اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ
“Read in the name of your Lord who created.” — Quran 96:1
Scholarship & Spirituality
A lifelong pursuit of wisdom — across Islamic tradition, world thought, and the sciences
Throughout his life, Aslam Hayat maintained a deep commitment to learning, reflection, and intellectual exploration. While his professional career was built in accountancy and civil aviation, his personal interests extended far beyond his formal occupations.
He was a lifelong reader, researcher, writer, and student of both classical and contemporary thought. His library reflected an extraordinary range of interests that crossed religious traditions, civilisations, and academic disciplines. He believed that wisdom could be found through sincere study, thoughtful reflection, and respectful engagement with ideas.
Islamic Scholarship & Sufism
The scholars, saints, and mystics whose writings shaped his spiritual life
One of the central pillars of Aslam Hayat's intellectual life was the study of Islamic spirituality, particularly the rich traditions of Sufism. For decades he read and reflected upon the works of some of the most influential scholars, saints, philosophers, and mystics in Islamic history.
Through these scholars he explored themes such as spiritual purification, self-knowledge, divine love, humility, patience, trust in God, ethical conduct, and the inner dimensions of faith.
Shaykh Abdul Qadir al-Jilani
Founder of the Qadiriyya order; master of Islamic jurisprudence and spiritual teaching
Imam Abu Hamid al-Ghazali
Author of Ihya Ulum al-Din; philosopher of the spiritual sciences
Jalaluddin Rumi
Persian poet and Sufi mystic; author of the Masnavi
Ali Hujwiri (Data Ganj Bakhsh)
Author of Kashf al-Mahjub; patron saint of Lahore
Lal Shahbaz Qalandar
Sufi saint of Sindh; revered across South Asia
Baba Farid
Punjabi Sufi saint; among the earliest poets in the Punjabi language
Shaykh Zakariya Kandhlawi
Scholar and spiritual teacher of the Deobandi tradition
Fakhr al-Din al-Razi
Theologian and philosopher; author of major Quranic commentary
Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi
Andalusian philosopher and mystic; among the most studied of all Sufi thinkers
Ibn Arabi & Spiritual Philosophy
The thinker who occupied the most central place in his studies
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Among the scholars he studied, Ibn Arabi occupied a particularly important place. Aslam Hayat spent many years reading and contemplating Ibn Arabi's writings concerning the nature of existence, divine reality, human consciousness, and spiritual transformation.
Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi (1165–1240) — Andalusian philosopher and mystic; among the most widely studied Sufi thinkers in Islamic intellectual history.
Ibn Arabi's vast body of work — including the Futuhat al-Makkiyya (The Meccan Revelations) and the Fusus al-Hikam (The Bezels of Wisdom) — addresses the deepest questions of existence, divine attributes, the human soul, and the nature of knowledge. For Aslam Hayat, studying these texts was not merely an academic exercise but a sustained spiritual practice spanning many years.
Comparative Religion & World Thought
A mind open to wisdom across traditions
Although deeply rooted in Islamic tradition, Aslam Hayat never limited himself to a single intellectual framework. He believed that meaningful understanding often emerged through dialogue between traditions and disciplines. As a result, he regularly explored works written by thinkers from diverse religious, philosophical, and scientific backgrounds.
These writers introduced perspectives on spirituality, comparative religion, compassion, consciousness, and the shared ethical values that connect humanity across cultures.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama
Teachings on compassion, mindfulness, and the ethics of human kindness
Karen Armstrong
Historian of religion and author on Islam, Christianity, Judaism, and compassion
Neil Douglas-Klotz
Scholar of Semitic spirituality and the Aramaic roots of sacred texts
Kabir Helminski
Translator of Rumi and writer on Sufi wisdom for contemporary readers
Deepak Chopra
Author on consciousness, spirituality, and the integration of science and faith
Science, Cosmology & Human Knowledge
The questions that connect scientific discovery to spiritual understanding
Aslam Hayat was equally fascinated by scientific inquiry and humanity's search to understand the universe. He was particularly interested in questions concerning the origins of the universe, time, consciousness, human knowledge, and the relationship between scientific discovery and spiritual understanding.
Rather than viewing science and spirituality as opposing forces, he often regarded them as complementary efforts to understand reality from different perspectives.
Albert Einstein
Reflections on the nature of reality, time, space, and the relationship between science and spirituality
Stephen Hawking
Writings on cosmology, the origins of the universe, and the limits of human knowledge
“Rather than viewing science and spirituality as opposing forces, he often regarded them as complementary efforts to understand reality from different perspectives.”
Writing & Intellectual Legacy
How a lifetime of reading shaped 650 published articles
The influence of these scholars and thinkers found direct expression in his own writing. Over a period spanning more than twenty-five years, Aslam Hayat published over 650 articles in Vancouver's Pakistani community newspaper, The Miracle. His writings frequently explored:
His articles sought to educate, encourage reflection, and preserve knowledge for future generations. The breadth of his reading is reflected directly in the range of his writing — few columnists in the Pakistani-Canadian community brought the same depth of historical, spiritual, and philosophical perspective to every subject they addressed.
A Lifelong Pursuit of Wisdom
More than any particular title or profession, Aslam Hayat viewed himself as a student.— The family of Aslam Hayat
His lifelong pursuit of knowledge connected ancient Islamic scholarship with modern scientific inquiry, Eastern spirituality with Western philosophy, and historical memory with contemporary experience.
Those who knew him often remembered his curiosity, his humility, and his eagerness to learn. His intellectual legacy continues through the books he read, the articles he wrote, the ideas he shared, and the generations he inspired to value knowledge, reflection, and wisdom.
Explore Further
Aslam Hayat's intellectual life is best understood through his own words. His articles — preserved in this archive — are the fullest record of how he read, thought, and wrote.