Futuwwah Initiative

The Muslim young man today is in a state of psychospiritual crisis.

While the close-knit Islamic societies of yesteryear provided all of the structures and services he needed to adopt proper akhlaq (Islamic moral character), learn a suitable trade, and seek higher spiritual guidance, today his like is constantly berated by a multitude of often irreconcilable callings.

Pressures from school plus responsibilities at home and in the community clash with disruptions from social media, phone and internet abuse, social campaigns, competing ideologies, videogames, etc. Pontiffs on both sides of the neoliberal political spectrum lock him in a tug-of-war for his absolute loyalty. What results are many young men growing up missing a sense of place and belonging in the world and, namely, the Ummah of Rasulullah ﷺ.

Higher rates of apostasy, drugs, crime, and suicide are frequently cited on his behalf, but the world continues to look the other way from any holistic return to our roots as human beings as a solution.

For too long, our communities have responded to increasing rates of Muslim male risk behaviors with reactionary measures that don’t move us forward. It is high time that we proactively create structured tarbiyah programs that will not only build resilience against falling into these traps, but ready today’s youth to become tomorrow’s community servants and leaders.

Our Responsibility

Mihraab has designed a holistic and traditionally-based initiative to fill the gap left in the wake of modern individualistic ideologies. We believe that no such endeavor is worthwhile unless it adheres to the Sacred Law of Islam and supports the priorities and methodology of the pure and purifying Sunnah. It is also important to contextualize the program with the societal conditions our children are growing up in, providing practical guidance for adopting a resilient Islamic lifestyle in both facilitative and troubling times.

What is Futuwwah?

Futuwwah is an Arabic term that stems from the root fa-ti-ya, and is closely related to the word fata, which refers to a young man of chivalrous disposition. Futuwwah came to later signify the chivalrous ethics that make a young man complete in his admirable character: ethics which would be taught in traditional communal institutions like guilds, lodges, and madrasahs.

The ideal fata exemplifies qualities that can only be sufficiently encapsulated in words as the Sunnah. These include ethics of resilience, courage, humility, modesty, generosity, and preferring others’ needs.

Like traditionally-founded futuwwah guilds, Mihraab Foundation’s Futuwwah Initiative focuses on developing five main points: training Islamic chivalrous etiquette (adab), sacred knowledge, service to the community, Sunnah recreational activities, and educational and career guidance.

Who is eligible to participate?

Boys ages 11-17 may register as a participant.
Adult males 18 years or older may apply to become a registered volunteer if they meet the eligibility requirements (Coming Soon).

We believe the return of single-gender bonding experiences between adults and children is an important step towards reunifying with our Divine-oriented purpose. For this purpose, while this program caters to the needs of boys and young men specifically, its success may in the future inspire a future program for young Muslimahs.

This program is by registration only, as its success requires consistency on behalf of the participant, coordination between leadership and parents, and financial and administrative resources to keep up with participant advancement, skills, and outings. During the Beta phase of the program, participants are required to maintain 75% attendance of meetings and attend most outings.

Register Now

When does this program start?

The Futuwwah Initiative will be deployed in multiple phases, allowing us to learn from feedback and further develop the program before expanding.

Current Phase: Alpha

During this phase, select families will be invited to register to participate on outings and some initial meetings. Feedback will be collected, and development of the program’s detailed structure will continue through the Beta phase. No registration fees will be collected during this phase, which will begin Summer 2025, insha’ Allah.