Thursday, May 10, 2012

Muslimahs in Sports: An Article

Salaam alaikum wa rahmat Allah wa barakatuh everyone!  Insh'Allah you're all well and in the best of health and the highest of iman.  I came across this article on Muslim women participating in athletics, specifically competing in the Olympics.  Read it HERE.

The article brought up a very interesting topic...veiled athletes vs. non-veiled athletes.  I personally think that it's a shame, though it's not very surprising, that people/the media are so focused on what women are wearing and their physical appearance rather than their athletic accomplishments.  I find it sad that clerics in Algeria called Hassiba Boulmerka "anti-Islam", and that she received death threats simply because she chose to compete in a traditional track suit (yes, it's not exactly good hijab for a woman...or even a MAN for that matter, to wear track shorts...but sheesh, that doesn't automatically mean that she's not Muslim, or that she's AGAINST Islam, subhan'Allah...although I myself wear large headscarves and abayas, I'm so sick and tired of people making assumptions like this about sisters who chose not to cover *rant*).  I also find it sad that the American fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad probably gets far more questions about wearing the hijab than she does about her training regimen, etc.

On another note...I'm thrilled that at each Olympics there are increasing numbers of veiled Muslimah athletes...I really think they should serve as an inspiration for all of us Muslimahs to be active and take care of the bodies that Allah(swt) gave us.  There is a lot of cultural (notice I said CULTURAL, not religious) pressure for Muslim women not to participate in sports or an active lifestyle as it's not "modest" for us to do so.  This kind of attitude only hurts Muslim women, because it severely limits us with what we can do in order to keep our bodies healthy.  I personally do not see why there is any reason why a veiled Muslimah cannot participate in sports while still maintaining her modesty.  What do you think?

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

A Great FEMALE Lecturer, Mash'Allah!

Salaam alaikum wa rahmat Allah wa barakatuh everyone, insh'Allah everyone is well and in the best of health and the highest of iman. It is so rare to come across female Muslim lecturer, never mind one who is good, but I've recently discovered sister Yasmin Mogahed, and mash'Allah I really enjoy listening to her. She organizes her thoughts and conveys her message in a very approachable manner. I really wish there were more female lecturers out there, as it's so refreshing to listen to a learned sister for a change. Some of the comments made by men on videos of her lectures though...subhan'Allah. I swear there are some brothers out there who truly believe that the world would be a better place if women didn't exist, astighfirallah. May Allah(swt) reward sister Yasmin for her efforts, and may He(swt) increase all of our knowledge, ameen!

Thursday, April 12, 2012

An Islamic Gay Marriage?!?

Salaam alaikum wa rahmat Allah wa barakatuh everyone, insh'Allah you're all in the best of health and the highest of iman. So, I came across this article yesterday, and the entire thing just seemed to be one HUGE oxymoron, and so many levels of wrong. Read it HERE and tell me what you think.


Subhan'Allah, I don't have anything against people who identify themselves as homosexual as people, but Allah(swt) has clearly stated in the Qur'an that marriage is between a male and a female, not a man and a man or a woman and a woman, and that the act of sodomy is sinful. How then can this imam marry these two men "according to sharia law," let alone condone their relationship as being halal?!? May Allah(swt) guide us all, ameen!

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

A-Z Tag

Salaam alaikum everyone, long time, no write, yes? I bet you're all used to it by now though...

Anyways, I thought I would make another post just because it's been a while. I saw this tag over at sister Yara's blog (go check her out if you haven't already...mash'Allah I love her blog, and her YouTube channel!) and thought I'd give it a go...

Age: 22

Bed Size: Almost a Queen...the mattress sizing here is so weird...

Chore you Hate: It has to be a tie between cleaning the dishes and mopping the floor.

Dogs: I love chows...they look like giant teddy bears :)

Essential start of your day: Something I've been trying to make an essential start of my day would be praying fajr on time. Unfortunately, I'm a bad fajr riser, astighfirallah, but I try :( As of right now, I would have to say kissing my hubby goodbye before he goes off to work.

Favourite Colour: purple

Gold or Silver: I prefer silver

Height: just under 5'5", or 164cm if you want to get exact

Instruments I play: I used to play the cello in elementary school. I gave it up to take more ballet lessons (I was very serious about classical ballet).

Job Title: Muslimah and a house wife...and soon to be...MOMMY insh'Allah :D

Kids: my little boy is due to make his appearance in JULY insh'Allah...I can't wait to meet him!!

Live: Casablanca, Morocco

Mum's name: I don't think she'd appreciate me disclosing her name here, so I'll just say "Mom" or "Mommy"...it depends, I call her both

Nickname: Everyone calls me Ayah here, my husband also has an affectionate name that only he uses with me, but I won't say what it is.

Pet Peeve: when people chew with their mouths open...or when they chomp on their gum obnoxiously...it drives me up the wall!

Quote from a movie: I like movies, but I'm not that into movie quotes.

Right or left handed: Righty

Siblings: one sister, one brother

Time you wake up: it varies...sometimes I'm up at 7:30am for good, and sometimes I just wake up to say goodbye to my husband and continue sleeping until 10 am ish. Most mornings I am up by 11. Yeah...that's all gonna change soon XD

Underwear: umm, I wear it?

Vegetables you dislike: I'm not too fond of steamed zucchini, but I'll still eat it. I'm also not a huge fan of raw tomatoes (even though they're technically a fruit, not a vegetable)...I can't eat them by themselves, they have to be mixed into a salad with some sort of dressing, or on a sandwich. I used to not eat them period.

What makes you run late: if I'm having a bad hijab day...that always makes me run late

X-rays you've had done: my teeth, my chest, my left knee, my right wrist...I've never broken a bone though, alhamdolillah

Yummy food you make: most of what I make is at least edible...but I make really good home-made mashed potatoes from scratch, and I make great spaghetti sauce from scratch too...I'm still getting better at Moroccan cuisine, even though I have tagines down fairly well. If I'm following a recipe, it generally turns out well.

Zoo animal: I like penguins, but you usually find them at aquariums, not zoos. Emus are also pretty cool.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

One of My Favorite Lecturers

Salaam alaikum wa rahmat Allah wa barakatuh,

I love lectures by brother Nouman Ali Khan, and this one is no different. Take time to check out some of his other lectures as well.

Monday, February 13, 2012

Makeup and I...Why I Don't Wear It

Salaam alaikum wa rahmat Allah wa barakatuh everyone,

Insh'Allah this post finds you in the best of health and the highest of iman! So, yay, I finally have something semi-interesting to blog about :P

So...makeup...my personal thoughts. Honestly, I've never been a fan of it. I used to be a ballet dancer (I took lessons for 10 years!), and was on stage quite a bit, so I used to have to wear heavy stage makeup on a semi-regular basis. Perhaps this is why I don't like makeup so much...because let's face it, stage makeup feels icky on your face, and is actually REALLY scary when you're not on stage because it's so heavy. However, even when my friends would give me "makeovers" at sleepovers with much more normal makeup, I'd always end up washing my face off after 15 minutes.

Makeup is just not ME. It doesn't make me feel more beautiful or confident. In fact, it makes me feel like I'm hiding behind something. When I look at myself in the mirror when I have makeup on, the face staring back at me isn't my own. I've gotten a lot of remarks over the years about, "oh, if you actually had someone do your makeup correctly for you, or if you just put on a little foundation and lip gloss with some light eyeliner you'd LOVE it" or "you just don't like it because no one's done it for you correctly." I've tried that. I've had my makeup done for me countless times, even a couple times by professionals, and I STILL never like it. I just don't like makeup. Quite frankly, I think I look better without it on (my dad and my husband both agree on this, actually...alhamdolillah I'm very blessed to have men in my life who appreciate the face that Allah gave me).

So yeah, that is why I don't wear makeup...even at home around my husband. It also has to do with modesty, but I think that'll be another post for another day...

What are your personal views on makeup? Why do you like to wear it/not wear it?

Monday, January 30, 2012

My Takchita

Salaam alaikum wa rahmat Allah wa barakatuh everyone...

Yes, I know it's been a really long time since I've posted anything, but I haven't really felt that motivated to write about anything. Not too surprising though, is it? I do tend to be a very inconsistent blogger after all.

Anyways, to make up for the lack of posts I just wanted to share a few pictures of my takchita (a traditional Moroccan dress for women, reserved for parties and special occasions) that I wore for my husband's aunt A's wedding back in November. Mash'Allah she was a beautiful bride, and she actually kept her hijab ON for her wedding (a lot of women here take it off for some reason...) I'll post some pictures of her negaffa once I get a chance to go through them all insh'Allah.

In the meantime, enjoy the ones of yours truly haha :P


Sorry if it looks a bit strange...I had to crop the hubbster out of the photo XD


If you're a lady you can't go to a wedding without getting henna done, now can you?