 Silence, quarantine, a second that lasts a year. New emblems, all else is still, nith yet I feel a cold chill. New day, whose void will never be filled, all is too. Allahumma salli ala Muhammed wa Ali Muhammed. Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wa barakatuh. My name is Ali Al-Hakeem, age 21, second year, Optometry student at Bradford University and I'm a servant and reciter of the Ahlul Bayt. Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wa barakatuh. I started reciting Latmiyat, Noah Yulogy at the age of 10 where I recited my first Noah Latmiyat in front of a crowd of about 100 people in Dar al-Islam Manchester and I recited, it was the opening part for the Latm which is Ahsan Wa Msaabah. It's like the Yahusin, Yahusin in our Pakistani communities and I remember that when I first recited it I was a bit nervous so I couldn't really hold the paper with one hand so I had to use both hands to hold the paper just to make sure the paper doesn't fall and at the same time I couldn't really look at the people in the eye because I was a bit scared so I just focused on the paper. That was my beginning and then later I looked at the clip and it was okay but there was a lot of improvement so that's how I started off my journey. The people who inspired me and really who I saw as an icon when I started reciting was Mulla Basm Karbala'i They used to bring his CDs to Dar al-Islam as well as my dad when he used to go to Iraq and come back, he used to bring Basm Karbala'i as well as Mulla Jaleel. They used to bring their CDs and I used to listen to them and copy them. Also my dad himself, he's a reciter when he was small in Basra he used to be a Quran reciter he started doing Latmoyat so when he used to read Dar al-Islam I used to also copy him so I would say that those are the people who inspired me to recite Latmoyat at such a young age and so then I used them as a guide to improve my vocals. When I started reciting I didn't really start reciting in English straight away for the first couple of years I used to recite in Arabic because there wasn't really English recitations going on because the crowd that I used to recite were mainly Arabs so obviously I would recite Arabic and my mother is the one who guided me and taught me how to recite and to read Arabic she used to sit down and teach me this is how you do this part and I remember that when I started off I was very slow like one Latmoyat it took me approximately the first Latmoyat I did took me three months to learn the next Latmoyat one month after that two weeks the one after that one week and from that I used to learn the Latmoyat the night before the Majlis so Alhamdulillah there was a quick progress in learning of how to recite Arabic at the age of 12 a famous lecturer called Sayyid Jassim Tawir Jawi came to Manchester to do a lecture after him I was the one who was doing the Latmoyat and when I finished he told me that Alhamdulillah very good he gave me a book of a poet and he signed it and it really didn't inspire me to keep on going because of a person of such caliber telling me that I'm good I was still at the early ages and I wasn't really reciting properly but it really didn't inspire me and that's what kept me going ʻʻOʻAli Ḥaʻidari ʻLauda ʻOʻAntin ʻU to pretend to forget this moment ʻIt is fine ʻWe will never forget the chosen ʻHis eternal beauty ʻAmen across the ʻThat could breed 8,000 great trees ʻOʻAli Ḥaʻidari ʻStanding on the desert of truth ʻWhat you chose not to enter ʻThe garden of truth ʻYou saw the hundred ʻWhen I met the seyyid ʻI was in high school ʻDuring high school ʻI was very active in school ʻSo academically ʻI used to revise every night ʻApproximately an hour and a half ʻAt the same time ʻI used to be very active ʻIn the extracurricular activities ʻEspecially the sports department ʻWhere I was so involved with all the sports ʻSo I didn't really focus on just one sport ʻIt was basketball, rugby, athletics, football ʻAnd through that ʻThey elected me to become ʻThe sports captain of the school ʻAnd the school itself ʻWas a sports college ʻAlhamdulillah ʻIt was really beneficial for me ʻBecause I used to interact a lot ʻWith the adults, with the teachers ʻAnd through that ʻI gained communication skills ʻListening skills ʻAnd that actually benefited me ʻWith my ʻLatum recitation world ʻBecause I could use those skills ʻThat I learnt from school ʻAnd apply them ʻSo it enhances my professionalism ʻIn front of the audience ʻSo not only did I ʻNot only was I was a sports captain ʻI was really involved with ʻMy academic work ʻBecause I wanted to have ʻA good future ʻInshallah ʻSo ʻAlhamdulillah ʻAlhamdulillah ʻThe end of high school ʻI ended up with ʻ10 ʻ8 ʻStars and 4 A's ʻThat was the end of high school ʻSo ʻAlhamdulillah ʻI was very active ʻBut during that time ʻAt the same time ʻI continued with my majalis ʻBut in high school ʻI realised ʻThere was a big demand ʻFor majalis ʻLatum ʻIn the English language ʻBecause the communities ʻThat we have in Manchester ʻWhich is where I'm based ʻIt's a mixed cultural community ʻSo we have the Iraqis ʻWe have the ʻWe have some Qajis ʻWe have some Pakistanis ʻWe have the Iranians ʻIt's a big mixture ʻAnd what they started doing ʻIs lectures in English ʻBut after the English lecture ʻYou also need ʻIn English ʻLatumia ʻOtherwise if you start ʻRessiting in Arabic ʻSome of the audience ʻWon't understand what you're saying ʻHence why ʻI started resiting in English ʻIt was very difficult ʻTo start with ʻBecause I didn't understand ʻThe concept ʻOf syllables in the poem ʻBut through practice ʻThrough practice ʻAlhamdulillah ʻWe established ourselves ʻDuring that time ʻThe only poet ʻI used to write ʻFor me was ʻMy brother ʻHe used to write poems for me ʻAnd we used to like ʻExperiment with ʻWe're still experimental ʻProcess and time ʻYes ʻAlhamdulillah ʻMy brother ʻWe were progressing ʻAnd improving ʻOur poetry ʻBoth through the tunes ʻAt that stage ʻI still copied ʻThe main reciters ʻI didn't make up my own tunes ʻI was still learning ʻFrom the people ʻThe pioneers ʻIn Arabic reciting ʻI used to get the tune ʻAnd copy it into the ʻEnglish language ʻAnd try and fit the syllables ʻIt was very difficult to do ʻBut Alhamdulillah ʻWe progressed ʻAnd I open you ʻAm I your son? ʻI told your father ʻThat I will always keep you safe ʻHow can I say yes ʻWhen I know what ʻWill then happen ʻI can't ʻBut to see you ʻDrained all in blood ʻOh my cousin ʻOh my cousin ʻRise your arms ʻOh my cousin ʻI can't let you go ʻAfter high school ʻI went to college ʻAnd I studied maths, chemistry, physics and biology ʻAnd it was very intense ʻI would say that college ʻWas the most difficult part ʻOf my life academically ʻBecause I kept the four subjects ʻIt's two years in college in the UK ʻFor these subjects ʻAnd I kept both ʻAll four of them in the second year ʻSo it was a bit hectic ʻAlhamdulillah ʻWe progressed ʻAfter my first year in college ʻI travelled to ʻAraq Basra ʻWhere I went to ʻDulfaqar Studios ʻWho's owned by ʻMulla Mahdi Zainabi ʻAnd I met him ʻAnd I recorded ʻMy first album ʻCalled ʻNahib Elkoun ʻWhich means ʻThe Morning World in English ʻAnd it was a mixture ʻOf English and Arabic ʻAnd through that ʻI met ʻMulla Mahdi ʻAnd I met the people ʻWho you worked with ʻAnd Alhamdulillah ʻThey motivated me ʻBecause I didn't really know ʻWhat I was doing ʻBecause it was the first time ʻHe recorded in a studio ʻBut it made me feel comfortable ʻAnd through that ʻAlhamdulillah ʻWe have a good relationship ʻWhen it comes to the service ʻOf ʻEkhlil Bayt ʻWhere I've been coming to him ʻEvery year ʻTo record in English ʻAlhamdulillah ʻOur days ʻYou did not have ʻAny water to drink ʻThe thirst makes ʻIt's hard for ʻAny of us to think ʻYet you continued ʻWith the intentions ʻYou came even though ʻYou knew that ʻYour death would come ʻThe same ʻThe struggle ʻIn Karbala ʻThen I came back to the UK ʻAnd I distributed the CDs ʻAnd people really enjoyed it ʻAnd they told me to ʻProgressing ʻKeep them recorded in English ʻAlhamdulillah ʻWe kept them progressing ʻAfter college ʻI went to university ʻAnd I'm currently studying ʻOptometry ʻAt Bradford University ʻJust finished ʻSecond year ʻAlhamdulillah ʻAnd during that time ʻI met a person called ʻSadiq Damani ʻSadiq Damani is ʻI'd say a unique individual ʻBefore I met ʻSadiq I met other poets ʻSaid Wafak Abidi ʻRaza Abbas Rizvi ʻTiba Sa'adun from ʻMichigan ʻAnd Muhammad Huda ʻVarious poets ʻWhich I worked with ʻBut then I met ʻSadiq Damani ʻA very unique person ʻBecause he's not only a poet ʻHe's a reciter as well ʻA lecturer ʻAnd a host ʻSo he's like ʻA combination of ʻYou know ʻAs a combination of skills ʻWhich is very useful ʻYou know for us youth ʻAlhamdulillah ʻAnd when I met him ʻHe really liked the work ʻThat I did in the studios ʻBut he told me to ʻContinue to progress ʻAnd he told me right ʻYou need to improve ʻWith recitations on the member ʻWith this ʻYou need to improve ʻAnd stop doing this ʻAnd do this ʻHe corrected me ʻAnd at the same time ʻIn the studio ʻSo it's not only the Majalis ʻTold me how to improve ʻIn the studio ʻAnd we kept some work ʻAnd we progressed ʻAnd through him ʻMy Majalis expanded ʻSo not only did ʻI start reciting ʻIn the north of England ʻWe progressed ʻTo middle of England ʻWhich is in Birmingham ʻAs well as London ʻAnd through that ʻWe kept some progressing ʻThen last ʻMoharram 2014 ʻWe travelled to ʻMichigan, USA ʻTo follow ʻMoharram ʻTen nights ʻWhich actually became ʻTwelve nights ʻWhere I'm a ʻHumble people ʻVery, very ʻPious people ʻSheikh ʻIlahi ʻAs well as the people ʻThat work in the markets ʻVery, very ʻAlhamdulillā ʻThey made me feel ʻWelcome when I came there ʻAnd we read ʻTen nights in ʻMoharram ʻAnd I brought ʻMy friend ʻMoharram ʻMoharram ʻAnd our travels ʻAround the UK ʻTo motivate ʻAnd give the passion ʻOf the measures ʻSo people can do ʻMātaman ʻAzada ʻAb'Abdullāl Hussain ʻIn the way that ʻI truly should be done. ʻSo he came with me ʻAnd we motivated ʻThe youth there ʻAs well as the adults ʻTo do ʻLatom ʻAnd Alhamdulillā ʻIs really good. ʻAs we expanded ʻTo America ʻAnd the UK ʻOur work ʻNot only on the member ʻBut as well as ʻExpanded on a national ʻAnd international ʻScale ʻAnd Alhamdulillā ʻMany people ʻEnjoyed the work ʻThat we did ʻBut there's always ʻDream for improvement ʻWhich is why ʻI always come back ʻAsking him ʻHabibi ʻWhere can we ʻHow can we improve ʻOn this ʻLatmir ʻOn the member ʻOf Imam Hussain ʻThe performance ʻBoth vocally ʻAs well as in front ʻPeople ʻHow can I improve ʻWith that aspect ʻSo I always come back ʻAnd ʻMay Allah ʻPromong his life ʻI do think ʻYou can see ʻAnd it goes on ʻTo Qasim ʻAlayhi ʻSalam ʻQasim when he is in ʻKerbalā ʻHe looks around ʻAnd he realizes ʻNow is his time ʻQasim go ʻSaʿal Hussain ʻHis uncle ʻAnd he says ʻO my uncle ʻLet's now be the time ʻWhere I go ʻAnd defend you ʻImam al Hussain ʻGave a promise ʻSaʿal Hussain ʻThat I will protect your son ʻI will protect your son ʻMy nephew ʻQasim ʻImam al Hussain ʻCannot say no ʻHe cannot say no ʻHe has to say no ʻMy apologies ʻHe has to say no ʻBut then ʻQasim comes forward ʻQasim comes forward ʻWith a letter ʻAnd this letter ʻIs from al Hussain ʻSaying ʻO Hussain ʻOn that day ʻWhen you call out ʻHalmin ʻNasirin ʻYansurina ʻAnd no one comes to you ʻExcept ʻMy ʻQasim ʻTo represent me ʻBut you know ʻThe tragedy of al ʻQasim is ʻIt's when ʻImam al Hussain ʻStart to tie ʻThe turban around his head ʻSkollas say that there are two things ʻWith regard to this turban ʻSkollas say that the first use ʻOf this turban ʻWas to show that ʻHe was the son of al ʻHussain ʻThat mark of the Arab ʻThe pure Arab ʻAnd the second they say ʻThe second part ʻOf that turban ʻThey say that because ʻAl ʻQasim was so young ʻThe helmet would not fit ʻAl ʻQasim ʻAfter I came back ʻFrom Muharram in USA ʻWe determined to come back ʻFourty ʻSo then I came back ʻFourty ʻAnd then also ʻWe continued the service ʻImam Hussain ʻAnd inshallah ʻMay we continue to expand ʻWith the team of poets ʻAs well as other reciters ʻThat are met along the way ʻWe made the English language ʻFor lecturing ʻAs well as recitations expand ʻWe don't want only ʻIn English ʻAnd that's it ʻNo ʻOn the contrary ʻIt would be preferable ʻIf there's an army of reciters ʻAnd when it comes to Muharram ʻThere's a reciter ʻIn every ʻMejlis after the lecture ʻReciting in English ʻSo then people understand ʻWhat's going on ʻAnd the tragedy of ʻImam Hussain ʻIn the English language ʻBecause it's the universal language ʻAnd may people ʻAnd that's basically ʻWhat we're doing right now ʻAll that we're doing right now ʻWe're promoting ʻThe ʻAzaʻ ʻOf ʻImam Hussain ʻIn the English language ʻSo we may hopefully inspire ʻOthers to be the youth ʻOr people who are older ʻTo recite in English ʻSo people understand ʻEnglish is the universal language ʻSo if we all start reciting in English ʻEveryone's going to understand ʻWhat's going on ʻSo there will be a reciter ʻAfter every ʻMejlis ʻAfter the lecture ʻAnd that's my aim ʻIt can't be just ʻThree or four reciters ʻIn English ʻAnd that's it ʻNo ʻThe contrary ʻIt needs to be 20, 30 ʻForty reciters ʻThat travel the world ʻAnd serve ʻThe ʻAhl al-Bayt ʻIn the English language ʻAnd that's very important ʻBecause in the western world ʻThat's the way forward ʻAnd obviously ʻWe keep our cultural heritage ʻSo we do recite ʻSometimes ʻNo ʻHazan ʻLadmiyad ʻIn Urdu ʻIn Wajrati ʻIn Arabic ʻWe keep the cultural background ʻSo that's the aim ʻAt the end of the day ʻMy aim is hopefully ʻTo continue to recite ʻIn the English language ʻBoth on the member ʻOf Imam Hussein ʻAs well as in the studios ʻObviously as ʻYou know ʻAlhamdulʻAzdi ʻAs days progressed ʻWe've expanded to other studios ʻIn Kuwait ʻIn Basra ʻIn London ʻAnd inshallah ʻWe continue to progress ʻWith the ʻChadama ʻOf Imam Hussein ʻBoth in the studios ʻAnd the member ʻInshallah ʻSo as I said before ʻInshallah ʻOur aim is to have ʻAn army of reciters ʻIn English ʻThat's my true aim ʻSo I'm hoping ʻIn the near future ʻTo have a camp ʻOr you know ʻSome kind of day ʻOr a couple of days ʻWe're having ʻWe gather people ʻWho are motivated ʻI want to recite ʻFor the ʻAhle el-Bayt ʻIn the English language ʻWe come sit down ʻWe teach them the basics ʻSo when you're ʻIn the member ʻOf Imam Hussein ʻHow do you recite ʻHow do you look at the people ʻBuilding your confidence ʻWhen to look at the people ʻHow to motivate them ʻThen when you go ʻRecording the studio ʻIt has its own skill set ʻSo just because you might be ʻA fantastic reciter ʻOn the member ʻOf Imam Hussein ʻAnd you're very confident ʻDoesn't mean that ʻYou're going to be very good ʻIn the studio ʻWhen you record studio work ʻIt's completely different ʻYou need a different skill set ʻWhere you need to ʻBe properly on pace ʻAnd there's a lot of detail ʻWith it ʻAnd inshallah ʻThat's what we're hoping to do ʻIn the camp ʻTo record ʻPeople reciting ʻAnd we want to progress ʻSo inshallah ʻThat's one of the objects ʻThat I have ʻMy voice echoing ʻAs I shout his name ʻI keep shouting ʻBut it is all in vain ʻWhat did they do ʻTo hear ʻBrother Hose ʻZeyne ʻZeyne ʻZeyne ʻWe are Zeyne ʻZeyne ʻZeyne ʻZeyne ʻWe are Zeyne ʻI look around ʻAnd there's something ʻI see ʻI walk closer ʻBut then reality ʻAppears suddenly ʻAnd it then hits me ʻThat's the form ʻI can see ʻVery vaguely ʻIs a headless ʻFor me ʻBeaten body ʻZeyne ʻZeyne ʻZeyne ʻThe khadama ʻof Imam Hossein ʻIs very important ʻBecause through Imam Hossein ʻThe message of Islam ʻIs spread ʻAnd I personally believe ʻA very, very beneficial way ʻIn effective way ʻObserving Imam Hossein ʻAnd inspiring people ʻTo become more religious ʻIn yen ʻIs to Allah ʻI ʻThrough the matem ʻDua ʻAnd Quran ʻThese are the things ʻWhich will truly, truly ʻPenetrate into the hearts ʻOf the individuals who are listening. ʻI personally went through a journey ʻWhere as I started 10 years old ʻAnd now I'm 21 ʻThese last 11 years ʻI would say that ʻWithout Imam Hossein ʻAnd without the Latmiyat ʻWhich I learned ʻAnd the team that work with me ʻAnd through the Latm ʻAnd the Noha ʻIt shaped my life ʻAnd I'm hoping ʻThat people who want to be inspired ʻThey want to feel that ʻSpiritual feeling ʻOf closeness to Allah ʻAnd you want to cry ʻYou want to cry ʻFor the Ahl al-Bait ʻOn Imam Hossein ʻOn the Day of Ashura ʻYou want to serve the Ahl al-Bait ʻAnd a very effective way ʻOf doing that ʻPeople might not see it ʻAs it being a very important thing ʻThey might say ʻNo, let's only do lectures ʻAnd lectures is more than enough in the medallist. ʻOn the contrary ʻIt is the Latm of Imam Hossein ʻWhich will penetrate the hearts ʻDon't get me wrong ʻLecturing is very very important ʻBecause it's the knowledge ʻThat you grasp ʻWhich gives you an understanding ʻOf how to be a better person ʻBut through the Latmiyat ʻThe Latmiyat are also an institute of education ʻFor the events that happened in Karbala ʻNot only that ʻThe Latmiyat are the ones ʻThe Latmiyat are the things ʻWhich inspire a person ʻTo become a better individual ʻHuman being ʻAnd gives you that spiritual feeling ʻAnd closeness to Allah ʻI can't stress enough ʻHow important it is ʻTo listen ʻAnd to recite ʻNot only males ʻI encourage our sisters ʻTo become established recites ʻIn the English language ʻAnd let them spread ʻThe message of the Ahl al-Bait ʻWithin their communities ʻLet them do majālis ʻFor Imam Hussain ʻAlay salām ʻLet them have English female lectures ʻAnd after that ʻEnglish female recites ʻTo inspire the young sisters ʻSo then they may ʻServe Imam Hussain ʻIn a much more grand ʻAnd up the scale ʻFor the serve of Imam Hussain ʻIt doesn't need to be only males ʻContrary females as well ʻAnd let's serve Imam Hussain ʻOn an international scale ʻLet's spread the message of Imam Hussain ʻAlhamdulillah ʻIn the UK ʻThe message of Ahl al-Bait ʻIs being spread ʻOn a fast rate ʻBut let's make it exponential rate ʻWhy not? ʻWe have the capabilities ʻWe have the passion ʻAnd the flair ʻAlhamdulillah ʻWe've been guided ʻOn a fast rate ʻWhy can't we continue ʻTo serve the Ahl al-Bait ʻIn the way that ʻThe truly should be served? ʻI truly, truly hope ʻThat people get the message ʻThat I'm trying to ʻGet across ʻLet the majority ʻof Imam Hussain spread ʻWhoever wants to donate, donate ʻWhoever wants to serve ʻLet them serve ʻAnd let's expand ʻThe madrasa ʻThe educational institute ʻOf Imam Hussain ʻSpread it ʻUnto an international scale ʻWhoever wants to serve ʻLet themselves ʻLet them serve ʻAnd I encourage the adults ʻIf they can motivate ʻTheir youth to recite ʻDon't tell them, ʻNo, it's okay ʻYou don't need to recite ʻYou can listen to the lecture ʻNo, encourage them to recite ʻAnd I kindly ask ʻMy fellow reciting brothers ʻAfter my fellow ʻRawdood friends ʻIf they can inspire ʻThe youth ʻAnd if a young child ʻCome to them ʻAnd tells them ʻCan you read my poem ʻTell them no problem ʻI will read your poem ʻIt will inspire ʻThat young child ʻTo continue to read ʻAnd recite ʻIf he wants to recite ʻGive this young child ʻA small opportunity ʻTo recite ʻAlhamdulillah ʻI was blessed with the opportunity ʻAnd through the ʻI progressed ʻI truly encourage ʻMy fellow reciting brothers ʻTo encourage ʻThe younger generation ʻTo continue ʻTo recite ʻAnd give them that opportunity ʻI ask you the prayer ʻMay Allah bless you ʻMay Allah bless you ʻAnd take our prayers ʻAnd pray to Muhammad ʻAnd to my people ʻAnd pray to Muhammad