ISLAM

The Inherent Differences Between Man and Woman - III

2013-02-27T13:27:00.002-08:00

Should there be equality in all rulings, given the differences in physique and competence, it would be a reversal of Fitrah (natural disposition), and injustice against both the authoritative sex (men) and the other one (women) if not the entire life of human society, for in this case, it would result in deprivation of the fruits obtained from the capacity of being authoritative and, at the same time, the members of the other sex would be obliged to do what is beyond their capacity. Allaah The Almighty forbids that such injustice, even as much as the weight of a mustard seed, should happen in the Sharee‘ah of Allaah, who is the Wisest of judges. This is why these fine rulings ensure that the woman is provided for while she practices motherhood, maintains her house, and raises the future generations of the Ummah (Muslim nation).
May Allaah have mercy upon the prominent scholar, Mahmood Muhammad Shaakir, who commented on the previously-mentioned statement of At-Tabari saying,
This is merely a type of false wishing and longing which the people of this age are contentiously involved in and misunderstand, and the only way to be saved from it is to have a sincere intention, a correct understanding of the nature of humankind, as well as to separate baseless false wishes from necessity, and to release oneself from the bond of blind imitation of the prevailing nations and from the captivity of the corrupt society which has dragged the nations of today into great turmoil.
However, some of the people of our religion, may Allaah guide them and mend their affairs, have been led astray, while assuming the mode of reform, and have confused what might reform their corruption by means of endeavor, thought and wisdom, with what would corrupt them. People have become radically excessive, and the resentful advocates of falsehood among them who are in charge of the press today have increased. Thus, tongues have spoken confused words, minds have fallen into chaos, and many people have slipped along with those advocates, to the extent that we have come to see some seemingly learned people who are of those of religious knowledge, say about this issue words from which every religious person should disassociate himself.
There is a huge difference between the state in which the life of the Ummah, with its men and women, is correct and pure from evil, disfigurement and ignorance, and the state in which the Ummah eliminates all the barriers between men and women and thus reduces itself to no more than false wishes that bring about envy and transgression with no just cause. Let me repeat the words of Abu Ja‘far “O Allaah, guide us to the straight path at a time in which the tongue has betrayed the mind. Let those who oppose the command of Allaah, and reject His fate in them beware lest a calamity would befall them and obliterate their remaining traces on earth as it obliterated the traces of those who were before them.”
Thus, this principle confirms the physical, moral and Sharee‘ah-recognized distinctions between man and woman.
The forthcoming principles will be established on this first one, since they would discuss the distinctions between them concerning adornment and Hijaab.

The Inherent Differences Between Man and Woman - II

2013-02-27T13:26:00.003-08:00

Here is a set of features with which men and women have been characterized:
From among the rulings assigned to men, a mention may be made of the following:
• Men are in charge of the household in general and of preserving, caring and safeguarding virtue, holding back vice and protecting those under their guardianship from evil. They are also in charge of the household in terms of earning a living and spending upon it. In confirmation of this, Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {Men are in charge of women by [right of] what Allaah has given one over the other and what they spend [for maintenance] from their wealth. So righteous women are devoutly obedient, guarding in [the husband's] absence what Allaah would have them guard.} [Quran 4:34]
Consider the effect of that responsibility in the word "under" in the Grand Quran as stated by Allaah The Almighty in Soorat At-Tahreem: {Allaah presents an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two of Our righteous servants.} [Quran 66:10]
"Under" in this context tells us that they had no authority over their husbands; rather, it was their husbands who had authority over them. The woman is, therefore, not to be regarded as equal to or above the man in this regard.
• Prophethood and the delivering of Allaah’s message are the domain of men and not women. In confirmation of this, Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {And We sent not before you [as messengers] except men to whom We revealed from among the people of cities.} [Quran 12:109]
According to scholars of Tafseer (Quranic exegesis), Allaah The Almighty has never sent as a prophet a woman, an angel, a jinn, or a Bedouin.
• As for public guardianship and the jobs done under it like the judiciary, public administration, and so on, and all other forms of guardianship like that in marriage, are also the domain of men.
• Men are specifically assigned, to the exclusion of women, many acts of worship such as the obligatory duty of Jihaad, Jumu‘ah (Friday prayer in the mosque) prayer, congregational prayers (in the mosque), pronouncement of the Athaan and Iqaamah (calls to prayer), and so on. Divorce also is made in the hand of the man and not the woman, and the custody of the children are given to the man and not the woman.
• The man's share of inheritance, blood-money and his witness is twice that of the woman.
These and other rulings assigned exclusively to men explain the meaning of what is mentioned by Allaah The Almighty at the end of the Noble Verse of Divorce in which He Says (what means): {But the men have a degree over them [in responsibility and authority]. And Allaah is Exalted in Might and Wise.} [Quran 2:228]
On the other hand, there are many rulings that Allaah The Almighty assigned to women in acts of worship, social interaction, marriage and its ramifications, judgments, and so on. They are well-known in the Quran and Sunnah as well as in the writings of jurists. Many books, in the past as well as the present, have been dedicated to this purpose in particular.
Some of these pertain to her Hijaab and guarding her virtue.
That Allaah The Almighty has assigned to each sex a set of rulings has three implications:
First, to have faith in and acknowledge the physical, mental and Sharee‘ah-determined distinction between men and women. Each should be satisfied with what has been decreed by Allaah The Almighty for him/her. Perfect justice lies in these distinctions, and through observing them, order is achieved in the life of human society.
Second, it is impermissible for a male or a female Muslim to hope for what was assigned by Allaah The Almighty to the other. To do so would be to be displeased with the decree of Allaah The Almighty and dissatisfied with His command and ordinance. Rather, let each slave ask Allaah The Almighty out of His bounty for that is from Sharee‘ah-recommended politeness and which removes envy, disciplines the believing soul and habituates it to be pleased with what is decreed by Allaah The Almighty.
Allaah The Almighty forbade wishing for what is assigned to others in His statement (which means): {And do not wish for that by which Allaah has made some of you exceed others. For men is a share of what they have earned, and for women is a share of what they have earned. And ask Allaah of His bounty. Indeed Allaah is ever, of all things, Knowing.}[Quran 4:32]
The occasion on which this verse was revealed is what is narrated on the authority of Mujaahid that Umm Salamah said, “O Messenger of Allaah, will men take part in Jihaad and we [women] not do so? Why should we have only half their inheritance?” On that Allaah The Almighty revealed (what means): {And do not wish for that by which Allaah has made some of you exceed others.} [Quran 4:32] [At-Tabari, Ahmad, Al-Haakim and others]
According to At-Tabari “Allaah The Almighty means here, 'Desire not that with which Allaah has favored some of you over others'. It is mentioned that it was revealed in connection with some women who wished to be in the same position of men and have what they have, but Allaah The Almighty forbade His slaves to have such false wishes and commanded them to ask Him for His Bounty, as such wishes always draw envy and transgression with no just cause.”
Third, if mere wishing is forbidden as stated by the Quran, then what about those who actually deny the Sharee‘ah-determined distinctions, call for their cancellation, and claim equality, to which they invite in the name of equality between man and woman?
Undoubtedly, this is an atheistic theory for it contradicts the universal norm of Allaah The Almighty that decreed these physical and moral distinctions between men and women and seeks to disregard Islam with its Sharee‘ah-related texts which determine, in many rulings, the differences between the male and the female.

The Inherent Differences Between Man and Woman - I

2013-02-27T13:25:00.002-08:00

The physical, moral and Sharee‘ah-related differences between man and woman are proven by Divine Decree, the Sharee‘ah, and sound ration.
That is, Allaah The Almighty has created man and woman as twin-halves of the human species: male and female, as confirmed by His Statement (which means): {And that He creates the two mates - the male and female.} [Quran 53:45] Both participate in maintaining the universe, each in his/her field. They share in maintaining it by worshipping Allaah The Almighty, in which there is no difference between men and women in the universalities of religion: Tawheed (Islamic monotheism), creed, articles of faith, submission to Allaah The Almighty, reward and punishment, encouragement and admonition in general, in addition to virtue and chastity. There is also no difference between them in the universality of religious law, as regards to all rights and duties; Allaah The Almighty Says (what means):
• {And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me.}[Quran 51:56]
• {Whoever does righteousness, whether male or female, while he is a believer - We will surely cause him to live a good life.} [Quran 16:97]
• {And whoever does righteous deeds, whether male or female, while being a believer - those will enter Paradise and will not be wronged, [even as much as] the speck on a date seed.} [Quran 4:124]
But, Allaah The Almighty decreed that man is different from woman in physique, constitution and appearance. Man is more perfect in nature, disposition and physical power than woman, due to what she suffers of menses, pregnancy, the pains of childbirth, suckling, looking after the affairs of the baby, and raising the future generation of the Ummah (Muslim nation). That is why the woman was created from the rib of Aadam (Adam) . She is a complementary part of him, and man is entrusted to take care of her affairs, guard and protect her, and maintain her as well as their offspring.
This difference in disposition led to differences between them in physical, mental, intellectual, emotional capabilities, and will-power, and that was reflected in the difference in work, performance, and competence. Additionally, modern day scientists have concluded that there are amazing signs of physiological disparity between the two sexes.
The types of difference between the sexes has accounted for a large set of corresponding Sharee‘ah-stipulated rulings. Allaah, The Exalted in Honor, the Wise, with His Perfect Wisdom, has enjoined difference, disparity and authority between man and woman in some Sharee‘ah-stipulated rulings in tasks and functions that befit each according to his/her physique, constitution, capabilities and performance, and the aptitude of each of them in his/her respective field of human life, in order for life to be integrated and for each party to undertake his/her task in it.
Allaah The Almighty assigned to men rulings that befit their physique, constitution, structure, competence, qualification for performance, patience, endurance and solemnity, and the bulk of their role is outside the home as they endeavor to provide for their household. He did the same with women, to whom He assigned rulings that befit their physique, constitution, structure, competence, qualification for performance and fragile endurance, and the bulk of their job is thus inside the home, looking after the affairs of their household and raising those in it who constitute the next generation of the Ummah.
Allaah The Almighty related from a woman her statement (which means):{“And the male is not like the female.”} [Quran 3:36] Exalted be He, to whom belongs the creation and command, ruling and legislation:{Unquestionably, His is the creation and the command; blessed is Allaah, Lord of the worlds.} [Quran 7:54]
This is the universal norm of Allaah The Almighty in His creation (meaning that whatever Allaah The Almighty wills and decrees for his slaves will inevitably occur), constitution and foundations, and His Legislative norm concerning commands, rulings and laws. Both norms meet to serve the benefits of people, the maintenance of the universe, and the organization of the life of the individual, the home, the community and human society.

Maryam, the Mother of Jesus

2013-02-27T13:23:00.003-08:00

As Muslims, we respect, honor and hold in high esteem Maryam, may Allaah exalt her mention, the daughter of Imraan who was a chaste virgin and is the best of the women of the world.
The Muslims respect and love her for many reasons, among which are the following:
• Allaah Almighty praised her and described her as being pure and chaste; Allaah Almighty Says (what means): {And [the example of] Mary, the daughter of ‘Imraan, who guarded her chastity, so We blew into [her garment] through Our angel [i.e. Gabriel], and she believed in the words of her Lord and His scriptures and was of the devoutly obedient.} [Quran 66:12] Indeed, Allaah Almighty mentioned her and elaborated on the details of her story in many verses in the Quran.
• Allaah has chosen her as the best of the women of this world; Allaah Says (what means): {(And [mention] when the angels said, “O Mary, indeed Allaah has chosen you and purified you and chosen you above the women of the worlds.} [Quran 3:42]
• Maryam, may Allaah exalt her mention, was brought up in a pious and religious family like her mother  who vowed to Allaah to dedicate what was in her womb to His Services and to serve His Religion; Allaah Says (what means): {[Mention, O Muhammad], when the wife of Imraan said, “My Lord, indeed I have pledged to You what is in my womb, consecrated [for Your service], so accept this from me. Indeed, You are the Hearing, the Knowing.” But when she delivered her, she said, “My Lord I have delivered a female.” And Allaah was most knowing of what she delivered, and the male is not like the female. And I have named her Mary, and I seek refuge for her in You and [for] her descendants from Satan, the expelled [from the mercy of Allaah].”} [Quran 3: 35-36]
Indeed, Allaah accepted the supplication of the mother of Maryam as He appointed a Prophet to her care and service, who was the Prophet Zechariah  so that she would be brought up upon the Guidance of Allaah. Allaah Says (what means): {So her Lord accepted her with good acceptance and caused her to grow in a good manner and put her in the care of Zechariah. Every time Zechariah entered upon her in the prayer chamber, he found with her provision. He said, “O Mary, from where is this [coming] to you?” She said, “It is from Allaah. Indeed, Allaah provides for whom He wills without account.”} [Quran 3:37]
• Maryam, may Allaah exalt her mention, reached a status and an honorable level that no other women has reached; the Prophet mentioned this and clarified this in many Ahadeeth. For instance, we cite the following:
- “Many men reached the level of perfection, but no woman reached such a level except Maryam, the daughter of Imraan, and Asia, the wife of Pharaoh." [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
- “The best of the women of her time was Maryam, daughter of Imraan, and the best of the women of her time was Khadeejah, Bint Khuwaylid.”[Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
- “The best of the women of paradise after Maryam Bint ‘Imraan are: Faatimah [daughter of the Prophet], Khadeejah [Prophet’s wife] and Asia the wife of Pharaoh.” [As-Silsilah As-Saheehah]
- “The best of the women of the world are: “Maryam Bint ‘Imraan, Khadeejah Bint Khuwaylid, Faatimah Bint Muhammad, and Asia, the wife of Pharaoh.” [At-Tirmithi]
• All the Muslim nation agree that Maryam, may Allaah exalt her mention, was of great honor and high status and they consider her as an example regarding purity and chastity.
• A whole Chapter in the Quran was named after her name and she is the only woman who has won this honor (as no other Chapter is named after any other woman), and Allaah elaborated in details the story of her conceiving ‘Eesa  and her giving birth to him.
• Also, she is the only woman who was clearly mentioned by name in the Quran whereas other women of honor and great status were only mentioned by reference.
Indeed, her name was mentioned explicitly in the Quran 34 times in 32 verses, and it was mentioned 11 times without being linked to her son ‘Eesa (Jesus) .
• Also, Maryam, may Allaah exalt her mention, was the one who was given as an example – along with Asia Bint Muzaahim [the wife of Pharaoh] –for the Muslim women, and for men as well. Allaah Says (what means): {And Allaah presents an example of those who believed: the wife of Pharaoh, when she said, “My Lord, build for me near You a house in Paradise and save me from Pharaoh and his deeds and save me from the wrongdoing people.” And [the example of] Mary, the daughter of ‘Imraan, who guarded her chastity, so We blew into [her garment] through Our angel [i.e. Gabriel], and she believed in the words of her Lord and His scriptures and was of the devoutly obedient.} [Quran 66:11-12]
• Maryam, may Allaah exalt her mention was known for her chastity and virginity even after giving birth to ‘Eesa (Jesus), the Messenger of Allaah, may Allaah exalt their mention. She sought refuge with Allaah when the angel Jibreel (Gabriel) appeared to her in the form of a man in all respects, as she said: Allaah Says [on her tongue] (what means): {She said: “Verily! I seek refuge with the Most Merciful (i.e. Allaah) from you if you do fear Allaah”} [Quran 19:18]
• Allaah honored her by declaring her not guilty and by protecting her honor and dignity with a great miracle as He made her son –‘Eesa (Jesus) –speak while he was still in the cradle in order to declare her innocence and refute the accusation of the people of falsehood and corruption. Indeed, Allaah mentioned in details the story how she conceived her son and how she gave birth to him. Allaah Says (what means): {Then she brought him to her people, carrying him. They said, ‘O Mary, you have certainly done a thing unprecedented. O sister of Aaron, your father was not a man of evil, nor was your mother unchaste.” So she pointed to him. They said, “How can we speak to one who is in the cradle a child?” [Jesus] said, “Indeed, I am the servant of Allaah. He has given me the Scripture and made me a prophet. And He has made me blessed wherever I am and has enjoined upon me prayer and Zakaah as long as I remain alive. And [made me] dutiful to my mother, and He has not made me a wretched tyrant. And peace is on me the day I was born and the day I will die and the day I am raised alive.” That is Jesus, the son of Mary— the word of truth about which they are in dispute. It is not [befitting] for Allaah to take a son; exalted is He! When He decrees an affair, He only says to it, “Be,” and it is.} [Quran 19:27-35]
• Allaah selected her to be a pious believing mother for one of the Prophets of great determination, who were the five great Prophets in the history of mankind, may Allaah exalt their mention.
• She conceived ‘Eesa (Jesus)  in an unordinary human way, and in a miraculous manner as the angel Jibreel (Gabriel) breathed into her womb and she became pregnant, and then she gave birth to him.
• She was honored as Allaah attributed her great son to her; Jesus, son of Mary, as he was mentioned being attributed to her in the Quran 23 times out of 34 times.
• Allaah honored her with a number of miracles before her pregnancy and after she gave birth, such as the food which Allaah blessed her with when there was nobody to give her food or when she was lacking it. Allaah Says (what means): {…and put her in the care of Zechariah. Every time Zechariah entered upon her in the prayer chamber, he found with her provision. He said, “O Mary, from where is this [coming] to you?” She said, “It is from Allaah. Indeed, Allaah provides for whom He wills without account.”} [Quran 3:37] Allaah also blessed her with the stream and the palm tree, which Allaah created for her so that she would eat and drink from them in the lonely place where she was so that she will give birth far from the eyes of the people. Allaah Says (what means): {…But he called her from below her, “Do not grieve; your Lord has provided beneath you a stream. And shake toward you the trunk of the palm tree; it will drop upon you ripe, fresh dates. So eat and drink and be contented…”} [Quran 19:24-26]
• She was strong in her religion. She endured much hardship and was steadfast to the last second of hardship, especially when she became pregnant, when she gave birth, and when she breastfed her son.
• Her name was widely spread among the Christians and the Muslims. Indeed, many Muslims like naming their daughters Maryam, and her name is absolutely the most wide-spread name for females around the world and in the Christian world. Her name is especially spread among the woman in Spanish speaking countries, such as the name of Mary Augustine, and Mary Asunción, Mary Antoinette, Miriam, Mary Carmen, and Mary Magdalene, Virginia, …etc.
Conclusion:
Maryam, may Allaah exalt her mention, is a role model for all Muslim women because she maintained her impeccable character throughout her life. Allaah raised her status and chose her from among the women of the entire world. Indeed, many verses and many Ahadeeth clarified her great status.
Allaah blessed her with some miracles, protected her and defended her against any accusations and blasphemy. On the other hand, Maryam, may Allaah exalt her mention, demonstrated her genuine devotion and loyalty to Allaah through her impeccable virtue and behavior. She also expressed her profound and genuine devotion to Him Almighty through her determination, devotion, and unconditional surrender to His Will. She placed all of her hope and trust only in Allaah.
As a result, Allaah supported her with His Grace and Help, and turned all hardship into goodness and beauty.
She became pregnant and delivered her child all alone. She showed patience and complete faith in Allaah and endured the accusations of her people. Consequently, Allaah eased her burden, supported her, and refuted any accusations against her.
Maryam, may Allaah exalt her mention, had a superior and honorable position.
As Muslims, we should honor her, defend her dignity and chastity, and clarify to the people of the whole world the truth about her that she is the best example for all women around the world to follow. She was indeed the best woman ever in the whole world, may Allaah exalt her mention.

Our Non-Muslim Relatives: Their Rights Upon us

2013-02-27T13:21:00.003-08:00

By Kimberly Ben
When I reverted to Islam over 10 years ago, I received mixed reactions from my friends and family. While attending my first family gathering wearing Hijaab, I was eyed very curiously at first, but with time they have come to accept my choice.
Now, no one even seems to notice much except for the occasional complement on my choice of scarf. Most of my relatives accepted my new faith kindly with respect and made efforts to accommodate me, and my family. When holidays rolled around, my relatives would sometimes find it difficult to purchase gifts for other children in the family while "leaving mine out." When I patiently explained why it was important to me that they respect my decision, they did just that. There were a couple of times where my new faith was "challenged" (luring intense discussions about religion, or world events, but we have all learned to respect one another's choices and continue to love and support one another as a family. In many ways, Islam helped me improve my family relationships since I began taking seriously the instruction to maintain family ties. Alhamdu Lillaah (praise be to Allaah), it has been a pretty easy transition.
Establishing boundaries
Even the most pleasant visit with non-family members can present challenges and tests. Some things are easy to navigate, like avoiding alcohol or dishes with non-halal meat at a family event. Others are more difficult. One area that can be challenging is family gossip. Many relatives delight in sharing family secrets when they come together. It can be difficult to resist the urge to listen, participate and comment about the juicy details of another's life, but this is considered backbiting, and participating in it, is likewise forbidden and should be avoided.
Spreading malicious gossip about others is condemned in the Quran; Allaah Says (what means): {… And do not spy or backbite each other. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother when dead? You would detest it. And fear Allaah; indeed, Allaah is Accepting of repentance and Merciful.} [Quran 49:12] If you are part of a family whose favorite pastime is dishing on one another, you may have to get creative when attempting to avoid this kind of activity. When you notice that the conversation is taking a turn to gossip, try gently steering the conversation to another topic instead.
Another challenge specific to women is the issue of Hijaab. Some non-Muslim family members do not understand the purpose of Hijaab and may try to discourage a Muslim relative from wearing it. Some Muslim women recall being pressured to remove their scarves when running simple errands, or while attending a large event with family and friends because it was considered "embarrassing". This could be a real conundrum for a revert who has her own struggle with the issue of wearing Hijaab. This could be an opportunity to educate your family about the benefits of Hijaab. Enlighten them to the fact that covering has been an integral part of maintaining modesty in other religions as well –including Christianity and Judaism. Ultimately, we seek to please Allaah and have to make decisions that complement that goal.
Balancing religious obligations and family
Muslims can maintain their identity and religious obligations while keeping family ties by being patient, compassionate and kind to non-Muslim relatives even when they are critical, or negative:
Remain humble. Don't treat others as if you are superior to them. Be polite. Accept invitations from family that are within religious principles. This is an opportunity to strengthen family ties. Refuse to be a part of bad behavior, or create dissention.
Be cheerful and pleasant to everyone. We all prefer the company of someone pleasant and happy. A positive attitude is infectious. The Prophet was known for being cheerful, smiling pleasantly to everyone. Anyone who spent time with him felt as though he liked him or her best. Our families deserve to know that feeling.
Show mercy to others. Allaah Says (what means): {So by mercy from Allaah, [O Muhammad sallallaahu ‘'alayhi wa sallam], you were lenient with them. And if you had been rude [in speech] and harsh in heart, they would have disbanded from about you. So pardon them and ask forgiveness for them and consult them in the matter. And when you have decided, then rely upon Allaah. Indeed, Allaah loves those who rely [upon Him].} [Quran 3:159]
Many Muslims with non-Muslim family members may be confronted with challenges but they should be considered as opportunities to grow, increase in faith and ultimately earn the pleasure and rewards of Allaah Almighty. When you are attempting to establish good habits and find yourself surrounded by those whose principles are different from yours, you must establish a delicate balance between monitoring your own behavior, and allowing others the freedom to choose their behavior and way of life. As long as their decisions do not directly affect you, it may be best to let things go in the interest of maintaining peace and harmony.
Allaah Almighty Says (what means): {Say: O disbelievers, I worship not what you worship, nor will you worship that which I worship. And I shall not worship that which you are worshipping. Nor will you worship that which I worship. To you be your religion, and to me my religion.} [Quran 109:1-6]
For reverts, accepting Islam can be an exciting experience filled with lots of change. Many new Muslims often place lots of pressure on themselves to do everything "right," and may make drastic changes in their lives. Some of these decisions may be necessary, but it is a good idea to remember that Islam calls for moderation in all things. Islam has turned many wayward lives around, bringing an end to lifestyles that included drinking, drugs, promiscuity and even criminal activity. Even though you may never hear it directly, some non-Muslim families may be so impressed by the positive behavior of a Muslim family member, that they may start holding a much higher regard for Islam. We should always strive to exemplify the positive characteristics of our faith. We have an opportunity to show our non-Muslim family members the true, compassionate representation of a Muslim. So give others the freedom to see the benefit of Islam for themselves. Make time to visit and keep in touch with relatives. They are the people closest to us in this life, and can be our greatest allies and support.

Milestones on the path of dutifulness to parents

2013-02-27T13:19:00.003-08:00

There is no doubt that parents play an effective role in preventing their children from being undutiful. As it is known that prevention is better than cure, we advise noble parents who play the greatest role in this important process, to prepare youth and prevent them from being undutiful.

The family is the first incubator where the adolescent grows up and receives an upbringing. Hence, it has a far-reaching effect on the upbringing of children. It is sufficient to know that children act in a way that conforms to their environment. So, the environment forms the way in which the child learns his behavior. If adolescents grow up with a sense of righteousness and gratitude, undoubtedly, this would greatly affect them.

The following are some of the important means that parents should use while building the wall to prevent undutifulness:

1-   Extreme warning: An extreme warning lies in bringing up the children to be undutiful. Perhaps some people wonder about this warning. Yes, there are parents who plant the bomb which soon explodes. For example, some families express happiness when the child grows and is able to speak and move. Consequently, they tell him to beat or insult one of the parents. They mix jest with seriousness causing the disruption of the child’s moral standards. They are not aware that they are implanting in the innocent little child, at a very young age, disrespect to parents. This is the way it has always been, and always will be.

2-   Keenness on teaching the child the parents’ favors: It is a key step on the way of preventing undutifulness. It is to raise the children to be accustomed to respecting and realizing the status and favor of their parents. Ignorance of the status of parents and consequent punishment for being undutiful to them will lead the children to be undutiful.

3-   To be equally dutiful to you: Some parents are trapped in discrimination by favoring some of their children to others. This is plain injustice. Therefore, Sharee‘ah (Islamic legislation) strongly forbids this matter and warns of its bad consequences. When Basheer ibn Sa‘d  came to the Prophet, , to give his son An-Nu‘maan a gift; the Prophet, , asked: “‘Did you give all your children gifts like An-Nu‘maan?’ He said, ‘No.’ The Prophet  said: ‘So, look for another witness. Do you not like them (your children) to be equally dutiful to you?’” [Al-Albaani: Saheeh]

Steps of treatment

After dealing with the gravity of undutifulness and suggesting some methods to prevent it, we should talk about the steps of treatment, which are:

1-   Virtues and punishments: This is one of the foremost steps which the person who seeks dutifulness should have in mind and realize. One could change from one state to another if he finds a strong motive. Undoubtedly, knowing and remembering the fruits of dutifulness will be one of the best incentives to practice it. Similarly, contemplating the bad consequences of undutifulness and the resulting distress and grief in the worldly life before the Hereafter will help one be dutiful and keep away from undutifulness.

2-   Good friends: You should have good friends who correct your mistakes and inform you about the consequences of your actions. If good company is sought in the course of worldly journeys and travel, what should be the case in the travel of the Hereafter where the believer is in greater need to have a righteous helper and an agreeable companion who would be, in relation to his friend, like two hands that wash the other.
They are righteous people who guide you to the way of righteousness and direct you with their kind words if you commit an undutiful or a semi-undutiful act.
Hence, it becomes mandatory to get rid of bad friends who are the reason behind every catastrophe. You should know, especially in this stage of adolescence, that friends are chosen by the adolescent according to his desire and inclination. The grave problem is that this test often comes spontaneously where the child grows up with a neighbor at school or university. This friend may become the reason behind his undutifulness through absorbing behavior due to frequent interaction over a period of time. So, you should select your friends cautiously and deliberately.

3-   O people of the faith: here, you should ask yourself: Are you faithful? Perhaps, you would quickly answer in the affirmative. This is a good reply; however, to reach such a degree of faithfulness you should read some questions, if your answer is in the affirmative, then, enjoy your faithfulness. Otherwise, you should do your best to make your answers in the affirmative.
- Do you frequently remember your parents’ favors?
- Do you frequently thank them for their care and upbringing?
- Do you supplicate Allaah The Almighty for them in your prayers, going, coming, with your friends and alone?
- Did you ever think about doing something for them and expressing your love and faithfulness?
- Do you quickly blame yourself and rush to serve them whenever you feel that you have fallen short to fulfill their rights?
This is the tip of the iceberg of questions which are well known to faithful people. Subhaan Allaah (Glory be to Allaah!), when a friend does us a favor, we remember it, keep treating him kindly and speaking well of him in his absence by remembering his good qualities. How come that we do not adopt this attitude— which we adopt towards our friends— towards our parents who sacrifice their time so that we can enjoy our times? They spent their money so that we become rich. They spent many nights crying because of our illness. Many times they were preoccupied from life with our needs. There are many of their supplications for us which were answered. How many times do kind parents sit watching their children dreaming of the day on which they become successful Muslim youth, with people delighting in them? By Allaah, these are only a few matters to remember. Is it not time for us to become faithful?

Family role

1-   Understanding the stage: first, I would like to ask why do adolescents clash with their parents. What are the reasons which drive him to argue after he was tractable during his childhood? Why does he tend to independence and individuality in taking decisions?
It seems that the answer is summarized in the fact that the adolescent is living through a new stage. The more parents are able to understand this, the more dutifulness they will get and vice versa. Missing understanding between parents and children is the gravest matter that culminates in undutifulness to parents. Children want to build their own life according to their style and that of their friends. On the other hand, parents look from their own point of view and through their own perspectives of their customs. Hence, each party is on a different wavelength. The deeper understanding of this stage the parents have, the more capable they will be of dealing according to methodology and awareness. By the permission of Allaah, it will result in dutifulness to parents and in having good manners.
We previously clarified that the adolescent in this stage wants to fulfill some needs such as security, acceptance, feeling responsible, and so on. The more the parents are aware of these needs, the stronger and more successful the relation will be. Undoubtedly, such success is topped by dutifulness to parents. Hence, we need to read a lot on the needs of adolescents and how to deal with them.

2-   Stop the conflict: it is important that parents understand that their children during this stage need to feel that their parents value them highly and know that they have moved from childhood to youth. In many cases, we find that the family’s stance towards the child, which may degrade or mock him, increases the child’s tendency to resort to his friends and compound their influence and effect on him.

3-   Feeling rejected followed by loss: It is noteworthy that whenever the adolescent feels acceptance and esteem, he loves his parents more and more. Therefore, the more we accept the basic personal traits of our adolescents, the more they feel at ease with us and their desire to spend time at home increases. Undoubtedly, such a feeling of acceptance and esteem leads to a similar result with the children.

How to Handle Burdens

2013-02-27T13:18:00.001-08:00

We all have stress and burdens in our daily lives. Whether it is school or work or just the trials of life, we carry much on our shoulders. Some of us carry our own loads and some of us carry loads that we share with others, such as health problems, personal family issues, financial dilemmas, marital discord, employment troubles, and the list could go on. These burdens that we bear can be heavy. In fact, most of us may say that at one time or another, these burdens are too hard to bear.
But, in Chapter two [Quran 2], Allaah Almighty promises us that we will never have to carry a burden that is greater than what we can bear. So why do we feel then that the burden is too heavy for us to carry? Why do we feel as if we had the weight of the entire world on our shoulders and as if we had more than our share of worries and woes?
We feel this way not because of the weight of the burden, but rather the way we carry it.
Bend at the knees
When we physically carry heavy loads in our arms, we are always told to `bend at the knees' to avoid breaking our backs and injuring our necks. There is great wisdom in ensuring that something is sincerely done in our own best interest, and not just done as a task that we want to get rid of. Likewise, a burden that is carried with little or no care or concern for our own well-being does not make much sense. In a short amount of time, one would `burn out' and be of much less use to the same people that we were intending to help in the first place. So, a burden carried on our shoulders should be carried with care as well, otherwise it could similarly become a `pain in the neck'. In other words, a burden on its own is not such a pain but a mere responsibility; but a burden that is not carried well becomes a pain, a hassle that one harbors reluctantly.
No matter how heavy our burden is, if we carry it with confidence and self respect, we can handle the weight of it and carry it to fruition or to the point that it needs to be carried.
Sometimes, this weight that we carry is for a short period and sometimes it is for a long period; whatever the duration, our attitude determines in large part the outcome. The way that we handle any situation determines how that situation can end. Think about many of the burdens that you may have in your life at this very moment. The way you see them can have a huge impact on the way they affect your life. If you think they are enormous, then you tend to visualize them as such.
If you imagine that it is the end of the world, you would probably feel as if the world was about to come crashing down on you.
Instead, if we can remember at times like this that there is no such thing as a burden too great, we can take a deep breath and remind ourselves that we can handle it. We have to remember that Allaah Almighty Knows what we can handle. After all, He Almighty created us and thus Knows better than anyone else what we can and cannot handle.
Pulling our own weight
In remembering this, it would be better for us to handle our responsibilities not with complaints and grouchiness but with self-restraint and grace. The burdens placed on our shoulders should not weigh us down to the point of immobility. Instead, we can think of them as challenges that we can learn to face and overcome. The reality is that, no matter how bad the situation is, there is always someone out there whose situation is harder than ours. Maybe we can't see that person when we need to, but we need to know that this reality exists and that our own burdens are meant for us. The burden of other people could be much worse.
All of the burdens that we have are a test from Allaah Almighty—we know that already. What we sometimes forget is how to handle those burdens. Usually, we complain about everything that is ‘going wrong’ in our lives. If we can change our perspective and balance those burdens with a stronger back and with a more positive attitude, we will see that the burden is not as heavy as the reward for being grateful for those things that we have in our lives that are going well.

Enjoining good and forbidding evil

2013-02-27T13:17:00.000-08:00

Allaah, the Exalted, Says (what means): "Let there arise out of you a group of people inviting to all that is good (Islam), enjoining Al-Ma`roof (i.e., Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam orders one to do) and forbidding Al-Munkar (polytheism, disbelief and all that Islam has forbidden). And it is they who are the successful.'' [Quran 3:104]

"You (true believers in Islamic Monotheism) are the best of peoples ever raised up for mankind; you enjoin Al-Ma`roof (i.e., Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam has ordained) and forbid Al-Munkar (polytheism, disbelief and all that Islam has forbidden)''.[Quran 3:110]

"Show forgiveness, enjoin what is good, and turn away from the foolish (i.e., don't punish them).''[Quran 7:199]

"Those among the Children of Israel who disbelieved were cursed by the tongue of Daawood (David) and `Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary). That was because they disobeyed (Allaah and the Messengers) and were ever transgressing beyond bounds. They used not to forbid one another from the Munkar (wrong, evildoing, sins, polytheism, disbelief) which they committed. Vile indeed was what they used to do".[Quran 5:78, 79]

"…We (i.e. Allaah Almighty) rescued those who forbade evil, and with a severe torment We seized those who did wrong because they used to rebel against Allaah's Command (disobey Allaah)."[Quran 7:165]

Abu Sa`eed Al-Khudri  reported: The Messenger of Allaah  said,"Whoever amongst you sees an evil, he must change it with his hand; if he is unable to do so, then with his tongue; and if he is yet unable to do so, then with his heart; and that is the weakest form of Faith". [Muslim]

This Hadeeth (narration) contains a very important prescription to prevent the Muslim society from all things which are forbidden in Islam. So long as Muslims adhered to it and ceaselessly and fearlessly performed their obligation of enjoining the right and forbidding the wrong, their society was largely safe from many evils and sins.

Nu`maan Ibn Basheer, May Allaah be pleased with him, reported: The Prophet  said: "The likeness of the man who observes the limits prescribed by Allaah and that of the man who transgresses them is like a group of people who get on board a ship after casting lots. Some of them are in its lower deck and some of them in its upper (deck). Those who are in its lower (deck), when they require water, go to the occupants of the upper deck, and say to them: `If we make a hole in the bottom of the ship, we shall not harm you.' If they (the occupants of the upper deck) leave them to carry out their design they all will be drowned. But if they do not let them go ahead (with their plan), all of them will remain safe".[Al-Bukhaari]

We learn from this Hadeeth that the consequences of committing actswhich are forbidden in Islam are not confined only to those persons who commit them, but the whole society has to suffer the consequences. It is, therefore, essential that the people who are in the habit of committing sinful acts and violate Divine injunctions, should be checked to save the whole society from destruction. If this is not done, the entire society will have to face the Divine punishment.

The Prophet  said, "Beware of sitting on roads (paths).'' The audience said: "We have them as sitting places.'' The Messenger  said, "If you have to sit there, then observe the rights of the way". They asked, "What are the rights of the way?'' He  said, "To lower your gaze (on seeing what is illegal to look at), removal of harmful objects from the way, returning greetings, and enjoining good and forbidding wrong". [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]

This Hadeeth tells us that it is improper to sit on roadsides and passages in such a way, which causes inconvenience to the people who pass by. It is really very unfortunate that now we do not care about such things at all. If sitting on the roadside is indispensable, then it is essential to observe the requirements mentioned in the Hadeeth.

Some Islamic etiquette mentioned in this Hadeeth have also been stated in other Ahadeeth (pl. or Hadeeth). For instance, politeness of speech, sharing of someone's burden, helping the oppressed and the troubled, guiding the wayward person to the right path, answering (in the prescribed manner) one who sneezes, etc.

`Abdullaah Ibn `Abbaas  reported: The Messenger of Allaah  saw a man wearing a gold ring. So he (the Prophet ) pulled it off and threw it away, saying, "One of you takes a live coal, and puts it on his hand?!'' It was said to the man after the Messenger  had left: "Take your ring (of gold) and utilize it,'' whereupon he said: "No, by Allaah, I would never take it after the Messenger of Allaah  has thrown it away". [Muslim]

We learn from this Hadeeth that wearing gold rings (and other golden ornaments) is prohibited for men. Unfortunately, it has become a popular fashion nowadays for men to wear gold rings to signify their marriage, which is a very dangerous custom that must be shunned.

`Aa'idh Ibn `Amr  visited `Ubaidillaah Ibn Ziyaad (the ruler) and said to him: "Son, I heard the Messenger of Allaah  saying, 'The worst shepherds (rulers) are those who deal harshly in respect of supervision. Beware, don't be one of them!''' Ibn Ziyaad said to him, "Sit down, you are but a husk from among the Companions of the Prophet  '' `Aa'idh Ibn `Amr  retorted: "Was there any husk among them? Surely, husk came after them and among others than them". [Muslim]

This Hadeeth presents a model of courage and boldness of speaking the truth before a tyrant. It was displayed by `Aa'idh in the court of 'Ubaidillaah Ibn Ziyaad, governor of Basrah. The latter humiliated `Aa'idh the righteous preacher, for his straight forwardness and truth but he repeated his statement about the eminence of the Companions of the Prophet  and said none of them could be called husk.

Huthaifah  reported: The Prophet  said, "By Him in Whose Hand my life is, you either enjoin good and forbid evil, or Allaah will certainly soon send His punishment to you. Then you will make supplication and it will not be accepted". [At-Tirmithi]

To abandon the practice of enjoining virtue and forbidding vice is likely to incur the displeasure of Allaah and the rejection of prayers and supplications.

Who are the Mahrams of a Woman?

2013-02-27T13:15:00.003-08:00

When people distance themselves from the instructions of Islam and the rulings of religion -- especially those which guard chastity and the ‘Awrah (parts of the body that must be covered), prevent mixing of progeny and other immoral acts -- they fall into the pit of vice and immorality. This is encouraged by the enemies of Islam who try to control women with all the possible means until they lead them astray and strip them of their modesty, under the pretext of "liberating" them. In reality, they wanted to liberate women from their religion, modesty, and chastity.
As a ruling of Sharee‘ah (Islamic legislation), a woman has to know who her Mahrams (non-marriageable men) are, so as to guard herself and her religion.
The following question was raised to An-Nawawi : “Who is the woman whom a man is permitted to look at and meet her in seclusion?”
An-Nawawi  replied, “It is every woman whom he is permanently forbidden to marry due to a permissible reason because of her unlawfulness.”
“Permanently” is said to exclude the wife’s sister and her like, namely her paternal aunt, maternal aunt, and her daughter if the marital contract is concluded with the mother yet the marriage has not been consummated with her.
“Due to a permissible reason” excludes the mother and her daughter with whom a man had sexual intercourse mistakenly believing that it was lawful. The mother and her daughter are permanently forbidden, not because of a permissible reason, but because doubtful intercourse which is neither described as permissible nor unlawful, because the man was oblivious and thus, incompetent to receive religious commitment at that time.
“Because of her unlawfulness” excludes the woman who is involved in Li‘aan (oath of condemnation). This woman is permanently forbidden to remarry (her ex-husband) as an act of punishment, not because she is unlawful for him. Allaah knows best.” [The Fataawaa that is known as Al-Manthooraat by An-Nawawi, question no. 223.]
Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {And not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their headcovers over their chests and not expose their adornment except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers, their brothers' sons, their sisters' sons, their women, that which their right hands possess, or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women.} [Quran 24:31]
As regards “their fathers” up to the end of the verse, &Ibn Katheer&&  said, “These are all Mahrams for the woman who, therefore, is allowed to appear to them in her adornment without excessive display of beauty.”
Explanation of Mahrams:
• Their fathers: The woman’s father.
• Their husbands’ fathers: The husband’s father and grandfathers, up to all levels.
• Their sons: The woman’s sons down to all levels, and also the sons of daughters down to all levels.
• Their husbands’ sons: Male sons of the husband, including grandsons down to all degrees, whether they are sons of the husband’s sons or daughters.
• Their brothers: The woman’s brother
• Their brothers’ sons: The brother’s sons down to all degrees.
• Their sisters’ sons: The sister’s sons down to all degrees.
• Their women: Muslim, not polytheistic women, according to the preponderant opinion.
• That which their right hands possess: This may mean either:
bondmaids or bondmen.
• Male attendants having no physical desire: They are men who are not at the same level as the women and have no interest in or desire for women; or the oblivious person who has no desire; an imbecile; and, an impotent man. The eunuch who can describe women is excluded.
• Children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women: Because they are so young they do not understand anything about women or their ‘Awrah (parts of the body that must be covered). If a child is young and does not understand that, there is nothing wrong with him entering upon women, but if he is an adolescent or approaching adolescence, so that he knows and understands these things, and can make a distinction between a woman who is beautiful and one who is not, then he should not enter upon women.
First benefit:
Are a woman’s paternal and maternal uncles her Mahrams?
Al-Qurtubi  said, “The majority of scholars held that the maternal and paternal uncles of a woman are like other Mahrams in that they are allowed to see of the woman what is permissible for them to see.”
Second benefit:
Is the daughter’s husband a Mahram for her mother?
Ibn Katheer  said, “The majority of scholars held that the wife’s mother becomes forbidden to be married to a person once he concludes the marital contract with her daughter.”
Third benefit:
Is the mother’s husband a Mahram for her daughter (i.e. his stepdaughter)?
A mother’s husband (the stepfather) is not a Mahram for her daughter except on two conditions, as Ibn Hajar  said in Al-Fat’h, “The prohibition of marrying a stepdaughter is stipulated by two things:
o She must be under the guardianship of the man
o The man should have consummated the marriage with her mother.
Therefore, the stepfather is not a Mahram to his step-daughter if only one of the two conditions exists.”
This view was adopted by Daawood ibn ‘Ali and his companions, chosen by Ibn Hazm, narrated by Abu Al-Qaasim Ar-Raafi‘i on the authority of Maalik . However, Ibn Taymiyyah  found it dubious and did not hold a certain opinion regarding it.
Finally, the majority of scholars held that the stepdaughter is unlawful to her stepfather in marriage, whether she was under his guardianship or not. Please check Tafseer ibn Katheer and Fat’h Al-Baari.

The Description of Paradise – III

2013-02-27T13:12:00.003-08:00

The Soil of Paradise
Describing the soil of Paradise, the Prophet Muhammad said:
“I entered Paradise, where I saw lights of pearl, its soil was musk.” [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
Ibn Sayyaad  asked the Messenger  about the soil of Paradise. He  said, “It is a fine white powder of pure musk.” [Muslim and Ahmad]
Abu Hurayrah  said: “I asked, ‘O’ Messenger of Allaah, ‘From what are people created?’ He said: "From water." We (present Companions) asked, ‘From what is Paradise built?’ He said, ‘Bricks of gold and silver and mortar of fragrant musk; its pebbles are pearls and rubies, and its soil is saffron. Whoever enters it is blessed with joy and will never be miserable; he will remain there forever and will never die; his clothes will never wear out and his youth will never fade away.’” [Ahmad and others]
The Rivers of Paradise
Allaah, the Most High and Exalted, has told us that rivers flow from beneath Paradise. He Says in the Quran (what means):
{And give good tidings to those who believe and do righteous deeds that they will have gardens [in Paradise] beneath which rivers flow.} [Quran 2: 25]
Allaah also Says (what means): {Those will have gardens of perpetual residence; beneath them rivers will flow.} [Quran 18: 31]
The Prophet  has told us clearly about the rivers of Paradise. He said that during his Mi'raaj’ (miraculous Ascension to the heavens):
“...I saw four rivers flowing out from beneath Sidrat Al-Muntaha (the Lote Tree in the seventh heaven), two visible and two hidden. I asked, ‘O Jibreel (Gabriel), what are these rivers?’ He said, ‘The two hidden rivers are rivers of Paradise, and the two visible rivers are the Nile and the Euphrates.” [Muslim]
Imaam Al-Bukhaari  reported from Anas Ibn Maalik  that the Messenger of Allaah  said: “I was shown As-Sidrah (Lote Tree), where I saw four rivers, two visible rivers and two hidden rivers. The two visible rivers are the Nile and the Euphrates, and the two hidden rivers are rivers in Paradise.”
Moreover, the Messenger of Allaah  said: “Seehaan and Jeehaan (the Euphrates and the Nile) are all from the rivers of Paradise.” [Muslim]
Shaykh Al-Albaani  said: “Perhaps what is meant is that these rivers originated from Paradise just as mankind did; this Hadeeth does not contradict the well-established fact that these rivers spring forth from known sources on earth. If this is not in fact the meaning of this Hadeeth, then it is one of the matters of the Unseen (Al-Ghayb), which we must believe and accept because the Prophet  has told us about it.” [Silsilat Al-A Haadeeth As-Saheehah, 1/18]
Al-Qaari  said: “These four rivers are considered to be among the rivers of Paradise, because they are so sweet and digestive, so fresh and wholesome. They contain blessings from Allaah, and are honored by the fact that the Prophet  came to them and drank from them.” [Mishkaat Al-Masaabeeh 3/80
Another of the rivers of Paradise is Al-Kawthar which Allaah, the Almighty has given to His Messenger  according His Saying (which means):
{Indeed, We have granted you, [O Muhammad], Al-Kawthar.} [Quran 108: 1]
The Prophet  saw it during his Ascension and told us about it. He said: “Whilst I was walking in Paradise, I saw a river whose banks were domes of hollow pearls. I asked, ‘What is this, O’ Jibreel?’ He said, ‘This is Al-Kawthar which your Lord has given to you.’ Its scent - or its mud - was of fragrant musk.” Hudbah  [one of the narrators] was not sure if he said Teeb (scent) or Teen (mud). [Al-Bukhaari]
On the other hand, Ibn Katheer  compiled a number of Ahadeeth in which the Prophet  spoke about A1-Kawthar, such as the Hadeeth narrated by Muslim from Anas, which states that when the verse (which means): " {Indeed, We have granted you, [O Muhammad], Al-Kawthar.} , was revealed, the Prophet  said:
“Do you know what Al-Kawthar is?” They said, “Allaah and His Messenger know best.” He said, “It is a river that Allaah has promised to me, and in it is much goodness.” [Muslim]
He also quoted the Hadeeth narrated by Ahmad  from Anas according to which the Prophet  said:
“I have been given Al-Kawthar, which is a river flowing across the face of the earth; its banks are domes of pearl and it is not covered. I touched its mud with my hand, and found that it was fragrant musk, and its pebbles were pearls.” [Ahmad]
According to another Hadeeth, also narrated by Ahmad from Anas the Prophet  said:
“It is a river that Allaah has given to me in Paradise. Its mud is musk and its water is whiter than milk and sweeter than honey. Birds with necks like the necks of camels drink from it.” [Ahmad]
The rivers of Paradise do not contain just water. There are rivers of water, of milk, of wine and of clear honey. Allaah, the Most High and Exalted, Says (what means):
{Is the description of Paradise, which the righteous are promised, wherein are rivers of water unaltered, rivers of milk the taste of which never changes, rivers of wine delicious to those who drink, and rivers of purified honey, in which they will have from all [kinds of] fruits and forgiveness from their Lord, like [that of] those who abide eternally in the Fire and are given to drink scalding water that will sever their intestines.}[Quran 47: 15]
Moreover, the Messenger of Allaah  said: “In Paradise there is a sea of honey, a sea of wine, a sea of milk and a sea of water, and the rivers flow out of these seas.” [At-Tirmithi]
He  also told us of a river called Baariq, which flows by the gate of Paradise. During the period of Barzakh (the time between death and the Day of Resurrection), the martyrs will be beside this river. Ahmad, At-Tabaraani and Al-Haakim  reported from Ibn ‘Abbaas  that the Messenger of Allaah  said:
“The martyrs are in a green dome beside the river of Baariq, by the gate of Paradise, from which provision comes to them morning and evening.”[Al-Jaami']
By: Umar Sulaymaan Al-Ashqar

The Description of Paradise –II

2013-02-27T13:11:00.001-08:00

The Grades of Paradise
The evidence that Paradise has various grades and its inhabitants will be in different ranks and categories:
Paradise consists of grades, some of which are above others, and its people will be of differing levels and categories according to their position in Paradise. Almighty Allaah Says (what means):
{But whoever comes to Him as a believer having done righteous deeds — for those will be the highest degrees [in position].}[Quran 20:75]
One of those who explained and clarified this issue was Ibn Taymiyyah  who said: "Paradise has grades that are widely differentiated. The beloved Awliyaa’ (those close to Allaah because of their piety and heedfulness) will be placed in those levels according to their faith and piety. Allaah, the Most Exalted, Says (what means):
{Whoever should desire the immediate (worldly gratifications) — We hasten for him from it what We will to whom We intend. Then We have made for him Hell, which he will [enter to] burn, censured and banished.}[Quran 17:18]
Allaah, the Most High, explains how He gives more of His Bounty in this world or the next, as He wills, and His Bounty is not withheld [forbidden] from either the righteous or the sinful. Allaah, the Exalted, Says (what means):
{Look how We have favored [in provision] some of them over others. But the Hereafter is greater in degrees [of difference] and greater in distinction.} [Quran 17: 21]
Allaah Almighty explains that the differences between people in the Hereafter will be greater than the differences between them in this life, and the difference between the levels or ranks of the Hereafter is greater than the differences here in this life. Allaah also differentiates between His Prophets, may Allaah exalt their mention, as He does between the rest of His believing slaves. Allaah, the All-Majestic, Says (what means):
{Those messengers- some of them We caused to exceed others. Among them were those to whom Allaah spoke, and He raised some of them in degree. And We gave Jesus, the son of Mary, clear proofs, and We supported him with the pure spirit [(Jibreel (Gabriel)].} [Quran 2: 253]
Allaah also Says (what means): {And your Lord is Most Knowing of whoever is in the heavens and the earth. And We have made some of the prophets exceed others [in various ways], and to Daawood (David) We gave the Book [of Psalms].} [Quran 17: 55]
On the other hand, the Prophet Muhammad  said:
“A strong believer is better and more beloved to Allaah than a weak believer, although both are good. Pay attention to that which benefits you, seek Allaah’s help, and never feel helpless. If something happens to you, do not say, ‘If only such and such would have happened.’ Say instead: ‘Allaah has decreed it and He does what He wills.’ Saying ‘if only’ opens the way for Satan.” [Muslim]
Besides, the Prophet  also said:
“If a judge forms an independent judgment to decide an issue in the light of the Quran and the Sunnah (Ijtihaad) and is correct, he will have two rewards, and if he is mistaken, he will have one reward.” [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
Indeed, there are many verses in the Quran which indicate that there are different degrees and various ranks as a reward for the believers in Paradise (according to the excellence of their deeds). These verses are as follows:
{Not equal among you are those who spent before the conquest [of Makkah] and fought [and those who did so after it]. Those are greater in degree than those who spent afterwards and fought. But to all Allaah has promised the best [reward] And Allaah, with what you do, is Acquainted....} [Quran 57: 10]
{Not equal are those believers remaining [at home] — other than the disabled — and the Mujahideen, [who strive and fight] in the cause of Allaah with their wealth and their lives. Allaah has preferred the Mujahideen through their wealth and their lives over those who remain [behind], by degrees. And to all [i.e. both] Allaah has promised the best [reward]. But Allaah has preferred the Mujahideen over those who remain [behind] with a great reward — Degrees [of high position] from Him and forgiveness and mercy.} [Quran 4: 95-96]
{Have you made the providing of water for the pilgrim and the maintenance of al-Masjid al-Haram (the Sacred Mosque in Makkah) equal to [the deeds of] one who believes in Allaah and the Last Day and strives in the cause of Allaah? They are not equal in the sight of Allaah. And Allaah does not guide the wrongdoing people. The ones who have believed, emigrated and striven in the cause of Allaah with their wealth and their lives are greater in rank in the sight of Allaah.
And it is those who are the attainers [of success]. Their Lord gives them good tidings of mercy from Him and approval and of gardens for them wherein is enduring pleasure. [They will be] abiding therein forever. Indeed, Allaah has with Him a great reward.} [Quran 9: 19-22]
{Is one who is devoutly obedient during periods of the night, prostrating and standing [in prayer], fearing the Hereafter and hoping for the mercy of his Lord, [like one who does not]? Say, “Are those who know equal to those who do not know?” Only they will remember [who are] people of understanding.} [Quran 39. 9]
{... O you who have believed, when you are told, “Space yourselves” in assemblies, then make space; Allaah will make space for you.’ And when you are told, “Arise,” then arise; Allaah will raise those who have believed among you and those who were given knowledge, by degrees. And Allaah is Acquainted with what you do.} [Quran 58. 11]
Al-Bukhaari  reported from Abu Hurayrah  that the Prophet said:
“Whoever believes in Allaah and His Messenger, offers prayer perfectly and fasts the month of Ramadhaan, will be granted Paradise as of right by Allaah, no matter whether he fights in Allaah’s cause or remains in the land where he is born.” The people said: “O Messenger of Allaah, shall we acquaint the people with this good news?” He said, “Paradise has one hundred grades (and ranks) which Allaah has reserved for the Mujaahideen who fight in His Cause, and the extent of difference (distance) between each of the two grades is like the distance between the heavens and the earth. So when you ask Allaah for something, ask for Al-Firdaws, which is the best and highest part of Paradise.” I (the narrator, Abu Hurayrah) thought that the Prophet  said: “Above it (Al-Firdaws) is the Throne of the Most Merciful, and from it originate the rivers of Paradise.” [Al-Bukhaari]

The Description of Paradise - I

2013-02-27T13:10:00.002-08:00

There is nothing Like It
The delights of Paradise surpass imagination and defy description. They are like nothing known to the people of this world no matter how advanced we may become.
What we achieve is nothing in comparison with the joys of the Hereafter. As is mentioned in several Ahadeeth, there is nothing like Paradise: “It is sparkling light, aromatic plants, a lofty palace, a flowing river, ripe fruit, a beautiful wife and abundant clothing, in an eternal abode of radiant joy, in beautiful, soundly-constructed high houses.” [Ibn Maajah]
The Prophet Muhammad  was asked by his companions  about the buildings of Paradise and he replied with a wonderful description:“(In it are) Bricks of gold and silver, mortar of fragrant musk, pebbles of pearl and sapphire, and soil of saffron. Whoever enters it is filled with joy and will never feel miserable; he will live there forever and will never die; their clothes will never wear out and their youth will never fade.”[Ahmad and others]
Describing Paradise, Almighty Allaah Says (what means): {And when you look there [in Paradise], you will see pleasure and great dominion."}[Quran 76:20]
What Allaah Almighty has kept hidden from us of the delights of Paradise is beyond our ability to comprehend. Almighty Allaah Says (what means):
{And no soul knows what has been hidden for them of comfort for eyes [i.e. satisfaction] as reward for what they used to do.} [Quran 32. 17]
Besides, the Messenger of Allaah  said:
“Allaah, the Exalted, has said: “I have prepared for My righteous Slaves [in Paradise] what no eyes have ever seen, no ears have ever heard of, and what has never come to the mind or heart of a human being.”; recite, if you wish {And no soul knows what has been hidden for them of comfort for eyes [i.e. satisfaction] as reward for what they used to do.} [Quran 32:17] [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
Moreover, Imaam Muslim reported that Sahl Ibn Sa’d As-Saa’idi said: I attended a gathering where the Messenger of Allaah described Paradise, and I stayed until he finished speaking. At the end of the description, he said: “In it is what no eyes have ever seen, no ears have ever heard of, and what has never come to the mind or heart of a human being.” He then recited the verse (which means): {Their sides part [i.e. they arise] from [their] beds; they supplicate their Lord in fear and aspiration, and from what We have provided them, they spend ). And no soul knows what has been hidden for them of comfort for eyes [i.e. satisfaction] as reward for what they used to do.} [Quran 32: 16-17]
The Gates of Paradise
Paradise has gates through which the believers will enter, as the angels enter therein, as Allaah, the Most Exalted, Says (what means): {Gardens of perpetual residence, whose doors will be opened to them.} [Quran 38: 50]
Allaah, the Most Exalted, Says (what means): {Gardens of perpetual residence; they will enter them with whoever were righteous among their fathers, their spouses and their descendants. And the angels will enter upon them from every gate, [saying]. ‘Peace [i.e. security] be upon you for what you patiently endured. And excellent is the final home.’} [Quran 13: 23-24]
Allaah, the Most High and Exalted, has told us that these gates will be opened when the believers reach them, and they [the believers] will be welcomed by the angels with greetings of peace. Almighty Allaah Says (what means): {…when they reach it while its gates have been opened and its keepers say, 'Peace be upon you; you have become pure; so enter it to abide eternally therein,'} [Quran 39: 73]
The number of gates of Paradise is eight; one of them is called Ar-
Rayaan, which is exclusively for those who fast. The Messenger
of Allaah  said: “In Paradise there are eight gates. There is one gate called 'Ar-Rayyaan'. No-one will enter it except those who fast, and when they have entered, it will be locked behind them, and no-one else will enter it.” [Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
There are also gates for those who pray much, those who give charity and those who fight in Jihad, as well as the gate called Ar-Rayyaan for those who fast.
In a Hadeeth reported by both Al-Bukhaari and Muslim, Abu Hurayrah  narrated that the Messenger of Allaah  said:
“Whoever spends a pair (of anything) from his wealth for the sake of Allaah, will be called from the gates of Paradise, Paradise has eight gates. Whoever will be from the people of the prayer (i.e. the people who observe the prayer regularly, properly, and perform both obligatory and supererogatory prayers), will be called from the gate of prayer; whoever will be from among the people of Sadaqah (charity, i.e. spend money in charity) will be called from the gate of charity. Whoever will be from among the people of Jihad will be called from the gate of Jihad, and whoever will be from among the people of fasting (obligatory and optional) will be called from the gate of fasting.”
Furthermore, Abu Bakr  said: “By Allaah, it would not matter if a person was called from any of them, but will anyone be there to be called from all of them, O’ Messenger of Allaah?” He  said, “Yes, and I hope that you will be one of them.” [Al-Bukhaari Muslim]
Abu Bakr’s question refers to a person who has all these good qualities: prayer, fasting, charity, Jihad, etc., in order to be called from all the gates. In another Hadeeth, the Prophet  said:
“Whoever spends a pair (of anything) for the sake of Allaah will be called from all eight gates of Paradise. He also spoke of the person who performs ablution and does it properly, then lifts his gaze to the sky and says: ‘Ashhadu an laa ilaaha illallaah wahdahu laa shareeka lahu, wa ashhadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduhu wa rasooluhu,’ the eight gates of Paradise will be opened to him, and he will enter it through any gate he wishes.” [ibid]
Additionally, ‘Umar Ibn Al-Khattaab  said: “The Messenger of Allaah  said: “Whoever performs ablution and does it well, then lifts his gaze to the heavens and says: ‘Ashhadu an laa ilaaha illa Allaah wahdahu laa shareeka lahu, wa ashhadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduhu wa rasooluhu (I bear witness that None has the right to be worshipped but Allaah, He has no partners nor associates, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger), the eight gates of Paradise will be opened to him, and he will enter it through any gate he wishes." [Muslim]
Allaah also Says (what means): {…when they reach it while its gates have been opened and its keepers say, 'Peace be upon you; you have become pure; so enter it to abide eternally therein'.} [Quran 39:73]
The Prophet  told us that there is a gate, which is specific for those who will not be called to account: this is the right-hand gate of Paradise. The rest of them will enter Paradise with all other nations through other gates. In a Hadeeth about Ash-Shafaa‘ah (intercession), the Prophet said:
“Allaah will say: ‘O Muhammad, admit those of your Ummah (followers) who do not need to be brought to account through the right hand gate; and the others will enter through other gates like the rest of the people.”[Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
In the same Hadeeth, the Prophet  described the width of the gate of Paradise, stating that the width between the two sides of the gate is like the distance between Makkah and Hajar, or between Makkah and Basra.” [ibid]
The Messenger of Allaah  said: “The distance between the two gate-panels of one of the gates of Paradise is the distance of forty-year’s walking, but a time will come when it would be very crowded.” [Ahmad]

A Jewish American Embraces Islam

2012-11-19T23:42:00.004-08:00

I saw her radiant face in a mosque that is located on a hill in a small American state, reciting a translation of the Noble Quran. I greeted her and she returned the greeting warmly and cheerfully; we got talking and became good friends in no time. One night, we were on the shore of a beautiful lake, where she related to me the story of her conversion to Islam. I want to share her experience with you, dear readers, so we can deduce some wisdom from it.

The sister, who was a new Muslim, related,

"I grew up in the Jewish American home of a dysfunctional and broken family; after my parents' divorce, my father married another woman. My stepmother tortured and mistreated me a lot; this drove me to run away from home when I was seventeen. I moved to another state where I met some young Arab men who were, as my homeless friends told me, 'generous'. All a girl needed to do was to give one of them a smile and she would find someone to buy her dinner and offer her a cozy place and a comfortable bed to spend the night.

“I followed in the footsteps of my homeless girlfriends, but at the end of each night I would run away; for I did not like such illicit relationships and I hated Arabs. Nonetheless, I was not happy with my life at all and I never felt safe or secure; I was haunted all the time by distress and a sense of loss.

“At this stage of my life I resorted to religion, to relish the sweetness and warmth of spirituality, hoping to find in it the motivation to keep me going in my harsh life; however, I found my religion, Judaism, unconvincing. I found it a religion that does not respect women or humanity. I realized that Judaism is a selfish religion that fosters backwardness; I did not find in it my objective, for I do not believe in superstition or myths, so I embraced Christianity.

"However, in Christianity I found even more contradictions and unbelievable things which Christians were expected to believe in without questioning. I frequently asked questions such as: how could the Lord kill His son? How could the Lord have a son in the first place? How can one believe in three gods and not even be able to see any of them?I was bewildered and perplexed at all these unanswerable questions, so I gave up Christianity, yet I always believed that this universe, definitely, has a Creator. I used to spend my nights thinking and pondering on this thought until morning.

"One bleak and gloomy night when it was almost dawn, I was about to commit suicide due to my state of depression. I hit rock bottom and nothing in the world made sense to me anymore. It was raining heavily that night and thick clouds had gathered, enveloping my universe as if they were imprisoning me. Watching the trees around me, I felt as if the crowding trees were looking at me furiously and the drops on rain were playing a hideous and dull melody, as I peered out of the window of an abandoned house.

"For some reason I found myself praying to God, saying: ‘O my Lord, I know that You are out there… I know that You love me… I am a prisoner… I am one of your weak creatures; guide me to the right path. O my Lord, either guide me or let me die.’ I kept praying and crying bitterly that night until I fell asleep and in the morning, I woke up with a cheerful heart, but I did not know the reason behind this unfamiliar feeling. I went out on my daily pursuit of livelihood. Perhaps I would find a young man to pay for my breakfast, or wash his dishes and earn some money.

"Then, I met a young Arab man and we talked and talked for a very long time. After breakfast, he asked me to go with him to his home and live with him. I accepted his offer and went with him.

“While we were having lunch, drinking and laughing, a bearded young man named Sa’d – as I came to know later when my Arab friend called out his name in surprise – visited us. This bearded young man took my friend by the hand and drove him away. I stayed there shaking; there I was, face to face with a terrorist! However, he did not do anything scary but politely asked me to go home. I told him that I had no home; he looked at me sadly and I saw on his face how he pitied me, and said, ‘Alright, you can stay here for tonight’ – since it was bitterly cold outside – ‘but you should leave tomorrow. Take this money to live on until you find a job.’

"He headed towards the door, so I asked him to stop and said, ‘Thank you! Please stay; I will leave, but I want to ask you a favor: could you tell me why you did what you did with me and your friend?" He lowered his gaze while he spoke to me, saying, ‘It is Islam; it forbids what is unlawful and makes permissible what is lawful. It also forbids sitting in seclusion with a non-Mahram (marriageable) woman and drinking alcohol, and Muslims are enjoined to treat people kindly and adopt high morals.’

“I was perplexed and surprised at his answer; were these the Muslims who were being called terrorists? I thought they carried guns and killed everybody they met; for this was the image drawn by the American media of Muslims. I told him, ‘I would like to know more about Islam, can you tell me?’ He responded, ‘I will take you to a religious Muslim family and I know that they will teach you Islam in the best way.’

“The next day at ten o'clock, he took me to this Muslim family who welcomed me warmly. I kept asking them about Islam and Dr. Sulaymaan, the head of the family, answered me until I was totally satisfied and convinced with everything he said about Islam. At that moment, I knew that I had found what I was looking for: a clear and straightforward religion that is compatible with common sense and I did not find any difficulty in believing what I heard about it; it was the truth.

“That day, I felt ecstatic and savored a sense of bliss when I announced I had embraced Islam, and wore the Hijaab immediately on the same day!

“Late that evening, Dr. Sulaymaan's wife took me to the best room in the house and told me, ‘This is your room and you are welcome to stay here as long as you wish.’ She saw me looking out of the window, smiling with tears running down my cheeks. She inquired about the reason behind my tears. I said, 'Yesterday, exactly at this time, I was standing next to a window, praying to Allaah The Almighty and imploring Him either to show me the right way or let me die. He guided me to the Right Path and now I am an honorable Muslim woman who knows her Lord, her Creator and knows the path that leads to Him; Islam is the path to Allaah.’ Dr. Sulaymaan's wife burst into tears and hugged me affectionately."

What Islam offers the Earth

2012-11-19T23:41:00.000-08:00

One of the amazing things that strike the reader of the Quran is its significant and multifaceted emphasis on the relationship of man to the environment. This is not merely about self, family and surroundings. It’s about the whole universe—heavens and earth—and all of Allaah’s magnificent creation in them. I'm talking about all the constituents of what some call "nature," and down to the details: It’s geological foundations, waters, steady and violent shifts and movements, and its countless, varied forms of life and existence, and how it cycles and sustains them.
I know many scientists whom the Quran simply over-awed once they realized what it says about life, nature, and the universe. They were seized by the literally hundreds of Quranic verses that discuss and give guidance about the issues of the environment—all the ones we are suddenly talking about today, and plenty more that haven’t even come into view yet. What grabbed them was the realization that Allaah Almighty clearly knew how abusive unguided man would be to his planetary home.
Just look at what we have brought upon ourselves and our innocent fellows in creation in but the last handful of decades. Perhaps this is why I too now find reading the Quran's beautiful, moving, and harrowing "environmental" verses so spiritually and intellectually uplifting. Allaah Almighty Says what means: “The creation of the heavens and earth is greater than the creation of mankind, but most of the people do not know.” [Quran 40:57] Or: “And there is no creature on [or within] the earth or bird that flies with its wings except [that they are] communities like you. We have not neglected in the Register a thing. Then unto their Lord they will be gathered.” [Quran 6:38]
In light of the unprecedented environmental crises we are facing today, I thought to speak to a bit of what Islam has to offer man to help him get the balance back in his life and restore his intimate and timeless relationship with creation. I call them Islam’s Five Environmental Commandments:
One: Man is part of the environment
Man, literally in sum and substance, is of the environment. Thus he must feel and live in harmony with it. Both man and his environment are the creation of the God—and both are worshippers of Him—with the technical exception that man has the will to refuse to worship and obey God willingly, though he does it unwillingly from moment to moment. Allaah Says what means “The seven heavens and the earth and whatever is in them exalt Him. And there is not a thing except that it exalts [Allaah] by His praise, but you do not understand their [way of] exalting. Indeed, He is ever Forbearing and Forgiving.” [Quran 17:44] And even though the earth and surroundings were created long before man, the end of both is virtually synchronous—the end of time—hence, the implicit benefit to man for leading an environmentally friendly lifestyle. A corollary of this determinant is that the environmental crisis is a human matter and cooperation on meeting its challenges should, therefore, not be hampered by religious or other differences.
Two: Man is trustee of the environment
Man has accepted God's decree of Khilaafah (vicegerency, read verse 2:30), which makes him responsible to use the environment to achieve his God-given purpose in this life, with the condition that he maintains it for future generations, which have as much right to it as their predecessors. The Prophet said: “People (past and future generations included) share alike in water, air, and herbage." [Abu Daawood]
Three: Man shall be fair to the environment
Man cannot, and will not, fulfill or be true to his custodianship of the earth without creation-wide fairness. The Quran could not be more unequivocal when it comes to this principle. Man shall be fair in leading his life in this world because God created it in a balanced state. Should he fail, unwarranted injustice will lead to creation's disruption and its inability to continue supporting man's needs for a hospitable habitation. Read and ponder the import of verses which mean: “The sun and the moon [move] by precise calculation, and the stars and trees prostrate. And the heaven He raised and imposed the balance. That you not transgress within the balance. And establish weight in justice and do not make deficient the balance.” [Quran 55:5-9]
Four: Man shall not spread mischief in the Land
Man must realize that God forbids harm, big and small, to one's self and all others. The Prophet said: “There is no reason to) harm or reciprocate harm.” [Ibn Maajah] And Allaah Says (what means): “And cause not corruption upon the earth after its reformation. And invoke Him in fear and aspiration. Indeed, the mercy of Allaah is near to the doers of good.” [Quran 7:56] Many scientists and activists believe that efforts to restore a healthy balance to the environment will never be achieved to any viable degree in the face of the unfathomable destruction of our wars of greed.
Five: Man shall follow a model of moderation and conservation
Most people do not grasp that much of the pollution comes from a culture of consumerism, whose primary effect is waste. It is unfortunate that people in the underdeveloped world, including Muslims, have embraced being consumers and wasters. The Quran is true in depicting this tendency of man, especially when resources become abundant. Allaah Says (what means): “Competition in [worldly] increase diverts you. Until you visit the graveyards.” [Quran 102:1-2] But abundance does not justify wastage. God Almighty prohibits this. He Almighty Says what means: “Indeed, the wasteful are brothers of the devils, and ever has Satan been to his Lord ungrateful.” [Quran 17:27] Insatiable pursuit of increased materials combined with technological advancement has given some nations unprecedented control over man and his environment. But history tells us that these are signs that civilizations are doomed to perish.

The facts of life, confirmed by science

2012-11-19T23:39:00.000-08:00

Materialist philosophy lies at the basis of the theory of evolution. Materialism rests on the supposition that everything that exists is matter. According to this philosophy, matter has existed since eternity, will continue to exist forever and there is nothing but matter. In order to provide support for their claim, materialists use logic called “reductionism”. This is the idea that things which are not observable, can also be explained by material causes.
To make matters clearer, let us take the example of the human mind. It is evident that the mind cannot be touched or seen. Moreover, it has no center in the human brain. This situation unavoidably leads us to the conclusion that the mind is a concept beyond matter. Therefore, the being which we refer to as “I,” who thinks, loves, gets nervous, worries, feels pleasure or pain, is not a material being in the same way as a sofa, a table or a stone.
Materialists, however, claim that mind is “reducible to matter.” According to the materialist claim, thinking, loving, worrying and all our mental activities are nothing but chemical reactions taking place between the atoms in the brain. Feelings of love and fear are merely chemical reactions in some cells in our brain. The famous materialist philosopher Karl Vogt stressed this logic with his famous words: “Just as the liver secretes gall, so do our brains, secrete thought.” (Encyclopedia Britannica). However, gall is matter, whereas there is no evidence that thought is the same.
One of the most prominent features of this picture is “information” which is present in nature and can never be reduced to matter.
Matter cannot produce information
There is incredibly comprehensive information contained in the DNA of living things. Something as small as a hundred thousandth of a millimeter contains a sort of “data bank” that specifies all the physical details of the body of a living thing. Moreover, the body also contains a system that reads this information, interprets it and carries out “production” in line with it. In all living cells, the information in the DNA is “read” by various enzymes and proteins are produced according to this information. This system makes the production of millions of proteins possible every second, with the required type of protein for specific places needed in our bodies. In this way, dead eye cells are replaced by living ones and old blood cells by new ones.
At this point, let us consider the claim of Materialism: Is it possible that the information in DNA could be reduced to matter, as materialists suggest? Or, in other words, can it be accepted that DNA is merely a collection of matter, and the information it contains came about as a result of the random interactions of such pieces of matter?
All the scientific research, experiments and observations carried out in the 20^th century CE show that the answer to this question is a definite “No.” The director of the German Federal Physics and Technology Institute, Professor Dr. Werner Gitt has this to say on the issue: “A coding system always entails a nonmaterial intellectual process. A physical matter cannot produce an information code. All experiences show that every piece of creative information represents some mental idea-giver who exercised his own free will, and who is endowed with an intelligent mind. There is no known law of nature, no known process and no known sequence of events which can cause information to originate by itself in matter.” (Werner Gitt. In the Beginning Was Information).
Werner Gitt’s words summarize the conclusions of the “information theory” which has been developed in the last 50 years and is accepted as a part of thermodynamics. Information theory investigates the origin and nature of the information in the universe. The conclusion reached by information theoreticians as a result of long studies is that “Information is something different from matter. It can never be reduced to matter. The origin of information and physical matter must be investigated separately.”
For instance, let us think of the source of a book. A book consists of paper, ink and the information it contains. Paper and ink are material elements. Their source is matter: Paper is made of cellulose and ink of certain chemicals. However, the information in the book is non-material and cannot have a material source. The source of the information in each book is the mind of the person who wrote it.
Moreover, this mind determines how paper and ink will be used. A book initially forms in the mind of the writer. The writer builds a chain of logic in his mind and orders his sentences. As a second step, he puts them into a material form, which is to say that he translates the information in his mind into letters, using a pen, a typewriter or a computer. Later, these letters are printed in a publishing house and take the shape of a book made up of papers and ink.
We can therefore state this general conclusion: “If physical matter contains information, then that matter must have been designed by a mind that possessed the information in question. First, there is the mind. That mind translates the information it possesses into matter, which constitutes the act of design.”
The origin of information in Nature
When we apply this scientific definition of information to Nature, a very important result ensues. This is because Nature overflows with an immense body of information (for example in the case of DNA, and since this information cannot be reduced to matter, it therefore comes from a source beyond matter.) This fact is revealed as in the following verse in the Quran (which means): “They said: ‘Exalted are You! We have no knowledge except what You have taught us. Indeed, it is You who is the Knowing, the Wise.’” [Quran 2: 32]
One of the foremost advocates of the theory of evolution, George C. Williams, admits this reality, which most materialists and evolutionists are reluctant to see. Williams has strongly defended Materialism for years, but in an article he wrote in 1995, he states the incorrectness of the materialist (reductionist) approach which holds everything is matter: “Evolutionary biologists have failed to realize that they work with two more or less incommensurable domains: that of information and that of matter. These two domains will never be brought together in any kind of the sense usually implied by the term “reductionism.” The gene is a package of information, not an object. In biology, when you are talking about things like genes and genotypes and gene pools, you are talking about information, not physical objective reality. This dearth of shared descriptors makes matter and information two separate domains of existence, which have to be discussed separately, in their own terms.” (George C. Williams. The Third Culture: Beyond the Scientific Revolution).
Therefore, contrary to the supposition of materialists, the source of the information in nature cannot be matter itself. The source of information is not matter, but a superior Wisdom beyond matter. This Wisdom existed prior to matter. Matter was brought into existence, given form and organized by the Creator of the Heavens, the Earth and all that exists.

Harvesting the Chaff

2012-11-19T23:37:00.001-08:00

Despite the improvement of the economic conditions of workers in Europe, the socio-economic status of the woman is still critical. The woman still earns half of the salary of the man in most fields of work, if not all. If a woman wants to marry, she has to relinquish her name and the name of her father to become a subordinate to her husband even if in terms of name. In many cases, she has no right to dispose of her property except with the permission of her husband. Many readers will be astonished to know that it is the woman in many cultures who pays the dowry to the man, not vice versa -- although many Westerners nowadays do not follow this practice. Moreover, the man is not responsible for the financial maintenance of his wife.
On the other hand, Islam gave the woman her independent character and identity. She cannot be married except after her permission and consent. She does not change her name, but keeps her father's name and family name after marriage. She has the complete authority to dispose of her property without taking her husband’s permission. She does not have to support herself or her children financially even if she is rich and her husband is poor. If she spends any money, then it is considered as charity given to her husband or a debt that he has to pay back when he has the means to do so.
The status of the Western woman, who still struggles to earn her living in return for mean wages that men would not usually accept, is pathetic.
Because of the deteriorating economic and social conditions, she has become an easy prey to the middlemen of the international prostitution trade. She is also used to promote goods. We always find the photo of a charming woman in advertisements even if the advertisement has nothing to do with women.
The commercial mind thinks actively and employs a group of women in stores and offices under the supervision of a man or two men in order to regulate work and intellectually, physically and sexually dominate the women.Because of these deteriorating conditions, the woman suffers from loneliness, from which she escapes into the arms of any man, who soon gets bored with her and takes another. The woman has to take contraceptive pills early. As a result, officials in the West have found themselves obliged to teach schoolgirls how to use contraceptives. Nevertheless, there are thousands of young girls who become pregnant every year due to their inadequate knowledge about contraceptives. Therefore, mentors and officials instituted programs to teach the use of contraceptives in secondary schools, then in preparatory schools and finally in primary schools when they found that very young girls fall prey to pregnancy the most. Officials are not concerned with the spread of fornication and prostitution; rather, their concern is focused on circulating contraceptives among children.
Western laws had to legalize abortion, even if they did so reluctantly. Cases of abortion spread to the extent that a million cases of abortion take place every year in the US. About the same number of abortions takes place in Europe.
Statistics reveal that most suicide cases take place among young girls who live an anxious desperate life. For the first time in the history of medicine, collective cases of cruel battering of young children have appeared. These cases mostly end up in death or in physical and mental damage.
The woman brought all these calamities and afflictions upon herself through the misfortune of her going out of her home to work in offices and factories. Actually, we are doing the European woman an injustice, because she did not work outside her home willingly. She was forced to go outside her home to work in search of a living after the capitalists demolished the family by taking the father to the furnace of the factories and the cellars of mines. The woman, at that time, had to go out searching for provision. Hands received her and desires exploited her. In order to achieve the goals of the Jews, all means of treachery, apparent and hidden means of crime were used to demolish values and morals and increase the unending greed of the capitalists.

Oxidation in the blood

2012-11-19T23:36:00.000-08:00

Allaah Almighty Says (what means): “No! Rather, what they have earned has rusted up their hearts." [Quran 83:14]
The term ‘rusted’ used to describe hearts in verse of the chapter Al-Mutaffifeen may be a reference to biochemical reaction that takes place in the heart—Allaah knows the truth. Rust is the result of iron reacting with oxygen – oxidation.
The oxygen we absorb from the air is carried through the body thanks to the iron in the hemoglobin in the blood. During this process, the oxygen reacts with the iron in the blood. This means there is a constant process resembling rusting in the blood in the human body, and therefore in the heart, the center of the circulation system.
An excess of iron in the blood can even lead to premature aging in all the body's cells by causing rust-like oxidation. In the disease known as `hemochromatosis,' caused by excess iron accumulating in the body, iron produces toxic effects and causes organs such as the liver to collapse. Since this is the result of iron oxidation, this phenomenon is often described as organs `rusting' or `rust accumulation' in organs. In the journal Science News, Dr. Sharon McDonnell describes the iron oxidation in cells making up organs as `rusting'.
Another reference says this about the disease: "...those with hemochromatosis absorb iron, storing it in their organs. Over time, it accumulates in toxic amounts, causing organs to fail because they literally rust."
It is only possible to identify the reaction of iron with oxygen in the body—oxidation in the blood—in laboratories with highly advanced equipment. The fact that such a comparison, so compatible with the scientific data, appears in the Quran is an evident miracle, given the time when the Quran was revealed. The fact that the Quran also contains countless other pieces of information all in agreement with modern science is another sign that it is the revelation of Omniscient Allaah, our Lord and the Creator of all things.
The mother’s womb with its secure protection
Allaah Almighty Says (what means): "Did We not create you from a liquid disdained? And We placed it in a firm lodging for a known extent. And We determined [it], and excellent [are We] to determine.” [Quran 77: 20-23]
And, "And certainly did We create man from an extract of clay. Then We placed him as a sperm-drop in a firm lodging. Then We made the sperm-drop into a clinging clot, and We made the clot into a lump [of flesh], and We made [from] the lump, bones, and We covered the bones with flesh; then We developed him into another creation. So blessed is Allaah, the best of creators.” [Quran 23: 12-14]
The above verses about the creation of human beings contain fundamental information from the field of embryology. The description of the womb as a "secure receptacle" indicates an important feature that has been better understood through modern science—Allaah knows the truth. The process that begins with the zygote, produced by the sperm and egg cells coming together and continues until the emergence of a complete human being, made up of trillions of cells all working in harmony, takes. The word "makeen," translated as `secure' above, also suggests such meanings as `unshakeable, sound, resolute, powerful, fixed and safely put in place.' The word "karaar" also means `location, stability, permanence and place of settlement: These words very wisely describe the womb as a sound and safe location. The mother's womb provides insulation against external agents, light and sound, and particularly protects the baby against shock and pressure.
Located in the pelvic cavity, the womb is well protected by the thick and strong bones that surround' endometrium’ on the inside, helping bear the weight of the embryo until the end of pregnancy. This structure made up of powerful muscles is ideally constructed for the baby's growth and development. During pregnancy, the ligaments attaching the bones in the region together become thicker and longer. These ligaments that attach the top of the womb to the strong pelvic bones make the womb strong and stable.
The embryo also has a source of the heat, water, oxygen and nutrients it needs during the course of its development. The mother's womb undergoes many changes that enhance its strength during pregnancy. Together with the muscles, ligaments and elastic tissues it contains, there is also an increase in the number of blood vessels and nerves. The womb is thus able to increase 20 times in more elasticity. The constant changes in the womb continue even after the embryo has grown into a healthy baby many hundreds of times larger than its initial state. The womb now changes in such a way as to permit the baby to exit in a healthy manner.
During pregnancy, another most miraculous state of affairs regarding the protection of the baby comes about. The baby is also protected against internal threats. When a foreign body enters the body, such as during an organ or bone—arrow transplant, the host's defense system begins reacting, and this can sometimes lead to fatal consequences. But that never happens to the fetus, and the mother's immune system does not regard it as a foreign body. It is extraordinary how the mother's immune system tolerates foreign genes from the father; because the baby is 50 percent foreign body. Marianne van den Heuvel, a scientist from Guelph University, describes this as `fascinating' and continues: `That was always a puzzle from an immunology standpoint because the fetus is actually foreign. It's part of the mother and "It's part of the mother and also part of the father. It should be rejected by the body...,” but, by the will of Allaah, no such thing happens, and the womb remains a very safe and secure place.
All the information about embryology provided in the Quran is in full agreement with modern medicine. This information, which has emerged through advanced technology, is one of the clearest proofs that the Quran is the revelation of our Lord, the Creator of all. It is also revealed in the Quran, which is full of information from hundreds of years ago that sheds light on the scientific world of today, that: Allaah Almighty Says what means: "And in the creation of yourselves and what He disperses of moving creatures are signs for people who are certain [in faith]." [Quran 45:04]

The myth of 'self organization of matter'

2012-11-19T23:34:00.003-08:00

Quite aware that the Second Law of Thermodynamics renders evolution impossible, some evolutionist scientists have made speculative attempts to close the gap between the two, so as to render evolution possible. As usual, even those endeavors show that the theory of evolution faces an inescapable impasse.

One person distinguished by his efforts to marry thermodynamics and evolution is the Belgian scientist Ilya Prigogine. Starting out from the 'Chaos Theory', Prigogine proposed a number of hypotheses in which ordered forms come into existence from chaos (disorder). He argued that some open systems can portray a decrease in entropy due to an influx of outer energy and the resultant outcome “ordering”, is a proof that “matter can organize itself.” Since then, the concept of the “self-organization of matter” has been quite popular among evolutionists and materialists. They act like they have found a materialistic origin for the complexity of life and a materialistic solution for the problem of life’s origin.

But a closer look reveals that this argument is totally abstract and in fact just wishful thinking. Moreover, it includes a very naïve deception. The deception is the deliberate confusion of two distinct concepts, “self organization” and “self ordering.”

We can explain it by an example. Imagine a sea shore with different types of stones mixed with each other -- big stones, smaller stones and very tiny ones. When a strong wave hits the shore, there may appear an “ordering” among the stones. The water will raise the ones with equal weights in equal amounts. When the wave goes back, the stones may possibly be ordered from the smallest to the biggest towards the sea.

This is a “self ordering” process: the seashore is an open system and an influx of energy (the wave) may cause an “ordering”. But note that the same process can not make a castle of sand in the seashore. If we see a castle made of sand, we are sure that someone has made it. The difference between the castle and the “ordered” stones is that the former includes a very unique complexity, while the latter includes only repetitive order. It is like a typewriter typing “aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa” for hundreds of times – because an object (an influx of energy) fell onto the letter “a” on the keyboard. Of course, such a repetitive order of “a” s does not include any information and thus any complexity. You need a conscious mind to have a complex sequence of letters that includes information.

The same thing applies when wind enters a room full of dust. Before this influx, the dust may be scattered around. When the wind comes in, the dust may be collected in a corner of the room. This is “self ordering”. But the dust never “self organizes” itself and creates a picture of a man on the floor of the room.

These examples are quite similar to the ‘self organization' scenarios of evolutionists. They argue that matter has a tendency for self organization, then give examples of self ordering and then try to confuse both concepts. Prigogine himself gave examples of self ordering molecules during influx of energy. The American scientists Thaxton, Bradley and Olsen, in their book titled The Mystery of Life’s Origin, explain this fact as follows:

“…In each case random movements of molecules in a fluid are spontaneously replaced by a highly ordered behavior." Prigogine, Eigen and others have suggested that a similar sort of self-organization may be intrinsic in organic chemistry and can potentially account for the highly complex macromolecules essential for living systems, but such analogies have scant relevance to the origin-of-life question. A major reason is that they fail to distinguish between order and complexity.

"… Regularity or order cannot serve to store the large amount of information required by living systems. A highly irregular, but specified structure is required rather than an ordered structure. This is a serious flaw in the analogy offered. There is no apparent connection between the kind of spontaneous ordering that occurs from energy flow through such systems and the work required to build a periodic information-intensive macromolecule like DNA protein.”

In fact, Prigogine himself had to accept that his arguments do no count for the origin of life. He said:

“The problem of biological order involves the transition from the molecular activity to the supermolecular order of the cell. This problem is far from being solved.”

Then, why do evolutionists still try to believe in unscientific scenarios like “self organization of matter”? Why do they insist on rejecting the manifest intelligence in living systems? The answer is that they have a dogmatic faith in materialism and they believe that matter has some mysterious power to create life. A professor of chemistry from New YorkUniversity and DNA expert, Robert Shapiro explains this belief of evolutionists and the materialist dogma lying at its base as follows:

“Another evolutionary principle is therefore needed to take us across the gap from mixtures of simple natural chemicals to the first effective replicator. This principle has not yet been described in detail or demonstrated, but it is anticipated, and given names such as chemical evolution and self-organization of matter. The existence of the principle is taken for granted in the philosophy of dialectical materialism, as applied to the origin of life by Alexander Oparin.”

This situation makes it clear that evolution is a dogma that is against empirical science and the origin of living beings can only be explained by the intervention of a supernatural power. That supernatural power is Allaah (God), who created the entire universe from nothing. Science has proven that evolution is still impossible as far as thermodynamics is concerned and the existence of life has no explanation but Creation.

Evolutionist claims and the facts

2012-11-19T23:33:00.000-08:00

In this article, we will address a number of biological phenomena and concepts presented as theoretical evidence by evolutionists. These topics are particularly important for they show that there is no scientific finding that supports evolution, instead they reveal the extent of the distortion employed by evolutionists.

Variations and Species

Variation is a term used in genetics to refer to a genetic event that causes individuals or groups of a certain species to harbor different characteristics from one another. For example, all the people on earth carry basically the same genetic information, yet some have slanted eyes, some have red hair, some have long noses, or some are short or tall depending on the extent of the variation potential of this genetic information.

Evolutionists predict the variations within a species as evidence of the theory. However, variation does not constitute evidence for evolution, because variations are merely the outcomes of different combinations of the already existing genetic information and they do not add any new characteristic to the genetic information.

Variation always takes place within the limits of genetic information. In the science of genetics, this limit is called the “gene pool”. All the characteristics present in the gene pool of a species may come into view in various ways due to variation. For example, as a result of variation in a reptile species, there may appear varieties that have relatively longer tails or shorter legs, since the information for both long and short legs already exists in the gene pool. However, these variations do not transform reptiles into birds by adding wings or feathers to them, or by changing their metabolism. Such a change requires an increase in the genetic information of the living thing, which is by no means possible in variations.

Darwin was not aware of this fact when he formulated his theory. He thought that there was no limit to variations. In an article written in 1844 CE he had stated: “That a limit to variation does exist in nature is assumed by most authors, though I am unable to discover a single fact on which this belief is grounded”. In The Origin of Species he cited different examples of variations as the most important evidence for his theory.

For instance, according to Darwin animal breeders who mated different varieties of cattle in order to bring about new varieties that produced more milk, were ultimately going to transform them into a different species. Darwin’s notion of “unlimited variation” is best seen in the following sentence from The Origin of Species: “I can see no difficulty in a race of bears being rendered, by natural selection, more and more aquatic in their habits, with larger and larger mouths, till a creature was produced as monstrous as a whale.”

The reason Darwin cited such a far-fetched example was the primitive understanding of science in his day. Since then, in the 20^th century CE, Science has posited the principle of “genetic stability” (genetic homeostasis) based on the result of experiments conducted on living things. This principle holds that all mating attempts carried out to produce new variations were inconclusive and that there are strict barriers among different species of living things. This meant that it was absolutely impossible for animal breeders to convert cattle into a different species by mating different variations of them as Darwin had postulated.

Norman Macbeth, who disproved Darwinism in his book Darwin Retired, states: “The heart of the problem is whether living things do indeed vary to an unlimited extent…The species look stable. We have all heard of disappointed breeders who carried their work to a certain point only to see the animals or plants revert to where they had started. Despite strenuous efforts for two or three centuries, it has never been possible to produce a blue rose or a black tulip.”

Luther Burbank, considered the most competent breeder of all time, expressed this fact when he said that: “there are limits to the development possible and these limits follow a law.” In addressing this subject the Danish scientist W.L. Johannsen commented:

“The variations upon which Darwin and Wallace had placed their emphasis cannot be selectively pushed beyond a certain point, that such variability does not contain the secret of indefinite departure.”

It is time that evolutionists were honest with themselves and realized that Science has its limits; it can only be a means of understanding the complex design underlying all Creation, it can never be a Creator itself.

The water cycle and the seas in the Quran

2012-11-19T23:31:00.002-08:00

When the verses of the Quran concerning the role of water in man’s existence are read in succession today, they appear to express ideas that are obvious. The reason for this is simple: in our day and age, we all know about the water cycle in nature to a greater or lesser extent.

However, if we consider the various ancient concepts on this subject, it becomes clear that the data in the Quran does not embody the mythical concepts prevalent at the time of Revelation, that had developed more according to philosophical speculation than observed phenomena. Although it was empirically possible to acquire the useful practical knowledge necessary to improve irrigation, the concepts held on the water cycle in general would hardly be acceptable today.

Thus, it would have been easy to imagine that underground water could have come from the infiltration of precipitation in the soil. In ancient times however, this idea, held by Virtuvius Polio Marcus in Rome 1^st century CE, was cited as an exception. Thereafter, for many centuries (and the Quranic Revelation occurred during this period) man held completely inaccurate views on the water cycle.

Two specialists on this subject, G. Gastany and B. Blavoux, in their entry in the Encyclopedia Universalis under the heading ‘Hydrogeology’, give an edifying history of this problem.

“In the 7^th century CE, Thales of Miletus held the theory whereby the waters of the oceans, under the effect of winds, were thrust towards the interior of the continents; so the water fell upon the earth and penetrated into the soil. Plato shared these views and thought that the return of the waters to the oceans was via a great abyss, the ‘Tartarus’. Until the 18^th century CE, this theory had many supporters, one of whom was Descartes. Aristotle imagined that the water vapour from the soil condensed in cool mountain caverns and formed underground lakes that fed springs. He was followed by Seneca (1^st century CE) and many others, until 1877 CE, among them O. Volger …”

The first clear formulation of the water cycle must be attributed to Bernard Palissy in 1580 CE. He claimed that underground water came from rainwater infiltrating into the soil. This theory was confirmed by E. Mariotte and P. Perrault in the 17^th century CE.

In the following passages from the Quran, there is no trace of the mistaken ideas that were current at the time of Prophet Muhammad .

The Quran says (what means): “We sent down water from the sky, blessed water whereby We caused to grow gardens, grains for harvest, tall palm-trees with their spathes, piled one above the other – sustenance for (Our) servants. Therewith We gave (new) life to a dead land. So will be the emergence (from the tombs).” [Quran 50:9-11]

And (what means): “We sent down water from the sky in measure and lodged it in the ground. And We certainly are able to withdraw it. Therewith for you We gave rise to gardens of palm-trees and vineyards where for you are abundant fruits and of them you eat.” [Quran 23: 18-19]

And (what means): “We sent forth the winds that fecundate. We cause the water to descend from the sky. We provide you with the water – you (could) not be the guardians of its reserves.” [Quran 15:22]

There are two possible interpretations of this last verse. The fecundating winds may be taken to be the fertilizers of plants because they carry pollen. However, this may be a figurative expression referring by analogy to the role the wind plays in the process, whereby a non-raincarrying cloud is turned into one that produces a shower of rain.

The Quran says (what means): “Allaah is the One Who sends forth the winds which raised up the clouds. He spreads them in the sky as He wills and breaks them into fragments. Then thou seest raindrops issuing from within them. He makes them reach such of His servants as He wills. And they are rejoicing.” [Quran 30:48]

And (what means): “(Allaah) is the One Who sends forth the winds like heralds of His Mercy. When they have carried the heavy-laden clouds, We drive them to a dead land. Then We cause water to descend and thereby bring forth fruits of every kind. Thus We will bring forth the dead. Maybe you will remember.” [Quran 7:57]

And (what means): “Hast thou not seen that Allaah sent water down from the sky and led it through sources into the ground? Then He caused sown fields of different colors to grow.” [Quran 39:21]

And (what means): “Therein We placed gardens of palm-trees and vineyards and We caused water springs to gush forth.” [Quran 36:34]

The importance of springs and the way they are fed by rainwater conducted into them is stressed in the last three verses. It is worth pausing to examine this fact and call to mind the predominance in the Middle Ages of views such as those held by Aristotle, according to whom springs were fed by underground lakes. In his entry on Hydrology in the Encyclopedia Universalis, M.R. Remenieras, a teacher at the French National School of Agronomy (Ecole nationale du Genie rural, des Eaux et Forets), describes the main stages of hydrology and refers to the magnificent irrigation works of the ancients, particularly in the Middle East. However, he notes that an empirical outlook ruled over everything, since the ideas of the time proceeded from mistaken concepts. He continues as follows:

“It was not until the Renaissance (between circa 1400 and 1600 CE) that purely philosophical concepts gave way to research based on the objective observation of hydrologic phenomena. Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519 CE) rebelled against Aristotle’s statements. Bernard Palissy, in his Wonderful Discourse on the Nature of Waters and Fountains both Natural and Artificial (Discours admirable de la nature des eaux et fontaines tant naturelles qu’artificielles; Paris, 1570) gives a correct interpretation of the water cycle and especially of the way springs are fed by rainwater.”

This last statement is surely exactly what is mentioned in the Quran (chapter 39, verse 21) describing the way rainwater is conducted into sources in the ground.

The subject of chapter 24, verse 43, is rain and hail (which means):

“Hast thou not seen that God makes the clouds move gently, then joins them together, then makes them a heap. And thou seest raindrops issuing from within it. He sends down from the sky mountains of hail, He strikes therewith whom He wills and He turns it away from whom He wills. The flashing of its lightning almost snatches away the sight.”

The following passage requires some comment (which means):

“Have you observed the water you drink? Do you bring it down from the rainclouds? Or do We? If it were Our will, We could make it salty. Then why are you not thankful?” [Quran 56: 68-70]

This reference to the fact that God could have made fresh water salty is a way of expressing Divine Omnipotence. Another means of reminding us of the same Omnipotence is the challenge to man to make rainfall from the clouds. In modern times however, technology has surely made it possible to create rain artificially. Can one therefore oppose the statement in the Quran to man’s ability to produce precipitations?

The answer is no, because it seems clear that one must take account of man’s limitations in this field. M.A. Facy, an expert at the French Meteorological Office, wrote the following in the Encyclopedia Universalis under the heading Precipitations: “It will never be possible to make rain fall from a cloud that does not have the suitable characteristics of a raincloud or one that has not yet reached the appropriate stage of evolution (maturity).” Therefore, man can never hasten the precipitation process by technical means, when the natural conditions for it are not present. If this were not the case, droughts would never occur in practice – which they obviously do. Thus, to have control over rain and fine weather still remains a dream.

Man cannot willfully break the established cycle that maintains the circulation of water in nature. This cycle may be outlined as follows, according to modern ideas on hydrology:

The heat from the sun’s rays causes the water from the sea and other water surfaces on Earth to evaporate. The water vapour that is given off rises into the atmosphere and, by condensation, forms clouds. The winds then intervene and move the clouds thus formed over varying distances. The clouds can then either disperse without producing rain, or combine their mass with others to create even greater condensation, or they can fragment and produce rain at some stages in their evolution. When rain reaches the sea (70 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by water), the cycle is soon repeated. When rain falls on the land, it may be absorbed by vegetation aid its growth; the vegetation in its turn gives off water and thus returns some water to the atmosphere. The rest, to a lesser or greater extent, infiltrates into the soil, from where it is either conducted through channels into the sea, or comes back to the Earth’s surface network through springs or resurgences.

When one compares the modern data of hydrology to what is contained in the numerous verses of the Quran quoted in this paragraph, one has to admit that there is a remarkable degree of agreement between them.

Media and the Islamic Identity of the Muslim Child - II

2012-04-24T23:22:00.004-07:00

1- The importance of protecting children from the media invasion and the obliteration of identity:
Childhood is one of the most important stages in one’s life, because his personality and tendencies are formed during this time, in addition to physical and mental growth.
Psychological and educational studies prove that this is the most critical stage in a person’s development, and that the child stores the majority of the experiences and information that affect his life in the future during this stage.
The child, as described by Al-Ghazzaali is a “blank sheet in which we may write down good or evil. So, if we habituate him to be good, he will be a good, and vice versa.”
Therefore, it is vital that we pay attention to the child and ensure that what is introduced to him in his social environment is intellectually beneficial to reflect positively on the young child, his behavior and development.
Today, our children face an intellectual invasion in a world dominated by influential cultures that own the most influential mass media.
Hence, there must be practical means to protect children from the bad and negative programs that are presented to them.
Ismaa‘eel ‘Abd Al-Kaafi, says, "We must preserve the Islamic identity of our generations through providing them with suitable cultural and media production alternatives to exist side by side with foreign media and cultural products in this age of information technology.
The family, school, mosque, mass media and the society as a whole should participate in guiding and directing this process. The society must be aware of the danger of mass media against our children if they are not directed rightly under the supervision of different educational institutions."
2- Types of educational means and their influence on the child’s identity and culture:
1- TV as a means of media: There is no doubt that watching TV daily occupies the spare time of the children and adults as well. They acquire information and are introduced to different cultures through it. One of the negative impacts of TV, to which we should pay attention, is that the children spend many hours in front of it. This affects their social life and relations as well as their behavior with their playmates.
TV also affects their studies and the negative effect of the violence and crime on TV programs cannot be denied.
This shows us the role of the TV in sowing the seeds of fear and worry in our children through horror movies and movies featuring ghosts and devils.
2- Computer as a means for developing the culture of the young:
PC and video games are among the most influential factors in guiding and directing children. Educational studies reveal that computer programs can have negative and positive effects on the culture of the Muslim child.
The positive effects include strengthening the child’s ability to read, write, express himself orally, listen, and pay attention.
They also provide the child with general culture, teach him some scientific principles, help him to learn foreign languages, and help him to develop his artistic and mathematical abilities.
These programs also strengthen the child’s ability to solve problems, improve his social adjustment, develop his skills and hobbies, and make use of his spare time.
On the other hand, these programs have negative effects, because they weaken the child’s ability to perform social activities and duties. They also distract the child from playing physical games. Negative health effects include habituating the child to laziness and may cause obesity due to lack of movement, in addition to deterioration of general health.
Despite the benefits of these programs, their use as a means of education and culture ‎is still limited in comparison to direct social interaction. Their role in education and culture is still weaker than the printed and visual mass media in poorer communities and among lower classes.
The Internet absorbs the child’s attention and makes many children lose their ability to talk and communicate with others.
3- Printed mass media and stories as sources of the child’s culture:
Printed materials such as books and magazines still play an important role in developing children’s culture, because they encourage creative abilities, entertain the child, occupy his spare time and develop his hobbies.
Printed media refines behavior and instills good morals, corrects deviant characters and loosens the shackles of blind imitation and foreign destructive ideas.
We want to transform the printed media and all mass media into resources that enrich the child’s culture away from all the materials that do not accord with our social environment and culture.
Stories are considered a vital resource that can implant correct beliefs in the child’s mind, provides him with facts, and reinforce the educational process. Children’s literature is a positive means that forms the religious creed and develops cultural experiences.
A story is still considered a beacon and an important educational method and its content has always played a key educational role because of its psychological and educational advantages.

Media and the Islamic Identity of the Muslim Child - I

2012-04-24T23:21:00.004-07:00

1- The meaning of the child’s culture:

Culture refers to a combination of beliefs, morals, traditions, laws, knowledge and behavioral patterns that one acquires within society.
Children have their special and distinguished vocabularies, as well as special values and methods that they use in playing, expressing themselves and satisfying their needs. They also have special reactions, stances, trends, emotions and lifestyle. We call all this the “child’s culture”.
2- Mass media as a source of the child’s culture and experiences:
Today all cultural borders between nations have disappeared and we live now amidst a massive technological and scientific revolution within which the mass media plays a very important role in forming the child’s psychology religiously, culturally and socially. To have a child with a distinct and integrated personality, there should be a specific vision to preserve his cultural and religious identity.
In this respect, the mass media including TV, the Internet, electronic games, and so on, play a key role in building the Muslim child culturally. It should be determined what is introduced to him from the other cultures.
Studies all over the world show that the child between the ages of six to sixteen spends about 12-24 hours a week in front of screens.
Influence of the mass media on the child:
The mass media provides a small child with different cultures while he is still unable to differentiate between what is good and what is bad. This transforms the mass media into a double-edged weapon with its positive and negative influences. This should draw our attention to the fact that the mass media and media institutions that are directed to the child and that are concerned with childhood should be the center of attention of the whole society.
We do not deny the importance of print, audio, and visual mass media in forming learning experiences, and defining, modifying and dispersing attitudes. Similarly, we do not deny the role of the mass media in developing the child’s personality, polishing his skills, and developing his mental, emotional and social abilities. The media for the child is a method for guidance and entertainment, as well as a means for transferring and establishing traditions. However, where are the mass media that cover all that interests the child?
The media materials that our children watch on TV or other mass media can be divided into three categories:
The first category:
Disney films, which are made in the West and that aim at serving the American culture in particular. The theme of these films is derived from their Western values, which contradict our own Islamic traditions and values. So-called "love" dominates every single word of these stories, which aim to mold the child’s mentality in a certain way. If we contemplate the appearance, we will find that they fulfill the criteria of material beauty.
Therefore, a child who watches such films will grow up knowing nothing but the Western concept of beauty, not to mention that these films aim at making profits in the first place. This attitude transforms the child into a consumer, because once he sees the story, he hurries to buy pens and notebooks that carry the pictures of its heroes.
The second category:
The Far East dubbed cartoon films that are characterized by wild imagination and featuring violent electronic aliens that walk in the streets to destroy and kill. These films are introduced to the Arab child through the local mass media.
The third category:
This category is represented in the local materials that are produced by private and public media establishments. They are mostly in audio or video format. However, they are artistically and technically weak and cannot compete with the other alternatives. Nevertheless, some successful and beneficial works appear from time to time. Some institutions also produce stories derived from the Quran and Islamic history in addition to Nasheeds (Islamic poetry). However, such materials are too few to meet the Muslim child’s needs.
3- Mass media and their influence on the identity and culture of the Muslim child:
The issue of the mass media and the Muslim child’s culture is critical, given the important role of the mass media in transferring the Ummah’s culture from generation to generation. The mass media are also considered cultural means that help in supporting stances, encouraging desired behaviors and warning against undesired ones. This shows us the greatness of the responsibility of the mass media that target the Muslim child and those who run them.
The majority of studies and researches in this field show that belonging to a strong and civilized environment with a distinct identity since early childhood is one of the most influential factors in the child’s upbringing and culture. Hence, the mass media shoulder a great responsibility regarding focusing on the Islamic values that should be implanted in the child to form a set of beliefs that express his Islamic identity.

Guided to Faith by a Blind Boy - II

2012-04-24T23:20:00.004-07:00

I wiped away his tears with my hands and held his hand. I wanted to take him to the mosque by car but he refused, arguing that it was close by and that he wanted to walk to the mosque. I felt ashamed because I could not even remember the last time I had entered the mosque. However, it was the first time I was feeling fear and regret for my negligence over the past years.
The mosque was full of worshippers, but I managed to find a place for Saalim in the first row. We listened to the Friday Khutbah (sermon) together and he prayed beside me; actually, no, I prayed beside him.
After the end of the prayer, Saalim asked me to hand him a copy of the Quran. I was surprised: how could he read when he was blind?
I was about to ignore his request, but I responded for fear of hurting his feelings. I handed him the copy of the Quran.
He asked me to open it and get the beginning of Chapter Al-Kahf. I kept on turning the pages one time and searching for the page number in the index another time until I finally found it.
He took it from me, put it before him and started to recite the Chapter while his eyes were closed. He had memorized the whole Chapter!
I was ashamed of myself. I picked up another copy of the Quran.
I felt a shiver going through my body as I read more and more of it. I asked Allaah The Almighty to forgive and guide me and began crying like a child. I kept reading the Quran and asked Allaah The Almighty to forgive and guide me.
There were still some people at the mosque performing the voluntary prayer. I was embarrassed and tried to hold back my tears, but my crying turned into weeping and sobbing.
I did not feel a small hand touching my face and wiping away my tears. It was Saalim. I embraced him, looked at him and said to myself: "You are not the blind; rather, I was the blind one when I followed some dissolute persons who were dragging me to Hell."
We returned home to my wife, who was very worried about Saalim. Her worry turned into tears of joy when she came to know that I had performed the Friday prayer with Saalim.
From that day on, I did not miss any congregational prayer in the mosque. I deserted my bad companions and had righteous companions whom I befriended at the mosque. I tasted the sweetness of faith with my new friends and learnt things from them that I had been too preoccupied by worldly pleasures to know. I never missed a gathering of knowledge or a Witr prayer and completed the recitation of the Quran many times within one month, by the grace of Allaah The Almighty. I kept my tongue often busy with remembrance of Allaah The Almighty, hoping that He would forgive me for past habit of backbiting and mocking people. I felt that I got closer to my family. The look of fear and pity that always loomed in my wife's eyes disappeared.
Now, a smile never leaves Saalim’s face. Anyone who sees him would feel as if he owns the whole world with everything in it. I praised Allaah The Almighty so much for His favors.
One day, my righteous friends decided to visit a remote area in order to give Da‘wah. I was hesitating about going with them. I performed the Istikhaarah prayer and consulted my wife. I had expected that she would refuse but her answer was the opposite!
She was very happy and even encouraged me. She used to see me traveling for dissolute purposes to commit lewd acts in the past without consulting her. I went to Saalim and told him that I was going away for a few days, and he embraced me with his small arms and bid me farewell. I left home for three months and a half. During that period, I used to call my family whenever I had the chance. I missed them so much! I missed Saalim so much!
I wished to hear his voice. He was the only one who I could not speak with since I had traveled for he was either in school or the mosque whenever I called them.
Whenever I told my wife how I missed him, she laughed from sheer joy and happiness. The last time I called her, however, she did not sound her normal self and I did not hear her expected laugh.
I asked her to convey my greetings to Saalim. She replied, “In shaa’ Allaah (God Willing)” and kept silent.
Finally I went back home. I knocked on the door, hoping to see Saalim opening the door, but I was surprised when my son Khaalid, who was less than four years old, opened the door. I carried him in my arms while he cried out in joy, “Father! Father!”
I do not know why I felt a sense of distress when I entered the house. I sought refuge in Allaah The Almighty from the accursed devil. My wife came forward with an unusually strained face: it was as if she was faking her joy and happiness.
I looked at her carefully and then asked her, “What is the matter?” She said, “Nothing.” Suddenly I remembered Saalim and said, “Where is Saalim?”
She lowered her head and did not answer and some tears fell on her cheeks. I cried out, “Saalim! Where is Saalim?” Thereupon, I heard only the voice of my son, Khaalid, saying in a childish tone, “Saalim went to Paradise...he is with Allaah…”
My wife could not bear her sorrow in silence anymore and burst into tears. She was about to fall unconscious on the ground, and left the room.
Later, I came to know that Saalim had contracted fever two weeks before my return. My wife took him to the hospital but his fever got worse and he died.

Guided to Faith by a Blind Boy - I

2012-04-24T23:19:00.004-07:00

I still remember the night my wife gave birth to my first son. I was not yet thirty years of age and had stayed out with my friends in a restaurant all night. It was an evening full of vain talk, not to mention backbiting and vulgar comments. I was often the one who instigated the comments and backbiting that made them laugh.
I remember that I made them laugh a lot that night. I had the unique talent of mimicking others to an uncanny degree. I could change the tone of my voice so that it became exactly like the person I was mocking. Yes, it was my habit to mock all people, even my friends. Some people avoided me in order to be safe from my tongue.
I remember that night I mocked a blind person I saw begging in the market. What is even worse is that I put my foot in his way and he tripped and fell to the ground. He kept on turning his head this way and that, not knowing what to say. I laughed in a loud voice and my laugh echoed throughout the market. I went back home late as usual and found my wife waiting for me. She was in a pathetic condition.
With a quavering voice, she said, “Raashid… where were you?”
I said sarcastically, “On Mars! I was with my friends of course.”
She appeared very tired and fatigued. She was overcome with tears and said, “Raashid... I am exhausted…it seems like I am about to give birth.” Then a silent tear fell on her cheek.
I felt that I had neglected my wife. I was supposed to take care of her and stop my evenings out, particularly as she was in her ninth month.
I quickly accompanied her to the hospital.
She entered the delivery room and was in labor pains for several hours, while I waited impatiently for the birth. She suffered from a difficult delivery. I waited for a long time until I got tired, then I went home and left my phone number in order for them to call me and give me the good news.
An hour later, they called me in order to give me the good news of the birth of Saalim. I immediately went to the hospital. When they saw me asking about my wife’s room, they asked me to meet the doctor first. I shouted, “What doctor? I want to see my son, Saalim.” They said, “You have to meet the doctor first.”
I entered upon the doctor and she started talking to me about afflictions and being satisfied with fate. Then she said, “Your child suffers from a serious deformity in his eyes and it appears that he is blind!”
I lowered my head, trying to conceal my tears. I remembered the blind beggar I had tripped up in the market and made people laugh at.
Glory be to Allaah! What goes around comes around! I kept silent for a while and did not know what to say. Then I remembered my wife and son. I thanked the doctor for her kindness and then went to see my wife.
My wife was not sad because she believed in and was satisfied with the divine decree of Allaah The Almighty. She had often advised me to stop mocking people. She had often repeated: do not backbite people.
We came out of the hospital with my son Saalim. The fact was that I did not care much about him much and ignored his presence at home. When he cried, I would flee to the living room to sleep. My wife, however, showered him with love and care. As for me, I did not hate him, but I could not love him either!
Saalim started growing and he started to crawl like all babies, but in a strange abnormal way. When he was almost one year old, he tried to walk but we discovered that he was disabled. This affected me a great deal.
Later, my wife gave birth to my other sons, Khaalid and ‘Umar.
Years passed and Saalim and his brothers grew up. I did not like to stay at home and spent most of my time with my friends; I was like a toy in their hands and completely under their influence. My wife, however, did not despair of reforming me; she was always supplicating Allaah The Almighty to guide me. She never got angry at my irrational actions, but she was greatly grieved when she saw me ignoring Saalim and taking care of his brothers.
Saalim grew up and my pain grew as well. I did not object when my wife asked to enroll him in a school for the disabled. I did not feel the passing of years. The routine in which I spent my days was: work, sleep, eating and enjoyment in the evenings.
One Friday, I woke up at eleven o'clock in the morning. It was too early by my usual standards. I has been invited to a wedding banquet, so I put on my clothes, applied perfume and went out.
I passed by the living room – but I stopped when I saw that Saalim was weeping bitterly!
It was the first time I had paid attention to Saalim’s weeping since he was a child. Ten years had passed and I had never given him any attention. I tried to ignore him but I could not. I heard his voice calling his mother while I was in the room.
I turned and then approached him. I said, “Saalim, Why are you crying?”
When he heard my voice, he stopped crying. When he felt me approaching him, he started trying to feel around him with his small hands. Why was he doing that? I saw that he was trying to move away from me! It is as if he was saying, “Now you deign to take notice of my presence! Where were you ten years ago?”
I followed him and he entered his room. In the beginning, he refused to tell my why he was weeping. It was only when I spoke gently to him that he ventured to mention the reason behind his weeping. As I listened to him, I began trembling. Do you know why?
His brother ‘Umar, who used to accompany him to the mosque (Masjid) was late and because it was Friday, he was afraid of not finding a place in the first row. Saalim called ‘Umar and his mother but neither of them answered. Thus, he began weeping. I looked at the tears falling from his blind eyes and could not bear the sight, and so, I put my hand on his mouth and said, “Are you weeping for this reason, O Saalim!” He replied, “Yes…”
I forgot my friends. I forgot the banquet. I said, “Saalim, don’t be sad. Do you know who will accompany you to the mosque today?” He said, “‘Umar, of course. But he is always late.” I said, “No. I will accompany you.” Saalim was surprised and could not believe his ears. He thought that I was mocking him, and continued to weep.

Hijaab: definition and conditions

2012-04-24T23:18:00.002-07:00

Hijaab is an Arabic word that describes the Muslim woman's entire dress code, which includes a veil and whatever else is needed to cover everything except the face and hands. It is adopted at puberty - an age when, according to Islam, people become accountable for their actions.

This essay will attempt to briefly enumerate the basic requirements regarding the Hijaab as stipulated by the Sharee’ah (Islamic Law). The term Hijaab includes not only dress and the covering of the body, but also the methods of behaviour that one has before members of the same and/or opposite sex, promoting privacy for females and prohibiting loose intermingling between males and females; it is, therefore, an encouragement of modesty, decency, and chastity.

The following requirements represent the ones agreed upon by the overwhelming majority of Islamic scholars and are all solidly backed by firm evidence taken from the Quran, the Sunnah (Prophetic traditions) and the practice of the Companions of the Prophet .

1. The Extent of Covering

The dress worn in public must cover the entire body except what has been specifically excluded, based upon the following verse:

Allaah Says (what means): “And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts and not display their adornment [Zeenah] except only that which [ordinarily] appears thereof and to draw their headcovers [Khumur] over their chests and not display their adornment [i.e., beauty] except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands’ sons, their brothers, their brothers’ sons, their sisters’ sons, their female slaves, their women [i.e., their sisters in Islam], or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allaah in repentance, all of you, O Believers, in order that you might succeed." [Quran 24:31]

The word Zeenah in the above verse literally means adornment, and includes both:

(a) That which Allaah has adorned (i.e., the woman’s natural and/or physical beauty), and,

(b) That with which they adorn themselves (i.e., jewellery, eye shadow, attractive clothing, hand dye, etc). The word 'Khumur' (pl. of 'Khimaar') refers to a cloth that covers the head (including the ears), hair, neck and bosom.

2. Thickness

The garment should be thick and opaque so as not to display the skin colour and form of the body beneath it. Delicate or transparent clothing does not constitute a proper covering. Imaam Al-Qurtubi reported a narration from ‘Aa’ishah that some women from the tribe of Banu Tameem came to see her wearing transparent clothing. ‘Aa’ishah said to them: "If you are believing women, these are not the clothes of believing women.” He also reported that on another occasion, a bride came to see her wearing a sheer, transparent Khimaar, whereupon ‘Aa’ishah remarked: “A woman who wears such clothing does not believe in Soorah An-Noor (i.e., the chapter in the Quran that contains the abovementioned verse regarding the Hijaab)." Moreover, the following Hadeeth makes this point graphically clear. Prophet Muhammad said: "There will be among the last of my Ummah (Nation), scantily dressed women; they will wear their hair on top of their heads, like a camel’s hump. Curse them - for verily they are cursed."

3. Looseness

The clothing must hang loosely and not be so tight and fitting as to show the shape and size of the woman’s body. This obviously prohibits such things as skin-tight body suits and the like. The following Hadeeth proves this point clearly. Usaamah bin Zayd said: The Prophet once gave me a gift of thick Coptic cloth that he had received as a gift from Dahiyyah Al-Kalbee, so I gave it to my wife. Afterwards, he asked me: “Why haven't you worn the Coptic cloth? I replied: 'I gave it to my wife.' The Prophet then said: "Tell her to wear a thick gown under it (i.e., the Coptic garment) for I fear that it may describe the size of her limbs.” [Narrated by Ahmad, Al Bayhaqi & Al-Haakim]

4. Colour, Appearance and Demeanour

Allaah Says (what means): “O wives of the Prophet! You are not like anyone among women. If you fear Allaah, then do not be soft in speech [to men], lest he in whose heart is disease should covet, but speak with appropriate speech." [Quran: 33:32]

The reason for the revelation of this verse was not due to the fear of distrust or misbehaviour on the part of the women, but rather to prevent them from speaking invitingly, walking seductively, or dressing revealingly so as to arouse sexual desire in the heart of lecherous and evil men. Seductive dressing and enticing speech are the characteristics of ill-intentioned women, not Muslims. Imaam Al-Qurtubi mentioned that Mujaahid said: "Women (before the advent of Islam) would walk about among men." Qataadah said: "The women (at that time) would wear an untied cloth on their heads, while provocatively toying with their necklaces, earrings, and other ornamental jewellery."

5. Difference from Men’s Clothing

The clothing of a Muslim woman must not resemble that of men. The following statement helps to explain this: Abu Hurayrah said: "The Prophet cursed the man who wears women’s clothes and the woman who wears men’s clothes." [Abu Daawood & Ibn Maajah]

6. Difference from the Clothing of Unbelievers

Her clothing must not resemble the clothing of the unbelievers. This is a general ruling of the Sharee’ah which encompasses not only dress but also matters such as manners, customs, religious practices and festivities, transactions, etc. Indeed, dissimilarity with unbelievers is a precedent that was established by the first generation of Muslims. ‘Abdullaah bin ‘Amr bin Al-’Aas sad: "The Prophet once saw me wearing two saffron coloured garments, so he said: “Indeed, these are clothes of 'Kuffaar' (unbelievers), so do not wear them.” [Muslim]

7. No Vain or Ostentatious Dressing

The woman’s dress must not be an expression of ostentation, vanity or a status symbol by being excessively showy or expensive, nor must it be excessively tattered so as to gain admiration and fame for being extremely humble. Ibn ‘Umar reported that the Prophet said: “Whoever dresses for ostentation in this world, Allaah will dress that person in a dress of humiliation on the Day of Resurrection, and then set it on fire.” [Abu Daawood]