Roots OfKnowledge

Eid mubarak to everyone !!
May Allah accept from us all

2 days ago | [YT] | 44

Roots OfKnowledge

Ya Allah
Forgive us, our parents , our families, our teachers and our students
Give us upright leaders in our communities
Unite the Ummah,
Help the oppressed
Cure the ill.
Forgive our deceased
remove our debts
accept our deeds
Enter us into Jannah Firdous without any account See less

3 days ago | [YT] | 51

Roots OfKnowledge

If i cant see it i dont believe it ! 😅

Im old school i need to see all my thoughts and notes to make sense, adjust and organise them

Almost near the end phase of making the leadership course notes

Ill post the books i used for anyone interested

as-suffa.org/education/prophetic-leadership-a-blue…

4 days ago | [YT] | 50

Roots OfKnowledge

If there were two, the whole system would collapse

One of the questions that came to mind while I was reading up on leadership was pretty simple: why has humanity consistently preferred a single leader throughout history?

The author of Depth Leadership breaks this down by highlighting four major problems that come with a dual leadership system:

> Constant monitoring: The underlying psychodynamics mean the co-leaders have to constantly check in on and second-guess each other.

> Sibling rivalry: Just like in a family unit, an unconscious competition and rivalry naturally forms between the two.

> Loss of neutrality: There is a high risk of collusion against the group, or the leaders taking opposing sides when the community splits on an issue.

> A mismatched pace: The two leaders often use completely different methodologies and speeds when trying to resolve conflicts.

She does mention that co-leadership can work to a degree, but only under very specific conditions. In a nutshell, it only succeeds when both individuals can effectively act as a single leader. They have to :
1. set their emotions aside entirely,
2. maintain absolute professionalism,
3. and share a single, unifying philosophy.

Ultimately, for us as Muslims, this is a powerful reminder. The Ummah will never be able to function at its optimum level unless it is united under a single, clear leader.

registration link for the course in the comments

1 week ago | [YT] | 10

Roots OfKnowledge

1 week ago | [YT] | 22

Roots OfKnowledge

Not everyone should be put on a pedestal

Here’s another discussion from Mirror Thinking by Fiona Murden that I found really useful and wanted to share with you guys.

The problem with putting a role model on a pedestal is that the standard for right and wrong shifts once they are in the limelight. It stops being about universal rules and becomes tailored to that specific person, especially when all they ever hear is praise. This is a trap any human being can fall into. Our brains simply aren't wired to sustain continuous power or fame without disconnecting us from normal societal checks and balances.

Even if someone starts out with the best intentions, power can literally cause acquired personality disorders. Fiona Murden calls it "Hubris [Arrogance] Syndrome". She mentions a study done by Lord David Owen and Jonathan Davidson that found that out of 18 US presidents, 7 had traits of this disorder, with George W. Bush having full-blown 'hubris syndrome'. In the UK, out of 26 prime ministers, David Lloyd George, Neville Chamberlain, Margaret Thatcher, and Tony Blair all developed the actual syndrome.

Now imagine such studies were done on contemporary Muslim leaders, scholars & influencers. How much of a difference would there be?

Whether someone is a Maulana, a Shaykh, or just an overnight social media sensation, absolutely no one is immune to the sickness of being put on a pedestal. There has to be a proactive effort to suppress this from overtaking a person's life and thus taking them away from Allah.

She asks an interesting question why is there such a rapid increase in arrogance in today's leaders as compared to the past?

Classically, tribes were small, leaders rarely experienced hubris, the natural checks in society kept them grounded and deeply connected to the community. But the modern era has stripped away those constraints. Today, online influencers can gain massive popularity overnight without feeling any real human connection to their audience. The result? An abuse of power, and a total inability to handle feedback are classic signs of someone suffering from hubris.

Islam has always warned us about the dangers of public praise and holding high positions. Being brutally self-critical and ensuring others kept him in check was the well-known habit of Sayyidna Umar (r.a.).

May Allah protect us and give us true insight into ourselves.

1 week ago | [YT] | 18

Roots OfKnowledge

How Mirror thinking shapes our perception of others

Today, while reading Mirror Thinking by Fiona Murden, I came across a really interesting point about how our brains handle empathy. The book explains that people actually feel less empathy for someone if that person supports a rival sports team. It turns out the brain is literally wired to switch off empathy for perceived rivals.

Sadly, you see this exact same thing happening in a lot of Muslim groups and organisations. As soon as someone buys into a specific group mentality, they lose the ability to feel the same empathy for outsiders as they would for members of their own circle. In fact, the book even mentions that watching a rival group suffer can actually activate the reward centers in the brain. The only way to beat this is if a person consciously steps outside of that mindset, questions their own automatic reactions, and intentionally rises above that tribal group mentality.

It made me think about one of the most beautiful aspects of the Prophet, peace be upon him, his incredible ability to show deep empathy even to those who actively harmed him. There are so many narrations where his sublime character completely broke through people's defences. When people witness that kind of empathy, it is unforgettable. It completely mirrors into their own lives and shapes the way they make decisions from that moment on.

Let me know if you want me to share a few more interesting points from the book related to leadership.

1 week ago | [YT] | 20

Roots OfKnowledge

Islam's Built-In Leadership

From all the things I have been reading about leadership, I have come to realise something: If you switched the word "Islam" for "divinely guided leadership", you would not be far from the truth. Leadership is literally built right into our daily rituals and the way our communities function.

Take prayer, for example. Five times a day, someone is chosen from among the ranks to lead. The followers fall into perfect alignment and follow along from start to finish. But it's not blind obedience. If the Imam makes a mistake, the community is actually required to call it out and correct him. Because we repeat this every single day, the core ideas of leadership and accountability are naturally woven right into the fabric of our lives.

Look at Zakat, too. It’s not just a case of someone feeling pity for the less fortunate, reaching into their pocket, and tossing some cash. It’s actually a highly sophisticated system designed to map out exactly who is in need and who has the means to give. It sets strict guidelines for when, how much & who receives what. This pushes the responsibility upon the individuals in authority to stand up, to take the lead, to make sure everything is handed out equally and transparently.

These are just two common, everyday practices that millions of us do without ever really stopping to realise the deep leadership wisdom behind them.

But there is a flip side to this. Because people are used to following, it can easily make the public feel like they owe absolute devotion to their leaders or religious scholars. Respecting them is fine, but it turns toxic the second these mentors and scholars are put on a pedestal to the point where they expect and enjoy being idolised.

The second honest leadership stops being about serving the people and turns into leader worship, we reduce Islam to empty rituals, just like any other faith out there. We strip it of its practical purpose, which is supposed to be the actual betterment of mankind.

#propheticleadershipblueprint

1 week ago | [YT] | 20

Roots OfKnowledge

When leaders succumb to the crowd

One of the books I’m currently reading is 'Depth Leadership' by Helene Smit, which looks at the deep psychological side of leadership.

There’s this really interesting section where she talks about how a group can unconsciously project their own backgrounds, traumas, and baggage onto their leader without the leader even realizing it. If you aren't careful, you end up compromising your own values and boundaries just to cater to the collective psyche of the crowd. This is seen when influencers drop their values once they succumb to the "stay-relevant" phase of their online/media career.

It honestly made me reflect on just how incredibly strong the Prophets of Allah were, and how unshakable they remained in their conviction. Think about our Prophet ﷺ maintaining absolute consistency for 23 years, despite 13 years of brutal persecution, isolation, and trauma in Makkah. Yet, despite his immense strength, Allah still reminded him:

"And if We had not given you a firm footing, you would have almost inclined toward them a little." (Quran 17:74)

The Quran was his anchor, the ultimate rope of Allah that made him the greatest leader to ever exist. Whether he was at home with his family, in the masjid, conducting trade, or acting as the head of state, his leadership style will always be miles ahead of anything modern psychology tries to teach us.

When you look at history, even the most rigid Muslim leaders usually softened their stance once they actually took office. For some, the reality of governance completely shifted them to the opposite side of the spectrum. On paper, it’s easy for anyone to imagine themselves as the perfect, ideal leader and sit back picking faults in those who are actually trying to lead. But reality hits different.

I've come to realise that the Ummah today desperately needs to understand the weight and seriousness of two things: marriage (with everything it entails) and honest leadership. Because we lack both, the Ummah is crumbling from the inside out, both within the walls of our own homes and in our houses of governance.

#propheticleadershipblueprint

2 weeks ago | [YT] | 22

Roots OfKnowledge

Not every scholar is a leader, just as not every leader is a scholar.

Leadership isn't something free it’s a specific skillset forged over years of trial and error. Unless a scholar has spent significant time among the community, actually dealing with people’s messy, real-world problems, they shouldn't be the "go-to" for life’s big crises.
There is this common misconception that the moment someone graduates from a Madrasah or an Islamic institute, they suddenly possess a fountain of golden advice. That’s just not the reality.

Don’t get me wrong, if you need to know the technicalities of prayer, Zakat, Hajj, or the ethics of trade, that is strictly the domain of trained scholars.

But I remember when I first graduated; people would come to me for advice on marriage, divorce, career moves, or even depression. Honestly? I didn't have the answers. I’d just parrot things I’d heard from my teachers, but I realise now that wasn't the best move. When it comes to helping people through life, experience is the most vital ingredient. You need that lived wisdom alongside Islamic knowledge.

I think the reason the public treats scholars like a "fourth emergency service" is because of the heavy titles we use, Molana, Mufti, Shaykh, Apa, or Shaykha. We put people on pedestals. Yet, one of the truest marks of a great leader is the ability to admit their own limitations.

Even our Noble Prophet (peace be upon him) would constantly remind his companions of his humanity. When a man approached him, trembling with nerves and awe, he said:

"Take it easy on yourself, for I am not a king. I am merely the son of a woman from the Quraysh who used to eat dried meat."

My advice to the public is this: if you’re looking for help with a specific problem, find a scholar who has hands-on experience in that specific field. If you can’t find one, you’re honestly better off speaking to a wise elder in your family who has lived through it.

And to my fellow graduates: please, don't feel like you have to solve everyone’s problems or have an answer for every DM. Being a listening ear is one thing, but giving "half-baked" solutions is dishonest. We need to get comfortable saying, "I don't know." Many of the greatest scholars of our past were never too proud to apologise and admit they didn't have the answer.

2 weeks ago (edited) | [YT] | 42