See the World Through the Eyes of Mawlānā Abū al-ʿIrfān Nadwī
In the history of human societies there is a strange yet repeatedly recurring tragedy: when a weakness becomes…
Character and Ethics
Character sits at the heart of the Islamic tradition, and these articles ask what it means to live well among others. Shaykh Akram Nadwi writes here on sincerity, restraint, the dangers of excess, and the conduct that faith calls for in ordinary dealings. The emphasis is practical: knowledge is measured by how it shapes a person’s manners and heart.
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Sincerity and the Search for Validation
As a person progresses upon this path, they must guard themselves against seeking validation from others regarding the quality of their īmān or the depth of their spirituality. No scholar, teacher, or community can truly…
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Reminder: How ignorant you are of the beauty of Joseph!
How ignorant you are of the beauty of Joseph! You imagined that Joseph’s beauty was confined to the…
Reminder: I made the Scale ashamed
When I presented my deeds on the Scale of God on the Day of Judgment, my soul trembled…
Reminder: The stranger who loses the path of his journey
I was born in Paradise, beside the Lord of all worlds, and it was for me a homeland…
Reminder: Do not be angered if you are called ignorant
Do not be angered if you are called ignorant; for does a person truly resent a title that…
Reminder: Then—death
What is life but a fleeting moment between dawn and sunset: it begins with a cry and ends…
Reminder: Create another world
Wherever you cast your gaze, you behold rampant evil and blazing corruption; wherever you alight or journey on,…
Reminder: Speech is headache itself
Indeed, speech, even when it adorns itself in the garb of intimate supplication and veils itself behind a…
Reminder: A nation that cannot tell earthenware from pearls
We are a nation that cannot distinguish earthenware from pearls, nor clay from ruby; that does not discern…
Reminder: Islam does not suit you, o you enamoured of comfort!
O you who are infatuated with comfort! O you who prefer safety above all, who delight in food…
Reminder: My darkness came from my purity
I am deeply enamoured of myself, profoundly deluded by her; I behold her in my eyes raised above…
The First Ramadan in Oxford
Ramadan in Oxford brings with it a peculiar atmosphere. This city breathes within an ancient scholarly air: the…
Questions & Answers on Character and Ethics
View all Q&A →Knowing oneself through returning to the Dīn
My student, Abu Hanifah Dilawar, forwarded to me the following question: Assalāmu ʿalaykum wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuhu, Shaykh. This is a question from a Bangladeshi reader of the Bangla Facebook page who regularly reads your articles. They wrote: “I could…
“A bedding for a man, a bedding for his wife, a third for a guest, and the fourth is for the shayṭān”
Sunan Abi Dawud, Hadith 4142, narrated by Jabir ibn ‘Abdullah. The hadith says: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned bedding and said: “There should be bedding for a man, bedding for his wife, and a…
Balancing birr, patience, and self-protection
My student Dr Areeg asked me the following question: Assalamu alaykum Shaykh Akram, Islam places great emphasis on maintaining family ties and showing birr al-walidayn. However, I struggle to understand how this can be reconciled with situations involving abusive parents,…