Soulful Wisdom Podcast (formerly Muslimcentric) – Details, episodes & analysis

“I wasn’t prepared for Hajj.” 🕋
Musician Isam B reflects on performing Hajj just months before Outlandish’s global breakthrough with Aicha.
He describes how the pilgrimage planted a seed that helped prepare him for the fame, pressure and opportunities that followed.
A timely reminder as millions undertake their Hajj journey this year.
#Hajj #isamb #islam

Listen to the full interview:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3yvnE2OLgPKKWmelYHrq2q?si=vueB1Y_TQH64p7IsDckyEA

Join us for a deeply personal interview with Brother Ali, a renowned hip hop artist and activist. In this episode, we explore Brother Ali's incredible journey: from growing up with albinism and being embraced by the black community, to converting to Islam at 15, and his outspoken stance on critical issues like Palestine that led to his marginalisation by influential powers.

- Early Life & Albinism: Brother Ali shares his experiences growing up with albinism and finding acceptance within the black community.

- Conversion to Islam: Hear about Brother Ali's spiritual journey and conversion to Islam at the age of 15.

- Advocacy & Cancel Culture: Discover how his advocacy for Palestine and other causes has impacted his career, leading to his "cancellation" by some in the industry.

- Entertainment Industry: From performing on Jimmy Fallon and Conan O’Brien to appearances at Glastonbury and Coachella, Brother Ali reflects on his changing career.

- Relocation to Istanbul: Brother Ali discusses his move to Istanbul and his reflections on America.

- Relationships with Legends: Insights into his connections with Yasiin Bey, Chuck D of Public Enemy, Rakim, KRS-One, and Dave Chappelle.

Brother Ali’s openness and honesty provide a unique look into the mainstream entertainment world and the challenges faced by Muslims. His story is one of resilience, faith, and unwavering commitment to truth.

#BrotherAli #HipHop #Islam

In this episode, we discuss:

• Relocating from USA to Istanbul
• Being authentic, challenges in my career
• Albinism. Black people taught me how to live life.
• My conversion to Islam - Part 1
• HipHop legends - KRS One, Chuck D
• My conversion to Islam - Part 2
• Music and Islam
• Entertainment Industry
• Albinism
• Fame and Celebrity: Dave Chappelle.
• How therapy has helped me
• Sacrifice
• My legacy
• Love and Service – New Album
• What to listen to me if you have never heard my music
• I want to help those who want to come to Islam

USEFUL LINKS

- Watch this episode on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/muslimcentric?sub_confirmation=1

- Brother Ali

https://www.instagram.com/brotheraliisblind/

https://www.facebook.com/brotherali

https://www.youtube.com/@BrotherAli_Travelers

- NEW ALBUM: Brother Ali's new album Love and Service - available on Spotify and other streaming platforms, as well as physical copies at https://www.brotherali.com/

- MUST-WATCH VIDEOS

The Collapse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0WACI8OJSI

Cadillac: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxZHHkBSQbo

- Support Independent Artists like Brother Ali, whose voices are often silenced. By supporting independent music, we ensure that important messages and diverse voices continue to be heard.

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Dr Hany El-Banna is the founder of Islamic Relief, the global Muslim charity started in the 1980s. He is a legend in the Muslim ummah – a true visionary. He eventually left the charity he founded but remains as active as ever travelling the world to inspire and train individuals.

The interview was recorded during Dr Hany’s visit to Glasgow, Scotland as part of a film festival showing a documentary about his life. It is a must watch film – see link below.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Early life in Egypt
• Life as a medical doctor
• Marriage
• Starting Islamic Relief
• 3 key life decisions (1) leaving Cairo age 27 (2) leaving Medicine age 45 (3) leaving Islamic Relief age 58
• Being a failure
• Critical views of Muslim Charities
• Sacrifice
• Personal development
• Being a visionary
• Growth of organisations beyond the vision of the founder
• Legacy

USEFUL LINKS

Watch this episode on Youtube

https://www.youtube.com/muslimcentric

Documentary - Hany El-Banna: The man behind a major global charity (Al Jazeera World)

https://youtu.be/nDBtIOXjJIs

Dr Hany Links

Youtube (2800+ videos): https://www.youtube.com/@hanyelbanna-2162

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theflyingdoctor

Twitter: https://twitter.com/drhanyelbanna

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Ashur Shamis is a Libyan who lived in exile for decades in the UK during the reign of Gaddafi. He set up an opposition party at the risk to his own life. His student days in the UK were formative and he provides an insight into the Muslim community in the 1960s, especially within Universities.

He is well known for translating a number of works into English, including co-translating volumes of In the Shade of the Quran by Sayyid Qutb.

Topics discussed in this episode:

• My relationship with Malcolm X
• Early life growing up in Libya
• Developing a relationship with the Quran
• Encountering ‘In the Shade of the Quran’ by Sayyid Qutb
• Islamic Societies and FOSIS (Federation of Student Islamic Societies)
• Sayyid Qutb, Milestones and In the Shade of the Quran
• The roots of Islamic activism in the UK (1960s+)
• Do Muslims read enough?
• Muslim students today
• Being placed on Gaddafi’s liquidation list
• Witnessing the assassination of his friend
• Opposing Gaddafi and accepting his life will be in danger
• Reflections on the Arab Spring
• South Africa and the legacy of Imam Abdullah Haron
• Advice on deepening our relationship with the Quran

Interview recorded 8 March 2020.

USEFUL LINKS

About Ashur

http://ashurshamis.com/personal/about-ashur/

The Colonel’s Stray Dogs (Trailer)

https://youtu.be/WxRs6DmLAUY

In the Shade of the Quran

https://www.kubepublishing.com/collections/vendors?q=Sayyid%20Qutb&contributorID=100063

Imam Abdullah Haron

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abdullah_Haron

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PART 3 - Question & Answer session

Panelists:

- Shaykh Abdul Aziz Ahmed: World renowned scholar and educationalist based in Glasgow.

https://www.facebook.com/abdul.azizahmed.906

- Saiqa Naz: Cognitive Behavioural Therapist, British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP)

https://twitter.com/saiqa_naz

- Dr Aman Durrani: Consultant Psychiatrist based in Glasgow

Questions:

• Is mental illness associated with punishment from God?
• Mind, Body and Soul
• Importance of Breathing
• Struggling to implement the CBT model – the value of a therapist
• The spiritual path – Ilm (knowledge), Amal (action), Haal (state)
• Is OCD due to Shaytan, your Nafs or a psychological coping mechanism?
• Using medication to treat your mental health

Mental health and wellbeing is such an important and relevant issue affecting all of us, our friends and our families. This episode is a recording of an event held in Glasgow, Scotland in July 2018 called "Coping with Stress and Anxiety - a practical approach from a spiritual and psychological perspective".

VIDEO

Watch the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/yPhQax5p4sc

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PART 2 - The Psychological (CBT) Perspective

Speaker: Saiqa Naz is a Cognitive Behavioural Therapist with the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP)

https://twitter.com/saiqa_naz

Topics covered by Saiqa:

• CBT model
• Problem solving technique
• Impact of negative thoughts
• Coping skills for managing stress
• Identifying signs of stress and anxiety
• Causes of stress
• Worked example
• Differentiating real and hypothetical worries

Mental health and wellbeing is such an important and relevant issue affecting all of us, our friends and our families. This episode is a recording of an event held in Glasgow, Scotland in July 2018 called "Coping with Stress and Anxiety - a practical approach from a spiritual and psychological perspective".

VIDEO

Watch the video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Tw9lXRidjUE

SUPPORT US

If you benefited from The MuslimCentric Podcast, please rate, review, like and share.

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Mental health and wellbeing is such an important and relevant issue affecting all of us, our friends and our families. This episode is a recording of an event held in Glasgow, Scotland in July 2018 called "Coping with Stress and Anxiety - a practical approach from a spiritual and psychological perspective".

PART 1 - The Spiritual Perspective

Speaker: Shaykh Abdul Aziz Ahmed. A world renowned scholar and educationalist based in Glasgow. I interviewed him on this podcast episode #25 - Desert Island Gems.

https://www.facebook.com/abdul.azizahmed.906

Shaykh Abdul Aziz focuses his discussion on

• The relationship between culture and religion
• Muslim tendencies to focus on supernatural forces to explain mental illness
• Anxiety as a gateway to other mental health difficulties
• Shaykh Abu Zayd al-Balkhi - a 9th century polymath who wrote about mental and psychological disorders. The book in English is widely available "Abu Zayd al-Balkhi’s Sustenance of the Soul: the Cognitive Behavior Therapy of a Ninth Century Physician" (ISBN:1565645995)
• Dealing with Negative and positive thoughts
• Arabic terms and concepts of anxiety and sadness
• Prophetic traditions

VIDEO

Watch the video on Youtube: https://youtu.be/009FiMOU69s

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This episode was recorded on the night before Eid and at the conclusion of the Cradle2Grave series. We decided to have a slightly different format with a panel of interesting guests including Islamic scholar Shaykh Amer Jamil, broadcaster and fundraiser Naeem Raza, medical doctor and GP Dr Nadeem Bhatti, Islamic finance expert Omar Shaikh, university graduate and Radio Ramadhan presenter Rameez Mahmood and my co-host Umran Amin.

It was a light hearted discussion but also one where we reflected about our own stage in life. It is a longer episode but having listened to it again in 2022, there is so much that is still relevant. We hope it brings a smile to your face. Our topics included

• The (alleged?) origin of croissants!
• What people call Dr Bhatti
• Organising a charity cycle from Scotland to Syria
• Driving to Pakistan from Britain
• Shaykh Amer’s travels
• The pursuit of knowledge
• Anecdote about Shaykh Ruzwan
• Careers
• Meeting Muhammad Ali
• Nurturing role models and having courage
• The lost practice of Waqf
• Islamicising and Muslimifying everything
• Eid prayer times in Glasgow
• Quiz amongst the panellists
• Who would you like to have dinner with?
• What advice would you give your younger self?
• Seeing Asian people on British TV for the first time
• Naeem and his midlife crisis

ABOUT THE SERIES

This episode followed the Cradle2Grave series discussing how Muslims can navigate important life events from the moment we are born to the time when we leave this earth. The series was originally broadcast in Ramadhan 2017 on Radio Ramadhan Glasgow https://www.rr365.co.uk

GUESTS AND HOSTS

Hosted by Dr Aman and Umran.

Shaykh Amer Jamil (https://www.amerjamil.com) is a Scottish-born Islamic Scholar and co-founder of iSyllabus UK (https://www.isyllabus.org) , an educational institute that has taught 7000+ students across 15 UK cities over the last 10 years. He is a specialist in Islamic family law and provides guidance and support for those experiencing family and marital difficulties at Unity Family Services (https://www.unityfamily.co.uk). He has been described as one of the Scotland’s most prominent and respected Muslim thinkers by the Scottish media.

SUPPORT US

If you benefited from The MuslimCentric Podcast, please rate, review, like and share.

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As we release this episode in January 2022 from Scotland, there are only a few months to go before we welcome Ramadhan again inshallah. This episode was recorded as a conclusion to our Cradle 2 the Grave series and focused on maintaining the spiritual high of Ramadhan throughout the whole year.

However the topics discussed with Shaykh Amer Jamil are relevant to our spiritual journey and struggle all year round and not necessarily just for Ramadhan.

Shaykh Amer Jamil provides guidance on topics such as,

• Making dua on completion of the Quran
• The Night of Power (Laylatul Qadr)
• The process of reflection
• Dhikr and Fikr - Remembrance and Reflection
• Creating the right environment for spiritual reflection
• Imam Ghazali’s advice on Muhasabah
• Maintaining positive habits
• Tawbah (Repentance)
• Shaykh Amer’s most memorable Ramadhan’s around the world
• 6 fasts of Shawwal
• Giving charity throughout the year
• Beneficial and harmful acts on Eid day
• Spending Eid day alone
• Moon-wars over the day of Eid

ABOUT THE SERIES

This episode followed the Cradle2Grave series discussing how Muslims can navigate important life events from the moment we are born to the time when we leave this earth. The series was originally broadcast in Ramadhan 2017 on Radio Ramadhan Glasgow https://www.rr365.co.uk

GUESTS AND HOSTS

Hosted by Dr Aman and Umran.

Shaykh Amer Jamil (https://www.amerjamil.com) is a Scottish-born Islamic Scholar and co-founder of iSyllabus UK (https://www.isyllabus.org) , an educational institute that has taught 7000+ students across 15 UK cities over the last 10 years. He is a specialist in Islamic family law and provides guidance and support for those experiencing family and marital difficulties at Unity Family Services (https://www.unityfamily.co.uk). He has been described as one of the Scotland’s most prominent and respected Muslim thinkers by the Scottish media.

SUPPORT US

If you benefited from The MuslimCentric Podcast, please rate, review, like and share.

KEEP IN TOUCH

Website: https://www.muslimcentricpodcast.com/

Facebook: muslimcentric

Instagram: muslimcentricpodcast

Twitter: @muslimcentric

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/muslimcentric

In this episode of Cradle2Grave, we discuss the topic of death and how to prepare for it and how to manage when we are in this situation. We cover a number of topics including:

• Why Shaykh Amer started his popular courses on preparing for death
• What to do when a loved one is in the last stages of their life
• Should you visit people in hospital at the end of their life?
• What is the process when someone dies ? For example, getting the death certificate and arranging the funeral
• The morning of the janazah and burial
• Are post mortems permissible?
• Organ donation
• Should the burial be done abroad?
• Having a headstone at the grave
• Placing flowers at the grave
• Is there such a thing as a good or bad death?
• What deaths would be considered as martyrdom?
• Ghusl of the deceased
• Reciting quran and dhikr once the person has died
• Showing the face of the deceased
• The souls journey after death
• The questioning in the grave and the barzakh (interspace)
• How should family and friends deal with their loss
• Is reading the Quran for the deceased permissible?
• Offering condolences

ABOUT THE SERIES

Cradle2Grave is a series discussing how Muslims can navigate important life events from the moment we are born to the time when we leave this earth.

The topics we discuss include 

• Marriage
• Parenting
• Childhood abuse
• Old age
• Death

Unfortunately the first episode on Birth has been lost due to technical issues.

The series was originally broadcast in Ramadhan 2017 on Radio Ramadhan Glasgow https://www.rr365.co.uk

GUESTS AND HOSTS

Hosted by Dr Aman and Umran.

Shaykh Amer Jamil (https://www.amerjamil.com) is a Scottish-born Islamic Scholar and co-founder of iSyllabus UK (https://www.isyllabus.org) , an educational institute that has taught 7000+ students across 15 UK cities over the last 10 years. He is a specialist in Islamic family law and provides guidance and support for those experiencing family and marital difficulties at Unity Family Services (https://www.unityfamily.co.uk). He has been described as one of the Scotland’s most prominent and respected Muslim thinkers by the Scottish media.

SUPPORT US

If you benefited from The MuslimCentric Podcast, please rate, review, like and share.

KEEP IN TOUCH

Website: https://www.muslimcentricpodcast.com/

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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/muslimcentric