Skip to content

Tag: Quran

Leonardo da Vinci, The Rum Diary, The Name of the Rose, TED-Ed, and a Quran Passage

Sunday Supplement #180 (October 20th, 2024)

Below is another Sunday Supplement with a quote worth sharing, a book worth reading, a movie worth watching, brainfood worth consuming, and a spiritual passage worth pondering.

Please take something away from these recommendations that enriches your week ahead!

Quote of the Week:

“All our knowledge has its origins in our perceptions.”

– Leonardo da Vinci

Book of the Week:

The Rum Diary – Hunter S. Thompson

Hunter S. Thompson was an American journalist and author famous for establishing a genre of journalism called “Gonzo,” where the writer becomes a subjective central figure and participant in the narrative.

Thompson’s most famous works are probably Fear and Loathing in Los Vegas and Hells Angels, the latter being a book Thompson wrote after spending a year with the motorcycle club to write a first-hand account.

The Rum Diary was Thompson’s second attempt at a novel (it was started in the late 1950s), but it was published in 1998, a long time after he became famous.

Set in the 1950s, the story follows a journalist, Paul Kemp, who moves from New York to San Juan, Puerto Rico, to work at a major newspaper. The novel depicts a messy, violent love story involving the Americans who work for the newspaper.

Thompson wasn’t a fan of the novel and, apparently, only agreed to publish it because he needed the money. I found the book engaging and a brilliant exploration of idealism, disillusionment, and lust.

Movie of the Week:

The Name of the Rose

The 1986 film The Name of the Rose was based on Umberto Eco’s 1980 Italian novel, which sold over 50 million copies worldwide.

Sean Connery stars as a Franciscan friar, William of Baskerville, who investigates a series of mysterious deaths in a medieval abbey.

In addition to Sean Connery’s BAFTA-winning performance, the supporting cast includes a young Christian Slater, F. Murray Abraham, Valentina Vargas, Michael Lonsdale, William Hickey, and Ron Perlman.

Jean-Jacques Annaud brilliantly directed the murder mystery period piece. Check out the reasons for the film’s R rating, but definitely give it a watch if it calls to you.

Brainfood of the Week:

How To Make Smart Decisions More Easily | TED-Ed

This TED-Ed video focuses on decision fatigue. It starts by highlighting a 2011 study on judges’ parole cases and how the time of day significantly impacted decisions.

Decision fatigue occurs when there are too many big decisions in our day. When we experience decision fatigue, we become prone to errors.

The video then highlights different ways decision fatigue can impact our lives and provides strategies for avoiding it.

I find it incredible how our perception of a matter can significantly change depending on our fatigue level. This video is a good reminder to avoid overloading yourself.

Closing Spiritual Passage:

“And do not (contemptuously) turn your face away from people, and do not walk through the earth exultantly.”

– Surah Luqman 18

This Quran passage speaks to staying humble in life. Arrogance and cockiness come in many different forms, and I appreciate the examples in this verse.

When I typically think of unhealthy pride, I think of boasting. The first part of the Quran verse discusses turning away from people in contempt. This is a great reminder to check your ego and not judge others.

For me, this verse is a timely reminder to quiet my mind and attune to gratitude and humility. Our perceptions are our own to control, and this verse gives examples of wayward paths.


Decide how you want to perceive the world, and have a blessed week ahead!

Leave a Comment

Susan Sontag, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Boyhood, Eckhart Tolle, and a Quran Passage

Sunday Supplement #174 (September 8th, 2024)

Below is another Sunday Supplement with a quote worth sharing, a book worth reading, a movie worth watching, brainfood worth consuming, and a spiritual passage worth pondering.

Please take something away from these recommendations that enriches your week ahead!

Quote of the Week:

“Compassion is an unstable emotion. It needs to be translated into action, or it withers.”

– Susan Sontag

Book of the Week:

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde – Robert Stevenson

Robert Louis Stevenson’s famous novella Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is a well-known work of English literature and a pivotal book in the history of the gothic/horror genre.

The novella, published in 1886, follows Gabriel John Utterson, a London-based legal practitioner who investigates the connection between a murderous criminal named Edward Hyde and Utterson’s friend Dr. Henry Jekyll.

Utterson believes that Mr. Hyde is blackmailing Dr. Jekyll after Jekyll covers for the brutal acts of the murderer.

Finding a work of art that lasts for decades or centuries is a beautiful experience. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Stevenson’s novella and highly recommend it.

Movie of the Week:

Boyhood

Richard Linklater’s 2014 film Boyhood depicts the childhood and adolescence of Mason Evans Jr., from ages six to 18, as he grows up in Texas with divorced parents.

Linklater filmed the movie from 2002 to 2013. The project began without a completed script, and Linklater allowed all pivotal actors to participate in the writing process to help incorporate their experiences into their characters’ stories.

Ellar Coltrane portrayed Mason, Ethan Hawke portrayed Mason’s dad, Patricia Arquette portrayed Mason’s mom, and Lorelei Linklater portrayed Mason’s sister. Each had a phenomenal performance.

Boyhood was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Motion Picture of the Year. Arquette won for Best Performance of an Actress in a Supporting Role.

When I first saw it, it felt like a unique experience in Cinema history. The story, acting, and directing are brilliant. It’s almost three hours long and well worth the watch.

Brainfood of the Week:

Guide to Overcoming People Pleasing | Eckhart Tolle

Eckhart Tolle is a spiritual teacher, public speaker, and bestselling author. I’ve featured some of his videos and books in previous Sunday Supplements.

In this video, Tolle answers a question from an audience member about growing in a different (spiritual) direction than a family member and how to handle that situation.

Tolle states our happiness or fulfillment does not depend on any other human’s acceptance of who we are.

Tolle explains how conditions of society and environments can lead to judgments of others. He encourages understanding, compassion, and acceptance.

If you enjoy the video, check out some of the other posts where I’ve featured his work.

Closing Spiritual Passage:

“Indeed, Allah is with those who are righteous and those who do good.”

– Surah Al-Ankabut 29:69

This passage from the Quran is an interesting litmus test for determining whether one’s actions qualify for God’s approval.

Many religious messages are twisted by those who claim to be followers to justify their actions or what they think is righteous and good.

I think we must reflect on our thoughts and actions and ensure they align with what is righteous and what is good.

Many different verses and passages from various religions speak about righteousness and goodness. Seek those sources that help you be your best self.


Have compassion for yourself and others, and have a blessed week ahead!

Comments closed

Sigmund Freud, Sleep No More, Ordinary People, Psych2Go, and a Quran Passage

Sunday Supplement #166 (July 14th, 2024)

Below is another Sunday Supplement with a quote worth sharing, a book worth reading, a movie worth watching, brainfood worth consuming, and a spiritual passage worth pondering.

Please take something away from these recommendations that enriches your week ahead!

Quote of the Week:

“Unexpressed emotions will never die. They are buried alive and will come forth later in uglier ways.”

– Sigmund Freud

Book of the Week:

Sleep No More – Greg Iles

New York Times bestselling author Greg Iles’s Sleep Nor More follows John Waters, a successful businessman and happy family man whose life is upended by one word, “soon.”

Waters faces a memory from his past, an obsession he thought he had escaped, in the form of a stranger who whispers the word and an old lover used to share.

Stephen King’s review, which he doesn’t often do, says the novel should come with a red wrapper marked DANGER: HIGH EXPLOSIVES.

I remember reading this book many years ago; the gripping experience has always stayed with me. If you’re looking for a spooky summer read, this is it.

Movie of the Week:

Ordinary People

As I’ve stated in previous Sunday Supplements, I think it is quite a feat for films to stand the test of time. Some movies don’t even fare well after a re-watch a couple of years later.

The 1981 Academy Award Best Picture winner Ordinary People tells a powerful story that will likely continue to stand tall in Cinema history. 

The film follows the grieving of an affluent family. Each member handles the death differently, and the story follows the consequences of each member’s path.

Timothy Hutton stars as the son Conrad, Donald Sutherland stars as the father Calvin, Mary Tyler Moore stars as the mother Beth, and Judd Hirsch stands out in his supporting role of Conrad’s therapist.

In addition to the Best Picture win, Ordinary People won the Oscar for Best Director (Robert Redford), Best Writing (Alvin Sargent), and Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Hutton). Mary Tyler Moore and Judd Hirsch received nominations.

Brainfood of the Week:

4 Signs You Are Still Grieving | Pysch2Go

Psych2Go’s mission is to make psychology and mental health more accessible to everyone. I’ve featured their videos in a few previous Sunday Supplements.

This video starts by discussing how we may think we’ve moved on from something or someone, but we may still be experiencing unresolved grief.

The video then gets into the four signs of unresolved grief and how you can be aware of them. At the end of the video, Pysch2Go highlights a service of affordable online counseling platform.

I’ve featured another Psych2Go video on grieving in Sunday Supplement #104. Check it out if you found this one useful.

Closing Spiritual Passage:

“We will certainly test you with a touch of fear and famine and loss of property, life, and crops. Give good news to those who patiently endure.”

– Surah Al-Baqara 155

I found this passage from the Quran an interesting look at the tests God or the world can give us and the grieving process.

When I looked at the definition of endure, I found it meant patiently suffering. From the above passage, I take away the good news of allowing a loss or hardship to process while we move forward instead of trying to rush things.

I think the messages of powering through and ignoring emotions are familiar narratives. However, by burying emotions, we can lose the opportunity to learn and to heal. 

This Quran passage reminds me that it’s okay not always to feel in control or to suffer, but when we patiently endure, good news will eventually come.

Make sure to acknowledge your emotions, and have a blessed week ahead!

Comments closed

John F. Kennedy, The Dead Zone, The Last Samurai, Kurzgesagt — In a Nutshell, and a Quran Passage

Sunday Supplement #151 (March 31st, 2024)

Below is another Sunday Supplement with a quote worth sharing, a book worth reading, a movie worth watching, brainfood worth consuming, and a spiritual passage worth pondering.

Please take something away from these recommendations that enriches your week ahead!

Quote of the Week:

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”

– John F. Kennedy

Book of the Week:

The Dead Zone – Stephen King

I’ve featured several Stephen King books in previous Sunday Supplements, and while I tend to mix up my recommendations, I think there are many King books worth reading. There’s a reason he’s written over 60 books, and all of them are bestsellers.

The Dead Zone follows the lives of Johnny Smith, a high school teacher in Maine who suffered an accident as a child that planted a seed for future events, and Greg Stillson, a door-to-door salesman with grand ambitions.

Johnny and Stillson’s paths cross after Johnny suffers an accident that leaves him in a coma for over five years. He realizes he must thwart Stillson’s ambitions at any cost.

What I love about King’s books is the character building. In The Dead Zone, King brilliantly builds Johnny and Stillson’s characters. What Johnny loses in his five years in the coma, along with Stillson’s growing ambitions, drives the narrative to the heartfelt climax.

If you are curious to check out Stephen King’s works but aren’t a horror fan, this is a solid book to choose for your first read.

Movie of the Week:

The Last Samurai

One of my favorite screenwriters is John Logan. He is the creator/writer of Penny Dreadful and the writer of Skyfall, Hugo, Rango, Sweeny Todd, and Gladiator (among others).

The film follows a US Army veteran who gets hired by the Japanese emperor to train his army in modern warfare and quell the samurai, who are viewed as relics of the past that impede Japan’s westernization. 

The veteran, played by Tom Cruise — (spoiler alert) — is captured by the samurai. The film follows his journey as he ends up being saved by the culture he was hired to destroy.

The film was nominated for four Oscars, including Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Ken Watanabe.

While it’s hard to choose from Logan’s excellent filmography, and I will cop out and not pick a favorite, The Last Samurai competes for the top spot. I highly recommend it.

Brainfood of the Week:

An Antidote to Dissatisfaction | Kurzgesagt — In a Nutshell

I recently stumbled upon Kurzgesagt’s YouTube channel and can’t recommend it highly enough. They are “a team of illustrators, animators, number crunchers, and one dog who aim to spark curiosity about science and the world we live in.”

This video starts by discussing how it’s easy to slip into thoughts of scarcity, inferiority, and negative comparison and how researchers have looked into how to counteract these impulses in the last twenty years.

One of the strongest predictors of how happy people are, how easily they make friends, and how good they are at dealing with hardship is gratitude.

How you experience life is a representation of what you believe about it. If you attack your core beliefs about yourself and your life, you can change your thoughts and feelings, which automatically changes your behavior. 

The above points are just a few of my favorite picks from the video, but its breakdown of gratitude, its evolution, and how to practice it make the video well worth watching.

Closing Spiritual Passage:

“For whoever is grateful, it is only for their own good.”

– Surah Luqman 31:12

This Quran passage discusses gratitude to God. However, I don’t think it is necessarily solely limited to a creator; it can encompass what God can represent.

Being grateful for love, your fellow humans, nature, life, etc, all fall under the umbrella of what God represents.

For me, the key point of this passage is the focus on gratitude. Cultivating a habit of gratitude can only be beneficial.

Operating from a perspective of gratitude allows you to see the good in any situation. That doesn’t mean you ignore bad things, but you can always look to the good after you’ve handled or processed the bad.

Practice gratitude, and have a blessed week ahead!

Comments closed

George Eliot, Barsoom/Mars Series, Big Fish, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, and a Quran Passage

Sunday Supplement #146 (February 25th, 2024)

Below is another Sunday Supplement with a quote worth sharing, a book worth reading, a movie worth watching, brainfood worth consuming, and a spiritual passage worth pondering.

Please take something away from these recommendations that enriches your week ahead!

Quote of the Week:

“Adventure is not outside man; it is within.”

– George Eliot

Book of the Week:

Barsoom/Mars Series – Edgar Rice Burroughs

Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote the Barsoom books in the early 20th century. The first story appeared in serial form in 1912 for The All-Story magazine before being published as a novel.

Burroughs’s novels follow John Carter in the first few books, a Civil War veteran who gets transported to the dying planet of Mars.

Carter gets thrown into the mix of different cultures and species and finds allies and enemies to fight with and against.

There are 11 novels in the series, and I highly recommend them. For me, this is the epitome of the science fiction and adventure genre.

I nerded out when I started reading these books. They are pretty simple and quick reads but offer an entertaining story each time.

Movie of the Week:

Big Fish

I’ve featured two Tim Burton movies in previous Sunday Supplements, but Big Fish is hands down my favorite that he’s made.

The film’s narrative bookends are a frustrated son’s attempts to discover the true story of his dying father’s life because his father has always previously told him the tall tale version.

Big Fish jumps between the present relationship between the son (played by Billy Crudup) and his father (played by Albert Finney) and the tall tales featuring the young father (played by Ewan McGregor). 

The film is based on the novel by Daniel Wallace. Tim Burton brilliantly brings the story to life, and it is a movie I’ve watched over the years and have always enjoyed.

Brainfood of the Week:

What Adventure Means to People Who Do It for a Living | Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity

The Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity is Canada’s leader in arts and culture. They exist to inspire artists and leaders to make their unique contributions to society.

Life-long adventurers from around the globe gather for the Banff Mountain Film and Book Festival in Alberta, Canada. In this video, some adventures discuss what adventure means to them.

Joe Riis (conservationist & filmmaker), Bruce Kirkby (author), Cedar Wright (climber & filmmaker), Pete McBride (photographer), and Cecile Skog (adventurer) are some of the people who speak on adventure.

A takeaway from most of the people who feature in the short video is pushing yourself outside of your comfort zone. I think that’s an essential thing to remember in your life. 

Check out the short video to hear some interesting takes on adventure, and give the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity a look if you want to check out more of their stuff.

Closing Spiritual Passage:

“Do what is beautiful. Allah loves those who do what is beautiful.”

– Quran 2:195

To me, this Quran passage is a quite simple reminder to pursue beautiful things in life. That can be different things for different people, but I focus on the call to action in the verse.

Often, we can be passive in our lives. We can let days, weeks, months, or years slip by while falling into an unfulfilling routine.

The call to action of doing what is beautiful is a reminder to check in on yourself and ask if you are pursuing beauty in your life.

When I think of beauty, I think of moments where I am present and appreciative of my life. I find beauty in pursuing the activities that bring me joy, learning, and growing.

Pursue beauty, adventure within and without, and have a blessed week ahead!

Comments closed
2021 © Drew Alexander Ross