Arabic Typing Tutor for Mac

If you google "Arabic Typing Trainer/tutor/program" you'll get tons of results for PC's, but what about us mac users? Where's our arabic typing program? Unfortunately, I don't know. What I do know, is that there is a very VERY simple typing tutor that accepts text files as inputs and will allow you to use any keyboard layout.


ATypeTrainer4Mac (http://homepage.mac.com/typetrainer4mac/Menu1.html) comes pre-installed with a variety of text files of different languages, and includes one with arabic. This initial file is quite handy for learning where the keys are and will cover everything from home row up to phonetics and numbers. Once you've got the hang of finding all they keys, you can download an arabic dictionary file and import it (you'll have to look around for one; what you want is a text file listing words in arabic). I actually find this website: http://www.lorem-ipsum.info/generator3 which will generate random arabic words that you can copy and paste or download as a text file.
You can also get it to bring words from an open window in Safari, Firefox, Mail, or Opera!

English Quran MP3

Let's face it, there's no substitution for the Arabic Quran. All translated versions are recognized as "interpretations" or "summarizations" because there are some words in arabic that don't have english equivalents, but rather represent ideas. Unfortunately, at least for me, 90% of the Arabic Quran is...well...foreign; I can't understand it, so listening to Quran in Arabic doesn't do me much good (unless I'm trying to memorize something in which case it's quite handy because it gives me the rhythm to recite to, making it easier to memorize). What I want now though, is a way to listen to the meaning of the Quran, so I can have some grasp of the content, as opposed to the words as I've been doing. 

A quick google search later and I found this:

http://www.internetmosque.net/quran/english_quran/quran_all_listen.htm

All 114 Surahs (and an end prayer too!) in English only as translated by Pickthal, with a very nice narrator.

Now, my gripe with Pickthal is that he uses old english (thee, thy, thou, hast, etc.) which I'm not particularly fond of. Fortunately, there's this one:

http://www.internetmosque.net/quran/quraneng/listen_only.htm

Which uses Malik's interpretation (i.e you, your, have, etc.). Unfortunately, the recitation is done by a guy called J.D Hall who just doesn't have as nice a voice as the Pickthal translation guy. 

The choice is up to you though, take whichever you like. Remember, it IS just an interpretation and not a substitute for learning (in every sense of the word) the Quran in arabic. 

*****If you want to download the files, I recommend opening the pages in Firefox and using the "Downthemall" add on (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/201/). For just the Quran, add "translated" to the filter. :) 

An Interesting Marriage Website

Don't look at me like that! I'm 23, lonely as a bump on a log, and there's nothing I can do about it so I read marriage articles: they give me the warm fuzzies. ANYWAY. Here's a nice one:

Zawaj.com

You can go ahead and skip the eharmony part of it and go straight to the articles:

http://www.zawaj.com/category/islamic-marriage-articles/

They talk about some interesting issues and bring up some good points while trying to accept that times have changed just a little bit, especially with respect to women. 

Here's something they said to ask each other that I thought was particularly interesting:

"What can I do to make you happy?"

But the context they're saying to use it in, is not when things are going swimmingly and you two are all over each other, no. They say to ask this when you're going through a rough patch, at which time I'm willing to bet at LEAST 90% of you would never swallow their pride and ask such a thing. So I say to the asker: just do it, and be prepared for anything; humiliation, zany requests, nit-picking. Seriously, check your pride (and tongue) at the door and ask it while being prepared to follow through, no retaliation, no counter-arguments, etc. Kapeesh? Now, to the asked: the asker is currently VERY VULNERABLE. DON'T MAKE THE SITUATION WORSE. Think long and hard about what reasonable thing they can do to make you happy, and try to make it easy for them, but be honest. Then ask them the same. 

Anyway, take a look, have a browse, maybe you'll find something helpful! 

A Nice Ayat (60:8)

(60:8) Allah does not forbid you to deal justly and kindly with those who fought not against you on account of religion nor drove you out of your homes. Verily, Allah loves those who deal with equity.


I like this because there are many ayat that tell us not to take the nonbelievers as friends/helpers/protectors, etc and to treat them harshly and things like this that can EASILY be taken OUT OF CONTEXT and warped to make us out to be an awful bunch. This simple little ayat says that as long as they're not fighting with us, or have pushed us out of your homes, we should be nice and treat them fairly (i.e keep the peace). 

The Dark Ages

This is an interesting little video that's been flying around the internet. It's a little introduction to Muslim contributions in the fields of science and medicine during the dark ages, but done as a short film.

فيلم رائع من الغرب لأول مرة.flv

Zakat Al-Fitr

Who must pay it:


Okay, so, Islamic fundamental fail on me! Apparently there's a Zakat due at the end of Ramadan called "Zakat Al-Fitr" and it is obligatory on every Muslim, young and old, male and female, free and slave who possesses one sa' (about 3kg) (about 5.5 pounds according to islamicity.com) of dates or barely which is not needed as a basic food for himself or his family for the duration of one day and night. It's  purpose is to purify one who fasts from any indecent act or speech and to help the poor and needy. Every free muslim must pay it for himself, his wife, children and servants. (All from Fiqh us-Sunnah).

This kind of explains the "Zakat Al-Fitr" box that was always outside the soccer field (yes, we do Eid Prayer in an indoor soccer field. We did it in a tennis court once, but that was a bit of a disaster.) on eid prayer.

When to pay it:

So, this little tax is accepted as Zakah for anyone paying it before the Eid Salah (again, that explains the box) and as Sadaqah for anyone paying it after, but it must be paid. If you don't pay it, the scholars agree that it becomes a debt that you must pay, and in fact they go on to say delaying it is similar to delaying a prayer. DON'T DO IT, IT WON'T END WELL. Fortunately, it is permissible to pay this Zakat a day or two before eid, but the scholars differ as to earlier payments:

Abu Hanifah: you can pay before Ramadan
Ash-Shaf'i: at the beginning of Ramadan
Malik and Ahmad: Only a day or two before Eid.

How much to pay:


The amount to be paid is one sa' (about 3 kg, or 5.5 pounds) of dates, barely, rice, wheat or things like this. Fortunately, the Hanafi school allows the donation of money instead. How much money? Well, I imagine it would be enough to pay for the required amount of foodstuffs previously mentioned, but I'm sure it wouldn't hurt to add a dollar or two just to be safe. ;)

Fate and Predestiny

Probably the single most confusing concept in Islam is that of fate and predestiny. Muslims frequently hear and read that our lives, and everything, even where we end up after we die is predetermined. This just baffles the heck out of most of us though because if that's the case, then where is justice? Why bother doing good deeds at all? Why bother doing anything?

When I was in the middle east I was talking with a cousin of mine and he was telling me a story about how one of his professors used the concept of dimensions to explain the concept of God. Expanding upon this in my head, I think I finally managed to explain all this fate and predestiny stuff, so here goes. 

DISCLAIMER

THE FOLLOWING IS WHAT I USE TO CONTENT MYSELF. IT MAY BE COMPLETELY WRONG AND IS A RESULT OF MY OWN THINKING.

The religious texts say that everything we do, etc is fate. The way I see it is that, yes it is fate, but it does not control us, we are not forced to follow it but we do. If you imagine our lives as a film, God can scroll through the film. He knows every part, the beginning, middle and end. It's part of His "All-Knowing"-ness. So when it's said "What is written", it's like God went through our film and simply wrote out everything we are going to do. The key point is that the film came first (so to speak): we decide our actions and decisions but God already knows them. It's like a friend who's already watched a movie telling you what's going to happen. He knows how the movie ends, and what happens to the main character, but that doesn't actually affect the main characters actions. 

Now, to explain predestiny. As I imagine it, we are on game boards, or at the centre of a maze constantly moving towards the edge. The walls of the maze are, for lack of a better word, opportunities and events. These choices and opportunities are built into the game board or maze and are predetermined: they are "factory made". It is our free will that allows us to choose which opportunities we take and how we respond to events. Some people's mazes will be simple, with few difficult events and opportunities, while other's will be harder, but everyone has the ability to choose their own paths. At the end of the maze, the edges of the board is death and beyond that half the board is surrounded by Paradise, while the other by Hell. 

So, to summarize my understanding/explanation. We have free will, but a God-made maze. We have to make the right choices at the events and opportunities God built into our mazes. God, being Master of Time and All-Knowing, knows what path and decisions and actions we will take and make, and has written it down, but this does not control us, it's simply an outline of what we are going to do anyway. 

I hope that explanation helps and isn't totally blasphemous.