Insha Allah (God willing), there is going to be a lot on this page. At the moment though, this is the least developed part of the web site. In the future, look for articles on the equality of humans, the importance of charity, and the message of brotherhood. For now though, I'm starting by developing some resources for and about Muslim women. Oh, and just for fun, check out what Yusuf Islam (formerly Cat Stevens) is up to, in the section on Islamic music!

The picture which is loading on your left is from Muslim Spain. It is very nice, but will take a long time to load. If you don't want to wait, just head on down to see what's below.

Are all Muslims misogynist? Are all Muslim women uneducated and oppressed by their domineering male relatives? Do they all secretly wish to abandon their people and embrace the West? I don't believe that men can convince non Muslim women about this, so I hope to include testimonies of Muslim women about how they see their faith. The first three articles below are written by women, the first a non-Muslim, the second a born Muslim, and the third a convert to Islam.

• Shattering Illusions: Western Conceptions of Muslim Women. By prize-winning American Muslimah (Muslim woman) Saimah Ashraf.

• Islamic Traditions and the Feminist Movement: Confrontation or Cooperation? This article by Dr Lois Lamya al Faruqi, an American convert, describes some of the reasons Western feminism is viewed suspiciously by many Muslim women.


• Women in Islam versus Women in the Judaeo-Christian Tradition: The Myth & the Reality. This paper, written by Dr. Sherif Abdel Azeem, analyses the scriptures of the Old Testament, the New Testament, and the Quran, to determine the position of women in the three great monotheistic traditions. What you find might unsettle a few prejudices.

For some people this may seem like a contradiction in terms, but in reality music has enjoyed a place in nearly all Islamic societies. The reason music is looked on suspiciously by some conservative Muslims is that it can distract from the worship of God. However, nearly all agree that the sound of the human voice accompanied by percussion is permitted. This type of music, Nasheed, is famous throughout the Muslim world and has many particular and varied forms. Insha Allah, this site will provide links to sites with this kind of music on the web. Please post me your url if you have a site with this kind of music on it.

• British Nasheed: Remember Cat Stevens? Well (in case you haven't heard), he converted to Islam, and has been making music again! To be honest, it's not all everyone's cup of tea. Anyway, check out "God is the light" and "Selawat", his two songs with the Malaysian group, Raihan. They're excellent. "Turn to Allah" and the songs on the album "The Life of the Last Prophet" are also good. By the way, "The Life of the Last Prophet" is an excellent (spoken) introduction to the Messenger of God, Muhammad.


• The artist formerly known as Dr. Jihad! & the Intellectual Muslim Guerrillas. Alternative music with guitars, synthesizers and various other sounds! Not really my cup of tea musically but I like some of the lyrics. Jeremiah - their alter-ego felt compelled to change their name after Sept 11th [not sure I agree with him but anyway], he has an interesting website.


• David Rovic. This guy is not a Muslim, but I like some of his songs. Anti-war and topical. There's a song about what happened in Jenin that will break your heart, and a great line "when the fat-cats in their mansions say that you don't want peace, do you wonder what they mean?" Kind of puts things in perspective really