Saturday, November 21, 2009

IQ quiz

Quiz

HELP YOUR CHILD BUILD SELF-CONFIDENCE

12 WAYS TO HELP YOUR CHILD BUILD SELF-CONFIDENCE

Developing Your Emotional Intelligence


Top Ten Suggestions

1. Become emotionally literate. Label your feelings, rather than labeling people or situations. Use three word sentences beginning with "I feel".

Start labeling feelings; stop labeling people & situations

"I feel impatient." vs "This is ridiculous." I feel hurt and bitter". vs. "You are an insensitive jerk."

"I feel afraid." vs. "You are driving like an idiot."

2. Distinguish between thoughts and feelings. Thoughts: I feel like...& I feel as if.... & I feel that

Feelings: I feel: (feeling word)

3. Take more responsibility for your feelings. "I feel jealous." vs. "You are making me jealous."

Analyze your own feelings rather than the action or motives of other people. Let your feelings help you identify your unmet emotional needs.

4. Use your feelings to help make decisions "How will I feel if I do this?" "How will I feel if I don't?"

"How do I feel?" "What would help me feel better?"

Ask others "How do you feel?" and "What would help you feel better?"

5. Use feelings to set and achieve goals - Set feeling goals. Think about how you want to feel or how you want others to feel. (your employees, your clients, your students, your children, your partner)

- Get feedback and track progress towards the feeling goals by periodically measuring feelings from 0-10. For example, ask clients, students, teenagers how much they feel respected from 0 to 10.

6. Feel energized, not angry. Use what others call "anger" to help feel energized to take productive action.
7. Validate other people's feelings. Show empathy, understanding, and acceptance of other people's feelings.
8. Use feelings to help show respect for others. How will you feel if I do this? How will you feel if I don't? Then listen and take their feelings into consideration.
9. Don't advise, command, control, criticize, judge or lecture to others. Instead, try to just listen with empathy and non-judgment.
10. Avoid people who invalidate you. While this is not always possible, at least try to spend less time with them, or try not to let them have psychological power over you.


More Tips

- Ask others how they feel -- on scale of 0-10

- Make time to reflect on your feelings

- Identify your fears and desires

- Identify your UEN's (Unmet Emotional Needs)

- Express your feelings - find out who listens, understands, validates you and cares.

- Develop the courage and self-confidence to follow your own feelings

- Work on managing your negative feelings

- See the list of feeling words to practice improving your emotional literacy


Useful Things to Remember

- Your "negative" feelings are expressions of your unmet emotional needs (UEN's)

- Each negative feeling has a positive value

- Awareness of your feelings increases self-knowledge. Self-knowledge aids self-improvement.

- Actions and behavior are motivated by feelings. We can often choose how we respond to an emotion. Remembering this helps us feel in control, which is empowering. Taking responsibility for meeting our own needs is also empowering.


Managing Your Negative Feelings

Ask: why something bothers you.

Look at the relationship between your unmet emotional needs, your childhood, and your beliefs.

Consider the possibility that some of your beliefs might be dysfunctional and remember that beliefs can be changed.

Remember that accepting responsibility helps release resentment.

Re-frame the situation as an opportunity for personal growth.

Change some of your demands and expectations into preferences to make them less emotionally powerful and addictive.

Emotional intelligence

Emotional intelligence for leadership.

Sunday, July 12, 2009

THE MOSQUE OF CORDOBA


The cycle of day and night [is] the engraver of events.
The cycle of day and night [is] the essence of life and death.
The cycle of day and night is a two-colored thread of silk
with which the being weaves its attire of traits.
The cycle of day and night [is] the lamentation of the musical-instrument of the origin
through which the being shows the vicissitudes of possibilities.
It tries you, it tries me;
the cycle of day and night is the examiner of the cosmos.
If you're impure, if I'm impure
[then] it leads to your funeral procession, it leads to my funeral procession.
What else is the truth of your days and nights;
a surge of the time sans day and night.
All the marvels of the skills are transient;
the existence of world is ephemeral! The existence of world is ephemeral!

[The fate of] the beginning and the end is death, [the fate of] the unseen and apparent is death.
Be it an antiquated imprint or the latest one, its last destination is death.
Yet there exists a hue of eternity in this imprint;
the one that has been completed by some man of God.
The actions of the man of God get accelerated with [the help of] love.
The essence of life is love; death is forbidden for it.
hough the gush of the time is intense and fast
love itself is a tempest that restrains [other] tempests.
In the calendar of love, besides the contemporary age,
|there're other ages too that don't have names.
Love is the mainstay of Gabriel, love is the heart of Mustafa.
Love is the Messenger of God, love is the message of God.
The flower looks dazzling because of the intoxication of love.
Love is the undiluted wine, love is the wine-cup of a munificent drinker.
Love is the jurist of the Shariat, love is the commander of the army.
Love is the traveler because of which it passes through thousands of stages.

The lifeline streams out of the plectrum of love.
The radiance of life is due to love; the fire of life is because of love.

O Mosque of Cordoba! Your existence [too] is because of love.
Love is infinite time that's beyond the cycle of transient time.
Be it painting, architecture, music poetry or calligraphy,
all these arts thrive on the intensity of love!
The intensity of love turns a stone into a heart
[and] it's love that bestows depth of feeling, exhilaration and melody to the voice.
Your environ is charming, my songs are poignant;
you make the hearts bow before God, I make the hearts capacious.
The bosom of man isn't inferior to the empyrean throne of God
though his body is made of earth and is mortal.
Though the angels [also] prostrate before God
but their prostration lacks poignancy.
[Though] I'm an infidel from India, behold my earnestness
[that] my heart prays benison for the Prophet, my lips do the same.

The zeal is in my tune, the zeal is in my flute;
the hymn of God is in my essence.
Your grandeur and beauty manifests the man of God;
he too is eminent and handsome, you too are eminent and handsome.
Your foundation is stable, you've countless pillars
[which look like] the rows of palm trees in the oasis of Syria.
The radiance of Sinai valley is spread over your nooks and corners;
this tall minaret of yours is the place of manifestation for Gabriel.
The pious Muslim can never be eliminated, for
his calls for prayers reveal the mysteries of Moses and Abraham.
His land is limitless, his sky is boundless;
the surge of his sea is spread over Tigris, Danube and Nile.
His reigns have been awe-inspiring, his tales have been extraordinary;
it was he who commanded the antiquated epoch to perish.
He's the cupbearer to those who have taste, he's the cavalier of the field of passion;
his wine is pure, his sword is of high trait.

He's the soldier whose armor is [the belief in] one God;
under the shadow of swords his refuge is [the belief in] one God.

Through you the mysteries of the pious Muslim,
the warmth of his days, the poignancy of his nights,
his lofty position, his exalted thoughts,
his exhilaration, his passion, his humility, his dalliance, have been revealed.
The hand of God is the hand of the pious Muslim,
which is triumphant, effectual, resourceful [and] skillful.
[He possesses] the traits of both man and angel and the attributes of the Lord;
his heart, though carefree, is richer than the two worlds.
His expectations are few, his objectives are sublime;
his style is irresistible, his sight is captivating.
[He's] soft while conversing, passionate while in action;
be it the battlefield or a social gathering [he's always] pious and orderly.
His faith is the focal point of Truth
and the rest of the cosmos is illusion, sorcery and unreal.

He's the destination of reason, he is the output of love;
he's is the warmth of the assemblage in the circuit of cosmos.
You're the Mecca of the designers, the apostle of the grandeur of Islam;
by virtue of you, the land of Spain has become as hallowed as that of Mecca.
If any other model, as exquisite as you, exists in this world
it is in the heart of a Muslim and nowhere else.
Alas! Those men of Truth! Those Arab cavaliers!
The possessors of 'inspiring character', the followers of truth and faith;
their rule has revealed this simple mystery
that the State ruled by the faithful is pro-poor, not monarchical;
their insights have trained the East and the West;
their reasoning was the guiding force in the darkness of Europe.
It is because of their blood that, even today, the Spanish people
are friendly, hospitable, simple and handsome.
In this country, even now, [people's eyes] look like those of gazelle
and, even today, the arrows of their sights are enchanting.
The aroma of Yemen, even today, is mixed in its winds;
the tunes of Hejaz, even now, are fused in its songs.
In the eyes of the faithful your land's estimation is equal to that of sky.
Alas! Your environ has not heard the call for prayer for centuries.
In which vale, at what destination,
the strong caravan of the zealous lovers [of God] got stuck up.
Germany has witnessed the Reformation
that has erased all the imprints of antiquated faith;
because of which the piety of the Pope has become an erroneous term
and the subtle ferry of reason sailed on its course.
France too has experienced the Revolution
that has changed the world of the Westerners.
The Roman nation that has been submerged in retrogressive culture
has, once again, become powerful because of the new ideas.
The soul of the Muslim nation too is experiencing similar unrest;
what lies ahead is a mystery of God that I can't reveal.
Wait and see what spurts out of the seabed;
the blue dome [of sky] changes to what colour.
In the vale, surrounded by the mountain range, the cloud is swallowed up by the redness;
the sun has set leaving behind the mounds of rubies from Badakhshan.
The song of the farmer's daughter is simple and poignant;
youth is like a tempest to the vessel of heart.
O stream of Kabeer! On your bank
someone is perceiving the dream of some other age.
[Though] the coming world is still covered with the curtain of destiny,
before my eyes its beginning is uncovered.
If I remove the curtains from the face of the [future] thoughts
the Western people won't face up to my songs.
The life that has no place for revolution is death
[for] the spirit of the nation lies in struggle and revolution.
The nation, which takes stock of its actions in each age,
develops into a sword in the hand of death.
All the imprints are incomplete in the absence of love and endeavor;
melody is like a crude insanity in the absence of love and endeavor

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Baby, it's all good! - A modern hijab poem

Baby, it's all good! - A modern hijab poem

Author unknown

What do you see when you look at me
Do you see someone limited, or someone free
All some people can do is just look and stare
Simply because they can't see my hair
Others think I am controlled and uneducated
They think that I am limited and un-liberated
They are so thankful that they are not me
Because they would like to remain 'free'

Well free isn't exactly the word I would've used
Describing women who are cheated on and abused
They think that I do not have opinions or voice
They think that being hooded isn't my choice
They think that the hood makes me look caged
That my husband or dad are totally outraged
All they can do is look at me in fear
And in my eye there is a tear

Not because I have been stared at or made fun of
But because people are ignoring the One up above
On the day of judgment they will be the fools
Because they were too ashamed to play by their own rules
Maybe the guys won't think I am a cutie
But at least I am filled with more inner beauty
See I have declined from being a guy's toy
Because I won't let myself be controlled by a boy

Real men are able to appreciate my mind
And aren't busy looking at my behind
Hooded girls are the ones really helping the Muslim cause
The role that we play definitely deserves applause
I will be recognized because I am smart and bright
And because some people are inspired by my sight
The smart ones are attracted by my tranquility
In the back of their mind they wish they were me

We have the strength to do what we think is right
Even if it means putting up a life long fight
You see we are not controlled by a mini skirt and tight shirt
We are given only respect, and never treated like dirt
So you see, we are the ones that are free and liberated
We are not the ones that are sexually terrorized and violated
We are the ones that are free and pure
We're free of STD's that have no cure

So when people ask you how you feel about the hood
Just sum it up by saying, 'Baby its all good'

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Shaheed e hijab

Egyptians angry over German court slayingStory Highlights

•Sherbini killed in courtroom as she prepared to give testimony against man

•The man was convicted of calling Sherbini a "terrorist," "bitch" and "Islamist"

•Many Egyptians shout hostile slogans against Germany during her funeralJuly 7, 2009 -- Updated 0502 GMT (1302 HKT)Next Article in World »
(CNN) -- Hundreds of Egyptians took part Monday in the funeral of Marwa Sherbini, an Egyptian woman who was stabbed to death last week in the German city of Dresden in a crime believed to be racially motivated.

Egyptians take part in the funeral of Marwa Sherbini, who was murdered in Germany last week.
Sherbini, 33, was stabbed to death Wednesday in a courtroom as she prepared to give testimony against a German man of Russian descent whom she had sued for insult and abuse.

The man, identified in German media as Alex A., 28, was convicted of calling Sherbini, who wore a headscarf, "terrorist," "bitch" and "Islamist" when she asked him him to leave a swing for her 3-year-old son Mustafa during an August 2008 visit to a children's park.

He was fined and appealed the ruling. The two were in court Wednesday for that appeal when Alex A. attacked, pulling out a knife and stabbing Sherbini 18 times. He also stabbed her husband three times and attacked another person.

According to Arab media, police officers tried to intervene to end the fight, and a number of shots were fired. One hit the husband, who fell unconscious and is currently in intensive care in the hospital of Dresden University.

Sherbini was three months pregnant at the time of her death.

Hundreds attended Sherbini's funeral in Alexandria, Egypt, her hometown, among them government officials, including Egyptian Manpower Minister Aisha Abdel Hadi and Telecommunications Minister Tariq Kamel, Egyptian media reported.

Many shouted hostile slogans against Germany and called for Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to take a firm stand on the incident. Egypt's grand mufti, Mohammed Sayyed Tantawi, demanded the severest punishment to be issued against Alex A.

Berlin witnessed angry protests on Saturday, when hundreds of Arabs and Muslims demonstrated after a funeral prayer that called her killing an outrageous racist murder against Muslims.

In a phone call with Al Arabiya, Marwa's brother, Tariq Sherbini, said, "Extremism has no religion. My sister was killed simply because she wore the veil. This incident clearly shows that extremism is not limited to one religion or another and it is not exclusively carried out by Muslims."

"We are only asking for a fair punishment," he said, adding that his sister was not a radical. "She was a religious woman who prayed and wore her headscarf, but she was killed because of her belief."

Anger about Sherbini's death smoldered online, as Twitterers and bloggers pushed the cause.

"She is a victim of hatred and racism," tweeted Ghada Essawy, among many other Arab twitters and bloggers. Essawy called Sherbini "the martyr of the veil."

Various videos circulated on YouTube calling on Egypt to take action and urging Germany to address what their makers saw as a new wave of hatred against Arabs and Muslims in its community.

One video showed various pictures of a young happy Marwa saying that "The woman stood up for her rights and she was killed. May God bless her." The English font in the video presentation asked "when will Egypt cares for its citizens' rights inside Egypt and abroad."

Sherbini and her husband moved to Dresden in 2003, after the husband received a grant to study genetic engineering in the renowned Max Planck Institute. He was scheduled to present his Ph.D. thesis in the coming day

Merwa Sherbibi 'headscarf martyr'

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8136500.stm

Egypt mourns 'headscarf martyr'

Marwa Sherbini is being hailed as the shahida, or martyr, of the Hijab
The body of a Muslim woman, killed in a German courtroom by a man convicted of insulting her religion, has been taken back to her native Egypt for burial.

Marwa Sherbini, 31, was stabbed 18 times by Axel W, who is now under arrest in Dresden for suspected murder.

Husband Elwi Okaz is also in a critical condition in hospital, after being injured as he tried to save his wife.

Ms Sherbini had sued her killer after he called her a "terrorist" because of her headscarf.

The case has attracted much attention in Egypt and the Muslim world.

German prosecutors have said the 28-year-old attacker, identified only as Axel W, was driven by a deep hatred of foreigners and Muslims.

'Martyr'

Medics were unable to save Ms Sherbini who was three months pregnant with her second child. Her three-year-old son was with the family in court when she was killed.

Axel W and Ms Sherbini and family were in court for his appeal against a fine of 750 euros ($1,050) for insulting her in 2008, apparently because she was wearing the Muslim headscarf or Hijab.

Newspapers in Egypt have expressed outrage at the case, asking how it was allowed to happen and dubbing Ms Sherbini "the martyr of the Hijab".

Senior Egyptian officials and German diplomatic staff attended the funeral in Alexandria along with hundreds of mourners.

Media reports say Mr Okaz was injured both by the attacker and when a policeman opened fire in the courtroom.

Monday, June 29, 2009

How to Start a Revolution

by JONATHAN on May 21st, 2009


I’ve found the secret to being excited about waking up every day; and I’ll tell you what it is right now. It’s starting a Revolution. I didn’t always think in these terms though…
I used to ask: What can I gain? How can I turn this into a business that will support me?
I focused on helping others by sharing my perspective, but that was the extent of it. When I did that, working on this blog would be exciting sometimes, and at other times it would feel like just a chore.
Now, I can’t even contain my energy for the work I’m doing. I feel like there’s electricity in the air. I’ve changed my mindset and made the decision to do something epic. Now I’m focused on creating a social movement of people living on their own terms. Because of this, I’ve moved from ego-centric to collective-centric.
It’s bigger than me now.
Guess what happens when you make something bigger than you? You get plugged in. You become connected to this amazing source of energy that was never previously available to you.
Now I ask: How can I take action that will support this vision? How can I create momentum to further ignite this revolution?
Waking up excited
The biggest benefit to working on a revolution is that it gives you an insane amount of energy. Working on a revolution will make you want to wake up. You might even have a hard time falling asleep at night, because you’re so motivated to take action on your vision. This is how I feel when I’m laying in bed thinking about all of the awesome stuff I’m doing with this blog and with Project Mojave, and my plans to expand this project into something even bigger.
So if creating something worth remembering is likely to make you a thousand times more productive, why isn’t everyone working on something like this? I think more people would devote themselves to something greater, if they just knew how to do it.
I often spend a lot of time talking about perspective and cultivating an authentic state. While that’s all good, I want to switch gears here to practical and logistics of the application of these perspectives.
First, we need to define what it takes to create a Revolution…
It has to be something you care deeply about and would be willing to devote your life to.
It should be something that will help other people.
It should have a long term impact.
It has to be remarkable; it has to be worth sharing and bigger than you.
Working toward a revolution often involves the pursuit of being an ordinary radical.
Your revolution must have a distinctive quality to it that is caused by you working in it. It wouldn’t be the same if someone else did it. But it is definitely a collective movement created by similar values.
Secondly, how do you discover what Revolution you’ll start?
This is probably the most difficult question to answer and where 99% of people get stuck. It’s impossible for me to completely guide you in this pursuit, because you’ll have to do a lot of exploring.
You’ll probably start some projects and have to let them go, because they didn’t work or they weren’t a good fit for you. This can be difficult to do when you’ve invested a large amount of time in them, but ultimately it’s necessary to throw away a lot of good ideas, if you really want to find what bigger purpose you want to devote yourself to. Mediocrity must be sacrificed in the wake of greatness.
Creating a meaningful revolution demands the habit of quitting a lot of things.
I currently have 30 drafts in my blog admin area. At least 28 of those won’t see the light of day.
I’ve gotten really good at throwing away ideas, because I care about producing only things of remarkable value. I feel that if I’m not supporting something compelling, all I’m doing is contributing to the noise. I would rather not water down my content or pollute the already congested content sphere.
So the best advice I can give in this area is to fearlessly walk your path. Generate lots of ideas and be willing to throw most of them away. Practice. The more you practice the more you’ll be able to refine and shape your vision. This might sound odd, but it’s only really through the constant movement in the direction of what you might think your vision is, that you’ll find what your true vision is.
It might start out with something that you’re kind of, sort of passionate about. You like it enough to work hard at it. Then a few months later, you’ve gained enough experience working on it to have explored other possibilities. Now you decide that part of what you originally set out to do still applies, but it looks different than it did at first. Then another few months of work go by and your vision is refined even more.
It’s only this kind of walking the path that brings clarity. Don’t wait for clarity or your “one true purpose” before you start. Please, please, don’t do that. It will never happen. Epiphanies are found in the dirty, messy circuitous routes of practice.
Other than practice, there is an awesome, invaluable tool to help you figure out what your revolution will consist of. And that’s asking questions.
I think asking ourselves questions is one of the most powerful, overlooked things you can do. If you can develop the habit of initiating these kinds of conversations with yourself on a daily basis, you will achieve greater things you could have otherwise envisioned.
Here are some potent questions to get you started:
What do you teach others simply by being you?
What would you spend your time on, even if you didn’t get paid to do it?
What do you find yourself researching and can’t stop yourself from learning more about?
Is there anything you would consider yourself an expert in? If not, is there anything you’d like to be an expert in?
What gifts do you have that you’d like to make available to the world?
What do you want to change?
What lessons do you often find yourself repeating in life?
How does your purpose impact your local community? How does it impact your family? Your friends? The world?
What does your tribe (the people you most connect with) look like? What do you identify with on a collective level?
What legacy do you want to leave behind when you’re gone?
All of these questions aren’t meant to come up with the one-true-answer; they’re simply an impetus for getting your mind moving. Try combining asking these questions with mind-mapping. Have conversations with people, get their feedback. Connect with like-minded people and use them as a sounding board to explore your ideas. Just remember to stay true to yourself.
The most important thing is not holding back. Allow yourself to be ridiculous and completely authentic.
Now it’s time to start creating.
Moving from thought to action.
Once you’ve figured out what your project will look like, it’s time to start taking action. It’s time to stop thinking about it and start cultivating.
Just like discovering what to work on, a lot of people get stuck on how to start. It seems daunting when you’re staring up at a mammoth of a project from ground zero. There are so many things to do, so many approaches you could take, so many options.
But there is a reach, I promise you. And there is even that elusive grasp. But it only comes from starting. It only comes from not caring about what step you’ll take next, but just caring about the fact that you are taking a step.
The necessary ingredients to every revolution:
A revolution can be big or small. Whether you’re trying to change the education system or change the way people look at folding underwear, what matters is that you are passionate about it.
Rally your tribe. No revolution is a revolution without a group of people that share similar values. If you get really clear about your cause, you will easily be able to spot these people and make connections with them. Before long, you will likely not even need to seek them out. They will come to you.
Tap into your outrage. Most revolutions involve some kind of outrage or anger. This is a good thing. Your anger can be a gift if you use it wisely and don’t let it consume you. Use your outrage and your passion to fuel your action for change.
The cause rules. Movement and direction of your revolution should be dictated by the demands of the cause. Guru worship or leader exaltation results in the cause becoming obscured. Avoid these things so the movement is centered on the mission, and not a single individual.
Break down actionable steps. What change needs to be made and how will those changes best be accomplished? If the status quo needs to be interrupted, how will you deal with the resistance? Are you willing to stay true to your cause despite the protesters you will be faced with?
Keep the end in mind. It’s easy to get side-tracked with things that might seem to benefit your mission, but are really just distractions. In order to be effective, you must learn to cultivate an unshakable focus on your ultimate aim. Triage ruthlessly. Anything that does directly or indirectly benefit your cause, is a weed suffocating and diluting your objective, and it must be pulled.
Once in a while you’ll question whether or not you’re up to the task.
But something else is even scarier: what you left behind.
The ordinary, conventional, safe, secure, default life that you could have chosen instead. That’s what’s really scary. Remember that and you’ll be okay.
Everyone’s project will be vastly different, all I can offer are the necessary ingredients I’ve found. So instead of offering more practical advice, I’ll tell you about…
My Revolution

Since I wrote this article about work being sacred, I’ve given a lot of thought to creating something bigger than me. (Chris Guillebeau’s post Creating a Legacy Project and Charlie Gilkey’s Do Epic Shit, also spurred me to think more deeply about this.)
I’ve always aimed to be remarkable with my writing and this blog. Actually, there’s never been a time in my life where I’ve really pursued something in the hopes of being just okay.
So reaching to be uncommon and exceptional wasn’t a challenge for me, but the idea of creating some bigger than me was. Being unconventional and providing value is one thing. Creating an entire social movement, now that’s nothing to shake a stick at.
That is my reason for waking up. That is something I live for. That is something that gets me excited about being alive.
Thinking in terms of leading, or at least stimulating a collective revolution, really made me rethink what I’m doing with this blog. It made me think about something bigger than just me and my ambitions.
Thinking about this forced me to crystallize how all of the stuff I do fits into a universal picture. I still have the same plan, I still have the same style, that’s not changing. What is changing is a deepening of community and purpose.
So this is my revolution:
To create a movement based on authentic action. A social revolution of people liberating themselves through living on their own terms.”
That’s it. That’s my reason for waking up.
How this revolution will take form is something I’ve been giving a lot of thought to.
The plan
As you can probably guess, the medium for my revolution is mainly, this blog. But it’s also the ebook, the liberation manifesto, my work with Project Mojave, and the other products that I’ll later release (that are currently in development). I plan to develop a collection of products (some free and some for sale) aimed toward creating personal freedom that will outlast me when I’m gone. Some of my ideas may seem dissimilar, but they are all related to stimulating a social movement of living on your own terms.
Some of this collection of resources will come in different forms. Obviously there will be blog posts, but there will also be ebooks, physical books (later down the line, when I become famous, of course), and possibly some audio and video courses.
The best part about this is I now have a crystallization of one underlying intention behind everything I do. The way my action manifests might be different, but the purpose is unified.
All of the stuff I’m creating revolves around a similar theme: unconventional methods for improving your life and living more authentically. I want to help promote this revolution in an unconventional way. My aim is to create a wealth of resources for people that are easily bored with the same approach and crave something different. I want to appeal not just to the typical self-help typecast, but to punk rock kids, iconoclasts, recovering lawyers and cubicle-dwellers, people living off the grid, and people that aren’t satisfied with the status quo. I want to connect with those that question supposedly unquestionable belief-systems, and those that want live on their own terms.
My message is personal and collective liberation, my style or medium is an unconventional, renegade kind of approach. The message is my core passion and purpose, the medium is the style that I most resonate with.
My project isn’t about prostrating myself as a guru and saying “follow this one true way.” I simply aim to say “Hey, this seems like an interesting idea, and it’s worked well for me. Plus it’s a pretty interesting and uncommon way to live.” Not a lot of people are killing their goals, giving up caring and embracing ADD.
My project is to create an abundant wealth of information and resources for people interested in non-traditional modes of living. That’s it. That’s my legacy. And I think it absolutely kicks ass. It keeps me up at night, and makes me excited to wake up the next morning.
Others may think that this project is totally lame or downright silly. And that’s okay. It’s my legacy, not theirs.
I’ve found a meaningful pilgrimage to devote my life to, in the service of this cause and the service of others. Knowing that, I’m no longer perpetually searching. My actions are guided by a coherent mission.
Keeping perspective
Creating a revolution to me is something worth living for. But it’s also important to remember that the little things in life are what really makes a difference. You can be fighting AIDS in Somalia, but if you’re an asshole to your sister, it kind of negates the rest of it.
Remember that even if you’re thinking big, it’s the small things you do every day that make a difference.
Massive change and working toward social change is awesome, but it’s also how you live your life on a daily basis that matters most. It’s how you interact with people you meet on the sidewalk waiting for a bus, or in line at a cafe. It’s how you treat your loved ones and family that makes a difference. It’s the small things that create the possibility for huge change.
In short, it’s not just having your eyes on the future and how things will be when your aim is realized.
Because it’s right here, right now. That change is possible. It’s this moment that we must live in.
That’s where transformation culminates.
It’s in this moment that the revolution takes place.

Monday, June 15, 2009

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Pop Culture in the Name of Islam

 

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Written by Yvonne Ridley   
Monday, 24 April 2006
I FEEL very uncomfortable about the pop culture which is growing around some so-called Nasheed artists. Of course I use the term ‘Nasheed artists' very lightly. Islamic ‘boy bands' and Muslim ‘popsters' would probably be more appropriate.

Eminent scholars throughout history have often opined that music is haram, and I don't recall reading anything about the Sahaba whooping it up to the sound of music. Don't get me wrong. I'm all for people letting off steam, but in a dignified manner and one which is appropriate to their surroundings.

The reason I am expressing concern is that just a few days ago at a venue in Central London, sisters went wild in the aisles as some form of pop-mania swept through the concert venue. And I'm not just talking about silly, little girls who don't know any better; I am talking about sisters in their 20's, 30's and 40's, who squealed, shouted, swayed and danced. Even the security guys who looked more like pipe cleaners than bulldozers were left looking dazed and confused as they tried to stop hijabi sisters from standing on their chairs.

Of course the stage groupies did not help at all as they waved and encouraged the largely female Muslim crowd to "get up and sing along." (They're called ‘Fluffers' in lap-dancing circles!)


The source of all this adulation was British-born Sami Yusuf, who is so proud of his claret-colored passport that he wants us all to wave the Union Jacks. I'm amazed he didn't encourage his fans to sing "Land of Hope and Glory." Brother Sami asked his audience to cheer if they were proud to be British ,and when they responded loudly, he said he couldn't hear them and asked them to cheer again.


How can anyone be proud to be British? Britain is the third most hated country in the world. The Union Jack is drenched in the blood of our brothers and sisters across Iraq, Afghanistan, and Palestine. Our history is steeped in the blood of colonialism, rooted in slavery, brutality, torture, and oppression. And we haven't had a decent game of soccer since we lifted the World Cup in 1966.


Apparently Sami also said one of the selling points of Brand UK was having Muslims in the Metropolitan Police Force! Astafur'Allah! Dude, these are the same cops who have a shoot-to-kill policy and would have gunned down a Muslim last year if they could tell the difference between a Bangladeshi and a Brazilian. This is the same police force that has raided more than 3000 Muslim homes in Britain since 9/11. What sort of life is there on Planet Sami, I wonder? If he is so proud to be British, why is he living in the great Middle Eastern democracy of Egypt?

Apparently the sort of hysteria Sami helped encourage is also in America, and if it is happening on both sides of the Atlantic, then it must be creeping around the globe and poisoning the masses. Islamic boy bands like 786 and Mecca 2 Medina are also the subject of the sort of female adulation you expect to see on American Pop Idol or the X-Factor. Surely Islamic events should be promoting restrained and more sedate behavior.

Do we blame the out-of-control sisters? Or do we blame the organizers for allowing this sort of excessive behavior which demeans Islam? Or do we blame the artists themselves?

Abu Ali and Abu Abdul Malik, struggling for their Deen, would certainly not try to whip up this sort of hysteria. Neither would the anonymous heroic Nasheed artists who sing for freedom; check out Idhrib Ya Asad Fallujah, and you will know exactly what I mean.

Fallujah is now synonymous with the sort of heroic resistance that elevated the Palestinians of Jenin to the ranks of the resistance written about in the Paris Communeand the Siege of Leningrad. The US military has banned the playing of any Nasheeds about Fallujah because of the power and the passion it evokes.

If those Nasheeds had sisters running in the streets whooping and dancing, however, the Nasheeds may be encouraged because of haram activity surrounding them.

Quite frankly, I really don't know how anyone in the Ummah can really let go and scream and shout with joy at pleasure domes when there is so much brutality and suffering going on in the world today. The rivers of blood flow freely from the veins of our brothers and sisters from across the Muslim world.

Screaming and shouting the names of musical heroes drown out the screams coming from the dungeons of Uzbekistan where brothers and sisters are boiled alive in vats of water. How many will jump up and down and wave their arms in the air, shouting wildly for justice for our kin in Kashmir, Afghanistan, Chechnya, Palestine, and Iraq?

There are many more killing fields as well across the Asian and Arab world. Will you climb on theater chairs and express your rage over Guantanamo Bay and other gulags where our brothers and sisters are being tortured, raped, sodomized, beaten, and burned? Or will you just switch off this concerned sister and switch on to the likes of Sami Yusuf because he can sell you a pipe dream with his soothing words and melodic voice?

Oh, Muslims, wake up! The Ummah is not bleeding; it is hemorrhaging. Listen not to what is haram. Listen to the pain of your global family.

Sunday, May 17, 2009

USMLE STEP 1 schedule

1st Week: 
BIOCHEMISTRY 
June 8-13 

Monday Chat: 
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 
Nucleic Acid Structure and Organization 
DNA Replication and Repair; Transcription and RNA Processing 

Tuesday Chat: 
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY (cont) 
The genetic Code, Mutations, and Translation 
Genetic regulation; Recombinant DNA; Genetic testing 

Wednesday Chat: 
MEDICAL GENETICS 
Single-Gene Disorders 
Population genetics 
Cytogenetics 
Gene Mapping and Cloning 
Genetics of Common Diseases 
Genetic Diagnosis and Gene Therapy 

Thursday Chat: 
METABOLISM 
Hormones 
Vitamins 
Overview of Energy Metabolism 
Glycolysis and Pyruvate Dehydrogenase 
Citric Acid Cycle and Oxydative Phosphorylation 
Glycogen, Gluconeogenesis and the Hexose Monophosphate Shunt 



Friday Chat: 
METABOLISM 
Lipid synthesis and storage 
Lipid mobilization and catabolism 
Amino Acids, proteins, and Enzymes 
Amino Acid Metabolism 
Purine and Pyrimidine Metabolism 




2nd Week: 
ANATOMY 
June 15-20 

Monday Chat: 
EMBRYOLOGY: 
Gonad Development; Week 1; Week 2; Weeks 3–8, Embryonic period 

Tuesday Chat: 
HISTOLOGY AND CYTOLOGY 
Cell components 
Nervous Tissue; Muscle tissue 
Lymphoid Organs; Integument 
Respiratory System; Gastrointestinal System 
Renal/Urinary System; Male/Reproductive System 
Female/Reproductive System 

Wednesday Chat: 
GROSS ANATOMY AND ORGANOGENESIS 
Back and nervous System 
Thorax; Abdomen, Pelvis and perineum 
Upper Limb; Lower Limb; Head and Neck 

Thursday Chat: 
NEUROSCIENCE: 
Peripheral Nervous System 
Central Nervous System 
The Ventricular System 
The Spinal Cord 
The Brain Stem 
The Cerebellum 
Visual Pathways 
Diencephalon 
Basal Ganglia 
Cerebral Cortex 
The Limbic System 



Friday Chat: 
(Begin Physiology because short week for Thanksgiving) 
GENERAL TOPICS 
Membrane Transport 
Body Compartments 

EXCITABLE TISSUE 
Ionic Equilibrium and Resting Membrane Potential 
The Neuron Action potential 
Synaptic Transmission 



3rd Week: 
PHYSIOLOGY (cont) 
June 22-27 

Monday Chat: 
PERIPHERAL CIRCULATION 
General Aspects of the Cardiovascular System 
Regulation of Blood flow 

SKELETAL MUSCLE 
Excitation-Contraction Coupling 
Skeletal Muscle Mechanics 

CARDIAC MUSCLE 
Electrical activity of the heart 
Heart muscle mechanics 

Tuesday Chat: 
RESPIRATION 
Lung Mechanics 
Alveolar-Blood Gas Exchange 
Transport of O2 and CO2 and the regulation of respiration 
Four causes of Hypoxemia 

RENAL PHYSIOLOGY 
Renal processes 
Clearance 
Regional transport 

ACID BASE DISTURBANCE 

Wednesday Chat: 
ENDOCRINOLOGY 
Mechanisms of Hormone action 
The Hypothalamic anterior Pituitary system 
Adrenal hormones 
ADH and regulation of Osmolarity and ECF 
The Endocrine pancreas 
Growth Hormone 
Adrenal Medulla 
Hormonal Control of Calcium and Phosphate 
Thyroid Hormones 
Male reproductive system 
Female reproductive system 

GASTROINTESTINAL PHYSIOLOGY 


Thursday Chat: 
Off for Thanksgiving 



Friday Chat: 
Off for Thanksgiving, or review of Physio 





4th Week: 
BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE 
June 29-July 4 

Monday Chat: 
Epidemiology,Statistics 
Social Life in the US 
Substance Abuse 

Tuesday Chat: 
Human Sexuality 
Learning and Behavior Modification 
Defense mechanisms 


Wednesday Chat: 
Psychologic health and Testing 
Child Development 
Sleep and sleep disorders 

Thursday Chat: 
Organic Disorders 
Psychopharmacology 
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual IV (DSM IV) 



Friday Chat: 
Ethical and legal Issues 
Physician-patient relationships 




5th Week: 
PATHOLOGY by Goljan 
July 6-11 

Monday Chat: 
1. Cell Injury 
2. Inflammation 

Tuesday Chat: 
3. Fluids/hemodynamics 
4. Neoplasia 


Wednesday Chat: 
5. RBC and WBC 
6. Lymphoproliferatives 

Thursday Chat: 
7. Coagulation 
8. Blood Bank 

Friday Chat: 
9. Cardiovascular 
10. Respiratory 




6th Week: 
PATHOLOGY by Goljan (cont)
July 13-18 

Monday Chat: 
11. Gastrointestinal 
12. Hepatobiliar / Pancreas 

Tuesday Chat: 
13. Renal/ Lower Urinary 
14. STD / Gynecology 


Wednesday Chat: 
15. Endocrine 
16. Musculoskeletal 

Thursday Chat: 
17. Skin 
18. CNS/Special senses 

Friday Chat: 
Overall Goljan review 




7th Week: 
IMMUNOLOGY 
July 20-25 

Monday Chat: 
INTRODUCTION 
Innate Immunity 
Acquired (Adaptative) Immunity 
Immunoglobulins and T-cell Receptors 
Immunoglobulins and T-cell Receptor (TCR) Genes 

Tuesday Chat: 
Antigens and Immunogens 
Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) 
The Lymphoid System 
The Immune Response 
T cell subsets and Interleukins 
Cell-mediated Immunity 
Complement 


Wednesday Chat: 
Failures of the Immune System: Hypersensitivity 
Failures of the Immune System: Immunodeficiency 
Failures of the Immune System: Autoimmunity 
Regulation and Tolerance 
Transplantation Immunology 
Immunology Laboratory Procedures 

Thursday Chat: 
Off 

Friday Chat: 
Off  




8th Week: 
MICROBIOLOGY 
July 27-August 1 

Monday Chat: 
General Microbiology 
Medically Important bacteria 

Tuesday Chat: 
Medically Important Fungi 
Medical Parasitology 


Wednesday Chat: 
Medically Important Viruses 

Thursday Chat: 
Microbial Genetics/Drug Resistance 
Clinical Infectious Disease 
Comparative Microbiology 
Flow Charts/Clue Sheets 



Friday Chat: 
Off 




9th Week: 
PHARMACOLOGY*** 
AUgust 3- 8 

Monday Chat: 
GENERAL PRINCIPLES**: 
Pharmacokinetics; 
Pharmacodynamics 
AUTONOMIC PHARMACOLOGY**: 
The Autonomic nervous System; 
Cholinergic Pharmacology; 
Adrenergic Neuroeffector Junctions; 
Autonomic Drugs: The Eye and Cardiovascular System; 
Autonomic Drug Summary 

Tuesday Chat: 
CARDIAC AND RENAL PHARMACOLOGY***: 
Fundamental Concepts; 
Antiarrythmics Drugs; 
Antihypertensive Drugs; 
Drugs for heart Failure; 
Antianginal Drugs; 
Diuretics; 
Antihyperlipidemics 

Wednesday Chat: 
- CNS PHARMACOLOGY*** 

Thursday Chat: 
- ANTIMICROBIAL AGENTS**: 
Antibacterial Agents; 
Antifungal Agents; 
Antiviral* Agents; 
Antiprotozoal Agents and the Antimicrobial Drug List 
- DRUGS FOR INFLAMMATORY AND RELATED DISORDERS 

Friday Chat: 
- DRUGS USED IN BLOOD AND ENDOCRINE DISORDERS: 
Blood Pharmacology; Endocrine Pharmacology 
- ANTICANCER DRUGS* 
- IMMUNOPHARMACOLOGY 
- TOXICOLOGY: Anticancer drugs; Immunopharmacology; Toxicology

___________________
once we have a destiny we have acquired the reason of life, but life can press us to keep ourselves away from it. a strange force comes to keep ourselves limited. It is determination which keeps limitations away and turn the table around. it is imagination which makes us infinite.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Friday, March 6, 2009

Footprints in the Sand


One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord.
Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.
In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.
Sometimes there were two sets of footprints,
other times there were one set of footprints.

This bothered me because I noticed
that during the low periods of my life,
when I was suffering from
anguish, sorrow or defeat,
I could see only one set of footprints.

So I said to the Lord,
"You promised me Lord,
that if I followed you,
you would walk with me always.
But I have noticed that during
the most trying periods of my life
there have only been one
set of footprints in the sand.
Why, when I needed you most,
you have not been there for me?"

The Lord replied,
"The times when you have
seen only one set of footprints in the sand,
is when I carried you."

Mary Stevenson

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

You can clean Masjid!

Clean masjid !

Islamic empire



██ Expansion under the Prophet Mohammad, 612-632

██ Expansion during the Rightly Guided Caliphate, 635-680

██ Expansion during the Umayyad Caliphate, 661-750


Ibn Seena

Ibn Seena

Avicenna

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Persian Scholar
Name: Alī Sīnā Balkhi (Avicenna)
Title: Sharaf al-Mulk, Hujjat al-Haq, Sheikh al-Rayees
Birth: approximately 980 CE / 370 AH
Death: 1037 CE / 428 AH
Ethnicity: Persian[1]
Region: Central Asia and Persia
School tradition: Avicennism[2]
Main interests: Islamic medicine, alchemy and chemistry in Islam, Islamic astronomy, Islamic ethics, early Islamic philosophy, Islamic studies, logic in Islamic philosophy, geography, mathematics, Islamic psychological thought, physics, Persian poetry, science, Kalam, Paleontologist
Notable ideas: Father of modern medicine and the concept of momentum, founder of Avicennism and Avicennian logic, forerunner of psychoanalysis, pioneer of aromatherapy and neuropsychiatry, and important contributor to geology.
Works: The Canon of Medicine
The Book of Healing
Influences: Hippocrates, Sushruta, Charaka, Aristotle, Galen, Plotinus, Neoplatonism, Indian mathematics, Muhammad, Ja'far al-Sadiq, Wasil ibn Ata, al-Kindi, al-Farabi, Muhammad ibn Zakariya ar-Razi, Abu Rayhan Biruni, Muslim physicians
Influenced: Abu Rayhan Biruni, Omar Khayyám, al-Ghazali, Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, Abubacer, Averroes, Shahab al-Din Suhrawardi, Nasīr al-Dīn al-Tūsī, Ibn al-Nafis, Scholasticism, Albertus Magnus, Duns Scotus, Thomas Aquinas, Jean Buridan, Giambattista Benedetti, Galileo Galilei, William Harvey, René Descartes, Spinoza

Abū ‘Alī al-Ḥusayn ibn ‘Abd Allāh ibn Sīnā Balkhi', known as Abu Ali Sina Balkhi[3][4] (Persian: ابوعلی سینا بلخى) or Ibn Sina (Persian: ابن سینا) and commonly known in English by his Latinized name Avicenna (Greek: Aβιτζιανός, Abitzianos),[5] (born c. 980 near Bukhara, contemporary Uzbekistan, died 1037 in Hamedan in modern Iran) was a Persian[6] polymath and the foremost[7] physician and philosopher of his time. He was also an astronomer, chemist, geologist, logician, paleontologist, mathematician, physicist, poet, psychologist, scientist, and teacher. [8]

Ibn Sīnā wrote almost 450 treatises on a wide range of subjects, of which around 240 have survived. In particular, 150 of his surviving treatises concentrate on philosophy and 40 of them concentrate on medicine.[9][10] His most famous works are The Book of Healing, a vast philosophical and scientific encyclopaedia, and The Canon of Medicine,[1] which was a standard medical text at many medieval universities.[11] The Canon of Medicine was used as a text-book in the universities of Montpellier and Louvain as late as 1650.[12] Ibn Sīnā developed a medical system that combined his own personal experience with that of Islamic medicine, the medical system of the Greek physician Galen,[13] Aristotelian metaphysics[14] (Avicenna was one of the main interpreters of Aristotle)[15], and ancient Persian, Mesopotamian and Indian medicine. He was also the founder of Avicennian logic and the philosophical school of Avicennism, which were influential among both Muslim and Scholastic thinkers.

Ibn Sīnā is regarded as a father of early modern medicine,[16][17] and clinical pharmacology[18] particularly for his introduction of systematic experimentation and quantification into the study of physiology,[19] his discovery of the contagious nature of infectious diseases,[20] the introduction of quarantine to limit the spread of contagious diseases, the introduction of experimental medicine, evidence-based medicine, clinical trials,[21] randomized controlled trials,[22][23] efficacy tests,[24][25] clinical pharmacology,[24] neuropsychiatry,[26] risk factor analysis, and the idea of a syndrome,[27] and the importance of dietetics and the influence of climate and environment on health.[28] He is also considered the father of the fundamental concept of momentum in physics,[29] and regarded as a pioneer of aromatherapy for his invention of steam distillation and extraction of essential oils.[30] He also developed the concept of uniformitarianism and law of superposition in geology.[31]

George Sarton, an author of the history of science, wrote in the Introduction to the History of Science:

"One of the most famous exponents of Muslim universalism and an eminent figure in Islamic learning was Ibn Sina, known in the West as Avicenna (981-1037). For a thousand years he has retained his original renown as one of the greatest thinkers and medical scholars in history. His most important medical works are the Qanun (Canon) and a treatise on Cardiac drugs. The 'Qanun fi-l-Tibb' is an immense encyclopedia of medicine. It contains some of the most illuminating thoughts pertaining to distinction of mediastinitis from pleurisy; contagious nature of phthisis; distribution of diseases by water and soil; careful description of skin troubles; of sexual diseases and perversions; of nervous ailments."[20]