Apr 12, 2011
Posted by Mohammed Ali in Sufi Comics | 6 comments
Sufi Comics - Why doesnt God do something
This is our first comic after publishing 40 Sufi Comics (Volume 1). Inshallah this comic will be part of 40 Sufi Comics (Volume 2) :)
The comic above is one of my favourite parables, and has had a profound effect on me. We often complain that why doesn’t God do something about the poor in the world (ie the beggar), or the oppressed, eg the Palestinans (ie the beaten) or the crippled. Well He did do something. He created me and you. All of us put together have sufficient resources to make a significant difference in the world. We should now talk the talk less and walk the walk more.
“Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change their own condition” – Quran (13:11)
Have We not given him two eyes,
And a tongue and two lips,
And pointed out to him the two conspicuous ways?
But he would not attempt the uphill road,
And what will make you comprehend what the uphill road is?
(It is) the setting free of a slave,
Or the giving of food in a day of hunger
To an orphan, having relationship,
Or to the poor man lying in the dust.
Then he is of those who believe and charge one another to show patience, and charge one another to show compassion. – Quran (90:8-17)
“We are the luckiest people that ever lived; we have abundantly and manifestly the capacity to address human problems if we care. It is a matter of vision and courage and compassion.” -RAMSEY CLARK
Mar 13, 2011
Posted by Mohammed Ali in General, Sufi Comics | 9 comments
I’m pleased to share the news that 40 Sufi Comics book is now available to purchase on Amazon.com! If you’ve enjoyed reading Sufi Comics, please take out the time to write a review. Those you’ve requested for a free copy of the book, this week I’ll be shipping them to you. I still have some free copies left, so it’s still not late to ask for one. :)
How does one publish a book on Amazon.com?
- Steps to Publish a book using CreateSpace
Those of you who have been dreaming to publish a book, I would urge you to go for it! It’s a very rewarding experience and has never been this easy! Several people asked me how I got the book on Amazon. I’m outlining here a high level view of the steps:
* Once the content of your book is ready the first thing you need to do is to decide which digital publisher you need to approach. There are 2 big ones: Lulu.com & CreateSpace.com. I did some research and found both of them competitive, but decided to go with CreateSpace.com ’cause it’s an Amazon.com company and therefore the fastest route to get your book on Amazon.
* Once you’re registered with CreateSpace (it’s free), they ask you details about the book you want to publish (name, author, description, genre etc).
* Then you need to decide & inform the Physical properties of the book. This would include the page size, number of pages, type of cover. At the end of the process an ISBN number will be assigned to the book.
* With the above details in place, CreateSpace will ask you to upload 2 PDF files. One for the Interior pages, the other for the Cover page. This was the most time consuming step for me ’cause I had to constantly adjust the margin space, and page arrangements to meet their requirements. My skills in Graphic Design came in use here. If would be useful to have a friend with design skills to help in taking you through this step.
* After you’ve uploaded the PDF files as per their specifications, they will ship (at your cost) a ‘Proof’ copy of the book. If it looks good, you’ll need to approve it. Below are photographs of the Sufi Comics Proof Copy:
* Now you’re almost through. Setup the selling price of the book. CreateSpace will charge a fixed cost per print, whatever you sell your book for above that price is your Royalty! So if CreateSpace charges a fix cost of $5 per copy, and if you set the selling price as $9, then you will receive $4 for each sale.
Once you’ve entered the Sales Information, then in approximately a week’s time you’ll find that your book is available for the world to buy on Amazon.com!
Never in history has it been this easy for an individual to publish a book with the largest distributor in the world!
Feb 17, 2011
Posted by Mohammed Ali in Sufi Comics | 0 comments
The first paperback prints of 40 Sufi Comics are out! :) These are limited copies that were printed locally. Inshallah, the book will also be released on Amazon.com shortly. I’ll be giving away some of the locally printed ones for free. If you would like 1 copy or more, please fill in this form. Based on the number of copies and where it needs to be shipped to, there will be some cost towards shipping only. Once the form is filled out, I will respond back to you with the details.
If you would like to contribute towards the book, to show your appreciation, I request you to donate to any of these two charities that I support: Comfort Aid and Life Line Trust. This money will be spent well to improve the lives of the needy. Thank you for your support!
Jan 8, 2011
Posted by Mohammed Ali in Sufi Comics | 13 comments
I’m pleased to announce that the 40 Sufi Comics book is now out, and available to download for free. Thank you to all those who’ve been supportive with their encouragement and feedback!
Sufi Comics are short comic strips that illustrate the eternal spiritual truths in the teachings of Islam. These comics were published on the Arif & Ali’s Blog over the last two years. 40 Sufi Comics is a collection of these comics in the form of a book. Along side each comic are verses from the Holy Quran & Traditions from the Prophet & the Ahlul Bayt, related to the topic of the comic. Some of the titles included in the book:
* The Truth about Lies
* Mother
* Where does Wisdom come from?
* Where is God’s Treasure?
* No Problem!
* How far is Heaven?
* A Visit to Hell
* Can I see God?
and more…
Read Online or Download the Book for Free
40 Sufi Comics by Arif & Ali is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. This means you’re free to share, copy & distribute the book (for commercial and non-commercial purposes), as long as you attribute the work to the Authors and do not alter the work.
Read Online
Download book in PDF
Buy Book in Print
40 Sufi Comics can also be bought from Amazon.com and Flipkart.com
Dec 28, 2010
Posted by Mohammed Ali in Sufi Comics | 4 comments
Alhamdulliah, the 40 Sufi Comics Book is almost done. Inshallah in the month of January 2011, it’ll be released under Creative Commons license. This means it can be downloaded, shared & distributed for free! The printed version will be available for a reasonable cost.
Besides each comic I’ve included verses from the Holy Qur’an and the Traditions from the Prophet & the Ahlul Bayt, related to the topic of the comic. For some comics I’ve shared the thoughts that was going through my mind when drawing them.
Thank you to all of you who’ve given support & encouragement to make this book possible. Here are some pages from the Book:
