He admitted that he hadn’t told anyone else – family or friends – about how he was feeling. I think this was the reason I kept calling him despite his apparent happiness. On some level I’d recognised the subtle signs of the same act that I’d been playing for years.

Usually when I arrive at work on a Monday morning my supervisor asks me: “did you have a good weekend, was it restful?”

Alhamdulillah, it was an excellent weekend but far from restful. I think I would have been annoyed if I had a restful weekend where I didn’t achieve anything.

How many times have I sat on a dinner table listening to my Dad debating with an Uncle about the problems in Bangladesh? Loads! And nobody seems to have an answer. My dad ends up with the same question every time: Why don’t Bengalis just follow the law in Bangladesh?

Ever since the Danes published the abominable cartoons of our beloved Prophet (saws) on 30 September 2005, the European newspapers observed the lack of backlash by the Muslims. When this issue came to the attention of the Ummah, globally, it is then that the World began to take notice of the uproar amongst the Muslims. Protests in Palestine, Iraq, Indonesia, Jordon, Syria, Iran and many more to now the protests taking place in Europe.

I had learnt the meaning of spirit. For many people, a “spiritual” environment involves the warm glow of candles, the exotic scent of incense, the sound of a flute, stillness… For some, these things are almost a requirement for meditation. Indeed an industry has developed around this idea.