By Ashley Mcguire

Altmuslimah, 25 April 2012

She’s been called the “Ice Princess in the Hijab.” And I think she rocks. Zahra Lari is a 17-year-old Olympic figure-skating hopeful from the United Arab Emirates. And you can’t miss her because she wears a black hijab instead of sparkly hair clips and nylon pants instead of the characteristic shiny nude tights. I love seeing a Muslim woman as a competitive athlete. I just love it. I was crushed when the Iranian women’s soccer team was disqualified from the Olympics because of their headscarves.

I thought it was misogynistic to tell those women, already living under a regime that is restrictive to women, that their dream was off-limits simply because they were lawful Iranian women covering their heads. The images of those strong women, humiliated and crying on the field, was devastating.
As a non-Muslim, I have my own mixed views about the hjiab. I don’t understand why a woman would have to cover her hair to be modest. But I have also seen and met Muslim women who embrace the headscarf or the hijab who have a twinkle in their eyes and a freedom in their spirit that must come from shielding oneself from our grasping, hyper-sexualized world.
And I know non-Catholics might look at my faith’s teaching against artificial contraception, for example, as backwards and oppressive, as many rush to label the hijab. But I am grateful and appreciative towards those who try to understand, or at least recognize that I find freedom and dignity in the choice to obey that teaching.
As women of faith, we owe each other understanding and support in our choices that may defy the culture’s terms for our empowerment. It is our right to follow our consciences and make religious choices. And whether the state tries to take that right away through the law, or whether society tries to shame us away from our rights, women of faith should be allies in defending one another’s right to religious choice.
Zahra Lari could have run away from her family and defied the hijab. She probably would have become some feminist hero for doing so. But I think she is a feminist hero nonetheless. She became the first woman in the world to compete in international figure skating in a hijab. In my book, that is more noteworthy than being the first woman to land a quadruple axel. Because that takes a kind of courage that stirs only the deepest part of the soul. She made a choice that would no doubt engender scrutiny from the ultra-conservative religious community that doesn’t want to see a woman dancing on skates and from the liberal pundits who don’t like seeing women in a Muslim headcovering.
Guts, my friends. Guts.
Speaking of her ambition, Lari recently said, “In my country women don’t do much sport and even less figure skating. . . . I want to encourage girls from the Emirates and the Gulf to achieve their dream too and not to let anyone tell them not to do sport, not only figure skating but all sports.” And defending her hijab, she said, “I skate with the hijab, my costume is in line with Islamic tradition.”
Her defense was refreshingly simple and straightforward, almost as if to say, “I don’t really owe you an explanation.”
Zahra Lari exemplifies to the world that you can be a practicing Muslim woman who is competitive, ambitious, and bold. That is a good example for all women of faith, particularly in a world that increasingly views religion as incompatible with female strength and empowerment.
Lari brought to mind the 1980s classic movie, Chariots of Fire. The film centers around two athletes: Eric Liddell, a Scottish Christian who runs for the express purpose of glorifying God, and Harold Abrahams, an English Jew who runs to overcome anti-Semitism. Both men refuse to compromise their faith for the sport, and they are better athletes because of it.
Whether she intended it or not, Zahra Lari has brought Chariots of Fire to the rink. But she is a woman in a part of the world where women are still barred from many opportunities. And a Muslim in a time when anti-Muslim sentiment runs strong. She has brought Chariots of Fire to a whole new level.

So rock on, Ms. Lari.
Ashley McGuire is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of AltMuslimah’s sister site, AltCatholicah.com.

(Photo Credit: gulfnews.com)

http://www.altmuslimah.com/a/b/spa/4618/

by Dr Ahmad Soboh

To listen to this khutbah, please click here:

http://www.islamicity.com/islamitv/?ref=12208

by Muslema Purmul www.SuhaibWeb.com

1. “Say, ‘O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful.’” (Qur’an 39:53)

2. “Except those who repent and correct themselves and make evident [what they concealed]. Those – I will accept their repentance, and I am the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful.” (Qur’an 2:160)

3. “But whoever repents after his wrongdoing and reforms, indeed, Allah will turn to him in forgiveness. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.” (Qur’an 5:39)

4. “[...] Then He turned to them so they could repent. Indeed, Allah is the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful.” (Qur’an 9:118)

5. “[O Muhammad], inform My servants that it is I who am the Forgiving, the Merciful.” (Qur’an 15:49)

6. “And [there are] others who have acknowledged their sins. They had mixed a righteous deed with another that was bad. Perhaps Allah will turn to them in forgiveness. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.” (Qur’an 9:102)

7. “Those who avoid the major sins and immoralities, only [committing] slight ones. Indeed, your Lord is vast in forgiveness. [...]” (Qur’an 53:32)

8. “[...] indeed He is ever, to the often returning [to Him], Forgiving.” (Qur’an 17:25)

9. “And whoever does a wrong or wrongs himself but then seeks forgiveness of Allah will find Allah Forgiving and Merciful.” (Qur’an 4:110)

10. “[...] And seek forgiveness of Allah. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.” (Qur’an 73:20)

11. “[...] Indeed, no one despairs of relief from Allah except the disbelieving people.” (Qur’an 12:87)

12. “And when My servants ask you, [O Muhammad], concerning Me – indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. [...]” (Qur’an 2:186)

13. “O you who have believed, repent to Allah with sincere repentance. Perhaps your Lord will remove from you your misdeeds and admit you into gardens beneath which rivers flow [on] the Day when Allah will not disgrace the Prophet and those who believed with him. Their light will proceed before them and on their right; they will say, “Our Lord, perfect for us our light and forgive us. Indeed, You are over all things competent.” (Qur’an 66:8)

14. “And those who, when they commit an immorality or wrong themselves [by transgression], remember Allah and seek forgiveness for their sins – and who can forgive sins except Allah? [...]” (Quran 3:135)

15. “[...] Indeed, good deeds do away with misdeeds. That is a reminder for those who remember.” (Qur’an 11:114)

16. “Except for those who repent, believe and do righteous work. For them Allah will replace their evil deeds with good. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful.” (Qur’an 25:70)

17. “And it is He who accepts repentance from his servants and pardons misdeeds, and He knows what you do.” (Qur’an 42:25)

18. On the authority of Anas radi allahu `anhu (may Allah be please with him), who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah   say: “Allah the Almighty has said: ‘O son of Adam, so long as you call upon Me, and hope in Me, I shall forgive you for what you have done, and I shall not mind. O son of Adam, were your sins to reach the clouds in the sky and were you then to ask forgiveness of Me, I shall forgive you. O son of Adam, were you to come to Me with an earthful of sins and were you then to face Me, without having associated anything with Me, I shall grant you an earthful of pardon.’” (Tirmidhi)

19. On the authority of Abu Hurayrah  the Prophet   said, from among the things he reports from his Lord (swt), is that He said: “A servant [of Allah's] committed a sin and said: ‘O Allah, forgive me my sin.’ And He (glorified and exalted be He) said: ‘My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for them.’ Then he sinned again and said: ‘O Lord, forgive me my sin.’ And He (glorified and exalted be He) said: ‘My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for them.’ Then he sinned again and said: ‘O Lord, forgive me my sin.’ And He (glorified and exalted be He) said: ‘My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for sins. Do what you wish, for I have forgiven you.’” (Bukhari and Muslim)

20. On the authority of Ibn Abbas  the Messenger of Allah   said among the sayings he relates from his Lord is: “Allah has written down the good deeds and the bad ones.” Then he explained it [by saying that]: “He who has intended a good deed and has not done it, Allah writes it down with Himself as a full good deed, but if he has intended it and has done it, Allah writes it down with Himself as from ten good deeds to seven hundred times, or many times over. But if he has intended a bad deed and has not done it, Allah writes it down with Himself as a full good deed, but if he has intended it and has done it, Allah writes it down as one bad deed.” (Bukhari and Muslim)

21. Abdullah ibn Omar  says that the Prophet   said: “Allah accepts the repentance of His servant as long as he does not croak (on his deathbed).” (Tirmidhi)

22. Anas ibn Malik  says that the Prophet   said: “When a servant of Allah returns to Him and repents, Allah is happier than a traveler who loses his mount which has all his belongings and provisions on it and then resorts to the shade of tree after losing all hope only to wake up and find his mount staring in his face, and then out of joy and happiness erroneously says: ‘Allah You are my servant and I your Lord.” (Bukhari, Muslim)

23. Narrated Abu Huraira : I heard Allah’s Messenger   saying, “The good deeds of any person will not make him enter Paradise.” They (the Prophet’s companions) said, ‘Not even you, O Allah’s Apostle?’ He said, “Not even myself, unless Allah bestows His favor and Mercy on me.” So be moderate in your religious deeds and do the deeds that are within your ability: and none of you should wish for death, for if he is a good doer, he may increase his good deeds, and if he is an evil doer, he may repent to Allah.” (Bukhari)

24. The Prophet  said,”Every son of Adam makes mistakes, and the best of those who make mistakes are those who repent.” (At-Tirmidhi)

25. He  also said: “I swear by Him in whose hand is my soul, if you were a people who did not commit sin, Allah would take you away and replace you with a people who would sin and then seek Allah’s forgiveness so He could forgive them.” (Muslim)

26. On the authority of Ibn Abbas  that the Messenger of Allah   said: “Allah has pardoned for me my people for [their] mistakes and [their] forgetfulness and for what they have done under duress.” (ibn Majah, Baihaqi and others)

27. The Prophet  said to Mu’adh bin Jabal  , “Shall I not show you the gates of goodness? Fasting is a shield, charity extinguishes sin as water extinguishes fire; and the praying of a man in the depth of night.” Then he recited: “Who forsake their beds to cry unto their Lord in fear and hope, and spend of that We have bestowed on them. No soul knoweth what is kept hid for them of joy, as a reward for what they used to do.” (Qur’an 32:16-17) (Tirmidhi)

28. Ali  said, “The sin which makes you sad and repentant is more liked by Allah than the good deed which turns you arrogant.”

29. A man asked Abdullah ibn Masood  about repenting from a sin which he wanted to commit but did not commit it. Abdullah   turned away from the man and then turned towards him with his eyes weeping and said: “Paradise has eight entrances, all of which open and shut except the entrance of tawbah. This entrance has an angel guarding it so that it does not shut. So repent and do not despair.”

30. Saeed ibn Musayib  said, “Allah will change the bad deeds of those who repent and convert them into good deeds (on the Scales) on the Day of Judgment. Repentance is itself a good deed. So the sinner changes his sins into good deeds.” (Madarij al-Salikeen)

1. Anas ibn Malik   reports: “The Prophet   came one day into the mosque and found a rope stretched between two pillars. He asked what the rope was for. He was told that it was put up for Zainab, so that she would hold on to it during her prayer when she felt too tired. The Prophet said: ‘No. Take it off. Let everyone pray when they feel fresh and comfortable. When they feel tired, they should sit down.’” (Bukhari)

2. Narrated `A’isha : The Prophet   used to say, “Do those deeds which you can do easily, as Allah will not get tired (of giving rewards) till you get bored and tired (of performing religious deeds).” The most beloved prayer to the Prophet was the one that was done regularly even if it were little. And whenever the Prophet offered a prayer he used to offer it regularly. (Bukhari)

3. Narrated ‘Abdullah bin ‘Amr: Allah’s Messenger  was informed that I had taken an oath to fast daily and to pray all through the night throughout my life. I replied, “Let my parents be sacrificed for you! I said so.” The Prophet   said, “You cannot do that. So, fast for few days and give it up for few days, pray and sleep. Fast three days a month as the reward of good deeds is multiplied ten times and that will be equal to one year of fasting.” I replied, “I can do better than that.” The Prophet   said to me, “Fast one day and give up fasting for a day and that is the fasting of Prophet David and that is the best fasting.” I said, “I have the power to fast better (more) than that.” The Prophet   said, “There is no better fasting than that.” (Bukhari)

4. Narrated Mujahid from ‘Abdullah bin ‘Amr: The Prophet  said, “Fast three days a month.” ‘Abdullah said, “I am able to fast more than that.” They kept on arguing on this matter till the Prophet said, “Fast on alternate days, and recite the whole Qur’an once a month.” ‘Abdullah said, “I can recite more,” and the argument went on till the Prophet  said, “Recite the Qur’an once each three days.” (Bukhari)

5. The Prophet  said, “Make matters easy and do not make them difficult, give glad tidings and do not make people averse.” (Bukhari and Muslim)

Ahmad Deedat is a name which suddenly brings to mind the picture of a smiling white-bearded man fluently speaking in English about Islam. We find him debating with Jimmy Swaggart in the US, or challenging Palestinian American missionary, Anis Shorosh in UK or lecturing in Canada, Sweden, Denmark, Australia or visiting Maldives, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. He was a man of mission. He dedicated his life for the defense of Islam. Though he did not graduate from any university, the prestigious Faisal Award was conferred upon him in recognition of his great services to Islam. His first public lecture to fifteen people was delivered in 1942 at Durban entitled “Muhammad: The Messenger of Peace.” Later he delivered hundreds of lectures around the globe and published thousands of his books and videos which are distributed for free in the East and the West. Several thousands of people have entered the fold of Islam through his efforts. He was born in a poor family in Surat, India. His father, who was a tailor, migrated to South Africa after his birth. He could see his father only at the age of 9 when he went to Natal. He joined the school, established his worth but could not continue after sixth standard because of financial handicap. He started a private job at the age of 16. In 1936 he was working on a Muslim-owned store near a Christian seminary. The young missionary trainees, taking him a Muslim, hurled a number of insults upon him. Whatever they were taught in the classroom against Islam or its Prophet, they bombarded it upon him. He, being a simple Muslim, was perplexed with this sudden attack. But it infused a stubborn flame of desire within the young man to counter their false allegations. He tried to search for proper books and fortunately he found a marvelous treatise named Izharul Haq (Truth Revealed) by Maulana Rahmatullah Kairanvi who already had a challenging debate with Bishop Fender on April 9, 1854 at Agra. Young Deedat began to study this book in the basement of his employer and purchased his first Bible to attest the references. The next week he was able to defend himself and counteract the trainees in a befitting manner. He got another opportunity when a new Muslim convert Fairfax began classes on Bible and on how to preach Islam to Christians. Ahmad Deedat joined the course but after few months Fairfax left the classes and surprisingly Deedat who was by that time quite competent in the subject took over the class as their tutor which he continued for three years. Now that was his most favorite subject. He began to lecture in Natal and then in nearby cities. A decade later, thousands of people were filling city halls in Johannesburg and Cape Town to hear his dissertations. Ahmad Deedat also conducted guided tours of the vast ornamental Jama Masjid Durban which was a popular tourist spot. A sophisticated program of luncheons, speeches and free handbills was created for the international tourists which was often their first contact with Islam. By 1956 his activity increased many folds and it was felt necessary to establish a separate dawa (preaching) center in the city. He was supported by two of his friends named Ghulam Husain Vanker and Taher Rasool who supported him to establish the Islamic Propagation Center International (IPCI) for publication of books and arranging classes for the ever increasing Muslim converts. The Muslim community of South Africa supported his efforts. A generous Muslim brother donated 30,000-square-meter plot where he established the Al Salaam Educational Institute at Braemar. In 1985 he started his real career as champion of global Dawah work. He rented the prestigious Royal Albert Hall in London twice to debate the world-famed Christian contemporaries in front of packed audience. As a crown of his successes he was awarded with King Faisal International Prize for the service of Islam in 1986. The main subjects of his debates were “ls the Bible True Word of God?” and “Is Jesus God?” which he discussed with Swaggart in US, Anis Shorosh in UK, Pastor Stanley Sjoberg in Stockholm Sweden and Pastor Erick Bock in Copenhagen, Denmark. These debates were recorded on video and distributed in the thousands throughout the world. He was bold enough even to invite Pope John Paul II to a public dialogue in the Vatican Square but the pope did not accept as explained in Deedat’s pamphlet “His Holiness Plays Hide and Seek With Muslims”. He was a prolific author. He wrote the following concise and impressive palm-sized books which were printed and distributed in the millions around the globe. • Is the Bible God’s Word? • What The Bible Says About Muhammad • Muhammad: The Natural Successor to Christ • Christ in Islam • Muhammad The Greatest • AI-Qur’an the Miracle of Miracles • What is His Name • What was the sign of Jonah • Resurrection or Resuscitation The collected version of his four books appeared in “The Choice: Islam or Christianity” in 1993. Later another collection of his six books was published as “The Choice Volume Two.” He also wrote a “Combat Kit” arming the young generation against the Bible thumpers. In 1996 when he was at the climax of his activity, he suffered a serious stroke and remained paralyzed and bedridden for nine years. He was unable to speak or write. Even in this situation he received dozens of letters and visitors daily to pay him respect and homage to his great contribution and he (through signaling) encouraged them to continue the noble work in future. Sheikh Ahmad Deedat breathed his last on 3rd Rajab 1426 (Aug. 8, 2005) at his home and was buried at Verulam cemetery in South Africa. His wife Hawwa Deedat expired at 85 after a year on Aug. 28, 2006. May Almighty Allah bless his soul with Jannatul Firdous for his path-breaking and excellent efforts for dawa of Islam worldwide as well as re-igniting the spirit of self-esteem and renaissance amongst millions of Muslims around the world. Though he could not speak since 1996, he could still be seen on his videos in debating halls and his voice is heard loudly inviting the masses to the truth, in the UK and US, in Sweden, in Canada and Australia. His eternal message is “Come to the light or stay in the dark, the choice is yours.”

http://arabnews.com/lifestyle/islam/article545262.ece

Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth,

The parable of His Light is as if there were a niche,

And within it a Lamp: The Lamp enclosed in Glass;

The glass as it were a brilliant star;

Lit from a blessed Tree,

An Olive, neither of the East nor of the West,

Whose oil is well-nigh luminous, though fire scarce touched it;

Light upon Light!

Allah doth set forth parables for men: and Allah doth know all things.

Quran 24:35 Al Nur (The Light)

by Mehdi Hassan

The Guardian, Monday 2nd April, 2012

It was the Muslims wot won it. To pretend otherwise is naive if not disingenuous. George Galloway could not have triumphed in the Bradford West byelection, with the biggest swing in modern British political history, had it not been for the loud, passionate and overwhelming support of the constituency’s big Muslim population. “All praise to Allah!” the new Respect party MP gratefully proclaimed, via loudspeaker, to his supporters on Saturday.

by Sarah Walton

The TEXT of the khutbah follows:

“A-úthu billáhi minash shaytánir rajeem. Bismilláhir rahmánir raheem

Al hamdu lillahi nahmaduhu wanasta’eenahu, wanastagh-firuhu, wanatoobu ilayhi, wana’oothu Billaahi min shuroori an-fusinaa, wamin sayyi aati a’maalinaa. May- Yahdillahu fa huwal muhtad, wa may- yudlill falan tajidaa lahu waliyan murshida. Wa ash-hadu an Laa ilaaha ill-Alláh, wahdahoo laa shareeka lah, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduhoo warasooluh”¬

All Praise is due to Alláh, We praise Him and we seek help from Him. We ask forgiveness from Him. We repent to Him; and we seek refuge in Him from our own evils and our own bad deeds. Anyone who is guided by Alláh,  is truly guided; and anyone who has been left astray, will find no one to guide him. I bear witness that there is no god but Alláh, the Only One without any partner; and I bear witness that Muhammad, sws, is His servant, and His messenger.

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem! Ya Ay-yuhal-latheena ‘aamanut taqul-laaha, haqqa tuqaatihee wala tamu tun-na, il-la wa antum Muslimoon.”

O You who believe, – be aware of Allah, with correct awareness, and die not except as Muslims.

Ya Ay-yuhal-latheena ‘aamanut taqul-laaha, wa qooloo qawlan sadeedaa. Yuslih-lakum a’maalakum wa yaghfir lakum thunoobakum, wamay yu-til-laaha warasoolah, faqad faaza fawzan atheemaa.”

O You who believe, – Be aware of Allah, and speak a straightforward word. He will forgive your sins and repair your deeds. And whoever takes Allah and His Prophet as a guide, has already achieved a mighty victory.

In the opening verse of Sura An-Nisaa’, Allah says:

O mankind! Show reverence towards your Guardian-Lord Who created you from a single person, created, of like nature, his mate and from the two of them scattered (like seeds) countless men and women;? Be conscious of Allah, through Whom ye demand your mutual (rights) and (show reverence towards) the wombs (that bore you): for surely, Allah ever watches over you.

My Dear Sisters and Brothers,

Last Friday our khutbah dealt with Prophet Muhammad’s encounter with some remarkable Christians in the early days of his mission. We reminded ourselves that, despite many centuries of rivalry and conflict, there’s always been a deep spiritual connection Christians and Muslims,

The trouble is that most people don’t handle complexity so easily. We like to keep things simple, sometimes too simple. We like to put things in neat little boxes, good and bad, right and wrong. We like to categorise other people as friends or enemies, good people or bad people. It’s much harder to appreciate the subtle and many faceted aspects of human nature.

Today’s khutbah is about how we can try to deal with complexity.

A person may have one or two bad habits, but that doesn’t necessarily make for a completely bad person. It’s so easy to oversimplify things and to end up with a completely wrong and distorted conclusion. Someone may have been rude or angry with us for a few moments, and we might judge that person by just that one brief encounter. We may forget the 99% of good things that person does at other times.

Let’s consider our own behaviour. We may think of ourselves good Muslims, public spirited, ever willing to help others with a smile. But on some rare occasions we might behave completely out of character. In some exceptional moments of anger, fear, frustration or temptation, we might do things that we later regret. We might slip from our normal high standards and fall into behaviour that, afterwards, we might feel deeply ashamed of. Would it be right for people to judge us on the basis of those momentary lapses? Wouldn’t we all expect some fairness, some balance and perspective? Wouldn’t we want our judges to overlook our brief lapses and to consider the many, many good deeds we do for most of the time?

The truth is that every human being has at least the potential to be extremely good, and extremely bad. It’s the repetition of good or bad deeds that grows into habits, and those habits shape our character. Our character ultimately decides our destiny. Whether we arrive at a high place in Allah’s Garden, or whether we suffer the endless pain in that hotter place down below, that is for Allah alone to decide. Allah is the best of judges.

Sura Al-Teen reminds us in these eloquent words:

“By the Fig and the Olive, (1) And the Mount of Sinai, (2) And this City of security? (3) We have indeed created man in the best of moulds, (4) Then do We abase him (to be) the lowest of the low? (5) Except those who believe and do righteous deeds: for they shall have a reward unfailing. (6) Then what can, after this, contradict you; as to the Judgment (to come)? (7) Is Allah not the wisest of Judges? (8)”

Brothers and sisters, Sura Al-Teen reminds us that Allah created us in the very best of forms, the most excellent of all His creation. Then it warns us that unless we have faith in Him, and do good deeds, we risk falling to the lowest of the low. Only Iman and ‘amilus saalihaat, only faith and good actions can save us from a very bad ending. That’s the key. The reward from Allah never fails, and never ends. Only Allah has the complete picture. Only Allah can judge with absolute fairness and justice.

We should all humbly admit our human limitations. When in doubt about someone’s behaviour, always give it the best interpretation. Surely, you would like others to give you the benefit of any doubt. So, why not do the same to them? Treat people as if you expect good from them. It’s human nature to try to live up to someone’s high expectations, when they think highly of us. Allah thinks highly of us. He expects us to be good to others. So let’s try to live up to Allah’s expectations. Let’s not disappoint Him.

“Innalláha wa malaaikata yusallúna alan nabi. Yá ay yuhal latheena ámanu sallú alayhi wasalli mú tas leema. Allahumma salli alá Muhammad, wa ala áli Muhammad, kama salayta ala Ibrahim, wa ala ali Ibrahim.Allahumma barik ala Muhammad, kama barakta ala Ibrahim, wa ala ali ibrahim. Fil ála meen, innaka hameedun majeed.”

Allah and His angels send greetings on Prophet Muhammad, O you who believe, send greetings on him, and salute him with a worthy salutation! O Allah, send peace on Muhammad and his family, just as you sent peace on Abraham and his family. O Allah, send blessings on Muhammad and his family, just as you sent blessings on Abraham and his family. In both worlds, You are Praiseworthy and Exalted.

Second Khutbah:

“Soob’ hanallahi wal hamdu lillah, wala hawla wala quwwata illah billah yu althi yual theem”

Glory to Allah!  Praise to Allah! There is no power and no strength except from Allah!

My dear sisters and brothers,

A well-known Scholar tells this story. Once on a journey, his caravan was attacked by some robbers. The robbers quickly seized all their possessions then started eating their food. But he noticed that their leader wasn’t eating. The gang leader just stood by, watching his men. So, the scholar walked up to him and asked why he wasn’t eating with his men. “Because I’m fasting,” said the leader. “You’re fasting, and you rob people? What a contradiction!” “Yes,” came the reply. “I may be a robber and I may be full of sins, but I still want to keep a door open to Allah.”

Just think about that, brothers and sisters, in the midst of his sinful behaviour, this leader of a gang of thieves still fasts while he robs people. He keeps a door open to Allah!

Years later, the Sheikh tells us that he was making tawaaf around the Kaaba, when he recognised the same man again, this time gang leader is also making tawaaf. As he moved closer, he heard the man making the most passionate and heartfelt duah for mercy and forgiveness… such a beautiful duah that he had never heard before!

What do we learn from this, my dear sisters and brothers? We learn that no matter how low we may have fallen in our behaviour, we must always keep open a door to Allah. Continue to pray and continue to fast, even when you’ve done something wrong. Pray and fast especially when you’ve done something wrong. Shaytaan will tell you that it’s hypocrisy, that only good people pray and fast. Shaytaan will tell you that it’s too late, you’re too bad, you’ve had too many chances, you’ve done too many sins and there’s no hope for you. But ignore him. Allah is ready to forgive a mountain of sins with an even bigger mountain of forgiveness. We must never despair of Allah’s capacity to forgive.

Never despair of Allah’s mercy. He forgives anything except that we should associate partners with him.

Those who’ve read the seerah literature will remember the story of the Abyssinian slave, Wahshy ibn Harb who was responsible for killing the Prophet’s uncle, Hamza, in the battle of Uhud. This caused Prophet Muhammad indescribable pain and grief. Yet such was our noble Prophet’s character, that he later sent several messages to Wahshy ibn Harb inviting him to Islam. Each time the man refused, knowing what pain and suffering he must have caused the Prophet. Wahshi feared that his sins were unforgivable. Finally, rasool-Allah-sws sent him this verse from the Sura Al Zumar v 53:

“O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful” (Quran 39:53)

Remember, dear sisters and brothers, Islam offers a message of hope, not despair. Prophet Muhammad loved optimism, not pessimism. In the midst of all the darkness, fear and danger, there is Allah’s guiding light. Find it, grasp it and be guided by it.

My dear sisters and brothers,

What can we take away from our khutbah today? Don’t judge people by one or two faults. Think good of others, think good of yourself and constantly keep a door open to Allah. Keep up your prayers and fasting. And do good deeds, often, even if only small ones.

Let’s do something easy, simple and practical. I have a suggestion that almost anyone can do on a regular basis, where the results can be huge in relation to the effort.

Next time you go to the supermarket to buy your groceries, buy some extra bread, cheese and butter or margarine. Take these extra items to your local charity that feeds homeless people. There are charities for the hungry and homeless in every city. Make sure you are wearing a Hijab or a kufiyya/prayer cap, anything that distinguishes you as a Muslim. This is important. You’re doing this charity not to show off for yourself. You’re doing it for Allah and His Prophet sws. You want people to see that Muslims care about the poor and hungry. You don’t have to identify yourself personally. Don’t give anyone your name. It’s enough that people can see you as a Muslim feeding the poor.

Try doing this regularly: once a week, if you can afford it, or even just once a month.

You are following Prophet Muhammad’s advice to “feed the hungry” and you want people to see that this is a Muslim who is feeding the hungry, not just anybody. It’s important that people out there associate Muslims with something good. Allah knows, the media are doing a pretty good job of constantly associating us with bad news! This I believe is a very easy, simple and effective way of bringing immediate benefit to some of the poorest and most vulnerable people around us. That’s the main priority. As a by-product, it helps us to promote a better image of the Muslim community. Always remember why you are doing this. You’re doing this out of love and gratitude to Allah and His Prophet, not for yourself. You’re not doing it to massage your own ego.

Sadaqa (voluntary charity) is such an important principle. Prophet Muhammad advised us to give generously in charity. Everyone can give something, even the poor can give, even if it is just a date or half a date. It’s the principle of giving that matters most. Sometimes we make the mistake of thinking that giving is only for the rich, and that we don’t have enough to give. If you think this way, then you really are poor! Poverty of the heart is the worst kind of poverty…. it suggests that you don’t trust Allah to provide for you. Give, and don’t fear that you won’t have enough for yourself. Allah will provide. When you give generously, even though your resources are modest, you’re showing Allah that you trust Him. Read Sura Talaq verses 2-3:

“Wamay-yattaqil laaha yaj’al-lahu makhraja. Wayar-zuqu min haythu la yahtasibu, wamay yatawakkal ‘alal-Laahi fahuwa hasbuhu, innal-Laaha baalighu amrihee qad’ja’alal-Laahu likulli shay-in qadaraa.”

“And for those who fear Allah, He always prepares a way out (2) And He provides for them from (sources) they never could imagine. And if anyone puts his trust in Allah, sufficient is (Allah) for him. For Allah will surely accomplish His purpose: truly, Allah has appointed a due proportion for all things.”

If you like, you can make a niyyah (intention) that this is for the benefit of some relative or friend who is sick, or it’s for your forthcoming exams, or for any other good reason. Allah will put barakah, blessings into your life and He will make easy and bearable whatever seems too difficult.

Brothers and sisters, to conclude our khutbah:

InnaAllaha, Yamuru bil adel, wal ihsaan, wa eetaa-i zil qurba; wa yanha anil fuhshaa-i, wal munkari walbaghi; ya-idzukhum lallakum tathak-karoon. (Sura 16:90),

“Surely Allah commands justice, good deeds and generosity to others and to relatives; and He forbids all shameful deeds, and injustice and rebellion: He instructs you, so that you may be reminded.”

Fadth kuroonee adth kurkum, wash kuroolee walaa tak furoon [2:152].

“and remember Me: I will remember you. Be grateful to Me, and do not reject faith.”

wala thikrul-Laahi akbar, Wal-Laahu ya’lamu maa tasna’oon.” [29:45].

“and without doubt, Remembrance of Allah is the Greatest Thing in life, and Allah knows the deeds that you do.”

Ameen.                   Aqeemus salaah

Christians and Muslims: the other story

Arshad Gamiet/Royal Holloway University of London/16^th March 2012

(to listen to this khutbah, or to download the audio version, please click here)  

“A-úthu billáhi minash shaytánir rajeem. Bismilláhir rahmánir raheem

Al hamdu lillahi nahmaduhu wanasta’eenahu, wanastagh-firuhu, wanatoobu ilayhi, wana’oothu Billaahi min shuroori an-fusinaa, wamin sayyi aati a’maalinaa. May- Yahdillahu fa huwal muhtad, wa may- yudlill falan tajidaa lahu waliyan murshida. Wa ash-hadu an Laa ilaaha ill-Alláh, wahdahoo laa shareeka lah, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduhoo warasooluh”

All Praise is due to Alláh, We praise Him and we seek help from Him. We ask forgiveness from Him. We repent to Him; and we seek refuge in Him from our own evils and our own bad deeds. Anyone who is guided by Alláh,  is truly guided; and anyone who has been left astray, will find no one to guide him. I bear witness that there is no god but Alláh, the Only One without any partner; and I bear witness that Muhammad, sws, is His servant, and His messenger.

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem! Ya Ay-yuhal-latheena ‘aamanut taqul-laaha, haqqa tuqaatihee wala tamu tun-na, il-la wa antum Muslimoon.”

O You who believe, – be aware of Allah, with correct awareness, and die not except as Muslims.

Ya Ay-yuhal-latheena ‘aamanut taqul-laaha, wa qooloo qawlan sadeedaa. Yuslih-lakum a’maalakum wa yaghfir lakum thunoobakum, wamay yu-til-laaha warasoolah, faqad faaza fawzan atheemaa.”

O You who believe, – Be aware of Allah, and speak a straightforward word. He will forgive your sins and repair your deeds. And whoever takes Allah and His Prophet as a guide, has already achieved a mighty victory.

In the opening verse of Sura An-Nisaa’, Allah says:

O mankind! Show reverence towards your Guardian-Lord Who created you from a single person, created, of like nature, his mate and from the two of them scattered (like seeds) countless men and women;― Be conscious of Allah, through Whom ye demand your mutual (rights) and (show reverence towards) the wombs (that bore you): for surely, Allah ever watches over you.

My Dear Sisters and Brothers,

In the verse I just quoted, the Holy Quran reminds us that we are all descended from common ancestors, we are all children of Adam and Eve, peace be on them. Yet there are still people who forget this, and who treat others with unbelievable hatred and contempt. In recent days, some Christians have been burning Qurans and some Muslims have been bombing churches and committing acts of mindless terror. They claim they are defending their religion and serving God. But each group is equally misguided. They’re just massaging their own bruised egos. Senseless violence between followers of one great religion and another has nothing to do with real faith.

Wars between Crusaders and Caliphates tell us more about the political rivalry for wealth and power between two civilizations. It tells us nothing about the spiritual connection that has always existed, very strongly, between believing Christians and believing Muslims.

In today’s khutbah I want to focus on this topic. Let’s look at three remarkable Christians to illustrate the intimate connection between the followers of Jesus and Muhammad, may Allah’s peace and blessings be on both of them. We can learn some important lessons from their stories.

They are Bahira, Waraqa and Najashi, the king, the Negus of Abyssinia.

Let’s begin with Bahira the Monk. As we know, Prophet Muhammad was an orphan. His father died before he was born, and his mother died just a few years later. So he was left in the care of his uncle Abu Talib. One day Abu Talib decided to take him along with a caravan to Syria. Along this route was a monastery. Bahira, a Christian monk lived there.

As the caravan approached, Bahira noticed a small cloud was shading it from the sun, in an otherwise cloudless sky. When the caravan stopped by a tree, the cloud also stopped. This tree, by the way, is still alive, subhanallah! It’s still there. It’s the only tree, in fact the only vegetation of any kind, for more than 100 miles in any direction, between Jordan and Syria. This tree stands all alone in the empty desert, the last living sahaba, the last living entity still connected with our beloved Prophet, sws

Bahira invited the travellers to a meal, and after examining the boy Muhammad closely he recognised the mark of prophet-hood on his back. He advised Abu Talib to take good care of him, because his own people would seek to harm him.

Our story goes fast-forward to a mountain cave near Makka and Muhammad is now a man of 40. He often comes here to meditate, but tonight, one of the last 10 nights of Ramadan, a strange thing happens. Suddenly, the Angel Gabriel appears, and hugs Muhammad in a tight embrace, almost squeezing the life out of him, commanding him to read. He protests: I cannot read! I’m illiterate! But again and again he is commanded: Read! Until the first verses of the Holy Quran come forth from his lips:

“Bismillaahir Rahmaanir Raheem! Iqra! Bismi Rabbikal lathee khalaq! Khalaqal insaana min ‘alaq. Iqra wa rabbukal akram; Al-lathee ‘al lama bil qalam, ‘alamal insaana ma lam ya’alam”

In the name of Allah, the All- Merciful, the All-Compassionate.
READ! In the name of thy Lord Who created, (1) Created man from a clot of blood. (2) Read: And thy Lord is the Most Bounteous, (3) Who teaches by the pen, (4) Teaches man that which he knew not

This was the beginning of Muhammad’s assignment as God’s last Prophet. Gripped by fear and dread, he rushed home to his wife, Khadija, pleading, “Cover me, cover me!” He feared that he was losing his mind. But Khadija reassured him, saying “You always maintain family ties, always feed the poor and you stand by the downtrodden. Allah would never humiliate you or forsake you.” And where do you think she took him to find advice and consolation? To the rich and powerful, the grandees of Makka? No! She was rich and powerful herself. But she took him to her cousin, Waraqa,  a poor man in failing health who was a Christian. He was old and losing his sight, but he reassured Muhammad that this event was foretold in earlier scripture. “If I lived long enough I would stand by you, even when your people turn against you,” said Waraqa. “Will my people turn against me?” asked Prophet Muhammad. Waraqa replied: “Never has a prophet brought what your will bring without his people turning against him.”

We are reminded here, that Abraham, Noah, Moses and Jesus all met with ingratitude and violent rebellion from their own people, the very people who needed to be saved from themselves. Doesn’t that sound familiar? People of faith are always resisted by their own people who prefer to worship the false idols of power, greed and vanity.

Here’s another example of a great Christian of the time,The king, the Negus of Abyssinia, who protected a small group of Muslims from persecution from their own tribe, the Qureish of Makka.

As soon as Prophet Muhammad started preaching his message, he made enemies, lethal enemies. He called on people to worship the One God of Abraham and Moses and Jesus, not the many idols, 360 idols of wood and stone adorning the kaaba. This was bad for business. Imagine someone preaching against capitalism and consumerism in Trafalgar Square! Not quite the same earth-shaking message, but imagine! Prophet Muhammad urged people to stop burying alive their baby daughters, for the strong to stop oppressing the weak, for the tribes to stop genocidal warfare. He was calling for change, radical change, and his enemies, sensing a threat to their power and authority, started torturing and killing his followers.

Islam was now in mortal danger.

So as a precaution, Prophet Muhammad sent a small group to Abyssinia/ Ethiopia. “There you will find a just and tolerant Christian ruler who will protect you,” he assured them.  These were the world’s first Muslim Asylum seekers, given protection by a Christian king in Africa, 1,400 years ago! Today, Good Christians in Britain and Europe are still following this noble tradition, taking care of asylum seekers who fear persecution in their own countries!

What about Muslim hospitality towards Christians?

While he was the Governor of Madinah, Prophet Muhammad received a delegation of Christians from Najran in Southern Arabia. When it was time to pray, they had no place to pray, so he invited them into his mosque and allowed them to pray in there.

My dear brothers and sisters! How many of us Muslims will do that today? How many mosques anywhere in the Muslim world, will offer their Christian neighbours that courtesy exemplified by our own Prophet?

Here at Royal Holloway University, in a few weeks time when students write their exams, we’ll have to do our Friday prayers in another hall. For years, we’ve used the Jurgens Centre at exam time. The Jurgens Centre belongs to the local Catholic Church. Remember that. We Muslims do our Friday prayers in a hall owned by the Catholic Church. 1400 years after the Najran Christians prayed in Prophet Muhammad’s mosque, Christians in Englefield Green are returning the favour!

When believers of any faith treat believers of another faith with kindness and respect, they are also showing a courtesy to God, to Allah.

My dear sisters and brothers, let’s remember the Golden Rule, the Ethic of Reciprocity: Nabi Isa, Jesus saidl “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” 600 years later, Prophet Muhammad expressed the same message in different words. He said that we are not believers until we desire for others what we desire for ourselves.

“Innalláha wa malaaikata yusallúna alan nabi. Yá ay yuhal latheena ámanu sallú alayhi wasalli mú tas leema. Allahumma salli alá Muhammad, wa ala áli Muhammad, kama salayta ala Ibrahim, wa ala ali Ibrahim.Allahumma barik ala Muhammad, kama barakta ala Ibrahim, wa ala ali ibrahim. Fil ála meen, innaka hameedun majeed.”

Allah and His angels send greetings on Prophet Muhammad, O you who believe, send greetings on him, and salute him with a worthy salutation! O Allah, send peace on Muhammad and his family, just as you sent peace on Abraham and his family. O Allah, send blessings on Muhammad and his family, just as you sent blessings on Abraham and his family. In both worlds, You are Praiseworthy and Exalted.

Second Khutbah:

“Soob’ hanallahi wal hamdu lillah, wala hawla wala quwwata illah billah yu althi yual theem”

Glory to Allah!  Praise to Allah! There is no power and no strength except from Allah!

My dear sisters and brothers,

The Islamic Calendar, the Hegira, began when Prophet Muhammad evaded assassination in Makka and migrated to Madinah. Jews, Christians and Muslims welcomed him as their new leader. They eagerly awaited his first speech, his first sermon, khutbah. It was short, eloquent, and powerful.

He summed up the entire teaching of Islam in one short sentence:

“Spread salaam (peace), feed the hungry; pray for a part of the night and you will enter paradise.” (Hadith)

That’s all…   That’s what Islam is all about: Spreading peace between people, feeding the poor, thanking our generous Provider every night, and hoping for his good pleasure.

A few years ago my wife and I visited the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. In the middle of the Sinai desert we found Mount Sinai, where Moses received the 10 Commandments. At the foot of the mountain is the ancient St Catherine’s Monastery. We were amazed to find a mosque inside this monastery. We were also amazed to find that local Muslim Arabs have been coming to the monastery every day, for over 1,400 years, to knead the dough and bake the bread there, side by side, with Coptic Christian monks.

But the monks showed us something even more amazing. High up on a wall is a gold-framed Charter of Privileges to the Christians. It is written in Arabic, and it is signed by Prophet Muhammad, with the seal of his ring imprinted in red wax. The one we read was a copy, as the original Charter is in the Topkapi Museum in Istanbul. It reads:

This is a message from Muhammad ibn Abdullah, as a covenant to those who adopt Christianity, near and far, we are with them.
Verily I, the servants, the helpers, and my followers defend them, because Christians are my citizens; and by Allah! I hold out against anything that displeases them.
No compulsion is to be on them.
Neither are their judges to be removed from their jobs nor their monks from their monasteries.
No one is to destroy a house of their religion, to damage it, or to carry anything from it to the Muslims’ houses.
Should anyone take any of these, he would spoil God’s covenant and disobey His Prophet. Verily, they are my allies and have my secure charter against all that they hate.
No one is to force them to travel or to oblige them to fight.
The Muslims are to fight for them.
If a female Christian is married to a Muslim it is not to take place without her approval. She is not to be prevented from visiting her church to pray.
Their churches are to be respected. They are neither to be prevented from repairing them nor the sacredness of their covenants.
No one of the nation (Muslims) is to disobey the covenant till the Last Day (end of the world).

This charter of privileges has been honoured and faithfully applied by many Muslim regimes throughout the centuries. Imagine that! Despite wars between Crusaders and Caliphates, Christians were safe here, making bread and breaking bread with local Muslims. There’s a powerful message for our troubled world today.

Those who ‘spoil God’s Covenant’ and disobey clear instructions from Prophet Muhammad will have to answer to Almighty Allah. Let us therefore show respect and love for fellow believers among the ‘People of the earlier Scriptures.’ This is what Allah commands us to do, and for more than 14 centuries, Prophet Muhammad’s letter has reminded us of this Covenant.

Brothers and sisters, to conclude our khutbah:

InnaAllaha, Yamuru bil adel, wal ihsaan, wa eetaa-i zil qurba; wa yanha anil fuhshaa-i, wal munkari walbaghi; ya-idzukhum lallakum tathak-karoon. (Sura 16:90),

“Surely Allah commands justice, good deeds and generosity to others and to relatives; and He forbids all shameful deeds, and injustice and rebellion: He instructs you, so that you may be reminded.”

Fadth kuroonee adth kurkum, wash kuroolee walaa tak furoon [2:152].

“and remember Me: I will remember you. Be grateful to Me, and do not reject faith.”

wala thikrul-Laahi akbar, Wal-Laahu ya’lamu maa tasna’oon.” [29:45].

“and without doubt, Remembrance of Allah is the Greatest Thing in life, and Allah knows the deeds that you do.”

Ameen.                   Aqeemus salaah

Laurent Levy and his daughters

By Daniel Ben Simon

Two sisters became captivated by Islam, and their French liberal, `Jewish-by-chance’ father has found himself having to face up to their religiosity and subsequent expulsion from school. The incident has provoked both private and national ferment.

Laurent Levy, a sworn liberal and a total atheist, noticed dramatic changes in his two daughters, but he did not attribute much importance to them. One day, about two years ago, the two girls stopped eating pork. “No problem,” he said. A while later, they informed him that they intended to fast during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan. Levy thought it the most natural thing in the world that his daughters were adopting.

When Levy’s daughters – Lila, 19, and Alma, 16 – told him that they were going to fast for the entire month of Ramadan, he did not stand in their way. “It is their right,” he said.

A while later the sisters informed him of their intention to pray five times a day, as commanded by the Koran. There is no reason why they shouldn’t do this, thought the father. Then they stopped going to the beach and wearing bathing suits, and even stopped using the family swimming pool during vacations. At night the two sat and learned chapters of the Koran by heart. Friends in the neighborhood and at school were amazed by the change in the two cheerful young women.

Gradually they began to wrap themselves in long clothing, even in the summer, and covered their legs with thick stockings.

About a year ago the transformation was completed. Lila and Alma donned scarves and covered their heads. After a while they also covered their chins and their foreheads. At school they stopped talking to boys, whispered only to each other and distanced themselves from the other students. They did not take part in physical education classes, as they were required to wear gym clothes that they felt revealed too much of their bodies.

Quickly the two sisters became a phenomenon. Even in Aubervilliers, the northern Paris suburb where they live, eyebrows were raised. In recent years this suburb has been taken over by Muslim immigrants from North Africa, and Parisians have moved away. On Fridays, residents started taking the day off and preferred to spend their time in prayer; many young people do not go to school. During the month of Ramadan the neighborhood is silent during the hours of fasting, and wakes up after the evening meal that breaks the fast.

According to the father, his daughters were captivated by the Muslim religion and he found himself helpless in the face of their accelerated Islamization. All his life he had loathed religious beliefs of any sort and blamed them for ignorance and various kinds of distress. He preached secularism and joined the movements of the extreme left, because he only felt at home there. In the not-too-distant past, he served as counsel in suits filed against National Front leader Jean- Marie Le Pen for having described the concentration camps as a “detail” of World War II. He has also represented Islamic organizations that sued actress Brigitte Bardot after she published an anti- Islamic book.

Head-covering debate

About a month ago the two sisters were called into the office of the principal of the Henri Wallon high school, where they studied. Their external appearance, they were informed, was causing ferment among the students, and therefore they must dress like the others; if not, they would be expelled. The girls refused. The school sent a letter to their parents and warned of the steps it was about to take. The parents, who are divorced, defended their daughters, each in his or her own way: The mother tried to moderate her daughters’ militant stubbornness, the father supported their struggle.

The two sisters were suspended from school until the convening of a disciplinary committee that was supposed to decide their fate. The media depicted the affair as a test of the state’s secularism, and the story quickly hit the headlines. The intellectual community was in an uproar, as were local political institutions; both intellectuals and politicians openly applied pressure on the school’s disciplinary committee members to reach a decision that reflected their point of view.

The debate did not remain at the theoretical level, but dealt with the smallest details of items of dress as they express the state’s secularism, compared to clothing that threatens its status. Before the girls were suspended from school, they were asked to remove their head coverings because of their religious significance. The school authorities relied on a law that was passed in 1905 concerning the separation of church and state, and argued that the head coverings violated the spirit of the law.

During the discussion of the suspension, one of the sisters argued that a Jewish skullcap covers the head. She was told that partially covering the head does not constitute a violation of the separation of church and state. “I’m angry,” fumed Lila after she was suspended from school. “They told us we have to show the roots of our hair, the lobes of our ears and our necks. But if we do that we might as well not wear a headscarf at all – we might as well carry it in our hands.”

Last Friday the disciplinary committee met at the school. Dozens of journalists crowded into the entrance to the school, and television cameras broadcast live the arrival of the girls and their father. The deliberations began at 6 P.M. and went on until after midnight. The French waited for the committee’s ruling as if the future of the French Republic depended on the decision of a few members of the school board of an obscure suburb of Paris.

At the end of the discussion, the members of the Levy family left the hall. The expressions on their faces testified to what had happened inside. “This was not a pedagogical discussion,” one of the teachers told the journalists. “It was like a court martial.” Another teacher, with a broad smile on his face, related that the correct and inevitable decision had been taken. “We decided to expel them from the school,” he said, “because the internal `balance’ in France makes it essential that a head covering not cover the hair, the ears or the base of the neck. It turns out that Muslim young women do not want to expose these parts.’

`How low France has sunk’

After midnight, the family got home. Levy was furious; the girls were still wiping away tears.

“They’ve thrown them out like dogs,” Levy told Haaretz two days later, “and this shows how low France has sunk.” According to him, he couldn’t fall asleep that night, nor could his daughters. They read verses of the Koran. “I was proud of them,” he added. “I educated my children to be rebellious and I am proud that they have followed in my footsteps.”

Laurent Levy is a strange individual. This week he was surprised to hear that the reverberations of his daughters’ struggle have reached Israel. “No wonder,” he said. “With a name like mine, in Israel they probably think that I’m a little crazy.”

Levy angrily recalled the deliberations that were held on Friday: “We entered the hall where a number of representatives of the school’s educational council were sitting. I had been summoned with my two daughters, but I was not allowed to bring witnesses. They also refused to allow my partner to enter the hall.”

With almost religious fervor, Levy defended his daughters’ right to lead a strictly religious Muslim lifestyle. He rejoiced that they had chosen a way of life that affords them happiness and argued that even though he is an atheist, he cannot help but admire their choice.

The panel listened and appeared not to be impressed by his fervor. At the end of the deliberations they authorized the expulsion of the two girls from the school on the grounds that their exceptional appearance violated the secular standing of France and the values of the Republic.

Not for a moment did he feel that his Judaism was threatened, nor did he act as a Jew. “I’m a nonreligious person,” Levy admitted. “I grew up without a religion and there was not a trace of Judaism in the education I received. My children ate pork like any other French person. There was no religious influence on my children apart from the fact that my wife’s parents told them about Islam.”

Levy, 47, was born to a Jewish family in Tunis and immigrated to France when he was young. According to him, he is a Sephardic Jew with roots in Amsterdam and Leghorn. His father was active in the Jewish community in Tunis and even wrote a book about the community. “As far as my daughters are concerned, they have never hidden their Jewishness and were even proud of their Jewish heritage.”

Levy has four children: Lila and Alma, Sami, 20, and Noura, 16. “They’re good kids,” he said humorously, “because I educated them, too, not to accept reality the way it is and to be rebellious. I am proud that I have been successful in my education. Lila and Alma have also rebelled in their own way.”

The Fifth Republic has taken a stance against their rebellion with an almost Napoleonic brutality and has given them a tough choice: either school or the head covering.

“Let there be no doubt,” added Levy, “I know that the disciplinary committee’s decision was taken at the highest levels of the country’s government. Only someone who isn’t French is unable to understand this country’s insanity when it comes to the veil. Say `head covering’ to a French person and they’re ready to embark on a civil war. I’m a leftist and definitely a secular person, but as I see it, secularism is the freedom to act on your religious beliefs without the government interfering.

“My daughters are not militants and they didn’t try to convert other girls in the school. None of the members of the disciplinary committee claimed this, but they all demanded that the girls expose parts of their bodies. These people have really become ayatollahs of secularism. Since when, I asked them, can people be forced to expose their bodies? To my regret, this was an embarrassing spectacle. None of them listened to me because the outcome was predetermined.”

In the coming days he intends to find another educational setting for his daughters, so that they will be able to take their baccalaureate exams and so that Alma will be able to complete 11th grade. “At least at university, no one will stop them from covering their heads,” he added. “There they will be able to feel like Muslims without anyone hassling them.”

Scarf or veil?

It would appear that the Muslim religion in France boils down to the matter of head covering alone, as if all the ordinances of the Koran have drained into that piece of cloth called a head covering by some, and a veil by others. The French call it a “scarf” so as to make it less symbolic.

The political establishments breathed a sigh of relief. Left and right went out of their way to praise the school’s decision to expel the two sisters. For several years now the right has been conducting a relentless fight against Muslim immigrants whose ritual observances are depicted as undermining the symbols of the Republic. Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin has recently ordered the preparation of legislation that would prohibit the wearing of head coverings on school premises. The left, which has adopted secularism as its main religion, has fought hand in hand with the right in the war against Muslim ostentation.

Socialist Party leader Francois Holland was enthusiastic about the decision: “We are living in a secular country and the veil is not permitted on school premises.” The Republican Raffarin also expressed satisfaction with the decision and his popular Interior Minister Nicola Sarkozy supported it with all his heart.

Increasing anxiety

In light of the increasing anxiety about Islam in France, the affair of the Levy sisters has demonstrated the extent to which Islam has grown more influential in their country. It is not only Islam that scares the French, but also any religion that lifts its head and threatens to blur the secular outlines of the Republic. Studies show that only one out of 20 French citizens sees himself as connected to religion, the lowest proportion in all of Europe.

The question that is being asked today is how to stop the spread of Islam. About two months ago, worrying details surfaced from a secret report written by the French internal intelligence service about French people who have converted to Islam. The information was leaked to the right-wing newspaper Le Figaro and sparked anger mixed with fear throughout the country. According to the secret report, about 50,000 French people have converted to Islam. The intelligence services described this process as “a disturbing phenomenon that is at the height of flourishing.”

Many of the new converts were considered to have been affiliated to no religion before they adopted Islam. From extreme secularists they have become religious extremists. It turns out that they also stand out in comparison to their Muslim colleagues. While the ordinary Muslims follow a moderate way of life, the new Muslims have shut themselves into mosques and have learned the entire Koran by heart. They have forced a similar lifestyle on their wives and have cut off ties with their families.

Part of this group consists of women who have converted to Islam because of marriage or social pressure. Men have converted for ideological reasons, because they came to the conclusion that there is no religion more sublime and more purifying concerning the soul than Islam. In the report, the intelligence services expressed “great concern,” as they put it, about the exploitation of the new converts by terror elements to advance their aims: It is easy to make the converts operatives as they have European passports and the ability to move among countries without restriction, without arousing suspicion. They look Western and it is easy for them to evade the suspicious looks of border police. This was the case with Pierre Robert, a French citizen who converted years ago and joined a terror organization in Morocco that was responsible for a series of terror attacks in that country last May. He has recently been given a life sentence for his part in the affair.

Not all Muslims are on the same side. More and more Muslim immigrants are speaking up against the exploitation of religion by extremists. “The whole story about the head covering is a matter that is connected to the sexual problem of Muslim men,” says Prof. Leila Babes, a sociologist of religion at Lille University, who is herself a Muslim. “The scarf drives Muslims crazy, because they see a woman’s body as an instrument for sexual lust only and therefore they force her to cover herself from head to toe to calm their sexual desires. If she is covered, she is a `good Muslim woman’ and if not, then she is licentious.”

This is why Babes and many other Muslim academics have taken a stance on the side of the government and have demanded the prohibition of Muslim head coverings on school premises.

Levy, however, supported the wearing of the head coverings on school premises even before his daughters became devout Muslims. According to him, over time he learned to appreciate the path they followed until they adopted Islam, and the strength they needed to carry this out.

“A few days ago my daughter told me that she and her sister met a pious Muslim in the street who wanted to enlist his mosque in their struggle,” he related. “They told him that it was none of his business. Had I thought that they had fallen into the clutches of Muslim proselytizers, I would have acted differently. But their mother and I know that they came to this of their own accord. However, I’m not with them all day long and I can’t swear that something else hasn’t happened.”

On one of the shelves at his law office Levy keeps a picture of his daughters, with their heads uncovered and shoulder-length hair.  Despite the fierce struggle he is conducting, he does not conceal some degree of personal distress. Recently he spoke with his daughters in order to test the limits of their flexibility and willingness to compromise. As a romantic at heart, he feels that they have been swept up as if they had fallen in love. This is why he does not reject an imposed compromise to end the affair. Meanwhile, he has been careful about not hurting them after the state has already done so.

“I am afraid they will leave everything,” Levy admits. “Both school and the family environment.”

Source: Mission Islam – Daniel Ben Simon

http://www.iviews.com/Articles/articles.asp?ref=MI1108-4799

Rabbi Allen S. Maller

Muslims and Jews do not circumcise their children for medical health reasons, although neither religion believes that circumcision is harmful to a man’s health. However, there are vociferous groups in Europe and the U.S. that attack this religious ritual under the guise of medical and moral concern, claiming that circumcision is painful (like a vaccination) and an unnecessary procedure (like plastic surgery). Yet more and more evidence is accumulating that circumcision is good for men physically as well as spiritually. According to a new U.S. study, circumcised men may have a lower risk of developing prostate cancer than those who still have their foreskin.

The World Health Organization already recommends the procedure based on research showing it lowers heterosexual men’s risk of contracting HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. In 2011 scientists also reported that wives and girlfriends of circumcised men had lower rates of infection with human papillomavirus or HPV, which in rare cases may lead to cervical and other cancers. And last week, researchers reported that African men who were circumcised were less likely to be infected with a particular herpes virus. The new study, published in the journal Cancer, jibes with those findings.

Although most U.S. men are circumcised, the procedure has become less popular over the past decade, and various groups have spoken out against it. In September 2011, the Dutch Medical Association discouraged the practice, calling it a “painful and harmful ritual.” The Dutch statement was rejected by both Jews and Muslims, who also joined together in opposing a bill in the Dutch parliament outlawing ritual slaughter of animals.

The new study compared two groups of more than 1,600 men who had answered questions about their medical history, sex life and whether or not they were circumcised. Half had prostate cancer, the others didn’t. In the group with cancer, 69 percent of the men have been circumcised, compared to 72 percent of those without cancer – suggesting a small protective effect.

But after accounting for a host of other factors, such as age, race and whether or not the men had been screened for prostate cancer, those who were circumcised  had a 15 percent lower risk of the disease. “Circumcision before first sexual intercourse is associated with a reduction in the relative risk of prostate cancer in the study population,” the study stated.

The foreskin is known to be prone to tiny tears during sex, which may help bacteria and viruses enter the bloodstream. so some viruses can trigger cancer when they are incorporated into human DNA. Another possibility is that sexually transmitted microorganisms could lead to cancer by causing chronic inflammation. One in six U.S. men will get prostate cancer during his lifetime, although only a minority of them will die from the disease.

My generation grew up at a time when colonial hang up was at its peak. Our older generation had been slaves and had a huge inferiority complex of the British. The school I went to was similar to all elite schools in Pakistan. Despite gaining independent, they were, and still are, producing replicas of public schoolboys rather than Pakistanis.

I read Shakespeare, which was fine, but no Allama Iqbal – the national poet of Pakistan. The class on Islamic studies was not taken seriously, and when I left school I was considered among the elite of the country because I could speak English and wore Western clothes.

Despite periodically shouting ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ in school functions, I considered my own culture backward and religion outdated. Among our group if any one talked about religion, prayed or kept a beard he was immediately branded a Mullah.

Because of the power of the Western media, our heroes were Western movie stars or pop stars. When I went to Oxford already burdened with this hang up, things didn’t get any easier. At Oxford, not just Islam, but all religions were considered anachronism.

Science had replaced religion and if something couldn’t be logically proved it did not exist. All supernatural stuff was confined to the movies. Philosophers like Darwin, who with his half-baked theory of evolution had supposedly disproved the creation of men and hence religion, were read and revered.

Moreover, European history reflected its awful experience with religion. The horrors committed by the Christian clergy during the Inquisition era had left a powerful impact on the Western mind.

To understand why the West is so keen on secularism, one should go to places like Cordoba in Spain and see the torture apparatus used during the Spanish Inquisition. Also the persecution of scientists as heretics by the clergy had convinced the Europeans that all religions are regressive.

However, the biggest factor that drove people like me away from religion was the selective Islam practiced by most of its preachers. In short, there was a huge difference between what they practiced and what they preached. Also, rather than explaining the philosophy behind the religion, there was an overemphasis on rituals.

I feel that humans are different to animals. While, the latter can be drilled, humans need to be intellectually convinced. That is why the Qur’an constantly appeals to reason. The worst, of course, was the exploitation of Islam for political gains by various individuals or groups.

Hence, it was a miracle I did not become an atheist. The only reason why I did not was the powerful religious influence my mother wielded on me since my childhood. It was not so much out of conviction but love for her that I stayed a Muslim.

However, my Islam was selective. I accepted only parts of the religion that suited me. Prayers were restricted to Eid days and occasionally on Fridays, when my father insisted on taking me to the mosque with him.

All in all I was smoothly moving to becoming a Pukka Brown Sahib. After all I had the right credentials in terms of school, university and, above all, acceptability in the English aristocracy, something that our brown sahibs would give their lives for. So what led me to do a ‘lota’ on the Brown Sahib culture and instead become a ‘desi’?

Well it did not just happen overnight.

Firstly, the inferiority complex that my generation had inherited gradually went as I developed into a world-class athlete. Secondly, I was in the unique position of living between two cultures. I began to see the advantages and the disadvantages of both societies.

In Western societies, institutions were strong while they were collapsing in our country. However, there was an area where we were and still are superior, and that is our family life. I began to realize that this was the Western society’s biggest loss. In trying to free itself from the oppression of the clergy, they had removed both God and religion from their lives.

While science, no matter how much it progresses, can answer a lot of questions – two questions it will never be able to answer: One, what is the purpose of our existence and two, what happens to us when we die?

It is this vacuum that I felt created the materialistic and the hedonistic culture. If this is the only life then one must make hay while the sun shines – and in order to do so one needs money. Such a culture is bound to cause psychological problems in a human being, as there was going to be an imbalance between the body and the soul.

Consequently, in the US, which has shown the greatest materialistic progress while giving its citizens numerous rights, almost 60 percent of the population consult psychiatrists. Yet, amazingly in modern psychology, there is no study of the human soul. Sweden and Switzerland, who provide the most welfare to their citizens, also have the highest suicide rates. Hence, man is not necessarily content with material well being and needs something more.

Since all morality has it roots in religion, once religion was removed, immorality has progressively grown since the 70s. Its direct impact has been on family life. In the UK, the divorce rate is 60 percent, while it is estimated that there are over 35 percent single mothers. The crime rate is rising in almost all Western societies, but the most disturbing fact is the alarming increase in racism. While science always tries to prove the inequality of man (recent survey showing the American Black to be genetically less intelligent than whites) it is only religion that preaches the equality of man.

Between 1991 and 1997, it was estimated that total immigration into Europe was around 520,000, and there were racially motivated attacks all over, especially in Britain, France and Germany. In Pakistan during the Afghan war, we had over four million refugees, and despite the people being so much poorer, there was no racial tension.

There was a sequence of events in the 80s that moved me toward God as the Qur’an says: “There are signs for people of understanding.” One of them was cricket. As I was a student of the game, the more I understood the game, the more I began to realize that what I considered to be chance was, in fact, the will of Allah. A pattern which became clearer with time. But it was not until Salman Rushdie’s “Satanic Verses” that my understanding of Islam began to develop.

People like me who were living in the Western world bore the brunt of anti-Islam prejudice that followed the Muslim reaction to the book. We were left with two choices: fight or flight. Since I felt strongly that the attacks on Islam were unfair, I decided to fight. It was then I realized that I was not equipped to do so as my knowledge of Islam was inadequate. Hence I started my research and for me a period of my greatest enlightenment. I read scholars like Ali Shariati, Muhammad Asad, Iqbal, Gai Eaton, plus of course, a study of Qur’an.

I will try to explain as concisely as is possible, what “discovering the truth” meant for me. When the believers are addressed in the Qur’an, it always says, “Those who believe and do good deeds.” In other words, a Muslim has dual function, one toward God and the other toward fellow human beings.

The greatest impact of believing in God for me, meant that I lost all fear of human beings. The Qur’an liberates man from man when it says that life and death and respect and humiliation are God’s jurisdiction, so we do not have to bow before other human beings.

Moreover, since this is a transitory world where we prepare for the eternal one, I broke out of the self-imposed prisons, such as growing old (such a curse in the Western world, as a result of which, plastic surgeons are having a field day), materialism, ego, what people say and so on. It is important to note that one does not eliminate earthly desires. But instead of being controlled by them, one controls them.

By following the second part of believing in Islam, I have become a better human being. Rather than being self-centered and living for the self, I feel that because the Almighty gave so much to me, in turn I must use that blessing to help the less privileged. This I did by following the fundamentals of Islam rather than becoming a Kalashnikov-wielding fanatic.

I have become a tolerant and a giving human being who feels compassion for the underprivileged. Instead of attributing success to myself, I know it is because of God’s will, hence I learned humility instead of arrogance.

Also, instead of the snobbish Brown Sahib attitude toward our masses, I believe in egalitarianism and strongly feel against the injustice done to the weak in our society. According to the Qur’an, “Oppression is worse than killing.” In fact only now do I understand the true meaning of Islam, if you submit to the will of Allah, you have inner peace.

Through my faith, I have discovered strength within me that I never knew existed and that has released my potential in life. I feel that in Pakistan we have selective Islam. Just believing in God and going through the rituals is not enough. One also has to be a good human being. I feel there are certain Western countries with far more Islamic traits than us in Pakistan, especially in the way they protect the rights of their citizens, or for that matter their justice system. In fact some of the finest individuals I know live there.

What I dislike about them is their double standards in the way they protect the rights of their citizens but consider citizens of other countries as being somehow inferior to them as human being, e.g. dumping toxic waste in the Third World, advertising cigarettes that are not allowed in the West and selling drugs that are banned in the West.

One of the problems facing Pakistan is the polarization of two reactionary groups. On the one side is the Westernized group that looks upon Islam through Western eyes and has inadequate knowledge about the subject. It reacts strongly to anyone trying to impose Islam in society and wants only a selective part of the religion. On the other extreme is the group that reacts to this Westernized elite and in trying to become a defender of the faith, takes up such intolerant and self-righteous attitudes that are repugnant to the spirit of Islam.

What needs to be done is to somehow start a dialogue between the two extreme. In order for this to happen, the group on whom the greatest proportion of our educational resources are spent in this country must study Islam properly.

Whether they become practicing Muslims or believe in God is entirely a personal choice. As the Qur’an tells us there is “no compulsion in religion.” However, they must arm themselves with knowledge as a weapon to fight extremism. Just by turning up their noses at extremism the problem is not going to be solved.

The Qur’an calls Muslims “the middle nation”, not of extremes. The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) was told to simply give the message and not worry whether people converted or not, therefore, there is no question in Islam of forcing your opinions on anyone else.

Moreover, we are told to respect other religions, their places of worship and their prophets. It should be noted that no Muslim missionaries or armies ever went to Malaysia or Indonesia. The people converted to Islam due to the high principles and impeccable character of the Muslim traders. At the moment, the worst advertisements for Islam are the countries with their selective Islam, especially where religion is used to deprive people of their rights. In fact, a society that obeys fundamentals of Islam has to be a liberal one.

If Pakistan’s Westernized class starts to study Islam, not only will it be able to help society fight sectarianism and extremism, but it will also make them realize what a progressive religion Islam is. They will also be able to help the Western world by articulating Islamic concepts. Recently, Prince Charles accepted that the Western world can learn from Islam. But how can this happen if the group that is in the best position to project Islam gets its attitudes from the West and considers Islam backward? Islam is a universal religion and that is why our Prophet (peace be upon him) was called a Mercy for all mankind. (Internews)

This article appeared on < arabnews > , a leading English daily in Saudi Arabia.

Letter from Prophet Muhammad to Heraclius, King of Byzantium

The Prophet wrote to the Caesar of the Byzantine Empire, inviting him to Islam, sending a letter to him with Dihya al-Kalbi. The Prophet directed him to present the letter to the governor of Busra, who would forward it to Caesar.
When God had relieved him of the Persian armies, Caesar walked from Emesa [in central Syria] to Jerusalem, out of gratitude to God for having inured him to trial. So when the letter of the Prophet reached him, Caesar read it and said, “Look for someone from his people around here, so that I may ask about this Messenger of God.”

Now, it happened that Abu Sufyan was then in Syria with some men from the Quraish tribe who had come on business during the truce that then existed between the Prophet and the disbelievers of the Quraish.

Abu Sufyan later said, “The emissary of Caesar found us in a part of Syria, and he took me and my companions to Jerusalem. There we were brought to Caesar, who was sitting at his royal court, his crown on his head, around him the grandees of Byzantium.”

Now, Caesar said to his interpreter, “Ask them who among them is closest in kinship to this man who claims to be a prophet.”

Abu Sufyan [who was not a Muslim at the time] responded that he was nearest of them in kinship.

Caesar asked, “And what is the relationship between you and him?”

Abu Sufyan said, “He is a son of my paternal uncle.” Then Caesar said, “Bring him closer,” and had Abu Sufyan’s companions placed behind him, at his shoulders. Then he told his interpreter, “Tell his companions that I am going to question him about this man who claims to be a prophet; so if he tells a lie, immediately repudiate it as a lie.”

Later Abu Sufyan admitted that he would have lied when asked about the Prophet, if not for the fact that he would have been shamed to have others spreading reports that he was a liar. So he told the truth.

Now, Caesar asked through his interpreter, “How is the lineage of this man among you?”

Abu Sufyan replied, “He is of noble descent among us.” Caesar asked, “And has any one of your people previously said what he has said?”

Abu Sufyan said, “No.”

Caesar asked, “Had you found him a liar before he said what he has now said?”

Abu Sufyan said, “No.”

Caesar asked, “Was any among his ancestors a king?”

Abu Sufyan replied, “No.”

Caesar asked, “And do the highborn people listen to him, or the powerless among them?”

Abu Sufyan answered, “Rather the powerless.”

Caesar asked, “And are they increasing or decreasing?”

Abu Sufyan replied, “Increasing.”

Caesar asked, “And does anyone turn away discontent with his religion after having gone into it?”

Abu Sufyan said, “No.”

Caesar asked, “Is he treacherous?”

Abu Sufyan replied, “No, but we are in a truce with him now, and we fear he may betray us.” Later on, Abu Sufyan admitted that this was the closest he was able to come to putting in a bad word against Muhammad.

Caesar went on, “Then have you fought each other?”

Abu Sufyan said, “Yes.”

Caesar asked, “And how did your wars turn out?”

Abu Sufyan said, “Our contests have had alternating results; sometimes he wins over us, and other times we win over him.”

Caesar asked, “What does he enjoin upon you?”

Abu Sufyan replied, “He enjoins us to worship God alone, not associating anything with the sole divinity. And he enjoins us not to worship the fetishes of our ancestors. He also enjoins us to pray, to give charity, and to be chaste; and to fulfill promises and discharge trusts.”

When Abu Sufyan had said this, Caesar told his interpreter to say to him, “I asked you about his lineage among you, and you stated that he is of a sound lineage. And so were all prophets called forth from sound lineages of their people.

“Then I asked if anyone had said what he said before him, and you stated that none had. I would have said, if someone had said this before, that he was a man following something that had been said before him.

“And I asked you if you had found him a liar before he had said what he has said, and you stated that you had not. So I knew he would not lie about God if he did not lie about humans.

“And I asked you if any of his ancestors was a king, and you stated that none had been. I would have said, if any of his ancestors had been a king, that he was seeking the kingdom of his ancestors.

“And I asked you if the highborn people followed him, or the powerless ones; and you stated that it is the powerless. And they are the followers of the Messengers.

“And I asked you if they were increasing or decreasing, and you stated that they were increasing. And so it is with Faith, until it is complete.

“And I asked you if anyone turns away disaffected with his religion after having gone into it, and you stated that none did; and so it is with Faith, with which no one is displeased when its cheerfulness mixes into hearts.

“And I asked you if he acts treacherously, and you stated that he does not. And so it is with all Messengers; they do not act treacherously.

“And I asked you if you fight with each other, and you stated that you did, and that your fortunes in war alternated, now in his favor, now in yours. And so are all Messengers tried, and final victory will be his.

“And I asked you what he enjoins upon you, and you stated that he enjoins you to worship God, and not to associate anything with God, and not to worship the fetishes of your ancestors. And he enjoins you to pray, to give charity, to be chaste, to keep promises, and to fulfill trusts. And this is the description of a prophet.

“I knew he would appear, but I did not know he would be from among you. If what you have said is true, he will soon rule the ground beneath these two feet of mine. If I could expect to reach him, I would take it upon myself to go and meet him; and if I were with him, I would wash his feet.”

Then Caesar called for the letter of the Prophet, and it was read aloud. In it was this:

In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful. From Muhammad, slave and messenger of God, to Heraclius, ruler of Byzantium. Peace upon all who follow Guidance.

Now then, I call you with the call to submission to God. Surrender to God, and you will be safe. Surrender to God, and God will give you a double reward. If you turn away, then the misdeeds of the peasants will be your fault.

And, people of the Book, come to a Word common to both of us, that we worship only God and do not associate anything with God, and that none of us takes any for lords but God. And if they turn away, then say, “Witness that we have surrendered to God.”

Excerpted from “The Wisdom of the Prophet” by Thomas Cleary.

Salahuddin Ayyubi (Saladin)

By Faysal Burhan

Saladin: A Benevolent Man Respected By Christians

A Hero Respected By Both Muslims & Christians

Both Christians and Muslims admire Saladin.

Saladin’s traits and virtues were purely a reflection of the teachings of his faith.

He defeated the Crusaders, known to Muslims as the Franks, and recaptured Jerusalem in 1187.

The experience of the Crusaders with the Muslims demonstrates that Muslims and Christians are in no civilization clash, but rather in civilization bondage.

In 1099 Jerusalem  fell to the First Crusaders.  They slaughtered its Christian, Muslim and Jewish inhabitants, after promising them safety.  In 1187  Saladin destroyed King Guy’s army at the Horns of Hettin and  recovered Jerusalem. In stark contrast to the Crusades 88 years earlier, Saladin, adhering to the teachings of Islam, did not slaughter the city’s Christian inhabitants. Saladin’s noble act won him the respect of his opponents throughout the world including Richard the Lion heart.Saladin’s generosity and sense of honor in negotiating the peace treaty that ended the Crusade won him the lasting admiration and gratitude of the Christian world.

Saladin’s Birth and Lineage

Saladin was born in Tikrite (a city on the Tigris River), Iraq in 1137, of Kurdish ancestry. The Abbasid Caliph of Baghdad, al Mustarshid, had appointed his father Ayyub, skilled in administration and diplomacy, as the governor of the town.

Childhood and Education

Saladin received his early childhood education in Baalbek and Damascus, Syria. In 1143, when Saladin was six years old, Sultan Zengi of Musel appointed his father Ayyub as the governor of Baalbek. When Zengi died in 1146, his son Nur al Din succeeded him. Nur al-Din was a respected devout leader. After few years, Nur al Din appointed Ayyub as the Head of Damascus Militia. Saladin grew up where political decisions regarding the Crusades were made. His cultural and religious education was typical of the environments surrounding Baalbek and Damascus. Like his peers, Saladin learned Arabic, poetry, the formal prayers and memorization of the Quran and the Hadith.

Saladin in Early Adulthood

In the Middle Ages the youth were given responsibilities of manhood early.  He was sent to his uncle Shirkuh in Aleppo on a career that would lead him to become one of Nur al Din’s emirs. The devout Nur al-Din soon became a mentor for the young Saladin.  He built and funded schools and hospitals. He promoted the divine values of Islam and governed in the light of the Quran.

Nur al-Din set up the Court of Appeals. Saladin regularly attended the Court of Appeals as a student.  Saladin learned to appreciate the wisdom and justice of the Islamic law. Nur al Din was the first Muslim ruler who saw the need for Muslim states to be united.  Saladin respected him tremendously and followed Nur al-Din’s example in uniting the ummah.

Saladin in His Adulthood

Saladin, who learned his military lessons in Nur al-Din’s militia at the hands of his uncle Shirkuh, soon began to stand out among Nur al-Din’s leaders. In 1164, at the age of 26 he was an assistant to his uncle Shirkuh in an expedition to rescue Egypt from an invasion by Amalric, king of Jerusalem. Saladin made a lasting impression on his peers during this expedition.

Saladin used diplomacy and the administrative skills in piecing together this badly divided region. Saladin’s scope of vision was that he gave each situation its due attention and weight, and he never broke a bridge of diplomacy or peace initiative with his opponents. The power or wealth he acquired never spoiled him. Power and position did not mean anything to him. Despite his advisor’s request to keep some of the revenues he received from Egypt and Syria, he never kept any of it. When he died, his wealth was only few dinars.

The Decisive Battle of Hettin

In return for an attack made by the Crusaders of the Kerak on Muslim pilgrims in 1187, Saladin moved his army to northern Palestine and defeated the much larger Crusader army in the decisive battle of Hettin (July 4, 1187). Three months after this battle, Saladin captured Jerusalem., Saladin did not loot, murder or seek revenge for the Muslims. He spared the lives of 100,000 Christians and allowed Christian pilgrims in Jerusalem after it’s fall. In this benevolent act, Saladin was simply emulating Prophet Muhammad when  the Prophet re-entered his birth-city of Makkah, with ten thousand people. There was no bloodshed.

Recapturing Jerusalem shocked the West, and as such it brought about the Third Crusade led by Richard the Lion heart, King of England in 1189. Saladin’s army checked the massive Frankish armies and weakened them in a war of attrition on the land of Palestine. It was during this period Richard negotiated peace with Saladin.   Third Crusade army was exhausted. It was Saladin’s generosity  in  this treaty, which ended the Crusades and established his legendery status.. .

Magnanimity and Benevolence at Work

Some of the stories  that  help the reader to understand why Saladin became a legendary figure in the Western world follow:

a- Preventing a Bloodbath

After capturing Jerusalem in October 1187, Saladin’s act in signing the peace treaty and saving Christian blood was indeed a pious act. He not only spared the lives of 100,000 Christians, but also guaranteed their safe departure along with their property and belongings. They were given forty days to prepare for departure. In this way eighty four thousand of them left the city in perfect safety. What is important to understand is that Saladin was in a  position to seek revenge for his people. However he did not , because his faith taught him  to be merciful and forgiving.

b- Foregoing ransom

Part of the condition of the surrender of Jerusalem, was that each Christian pays her or his ransom. Thousands of Christians, mainly women, were not able to pay their ransom.Al-Adel, Saladin’s brother, Geukburi, Saladin’s brother-in law and Saladin  instead paid their ransom out of their own pockets.

This act was done in spite of the fact that there were some rich Christians such as the Patriarch, Heraclius and Madame la Patriarchesse of Jerusalem.   Saladin was advised to confiscate  that  wealth to use it as ransom for the poor Christians.  He refused to go back on his word.  He allowed the wealthy Christians to depart with all their wealth intact.

c- Excellence Beyond Justice

During the forty days respite that was given to the Westerners to leave Jerusalem, several Christian women approached Saladin asking for  their missing men. They had no one to look after them.  Saladin ordered his soldiers to find their missing guardians, and/or given compensation if they were killed.

This  act is  one of the many.  Having a Muslim paying a ransom to a family of a soldier killed fighting other Muslims is excellence beyond justice

d- “Victory Is Changing the Hearts of Your Opponents by Gentleness and Kindness.”- Saladin

In September 1192, during the siege of Acre,when Richard fell sick, Saladin sent him his own physician to treat him. Along with this health care, he frequently sent him ice to cool down his fever and plum fruits that were necessary for his recovery.

e-  Pure Chivalry

During an offense made by Richard against a Muslim squadron  Richard’s horse was killed and he was down on the ground.  Saladin sent him two mounts so that he would not be at a disadvantage.

f- Returning a child

During the siege of Acre, a Christian woman came to Saladin’s camp weeping and wailing insisting that her child was snatched away by his soldiers. He himself returned the child to his mother and had them mount on the back of a mare to be returned safely to their camp.

g- Libert of faith

During the siege of Acre several soldiers were captured. Among them was an old man who was so old that he was toothless and could hardly walk. Saladin asked him  why he was there. The old man said that he wanted  to make a pilgrimage to the Church of the Resurrection in Jerusalem. Saladin provided a horse for him and had him escorted to Jerusalem to fulfill his  dream.

Conclusion

Saladin was an honorable leader. His character and charitable deeds demonstrates that Muslims were no “infidels”. The Crusaders discovered that Muslims  had  values they consider Christian.  Saladan’s chivalry became the source of many plays and used in literature.   .

Source: This is a summary of an article titled (Saladin: a Benevolent Man, Respected by both Muslims and Christians), from The Institute of Arabic and Islamic Studies web site – http://www.islamic-study.org/

Related Links:

http://www.onislam.net/english/reading-islam/research-studies/islamic-history/453955-saladin-a-benevolent-man.html

by Khaled Abou El Fadl

WHEN Imam Zuhri, a famous scholar of Sunna (Prophet Muhammad’s traditions), indicated to Qasim ibn Muhammd (a scholar of the Qur’an), a desire to seek knowledge, Qasim advised him to join the assembly of a well-known woman jurist of the day, Amara bin Al-Rahman. Imam Zuhri attended her assembly and later described her as “a boundless ocean of knowledge.” In fact, Amra instructed a number of famed scholars, such as Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Hazama, and Yahya ibn Said.

Amra was not an anomaly in Islamic history, for it abounds with famous women narrators of jurisprudence, starting with Aisha, the Prophet’s wife. A conservative count would reveal at least 2,500 extraordinary women jurists, narrators of Hadith, and poets throughout history.

That was then, but now we encounter hardly a single Islamic woman jurist. Women are all but absent from Islamic public and intellectual life. There are remarkable women activists in many Mosques and there are a few impressive writers, such as Zaynab al-Ghazali. But these are exceptions. One will rarely find a woman lecturing to a mixed audience about a gender-neutral topic such as “riba” (usury), for example. And while it is common to encounter professional Muslim women in every walk of life, it is very rare to find them on the boards of Islamic centers, or holding leadership positions.

There are several reasons for this alarming phenomenon. A particularly disturbing one is the derogatory attitude that seems to have infected many Muslim men. Very few are willing to be instructed or taught by women. Muslim men, in North America and elsewhere, seem to have developed a woman-phobia that consistently aspires to exclude women from conferences, meetings, gatherings, and even the Mosques.

May God bless Fatimah bint Qais, who tenaciously argued with Hazrat Umar and Hazrat Aisha over a legal point and refused to change her opinion. And there was Umm Yaqab, who on hearing Abdullah ibn Masud explain a legal point, then confidently told him, “I have read the entire Qur’an but have not found your explanation anywhere in it.”
The fact is, that Islam neither limits women to the private sphere, nor does it give men supremacy over the public and private life. One notices that the Greek and Roman cultures which preceded Islamic civilization did not produce a single eminent woman philosopher or jurist. Likewise, until the 1700s, Europe failed to produce a single female social, political, or legal jurist. Islam did exactly the opposite in every respect, so much so that Hazart Umar bin al-Khitatab used to entrust Shaffa bint Abdullah as an inspector over the market in Medina. Moreover, Islamic history is replete with examples of female professors who tutored famous male jurists.

Yet the sad legacy of our time is that we have taken women back to the pre-Islamic era by excluding them from public exposure or involvement. A modern scholar, Muhammad al-Ghazali, once described this phenomenon as the “ascendency of Bedouin fiqh (jurisprudence).” What he meant by this term is that in much of contemporary culture … the world revolves around men and everything is channeled to their service.

The sunna (traditions) of the Prophet reveal that he used to assist his wives in household duties. But most modern scholars have not had the probity to suggest that the practice of men lending a helping hand in the home is to be recommended or even required in certain circumstances. Most men are content to ignore this and selectively emphasize whatever in the sunna serves only their interests. It is well-known that women like Aisha, Umm Salamah, Laila bint Qasim, Asma bint Abu Bakr, Kaula bint Umm Darda, and many others, were trusted with preserving and teaching one-fourth of our religion.

Isn’t it time we again trusted women to contribute to our public and intellectual lives? May the Muslim community in North America lead the way in producing the first Muslim woman jurist in more than two centuries. It is certainly long overdue.

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Watch the Youtube video of this khutbah: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QNd9kL4pGk

What’s the True Romance?

In Love With All Creation

By Maryam Bachmeier

OnIslam.net, 04 January 2012

February is here, and it is time for people in the US and Canada when husbands and wives, family and friends express their deep feelings of appreciation and devotion to each other, during celebrating the Valentine Day.

It is also a special time for married couples to remember ‘romance’.

Yet, in the midst of all this celebration and good will toward one another, many have not been able to capture the connections that they long for in their life. This sometimes leads people to feel depressed, forlorn and lonely.
• Why is this so?

• What are we missing?

I propose that perhaps we are somewhat misguided on what love is, where it comes from, and how it is sustained.

Like worshiping idols, and hoping that inanimate objects can guide us toward the heavens, we have often looked to a mere human for love.

But what is Love?

Love is an Attribute of God.  The only way we can experience authentic love, is to experience the love of God.  If we put our relationship with God first, we will fall in love with all His creation.

God first, then His creations! If we follow this “formula” we will have an opportunity to experience love in all its expressions. It is the inspiration that leads us to feel love, and these feelings invite us to know the Beloved.

When one operates according to this paradigm, one can experience authentic romance.  There is a reason why the sunset on a warm breezy night captures the heart of lovers;  it gets the love struck creatures in touch with something much greater than themselves, and this is exactly what romance is.

The sensuousness we feel from the expressions of nature and the touch of a loved one increases the Oxcytocin in our brains, and it changes our mood and consciousness, so that we can be open to something Divine.

It is for us to differentiate between a lasting and authentic love, and a fleeting moment.  If we can commit to a life in submission to God, and the life of Islam, then we might be able to make the kind of commitment that will sustain a lasting devoted love.

Post-Tech Love

With this model in mind, while in the post tech-space age universe we live in,   we can ask:  what model of relationship is most likely to increase the probability of creating a stable and lasting relationship?

We have the past model of the arranged marriage.  This works well when this occurs in the context of a culture that still values certain norms.  And these actually have the best statistics for success.

But in these marriages, the spouses are young, committed to the ideals of marriage and family, and they are in a stage of life where identity formation is very active, but not complete.

These marriages survive lifetimes because the identity is formed simultaneously.

So what about marriages of older people, who have already completed some of the stages of identity formation?  The “modern” marriage that occurs later in life has become a necessity for many people in the modern world, due to the fact that one needs to make a certain amount of money, etc., before one can even dream of creating a stable marriage and have children.

So, with all this, the issues of the division of labor have developed into an argument for equality.  But this model has failed.

People date, feel the hormones, call that love, commit to each other (forgetting about God) get married, and then go to work to become financially able to start a family. Then they begin to argue when things become stressful.  They each have their own individual identities, and are determined to “grow”…seeking “support” from each other.

Yet, over half of these marriages fail.  Is it possible to gain the mindset that makes it possible for the arranged marriage to work, by using the formula of putting God first, committing to the path of marriage as a way to complete one’s deen (religion), and enter into awareness that the two identities will merge as each begins to know more about the other?

Is it possible to follow the principles of the “complimentary” model, using “roles” and “functions” as a means to support the overall institution of marriage?

Can our modern society even think of such a notion?

I propose that if we consider this “old fashioned” model, we might find our way back to the original purpose and intent of marriage, and enjoy the benefits of marriage that God wanted us to have.

The Only Love There Is

Love God first.  Let this love be your real compassion.  The Greek define three types of love: love for humanity, love for God and Romantic love, but in fact there is only one source of Love and that is Allah.

If you want to feel REAL love, then you must understand this.  No one can love another truly, without the awareness, acceptance, and expression of the love of God.  This is what the individual must embrace first, before embracing another.

It is the only love that exists, the only love that can be embraced.  Let your love of God,  the Source from which all love flows, be your passion.

If you do this, you will love your spouse.  If your spouse cannot “tune” in to this divine aspect of God, then he or she cannot truly love in the deepest way, and sadly this is the state of affairs for so many, but your happiness does not depend on this.  If you “tune in” to this genuine and eternal love, you will be sustained by it.

But what is even more remarkable is that when a man and his wife first embrace God and allow the Love of God to permeate them; each individually, they will both then truly feel genuine love for each other.

This is the beginning of the True Romance.  And in case you are worried about the sex, if you authentically follow this formula you will be so inspired, that this aspect will be just fine.

The Ties that Last

And that is why, we don’t need to use the failed model of Western dating to “fall in love” with our marriage partners and to have a successful marriage.  Why have the traditional arranged marriages worked so much better in terms of longevity compared to the modern Western marriage?

A combination of reasons, but a lot of it has to do with the fact the each partner has been pre-screened for their character.  And, if both partners are committed to a joint value system, and they both love God, then love can grow.

The journey of discovering each other and themselves as a result can be an enjoyable one.  It is the commitment to this journey and to God and the Path that develops deep love.

The more you know someone, the more you love them.  God is the source of all, we learn about God as we go on this Islamic journey. We learn about God, we learn about our spouses, we learn about our family, our children, our friends, and then we can develop the kind of love that helps people, a family, a community to survive through the ups and downs of the journey.

Instead of making a commitment to each other, make a commitment to God. Make a commitment to live according to His Guidance.  Love, the feeling is nothing, unless it is translated into action.  Love one another, that is something that you must do.  And it is an action that you must take with faith in God and with commitment to serve Him.

So, if it is that simple, what do you do when the marriage gets dull and boring? The truth is it is this simple.  Inspiration comes from Allah.  If you want romance in your life, and you have been married for 20 years, then you know enough about your spouse to know what will bring an inspiration to him or her.

You know how to create a mood and an environment that will foster “love feelings”, it is something that you consciously take action to achieve, if you have journeyed together in honesty and authenticity.

I could take this time to write about many clever ways to get the romance going here in this article, but there are so many articles and books on the “how to’” that I suggest you simply read those.  The key aspect is communication.

• Know what your spouse who is your beloved likes, sexually, physically, emotionally, mentally, and share a spiritual life together.

• Explore communication techniques and find the ones that work with both of you.

The miracle is, all this can be done without costing a penny!  Well, maybe the massage oil, and the candles will cost a few pennies, but not much, the rest is the joy of learning and the pleasure in using that knowledge which you have of each other for each other’s needs. If you love, you will express it.

For better, or worse, rich or poor, good times, and hard times, you will go hand in hand from this day forward and together into Paradise.

This can only become a reality when one first makes a genuine and authentic commitment to God, then to your spouse as an expression of that commitment.

• Don’t give up, don’t walk out.

No matter what it takes, take the time to learn your partner’s communication style, and develop a communication system that works for you both.  And above all, pray together.

Let love light the way.

All Praise be to God from Whom love flows.

Dr. Maryam Bachmeier has 11 years in the mental health field, and is currently a staff psychologist at the Napa State Hospital.

http://www.onislam.net/english/family/gender-issues/intimacy/443587-whats-the-true-romance.html

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Watch this khutbah on Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRWqb4vDFmg

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The Prophet Muhammad taught love, kindness and compassion to his people, and was seen to be the most loving, kind, and compassionate of all of them. The Quran mentions his kind and gentle behavior in these words: “O Messenger of Allah! It is a great Mercy of God that you are gentle and kind towards them; for, had you been harsh and hard-hearted, they would all have broken away from you” (Quran 3:159).

There are many instances that show his kindness and gentleness, especially to the weak and the poor. Anas, who was his helper, said: “I served Allah’s Messenger for ten years and he never said to me, ‘Shame’ or ‘Why did you do such-and-such a thing?’ or ‘Why did you not do such-and-such a thing?’” (Bukhari, 2038).

Once he said to his wife: “0 ‘A’ishah! Never turn away any needy man from your door empty-handed. 0 ‘A’ishah! Love the poor; bring them near to you and God will bring you near to Him on the Day of Resurrection”. He also went much further on to say: “Seek me among your weak ones, for you are given provision, or you are given help only by reason of the presence of your weak ones”. (Rahman, Encyclopedia of Seerah, VOL. VIII, p. 151) God Almighty is Kind, and the Prophet imitated Allah’s example in its perfection by showing kindness to his servants and all creatures without any regard for their beliefs, color or nationality. The Prophet said: “God is kind and likes kindness in all things” (Bukhari, 6601).

His heart ached within him at the corrupt state of his fellow-Meccans and their rejection of One God. The Holy Quran testifies to it in these words: “0 Muhammad, you will, perhaps, consume yourself with grief because the people do not believe” (Quran 26:3). In Surah Kahf, we read: “Well, 0 Muhammad, it may be that you will kill yourself for their sake out of sorrow if they do not believe in this Message.” (Quran 18:6). And Surah Fatir says: “So let not your life be consumed in grief for their sake.” (Quran 35:8).

He took a great interest in the welfare of all people and had great compassion for people in trouble. The Prophet Muhammad imitated the attributes of God par excellence and translated them into practice in the highest form possible for man. Kindness is an attribute of Allah, which has no limits. It is extensive and encompasses all things and all beings without discrimination. Likewise was the kindness of the Prophet. He extended it to all beings, both animate and inanimate and benefited all without measure. The Quranic words for the Prophet’s kindness, ra’ufun rahirn (Quran 9:128) are very intensive and comprehensive in meaning and convey the true nature and extent of the Prophet’s kindness to people. The Prophet said: “One of the finest acts of kindness is for a man to treat his fathers’ friends in a kindly way after he has departed” (Abu dawud, 5123)

The issue of treating friends well was also extended to include relations: “He who wishes to have his provision enlarged and his term of life prolonged should treat his relatives well” (Bukhari, 5985). He emphasized on this matter because he deeply held the view that “Only kindness prolongs life, and a person is deprived of provisions for the faults he commits” (Ibn Majah). Bahz b. Hakim, on his father’s authority, said that his grandfather told him that he had asked Allah’s Messenger to whom he should show kindness and that the Prophet had replied: “Your mother.” He asked who came next and he replied: “Your mother.” He asked who came next and he replied for the third time: “Your mother.” He again asked who came next and he replied: “Your father, then your relatives in order of relationship” (Abu dawud, 5120). He dwelled on the issue of treating orphans humanely as he stated that “The best house among the Muslims is one which contains an orphan who is well treated, and the worst house among the Muslims is one which contains an orphan who is badly treated” (Ibn Majah, 3679). This means that the Prophet cautioned his followers against general maltreatment of anyone regardless of his status. By extending good treatment from friends to relatives and now to neighbors, Prophet Muhammad was intent in making all humans interdependent as he emphasized in the following words: “All creatures are Allah’s dependants, and those dearest to God are the ones who treat His dependants kindly” (Rahman, VOL VIII, p. 154). He emphasized the kind treatment of women again and again in his speeches:

Treat women kindly, since they are your helpers; . . . you have your rights upon your wives and they have their rights upon you. Your right is that they shall not allow anyone you dislike to enter your bed or your home, and their right is that you should treat them well. (from the Farewell Sermon of the Prophet)

Once a number of women complained to the Prophet’s wives about their ill-treatment by their husbands. On hearing of this, the Prophet said: “Such persons among you are not good persons.” (Abu Dawud, 1834). This condemnation by the Prophet himself was an indication that no one will be accepted before God who, while on earth, decided to be unkind to women. Another person said to the Prophet: “0 Messenger of Allah! My relatives are such that although I cooperate with them, they cut me off; I am kind to them but they ill treat me.” The Prophet said this in reply: “So long as you continue as you are, God will always help you and He will protect you against their mischief” (Muslim, 4640). This was not only a way of bringing comfort to the mind of the worried person but one of the communicative techniques of the Prophet to assure who ever found himself in that situation to look up to God to be consoled and protected. So it was pointless to preach vengeance to this kind of people suffering from this similar fate. Indeed, Prophet Muhammad was nothing short of a competent counselor.

He was always counseling people to be goodhearted regardless of their sex, age or gender. Once Asma bint Abu Bakr’s mother, who was still an unbeliever, came to see her in Madinah. She told this to the Prophet and said: “My mother has come to see me and she is expecting something from me. May I oblige her?” The Prophet said: “Yes, be kind to your mother” (Muslim, 2195). This attitude of the Prophet was equally extended to Zainab as-Saqafia, the wife of Abdullah ibn Mas’ud and an Ansari woman. She went to see the Prophet and to inquire whether it would be a charity if they spent something on their husbands and on the orphans under their care. The Prophet said: “They will get a two-fold reward, one for kindness towards their relatives and the other for charity” (Bukhari, 1466).

There are many Ahadith concerning his kindness to animals, birds and insects: “God prescribed kindness towards everything; so when you slaughter any animal, slaughter it well; when you sacrifice, make your sacrifice good. And let everyone sharpen his weapon and make it easy for his sacrificed animal” (Muslim, 5055). He made this kind of statement to demonstrate his love for both humans and animals. In essence, Prophet Muhammad was equally showing his followers that he too is feels pain.

“A-úthu billáhi minash shaytánir rajeem. Bismilláhir rahmánir raheem.

Al hamdu lillahi nahmaduhu wanasta’eenahu, wanastagh-firuhu, wanatoobu ilayhi, wana’oothu Billaahi min shuroori an-fusinaa, wamin sayyi aati a’maalinaa.

All Praise is due to Alláh, We praise Him and we seek help from Him. We ask forgiveness from Him. We repent to Him; and we seek refuge in Him from our own evils and our own bad deeds.

May- Yahdillahu fa huwal muhtad, wa may- yudlill falan tajidaa lahu waliyan murshida.

Anyone who is guided by Alláh, he is indeed guided; and anyone who has been left astray, will find no one to guide him.

Wa ash-hadu an Laa ilaaha ill-Alláh, wahdahoo laa shareeka lah, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan ‘abduhoo warasooluh”

And, I bear witness that there is no god but Alláh, the Only One without any partner; and I bear witness that Muhammad, sws, is His servant, and His messenger.

My respected Brothers and Sisters in Islam,

The 12th Rabi-al-Awwal was the birthday of our beloved Prophet Muhammad, sws. Across the entire Muslim world, there were celebrations of what we call Moulood al Nabi. This is a good time for us to pause, and to reflect, on the life and Mission of this greatest of all men, who is described in The Holy Qur’án as, “Khaataman Nabii-een,” “The seal of the Prophets.”

What are the essential points about his life, that has meaning for us today, not only for Muslims, but for all mankind? We naturally feel a tremendous love, reverence and gratitude to our Holy Prophet Muhammad, sws. After all, it is he who brought us Islám, in its final and complete form. It is he who suffered humiliation and abuse from his own people, who endured exile and violence for the sake of his mission. It is he who established the foundations of this Ummah, this great Brotherhood of Muslims, of which we are privileged to belong. We can be excused for regarding him with so much love and affection, that, others might say we lack objectivity in our views. OK, that’s fine. If a Muslim says that Muhammad was the greatest man who ever lived, outsiders will probably not pay much attention. But, if the same words of admiration came from their own writers and thinkers, people do sit up and take notice.

One English writer who admired him greatly was Thomas Carlyle, who wrote (On Heroes and Hero Worship, and the Heroic in History, London, 1918).

“… These Arabs, the man Muhammad, and that one century. It is as if a spark had fallen, one spark on a world of what seemed black unnoticeable sand, but lo, the sand proves explosive powder, blazes heaven high from Delhi to Grenada: I said: the Great Man was always as lightning out of heaven; the rest of the men waited on him like fuel, and then they too would flame … How one man single-handedly could weld warring tribes and wandering boudouins into a most powerful and civilised nation in less then twenty years….”.

Another writer, Michael Hart, in his book, “The 100 greatest men in history,” placed Nabii Muhammad at the top of his list of men who had the biggest impact on human history.

We Muslims of course, have no need for anyone else to endorse the greatness of our beloved Prophet Muhammad, sws. We know that he is the greatest of all men. For us, it is enough that Alláh describes his status in The Holy Qur’án:

“Wa maa arsal naaka illaa Rahmatal lil-‘aalameen!”

“and We have not sent you [O Muhammad], but as a Mercy to all the Worlds.”

Note that the term ‘alameen” in Arabic, refers not only to all nations, or to all of mankind, but to all the worlds, i.e. including the world of matter and of the spirit. In the same way, the first line of Súra Al-Faatiha says: “Al-hamdu lillaahi Rabbil ‘aalameen,” “All praise is due to Alláh, Lord of all the worlds,” so The Holy Qur’án refers to our beloved Prophet Muhammad, sws as a Mercy to all the worlds. We who claim to be his followers, and who remember him in every prayer, should study his life and follow his example. For truly, in the Messenger of Alláh is the finest of examples.

“Alhamdu lillahi Rabbil ‘Aalameen. Was-salaatu was-salaamu alaa Khairil mursaleen. Muhammadin-nabeey-yil Ummiy-yee, wa-‘alaa aalihee, wasah-bihee, aj-ma’een.

All praise is due to Alláh, the Lord of all the Worlds; may the greetings and peace be upon the best messenger, Muhammad, the unlettered prophet; and upon his family and upon all of his companions.

Ammaa ba’ad:

Innalláha wa malaaikata yusallúna alan nabi. Yá ay yuhal latheena ámanu sallú alayhi wasalli mú tas leema.

Behold, Alláh and his angels shower blessings on the Prophet. O you who believe! Ask for blessings on him, and salute him with a worthy greeting.

Allahumma salli alá Muhammad, wa ala áli Muhammad, kama salayta ala Ibrahim, wa ala ali Ibrahim. Allahumma barik ala Muhammad, wa alaa áli Muhammad, kama barakta ala Ibrahim, wa ala ali ibrahim. Fil ála meen, innaka hameedun majeed.”

O Alláh! Send your greetings upon Muhammad and his family, just as you sent your greetings on Ibraheem, and his family. O Alláh, send you blessings on Muhammad and his family, just as you blessed Ibraheem and his family. In both worlds, you are praiseworthy and exalted.

Second Khutbah

Sub’ hanallahi wal hamdu lillah, wala hawla wala quwwata illah billah yu althi yual theem.

Dear brothers and sisters,

These are very difficult days for Muslims everywhere. We are presently weak and divided, and it seems the Ummah is being torn apart from within our ranks and from outside. But we must never despair, never lose hope. And we must not lose heart. Allah takes good care of His creation. He will take good care of His religion. History is on our side. Truth will prevail over falsehood. It will be a long and painful struggle, with many false dawns, but we should be in no doubt that the Religion of Alláh will triumph in the end.

Islám ennobled every human community that came under its influence. Even Ghengiz Khan, the most fearsome ‘international terrorist’ of his time, could not destroy Islam. He brought his Mongol horsemen sweeping out of the Steppes of Central Asia. His warriors destroyed everything else in their path, but they could not resist the appeal of “Laa ilaaha ill-lall-laah; Muhammadar-Rasoolull-laah.” “There is no god except Alláh, Muhammad is the Messenger of Alláh.” The Mongols raped and plundered their way southward and westward until they were stopped at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260. Here  the brave warriors led by Beybars under the  Mameluk Sultan, Kotoz “Noor el dein Mahmoud” turned the tide. This great victory allowed the entire world to breathe a collective sigh of relief. Despite themselves, and despite having destroyed a huge swathe of the Muslim world, including Baghdad, the Mongols in time accepted Islam as their religion. Their descendants became the Mogul emperors who ruled India for many centuries.

Today, ironically, while many Muslim individuals and nations are looking towards the West for their role-models, there are growing numbers of Europeans and North Americans who are turning the other way, turning to Islám in order to find some meaning and purpose to their lives. In a recent newspaper article, a Jewish historian wrote about her reflections about the growth of Islám in the West. She said that while travelling on a train in Brussels, she found herself with a large group of schoolgirls wearing hijab. “The girls smiled at me, and I smiled back,” she wrote, “and I could not help thinking, here is the future of Europe, and I am the past.”

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Islám is winning the hearts and minds of a many thinking people in the West. Alláh assures the ultimate victory of Islám, and we have no doubts about that. The real question is, what role are we going to play in helping that process along? Will Islám win with our help and effort, or will Islám win, in spite of us? That is what really matters. Are we going to concern ourselves only with our own narrow, selfish lives? – Are we only bothered about our career, our family and our leisure time? Are we not going to seek the good pleasure of Alláh, by serving Islám wholeheartedly, by serving all Allah’s creatures, unselfishly and with enthusiasm?

History shows that the struggle to establish Islám in every age and every land, was often carried forward by small numbers of Muslims, who had cultivated some quite exceptional qualities. Our beloved Prophet Muhammad, sws, and his illustrious Companions, were the most remarkable human beings that ever walked on this planet. Their qualities of faith in Alláh, obedience to His prophet, patience and honesty enabled them to build a world civilization.

Those were Believers who committed themselves and their possessions totally to Islám. For them, there were no half-measures. They did not make any plans without taking into account what pleases Alláh. It was more important for them to know how their plans should fit into the Master Plan of the Master Planner. These remarkable Muslims, the Companions of the Prophet, and all those who followed their noble example, worked hard, and reposed all their trust in Alláh. They feared nothing and no-one except Allah. They are the ones described in these beautiful last 2 verses of Súra Taubah:

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem!

128. Laqad jaaa-akum Rasuulum min ‘an-fusikum ‘azizun ‘alayhi maa’anit-tum harisun ‘alaykum bil-Mu’mineena ra’uufur-Raheem.

129. Fa-in tawal-low faqul has-biyal-laahu Laa-ilaaha il-laahu ‘alayhi tawakkal tu wa-huwa Rabbul ‘alrshil Adtheem!

128. Now has come unto you a Messenger from amongst yourselves. It grieves him that you should suffer. Ardently anxious is he over you. To the Believers he is most kind and merciful.

129. But if they turn away, say: “Alláh suffices me; there is no god but He, on Him is my trust; He is the Lord of the Magnificent Throne.”

These comforting and inspiring verses have helped Muslims in hardship and distress throughout the ages. They should also comfort and inspire us today.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Islám, let us remember our beloved Prophet Muhammad, sws, by trying to be like him, and his illustrious Companions, the Sahaaba. Let us cultivate those noble qualities of ‘Imán and Taqwa’, honesty, reliability and integrity of character.  Let our lives be like beacons of light in the spiritual darkness of our present times. Prophet Muhammad sws is described in Sura 45:v16 as “siraj munir,” a lamp spreading light. By following him, we too can reflect light, however dimly, for those who are in utter darkness.

Let us become the True Believers who will end their lives responding to those evocative final verses of Súra Al-Fajr, where Alláh invites our souls in these words:

“fad-ghuleefee ‘ibaadee, wad-ghulee jan-natee.”

“enter you, my devotees, enter you my Heaven.”

Let us pray to Alláh, to help us earn His good pleasure, his ridwaan, to enter His Garden. Let us become worthy inheritors of this great Ummah whose foundations were laid by our beloved Prophet Muhammad, sws. That would be the best way to celebrate Moulood-an-Nabii.

Let us also make a special prayer for those who are busy with exams at this time. Whether it be GCSE’s, A-levels, or university examinations. It can be a stressful time for them and for their families. May Alláh in His infinite mercy and wisdom, help those who are writing exams, to achieve excellent results. May Alláh guide us all and help us all win His good pleasure.

Ameen! Aqeemus salaah!

* This khutbah (friday sermon) was originally delivered at Royal Holloway College, Univ. of London, UK on 31st May 2002

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“There is none amongst the believers who plants a tree, or sows a seed, and then a bird, or a person, or an animal eats thereof, but it is regarded as having given a charitable gift [for which there is great recompense].” [Al-Bukhari, III:513].

The idea of the Prophet Mohammed as a pioneer of environmentalism will initially strike many as strange: indeed, the term “environment” and related concepts like “ecology”, “environmental awareness” and “sustainability”, are modern-day inventions, terms that were formulated in the face of the growing concerns about the contemporary state of the natural world around us.

And yet a closer reading of the hadith, the body of work that recounts significant events in the Prophet’s life, reveals that he was a staunch advocate of environmental protection. One could say he was an “environmentalist avant la lettre”, a pioneer in the domain of conservation, sustainable development and resource management, and one who constantly sought to maintain a harmonious balance between man and nature. From all accounts of his life and deeds, we read that the Prophet had a profound respect for fauna and flora, as well as an almost visceral connection to the four elements, earth, water, fire and air.

He was a strong proponent of the sustainable use and cultivation of land and water, proper treatment of animals, plants and birds, and the equal rights of users. In this context the modernity of the Prophet’s view of the environment and the concepts he introduced to his followers is particularly striking; certain passages of the hadith could easily be mistaken for discussions about contemporary environmental issues.

Three Principles

The Prophet’s environmental philosophy is first of all holistic: it assumes a fundamental link and interdependency between all natural elements and bases its teachings on the premise that if man abuses or exhausts one element, the natural world as a whole will suffer direct consequences. This belief is nowhere formulated in one concise phrase; it is rather an underlying principle that forms the foundation of all the Prophet’s actions and words, a life philosophy that defined him as a person.

The three most important principles of the Prophet’s philosophy of nature are based on the Qur’anic teachings and the concepts of tawhid (unity), khalifa(stewardship) and amana (trust).

Tawhid, the oneness of God, is a cornerstone of the Islamic faith. It recognizes the fact that there is one absolute Creator and that man is responsible to Him for all his actions: “To God belongs all that is in the heavens and in the earth, for God encompasses everything [4:126].”  The Prophet acknowledges that God’s knowledge and power covers everything. Therefore abusing one of his creations, whether it is a living being or a natural resource, is a sin. The Prophet considered all of God’s creations to be equal before God and he believed animals, but also land, forests and watercourses should have rights.

The concepts of khalifa, stewardship, and amana, trust, emerge from the principle of tawhid. The Qur’an explains that mankind holds a privileged position among God’s creations on earth: he is chosen as khalifa, “vice-regent” and carries the responsibility of caring for God’s earthly creations. Each individual is given this task and privilege in the form of God’s trust. But the Qur’an repeatedly warns believers against arrogance: they are no better than other creatures.  “No creature is there on earth nor a bird flying with its wings but they are nations like you [6:38]”; “Surely the creation of the heavens and the earth is greater than the creation of man; but most people know not [40:57]”.

The Prophet believed that the universe and the creations in it – animals, plants, water, land – were not created for mankind. Man is allowed to use the resources but he can never own them. Thus while Islam allows land ownership, it has limitations: an owner can, for example, only own land if he uses it; once he ceases to use it, he has to part with his possession.

The Prophet recognized man’s responsibility to God but always maintained humility. Thus he said: “When doomsday comes, if someone has a palm shoot in his hand, he should plant it,” suggesting that even when all hope is lost for mankind, one should sustain nature’s growth. He believed that nature remains a good in itself, even if man does not benefit from it.

Similarly, the Prophet incited believers to share the earth’s resources. He said: “Muslims share alike in three things – water, herbage and fire,” and he considered it a sin to withhold water from the thirsty. “No one can refuse surplus water without sinning against Allah and against man” [Mishkat al Masabih].

The Prophet’s attitude towards sustainable use of land, conservation of water and the treatment of animals is a further illustration of the humility of his environmental philosophy.

Sustainable Use of Land

“The earth has been created for me as a mosque and as a means of purification.” [Al-Bukhari I:331] With these words the Prophet emphasizes the sacred nature of earth or soil, not only as a pure entity but also as a purifying agent. This reverence towards soil is also demonstrated in the ritual of tayammum, or “dry wudu” which permits the use of dust in the performance of ritual purification before prayer when water is not available.

The Prophet saw earth as subservient to man, but recognised that it should not be overexploited or abused, and that it had rights, like the trees and wildlife living on it. In order to protect land, forests and wildlife, the Prophet created inviolable zones known as hima and haram, in which resources were to be left untouched. Both are still in use today: haram areas are often drawn up around wells and water sources to protect the groundwater table from over-pumping. Hima applies particularly to wildlife and forestry and usually designates an area of land where grazing and woodcutting are restricted, or where certain animal species are protected.

The Prophet not only encouraged the sustainable use of fertile lands, he also told his followers of the benefits of making unused land productive: planting a tree, sowing a seed and irrigating dry land were all regarded as charitable deeds.“Whoever brings dead land to life, that is, cultivates wasteland, for him is a reward therein.” Thus any person who irrigates a plot of “dead”, or desert land becomes its rightful owner.

Conservation of Water

In the harsh desert environment where the Prophet lived, water was synonymous to life. Water was a gift from God, the source of all life on earth as is testified in the Qur’an:  “We made from water every living thing” [21:30].  The Qur’an constantly reminds believers that they are but the guardians of God’s creation on earth and that they should never take this creation for granted: “Consider the water which you drink. Was it you that brought it down from the rain cloud or We? If We had pleased, We could make it bitter” [56:68-70].

Saving water and safeguarding its purity were two important issues for the Prophet: we have seen that his concern about the sustainable use of water led to the creation of haram zones in the vicinity of water sources. But even when water was abundant, he advocated thriftiness: thus he recommended that believers perform wudu no more than three times, even if they were near to a flowing spring or river. The theologian El-Bukhari added: “ The men of science disapprove of exaggeration and also of exceeding the number of ablutions of the Prophet.” The Prophet also warned against water pollution by forbidding urination in stagnant water.

The Treatment of Animals:

“If anyone wrongfully kills even a sparrow, let alone anything greater, he will face God’s interrogation” [Mishkat al Masabih]. These words reflect the great reverence, respect and love that the Prophet always showed towards animals. He believed that as part of God’s creation, animals should be treated with dignity, and the hadith contains a large collection of traditions, admonitions and stories about his relationship to animals. It shows that he had particular consideration for horses and camels: to him they were valiant companions during journey and battle, and he found great solace and wisdom in their presence as the following tradition reveals: “In the forehead of horses are tied up welfare and bliss until the Day of Resurrection.”

Even in the slaughter of animals, the Prophet showed great gentleness and sensitivity. While he did not practice vegetarianism, the hadiths clearly show that the Prophet was extremely sensitive to the suffering of animals, almost as though he shared their pain viscerally. Thus he recommends using sharp knives and a good method so that the animal can die a quick death with as little pain as possible. He also warned against slaughtering an animal in the presence of other animals, or letting the animal witness the sharpening of blades: to him that was equal to “slaughtering the animal twice” and he emphatically condemned such practices as “abominable”.

Conclusion

It is impossible to do justice to the full scope and significance of Prophet Mohammed’s environmental philosophy in this short article. His holistic view of nature and his understanding of man’s place within the natural world pioneered environmental awareness within the Muslim community.

Sadly, the harmony that the Prophet advocated between man and his environment has today all too often been lost. As we face the effects of pollution and overexploitation, desertification and water scarcity in some parts of the world and floods and violent storms elsewhere, it is perhaps time for the world community as a whole, Muslims, Christians and Jews, Hindus and Buddhists, atheists and agnostics, to take a leaf out of the Prophet’s book and address the current environmental crisis seriously and wisely.

http://kalkhausar.wordpress.com/2011/02/18/prophet-muhammed-a-pioneer-of-the-environment/

Khutbah delivered in Orange County, USA,

27th January 2011

http://vimeo.com/19291892

by Islamweb.net

From Adamslist compiled by A. I. Seedat

The heart is like a fort and Satan the advancing enemy, who is intent on infiltrating and occupying it.

Hence, only by guarding the gates, entrances and vulnerable positions, will it be impenetrable.

Yet, a person who is unacquainted with the structure of the fortress, particularly its access points, cannot adequately defend it.

By the same token, the obligation of guarding the heart from the whispers of Satan cannot be fulfilled and he cannot be warded off, unless a person knows the gates to the heart that Satan may take.

These gateways are, generally, personal characteristics, of which there are many but, here, we will only refer to the ones that are so wide so as to accommodate all the numerous soldiers of Satan:

- Anger and desire: Anger is the ghoul of the psyche; when it weakens the guards of one’s mind, Satan’s soldiers immediately seize the opportunity to attack. Furthermore, when a person becomes enraged, Satan toys with him in the same way children play with a ball.

- Envy and greed: No matter how careful man is, his covetousness makes him deaf and dumb. The light of insight reveals the gates of Satan; when envy and greediness mask this light, man becomes at risk. Hence, Satan seizes that opportunity and adorns for an acquisitive person whatever leads to his or her desires, even if it is heinous and evil. The Prophet, peace be upon him, spoke of avarice:

“If two starving wolves were left in a flock of sheep, they would not be as harmful [to them] as a person’s hunger for money and status is to his [or her] faith.” (At-Tirmidhi)

- Satiating oneself: This is one of Satan’s gateways to the heart; although lawful, eating in excess strengthens one’s desires, which, in turn, are his weapons.

- Impetuosity: Haste and recklessness are among the widest gates of Satan to one’s heart, as the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:

“Hastiness is from Satan and deliberateness is from God.” (At-Tirmidhi)

- Miserliness and fear of poverty: They prevent a person from giving in charity, instead justifying hoarding, which only leads to a painful punishment.

- Bigotry toward a specific school of thought or an inclination toward a desire, bearing grudges against opponents or treating them with contempt: This destroys the immoral and pious alike. Defaming people and calling attention to their faults is one of the predatory characteristics inherent in human nature.

- Thinking ill of Muslims: {O you who have believed! Avoid much suspicion, indeed some suspicions are sins.} (Al-Hujurat, 49: 12). Indeed, only hypocrites seek out flaws in others, whereas believers seek excuses for them.

A person may now ask: “How can one ward Satan off? Is it enough to be in constant remembrance of God or to utter [phrases like] ‘Laa hawla wala quwwata illaa billaah (There is no power or strength except in God)’?” The answer is that you must know that the course of treatment to save one’s heart from the whispers of Satan is to block the gateways [he takes] and to purify the heart from the aforementioned bad characteristics.

The remembrance of God should indeed suffice in stopping Satan from passing by or whispering in one’s heart. However, that cannot happen unless the heart itself is already of a pious nature and purified from evil characteristics. If not, words of His remembrance will be no more than mere thoughts without any impact on the heart or substance to deflect Satan: {Indeed, those who are pious – when an impulse touches them from Satan, they remember [Him] and at once they have insight.} (Al-A’raf, 7: 201).

Therefore, since this is only confined to the pious, once a person manages to uproot evil traits from within, Satan may pass by or whisper, but will never be able to reside in the heart.

You see, Satan is like an approaching starved dog; if a person has neither bread nor meat, it will move away just by your voice which commands it to “go away”. However, if you have meat in your hands and the dog is hungry, it will attack the flesh and your mere words will not be enough to keep the animal at bay.

Similarly, if the heart is free from anything Satan can feed on, Dhikr (remembrance of God) will be enough to fend it off. On the other hand, if a person’s desires dominate his or her heart, the influence of Dhikr is restricted to the outer edges of the heart and instead, its core becomes a residence for Satan. The Prophet said:

“The heart is touched twice: [one of it is] a touch by the angel [which constitutes] a command of goodness and an acceptance of the truth. So, if a man experiences this, he should know that it is from God the Almighty and he should consequently thank Him. On the other hand, [there is] a touch from the enemy [Satan, and that constitutes an] insinuation of evil, disbelief in truth and being barred from good. So, if a person experiences this, he should seek refuge with God from the accursed Satan.” Then, the Prophet recited the Saying of God: {Satan threatens you with poverty and orders you to immorality.} (Al-Baqarah, 2:268).” [An-Nasa’i and At-Tirmidhi]

Expounding on this, Al-Hassan, may God have mercy upon him said: They [i.e., the two touches] are actually two concerns that occur to the heart: one from God the Almighty and the other from the enemy [Satan]. May God have mercy upon a slave who examines his concerns and lets that affect him which is from God, and strives against whatever he deems from the enemy.”

You Decide

By nature, the heart equally accepts both the inspiration of an angel and the incitement of Satan, such that there is a balance. However, the latter aspect dominates when a person acts ravenously and indulges in desires, whereas the former overrules it if a person turns away from wants and whims, and resists them.

When man becomes subservient to his desires and his actions become driven by rage, the influence of Satan will prevail via whims, which are his haven, and the heart will become Satan’s nest and pasture.  On the other hand, if a person strives against his or her desires, barring them from impacting him or her and adopts some angelic traits, his or her heart will become the dwelling and station of angels. Thus, the soldiers of angels and of Satan are in an epic struggle, until the heart opens to one of them, allowing them to reside within and dominate; the other party, then, will only be able to pass with stealth.

Unfortunately, most hearts are conquered by the soldiers of Satan, sustained by obedience to desires and whims, and, therefore, the organs are riddled with base notions that give preference to this temporary life, with clear disregard of the Hereafter. The heart cannot be recaptured except when it is purified from the nutrition of Satan and is supported with the remembrance of Allah the Almighty, which is the haven of angels.

Responses of the Heart to Temptation

Hudhayfah ibn Al-Yaman, may God be pleased with him, narrated that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:

“Temptations are presented to hearts in the same way as a reed mat is woven, stick by stick. Any heart which is saturated by them will receive a black mark, whereas any heart that rejects them will have a white mark put on it. The result is that there will be two types of hearts: a black and dusty heart, which is like an uneven vessel that neither recognizes good nor rejects evil, except what is impregnated into it of desires; and a white heart that will never be harmed by any temptation, as long as there are heavens and the earth.” (Muslim)

Heart Types

When the lure of desire and doubts are presented to the heart, it transforms into either of two types:

1- A heart that absorbs temptation in the same way a sponge soaks up water. This one will get a black stain every time it gives in to a temptation, until it becomes wholly dark and uneven. When this happens, the heart will be susceptible to two dangerous diseases: firstly, it will be unable to differentiate between good and evil, to the extent that it will not recognize either of them. Thereafter, the illness will pervade the organ until a person believes that good is evil and evil is good, the Prophetic Sunnah (the lifestyle of the Prophet p.b.u.h) is a religious innovation and vice versa, and that truth is falsehood and the opposite holds true as well. Secondly, the heart will begin to be subservient to its whims, making them a criterion for judging the teachings of the Prophet.

2- The second is the white heart that is illuminated by the light of faith. When temptations are presented to it, it will immediately deny and reject them, thereby increasing in brightness and radiance.

As for the temptations themselves, they are categorized into two: desires and doubts. While the first leads to the corruption of both intentions and one’s will, the second taints a person’s knowledge and belief.

Heart Diseases

Accordingly, diseases of the heart are also of base desires and doubts; the former can be interpreted by the verse in which God the Almighty Says (what means): {Do not be soft in speech [to men], lest he in whose heart is disease should covet.} (Al-Ahzab, 33: 32)

Unlike a healthy person, a patient is more sensitive to the slightest changes in heat, cold or movement; likewise, when the heart suffers from an illness, even a small amount of whims or doubts harms it and it is unable to ward them off. On the other hand, a sound heart powerfully fends off these temptations, even in the face of more attacks.

As for the other kind, God referred to the disease of doubt, when He said: {In their hearts is disease, so God has increased their disease.} (Al-Baqarah, 2: 10) Commenting on this verse, Qatadah and Mujahid, may Allah have mercy upon them, stated that “disease” here refers to misgivings.

Remedy

Although illnesses of the heart come in these two forms, the Glorious Quran is a remedy for both. It includes decisive proofs that distinguish between truth and falsehood; with them, the disease of doubt, which corrupts a person’s knowledge and intellect, is removed, and a person can perceive things in their real form. Thus, the Quran is the true cure for malicious allegations and doubts. Yet, its effectiveness is contingent on understanding the Quran and comprehending its essence. And, if God grants that to a person, his or her heart will as clearly distinguish between truth and falsehood, as it does between night and day.

Additionally, the Quran heals the other of the two diseases: desire; for, it includes wisdom, admonition and encouragement. It also contains verses warning people against indulging in the worldly life and instead urging them to work for the Hereafter. Furthermore, it has parables and stories that illustrate various lessons and warnings. Contemplating all this, a sound heart will surely incline towards what benefits it in both worlds and turn away from what will be of harm. The heart will then love guidance and detest vice.

Thus, the Glorious Quran removes diseases that result in corrupt yearnings; it reforms the heart, and so, reforms its wants, thus restoring it to the natural, pure state that it was created in. Referring to this, God says:{And We reveal of the Qur’an that which is a healing and a mercy for believers though it increase the evil-doers in naught save ruin.} (Al-Isra, 17: 82)

{O mankind, there has to come to you instruction from your Lord and healing for what is in the breasts and guidance and mercy for the believers.} (Yunus, 10: 57)

The heart feeds on faith and the Quran, taking from it what purifies and strengthens it. Both the heart and body require growth and development until they become perfect and sound. Hence, just as the body needs nutrients that build it and a healthy diet that protects it from harm, so does the heart. But, it can only obtain its nourishment from the Quran; and if it attempts to get something similar from another source, it would be provided with very little and not be able to reach its potential. Similarly, plants do not grow or become ripe without nutrients and proper environment; only when those are available, can we say they do.

Therefore, a person should study the signs of an ill and a sound heart, so he or she is able to discern which type he or she possesses. If the heart is sick, a slave of God must do his or her best to treat it before he or she meets Him with a sick heart, which will deprive him or her from entering Paradise. If the heart is sound, then he or she must nonetheless continue to safeguard its soundness until he or she dies in this state. If, however, the heart is dead, he or she can take solace in the fact that God gives life to the dead, as He Says (what means):{Know that God gives life to the earth after its lifelessness. We have made clear to you the signs; perhaps you will understand.} (Al-Hadid, 57: 17)

Source: Islamweb.net - http://www.islamweb.net

http://www.onislam.net/english/reading-islam/living-islam/growing-in-faith/453891-satans-gateways-to-the-heart.html

Afghan calligrapher Mohammed Sabeer Hussani, center, and nine student apprentices work on a page for the world's largest Quran - the Islamic holy book - at the Hakim Nasir-e-Khusraw Balkhi Cultural Center in Kabul, Afghanistan. (Credit: Hakim Nasir-e-Khusraw Balkhi Cultural Center)

From WorldWatch, CBS News www.cbsnews.com

The world’s largest Quran has been unveiled in the Afghan capital, Kabul. The cultural center that commissioned the work wanted more than just to own the largest Muslim holy book — it wanted to show the world that despite more than 30 years of war, Afghanistan’s rich cultural heritage has not been destroyed.

Afghan calligrapher Mohammed Sabeer Khedri Hussani, 52, and nine student apprentices spent five years working 18 hours a day, seven days a week, to create the enormous masterpiece. Hussani, a devout Muslim, tells CBS News it was a labor of love, and he is proud of his accomplishment.

“My happiness is when I see each and every group of people coming everyday to see my calligraphy, it makes me feel proud,” he says.

The lavish holy book, with pages measuring more than seven feet tall and five feet wide, has been certified as the world’s largest Quran by the Afghan Ministry of Hajj and Religious Affairs, according to the cultural center which houses it.

It weighs 1,102 pounds, and has 218 pages of cloth and paper bound inside an embossed leather cover made from the skins of 21 goats. Hussani says the book cost a million dollars to create, and was paid for by Islamic spiritual leader Alhaj Sayed Mansoor Naderi.

The Quran combines gold script with millions of tiny colorful dots, forming highly symbolic decorations around the giant pages.

“I wanted to use as many tasteful colors as possible to make this holy book look beautiful,” Hussani says. The book was completed in 2009, but a room at the cultural center had to be built to house it.

The cultural center was originally founded in the 1980s, and was once home to 50 thousand books, a medical center and schools teaching traditional Afghan crafts like carpet weaving, but it was largely destroyed in the 1990s during the Civil War that followed the Soviet pullout.

The founders have been reviving the center since the fall of the Taliban government in 2001, and the new Quran is its showpiece.

By the time I gathered the courage to email my friend Mariam for recommendations on local mosques, I had been keeping my secret for weeks. I was a half-closeted Muslim. My conversion to Islam came about with blinding speed and by accident.

For years I felt my emotional connection to God decay, despite all of my Catholic-sanctioned attempts to reawaken even the smallest degree of fervor. Out of desperation, one spring I began to read an English interpretation of the Quran hoping for a fresh perspective on the familiar Judeo-Christian stories. Since I had lost my ability to focus on or feel moved by well-worn Bible passages, I reasoned that if I just read a few chapters of the same stories narrated in a different way, then surely I would find my Catholic faith revived and would return, newly energized, to reading the stories the “right” way.
I never expected that in less than a week I would develop a powerful craving to read to the oft-repeated promises: God is the All-Knowing, the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing, the most Forgiving, the Dispenser of Grace. I never imagined that the poetic articulations of God’s bounty and the precision of His creation would appeal so vividly to my analytical nature, or that the breathtaking language would stand out as supreme above anything I had read before. I am an avid reader and, as an attorney, have been trained to critique language and spot the weaknesses in arguments. And yet by the time I was halfway through the Quran, I realized I could no longer read it as a cultural experiment or as an idle intellectual pursuit or as a gateway back into my Catholic faith.
I was simply reading my book. Even across centuries of time and strained through English interpretations, I knew I was reading words sent down by God. In mere days of reading the first chapter the Quran, my transformation began. I fought it for only a few more weeks, devouring the Quran a second time to be sure, before I said my shahada.
Telling non-Muslim friends was the easy part. Most of my friends were ivory tower progressives who exalted spiritual independence and disdained Islamophobic political rhetoric. A handful of Christian friends offered a few gentle, respectfully worded concerns, but far more often the news was met with excitement and encouragement for my personal journey of discovery. The accolades were ill-fitting and the attention intimidating. In fact, the more I was commended for my bravery, the more it sank in what a scary thing I had done.
Having given the news of my conversion to non-Muslim friends, I then reached out to a few Muslim friends who I was likely to see in the coming months but who remained outside of my closest circle. Here, my apprehension grew into a sense of inauthenticity. Was it even appropriate to contact them out of the blue to say I converted? “Good luck in your new apartment, hey, I converted to Islam!” Or, “How’s the job hunt going? By the way, I’m a Muslim now!” To mollify my awkwardness, I raised the issue flippantly, deflecting my fear with self-deprecating humor, holding myself out like a spectacle to be judged on their terms. I took what had been a deeply personal decision and did my best to downplay it for their consumption.
After I survived those blundering phone calls, there remained the problem of telling Mariam. She had been one of my best friends since our law school years. I had long admired Mariam for being one of the most incisive thinkers I knew, and for devoting so much of her energy to women’s issues in Islamic countries. Over countless lunches, she would recite in detail the latest injustices occurring in parts of the world that had no connection to my suburban American upbringing. Our friendship including bonding over our own versions of feminism, but she seemed to be fighting two battles: the usual sexism of daily American life to which I could relate, and an entirely different arena of patriarchy in the “community” that remained foreign to me.
After years of seeing Mariam as a complex individual, as my smart and interesting friend who could skewer those who support injustice and yet relate compassionately to my mundane complaints about long hours at the office, I pigeonholed Mariam as “my Muslim friend who doesn’t know I’m Muslim.” She became a prototype of what it meant to me to be a Muslim-American woman. From the political causes she undertook to the effortless way she draped a scarf across her shoulders, from the superficial to the meaningful, I saw her as a full and true Muslim. Islam was her right, and no one could take it away from her. In comparison, I was an outsider, a fraud, a silly little girl who jumped into something headfirst and in utter ignorance of the social consequences.
On some level, converting to her religion without her input or blessing called my entire identity as a new Muslim into doubt. I transposed all of my insecurities on her and feared she would question my choice in the same keen way that she analyzed her cases. And I, of course, would lack the answers to defend my conversion. What if I had misunderstood the Quran? Scholars spend lifetimes pouring over this layered text, and here I had sped through it in a matter of weeks and embraced it instantly. I had never even stepped foot inside a mosque! Would she expect me to say “inshallah” around her, or would I sound ridiculous for suddenly speaking Arabic phrases?
Every aspect of my struggle with my new spiritual identity found a foil in Mariam, and I was too intimidated to approach my friend until months had passed. I was going nowhere on my independent hunt for a mosque, for something beyond reading in my solitary apartment and browsing websites with incomprehensible prayer instructions. I hadn’t required any help in deciding whether to convert, but now that I identified myself as a Muslim (however ill-fitting the description felt) I needed guidance on how to be one. And so I sent Mariam an email with no explanation. “I’m looking for a recommendation on a mosque in the area. Any ideas?”
My phone rang shortly after. I knew it would be her and my voice was unsteady as I answered. Never one to mince words, Mariam asked me outright why I inquired about a mosque. I remember responding in the light, laughing tone I’d used with my more casual Muslim friends but my voice caught in my throat. Mariam asked me why I converted. My reasoning sounded inadequate to my ears, “I read the Quran…and…it seems true to me. Especially by the time I got towards the end, where it’s so powerful and even in English the words are unlike anything a human being could create, I realized this had to be divinely inspired. It couldn’t be from man, it had to be from God.” I remember my words spilling out one over the other and my voice trembling. I cut myself off for fear of sounding even more naïve that I felt sure I already did.
A few moments of silence passed, and when she spoke again I heard the emotion in her voice. She told me how ecstatic she was to hear the news and immediately a weight removed itself from my chest. At last, I could freely discuss my conversion with a friend who understood the beauty and the mystery of that miraculous book.
In time, Mariam became my Quran study buddy and living Cliff-Notes guide to “the community.” She invited me to celebrate my first Eid with her family, and provided an anchor of sanity when all of the adjustments grew overwhelming. Of all our shared moments, I always remember that first day we spoke openly about our love for the Quran as one of the turning points of my conversion. I entered that conversation lacking any claim to my own “Muslimness,” and while it would be misleading to suggest that with a snap of Mariam’s fingers I cemented a new identity, it did mark the first time that we talked as two lawyers, two women, and two friends, like always, but now also as two Muslims.

(Photo Credit: Yutaka Tsutano)
Natalie Abraham is an attorney and a recent convert to Islam. She wrote this article using a pen name.

http://www.altmuslimah.com/a/b/mca/4542/