tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8919265877138027256.post6500152656053240279..comments2023-12-22T18:48:47.386+00:00Comments on Mahdi Lock: "Religion of Peace"Mahdi Lockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17083440397337482887noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8919265877138027256.post-55928752432776482442016-10-17T14:01:35.679+01:002016-10-17T14:01:35.679+01:00Jzkullah khayr,barakullah feekum for your time and...Jzkullah khayr,barakullah feekum for your time and effort in writing these beneficial pointers. ma'as-salaamahAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14827800561080771575noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8919265877138027256.post-49178875988927756302016-10-17T05:34:04.123+01:002016-10-17T05:34:04.123+01:00Wa alaykum Assalaam wa Rahmatullah,
Jazakum Allah...Wa alaykum Assalaam wa Rahmatullah,<br /><br />Jazakum Allah khayran for the comment.<br /><br />Let me try to summarise this as best I can:<br /><br />1) For starters, there are, of course, the practical difficulties of moving, such as shipping belongings, selling furniture, putting other belongings into storage etc. I think that was the hardest thing for me back in 2008.<br /><br />2) With that said, the best thing to do is a scouting trip, or several. Visit Muslim countries, or at least one Muslim country, and try to a) get a feel of the place and b) get some contacts. Contacts can help you with employment and settling in once you've decided where to go. The longer the trip the better, as you want to feel more like a resident than just a visitor. For example, instead of just going to Morocco or Egypt or Malaysia as a tourist, try to enroll in a course (e.g. Arabic (even if you know Arabic), Fiqh, Creed whatever) and maybe even live with a host family for some time. It could be a summer course, a semester course, or maybe even an entire year abroad.<br /><br />3) It's definitely beneficial to be somewhere where your madhhab is taught and applied, but if not, you should still be able to find people to study with, even if it's not fiqh.<br /><br />4) An ironic thing about the Muslim world, and especially the Arab world, in comparison to the UK, for example, is that you don't feel that the government is in your face so much. You would expect the opposite, but these countries generally have one rule: don't insult the king or ruler or his government. Don't mess with him and he won't mess with you. In the UK, there are posters everywhere warning you about terrorism, climate change, five portions of fruit a day etc. or informing you of some branch of government or other that you must contact in the event of such and such event. In the Arab world, you're just going to see pictures of the king or ruler, which reinforces the message: don't mess with me and I won't mess with you.<br /><br />5) Obviously, you should expect your material standard of living to be slightly lower, but the complete opposite with regards to your overall well-being and quality of life. You won't get next-day delivery from Amazon, or maybe delivery at all, but you will be able to go the masjid five times a day (or at least be able to pray at work) and hear the adhaan. You will be able to attend Jumu'ah, and maybe even have the day off. Eid will always be a holiday. The meat will always be halal. Your letterbox won't be stuffed with bills and taxes.<br /><br />6) Once you have a job or business and you know how things work, and then you have some private lessons on the sides or classes that you can attend, life is pretty good, because you have your living costs covered, your spiritual nourishment and you are working towards meaningful goals. Life is terrible if you have nothing to look forward to.<br /><br />7) In terms of "freedom", from my experience, Europe and the Anglosphere grant moral and political "freedom". In others words, you can sin and badmouth politicians. In the Muslim world, it tends to be more about economic freedom. Some Muslim countries are tax free, for example. Others are tax free for businesses for the first five years and thus there are a lot of small businesses. Yes, the leftovers of the post-Tanzimat Ottoman bureaucracy live on in the Middle East (and the leftover of French bureaucracy in North Africa), but it's manageable.<br /><br />And may Allah grant you ease and success.<br /><br />Wassalaam,<br /><br />MahdiMahdi Lockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17083440397337482887noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8919265877138027256.post-52911394955775670412016-10-16T13:21:54.788+01:002016-10-16T13:21:54.788+01:00salaamun 'alaykum.
Could you summarize any d...salaamun 'alaykum. <br /><br />Could you summarize any difficulties you overcame in moving out of the anglosphere into a Muslim heart-land. What a person, considering this move, should do in order to build and maintain stability within a Muslim society. jazakAllah khayr Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14827800561080771575noreply@blogger.com