Islam in Japan and the Cultural Imperative with Dr. Naoki Yamamoto: Shajarat Al Nur - Feb 15, 2025

 YouTube Video: https://youtu.be/0vRcRnrpf7s?si=6SUtjG3NGgBJn8oM

Talk Objective: In this virtual talk, under the theme of Suḥba, we explore the historic connection between Islam and Japanese culture and tradition. Dr. Naoki Yamamoto highlights how the dimension of iḥsan within the Islamic tradition plays a pivotal role in reviving and renewing traditional Japanese cultural practices and ethics. He also touches on aspects of the Japanese tea ceremony and its profound cultural significance. 

Speaker Profile: Dr. Qayyim Naoki Yamamoto is currently an assistant professor at the Graduate School of Turkic Studies, Marmara University. He completed his PhD at the Graduate School of Asia and Africa Studies, Kyoto University, in 2018. Dr. Yamamoto specializes in Ottoman Tasawwuf and traditional Japanese culture. His publications include a Japanese translation of Sulami’s ‘Kitāb al- Futuwwa’ and ‘Introduction to Tasawwuf: A Comparison with Shonen Manga (Shueisha Web Essay Series).

’ The Theme – Suḥba: Companionship has been the cornerstone – the beating heart – of traditional Islamic communities. Whether through seeking the guidance of a murshid (guide) to gain esoteric knowledge, building zāwiyahs (communal centers) for spiritual cultivation and craft refinement, or exchanging ideas and cultural inspirations, these practices have paved the way for soteriological blossoming within the Islamic tradition. In this series of talks, we explore this topic – steeped in spiritual depth and historical context. About Us: Shajarat al-Nur is dedicated to reviving traditional cognitive frameworks embedded and influenced by the science of the heart – “iḥsan.” We draw inspiration from spiritual cultivation to respond to contemporary challenges while remaining grounded and connected through pursuing excellence and knowledge. 

Our mission at Shajarat al-Nur is to illuminate the path to the traditional sciences through engaging talks and live events led by renowned scholars and experts.

Through the Lens | al-Zāwiyah: the Corner of Blessings with Peter Sanders: Shajarat Al Nur - Video: Feb 9, 2025

YouTube Video: https://youtu.be/nzjzM4Xd-Hw?si=GbWZ_iMMYmF5ZkCU

Talk Objective: In this virtual interactive talk, centered on the theme of Suhba, we explore the pivotal role of the zāwiyah (communal center) in fostering soteriological growth within the Islamic tradition. Renowned photographer Peter Sanders guides us through a visual journey with his captivating photographs and personal experiences of zāwiyahs in Morocco and Libya. We explore the enduring influence of these establishments and their evolving roles in contemporary Islamic societies. By examining historical precedents and modern iterations, we reveal how these ancient wellsprings of spirituality can guide and shape our responses to today’s complex challenges, drawing from their timeless wisdom and creativity.

Speaker Profile: Peter (Abdul-Adheem) Sanders is the world’s preeminent photographer of the Muslim world. For over fifty-five years, he has captured more than half a million images that reflect a rich traditional civilization filled with warmth, humanity, and compassion. His exemplary work and initiatives earned him a place among the 500 most influential Muslims in the world. He serves as a permanent ambassador for MOSAIC, a charity established by HRH King Charles. Born in London, Sanders began his career in photography in the mid-1960s, capturing the faces of well-known musicians such as Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, and The Rolling Stones. In the 1970s, his focus shifted to the traditional and spiritual universe of Islam, and he converted to Islam in 1971. That same year, Sanders had the unique opportunity to document the world's largest worship gathering in Mecca during the Hajj season. Sanders traveled the world to meet and photograph saints and sages of Islam, publishing his work in books such as “Meetings with Mountains: Encounters with Saints and Sages of the Islamic World” and “Exemplars of Our Time” with Michael Sugich. He is currently finalizing his book “Heaven, Earth, and the 10,000 Things: The Lives of the Muslims of China”. The Theme – Suhba: Companionship has been the cornerstone – the beating heart – of traditional Islamic communities. Whether through seeking the guidance of a murshid (guide) to gain esoteric knowledge, building zāwiyahs (communal centers) for spiritual cultivation and craft refinement, or exchanging ideas and cultural inspirations, these practices have paved the way for soteriological blossoming within the Islamic tradition. In this series of talks, we explore this topic – steeped in spiritual depth and historical context. About Us: Shajarat al-Nur is dedicated to reviving traditional cognitive frameworks embedded and influenced by the science of the heart – “iḥsan.” We draw inspiration from spiritual cultivation to respond to contemporary challenges while remaining grounded and connected through pursuing excellence and knowledge. Our mission at Shajarat al-Nur is to illuminate the path to the traditional sciences through engaging talks and live events led by renowned scholars and experts.

Spiritual Significance in Islamic Architecture: Dr Mostafa Badawi - Interview with Muhammad Abd Al-Aziz

YouTube Video: Muhammad Jawad - Feb 8, 2025

https://youtu.be/gVC9BcMF-oo?si=WWMhGliDWyLmFKAW

Islamic Architecture is among the most recognisable and most admired in the world. It’s known for its beauty, precision and timelessness, but few understand the meanings and metaphors that underpin it. In this book, Dr Mostafa Badawi takes an unprecedented look at the Spiritual Significance in Islamic Architecture taking the reader on a journey to uncover long forgotten meanings.

Amazon Book : Spiritual Significance in Islamic Architecture - Mostafa Badawi

https://www.amazon.com/SPIRITUAL-SIGNIFICANCE-ISLAMIC-ARCHITECTURE-Mostafa/dp/0952085364

"About The Book Islamic Architecture is among the most recognizable and most admired in the world. It’s known for its beauty, precision, and timelessness, but few understand the meanings and metaphors that underpin it. In this incredible new publication, Dr. Mostafa Badawi takes an unprecedented look at the Spiritual Significance in Islamic Architecture taking the reader on a journey to uncover long forgotten meanings. This stunning production comprises of 452 full colour pages with premium gold gilted edges, cloth hardback, and dust jacket making it a must have for every home and a perfect gift. Book Blurb It is a cosmic law that the universe that we know is made of complementary and interacting pairs, positive and negative, upper and lower, matter and anti-matter, and so on. That this is the reflection in the created universe of the polarization of the Divine Attributes into Attributes of Majesty and Attributes of Beauty has always been known to Muslim intellectuals. But that this law is represented pervasively in all Islamic art and especially architecture has been lost sight of by the Muslims of today. In fact, everything in a traditional Muslim environment, not only architecture, but furniture, utensils, clothes, and calligraphy, is a spiritual reminder of God and the laws governing this world and the next. This study explores in unprecedented detail and with authoritative textual references the deeper meanings of many of the elements of Islamic architecture."

A Man of Many Splendours - Habib Ahmad Mashhur al-Haddad RA:His Life, Mission and Influence" by Dr Mostafa al-Badawi - Interview by Dr. HA Hellyer

 YouTube Video - Source: Muhammad Jawad -Jan 21, 2025

The book "A Man of Many Splendours: Habib Ahmad Mashhur al-Haddad : His Life, Mission and Influence" by Dr Mostafa al-Badawi.On the 14th Rajab 1416 (1995) Habib Ahmad Mashhur al-Haddad (Rahimahullah) returned back to his Lord. Today we remember the great scholar and saint and the special qualities he possessed. “Mashhur means famous and Habib Ahmad did indeed become exceptionally famous. His presence was imposing, yet at the same time, because of his engaging and affectionate manners, quite soothing. His knowledge was awesome. He was truly a man of many splendours."

https://youtu.be/mvQXlnlhlf4?si=KZd9X3r8Dz5gr1R1

Book: A vivid and detailed portrait of Habib Ahmad Mashhur al-Haddad, the great 20th century Ba-Alawi scholar and saint whose influence in many parts of East Africa was so profound that he was considered the Renewer (Mujaddid) of Islam.

"Habib Ahmad Mashhur Al-Haddad (1907-1995): His Life, Mission & Influence

A vivid and detailed portrait of Habib Ahmad Mashhur al-Haddad, the great 20th century Ba-Alawi scholar and saint whose influence in many parts of East Africa was so profound that he was considered the Renewer (Mujaddid) of Islam.

An equally great and famous Saint of the 13th century CE, Shaykh Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi, the direct successor at the head of the Shadhili Sufi Order of Shaykh Abu al-Hasan al-Shadhili, said, “Know that whomever God chooses to make a summoner to Him He must make known to His servants, for only then will he be able to call them to Him. He will then clothe him in boch majesty and splendour.”

Mashhur means famous and Habib Ahmad did indeed become exceptionally famous. His presence was imposing, yet at the same time, because of his engaging and affectionate manners, quite soothing. His knowledge was awesome. He was truly a man of many splendours.

To compile this account, Dr. Mostafa al-Badawi drew on the numerous verbal and written accounts he lad been collecting over the years from those who had known Habib Ahmad closely, his own personal experience, Habib Ahmad’s writings, letters and poems, and the many recordings of his discourses.

Source:https://ivpublishing.org/book/man-of-many-splendours/