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Compiled by: Azeem Ayub |
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Reflections |
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When Death shall Die
We are all born to die.
Death is the greatest and perhaps the most neglected reality of life. Some
fleeting moments and then off we go. We may fall to the deception of this
transience -- but not for long: the dawn of life relentlessly gives way to
the dusk of death everyday only to herald the advent of a new dawn, a new
life. The process continues and life goes on under the shadow of death.
Inexorable is this practice, unrelenting this law.
And then one day, the
glorious sun and the milky moon, the dazzling stars and the stormy seas
–would also meet their fate:
At the time [O People!]
when the sky is rent asunder, and when the stars are scattered, and when the
seas burst forth, and when the graves are opened, at that time each one [of
these people who have wronged their souls] will come to know what he has
sent forward and what he has left behind. (82:1-5)
And then, as this verse
says, man would be made to stand before his Lord. He who was vanquished by
death would now forever be free from its claws: ‘Death shall be no more:
death thou shalt die’.
But realize he should:
Death he may have overcome – but now he would face a dilemma more critical:
the blissful life of Paradise or the torment of Hell.
Before such a time comes,
would that we all remember that on that fateful day: The disbeliever would cry out: ‘Would that I were dust’. (78:40)
Topic URL: http://www.monthly-renaissance.com/issue/content.aspx?id=386
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In this Issue |
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Reflections |
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Read & Reflect | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Debate & Discuss * Discussion Forum: The Directives of Jihad | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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* General Discussion Forum: Is beating wife Allowed? Does Qur'an Permit?
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Read and Reflect |
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Subject Matter of the Holy Qur’an
Author Javed Ahmad Ghamidi (Tr. by Tariq Hashmi)
A very basic fact regarding the Holy Qur’ān – one that can be very easily detected by a more general reader of the book- is that it introduces propositions, believing in which and meeting the requirements entailed by such a belief decide the question of man’s success in the afterlife. It is only these propositions the Qur’ān aims at proving through psychological, natural and historical evidence. It is only these facts the Qur’ān calls the human beings to submit to, warns them regarding the consequences of rejecting them and explains what entails professing faith in them. The Book does not deal with anything beyond these points. Though at times it refers to the laws of the physical, world in order to explain these facts without contradicting the reality, yet the discoveries in the realm of physics made thus far and the ones which human intellect is bound to penetrate in future, are not discussed in the Qur’ān at all. Such knowledge is not the subject of the Qur’ān in any way.
But alas, during the course of Muslim history, people have repeatedly failed to acknowledge this true position of the Book. Consequently we see that they first imposed a premise external to the Qur’ān on it proposing that being divine in origin, the Book must moderate all the possible human disciplines. Having imposed such a condition on the Book they tried to base all the human disciplines in it. Therefore, this endeavour led them discover the illusions of Greek philosophy from its verses at one time and to ground the current scientific knowledge in its text at another. At one time, the prevalent knowledge of medical science and theories of astrology and astronomy were extracted from its verses and the mention of the atomic bomb and man’s conquest of Moon at another. In such adventures they opted to ignore grossly all rules of linguistic expression of the Book and the bright light of the context of its verses.
All this trouble owes itself to the erroneous conclusions about the Book. They failed to grasp the fact that the Lord has blessed mankind with intellect before He revealed the Book to them. Just like this Book is a blessing of God bestowed upon them so is the intellect a manifestation of His profound generosity. Therefore, the Book does not concern the matters in which intellect suffices as a guide for them. Similarly in matters the Book deals with, the intellect, when functional, is compelled to submit to its dictates.
The fact also holds true in the case of the teachings of the Prophet (sws). He has explained this reality to his adherents in no unclear terms. The Mother of the Faithful, Ḥaḍrat Ā’ishah narrates that when the Prophet (sws) noticed people engaged in cross fertilizing the date palms trees he said: “It would be better if this exercise is abandoned.” Consequently, the people did not cross fertilize the dates palm trees that year. As a consequence the produce dropped considerably. The people mentioned the state of affair to the Prophet (sws) who responded: “You understand these matters better than me. I have come to explain to you the religion of God. Therefore, turn to me for guidance only in religious matters.”1
If we really intend to be guided by the Holy Qur’ān we are obligated to turn to it for guidance in nothing except the religious truth and facts. We may not knock at but our intellect in matters such as how to carve a bed out of wood to avail us a comfortable sleep and how to conduct research on the heavenly bodies. It is an unquestioned fact that intellect has never failed us in its own spheres. The Holy Qur’ān has been revealed to make plain to us what we are expected to believe in and what to practice in order to please God in the life of this world. We should bend our desires to submit to the dictates of the Book rather than basing our cherished concepts and issues in its verses. The Almighty has repeatedly explained in the Holy Qur’ān that making our desires submit before its dictates is crucial to seeking its guidance. It is but possible that one desire to seek the foundation of the worldly disciplines and fields of knowledge in this book alone yet his desire cannot alter the fact to a slight degree that this book deals only and only with the kind of knowledge upon which our afterwordly salvation depends.
(Translated from Maqāmāt by Tariq Mahmood Hashmi)
Read URL: http://www.monthly-renaissance.com/issue/content.aspx?id=1220
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Course Forums: The Directives of Jihad
Topic: Forcing to Islam, Right or Wrong?
Kaiser5 This course said that the Almighty's scheme in this world is to test man by giving him the right to freely chose his religion. Can u please provide me with verses from the Qur'an or Hadiths that led to this conclusion? Another thing, it says that Jihad to spread the truth or force Islam on others isn't our job but that of the prophets b/c unbelievers deliberately deny it. Again, i need to be provided with verses or ahadiths that led to this conclusion.
And my question here is, forcing Islam by persecution or any other violent way on other non-Muslims right or wrong? Please use verses or ahadiths to prove it. Me personally, i think its wrong but i see a lot of people in the Muslim world that try to force Islam on non-Muslims through violent ways and consequently tarnish Islam's image. And i can't stop wondering as to where they got the idea that they need to force it on others. Furthermore, can Jihad apply from Muslims against other Muslims that persecute non-Muslims ? Thanks, your answers will be much appreciated!
AbdullahRahim (Moderator) Thanks for your question.
1. The verse 2:256 sets a general rule about freedom of choice when it comes to religion. Every other verse and every Hadith has to be seen and interpreted with this verse (as a principle) in mind:
"There is no compulsion in relation to His religion: The right path has now become completely distinct from the erroneous ones. Therefore, whoever rejects the arrogant [Satan] and believes in God, he indeed has gripped a firm handle that shall never break apart. And God is all-hearing, all-knowing." (2:256)
Accordingly, no one can attempt to force others into Islam. Those Muslims who believe otherwise should explain how they justify their belief in the light of the above verse of the Qur'an. Also rationally they need to justify how it is possible to call some one Muslim when the person only behaves like a Muslim to remain safe and unharmed while in his heart he is not convinced about Islam.
2. You asked for an evidence from the Qur'an that says "Jihad to spread the truth or force Islam on others isn't our job but that of the prophets b/c unbelievers deliberately deny it".
The module does not say that. It says:
"once the truth is communicated to the addressees of a Messenger to the extent that none of them is left with an excuse to deny it and they still deliberately deny it, then they are punished in this very world by the Almighty in either of the following two ways:
i. through natural calamities like storms and earthquakes ii. through the swords of the believers".
The Jihad you are referring to is not to force people to religion, but is in fact the punishment of God that is taken place through the swords of believers, after giving enough ultimatum, against people who are convinced about the truth but do not accept it because of their arrogance.
With regard to Jihad (that in this context basically means attempting to kill others), we first need to bear in mind a general rule of the Qur'an about killing:
"Whoever killed even a single soul - not being a punishment of murder neither that of spreading unrest in the land - is as if he killed the whole of mankind." (5: 32)
Accordingly only two reasons for killing can be justified, these are punishment of murder and punishment of those who spread unrest in the land.
While Jihad against persecution can be justified in the light of the above rule, Jihad to force them to accept a religion will not be online with the above.
Therefore any one who claims that we can kill people in an attempt to force them to accept religion needs to justify how this can be seen as punishment for either unjust murder or spreading unrest in the land, referring to verse 5:32.
There can only be exception from the above rule for those who have special permission from God to carry out Jihad for another reason (other than curbing persecution).
This special permission is only given to the Prophet (sws) and his companions:
If you read the beginning of the Sura of Taubah you will see how the verses in this particular chapter of the Qur'an (as an example) relate to the time and the direct addressees of the Prophet (sws).
Again if any one claims that these verses are addressing all Muslims of all time then the burden will be on him to reason how he has come to this conclusion.
It is referring to this very rule of God's punishment through his Messengers (and his direct followers) that we read in the Qur'an:
"Indeed those who are opposing Allah and His Messenger are bound to be humiliated. The Almighty has ordained: ‘I and My Messengers shall always prevail’. Indeed Allah is Mighty and Powerful. (58:20-1)
Also:
“Fight them and God will punish them with your hands.” (9:14)
3. The word “Fitna” that is used in the Qur'an has a general meaning of “persecution”. Therefore we do not have any reasons to introduce limiting conditions for Jihad against persecution, on the basis of people involved being Muslims or Non-Muslims.
Yes even if a non-Muslim group is being persecuted by Muslims, other Muslims with the directive of their respective state may start Jihad against those oppressing Muslims.
Please do let me know if this needs further clarification.
AR
samra As I have read in the Jihad reading that a Muslim state can wage war against a state which is causing violence and oppression to the human beings anywhere in the world to protect and support the oppressed. It sounds like this itself will create more violence and war where war has also been commercialized for selling and buying war equipment as a business. We see today that there are other ways of stopping oppression and war in the world for example by calling out world peace summits and conferences for dialogue and finding alternatives in order to reach an agreed peaceful way out.
Just like there was a time when beating a spouse was a norm of the society and culture in order to keep the peace and stability in the family, husband would beat wife and wife's brothers would beat husband-even today it happens in many places including Pakistan and India- but today in an educated and groomed society there are many alternatives for both the spouses to come to an agreed plan where both the parties assess their attitude and intentions for the peaceful running of this small but most important individual state of a family in a society as a whole.
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Is beating wife allowed? Does Quran permit?
loganc
Alhmadulilah. Let us keep away from this kind of talk - this leads to division in the Ummah and the only path to success in this diin is together. Rasool Allahi, peace be upon him, said that 73 sects will emerge and only one will enter jennah. Let us hold fast to the Qur'an and the kind manners demanded of us. This is not a place of fighting, insha'Allah ta'ala.
Regarding the topic at hand, we can see some key points regarding the issues of "beating" a wife. Firstly, the Qur'an has laid out certain methods in dealing with disagreement between husband and wife, these must be followed and the last course of action is a light physical one, note that any action leaving marks on the body is too harsh - as taught by Muhammad, peace be upon him. Thus "beating" in the English term is not allowed. However, there is a methodology laid out in the Qur'an and ahadith that allows for minor physical persuasion. Also note that the Prophet, peace be upon him, is the best of examples and did not do this, rather he separated his bed from his wives - and he did this for one entire month at one point. Also brothers and sisters in Islam, note that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said that the best of the brothers are those who are best to their wives.
May Allah guide us to the best of actions. May Allah keep us on His straight path. Amin.
If anything I said was correct it comes from Allah who deserves all praise and if anything is wrong it comes from me and the shaitan.
Salaam aliukum
hkhan (Moderator) nice to see u after a while L; salam  how
was ur trip to home.
"A good Idea is Best Shared" is written on the wish card i received from local bbc (as we join them occasionally for the discussions about community issues)
yesterday as i was waiting at a tr. signal behind a local service bus i noticed the advert for a new car with a pic where a man is pushing an old car and the front portion of the car is new. it said at the bottom " give a push to your old car. buy a new one at easy terms "etc.
much fuss is made
about treating women badly in Islam but we can see the times of ignorance in
modern times again. as we read the hx of 'daur e jahlia' in arabia that women
were changed frequently just like a shoe or a slipper, today we can see this
happening just like the changing of a car model. most of the histories I get
from patients and other contacts, it seems like woman is treated no more than an
object (am talking about majority. there are still some morals and family
virtues to be found)
girls at a very
young age are exposed to characters like 'barbie doll' and some other disney
characters where the message is looking beautiful and being available for men.
this continues throughout life. if she is unable to do so, then she can forget
about a suitable place in society, higher status at a job/career etc. she is valuable, untill she is attractive and colourful to satisfy man's desires. beating or killing her to even death on small issues is not a problem.
no wonder the beloved (prophet Muhammad sws)
stressed so much on woman's rights. its a melancholy of all ages and times. Salaam aliukum,
Jaza'kAllah khier.
Yes, although let me just mention one point to our brothers and sisters in Islam because I assume most of the readers in this forum are Muslims:
We do have an issue within our Ummah regarding the mistreatment of women. I am not talking about western secular standards of human rights and women's liberation, rather I am talking about the Islamic regulations, the Islamic teachings and Islamic mannerisms that are being forgotten and/or ignored.
Recall a hadith where the Prophet, peace be upon him, was asked if a woman ought to greet her husband at the door when he comes home - he, peace be upon him, says that would be nice. The man (subhan'Allah brothers look how little we have changed since the time of Rasooli, peace be upon him), thought that he was on a roll and maybe he could push a little more, so he asks: Is is good for my wife to stand while I eat (thus she is the server of food rather than the co-eater of food)? Rasool Allahi, peace be upon him, says: This is the attitude of tyrants.
1400 years later brothers and sisters, in so many facets of life our brothers are acting like tyrants. Regardless if it is a cultural hangover or something else, it is not Islam. We need to return to, or go to, the diin of Islam insha'Allah ta'ala.
If I have said anything good it is from Allah who deserves all praise and if anything is wrong or mis-said it comes from me and the shaitan.
salaam aliukum
Further may be seen at:
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Pause
and Ponder |
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Question: After doing istikharah, if a person sees a frightening dream he will most probably link it to an indication from God that he should not do what he is planning to do (whatever that may be ). But if common sense tells him to do whatever he is thinking about, then what should a person do? People say that because now you have been given the answer in your dreams it would be incorrect to do something against what the Almighty has suggested. In other words, what should a person do if for instance his dreams tell him not to do that thing but knowledge, common sense and experience tell him to go for it?
Answer:
People generally
think that only through dreams does one get an indication of Allah’s will after
doing istikhārah. It is because of this misconception that they think that an
indication through a dream is the only way to know the Almighty’s will in a
particular matter. Actually, there are a number of ways in which this indication
can come. Dreams are just one of these. There may be several ways. For example,
circumstances sometimes become more clear so that a person is able to judge for
himself. Similarly, someone might just come along and help a person in his
decision. Likewise, the Almighty may directly guide a person by giving him an
inner indication.
URL: http://www.studying-islam.org/querytext.aspx?id=913
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