Issue 165 (May - Jun 2025)

“Knowledge was a dot.” As mysterious as it sounds, this ancient statement says a lot in a few words, which Hikmet Adem is attempting to unpack in this issue. The learned men of the past were not experts in one field only – you would find them to be as knowledgeable in medicine as in astronomy, math…

Today, above all else, we are in need of a generation that is conscientious in fulfilling their duty toward God. We need ideal people who can serve as guides to our society; guides who will save humanity from the accursed abysses of disbelief, ignorance, error, the anarchy we have been trying to su…

We perceive the world around us through colors, sounds, geometric patterns, and smells. Although various theories and models have been proposed to explain how the senses are processed in the brain as sight, sound, and smell, we are still in the infancy stage of understanding these magnificent sense…

A dot is a whole, without parts and sections, not divided, single. As such, it symbolizes oneness and unity. A true scholar is the one who is aware of this whole and can see it in its entirety. Such scholars, if they want, can open and expand that whole in their mind through reasoning. The one who…

Medicines and vaccines have transformed the prevention and treatment of diseases. In addition to their benefits, medicinal products may also have side effects, some of which may be undesirable and/or unexpected. For example, thalidomide was introduced in the late 1950s as a sedative and a treatmen…

Sometimes I wonder how we all got here. To a state in the world where the very air we breathe is toxic. I pull my mask back up over my mouth and push on through the abandoned aisles of the local convenience store. Any more than a few moments in this air without a mask, and my lungs will collapse…

On a less than memorable episode of The Simpsons, Bart, the hell-raising ten-year-old, is struggling to begin a paper on World War I that is due the next day. Books are piled on his desk. The pen is in his hand, touching the paper (back when kids still wrote essays by hand). He looks around the roo…

What is meant by 'ilm ladun, or the special knowledge from God's Presence, is knowledge of the Unseen or knowledge of mysteries, or knowledge which God imparts into one's heart and the truths occurring to it. Primarily included is the knowledge of all the Prophets and Messengers, as well as the kno…

One evening, as the last light of dusk faded over the Grand Canyon, I found myself in the company of a friend, walking toward the dock that spanned the Colorado River. Our plan was to visit the Havasupai Falls, and we had no other choice but to board a small rowing boat to cross. Yet as we neared t…

Throughout history, metals have held profound significance, shaping civilizations and symbolizing strength, resilience, justice, and divine provision. Sacred texts from across traditions reflect this importance, highlighting humanity’s relationship with metals like gold, silver, copper, and iron. T…

Being barely enough while overcoming all challenges Desires pulling me in all directions The first and the last advice in all of this I have a job to do Receiving accolades or battered with hatred Regardless, I will change it, I will save it At the 11th hour, never a dull moment  It’s never enough…

Leonardo da Vinci envisioned machines that run continuously and designed self-feeding mechanisms, which he presented in his drawings in the Codex Atlanticus [1]. From the perspective of today's advanced technologies, such ideas may no longer seem impossible to many people, but at that time, they we…

Faithfulness means living in accordance with the covenant one made with God in pre-eternity. When a believer declares their faith, they are, in that moment, giving their word to God. It is as though they have taken an oath and entered into a binding agreement with Him. True faithfulness lies in ful…

A First in Medicine: Personalized Gene Editing Saves Infant with Rare Genetic Disorder Musunuru et al. Patient-Specific In Vivo Gene Editing to Treat a Rare Genetic Disease. New England Journal of Medicine, May 2025. A recent groundbreaking study reported that researchers have successfully develo…