International Yoga Day, a wrong approach by Government of India

Yoga is the best thing that has happened to humans. It is good for human body as it  increases the cohesive functioning of mind, body and the soul. What messes our body is what we consume; food, water and air, and its regulator in the form of exercise.

Over the years the entire world has simultaneously discovered a fairly decent combination of foods and water to keep us in shape and healthy. However, we missed out on the third important element; air.   Thanks to the Indian Yogi’s for their tapasya and giving us the gift of Yoga.

The Indian Government has announced an International Yoga Day making it compulsory for everyone to observe. However, it should have been introduced as an option, giving complete freedom to choose, rather than making it compulsory.  When people are given choices, it will increase acceptability with least resistance; I mean any change for that matter, it goes thru the same process.

Cartoon by: Irfan Khan, one of the greatest Cartoonists in India www.cartoonsbyirfan.com 

Nowhere in the civilized world are people forced to do things against their will. Tobacco and Alcohol are injurious to health, yet the products are not banned. We give choices to the people; we put warnings on tobacco products and Alcohol, but don’t push people to stop consuming. The United States tried prohibition and failed,  Andhra Pradesh Government failed as well. If someone thinks Saudi Arabia has succeeded, they are wrong, there is more alcohol there than in free markets. 

The best example of failure of imposition other than Alcohol is Hindi. When Hindi was imposed on south, the South resisted violently even today, many from TN, Karnataka, Kerala and some parts of Andhra resist learning Hindi and I am sure there is resistance in other corners as well.  It was simply because it was pushed on them. Did you see some of the BJP ministers took the “national” oath of office in Tamil and Telugu and not Hindi? Do you remember Jayalalithaa protesting to Modi to not tweet in Hindi? Does the Maratha pride allow them to abandon Marathi and accept Hindi?

Yoga is wrongfully perceived as a Hindu value.  The problem is two sided; in the US a few years ago, the Christian fundamentalists declared Yoga was a Hindu thing and Christians should not follow it. I had written some strongly worded notes about it.  The other side of the coin is the fundamentalist Hindus claim that Yoga is a Hindu value and westerners are usurping it, stealing it as their own. Both are wrong, good things are good things and for all people.  Because of the fundamentalist Hindus, Yoga is perceived as a Hindu thing. 

A few extremists look to it as a stepping stone for fulfilling their dream of pushing India to be a 100% Hindu Nation by 2025 and no wonder Muslims and Christians will resist it.  As free Indians we all should resist any bloody imposition on any one of the 1.25 Billion of us,  if  some of us  “rejoice” pushing it on unwilling citizens and trampling on their freedom,  believe me, their freedom will be on the chopping block next.  We rise and fall together as a nation.

What is the need for making Yoga compulsory? Can you make eating an apple a day compulsory? Walking a mile compulsory? What is the gain?

The mess up came from a few loose mouths who made a big deal that “India is second and Islam is first to Muslims” – looks like that is the statement they wanted to deliver. They are wrong.  The BJP-RSS considers it a victory to force Muslims to obey, they get a sadistic joy out of it, and that is one of the reasons for resistance.  Yogi Adityanath says, those who are opposed to should jump in to the sea, he is no ordinary man; he is the MP and a Mahant with substantial following like the Baghdadi Guy.

India’s famous opportunist François Gautier writes, "By opposing yoga in schools they (Muslims) are showing that they are Muslims first and Indians second."  And now consider this response from the Right wing Christians," By opposing Christian prayers in schools they (Hindus) are showing that they are Hindus first and Americans second." Both the statements are equally dumb and stupid.

Christian Prayer should not be equated with America, nor should Yoga be equated with India.

Gautier knows what appeases the Hindu right and baits them with it, and "Apna ullu theek kar leta hai" makes his own good fooling them and receiving accolades. The problem is not him; it is the men that fall prey to his divisive rhetoric.  

My conscience prevents me from doing what he does, if not I can earn a lot of fame, influence and money - all I have to do is bad mouth Islam and Muslims, and they gloat uncontrollably and take care of him.  François Gautier is hell bent on placing wedges between Hindus and Muslims; we have seen the likes of him in Cornwallis and Wellesley who succeeded in the past, do we want men like him to continue to dupe the Indians?

Let them tear India down, we will put it back together. 

As Indian Americans, we should oppose any bloody imposition on anyone, using the language of a few radical members of the Parliament, a right winger American can easily say, if you guys have a problem with Christian prayers, go back to where you came from, this is a Christian Nation."

Thanks to the large majority of Americans, they will not let anyone say that non-sense and get away with it.

I don't know what Mihir Meghani (President of Hindu America Foundation) will say about this. He and I have opposed the placement of Ten Commandments in public places, particularly the High court in Texas.  Now would he oppose imposing Yoga on others in Indians?  

Shadi Katyal writes, "India which was once the only nation where any person could come and seek refuge and help and become part of the culture. USA did not even exist but now I feel sorry and afraid that India of the past has become xenophobic and closed minded one. The people are being bred to teach hate against the other minorities and I see dark cloud over the nation." 

Khalid Azam brings out a good question, “The five daily prayers prescribed by Islam are [also] known to provide a lot of health benefits. Does that mean it is acceptable that the five daily prayers be made mandatory on all Hindus or non-Muslims living in Muslim countries like Malaysia, Gulf etc? One of the ministers from the Hindu Right Wing group says that if Muslims have objections to Shlokas, they can say "Allah" instead. Would a Muslim minister state that Hindus can say "Eshwar" instead of Allah in the Namaz?  Is forced imposition of salaat/ Namaz any more acceptable? How many Hindus would accept a mandatory imposition of Islam's five daily prayers in Indian schools?

 I hope most of us have learned the value of liberty and believe in our immortal declaration, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed;"

As an Indian American who subscribes to the idea of individual freedom to Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness, I stand opposed to imposing anything on any Indian. India has a major role to play in the world affairs; these petty things will drown us.

Being an Indian American, how many of you would oppose imposition of Christian prayers on Hindus, Jews or Muslims?  If they impose on Jews, would you stand up for them? Would you stand up for Muslims if they are pushed to do Yoga? No human should be pushed to do anything, do you agree? 

I hope Prime Minister Modi tells this man, "Mr. Gautier, don't' divide my nation, I am focusing on development and I need sab ka saath, don't ruin it for me, we are not going to put the white guys on the pedestal any more, we are not going to bow to the Gora people with "yes sir" any more, hum bhi kisi se kum nahin, we are Indians at heart and we will work together for every one's vikas. Don't ruin my future, lets' focus on development.”

I have received several questions and will answer them all and append here below.   

Thank you,

mike ghouse   
(214) 325-1916

Mike is a speaker, thinker, writer, pluralist,  TV-Radio commentator and a human rights activist committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. His info in 63 links at MikeGhouse.net and writings at TheGhouseDiary.com

Also published at: SaddaHaq.com - https://www.saddahaq.com/human-interest/fathersday/happy-fathers-day

Happy Fathers day - a tribute to my father

 Happy Father's day | The Ghouse Diary.com

On  this father's day, I will be dedicating half an hour to reflect on my father; Mohamed Abdul Rahman.  He is one of my mentors, and an affectionate and caring father who opened many windows of knowledge for me.

If I am a pluralist today, if I respect the otherness of others and have no prejudice towards others, it was his teaching; living by example.  With what happened in Charleston two days ago, McKinney a few weeks ago, Baltimore and St. Louis a few months ago, his stand on equality in thoughts, acts and talks makes a whole lot of sense. 

If you are one of the parents who teach your children to look down on people other than your own kind, you are essentially running a sewer in their body system and messing them up for a life time. It would be difficult for them to live with people who are different than them.  You must turn in yourselves into some educational courses to set yourselves free from prejudices. If it is you, please go to interfaith meetings and  inter cultural events, it will gradually fix you up by removing the sewer line and replacing it with oxygen. 

In the 1950’s and 60’s India was pretty much like the United States, both nations treated their Blacks and Dalits shamelessly. The Dalits, also known as untouchables were not allowed to step in your homes – my father broke all the wrongful norms of the society, not only did they come in our home, they also ate from the same plates as we did, and drank the tea from the same cups. Both of my parents were free when they left this world, they were mukt, got their moksha earned their nirvana and received their salvation with Nijaat.

It was a big no-no at that time,  and many of his friends said unsavory words, but my father stood his ground. I see that streak in me playing it out all the times. Thank you Dad for inculcating the value of treating every human with full dignity, and that is just one of the thousands of things you blessed me with. I love to see all of God's creation treated fairly and justly.

Indeed, my father endured criticism and some abuse from his conservative friends; Hindus, Muslims and others at that time.

 My parents told us (me and my siblings) that we are all one family, from Adam and Eve and that we will have differences and have to learn to live with each other. they often quoted the verse from Quran, to respect the otherness of others - Lakum dinakum Wali addin.

My prayers also go to my father figure Mr. Everett Blauvelt, who opened the doors for me to enter the United States.  He was indeed a very caring man and named me Mike. He was a good listener.

I miss them both today. I also appreciate my friends who are father figures to me - Davendra Maini, Bill Matthews and Harbans Lal.

My heart goes out to those who did not have a good relationship with their fathers but, despite that they have survived, and they can give that affection to their off springs and others. Father's day is a difficult day for them, while others are cherishing their fathers, they are struggling with mixed feelings to the feelings of hate. It's not easy, and there is no quick fix to it, other than reflecting on it, and taking the responsibility to your own life. Life is given to each one of us as a trust,  and at least we can live up to it.

Life is all about expressions and completing transactions. Every emotion, thought, action or a change creates a new debt or a favor that needs to be re-balanced. Obviously we cannot reciprocate the favors in full, but we have been able to do that with a thank you in the most simplistic way and that is good enough.

One of the incomplete transactions of my life was not being able to do the things I wanted to do for my father. As a kid I would step in and take over the work from him so he can take rest, an Indian tradition that I cherish. When I moved to Saudi Arabia on an assignment, I sent my first check to him with which he started paying off my loan. With the next check I asked him to buy clothes for the family and wanted him to replace his old black Jacket he wore forever with a new one. He said no, first things first. In the first week of December 1977 my check paid off all my loans, and with the next check I asked him to oblige me, and he said he will. Man, I am feeling a deluge of emotions as I am writing this for the 2^nd time, darn it. my eyes are welled up again.
 

He did not get the check; he passed away a day before receiving it.  He lived up to his own words, "Until my last breath, I will be earning my living and taking care of my family." Darn it, he did it. I was angry for my helplessness, and was happy that the man kept his word. But that created a huge vacuum in my life and I continue to recover my balance by serving the senior friends in whatever little way I can. You can always count on me to drop everything off to attend to a senior's request.

My father is my hero and opened the doors of wisdom to us. Pluralism indeed runs in my family. He taught one of the biggest lessons of my life in social cohesiveness and dealing with extremism that I continue to reflect in my talks, acts and write ups.

During the communal riots in Jabalpur (India) in the early sixties, both Muslims and Hindus were killed in the mayhem. I wish every father in India, America and elsewhere teaches this lesson to his kids. He was crystal clear on his take; He told us the "individuals" are responsible for the bloodshed and not the religions; he would emphasize that you cannot blame the intangible religion and expect justice, we must blame the individuals who caused it and punish them accordingly for disturbing the peace and thus bring a resolution to the conflict by serving justice. He said you cannot annihilate, kill, hang or beat the religion, then why bark at it?
 

My father was a Mayor of the Town of Yelahanka (The town gave birth to Bangalore in 1537) and served the council for many years. He was also the president of the Muslim Association of the town. We grew up with no barriers between us and other human being. 

He treated all of us kids with dignity and I am pleased I got to be disciplined at least once in my life. I guess I replicated that with my children to the point my kids would actually say, Dad, you should have disciplined us. I did not see the need for it. I am fine and they are fine too. I gave them the cold shoulder that my father had given me to straighten me out, and it worked both ways, although my daughter was a tough cookie, she would not budge.
 

I was about ten years old and watched a man fall off his bicycle with his big bag of rice and was struggling to get back on it, and I wasn't going to help him, instead I was laughing at him. I saw my father about 100 feet away and the way he sped towards me, which got me frightened for the first time, I dashed inside the home and a few minutes later after helping the guy,  he came in dashing… I climbed on top of the paddy bags in a corner of the house, I thought he could not get me there, so he goes outside and plucks a long branch off the mulberry tree and gives me a few good ones. "My son will never do that" after that conditioning, I have developed the habit of stopping for everyone who needs help. I dare not watch and not do something about it.

To those who have not had a father or had a negative experience, God has offered guidance through the instrument of forgiveness to release you from the pain. Just do it. I will be happy to be a big brother or even a father figure in the moment of your need. It's an open offer to call me at (214) 325-1916, let’s keep it to 5 minutes.
 

God bless us all, Amen!

Thank you,
mike ghouse   
(214) 325-1916

Mike is a speaker, thinker, writer, pluralist,  TV-Radio commentator and a human rights activist committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. His info in 63 links at MikeGhouse.net and writings at TheGhouseDiary.com 

South Carolina Massacre - a terrorist kills 9 in a church.

Charleston Massacre | www.TheGhouseDiary.com

On June 18, 2015, a terrorist barged in to a Church in Charleston, South Carolina and killed 9 innocent people.  A place of worship is an universal sanctuary of peace and we must  honor that, just as we pullover when a funeral procession or a fire truck run through the road. 

First, let’s pray for the departed souls to rest in peace,  and pray that this situation does not aggravate further into racial tensions. 

This terrorist happens to be a White Christian man who hated Black Christians,  and the situation has nothing to do with Christianity, just as the Jewish gunman opened fire and killed 22 Muslim Worshipers in Jerusalem;  the extremists among Muslims are hell bent on Killing Shia and Ahmadiyya Muslims in Pakistan, the extremists among Hindus destroyed a Historical Mosque in Ayodhya and raped, killed and burnt Muslims in Gujarat,  Buddhist Monks violently burnt men and women in Burma; the mobs from Hindus massacred the Sikhs,  Muslim fanatics go on a killing spree in Bangladesh, and the Isis men are beheading Christians, Yazidis and Shia. 

These acts of terror are perpetrated by individuals from every faith, race or region, but in no case the religion authorized them to do this horrendous acts of murdering innocent people.  The criminals are there in every region, religion and race.  

What causes them to be terrorists? I hope we can study this and find solutions.

We endured the Wisconsin shooting where a terrorist walked into a Gurdwara (Sikh temple) and randomly killed worshipers, in response, the Sikhs set the new standards of dealing with the conflict – instead of blaming “all,” they chose to hold candle light vigils across the country and forgave the terrorist. This is an act which Jesus, Muhammad, Nanank and other religious leaders have advocated.

We need to work on greater integrity of Americans for the safety and security of all of us.

As a nation, particularly the relatives of the victims can set the new standards in civility by forgiving the murderer, but keep him in the prison until he has a chance to genuinely repent. Forgiveness extinguishes the fears and hatred more than any eye for an eye will do. There a more terrorists like him, a trial in the court will bring out the worst in him for us to understand his sickness and deal with others. Killing him will kill one person, forgiving and rehabilitating him will save a heck of a lot more lives.

As a nation we mourn together with a few minutes of silence of our own, without blaming any one, but determined to bring a positive change thru peace and non-violence. We need to find a way to heal. Please take a minute and pray for the improved relations among us all. Amen.

To read views of other panelists, please visit Dallas Morning News-Texas Faith: When racism becomes terrorism

 http://dallasmorningviewsblog.dallasnews.com/2015/06/texas-faith-when-racism-becomes-terrorism.html/#more-57059

News links

1. BBC - http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-33179019 
2. The confederate flag - http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/06/19/charleston-shooting-confederate-flag/28990095/
3. The terrorist Dylann roof is capture - http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/19/us/charleston-church-shooting.html?_r=0
4. Politics of Flag - http://www.newsweek.com/why-its-so-hard-move-confederate-flag-south-carolinas-state-house-344958 
5. 9 Killed - http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/06/18/local-vigil-for-south-carolina-shootings.html

mike
Mike Ghouse, Speaker
www.AmericansTogether.org
(214) 325-1916 text/talk
........................................................................................................
Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism, Islam,India, Israel-Palestine, Politics and other issues of the day. He is a human rights activist, and his book standing up for others will be out soon | He is producing a full feature film "Sacred" to be released on 9/11 and a documentary "Americans together" for a July 4 release.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com - Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.

Quran Mistranslations and solutions

Beware of Mis-translations of Quran | World Muslim Congress

How wrong was I to believe that almost all Muslims were aware of the mis-translations of Quran. It came as a big surprise to me to know that there are  Muslims  who innocently believe everything they read about Quran is divine without ever questioning it. Please be aware that there are two translations of Quran that are not only wrong, but bad.

Quran is for the entire humanity, but the Hilali Khan/Mohsin Khan duo's translation has reduced it to the exclusive book of Muslims. If a Jew, Christian or a Hindu were to read it, they have every reason to fear Muslims and the "Muslim God " who teaches hatred towards them.  All you had to do to acquire the free copy of this book was  to call 1-800 number and they would send a free copy of the Quran, I have no idea how many copies are out there in the hands of innocent people,  we can check the boasting emails or news letters proclaiming how many million copies were distributed.  A lot of damage was done.  The good news is many of the mis-translation are fixed since 2012.

Hilali Khan and Mohsin Khan Duo as great scholars. They mis-translated the Quran around 1924, and as Muslims blessed with the courage to speak, we have to disagree.

Let us not elevate any human’s words to be on par with God – men like Hilali Khan, Mohsin Khan, Tamiya, Kathir, Banna, Qutub, Maududi, Shah Waliullah and other fallible humans have made several mistakes. We should not give their word equivalency to God’s word. 

Whatever their intention was, these men have messed up the translations and interpretations of Quran. The brunt of Islamophobia that we are dealing with today was mothered by their work.  Indeed, the Spencers, Gellers, Baghdadis, Bin Ladens and Awalakis believe in that version of Islam.

Full article will be out in a few days and a link will be provided. 

Mike Ghouse is a Muslim thinker, write and a speaker, and much of his work is published in Huffington Post, Dallas Morning News, Arab News, New Age Islam and several other periodicals and at www.worldMuslimCongress.com

A conversation about Muslims and Pakistan at Dr. Mona Kazim Shah's home

June 13, 2015, Dallas, Texas 

at Dr. Mona Kazim Shah’s home.

With what is going on in Pakistan with minorities, Mona invited several of her friends to join her for an open conversation, about 30 gathered and each one shared his or her thoughts about it. One overwhelming theme was the agony of being misunderstood, and what each one is doing to change that. It was a motivating gathering of activists, who are doing something or the other to bring about a change. 

Most of the problems in the society stem from not knowing each other, when we do, things will change. Otherwise, we keep building myths about each other without ever making an attempt to fall them. We cannot expect change if we do nothing about it. 

What does it take to change the perceptions about Muslims? Not fight, but be an example and connect and get to know”? Knowledge leads to understanding and understanding to acceptance (not agreement) and appreciation with a different point of view. 

JULY 4TH.

Such an opportunity exists, and it is here – July 4th; inviting your non-Muslims friends to celebrate July 4th, it is the most patriotic thing to do, and it will bind us with fellow Americans. Make an effort to invite people from different faiths, races, ethnicities and orientations – to rid of your own biases against others. You’ll be pleased you did it. An article about it will be released next week with details. It will be atwww.AmericansTogether.org 

RAMADAN 

It is a blessed month, and we need to feel its blessings in our guts by being honest and sincere with ourselves. The most important question we have to ask ourselves is – Is Prophet Muhammad really a mercy to the mankind? If he was, as a follower, am I? Am I kind to everyone? All Humanity? or just some? Am I loaded with hate for fellow Muslims? How can I be a better Muslim like the Prophet without prejudice towards fellow humans? Are we capable of meeting someone from Sunni, Shia, Ahmadiyya or the sub groups within, and say peace to them? Do we really mean it when we say Prophet was a mercy to "mankind" or do we reduce him to the ownership of Muslims? Can we show it by your actions? If you cannot, then please don't say anything shallow. Take a look at this http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/how-i-connect-with-prophet-muhammad_b_2547782.html 

Ramadan is to purify us, it’s here for you. Go do the Iftaar in a Masjid a day, every Masjid of Shia, Sunni and Ahmadiyya and within each denomination there are several – you have 29 or 30 days to practice removing your prejudice, go do it and be free from the conditioning, being free from prejudices is such a joy, it's like walking out of home to work with no worries. A list of Mosques in Dallas is at www.DallasMuslimCenter.org 

How each Mosque follows their own unique tradition is chronicled here with the pictures of Mosques since 2010-http://ramadanexclusive.com/

POWER OF ENGAGEMENT.

I shared my experience with Sean Hannity, which I have called the power of engagement – change comes by engaging with people without which there is no chance. It’s like the lottery ticket, you cannot complain for not winning it, if you have not purchased it. Engagement increased the chances to a change, disengagement guarantees status-quo. 

Full story in the video at my talk at Aligarh Muslim University -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDMuE4bdYW4 

If you want to learn about Pluralism – please visit 
www.FoundationforPluralism.com 

Pluralism in Islam – www.worldMuslimCongress.com 

Building a cohesive America at www.AmericansTogether.org 

Thanks
Mike Ghouse – all about me is at www.MikeGhouse.net in 63 Links 

Muslim Reponse to Pamela Geller and the Bikers in Phoenix - Saudi Gazette

Phoenix Bikers controversy over drawing Prophet Muhammad's cartoons

Tariq A. Al-Maeena 
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index.cfm?method=home.regcon&contentid=20150603245999

A GAME is being played all the way from Melbourne, Australia, to sunny Phoenix, Arizona, in the United States and it is called ‘Muslim Baiting.’ How it works is simple. A public announcement is made under the guise of free speech that a revered figure or scripture for Muslims is going to be attacked and ridiculed.  The game is to goad Muslims into a senseless cycle of reactionary violence.

In the past it seems to have succeeded judging from the reactions of Muslims from London to Lahore where flags, property and other objects were destroyed in retaliation against slurs against Islam. But what did such meaningless reactions accomplish? A new determination by some quacks to push Muslim buttons towards more stupid and inconsequential outcomes.

In the Phoenix goad and bait, biker gangs armed with assault rifles announced their intention to hold a ‘draw Muhammad cartoon contest’ outside a mosque. Displaying slogans and placards with words intended to inflame such as “Stop Islam” and “Support Your Local White Boy” the heavily armed bikers wanted to create a mayhem on the back of Muslim reaction. Violent responses in the past against religious slurs had perhaps encouraged them to goad a new group into a battle. Fortunately, the pro and anti Islam groups were well separated by the Phoenix police and no incident except for the expelling of a lot of hot air was reported.

Perhaps Muslim leaders in America are beginning to understand their role in spreading the right message when it comes to Islam baiting and it is reaching the right ears. Mike Ghouse, the President of the America Together Foundation is one such figure that should be credited with ensuring that Muslims should be responsible and not responsive when faced with slurs against their faith.

In a statement widely circulated before the Phoenix event, Mike implored those sympathetic to Islam to be ‘understanding’ rather than revolting. He said, “Let the Bikers draw cartoons of the Prophet (pbuh), look to this as an opportunity to follow the practice of the Prophet (pbuh), he was a mercy to mankind and it is time for Muslims to demonstrate that. What did he do when he was harassed on his way to Taif? He prayed in the tradition of Jesus, forgive them God, for they know not. God's will was to show a way to build better societies by mitigating the conflicts and nurturing good will and not by aggravating it. Thus he turned the other check as Jesus had taught and prayed for the wellbeing of all.”

Speaking on the eve of the Biker event, Mike stated that “This Friday, I urge Muslims around American Mosques to open up their hearts an minds of understanding, instead of sulking, retrieving to a corner, getting angry or harboring ill-will, I ask them to pray for the welfare of Biker Americans in their Friday sermons across the land and hopefully across the globe. Let them make an effort to build a cohesive America where no American has to live in apprehension or fear of the other. Let’s do our part right and seek God’s help in repairing our relationships.”

“Criticism can fade away or rain on us depending on how we respond to it. Lack of conviction in one's faith breeds intolerance towards criticism, whereas firmness in faith can lead us to learn from criticism, explore the infinite wisdom and realize the strength of our faith (Imaan); a worthy feeling to have, instead of living in doubt and shooing criticism away.

“We need to handle criticism of Qur’an, Islam and the Prophet (pbuh) with grace, and respond to it gracefully. At least it increases the chances of mitigating the conflict and restoring harmony. The other way around is fighting back, which guarantees further aggravation of the conflict and isolation. Let freedom of speech remain the corner stone of Islam.

“I urge fellow Muslims to be open to all the criticism with confidence, let the doors of communications be open. Islam stands on its own; it does not need our defense. M. Ghouse.”

Islam has indeed stood the test of time against many who marauded against it and spilled blood. But it has not been vanquished. Mike’s message should be taken with great consideration for a greater understanding by people not familiar with this religion of peace.
 

— The author can be reached at talmaeena@aol.com. Follow him on Twitter @talmaeena

Peaceful protests at McKinney Police headquarters

Peaceful protests at McKinney Police headquarters  on Monday, June 8, 2015 - 6:50 PM - 8:20 PM - this is a developing story. 

This will be continually updated until Thursday - hope to receive emails from all the 26 speakers to include their speech and I welcome any pictures any one has taken.

Nearly 150 People had gathered in front of the McKinney Police Headquarters at 2200 Taylor Burl Dr. The event was organized by Olinka Green Defense committee and was posted on facebook; 955 People RSVPD, with a 150 Maybes and 4200 people were invited. 
https://www.facebook.com/events/1401015223561412/1401605123502422/ - 

I was there at 5:45 and people started coming, and about 6:30 PM we had about 100 people, the organizers were apparently in another event, where they had originally intended to hold, that left me to get organized and moderate the event.

Someone came with banner, and another one with a hand held public address system, I started the program 6:50 with our National Anthem followed by Pluralism prayers that included people of all faiths and no-faiths ( will post later tomorrow).  Then gave a talk about the need to gather, much of the talk is drawn from the Petition at Avaz and Press release at: AmericansTogether.org 

A total of 26 People spoke to the point and within two to three minutes. I made sure no one goes home with a feeling that they did not get the chance to speak, every one who wanted to speak was asked to come up and speak, and they did. I wish, some one had recorded the powerful statements from the people. we were represented by people of many faiths, races and ethnicity. We were all in this together.  However, I have asked every one to send his or her speech notes in the email to me at MikeGhouse@gmail.com, the represented complete diversity of expression. 

Thanks to the speakers for listening to me to keep it non-political,  and I had to stop two of them from going on over either the Republicans or Democrats, we were gathered there as Americans and the issue is American and we are going to find solutions as Americans. 

A few of the speakers were pounding on police force as if all of them were bad,  and I am glad to speak up right after their speech, not to negate them, but to assert the difference. We cannot stereotype any one. Police is good and they are here to protect and give us the sense of security, even though a few of them violate their own ethics.  However, none of us would have been able to speak freely if police were brutal, they are not a different species, they are from among us and we have a few bad apples and we need to treat them.  We need to investigate where the flaw in the system was, were they trained wrongly? If the flaw is in the training we need to tear that apart and rebuild the training manual. 

I will compile all parts of my speech, meanwhile I request you to share your pictures and your notes to compile them together and get it all published.  Most of the TV channels were there, and whatever they report, we will share it here. They have to allocated a few seconds in the 5 or 10 minutes they have available in the news program. 

Here is the first link someone sent me

Press Release at: AmericansTogether.org 
Petition at: Avaz 

VIDEOS: 

NBC5 - Dallas:http://www.nbcdfw.com/video/#!/home/top-videos/QuestionsRemainAfterMcKinneyViralVideo/306576421

Thanks to Kimberly Diggs for sharing this video about Pluralism -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whBdhtzjOrg

 

FULL REPORTS

1. Breitbart news - God is going to heal McKinney
   http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2015/06/09/god-is-going-to-heal-mckinney-says-local-pastor/
2. McKinney Courier-Gazette
    http://starlocalmedia.com/mckinneycouriergazette/hundreds-of-area-residents-rally-in-mckinney/article_2a5ebe58-0f01-11e5-899b-03730f2bdebc.html
3. Dallas Morning news -  http://www.dallasnews.com/news/community-news/mckinney/headlines/20150608-dueling-views-of-mckinney-melee-fault-intruding-teens-racist-adults-police-officer.ece
    

PRINT MEDIA

1. CNN Reports - http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1247539?ref=feeds%2Flatest
2. News Sides - http://www.newssides.com/press_release/public/155660-Mckinney__Texas___Police_Brutality_is_Not_Acceptable__Need_A_Full_Investigation.php
3. Press release - http://www.prfree.org/news-mckinney-texas-police-brutality-is-not-acceptable-need-a-full-investigation-154395.html
4. http://www.freenewspos.com/en/latest-news-article/g/59160/Mckinney-Texas/mckinney-texas-police-brutality-is-not-acceptable-need-a-full-investigation
5. Newslive - http://newslive7.in/component/blogfactory/posts?tag=mike-ghouse
6. Plano Paper - Plano Paper http://starlocalmedia.com/interfaith-prayer-jpg/image_04c7aec2-0ecd-11e5-9e0b-13e732552d6e.html
7. Star News Paper - http://starlocalmedia.com/mckinneycouriergazette/news/not-another-ferguson-peaceful-protest-unity-mark-mckinney-s-response/article_7e0706e8-13a5-11e5-847a-5b54e2973825.html

HUMOR

Jon Stewart - http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2015/06/jon-stewart-larry-wilmore-wade-into-the-mckinney-police-departments-pool-party.html/
Barrells on site https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4SYILXwYa8

NBC Video: http://www.nbcdfw.com/video/#!/home/top-videos/QuestionsRemainAfterMcKinneyViralVideo/306576421

Guy Potter took this picture

More to come

Maryam Siddiqui is the new inspiration of India.

Maryam Siddiqui the new inspiration for India | TheGhousediary.com
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2015/06/maryam-siddiqui-is-new-inspiration-of.html

Reading this news welled up my eyes, what a beautiful news it is for this Monday. Maryam Siddiqui becomes a role model for generations of children to come not only in India, but across the world.  What an inspiration she is!

I have added three three YouTube videos – absolutely inspirational! She is the kind of role model we need for our kids.  The interviews were conducted in Hindi/Urdu language she and her parents talk about the inclusive language that I grew up with? Please note, I hope to spend time in understanding Maryam and work on getting it translated into English. She is worth spending the time!

She is blessed to have great parents! Indeed, she inspires me to know that more and more and more Muslims parents have raised their kids to be pluralistic. I cannot thank enough to my parents for giving me and my family similar education – to respect the otherness of others, all of us are God’s creation and respecting each one amounts to respecting God.  My Parents never ever said one negative thing about Hindus, Christians, Jains and others in our town.  Even during communal riots, my father said, it was between two idiotic individuals that flared up into communal thing, he never let us believe that religion is the problem, he said problems always start with individuals so do the solutions. He was clear for us not to be prejudiced towards any one.  

I thank my Mom and Dad for that education, and thank Maryam and her parents for assuring me that, that is how parents should raise their children. Now, I ask you, if  you were raised with similar values, that is no prejudice towards other people, please share it in one powerful short sentence to be included as your quote in the article I am compiling. We have to encourage what is good and multiply it. 

No doubt, there are parents, who poison their kids,  and mess up the lives of their children with ill-will and hatred for others. To those men and women who are biased towards the others, please wake up, and don’t pass that on to your children. Don’t mess with their future, and don’t make them unfits to live in a pluralistic society. Very soon, you will find people of different faiths, cultures, ethnicities, races, nationalities and social backgrounds working, eating, playing, marrying, and doing things together. Prepare them for it, rather than poison them and make their life difficult, you may have lived with fear and hate, but don't give them the same...


Bill Gates is the first known human being in the last 100 years to encourage other wealthy individuals to invest their monies in human development – education, eradication of diseases and skills to support themselves.  What was he going to do with his Billions? Then Warren Buffet and others followed the suit.  It is good to see the fruit of your contribution while you’re alive, than leaving it for others to decide what to be done with it. If you got the money, donate it to causes that bring people together for building safer and securer communities than divisive elements that create anxieties for all, and do it while you are alive. 

Malala is another first teen to set the example to consider the whole world as her family, a concept embedded in all religious teachings and now Maryam!  There are many more like them, if you know some one, put them on the pedestal, it is your responsibility to do that. 

This is what she said, "I, however, have the means to lead a reasonable life because the Almighty has been kind to my parents. But there are many children who are not as lucky as me. So, I have decided to return the cash award to the state government so that it can be used for the betterment of children in need," she said.

Here is the full story:

Maryam Siddiqui winner of Gita Champion League returns 11 lakh (1.1 Million) Indian Rupees award to U .P.  Government.

by kracktivist in Human Rights

Drawing inspiration from Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai for pursuing the cause of education for all, a 12-year-old Muslim girl Maryam Siddiqui who was on Saturday given Rs 11 lakh by UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav for winning the Gita Champions League has returned the award.She wants the state gov ernment to use the money for the “betterment of children in need“. Maryam had won the Gita Champions League contest organised by International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Iskcon) in January in which over 3,000 students had participated. Akhilesh felicitated her on Saturday at an official function in Lucknow, where he gave her the cash award and a plaque.

In a grand gesture unusual for a 12-year-old, Maryam also contributed two cheques of Rs 11,000 each to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund and said she would like to see the funds being used for educating orphaned and needy children in the state.

Calling herself an ambassador of peace, Maryam told TOI she is now on a mission to promote the cause of education for the poor.“Education is the only route to change their destiny ,“ she said. “I’m grateful to the UP government for conferring this honour on me. I, however, have the means to lead a reasonable life because the Almighty has been kind to my parents. But there are many children who are not as lucky as me. So, I have decided to return the cash award to the state government so that it can be used for the betterment of children in need,“ she said.

Maryam’s father Asif Siddiqui confirmed that they had submitted an official letter to the Uttar Pradesh government requesting them to use her cash award for educating children, instead.

http://epaperbeta.timesofindia.com/Article.aspx?eid=31804&articlexml=Girl-returns-Rs-11L-reward-to-UP-govt-08062015012092

More about Maryam: Good interviews – Pluralism is in their hearts.

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sryEq92aII4
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XAsBLusQ7cc
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFfiJ-p_Qs8

Now, I ask you, if  you were raised with similar values, that is no prejudice towards other people, please share it in one powerful short sentence to be included as your quote in the article I am compiling. We have to encourage what is good and multiply it. Send to MikeGhouse@gmail.com 

Thank you

mike
Mike Ghouse, Speaker
(214) 325-1916 text/talk
........................................................................................................
Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism, Islam, India, Israel-Palestine, Politics and other issues of the day. He is a human rights activist, and his book standing up for others will be out soon | He is producing a full feature film " Sacred" to be released on 9/11 and a documentary "Americans together" for a July 4 release.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com - Mike is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.