To cultivate meaningful experiences for all Muslim Americans, aiding them on their spiritual journey by leveraging and disseminating the sacred wisdoms and teachings of the Ithnā ʿAsharī tradition. Guiding Principles
The Sirat Initiative is anchored by the guiding principles of the Holy Qurʾān as they are taught and expounded by the Holy Messenger and his Purified Household, God’s blessings upon them. At the core of these teachings are the ʾuṣūl ad-dīn or fundamental doctrines of faith, with tawḥīd and ʿadālah (Divine Unity and Justice) at their core, nubūwwah and walāyah (Prophecy and Initiation) as the archetypal models of spiritual radiance and guidance, and maʿād (transcendence in the hereafter) as the ultimate destination. Core Values
In addition to its guiding principles, The Sirat Initiative strives to remain grounded in the following core values:
Iḥsān – lit. ‘to make beautiful’, īḥsān is the Qurʾānic principle of centering ʿilm (knowledge) in in our actions by way of ʾadab (good comportment), the same way the ʾadīb or poet centers words to compose an eloquent verse. Ukhūwwah – lit. ‘camaraderie’ or ‘brother/sisterhood’, the secret of ukhūwwah is generosity— striving, as the Holy Prophet did, to be generous with one’s self, and seeking to elevate the low and lower the elevated so that they might meet in that middle place called brotherhood. To be impartial is not to let one’s subjective emotions color and prejudice their judgement, but rather, to discern the truth of things, and to privilege that truth above all else. Indeed, to love Truth is to love God, one of His Names being al-Ḥaqq (the Truth). Family – The core institution of Muslim social life, the family is a fundamental fixture of society—for no society can be well if the family is unwell. Based on the principle of tawḥid, the family is a unity unto itself, exemplified in its prototypical dispensation by the Ahl al-Bayt, God’s blessings upon them. Rūḥanīyyah – Essential to religion (and not distinct from it), the spiritual life, or ruḥanīyyah is at the heart of Islamic piety, where the sālik (wayfarer) embarks on a journey along the ṣirāṭ (path) to the Beloved.
