Menara Gardens, Marrakesh 🌴
The gardens were established in the 12th century by the Almohad Caliph Abd al-Mu'min who ruled al-Andalus and parts of North Africa. The place was designed as an agricultural estate with a large reservoir that collected water brought from the Atlas Mountains through underground channels known as khettaras, allowing thousands of olive trees to grow.
In addition to supplying the city the area was used by the military for training.
More than 800 years later, the Menara Gardens remain one of the finest reminders of Morocco's rich Islamic and Andalusian legacy.
The gardens were established in the 12th century by the Almohad Caliph Abd al-Mu'min who ruled al-Andalus and parts of North Africa. The place was designed as an agricultural estate with a large reservoir that collected water brought from the Atlas Mountains through underground channels known as khettaras, allowing thousands of olive trees to grow.
In addition to supplying the city the area was used by the military for training.
More than 800 years later, the Menara Gardens remain one of the finest reminders of Morocco's rich Islamic and Andalusian legacy.
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Forwarded from In the Shade of the Minaret
Experience al-Andalus through its history and the voices of the past. Join Ustadh Abu Ayyub Marulanda (In the Shade of the Minaret)from Ustadh Riyad Ramo (Gems of Al Andalus) for an unforgettable journey as we travel "In the Footsteps of the Nasrids, the last Muslim Dynasty in Spain".
🗓 September 19th-26th 2026
📍Granada - Cordoba - Seville
Click HERE for details
#islamichistory #muslimhistory #muslimhistorians #alandalus #muslimtravel
🗓 September 19th-26th 2026
📍Granada - Cordoba - Seville
Click HERE for details
#islamichistory #muslimhistory #muslimhistorians #alandalus #muslimtravel
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Forwarded from In the Shade of the Minaret
🚨 Traitor? Coward? Unlucky?
💁🏻♂ Often described as the above and more, Sultan Abu Abdullah Muhammad XII (d. 1533) is often vilified in history as being the ruler who betrayed the Muslims of al-Andalus, but what is the truth?
📍Join us in Spain this September to uncover the truth!
Click HERE for more info
#intheshadeoftheminaret #islamichistory #muslimhistory #alandalus #nasrids
💁🏻♂ Often described as the above and more, Sultan Abu Abdullah Muhammad XII (d. 1533) is often vilified in history as being the ruler who betrayed the Muslims of al-Andalus, but what is the truth?
📍Join us in Spain this September to uncover the truth!
Click HERE for more info
#intheshadeoftheminaret #islamichistory #muslimhistory #alandalus #nasrids
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In the Shade of the Minaret
🚨 Traitor? Coward? Unlucky? 💁🏻♂ Often described as the above and more, Sultan Abu Abdullah Muhammad XII (d. 1533) is often vilified in history as being the ruler who betrayed the Muslims of al-Andalus, but what is the truth? 📍Join us in Spain this September…
Join us in Spain! I will be giving a talk on the life and works of Imam Lisan al-Din ibn al-Khatib
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Forwarded from In the Shade of the Minaret
🚨 Top Picks!
📚 3 Must-Read Books on Al-Andalus by Dr. Mohamad Balan:
1. Islamic Spain: 1250-1500 by Leonard Patrick Harvey
2. Muslim Spain, Its History and Culture by Anwar Chejne
3. Kingdoms of Faith: A New History of Islamic Spain by Brian Catlos
Happy Reading!
#intheshadeoftheminaret #islamichistory #muslimhistory #books #booklist
📚 3 Must-Read Books on Al-Andalus by Dr. Mohamad Balan:
1. Islamic Spain: 1250-1500 by Leonard Patrick Harvey
2. Muslim Spain, Its History and Culture by Anwar Chejne
3. Kingdoms of Faith: A New History of Islamic Spain by Brian Catlos
Happy Reading!
#intheshadeoftheminaret #islamichistory #muslimhistory #books #booklist
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Forwarded from al-Ḥanafiyyah | ٱلْمَذْهَب ٱلْحَنَفِيّ
The Scholarly Excellence of al-Andalus
🔴 In my view, al-Andalus was the finest of the lands of Islām in terms of scholarly composition. They took from the methodological traditions of the East and brought their investigations into the realm of eloquent Arabic expression. The Umayyads of Córdoba also contributed to the advancement of learning and the Arabic language.
Thus emerged an intellectual revival founded upon the foundations of the Arabic linguistic tradition, combining rational inquiry with transmitted knowledge.
It was for this reason that great scholars emerged in al-Andalus, among them:
Ibn Ḥabīb, al-Aṣīlī, al-Bājī, Ibn Ḥazm, Ibn Rushd al-Jadd, Ibn Rushd al-Ḥafīd, Ibn al-ʿArabī, Qāḍī ʿIyāḍ, Ibn al-Sīd al-Baṭalyawsī, al-Aʿlam, Ibn Ṭufayl, Ibn Zuhr, and Ibn Bājjah.
Their inclination toward memorization also led later Andalusian scholars to develop the method of versified composition, particularly in disciplines dependent upon transmitted knowledge, such as Arabic grammar, Qurʾānic readings, Arabic prosody, and jurisprudence.
Thus, Ibn Muʿṭī composed his Alfiyyah on grammar; Ibn Mālik composed the al-Kāfiyah al-Shāfiyah and the famous Alfiyyah; while al-Shāṭibī composed Ḥirz al-Amānī on the Qurʾānic qirāʾāt and al-ʿAqīlah.
The practice of versified composition had, however, already appeared somewhat earlier in the East, as mentioned previously.
From this Andalusian scholarly tradition there subsequently arose the intellectual revival of Tlemcen, particularly during the era of Ibn Marzūq, al-ʿUqbānī, and al-Sharīf al-Tilimsānī. Yet the movement there remained more limited, owing to the comparatively narrower scope of its civilization and political power.🔴
Thus emerged an intellectual revival founded upon the foundations of the Arabic linguistic tradition, combining rational inquiry with transmitted knowledge.
It was for this reason that great scholars emerged in al-Andalus, among them:
Ibn Ḥabīb, al-Aṣīlī, al-Bājī, Ibn Ḥazm, Ibn Rushd al-Jadd, Ibn Rushd al-Ḥafīd, Ibn al-ʿArabī, Qāḍī ʿIyāḍ, Ibn al-Sīd al-Baṭalyawsī, al-Aʿlam, Ibn Ṭufayl, Ibn Zuhr, and Ibn Bājjah.
Their inclination toward memorization also led later Andalusian scholars to develop the method of versified composition, particularly in disciplines dependent upon transmitted knowledge, such as Arabic grammar, Qurʾānic readings, Arabic prosody, and jurisprudence.
Thus, Ibn Muʿṭī composed his Alfiyyah on grammar; Ibn Mālik composed the al-Kāfiyah al-Shāfiyah and the famous Alfiyyah; while al-Shāṭibī composed Ḥirz al-Amānī on the Qurʾānic qirāʾāt and al-ʿAqīlah.
The practice of versified composition had, however, already appeared somewhat earlier in the East, as mentioned previously.
From this Andalusian scholarly tradition there subsequently arose the intellectual revival of Tlemcen, particularly during the era of Ibn Marzūq, al-ʿUqbānī, and al-Sharīf al-Tilimsānī. Yet the movement there remained more limited, owing to the comparatively narrower scope of its civilization and political power.
📌 • Muḥammad al-Ṭāhir ibn ʿĀshūr, A-laysa al-Ṣubḥu bi-Qarīb, p. 148.
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"During the centuries that elapsed between these two dates (711 CE-1502 CE), Muslim Spain had written one of the brightest pages in the history of medieval Europe. Her influence had passed through Provence into the other countries of Europe, bringing into birth a new poetry and a new culture, and it was from her that Christian scholars received what of Greek philosophy and science they had to stimulate their mental activity up to the time of the Renaissance."
The Preaching of Islam by Thomas Walker Arnold
The Preaching of Islam by Thomas Walker Arnold
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New Book! 📚
A new publication of an Andalusian Maliki refutation of Ibn Hazm and some of his irregular positions from the Dhahiri school. The book shows the scholary world of refutations between Malikis and Dhahiris.
The book is by Abu al-Asbagh 'Isa ibn Sahl al-Asadi (d. 486 AH / 1093 CE), one of the major judges and prominent Maliki scholars of al-Andalus.
The work examines Ibn Hazm's legal opinions and highlights rulings in which he diverged from the majority of scholars. The book was intended as a warning for judges, muftis, and students knowledge from adopting the way of Ibn Hazm.
This new edition has been prepared and critically edited by Muhammad ibn Zayn al-Abidin Rustum, a professor in Morocco. Who has been doing great job reviving Andalusian works.
The work comes from a rare manuscript preserved in the Al-Qarawiyyin Library in Fez and is being published as a complete work for the first time.
A new publication of an Andalusian Maliki refutation of Ibn Hazm and some of his irregular positions from the Dhahiri school. The book shows the scholary world of refutations between Malikis and Dhahiris.
The book is by Abu al-Asbagh 'Isa ibn Sahl al-Asadi (d. 486 AH / 1093 CE), one of the major judges and prominent Maliki scholars of al-Andalus.
The work examines Ibn Hazm's legal opinions and highlights rulings in which he diverged from the majority of scholars. The book was intended as a warning for judges, muftis, and students knowledge from adopting the way of Ibn Hazm.
This new edition has been prepared and critically edited by Muhammad ibn Zayn al-Abidin Rustum, a professor in Morocco. Who has been doing great job reviving Andalusian works.
The work comes from a rare manuscript preserved in the Al-Qarawiyyin Library in Fez and is being published as a complete work for the first time.
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The Story Behind the Name Safi
The 11th-century Andalusian geographer Muhammad al-Idrisi gives an unusual explanation for the origin of the name Safi (Asafi), connecting it to the Arabic word asaf, meaning regret.
According to al-Idrisi, a group of sailors from al-Andalus set out across the Atlantic in search of what lay beyond it. After becoming lost, they eventually came to an island where they were captured by its inhabitants then sent back to sea blindfolded and eventually reached the shores of Safi.
When the local people found them, they helped the sailors and told them that they were still two months away from their homeland, al-Andalus. Upon hearing this, one of the sailors reportedly exclaimed:
"Wa asafi!" — "Oh, my regret!"
Al-Idrisi relates that from this expression the city came to be known as Asafi, or Safi.
Allah knows best on the historical origin of the name.
The 11th-century Andalusian geographer Muhammad al-Idrisi gives an unusual explanation for the origin of the name Safi (Asafi), connecting it to the Arabic word asaf, meaning regret.
According to al-Idrisi, a group of sailors from al-Andalus set out across the Atlantic in search of what lay beyond it. After becoming lost, they eventually came to an island where they were captured by its inhabitants then sent back to sea blindfolded and eventually reached the shores of Safi.
When the local people found them, they helped the sailors and told them that they were still two months away from their homeland, al-Andalus. Upon hearing this, one of the sailors reportedly exclaimed:
"Wa asafi!" — "Oh, my regret!"
Al-Idrisi relates that from this expression the city came to be known as Asafi, or Safi.
Allah knows best on the historical origin of the name.
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