The Humble I

Knowing, Doing, Becoming

the Prophet’s hair

December 11, 2012

Yearning for the Prophet ﷺ

The Prophet said, peace be upon him: ‘Among those of my nation (ummah) that most fervently love me will be a people who shall come after me, and who would give up their family and property in exchange for being able to see me.’1 The lady ‘A’ishah related: A man came to the Prophet, peace be upon… Continue reading

prophetology, salafism reconsidered

Al-Dhahabi, date-palm tree, Hasan al-Basri, Imam Ahmad, love of the Prophet, relics of the Prophet, the Prophet’s hair

About Me

My name is Surkheel Sharif (aka Abu Aaliyah). Born and raised in London, England, I began my more formal, but gradual studies of the Islamic sciences around the late 1980s (just a few years after having quit my degree in Astrophysics). I also gained an MA in Islamic Studies from Birkbeck College, University of London, in 2009.

I’ve translated a few Islamic works from Arabic into English; one of them, a short text on Muslim spirituality, called The Exquisite Pearl (2000). I have also authored a few books, including: More Fish Please & the Earth’s Complaint (2011); Fussing Over the 15th of Sha’ban & the Golden Rule of Differing (2011); A Muslim’s Guide to Modernity (2025); and Salafism Reconsidered (forthcoming)

I am the founder and current Director of the Jawziyyah Institute (est. 1999): a non-profit organisation dedicated to cultivating an Islam true to its time-honoured tradition, relevant to its current context, and of benefit to wider society.

the Prophet’s hair

Yearning for the Prophet ﷺ