Afghan "Withdrawal' Anniversary

It falls to the Jamaat-i-Islami of Pakistan to remind us (via Facebook, in my case) that today is the 132nd (they say 124th, counting from 1888) Anniversary of the Battle of Maiwand.

This was the battle that led to the Superpower of the 19th Century withdrawing from Afghanistan.

(For a graphic illustrating "Withdrawal Campaigns", see earlier post and a graphical compilation at: http://blog.ifaqeer.com/2010/12/afghan-exit-strategy-over-last-few.html.)

What Submission?

One keeps hearing that "Islam" means submission. That a Muslim is one who has submitted.

That's not my definition; for the last few years my definition had evolved from the patriarchal, hierarchical, top-down idea of submission to one of being at peace with, at one with, or just "with". For that is the literal translation of the word:

Just as Ma-Barak (or "Mubarak", as we say in Urdu in South Asia) means "with blessing"; one full of blessing; not "submitted and kowtowing to blessing", Ma-Salaam (and thus Muslim) says to me to be with Peace; to be one who has Peace. The semitic root S-L-M is also the root of "Musallam" which, unless I know wrong, means "to be complete"; "to be whole".

Thus a Muslim should be one who has at least declared an intention to be one with Peace, with The One, The Whole, The Unity (and thus one who believes in Tawheed).

What submission?

An Intellectual Map of Shāh Walīullah [d. 1176/1763] and Major Figures of Contemporary Islam

Here's a very important analytical work. (Click on the map to go to the blog post about it.)

Saving Lives, India and Global Leadership

Of late, particularly, I have been a strong critic of the Indian government, in particular, and the little-minded, juvenile moves they've been up to. But this. THIS is the kind of global leadership India, as one the largest countries in the world, should be providing. Kudos and congratulations to all Indians.

India Overrules Bayer, Allowing Generic Drug

www.nytimes.com

In granting the nation’s first compulsory license of a patented drug, the government said a generic drug company can now sell the cancer pill for 3 percent of the price Bayer charges.

On the Passing of Encyclopedia Britannica

Yes, the Encyclopedia Britannica will be missed by us old farts. And being from a family of bibliophiles and trivia nerds, the memories of any tree-based encyclopedia are warm and fuzzy. So let's savor them today.

But let's not despair. For the next generation has an alternative; the Wikipedia, where they receive—and participate in presenting—a more complete picture of the world than we grew up having to read.