Issue 08

Summer 2018
CONNECTING MUSLIMS ON THE INSIDE AND OUT

This issue is made in collaboration with Al-Talib News-

magazine at UCLA.

THIS ISSUE
Unspoken Arabic P. 1
The Daily Renewal P. 3
The Story of Julaybib (RA) P. 4
The Prize of Persia P. 6
Brooklyn to Silver Spring: Sharing the Story of the Dar al Islam Movement P. 7

Unspoken Arabic
Why American Muslims Should be Speaking More Arabic, Not Less
Written by Chakib Mouzaoui

B
oth of my parents are fluent in four languages: Algerian
Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic, French, and English.
This multilinguality has made my childhood full of
linguistic diversity; with my parents’ conversations so rich
with different vocabularies and grammatical structures, I
often could not figure out what my parents were talking
about until after I started taking French classes in middle
and high school. My lack of understanding was also in large
part due to my own stubbornness of speaking back to my
parents in English, the only language I considered cool and
respectable at the time. This refusal to take advantage of my
multilingual household and engage with these languages at
a critical age has been one of my greatest childhood regrets.
This regret is driven not by a mere desire for academic
knowledge per se; I now feel that I, along with many Muslim
Americans, struggle to incorporate Arabic into our lives.

Many would find the amount of Arabic used and

encouraged by American Muslims today to be very
sufficient, and some even decry it as an excessive expression
of a sentiment of Arab cultural and racial supremacy in our
community. We are already obliged to perform prayers
entirely in Arabic, give each other Arabic peace greetings,
and are furthermore encouraged to recite the Qur’an in its

1
original language and make supplications to Allah in the
language of His final Messenger (SAW). For many non-Arabic
speakers like myself, this has led to an awkward feeling of
“not understanding what comes out of your own mouth”
that contributes to a kind of spiritual alienation. The easy
way out of this alienation is to study Islam in English to the
point where whenever fiqh (legal jurisprudence) requires or
encourages us to say something in Arabic, we keep in the back
of our minds a corresponding English meaning. For example,
Muslims of all language groups understand “as-salaamu
‘alaikum” to mean “peace be upon you” without necessarily
knowing where in this phrase is the “be,” the “upon,” or the
“you.” Unfortunately, any language learner can guess that this
“phrasebook memorization” approach to Arabic isn’t even close
to fluency. Our Ummah (nation/community) needs fluency.
In other words, either Classical or Modern Standard
Arabic should become the lingua franca of not just the Arab
world, but the Muslim world. A lingua franca is a language used
to exchange information between communities with different
native languages, often when none of those native languages
is the lingua franca itself. Well-known lingua francas include
English in much of the world today and Latin in Ancient to
Early Modern Europe, while lesser known varieties were also
used, such as Plains Indian Sign Language in North America
and Aramaic (the language of ‘Isa (AS)) in early Western Asia.
Increased urbanization and Internet access gives Muslims
more of an opportunity to communicate internationally,
and this opportunity can only be seized with a lingua franca.
The advantage of Arabic in the Muslim world over
English extends beyond the obvious deeper understanding of
the Qur’an. Muslims have a rich tradition of Islamic words in
Arabic that have not been translated into English. For example,
at the time of this writing a well-known tafseer (Qur’an
commentaries) by Abu ‘Abdullah Al-Qurtubi is only available
in English in abridged form. Countless works of hadith science,
fiqh, and philosophy have been kept out of the hands of Muslim
Americans due to the language barrier, and so we are left to rely
on only the most dedicated members of our community who
have taken the time to learn the language or otherwise those
lucky enough to be native speakers. Arabic continues to already
be the lingua franca of Islamic scholars, and there is little excuse
to distance ourselves from this sphere of communication.
influence of accessible Korean and
Japanese media has made it easier
for many to learn Japanese and
Korean, we should let this rich
Islamic culture, a huge body of which
is in the Arabic language, assist us
in learning Arabic. An American
Muslim culture that speaks Arabic should be developed
side-by-side with a culture of Arabic pedagogy. Aside from
the continuation of translating important Islamic works into
English, speeches, lectures, documentaries, and TV series
should be given English subtitles. The more English speakers
are exposed to the sound of Arabic, even if reading English
translations in the meanwhile, the easier Arabic becomes.
Under no circumstances does this mean we should fill
our UCLA Muslim Student Association (MSA) offices and
masjids with Arabic conversation to the point of alienating
those without the resources to learn Arabic, or those who
have just recently started being interested in Islam in general.
Deeper language bonds with the rest of the world must be
established without forgetting to create and maintain bonds
with the monolingual American community at home. The
Muslim American community should in fact act as a bridge
between the particular American community and the global
Muslim community, and this applies to the world of language
as well. In fact, by developing the accessibility of Arabic words
and ideas to the American community at large, monolingual
Americans can feel even more comfortable with a bilingual
Ummah. The gap between the Arabic and English languages
is only as wide as the gap between its peoples and cultures.

The immense differences in culture, history, vocabulary,

and grammar between Arabic and English has led the Foreign
Services Institute to classify Arabic as a “Category V” language
for English speakers: the category with the hardest languages
to learn, requiring an estimated 88 weeks
or 2,200 hours of learning. The only other
languages in this category are Cantonese,
Mandarin, Japanese, and Korean. This
shows that learning Arabic can be a
daunting task for many. However, like
how the immense international cultural

2
The Daily Renewal
Written by Nadiyah Priasti
T
he act of self reflection is not just a hobby that is picked
up by someone who has spare time, though it could be.
It is a rigorous process that prods at the most vulnerable
and undesirable part of a person, and for this reason, self
reflection is an exhausting process. However, just like anything
strenuous, if done sincerely and with the right intention of
self renewal and understanding, the rewards are unequivocal
to even the most precious of tangible items. In short, self
reflection is a confrontation with the diseases of the heart.
One of the most trying tests in life is being conscious
of one’s nafs (lower self). Ego is difficult to overcome because
one must first recognize its presence in order to start the
humbling journey of refining it. When embarking on this
journey, one should constantly remind themselves that
this act of self improvement should be done for sake the
of Allah (swt). The first step is to recognize that no one is
perfect, nor will they ever be, so it is important to constantly
strive to become a better person, and in the process, a better
Muslim. Self reflection is a powerful tool that allows you to
humble yourself by exposing the errors of your way, whether
it be in the form of physical actions, wrong intentions, etc.
The Prophet Muhammad (saw) set a precedent in
spiritual decorum that manifested into thoughtful and
conscious actions in order to aid the future ummah.
Whenever you feel or experience any sort of negative
emotion or experience, evaluate the situation and your
response as the Prophet (saw) would with patience, and
understand that you are experiencing this discomfort as
a test from Allah (swt). During hardships, we often close
ourselves off in this bubble of self despair, and no matter
how many times we mentally prepare ourselves with the
knowledge that Allah will test us countless of times during
our lives, everything becomes bleak; because of this, we need
the clarity that can only be found through self reflection.
The beauty of self reflection is that there are no
guidelines to it; there are no right or wrong ways to go about
this act of worship. The essence of self reflecting lies within
pinpointing a certain emotion or moment in time, and then
uncovering the underlying factors that come into play with
the end goal being a deeper understanding of both our
intentions and the intentions of those who may be involved.
The beauty of self reflection is that there
are no guidelines to it; there are no right
or wrong ways to go about this act of
worship. The essence of self reflecting
lies within pinpointing a certain emotion
or moment in time, and then uncovering
the underlying factors that come into
3
play with the end goal being a deeper
understanding of both our intentions
and the intentions of those who may
be involved. This is where the act of
self reflection becomes the defining
factor between a progressive lifestyle
and a lifestyle full of relapses. Self
reflection can help one stop making assumptions about people
by evaluating their true intentions and any hidden ones that
may be present. This act is key to healthy relationships because
it forces you to pause and analyze a situation, from a person’s
reaction to their action, rather than jumping to conclusions.
The answers are all there, you just have to be brave enough,
and patient enough, to read between the lines, and a fair
warning, what you discover is not always a great, positive
epiphany, but it will ultimately help you grow as a person,
and will help you avoid going down the same road again.
Partaking in self reflection is free, but disclaimer: it is heavy
on critical thinking, so take your time exploring and learning
what works for you. It is an exhaustive process that requires
getting down to the roots of problems, so don’t feel discouraged
if you don’t see uplifting results right away. A good way to get
into self-reflection is to start small by taking five minutes a day
to think about what bothered you, no matter its degree, and
why it affected you in that way. Without even realizing it, you’ll
soon catch yourself pausing during a particularly challenging
time and thinking through every single dimension of the
situation; you might be surprised to find that either your initial
thought was wrong, or that the result may not have as much
negative impact on your life as you first thought it to have.
The notion that attaining beauty is a rigorous and painful
process could not be more relevant when dealing with self
reflection. Looking beautiful inwardly is ultimately what we
will be tested on, and I dare say that this feat is impossible
to attain without self reflection. Though it may seem like a
daunting task, the reason why people often brush it off, or
belittle its effects, is because they are either too afraid or are in
denial of the truth that lies beneath them. Those who brush off
reflecting until the Day of Judgement are doing a disservice to
themselves because those who do self reflect understand that it
is a process that one can find solace in during the tribulations
of life. It is a lot of critical thinking that may come with self
deprecation, but when done thoughtfully, the first wave
of self loathing turns into understanding of deeper rooted
issues, which can ultimately lead to purification of the soul.
The Story of Julaybib (RA)
Written by Sohaib Kazmi
A
llah (SWT) and the Prophet (PBUH) stressed the
importance of treating others well numerous times.
In Surah Hujurat, verse 11, Allah says the following:
(Surah Hujurat, Ayah 11)
“O you who have believed, let not a people ridicule
[another] people; perhaps they may be better than them; nor let
women ridicule [other] women; perhaps they may be better than
them. And do not insult one another and do not call each other
by [offensive] nicknames. Wretched is the name of disobedience
after [one’s] faith. And whoever does not repent - then it is those
who are the wrongdoers.” (as translated by Sahih International)
Islam is multifaceted, and while our responsibility
to Allah and His Message comes first, our responsibility
to those around us is not far behind. Indeed, Allah has
sent many examples for us to learn from, and in this case it
is the character of Julaybib, one of the Companions (RA)
of the Prophet (PBUH). To be considered a Companion,
one must be a follower of the Prophet (PBUH) who had
met and spent time with him. In the story of Julaybib, it
becomes clear how even the least privileged of men can be
blessed with this greatest of honors if only their heart is pure.
Julaybib, an Arabic word meaning “small-grown” or
“diminutive,” lived the kind of life we would expect to see
in a sad movie or book. He was born to unknown parents
of unknown lineage, both of which shattered any hopes of
social mobility, or even acceptance. If people did not know
one’s lineage, they were worse than dead; absolutely no one
would offer any kind of help or protection, and they would
be subject to shame and ridicule. To add insult to (sometimes
literal) injury, Julaybib was kn own as damim, an Arabic
term meaning ugly or deformed.He was short in stature and
repulsive to look at. As a result, he was shunned from almost all
parts of society to the point that his history
was barely recorded. All that is known
about Julaybib prior to Islam is that he
was either from Madinah or the outlying
areas, as he came into Islam as an Ansar.
With such a life, Julaybib seemed
4
destined to be ridiculed and forgotten,
an existence often reserved for the
villains or background characters of
a story, but rarely applied in real life.
Julaybib was no villain, and would soon be lifted from the status
of a background character. When Allah’s Messenger (PBUH)
migrated to Madinah, he became aware of Julaybib’s plight and,
out of his unending compassion, resolved to help the man. How
beautiful the character of the Prophet (PBUH) is, and how great
of an example for us! A man, reduced by society to nothing,
prohibited from even entering their homes, is not only helped
but by the most important figure in the city. He did not judge
Julaybib for his looks or status, but by his character and faith.
How did the Prophet (PBUH) help Julaybib, then?
He approached one of the Ansar with the intention of
getting his Companion married. It is said that of the
brides in Madinah, none were more eligible than his
daughter. “How wonderful and blessed, o Messenger of
God,” replied the Ansari man, thinking that the Prophet
(PBUH) intended to marry his daughter. “I do not want her
for myself,” the Prophet clarified,“I want her for Julaybib.”
The man was shocked and excused himself to consult
with his wife. Of all the people to marry his daughter to,
Julaybib was not in contention. “The Prophet, may Allah
bless him and give him peace, wants to have our daughter
married.” His wife, assuming the same as her husband
had, was excited and gave her affirmation. One can only
imagine how the man mustered the courage to tell her that
the Prophet (PBUH) wanted their daughter for Julaybib.
“To Julaybib?! No, never to Julaybib! No, by Allah,
we will not marry her to him,” the wife exclaimed.
Both husband and wife were both in agreement. Julaybib
would not come close to their daughter. He was about to
return to the Prophet and inform him of their decision when
the daughter, who had overheard her mother, asked: “Who
has asked you to marry me?” The mother explained the
situation to her, and as she realized that her parents were about
to oppose the request of the Prophet, she became unsettled.
“How could you refuse the request of the Messenger
of Allah? Verily, Julaybib shall certainly not bring me to
ruin, so send me to him. I am satisfied with whatever
the Prophet believes is good for me.” It is said that
she then recited the following verse to her parents:
 “It is not for a believing man or a believing woman,
when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter, that
they should [thereafter] have any choice about their affair.
And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly
strayed into clear error.” (as translated by Sahih International)
When the Prophet heard of her response and her
decision, he prayed for her: “O Allah, bestow her with good in
abundance, and make her life not one of hardship and troubles.”
After their marriage, Julaybib and his wife lived together
in happiness. One day, he was given the honor of accompanying
the Prophet on an expedition, but along the way they
encountered some of the disbelievers who engaged them in
battle. When the dust settled and the swords were sheathed, the
Prophet (PBUH) asked his Companions if any men had been
lost. They gave a list of relatives and close friends, whereupon the
Prophet (PBUH) turned to ask a different set of Companions.
This unit stated that, praise be to Allah, they were fortunate
enough to have survived. “We have lost no one, o Prophet.”
“But I have lost Julaybib,” he replied, “search for him
in the battlefield.” The Companions found Julaybib’s lifeless
body next to the corpses of seven of the enemy, whom he had
struck down before his death. The Prophet came over to his
departed Companion and stood over him, looking upon his
dear Julaybib’s last moments.
“He is of me and I am of him.” The Prophet repeated this
twice or thrice before taking Julaybib’s body in his arms. He
dug for the martyr a grave himself, and he placed the body in
it himself.
Thus ended the story of Julaybib. He lived life as a
background character, and to some even a villain, but to the
best of all men, he was a beautiful soul and, indeed, an unsung
hero. The stories of Julaybib and his wife have not stood the test
of time like those of other Companions like Abu Bakr, but that
does not mean we do not remember him, nor does it mean that
we do not learn from what we do know.
The story of Julaybib also has implications for Muslims
today, especially in our conduct with each other. Julaybib
was a man who lived the kind of life we might hear of in a
fairy tale, but the worst thing to happen to him was the social
ostracization. To be shunned by everyone because of a lack of
status, various deformities, and poverty? To not feel an inkling
of kindness until much later in life? One can only imagine how
Julaybib coped with his condition, and it is a testament to his
fortitude that he continued to soldier on
despite everyone having turned against
him for no crime of his own.
And it is from this treatment, as well
as the Prophet’s (PBUH) actions, that we
can learn from Julaybib’s story. We must be
cognizant of how we treat each other, and
5
how included we make them feel. As
Allah has told us in Surah Hujurat, one
of the worst offenses we can commit
towards another person is to ridicule
them and call them by offensive
nicknames; wretched are those who
disobey after Allah has commanded
them. If not for the fact that we do not have another name to
call him by, we would avoid using Julaybib, in and of itself a
demeaning nickname.
While Allah has reserved a punishment for those who
are unjust with the people they meet, we must also not forget
the various consequences of such treatment on the victims
themselves. Julaybib’s treatment at the hands of his community
must have taken a heavy toll on his mental health. He was left
with no support should anything have happened to him, and
if he was fated to die before the Prophet (PBUH) arrived to
Madinah, we would likely not have been remembered enough
to even be given a funeral.
Everyone has something they must overcome, whether
that is a lack of status or money, physical problems, or
something else. To ostracize or attack someone without care
to their condition is to disobey Allah, and the consequences of
this lie beyond His disapproval. We as Muslims today can learn
from this story by doing our best to support and strengthen
each other, instead of ridiculing and demeaning.When the
Prophet (PBUH) set time aside specifically for Julaybib’s well-
being, how must he have felt that another person cared about
him, let alone the best of people? And how must he have felt
that the Prophet (PBUH) was helping him with becoming
more accepted by others?
When we see our friends, take a moment to ask how
they’re doing, see if we’re able to help, and make ourselves a
people who care unlike those who Julaybib was tested with.
And even if it’s someone we’re meeting for the first time or
someone with whom we might not be comfortable, we must
at least avoid ostracizing or attacking them, and if possible
treating them with respect and dignity. If we don’t, we disobey
Allah and can irreparably hurt the person. But if we do? We
strengthen that person, help them in their time of need, and
possibly create a hero like the one Julaybib became.
Julaybib is an unsung hero in the annals of Islamic history.
His story reads like one out of a fairy tale, but with a lot more
time spent in the “abuse” phase and less in the “happy ending”
one. And yet, the Prophet (PBUH) gave him the time of day
despite having an entire Ummah to worry about. Let’s learn
from Julaybib’s story and do our best to be kind, accepting, and
supportive of the people we meet regardless of their condition.
Not only do we follow Allah’s command and the Prophet’s
example, we help others achieve the best they can. And in
doing so, we become heroes ourselves.
The Prize of Persia
Written by Sohaib Kazmi
T
he reach of Islam, even during its infancy, was so vast that
even outside of Arabia people developed an interest in
it. One such non-Arab who heeded its call is Salman Al-
Farsi, or Salman the Persian. Many know him as the Companion
who proposed the idea of the trench as a defensive measure
against the enemies’ onslaught against Madinah. Indeed, the
Battle of the Trench, where the Muslims defended their city
against an offensive comprised of various tribes including
the Quraysh, would not have been a success without his
contribution; to leave his story at that would be to do a disservice
to his memory. Salman’s story before becoming a Muslim
reveals his devotion to truth and his love for Allah, qualities
which we as Muslims should strive for regardless of our era.
Born to the chief of a Persian village, Salman was raised
in the lap of wealth and luxury. His father deeply loved him, but
also feared losing him; to assuage his worries, he kept Salman at
home, almost like a prisoner, and raised him as a Zoroastrian,
the faith of the Persian people. The Zoroastrian faith places a
great emphasis on fire as a symbol of purity and God’s light, and
many of their rituals revolve around tending to a holy flame.
As he grew older, Salman developed a burning passion for the
religion, so much so that he eventually became a custodian
of their holy flame. Day after day, Salman tended to the fire,
stoking it if need be and ensuring that it never extinguished.
Salman’s father, as a wealthy chief, possessed a large
estate where he grew vast numbers of crops. Balancing his
responsibilities as chief with his estate sometimes required that he
choose between either, and one day he told Salman to look after
the estate as he dealt with village matters.
Though the predominant faith in Persia was
Zoroastrianism, there were smaller groups
of people from other religions. Salman had
never heard of anything other than his own
religion due to his father’s watchful eye, and
when he passed by a church on his way to the
6
estate, he felt drawn towards the voices
of their prayer. He was immediately
impressed by their prayers and
believed that their faith was better
than his own, and resolved to spend
the day in the church instead of going
to the estate.Upon returning home,
when prompted by his father about his activities during the
day, Salman told him about his visit to the church. His father,
a staunch Zoroastrian, became upset with his son’s decision
and declared, “My son, there is nothing good in that religion.
Your religion and the religion of your ancestors is better,” to
which Salman replied, “No, their religion is better than ours.”
His father’s fears had been realized: his dear son, whom
he had raised and groomed to be his successor, was leaving his
people’s faith. How could a devout Zoroastrian, let alone the
village chief, let his child go to another religion? He couldn’t
fathom the possibility, and kept Salman locked up in the house
with a chain shackled to his feet. Despite this, Salman man-
aged to send a message to the Christians he had met, asking is
there was a convoy headed to Syria, the original land of Chris-
tianity. In time, he was informed of one such group, and Sal-
man managed to escape his prison and go with them. Upon
reaching Syria, he made his way towards the bishop of the
church and asked to serve and learn under him. The bishop
agreed, but Salman soon found out of the bishop’s corruption.
He would encourage his followers to donate in the way of Al-
lah, but would take the money for himself and spend none
of it on the poor and needy. When the bishop died, Salman
revealed his corruption to the public, and instead of bury-
ing him, the Christian people nailed him on a cross instead.
Salman was a man devoted to finding the truth, and
though the bishop had shown himself to be corrupt, he de-
cided to stay with the bishop’s replacement, a man of pure
intentions and faith. Salman spent a great deal of time with
him, and when the new bishop neared the end of his life, he
told Salman to go to a man in Mosul. With this man, a de-
voted servant of God like the bishop himself, Salman would
be able to continue serving in the way of Christianity. When
the man in Mosul died, he directed Salman to a man in Na-
siyyibeen (present day Turkey), and so on. When the last
priest he stayed with was on his deathbed, there was no one
left among the people who followed their way.However, the
time of a new Prophet was about to arrive. He told Salman to
leave Syria and look for this Prophet in the land of the Arabs;
one who would migrate to a land of palm trees, who would
accept gifts but never took charity, and who had the Seal of
Prophethood between his shoulders. Taking this last piece of
advice, Salman departed from Syria with a group of Arabs.
The Arabs had promised to take Salman to Arabia, but
had more devious plans in mind. When they reached their
destination, they immediately turned on Salman and sold
him to a Jewish master, who then sold him to his cousin
from Madinah. On his way to Madinah, Salman noticed the
palm trees his former mentor had spoken about, and dearly
hoped that he had made it to the right place. He would not,
unfortunately, hear about Islam a few years later when the
Muslims migrated to Madinah with the Prophet Muham-
mad (PBUH). Salman recalled working atop a palm tree
when his master’s relative came speaking of a man who called
himself a Prophet. He could not believe it and immediate-
ly started down the tree when his master hit him. “This has
nothing to do with you, go back to work!” his master said.
Still, Salman couldn’t hold back his excitement, and left his
master’s field in the darkness of the evening. He took some food
with him and made for the Prophet’s gathering. The first of his men-
tor’s predictions had come true, and he set out to test the others.
He went to the Prophet (PBUH), who had yet not reached
the main city, and offered him his food as charity. The Prophet
thanked him and shared the food with his companions, but re-
fused to take any of it. Salman noted this and left to return with
more food, this time offering it as a gift. The Prophet (PBUH),
as his mentor had predicted, ate this food instead.Only one
prediction remained, that of the Seal of Prophethood, but
Salman was unable to confirm it at the time. Later, he came
to a funeral the Prophet (PBUH) was attending and attempt-
ed to maneuver around so as to catch a glimpse of the Seal.
The Prophet, aware of Salman’s intention, exposed his back re-
vealing the Seal to Salman. Salman, overjoyed, embraced the
Prophet and began weeping. The Prophet asked about his story,
and was able to free Salman as a slave after the battles of Badr
and Uhud. From then on, Salman made an effort to never miss
a moment with the Prophet, and was a key figure in defending
the Muslims against the combined offensive of the disbelievers.
Salman’s path to Islam provides an insight into the type of
man he was. He was devoted to finding the truth regardless of
the obstacles in his way, and would readily shed tradition in fa-
vor of something better. He traveled from the distant empire of
Persia to the desert sands of Arabia, leaving wealth and luxury
behind to become a mistreated slave, all to come to Allah. In
the face of mass Islamophobic sentiment today, many of us find
it hard to hold fast to the rope of faith. Being Muslim, especially
visibly so, can cause problems in our everyday lives. Though we
live over 1400 years later, we can learn from Salman’s devotion
to truth and faith. The obstacles in front of us today should not
prevent us from striving for truth and maintaining our faith. His
dedication was rewarded with greatness in this life and the next;
should we hold fast to our beliefs and the truth, so too will ours.
7
Brooklyn to Silver
Spring
Sharing the Story of the Dar al
Islam Movement
Written by Kamilah Abdulkhabir-Bar-
bour
Article retrieved from www.muslimlinkpaper.com, May 25, 2018.
T
he Dar ul Islam community was a grassroots movement
established primarily by African Americans in
Brooklyn, New York around 1962. Its purpose was
to uphold life as governed by Quranic teachings and the
sunnah (example) of the Prophet Muhammad. It was at Yasin
Mosque, an old three-story building tucked away on Herkimer
Place that congregants gathered to establish the call to God.
Though the Mosque was named after a chapter in the Quran,
the community as a whole was loosely referred to as, the Dar.
Islamic life in America around 1960 was more visible
through organizations like the Moorish Science Temple, the
Muslim Student Association and the Nation of Islam under
the leadership of Elijah Muhammad. In 1964, when Malcom
X left the Nation of Islam for a more orthodox practice of
faith – Strict adherence to the Quran and Sunnah, for many,
it negated the former Islamic organizations as a standard by
which to judge true Islamic faith. Through the teachings of
Sheik Daoud Faisal and later, Imam Yahya Abdul Karim, Dar
members took on both the physical appearances as well as the
practice to solidify their acceptance of this new way of life.
Among many, one of the goals of the Dar was to
raise the status of its minority members and to establish a
fully functioning refuge complete with a place of worship,
schools and a governing body where they adopted a strict
routine and policies on how to live according to Islam.
The African Diaspora worked its way into American
culture and redefined what it meant to be black in America.
It gave African Americans a means to redefine themselves
with dignity and self-pride, finding beauty in their
appearance and purposefulness in their actions. Change
was the paradigm of the 1960s and 70s and within it,
 Picture retrieved from www.muslimlinkpaper.com, May 25, 2018.
groups claiming many social affiliations, racial identities,
sexual orientations and religious beliefs emerged to claim
their space in the matrix of the American experience.
The Dar ul Islam movement was born from an
accumulation of unanswered questions and unfavorable
circumstances that had a group of African Americans
from New York City at a loss. Their quest to be made
whole through truth and justice led many to return to the
Islam practiced by their African Ancestors and brought to
America through the establishment of slavery in the south.
Though there was no national organization among
all the emergent sectors of the American experience, those
groups who sought change seemed to move simultaneously
to shift the conscience of the masses. In this mix emerged
a group devoted to strict adherence to the Islamic Holy
Book, the Quran, and the sunnah (practices) of Muhammad
Ibn Abdullah of the Arab nation over 1400 years ago.
Dar ul Islam translates to mean “The House of Islam” and
it was at 52 Herkimer Place in Brooklyn, New York that Yasin
Mosque was created for the communal worship of Allah. The
Dar ul Islam Collection by photographer, Khalil Abdulkhabir
embodies the most progressive years of this grassroots religious
movement as it took form in and around Yasin Mosque. Between
1970 – when Abdulkhabir converted from a Baptist Christian
background and 1982, he lent his talents behind the lens to
serve the village that supported his new life as a Muslim and
this website is dedicated to telling that story through his photos.
Visual records from the Dar are a testament to the successful
development of businesses, schools and cultural outlets that
defined its congregants. The Dar ul Islam Collection contains
pieces that are dramatic and artistic, exposing and illuminating
Abdulkhabir’s subjects in a way that are not stereotypical. It is our
hope to present the Dar to the public and secure a place for it in
history as an effort from common people who made significant
contributions to the development of Islam in America.
Islamic Institute of Orange County
c/o Link Outside
1220 N. State Colege Blvd.
Anaheim, CA 92806
714-533-6271
info@linkoutside.com
Link Outside | Issue 08 Summer 2018