Arrogance. The daddy of all sins, the characteristic found in history's most villainous beings, the reason behind the downfall of Satan and the root of all spiritual sicknesses. It is also the most despicable trait found in man. No one likes an arrogant person. We dislike those individuals who look down at others, those who think they are superior to others in terms of looks, intelligence, status or piety, those who are convinced that they are right whilst everyone else is wrong, those who can not speak without praising themselves, those who belittle or talk down to others and have huge egos. Since we strongly detest this trait, it makes sense that we scrutinise our own characters and check whether or not we possess the very same thing that we can't stand in others.

In our society keeping quiet or being an introvert are characteristics that are looked down upon. This is because our society only values what is apparent; thus the self-effacing individuals who refrain from speaking unnecessarily are known as the ones who are insecure and lacking in self-confidence, whilst the long-winded individuals are deemed as being clever, witty and successful.

This is ironic, as this mentality was not shared by our pious predecessors, according to Hadrat Ali (ra) "when intelligence is complete speech becomes rare". Traditionally it has also been said that one should "be sure of the stupidity of a man if he speaks too much".

By Alveena Salim

Culture, what exactly is it? Well even though you might think it's got nothing to do with you; you are in fact surrounded by culture all the time – be it the culture of your parents/grandparents or the western 'British' culture.

Culture is the outward expressions of your values, beliefs, lifestyle etc. So from that point of view if culture is just basically your way of doing things then Islam can be your culture right? Yep too right it can and so it should be!

Can We Be "Too" Into It?

We live in a society in which Western values dictate how we should live our lives. These external pressures, coupled with the inclination towards their desires, makes it increasingly difficult for people to practice their religion.

To become attached to Allah (swa) one must become detached from the world. That way even though our work may be on Earth, our hearts should always remain with our Lord.

Then why do we refer to those individuals who may spend all their time in the mosque and are not interested in the "normal" activities that "normal people" find pleasure in as "extremists", "religious fanatics" or "too much into it"?

Written by Sajid Iqbal

“Oppression”

“They have to walk 10 steps behind their husband”

“They can’t even work”

Yeah yeah, heard it all before and probably a lot more. What is it with people thinking Islam treats women as second class citizens? Don’t tell me, you sometimes wonder that too? Well STOP THERE, because you’ll be surprised just how many rights women are given in Islam. Not Convinced ? Read on ! You will soon realise that its not the Spice Girls who introduced 'Girl Power' but it was Islam.

Next time you think Islam oppresses women, a woman is worth half a man and that Islam treats them like second class citizens then never forget this:

By Irfan Jalil and Sajid Iqbal

You're probably thinking what the heck has politics got to do with Islam? I know, you're thinking Islam is a religion and has nowt to do with politics. You've always been told Islam is about worship, prayer, fasting, obeying God, being good and other nice and fluffy things.

Well you know what, if that's your understanding of Islam then you're in for the shock of your life.

By Sajid Iqbal

After the terrible terrorist attacks in London, everyone is pointing the finger at Islam and Muslims. So does Islam promote violence? Does Islam support terrorism? Is Islam a religion of extremists and fanatics?

The following traditions of Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace, will clarify that Islam is a faith that promotes peace and harmony and one that is against violence:

‘A perfect Muslim is one from whose tongue and hands mankind is safe.’

The London terror attacks were a nasty piece of work by sick, pathetic, blood-sucking idiots. These attacks were a massive crime against humanity. This was a job carried out by crackpots who have no value for human life.

They wanted to kill anyone and everyone- black, white, brown, pink, Muslim, Jew, Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Atheist. These kind of people, and those behind them, need to be caught and punished big time!

So ‘who-dunnit’ is what everyone wants to know. The favourites are always Al-Qaeeda whether it was them or not. It seems that British Muslims were behind these terrorist attacks. And you know what that means don’t ya? Islam and EVERY SINGLE Muslim is put on trial.