Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences 
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I can’t vouch for all cultures and religions, but I do know that Muslims as a practice do not touch the opposite gender if they’re not related by blood. Most Muslim guys you meet probably won’t care either way, but the women are pretty conscientious about shaking hands. If you’re worried about how a man should greet a Muslim woman, a simple nod of the head will do and a direct address. Also it might help to not offer your hand, because it may alienate the woman. I recommend having your hands clasped in front of you or behind you, so they know of your intention not to shake. This is the advice I gave my principal at the high school I went to, where there were many Muslims. This really helped on graduation day. Lots of us weren’t comfortable with shaking hands, so the male principal very kindly gave the Muslim girls a little bow instead. It really made us feel welcome. Also, in most cultures from South Asia and the Middle East, even Christians and Hindus follow this social norm. They believe that touching is a privilege and not to be shared with just anyone.
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Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,For me faith is built on one thing, logic. Because science and evolution could not answer all my questions about the origin of the universe, matter and life in general, I looked to other explanations. I saw that around me was a world that I did not create, and whose creation was not satisfactorally explained, and that simple existence of life was substantial proof that something made this. I saw the finished product of something inexplicable, and instead of assuming that things just appeared (because in my whole life, nothing has ever just appeared. Isn’t that the first thing they teach you in biology, no abiogenesis. Life comes from life, things come from things). So, that was my first brick in the foundation of my faith. I’ve moved on, questioning along the way, not taking anything for granted. I’ve settled on a religion that bases faith on logic, and says throughout its text ‘This is a book for men of understanding, if only they would see’. It says that God gave man logic as a means to find his faith. Because I know that I’ve questioned, I’ve argued, I’ve researched and I did not lie to myself, I can say that my religion is true. Of course I cannot call God before you to verify this, or show you that my religious text is true by going back in time or anything of the sort, but I used the best tool man has, the mind, to find something believable.
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Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,In the course of 3 years I knew seven Caucasian Americans who converted to Islam due to no compulsion other than their own desire. Of them five were young white women, one was a young white man and the third was a young Russian-American man. They were all between the ages of 16-25. Apparently the appeal crosses all boundaries.
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Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,There are Muslim missionairies, but as there is no central authority in Islam like that in Catholicism, Mormonism, Jehova’s Witnessism and others, it is not a far reaching organisation. There is the ‘Tableeghi Jamaat’, a group of Muslims whose main purpose is to call others to Islam, and a few others. The majority of these groups are based in mosques and aid those who come seeking Islam and also give equal attention to guiding back lost or uninformed Muslims. Give us some credit for not being the annoying, door-knocking, pamphlet pushing, ‘Good news’ stuffing types đ
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Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,This is a strange habit you’ve touched on, and as a Pakistani I have never done this, but I think I can tell you the reason for it. In Pakistan and India, the system of merchant/customer relations is a very tricky one. Basically, their prices are not regulated, and it’s you vs. him. He wants to make the most money off you as possible, and you want to get the product as cheaply as you can. It’s buyer beware and seller defend yourself. When some Pakistanis and Indians come to the United States, they still carry that mentality. They have never been taught any regulations in buying, as there really are no shopping ethics in their home countries.
Also, a good majority of the type who do buy, read and return books are young students who have limited funds and are simply here to get a decent education. In education, people from the Sub-continent usually put forth their greatest effort, so if they’re strapped for cash, some would rather buy a book, Xerox what they need and return it. It doesn’t seem wrong to them because they’re not damaging the book and probably take great pains to make sure it’s kept in good shape so it can be sellable. Having the book is a matter of passing and failing sometimes, and if their parents have sold the family car, house and jewelry to get them to the United States for an education, they’re not about to let the matter of money stop them from fulfilling that obligation.
It’s a matter of culture and circumstances. You won’t find all Pakistanis and Indians doing this, and chances are it will be forgotten by the next generation that brings their children up in the West. Please have patience with them. The United States is a whole other world for us, and we have so much to learn on arrival that things like this fall through the cracks while we focus on more important things, like the language, idioms, social norms and what-not.
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Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I often am greeted by well-wishers with ‘Merry Christmas’ and ‘Happy Easter’, but I do not find it offensive. Because the intention is almost always to spread that individual’s joy I take such greetings in stride, smile and return the greeting with the sentence ‘I don’t celebrate ______ (fill in the blank), but thank you and Merry __________ to you too’. As a Muslim I am taught to always be courteous and at the same time be informative about my faith.
User Detail :
Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,My father is Muslim and my mom is Mormon. When they got married my father told my mom his religion stipulated that the kids be Muslim. She said fine, with the intention of having no kids. In time, however, myself and my three siblings were born. We were raised knowing equal amounts of Christianity/Mormonism and Islam. By the time I was a teenager I was equally inclined to both faiths, having attended more Sunday School than Islamic studies classes, but having been taught more Islam officially. This, as you can imagine, lead to a hell of a lot of confusion for me. I prayed for guidance to God (not Jesus, not Allah at that time, just God) and soon enough I found myself seeing the glaring inconsistencies in one of the faiths and the logic behind the other. My siblings took similar paths, though one brother did fall completely away from religion. Because in Islam there is no compulsion, my father could only teach us what he knew, what he believed and leave it at that. We chose, on our own, all four siblings, as adults to follow Islam. By the way, I would NOT recommend a mixed religion marriage to anyone. Its only by the grace of God and the kindness of my parents that us kids came out all right. I know many other mixed religion families whose children have been institutionalised, chosen lifes of crime, become wholly immoral and grown up to be quite confused.
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Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Thanks, Karim. I’m a Muslim but didn’t know that reason for limiting adoption. Jazak’Allah, brother. May Allah bless you for the service you do.
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Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I’m the product of a Muslim-Christian marriage so here is my take on your situation. For a practicing Muslim woman dating and marrying a non-Muslim is completely forbidden. The fact that your girlfriend is dating you, a non-Muslim and might be considering marriage might mean that she is not inclined to follow her faith. If she doesn’t care for her religion and comes from a non-practicing family, then you shouldn’t have that much of a problem being together, religion-wise. However, if she is inclined to Islam and perhaps dating you is just a bit of a fall on her part, then you will have SERIOUS issues. For instance, will your children be Muslim or Atheist? Will she allow pork and alcohol in the home? Will her parents accept your wedding or will she be disowned (happens all the time). Culturally, however, there will always be very big issues. I doubt her Moroccan family will ever accept you, a non-Muslim and a Westerner. However, as I am not Moroccan, I cannot shed much more light on expected cultural problems in your futures. I can just say that you guys have a lot things in the way to marital harmony. And having been the product of a cross-racial, cultural and religious marriage, I can only warn against it. I know many kids from mixed-marriages for whom the constant friction in their parent’s relationship caused severe psychological disorders.
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Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Those who follow the religion of Islam are called ‘Muslims’. It is an Arabic word which means those who submit, or are in peace. ‘Islamic’ is an English word derived from the word ‘Islam’ which basically means ‘like Islam, or in Islam’. A person who practices Islam will always be a Muslim, but something that is practiced by Myslims, like Hajj, is an ‘Islamic’ practice. Judaism = the religion Jews = those who follow the religion Jewish = pertaining to Jews or Judaisim Islam = the religion Muslims = those who follow the religion Islamc = pertaining to Muslims or Islam
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Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Two reasons. For religious reasons, Muslim women are required to cover themselves in loose-fitting clothing, to the wrist and to the ankle (some people wear gloves, socks and face veils, but it’s not neccessary) and to cover their head and chests with a scarf. In countries in the Mideast, where there are Christian Arabs, Jews and Muslims, the clothing of choice is long and loose – often white gowns and cloaks. The reason for this is that the clothing protects from the sun, the looseness allows for the breeze to pass through and the white reflects heat.
As a woman who practices ‘Hijab,’ or Islamic covering, I can tell you that we’re usually not hot. It’s strange, I know, but true. I wear long clothes and a scarf all year long and have never suffered from heatstroke or more than a certain level of discomfort. I attribute it to the fact that my body temperature is being well-regulated inside my clothing, and it’s not greatly affected by the weather because it is insulated with cloth and protected from the sun.
User Detail :
Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,I’ve known thousands of Arabs in my life, though I am not one. Arabs consider themselves Arab. Seriously, their culture is so old and so defined, and for them, it is a proud culture, and that is what they define themselves as racially. Of course, ‘Arab’ is a broad term; depending on whether the individual is a Moorish Arab (Morocco to Egypt) or a Mid-Eastern Arab, or a Berber Arab, they might classify themselves differently racially. But I have never met an Arab who considered himself or herself white. I’ve met some who labeled themselves as black and others as Asians, but white I have yet to see.
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Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,Muslims deal with the ‘torture of abstinence’ the same way they deal with the rules mandating prayer five times a day, fasting from dawn till dusk for a 30 days, eating only blessed meat, avoiding pork, liquor, drugs and the like. We are taught to be disciplined. The Muslim philosophy is that this life is simply a test and our purpose is to pass the test as best as we can. Due to that, we try to follow the many rules imposed on us by God. Of course, not everyone follows these rules. It is becoming increasingly common for men and women alike to indulge in pre-marital relations, but it is not acceptable in Islamic societies, nor it is advocated. There will always be those who break the rules; who do not have the fortitude or desire to follow. Some rise to the occasion, others fall. A sad truth though is that many Muslims living in Western societies where sexual relations of all sorts are celebrated do participate in the free-for-all. Often it is more acceptable for men to ‘sow their oats’ before marriage, but for women it is still undesired. Aside from deviants in Islamic society, the standard still is chastity till marriage. That is why Muslims marry young and avoid temptations.
User Detail :
Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,You can see how limited the American perspective on ‘Arabs’ is by the fact that all those accused in the Sept. 11 attacks have been labeled ‘Arab,’ whether they were Afghani, Pakistani, Palestinian, Egyptian, Iraqi, Irani, Tunisian, Algerian or whatnot. These are all different nationalities, whose members often belong to different races, religions and cultures. But I digress… The reason many people in the United States after Sept. 11 have begun to hate all ‘Arabs’ is that they have limited information on them; they have been programmed through years of biased movies and books (remember ‘The Seige’?) to hold no sympathy for ‘Arabs.’ Muslims have been demonized for hundreds of years in Western culture, and very few Americans know any Arabs on a personal level with whom they can form a personal opinion to overcome stereotypes. Of course, this isn’t true for everyone, and this is just my opinion. It’s a complex issue with no easy answers.
User Detail :
Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,The tradition of the Islamic Hajj is believed to be passed down by Prophet Abraham (may God be pleased with him). He was layed the first stone at Ka’ba and circled the House of Allah in devotion to one god. The Ka’ba has been a house of worship for many religions since then, but was re-claimed by Prophet Muhammed for the people of the Abrahamic tradition, known as Muslims, some 1400 years ago. Muslims from all walks of life follow in this tradition to show our devotion to God, our unity and our equality. During the Hajj all men and women are equal. There are no kings and no paupers. Donning the same humble robe (or for women, any simple clothing), we come together to show our humility. May Allah forgive me if I have erred in my knowledge.
User Detail :
Name : Hayat R., Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Caucasian/Asian mix, Religion : Muslim, Age : 20, City : Islamabad, State : NA, Country : Pakistan, Occupation : Journalist, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,
