Saturday, October 13, 2007

Crunch time. Tomorrow after my Oud class I will meet someone whose knowledge I have come to respect highly. I want to find out about the role of women in Islamic societies and the reasons behind certain practices or beliefs. I need to find out what the position is on the hejab, on marriage, on segregation of the sexes and yes, on female circumcision. I want to start from the alphabet again and work my way back up. If anyone has any other questions, please let me know and I will ask them and present my findings; they will not be definitive from a religious or philosophical point of view, but they can help point me in the right direction. I want to shed away my secular upbringing and 'civilized' sensibilities, I know where these come from, what history has made me wear these ideas as if they were my own, now I need to wear a different set of clothes for a while, so that I can understand and learn rather than stereotype and condemn.

As Bertrand Russell wrote, "When an intelligent man expresses a view which seems to us obviously absurd, we should not attempt to prove that it is somehow true, but we should try to understand how it ever came to seem true. This exercise of historical and psychological imagination at once enlarges the scope of our own thinking, and helps us to realize how foolish many of our own cherished prejudices will seem to an age which has a different temper of mind."

3 comments:

Dubai Jazz said...

Wassim,
There is nothing wrong in pursuing knowledge to clarify a certain dilemma, in fact, it is quite commendable.

Is this chap knowledgeable about the linguistics of the Qura'n ?? If yes, there is this thing which has been troubling me, would you please ask him what does he think of the claims made by atheists and agnostics about the un-coincidental similarity between the pre-Islamic (Jaheli) poetry and some verses in Qura'n? (you know, the ultimate claim that Qura'n was put by Mohamed and not by prophecy)

thanks in advance, and would be grateful if you can share the knowledge about the other issues as well...

Maysaloon said...

Excellent point DJ, I will ask and I have a feeling that it's up his alley.

G.Gar said...

Dear waasim,

I also have question for the Juriprudent. I want to know whether the Irani mullah descsion to help the Americans capture Bahgdad( quoting Ayatollah Abtahy the deputy of Khatamy) is considered halal or haram?