Category Archives: Psychology

Metaphysics, Modern Living, Psychology, Uncategorized

Agnostics and Atheists ,Lend me your Ears!

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Introductory note: This article is written for all the well-intentioned, kind-hearted A&Aers(we will use A&As as an abbreviation at times for Atheists and Agnostics during this article for the sake of brevity lol).They have been unwittingly sold a bill of goods by a very skilful and manipulative cabal of philosophers and marketers that have been operating for a very long time.I hope this article may serve to put a dent into their well-honed atheistic armour!

There is a common social narrative, in contemporary society,  that religious people are brain-washed by their religious leaders and agnostics are free-thinkers! Actually,nothing could be further from the truth! For over two hundred years, at least, the Western mind (and now it is present in the East as well) has been indoctrinated with atheistic principles .From the French Revolutions ” Liberté, Égalité and Fraternité” which puts all the emphasis on the human position to Nietzche’s “God is Dead” to the Empiricism of John Locke and the so-called “Scientific Revolution”, the Western mind has been inundated with atheistic concepts that put man at the centre of the Universe as opposed to God.Ironically this is the polar opposite to the equally politically correct Copernican discovery that the sun was the center of our galaxy,not the Earth.As opposed to that great astronomical discovery,A&As assert again the centrality of man as opposed to his Creator.I guess human arrogance and self-centeredness continues to reassert itself in various and sundry ways!

N.B.Empiricism is a biggie here because it says that all you can know is what you can see and hear with your five senses.Only the outer and the measurable is true in this vision. “Evidence-Based” and “data based”-we hear those phrases over and over again like a tired mantra.Now science has taken up the flag of this Empiricism and misled many,many people who have lost touch with their inner senses.Working as psychiatrists and psychotherapists, we can see how that imbalance wreaks destruction on peoples lives as well as their general understandings.On a larger scale the politicians and administrative governing bodies, including those pf private corporations, are all corrupted by this point of view! No wonder we are in such a mess!

This philosophical brain-washing has been going on right up until the modern epoch.So we have the Existentialists like Sartre and Camus making the same case.In Britain we have the esteemed philosopher Bertrand Russell writing”Why I am Not a Christian”. And then there are the great scientific geniuses like Freud and Marx and Darwin (although in all fairness to the latter, he ,for one,remained a believing Christian up to his death) telling us the same story.In recent times we have been treated to the eloquence of Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins repeating the same narrative.So anyone thinking that he,himself,came up with this narrative is seriously deluded or incorrigibly arrogant.The story-line has been developing for centuries!

Now,the story line goes something like this.”Religion has been a bad actor for millenia.It has caused countless acts of violence and sowed division across the globe.Now there is some Truth to that statement.I will spare you,for now,however the historical analysis of non-religious movements like Fascism and Communism.The historians that have investigated this have concluded that non-religious movements have actually caused more death and destruction than religious ones!- but that is a discussion for another time.

This  story line also tells us that although religion is BAD ,spirituality is GOOD,What is ignored in that affirmation is the fact that almost all forms of spirituality come from religion! I discovered that for the first time when I studied Transcendental Meditation back in the seventies-advertised as a secular practice.I quickly realized that the meditation techniques being taught were permeated through and through with Hindu philosophy,language and rituals.So too is Mindfulness- related to Buddhism and Yoga to Vedantic Hinduism. Separating spirituality from religion is like separating breathing from lung function! Impossible.Can’t be done.

Another part of this atheistic narrative is that science can explain everything.Really!? So when we see the obvious  contradiction in the image  of the famous physicist, Stephen Hawking, almost completely incapacitated in a wheelchair because of A.L.S promoting the Big Bang Theory as a potent theory for origin of the Universe,we have to recoil in disbelief! The fact that we do not react with disbelief is a sign of how far we have dissociated ourselves from common sense! The Big Bang Theory may tell us what some of the early events were in the Creation story.But it certainly doesn’t tell us the Original Cause.

In fact None of the Great scientific theories can tell us the Original cause-neither the theory of Evolution, in biology, nor the Class Struggle, in political history, nor the Unconscious of psychoanalysis nor the Theory of Relativity in Physics..They  only address intermediary causes.And thus they tell us nothing about ultimate Causation and even less about meaning!

Another interesting irony here- there is more diversity in religious theory than there is in A&A theory!The agnostic discourse almost always has the same refrain.”Religious people are deluded.They believe in order  to make themselves feel better about their lives.And their religious leaders have put a blindfold over their vision” .They all,universally, say the same thing!

Paradoxically,in the religious domain,however,diversity abounds!Some religions(Hinduism and Buddhism for example) believe that our Ultimate goal is Enlightenment.Western religions hold that our purpose is to worship God and serve Him.Very big difference there!. Some religions,like Christianity,believe that God incarnated in the flesh.Judaism and Islam reject that idea categorically.Judaism believes in the chosen nature of its nation while Islam and Christianity believe in the Equality of all humans.The list goes on and on.But it is intriguing to see that are more substantial differences in the minds of religious people than that in the supposedly “free- thinkers”.How ironical?! All the ‘free thinkers’ come to the same conclusions.Makes you wonder about their supposed freedom!

Now,let us get to the crux of the matter-the Basic Epistemology if you wish.The idea that there is no God is just that-an idea.Any self-reflecting atheist will have to admit that! You cannot prove the non-existence of something.Even the Western legal systems have come to the same conclusion.You cannot prove the non-existence of a thing or an event.So the notion of the non-Existence of God is just that-a notion.

On the other side,let us forget for now about Prophets and Saints and mystics and angels and Holy Books for now-although that is admittedly factoring out a lot of data! But I know how much those entities are anathema to the A&A mindset.So instead let us look at the n.d.e experiences as I relate them in my book “The Big Questions:Evidence-Based Faith'”These are ordinary people,most often not particularly religious some even being atheists prior to their experience.

Yes I am well aware that there is a commonplace pseudo-scientific argument that these represent the delusions of a dying brain.Anyone familiar with brain physiology and pathology should immediately see through that bogus argument( if you need more ‘scientific’ proof you can check out the work of Bruce Greyson and Pim Van Lomel although I must say that if you need to go that far in your research ,you are probably a lost cause lol). All forms of brain pathology create dysfunction and perturbations and physiological disease like headaches and vertigo and epilepsy.This form has as its effect more compassion,more serenity and more perspective on human life itself.How could that possibly be pathological?! Au contraire, instead of incapacitating the individual,it improves mental health and clarity.

So… these ordinary people in life-threatening situations see deceased relatives ,the heavens and the hellworlds, and beings of Light and God Himself-sometimes as separate from them and sometimes merged in His Essential Consciousness.They confirm ALL the teachings of the saints and mystics.And they have no more doubts!Then they report back to us their discoveries- as witnesses.

Let me be very clear here.If you are still holding on to an atheistic or agnostic position you are believing in a philosophical theory rather than in actual human experience.IMHO,that is a really bad choice-a bad exchange.And the loss in the hereafter could be VERY long-lasting.May God help you see the light!

Addendum.Since the most common objection about the relevance of the n.d.e experience is that it must be a change in brain chemistry caused by the dying brain, let me give you what I believe to be an accurate and simple analogy.And btw, this modernistic,”scientific” reflex,about brain chemistry,is a thoroughly conditioned response.Where are you now Skinner,the father of the conditionned reflex lol, now that we need you to explain this to people lol?!

The analogy goes like this:It’s the beginning of the summer and a   neighbour tells you that there is a new ice-cream shop that opened down the road.So what are the possibilities? The neighbour may be a compulsive liar or even a sadistic teaser.Or he could have mis-spoken (dysphasia lol) or bought new glasses recently and thought that the computer repair shop was actually an ice-cream place.Or again he could be a psychic who saw into heavenly worlds where there are always ice-cream shops on hot days lol. Those are the kind of obtuse explanations the “scientists” are looking for!

But, far and away ,the most likely version is that the ice-cream shop is a reality and you are best off checking it out ASAP! You see,the scientists are operating from theory and conjecture and ideology.The bottom line is they don’t want to believe in other-worldly realities because it goes against their attachment to Philosophical Materialism and Atheism.Actually,now that I think about it,Agnosticism is actually a sophisticated cover-up for Atheism.They,too, prefer their “mind-productions” to actual reality.May God help them to open their hearts and souls.On the other hand,if they just use their minds it will surely lead them astray!

 

 

Metaphysics, Modern Living, Psychology, Uncategorized

Epistemology-Synthesis

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What do most people say they want?They say they want the Truth.In Arabic the word is “Haqq” and it refers to both Truth and Reality.Epistemology is the science of accessing that Reality.From there,everything becomes possible! Without it,everything is meaningless!

Most modern people have been trained to think that the way to knowledge is to accumulate data and then analyze it logically.I like to call that the “Aristotelian Approach”I have found that way to be inefficient,defective and misleading .Watch the justice system operate if you don’t believe me.

So what do we learn from Sufism and Islam about this question?As I see it, there are three principal doors to knowledge-the deeper knowledge and the one that counts ultimately.

The first is the opening of the heart.We are talking here about the subtle heart -not the one of gross feelings like anger an d sadness and even joy.I won’t address the question of love for now as that can be very confusing and misleading lol.

The second  is seeing”basirat’-the inner vision.Once that is developed we can see the inner aspect of what is going on-the good and the evil of it,the sincerity and the hypocrisy,the darkness and the light.

And finally the the third is  hearing and developing ‘the ear of truth’ the entity that  hears ‘the sound of truth’.When we hear that, we have to act on the truth we hear.(Remember the sequential formula-ilm(knowledge),amal(action) then hal(state).Without the knowledge ,there is no proper action. Without the action,there is no change in state!Our nafs will surely object but our hearts will say ‘yes!’

Now the Quran tells us about this.It talks about “those whose hearts are sealed” and those who are “deaf,blind and dumb”.And we can understand that this is not outer blindness nor outer deafness but rather the inner senses.If our hearts are sealed and we are blind and deaf,we will surely make wrong decisions and that is what we see all around us.

Is there a corrective?Yes,there is.It is spiritual practice beginning with what is obligatory in our religion and proceeding to dhikr and wird and listening to wise ones and opening our hearts to the hidden and the invisible.There is no other way! Reason will not get us there.Psychotherapy will not get us there.Motivators like Antony Robbins and Steven Covey will not get us there!

Only proper spiritual practice and virtuous ways will get us there.For then, as a reward,Allah will cleanse our hearts to feel properly, clear our vision- to see what is real- and remove the ‘wax’ from our inner ears so we can hear ‘the ring of Truth’ when it chimes.

 

As I pursue my path and observe others, I see clearly that most people,no matter what I or other mystics say,still trust their minds(ideas and feelings) and act accordingly.Although this is instinctive,it is a serious error!A couple of quotes, from non-religious people, are in order: “The right answer is often the opposite of the instinctive one”-Clint Eastwood-“The Million-Dollar Baby. “All your problems come from the same place.You believe the contents of your own mind”Byron Katie. So what are the alternatives.

The first two alternatives to “mind productions” are very difficult for modern people.The first is to tap into the will of God.Not an easy matter.Most people are so stuck in their own will and desires that the true will of God is completely obscured.Many do not even accept the idea that God has Will.

The second alternative is to trust in an intermediary like a Prophet or a sheikh or a guru.Once again the modern mind is trained to rebel against authority and to want to be independent,autonomous,”free”.

For these reasons I will suggest a third method -despite knowing full well the actual resistance I will encounter-the Scientific Method.Yes,that’s right-the scientific method,the real one! That involves real observation and experimentation and genuine conclusions-not statistical analysis,demographics and peer-reviewed journals.Observation and experimentation.Simple as that.Simple but deep!

I’ll give you a concrete example.When I first started to learn about the Islamic Istikhara practice,I did an experiment.I took 10 decisions I had to make.Then I analyzed the data I had,did some research on the subject and some thinking and came to a conclusion.After that I did the Istikhara practice.And then I followed the situation to its inevitable conclusion.My analytic decision was wrong 8/10 times! That’s right-I was one out of five -a 20% success rate.And I believe I’m reasonably good  at that process.So all those wonderful decisions you make-are most probably wrong!

The Istikhara(it must be properly interpreted of course,which is another science) was inevitably right.When it wasn’t,it was due to misinterpretation!

Really folks,your whole process of making decisions is flawed!The one they taught you in school doesn’t work! Just look around you if you don’t believe me lol.You can observe it yourself.Admittedly,this takes deep observation and humility..It also takes a true open mind.

Medical Epistemology:I guess philosophy is important after all lol.My two favourite terms these days are Epistemology and Empiricism and its sister Philosophical Materialism.So my apologies to Wittgenstein and John Stuart Mills after all lol.

So( not supposed to use that word according to current anal grammarians .Another form of political correctness-this time in the  world of grammar.).And yet(probably also banned as a term lol) it is SO useful .Maybe that’s why they want to ban it! (the conspiratorial epistemology-to be unveiled shortly).So,I repeat,the current pandemic gives us a chance to examine different forms of Epistemology.Epistemology basically means “how do you get to the Truth,The Realty of any situation or question?”(same word btw in Arabic-Truth and Reality=Haqq!)

So let us examine four forms of Epistemology as applied to the Covid pandemic and  try to see their relative value.I will personalize these approaches in order to make the point more vividly and graspable.

  1. The Didier Raoult paradigm-information on the ground.For those that don’t know this fascinating character from Marseilles,he is one of the first doctors to promote hydroxychloriquine as a Covid treatment-mostly based on his clinical experience at a hospital in Marseilles.He even took the trouble to document his cases and show that at his clinic ,they had reduced the death rate by about 70% by this approach.Further studies done in the right way,using HCT early in the illness with azithromycin and Zinc came to similar conclusions-anywhere from a 60-80% reduction! All of this based on examining the facts on the ground.This principle is applicable to many other situations .Ask the people who are there experiencing it.But no! The current Epistemological paradigm forbids this! It is dismissed either as “subjective” or “anecdotal” or some other disparaging term.         I was pleased to hear from my brother in NYC whose future son-in-law was himself working on the ground in a Brooklyn hospital where the doctors noticed that HCT was useful early in the illness and they were not even using it with antibiotics and zinc! But no,the CDC and WHO will hear nothing of this .They need their prospective, double-blind ,placebo-controlled peer-reviewed (i.e. non-existent studies) lol to arrive at conclusions.)
  2. The Chris Martenson (peakprosperity.com) paradigm.Unlike the former paradigm  Chris is working from outside the battlefield.But he uses the on the ground workers as one source amongst others.Then he interviews people who have experienced the illness(how strange and unscientific lol!),looks at the research including the less high-profile journals and the non-statistical scientific reports.He scours the newspapers,TV Cable News and radio reports.From this vast array of sources he is able to discern the chaff from the wheat, pick out the B.S. even in hot-shot journals like Lancet and JAMA and then come to conclusions.He is almost invariably right and when he isn’t, he admits it.   Oddly enough I have seen judges in the courts using a very similar process of teasing out the reality from an abundance of sources.And in my experience, they consistently understand the Reality better than the “expert doctors” who are supposed to be the  experts in the area! That is because the doctors are using the next paradigm-the Fauci approach lol
  3.  The Fauci and his acolyte Sanjay Gupta approach- also known as current scientific consensus.These people only believe in peer-reviewed,placebo-controlled,double blind prospective studies and Cochrane database metastudies and official organizations like WHO and FDA and CDC..They are very often wrong as has been Fauci all along in this pandemic.He got the mask issue wrong(not enough studies?!)the hydroxychloroquine issue wrong(looking at the wrong studies and ignoring the right ones) and the man-made nature of the virus(how he could get that one wrong is beyond me as HE was instrumental in creating it!). The problem is that most medical personnel and certainly the formal afore-mentioned institutions(WHO,FDA,CDC,NIH) are all using that paradigm! No wonder we are in such confusion and such trouble.
  4. I can’t complete this abbreviated list of Epistemological approaches without mentioning the Brian Rose,Sayer Ji Plandemic conspiratorial epistemology.These people see the lies and the deceptions of the official stories of government and health institutions but go way beyond the facts into paranoid projections.So the fact that there was a 201 Event meeting of government and public health officials and businessmen organized by John’s Hopkins University  in October 2019 that simulated a pandemic to try to develop strategies to deal with such an event means for them that the pandemic was planned.Wrong! The fact that the Wuhan lab was under the control of the Chinese military means that this virus was a bio-weapon of war.Wrong again. The fact that Bill Gates screwed up with vaccines in India and Africa means that he is trying to depopulate the world so that he can better control it.Anyone with familiarity with the paranoid mind-set(I was a psychiatrist for 45 years lol) can recognize the cognitive errors in these kinds of distortions and projections.On top of it,they may be dangerous as they stir up unnecessary fear and anger in a situation where there is enough realistic fear and anger to go around already!
  5. Btw, each of these types of Epistemology can be used in many other areas of life as well.As I have indicated in other articles on this blogsite-which you are free to explore.In fact,I consider myself to be an Epistemologist of Spiritual Reality and Truth.              In summary.we have all been conditioned and brain-washed into a form of Epistemology that is seriously flawed.Either we believe what the authorities tell us(Big Mistake!) or we over-use our minds and come to logical but wrong conclusions.We need to cleanse our hearts and ears and eyes to perceive correctly.And that requires a lot of inner work! God be with you.Salaams,Sufi Ibrahim
Metaphysics, Modern Living, Psychology

How They Are Not Listening? Let me count the ways!

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There is currently an epidemic of deafness in human interactions going on. After observing this,I have been trying to understand why that is .This article is more about the “how’ than the “why”. Have a listen! lol

I could not have admitted this a while ago,when I was studying psychiatry,but I have learnt many deep and useful things from the psychoanalysts.One of the things they realized early on was that it was not enough to say the truth about the psychodynamics at play or about anything else for that matter.Firstly,you have to interpret the defenses i.e. you have to identify the barriers in the way of listening.

Now, ironically,there is something parallel in the Islamic tradition-yes the very same religious mentality that Freud liked to denigrate lol! It says”laillaha illaha”.(There is no God but the one true God).So you have to start by denying the falsehood-the various forms of idolatry.Then and only then,can you affirm the Truth -Allah.Ajib! Psychoanalysts and pious believers using the same approach.! What could be more reassuring lol,?

So what are these barriers to listening? I will list a few of the more obvious ones to begin with:
1-Denouncing the Source: so ,if you don’t like what someone says,you respond” He’s just ignorant” or “he’s a right-winger” or “he’s just too politically correct” or “he’s just a chauvinist, macho or a homophobe or an Islamophobe or a feminist”or any one of numerous categories that would discredit the individual from being a truth-sayer.The problem is that each and every one of those categories speaks the Truth at times.I could even add psychotics and borderlines and psychopaths to the list and not  forget Mr. Trump-the Narcissists lol.So categorizing people does not necessarily help you identify the Truth or falseness of what they are saying! Be careful!

2-The Bureaucratic Reflex: (Purolator story).When we think about bureaucracies,we are usually thinking about government institutions.However,many of the large”private” enterprises (think banks and any large companies including social media ones) Here is one recent example,I can share with you.I order my meat from the only reliable halal,organic supplier I know-Blossompure in Toronto.They have taken to shipping it via a delivery service in Canada known as Purolator-supposedly a private company(When I looked into its ownership- out of total frustration- I realized it was owned mostly by Post Canada! And I thought we were living in a competitive capitalist society! Think again Ibrahim!)

Anyway,here is how the story unfolded.Purolator claims they do next day delivery to Montreal.More often than not,however,that takes two days.Not a problem as the meat is so well-packed that after two days it is still mostly frozen.However,this time when they arrived at my appartment block the driver realized that the appartment number was missing.Instead of leaving it in the hallway(possible solution #1) his instructions were to bring it back to the warehouse.Note that we are now Friday and Purolator is closed on Saturday and Sunday! I get an email notice that the shipment was diverted because of the incomplete address.So I call the tracking line but they know nothing about it except that it was diverted.So I call the local Purolator warehouse and mange to connect with an agent.”Can you call the truck driver and complete the address”(Possible solution #2).”Sorry sir ,we can’t reach them.””Can you text him and ask him to call me?”(Possible solution #3)””Sorry sir our system doesn’t permit that” .”The can I meet him at the warehouse(possible solution#4).”Sorry sir,he arrives after we close” Can you tell him I will meet him when he arrives(Possible solution #5).That’s not possible sir”. “Is there any chance you would have a small freezer in your(huge) warehouse?”(possible solution #6 No,sir,we don’t have that sort of equipment.” N.B. You can probably think of other possible solutions but the system doesn’t permit of any of them!

Sure enough I receive a call on Monday morning to come pick up the meat.It has now been five days in transit and the entire box of meat is spoiled! Such is the insanity of bureaucracy.In this case,the result was spoiled meat. In many cases,it is lethal!

3-“It’s not significant” So even if it is true,it doesn’t matter.We recently had an unfortunate incident of that on a bridge near my home.A negligent repair crew sectioned the “rebar” on one of the supporting columns of the bridge.The mistake was reported to the Minisry of Transport who decided it was no big deal.So they continued sectioning the rebar on other columns!.By the time that had been done on 10 other columns ,they needed to shut down the bridge-indefinitely -a vital artery in the West of the city. “Human error” said the Ministry.”Ya,right” Deafness on high.That is significant  human error but by no means isolated to Quebec bridges.I just watched a news report on American television about the management of the Covid epidemic.Human error as well! ! May well have cost hundreds of thousands of lives.Deafness is a very costly disease!

4- Doesn’t coincide with one’s ideological schema. The preceding story of mismanagement of the Covid pandemic fits in nicely here.The ideology in question is “Double-blind,placebo-controlled,peer-reviewed,published in prestigious medical journal”  ideology.They now call that “Science”.Oops,got that one wrong-500,000 lives later! Of course this doesn’t only apply to medicine.In Vietnam,we were fighting Communism,in Iraq they were fighting terrorism ! And what about Chile and Nicaragua and Iran (putting in the Shah). Oops,got a few of those wrong also- because of ideology,no?

5-Following your desires; most people can get there heads around this one lol.You continue smoking despite the evidence.eating too much sugar and refined carbohydrates for diabetics.Women looking for bad boys and men seeking out b–ches. Lol.That one is usually easy to spot.Especially if it is happening to others!

6- The habit reflex; The Islamic holy texts are full of this one! Our Prophet saws preaches to his people and they respond;” But this is not what our ancestors have done.How can we change that?!’and Allah responds “but they were in error and ignorant”(paraphrasing).”No matter” say the Quraysh.They are our point of reference.Of course,this is not just the Quraysh.All societies have elements of conditioned ignorance.When Dr. Ed Hallowell was asked how teachers and educators dealt with the ADHD population in the good olde days he responded”They had a standard approach-blame shame and humiliation”. That’s just what they do! Why would we change that?’ It worked so well,right?! So the ADHDers became drug addicts and criminals and low-lifers.Just the way it is,I guess!To extend the model into the field of nutrition,let’s take the French and Italian insistence on devitalized refined white bread and pasta.The way of their ancestors!But nowadays almost guaranteed Diabetes 2.! Worth changing habits? You bet!

7-:The Contrarians; You say white,they say black.You say up,they say down.Ever met one of those lol?They are all around us.Sometimes,it is specific to certain relationships-like toddlers and adolescents and their parents.But sometimes it is generalized to all people.And at other times ,it has a competitive aspect.The non-listening other just wants to prove that he/she  is smarter or better-informed than you are.Besides being contrarian and competitive,this reaction implies a certain arrogance.”My idea is better than yours-by defintion lol”

These are some of the types of deafness.And they are legion.How to get to hearing?! That is a matter for another time.If you are impatient,you can start by reading any of the short articles on Epistemology on this blog.I am hoping to coalesce them all together soon.Stay tuned!

Islam, Psychology, Spiritual Practice, Uncategorized

Ramadan as Process(An update to The Phenomenology of Ramadan)

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Islam, Modern Living

Ramadan as Process:

I an writing this article because it seems to me that there is a major aspect of the Ramadan experience that our scholars are unwilling to talk about -except in the most fleeting terms-its difficulty lol.They much prefer their idealizations and their principles to the lived reality!On the other hand ,in sharp contrast,I was pleased to hear Sheikh  Zaid Shakir recently mentioning “the rigours of Ramadan” The local Imam,when the mosque was operating at full capacity,loved,instead, to talk about how quickly it is was passing.”19 days” he would say:”and it passed like a brief moment”.Really?! Yup,a brief moment -of 19 eternities.

So ,all around me I would see and hear of events.Like my very first Tarawih prayer where the Imam fell to the floor writhing in pain.It turned out that the Ramadan dehydration phenomenon had crystallized a stone in his urinary tract requiring an emergency medical procedure.Or the woman who would mention to her friends that her husband, who said he was fine with fasting, was regularly losing his temper for nothing.Or the patients I had to recommend to stop their fast because their depression,which they were already struggling with, had gotten worse! All of this goes on backstage,while in the foreground the ulema are only telling us of the blessings and the benefits- which is also true.

Don’t get me wrong here! I think Ramadan is a wonderful practice- clearly ordained by our Lord for our benefit.But that benefit is spiritual- not physical.And it involves hardship and perseverance and submission to our Lord.If it were otherwise it would not be called “the month of patience”. It is not a beach-party of Divine Presence.For that, no patience would required.

So why do I bring this up?! Because I don’t believe in “denial'”. According to the psychoanalysts,denial is the most primitive form of defense mechanism.And in the Arabic language the root word for denial (k-th-b) is the same as that for lying! So we really don’t want to go there.This attempt at denial ends up being counterproductive! If the ulema were hoping to encourage us by telling us only about the positive aspects and not acknowledging the experience,they have the opposite effect.People who are having difficulty and pain then feel like they are defective,slackers and losers.Is that what we want?! To have a collective assault on our self-worth?That is certainly NOT the intention of our Lord or his Prophet saws

Now,once again,the point here is not to minimize the importance of Ramadan.Allah has ordered it for our benefit.The point is to learn how to manage it in a way that we get the maximum benefit and the least harm.We all know of people who cannot do it-due to diabetes,or migraines or circulatory illness or even in my experience people who are depressed and psychotic.But there are many more subtle and more common issues.Last year, I myself missed a large part of the fast because of the viral illness called Shingles.It was apparent that the fasting had triggered it and it would only get worse if I continued fasting .I had to make up the days during the year.I was content with my decision.And this year all is well,so far! Alhumdulillah.

Others are not so discerning.I remember being with an Irish convert in England who suffered from serious epilepsy.I advised him to do only a partial fast. He wouldn’t listen and had a grand-mal seizure in the Peckham mosque during tarawih prayers in the last ten days.That seizure elicited a huge fitna between the believers in neurology(including myself lol) and those who considered it was “jinn”.A huge conflagration occurred and the police(who were excellently trained unlike in America!) had to be called in to quell the riot!. That is not what we need as Muslims!

Admittedly most Ramadan issues are not quite so dramatic.They are more about managing our energy deficits,dealing with the headaches,the periods of constipation and loss of drive.All of those are reasonably frequent and need to be managed.For most people,Ramadan is a roller-coaster!  Periods of loss of energy,loss of motivation followed by moments of barakat and peace and blessings.Some experience tranquility and calm.Others lose their will to to do anything! “it’s all grist for the mill” the psychoanalysts like to say.For us “it’s all service to our Lord”. But, we are not supposed to be increasing the pain through blindness and ignorance.And the blindness we are referring to here mostly involves blindness to our inner experience.

“So what does this mean concretely?”you may ask.And we ARE living in the era of concreteness! It is called Philosophical Materialism or Empirism-and it affects the Muslim psyche just as it affects the social psyche generally.Some examples.When I was still practising psychiatry,I would reduce the number of patients I saw /day and abstain from new evaluations and complex reports since that is what took the most cognitive effort.When I met some Iranian students of agriculture at the local university,they told me they started studying at iftar and studied through the night.”Clever ones” I thought! A member of the Tunisian Olypmpic team told me they did their athletic training at midnight during Ramadan-after the Tarawih prayer.Another brilliant move.But all of that requires awareness and breaking of habits-somehing that is all too rare in many circles!

One of the keys here is NOT to feel guilty about our experience.And not to be a”.Ramadan fasting macho”.The Imams seem to be specialized in making us feel bad! ‘You fasted all day but you had some bad thoughts about a friend.Fasting cancelled”. “You recited some Quran.Did you not know that Imam AbuHanifa and Imam Shafii did two complete Qurans /day.So you’re a slacker”! ” You left after 8 rakats.Don’t you know that 20 is better” And on and on .I call this “The Catholicization of Islam” as the Catholics were adept at making their parishioners feel bad about themselves and regularly sending them to the hell-fires! One of the reasons so many left the Church.

Sheikh Nazim used to tell us that the formula for life was 40 to1- pain to pleasure.My apologies to any hedonists in the audience lol.Ramadan may well be even more acute.But the reward is with Allah.I shudder to think what the outcome would be if it  were in the hands of human beings.Actually if you look around at our planet you can see what that would be?! Gradual and systematic destruction! Tawakuultu Ilayhi Wa Huwa Rabb ul Arsh Al Atheem. (We trust in Him and He is the Lord of the Magificent Throne-i.e. the Ultimate Manager!)

So,Ramadan Kareem and Saleem.It’s going to be tough! Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise! But in the end it’s more than worth it.And it’s well  worth managing it skilfuly as well!

The Phenomenology of Ramadan

“Phenomenology” is a relatively new area of inquiry- often associated with such personalities as the German philosopher Edmund Husserl (1859-1938) and Martin Heidegger(1889-1976).We will not even attempt to go into the the intricacies of their philosophical systems as this would fly in the face of my most profound conviction about the need for simplicity. I would prefer to sort out a chaotic garage or warehouse space(obviously of my own making lol) than to even attempt such an endeavour.

Nevertheless,I think these schools of thought do represent an important development in our own way of conceiving the world and more specifically the need for us to observe and reflect on our inner  experience.This need does not seem to be very present in traditional cultures including Islam where correct behaviour and correct beliefs seemed to suffice.So for most Muslims ,the fact that Allah ordained fasting in the Quran(2:183) and the Prophet saws told us of its benefits and the scholars have determined that the first ten days are for “Rahmat”(mercy) and the second ten are about” forgiveness from God” and the last ten give “freedom from the hellfires” is sufficient.

Being in the modern world, however, some of us, at least, feel the need to go deeper-into the inner experience and this is where phenomenology comes in.We need to look at the inner,experiential reality .

As I reflected on this( it may well have been an inspiration) I realized that an interesting parallel to Ramadan is the experience of pregnancy.The trigger for this thinking may well have been a difficult beginning to this year’s Ramadan and my recollections of the accounts of Kate Middleton, the duchess of Cambridge, and her difficult pregnancies being bed-ridden for months at the beginning of each of her pregnancies with overwhelming nausea.The details of her experience are not what is important here however,no more than the details of the philosophical systems of Husserl and Heidegger.What is interesting is that the three trimesters of pregnancy provide an interesting parallel to the three ten-day sections of Ramadan and I believe this can be helpful to us in understanding the process.

So, in Ramadan,the first ten days especially the early ones can be difficult for people.Just as women often experience nausea(morning-sickness) during the first trimester fasters will have a variety of symptoms as they take on the fast-headaches,dizziness,weakness,lack of concentration ,etc. Depending on the state of health of the practitioner this may last only a day or two or may continue for a longer period of time,for some intermittently throughout the month.

The second trimester of pregnancy usually is characterized by a subsidence of the ‘crisis mode’ ,less symptoms,a calmness and  a waiting.I would call this phase”paddling” and “incubation”. The baby is slowing growing and developing.The same is true in Ramadan.The worst is over.Now is the time of persistence and patience.

We all know where the third trimester of pregnancy leads! If we have had any contact with a woman going through it,we know they are literally “carrying a heavy load” ,exhausted,breathless at night and anticipating and fretting about the”apocalypse ‘to come.And then it is over.At this point the model breaks down somewhat as Ramadan is not as clearly defines in its finality.So for the last ten days  to be more accurate I would add in the model of the Shakespearian play which builds up to its climax(Lailat al Qadr) and its dénouement(the few days left after Lailat al Qadr. And the the Eid celebrations-in both cases.However for the woman, as opposed to the faster,the work has just begun!That is why Allah and his Prophet insist so strongly on the rights of the Mother!

I hope that helps you understand better the inner process of the month of fasting and makes it a more fulfilling and satisfying experience.I feel like it is helping me to think of it this way.And I can’t wait to see the baby at the end! Salaams,ibrahim

Metaphysics, Modern Living, Psychology, Spiritual Practice, Uncategorized

Positivity Training.

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One of the great sheikhs of our time,sent by the famous Ahmad al Alawi of Mostaghanem , Algeria to Damascus was named Mohammad al Hashimi.May Allah raise his rank still further. The Damascenes were missing him dearly when he departed in 1961 so they went to see his khadim (servant) and asked him what he had learned from the great sheikh.He answered “I learned only one thing”.They were amazed.”Fourty years around the sheikh and you learnt only one thing?!”they said.”Yes” he responded.”Ok.Then what was that thing?” And he responded “fi kooli shay khair”(within everything is goodness”). And they left incredulous! But the servant had made a deep point that has echoes throughout the history of Islam and all the world religions for that matter.The essence of everything in Existence is goodness and Love!Hard to believe but True,nevertheless.

The next question becomes,of course,how do we get to that positivity?This question involves an overlap between psychology and spirituality! The psychological exploration involved the study on Happiness by George Valliant of Harvard University and the Positive Psychology movement promoted by Martin Seligman ,president of the American Psychological Association.The latter defined it as ‘the scientific study of what makes life most worth living” or “the scientific study of positive human functioning and flourishing on multiple levels that include the biological,personal,relational,institutional,cultural and global dimensions of life” Ugh,lol! Whenever an author throws in”scientific” along with a bunch of other jargon I cringe lol.Mostly it is an effort to increase their credibility- since science has become the religion of the masses. Ok ,Ibrahim.Watch your negativity lol

Now a religious,spiritual person will read these things and say:”What about God?!”. “How can you be happy in a random universe without a Creator and without an afterlife and accountability?” Good questions lol.But not particularly agreeable to the liberal,progressive,agnostic narrative of the times!

So,let us first look at what the psychologist,intellectual Seligman proposes and then we will get to a more spiritual and transcendent perspective.Mine and that of Sheikh Hashimi mentioned above.I will also provide some helpful practices inshallah.

So Seligman proposes the acronym PERMA .That stands for Positive Affect,Engagement,Relationships,Meaning and Accomplishments.Let us look at these one by one.

1)Positive Affect involves a wide range of feelings like happiness,joy,excitement and satisfaction.The problem here is that many of these are outside of  our control.Most spiritual people understand that we cannot really generate these feelings.They are,in fact gifts(‘niamat’) from our Creator.More of that later.

2)Engagement-in activities.That we can do! But,ever noticed what happens when you do?! It often ends in disappointment.Either you realize the people you are with are not what you expected(like my experience in Marxist groups lol) or you realize the cause you were fighting for like Socialism falls apart when you actually visit the countries that are practicing it -like Marxism in China at the time of the Cultrural Revolution.

In case you think this is limited to left-wing causes,I noticed something interesting during my psychiatric practice.Some of my patients with the most disappointing relationships I had seen were people with partners from the great human-rights movements of our times-Amnesty International, Médecins Sans Frontières and Greenpeace amongst others.This was at first very surprising- until I figured out that these people were ideologues.Their convictions were strong but their hearts were hard and insensitive.Oh.oh.Problem.I had noticed the same thing during my participation in left-wing groups.The right-wingers had better relationships.I was genuinely surprised! If you need a more public version of this truth, think of the marriages of George Bush senior and junior and Ronald Reagan vs. the marriages of F.D.R. J,F.K. and Clinton lol.Surprising,no?The people with the best ideas often have the worst hearts!

3)Relationships.Yes! But how do you do that? Relationships have become more and more difficult.I tell young people now that my ballpark figure for intimate relationships is 1/10.Only 10% are going to work ! One of the best-known researchers in Marital Therapy,John Gottman, says that if you follow marriages in America for 40 years there is a divorce rate around 60%! And that is marriages and old-timers lol. Imagine what it is like now?!Not a good place to start,for sure.Some people are able to replace that with good relationships at work.and others with good family relationships.But many are left out in the cold!

4)Meaning! Whoa! Is that ever a loaded term!? Now the nders often find that, in fact,they are sent back for a purpose.And we all have a purpose,no doubt.But it is very easy to get lost .With all the contingencies of modern life, it is easy to end up in survival mode guaranteeing one’s economical situation and that of their progeny.Fill in the rest of your time with entertainment and you are good to go!Or are you.You can easily end up with a dread of death and a painful sense of temporality Without a Creator,there can be no true meaning.We are then stuck with Existentialism which often enough concludes that suicide is the only rational way out!(Read Camus for further elucidation lol) Wa la howla wala quwatta.

5)Accomplishments?! And what are those accomplishments.Making a million dollars? Getting a Phd. or even better lol an M.D.?! When the Pakistani mothers in my community were pushing their children into med school ,I would invite them to come to my Continuing Ed Courses in medicine to see those docs after 20-30 years of practice”Is that what you would like for your children?” I would ask.They would come running after the talk and say: “You musn’t say that, Dr. Ibrahim(yes,I was one of those fortunate few m.d.s lol).You will discourage them”No I would answer in my all-too provocative way. “You are the ones who are discouraged.If that is their vocation ,it is fine,But if not,you are committing them to  a lifetime of misery”.But who cares about that when you can say that your son or daughter is a doctor lol?!

As you can see by now,I am not a big fan of the secular version of happiness.It inevitably breaks down when confronted with the tests and tragedies of life and with the inevitable sickness and death that accompanies old-age.So let us examine a more robust response-the spiritual one!

So far,so bad lol.I like to frame my articles according to the Islamic Formula of “laillaha illallah”(there is no god besides the One God).Tha tis we start by denying  the batil(the falsehood) and then we assert the positive-the Truth.So,here is what you have been waiting for lol- the positive!

A Protocol for developing Positivity:

In effect,if we look deeply,the entire religious/spiritual enterprise is about developing positivity. From trusting in God (tawakkul) to loving Him and His Prophet, to surrendering to His Will,it is all positivity-training.Nevertheless,in this article we will concentrate on four aspects of this practice.

1-Gratitude: Even the secularists agree to this one! In fact there is research to indicate that doing a gratitude practice helps with depression!If you Google the subject,you will find numerous articles to confirm this effect.What I am recommending here is that every night before you go to sleep,think of 3-5 things that happened during the day that you can be grateful for.It can even be for something negative that did not happen. It might sound something like this”I am grateful for the efficient snow-clearing operations that happen all around me during the winter making life that much easier in Canada.Or again”I am grateful that the huge icicles that fell off my roof as the thaw came in did not injure anyone”. You can see that the gratitude can be very specific to one’s particular situation.

Once again here you can see the advantage of being a believer! At least we know who we are grateful to-our Creator.Rabb Alameen(the Lord of the worlds).I guess there are people wpo get benefit just by being grateful to the forces of chance but that seems like small comfort to a metaphysician like myself lol

Now, as a believer,we should be grateful all the time,or at least many times during the day,not only at night.So remember the gratitude button.It is not always easy.Why is that? I like to say that the human brain is a compass that points south?!i.e. it is designed to indicate the negative,the dangerous,the tragic.The evolutionary biologists tell us that this has a survival benefit in it.It is better to misidentify the rock as a sabre-toothed tiger( no loss except for some anxiety lol) than misidentify the tiger as a rock(and get eaten unnecessarily!). Although this has an evolutionary advantage,it also has a spiritual,happiness disadvantage.We end up living in fear and worry  and doubt!

Let me give you a clinical anecdote to underline the issue here.I once had a client with a suspicious breast lump- who was scheduled for a biopsy.She was understandably freaked-out and we spent the entire session dealing with her anxiety.Two weeks later,she came in and immediately started complaining about her spouse(we’re used to that in psychotherapy lol). Something in me felt that this was not right.And then it clicked”One moment here”I said”Two weeks ago you were sure you were dying and would leave two children without a mother! What happened with the biopsy?” ” Oh,that” she responded” It was negative.I’m fine.But my husband….lol “. You see what had happened is the brain, geared to negativity mode, had shifted to the next problem!  Here is where the work begins! “One,moment here”I said.”Let’s take a moment to be happy and grateful that the lump was benign,that you’re going to live and be there for your children.” She laughed shyly!

So for each of us we have to catch the thing to be grateful for “on the fly” so to speak.Our brain will not flag it.It is set in negativity mode But our soul must if we want to be happy and grateful!

2-Philantrophy: This refers to thinking about the other ,considering the other,and doing for the other.In the Islamic traditions,our Prophet saws is the model for good character.It is said that when he arises on the Day of Judgment, his first words are “ummat, ummati(my community,my community) .”How are the others doing?” The polar opposite of Trump lol who is always thinking:”How does this affect me?”

Now philantrophy can take many forms and it has its own risks.It can take the form of charitable donations.So many good causes to donate to.Unfortunately this has become a cottage industry with the risk of corrupting the whole process and turning people off. I resent some of those heart-wrrenching ads about starving children and amputees and mistreated animals.They are ALL real and worthy causes.But there is something manipulative in this approach, something about the process that is “marketing ” and obnoxious.Allah knows our intentions however and will reward us accordingly.

Another form of philanthropy is simply doing a good deed like driving a neighbour who has no car to the grocery store or fixing someone’s leaky tap for free.All of this is charity.In fact our Prophet saws has said that even a smile is a form of charity. I like to remind Muslims with sour expressions on their faces(especially women lol) of that hadith when I go shopping lol.Our tradition is about being positive. This is what gives people shining faces with light.

Another form of philantrophy is listening and accompanying people who are having a hard time, emotionally, through their distress.Once again,be careful.If you take on too much pain ,you yourself will be negatively affected.

So very many ways of thinking and helping others.They are in front of us every day! But once again,we need to confront our egos! They are programmed to be selfish! Another survival advantage,the biologists will tell us in their cynical ways..Survival here- but negative consequences on the other side.Read about nders “Life Reviews” if you need confirmation.

I would like to complete this section with an apocryphal story from the Sufi traditions.There was once  a nasty,foul lady who used to hang out in the markets of Baghdad.She spent her time cursing people and speaking foul language.And then she died! Several students of Imam Junayd ,one of the greatest of the Sufis,saw her on the other side- in paradise!They couldn’t believe their eyes so they went to their teacher.”How could such a woman be in paradise ?” they asked.Al Junayd was quick to answer” One day there was a dog shivering in the cold,dying in the market.She took off her coat to help him be warm.For this deed alone, Allah forgave all her other sins!” Alhumdulillah!

3-Seeing the positive We have a number of expressions for this in English and French-“Seeing the silver lining in the cloud”;”seeing the glass as half-full rather than half-empty” and many others.The manoeuvre is always the same.”Look at the bright side”.Hamza Yusuf is fond of telling the story of a Moroccan or Mauritanian man who had very strong faith but had a bad stroke( May Allah spare us these kind of tests). Instead of complaining about his right side which was completely paralyzed ,he would point out how well his left side was working and attribute that to the Mercy of his Lord.A very high degree of faith indeed!

We have many occasions to do this practice. Some banal examples: Our sink blocks up in the kitchen”Thank God I have another sink in the bathroom”.Our child has A.DH.D. “Thank God,it’s not autism”. Our car has some issues.”Thank God,we have several good mechanics in the area.”There are countless ways we can count our blessings! And we should make it our duty to do so!

4-The Acceptance Practice (hot off the press)lol

In Sufism this is referred to as “rida” -officially translated as “satisfaction” or “contentment”

This just came to me! Only believers can benefit from this one ,I believe.We know that everything,yes everything, is from God.The Sufis say that not a molecule in the Universe moves without the permission of the Divine! Even the Advaita people like Robert Adams say “Everything is unfolding exactly as it should.There are NO mistakes in the Universe”. So here is how we apply that knowledge! Whatever occurs, especially what appears to be negative,we say: “This too is from Allah and I accept it” Then we find a good reason why that may be so.A simple personal example.Recently I had a problem with a tooth which previously had a root canal.My dentist looked at it,couldn’t quite figure it out and referred me to the root canal specialist.But he was overbooked and couldn’t see me for two months.A bummer,no? Not easy to accept.Then I thought”It is not really causing me any pain.Alhumdulillah.And the wait will train me in patience”(not one of my natural attributes lol.)The problem is still there but much of the disappointment is gone.And I know I can do even better than that in the future.

This last anecdote also refers  us back to our relationship to the body-source of so much grief! In my neck of the woods,the French Canadians like to greet us on New Years with “Bonne Année .Je vous souhaite la bonne santé. Après tout, c’est la santé qui est la pricipale”(Happy New Years .I wish you good health.After all,it’s health(physical health) that’s the most important!) .I used to let it pass.But now,for those who can handle it I respond: “One moment.That can’t be it! We are all condemned to ill-health and death at some point.So if it’s all about health,we’re really  in trouble!” .Most of them smile back but some ask the follow-up question:”So,what’s it about/” And I respond “It’s about Faith.And our relationship to the Creator”The believers smile.And the agnostics scowl lol.

So there you go! Four practices to maintain positivity.1) gratitude; 2) Philanthropy; 3) Seeing the positive in everything and 4) acceptance.Let’s get to work- you and  me!

Salaams,Sufi Ibrahim

 

 

Holistic Medicine, Metaphysics, Modern Living, Psychology, Uncategorized

Four Essential Areas of Knowledge

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This one has required a long gestational period! It is the summary of decades of experience and observation!

The majority of people limit their knowledge-base to what is necessary to survive- with a bit of recreation thrown in.The Hindus would call that First Chakra preoccupations lol So they learn to do their trade,to earn a living and to take care of their basic needs.N.B. I am talking here  about the “good ones” -not the criminals and psychopaths of which there are far too many nowadays.

Then there is the minority of people who undertake a spiritual path.They understand that “this can’t be all there is” and so they aim higher-to understand the invisible worlds and the After-life. Some of them are corrupt but most are well-intentioned and sincere- regardless of their actual attainment.

However(is that word still allowed lol) that too is not enough.Regardless of the spiritual path and the associated religious practice(yes,religious practice because without it the spiritual gains drain out constantly like having the archetypal hole in one’s bucket). Whether the practice is meditation-based or prayer-based or obedience and service-based or even based on the struggle with the ego (jihad-a-nafs )it is still not enough to manage life in the modern world- especially given the fact that most religions are based on teachings from long ago and have been struggling themselves to keep up with the times.

So,what are these areas of knowledge that are necessary to successfully managing one’s life in the modern world.There are ,at least four that I have identified;

1)Comparative Religion:knowing about other religions that we are not practicing. N.B. I am not advocating here the smorgasbord of religious practice that I first encountered with the Sufi Order of the West. All due respect to the dignity and nobility of Hazrat Inayat Khan and his son Pir Vilayat, practicing all the religions at the same time is like putting chop suey in your Boeuf Bourgignon or adding knishes to your lasagna.Just doesn’t work lol

So,what is the reason to learn about other religions? Well,firstly we are living in a global village. Veut, veut pas(whether we like it or not) unlike living in Medieval Christian times or in a strict Hassidic community or a Deobandi one for that matter ,we are going to encounter people from other faiths.And the vast majority of them are not going to convert! That’s just the reality and we have to live with it.So it is better to know something about the others’ point of view-what they value and what they reject.That makes for better relations.

Secondly,each religion has its areas of strength that we can learn from even if we reject their overall approach.The Christians,for example,have developed kindness and charity and piety. So even if we reject some of their theology we can acknowledge their strengths.The Hindus and Buddhists,despite, slipping into idolatry at times(whether the pantheon of Hindu gods or the statues of Buddha) and being imbalanced in the direction of transcendence as opposed to living properly in the world, have developed the most sophisticated and carefully mapped-out processes of meditations.We can learn from them. And the Jews have defended a pure monotheism and a rigorous intellectual traditional of scriptural interpretations(the Talmud). Another chance to learn! Let us approach traditions other than our own with respect and awareness rather than religious jingoism and the results can not be other than positive!

2) Psychology:The twentieth century saw a fluorishing area of investigation into the individual psyche. From Sigmund Freud to C.G. Jung through Skinner and Aaron Beck,not to mention Fritz Perls and the Gestaltists and Wilhelm Reich and the field of Bioenergetics there was an outpouring of observations on the constitution of the individual psyche.

Now, spiritual disciplines were always aware of this problematic aspect of the human constitution.The fight against the ego and its negative tendencies has always been part of the spiritual path.However,never before was the “mind” (thoughts and emotions) looked at with such precision and details. One of the areas where this becomes particularly helpful is in dream interpretation(something we will be exploring in our upcoming book on the subject.)Suffice it to say that even the great Sufi dream interpreters like Ibn Sirin had not uncovered many of the mechanisms of dream expression. To be more specific without being comprehensive,the concepts of the “unconscious”, “displacement”, “condensation” and Collective Archetypes(C.G. Jung) are just a few of the newer ideas that help us to properly understand dreams.

It must be said here that spiritual teachers,including the best of them, are generally resistant to psychological thinking and practice.I get it! It can easily slip into individualism,egotism and agnosticism.That being said, this refusal of the psychological domain can lead to catastrophic consequences including suicide ,death and physical illnesses.I will leave out the illustrative case histories for another time!Suffice it to say that we ignore this domain at our own peril!

3) Environmental and Functional Medicine:Ever since the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century but even more acutely since the 1950’s we have been exposed to ever increasing levels of toxins.From pesticides like Round-up to vaccines and their adjuvants to heavy metals and VOCs in construction materials and more and more EMFS due to cellphones and wifi and G5 we are literally bombarded with toxins.Not only are most spiritual teachers oblivious to this reality but the experts,the doctors in our medical clinics, are woefully uninformed and misinformed about this subject.Most of them are still looking for that Pasteurian, Koch postulate single variable -cause that is not present in most cases especially those of chronic illnesses. We are living amidst a literal deluge of toxins that are causing an epidemic of serious illnesses like Autism and Cancer and Auto-immune disease and Alzheimer’s.Anyone seen any of those around them lol?! But most of our medical personnel,let alone our clergy, are clueless.The doctors are still looking for excuses for this phenomenon like”cancer has always been around”True but not at that rate- or”It’s only because the population is ageing”. But there is more and more cancer in children! With autism the rate has gone up from 1/2000 when I studied psychiatry to 1/30 to 1/60 depending on which studies you read.that is 4000% increase! And what do the doctors say”It must be because we have gotten better at diagnosing it or again”the diagnostic criteria have enlarged”! No,no and no! “There are none as blind as those who will not see”!

All of this means that often,we need to manage our own medical situations.The regular doctors are resources. At times they can do extraordinary things like stenting for acute coronary artery disease but overall we need to manage our own health.I will not outrage you here with some of the horror stories of spiritual teachers giving medical advice! Suffice it to say that the smart ones refer you back to your doctor.Then you have ,often, to save yourself from their limited knowledge as well lol.

So-o-o-o learn,learn and learn and then manage your own health.It’s the only truly effective strategy!

4) Near-death and peri-death experiences:This is a brand new area! Really just began in earnest with the publication of Raymond Moody’s book “Life after Life” in 1975 and Elizabeth Kubler-Ross’s work on the dying and grieving processes.And why do I consider it so important?!So important in fact that I wrote a book on it called “The Big Questions-Evidence-Based Faith”(available on Amazon or at this blog.)One of my spiritual teachers once said this:”There are only three questions that should be of concern-me,God and death”! So death is one-third of the curriculum lol. All the great spiritual teachers have counselled their students to reflect on death! The Prophet saws has said“The most wise from among you is he who remembers death the most and the most prudent from among you is he who is most prepared for it”. Wise words no doubt,

So-o-o now we have this window into the death process that is both compelling ,contemporary and relatable.And those are the near-death experiences about which there is more and more material being produced every day.Why would anyone in their right minds ignore this treasure-trove of reports?!

Well,the “scientific types” are still looking for the magical neurochemical compound or neurophysiolgical process that would explain it all away!? Can you imagine?! Here we have credible,honest people in our midst bringing back credible reports that are consistent with everything our religious teachers and mystics have been saying since the beginning of times and we have these sim[ple-minded skeptics,no doubt conditioned by our Empiricist educational system,thinking: “This must be endorphins or hypoxia or chemically-induced hallucinations.In Islam we say “wa la howla wala quwatta’.(How could they be so blind and opaque?!) The latter question will be a topic for another time.Suffice it to say, for now, that this knowledge ,of the near-death and peri-death experiences, can be both reassuring(that we DO continue after death) and instructive -as to what is important in life and what isn’t .Once again we ignore it at our own risk and peril!.

So there you go! Comparative Religion,Psychology,Environmental Medicine and Near-death experiences.A glorious and sumptuous  repast! That should keep you busy for the next few decades lol

Modern Living, Politics, Psychology, Uncategorized

In case you thought I was anti-American….lol

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Follow this thread from my Facebook page to see how I combat “black and white thinking”

Joel Ibrahim Kreps
Absolutely! The Americans have almost nothing to contribute to morality,that is.-except for the principle of hard work-often overdone however.They do make important contributions however to digital technology and science.I did appreciate their medical conferences and spiritual seminars over the years! Beware Khadijah of “black and white thinking”.That is one of my more important teachings!…
Khadijah:
Joel Ibrahim Kreps

I wasn’t aware that they were a part of those types of conferences.

Joel Ibrahim Kreps
The Americans are the best teachers of medicine and psychiatry and psychology on the planet!

Joel Ibrahim Kreps

I once attended an iftar dinner with a Pakistani friend and his relatives.One of the relatives,a middle-aged Pakistani man said” Those Americans,everything they do is evil”! That got me upset and Allah sent me an inspiration- something I had never thought before! ” Yea” I said “If the Americans had not been involved in the Pacific theater in WW2( yes,I know about Pearl Harbour but that is beside the point) Pakistan would now be occupied by the Japanese.Ask the Chinese and Koreans what that is like”! The whole table went silent lol
Then some even more foolish Muslim on my Facebook page took it upon himself to point out that it was still India at the time.As if it makes a difference whether you are a citizen of India or Pakistan to the Japanese?!Completely irrelevant lol
Joel Ibrahim Kreps
Even in terms of Islamic scholars,I trust Hamza Yusuf, Omar Suleiman and Sheikh Nuh- all American-raised, two of the three being converts, more than any of the Eastern scholars-none of whom have ANY perspective on their own societies.So, like everything else on the planet ,there is some good in America-lots of good in fact and lots of evil! I guess,you could call it an interesting place lol
Counselling, Modern Living, Psychology

Family Dynamics-Bowen

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Important to understand-especially in immigrant families!

Definitions from Bowen Theory

 

Differentiation of Self:  

“The ability to be in emotional contact with others yet still autonomous in one’s own emotional functioning is the essence of the concept of differentiation.” (Kerr & Bowen. 1988)

“Differentiation is a product of a way of thinking that translates into a way of being….Such changes are reflected in the ability to be in emotional contact with a difficult, emotionally charged problem and not feel compelled to preach about what others “should” do, not rush in to “fix” the problem and not pretend to be detached by emotionally insulating oneself.” (Kerr & Bowen 1988)

Fusion:

“Fusion or lack of differentiation is where individual choices are set aside in service of achieving harmony in the system” (Brown, 1999)

Fusion is where “people form intense relationships with others and their actions depend largely on the condition of the relationships at any given time…Decisions depend on what others think and whether the decision will disturb the fusion of the existing relationships.” (Papero, 2000)

Fusion:

“Fusion or lack of differentiation is where individual choices are set aside in service of achieving harmony in the system” (Brown, 1999)

Fusion is where “people form intense relationships with others and their actions depend largely on the condition of the relationships at any given time…Decisions depend on what others think and whether the decision will disturb the fusion of the existing relationships.” (Papero, 2000)

Emotional Cut-off:

“The concept of emotional cut-off refers to the phenomenon of emotional distancing, whether the cut-off takes the form of internal mechanisms or physical distancing.”(Titelman. 1987)

“The emotional cut-off is a natural process. On a simple level people speak of the need for personal space…as a means of “explaining” their avoidance of others. Distance seems to be the safety valve of the emotional system. Yet at the same time distance leaves people primed for closeness….The more an individual employs cut-off to manage attachment to parents and the original family, the greater his or her vulnerability to intense emotional processes in current relationships.” (Papero.1990)

Metaphysics, Modern Living, Psychology

Cognitive Error on the Hill?!

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Ok. Security lapse on Capitol Hill explained-by an ex-chief of Capitol Police! Remember the importance of “sammiyya”(the hearing function- more truth that way than all the commissions of enquiry put together lol).So here is what he said” After the Trump foray across the lawn to the Church,the police and military were accused of over-reacting. So the police wanted to have a low-profile presence” Sounds good to me! But think about it.! That is a classic mistake.Think the non-intervention in Syria(reaction to Iraq) and the defeat of the American forces in Danang(reaction to the defeat of the French at Dienbienphu) All the same error!

I once met a building inspector at a conference on sick buildings in Ottawa.He was considered one of the best in Canada! I asked him what his secret of success was?! He said” It’s simple.95% (yes 95% !) of the problems I am called upon to analyze are solutions to previous problems”! Ajib!(amazing).From thence my own aphorism about life.”Every solution you find contains the seeds of future problems”! Think chemotherapy in cancer or automobiles in transportation.Think about your solutions to problems of loneliness lol!The list is almost infinite.Think about it .But be careful.You might become a believer and that DOES solve a lot of problems.Although that, too, can cause problems down the road.Ever noticed lol?!

Modern Living, Politics, Psychology

Fascism and Conspiracy Theories

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Most people who have looked at history realize that Fascism(whether Nazism or Communism) goes together with paranoia(think Hitler and Stalin for starters!).So( even this ‘so’ on this post as I write it,is now underlined in red! by the grammarian Fascists lol) we should not at all be surprised by the plethora of conspiracy theories out there.Why is that? Because we are now living in a period of Scientific and Politically Correct Fascism! This Fascism prevents people from expressing views that are different from the social consensus– in the name of science ,experts,political activisms of various sorts.So as long as censorship abounds and alternative views,whether medical or political or moral, are systematically blocked from expression ,the conspiracy theories will continue to accumulate.There is no way to control the symptoms(conspiratorial mind-set) if you don’t control the disease (over-control of information,insensitivity and deafness to peoples’ needs and rigid,blind bureaucratic processes everywhere in our societies!)