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IMANA Hosts Successful 50th Anniversary Gala

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by TMO Staff

 The Islamic Medical Association of North America (IMANA) celebrated its 50th Anniversary with a Gala dinner in Reston, Virginia on Saturday, October 14.

The turnout was fantastic and it was a splendid evening honoring IMANA’s milestones. 380 guests including government officials, representatives from several non-profit organizations, friends, and loved ones of IMANA’s community along with twenty-three former IMANA presidents gathered together to recognize IMANA’s contributions to the American society and its impact across the globe. The evening highlighted IMANA’s accomplishments driven by IMANA’s vision articulated a half a century ago.

Attendees enjoyed a keynote speech from Ambassador Shabazz, daughter of Malcolm X, and an address by Lonnie Ali, wife of the legendary Muhammad Ali. The IMANA lifetime achievement award was given to Muhammad Ali, posthumously for his work towards the clinical care and rehabilitation of patients with Parkinson’s disease at the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center. After accepting the award, Lonnie Ali spoke about the dedication to service and passion for justice of Muhammad Ali and his exemplary life, that left a deep and wide impact around the world. All the IMANA former presidents, present at the event, were acknowledged with an award for their exceptional leadership and service.

Guests were delighted with an exquisite cuisine, including international desserts from countries all around the world in which IMANA has provided medical relief. The crowd enjoyed an evening of laughter with comedian Mo Amer. IMANA also released copies of its new book commemorating its 50-Year History Serving Faith, Profession and Community by American Muslim healthcare professionals. The book will be available to purchase online starting next week.

The IMANA 50th Anniversary Gala dinner was truly a night to remember and a gratifying celebration. The silent auction was well received with the outstanding artworks from Eye for Art, all but two pieces were purchased.

“We are proud to continue IMANA’s mission to strive towards a world in which the wellness and health care of all people are served by the American Muslim community,” the organization wrote on their website.

“This event would not have been possible without the generous support of every one of our volunteers and of course all our attendees,” they added.

Karbala, A Reminder

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Photo Credit: Davoud Ghahrdar

by Suraiya Ali

There is a story of Karbala

that everyone knows.

There is a story of a man who was connected to divinity

There is a story of a man who knew that he was the prophet’s progeny.

There is a story of a man who realized his life was political currency,

that with spending it, he could save thousands, millions, of others from calamity.

There is a story of Karbala that is harsh. It is chains on the chest of mourning men.

This is a story about Hazart Hussain, who went to aid his allies in Kufa, and with his family, walked into his own martyrdom.

There is a story that he knew he was going to die, and that when his enemy told him

that not even a funeral shroud

would be provided for his corpse,

he responded, God will send onto his body a cloth of divine light, directly from Heaven.

There is a story that is about massacre.

70 women and children, warrior and worshipper, killed by an army of thousands; starved from water for three days.

There is a story of Karbala that everyone knows.

It is sharp like swords, putrid like the smell of bodies left to rot in the desert.

There is another Karbala, that we do not speak about.

There is a Karbala that is soft.

There is a Karbala;

In which Hazart Hussein was a father, a new father, to baby boys; Ali as-Asghar and Zayn-al Abidin,

In which he felt their infant hands, soft as the petals of Persian Jasmine, grasp his fingers.

There is a Karbala;

In which he heard his young daughter, Ruqayyah, speak to him in the gentle and gibbering Arabic of a toddler.

There is a Karbala full of mothers, who tended to their children, regardless of thirst, regardless of heat, with love as supple as the hand-woven rugs they left behind in their homes.

There is a Karbala full of husbands, who’s bond in marriage reeked so much of love that their wives walked with them through that desert, to the last moment they would ever be able to embrace one and other.

There is a Karbala of love.

There is a Karbala as soft as the laugh of a child, as smooth as silk on a jummah afternoon.

There is Karbala as sweet as Hafiz, as succulent as Rumi.

Why do I remind you of this? When you fathers beat themselves with chains, and your mothers weep into black chadors– why do I remind you of softness?

I do not wish to romanticize Karbala.

There is no romance in malpractice.

I wish to remind you that as you fight for the injustices of our past, and blaze forward to undo the injustice of our future, you must seek the soft.

You must remember as you mourn that while they fought they also loved.

While they died they also loved.

While their last breath left their bodies, they also loved.

My Karbala so full of love that it is as soft as pink chiffon, as delicate as rose petals.

My Karbala is one where the Army of the Holy was massacred, but the love of their House was only sanctified.

My Karbala is soft, so soft, that even chain links covered with the blood of devotees, are no match for the noor they bring to those who hold them.

 

Poet Suraiya Ali has grown up with the mourning of Karbala. She has felt her history every Ashura. During the Muslim month of Moharram, where Shia and Sunni Muslims alike, mourn the martyrdom of Hazart Hussain, who suffered on the fields of Karbala a death deemed gruesome by most in history, it is easy to be lost in the convictions of pain. Suraiya in her work, “Karbala, A Reminder”, engages readers in realize, that even with pain comes softness and in that softness, a devotee can find bliss. 

dates

The Mentions of Dates in The Quran and Hadith

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by M.I.H. Farooqi

The date palm is said to have originated in the Middle East and has proven to be such a source of nourishment that it has become a popular wholesome food across the planet. In many ways, dates may be considered as an almost ideal food, providing a wide range of essential nutrients and potential health benefits. It is because of its energy value, that dates have special significance for the fasting month of Ramazan. Man can survive for long years with good health if only dates (Arabic: Tamar; Hindi/Urdu: Khajur) are eaten daily.

Many fruits and fruit-bearing plants have been mentioned in the Qur’an, but it is the date palm that finds maximum references. Under the Quranic names of Nakhl and Nakhil , it has been mentioned in 20 verses of the Quran.

In Surat Al-Nahl, Allah Says: “With it He produces for you corn, olives, date palms, grapes, and every kind of fruit: Verily in this is a Sign for those who give thought” (Al-Quran 16:11).

The Qur’an also narrates the incidence when Maryam, may Allah be pleased with her, was provided with fresh ripe dates when she was feeling pain during childbirth (Al-Quran 19:23). It is this verse that is supposed to be the reason for considering dates to be beneficial to pregnant women while experiencing contractions.

In Prophetic Traditions, many useful properties have attributed to dates. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) advised his followers to break fast with dates during Ramadan. He also advised:

‘‘Don’t miss evening meal, even if it happens to be constituted of few dates. Missing of evening meals hasten aging.”

In another hadith, taking dates in the morning is said to help in preventing poisoning.

The botanical name of the date palm is Phoenix dactylifera, which belongs to the family Palmae (Arecaceae). In Arabic, the date palm is called “Nakhl” whereas its fruit is known as “Tamar,” although in many Arab and African countries the Hindi word “Khajur” and Persian word “Khurma” have been of common usage for the date fruits.

It is assumed that the domestication and cultivation of date palm started 6,000 to 8,000 years back in Mesopotamia. Probably no other fruit plant was in cultivation at that time anywhere in the world and that may be the reason why the date palm is supposed to be the plant most associated with the development of human culture and civilization. According to an old saying in Arabic, the uses of date palm are as many as the number of days in a year.

Dates are not only sweet and delicious but they are one of the best-known nutritious diets for mankind. They contain more than 60 percent invert sugar along with a small amount of sucrose in addition to protein, pectin, tannin, cellulose, starch and fat in varying proportions. Vitamins A, B and C are also present in appreciable amounts. Furthermore, the mineral constituents present are iron, sodium, calcium, sulphur, chlorine and phosphorus. Wholesome dates are used for making confectionery, beverages, sugar and a sugary syrup — very much like honey.
Dates are reputed for their great medicinal value. They are demulcents, emollients, a heart stimulant and help in checking the loss of memory. They are also useful in respiratory disorders in general and asthma in particular. In addition, dates are laxatives, diuretics and aphrodisiacs. Thus, taking into account all of their constituents and qualities, they can be rated as a nutritious diet and a health tonic.

[Read More: “An Energizing Date and Banana Smoothie To Power You Through the End of Ramadan“]

Because of their beauty and elegance, date palm gardens are an exquisite sight. In fact, most of the poets of Arabia, Africa and even Europe have described date palms in their well-known poems. Homer, in his epic, “Odyssey,” has used the word “Tamar” (date tree) to represent beauty. Similarly, Chaucer and Shakespeare have also mentioned date palms in their writings.

Phyto-geographically, the area of cultivation of date palms extends from Western India to the East of Africa. According to the UN Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO) report of 2012, top ten producing countries of dates are Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Iraq, Pakistan, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Tunisia and Libya.
However, some of the best varieties like Ajwah, Khalas, Zahidi, Muzafati, Hayati, Afandi, Helwah, Jebaily, Shalaby, Rabiyyah, Rashudiah, Safawy, Maktoomi, and Sariyyah are produced in Saudi Arabia, Oman, Iran UAE and Iraq.

Total world date fruit production is about 7.8 million tonnes (2012- FAO Report) of which 87% comes from the ten countries mentioned above.

India is the major importer of dates after France. About 5 lakh metric tonnes are imported in India every year
Chemical Composition of 100gms of Dates: Energy 280 kcal 1180 kJ; Carbohydrates, 75 g (Sugars, 63 g); Dietary fiber, 8 g; Fat, 0.4 g;Protein, 2.5 g; Water,21 g; Vitamin C, 0.4mg; Manganese,0.262 mg