I have longed for a medium where I could reach and be reached; perhaps with a hint of a book-like feeling.  And although my profession is, and has been, within technology for well over a decade, this is my 1st time embarking on blogs.  I can only hope, insha'Allah (it's Arabic for God Willing) that it's something I keep doing regardless of the audience I may or may not receive.

This particular post is about my fellow Muslims.  To be fair, a trait I take very seriously, I will be picking on everyone, from every creed, faith, religion, ethnic background, color, etc.  But as a Muslim myself, I will likely be very vocal about Muslims the most.  Not because I want to complain; rather, it's because I want us to wake up and live up to our religion.  There're enough misconceptions and stereotypes out there, we need not add to them and/or make them worse.  Our efforts should focus, instead, on changing that ill-perception.  How, you may ask?  Well, start with yourself.

No this is not an Islam-only blog.  I just have some pet peeves I'd like to shed some light on, and I'm starting with my own people, culture and religion before I move on to others.  No, I'm not going in order.

Major/Main tenants of faith aside, many Muslims don't (or care to) check on their neighbors.  Islam aside, that's a common courtesy, for God's sake.  Many have created a bubble for themselves, especially after 9/11, and are simply keeping to themselves.  In the process, however, it's chipping away at one of the fundamentals of Islam:  Manners.

Whether your neighbors are Muslims or not, Islam teaches us that our neighbors have rights.  Whether they ask for such rights or know about them is absolutely irrelevant.  We are still responsible for fulfilling them.  I don't want to get into citing and quoting Islamic narrations; and not to mention, this is not about Islam as much as it is about common courtesy.  They/We are your neighbors.  Islam simply emphasizes the importance of such mannerisms, and reminds us of such courtesies.

Of course, in the spirit of starting with ourselves, common courtesy needs to start with how we treat each other.  I've heard several Imams (usually the head of a Mosque or a religious leading figure) in multiple cities around the US speak of that very subject.  The Sermons emphasize, most of the time, how we treat each other around the Mosque and within a relationship that may have gone a bit south (amongst friends, spouses, etc.).

My source of contention is with how we treat each other, Muslims with Muslims, when we don't know one another.  At a high level, I'm happy to see that when one recognizes another Muslim, perhaps a familiar face seen in a Mosque, a woman with a hijab (head scarf) or simply the representation of a Muslim (long beard, certain clothing, etc.) I still see/hear many say "As-salamu alaikum" (which means literally "may peace/blessing be with/upon you").  Thank God that's not gone.

Take it to a mass gathering like a few thousand or even a few hundred gathered for Eid prayers and it's an absolute mad house.  The amount of chaos, trash afterwards, etc. is just truly astonishing.  And not to be sexist, but most of my observations have been that of the women doing the majority of the damage. 

Allow me to digress ... Once, I witnessed a woman pushing her infant/toddler after Eid prayer (Eid, by the way, is a festival we Muslims celebrate either after the month of fasting, Ramadhan, or at the end of Pilgrimage  —Both are kind of like Christmas for us) in a stroller weaving through the crowd without little care who she bumped into, stepped on (rolled on, really), etc.  During the same day & time, another didn't care much what of her food or trash was flying, or whether or not she missed the receptacle when she took care of whatever was left of her trash.

At the Mosque, especially during Eid, but it happens during most congregational prayers, the women's hall is the loudest.  I say that like the men's hall is actually talking, but they're not.  Yes, men and women pray in different halls as they should.  This particular post is not about that.  Another time will come when I'll be more than happy to explain that.

Let me take it up a notch ... Most of the talking women I've witnessed are of the IndoPak culture.  This is where one of my pet peeves kicks in.  Indian, Pakistani, Arab, purple, blue, or whatever you are, but specifically if you're a Muslim person, should know that you are attending prayer.  Logically, you should attend to that.  Common courtesy and professionalism should trigger something and tell you that talking inside a Mosque is probably not a good idea.  When you add to that how the Prophet of Islam (peace be upon him) stated that talking during a Sermon nullifies your attendance then you should definitely be sitting quietly.  You didn't know that?  Perhaps it's applicable in my creed (math-hab) and not yours?  How about the common sense aspect of it?  C'mon.

You see, especially to non-Muslims reading this, Islam is about common sense.  It should appeal to one's logic, and make them accountable only to God, and to Him alone.  Period.  It's one of the many blessings of Islam, I think.

When you're fasting, no one gives a hoot whether or not you break your fast.  It's between you and Him.  Another characteristic of Islam is that God will never give you more than what you can bare.  It's even stated as such directly (not an interpretation) in the Qur'an.

Now mix a bit of ignorance with a tad of culture and dash of stupidity and voilà ... we have a mess.  And unfortunately, we normally have that mess on display.  As of late, more eyes are on Muslims and Islam.  All it takes is some common sense, common courtesy and the will to change ... to change that perception.  To not be stuck and go about our life out of sheer inertia.

For those of you may have differing creeds, and I don't know if it's different from one to the other on this particular point, know that in my reference of no talking once the sermon has started includes the forbidding of one of the highest, and most practiced, recommendations in Islam:  Saying "salam."  That's correct.  You cannot even say "salam" when you enter the Mosque, if you've entered it after the call of prayer has begun (the Athan).  And if someone still says "salam" upon entering the Mosque, after the Athan has been called, you as the person who's already been there cannot return that greeting.  Actually, if one was to extend their hand to shake it 'cause they knew you and simply wanted to say "hi" or "salam" or whatever, you cannot even recognize that.  You should not extend your hand back.  Your attention should belong exclusively to the person giving the Sermon.

Now, if you knew that tad bit of info. GREAT.  I hope you're amongst those that are practicing it.
If you're not, then now you know.  Please stop interrupting the sole reason why all those worshipers are there to do in the first place.  You could even be interrupting the speaker himself.

My intention is not to preach, complain or even chastise.  Instead, it's to show common courtesies, their built-in place within Islam and the ignorance that surround them.

I'm here, on this blog, to change the World around me.  This is for me as much as it is for everyone else.