For my readers: If you come across words and phrases you don’t recognize, which I’m sure you will, I urge you to do your research. This set of reflective vignettes is my farewell to Muharrum, but perhaps my introduction to you. Meet me halfway.  Tonight marks the fortieth day following Ashura, chehlum in Urdu and … Continue reading Alvida, Muharrum →

Loving is spiritual and arguably cannot be separated from worshipping. Byun-Chul Han, author of The Disappearance of Rituals: A Topology of the Present, notes, “It is no coincidence that the word ‘religion’ comes from relegare, to focus the attention. All religious praxis is an exercise of attention. The temple is a place of deep attention. According to … Continue reading love as an act of worship →

parts two & three are on their way xx Part One: A confession over a plate of biryani I first cooked for M a few weeks into seeing each other. What she had said in passing about wanting a plate of homecooked biryani was translated into a demand for me. I was on a mission. … Continue reading meals with m →

When I say that I grew up “without a father,” I mean that I grew up with his absence. His absence in my life is its own tangible and alive being that I’ve interacted with. It is not akin to having a ghost lingering in your life as much as it is a clingy pet … Continue reading father’s daughter →