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Liy Yusof

The four-arched portal of Rahma

The Signs In Ourselves

The four-arched portal of Rahma

What do we do when encountering social rhetoric, verses, and hadith that seem to violate the higher Qur'anic ethical principles of love, rahma, beauty, justice, and equity? Dr Ghazala Anwar offers this Qur'anic portal of Rahma to negotiate this apparent challenge to our faith.

Women as authorities and producers of Islamic knowledge

The Signs In Ourselves

Women as authorities and producers of Islamic knowledge

The struggle to decriminalise sexual diversity from within an Islamic framework holds hands with the intergenerational struggle to democratise authority and justice for women.

Breathing with the Opener: A skeleton key meditation

Breathing with the Opener: A skeleton key meditation

A meditation based on the Quran's opener, Surah Al-Fatihah. If you know the sura, you'll have a grounding tool when thoughts wander.

We can't leave anyone behind

We can't leave anyone behind

We're just out here trying to survive men we didn't elect, and we can't leave anyone behind. How long do we endure processes that will not open ways forward?

Poem: Zoonotic Spillover

Poem: Zoonotic Spillover

A Malaysian pandemic poem by Liy Yusof, after Andreas Malm. Translated into Bahasa Melayu by Jack Malik.

In conversation with my elder, amina wadud

In conversation with my elder, amina wadud

amina wadud invited me to talk about our explorations of sexual diversity and human dignity— and the ethical question of our time for Muslims everywhere.

Remembering and expressing gratitude (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 12 of 12)

The Signs In Ourselves

Remembering and expressing gratitude (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 12 of 12)

Reframing the journeys of our life and earth as experiences of gratitude can be healing, humbling, and empowering for many queer and sexually diverse Muslims.

Imagining our dream futures (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 11 of 12)

The Signs In Ourselves

Imagining our dream futures (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 11 of 12)

I asked queer Muslims: What does the future of your dreams look like? And then artist Dhiyanah Hassan lovingly illustrated their answers.

Lessons from us for everyone else (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 10 of 12)

The Signs In Ourselves

Lessons from us for everyone else (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 10 of 12)

What if we allowed ourselves to see the lives of queer Muslims as a manifested source of rich Divine understanding for others?

Letters to our past selves (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 9 of 12)

The Signs In Ourselves

Letters to our past selves (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 9 of 12)

In this part of the series, queer Muslims send messages back in time to their younger selves.

Intersectional paths to the Divine (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 8 of 12)

The Signs In Ourselves

Intersectional paths to the Divine (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 8 of 12)

A Muslim falls in love with the Psalms. A genderfluid person finds their way back to Islam by honouring their ancestors. A teacher assigns his students time with a community of sex workers.

Some inspiring elements of Islam (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 7 of 12):

The Signs In Ourselves

Some inspiring elements of Islam (The Signs In Ourselves, Part 7 of 12):

In this part of the series, you’ll find stories about why queer Muslims hold fast to our status as believers, and what is it about Islam that inspires in us comfort and growth.