Dr Muhammad Maroof Shah

Dialogue between Religious and Secular Sensibilities and Questioning Religionist-Liberal Divide From India to Turkey to Egypt religion has helped political parties win power. Religion is one of the key factors influencing outcome of elections in many officially secular states. Religion is driving number of big industries and priests/religious leaders continue to be king makers or influence much of power relations. Despite all this ours is characterized as a secular age and we have no choice of travelling backwards in time or imaging an isolated place in future where secularism hasn’t encroached. Let us note extent of secularization one has to engage with to remain. Influence of Secular Critiques of Religion We are all, willy nilly, secular in certain sense, in certain areas. Design of our cities, homes, roads, certain profanation of sacred spaces, worldwide domination of secularism in political constitutions, text books, academia, certain secularization of dress etc. are all with

Reading Philosophy as a Quest for Fascinating Life The key challenge and the question life asks from all of us – that religion, philosophy and art treat in their own, arguably complementary ways – is how to live well. Religions are doctrinal support systems for patterning life into an art of rituals for participation in the sacred time that mirrors a sort of eternity where hearts find rest or fulfillment/salvation. Art reconciles us to life by unearthing its beauty while goading us to its riches that we find irresistible. Philosophy provides cognitive resources for clarifying what we really want and living without illusions while appreciating our limits and interpreting our dreams and myths. It is to this last task that the slim but provocative and scintillating volume of aphorisms, apothegms and apologues Creative Obsession: Philosophical Life in Broad Daylight invites us. Forcing on us a soum (fast)/hard discipline of the mind with little regard for our fears and sentiments and

Asking Some Difficult Questions about Islam Following Iqbal, Fazlur Rahman has been arguably the last major philosopher of our subcontinent and like the former’s philosophical lectures, his works are largely unheard, and certainly unheeded. He has been one of the most brilliant minds who was deeply informed about traditional Islam’s most important languages, thinkers, history and general self understanding. It is shocking how little he has been read or understood or engaged with by Ulama whose key premises he interrogated. His great works have been and could be criticized on this or that point, but that does not mean his many an insight and contribution could be ignored. We can’t proceed to solve certain problems today for the Muslim world, especially in the subcontinent, without taking note of Fazlur Rahman. He was indeed fazl of Rahman and so far we have been absent to receive the treasure he uncovered. Today we take note of some of his questions he has raised regarding Quran ex

Why Neo-Salafi and other Modernist Critiques of Sufism aren’t convincing? Some people can’t be satisfied with post-dated cheques or mere promises of future rewards. They can’t afford to wait after pledging to marry to postpone consummation to some future time or another life; they want immediate consummation. They can’t afford to just gaze through a veil on the object of their love and want to take their love affair with God seriously and live God, breathe God and not just talk about God. They want to witness first hand, on their own authority, what others are content to believe on other’s authority. They take the notion of heaven so seriously that they claim they have keys of it here and now and reside therein. These people don’t believe in being just good/decent Muslims but strive to be the best Muslims. They can’t afford compromise of any kind and seek to pursue perfection in every sphere. They live and die for beauty. They aren’t content to be mere slaves but seek audience of t