Mawlana Bilal Ali Ansari Academic Advisor and Liaison for the Department of Hadith Studies at Darul Qasim Walking through Darul Qasim’s gate of knowledge is an act of community re-engagement. It is a re-presentation of the Islamic intellectual tradition by students and faculty who see their learning and teaching as not only transformative on an individual level, but also on...
Reflection delivered on April 16th, 2022 “We must not lose hope from Allah’s ﷻ Raḥmah for the Ummah. The greatest disease in the Ummah is pessimism, losing hope. Losing hope in yourself, losing hope in the people around you, losing hope in the Ummah of Muhammad ﷺ.” On this night of Ramaḍān, Shaykh Amin reminds us that we must guard...
Reflection delivered on April 15th, 2022 “Maghfirah is when Allah ﷻ envelopes you with His ﷻ raḥmah in such a way that no one will ever detect any sin on you…even you.” In these reflections, Shaykh Amin reminds us of the importance of the second 10 days of Ramaḍān, the days of Maghfirah. The Prophet ﷺ taught us to seek...
In 2020, Aala Al-Akhfash, a first year student in the Intermediate Program, graduated from a highschool in Knoxville, Tennessee as the pandemic was at its peak. Classes came to a standstill, but she was fortunate enough to be able to graduate. She recalls “it was a weird stopping point”, but little did she realize her quest for more knowledge was...
About twenty years ago, Dr. Choukri Heddouchi, at the time a doctoral student at the University of Chicago, decided to attend an on-campus Tafsīr session of Shaykh Amin’s. This was part of a series for Muslim students. Since highschool, Dr. Heddouchi has had a special interest in the topic. He recollects, at the time, he was independently studying the Tafsīr...
Like many students at Darul Qasim, Hussam Bteibet, 3rd year student in the Intermediate Program, balances both his professional career with his quest for more knowledge. Hussam received his bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from Cleveland State University in 2016. He is currently working as a cybersecurity engineer for a software company. How is he able to give time to...
Reflection delivered on April 8th, 2022 In this Friday reflection, Shaykh Amin speaks about the month of Ramaḍān as one in which the distribution of Allah’s ﷻ raḥmah (Divine Mercy) is not only huge, but also ever-present. His ﷻ mercy becomes very close to those who fast and do good. The “whole of Ramaḍān gives us access to the heavens, any...
Reflection delivered after Tarāwīh on the 9th of Ramaḍān In this reflection, Shaykh Amin reminds us that these first ten days of Ramaḍān are the days of Raḥmah (Divine mercy). “All that exists has a shade of Allah’s ﷻ Raḥmah.” This is how we understand Allah’s ﷻ generosity and magnanimity, as all-encompassing. The “fact that a thing exists is only...
Bushra Alvi, 4th year student in the Intermediate Program, glances back at the physical gates that make up the back wall of Darul Qasim’s library. Students and faculty spent countless hours here studying traditional and contemporary Islamic texts. She is asked to reflect on how walking through the symbolic gate of knowledge, that is Darul Qasim, has transformed her. Instantly...
“I see Darul Qasim as being a place that has the potential not just to transform individuals, but also society as a whole.[…] Because what we are trying to do here is […] not just teach students the bare bones, dry fiqh […] and this is what you believe… and things like that. But getting them to think about Islam...
On the first night of Ramaḍān, Shaykh Amin shared some post-tarāwīḥ reflections on the immense reward that is accessible to all during this blessed month. He reminded all who were present that Allah ﷻ is the Most Generous Being, al-Karīm, and that He ﷻ loves us to ask Him ﷻ to fulfill our needs. This month should be entered by...
“For me, Darul Qasim, more than any other institution, was able to create a dialogue with the living and a dialogue with those that are dead.” Mawlana Saaleh Baseer, a second-year Ifta student, reflects here on Darul Qasim’s illuminating and engaging approach to the acquisition of academic knowledge. When walking through this gate of knowledge there is a realization that...
