*****Toronto Convention: Jan.2-4th*****

[Kruella]

It was a wonderful experience! I loved the incredible turnout and hopefully we all got one resolution to keep the whole year. I loved the dynamic and zestful presentation of Imam Zaid shakir (surely 50cent ain't worth a dime if he doesn't repent lol). I was in awe of the details of the linguistic miracle of the quran from Shk Hamza Yusuf (it was beautifully and so eloquently delivered). And of course, the soulful and sometimes comical delivery of the "heart" from Imam Moktar, I loved his feelings for the words. Unfortunatly, I missed Tariq Ramadan's presentation which i was so looking forward to. Can you guys tell me how it was on friday?

Hope each one who attended had a wonderful time as I did and maybe we'll have it at the skydome as Imam Zaid proclaimed.

 

salamz

[Haneefah]

Originally posted by Tamina:

10,000 muslims :eek:

I Know :eek: :cool: I had to literally hold my cousins' hands cuz once you lose someone there it'd take hours before you find them again.

 

Masha'Allah, It was an amazing convention. I have never seen anything like this before in this country. It was an undescribable experience for me personally because I've learned so much from some of the speakers (though all were very informative). Honestly, their lectures seemed as though they were specifically targeting me in terms of the points they were touching on and how I could relate to those points. So I came back home ready to CHANGE and do something about my current state as a Muslim ( I must say, DR. Tariq Swaidan with his lec's on success and change has had an immense impact on me).

 

Just the sight of so many Muslims united for the love of Allah (swt) and with the intention of improving their knowledge in Islam and interacting with their brothers and sisters was just beautiful all around!!

 

We really do have to thank Allah (swt) for giving us the opportunity to organize such a great conference so freely in a country that belongs to Kuffars and esp in a time where there's so much negativity being portrayed about Islam and Muslims. Like one of the speakers said ( I believe it was Tariq Ramadan), we as North Americans, esp Canadians DO have the opportunity to do something about the current situation of Muslims worldwide, and it is up to us and only us to decide to make a difference. May Allah guide us all, strengthen our Iman, and give us the capacity to make that difference. Amiin.

 

Insha'Allah, I will try and share my lecture notes with you guys once I organize them.

 

All of you who couldn't make it...I strongly urge you to buy the video tapes!

 

I must admit, I'm very proud of our Somali sisters. Masha'allah, Masha'Allah again to the number of sisters who participated and some who were even volunteering...I really do commend them for getting involved in events like this and learning about their deen, also the families who've attended (mainly mothers with their daughters). However, I was quite disappointed with our guys considering how only few showed up. Insha'Allah we should pray for them and for all of us.

 

P.S. Tamina, sadly enough Ilhaam and I couldn't make it today so pls do fill us in and share your notes with us...esp shaikh Hamza's and Dr. tariq's lectures.

[x_quizit]

I had a great time as well, the presenters were excellent and very enlightening and i do not if any of u sistas felt the same, but going to the convention makes u feel proud and priviledged to be born a muslim and being there can only strenghten ones' belief. I also enjoyed Imam Zaid's lectures, he was very brilliant, delivered his message in a way that engaged the audience, so was Imam Quick who's main message was taking a stand in life instead of us just waiting for everything to be solved for us. Hamza yusuf's linguistic delivery about the miracles of Islam was great as well, especially how he put it all together at the end, and last but not least the Sheikh Abdullah who spoke about women playing an important role in an islamic society and also talked about the importance of maintaining our deen all the time, be it good times or bad.

I missed the woman speaker Ammenah i believe her name is so if any of u can tell me what she spoke about and also the famed and well respected Tariq ramadan i was too late for, i would appreciate ur comments.

I was disappointed in Khalid's speech, not in the message but in the way the translaters were so late in transmitting his message on screen and often times, didnt write all he said, i would have understood it more if the translation was more speedy, but nonethless, from what I saw in the lil' translation, he talked about the Prophet (saw) and his companions, their hijra, and tied it in to assimilation in the west, for us not to be scared of it, but to have a balance.

 

Most memorable quotes/ideas for me were:

 

1-"Allah promised that extremists would perish" (sheik abdullah)

 

2-"a real test is having ur home bulldozed over like in palestine, and a lil test is getting stopped at the airport cause we're muslim" (Imam Zaid)-talking about the importance of getting our priorities straight, that of course we will face hard times but not to equate it to the eral hard times happening in kashmir, Chechnya, Palestine, etc...

 

3-"dont judge the next person cause tomorrow they can be the best of muslims" (abdullah i believe, correct me if im wrong)

 

What about for u guys? what are ur memorable moments or ideas u got out of the conference?

overall, i enjoyed it, found it to be in line to what i always believed and it taught me more new things as well, the speakers overall were great and im looking forward to next yr.

 

peace

[Miriam1]

The conference mashallah was amazing, it was far more than i have expected, it in many ways englightened me and inspiried me.

 

"The People"

 

1-It was great to see that many muslims. Sweet and interesting the way everyone was so nice to each other, always hearing from the crowd sister this or brother that.

 

2-The clothes waaaw lol, loved how most of the attendees wore the 3abbay and the thob, in many styles...the looked beautiful, not that anyone who was in casual wear was ugly but to me, they seemed to highlight the reason of the conference.

 

The "Speakers"

 

Dr Tareq Suwaidan, Imam Zaid Shakir and Sh.Abdallah Hakim Quick are the three i found to be most inspiring. Sh. Hakim's voice was so sincere at times i thought he would start crying, as i was well on my way lol. I loved his lecture on the heart, was simply great.

 

Hamza Yusuf on his lecture of the alphabets, words and their deeper meaning in the Quran and Sh. Abdullah Hakim Quick, loved the way he spoke about South Africa.

 

Br.Ziaullah Khan was a pure jokester.

 

Sr.Amina Assimili, I found her lecture interesting, yet i dont know, she seemed to lack energy and was to relaxed. I found myself thinking baout how to balance my cheque book while she spoke but mashalla i loved the way she presented the reason we wore the hijab, a very logical presentation.

 

"Fav qoute"

Walahi my memory fails me, not sure who said this qoute ,but it stuck.

"Not sure if you want to become a muslimah or the next J-lo

Not sure if u want to become a muslim or the next 50-cent, dont be wishy washy muslim be a strong in your decision"

 

I think at the end of the day you can not possibly remember everything that was said, but there is a feeling you get and thats the one that stays

 

Inshallah next year i will be there and hope to help in a way.

 

POWER TO THE MUSLIMS !!!!!!!

[sayfulaah-almasluul]

i am so happy that you guys,enjoyed and had good time with those sheikhs.some of maychange thier situation to good,i hope ramification of these lectures will be great in your lives.

i wasn't fortunate though to participate this extraordinary muxatharat ,but i did met one of most respected sheeikhs in muslim world.gusse who?sheikh yusuf alqardhaawi.on last friday 2/01/04 fadhiilatu qardhaawi was in dublin giving lectures and mawaacidas.realy nice man and so eloquent.his speeches left very good affect in our souls.

[Raxmah]

Salaams

 

Mashallah it must have been a wonderful convention. I wasn't furtunate enough to make it, For those who attended walah you had a wonderful oppurtunity, implement what you learned in your lives and please share what you learned with us. I can't beleive I missed Hamza Yusuf speak, I love his lectures. Just wondering Was Sudais there?

[Xafsa]

where would the tapes be sold..does anyone know? If so let me know.

[Caveman]

Assalamu Allaikum,

 

i trully envy every one of you who attended the convention....but Masha'a Allah may allah continue us with these type of blessings...

But i asked a Question long time ago..and i was requesting those of you who attended the convention to tell me if any Islamic Company that have recorded these lectures. if so, please tell us...

 

thank you

Salaam

[StarGazer]

^^^ Caveman, I did reply the 1st time my dear...visit the website, I believe its in the process of releasing audio/video. Plss brothers& sisters, invest in them I assure you, you won't regret.

 

My reaction:

 

I was astonished by the quality of the presentations. Every one who attended was looking for answers as to why we are stuck as muslims here in the West. I left that convention challenged to make a commitment to myself to serve my Master, and I can only do it by walking the walk and stop paying lip service to Islam.

 

 

Sh.Abdullah Adhami: I listened attentively to his session on gender and experience. His point was that self empowerement is self-propelled. Don't look to society or your spouse/mother/father for that push, they will only limit you. A person will be treated in society according to the status they percieve you to be. A person's reality is what gifts Allah endowed and what he held from them. Realize your potential, no matter your gender, and rise to the occasion. I'm only sad I missed this years Deen Intensive Program.

 

Tareq Suwaidan: Loved his style of presentation...cute sense of humour. He talked about the definition of success and personal change. The balanced achievement in 4 areas of life are from : 1) Within 2) Withothers 3) Within life 4)With Allah (SWT) (not the least ofcourse). Now you achieve one of them...you're partially successful. You need to conquer all 4 areas. Reminds me of the book "7 highly habits of effective people". These are basic universal principles.

 

Sh. AbdulHakim Quick:

We were honored to have him this year, his new book is available now "40 Hadiths on Revival". Get it!! Muslims in the West tend to resort(especially after 9/11) to either total isolation or assimilation. We need not isolation, assimilation, or desperate confrontation, but revival and dawah. Best dawah is SILENCE DAWAH. Leave dawah to those who have the time. Your job is to be a muslim by building your character and not hiding from this society. We are not going anywhere guys. Get involved in politics, economics, PTA's, community gatherings. Greatest weapon is Towbah (repentence), then self analysis and reconstruction. "Why can't we gather the best of different muslim organizations ( salafis, sufis, akhwaanul muslimiin) and use it to strengthen our community here?".

 

Dr. Munir Kassim: 1) Be Canadian/American/British

2) Stop being spiritually arrogant (ehem SOL Islam section ) 3) Open mosques, centers, institution to both muslims and non-muslims. We got nothing to hide do we? 4) Put our differences aside. 5)Stop thinking that muslims hardships began after 9/11. Now if you look back in US history, the jews and the catholics went through HELL to keep their faith while pursuing their ambitions. 40 yrs later, 1st catholic was elected as the president. Who knows, we might have a muslim supreme judge one day.

 

Imam Mokhtar: I don't about anyone else but he brought me to tears. He's just a beautiful being. His message was: A qalb(heart) attached to the Rasuul(SAW)is freer than a qalb attached to dunya. Attachements= materials or people. By attachements, the qalb is veiled or jailed. You'll just have to get the tape..

 

I can speak forever about what I've extracted from this gathering, but I'll spare your eyes and encourage you to get your copy.

 

However, they've reminded us that numbers don't really matter........b'coz there are 10 folds of muslims out there who couldn't care less. Let's stop alienating our brothers and sisters and find a way to relate to them the Sunnah of the Rasuul by striving to embody the Islamic principles & values. Don't be judgemental. There will always be differences among us, however we need to put things into perspective to work for the greater cause for the sake of our children.

 

Dr. Munir " Don't hold back your children, rather vacinate them with ISLAM and let them GO!"

[Matkey]

I have always wanted to meet brother Abdalla Hakim Quick before he moved to South Africa. But this time I had the opportunity to meet him at Islamic conference in Toronto. He was at his booth where his daughters, I think, were selling his books and types. But unfortunately I missed his lecture. Hamza Yusef did a good job in term of reminding young people how the civilization flourished from Islam. But I was expecting him to make some profound theologico-philosophical discussion about the so-called advanced nations (west) and the Islamic world as he did in his earlier lectures (Methodology of Qur’an which I have watched over and over again). I would highly recommend those of you who haven’t seen this lecture (methodology of qur’an) to buy it! Even those who are into philosophy will enjoy the way brother Hamze delineates philosophers mistakes in terms gayip (the unseen) and the seen world. As most of you know, he has website where you can purchase all of his lectures, and you can also become a member of his site so that you can have an access to his lectures. I REALLY ENJOYED NOT ONLY THE LECTURE BUT ALSO THE ATMOSPHERE. INDEED, IT WAS WELL ORGANIZED.

[SAGAL]

I love abdul hakim quick. I think he's the best speaker. Inshallah i'll go everyyear

[Qac Qaac]

I am very sorry that, i am replying so late. but i too enjoyed like most of our sisters here enjoyed.

 

i learned lots of stuff from Tareeq Suwaidan, and Hamza Yusuf. Do u all remember this. for those of you who know something about the arabic language how the fa in arabic opens the mouth, and the miim closes the mouth put them together u have FAM which mouth in arabic, and also discribes the job of the mouth it opens and closes masha'allah.

 

i think the most boring thing, was when the mayor, the rcmp, and the cheif, because i didn't feel sincerity from them. but i guess it was for politics, but other than this i loved it.

 

my favourits.

 

1. Mukhtar Maghrawi

2. Abdullah Hakim Quick.

3. Tareeq Suwaidan

4. Hamza Yusuf

5. Imam Zaid Shakir.

 

Quotes.

 

tareeq suwaidan " change your goals into project"

abdallah hakim quick " put women in a leader ship role"

tareeq ramadaan " i criticize th action of the government of Isreal, it doesn't make me anti-semetic"

Hamza Yousuf " we taught the western everything they know" " what happen now"

 

Hamza yousuf " American talibans" loool.

tareeq suwaidan " from Omar bin Khattab story, my wife cooks and washes my cloth for free, and is not obligotory to do it for me, why don't i let her yell at me couple of times".....

 

i could go on the whole day. but i'll stop here.

[LixAfar iyo Nus]

The conference was well done Mash'Allah. I'm really happy to say that our Somali sisters A.k.a 'Future Mothers' have represented very well in being part of the organization of the conference and also attending it.

 

For those Somali's whom are close to the Deen and try to practice it, in the essence of pleasing Allah will be the ones who will take an active role in the reconstruction of Somlia. The ONLY sollution to Somalia is ISLAM and Islam only. Somalia is in need of innovative rethinking based on original, authentic Islamic sources. Keep up the good fight.....the time is extremely near.

 

Nonetheless, Abdalla Hakiim Quick was a man among boys because he spoke with a purpose and objective. I thought he gave us a practical solutions to the problems we Muslims face. He said confrontation was legitimate in Palestine, Chichniya...etc 'Allahu Akbar' otherwise no need for desprate confrontation, no isolation and no issimilation. His book 'The forty Ahaadeeth on Islamic Revival' is a book that is truly remarkable and will revive the Islamic spirit within ourselves and our communities. Please read it and see it for yourself.

 

He ended up saying that we MUSLIMS need to make,

 

1- tawbah (repentence),

2- self analysis and

3- re-construction

 

For those who don't know Shiekh Abdalla Hakiim Quick, this is a brief backround of him:

 

He embraced Islam in 1970 and after a while he went to Madina University, where he completed a BA from the college of Da'wah and Usul al-Din. he later got his masters degree and PhD on the History of Islam in Africa at the University of Toronto. The focus of his thesis was the life of Shiekh Uthman Dan Fodio, the Amir of the Sokoto Caliphate in the 18th century.

 

May Allah be pleased with him and have mercy on us...Aameen.

[Qac Qaac]

Uthman dan Fodio, woow whatta man. Lix afar thanks man. I hope we find hundred of Uthman dan Fodio now among our muslim ppl.

[LixAfar iyo Nus]

Hey, my main man Qac Qac....I'm hoping that you become the Just, spiritual Islamic leader as Uthman Dan Fadio and Half Islamic Worrior just like Qac Qac Ibn Amr...We are counting on you Insh'Allah.