In the Name of God, Full of Grace, Full of Mercy.
May Peace and Blessings be unto you. Welcome to this blog.
“God is the Light of the heavens and the earth; the likeness of His Light is as a niche wherein is a lamp that is in a glass; the glass, which as it were is a glittering star kindled from a Blessed Tree, an olive that is neither of the East nor of the West whose oil wellnigh would shine, even if no fire touched it; Light upon Light; God guides to His Light whom He will. And God strikes parables for men, and God has knowledge of everything.” (Quran, 24:35)
“Wisdom is the lost treasure of the believer, he may retrieve it wherever he finds it.”–Prophet Muhammad (saw)
This blog is about reflecting upon and presenting those elements of the Islamic Tradition which are the most universal in nature, and which, to use the above Quranic metaphor of the blessed olive tree, are confined to “neither of the East nor the West”.
The intention is not to circumvent the essential, formal and creedal elements of the Islamic Tradition, but rather to compliment them through broadening one’s awareness of those very same elements in Islam and as they may relate to other revealed wisdom traditions. In this light, I shall focus on expressions of a “Wisdom” or “Light” rooted in the Sacred which, is timeless or eternal, whose appeal is universal, and whose scope is ‘confined’ by “neither East nor West” yet ‘defined’ by my personal experiences in both East and West as a Muslim who has benefitted from mutually enriching intra-faith and inter-faith contact and dialogue. I pray this endeavor to blog certain thoughts, discussions, and experiences over years of striving to live the wisdom of Islam and through searching for Prophetic wisdom in other Revealed Traditions, may be of benefit to various seekers of Truth.
I pray these reflections lead not only to a heightened awareness of the beauty of Islam, but also to a more profound recognition of Divine Reality along with a deepening of one’s spiritual and religious practice in whichever revealed religion one finds themselves to be in. In particular I pray this blog may serve as a bridge for those Muslims who seek a similar bridging of the gap between their Western and Muslim identities in order to live in peace with themselves and in harmony with others in the Name of God. I also pray that this blog may be of benefit to those seekers across religious frontiers and global hemispheres who seek a similar bridging between a sense of “Self” and “Other” without blurring formal distinctions, all in order to bring deeper meaning into their lives. Amen.
~Hasan Awan
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