"ISLAM" THE RELIGION OF TRUTH

Unseen knowledge given to our Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him)

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 13:52:00 +0000

Only Almighty Allah knows the unseen things about the past and the future that are beyond the capacity of human senses to perceive. Everything that happens in all the worlds of the universe is controlled by Allah and contained in His knowledge. The miracle of unseen knowledge was vouchsafed to our Prophet (saas) to the extent that Allah willed. Allah told our Prophet (saas) about events hidden in the past that no one else knew and about things that would happen in the future, and he revealed this knowledge to his companions and all his people.

It is Allah Who created time and taught the concept of it to the people. He is exalted above time and not limited by it, He knows all secrets and He can reveal the secret things hidden in his Presence to any of His messengers according to His will. Those to whom He has given secret knowledge can, by His will, tell about things past and the yet to come; they see the inner face of events and know their various consequences.

Allah tells us in the Qur'an that He has given some of the unseen knowledge hidden in His Presence to some messengers:

He is the Knower of the Unseen, and does not divulge His Unseen to anyone–except a Messenger with whom He is well pleased, and then He posts sentinels before him and behind him, so that He may know that they have indeed transmitted the Messages of their Lord. (Surat al-Jinn, 26-27)

Our Prophet Muhammad (saas) was a messenger special to Allah to whom He gave much secret knowledge from His Presence. Our Prophet (saas) knew things that happened in the past unknown to anyone else and learned from Allah many things that were going to occur in the future. Allah reveals this in the Qur'an:

This is news of the Unseen which We reveal to you. You were not with them when they decided what to do and devised their scheme.' (Surah Yusuf, 102)

OUR PROPHET'S (saas) MIRACULOUS UNSEEN KNOWLEDGE

Our Prophet's (saas) ability to know unseen things did not come from himself. But he revealed these things to those around him in accordance to Allah's will. All-knowing Allah revealed this knowledge to His messenger which pointed to events that happened in the past or that were with certainty about to occur in the future. This shows that all the knowledge our Prophet (saas) revealed was a miracle. Several times throughout his life, our Prophet (saas) delivered information that could only be known by Allah's revelation. He was given knowledge e about the past, the present and the future and this was a proof that he was a true prophet. The Qur'an describes many details of the divine knowledge given to Muhammad (saas) together with his devotion and submission to Allah:

Say: 'I possess no power to help or harm myself, except as Allah wills. If I had had knowledge of the Unseen, I would have sought to gain much good and no evil would have touched me. I am only a warner and a bringer of good news to people who believe.' (Surat al-A'raf, 188)

As a result of the revelations given to Allah's holy Prophet Muhammad (saas) both personally and through the verses of the Qur'an, he gained knowledge about the past, present and future. According to Allah's will, he had knowledge about many matters that no one else could know. Because of this knowledge, he could announce victory to Muslims in dire straits by which he was able to bolster their zeal. The occurrence in sequence of each of these events predicted by our Prophet (saas) was miraculous.

There are many events predicted by our Prophet (saas) 1400 years ago that are coming true today. Many scholars of the Hadiths such as Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, Thirmidhi, Nasai, Ibn Majah, witness to the fact that secret knowledge revealed by our Prophet (saas) in the Hadiths is true. They attest to the miracle that all the secret knowledge revealed by our Prophet (saas) has come true and continues to come true.

False Accusations Against Our Prophet (saas) Despite The Miracle of His Unseen Knowledge

From the time our Prophet (saas) started to communicate what is revealed to him in the Qur'an to the people around him, unbelievers accused this blessed personage of not telling the truth. They approached every piece of information brought by him with suspicion and were unwilling to believe in him. However, our Prophet (saas) was a personage whose honesty and credibility could easily be understood just by looking at his face and way of living. Although he was a person who was unanimously qualified as "Al-amin" (reliable) throughout his life and addressed with this epithet, some people insisted on saying lies not to comply with the right path to which he called.

In their savage attacks on our Prophet (saas), deniers reject the possibility that a person can tell the truth every moment of his life. They say that an individual cannot live his life speaking the truth every moment until his death. But our Prophet (saas) was a devout and self-sacrificing man who prayed day and night; he was patient and his moral rectitude was an example to the whole world. He entered battle with great courage and fought in the front ranks. Even faced with the threat of death, he continued to proclaim the truth.

Our Prophet (saas) always practiced the moral teachings of the Qur'an impeccably and was an example for all believers. Our blessed Prophet (saas) taught generosity and gave liberally of all he had; he offered his life and his possessions to gain the favor of Allah. He taught patience, self-sacrifice, true love and friendship and lived these moral qualities in the best possible way. Also, he urged people to be merciful and forgiving and he practiced these virtues with singular determination. The unbelievers that accused our Prophet (saas) should have considered following:

It does not belong to the power of human nature to perpetuate a lie throughout a lifetime. It is not possible for a person to be a liar and live his life consistently in accordance with thousands of non-conflicting verses. And why would a liar persist in such an attitude until the end of his life? And why would people put their lives at risk in order to show the right path to the Hereafter?

And is it possible for everything a liar says to be the vehicle of such great wisdom? Is it possible for everything he has said to be perfect from the aspect of eternity; to be possessed of a certain numerical code; for everything he has said throughout 23 years to be in an eternal, mathematical and scientific harmony? Is it possible for all he has said to contain the wisdom to answer all the questions concerning social life to which people's consciences seek the answer? It is certain that a liar cannot avoid detection when one day his words do not hold together. However, everything our Prophet (saas) said has come true and both Muslims and deniers have witnessed that truth.

Undoubtedly, every miracle given to every prophet is important. But the fact that masses of people witnessed the miracles of our Prophet (saas) make him different from other prophets. For example, when 'Isa (as) raised a person to life or cured a sick person, it was only the people standing around who witnessed the miracles. And it was only Pharaoh, his people and the children of Israel that witnessed the miracles of Musa (as). (Only Allah knows the whole truth). When our Prophet (saas) predicted a victorious war, the number of people who witnessed the battle was much greater. Tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of people saw these miracles happen.

Here are some of the announcements of our Prophet (saas) that qualify as miracles:

The Victory over Byzantine Empire

One of the future predictions in the Qur'an comes immediately at the beginning of Surat ar-Rum. In these verses it is announced that the Byzantine Empire has suffered defeat but that a short time later it would again be victorious:

Alif Lam Mim. The Romans have been defeated in the lowest land, but after their defeat they will themselves be victorious in a few years' time. The affair is Allah's from beginning to end. On that day, the believers will rejoice. (Surat ar-Rum, 1-4)

These verses were sent down in 620 A.D., 7 years after the Christian Byzantines suffered a major defeat by the pagan Persians in 613-614 A.D. The verses tell us that the Byzantines were going to be victorious very soon. However, at that time, the Byzantines had experienced such serious losses that it seemed impossible for them even to survive, not to mention winning another victory. The Persians defeated the Byzantines at Antioch in 613 A.D. and went on to take Damascus, Cilicia, Tarsus, Armenia and Jerusalem. It was especially the loss of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher that dealt the greatest blow to the Byzantines. 1

At that time it was not the Persians but the Avars, Slavs and Lombards that were the most serious threat to the Byzantines. The Avars came up to the very gates of Constantinople. In order to supply the armies, the Byzantine emperor Heracleius had the gold, silver and precious ornaments from the churches melted down and turned into money. When this proved insufficient, he even melted down the bronze statues to make coins. Many governors revolted against the Heracleius and the empire came close to disintegration. The former Byzantine possessions of Mesopotamia, Cilicia, Syria, Palestine, Egypt and Armenia were occupied by the pagan Persians. 2

In short, everything pointed to the destruction of the Byzantine Empire. But exactly at that time, the first verses of Surat ar-Rum were revealed saying that, before 9 years had passed, the Byzantines would again be victorious. The Arab hypocrites thought that this victory announced in the Qur'an would never happen.

But, as with everything predicted in the Qur'an, this too was inevitable. In 622 A.D., Heracleius invaded Armenia and won several battles against the Persians.3 In December 627 A.D., there was a major battle between the Byzantines and the Persians near Baghdad, 50 km east the Tigris River by the ruins of Nineveh. The Byzantines defeated the Persians and a few months later the Persians were forced to sign a treaty restoring the occupied lands to the Byzantines. 4

The Byzantine victory in 630 A.D. and the defeat of the Persian emperor, Chosrov II, meant that Jerusalem was returned to Heracleius and the Church of the Holy Sepulcher came back under Christian control. 5

So, as Allah said in the Qur'an and our Prophet (saas) proclaimed to the people, the Byzantine victory happened miraculously within that predicted 3-9 year period.

Another miracle of these verses is that facts of geography were given that no one could have known at that time.

Verse 3 of Surat ar-Rum says that the Byzantines were defeated at the the lowest land. The Arabic for this is edna el-ard, which can also mean a nearby place. But this translation is not a literal rendering of the original; it is metaphorical. The Arabic word edna is the superlative form of deni (low) and means lowest. Ard means Earth. So, edna el-ard means the lowest place on Earth.

Some commentators, thinking that this place is close to the Arabs, translate the phrase asclosest. But the basic meaning of the word points to a geological fact that no one could known at the time the Qur'an was revealed: the lowest place on Earth is the area of the Dead Sea where the Byzantines were defeated in 613 A.D. And, as we said before, the hardest blow for the Christians was the loss of Jerusalem, close to the Dead Sea.

The Dead Sea, at 399 meters below sea-level, is the lowest point on Earth. 6

What is remarkable here is that the level of the Dead Sea could only be determined with the use of modern measuring equipment. Previously no one could know that the Dead Sea was the lowest place on Earth. But this area is described in the Qur'an as the lowest land on Earth. This is another proof that the Qur'an is the word of Allah; and it is a miracle that Allah granted this knowledge to His Prophet.

The defeat of Mecca

Allah has confirmed His Messenger's vision with truth: 'You will enter the Sacred Mosque (Masjid al-Haram) in safety, Allah willing, shaving your heads and cutting your hair without any fear.' He knew what you did not know and ordained, in place of this, an imminent victory. (Surat al-Fath, 27)

While our Prophet (saas) was in Medina, he had a dream: he saw believers safely entering the The Sacred Mosque (Masjid al-Haram) and circling the Kaaba. He revealed this good news to the believers. It was good news because the believers who had left Mecca for Medina had not been allowed to return.

As an encouragement, Allah revealed verse 27 of Surat al-Fath to our Prophet (saas). He said the dream was true and, according to His will, believers could return to Mecca. Indeed, later as the dream had foretold, after the Treaty of Hudaybiya and the subsequent defeat of Mecca, Muslims entered the Sacred Mosque in peace. So the glad tidings inspired in our Prophet (saas) by Allah came true.

Buhari relates a story of Ibn-i Abbas concerning the defeat of Mecca:

İbnu Abbas said that in the verse, "He Who has imposed the Qur'an upon you will most certainly bring you back home again" (Surat al-Qasas, 85), what is meant with the word home here is Macca."7

It is important to note here that verse 27 of Surat al-Fath mentions another victory before the defeat of Mecca. As the verse foretold, before they captured Mecca, Muslims took the Hayber Castle that had been a Jewish possession.8 The famous Jelaleyn interprets the verse of Surat al-Fath as follows:

"…Allah made the dream He showed his Prophet (saas) come true. In the year the Hudaybiya was signed, before going to expedition, the Prophet (saas) saw in his dream himself and his people safely entering Mecca with shaved heads and informed his people about this [good news]which made his people pleased. He set out together with his people but unbelievers averted them in Hudaybiya. Some of the hypocrites raised suspicions of this. This is the time when this verse was revealed. "InshaAllah you will enter Masjid al-Haram safely, with no fear whatsoever, with shaved heads, (or some of you) with shortened hair. But in terms of peace, for your benefit, Allah knew what you did not know and before entering Mecca, granted a conquest. This was the conquest of Haybar. And the next year the dream came true." 9

In the eighth year of the Migration, our Prophet (saas) entered Mecca and conquered it. But when he delivered this good news to the believers, it did not appear likely to happen. Conditions seemed to be in favor of an opposite outcome; the hypocrites seemed determined to keep the believers from entering Mecca. This caused those who had sickness in their hearts to doubt the words of the Prophet (saas). But our Prophet (saas) trusted in Allah and was not moved by what people said; he believed in what Allah had told him and revealed it to the people. The fact that this secret revelation from our Lord came to pass is a miracle witnessed by millions of people.

The Defeat of Egypt

O my people! You are about to conquer Egypt. Keep the welfare of the conquered people in view. You shall have to abide by the divine covenant that their life and property and their honor should be protected. 10

This Hadith announces that Egypt would be conquered. While our Prophet (saas) was proclaiming this, Egypt was under the rule of Rome and Muslims were not yet very strong. But these words of our Prophet (saas) came true: in the year 641 A.D., shortly after his death, in the caliphate of Omar, Egypt was conquered by Muslims commanded by Amr bin As. 11 This event was another secret revelation of our Prophet (saas) that came true.

The Conquest of Roman and Persian Lands

Kisra (Khosrau, King of Persia) will die; there will be no Kisra after him, and Qaisar (Caesar, King of Rome) will die; there would be no Qaisar after him, but, by One in Whose Hand is my life, you will spend their treasures in the cause of Allah. 12

The word kisra that appears in this saying was a title used by Persian kings. The title Caesar was used by Roman Empire. In the Hadiths, our Prophet (saas) announces that the treasuries of these two monarchs would remain in the possession of Muslims.

It is important to notice here that, when our Prophet (saas) made this glad announcement, Muslims had no military or economic power and did not yet have the ability to make such a great conquest. And, at that time, the most powerful states were Persia and Rome. For this reason, when our Prophet (saas) announced these two conquests, economic and military conditions seemed to be against the possibility. Nevertheless, they happened. Persia was conquered in Omar's time and the Empire of the Persian Kisra was brought to an end.13

The beginning of the end of the Roman Caesar and the Muslim confiscation of his treasury started in the time of the Rashid caliphs with the conquest of some important Roman centers. Starting in the time of Abu Bakr, the Roman possessions of Jordan, Palestine, Jerusalem, Syria and Egypt fell to Muslims. Constantinople was taken by the Ottoman Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror in 1453. And with the fall of the Roman Empire the title of Caesar ceased to be used.14 So, these conquests that seemed impossible in the time of our Prophet (saas) were miraculously revealed to him by Allah.

Our Prophet (saas) Answered a Question before it was asked.

In the Qur'an, Allah tells us that 'Isa (as) knew by the will of Allah what people ate and what they kept. (Surah Al 'Imran, 49) and that Yusuf (as) could tell when a meal was about to come (Surah Yusuf, 37). These miracles were gifts bequeathed by Allah's grace to His prophets. As our Prophet (saas) says in the Hadiths, that, as a miracle from Allah, he answered a question before a person asked it and could tell what a person was thinking. For example, the Hadiths tells us that our Prophet (saas) told his companions where and when there would be a victory.15 Again, according to the Hadiths, our Prophet (saas) could tell when someone was going to come home before they came and when they would enter a room before they entered it. 16 He also was able to recognize immediately the mind of a hypocrite, those hostile to Muslims and those who harbored evil ideas. 17 (Surah Muhammad, 30)

There are hundreds of examples of such miracles in the Hadiths. In one Hadith, our Prophet (saas) gave an answer to a question in the mind of Abu Sufian who, as a result, bore witness to the fact that this blessed person was indeed a prophet:

Abu Sufian was sitting in a corner of the Masjid. One day our Prophet (saas) came out of his house. From where he sat Abu Sufian thought: "I wonder with what he overcame?" Our Prophet (saas) came next to Abu Sufian and touched his back, saying: "I overcame you with Allah." Abu Sufian said: "I bear witness that you are the Messenger of Allah". 18

Our Prophet (saas) knew what people were thinking and was able to give them an answer to their questions. An example is the Hadith about Vabisa:

I came to our Prophet (saas). My intention was to ask him every thing about goodness and sins. He was surrounded by Muslims, asking him questions and demanding fetwa. I wanted to proceed among them.

- "Stay away from Allah's messenger, Vabisa!" they said.
- I replied: "Leave me so that I can come very close to him. He is the most amiable of all those to whom I want to be close!
- He said: "Leave Vabisa!" Then, he addressed me twice or three times: "Vabisa, come closer! At the end I came close to him and sat in front of him.
- He said: "Vabisa. Shall I tell you or would you like to ask to me!"
-" I want you to tell me"I said.
- He said: "You are here to ask me about goodness and sins, right?"
- I said: "Yes." Then, he showed my heart with his fingers and said: "Vabisa, consult your heart, consult yourself! Goodness is what your heart finds peace in even if people give you a fatwa or not; sin is what eradicates (disturbs) the heart, the thing that wanders around in chest!" 19

As the Hadith says, our Prophet (saas) was given grace from Allah to be able to know the answer to a question often before he was even asked. Another example of his ability to read a person's thoughts and intentions is the Hadith about Abu Darda's being a Muslim:

Abu Darda was worshipping an idol. Abdullah b. Ravaha and Abu Salam went near that idol and broke it. When Abu Darda saw the idol in that situation he couldn't help himself from saying: "What a pity! Couldn't you protect yourself" Then the Prophet (saas) came. Abdullah b. Ravaha saw him on the way and said: "That is Abu Darda! He should certainly be here to find us." Upon this Allah's messenger said: "No! He is coming here to be a Muslim. My Lord told that he would be a Muslim." 20

All the above examples show that our Prophet Muhammad (saas) showed many miracles by Allah's will. Our Prophet (saas) was an example of excellent moral character, trust and faithfulness; with his miracles he strengthened the eager resolve of those with faith.

The End Times that is being experienced in the light of our Prophet's Knowledge about the Unseen.

The End Times is a period that will be experienced on Earth before the Doomsday. Our Prophet's many news regarding the events that would occur in the End Times have reached us. That these events occur one after another in our time is also a miracle of our Prophet (saas). Our Prophet (saas) explained the events that would occur 1400 years after his time in details as if he watched that time. The rise of a comet, the Iran-Iraq war, the Qaba raid, the increase in fitnah and moral degeneration are only a few of the signs that would occur in the End Times.

It should be stated at this point that the signs revealed by our Prophet (saas) in the Hadiths may have been seen severally over the past 1400 years at various times and in diverse places in the world. But since the year 1400 in the Muslim calendar they have happened one after another in the same period of time. This shows that another event predicted by our Prophet (saas) has come to pass:

Signs following one another like the pieces of a necklace falling one after the other when its string is cut. 21

Many of these events announced in the Hadiths of our Prophet (saas) as signs of the end are happening in our day. The increase of wars, conflicts, terror, violence, anarchy, chaos, murders and torture is an indication that the first period of the end times is upon us.

According to what our Prophet (saas) says in the Hadiths, Allah will rescue people after this dark period and save them from chaos; it will be a great salvation. In order to direct morally deficient, degenerate societies onto the right path, Allah will appoint His excellent servant, Mahdi, as mediator. Mahdi (the guide to the truth) will assemble the Islamic world under one roof; he will cause the moral teachings of the Qur'an to prevail throughout the world and, together with 'Isa (as) who is to return to Earth a second time, he will engage in an intellectual struggle against the strife of the End Times.

In the Hadiths, our Prophet (saas) told people to obey the excellent Mahdi who would be the means of salvation in this world and in the Hereafter; he pointed out all the good things that would mark this period:

A man from my family appears to fill Earth with justice, just as it has been filled with corruption. So whoever reaches that [time] ought to come to them, even if crawling on the ice/snow, since among them is the caliph of Allah al-Mahdi. 22

All the miracles proclaimed by our Prophet (saas) concerning past events or with regard to 'Isa (as), Mahdi and signs of the End Times are a cause for rejoicing for all Muslims and a gracious help from Allah. According to Allah's will, these miracles are proofs that will strengthen the faith of believers and bind them even more closely to the glorious Qur'an sent down to our Prophet (saas) from Allah.

With Warm Thanks & Regards,
Noor Muhammad Ansari,

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Six Qualities of the Truly Successful

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 09:35:00 +0000

There are many places in the Holy Quran, where the verses speak about the attributes of the ones who want success in this life and the hereafter. The first such place is in Surah Al-Baqarah, the second chapter.

The six qualities mentioned in these verses are:

1. Accept the Holy Quran as the Book of guidance as a God-conscious person

2. Belief in the unseen

3. Offer and establish prayer

4. Spend in the way of Allah from what He has given

5. Believe in the Holy Quran and the divine books sent to earlier Prophets of God

6. Believe in the After Life.

The verses and their explanation follow:

ذَلِكَ الْكِتَابُ لاَ رَيْبَ فِيهِ هُدًى لِّلْمُتَّقِينَ

الَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْغَيْبِ وَيُقِيمُونَ الصَّلاةَ وَمِمَّا رَزَقْنَاهُمْ يُنفِقُونَ

والَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِمَا أُنزِلَ إِلَيْكَ وَمَا أُنزِلَ مِن قَبْلِكَ وَبِالآخِرَةِ هُمْ يُوقِنُونَ

أُوْلَـئِكَ عَلَى هُدًى مِّن رَّبِّهِمْ وَأُوْلَـئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ

This is the Book; in it is guidance sure, without doubt, to those who fear God; Who believe in the Unseen, are steadfast in prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them; And who believe in the Revelation sent to thee, and sent before thy time, and (in their hearts) have the assurance of the Hereafter. They are on (true) guidance, from their Lord, and it is these who will prosper. (Translation by Abdullah Yusuf Ali)

Explanatory notes:

This is the Book; in it is guidance sure, without doubt, to those who fear God;

One obvious meaning of this verse is that this Book, the Qur'an, is undoubtedly from God. Another possible meaning is that nothing contained in it can be subject to doubt. Books which deal with supernatural questions, with matters that lye beyond the range of sense perception, are invariably based on conjecture and their authors, despite their brave show of competence, are therefore not immune from a degree of skepticism regarding their statements. This Book, which is based wholly on Truth, a Book which is the work of none other than the All-Knowing God Himself is distinguishable from all other books. Hence, there is no room for doubt about its contents despite the hesitation some people might express either through ignorance or folly.

This is the Book of guidance for those who are God-conscious.

This means that while the Book is potentially for all, only those who possess certain qualities can benefit from it. The first such quality is piety: those who want to benefit should be disposed to distinguish between good and evil, and to shun evil and do good. Those who lead an animal existence, who never to consider whether their actions are either good or bad, who cynically follow the prevailing winds, who are helplessly tossed about by the animal desires that dominate their minds, such persons are all together incapable of deriving any benefit from the guidance embodied in the Qur'an.

Belief in the Unseen

This is the second prerequisite for deriving benefit from the Qur'an. Ghayb signifies the verities which are hidden from man's senses and which are beyond the scope of man's ordinary observation and experience, for example the existence and attributes of God, the angels, the process of revelation, Paradise, Hell and so on. 'Belief in the ghaib' means having faith in such matters, based on an absolute confidence in the Messengers of God and despite the fact that it is impossible to experience them.
According to this verse, Qur'anic guidance can prove helpful only to those prepared to affirm the truths of the supra sensory realm. People who make their belief in these questions conditional upon sensory perception of the object of belief, and who are not prepared even to consider the possibility of the existence of things that cannot be weighed or measured, cannot profit from this Book.

Establish prayer

This is the third requirement. It is pointed out that those to whom belief means merely the pronouncement of a formula, who think that a mere verbal confession of faith is enough and that it makes no practical demands on them, can derive no guidance from the Qur'an. To benefit from the Qur'an it is essential that a man's decision to believe should be followed immediately by practical obedience to God.

Prayer is the first and continuing sign of practical obedience. No more than a few hours can pass after a man has embraced Islam than the mu'adhin calls to Prayer and it becomes evident whether or not the profession of faith has been genuine. Moreover, the mu'adhin calls to Prayer five times every day and whenever a man fails to respond to his call it becomes clear that he has transgressed the bounds of practical obedience. An abandonment of Prayer amounts to an abandonment of obedience. Obviously, if a man is not prepared to follow the directives of his guide, it is immaterial whether or not true guidance is available to him.

It should also be noted that the expression 'establishment of Prayer' has a wider meaning than mere performance of Prayer. It means that the system of Prayer should be organized on a collective basis. If there is a person in a locality who prays individually but no arrangements are made for congregational Prayer, it cannot be claimed that Prayer is established in that locality.

Spend in God's way

This, the fourth prerequisite for a person to benefit from the Qur'an. It demands that the person concerned should neither be niggardly nor a worshipper of money. On the contrary, he should be willing to pay the claims on his property of both God and man, and should not flinch from making financial sacrifices for the sake of his convictions.

Believe in the Holy Quran and the divine books sent to earlier Prophets of God

The fifth requirement is that one should believe in the Books revealed by God to His Prophets in the various ages and regions of the world, in the Book revealed to Muhammad (peace be on him) as well as in those revealed to the other Prophets who preceded him. The door of the Qur'an is closed to all those who do not consider it necessary for man to receive guidance from God. It is also closed to those who, even if they believe in the need for such guidance, do not consider it necessary to seek it through the channel of revelation and prophethood, but would rather weave their own set of ideas and concepts and regard them as equivalent to Divine Guidance.

This door is also closed to those who believe in Divine books as such, but confine this belief to those books accepted by their forefathers, and spurn Divine Guidance revealed to anyone born beyond their own racial and national boundaries. The Qur'an excludes all such people and is prepared to open the source of its grace only to those who believe that mankind does require Divine Guidance, who acknowledge that this guidance does not come to people individually but reaches them through Prophets and Divine Books and who are not given to racial or national chauvinism but are devotees of Truth alone, and are therefore prepared to submit to Divine Guidance wherever it be found.

Believe in the After Life

Belief in the After-life is the sixth and last requirement. The term al-Akhirah embraces a whole set of ideas:
(i) that man is not an irresponsible being, but is answerable to God for all his conduct in this world;
(ii) that the present order of the world is not timeless, but will come to an end at an appointed hour known only to God;
(iii) that when this world comes to an end, God will bring into being another world in which He will resurrect, at one and the same moment, all the human beings ever born on earth. He will gather them together, examine their conduct and grant each one just reward for his actions;
(iv) that those who are accounted good in God's judgment will be sent to Heaven, and those judged by Him as evil-doers will be consigned to Hell;
(v) that the real measure of success and failure is not one's prosperity in the present life, but one's success or failure according to God's judgment in the Next.
Those who do not accept this set of beliefs can derive no benefit from the Qur'an. For if a man is merely in a state of doubt and hesitation with regard to these matters - let alone disbelieving them - he cannot advance even one step forward along the path charted out by the Qur'an.

With Warm Thanks & Regards,
Noor Muhammad Ansari,

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Why I Believe in Islam

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 06:18:00 +0000

The following is an extract from the writing of Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmood Ahmad—the second successor to the Promised Messiah and Mahdi, founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam.

I have been asked to state why I believe in Islam. When I put the question to myself, the reply I received was, for the same reason for which I believe in anything else, that is to say, because it is the truth. A more detailed reply would be that in my view the central doctrine of all religions is the existence of God and man's relationship with Him, so that the religion that can succeed in establishing a true relationship between God and man must be true, and the truth of a faith is surely a sufficient reason for believing in it.

Islam claims that the Creator of this universe is a living God and that He reveals Himself to His creatures in this age in the same manner in which He used to reveal Himself in the ages past. This claim can be tested in two ways. God may either manifest His signs direct for a seeker after Him, or the seeker may come to believe in God by studying the life of a person to whom God has revealed Himself. As by the Grace of God, I happen to be one of those people to whom God has on many occasion and in a supernatural way revealed Himself. I stand in need of no further reason for believing in truth of Islam than that I have experienced the truth in my own person.

For the benefit of people who have had no similar experience, however, I proceed to relate the grounds which, in addition to my personal experience, have been the cause of my believing in Islam.

First of all, I believe in Islam for the reason that it does not compel me to accept all those matters the sum total of which is called Religion merely on authority, but furnishes convincing arguments in support of its doctrines. The existence of God and the nature of His attributes, angels, prayer and its effects, Divine decrees and their sphere, worship and its need, Divine Law and its benefits, revelation and its importance, resurrection and the life after death, heaven and hell -- with regard to every one of these, Islam has given detailed explanations and has established their truth with strong arguments to the satisfaction of the human mind.

Islam, therefore, furnishes me not only with faith, but also with the certainty of knowledge which satisfies my intellect and compels it to admit the need of religion.

Secondly, I believe in Islam as it does not base itself upon the experience of people who have passed away, but invites everybody to a personal experience of that which it teaches and guarantees. It claims that every truth can, in some manner or the other, be put to the test in this world, and it thus satisfies my reason.

Thirdly, I believe in Islam as it teaches that there can be no conflict between the word of God and the work of God, and thus resolves the supposed conflict between science and religion. It does not ask me to ignore the laws of nature and to believe in things which are contrary to them. On the contrary, it exhorts me to study the laws of nature and derive benefit from them. It teaches me that, as revelation comes from God and He also is the Creator of the universe, there can be no conflict between that which He does and that which He says. It invites me, therefore, in order to understand His revelation, to study His work, and in order to realize the significance of His work, to study His word, and thus satisfies my intellectual yearning."

Fourthly, I believe in Islam as it does not seek to crush my natural desires but guides them along right channels. It does not, by altogether crushing my desires, reduce me to a stone; nor does it, by leaving them uncontrolled and unrestrained, reduce me to an animal, but, like an expert irrigation engineer who harnesses uncontrolled waters and makes them run into irrigation channels, thereby bringing prosperity to waste areas, it converts my natural desires by proper control and guidance into high moral qualities."

It does not say to me: God has given you a loving heart but forbids you to select a life companion, or that He has endowed you with the sense of taste and the capacity to appreciate good food, but has forbidden you to eat such food. On the contrary, it teaches me to love in a pure and proper way which would ensure through my progeny the perpetuation of all my good resolves. It permits me to use good food, but within proper limits, lest I should eat my fill and my neighbor should go hungry. By thus converting my natural desires into high moral qualities, it satisfies my humanity.

Fifthly, I believe in Islam for the reason that it has dealt fairly and lovingly not only with me but with the whole world. It teaches me not to discharge my duties towards myself but insists upon my dealing fairly with every other person and thing, and has furnished me with proper guidance for this purpose.

For Instance, It draws attention to the rights of parents and the duties which children owe to their parents. It admonishes the children to behave obediently and tenderly toward their parents, and has made the latter heirs to that which the former may leave. On the other hand, it enjoins love and affection upon the parents for their children and imposes upon them the duty of bringing up their children well, training them in good qualities and looking after their health, and has also made them heirs to their parents.

Similarly, it enjoins the best relationship between husband and wife and requires each to have due consideration for the need and desires of the other and that they should behave affectionately towards each other. This was put beautifully by the Holy Founder of Islam when he said:

" A person who mistreats his wife during the day and loves her at night, acts in complete contradiction to the beauty of human nature."

He also said:

"The best of you are those who treat their wives best."

Again he said:

"A Woman is fragile, like glass, and men should, therefore, treat a woman with delicacy and tenderness, as they would handle an article made of glass."

Islam has laid special stress upon the education and training of girls. The Holy Prophet has said:

"A person, who brings his daughter up well and gives her a good training and education, thereby earns paradise."

Islam has made daughters the heirs of their parents along with the sons.

Again, it has laid down fair rules for the guidance of the rulers and the ruled. It says to the rulers that the authority vested in them is not their private property but is a trust and that they should discharge the obligations of that trust to the utmost, like upright and honest people, and should carry on government in consultation with the people. It says to the ruled, the power to choose your rulers has been bestowed upon you as a gift from God and you should, therefore, be careful to invest only such persons with governing authority as fully deserve it, and after vesting this authority in them, you should give them your fullest cooperation and should not rebel against them, for if you do so, you are merely seeking to demolish that which your own hands have built.

It has also regulated the rights and duties of the employer and employed. It says to the employer: You must render to the workman his full due even before his perspiration is dry on his body and should not look down upon those who work for you, for they are your brothers whose care has been entrusted to you by God and who are the true supporters of your prosperity. You should, therefore, not be so foolish to seek destroy that which constitutes you own support and the basis of your power. It says to the workman: When you are engaged to execute a piece of work for somebody, you should discharge your obligation honestly and with due care and diligence.

It says to those who have been endowed with abundance of physical health and strength that they should not behave oppressively towards the weak, nor treat contemptuously those who suffer from some physical defect of blemish; for these ought to excite one's pity rather than one's contempt.

It says to the wealthy: You have been charged with the duty of looking after the poor and you must set aside one fortieth of your substance every year so that it may be employed in the relief of poverty and distress and for the advancement of those who lack the means of advancement. It teaches them not to enhance the disabilities of the poor by lending money to them on interest but to help them with free gifts and free loans, pointing out that wealth is not given to a man that he may spend his life in luxury and riotous living, but that he should use it for the advancement the whole humanity and should thus deserve the best reward here and hereafter.

On the other hand, it also teaches to the poor not to look with envy and longing upon that which has been given to other people, as these feelings gradually darken the mind disable a person from developing such good qualities as he himself been endowed with it, therefore, exhorts the poor to devote their attention towards developing such talents as God has bestowed upon them, so that they should progress along beneficent lines. It directs governments to afford facilities for the poorer sections of the community for such advancement and not to permit all wealth and power to be concentrated in a few hands.

It reminds those whose ancestors had attained dignity and honor as the result of noble efforts that it is their duty to maintain that dignity and that honor with their own noble efforts, and it warns them against looking down upon others who have not been blessed in the same way, as God has made all mankind equal. It reminds them that God, who has bestowed these honors upon them, can bestow greater honors upon others, and that if they misuse the position to which they have been called and transgress against those who have not been similarly endowed, they will be laying the foundations of future transgressions against themselves by those who are now transgressed against. They should, therefore, take no pride in proclaiming their own greatness, but should take pride in helping others to become great, for true greatness belongs only to him who tries to raise his fallen brother to greatness.

Islam teaches that no nation should transgress against another nation, nor should one state transgress against another, but that nations and states should cooperate with each other for the purpose of advancing the interests of the whole humanity. It forbids some nations and states and individuals from uniting with each other in order to conspire against other nations and states or individuals. On the other hand, it teaches that nations and states and individuals should covenant with each other to restrain each other from aggression and to cooperate with each other in advancing those that are backward.

In short, I find that Islam provides conditions of peace and comfort for me and for all those who may wish to tread path prescribed by it, whoever they may be, whatever they may be and wherever they may be, in whatever position I place myself, I find that Islam is equally useful and beneficial for me and mine, for my neighbors, for people whom I do not know and have not even heard of, for men and for women, for the aged and for the young, for the employer and the employed, for the rich and for the poor, for great nations and for small, for internationalists and for the nationalists, and that it establishes a sure and certain relationship between me and my Maker.

I believe in it and how indeed could I give it up and accept something else in its place.

With Warm Thanks & Regards,
Noor Muhammad Ansari,

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Concept of Worship in Islam

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 03:32:00 +0000

The concept of worship in Islam is misunderstood by many people including some Muslims. Worship is commonly taken to mean performing ritualistic acts such as prayers, fasting, charity, etc. This limited understanding of worship is only one part of the meaning of worship in Islam. That is why the traditional definition of worship in Islam is a comprehensive definition that includes almost everything in any individual's activities. The definition goes something like this:

"Worship is an all inclusive term for all that God loves of external and internal sayings and actions of a person."

In other words, worship is everything one says or does for the pleasure of Allah. This, of course, includes rituals as well as beliefs, social activities, and personal contributions to the welfare of one's fellow human-beings. Islam looks at the individual as a whole. He is required to submit himself completely to Allah, as the Quran instructed the Prophet Muhammad to do:

"Say (O Muhammad) my prayer, my sacrifice, my life and my death belong to Allah; He has no partner and I am ordered to be among those who submit, i.e.; Muslims." (6:162, 163)

The natural result of this submission is that all one's activities should conform to the instructions of the one to whom the person is submitting. Islam, being a way of life, requires that its followers model their life according to its teachings in every aspect, religious or other wise. This might sound strange to some people who think of religion as a personal relation between the individual and God, having no impact on one's activities outside rituals. As a matter of fact Islam does not think much of mere rituals when they are performed mechanically and have no influence on one's inner life. The Quran addresses the believers and their neighbors from among the People of the Book who were arguing with them about the change of the direction of Qibla in the following verse:

"It is not righteousness that you turn your faces toward the East or the West, but righteous is he who believes in Allah and the Last Day and the Angels and the Book and the Prophets, and gives his beloved money to his relatives and the orphans and the needy and for the ransoming of captives and who observes prayer and pays the poor-due; and those who fulfill their promises when they have made one, and the patient in poverty and affliction and the steadfast in time of war; it is those who have proved truthful and it is those who are the God-fearing." (2:177)

The deeds in the above verse are the deeds of righteousness and they are only a part of worship. The Prophet told us about faith, which is the basis of worship, that it "is made up of sixty and some branches; the highest of which is the belief in the Oneness of Allah, i.e., there is no God but Allah and the lowest in the scale of worship is removing obstacles and dirt from people's way." Decent work is considered in Islam a type of worship. The Prophet said:

"Whoever finds himself at the nightfall tired of his work, God will forgive his sins."
Seeking knowledge is one of the highest types of worship. The Prophet told his companions that "seeking knowledge is a (religious) duty on every Muslim." In another saying he said:

"Seeking knowledge for one hour is better than praying for seventy years."
Social courtesy and cooperation are part of worship when done for the sake of Allah as the Prophet told us:
"Receiving your friend with a smile is a type of charity, helping a person to load his animal is a charity and putting some water in your neighbor's bucket is a charity."

It is worth noting that even performing one's duties is considered a sort of worship. The Prophet told us that whatever one spends for his family is a type of charity; he will be rewarded for it if he acquires it through legal means. Kindness to members of one's family is an act of worship as when one puts a piece of food in his spouse's mouth. Not only this but even the acts we enjoy doing very much, when they are performed according to the instructions of the Prophet, are considered as acts of worship. The Prophet told his companions that they will be rewarded even for having sexual intercourse with their wives. The companions were astonished and asked: "How are we going to be rewarded for doing something we enjoy very much?" The Prophet asked them: "Suppose you satisfy your desires illegally; don't you think that you will be punished for that?" They replied, "Yes." "So," he said, "by satisfying it legally with your wives you are rewarded for it." This means they are acts of worship. Thus Islam does not consider sex a dirty thing that one should avoid. It is dirty and sinful only when it is satisfied outside marital life.

It is clear, from the previous discussion that the concept of worship in Islam is a comprehensive concept that includes all the positive activities of the individual. This of course is in agreement with the all inclusive nature of Islam as a way of life. It regulates human life on all levels: individual, social, economic, political and spiritual. That is why Islam provides guidance to the small est details of one's life on all these levels. Thus following these details is following Islamic instructions in that specific area. It is a very encouraging element when one realizes that all his activities are considered by God as acts of worship. This should lead the individual to seek Allah's pleasure in his actions and always try to do them in the best possible manner whether he is watched by his superiors or he is alone. There is always the permanent supervisor, who knows everything, namely, Allah.

Ritual Worship
Discussing the non-ritual worship in Islam first does not mean undervaluing the importance of the ritual ones. Actually ritual worship, if performed in true spirit, elevates man morally and spiritually and enables him to carry on his activities in all walks of life according to the Guidance of God. Among ritual worships, Salah (ritual prayer) occupies the key position for two reasons. Firstly, it is the distinctive mark of a believer. Secondly, it prevents an individual from all sorts of abominations and vices by providing him chances of direct communion with his Creator five times a day, wherein he renews his covenant with God and seeks His guidance again and again:

"You alone we worship and to You alone we turn for help. Guide us to the straight path." (1:5,6)
Actually Salah is the first practical manifestation of Faith and also the foremost of the basis conditions for the success of the believers:

"Successful indeed are the believers who are humble in their prayers." (23:12)
The same fact has been emphasized by the Prophet (PBUH) in a different way. He says:
"Those who offer their Salah with great care and punctuality, will find it a light, a proof of their Faith and cause of their salvation on the Day of Judgment."

After Salah, Zakah (poor-due) is an important pillar of Islam. In the Quran, Salah and Zakah mostly have been mentioned together many times. Like Salah, Zakah is a manifestation of faith that affirms that God is the sole owner of everything in the universe, and what men hold is a trust in their hand over which God made them trustees to discharge it as He has laid down:

"Believe in Allah and His messenger and spend of that over which He made you trustees." (57:7)
In this respect Zakah is an act of devotion which, like prayer, brings the believer nearer to his Lord. Apart from this, Zakah is a means of redistribution of wealth in a way that reduces differences between classes and groups. It makes a fair contribution to social stability. By purging the soul of the rich from selfishness and the soul of the poor from envy and resentment against society, it stops up the channels leading to class hatred and makes it possible for the springs of brotherhood and solidarity to gush forth. Such stability is not merely based on the personal feelings of the rich; it stands on a firmly established right which, if the rich denied it, would be exacted by force, if necessary.

Siyam (fasting during the day time of the month of Ramadan) is another pillar of Islam. The main function of fasting is to make the Muslim pure from "within" as other aspects of Shariah make him pure from "without." By such purity he responds to what is true and good and shuns what is false and evil. This is what we can perceive in the Quranic verse:

"O you who believe, fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may gain piety." (2:183)

In an authentic tradition, the Prophet reported Allah as saying:
"He suspends eating, drinking, and gratification of his sexual passion for My sake."
Thus his reward is going to be according to God's great bounty. Fasting, then, awakens the conscience of the individual and gives it scope for exercise in a joint experience for all society at the same time, thus adding further strength to each individual. Moreover, fasting offers a compulsory rest to the over-worked human machine for the duration of one full month. Similarly fasting reminds an individual of those who are deprived of life's necessities throughout the year or throughout life. It makes him realize the suffering of others, the less fortunate brothers in Islam, and thus promotes in him a sense of sympathy and kindness to them.

Lastly, we come to Al-Hajj (pilgrimage to the House of God in Makkah). This very important pillar of Islam manifests a unique unity, dispelling all kinds of differences. Muslims from all corners of the world wearing the same dress, respond to the call of Hajj in one voice and language; LABBAIK ALLAHUMMA LABBAIK (Here I am at your service O Lord!). In Hajj there is an exercise of strict self-discipline and control where not only sacred things are revered, but even the life of plants and birds is made inviolable so that everything lives in safety:

"And he that venerates the sacred things of God, it shall be better for him with his Lord." (22:30) "And he that venerates the waymarks of God, it surely is from devotion of the heart." (22:32)

Pilgrimage gives an opportunity to all Muslims from all groups, classes, organizations, and governments from all over the Muslim world to meet annually in a great congress. The time and venue of this congress has been set by their One God. Invitation to attend is open to every Muslim. No one has the power to bar anyone. Every Muslim who attends is guaranteed full safety and freedom as long as he himself does not violate its safety. Thus, worship in Islam, whether ritual or non-ritual, trains the individual in such a way that he loves his Creator most and thereby gains an unyielding will and spirit to wipe out all evil and oppression from the human society and make the word of God dominant in the world.

Acknowledgement:
The article is published by World Assembly of Muslim Youth (WAMY), P.O. Box 10845, Riyadh 11443, Saudi Arabia

--
With Warm Thanks & Regards,
Noor Muhammad Ansari,
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Prophet Ibrahim (peace be on him)

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 10:36:00 +0000

The Advent of Ibrahim (Abraham):
Long ago Almighty Allah gave the honor of His choice to a man called Ibrahim. He became the Prophet. His native Mesopotamia is the present southern 'Iraq. He was an ideal model for mankind. Speaking highly of him the Holy Qur'an says:

"Ibrahim was indeed a paragon of virtue, obedient to Allah, ever inclined to Him and he was not of those who set up equals to Allah. He was ever grateful for His favours, We chose him and guided him to a straight path; and We bestowed on him good in this world and in the Hereafter, he will surely be among the righteous." (16: 121-123)

His Nation was Staunch Worshippers of Idols:

In the days of the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) ignorance prevailed upon the minds of the people. Most of the people had no knowledge of Allah and His teachings. They worshipped the sun, the moon and the stars. They were astronomers and maintained the records of the movements of the planets. They prayed to the idols made of wood and stone and made many offerings for them. The priests enjoyed a prominent place in the society. They commanded respect among their followers. They were paid well. The poor people were ruled by the chiefs. They were subjected to their cruelty and injustice.

The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was the son of Terah whose surname Adhar was popularly known. He was a doll carver and a staunch worshipper of idols. He did all he could to compel Ibrahim (peace be upon him) to worship the handicrafts of man but flatly refused to do so. He hated even an idea of worshipping the idols which could neither see, nor hear, nor speak.

The Prophet Ibrahim's Preaching:

The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) received the message of Allah through a special angel Gabriel (Jibra'il). Gradually he was commanded to start preaching. As he was a strong man in his will and determination, he worked very hard. He began his mission in the teeth of opposition. He argued with his people with great vigour regarding the folly of worshipping the idols. The Holy Qur'an says:

"When he said to his father and his people: What are these images to which you are so devoted ? They replied: We found our fathers worshipping them. He said: Then you as well as your fathers have indeed, been in manifest error. They said: Is it really the truth that you have brought for us or are you jesting ? He replied: Nay, your Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth; He brought them into existence and I am of those who bear witness to this, and by Allah, I will certainly plan against your idols after you have gone away and turned your backs." (21: 53-58)

Opposition by the People and Discussion with the King:

The people paid no heed to his teachings. They insisted on their ways. They did not refrain from worshipping the twinkling stars, shining moon and ugly idols. The priests kept on encouraging the people to disbelieve in the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him). They were afraid lest they should be deprived of their priesthood if the people abandoned idol-worship. As a matter of fact the king Nemrùd in that area thought himself to be god. He had a big castle and many soldiers at his disposal. He desired to argue with the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) one day. They met to hold discussions: The king looked at the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) mockingly for a while. Then he said: What is this thing you are calling the people for? Why do you persuade the People to worship God Who is invisible? The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) replied boldly: My God is the One: Who gives and takes away life. Nemrud answered arrogantly: I have also the power to do that. I can kill the persons and can spare them also. The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) asked a clever question that caught every one by surprise. He said: My God causes the sun to rise from the East and set it in the West. Can you make it come from the east? On hearing the king remained silent because he knew that no man had the power to do so.

Breakage of the Idols:

After a few days a special event took place. There was a grand ceremony outside the locality and every one had to participate in the celebrations. Most of the evil-doers drank; liquor and became noisy and wild. They were losing their balance of mind in a state of intoxication. There was a great hustle. Almost every one from the town attended the ceremony except the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him). He had a special plan in his mind. He proceeded towards the Temple escaping the sight of others. When he entered the Temple, he saw there many statues which stood motionless and helpless.

The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) lifted his heavy axe and began to smite the idols turn by turn. The idols fell to the ground with a big thud. The floor was loaded with numerous noses, ears, heads, arms, legs and other parts of the idols. He broke all the idols in the sanctuary but spared the Chief one. He did so to demonstrate that the idols had no power to cause harm to any one or bestow benefits upon others. They were as helpless as mere stones and it is against the dignity of human beings to pay homage to them. When the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) finished his job, he left the Temple cautiously making sure that no one had seen him.

Decision to Burn Ibrahim Alive:

When the celebrations came to an end, the people returned. The priests went directly towards the Temple as usual and some people accompanied them. They saw that the idols were smashed to pieces. The floor was littered with stones and the Chief idol was standing with an axe hanging down along its neck. The priests began to scream and became confused. The people rushed to the Temple on hearing a deafening hue and cry. Every one was in a furious mood. They wanted to know who had dared do this trouble to the idols. They wished to take revenge. Then some one said that the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) would have done so because he consistently spoke ill of our gods and advised the people to worship One God. The Holy Qur'an relates:

"Then he broke them into pieces except the Chief of them that haply they may return to him. They said: Who has done so to our gods? Most surely he is one of the evil-doers. We heard a youth called Ibrahim making mention of them." (21:57)

The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was summoned to appear before the king. When he came, he was asked if he had destroyed all those idols. He remained silent for a while. Afterwards he directed the king to ask the chief idol on whose neck was hung the axe with which the havoc was done. The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was mocking and making fun of those stupid people who worshipped helpless, dumb and deaf idols made of stones. The king as well as the priests did not like to prolong their discussions because the arguments of the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) were very sound and convincing. The Holy Qur'an relates:

"Then they said to Ibrahim: Is it you who has done so to our gods? He replied: Well, some one has surely done this. Here is the chief of them, so ask them if they can speak. Then they turned towards one another and said: You yourselves are surely in the wrong. Then they were made to hung down their heads out of shame and said to Ibrahim: Certainly you know that they do not speak." (21: 65-68).Although they felt ashamed yet they remained stubborn. They decided to burn the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) alive for causing destruction to their idols.

Fire does not Burn The Prophet Ibrahim:

A big furnace was prepared for this purpose. The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was tied with a rope and he could hardly move. He was quite calm and cheerful believing firmly that Allah would save him. He did not even resist and the spectators were amazed at his attitude.

The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was thrown in the centre of the furnace. The flames of the fire were blazing. They sizzled and hissed but the Almighty Allah ordered the fire not to harm His friend Ibrahim (peace be upon him):

"We said: 0' fire! Be thou a means of comfort and security for Ibrahim." (21:70)

The transgressors thought that the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) had burnt to death. They did not hear the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) shouting with pain. Some time later the people saw the prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) walking out of the fire safe as if nothing had touched him. They were much surprised to see him.

Migration to Palestine:

In spite of this miracle the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) could not have a large number of people following his teachings. He went on preaching and underwent a chain of tests and trials to prove his obedience and sincerity. When his people tortured the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him), he was ordered to leave that area and go to the blessed land which is now called Palestine. In compliance with the Commandment of Almighty Allah the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) did not lose a moment's rest without getting in touch with the people and teaching them about God and His message. Nothing seemed to discourage him.

Birth of the Prophet Isma'il and Migration to Mecca:

As the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) had no off-spring from his first wife Sarah, he entered into matrimonial alliance with another woman called Hajira (Hagar). He prayed for a son in all sublimity and his prayer was granted. Some time later Hajira announced happy news that she was expecting a baby. As time passed she gave birth to Isma'il (Ishmael). Soon after God ordered the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) to take his wife Hajira and the Prophet Isma'il(peace be upon him) to the valley of Bathã (Mecca). In accordance with the Divine Commandment he set out on a long and troublesome journey. They arrived at the spot after a long time. It was hilly area without any trees and water. They set up their tents and looked around but nothing was visible except sand. The Prophet Ismail (peace be upon him) had attained the age of a few months only when the event of migration took place. He began to cry because of thirst. His mother began to look for water but it was not available anywhere.

Zam Zam is Discovered:

She ran desperately in quest of water between two hillocks called Safa and Marwa but found no water. She came back to her thirsty infant and was surprised to see the spring of Zam Zam emerged from beneath the foot of the Prophet Isma'il (peace be upon him). She heaved a sigh of relief. She quenched the thirst of her baby with water. Many people from far and wide came to the spot where Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and his family had settled. Gradually this locality named Mecca became the birth place of Islam.

Vision of the Prophet Ibrahim Regarding the Sacrifice of the Prophet Isma'il:

The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) went back to Palestine to join his first wife, the beloved Sarah. He received a Commandment in his vision to sacrifice his only son, Isma'il. The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) had no hesitation in complying with what he was ordered to do but his son was infant at that time. He had to wait until he grew older. Due to delay the temptation of not doing what he was supposed to do, was certainly there. But the Prophet Ibrahim (peace he upon him) had a solid faith in Allah and his life was all dedicated to His' service. So he kept on waiting until Prophet Isma'il (peace be upon him) became a teenager. One day the father told his son about the dream. To his great surprise he saw that Prophet Isma'il (peace be upon him) had no objection and was willing to be sacrificed as Allah had willed it. He said:

"O' my father! Do what you have been commanded to do; then you will find me of the patients." (37: 10, 11)

This was a hard decision for a young man to take and it was a moment of great faith in Allah.

The Ordeal of Sacrifice of Prophet Ismail:

On the tenth of Dhil Hijja the father and his beloved son walked side by side. A young lad possessed forbearance and the old man was full of determination and spirit to complete submission to Allah. Their purpose was to carry out the orders of their Lord. Nothing was dearer to them than the service of Allah. They proceeded towards Mina with a sharp butcher's knife that, the old shaky Ibrahim had in his hand. Many a thought and memories of the past must have crossed in their minds. Finally they reached a special spot. The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) looked at his loving son whereas Prophet Isma'il (peace be upon him) cast a glance at his, father obediently and cheerfully. The father laid his son prostrate on the ground. He was standing beside him. His heart was beating violently. He was shaking with emotions when he drew the knife across the neck of his son. It was a moment of action, an action that was very hard to put into practice.

God highly appreciated them for their obedience and they heard a voice:

"0' Ibrahim! you have indeed shown the truth of the vision. Surely do We reward the doers of good." (37:105)

When Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) fulfilled the command of the dream, he was ordered not to sacrifice his own son. A ram was provided in his stead. The Prophet Isma'il (peace be upon him) stood up and the ram was sacrificed. So the moment of suspense came to an end and both the father and the son expressed a deep sense of happiness and gratitude. From that time until today, the savage custom human sacrifice has been absolutely abolished.

Glad Tidings Regarding the Birth of Prophet Ishaq:

When the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) displayed his unstinted submission to the orders of Allah by trying to sacrifice his beloved son Ismail he was informed of a glad-tiding regarding the birth of baby from Sarah, his first wife. The Holy Qur'an affirms:

"And We gave him the good news of Ishaq (Isaac), a Prophet among the good ones and We showered our blessings on him and on Ishaq, and of their offspring are the doers of good and also those who are clearly unjust to their ownselves." (37: 112, 113)

Time passed by and Sarah, the old lady got pregnant. At last she gave birth to a male baby and they gave him the name of Ishaq. Later on Isma'il (peace be upon him) proved to be the Prophet of the Muslims and Ishaq (peace be upon him) became the Prophet of the Jews.

Re-construction of Ka'bah:

The first House of Allah, the Ka'bah was erected by the Prophet Adam (peace be upon him). It was reconstructed by the Prophet Ibrahim and the Prophet Isma'il (peace be upon them). The Muqam-e-Ibrahim is still outside the enclosure. It is a place of marble-like stone on which he stood to raise the walls of the sanctuary at Mecca. This stone contains the sunken imprints of the feet of the great Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him). The Holy Qur'an testifies to the hallowed sanctity of this stone by declaring it to be one of the Signs of Allah. It says:

"We made the House a resort for men and a place of security after saying: Take as your place of worship the spot where Ibrahim stood to pray. And We enjoined Ibrahim and Isma'il by saying: Purify My House for those who visit it and those who meditate therein; and those who bow down and those who prostrate themselves." (1:125)

Burial Place:

The Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) lived for 175 years. His life was full of happenings, tests and trials. He had a firm faith in Allah. He never missed a moment's rest in calling for the message of Allah. He gained thousands upon thousands of believers. When he passed away, he was buried in Hebron, twenty miles south-west of Jerusalem.

With Warm Thanks & Regards,
Noor Muhammad Ansari,

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Quran: The Miracle of Prophet Muhammad

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 10:16:00 +0000

Certain non-Muslims once came before the Prophet Muhammad and asked him for proof that he was a true prophet. They pointed out that Moses, one of God's prophets, had come before the world with the miracles of the Staff and the White Hand – clear proof of his being a genuine prophet. Jesus, they added, had made the blind see and had healed lepers, again proving by these miracles that he was a prophet of God. Other prophets, too, had been given the power to perform miracles, and they had not hesitated to display this power as a proof of their prophet hood. "Tell us," they said, "what miracle have you brought as proof of your prophet hood?"

The Prophet listened in silence to what they had to say, then he read out these concluding verses of the third chapter of the Qur'an:

In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and day, there are signs for men of sense; those that remember God when standing, sitting and lying down, and reflect on the creation of the heavens and the earth (saying): 'Lord, You have not created these in vain. Glory be to You! Save us from the torment of the Fire. Lord, those whom You will cast into hell shall be put to eternal shame: none will help the evil-doers. Lord we have heard a preacher call men to the true faith, saying: 'Believe in your Lord,' and we believed. Lord, forgive us our sins and remove from us our evil deeds and make us die with the righteous (3:193).

By reciting these verses, the Prophet meant to show that the proof of his prophethood lay in the universe spread all around us. The whole system of the heavens and the earth testified, albeit silently, to the truth of his prophethood and divine revelation. What further miracle was then required?

The prophethood of the Prophet Muhammad was for all time to come. That being so, a miracle of a temporary nature would not suffice to guarantee the genuineness of his mission. His miracle, like his prophethood had to be of a permanent nature, so that even after he had left this world, its benefits would continue to accrue to future generations. That is why the Prophet presented God's world as an enduring miracle in support of his prophethood. The Qur'an has specified those aspects of the universal system, which prove the need for the divine guidance of man on this earth.

The universe is characterized by a question mark after its whole existence; prophethood provides the answer to that question. We have before us a grand and impeccable universe. Not only does it visibly exist, but it is also in perpetual motion; it functions with clockwork regularity and is free of all imperfections. Extremely meaningful activities are taking place within it, and all its component parts are coordinated with total precision. In spite of the incredibly vast and multifaceted expanse which it occupies, it shows absolute perfection in its system of functioning.

On seeing such a universe, one has to ask, "Who is its Creator?" "Who is its Master?" and, "How has all this been brought into being from nothingness?"

The universe puts these questions to us, but it does not give us the answers. It gives us a glimpse of the rainbow without showing us the face of its Creator. There is motion in this world, there is life and there is light. Creativity is at work in every nook and cranny, powered by an all-pervading energy which manifests itself in a great diversity of forms. Many are the life forms in this world, and as many are the 'languages' in which they express themselves, but, as far as the all-important questions are concerned, all remain silent. Neither is there any material thing to give mankind answers to those questions - no signboards on the mountainsides, no special cloud formations in the sky. Here is a riddle which simply cries out for someone to provide us with the answers.

Besides this, an even more difficult question arises as ¬to the ultimate destination of the universe. Everything in it is in motion. The Earth spins on a never-ending journey. The solar system is constantly revolving and, as it does so, takes the Earth and other planets irresistibly in one particular direction. The galaxy to which our solar system¬ belongs is also in motion, taking our solar system and other stars on an unending journey through space. The whole universe is on its way to some destination. But there is no part of the celestial caravan, which gives us an inkling of where it is going – or even if it will ever come to rest.

This is a question of the utmost importance to man, for he too is part of that celestial caravan. He too is careering towards an unknown destination. Unless he is enlightened as to the nature of his journey and his final destination, his life will be lived in a twilight of doom and uncertainty. This state of affairs demands that there should be some way of giving man this precious information. How else is he to understand the reality confronting him?

Another important question which is closely related to this is what man should, and should not do. All human beings find themselves in situations where more than one line of action is possible. Which of these are they to choose, and what standards must they set themselves in order to make the best choice? Human beings are not like water, whose course is determined for it by the ups and downs of the land it is crossing. They are not like the stars who move according to a certain order without having to give any thought to it. Nor are they like the trees whose skywards growth is not of their own choosing. Unlike the objects of the universe, which are never faced with options, man has always to think of what to do, how to do it, what to take and what to leave. Because of the will and power with which he has been invested, he finds himself eternally confronted with moral dilemmas. Man, in fact, is the only being in the universe for which a definite course of action has not been laid down.

Functioning with perfect regularity, the sun daily gives us light, but it does not throw any light on the question of our lives. Winds blow all over the world, bringing the fragrance of the flowers to our nostrils, but they do not bring us any news concerning the basic issues confronting us. Water remains liquid, freezes, turns into vapour all in accordance with a definite law. It provides us with coolness and moisture. It is the most refreshing of all drinks. But it does not aid us at all in our quest for the truth. The Earth unfailingly rotates upon its axis, thereby removing the veil of night and bringing to us the light of day. But it does not lay bare to us the secret or life. Trees burst upwards through the surface of the earth, to go to work like some highly efficient factory, providing us with nourishment and shade, but they give us nothing with which to nourish our minds. The birds cheer us with their melodies, never in doubt themselves as to which course to adopt. But no mes¬sage do they pass on to us in a language we can understand. Stars and planets keep faithfully to their path, never deviating by a single second from their heavenly schedule. Yet they do not reveal the goal towards which mankind is meant to strive.

Everything in the universe, from tiny ants to vast constellations, adheres to a single definite course, and, judging from the way all things are faithful to the pattern laid down for them, they are fully aware of the course they are meant to steer. Only man remains in ignorance of his course of action. In this, he stands alone in the universe- an unaware creature adrift in an all-knowing Cosmos. He sees every¬thing proceeding in due course towards its destination, but, as for himself, he has no idea of what he should do, or where he should go.

Another, more important characteristic which distinguishes man from the rule-bound objects of the universe is that he has the power to do as he wills, launching himself on this or that course of action, or refraining from it al¬together, as he chooses. The Earth rotates on its axis and travels in its orbit without infringing upon the domain of other planets. With man, things are very different. While all things in the world are geared in a certain direction, man is the only being with the capacity to proceed in more than one direction so that when man leaves his own domain, he often encroaches upon those of his fellow-men. This fact alone shows that a man must chalk out his course of action in a way very different from the remainder of the Universe. The denizens of the animal and vegetable kingdoms have an innate knowledge of their path, just as celestial objects have their appointed course. But man is not born with this knowledge, and must find it elsewhere.

History, sad to say, has demonstrated man's inability to seek out the correct course in life. He may be endowed with a keen intellect and a broad-based understanding, but these have proved woefully inadequate in dealing with the basic issue in life- the question of what course of action to adopt. No efforts of his own can enable him to arrive at an answer to this question: the experience of thousands of years has shown this to be true.

Not finding any answer to his question in the world around him, man started delving into the matter himself, but whole generations of truth-seekers have failed to arrive at any convincing conclusions. Man may have discovered the principles underlying the motion of the stars and planets, but he has not been successful in finding out anything about his own life's journey – where it began, and where it will all come to an end. He has discovered the laws of the animal, vegetable and mineral worlds, but the law of man himself has remained a mystery to him. He has grasped the fact that when matter is destroyed, it converts into energy, which then turns into matter when destroyed itself. But what happens to a man after death? No answer to this question has so far been furnished by the human intellect. Man has discovered that all objects in the universe are governed in their behaviour by one unchanging law, and that they have continued to function for millions of years without once deviating in the slightest from the dictates of this law. But, as for the law which guides man in his life – he has remained in the dark as to what this may be. Using the most advanced equipment, man has gazed into the outer reaches of space and delved deep into the internal workings of the tiniest of atoms. But he has not been able to gain any insight into the reality of man, or even according to what Plan he has come into the world.

To find out about himself is man's greatest need, yet, in this, he is quite helpless. His very helplessness shows that he is in desperate need of someone to guide him. Herein lies the conclusive proof of the necessity for prophet hood. Without prophetic guidance, man is unable to make his life meaningful. The sheer necessity of prophet hood for man is further confirmed by the teachings of the prophets which provided complete and, therefore, satisfactory answers to all the questions confronting man: they are, in themselves, a proof that the prophets were sent into the world by God, and that they derived their knowledge from Him. One of the most important features of their mission is to explain the divine laws by which man must allow his existence to be governed, for, unlike the non-human creature of this world, man has no innate knowledge of the laws to which he must conform.

The crucial point made by the Prophet Muhammad is that this universe has One God who, with His extraordinary strength and wisdom, controls and sustains it. In order to understand how perfectly satisfactory this explanation is, let us imagine a complex piece of machinery which runs with perfect precision, but which bears no inscription which would give us a clue as to its origins. Onlookers, amazed at its masterly construction, would dearly like to know the name of the manufacturer. Their curiosity is at last set at rest when an informed person names the most advanced factory in the entire field of engineering as its place of manufacture. This quit adequately explains how all its parts happen to work with such smooth coordination.

Likewise, our wonder at the impeccable functioning of our colossal universe and our curiosity about how it came into existence are satisfied by the Prophet's explanation that there is one all-powerful God, who has created this world and who guides it on its journey by means of His divine power. We find this answer acceptable because it is in no way far-fetched. Belief in God, in fact, is in no essential way different from belief in ourselves. At the purely human level, we apprehend ourselves as beings who see, hear, think, move around, use their hands and their brains, make plans, make things happen in the world, and so on. Just this experience of ourselves tells us that human beings are invested with certain powers, albeit in limited form. What then is so extraordinary about these same powers being embodied, to absolute perfection, in an all-powerful God? The relative scales on which these powers are enjoyed may be widely different but, in essence, the powers remain the same. The "I am" that everyone understands in everyday life is the very statement which proves that "God is."

The other certainty which the Prophet brings to us is that this universe has a definite end which will become manifest to us after death. He makes it clear also that the power which man appears to wield in this world has been granted to him only for a certain limited period of time so that he may be put to the divine test. When this period is over, the present Order will be replaced with a new and perfect one, and, whereas God is now hidden from our view, He will at that time become manifest in all His might and majesty. If He remains concealed from us at the present time, it is so that We may more effectively be put to the test. Everyone is given the opportunity to make the most of his or her time in this world, but it is only those who proved faithful to God, when God was as yet hidden from the world, who will receive God's blessings to the fullest extent in the world that is to come. Those who remained at a distance from God in this world will find themselves far removed from His blessings in the eternal world of the afterlife.

The word of the Prophet is the ultimate truth, for, is it conceivable that God should create a sensate being such as man without His ever appearing before him to allow him to see and know his Lord?

It is likewise inconceivable that a world which appears so meaningful to us should have no just conclusion, and that there should not come a day when wrongdoing and in¬justice are exposed for what they are. Here, once again, the message that the Prophet brings us about the Day of Judgment strikes a welcome chord in the human heart. In a world where things come into being from nothingness, as it were, where day follows night, where mighty trees spring from tiny seeds, where today is always followed by tomorrow, we should have no difficulty in accepting the idea of a hereafter. It is like the breaking of a new day, but on a wider horizon than the daybreak we witness with our own eyes in this world. Once we have had it put to us in this way, we find it quite easy to accept the coming of an even greater tomorrow than that which comes to us daily with the rising of the sun. The word of the Prophet converts what we feel should happen into a conscious conviction. It puts the stamp of certainty on an event, which is only hinted at by the happenings of this world.

Human beings, by their very nature, desire a definite focus for their attention, some point upon which they can concentrate their thoughts and emotions. This is a continual need which is felt by all. Some meet this need by giving all their attention to their wives and families, to their tribe, clan or country. Some make wealth or power their central purpose in life. Few of these things, however, are deserving of the serious consideration given to them by the majority of the people, and can cause a distinct perversion of what human urges ought to be. None of these things has the capacity to give a man moral support in times of need, and none will improve the prospects of his life having a successful outcome.

The attainment of goals connected with the above¬mentioned personal interests is almost invariably, at the expense of another, and this leads to continuous strife in society. What people need is the kind of focus for their attention which will contribute to their own spiritual uplift without causing any harm to others. The prime focus offered to mankind by the Prophet is the worship of Almighty God. This means putting one's trust in Him and fearing Him and loving Him above all else. This is a course of action which has been made easy for us to understand by the Prophet's showing us how God, unlike finite matter, is in¬finite not only in His power but in His accessibility. He has made it plain that there can be no worthier focus of our attention; his advocacy of this cause supports his claim that he has been sent to the world by God.

One of the major afflictions of human society is that no matter how faultlessly its laws are formulated, there are always people who will find loopholes in them. The wielder of power defies the law, the rich man buys 'justice' and the clever manipulator conceals his wrong-doing or displays it in a favourable light. The cheats and twisters of truth are legion. When human beings deal with other human beings without any reference whatsoever to God, all kinds of malpractices are to be expected. But the moment God be-comes the true focus of attention; all such ignoble activity ceases outright. When one is dealing with God, from whom nothing can be hidden, one steps warily, and with due regard for one's fellow-men. We should never lose sight of the fact that the law can never be upheld unless there is the kind of respect for it which is rooted in the fear of God.

The essential factor in the making of a sound world order is the spirit of self-sacrifice. What does such sacrifice en¬tail? It means giving precedence to the opinions of others, seeing the credit due to oneself given to others, putting others' interests before those of one's own household, and even handing over one's own hard-earned wealth to others, or expending energy on apparently thankless tasks. Without this spirit of sacrifice, society degenerates into a den of deceit and plunder. It is when people believe that there is no other life but the life of this world that they have no incentive to be self-sacrificing. Without God as the focus of attention, society is inevitably torn with strife, making it impossible for a harmonious environment ever to develop on earth.

The Prophet, however, shows mankind a different and better destiny, one which is based on the worship of God and the self-sacrifice which that entails. Moreover, he makes people realize that their sacrifices are not a senseless waste, for they will be fully rewarded in the afterlife. When people begin to realize what value their right action will have in the eyes of God, they will root out all injustice from society and lay down a solid foundation for truth and justice. Everyone will then be ready to sacrifice his own interests, without which no stable and upright society can come into existence. The religion brought by the Prophet of Islam is no different from that brought by his forerunners. Its only distinguishing feature is that, whereas the previous religions could not survive intact after the passing of their prophets that of Islam has been preserved in its pristine form right down to the present day. It was because the fol¬lowers of previous religions were not powerful enough to preserve their religion in its original form that God sent the Prophet of Islam as the final prophet to the world, and helped him to gain ascendancy over all other nations and religious denominations. The success of the Prophet was indeed extraordinary; giving tangible proof that he was truly a prophet of God, for such success has not been the lot of any other individual throughout the entire history of the world. Such an incomparable victory could never have been within the grasp of an ordinary human being, and it was only with divine assistance that the Prophet could triumph in the way he did.

The victory of the Prophet Muhammad over his enemies and the success enjoyed by his mission, both in and outside Arabia, are unique events in world history. This is a fact accepted by reputed historians who freely admit that the Prophet's success has never been equalled either before or after him. Even those who do not believe in him feel compelled to put the Prophet's name at the top of any list they compile of great figures in world history.

The Prophet's unique and exceptional success is usually categorized as a human achievement, pure and simple, thus entitling him to lavish praise as a great personality. But there is obviously more to his success than this, for if it was nothing more than a 'human achievement' in the normal sense of the expression, why is it that no other human being has been able to equal it? There should have been nothing to prevent other figures in history from winning similar or even greater victories. The truth of the matter is that the exceptional nature of the Prophet's success is a sign of the most tremendous significance: it is a sign of his having had God's assistance in whatever he did. It was because he was God's prophet, God's representative on this earth, that the Almighty gave him His divine succour. The exceptional success he achieved proved him over and over again not only to be an outstanding human being but to be the true Prophet of God.

What is even more important is that the Prophet's success laid the ground work for the permanent preservation of the religion he brought. The triumph of his progress made it possible for his followers to found an empire ex¬tending over a vast area, and this in itself ensured the perpetuity of the Prophet's religion. It is truly remarkable that fourteen hundred years have elapsed since the coming of the Prophet without his religion having been altered in the slightest way. It has been preserved in all its purity, exactly in the form in which the Prophet presented it to the world. In an¬cient times, the nations who had been entrusted with the guardianship of the Divine Scriptures repeatedly betrayed that trust, allowing the Book of God to be laid waste. New Prophets, therefore, had to come to the world time and time again in order to revivify the true spirit of religion and to re-introduce its teachings in their true form to mankind. But after the Prophet of Islam, the world will see no further prophets, for the Book which the Prophet gave to the world – the Quran – is still fully preserved in its original form.

It is not only the Prophet's Scripture – the Quran – which is with us today, but his very own spirit. It is as though he himself were still amongst us as a living Prophet, for his utterances, the events of his life, the struggle of his prophetic mission, have all been fully recorded and have remained, intact. Thanks to the advent of the modern printing press authentic renderings of his thoughts and actions can be read and appreciated all over the world. It is an absolute certainty that he will remain God's Messenger to mankind for all time to come.

with ref : http://cpsglobal.org/content/quran-miracle-prophet-muhammad

With Warm Thanks & Regards,
Noor Muhammad Ansari,

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Europol Report: All Terrorists are Muslimsâ¦Except the 99.6% that Arenât

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 10:30:00 +0000

Europol releases an annual study of terrorism; the results do not support claims that "(nearly) all Muslims are terrorists"

Islamophobes have been popularizing the claim that "not all Muslims are terrorists, but (nearly) all terrorists are Muslims." Despite this idea becoming axiomatic in some circles, it is quite simply not factual. In my previous article entitled "All Terrorists are Muslims…Except the 94% that Aren't", I used official FBI records to show that only 6% of terrorist attacks on U.S. soil from 1980 to 2005 were carried out by Islamic extremists. The remaining 94% were from other groups (42% from Latinos, 24% from extreme left wing groups, 7% fro m extremist Jews, 5% from communists, and 16% from all other groups).
But what about across the pond? The data gathered by Europol strengthens my argument even further. (hat tip: Koppe) Europol publishes an annual report entitled EU Terrorism Situation and Trend Report. On their official website, you can access the reports from 2007, 2008, and 2009. (If anyone can find the reports from earlier than that, please let me know so we can include those as well.)
The results are stark, and prove decisiv ely that not all terrorists are Muslims. In fact, a whopping 99.6% of terrorist attacks in Europe were by non-Muslim groups; a good 84.8% of attacks were from separatist groups completely unrelated to Islam. Leftist groups accounted for over sixteen times as much terrorism as radical Islamic groups. Only a measly 0.4% of terrorist attacks from 2007 to 2009 could be attributed to extremist Muslims.
Here are the official tables provided in the reports…
For 2006:

For 2007:
< img src="http://www.loonwatch.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/2007b.jpg" border="0" alt="2007b" width="550" height="261" style="border-top-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-bottom-style: none; border-left-style: none; border-width: initial; border-color: initial; ">
For 2008:

(According to the report, there was 1 "Islamist attack" in the UK in 2008, which was omitted in the table above. It has been included in the bar graph below.)
Just glancing at those tables is enough to know how absurd it is to claim that "all terrorists are Muslims." That statement is nowhere near the truth. If we compile the data, it comes out to this:

On p.7, the 2009 Europol report concludes:

Islamist terrorism is still perceived as being the biggest threat worldwide, despite the fact that the EU only faced one Islamist terrorist attack in 2008. This bomb attack took place in the UK…Separatist terrorism remains the terrorism area which affects the EU most. This includes Basque separatist terrorism in Spain and France, and Corsican terrorism in France…Past contacts between ETA and the FARC illustrate the fact that also separatist terrorist organizations seek cooperation partners outside the EU on the basis of common interests. In the UK, dissident Irish republican groups, principally the RIRA and the CIRA, and other paramilitary groups may continue to engage in crime and violence.
Perception is not reality. Due to the right wing's influence and propaganda, people mistakenly think that Islamic terrorism is the greatest threat to the Western world. It is even a commonly held belief that Islamic terrorism poses an existential threat–that the very survival of the Western world is at stake. Of course, the reality is that there are other groups that engage in terrorism on a m uch larger scale, yet these terrorist incidents are minimized. Acts of terrorism committed by Muslims are purposefully sensationalized and focused upon, culminating in the idea that "(nearly) all terrorists are Muslims."
Terrorism from Islamic extremists is certainly a cause for concern, but it need not be an issue that creates mass hysteria. Nor should it be allowed to be such a critical issue that we are willing to sacrifice our ideals or civil rights for fear of it. Neither should we be reduced to a status of absolute sissitude. We have analyzed data from America and Europe (a good portion of the entire Western world), and the threat from Islamic terrorism is much more minimal than commonly assumed; in the U.S., it accounts for 6% of terrorist attacks, and in Europe not even half of a percent.
It is only through sensationalism and fear mongering that the topic of Islamic terrorism is allowed to be used to demonize a religious community that happens to be a minority in the West. When confronted by such lunacy, we ought to respond with the facts and the truth.
In a future article, we shall analyze the data for terrorism on the world stage in order to further strengthen our argument…
http://www.loonwatch.com/2010/01/terrorism-in-europe/
All Terrorists are Muslims…Except the 94% that Aren't
Posted on 20 January 2010 by Danios

CNN recently published an article entitled Study: Threat of Muslim-American terrorism in U.S. exaggerated; according to a study released by Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, "the terrorist threat posed by radicalized Muslim-Americans has been exaggerated."
Yet, Americans continue to live in mortal fear of radical Islam, a fear propagated and inflamed by right wing Islamophobes. If one follows the cable news networks, it seems as if all terrorists are Muslims. It has even become axiomatic in some circles t o chant:"Not all Muslims are terrorists, but nearly all terrorists are Muslims." Muslims and their "leftist dhimmi allies" respond feebly, mentioning Waco as the one counter example, unwittingly affirming the belief that "nearly all terrorists are Muslims."
But perception is not reality. The data simply does not support such a hasty conclusion. On the FBI's official website, there exists a chronological list of all terrorist attacks committed on U.S. soil from the year 1980 all the way to 2005. That list can be accessed here (scroll down all the way to the bottom).
Terrorist Attacks on U.S. Soil b y Group, From 1980 to 2005, According to FBI Database
According to this data, there were more Jewish acts of terrorism within the United States than Islamic (7% vs 6%). These radical Jews committed acts of terrorism in the name of their religion. These were not terrorists who happened to be Jews; rather, they were extremist Jews who committed acts of terrorism based on their religious passions, just like Al-Qaeda and company.
Yet notice the disparity in media coverage between the two. It would indeed be very interesting to construct a corresponding pie chart that depicted the l evel of media coverage of each group. The reason that Muslim apologists and their "leftist dhimmi allies" cannot recall another non-Islamic act of terrorism other than Waco is due to the fact that the media gives menial (if any) coverage to such events. If a terrorist attack does not fit the "Islam is the perennial and existential threat of our times" narrative, it is simply not paid much attention to, which in a circuitous manner reinforces and "proves" the preconceived narrative. It is to such an extent that the average American cannot remember any Jewish or Latino terrorist; why should he when he has never even heard of the Jewish Defense League or the Ejercito Popular Boricua Macheteros? Surely what he does not know does not exist!
The Islamophobes claim that Islam is intrinsically a terrorist religion. The proof? Well, just about every terrorist attack is Islamic, they retort. Unfortunately for them, that's not quite true. More like six percent. Using their defunct logic, these right wingers ought now to conclude that nearly all acts of terrorism are committed by Latinos (or Jews). Let them dare say it…they couldn't; it would be political and social suicide to say such a thing. Most Americans would shut down such talk as bigoted; yet, similar statements continue to be said of Islam, without any repercussions.
The Islamophobes live in a fantasy world where everyone is supposedly too "politically correct" to criticize Islam and Muslims. Yet, the reality is the exact opposite: you can get away with saying anything against the crescent. Can you imagine the reaction if I said that Lat inos should be profiled because after all they are the ones who commit the most terrorism in the country? (For the record: I don't believe in such profiling, because I am–unlike the right wing nutters–a believer in American ideals.)
The moral of the story is that Americans ought to calm down when it comes to Islamic terrorism. Right wingers always live in mortal fear–or rather, they try to make you feel that way. In fact, Pamela Geller (the queen of internet Islamophobia) literally said her mission was to "scare the bejeezus outta ya." Don't be fooled, and don't be a wuss. You don't live in constant fear of radicalized Latinos (unless you're Lou Dobbs), even though they commit seven times more acts of terrorism than Muslims in America. Why then are you wetting yourself over Islamic radicals? In the words of Cenk Uygur: you're at a ten when you need to be at a four. Nobody is saying that Islamic terrorism is not a matter of concern, but it's grossly exaggerated.
Related Posts:
Europol report: All terrorists are Muslims…Except the 99.6% that aren't
RAND report: Threat of homegrown jihadism exaggerated, Zero U.S. civilians killed since 9/11
Update:
A reader by the name of Dima added:
The FBI Terrorism Report shows…[that] the highest number of terrorist incidents in the U.S. by region (90) took place in Puerto Rico.
Second Update:
An Islamophobe commented on this article, saying that the statistics are flawed because the FBI included small acts such as "stealing rats from a lab" as an act of terrorism. Of course, this is patently false. Here is a breakdown of the terrorist attacks by type (the pie chart is from the FBI's official website and can be accessed here):
Terrorism by Event, From 1980 to 2005, According to FBI Database
http://www.loonwatch.com/2010/01/not-all-terrorists-are-muslims/

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Skype ID : ansarinoor
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HIJAB IN THE WORKPLACE

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 01:32:00 +0000

What are the requirements for Muslim women's dress?

A: Rules regarding Muslim women's (and men's) attire are derived from
the Quran, Islam's revealed text, and the traditions (hadith) of the
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). In the Quran, God states: "Say to
the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their
modesty...And s ay to the believing women that they should lower their
gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty
and adornments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they
should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty
except to their husbands, their fathers...(a list of exceptions)"
[Chapter 24, verses 30-31] Also, "O Prophet! Tell thy wives and
daughters, and the believing women, that they should cast their outer
garments over their persons...that they should be known and not
molested." [Chapter 33, verse 59]

In one traditi on, the Prophet Muhammad is quoted as saying: "...If the
woman reaches the age of puberty, no part of her body should be seen but
this --- and he pointed to his face and hands."

From these and other references, the vast majority of Muslim scholars
and jurists, past and present, have determined the minimum requirements
for Muslim women's dress: 1) Clothing must cover the entire body, with
the exception of the face and the hands. 2) The attire should not be
form fitting, sheer or so eye-catching as to attract undue attention or
reveal the shape of the body.

There are similar, yet less obvious requirements for a Muslim male's
attire. 1) A Muslim man must always be covered from the navel to the
knees. 2) A Muslim man should similarly not wear tight, sheer,
revealing, or eye-catching clothing. In addition, a Muslim man is
prohibited from wearing silk clothing (except for medical reasons) or
gold jewelry. A Muslim woman may wear silk or gold.

(References: "The M uslim Woman's Dress," Dr. Jamal Badawi, Ta-Ha
Publishers; "Hijab in Islam," Maulana Wahiduddin Khan, Al-Risala Books;
"The Islamic Ruling Regarding Women's Dress," Abu Bilal Mustafa
Al-Kanadi, Abul-Qasim Publishing; "Islamic Dress," Muslim Women of
Minnesota; "Your Hijab and U.S. Law," North American Council for Muslim
Women)

Q. Is Islamic dress appropriate for modern times?

A: Islamic dress is modern and practical. Muslim women wearing Islamic
dress work and study without any problems or constraints.

Q. Does Islamic dress imply that women are submissive or inferior to men?

A: Islamic dress is one of many rights granted to Islamic women. Modest
clothing is worn in obedience to God and has nothing to do with
submissiveness to men. Muslim men and women have similar ri ghts and
obligations and both submit to God.

Q. But aren't there Muslim women who do not wear Islamic Dress, or hijab?

A: Some Muslim women choose not to wear hijab. Some may want to wear it
but believe they cannot get a job wearing a head scarf. Others may not
be aware of the requirement or are under the mistaken impression that
wearing hijab is an indication of inferior status.

Q. Why is Islamic dress becoming an issue for personnel managers and
supervisors?

A: The Muslim community in American is growing rapidly. Growth factors
include conversions to Islam, immigration from Muslim countries and high
birth rates for Muslim families. As the community grows, more Muslim
women will enter the work force. In many cases, these women wish both to
work and to maintain their religious convictions. It should be possible
to fulfill both goals.

Q. What issues do Muslim women face in the workplace?

A: Muslim women report that the issue of attire comes up most often in
the initial interview for a job. Some interviewers will ask if the
prospective employee plans to wear the scarf to work. Others may
inappropriately inquire about religious practice s or beliefs. Sometimes
the prospective employee, feeling pressure to earn a living, will take
off the scarf for the interview and then put it on when hired for the
job. Modest dress should not be equated with incompetence.

Other issues include unwanted touching or pulling on scarves by other
employees, verbal harassment or subtle ostracism and denial of
promotion. Many Muslims also object to being pressured to attend
celebrations of other religious traditions or to attend
employer-sponsored celebrations at which alcohol is served.

Q. What can an employer reasonably require of a woman wearing hijab?

A: An employer can ask that an employee's attire not pose a danger to
that employee or to others. For example, a Muslim woman who wears her
head scarf so that loose ends are exposed should not be operating a
drill press or similar machinery. That employee could be asked to
arrange her hijab so that the loose ends are tucked in. An employer can
ask that the hij ab be neat and clean and in a color that does not clash
with a company uniform.

Q. What are the legal precedents on this issue?

A: Many cases have demonstrated an employee's legal right to reasonable
accommodation in matters of faith. Examples: 1) The failure of other
Muslim employees to wear headscarves is legally irrelevant. The employee
need only show sincerely-held religious beliefs. (E.E.O.C. v. Reads,
Inc., 1991) 2) There are no health or safety concerns at issue. (Cf.
E.E.O.C. Dec. No. 82-1, 1982, also E.E.O.C. Dec. No. 81-20, 1981) 3)
Companies cannot give effect to private biases. In other words, just
because an employer believes customers will be prejudiced against a
woman in a scarf, that does not mean the employee can be fired. (Palmer
v. Sidoti, 1984, also Cf. Sprogis v. United Air Lines, Inc., 1971) 4) An
employer must demonstrate "undue hardship" caused by the wearing of
religious attire. (TWA v. Hardison, 1977) Hardships recognized by the
courts include cost to the employer or effect on co-workers. 5) Dress
codes can have disproportionate impact on certain faiths. (E.E.O.C. Dec.
No. 71-2620, 1971, also E.E.O.C. Dec. No. 71-779, 1970)

Love and Justice Must Coexist

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 12:37:00 +0000

Allah T'ala says in the Holy Quran:

'Oh you who believe, stand up firmly for justice, as witnesses to God, even if it be against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be against rich or poor; for God can best protect both. Do not follow any passion, lest you not be just. And if you distort or decline to do justice, verily God is well-acquainted with all that you do.'" (Quran 4:135)

In the same book, Allah T'ala elevates obedience and kindness to parents (especially mothers) to a status second only to the worship of Allah.

"Your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him and that you be kind to parents. Whether one or both of them attain old age in your life, say not to them a word of contempt nor repel them, but address them in terms of honor." (Qur'an 17:23)

What does it mean if you find out that your father or mother or son have committed a crime? You love them, you will be stricken with grief, you will cry, but you still have to stand for justice. Love and justice must coexist!

In fact, confession of a crime may lead to forgiveness and Mercy of Allah T'ala.

Imran b. Husain reported that a woman from Juhaina came to Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) and she had become pregnant because of adultery. She said: Allah's Apostle, I have done something for which (prescribed punishment) must be imposed upon me, so impose that. Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) called her master and said: Treat her well, and when she delivers bring her to me. He did accordingly. Then Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him) pronounced judgment about her and her clothes were tied around her and then he commanded and she was stoned to death. He then prayed over her (dead body). Thereupon Umar said to him: Allah's Apostle, you offer prayer for her, whereas she had committed adultery! Thereupon he said: She has made such a repentance that if it were to be divided among seventy men of Medina, it would be enough. Have you found any repentance better than this that she sacrificed her life for Allah, the Majestic? (Muslim Book 017, Number 4207)

The person being punished should not be cursed.

Narrated Abu Salama:
Abu Huraira said, "A man who drank wine was brought to the Prophet. The Prophet said, 'Beat him!" Abu Huraira added, "So some of us beat him with our hands, and some with their shoes, and some with their garments (by twisting it) like a lash, and then when we finished, someone said to him, 'May Allah disgrace you!' On that the Prophet said, 'Do not say so, for you are helping Satan to overpower him.' " (Bukhari Volume 8, Book 81, Number 768)

With Ref : islam101.net

With Warm Thanks & Regards,
Noor Muhammad Ansari,
Mobile : +91 99871 58559

Skype ID : ansarinoor
E mail : 786anf@gmail.com

Life After Death

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 10:51:00 +0000

The question whether there is a life after death does not fall under the jurisdiction of science, as science is concerned only with classification and analysis of data. Moreover, man has been busy with scientific inquiries and research, in the modern sense of the term, only for the last few centuries, while he has been familiar with the concept of life after death since times immemorial. All the prophets of God called their people to worship God and to believe in life after death. They laid so much emphasis on the belief in life after death that even a slight doubt in it meant denying God and made all other beliefs meaningless. The very fact that all the prophets of God have dealt with this metaphysical question of life after death so confidently and so uniformly - the gap between their ages being thousands of years - goes to prove that the source of their knowledge of life after death as proclaimed by them all, was the same, i.e., Divine revelation.

We also know that these prophets of God were greatly opposed by their people, mainly on the issue of life after death, as their people thought it impossible. But in spite of opposition, the prophets won many sincere followers. The question arises: what made those followers forsake the established beliefs, traditions and customs of their forefathers, notwithstanding the risk of being totally alienated from their own community? The simple answer is: they made use of their faculties of mind and heart and realized the truth. Did they realize the truth through perceptual consciousness? Not so, as perceptual experience of life after death is impossible. Actually, God has given man, besides perceptual consciousness, rational, aesthetic and moral consciousness too. It is this consciousness that guides man regarding realities that cannot be verified through sensory data. That is why all the prophets of God while calling people to believe in God and life after death, appeal to the aesthetic, moral and rational consciousness of man. For example, when the idolaters of Makkah denied even the possibility of life after death, the Quran exposed the weakness of their stand by advancing very logical and rational arguments in support of it:

"And he has coined for us a similitude, and has forgotten the fact of his creation, saying: who will revive these bones when they have rotted away? Say: He will revive them Who produced them at first, for He is the Knower of every creation, Who has appointed for you fire from the green tree, and behold! you kindle from it. Is not He Who created the heavens and the earth, able to create the like of them? Yes, and He is indeed the Supreme Creator, the All-Knowing." (36:78-81)

At another occasion, the Quran very clearly says that the disbelievers have no sound basis for their denial of life after death. It is based on pure conjecture:

"They say, 'There is nothing but our present life; we die, and we live, and nothing but Time destroys us.' Of that they have no knowledge; they merely conjecture. And when our revelations are recited to them, their only argument is that they say, 'Bring us our fathers, if you speak truly.' (45:24-25)

Surely God will raise all the dead. But God has His own plan of things. A day will come when the whole universe will be destroyed and then again the dead will be resurrected to stand before God. That day will be the beginning of the life that will never end, and that Day every person will be rewarded by God according to his or her good or evil deed. The explanation that the Quran gives about the necessity of life after death is what the moral consciousness of man demands. Actually, if there is no life after death, the very belief in God becomes irrelevant, or even if one believes in God, that would be an unjust and indifferent God: having once created man and not concerned with his fate. Surely, God is just. He will punish the tyrants whose crimes are beyond count: having killed hundreds of innocent persons, created great corruptions in the society, enslaved numerous persons to serve their whims, etc. Man's having a very short span of life in this world, and this physical world's too being not eternal, punishments or rewards equal to the evil or noble deeds of persons are not possible here.

The Quran very emphatically states that the Day of Judgment must come and God will decide about the fate of each soul according to his or her record of deeds:

"Those who disbelieve say: The Hour will never come unto us. Say: Nay, by my Lord, but it is coming unto you surely. (He is) the Knower of the Unseen. Not an atom's weight, or less than that or greater, escapes Him in the heavens or in the earth, but it is in a clear Record. That He may reward those who believe and do good words. For them is pardon and a rich provision. But those who strive against our revelations, challenging (Us), theirs will be a painful doom of wrath." (34:3-5)

The Day of Resurrection will be the Day when God's attributes of Justice and Mercy will be in full manifestation. God will shower His Mercy on those who suffered for His sake in the worldly life, believing that an eternal bliss was awaiting them. But those who abused the bounties of God, caring nothing for the life to come, will be in the most miserable state. Drawing a comparison between them, the Quran says:

"Is he, then, to whom We have promised a goodly promise the fulfillment of which he will meet, like the one whom We have provided with the good things of this life, and then on the Day of Resurrection he will be of those who will be brought arraigned before God?" (28:61)

The Quran also states that this worldly life is a preparation for the eternal life after death. But those who deny it become slaves of their passions and desires, make fun of virtuous and God-conscious persons. Such persons realize their folly only at the time of their death and wish to be given a further chance in the world but in vain. Their miserable state at the time of death, and the horror of the Day of Judgment, and the eternal bliss guaranteed to the sincere believers are very beautifully mentioned in the following verses of the Holy Quran:

"Until, when death comes unto one of them, he says, 'My Lord send me back, that I may do right in that which I have left behind! But nay! It is but a word that he speaks; and behind them is a barrier until the day when they are raised. And when the Trumpet is blown there will be no kinship among them that day, nor will they ask of one another. Then those whose scales are heavy, they are successful. And those whose scales are light are those who lose their souls, in hell abiding, the fire burns their faces and they are glum therein." (23:99-104)

The belief in life after death not only guarantees success in the Hereafter but also makes this world full of peace and happiness by making individuals most responsible and dutiful in their activities. Think of the people of Arabia. Gambling, wine, tribal feuds, plundering and murdering were their main traits when they had no belief in life after death. But as soon as they accepted the belief in One God and life after death they became the most disciplined nation of the world. They gave up their vices, helped each other in hours of need, and settled all their disputes on the basis of justice and equality. Similarly the denial of life after death has its consequences not only in the Hereafter but also in this world. When a nation as a whole denies it, all kinds of evils and corruptions become rampant in that society and ultimately it is destroyed. The Quran mentions the terrible end of 'Aad, Thamud and the Pharaoh in some detail:

"(The tribes of) Thamud and 'Aad disbelieved in the judgment to come. As for Thamud, they were destroyed by the lightning, and as for 'Aad, they were destroyed by a fierce roaring wind, which He imposed on them for seven long nights and eight long days so that you might see the people laid prostrate in it as if they were the stumps of fallen down palm trees. "Now do you see remnant of them? Pharaoh likewise and those before him and the subverted cities. They committed errors and those before him, and they rebelled against the Messenger of their Lord, and He seized them with a surpassing grip. Lo, when the waters rose, We bore you in the running ship that We might make it a reminder for you and for heeding ears to hold. So when the Trumpet is blown with a single blast and the earth and the mountains are lifted up and crushed with a single blow, then on that day, the Terror shall come to pass, and the heaven shall be split for upon that day it will be very frail. Then as for him who is given his book in his right hand, he shall say, 'Here take and read my book! Certainly I thought I should encounter my reckoning.' So he shall be in a pleasing life in a lofty garden, its clusters nigh to gather. "'Eat and drink with wholesome appetite for that you did long ago, in the days gone by.'

"But as for him who is given his book in his left hand, he shall say: 'Would that I had not been given my book and not known my reckoning! Would that it had been the end! My wealth has not availed me, my authority is gone from me.'" (69:4-29)

Thus, there are very convincing reasons to believe in life after death. First, all the prophets of God have called their people to believe in it. Secondly, whenever a human society is built on the basis of this belief, it has been the most ideal and peaceful society, free of social and moral evils. Thirdly, history bears witness that whenever this belief is rejected collectively by a group of people in spite of the repeated warning of the Prophet, the group as a whole has been punished by God even in this world. Fourthly, moral, aesthetic and rational faculties of man endorse the possibility of life after death. Fifthly, God's attributes of Justice and Mercy have no meaning if there is no life after death.

Twelve Proofs that Muhammad is a True Prophet

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 05:03:00 +0000

My brothers and sisters everywhere! With this essay, I am not singling out the adherents of Islam - to which I ascribe - but rather I am writing this essay to every man and woman throughout the whole world.

I ask Allah that He facilitates tat this essay reaches every ear, falls under the sight of every eye, and is understood by every heart...

Muhammad the son of `Abdullah is Allah's Prophet and the Final Messenger Sent by Allah to the Inhabitants of Earth.

My brothers and sisters everywhere! You should know that the Messenger, Muhammad the son of `Abdullah (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) is Allah's Messenger in reality and truth. The evidences that show his veracity are abundant. None but an infidel, who out of arrogance alone, could deny these signs.

Among these proofs:

1. Muhammad (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) was raised illiterate, unable to read or write, and remained like that till his death. Among all his people, he was known as being truthful and trustworthy. Before receiving revelation, he had no prior knowledge of Religion or any previously sent Message. He remained like that for his first forty years. Revelation then came to Muhammad with the Koran that we now have between our hands. This Koran mentioned most of the accounts found in the previous scriptures, telling us about these events in the greatest detail as if he witnessed them. These accounts came precisely as they were found in the Torah sent down to Moses and in the Gospel sent down to Jesus. Neither the Jews or Christians were able to belie him regarding anything that he said.

2. Muhammad (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) also foretold of everything that would occur to him and his community after him, pertaining to victory, the removal of the tyrannical kingdoms of Chosroes [the royal title for the Zoroastrian kings of Persia] and Caesar, and the establishment of the religion of Islam throughout the earth. These events occurred exactly as Muhammad foretold, as if he was reading the future from an open book.

3. Muhammad (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) also brought an Arabic Koran that is the peak of eloquence and clarity. The Koran challenged those eloquent and fluent Arabs of his time, who initially belied him, to bring forth a single chapter like the Koran. The eloquent Arabs of his day were unable to contest this Koran.

Indeed, till our day, none has ever dared to claim that he has been able to compose words that equal-or even approach-the order, grace, beauty, and splendor of this Glorious Koran.

4. The life history of this Noble Prophet was a perfect example of being upright, merciful, compassionate, truthful, brave, generous, distant from all evil character, and ascetic in all worldly matters, while striving solely for the reward of the Hereafter. Moreover, in all his actions and dealings, he was ever mindful and fearful of Allah.

5. Allah instilled great love for Muhammad (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) in the hearts of all who believed in and met him. This love reached such a degree that any of his companions would willingly sacrifice his (or her) self, mother or father for him.

Till today, those who believe in Muhammad honor and love him. Anyone of those who believe in him would ransom his own family and wealth to see him, even if but once.

6. All of history has not preserved the biography of any person in the manner it has preserved the life of Muhammad, who is the most influential human in history.

Nor has the entire earth known of anyone whom every morning and evening, and many times thereafter throughout the day, is thought of by those who believe in him. Upon remembering Muhammad, the believers in him will greet him and ask Allah to bless him. They do such with full hearts and true love for him.

7. Nor has there every been a man on earth whom is still followed in all his doings by those who believe in him.

Those who believe in Muhammad, sleep in the manner he slept; purify themselves (through ablution and ritual washing) in the manner he purified himself; and adhere to his practice in the way they eat, drink, and clothe themselves.

Indeed in all aspects of their lives, the believers in Muhammad adhere to the teachings he spread among them and the path that he traveled upon during his life.

During every generation, from his day till our time, the believers in this Noble Prophet have fully adhered to his teachings. With some, this has reached the degree that they desire to follow and adhere to the Prophet's way in his personal matters regarding which Allah has not sought of them to adhere to in worship. For example, some will only eat those specific foods or only wear those specific garments that the Messenger liked.

Let alone all that, all those who believe in Muhammad repeat those praises of Allah, special prayers, and invocations that he would say during each of his actions during day and night, like: what he would say when he greeted people, upon entering and leaving the house, entering and leaving the mosque, entering and leaving the bathroom, going to sleep and awaking from sleep, observing the new crescent, observing the new fruit on trees, eating, drinking, dressing, riding, traveling and returning from travel, etc.

Let alone all that, all those who believe in Muhammad fully perform-even to the minute detail-every act of worship-like prayer, fasting, charity, and pilgrimage-as this Noble Messenger (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) taught and as he himself performed.

All of this allows those who believe in him, to live their lives in all aspects with this Noble Messenger as their example, as if he was standing before them, for them to follow in all their doings.

8. There has never been nor will there ever be a man anywhere upon this earth who has received such love, respect, honor, and obedience in all matters-small and large alike-as has this Noble Prophet.

9. Since his day, in every region of the earth and during every period, this Noble Prophet has been followed by individuals from all races, colors and peoples. Many of those who followed him were previously Christians, Jews, pagans, idolaters, or without any religion. Among those who chose to follow him, were those who were known for their sound judgment, wisdom, reflection, and foresight. They chose to follow this Noble Prophet after they witnessed the signs of his truthfulness and the evidences of his miracles. They did not choose to follow Muhammad out of compulsion or coercion or because they had adopted the ways of their fathers and mothers.

Indeed many of the followers of this Prophet (may Allah's blessings peace be upon him), chose to follow him during the time when Islam was weak, when there were few Muslims, and when there was severe persecution of his followers on earth. Most people who have followed this Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) have done so not to acquire some material benefits. Indeed many of his followers have suffered the greatest forms of harm and persecution as a result of following this Prophet. Despite all this harm and persecution, this did not turn them back from his religion.

My brethren! All of this clearly indicates to anyone possessing any sense, that this Prophet was truly and really Allah's messenger and that he was not just a man who claimed prophethood or spoke about Allah without knowledge.

10. With all this, Muhammad came with a great religion in its credal and legal make-up.

Muhammad described Allah with qualities of complete perfection, and at the same time in a manner that is free of ascribing to Him any imperfection. Neither the philosophers or the wise could ever describe Allah like such. Indeed it is impossible to imagine that any human mind could conceive of an existing being that possesses such complete ability, knowledge, and greatness; Who has subdued the creation; Who has encompassed everything in the universe, small or large; and Who possesses such perfect mercy.

Nor is it in the ability of any human being to place a perfect law based upon justice, equality, mercy and objectivity for all human activity on earth like the laws that Muhammad brought for all spheres of human activity - like buying and selling, marriage and divorce, renting, testimony, custody, and all other contracts that are necessary to uphold life and civilization on earth.

11. It is impossible that any person conceive wisdom,, morals, good manners, nobleness of characters as what this honorable Prophet (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) brought.

In a full and complete manner, Muhammad spread a teaching regarding character and manners toward one' parents, relatives, fiends, family, humanity, animals, plants and inanimate objects. It is impossible for the human mind alone to grasp all of that teaching or come with a similar teaching.

All of that unequivocally indicates that this Messenger did not bring an) of this religion from his own accord, but that it was rather a teaching and inspiration that he received from the One Who created the earth and the high heavens above and created this universe in its miraculous architecture and perfection.

12. The legal and credal make-up of the religion that the Messenger, Muhammad, (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him) brought resembles the engineering of the heavens and the earth. All of that indicates that He who created the heavens and the earth is the One Who sent down this great law and upright religion.

The degree of inimitability of the Divine law that was sent down upon Muhammad is to the same degree of inimitability of the Divine creation of the heavens and earth. For just as humanity cannot create this universe, in the same manner humanity cannot bring forth a law like Allah's law that He sent down upon His servant and messenger Muhammad (may Allah's blessings and peace be upon him).

With Ref : http://www.islaam.com/Article.aspx?id=61

Originally published by IANA

With Warm Thanks & Regards,
Noor Muhammad Ansari,
Mobile : +91 99871 58559

Skype ID : ansarinoor

E mail : 786anf@gmail.com

The True Religion "Islam"

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Thu, 26 May 2011 09:43:00 +0000

The first thing that one should know and clearly understand about Islam is what the word "Islam" itself means. The religion of Islam is not named after a person as in the case of Christianity which was named after Jesus Christ, Buddhism after Gotama Buddha, Confucianism after Confucius, and Marxism after Karl Marx. Nor was it named after a tribe like Judaism after the tribe of Judah and Hinduism after the Hindus. Islam is the true religion of "Allah" and as such, its name represents the central principle of Allah's "God's" religion; the total submission to the will of Allah "God". The Arabic word "Islam" means the submission or surrender of one's will to the only true god worthy of worship "Allah" and anyone who does so is termed a "Muslim", The word also implies "peace" which is the natural consequence of total submission to the will of Allah. Hence, it was not a new religion brought by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) I in Arabia in the seventh century, but only the true religion of Allah re-expressed in its final form.

Islam is the religion which was given to Adam, the first man and the first prophet of Allah, and it was the religion of all the prophets sent by Allah to mankind. The name of God's religion lslam was not decided upon by later generations of man. It was chosen by Allah Himself and clearly mentioned in His final revelation to man. In the final book of divine revelation, the Qur'aan, Allah states the following:

"This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed My favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion". (Soorah Al-Maa'idah 5:3)

"If anyone desires a religion other than Islam (submission to Allah (God) never will It be accepted of Him" (Soorah Aal'imraan 3:85)

"Abraham was not a Jew nor Christian; but an upright Muslim." (Soorah Aal'imraan 3:67)

Nowhere in the Bible will you find Allah saying to Prophet Moses' people or their descendants that their religion is Judaism, nor to the followers of Christ that their religion is Christianity. In fact, Christ was not even his name, nor was it Jesus! The name "Christ" comes from the Greek word Christos which means the annointed. That is, Christ is a Greek translation of the Hebrew title "Messiah". The name "Jesus" on the other hand, is a latinized version of the Hebrew name Esau.

For simplicity's sake, I will however continue to refer to Prophet Esau (PBUH) as Jesus. As for his religion, it was what he called his followers to. Like the prophets before him, he called the people to surrender their will to the will of Allah; (which is Islam) and he warned them to stay away from the false gods of human imagination.

According to the New Testament, he taught his followers to pray as follows: "Yours will be done on earth as it is in Heaven".

THE MESSAGE OF ISLAM

Since the total submission of one's will to Allah represents the essence of worship, the basic message of Allah's divine religion, Islam is the worship of Allah alone and the avoidance of worship directed to any person, place or thing other than Allah.Since everything other than Allah, the Creator of all things, is Allah's creation; it may be said that Islam, in essence calls man away from the worship of creation and invites him to worship only its Creator. He is the only one deserving man's worship as it is only by His will that prayers are answered. If man prays to a tree and his prayers are answered, it was not the tree which answered his prayers but Allah who allowed the circumstances prayed for to take place. One might say, "That is obvious," however, to tree-worshippers it might not be. Similarly, prayers to Jesus, Buddha, or Krishna, to Saint Christopher, or Saint Jude or even to Muhammad, are not answered by them but are answered by Allah. Jesus did nottell his followers to worship him but to worship Allah. As the Qur'aan states:

"And behold Allah will say: "O Jesus the son of Mary Did you say to men, Worship me and my mother as gods besides Allah He will say-"Glory to you I could never say what I had no right (to say')" (Soorah Al-Maa'idah- 5:116)

Nor did he worship himself when he worshipped but rather he worshipped Allah. This basic principle is enshrined in the opening chapter of the Qur'aan, known asSoorah Al-Faatihah, verse 4:

"You alone do we worship and from you alone do we seek help".

Elsewhere, in the final book of revelation, the Qur'aan, Allah also said:

"And your Lord says:"Call on Me and I will answer your(prayer)."(Soorsh Mu'min 40:60)

it is worth noting that the basic message of Islam is that Allah and His creation are distinctly different entities. Neither is Allah His creation or a part of it, nor is His creation Him or a part of Him.

This might seem obvious, but, man's worship of creation instead of the Creator is to a large degree based on ignorance of this concept. It is the belief that the essence of Allah is everywhere in His creation or that His divine being is or was present in some aspects of His creation, which has provided justification for the worship of creation though such worship maybecalled the worship of Allah through his creation. How ever, the message of Islam as brought by the prophets of Allah is to worship only Allah and to avoid the worship of his creation either directly or indirectly. In the Our'aan Allah clearlystates:

"For We assuredly sent amongst every people a prophet,(with the command) worship meand avoid false gods " (Soorsh Al-Nahl 16:36)

When the idol worshipper is questioned as to why he or she bows down to idols created by men, the invariable reply is that they are not actually worshipping the stone image, but Allah who is present within it. They claim that the stone idol is only a focal point for Allah's essence and is not in itself Allah! One who has accepted the concept of the presence of God's being within His creation in any way will be obliged to accept this argument of idolatry. Whereas, one who understands the basic message of Islam and its implications would never concede to idolatry no matter how it is rationalized. Those who have claimed divinity for themselves down through the ages have often based their claims on the mistaken belief that Allah is present in man. They merely had to assert that although Allah according to their false beliefs, is in all of us, He is more present in them than in the rest of us. Hence, they claim, we should submit our will to them and worship them as they are either God in person or God concentrated within the person.

Similarly, those who have asserted the godhood of others after their passing have found fertile ground among those who accept the false belief of God's presence in man. One who has grasped the basic message of Islam and its implications could never agree to worship another human being under any circumstances. God's religion in essence is a clear call to the worship of the Creator and the rejection of creation-worship in any form. This is the meaning of the motto of Islam:

"Laa Elaaha lllallaah" (There is no god but Allah)

Its repetition automatically brings one within the fold of Islam and sincere belief in it guarantees one Paradise.

Thus, the final Prophet of Islam is reported to have said, "Any one who says: There is no god but Allah and dies holding that (belief) will enter paradise".(Reported by Abu Dharr and collected by Al-Bukhaaree and Muslim).

It consists in the submission to Allah as one God, yielding to Him by obeying His commandments, and the denial of polytheism and polytheists.

THE MESSAGE OF FALSE RELIGION

There are so many sects, cults, religions, philosophies, and movements in the world, all of which claim to be the right way or the only true path to Allah. How can one determine which one is correct or if, in fact, all are correct? The method by which the answer can be found is to clear away the superficial differences in the teachings of the various claimants to the ultimate truth, and identify the central object of worship to which they call, directly or indirectly. False religions all have in common one basic concept with regards to Allah. They either claim that all men are gods or that specific men were Allah or that nature is Allah or that Allah is a figment of man's imagination.

Thus, it may be stated that the basic message of false religion is that Allah may be worshipped in the form of His creation. False religion invites man to the worship of creation by calling the creation or some aspect of it God. For example, prophet Jesus invited his followers to worship Allah but those who claim to be his followers today call people to worship Jesus, claiming that he was Allah!

Buddha was a reformer who introduced a number of humanistic principles to the religion of India. He did not claim to be God nor did he suggest to his followers that he be an object of worship. Yet, today most Buddhists who are to be found outside of India have taken him to be God and prostrate to idols made in their perception of his likeness.

By using the principle of identifying the object of worship, false religion becomes very obvious and the contrived nature of their origin clear. As God said in the Our'aan:

That which you worship besides Him are only names you and your forefathers have invented for which Allah has sent down no authority: The command belongs only to Allah:

He has commanded that you only worship Him; that is the right religion, but most men do not understand ". (Soorah Yoosuf 12:40)

It may be argued that all religions teach good things so why should it matter which one we follow. The reply is that all false religions teach the greatest evil, the worship of creation. Creation-worship is the greatest sin that man can commit because it contradicts the very purpose of his creation. Man was created to worship Allah alone as Allah has explicitly stated in the Our'aan:

"I have only created Jlnns and men, that they may worship me"(Soorah Zaareeyaat 51:56)

Consequently, the worship of creation, which is the essence of idolatry, is the only unforgivable sin. One who dies in this state of idolatry has sealed his fate in the next life. This is not an opinion, but a revealed fact stated by Allah in his final revelation to man:

"Verily Allah will not forgive the joining of partners with Him, but He may forgive (sins) less than that for whom so ever He wishes"(Soorah An- Nisaa 4:48 and 116)

THE UNIVERSALITY OF ISLAM

Since the consequences of false religion are so grave, the true religion of Allah must be universally understandable and attainable, not confined to any people, place or time. There can not be conditions like baptism, belief in a man, as a saviour etc., for a believer to enter paradise. Within the central principle of Islam and in its definition, (the surrender of one's will to God) lies the roots of lslam's universality. Whenever man comes to the realization that Allah is one and distinct from His creation, and submits himself to Allah, he becomes a Muslim in body and spirit and is eligible for paradise. Thus, anyone at anytime in the most remote region of the world can become a Muslim, a follower of God's religion, Islam, by merely rejecting the worship of creation and by turning to Allah (God) alone-It should be noted however, that the recognition of and submission to Allah requires that one chooses between right and wrong and such a choice implies accountability. Man will be held responsible for his choices, and, as such, he should try his utmost to do good and avoid evil. The ultimate good being the worship of Allah alone and the ultimate evil being the worship of His creation along with or instead of Allah. This fact is expressed in the final revelation as follows:

"Verily those who believe, those who follow the Jewish (Scriptures), the Christians and the Sabians any who believe In Allah and the last day, and work righteousness *hall have their reward with their Lord;They will not be overcome by fear nor grief (Soorah Al-Baqarah 2:62).

If only they had stood by the law, the Gospel, and all the revelation that was sent to them from their Lord, they would have enjoyed happiness from every side. There Is from among them a party on the right course; but many of them follow a course that Is evil.". (Soorah Al-.Maa'idah 5:66)

RECOGNITION OF ALLAH

The question which arises here is, "How can all people be expected to believe in Allah given their varying- backgrounds, societies and cultures? For people to be responsible for worshipping Allah they all have to have access to knowledge of Allah. The final revelation teaches that all mankind have the recognition of Allah imprinted on their souls, a part of their very nature with which they are created.

In Soorah Al-A'raaf, Verses 172-173; Allah explained that when He created Adam, He caused all of Adam's descendants to come into existence and took a pledge from them saying, Am I not your Lord? To which they all replied, " Yes, we testify to It:'

Allah then explained why He had all of mankind bear witness that He is their creator and only true God worthy of worship. He said, "That was In case you (mankind) should say on the day of Resurrection, "Verily we were unaware of all this." That is to say, we had no idea that You Allah, were our God. No one told us that we were only supposed to worship You alone. Allah went on to explain That it was also In case you should say, "Certainly It was our ancestors who made partners (With Allah) and we are only their descendants; will You then destroy us for what those liars did?" Thus, every child is born with a natural belief in Allah and an inborn inclination to worship Him alone called in Arabic the "Fitrah".

If the child were left alone, he would worship Allah in his own way, but all children are affected by those things around them, seen or unseen.

The Prophet (PBUH) reported that Allah said, "I created my servants in the right religion but devils made them go astray". The Prophet (PBUH) also said, "Each child is born in a state of "Fitrah", then his parents make him a Jew, Christian or a Zoroastrian, the way an animal gives birth to a normal offspring. Have you noticed any that were born mutilated?" (Collected by Al-Bukhaaree and Muslim).

So, just as the child submits to the physical laws which Allah has put in nature, his soul also submits naturally to the fact that Allah is his Lord and Creator. But, his parents try to make him follow their own way and the child is not strong enough in the early stages of his life to resist or oppose the will of his parents. The religion which the child follows at this stage is one of custom and upbringing and Allah does not hold him to account or punish him for this religion.

Throughout people's lives from childhood until the time they die, signs are shown to them in all regions of the earth and in their own souls, until it becomes clear that there is only one true God (Allah). If the people are honest with themselves, reject their false gods and seek Allah, the way will be made easy for them but if they continually reject Allah's signs and continue to worship creation, the more difficult it will be for them to escape. For example, in the South Eastern region of the Amazon jungle in Brazil, South America, a primitive tribe erected a new hut to house their main idol Skwatch, representing the supreme God of all creation. The homage to the God, and while he was in prostration to what he had been taught was his Creator and Sustainer, a mangy old flea-ridden dog walked into the hut, The young man looked up in time to see the dog lift its hind leg and pass urine on the idol. Outraged, the youth chased the dog out of the temple, but when his rage died down he realized that the idol could not be the Lordof the universe. Allah must be elsewhere. he now had a choice to act on his knowledge and seek Allah, or to dishonestly go along with the false beliefs of his tribe. As strange as it may seem, that was a sign from Allah for that young man. It contained within it divine guidance that what he was worshipping was false.

Prophets were sent, as was earlier mentioned, to every nation and tribe to support man's natural belief in Allah and man's inborn inclination to worship Him as well as to reinforce the divine truth in the daily signs revealed by Allah. Although, in most cases, much of the prophets' teachings became distorted, portions remained which point out right and wrong. For example, the ten commandments of the Torah, their confirmation in the Gospels and the existence of laws against murder, stealing and adultery in most societies. Consequently, every soul will be held to account for its belief in Allah and its acceptance of the religion of Islam; the total submission to the will of Allah.

We pray to Allah, the exalted, to keep us on the right path to which He has guided us, and to bestow on us a blessing from Him, He is indeed the Most Merciful. Praise and gratitude be to Allah,the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be on prophet Muhammed, his Family, his companions, and those who rightly follow them.

With Warm Thanks & Regards,
Noor Muhammad Ansari,
Mobile : +91 99871 58559

Skype ID : ansarinoor

E mail : 786anf@gmail.com

Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him)

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Mon, 23 May 2011 03:57:00 +0000

The Last Prophet of Allah

Allah proclaimed Muhammad as the last prophet. In the Qur'an, he is called "Rahmatun-lil-aalameen, " the blessing for the universe.

Names of Muhammad

The Prophet of Islam has many popular names. He was named Muhammad at birth. Other names include Ahmad, Taha, Yaseen, Muzammil, Mustafa, Rahmatun-lilaalameen, Khairul Mursaleen and Khatainun Nabiyyeen. His Kunniyya include Abul Qasim and Abu Ibrahim.

The Genealogy of Muhammad

The genealogy of Muhammad can be traced eighteen generations back to Abul Aarab Ismail, son of Ibrahim. His father Abdullah was one of the ten sons of Abd al-Muttaleb bin Hashim, the highly respected chief in the clan of Quraysh. His mother Amenah, daughter of Wahb, belonged to the respected clan of Banu Zuhra in the clan of Quraysh.

The Birth and early life of Muhammad

According to the popular tradition, Muhammad was bom in Makkah (Mecca) on Friday, 17 Rabi-ul Awwal in the year of the Elephant (Am al Feel), or August 29, 570 AD. Muhammad's father had died a few months before his birth. His grand-father, Abd al-Muttaleb took him under his own foster care.

According to the custom of Quraysh, the women from modest tribes living in the desert around Makkah were engaged for wages to suckle the new bom babies. These were sought for the infant Muhannnad. After trying no less than eight prospective nurses, the grand son of Abd alMuttaleb felt comfortable in the lap of Haleemah, a magnificent lady from the tribe of Banu S'ad. He stayed with Haleemah in the desert upto the age of about four (or six) years.

When he was returned to the full care of his own mother, she took him to her ancestoral city, Yathreb (later renamed Madinah), to introduce him to the people of his matemal clan. On their way, she died in the village of Abwa', between Madinah and Makkah, and she was buried there. Muhammad was brought back to the care of his grand father.

Muhammad was only eight years old when his grand father, Abd al-Muttaleb also died. At this time, his uncle Abu Talib (father of Ali) took his orphan nephew in his personal care. He grew up under the most affectionate guardianship of Abu Talib and his wife Fatirnah binte Asad. They always treated him like one of their own sons.

Observations on the early life of Muhammad

Muhammad grew to his youth in the house of Abu Talib, who adored his nephew for his good nature and style. He loved him more than his own children. Abu Talib made many observations on the habits of Muhammad. Some of these are quoted below:

Whenever Muhammad had a meal, he always started by saying "Bismillah .... i.e. I begin with the name of Allah, and finished by saying Alhamdu lillah .... i. e. all praise to Allah. " He said that they were so touched by this fine habit of Muhammad that the whole family adopted his manner.

Abu Talib noted Muhammad saying his prayers in a way not known to him before. He asked his nephew to explain to him the method of his worship. When he heard the reasons for the rituals, he was so pleased that he urged his sons to join Muhammad in his ritual worship.

It is quoted from Abu Talib that Muhammad never told lies nor fabricated events. He did not waste his time nor indulged in unproductive activities. He liked solitude, and devoted some of his time for meditation. He spoke to others with courtesy and respect. He was so honest in his dealings that he became known as "Al Ameen" (the most honest and trustworthy person).

Trips to Syria with Abu Talib

Muhammad accompanied his uncle twice on trading trips to the city of Damascus, in the then Roman province of Syria.

Many traditions are quoted by several authors regarding these trips. On the first trip he was only thirteen years of age. A Christian monk named Bahera

observed Muhammad closely and cautiond Abu Talib to take particular care of the youth, for he saw signs of greatness in him. On the second trip, now fully grown to manhood, he met the same monk again. This time Bahera told Abu Talib that he saw signs of prophethood in his nephew and that he should protect him from harm.

Trips to Syria in the employment of Khadija

Khadija was a wealthy busineswoman who used to send out reputable traders to Syria to conduct trading business on her behalf. She was a very kind hearted lady who spent a lot of her wealth on social services amongst her tribe. One of her widowed cousins named Hala lived in her household with her three daughters, and she brought up these girls after her death.

Abu Talib wanted to introduce his favourite nephew Muhammad into an independent trade. At the same time, Khadija had heard about the honesty of Abu Talib's nephew. On the recommendation of Abu Talib, she gave an appointment to Muhammd to lead her trade caravan to Syria. During this trip, he was accompanied by Khadija's personal servant, Maisarah.

On this trip, they came across another monk called Nestorah who also affinned the previous predictions of Baherah. The trading went exceptionally well and they made unusual profit in their transactions. They returned home laiden with exchanged merchandise. Khadija was very pleased at the great success of her trading mission under Muhammad and wondered over the stories her servant had told her about him.

Marriage to Khadija and their progeny

Muhammad had reach ' ed marriageable age of twenty five years. Khadija was forty. The proposal of marriage for the two, originating from Khadija, was gladly accepted by Muhammad, after consultation with his uncle, and they were married. The nikah was recited by Abu Talib. They had three sons and one daughter from this marriage, but only the daughter Fatima survived. Her brothers Qasim, Abdullah and Taher (Tayyeb) all died in infancy.

The Cave of Hira and the beginnings of Divine Revelations

Muhammad regularly visited a cave known as Hira, high in one of the mountains surrounding Makkah. He meditated and pondered over the complications and intricacies of the creation. During one of these days when he was deep in thought, the archangel Jibril of Allah appeared in front of him and asked him to read. Muhammad asked him what was he to read, for he had not received any formal education. Jibril told him again " Read in the name of Allah who created man from but a mere clot. It is only He whom you must trust. It is He who teaches every thing. He is who teaches all that can be inscribed, and it is He who taught man what he knew not."

After this extra-ordinary experience in the cave, Muhammad returned home and narrated this to his wife Khadija. She at once remembered the predictions that had been made about the prophethood of her husband. She comforted him and he laid down under the cover of a light blanket.

Jibril came down to him again with the message of Allah, "O, you who is lying under cover of the blanket, this is no time to rest! Get up and spread the message with energy and diligence!" This was a formal mandate to him to proclaim his prophethood.

According to some reports, his daughter, Fatima was bom in the same year.

The Methods of Spreading the Message

The task was tough. The people were totally immersed in idolatory. Many of them were rich and arrogant. He wondered how would he approach them and commence his task. Allah sent Jibril again and advised him not to despair for He would provide him with guidance and systematic instructions on how to begin the mission of spreading His message:

i Start with your closest relatives

ii For those who accept your teachings, show kindness and forbearance and encourage them towards compliance

iii For those who defy you, just tell them that you had delivered the message of the Creator, and that from then on you exonerate yourself from their deeds

iv Do not despair. Trust in Allah. He will help you in your task. Be confident that your sustenance and support for this mission comes only from your Provider, Allah.

The First Muslims

Encouraged by these clear instructions from Allah the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad started his mission by calling his relatives to a banquet on two separate occasions. He announced his prophethood as ordained by Allah. They ridiculed him and did not accept his message. His beloved wife Khadiia gave him support and consolation at these frustrating moments and became the first one to accept him as the messenger of Allah. She laid down her entire wealth and personal resources in the service of Islam.

His nephew Ali, whom he had nurtured from infancy, was the first youth of Makkah to accept the prophethood of Muhammad. In fact he stood up at each of the banquets boldly and confirmed the prophethood of Muhammad.

Zaid bin Harith, a youth fostered by Muhammad, known in some traditions as his adopted son was also one of the first to accept Islam.

Abu Bakar was the first amongst the elders to join the small group of the early muslims.

General Call to join the Truth

Undaunted by the hostile response from his clansmen and other Makkans, the Prophet went to the holy precinct of the Ka'ba to make his announcement. He called upon the people to abandon worship of false gods and idols and return to the Creator, the All Powerfull Allah. He said that if they would join him in his call, Allah would make them a very respected community and grant them power and control over vast lands beyond their own. People initially laughed at such prospect. Their hearts were hardened. They did not want to give up the worship of their popular gods that had been handed down to them for generations. Later, they became more hostile to Muhammad and his followers.

Hostilities of the Kuffar against the Muslims

The arrogant and rich elite of Makkah subjected the early musihns to painful torture which killed some of them and maimed others. The steadfast believers did not waver in their belief.

Having failed to achieve their ends through the use of force, the pagan Arabs sent a delegation to Abu Talib to protest agais'L- Muhammad and his teachings. They told him that they were prepared to pay Muhammad any amount of money he wanted, or he could marry any beautiful woman he chose, and they would even accept him as the Chief of Makkah if he stopped talking against their idols. Muhammad refused their offers and said that the mission on which he had embarked, could not be bought or bribed with any amount of worldly riches.

They turned to Abu Talib and offered Ghamaza bin Walid in exchange for Muhammad, but he refused the absurd exchange. He said that he would never surrender his nephew to them for any reason. He asked Muhammad to continue doing what he must, and that he would always support him.

First Hijra to Abyssenia

Muhammad was into his fifth year of teaching while his followers continued to suffer untold tortures at the hands of kuffar. He ordered his followers to leave the hostilities of the kuffar and take refuge in the Christian kingdom of Abyssenia under king Negus. There were only eleven men and four women among the first migrants to Abyssenia. Utlunan and his wife Ruqayya were also amongst this group of believers.

Second Hijra to Abyssenia

Only a short while later, a second group of eighty two muslims were instructed to migrate to Abyssenia. The group was led by Ja'far bin Abu Talib. The kuffar were enraged at the escape of their fugitives to the neigboring kingdom across the Red Sea. They sent their representation to King Negus, along with presents and gifts, and asked the extradition of their fugitives.

The Address by Jalffar bin Abu Talib and the recitation of al Qur'an in the court of King Negus

The kuffar alleged that the fugitives rebuked their gods and idols, and were disrupting the practice of their old religion. King Negus was a Christian and did not believe in idolatory. So he was not prepared to release the fugitives on that ground. The kuffar then lied that the Muslims said unkind words about Isa and his mother Maryam. At this allegation, the king asked the leader of the fugitives to come forward and answer the allegations. Ja'ffar bin Abu Talib got up and addressed the king and his court thus: " 0 king, we were a people sunken deep in ignorance. We had abandoned the teachings of our fore fathers Ibahim and Ismail. We worshiped idols and false gods, indulged in base activities without shame or remorse. We had lost affection for the very young and showed no compassion for the aged or infinn, and killed our female infants. Allah has sent us a prophet whose truthfulness is acknowledged even by his foes. He comes from a pure family and teaches us things that make us respect life and the bounties of the Creator. He tells us to believe in one God only, and not split Him or attribute partners with Him. He tells us to deal with others with honesty, not usurp others' rights, love children and respect elders. He has taught us to handle our women with love and respect, and give them the rights that they deserve as mothers, wives, daughters or sisters. He forbade us to kill our daughters as their provision comes from the Divine Sustainer of all creation.

"We decided to follow him in what he has taught us. We have stolen nothing, nor are we fugitives of war. He told us to flee from oppression into your protection.

"As for the allegations regarding Isa, the Qur'an has a chapter regarding the events of his birth and prophethood. "

He then recited a few ayat (verses) from Sura Maryam. The style and melody of his recitation, and the truth and the contents of the ayat had a profound effect on the king and his courtiers. Their hearts moved and their eyes were moistened with tears.

The king announced that the immigrants were not to be treated as fugitives in his country but as their respected guests. They could live as they pleased and trade in peace under his protection. He told the pursuers to leave his country and never come again seeking extradition of the Muslims.

The Declaration of Faith by Hamza and Umar

The unsuccessful return of the envoy from Abyssenia further fueled hostilities against Muhammad and his followers. One day Hamza bin Abd al-Muttaleb came to know that the kuffar had stoned the Prophet and had thrown garbage over him during his prayer. He came storming to the scene, beat up the infidel crowd until they ran for their lives. Hamza recited the kalima in public and joined the roup of the believers.

Umar bin Khattab was short tempered by nature. One day he heard his sister reciting from al Qur'an. He admonished her, and in a rage, rushed to the place where the Prophet was addressing the Muslims. On hearing the Prophet recite the ayas of Qur'an, his anger melted away, and he accepted Islam by reciting the kalima.

The Muslims seek shelter in Shelbe Abi Talib

Islam was making steady progress, to great frustration of the kuffar. Their opposition to the Prophet reached its peak. Abu Sufyan spearheaded the move to boycott Muhammad and his followers and forced them and their Hashimite supporters to take shelter in a fortress known as She'be Abi Talib. The blockade included total boycott of the Muslims and the Hashimites from all social and economic activities. The agreement was written and unanimously signed by all the chiefs of the kuffar clans of Makkah in 616 AD. The kuffar enforced a ban and excommunication against the ininates of She'be Abi Talib. Abu Sufyan also had personal motives to get the leadership of Makkah transferred from the house of Hashhn to his own. The kuffar demanded from Abu Taleb to either surrender unconditionally, or to hand over to them Muhammad and his followers. Abu Talib refused their demands and suffered the blockade along with the Muslims. He suffered a considerable financial and social set-back due to the blockade. The Muslims remained steadfast in their beliefs, and continued their practice of Islam under the protection of Abu Talib.

Abu Talib wrote a beautiful eulogy about his nephew, the Prophet of Islam. It is a written testimony of his love for the Prophet and his mission. The kuffar got tired of the three year long blockade and had no choice but to lift it completely. The Muslims returned to their homes once again and resumed their social interactions with the other towns people.

The Year of Grief

It was only two months after the lifting of the blockade, that Abu Talib passed away. He had fostered Muhammad as his own son, introduced him to trading, and got him married. He protected and defended him against the kuffar. He declared his faith in Islam before he died. He was a respected elder of the community and was able to serve Islam in its early days. He was a true ally of the small community of early Muslims. He provided them support and shelter in their hardship. His death was indeed a great loss to Muhammad and his friends.

To further grief of the Prophet, only three days after the death of his beloved uncle, his devoted wife Khadija also died. Khadija was not only the first of the believers but also a comforter of the Prophet in his difficult days. She was a great sustainer and benefactor of the early muslims. Her death was a painful loss for Muhammad as well as his followers.

This year was named by the prophet as Aamm-ulHuzn (the year of grief) because of these two deaths.

Visit to Taif

The Prophet had lost his two best supporters. The Makkan's enemosity reached its highest peak and they increased their atrocities against the Prophet and his followers.

The Prophet of Allah decided to take his mission to Taif, a town about seventy miles east of Makkah. He called upon the people to stop bowing to false gods and idols and return to the worship of Allah, the one and only Lord and Sustainer of the Universe. He was not received well in the town. The people threw stones at him. Bruised and bleeding, he left Taif.

Heart broken and disappointed at the response of the people of Taif, the Prophet returned to Makkah. He was received with ridicule and opposition, but he continued his mission in an undaunted and resolute manner.

By now, the news of the teachings of Muhammad had also reached the people of Yathreb (later renamed Madinah, or Medina)

Spreading the Message to Yathreb

Six men from the tribe of Khazraj (in Yathreb) were visiting Makkah. They met with the Prophet and accepted Islam. They returned to their homes with new enlightenment. The following year twelve more people from the Banu Khazraj visited the Prophet and joined the group of believers. Upon their return, the Prophet sent one of his companions to further the cause of Islam in Yathreb. The next year more people from Banu Khazraj as well as Banu Aws visited the Prophet and accepted Islam as their way of life. Upon their returning home, they extended invitation to the Prophet and his followers to emigrate to Yathreb so that other members of their tribes could benefit from his teachings.

Al-Isral- A Unique Miracle

Just before the Prophet had migrated to Yathreb, Allah took him on a miraculous ascention to the Heavens, known as al-Isra'(or al-Me'raj). One night while he was resting in the house of his cousin Unim-e-Hani, he was transported to the mosque, al-Aqsa (Bait-ul-Muqqadis) in Jerusalem. After he had offered his prayers, he was taken on a miraculous tour of the skies and worlds beyond. The divine vehicle used for his flight is known as Burraq which can be translated "as fast as burq (lightening)." This extaterrestrial experience was in body, not in soul. By al-Isra', Allah had intended for Muhammad to see the span and the vastness of His universe and secrets of the heavens. After all, unlike other prophets, his prophethood encompassed the whole universe. The Prophet returned to pursue his task with a renewed vigor.

Some people consider al-Me'raj as a spiritual, not bodily experience. They lose sight of the infinite powers of Allah and other reported miracles of the Prophets Ibrahim, ldris, Ilyas, Musa and Isa. There is nothing difficult for Allah. Al-Me'ra of the Prophet of Islam was truly a precursor of the modem day man's flight in space.

Hijrath

The Prophet and his followers had to suffer at the hands of kuffar of Makkah for fourteen years until he told his followers to start emigrating to Yathreb. The move was to be slow and casual so that the kuffar would not cause trouble or block it. In the meantime he remained in Makkah to continue his mission and supervise the slow emigration of his followers. The few people left in Makkah beside himself included his daughter Fatima, his cousin Ali, Ali's mother Fatima binte Asad and his friend Abu Bakar. The time for their migration had now come. He assigned Ali to stay back, and sleep in his bed. He asked him to distribute all the goods to the people who had deposited these with him for safe keeping. Accompanied by Abu Bakar, the Prophet left Makkah in the darkness of night.

In the meanwhile, the kuffar patrolled the streets around the house of Muhammad and looked over the low walls of his courtyard. They saw nothing and suspected no movement in the house through the night. As the day dawned, they broke into the house. They were enraged to see Ali on the bed instead of Muhammad. They angrily asked Ali regarding the whereabouts of Muhammad. Ali asked them if they had left him in his custody. They were embarrassed by this clever answer and left the house in search of the Prophet.

Ali carried out the instructions of the Prophet and hastened to join him at Quba, on the way to Yathreb.

The Cave of Thaur and the Miracles of Allah

The Prophet and his companion, Abu Bakar took refuge in the cave of Thaur, just outside the city of Makkah. The kuffar were not about to give up their search for the escapees. Their search brought them to this cave. Upon hearing the footsteps of the pursuers, Abu Bakar showed fear for their being discovered in the cave. The Prophet told him not to be scared because Allah was with them. Just then a spider spun a web at the entrance of the cave, and a dove laid eggs over a nest. Hence the kuffar did not suspect there was any body in the cave. They left to continue their search elsewhere.

The Prophet and his companion stayed in the cave for three days. When the danger had subsided, they made their way towards Yathreb.

Arrival at Yathreb

The Prophet approached the city of Yathreb on 12 Rabi ul-Awwal, according to 2 July, 622AD and made his first stop at Quba. Ali joined them at this location, and the caravan proceeded towards the city. A Mosque was subsequently built at Quba and exists to this day.

The people of Yathreb who had been receiving muslim refugees from Makkah were anxiously waiting for the arrival of the Prophet himself. Everybody wanted the Prophet to stay in his house. The Prophet took a unique precaution so that no body would feel left out. He freed the reins of his camel and said that the camel would stop wherever Allah wanted it. Finally the camel sat down in front of the house of Abu Ayyub Ansari. The Prophet stayed with this family until his own quarters were ready. The city of Yathreb became popularly known as Madina-tunNabi i.e. the city of the Prophet, and later as Madinah (or Medina).

Building of Masjid-un-Nabi

The Prophet bought an empty lot from the owner and built the Grand Mosque at that site. It was not grand because of the beautiful construction but because it was built by the Prophet for the first grand congregation of muslims. The Prophet and his family built their quarters around this mosque, as did some of his companions too.

Initiation of the Brotherhood of Islam

As a fairly large number of refugees had come to Madinah, mostly without their belongings, it was necessary to provide for their needs as well as integrate them with the host community. It was for this reason that the Prophet initiated at a simple ceremony, what is called the Akhuwwa or Brotherhood among his followers. According to this, each Medinite was named to be brother of a refugee from Makkah, and like real brothers, they now would equally own their businesses or properties. It was in the same year that Salman Farsi and Abdallah bin Salman, a Jew, visited the Prophet and accepted Islam.

The Causes of Battles

The emigration of all muslims and the Prophet from Makkah angered the kuffar. They had wanted to kill Muhammad but Allah saved him from their sinister designs. They could not see the small community of musliins living in peace elsewhere. They ambushed them and robbed or killed the isolated travellers. They teamed up with other kuffar communities around Madinah to perpetuate their ill treatment of the muslims. They even had the local clans of Bani Israil join them in their hostile plans, and make mischief against the muslims in Madinah and in the Jewish habitations near the city. The Makkans were furious because Muhammad asked them to worship Allah the one and only God, and taught them respect for life in general, and mutual love and tolerance amongst humans. The Prophet however did not sit back passively to take the insult from the enemy. He collected his believers and trained them to defend themselves, their families and their property against aggression or oppression. Although initially small in numbers and limited in resources, the Muslims were well armed with faith and confidence.

The Rules for the Battles

The Prophet had an exceptionally kind and gentle personality. He had shown his talent in peaceful settlement of quarrels amongst warring clans even before the proclamation of prophethood. The Prophet laid down 'Rules of Warfare' to be followed when it appeared to him that war was unavoidable to protect the Muslims and their families against the enemy's offence. These rules are listed below:

-Call upon Allah for help when you mount for a battle in His name

-Try and negotiate settlements with peace

-If you have to draw arms in war, do not resort to devious means in your battles and avoid the tactics of ambush

-Do not disfigure or dismember the fallen

-Do not kill or hann the old, the sick or the infirm, women and children

-Leave the monks and ascetics alone

-Do not cut or bum fruit trees

-Do not destroy cultivations or other vegetation

-Do not harin those who seek your protection. If they agree to pay the tythe for their safe conduct, accept it

-Allow the besieged to come out for peace or safe conduct

These rules made a revolutionary change in the old, brutal and ruthless methods of war amongst the Arabs of that time, and in the future. There was to be humanity and compassion even when the two parties had to come out in arms. It is a pity that the modem states and nations totally overlook these moral restraints in their conduct of war.

The Battles of the Prophet

Wars with the opposing forces of evil started from the first year of emigration of the muslirns from Makkah. It would be difficult to describe each one of them in this booklet. The reader is referred to several other larger works that are available on the subject. Many of these battles were with the kuffar and Abu Sufyan bin Harb, the arch enemy of Islam. Others were with the mischievous Bani Israil in Madinah and at Khyber, in north east of Madinah. The major battles were Badr, Uhad, Khandaq, Hunayn and Khyber.

Treaty of Peace with the Kuffar

When the kuffar failed to weaken the Muslims in their faith, despite their tactics, they retracted into their stronghold in Makkah. By this time, the numbers of the Muslims had increased. They wanted to go for pilgrimage to the holy precinct of Ka'bah which is located in the heart of Makkah. When a large entourage of Muslims, accompanied by the Prophet approached Makkah, it made the kuffar nervous about the intentions of the Muslims. They intercepted and the Treaty of Hudaybiya was signed between the Muslims and the kuffar of Makkah. According to the terms of this treaty, Muslims would not enter the city that year. They performed their ritual sacrifices at their encampment, and returned to their homes. They were a little disappointed for not having been able to enter the holy precinct. The Prophet comforted them and said that they would all return to Makkah and perform their full rituals the following year.

The follwing year, the Muslims entered Makkah under the treaty. According to the agreement, the city was vacated by the kuffar who pitched their tents on the hills surrounding the holy precinct. They saw the muslims perform the rituals of Umra, all clad in white robes, quiet and sober in behaviour. There was no music or dancing or drinking or noise or screams. Their hearts were stirred by the discipline and organization of the Muslims.

The Conquest of Makkah

The mischief mongers among the kuffar caused breach in the peace treaty and killed some members of the Muslim alliance. Such conduct could not go unchallenged. The muslim community had to protect the rights of allies and their property. The leader of kuffar, the arch enemy of Islam, Abu Sufyan bin Harb went to Madinah to make repairs but he had to return to Makkah without forgiveness in this matter. Muhammad collected a large army of his faithfulls and marched on Makkah. The overwhelmed kuffar were unable to face this formidable force. When Abu Sufyan saw that he had no choice but to surrender, he accepted Islam and rushed home to tell others to do the same.

Muhammad declared total amnesty for all. The lives of all those who would gather under his banner, or keep inside their homes, or collect within the holy precinct of Ka'ba, or even those who would gather in the house of Abu Sufyan would be spared. They were to accept Allah as their supreme Lord, and Muhammad as His Messenger. This was a momentous day for the Muslims. They were back home to see their relatives and properties as free citizens. The mercy of the Prophet protected their former tormentors from revenge. The city of Makkah was declared as the city of Peace and sanctuary for all mankind.

Cleansing of Kalba from idols

The Prophet entered the gate of Ka'ba and joined Ali to break the idols which had for so long desecrated the House of Allah. The debris was quickly removed from the yard while the Muslims prepared for the first congregational prayer in the holy precict of Ka'ba. The numbers of the Muslims had swelled with the addition of the new converts. Bilal, the African, called out the Azan (the call for prayers) in his melodious style which brought tears in the eyes of the people. The events of past few years went rapidly through their minds and they thanked Allah for His mercy and benevolence.

Sura Barat

Whereas the Ka'ba had been cleansed, and the style of Hajj and Umra had been established by the Prophet himself, the kuffar from other districts were unaware of the recent changes. They would come to Makkah in the old style, singing and dancing, howling and screaming, exposing their bodies and carying idols and pagan offerings, unbefitting the piety restored to the sanctuary and the city of peace. As the sacred season of the year 9AH was approaching, Allah sent sura Barat to be announced to the pilgrims. It was to forbid the entry of all idolators in the sanctuary of Ka'ba. Abu Bakar was deputed to carry out this function. He was gone only a short distance when the Prophet received a Command from Allah and in compliance with it, he instructed Ali to overtake Abu Bakar, take back the verses and himself announce these to the pilgrims at Makkah, on behalf of the Prophet. Abu Baker returned to Madinah with his entourage.

Mubahila with the Christians of Najran

In the same year, the message of Islam was conveyed to the Christians of Najran. They were invited to believe in the Oneness of Allah, give up the false belief in Trinity and the distorted notion that Jesus (Isa) was the Son of God. This was followed by long discussions and debates in Madinah, but the Christian bishops held fast to their beliefs. While this argument was in progress, the Prophet received a revelation : "...And he who disputes with thee concerning him after the truth had come to thee, say thou, come, let us call together our sons, and your sons, our women and your women, and our selves and your selves, then let us invoke and lay the curse of Allah on the liars. " The Christian were informed and they accepted to meet the Prophet at an open place. On the appointed day and time, the Prophet took with him his daughter Fatima, her two sons Hassan and Hussain, and his cousin and son-in-law Ali.

When the Christian priests saw this small group marching towards the arena, they saw in them the signs of extra-ordinary nature. Filled with an awe, they agreed to pay tax and withdrew from the contest.

Missionaries of Muhammad

The people of Yatnan requested the Prophet to send them some one who would teach them Islam. The Prophet initially sent Khalid bin Walid, who quickly became unpopular due to his hostile manners. The Prophet recalled him and sent Ali to Yaman. The people of Yaman became very fond of Ali as a teacher. They had also known him as the champion of Islam in many important battles. Ali demonstrated his compassion for the people, and his depth of knowledge of the Qur'an.

The Last Hajj

By the tenth year of al-Hijra Islam had reached throughout the Arabian peninsula, and Ka'ba had been cleansed of all vestiges of paganism. The strict orders of conduct for Haj and Umra had already been laid by Allah through His revelation of Sura Barat. The Prophet decided to perform the ritual of Hajj along with his friends and followers. Ali who was in the south, hastened to join the Prophet on this auspicious occasion, to perform the first complete ritual of Hajj, led personally by the Prophet.

The faithful came, drones upon drones, from all directions to join the Prophet on this blessed occasion. The Prophet conducted the Hajj complete in ceremonies and delivered his famous sermon at Jabal-an-Noor.

The Last Revelations from Allah

It was at Khum-e-Ghadir, about half way to Madinah when Jibril brought the last revelation from Allah: "...O though, Apostle, proclaim what has been sent down to thee from thy Lord; and if though did not, it was as if though had not completed thy mission at all (and fear not), Allah will defend thee against men; verily Allah guideth not the unbelieving people.

The Prophet, on receiving the above Commandment immediately stopped the caravan and recalled the Muslims who had already departed in different directions. Standing on top of a raised platform, made in a make-shift manner, with the camel seats, the Prophet then announced to the people that he was to leave them soon, and they should follow the two things he was leaving behind, Allah's Book (al-Qur'an) and his Ahle Bait. Then he took Ali's hand in his hand and raised him, proclaiming, "Whomsoever I am the guardian, Ali too will be his guardian." Muslims gave their greetings and assurance to Ali. When this was happening, the Prophet received his last revelation and after that there was not to be any revelation: "...This day, we have perfected your religion and perfected you in my grace.

Death of the Prophet

Soon after his return from the last Hajj, the Prophet passed away after a short illness. His death was deeply felt by his family, friends and thousands of his followers. He was the last prophet of Allah, who left a legacy of his complete and superb personality, his excellent conduct, the Qur'an, his family, his companions and a rich body of traditions to guide mankind for all times.

The Achievements of Muhammed

In a short period of ten years after his emigration from Makkah, the power of arrogance and ignorance had been completely routed, idolatory had been totally wiped out, and the Message of Allah had spread throughout the Arabian peninsula. The Prophet himself had already sent letters to the rulers of the neigboring lands to quit paganism and called them to accept Islam and true monotheism. The teachings of Islam had started to spill over to lands beyond Arabia. The glory of the House of Allah, the sanctuary for mankind, had been re-established. The ritual of Hajj became sanctified and the rules for its proper conduct were established. The Arabs, who were divided into splintered group of clans and tribes were wrought into a nation, charged with spirit and purpose. Within only fifty years after the death of the Prophet, the Muslim rulers had conquered vast lands and peoples from east to west. Conquests of hearts and minds with Islamic idealogy followed these conquests. Today over one billion Muslims harken to the Message of Islam in many ethnic communities throughout the world.

The rights of the individual were secured and the rights of others in society were established. Women were given the dignity and respect as wives, daughters, mothers or sisters. Their rightful place in society was recognized and their right of inheritance was established. The Prophet had given his followers a code of conduct which was to govern the lives of all generations of Muslims in the future. They were true then and are true today. Muhammad was truly the greatest of all messengers of Allah who had completed His mission on earth, and had sealed prophesy for all times to come.

Observations on life and character of Prophet Muhammad

- When someone approached him, the Prophet always paid him his full attention

- He spoke softly, briefly but precisely and clearly. He avoided purposeless speech or discussion

- While being addressed, he did not interrupt the speaker

- He pointed with hands not with eyes

- He smiled on happy occasions and never reacted with laughter

- He was always the first to offer greetings

- While shaking hands, he avoided pulling his hand

- He walked on earth with humility, and with a down ward gaze

- He greeted children with affection and always spoke to them with kindness

- He treated the elderly with compassion and respect

- He kept the good people around him and preached to the misguided with kindness

- In a meeting, he had no reserved place, and sat at the available place

- While seated on the floor, he did not stretch his legs

- While seated with visitors, he was not the first to leave. He waited until the visitors left

- His company was always pleasant and informative

- The tone of speech and discussions were always low in his company

- He helped any one and every one with whatever he had at the time

- If, for any reason he was unable to fulfill the needs of one seeking assistance, he spoke to him kindly and begged for his/her forgiveness for not being able to provide the service at that time

- When some one spoke to him with rudeness, he remained quiet

- He was not seen to speak or deal with any one with anger

- His sayings and deeds were always in concordance with the Qur'an and the Will of Allah

- He sat at the same level with others and ate the same food as those who served him

- He did most of his own house-hold or other personal chores

- He mended his own attire, including his shoes

- He encouraged the owners not to cordon their fruit groves so that less fortunate may also enjoy the bounty of Allah

- He usually accepted invitation to have meals with friends and believers but told them that sadaqah, khayrat and zakat were haram for him

- He avoided colorful and decorative attire

- He treated his servants with kindness and never rebuked or punished them for error or mistake

- If a servant wanted his attention, Muhammad would get up and go to him before the servant could get to him

- He did not travel mounted while a companion was a foot

- He always kept his promise

- He slept little, and spent his time either in worship or serving others

- He had immense knowledge about all kinds of things and subjects although he never attended any formal school or other tutorship

- The Qur'an is the greatest miracle Allah bestowed on Muhammed for eternal benefit of all mankind.

With Warm Thanks & Regards,
Noor Muhammad Ansari,
Mobile : +91 99871 58559

Skype ID : ansarinoor

E mail : 786anf@gmail.com

Spiritual Unity

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 11:18:00 +0000

It is generally said that in present times, the world has assumed the form of a global village. But this is only half the truth. Modern technology and communications have, of course, greatly reduced distances across the world. But the closeness thus produced is of a purely physical nature. Modern technology may have bridged certain gaps, bringing the external world closer together, but the task of bringing unity into the internal world has yet to be accomplished.

What is spiritual unity? Let us take a very simple example. When you live in a crowded settlement, the walls all around give you a sense of limitation. You experience the friction of living in close contact with others and you suffer from mental tension. Later, when you emerge from that dense human settlement into open, natural surroundings you immediately feel that your tension has evaporated and you have once again become serene. The feeling of separateness is replaced by an all-pervasive feeling of unity. You immediately become part of a world where there are no boundaries. A sense of universality prevails.

We have all had this experience at one time or another. It shows us what spiritual unity is. It is, in fact, the raising of one's existence to a higher plane. The moment you achieve this, you feel you are emerging from a limited world to become a citizen of an unlimited world. Disunity now disappears, giving way to unity all around.

Although, physically, all human beings appear to be different, spiritually they are one. It is as if spiritual unity between human beings already exists, it does not have to be externally imposed. We have only to make people aware of its existence. Once the outer, artificial veils are removed, what remains will be pure spirituality.

In reality, the various sets of circumstances that confront man in this world lead to drawing of different veils over man's natural propensities. For instance, the veil of material greed produces self-centeredness; the veil of jealousy causes him to see himself as being separate from others; the veil of prejudice causes him to discriminate between human beings, and so on.

These veils, in fact, tend to block man's natural urge towards spiritual unity. What is required is to remove these artificial veils in order that the true, inner reality be brought into focus.

The aim of all religions, basically, is to encourage this spiritual unity within man himself and among men. No religion is at variance with another so far as this goal is concerned. The language in which this is set forth may vary from one religion to another, but, without doubt, the main concern of all religions is to produce spiritual unity within and between all human beings. Without spiritual unity, there is little hope of creating peace and harmony throughout the world. And where there is no peace and harmony, the dream of human progress will forever remain elusive.

Now, what is Islam's contribution to spiritual unity? The subject is too vast for more than jus

Ref : http://www.cpsglobal.org/

Surely the guilty shall not prosper!

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 12:27:00 +0000

إِنَّهُ لاَ يُفْلِحُ الْمُجْرِمُونَ

The Qur'anic term falah (prosperity, success) used in the above verse (last part of verse 10:17) has been understood by some to signify such things as longevity, worldly prosperity and other worldly attainments. Under this false impression, they tend to believe that if a claimant to prophethood attains material prosperity and longevity or if his message is spread around, then he ought to be considered a genuine Prophet because he has indeed attained 'prosperity'. Had he been an impostor, it is argued, he would soon have been assassinated, or would have starved to death, and, in any case, his message would not have spread around. Such an absurd line of argument can only be pursued by those who are altogether ignorant of the concept of falah (prosperity) as envisaged in the Qur'an, who are unaware of God's law of respite regarding evil-doers, and who are altogether unappreciative of the special meaning in which the term has been employed in the present context.
In order to fully understand what is meant by saying that 'the guilty shall not prosper', a number of things ought to be borne in mind. In the first place, the Qur'anic statement that "the guilty shall not prosper' is not made with a view to providing a yardstick that might be applied by people so as to determine the truth or falsity of the claimants of prophethood. The verse does not seek to stress that all those who 'prosper' after claiming to be a Prophet are truly Prophets, and that those who do not prosper after making such a claim are not so. The point of emphasis here is altogether different. Here the Prophet (peace be on him) is being made to say that since he knows fully that those guilty of inventing lies against Allah could not prosper, he would not dare make any claim to prophethood if such a claim was false.

On the other hand, the Prophet (peace be on him) also knew that the unbelievers were guilty of rejecting the true signs of God and of declaring a true Prophet of God to be an impostor. In view of that monstrous guilt, it was quite apparent to the Prophet (peace be on him) that they would not prosper.
Moreover, the Qur'anic term falah (prosperity, success) has not been used in the limited sense of worldly success. Rather, it denotes that enduring success which admits of no failure regardless of whether one is able to achieve success in the present phase of one's existence or not. it is quite possible that someone who calls people to falsehood might enjoy life and nourish in a worldly sense, and he might even be able to attain a substantial following for his message. But this is not true prosperity or success; rather it constitutes total loss and failure. Contrarily, it is also possible that someone who calls people to the truth might be exposed to much persecution and be overwhelmed by pain and suffering. It is possible that even before he is able to create any significant following, he is continually subjected to persecution and torture. In the Qur'anic view, such an apparently tragic end constitutes the very zenith of such a person's success rather than his failure.

Moreover, it should be remembered that it has been amply elucidated in the Qur'an that God does not punish evil-doers instantly: that He rather grants them a fair opportunity to mend their ways. Not only that, if the evil-doers misuse the respite granted by God to perpetrate further wrongs, they are sometimes granted an even further respite. In fact, at times a variety of worldly favours are bestowed upon such evil-doers in order that the potential for wickedness inherent in them might be fully exposed by their actions, proving that they do indeed deserve a very severe punishment. Hence, if an impostor continues to enjoy periods of respite and if worldly favours are lavished upon him this should not in any way give rise to the notion that he is on the right path.

In the same way as God grants respite to other evil-doers. He also grants respite to impostors. There are no grounds whatsoever for believing that the respite granted to other evil-doers would not be granted to those impostors who lay false claim to prophethood. We may well call to mind that Satan himself has been granted a respite until Doomsday, It has never been indicated that although Satan is granted a free hand to misguide human beings, as soon as he throws up an impostor claiming prophethood such a venture is instantly nipped in the bud.

In order to refute the view expressed above it is possible that someone may refer to the following verse of the Qur'an: Now if he [i.e. Muhammad] would have made up, ascribed some sayings to Us, We would indeed have seized him by the right hand, and then indeed would have cut his life-vein (al-Haqqah 69: 44-6).

Even a little reflection makes it obvious that the verse in question does not contradict the view we have expressed above. For, what the present verse says relates to a principle which God follows in dealing with true Prophets. Were any such Prophet to falsely claim something to be a revelation from God, he would instantly be seized by God's wrath. To argue to the contrary that all those who are not seized by God's wrath are necessarily genuine Prophets is simply a logical fallacy devoid of any justification. For the threat of instant Divine wrath embodied in this verse is applicable only to true Prophets, and not to impostors who, like other evil-doers, are granted a respite.

This can be well understood if we bear in mind the disciplinary rules laid down by different governments for their officials. It is obvious that those rules are not enforced in respect of ordinary citizens. Were the latter to lay any false claim to being a government official, he would be subjected to the normal rules of the criminal code relating to the conviction of those who are guilty of fraud rather than to the disciplinary rules meant for government officials. Under this analogy, an impostor who claims to be a Prophet, would be dealt with by God along with other evil-doers who commit evil, and who, as we know, are not necessarily punished immediately.

In any case, as we have pointed out earlier, the verses quoted above were not revealed so as to provide the criterion to judge the truth of anyone who lays claim to prophethood. This verse should not be considered to mean that if a celestial hand stretches forth to cut off the life-vein of a claimant to prophethood, such a person is an impostor; and if that does not happen, he is a genuine Prophet. Such a weird criterion would have been needed only if no other means were available to judge the genuineness of a claimant to prophethood. But as things stand, a Prophet is known by his character, by his work, and by the contents of his message. (Tafheemul Quran).

THE PROPHET SULAIMAN (peace be upon him)

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 08:41:00 +0000

The Prophet Sulaiman (Solomon) was the youngest son of the Prophet Dawud (peace be upon him). He was born at Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Saba. As he was a talented fellow with versatile gifts, his father made him his heir. After the death of Prophet Dawud (peace be upon him) he ascended the throne of Judia on account of his sagacity, power of judgement, right understanding and spiritual insight. The Holy Qur'an says: "And We verily gave knowledge to Dawud and Sulaiman and they said: praise be to Allah Who has preferred us above many of his believing sons". (27: I5)

The Prophet Sulaiman Makes Sound Decisions:

The Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) was endowed with the quality of giving sound decision in complicated cases. Once a dispute arose between two persons. They were present before the Prophet Dawud (peace be upon him). One of them said: Sir, the sheep of that person have trampled over my crops. They have grazed and caused me a considerable loss. It must be compensated by the owner. The shepherd was very poor. He had nothing except sheep and the damage done to the crops exceeded the price of the sheep. The Prophet Dawud (peace be upon him) ordered the defaulter to give his sheep to the owner of the land as reparation. Sulaiman, the teen-aged child was listening to the judgement of his father. He, respectfully, spoke out: Dear father, undoubtedly, your decision is correct but it will be handed over to more appropriate if all the sheep are the plaintiff for the utilisation of their milk and wool only. The respondent should be directed to render services to the owner of the field until the condition of the damaged fields restores to the normal position. When it is done, sheep must be given back to the shepherd. The Prophet Dawud (peace be upon him) appreciated this novel way of awarding justice and the Holy Qur'an speaks very highly of him:

"And Dawud (David) and Sulaiman (Solomon) when they gave judgement concerning the field, when people's sheep had strayed and browsed therein by night; and We were witnesses to their judgement. And We made Sulaiman to understand (the case); and unto each of them We gave judgement and knowledge." (21: 78, 79)

Prevalence over Wind:
The Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) inherited many virtues from his illustrious father. He was endowed with special gifts. Wind was made subservient to him and he could easily perform long journey in the twinkling of an eye. The Holy Qur'an affirms:

"And (We made) the wind subservient to Sulaiman whereof the morning course was a month's journey and the course a month's journey." (54:12)

"So We subjected the wind to his power, setting fair by his command withersoever he intended" (38:36)

"And unto Sulaiman We subdued the wind in its raging. It flows by his order towards the land which We had blessed And of every thing We are aware." (21:81)

The Prophet Dawud Perceives the Speech of the Birds:
The Prophet Sulaiman peace be upon him) was gifted with the knowledge of understanding the speech of birds, animals and insects. He was also capable to talk to them. The Holy Qur'an testifies to it in the following Verses:

"He (Sulaiman) said: O' People! We have been taught the language of the birds and have been given (abundance) of all things; this is indeed grace manifest (from Allah)."

Jinns are Subdued to Him:
He was also given the power over Jinns and Devils. He utilized them in his service. They carried out his orders ungrudgingly and were punished when they became refractory The Holy Qur'an affirms:

034.012 And to Solomon (We made) the Wind (obedient): Its early morning (stride)
was a month's (journey), and its evening (stride) was a month's (journey); and We
made a Font of molten brass to flow for him; and there were Jinns that worked in
front of him, by the leave of his Lord, and if any of them turned aside from our
command, We made him taste of the Penalty of the Blazing Fire.

034.013 They worked for him as he desired, (making) arches, images, basons as large
as reservoirs, and (cooking) cauldrons fixed (in their places): "Work ye, sons of
David, with thanks! but few of My servants are grateful!"

In another Verse the Holy Qur'an says: "And before Sulaiman were marshalled his hosts--of Jinns, and men and birds and they were all in order and ranks." (21: 17)

It is stated that the Jinns were subjugated to the Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) to help him in the construction of the Holy Temple - Baitul Muqaddas (Masjid Aqsa).

Ardent Lover of Horses:

The Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) was also a great lover of horses. They constituted an essential part of his army. When they returned after a mission, he would give them strokes of affections on ankles and necks. The Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) did so in approbation of their loyalty and high speed.

The Incident of the Queen of Saba:

The area which now comprises Yemen and is known as Saba was ruled by a queen. It was a prosperous kingdom. The queen enabled its people to attain a high degree of civilisation. One day Hud informed the Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) of the flourishing kingdom of Saba. It said:

"The ruler of Saba is the queen upon whom, God has bestowed His unlimited favours. Her throne is magnificent. She is depraved. The inhabitants of her kingdom worship the sun and the moon. They do not make obeisance to Allah and refrain from thanking Him Who has created all these objects." Sulaiman, the Prophet of Allah and the King wrote a letter and handed over to Hud to be conveyed to the queen of Saba. He warned her not to be arrogant of her power. He advised her to submit to God and abide by His Commandments. The queen read this letter and was much puzzled. As she was a prudent lady, she called her chiefs and sought their counsels. Some proud chiefs suggested to fight tooth and nail against the Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) whereas the others left the matter for her to decide.

The Holy Qur'an says:

''She said: O' chiefs! Advise me in this affair for I never decide an affair until you are in my presence. They said: We are endowed with strength and ale possessors of mighty powers but the command is thine. Therefore see what you will command." (27:29-33)

The queen did not like to embroil her country into war because it would cause destruction. She thought of a plan and arranged for precious gifts for the monarch. She planned to germinate cordial relations and pacify her warlike subjects by using this device. But wealth had no value for the Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him). He was annoyed at the delivery of the presents. He returned them with harsh words and said to the messenger:

"I do not hanker after wealth. I, therefore, attach no importance to there Costly gifts. I wish that the queen and his followers should submit to God and follow the true faith. I shall invade your country if the queen does not come to me in submission.''

After some time the King marched with an army and passed through the Valley of Ants on his way to the kingdom of Saba. In the Valley he overheard the conversation among the terrified ants who hurried towards their holes for fear of being crushed under the feet of the marching army. The King was moved to pity and learnt the lesson to protect the life and honour of the humble creatures. He thought that the queen and his people are just like humble ants. They should not be trampled upon and killed to win Fame in the world. An account of this incident is related in the following Verses:

"At length when they came to a valley of ants, one of the ants said: 0' ants! Get into your holes lest Sulaiman and his hosts crush you without knowing it. Thereupon he smiled at her speech and he said: 0' my Lord! So order the that I may be grateful for Your favours which You have bestowed upon me and my father and that I may work the righteousness that will please Thee and admit me by Your grace into the ranks of Your righteous servants.'' (27: 18, 19)

The King did not proceed further because he did not like the massacre which would result in case of clash between two armies. His aim was to reform the queen and the inhabitants of Saba. He desired to bring them to the right path. He wished to save the depraved people from seduction.

When the queen got wind of an expected attack of the Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) she proceeded towards him to patch up differences. When the King came to know of her departure, he ordered one of the Jinns to bring the magnificent throne of the queen in the twinkling of an eye. The command was obeyed immediately. When the queen arrived at the court of Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) after a long journey, she was asked to identify her throne.

She recognised the throne and said:

"I am already aware of your power and majesty. I have come to you as your submissive servant."

The Holy Qur'an states:

"So when she arrived she was asked: Is it your throne? She said: It was just like this and we were given the knowledge before it and we were already submissive and he diverted her from the worship of others besides Allah, for she was Sprung of a people that have no faith." (7:4L, 43)

The queen was taken to the lofty palace. Its floor was made of slabs of polished glass that deceived the eyes and looked like water. The queen tucked up her shirt to pass through it. She was reminded that that was not water. She then realised that reality did not lay at the surface and it needed eyes to see.

According to the Holy Qur'an she said:

"O' my Lord! I have indeed wronged myself; I do submit with Sulaiman to the Lord of the Worlds." (27:45)

The queen of Saba felt penitence and accepted the religion of God. The Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) ruled for thirty years. He died at the age of eighty-nine years. After his death Rohoboam, his son became a king. He led a luxurious life and yielded to pleasure seeking temptations. The people revolted against him and soon the glorious chapter of the reign of Prophet Dawud's family came to an end.

Shirk in Practice

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 12:02:00 +0000

Allah T'ala says in the Holy Quran:

وَقَالَ الشَّيْطَانُ لَمَّا قُضِيَ الأَمْرُ إِنَّ اللّهَ وَعَدَكُمْ وَعْدَ الْحَقِّ وَوَعَدتُّكُمْ فَأَخْلَفْتُكُمْ وَمَا كَانَ لِيَ عَلَيْكُم مِّن سُلْطَانٍ إِلاَّ أَن دَعَوْتُكُمْ فَاسْتَجَبْتُمْ لِي فَلاَ تَلُومُونِي وَلُومُواْ أَنفُسَكُم مَّا أَنَاْ بِمُصْرِخِكُمْ وَمَا أَنتُمْ بِمُصْرِخِيَّ إِنِّي كَفَرْتُ بِمَآ أَشْرَكْتُمُونِ مِن قَبْلُ إِنَّ الظَّالِمِينَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ

(14:22) And when Our judgment has been passed, Satan will say, "The fact is that the promises Allah had made with you were all true. I, too, made some promises with you but I failed to keep any of them. ^*1 Yet I had no power over you; I did nothing but to invite you to my way and you accepted my invitation. ^*2 So do not now blame me, but blame yourselves. I cannot help you here, nor can you help me. I dissociate myself from your making me a partner with God before this. ^*3 Such wrong-doers are sure to receive a grievous torment. "

*1 When the criminals will charge Satan with leading them astray, he will plead guilty, as if to say, "You yourselves see now that all the promises and warnings made by AIIah have come out true and all the promises which I made have proved to be false. I also confess that it was all deception that I gave you false assurances of prosperity, beguiled you by greed and enticed you in the snare of great expectations. I assured you that in the first instance there will be no life in the Hereafter, and that, if there be any you will go spot-free by the intercession of such and such a saint. The only thing you have to do is to make offerings before him: then you may do whatever you please, for he will deliver you from all the consequences. I repeat that I said all these things and asked my agents to say the same. "

*2 That is, "You cannot say and prove that it was I who forced you to follow the wrong way, whereas you wanted to follow the Right Way. You will yourselves admit that it is not so. I did no more than this that I invited you to falsehood in opposition to the invitation to the Truth and tempted you to vice instead of virtue. But I had no power to force you to the wrong way, if you desired to follow the Right Way, when you had the power and the option to follow either of the ways. Now I am ready to bear the burden of the wicked invitation I extended to you, but you are not justified in any way to throw on me the burden of accepting my invitation, for you did it on your own responsibility. You should, therefore, yourselves bear all its consequences. "

*3 This is a clear proof of shirk in practice, as apart from shirk in creed. As Satan will charge his followers with making him a partner with God, it is obvious that as far as creed is concerned there is no one who makes Satan a partner with God in His Godhead or His worship: nay, every one curses him for his evil ways. Nevertheless, people obey and submit to him and follow him blindly, as if he were their "god" and that is what has been termed shirk.

Let us now consider this thesis from the opposite point of view. Some one might say that this does not hold good, for this is based on a mere saying of Satan which has been cited here. First, this objection is not sound because Allah Himself would have refuted it, had it been baseless. Secondly, this is not the only instance of shirk in practice in the Qur'an.
Here are a few more instances of this:

(a) It charges the Jews and Christians with shirk because they set up their priests and monks as their "Lords" besides AIIah. (IX: 31).

(b) Those who follow the superstitious customs have been called mushriks. (VI: 136139).

(d) Those who are disobedient to Allah have been accused of worshipping "Satan". (XXXVI: 60).

(e) Those who follow man-made laws without Allah's sanction have been reproved for setting up the makers of the laws without Allah's sanction as partners with God. (XLI: 21).

All the above instances are clear proofs of the fact that shirk is not confined to this creed alone that one might set up a partner with Allah in His Godhead as an article of faith. But it is also shirk that one should follow and surrender to some one other than Allah without any Divine sanction or in spite of a Divine prohibition. Such a one shall be guilty of shirk even though the follower might be at the same time cursing the one whom he follows and obeys. The only difference between the two kinds of shirk may be the extent of the crime and not its nature.

(Ref: Tafheemul Quran)

What is Kufr?

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 11:32:00 +0000

There has been a recent trend among quasi-traditionalist writers and speakers that promotes an ideology that undermines the very foundation of Islam—namely, an ideology that attempts to erase the distinction between Iman (Faith or Belief) and kufr(disbeli ef)—that is, to confuse the distinction between the Muslims and the disbelievers. The Believers (i.e., the Muslims) are clearly defined in the Qur'an. Al-Hujarat, 15 means:

The Believers are only those who believe in Allah and His Messenger [Prophet Muhammad] and have no doubt.

Abu Hanifah said: "Iman [Faith or Belief] and Islam are inseparable. Every Muslim is a Believer, and every Believer is a Muslim." Faith (Iman) is to believe correctly in Allah, and to believe correctly in the Messenger of Allah (Prophet Muhammad). Believing correctly in Allah entails believing in One Perfect Beginningless Creator, Who is the Creator of everything, and that Allah absolutely does not need anything. Allah is Incomparable. Allah is unimaginable. Allah is not a material or spiritual being. Allah is Eternal and not subject to development or change. Allah existed before time, direction, or space. Allah is the Creator of time, direction, and space; hence, Allah is not in time, direction, or space.

Believing in Prophet Muhammad entails believing he was truthful in everything he conveyed from Allah, whether it be the matters of the unseen (such as, the Angelic realm), the previous Prophets and Messengers, the (authentic) Divine Books, the events of the Afterlife, such as, the Judgment Day and the ultimate dwelling in Paradise or Hell. Also, one must accept the superiority of the Sacred Law that was revealed to Prophet Muhammad.

Furthermore, one must also believe that all the Prophets were men of outstanding character and righteousness. All the Prophets were Muslims; they were truthful, honorable, virtuous, handsome, courageous, intelligent, and wise men who called people to the correct belief in the Creator. Allah supported the Prophets with miracles to demonstrate their truthfulness in what they conveyed. None of the Prophets committed disbelief, enormities, or sins that would indicate baseness of character. Allah has informed us of their truthfulness; hence, we must believe in all of them.

Kufr (disbelief) is the opposite of Iman (Faith). Linguistically, kufr is derived from the verbal root k-f-r, which literally means "to conceal or cover." However, in the terminology of Islamic Doctrine, anyone who does not have Iman (Faith) commits kufr (disbelief). The person who commits disbelief is called a kafir (pl. kafirun, kafirin, k uffar). Hence, every non-Muslim, whether atheist, agnostic, Jew, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Zoroastrian, or the like is a kafir. This is mentioned in the Qur'an:

Whoever does not believe in Allah and His Messenger [Muhammad], then certainly Allah has prepared for the disbelievers (kafirin) a raging fire. (Al-Fath, 13)

There are three general categories of disbelief:

A) Ta^til: the denial of Allah's Attributes, such as, for one to claim that Allah does not know everything, or to claim that Allah is not the Creator of everything.

B) Tashbih: the resembling of Allah to the creations in one way or another, such as, claiming Allah is an idol, the sun, moon, a human, or that Allah has a size or form or exists in a direction, location, or time.

C) Takdhib: the belying or rejecting what is well-established and commonly known in the Religion, such as, the obligation of the five daily prayers, fasting during Ramadan, the hijab for the woman, and the prohibition of alcohol, stealing, murder, fornication, and homosexuality. (It is important to note that simply doing a prohibition or neglecting an obligation does not constitute disbelief (kufr) unless one deems the sin permissible, for deeming the sins permissible is, in essence, rejecting what Allah revealed, and the one who rejects what Allah has revealed can't be considered a Muslim.)

Other examples of disbelief (kufr) would be for a person to mock the Sunnah of the Prophet, to intentionally throw the Qur'an or other religious material in the trash, or to assist another to commit disbelief.

The disbelievers are of two general categories: those who are legally accountable (mukallaf) and those who are not. Any non-Muslim who is sane, pubescent, and has heard the Shahadah (Declaration of Faith) in a language he understands is considered an accountable kafir, and is obligated to immediately embrace Islam. On the other hand, if the non-Muslim was prepubescent, insane, or never heard the Declaration of Faith, then he is not accountable.

As for the accountable disbeliever (kafir), if he dies in such a state, he will have no reward in the Hereafter. Al ^Imran, 85 means:

Whoever elects for himself a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted from him, and he will be among the losers in the Hereafter.

Furthermore, the Qur'an promises the (accountable) disbelievers everlasting torture in Hell. Al-Baqarah, 161-162 means:

Surely, those who disbelieve and die while they are disbelievers (kuffar), upon them is the curse of Allah and the angels and men; condemned therein forever, their punishment shall not be lessened.

Because some extremists have made takfir (deemed others kafir) without justification, does not mean that Muslims should become apologists and abandon making a distinction between Believers (i.e., Muslims) and disbelievers (i.e., kuffar). Nonetheless, in making this distinction, it does not justify acts of terror and murder in the name of "Islam." To the contrary, Muslims must be moderate and learn their Religion according to the genuine traditional methodology of Sunni Islamic scholarship. Muslims in the West should work diligently to invite non-Muslims to Islam with good manners and by demonstrating the truthfulness of the Islamic doctrine. Furthermore, Muslims should be magnanimous, and forbearing in their dealings with other members of the society–but without distorting or compromising their Faith.

--
Noor Muhammad

what is Kufr ?

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 11:32:00 +0000

I bear witness that none has the right to be worshipped except Allah (swt) and that Muhammad (pbuh) is His Messenger and the Seal of the Prophets.

Just like the opposite of Tawheed (Oneness of Allah) is Shirk (associating or setting up rivals to Allah), similarly, the opposite of Emaan (faith) is Kufr (disbelief). It is essential why we must know what Kufr is all about, in order to keep away from it. In Arabic, Kufr by definition means to cover or conceal something. In Islamic terminology it means that a person does not believe in Allah (swt) and His Messenger, Muhammad (pbuh). Sheikh al-Islam ibn Taymiyyah (may Allah's mercy be upon him) said: "Kufr is the attribute of everyone who rejects something that Allah has commanded us to believe in, after news of that has reached him, whether he rejects it in his heart without uttering it, or he speaks those words of rejection without believing it in his heart, or he does both; or he does an action which is described in the texts as putting one beyond the pale of faith." (Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 12/335)

The following 12 points are a general list of actions and beliefs that would classify a person as a Kaafir (disbeliever) or a Murtadd (apostate):

Anyone who rejects Allah 's Lordship (Ruboobiyyah) or Allah's sole right to be worshipped (Uloohiyyah) or Allah's Prophets and Messengers and the Message that they brought or to believe that a Prophet or a Messenger can come after Muhammad (pbuh).
Anyone who rejects Allah's Names or Attributes (Asma' wa as-Sifaat) that includes His Living, Knowing, Hearing, Seeing, having a Face and Hands (in a manner that suits His Majesty and definitely not like His Creation), or adding to them that which is not cited in the Qur'an or Sunnah. Some Muslims believe that Allah (swt) is everywhere or in everything, this is completely incorrect, Allah (swt) is Above and Beyond His Creation, everything is in need of Him yet He is need of nothing. It is also incorrect to attribute to the Creation any of His Qualities or that which is due to Allah (swt) Alone or being pleased with anything that is worshipped besides Allah (swt).
Anyone who sets up mediators between themselves and Allah, putting their trust in them, supplicating to them, and requesting their intercession. This includes grave-worship and invoking the dead, asking for their help, or offering gifts or sacrifices to them will all come under Shirk.
Anyone who abuses or curses the Name of Allah, in order to reject or revile Him, including abusing, cursing or rejecting any of His Angels, Prophets or Messengers.
Anyone who rejects or stops the obligatory duties of the Shar'iaa (Divine Law) i.e. Prayers, Zakaah, Fasting, Pilgrimage to Makkah (Hajj), Jihad, kindness to parents, or turning away from the religion by not gaining knowledge or practicing it's fundamentals and guidelines.
Anyone who believes that it is permissible to make Halal what is Haram such as adultery, fornication, consumption of alcohol, taking drugs, theft, murder, sorcery, magic, etc. or to make Haram what is Halal such as eating meat or seafood, marrying plural wives, the veil for women, etc.
Anyone w ho rejects an Ayah (verse, sign, etc.) from the Qur'an or to deliberately give it deviant interpretations that are not derived from the Qur'an itself, or the Sunnah of Muhammad (pbuh) or according to the well-known methods of Tafseer. Abu Hurairah (may Allah's mercy be upon him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: "Don't pursue that which you have no knowledge of." (Imam Ahmed's Musnad)
Anyone who displays dislike, hate, scorn, for Islam, its creed, its obligatory duties or its customs.
Anyone who disbelieves in the Last Day (Day of Resurrection), its punishment or reward or to believe that the punishment and reward of the Hereafter are only imaginary, theoretical, metaphorical, figurative or spiritual.
Anyone who claims that the Righteous (Awliya) are above the Prophets and Messengers of Allah (peace be upon them) or claiming that some of the Righteous people are excused from religious duties or acts of worship prescribed by Allah (swt).
Anyone who rules or judges by other than that which Allah (swt) has revealed. Anyone who believes that man-made laws or anything is superior or better than Allah's (swt) Shari'ah is considered a disbeliever. Anyone who substitutes Allah's (swt) Shari'ah with man-made laws or with the opinions of individuals and deems it to be kosher, even though he might say that the Shari'ah is better, is still a disbeliever. Whereas, anyone who holds fast to the religion of Islam, but is a sinner and a wrongdoer because of following his whims and desires, or chasing after some worldly benefit, but admits that he is sinning and is a wrongdoer, would not be guilty of Kufr that could put him beyond the pale of Islam.
Anyone who aids or supports the Mushrikoon (Polytheists) against the Muslims.

Scholars have d ivided Kufr into a number of categories. They are as follows:

Kufr by denial/rejection (Takdhib/Inkaar/Juhood): This can be disbelief in the heart or can be of an outward/obvious rejection. If one conceals the truth and does not submit to it outwardly, despite the fact that the person recognizes it and knows it inwardly, like the Jews' rejection of Muhammad (pbuh). Allah (swt) says: "then when there came to them that which they had recognised, they disbelieved in it." (Al-Baqarah 2:89 & 146) This is so, because rejection only takes place when a person knows the truth and refuses it. That's why Allah (swt) tells us that the Kuffaar's disbelief in Muhammad (pbuh) was only outward and oral, but inwardly they knew the truth. Allah (swt) says: "It is not you that they deny, but it is the Ayahs (verses, sig ns, etc.) of Allah that the polytheists and wrongdoers deny." (Al-An'am 6:33) In another place, Allah (swt) says: "And they belied them (those Ayahs) wrongfully and arrogantly, though their own selves were convinced thereof." (Al-Naml 27:14) It is important to note that this Kufr is like the Kufr of permitting that which is forbidden. If someone regards something as permissible which he knows that Islam has forbidden, or forbids something that is permissible, then he has disbelieved in the Message brought by Muhammad (pbuh).

Kufr by arrogance/pride [Istakbaar (like the Kufr of Iblees)]: Allah (swt) says: "… except Iblees (Satan), he refused and was proud and was one of the disbelievers (disobedient to Allah)." (Al-Baqarah 2:34) In another place, Allah (swt) says: "They (the hypocrites) say: 'We have believed in Allah and in the Messenger (Muhammad), and we obey,' then a party of them turns away thereafter, such are the disbelievers." (Al-Noor 24:47) Therefore, Allah (swt) makes it clear that even if people utter words of faith but do not act in accordance with faith, then they are disbelievers.

Kufr out of stubbornness ('Inaad): This is when a person recognizes the truth but rejects to accept it and desists from making a declaration. Allah (swt) says: "Throw into the Fire (Hell) every stubborn disbeliever". (Qaaf 50:24)

Kufr by hypocrisy (Nifaaq): This happens by disbelief in one's heart, while on the outside, one only submits in order to sh ow off to people. This was a new kind of enemy that emerged in the Madinah period. They are known as the Munafiqoon. Allah (swt) says: "Verily the hypocrites will be in the lowest depths of Hell. You will find no one to help them". (An-Nisa 4:145) Also, Allah (swt) says regarding them: "And of mankind, there are some (hypocrites) who say: 'We believe in Allah and the Last Day,' while in fact they believe not. They (think to) deceive Allah and those who believe, while they only deceive themselves, and perceive (it) not! In their hearts is a disease (of doubt and hypocrisy) and Allah has increased their disease. A painful torment is theirs because they used to tell lies. And when it is said to them: 'Make not mischief on the earth,' they say: 'We are only peacemakers.' Verily, they are the ones who make mischief, but they perceive not. And when it is said to them (hypocrites): 'Believe as the people (followers of Muhammad, Al-Ansaar and Al-Muhajiroon) have believed,' they say: 'Shall we believe as the fools have believed?' Verily, they are the fools, but they know not. And when they meet those who believe, they say: 'We believe,' but when they are alone with their Shayaateen (devils — polytheists, hypocrites), they say: 'Truly, we are with you; verily, we were but mocking.' Allah mocks at them and gives them increase in their wrong-doing to wander blindly. These are they who have purchased error for guidance, so their commerce was profitless. And they were not guided. Their likeness is as the likeness of one who kindled a fire; then, when it lighted all around him, Allah took away their light and left them in darkness. (So) they could not see. They are deaf, dumb, and blind, so they return not (to the Right Path). Or like a rainstorm from the sky, wherein is darkness, thunder, and lightning. They thrust their fingers in their ears to keep out the stunning thunderclap for fear of death. But Allah ever encompasse s the disbelievers (i.e. Allah will gather them all together). The lightning almost snatches away their sight, whenever it flashes for them, they walk therein, and when darkness covers them, they stand still. And if Allah willed, He could have taken away their hearing and their sight. Certainly, Allah has power over all things." (Al-Baqarah 2:8-20)

Kufr by ignorance (Jahl): Denial or rejection of Islam or the teachings of Islam due to ignorance. This type of Kufr is attributed to Abu Jahl and his adherents.

Kufr by doubt (Shakk): It is necessary for every Muslim to have certainty in faith (Yaqeen) with what the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) brought, and not hav e any room for doubt or hesitation. Allah (swt) says: "And he went into his garden while in a state (of pride and disbelief), unjust to himself. He said: 'I think not that this will ever perish. And I think not the Hour will ever come, and if indeed I am brought back to my Lord, (on the Day of Resurrection), I surely, shall find better than this when I return to Him.' His companion said to him during the talk with him: 'Do you disbelieve in Him Who created you out of dust (i.e. your father Adam), then out of Nutfah (mixed semen drops of male and female discharge), then fashioned you into a man? But as for my part, (I believe) that He is Allah, my Lord, and none shall I associate as partner with my Lord.'" (Al-Kahf 18:35-38)

Kufr by mockery or ridicule (Istihzaha): This is for those (believers or non-belie vers) who ridicule or make a mockery of Allah (swt), His Ayats, His Prophets and Messengers, etc. Allah (swt) says: "Say! Was it at Allah, His signs and His apostles that you were mocking? Make no excuses. You have disbelieved after you have believed. (At-Tawbah 9:65-66)

Kufr of evasion (I'raadh): This is when a person turns away or avoids the truth. Allah (swt) says: "And who is more unjust than he who is reminded of his Lord's signs but then turns away from them. Then he forgets what he has sent forward (for the Day of Judgement) (Al-Kahf 18:57)

Kufr by interpretation (Ta'weel): This does not happen by complete rejection, but is rendered by means of interpretation (see point no. 7 in the general list above). This takes place when a person distorts a belief or teaching of Islam by giving an interpretation or meaning to it other than what was the meaning ascribed to it by the Messenger of Allah (pbuh). Nowadays, this has become very common among those who were born Muslim. Corrupt interpretation is widely employed by Muslims to distort the true beliefs and teachings of Islam. It is such baseless and corrupt interpretation of Qur'anic Ayats and authentic Ahaadith are given meanings which clash with their true and original meanings explained by the Messenger of Allah (pbuh). Allah (swt) says: "And among mankind is he who disputes concerning Allah, without knowledge, and follows every rebellious shaytaan". (Al-Hajj 22:3)

Kufr of making Halal into Haram and vice-versa (Istihaal): This takes place when a person accepts something as lawful that Allah (swt) has made unlawful and vice-versa (see point no. 6 in the general list above). Allah (swt) Alone has the right to make things Halal and Haram and anybody who meddles with His right are like rivals to Him and therefore this takes a person beyond the pale of faith.

Kufr of abhorrence for Allah's Commands (Kurh): This is for people who detest and hate the Commands given by Allah (swt). Allah (swt) says: "Perdition (destruction) has been consigned to those who disbelieve and He will render their actions void. This is because they are averse to that which Allah has revealed so He has made their actions fruitless. (Muhammed 47:8-9)

Kufr by substituting the Shari'ah (Istibdaal): This is when a person substitutes Allah's (swt) Laws. There are three types:

Rejection of the Shari'ah by denial of it.
Rejection of the Shari'ah without denial of it.
To Substitute the Shari'ah with man-made laws (see point no. 11 in the general list above). Allah (swt) says: "Or have they partners with Allah who have instituted for them a religion which Allah has not allowed. (Ash-Shoora 42:8) Also, Allah (swt) says: "Say not concerning that which your tongues put forth falsely (that) is lawful and this is forbidden so as to invent a lie against Allah. Verily, those who invent a lie against Allah will never prosper. (An-Nahl 16:116)

I would like to add that we should not rush in labeling Muslims as disbelievers or apostates until and unless we have obvious and undeniable proof. This is known as Takfeer. This is something that should be left to the scholars of Islam. There could be evidence that clearly shows a Muslim to be a disbeliever, but still we should not be quick to pass judgments as we can only see what is outwardly evident, but it is Allah (swt) Alone who can see into the hearts of mankind. 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar (may Allah's mercy be upon him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: "Any person who called his brother 'O Unbeliever' (has in fact done an act by which this kufr) would return to one of them. If it were so as he (the accuser) asserted, (the kufr of the accused would be confirmed, but if the kufr was not true) then it returned to him (the man who called his brother Muslim a kaafir)." (Saheeh Muslim). Also, it is narrated by Dahhaak (may Allah's mercy be upon him) that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: "Whoever curses a believer, it is as if he killed h im and whoever throws the charge of kufr at a believer, it is as if he killed him". (Saheeh Al-Bukhaari) This is a whole topic on its own, but Insh'Allah, in the near future I will do an article explaining this in more detail.

I would like to make a plea to my Muslim brothers and sisters that we should take our Deen seriously; we must gain knowledge and learn our Deen. There are too many of us that are ignorant while our lives are just passing us by and one day it will be too late as death will coming knocking on your door. There will be no excuse (unless Allah Wills it) on that Day when we shall all be brought before Allah (swt). Be mindful O Muslims! May Allah protect us and keep us safe from falling into Kufr and Takfeer. May He Bless us with knowledge of Islam so that we may understand and implement our Deen correctly and deliver the Message of Truth to the rest of mankind. Ameen.

In the End, Allah Knows Best!

--
Noor Muhammad

What is Kufr?

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 19:32:00 +0000

There has been a recent trend among quasi-traditionalist writers and speakers that promotes an ideology that undermines the very foundation of Islam—namely, an ideology that attempts to erase the distinction between Iman (Faith or Belief) and kufr(disbelief)—that is, to confuse the distinction between the Muslims and the disbelievers. The Believers (i.e., the Muslims) are clearly defined in the Qur'an. Al-Hujarat, 15 means:

The Believers are only those who believe in Allah and His Messenger [Prophet Muhammad] and have no doubt.

Kufr (disbelief) is the opposite of Iman (Faith). Linguistically, kufr is derived from the verbal root k-f-r, which literally means "to conceal or cover." However, in the terminology of Islamic Doctrine, anyone who does not have Iman (Faith) commits kufr (disbelief). The person who commits disbelief is called a kafir (pl. kafirun, kafirin, kuffar). Hence, every non-Muslim, whether atheist, agnostic, Jew, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Zoroastrian, or the like is a kafir. This is mentioned in the Qur'an:

Whoever does not believe in Allah and His Messenger [Muhammad], then certainly Allah has prepared for the disbelievers (kafirin) a raging fire. (Al-Fath, 13)

There are three general categories of disbelief:

A) Ta^til: the denial of Allah's Attributes, such as, for one to claim that Allah does not know everything, or to claim that Allah is not the Creator of everything.

The disbelievers are of two general categories: those who are legally accountable (mukallaf) and those who are not. Any non-Muslim who is sane, pubescent, and has heard the Shahadah (Declaration of Faith) in a language he understands is considered an account able kafir, and is obligated to immediately embrace Islam. On the other hand, if the non-Muslim was prepubescent, insane, or never heard the Declaration of Faith, then he is not accountable.

As for the accountable disbeliever (kafir), if he dies in such a state, he will have no reward in the Hereafter. Al ^Imran, 85 means:

Whoever elects for himself a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted from him, and he will be among the losers in the Hereafter.

Furthermore, the Qur'an promises the (accountable) disbelievers everlasting torture in Hell. Al-Baqarah, 161-162 means:

--
Noor Muhammad

SHIRK: THE ULTIMATE CRIME

noreply@blogger.com (Noor Muhammad) — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 19:32:00 +0000

Murder, rape, child molesting and genocide. These are all some of the appalling crimes which occur in our world today. Many would think that these are the worst possible offenses which could be committed. But there is something which outweighs all of these crimes put together: It is the crime of shirk.

Some people may question this notion. But when viewed in a proper context, the fact that there is no crime worse then shirk, will become evident to every sincere person.

There is no doubt that the above crimes are indeed terrible, but their comparison with shirk shows that they do not hold much significance in relation to this travesty. When a man murders, rapes or steals, the injustice which is done is directed primarily at other humans. But when a man commits shirk, the injustice is directed towards the Creator of the heavens and the earth; Allah. When a person is murdered, all sorts of reasons and explanations are given. But one thing that the murderer cannot claim, is that the murdered was someone who provided him with food, shelter, clothing and all the other things which keep humans aloft in this life.

But when a person commits shirk, they attempt to, willingly or unwillingly, direct an injustice towards the one who has provided them with all these necessary things - and often a whole lot more. This Being who provides us with all our needs and wants is of course Allah, the Lord of this universe. So is it right for us to commit this offense against the one who has provided us with all that we could possibly need? This is the ultimate form of ingratitude which humans display, and will eventually cause many people eternal pain. The severity of this crime has been established in shaa Allah, but until now you may have been wondering 'what exactly is shirk?'

THE REALITY OF SHIRK

In the previous issue we talked about Tawheed (the Oneness of Allah). Shirk is its exact opposite. Linguistically, shirk means a partnership or to share or associate. However, Islamicly it is to give to other than Allah, that which belongs solely to Allah. This means that parts of Allah's creation are given powers and attributes which belong to Allah, thus, ultimately sending worship to other then Allah alone. These parts of the creation therefore become partners with Allah.

The purpose of our creation is outlined in the Qur'an when Allah says: "I did not create the Jinn[1] and mankind except to worship Me" (Surah Ad-Dhariyat 51:56)

Our very existence on this earth is to worship Allah alone. By committing shirk, a person ends up denying this very purpose of our creation. To Allah, this is the gravest of sins and thus unforgivable.

Allah says: "Surely Allah will not forgive the association of partners (shirk) with Him, but He forgives (sins) less then that to whomever He wish es" (Surah An-Nisa 4:48)

This means that everything can be forgiven except shirk. However we should not misunderstand this into thinking that those who commit shirk are totally doomed. Allah calls himself by al-Ghafoor (The Most Forgiving), and truly he is the Most Forgiving. If a person commits shirk and then wishes to make repentance, Allah accepts his repentance and wipes the slate clean. But if the person does not make repentance during his lifetime, then Allah will not forgive this person on the Day of judgment. Hellfire will be made eternal and he/she will never come out. It must also be remembered that Allah through his justice, has not discriminated in the punishment of this crime. If a Muslim commits shirk during his lifetime, and does not make repentance, he too will face the eternal fury of the Hellfire. It is this thought which helps Muslims from becom ing too complacent and arrogant like some of the previous nations.[2]

Some people say that eternal Hellfire is unjust. But indeed Allah is the Most Just. While some will go to Hell forever for committing shirk, there will be others who will go to Paradise forever for upholding Tawheed. Those who say that Allah is unjust for sending some to Hell forever, should therefore also say that Allah is unjust for sending others to Paradise forever! But we know that those who claim this, would never themselves refuse an everlasting reward such as Paradise, thus showing the weak human understanding of this argument.

By committing shirk we should not fool ourselves into thinking that we harm Allah in anyway. Rather we harm ourselves with the threat of Allah's punishment. It is as if humans stick two fingers up at Allah after He has favored them with so much. Thus a crime is committed against Allah, yet it does not harm him - Such is the magnitude and greatness of our Creator. In order to understand how shirk manifests itself in our world, we need to look at how it relates to the categories of Tawheed (mentioned in the last issue).

SHIRK IN ALLAH'S LORDSHIP (RUBOOBEEYA)

This category of shirk has two aspects:

(i)- SHIRK BY ASSOCIATION - As Muslims we believe that it is Allah alone who Controls and Sustains the universe. Those who commit shirk by association believe that Allah is the Creator, but other parts of the creation also play a role in the running of the world. A classic example of this is the Christian concept of Trinity. Christians believe that God (Allah) alone does not regulate the affairs of mankind. They believe that the other two parts of the Trinity, Jesus (as) and the Holy spirit, also play a part in worldly affairs e.g. Jesus pronounces judgment on the world and the holy spirit helps Christians through their daily lives. Qualities such as these should only belong to Allah. The Hindus also commit this kind of shirk, with them having hundreds of different Gods for different aspects of their lives.

Unfortunately some Muslims have also fallen prey to this shirk. There are many from the Indian subcontinent who often call out for help upon saints and holy men who have passed away. One of the main saints whom they invoke is 'Abdul-Qadir al-Jeelanee'[3] whom they call 'Al-Ghawth-e-Azam' (the greatest source of help).

(ii)-SHIRK BY NEGATION - Over the centuries many philosophies and ways of life have denied the existence of God. Buddhism and Jainism are amongst the major world religions which assert this belief. During the 18th and 19th centuries the advancement of scientific knowledge led many philosophers and scientists to claim that God was a figment of mans imagination. By canceling the role of a supreme legislator, those who claim that God does not exist, ultimately attempt to make themselves masters of their own destinies. Some atheists also give Allah's attributes to his creation. By denying Allah, they say the world is eternal with no beginning and no end. And we know that this is only for Allah.

SH IRK IN ALLAH'S NAMES AND ATTRIBUTES (ASMA WA SIFAAT)

This category of shirk has two aspects:

(i) -SHIRK BY HUMANIZATION - The Tawheed of Allah's names and attributes demands that we believe Allah to be free from any human likeness. Those who commit shirk by humanization give attributes to God which are more appropriate for human beings than an all-powerful Creator. Christianity is again guilty of this shirk. In the Bible we find countless examples of God being given human attributes. In the book of Genesis, God is said to have created the world in six days and then rested on the seventh!! In other places God is said to have repented for his bad thoughts and felt sorry because of his actions!

This form of shirk has even taken some people beyond the limits of sanity. In India there are many Hindus who worship the Shiva Lingam Deity. This is an idol which is shaped and sized to represent the male genitals. For the Hindus it represents the reproductive powers of God, and they display their affection by massaging the deity with milk, water and butter!

These examples of humanization are indeed an injustice to the almighty, who responds clearly by saying in the Qu'raan:

"There is nothing like Him and He sees and hears all things" (Surah Ash-Shoora 42:11)

(ii) - SHIRK BY DEIFICATION - This form of shirk occurs when created beings are given the names or attributes of Allah and thus become deities. This form of shirk is especially popular with humans, with many people being given a Godlike status by ignorant followers. Jesus, Buddha, Rama, Zoroaster and many other famous religious figures of the past have been held to be incarnations of the all mighty. The twentieth Century has also seen many cults emerge, from which many leaders have claimed divinity. Sai Baba [4], David Koresh [5], Guru Rajnishi [6] and many more have all claimed this attribute which only belongs to Allah.

SHIRK IN THE WORSHIP OF ALLAH (EEBAADAH)

This category of shirk has two aspects:

(i) - MAJOR SHIRK (SHIRK-AL-AKBAR)- As Muslims we believe that all forms of worship should be for Allah alone. Those people who physically direct their worship at other then Allah, commit this major shirk. By doing this action, mankind commits the greatest act of rebellion and places himself at the doors of eternal hellfire.

Worship in Christianity is usually devoid of God's name, and Christians often bow down in front of statues of Christ, Mary and many other saints of Christendom. The Muslims have also fallen foul to this evil. Thousands, if not millions, of ignorant Muslims make pilgrimages to the graves of saints and holy men. At the graves they perform acts which clearly violate the principles of Tawheed. They perform prayers (literally!) at the graveside, they sacrifice in the name of the dead saint and they make tawwaaf (circumambulation) of the grave. Many of t hem even ask the dead saints to grant them children and to forgive them of their sins! All this contradicts the statement of Allah when he commands us to:

"Say; Truly my prayer, my sacrifice, my life and my death are all for Allah, Lord of the worlds" (Surah Al-An'aam 6:162)

Major shirk is rampant amongst the world's population and is ultimately the obstacle to our salvation.

(ii)- MINOR SHIRK (SHIRK-E-ASGHAR) - "Mahmood bin Lubayd reported that Allah's Messenger (saws) said: 'The thing that I fear for you the most is minor shirk'. The companions asked: 'O' Messenger of Allah, w hat is minor shirk?' He replied: 'Showing off (ar-riya), for verily Allah will say on the day of resurrection when people are receiving their rewards, 'Go to those whom you were showing off too in the world and see if you can find any reward from them'" [7].

When doing righteous deeds our intentions should be to please the one who sustains and keeps us alive. It should not be to please those who have done nothing in comparison to what the Creator has done. Showing off has become a disease amongst humans, and tears away at any sincerity which may be present inside a person. Thus Islam is probably the only way of life which regulates this minor action, and places its danger in a proper context.

To know of the dangers of shirk should be of primary importance. Whether we are Muslim or not, we should realize that it is the crime of shirk which has led to the destr uction of our world. By taking man away from the worship of Allah, it has led him to the worship of other men, leading to oppression and tyranny. By confining man to the narrowness of this world, it will deny him the vastness of the hereafter, which leads to justice and success. Therefore surely . . . . shirk is the ultimate crime.

Footnotes
1 Jinn's are another part of Allah's creation. They were created from smokeless fire and are (like man) required to worship Allah.
2 The Jewish people were granted many favors by Allah. But this favoritism resulted in them becoming arrogant, and the favors of Allah were taken away from them.
3 Abdul-Qadir AI-Jeelanee was born in Jeelan (Iran) in the year 1077 CE. He was a jurist of the Hanbalite school of Islamic law. Many miracles have been falsely attributed to him, elevating him up to a Godlike status. He himself was very harsh against those who opposed Tawheed . The Qaadiree Sufi order is named after him. He died in the year 1166 CE.
4 Sai Baba is an Indian Holy man who claims the loyalty of millions worldwide through his multi-faith cult. He is deified to such an extent that his followers wake up at dawn every day to pray to him.
5 David Koresh was the leader of the Branch Davidian sect based in Waco, Texas, USA Koresh reinterpreted the teachings of the Bible to proclaim himself as the son of God. The cult was ended in 1993, when a fire killed most of Koresh's followers after a shoot-out with FBI officers.
6 Guru Rajnishi was the leader of a major American commune during the eighties. The cult lost momentum after it was accused of the attempted murder of an American politician.
7 Authentic-Narrated by Ahmed, Baihaqee and Tabaranee

--
Noor Muhammad

"ISLAM" THE RELIGION OF TRUTH

Unseen knowledge given to our Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him)

Six Qualities of the Truly Successful

Why I Believe in Islam

Concept of Worship in Islam

Ritual Worship

Prophet Ibrahim (peace be on him)

Quran: The Miracle of Prophet Muhammad

Europol Report: All Terrorists are Muslimsâ¦Except the 99.6% that Arenât

All Terrorists are Muslims…Except the 94% that Aren't

Terrorist Attacks on U.S. Soil b y Group, From 1980 to 2005, According to FBI Database

HIJAB IN THE WORKPLACE

Love and Justice Must Coexist

Life After Death

Twelve Proofs that Muhammad is a True Prophet

The True Religion "Islam"

THE MESSAGE OF ISLAM

THE MESSAGE OF FALSE RELIGION

THE UNIVERSALITY OF ISLAM

RECOGNITION OF ALLAH

Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him)

Spiritual Unity

Surely the guilty shall not prosper!

THE PROPHET SULAIMAN (peace be upon him)

Shirk in Practice

What is Kufr?

what is Kufr ?

What is Kufr?

SHIRK: THE ULTIMATE CRIME

Europol Report: All Terrorists are Muslimsâ¦Except the 99.6% that Arenât