Presented By The Preservers & Middle Nation
A Two Part Live Course

Sundays · August 2 & 9

By theTime

Qur'anic Psychological Decolonization 101

Led by Imam Isa ibn Matta and Shaykh Shahid Bolsen

Live on Zoom August 2 & 9 · Sundays 6:00 to 7:30 PM CT / 7:00 to 8:30 PM ET
See Course Outline

Humanity is in loss, except those who have faith, do good, and urge each other to the truth, and urge each other to perseverance.

Surah al-'Asr
What Shapes the Way We Understand Ourselves?

A Framework for Reclaiming an Islamic Understanding

We live within systems that do more than govern our societies. They influence how we define success, measure human worth, understand suffering, and imagine what is possible.

Over time, these assumptions can become so deeply embedded that they feel natural, even when they conflict with the worldview of the Qur'an.

By the Time: Qur'anic Psychological Decolonization 101 is a two session course examining Surah al-'Asr as a concise yet comprehensive framework for reclaiming an Islamic understanding of the human condition.

Together, we will explore what the Qur'an reveals about time, collective loss, faith, truth, and steadfastness, and how these ideas challenge the psychological foundations of dominant modern narratives.

This is not merely a study of a short surah. It is an invitation to reconsider the assumptions through which we interpret ourselves and the world.

What We Will Explore
  • How dominant systems shape our ideas of success, freedom, and human worth
  • The difference between Qur'anic consciousness and inherited cultural assumptions
  • Why Surah al-'Asr presents loss as the default human condition
  • The relationship between faith, action, truth, and steadfastness
  • How psychological decolonization begins with recovering a Qur'anic framework
  • What it means to build a life, and a community, outside the logic of loss
Who Is This Course For?

This course is for anyone seeking to engage the Qur'an not only as a text to be recited, but as a framework through which reality can be understood. No prior academic study is required.

Course Structure

Two Sessions. One Transformative Surah.

Session 01 · August 2
The Timeless Oath: Humanity in Loss

Why does Allah swear by time, and what does it reveal about the human condition?

We begin by examining the opening oath of Surah al-ʿAṣr and the Qur'anic meaning of time. From there, we turn to Allah's universal diagnosis that humanity is in a state of loss, exploring how our relationship with time shapes our priorities, how modern systems define progress and success, and why those definitions often fail us. This session reveals what gives a human life true value and what it means to live before time runs out.

Session 02 · August 9
Imaanic Exceptionalism

What allows a person to escape the condition of loss?

In this final session, we explore the four qualities named in Surah al-'Asr: faith, righteous action, mutual commitment to truth, and mutual commitment to patience. Together, they form a distinctly Qur'anic model of personal transformation, communal responsibility, and meaningful resistance.

Schedule
Sundays · August 2 and 9
Time
6:00 to 7:30 PM CT · 7:00 to 8:30 PM ET
Format
Live Online · Two Sessions
Presented By
The Preservers × Middle Nation
Meet Your Instructors

Who's Leading This

I
Imam Isa ibn Matta
Instructor
S
Shaykh Shahid Bolsen
Instructor
The Preservers × Middle Nation

Humanity Is in Loss, Except Those Who Choose Another Path

Surah al-'Asr is only three verses long, yet it offers a complete diagnosis of the human condition and a path beyond it. Join The Preservers and Middle Nation for a timely exploration of one of the Qur'an's most profound chapters.

Registration details and access information will be provided upon enrollment.