Author: baqir shameem

My second visit to Portland, Oregon was after witnessing my granddaghter's stellar performance in the US North West Youth Rowing Championship held at Vanouver lake, Washington ; she was the coxswain, entered the event for the first time and her team consisting of eight helsmen were runners up. Yameena in the centre In my first… Continue reading The Meet Up Group →

After the rigors of travel during the Ziarat, Dubai was the classic locale for leisure and relaxation which I relished in the company of my handsome nephew Murtuza (Tabish) , equally charming wife Samiya and their frolicsome children Hasan and Ahmad, at their residential bungalow. Having worked at Bahrain for nearly ten years, Dubai was… Continue reading Safarnama-Dubai →

From Balad we reached Kazmain in nearly two hours covering a distance of approximately 50 miles. This holy shrine, as with the others, is visited by millions of the followers every year. Our Maulana explained the reasons for its sanctity and veneration. Sharing it. https://videopress.com/v/XXBewj2h?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true Photography inside the shrine is prohibited. We recited the Fateha… Continue reading Safarnama Iraq – Kazmain →

It took the taxi nearly two hours to cover the 32 Km distance from Samrra to Balad. Perhaps due to the inadequacy of water, the landscape in most areas along the highway that we had earlier traversed had appeared arid with scanty vegetation. However, the fields in the Samarra- Balak belt were well attended to… Continue reading Safarnama Iraq – Balad →

After the Fajr (dawn) namaz (prayer) Maulana Qasim Najaf, guide and mentor for the day's ziarat met me at the hotel. We set out to reach Samarra first and decided to touch Balak and Kazmein on the return journey. The three and half hour journey to Samarra took over five hours due to the poor… Continue reading Safarnama Iraq: Samarra →

Ahl al-Bayt (Arabic:lit. 'people of the house') refers to the family tree of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). In Shiasm, the term is limited to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH); his daughter Fatimah, his cousin and son-in-law Ali Ibn Abu Talib, their two sons, Hasan, Husayn and the lineage thereafter. The term has also been extended in Sunnism to apply to all descendants of the Banu Hashim (Muhammad's clan)… Continue reading Safarnama Iraq – Karbala →

The 10 km journey to Kufa from Najaf was a bit uncomfortable due to the rains water puddles and pits all over the road, especially in the built up areas. For me I was entering my emotional world, as the preamble to the greatest tragedy was unolding. It all began when the Kufan's invited Hazrat… Continue reading Safarnama Iraq: Kufa →

Why did I go to Najaf? I heard and read the words of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) and had no other choice as a Shia! Sharing these with you. “Ali is from me and I am from Ali.” “Ali is the first person to believe in my Prophet hood and will be the first person to… Continue reading Safarnama Iraq: Najaf →

a (Picture by Jafar Shameem) The scriptures dictate, “follow one path, the right one” for a long and happy life I scratched my head when I read the book and said to myself “I will surely strife” My parents taught me to obey and respect the tutors, the elders and seek friendship My teachers in… Continue reading The Right Path? →

 “What's in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other word would smell as sweet.” So declares Juliet as she laments the name of her beloved in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet I suppose the great Peer had this in mind when he tutored Juliet, “what matters is what something is, not what… Continue reading What’s in a Name? →