New Literature for a New Era

Alike for all humans,
The rich and the poor,
Man and woman,
Those with education and those without.
In every part of the world,
And in every age.

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Rising to the same common call to prayer,
The wondrous melody of the Azaan,
Poured in every newborn ear,
Million upon million each year.
And flowing from every minaret around the globe

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And there is more!
Not the least, that amazing journey,
The journey of a lifetime,
Hajj!
Unlike any other journey on this earth.
Destination Ka’abah,
The house of God at Makkah!

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Timeless cradle of love and devotion,
This Ka’abah!
A spectacle beyond compare.
Milling mass of humanity,
Wrapped, if you are a male,
In two sheets of cotton,-
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White and unsewn,
Each a replica of the other.
Indistinguishable,
One man from another,
King and commoner,
Rich and poor.

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But free, if you are a woman,
To dress as you please,
Within the bounds of modesty,
As both men and women must.

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And then the same rituals and rites,
The same steps and rounds around the Ka’aba,
The same running up and down between Safa and Marwa.
Over and over and again.

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That amazing Ka’abah,
That house of God,
That monument erected by Abraham,
And by his son Isma’eel.

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Humanity spinning around it,
In endless circles,
Without a moment’s break or respite,
Except when the Fard Salah is in session,
The required worship form,
What most call prayer.

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As it were the center of the earth,
The axis on which the globe revolves.
A marvel to behold,
Even more marvelous to do,
Twirled by a finger unseen.

*********

And then that final moment of truth and reality,
In every life,
Unerring,
Inescapable,
Final.

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When death must overtake life,
When life’s journey must take a breather,
When the wayfarer must pause,
And say “Goodbye,”

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To all on earth.

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Leaving all possessions behind,
Snapping all earthly ties.

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Even then,
Even when death comes calling,
Does the community of belief hold,
Does the bond of brotherhood and sisterhood survive.

**************

For the believers are but brothers,
And sisters.
Not only in this world,

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But also in the next.

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The Ummah lives.
Even as the human dies.

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And so lives the one common way,
The universal and timeless practice,
Of the Ummah,
The way of Al-Islam,
To bathe the body of the believer,
And to dress it,
In white cotton sheets!

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Each case identical to the other,
From one end of the earth,
To the other.
And the same common final prayers,
Before consigning the body to the ground.

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For 1400 long years.

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One grave,
Mirror image of all the others,
From one end of the earth,
To the other.
For 1400 long years.

**********

How much more could there be,
That which holds a people together?
That which ties a people into a brotherhood,
And sisterhood?
Timeless and universal?

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The brotherhood
And sisterhood

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Of the Ummah.

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Truly one people.
One community.
One nation.
Bound not by land or blood,
But by something higher.
Something more lasting,
The bond of common belief,
And of common behavior.

****************

This family of fellow believers,
Amazing and awe inspiring.

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When one hurts, all must.
When one rejoices, so must all.

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Triumph of one,
Must mean the triumph of all.
And defeat or tragedy for one,
Must inexorably sadden all.

**********

So, Muslims!

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Reach out to your fellow Muslims.

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They are you,
And you are them.
Each, part of the other,
You and your fellow Muslims.

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So, reach out to the other part of you!

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As best as you can.
And as much as you can.
Face to face,
If you can.

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By letter,
Or by phone if you can’t.

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Through e-mail and the Internet.
As the world shrinks around you,
In a jumble of electronic signals.

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Or reach out by any other means available,
Or necessary.

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Drive up to their place.
Invite them to yours.

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Reach out with God,
With Qur’an,
And with Hadeeth.

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Reach out with love, compassion and kindness.
And with genuine regard and respect.

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Do something good.
Say something nice.
At least greet them with a smile.

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For, a warm smile,
When you run into a fellow Muslim,
On the street,
Or anywhere else,
Is an act of devotion to God.
It is no less than an act of worship,
In the wonderful system we call Islam.

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For,
There isn’t much left,
By way of Deen or Eeman,
By way of “faith” or “religion,”
If,
Being Muslim,
You can’t even offer a friendly greeting

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To your fellow Muslims.
Or at least a warm and genuine smile,
When you meet them.

***************

And then,
Muslims!
Reach out to non-Muslims!
Humanity is but one family.
Under one God,
Merciful and beneficent.
Sprung from one common parentage.
Equally children of Adam,
One and all.
Sharing the same common roots,
In religious lore,
And in scientific discourse.

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Hence,
Death or decay of one,
Says the poet,
Diminishes all.

***************

So, Muslims!
Somehow,
Reach out to all.
Reach out,
To non-Muslim members of your human family.

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Reach out
To those with whom you have bonds of blood.
Those who have claims on you,
Based on that ancient kinship.
That common drop of Adam’s blood.

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Reach out with God,
And with Qur’an,
And with Hadeeth.

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Reach out with love,
And with compassion and kindness.
And with genuine regard and respect.

*************

And then, Muslims!

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Reach out to the world in which you live!

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Your habitat.
The environment that surrounds you.
The air you breathe.
The water you drink.

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The earth on which you walk.
The animals that feed and clothe you.
And keep you company.
And help you run your world.

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The plants that shelter and protect you.
The only factory in the world,
That makes clean air.
And supplies that fresh air to you,
Full of life-giving oxygen,
The stuff of all life,
Human and animal,
Free of cost.
Reach out to the animate world around you,
And the inanimate world.
Reach out to all those beings,
And things,
With whom you share this planet.
In a common privilege of being.
Reach out with care,
With concern,
And with responsibility.

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Reach out with love,
And with compassion,
And with kindness.
And with genuine regard and respect.

*************

For,
As Muslims,
You are not just your brothers’ keepers.
You are the keepers of the entire planet.
You are its guardian angels

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That is what you are.
Keepers and guardian angels
Of whatever is around you.
Keepers and caretakers.

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That is what you are,
Keepers and guardian angels,
Of the world,
And of everything and everyone in the world.

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You are,
The world’s stewards and custodians,
Its managers and protectors,
And its servants and trustees.

*****************

And then Muslims,
You are,
And you must be,
The world’s conscience.

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And its voice,
Especially of those without voice.

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You are,
And you must be,
The world’s designated voice of reason.

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A force for justice against injustice,
And for fairness against prejudice,
And for equality against discrimination,
And for compassion against cruelty.

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A voice,
Loud, powerful, clear,
Of freedom against tyranny,
Of liberty against oppression.

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Just as you are,
And you must be,
Above all else,
The custodians and champions of truth,
Against falsehood.

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Of light,
Against darkness.

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Not just for friends
But also for foes.

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Not just for your own kind,
But for every kind,
And everyone.
Even if it be against your own selves.
Even it be against your own kind.
Or against your own people,
Whoever those people may be.
And even when it involves your enemies,
Whoever those enemies may be.

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You are the source of justice,
Muslims!
For Muslims and for non-Muslims alike.
For humans and nonhumans alike.
For the living and the nonliving alike.
For, that is who you are,
The voice of the voiceless,
The champions of those without a champion.
And the voice of truth and justice for all.

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For,
In your role as Muslims,
God has made them all your wards,
Muslims and non-Muslim,
Human and non-human.

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God has placed them all under your stewardship.
Under your care and protection.
Which makes this whole world,
Your turf and territory,
Your dominion,
And your responsibility.

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Not to own,
Not to abuse,
Not to squander,
Not to destroy,
But to serve.

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And to protect.

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And to cherish.

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And to nurture and husband.

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And to utilize,
With care and caution,
And with great accountability.

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To utilize,
What you need,
To meet your own needs,
And the needs of others.

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Needs!
Honest and lawful needs,
Of the truly needy.

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Not the greed of the greedy,
Or the wanton ways of the profligate.

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To share the planet and its bounties,
With all the others who now share,
Or would in future share,
This wonderful planet with you.

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That is your charge,
And your mandate,
Dear Muslims!

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And that,
Muslims!
Is the meaning of your dominion,
And stewardship.

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For,
You are Allah’s Khaleefah,
God’s representative,
On earth.

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That is your charge,
And your mandate as Muslims.

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For,
You are,
The instrument,
Of God’s mercy to the humankind.
And to the world.

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So, Muslims!
Reach out!

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To yourself.
To God.
To Qur’an.
To Hadeeth.
To family and friends.
To fellow Muslims.
To non-Muslims.
To the entire world.
Living and nonliving.

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And make this world a better place,

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For all.

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For yourself.
As well as for others.
Regardless of who those others may be.
Regardless of their color.
Or race.
Or religion.
Or culture.
Or gender.
Or something else.

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Leave this world a little better than you found it.
No matter by how little.
No matter in what specific way.

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For,
Muslims!
In the ultimate analysis,
That is what it means to be a Muslim!

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A source,
Of all the wonderful things in this world.

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To be the messengers of Salaam,
Of peace and contentment,
Of wealth and prosperity,
Of joy, happiness and tranquility,
Of well-being of the body, mind and soul,
And of all-round success,
And of personal strength and security,
And communal and societal welfare,
For one and for all.

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Right here,
In this world,

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As well as in the hereafter,
The next world.

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For,
Dear Muslims!
That is what it means,
That little word,
Salaam!

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One little word,
And so much meaning packed into it.

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And that is who you are,
Muslims!
Allah’s messengers to His creation,
Allah’s representatives on earth,
Instruments of Allah’s mercy,
Charged with the mission and method of Salaam.
Of peace, blessings, mercy.
To Allah’s creation.
May Allah, the Almighty,
The infinitely compassionate, beneficent and merciful,
Encompass you in his love and mercy,

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In his peace and blessings!
In a word,
May he wrap the mantle of his salaam around you.
And his Rasool!

END

© 2001 Syed Husain Pasha

Dr. Pasha is an educator and scholar of exceptional 
talent, training and experience. He can be reached at DrSyedPasha [at] 
AOL [dot] com or www.IslamicSolutions.com

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