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sharmin শারমিন

@sharminultra

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Over the last five weeks, I’ve been part of a small cohort of apprentices trained by the legendary @thesaamibrothersofficial hosted by @12gates - master practitioners of khayaal and qawwal, one of South Asia’s oldest vocal traditions tracing its lineage back over 800 years to Hazrat Amir Khusrau. Now I haven’t sung since middle school chorus days, but through this residency, our teachers taught us the fundamentals of developing a voice connected to the Divine. We worked through our breath, pitches and note recognition, and the microtonal ornamentation of ancient alaap and raags and bandishes in its original form. Khayaal, or imagination, is the tariqa (way), people connect to their God and learn through their voice. This fellowship helped me explore how our awaz (voice) can open pathways for spiritual listening or sama’a for remembrance of the Divine, or dhikr.

There are so many lessons I’m still processing from this once-in-a-lifetime experience - like how Arooj bhai once asked: Allah is khoobsurat (beautiful), but how much beauty can humans see? That is the true essence of khayaal.

If you’re in the Philadelphia area, you can see us perform alongside our teachers this Friday, October 9 at the Ethical Society. Tickets in bio!

#qawwali #sufi by @sharminultra

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11 days ago

Sufi edition —

1. Women of Sufism by Camille Adams Helminski wonderfully covers the expansive history, poetry and spiritual contributions of Muslim women.

2. Sufism: The Heart of Islam by Saudia Dehlvi goes into the major Sufi orders, their popularity and lineage across South Asia, and the remarkable lives of the early Sufis, their literature, and philosophies.

3. Secrets of Divine Love by A. Helwa is a beautifully written spiritual guidebook focused on heart-centered faith - her approach is deeply psychological, asking us to deepen our relationships to God through unconditional love and healing the inner critic to challenge ego and practice mindfulness.

#sufi #bookstagram #booktok by @sharminultra

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4 days ago

9/11 was a canon event for a lot of young Muslim Americans — and it continues to impact all of us today.

The U.S. government used the terror attacks to justify the endless war, cruel immigration policy, and mass surveillance we’re subject to 25 years later. #NoTechforICE is fighting against that. Help us reverse the violence of the last quarter-century by joining the campaign today.

#911 #worldtradecenter #purgepalantir #flock by @sharminultra

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It’s crazy to land in Lisbon and Bangla to be the first language that you hear in the airport. Your cab driver is a Syleti who migrated a few years ago. You drop off your luggage at a storage unit, and the shopkeeper is a sweet man named Shamim from Comilla. You walk to the local coffee shop, and a man from Noakhali makes you a dalgona coffee.

It’s crazy to think that Muslims arrived in Portugal as early as 700 AD, and ruled for over 400 years, to find no trace of it in the museums and public memory. You can find Muslims in the intricate geometric patterns, the azulejos (ceramic tiles) or the names of areas like Alfama which originates from al-hamma because the Moorish rule of Lisbon introduced them to bathhouses, and Aljube which translates to prison or dungeon. They introduced irrigation systems, new crops like rice and citrus, and the Portuguese brought chilis and words like janala (window) and almari (warddrobe) and veranda (porch) to Bengal.

It’s crazier to think that the Portuguese expelled Muslims and Jews out by the mid-13th century, only for thousands of Bangladeshi laborers and climate refugees to migrate to Portugal to keep the country running.

Snippets from little Bangladesh in Martim Moniz. The streets are bustling with indigenous vegetables like lau (squash), begun (eggplants) and restaurants with posters of Imran Khan next to Shongshod Bhobhon and shops called Amar Shonar Bangla and Bangla Town. taken in Lisbon, Portugal by @sharminultra

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a month ago

Developed my film from Dhaka, Mexico City + Philly 📸

#35mm by @sharminultra

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2 months ago

Some books that changed my life recently 📚📖

1. CHAOS: Charles Manson, the CIA and the Secret History of the 60s by Tom O’Neill - this book had me at the edge of my seat going into research holes about drug trials and mind control programs administered by the CIA at the San Francisco Haight-Asbury Clinic, the anti-war movement of the 60s and the rising anti-Black counterinsurgency against the Black Panthers. The book draws connections between the fear mongering brought on by the Manson murders and the federal government, these white hippie cults and false prophets that weaponized psychedelics and the socio-political and cultural impacts of a neo-spirituality that effectively de-fanged a militant anti-war movement. It attempts to truly answer: what happened to all the free love-hippies who fought against the Vietnam war, and how did they become part of reactionary psyop cults?

2. No God But Us by @djinn_t0nic - I love a queer Muslim novel. Bobuq’s writing is captivating, he follows the intertwined stories of Afghan refugees in Turkey, and how their lives are colored with the intricacies of belonging, migration, family, and intimacy.

3. Red Star Over the Third World by @possiblehistory - I read some of these chapters in college, and revisited it with a renewed understanding of the beginnings of socialist movements in the Global South after the October Revolution. This is a brief summary - a place to begin - that shares a little texture to women’s struggles, issues within peasant movement organizing and anti-imperialism in Cuba, Vietnam, and Eastern Asia. I’d pair this book with Blackshirts and Reds: Rational Fascism and the Overthrow of Communism by Michael Parenti and Jakarta Method (tough read) by Vincent Bevins.

📕 What books are you reading? taken in Book lover by @sharminultra

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3 months ago

annoying-maxxing ⚽️ by @sharminultra

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3 months ago

The World Cup is a lesson in geo-politics - it really feels like Empire v. Global South, and there are only two African teams left. There’s truly no greater feeling than watching America get dogwalked after rigging the game ❤️

I’m rooting for everyone in the global South!

Watch the quarterfinal match in NYC with me @starrbarbk this Saturday, July 11 from 4-7PM ⚽️🥅🏟️

#fifaworldcup2026 #nyc #worldcup2026 taken in FIFA World Cup by @sharminultra

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3 months ago

NEW YORK FOREVER
WE DID THIS TOGETHER
MY CITY ALIVE
KNICKS IN FIVE!!!!!
🗽🗽🗽

#knicksnation #knicks

💙🧡💙🧡 taken in New York Knicks by @sharminultra

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4 months ago

KNICKS IN 5!!!!!!

#knicksnation #brooklyn #bangladeshstreetstyle taken in New York Knicks by @sharminultra

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4 months ago

love in the vortex 🏜️🌵 taken in Navajo Nation by @sharminultra

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5 months ago

There are so many rad socialists running for office across the country! 🗳️

Philadelphia, primaries are TOMORROW Tuesday, May 19! Donate and vote for @chrisrabb for Congress!

Special shoutout to my forever home NYC where @aberkawas for NY state senate 🗽

Check out @reclaimphiladelphia voter guide for more information 🔌 by @sharminultra

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