What does it actually take to believe? Not to inherit faith from your parents or absorb it from your surroundings, but to own it for yourself.  In the first episode of the Foundations of Faith series, Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan answers that question in an unexpected way. The foundations of faith, he argues, do not begin with proofs […]

The Quran reserves its description of true faith for ulul albab, people of sound minds (3:190)1. In the first episode of the Foundations of Faith series, Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan explains that a sound mind is one free from vanities, a mind not buried under useless information. Here are five signs the information age is crowding out your clarity and what […]

Can you argue someone into believing in Allah? In the second episode of the Foundations of Faith series, Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan says no and the reason reveals something essential about how faith actually grows.  Why Debates Don’t Build Faith  A debate, he points out, is usually two people with big egos trying to disprove each other. When you are losing a debate, you do not feel […]

In Surah Ali ‘Imran (3), Allah describes the people of sound minds with two qualities: they remember Allah standing, sitting and on their sides and they think deeply about the creation of the heavens and the earth (3:191)1. One habit is spiritual, the other intellectual. In the Foundations of Faith series, Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan argues that faith cannot […]

An ayah is more than a verse. It is a sign, something that points you to Allah. In the final episode of the Foundations of Faith series, Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan explains that the Quran constantly directs our eyes outward and asks us to find ayat everywhere. Here are five everyday moments the Quran itself singles out.  1. Looking Up at […]

If you asked most Muslims what the Quran is about, few would give the answer Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan offers in the final episode of the Foundations of Faith series: the Quran is about the ayah.  More Than a Verse  The word ayah is usually translated as verse, but the meaning runs much deeper. An ayah is a […]