Dating in seventh-century Arabia

War often brings out the worst in people. Hind bint Utbah was the wife of Abu Sufyan—the Meccan chieftain who fought against the early rise of Islam. Hind shared Abu Sufyan’s hatred for Muslims and commissioned her slave, Wahshi ibn Sufyan, to kill Prophet Muhammad’s uncle Hamza. In return, she promised him his freedom. Wahshi…

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Muhammad by Mohamed Volume Three

The third volume of the Muhammad by Mohamed series is now available—for the first time in full-color! You can find it through the Lulu bookstore, Apple iBookstore, Barnes & Noble NOOK, Amazon Kindle and other retailers. I am deeply grateful for the encouragement I have received in my efforts to normalize Islamic satire and since…

Stomach problems? Try fresh, tasty camel wizz!

In Islam’s body of literature, there is a reputable story that Prophet Muhammad prescribed camel urine for stomach problems. Variants of the story are relayed by both Mohamed al-Bukhari and Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj (respected compilers of such tales). Of course, I am paraphrasing in the below cartoon. This comic and some juicy context will be…

The Drawn Sword of Allah: meet Islam’s greatest general

Khalid ibn al-Walid was, like Omar, a companion of the Prophet who had fought against Muhammad’s followers in the early days of the revelations—notably, at the Battle of Badr. Ibn al-Walid was destined to convert and become one of Islam’s greatest generals. The broad-shouldered soldier’s soldier and genius battlefield tactician whose nickname was the “Drawn…

To convict an unfaithful spouse of adultery in Islam, four witnesses need to have watched them shag

Islam mandates a draconian punishment for those convicted of adultery: stoning to death. This sounds terrifying, but the good news is that a conviction for adultery is more easily avoided than you might expect because four witnesses are required to prosecute the libertine in question. According to a prophetic tradition brought to us by Abu…