Start With Words

Knowledge is a public good and it must be treated as such.

If you want to learn a language efficiently, then you need to give that language life. Every word needs to connect to sounds and images, and scents and tastes and emotions. Every bit of grammar can't be some kind of abstract grammatical code; it needs to be something that can help you tell your story. And if you do this, you will find that the words begin to stick in your mind, and the grammar, it begins to stick too. And you start to realize that you don't need some kind of language gene, some gift from God to accomplish this. This is something that everyone has both the time and the ability to do.

HALCYONIC (adjective) - often used to describe an idyllic time in the past that is remembered as better than today.

SALVIFIC (adjective) - having the intent or power to save or redeem.

JURISPRUDENTIAL (adjective) - of relating to a system or body of law.

ARDENT (adjective) - very enthusiastic or passionate.

VICISSITUDE (noun) - a change of circumstances or fortune, typically one that is unwelcome or unpleasant; alternation between opposite or contrasting things.

But ʿUbayd Allāh knew that if he divorced Rāqī, she would, according to Islamic law, be able to keep everything he already gave or promised her (i.e., mahr) for their marriage. In their case, that meant swaths of land and enviable properties. But ʿUbayd Allāh also knew that if Rāqī was the one who asked for a divorce (khulʿ), he would be able to negotiate with her to keep what he gave her. So, ʿUbayd Allāh devised a plan where he would make Rāqī’s life so miserable that she would beg for a divorce. She did exactly that. In December 1118 C.E., Rāqī came to an agreement with ʿUbayd Allāh and forfeited anything she received in their marriage in exchange for a divorce. Little did ʿUbayd Allāh realize, Rāqī also knew her rights under the law. In fact, when she was still married, she had prepared a legal document (ʿaqd istirʿāʾ) that collected witness testimony of her abuse. She took her case to court and presented her evidence. The great Mālikī scholar Ibn Rushd al-Jadd (d. 520/1126) oversaw her case. He listened carefully and examined the evidence. He ruled the following: unless ʿUbayd Allāh could rebut the overwhelming evidence testifying to his abuse, he had to return everything he took from Rāqī. Why? Because if a husband harms his wife, she has the right to divorce and the right to keep her dower. (Tesneem Alkiek, in Marital Harm through the Ages: Perspectives from Islamic Scholarship and Practice, included in Hashiya Magazine Issue I, p. 52-53)

Everyone knows that something is wrong. The politicians say, “we need higher standards.” The schools say, “we need more money and equipment.” Educators say one thing, and teachers 3 say another. They are all wrong. The only people who understand what is going on are the ones most often blamed and least often heard: the students. They say, “math class is stupid and boring,” and they are right.

ALACRITY (noun) - brisk and cheerful readiness.

TRUANT (adjective) - wandering, straying.