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2009-11-15T03:31:00.001-08:00

The Prophet is the best ideal to follow in your life…

2009-10-04T02:58:00.000-07:00

He is the only personality in history to be followed in everything…

-If you are rich so follow the Prophet when he was a merchant traveling with his products between Hijaz and Ash-Sham and when he earned Bahrain's stores

-If you are poor so take him as an example when he was under blockade in the col (mountain pass) of Abu Taleb and when he emigrated to Madinah leaving his country without having anything…

-If you are a king so follow him in his "Sunna" (All his doings and sayings) when he guided the Arabs and was obeyed by all, even great personalities.

-If you are a weak person so take the Prophet as an example when he was accused in Makkah within the atheist system.

-If you are a conqueror, you can share part of his life when he conquered his enemy in the Battle of Badr, Honayn and Makkah

-If you are defeated, take a moral lesson from the Battle of Uhod when he (PBUH)was among his dead and wounded friends…

-If you are a teacher take him an example when he taught his companions in the Masjed.

-If you are a student or seeking for more education, follow him (PBUH) when he was sitting between Gabriel's hands learning and understanding his Message…

-If you are an advisor, faithful consulter so listen to him when he advised the people in his Masjed of Madinah…

-If you are an Orphan, you have to know that the Muhammad's father died before his birth and his mother when he (PBUH) was still a child…

-And as for children he was that cute and polite child living his first years with his child-minder Halima Assa'diyah …

-If you are young so read the biography of the shepherd of Makkah…

-If you are a merchant traveling with some goods, so notice the behaviors of the caravan's leader who went to Busra…

-If you are a judge or evaluator, so look at the Prophet's judgment when he went to Ka'ba and saw the leaders of the tribes about to kill each other because they were struggling about who is the one to put the black stone in its place, and the Prophet –of course- resolved the problem. And also when he was in Madinah judging equally between people no matter if they are rich or poor…

-If you are a husband so read the Prophet's biography about the honest life of Khadijah's and Aisha's husband.

-And if you are a father, so learn how to treat your children as he (PBUH) did with his daughters and grandchildren…

No matter who you are … you have the Prophet's biography; your guide and candle lightning the darkness of your daily life helping you to go through it to gain the hereafter….

He is indeed the greatest personality all over the world.

JANAZAH PRAYERS

2009-10-01T05:22:00.000-07:00

Al Fiqh'Ala Al Madhahib Al Arab'a, Abdul Rahman Al Jazeeri, 1970, pp. 500-5345.Fiqhul Sunnah, Vol. 4, Sayed Sabiq, 1968, pp. 69-138.Sifat Salatul Nabi, 5th Edition, Mohammad Nasirul Deen, Al Albani, 1389 P. pp. 125.Riyadhul Saliheen, pp. 360-373, Cairo Edition.

There are five main points for the preparation of a Muslim's body for burial; we present briefly the procedure involved in each of them:

I. Body-Washing or "Ghusl"

Washing the deceased's body is obligatory on Muslims; it is a Fard Kifaya, i.e., if some members take the responsibility of doing it the need is fulfilled, but if no one fulfills it then all Muslims will be accountable.

Washing can be carried out in the following way:

A man's body should be washed by men and a women's by women, but a child's body may be washed by either sex. A husband can wash his wife's body and vice-versa if the need arises.
Only one person is needed for washing with someone to help and preferably those people who know the deceased.
Place the body on a high place, e.g., a table or something similar.
Remove the deceased's clothes (garments) leaving the private parts covered.
Press the stomach gently and clean whatever comes out.
For washing, use a piece of cloth or your hands.
Only clean water may be used; add some scented oils (nonalcoholic) in the final wash. It is preferable to use warm water.
Perform ablution (wudu) for the body, cleaning the teeth and nose from outside only.
Wash three times, but if the body needs more cleaning, continue washing five or seven times, but in it must be odd numbers.

Turn the body on its left side and begin washing the right side. Then turn it on its right side to wash the left side. This is done in each wash. The first and the second washes are done with water and soap, while the last one with water and scent.

Hair should be un-braided, washed and combed, For women it may again be braided in three braids.
Dry the body with a clean cloth or towel.
Add some perfume on the head, forehead, nose, hands, knees, eyes, armpits, and place perfumed cotton on the front and rear openings.

II. Wrapping (Kafan)

The cloth used for wrapping the body must be a clean (preferably white) and should cover the whole body.
Add some perfume to the kafan (non-alcoholic).
Do not use silk cloth for men.
Use three pieces of cloth for men and five for women, (each piece of cloth must cover the entire body.)
Tie the open cloth at the head and feet, with a piece of cloth (from the same kafan) in such a way that one can differentiate the head from the legs.

III. Prayers (Salat)

It is better that those praying divide themselves into three rows facing the qibla (Shortest distance to Makkah, Saudi Arabia) with the Imam in front.
Put the body (or bodies) in front of the Imam.
The Imam should stand by the middle of the body if the deceased is a man and by the shoulder if she is a woman.
If there is more than one body, then they should be put one in front of the other, those of the men nearest to the Imam and those of the women furthest from him.
Having the appropriate neeyat (intention to perform Burial Prayers) in your heart, raise your hands in the usual manner and say, Allahu Akbar.
Then fold and hold your hands on your breast in the usual manner, the right hand on the left.
Read al Fatiha quietly.
Say Allah Akbar without raising the hands.
Pray for the Prophet in the same way as you do in tashahud.
Say Allahu Akbar (do not raise your hands).
Make du'a for the deceased.
Say Allabu Akbar (do not raise your hands).
Make du'a for the Muslims.
Say Assalaamu 'Alaikum, thus finishing the prayer.

The entire burial prayer is done while one is standing, there are no raks or sujud in it.

Du'a for the deceased may be chosen from any of the prophetic du'as:

IV. Funeral

In the procession mourners should walk in front or beside the bier. Those who are riding or driving should follow it.
Silence is recommended.
It is absolutely forbidden to accompany the body with music or crying.

V. Burial

The grave should be deep, wide and well made. It is recommended that it consist of two excavations, one inside the other. It is recommended that the smaller one called lahd be dug on the side of the larger one facing the qibla
It is in this one that the body is put.
The deceased's body should be laid on the ground with the face toward the qibla, the direction of the Ka'aba.
While laying it say: Bismillah Wa A'la Milla Rasulallah
It is not recommended to use a casket unless there is a need for it, e.g., if the soil is very loose or wet. A stone, or bricks or some soil should be put under the deceased's head to raise it up.
Do not use a pillow or put anything with the deceased inside the grave.
Cover the lahd with bricks so that they become like a roof for it. Pour three handfuls of soil.
Fill the larger pit with soil. It is preferable that each one of those present share in this by pouring three handfuls of soil. Raise the level of the grave a little less than one foot in a sloping way.

References (all in Arabic):

Al Fiqh'Ala Al Madhahib Al Arab'a, Abdul Rahman Al Jazeeri, 1970, pp. 500-5345.Fiqhul Sunnah, Vol. 4, Sayed Sabiq, 1968, pp. 69-138.Sifat Salatul Nabi, 5th Edition, Mohammad Nasirul Deen, Al Albani, 1389 P. pp. 125.Riyadhul Saliheen, pp. 360-373, Cairo Edition.

This burial procedure has been edited from a hand out by The Muslim Student Association of the United States and Canada, titled "Preperation of the Deceased and Janazah Prayers".

Thanks islamicity.com

Islam A World Civilization

2009-10-01T05:11:00.000-07:00

"Thus We have appointed you a middle nation, that you may be witnesses upon mankind." (Qur'an 2:143)

General Characteristics of Islamic Civilization. Islam was destined to become a world religion and to create a civilization which stretched from one end of the globe to the other. Already during the early Muslim caliphates, first the Arabs, then the Persians and later the Turks set about to create classical Islamic civilization. Later, in the 13th century, both Africa and India became great centers of Islamic civilization and soon thereafter Muslim kingdoms were established in the Malay-Indonesian world while Chinese Muslims flourished throughout China.

Islam is a religion for all people from whatever race or background they might be. That is why Islamic civilization is based on a unity which stands completely against any racial or ethnic discrimination. Such major racial and ethnic groups as the Arabs, Persians, Turks, Africans, Indians, Chinese and Malays in addition to numerous smaller units embraced Islam and contributed to the building of Islamic civilization. Moreover, Islam was not opposed to learning from the earlier civilizations and incorporating their science, learning, and culture into its own world view, as long as they did not oppose the principles of Islam. Each ethnic and racial group which embraced Islam made its contribution to the one Islamic civilization to which everyone belonged. The sense of brotherhood and sisterhood was so much emphasized that it overcame all local attachments to a particular tribe, race, or language--all of which became subservient to the universal Brotherhood and sisterhood of Islam.

The global civilization thus created by Islam permitted people of diverse ethnic backgrounds to work together in cultivating various arts and sciences. Although the civilization was profoundly Islamic, even non-Muslim "people of the book" participated in the intellectual activity whose fruits belonged to everyone. The scientific climate was reminiscent of the present situation in America where scientists and men and women of learning from all over the world are active in the advancement of knowledge which belongs to everyone.

The global civilization created by Islam also succeeded in activating the mind and thought of the people who entered its fold. As a result of Islam, the nomadic Arabs became torch-bearers of science and learning. The Persians who had created a great civilization before the rise of Islam nevertheless produced much more science and learning in the Islamic period than before. The same can be said of the Turks and other peoples who embraced Islam. The religion of Islam was itself responsible not only for the creation of a world civilization in which people of many different ethnic backgrounds participated, but it played a central role in developing intellectual and cultural life on a scale not seen before. For some eight hundred years Arabic remained the major intellectual and scientific language of the world. During the centuries following the rise of Islam, Muslim dynasties ruling in various parts of the Islamic world bore witness to the flowering of Islamic culture and thought. In fact this tradition of intellectual activity was eclipsed only at the beginning of modern times as a result of the weakening of faith among Muslims combined with external domination. And today this activity has begun a new in many parts of the Islamic world now that the Muslims have regained their political independence.

Left: A general view of the skyline of Istanbul, the old Ottoman capital, showing the Suleymaniye Mosque, one of the many grand Mosques which adorn the city.

Right: The mosque and mausleum of Ali al-Rida in Mashhad, Iran which, because of the presence of this site, became over the centuries one of the major center of religious learning and activity in the Islamic world.

A Brief History of Islam: The Rightly Guided Caliphs

Upon the death of the Prophet, Abu Bakr, the friend of the Prophet and the first adult male to embrace Islam, became caliph. Abu Bakr ruled for two years to be succeeded by 'Umar who was caliph for a decade and during whose rule Islam spread extensively east and west conquering the Persian empire, Syria and Egypt. It was 'Umar who marched on foot at the end of the Muslim army into Jerusalem and ordered the protection of Christian sites. 'Umar also established the first public treasury and a sophisticated financial administration. He established many of the basic practices of Islamic government.

'Umar was succeeded by ' Uthman who ruled for some twelve years during which time the Islamic expansion continued. He is also known as the caliph who had the definitive text of the Noble Quran copied and sent to the four corners of the Islamic world. He was in turn succeeded by 'All who is known to this day for his eloquent sermons and letters, and also for his bravery. With his death the rule of the "rightly guided" caliphs, who hold a special place of respect in the hearts of Muslims, came to an end.

The Caliphates

The Umayyad caliphate established in 661 was to last for about a century. During this time Damascus became the capital of an Islamic world which stretched from the western borders of China to southern France. Not only did the Islamic conquests continue during this period through North Africa to Spain and France in the West and to Sind, Central Asia and Transoxiana in the East, but the basic social and legal institutions of the newly founded Islamic world were established.

The Abbasids, who succeeded the Umayyads, shifted the capital to Baghdad which soon developed into an incomparable center of learning and culture as well as the administrative and political heart of a vast world.

They ruled for over 500 years but gradually their power waned and they remained only symbolic rulers bestowing legitimacy upon various sultans and princes who wielded actual military power. The Abbasid caliphate was finally abolished when Hulagu, the Mongol ruler, captured Baghdad in 1258, destroying much of the city including its incomparable libraries.

While the Abbasids ruled in Baghdad, a number of powerful dynasties such as the Fatimids, Ayyubids and Mamluks held power in Egypt, Syria and Palestine. The most important event in this area as far as the relation between Islam and the Western world was concerned was the series of Crusades declared by the Pope and espoused by various European kings. The purpose, although political, was outwardly to recapture the Holy Land and especially Jerusalem for Christianity. Although there was at the beginning some success, and local European rule was set up in parts of Syria and Palestine, Muslims finally prevailed and in 1187 Saladin,the great Muslim leader, recaptured Jerusalem and defeated the Crusaders.

SOME ENGLISH WORDS DERIVED FROM ARABIC
ADMIRAL-amiral-rahl	ATLAS-atlas	JASMINE-yasmin	SAFARI-safara
ADOBE-al-tub	AZIMUTH-al-suut	LEMON-limun	SAFFRON-za'faran
ALCHEMY-al-kimiya'	BANANA-banana	LUTE-al-'ud	SANDALWOOD-sandal
ALCOVE-alqubba	BAROQUE-burqa	MAGAZINE-makhazin	SOFA-suffa
ALEMBIC-al-anbiq	CABLE-habl	MASK-maskhara	SUGAR-sukhar
ALGEBRA-al-jabr	CAMEL-jamal	MONSOON-mawsim	SYRUP-sharab,shurb
AMBER-ambar	CHECKMATE-shah mat	MUSK-musk	TAMBOUR-taburak
AMULET-hama'il	COFFEE-qahwa	NADIR-nazir	TROUBADOUR-tarrab
ANTIMONY-ithmid	COTTON-quton	ORANGE-naranj	ZERO-sifr
ARTICHOKE-al-kharshuf	GIRAFFE-ZURAFA	RICE-ruzz	ZIRCON-azraq

North Africa and Spain

When the Abbasids captured Damascus, one of the Umayyad princes escaped and made the long journey from there to Spain to found Umayyad rule there, thus beginning the golden age of Islam in Spain. Cordoba was established as the capital and soon became Europe's greatest city not only in population but from the point of view of its cultural and intellectual life. The Umayyads ruled over two centuries until they weakened and were replaced by local rulers.

Meanwhile in North Africa, various local dynasties held sway until two powerful Berber dynasties succeeded in uniting much of North Africa and also Spain in the 12th and 13th centuries. After them this area was ruled once again by local dynasties such as the Sharifids of Morocco who still rule in that country. As for Spain itself, Muslim power continued to wane until the last Muslim dynasty was defeated in Granada in 1492 thus bringing nearly eight hundred years of Muslim rule in Spain to an end.

Islamic History after the Mongol Invasion

The Mongols devastated the eastern lands of Islam and ruled from the Sinai Desert to India for a century. But they soon converted to Islam and became known as the Il-Khanids. They were in turn succeeded by Timur and his descendants who made Samarqand their capital and ruled from 1369 to 1500. The sudden rise of Timur delayed the formation and expansion of the Ottoman empire but soon the Ottomans became the dominant power in the Islamic world.

From humble origins the Turks rose to dominate over the whole of Anatolia and even parts of Europe. In 1453 Mehmet the Conqueror captured Constantinople and put an end to the Byzantine empire. The Ottomans conquered much of eastern Europe and nearly the whole of the Arab world, only Morocco and Mauritania in the West and Yemen, Hadramaut and parts of the Arabian peninsula remaining beyond their control. They reached their zenith of power with Suleyman the Magnificent whose armies reached Hungary and Austria. From the 17th century onward with the rise of Western European powers and later Russia, the power of the Ottomans began to wane. But they nevertheless remained a force to be reckoned with until the First World War when they were defeated by the Western nations. Soon thereafter Kamal Ataturk gained power in Turkey and abolished the six centuries of rule of the Ottomans in 1924. While the Ottomans were concerned mostly with the western front of their empire, to the east in Persia a new dynasty called the Safavids came to power in 1502. The Safavids established a powerful state of their own which flourished for over two centuries and became known for the flowering of the arts. Their capital, Isfahan, became one of the most beautiful cities with its blue tiled mosques and exquisite houses. The Afghan invasion of 1736 put an end to Safavid rule and prepared the independence of Afghanistan which occurred formally in the 19th century. Persia itself fell into turmoil until Nader Shah, the last Oriental conqueror, reunited the country and even conquered India. But the rule of the dynasty established by him was short-lived. The Zand dynasty soon took over to be overthrown by the Qajars in 1779 who made Tehran their capital and ruled until 1921 when they were in turn replaced by the Pahlavis.

As for India, Islam entered into the land east of the Indus River peacefully. Gradually Muslims gained political power beginning in the early 13th century. But this period which marked the expansion of both Islam and Islamic culture came to an end with the conquest of much of India in 1526 by Babur, one of the Timurid princes. He established the powerful Mogul empire which produced such famous rulers as Akbar, Jahangir, and Shah Jahan and which lasted, despite the gradual rise of British power in India, until 1857 when it was officially abolished. Farther east in the Malay world, Islam began to spread in the 12th century in northern Sumatra and soon Muslim kingdoms were established in Java, Sumatra and mainland Malaysia. Despite the colonization of the Malay world, Islam spread in that area covering present day Indonesia, Malaysia, the southern Philippines and southern Thailand, and is still continuing in islands farther east.

As far as Africa is concerned, Islam entered into East Africa at the very beginning of the Islamic period but remained confined to the coast for some time, only the Sudan and Somali land becoming gradually both Arabized and Islamized. West Africa felt the presence of Islam through North African traders who traveled with their camel caravans south of the Sahara. By the 14th century there were already Muslim sultanates in such areas as Mali, and Timbuctu in West Africa and Harar in East Africa had become seats of Islamic learning. Gradually Islam penetrated both inland and southward. There also appeared major charismatic figures who inspired intense resistance against European domination. The process of the Islamization of Africa did not cease during the colonial period and continues even today with the result that most Africans are now Muslims caring on a tradition which has had practically as long a history in certain areas of sub-Saharan Africa as Islam itself.

Major Dates of Islamic History
Birth of the Prophet Muhammed 570 A.D.	The Seljuqs 137-1300
First verses of the Noble Quran revealed 609	Saladin's Conquest of Jeruslem 1187
Prophet's migration form Makkah to Madinah (hijrah), beginning of Islamic calender 622	The Mamluks 1252-1517
Death of the Prophet 632	The Mongol Conquest of Baghdad 1258
The "Rightly Guided" Caliphs 632-661	The Ottomans 1299-1924
The Umayyads 661-750	The Timurids 1369-1500
The Abbasids 750-1258	Conquest of Constantinople 1453
The Spanish Umayyads 756-1031	The Fall of Granada 1492
The Fatimids 909-1171	The Safavids 1502-1736

Credits
Incorporated from the Magazine "Islam: A Global Civilization", prepared by Islamic Affairs Department, The Embassy of Saudi Arabia, Washington, D.C.

Thanks islamicity.com

The Mosque 3

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The Mosque 2

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The Mosque 1

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The mosque

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A COLLECTION OF WORLD MOST BEAUTIFUL DARGAHS 3

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A COLLECTION OF WORLD MOST BEAUTIFUL DARGAHS 2

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A COLLECTION OF WORLD MOST BEAUTIFUL DARGAHS 1

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A COLLECTION OF WORLD MOST BEAUTIFUL DARGAHS

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PROPHET GALLERY # 5

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PROPHET GALLERY # 4

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PROPHET GALLERY # 3

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PROPHET GALLERY # 2

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PROPHET GALLERY # 1

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Wallpapers3

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Wallpapers2

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wallpapers1

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Prophet Home

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The Positive Way

2009-09-23T06:58:00.011-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

We have been advised in the Qur’an that goodness and evil are not equal. Therefore we should return good for evil (41:34). This has been expressed repeatedly in the Qur’an in different wording.

This means that believers should always react positively. At all events they should refrain from negative reaction. Their behavior should be proper, not only in normal circumstances, but also in abnormal circumstances. That is, even when any group displays bad behavior, it is still incumbent on the believers not to display a retaliatory mentality. At that moment, too, they should prove to be men of principle. They should maintain their good behavior, even in the face of bad behavior from others.

Interpreting this verse, Abdullah ibn Abbas comments: ‘God has commanded Muslims in this verse, even when they are angered, to resort to patience and tolerance. Whenever anyone shows any signs of ignorance or a biased mentality, believers should adopt the path of tolerance and fortitude. And whenever anyone displays bad behavior, believers should forgive him.

This Islamic course of action may be described as positive behavior. That is, opting for moderation instead of retaliation. Whatever the attitude of others may be, believers should always remain true to the highest Islamic standards of human character.

A believer is one who begins to lead his life in accordance with the higher realities; the level of whose thinking is above that of ordinary human beings. Such a person comes to have a limitless capacity for tolerance. His inner-self is so deeply immersed that in peace, no outward event can disturb his emotional balance. He takes pity on those who are easily angered. Where ordinary people become provoked, he remains blissfully serene.

Antidote

2009-09-23T06:58:00.009-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

In a statement made to the Rajya Sabha in July 1991, Mr. M.M Jacob, Minister of State for Home Affairs, put the number of suicides in Delhi alone during the three and a half year period from January 1988, to June 30, 1991, at 2,700. He said that the basic reason for taking this step was extreme frustration. (Hindustan Times, August 1, 1991)

It is only very rarely that a handicapped person kills himself. Most of the people who die by their own hands are physically quite healthy. There are many reasons, however, for their taking the extreme step of suicide: failure to gain admission to post-graduate courses, or to secure a good job after completing a university education, postponement of promotion, inability to marry the person of one’s choice.

Most of these people had everything in their favor, including good health. They lacked none of the necessities of life. But because one thing, which seemed of great importance to them, eluded their grasp, they fell a prey to such an overwhelming sense of frustration that they decided to end it all.

One thing—the greatest thing in the world—was absent from all of their lives: hope. Man lives on hope. Where it evades him, life appears so meaningless that he sees no sense in continuing with it. That is when he takes his own life.

The mistake all suiciders make is to look only at the present and not at the future. Because the present has not been blessed with abundance, that does not mean that the future will not change for the better. If a man contemplating suicide were instead to turn his attention to exploiting his own capabilities and seizing whatever opportunities came his way, it is very likely that he would come to possess all those things, absence of which makes him so miserable today.

The man whose gaze is fixed on the present may find much to depress him. It is only when he looks to the future that he will find the courage to act.

God-given Hope

2009-09-23T06:58:00.008-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

If a misfortune befalls you, it is the fruit of your own labors. He forgives much. (42:30)

This verse of the Qur’an tells us that whenever a man is afflicted by some misfortune, it is necessarily the result of one or more of his own actions. Complaining against others in this world is meaningless. When everyone must suffer the consequences of his own actions, making protests and complaints against others is only a waste of time. It will in no way solve the problem.

This is a system devised by nature itself. It has good tidings, and great hope for us, in that it has placed our problems in our own hands. It has not left us to be dependent on the charity and compassion of others.

If the problems faced by us had been caused by others, then we should have been dependent upon others for their solution. We should have had to wait for others’ kindness. But God has devised the system of world in such a way that He has made everyone’s concerns his own personal affair. That is, everyone can construct his life by dint of his own efforts. Everyone’s future is in his own hands.

Sometimes one has to incur a loss due to one’s own foolishness; much harm can be avoided by adopting wise ways. Sometimes an initiative goes awry for lack of planning. But there will always be other chances to work in future in a planned way so that the mistake may be rectified. Sometimes by being hasty a man invites trouble, but then he always has the possibility of turning the situation to good account by adopting the ways of patience and fortitude. Sometimes people bring ruin upon themselves by being too emotional, but they too have the chance to reach their goal of success by remaining cool and rational in their approach on subsequent occasions.

Forgiveness—An Islamic Virtue

2009-09-23T06:58:00.007-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Islam attaches great importance to the concept of pardoning of sins by Allah so that one may be saved from Hellfire. On several occasions, the Qur’an gives such prayers as ‘Pardon us, forgive us our sins, and have mercy upon us’ (Qur’an 2:286). Allah assures us that no matter what our sin, if we truly repent and seek His forgiveness, and take steps to put right our wrongs, He will forgive us. The Prophet Muhammad said, "My heart is clouded until I have asked God’s forgiveness seventy times during the day and night."

We are likewise asked to show mercy to our fellow men. (90:17) Since God is Himself forgiving, He desires that people should cultivate this attribute and show forgiveness to other human beings. (The Qur’an,

24:22; 64:14).

The Prophet Muhammad taught his followers that the individual who pardons his enemy, even while having the power to extract revenge, will be nearest to God in the Hereafter. Once the Prophet was asked, "How many times are we to forgive our servants’ faults?" He remained silent. The questioner repeated his question. But the Prophet gave no answer. But when the person asked a third time, he said, "Forgive your servant seventy times a day."

The Qur’an makes it clear that a strong, adverse, emotional reaction such as anger does not befit the true believer, and instead cites as a mark of excellence the quality of forgiveness: "When they become angry, they are forgiving." (42:37)

Silence

2009-09-23T06:58:00.006-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Ernest Psiachari (1883-1914), a French writer, was in his youth a free-thinker and an atheist. But later he reverted to Christianity. Grandson of the famous historian, Ernest Rinan, Psiachari is ranked among those who made an effort to bring about a spiritual awakening in France at the turn of the twentieth century. One of his sayings has been rendered in English in these words:

Silence is a bit of heaven that comes down to earth.Silence is the language of nature. When one observes silence one finds oneself at one with nature, and surely there is no higher plane on which the human soul may exist.

Man cannot, of course, remain silent in the absolute sense. When he appears to be silent, he is so for others, not for himself. Remaining silent as far the external world goes, he starts conversing with his internal world.

Observing silence is a great act. When one is silent one’s attention is diverted more to ‘heavenly’ matters than to ‘down-to-earth’ ones. One’s ears are turned more to the whispers of angels than to those of men. Man’s focus becomes his own self rather than extraneous matters. He eschews superficiality and engages himself with deeper realities.When man speaks, he is in a limited domain, but when he is silent he finds himself in the unlimited vastness of the world.

The News of the Last Day

2009-09-23T06:58:00.005-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

A high-intensity earthquake lasting 45 seconds and epicenter at Almora, U.P., rocked northern India at a quarter to twelve, midnight, on October 20, 1991. With the same jolts, which could be felt even as far away as Delhi, hundreds of houses collapsed, about a thousand people were killed and more than three thousand were injured.

Although so devastating in its effects, in comparison with that supreme, world-shaking event, the qiamah (the Day of Resurrection) an earthquake is but a very minor affair. Nevertheless, it gives us an idea of what will happen on that day on a much vaster scale. The Times of India of October 21, 1991, reported an incident which took place on that very night which provides a telling parallel. It seems that at 2.30 a.m. just ten minutes before the earthquake began, certain Punjab militants opened fire on the Sirsa (District Bareilly) police station with AK-47 rifles, where the few police personnel on duty at that time were ill-equipped for effective defense.

However, the militants had not reckoned with the forces of nature. Instead of just dealing with a small police chowky, they now found themselves battling with a vastly superior enemy. Like all the other people in the vicinity they fled in terror, no doubt thinking that the heavens were falling on them.

The helplessness experienced in the face of an earthquake is nothing compared to the state of desperation man will be reduced to on the Qiamah. Then he will be confronted with the biggest imaginable earthquake, and will be powerless to control it.

When possessed with power, man tends to become haughty and over-confident. But when the earth is so shaken that the mountains come tumbling down and it is engulfed by the mighty waves of the ocean, he will flee in utter bewilderment, leaving all his possessions behind him. To his horror, he will find that there is no escape route whatsoever.

The Pure in Heart

2009-09-23T06:58:00.004-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

The Qur’an tells us that man’s sole mainstay in the Hereafter will be the pureness of his heart (26:89). That is, only the pure in heart can gain entrance to paradise. Different commentators on the Qur’an have worded their explanations of this in a variety of ways, but the gist of what they say is largely the same. Here is what Ibn Kathir has written:

The sound heart is one which knows no impurity or idolatry. According to Ibn Seerin, the sound heart is one which has fully realized that God is Truth and that Doomsday will certainly come — there is no doubt about it — and that God will certainly raise the dead from the grave. According to Ibn Abbas, a sound heart is one which has borne witness that there is no god but God. According to Mujahid, Hasan and others, a sound heart is one to which idolatry is unknown. According to Sayeed ibn Musayyeb, a sound heart is an upright heart. It is the heart of the believer; the heart of an unbeliever and hypocrite is a diseased one. According to Abu Usman Nisapuri, it means a heart free from bid'a (inventions in religion) and content with the sunnah of the Prophet (3/339).

It is not just the aggregate of a man’s good deeds which provides the criterion for entrance into heaven, but rather his inward state. What will be of real value on Doomsday is the character a man has developed in this life. Those in possession of a divine (rabbani) personality, who are enlightened and aware, who are free of psychological complexities and negative attitudes, who have proved their ability to lead their lives on the level of divine nature, will find their entrance into heaven made easy.

Importance of Education

2009-09-23T06:58:00.003-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

The field of education, covering ethics, religion, skills and general knowledge, is a very broad and very vital one. The importance of learning in enabling the individual to put his potentials to optimal use is self-evident. Without education, the training of the human minds is incomplete. No individual is a human being in the proper sense until he has been educated.

Education makes man a right thinker and a correct decision-maker. It achieves this by bringing him knowledge from the external world, teaching him to reason, and acquainting him with past history, so that he may be a better judge of the present. Without education, man, as it were, is shut up in a windowless room. With education, he finds himself in a room with all its windows open to the outside world.

This is why Islam attaches such great importance to knowledge and education. The Qur’an, it should be noted repeatedly asks us to observe the earth and heavens. This instills in man the desire to learn natural science. When the Qur’an began to be revealed, the first word of its first verse was ‘Iqra!’ that is, ‘Read.’ Education is thus the starting point of every successful human activity.

All the books of hadith have a chapter on knowledge (ilm). In Sahih Bukhari, there is a chapter entitled, "The virtue of one who acquires ilm (learning) and imparts it to others.} In the hadith, the scholar is accorded great respect. According to one tradition, the ink of a scholar’s pen is more precious than the blood of a martyr, the reason being that while a martyr is engaged in the task of defense, an alim (scholar) builds individuals and nations along positive lines. In this way, he bestows upon the world a real life treasure.

The very great importance attached to learning in Islam is illustrated by an event in the life of the Prophet. At the battle of Badr, in which the Prophet was victorious, seventy of his enemies were taken prisoner. Now these captives were all literate people. So, in order to benefit from their erudition, the Prophet declared that if each prisoner taught ten Medinan children how to read and write, that would serve as his ransom and he would be set free. This was the first school in the history of Islam, established by the Prophet himself. It was of no matter to him that all its teachers were non-Muslims, all were prisoners of war, and all were likely to create problems again for Islam and Muslims once they were released. This Sunnah of the Prophet showed that whatever the risk involved, education was paramount.

Islam not only stresses the importance of learning, but demonstrates how all the factors necessary to progress in learning have been provided by God. An especially vital factor is the freedom to conduct research. Such freedom was encouraged right from the beginning, as is illustrated by an incident which took place after the Prophet had migrated from Mecca to Medina. There he saw some people atop the date palms pollinating them. Since dates were not grown in Mecca the Prophet had to ask what these people were doing to the trees. He thereupon forbade them to do this, and the following year date crop was very poor as compared to previous year. When the Prophet asked the reason, he was told that the yield depended on pollination. He then told the date-growers to resume this practice, admitting that they knew more about "worldly matters" than he did.

In this way, the Prophet separated practical matters from religion, thus paving the way for the free conduct of research throughout the world of nature and the adoption of conclusions based thereon. This great emphasis placed on exact knowledge resulted in the awakening of a great desire for learning among the Muslims of the first phase. This process began in Mecca, then reached Medina and Damascus, later centering on Baghdad. Ultimately it entered Spain. Spain flourished, with extraordinary progress made in various academic and scientific disciplines. This flood of scientific progress then entered Europe, ultimately ushering in the modern, scientific age.

Intentions

2009-09-23T06:58:00.002-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Islam attaches the utmost importance to intentions (niyyah). No action is acceptable to God purely on the basis of its outer appearance. He accepts only such actions as are performed with proper intention, and rejects those performed with ill-intention. Right intention is the moral purpose which underlies all actions performed solely for God’s pleasure. One who acts on such feelings will be rewarded by God in the Hereafter.

Ill-intention, on the other hand, is a negative spur to worldly attainment. Ostensibly religious acts, if performed for worldly gain or public commendation, are in this sense ill-intentioned. Any fame, honor or popularity which ensues from an ill-intentioned act is a hollow triumph and is looked upon by the Almighty with extreme disfavor.

Intention is rooted in man’s inner thinking and feelings. A common man is unable to penetrate the inner recesses of a person’s mind but God knows full well what a man’s thought processes and feelings are. People can be deluded by appearances, but God has complete knowledge of everything. He will deal with people according to His knowledge and will reward everyone exactly as he or she deserves.

Intention has to do with the inner reality. A thing which loses its reality or its meaningfulness is valueless. Similarly, an act which is performed with ill intention or with no good intention, has no value—neither in the eyes of man, nor of God.

Things are of value only when they are pure, without any adulteration. An act done with right intention is a pure act, and an act performed without right intention is an impure act.

On Trust and Obligation

2009-09-23T06:58:00.001-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

One of the marks of true believers is, according to the Qur’an, that they "faithfully observe their trusts and their covenants" (23:8).

Maulana Shabbir Ahmad Usmani has briefly explained it in these words: "They do not commit breach of trust and do not break promises, neither in the matter of God nor in the matter of men" (p. 443).

Everything man has is given to him in trust by God or by man. In this way everyone is bound by certain promises and obligations. Some obligations are entered into by written or spoken agreement, while others are a matter of tacit understanding. Whatever the form of agreement, man has to fulfill all these trusts and obligations. If he fails to do so, he does not come up to the highest standards of humanity. He is proving himself guilty in the eyes of God.Man’s body, heart and mind, are all like trusts from God. It is, therefore, incumbent upon man to make the best use of these endowments within the limits decreed by God. That is, his hands and feet should move only for the cause of justice, and not for tyranny. His mind should be full only of well-wishing and not of ill-will. Similarly all the trusts by which he is bound should be discharged to the trustees, whether these trusts are in written or in verbal form. He should never regard another’s possessions as his own.

Everyone is bound by obligations, in relation on the one hand to man and on the other to God. According to the Qur’an, trust of two kinds stems from God; one is the inherent sense of responsibility man is born with; this form of trust is binding upon all human beings born on this earth. Another form of trust is that which arises from faith in God. Only those are bound by this sense of commitment who have embraced God’s religion as brought to them by God’s messenger; in this sense, these believers are consciously bound in trust. Let’s now take the matter of trust as regards man. Some obligations are incurred from time to time as they arise in particular and are set down in contracts, while others automatically devolve upon individuals either as family members, or as citizens of the state, living in society. Discharging all these trusts and obligations is man’s duty, in obedience both to his own nature and to the Shariah.

Purity and Cleanliness

2009-09-23T06:54:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Islam greatly approves cleanliness. According to the Qur’an: Allah loves those that turn to Him in repentance and purify themselves (2:222).

When man rues his mistakes and returns to the path of truth, this is called an act of repentance. As such, it purifies man’s inner self. Just as by using water we can cleanse the dirt from the body, so by repentance we can purify the soul—the inner-self. That is why Islam lays great stress on both these things.

According to a hadith: "Purity is half of faith." Similarly the Prophet of Islam once observed: "God is clean and loves cleanliness." (Ibn Majah)

Man is a creature who has been specially granted the quality of sensitivity. That is why man naturally likes cleanliness, and since Islam is a religion of nature, it lays great stress on cleanliness. Man’s body, his clothing and his home, should all be pictures of cleanliness.

It was due to the importance given to cleanliness that the companions of the Prophet used to bathe daily. According to Muwatta Imam Malik, Abdullah ibn Umar spoke of how his father used to take a bath before each prayer. In this way he used to bath five times a day. The third Caliph, Usman ibn Affan, used to bath daily (Musnad Ahmad).

The cleanliness of body and soul is one of the basic demands of Islam.

Facility versus Difficulty

2009-09-23T06:53:00.003-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

One day the Prophet of Islam seated himself in a mosque in Medina, along with some companions. Shortly thereafter, a Bedouin entered the mosque and began urinating. The Prophet’s Companions rose with the intention of beating the Bedouin. But the Prophet forbade them to do so, asking them to let him be. When the man had finished urinating, the Prophet asked the Companions to fetch a bucket of water and wash the place clean.

Afterwards he explained to his Companions: You are sent to make things easy and not to make things difficult (Fathul Bari, 1/386).

This illustrates for us an unwavering principle of Islam, that is, in social life when any unpleasant incident takes place, the believers should concentrate on finding a solution to the problem and not just think in terms of what punishment to mete out to the problem-maker. On all such occasions the urge to reform should be engendered within the believers instead of a desire to exact revenge. Such methods should be adopted as alleviate rather than aggravate the problem. Just as when some building is set on fire, the most natural impulse is to immediately extinguish it, rather than fan the flames to make it flare up even more.

In most controversial matters there can be both easy and diffiicult ways of resolving the problem. Treading the path of facility usually eases matters, whereas treading the path of difficulty can cause matters to flare up with even greater intensity. In all situations, Islam gives preference to the former, rather than to the latter approach.

This is an eternal principle of Islam, relating to both personal and social life. It ought to be applied in all matters inside as well as outside the home. It is a perfect principle on which to base a perfect system of life.

On the Basis of Falsehood

2009-09-23T06:53:00.002-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Pravda, (literal meaning: truth) a Russian daily newspaper with a circulation of eleven million was brought out by the Communist Party in 1912, a few years before the Russian revolution. With editors of the caliber of Stalin and Lenin on its editorial board in the initial stages, it came to be regarded as one of the most important newspapers of the former Soviet Union. Its correspondents numbered more than forty thousand.

Besides being in possession of large properties, Pravda was granted extraordinary aid by the government. After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, however, all aid stopped and its properties were confiscated in the same year by the newly formed government.

Consequently, the newspaper suffered from insurmountable monetary problems, and its publication ultimately ceased on March 14, 1992.Pravda’s entire importance was associated with the socialist regime. The communists had carved out an economic and political hell in the name of the Soviet Union, but through Pravda they contrived to present this system to the world as a kind of Paradise. Herein lay the value of the Pravda as it served their purpose only too well. When the spell of the socialistic ‘heaven’ was broken and the truth laid base, Pravda was left with no chance to present falsehood as truth. It was this reality which dealt it the final death blow.

Under the heading ‘Truth is Dead’ (toi, March 19, 1992) a commentator writes:

‘No wonder it now finds it difficult to face up to the truth: that it has no place in post-Communist Russia.’

A somewhat similar happening will occur in the Hereafter. They will then learn, all of a sudden, that not to speak of eleven million, not even eleven people will be subscribers to their so-called truth.

The Story of Hajj

2009-09-23T06:53:00.001-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

The First Call to Hajj

The Prophet Muhammad’s Hajj

Making the Hajj Today1. The First Call to Hajj

Long ago about 5000 years ago, in a faraway place called Ur in Iraq, a child was born whose name was Abraham or Ibrahim. He was so gracious, tender-hearted and of pure in faith that Allah gave him wisdom when he was still a child. Allah was so pleased with him that he made him His best friend.

When Abraham grew up, he became a great prophet, and preached the truth and God’s message in his country. Later he traveled to Syria, Palestine and Egypt.

When a beautiful son was born to his wife Hagar, he was ordered by Allah to travel towards Mecca along with his wife and the little child, whose name was Ishmael or Ismail. They all traveled for a long time till they reached a lonely, barren valley, near two small hills called Safa and Marwa. Abraham asked his wife to stay near one of the hills along with the little Ishmael, and started to go away. But his wife protested "Why are you leaving us alone here? Are you leaving us here to die?" But Abraham replied, "My Lord has commanded me to do this." Then Hagar, breathing a sigh of relief, said: "If Allah has ordered you to do so, then He will not let us die."

After a while, baby Ishmael began to cry for want of water. But there was not a single drop of water to drink. Hagar ran helplessly from one hill to another, but there was no water, nor any human being to give her water. As the baby was crying desperately with thirst and the mother was running from one mountain to another, Allah caused a miracle—a spring gushed forth beneath the feet of Ishmael. When Hagar saw this from a distance, she shouted "Zam-zam (stay, stay!)." Hagar came running and gave some fresh spring water to the thirsty child to drink. And so his life was saved. This spring later on became famous as Zamzam.

Ishmael and his mother begin to live in the valley and because of the Zamzam spring more people gradually came to settle in the valley, slowly building up a small town, which was later called Mecca.From time to time Abraham would visit Mecca to meet his family, especially to see his young Ishmael, growing up in the beautiful surroundings of nature—in a lovely valley surrounded by hills, away from the crowded city—away from people of the city who at that time were mostly idol-worshippers.

One night, Abraham dreamt that he was sacrificing his son, Ishmael. This was an order from his Lord. His son was still a child, but Abraham told him about his dream. Ishmael was a brave boy. He was ready to obey the command of God, who had created him. So, without hesitating, he said to his father, "Do what you are commanded, father. Godwilling, you will find me one of the steadfast."

Abraham took his son away to sacrifice him. As he reached a place, which is now known as Mina—a valley near Mecca—Satan appeared and tried to dissuade him. Abraham picked up a few small stones and threw them at Satan. And little Ishmael and his mother did likewise.

As Abraham took a knife to sacrifice Ishmael, Allah sent the angel Gabriel (Jibril) with a ram. "Sacrifice this ram. Do not sacrifice Ishmael," said Gabriel to Abraham. Allah was so pleased with this act—the readiness of Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son, that He commanded the believers to observe this day as Id al-Adha, or the Feast of Sacrifice. Every year Muslims sacrifice an animal in remembrance of the great act of Abraham.

Ishmael grew up a strong and loving youth. Abraham and Ishmael were ordered by Allah to build the House of God—the Kabah in Mecca. Both took stones from the nearby hills and started building the Kabah. As they laid the foundation, they prayed, "Our Lord, accept this from us! You are the All-hearing, the All-seeing." They also prayed for a prophet to be born in their family who would teach wisdom to the people and purify their faith. Their prayer was answered many years later, when the Prophet Muhammad was born to their descendants.

Abraham was ordered by God to clean the Kabah for those who come there to pray, and to call people to Hajj: "Call all people to make the Pilgrimage, they shall come to you on foot and on the backs of swift camels; they shall come from every deep ravine."

And so Allah made it obligatory for every Muslim male and female to go for Hajj once in a lifetime, provided their means and health permitted. Since then believers from every part of the world go to perform Hajj to fulfill the command of their Lord and to remember the great act of the Prophet Abraham.

The Prophet Muhammad’s Hajj

10 years after his migration from Mecca to Medina, the Prophet Muhammad performed his Hajj, which came to be known as the "Hajj of Farewell." The Prophet told his followers: "Learn how to perform Hajj, as after this year I may not perform it." As the news spread around, people from Medina and nearby areas started assembling there to accompany the Prophet.

On the afternoon of Thursday, 24 Dhul Qada, 10 AH, the Prophet mounted his she-camel to set out for Mecca. A multitude of people, over 100,000 in number, accompanied him. Jabir, a Companion of the Prophet said, "I could see people as far as my eyes could see." On the way more people joined the caravan. When the Prophet reached a place called Dhul Halifa, he spent the night there and in the morning took a bath and put on ihram, the pilgrims’ dress, made up of two unstitched sheets (women wear normal dress and cover their heads by a scarf). Afterwards he moved towards Mecca saying the talbiyah prayer: "Here I am, O Allah, Here I am at Your service! You have no partner, here I am. All praise, grace and dominion belongs to You. You have no partner." The multitude joined him in repeating these words.

After travelling for nine days, the Prophet reached Mecca on 4 Dhul Hijjah. He first went to the Sacred Mosque. On seeing the Kabah, he said: "O Allah! increase the greatness and sublimity of Your House." And further added, "O Allah, You are peace, with You is peace. Our Lord, keep us alive with peace." Afterwards he performed tawaf—going round the Kabah seven times. As he did this, he kept calling upon God: "Our Lord, give us goodness in this world and goodness in the Hereafter, and keep us safe from the fire of Hell." When he had finished going round the Kabah, he prayed two rakat at the Maqam Ibrahim—the Station of Abraham, and went towards the Black Stone and kissed it. He moved towards Safa, saying that Safa and Marwa were one of the signs of Allah. He went up the Safa hill, till he could see the Kabah. (At that time the hills of Safa and Marwa were outside the Sacred Mosque, but now after the expansion of the grounds, they come within the boundary wall

The Prophet walked briskly between the two hills seven times and ended the walk at Marwa. Some of the seven laps he did on camel-back. Perhaps he did so that people could see him from a distance. The Prophet was staying in Mecca at a place called al-Bath. After staying there for four days, he moved to Mina on 8 Dhul Hijjah and the next morning, he moved off towards Arafat. At Arafat, he stayed in a small tent in the Arnah valley. In the afternoon he rode his she-camel as far as the middle part of the Arafat valley. Here, mounted on his she-camel, he gave a sermon which is known as the Sermon of the Farewell Hajj. Today, at this very spot there stands a mosque by the name of Nimra.

In his message to humanity, the Prophet emphasized the highest moral values. Here the Prophet announced: "No Arab is superior to a non-Arab and no non-Arab is superior to an Arab. No black man is superior to a red man and no red man is superior to a black, except through taqwa or fear of Allah. The most noble among you is the one who is deeply conscious of God."

While the Prophet was praying here, the very last verse of the Qur’an was revealed to him, and so the Holy Book was completed.

After delivering the sermon, the Prophet performed two prayers together—Zuhr and Asr. After prayers, the Prophet came to the spot in Arafat which known as the "standing place". Here, mounted on his she-camel, the Prophet prayed till sunset. He said that the prayer of this day was the best of all. The Prophet was praying with divine feelings. He was praying, the people around him were praying, some standing, some mounted on their animals—weeping and crying to their Lord for His favors, vowing for repentance and craving His blessing. It was such a great moment that the Prophet said, "Arafat is Hajj." He prayed, "O Allah, You are listening to me. You are watching my place. You are aware of my hidden and open affairs. I am miserable and needy, I am pleading to You. Asking your protection..."

After sunset, the Prophet rode towards Muzdalifa. He asked Usama ibn Zayd to ride his camel too. He went on saying Labbayk Allahumma Labbayk—"Here I am O Lord, Here I am". And the people were chanting the same. The Prophet asked people not to run, but to move slowly and calmly, as running was no work of piety. On reaching Muzdalifa, the Prophet asked his Companion, Bilal to give the call for prayers. There he said the Maghrib and the Isha prayer together. The Prophet took rest at night and in the morning after praying, he went towards a place called Mashar Haram where he offered further for prayers. Before sunrise, the Prophet left Muzdalifah for Mina, after taking seven small pebbles from there. On the way, passing through the valley of Muhssar, he asked people to move fast, as this was the place, where the People of the Elephant, who came to destroy the Kabah, were punished by Allah. This incident happened in the year in which the Prophet was born. Riding on, he reached the Jamarah, the three pillars at Mina, at which he cast seven pebbles, saying Allahu Akbar each time. The Prophet gave his second sermon at Mina, which was similar to the previous one at Arafat. Afterwards the Prophet offered his sacrifices, shaved his head and took off the ihram—the pilgrims’ dress. That was the day of the feast—(today we remember that day as Id al-Adha).

On the same day, the Prophet rode to Mecca, performed tawaf, drank water at Zamzam and returned to Mina. At Mina people came to him, asking many questions about the pilgrimage. Some said, "I delayed in doing so and so," or "I performed something before it was due," and so on. But the Prophet would tell them: "No objection, no objection! Objections are only for the person who wrongfully violates the honor of his fellow-man."

At Mina the Prophet spent three more days for the throwing of stones. In the afternoon of Tuesday, the Prophet moved to Mecca, where he stayed in a tent and slept briefly. Before the morning prayer, he went to the Sacred Mosque and performed the tawaf of Farewell.

The Prophet stayed in Mecca during Hajj for 10 days. Afterwards he left for Medina. At a place called, Dhul Halifa he rested for the night, and at the sunrise, entered his beloved city—Medina, the Radiant. When he first saw the city dwellings from a distance, words of praise started pouring from his lips: "Allah is most High. There is no deity save Him. He is One. No one is His partner. He is Lord of everything. All praise belongs to Him and He empowers all things. We are returning repentant, praying, prostrating ourselves, praising our Lord. Allah has kept His promise."The Prophet died two months after performing his Hajj.

Making the Hajj

Today, in answer to the original call of the Prophet Abraham, and, following the footsteps of our beloved Prophet Muhammad, over too million people from every corner of the globe gather at Mecca to perform their Hajj.

Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. It is compulsory on every Muslim, if he or she is healthy enough and has means to travel. It lasts from 8th to 13th of Islamic month called Dhul-Hijjah. Following the example set by the Prophet, the pilgrims put on unstitched clothing made up of two sheets. (Women wear normal clothes with a scarf to cover the head). All pilgrims, be they rich and poor, black and white, must dress in this way before they start the pilgrimage, so that men of all countries and all races look alike. No one then take pride of place over another. In the eyes of God, all humans are equal. Just think how God has created us all from a single set of parents—Adam and Eve (Hawwa).

In old days, before the age of airplanes, the pilgrims used to travel the long distance to Mecca in ships and in caravans—long lines of covered wagons pulled by camels or horses in which people used to travel together for safety. There were three main caravans: one from Egypt, one from Iraq and one from Syria. These journeys took months, pilgrims carried with them the food and other things they needed to sustain them on their journey. These travels were often full of adventures.

The Sacred Mosque of Mecca, which has been made larger over the years, has now enough space for one million pilgrims at a time. Here following the example set by the Prophet, the pilgrims circle the holy Kabah seven times. This shows how our lives should revolve around our Lord. Then they walk briskly back and forth over 394 meters between Safa and Marwa, the two small hills referred to in the Qur’an as "signs of Allah." This rite is performed in memory of Hagar, Abraham’s wife, whose story has been told in previous pages. In the early days, pilgrims used to drink the miraculous waters of the Zamzam straight from the spring, later it took shape of a well and now water is pumped out and channeled in taps which have been provided near the Kabah in an underground enclosure with separate entrances for men and women. The in an appreciable manner, it is Islam and Zamzam is also kept in containers throughout the Sacred Mosque.

Throughout the entire Hajj, the pilgrim follow the Prophet’s lead. On the first day, they set out for Mina, a small town about 5 km from Mecca. They spend three days and nights there, living in small tents. The town, which normally has no more than a few thousand inhabitants, burst into life on the days of Hajj, when over two million people come pouring in. They come here to throw stones at the three pillars which mark the exact spot where Abraham drove away Satan, who tried hard to make him disobey God’s command to sacrifice his son, Ishmael. This is meant to remind us that there can be a devil within us, who tries to make us do wrong things, and who stops us from doing good. Throwing stones at the pillars shows us how we ourselves have to drive out this inner devil, just as Abraham did when he threw stones at Satan.From Mina the pilgrims go on to Arafat, where the main rite of Hajj—"the standing of Arafat"—is performed. The center of attention is the 200 hundred feet high Mount of Mercy from which the Prophet, seated on a camel, preached his last sermon in 632 AD to a crowd of over 100,000. It was there that he told them of the importance Islam attaches to human equality, regardless of any personal distinction, and the equal sharing of rights and duties by husband and wife. He also placed a ban on people lending money in such a way that they borrowers had to pay them back much more than they had taken from them, so that they found it very difficult to pay back such huge debts. (This was known as ‘usury’). The pilgrims stand here "before God", praying and listening to sermons. Everyone calls upon God in his own way: standing or sitting; motionless or walking about; or even mounted. Here every pilgrim strives his utmost to open his or her heart to God in personal prayers full of true humility and sincerity.

After a short stay here, they return to Muzdalifa, spending the night there and setting off early the next morning for Mina. After staying two more nights in Mina, they return to Mecca for the final encircling of the Kabah, which ends the Hajj.

Medina, where the Prophet Muhammad’s mosque and grave are situated, also attracts pilgrims in great numbers. Though this is not part of Hajj, the pilgrims, because of their great reverence for the Prophet, stay there for a few more days to pray in the Prophet’s mosque and visit places of historical interest.

When the pilgrim performs the Hajj, he is filled with awe, for he feels he is leaving his own world and entering that of the God. He feels so close to God, standing there at Arafat on the very spot where the Prophet delivered his last message to humanity. Now he is touching the Lord, revolving around Him, running towards Him, journeying on His behalf, making sacrifices in His name, throwing pebbles at His enemies, praying to the Almighty and having his prayers answered. Indeed, to go on Hajj is to meet one’s Creator.

The pilgrims go back home with that same feeling of awe, but also with a great sense of peace. And if they now have that great sense of peace, it is because, having shed their sins on that plain, they have been relieved of their brothers in Islam. In them has been born the spirit of caring for others and a sense of wonder at all the marvelous things the past has given them.

As pilgrims of different races, speaking different languages, return to their homes, they carry with them wonderful memories of the prophets and other great men of the past. They will always remember that great coming together, where rich and poor, black and white, young and old, met as equals. They go back, radiant with hope and joy, for they have fulfilled God’s command, made to mankind in ancient times, to go on the pilgrimage. Above all, they return with a prayer on their lips: May it please God, they pray, to find their Hajj acceptable.

The Concept of Divine Love

2009-09-23T06:53:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

We learn of 99 names of the attributes of God from the Qur’an, some of these being

Rahman Most mercifulRahim Most compassionateWadud Most LovingAs-Salam Most peace lovingRafiq Most GentleGhafoor Most forgivingJameel Most beautiful

As these names suggest, God’s love for His servants is boundless. It follows that His servants should in like manners show great love and compassion for one another. The Hadith endorses this by exhorting all human being to adopt a divine code of ethics based on love and respect for the Almighty and regard and consideration for fellow human beings.It is certainly incumbent upon all of the faithful to foster a loving, caring attitude towards others and to recognize that, in showing love and compassion to their fellow men, they are following a course of right action, for which they will be rewarded by God in the Hereafter. They must see love as a virtue—a quality to be nurtured and developed.However, love in Islam is in a different plane from love as defined by secular philosophy. In the latter case, the concept is derived from a study of human being in relation to their worldly lives.

That is why love is given the status of an absolute good in philosophy. But this notion is flawed by a contradiction. This philosophy, which upholds human love as the greatest virtue, cannot provide any explanation for the evils of this world. Viewing evil as an ideologically insoluble problem. It disassociates it entirely from the broader context, in which it may be seen as the obverse side of the coin of love.

Islam, on the contrary, deliberates upon evil as occurring in the absence of love. On the one hand Islam holds love to be a very great virtue, while on the other, it castigates those who commit evil as the greatest culprits in the eyes of God, who will punish them for their misdeeds and deprive them of His love.

The concept of love in Islam is closely associated with the concept of reward and punishments. But the most significant factor in this is God’s predisposition to show compassion. He may reward good deeds and punish the wrong-doer, but there is always scope within His scheme of things to look upon sincere repentance and to show His divine mercy. According to a Hadith, God said: "My mercy prevails over My wrath."Once the Prophet of Islam saw a woman cooking food over a fire, while holding a baby in her arms. The Prophet asked his companion whether they thought it possible for this woman to throw her baby into the fire. They replied never, that could not happen.

The Prophet replied that God loved His servants more than this woman loved her child.

Many illustrations of this point are to be found in the Qur’an and Hadith. Thanks to this over-archiving attribute of Mercy—as we are told in the Qur’an—those performing an act of virtue will be rewarded ten fold or more but the evil doer will be given punishment only in equal measure and one who sincerely repents will more over, be forgiven.God’s compassion is so great that no sin is above forgiveness. However much a servant sins, if at any stage before his death he truly repents and seeks God’s pardon, all his sins will be forgiven. However in God’s court, it is sincerity which is of prime value, not lip service.

According to a Hadith our deeds are judged by intentions and parse.In this connection a very revealing anecdote has been recorded in books of traditions. It is as follows:

There was once a man so aggressive by nature that he became involved in many murders—99 to be exact. Eventually he realized that he should abandon his aggressive ways and seek forgiveness from his Lord. So he went to a religious scholar and told him that he had already killed 99 people. Could he expect salvation? The scholar replied, "No, after committing such great misdeed, you stand no chance of being granted forgiveness and salvation." The man was enraged at this and killed the scholar there and then.

Sometime afterwards, he went to another scholar and again told him the whole story. This scholar was wiser than the first. He told him that he should not despair of receiving God’s mercy. He advised the man to leave the settlement where he lived, as it was inhabited by criminals. That was why he was also turned into a criminal. He suggested that he settle in a certain neighborhood inhabited only by good people, under whose influence he would be reformed. So the man set off to enter the society of good people, but he was still on his way, he was overtaken by death.

The Hadith tells us how this man’s case was presented to the court of God where it had to be decided whether he should be forgiven or punished. God asked His angel to measure the path to see whether at the time of his death he was closer to the good neighborhood or the bad. The angels took the measurement and informed God that he had been nearer to good neighborhood. At this God pardoned him and he was ushered into paradise.

God is Adil the Just. So justice demands that people be held to account. But since God loves His servants, He gives them the benefit of the doubt and loses no opportunity to grant them salvation.

There is another very interesting story recorded in the books of Hadith about a woman of bad character who neglected her devotions to God. One day, she was walking along a deserted road where she found a dog dying of thirst. There was no water to be seen anywhere, so she walked some distance to search for a pond or a well. Finally, she found a well, but there was nothing with which drew up water from it. So she tied one of her shoes to her shawl, lowered it into the well and brought up water in it. She did this several times, each time dropping water into the dog’s mouth. In this way, thirst was quenched and it happily walked off, wagging its tail.

God was so pleased at this act of mercy that He forgave the woman her sin.

This aspect of Islam has been particularly developed among the Sufis, for whom the very basis of Islam is in love. Many of their sayings on this subject are regularly quoted. An excellent example is a couplet by Hafiz, the great Sufi poet:

We have not studied/paid attention to dwelt upon the stories of Dara and Sikandar (emperors, heroes).

Ask us only about the stories of love and compassion.

Nizamuddin Aulia, the great sufi poet of the 11th century, is said to have told one of his disciples when he brought him a gift of scissors, (a product of his hometown): "The gift you have brought is not a good one! Scissors are meant for cutting asunder. But our task is not to set people apart from one another. You should have brought if you really wanted to bring one, is that of a needle and thread, as their job is to unite.

The first verse of the Qur’an: ‘In the name of God, the most beneficent, the most merciful,’ has been repeated 114 times throughout the text. This shows that Mercy and Compassion are the most important of God’s attributes. Besides these 114 times, these words occur at many other places in the holy scriptures.

The main title the Qur’an accords to the Prophet of Islam is a ‘Mercy for all mankind.’

The Spirit of Islam

2009-09-23T06:25:00.000-07:00

By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Islam is the answer to the demands of nature. It is in fact a counterpart of human nature. This is why Islam has been called a religion of nature in the Qur’an and Hadith.

A man once came to the Prophet Muhammad and asked him what he should do in a certain matter. The Prophet replied, ‘Consult your heart about it.’ By the heart the Prophet meant common sense. That is, what one’s common sense tells one would likewise be the demand of Islam.

What does human nature desire more than anything? It desires, above all, peace and love. Every human being wants to live in peace and to receive love from the people around him. Peace and love are the religion of human nature as well as the demand of Islam. The Qur’an tells us, "…and God calls to the home of peace." (10:25)

One of the teachings of Islam is that when two or more people meet, they must greet one another with the words, Assalamu-‘Alaikum (Peace be upon you). Similarly, Salat or five times daily prayer is the highest form of worship in Islam. At the close of each prayer all worshippers have to turn their faces to either side and utter the words Assalamu-‘Alaikum wa rahmatullah (May peace and God’s blessings be upon you). This is like a pledge given to people: ‘O people you are safe from me. Your life, your property, your honor is secure with me.’

This sums up the spirit of true religion, the goal of which is spiritual uplift. It is the ultimate state of this spiritual uplift which is referred to in the Qur’an as the "soul at rest" (87:27).

Thus a true and perfect man, from the religious point of view, is one who has reached that level of spiritual development where nothing but peace prevails. When a person has attained that peaceful state, others will receive from him nothing but peace. He may be likened to a flower which can send out only its fragrance to man, it being impossible for it to emit a foul smell.

An incident relating to a saint very aptly illustrates the spirit of religion. The story goes that once a Muslim sufi was travelling along with his disciples. During the journey he encamped near a large grove of trees upon which doves used to perch.

During this halt one of the sufi’s disciples aimed at one of the doves, killed it, cooked it and then ate it. Afterwards something strange happened. A flock of doves came to the tree under which the sufi was resting and began hovering over it and making a noise.

The Muslim sufi, communicating with the leader of the birds, asked what was the matter with them and why they were protesting. The leader replied, "We have a complaint to make against you, that is, one of your disciples has killed one of us." Then the Muslim sufi called the disciple in question and asked him about it. He said that he had not done anything wrong, as the birds were their foodstuff. He was hungry, so he killed one for food. He thought that in so doing he had not done anything wrong. The sufi then conveyed this reply to the leader of the doves.

The latter replied: Perhaps you have failed to understand our point. Actually what we are complaining about is that all of you came here in the garb of sufis yet acted as hunters. Had you come here in hunter’s garb, we would certainly have remained on the alert. When we saw you in the guise of sufis, we thought that we were safe with you and remained perched on the top of the tree without being properly vigilant.

This anecdote illustrates very well the reality of a true religious person or spiritual person for that matter. One who has reached the stage of spiritual uplift, and has found the true essence of religion no longer has the will or the capacity to do harm. He gives life not death, to others. He benefits others, doing no injury to anyone. In short, he lives among the people like flowers and not like thorns. He has nothing but love in his heart to bestow upon others.

Now I should like to say a few words about prayer and meditation in Islam. Let me begin with a question from the Qur’an: "When My servants question you about Me, tell them that I am near. I answer the prayer of the suppliant when he calls to Me; therefore, let them answer My call and put their trust in Me, that they may be rightly guided (2:186)."This verse of the Qur’an tells us that in Islam there is no need for any intermediary to establish contact between God and man. At any time and place man can contact God directly. The only condition is that man should turn to God with sincere devotion.

Islam believes in a personal God. God is an alive being, fully aware of His servants. He hears and sees. That being so, man must call God in all personal matters. Whenever he calls God with a sincere heart, he will find Him close by.

Meditation in Islam aims at bringing man closer to God. When man worships God, when he remembers Him, when his heart is turned towards Him in full concentration, when he makes a request or a plea, then he establishes a rapport with his Maker. In the words of the Hadith, at that particular moment he comes to whisper with his Lord. He has the tangible feeling that he is pouring his heart out to God and that God in turn is answering his call.

When this communion is established between God and man, man can feel himself becoming imbued with a special kind of peace. His eyes are moist with tears. He starts receiving inspiration from God. It is in moments such as these that man can rest assured of his prayers being granted by God.

According to a hadith the Prophet Muhammad said the highest form of worship is to pray as if you were seeing God. We learn from this hadith the true sign of a superior form of worship. The true sign is for man to sense the presence of God during worship, and feel that he has come close to God. That is when he can experience the refreshing, cooling effect of God’s love and blessings for man. It is this feeling of closeness to God which is the highest form of spiritual experience.

Tolerance

2009-09-23T06:24:00.000-07:00

By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

According to Voltaire,
"Tolerance is a law of nature stamped on the heart of all men."
Nothing could be truer than this statement; tolerance is, indeed, a permanent law of nature. But it is not something which has to be externally imposed, for the human desire for tolerance is limitless. Just as truth and honesty are virtues, so is tolerance a virtue. And just as no one ever needs to ask for how long one should remain truthful and honest, so does one think of tolerance as having an eternal value. The way of tolerance should be unquestioningly adopted at all times as possessing superior merit.

A man who is intolerant is not a human being in the full sense of the expression. To become enraged at antagonism is surely a sign of weakness. Of course, there are many who do not want to recognize the principle of tolerance as being eternal, for, in conditions of adversity, the temptation to retaliate becomes too strong. The feelings of anger which accompany negative reaction must somehow be vented, and those who think and act in this way are keen to retain the illusion that, in hitting back, they are not doing anything unlawful.Such thinking is quite wrong. In reality, when a man is enraged at anything which goes against his will, tolerance as a priority becomes paramount. Many men strive to become supermen. But the true superman is one who, in really trying situations, can demonstrate his super-tolerance. Just any act of antagonism does not give us the license to be intolerant. Rather, such occasions call for greater tolerance than in normal circumstances. In everyday matter, where there is none of the stress and strain of opposition, no one has difficulty in being tolerant. It is only in extraordinary situations, fraught with conflict, that the truly tolerant man will prove his mettle.

On January 1st, 1995, the United Nations proclaimed 1995 as the "Year of Tolerance," saying that the ability to be tolerant of the actions, beliefs and opinions of others is a major factor in promoting world peace. The statement issued by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, (UNESCO) on this occasion, emphasizes that amidst the resurgence of ethnic conflicts, discrimination against minorities and xenophobia directed against refugees and asylum-seekers, tolerance is the only way forward. It pointed out that racism and religious fanaticism in many countries had led to many forms of discrimination and the intimidation of those who held contrary views. Violence against and intimidation of authors, journalists and others who exercise their freedom of expression, were also on the increase along with political movements which seek to make particular groups responsible for social ills such as crime and unemployment. Intolerance is one of the greatest challenges we face on the threshold to the 21st century, said the UNESCO Statement. Intolerance is both an ethnic and political problem. It is a rejection of the differences between individuals and between cultures. When intolerance becomes organized or institutionalized, it destroys democratic principles and poses a threat to world peace. (The Hindustan Times, January 1, 1995)

This proclamation of the UN is most apt and timely. The prime need of the world today is indeed tolerance.

One of the stark realities of life is that divergence of views does exist between man and man, and that it impinges at all levels. Be it at the level of a family or a society, a community or a country, differences are bound to exist everywhere. Now the question is how best unity can be forged or harmony brought about in the face of human differences.

Some people hold that the removal of all differences is the sine qua non for bringing about unity. But, this view is untenable, for the simple reason that, it is not practicable. You may not like the thorns which essentially accompany roses, but it is not possible for you to pluck out all the thorns and destroy them completely. For, if you pluck out one, another will grow in its place. Even if you run a bulldozer over all rosebushes, new plants will grow in their place bearing roses which are ineluctably accompanied by thorns. In the present scheme of things, roses can be had only by tolerating the existence of thorns. Similarly, a peaceful society can be created only by creating and fostering the spirit of tolerance towards diversities. In this world, unity is achievable only by learning to unite in spite of differences, rather than insisting on unity without differences. For total eradication of differences is an impossibility. The secret of attaining peace in life is tolerance of disturbance of the peace.There is nothing wrong in diversity of opinions. In fact, this is a positive quality which has many advantages. The beauty of the garden of life is actually enhanced if the flower of unity is accompanied by the thorn of diversity.An advantage flowing from this attitude is that it builds character. If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if you behave properly with those holding divergent views from you or who criticize you, then you deserve to be credited with having an excellent character.

In the same way, a society whose members hold identical views and never have any controversial discussions, will soon find itself in the doldrums. The

intellectual development of the members of this society will be frozen, because personal evolution takes place only where the interaction of divergent thinking provides the requisite mental stimuli.

The adoption of a policy of tolerance in the midst of controversy and in the face of opposition is not a negative step. It is undoubtedly a positive course of action.

Divergence of views plays an important role in the development of the human psyche. It is only after running the intellectual gauntlet that a developed personality emerges. If, in a human society, this process ceases to operate, the development of character will come to a standstill.

Nobody in this world is perfect. If a man is endowed with some good qualities, he may be lacking in others. This is one of the reasons for differences cropping up between people. But, for life as a whole, this disparateness is actually a great blessing: the good points of one man may compensate for the shortcomings of another, just as one set of talents in one man may complement a different set in another. If people could only learn to tolerate others’ differences, their very forbearance would become a great enabling factor in collective human development.

After 1947, when the first government of independent India was formed, two important leaders were included in it. One was Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and the other was Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel. Pandit Nehru’s westernized ideas were in great contrast to the orientalism of Sardar Patel. And this caused frequent differences of opinion between these two leaders. But this proved to be a boon for the nation, because with Pandit Nehru’s abilities compensating for the shortcomings of Sardar Patel, and vice versa, the end result was one of an efficacious complementarity. The above is a good example of the difference between the respective natures and opinions of individuals essential for human development in general.

The habit of tolerance prevents a man from wasting his time and talent on unnecessary matters. When negatively affected by another’s unpalatable behavior, your mental equilibrium is upset, whereas when emotionally untouched by such behavior, your mind will fully retain its equilibrium and, without wasting a single moment, you will continue to carry out your duties in the normal way. The policy of tolerance or forbearance enhances your efficacy, while intolerant behavior reduces it.

Tolerance is not an act of compulsion. It is a positive principle of life, expressing the noble side of a man’s character. The existence of tolerant human beings in a society is just like the blooming of flowers in a garden.

Tolerance: Its Significance Today

2009-09-23T06:22:00.000-07:00

By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

On January 1st, 1995, the United Nations proclaimed 1995 as the "Year of Tolerance," saying that the ability to be tolerant of the actions, beliefs and opinions of others is a major factor in promoting world peace. The statement issued by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, (UNESCO) on this occasion, emphasizes that amidst the resurgence of ethnic conflicts, discrimination against minorities and xenophobia directed against refugees and asylum-seekers, tolerance is the only way forward. It is said, racism and religious fanaticism in many countries had led to many forms of discrimination and the intimidation of those who held contrary views. Violence against and intimidation of authors, journalists and others who exercise their freedom of expression, were also on the increase along with political movements which seek to make particular groups responsible for social ills such as crime and unemployment. Intolerance is one of the greatest challenges we face on the threshold to the 21st century, said the UNESCO Statement. Intolerance is both an ethnic and political problem. It is a rejection of the differences between individuals and between cultures. When intolerance becomes organized or institutionalized, it destroys democratic principles and poses a threat to world peace. —The Hindustan Times, January 1, 1995.

This proclamation of the UN is most apt and timely. The prime need of the world today is indeed tolerance.

There is nothing wrong in diversity of opinions. In fact, this is a positive quality which has many advantages. The beauty of the garden of life is actually enhanced if the flower of unity is accompanied by the thorn of diversity.A

n advantage flowing from this attitude is that it builds character. If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if you behave properly with those holding divergent views from you or who criticize you, then you deserve to be credited with having an excellent character.

In the same way, a society whose members hold identical views and never have any controversial discussions, will soon find itself in the doldrums. The intellectual development of the members of this society will be frozen, because personal evolution takes place only where the interaction of divergent thinking provides the requisite mental stimuli.

The adoption of a policy of tolerance in the midst of controversy and in the face opposition is not a negative step. It is undoubtedly a positive course of action.

After 1947, when the first Government of Independent India was formed, two important leaders were included in it. One was Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and the other was Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel. Pandit Nehru’s westernized ideas were in great contrast to the orientalism of Sardar Patel. And this caused frequent differences of opinion between these two leaders. But this proved to be a boon for the nation, because with Pandit Nehru’s abilities compensating for the shortcomings of Sardar Patel, and vice versa, the end result was one of an efficacious complementarity. The above is a good example of the difference between the respective natures and opinions of individuals essential for human development in general.

Patience: Superior Solution

2009-09-23T06:21:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Patience, the focus of about 200 verses of the Qur’an, and referred to indirectly in many others, may be termed the core subject of the scriptures.

The verses directly relating to patience are quite explicit in their content. For instance,

And seek (Allah’s) help with patience and prayer. (2:45)And endure patiently whatever may befall thee. (31:17)And exhort one another to be patient. (103:3)And heed not their annoyance, but put thy trust in Allah. (33:48)

A very pronounced and direct instruction to behave with patience and endurance is apparent in these verses.

The majority of the other verses are also intensely concerned with patience. The very first verse of the Qur’an begins with "Praise belongs to Allah." (al-Fatiha) This shows that Allah expects mankind to express its gratitude and admiration to Him. But this is a very trying expectation! We know that this world is full of unpleasant experiences and nobody can be insulated from them. According to the Qur’an "Man is born in toil." Indeed, it is not possible for anyone to create a life of absolute bliss for himself.

How then a person can become grateful and appreciative of Allah’s grace in the real sense? The only way to be so is through patience. It is only when a man patiently endures worldly problems that it is possible for him to express his feeling of gratefulness to Allah. It is for this reason that the Qur’an associates gratefulness with patience. (31:31)Patience makes a person capable of finding a positive and successful solution to any problem. When someone explodes with anger while facing his adversary, he loses the faculty to respond effectively or to think of well-planned action. But when he applies patience and tolerance, he finds himself competent to make a rational move instead of an impulsive reaction. History testifies that one who acts on impulses and emotional reactions, invariably fails; and one who responds rationally, always succeeds.

Patience is undoubtedly the superior solution to all problems.

Non-Violence and Islam

2009-09-23T06:19:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Non-violence should never be confused with inaction or passivity. Non-violence is action in the full sense of the word. Rather it is more forceful an action than that of violence. It is a fact that non-violent activism is more powerful and effective than violent activism.

Non-violent activism is not limited in its sphere. It is a course of action which may be followed in all matters.

Whenever individuals, groups or communities are faced with a problem, one way to solve it is by resorting to violence. The better way is to attempt to solve the problem by peaceful means, avoiding violence and confrontation. Peaceful means may take various forms. In fact, it is the nature of the problem which will determine which of these peaceful methods is applicable to the given situation.

Islam is a religion which teaches non-violence. According to the Qur’an, God does not love fasad, violence. What is meant here by fasad is clearly expressed in verse 205 of the second Surah. Basically, fasad is that action which results in disruption of the social system, causing huge losses in terms of lives and property.

Conversely, we can say with certainty that God loves non-violence. He abhors violent activity being indulged in human society, as a result of which people have to pay the price with their possessions and lives. This is supported by other statements in the Qur’an. For instance, we are told in the Qur’an that peace is one of God’s names (59:23). Those who seek to please God are assured by verse 5 of the sixteenth surah that they will be guided by Him to "the paths of peace." Paradise, which is the final destination of the society of God’s choice, is referred to in the Qur’an as "the home of peace" (89:30), etc.

The entire spirit of the Qur’an is in consonance with this concept. For instance, the Qur’an attaches great importance to patience. In fact, patience is set above all other Islamic virtues with the exceptional promise of reward beyond measure. (39:10)

Patience implies a peaceful response or reaction, whereas impatience implies a violent response. The word Sabr exactly expresses the notion of non-violence as it is understood in modern times. That patient action is non-violent action has been clearly expressed in the Qur’an. According to one tradition, the Prophet of Islam observed: God grants to rifq (gentleness) what he does not grant to unf (violence). (Sunan, Abu Dawood, 4/255)

The word rifq has been used in this hadith as an antithesis to unf. These terms convey exactly what is meant by violence and non-violence in present times. This hadith clearly indicates the superiority of the non-violent method.

God grants on non-violence what He does not grant to violence is no simple matter. It has very wide and deep implications. It embodies an eternal law of nature. By the very law of nature all bad things are associated with violence, while all good things are associated with non-violence.

Violent activities breed hatred in society, while non-violent activities elicit love. Violence is the way of destruction while non-violence is the way of construction. In an atmosphere of violence, it is enmity which flourishes, while in an atmosphere of non-violence, it is friendship which flourishes. The method of violence gives way to negative values while the method of non-violence is marked by positive values. The method of violence embroils people in problems, while the method of non-violence leads people to the exploiting of opportunities. In short, violence is death, non-violence is life.

Both the Qur’an and the hadith have attached great importance to jihad. What is jihad? Jihad means struggle, to struggle one’s utmost. It must be appreciated at the outset that this word is used for non-violent struggle as opposed to violent struggle. One clear proof of this is the verse of the Qur’an (25:52) which says: Perform jihad with this (i.e. the word of the Qur’an) most strenuously.

The Qur’an is not a sword or a gun. It is a book of ideology. In such a case performing jihad with the Qur’an would mean an ideological struggle to conquer peoples’ hearts and minds through Islam’s superior philosophy.

In the light of this verse of the Qur’an, jihad in actual fact is another name for peaceful activism or non-violent activism. Where qital is violent activism, jihad is non-violent activism.

Peaceful Beginning

When the Qur’an began to be revealed, the first verse of the revelation conveyed the injunction: ‘Read!’ (Iqra) (96:1). By perusing this verse we learn about the initiation of Islamic action. It begins from the point where there is hope of continuing the movement along peaceful lines, and not from that point where there are chances of its being marred by violence.

When the command of ‘Iqra’ was revealed, there were many options available in Mecca as starting points for a movement. For instance, one possible starting point was to launch a movement to purify the Kabah of the 360 idols installed in it. But, by pursuing such a course the Islamic movement would certainly have had to face a violent reaction from the Quraysh. An alternative starting point could have been an attempt to secure a seat in the Dar-al-Nadwa (Mecca’s parliament). At that time almost the whole of Arabia was under the direct or indirect influence of the Roman and Sasanid empires. If the freeing of Arabia from this influence had been made the starting point, this would also have been met with an immediate violent reaction on the part of the Quraysh.

Leaving aside these options, the path followed was that of reading the Qur’an, an activity that could be with certainty continued along peaceful lines: no violent reaction would ensue from engaging in such an activity.

The Prophet of Islam followed this principle throughout his life. His policy was that of adopting non-violent methods in preference to violent methods. It is this policy which was referred to by Aishah, the Prophet’s wife, in these words: Whenever the Prophet had to opt for one of two ways, he almost always opted for the easier one. (Fathul Bari 6/654)

What are the advantages of non-violent activism over violent activism? They are briefly stated as under:

According to the Qur’an there are two faculties in every human being which are mutually antipathetic. One is the ego, and the other is the conscience called respectively nafs ammara and nafs lawwama. (The Qur’an, 12:53; 75:26) What the violent method invariably does is to awaken the ego which necessarily results in a breakdown of social equilibrium. On the other hand, non-violent activism awakens the conscience. From this results an awakening in people of introspection and self-appraisal. And according to the Qur’an, the miraculous outcome of this is that "he who is your enemy will become your dearest friend." (41:34)

A great advantage of the non-violent method is that, by following it, no part of one’s time is wasted. The opportunities available in any given situation may then be exploited to the fullest extent—as happened after the no-war pact of Hudaybiya. This peace treaty enabled the energies of the believers to be utilized in peaceful constructive activities instead of being dissipated in a futile armed encounter. One great harm done by violent activism is the breaking of social traditions in the launching of militant movements. Conversely, the great benefit that accrues from non-violent activism is that it can be initiated and prolonged with no damage to tradition.

Generally speaking, attempts to improve or replace existing systems by violent activism are counter-productive. One coup d’état is often the signal for a series of coups and counter-coups, none of which benefit the common man. The truly desirable revolution is that which permits gradual and beneficial changes. And this can be achieved only on the basis of non-violence.

Success Through the Non-violence Method

All the great successes of the first phase of Islam as well as the succeeding periods were achieved by non-violent methods. Listed below are some examples of these successes.

Of the 23 year period of prophethood, the initial 13 years were spent by the Prophet in Mecca. The Prophet fully adopted the way of pacifism or non-violence during this time. There were many such issues in Mecca at that time which could have been the subject of clash and confrontation. But, sedulously avoiding all such issues, the Prophet of Islam strictly limited his sphere to peaceful propagation of the word of God. This resulted in Dawah work being performed in full force throughout this period. One of the great gains during these 13 years of dawah work was the entry into the Islamic fold of men of the highest moral caliber who were responsible for forming the history of Islam, for instance, Abu Bakr, Umar, Usman and Ali, etc.

In Mecca when the Quraysh leaders were set to wage war against the Prophet, even then, instead of opting for the way of reaction and retaliation, what the Prophet did was to secretly migrate to Medina.

Migration, by its very nature, was a clear example of non-violent activism. This peaceful strategy enabled the Prophet and his followers, about two hundred in number, to form a powerful center of Islam in Medina. Had they adopted the path of confrontation instead of peaceful migration, the history of Islam might have been buried right there in Mecca shortly after its inception.

After the emigration, his antagonists took the unilateral decision to wage war against him. Consequently such bloody encounters as those of Badr and Uhud took place. Then the Prophet made a 10-year peace treaty known in history as Sulh al-Hudaybiya, by accepting all the conditions of his opponents. This has been called a ‘clear victory’ in the Qur’an. It is this peace treaty, paving the way for peaceful constructive activities which ultimately made possible the conquest of Mecca and the whole of Arabia.

By the end of the pious caliphate, a bloody encounter took place between the Banu Hashim and the Banu Umayya. This stopped the advance of Islam for a period of ten years. What set this process in motion once again was the voluntary withdrawal of Hasan ibn Ali (d. 50 A.H.) from the battlefield. This was undeniably a practical form of non-violent activism. This peaceful move on the part of Hasan ibn Ali re-opened to Islam the locked doors of progress.

During the last days of the Abbasid caliphate Mongol tribes attacked the Muslim world and right from Samarkand to Aleppo destroyed the entire Muslim world. The history of Islam had apparently come to a standstill. At that moment the spirit of dawah work was born within the Muslims. As a result, the majority of the Mongols converted to Islam. And that miracle took place which has been described by an orientalist in these words: "The religion of Muslims has conquered where their arms had failed."

Islamic history took a crucial turn when, in the years succeeding the pious caliphate, rot had set in the system of the government, and the caliphate had turned into monarchy. At that juncture, many factors emerged which would result in clash and confrontation between the ruler and the ruled. But, following the guidance of the Prophet, the Muslims totally avoided political confrontation. This history beginning with the Umayyad caliphate, continued for several centuries. This was possible because the tabieen (companions of the Prophet’s companions) and their succeeding generations, consisting of traditionalists, jurists, ulema, Sufis and other great religious scholars, all scrupulously avoided any clash or confrontation with the rulers.

It was during this period that peaceful dawah work was started in various countries and the disciplines of hadith, fiqh and other Islamic sciences came into existence on a large scale after a long period of great ideological struggle. All the precious books which adorn our libraries, all the classical literature of Islam are the result of these peaceful activities.

For instance, the hadith as a source of shariah is second only to the Qur’an in Islam. These traditions now exist in the form of printed books. These books are so precious that, without them, it would not have been possible to develop Islam into a complete system as it exists today. During the Umayyads and Abbasids, when the political system had begun to deteriorate, where were these tens of thousands of traditions. All of them existed in the memory of the religious scholars, whose names are mentioned in the books as chains in the link of authorities who have handed this legacy down to us. Had they adopted the principle of violent activism and clashed with the ‘oppressive’ rulers, they would all have been slaughtered by them and the entire legacy of traditions instead of finding a place on the pages of books, would have been buried along with them in the graveyards. It is by the miracle of having adopted non-violence instead of violence that the precious sources of our traditions have survived in book form and, till today, adorn our libraries.

Political Revolt Unlawful

Despite the blatant perversion in the Muslim rulers after the pious caliphate, the Muslim ulema did not lead an insurrection against these corrupt individuals. For about a period of one thousand years they remained detached in this matter and continued to engage all their efforts in non-material fields. This was not a matter of accident but in obedience to the injunctions of the shariah.

As we know, in the books of hadith detailed traditions have been set down in the chapters titled ‘kitabul fitan’. The Prophet of Islam observed in plain words that in later times perversions would set in the rulers, they would become tyrannical and unjust, but that Muslims should not wield their swords against them. They should rather move to the mountains with their goats and camels.

By ‘goats and camels’ are meant the opportunities in non-political fields which exist, even when the political institutions are corrupted. This injunction given by the Prophet meant that the Muslims should avail of such opportunities by avoiding clash and confrontation in the political field. In short, by ignoring the political problem, they should avail of the non-political opportunities.

These injunctions of the Prophet of Islam were so clear that the Muslim ulema of later times formed a consensus to make insurrection against the rulers unlawful.

Imam An-Nawawi, commenting upon some traditions as set forth by Sahih Muslim (Kitab Al-Imarah) observes: "You should not come into conflict with the rulers in matters of their power. Even if you find them going against express Islamic injunctions, you should attempt to make the truth clear to them solely through words of wisdom and advice. So far as revolt and war against them in order to unseat them is concerned, that is totally unlawful according to the consensus of the ulema, even when the rulers are zalim and fasiq (tyrants and evil)." (Sahih Muslim, Bisharh An-Nawawi, 12/229)

This command of the Prophet, as clearly expressed above, was based on extremely important considerations. In actual fact, in the early phase of Islam (as well as in the later phase) dawah and reform works had to be performed, without which the history of Islam would not have been complete. If the ulema of the Muslim community had tried to pose a threat to the political institutions, certainly all this constructive work would have been left undone. That is why the Prophet of Islam expressly prohibited any clash with political institutions. This avoidance of strife guaranteed that non-political constructive work would continue to be performed without any break.

In every society there are always two systems side by side, one political and the other non-political. The latter is established through various non-political institutions. According to the scheme of Islam, non-political institutions established at the social level have always to remain stable. In this way there is a continuing endeavor—even when the political institutions have become corrupt, or keep changing—to keep Islam firmly established at the level of the non-political system.

The Command of War in Islam

It is a fact that certain verses in the Qur’an convey the command to do battle (qital) (22:39). What the special circumstances are which justify the issuance of and compliance with this command we learn from our study of the Qur’an.

The first point to be noted is that aggression or the launching of an offensive by the believers is not totally forbidden. It is permissible, but with certain provisos. We are clearly commanded in the Qur’an: Fight for the sake of God those that fight against you, but do not be aggressive. (2:190)

Only defensive war is permitted in Islam. Such a war is one in which aggression is committed by some other party so that the believers have to fight in self-defense. Initiating hostility is not permitted for Muslims. The Qur’an says: "They were the first to attack you." (9:13)

Furthermore, even in the case of the offensive being launched by an opposing group, the believers are not supposed to retaliate immediately. Rather in the beginning all efforts are to be made to avert war, and only when avoidance has become impossible is battle to be resorted to inevitably in defense.

3. According to the Qur’an there was one form of war which was time- bound strictly in relation to its purpose. This was to put an end to fitna ‘Fight against them until fitna is no more.’ (2:193) In this verse fitna signifies that coercive system which had reached the extremes of religious persecution. In ancient times this coercive political system prevailed all over the world. This absolutism had closed all the doors of progress, both spiritual and material. At that time God commanded the believers to break this coercive system in order to usher in freedom, so that all doors of spiritual and material progress might be opened to man.

This mission was undertaken and brought to a successful conclusion at the internal level within Arabia during the life of the Prophet. Later, during the pious caliphate, the Sasanid and Byzantine empires were dismantled with special divine succor. Consequently, intellectual oppression at the international level was replaced by intellectual freedom.

In this connection those traditions are worth noting which are enshrined in Sahih al-Bukhari. When, after the fourth caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib, political conflict ensued between Abdullah ibn Zubayr and the Umayyads, Abdullah ibn Umar, the seniormost companion of the Prophet held himself aloof from the battle. People approached him and, quoting the verse of qital-e-fitna, asked him why he was not joining in the battle. Abdullah ibn Umar replied that ‘fitna’ as mentioned in the Qur’an did not refer to political infighting, but rather to the religious coercive system, that had already been put to an end by them. (Fathul Bari, 8/60)

From this we learn that the war against fitna was a war of limited duration, meant to be engaged in only until its specific purpose had been served.

Invoking the Quranic exhortation to do battle against fitna in order to validate acts of war which had quite other aims was improper. This verse could be cited only if the same state of affairs as existed at the time of its revelation, were to prevail once again.

The biographers of the Prophet of Islam have put the number of Ghazwa (battle) at more than 80. This gives the impression that the Prophet of Islam in his 23-year prophetic career waged about four battles in a year. But this impression is entirely baseless. The truth is that the Prophet of Islam in his entire prophetic life, engaged in war only on three occasions. All the other incidents described as Ghazwa were in actual fact examples of avoidance of war and not instances of involvement in battle.

For instance, in the books of seerah, the incident of Al-Ahzab is called a Ghazwa (battle), whereas the truth is that on this occasion the armed tribes of Arabia, twelve thousand in number, reached the borders of Medina with all intentions of waging war, but the Prophet and his companions dug a deep trench between them, thus successfully preventing a battle from taking place. The same is the case with all the other incidents called Ghazwa. The opponents of the Prophet repeatedly tried to get him embroiled in war, but on all such occasions, he managed to resort to some such strategy as averted the war, thus defusing the situation.

There were only three instances of Muslims really entering the field of battle—Badr, Uhud and Hunayn. But the events tell us that on all these occasions, war had become inevitable, so that the Prophet was compelled to encounter the aggressors in self-defense. Furthermore, these battles lasted only for half a day, each beginning from noon and ending with the setting of the sun. Thus it would be proper to say that the Prophet in his entire life span had actively engaged in war for a total of a day and a half. That is to say, the Prophet had observed the principle of non-violence throughout his 23-year prophetic career, except for one and a half days.

The Islamic method, being based totally on the principle of non-violence, it is unlawful for believers to initiate hostilities. Except in cases where self-defense has become inevitable, the Qur’an in no circumstance gives permission for violence.

The Modern Age and Non-Violence

The greatest problem facing Islam today is, as I see it, that Muslims have almost totally forgotten the sunnah (Prophet’s way) of non-violence. In latter times when the Ottoman and Mughal empires disintegrated and problems like those besetting Palestine have had to be confronted by the faithful, Muslims all over the world have fallen a prey to negative reaction on a colossal scale; they have failed to remember that the policy of Islam is not that of violence but of non-violence. It is the result of this deviation, that despite almost a 100-years of bloody wars, Muslims have achieved no positive gain. Rather whatever they already had has been lost by them.

According to Imam Malik, later generations of this Ummah (Muslim community) settled matters at issue in the same way that earlier generations had done, i.e. non-violent methods. Similarly, Muslims of modern times must likewise resort only to non-violent methods. Just as no gain could accrue from violent methods earlier, no gain can accrue from violent methods today.

The state of affairs of Muslims in modern times resembles that which prevailed at the time of Hudaybiya. Today once again — only on a far larger scale — this hamiyat al-jahiliya prejudices prevailing in pre-Islamic Arabia (48:28) is being displayed by the other party. In the first phase of Islam its solution lay in Muslims sedulously avoiding an equivalent display of prejudice, and in holding firmly kalema at-taqwa they became entitled to the succor of God and were granted a clear victory (48:26).

At the time of the Hudaybiya peace treaty, the Quraysh, who had secured the leadership of Arabia, were bent on waging war. The Kaaba was in their possession. They had expelled the Prophet and his companions from their home town. They had taken possession of Muslims’ homes and other properties, and spared no effort in disseminating negative propaganda against Islam.

Given this state of affairs, there were only two options before the believers. One was to attempt to put an end to tyranny and launch an outright war on the other party in the name of securing their rights. The result of such a move would certainly have been further loss in terms of lives and property.

The second option was to remain patient in the face of immediate loss, be it political or material, and, in spite of the losses avail of whatever opportunities are already available. The Prophet of Islam and his companions chose this second course. The result was that in just a few years time the entire history of Arabia was altered for the better by an Islamic revolution.

The same state of affairs is widespread in modern times. Although today Muslims have suffered great losses, political and material, at the hands of other nations, there still exist a great number of opportunities only for self-betterment and for dawah work on a far larger scale. If availed of wisely, we can rewrite the history of Islam in magnificent terms.

The Manifestation of Religion

The aim of the revolution brought about by the Prophet and his companions in the seventh century is stated in the Qur’an to be izhar-e-deen. (Izhar in Arabic means dominance/ascendancy. Here izhar-e-deen signifies intellectual and ideological dominance, not political dominance. This means that in intellectual and ideological respects, God’s religion assumes ascendancy over all other ideologies and religions.)

Izhar-e-deen was not an incident of short duration, but an ongoing assertion of the eternal dominance of Islam. Its implication was that in the world of ideology, such a revolution would be brought about as would establish the supremacy of Islam forever. Its purpose was to unravel all the veils of superstition which clouded human judgement, and to lay bare the scientific proofs hidden in nature, so that the truth of monotheism could be brought to light for all humanity. As the Qur’an puts it, ‘They desire to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths: but Allah seeks only to perfect His light, however much the infidels may abhor it.’ (9:32, 33)

Granting ideological ascendancy to God’s religion was a matter of considerable complexity, amounting to the writing of history afresh. For although God’s unassailable truth had always existed, it had become obscured by false and misguided ideas, because thinking, the arts and learning in general, had all become fettered by superstition and idolatry. This had led to a veil being thrown over true religion, which was the only proper vehicle for God’s truth. The coercive systems of the monarchies which prevailed all over the world at that time were responsible for perpetuating this state of affairs, for any intellectual freedom, particularly the freedom of religion, would have been a challenge to their supreme authority. Under such systems, there could be only such social development as suited individual rulers, and there could be no scientific development whatsoever.

Systems of governance which depended on religious persecution had, therefore, to be overthrown, so that a propitious atmosphere could be created for the performance of dawah of the true religion. This was carried into effect with resounding success by the Prophet and his companions, and all arguments were rallied in support of God’s true religion, so that all other religions would be divested of their former influence. This abolition of oppressive systems and the freeing of people’s minds from superstition naturally led to free scientific inquiry, a process which Islam has continued to foster over the centuries without interruption, and which has culminated in the unparalleled scientific achievements of the present day.

The technological advance which have been made possible by this scientific revolution have in turn provided Islam with an improved means of propagating Islam, namely modern communications. By making use of the media, those engaged in dawah work can spread the word of God much further and much faster than ever before. According to a hadith, a time was to come when God’s word would enter all the homes in the world. (Musnad, Ahmad). This was indirectly a prediction of the advent of our modern age of communications.

In ancient times, the study of religion could be done only as something sacred and as a matter of dogma. That is why established and unestablished religions had not, academically been distinguished from one another. In modern times, thanks to the influence of the scientific revolution, the study of religions can be done as objectively and as critically as any other matter which comes under scientific scrutiny. Such critical study has proved, purely academically, that historically there is only one reliable religion, and that is Islam. All other religions are lacking in this historical credibility. Prior to this, the dayees of Islam could resort only to traditional arguments in support of their faith, but it has become possible to measure up Islamic realities by the highest standards of human knowledge and to establish its authenticity by purely logical arguments. Indeed, in latter times, the sciences themselves have borne out the divine truths of Islam.

Yet, despite modern developments, our own times are constantly regarded as being fraught with problems for Islam. Muslims, lacking in understanding and awareness, forget that the modern age has never ceased to be the age of Islam. They fail to appreciate that Islam’s potential remains undiminished, and that it is for believers to convert that potential into an immediate reality. They should take into account the fact that, in the wake of the scientific revolution, which is itself the direct outcome of the Islamic revolution, it has become possible to begin a serious and beneficial dialogue between Islam and non-Islam, the result of which will necessarily be in favor of Islam. Now, this being so, the need of the hour is for Muslims to put an end unilaterally to all violent activities against madu (addressee) nations, so that a normal, amicable relationship may be allowed to grow between dayee and madu.

A Great Opportunity

1. Since direct argument cannot be applied to religious beliefs pertaining to the unseen world, these can be supported only by indirect or inferential argument. Educated people had therefore come to believe that religious realities belonged only to the domain of dogma, and that they were not academic or scientific realities. But after the breaking up of the atom the science of logic has undergone a change, and it has been accepted that inferential argument too, in its nature, is as valid and reliable as direct argument. It has subsequently become possible for religious realities to be established on an academic level, i.e. exactly on the same level as material or non-religious theories.

2. In ancient times when man observed the world, it appeared to him that in nature there existed things which were very different from one another. This observation of appearance produced the mentality of idolatry. People began to think that in view of the great diversity of things in existence, their Creator too would perforce take many and varied shapes. But scientific study has shown that this variety is only that of appearance. Otherwise, all things in nature are different expressions of the same matter. In this way shirk(idolatry) came to be seen as an intellectually untenable practice, while monotheism gained the solid support of logic.

3. According to a statement of the Qur’an, the signs of God lay hidden in the earth and the heavens. The study of science has made it manifest to all men that the universe is a great storehouse of divine arguments. "We will show them Our signs in all the regions of the earth and in their own souls, until they clearly see that this is the Truth." (41:53)

4. After the new discoveries of science, many such things have come to the knowledge of man as have rendered it possible to prove with new arguments those events which are of important religious significance. For instance, carbon 14 dating has made it possible to determine the exact age of the mummy of Ramses II, thereby providing scientific proof for the statement of the Qur’an that the body of Pharaoh was saved by God, so that it might become "a sign to all posterity." (10:92)

Islam in the Present Age

Now the question arises as to whether an Islam which teaches non-violence can be of relevance in the present age, and assume a superior position once again in new situations.

The answer is entirely in the positive. The truth is that Islam’s being a peaceful religion shows that it is an eternal religion. Had it been a religion of violence, it would not have been eternal. For in modern times, the way of violence has been totally rejected by contemporary thinking. Now only that system is worthy of consideration and acceptance the teachings of which are based on peace and non-violence.

Modern thinking, for example, has rejected communism. One of the major reasons was that communism had to be sustained by violence. And under no circumstances is violence acceptable to the modern mind. Nazism and Fascism too have been rejected on similar grounds. Modern man, therefore, disapproves of religious and non-religious extremism, because they lead man, willy nilly, to violence.

But Islam is a religion of nature. It has held violence as inadmissible from the outset. Islam has been an upholder of peace, not violence, from day one.

In the past, Islam played a great role in the development of humanity, as a result of which human history entered a new age of progress and development. The time has come today for Islam to play a great constructive role, leading human history once again into a new age of progress.

What is called scientific or technical progress is the result of the discovery of some of the great secrets of nature. But if nature and its mysteries have always existed in our world, why has there been such a long delay in their discovery? Why could not the scientific advancement of the last few hundred years have been made thousands of years ago?The reason was that in ancient times scientific inquiry was anathema to men of religion, to the point where religious persecution had become an inseparable obstacle to the progress of science. Since ancient times, religion and science (divine knowledge and human knowledge) were linked with one another. What Islam did was separate religion (which had become, in essence, a set of irrational beliefs) from scientific research and investigation. For instance, eclipses of the sun and moon had been linked with human destiny. The Prophet of Islam declared that eclipses had nothing to do with the lot of human beings. These were astronomical events, not events pertaining to the fate of mankind. (Fathul Bari, 2/611)

The incident of the pollination of dates is recorded in the books of hadith. The Prophet of Islam observed that in worldly matters such as these, "you should act according to your experience, as you know these matters better." (Sahih Muslim Bi Sharh An-Nawawi, 15/117)This meant delinking religion and science from one another. In this way scientific research acquired an atmosphere of freedom for its functioning. For the first time in human history science (human knowledge) could be developed freely without the intervention of religion. And advancing gradually, culminated in the attainment of the modern age.

But, today man is again facing an even greater problem. That is, despite the extraordinary progress made in the field of science and technology, human beings are confronted with the problem of not knowing the limit of freedom.

Modern man aspired to freedom as the highest good, but once having reached this goal, he was unable to set reasonable limits to freedom. In consequence, unrestrained freedom descended into anarchy and lawlessness. This is the actual cause of many of the problems which are emerging in modern times in western society. Now man requires an ideology which delimits his freedom, drawing the line between desirable and undesirable freedom. And it is only Islam which can provide him with such an ideology.

Now is the time for this ideology to be presented to man, who is ready and waiting to accept it.

After the fall of communism (1991), much of the world was and still is, faced with an ideological vacuum. This vacuum can be filled by Islam alone. In the present world the developed countries have become economic or military superpowers, but the place is vacant for an ideological superpower, and that, potentially belongs to Islam.There is only one obstacle in converting a great potential into a reality in favor of Islam. And that is the repeated recourse to violence by Muslim movements in modern times. Such action has presented Islam before the world in the guise of a violent religion. For this reason the man of today shies away from Islam. He fails to study Islam objectively. If this barrier could be removed and Islam once again brought before the world as a non-violent religion, or as a peaceful social system, then once again humanity would accept it, recognizing it to be the voice of its own nature.

Modern man is in need of a new religion or a new system, based on peace. It should be free from superstitious beliefs, and should provide the answers to deep psychological questions, on our flawed existence. Its principles should not clash with scientific realities, and it should be supported by a victorious history.

Today no religion but Islam can lay such positive claims to acceptance, for it is Islam and Islam alone which fulfills all these conditions. Individually, there are many men and women today who, after having studied Islam, have acknowledged these unique qualities in Islam. Some have acknowledged them in theory while others have gone ahead and accepted Islam in practice.

Dawah Activism

Islamic activism in respect of its method is based on non-violence and in respect of its target is based on dawah. Dawah, in fact, is another name for a peaceful struggle for the propagation of Islam. It would be true to say that Islamic activism in fact is dawah activism.

The task of dawah is no simple one. It enjoys the status of a key factor. If this task is fully performed, all other objectives will be automatically achieved. Here are certain references from the Qur’an in this connection.

Through dawah the believers receive God’s protection against the mischief of the opponents.

Through dawah even the direst of enemies turns into a dearest friend. (41:34)

Dawah proves Islam’s ideological superiority. And without doubt nothing is greater than the superiority of ideology. (10:32)

Through dawah a positive mentality is inculcated within the ummah. This is called ‘honest counsel’ in the Qur’an. (7:68)

The mission of dawah is performed by human beings but the conducive conditions for it are provided by God. Just as the farming is to be done by the farmer while the rains come from God. In modern times favorable conditions have been fully provided to man. Now the believers’ duty is to refrain from expending their energies in futile activities. They must exert their entire energy in dawah work. All the best results will ensue from this act.

The Prophet of Islam along with about two hundred of his companions left Mecca when the Meccan leaders had made it impossible for them to stay there. The Meccans had even decided to kill the Prophet. But the first speech the Prophet made on reaching Medina had no taste of bitterness, neither did it contain any mention of vengeance on or violence against the Quraysh.

On reaching Medina first priority was given to the task of entering into peace treaties with the tribes in and around Medina, for instance with the Banu Khuza‘a, etc. According to their pact neither would they fight against the Muslims nor would the Muslims fight against them. Most of the tribes in Arabia joined in these truce agreements.But the Quraysh did not desist from aggression, and even engaged in certain military forays against the Muslims. But, finally, in the sixth year of Hijrah, the Prophet succeeded in making a peace treaty with the Quraysh as well at a place called Hudaybiya, albeit on acceptance of all the conditions laid down by the Quraysh.

Muslims Displaced

It is an incontrovertible fact that Muslims have not been able to join the mainstream in modern times. At all places and in every department they are leading their lives as if driven into a corner. This is undoubtedly an extremely critical problem, for it has relegated Muslims to second class positions all over the world.

To me, the greatest reason for this is the violent attitude of the Muslims. Today’s Muslims are easily provoked and become violent at anything which is against their way of thinking, or even not to their liking. It is true that not all Muslims become involved in acts of violence. Yet all Muslims would be regarded involved in this matter. This is because that section, of Muslims—in fact, the majority—who are not personally involved, neither disown those members of their community who are engaged in violence, nor even condemn them. In such a case, according to the Islamic shariah itself if the involved Muslims are directly responsible, the uninvolved Muslims are also indirectly responsible.

It is Muslims’ religious and secular leaders who are actually responsible for this violent approach on the part of Muslims today. In modern times when Muslims have had to undergo the experience of defeat, almost all the religious, secular scholars (ulama) and intellectuals follow one single line, that of awakening the spirit of jihad (in the sense of qital) among Muslims. The entire Muslim world reverberates with such slogans as ‘Jihad is our way and Jihad is the only solution to our problems!’

The entire world has witnessed a great number of large and small movements in violent response to the problems faced by Muslims.If you go to Palestine, you will hear the youth singing a song no doubt taught to them by their elders:

Let’s make war, let’s make war,For war is the way to success.

In modern times the violent approach of our ulema, intellectuals, and leaders of movements, is the sole reason for the present violent mentality among Muslims all over the world. It is as a result of this mentality that, if anyone writes a book against Islam, Muslims are prepared to kill the writer. If any procession raises anti-Muslim slogans, Muslims start stoning the procession instead of killing the evil by observing silence, which, as Umar Faruq advocated, would be the best strategy in this case. If there is any monetary or territorial controversy with any nation, they immediately take up arms against it, rather than adopt a peaceful strategy to solve the problem.

This violent mentality of Muslims is responsible for having alienated them from their neighbors everywhere. Their conduct clearly shows that they no longer cherish the ideal of universal brotherhood. Everywhere they are looked upon with aversion and dread. One can even see notices on walls which say ‘Beware of Muslims’, instead of ‘Beware of dogs.’ And if these words are not inscribed on walls, they are certainly inscribed on the hearts and minds of the people. The resulting dissociation has left Muslims a backward group in modern times. Even in advanced countries like America they remain backward as a community in comparison with other immigrant groups.

The only way to alleviate the tragic plight of Muslims is to bring them back to non-violent Islam, by helping to understand that their violent version of Islam is not the true one.

As soon as Muslims take to the path of non-violent Islam, they will be able to become equal partners with other communities. They will have joined the universal mainstream, and will consequently be able to participate in all activities, in all institutions. People instead of dreading them, will welcome them. They will become a part of the universal brotherhood. Their issues will be looked upon with justice. Their equal partnership will be certain in all institutions ranging from the social to the educational.

Peaceful interaction will give Muslims the kind of intellectual stimulation and variety of experience which they must have if they are to tread the path of progress.

Interaction will also facilitate the task of dawah on a large scale. The natural result of this vast interaction of Muslims and non-Muslims will be that everywhere dialogue on Islam will be started, formally as well as informally. In modern times, because of the extremist and violent attitude of Muslims, serious dialogue between Islam and non-Islam has almost come to an end. Now when peaceful interaction between Muslims and non-Muslims takes place in a normal atmosphere, serious dialogue will ensue on its own. The beginning of serious dialogue between Islam and non-Islam is, without doubt, a very great success from the point of view of dawah.

The Qur’an describes Sulh Al-Hudaybiya, in the early period of Islam as a ‘clear victory’. It was a ‘clear victory’ in the sense that it established peace between the believers in tawhid and believers in shirk, thus making it possible for a serious dialogue to be held between the two on religious matters.

In modern times if Muslims abandon the path of violence and fully adopt the path of non-violence, this will be for Muslims like reviving the sunnah of Hudaybiya. And they will start receiving those great benefits which Islam and Muslims had gained after the event of Hudaybiya in the first phase.

Peace and Justice

One great problem for Muslims is that peace does not necessarily guarantee them justice. This has caused Muslims to become violent and to neglect opportunities for dawah. In modern times Muslims want a peace which brings them justice. But according to the law of nature, this kind of peace can never be achieved, that is why Muslims the world over are in a state of physical and mental unrest. Distressed in their minds, they have become violent in their thinking and in their actions.

The truth is that peace does not automatically produce justice. Peace in actual fact simply opens up opportunities for the achievement of justice. At the time of Hudaybiya the Prophet of Islam had not found justice. He had achieved peace but only by delinking it from justice. The Prophet had made this peace not to exact justice but to receive the opportunities. And great opportunities for dawah action did open up with the establishment of peace. The Prophet exploited these opportunities in full measure. Therefore, in just a few years’ time the Prophet not only ensured justice, but set Islam upon a much more solid footing.

The Muslims of the present day have to understand this secret of nature. Only then will it be possible for them first to find peace, then ultimately their desired goal of justice.

Conclusion

In October 1997, I met a 36-year old European, Leon Zippo Hayes, who was born in the city of Christchurch in New Zealand. After having studied Islam, he has changed his religion. His Islamic name is Khalilur Rahman. Passing through Muslim countries he is going to perform Hajj by land.

During the conversation he said that in modern times Muslims are engaged in bloody war at many places, at some places with others and at other places among themselves. This had led him (like many others) to conclude that perhaps Islam was a religion of violence. Later, he studied the Qur’an with the help of translations, and when he reached this verse in the Qur’an: ‘Whoever killed a human being should be looked upon as though he had killed all mankind (5:32),’ he said that he was so moved that he could not believe that it was in the Qur’an.This incident is broadly indicative of the thinking of non-Muslims on Islam. On seeing the actions of Muslims, people today find it hard to believe that Islam may be a religion of peace. But if Muslims stop engaging in violent activities and give people the opportunity to appreciate Islam in its original form, then certainly a great number of people would realise as they never had before that Islam was a peaceful religion and they would rush to it, saying that it was exactly the religion which their souls had been seeking all along.

(This paper was presented at the Symposium on Islam and Peace sponsored by Non-Violence International and The Mohammed Said Farsi Chair of Islamic Peace at the American University Washington D.C.)

Islam: A Tolerant Religion

2009-09-23T06:18:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

So far as Islam is concerned, it is an entirely tolerant religion. Islam desires peace to prevail in the world. The Qur’an calls the way of Islam ‘the paths of Peace’ (5:16). The state of peace can never prevail in a society if a tolerant attitude is lacking in the people. Tolerance is the only basis for peace; in a society where tolerance is absent, peace likewise will be non-existent.

Peace is the religion of the universe. Peace should, therefore, be the religion of man too, so that, in the words of Bible, the will of the Lord may be done on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10).

In a similar vein, the Qur’an tells us that: "The sun is not allowed to overtake the moon, nor does the night outpace the day. Each in its own orbit runs" (36:40).

When God created heaven and the earth, He so ordered things that each part might perform its function peacefully without clashing with any other part. For billions of years, therefore, the entire universe has been fulfilling its function in total harmony with His divine plan.The universe is following this path of peace—which is known in science as the law of nature as it is imposed upon it by God, whereas man has to adopt this path of peace of his own free will. This has been expressed in the Qur’an in these words: "Are they seeking a religion other than God’s, when every soul in heaven and earth has submitted to Him, willingly or by compulsion? To Him they shall all return" (3:83).

Peace is no external factor to be artificially imposed upon man. Peace is inherent in nature itself. The system of nature set up by God already rests on the basis of peace. If this system is not disrupted, it will continue to stay the course set for it by the Almighty. But the only way to keep humanity on the path of peace is to rid it of corruption. That is why the Qur’an enjoins: "And do not corrupt the land after it has been set in order" (7:85).

In order to preserve the peace, established by nature, from disruption, two important injunctions have been laid down by Islam. One, at the individual level, stresses the exercise of patience, and the other, at the social level, forbids taking the offensive.

Negative reaction on the part of the individual is the greatest factor responsible for disrupting peace in daily life. It repeatedly happens that in social life one experiences bitterness on account of others. On such occasions, if one reacts negatively, the matter will escalate to the point of a head-on collision. That is why Islam repeatedly enjoins us to tread the path of patience. The Qur’an says: Surely the patient will be paid their wages in full without measure (39:10).The reason for the rewards for patience being so great is that patience is the key factor in maintaining the desired system of God. In the words of the Qur’an the patient man is the helper of God (61:14).

The other injunction, designed to maintain peace in human society, forbids the waging of an offensive war. No one in Islam enjoys the right to wage war against another. There are no grounds on which this could be considered justifiable.There is only one kind of war permitted in Islam and that is a defensive war. If a nation, by deviating from the principles of nature, wages war against another nation, defense in such circumstances, subject to certain conditions, is temporarily allowed.

To sum up, Islam is a religion of peace. The Arabic root of Islam, ‘silm’, means peace. The Qur’an says: ‘...and God calls to the home of peace’ (10:25).

Peace is basic to all religions. Let us all strive then to establish peace in the world, for that is the bedrock on which all human progress rests.

How to Attain Peace in Jerusalem

2009-09-23T06:17:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Jerusalem has been called a land of blessing in the Qur’an. There those sacred places are situated where religious people go to find spiritual solace. This status of Jerusalem demands the establishment of peace there on a permanent basis. Without peace Jerusalem cannot retain its spiritual position.

Yet we find that peace has not existed in Jerusalem for a long time. It has become a land of violence instead of a land of peace. This is an extremely grave state of affairs. We are duty bound to discover a formula of peace for Jerusalem, otherwise we shall incur the wrath of God.

The first point to be considered is that the Mecca model or the Vatican model cannot be applied to Jerusalem. The reason being that Mecca and the Vatican are each the sacred site of only one religion. Therefore, it is possible at these places for the adherents of the same religion to establish their rule. Jerusalem, on the contrary, is a junction point of three religions at the same time—Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The holy sites of all the three religions exist there. In such a situation, if we attempt to establish the Mecca model or the Vatican model, Jerusalem will remain an eternal battleground. And it will be impossible for the followers of these religions to perform their religious rituals there in a peaceful atmosphere.

Given this state of affairs, the only practicable peace formula is to adopt the delinking policy between religious and political issues, in order that the followers of all religions may find an opportunity on a permanent basis to go there and return to their homes after performing their respective religious rites and rituals in a state of peace.This practicable formula, in two short phrases, is as follows:

Administration by one. Access to all.

This means that in the matter of political power, the policy of statusquoism must be adopted. It is a known fact that political power depends upon historical circumstances. And circumstances keep changing. In consequence, the seat of political power also keeps changing by turns. The same historical law has been described in these words in the Qur’an:

If you have suffered a defeat, so did the enemy. We alternate these vicissitudes among mankind so that Allah may know the true believers and choose martyrs from among you. Allah does not love the unjust. (3:140)

In accordance with this verse, the course to be adopted is that whatever group comes into power as a matter of historical process, must be accepted by the rest as a matter of historical verdict. Those who have been denied a share in political power must accept the verdict of history. They must wait for the time when changes in historical process themselves give their verdict in favor of the concerned group. Besides, so far as religious rites and rituals are concerned, these should be held as belonging to a field completely outside that of political power. From this standpoint, everyone should have total freedom to visit Jerusalem whenever he pleases in order to perform the rituals of his own religion. And he should also have the guarantee of a safe return.

In practice, this peace formula, has been prevalent at least partially in Jerusalem. From the period of the second Islamic Caliph to the beginning of the Crusades, the situation had been the same. Although only one religious group ruled, so far as visits to the sacred sites were concerned, the doors for such visits were equally open to the adherents of all three religions.

Now in present times too this state of affairs is partially maintained, that is, the Christians have, unannounced, adopted this formula without challenging the present political set up; they visit their religious sites the whole year round and return home in peace after performing their religious rites and rituals.

This formula is nothing new. Its origin can be traced back to the religious teachings of the three religions.In ancient times when the political power of this region was taken away from the Jews, they were enjoined according to the Bible:

Say to the King and to the queen mother, "Humble yourselves, sit down, for your rule shall collapse, the crown of your glory." (Jeremiah 13:18)

This means that when, owing to historical process, political power changed hands, the Jews were asked not to try to change the status quo but were instead enjoined to devote themselves to the performance of the religious duty which they owed to God.Similarly, during the times of Jesus Christ Jerusalem was under the rule of non-Israeli people. When Jesus Christ was asked about it, he offered the solution in these words:

"Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s. (Mark 12:17)

This means that the matter of changing the Caesar, that is the ruler, should be left to historical factors, while engaging oneself in one’s duty as imposed by God.

In the case of Islam, exactly the same holds true. According to a Hadith, the Companions of the Prophet once asked him, ‘When political circumstances change, and rulers are devoid of the Islamic spirit, what has to be done?’ The Prophet replied: ‘Render them their dues and ask for your rights from God.’ According to another hadith, the Prophet said: ‘They will be accountable for their deeds, and you will be accountable for yours.’

These quotations make it very clear that this formula not only meets the standard of rationality, but it also enjoys the sanction of the three religions.

This means that if political rulers are not to your liking, instead of clashing with them, you should ignore the differences and devote yourself fully to do the duty you owe to God.

To conclude I have to say that it is essential to allow Jerusalem to become a permanently peaceful city. If political rule by adherents of a particular religion is regarded as a necessary condition for the performance of that religion’s rites, then peace can never be attained. Such a situation is impracticable because of the presence of the holy religious sites of three different religions in Jerusalem. In such a state of affairs, the only practical solution is to adopt the principle of political statusquoism in the matter of administration, while in the field of religion Jerusalem should be accorded the status of an open city for all time to come.

There is no other way besides this, as all other ways are simply not workable.

The Policy of Peace in Islam - How to attain normalcy in Jerusalem

2009-09-23T06:13:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin khan

According to the Prophet Muhammad, upon whom be peace, a believer is one with whom one can trust one’s life and property. That is because Islam is a religion of peace. The Qur’an calls its way ‘the paths of peace’ (5:16). It describes reconciliation as the best policy, (4:128) and states quite plainly that God abhors disturbance of the peace (2:205).

Yet, in this world, for one reason or the other, peace remains elusive. Differences—political and apolitical—keep on arising between individuals and groups, Muslims and non-Muslims. Whenever people refuse to be tolerant of these differences, insisting that they be rooted out the moment they arise, there is bound to be strife. Peace, as a result, can never prevail in this world.

One recent example is the ever-recurring conflict over Jerusalem. Jerusalem is a very ancient, historic city with a unique value for all the millions of people of different religious persuasions who believe it to be their very own Sacred Place. Jerusalem is, indeed, a symbol and center of inspiration for the three great Semitic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. For Jews, it is a living proof of their ancient grandeur, and the pivot of their national history. For Christians, it is the scene of their Savior’s agony and triumph. For Muslims, it is the first halting place on the Prophet’s mystic journey, and also the site of one of Islam’s most sacred Shrines. Thus, for all three faiths, it is a center of pilgrimage, while for Muslims it is the third holiest place of worship.

Now the question arises as to how, when it is a place of worship for all three religions, it can be freely accessible to all. How can the adherents of all the three religions have the opportunity there to satisfy their religious feelings?

Nowadays, all around us, we hear the slogan: "Jerusalem is ours." The raising of this slogan by different parties clearly shows that each one desires political supremacy for itself. All the three believe that without political dominance over this sacred city, they cannot worship God in the proper sense of the word.

If the condition for visiting this sacred place were that only that person or group could visit it who enjoyed political dominance there, Jerusalem would be turned from a place of peaceful worship into a battlefield. As political power can be wielded by only one religious group at a time, the other two groups, who are not in power, will constantly be in opposition to it. In this way, a place which should remain perfectly ‘tranquil’ will be eternally rent by clash and confrontation. As a result, not even the group in power will have the opportunity to perform its religious rites in peace.

This is indeed a very practical and important question which demands a serious rethinking. I would like to deal here briefly with the position of Islam in this matter.

The first indirect reference to Jerusalem appears in the 17th Surah of the Qur’an. It says: ‘Glory be to Him who made His Servant go by night from the Sacred Mosque to the distant Mosque, whose precincts We have blessed, that we might show him some of Our Signs’ (17:1). Prior to the emigration in early 622, the Prophet Muhammad went on an extraordinary journey called Mi‘raj (Ascension) in the history of Islam. Through God’s unseen arrangement, this journey took the Prophet from Mecca to Jerusalem. There, according to the belief of the Muslims, he performed a prayer in congregation with all the Prophets who had been his forerunners at the holy site of al-Masjid al-Aqsa (al Bayt al-Maqdis).

Another reference to Jerusalem appears in one of the sayings of the Prophet recorded in all the six authentic books of Hadith with minor differences in wording. According to this tradition, there are only three mosques to which a journey may be lawfully made for the purpose of saying one’s prayers—al-Masjid al-Haram of Mecca, al-Masjid al-Nabi of Medina and al-Masjid al-Aqsa of Jerusalem. (Certain traditions use the name Masjid Ilia for the Masjid al-Aqsa in Palestine.) Yet another tradition tells us that there is a far greater reward for praying in these three mosques than in any other mosque.

We learn, however, from the Qur’an that in no part of the world can political power be wielded indefinitely by the same nation or group: ‘We bring these days to men by turns’ (3:140). Given that power changes hands from time to time between different communities, how are believers to worship at al-Masjid al-Aqsa? Whereas each Muslim has a natural desire to enter this mosque and prostrate himself before God as the Prophet Muhammad and the other Prophets did.

According to the Qur’an, political power, by the very law of nature, cannot forever remain with one nation. In that case, if this act of worship is linked with the notion that a Muslim can receive God’s blessings only when this land is under Muslim political rule, millions of Muslims would have had to bury this desire in their hearts and leave this world with this cherished desire unfulfilled, as it happened with the former Saudi king Faisal ibn Abdul Aziz (1906-1975). They would never have had, the unique experience of prostrating themselves before Almighty God at a place where the Prophet Muhammad, along with all the Prophets, had prostrated himself before his Lord.

What is the solution to this problem? Its solution lies in a practice (Sunnah) of the Prophet Muhammad: to separate the religious from the political aspect of the matter. This would enable men of religion to solve the problem by applying what is called ‘practical wisdom,’ that is, to avoid the present problems and grasp the available opportunities. By following this process, they would be able to fulfill their cherished religious desire of which they have been denied unnecessarily so far. In the process, they would be able to avoid confrontational situations. Here are some telling examples of this Sunnah of the Prophet.

The Prophet Muhammad emigrated from Mecca to Medina in July 622. For the first year and a half in Medina (i.e. till the end of 623) he and his companions prayed in the direction of al-Bayt al-Maqdis in Jerusalem. At the beginning of 624, the faithful, were enjoined, by Qur’anic revelation, to face in the direction of the Sacred Ka‘ba at Mecca to say their prayers (2:144).

When this injunction regarding the Qiblah (direction of prayer) was revealed, 360 idols were still in position in the Ka‘bah, at that time a long-established center of polytheism. The presence of these idols must certainly have made Muslims feel reluctant to face in the direction of the Ka‘bah at prayer time. How could believers in monotheism turn their faces towards what was, in effect, a structure strongly associated with polytheism? It is significant that along with the change of Qiblah came the injunction to treat this problem as a matter requiring patience, and not to hesitate in facing the Ka‘bah: "O believers, seek assistance in prayer. God is with those who are patient" (2:153).

As history tells us, this state of affairs continued for six long years, till the conquest of Mecca (630) when the Ka‘bah was cleared of idols. This establishes a very important principle of Islam which may be termed as Al-fasl bayn al-qaziyatayn, that is, the separation of two different facets of a problem from each other. According to this principle, the Ka‘bah and the idols were given separate consideration. By remaining patient on the issue of the presence of the idols, believers were able to accept the Ka‘bah as the direction for prayer.

Another such example is the above mentioned heavenly journey (Isra

or Mi‘raj undertaken by the Prophet before the emigration in 622. At that juncture, Jerusalem was ruled by Iranians, that is to say, by non-Muslims. The Iranian ruler, Khusroe Parvez, attacked Jerusalem in 614, wresting it from the Romans, who had governed it since 63 BC This political dominance of the Iranian empire ended only when the Roman Emperor Hercules defeated the Iranians and restored Roman rule over Jerusalem in 629.

This means that, before his emigration, the Prophet Muhammad entered Jerusalem on his Mi‘raj journey to say his prayer at the Masjid al-Aqsa at a time when the city was under the rule of a non-Muslim king. From this we derive the very important Sunnah of the Prophet that worship and politics practically belong to separate spheres, and, as such, should not be confused with one another.

The third example took place after the Hijrah in 629. At that

time, Mecca was entirely under the domination of the idolatrous Quraysh. In spite of that, the Prophet and his companions came to Mecca from Medina to spend three days there to perform Umrah (the minor pilgrimage) and the circumambulation of the Ka‘bah. This was possible solely because the Prophet did not mix worship with politics. If the Prophet had thought that Umra could be performed only when Mecca came under Muslim political rule, he would never have entered Mecca for worship along with his companions.

In the light of this Sunnah of the Prophet, the solution to the present problem of Jerusalem lies in separating the issue of worship from that of political supremacy. Muslims belonging to Palestine, or any other country, should be able to go freely to Jerusalem in order to pray to God in the Aqsa Mosque. Worship should be totally disassociated from political issues.

To sum it up, the only practical solution to the problem of Jerusalem, in present circumstances, is to apply the above principle of Al-fasl bayn al-qaziyatayn to this matter, that is, to keep the two aspects of a controversial issue separate from one another. There is no other possible solution to the problem of Jerusalem. We ought to keep the political aspect apart from its religious aspect so that no ideological barrier comes in the way of worship by the people, and the faithful are able to go to Jerusalem freely in order to satisfy their religious feelings.

The Concept of Jihad

2009-09-23T06:08:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Jihad is regularly misconstrued as war, with all its connotations of violence and bloodshed. However, in the Islamic context, and in literal sense, the word jihad simply means a struggle—doing one’s utmost to further a worthy cause. This is an entirely peaceful struggle, with no overtones even of aggression. The actual Arabic equivalent of war, is qital, and even this is meant in a defensive sense.

According to Islamic teachings, jihad is of two kinds. One is with the self (jihad bin nafs), that is, making the maximum effort to keep control over negative feelings in one’s self, for instance, arrogance, jealousy, greed, revenge, anger, etc. The psychological efforts to lead such a life of restraint is what jihad bin nafs is about. In social life, it happens time and again that all sorts of base, negative feelings well up within a man, causing him to lead his life succumbing to desires and temptations. The internal effort made in such a situation to overcome the temptations of the self and to continue to lead a life guided by principles is the truly Islamic jihad bin nafs.

According to the hadith, a believer is one who wages jihad with himself in the path of obedience to God. That is, at moments when the self (nafs), lured by some temptation, desires to deviate from the path of God, he keeps control over it and remains unswervingly on the divine path. This is his jihad—a permanent feature of the life of a believer, continuing day and night, and ending only with death.

The other form of jihad is that which is engaged in to propagate the constructive message of Islam. All those who embark upon such a course must first of all study the Qur’an and sunnah in a dispassionate and objective manner. No kind of conditioning should be allowed to come in the way of such a study. Only after passing through this intellectual jihad will the would-be proponent of Islam be in a position to make a true representation of his religion.

Two conditions have been laid down in the Qur’an for the communication of the teachings of Islam to others—nasih, well-wishing and amin, trustworthiness. The former appertains to God and the latter to man.

What is meant by nasih (well-wishing) is an earnest desire on the part of the teacher for the well-being not just of his immediate interlocutors, but the whole of humanity. This well-wishing should be so steadfast that it remains undiluted even in the face of injustice and oppression. Overlooking people’s negative behavior towards him, the teacher should continue to remain their well-wisher.

The element of trustworthiness (amin) is important in that it ensures that the Islam God has sent to the world will be presented to the people without deletion, addition or distortion. For instance, if the Islam sent by God is akhirah (Hereafter) oriented, it should not become world oriented; if it is spirituality based, it should not become politics based; if it confines jihad to peaceful struggle, it should not become violence based.

Islam asks us to perform jihad by means of the Qur’an, calling this ‘greater’ jihad. But it never asks its believers to do the ‘greater’ jihad by means of the gun.This is a clear proof that jihad is, in actual fact, a wholly peaceful activity, carried out through peaceful methods. It has nothing to do with violent activities or violent threats.

Jihad through the Qur’an means striving to the utmost to present the teachings of the Qur’an before the people. That is, presenting the concept of One God as opposed to the concept of many gods; presenting akhirah-oriented life as superior to world-oriented life; principle-oriented life as against interest-oriented life; a humanitarian-oriented life as more elevated than a self-oriented life and a duty-oriented life as a categorical imperative taking moral precedence over a rights-oriented life.

Jihad, according to Islam, is not something about which there is any mystery. It is simply a natural requirement of daily living. It is vital both as a concept and as a practice because, while leading his life in this world, man is repeatedly confronted by such circumstances as are likely to derail him from the humanitarian path of the highest order.

These factors sometimes appear within man in the form of negative feelings. This is something to which everyone must remain intellectually alert, so that if for any reason there is some danger of a negative mindset gaining the upperhand, he may consciously and deliberately turn himself to positive thinking. Even if circumstances repeatedly place him in situations which are depressing and demoralizing, he must never on such occasions lose courage or lose sight of noble goals. The re-assertion of his ethical sense is the real jihad which he has to wage.

From the Islamic standpoint, intention is all-important. Any undertaking carried out with good intentions will win God’s approval, while anything done with bad intentions is bound to be disapproved of and rejected by God. In actual fact, intentions are the sole criteria of good or bad actions in the divine scheme of things.

This truth relates jihad to man’s entire life and to all of his activities. Whatever man does in this world, be it at home, or in his professional capacity, in family or in social life, his prime imperative must be to carry it out with good intentions and not the reverse. This, however, is no simple matter. In all one’s dealings, adhering strictly to the right path requires a continuous struggle. This is a great and unremitting lifelong struggle. And this is what is called jihad.

Even if one is engaged in good works, such as the establishment and running of institutions which cater for social welfare or academic needs, or if one is personally engaged in social work or performing some service in the political field, in all such works the element of personal glory has a way of creeping in. Therefore, in all such instances, it is essential that in the individuals concerned there should be a strong tendency to introspection, so that they may keep before them at all times the goal, not of personal glory but the greater glory of God.

It is one’s intense inner struggle to make all activities God-oriented which is truly Islamic jihad.

On Islam and Jihad

2009-09-23T04:18:00.000-07:00

Dr. Farida Khanam

A perusal of the Qur’an followed by a study of latter-day Muslim history will reveal a blatant contradiction between the two—that of principle and practice. Where recent developments in some Muslim countries bespeaks the culture of war, the Qur’an, on the contrary, is imbued with the spirit of tolerance. Its culture is not that of war, but of mercy.

At the very beginning of the Qur’an, the first invocation reads: "In the name of God, the most Merciful, the most Beneficent. Throughout the Qur’an, God’s name is thus invoked no less than 113 times. Moreover, Qur’an states that the prophets were sent to the world as a mercy to the people (21:107).

The word ‘jihad’ has nowhere been used in the Qur’an to mean war in the sense of launching an offensive. It is used rather to mean ‘struggle’. The action most consistently called for in the Qur’an is the exercise of patience. Yet today, the ‘Muslim Mujahideen’ under unfavorable conditions have equated "God is Great" with "War is Great." For them, the greatest reward is to be able to wield a Kalashnikov rifle.

In the light of on-going conflict, we must ask why so great a contradiction has arisen between the principles of Islam and the practices of Muslims. At least one root cause may be traced to historical exigency.

Since time immemorial, military commanders have been accorded positions of great eminence in the annals of history. It is a universal phenomenon that the hero is idolized even in peace time and becomes a model for the people. It is this placing of heroism in the militaristic context which has been the greatest underlying factor in the undue stress laid on war in the latter phase of Islam’s history. With the automatic accord in Muslim society of a place of honor and importance to the heroes of the battlefield, annalists’ subsequent compilations of Islamic history have tended to read like an uninterrupted series of wars and conquests.

These early chronicles having set the example, subsequent writings on Islamic history followed the same pattern of emphasis on militarism. The Prophet’s biographies were called ‘maghazi’, that is ‘The Battles Fought by the Prophet,’ yet the Prophet of Islam in fact did battle only three times in his entire life, and the period of his involvement in these battles did not total more than one and half days. He fought, let it be said, in self-defense, when hemmed in by aggressors, and he simply had no option. But historians—flying in the face of fact—have converted his whole life into one of confrontation and war.

We must keep it in mind that the Prophet Muhammad was born at a time when an atmosphere for militancy prevailed in the Arab society. There being, in their view, no other path to justice. But the Prophet always opted for avoidance of conflict. For instance, in the campaign of Ahzab, the Prophet advised his Companions to dig a trench between them and the enemies, thus preventing a head-on clash.

Another well-known instance of the Prophet’s dislike for hostilities is his cessation of the campaign of Hudaibiya with a treaty which made more concessions to the enemies than to his own people. In the case of the conquest of Mecca, he avoided a battle altogether by making a rapid entry into the city with ten thousand Muslims—a number large enough to awe his enemies into submission.

In this way, on all occasions, the Prophet endeavored to achieve his objectives by peaceful rather than by war-like means. It is, therefore, unconscionable that in later biographical writing, all the events of his life have been arranged under the heading of ‘battles’ (ghazawat). How he managed to avert the cataclysms of war has not been dealt with in any of the works which purportedly depict his life.

Ibn Khaldun, the celebrated 14th century historian, was the first to lay down definite rules for the study and writing of history and sociology. He followed the revolutionary course of attempting to present history as a chronicle of events centering on the common man rather than on kings, their generals and the battles they fought. But since war heroes were already entrenched as the idols of society, the caravan of writers and historians continued to follow the same well-worn path as had been trodden prior to Ibn Khaldun. When people have come to regard war heroes as the greatest of men, it is but natural that it is the events of the battlefield which will be given the greatest prominence in works of history. All other events will either be relegated to the background or omitted altogether.

In the later phase of Islam, there came into existence a powerful group of Sufis—many of them great men, who exerted their influence on a multitude of people, their goal being to put an end to this contradiction between the tenets of Islam and Muslim conduct: they at least wanted to strike a balance between the two. But the Sufis failed in this, the principal reason being that they expressed themselves in terms of dreams and the realization of inspiration. The militant interpretation of Islam, on the contrary, was ostensibly based on history and knowledge. Dreams and personal realizations could, therefore, never adequately counter what had come to be regarded as hard facts. Objective reasoning cannot be bested by subjective postulations, and so the Sufis failed to establish the equilibrium between precept and practice which they so ardently desired.

In the past when the sword was the only weapon of war, militancy did not lead to the mass-scale loss of life and property as modern warfare brings in its wake. In former times, fighting was confined to the battlefield; the only sufferers were those engaged in the battle. But today, the spear and sword have been replaced by megabombs and devastating long-range missiles, so that killing and destruction take place on a horrendous scale. It is the entire human settlement which has now become the global arena of war. Even the air we breathe and the water we drink are left polluted in war’s aftermath.

Hence people in the West find Islam outdated and irrelevant precisely because of its militant interpretation. Demands for a reform in Islam are on the increase, as the ‘old’ version of Islam cannot apparently keep pace with the modern world.

But, in reality, it is not reformation which is urgent, but revival. What is needed is to discard as superficial and erroneous the militant and political interpretation of Islam, and to adopt the original, ‘old’ version of Islam based on peace, mercy and the love of mankind.The so-called Muslim Mujahideen have been exhorting their co-religionists to do battle all over the world. But the Qur’an says: ‘...and God calls to the home of peace’ (10:25). It is up to right-thinking people everywhere to disregard the Mujahideen call, and to start seeing and accepting Islam as it is truly represented by the Qur’an.

Creating Harmony Amidst Cultural Conflict

2009-09-23T04:16:00.000-07:00

By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

There is no denying the fact that cultural conflict does exist in reality. However, this is a blessing in disguise. Conflict between different cultures has always existed in human history. The only thing new about this phenomena in our times is that the modern means of communication have greatly accelerated the pace of this process.

The second point I should like to make is that cultural conflict per se poses no danger. It rather denotes a healthy process. Arnold Toynbee’s theory that challenges act as a spur to take the nations forward, applies to cultural conflict too. Challenges in fact are the only ladder to the ongoing progressive journey of human history.

In ancient time, the confrontation of Roman and non-Roman culture resulted in the emergence of Muslim nations, bringing the history forward. Afterwards, Muslim and non-Muslim culture, came into conflict resulting in the emergence of renaissance in Europe. History further moved forward.

In the twentieth century European and non-European cultures faced challenges. As a result of which the USA emerged on the scene with the greatest of progress ever made in history.

However this is in no way the final phase in human history. Now the collision is taking place between American and non-American culture which would result in a better, more advanced culture, and it is quite possible that this might be Indian or Asian culture.

The actual task to be performed by India and other under-developed countries is not to engage themselves in protest against the so-called cultural invasions. What is more important for us is to devote our attention to educating our people. Increasing the percentage of literacy among the people amounts to making them an aware, enlightened people. Once we have managed to make them an enlightened people, it is quite possible that those who are lagging behind today may become pioneers of a new cultural age, as has often taken place in history.

World Religions and the Spirit of Tolerance

2009-09-23T03:19:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

In its declaration the United Nations held the year 1995 as the year of tolerance. Now we have come close to the end of the year. Tolerance is a permanent human requirement. In this respect the subject of today’s discussion is very important.

All the great religions of the world can be broadly divided into two categories: Aryan religions and Semitic religions. So far as I have studied I have found that tolerance has been given equal importance in both these types of religions. Religion makes a man a spiritually developed human being. One who has elevated his spirituality can not afford intolerance. The behavior of a truly religious person is always one of tolerance.

So far as I have studied the difference between the two types of religions is that of rationale of tolerance instead of tolerance itself. The philosophic ground of tolerance in the Aryan religions is derived from their belief that truth is an all-pervading reality. According to this concept, the psychology of a religious person is that ‘If I am in the right, you too, according to your own tradition are in the right." That is to say, tolerance in Aryan religions is based on the concept of manyness of reality.

The philosophic base of tolerance in Semitic religions is different from this, as these religions believe in the principle of oneness of reality. However, so far as the question of human respect is concerned, Semitic religions lay equal emphasis on this value. That is to say, the difference in this respect in both the branches of religions is one of philosophy not of practice.

To put it differently the basis of tolerance in Aryan religions is on mutual recognition, while its basis in Semitic religions is on mutual respect. This difference is only one of philosophic explanation. So far as practical behavior is concerned, there is no difference in either religions in this respect.

To sum it up, the spirit of tolerance is the essence of all religions. The man produced by religion can never be divested of the spirit of tolerance. Intolerance appears to be directed at others, but it is akin to killing man’s own religious personality. Then how can a sincere person be willing to kill himself by his own hands.

The Qur’an

2009-09-23T03:13:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin khan

The Qur’an, the Book of God, enshrines the teachings which were basically the same as were to be found in previous revealed scriptures. But these ancient scriptures are no longer preserved in their original state. Later additions and deletions have rendered them unreliable, whereas the Qur’an, preserved in its original state, is totally reliable.

The Qur’an has 114 chapters. Its contents in a nutshell are: belief in one God, and considering oneself answerable to Him; firm belief that the guidance sent by God through the Prophet Muhammad is the truth and that man’s eternal salvation rests thereon.

The position of the Qur’an is not just that it is one of the many revealed scriptures but that it is the only authentic heavenly book, as all other books, due to human additions and deletions, have been rendered historically unreliable. When a believer in the previous revealed scripture turns to the Qur’an, it does not mean that he is rejecting his own belief, but rather amounts to his having re-discovered his own faith in an authentic form.

The Qur’an is a sacred book sent by the Lord of all creation. It is a book for all human beings, because it has been sent by that Divine Being who is the God of all of us.

The Qur’an is no new heavenly scripture. It is only an authentic edition of the previous heavenly scriptures. In this respect, the Qur’an is a book for all human beings, of all nations. It is the expression of God’s mercy for one and for all. It is a complete message sent by God for every one of us. The Qur’an is a light of guidance for all the world just as the sun is the source of light and heat for all the world.

Islam means submission. The religion of Islam is so named because it is based on obedience to God. A true believer in Islam is one who subordinates his thinking to God, who follows God’s dictates in all aspects of his life.

Islam is the religion of the entire universe. For the entire universe and all its parts are functioning in accordance with the law laid down by God.

Such behavior is also desired of man. Man should also lead his life as God’s obedient servant just as the rest of the universe is fully subservient to God. The only difference is that the universe has submitted to God compulsorily, while man is required to submit to the will of God by his own choice.

When man adopts Islam, first of all it is his thinking which comes under Islam, then his desires, his feelings, his interests, his relations, his loves and his hatred. All are colored by his obedience to God’s will.

When man, in his daily life comes under God’s command, his behavior with people, his dealings all are molded by the demands of Islam. From inside to outside he becomes a person devoted to God.

Man is God’s servant, and indeed, the only proper way for man in this world is to live as the servant of God. Islam, in fact, is another name for this life of servitude to God. Where the Islamic life is devoted to the service of God, the un-Islamic life unashamedly flouts the will of God. Islam teaches man to lead an obedient life and surrender himself completely to the will of God. It is people who do so who will share God’s blessings in the next world.

Ingratitude for God’s Blessings

2009-09-23T03:12:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

Right from a glass of water to political power, everything that people possess in this world is from God. Everything is a direct blessing of God. Whatever one finds in this world is there because of the will of God. If God does not will it, no one can have anything, no matter how hard he tries for it. This is an undeniable truth proved by the Qur’an and the Hadith.

Another thing that we learn from the Qur’an and the Hadith is that there are two forms of divine blessing. One special and the other general. Political power is a special blessing of God. We learn from the Qur’an that political power is not given to everyone. Neither can it be received through political movements or the gun culture. It is directly related with the way of God. One of the sunnah of God is that if a group proves, in the real sense of the word, to have true faith and to be virtuous in action, then God grants that group political power:

Allah has promised those of you who believe and do good works to make them masters in the land (24:55).

That is, even when power is desirable, the movement will begin from the point of character building and individual reform instead of political action.

Then God’s general gift is what is shared, more or less by everyone. In principle, it consists of two kinds of things—peaceful circumstances and the easy availability of the necessities of life. This we learn from the following verse of the Qur’an:

God has made an example of the city which was once safe and peaceful. Its provisions used to come in abundance from every quarter: but its people denied the favors of Allah. Therefore, He afflicted them with famine and fear as a punishment for what they did. (16:112)

Two things in this verse are called the blessings of God: peace and provision. It shows that from the worldly point of view these two things are essential for human beings. If a group comes to possess these two things, then it should not wage war for anything else, such as political power. Rather considering those blessings to be sufficient, believers should engage themselves in thanksgiving to God, until God himself paves the way for whatever else is to come.

What is thanksgiving to God? It is that whatever God has given us should be put to proper religious and constructive use. Remaining content with what one already has is thanksgiving, whereas regarding what one already possesses as unimportant and launching stormy movements for things not in our possession is ungratefulness.

Any Muslims in possession of both peace and provision ought to occupy themselves with spiritual matters rather than political activities. Now is the time to engage themselves in producing spiritual fervor in their people; in launching movements of moral reform; in educating their people; in planning the way to communicate God’s message to other communities; in spending their time in their places of worship, in developing their academic institutions, in setting up their settlements as a model abode of godly people, etc.

This is true thanksgiving. This is to pay the due of God’s blessings. A non-believer’s eyes are on his rights while a believer’s eyes are on his responsibilities. That is why an unbeliever is always running for what he has yet to possess, while a believer always engages himself in discharging his responsibilities within his own sphere.

Those who do not follow the path of thankfulness, launch heated movements towards political goals or revive the gun culture against their supposed enemies. Such people are undoubtedly anarchists. Their case is one of adding insult to injury, even if their movement has been launched in the name of Islam.

For such people it is the decree of God that they never reach their political goal, and whatever blessings of peace and worldly provision they have already enjoyed be denied to them. They will lose what they already possess. This is the way of God.

The Qur’an’s Lament

2009-09-23T03:08:00.000-07:00

(Mahirul Qadri)

They lift me to their eyes, then consign me to a niche
Or frame me in a locket, or rinse me for a potion
A satchel of silk and brocade,
And soaked in perfume becomes my cell
And as if by parrots and mynahs trained to talk
My words are intoned in mere recitation.
When disputes arise and a solemn oath is sworn,
They need me, so they take me out.
There’s no assembly without my recitation.
But hearts remain cold and eyes stay dry
Lies outstrip truth and evil beats good
And for each smile I yield uncounted tears.
They claim faith in me while obeying alien codes
So to harass, and revile me too.
Though all festive gatherings are open to me
I am there only as the sole victim.

Qur’an—The Sacred Book of Islam

2009-09-23T03:06:00.000-07:00

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

The Qur’an, according to Muslim belief, is a revealed book: it is not authored by a human being, but is the true word of God in human language. A medium-sized book so far as its volume is concerned, it comprises 114 chapters or surahs (77,439 words). Its revelation to the Prophet Muhammad, upon whom be peace, through the angel Gabriel, began in A.D. 610, while the Prophet was sitting in seclusion in the cave of Hera at the top of the Mountain of Light, two miles from Mecca. The scriptures were not revealed at one point of time. Their various parts were revealed as and when the occasion demanded. The entire process was completed over a period of 23 years, the last passage being revealed to the Prophet while he was addressing a gathering at Mount Arafat on the occasion of his last Hajj in A.D. 622. The entire volume was later compiled in Medina during the last days of the Prophet.

Since the Qur’an came into existence long before the days of the printing press, there were only two ways of preserving it: either by committing the entire text to memory, or writing it down on paper or other materials. That is why there have always been a great number of Hafiz (those who committed the entire Qur’an to memory) in every age, right from the Qur’an’s first revelation. The earliest written copies are still available in different museums, one of these being in Tashkent.

The Qur’an, addressed directly to mankind, tells us of God’s scheme for human existence: that man is placed on this earth for the purpose of being tested. The freedom he has here has not been given him as a matter of right, but as a means to allow him to prove his moral fibber. It is the outcome of this test which will ultimately decide man’s eternal fate. It is asserted in the holy book that human beings are eternal creatures, yet only an infinitesimal part of their lifespan has been assigned to the present world, while the remainder has been ordained for the Hereafter.

As we learn from the scriptures, all the previously revealed books had been sent by God so that man might be informed of the nature of his life. The Qur’an, the last of the revealed books, endorses all the revealed books which preceded it. But this endorsement applies to them only in their original, pristine versions. The religious scriptures preceding the Qur’an were—as is claimed by their followers—divine in origin. But from the point of view of academic authenticity, they have lost their original credibility. This is due to alteration, deletion and interpolation. According to the Qur’an, the only authentic version of God’s message to mankind is that revealed by Him to His final Prophet.

The study of the Qur’an tells us that it is individual-based rather than system-oriented. That is, the actual target of the holy book is to change the thinking of the individual. Changing the system is not the Qur’an’s direct objective. For the system is subservient to the individual and not the individual to the system. That is why the utmost emphasis is placed on inculcating right thinking in man. Yet, it is not the method of the Qur’an to set out everything in advance, in detail. It rather encourages individuals to think for themselves along the proper lines, so that they may discover for themselves the great truths of life. In educational terminology this is called the discovery method.

Islamic teachings can be summed up under two basic headings: (1) believing in One God and worshipping Him alone; (2) regarding all human beings as equal and according equal rights to all. In brief, monotheism and justice for all. The Qur’an enshrines these basic teachings, dealing with them in their abstract and practical forms, but for a detailed application of their wisdom, one must go to the hadith (the sayings and deeds of the Prophet Muhammad).

As far as social life is concerned, the essence of Islamic teaching is that God has granted freedom to everyone. This freedom in itself demands that people should lead their lives with proper restraint. For if freedom is exercised without restraint, it will inevitably result in friction, outright clashes and the descent of society into chaos. Social equilibrium can be maintained only if conscience (nafs lawwama) prevails over ego (nafs ammara). In social life, our actions elicit good or evil depending upon whether we have activated the ego or the conscience of the person or persons concerned.

Whenever one initiates any undertaking, the Qur’an states expressly that one should begin by uttering the name of God. One thus always reminds oneself at the outset of God’s attributes of benevolence and compassion. It is also a way of determining that all projects will be launched not with personal but with divine intentions, and that all actions stemming therefrom will be merciful rather than exploitative in nature. The most frequently repeated invocation in the Qur’an is: "In the name of God, the most Beneficent, the most Merciful." The recurrence of this phrase no less than 114 times is in itself a clear indication of how important it is.

Principles of Success— In the light of Seerah

2009-09-23T03:05:00.000-07:00

By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

It is a well-known fact that the Prophet of Islam (PBUH) was the supremely successful man in the entire human history. But he was not just a hero, as Thomas Carlyle has called him. According to the Qur’an, he was a good example for all mankind. He has shown us the way of achieving supreme success in this world.

By studying the life of the Prophet we can derive those important principles which were followed by the Prophet. In short, the Prophet of Islam was a positive thinker in the full sense of the word. All his activities were result-oriented. He completely refrained from all such steps as may prove counter-productive.

First Principle: To begin from the possibleThis principle is well explained in a saying of Aishah. She said: "Whenever the Prophet had to choose between two options, he always opted for the easier choice." (Al-Bukhari)To choose the easiest option means to begin from the possible, and one who begins from the possible will surely reach his goal.

Second Principle: To see advantage in disadvantageIn the early days of Mecca, there were many problems and difficulties. At that time, a guiding verse in the Qur’an was revealed. It said: "With every hardship there is ease, with every hardship there is ease." (94:5-6).This means that if there are some problems, there are also opportunities at the same time. And the way to success is to ignore the problems and avail the opportunities.

Third Principle: To change the place of actionThis principle is derived from the Hijrah. Hijrah was not just a migration from Mecca to Medina. It was to find a more suitable place for Islamic work, as history proved later on.

Fourth Principle: To make a friend out of an enemyThe prophet of Islam was repeatedly subjected to practices of antagonism by the unbelievers. At that time the Qur’an enjoined upon him the return of good for evil. And then, as the Qur’an added, "You will see your direst enemy has become your closest friend" (41:34).

It means that a good deed in return of a bad deed has a conquering effect over your enemies. And the life of the Prophet is a historical proof of this principle.

Fifth Principle: To turn minus into plusAfter the Battle of Badr, about 70 of the unbelievers were taken as the prisoners of war. They were educated people. The Prophet announced that if any one of them would teach ten Muslim children how to read and write he would be freed. This was the first school in the history of Islam in which all of the students were Muslims, and all of the teachers were from the enemy rank. Here I shall quote a British orientalist who remarked about the Prophet of Islam: He faced adversity with the determination to wring success out of failure.

Sixth Principle: The power of peace is stronger than the power of violenceWhen Mecca was conquered, all of the Prophet’s direst opponents were brought before him. They were war criminals, in every sense of the word. But the Prophet did not order to kill them. He simply said: "Go, you are free." The result of this kind behavior was miraculous. They immediately accepted Islam.

Seventh Principle: Not to be a dichotomous thinkerIn the famous Ghazwa of Muta, Khalid bin Walid decided to withdraw Muslim forces from the battlefield because he discovered that the enemy was unproportionately outnumbered. When they reached Medina, some of the Muslims received them by the word "O Furrar" (O deserters!) The Prophet said "No. They are Kurrar" (men of advancement)."

Those Medinan people were thinking dichotomously, either fighting or retreating. The Prophet said no. There is also a third option, and that is to avoid war and find a time to strengthen yourself. Now history tells us that the Muslims, after three years of preparation, advanced again towards the Roman border and this time they won a resounding victory.

Eighth Principle: To bring the battle in one’s own favorable fieldThis principle is derived from the Ghazwa of Hudaibiyya. At that time, the unbelievers were determined to engage Muslims in fighting, because obviously they were in an advantageous position. But the Prophet, by accepting their conditions unilaterally, entered into a pact. It was a ten-year peace treaty. Until then, the meeting ground between Muslims and non-Muslims had been on the battlefield. Now the area of conflict became that of ideological debate. Within two years, Islam emerged as victorious because of the simple reason of its ideological superiority.

Ninth Principle: Gradualism instead of radicalismThis principle is well-established by a hadith of Al-Bukhari. Aishah says that the first verses of the Qur’an were related mostly to heaven and hell. And then after a long time when the people’s hearts had softened, the specific commands to desist from adultery and drinking were revealed in the Qur’an.This is a clear proof that for social changes, Islam advocates the evolutionary method, rather than the revolutionary method.

Tenth Principle: To be pragmatic in controversial mattersDuring the writing of Hudaibiyyah treaty, the Prophet dictated these words: "This is from Muhammad, the Messenger of God." The Qurayshi delegate raised objections over these words. The Prophet promptly changed the word and ordered to write simply Muhammad, son of Abdullah.

These were the principles through which the Prophet of Islam gained that success which has been recognized by historians as the supreme success.

In the end, I would like to repeat those ten principles of success:

1. To begin from the possible
2. To see advantage in disadvantage
3. To change the place of action
4. To make a friend out of an enemy
5. To turn minus into plus
6. The power of peace is stronger than the power of violence
7. Not to be a dichotomous thinker
8. To bring the battle in one’s own favorable field
9. Gradualism instead of radicalism
10. To be pragmatic in controversial matters

Prophet’s Love and Tolerance for Mankind

2009-09-23T03:04:00.000-07:00

Dr. Farida Khanam

The Prophet Muhammad is introduced in the Qur’an in these words:

And We have not sent you forth but as a mercy to mankind (21:107).

This shows that his distinctive quality was that he was a blessing incarnate in word and deed.

According to a tradition recorded in the Sahih of Imam Muslim, when his opponents greatly increased their persecution, his Companions asked him to curse them. At this the Prophet replied, "I have not been sent to lay a curse upon men but to be a blessing to them." His opponents continued to treat him and his Companions with injustice and cruelty, but he always prayed for them.

Once he was so badly stoned by his enemies that the blood began to spurt from all over his body. This happened when he went to Ta’if, where the Hijaz aristocracy used to while away their summer days. When he attempted to call them to Islam, instead of listening to his words of wisdom, they set the street urchins upon him, who kept chasing him till nightfall. Even at that point, when he was utterly exhausted and bleeding from head to foot, all he said was: "O my Lord, guide my people along the true path as they are ignorant of the truth."

His heart was filled with intense love for all human kind irrespective of caste, creed, or color. Once he advised his companions to regard all people as their brothers and sisters. He added: "You are all Adam’s offspring and Adam was born of clay."

All this tells us what kind of awareness he wanted to bring about in man. His mission was to bring people abreast of the reality that all men and women, although inhabiting different regions of the world, and seemingly different from one another as regards their color, language, dress, culture, etc., were each other’s blood brothers. Hence a proper relationship will be established between all human beings only if they regard one another as sisters and brothers. Only then will proper feelings of love and respect prevail throughout the world.

According to a hadith (sayings of the Prophet), the Prophet once said, "A true believer is one with whom others feel secure. One who returns love for hatred." The Prophet made it clear that one who would only return love for love was on a lower ethical plane. We should never think it is only if people treat us well, that we should treat them well. We should rather be accustomed to being good to those who are not good to us and to not wronging those who harm us.

The Prophet once borrowed some money from a Jew. After a few days the Jew came to demand payment of his debt. The Prophet told him that at that moment he had nothing to pay him with. The Jew said that he won’t let him go until he had paid him back. And so the Jew stayed there, from morning till night, holding the Prophet captive. At that time the Prophet was the established ruler of Medina and could have easily taken action against him. His Companions naturally wanted to rebuke the man and chase him away. But the Prophet forbade this, saying, "The Lord has forbidden us to wrong anyone." The Jew continued to hold the Prophet captive until the following morning. But with the first light of dawn, the Jew was moved by the Prophet’s tolerance, and he thereupon embraced Islam. In spite of being a rich man, he had detained the Prophet the day before on account of a few pence. But now the Prophet’s noble conduct had had such an impact on him that he was willing to give all his wealth to the Prophet, saying, "Spend it as you please."

According to another hadith, the Prophet once said: "By God, he is not a believer, by God, he is not a believer; by God, he is not a believer, with whom his neighbors are not secure." This hadith shows how much he loved and cared for all human beings. One of the lessons he taught was that we should live among others like flowers, and not like thorns, without giving trouble to anybody.

In another hadith the Prophet said: "If a believer is not able to benefit others, he must at least do them no harm." This shows that to the Prophet the man who becomes useful to others leads his life on a higher plane. But if he fails to do so, he should at least create no trouble for his fellow men. For a man to be a really good servant of God, he must live in this world as a no-problem person. There is no third option.

The Prophet’s own example is testified to by Anas ibn Malik who served the Prophet for ten years. He says that the Prophet never ever rebuked him. "When I did something, he never questioned my manner of doing it; and when I did not do something, he never questioned my failure to do it. He was the most good-natured of all men." Such conduct gained him the respect even of his enemies and his followers stood by him through all kinds of hardship and misfortune. He applied the principles on which his own life was based in equal measure to those who followed his path and to those who had harmed or discountenanced him.I

In the present world, everyone’s thinking, tastes, aptitude, likes and dislikes can never exactly coincide. For many reasons, differences do arise in this world. But then, what is the permanent solution to the problem? The solution lies in tolerance, called i‘raz in Arabic. The Prophet’s entire life served as a perfect example of this principle. According to his wife, ‘A’isha, "He was a personification of the Qur’an."

That is to say, the Prophet molded his own life in accordance with the ideal pattern of life which he presented to others in the form of the Qur’an. He never beat a servant, or a woman, or anyone else. He did, of course, fight for what was right. Yet, when he had to choose between two alternatives, he would take the easier course, provided it involved no sin.’ No one was more careful to avoid sin than he. He never sought revenge—on his own behalf—for any wrong done to him personally. Only if God’s commandments had been broken would he mete out retribution for the sake of God. It was such conduct which gained the Prophet universal respect.

In the early Meccan period when the antagonists far exceeded the Prophet’s companions in number, it often happened that when the Prophet would stand to pray, his detractors would come near him and whistle and clap in order to disturb him, but the Prophet did not even once show his anger at such acts. He always opted for the policy of tolerance and avoidance of confrontation.

When the Prophet migrated to Medina he built the first mosque known as Masjid al-Nabi (Mosque of the Prophet), considered to be the second most sacred mosque in Islam.

One day the Prophet was sitting in the mosque along with his companions. A Bedouin entered the mosque and started urinating. The Companions rushed to catch him and give him a good beating. But the Prophet did not allow them to do so. After the Bedouin had urinated, he asked his companions to bring a bucket of water and wash the place. Afterwards the Prophet called the man and with gentleness and affection explained to him that this was a place of worship and that it should be kept clean.

When the opposition became very strong the Prophet left Mecca for Medina. But his antagonists did not leave him in peace. They began to attack Medina. In this way a state of war prevailed between the Muslims and non-Muslims.

Since the Prophet avoided war at all costs, he strove to bring about a peace agreement between him and the Meccans. After great efforts on his part, the non-Muslims agreed to the finalizing of a 10-year peace treaty, which was drafted and signed at the al-Hudaybiyyah.

While the al-Hudaybiyyah treaty was being drafted, the Meccans indulged in a number of extremely provocative acts. For instance, the agreement mentioned the Prophet’s name as ‘Muhammad the Messenger of God.’ They insisted that the phrase ‘the messenger of God’ should be taken out, and be replaced simply by ‘Muhammad, son of Abdullah’. The Prophet accepted their unreasonable condition and deleted the appellation with his own hands. Similarly, they made the condition that if they could lay their hands on any Muslim they would make him a hostage, but if the Muslims succeeded in detaining any non-Muslim, they would have to set him free. The Prophet even relented on this point. For the restoration of peace in the region, the Prophet accepted a number of such unjustifiable clauses as were added by the enemy. In this way he set the example of peace and tolerance being linked with one another. If we desire peace, we must tolerate many unpleasant things from others. There is no other way to establish peace in society.

Once the Prophet was seated at some place in Medina, along with his companions. During this time a funeral (procession) passed by. On seeing this the Prophet stood up. Seeing the Prophet stand, up, one of his Companion remarked that the funeral was that of a Jew, that is, a non-Muslim. The Prophet replied, ‘Was he not a human being?’

This incident illustrates how an atmosphere of mutual love and compassion can be brought about in the world only when we consciously rise above all insidious demarcation of caste, color and creed. Just as the Prophet did, we too must look at all men as human beings who deserve to be respected at all events.

The Prophet Muhammad’s Message of Peace

2009-09-23T03:02:00.000-07:00

By Saniyasnain Khan

A major part of the Prophet’s mission was to bring peace to the world. One of the ways in which he strove towards this end was to attempt to convince people that all men and women, albeit inhabiting very different regions of the world, and seemingly different from one another in color, culture and language, etc., were in fact each other’s blood brothers and sisters. His message was crucial, for a proper relationship of love and respect can be established only if that is how human beings regard one another. To inculcate such feelings, the Prophet would preach to his followers: "You are all Adam’s offspring and Adam was made of clay." And in his prayers to his Creator, he said, "O Lord, all your servants are brothers."

The Prophet would exhort his followers to live in peace with their fellow men, saying, "A true believer is one with whom others feel secure—one who returns love for hatred. He used to teach believers that anyone who would return love only when love was given belonged on a lower ethical plane. The true believer never reasons that it is only if people treat him well that he will treat them well in return. He is accustomed rather to doing good to those who mistreat him, and to refrain from harming those who do him injury. The Prophet himself set the example. All his recorded words and actions reveal him as a man of great gentleness, kindness, humility, good humor and excellent common sense, with a great love for all people and even for animals.Despite his position as leader, the Prophet never believed himself to be greater or better than other people. He never made others feel small, unwanted or embarrassed. He urged his followers to behave kindly and humbly, releasing slaves whenever possible, and giving in charity, especially to very poor people, orphans and prisoners—without any thought of reward.

He would tell people that "every religion has some special characteristic, that of Islam being modesty." In the absence of such a virtue, no community can have lasting peace. The Prophet’s own modesty, coupled with great strength of character, is depicted in a well-known story of an old Meccan woman who hated the Prophet. Every morning when the Prophet passed by her house, she would empty a basket of rubbish on his head from the upper story of her house. He never once remonstrated with her about this. One day, when the Prophet passed through this area, no rubbish fell on his head. Thinking that the old woman must be ill, he went upstairs to inquire how she was, and found her ill in bed. When she discovered that the Prophet had come to see her, she began to weep: "I ill-treated you, and now you come to inquire after my health!" Ultimately, she became one of his followers. What strength of character, what patience and tolerance the Prophet evinced in refusing to be provoked, preferring rather to show kindness and magnanimity to one who had wished him ill.

His was a high moral character, so that even if badly treated by others, he went on returning good for evil. People harmed him, yet he would pray for them. He would remain patient in the face of oppression and, regardless of the provocation, he would refrain from becoming incensed. In setting this example, his ulterior aim was to fashion souls which were God-oriented, which found God so great that everything else paled into insignificance. He wanted everyone to have such boundless peace of mind that nothing could disturb them. Such balanced individuals, would never then became a prey to worldliness. Totally free from negative reaction, they would then be able to turn everything in this world, whether material or spiritual, into food for more profound thought, rather than into pretexts for rash and vengeful action. The essence of this philosophy is expressed in one of the Prophet’s sayings: "Nine things the Lord has commanded me:Fear of God in private and in public;Justness, whether in anger or in calmness;Moderation in both poverty and affluence;That I should join hands with those who break away from me;and give to those who deprive me;and forgive those who wrong me;and that my silence should be meditation;and my words remembrance of God;and my vision keen observation." (Razin)Throughout the first thirteen years of his prophethood, Prophet Muhammad preached in Mecca, but it was in the face of bitter opposition from the Meccans. When it became impossible for him to stay there, he left for Medina. Wars were waged against him, but he showed his antagonists that the power of peace was far greater than that of war. The peace treaty of Hudaybiyyah is a clear example of this, when the Prophet agreed to every demand his antagonists made on the sole assurance that peace would subsequently prevail.

His life’s experience ranged from penury to prosperity, from defeat to success, yet whatever the degree of well-being or hardship, he steadfastly trod the path of moderation. At all times and right till the end, he remained and patient and grateful servant of the Almighty, bringing his message of peace and tolerance to mankind.