Return: A Journey Home - of love, justice, and God
Join us for a conversation with Ailya Vajid, moderated by Zamina Mithani, about Imam Hussain's return to God and the lessons of love and justice from his journey that are applicable to our lives today. We will have Quran recitation by Zuhair Hussaini and poetry reading by Zain Haider Awan at the beginning of the program.
Ailya Vajid has served as Muslim chaplain on several college campuses over the past seven years. In this role, she supports the religious, spiritual, and broader meaning-making journeys of students, faculty, and staff. She also engages in interfaith relationship building and dialogue, as well as partnerships and collaborations with local communities. In her work, Ailya seeks to promote open, honest dialogue and interaction in both intra-faith and interfaith contexts. Currently Ailya is pursuing studies in Unani Tibb (Greoc-Islamic medicine) at the College of Medicine and Healing Arts. In her spare time, Ailya enjoys spending time in nature, reading sacred and reflective texts, learning about traditional forms of healing, and listening to people’s life stories. Ailya holds a BA in Religion and Islamic Studies from Swarthmore College and an MA in Theological Studies, with a focus in Islamic Studies, from Harvard Divinity School.
Zamina Mithani is a graduate from the Masters of Bioethics program at Harvard Medical School and is currently a medical student at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver Canada. She has a passion for examining the intersections of spirituality, culture and ethics, both within medicine and within her community. In her undergraduate years, she served as the president of Thaqalayn Muslim Association for two terms, gave a TEDx talk about her Muslim identity, and organized various Muslim and interfaith programming at her campus and beyond.
Zuhair Hussaini is an architect and Quran reciter born and raised in New York. He studied the art of recitation under the mentorship of Egyptian and Iranian Qurra. Zuhair often recites for delegations during the UN assembly, conferences, as well as participating in the International Competitions in both Iran and Malaysia. He has also recited in the mausoleums of Imam Hussain (AS) and Imam as-Redha (AS) in the cities of Karbala and Mashhad.
In addition to Qur’an recitation, Zuhair engages in Arabic calligraphy and graphic design. He completed his architecture thesis on the rebuilding of Jannatul Baqi, the first proposal of its kind envisioning a future mausoleum design for the cemetery.
With the start of the Islamic New Year in the month of Muharram, Muslims around the world are commemorating the Tragedy of Karbala and the martyrdom of Imam Hussain son of Ali, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). The Tragedy of Karbala holds a very sacred space for many Muslims - it is a religious, spiritual, and political struggle, a test of God's love, the manifestation of God's name - the One who is Just -, the macrocosm of all tragedies before it and after it, and so much more. We pray as we enter these days of love and sorrow, we are all able to reflect on our relationship with God and delve into what justice means in Islam and all that people before us have sacrificed for Divine Justice.
Join us for a series of Muharram events to learn the history, significance, and practical lessons of Karbala.
