Dar al-Islam (organisation)

Dar al-Islam is a Muslim organization based in Abiquiú, New Mexico, USA.

History

Dar al-Islam in Abiquiu, New Mexico was the first planned Islamic community in the United States. It was originally co-founded in 1979 by Nooruddeen Durkee, an American convert to Islam, Sahl Kabbani, a Saudi businessman, and Dr. Abdullah Naseef, the former secretary-general of the World Muslim League. Kabbani reportedly contributed $125,000 to the non-profit Lama Foundation that was formed to create the community, while the bulk of the start up funds were said to have came from the Riyadh Ladies’ Benevolent Association of Saudi Arabia, the late King Khalid, and two of his daughters. The idea was to establish a community where Muslims who came to the U.S. could engage in life's daily transactions according to their beliefs: the deen, or code of Islam, and where they would be able to comply with their religious duty to bear witness to Islam: the da'wa, or calling. At the same time the community hoped to become a teaching facility for Americans who wished to know something about Islam.

The foundation purchased its first 1,000-acre (4.0 km²) site from Alva Simpson, a well-established rancher along the Chama, for $1,372,000. The land included the 400-acre (1.6 km²) mesa top, plus 600 acres (2.4 km²) below the mesa – a lush, fertile tract along the Chama River. The masjid (mosque) and madrassa (religious school) were designed by the Egyptian architect Hassan Fathy and were constructed of mud bricks (adobe). The main buildings were completed in 1981, and Dar al-Islam opened in 1982. At its height, the community served some 60 students, employed seven full-time teachers, and partially supported itself through resident entrepreneurial efforts. By 1990, however, the project was suffering from attrition because of a general downturn in the economy and the difficulty of recruiting families to the remote and rigorous lifestyle that Dar al-Islam offered. Although it never fully achieved its original intent as a residential community for American Muslims, it did succeed in remaining viable as an educational facility. Today it provides religious instruction, retreats and camps for its residents and other Muslims, as well as teaching workshops on Islam for public and private institutions.^[1]

Current

The organization (now a nonprofit educational organization) with the goal of facilitating the growth of accurate and authentic knowledge of Islam among the American people with a commitment to build bridges among the Muslims and non-Muslims of America. It hosts Muslim Youth Camps and works to continue outreach and interfaith work. Notable speakers who have presented at Dar al-Islam include Hamza Yusuf and Seyyed Hossein Nasr.

References

1. ^ Curtis, Edward (2010). Encyclopedia of Muslim-American History. New York: Facts on File. pp. 134. ISBN 978-1-4381-3044-8. http://books.google.com/books?id=owZCMZpYamMC&pg=PA134&lpg=PA134&dq=encyclopedia+of+muslim-american+history+dar+al+islam&source=bl&ots=_DG2Pxeyti&sig=rVnHMkpq6cajDl8jM_cpn7n3rv0&hl=en&ei=9g4OTu65KYPk0QHS4ZXEDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=encyclopedia%20of%20muslim-american%20history%20dar%20al%20islam&f=false. 

External links

www.daralislam.org
Dar al-Islam in The Encyclopedia of Muslim-American History