About MyBasirah

How this initiative came about

For more than a decade, I have been involved in da‘wah work largely behind the scenes, supporting Muslim organisations and a number of widely known Muslim public figures active online.

During that time, I have witnessed a great deal of good.

Digital platforms have enabled beneficial Islamic knowledge to reach millions, opened new opportunities for da‘wah and education, and allowed Muslims across the world to benefit from scholars, du‘at and organisations in ways that were previously not possible.

But alongside this benefit, I have also witnessed first hand a troubling deterioration in parts of the Muslim digital space.

Disagreements have at times descended into insults, humiliation, personal attacks, hostile public refutations, foul language and serious allegations. Private disputes have been brought into the public domain. Differences that could potentially have been handled through consultation and private dialogue have instead developed into prolonged public conflict and, in some cases, legal action.

The concern is not simply that Muslims disagree. Disagreement has always existed within the Islamic tradition.

The deeper concern is how we disagree, what principles govern our conduct when emotions and reputations are involved, and what effect that behaviour has on those watching us.

What I witnessed behind the scenes

On a number of occasions, I have also been involved in trying to mediate privately between du‘at and Muslim public figures in dispute.

Those experiences highlighted something important.

Principles such as sincerity, justice, wisdom, adab, verification, consultation and accountability are readily affirmed when discussed in theory. Their real test comes when disagreement becomes personal, when someone feels wronged, when reputations are at stake, or when a person has a large public platform through which they can respond.

At such moments, the very Islamic principles we teach others can become difficult to apply consistently.

I have also seen the wider effect this can have, particularly on younger Muslims. Constant exposure to personality driven disputes, accusations and public hostility can normalise suspicion, factionalism and combative behaviour, even when the discussion itself is presented in the name of Islam.

It became increasingly clear that this was not simply a matter of individual behaviour. It was also a question of culture, standards and how Islamic principles are applied within a rapidly changing digital environment.

From concern to consultation

Rather than develop the idea in isolation, I began consulting scholars, du‘at, Muslim public figures and others with experience of Islamic public engagement.

Those conversations helped refine the purpose of MyBasirah.

A recurring theme was that good principles alone are not enough. What matters is how those principles are applied in difficult, controversial and sensitive situations.

Serious public matters may require shura, consultation with qualified scholars and relevant subject matter experts, careful consideration of maṣlaḥah and mafsadah, awareness of wider consequences and accountability to people capable of questioning and challenging one’s judgement.

Those consultations helped shape MyBasirah into something broader than a website or awareness campaign.

They contributed to the development of an organisation that seeks to encourage a clearer and more principled culture of Islamic public engagement.

What MyBasirah is trying to achieve

MyBasirah seeks to help restore greater principle, responsibility and reflection to Muslim public discourse.

It is not being established to police the Muslim community, determine who is right in every disagreement or create a new religious authority.

Its purpose is to draw upon the Qur’an and Sunnah and the rich ethical legacy of the Islamic scholarly tradition, and to consider how those principles should guide public engagement in the realities of the digital age.

MyBasirah is also concerned with how these principles are applied in difficult real world situations, particularly where public controversy, political or social sensitivity, competing interests or potential harm are involved.

The aim is not merely to encourage better speech.

It is to encourage better judgement, greater accountability and a stronger awareness of what our public engagement is producing in ourselves, our audiences and the wider Ummah.

How MyBasirah works

MyBasirah approaches this from two directions.

The first concerns those who exercise public influence.

The Charter for Responsible Islamic Public Engagement sets out principles intended to encourage sincerity, justice, wisdom, adab, verification, consultation, accountability and awareness of consequences in public Islamic engagement.

The second concerns those receiving that influence.

MyBasirah encourages Muslims to reflect not simply on who they listen to, but on what that influence is producing within them.

Does the content we engage with increase knowledge, worship, humility, character and beneficial action?

Or does it increasingly draw us towards personalities, controversy, suspicion and conflict?

This is not about judging individuals. It is about developing greater basirah, discernment, in how influence is exercised and how it is received.

Principles must be applied, not merely affirmed

Agreement with good principles is not enough if those principles are applied selectively or used retrospectively to justify a position already taken.

Responsible Islamic public engagement requires a process.

Where serious controversy, sensitive public matters or potential wider harm are involved, appropriate consultation should be sought from qualified scholars and relevant subject matter experts. The likely benefits and harms should be considered carefully. Wider consequences should be taken into account. Those exercising influence should also remain accountable to people capable of questioning and challenging their judgement.

MyBasirah seeks, where appropriate, to facilitate shura, constructive dialogue and private reconciliation by helping relevant parties engage with suitable scholars, experts or mediators.

In all cases, adab must never be compromised.

Working in the spirit of the Ummah

MyBasirah does not seek to operate in isolation.

It aims to work constructively with scholars, du‘at, Muslim organisations, community leaders and relevant professionals wherever cooperation can benefit the wider Muslim community.

The challenges affecting Muslim public discourse are not the responsibility of one individual, organisation or group. They require consultation, cooperation and a shared sense of responsibility.

MyBasirah therefore seeks to build relationships, facilitate shura where appropriate, encourage reconciliation and support efforts that strengthen adab, accountability and beneficial public engagement across the Ummah.

Legitimate differences of opinion and scholarly tradition will remain. The objective is not uniformity.

The objective is to encourage a culture in which those differences can exist without compromising justice, dignity, brotherhood and Islamic conduct.

Our aim

The aim of MyBasirah is ultimately constructive.

We want Islamic public influence to lead towards greater worship, stronger character, beneficial knowledge, service, cooperation, healthier relationships and positive contribution to society.

We want disagreement to be conducted with knowledge, fairness and adab.

We want serious decisions to be approached with consultation, accountability and awareness of consequences.

And we want Muslims engaging with Islamic content to become more conscious of what that influence is doing to their hearts, minds and behaviour.

MyBasirah seeks to contribute towards a digital Islamic culture that is more principled, more beneficial and more worthy of the message it seeks to represent.