Four Unmissable Events at The Bradford Literature Festival

A ten-day programme with a jam-packed schedule of events featuring artists, scholars and poets, Bradford once again says hello to the Bradford Literature Festival! With over five hundred events planned, there’s something for everyone. Here’s a list of four events that cannot be missed this year:

Travels in Muslim Lands: Tharik Hussain, Rebecca Lowe

Travelling to the Muslim lands is often misunderstood by many which is why Rebecca Lowe and Tharik Hussain come together to challenge this narrative.

Writer Rebecca Lowe is widely known for her 11,000 km bike ride which took her from London to Iran. Throughout her journey, she visited Turkey, Lebanon, Egypt and Sudan at a time when ISIS was at its height.

Author Tharik Hussain on the other hand took a slightly different journey. With his wife and young daughters, Tharik travelled passionately around Western Balkans; a region which is known to be home to the largest indigenous Muslim population in Europe.

Join them both on Saturday 2 July at 2:15 PM as they discuss their books and explore the concept of travel writing about the Muslim lands.

A Blessed Valley: Shaykh Yahya Rhodus

A Blessed Valley is a book that tells the story of one of the purest lineages of Ahl al-Bayt; the Ba-‘Alawi sayyids of Hadramawt in southern Yemen. Over the many centuries, the Ba-‘Alawi sayyids have produced a tradition of scholarship and chains of transmission which remain unbroken to this day.

The book details their biographies and tells the world the immense influence they have had on many around the world. The author of the book is Dr Mostafa al-Badawi – an Egyptian psychiatrist, translator of Islamic texts, and scholar of Islamic sciences.

Join Shaykh Yahya Rhodus on Sunday 26 June at 5 PM as he takes part in the launch of Dr Badawi’s inspirational book.

The Golden Thread of Parenting: Shaykh Haroon Hanif

Its not easy to raise children, particularly with the modern challenges and distractions we face. Yet we can all agree that the act of raising children is a selfless, rewarding and noble endeavour.

This event will explore ‘Simt al-Uqyan’ (A Thread of Pure Gold). Originally written in the form of a poem by Imam Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Ramli, ‘Simt al-Uqyan’ is a summarised version of the original Manzumat Riyadat al-Sibyan (A Treatise on Raising Children).

Join Shaykh Haroon Hanif on Wednesday 29 June at 10:30 AM, as he explores parts of the book and attempts to apply key points to the contemporary parenting challenges we experience today.

The Book of Contemplation: Shaykh Yahya Rhodus

This popular event will see Shaykh Yahya Rhodus discuss Ihya Ulum al-SDin (The Revival of the Religious Sciences). Originally written by the 10th century Persian polymath Imam al-Ghazali, Ihya Ulum explores the art of reflection and contemplation; and act that is seldom practiced today.

With Shaykh Yahya’s interpretation, it is identified how the act of reflection can be related to the 10th book of Aristotle’s famous Nicomachean Ethics.

Join Shaykh Yahya Rhodus on Sunday 26 June at 6:30P PM as he explores the art of contemplation and discusses how it can be implemented into our ever-busy lives.