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ye jo Jeff Buckley hai...

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Jeff Buckley's cover of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's - Yeh Jo Halka Halka Saroor Hai from the album 'Live at Sin-é' The title song is a bit hard to translate but it's something on the lines of 'that ecstasy feeling' - terrible translation. I suggest you learn Urdu but for now here is a little breakdown: [Yeh Jo = that is, it is; Halka Halka = (very) light/little/slight; Saroor = exhilaration/ecstasy, Hai = is] Here is a link to the original by the ustaad : Link Below is an interview by the late great Jeff Buckley with the late great Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan for the Interview magazine (Jan 1996): Pakistani Qawwali singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan drives people wild with his music, which is an unbelievable combination of rich, soaring, complex sounds including something that is hard to describe but reminds us of yodeling. His music has been featured on movie soundtracks and in concert halls around the world, and his ecstatic voice haunts all who hear i...

'Islamic' fashion comes to Bangladesh

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Front Cover Muhajjabah means 'one who hijab s' and hijab means 'to cover', is the new Muslim women fashion magazine launched in Bangladesh. First of its kind to promote 'Islamic' dress in the country. Not sure how I feel about this, as a Muslimah, one would expect me to be thrilled at the prospect of promoting 'Islamicness'. I suppose my problem comes with the term and the image of hijab, it is made into solely a physical attribute. 'Hijabbing' of the innerself is just as important than the outerself in Islam but we're so obsessed with the latter that the former gets brushed to the side or rather it is not emphasised as much as I would like it to be i.e., just as equally. Aside from that, looking at other images in the magazine it is pretty apparent that it is not just focusing on fashion but rather on the diversity of women in Bangladesh who dress differently and for differently occasions, whether that be the work place, a ...

ulta falta #1

How is it that people have time to call you but only to tell you how busy they are and that they can't chat to you...? you. called. me. pfft.

hok kolorob

Means 'silla silli' if you know Sylhetti otherwise it translates, roughly to 'scream and shout/make some noise'. 03.Arnob - Hok Kol... Arnob's got a new album out titled Doob , haven't heard it yet, anyone want to send it my way...?

Much Ado about Women...

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I always cringe when there is an event on about women; discussing women issues by women for women. Yet yesterday I gave such an event the benefit of the doubt, thought perhaps I could learn something from it and cure the sceptic in me, a little. The event was the Radical Middle Way Question Time for Women , titled Spiced Spare Ribs . Admittedly it took me a while to figure out what the title meant, forgive me, I'm slow... The event started off with the criticism of the poster and the title of the event. Where I thought the title was a bit tongue and cheek (post realisation of what it meant), Humera Khan begged to differ, her stance was that we needn't go back to reducing women to be just the spare rib of Adam as that was retrogressive. Second issue was the image, it was of a Muslim girl in a jilbab epitomising what a Muslim woman should looked like. This bothered me also, symbolism is a very powerful medium, you go around claiming Muslim women are women who dress a particular ...

Happy Valentines

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Been walking past this poster for a few weeks now, and finally it has some use! :)

What is in a Question?

Recently speaking to a friend on the question of finding the suitable 'suitor' she told me her mode of choosing someone. She's decided to ask some questions;* religion-related, lifestyle-related - types, reasonable. Except two of her question came down to answering 'what is your concept of God?' and 'How do you know Islam if the right religion?' Of course, she isn't looking for a full proof answer but rather how the person reasons themselves. And not that they are unreasonable questions to ask but I think mine (if a time should come) would be more general and may entail a are you salafi? -question when it came down to religion :) So, how would you feel answering such questions? Would you love the challenge? Think odd of her? Or simply like her a bit for asking it? And, what would your Questions be? *In the Asian/Muslim circle relationships are formed commonly through intermediaries who find you your suitor and through them you communicate and give your ...