Dr. Pasha's Arabic Language and Cultural Immersion Sessions -- Lesson 36 --
And Some Instructions and Assignments
First, a Follow-Up
- Revolution, Not Class: What I do is not a Class, it is a Revolution. For, that is what I am into: Revolutions. Anything less is not worth the bother to me. Nothing less is acceptable.
Revolution in thought, belief and behavior.
And Revolution in Culture.
At the level of individuals, groups, nations and societies.
For, that is what Islam is all about: a total and most wonderful transformation of individuals and societies from the Darkness and Curse of Jaahiliyyat (State of Pre-Islam: the condition people are in prior to their discovering Islam) into the blessings and light of God Almighty's Guidance (State of Islam: when people discover and embrace Islam as God's very special gift to his creation).
But when you mention Revolutions, people think mostly blood and mayhem. But real Revolutions are born in people's mind, and then they saturate the souls of individuals and the Psyche and Zeitgeist of societies, cultures and times.
Just ponder this Revolutionary Declaration of Human Liberty and Independence by Thomas Jefferson, more sweeping, global and forceful than the Declaration of Independence that he crafted for America.
"I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility to
every form of Tyranny over the mind of man."
For, the Revolution of the Mind and the Spirit has primacy over all Physical Revolutions.
- And, in fact, by the Grace of Almighty God, this is our Third Revolution.
Our First Revolution was to train generations of Native English Speakers in the West to read the Qur'an correctly and with fluency.
- And our Second Revolution was when we did away with extended Qur'an commentaries and enabled participants to understand the Qur'an based on simple and direct Linguistic Comprehension. Through this method, Allah enabled us to see the Miracles of the Qur'an with our own sinful mortal eyes.
So, it is important for all of us in our sessions to understand that we are not running a "class" here, we are working for a Revolution.
- As a result, what we do is a Working Session, and not Babysitting. And a Working Session is one in which everybody works -- and very, very hard.
Muslims have been Pavloved into being Babysat -- for hours on end -- while they sit still or doze off while the Learned Ones hold forth. At the end of the day, as the saying goes, the Learning Curve remains as flat as it was at the beginning. And the condition of the Muslim Ummah goes from bad to worse.
- That is why in our efforts -- meaning whatever we do -- we drive with our eyes fixed on the Results. For, that is what Revolutions are about: they are about Results.
- And the Results we want are encapsulated in one simple area of focus: Recruiting and Training People to Work for Allah. For, that is what Islam is all about: Working for Allah.
As Allah says in the Qur'an, that was the only reason Allah created human beings -- and Jinn too: to work for him.
Here are the words of the Qur'an:
Wa Maa Khalaqtul Jinna wal Insa Illa Li-Ya'budoon.
Some Instructions
- Read every Instruction provided thus far: LETTER BY LETTER. AND MULTIPLE TIMES.
- Follow all Instructions: TO THE LETTER. Do not skim and do not skip steps.
- When doing things in our sessions, STAY WITH ME LETTER BY LETTER. Do not second guess; do not jump ahead; do not lag behind.
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When Speaking, speak SIMPLY, DIRECTLY AND WITHOUT PREVARICATION. For, that is Islam.
Speak like an arrow. For, that is your Model of Islamic Communication.
- When Communicating, cut out all excess words. Eliminate all filler expressions. Simple and direct, does it best.
And Now, an Assignment or Two
- Read Surah Al-Ikhlas several times. CONSIDER EVERY WORD and its meaning, OVER AND OVER.
- Surah Al-Ikhlas is your Model of How to Communicate, in general, and as a Muslim.
After Allah enabled me to do a most rigorous Ph.D. in Communication, from one of the most demanding universities in the world, Allah's Book in general, and Surah Al-Ikhlas in particular, taught me how to communicate as a human being, as a scholar, as a professional, as a university teacher -- and as a Muslim.
It is all in there: in Surah Al-Ikhlas.
- Master the following Verb Forms and Formats -- Past Tense and Present and Future Tense. These are Verb Meters if you want to call them that. Recite and Memorize them.
You need fit all other Three-Letter Verbs into one of these forms, formats, patterns and meters.
a – Kataba-Yaktubu, fathah-dammah;
b – Daraba-Yadribu, fathah-kasrah;
c – Fataha-Yaftahu, fathah-fathah;
d – Fahima-Yafhamu, kasra-fathah;
e – Kabura-Yakburu, dammah-dammah;
f – Hasiba-Yahsibu, kasrah-kasrah.
A General Comment
Understand full well that your heart is not big enough to contain you -- Your Nafs that is -- and your God, both at the same time. So, you will have to let one go. Which one to let go, that is your own personal decision.
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