Fake religiosity on March 16, 2018 There is a classic Sufi tale about a man searching for something on his lawn. Another man was walking by and asked him what it was that he sought. With his head in the grass, the man replied “My keys.” The Good Samaritan asked where he had dropped the keys. The man replied, “I […]
The Lodhran fallacy on February 22, 2018They say that hindsight is 20/20. Nowhere is that more evident than the post-electoral analysis of NA-154 by political pundits and journalists alike. All of them are repeating the same answers to the million-dollar question — what went wrong in Lodhran. According to most of them, the reason Ali Tareen lost is because people rejected […]
The myth of democracy on February 2, 2018The ultimate objective of any democracy is for people to elect rulers of their choice, which is what Pakistanis believe they are doing when they cast their vote every election. Yet the vast majority of the voters have never directly voted for a prime minister or even a chief minister. They have only voted for […]
10 most annoying things cousins from abroad say on January 1, 2018It’s that time of the year where every street has a house glowing with fairy lights indicating an upcoming wedding. It’s a festive time full of marriages and parties, and lunches and brunches. Unfortunately you can’t have a rose without the thorn. In the case of our wondrous winters, the thorn comes in the shape […]
The march of the religious right on December 9, 2017A few weeks ago, my two-year-old son and I were at our local mosque. We reached early and were approached by two merry missionaries from Karachi. After some ceremonial small talk, they asked if I prayed regularly. I confirmed that I did. They asked if I read the Quran daily and fasted yearly. I assured […]
Carnage in the Ka’bah on November 21, 2017It’s hard to believe but on Nov 20th, thirty-eight years ago, Juhayman al-Otaybi and his army of fanatics began seized the Holy Ka’bah. Hundreds of pilgrims were taken hostage. For the first time in centuries prayers and tawaaf, the circumambulation of the Ka’bah, stopped. Instead, the house of God was turned into a bloody battlefield […]
Understanding Ashura on October 1, 2017Hazrat Imam Hussain and his followers were martyred on the scorching sands of Karbala on the 10th of Muharram some 1337 years ago. This travesty concerns us all. The tragic events that unfolded in Karbala were not just about a cowardly war crime committed by an unjust ruler. It was also about the fearless defiance […]
United we stand, divided we fall on August 14, 201771 years ago in Hoshiarpur, a city in Punjab fabled for mango groves and micro fortresses manned by Pathans, my teenage grandfather sat in the courtyard to catch the evening breeze. He had chosen to skip dinner, a privilege extended to the youngest child in any home. What’s the harm he thought, especially since his […]
Revolution in Pakistan? Think again on June 15, 2017In Pakistan there have been calls for a revolution, especially in the last few years. We saw Dharnas, Arab Springs, and now an international corruption scandal from Panama that threatens to undo it all here at home. Fear not, Pakistan is very much immune to any such revolution. Firstly let’s be clear, a Coup D’état […]