Saudi women and plastic surgery

Islam is truly a unique religion. In fact it is not simply a religion but rather a way of life. It has answers and solutions to all aspects of life clearly defined within the Quraan as well as the hadith or sayings of the Prophet Muhammed (saw). So what is the Islamic point of view with regards to plastic surgery? Well Islam permits plastic surgery only in certain circumstances or situations. If for example a person had an accident and became deformed then plastic surgery will be permitted or in the case of a friend of mine whose nose fractured by a door that was mistakenly banged into her and has now got some breathing problems, plastic surgery will be permitted to remove the discomfort. Skin grafts will also be allowed in patients that have been severely burnt. However, undergoing cosmetic surgery for mere vanity is prohibited in Islam. The hypocrisy that exists within Saudi society simply baffles me. On the one hand we have women who are covered up from head to toe and on the other hand these same women are now undergoing all types of cosmetic and reconstruction surgeries to look like women that have graced international magazine covers.Speaking to a well known plastic surgeon in the Kingdom a few weeks ago, I was told that in the past there may have been one or two cosmetic and dermatology clinics in Riyadh but nowadays more and more clinics have sprung up each one offering the latest state of the art technology in the field of cosmetic surgery. Saudi women are being admitted for all types of procedures ranging from Botox, liposuction, boob augmentations, tummy tucks, nose jobs and buttock implants.

Islam prohibits the plucking of the eyebrows as it changes a woman's facial features and yet there are many Saudi women who have had eye brow tattooing done. This procedure involves removing the eye brows permanently through laser treatment or temporarily by threading the eyebrows with cotton  and then replacing the real eyebrow with a permanent eyebrow tattoo.The tattoo is drawn with ink that matches the individuals skin tone and complexion. The total cost of the procedure is approximately SR3000. Tattoos amongst young Saudi women trying to imitate western movies stars is also very much a fashion trend here.The majority of Saudi women would opt for false nails coupled with nail polish which once again is prohibited in Islam.

Three weeks ago I had a patient who came for her pain medication after undergoing a "boob job". She was clearly in lots of pain and whilst we were chatting I asked her why did she go through this whole agonizing procedure. She told me that she had a breast augmentation done to fulfill her husbands wish. He apparently likes a fuller more voluptuous woman and hence convinced her to get a breast augmentation done increasing her cup size from 34C to 36C. She went on further to say that she was afraid of losing her husband as he could very easily leave her and get married to a more beautiful woman of his choice. I couldn't help but wonder in the back of my mind that you actually get such fake and superficial people in the world. I thought two people marry each other for love and that looks, money and materialistic possession is unimportant.I thought that when you marry someone you accept that person the way they are and love them the way they are. I guess I have the old school of thinking. I guess with a new world order comes a new way of thinking as well.....How ridiculous in my opinion.If her husband was my husband, I probably would have knocked his head with a frying pan and sent him off packing lock stock and barrel!!

Last month whilst dining out with friends and having a fabulous time with amazing company I returned home only to break out in a huge allergic reaction. My upper lip and my right eye lid was swollen. I looked absolutely funny and the worst part was that I needed to report to work in the morning. I immediately took  high doses of antihistamines to reduce the swelling and then retired to bed. The next morning I woke up only to find that the swelling was still there. I looked like a caricature of myself and didn't know whether I should laugh or cry. I went to work and naturally everyone started asking what happened and of course suggesting what medication I should take. The most hilarious comment though that I got was from a patient who assumed that my upper lip and eyelid was swollen due to a botox injection. She said that she always thought I had lovely full lips and now she knows the reason. I kept on telling her that I had an allergic reaction and she just wouldn't believe me. I wouldn't be surprised if she probably made an appointment the next day with the plastic surgeon to get a shot of botox.

Whilst most women aspire to be like the women we are so use to seeing on magazine covers or on television the truth is that these women have been made to look a certain way through plastic and cosmetic surgery. They do not have natural beauty. Their boobs are upright and perky due to implants as natural breasts do not look anything like the one's that are stuffed in our faces in magazines..their derrieres are cellulite free and their skin flawless due to airbrushing and various other computerized technology out their to create a false, fake image of how a woman should be. The truth is that many of these stars were nothing to look at during their childhood or teenage years. For many of them it has been a case of the ugly duckling turning into a beautiful swan through numerous cosmetic surgeries and procedures to simply become the sex symbols of the world. After all SEX SELLS!!! Doesn't it.

So my question to all Saudi women out there is,Do you really want the world to view you as a sex symbol or a sex object like the women who grace these magazines or would you rather have the world view you as a modest moral woman who adheres to her religion, her culture and her roots and is proud of being a part of that culture and religion? Why aspire to be like someone else?Be proud of who you are and be happy with the way God has created you.

Source:

http://www.india-forums.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1364543 - pictures

DATING SAUDI STYLE

So I'm sure many of you must be wondering if people in Saudi Arabia go out on dates or meet members of the opposite sex who could possibly land up becoming a potential life partner...The answer is YESSSSS...Although the whole dating process and interaction between the sexes is quite strange...

Young men also known as "shabaabs" try their luck at meeting young women through the following dating tricks:
Trick number one: Many young Saudi men would either have their mobile numbers or their BBM PIN written on a piece of paper which is then stuck on one of the windows of the car. I have witnessed groups of Saudi men chasing cars that have young Saudi women in them in an effort to seek their attention.

Trick number two: If a woman is walking alone in the supermarket for some odd reason a single Saudi male would assume that she is single as well and would simply drop his mobile number in her trolley and walk on as though nothing happened. I have a friend of mine who is married and she went to the Hyper Panda down the road to do grocery shopping without her husband only to encounter such a situation. After shouting at the man, his face supposedly turned red and he walked out of the supermarket quite speedily.

Trick number three: Nowadays with internet and mobile phone technology many young Saudi males and females are meeting each other through online internet dating sites. Now how does this meeting occur? Usually the young woman would go out with her friends and her driver to the mall. Once they get dropped off at the mall she simply hops into the car of the man she has set up a date with. This is how Mrs Z met her husband three years ago.

With the Kingdom having almost two million unmarried females, it is only natural that the females are becoming bold enough into asking men directly for their telephone numbers. Last week the Executive on Duty who happens to be a close friend of mine encountered this situation. Apparently there is a group of women who are frequenting the hospital emergency department for no real apparent reason simply requiring panadol or brufen and this has been occurring for over a few weeks now. So finally after frequenting the hospital a few times during a short space of time and of course irritating the medical staff who should be dealing with more serious life threatening cases a lady from the group went straight up to Mr. EOD (Executive on Duty) and asked him for his mobile number and if he is married. Mr. EOD is such a friendly, sweet man that he was blushing and laughing away whilst relating this story to me.He then went on to say that he hopes InshaAllah all these unmarried women here do get married as living in this country without a man can be quite difficult for a Saudi woman.So did he give her his mobile number...NO...Definitely not!!!!

I myself have been victim to many of these tricks but the one I'm frequently encountered with at work is when you ask a male patient to write down his ID number as proof of medication receipt. In most cases the man is quick to write down his mobile number with a smile and a wink in his eye.I then have to be a little louder and reaffirm that I require the ID number and not his mobile number.

But the most hilarious dating trick for me which certainly didn't take the cake but rather the whole bakery was a written note that was stuck behind a plane seat. The note read as follows and was written in both English and Arabic: Hi I am Muhammed, a 33 year old single, well educated Saudi male. So if you are a single, beautiful woman sitting on the seat with this note staring at you and you are  looking out for a life partner then give me a tinkle....mobile number and BBM PIN followed!!!!!

I guess as long as you have single male and females in society desiring to interact with the opposite sex in meaningful relationships leading to love, people will always find ways around rules and regulations. So despite the Kingdom's strict laws pertaining to gender segregation coupled with severe punishments imposed if these laws are violated, young Saudi males and females are very much into the dating scene trying to forge relationships leading to marriage. The younger Saudis especially those that have returned from abroad and have seen life in a different light are willing to break free from culture and tradition and marry people who they love and care for as opposed to an arranged marriage whereby the parents choose a potential partner and in many instances the marriage lands up in divorce due to incompatibilities between both partners. The parents happiness is only considered as opposed to the couple. Whilst many of these dating tricks may be considered abnormal in other parts of the world....you will probably be slapped or clobbered on your head but in this part of the world this is DATING, SAUDI STYLE!!!!

E.T IN THE QURAAN

A close friend of mine sent me this article through email. I thought it was quite an interesting piece of writing and hence I decided to share it with all of you.I do not know who wrote this article and I certainly do not take credit for it.

On 7th August 1996,NASA (1) scientists made an announcement that made front page headlines throughout the world.Within a Martian meteorite,they had found evidence of a microscopic lifeform that may have existed on Mars more than three billion years ago. (2) Although other studies were later published which challenged this conclusion, (3) numerous recent discoveries,for example,the discovery by the Galileo spacecraft, (4) in February 1997,of a possible red-coloured sea under the ice crust of Jupiter's moon,Europa, (5) are raising hopes that we may soon be able to get an answer to one of the oldest and most interesting questions asked by humans-"Is anyone out there,or are we alone in the universe?"

However,it may be that none of us may live to see the day when scientists will give us a definitive answer to this question.For Muslims,that should not be a problem.We already have the answer.Although many Muslims are unaware of the fact,the Quran (6) explicitly mentions the existence of extraterrestrial life.

The existence of creatures of a spiritual nature,such as angels,in the universe,is accepted as a fact by all Muslims,as well as people of other religions, such as Christians.The point that generates excitement among the public,and scientists is the question of whether material lifeforms like ourselves,which can be found by science,do actually exist outside the earth. (7) The objective of this article is to present evidence from the Quran for the existence in the universe,of MATERIAL lifeforms ("Life as we know it").

"Dabbatun"

In Sura 42,Verse 29 (42:29) of the Quran,we are told, "Among His (God's) signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth,and the living creatures that He has scattered through them :and He has power to gather them together when He wills." (8) Before proceeding further,a point or two must be noted.The word "sama",translated "heavens",is also the Arabic for "sky".One may object that the verse refers to creatures in the sky (which would be birds),not in the heavens.However,birds are mentioned seperately from creatures of the heavens in 24:41, "Seest thou not that it is God Whose praise all beings in the heavens and on earth do celebrate,and the birds (of the air) with wings outspread?..." (9) In a note to 42;29,Muhammad Asad states,"In the Quran,the expression "the heavens and earth" invariably denotes the universe in its entireity." (10) The Quran mentions that inanimate objects also worship God:"Do they not look at God's creation, (even) among (inanimate) things- how their (very) shadows turn round,from right to left,prostrating themselves to God..."(16:48). (11) Therefore,may not the creatures spoken of in 42:29 in the heavens,be inanimate creatures of God.No.The next verse,16:49 goes, "And to God doth obeisance all that is in the heavens and earth,whether moving (living) creatures or the angels...". (12) The word translated "living creatures" here is the same as that in 42:29- "Dabbatun".Comments Asad,"The word dabbah denotes any sentient,corporeal being capable of spontaneous movement and is contrasted here with the non-corporeal,spiritual beings designated as "angels" ". (13) In other words,42:29 is referring to precisely the type of lifeforms that science is searching for,not some metaphysical entities.Yusuf Ali says,"Dabbatun:beasts,living,crawling creatures of all kind." (14) This is the same word used in 2:164,"...in the beasts of all kinds that He scatters through the earth...are signs for a people that are wise," (15) and in 24:45,"And God has created every animal from water:of them are some that creep on their bellies;some that walk on two legs;and some that walk on four. God creates what he wills..." (16) Commenting on 42:29,Allama Shabbir Ahmad Usmani says,"From the verse it appears that like on the earth,there are some kinds of animals- living creatures- in the heavens also." (17) On the same verse,Yusuf Ali comments, "Life is not confined to our one little Planet.It is a very old speculation to imagine some life like human life on the planet Mars...it is reasonable to suppose that Life in some form or other is scattered through some of the millions of heavenly bodies scattered through space." (18) From such remarks,the reader will realize that Muslim scholars are well aware of the fact that 42:29 clearly mentions the existence of aliens.

Is there any alien intelligent life ?

Although the discovery of any form of life outside the earth would be dramatic,humankind is especially interested in knowing whether there is any alien intelligent life in the universe.NASA previously had a program on the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI).Although now scrapped due to budget cuts, private SETI organizations (19) have now been made which continue the search.The Planetary Society, (20) a private organization,in which the film director Steven Speilberg (21) is a member of the Board of Directors,has the largest SETI program in the world.So far, no sign of alien intelligent life has turned up.Can the Quran provide an answer?

Sura 27:65 commands,"Say:None in the heavens or on earth, except God,knows what is hidden:nor can they perceive when they shall be raised up (for Judgement)." (22) This shows that,like humans,there are other creatures in the universe that will also be raised from the dead.We are told in 19:93-96,"Not one of the beings in the heavens and the earth but must come to (God) Most Gracious as a servant.He does take an account of them (all),and hath numbered them (all) exactly.And everyone of them will come to Him singly on the Day of Judgement.On those who believe and work deeds of righteousness, will (God) Most Gracious bestow love." (23) From these verses we learn that there are alien lifeforms that,like us,will also be judged according to the works that they do during their lives.Among them are the believers.Therefore,naturally,there will also be those aliens who are unbelievers.The believers will be rewarded.The lifeforms being descibed in the above verses can hardly be expected to be microorganisms.The Quran is referring to creatures of a level of development that makes them morally accountable beings.They must be organisms possessing qualities which we would ascribe to intelligent lifeforms.

In Sura 72:14-15,jinn (a type of spiritual lifeform,which the Quran mention as living on the earth) say,"Amongst us are some that submit their wills (to God),and some that swerve from justice.Now those who submit their wills- they have sought out (the path) of right conduct:But those who swerve- they are (but) fuel for Hell-fire." (24) The Quran mentions that good jinn will be rewarded with Paradise.Summing up from all the above verses,it is clear that Judgement Day is for creatures in the whole universe (Sura 39:68-"The Trumpet will (just) be sounded when all that are in the heavens and on earth will swoon, except such as it will please God (to exempt).Then will a second one be sounded,when,behold,they will be standing and looking on!") (25) and like jinn,aliens will also be sharing Paradise and Hell with humans.In fact,the Quran mentions that Paradise is of a size like that of our present universe- 57:21,"Therefore (vie) with one another for the pardon of your Lord,and for a Paradise as vast as heaven and earh, prepared for those who believe in Allah and His apostles." (26) Therefore, it is not surprising that when we are sharing this universe with aliens,we should share Paradise and Hell with them too.The Quran shows us,therefore,that not only do aliens exist,but among them are also intelligent beings.

Where can aliens be found?

Knowing that aliens,including intelligent lifeforms exist elsewhere, our next question would be,"Where do they live?"Scientists naturally expect them to live on planets.They look for other planets around other stars- planets that have the right conditions to harbour life- in other words,other earths.In October 1995,scientists announced the discovery of the first extrasolar planet around the star 51 Pegasi. (27) Since then,there have been a string of discoveries of other planets.At the time of writing of this article,fifteen planets have been claimed to have been discovered. (28) Although some of these objects have been dismissed as brown dwarfs (including the object around Pegasi 51) by some scientists, (29) at least some of the fifteen objects are agreed upon as being planets.Scientists believe that on potential moons around planets found to be orbiting two stars, the right conditions may exist for life to be present. (30)

In Sura 65:12,we are informed,"God is He Who created seven heavens and of the earth a similar number..." (31) This verse,although usually translated properly,is very commonly misinterpreted by commentators.They give their interpretation that space is divided into seven zones,and likewise,as Yusuf Ali puts it,"the crust of the earth is built up of geological strata one above another". (32) This interpretation arises due to a misunderstanding of what a "heaven" is as mentioned in the Quran.Before continuing further about the topic of aliens,it is necessary to clear up this confusion.The answer can be deduced from verses in the Quran itself and comparing them with our current scientific knowledge about the universe.

Sura 21:30 asks,"Do not the unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation),before we clove them asunder?..." (33) Sura 41:11-12 tell us,"Then turned He to the heaven when it was smoke,and said unto it and unto the earth:come both of you,willingly or loth...Then We ordained them seven heavens...and inspired in each heaven its mandate;and We decked the lowest heaven with lamps..." (34) and Sura 71:15-16,"See ye not how Allah hath created seven heavens in harmony,and hath made the moon a light therin,and made the sun a lamp?" (35) Sura 51:47 informs us,"And it is We who have built the universe with (Our creative) power;and,verily,it is We who are steadily expanding it." (36) Asad,comments on the above verses as follows:about 21:30,"...the above unmistakable reference to the unitary origin of the universe- metonymically described in the Quran as "the heavens and the earth"- strikingly anticipates the view of almost all modern astrophysicists that this universe has originated as one entity from one single element,namely,hydrogen,which became subsequently consolidated through gravity and then seperated into individual nebulae,galaxies,and solar systems,with individual parts progressively breaking away to form new entities in the shape of stars,planets and the latter's satellites"; (37) about 41:11,he explains the word "smoke" as,"a gas- evidently hydrogen gas,which physicists regard as the primal element from which all material particles of the universe have evolved and still evolve..." (38) and says about the verse,"explaining this passage,Zamakhshari observes:"The meaning of God's command to the skies (heavens) and the earth to "come"... is this:He willed their coming into being..."";for 41:12,he explains "seven heavens" as,"a multiplicity of cosmic systems"; (39) about 51:47 he says,"the phrase "inna la-musi'un" clearly foreshadows the modern notion of the "expanding universe"- that is,the fact that the cosmos,though finite in extent,is continuously expanding in space." (40) Finally,three more verses need to be referred to- 50:38,"And verily We created the heavens and the earth and all that is between them...and naught of weariness touched us" (41) ,21:104,"The Day when We shall roll up the heavens as a recorder rolleth up a written scroll.As We began the first creation,We shall repeat it.(It is a promise binding) upon Us.Lo!We are to perform it" (42) ,and 14:48, "One day the Earth will be changed to a different Earth,and so will be the heavens..." (43)

From the verses above,we learn this from the Quran:a heaven is a material entity which arose from the same material as the earth originated from.Initially,there was one gaseous mass.A cleavage process occured resulting in the making of the "seven heavens" and "all that lies between them".The sun,moon and earth are constituants of a heaven.Therefore,a heaven must be larger than a star (sun).When the end of the universe is at hand,the heavens,which till then were in an expanding universe (51:47) will come together.Then,the way our present universe came into being,in a similar manner,a new creation will come into being,containing other heavens and another earth.Any astronomer reading these verses can tell you that there is only one entity that fits the description of a heaven in the Quran- a "heaven" in the Quran must be referring to a "galaxy".According to modern science,the universe arose from a singularity,at the Big Bang,and has since,been expanding.From a primordial gas cloud arose hugh fragments from which the galaxies and their clusters arose.Today,the galaxies are moving apart from each other in space.They are seperated by intergalactic space in which may lurk invisible dark matter,making upto 90% of the total mass of the universe.if there is sufficient dark matter,at some time in the future,the universe will stop expanding and enter a contraction phase in which the galaxies will finally come close together in a Big Crunch marking an end to the present universe.The universe would have returned to a singularity state similar to that from which the present universe arose.Then,once again,scientists predict,a new universe may rebound from the singularity of the Big Crunch,as another Big Bang gives rise to a universe with its own galaxies and planets etc.Verses in the Quran agree amazingly with our current ideas about the universe!

The purpose of our lengthy divergence from the main topic of this article was to prove that the "seven heavens" are not zones into which the universe is divided,but large astronomical entities, the galaxies.Some people have interpretted a heaven as being a solar system.However,while this view may seem appropriate for some verses,it does not tally with all the verses.

The Quran mentions the creation of seven heavens.Asad explains that,"...as regards the "seven heavens",it is to be borne in mind that in Arabic usage...the number "seven" is often synonymous with "several"." (44) I have shown that the heavens are the galaxies and we can see that millions of them exist.Even if we assume that the heaven are some other astronomical objects that arose from the primary gas cloud,they definitely are not literally seven in number,but in the millions.

The relevance of this to our discussion on aliens is that the Sura 65:12 tells us that,as God has created "seven Heavens",He has created,"of the earth a similar number..." Therefore,as there are millions of galaxies,God has also created millions of earths scattered throughout the universe.Usmani comments on 65:12,"The earths as well,He created seven (Usmani thinks literally seven.We know it actually means "many"),as given in the Tradition of Tirmizi etc.It is possible they are not visible, it is possible they are visible,but people think them to be stars or planets,as the scientists of today have predicted the possibility of life on Mars etc..." (45) An important thing to point out in 65:12 is that God does not use the word "worlds",but specifically,"earth".An 'earth' would be a planet that harbours life.Scientists also often speak of looking for other earths.They mean not just any planet,but one sustaining or capable of sustaining life.In his book,The Bible,The Quran and Science, Maurice Bucaille writes,"...it comes as no small surprise to the reader of the Quran to find that earths such as our own may be found in the Universe..." (46)

We have finally arrived at the Quran's answer as to where aliens can be found.They inhabit the millions of earths that God has created among the millions of heavens (galaxies) in the universe. The Quran therefore,gives us a magnificent view of the universe- a universe teeming with life,a place that the late astronomer Carl Sagan described as a "cosmic fugue,with themes and counter- points,dissonances and harmonies,a billion different voices playing the life music." (47)

Will we ever discover aliens?

So far,we have learnt from the Quran that extraterrestrial life,inclucing intelligent life, exists throughout countless earths in the universe.But this is not sufficient to satisfy our curiosity.We want scientists to actually discover aliens.Only after we have found incontrovertible scientific evidence that aliens exist,will our (unbelieving) hearts see that the Quran was correct all along.We actually won't be satisfied till we meet an alien face to face.Is there any chance that in the future we will actually discover,through science,the existence of aliens and establish some kind of contact with them or even meet them?

To get some idea on this matter,we must return to Sura 42:29.We are told over there that the scattering of living creatures in the heavens and the earth is a "sign".What is a sign?Sura 6:104 says,"Momentous signs have come to you from your Lord.He that sees them shall himself have much to gain,but he who is blind to them shall lose much." (48) Sura 6:109,"They solemly swear by Allah that if a sign be given them they would believe in it." (49) Sura 7:73,"A clear proof has come to you from your Lord.Here is Allah's she-camel:a sign for you." (50) Clearly,a sign is something which we can see,or at least,experience with our senses.Otherwise,it would not be a sign.Some signs are those that God showed to humans in the past.Other signs remain for God to show us in the future-"Soon we will show them Our Signs in the (furthest) regions,and in their own souls,until it becomes manifest to them that this is the Truth" (41:53). (51) THERFORE,SURA 42:29 CONTAINS A PROPHESY THAT A TIME WILL INDEED COME IN THE FUTUTE WHEN HUMANS WILL DISCOVER ALIENS.

In Sura 55:33-34,we are addressed,"O ye assembly of Jinn and men!If it be you can pass beyond the regions of the heavens and the earth,pass ye!Not without authority will ye be able to pass!Then which of the favours of your Lord will ye deny?" (52) Why does God ask us to go into space? There must be some purpose.Maybe it be for us to fulfil some grand destiny in store for our species- maybe to become a galactic race,a respectable part of the galactic community of civilizations.Maybe,it is our travels in space that may lead to our encounter with aliens and fulfil the prophesy in 42:29.Only time will tell.In anticipation of the time when we become space-travellers,we are told in Sura 29:22, "Neither on earth nor in heaven shall you be beyond reach:nor have you any guardian or helper besides Allah." (53)

To reach other civilizations,we must be capable of feasible interstellar transport. Might we one day be capable of undertaking such a voyage?Sura 16:8 says,"And (it is He Who creates) horses and mules for you to ride...and He will yet create things of which (today) you have no knowledge." (54) The latter part of this verse is often translated in the present tense but as Asad points out,"The use in this context,of the aorist "yakhluqu" implies the future tense ("He will create") ...Since this reference to God's continuing creation comes immediately after a mention of primitive means of transport,it obviously relates to other- as yet unknown- things of the same category:that is to say,to new means of transport which God unceasingly creates through the instrumentality of the inventiveness with which He has endowed man's mind." (55) Therefore,it is possible that we may one day make the spacecraft required for interstellar travel.After all,God Himself has encouraged us to,"pass beyond the regions of the heavens".Sura 42:29 ends with the statement that God has the power to gather the creatures of the heavens and earth together if He wills.This also points to the possibility of our meeting aliens in the future.However,this gathering may well refer to that which will occur on Judgement Day as mentioned in Sura 19:93-96 (see above).

Man's position among creation

The most revolutionary discoveries in history have been those which altered the way humans perceived themselves in the universe.We discovered that the earth was not at the centre of the universe.We discovered that our Sun was a very ordinary star located in an insignificant part of an ordinary galaxy,which was only one of millions of galaxies.These discoveries should have humbled us.Yet,even today,many of us triumphantly proclaim ourselves as being the most supreme creation of God.It is common to ascribe our cherished position among all living things to our higher intellectual abilities.If we were to find out that there are other intelligent beings in the universe,and that some may be intellectually more superior to us,where would that leave us ?Would we finally be dethroned?

Sura 17:70 informs us,"Verily We have honoured the children of Adam...and preferred them above many of those whom We created with a marked preferment." (56) Many translations fail to mention the "marked preferment" in the verse,although the verse contains the Arabic "tafzelan" which conveys this.Note that the verse mentions that there are other creatures besides humans,who have also been given a position of distinction,and humans have been preferred above many,not all,of these creatures.Usmani states in a comment on this verse,"Under this verse a debate is opened:Who is superior- Man or Angel?But logically this verse does not decide the issue." (57) Another scholar has written,"From this (verse) it is evident that whatever superiority humans have got over other creatures is not whole.Allah's creatures contain such creatures upon which humans have got no superiority."It must be remembered here that while so far we have been discussing material alien lifeforms,the debate of man's position in creation includes both material and spiritual creatures of God.Some early authorities,such as Hasan,have not accepted the word "akser" mentioned in 17:70 as meaning "many".Hasan maintains that the word "akser",as used in 17:70, should be understood as meaning "all",since the same word is used in 26:233 and 10:36,where it would be inappropriate to take its meaning as "many" but rather as "all".With such a substitution in verse 17:70,the meaning would be altered to mean that man is preferred by God over all creatures.

The debate on man's status continues among scholars and also among the public.Let us make an analogy to the debate of whether man is superior to woman.Suppose for a moment that we hand the trophy to man and let him enjoy his "superior" position.On the Day of Judgement,it will only be deeds that count and good women will go to Paradise and bad men will burn in Hell.Who would have been more superior?As you can see,in the final analysis,any debate on the status of a race,or species is useless.From earlier verses mentioned in this article,the reader will remember that,according to the Quran, God will judge humans as well as aliens on the basis of their deeds and reward them accordingly.Many humans will be sent to Hell for their wrongdoings. At the same time there will be aliens who will be rewarded for their good deeds.Who would be more superior- the unbelieving human or the faithful alien?The answer is obvious.Therefore,what's the use of debating this point?Status of a creature is relative to its moral conduct.Sura 95:4-5 states, "Surely We created man of the best stature,then We reduced him to the lowest of the low." (58)

Islam and the geocentric universe

It is the fanciful idea of religion-bashers that the discovery of extraterrestrial life will undermine any remaining credibility that religion may have.In the case of Islam,as one can see from this discussion,that can hardly be the case.On the contrary,such a discovery would verify the truth of the statements contained in the Quran relating to the subject of alien life,and strengthen the position of Muslims.The vision of Islam is that of a truly universal religion.It is far removed from the exclusiveness of Judaism ("We are the Chosen Ones for God's message").It is a pity that the image of all religions has suffered a setback from the great scandal of the Church- its treatment of Galileo,for (rightly) challenging their views of a geocentric universe,in which Man was The Central Figure in God's Plan of Creation,living on a planet around which all the rest of creation revolved.

The Quran gives us a picture of our place in the universe that is quite different.In Sura 40:57,God says, "Assuredly the creation of the heavens and the earth is a greater (matter) than the creation of men:yet most men understand not." (59) Comments Yusuf Ali,"Man is himself a tiny part of creation.Why should he be so ego-centric?" (60) No one race of humans was chosen to be the exclusive custodians of the truth.Sura 16:36 tells us,"For We assuredly sent amongst every People an apostle,(with the command),"Serve God,and eschew Evil":of the people were some whom God guided,and others on whom Error became inevitably (established).So travel through the earth,and see what was the end of those who denied (the Truth)." (61) According to some Traditions of The Prophet (pbuh), 124,000 messengers have been sent into the world by God,throughout the ages to people all over the world.No nation was denied access to the Truth.Even on earth,guidance was provided not only to humans,but also the Jinn who co-habit this planet with us- 6:130:"(Then He will say):"Jinn and men!Did there not come to you apostles of your own who proclaimed to you my revelations and warned you of this day?" (62) .God's bounty,according to Islam,is not confined to creatures of the earth because He is,"...Lord of the heavens and Lord of the earth,the Lord of the Worlds" (45:36). (63) To the people were sent revealed Books also,the last of which is the Quran.About the Quran itself,we are told in 43:4,"It is in the Mother Book with Us,sublime and full of wisdom." (64) About other planets,S.Bashir-ud-din Mahmood has this to say,"On the basis of the interpretation of verse 65:12 by Ibn-e-Abbas (May Allah be pleased with him),we can say that inhabitants of these worlds must have their religion like ours and so the Holy Books.They all come from the same "Supreme Source" of revelation from where the Holy Quran originated for us on the Earth.It is evident from the verse of the Holy Quran" (ie.43;4.All Books come from the "Mother Book with Us"). (65) The very first verse of the Quran begins,"Praise be to Allah,Lord of the Worlds." (66)

Summing up,while the Quran does point out that man has a favoured position on earth, (2:30-"Behold,thy Lord said to the angels:"I will create a vicegerent on earth.""; (67) 2:34- "We said to the angels:"Bow down to Adam..."" (68) 95:4- We have indeed created man in the best of moulds." (69) ) there are other creatures of God who have also been favoured in the universe (17:70).Humans are just a small part of God's creation (40:57).When they act wrongly,they are reduced to the lowest of the low (95:5).Salvation is not only for some race of humans, but for all humans and creatures throughout the universe.There is a grand destiny planned by God for all of them.All humans as well as aliens who follow the guidance that God sent to their respective planets,will be rewarded (19:96)."...it is God Whose praise all beings in the heavens and on earth do celebrate..."(24:41). (70) All will return to Him.How far the picture of the universe that Islam paints is from that of a geocentric universe!

Conclusion - a "secret" waiting to be told

If the Quran is so explicit in stating the existence of living organisms in the universe (42:29),we would suppose that the Muslim population would generally be aware of the fact that the Quran mentions extraterrestrials.Unfortunately that is not the case.A significant proportion of Muslims have no idea that this exciting piece of information is provided in their Holy Book.I have quoted a number of scholars in this article,who have commented on the verses relating to extraterrestrials.Among them are those such as Yusuf Ali and Muhammad Asad,whose works are known to Muslims throughout the world.Allama Shabbir Ahmad Usmani was a prominent figure in the Freedom Movement of Pakistan.All scholars quoted are from the mainstream of Islam. So,at least,Muslim scholars are aware of the Quran mentioning aliens.Yet,there are scholars also who have no idea about this subject.Surprisingly,even Maurice Bucaille,whose brilliant book, The Bible,The Quran and Science is extensive in its coverage of scientific topics in the Quran,completely overlooked the mention of aliens.

How aware were the early Muslims,about the existence of extraterrestrials,or verses in the Quran on this topic?Bashir-ud-Din Mahmood writes,"The idea that there is life elsewhere in the universe also,was derived from the Prophet of Allah (pbuh) when he told Muslims,"When you sit down in the prayer for the Attahiyat and say: "Peace be upon us,and the righteous servants of Allah" you actually send peace on all the righteous people living on the Earth and in the heavens."This clearly implies that all type of people,good and bad live in the other worlds as they live on our Earth." (71) He also writes,with reference to the Rasial Imam Ghazali,"According to Imam Muhammad Ghazali (11th Century),people in some of these planetary worlds have learnt to travel and communicate with each other." (72)

The case of Ibn-e-Abbas is interesting.He was one of the Companions of the Prophet (pbuh).The Prophet (pbuh) had prayed to God specially to endow Ibn-e-Abbas(73) with knowledge of the Quran,and he became one of the great scholars of the Quran.Maulana Maududi writing in his Tafhim-ul-Quran,tells us that,"Ibn-e-Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him)...believed with confidence that there are many more earth-like bodies in the heavens. ...He not only thought that such earths are inhabited by intelligent beings but also that their people are exactly like the inhabitants on the Earth.He even went so far as to say that they may have a Prophet like Muhammad (pbuh),and had a Adam,like our Adam,a Noah,like our Noah,an Ibrahim like our Ibrahim,and a Jesus like our Jesus (pbut)." (74) The knowledge of the existence of aliens and that they are mentioned in the Quran, has been present among Muslims from the earliest days of Islam!

There is something else that we know about Ibn-e-Abbas.He did not widely publicize his views about aliens. Rather,he was quite secretive about this matter.The reason is that he was afraid that his ideas would confuse people.In fact,he was afraid that people would be in danger of becoming unbelievers by not accepting the truth of this matter,which the Quran itself attested to.Perhaps it was such considerations that lead Muslim scholars of later times not to touch on the topic of aliens much,and so today,also,so many Muslims remain unaware about this matter.But times have changed.We've come a long way in our voyage of discovery of the wonders that surround us.The recent discoveries of extrasolar planets,of ice on the moon (75) ,of microbes deep beneath the earth's surface and around thermal vents in the oceans (76) ,of water on the sun (77) and many other amazing findings are setting the stage for a grand finale.The public is mentally prepared to hear soon about the discovery of life outside the earth.

In recent times,Muslims have missed golden opportunities of propagating their religion to the peoples of the world.For example,the Quran mentions the expansion of the universe.This phenomenon was discovered by scientists only in 1929.If Muslims had let the world know beforehand,that the Quran mentioned this fact, then upon its discovery,a big impact could have been made on the non-Muslim world.We would have shown the world the power,the miracle,of the Quran.Of course,even today,the miracle remains that the Quran mentions the expansion of the universe,but non-Muslims tend to say,"Now you tell us,after science has already discovered this!You must be construeing the meaning of Quranic verses to suit your wishes."

Today,as we stand at the threshold of making the most revolutionary discovery in the history of humankind,we Muslims should ask ourselves,"Hasn't the time finally come for the "secret" that Ibn-e-Abbas held to be made known to the whole world?"Yes,the time is ripe.Let the world know,before it discovers for itself,that 1400 years ago in the deserts of Arabia,a prophet received revelations,mentioning the existence of extraterrestrial life through countless heavenly bodies in the universe,and prophesying that one day, humans will indeed discover aliens.

The Quran contains many amazing statements relating to science.There is no reason to believe that it has finally yielded all of its scientific secrets and as we enter the next century,we can be confidant that the Quran will continue to shed light on some of the most enduring and intriguing scientific mysteries of our times.

So with National Day celebrations continuing way into the early hours of the morning and with thousands of people rushing to all corners of the city to view the huge firework displays, I can't help but wonder as to how many thousands of Riyals were spent on useless firework displays which has no basis within Islamic culture any way. Is this the best type of entertainment the ministry could put together for its citizens? I'm very surprised that the Sheikh's and clerics of the country have not spoken up about this issue which is relevant and very much against Islamic tradition.Firework displays are held in various parts of the Kingdom during both the Eids as well. The sad part though is that down the road from many of these display venues, reside thousands of poor middle class Saudi families who are struggling to support their families. Each year the UAE spends a few million dirhams in fire work displays during the New Year celebrations and yet there are many masjids in the UAE that do not have adequate water supplies due to improper construction and plumbing techniques. The Dubai government mentioned that rectifying the plumbing issues would cost the government millions of dirhams and so the masjids should simply "make do" with the limited water supply they receive per day. Now on the one hand you have a government who can throw away millions on firework displays but they do not have the money to correct the plumbing issues in masjids. With thousands of people from across the globe starving and living in absolute squalor is it really necessary to be having these useless firework displays or is it more rewarding to give the money away to the poor and uplift the poor people within the community!!!!!!

Matchmaking woes

Article written by Farah Mustafa Wadi

In the past, the criterion for choosing a bride was based on her family’s reputation. However, now young men place light-skinned brides at the top of their list. This superficiality has made many people in the Kingdom resort to ‘matchmakers’ as an efficient and convenient option to find the ideal husband or wife. The matchmaker’s task, however, is not an easy one as she (matchmakers are almost always women) has to guide two families to see through the marital union of two people.
Umm Mohammad, a 60-year old Palestinian woman started working as a matchmaker or “Khattabah” six years ago in the Kingdom, and she highlights the main reasons why families are resorting to the services of a “Khattabah”.
“It is not easy for some women to go out searching for a good bride (for their sons or brothers) in Saudi Arabia. Some women don’t have many friends because their husbands restrict their sociability. This makes these women resort to the matchmakers to fulfill their needs,” said Umm Mohammad.
She added that she faced much criticism from a potential groom’s family whenever she found a potential bride who wasn’t a perfect fit for their superficial prerequisites. “Many young men and their mothers desire a beautiful girl, who is tall and thin and has blond hair. It becomes very frustrating to work with such conditions. Sometimes they specifically ask for working girls because of rising expenses,” she remarked.
“The strangest situation that I have faced during my experience as a matchmaker, was when a potential groom’s mother asked me to scrutinize the potential bride as soon as she took a shower, so that I could see how naturally beautiful she was. However, the families of some potential brides find these tests acceptable, and the couples have lived happily after the wedding,” said Umm Mohammad. She added that some Saudi men have specifically requested women from Syria and Palestine because of their ‘beauty’.
Similarly, many potential brides have also started asking matchmakers to find men with certain specifications.
”Some girls have asked me to send them the guy’s (potential groom) photograph via mobile phone messaging, and most have said they prefer a tall and good looking man who is well settled. Some girls have also asked me to find for them a young man who resembles Wael K’foury, a well-known and handsome Lebanese singer,” laughed Umm Ali, a Saudi matchmaker who has been in the trade for eight years.
Umm Mohammad has fifteen folders containing the description of both potential brides and grooms and says she feels a certain excitement when she brings a couple together. Her fame grew as she expanded her services and started offering them on the internet. She claims to have many young men call her demanding a ‘beautiful’ potential wife.
“I have arranged 75 marriages within various cities in the Kingdom during the past six years. I love this career because I feel sorry for some women who are still single, and am genuinely happy when I see them living happily with their husbands because of my work,” she said.
“After my website officially started six months ago, many Saudi men have been requesting me to provide services for the ‘Al Mesyar’ marriage which I don’t appreciate because it harms women who are fundamentally more vulnerable than the men,” added Umm Mohammad.
There are some matchmakers in Saudi Arabia who are providing matchmaking services for ‘Al-Mesyar’ marriages - where the couple does not live together and the husband is not financially responsible for his wife - with the condition that if the groom’s parents wants a suitable girl for their son, the matchmaker will require them to pay SR 2000 or SR 3000 in the beginning, even reaching SR 5000 for a girl who matches certain specifications.
“I don’t appreciate these matchmakers because the ‘extra’ money may be completely wasted. What if the alliance does not work out because the couple are not suited to each other?” she pointed out.
Mansour Bin Askar, a professor of Sociology at Al-Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University says that the main reason why the mothers of a potential groom particularly, are approaching matchmakers is the modernization of cities in the Kingdom. “Taking eligible young women to the matchmaker is a positive way to find suitable grooms for them as matchmakers charge money for their services, so there is a greater possibility that she will practice her job seriously,” remarked Bin Askar.
He believes however, that some matchmakers are in this field solely because of the money. They do not seek to formalize the acceptance of both the groom and bride and often feed incorrect information to both families, which often becomes a source of conflict in the future between both families.
Umm Ali claims eighty marriages to her credit, and says her job is often a source of anxiety as potential grooms are usually very particular about the woman they want to marry and their demands are currently on the rise. She advises prospective matchmakers to undertake this work with genuine honesty and loyalty.
“This kind of work is not easy to undertake because occasionally it takes a long time to match prospective brides and grooms, according to the specifications they request,” emphasized Umm Ali, adding that she once rejected a prospective groom who wished to marry for only two days.
Umm Mohammad is also bewildered by the recurrence of Saudi women requesting prospective brides for their husbands’ second marriage. “More than ten Saudi wives have asked me to find wives for their husband, as they would prefer to know exactly who their husbands are marrying, rather than finding out about the second marriage later on,” remarked Umm Mohammad.
She is also particularly interested in finding husbands for single women between the age of 35 and 45 years, and claims that she finds it difficult to sleep whenever she is unable to do so.
“About twelve girls who are between the age of 32 to 45 years have gotten married because of my service. I prefer to find prospective grooms for older girls rather than those who are between the age of 18 and 30. The younger girls will still have a change to get married later on,” she added.
She seems genuinely interested in the welfare of her clients and claims to be available to advise them on their married life free of charge.
“The calls I recieve on a daily basis may reach up to fifty calls in a single day, and they come from all over the Kingdom, and even from abroad with couples and their families remembering me and even thanking me for bringing them together,” she proudly claims. –SG __

Source:
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/

Why marrying a Saudi woman is a curse for most Saudi Men?‏

There are approximately two million unmarried women in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Whilst the prophetic prophecy holds true that there will be less men for women as the world nears towards an end the big question still remains, Why are there so many unmarried women in the Kingdom?

Most Saudi men that I have spoken to prefer marrying a non Saudi woman.According to many of them Saudi women are arrogant and demanding, brought up with pride, demand high amounts of mahr(dowry) and simply do not know how to manage a home properly. Mishal (not his real name) is a 22 year old messenger that works in the hospital  during the night. He told me that as soon as he got married he was already in huge sums of debt. He had to pay a total of SR100000 to his wife's family as mahr(dowry) as well as for the marriage party and the brides trousseau. In addition to this he had to also furnish the apartment that he is now renting.His wife comes from a home where she had a maid and a driver and so he will have to provide her with this as well in his home which is an added expense.To top it up all he also had to fork out money for the exotic honeymoon trip abroad.  Mishal earns an average salary of around sr7000 and so according to him he feels a huge burden on his shoulders to pay off a huge debt that he has. In Saudi Arabia banks provide young Saudi males with loans to get married. This is a really ridiculous concept to me as there is no such a thing in Islam. Islam is a simple religion. The basic mahr or dowry that could be  given to a girls family is usually Mahr e Fatimi which is equivalent to 10 dirhams or approximately 31g of silver. This will suffice as dowry. A man can give any amount of dowry that he can afford without placing himself or his family in any financial debt.

Marriage here in the Kingdom is like a business.Mr N related this really hilarious story to me two nights ago. His best friend wanted to marry his cousin whom he was in love with. He approached his uncle with a proposal and his uncle demanded a mahr(dowry) of SR50000. Mr. N handed over the money to his uncle a week later. His uncle promised to marry his daughter off within two months but this never transpired. The uncle took the SR50000 and gave it to another family as mahr(dowry) for his son. He then decided to marry off his daughter to another family for SR150000 mahr. This family agreed. Upon receiving the mahr money, he returned his nephews SR50000 and he was now left with SR100000 which was like his profit. Now mahr in Islam should be given to the girl. Her father or her family have no right to that money. But here in Saudi, the fathers or the family keep the money. At present, the nephew and the uncle are no longer on talking terms and there is a break in family ties and relationships all in the name of money.To top it up all, the uncles son gets married and after two months of marriage his wife demands a divorce. Now when a woman demands a divorce it is termed as 'khula" and the woman needs to return the dowry money that was given to her. Her father in law then decided that she needed to return SR50000 plus an additional SR30000 for causing the family grief and agony. I couldn't stop laughing when Mr. N related this story as none of this is per Islamic customs or tradition and yet this is the reality of marriages here in the Kingdom.

I met a lady in the haram in Makkatul Mukarrama a few months ago. She was a mother of three kids and her eldest son was 18 years old. She then told me that her husband is still paying her mahr money after 20 yrs of marriage. She said that her father demanded a high amount of mahr for her so that her husband will not be able to marry another woman in the future.
Coming back to Mishal, he told me that had he married a woman from outside like Malaysia or Indonesia he would not be in debt today. To add insult to injury, with his average salary he is saving up money to buy his wife a SR10000 handbag that she insists on having.He also has to pay the weekly beautician and spa bill which amounts to SR3000 every month. Clearly Mishal has more expenses than what he is earning and his wife doesn't seem to understand this. I was told that this is the mentality of most Saudi women.His wife does not cook and leaves all domestic chores to the maid. Every week she has a girls night out function to attend where she requires a new dress and needs to have her hair and make up done at a beauty salon.Saudi women in general are not the domesticated homely type. They prefer dumping all household chores and responsibilities to the maid. Even the kids are the responsibility of the nanny. There is no parenting system here.

http://www.emirates247.com/first-time-in-saudi-arabia-the-2010-cosmetic-expo-1.336911 - picture

Whenever I think about handbags I always remember a very dear friend of mine Mr. Al bin Ali. He hails from an aristocratic family that were the previous ruling family of Bahrain.He is a man of average built with the most gorgeous emerald green eyes, fair skin and pink lips. He has a really soft personality with true gentleman like etiquette. He always asks me why don't I carry expensive handbags. Whenever he goes to the airport he always notices Saudi women carrying the most expensive handbags many of them ranging from
 SR 5000 to SR 50000. My answer would always be the same each time. A handbag does not define me as a human being and it doesn't make me the person that I am.When there are thousands of human beings suffering throughout the world how can anyone indulge in such extravagant luxuries at the expense of their poor husbands.Contrary to what the world thinks many Saudi men are heavily in debt due to the demanding lifestyles of their wives. Many of them live on credit and spend their lives working hard to pay off huge credit card bills.I find it most ridiculous that women here can squander thousands of riyals on make up and handbags but find it difficult to give that same amount of money away in charity.

There have also been numerous cases reported whereby fathers refuse to marry off their working educated daughters so that they can have control over their salaries. A female doctor working with a close friend of mine took her father to court because he refused to allow her to marry a colleague of hers simply on the grounds that once she is married he will not get a share of  her salary. Luckily for her the court ruled in her favour and she was granted permission by the court to marry whenever she wished.

So to all the unmarried Saudi women out there. I know many of you despise Saudi men getting married to western women or women of other nationalities but the truth is that you only have yourselves to blame. Stop aspiring to lead a princesses life. Come back to reality and view life in a logical, realistic manner.There is nothing great about leading a princesses life.From my own experience most of them are delusional any way. Happiness in this world is not simply about materialistic gains or possessions. Throw away the un-Islamic marriage customs and traditions here and bring back the true spirit of Islam and the sunnah way of carrying out a marriage. Many of you have elaborate, huge, expensive weddings demanding thousands of riyals in mahr and yet after a few months the whole relationship lands up in divorce. Naturally if the intention of the marriage in the first place is materialistic gain then it is obvious that the marriage is bound to be doomed.Indeed the most blessed of all marriages according to the Prophet (saw) is a simple marriage!!!

Oud: The scent of Arabian luxury

Article written by RIMA AL-MUKHTAR

A renowned Arab Caliph once said: “If I were a merchant, I would only trade in Oud perfume, so that if I did not make a profit, I would have profited from its sensational scent.”

Oud (agarwood or agar) comes from trees found in India, Cambodia, Yemen, Thailand and Ethiopia. It is a certain fungal infection that comes from Aquilaria trees, which is peeled off the tree. The chips are initially pale and light in color; the heartwood turns dense and dark as a result of the growth of a dangerous mold.

Oud has a very strong and unique scent that is available in chips, which are lit and burned. The scented smoke is called Bakhoor. Oud is also available in an oil form, which is placed in small perfume bottles. People apply the oil on certain areas such as behind the ears and on the wrists for a long-lasting scented effect.

Oud oil is produced by mashing agarwood and placing it in distilling pots and covering them with several inches of water. The lid is then closed and the pot is heated until the water boils. The boiling water ruptures the cells of the wood and the vapor of agarwood oil and steam rises to the top of the pot and escapes, released through a tube leading to a condenser. The condenser cools the vapor and is itself repeatedly cooled by water.

After soaking, the barrels of agarwood mash are emptied into distilling pots and placed over wood fires for distillation. The heating process may look primitive, but the fires are tended by skilled workers who control the temperature quite carefully.

As the vapor passes through the condenser and is cooled, it reverts to a liquid form and is collected in a vessel where the oil and water separate. The water is drawn off leaving the agarwood oil.Several distillations will generally occur, with the first producing the highest grade of agarwood oil and the last, the lowest. These distillations may continue over a week’s time. After distillation, the remaining mash from the distilling pot is left in the sun to dry. It will then be ground up and used to make joss sticks (incense). Before being bottled, the agarwood oil is filtered to remove dirt and impurities.

Bakhoor, the scented smoke, is made from placing the Oud chip on a bed of natural coal or lighted charcoal, which allows the wood to burn and puff the fragrance of the authentic Oud. Once the chip is burned out, it should be thrown away.

Traditionally in Saudi Arabia, when Oud is lit, the Oud burner is passed around from one person to another as part of Saudi hospitality. An old odd fact about Bakhoor is that when a host is tired of his visitors and wants them to leave, he/she would burn a chip of Oud and walk around the room. Guests would then know that this is a polite signal for them to leave.

Oud in its oil form (dehan) is a considerable investment. It is sold and measured in 12-milliliter bottles called tola. Prices for one tola range anywhere from SR300 to SR8,000. Anything below this price might be a copy or a Chinese imitation.

According to Um Mohammed, a Saudi woman who mixes Oud and has been selling it for a living for over 30 years, says there are other kinds of Oud aside from oil and Bakhoor. There is a special mix called Mabthouth.

“Mabthouth is an Oud paste that is made by crushing Oud wood and adding different scents from Oud dehan and flower oils. Then, the paste is shaped into balls,” she explained. “This paste gives a different smell than what a normal Oud chip would give. As soon as you put the Mabthouth on the flaming coal, you will smell different kinds of Arabian scents all together.”

There are different kinds of Mabthouth that are produced every year. Um Mohammed said that she takes each mixture under study before displaying and offering them to clients. Price range for Mabthouth goes from SR100 to SR500 per box.

Um Mohammed takes small poor quality pieces of Oud (wood chips), crushes them into tiny morsels and mixes them with different oils. When burned, this mixture gives off a better scent than the poor quality pieces when burned alone. This is only done to improve the quality of Oud.

Only natural materials are used to manufacture Arabian Oud mixtures. Um Mohammed uses musk, patchouli, oak, jasmine flower, rose flower, saffron, cedar, amber, bergamot, sandalwood and, of course, agarwood.

Saudi women use a certain method of Bakhoor burning: They walk around the house holding the burner to scatter the smoke in every room. They also wave their abayas and clothing above the smoke so that it picks up the scent and stays there for long. Other Saudi women use Oud and Bakhoor as body perfume by applying dehan on their hair. They put some of the dehan on the tip of their fingers and run it through their wet hair, or they just wave their hair on the smoke coming out of the Bakhoor burner.

Imam Bukhari reported that Oud is known to be an excellent scent for strengthening the body and the mind. According to him, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Treat with Indian incense (Oud Al-Hindi) for it has healing for seven diseases; it is to be sniffed by one having throat problems and put in the mouth for one suffering from pleurisy.”

Oud is also used to traditionally treat asthma, chest congestion, colic, nausea, kidney problems, thyroid cancer, lung tumors, and post childbirth. It is also a general tonic in China, India and Japan.

International perfume brands such as Tom Ford, Armani, Dior, Kilian and more are now embracing Oud for its distinctive long-lasting scent and are including it in their luxurious perfume mixtures.

Popular brand stores in Saudi Arabia that are famous for selling high quality Oud are: Arabian Oud, Ajmal and Abdul Samad Alqurashi.

HOW TO LINK A FAKE DEHAN AL 3OUD? 

Get a glass of water. Put a drop of real dehan al 3oud and mix it. If the 3oud  dissolves in water in the same way as sugar dissolves in water, it means it is original. But the fake Chinese copy one, no matter how much u stir, it will remain as a  top layer in the glass of water. It will not dissolve.

When purchasing Oud - the best advice remains, "Let the buyer beware". Fakes are abound in the market place. Prior to purchasing 3oud chips, it is advised that you  break the oud chip and compare the color of the interior to the exterior. If one is lighter than the other, it is fake. Another test can be done by putting the 3oud chip in water, if it floats then it is completely wood - and it's fake!

Source:
http://www.arabnews.com/node/390956

DISGUSTING TOILETS AND RUN DOWN FILLING STATIONS

Carrying around enough tissue paper in my handbag nowadays is a lesson I had to unfortunately learn the hard way. In South Africa our home has an eastern toilet as well as a western style high pan. I personally find the eastern style toilet messy and unhygienic and hence at home I simply grew accustomed to the high pan.I have been forced to use  the low pan toilet in South Africa during the occasional camping trips which have  led to some uncomfortable situations but all-in-all, my experience at public washrooms has been generally positive especially at filling stations like Ultra city. Sure, on road trips, you would find the yucky, smelly, dirty washrooms but none of that experience could prepare me for what I would find in the Kingdom.

                            

Obviously, my experience is limited to using female washrooms here in the Kingdom but I am told by my colleagues that the male washrooms are quite similar in nature. As you can see, the Eastern style toilet can be used in a manner similar to the one presented on the YouTube video below (The video is hilarious but so true) There is a hole and a hose. Easy enough to figure out I suppose. When I viewed the video for the first time it kind of reminded me of all my disastrous toilet experiences during my trip to India. The toilets were just shocking. I have no words to describe the unhygienic and filthy state of Indian public toilets. There were times when I really required to use a toilet whilst out sight seeing and upon seeing the condition of the restrooms it caused my urge to disappear almost instantly. I recall an incident whilst out shopping in Mumbai city and my dad needed to use the restroom urgently. So what he decided to do was hop into a taxi and get dropped of at the nearest five star hotel in town so that he could use their bathroom..I will never ever forget my toilet experience in one of the villages in Gujurat, India. For a start the toilet was situated outside from the main house and was literally a hole in the ground. The toilet was made out of corrugated metal sheeting very similar to a shack house that we very often see in South Africa. The toilet had no lights and so during the day slight amount of light would come through from the holes in the sheeting. I remember using the toilet one morning after breakfast only to come out screaming after noticing a huge cat size rat that ran past me whilst in the squatting position. (lol--- I am laughing as I write this)

Usually in South Africa even after utilizing water to wash your buttocks, there is always toilet paper on hand to dry the water away. But here in the Kingdom, in most public toilets you will not find toilet paper. Going to the toilet is quite an experience and a half with most public toilets allowing you the choice to utilize either a western high pan or an eastern squat pan.

So this is the basic scenario with regards to the toilet issue in the Kingdom. You are out at a shopping mall with your best friends for a ladies night out. You are dressed in your most elegant flowing abaya for the  occasion and in between the whole experience you suddenly have the urge to use the restroom. So you rush off to the nearest female toilets only to find that the entire floor area looks as though a tsunami has hit the place. There is black murky stagnant water, hair and dirt everywhere. There is also urine drops on the toilet seat. Now you begin to wonder what the hell was the person before you doing in the toilet? Why have they splashed water all over the place? For your information the toilet story in the Kingdom is a never ending story as scenarios like the one I described to you above happens every time, at every toilet and to everyone.

You would think that the Kingdom with all its oil wealth and with the Saudi Royal family traveling abroad almost every week on end would gather some insight from other countries into building adequate restrooms that are clean and hygienic for their citizens. The pilgrims traveling between Makkah and Medina by vehicle have a really difficult time as the garages or filling stations here in the Kingdom are a sight for sore eyes.
I remember traveling between Makkah and Medina two years ago and we stopped for the Asr prayers at a masjid on the way. That urge to use the toilet simply disappeared after viewing the disgusting state of the toilet. A strong urine smell emanated from the toilet and there was dirty stagnant water everywhere. The most shocking part of it all was that the toilet was right next to the masjid. There is a hadith that states "Attahooru Shatral Imaan"...Cleanliness is half of faith.... So with hygiene and cleanliness being a part of the Islamic religion I fail to understand why all the bathrooms and restrooms here in the Kingdom are so dirty.

The airport toilets are generally more user friendly as there is usually a  cleaner who stays permanently in the restroom mopping and cleaning as you leave the toilet. However, the manner in which she cleans is just so primitive and outdated. Buckets of water is thrown onto the floor as though a flood hit the place and then she takes a mop and mops up all the water down a drain. With so many sophisticated cleaning machines available in the market you would expect a country that is rich to have better systems in place.Wearing a long abaya and entering into a toilet bombarded with stagnant water all over is definitely not a pleasant experience at all. Your clothes become impure which in turn makes it very difficult to perform your prayers.
If there is someone from Saudi reading this blog, please, please please can you tell me why are the Filling stations sooooooo run down and why are the washrooms in this country so dirty and unhygienic!!!!

So, What's your nationality?

Saudi Arabia has to be undoubtedly the only country in the world where everything is based on nationality.Your job, where you reside and even the service that you receive is all dependent on the passport you carrying.Nationalities are classed into different zones.So you may be thinking that Saudi citizens are classed as zone one as they are the native people of the country. Wrong!!!Think again. You will be shocked to learn that Americans and Canadians top the list followed by Saudi citizens and thereafter various other nationalities follow with Indians, Pakistanis, Filipinos and Bangladeshis at the lower end of the list.I find it surprising that  the people  of the country haven't questioned this.So what does it mean if you carrying an American or Canadian passport. Well,you will be eligible to numerous perks and benefits that are simply not afforded to many of the other nationalities.You will be entitled to a huge villa with pool and cleaning service, you will be given a higher salary than everyone else and many a times you will be offered to fly to the States twice a year at the cost of the company. I find the house bit ironic when there are thousands of Saudis who do not have homes or big villas to reside in. Almost 60 % of Saudi citizens live in rented apartments or homes.There are many Americans that I work with who simply have diploma degrees or normal B.Sc degrees but earn salaries that are three times more than their counterparts.For some odd reason, the perception here is that if you come from the USA or Canada you automatically are a great, intelligent person.Shouldn't a salary be based on merit in terms of the knowledge and experience that you have acquired  rather than upon a passport or nationality?

I have two friends. One is American and the other is Pakistani. The American has a normal Bachelors degree whereas the Pakistani has a doctorate in his field. The most amazing thing is that the American earns almost four times more than the Pakistani, is given the best accommodation within the hospital compound along with various other perks. The Pakistani on the other hand is not allowed accommodation within the hospital compound neither is he entitled to an education allowance for his kids.Of course the American friend is allowed a very high education allowance for two kids.If Saudi Arabia calls itself a Muslim country, then how can these bizarre policies ever be deemed as Islamic. This principle is totally against the teachings of Islam. Why is there a  perception that anyone from the west is great and intelligent whereas people from the east are poor, uneducated, etc etc.

The same kind of bizarre attitude exists at the airport as well. Many a times I would arrive at either King Khaled International airport in Riyadh or King Abdul Aziz airport in Jeddah only to find queues of Filipinos and Indians waiting patiently to pass through customs and immigrations. They would be spoken to in a very abrupt manner and treated with complete disrespect.At the same time I noticed many Americans or lets just say western orientated people treated with great care at the airport. They are usually asked to  proceed to a separate gate where there are  no queues at all.What kind of a mentality is this?

At the Janadriyya festival  this year a group of Saudi friends who visited were refused entry at a stage show as there were no more seats available. There were however four rows of seats right in front reserved in the event of any VIP guests arriving to view the show.As my Saudi friends left they encountered a group of western nurses who were also heading for the same show. They told them that there are no more seats available. However, at this point the guard came up to the western nurses and simply ushered them  straight in to the VIP area of the event to the amazement of my friends who were quite annoyed and upset.

We were having a chat the other night over coffee with my colleagues about  how one nationality perceives the other. Mr. N a Saudi gentleman views all Bangladeshis as thieves, all Pakistanis are shrewd and dirty especially the cab drivers according to him, Lebanese women are promiscuous and well Indians are perceived by him as being quiet and generally not too bad. So during this conversation, Mr F who is a Pakistani  doctor said that all Saudis are lazy, they come to work late and leave early and if all the expats left Saudi Arabia overnight the country would literally collapse.Its really awesome working with people from all over the world. Its is even more fascinating learning about their cultures and knowing about how they view the rest of the world. Whilst some of the stereotypes that we have created are true I still believe and maintain that at the end of it all we are all simply human beings and so irrespective of race, colour or creed, in every society you will find the good, the bad and the ugly. You are bound to find lazy and hard working people in all parts of the world and whilst many people here are under the assumption that Bangladeshis are thieves, you are bound to find thieves in America and within Saudi Arabia too.

There is one event that occurs yearly in Saudi Arabia and also happens to be one of the five pillars of Islam. The Hajj ritual quite rightly sums up the whole discussion regarding the issue of  nationalities.During the Hajj ritual all nationalities stand  together side by side dressed in one attire.There is no differentiation between rich  and poor, American and Indian,educated and uneducated individuals, everyone stands in front of God as His servants. No one is better than the other or more superior than the other.I think this policy of nationality that exists in Saudi Arabia is something that should be addressed and abolished. Everyone should be treated equally based on merit rather than a document stating that you are an American or an Indian for that matter. Respect is something that every human being deserves irrespective of class or status.This is the basis of the Islamic religion which unfortunately is not practiced within our so called "Islamic countries". As the Prophet (saw) said that an Arab is not  superior over a non Arab and a white person is not superior over a black person accept in good deeds and piety.