Surah 36: Ya-Sin | Q&A | Project Illumine

Part 2: Dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl answers questions related to Surah Ya Sin and more.


Timestamps:
0:57 - Dr. Abou El Fadl’s note before beginning

10:14 - “Could the professor speak more about how the partnerships within us can lead to perception or blindness?”

20:25 - "Thank you so much for the knowledge. My question is about how to express the surah in personal relationships. I am often drawn to deep connections with people going through a 'dark night of the soul', who's gaze seems to fixed on their hardships. Probably because I've been there, too. Is it possible to create or maintain close relationships with people who do basic good deeds but who seem to have a misery mindset? It is draining but I don't want to abandon anybody."

27:24 - "Ayat 9 is usually understood as a physical barrier, so my Palestinian friends recite it at the border to prevent the IDF from seeing what's in their suitcases when they are crossing. To the point that the soldiers are even familiar with the ayat. Can this ayat truly be used that way?"

30:20 - “Is the example of the village that rejected the messengers a metaphor or just a story, or is it an actual instance in history?”

34:34 - “Could it be that the three messengers are the human epistemology, the Prophet, and the Quran? Do you think that this is a possibility?”

36:04 - “It's a two part question. The first one is, is there anything in the tradition that talks about how, when this first entered the ears of the first Muslims, how they reacted to it? What it did to them. And the second part of that question is, really because of my own reaction... I've read the surah so many times, I've heard the surah talked about so many times, but the effect that it had on me today was visceral. It was physical. It was terrifying. And it's going to take me probably a very long time to recover from it. It's very easy for me and my own nature to become overwhelmed, so what do I do now?”

48:29 - “I've come across this issue a couple of times with Jews and Christians but more often with Christians regarding the belief that the stories of many of those that we call prophets but I'm not always sure they are prophets for them. That they say, ‘These were people who we couldn't use as examples because…’ They allege that they've done some very horrific crimes and horrible things. Crimes against humanity, in a way. Ugly things. Whether it's incest or adultery et cetera, et cetera. I was just trying to understand if you have any guidance or advice in regards to having a discussion that might help us in that regard? I'm not sure. It's a very tough area and sometimes I feel like I'm not well equipped to be able to... Maybe it's not something you can convince them of, to say that these are lies that were made against these prophets.”

56:07- "Thank you again for another exhilarating and soul enriching tafsir. With Muharram approaching and the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Husayn, would you comment on what you personally believe is the best way we can commemorate and venerate the Imam and the Ahl al Bayt?"

1:06:16 - “If you're Muslim, maybe you're strong in the innate and not strong in your knowledge of the Quran. If you're non-Muslim, you find people who are very ethical but probably have no chance of being interested in the Quran. I thought I would just ask if you had any thoughts about that.”


For more: https://www.usuli.org/new-quran-project/