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Books that influenced Gandhi
“A friend of the poor and the underdog, humble and bold, sincere and frank, simple and austere, non-violent and truthful in thoughts, words and deeds; frail in body but mighty in spirit”. This is how Satish Kumar describes Mahatma Gandhi. This great leader shook the foundations of British Empire and tried to liberate India in the real sense of the term. He tried emancipating the “untouchables” in the way he deemed the most appropriate, gave the message of peace, love, brotherhood, truth and non-violence. It is important to know what shaped such great a leader and what thoughts inspired him. Gandhi’s thought started developing and getting shaped in London where…
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Instruction of the Student – Imam Zarnuji
Burhan al-Din al-Zarnuji (d. 620 AH/1223 CE), a Muslim scholar, is the author of the celebrated pedagogical work Ta’līm al-Muta’allim-Ṭarīq at-Ta’-allum (Instruction of the Student: The Method of Learning). We took the book for our reading sessions. The following summary would be helpful for the ones who have read the text or joined us in the sessions. These bullets can help in reminding what is already learned, this cannot replace a teacher or the text. Foreword by Hamza Yusuf: Islamic Community is Rooted in Adab. Adab is knowing ones place in hierarchy. Argument for hierarchy “Are they the same – those who know and those who do not” (39:9). “I…
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How to read a book – Part III
Click here for Part 1 Click here for Part 2 By now you can be reasonably sure you have understood the book. However a complete understanding of a book requires the final work of criticism, the work of judging. Till now you have been following the author, keeping your eyes and mind open and your mouth shut. From now onwards you are going to present yourself and argue with the author in the third and final state of reading of which the rules are as follows.
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How to read a book – Part II
Click here for Part 1 Levels of Reading: There are four levels of reading, and these levels are cumulative i.e. higher level includes all the lower levels in herself.
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How to read a book!
The fundamental problem that lies beneath almost every issue plaguing the human society in these days and times is somehow related with the ideas of knowledge and education. The massive information explosion and the fast media through which it can flow have made knowledge very easy to acquire, or so it may seem. It becomes imperative to discuss how to and how not to acquire knowledge. By knowing so we may be able to differentiate between propaganda and education. The opinion formed thus is not just a well-informed one, but a well understood well as well. In this short essay we wish to throw some light on this highly important…
Renaissance, Reformation, Enlightenment