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The Archetypal Adam With No Eve

This lectures addresses issues from human divinity to gender primacy and the intriguing shadows of the self in the context of the Narratives of Creation and that of The Garden of Eden. It is an attempt to clarify and emphasize the distinction between the Qur'anic Narratives and those of the Judeo-Christian traditions. The lecture was presented at the IMAN Peace Center in Los Angeles on Feburary 16th, 2014.

Due to time constraints I wasn’t able to elaborate on Adam’s androgyny. In the Narrative of Creation the androgyny of Adam implies having both masculine and feminine qualities as God created humanity from a single living entity—soul. Otherwise we cannot account for the feminine soul. Just as modern psychology tells us that both men and women have both masculine and feminine qualities in different proportions. This should not be confused with the male and female gender. The former refers to their psycho-spiritual nature whereas the later describes their physical difference. When with the splitting of Adam occurs in the Garden of Eden, a notion analogous to the splitting of first humans by Zeus in the Greek Mythology, the gender difference—a prerequisite for reproduction—manifests which is implied by their awareness of their nakedness.

An Archetypal Adam with No Eve is also the topic of the Mythosophia Series, Lecture 4, that can be heard in the Audio Section below.

In the Shadow of Rumi

Unveiling a poetic perspective in a cross-cultural milieu presents a perspective on the relevance of Sufi self-actualization techniques in modern therapy, concentrating on the overlapping descriptives of ego and the nafs in Easter and Western thought. The presentation is followed by a discussion and debate on the subject by scholars and spiritual and healthcare professionals. Presented at the Creative Community at Venice Love Shack (Yoga Hall) on Sunday February 23, 2014.

Stanizai -- Treasures of Islamic Mysticism

Poetic sampling of literary treasures in Islamic Mysticism. Unearthing the Literary Treasures of Islamic Mysticism is a poetic sampling of literary treasures in Islamic Mysticism that explains certain principles in Sufism covering such concepts as Spiritual Poetry, Islamic Mysticism, Rumi, Ibn Arabi, Hallaj, Hafiz, Baydil, Rahman Baba, and Islamic thought. The ideas and ideals of great Sufi thinkers are presented through their colorful of poetry beyond rhyme and reason as a lecture to the Academy of Islamic Thought in Los Angeles, California - December 11, 2011.

The Golden Age of Al-Andalus

This three-part presentation is an historical overview of Al-Andalus that discusses three dimensions of life in Muslim Spain: Part I: From Civilizational Glory to Theocratic Tyranny - Eight centuries of inclusivity and religious pluralism. Part II: Spain’s Culture of Coexistence in the Second Millennia - The cradle of flourishing arts and sciences through cultural convergence. Part III: When East was West – Islam’s Rising Peripheries - The compatibility of reason and revelation in the promotion of science, philosophy, and spiritualism.

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Analysis of War, Politics, and Society

Objectivity in political analysis is a relativity that spins on the orbit of its own reality. Not just in what meaning is encoded in the syntax, but also in what is read into the written word. In addition, identifiable traits of an analyst’s identity such as name, gender, ethnicity, or ideology may further subject his/her objectivity to the reader’s inherent prejudices and projections. In the absence of such immunity, it is hoped that the application of scientific methodology would create a buffer against skewed and slanted perspectives.

In respect to analyzing the crisis of the polity and people of Afghanistan--the focus of most of these analyses--this is particularly critical where often a balanced perspective is lost between heightened tensions and lowered sensitivities to ethno-linguistic peculiarities. A writer’s identity is often read through dark lenses before his/her ideas are given the light of day to enter the realm of consideration and comprehension. Some of this is to be expected from a people whose political psyche is scarred by decades of military invasions, foreign occupations, ideological indoctrinations, ethnic cleansings and civil strife. We must strive then in adherence to an impartiality that is humanly possible and an objectivity that doesn’t water down the colors that paint on the canvas of human soul.

Robbing the Arab Spring of Political Legitimacy

The latest wave of technological advancement raised hopes that the Arab street would finally be able to bypass the dictates of the un-authoritative and venture into the open spaces of popular democracy. The expectation was that popular networking media would empower the disenfranchised enabling the grassroots to evolve into a viable democratic system.

When the rumbling roar of revolutions signaled a region-wide power-shift, the West declared Arab dictatorships too indispensible to fail. The ‘holy cow’ of democracy was gored by the empire that struck back with vengeance rendering the revolutions irrelevant and their legitimacy heisted. The revolutions of the Arab Spring were derailed to guarantee the re-establishment of guarantors of Western ‘interests’ and to prevent any popular indigenous movement from gaining power on their own terms lest through them Islamic movements gain ideological traction and legitimacy. Thus, the Arab revolutions, if they succeeded at all, are re-cloaked status quo ante defined by their 360-degree turns.

The unfolding of events show that the birthing pains have not delivered healthy and functioning democracies as Western ‘interests’ have trumped the interests of the people who are willing to die for a meaningful change. Genuine efforts to attain political modernity in the Arab world have been put on hold for now with their prospects mired in the inevitably of political instability, ethno-sectarian tensions, stalled democratic reforms, and a breakdown in constructive political discourse. In due course, the pundits, without reading the pulse of the Muslim society or listening to the thumping of its heartbeat, will conveniently blame these miseries on the incompatibility of Islam and democracy and/or Muslims and modernity.