James D. Frankel: Islam in China, Confucianism & Liu Zhi | EP 172: Kianistan with Tafhim Kiani -Oct 27, 2026

 YouTube Video:

https://youtu.be/5USq8kUkj1w?si=GLiKnvZPBVioPu0Y

In Episode 172 of the Kianistan Podcast, host Tafhim Kiani speaks with James D. Frankel, Associate Professor of Cultural and Religious Studies at The Chinese University of Hong Kong and Director of its Centre for the Study of Islamic Culture. They explore how Islam developed within Chinese civilization and how Muslim scholars reconciled Islamic teachings with Confucian philosophy and Chinese intellectual traditions. The discussion focuses on Liu Zhi, the influential Chinese Muslim scholar behind Rectifying God's Name, the Han Kitab literary tradition, the history of Muslims in China, and the Mongol and Ming dynasties. They also examine Chinese Muslim identity, Islamic scholarship, religious integration, and why Islam became deeply rooted in Chinese society without relying on large-scale missionary activity. ABOUT JAMES D. FRANKEL James D. Frankel is an academic specializing in Islam in China, Chinese Muslim history and Islamic culture. He is the author of Rectifying God's Name, a study of the eighteenth-century Chinese Muslim scholar Liu Zhi. FOLLOW JAMES D. FRANKEL Website: https://www.jamesdfrankel.com/about Amazon — Books by James: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/... Support the Kianistan Podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/tafhimkianz What You'll Discover in This Episode How Islam first reached China through trade
Who Liu Zhi was and why his scholarship matters
The Han Kitab tradition of Chinese Islamic literature
How Muslim scholars reconciled Islam with Confucian thought
Muslims' roles during the Mongol and Ming dynasties
Arabic, Persian and classical Chinese in Islamic scholarship
Chinese Muslim identity, integration and discrimination
Islamic ritual and the limits of religious acceptance
Why Islam integrated differently from Christianity in China
James Frankel's research and books on Islam in China

Chapters : 00:00 Introduction — Islam in China 01:27 Liu Zhi: The Chinese Muslim Scholar 05:20 Islamic Scholarship in China 07:39 What Is the Han Kitab? 10:47 How Islam Reached China 13:21 Muslims Under Mongol Rule 17:25 The Ming Dynasty & Chinese Muslim Identity 21:00 Confucianism & Islamic Philosophy 29:00 Liu Zhi's Contribution to Islamic Thought 38:00 Chinese Muslim Literature & Scholarship 45:00 Liu Zhi's Books & Islamic Teachings 49:49 Did Chinese Scholars Accept Islam? 54:01 Islam, Christianity & Religious Integration 58:15 James Frankel's Books & Final Thoughts

Amazon:Islam in China (Islam in Series):by James Frankel (Author)

https://www.amazon.com/Islam-China-James-Frankel-ebook/dp/B094MGQRT9?ref_=ast_author_dp&th=1&psc=1

In China there are up to 25 million Muslims living in the country, representing over 1200 years of Chinese-Islamic relations. However, little is known about the historical and contemporary geopolitical relations between China and the Muslim world, or the situation for the diverse groups of Muslims living in China today.
In this book, James Frankel studies the rich and dynamic history of Muslims in China from the Tang dynasty (618-907) to the present day. He shows that Muslims in China remain an internally diverse population separated geographically, ethnically, linguistically, economically, educationally, and along sectarian and kinship lines. But despite having its own local flavours and accents, Islam in China is recognisable as the same religious tradition practiced by approximately 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide and Muslims in China are inextricably part of society, living alongside other minorities and amongst the great Han Chinese majority.
Tracing 1200 years of history, this book shows that Muslim communities in China have undergone tremendous change, touched by the forces of Chinese history, the development of Islamic traditions outside China, and geopolitics. In highlighting the paradoxical situation in which Chinese Muslims have found themselves - living as both insiders and outsiders to Chinese society and state - the book examines why after so many centuries of habitation and naturalisation, Muslims in China are still stigmatized by their perceived alien origins. The book follows the 'yin and yang' of compatibility and difference and the connections and ruptures between two great civilisations.

James D. Frankel, Ph.D., a native New Yorker, holds his bachelor's degree in East Asian studies and doctorate in religion from Columbia University in New York City. His expertise is in the history of Islam in China, a field that draws upon and informs his scholarly interests in the comparative history of ideas, and religious and cultural syncretism. As a member of the faculty of religion at the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa, Dr. Frankel teaches courses in comparative religion, Islam, and mysticism. He has lived in China and traveled extensively in Asia and Europe for research and to meet with fellow scholars and religious leaders of Muslim minority communities. Rectifying God's Name is his first book.

Amazon:Rectifying God’s Name: Liu Zhi’s Confucian Translation of Monotheism and Islamic Law by James D. Frankel (Author)
https://www.amazon.com/Rectifying-Gods-Name-Translation-Monotheism/dp/0824834747?ref_=ast_author_dp

Islam first arrived in China more than 1,200 years ago, but for more than a millennium it was perceived as a foreign presence. The restoration of native Chinese rule by the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), after nearly a century of Mongol domination, helped transform Chinese intellectual discourse on ideological, social, political, religious, and ethnic identity. This led to the creation of a burgeoning network of Sinicized Muslim scholars who wrote about Islam in classical Chinese and developed a body of literature known as the Han Kitab. Rectifying God’s Name examines the life and work of one of the most important of the Qing Chinese Muslim literati, Liu Zhi (ca. 1660–ca. 1730), and places his writings in their historical, cultural, social, and religio-philosophical context. His Tianfang danli (Ritual law of Islam) represents the most systematic and sophisticated attempt within the Han Kitab corpus to harmonize Islam with Chinese thought.
The volume begins by situating Liu Zhi in the historical development of the Chinese Muslim intellectual tradition, examining his sources and influences as well as his legacy. Delving into the contents of Liu Zhi’s work, it focuses on his use of specific Chinese terms and concepts, their origins and meanings in Chinese thought, and their correspondence to Islamic principles. A close examination of the Tianfang dianli reveals Liu Zhi’s specific usage of the concept of Ritual as a common foundation of both Confucian morality and social order and Islamic piety. The challenge of expressing such concepts in a context devoid of any clear monotheistic principle tested the limits of his scholarship and linguistic finesse. Liu Zhi's theological discussion in the Tianfang dianli engages not only the ancient Confucian tradition, but also Daoism, Buddhism, and even non-Chinese traditions. His methodology reveals an erudite and cosmopolitan scholar who synthesized diverse influences, from Sufism to Neo-Confucianism, and possibly even Jesuit and Jewish sources, into a body of work that was both steeped in tradition and, yet, exceedingly original, epitomizing the phenomenon of Chinese Muslim simultaneity.
A compelling and multidimensional study, Rectifying God’s Name will be eagerly welcomed by interested readers of Chinese and Islamic religious and social history, as well as students and scholars of comparative religion.

Has the Qur’an been faithfully preserved from the time of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to the text Muslims recite today?:Dr.Ali Ataie-Blogging Theology- Oct 26.2026

Youtube Video: 

https://youtu.be/PtjtPVVUmm8?si=3rY3NYWXMOeN9X4Y

Presentation Slides: Slides for “Is the Qur’an Preserved?” https://bit.ly/3OpCtpg 

Has the Qur’an been faithfully preserved from the time of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ to the text Muslims recite today? In this detailed presentation, Dr. Ali Ataie examines the historical, textual, and manuscript evidence surrounding the preservation of the Qur’an. Drawing on Qur’anic studies, hadith, manuscript evidence, the history of the qirāʾāt, and comparative textual criticism, he addresses many of the most common questions and objections raised about the transmission of the Qur’anic text. The discussion explores the earliest attestation of the Qur’an, first-century Hijri manuscripts, the seven aḥruf, the qirāʾāt, companion codices, the collection of the Qur’an under ʿUthmān ibn ʿAffān رضي الله عنه, and the relationship between oral and written transmission. Dr. Ataie also examines difficult and frequently cited topics such as the codex of Ibn Masʿūd, the reported codex of Ubayy ibn Kaʿb, variant readings, abandoned recitations, the Ṣanʿāʾ palimpsest, the canonical reciters and transmitters, and the criteria Muslim scholars used to distinguish authorized from unauthorized readings. A major theme throughout the presentation is the difference between textual variation and textual corruption. Dr. Ataie places Qur’anic transmission alongside the textual history of the Bible and explains why the existence of recognized readings does not necessarily undermine the Muslim claim that the Qur’an has been reliably preserved. The presentation also engages the arguments of Orientalist scholars and Christian polemicists, including discussions surrounding modern manuscript criticism and claims such as the famous report that “a goat ate the Qur’an.” For anyone interested in the history of the Qur’an, early Islamic manuscripts, qirāʾāt, aḥruf, Qur’anic preservation, textual criticism, or Muslim-Christian dialogue, this is a wide-ranging and important presentation. This video was originally published on June 25, 2022, on the Blogging Theology YouTube channel, hosted by Br. Paul Williams. I would like to offer a special and sincere thank you to Br. Paul Williams for graciously allowing me to host this presentation on my own channel. I am deeply grateful for his generosity and for the important work he has done through Blogging Theology, creating a platform for serious, long-form discussions on Islam, Christianity, biblical studies, Qur’anic studies, theology, history, and comparative religion. Br. Paul has consistently provided space for difficult and technical subjects to be explored with depth and intellectual seriousness, and I greatly appreciate his willingness to allow this presentation to be shared here as well. Please be sure to support Br. Paul Williams and the Blogging Theology YouTube channel and explore their extensive collection of lectures, interviews, and scholarly conversations. 

Topics Covered: The presentation includes discussion of: Early attestation of the Qur’an Qur’anic manuscripts from the first Islamic century The seven aḥruf The canonical qirāʾāt Companion codices and textual traditions The ʿUthmānic codex committee The concept of the “Prophetic Archetype” Ibn Masʿūd’s codex Ubayy ibn Kaʿb and the reported additional sūrahs The Ṣanʿāʾ palimpsest Authorized and unauthorized recitations Manuscript and skeletal-text variation Hadith reports concerning preservation The “goat ate the Qur’an” report Modern Orientalist and Christian polemical claims Daniel Brubaker’s work on Qur’anic manuscripts 

Dr. Ali Ataie is a scholar of biblical hermeneutics, sacred languages, comparative theology, Qur’anic studies, and comparative religion. His work frequently engages the Qur’an, the Bible, early Christianity, Islamic theology, textual criticism, and the historical transmission of scripture.

Amazon:The Perfect Guide to the Sciences of the Qu'ran: Al-Itqan Fi 'ulum Al-Qur'an (Great Books of Islamic Civilization) amazon.com
by Imam Jalal Al-Suyuti (Author), Osman A Al-Bili (Editor), Hamid Algar (Translator), Michael Schub (Translator), Ayman Abdel Haleem (Translator)

Imam Jalal-al-Din al-Suyuti (849-911 AH / 1445-1505 AD) was born, lived, and was buried in Cairo. The ascription 'al-Suyuti' is a reference to Asyut, a town in Upper Egypt from which his family hailed. Known as the 'son of books' from the numerous books he studied and referred to in his works, he could equally be called the 'father of books' because of the many books he produced. From his early years, al-Suyuti devoted his life to learning, reading, writing, and teaching - holding notable positions in the city of Cairo at a time when it was the center of Islamic learning par excellence. He was an outstanding scholar, second to none in the field of Qur'anic Sciences ('Ulum Al-Qur'an) in which he produced many well-known works. However, being the all-round scholar that he was, his contributions covered almost all the fields of Arabic, the Qur'an, the Traditions (hadith), and history. His works were of such superb quality that they earned him the respect of his generation and the generations that followed, up to the present day. Most important of these, in the field of Qur'anic Sciences, was his Al-Itqan. Al-Itqan is perhaps the most outstanding work of its kind in the field of Qur'anic Sciences. Exhaustive in its sources and its subjects, thoughtfully and lucidly written, the work is also well arranged. Readers will be taken by the depth, breadth, scope, and mastery of the author while noting how much Muslim scholars have devoted to the study of the Qur'an and how varied and diverse were the fields in which those studies were made. The work found its way to many circles both near and far in the Islamic world. The translation presented here is of a publication of four volumes published in 1387 AH (1967 AD). Now in paperback, this book is the translation of the first volume. It is a must to the specialist of Qur'anic Studies and is highly recommended to the initiate

Imam Jalal-Al-Din Al-Suyuti (849 - 911 AH / 1445 - 1505 AD) was born, lived and was buried in Cairo. The ascription 'Al-Suyuti' is a reference to Asyut, a town in Upper Egypt from which his family hailed. Known as the 'son of books' from the numerous books he studied and referred to in his works, he could equally be called the 'father of books' because of the many books he produced.

Muhammad Abdel Haleem was born in Egypt, and learned the Qur'an by heart from childhood. He is Professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He is the Editor of the Journal of Qur'anic Studies.

Amazon:The History Of The Quranic Text: From Revelation To Compilation by Muhammad Mustafa Al-Azami (2005-08-02)
by Muhammad Mustafa al-ʿAzami (Author)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01K3HN1G4?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback

With full colour images, meticulously annotated and researched, The History of the Qur’anic Text provides unique insights into the Qur’an’s immaculate preservation throughout its history, covering such topics as how divine revelations were received, Prophet Muhammad’s role in teaching and disseminating these verses, the text’s compilation under his guidance and the setting of its final shape shortly after his death. It also looks at the origins of Arabic, its palaeography and orthography, the so-called Mushaf of Ibn Mas‘ud, and the strict methodology employed in assembling textual fragments. This scholarly work provides an essential basis for sincere study of the Qur’an at a time when mis-representation of Islam’s Holy Book has become all too common.The author also investigates the histories of the Old and New Testaments, relying entirely on Judeo-Christian sources, and by so doing the book attains an absolutely epic scope. Through this the author makes a sophisticated and passionate case for questioning the aims of Western scholarship towards Islam’s Holy Book and illustrates convincingly that such research, motivated by more than mere curiosity, has no scientific bearing on the Qur’an’s integrity. A truly monumental effort, an indispensable tool for Muslims and non-Muslims alike, this work presents a cogent and powerful argument for the Qur’an’s unique inviolability and will serve as a cornerstone addition to any personal library and Islamic curriculum.

Article:How the Qur'an Was Preserved During the Prophet's ﷺ Time: Mechanisms of Oral and Written Transmission
How did the Prophet ﷺ and his companions transmit the Quran orally and textually so that its message would be preserved for all of time?: Shaykh Yousef Wahb- Yaqeen Institute-December 5, 2022

https://yaqeeninstitute.org/read/paper/how-the-quran-was-preserved-during-the-prophets-time-mechanisms-of-oral-and-written-transmission

Nasheed with English Subtitles:‏هُوَ النُورُ يَهْدِي الْحَائِرِينَ ضِيَاؤُهُ He Is The Light Whose Illumination Guides The Bewildered ﷺ ::Habib Ali Bin Muhammad Al-Habshi(ra)-OCC-Oct1,2024

 YouTube Video:

https://youtu.be/2-Xwk7uv_-g?si=vhV4A5pu9Nh21rLE

He is the Light that Guides ﷺ - Habīb 'Ali b. Muhammad b. Husayn al-Habashi هو النور يهدي الحائرين ضياؤه - للحبيب علي بن محمد بن حسين الحبشي Selected verses from one of the most famous odes of the great cardinal pole of prophetic love, the noble Imām of Hadramawt, Habīb 'Ali bin Muhammad bin Husayn al-Habashi Bā 'Alawi al-Husayni (رضي الله عنه) that will stir passion and longing for the Beloved of Allah ﷺ. Recited in the presence of Habīb 'Umar b. Hafīḍh and other scholars and the righteous, during the annual Burdah recitation in Rabī' al-Awwal 1445AH in the blessed city of Tarīm, Hadramawt, Yemen.

Qasida Collection::‏هُوَ النُورُ يَهْدِي الْحَائِرِينَ ضِيَاؤُهُ He Is The Light Whose Illumination Guides The Bewildered ﷺ 

https://www.qasidacollection.com/qasida/p2LdaA97RFG0DzsKfPcy

‏هُوَ النُورُ يَهْدِي الْحَائِرِينَ ضِيَاؤُهُ
وَفِي ٱلْحَشْرِ ظِلُّ ٱلْمُرْسَلِينَ لِوَاؤُهُ

huwan nūru yahdīl ḥā’irīna ḍiyāuhu
wafīl ḥashri ẓillul mursalīna liwāuhu
He is the light that guides the confused with its radiance
And on the Day of Gathering, the shade of the messengers is his banner
تَلَقَّى مِنَ ٱلْغَيْبِ ٱلْمُجَرَّدِ حِكْمَةً
بِهَا أَمْطَرَتْ فِي ٱلْخَافِقَيْنِ سَمَاؤُهُ
talaqqā minal ghaybil mujarradi ḥikmatan
bihā amṭarat fīl khāfiqayni samāuhu
He received from the unseen a wisdom
With it, his sky rained upon the two horizons
وَمَشْهُودُ أَهْلِ ٱلْحَقِّ مِنْهُ لَطَائِفٌ
تُخَبِّرُ أَنَّ ٱلْمَجْدَ وَٱلشَّأْوَ شَأْوُهُ
wamashhūdu ahlil ḥaqqi minhu laṭā’ifun
tukhabbiru annal majda wash sha’wa sha’wuhu
And the witnessed truth from him are subtleties
That tell that glory and ambition are his ambition
فَلِلَّهِ مَا لِلْعَيْنِ مِنْ مَشْهَدِ ٱجْتِلَى
يَعِزُّ عَلَى أَهْلِ ٱلْحِجَابِ ٱجْتِلَاؤُهُ
falillahi mā lilʿayni min mashhadij tilā
yaʿizzu ʿalā ahlil ḥijābij tilāuhu
For God, what the eye witnesses is a scene
Difficult for those veiled to perceive
أَيَا نَازِحًا عَنِّي وَمَسْكَنُهُ ٱلْحَشَا
أَجِبْ مَنْ مَلَا كُلَّ ٱلنَّوَاحِي نِدَاؤُهُ
ayā nāziḥan ʿannī wamaskanuhul ḥashā
ajib man malā kullan nawāḥī nidāuhu
O you who are distant from me, yet his dwelling is in my heart
Answer the one whose call fills all directions
أَجِبْ مَنْ تَوَلَّاهُ ٱلْهَوَى فِيكَ وَٱمْضِ فِي
فُؤَادِيَ مَا يَهْوالْ هَوَ وَيَشَاؤُهُ
ajib man tawallāhul hawā fīka waāmḍi fī
fuādiya mā yahwāl hawa wayashāuhu
Answer the one whom passion has taken over in you and proceed
In my heart whatever love desires and wishes
بَنَى ٱلْحُبُّ فِي وَسْطِ ٱلْفُؤَادِ مَنَازِلًا
فَلِلَّهِ بَانٍ فَاقَ صُنْعًا بِنَاؤُهُ
banal ḥubbu fī wasṭil fuādi manāzilan
falillahi bānin fāqa ṣunʿan bināuhu
Love has built in the midst of the heart dwellings
So for God, a builder whose construction surpasses in craftsmanship
بِحُكْمِ ٱلْوَلَا جَرَّدْتُ قَصْدِي وَحَبَّذَا
مَوَالٍ أَرَاحَ ٱلْقَلْبَ مِنْهُ وَلَاؤُهُ
biḥukmil walā jarradtu qaṣdī waḥabbadhā
mawālin arāḥal qalba minhu walāuhu
By the rule of loyalty, I have stripped my intention, and how delightful
Are the allies whose loyalty has comforted the heart
مَرِضْتُ فَكَانَ ٱلذِّكْرُ بُرْاءً لِعِلَّتِي
فَيَ حَبَّذَا ذِكْرَا لِقَلْبِي شِفَاؤُهُ
mariḍtu fakānadh dhikru burā’an liʿillatī
faya ḥabbadhā dhikrā liqalbī shifāuhu
I fell ill, and remembrance was a cure for my ailment
So how delightful is the remembrance that heals my heart
إِذَا عَلِمَ العُشَّاقُ دَاءِ فَقُلْ لَهُمْ
فَإِنَّ لِقَى أَحْبَابِ قَلْبِي دَوَاؤُهُ
idhā ʿalimal ʿushshāqu dā’i faqul lahum
fa inna liqā aḥbābi qalbī dawāuhu
If the lovers knew the ailment, tell them
For meeting the beloveds of my heart is its remedy
أَيَا رَاحِلًا بَلِّغْ حَبِيبِي رِسَالَةً
بِحَرْفِ مِنَ الأَشْوَاقِ يَحْلُو هِجَاؤُهُ
ayā rāḥilan balligh ḥabībī risālatan
biḥarfi minal ashwāqi yaḥlū hijāuhu
O traveler, convey a message to my beloved
With a letter of longing that sweetens its spelling
وَهَيْهَاتَ أَنْ يَلْقَى الْعَذُولُ إِلَى الْحَشَا
سَبِيلًا سَوَاءٌ مَدْحُهُ وَهِجَاؤُهُ
wahayhāta an yalqal ʿadhūlu ilal ḥashā
sabīlan sawā’un madḥuhu wahijāuhu
And far be it that the critic finds a way to the heart
Whether in praise or criticism
فُؤَادِي بِخَيْرِ الْمُرْسَلِينَ مُوَلَّعٌ
وَأَشْرَفُ مَا يَحْلُو لِسَمْعِي ثَنَاؤُهُ
fuādī bikhayril mursalīna muwallaʿun
wa ashrafu mā yaḥlū lisamʿī thanāuhu
My heart is enamored with the best of messengers
And the most honorable thing that pleases my ear is his praise
رَقَى فِي الْعُلَى وَالْمَجْدِ أَشْرَفَ رُتْبَةٍ
بِمَبْدَاهُ حَارَ الْخَلْقُ كَيْفَ انْتِهَاؤُهُ
raqā fīl ʿulā wal majdi ashrafa rutbatin
bimabdāhu ḥāral khalqu kayfan tihāuhu
He ascended in the heights and glory to the most noble rank
In his origin, creation wondered how his end would be
أَيَا سَيِّدِي قَلْبِي بِحُبِّكَ بَاؤِحٌ
وَطَرْفِيَ بَعْدَ الدَّمْعِ تَجْرِي دِمَاؤُهُ
ayā sayyidī qalbī biḥubbika bāiḥun
waṭarfiya baʿdad damʿi tajrī dimāuhu
O my master, my heart is exposed with your love
And my eyes, after tears, flow with blood
إِذَا رُمْتُ كَتْمَ الحُبِّ زَادَتْ صَبَابَتِي
فَسِيَّانِ عِنْدِي بَثُّهُ وَخَفَاؤُهُ
idhā rumtu katmal ḥubbi zādat ṣabābatī
fasiyyāni ʿindī baththuhu wakhafāuhu
If I sought to hide love, my yearning increased
So it is the same to me whether it is revealed or concealed
أَجِبْ يَا حَبِيبَ الْقَلْبِ دَعْوَةَ شَيِّقٍ
شَكَا لَفْحَ نَارٍ قَدْ حَوَتْهَا حَشَاؤُهُ
ajib yā ḥabībal qalbi daʿwata shayyiqin
shakā lafḥa nārin qad ḥawathā ḥashāuhu
Answer, O beloved of the heart, the call of the longing one
Who complained of the burning fire that his heart contained
وَمُرْطَيْفَكَ الْمَيْمُونَ فِي غَفْلَةِ الْعِدَا
يَمُرُّ بِطَرْفٍ زَادَ فِيكَ بُكَاؤُهُ
wamurṭayfakal maymūna fī ghaflatil ʿidā
yamurru biṭarfin zāda fīka bukāuhu
And command your blessed glance in the heedlessness of enemies
To pass with a look that increased your weeping
لِيَ ٱللَّهُ مِنْ حُبٍّ تَعَسَّرَ وَصْفُهُ
وَلِلَّهِ أَمْرِي وَٱلْقَضَاءُ قَضَاؤُهُ
liyal lahu min ḥubbin taʿassara waṣfuhu
walillahi amrī wal qaḍā’u qaḍāuhu
By God, from a love whose description is difficult
And to God belongs my affair, and the decree is His decree
فَيَـٰرَبِّ شَرِّفْنِي بِرُؤْيَةِ سَيِّدِي
وَأَجْلِ صَدَى ٱلْقَلْبِ ٱلْكَثِيرِ صَدَاؤُهُ
fayārabbi sharrifnī biru’yati sayyidī
wa ajli ṣadal qalbil kathīri ṣadāuhu
O Lord, honor me with the vision of my master
And clear the echo of the heart, which has much resonance
وَبَلِّغْ عَلِيًّ مَا يَرُومُ مِنَ ٱلْلِّقَا
بِأَشْرَفِ عَبْدٍ جُلُّ قَصْدِي لِقَاؤُهُ
waballigh ʿaliyyan mā yarūmu minal lliqā
bi ashrafi ʿabdin jullu qaṣdī liqāuhu
And grant Ali what he desires from the meeting
With the most honorable servant, my ultimate aim is his meeting
عَلَيْهِ صَلَاةُ ٱللَّهِ مَاهَبَّتِ ٱلصَّبَا
وَمَا أَطْرَبَ ٱلْحَادِي فَطَابَ حُدَاؤُهُ
ʿalayhi ṣalātul lahi māhabbatiṣ ṣabā
wamā aṭrabal ḥādī faṭāba ḥudāuhu
Upon him be God's prayers as long as the east wind blows
And as long as the singer's song delights and his melody pleases
مَعَ ٱلْآلِ وَلْاَ صْحَابِ مَا قَالَ مُنْشِدٌ
هُوَ ٱلنُّورُ يَهْدِي ٱلْحَائِرِينَ ضِيَاؤُهُ
maʿal āli wala ṣḥābi mā qāla munshidun
huwan nūru yahdīl ḥā’irīna ḍiyāuhu
With the family and companions, as long as a singer says
He is the light that guides the confused with its radiance

What Tasawwuf(Sufism) Really Is: The 10 Traits of Its People | Shaykh Yahya Rhodus-Reza-Sep 12, 2026

 YouTube Video:

https://youtu.be/pQQx6TYh2lg?si=KgmfObQ-_7I5mv37

Shaykh Yahya Rhodus teaches Sufism: Its Essence and the Traits of Its People by al-Habib ʿUmar bin Hafiz — a full seminar on what tasawwuf actually is, and the ten traits that mark the people who live it. The book defines tasawwuf as acting with excellence (ihsan) on what Allah says in His Book and on the tongue of His Messenger ﷺ, and embodying those qualities experientially — not merely believing them, but rising through the degrees of certainty until they become lived reality. A believer knows Allah is the Provider; the one who has realised it doesn't panic when the job goes. Shaykh Yahya works through all ten traits, then takes questions from the audience. 

What is covered: Setting the ground: Why the word tasawwuf carries weight, and the difference between being a Muslim, a mu'min, and a muhsin. Four definitions of tasawwuf from the book. The degrees of certainty, and why belief and realisation are not the same thing — a believer knows Allah is the Provider; the one who has realised it doesn't panic when the job goes. Who is actually called a Sufi, and the three ranks: the one who has arrived, the one still travelling, and the one who believes in the path and loves its people. Along the way, why the Qur'an was revealed at all, what religious maturity looks like in practice — knowing which question to ask whom — and a personal reflection on his mother's passing and the gap between what Islam is and what people assume it is. 

The ten traits: Knowledge of the Book and the Sunnah:

the foundation; nothing is built without it. Includes a practical goal for daily Qur'an recitation, and why knowledge without action is meaningless. 

Concern for the attributes and actions of the heart:

The heart is what is weighed, and why its actions can outweigh years of outward worship. What it means to adorn the heart, and what disfigures it. 

Sincerity (ikhlas): 

Purifying intention of every trace of others, the way honey is drawn out of the comb. 

Truthfulness (sidq:)

Giving the whole of yourself to whatever is in front of you, and its six ascending levels. 

Humility of heart:

Not holding yourself above anyone, and what humility is not. 

Recognising the people of honour and uprooting envy: 

Why envy destroys families and communities, and the practice that removes it. 

Remembering Allah abundantly:Presence and perseverance as the two pillars of dhikr. 

Conveying with excellence and leaving discourteous argument: 

Why online quarrels are not how anyone builds their religion. 

Responding to evil with goodness: including what it costs to insist on your rights, and why letting go takes time and sometimes help. 

Love of Allah and preferring Him over all else: the station everything else leads to. 

Audience questions: Making duʿa for the guidance of non-Muslims. Caring for a parent in cognitive decline without breaking yourself. The difference between working on the ego and hating yourself. Why knowledge doesn't always become action. Familiarity with scholars and forgetting their rank. Advice for the munshid. How to respond when people hostile to Islam suffer setbacks. Dhikr of the tongue versus dhikr of the heart. Advice for those who struggle with Arabic pronunciation. 

About the teacher: Shaykh Yahya Rhodus Founding Director of Al-Maqasid seminary in Pennsylvania. He studied with Murabit al-Hajj in Mauritania and at Dar al-Mustafa in Tarim under Habib ʿUmar bin Hafiz. https://www.almaqasid.org/seminary-in... 

About the author: al-Habib ʿUmar bin Hafiz: Founder of Dar al-Mustafa in Tarim, Hadramawt, and one of the leading scholars of the Baʿalawi tradition. https://muwasala.org/2012/06/05/habib... Original recording credit and thanks to MCC East Bay (Muslim Community Center)

Mecca Books: Sufism: Its Essence & the Traits of its People-Umar ibn Hafiz (Author),Amjad Tarsin(Translator)  https://www.meccabooks.com/products/sufism-its-essence-the-traits-of-its-people?srsltid=AU7gw4WZdAwhjDmJCbeWTDSgR2HK8O575MPkKzW0hIltYtUIrFzGJduB 

Sufism (Tasawwuf), the path of spiritual purification, is the essence of Islam. Ironically, misunderstandings regarding it remain prevalent. This book's Author,Habib Umar bin Hafiz is a living Master of both the inward and outward sciences of Islam. With clarity and authority, he succinctly provides a definitive understanding of Sufism and the ten most important traits of its true people. 

Any claims that contradict these qualities have no authentic connection to Sufism. May Allah magnify its benefit for the author, reader, scribe, listener, and the entire Ummah of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). 

Contents: 

First Trait: Knowledge of the Book & the Sunna 

Second Trait: Their Concern with the Attributes and Actions of the Heart 

Third Trait: Sincerity 

Fourth Trait: Trueness 

Fifth Trait: Humility of Heart 

Sixth Trait: Recognizing the People of Honor & Eliminating Envy 

Seventh Trait: Remembering Allah Abundantly 

Eighth Trait: Conveying with Excellence & Eliminating Discourteous Argumentation 

Ninth Trait: Responding to Evil with Goodness 

Tenth Trait: Love of Allah & Preferring Him Over All Else

Question: The term Sufism (misnomer) was introduced by which Orientalist and when?

Answar:Source:Google AI:

The term Sufism (originally appearing as Sufiism) was coined in English around 1817 by Western scholars and Orientalists associated with the Asiatic Society and colonial administration in India, rather than being attributed to a single individual. [1, 2, 3]

Origins and ContextTimeframe: The neologism emerged in the late 18th to early 19th century (recorded in English as Sufiism in 1817 and later refined to Sufism by 1836). [1]

Early Figures: Pioneer British Orientalists like Sir William Jones (1746–1794) and later German scholars like F.A. D. Tholuck (who wrote Ssufismus in 1821) helped popularize the academic study of the tradition. [1, 2]
Concept vs. Tradition: While practitioners historically used the Arabic term taṣawwuf to describe their spiritual path, European Orientalists applied the -ism suffix to categorize it as an intellectual doctrine or standalone "mysticism" separate from mainstream Islamic practice. [1, 2, 3]

Taṣawwuf vs. Sufism: The Concept and the Category:

The divergence between the indigenous term and the Western neologism reflects two very different ways of understanding Islamic spirituality. [1]Taṣawwuf: This is an Arabic verbal noun that literally translates to "the process of becoming a Sufi" or "dressing in wool" (ṣūf). Within Islamic civilization, it is considered an internal, organic dimension of the Islamic faith. It is treated not as an isolated ideology, but as the practical realization of Ihsān (spiritual excellence or doing what is beautiful), operating side-by-side with Imān (faith) and Islām (ritual practice). [1, 2]
"Sufism": By attaching the Enlightenment-era "-ism" suffix, European academics artificially isolated these spiritual practices into a distinct, bounded "system" or philosophy. This shift reframed a living, multi-layered spiritual method into an abstract intellectual doctrine that could be studied independently of the daily religious life of Muslims. [1, 2, 3]

How Early Orientalist Views Shaped Modern Study
The early Western academic approach to taṣawwuf was heavily shaped by the colonial and cultural biases of the 18th and 19th centuries: [1]The Thesis of "Foreign Origin": Because many early Orientalists held deeply negative stereotypes about mainstream Islam—viewing it as inherently legalistic, stagnant, or "sterile"—they found it difficult to believe that profound mystical poetry and philosophy could blossom from within the faith. As a result, scholars like Sir William Jones argued that Sufism must have emerged from outside influences, such as Hindu Vedanta, Buddhist meditation, Christian monasticism, or ancient Greek Neo-Platonism. [1, 2, 3]

The Divide-and-Conquer Categorization: This scholarship created a sharp, manufactured dichotomy between the "good, tolerant, poetic Sufi" and the "bad, rigid orthodox Muslim". While colonial administrations eagerly cataloged and translated the humanistic poetry of Hafez or Rumi, they simultaneously viewed the actual, living Sufi political networks and brotherhoods (tariqas) with suspicion, seeing them as centers for potential anti-colonial resistance. [1, 2]

Impact on the Modern Field: For generations, Western academia inherited this flawed framework, often analyzing Sufi texts completely divorced from Islamic law (sharia) and theology. It was only in the mid-to-late 20th century that modern historians and scholars—such as Carl Ernst and Nile Green—successfully dismantled these older theories, definitively proving that historical Sufism and orthodox Islam were inextricably intertwined and mutually reinforcing. [1, 2, 3, 4]
Taṣawwuf vs. Sufism: The Concept and the Category

Post-Salafism: Is Salafism Beginning to Fragment? | Dr Besnik Sinani: Blogging Theology- Oct 3, 2026

 YouTube Video:

https://youtu.be/IbiGM6R-JaE?si=-DYlu31omOyktxTk

The Wahhabi Roots of Saudi Nationalism and the Persistence of Religious Nationalism: https://themaydan.com/2024/03/the-wah... Konak Institute: https://www.konak.org/besnik-sinani-bio  / besnik-sinani-067992353

Article:The Wahhabi Roots of Saudi Nationalism and the Persistence of Religious Nationalism
By Besnik Sinani // March 13, 2024- Maydan:An online publication of the AbuSulayman Center for Global Islamic Studies at George Mason University

Full Article:https://themaydan.com/2024/03/the-wahhabi-roots-of-saudi-nationalism-and-the-persistence-of-religious-nationalism/

"In January, 2022, Saudi Arabia announced that the following month, on February 22nd, 2022, the kingdom would begin celebrating a new national holiday. This celebration, termed “Founding Day,” pushed back the inception of the nation almost three decades prior to the fateful meeting in 1744 between Muhammad Ibn Saud, the then head of the small Saudi clan, and Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab, the religious reformer convinced that most Muslims had become idol-worshipers. The new celebration presents an alternative account, which removes the Wahhabis from the founding narrative of the nation, a further indication that nationalism is replacing Wahhabism as the legitimizing ideology of the kingdom. This observation reflects the history of ideological tension between nationalism and Wahhabism. Has that relationship, however, always been confrontational?
Nationalist ideology was long considered irrelevant in Saudi Arabia, due to seemingly two opposing forces, the country’s tribal fragmentation, which precluded a sense of national unity, and to the prominence of religion, which promoted a sense of brotherhood that transcended national boundaries. Saudi ulama have regarded nationalism as an expression of atheism. In the midst of the Cold War, Saudi Arabia spearheaded an ideological battle against Arab Nationalism, and King Faysal (d. 1975), aided by the ulama, emerged as the celebrated leader of a competing form of mobilization, known as Pan-Islamism. When King Abdullah (d. 2015) first recognized the Saudi National Day in 2005, and later declared it a National Holiday, he did so against the verdict of the ulama. In this context, the state promoted nationalism in an attempt to curb the power of religion in society. Taking place in the backdrop of the Islamist opposition movement of the 1990s, known as the Sahwa, the celebration of the National Day, together with major educational and cultural projects were part of a larger state policy aimed at what Rosie Bsheer has depicted as a de-centering of religion from the public sphere and from its historical role as the ideological backbone of the kingdom. The contemporary state promotion of nationalism aims to dramatically reduce the role of religion, and bring the focus of loyalty to the Royal Family, especially the Crown Prince, MBS.

Besnik Sinani is the author of the forthcoming monograph “Sufism in Saudi Arabia Since 1979: the Politics of Orthodoxy in Contemporary Islam” to be published by Brill in 2024. He is an AIWG fellow at the Center for Muslim Theology, Tübingen University. A version of this article was first presented in “The Religious Dimensions of Nationalism” Conference, at the Cini Foundation in Venice in 2021.

PhD Thesis PDF: The Future of Sufism in Saudi Arabia Under Salafi–Sufi Polemics and Vision 2030’s Adoption of Wasaṭiyya: Khalid S. Al Nassar MA ,Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of PhD Theology and Religious Studies School of Critical Studies College of Arts University of Glasgow 

https://theses.gla.ac.uk/85207/4/2025alnassarphd.pdf

ABSTRACT: In the aftermath of the poor reputation acquired by the government-supported Salafi establishment as the principal source of political Islam’s fundamentalist ideology behind Islamic terrorism, the Saudi government was compelled to rethink its internal socioreligious policies and imposition of the austere Salafism on the heterogenous Saudi society. Societal pluralism was promoted when different groups within society, Sufis, Shīʿa and liberal modernists, were all invited to participate in national dialogue forums. These forums were precursors to major socioreligious reform, as expressed in the country’s Vision 2030. Pluralism is sought in the controversial Qurʾanic concept of wasaṭiyya (middle way), hoping to provide a solid Islamic foundation for the unprecedented socioreligious change of attitude. Wasaṭiyya would achieve two premises, as advanced in this thesis. First, it would instil an intraIslamic and societal pluralism within the heterogeneous composition of Saudi society. Second, it would promote public acceptance of harmonious coexistence across cultural and religious worlds. The prevailing Salafi establishment’s definition of wasaṭiyya is not conducive to fulfilling the two premises mentioned above. Instead, this thesis proposes that an alternative Sufi-defined wasaṭiyya, grounded in taṣawwuf’s two principles of sulūk (behaviour; conduct) and akhlāq (ethics), would better fulfil the two premises. Yet, in a country known for its deeprooted Salafi abhorrence of taṣawwuf (Sufism), Sufism’s approach to wasaṭiyya cannot be addressed outside the context of the Salafi‒Sufi polemical relationship. Through a review of the literature and multimedia sources, a comparative analysis was conducted, and Salafi‒Sufi refutations and counter-refutations were identified. The research revealed that the Sufi interpretation of wasaṭiyya was inclusive, promoting pluralistic intraIslamic and a disposition towards modernist schools of thought. Taṣawwuf’s wasaṭiyya underlines a new comprehensive approach to an Islamic philosophy for life that naturally fulfils the two premises of the socioreligious-cum-political aspect of Vision 2030. Although the state of taṣawwuf in Saudi Arabia is far from widely accepted, government-supported intellectual efforts and official public media programmes about taṣawwuf target the country’s intelligentsia. This highlights the intellectual acknowledgement of true Sufism, in contrast to pseudo-Sufism, as essential to Islamic ethics. Consequently, this thesis advocates including Sufism’s two principles, sulūk and aklāq, in the country’s religious education system.

Article:In Saudi Arabia, a Resurgence of Sufism: Faiza Saleh Ambah:Special to The Washington Post-May 2, 2006
https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/01/AR2006050101380.html

"Salman al-Odah, the country's most popular puritanical cleric, who was jailed in the 1990s for opposing the presence of U.S. troops in the kingdom, accepted an invitation to visit Sufi cleric Abdallah Fadaaq's mawlid and lesson last week. The scene at Fadaaq's house was an obvious sign of conciliation.Al-Odah sat with his hands neatly folded in his lap, wearing a red-and-white checkered headdress and clear wraparound glasses and sporting the short scraggly beard that indicates a conservative. Fadaaq, who at 39 is emerging as the new symbol of Hejazi Sufism, wore the white turban, the white overcoat and shawl typical of Sufis, wooden prayer beads resting on his lap. "It's true that there are differences between the way people practice their faith in this country, and this is an indication that people are using their minds and thinking, which is a good thing," Fadaaq said. "But what we should concentrate on are the expanses that bring us together, like the prophet. We must take advantage of what we have in common."

Article:Visiting H.E. Al-Sayyid Abdallah Fadaaq, the highest ranking Sufi cleric of Arabia:Sayyid Ahmed Amiruddin Wordpress
https://ahmedamiruddin.wordpress.com/2010/07/22/visiting-h-e-al-sayyid-abdallah-fadaaq-the-chief-sufi-cleric-of-arabia/

Al-Sayyid Abdallah Fadaaq is the leading Sufi cleric of the Hijaz and the cheif of the Husayni line of the Prophet Muhammad’s (peace and blessings be upon him) descendents in the Hijaz. Al-Sayyid Abdullah comes from a family of Islamic scholars from Makkah Al Mukkaramah. His grandfather was amongst the leading scholars of the Hijaz during the Ottoman and Hashemite era and served as Imam at the Grand Mosque of Makkah. Differences arising with the current Wahabi regime forced him to leave teaching at the Grand Mosque in Makkah like his ancestors, to teach privately from his home in Jeddah. Shaykh Abdullah has authored many books and regularly appears in the Arab media and was a close student of the late Sufi scholar and sage of Arabia; Imam Al-Sayyid Muhammad ibn Alawi Al-Maliki Makki (rah).
Al-Sayyid Abdullah Fadaaq invited Sayyid Ahmed Amiruddin, a Deputy of Shaykh Mehmet Nazim Adil al-Haqqani, to his home during his Hijaz tour.

Prophet'Muhammad's ﷺ Barzakh Life:The Seerah 71: Shaykh Fouad Elgohari: The Majlis-Jun 11, 2025

 YouTube Video:

https://www.youtube.com/live/abZRfFyAmaE?si=y0PFtVejlTGarB6P

1.Shaykh Fouad Elgohari narrates in Arabic with English Translation the famous text by the Shafii Jurist Imam Ibn Hajar al-Haytami RA(d. 974 AH / 1567 CE), outlining the state of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ in Barzakh (the intermediate realm after death), is captured in his concise treatise and poem titled "Dafi'at al-Shiqaq wal-Khilaf bi-Qawl al-Mustafa wa Ahl al-Insaaf fi Hayat al-Anbiya fi Quburihim" (The Expeller of Discord and Disagreement via the Words of the Chosen One and the People of Justice Regarding the Life of the Prophets in Their Graves). Source: Google AI Mode

The Poem: Arabic & English Translation

Original Arabic	English Translation
تَوَاتَرَتِ الأَدِلَّةُ وَالنُّقُولُ فَمَا يُحْصِي المُصَنِّفُ مَا يَقُولُ	The textual evidences and narrations are recurrently transmitted, Such that an author cannot fully enumerate all that is stated.
بِأَنَّ المُصْطَفَى حَيٌّ طَرِيٌّ هِلَالٌ لَيْسَ يَطْرُقُهُ أُفُولُ	Proving that the Chosen One is alive and fresh, Like a crescent moon that is never overtaken by setting or eclipse.
وَأَنَّ الجِسْمَ مِنْهُ بِقَاعِ لَحْدٍ كَوَرْدٍ لَا يُدَنِّسُهُ الذُّبُولُ	And that his body at the bottom of his resting chamber Is like a rose, completely untouched by withering or decay.
وَأَنَّ الهَاشِمِيَّ بِكُلِّ وَصْفٍ جَمِيلٍ لَا يُغَيِّرُهُ الحُلُولُ	And that the Hashimi Prophet, in every single description, Remains beautiful; his essence is unaltered by occupying the grave.
وَأَنَّ الدُّودَ لَا يَأْتِي إِلَيْهِ كَذَا الآفَاتُ لَيْسَ لَهَا وُصُولُ	And that worms do not approach him, Just as pests and afflictions find no access to him.
وَلَمْ تَأْكُلْ لَهُ الغَبْرَاءُ لَحْماً وَلَا عَظْماً وَأُثْبِتُ مَا أَقُولُ	The dusty earth has not consumed his flesh Nor his bones—and I stand firm in what I affirm.
وَتَأْتِيهِ المَلَائِكُ كُلَّ حِينٍ تُحَيِّيهِ وَتَسْمَعُ مَا تَقُولُ	The angels come to him at every moment; They greet him, and he hears what they say.
وَتَأْتِيهِ بِأَرْزَاقٍ حِسَانٍ وَبِرٍّ حَيْثُ يَأْمُرُهَا الجَلِيلُ	They bring him beautiful, pure provisions And goodness, exactly as ordered by the Majestic Lord.
يُطَهَّرُ لِلصَّلَاةِ بِمَاءِ غَيْبٍ وَيَقْضِيهَا بِذَا وَرَدَ الدَّلِيلُ	He is purified for prayer with unseen celestial water, And performs it, as transmitted in scriptural evidence.
يُصَلِّي فِي الضَّرِيحِ صَلَاةَ خَمْسٍ دَوَاماً لَا يَمَلُّ وَلَا يَمِيلُ	He continuously performs the five obligatory prayers inside the tomb, Never tiring, and never wavering.
كَذَا الأَعْمَالُ تُعْرَضُ كُلَّ يَوْمٍ عَلَيْهِ كَيْ يَسُرَّ بِهَا الرَّسُولُ	Likewise, the deeds of his nation are presented daily Unto him, so that the Messenger may rejoice through them.
فَإِنْ كَانَتْ صَلَاحاً قَامَ يَدْعُو إِلَى المَوْلَى وَيَسْمَعُ مَا يَقُولُ	If they are righteous, he stands invoking blessings, Directing prayers to the Lord, Who hears his speech.

Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī al-Makkī  رَحْمَةُ ٱللَّٰهِ عَلَيْهِ (1503-1566)

Shihab al-Din Abu al-’Abbas Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn ‘Ali ibn Hajr al-Haytami al-Makki al-Ansari. He is al-Azhari in scholarship, al-Ash’ari in doctrine, al-Junaidi in the tasawwuf path, a Hadith master, and a brilliant scholar of in-depth applications of Sacred Law. He was born in the end of 909 H in Abu Haytam, western Egypt. He was the Shāfi‘ī Imām of his time.
He studied under many well known students of al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, the utmost among them, Shaykh al-Islam Zakariyya al-Ansari (926 H). Imam Ibn Hajar al-Haytami mentioned, “Whenever I met Qadi Zakariyya, he would supplicate for me, “May Allah give you deep understanding of din (religion).”” He was given authority to issue fatwa (legal verdict) at the end of 929 H.He was a master in the field of Tafsir, Hadith, Kalam, Fiqh, Usul, Fara’idh and Arithmetic, Nahw, Sarf, Ma’ani, Mantiq, Bayan, Tasawwuf, and was blessed with an excellent memory retention, for which he was well-known.

Source: Ahlus Sunnah Forum  https://ahlussunnah.boards.net/thread/87/shaykh-islam-haytami-shafii-ashari?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic

2.Shaykh Fouad Elgohari narrates Ahadith from The Life of the Prophets in their Graves by the  Muhaddith of Haramain Sharifain, Sayyid Muhammad ibn al-Alawi al-Maliki (Alayhi Rahma): Translated by Gibril Fouad Haddad 

Podcast: The Life of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ by Shaykh Fouad Elgohri: The Majlis (71 Videos)

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAiybqS_Z2huRCshWhmo7d7OsqQpvgAfF&si=dxQ4CnJ__Qns2S6k

The Prophet ﷺ in Barzakh:The Special Life of Our Prophet ﷺ by Sayyid Muhammad ibn `Alawi al-Maliki: Ahlus Sunnah Forum-Mar 19, 2017
https://ahlussunnah.boards.net/thread/606/prophet-barzakh?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic

Amazon:Life of the Prophets In Their Graves:Sayyid Muham Ibn Al-'Alawi Al-Maliki (Author), Gibril Fouad Haddad (Translator)

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GR5S456M?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback

The Life of the Prophets in their Graves by the late Muhaddith of Mecca, Sayyid Muhammad ibn al-Alawi al-Maliki is a simple yet profound overview covering the subject matter at hand. Sayyid Muhammad tackles the issue by addressing the following:
His ﷺ Saying {Verily You Shall Die} (39:30)
The Isthmus-Life of Prophets: Proof-Texts
Commentary and Further Proof-Texts
The Special Life of Our Prophet ﷺ
The Prophet ﷺ Answers Whoever Calls Him
The Sending of Salām by Courier to the Prophet ﷺ
Salām and Adhān Heard from the Noble Grave
The proof-texts for the life of Prophets in the grave are numerous. It is hoped that by the completion of this book, readers will be able to firmly understand introductory level concepts on this subject matter.
About The Author
Sayyid Muhammad Ibn al-Alawi bin Abbas al-Maliki al-Hasani was one of the foremost traditional Islamic scholars of contemporary times, and without doubt, the most highly respected and loved scholar of the holy city of Makkah and the entire Hijaz region (Western Arabia). He is a grandson of the Prophet ﷺ, a leader of the Ahl al-Bayt, the Imam of Hadith in our age, an authority of the four Madhhabs, a spiritual leader of the highest caliber, a caller to Allah par excellence, and unparalleled in his standing in the world of traditional Islamic scholarship. Visiting him was considered imperative for the ʿUlama who would make the journey to Makkah.

Shaykh Gibril Fouad Haddad is a well-known Lebanese-American scholar and religious leader and has emerged as one of the clearest voices of traditional Islam in the West and is quickly earning a reputation as a respected translator and interpreter of the sacred Islamic texts.
Born in 1960 in to a middle-class Lebanese Catholic family in Beirut, Lebanon, and schooled in England, he declared his shahadah in 1991 as a graduate student at Columbia University in New York where he obtained his PhD degree in French literature.
The same year, he met his teacher, Mawlana Shaykh Nazim al-Haqqani of Cyprus, from whom he took the Naqshbandi tariqa. He taught at the State University of New York at Stony Brook for 2 years and in 1997 moved to Damascus where he studied the Islamic disciplines for 9 years.Among the teachers he has been honoured to read with are Shaykh Dr. Nur al-Din `Itr, Shaykh Adib Kallas, Shaykh Wahbi al-Ghawji, Shaykh Muhammad al-Ya`qubi, Shaykh Adnan al-Majd, Shaykh Mu`tazz al-Subayni, Shaykh Dr. Samir al-Nass, Shaykh Dr. Wahba al-Zuhayli, Shaykh `Abd al-Hadi Kharsa, and Shaykh Muhammad Muti` al-Hafiz. He also holds ijazas from Shaykh Dr. Muhammad ibn `Alawi al-Maliki and Shaykh Husayn `Usayran, the last of the close students of the pious Qadi Shaykh Yusuf al-Nabhani, as well ijazas from more than 100 shaykhs from Algeria to Yemen – Allah reward them all and continue to benefit us through them.
Shaykh Gibril is an accomplished and influential Islamic scholar, religious leader, author, and Arabic translator of classical Islamic texts. He is also a teacher on the traditional online Qibla Islamic institute (formerly SunniPath) [website]. He was listed in the inaugural edition “500 Most influential Muslims” and was referred to as “one of the clearest voices of traditional Islam in the West”. He is also a contributor to the website eshaykh.com, which offer guidance and traditional teachings on various aspects of Islam.

Source:Osmanisnin Wordpress

https://osmanisnin.wordpress.com/2014/12/16/shaykh-dr-g-f-haddad/

The Hidden History of Muslims in Europe:Tharik Hussain (Book Talk: Muslim Europe: A Journey in Search of a Fourteen Hundred Year History): Kianistan-Oct 1, 2026

 YouTube Video:

https://youtu.be/qPE3t2x2cVY?si=61ASjbp4dJdbAvIq

In this episode of the Kianistan Podcast, host Tafhim Kiani is joined by author and journalist Tharik Hussain to explore the history of Muslims in Europe, from the arrival of Islam to the present day. They discuss Muslim communities in Spain, Sicily, the Balkans, the Volga region, Poland and Lithuania, as well as the influence of Muslims on European food, culture, science, architecture and law. The conversation also examines how this history has been remembered and forgotten, including the story of the Moriscos and the perception of Muslims as a recent arrival in Europe. Tharik also discusses Muslims in Europe today, demographic change, populist and far-right politics, and the future of Muslim communities across Europe. WHAT YOU'LL DISCOVER IN THIS EPISODE • The arrival of Islam in Europe • Muslim Spain, Sicily & the Balkans • Muslims in Eastern Europe • Muslim influence on food & culture • Science, art, architecture & law • Córdoba, the Mezquita & Alhambra • The forgotten history of European Muslims • The Moriscos and their legacy • Muslims in Europe today • The future of Muslim Europe

Amazon:Muslim Europe: A Journey in Search of a Fourteen Hundred Year History:Tharik Hussain

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DY1D7HL9?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback

For over 1,400 years, Muslims have been an integral part of Europe’s story, yet their contributions have been pushed to the margins or erased altogether. In Muslim Europe, award-winning author Tharik Hussain restores this forgotten history.
In a revelatory journey across the continent, we tread in the footsteps of the first Muslims who arrived on European soil in 647 AD. We travel through Cyprus, Sicily, Malta, Portugal and Spain, learning about the continent’s great Caliphate culture and Muslim commonwealth, encountering red-haired European Sultans and Arabic-speaking Christian Kings, the Sufi lodges of Cyprus and the palaces of Sicily.
Forgotten Muslim pioneers like Abbas Ibn Firnas gave us flight, Ibn Rushd gifted us modern philosophy and the cross fertilisation of faiths and cultures birthed Europe’s Christian Renaissance. For twelve centuries, Muslim Europe was a sanctuary for the continent’s Jews. Recalling the poignant voices of Hasdai Ibn Shaprut and Abraham Ibn Daoud, Jews flourished under Muslim protection triggering the Jewish Golden Age.
For the first time, Muslim Europe lays bare the cause of our collective Islamic amnesia by mapping Europe’s ‘anti-Muslim DNA’ through medieval Crusade narratives and nation-building myths. But Islam was never a sideshow to Western culture; it was integral to its development for over 1,400 years.
Deep, learned and utterly convincing, this first Muslim Eurocentric history of the continent dismantles the myth of Europe’s Judaeo-Christian cultural foundation, and offers nothing less than a profound shift in our self-understanding.
Review:
Tharik Hussain’s travels around the Mediterranean revealed how Islamic culture helped civilise the West . . . Fascinating . . . This is no dry archaeological or architectural study. Much of the human interest here comes from Hussain’s meetings with actual Muslims, both residents and visitors . . . while English doctors prescribed crushed snails and smouldering goat’s hair, learned physicians in Muslim Cordoba were performing successful caesareans and cataract operations — Noel Malcolm, The Telegraph

There is something of Naipaul’s vivid sense of human realities . . . particularly through Hussain’s many many pen portraits of actual European Muslims living their Islam . . . fascinating . . . he hopes to provide a positive charter in in the past for Muslim-Christian relations in the present — Nile Green, Times Literary Supplement

Offers a fresh, bracing perspective on European history . . . Hussain’s mission to restore Islamic heritage to the wider story of Europe’s history is admirable, as are his efforts to foster a “place identity”, a sense of belonging in Europe for European Muslims in general and his children in particular — Justin Marozzi, The Times

A vital, important and sharply observant new voice . . . In an age of growing Islamophobia, when ignorant commentators constantly depict Muslims as the Other, as dangerous outsiders, Hussain reminds us of the long history and the complex, mixed syncretic culture of European Islam, and nudges us to remember the massive debt Europe still owes to the Muslim world . . . A book I’ve been longing for someone to write — William Dalrymple

Fascinating . . . complicates our notion of “Europe” as a closed Judeo-Christian space, reminding us that Muslims have since the early days of Islam been an integral, important part of the continent — Daniel Motadel, New Statesman

Uncovers a world of which few are fully aware — Colin Thubron

A perspective-shattering work showing that, far from being fatal to Western culture, Islam has been integral to the development of Europe for more than 1,400 years . . . Muslim Europe reads as both a revisionist work of history and a voyage of discovery — Caroline Sanderson

Tharik Hussain is the essential second eye we need to get the history of Europe into focus, a brilliantly informed and also charming guide to the often hidden place of Islam in our shared past. He takes us to unfamiliar times and unfamiliar places – some glittering, some domestic – and expertly shows how they shaped us — Michael Pye, author of THE EDGE OF THE WORLD

A vital, eye-opening journey into a Europe we were never taught about. A truly extraordinary work of rediscovery that pulls back the veil on a millennium of forgotten history and shows us that Europe has always been far more diverse, interconnected and culturally rich than we’ve been led to believe. With the curiosity of a traveller and the rigour of a historian, Tharik uncovers forgotten stories that challenge everything we think we know about the continent’s past. An important and necessary book for these times — Levison Wood, author of WALKING THE NILE

Tharik Hussain is just the kind of travelling companion we need in polarised times like these: curious, empathetic, erudite. An absolutely fascinating book, expertly threading past and present with a revelatory light — Sophy Roberts, author THE LOST PIANOS OF SIBERIA

About the Author:
Tharik Hussain is an award-winning author and journalist specialising in global Muslim heritage and culture. He has written for newspapers such as The Times, Guardian and Telegraph, magazines such as National Geographic Traveler, and broadcast media such as Al Jazeera and the BBC. For the latter, he produced award-winning radio program America’s Mosques. Tharik has written or contributed to travel books on areas including the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Europe, and his book on Islam in the Western Balkans, Minarets in the Mountains, was longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize, shortlisted for the Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year, and won the Adele Evans Award.