Embrace the social teachings of Islam by rethinking modern individualism.

Embrace the social teachings of Islam by rethinking modern individualism.

Articles

IN DEPTH REFLECTIONS

Along with our Modern Questions, Grounded Answers series, the following articles shed light on various aspects of the Islamic worldview. These articles, along with the rest of Sila’s work, call on us to embrace the social teachings of Islam by examining how modern individualism has affected both major and minor-seeming aspects of our social ideas and interactions.

Being Empowered Through Allah Against Sexual Impropriety and Exploitation

Dr. Fareeha Khan January 1, 2025

Recently, a woman needed an official document signed by a government official. She was lucky enough to get in touch with a high-level official who kindly offered to help her, asking her to come at a certain time to the administrative office so he could take care of her need. After she arrived and went through security, she was led to the building where the official’s office was.

Understanding Imam al-Ghazali’s Teachings on the Upbringing of Children: A Modern Perspective

Ustadha Sulma Badrudduja August 31, 2024

Imam al-Ghazali, the renowned 11th-century scholar of the outward and inward Islamic sciences, was known by his contemporaries as Hujjat al-Islam, the living proof of the religion itself, and then

Sexual Responsibility and the Fulfillment of Desire

Dr. Fareeha Khan July 28, 2022

Al-Fadl b. ‘Abbas rode behind the Prophet ﷺ as his companion on the back portion of his camel on the Day of Nahr (during Hajj) and al-Fadl was a handsome

Marriage and Family

Marriage and Family

Sheikh Nuh Ha Mim Keller September 30, 2021

What is a Muslim man expected to do when he gets married? How about a Muslim woman? These questions were more easily understood and accepted in earlier times, particularly in healthy Muslim societies that had holistic understandings of God’s place in the picture of Muslim family life.

Fall of the Family

Sheikh Abdal Hakim Murad July 12, 2021

Abdal Wadod Shalabi has remarked that a society only becomes truly decadent when “decadence” as a principle is never referred to in public debate. Prior generations of Muslims and Christians

Communal Life

Dr. Asad Tarsin June 29, 2021

Complementary to the rulings about personal daily life are those related to interactions among people. Below we will examine the guidance of Islamic law (sharīʿah) about several of the essential

Hosting Houseguests Expands the Heart

Hina Khan Mukhtar April 17, 2021

Living in beautiful Northern California, our family is blessed with many house guests throughout the months of the year, alhamdulillah (praise be to God). I remember one year when we

The Connecting Factor Between You and Allah

Dr. Fareeha Khan April 11, 2021

The Sila Initiative · The Connecting Factor Between You and Allah | Audio Article بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم The following essay is a transcript of an interview of Dr. Fareeha

Beautifying Oneself in the Home

Ustadha Sadaf Khan October 21, 2020

A well-dressed woman who takes care of her appearance not only appears attractive, but has an aura of composure and femininity about her. The fitrah (natural disposition) and instinctive quality

Individualism & the Destruction of Community

Ilham Ibrahim June 11, 2020

In considering the evolution of this phenomenon, its necessary to recognise that whilst over the past few hundred years, liberal theory has branched out into a broad spectrum of interpretations, they inextricably trace their roots back to Enlightenment thinkers. The founding fathers of liberalism

Reconnecting with Our Scholars Upon the Plain of Taqwa

Dr. Fareeha Khan January 2, 2020

وَإِذَآ أَنْعَمْنَا عَلَى الإِنسَانِ أَعْرَضَ وَنَأَى بِجَانِبِهِوَإِذَا مَسَّهُ الشَّرُّ كَانَ يَؤُوسًا “When We bestow Our favors unto man he turns away and becomes remote.But when evil befalls he gives himself

My Mother-in-Law’s Pakoray

Hina Khan Mukhtar April 19, 2018

It’s still a few hours before any hint of twilight when my mother-in-law pulls herself up off the couch, murmuring with a sense of urgency, “I need to start getting the pakora batter ready for iftar.”

Raising Children with Deen and Dunya

Hina Khan Mukhtar January 12, 2018

I still vividly remember the first night I spent by myself in the hospital after delivering my eldest son Shaan. The guests were gone for the day, the hallway lights

A Call to Devotion: Reading the Qur’an as a Modern Muslim

Dr. Fareeha Khan September 24, 2017

devotion noun: love, loyalty, or enthusiasm for a person or activity; religious worship or observance; profound dedication Devotion, and Its Fruits She would then spread the prayer-mat, a beautiful soft Persian

Inspirational Women: Interview with Mrs. Shaheen Usmani

The Sila Initiative August 9, 2017

There are few religious scholars more well-known in the Muslim world than Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani. His expertise in fiqh and hadith, and in particular his specialization in Islamic Finance, allows him to serve as a distinguished member on numerous international bodies of Islamic law. For scholars of such caliber, one rarely if ever hears about the internal happenings of their domestic life. And due to the emphasis on the modest and hidden nature of a woman’s private sphere, one rarely hears directly from the female members of such religious households.

How to Stop Loving Something Ugly

Dr. Fareeha Khan March 10, 2017

Empowerment is something desired by all who feel oppressed. If there is an overpowering force that is out to do us harm, we wish more than anything to overcome it. Contemporary common sense however teaches that there is one compelling force that we simply cannot overcome, and that is our own self (nafs). Desires, proclivities, and inclinations toward unwholesome, unseemly things are seen to be, at most, unfortunate. With mottos like “Just Do It!” having become part of the cultural fabric of contemporary society, it is easy to see why even those who wish to stop loving something ugly view the task as requiring Herculean effort.

There’s No Replacing a Good Father

Hina Khan Mukhtar November 2, 2016

The doorbell rang and my son Shaan, a 17-year-old high school junior, answered the door and welcomed his college-going friend Brian in to watch football with my husband Zeeshan and our other sons, 15-year-old Ameen and 10-year-old Raahim.

Allah Has Heard the Arguing Woman

Dr. Fareeha Khan September 11, 2016

“My Companions are like the stars; follow whichever you like and you will be rightly guided.”
–the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ

Wherever there is a discrepancy in power, there exists the possibility of abuse. As Muslims, we believe this is true of every relationship between willful beings, except the relationship between God and His creation. He is Just, at the level of the absolute, and His Justice will absolutely be realized, if not on this worldly plane, then on that of the Next.

The Content of Character

Dr. Fareeha Khan September 11, 2016

This tiny and beautifully produced book offers a simple yet powerful window into the sublime character of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.

Tips on Improving One’s Relationship with Allah

The Sila Initiative March 3, 2016

Do your best to have zuhd, meaning have less things of the dunya to be concerned about. For example, it’s very helpful to have a clean and fast house. Muslim homes traditionally were very sparse.

Since you’re here, why not check out the rest?

The publications of the Sila Initiative call on us to embrace the social teachings of Islam by examining how modern individualism has affected both major and minor-seeming aspects of our social ideas and interactions. Read more of our ARTICLES and LISTEN to our audio casts.

feminism

Inspirational Women: Mrs. Shaheen Usmani

The Sila Team May 29, 2023

INDIVIDUALISM

LIBERALISM

RECALIBRATION

RELATIONSHIPS

Making Supplication Your Habit

Dr. Fareeha Khan June 2, 2018

SOCIETY

Jannah: Finding Oneself at Home

Dr. Fareeha Khan December 6, 2020

LATEST AUDIO

Balancing Activism with Personal Responsibility

Dr. Fareeha Khan September 30, 2021

LATEST EVENT

Quenching the Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ with the Cup of Relief for What it Finds Over Gaza of Distress and Grief

The Sila Initiative November 4, 2023