The Islamic Halaqas Program
- Dedication
- The Ambassadors of Islam
- What is the Islamic Halaqas Program
- Why is the Program Named "Halaqa?"
- What is M4?
- Why Tuesday Night?
- Why Not Hold the Halaqa at an Islamic Center?
- Who Manages the Islamic Halaqas Program?
- Who Leads the Halaqas?
- What is the Purpose of the Islamic Halaqas Program?
- Who Has Participated in the Islamic Halaqas Program?
- How Was the Idea of the Islamic Halaqas Program Conceived?
- Who Attended the First Halaqa?
- Love, Unity and Forgiveness
- Contact Us
- Halaqas Schedule
- Related Links
Dedication
The Islamic Halaqas Program is dedicated to those who are very prominent in their closeness to God and whose intersession with our Lord, The Creator, we very much seek during the Night of Wednesday; this program is indeed dedicated to the Fourteen Infallibles: Muhammad ibn Abdillah al-Mustafa, Ali ibn Abi Taleb al-Murtadha, Fatimah ibnat Muhammad az-Zahra', al-Hassan ibn Ali al-Mojtaba, al-Hussein ibn Ali ash-Shaheed, Ali ibn al-Hussein Zeyn al-Abideen, Muhammad ibn Ali al-Baqer, Jaʿfar bin Muhammad as-Sadiq, Moussa ibn Jaʿfar al-Kazem, Ali ibn Moussa ar-Redha, Muhammad ibn Ali aj-Jawad, Ali ibn Muhammad al-Hady, al-Hassan ibn Ali az-Zaky, and the Awaited Imam, al-Mahdi, may the peace, mercy and blessings of God be upon all of them.
At the home of Hossein Falahati in San Jose, California.
The Ambassadors of Islam
Praise be to our Lord in all events, during these critical times in the history of Islam, God has bestowed upon the Muslims residing in the West, particularly the United States of America, the non-declinable duty and honor of representing the True Faith. As the de facto ambassadors of Islam to the Western nations, it is indeed our collective mission to keep our faith alive and thriving. One tremendously beneficial way to support our holy cause is to organize and participate in spiritual and business Islamic gatherings and develop maximum solidarity and cooperation in our community, God willing. In order to be true to this mission, with the concurrence and assistance of God, we founded the Islamic Halaqas Program. Halaqa is Arabic for circle.
At the home of Hassan Dastgah in Cupertino, California.
What is the Islamic Halaqas Program?
The idea of the Islamic Halaqas Program is for a group of Muslims to get together on Tuesday nights at different residences in various areas to collectively practice the True Faith.
The Islamic Halaqas Program starts with the jama'ah prayers of al-Maghrebain
(i.e., Salat al-Maghreb and Salat al-Esha'), followed by the invocation of
Du'a at-Tawwassul. The program then continues with relevant announcements about new ideas and a presentation of an Islamic topic by one of the faithful followed by a collective interactive discussion of the topic by all the attendees. Upon the end of the discussion, the leader of the Halaqa closes it with a Du'a and dinner is served to the attendees.
At the home of Mohamad Antar in San Jose, California. From left, Hossein Falahati, Shuja Yezdi, a Lebanese Shiite, and Ali Alamdar.
Why is the Program Named "Halaqa?"
Halaqa is Arabic for circle. During a Halaqa discussion we sit facing each, thus we form a circle. In a circle, every one is equal and can communicate and interact with everyone else easily and openly.
What is M4?
M4 is the alternate name of the Islamic Halaqa Program. The Arabic motto of this project includes four main words starting with the letter 'm'; thus M4.
At the home of Saeed Rezakhany. Zamani Zambri, right, lecturing.
Why Tuesday Night?
Tuesday night (or in Islamic terms, the Night of Wednesday) is when the Twelfth Imam, the Awaited Mahdi, PBUH, declares his Islamic government. According to our faith, it is recommended to invoke
Du'a at-Tawwassul
every Tuesday night. In fact, whomever has the tawfiq (the concurrence of God) to invoke
Du'a at-Tawwassul for 40 consecutive Nights of Wednesday will be God willing among the living companions of the al-Imam al-Mahdi, PBUH.
Du'a at-Tawwassul is a particularly powerful supplication. God provides the invokers of this Du'a with quick responses and fulfillments to their needs as this supplication includes the names of the Fourteen Infallibles, PBUT, and direct requests for their intercessions.
At the home of Hassan Dastgah in Cupertino, California.
Why Not Hold the Halaqa at an Islamic Center?
We do sometimes hold Halaqas at Islamic centers, especially when we see a benefit in doing so. However, there are many reasons as to why it is better and more practical to hold the Halaqas outside the Islamic centers; these reasons include the followings:
- Crossing any and all real or imagined boundaries that prevent us from uniting and coming together. These boundaries include:
- Geographic distance, as the Halaqa is conducted in various cities
- The lack of interest in Islamic centers among some members of the Islamic community
- Personal preferences for one center over another
- Giving life to our beloved faith beyond the Islamic centers and making every one of our homes a Mosque
- inging the blessings of God and attracting angels to the homes of the hosts of the Halaqas as the upholding of jamaa' prayers, the collective invocation of Du'a, the serving of food to the faithful pleases our All-Generous Lord
At the home of Azhar Zeeshan.
Who Manages the Islamic Halaqas Program?
The Islamic Halaqas Program is managed by the participating mullahs and local Islamic activists.
Who Leads the Halaqas?
So far the Halaqas have been led by the following mullahs (in Alphabetic order):
In the absence of a Shia cleric, other members of the Muslim community have been leading the Halaqas. So far, the Halaqas have been led by the following Islamic activists:
At the home of Ali Mirza.
What is the Purpose of the Islamic Halaqas Program?
The Islamic Halaqa Program is about bringing Muslims together, strengthening their bonds with God and with each other, and uniting and empowering them. The Islamic Halaqas Program brings to the participants many benefits:
- Every participant in the Islamic Halaqas Program benefits from the jamaa' prayers and the collective invocation of
Du'a.
- Every participant in the Islamic Halaqas Program has the opportunity to lead a Halaqa, host a Halaqa, make relevant announcements, present a Halaqa topic, discuss a Halaqa topic, or provide food to the participants.
- Every participant in the Islamic Halaqas Program has the opportunity to meet with new Muslims and develop new relationships in the community.
- Every participant in the Islamic Halaqas Program has the opportunity to promote his/her business and widen their networking circle.
- Most important, every participant in the Islamic Halaqas Program is sending a strong visual global message, via the SF☆BASIC website, to our fellow Muslims and all others that although we live in a system that permits us to easily cross the boundaries of Islam, we resolutely choose to collectively celebrate our True Faith not only on Fridays but on Tuesdays as well!!
At the home of Dr. Mazhar Khan in Morgan Hill, California.
Who Has Participated in the Islamic Halaqas Program?
The participants in the Islamic Halaqas Program have included Muslims of various countries of origin, including:
- Afghanistan
- America
- Canada
- Eritrea
- India
- Iran
- Iraq
- Lebanon
- Malaysia
- Pakistan
- Sierra Leone
The participants are from various San Francisco Bay Area cities and members of various Islamic centers.
At the home of Ali Abbas in Fremont, California.
How Was the Idea of the Islamic Halaqas Program Conceived?
The Islamic Halaqas Program was conceived on Monday, September 8, 2003, when Nabi Raza Mir (a.k.a. Nabi Raza Abidi) was fulfilling his religious obligation of consoling the ill. We took advantage of Abidi's visit and quickly organized a Halaqa, during which Abidi
introduced the attendees to Alam az-Zar (Arabic for "soul world") and discussed a number of metaphysical topics.
Praise be to God in all matters, this was the beginning of Project Reach-out and the Islamic Halaqas Program (a.k.a. Project M4) and a quest to celebrate our beloved faith in any and every home that opens its doors to Islam and the Muslims.
At the home of Azhar Zeeshan.
Who Attended the First Halaqa?
The first Halaqa was attended by:
At Masjid al-Rasool in Campbell, California.
Love, Unity and Forgiveness
Dear brother/sister, may God bless and guide you, please ask God, aj-Jame', the Gatherer, to bring us all together, unite us, and fill our hearts with love and forgiveness for each other. Please also pray for the success of the Islamic Halaqas Program and all Islamic projects.
 | City | Host | Topic | |
|---|
| Daly City, CA | Sam Bazzi | The Soul World | |
| San Bruno, CA | Kays Hadi | Islamic Activism | |
| Sunnyvale, CA | ICA | The Soul World | |
| San Jose, CA | Hassan Basma | Khums | |
|
Holy Mecca |
Dar as-Salam | The Soul World |  |
| Sunnyvale, CA | Sam Bazzi | Undoing Magic | |
| San Jose, CA | Nabi Raza Mir (a.k.a. Nabi Raza Abidi) | Distorters of Debate | |
| San Jose, CA | Hossein Falahati | The Monkey & the Banana |  |
| Cupertino, CA | Hassan Dastgah | Arrogance | |
| San Jose, CA | Mohamad Antar | The Tongue! | |
| San Jose, CA | Saeed Rezakhany | Leadership | |
| San Jose, CA | Mohamed Basma | Thankfulness | |
| Cupertino, CA | Hassan Dastgah | Promotion of Virtue & Prevention of Vice | |
| Fremont, CA | Azhar Zeeshan | Envy: Rejecting the Will of God! | |
| San Jose, CA | Mohammad Rakhshandehroo | Celebrating the Wrath of God! | |
| San Jose, CA | Mohamad Antar | Communicating With God! | |
| Fremont, CA | Ali Mirza | Our Inner Knowledge of the Creator | |
| Fremont, CA | Jawad Mirza | Ascending Towards the Creator | |
| Morgan Hill, CA | Dr. Mazhar Khan | Forgiveness | |
| Fremont, CA | Ali Abbass | Hijran: Abandonment | |
| San Jose, CA | Mohamed Basma | Pilgrimage | |
| Fremont, CA | Mehboob "Bob" Abedi | More on Pilgrimage | |
| Cupertino, CA | Hassan Dastgah | More on Pilgrimage | |
| Sunnyvale, CA | Azhar Zeeshan | Slander & Defamation | |
| Sunnyvale, CA | Nasser Alkhafaji | Japanese Highways | |
| Campbell, CA | Masjid Al-Rasool | Piousness | |
| Sunnyvale, CA | Mohammad Alofi | Age of Appearance | |
Related Links
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