October 12, 2008 at 1:06 pm (Uncategorized)
Tags: arabic, arabic grammar, hadith, hameed ha'iri, howza, imam, iran, islam, islamic seminary, islamic texts institute, iti, mudarris afghani, muslim, prophet, qom, qum, quran, ridwan arastu, rizwan arastu, shaikh hameed ha'iri, shia, shii, shiite, tradition, translation

Shaykh Rizwan Arastu
We have all felt the frustration at some point in our lives of not being able to find the answers to those crucial questions that assault every inquiring mind. We somehow innately believe that the Qur’an holds the answers to many of these questions, but when we turn to even the best translations at our disposal, we find them inadequate, either because the translation is obtuse or because there is no authoritative explanation to address the very question in whose quest we began our search.
We intrinsically believe that the traditions of the Prophet and Imams (peace be upon them) contain the panacea for all ills of body and soul, yet the language divide between us and them proves too vast: Few collections of their sayings are translated into English, and arguably none convey the inimitable power of their teachings.
It was to fill this abyssal void that the Islamic Texts Institute (ITI) was founded. ITI is a non-profit organization that aims to make Islamic primary sources available to Muslims in the West by providing accurate, scholarly translations of major Shia collections of traditions accompanied by sufficient commentary to facilitate the reader’s comprehension and assimilation of these teachings.
The team at ITI currently consists of three highly trained scholars of the howzah, or Islamic seminary, of Qum with expertise in various fields vital to the study of the traditions. Shaikh Hameed Ha’iri, a pupil of the late Mudarris Afghani, is a renowned expert of Arabic grammar and literature and a tireless researcher. No more than twenty seconds pass from the time he enters the Institute before he delves into the substantial pile of books on his desk and begins laboriously taking notes on every aspect of the tradition he is studying. In the five years I have known him, no grammatical structure, no matter how convoluted, has proved too difficult for him to tackle. It is not uncommon for him to stay long after hours to pursue an evasive tradition.
full article: www.insight-info.com
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July 6, 2008 at 5:07 am (Uncategorized)
Tags: algeria, arabic, ayatollah taleghani, bell laboratories, berkeley, chamran, egypt, english, french, german, imam khomeini, iran, islam, jabel-amel, lebanon, martyr, mostafa chamran, phalanges, politics, quran, revolution, shaheed motahhari, syria, tehran, texas, united states, university of texas
Late Imam Khomeini:
“Be like Chamran.”
Martyrs are too great to be in need of any tribute, yet what makes such occasion a must, is to make acquainted the new generations with the thoughts and beliefs of great men in history like Shahid Mostafa Chamran.
Chamran was born in 1932 in Tehran. At 15, he began his activities with Islamic associations, participating in classes of commentary on the Quran by Late Ayatollah Taleghani and those of logic and philosophy by Martyr Professor Motahhari.
Enjoying a government scholarship for talented students, he went to the United States for a period of 14 years and earned his master’s degree from the University of Texas. He then went on to get his Ph.D. in electronics and plasma physics with excellent grades from the University of California at Berkeley. He entered research on satellites and powerful radars with Bell Laboratories.
He had complete mastery over English and Arabic and also knew French and German.
His most important political activities abroad were organizing and training guerrilla and revolutionary forces in Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon and Syria.
Chamran participated in guerrilla activities in liberation wars against Israel and the Phalanges. For eight years he assumed responsibility for managing the Technical School of Jabal-Amel in southern Lebanon.
Full article: www.insight-info.com
At the time of the victory of the Islamic Revolution under the leadership of Imam Khomeini, Chamran returned to Iran. Initially, he became commander of the government division of the Revolutionary Guards. He was deputy prime minister for revolutionary affairs and was later appointed minister of defense.
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May 25, 2008 at 11:39 am (Uncategorized)
Tags: 14th of march, al-akhbar, america, american european, ap, arabic, balbak, beirut, cia, cole, dahiyah, doha, doha accord, george bush, hassan nasrullah, hizbollah, imam khomeini, islamic revolution, israel, israeli army, khaldeh, lebanese, lebanon, ma'ariv, martyrdrom, middle east, mishel aun, mishel sulayman, molotov coctail, mosad, ottoman empire, palestine, politics, qabars, qatar, revolution, sayda, sayyid hassan nasrullah, security council, siniora, south lebanon, tyre, united nations, unity, walid jumblatt, weapon, zionist
. 26 years have passed since June 1982 were the names Dahiyah and Khaldeh passed through American and European telegrams. The youth of Dahiyah, a small village in the Southern Lebanese area of Khaldeh was able to hold the classical, prepared Israeli army for forty days with Molotov cocktails and light weapons that they already had with them. An AP reporter went to them on the 6th of September 1982 and asked them to introduce themselves. They responded: “We are the followers of Imam Khomeini. We consider death martyrdom and are not scared of any power.” The AP continued its report in September of 1982 by saying: “The spirits of the youth of Dahiyah can be seen all over South Lebanon. Tyre, Sayda, and Balbak are no less than Dahiyah either.”

Hizbollah was born with the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Lebanon and showed itself in the summer of that energetic year – 1982. It was a power which only a few people could imagine would have the power that it has today.
2. About one month ago, on the 24th of April, 2008, George Bush who prepared himself to visit the Middle East and take part in the occupied territory’s 60th anniversary gave news of America’s strong desire to topple Hizbollah. Some American and European news outlets called this a gift to Israel before his trip to occupied Palestine. A few days afterwards, Siniora’s government in an unexpected move fired the head of Beirut’s airport’s security who was a supporter of Hizbollah. It also called Hizbollah’s telephone system illegal. This move by the 14th of March political party which illegally held Lebanon’s government was faced with a serious warning by Hizbollah’s leader, Sayyid Hassan Nasrullah. At the same time, America emphasized that it will completely support the government and the American warship Cole entered Lebanon’s shores. Then, as always, Sayyid Hassan Nasrullah disgregarded America’s threats and gave Siniora a few days to retake his statements about the head of Beirut’s airport’s security and Hizbollah’s telephone system. When the government’s insistence and America’s support was seen, in a quick, accounted for move all of the centers under the control of the 14th of March political party were taken over along with their leaders. The continuance of this quick move in which America and the 14th of March PP did not expect showed the deep influence that Hizbollah has on the Lebanese people. Once again after the 33-Day-War a Lebanese struggle ended in the favor of Hizbollah. Hizbollah’s move was so unexpected from the view of America and Israel that Israel gave the order for all of its troops to be completely prepared. Some leaders of the 14th of March PP ran away from Beirut. The Siniora government, who thought itself to be strong with the backing of America only a few hours before, was forced to give in to the resistance’s orders. They retreated from what they said a few days before. According to the Lebanese newspaper al-Akhbar a number of CIA and Mosad officials who came to Lebanon to command this move and who stayed in the American embassy made a bridge between Beirut and Qabars escaping the situation.
It is worth mentioning that Walid Jumblatt, the head of one of the 14th of March PP’s groups who is undeniably attached to America and the Zionist regime and who escaped Beirut after the resistance’s lighting move, made fun of America’s promise of help in an interview and said: “Apparently the American Cole was sent to save us from Lebanon – not to help us in Lebanon.”
3. After the Hizbollah victory, which according to the Lebanese newspaper al-Akhbar was a slap in face to America before it was a blow on the 14th of March PP, the demands of Hizbollah that were made after their victory in the 33-Day-War were once again put uat the forefront. The reason for this is that after Hizbollah’s victories the resistance in Lebanon is not seen as a mere political power, rather as the Israeli newspaper Ma’ariv wrote: “Hizbollah showed that it is a popular movement and has took the power of the country who trusts and believes in them.”
The Doha Talks with the presence of Arabic foreign ministers, representatives of the resistance, and the 14th of March PP lead by Qatar was formed in this situation. From the beginning the Doha Talks could do nothing except give in to some of Hizbollah’s demands. It is clearly expected that Hizbollah will gain strength and the 14th of March PP will loose power, although most of the Arabs who took part in the talks wanted to protect the power of the 14th of March PP more than make Hizbollah loose power. Therefore, Hizbollah’s victory in the Doha Talks proves their strength – not that the things given to them makes them strong. Because of Hizbollah’s moves in the past two years the 14th of March PP did not have any other choice but to accept what the decisions in the Doha Talks were.
4. Hizbollah’s demands were: the establishment of the national-unified government, Mishel Sulayman becoming president, and 11 seats of the parliament (one-third reserved for the resistance) which gives them the power of veto. This plan was called the Mishel ‘Aun plan and was accepted in Doha. It should be noted that when these talks were announced Lebanese people in Beirut and other places protested saying that the Lebanese political heads have rigged these talks. They said: “This helped speed up the process.
5. The most important result of the Doha Talks was Hizbollah crossing the limits. Hizbollah created a nation in the past few years by their faith, bravery, sincerity, popularity, and their lives while protecting Lebanon and its entire population regardless of their religion or tribe. They brought a country who has been at discord and internal war since the Ottoman empire to a unified position showing that Lebanon’s peace will only be in unity.
6. After the results of the Doha Talks were mentioned American figures such as Khalilzad, Afghanistan’s representative in the United Nations said that they were going to make a United Nations Security Council resolution regarding Hizbollah. They said that since Hizbollah has turned national so the resolution number 1701 is illegal and nobody has the right to interfere in internal politics – making Siniora’s American backed movement illegal.
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