Ramadan day 22 – Desoto Masjid Al-Islam

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SUMMARY


22 Pictures in the link at Flickr given in the summary

The Imam; Imam Yahya Abdullah is one of the old timers and goes back to the movement of Imam Warith Deen Muhammad, also known as the Nation’s Imam. He has been a part of many of the events we have done and we know each other for at least five years.

He is well known for his interfaith work. Indeed, Imam Warith Deen Muhammad is the first Muslim to initiate the interfaith Dialogue in America. Imam Abdullah and Imam Qasim were students of Imam WD Muhammad. More about them at –http://dallasmuslimcenter.blogspot.com/2012/08/wd-muhammad-appreciation-week-in-dallas.html

Wiki, “Warith Deen Mohammed (born Wallace D. Muhammad; October 30, 1933 – September 9, 2008), also known as “W. Deen Mohammed” or “Imam W. Deen Muhammad”, was a progressive African American Muslim leader, theologian, philosopher, Muslim revivalist and Islamic thinker (1975–2008) who disbanded the original Nation of Islam in 1976 and transformed it into an orthodox mainstream Islamic movement.”

Nearly 2 Million Muslims switched from Nation of Islam to Sunni Islam. The WD Muhammad group makes about 1/3rd of Muslims in the United States.”

The Masjid is located right on Belt line; this is the 3rd loop road around Dallas and runs on the south side of the town going through Desoto.  On the north side of Belt line is Chapel Downs, a home subdivision. Instantly I was in my glorious past, way back in 1985, when I was a community manager for Ryland Homes, I wrapped up that neighborhood with the last few homes we had built. By the way the company had given me a cell phone, that had a huge steel suit case placed in the trunk of my car, and the wires were cut through to the front. I was driving nearly 150 miles a day that year driving from Denton to Desoto and Mesquite to Bedford, closing down subdivisions with a few lots left in each place, right before the market collapsed in 1986.

The atmosphere at this Masjid is more like a family gathering, mixing and mingling with each other. I made it to the Mosque a minute before Iftaar as I was stuck in traffic going through downtown Dallas on a Friday night. I wish I had gone earlier, there is 8 acres of land of this mosque with trees and I would have loved to take some pictures.

In the Warith Deen Tradition, the men and women sit together and break the fast, indeed; it highlights the cultural aspect of Islam. It’s only in America we have come to know that Islam as practiced has the religious and cultural components in it, in most other nations, both are intertwined and hard to distinguish between the two.

By the way, their teen girls have an outstanding Musical dance performance group. I have watched them perform at Family Federation church and the Lifeway Church. Their actions symbolize different aspect of prayers (Salat, namaz), it is amazing. Insha Allah, we may ask them to perform in our annual Thanksgiving Celebrations program; a cultural pluralism program of musical expressions.

Khairi Muhammad, 14, leads the prayers

The Maghrib prayers were led by Khairi Muhammad, 14 year old student of Imam Yahya. It was refreshing to see this; the Imam lets his students lead the prayers. He said; let them practice it early on!

Khairi also leads the Taraweeh prayers.

What a joy to see the Masjid overwhelmed by young kids, both male and female, most of them prayed the fard (obligatory) as well as the optional prayers. Thanks to the management and membership of the Mosques for participating in picture taking and sharing.  I am glad Imam Yahya asked the congregation for taking the pictures and everyone was a happy participant.

The ritual prayers are identical to most of the Sunni Mosques, the only difference I noticed was in the Tashahhud position, and most of us lift the fore finger when we recite, “Ashhadu-an La Ialha Illal La”, but they were lifting the fore finger and the middle finger together, it was more than three people doing that in the Sunna prayers to ignore as a personal thing.  I forgot to ask the Imam about its significance, or it is simply a matter of he did it, I do it too!

Thanks to Imam Yahya Abdullah, here is an update from him, “The 2 fingers during At-Tashahuud is because we are making Shahadatain (2 witnesses) not one, 1) La elaha illal Lah, 2) Muhammadan Rasuulu-Lah, as we know ALLAH and Muhammad The Prophet are not the same. First finger for ALLAH and the second finger for Muhammad the Prophet. Imam W. Deen Mohammed taught us this.”

Dinner was non-Asian and non-Middle eastern for the first time in 22 days! It was fish with Barbeque Sauce on it with Brown rice and Salad. I have had barbeque in every fashion, but this was the first time with fish. Oddly it was cooked by a Lebanese itna-Ashri Shia couple and not middle-eastern food. Good food for a change!  The brother believed that the Sunnis follow the12 imams, the three of us, Imam Yahya, Marzuk and I assured him that it is not in the Sunna and not a Sunni tradition. He thought that was Sunnah. Most Sunnis assume that all Muslims do what they do.

Khairi Muhammad, Mike Ghouse, Imam Yahya Abdullah and Marzuk Jaami

The lady across me in green shirt was visiting from Little Rock Arkansas. She was considering doing her Ph.D in psych or pursues a law degree.  Her joy was that the sisters were marrying Muslim men; I guess that is the case with all sisters in every faith in the world to marry within the community. It is particularly pronounced among Jews and Muslims, more than others.

It was good to see Marzuk Jaami, if you have lived in Dallas for more than 20 years, you may recall him and many Muslims joining together in the neighborhood watches and driving the drug pushers and gangster out of the neighborhoods, they cleaned the neighborhoods!

Marzuk is also one of the recipients of the “Pluralist” recognition that the Foundation for Pluralism honors every year at the Unity Day program.  He pioneered an educational series called Abraham in three faiths, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad in three faiths, a great educational program. Insha Allah, he plans to resume that this September. I wish, I really wish, Muslims from other traditions attend this and enlighten themselves.

Interestingly the dinner conversation involved China, almost everyone on the table was doing business in China, recycle, men’s suits… you name it. A few people call this China Masjid.

They have enough space on their grounds to do the Eid prayers along with other WD Muhammad tradition mosques.

Each mosque and each tradition is uniquely different.  Insha Allah, I will do my best to keep that uniqueness intact, however, it is not easy to write different things each day for the whole month, and we have just about 6or 7 days left!  I hope this has been a meaningful journey for you. I urge you to jump in experience it yourselves.
Mike Ghouse is committed to building a cohesive America with participation from every community. Please visit www.AmericaTogetherfoundation.com 

FRIDAY PRAYERS – TODAY’S MASJID WAS DAWOODI BOHRA MASJID
URL: http://nabsites.net/demo/juma-prayers-at-anjuman-e-najmi-in/ or simply go to  www.DallasMuslimCenter.com

Please mark your calendar for Tuesday, September 11, 2012 – 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM at Unity of Dallas, a positive event that brings all Americans Together to rededicate our pledge for a peaceful, prosperous and secure America. We are a part of America and we need to feel and live it.  If you liked some of the article, you will like the description of Unity Day USA atwww.UnityDayUSA.com

Please visit www.RamadanDaily.com  for a record since 2010.

MikeGhouse is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, civic affairs, Islam, India, Israel, peace and justice. Mike is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News and regularly at Huffington post, and several other periodicals across the world. The blog www.TheGhousediary.comis updated daily. 

Juma Prayers at Anjuman-e-Najmi in Irving

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FRIDAY, AUGUST 10, 2012

  • Juma Prayers – Anjuman-e-Najmi,  Irving
  • Visiting different Mosques every Friday.
  • Place of worship: Masjid Anjuman-e-Najmi
  • Address: 1324 S. Nursery Rd, Irving, TX 75060
  • Website: http://www.dallasjamaat.org/
  • Denomination: Dawoodi Bohra
  • Pictures:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeghouse/sets/72157631012940372/show/
  • Website: www.DallasMuslimCenter.com  
  • A part of Shiah Tayyibi Dawoodi Bohra denomination of Islam.
  • Clergy:  Janaab Aamil Saheb Sheik Fakhruddin Bhanpurawala
__________ __________ __________
 Anjuman-e-Najmi, Dawoodi Bohra Masjid, Irving, Texas – 11 other pictures in link

I am driven by the wisdom of Sura Hujurat 49:13. The reason we have conflicts with others and among ourselves is because we don’t know each other and shamefully, what we know is “cooked up” negatives about the other.

Today, I went to the Dawoodi Bohra Masjid for Friday Prayers, and as always, I walked out feeling good knowing that we all worship the creator, with our own uniqueness that is beautiful. Insha Allah, I will be visiting this Mosque for Iftaar this coming week. 
God says the best among you are the ones who understand and know each other. God has not said to be mirrors or copycats of each other. Had he wanted, he would have punched all of us out of a factory with exact same specifications. Nope, he wanted each one of us to be unique with our own specific thumbprint, eye print, taste bud, color bud, drink bud, scent bud and rituals bud. Respecting that uniqueness amounts to appreciating the creator.
I am blessed to have been to literally every place of worship of different faiths, and I simply admire the devotion of the individuals towards the creator, how one leans, bows, kneels or prostrates is unique to each tradition and it is beautiful. Like my daughter had said once, Gee Dad, God can be worshipped in so many different ways!
I urge Muslims to think about this… upgrading ourselves to be truly Mukhlookhul Aalameen, a universal being with whom everyone can relate, and who has no barriers between him (her) and another human.
Each denomination has its own addendum to the religious practices. The major denominations being Sunni, Shia, Ahamdiyya, Salafi, Alavi and Sufi – then within each there are many schools of thought and variations.

The Dawoodi Bohra is a small community,  but very active in building and maintaining good relations with fellow members of the community at large. They have always been a part of the activities of Local India Association and City of Irving.

Brother Tahir Hamid is one of the senior most (not by age, but duration of living in Dallas) Muslims in the area and has been active in keeping with the communities.  I met him again at the Masjid with his son Mustafa and nephew Mudar.

I want to share a funny anecdote; I have been a full participant in the domain of Rabbul Aalameen, under the mercy of Rahmatul Aalameen to have become a Mukhlookhul Aalameen, and a few have difficulty in placing me in a specific pigeon hole.

I have been called a Jew, Hindu, Sikh, Christian, Buddhist and a Baha’i, which I have appreciated. So the first person who meets me in the Mosque was all surprised – What is this Christian fellow doing in the mosque now?  

Well I am not a Christian, never was one, but Christ is one of my mentors.  I was born a Muslim, then remained an Atheist for nearly thirty years. I am in tune with Buddhism and Baha’i, equally beautiful faiths, but chose Islam some 15 years ago for the value it places on Justice and creating cohesive societies where no one has to be apprehensive or fearful of the others, and I align with that vision of a society. 

Alhamdu Lillah, I am pleased to be a Muslim, however, it does not mean that other faiths are any less. Because of my name, I have had amazing experiences.  

The Bohra community prays 4 rakats (units) of fard (obligatory) Prayers on Friday, it is as though it is another day along with the Sunna and optional prayers, they also pray additional 4 units of prayers in conjunction with Zohar (Noon) prayers and Asr (late afternoon) prayers.
There was no Friday Sermon, as they were all up last night with Lailat-al-Qadr (the night of value) prayers. Each Mosque and each tradition observes a different day in the last third, between the 21st to 27th night of Ramadan. God listens to the prayers in this night more enthusiastically, obviously when you have gone through the training of 20+ days, your Taqwa meters shows good reading (Taqwa is feeling a sense of closeness with the creator and emulating his qualities like forgiving, kinds, charitable, merciful and loving all of his creation).
When people line up for prayers, each one has a special prayer rug they pray on, leaving a lot of gap between individuals. In the Sunni tradition, there is usually a call for people to stand shoulder to shoulder.
One of my friends jumps at each one of the variations and becomes judgmental; I always challenge him to show me in Quraan. He is the kind who  believes that Prophet Muhammad’s body, or the dead bodies of prophets do not disintegrate, of course there is nothing like that in Quraan, a lot of it is hearsay. Every human body disintegrates, that is a normal part of creation. The greatness of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was, he never claimed to be divine, he said, he will die like everyone else and lived like everyone else.
The Adhan (prayer call) has an additional verse honoring Hazrat Ali, the spiritual head of the Shia tradition. A few Muslims need to free themselves from the severe programming to anxiously spit the words Bidda (innovation) at the drop of the hat.  We have the basic religion and cultural additions are tagged on to it, each tradition has its own influence, and we need to honor them and hold the tongue from pronouncing judgments. 

Prophet Muhammad never said; to be a Muslim, one has to wear the Arab garb, to be a Muslim one has to name their child from the prescribed list of names, to be a Muslim one has to speak Arabic, and to be a Muslim one has to eat Arab food. Islam is about faith and not rituals. Islam is about Universalism that embraces the God given diversity. 

Thank God for America, we are exposed to different traditions on a daily basis and have learned to separate the faith from culture. Other than the Hajj experience, you will not find God given diversity anywhere other than western democracies where Muslims of all hues come together without judging the other. Let me take that back, most of us leave the judgment about other’s faith to Allah, some work on taking over that power from God and attempt to act like God pronouncing judgement.  In Indian democracy, there is some degree of integration, but still Muslims live in silos, and yet claim we are one religion without being one. Look at the matrimonial pages to understand how they make Islam un-universal. 

I appreciated a very unique practice among Bohras today. The Adhan (prayer call) has two verses in it, where the Muezzin (caller for prayer) turns to the right and recites Hayya ‘ala-s-Salah – Hurry to the prayer and then turns to the left and recites, Hayya ‘ala-l-Falah Hurry to success; come to the right path and come to do good things… when the Adhan was recited,  the entire Jamaat (congregation) did turn to the right and again to the left. That was unique!

Growing up in India, I was taught to remain quite when the call for the prayer was on. They did that at this Mosque, but I have been seeing people carrying on the conversation during the Adhan and it always puzzles me. However women folk have always done the right thing, pull the scarves over their head and listen. 

Right after the conclusion of the prayer with Salam to the right and the left, they did a duwa (supplication) which was recited in Chorus by the entire Jamaat. That’s a new learning experience for me, and they finished the prayers with an emotional call to Imam Hussein by hitting their chest with their right and left palms several times.
I am a slow guy during the prayers, and had to hurry from position to position in the prayers to catch up with the Aamil Saheb (called Imam in other traditions) during the fard prayers. I was watching the people do the optional prayers with the agility and speed that I have not seen in ages, as a Kid I used to do that.

As usual, as I have mentioned earlier, we are all creatures of habit, during the Aqama (standing) position of the prayers, I could not drop my hands freely on the sides, and I had to place each hand on the other over my abdomen, as I was taught that way. It’s a funny feeling to drop the hands on the side; it feels like driving without a seat belt. Each one of us have our own habits that we form, they are not right or wrong, but feel in tune with the conditioning.
There was no Friday Sermon, and I ponder about it! It has become a ritual rather than a message sharing moment.   
Except a few Imams in Dallas, most of the visiting or Adhoc Imams will not pass for a fact check. I don’t know how many of the members simply put up with it or swallow it. For example, a preposterous statement was made in one Juma that Muslims don’t get aids because we get our kids get married early on, and they don’t have a chance to get aids! Even our grade school kids know better than that! We don’t have to build Islam on falsities. 
It is not just Muslims; the story is same with others. I have heard the tall claims from clergies of most of the religions if not all.  My dearest friend Pastor Robert Jeffress of the biggest Baptist Church in Dallas will not pass the fact check either.

While it is a pleasure to listen to Pastor George Mason on Radio on Sundays, he is a pastor of another big Baptist Church in Lakewood, and he makes perfect sense.  I wish I could watch Joel Osteen frequently, if you don’t know him, google him.  Most of his sermons can be easily converted to Islamic sermons by merely labeling the quotes from Quraan instead of the Bible, they are very inspirational. I am working on one.  I have appreciated a few sermons of Imam Zia Shaikh, Imam Zia Kavakci,  Ustad Nouman, Hamza Yousuf, Tariq Ramadan and Imam Feisal. Insha Allah, I would like to hear Imam Yaseen and other Imams  They connect with the people and are engaging speakers, speaking relevancy of Islam in our daily life.

Our sermons need to relate with our daily lives. If we tell the story of Abraham, we need to learn how it relates with our life today? Our kids will listen to them as courtesy, but that is not education. We need to do better than that. If you feel, this piece reflects some of your own thoughts, please share it in the comment section. 

Insha Allah, next Friday, I will be in Westport Masjid or River Road masjid in Louisville, Kentucky.

Mike Ghouse
www.MikeGhouse.net

Janamashtami Mubarak

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Janmashtami is celebration of Sri Krishna’s birthday, the man who is the 8th Avatar (representation) of Vishnu; meaning the facet of creator that manages the preservation aspect of life.   

Hinduism sees God in three broad categories; Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Brahma reflects the creator form of God, and Vishnu represents the preserver aspect of creation that inspires one to be righteous, and Shiva brings a finite ending to life. It is a part of the life cycle; every human is born, lives on, and finally disintegrates. Much of Hindu philosophy revolves around the preservation aspect of life; two of the most common and well known reflections are in the persona of Lord Krishna and Lord Rama.  Most people including some Hindus see this as Multiple Gods, it ain’t, and it’s the same God seen in different lights. 

Please visit to read the full story!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/sri-krishna-birthday-celebration-janmashtami_b_1762997.html

Ramadan day 20 – Sikh Temple

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SUMMARY:

Police Chiefs of several Cities
were represented

The massacre of Sikhs at the Gurudwara
in Oak Creek, Wisconsin shook the world. No one would have expected this to
happen in a suburb of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A deranged individual with hatred
walked in to the Gurudwara and opened the fire killing 6 and wounding several.

One of the great outcomes of this tragedy is the sacrifice made by
Police and Fire men around the world, and most certainly in Wisconsin. The
looney gunman Wade Michael Page shot the police officer multiple times, when the
other officers rushed to him, he waved them to go inside and take care of the
wounded and injured. It’s a tender moment and a moment to salute our officers.
When I read it for the first time, I was a cry
baby!

Mr. Manmohan Singh, secretary of the
Temple acknowledged that in his opening remarks in Punjabi, and I fully
understood it and the Punjabi language took me back some 16 years ago, when I
was in the Gurudwara shooting for my TV show, and interviewing Gyaniji (Clergy)
– the whole interview was in two languages- I was speaking in Hindi/Urdu and he
was speaking in Punjabi, the conversation was going on intensely until he used a
word that I did not understand, it was an awakening. We paused and learned that
we were speaking in two different languages, and yet we understood it, but not
all of it. We laughed it at that time. And today, I understood the speech of Mr.
Manmohan Singh in Punjabi, even though, formally I don’t know the
language.

It is one of the shortest Ceremonies,
after the Kirtans (Bhajans/Hymns) singing, Mr. Singh took to the microphone and
spoke, peace was emanating from his face and his language. Blessed are the peace
makers, said Jesus some 2000 years ago, meaning those whose language and actions
bring peace and not conflicts, Prophet Muhammad’s whole life was example of
mitigating conflicts and nurturing goodwill, Jesus described it as turning the
other cheek, meaning not aggravating the conflict, but finding a solution. Guru
Nanak, the fountain head of the Sikh faith was committed to bring peace between
different people at that time, indeed, Sikhism started out as an interfaith
movement; its basis is Seva, service to humanity.

Manmohan Singh’s speech was thoughtful,
expressing love and understanding, instead of the typical condemnations, I
admired him for that. People did walk out with a sense of support and a sense
of unity rather than rage at the evil man, that was a remarkable speech and I
thank Mr. Manmohan Singh for the same.

The sanctuary was full, people were standing… I
must guess that at least a 800 people attended the event. Everyone came from
different walks of life. I will link some of the stories here.

An ocean of people lighting each
others candle outside Gurudwara

The positive point about the event was the
support that all communities expressed in standing up with fellow members of the
family of faiths.

They kept the proceeding short and sweet, some of
us were to speak, I am glad they moved without all of us. My role was to speak
briefly and acknowledge my Wicca and Native American friends who had joined us.

Part of my speech would have been, “As an
American, Indian and a Muslim, I stand by the Sikh community and hope to find
sustainable solutions to prevent shameless events like this from happening. As
Americans we need to come together to build an America where no one needs to
live in apprehension, discomfort or fear of the other.

Blaming will not bring the lives back or solve the
problems, pushing the bigots to the corner will not do it, engaging (there is no
them, it is all of us) them in a normal day to day life has a chance of
nurturing goodwill.

We need to ask ourselves, am I capable of making
friends with fellow Americans from different backgrounds, races, faiths and
ethnicities? If I am reluctant, biased or bent on blaming others, then half of
the problem is me. If I have it, they have it and I need to begin purging my
bias first. More at: http://nabsites.net/demo/texas-faith-is-sikh-shooting-christian/

A few great articles were written in
commemorating this tragic event and here are the links for you to reflect
upon.

We Are
All Muslims by Sonny Singh: A Sikh Response to Islamophobia in the NYPD and
Beyond http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sonny-singh/sikh-response-to-nypd-surveillance-and-islamophobia_b_1336722.html
Islamophobia, Sikhophobia and Media Profiling by
Simran Jeet Singh
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/simran-jeet-singh/islamophobia-sikhophobia-and-media-profiling_b_1654692.html
The Gurdwara
handled and managed the event very well. I must appreciate every one of the Sikh
community and certainly Brother Raj Bhandari and Dr. Harbans Lal (one of my
favorite senior mentors) and several others for reaching out to people of
different faiths and ethnicities. There are several, but I won’t be able to
mention them all, however, I want to appreciate Sister Amina Rab for taking the
initiative and doing extensive follow up to bring the Muslims community
.

Sikh Muslim relationship

Thanks to
Raj for arranging a special room for prayers and arrangement of dates for
Iftaar, it was super nice of them to do this.
I have two
reflective stories to share about the Sikh-Muslim relationship. I have written
the full version of the story; in short, our Sikh and Zoroastrian friends were
offended at the first Unity day (9/11/2005) when Muslims walked out on them,
when it was their turn to speak. Both the communities held that pain for two
years, but thank God, we have great relationships with people of all faiths,
and two years later in 2007 at Crowne Plaza Hotel, Dr. Harbans Lal and Dr.
Firdosh Mehta shared their anguish with me and I couldn’t bear their pain and
dug out for answers. Muslims did walk out on them.

It was not because
the Sikhs and Zoroastrian were speaking, but because it was the time for evening
Prayers. Many a Muslims pray five times a day and on precise moments – for
example today’s schedule is 5:34 AM, 1:45 PM, 5:30 PM, 8:19 PM and 10:00 PM.
After hearing the reason, Dr. Lal and Dr. Mehta felt relieved and wished they
had clarified this two years ago, instead of carrying it.

As Jews observe
the Sabbath, Christians do theirs, Muslims fulfill their obligation to God. Even
if George Bush ( he was president in 2007) were speaking, a few Muslims will go
for their prayers. This was relayed to the speaker Panel that included people of
13 faiths, and 6 Mayors and other dignitaries

Mayor Pat
Evans and Daisy Khan were the speakers, and Mayor Evans said, I am perfectly
alright if Muslim go to prayers, God is first. Dr. Harbans Lal, Dr. Mehta and I
were relieved knowing the truth and communicate the same to the
public.
So, today,
Dr. Lal and Raj Bhandari were fully aware that Muslims had to break the fast at
8:19 and were ready to tell the story. Most of the thirty some of us were
sitting in the first four rows. On the other hand, what I admire about Brother
Suleman, Imam Yahya, Brother Azhar Azeez and other leaders of the community was
that they sat patiently beyond till 8:23, a window to go to do the Iftaar, and a
room they had arranged to pray the Maghrib ( evening) prayers.

The
Iftaar was perfect – Lentil, Rice and Roti, all home cooked and delicious, and
of course the Sevian (vermicelli) in the Shir Khurma (bioled in milk and sugar
with nuts).

350 years old Misunderstanding
cracked

There are
myths created about each other whether it is Hindu-Sikh, Jews-Muslim or any
combination. Most of them go unquestioned for centuries, one such myth was King
Aurangzeb’s attitude towards Sikhs – based on misinterpreting a verse from
Quraan and a word from Guruji Nanak. Dr. Dhaliwal of Nashville, Tennessee and I
have cracked that myth after 350 years. It is historic. http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2010/08/quraan-surah-hijr-1526-30.html
as Ramadan proceeds, I will share similar stories with Jews, Christians, Hindus,
Buddhists and others.
This
misunderstanding has played havoc during partition of India and Pakistan, the
human brutality came to the fore – Sikhs-Muslims-Hindus have mercilessly
slaughtered each other in the trains. We have to heal that, and the greatness to
communities comes when they realize that their pain was as much as others pain.
Neither Guru Nanak, Sri Krishna nor Prophet Muhammad authorized them to do
that, it were ordinary men acted out of anger of displacement. No one needs to
be blamed. Thank God, the process has begun, the Hindus and Sikhs have restored
a few dilapidated mosques and turned them over to Muslims, and in Pakistan the
Muslims have restored the Krishna Temple in Lahore and have maintained the birth
place of Guru Nanank in Nankana.
The good
part of the above story is that many young Sikhs responded to my posting on
facebook with, “where did this come from?” I am glad, the seniors had kept the
difficult part of the history to themselves and did not pass it on to the youth,
at least in America.
Huffington
Post – Sikhs and Muslims can come together on Guru Nanak’s birthday http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/sikhs-and-muslims-on-542n_b_1087327.html
We all need
to share little stories like this and reconnect with all humanity without bias.
We must stand up for each other. http://standingupforothers.blogspot.com/2012/08/standing-up-for-others.html

Each mosque and each tradition is
uniquely different. Insha Allah, I will do my best to keep that uniqueness
intact, however, it is not easy to write different things each day for the whole
month. If you wish to get a complete essence of this, please read for the whole
month.
Mike Ghouse is committed to building a
cohesive America with participation from every community. Please visit www.AmericaTogetherfoundation.com

Please mark your calendar for the Unity Day USA,
a positive event that brings all Americans Together to rededicate our pledge for
a peaceful, prosperous and secure America. We are a part of America and we need
to feel and live it. If you liked some of the article, you will like the
description of Unity Day USA at
www.UnityDayUSA.com

What does God really
want?

http://ramadanexclusive.blogspot.com/2012/07/happy-ramadan-what-does-god-really-want.html
Are Muslims a part of the American
society?
http://nabsites.net/demo/are-muslims-part-of-american-story/

A call from God to know each other http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2012/01/mission-of-world-muslim-congress.html


No American has to live in apprehension
or fear of the other.
There are solutions; here is a trailer of the
movie in making: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMXsTo4VYh8&feature=youtu.be

In defense of Islam, pursuing a
civil dialoguehttp://www.dallasnews.com/news/columnists/steve-blow/20100919-In-defense-of-Islam-pursuing-9397.ece

Prayer
postures
http://ramadanexclusive.blogspot.com/2012/07/muslim-prayers-format-salat-or-namaz.html

Interfaith Quraan
Conference
http://quraanconference.blogspot.com/2012/07/pastor-robert-jeffress-ingnites-quraan.html


Please visit www.RamadanDaily.com for a record since
2010.

MikeGhouse is committed to building
a Cohesive America and offers pluralistic
solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional speaker, thinker and a writer
on pluralism, politics, civic affairs, Islam, India, Israel, peace and justice. Mike
is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a
commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to the Texas Faith
Column at Dallas Morning News and regularly at Huffington post, and several other
periodicals across the world. The blog www.TheGhousediary.comis updated daily.

Ramadan day 19 – On the Border Restaurant

      Comments Off on Ramadan day 19 – On the Border Restaurant

Title
– Ramadan day 19 – On the Border Restaurant
Date
– Tuesday, August 7, 2012 | Ramadan 19, 1433
Mosque
– On the Border Restaurant
Address
– Addison, Texas
Website
–
None
Experience
different traditions daily at: www.RamadanDaily.com
Today’s
Pictures: No
Pictures
Iftaar
Time today: 8:20 PM CST
Recommended reading
listed below the note
Link
to this piece:

On the Border restaurant
was my destination tonight, Iftaar was at 8:20 on Chips and Salsa with my son
and daughter. It was a peaceful evening, and I always feels good be with my
kids.

No writing on Ramadan,
however, I wrote my weekly column for Dallas Morning News on the Massacre of
Sikhs at the Sikh Temple. It is sad and a difficult situation, however, the
following piece addressed how to prevent such situations.

TEXAS FAITH: Is the Sikh shooting Christian
terrorism?

I
am pleased to share a few thoughts on long term solutions in the light of Sikh
Massacre; this is in conjunction with my column at Dallas Morning
news.

As an American, Indian
and a Muslim, I stand by the Sikh community and hope to find sustainable
solutions to prevent shameless events like this from happening. As Americans we
need to come together to build an America where no one needs to live in
apprehension, discomfort or fear of the other.
Kindly join us for a
candlelight vigil on August 8th at the Sikh
Temple of North Texas at 506 Gatewood Rd, Garland, Texas
75043 in Garland, TX at 8
p.m.
Blaming will not bring the lives back or solve the
problems, pushing the bigots to the corner will not do it, engaging (there is no
them, it is all of us) them in a normal day to day life has a chance of
nurturing goodwill.

We need to
ask ourselves, am I capable of making friends with fellow Americans from
different backgrounds, races, faiths and ethnicities? If I am reluctant, biased
or bent on blaming others, then half of the problem is me. If I have it, they
have it. Then I need to shed my bias first.


Here is
an article on the topic at Dallas Morning News’s Texas Faith Section, and God
willing there will be an article with statements from a few about the incident
in a few days.
Texas
Faith is a weekly column at Dallas Morning News managed by Editors William
McKenzie and Wayne Slater, the material is contributed by several panelists, for
all responses please visit http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/2012/08/texas-faith-is-the-sikh-shooting-christian-terrorism.html/
MIKE
GHOUSE, President, Foundation for Pluralism, Dallas
The term “Christian
Terrorism” is one of the most dangerous terms to bring into currency. It is as
ridiculous as “Islamic Terrorism” or Jewish and Hindu Terrorism. I deplore
Juergensmeyer for floating it, as it amounts to advocating an eye for an eye,
making the whole world blind.

We continue to blame Christianity,
Islam, Judaism, Buddhism or other religions as though they are individuals who
can be slapped, hanged, annihilated, beat up, killed or punished for the wrong
doing. If we can’t do that, then why bark at
religion?

Every
piece of matter and life is
programmed to seek balance and justice respectively. Blaming a religion is
passing the buck to an intangible non-punishable entity, thus deliberately
perpetuating injustice. Justice is the key to
harmony and peaceful co-existence in the
society.

Individuals
are always responsible for the bloodshed and not the religions. By punishing
the individual for the wrong doing, we serve justice and restore trust and
cohesiveness in the society. We need to go a step further, and find the
individuals who inspire men like Wade Michael Page to massacre the Sikhs in the
temple or the senseless shooting in Colorado.
Hate is one of the
sources of disrupting peace in a society and it is our duty to track down the
source of such hate and work on mitigating it. We have an obligation to maintain
law and order and faithfully guard the safety of every citizen.

Politicians
and religious leaders need to be aware, that as a civilized society, we can hold
them accountable for making irresponsible statements.

If we learn to
respect the otherness of others, and accept the genetic uniqueness of each one
of us, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge. Ask yourselves, what is my
contribution to America?

As an American, Indian and
a Muslim, I stand by the Sikh community and hope to find long term sustainable
solutions to prevent shameless events like this from
happening.

As Americans we need to
come together to build an America where no one needs to live in apprehension,
discomfort or fear of the other.

URL – http://nabsites.net/demo/texas-faith-is-sikh-shooting-christian/

#
# #
Please visit the site http://standingupforothers.blogspot.com/
No
American has to live in apprehension or fear of the other. There are solutions;
here is a trailer of the movie in making: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMXsTo4VYh8&feature=youtu.be
Each
mosque and each tradition is uniquely different. Insha Allah, I will do my best
to keep that uniqueness intact, however, it is not easy to write different
things each day for the whole month. If you wish to get a complete essence of
this
Mike
Ghouse is committed to building a cohesive America with participation from every
community. Please visit www.AmericaTogetherfoundation.com

Please
mark your calendar for the Unity Day USA, a positive event that brings all
Americans Together to rededicate our pledge for a peaceful, prosperous and
secure America. We are a part of America and we need to feel and live it. If
you liked some of the article, you will like the description of Unity Day USA
at
www.UnityDayUSA.com

In
defense of Islam, pursuing a civil dialoguehttp://www.dallasnews.com/news/columnists/steve-blow/20100919-In-defense-of-Islam-pursuing-9397.ece

Prayer
postureshttp://ramadanexclusive.blogspot.com/2012/07/muslim-prayers-format-salat-or-namaz.html

What
does God really want?

http://ramadanexclusive.blogspot.com/2012/07/happy-ramadan-what-does-god-really-want.html
Are
Muslims a part of the American society? http://nabsites.net/demo/are-muslims-part-of-american-story/

A call
from God to know each other http://worldmuslimcongress.blogspot.com/2012/01/mission-of-world-muslim-congress.html


Please
visit www.RamadanDaily.com
for
a record since 2010.

MikeGhouse is
committed to building a Cohesive
America and
offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional
speaker,
thinker and a writer on pluralism,
politics, civic
affairs, Islam, India, Israel,
peace and justice. Mike is a frequent guest on Sean
Hannity show on
Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to
the Texas Faith Column at Dallas
Morning News and
regularly at Huffington
post, and
several other periodicals across the world. The blog www.TheGhousediary.comis
updated daily.

Ramadan day 18 – office

      Comments Off on Ramadan day 18 – office

Title
– Ramadan day 18 – office -no write up today
Date
– Monday, August 6, 2012 | Ramadan 18, 1433
Mosque
– Office
Address
– 2665 Villa Creek Dr, Suite 206, Dallas, TX 75234
Website
–
http://www.WorldMuslimCongress.Org
Experience
different traditions daily at: www.RamadanDaily.com
Today’s
Pictures: No
Pictures

Iftaar
Time today: 8:21 PM CST
Recommended reading
listed below the note
Link
to this piece: 

Ramadan day 17 Shia Momin Center

      Comments Off on Ramadan day 17 Shia Momin Center

DESCRIPTION:

Each mosque and each tradition is
uniquely different. Insha Allah, I will do my best to keep that uniqueness
intact, however, it is not easy to write different things each day for the whole
month. If you wish to get a complete essence of this journey in Ramadan, you
have to glance at the other days.

Click on picture to enlarge –
other pictures in the link

Today’s destination is the Shia Masjid in
the city of Irving called Momin Center, in case you are wondering what Momin
stands for, here it is: Metroplex
Organization of Muslims in North-Texas. Please remember, it is a name, and not
necessarily the organization of Muslims. That’s how we name things in the USA,
all private entities.
Click on picture to enlarge –
other pictures in the link

The articles at this site are being
published (translated versions) and read in several nations across the world,
here is the statistics for today’s views: USA 6800, Russia 2530, India 1070, UK
880, Pakistan 553, Qatar 530, Germany 389, Canada 330, Saudi Arabia 190,
Australia 181… 32% form Internet explorer, 28% through Chrome, 16% from Fire
Fox, 11% from Safari and…

Russia has thrown me off completely with
their numbers, but no China today, indeed we have had views from Tibet as well.
There may be a correlation here; I was invited to speak on Pluralism in Islam
in Tataristan, Russia, but I could not go, their budget did not pick up the
airfare, it makes sense why so many Russians are viewing this site, indeed, the
statistic is similar with World Muslim Congress.org. It was the same story with
Indonesia, did not get to go to speak on Islamophobia. If they pay for the
airfare, I will go and present the papers on various aspects of Islam,
particularly on Pluralism in Islam.

One of the first things I
do when I visit a Mosque is check on Quraan translations; One
Hilali Khan’s translation is
fraught with deliberate errors. Thank God, that is out of circulation now, but
millions of copies are out there in the hands of public doing the damage – it is
a sensitive issue, and part of the reason
for Islamophobia. The Quraan I picked to read was published in Saudi
Arabia, the translation of Quraan 1-7 was done up well. Picture in the link.

Got to meet with the
Dr. Mustafa Zaidi, president of the center and Mr. Sohel Sachak, VP, Insha
Allah, I will send them a formal invitation to join us at the Unity Day event
with as many members of the center as they can on September 11, 2012 – by the
way, our purpose is to bring all Americans together for a common purpose, to
know each other and build a cohesive America. It is a positive step forward.
More about it at www.UnitydayUSA.com

Click on picture to enlarge –
other pictures in the link

Maulana Raza
Usmani is a visiting scholar. In the last three years I have been going to this
Mosque, it is a common practice to bring scholars to give dars, education. There
is one on Tuesday night prior to Iftaar, if someone wants to go.

The
Maulana explained the difference in Iftaar procedure well. Unlike the Sunnis and
Ahmadiyya who do the Iftaar on the call for Maghrib (dusk) prayers, the Shias do
it after the prayers. He said, they do break the fast on the call, but wait to
eat after the supplication at the end of the prayers, they believe that
supplication is more powerful after the Dua (supplication). However, on the
call, one of the gentleman who knew me, asked me to go with my Iftaar and I did
along with a few others. They had an additional item – Lassi, the yogurt shake,
and that was delicious. I remembered back home in Bangalore, this was a common
thing to serve in the Mosques. I cannot believe, I don’t remember its
name.

The Shias do the Maghrib and Isha prayer back to back, the Isha is
2 units, as the Imam’s during Ramadan are usually visiting Imams. Most people do
the balance 2 on Isha after the prayers. No Taraweeh prayers in Shia Mosques, it
is a Sunni tradition initiated by Hazrat Umar.

The ritual prayer outlines
are the same, but with a few differences in the process. During the Qiyaam
(i.e., the standing position), the hands are dropped to the sides, I made an
effort to do that, but did not feel home with it, so I did what I am used to;
place my hands on my stomach folded together. The feeling was almost like the
feeling when you don’t wear seat belt while driving. There is nothing wrong or
right about either method, it is simply what you are used to.

Lifting of forefinger as a witness is a
Sunni practice while reciting Ashadu anna Muhammadur Rasool Allah in the
Tashahhud position and not a Shia practice.

Sunni prayers are
concluded with a physical turn of the head to the right and then to the left
with a Salaam Aliakum o Rahmatullah, while the Shias conclude it with the words
alone in the middle of the recitation.

If I were to score on the quality of carpet,
this mosque scores 8 out of 10, and the Plano Mosque would score low, the Masjid
e Aqsa perhaps scores 10 out of 10, and Aqsa is one of the cleanest Mosques I
have been to, it was incredibly clean!

One of the purposes
of writing the Ramadan notes is, for us to see that each method is beautiful,
and learn to drop the arrogance of wronging others. It’s not easy, but good
things are not easy anyways.

The language we need to develop in
expressing the difference is that of respect and not in terms of better or not
better, but appreciation of the uniqueness. Do we forget that Allah constantly
reminds as that the best among you is the one who knows the other, it means
acknowledging the difference and living with it. At the Ahmadiyya Mosque, I
added in my little talk, that Allah does not shower favors one over the other,
he has not signed a deal behind others backs for us to be arrogant. The least
liked person by God is an arrogant one.

May Allah help us all to learn to describe
the otherness of others as genuinely as we can and with utmost respect. One of
the greatest values of Islam is equality and it must reflect in our actions and
words. No one should be looked down or up, shame on us if we do. You might want
to consider reflecting on the wisdom of conducting a civil dialogue as describe
in Sura Kafirun (http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/07/sura-kafirun-un-believers.html)

Had a short
discussion with the Maulana, and was amazed at the way he described Ayatul
Kursi, and what does it mean to be in Jahilya box and how to get out of it. and
the first statement Prophet Muhammad made at Masjid-e-Nabwi about maintaining
relationships.
Mike Ghouse is committed to building a
cohesive America with participation from every community. Please visit
www.AmericaTogetherfoundation.com

Please
mark your calendar for the Unity Day USA, a positive event that brings all
Americans Together to rededicate our pledge for a peaceful, prosperous and
secure America. We are a part of America and we need to feel and live it. If
you liked some of the article, you will like the description of Unity Day USA
at
www.UnityDayUSA.com


Please visit
www.RamadanDaily.com for a record since
2010.

MikeGhouse is
committed to building a Cohesive
America and
offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional
speaker,
thinker and a writer on pluralism,
politics, civic
affairs, Islam, India, Israel,
peace and justice. Mike is a frequent guest on Sean
Hannity show on
Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to
the Texas Faith Column at Dallas
Morning News and
regularly at Huffington
post, and
several other periodicals across the world. The blog www.TheGhousediary.comis
updated daily.

TEXAS FAITH: Is the Sikh shooting Christian terrorism?

      Comments Off on TEXAS FAITH: Is the Sikh shooting Christian terrorism?

I am pleased to share a few thoughts on long
term solutions in the light of Sikh Massacre; this is in conjunction with my
column at Dallas Morning news. 

https://www.facebook.com/events/243314312456357/

As an American, Indian and a Muslim,
I stand by the Sikh community and hope to find sustainable solutions
to prevent shameless events like this from happening.  As Americans we need to come together to build an America
where no one needs to live in apprehension, discomfort or fear of the other.

Kindly join us for a candlelight vigil on August 8th at the Sikh
Temple of North Texas at 506
Gatewood Rd, Garland, Texas 75043 in Garland, TX at 8 p.m.

Blaming will not
bring the lives back or solve the problems, pushing the bigots to the corner
will not do it, engaging (there is no them, it is all of us) them in a normal
day to day life has a chance of nurturing goodwill.

We need to ask ourselves, am I capable of making friends with fellow Americans
from different backgrounds, races, faiths and ethnicities? If I am reluctant, biased
or bent on blaming others, then half of the problem is me. If I have it, they have
it. Then I need to shed my bias first.


Here is an article on the topic at Dallas Morning News’s Texas Faith Section,  and God willing there will be an article with
statements from a few about the incident in a few days.

Texas
Faith is a weekly column at Dallas Morning News managed by Editors William
McKenzie and Wayne Slater, the material is contributed by several panelists,
for all responses please visit  http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/2012/08/texas-faith-is-the-sikh-shooting-christian-terrorism.html/

MIKE GHOUSE, President, Foundation for Pluralism,
Dallas

The term “Christian Terrorism” is one of the most dangerous
terms to bring into currency. It is as ridiculous as “Islamic Terrorism” or Jewish
and Hindu Terrorism.  I deplore
Juergensmeyer for floating it, as it amounts to advocating an eye for an eye,
making the whole world blind.

We continue to blame Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism or other religions
as though they are individuals who can be slapped, hanged, annihilated, beat up, killed or punished
for the wrong doing. If we can’t do that, then why bark at religion?

Every piece of matter and life is programmed to seek balance and justice respectively. Blaming a
religion is passing the buck to an intangible non-punishable entity, thus deliberately
perpetuating injustice.  Justice is the key to harmony and peaceful
co-existence in the society.

Individuals are always responsible
for the bloodshed and not the religions.  By punishing the individual for the wrong
doing, we serve justice and restore trust and cohesiveness in the society.  We need to go a step further, and find the
individuals who inspire men like Wade Michael Page to massacre the Sikhs in the
temple or the senseless shooting in Colorado.

Hate is one of the sources of disrupting peace in a society and it is our duty
to track down the source of such hate and work on mitigating it. We have an
obligation to maintain law and order and faithfully guard the safety of every
citizen.

Politicians and religious
leaders need to be aware, that as a civilized society, we can hold them
accountable for making irresponsible statements.

If we learn to respect the otherness of others, and accept the genetic
uniqueness of each one of us, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge.  Ask yourselves, what is my contribution to
America?

As an American, Indian and
a Muslim, I stand by the Sikh community and hope to find long term sustainable
solutions to prevent shameless events like this from happening. 

As Americans
we need to come together to build an America where no one needs to live in
apprehension, discomfort or fear of the other.

URL – http://nabsites.net/demo/texas-faith-is-sikh-shooting-christian/

# # #

Please visit the site http://standingupforothers.blogspot.com/

No
American has to live in apprehension or fear of the other. There are solutions;
here is a trailer of the movie in making:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMXsTo4VYh8&feature=youtu.be

Mike Ghouse is committed to building a Cohesive America and
offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional
speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, civic affairs, Islam,
India, Israel, peace and justice. Mike is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show
on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly
to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning News and regularly at Huffington
post, and several other periodicals across the world. The blog
www.TheGhousediary.comis updated daily.

Sikh Massacre in Milwaukee Gurudwara

      Comments Off on Sikh Massacre in Milwaukee Gurudwara

SIKH TEMPLE MASSACRE IN MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN

PRESS RELEASE
Mike Ghouse, President
America Together Foundation
 (214) 325-1916 / text or talk
Mike@AmericaTogetherFoundation.com
MikeGhouse@aol.com

Sunday, August 11, 11:00 AM

We pray for the innocent people who died in the senseless shooting at the Sikh Gurudwara in Oak creek, Michigan.

We also condemn the senselessness of the murderer’s attitude towards fellow Americans, he was not alone, there are more like him and we need to find solutions.

As an American, Muslim and an Indian, I stand by the Sikh community and hope to find long term sustainable solutions to prevent the shameless events like this from happening in our nation.

It is our duty to keep law and order and faithfully guard the safety of every citizen. Hate is one of the many sources of disrupting the peace in a society and it is our duty to track down the source of such hate and work on mitigating it. We have an obligation to maintain peace and justice in the society.

Standing up for others is the right thing to do, every human goes through a period of invincibility to vulnerability, and if we don’t stand up for those who are vulnerable, then who will stand up for us when we are vulnerable?

As Americans we need to come together to build an America where no one needs to live in apprehension, discomfort or fear of the other.
I appeal to individuals and organizations to speak out against bigotry and terrorism and work on finding solutions, hating them will not solve it, pushing them to the corner will not cut it, engaging (there is no them, it is all of us) in a dialogue has a chance of mitigating bigotry and nurturing goodwill.

We need to learn about each other and demystify the myths about the others.
It starts out with knowing each other, knowledge leads to understanding and understanding to acceptance and appreciation of a different point of view. If we can learn to respect the otherness of others, and accept the God given uniqueness of each one of us, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge.
Mike Ghouse represents America Together Foundation, The Foundation for Pluralism and the World Muslim Congress, all committed to nurturing pluralistic values.
 Mike
Ghouse is a speaker, thinker and a writer on the topics of Pluralism, Coexistence,
politics, interfaith, Islam and cohesive societies. He is committed to building
a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day to the
media and the public.

Published at: 

  1. http://nabsites.net/demo/sikh-massacre-in-milwaukee-gurudwara/ 
  2. http://smirkingchimp.com/thread/mike-ghouse/44751/sikh-temple-massacre-in-milwaukee-wisconsin
  3. http://MikeGhouseforIndia.Blogspot.com
  4. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443792604577571193252248500.html

Jazzy Ghouse goes to UTD

      Comments Off on Jazzy Ghouse goes to UTD

I
talked to Mina in the morning to hear an update about her school at 3:23 she
texts me that she got accepted at UTD to do her Masters in criminology….

Another momentous day in my life, and here is what I wrote:

Way back in her high school, she watched every one of the NYPD shows, and I
watched most of the shows with her. We had a deal with the TV time, that each
one will take the turn and others will respect the turn. I have never liked
more than one TV in the household; we even debated that on my radio show with
Mina and Jeff. One TV keeps the family together, 2 TV’s breaks up the family.
Anyway, she dreamt of becoming the counselor (Vietnamese Doctor) in the show.
She went to junior academy at FBI and got her BS in psychology from UTD.

She has many names – I call her Mina most frequently, Jazzy when she is with
her friends and Jasmina at times. Her Middle name is Dilshad, that is my
sister’s name, when Mina was born, I was overwhelmed with her and
affectionately gave her my sisters name as her middle name, so I can call her
Dilshad once a while.

I am thrilled and simply overjoyed with her news! All I can think of is my
father and mother who would have been so proud of my girl. They were determined
to get their kids educated; my mother pulled me out of the field from becoming
a farmer. My Dad passed 7th grade and mother 4th grade, but they were both
ahead of their times; pluralistic in their attitudes and kind and gentle in
demeanor. My Dad went on to become the Mayor of the town and mom a leader among
the community.

By the way, she has made this on her own! She has her own goals… .. As a
father, I encouraged her to be herself … and her mother did the same. All we
wanted her to do was to get a Degree and I wanted her to have a master’s
degree. That’s gives everyone in my nucleus of family a Masters degree;
Yasmeen; MBBS (MD), Jeff (MS and JD), Fern (MS), Mina (MS) and me an MBA and
M.Com – I gave up on my PhD, Mina may pursue PhD. It’s my Dad’s dream come
true!

My son did his BS and MS in Accounting and Finance from UTD, and a JD from SMU.
My daughter in Law did her MS in Engineering from UTD. Wow, we are a UTD
family. May be I should look to teach Management Accounting or Business
management, or Pluralism in business and civil life.

Dad Ghouse