|
I'm moving to http://www.keadilan.net/blog/. I'm using wordpress on the new site. It should give me more control over the styles and contents (database). |
At-Talaq 3:
Wa yarzuqhu min haythu la yahtasibu wa man yatawakkal 'ala Allahi fa huwa hasbuhu inna Allaha balighu amrihi qad ja'ala Allahu li kulli shayin qadran
And He provides for him from where he does not reckon. And whoever puts trust in Allah, so Allah is sufficient for him. Surely Allah will accomplish His purpose. And Allah has set a measure for all things
The following is an excerpt of commentary on this ayah, from Tafsir Ibn Kathir:
Whoever has Taqwa of Allah in what He has commanded and avoids what He has forbidden, then Allah will make a way out for him from every difficulty and will provide for him from resources he never anticipated or thought about... Allah will execute His decisions and judgement that He made for him, in whatever way He wills and chooses |
Reading some of the obituaries of Kuntowijoyo I feel a sense of a great loss that I didn't know much about him. Having been abroad for my entire adult life, I lack the social, intellectual, and organizational experiences that come from, for instance, being in campus and active in its varieties of movements. I don't know (or know little) about a lot people I should know (more). This doesn't have to mean knowing them personally, but I'd like to know their histories, thoughts, influences, etc. So I'd need to know people who know them, and being in campus certainly would help.
However, being in the right place at the right time is not sufficient. The campus was rather polarized 10-15 years ago. I might be in one "side" without knowing much about the other side. At least that's what I've been observing from some of my friends. That's why it's very encouraging to see all sides are active in politics right now one way or another. This means there are interactions from all sides in the highest level, which should bode well for interactions in the lower levels. And those lower level interactions, which necessarily have been started 5-10 years ago, make the higher level ones possible. |
I wrote before the 2004 election (Bahasa), how the Bush win would bring together a unilateral approach and an incompetent administration resulting in policies that divorce themselves from reality-based world. (The article was written before the election, so it also has a lot of stuff on Kerry and Democrats. The relevant stuff is in sections 3.1 and 5.1.)
The current administration of the US seems to manage to always take the least popular position in every important issue matters to the rest of the world. No wonder, the world has managed to get by without the US.
Michael Lind wrote in the Financial Times how the US became the world's most dispensable nation,In a second inaugural address tinged with evangelical zeal, George W. Bush declared: "Today, America speaks anew to the peoples of the world." The peoples of the world, however, do not seem to be listening. A new world order is indeed emerging - but its architecture is being drafted in Asia and Europe, at meetings to which Americans have not been invited. |
This is just a quick rundown. Hopefully I have time to elaborate more later on.
If the whole tradition of western thoughts is a human body, then the body stands on two legs. The right leg is the scriptural tradition, originated in the Near East, preserved by Jews for hundreds of years BC, expanded by (and survive of) the Christian Roman Empire (the West and then Byzantium), and strengthened using power and organizations by the Church. The Jews held on to their society and identity, while Paul spreads Christianity to the masses.
The left leg is the philosophical tradition, started in Greece before Socrates, argued (literally) by Plato's dialogues, analyzed and classified by Aristotle's logic and methodology, lived by Epicurus, doubted by the skeptics, and practiced by the Roman stoics. Plato points upward to the divine soul, while Aristotle points to the worldly and human nature.
Augustine might be the first part of the torso which joined the two legs. He had a neoplatonist view before he formulated doctrines on soul and freewill. But, there was no major development in the west after him (I'm hesitant to use the term 'Dark Ages' here).
On the other hand, Muslim thinkers from Al Kindi, Al Farabi, to Ibnu Sina and Ibnu Rusdh, flourished during this time. In fact, without them the torso wouldn't be fully formed as we know now. Their scriptural traditions were not those of Augustine's but the philosophical traditions had the same origins. In fact, they got from the West more than Islam ever did and the West got more from them than Islam did.
Finally, Aquinas completes the top part of the torso. He studied Aristotle using Ibnu Rushd's commentary. He disagreed with Ibnu Rushd's double-truth that philosophy and theology might have different sets of truth, and tried to unify them. By and large, Aquinas was an Aristotelian, with his Natural Law built firmly in this tradition.
The next part will deal with the other part of the body, ie. arms, neck and heads which correspond to the more modern tradition. |
| » Detached |
|---|
Looking at the picture (NYT), I feel so guilty in a strange way. Lives for so many people will be different, while I'll carry on without any discernible changes. Maybe most of the people praying also will go on with their lives, but I just don't feel right about this. I'm afraid that being far away will make me so detached and soon forget about their lives and deaths. I hope to stamp this however awful moment in my memory, to always keep me grounded and rooted.
Jan. 6th, 2005 @ 01:22 pm
|
| » Spellbound |
|---|
I found the DVD of this documentary in the children section of the library. We really liked it. It's wonderful to see different expressions of ecstasy, surprise, confusion, or relief in the face of the children after they (mis)spelled their words. We also enjoyed watching the parents interact with their chidren during preparations and after the competition.
The six and four years old also really enjoyed the movie. Incidentally I just bought a children dictionary for them last week, so they followed along with all the spellings.
Dec. 8th, 2004 @ 06:26 pm
|
| » Blogging is not for everybody |
|---|
It's not for me if the lack of updates in the last couple of months is any indication. But, enough about me, blogging is not for Becker and Posner either, if their first posts are any indication. As bad as Becker is, Posner is even worse. The economist made a law argument (self defense), while the lawyer made an economic argument (expected cost-benefit), both ending up nowhere. Kieran Healy of Crooked Timber even had a little fun and said those posts might be from impostors.
Yes, their names and reputations attract a lot of attentions already. Yes, blog can be one of Hayek's mechanism for distribution of knowledge, and they certainly have a lot of knowledge to distribute. Just maybe, making and presenting arguments in this forum need different set of skills from those in the fora they are used to. Maybe blogging is not for them. Certainly it's too early to make any definitive pronouncement, so let's hope it will get better.
Dec. 6th, 2004 @ 12:54 pm
|
| » Her First Story |
|---|
She claimed this is original. She wrote it in about an hour while asking me for spelling of some of the words. I tried to stick to her writing as close as possible.
a Little Bat
once upon a time
There was a Bat
who was Flying
aLL night
That He sleeps aLL
day Long one day
some thing changed
He was sLeeping
in the nightTime
and playD aLL day
Long
anD He DiD That
EvEry Day That
LittLe Bat srue
Is Funny
I think that Bat is
sure changed
His LiFe
The End
Sep. 15th, 2004 @ 08:40 pm
|
| » Market vs Government |
|---|
Nicely summed up by DeLong -- about Krugman -- on balancing the roles of market and government: "Paul Krugman loves the market more than any other economist I know--in a "tough love" sense. That is, he's not one of those on the right who thinks that market failures don't exist, pretends that every market everywhere functions perfectly, and doesn't care much about how markets really work. He's not one of those on the left who thinks that market failures are unfixable, and that command-and-control is nearly always and everywhere a better alternative.
"He's one who believes that market failures are dangerous things that can be neutralized: smart reorganizations of property rights, or small steps that put the government's thumb on the scale to improve incentives, or tweaks to the legal structure that rule certain kinds of contracts out and other kinds of contracts in will, he thinks, almost always turn the market into an effective and efficient social planning and organization mechanisms that everyone can love. His is a "tough love" approach to markets--and it is a sign that he cares and that he has great faith in Adam Smith."
Aug. 31st, 2004 @ 11:14 am
|
|
|
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=92.2){kind=small}
hanif's journal