Bohra issues: archive of eye-opening articles and posts
This website and Forum have many interesting and thought-provoking posts submitted by various members over a period of many years, and which are difficult to locate. We have gathered this material in one place to provide easy access, and a starting point. Do yourself a favour, read this today.
News & Events
- Udaipur reformists protest against demolition of historic shrine
- In the month of Ramzan Muslims generally turn inward, contemplate and connect with Allah. It is a month of charity, abstinence and peace. Even the Prophet Mohammed prohibited war and conflict during the holy month. But the orthodox Bohras (the Shabab group) of Udaipur do not seem to understand its significance and care little about the sanctity of the month. They are bent upon creating trouble and disturbing the general peace of the community. more
Features
- An artist true to himself, true to his soil
- Every morning after breakfast you will find Abbas Batliwala in his studio communing with his canvas. “It’s the best time of day,†he says. A time to reflect on inner universe. From its unknown depths emerges an insistent creative urge that has defined his destiny and given him his true calling. If not for this urge Abbas would have been just another shopkeeper. “I’m no more than a salesman,†he says. Not for him the airs of an artist. He makes light of his talent and fame. more
Islamic perspective
- Karbala and the Imam Husayn in Persian and Indo-Muslim literature
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I still remember the deep impression which the first Persian poem I ever read in connection with the tragic events of Karbala left on me. It was Qaani’s elegy which begins with the words:
‘What is raining? Blood.
Who? The eyes.
How? Day and night.
Why? From grief.
Grief for whom?
Grief for the king of Karbala’ more
Bohras and Reform
- An Islamic sect reduced to a cult
- The Milli Gazette is a magazine widely read in the Muslim World. In its recent issue of 16-31 October, 2012 it has published an article “The Wizard of Gujarat†by Mr. Yunus Chitalwala. In this article the writer has said that “Bohras do not represent the mainstream Muslim communityâ€. In other words, Dawoodi Bohras have separated themselves from the mainstream Islam. more
- Who will save Dawoodi Bohras from themselves?
- The expectation and longing for a Saviour is found among many communities. The Jews still await the Messiah. The Christians expect Christ to come again. The Hindus hope for an avatar of the Lord to destroy adharma and establish dharma. The Bohras also await the reappearance of the Imam in the progeny of lmam Taiyyeb who went into seclusion about eight hundred years ago. It's been a long wait. These yearnings are more articulate in times of acute distress and despair. The Saviour, however, in unlikely to succour a people who have despaired and resigned themselves to their fate. more
Multimedia
- Interviews and talks
- Few people understand what the reform movement is about. They think reformists are against the Dai. This is not true. Check out a series of long-ranging interviews and talks to understand why reformists are fighting and what they are fighting for. more
Your story
- How can we stop Kothar’s juggernaut?
- I was born in 1939 in a Dawoodi Bohra family. Having been brought up in a traditional Bohra household and later having migrated to North America I ensured that my children were raised in the same tradition. I taught them to read, write and recite Arabic, how to perform wudhu and offer prayers, explained Islam and its sects down to what we are as Dawoodi Bohras. more