Saturday, March 28, 2009

A Moment's Reflection

We are born into exile,
That we may know the most beloved.
This time is but a trial,
We collapse for what we covet.
The only Truth is The Omnipotent.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

The Souls of Black Folk

I have just finish'd reading "The Souls of Black Folk" by W.E.B. Du Bois. Having have mused on the text somewhat, I find just cultural studies to a degree fascinating. To be cognizant of the many layers of the colonial situation as well as be aware of the Veil that Mr. Du Bois references. I have to ignore the minds that are part of the "conspiracy to silence" when it comes to the condition of Black folk. To empathize wholeheartedly with that middle-man trying to reach the European standard, at the same time, being disconnect'd from the root. How does one find elevated thought? How does one even know it exist without having been escort'd there by someone whose been will'd from an unknown space? One must clean the pipe from the residue that remains from colonialism.

Friday, March 6, 2009

The Development of a Community

As I reflect I'm finding an Orthodox Islamic community represents an excellent specimen for a case study for understanding the development of a group. Essentially, so much depends on the interaction of its inhabitants. We, humanity, were made diffferent for us all to make a contribution for the betterment. W.E.B. Dubois remarked about interracial cooperation referring to everyone contributing equally. What would happen if that elite part was to get up and leave? What would happen if the hegemonic group was to take its resources and leave those remaining to fend for themselves? This dynamic must remain an awareness in the forefront of the vocation.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

National Consciousness

In the essay "National Culture" Frantz Fanon remarks on the significance of establishing a National Consciousness. This notion of a consciousness represents the ideas, edifices, movements, as well as, past, that shape a Nation. Studying the idea of Post-Colonialism I see the many layers that exist in the Islamic groups I've been affiliated with. How the colonialist works to cripple the colonized. How leadership does not really work to develop the subaltern. Not just because of a lack of knowledge; but, too, a spiritual penury that exist.