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Ihya Effects

My new blog - http://ihyaeffects.blogspot.com/

The Best

This is about the list of best films and novels.

This page contains the list of best world cinema from various perspective.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Films_considered_the_greatest_ever

American Film Institutes (AFI) listed top 100 cinemas ever produced by Hollywood (American films). The first list has been published in 1998 and and 10th anniversary edition came in 2008
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AFI%27s_100_Years..._100_Movies_%2810th_Anniversary_Edition%29

Another list from AFI - top 10 in 10 genre
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AFI%27s_10_Top_10

Now books...

Modern Library published the list of 100 best novels and another list of 100 best non-fiction. That can be found here - http://www.randomhouse.com/modernlibrary/100bestnovels.html and http://www.randomhouse.com/modernlibrary/100bestnonfiction.html
A consolidated info about Modern Library and the list above mentioned can be found here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_Library

Another page in wikipedia that is interesting is the list of best selling books where in Bible tops the one - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_books

American beauty

It tells the story of a family living in a happy neighbourhood in a peaceful suburb of America. But the fact is that the main character Lester is deep down depressed and considered him as boring and unsuccessful. He eventually decides to cut loose the things which worries him. He quits the job blackmailing his boss and got a hefty leaving package. He changed the attitude towards his wife and daughter. He started working-out to impress his daughter's girl-friend Angelina. But everything ended in a disaster eventhough he felt GREAT at the end of his life.

If I extrapolate the story further the climax, the life of the rest of the characters would never be the same as before. Its a collapse.

In America, liberalism empowered the private life like the social and economic situation there. Few of the finest achievement of liberalism is the evolution of human rights as basic rights and the rise of feminism. The traditional family life was under the tyranny of patriarchy. And it is these movement emancipated the society from the shackles of subjugation.

But when it came to the cases of traditional institutions like marriage and family, looks like it resulted in its collapse. Individual freedom seldom goes in line with each others in the family. And that might have ended up in the collapse of those institutions.

Lets look at whats happening in the traditional societies in India. Following Patriarchy model by the rural india(1) ensures the continuity of the institution of marriage and family. But this comes at the cost of individual freedom. And because of that, it cannot be taken as the alternative that society needs. No empowered individual will be ready to accept the subjugative patriarchy model as their lifestyle.

Following is what I think as the solution for the crisis(2). Man(3) can take the responsibility of the family where he nurtures his own individual freedom and other households. He and others take the path of Sabr - sacrifice - and attain happiness in their life. And also this might save the institution of family. This solution is inspired from the new age Islam.

Epilogue:
I love my family.

--

(1) It is applicable to urban families that practising patriarchy.

(2) Solutions are never conclusive. It might evolve as I mature through my life.

(3) Here "man" can be best substituted by I as a person

Islam and Liberty - Mohamed Charfi

I got to know about the book from Frontline article - http://www.frontline.in/fl2313/stories/20060714000607800.htm

The author, Mohamed Charfi is a professor in law and served as Education minister of Tunisia.

Introduction and first chapter explain the facts and consequence of fundamentalism.

In second chapter which is the best in this book dissects the Islamic law - Sharia. He took the case of punishment for apostasy - death penalty. It was formalized based on a prophet's tradition - hadith. And motivation to carry out that was more of political reasons. Likewise he took most of the controversial rulings of Shariah.

He then logically and authoritatively concludes that Muslim law is anachronistic and were best for that time. Later Sharia remained stagnant and Ulema (scholar) attributed divinity to it. All later research were crushed and Tartaric attack (under Chengis Khan) on Abbaside killed eminent thinkers of that time. This led ulema to shut the door of Ijtihad (research) because they were afraid that they will never able to raise to the level of their predecessors.

Mutazziltes were crushed and the works of Avicenna, Averroes and the likes were burnt and lost in history.

Muslim thinkers in the late 18th and early 19th century did elaborative study on this subject and came to a point that Islam doesn't propose any totalitarian divine law for mankind

Author's answer for contemporary plural society is secularism. And Islam should be taken to private sphere.

Third chapter deals about the notion of Islamic state.

Author states that in Madeena there was no Islamic state formed under prophet. Actual Islamic state took birth with the caliphate of Aboobacker and flourished in the reign of Umar

Two more points from the same chapter.

After Jesus' crucification, his followers took the principle of rendering unto Ceasor that which Ceasor's and unto God that which God's. Author states that it was not a tactic rather a fundamental doctrine.

Erdogan's Justice and Development party in Turkey explicitly accepted secularism. And it doesn't refer Sharia nor describes itself as Islamist. Author takes this case as a point that Islam can co-oexist with secularism, modernity and democracy.

Fourth chapter puts forth education policy to achieve the above said social changes.

All in all this book was a wonderful read.

Islam Muslim Muslim Samooham

This book is more of a pragmatic thinking and solutions than a theolgical discourse. Author narrates the socio-economic state of contermporary muslims in India.

He points out the hard realities such as social evils like divorce are there in muslim society which were earlier accused only on western societies. His another observation is ethics level of indian muslims in day-to-day dealings is lesser compared to west. He urges muslims to take these things seriously which we are lacking.

Conditions of urban poor sect cannot be compared to the poor in the time of prophet. In cities nothing comes free including basic necessities like clean water. To sustain life, consistent income is vital. Whereas in the times of prophet's and before him basic necessities were never denied.

Education is directly linked to the survival. Those who cannot read cannot survive in the contemporary world. I would term illeterate is similar to a handicapped person who has to depend on others for rudimentary needs.

I didn't complete the book because I lost interest midway.