Gandhi...

image from Wikipedia

When Gandhi was asked if he was a Hindu, he answered: 

"Yes I am, I am also a Muslim, a Christian, a Buddhist, and a Jew."

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O humankind!
We have created you from a male and a female,
and made you into nations and tribes,
that you may know one another.
Verily, the most honourable of you with Allâh
is that (believer) who has At-Taqwa.
Verily, Allâh is All-Knowing, All-Aware.
--Quran 49:13--

Sheikh Kabir Helminski of the Mevlevi Order discusses zikr

The Threshold Society: Mevlevi Order of America
One Through Love

And remember your Protector and Sustainer,
O beloved Muhammad,humbly and with awe.
Use then a gentle voice, the words carried softly on your breath,
to praise Me in the morning and evening.
And do not be negligent in your remembrance.

--Quran al-A'raf 7:205--

Native American Proverb

And S/He giveth you all that ye ask for.  

But if ye count the favours of The Beloved,

never will ye be able to number them.

Verily, humankind is given up to injustice and ingratitude.

--Quran Surah Ibrahim (14:34)--

Wikipedia on Gratitude Journals

Tips for Keeping a Gratitude Journal

The Power of Gratitude from Oprah.com

The Israeli Dervish

 I think the Way of the Heart is the international language.

Miki Cohen, Israeli Dervish

Huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!


Those who believe,
and whose hearts find satisfaction
in remembering the Beloved,
know without doubt
hearts find satisfaction
in remembrance of the Beloved.


--Quran Surah ar-Rad 13:28--

Helping Afghan women who are victims of domestic violence

Women for Afghan Women

And among Allah's signs is this:
that S/He created mates for you from yourselves
that you may find rest and peace of mind in them,
and S/He ordained between you love and mercy.
Certainly, herein indeed are signs for people who reflect.

(Quran 30:21)
<3 <3 <3 ooo <3 <3 <3 ooo <3 <3 <3 ooo <3 <3 <3 ooo <3 <3 <3 ooo <3 <3 <3
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
"The most perfect of the believers is the best of you in character, and the best of you are those among you who are best to their wives."(Tirmidhi)

It Is Your Turn Now

It is your turn now,

you waited, you were patient.

The time has come

for us to polish you.

We will transform your inner  pearl

into a house of fire.

You're a god mine.

Did you know that,

hidden in the dirt of the earth?

It is your turn now,

to be placed in fire.

Let us cremate your impurities.

-Rumi

translation by Shahram Shiva, 

Hush Don't Say Anything to God: Passionate Poems of Rumi


*********************************


Once man has thus comprehended the essence of existence 
there remains for him the duty,
since he knows the value of his own soul, 
of making himself a direct path which will constantly lead
his individual soul to and bind it with the universal Soul
of which the Universe, 
as much of it as we perceive with our limited vision,
is one of the infinite manifestations.
Thus Islam's basic principle can only be defined
as monorealism and not as monotheism.
-Aga Khan III (Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah)
Learn more about the Shia Ismailis

Music Mondays

This is from the barrier breaking show, Coke Studio, in Pakistan.

Check them out at:
CokeStudio on Youtube
CokeStudio on Twitter
CokeStudio on Facebook

Be the Match

Be the Match

Be the Match Youtube channel

Muslim Athletes at the London Olympics 2012

Hijab to Make History in London Olympics

London Mosques Host Olympic Iftar

American Team Don Hijab to Support Captain

2012 Olympics: Ramadan Challenges and Opportunities

Olympics - Qatar's First Female Sprinter Feels No Pressure

Muslim Athletes Must Balance the Call to Fast With a Desire to Compete

Young Muslim Woman Breaks Ground in Fencing, Olympics

AP: Muslim Olympic Athletes Consider Delaying Ramadan Fast in London

Love Poem by Irving Karchmar

Love Poem

Gladly then did the world arise
By that one mighty word of power… Love!
From any other word quite apart
It rejoices in the willing heart
And binds the planets to their skies
And shines in You the brighter to my eyes

Night, come bring the dippers and Orion’s belt
To gird the firmament and bind us to His boundless will
That my heart, which has never felt such sentiment
May feel it then the deeper still

Give it not to chance then, nor say instead ’twas fate
That we have met in time who might have met too late
In the understanding of two hearts that may for earlier years amend
As our time flows like a river, unfelt til journeys end

– Irving Karchmar, 1986

Master of the Jinn, a novel by Irving Karchmar. 
Irving is a Sufi from the Nimatullahi Sufi Order
 His blog is Darvish.  

When does Ramadan begin?

thank you to Ranoush @ Flickr for the imagecopyright Ranoush
 

Counting down the days to Ramadan. When is Ramadan in 2012? It will begin on Friday, July 20 and end on Saturday, August 18. Based on sightability, it will begin, Saturday, July 21 in North America. 

A general introduction to Ramadan from Wikipedia.Get a Ramadan Countdown widget

Lesley Hazleton: On reading the Koran

The Gayatri Mantra

The Gayatri Mantra is a prayerful Sanskrit chanting of a verse from the Holy Vedas, one of the Sacred Texts revealed to the people of India in ancient times.

Here is the Prayer in Sanskrit

ॐ भूर्भुवः॒ स्वः ।

तत्स॑वितुर्वरे॑ण्यं ।

भ॒र्गो॑ दे॒वस्य॑ धीमहि। ।

धियो॒ यो नः॑ प्रचो॒दया॑त्॥ ।

and now a transliteration:

Oṃ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ
tát savitúr váreṇ(i)yaṃ
bhárgo devásya dhīmahi
dhíyo yó naḥ pracodáyāt




In the Gayatri Mantra, the seekers ask the Creator of the Universe to enlighten us, to guide our intellects toward wisdom and the ability to behold a deep understanding of Truth.

One of the more literal translations would be:

May we attain that excellent glory of Savitar the god:
So may he stimulate our prayers.
---The Hymns of the Rigveda


Among the many beautiful interpretations:

O Creator of the Universe! 
We meditate upon Thy Supreme Splendor. 
May Thy Radiant Power illuminate our intellects,
destroy our sins and guide us in the right direction! 

O Divine Mother,
Our hearts are filled with darkness.
Please make this darkness distant from us
and promote illumination within us.

May the Supreme Light
that illuminates the three worlds,
illumine our intellect also, fully,
and direct the rays of our intelligence
to the path of virtue 

We meditate on the Divine Light
of that adorable Sun of Spiritual Consciousness.
may it illumine our intellect just as the
splendorous sunlight dispells our darkness. 

Earth, sky, heaven.
Let us meditate on these
and on the most excellent
Light of that adorable Sun.
We pray that they may
guide our intellect.

Wikipedia includes some of the following interpretations:


Let us adore the supremacy of that divine sun, the god-head who illuminates all, who recreates all, from whom all proceed, to whom all must return, whom we invoke to direct our understandings aright in our progress toward his holy seat.
(Sir William Jones)


Unveil, O Thou who givest sustenance to the Universe, from whom all proceed, to whom all must return, that face of the True Sun now hidden by a vase of golden light, that we may see the truth and do our whole duty on our journey to thy sacred seat.
(William Quan Judge)


We meditate on the worshipable power and glory of Him who has created the earth, 
the nether world and the heavens (i.e. the universe), and who directs our understanding. (Sivanath Sastri)


We meditate on the glory of that Being 
who has produced this universe; 
may He enlighten our minds.
(Swami Vivekananda)

We meditate on the effulgent glory of the Divine Light; 
may he inspire our understanding.
(S. Radhakrishnan)








O Lord, you are the Almighty, the Omniscient, the Omnipresent one. You are imperceptible, exists beyond the peripheries of mind; but present in earth, in cosmos, in all the galaxies. You are all pervasive. Your luminosity sustains the life of all the living beings on this earth. You are the source of light. O my Lord, bless us, so that our intellect may get illuminated.


From Wahiduddin.net , several other translations are found:


We meditate on the glory of the Creator;
Who has created the Universe;
Who is worthy of Worship;
Who is the embodiment of Knowledge and Light;
Who is the remover of all Sin and Ignorance;
May He enlighten our Intellect.
(Swami Shivananda)

We meditate upon the radiant Divine Light
of that adorable Sun of Spiritual Consciousness;
May it awaken our intuitional consciousness.
(S. Krishnamurthy)

Mothers of the Nur Ashki Jerrahis

 Mother Maryam and Prophet Isa, peace be upon them  

They immediately recognize Perfect Wisdom

as the sole teacher,

the very principle of Buddhahood

the tender Mother of the Buddhas.

- Lex Hixon, Mother of the Buddhas

Love, intimacy, and constant remembrance are the glorious way.
Essentially, love, love, and more love.
- Shaykha Fariha al Jerrahi

 

The mystery of motherhood shines in Mecca. Mother of Holy Places, radiates as the Glorious Quran, Mother of Scriptures and illumines the entire universe as umma*, the spiritual community, Mother of the Lovers of Truth.  The mystery of motherhood sparkles secretly as the primary Divine Names, Rahman and Rahim which derive from the single Arabic root meaning womb. The mystery of motherhood glows delicately as the spiritual pregnancy of the heart of both men and women along the mystic way.  This rich spiritual mystery manifests in a special sense through all women.

O Matrix of Existence!  

O Birth Giver, Educator and Protector of All Worlds.

O Glorious One!

amin amin alhamdulillahi rabbi-l-alamin

 - Lex Hixon, Nur al-Jerrahi, Atom of the Sun of Knowledge, p. 168

God does not fit anywhere but the human heart.
The heart is the locus of remembrance of God.
- Shaykha Amina al Jerrahi

The Arabic of the Qu'ran is already much more gender inclusive than any translation.  For instance, even though the word Allah is grammatically masculine, the One's essence (Dhat) and attributes (Sifat) are both gendered female.

Neil Douglas Klotz, foreword to The Heart of the Q-uran by Lex Hixon

Interview with Halifa Ayshegul Ashki from TheButterflyGift.com Videos on Vimeo   

O Mother, I throw myself on Thy mercy;
I take shel­ter at Thy Hal­lowed Feet.

- Sri Ramakrishna - ...............................  Hadith of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, "Paradise lies at the feet of the Mother." .................

The Late Peacemaker Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bukhari

Honoring the Life of Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bukhari


Inscribed on the hilt of the Prophet’s sword:
‘Forgive him who wrongs you;
join him who cuts you off;
do good to him who does evil to you,
and speak the truth although it be against yourself.’


The Prophet said:


The proud will not enter paradise, nor a violent speaker.

God is not merciful to him who is not so to mankind.

Kindness is a mark of faith, and whoever has not kindness has not faith.

We were on a journey with the prophet when we saw a finch with two young ones. We took away the two young ones and the mother bird fluttered around. Then the Prophet came and said, 'Who has distressed her by taking away her young ones? Return her young ones to her.'

The Prophet also saw the abode of ants which we had burnt, and said, 'Who has burnt this?' We said, 'We (have done this).' The Prophet said, 'It is not proper that any one should punish another by fire unless it be the Lord of fire himself.'

The Prophet Muhammad said, 'My Cherisher has ordered me nine things: (1) To reverence Him, externally and internally; (2) to speak true, and with propriety, in prosperity and adversity; (3) moderation in affluence and poverty; (4) to benefit my relations and kindred who do not benefit me; (5) to give alms to him who refuses me; (6) to forgive him who injures me; (7) that my silence should be in attaining knowledge of God; (8) that when I speak, I should mention Him; (9) that when I look on God's creatures, it should be as an example for them.'

Deal gently with the people, and be not harsh; cheer them and condemn them not.

Rumi, Rumi, Rumi

Only Your presence revives my withered heart. 

You are the candle that lights the whole world 

and I am an empty vessel for Your Light.
-Rumi-

 
In the blackest of your moments wait with no fear.
-Rumi-

 
Within tears, find a hidden laughter; 

seek treasure amid ruins, sincere one.

-Rumi-

Make peace with the universe.
Take joy in it. 
It will turn to gold. Resurrection will be now. 
Every moment, a new beauty. 
-Rumi-

Me and the Mosque by Zarqa Nawaz

Light Verses

"When any one lights a lamp, 

he never puts it in the cellar or under the bushel, 

but on the lampstand, that people who come in may see the light.

(The Holy Book of Injeel:  Luke 11:33)

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

(The Holy Book of Zabur: Psalms 119:105)

'

Those who believe will stand alongside the Prophet,

their light streaming on ahead of them

and to their right.

They will say, "Our Lord, perfect our light for us and forgive us!"

(Quran: 66:8)

He is the one light that gives light

that gives light to all.

He shines; everything shines.

(Upanishads)

God is the Light of the heavens and the earth.

The parable of His Light

is as if there were a Niche,

and within it a Lamp;

the Lamp enclosed in Glass:

The Glass as it were a brilliant star:

Lit from a blessed Tree,

an olive neither of the East nor of the West,

Whose oil is well-night luminous,

though fire scarce touched it.

Light upon Light!

God guides whom He will to His Light:

God sets forth parables for men, and God knows all things.

(Quran 24:35)

Rumi's wisdom....

In generosity and helping others

be like the river.

In compassion and grace

be like the sun.

In concealing others' faults

be like the night.

In anger and fury

be like the dead.

In modesty and humility

be like the soil.

In tolerance

be like the ocean.

Either you appear as you are or

be as you appear.

Rumi

YA ALLAH!

Hu Hu Hu Hu Hu Hu Hu

The Beloved's Quran 2:115

 
To the Beloved belong the East and West

......so wherever you turn

there is your Beloved's Face.

The Beloved is

Everywhere

Omnipresence

Omniscience.

(Quran 2:115)

********************************************************************

La

i

l

a

h

a

ill

 ALLAH

Hiya Allah   -   Huwa Allah

Charity

Visit  SAVE THE CHILDREN

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once had several coins that he asked his wife to distribute in charity. But due to the Prophet's illness at the time, she did not have an opportunity to give out the coins. When the Prophet learned of this, he asked for the coins, placed them in his hand, and then said: "What would God's Prophet think if he were to meet God, who is Great and Glorious, while (still) possessing these?" - Al-Tirmidhi, Hadith 586

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Every Muslim has to give in charity." The people then asked: "(But what) if someone has nothing to give, what should he do?" The Prophet replied: "He should work with his hands and benefit himself and also give in charity (from what he earns)." The people further asked: "If he cannot find even that?" He replied: "He should help the needy who appeal for help." Then the people asked: "If he cannot do (even) that?" The Prophet said finally: "Then he should perform good deeds and keep away from evil deeds, and that will be regarded as charitable deeds." - Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 2, Hadith 524

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Charity is prescribed for each descendant of Adam every day the sun rises." He was then asked: "From what do we give charity every day?" The Prophet answered: "The doors of goodness are many...enjoining good, forbidding evil, removing harm from the road, listening to the deaf, leading the blind, guiding one to the object of his need, hurrying with the strength of one's legs to one in sorrow who is asking for help, and supporting the feeble with the strength of one's arms--all of these are charity prescribed for you." He also said: "Your smile for your brother is charity." - Fiqh-us-Sunnah, Volume 3, Number 98

"Spend (in charity) out of the sustenance that We have bestowed on you before that time when death will come to someone, and he shall say: "O my Lord! If only you would grant me reprieve for a little while, then I would give in charity, and be among the righteous." - The Holy Quran, 63:10

A man once said to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him): "I have plenty of property, a large family, a great deal of money, and I am a gracious host to my guests. Tell me how to conduct my life and how to spend (my money)." The Prophet replied: "Give (regular charity) out of your property, for truly it is a purifier, and be kind to your relatives and acknowledge the rights of the poor, neighbors and (those in need who seek your help)." - Fiqh-us-Sunnah, Volume 3, Number 3

"They ask you (O Muhammad) what they should spend in charity. Say: 'Whatever you spend with a good heart, give it to parents, relatives, orphans, the helpless, and travellers in need. Whatever good you do, God is aware of it.'" - The Holy Quran, 2:215

 The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Save yourself from hellfire by giving even half a date-fruit in charity." - Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 2, Hadith 498

Play games and generate donations of Free Rice 

 

  

A prostitute was forgiven by Allah, because, passing by a panting dog near a well and seeing that the dog was about to die of thirst, she took off her shoe, and tying it with her head-cover she drew out some water for it. So, Allah forgave her because of that.  - Sahih Al-Bukhari, 4:538

Where Is the Love by Black Eyed Peas

What's wrong with the world, mama
People livin' like they ain't got no mamas
I think the whole world addicted to the drama
Only attracted to things that'll bring you trauma

Overseas, yeah, we try to stop terrorism
But we still got terrorists here livin'
In the USA, the big CIA
The Bloods and The Crips and the KKK

But if you only have love for your own race
Then you only leave space to discriminate
And to discriminate only generates hate
And when you hate then you're bound to get irate, yeah

Madness is what you demonstrate
And that's exactly how anger works and operates
Man, you gotta have love just to set it straight
Take control of your mind and meditate

Let your soul gravitate to the love, y'all, y'all

People killin', people dyin'
Children hurt and you hear them cryin'
Can you practice what you preach
And would you turn the other cheek

Father, Father, Father help us
Send some guidance from above
'Cause people got me, got me questionin'
Where is the love (Love)

Where is the love (The love)
Where is the love (The love)
Where is the love, the love, the love

It just ain't the same, always unchanged
New days are strange, is the world insane
If love and peace are so strong
Why are there pieces of love that don't belong

Nations droppin' bombs
Chemical gasses fillin' lungs of little ones
With ongoin' sufferin' as the youth die young
So ask yourself is the lovin' really gone

So I could ask myself really what is goin' wrong
In this world that we livin' in people keep on givin' in
Makin' wrong decisions, only visions of them dividends
Not respectin' each other, deny thy brother
A war is goin' on but the reason's undercover

The truth is kept secret, it's swept under the rug
If you never know truth then you never know love
Where's the love, y'all, come on (I don't know)
Where's the truth, y'all, come on (I don't know)
Where's the love, y'all

People killin', people dyin'
Children hurt and you hear them cryin'
Can you practice what you preach
And would you turn the other cheek

Father, Father, Father help us
Send some guidance from above
'Cause people got me, got me questionin'
Where is the love (Love)

Where is the love (The love)?
Where is the love (The love)?
Where is the love, the love, the love?

I feel the weight of the world on my shoulder
As I'm gettin' older, y'all, people gets colder
Most of us only care about money makin'
Selfishness got us followin' our wrong direction

Wrong information always shown by the media
Negative images is the main criteria
Infecting the young minds faster than bacteria
Kids wanna act like what they see in the cinema

Yo', whatever happened to the values of humanity
Whatever happened to the fairness in equality
Instead of spreading love we're spreading animosity
Lack of understanding, leading us away from unity

That's the reason why sometimes I'm feelin' under
That's the reason why sometimes I'm feelin' down
There's no wonder why sometimes I'm feelin' under
Gotta keep my faith alive till love is found
Now ask yourself

Where is the love?
Where is the love?
Where is the love?
Where is the love?

Father, Father, Father, help us
Send some guidance from above
'Cause people got me, got me questionin'
Where is the love?

Sing with me y'all:
One world, one world (We only got)
One world, one world (That's all we got)
One world, one world
And something's wrong with it (Yeah)
Something's wrong with it (Yeah)
Something's wrong with the wo-wo-world, yeah
We only got
(One world, one world)
That's all we got
(One world, one world) 

(Black Eyed Peas, Where is the Love?)

Manal Al-Sharif

 

Meet Manal Al-Sharif, a young woman who, in 2011, challenged Saudi  laws which forbid women from driving. She has courageously challenged the rigid and conservative laws in Saudi Arabia many times, creating situations which expose discrimination against women in her country.  Feminists around the world will greatly admire her and this is a call to all people to defend her and support her efforts in whatever way they can.  

Join her cause.  Numbers speak in powerful ways, raising the energy that brings about positive change.  Its hard to say no to a million people who insist that women's rights allow them the same type of freedom which is granted to men.  Misogyny is man-made, not God-made.  God clearly commands in Quran that there is complete gender equality.  

How can women be deprived in this world 

when Allah deprives them of nothing when it comes to their entrance to Paradise?

........................................................................................................

Manal Al-Sharif, 

Gloria Steinhem of the Saudi world.
 ............................................................................................................................................................

Her organization: 

My Right to Drive
 ............................................................

Visit her website:
Manal Alsharif
............................................................................................................................
Twitter:
Manal_alsharif
............................................................

 

 .......................................................................................................................................

...................................................................

In Muhammad's time,  

women's rights were honored. 
...........................................................................

As for those who lead a righteous life, 

male or female, 

while believing, they enter Paradise; 

without the slightest injustice. 

(Quran 4:124)
.........................................................................

Women's Rights
@
Inspired by Muhammad

Women's Rights 
@
Inspired by Muhammad

.........................................................................................................................................
 
 Manal Al-Sharif
The 2012 Time 100

At CNN: 
The woman who defied Saudi's driving ban and put it on YouTube

At Huffington Post:

Manal Al-Sharif, Saudi Right-To-Drive Protester, Skips U.S. Award To Avoid 'Consequences' [UPDATE]

........................................................... 
Muhammad and Women (from PBS)

.............................................................

 If women's names are forbidden, 
how do we know the names 
of the Prophet's own blessed wives and daughter?
Why do we speak their names
with such reverence and admiration?

Peace be on you, mothers of the Faithful,
 Hazreti Aisha, Hazreti Fatima and Hazreti Khadija!

....................................................

Why would so many hadith begin with "Aisha narrated"

if her voice was to be unheard?

........................................................................................................ 

Allah treats men and women as complete equals.
Women and men are judged no differently.
They are granted entrance to Paradise no differently.

***

Anyone who works righteousness, male or female, while believing, we will surely grant them a happy life in this world, and we will surely pay them their full recompense (on the Day of Judgment) for their righteous works.
(Quran 16:97)


***


GOD has heard the woman who debated with you about her husband, and complained to GOD. GOD heard everything the two of you discussed.
GOD is Hearer, Seer.
(Quran 58:1)

**********************************************************


Islam came to set women free from misogyny.

Upon watching Ode to Great Mother

The Prophet, peace be upon him said, 

"Allah loves us more than 70 mothers love their children."

*** *** ***

Grant Us Union With Her Always

Has the light of the sun appeared from the world of the Unseen,
or have the veils of Layla been lifted from Her essence?

Yes. The longing of Layla for Her beloved friend has grown
until She has revealed Her love,

So that he has become a captive of Her ardent desire and the
longing which are Her goblets called out to him.

She did not leave until She had given him a drink from Her
goblet. There is no blame. Drink! for the wine is Her speech.

And She is naught but the presence of Truth (hadratul-haqq), alone, who
manifests Herself through forms whose every light varies.

She has manifested the unique beauty of the form design in the
depth of Her being. Look at the attributes of the Beloved manifested in you.

By Allah none have attained complete bliss except the one who
becomes a humble slave and seeks Her out.

And thus, She immersed the ugliness of his nature in the beauty
of Hers, and lights shone from him, their rays appearing -

So that he withdrew from the sensory which was a barrier and
embraced a meaning from which it is unlawful to separate.

Therefore let your goal be to commit yourself, oh my brother,
and avoid otherness and Her gentle breeze will waft over
beloved ones from you.

You will open the hearing of the wayfarer's heart (fu'aadi min saalikin) because the
subtle knowledge of Her is Her proof.

Grant us union with Her always and cause us to withdraw from
every sensory existence.

- Songs of Shaykh Muhammad ibn al-Habib, may Allah sanctify his Sirr

Woman is a beam of the divine Light
She is not the being 
whom sensual desire takes as its object.
She is Creator, it should be said.
She is not a Creature. 

 ~~Rumi  

The Prophet, sal allahu wa salaam, said,

 "Paradise lies at the feet of the Mother."

Ibn ‘Arabi says that Rahman and Rahim are connected to Rahem, the womb of an expecting mother. He says it’s “as if” the whole cosmos, all of us, each and every single being and all of the beings, are contained inside God’s womb. It’s “as if” we are being nurtured, protected, guided, loved, and provided for every instant from That Beloved. May God open our hearts and souls and mind to the beauties. 

---Omid Safi

"And when the angels said: 
O Mary! Lo! God hath chosen thee 
and made thee pure, 
and hath preferred thee 
above (all) the women of creation."
(Quran 3:42)

My very precious children, let us speak further about the language and qualities of the child. My precious children, when a baby emerges from its mother, it cries, "Amma, Amma!" That sound gladdens the mother's heart and brings joy to all those nearby. Isn't it a sound which makes everyone want to pick up the child and kiss it? Isn't it a sound which makes everyone happy? Does it make people cry? Certainly not. In fact, the same kind of sound is also made by sheep, by cows, and by many other animals. No matter what language you speak, that sound brings coolness, comfort, and gladness to the heart. Even though a mother may suffer and scream in pain and torment, even though she may come close to death when giving birth, as soon as she hears the sound of the baby's cry, she is soothed, she forgets all her pain, and her heart is comforted. She lifts the child to her heart, embraces it, and kisses it as soon as she hears that sound.

In just the same way God is both our Father and our Mother.

-- Bawa Muhaiyaddeen --

 List of Shia titles for Fatima

Muhammad, salallahu alayhi wa salam, said, 

"Fatima, alayhi salaam, is the Mother of her father."

One of Fatima's Names is Fatima-Fatir.

She is Fatima-Creatrix.

 A Sufi Ode to the Divine Mother

On the face of the earth there is no one more beautiful than You
Wherever I go I wear your image in my heart
Whenever I fall in a despondent mood I remember your image
And my spirit rises a thousand fold
Your advent is the blossom time of the Universe
O Mother you have showered your choicest blessings upon me
Also remember me on the Day of Judgement
I don’t know if I will go to heaven or hell
But wherever I go, please always abide in me.

One day the Prophet was in one of the markets of Medina. He left the market and so did I. Then he asked thrice, “Where is the small child?” Then he said, “Call Hasan.” So Hasan got up and started walking with a necklace of beads around his neck. The Prophet stretched his hand out like this, and Hasan did the same. The Prophet embraced him and said, “O Allah! I love him, so please love him and love those who love him.” Since Allah’s Apostle said that, nothing has been dearer to me than Hasan. 
(Bukhari, Libas) 

One day a person from the desert came to the Prophet Muhammad and said, “You are kissing children but traditionally we don’t kiss them.” The Prophet replied, “What can I do if God removed mercy from your heart?” 

(Bukhari, Ahlaq; Muslim, Kitab al-Fadail) 

A man once came to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) carrying a wrapped-up piece of cloth. He told the Prophet: "I saw a group of trees and heard the sound of young birds. I took them and put them in my garment. Their mother then came and began to hover around my head. I showed (the baby birds) to her, and she fell on them. I wrapped them (all) in my garment." The Prophet then said to his companions: "Are you surprised at the affection of the mother for her young?...God is more affectionate to His servants than a mother to her young." The Prophet told the man to put the baby birds back where he got them.

Sunan of Abu-Dawood, Hadith 1359