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AuthorOsaama Saifi

Osaama Saifi Received his BA from UC Berkeley in economics and rhetoric in 2012, with honors. He has led various interfaith events and believes the pen should be means of bridging differences. Osaama will be attending law school in the fall.

Muslim Wishes for Happy Holidays

  Originally published in the Santa Barbara Independent I know what you are thinking:”Happy holidays” is just an in inclusive way for non-Christians to say “Merry Christmas,” particularly when Chanukah was celebrated earlier this year. Muslims don’t celebrate Christmas, right? Au contraire, mon frère, Muslims may not celebrate Christmas, but Muslims do commemorate and honor Jesus Christ and...

Thanks Be to Women

Originally published in Santa Barbara Independent This Thanksgiving, we all will have many reasons to be thankful. I, for one, am thankful for all the women in my life, which at the moment include my mother and sister-in-law. It goes without saying that women are superheroes. It is then rather fitting that Marvel’s newest character, Ms. Marvel, is portrayed as a teenage female Muslim. While we’d...

Thanks Be to Women

Originally Published in the Santa Barbara Independant This Thanksgiving, we all will have many reasons to be thankful. I, for one, am thankful for all the women in my life, which at the moment include my mother and sister-in-law. It goes without saying that women are superheroes. It is then rather fitting that Marvel’s newest character, Ms. Marvel, is portrayed as a teenage female Muslim. While...

Remembering Abraham’s Sacrifice — Eid-ul-Adha

Originally published in Santa Barbara Independent Eid-ul-Adha literally means “commemoration of the sacrifice.” Some 10 weeks after Muslims spent a month sacrificing food in the month of Ramadan, Muslims spend time to remember Prophet Abraham’s sacrifice. While Islamic holidays may focus on sacrifices, these sacrifices are a means for strengthening one’s connection with God. This past Wednesday...

Service to Mankind and Faith

Originally published in Santa Barbara Independent “Prayer is better than sleep.” At 4:30 a.m., these words echoed through a hall packed with 1,240 Muslim youth during the call to prayer. The Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Organization, known as Majlis Khuddamul Ahmadiyya (MKA), brought together Muslim youth across the United States for its annual conference. With activities from 4:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., the...

Life of Muhammad New PBS Miniseries Provides a Glance at the Prophet

Originally published in Santa Barbara Independent As I kicked back in my humble American bungalow, pictures of modern Arabia peppered the television screen; images of immaculate mosques surrounded by dusty homes, desert planes under a beaming sun, and a sea of white robes, indistinguishable of race or gender, in pilgrimage to the holy city of Islam. While these images transported me to a distant...

Eid Marks the End of Ramadan – The Crucible of Fasting Removes Fetters of Extravagance

Originally Published in The Santa Barbara Independent “While we should be thankful of being able to fast during the month of Ramadan, we should be particularly thankful of the freedom that we have as American Muslims,” Imam Shamshad Nasir related to a packed congregation in the Bait ul Hameed mosque in Chino, California, during Eid-ul-Fitr. Often shorted to Eid, this celebration is at the end of...

Eid Marks the End of Ramadan The Crucible of Fasting Removes Fetters of Extravagance

Originally published in Santa Barbara Independent   “While we should be thankful of being able to fast during the month of Ramadan, we should be particularly thankful of the freedom that we have as American Muslims,” Imam Shamshad Nasir related to a packed congregation in the Bait ul Hameed mosque in Chino, California, during Eid-ul-Fitr. Often shorted to Eid, this celebration is at the end...

A Book Worth Reading – Ramadan Also Means a Time to Ponder the Qur’an

Originally published in Santa Barbara Independent   While Ramadan may be known as the month Muslims restrict their caloric consumption, Ramadan is also the month the Qur’an came into being. Muslims believe that Prophet Muhammad began to receive revelations of the Qur’an in the lunar month of Ramadan. Muslims further believe the angel Gabriel repeated the portions of the Qur’an revealed up to...

Fasting for What? Ramadan. It’s Not Just Another Trendy Diet

Originally published in Santa Barbara Independent   The atmosphere feels a bit different at 3:50 a.m. Hot summer days are suddenly cooled by the solitude this time of the night creates. Not only are many people at this hour awakening from a drunken stupor, but during the month of Ramadan, 1.3 billion Muslims in the world are awakening to pray and eat before their fast. Muslims throughout the...