Fun2forex

google adsense and forex

2010-11-20T17:54:00.000+05:00

People all over the apple use blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and abounding added forms of amusing media. These are their own claimed spaces on the internet. There are agency to accomplish money from all of these sources after abrogation the abundance of your computer chair. Google AdSense allows you to acquire money on a per bang model. To accomplish it assignment you artlessly alpha a website, abide it to Google, abode ads, and assignment to access your traffic. In time your alcove website may about-face into added assets which could alike about-face into your primary income.
The aboriginal footfall to authoritative any money from AdSense is to acquisition a topic. Think about what you appetite your website to be about. There will be some aliment and added assignment complex so be abiding to accept a accountable you are abreast about and finer commodity you accept a affection for autograph about. This is not a get affluent quick scheme, added of a ancillary activity that may advance into a allotment time or alike abounding time career. After acrimonious your affair you charge to accept a area name. Acquisition a area name that is accessible to search, includes accepted words, is accordant to your topic, and best chiefly is not already in use by addition website. Now architecture your web folio authoritative abiding it is accessible to navigate, advisory for bodies visiting, and agreeable to attending at. That agency alienated colors that ache the eyes, difficult to cross pages, or actuality abounding of blah account that bodies accept already apparent abounding added places.
After acrimonious and designing your website you charge to abide it to Google AdSense. After reviewing the pages, Google will action you advertisements. These ads pay based on a amount per bang model. That agency that the added guests bang on these links, the added you will be paid. Some links are account added than others and best alter from $0.50 to $2.00 per click. Google will clothier the ads it offers you to the agreeable of your website. Obviously it will not put advertisements for attorneys on a website about affable alike admitting abounding advocate advertisements pay well. If AdSense turns you bottomward the aboriginal time, artlessly use their suggestions for advance and try again.
Now that you accept advertisements that pay per bang on your website it is time to allure bodies who will do the beat for you. One of the easiest agency to access your cartage is to address abounding accessories about your alcove and abide them to commodity databases like EzineArticles.com or associatedcontent.com. Artlessly accommodate links to your website in the anatomy or signature of your accessories to allure barter to your armpit area they will hopefully bang your links and access your income. Be abiding to abstain beat your own links back Google AdSense can clue this and may append you.
Maybe you aloof appetite to address some account and your blog does not absolutely feel like a ample abundant allotment of agenda acreage for your account to alive anymore. Maybe you are attractive for added assets or are because architecture a career about internet marketing. No amount what, accede Google AdSense as a way to supplement your income. It may not be the get affluent arrangement that some bodies allocution about but it ability eventually be assisting abundant to become your abounding time career.

Take this Hijab and Love It

2010-11-20T16:34:00.000+05:00

Muslim women, as a group, don’t lack for media attention, but to say their representation in mass media is lopsided would be an understatement: They’re the subject of political, religious, and feminist debates, but their own voices are nearly invisible in the mainstream media, in film, and in books. But the one place Muslim women–in particular, muhajabat, or wearers of the hijab–are perhaps the most ignored is in the world of fashion.
It’s not that, as many might assume, women who sport the headscarf don’t care about fashion. But it’s got to be frustrating to be a muhajabah in a world of miniskirts and booty shorts. When your religious beliefs dictate a well-covered person but the mainstream fashion magazines are more like 80% bare skin and 20% clothing, you won’t be turning to Elle for advice on, say, matching a red hijab with black pants.
But without a mainstream outlet, some muhajabat have taken media matters into their own hands–or, more specifically, their blogs. With names like Stylish Muslimah, Hijabi Couture, and Hijabulous, these online fashion forums serve a dual purpose–they explain and demystify Muslim dress codes for novice muhajabat and curious outsiders, and they cull the web for fashion that can be adapted to their needs. Hijabs High, for instance, patterns itself after seen-on-the-street fashion blog The Sartorialist, with snapshots of stylish women from Singapore to Washington, D.C., posted as inspiration. The blogger behind Stylish Muslimah (“The Muslim Vogue”) assembles youthful, on-trend outfits with precise detail and links to online outlets where all the pieces can be found. And We Love Hijab highlights fashion-forward for plunds up seasonal trends in scarves, and even offers a hijab-specific version of What Not to Wear. (Sheath dresses: yea or nay?)
Perhaps the best part of hijabblogs is the sheer sense of positivity they put forth. Hijabs High says it best: The blog, its proprietor writes, “is inspired by the stylish and dynamic global community of Muslim women who fuse their identities and pronounce their place in the world everyday through beauty and fashion. It is my hope that this blog inspires, motivates, and encourages Muslims and non-Muslims alike to revisit their perceptions of the ‘look’ of Muslim women who wear the veil and encourage us all to be a little more fabulous.”

For Young Children

2010-11-20T16:21:00.000+05:00

Allah loves children

who cares for others,

who do deeds of kindness

to sisters and brothers;

like lending a hand

to somebody hurt,

like smiling at him

and saying a kind word;

like happily sharing

with girls and with boys

one’s favorite things

like books and like toys;

like sending flowers to somebody ill;

a visit to him

would be nicer still.

There are many things

we can do for each other,

to make life happy

for our sister and brother

YOU WEAR IT OR NOT BUT IT IS ESSENTIAL

2010-11-20T16:10:00.000+05:00

Ask yourself, or ask the next person who asks you that question, if a female judge walked into the courtroom wearing a tight miniskirt and low-cut blouse, would you take her seriously? Who would you respect more, a woman dressed like that or one dressed modestly? The Qur’an was revealed for all times, and though circumstances change, human nature does not. The fact is that men do like to look at women, so a woman who covers herself is more likely to be respected as a person than looked upon as a piece of meat or toy!
Muslim women wear hijab—which is more than just a head cover—because God ordered them to do so in two places in the Qur’an, and because Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) also ordered it. The Qur’an says in Surah 24, verses 30 – 31 what means:
*{Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and be modest. That is purer for them! Allah is Aware of what they do. And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and and their adornment only that which is apparent, and to draw their veils over their bosoms, and not to reveal their adornment save to their own husbands or fathers or husbands fathers, or their sons or their husbands’ sons, or their brothers or their brothers’ sons or sisters sons, or their women, or their slaves, or male attendants who lack vigor, or children who know naught of women’s nakedness. And let them not stamp their feet so as to reveal what they hide of their adornment. And turn unto Allah together, O believers, in order that ye may succeed.}*

These verses tell us that our Islamic dress is not just a matter of covering the head alone, but also of covering the bosom, which is attractive to men, and of lowering the gaze and walking in a way that does not attract attention. Note that the order to lower the gaze was addressed first to men..
Also the other verse about the same point, which is verse number 59 in Surah 33:
*{O Prophet! Tell thy wives and thy daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks close round them [when they go abroad]. That will be better, that so they may be recognized and not annoyed. Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful.}*
This indicates that one of the reasons for hijab is to distinguish the believing woman from the non-believing. This relates to the logic behind hijab.

Al Sayda Aisha:
Mentioned the women of Ansar, praised them and said good words about them. She then said: When Surat Al-Nur came down, they took the curtains, tore them and made head covers (veils) of them. (Sunan Abu Dawud: Book 32, Number 4089) Allah knows best

Prophet(SAW) said (Frightening hadith!):
“That among the signs of the Day of Judgment is that there will be women who will be dressed but will be naked, so curse them because for they are truly cursed! And they will never ever smell the fragrance of Paradise – authentic narration.” Allah knows best

First let me start by saying, that hijab is a “must” in Islam. However, you are not forced to wear it because this comes from the heart.

A Woman said about Hijab when we were talking about it some days before:

I don’t want to wear hijab. I find it ridiculous that the comparisons are always mini skirts or hijab. I don’t wear mini skirts, I dress very modestly, but I dont want to wear hijab. If muslim men are sexually aroused, if a woman dresses modestly but not in hijab, then tell men to stay at home and women can run their lives, the country, the world, quite well thank you very much! It is ridiculous that for men’s insecurities, women have to be penalised. And I am mightily tired of these arguments that are extremely condesending towards women saying its for our protection and respect etc. Teach muslim men to respect women whatever they wear. That is a basic human courtesy. Muslim men actually do not respect women at all! Whether you wear hijab or not.

A massage or answer to that woman is below:

Let’s keep men out of this as you mentioned in your comment. You wear it not for people or because of men, but for Allah and yourself. If you respect your religion and believe in Allah you will do everything he ordered us to do. It’s not about arguing whether men look or not, but as Allah mentioned in Quran,

“Tell the believing women to lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and their adornment only that which is apparent, and to draw their veils over their bosoms, and not to reveal their adornment.”

You don’t need to wear it if you dont respect it. If you have doubt in hijab, then you will have doubt in Allah. Recharge your eman and may Allah show you the right path ameen.

we Love Hijab Muslim Women

2010-11-20T15:40:00.000+05:00

I am a Muslim woman
Feel free to ask me why
When I walk,
I walk with dignity
When I speak
I do not lie

I am a Muslim woman
Not all of me you'll see
But what you should appreciate
Is that the choice I make is free

I'm not plagued with depression
I'm neither cheated nor abused
I don't envy other women
And I'm certainly not confused

Note, I speak perfect English
Et un petit peu de Francais aussi
I'm majoring in Linguistics
So you need not speak slowly

I run my own small business
Every cent I earn is mine
I drive my Chevy to school & work
And no, that's not a crime!

You often stare as I walk by
You don't understand my veil
But peace and power I have found
As I am equal to any male!

I am a Muslim woman
So please don't pity me
For God has guided me to truth
And now I'm finally free!

Quick Earning Ways For Students

2010-11-16T01:03:00.001+05:00

Here are my suggestions to the emailer.

Project Payday: A few months ago, I experimented with a way to make money quick online with a program called Project Payday. I took a day and researched this project online. Seemed real people were making real money with it. Not getting rich, but making enough extra money quickly to pay some bills or other stuff. The next day I signed up with Project Payday, watched the training video’s and browsed the Forums tao get a feel as to how this program worked. In all, this process took me a few hours. The next day I followed the directions and made myself available for some “offers”. The first day, I made $30. The next day I hit it hard for about 6 hours and brought down $70 for my efforts. The following day, I worked 3 to 4 hours total and made $45. I soon found out one drawback to this program. It’s boring! No special skills are needed other than the know-how to operate your computer and use the Internet, but it is tedious work. I’m not cut out to spend hours behind a computer! Most people can make money quickly with this program, but you’ll have to put the time into it. The more time you put into it, the more money you’ll make generally. It’s not rocket science but you will have to keep track of the trials you sign up for. t’s free to sign up if you fill out an offer or you can buy directly into the program. Next you’ll need to read the promotional literature they have and watch the training video’s. They even have a guarantee that says if you follow the simple 4 step process in Method 1 and don’t make money in 24 hours, they’ll give you $100! This is the best guarantee I’ve seen online. I doubt anyone will need it though, because I found it easy to make money with Project Payday although it was boring computer work.

# Read Emails – Taking Online Survey’s, etc: In my opinion, this isn’t as easy as Project Payday, but it’s real close. There are companies that receive thousands of emails every day that need to be read. Obviously the CEO or other employees can’t spend every day reading emails, so they outsource this. There are several companies where they outsource this type of work as well as other tedious, time consuming chores such as product testing, online surveys, online mystery shopping and other. Send Earnings is one such company that other companies outsource to. Consumers such as you sign up and are normally paid on a per assignment completed basis. The pay varies by what type of assignment you choose. You choose where you want to make money. Click Here to learn more or to sign up for this opportunity.

Become a Freelance Writer – Can you Write a sentence? Then you may have what it takes to make money as a Freelance Writer. You don’t have to have a degree in English either. In fact, if you can write in an easy to read manner, you have what it takes to make money writing Web content, short stories and other media. You can sell articles on Forums like DigitalPoint and SitePoint, but don’t expect to make a whole lot. Or you can sign up for a service like Freelance Home Writers. Basically this is a job board for Writers where Companies and Individuals needing Writers post their offers. You can either accept or reject them, it’s up to you.

# Make Money On Ebay - There are many ways to make money with eBay. It seems that the 2 most popular ways are either by going to Garage Sales or Estate Sales and buying stuff to resell. You can make some decent money this way. Back in 2001 I did this same thing for several months and I made around 1-1600 per month. But it was long hard work making all those auctions or driving around looking for deals at Garage sales. Another way that is becoming more and more popular is people starting their own online stores with the help of eBay. ProStores is an ebay company that offers several packages for you to start your online store. They do a lot of the work of getting set up for you. If this sounds interesting, give them a test drive. One Month Free Trial! ProStores – an eBay Company

# Become an Online Tutor – I’m not sure what this pays, but I’ve known people in the past who have worked with companies like e-Tutor, SmartThinking and Tutor.Com. Online tutoring is an in-demand service and growing all the time. If you like helping others learn, this could be just the ticket for you. You will have to set aside a certain number of hours per week, anywhere from 2 hours on up on average depending upon which service you go with.

# Give eLessons – Do you know MS Word inside and out? Can you make an Excel spreadsheet scream for mercy? Can you work magic with Quicken? Well, there are thousands of people who just want to know the basics of these programs or are looking for some updating. You can advertise on places such as Craigslist and Kijiji or even the local newspaper. You’d be surprised at the number of people just wanting to learn the basics on operating a computer and who are willing to pay someone to teach them!

# Become an Online Juror – Even Lawyers need to practice! There are places such a eJury and TrialJuries.Com that stage mock trials. The Jurors get paid anywhere from $5 to $60 depending on how complex the case is. There’s no guarantee you’ll get a case, but it has to better than cleaning up after the old folks at the Senior Citizen Center! Many colleges have access to these mock jury trials, but from what I’ve been told, they don’t pay as much as the online jury pools. Also, as with anything in life, if you slack off on the Jury, don’t expect to be called back. The more you pay attention and get involved, the more likely they’ll “keep your name around.”

Some college students show up on the first day in a bright shiny BMW convertible. Those are the ones who do not need help. For most College Students, a few extra dollars a month goes a long ways in making it easier to study for their classes. If you’re in a pinch, there’s no need to run down to the Blood Center to give blood, just turn your computer on and go to work.

Some Ways to Earn Money Online

2010-11-16T00:34:00.001+05:00

. Offer your professional expertise in an online marketplace.These days, you can do more than just sell your old books via Amazon and your old Coach handbags via eBay—now you can sell your professional capabilities in a marketplace. No longer are you limited to looking for a permanent or contract job on Web 1.0 style job sites like Monster or CareerBuilder. The new breed of freelancing and project-oriented sites let companies needing help describe their projects. Then freelancers and small businesses offer bids or ideas or proposals from which those buyers can choose.

Elance covers everything from programming and writing to consulting and design, while RentACoder focuses on software, natch. If you’re a graphic designer, check out options like Design Outpost or LogoWorks–you don’t have to find the customers, they’ll come to you. Wannabe industry analysts might sign up for TechDirt’s Insight Community, a marketplace for ideas about technology marketing.

2. Sell photos on stock photography sites. If people regularly oooo and aaaaah over your Flickr pics, maybe you’re destined for photographic greatness or maybe just for a few extra dollars. It’s easier than ever to get your photos out in front of the public, which of course means a tremendous amount of competition, but also means it might be an convenient way for you to build up a secondary income stream. Where can you upload and market your photos? Try Fotolia, Dreamstime, Shutterstock, and Big Stock Photo.

3. Blog for pay. Despite the explosion of blogs, it’s hard to find good writers who can turn around a solidly-written post on an interesting topic quickly. GigaOM is always looking for bloggers with great content ideas and solid writing skills. How do you get noticed? Comment and link to blogging network sites. Write blog posts that are polished and not overly personal (although showing some personality is a plus).

4. Or start your own blog network. If you like the business side of things–selling advertising, hiring and managing employees, attracting investors–and have the stomach to go up against the likes of Weblogs, Inc., GigaOmniMedia, b5media, maybe you should make an entire business out of blogs. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you’ll get a lot of time to write yourself though.

5. Provide service and support for open source software. Just because the software is free doesn’t mean you can’t make money on it–just ask Red Hat, a well-known distributor of Linux that sports a market cap of more than four billion dollars. As a solo web worker, you might not want to jump in and compete with big companies offering Linux support, but how about offering support for web content management systems like WordPress or Drupal? After getting comfortable with your own installation, you can pretty easily jump into helping other people set them up and configure them.

6. Online life coaching. Who has time to go meet a personal coach at an office? And don’t the new generation of web workers need to be met by their coaches in the same way that they work: via email, IM, and VoIP? You could, of course, go through some life coaching certification program, but on the web, reputation is more important than credentials. I bet Tony Robbins isn’t certified as a life coach–and no one can argue with his success. For an example of someone building up their profile and business online as a coach, check out Pamela Slim of Ganas Consulting and the Escape from Cubicle Nation blog.

7. Virtually assist other web workers. Freelancers and small businesses desperately need help running their businesses, but they’re not about to hire a secretary to come sit in the family room and answer phone calls. As a virtual assistant, you might do anything from making travel reservations to handling expense reimbursements to paying bills to arranging for a dog sitter. And you do it all from your own home office, interacting with your clients online and by phone. You can make $20 and up an hour doing this sort of work, depending on your expertise.

8. Build services atop Amazon Web Services. Elastic computing on AWS is so cool… and so incredibly primitive right now. Did you know that you can’t even count on your virtual hard drive on EC2 to store your data permanently? That’s why people are making money right now by offering services on top of AWS. Make it easier for people to use Amazon’s scalability web infrastructure like Enomaly has with elasticlive, a scalable web hosting platform built on AWS.

9. Write reviews for pay or perks. If you blog for any length of time on a particular topic–parenting, mobile phones, or PCs, for example–you will likely be approached to do book or product reviews. You can get free stuff this way, but are you selling your soul? Is there any such thing as a free laptop? These are decisions you’ll have to make for yourself, because no one agrees upon what ethical rules apply to bloggers. Even less do people agree on services like PayPerPost that pay you to write reviews on your blog. Check out disclosure rules closely and see whether such a gig would meet your own personal standards or not.

10. Become a virtual gold farmer. A half million Chinese now earn income by acquiring and selling World of Warcraft gold to gamers in other countries. If you’re not a young person living in China, this probably isn’t a viable option for you. But what’s intriguing about it is the opportunity to make real money working in a virtual economy. People are making real-world money in Second Life too.

Looking for more money-making ideas? Check out “10 More New Ways to Make Money Online” for some great suggestions.

Ways to Promote your Local Business for Free

2010-11-16T00:22:00.000+05:00

Many local businesses struggle to find ways to promote themselves, get links, rank in search engines, and ultimately drive traffic to their websites. Most small businesses also have limited budgets making the task more difficult. For those businesses here are 13 ways you can promote your business online for free.

Google Local: If you don’t already have one Create an account on Google Local.
Enter your company name, address, phone number and website. Verify the
information with a postacard or telephone call. In a few weeks you will help you get a map listing for your company name or industry and town.
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Google Coupons: Coupons are a great way to bring new customers into your business or remind old customers that you’re still around. Google has a free coupon tool that puts your coupon on relevant local searches.

Google Base: Google base is part of Google’s one box service. Google uses it to try giving the most appropriate answer from different data sources. If you are selling products you can upload feeds automatically into Google Base and often get preferential placement. You can also upload your business, or special event.

Yahoo Local: Yahoo local is a directory organized by category and geographic location. You can get a basic listing in Yahoo Local for free. People searching for your business or industry can find your listing

Get Reviews: An integral part of the Yahoo Local listings are reviews. Ask your good customers to write reviews for you on Yahoo local. Businesses with higher ratings will get preferential listings.

YellowPages.com: Yellow Pages have a strong brand name and recognition, and are still used by many people today.

Press Releases: Doing something newsworthy? If you are you can always submit a press release to PRWeb or PRLeap.com. Be sure to check out their tips like 25 Action Words for Writing a Newsworthy Headline and Why Localizing a Press Release to a ZIP Code and City Matters.

Free Blog Promotion Tools: Does your company have a website or are you thinking of adding one? Websites like Technorati and mybloglog can help you gain exposure, visitors, readers, and subscribers to your blog.

Free Directory Advertising: It doesn’t get any easier than trying free advertising. Go to BOTW.org and sign up for a free 60 day advertising listing.

Create a Lens at Squidoo: Squidoo has a nice easy to use interface that allows you to give information to your visitors. You can talk about your business specifically or the services or products you provide.

LinkedIn: Join LinkedIn and get connected with people you know and make connections with people you don’t through introductions. Look at the new Questions and Answers section and try and be genuinely helpful. Follow the axiom of ‘Givers Gain’ and you may generate a few leads for yourself from your goodwill.

Email Signatures: Be sure to add your URL to all of your outgoing email. Try adding your mission statement, or a catchy phrase to help people understand what you do. Change it a several times a year so people notice it again.

Syndicate Your Content and Ideas: Take advantage of article distribution Services like EZineArticles, ISnare, and IdeaMarketers to spread your message and approach. Use them to bring leads to your site by offering things like free ebooks or PDF’s that they can download after entering their contact information.

For more tips on how to promote your local business be sure to check out my complete series on local search tips, tricks and secrets or visit my local search page on Squidoo.

Adsense Tools

2010-11-15T23:50:00.000+05:00

Adsense Script Tools

These are the tiny little programs you install on your server (blech!) or locally on your machine that help you analyze your adsense clicks, CTR and earnings. Some of them are easy, some of them are difficult, and some of them help you make pretty graphs. To be honest none of them are worth recommending. You could do just as good a job by setting up your channels properly and dumping a CSV file into excel. If someone has a specific one or wants to send me a review copy of thier software, I will look at it. DO NOT send me anything that has to be installed on a server. I run multiple websites on multiple hosting companies, so I don’t need something that requires more maintenance thank you very much.

Adsense Tracking

While not set up to be an Adsense tracking tool per se, the free log analyzer from AddFreeStats is actually pretty good. You put a small graphic tracking bug on the bottom of each of your pages and it gives you standard logging reports. You can also activate adsense tracking to find out what ads are being clicked on what pages. Combine this with an excel spreadsheet and channels and you are good to go. You can upgrade to a paid version and get an invisible tracking bug. TIP: Lock down your stats under a password, I’m fascinated how many people leave that open.

Adsense in Action

Probably one of the best things you can do to increase your adsense earnings is to go and look how other people are doing things. The adsense case studies are one place. While these are Google approved you really don’t have an idea how successful they are. So you’d be much better off finding someone you know is in the UPS Club. Jason Calacanis who runs Weblogs Inc is on a quest to make 1 Million dollars a year from Adsense. While I do give Jason a hard time sometimes, I do actually admire what he’s built, and think there are some very valuable lessons to be learned from looking at the websites owns. Darren Rowse of ProBlogger also has two sites I really like the Digital Camera Review and Camera Phone Review. Don’t be a wanker and copy exactly what they’ve done, it’s bad form. Instead look at them, learn from them, and use it as inspiration.

Adsense: Why Bloggers Don’t Get It

2010-11-15T22:54:00.001+05:00

In doing the research for my series of Adsense articles, two common ideas kept getting repeated:

My Adsense ads are horrible, they only pay out (insert low dollar figure here)
My Adsense CTR is horrible, I only get a (insert extremely low CTR here)

To be fair these comments weren’t coming just from bloggers, but bloggers did make up an overwhelmingly large percentage. I think this stems from a misconception on the part of the bloggers that they are entitled to high payout and CTR. I’d like to spend a little time to share my feelings on this subject. In the early days a blog may just have been an online diary or journal, but like the days of the Nehru jackets, they are gone. What a blog is now is Chronologically Structured Content Management System, as opposed to the classic web hierarchical structured implementation. Let’s be clear, you can still use a blog as your online diary or journal, but nowdays it’s just as likely to be used as a commercial blog. Yes, I did just say commercial blog, and no the earth didn’t open under my feet and swallow me whole for saying it. Let’s take some time to look at a your typical blog.
You may post about commercial related subjects like your job, what you like to buy, or even your hobbies. However these posts are all about your life, they are no more commercially viable or attractive than say Aunt Millie’s Holiday Newsletter. Yes we all have an Aunt Millie in our family, every year she sends out a finely crafted newsletter in a coordinating envelope she ordered from paperdirect.com telling us all about her family. We learn how hard her husband works, how many activities her kids are in and how good they are at them. We also read the details of how her scrapbooking business hasn’t taken off yet, but she promises to spend more time on it right after New Years. So if you were a business owner would you want to advertise anywhere on Aunt Millie’s Newsletter? Then why would a business want to pay you top dollar to advertise on your blog? What’s that, you say your blog gets (insert a high number here) of readers per day, surely that has to be worth something? Well did you know Aunt Millie sends out over 800 copies of her holiday newsletter to 17 countries, on 4 continents? Now before you get all fired up about it, understand that I don’t have a problem with you having a personal blog or sharing it with the public. However your expectation that it has value outside of your family/friends/community, is a serious misconception.
So what exactly is a commercially viable blog? Don’t think of it as publishing a blog, think of it as publishing an online magazine. You need to start out with good content or articles about a small area or niche topic. You will need lots of content, and unless you are well known, don’t expect much to happen until you’ve written at least 100 and more likely over 200 articles. Yes you will have to devote some time and effort to publicizing and marketing it as well. Once you’ve got a significant focused reader base, that’s the time to slowly ad in the advertising. Now here’s the one that causes lots of people to freak out. BE PREPARED TO GIVE UP SOME PRIME SCREEN REAL ESTATE, IN THE CENTER, ABOVE THE FOLD, TO ADVERTISING. If you’ve worked with print media at all you will know the middle of the right hand page is the most desirable spot inside of a magazine (excluding the cover pages). I’ve sat through meetings where people have said ” … you know we need more right hand pages …”. If you want people to click on your ads, you will need put them where they can see them, above the fold in the center of the screen, in a prominent location. Yes I can almost here the keys typing for the flame comments and emails now. Before you hit that send button though, ask yourself this, are you building a space sough after by advertisers, or are you working on Aunt Millie’s Newsletter? No I don’t think your pages should be filled with ads, in fact quite the opposite, there should always be more content than advertising, ALWAYS!
Next thing, lose the fancy graphics and eye-candy from your template. Yes I know you may have paid for a fancy template, maybe you had your niece who’s a graphic artist design something for you, or you really like the way that spinning flaming platypus looks in your page header. Here’s the thing, it’s detracting from your content. Graphics should be simple, understated, and support the content, not overpower or compete with it. Now before some art student wearing a beret, corduroy jacket with elbow patches, and smoking a pipe or French cigarette, writes and calls me a Philistine, stop and think. Are you designing a commercially attractive and viable space, or are you designing an intricate macrame border for Aunt Millie’s Newsletter? Remember keep it simple and to the point.
Yes I know you feel like I just ripped off the band-aid, and now it hurts. Sorry but someone had to do it. I know some of you are still out there reading saying ‘but can’t I still have this … do we have to get rid of this … I really like that …’. Well I’m not your second grade teacher who’s going to tell you everything’s all right, that you don’t have to change a thing, and put a scooby-doo sticker on your shirt to make you feel better. If you want a blog that makes you more money than you spend at Starbucks every Tuesday, you will need to get serious about what you’re doing.
If none of this sounds incredibly fun, and really sounds pretty close to actual work, here’s the way I see it, getting an Adsense check for $5 is fun, getting an Adsense check for $500 or $5000 is work.

How to Make Forex Trading Fun and Profitable

2010-11-14T17:10:00.000+05:00

Most traders aim to make their Forex trading profitable. This is their biggest goal. They're willing to spend hours in front of the charts, read news item after news item, surf forums endlessly, and buy every course they can find.

Yet most traders still end up as losers. They're just unable to make a consistent profit. What's worse, they forget the real reason they tried Forex in the first place, it wasn't just to make money, it was to make money without having to make it into their regular job.

Forex has massive earning potential, well beyond what most jobs offer. However, no money in the world can buy back time so if you want your Forex experience to be fun you need to make sure you're not turning into a slave of the market. I recommend these steps:

1. Spend only a limited time on the market each and every day.
2. Don't take part in more than a single Forex forum.
3. Stop following your open trades. Use Take Profit and Stop Loss prices and let the trades play themselves out without your active supervision.
4. Don't allow yourself to be exposed to a lot of risk. Feeling like you may lose too much takes all the fun out of trading. Yes, you have to take risk but you don't need to be stupid about it. Only trade money you can afford to lose, and only risk a small part of that money on any single trade.

You may find it hard to believe but traders who don't have fun are not likely to be profitable. You want to Forex and the money you make to serve you, not the other way around. This is the whole point.

The other thing you need to do in order to make trading fun and profitable is to make sure it doesn't affect you emotionall. Trading the Forex market can prove to be quite a nerve wracking experience. Putting your money on the line, trying to see how which way the market is going, feeling the tension of a trade gone bad, seeing a profit shrink before your eyes... no wonder so many traders end up feeling stressed out and making silly emotion driven trading decision that cause them to lose money.

In order to make Forex trading both fun and profitable, you have to make sure you have full control over your emotions and that you don't allow them to influence your trading decisions. Anything other than that will be disastrous.

If you are like millions of other people in today's economy, you probably are searching for a new way to help supplement your income.
One such way is by Trading Forex for fun and profit. It stands for Foreign Exchange Trading and basically means that you are trading one nation's currency for another.

The point of this strategic trading is to trade your currency at a low price for a currency that you believe will increase value. When the trading is done for fun, a lot of money can be made simply by playing around with the ever-changing trade market.

When you start Trading Forex for fun and profit, you have to be careful that you make wise trading choices. Although you are doing the trading simply for fun, there still is a lot of money involved.

Because the market is global, the exchange rates constantly are changing. You could purchase a currency that is on its way up in the morning and by nightfall it already could have lost all its value. This is why many people trade for fun instead of as a way to earn a living. If you get too involved and invested in the trading, you risk losing your entire income.

Trading Forex for fun and profit also will be much easier on your stress levels than if you took it on full time. People who are in the business full time actually have people to help them monitor all the markets to ensure that they are making the right trading decisions. When you trade for fun, you can play around with the market. You will be happier and more pleased with yourself when you make a profit because you did it yourself. In addition, you will not have to stress yourself out as much because you do not have all your money invested.

Another reason why it is a good idea to try Trading Forex for fun and profit is because a lot of people in the Forex Business believe that beginners tend to do well in the trading. They are able to make a profit by making modest trades. This usually is the case because beginners are not exactly sure how the trade market works, so they stick with reserved trades for a while. This is a great thing to do for beginners. Because you simply are doing it for fun, you'll be able to make a profit easily.

The reason most people have loosing trades is they trade on emotions or get greedy.

Forex Fun With etoro:

Ever since eToro was featured on TechCrunch and got dugg, I've been addicted to Forex trading with eToro. Actually, I've been playing this since yesterday. :)

As TechCrunch rightly points out, eToro's friendly interface makes the boring, serious world of Forex fun. At this stage, let me just state for the record that I'm not a professional Forex trader nor do I have any prior experience with Forex trading. I do however have the (very) basic knowledge of how currencies work.

With that in mind, I skipped the introductions and dived straight into the big bad world of Forex. Out of the 4 eToro games available, the first game I tried out was the Forex marathon. Just select the currency which you think would rise above the rest and sit back and relax as they race against one another.

It was quite enjoyable to watch the Japanese sumo wrestler pitting himself against the American and European. As your selected currency rises/falls, the corresponding character will lead the pack or fall behind the rest. I'm sure many new traders will prefer this alternative representation to the standard graphs and charts as a single glance will tell you whether you made the right choice even if you're a layman.

However, Globe trader was the game that I excelled in. In Globe trader, you buy/sell currencies to make a profit. As the market fluctuates, you will hear a pinging sound, which was useful and sometimes annoying (it can be turned off).

Within an hour of risky trading, I made over $500. Unfortunately, my lucky streak came to an end and I ended up losing over $1000. This goes to show that the volatility of the Forex market is something that cannot be underestimated.

Although eToro's interface may seem very childish, it does actually provide vital details like the market spread, your current profit/loss and the ability to take profit or stop loss (profit/loss threshold). However, after my short trading experience, I wished it had more features like scheduling and the ability to carry out more consecutive trades. Nevertheless, eToro brings the much needed element of fun into the Forex trading world.

eToro runs on Windows XP and possibly Vista.

The Hijab Styles in USA These Days

2010-11-09T16:04:00.001+05:00

Muslim headscarves might not be the most obvious garments for a high fashion makeover, but that's just what two Belgian women have given them. And now, their designs are selling from Paris to Dubai.

Noor D'Izar founders Inge Rombouts and Fatima Rafiy started the label with the idea of turning the hijab, or Muslim headscarf, into a stylish accessory -- for all women.

"I would love for two women, Muslim and non-Muslim, to look at our website and think they can both wear the scarves," Rombouts told CNN.

Rombouts is not Muslim but when Rafiy showed her these designs she instantly saw the appeal.
"[I'd] never seen anything like it, so I was a bit taken aback," she said. "I thought, 'Ooh, I like this.' I can wear it. You can wear it. Everybody can wear it. It's about draping. It's about fun. It's about fashion."
Noor D'Izar took their designs to Paris Fashion Week earlier this year where they caused quite a buzz, according to Rombouts.

"There was a lot of interest from the western world -- men and women," she said. "One man who rides a motorbike bought our leather design to wear over his helmet."
Since the launch of their company in 2009, orders from non-Muslims have been steadily rising. Their designs combine the practical and the stylish.
Many of the headscarves are made of T-shirt-style material and have built-in headbands. They don't require fiddly pins or elaborate wrapping, meaning they can be put on or taken off in seconds.

"I think the European women that have bought it like the practical side of it," said Rombouts. "I wear it 'cause it's just fun."
Rhemou Cheba, a Noor D'Izar customer from Antwerp, agrees.
"I don't have to spend ages in front of the mirror pinning it, I can just slide it on and it stays on," she told CNN.

Noor D'Izar operates in Belgium -- a country that has a troubled relationship with the hijab. Many schools and offices have banned the Muslim headscarf, so deciding to wear one makes a definitive statement.
"The wearing of the veil doesn't have to be controversial," said Aziz Saliha, who stocks Noor D'Izar products in her Brussels clothing store.

"The debate around the veil is much politicized and it's just clothes, so that's what we want to do, bring the headscarf back into the fashion world where it belongs," Saliha said.

Right now, only around 10 percent of orders from Noor D'Izar are from non-Muslims, but as they launch their new winter collection Rombouts and Rafiy anticipate their fan base will continue to grow. As Rombouts said, "It's not about politics. It's about fashion."

Benefits Of Hijab

2010-11-09T15:29:00.001+05:00

Hijab for Women- Dr. Zakir Naik

HIJAAB FOR WOMEN

Question: Why does Islam degrade women by keeping them behind the veil?

Answer: The status of women in Islam is often the target of attacks in the secular media. The ‘hijaab’ or the Islamic dress is cited by many as an example of the ‘subjugation’ of women under Islamic law. Before we analyze the reasoning behind the religiously mandated ‘hijaab’, let us first study the status of women in societies before the advent of Islam

1. In the past women were degraded and used as objects of lust
The following examples from history amply illustrate the fact that the status of women in earlier civilizations was very low to the extent that they were denied basic human dignity:

1. Babylonian Civilization:The women were degraded and were denied all rights under the Babylonian law. If a man murdered a woman, instead of him being punished, his wife was put to death.

2. Greek Civilization: Greek Civilization is considered the most glorious of all ancient civilizations. Under this very ‘glorious’ system, women were deprived of all rights and were looked down upon.

In Greek mythology, an ‘imaginary woman’ called ‘Pandora’ is the root cause of misfortune of human beings. The Greeks considered women to be subhuman and inferior to men. Though chastity of women was precious, and women were held in high esteem, the Greeks were later overwhelmed by ego and sexual perversions. Prostitution became a regular practice amongst all classes of Greek society.

3. Roman Civilization:When Roman Civilization was at the zenith of its ‘glory’, a man even had the right to take the life of his wife. Prostitution and nudity were common amongst the Romans.

4. Egyptian Civilization:The Egyptian considered women evil and as a sign of a devil.

5. Pre-Islamic Arabia:Before Islam spread in Arabia, the Arabs looked down upon women and very often when a female child was born, she was buried alive.

2. Islam uplifted women and gave them equality and expects them to maintain their status.

Islam uplifted the status of women and granted them their just rights 1400 years ago. Islam expects women to maintain their status.

Hijaab for men:
People usually only discuss ‘hijaab’ in the context of women. However, in the Glorious Qur’an, Allah (swt) first mentions ‘hijaab’ for men before ‘hijaab’ for the women. The Qur’an mentions in Surah Noor:

“Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty: that will make for greater purity for them: and Allah is well acquainted with all that they do.”[Al-Qur’an 24:30]

The moment a man looks at a woman and if any brazen or unashamed thought comes to his mind, he should lower his gaze.

Hijaab for women:
The next verse of Surah Noor, says:
” And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands’ fathers, their sons…”[Al-Qur’an 24:31]

3. Six criteria for Hijaab.
According to Qur’an and Sunnah there are basically six criteria for observing hijaab:

1. Extent: The first criterion is the extent of the body that should be covered. This is different for men and women. The extent of covering obligatory on the male is to cover the body at least from the navel to the knees. For women, the extent of covering obligatory is to cover the complete body except the face and the hands upto the wrist. If they wish to, they can cover even these parts of the body. Some scholars of Islam insist that the face and the hands are part of the obligatory extent of ‘hijaab’.

All the remaining five criteria are the same for men and women.
2. The clothes worn should be loose and should not reveal the figure.
3. The clothes worn should not be transparent such that one can see through them.
4. The clothes worn should not be so glamorous as to attract the opposite sex.
5. The clothes worn should not resemble that of the opposite sex.
6. The clothes worn should not resemble that of the unbelievers i.e. they should not wear clothes that are specifically identities or symbols of the unbelievers’ religions.

4. Hijaab includes conduct and behaviour among other things
Complete ‘hijaab’, besides the six criteria of clothing, also includes the moral conduct, behaviour, attitude and intention of the individual. A person only fulfilling the criteria of ‘hijaab’ of the clothes is observing ‘hijaab’ in a limited sense. ‘Hijaab’ of the clothes should be accompanied by ‘hijaab’ of the eyes, ‘hijaab’ of the heart, ‘hijaab’ of thought and ‘hijaab’ of intention. It also includes the way a person walks, the way a person talks, the way he behaves, etc.

5. Hijaab prevents molestation
The reason why Hijaab is prescribed for women is mentioned in the Qur’an in the following verses of Surah Al-Ahzab:
“O Prophet! Tell thy wives and daughters, and the believing women that they should cast their outer garments over their persons (when abroad); that is most convenient, that they should be known (as such) and not molested. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.”[Al-Qur’an 33:59]
The Qur’an says that Hijaab has been prescribed for the women so that they are recognized as modest women and this will also prevent them from being molested.
6. Example of twin sisters
Suppose two sisters who are twins, and who are equally beautiful, walk down the street. One of them is attired in the Islamic hijaab i.e. the complete body is covered, except for the face and the hands up to the wrists. The other sister is wearing western clothes, a mini skirt or shorts. Just around the corner there is a hooligan or ruffian who is waiting for a catch, to tease a girl. Whom will he tease? The girl wearing the Islamic Hijaab or the girl wearing the skirt or the mini? Naturally he will tease the girl wearing the skirt or the mini. Such dresses are an indirect invitation to the opposite sex for teasing and molestation. The Qur’an rightly says that hijaab prevents women from being molested.

7. Capital punishment for the rapists
Under the Islamic shariah, a man convicted of having raped a woman, is given capital punishment. Many are astonished at this ‘harsh’ sentence. Some even say that Islam is a ruthless, barbaric religion! I have asked a simple question to hundreds of non-Muslim men. Suppose, God forbid, someone rapes your wife, your mother or your sister. You are made the judge and the rapist is brought in front of you. What punishment would you give him? All of them said they would put him to death. Some went to the extent of saying they would torture him to death. To them I ask, if someone rapes your wife or your mother you want to put him to death. But if the same crime is committed on somebody else’s wife or daughter you say capital punishment is barbaric. Why should there be double standards?

8. Western society falsely claims to have uplifted women
Western talk of women’s liberalization is nothing but a disguised form of exploitation of her body, degradation of her soul, and deprivation of her honour. Western society claims to have ‘uplifted’ women. On the contrary it has actually degraded them to the status of concubines, mistresses and society butterflies who are mere tools in the hands of pleasure seekers and sex marketeers, hidden behind the colourful screen of ‘art’ and ‘culture’.

9. USA has one of the highest rates of rape
United States of America is supposed to be one of the most advanced countries of the world. It also has one of the highest rates of rape in any country in the world. According to a FBI report, in the year 1990, every day on an average 1756 cases of rape were committed in U.S.A alone. Later another report said that on an average everyday 1900 cases of rapes are committed in USA. The year was not mentioned. May be it was 1992 or 1993. May be the Americans got ‘bolder’ in the following years.
Consider a scenario where the Islamic hijaab is followed in America. Whenever a man looks at a woman and any brazen or unashamed thought comes to his mind, he lowers his gaze. Every woman wears the Islamic hijaab, that is the complete body is covered except the face and the hands upto the wrist. After this if any man commits rape he is given capital punishment. I ask you, in such a scenario, will the rate of rape in America increase, will it remain the same, or will it decrease?

10. Implementation of Islamic Shariah will reduce the rate of rapesNaturally as soon as Islamic Shariah is implemented positive results will be inevitable. If Islamic Shariah is implemented in any part of the world, whether it is America or Europe, society will breathe easier. Hijaab does not degrade a woman but uplifts a woman and protects her modesty and chastity.

According to Islam women should not wear knighties and short dresses which leads to Sexual Harassment

2010-11-09T14:11:00.001+05:00

Etymology and meaning

According to the Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World, the meaning of hijab has evolved over time:

The term hijab or veil is not used in the Qur'an to refer to an article of clothing for women or men, rather it refers to a spatial curtain that divides or provides privacy. The Qur'an instructs the male believers (Muslims) to talk to wives of Prophet Muhammad behind a hijab. This hijab was the responsibility of the men and not the wives of Prophet Muhammad. However, in later Muslim societies this instruction, specific to the wives of Prophet Muhammad, was generalized, leading to the segregation of the Muslim men and women. The modesty in Qur'an concerns both men's and women's gaze, gait, garments, and genitalia. The clothing for women involves khumūr over the necklines and jilbab (cloaks) in public so that they may be identified and not harmed. Guidelines for covering of the entire body except for the hands, the feet and the face, are found in texts of fiqh and hadith that are developed later.[4]

One of the greatest thinkers of the 20th century, Ayatullah Murtadha Mutahhari in one of his masterpieces on this subject, The Islamic Modest Dress, says:

"The fact is that the covering or its new expression, hijab, is not concerned with whether or not it is good for a woman to appear in society covered or uncovered . The point is whether or not a woman and a man's need of her should be a limitless, free association or not. Should a man have the right to satisfy his needs with every woman and in every place short of committing adultery?Islam, which looks at the spirit of the problem, answers: No. Men are only allowed to satisfy their sexual desires with their legal wives within a marital situation based upon the laws of marriage which establish a series of heavy commitments. It is forbidden for men to have any physical relations with women they are not related to by marriage."

In Indonesia, notably the nation with the largest Muslim population, and some cultures or languages influenced by it namely Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines, the term jilbab is used instead with few exceptions to refer to the hijab, as opposed to its "correct" modern Arabic definition. In some cases, colloquial use of the term Jilbab may refer to any pre-Islamic female traditional head-dress.

In Islamic texts

Qur'an

The Qur'an instructs both Muslim men and women to dress in a modest way.

The clearest verse on the requirement of the hijab is surah 24:30–31, asking women to draw their khimar over their bosoms.[5][6]

Say to the believing men that they cast down their looks and guard their private parts; that is purer for them; surely Allah is Aware of what they do. And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their khimar over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to [...] (Qur'an 24:30-31)

In the following verse, Muslim women are asked to draw their jilbab over them (when they go out), as a measure to distinguish themselves from others, so that they are not harassed. Sura 33:59 reads:[6]

Those who harass believing men and believing women undeservedly, bear (on themselves) a calumny and a grievous sin. O Prophet! Enjoin your wives, your daughters, and the wives of true believers that they should cast their outer garments over their persons (when abroad) That is most convenient, that they may be distinguished and not be harassed. [...] (Qur'an 33:58–59)

Hadith
The Arabic word jilbab is translated as "cloak" in the following passage. Contemporary salafis insist that the jilbab (which is worn over the Kimaar and covers from the head to the toe) worn today is the same garment mentioned in the Qur'an and the hadith; other translators have chosen to use less specific terms:

* Narrated Anas ibn Malik: "I know (about) the Hijab (the order of veiling of women) more than anybody else. Ubay ibn Ka'b used to ask me about it. Allah's Apostle became the bridegroom of Zaynab bint Jahsh whom he married at Medina. After the sun had risen high in the sky, the Prophet invited the people to a meal. Allah's Apostle remained sitting and some people remained sitting with him after the other guests had left. Then Allah's Apostle got up and went away, and I too, followed him till he reached the door of 'Aisha's room. Then he thought that the people must have left the place by then, so he returned and I also returned with him. Behold, the people were still sitting at their places. So he went back again for the second time, and I went along with him too. When we reached the door of 'Aisha's room, he returned and I also returned with him to see that the people had left. Thereupon the Prophet hung a curtain between me and him and the Verse regarding the order for (veiling of women) Hijab was revealed." Sahih al-Bukhari, 7:65:375, Sahih Muslim, 8:3334
* Narrated Umm Salama Hind bint Abi Umayya, Ummul Mu'minin: "When the verse 'That they should cast their outer garments over their persons' was revealed, the women of Ansar came out as if they had crows hanging down over their heads by wearing outer garments." 32:4090. Abū Dawud classed this hadith as authentic.
* Narrated Safiya bint Shaiba: "Aisha used to say: 'When (the Verse): "They should draw their veils (Khumur) over their necks and bosoms (juyyub)," was revealed, (the ladies) cut their waist sheets at the edges and covered their faces with the cut pieces.'" Sahih al-Bukhari, 6:60:282, 32:4091.

Dress code required by hijab

Traditionally, Muslims have recognized many different forms of clothing as satisfying the demands of hijab.[12] Debate focused on how much of the male or female body should be covered. Different scholars adopted different interpretations of the original texts.

Women

The four major Sunni schools of thought (Hanafi, Shafi'i, Maliki and Hanbali) hold that entire body of the woman, except her face and hands - though a few clerics[who?] say face, hands, and feet - is part of her awrah, that is, the parts of her body that must be covered during prayer and in public settings.[13][14]

Some Muslims[who?] recommend that women wear clothing that is not form fitting to the body: either modest forms of western clothing (long shirts and skirts), or the more traditional jilbāb, a high-necked, loose robe that covers the arms and legs. A khimār or shaylah, a scarf or cowl that covers all but the face, is also worn in many different styles. Some Salafi scholars encourage covering the face, while some follow the opinion that it is only not obligatory to cover the face and the hands but mustahab (Highly recommended). Other scholars oppose face covering, particularly in the west where the woman may draw more attention as a result. These garments are very different in cut than most of the traditional forms of ħijāb, and they are worn worldwide by Muslims.

Detailed scholarly attention has been focused on prescribing female dress. Many Muslims believe that the basic requirements are that when in the presence of someone of the opposite sex (other than a close family member - see mahram), a woman should cover her body, and walk and dress in a way which does not draw sexual attention to her. Some believers go so far as to specify exactly which areas of the body must be covered. In some cases, this is everything save the eyes but most require everything save the face and hands to be covered. In nearly all Muslim cultures, young girls are not required to wear a ħijāb. There is not a single agreed age when a woman should begin wearing a ħijāb; however, in many Muslim countries, puberty is the dividing line.

In private, and in the presence of mahrams, the rules on dress are relaxed. However, in the presence of husband, most scholars stress the importance of mutual freedom and pleasure of the husband and wife.[15]
Alternative views

Other Muslims take a relativist approach to ħijāb. They believe that the commandment to maintain modesty must be interpreted with regard to the surrounding society. What is considered modest or daring in one society may not be considered so in another. It is important, they say, for believers to wear clothing that communicates modesty and reserve in the situations in which they find themselves.[7]

Along with scriptural arguments, Leila Ahmed argues that head covering should not be compulsory in Islam because the veil predates the revelation of the Qur'an. Head-covering was introduced into Arabia long before Muhammad, primarily through Arab contacts with Syria and Iran, where the hijab was a sign of social status. After all, only a woman who need not work in the fields could afford to remain secluded and veiled.[8][9]

Ahmed argues for a more liberal approach to hijab. Among her arguments is that while some Qur'anic verses enjoin women in general to "draw their Jilbabs (overgarment or cloak) around them to be recognized as believers and so that no harm will come to them"[Qur'an 33:58–59] and "guard their private parts... and drape down khimar over their breasts [when in the presence of unrelated men]",[Qur'an 24:31] they urge modesty.

However according to the vast majority of Muslims Sunni and Shia, al-Mawrid al-Qawrid Arabic dictionary, Hans-Wehr Dictionary of Arabic into English, and the exhaustive ancient Arabic dictionary Lisan al-arab (literally the tongue of the Arabs), the word "Khimar" means and was used to refer to a piece of cloth that covers the head, or headscarf today called "hijab".

Other verses do mention separation of men and women but they refer specifically to the wives of the prophet:

Abide still in your homes and make not a dazzling display like that of the former times of ignorance[Qur'an 33:32–33]

And when ye ask of them [the wives of the Prophet] anything, ask it of them from behind a curtain.[Qur'an 33:53]

According to Leila Ahmed, nowhere in the whole of the Qur'an is the term hijab applied to any woman other than the wives of Muhammad.[8][10]

According to at least two authors (Reza Aslam and Leila Ahmed), the stipulations of the hijab were originally meant only for Muhammad's wives, and were intended to maintain their inviolability. This was because Muhammad conducted all religious and civic affairs in the mosque adjacent to his home:

People were constantly coming in and out of this compound at all hours of the day. When delegations from other tribes come to speak with Prophet Muhammad, they would set up their tents for days at a time inside the open courtyard, just a few feet away from the apartments in which Prophet Muhammad's wives slept. And new emigrants who arrived in Yatrib would often stay within the mosque's walls until they could find suitable homes.[8]

According to Ahmed:

By instituting seclusion Prophet Muhammad was creating a distance between his wives and this thronging community on their doorstep.[11]

They argue that the term darabat al-hijab ("taking the veil"), was used synonymously and interchangeably with "becoming Prophet Muhammad's wife", and that during Muhammad's life, no other Muslim woman wore the hijab. Aslam suggests that Muslim women started to wear the hijab to emulate Muhammad's wives, who are revered as "Mothers of the Believers" in Islam,[8] and states "there was no tradition of veiling until around 627 C.E." in the Muslim community.[8][11]

Women Experience More Sexual Harassment In Work Groups With Male, Female Balance

2010-11-09T13:45:00.000+05:00

New research suggests that women are not more likely to be sexually harassed when they are the minority or majority in a work group. Instead, researchers found that in most cases, women were sexually harassed at work when their work group had a similar proportion of males and females.

A study looking at 110 work groups from around the world found that women who work in relatively equally matched gender groups were more likely to be harassed than women who worked in predominantly male or female groups. Women in these situations were more likely to experience taunting, patronizing, and predatory behaviors.

“Some people argue that women are more likely to be harassed when there are just a few women, and other people argue that women are harassed when they are the dominant group in an occupation. But we found that actually was not the case. Most sexual harassment occurs in situations in equally mixed gender groups,” said Randy Hodson, co-author of the study and professor of sociology at Ohio State University.

Hodson said the logic behind the finding is simple: sexual harassment occurs where there is more opportunity.
“There is a lot more opportunity in these groups because you have a lot of men who have contact on a regular basis with a lot of women, and that’s going to create more opportunities for sexual harassment. When women are less represented or when they are mainly working with other women, there is simply not as much opportunity,” he said.

Hodson and other researchers did a detailed analysis of book-length studies examining workplace culture from an array of industries, such as manufacturing, skilled trades, finance, and public administration. All of the books included detailed observations of worker interactions taken by researchers who were immersed into an organization for at least six months.

They then coded the information from the books to measure the type and severity of sexual harassment, ranging from the least severe (patronizing) to the most severe (predatory). The researchers only coded explicit examples of sexual harassment from the books, such as sexual advances or condescending comments made by supervisors or colleagues referring to women as delicate.

Workplaces ranging from less than 50 employees to more than 5,000 employees were included to more accurately represent the general workforce. The results were published recently in the journal Work and Occupations.

More than one third of the work groups studied did not have any incidents of sexual harassment. But when sexual harassment was observed, it was found more often in groups with a nearly equal mixture of men and women than in groups with a lone female in a predominately male environment.

“In our research, we saw example after example of situations where women were harassed most often in groups with an equal gender composition,” said Lindsey Joyce Chamberlain, co-author of the study and doctoral student in sociology at Ohio State.

While sexual harassment was most likely in equally mixed gender groups, sexual harassment was also present in groups with a wide range of female representation. Work groups that were predominantly female were protected from the most extreme forms of sexual harassment, but women in these groups were more likely to be targeted through patronizing behaviors.

The study found that the characteristics of a person’s job also influenced the likelihood and type of harassment. While increased job security was effective in combating the worst forms of sexual harassment, other factors were less effective.

Women who had more autonomy, for example, were more likely to be the victim of every type of sexual harassment. More power in some organizations led to women being taunted, but it also opened the door for sexual solicitation, threats, and forced sexual contact. This finding in particular was completely unexpected, Chamberlain said.

“We thought more power, for women especially, would protect them from certain types of harassment. But we many women that were harassed because they were in positions with power. Women who have jobs with higher autonomy may be seen as threats to men in organizations that have been traditionally been male dominated,” she said.

Compounding the issue, formal grievance procedures were also less effective in combating the less severe forms of sexual harassment. Women were well protected from predation, but company policies often left them less protected from taunting and patronizing from male coworkers.

Hodson said most organizational policies are clearly defined to protect workers from the most extreme behaviors including sexual solicitation, forced sexual contact, and threats. But many of the other, less severe forms of sexual harassment may be left out or less clearly defined, creating uncertainty among some workers on what can be considered sexual harassment.

Other co-authors of the study include Daniel Tope, assistant professor of sociology at Florida State University, and Martha Crowley, assistant professor of sociology at North Carolina State University.

Editor's Note: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

Crescent Earrings

2010-11-07T13:18:00.001+05:00

A beautiful turquoise teardrop accents these sterling silver earrings hand engraved by Egyptian artisans with the Islamic expression "Al-Hamd war Rada" (Praise and Contentment). Lightweight yet substantial, and very elegant!

Each piece is individually hand made following centuries old jewelry making traditions. Differences in engraving, slight marks and imperfections are a hallmark of the individuality of this product.

Women's Travel While With A Care

2010-11-07T13:07:00.000+05:00

Women's Travel Tips to Take to Heart
It's a fact that women need to travel with a little special care; horror stories do exist and women, taught to have a care in life in general, can toss cares to the wind on vacation (like all travelers can) and lose that finely tuned caution edge that they keep honed on their own city streets.
Avoiding Travel Theft
Thieves often perceive females as easier targets for theft than men. After all, aren't they the weaker sex? (Not!) The most obvious solution is sticking to the safer parts of town, but you'll certainly miss adventure if you do.

* Carry a light

Consider avoiding deserted streets after dark; if you can't, then carry a small, heavy flashlight in your hand. Be careful on dark streets even if you have a companion.

* Watch the crowd

Some thieves prefer crowded areas - stay alert in places like bus stations and during street celebrations, where you're likely to be jostled -- thieves use these circumstances to grab your stuff.
Consider your undies

Muggers aren't interested in your bra. Sew pockets into it where you can keep some folded cash; if you do get mugged, you're not left helpless. A money belt works, too, but thieves know all about money belts (and would you really use one at home, or on the streets of New York or Chicago?). I also sometimes stash a couple of bigger bills in a sock after dark or anytime in some places, since I can be the world's most careless person about cash in pockets.
* Don't bring the bling

Avoid ostentatious jewelry; you could be injured if a thief yanks a bracelet from your wrist or a necklace from your throat.

* Let the bag go

Most experts say not to resist -- let your bag go and then shout for help rather than risk assault. Opening your wallet and handing over your money may be enough for the thief and you can keep your bag -- it also may make a thief think you're reaching for a weapon. Better to hand over the bag.
Consider Your Attire
Dressing well can make a thief think you have mounds of moolah in your bag. And women's dress can be a major issue in some developing countries. Remember that, until recently, Afghanistan women had to cover themselves from head to toe or risk legal repercussions. It's already pretty clear that you're a Westerner -- avoid looking like a rich Westerner to avoid creepy kinds of attention.

* Dress like a local

Learn the local dress code as soon as you arrive; buy appropriate clothing locally if neccesary. In some countries, typical American young women's attire like a shirt that shows your belly may be an offensive slap in the face to local women and an invitation for a come-on from the men. In Islamic countries, lay aside your own opinions and wear a head scarf - read more about clothing in Muslim countries.
Money Belts
Money belts are a tried and true way to hide money while traveling. I often stash cash in a buttoned or zipped cargo pants pocket, but money belts have their place, like while you're wearing a skirt; I've hidden backup bucks in a money belt that stays in my locked backpack back at the room, too. Some money belts look like belts, and some are cloth pouches worn against the skin.

BurQa TrenDs

2010-11-07T12:32:00.000+05:00

But, anecdotally, the burka on the streets of London has become more common. Knightsbridge is home to plenty of wealthy Arab women who wear the veil in public, while in pockets of east London, some Muslim women work and travel almost unnoticed in niqabs. But does that really mean the city is becoming more “radicalised”?
Shaista Gohir, executive director of the Muslim Women's Network UK, is unconvinced: “No. The niqab, in the first place, is a minor phenomenon. Yes, Muslims are displaying their identity more overtly since 9/11 and 7/7 but they've also come under heavier political scrutiny. The veil has almost become a spiritual and physical shield.”

Gohir is one of the few Muslim women I've met who defends the right of any woman to wear what she pleases but who also admits that “the niqab is a barrier to communication, community relations and integration”.
Belgium became the first European country to outlaw the burka and French legislation now dictates that it is a criminal offence “to conceal one's face in public”.
But a report published last month by the think-tank Civitas suggests that in Britain at least, the veil should be accepted as part of a modern British way of life and be judged by practicality, not ideology. In contrast to Italy, Spain and the Netherlands, where state bans are being considered, the Civitas report (titled Women, Islam and Western Liberalism) recommends that unless the veil physically “hinders a citizen's ability to perform their public civic duties”, women alone should determine what they wear.
It's a point made repeatedly by the scores of Muslim women in London I interviewed.
At Friday prayers in the East London Mosque, dozens of women and girls from Somalian, Bangladeshi, and Pakistani heritage arrive in a diverse array of Islamic dress.
A group of teenage Bengali-speaking girls, all wearing hijabs (headscarves), skinny jeans and high-street dresses, giggle in a collective huddle when I ask why they choose to wear the headscarf. “'Cos we're Muslims,” says 16-year-old Zainab Zaman, suppressing a “durr!”. “And you can tell that instantly. That's our identity, it's who we are.”
Mishal Akhtar, 23, a part-time hijab wearer who works for a fashion magazine, believes wearing a headscarf can “actually be a bit punk. In your teens, in London, it's fashionable and cool — it's another accessory. It also marks you out and makes you belong at the same time. So yes, the appeal is really obvious.”
Fatima Barktulla, 31, a cheery pregnant mother of three boys who was born and grew up in Hackney, elaborates: “I started with the hijab, but when I got married I wanted to wear the niqab … It isn't a rejection of society, or an attempt to be different. It's not a political statement either.”
Does she feel it might be perceived as such? “No woman I know who wears a niqab is doing it to make a huge point. It's a personal, spiritual conviction. And I know that the niqab is a virtuous option and it is not obligatory.”
Barktulla, an Arabic studies lecturer, says that taking up the veil simply allows her to feel closer to God. “It doesn't contradict my being British either,” she insists. “I love this country — it's my home. Mine and my husband's parents come from India but it's alien to us.
People ask whether we wouldn't be better off living in an Islamic country' but it's only because we're brown-skinned and not part of the indigenous population. What would you say to the white English convert whose family has been here for centuries? Where would they go?”
Modesty in Islam is key for both men and women. But most Islamic scholars agree that the adoption of the full-face veil among Muslim women is more to do with culture than religion. Its purpose is to diminish a woman's sexual allure.
Yet perversely, it is arguable that by wearing one a woman is defining herself as little more than a sexual object. While in Riyadh a burka would go unnoticed, in London, a veiled Muslim woman attracts attention. I ask Barktulla if she doesn't feel that wearing one here contradicts its purpose.
“It's a different type of attention though,” says Barktulla. “On a day to day basis, it's really not that problematic. I don't think people stare at me in London any more.”
Does she place any legitimacy in Angela Merkel's recent comments about the failure of multiculturalism? “If multiculturalism really is a genuine desire to allow people to express themselves in their different ways, then it works,” she says. “If the idea was to allow immigrants to have their traditions and hope their kids would be wholly assimilated, then it doesn't. I don't think that was the idea though. This is a liberal democracy.”
Amoola Ismail, a 26-year-old British- Somalian care worker whose beautifully made-up eyes are all I can see over our coffee in Aldgate, agrees: “The irony is that when people get hot and bothered about Islam and criticise it for oppressing women and forcing them to cover up, they forget that removing any woman's individual right to choose makes them oppressors too.”
Ismail believes it's not just patronising but chauvinistic for the debate on burkas to be conducted in the press and among politicians without involving the women who actually wear them. “We're not delicate little creatures,” she scoffs. “We don't need to be saved. We need to be heard if they want to take this debate seriously and stop using it as a weapon to attack Islam.”
Not everyone sees the issue as a “clash of civilisations”. “We are a new culture here,” says Dr Riffat Majeed, a GP from Watford. “We're very British Muslims. I don't identify as being Pakistani like my parents. Our generation is taking advantage of the fact that we're living in the information age. When you grow up in the West, you question everything. You want to find out who you are, where you fit in. Having doubts and getting answers to those questions is perhaps why we're more religious than the first generation.”
Majeed believes Muslim immigrants in the Sixties and Seventies, practised “a more cultural form of Islam”, whereas now their offspring are better-informed and more observant. Majeed has worn the hijab for 13 years and a jilbab (a full-length cloak) for almost the last decade, inspiring her mother to do the same. I ask if she ever feels restricted by her self-imposed uniform — whether she misses dressing up?
“It's not like you get locked away and you're like an old woman; I still dress up. We have a lot of family and social dos. Women are segregated outside of close family events so I get my hair done, have my nice outfit and jewellery on but I don't resent my choices. It hasn't limited me, it feels natural.”
Maryam El Hajbi, a 24-year-old British-Moroccan researcher working for the anti-extremism think-tank Quilliam, believes the bigger problem is “the way in which the debate has become politicised. The niqab has been taken out of context and is being used as an ideological tool, an excuse to talk about immigration, integration or the failure of multiculturalism.”
El Hajbi finds it difficult to understand the feminist position that many veiled women maintain on account of the niqab making them feel empowered, but respects their choice. “A state ban would be totally counter-productive. The only real issue is where women or girls — such as at the school in Tower Hamlets — are forced to wear it.”
The Madani School for Girls has so far refused to speak to the press about its policy — niqabs for pupils aged 11-18 are mandatory on the journey to and from school.
The headmistress, Mrs Amra Bone, tells me it might be time to set some facts straight: “First, this policy has been in place since 1991, when the school was set up,” she explains. “It's not new. Second, the uniform was already under review and subject to potential change before [the press attention]. The girls don't have to wear niqabs in school and lots of them don't put them on until they reach the school gates.”
Mrs Bone admits she doesn't personally agree with the niqab but she says the school will continue its review with staff, students, parents and its management committee and will not be pressured by headlines.
Even so, the controversy around the veil remains. A guest at a debate on religious tolerance at the Battle of Ideas conference last weekend, said the sight of women wearing them in London made her feel violently sick. Another questioned whether moral relativism and liberalism were acceptable excuses to ignore the so-called “threat [burkas] pose to civil society”.
Whether one agrees with the choice London Muslims make (when they do choose) to cover their faces or not is irrelevant; protecting the freedom to allow that choice is a basic tenet of British life.

Islamic Fashion Shows

2010-11-07T12:11:00.001+05:00

Modesty is not meant to degrade women, but preserves the sacred bond of marriage between a man and woman, the panelists said.
“The Quran tells us to cover our head, body and shape, to embody the idea that men and women can be viewed as people, while not being objectified,” Kaali said.
The discussion broke down a few of the fallacies concerning Islam, such as fundamentalism, Americans’ perception, as well as supposed permission from the Quran to impose hatred upon “infidels.”
“The differences that have come to be in the Islamic world permitting inferiority of women, and a mistreatment of women are purely political, and entirely unacceptable according to the Quran,” Kaali said.
MSA panel members recognized Islam was a revolutionary idea at its inception, however, it is difficult to understand how some of the ideas closely associated to Islam in Americans’ eyes are incorrect in reference to the thoughts the Prophet Mohammad stated.
Huma Ali, a BSU graduate student also receiving questions in the panel discussion, directly addressed this.
“The Prophet Mohammad’s idea of Islam was so revolutionary in regards to women because he spoke positively of women’s right to education, to marry whom they choose, a woman’s right to participate in business and to use the money earned as her own,” Ali said.
The panel discussion was a stepping stone used, as Ali said, “to paint a true picture of Islam.”

Islamic Fashion Show from The Arbiter on Vimeo.

To Spread Peace Is Also Our Social Responsibility

2010-11-06T10:19:00.000+05:00

Concept of Peace in Islam

"But if the enemy incline towards peace, do thou (also) incline towards peace" (The Quran 8:61)

The Word "Islam"

The "root" of the word "Islam" in Arabic is SALAMA which is the origin of the words Peace & / or Submission, a submission to God and peace to all humanity. It is, thus, no wonder why the salutation in Islam is: "Al-Salamu Alaikum or Peace on You."
In this regard, prophet Mohammad ordered his fellow Muslims to salute others Muslims or non-Muslims with peace when he said: "Peace Before Speech"
It is a Rule in Islam that during war time, an enemy warrior who pronounces the word peace is totally immune.

No Coercion In Islam

Unlike many other religions where people were offered either conversion and peace or death, Islam came with the just word of our creator. In Quran 2:256; God said "Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error..." There are many other verses in the Quran that deals with the nature of spreading God's message. One of my favorites which I keep quoting is Verse 10:99 "If it had been thy Lord's Will, they would all have believed, all who are on earth! Wilt thou then compel mankind, against their will, to believe!" These verses and many others show how much emphasis Islam places on the mind of people, Muslims or non-Muslims.

Justice & Fairness to Non-Muslims

In This regard, Muslims are governed by the rules that the relationship with non-Muslims should be based on justice, mutual respect, cooperation, and communication. The Quran is very explicit about the justice part of the relationship when God stated in Verse 60:08 "Allah forbids you not, with regard to those who fight you not for (your) Faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them: for Allah loveth those who are just."

The Ultimate Justice

Another prominent example that I keep referring to concerning the just treatment of Islam to non-Muslims; is the fact that while a husband is allowed to ask his Muslim wife not to go to the Mosque; he has no right to ask his wife to go to Church or Synagogue if it happens that the wife is a Christian or a Jew.

Peace and Jihad

The root of the word Jihad is Jahada which means "spent the energy". The following need some clarification concerning the concept of Jihad in Islam:

The acts of Jihad are limitless in Islam. Work, going to school, even having sex with your spouse is classified as an act of Jihad in Islam that one will be rewarded for doing them.
The highest stage of Jihad is fighting the enemy of Muslims and Islam.
Defending your family, money, land, country...etc. by all means including the armed means are also considered Jihad

Misrepresentation of Anti-Islam

Anti-Muslims resort to a deceitful misrepresentation when they misquote the Quranic verses of the second chapter. They claim that Quran promoted killing the infidels wherever you find them. Indeed, this is true but only if the infidels attack Muslims. Here are the verses complete:
Quran 2:190-193.

Fight in the cause of Allah those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for Allah loveth not transgressors.
And slay them wherever ye catch them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out; for tumult and oppression are worse than slaughter; but fight them not at the Sacred Mosque, unless they (first) fight you there; but if they fight you, slay them. Such is the reward of those who suppress faith.
But if they cease, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.
And fight them on until there is no more tumult or oppression, and there prevail justice and faith in Allah; but if they cease, let there be no hostility except to those who practice oppression.

Contemporary Counterpart of Jihad

The United Nation's Charter does explicitly discuss the right of the occupied people to resist their occupiers. The legitimacy of fighting aggression by means of Jihad or armed struggle is extended not only from the Islamic teachings but also from the international law and UN Charter.

Morality & Ethics of Jihad

The legitimacy of annihilating the oppressive forces and military occupation is not limited to Islam or international law and UN Charter. In fact, it is very much morally and ethically unacceptable to people with minimum level of dignity and self respect to accept the life of slaves under the military machine rule of alien invaders. Who amongst the reader is willing to live in political and ideological slavery? Who is willing to give up his home for a Russian, an African, an American, or a Chinese? Who is willing to accept what courses are enforced on you in your school? And finally; who is willing to live under the Civil Detention Law; that Hitler used to massacre Jews; and, ironically, Jews are using the same law to massacre, deport, jail, and displace more than 5 million Palestinians? If you are willing; I, and many others are not. And this is just a tiny part of the ethics behind being enslaved to aliens.

To Wear or Not to Wear?

2010-11-06T09:37:00.000+05:00

I thought the other piece was too dry and serious; but decided to leave it up in case someone somehow reads it (and actually stays awake through it ). I wrote this piece a while back; I am sure a lot of Muslim women can relate to it especially those of us living in the West.
To Wear or Not to Wear…
Dear fashion designers,
(or all those who make decisions on inventory matters in popular department stores (and other stores for the masses),
I am a late twenty something woman, wife, mother, professional contractor, with enough purchasing power but without any real buying options. What does that exactly mean? Let me explain…
It seems to me that somewhere in the upper echelons of the fashion industry, someone decided that to be stylish, a woman has to bare it all. With that decisive decision, the marketing forces converged with designers, celebrities, money brokers, to open the floodgates of really skimpy, tight, and see through clothing. Now, I can understand why these cheap clothes have been created, for the market is undeniably available (and of course demand can always be created by the will of the advertisers, but that is besides the point).
But it is really frustrating for those of us self respecting women, who actually choose to cover our bodies. We have the money (if the ultimate end is profitability), and I am sure it wouldn’t kill your profit margins too much to add a couple of inches to your skirts and make some of your shirts long sleeved. Yes, even in the summer, some women still choose to cover their bodies and go for lighter cotton materials that are still long, loose, and adaptable for the heat.
I always wondered why men get the option of having very conservative clothes available no matter what the season is. The fact that tight “muscle” shirts are still made for those who want it, does not detract from the other nice professional and casual wear that actually covers their bodies. But alas, the privilege of covering oneself is only deemed desirable for men; hence giving them the exclusive rights and variety of options for cool, baggy, and wonderfully modest wear.
I have seen really beautiful linen skirts that are short, or at the very longest come down to 3/4 length. Why oh why, can’t you make the same one available in full length. You can even make a very small percentage of them that way. It could be 1% for starters. You might be surprised, women may actually flock to buy the longest ones. And if they don’t, I promise, there is enough of us around that you really won’t take a loss for it. Trust me, just try.
Wouldn’t you even consider making professional clothes a little bit more modest? I can almost understand the lack of availability in casual wear, but when I do go buy a professional suit, does it have to come with a 3 inch skirt? And if you take the pains of making a longer skirt, does it have to have a slit that comes up to my mid thigh? I know someone somewhere decided every woman, has to make her body accessible to all men (and not vice versa); but can you at least give me the illusion of choice?
You can of course tell me, to go make myself clothes. Alas, I do lack the patience, creativity and skill to do so. I also come from a culture where everyone had to make their own clothes, because it is more economical. So I like the idea of walking into a store and picking out outfits. It is just one of those things, you understand right?
Do you actually get it? I am waving my money in your face. Please do make long skirts available for us, long sleeved shirts/T shirts, dresses that are both long and long sleeves. Including the variety of loose fitting, opaque materials will not break your bank. please do go to the extra trouble of including modest women in your catalog of outfits you would be really surprised how many women out there are craving real clothes.
Thank you.
Yours sincerely,

Educating Muslim Women

2010-11-06T09:28:00.001+05:00

Educate a man, you educate a person. Educate a woman and you educate a family. Educate a family and you educate the ummah.
Last year on Eid al Adha I visited my Pakistani cousin. He has three children from a Yemeni mother; two boys and a girl. I like the girl very much; she is intelligent and hard working so together that makes a charming combination. It was on Eid that I found out that my niece was being made to study Urdu as a second language by her parents while her brothers were studying French and Spanish. She wanted to study Spanish because she is already fluent in Urdu. My cousin’s excuse is that she is a girl and doesn’t need to study European languages. The boys, future patriarchs of the family, need as many languages as they can master to better interact with the world. My cousin’s family has now moved to Saudi Arabia and I hear that the girl is being home-schooled while the boys go to an American school. She is being home-schooled for A Levels in a Muslim country by her mother who has never been to college and cannot speak English.
The graph below clearly shows the relationship between male and female illiteracy rates in Arab countries. There is not a single Arab country where the female illiteracy rate is lower than the male illiteracy rate. Qatar is an exceptional country because female and male illiteracy rates are equal.
According to the Adult Literacy Rates and Illiterate Population by Country and by Gender report (of September 2006) by UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS), Egypt’s adult literacy rate for males is 83% whereas that of females is 59.4%. The male adult literacy rate for Morocco is 65.7% and that of females is only 39.6%. Pakistan, another Muslim country’s literacy rate is 63% for males and a mirror image of 36% for females. Compare these percentages with that of Israel where male literacy rate is 98.5% and that of females is 95.9%! According to an unpublished report on senior schools by a lecturer at University of Reading, more and more Pakistani parents are keeping their children from seeking higher education or their children themselves are simply not interested in education. The result is that half of Pakistani households in the UK have incomes that are 50% below the national average income (Source) and nearly all Pakistanis aged 60 and over are living on Income Support (Source).
Where are we heading with these figures? Last year, a friend sent me a forwarded email with a plainly written essay on why Muslim youth must be educated urgently. The essay basically compared today’s most influential Jews with Muslims. Results were dismal in terms of how many Muslims were famous compared to what Jews have done for societal advancement and scholarly achievements. The essay referred to famous Jews like, Jonas Salk, Henry Kissinger, Wilhelm Steinitz, Arthur Miller, Stephen Sondheim, Boris Pasternak, Harry Houdini, Steven Spielberg, and Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster among the 100 most influential Jews. Of course, one may argue that Muslims are equally intelligent and have been influential, look up history. But, let’s face the stabbing truth – most great and influential Muslim scholars are dead. Gone are the Muslims who fashioned the Islamic Golden Age. I personally find it very sad, more so because in Michael Hart’s book “The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History�?, the number one position is held by Prophet Muhammed (pbuh). Time’s TIME 100: The People Who Shape Our World, has only 10 ‘Muslim sounding’ names out of 100 and one of them is that of Wafa Sultan! This means that less than 10% of the 100 most influential people in the world are Muslims. Today we urgently need people like Ibn Sina, Al Khawarzimi, Ibn Khaldun, Ibn Al Haytham, Ibn Arabi, and Ibn Rushd because today the number of original research papers published by scientists in Muslim countries is 0.1% of the number published by scientists in Europe and the USA. (Source)
And we need ‘banaat’ (girls) along with the ‘ibns’ (boys/sons) because when you educate a man, you educate a person. Educate a woman and you educate a family. Educate a family and you educate a village. Educate a village, and you educate a country.
A study done with Bangladeshi women showed that “girls’ career preferences in Bangladesh were the most limited in the survey: rural girls opted for ‘doctor’ or ‘teacher’ almost without exception and 88 per cent of the urban girls said they wanted to be doctors. The lack of range in career preferences would appear to be linked to the lack of role models for the girls: only a tiny percentage of their mothers were working outside the home.�?
Girls in developing countries don’t have appropriate role models and their parents make traditional career choices for them – doctor or teacher. We need Muslim female nurses, scientists, astronomers, composers, painters, writers, business entrepreneurs, and statisticians amongst other myriad professions. Fewer girls than boys are enrolled in high school science curricula because of a bias in the existing education system and family attitudes that encourage girls to study the arts and humanities.
Another study shows that 75% of Muslim women in India are illiterate
According to a hadith Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) said, “utlub al ‘ilm waslaw fi al-Sin�? (Seek knowledge, even unto China). The hadith instructs both men and women to seek knowledge. 750 verses of the Quran urge believers (men and women) to study nature, to reflect, and to make the best use of reason in their search for the ultimate truth (Source). Educating women achieves equality between the genders since it is the duty of both genders to seek education/knowledge and helps to eradicate disease and poverty in the developing world. In 1837, when Queen Victoria came to power, no institution of higher education in Britain was open to women. But before the beginning of the next century women had even entered institutions like Oxford and Cambridge. Many new universities were founded during Victoria’s reign and the result was that the sun never set on the British Empire. What I am proposing here is to empower Muslim women. I’m not a Western feminist. I’m not proposing that Muslim women bare themselves and burn their hijabs. I’m proposing that we change statistics Change statistics which show that half the women in the Arab world are illiterate and in all but four Arab countries less than 80 per cent of girls go to secondary school.

Social responsibilities of a Person

2010-11-06T09:13:00.000+05:00

What are the social responsibilities of an entrepreneur(he is a person who starts up a new business)?

Answer:

Social responsibilities of an entrepreneur are many. But the main responsibility for an entrepreneur is to generous to society. For example, Bill Gates is generous enough to take risk by quitting college,sell OS to million of people. Just imagine if Bill Gates was just keeping the software for himself, there are no windows OS now.

NewHorizon Magazine

2010-11-06T08:54:00.000+05:00

Magazine Information

"NewHorizon" is the official magazine of the Institute, published since 1991 it is the oldest magazine that focuses exclusively on various aspects relating to the Islamic financial services industry, keeping readers that include members, subscribers, students and the public with news, views, and developments affecting the Islamic financial services industry worldwide. The magazine also enjoys wide circulation amongst Islamic banks, central banks, conventional banks, academics, Shari'ah scholars and private organisations and is distributed to the major libraries around the world.

The Institute aims to provide in each issue:

News on the latest developments
Country focus
Academic Articles
Point of View
In-depth features
People on the move
Islamic indices
Forthcoming IIBI training programmes
Details of students who have successfully completed the Institute’s professional education courses

Contribute articles, research papers and point of view

The Institute welcomes contributions in the form of articles, research papers and other information for publication in "NewHorizon" magazines. The Institute can also arrange to feature interview with leading figures in the Islamic financial services industry.

Corporate Social Responsibilities

2010-11-06T08:40:00.000+05:00

Corporate Social Responsibilities

Islam has very specific rules and
guidelines concerning economic life.
Notions of corporate social responsibility is in
many ways consistent with an Islamic view of society

The value of social responsibility, either individually or collectively, has been recognised throughout history, and more structured programs for endowments and zakat were introduced by Islam in the 7th century. Major organisations throughout the world now realise that corporate social responsibility (CSR) is an important part of a company's operations, because of its positive impact on society, which in turn impacts positively on staff members and the general public.

The business community needs to be aware of the responsibility it has towards the society. CSR does not mean just taking part in charitable activities and events, it means holding the responsibility to develop the society by envisioning future plans for socio-economic justice and be conscious about their responsibility for the welfare of society around them. The business community is highly qualified to set a plan for social change, and integrate their development goals with the country's at large, as well as engage with the other organisations on collaborative projects.

CSR in the world view of Islam requires both individuals and organisations to be guided in the development of a moral self that distinguishes between right and wrong and never loses sight of its responsibilities towards God and mankind. Islam as a religion has not lost its general influence on societies where it is practiced and constitutes a ‘complete way of life' for the followers with specific implications for economic life and hence the role that responsible business can play in the development of a community/society/economy based upon the principles of social justice and equity rather than efficiency or profit generation.

• What is Corporate Social Responsibility?
• Corporate Social Responsibility at International Levels
• An Islamic perspective on the lack of social responsibility in business organisations
• Islam and Corporate Social Responsibility
• Role of Religious Scholars on Advisory Boards in Islamic banks other and Islamic financial institutions

What is Corporate Social Responsibility?
The World Bank defined corporate social responsibility to be the commitment of owners of commercial activities to contribute in sustainable development through working with their employees and their families, local community and the society as a whole to upgrade the people's living standards in a certain way that serves commerce and development in the same time. As for the international chamber of commerce, it has defined social responsibility to be all the attempts that contribute to the volunteering of co-operations to achieve development for ethical and social reasons. Hence, social responsibility depends on good initiatives of businessmen without any legal obligations. And therefore social responsibility is achieved through convincing and educating.

Corporate Social Responsibility at International Levels

Unlike the assumptions in many people's minds about the ineffectiveness of businessmen with regards to social development, corporate social responsibility became one of the vital principles of development that is being preached. The shrinking of the government's role in economic and social development caused the private sector to have an important role in the serious contribution to initiate development. At the international level and specifically in the big industrial and commercial countries, a goal has been set to achieve a balanced cooperation between the state, the businessmen and the society, in other words the government, the private sector and the third sector in achieving development without being totally dependant on one entity and lifting the responsibility off another.

Corporate social responsibility in the developed countries has overcome the description of being a random unorganized giving without specified goals; on the other hand the big corporations have had the role of being a main contributor in the development process and giving for development has become a main part of the corporations' activities. With the entrenchment and the widespread of the definition of corporate social responsibility, it became harder for these corporations to ignore their role in development and their responsibility towards the society.

The importance of such social participation does not only hold in feeling responsible but also to gain sympathy and respect of the society; consequently, the insurance of success and the demand of consumers. As a result, many corporations have built development units or at least have made yearly plans with clear goals to help the needy segment of the population and develop them in an effective way.

AN ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE ON THE LACK OF SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN BUSINESS ORGANISATIONS

A weakening sense of corporate social responsibility
There is a prevalent and strong belief that private enterprise operates in an amoral vacuum (McKenna, 1996). Many of the major business ethics texts even resign themselves to the fact that there is a widespread community acceptance that the term ‘business ethics' is an oxymoron; that business and ethics do not go together (e.g. Donaldson & Werhane, 1988; Velasquez, 1992). Partly this mirrors society standards and expectations, but it is also a reflection of the nature of both economic and mainstream management theories, which have evolved to leave little space, if any, for moral and social principles. Within these theories managers owe allegiance solely to the owners, and drive businesses through the yardstick of maximum profit. The argument is simple: profitability is, after all, a necessary condition of staying in business. It is argued that this viewpoint adopts a very specific value system and world-view.

The business world is overflowing with companies that win accolades and awards (such as Business Excellence, Quality, Investors in People) yet even in these companies' words such as trust, integrity, dignity, care and virtue still fail to hold significant practical meaning. With increasing frequency, companies once held up as paragons of virtuous excellence stand mired in scandal and deceit. Like it or not, we have managed to create a world, in which expediency and short-termism are the standard norm. We are becoming dependent on societies that have to provide more and more rules and legislations because trust between business organisations themselves and between consumers and businesses is declining. Many no longer trust others to tell the truth, honour obligations or act with moral fortitude (Sonnenberg & Goldberg, 1992). There are huge costs of this trend to business because it has led to the growth of cynical employees, who behave on the belief that the impression they make is more important than the work they produce. Milton-Smith (1995) retrospectively commenting on 1980's and 90's business environment … conjure up enduring images of extravagant display and excessive greed. And more recently, in the wake of corporate collapses involving well-known companies, such as Enron and WorldCom, many questions have been raised about the integrity of business and government leaders. There have been disturbing revelations of unethical and, in some cases, illegal business practices.

The link between a world view and problem solving approaches
There could be numerous reasons for such behaviour on the part of business organisations. One possible reason that is argued … is the use of problem-solving approaches and frameworks that emerge from secular-economic paradigms. These approaches, rooted on a materialistic worldview, tend to exclude spiritual and moral dimensions in the process of framing business and social problems. This in turn, influences business decisions and practices related to all aspects of the business including attitudes towards social responsibility and ethical codes in general.

There is a strong link between a worldview and problem-solving paradigms, and subsequently, between problem-solving paradigms and the degree of compliance to ethical codes and social responsibility exercised by a business organisation. The economic problem-solving approaches, due to their inherent reductionist methodologies and shortterm vision, tend to view compliance to ethical codes and fulfilling of corporate social responsibility as an extra cost, extra work and a distraction from the core business functions. In view of this, such approaches tend to either ignore or not include corporate social responsibility amongst the priorities of a business organisation.

A particular worldview, or the way people perceive social and material reality, impacts on how they interpret and respond to the world around them. A worldview embodies beliefs and assumptions about reality and it guides personal, corporate and social life in a particular direction. Peoples' goals, aspiration, priorities, strategies, commitments, and likes and dislikes, are all, on the whole, influenced and forged by the worldview they hold. The way people perceive the world shapes their social and political beliefs, and, thus, a worldview underpins social and economic policies and the culture of a community and business organisations. Islam contends, that a worldview that does not embody reality in its fullness, or is based on partial accounts of our true nature, will inevitably cause imbalances and inconsistencies in our personal, business and social life, leading to numerous social problems, strains and injustices in business and society. Such a worldview would lead to flawed perspectives and incoherent and disassociated social values, and, thus, affect attitudes and social conduct in a negative way. “Thus, any efforts for improving social life must begin by analysing the dominant worldviews in society, and the arising social principles and problem solving frameworks that guide and influence social policy” (Parvez, 2000 p.76).

Developing these arguments further, it is inferred that a worldview provides a particular vision of life and the universe around us. This vision, in turn, develops a specific frame of mind (a mindset), and it is this that gradually nurtures certain attitudes and creates distinctive approaches to life and human problems. Those who hold materialistic-secular views will tend to approach social and business problems and issues from different premises and perspectives as compared to those holding the Islamic worldview, or other worldviews for that matter. In light of this, it is argued that both the scale (i.e. dimensions considered) and scope (i.e. degree of broadness of strategies employed) regarding business ethics in general and corporate social responsibility in particular, would differ between different worldviews. In other words, different worldviews, and the emerging problem-solving frames of mind, would not view business ethics and social responsibility in the same way. There will be different opinions regarding what the aims of social responsibility should be or the appropriate responses for it. Thus, different worldviews would lead to problems being framed in different ways and would also influence and guide the process of formulating responses and solutions in different ways.

In light of this, there have been efforts to introduce changes in the worldview held by business organisations and society in general, in order to influence change in business models and to broaden problem-solving approaches. For example, there has been a pregnant yet significant shift in worldview over the last few decades. In the West, it began in the late 1970s, with the birth of environmentalism (Weiner, 1992). In the East, the notion of harmony with nature has long historical antecedents in religion as well as custom and practice. Many of the World's religions, such as Islam, Christianity and Buddism, explicitly embody principles of stewardship. This change holds significant meaning and could possibly transform many of the business models. The effects of these influences are gradually beginning to reverberate into a re-interpretation of the business gestalt. The mantle of the economic mantra of profit and dominion over nature is being challenged by the notion that humankind has stewardship obligations and social responsibilities beyond the self. Material dominion as mode of thought placed humankind at the top of a hierarchy and entitled it to exploit all of nature and even other humans for its own ends. Stewardship, in contrast, suggests that the task of humanity is to take care of its environment and preserve nature in all its forms and relationships. If humankind is to achieve the goal to return in as good or better shape the world that they inherited to each succeeding generation then nurturance and care need to become the primary drivers rather than profit alone.

Indifferent to ethical codes: a consequence of materialistic problem solving approaches
To understand the different responses and solutions derived from different worldviews, a closer examination of the problem-solving approaches and frameworks is required. As an illustration, the Islamic worldview recognises both the spiritual and material dimensions of reality and hence incorporates these into its philosophy of life and problem-solving approaches.

Behold! your Lord said to the angels: 'I am about to create humans, from sounding clay; from mud moulded into shape. When I have fashioned him (in due proportion) and breathed into him of my spirit, fall ye down in obeisance unto him (Quran, 15:28-29).

In contrast, materialism as a worldview argues that only the material or the physical universe constitutes reality. Matter and energy are the ultimate reality and, hence, the spiritual realm of our being and that of the universe is rejected. Materialism has been defined as: a primary concern for the acquisition of material goods and the enjoyment of physical satisfactions, and as a consequent rejection of or indifference to the spiritual, aesthetic, or ethical…(Stuart, 1989 p.19).

A frame of mind emerging from such a worldview naturally acknowledges only those dimensions of the social reality that are observable and have material form, whilst other dimensions that do not have any external and observable features are mostly overlooked or even ignored entirely from analysis (e.g. moral and spiritual dimensions). Hence, this partial view of social reality gradually places mental constraints on how problems are defined and subsequently on the solutions that are formulated. It prevents business decision-makers from developing more creative and broader mental and intellectual tools required for analysing and understanding stakeholder problems in a comprehensive and balanced ways. In other words, such a mindset places limitations on the problem-solving methodologies that are meant to guide policy-makers in framing stakeholder problems and developing solutions. This is why the boundaries that are drawn around a problem situation are often judgmental, narrow and exclude numerous non-material dimensions of the social phenomenon being addressed (Vickers, 1965). For example, the causes of business problems generally identified through secular-economic approaches tend to be restricted to material factors such as resources, profits, growth and efficiency. Such conclusions, however, reduce the variety of solutions that are possible for a given problem. Thus, due to the restricted nature of secular approaches, other, possibly more effective solutions which draw on the inner resources (i.e. moral and spiritual dimensions) to solve social and business problems, and which can inspire positive attitudes in people, generally remain outside business decision making.

Some of the popular secular-economic problem-solving approaches are broadly framed within a positivist approach such as the social survey tradition, and less often in the sociology of social problems, symbolic interactionism, and the natural history approach to social problems, amongst numerous others (Parsons, 1995). Most of these problem-solving approaches start by separating out and isolating the particular issue of concern (e.g. drop in profits) from its wider human and social context. They then employ various data collection methods for gaining insights into the problem situation. However, these methods tend to primarily focus attention on the hard properties of the problem context (i.e. objective and quantative data such as sales, outputs, bottom-line metrics, observable behaviour, etc.) and underplay the spiritual and soft properties (such as feelings, attitudes, tastes, perceptions, values, personal relationships or other subjective data). This is so because hard properties are easy to identify and generalise as opposed to the soft properties. Thus, the data collected often fails to illuminate the spiritual and moral dimensions of the problem situation, since these properties fall outside the problem-search boundaries. In other words, most secular-economic problem-solving approaches tend to employ a reductionist approach in identifying and addressing complex organisational problems, and these often ignore or overlook the intermeshed moral and spiritual issues. Problems are narrowed down and addressed in isolation to other wider moral and social issues, which may be important factors in their cause.

Moreover, on the output side, that is, in the formulation of solutions, secular-economic approaches tend to also rely largely on material/technological resources to bear upon the problem and for implementing the solutions. Thus, solutions from such approaches generally require material and economic resources, and external agencies and control mechanisms for their implementation, rather than the inner human resources and control mechanisms (i.e. positive emotions such as compassion, mercy, spirit of forgiveness, self and social discipline, motivation, self-adjustment and self-control).

As a result, such solutions place an increasing reliance on extrinsic mechanisms (e.g. monitoring, surveillance, performance measures, etc.) to ensure compliance to ethical codes and for implementing solutions in general. However, in the long term, such solutions, which emerge from secular problem-solving methodologies, mostly create a cyclical problem situation - they make people more dependent on external monitoring mechanisms or satisfier agencies (i.e. the money and external rewards), and by so doing further cultivate individualism, which narrows the spheres of personal and corporate social responsibility, which more often than not gives rise to win-lose solutions rather than collaboration based win-win solutions.

Some examples at this stage will help to illustrate the basic differences that exist between the Islamic and materialistic-secular problem-solving approaches. For instance, issues such as employee theft, misuse of proprietary information, abuse of company expense accounts, misuse of company assets and so on can affect the performance and subsequently the profits of a business organisation. These can also damage the standing of a company in society if they become widespread. So how can such offences or misdeeds be checked or eliminated completely? A secular approach would perhaps deal with each category of offences in isolation to the bigger picture of such problems. The process followed would include the collection of data on the offences or misdeeds in order to understand its material causes (in isolation from the wider moral conditions and social context), developing a number of alternative technical and formal/legal responses/solutions to address it, and then selecting the most appropriate one within budgetary constraints. Take the misuse of proprietary information for example. To address this issue, a materialistic-secular approach would aim to understand who has been involved and the strategies that have employed in committing such an offence, and as a result suggest the installation of more secure software systems for authentication and authorisation, secure locks, alarm systems in offices where the information maybe held, or even the imposition of harsher disciplinary policies for offenders, and so on. However, it is generally true that, with every problem solving strategy an organisation can come up with, offenders have managed to find some other ways for committing these sorts of offences. Thus, despite the fact that there are tougher disciplinary policies, penalties and more surveillance, such offences and misdeeds are not reduced. According to Islam, the solution does not lie solely in more secure software systems or other technological and legal policies, rather the inner dimensions of our being also requires attention; the deep recesses of the heart and soul have to be affected with moral-values, sense of accountability and respect for other peoples' property in order to change people's behaviour and attitudes towards such offences and social evils in general.

Similarly, to address a drop in profits, a secular approach would aim to understand how profits fell in terms of sales, output, manpower efficiency, and so on. However, it is found that, with many symptoms based responses/solutions (such as piece rate wage systems, gain-sharing, promotions, marketing manoeuvres and ploys etc) short term solutions emerge to the detriment of the long term.

Thus, despite the temporary improvement long term amelioration is not forthcoming. According to Islam, the solution lies not only in the extrinsic and surface but often the solution demands attention to the spiritual and moral dimensions of our being. This underpins personal citizenship, as well as organisational citizenship behaviours. Additionally materialistic-secular responses to problems try to contain or reduce their effects rather than addressing their roots. Such solutions to problems tend to operate by setting up of monitor and control structures, which are then operated indirectly through processes of control mechanisms such as ISO standards. Several millions of pounds are spent annually to form and maintain such control standards, but often with little results. As anticipated, such approaches mostly fail to lead business towards long-term stakeholder harmony, and at best only succeed in creating some awareness and understanding of such problems.

In contrast, Islam draws our attention to the fact that human motivation stems from one's worldview (Quran: 49:13). Improvement cannot, therefore, be made through control and legislation alone.

Certainly legislation and control mechanisms play an important role in establishing appropriate behaviour and minimum levels of performance but they constitute a small part of bigger issue of human behaviour and performance. From an Islamic perspective, control and laws that are to be employed for guiding personal and business conduct should be enacted to protect minimums of standards or as deterrents to wrong-doing. More than this there is a need to cultivate a higher consciousness, morals, and a sense of accountability as a prerequisite since they develop an inner respect for societal values and laws. Taken together, these can ensure a change from within and without. “Abhorrence of wrong-doing comes from within and, thus, the seed of change must be sown from within. Therefore, relying only on laws to change people may not lead to an effective overall and lasting change in business and society” (Parvez, 2000 pp.135-136).

Thus, from an Islamic perspective, such secular-economic problem-solving approaches do not deal with business and social issues and problems in a balanced and comprehensive way. Solutions that emerge are based either on partial understanding of the problem's spiritual, moral, psychological, sociological, political and economic dimensions, the wider problem context and their interrelationships, or are perhaps politically and economically motivated (Parsons, 1995 pp. 215-216), and thus, lack far-sightedness. On the whole, such approaches in business organisations overlook the more fundamental issues and concerns of employees and customers. The need for recognition, dignity, mutual support, justice, and for satisfying other emotional and spiritual requirements, which are essential for a healthy and balanced personal and work life, are not given the attention they deserve. Perhaps, this is why stress, depression, anxiety, boredom, deterioration in working relationships and spiritual emptiness are becoming a symptomatic condition of the modern business environment. From an Islamic perspective, at the very best secular problem-solving approaches address the symptoms of business problems, especially those involving business ethics and corporate social responsibility, rather than their root causes. Due to their narrow focus, and faulty premises, they fail to fully reconnect employees to the collective organisational life in which they exist.

The weakening sense of social responsibility
With the above foundations, this section moves onto explore the reasons why a sense of corporate social responsibility is weakening, as perceived from an Islamic perspective. From a materialistic secular view, exercising social responsibility is likely to be seen as a cost, and cost implies a reduction in profits, and this in turn can be considered to be against the interest of the business. From this perspective, it can be understood why business organisations limit their time and other resources for meeting their social responsibilities, or even try to absolve themselves from this extra work if they can. It follows, that in order to make organisations comply in fulfilling their social responsibilities some kind of policy or legislation would be required. However, this reduces social responsibility to a legal obligation and, which over time, weakens the importance of it being viewed as a moral or social obligation. Also, the drawback of this is that the law, although it may act as a deterrent, it cannot reach all spheres of business responsibility, and hence can be undermined or even broken. Thus, to ensure that business organisations fulfil their social responsibilities, external mechanisms of control are relied upon.

In contrast, from an Islamic perspective, social responsibility exercised by a business organisation is seen as a benefit rather than a cost. The logic of this can only be understood when the issue is considered in broader scale and a longer time frame. Islam takes an integrated view of individuals and society. It also broadens the frame of problem definition in terms of scale, scope and time horizon. From an Islamic perspective, therefore, social responsibility is not just a matter of legal obligations and material rights of stakeholders. It is a moral obligation and is a matter of survival of both business organisations and society, as they are both dependent on each other. Any social irresponsibility exercised towards each other would create problems for both, although these may unfold over a longer time span. Thus, if a business organisation does not fulfil its social obligations, and as a result passes on its costs (e.g. in the form of improper/illegal waste disposal, exploitation through false advertisement, direct exploitation of employees or customers, or by not addressing poor working conditions, high levels of stress, etc. onto society, it will come back to haunt or damage the business through different ways and forms such as sabotage by employees, poor morale, or even higher taxes, inflation, reduction in sales and profits, etc.). For example, a high level of stress amongst employees will mean more time off work or more people needing healthcare and medication.

This will in turn increase pressure on healthcare institutions and subsequently they will demand more resources from the government. To respond to these needs, the government may need to increase individual and corporate taxes or raise money in other ways. Ultimately, whatever the response strategy is adopted, it is likely that business organisations will have to meet these increased costs either directly or indirectly in the longer term (e.g. a company can also be sued by employees for negligence).

In contrast, by being more socially responsible and actively striving to balance the rights of all stakeholders based on fairness, justice and dignity, and ensuring a just distribution of wealth, will actually benefit a business organisation in the long-term as these would raise satisfaction, create a healthy and conducive working atmosphere, reduce stress, improve morale, increase productivity, and also increase the circulation of wealth in society.

For those who give in charity, men and women, and a loan to God a
beautiful loan, it shall be increased manifold (to their credit)
and they shall have, (besides) a liberal reward
(Al-Qur'an, 57:18).

God deprives usury of all blessing, but will give increase
for deeds of charity (Quran 2: 276).

By spending in charity, the wealth does not decrease… (Muslim, vol. 4, no: 6264). In other words, costs (in different forms) that are pushed onto society will come back as greater costs for business organisations. In contrast, any benefits that are pushed onto society will come back as greater benefits for business organisations over time.

In contrast to the narrow secular approaches, Islam adopts a broader boundary of reference in terms of issues considered as well as the time frame. Religions, like Islam are guided by moral and social frameworks that assist in focusing attention on addressing the root causes of social problems.

They take into consideration the wider factors impinging on a problem situation. The inner dimensions of our being, our human nature, aspirations and inclinations, positive and negative emotions, and the need for family, friendship, community, dignity and social contact, together with the dominant cultural values, social attitudes and practices, economic conditions, and time-space factors, etc., are all factors that need to be taken into consideration when addressing socially embedded business problems. However, many of these hardly come into the frameworks of materialistic-secular problem-solving methodologies. In Islam, the Holy Quran prescribes the process of Shura (i.e. consultation) for problem solving. In fact, Islam enjoins consultation (Shura) at all levels of individual, business and social life: in the affairs of the family, business, community, society and the state.

Those who hearken to their Lord, and establish prayer;
and who (conduct) their affairs by mutual consultation;
who spend out of what We bestow on them ...
(al-Shura 42: 38).

Hasan (1984) has defined Shura as: ‘a collective endeavour for seeking an objective truth'. In it, the participants are involved in a free exchange of ideas and views to arrive at a decision or a solution to a problem, basing them on the guiding frameworks contained in the Quran. The discussion is not based on blind support of a person, group or party, or constrained to narrow economic factors, but is rather intended to bring benefit and justice to all stakeholders in a problem situation.

Shura as a concept is rooted on pluralism, active participation of all stakeholders in a problem situation, and the employment of broader frameworks that are more inclusive of both material and spiritual factors. It is a process of deliberation involving all stakeholders in identifying the problem situation and in formulating the solutions. The process aims to arrive at responses or solutions to social problems that draw on the powerful inner human resources such as spiritual values for improving social attitudes and inspiring people to work for the common good.

In light of Islamic guidance, the issue of compliance to an ethical code and a weakening sense of corporate social responsibility need to be viewed in a broader context, and a more holistic approach needs to be formulated. Islam suggests that corporate social responsibility should not be viewed in a narrow sense - solely in meeting legal obligations. Rather, in addition, consideration should be given to meeting spiritual and moral obligations by drawing on the inner resources and the deeper positive emotions (e.g. mercy and compassion) that nurture a sense of duty towards others and a caring attitude. The deep underlying human feelings and needs for such things as dignity, the need for mutual support, respect, socialising and communicating, sharing with others, and so on, cannot and should not be overlooked. Human beings, and by extension businesses, cannot live by bread alone (that is, material things). Businesses are as much spiritual entities as they are material entities.

Organisational spirit is embodied by the collective business values, traditions and acts of individual employees. Besides economic needs, social and spiritual needs also need to be taken into consideration when addressing business social responsibility, or any other responsibility for that matter. The Islamic solution advocates creating a culture that constantly nurtures and draws upon these inner resources and positive forces to change attitudes and social practices (with the support of material resources). These are drawn upon to bind employees into the business, much as we bind individuals into a family and community, so that a natural infrastructure for providing support and help to those in need is nurtured and established. For example, the Islamic solution places the bulk of the responsibility of ‘social welfare' on the family and community, and the State is expected to intervene only when these natural social structures are unable to cope. In the broader context the business organisation is an integral extension of the family and community. Additionally, under this perspective the legislative or control approach is perceived as the bare minimum platform from which higher organisational citizenship and civic behaviours emerge, if nurtured correctly.

Materialistic-secular approaches generally provide technological and economic solutions to ethical and social issues, and tend not to draw upon the inner human resources to change and improve social attitudes. Also such solutions rely on external means, such as on-going monitoring processes, control agencies or the creation of control structures and processes for their implementation, and thus, require huge resources. This adds to the overall costs of the business and hence could lead to a reduction in profits. Drawing support from the resources that exist in the natural business environment (e.g. the employees) from where the problems originate, is not usually actively sought. Such approaches therefore create a demand for more and larger control agencies, and thus, gradually increase the role of the control structure and hierarchy. Over time these problems become bigger and increasingly more difficult to address. Numerous scholars highlight drawbacks of increased and more rigid structures for governance, albeit for different reasons (Hayek, 1976; George & Wilding, 1985).

Control, in contrast to empowerment, creates a business dependency on the function of a hierarchy of command and control, and this gradually undermines employee capacity and willingness to take responsibility for themselves (Thomas & Velthouse, 1990; Spreitzer, 1995). In turn, this subtle shift nurtures a weakening sense of wider social responsibility. Control environments characterised with amoral conventions come to rely and look after only self-interest (Fukayama, 1995; Mayer et al.1995). Thus, many employees no longer feel a personal responsibility for ensuring compliance to an ethical code as this is taken over by extrinsic and impersonal mechanisms. Purely, economics based decision-making, thus, contributes to attitudes of indifference to ethical codes and corporate social responsibility. This attitude gradually fragments the organisational community/collective and breeds individualism. In other words, it roots processes for social atomisation and an attitude of social neglect, indifference and even social irresponsibility (Etzioni, 1988; 1993).

In short, decision policies that have emerged from economic problem-solving approaches have in many cases created attitudes of indifference towards ethical codes and corporate social responsibility. They have contributed in breeding individualism, weakening of social relationships, and a culture where people lack a responsible, caring and sharing attitude (Tajfel, 1982; Deutsch, 1949; 1985). An Islamic perspective, which views the material and spiritual dimensions of social reality inclusively, argues for more comprehensive and balanced problem-solving approaches for resolution of stakeholder issues. To achieve this, it is suggested that economic problem-solving approaches should be broadened in scale (i.e. increase the range of dimensions analysed) and in scope (i.e. be part of a wider strategy for reforming and improving social life). They need to give consideration not only to the material and economic dimensions of the problem situation, but also to the following:

a. The spiritual dimensions of human nature; that is the positive and negative motives, desires, emotions and feelings, likes and dislikes, social attitudes and inter-personal relationships. Many problems arise from the inner spiritual state, moral condition of employees and the broader work culture. Positive or negative actions are driven by powerful inner forces such as: compassion and mercy, anger and hate, selfishness and indifference, jealousy and greed, sense of duty and respect, level of stress, system of rewards, a desire to meet ones' basic needs and aspirations, and the need for justice, freedom, the sense of dignity, affection, belonging, community, etc. An understanding of the spiritual and moral state of affairs is therefore important in social problem analysis and in the formulation of effective responses/solutions. Part of the business solution should also include strategies for inspiring and uplifting people spiritually, nurturing positive motives, desires and feelings, developing stronger inter-personal and social relationships, and a more friendly and conducive work culture (Edwards, 2000; Voydanoff, 1989; Zedeck, 1992).

The five pillars of Islam help to bring people at all levels of society together, in interaction and mutual support. They actually provide a focus on obligations and duties as well as rights and relationships of each other (by removing social hierarchies and barriers) and encourage the development of individuals and the community: spiritually, morally and socially.

b. Business problem analyses needs to integrate economic consideration with deeper social analysis. That is problems in one area of business may have their roots or triggers in other areas. For example, pollution, poor performance or a weakening sense of social responsibility may be triggered or caused by poor education, work pressures, family problems, peer group pressures, negative social attitudes etc. Therefore, analyses of different problems need to be integrated and a bigger picture developed of the state of social milieu of the organisation. This provides a more comprehensive and integrated approach to develop effective strategies to adequately address business social responsibility issues. According to Islam, this can be realised through the process of Shura (i.e. the involvement of all stakeholders in a free discussion in identifying the problem situation and in formulating the solutions)

c. Solutions should be guided by values and principles of social and economic justice, fair treatment, individual and social responsibility and accountability, etc. These should help to establish a balance between rights and duties.

d. Solutions should aim to strengthen the natural social infrastructure and not lead people to become dependent solely on the extrinsic rewards or monitoring mechanisms. They should provide support to, and not undermine the resources that exist within the natural social contexts from which the problems arise. In other words, the responsibility for developing and implementing solutions should be placed within the context from where the problems originated. Solutions should not be imposed from the top or from outside the social context, rather the business needs to work with the employees and customers and not upon them

Islam and Corporate Social Responsibility

Notions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) have been suggested to be consistent with an Islamic view of society. Indeed, values and principles that have been central to Islam since the time of the holy Prophet Mohammed (Peace and Blessings be upon him) may serve as a foundation for notions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) similar to those in the West. Much contemporary discussion of CSR, however, has not recognized this. These discussions have largely been based on a Western orientation informed by Western religious values. Moreover, CSR has evolved literally in response to particular issues or problems that are specific to businesses in a Western context. This led to a lack of a comprehensive global context within which a wider perspective of CSR should be positioned. On the other hand, the notion of social responsibility and justice has been an integral part of Islamic society for nearly 14 centuries. While Islamic philosophy is rich in precepts pertinent to CSR based on the Shariah (the Islamic legal and social system) derived from the Holy Qur'an and Hadith, these precepts have not yet been formally synthesized to present a systematic model with an explicit notion of CSR in Islam.
[Mohammed, Jawed A, Abstract PhD thesis on Corporate social responsibility in Islam, 2007 AUT University]

A weak compliance to ethical codes and a weakening of the sense of corporate social responsibility may exist due to numerous social, economic and cultural pressures. These pressures are linked and have emerged from the dominant and deeply rooted materialistic secular worldview in society. The problem-solving approaches have emerged from a materialistic mindset, which perceives social reality in material forms only. The non-material inner resources and spiritual dimensions that form part of the human and social reality are either rejected or largely overlooked and ignored. In light of this, the economic problem-solving approaches in general are unable to guide decision-makers in digging deep to identify the roots of ethical and social problems and issues, and therefore, the solutions tend to be restricted, limited, and lack balance. By linking the individual to the organisational community, companies can go a long way in avoiding the common shortcoming of business practice in business, as most arise from heavy reliance on technical rules based conformance to create technical proficiency (Mautz & Sharaf, 1996). Also, such approaches often obscure the role of individual to the extent that important moral and ethical issues are overlooked (Shaub et al., 1993). This type of blinkered focus is typified by the recent wave of companies adopting corporate codes of ethics and standards, in which managers hide behind a code of ethics believing they are ethical if they do not violate the rules. Such approaches often do away the role of ideals, virtue and individual integrity in the process. Sonnenberg and Goldberg (1992, p.54) note that many organizations believe there is no correlation between integrity and bottom-line performance but they are wrong: “integrity and performance are not at the opposite ends of a continuum... When people work for an organization that they believe is fair, where everyone is willing to give of themselves to get the job done, where traditions of loyalty and caring are hallmarks, people work to a higher level.”
[Extract on paper by Zahid Parvez & Pervaiz Ahmed, Working Paper Series 2004 Number WP005/04 ISSN Number 1363-6839, University of Wolverhampton, UK, 2004]

Islam and The Environment
[Fazlun M Khalid, Islamic Foundation for Ecology and Environmental
Sciences, Birmingham, UK]

The roots of Islamic environmental practice are to be found in the Qur'an and the guidance (sunnah) of the Prophet Muhammad. Over the centuries, Islamic practice has been elaborated by a succession of scholars and jurists responding to real problems experienced by the growing community of Muslims in various parts of the world.

The Islamic worldview is based on the belief in the existence of an all powerful creator who is the same God (Allah in Arabic) of the other monotheistic faiths, Judaism and Christianity. Muslims learn from the Qur'an that God created the universe and every single atom and molecule it contains and that the laws of creation include the elements of order, balance and proportion: “He created everything and determined it most exactly” (25:2) and “It is He Who appointed the sun to give radiance and the moon to give light, assigning it in phases . . . Allah did not create these things except with truth. We make the signs clear for people who know” (10:5).

What may be described as the Islamic creed has three aspects. The first is the core value system that Islam establishes, which is Islam itself and in this context is taken to mean submission. The second is faith (iman) and the third is good personal conduct (ihsan) traditionally described as righteousness or piety.

Qur'an again uses an environmental theme in exhorting humankind to be moderate; (6:142): “it is He who produces gardens, both cultivated and wild, and palm trees and crops of diverse kinds and olives and pomegranates both similar and dissimilar. Eat of their fruits when they bear fruit and pay their dues on the day of their harvest, and do not be profligate. He does not love the profligate.”

The Qur'anic view holds that everything on the earth was created for humankind. It was God's gift (ni'mah) to us, but a gift with conditions nevertheless and it is decidedly not something that one runs and plays with. The earth then is a testing ground of the human species. The tests are a measure of our acts of worship (ihsan) in its broadest sense.

For Muslims, their din is a whole, an organic reality, where every element has a function as a part of this whole. For example, Islam law does not make sense without the ethical dimension of the divine revelation. Law in the West is amoral. It deals with human ends for human purposes. The Muslim idea of the highest form of civilization is that it is the one that is pleasing to Allah.

People would find it impossible to live in today's world without money, but one increasingly comes across interesting appraisals of it like the following for example: “. . . in spite of all its fervid activity, money remains a naked symbol with no intrinsic value of its own and no direct linkage to anything specific” (Kurtzman, 1993). Money has come to be recognized as mere tokens and: there is something quite magical about the way money is created. No other commodity works quite the same way. The money supply grows through use; it expands through debt. The more we lend, the more we have. The more debt there is, the more there is. (Kurtzman, 1993)

These tokens of value that we create from nothing and use everyday grow exponentially ad infinitum. But we know that the natural world, which is subject to drastic resource depletion, has limits and is finite. This equation is lopsided and the question is for how long can we continue to create this infinite amount of token finance to exploit the real and tangible resources of a finite world. Looked at from this perspective, money, as the modern world has contrived it, assumes the characteristics of a virus that eats into the fabric of the planet. The consequences of this become visible as global environmental degradation.

However, people are increasingly taking a serious look at the current model of endless growth that supplies a contrived demand for consumer goods, which appears to be insatiable and which is, in the end, impacting on the biosphere with drastic consequences. This concern is reflected in the West by the growth of activism and protest organizations.

The planetary system, the earth and its ecosystems, all work within their own limits and tolerances. Islamic teaching likewise sets limits to human behavior as a control
against excess and it could be said that the limits to the human condition are set within four principles. They are the unity principle (Tawhid); the creation principle
(Fitra); the balance principle (Mizan); and the responsibility principle (Khalifa).

The Unity Principle
Tawhid is the foundation of Islamic monotheism and its essence is contained in the declaration (Shahada) which every Muslim makes (in the first part) and is a constant reminder of faith. It is “there is no God but God” and is the foundational statement of the Unity of the Creator from which everything else flows. “what is in the heavens and the earth belong to Allah. Allah encompasses everything” (4:125). This is the bedrock of the holistic approach in Islam as this affirms the interconnectedness of the natural order.

The Creation Principle
The Fitra principle describes the primordial nature of creation: “Allah's natural pattern on which He made mankind” (30:29). Mankind was created within the natural pattern of nature and being of it, its role is defined by this patterning itself. Fitra is the pure state, a state of intrinsic goodness and points to the possibility that everything in creation has a potential for goodness and the conscious expression of this rests with humankind.

The Balance Principle
In one of its more popular passages, the Qur'an describes creation thus (55:1–5): “The All-Merciful taught the Qur'an, He created man and taught him clear expression. The sun and moon both run with precision. The stars and the trees all bow down in prostration. He erected heaven and established the balance. Allah has singled out humankind and taught it clear expression – the capacity to reason. All creation has an order and a purpose and is in a state of dynamic balance.”

The Responsibility Principle
This principle establishes the tripartite relationship between the Creator, humankind and creation. God created everything for humankind and appointed it the vice-regent (Khalif) on this earth: “it is He Who appointed you Khalifs on this earth” (6:167). This role was one of trusteeship (amanah) which imposed a moral responsibility, “We offered the Trust to the heavens, the earth and the mountains but they refused to take it on and shrank from it. But man took it on.” (33:72). This assumption of responsibility made humankind accountable for their actions, “Will the reward for doing good be anything but good?” (55:59).

Role of Religious Scholars on Advisory Boards in Islamic banks other and Islamic financial institutions

Islamic financial institutions must adhere to the best practices of corporate governance however they have one extra layer of supervision in the form of religious boards. The religious boards have both supervisory and consultative functions. Since the Shari’h scholars on the religious boards carry great responsibility, it is important that only high calibre scholars are appointed to the religious boards.

An Islamic financial institution is required to establish operating procedures to ensure that no form of investment or business activity is undertaken that has not been approved in advance by the religious board. The management is also required to periodically report and certify to the religious board that the actual investments and business activities undertaken by the institution conform to forms previously approved by the religious board.

Islamic financial institutions that offer products and services conforming to Islamic principles must, therefore, be governed by a religious board that act as an independent Shari’ah Supervisory Board comprising of at least three Shari’ah scholars with specialised knowledge of the Islamic laws for transacting, fiqh al mu`amalat, in addition to knowledge of modern business, finance and economics.

They are responsible primarily to give approval that banking and other financial products and services offered comply with the Shari’ah and subsequent verification that of the operations and activities of the financial institutions have complied with the Shari’ah principles (a form of post Shari’ah audit). The Shari’ah Supervisory Board is required to issue independently a certificate of Shari’ah compliance.

The day-to-day application of Shari’ah by the Shari’ah Supervisory Boards is two-fold. First, in the increasingly complex and sophisticated world of modern finance they endeavours to answer the question on whether or not proposals for new transactions or products conform to the Shari’ah. Second, they act to a large extent in an investigatory role in reviewing the operations of the financial institution to ensure that they comply with the Shari’ah.

The concept of collective decision-making, in other words, decisions made by more than one scholar, is especially important. Shari’ah Supervisory Boards function is to ensure that decisions are not unilateral, and that difficult issues of finance receive adequate consideration by a number of qualified people.

Shaikh Yusuf Talal DeLorenzo, Islamic scholar, position is that unless a financial product or service can be certified as Shari’ah compliant by a competent Shari’ah supervisory board, that product's authenticity is dubious. At that point, it will be the responsibility of the individual investor or consumer to determine on his or her own that the product complies with the principles and precepts of the Shari’ah.