Category Archives: Stories

Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal (Arabic: أَحْمَد ابْن حَنۢبَل), or Ibn Ḥanbal (ابْن حَنۢبَل) (November 780 – 2 August 855 CE/164–241 AH), was an Arab Muslim jurist, theologian, ascetic, hadith traditionist, and founder of the Hanbali school of Sunni jurisprudence — one of the four major orthodox legal schools of Sunni Islam. A highly influential and active scholar during his lifetime, Ibn Hanbal went on to become “one of the most venerated” intellectual figures in Islamic history, who has… Read More »

A timeline of human evolution, history, technology, and the fates of human societies. This is History, history understood as a single, coherent, evolutionary process, when taking into account the experience of all peoples in all times. See an updated version here. (For my reference. All dates approximate. Suggestions welcome..) =====> All dates B.P. (Before Present) unless otherwise noted. <===== 250… Read More »

It was a warm afternoon on June 2, 1913, and the sun was shining brightly A middle-aged man was sitting under a tree on the twenty-second mile of the road from Rawalpindi to Murree, trying to protect himself from the hot sun. This person’s name was Pehlwan, his body and tosh were also like PehlwanPehlwan was the janitor… Read More »

Nelson Mandela, leader of the movement to end South African apartheid, is released from prison after 27 years on February 11, 1990. In 1944, Mandela, a lawyer, joined the African National Congress (ANC), the oldest Black political organization in South Africa, where he became a leader of Johannesburg’s youth wing of the ANC. In 1952, he became deputy national… Read More »

Having said that deciding how to tackle this mighty beast can throw up all manner of questions. For instance, when’s the best time to go? How long should I spend onboard? And, most frequently, do I choose a felucca or riverboat? To quickly address a couple of those queries, October to April is the best time to travel because it’s not too… Read More »

To help keep travelers safe, airports may use different kinds of screening equipment. Airport security scanning equipment is used to check carry-on items and checked luggage for items that are not approved for air travel. Some of the equipment used during the screening process can emit low-levels of radiation. On this page: About Radiation and Airport Security Scanning… Read More »

Abū Ṭalḥa, Zayd ibn Sahl ibn al-Aswad ibn Ḥarām al-Khazrajī (Arabic: أبو طلحة زيد بن سهل الأنصاري) was a renowned companion of the Islamic prophet Muḥammad and one of the Anṣār (the ‘Helpers’) of Medina.He was from Banu Khazraj, Which after the Hijrah came to be known as the Ansar. He was mostly known as a valiant fighter and skilful archer of the early Islamic period. Abū Ṭalḥa was known to… Read More »

I can feel their unasked questions. People wonder how I can still stand, still walk, still laugh. But they don’t ask. You can’t ask that of a mother who has lost her child. My son, Daniel, died three years ago at the age of 22. When people ask me, “How… are you?,” that pause, that inflection, tells me that’s really what… Read More »