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(The author of this article is the Editor in Chief of Al-Balaagh, a bi-monthly published from Lenasia, South Africa. He is a widely known Muslim scholar, writer, author, and journalist. In August 2001 he received an Award of Honor for his 50 years of extraordinary service in the cause of Islam. He has written more than 30,000 letters in 50 years at the rate of 3 to 5 letters a night - to various people around the world, answering their queries, or thanking them for something).
You have seen the 'CASPER THE GHOST', or Ku Klux Klan or NINJA type of picture of a Muslim woman. There are Muslim women-the Mujaahideen women in Iran with rifles in hand who do not wear the NINJA type of dress. To the NINJA dressed Muslim woman her face is more important; to the others giving their lives for Islam is paramount! These brave ladies are emulating their sisters during the battles in our Nabi's (SAS) time-who carried water to the wounded and dying, pulled out arrows from the bodies of the fallen, nursed them, and even fought against the enemies! And they didn't cover their faces like the Ninjas or Ku Klux Klan! -Nor did the Prophet (SAS) ever asked them to do so!
The practice of covering the face completely except for the eyes originated in Zoroastrian Persia of old where the patrician (aristocratic) women wore the purdah in order to distinguish themselves from the plebeian (of lower social class) women. This Zoroastrian CUSTOM has NOTHING whatsoever to do with the Shari'ah of Islam!
POSSIBILITY
Let us visualize the ludicrous situation to which purdah can lend itself. Here's a profitable possibility that can be merrily exploited by the ever-scheming "stronger sex": A man can freely, joyfully, and with perfect composure and relaxation, associate with his paramour by donning the purdah (burqa) and going out with her everywhere in public, undetected and with impunity. He can triumphantly thumb his nose at society from inside the purdah, because NOBODY can lift the veil on his surreptitious escapade!
The public will not bat an eyelid, never suspect, and take it for granted that two WOMEN wearing the purdah are going about their normal, legitimate business. But the man hidden in the fortress of the purdah has other "business" in mind!
THE PURDAH
One more point: Covering the countenance will frustrate man's desire to look at a woman's face. But what about the WOMAN wearing the purdah? SHE can ogle at men from behind the veil! What's there to restrain HER from nibbling at men with her eyes? Where, then is the meaning or significance of purdah?
TRUE purdah is of the heart, the eyes, and thoughts! A woman may cover her face, but her heart is evil, and her tongue full of malicious FITNAH and GOSSIP! (And do not forget that VEIL is the anagram of EVIL!!) What, the, is the use of covering the face? Our Nabi (SAS) maintained most emphatically that: "Verily, Allah does NOT look at your faces (whether veiled, unveiled, bearded or clean-shaven), nor at your wealth; but HE certainly looks at your HEARTS (how clean they are!) and at your DEEDS!"
ZOROASTRIANS
When Persia was conquered by Muslims, and the Zoroastrians (Fire-worshippers) accepted Islam, they brought their mores and customs into Islam-just as when the Hindus of India became Muslims, they incorporated all their Hindu traditions into Islam, e.g. observing "Chaaleeswa" (40 days) after someone dies, etc.
Instead of forcing women to cover their faces, the mullahs should embark on a concerted campaign to compel MEN to wear purdah!! This is because it is the men who mostly harbor evil thoughts. Women have much more cleaner minds than men. Some men are the real rascals! In spite of all the external paraphernalia of "piety"-topi, beard, that long, maxi, woman's kurta, tasbeeh in hand, etc., - Muslims KNOW a number of them to be involved in wicked operations (secret merchants of hard porn, hijacking trucks, stealing containers, etc.,) And yet the mullahs want to slap the Taliban-type of purdah on the poor, innocent women!
SUPINE
It is about time that the oppressed woman of Islam shattered the shackles of male oppression and released herself from the enervating bondage imposed on her by the mullahs! She must emulate her Lucknow sisters and send out a clear, unmistakable message, and programme of things to come.
For centuries the Muslim woman has lain supine. NOW is the time for her to stand UP and say: "Enough is enough!" She must recalcitrantly refuse to take things LYING DOWN… and assiduously assert the rights vouchsafed to her by Allah (SWT) and Rasool (SAS). The time for "sweet talk" is long over. The time for ACTION has now come!
Women of Islam, UNITE! You have NOTHING to lose except your chains! And Allah (SWT) and Rasool (SAS) will most certainly help you BREAK those chains, Insha'Allah.
It may or may not be nearer the truth, but a wise man has sagaciously suggested that only TWO types of women could possibly wear this ridiculous, preposterous, risibility-tickling, alien-looking Ninja-purdah: "The very OLD, and the very UGLY."
Courtesy, AL-BALAAGH of South Africa, p. 7, NOV/DEC 1997
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Backbiting
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Definition of Gheebah (Backbiting)
A backbiter is called Mughtaab. Gheebah is to talk about your brother/sister in such a manner that he/she would dislike it if told about it. Whether you talk about a physical defect, lineage, manners, conduct, faith or even his clothes, house or mode of transportation - all those constitute Gheebah. With reference to a person's body, it could be stated that he is bald, short, tall, black, yellow, or giving any physical description the person does not like. In regards to family tree, it could include stating that his father is a Bedouin, a garbage collector, cobbler, or anything that he may dislike. In regards to manners and conduct, it could include stating that he has bad manners, is stingy, arrogant, a coward, is weak-hearted, irresponsible or the like. In regards to his deeds associated with religion, it could include statements such as he is a thief, a liar, drunkard, treacherous, an oppressor, careless about Salah or Zakah, saying he doesn't perfect his Ruku' or Sujood, he is not careful about avoiding Najasah (impurities), isn't dutiful to his parents or he doesn't pay Zakah to the right persons, doesn't distribute Zakah correctly, or he doesn't guard his Sawm (fasting) from obscenity, backbiting, or talking ill about others. In regards to his deeds associated with daily living, it could include statements such as he has no manners with people, he talks too much, he always sleeps even when it is not time to sleep, or he sits where he shouldn't. Gheebah statements about someone's clothing could include statements such as his sleeve is wide, his thobe (shirt) is long, or that his clothes are dirty.
The Prophet (pbuh) defined backbiting when he said: "Do you know what is meant by backbiting?" They said, "Allah and His Messenger know best." He said, "To say something about your brother which he dislikes." One asked, "Even if what I say is true about my brother?" He replied, "If such defects you say are true about him, then you have backbitten him, and if he doesn't have what you say, then you have committed slander against him." (Related by Muslim, Abu Dawood, and Tirmidhi)
Hence, it is not allowed to talk about somebody in his/her absence, even if what was narrated was true. If it was not true, then it would be a bigger sin and it is called Buhtan (false accusation).
Talking about someone else's fault - even in the absence of that person - with the intention of saving someone from that person's harm or of getting someone's help in correcting these faults or of recording one's grievances with the authorities or of any other imaginable positive reason to discuss such faults, should not be considered as Gheebah.
It is important to note that to find other's faults or to talk sarcastically or to defame a person is called 'Lumz'. In the Qur'an, Allah states: "Do not defame one another." (Surah Al-Hujurat, 49:11)
It means that when you find faults in others, they will turn around and find faults in you.
The beauty of this wording of the Qur'an is that it says that finding faults in others is like finding faults in you.
Just like Allah states: "Do not kill yourself." Hence, if you kill others, they will try to kill you. Allah also says in the Qur'an: "Woe to every slanderer and back-biter!" (Surah Al-Humazah, 104: 1)
Allah (SWT) made it clear that defaming another Muslim in his/her absence is like eating the flesh of one's dead brother (49:12), which obviously, everybody hates. Hence, it is the most dreadful sin. Note that if the person is present, he/she may have a chance to defend himself/herself, although everybody does not have the courage to defend themselves in these circumstances. If, however, he/she is defamed in his/her absence, the damage is deep and somewhat permanent.
The tongue alone does not do backbiting; it can also be done with the eyes, hands and other movements. For example, imitating somebody who is limping, in order to insult him/her.
Muhammad Rasool Allah (SAS) said: " Backbiting is a worse sin than adultery." It is further explained in a saying of the Prophet (SAS), narrated by Abu Sa'eed and Jubair in Bayhaqi: "Allah may forgive a person if he/she repents after committing adultery. However, Allah will not forgive the one who backbites, till his/her victim forgives him/her."
One time, the Messenger of Allah pointed towards two graves and said to his companions that both of these people are being punished in their graves. One of them used to backbite people and the other was not careful about spilling drops of urine of his clothes and body whilst urinating.
The Prophet (SAS) during his Me’raj journey saw some people who had nails made of red copper. They were tearing apart their faces and chests with these nails. The Noble Prophet asked the Angel Jibrail (AS) about them, He said, “They are being punished because they used to eat people’s flesh in their lives, i.e. used to backbite and defame others.
Abu Hurayra (RA) narrates that the Noble Prophet (SAS) said, “The killing of a Muslim by another unjustly, usurping others’ wealth or defaming other Muslims is totally forbidden (or Haram).” (Sahih Muslim)
Note that listening to backbiting is the same as backbiting somebody. It is better to walk away from such individuals.
Backbiting violates the rights of Allah and the rights of people simultaneously. Hence, it is necessary to ask for forgiveness from the victim first, since Allah will not forgive until the victim forgives. If the victim has died or is untraceable, then ransom has to be paid. Anas (RA) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (SAS) said, “The ransom for backbiting is to pray to Allah for forgiveness by saying, “ O Allah! Forgive my sins and his too.”
Making Fun
Backbiting (Gheebah) can even be making fun of a person. The Prophet (SAS) vigorously opposed all aspects of backbiting even when it occurred in his own family. For example, once a woman visited Hadrat Aishah (RAa) and when the woman got up to leave, Hadrat Aishah Siddiqua (RAa) made a sign with her hand indicating to the Prophet (SAS) that the woman was short of stature. The Prophet (SAS) immediately chastised her, saying, "You have backbitten!" (Tirmidhi)
Imam Al- Nawawi, a great scholar, commented regarding the above Hadith saying, "This Hadith is paramount with regard to backbiting and I don't know anything more severe than this."
Nameemah (Tale carrying)
Nameemah is the use of speech by people against each other, wishing to cause corruption. ALLAH says in regard to this matter:
"...Neither backbite one another. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? You would hate it [so hate backbiting]" (Surah Hujurat, 49:12)
The Prophet (SAS) has clearly stated, "The gossip-monger will not enter paradise" (Bukhari, Muslim). Further, when the sin is injurious to others, Islam does not distinguish between a Muslim and a non-Muslim victim. The Muslim scholars generally consider backbiting of a non-Muslim unlawful. Defamation, therefore is a crime punishable by the courts in addition to being a matter of reckoning in the hereafter...
Guarding the Tongue
"And follow not that of which you have no knowledge. Verily! The hearing, and the sight, and the heart of each of those ones will be questioned." (17:36)
"Read! In the Name of your Lord Who has created. He has created man from a clot. Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous. Who has taught by the pen. He has taught man that which he knew not." (96:1-5)
It is well known that whoever guards his/her tongue will make fewer mistakes. He will be in control of himself and avoid from falling into something wrong. The Prophet (pbuh) guaranteed Paradise for one who guards his/her mouth. He is reported to have said:
"Whoever gives me surety to safeguard what is between his jaws and what is between his legs, I guarantee for him (entrance into) Paradise." [What is between one's jaws is the Lisan (tongue); and what is between the legs is the Farj (private parts)]."
Imam Nawawi said, "Be aware that it is incumbent upon every Mukallaf (competent person in full possession of his faculties) to guard his tongue against all kinds of talking except when it is evident that talking will be a means of beneficence. When talking and being quiet are both equal as a prudent measure, and then the Sunnah is to abstain from talking. Sometimes even a lawful talking may lead to unlawful or distasteful matters. This is a common practice, but there is nothing equivalent to safety." If your tongue is right and straight then the extremities will be straight. But if your tongue disobeys and indulges in the private affairs and honor of people, then the extremities will disobey and Allah's prohibitions will be violated. The Prophet (pbuh) is reported to have said:
"When the son of Adam gets up in the morning, all parts of his body deny the tongue saying, 'Fear Allah regarding us, we follow you. If you are right we shall also be right, and if you go astray, we shall also go astray.'" Nawawi said that denying the tongue means to humiliate and submit. Al-Albani said, "It means that the members consider the tongue as the one denying the favors."
The tongue is a great gift from Allah (SWT) and a marvelous creation. The size may be small, but its capacity to obey or disobey can be great. The Kufr (disbelief) can't be distinguished from Iman (faith) except through the testimony of the tongue. Iman and Kufr are the ultimate capacity to obey or disobey. The tongue has a very broad range of functions. It has a large measure of good that can be performed and a large measure of evil that can be inflicted. If one let go one's tongue, Shaytaan will take him everywhere and lead him to an edge, then allow him to fall for his own downfall. The only way to be saved from the evils of the tongue is to restrain it with the bridle of the Shari'ah (Islamic law). It should be used, but only for what is beneficial in this life and the Hereafter.
Indeed the tongue controls the rest of your body. A well-controlled tongue will keep us within Islam but a loose tongue will destroy us. Instead of swearing, lying and engaging in useless talk we can use our tongues in better ways and what better than telling people about Islam. Allah says "Who is better in speech than one who calls (men) to Allah and works righteousness and says I am one of those who bow down in Islam" (41:33)
Shaikh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah
Shaikh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah bless his soul, said: "It is strange that a person may find it easy to protect himself from eating Haraam, oppression and injustice, adultery, theft, drinking Khamr, and from unlawful looking, but it is hard for him to restrain the movement of his tongue. How often do we see people who are very cautious about falling into shameful deeds or injustice, but their tongue lashes against the living and the dead and they don't mind it."? He further said: "Some people have the disease of criticizing all the time. They forget the good about others and only mention their faults. They are like flies that avoid the good and pure places and land on the bad places and on wounds. This is because of the evil within the self and the spoiled nature."
Prohibition of Gheebah
Allah has said:
"And spy not, neither backbite against one another. Would any of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? You would hate it (so hate backbiting). And fear Allah. Verily Allah is the One Who accepts repentance, Most Merciful." (49:12)
"And follow not that of which you have no knowledge. Verily! The hearing, and the sight, and the heart of each of those ones will be questioned." (17:36)
"Not a word does he (or she) utter, but there is watcher by him ready (to record it)." (50:18)
It was narrated by Abu Musa: "Some people asked Allah's Messenger (pbuh) whose Islam is the best?" (i.e., who is a very good Muslim?) The Prophet (SAS) replied, "One who avoids harming the Muslims with his tongues and hands." He is also reported to have said, "Whosoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, should talk what is good or keep quiet. Sometimes a person may utter a word to which he attaches no importance and by it he falls into Hell farther than the distance between the East and West."
"And the person may utter a word which displeases Allah without thinking how serious it is, as a result of which Allah will record His wrath for him, because of His displeasure until the Day when he meets Him." (Related by Mu'atta Imam Malik and Tirmidhi).
'Uqbah Bin 'Aamer asked, "O Allah's Messenger (pbuh), what is salvation?" He said: "Control your tongue, keep inside your house, and weep for your sins." (Related by Tirmidhi)
In one Hadith, Allah's Messenger (pbuh) took hold of his tongue and then said, "Keep this under control." When the Sahaba asked, "will we be called to account for what we say?" He replied, "Won't the people be thrown face down into Hell on account of the produce of their tongues." (Related by Tirmidhi).
Now let us see the punishment of the person that backbites in this life and the Hereafter. The Prophet (pbuh) said: "O you people who believe with their tongues (meaning those who pay lip-service to faith), when faith has not entered their hearts, do not backbite the Muslims and do not expose their faults. Whoever exposes the faults of his Muslim brother, Allah will expose his faults. And if Allah exposes his faults, his faults will be open for everyone even if he would hide inside his house." (Related by Ahmad, Abu Dawood and Tirmidhi). Backbiting is prohibited by Ijmaa' (consensus). Imam Qurtubi said, "The Ijmaa' is that Gheebah is a major sin and it necessitates repentance, it is Wajib (obligatory) to turn to Allah in repentance from it."
Backbiting by writing
Gheebah can also be through writing, for the pen is one of two tongues. This is the case when the person tells the truth about others. It is Gheebah and he is Mughtaab, a backbiter. By doing this he disobeys his Lord and he eats the flesh of his brother. But if he is lying then he combines Gheebah and Kidhib (lying).
"When people mention others they may commit one of these three: Gheebah, Buhtan and Ifk, and all are in the Book of Allah. Gheebah is to say what is true about a person. Buhtan is to say what is not true about a person. And Ifk is to say what was conveyed to you." Allah's Messenger (pbuh) said: "All things belonging to a Muslim are unlawful for another Muslim: his blood, his property and his honor." (Muslim, Ahmad and Bayhaqi) Gheebah deals with honor and Allah has combined honor with property and blood.
Types of Gheebah
Gheebah has different forms and may take all kinds of means. The worst type of Gheebah is the one that combines gossip and riyaa'. An example would be when some person is mentioned and a man would say: "Al-hamdu lillah that He didn't try us, we would have been tempted to enter the doors of the sultan, or that we don't demean ourselves in seeking the ruins of this world." Or one may say, "I seek refuge with Allah from shamelessness. I ask Allah to protect me from such." The intention here is to criticize the other person and it is done in the form of a Du'a (supplication).
One may also praise another person but the intent is to criticize, such as saying: "How good such-and-such person is, he never had a shortcoming in his worship but now he is being lazy. He was tried with something everyone of us is tried with, which is lack of patience." One would criticize oneself but his/her intention is to criticize others by doing this. At the same time he praises himself by showing that he is righteous since he criticizes himself. In this case, he is Mughtaab, Muraa'ee and praising himself. He combines three shameful deeds and because of his ignorance he thinks that he is a righteous person who would not make Gheebah.
Another form of Gheebah is that one criticizes another person, but the people don't pay attention to what has been said. So he says, "Subhaan Allah. How amazing!..." so the people may listen to him and know what he is saying. Or he may say, "I was hurt to hear about our friend and how he was humiliated. I ask Allah to relieve him." He is actually lying about his concern regarding the friend, in his pretense of making Du'a. If he meant to pray for him, he would have prayed for him while alone.
The Motives for Gheebah
There may be numerous reasons to motivate one to make Gheebah. The following examples are among these reasons:
1. Lack of fear of Allah. Whoever feels the greatness of Allah and acknowledges that Allah is watching all his deeds and utterances, he would avoid anything that may displease Allah.
2. Getting things off one's chest. A person may do something to upset another. Every time the aggrieved person feels angry about it, he alleviates the anxiety by making Gheebah about the other person.
3. Joining a group of friends. When a group is engaged in a loose talk aimed at slandering others, a person may think that if he speaks out and tries to stop them they may dislike him and exclude him. So, he joins them in talking ill about others, assuring that this is the only way to be acceptable to them.
4. Seeking to raise one's own status by putting down others. A person may say: "So-and-so person is ignorant, he is not smart." The intention is to praise oneself and show that he has more knowledge than the other person.
5. Envy and jealousy. Some person may be praised by people who like him. A jealous person may hear them and make Gheebah of the other person, criticizing and insulting him, so that the people may think differently about the person they have just praised.
Types of Permissible Gheebah
Gheebah is permissible for a sound religious purpose that cannot be achieved except by using it. These permissible types of Gheebah are as follows:
1. Complaint because of an injustice, such as complaining to a ruler, judge or others in authority. A person may say in this case: "I was treated unjustly by so-and-so in such and such matter."
2. Seeking help to change a Munkar (wrong deed) and to correct the wrongdoers. A person may say: "A person does such and such, so stop him." His intention should be to check the Munkar. If this is not the case, then the statement is Haraam.
3. Seeking a Fatwa. A person may state to the Imam, Mufti or Shaikh, "My father, brother or so-and-so has treated me unfairly. Is that act permissible? And how do I get out of this situation? How do I obtain my rights?" This way of seeking a Fatwa is permissible. However, it is safer and more preferable to say whatever would be said about a non-specific person as doing such and such, as anonymously as possible.
4. Warning Muslims against evil and advising them. This could include criticism of untrustworthy narrators or witnesses. This is permissible by Ijmaa', rather it is mandatory and the benefit is very clear. Such as consulting in the matters of marriage or a business partnership. In this case, the person consulted should not hide anything about the concerned person. He should mention the faulty qualities only with the intention of benefiting the consultant.
5. Mentioning the person who indulges in Haraam or Bid'ah openly. This would include mentioning those who openly drink Khamr or those in positions of authority doing wrong. It is permissible to mention the sin of such a person. However, it is prohibited to mention the person with a different sin unless there is a reason that makes it permissible to do so for that sin.
6. Identifying a person. If a person is known by a descriptive nickname, such as Al-A'mash (squint-eyed), Al-A'raj (one who walks with a limp), or Al-Asamm (deaf), then it is permissible to use these names for identification purposes. But it is not permitted to use these names if the intention is to insult the person. If it is possible to identify such person by using another descriptive name, then it is better and preferable.
Kaffarah (Expiation) of Gheebah
Committing Gheebah is forbidden by the Ijmaa' of the scholars, and considered a major sin. Scholars differ in the Kaffarah of the Mughtaab (backbiter), but they all agree that he/she must make Tawbah as the first step. Repentance itself has three conditions: refraining from the sin, regret for the commission of the sin, and determination not to commit it ever again. Repentance from Gheebah, however, has an additional condition, a fourth one because the Mughtaab has actually committed two offenses:
1. One offense is towards Allah (because he committed an act which Allah has prohibited). The expiation is to turn to Allah in repentance and to regret what has been done.
2. The other one is against Allah's creatures. If the Gheebah has reached the person, then forgiveness must be sought from him and regret must be expressed to him for what has been said. But if the Gheebah didn't reach the person, then he should pray for the person's forgiveness and not tell him something he didn't know anyway, fearing that some evil may result from telling him.
The Cure for Gheebah
The Prophet (pbuh) is reported to have said: "Do you know who is bankrupt?" The Companions replied, 'The bankrupt amongst us is the person who has no money or property." The Prophet (pbuh) said, "The bankrupt from amongst my Ummah is the one who will come on the Day of Resurrection with a good record of Salah, Sawm and Zakah. But he also had cursed someone, slandered against someone, unlawfully took the property of another, killed someone or beat someone. Then all of these abused persons will receive parts of his (abuser's) Hasanaat. When all of his (abuser's) Hasanaat have been removed from his record after he (abuser) pays back for what he owes, then the aggrieved persons' sins will be transferred to and thrown on him (abuser) and he (abuser) will be thrown into the Fire." (Related by Muslim and Tirmidhi)
The Virtue of Opposing Gheebah
It is the right of a Muslim to speak up and oppose Gheebah made against his brother Muslim. He should protect his brother's honor and defend his reputation in his absence. Should a person fall short in fulfilling this right, he will be punished sooner or later. To defend your brother against Gheebah is not something minor. There are clear and sound Daleels (evidence) that tell us of the virtue of one who fulfills this obligation. Asmaa' Bint Yazeed said that Allah's Messenger (pbuh) said: "Whoever defends the honor of his brother in his absence, will be entitled to Allah's protection from the Fire." (Related by Ahmad) The Prophet (pbuh) is also reported to have said: "Whoever defends the honor of his brother, Allah will protect his face from the Fire on the Day of Resurrection." (Related by Ahmad and Tirmidhi)
The person who listens to Gheebah is also a sinner unless he opposes with his tongue or with his heart if he fears harm. If he can leave the gathering or interrupt and change the subject, then he should do so. If he says to the Mughtaab, 'be quiet' but he relishes the gossip in his heart, then such is hypocrisy. He will not be excused unless he rejects the gossip with his heart. One should take it seriously and defend his brethren quite explicitly. The Prophet (pbuh) is reported to have said: "Whoever witnesses the humiliation of a believer and doesn't support him while being capable of supporting him, Allah will humiliate him before all the creatures (on the Day of Judgment)." (Related by Ahmad). Let not the Mughtaab pollute your gatherings and dishonor the Muslims. You should defend the honor of the Muslims. If you do not do so, you may be absent one day and this Mughtaab will be eating of your flesh and you may not find anyone protecting your honor.
JOKING
"I was only joking". We treat lies as being trivial. However we are told, "Allah's messenger did not hate anything more than lying"(Ahmed). The Prophet (SAS) was once asked "Can a Muslim be a coward?" He (SAS) replied "Yes." and then was asked "Can a Muslim be a miser?" and the reply was "Yes." The Prophet (SAS) was then asked, "Can a Muslim be a liar?" The Prophet (SAS) replied "NO! A Muslim can never be a liar". Furthermore, he said, "Truth leads to virtue and virtue leads to paradise...Lying leads to wickedness and wickedness leads to the hellfire." (Bukhari). As we know that one lie leads to another ten lies, which lead to bad actions. Remember you can lie and think that you have got away with it but on the day of Judgement your hands, tongue and feet will bear testimony against you and tell the truth.
The Best Example
As we know that the best person to have ever lived is the Prophet Muhammad (SAS) and he is the best of example for mankind. If we follow him we can never go wrong. Áisha (RAa) the Prophet's wife described the Prophet's conduct as follows: "He was neither a obscene talker nor a user of bad words. He did not shout nor did he repay evil with evil. He used to forgive people and overlook their sins." (Tirmidhi). Final Advice: A beautiful saying of the Prophet (SAS) that will ensure the protection of our tongue. The Messenger of Allah (SAS) said: "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last day, LET HIM EITHER SPEAK GOOD OR KEEP SILENT"
REFERENCES
1. Article on "Suspicion, spying and backbiting" online at http://www.inter- islam.org/Prohibitions/Backbiting.html
2. Article on "BACKBITING" online at www.iad.org/islam/back.html
3. BACKBITING by Abdul Malik Al-Qasim Translated by Sami Ayoub and Mrs. Vivian Taylor Ayoub, DARUSSALAM Publishers & Distributors, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Definition of Gheebah (Backbiting)
A backbiter is called Mughtaab. Gheebah is to talk about your brother/sister in such a manner that he/she would dislike it if told about it. Whether you talk about a physical defect, lineage, manners, conduct, faith or even his clothes, house or mode of transportation - all those constitute Gheebah. With reference to a person's body, it could be stated that he is bald, short, tall, black, yellow, or giving any physical description the person does not like. In regards to family tree, it could include stating that his father is a Bedouin, a garbage collector, cobbler, or anything that he may dislike. In regards to manners and conduct, it could include stating that he has bad manners, is stingy, arrogant, a coward, is weak-hearted, irresponsible or the like. In regards to his deeds associated with religion, it could include statements such as he is a thief, a liar, drunkard, treacherous, an oppressor, careless about Salah or Zakah, saying he doesn't perfect his Ruku' or Sujood, he is not careful about avoiding Najasah (impurities), isn't dutiful to his parents or he doesn't pay Zakah to the right persons, doesn't distribute Zakah correctly, or he doesn't guard his Sawm (fasting) from obscenity, backbiting, or talking ill about others. In regards to his deeds associated with daily living, it could include statements such as he has no manners with people, he talks too much, he always sleeps even when it is not time to sleep, or he sits where he shouldn't. Gheebah statements about someone's clothing could include statements such as his sleeve is wide, his thobe (shirt) is long, or that his clothes are dirty.
The Prophet (pbuh) defined backbiting when he said: "Do you know what is meant by backbiting?" They said, "Allah and His Messenger know best." He said, "To say something about your brother which he dislikes." One asked, "Even if what I say is true about my brother?" He replied, "If such defects you say are true about him, then you have backbitten him, and if he doesn't have what you say, then you have committed slander against him." (Related by Muslim, Abu Dawood, and Tirmidhi)
Hence, it is not allowed to talk about somebody in his/her absence, even if what was narrated was true. If it was not true, then it would be a bigger sin and it is called Buhtan (false accusation).
Talking about someone else's fault - even in the absence of that person - with the intention of saving someone from that person's harm or of getting someone's help in correcting these faults or of recording one's grievances with the authorities or of any other imaginable positive reason to discuss such faults, should not be considered as Gheebah.
It is important to note that to find other's faults or to talk sarcastically or to defame a person is called 'Lumz'. In the Qur'an, Allah states: "Do not defame one another." (Surah Al-Hujurat, 49:11)
It means that when you find faults in others, they will turn around and find faults in you.
The beauty of this wording of the Qur'an is that it says that finding faults in others is like finding faults in you.
Just like Allah states: "Do not kill yourself." Hence, if you kill others, they will try to kill you. Allah also says in the Qur'an: "Woe to every slanderer and back-biter!" (Surah Al-Humazah, 104: 1)
Allah (SWT) made it clear that defaming another Muslim in his/her absence is like eating the flesh of one's dead brother (49:12), which obviously, everybody hates. Hence, it is the most dreadful sin. Note that if the person is present, he/she may have a chance to defend himself/herself, although everybody does not have the courage to defend themselves in these circumstances. If, however, he/she is defamed in his/her absence, the damage is deep and somewhat permanent.
The tongue alone does not do backbiting; it can also be done with the eyes, hands and other movements. For example, imitating somebody who is limping, in order to insult him/her.
Muhammad Rasool Allah (SAS) said: " Backbiting is a worse sin than adultery." It is further explained in a saying of the Prophet (SAS), narrated by Abu Sa'eed and Jubair in Bayhaqi: "Allah may forgive a person if he/she repents after committing adultery. However, Allah will not forgive the one who backbites, till his/her victim forgives him/her."
One time, the Messenger of Allah pointed towards two graves and said to his companions that both of these people are being punished in their graves. One of them used to backbite people and the other was not careful about spilling drops of urine of his clothes and body whilst urinating.
The Prophet (SAS) during his Me’raj journey saw some people who had nails made of red copper. They were tearing apart their faces and chests with these nails. The Noble Prophet asked the Angel Jibrail (AS) about them, He said, “They are being punished because they used to eat people’s flesh in their lives, i.e. used to backbite and defame others.
Abu Hurayra (RA) narrates that the Noble Prophet (SAS) said, “The killing of a Muslim by another unjustly, usurping others’ wealth or defaming other Muslims is totally forbidden (or Haram).” (Sahih Muslim)
Note that listening to backbiting is the same as backbiting somebody. It is better to walk away from such individuals.
Backbiting violates the rights of Allah and the rights of people simultaneously. Hence, it is necessary to ask for forgiveness from the victim first, since Allah will not forgive until the victim forgives. If the victim has died or is untraceable, then ransom has to be paid. Anas (RA) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (SAS) said, “The ransom for backbiting is to pray to Allah for forgiveness by saying, “ O Allah! Forgive my sins and his too.”
Making Fun
Backbiting (Gheebah) can even be making fun of a person. The Prophet (SAS) vigorously opposed all aspects of backbiting even when it occurred in his own family. For example, once a woman visited Hadrat Aishah (RAa) and when the woman got up to leave, Hadrat Aishah Siddiqua (RAa) made a sign with her hand indicating to the Prophet (SAS) that the woman was short of stature. The Prophet (SAS) immediately chastised her, saying, "You have backbitten!" (Tirmidhi)
Imam Al- Nawawi, a great scholar, commented regarding the above Hadith saying, "This Hadith is paramount with regard to backbiting and I don't know anything more severe than this."
Nameemah (Tale carrying)
Nameemah is the use of speech by people against each other, wishing to cause corruption. ALLAH says in regard to this matter:
"...Neither backbite one another. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? You would hate it [so hate backbiting]" (Surah Hujurat, 49:12)
The Prophet (SAS) has clearly stated, "The gossip-monger will not enter paradise" (Bukhari, Muslim). Further, when the sin is injurious to others, Islam does not distinguish between a Muslim and a non-Muslim victim. The Muslim scholars generally consider backbiting of a non-Muslim unlawful. Defamation, therefore is a crime punishable by the courts in addition to being a matter of reckoning in the hereafter...
Guarding the Tongue
"And follow not that of which you have no knowledge. Verily! The hearing, and the sight, and the heart of each of those ones will be questioned." (17:36)
"Read! In the Name of your Lord Who has created. He has created man from a clot. Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous. Who has taught by the pen. He has taught man that which he knew not." (96:1-5)
It is well known that whoever guards his/her tongue will make fewer mistakes. He will be in control of himself and avoid from falling into something wrong. The Prophet (pbuh) guaranteed Paradise for one who guards his/her mouth. He is reported to have said:
"Whoever gives me surety to safeguard what is between his jaws and what is between his legs, I guarantee for him (entrance into) Paradise." [What is between one's jaws is the Lisan (tongue); and what is between the legs is the Farj (private parts)]."
Imam Nawawi said, "Be aware that it is incumbent upon every Mukallaf (competent person in full possession of his faculties) to guard his tongue against all kinds of talking except when it is evident that talking will be a means of beneficence. When talking and being quiet are both equal as a prudent measure, and then the Sunnah is to abstain from talking. Sometimes even a lawful talking may lead to unlawful or distasteful matters. This is a common practice, but there is nothing equivalent to safety." If your tongue is right and straight then the extremities will be straight. But if your tongue disobeys and indulges in the private affairs and honor of people, then the extremities will disobey and Allah's prohibitions will be violated. The Prophet (pbuh) is reported to have said:
"When the son of Adam gets up in the morning, all parts of his body deny the tongue saying, 'Fear Allah regarding us, we follow you. If you are right we shall also be right, and if you go astray, we shall also go astray.'" Nawawi said that denying the tongue means to humiliate and submit. Al-Albani said, "It means that the members consider the tongue as the one denying the favors."
The tongue is a great gift from Allah (SWT) and a marvelous creation. The size may be small, but its capacity to obey or disobey can be great. The Kufr (disbelief) can't be distinguished from Iman (faith) except through the testimony of the tongue. Iman and Kufr are the ultimate capacity to obey or disobey. The tongue has a very broad range of functions. It has a large measure of good that can be performed and a large measure of evil that can be inflicted. If one let go one's tongue, Shaytaan will take him everywhere and lead him to an edge, then allow him to fall for his own downfall. The only way to be saved from the evils of the tongue is to restrain it with the bridle of the Shari'ah (Islamic law). It should be used, but only for what is beneficial in this life and the Hereafter.
Indeed the tongue controls the rest of your body. A well-controlled tongue will keep us within Islam but a loose tongue will destroy us. Instead of swearing, lying and engaging in useless talk we can use our tongues in better ways and what better than telling people about Islam. Allah says "Who is better in speech than one who calls (men) to Allah and works righteousness and says I am one of those who bow down in Islam" (41:33)
Shaikh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah
Shaikh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah bless his soul, said: "It is strange that a person may find it easy to protect himself from eating Haraam, oppression and injustice, adultery, theft, drinking Khamr, and from unlawful looking, but it is hard for him to restrain the movement of his tongue. How often do we see people who are very cautious about falling into shameful deeds or injustice, but their tongue lashes against the living and the dead and they don't mind it."? He further said: "Some people have the disease of criticizing all the time. They forget the good about others and only mention their faults. They are like flies that avoid the good and pure places and land on the bad places and on wounds. This is because of the evil within the self and the spoiled nature."
Prohibition of Gheebah
Allah has said:
"And spy not, neither backbite against one another. Would any of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? You would hate it (so hate backbiting). And fear Allah. Verily Allah is the One Who accepts repentance, Most Merciful." (49:12)
"And follow not that of which you have no knowledge. Verily! The hearing, and the sight, and the heart of each of those ones will be questioned." (17:36)
"Not a word does he (or she) utter, but there is watcher by him ready (to record it)." (50:18)
It was narrated by Abu Musa: "Some people asked Allah's Messenger (pbuh) whose Islam is the best?" (i.e., who is a very good Muslim?) The Prophet (SAS) replied, "One who avoids harming the Muslims with his tongues and hands." He is also reported to have said, "Whosoever believes in Allah and the Last Day, should talk what is good or keep quiet. Sometimes a person may utter a word to which he attaches no importance and by it he falls into Hell farther than the distance between the East and West."
"And the person may utter a word which displeases Allah without thinking how serious it is, as a result of which Allah will record His wrath for him, because of His displeasure until the Day when he meets Him." (Related by Mu'atta Imam Malik and Tirmidhi).
'Uqbah Bin 'Aamer asked, "O Allah's Messenger (pbuh), what is salvation?" He said: "Control your tongue, keep inside your house, and weep for your sins." (Related by Tirmidhi)
In one Hadith, Allah's Messenger (pbuh) took hold of his tongue and then said, "Keep this under control." When the Sahaba asked, "will we be called to account for what we say?" He replied, "Won't the people be thrown face down into Hell on account of the produce of their tongues." (Related by Tirmidhi).
Now let us see the punishment of the person that backbites in this life and the Hereafter. The Prophet (pbuh) said: "O you people who believe with their tongues (meaning those who pay lip-service to faith), when faith has not entered their hearts, do not backbite the Muslims and do not expose their faults. Whoever exposes the faults of his Muslim brother, Allah will expose his faults. And if Allah exposes his faults, his faults will be open for everyone even if he would hide inside his house." (Related by Ahmad, Abu Dawood and Tirmidhi). Backbiting is prohibited by Ijmaa' (consensus). Imam Qurtubi said, "The Ijmaa' is that Gheebah is a major sin and it necessitates repentance, it is Wajib (obligatory) to turn to Allah in repentance from it."
Backbiting by writing
Gheebah can also be through writing, for the pen is one of two tongues. This is the case when the person tells the truth about others. It is Gheebah and he is Mughtaab, a backbiter. By doing this he disobeys his Lord and he eats the flesh of his brother. But if he is lying then he combines Gheebah and Kidhib (lying).
"When people mention others they may commit one of these three: Gheebah, Buhtan and Ifk, and all are in the Book of Allah. Gheebah is to say what is true about a person. Buhtan is to say what is not true about a person. And Ifk is to say what was conveyed to you." Allah's Messenger (pbuh) said: "All things belonging to a Muslim are unlawful for another Muslim: his blood, his property and his honor." (Muslim, Ahmad and Bayhaqi) Gheebah deals with honor and Allah has combined honor with property and blood.
Types of Gheebah
Gheebah has different forms and may take all kinds of means. The worst type of Gheebah is the one that combines gossip and riyaa'. An example would be when some person is mentioned and a man would say: "Al-hamdu lillah that He didn't try us, we would have been tempted to enter the doors of the sultan, or that we don't demean ourselves in seeking the ruins of this world." Or one may say, "I seek refuge with Allah from shamelessness. I ask Allah to protect me from such." The intention here is to criticize the other person and it is done in the form of a Du'a (supplication).
One may also praise another person but the intent is to criticize, such as saying: "How good such-and-such person is, he never had a shortcoming in his worship but now he is being lazy. He was tried with something everyone of us is tried with, which is lack of patience." One would criticize oneself but his/her intention is to criticize others by doing this. At the same time he praises himself by showing that he is righteous since he criticizes himself. In this case, he is Mughtaab, Muraa'ee and praising himself. He combines three shameful deeds and because of his ignorance he thinks that he is a righteous person who would not make Gheebah.
Another form of Gheebah is that one criticizes another person, but the people don't pay attention to what has been said. So he says, "Subhaan Allah. How amazing!..." so the people may listen to him and know what he is saying. Or he may say, "I was hurt to hear about our friend and how he was humiliated. I ask Allah to relieve him." He is actually lying about his concern regarding the friend, in his pretense of making Du'a. If he meant to pray for him, he would have prayed for him while alone.
The Motives for Gheebah
There may be numerous reasons to motivate one to make Gheebah. The following examples are among these reasons:
1. Lack of fear of Allah. Whoever feels the greatness of Allah and acknowledges that Allah is watching all his deeds and utterances, he would avoid anything that may displease Allah.
2. Getting things off one's chest. A person may do something to upset another. Every time the aggrieved person feels angry about it, he alleviates the anxiety by making Gheebah about the other person.
3. Joining a group of friends. When a group is engaged in a loose talk aimed at slandering others, a person may think that if he speaks out and tries to stop them they may dislike him and exclude him. So, he joins them in talking ill about others, assuring that this is the only way to be acceptable to them.
4. Seeking to raise one's own status by putting down others. A person may say: "So-and-so person is ignorant, he is not smart." The intention is to praise oneself and show that he has more knowledge than the other person.
5. Envy and jealousy. Some person may be praised by people who like him. A jealous person may hear them and make Gheebah of the other person, criticizing and insulting him, so that the people may think differently about the person they have just praised.
Types of Permissible Gheebah
Gheebah is permissible for a sound religious purpose that cannot be achieved except by using it. These permissible types of Gheebah are as follows:
1. Complaint because of an injustice, such as complaining to a ruler, judge or others in authority. A person may say in this case: "I was treated unjustly by so-and-so in such and such matter."
2. Seeking help to change a Munkar (wrong deed) and to correct the wrongdoers. A person may say: "A person does such and such, so stop him." His intention should be to check the Munkar. If this is not the case, then the statement is Haraam.
3. Seeking a Fatwa. A person may state to the Imam, Mufti or Shaikh, "My father, brother or so-and-so has treated me unfairly. Is that act permissible? And how do I get out of this situation? How do I obtain my rights?" This way of seeking a Fatwa is permissible. However, it is safer and more preferable to say whatever would be said about a non-specific person as doing such and such, as anonymously as possible.
4. Warning Muslims against evil and advising them. This could include criticism of untrustworthy narrators or witnesses. This is permissible by Ijmaa', rather it is mandatory and the benefit is very clear. Such as consulting in the matters of marriage or a business partnership. In this case, the person consulted should not hide anything about the concerned person. He should mention the faulty qualities only with the intention of benefiting the consultant.
5. Mentioning the person who indulges in Haraam or Bid'ah openly. This would include mentioning those who openly drink Khamr or those in positions of authority doing wrong. It is permissible to mention the sin of such a person. However, it is prohibited to mention the person with a different sin unless there is a reason that makes it permissible to do so for that sin.
6. Identifying a person. If a person is known by a descriptive nickname, such as Al-A'mash (squint-eyed), Al-A'raj (one who walks with a limp), or Al-Asamm (deaf), then it is permissible to use these names for identification purposes. But it is not permitted to use these names if the intention is to insult the person. If it is possible to identify such person by using another descriptive name, then it is better and preferable.
Kaffarah (Expiation) of Gheebah
Committing Gheebah is forbidden by the Ijmaa' of the scholars, and considered a major sin. Scholars differ in the Kaffarah of the Mughtaab (backbiter), but they all agree that he/she must make Tawbah as the first step. Repentance itself has three conditions: refraining from the sin, regret for the commission of the sin, and determination not to commit it ever again. Repentance from Gheebah, however, has an additional condition, a fourth one because the Mughtaab has actually committed two offenses:
1. One offense is towards Allah (because he committed an act which Allah has prohibited). The expiation is to turn to Allah in repentance and to regret what has been done.
2. The other one is against Allah's creatures. If the Gheebah has reached the person, then forgiveness must be sought from him and regret must be expressed to him for what has been said. But if the Gheebah didn't reach the person, then he should pray for the person's forgiveness and not tell him something he didn't know anyway, fearing that some evil may result from telling him.
The Cure for Gheebah
The Prophet (pbuh) is reported to have said: "Do you know who is bankrupt?" The Companions replied, 'The bankrupt amongst us is the person who has no money or property." The Prophet (pbuh) said, "The bankrupt from amongst my Ummah is the one who will come on the Day of Resurrection with a good record of Salah, Sawm and Zakah. But he also had cursed someone, slandered against someone, unlawfully took the property of another, killed someone or beat someone. Then all of these abused persons will receive parts of his (abuser's) Hasanaat. When all of his (abuser's) Hasanaat have been removed from his record after he (abuser) pays back for what he owes, then the aggrieved persons' sins will be transferred to and thrown on him (abuser) and he (abuser) will be thrown into the Fire." (Related by Muslim and Tirmidhi)
The Virtue of Opposing Gheebah
It is the right of a Muslim to speak up and oppose Gheebah made against his brother Muslim. He should protect his brother's honor and defend his reputation in his absence. Should a person fall short in fulfilling this right, he will be punished sooner or later. To defend your brother against Gheebah is not something minor. There are clear and sound Daleels (evidence) that tell us of the virtue of one who fulfills this obligation. Asmaa' Bint Yazeed said that Allah's Messenger (pbuh) said: "Whoever defends the honor of his brother in his absence, will be entitled to Allah's protection from the Fire." (Related by Ahmad) The Prophet (pbuh) is also reported to have said: "Whoever defends the honor of his brother, Allah will protect his face from the Fire on the Day of Resurrection." (Related by Ahmad and Tirmidhi)
The person who listens to Gheebah is also a sinner unless he opposes with his tongue or with his heart if he fears harm. If he can leave the gathering or interrupt and change the subject, then he should do so. If he says to the Mughtaab, 'be quiet' but he relishes the gossip in his heart, then such is hypocrisy. He will not be excused unless he rejects the gossip with his heart. One should take it seriously and defend his brethren quite explicitly. The Prophet (pbuh) is reported to have said: "Whoever witnesses the humiliation of a believer and doesn't support him while being capable of supporting him, Allah will humiliate him before all the creatures (on the Day of Judgment)." (Related by Ahmad). Let not the Mughtaab pollute your gatherings and dishonor the Muslims. You should defend the honor of the Muslims. If you do not do so, you may be absent one day and this Mughtaab will be eating of your flesh and you may not find anyone protecting your honor.
JOKING
"I was only joking". We treat lies as being trivial. However we are told, "Allah's messenger did not hate anything more than lying"(Ahmed). The Prophet (SAS) was once asked "Can a Muslim be a coward?" He (SAS) replied "Yes." and then was asked "Can a Muslim be a miser?" and the reply was "Yes." The Prophet (SAS) was then asked, "Can a Muslim be a liar?" The Prophet (SAS) replied "NO! A Muslim can never be a liar". Furthermore, he said, "Truth leads to virtue and virtue leads to paradise...Lying leads to wickedness and wickedness leads to the hellfire." (Bukhari). As we know that one lie leads to another ten lies, which lead to bad actions. Remember you can lie and think that you have got away with it but on the day of Judgement your hands, tongue and feet will bear testimony against you and tell the truth.
The Best Example
As we know that the best person to have ever lived is the Prophet Muhammad (SAS) and he is the best of example for mankind. If we follow him we can never go wrong. Áisha (RAa) the Prophet's wife described the Prophet's conduct as follows: "He was neither a obscene talker nor a user of bad words. He did not shout nor did he repay evil with evil. He used to forgive people and overlook their sins." (Tirmidhi). Final Advice: A beautiful saying of the Prophet (SAS) that will ensure the protection of our tongue. The Messenger of Allah (SAS) said: "Whoever believes in Allah and the Last day, LET HIM EITHER SPEAK GOOD OR KEEP SILENT"
REFERENCES
1. Article on "Suspicion, spying and backbiting" online at http://www.inter- islam.org/Prohibitions/Backbiting.html
2. Article on "BACKBITING" online at www.iad.org/islam/back.html
3. BACKBITING by Abdul Malik Al-Qasim Translated by Sami Ayoub and Mrs. Vivian Taylor Ayoub, DARUSSALAM Publishers & Distributors, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The Islamic Approach to the Modern Sciences
www.doshiza.com
Introduction
The Qur'an is a book of guidance; among its several names is Kitab al-Hikmah or the Book of Wisdom. The verses of the Qur’an are called ayath (signs), just as are the phenomena of nature: both speak forth the presence and worship of Allah. We shall show them Our portents on the horizon and within themselves until it will be manifest unto them that it is the Truth (Qur'an, 41: 53). In over 1100 verses, the importance of thinking, reflecting and pondering on the signs (natural phenomena) of Allah is emphasized; among these are. 2: 230, 242; 6:97-8; 10:24,67; 13:3-4; 14:25; 16:11-13, 44. 67-9, 90; 20:54; 23:30; 26:8; 28:43; 29:44; 30:20-9; 37:55; 38:29 39:18,21,27,42; 45:3-5,13; 51:49; 59:21. The greatest gift of Allah to man is the ability to think which distinguishes him from all the animals on earth. The Qur’an declares that the universe and all that there is in it is created by Allah as a ‘sign’, a manifestation of His mercy, power and wisdom. It is also a manifestation of His bounty and goodness; for He has created things for man’s benefit. Mankind is enjoined to consider Allah's handiwork, to reflect on the wonders of His creation.
As man was created with an insatiable desire for knowledge, God made adequate arrangements for him to know the hidden secrets of the universe and taught him the nature and names of all things (2:31). Then all the powers and treasures of the heavens and the earth were made subject to him.
He has subjected to you, as from Him, all that is in the heavens and on the earth; Surely in that are signs for those who reflect. (45:13)
He has made subject to you the night and the day; the sun and the moon; and the stars
Are in subjection by His Command; Verily in this are signs for men of understanding. (16:12)
It is He who made the sea subject, that you may eat thereof flesh that is fresh and tender, and that you may extract there from ornaments to wear; and you see the ships thereon that plough the waves, that you seek (thus) of the bounty of God and that you may be grateful. (16:14)
Islam and science
In Islam there is no conflict of principle between science and religion. Both have always existed within man's innate nature without contradiction. Both are means of paying homage to God and worshipping Him who is the Lord and Sovereign of all. The desire to know the mysteries of the earth and the universe has existed in man from the beginning of his creation. Prophet Abraham exemplifies this (upon him be peace):
Behold! Abraham said: My Lord! Show me how Thou givest life to the dead. He (God) said: Dost thou not then believe? He said: Yes! But to satisfy my own understanding. (2:260)
The above verse clearly points to the truth that in a sound human nature there is no contradiction between these two innate tendencies, the desire to know and the desire to worship. Both help man to commit himself wholly to the worship of God and follow His Guidance. The quest for knowledge of the manifestations of God's Attributes in the universe leads to God-fearing:
Those truly fear God among His servants who have knowledge. (35: 28)
Just as worshipping God in hope and in fear is natural and human, so too the desire to know more about the world around us and to use its vast resources for the benefit of man is quite natural and human. In Islamic culture, it is a sin to separate and departmentalize science or knowledge and religion. Islamic culture rules the mosque and the school, the market and the laboratory, the home and the presidential office. The law-courts and the legislative assemblies, in short, every aspect of human life (Rahman. 1985. vol.1. p 254-310).
Man is endowed with mind, that is with intelligence or power of reasoning. The Qur’an has laid great emphasis on the proper development of this faculty, on the acquisition of knowledge through observation, experience, and meditation. A Divine injunction commands every Muslim, man and woman, to seek knowledge from the boundless and ever-revealing treasures of knowledge and truth in nature and in all God’s creation. The Qur’an also teaches man to find the 'truth’ and ‘reality’ of things through reasoning and argument, not through unquestioning acceptance of ancestral beliefs without substantiating evidence and argument. The Qur'an was the first book to demand proof in support of every ‘conventional truth’ or ‘historical legacy’, to ask ‘why’ it should he accepted. At the same time, it provides proof and evidence in support of its claims and contentions.
The method and style of reasoning of the Qur’an are quite different from those of philosophers and orators. This is because it is inviting people to believe and have faith in the Truth it has brought from God. A strong faith is essential for man to seek to do what is right consistently, because it is right, but such a strong faith cannot be achieved without reasoning and strong and convincing arguments. It is therefore necessary that natural and simple arguments be given that can satisfy and convince an ordinary man in the street and thereby strengthen his faith. This approach awakens human intellect from its slumber and leads it on to perceive and critically observe even’ phase of life and every phenomenon in nature (lslahi, 1978, pp. 101-117).
The Qur’an not only provides reasoning and arguments to prove its point but also develops the faculty of reasoning in man. This is because a total revolution in the individual and collective life of man cannot be brought about without fully awakening his faculties of thought. The Qur’an provides reasoning that prepares the ground for the creation of this wholesome thought in the heart and soul of man:
He bestows wisdom upon anyone He wills, and he who is given wisdom is in fact given abundant wealth, but only those who have common sense learn lessons from these things. (2: 269)
The Qur'an designates the whole world as the arena for human activity: this world is filled with a vast range of diverse objects created to challenge and be intelligible to the human faculties of thought, reflection, observation, which are, in turn, capable of discovering the deepest meaning and usefulness of the world. To understand the purposiveness of the created world, scientific and technological knowledge is imperative. The Qur’an, therefore, declares that the world is full of beauty and utility, and opens it up to human understanding, appreciation and use. If such a direction had not been given by the Qur’an with the clarity that it is, then the Divine design in the creation would not have been accomplished.
It is by Muslims who combined a passionate commitment to the absolute Transcendence and Oneness of God with a passionate dedication to the Divine Will, that the flame of science extinguished in Athens and Alexandria was rekindled. Science is not Divine revelation but it can provide a means to the betterment of mankind and to a better understanding of Allah’s creation and its purpose. Science is knowledge and Islam has laid great stress on acquisition of knowledge; the Qur’an enjoins God’s servants to beseech Him thus: O Lord! Increase
me in knowledge (20:114).
Also, God's Messenger, upon him be peace, encouraged, through his precept and practice, the spirit of investigation and analysis of facts. The Qur'an says that Allah has made the universe subservient to human capabilities:
And He has subjected to you, as from Him all that is in the heavens and on earth: Behold, in that are signs indeed for those who reflect. (45:13)
The ‘reflection’ here referred to is nothing different from the scientific spirit, which leads to understanding of and discoveries in the creation. In Islam, learning and searching for knowledge is a religious duty of every Muslim.The Qur’an appeals constantly to reason and experience and thus it pointed for the first time to the principle that science could be based on experiment as well as theory. The observable aspect of reality is emphasized by the Qur’an in several verses. One of these verses is:
Assuredly, in the creation of the heavens and of the earth; and in the alternation of night and day: and in the ships which pass through the sea; and in the rain which
God sends down from heaven, giving life to the earth after its death, and scattering over it all kinds of cattle: and in the change of the winds, and in the clouds that are made to do service between the heavens and the earth-are signs for those who understand.
(2: 164)
In another verse the Qur’an proclaims:
And it is He who has ordained the stars for you that you may be guided thereby in the darkness of the land and the sea. Clear have We made Our signs to men of knowledge. (6:95)
From over 1100 Qur’anic verses, and from the writings of numerous Eastern as well as Western scholars, it is evident that modern science owes its very existence to Islam. The new spirit of enquiry and the new methods of experiment, observation and measurement, on which modern science is based, are all contributions of those who followed the teachings of Islam.
Scientific achievements
Within a century after the death of the Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace, the Muslims not only conquered new lands, but also became scientific innovators with originality and productivity. The rise of Muslims to the zenith of civilization lasted over a thousand years. During this millennium Muslims contributed greatly to the enhancement of arts, sciences and cultural growth of mankind. At the apex of its glory around the tenth century, Cordoba, the capital of Muslim Spain, had pavements, street lighting, three hundred public baths, parks, palaces, one hundred thousand houses and seventy libraries. There were close to half a million books in a single library whereas the whole of France contained much less than this figure. By the ninth century, Islamic medical practice had advanced to hospitals with wards, doctors who had to pass tests, and the use of technical terminology. The then Baghdad General Hospital incorporated innovations which sound amazingly modern: the fountains cooled the air near the wards of those afflicted with fever, the insane were treated with gentleness; and at night the pain of the restless was soothed by soft music and storytelling. The prince and pauper received equal attention; the destitute upon discharge received five gold pieces to sustain them during convalescence. While Paris and London were places of mud streets and hovels, Baghdad, Cairo, and Cordoba had hospitals open to both male and female patients, staffed by attendants of both sexes. These medical centers had libraries, pharmacies, a system of interns, externs, and nurses. There were mobile clinics to reach the disabled, the disadvantaged and those in remote areas. There were regulations to maintain quality control on drugs. Pharmacists became licensed professionals and were pledged to follow the physician’s prescriptions. Legal measures were taken to prevent doctors from owning or holding stock in pharmacies. The extent to which Islamic medicine advanced in the fields of medical education, hospitals. bacteriology, medicine, anesthesia, surgery, pharmacology, ophthalmology, psychotherapy and psychosomatic disease would require several volumes to describe fully.
It is most important to note that the Muslims preserved the cultures of the conquered lands. The Islamic empire for more than 1000 years remained the most advanced and civilized society in the world. This is because Islam stressed the importance of and respect for learning, forbade destruction, and nurtured in Muslims the respect for authority and discipline, and tolerance for other religions. The Muslims recognized excellence and. hungering intellectually, were eager for the wisdom of the world of Galen, Hippocrates, Ptolemy. Dioscorides, Aristotle, and Paul of Aegina. By the tenth century their zeal and enthusiasm for learning resulted in all essential Greek writings being translated into Arabic in Damascus, Cairo, Baghdad. Arabic became the international language of learning and diplomacy. The center of scientific knowledge and activity shifted eastwards, and Baghdad emerged as the capital of the scientific world.
Islamic medicine is one of the most famous and best-known facets of Islamic civilization, and in which the Muslims most excelled: for example, they performed eye surgery 600 years earlier than in Europe. But they excelled in many other fields as well. For example, the Muslims used paper 200 years before Europe, invented spherical trigonometry in the late 10th century, solved equations of the third and fourth degree, binomials to the nth degree, and developed differential and integral mathematics. They discovered the force of gravitation, blood circulation, laws of motion, including planetary motion, and even developed the theory of evolution and taught it in their universities. They measured the circumference of the earth and value for specific gravities correct to three decimal places almost a thousand years ago. There is hardly a field of knowledge where Muslims did not research, think or investigate, explore or invent, something exemplary. And the greater part of these achievements were passed on to Europe, enabling its intellectual and cultural Renaissance, a historical reality now beginning to be widely acknowledged in the West.
The motivating factors
The zeal and enthusiasm to reach such a peak was the result of Islam's insistence on learning. The Qur'an itself is the greatest motivating factor in this regard: Islam is a rational religion. Repeatedly the Qur’an appeals to men to use their reason and especially their common sense in matters of religion. Historical experience goes to prove that a large measure of free thought is absolutely necessary to human progress, and at the same time those nations, which lose faith in God, deteriorate. To most modern Westerners religious commitment and free thought are incompatible. However, the experience and history of Muslims prove that they are perfectly compatible. In the early centuries of Islam, an intense faith in God was combined with free thought in every field of knowledge and endeavour; for Islam held nothing in human knowledge so sacred as to be immune from criticism. The Creator of the universe and the earth had bestowed on man the gift of reason, which is extolled by Muslim writers as the highest gift, to be used quite freely in the name of Allah - that is to say, with the purpose of pursuing what is good and eschewing what is evil, for which the sacred law affords guidance and safeguards. There is no priesthood in Islam, however the most wise and learned men became the natural leaders. As a matter of fact, scholars are described as ‘the heirs of the prophets’. (Syed, I.B., 2002)
The Qur’an asserts that those who have no knowledge are not equal to those who have it, and that those who do not observe and make sense of what they observe are worse than cattle. It also asserts that the meaning of revelation becomes clear to those who have knowledge and who have understanding, emphasizing that whosoever has been given knowledge has indeed been given an abundant good and that of all things, it is knowledge by which man is superior to angels and has been made vice-regent of God on earth.
References
Islahi, S.D. (1978) Call to Islam and How the Prophets Preached,
Islamic Publications, Lahore, pp.101-117.
Rahman, A. (1985) Encyclopedia of Seerah, Seerah Foundation, London, Vol.1
Syed, I.B. (2002) Intellectual Achievements of Muslims, Islamic Circle, Mauritius, Indian Ocean
Introduction
The Qur'an is a book of guidance; among its several names is Kitab al-Hikmah or the Book of Wisdom. The verses of the Qur’an are called ayath (signs), just as are the phenomena of nature: both speak forth the presence and worship of Allah. We shall show them Our portents on the horizon and within themselves until it will be manifest unto them that it is the Truth (Qur'an, 41: 53). In over 1100 verses, the importance of thinking, reflecting and pondering on the signs (natural phenomena) of Allah is emphasized; among these are. 2: 230, 242; 6:97-8; 10:24,67; 13:3-4; 14:25; 16:11-13, 44. 67-9, 90; 20:54; 23:30; 26:8; 28:43; 29:44; 30:20-9; 37:55; 38:29 39:18,21,27,42; 45:3-5,13; 51:49; 59:21. The greatest gift of Allah to man is the ability to think which distinguishes him from all the animals on earth. The Qur’an declares that the universe and all that there is in it is created by Allah as a ‘sign’, a manifestation of His mercy, power and wisdom. It is also a manifestation of His bounty and goodness; for He has created things for man’s benefit. Mankind is enjoined to consider Allah's handiwork, to reflect on the wonders of His creation.
As man was created with an insatiable desire for knowledge, God made adequate arrangements for him to know the hidden secrets of the universe and taught him the nature and names of all things (2:31). Then all the powers and treasures of the heavens and the earth were made subject to him.
He has subjected to you, as from Him, all that is in the heavens and on the earth; Surely in that are signs for those who reflect. (45:13)
He has made subject to you the night and the day; the sun and the moon; and the stars
Are in subjection by His Command; Verily in this are signs for men of understanding. (16:12)
It is He who made the sea subject, that you may eat thereof flesh that is fresh and tender, and that you may extract there from ornaments to wear; and you see the ships thereon that plough the waves, that you seek (thus) of the bounty of God and that you may be grateful. (16:14)
Islam and science
In Islam there is no conflict of principle between science and religion. Both have always existed within man's innate nature without contradiction. Both are means of paying homage to God and worshipping Him who is the Lord and Sovereign of all. The desire to know the mysteries of the earth and the universe has existed in man from the beginning of his creation. Prophet Abraham exemplifies this (upon him be peace):
Behold! Abraham said: My Lord! Show me how Thou givest life to the dead. He (God) said: Dost thou not then believe? He said: Yes! But to satisfy my own understanding. (2:260)
The above verse clearly points to the truth that in a sound human nature there is no contradiction between these two innate tendencies, the desire to know and the desire to worship. Both help man to commit himself wholly to the worship of God and follow His Guidance. The quest for knowledge of the manifestations of God's Attributes in the universe leads to God-fearing:
Those truly fear God among His servants who have knowledge. (35: 28)
Just as worshipping God in hope and in fear is natural and human, so too the desire to know more about the world around us and to use its vast resources for the benefit of man is quite natural and human. In Islamic culture, it is a sin to separate and departmentalize science or knowledge and religion. Islamic culture rules the mosque and the school, the market and the laboratory, the home and the presidential office. The law-courts and the legislative assemblies, in short, every aspect of human life (Rahman. 1985. vol.1. p 254-310).
Man is endowed with mind, that is with intelligence or power of reasoning. The Qur’an has laid great emphasis on the proper development of this faculty, on the acquisition of knowledge through observation, experience, and meditation. A Divine injunction commands every Muslim, man and woman, to seek knowledge from the boundless and ever-revealing treasures of knowledge and truth in nature and in all God’s creation. The Qur’an also teaches man to find the 'truth’ and ‘reality’ of things through reasoning and argument, not through unquestioning acceptance of ancestral beliefs without substantiating evidence and argument. The Qur'an was the first book to demand proof in support of every ‘conventional truth’ or ‘historical legacy’, to ask ‘why’ it should he accepted. At the same time, it provides proof and evidence in support of its claims and contentions.
The method and style of reasoning of the Qur’an are quite different from those of philosophers and orators. This is because it is inviting people to believe and have faith in the Truth it has brought from God. A strong faith is essential for man to seek to do what is right consistently, because it is right, but such a strong faith cannot be achieved without reasoning and strong and convincing arguments. It is therefore necessary that natural and simple arguments be given that can satisfy and convince an ordinary man in the street and thereby strengthen his faith. This approach awakens human intellect from its slumber and leads it on to perceive and critically observe even’ phase of life and every phenomenon in nature (lslahi, 1978, pp. 101-117).
The Qur’an not only provides reasoning and arguments to prove its point but also develops the faculty of reasoning in man. This is because a total revolution in the individual and collective life of man cannot be brought about without fully awakening his faculties of thought. The Qur’an provides reasoning that prepares the ground for the creation of this wholesome thought in the heart and soul of man:
He bestows wisdom upon anyone He wills, and he who is given wisdom is in fact given abundant wealth, but only those who have common sense learn lessons from these things. (2: 269)
The Qur'an designates the whole world as the arena for human activity: this world is filled with a vast range of diverse objects created to challenge and be intelligible to the human faculties of thought, reflection, observation, which are, in turn, capable of discovering the deepest meaning and usefulness of the world. To understand the purposiveness of the created world, scientific and technological knowledge is imperative. The Qur’an, therefore, declares that the world is full of beauty and utility, and opens it up to human understanding, appreciation and use. If such a direction had not been given by the Qur’an with the clarity that it is, then the Divine design in the creation would not have been accomplished.
It is by Muslims who combined a passionate commitment to the absolute Transcendence and Oneness of God with a passionate dedication to the Divine Will, that the flame of science extinguished in Athens and Alexandria was rekindled. Science is not Divine revelation but it can provide a means to the betterment of mankind and to a better understanding of Allah’s creation and its purpose. Science is knowledge and Islam has laid great stress on acquisition of knowledge; the Qur’an enjoins God’s servants to beseech Him thus: O Lord! Increase
me in knowledge (20:114).
Also, God's Messenger, upon him be peace, encouraged, through his precept and practice, the spirit of investigation and analysis of facts. The Qur'an says that Allah has made the universe subservient to human capabilities:
And He has subjected to you, as from Him all that is in the heavens and on earth: Behold, in that are signs indeed for those who reflect. (45:13)
The ‘reflection’ here referred to is nothing different from the scientific spirit, which leads to understanding of and discoveries in the creation. In Islam, learning and searching for knowledge is a religious duty of every Muslim.The Qur’an appeals constantly to reason and experience and thus it pointed for the first time to the principle that science could be based on experiment as well as theory. The observable aspect of reality is emphasized by the Qur’an in several verses. One of these verses is:
Assuredly, in the creation of the heavens and of the earth; and in the alternation of night and day: and in the ships which pass through the sea; and in the rain which
God sends down from heaven, giving life to the earth after its death, and scattering over it all kinds of cattle: and in the change of the winds, and in the clouds that are made to do service between the heavens and the earth-are signs for those who understand.
(2: 164)
In another verse the Qur’an proclaims:
And it is He who has ordained the stars for you that you may be guided thereby in the darkness of the land and the sea. Clear have We made Our signs to men of knowledge. (6:95)
From over 1100 Qur’anic verses, and from the writings of numerous Eastern as well as Western scholars, it is evident that modern science owes its very existence to Islam. The new spirit of enquiry and the new methods of experiment, observation and measurement, on which modern science is based, are all contributions of those who followed the teachings of Islam.
Scientific achievements
Within a century after the death of the Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace, the Muslims not only conquered new lands, but also became scientific innovators with originality and productivity. The rise of Muslims to the zenith of civilization lasted over a thousand years. During this millennium Muslims contributed greatly to the enhancement of arts, sciences and cultural growth of mankind. At the apex of its glory around the tenth century, Cordoba, the capital of Muslim Spain, had pavements, street lighting, three hundred public baths, parks, palaces, one hundred thousand houses and seventy libraries. There were close to half a million books in a single library whereas the whole of France contained much less than this figure. By the ninth century, Islamic medical practice had advanced to hospitals with wards, doctors who had to pass tests, and the use of technical terminology. The then Baghdad General Hospital incorporated innovations which sound amazingly modern: the fountains cooled the air near the wards of those afflicted with fever, the insane were treated with gentleness; and at night the pain of the restless was soothed by soft music and storytelling. The prince and pauper received equal attention; the destitute upon discharge received five gold pieces to sustain them during convalescence. While Paris and London were places of mud streets and hovels, Baghdad, Cairo, and Cordoba had hospitals open to both male and female patients, staffed by attendants of both sexes. These medical centers had libraries, pharmacies, a system of interns, externs, and nurses. There were mobile clinics to reach the disabled, the disadvantaged and those in remote areas. There were regulations to maintain quality control on drugs. Pharmacists became licensed professionals and were pledged to follow the physician’s prescriptions. Legal measures were taken to prevent doctors from owning or holding stock in pharmacies. The extent to which Islamic medicine advanced in the fields of medical education, hospitals. bacteriology, medicine, anesthesia, surgery, pharmacology, ophthalmology, psychotherapy and psychosomatic disease would require several volumes to describe fully.
It is most important to note that the Muslims preserved the cultures of the conquered lands. The Islamic empire for more than 1000 years remained the most advanced and civilized society in the world. This is because Islam stressed the importance of and respect for learning, forbade destruction, and nurtured in Muslims the respect for authority and discipline, and tolerance for other religions. The Muslims recognized excellence and. hungering intellectually, were eager for the wisdom of the world of Galen, Hippocrates, Ptolemy. Dioscorides, Aristotle, and Paul of Aegina. By the tenth century their zeal and enthusiasm for learning resulted in all essential Greek writings being translated into Arabic in Damascus, Cairo, Baghdad. Arabic became the international language of learning and diplomacy. The center of scientific knowledge and activity shifted eastwards, and Baghdad emerged as the capital of the scientific world.
Islamic medicine is one of the most famous and best-known facets of Islamic civilization, and in which the Muslims most excelled: for example, they performed eye surgery 600 years earlier than in Europe. But they excelled in many other fields as well. For example, the Muslims used paper 200 years before Europe, invented spherical trigonometry in the late 10th century, solved equations of the third and fourth degree, binomials to the nth degree, and developed differential and integral mathematics. They discovered the force of gravitation, blood circulation, laws of motion, including planetary motion, and even developed the theory of evolution and taught it in their universities. They measured the circumference of the earth and value for specific gravities correct to three decimal places almost a thousand years ago. There is hardly a field of knowledge where Muslims did not research, think or investigate, explore or invent, something exemplary. And the greater part of these achievements were passed on to Europe, enabling its intellectual and cultural Renaissance, a historical reality now beginning to be widely acknowledged in the West.
The motivating factors
The zeal and enthusiasm to reach such a peak was the result of Islam's insistence on learning. The Qur'an itself is the greatest motivating factor in this regard: Islam is a rational religion. Repeatedly the Qur’an appeals to men to use their reason and especially their common sense in matters of religion. Historical experience goes to prove that a large measure of free thought is absolutely necessary to human progress, and at the same time those nations, which lose faith in God, deteriorate. To most modern Westerners religious commitment and free thought are incompatible. However, the experience and history of Muslims prove that they are perfectly compatible. In the early centuries of Islam, an intense faith in God was combined with free thought in every field of knowledge and endeavour; for Islam held nothing in human knowledge so sacred as to be immune from criticism. The Creator of the universe and the earth had bestowed on man the gift of reason, which is extolled by Muslim writers as the highest gift, to be used quite freely in the name of Allah - that is to say, with the purpose of pursuing what is good and eschewing what is evil, for which the sacred law affords guidance and safeguards. There is no priesthood in Islam, however the most wise and learned men became the natural leaders. As a matter of fact, scholars are described as ‘the heirs of the prophets’. (Syed, I.B., 2002)
The Qur’an asserts that those who have no knowledge are not equal to those who have it, and that those who do not observe and make sense of what they observe are worse than cattle. It also asserts that the meaning of revelation becomes clear to those who have knowledge and who have understanding, emphasizing that whosoever has been given knowledge has indeed been given an abundant good and that of all things, it is knowledge by which man is superior to angels and has been made vice-regent of God on earth.
References
Islahi, S.D. (1978) Call to Islam and How the Prophets Preached,
Islamic Publications, Lahore, pp.101-117.
Rahman, A. (1985) Encyclopedia of Seerah, Seerah Foundation, London, Vol.1
Syed, I.B. (2002) Intellectual Achievements of Muslims, Islamic Circle, Mauritius, Indian Ocean
Contemporary world
www.doshiza.com
O my dear son! Establish worship and enjoin kindness and forbid iniquity, and persevere whatever may befall thee. Lo! That is of the steadfast heart of things."
…..Qur'an, Luqman, 31: 17.
The Muslims in America constitute about 6 million out of a total population of nearly 300 million. That is about 2 per cent. The Muslims are a tiny Island in the Ocean of America where the majority has non-Islamic values.
The world is plagued by all sorts of problems: social unrest, political instabilities, mass poverty and destitution, prostitution, homosexuality, sexual assaults on children, homicides, killings, drug addiction, alcoholism, domestic violence, family break-ups, juvenile delinquency, gun violence in schools and in the public, suicides and the so-called Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (Aids).
In the United States, one million teen-age girls give birth to children out of wedlock per year. How many Muslim teen-age girls give birth to children out of wedlock?
Jahiliyyah Period
(REF: The Life of Muhammad by Abdul Hameed Siddiqui)
The moral and socio- economic scene of today's world is uncannily similar to seventh century Arabia before the advent of Islam.
The tribes of Arabia held once a year, a general assembly, at 'Ukaz a place between Nakhlah and Ta'if. This fair, however, revived the scenes of Rome's greatest glory in gaiety (fun or joviality) and licentiousness (recklessness or decadence). Warriors of all tribes, sworn blood enemies for generations sat in open-air cafes and taverns (pub or saloon). Wine goblets were filled and emptied with alarming rapidity. Amidst this merrymaking the poets recited their poetical compositions, contending and vying (competing or contesting) with each other for the coveted (well-liked or in demand) first honour. A poet made a name for himself here or nowhere.
Drinking had in fact become a second nature with the Arabs. Wine and woman go together, and as a result of licentious drinking, fornication was very rampant (widespread or unchecked). Imported slave girls from Syria and Iraq who afforded vast opportunities of sensual pleasures to the rich with their dancing and singing and all corruption, which usually goes with them.
Polytheism and idol worship were rampant (widespread or unchecked) in Arabia, so was tribalism and unrestrained pursuit of wealth and power. Most Arabs were nomads, with the tribal structure assuring them security. This stability was based largely on the tradition of "blood vengeance," which invariably resulted in an endless cycle of revenge. Society seemed even harsher in the cities. There were only a few cities like Makkah, Yathrib (later Madinat an-Nabi, city of the Prophet or for short Madinah), and Ta'if. A small number of rich and powerful families controlled the economy. Many of the poor were eternally entangled in a web of usury (riba). This system of riba turned them into virtual slaves. Slavery itself was commonplace. Women's status was also extremely deplorable and they were treated largely as chattel (disposable commodity or property or slaves), which was essentially another form of slavery. Marriage, inheritance, and divorce laws reflected the chauvinistic attitudes prevalent in the society. For example unlimited polygamy was widespread, primogeniture (first born of the family) was the rule and sons often inherited their father's wives. A husband could stop conjugal relations with his wife and abdicate all responsibilities toward her without divorcing her and letting her go free. This cruel treatment of wives called zihar (turning your back on something) was widely practiced.
Although females were oppressed and abused routinely, female infanticide was commonplace, and male progeny was a source of pride and status in society, the majority of deities were female. The three major deities, al-Lat, al'-Uzza, and al-Manat were considered the daughters of Allah. (Astaghfirullah)!
Decency and modesty had been swept away from the society by these drinking revelries (celebrations), so common and so frequent, and by the absence of any social discipline; the heathen Arabs had little regard for the sanctity of matrimonial relations. They took pride in flouting them and describing publicly their adulterous adventures.
It is difficult to resist drawing analogies between the seventh century world and the state of the human morality in today's world at the turn of the new millennium. The nuclear man-woman, two-parent family, as a core unit of society has eroded seriously in the West. Brazen sexual exploitation in the media is commonplace and illicit sex condoned and even accepted. Violence at home, against women, children, and violence in the streets, is frightfully routine. Substance abuse is widespread, with United States as the largest consumer of drugs in the world. Alcoholism is rampant, especially among college students, with only feeble attempts being made to address the problem. The lessons from the AIDS epidemic are being swept under the rug of political correctness. African- Americans have been liberated as slaves for a century and a half, yet many are still trapped in an unending cycle of poverty and discrimination, which is in a way a form of economic slavery.
The unraveling (straightening out) of the moral fabric in today's society must weigh heavily on the minds of individuals with insight. They can draw personal solace and inspiration from the life of Prophet Muhammad (SAS).
It is said that while he was young as a herdsman Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) had a companion whom he asked to take over his duties while he (young Muhammad (SAS)) spent the night in town in some recreation (such as liquor bars or Disco bars) as other youths were wont (established custom) to do in those days. Before he reached his destination, however, Muhammad's (pbuh) attention was arrested by a wedding in one of the houses on the way. He stopped there to listen to the sounds emanating from the house and fell asleep. He came back to Makkah on another occasion for the same purpose, and again on the way his attention was arrested by the sound of beautiful music. He sat down on the street to listen, and again fell asleep. The temptations of Makkah had no power over the disciplined soul of Muhammad (SAS) whose prime concern was contemplation. This is not surprising. Far lesser men than Muhammad (SAS) have also overcome these temptations. He led a life far removed from vice and immorality, and found his pleasures in immersing himself in thought and contemplation.
The Arab tribal society of the Seventh century, whose structure was based on greed, debauchery, and violence, was changed in a very short time, by the Prophet (pbuh), into a society with one of the highest moral standards in history. Compassion, humility, devotion to God and egalitarianism (social equality) replaced the old well-entrenched tribal attitudes of pride in wealth, family and class, cruelty toward fellow humans and self-centered behavior. Women, for the first time in history, had rights and dignity, and the vulnerable and weak sections of the society were protected. Sexuality was removed from public prurience (that which incites lasciviousness (Driven by lust. Preoccupied with or exhibiting lustful desires) or lust) and became private and wholesome. Wealth was re-circulated so that even the smallest capillaries of the society were infused with energy and indigence (poverty or destitution) became nearly extinct.
EVERYTHING IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR, but not in ISLAM.
Alcohol in Soft Drinks
It is well known that some soft drinks, such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi-Cola, contain among their ingredients a tiny amount of alcohol, which is used to dissolve some constituents of the drinks such as color, flavor, etc. Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola, for example, contain different types of flavors, considered to be secrets of the trade, these flavors dissolve in alcohol, which is no more than two to three parts in one thousand (0.03-0.02 %) in these drinks
Such soft drinks are considered to be permissible halal from the Islamic point of view, according to the rules for eating and drinking in the Islamic legal law.
The concept behind these rule is that if a small amount of a prohibited substance X is mixed with a dominant permissible substance Y till substance X loses all its attributes such as taste, color, and smell, substance x loses the qualifications of being impure and prohibited by having being dissolved in substance Y.
This conclusion is supported by a ruling by Ibn Taymmiah in his Fatawa (21/502), and by the recommendations of the ninth Medical Fiqh Seminar of the Islamic Medical Science Organization, which met in Aldar Albayda’ in Morocco in June 1997.
The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America (IFANCA)
Natural and artificial flavors containing alcohol.
In the food industry, alcohol is the second common solvent after water. Some of the flavors like vanilla cannot be made without alcohol. One cannot imagine foods and drinks like, ice cream, cakes and cookies, soft drinks. Etc. without the use of alcohol. IFANCA (The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America) considers alcohol as an unavoidable impurity in the food systems. Muslim countries, which import food products, accept foods containing small quantities of alcohol.
We have established two levels of control points for alcohol in foods and ingredients:
Less than 0.1 per cent in the food items.
Less than 0.5 per cent in food ingredients.
At the above levels, one cannot detect the presence of alcohol by taste, smell or sight.
These guidelines are for the food industry to make halal certified products, however, where should one draw the line, is up to the individual Muslim consumer based on the available knowledge and his or her own commitment.
The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America
IFANCA
5901 N. Cicero Ste. 309, Chicago, IL 60646
TEL: (773) 283-3708
FAX: (773) 283-3973
(Reference: www.isna.net/fiqh)
Nation of Islam
Why Afro-Americans want to join the Nation of Islam?
The answer is to lead a moral life, a life of temperance a life of Tee-totallers. To be dignified members of the society.
Life Magazine of May 1979 issue pictorially depicted the reformation of Muslim inmates in a San Francisco prison. The Muslim inmates were free from Drugs and Alcohol and never practiced Homosexuality.
Story of an Atheist from a communist country
A man from the former Soviet Union immigrated to the United States when he was young. When he became old, he was worried about life after death or life hereafter, although he was an atheist. He studied the following religions thoroughly.
Hinduism
Buddhism
Judaism
Islam
Christianity
Finally he became a Christian, as the Christian priest assured him Paradise if he believed in Jesus Christ as his savior. As a Christian he studied the problems of Christian society and developed second thoughts and was inclined towards Islam for its five pillars of faith and the disciplined life of a Muslim.
Corruption in Muslim countries and World's most corrupt countries
In a developing Muslim country the following corruptions are found.
· Water in pot before milking the cow.
· Drug tampering
· Coffee tainted with tamarind powder
· Ghee (melted butter) tainted with Crisco
· Cereals, like rice and wheat tainted with pebbles to weigh more
· One Muslim by the name of Abdul Sattar (not his real name) has registered an organization called "Abdul Sattar Academy for Islam Research" D.B.U. (doing business as ) "Academy for Islamic Research". Peddling or marketing the business in the name of Islam. THIS IS HARAM.
A list of the world's most corrupt countries has been released recently by Transparency International a Berlin-based voluntary organization claiming to be fighting corruption all over the world by exposing corrupt practices everywhere. Topping the list are four Islamic countries namely Bangladesh (in 2001 and 2002 it is listed first), Nigeria (used to be Number One), Indonesia and Azerbaijan. Pakistan is a close seventh with many other Muslim countries following it. Nigeria, Bolivia and Colombia are rated the most corrupt countries, and Denmark, Finland and Sweden the least corrupt, in an index published by Transparency International, a non-government pressure group. In the year 1997 Transparency International, found Bangladesh occupying the fourth position among the corrupt countries. Being among the top ten on any account was news indeed. Bangladesh has since made incredibly tremendous progress in this particular field. Transparency International again came out with the astounding disclosure that Bangladesh topped the list of 91 countries it surveyed in 2001.
These countries are Muslim countries that have been bestowed with a religion that puts so much emphasis on honesty, truth, righteousness and other attributes of personal behaviour. Then why is the Muslim Umma so weak in its moral fiber? One reason that comes to mind is probably that our Ulama or religious preachers do not stress upon the importance of a righteous character or sound personal character.
They, in fact, indirectly connote that acts like offering or accepting bribe, adulterating foodstuff and medicines, hoarding, black marketing, exploiting the helpless, indulging in nepotism, defeating merit and justice, are but small vices which can be condoned by saying an extra prayers, by extra fasting or by going for Hajj. The result is that the Islamic Ummah is in a deep abyss of moral decadence.
The need of the hour is that the Ulama or religious preachers should stress upon the fact that God does not forgive deliberate acts of sin just by saying extra prayers, extra fastings or by performing a religious rite.
The Ulama or religious Preachers must emphasize the need for 'Jihad-e-Akbar', that is, jihad against personal desires, lust and greed. And that is the service Islam needs most, today. DO NOT JUDGE A CAR BY ITS DRIVER.
O my dear son! Establish worship and enjoin kindness and forbid iniquity, and persevere whatever may befall thee. Lo! That is of the steadfast heart of things."
…..Qur'an, Luqman, 31: 17.
The Muslims in America constitute about 6 million out of a total population of nearly 300 million. That is about 2 per cent. The Muslims are a tiny Island in the Ocean of America where the majority has non-Islamic values.
The world is plagued by all sorts of problems: social unrest, political instabilities, mass poverty and destitution, prostitution, homosexuality, sexual assaults on children, homicides, killings, drug addiction, alcoholism, domestic violence, family break-ups, juvenile delinquency, gun violence in schools and in the public, suicides and the so-called Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (Aids).
In the United States, one million teen-age girls give birth to children out of wedlock per year. How many Muslim teen-age girls give birth to children out of wedlock?
Jahiliyyah Period
(REF: The Life of Muhammad by Abdul Hameed Siddiqui)
The moral and socio- economic scene of today's world is uncannily similar to seventh century Arabia before the advent of Islam.
The tribes of Arabia held once a year, a general assembly, at 'Ukaz a place between Nakhlah and Ta'if. This fair, however, revived the scenes of Rome's greatest glory in gaiety (fun or joviality) and licentiousness (recklessness or decadence). Warriors of all tribes, sworn blood enemies for generations sat in open-air cafes and taverns (pub or saloon). Wine goblets were filled and emptied with alarming rapidity. Amidst this merrymaking the poets recited their poetical compositions, contending and vying (competing or contesting) with each other for the coveted (well-liked or in demand) first honour. A poet made a name for himself here or nowhere.
Drinking had in fact become a second nature with the Arabs. Wine and woman go together, and as a result of licentious drinking, fornication was very rampant (widespread or unchecked). Imported slave girls from Syria and Iraq who afforded vast opportunities of sensual pleasures to the rich with their dancing and singing and all corruption, which usually goes with them.
Polytheism and idol worship were rampant (widespread or unchecked) in Arabia, so was tribalism and unrestrained pursuit of wealth and power. Most Arabs were nomads, with the tribal structure assuring them security. This stability was based largely on the tradition of "blood vengeance," which invariably resulted in an endless cycle of revenge. Society seemed even harsher in the cities. There were only a few cities like Makkah, Yathrib (later Madinat an-Nabi, city of the Prophet or for short Madinah), and Ta'if. A small number of rich and powerful families controlled the economy. Many of the poor were eternally entangled in a web of usury (riba). This system of riba turned them into virtual slaves. Slavery itself was commonplace. Women's status was also extremely deplorable and they were treated largely as chattel (disposable commodity or property or slaves), which was essentially another form of slavery. Marriage, inheritance, and divorce laws reflected the chauvinistic attitudes prevalent in the society. For example unlimited polygamy was widespread, primogeniture (first born of the family) was the rule and sons often inherited their father's wives. A husband could stop conjugal relations with his wife and abdicate all responsibilities toward her without divorcing her and letting her go free. This cruel treatment of wives called zihar (turning your back on something) was widely practiced.
Although females were oppressed and abused routinely, female infanticide was commonplace, and male progeny was a source of pride and status in society, the majority of deities were female. The three major deities, al-Lat, al'-Uzza, and al-Manat were considered the daughters of Allah. (Astaghfirullah)!
Decency and modesty had been swept away from the society by these drinking revelries (celebrations), so common and so frequent, and by the absence of any social discipline; the heathen Arabs had little regard for the sanctity of matrimonial relations. They took pride in flouting them and describing publicly their adulterous adventures.
It is difficult to resist drawing analogies between the seventh century world and the state of the human morality in today's world at the turn of the new millennium. The nuclear man-woman, two-parent family, as a core unit of society has eroded seriously in the West. Brazen sexual exploitation in the media is commonplace and illicit sex condoned and even accepted. Violence at home, against women, children, and violence in the streets, is frightfully routine. Substance abuse is widespread, with United States as the largest consumer of drugs in the world. Alcoholism is rampant, especially among college students, with only feeble attempts being made to address the problem. The lessons from the AIDS epidemic are being swept under the rug of political correctness. African- Americans have been liberated as slaves for a century and a half, yet many are still trapped in an unending cycle of poverty and discrimination, which is in a way a form of economic slavery.
The unraveling (straightening out) of the moral fabric in today's society must weigh heavily on the minds of individuals with insight. They can draw personal solace and inspiration from the life of Prophet Muhammad (SAS).
It is said that while he was young as a herdsman Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) had a companion whom he asked to take over his duties while he (young Muhammad (SAS)) spent the night in town in some recreation (such as liquor bars or Disco bars) as other youths were wont (established custom) to do in those days. Before he reached his destination, however, Muhammad's (pbuh) attention was arrested by a wedding in one of the houses on the way. He stopped there to listen to the sounds emanating from the house and fell asleep. He came back to Makkah on another occasion for the same purpose, and again on the way his attention was arrested by the sound of beautiful music. He sat down on the street to listen, and again fell asleep. The temptations of Makkah had no power over the disciplined soul of Muhammad (SAS) whose prime concern was contemplation. This is not surprising. Far lesser men than Muhammad (SAS) have also overcome these temptations. He led a life far removed from vice and immorality, and found his pleasures in immersing himself in thought and contemplation.
The Arab tribal society of the Seventh century, whose structure was based on greed, debauchery, and violence, was changed in a very short time, by the Prophet (pbuh), into a society with one of the highest moral standards in history. Compassion, humility, devotion to God and egalitarianism (social equality) replaced the old well-entrenched tribal attitudes of pride in wealth, family and class, cruelty toward fellow humans and self-centered behavior. Women, for the first time in history, had rights and dignity, and the vulnerable and weak sections of the society were protected. Sexuality was removed from public prurience (that which incites lasciviousness (Driven by lust. Preoccupied with or exhibiting lustful desires) or lust) and became private and wholesome. Wealth was re-circulated so that even the smallest capillaries of the society were infused with energy and indigence (poverty or destitution) became nearly extinct.
EVERYTHING IS FAIR IN LOVE AND WAR, but not in ISLAM.
Alcohol in Soft Drinks
It is well known that some soft drinks, such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi-Cola, contain among their ingredients a tiny amount of alcohol, which is used to dissolve some constituents of the drinks such as color, flavor, etc. Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola, for example, contain different types of flavors, considered to be secrets of the trade, these flavors dissolve in alcohol, which is no more than two to three parts in one thousand (0.03-0.02 %) in these drinks
Such soft drinks are considered to be permissible halal from the Islamic point of view, according to the rules for eating and drinking in the Islamic legal law.
The concept behind these rule is that if a small amount of a prohibited substance X is mixed with a dominant permissible substance Y till substance X loses all its attributes such as taste, color, and smell, substance x loses the qualifications of being impure and prohibited by having being dissolved in substance Y.
This conclusion is supported by a ruling by Ibn Taymmiah in his Fatawa (21/502), and by the recommendations of the ninth Medical Fiqh Seminar of the Islamic Medical Science Organization, which met in Aldar Albayda’ in Morocco in June 1997.
The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America (IFANCA)
Natural and artificial flavors containing alcohol.
In the food industry, alcohol is the second common solvent after water. Some of the flavors like vanilla cannot be made without alcohol. One cannot imagine foods and drinks like, ice cream, cakes and cookies, soft drinks. Etc. without the use of alcohol. IFANCA (The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America) considers alcohol as an unavoidable impurity in the food systems. Muslim countries, which import food products, accept foods containing small quantities of alcohol.
We have established two levels of control points for alcohol in foods and ingredients:
Less than 0.1 per cent in the food items.
Less than 0.5 per cent in food ingredients.
At the above levels, one cannot detect the presence of alcohol by taste, smell or sight.
These guidelines are for the food industry to make halal certified products, however, where should one draw the line, is up to the individual Muslim consumer based on the available knowledge and his or her own commitment.
The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America
IFANCA
5901 N. Cicero Ste. 309, Chicago, IL 60646
TEL: (773) 283-3708
FAX: (773) 283-3973
(Reference: www.isna.net/fiqh)
Nation of Islam
Why Afro-Americans want to join the Nation of Islam?
The answer is to lead a moral life, a life of temperance a life of Tee-totallers. To be dignified members of the society.
Life Magazine of May 1979 issue pictorially depicted the reformation of Muslim inmates in a San Francisco prison. The Muslim inmates were free from Drugs and Alcohol and never practiced Homosexuality.
Story of an Atheist from a communist country
A man from the former Soviet Union immigrated to the United States when he was young. When he became old, he was worried about life after death or life hereafter, although he was an atheist. He studied the following religions thoroughly.
Hinduism
Buddhism
Judaism
Islam
Christianity
Finally he became a Christian, as the Christian priest assured him Paradise if he believed in Jesus Christ as his savior. As a Christian he studied the problems of Christian society and developed second thoughts and was inclined towards Islam for its five pillars of faith and the disciplined life of a Muslim.
Corruption in Muslim countries and World's most corrupt countries
In a developing Muslim country the following corruptions are found.
· Water in pot before milking the cow.
· Drug tampering
· Coffee tainted with tamarind powder
· Ghee (melted butter) tainted with Crisco
· Cereals, like rice and wheat tainted with pebbles to weigh more
· One Muslim by the name of Abdul Sattar (not his real name) has registered an organization called "Abdul Sattar Academy for Islam Research" D.B.U. (doing business as ) "Academy for Islamic Research". Peddling or marketing the business in the name of Islam. THIS IS HARAM.
A list of the world's most corrupt countries has been released recently by Transparency International a Berlin-based voluntary organization claiming to be fighting corruption all over the world by exposing corrupt practices everywhere. Topping the list are four Islamic countries namely Bangladesh (in 2001 and 2002 it is listed first), Nigeria (used to be Number One), Indonesia and Azerbaijan. Pakistan is a close seventh with many other Muslim countries following it. Nigeria, Bolivia and Colombia are rated the most corrupt countries, and Denmark, Finland and Sweden the least corrupt, in an index published by Transparency International, a non-government pressure group. In the year 1997 Transparency International, found Bangladesh occupying the fourth position among the corrupt countries. Being among the top ten on any account was news indeed. Bangladesh has since made incredibly tremendous progress in this particular field. Transparency International again came out with the astounding disclosure that Bangladesh topped the list of 91 countries it surveyed in 2001.
These countries are Muslim countries that have been bestowed with a religion that puts so much emphasis on honesty, truth, righteousness and other attributes of personal behaviour. Then why is the Muslim Umma so weak in its moral fiber? One reason that comes to mind is probably that our Ulama or religious preachers do not stress upon the importance of a righteous character or sound personal character.
They, in fact, indirectly connote that acts like offering or accepting bribe, adulterating foodstuff and medicines, hoarding, black marketing, exploiting the helpless, indulging in nepotism, defeating merit and justice, are but small vices which can be condoned by saying an extra prayers, by extra fasting or by going for Hajj. The result is that the Islamic Ummah is in a deep abyss of moral decadence.
The need of the hour is that the Ulama or religious preachers should stress upon the fact that God does not forgive deliberate acts of sin just by saying extra prayers, extra fastings or by performing a religious rite.
The Ulama or religious Preachers must emphasize the need for 'Jihad-e-Akbar', that is, jihad against personal desires, lust and greed. And that is the service Islam needs most, today. DO NOT JUDGE A CAR BY ITS DRIVER.
Two Social Evils
www.doshiza.com
The Muslims in America constitute about 6 million out of a total population of nearly 300 million. That is about 2 per cent. The Muslims are a tiny Island in the Ocean of America where the majority have non-Islamic values.
The world is plagued by all sorts of problems: social unrest, political instabilities, mass poverty and destitution, prostitution, homosexuality, sexual assaults on children, homicides, killings, drug addiction, alcoholism, domestic violence, family break-ups, juvenile delinquency, gun violence in schools and in the public, suicides and the so-called Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (Aids).
This article will analyze the two evils of society, namely slavery and alcoholism and compares its solution by Western methodology and Islamic solution
SLAVERY
As early as 1849, Abraham Lincoln believed that slaves should be emancipated, advocating a program in which they would be freed gradually. To gain support, he proposed that slave owners be compensated for giving up their "property." Support was not forthcoming because for Southern States slavery was an economic issue and for Northern States where lived the abolitionists, slavery was a moral issue. Slavery became the cause of American Civil War. 3 million Americans fought the war on American Soil and 600,000 were killed. Poor Farmers in the Northern States never saw a slave and poor farmers in Southern States could not afford to own a slave.
In September of 1862, after the Union's victory at Antietam, Lincoln issued a preliminary decree stating that, unless the rebellious states returned to the Union by January 1, 1863 freedom would be granted to slaves within those states. The decree also left room for a plan of compensated emancipation. No Confederate states took the offer, and on January 1, 1863 Lincoln presented the Emancipation Proclamation. The proclamation declared, "all persons held as slaves within any States, or designated part of the State, the people whereof shall be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free."
The Emancipation Proclamation did not free all slaves in the United States. Rather, it declared free, only those slaves living in states not under Union control. William Seward, Lincoln's secretary of state, commented, "We show our sympathy with slavery by emancipating slaves where we cannot reach them and holding them in bondage where we can set them free." Lincoln was fully aware of the irony, but he did not want to antagonize(upset) the slave states loyal to the Union by setting their slaves free.
The proclamation allowed black soldiers to fight for the Union -- soldiers that were desperately needed. It also tied the issue of slavery directly to the war. What the Muslims would have done during the Civil War. Slavery is a moral issue for the Muslims, hence they would have fought to preserve the Union and supported president Ibrahim Lincoln.
ISLAMIC SOLUTION
During the time of the Prophet of Islam there were so many evils in the social life of Arabia. The Prophet wanted to reform all those evils according to the Islamic scheme but
the method he opted was not a revolutionary one. Rather, it was what may be called, an evolutionary method.
An example of this evolutionary method can be seen in the case of slavery. At that time slavery was widespread everywhere in the world including Arabia. It even enjoyed the status of a highly established institution but the Prophet avoided a path that would seek to abolish slavery right in the beginning stage of his movement for reform. Instead, he adopted a gradual process of trying to remove the evils by way of education, teaching and explaining by peaceful means. God revealed verses in the Qur'an that enjoined the Prophet to persuade people to be kind to their slaves. These verses sought to change the very view of slaves in the eyes of slaveholders. The Qur'an referred to slaves not as slaves but as human beings no different from their "masters," equal to all other men and deserving of respect, dignity and treatment that is but the right of all human beings.
In those days slaves were a common commodity traded in the marketplace. So had slavery been immediately abolished, it was bound to create innumerable problems. It would have been as if a war were being waged with such chaos as would be the result of abolishing the ownership of all homes at a time when everyone owned their own house.
So Islam launched a two-fold movement. On one front, it continuously discouraged the making of new slaves. On the other front it also continuously ingrained into the mindset of society that freeing a slave was an incomparable virtue, even to the extent that one was encouraged to purchase new slaves solely for the purpose of freeing them. So the Prophet and his companions began to purchase slaves from their masters and set them free. This example clearly illustrates the Islamic method for removing social evils. This was the very method that was adopted by the Prophet to remove all the prevalent social
evils in Arabian society.
ALCOHOL
O you who believe! wine and gambling, stone altars and
divining arrows are filth from the handiwork of evil. Avoid
them completely so that hopefully you will be successful.
Devil wants to stir up enmity and hatred between you by
means of wine and gambling and to debar you from
remembrance of Allah and prayer. Will you not then give up? (al-Qur'an 5:90-91)
Consider Alcoholism.
In the USA alone, the economic costs of Alcoholism and drug abuse are reported to be at a quarter trillion dollars per year. The social and moral costs are additional. But the solution evades world's most technologically advanced and organized society.
18th Amendment
Consumption of alcohol was discouraged by law in many of the states over the first century of the United States under the Constitution. By 1855, 13 of the 31 states had temperance laws, or alcohol prohibition laws. The Civil War distracted the public from the temperance movement, but the proliferation of saloons after the Civil War, and the trappings of the saloons (like gambling, prostitution, and public drunkenness) lead to the so-called "Women's War" in 1873. Over time, the movement became more organized and the Anti-Saloon League was established in 1893. The ASL's goal was national prohibition, and it set up an office in Washington to that end - it even established its own publishing house in Westerville, Ohio.
The ASL polled candidates on their stand on the temperance question, endorsing candidates with a pro-temperance stance. In the election of 1915, ASL-sponsored candidates swept the elections for Congress, and on December 18, 1917, Congress passed the 18th Amendment. It quickly was adopted by the states, being ratified in just over a year, on January 16, 1919.This was after a century of grass roots efforts, which included thousands of societies for prohibition and abstinence pledges in churches. They also allocated $5 million for enforcement to turn USA into a liquor-free society. A few years later the estimate was $300 million and growing.
21st Amendment
The Prohibition era did have a certain sense of lawlessness; the very fact that consumption was not eliminated is testimony to that; and the fact that organized crime manufactured and distributed the bulk of the illicit alcohol of the 1920's and early 1930's is evidence that gangsters were aided by Prohibition. Enforcement was spotty, with stills (distilleries) and speakeasies(illicit drinking places) popping up in every population center. Over-zealous police and federal agents violated civil rights when searching for and destroying the paraphernalia of alcohol. While most Americans respected the law, were in favor of the law, the shine of "dry" began to wear off, especially as the Great Depression set in.(1929). Prohibition was widely evaded with 'bootlegging' falling under criminal control. This led to gang warfare particularly in Chicago. President Franklin Roosevelt urged the nation to practice moderation.
A movement began to form to repeal the 18th Amendment. Prohibition of alcohol was seen as an affront to personal liberty, pushed on the nation by religious moralists. Alcohol was also seen as a source of revenue for the local and national governments. The Congress passed the amendment on February 20, 1933. The ratification process was complete on December 5, 1933. The 21st Amendment repealed the 18th, the first time an amendment had been repealed by another. In 1933 America toasted farewell to 14 dry years. Hence fourteen years later Prohibition was repealed. The "Noble Experiment" had failed miserably.
In contrast, Islam banned alcohol 14 centuries ago among people whose love for alcohol was second to none. In three simple steps, spanning only a few years, alcohol was banished from the Muslim world. Today, despite small areas of infraction, a map of the dry world coincides with the map of the Muslim world. Islam has declared alcohol to be Ummul-Khabaith (the root of all evil) and no power on earth can change that designation.
We recently saw a small example of the same miracle with respect to drugs. One command by the Taliban Ameer achieved what hundreds of experts and millions of dollars could not. In the areas under Taliban rule the cultivation of opium has stopped.
ISLAMIC APPROACH
Prophet adopted this evolutionary or gradual method. According to al-Bukhâri, Áisha (RA), the wife of the Prophet says that in the early days of Islam only such verses were revealed that sought to change a person's heart and mind, not verses that laid down divine law. Only when the Qur'an had successfully inculcated in the believers an innate acceptance of the evil nature of alcohol and adultery were the two explicitly prohibited.
Describing this Qur'anic prohibition, Áisha (RA) says, " had such a ban been revealed right in the very beginning, the people would have immediately cried out, "Never shall we leave alcohol nor shall we ever leave adultery."
Gradual change is but the Natural way of change. Islam was able to establish an evil-free society for the first time in history only because it employed this natural method of gradual change. We cannot find an example of such comprehensive success in transforming society on the part of any reform movement in the history of social reform.
In other words, the Islamic scheme for social reform can be called a results-oriented method as opposed to a dogmatic method. Islam seeks to bring about change in a manner that takes into consideration the possible consequences of any action instead of simply imposing its laws without any regard to the results.
Study of the Prophet's life reveals the distinction that he made between his ideas and how he put them into practice. Although he was the greatest of idealists and loved perfection, when dealing with people he kept reality firmly in sight and remained ever practical. The Prophet's life is laden with examples such as those leading unto the prohibition of alcohol and adultery.
The Prophet's effort was always such that the people accepted the mores of Islam by their own choice, rather than be forced to accept it, at the command of some political power. One of the aspects behind the wisdom of the Prophet's method is that when people relinquish a certain social evil of their own accord then there is no negative psychology that results. If a certain standard is imposed upon society, however, the social evil in question may seem to have been removed but some other problem is sure to take its place.
Judging by the standard of results achieved, reform by persuasion is true reform while reform by force is simply an upheaval(turmoil, confusion) rather than real change.
Alcohol in Soft Drinks
It is well known that some soft drinks, such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi-Cola, contain among their ingredients a tiny amount of alcohol, which is used to dissolve some constituents of the drinks such as color, flavor, etc. Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola, for example, contain different types of flavors, considered to be secrets of the trade, these flavors dissolve in alcohol, which is no more than two to three parts in one thousand (0.3-0.2 %) in these drinks
Such soft drinks are considered to be permissible halal from the Islamic point of view, according to the rules for eating and drinking in the Islamic legal law.
The concept behind these rule is that if a small amount of a prohibited substance X is mixed with a dominant permissible substance Y till substance X loses all its attributes such as taste, color, and smell, substance x loses the qualifications of being impure and prohibited by having being dissolved in substance Y.
This conclusion is supported by a ruling by Ibn Taymmiah in his Fatawa (21/502), and by the recommendations of the ninth Medical Fiqh Seminar of the Islamic Medical Science Organization, which met in Aldar Albayda’ in Morocco in June 1997.
Natural and artificial flavors containing alcohol.
In the food industry, alcohol is the second common solvent after water. Some of the flavors like vanilla can not be made without alcohol. One can not imagine foods and drinks like, ice cream, cakes and cookies, soft drinks, etc. without the use of alcohol. IFANCA (The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America) considers alcohol as an unavoidable impurity in the food systems. Muslim countries, which import food products, accept foods containing small quantities of alcohol.
We have established two levels of control points for alcohol in foods and ingredients:
Less than 0.1 per cent in the food items.
Less than 0.5 per cent in food ingredients.
At the above levels, one can not detect the presence of alcohol by taste, smell or sight.
These guidelines are for the food industry to make halal certified products, however, where should one draw the line, is up to the individual Muslim consumer based on the available knowledge and his or her own commitment.
Islam is the Solution
Then there are armies of "experts" who have been convincing everyone that the real problem of the exploited countries is that they are too "traditional" and their salvation lies in aping the progressive ways of the West. This is the essence of the modernization theory that seeks to move societies from the "traditional" to the "modern."
Today there are generations of educated(in secular or western education) Muslims who have been convinced that progress means modernization, and modernization means westernization. For every problem they turn to the "First World" for answers, guidance, and assistance. They see their own societies as decadent and attribute this decadence to their adherence to traditions and religion. Most of the rulers in the Muslim world today, unfortunately, come from this group. At the same time they claim to be Muslims and servants of Islam.
May be we can invite them to shed this hypocrisy and take an objective look at their ideal (western) societies. They may find out that contrary to their thinking, whatever good is there in any society, it comes from Islam. Whatever evils are there come from hypocrisy and defiance of Islam.
It is generally observed that in Muslim societies today people are neither punctual nor value time much. Their leisurely ways are in direct contrast to the world where the creed is that time is money. Islam does not promote this materialistic notion of the value of time, which results in nobody having time for others. But it does teach the value of every moment of our life as providing the opportunity for earning the rewards in the hereafter. It does require us to be punctual and not to waste time. And it delivers.
In the vast Muslim world there is one activity that is extraordinary in its punctuality and discipline. In the big cities, as well as in the remotest rural areas, the azan is called five times a day and the people gather for the congregational prayers at the proper times without fail. Neither excessive cold in the winter nights nor excruciating heat during sizzling summer days keeps them from their sacred duty. This enterprise has not been financed by governments or big businesses. When most people are in their warm beds in their unheated homes, there is a muezzin in every neighborhood who never fails to wake up and remind everyone, "Prayer is better than sleep." "As-Salatu Khairun Min-an-Naum"
Here is a glimpse of the power of Islam. Can we imagine the situation when not just the muezzin and a small congregation, but the entire population becomes responsive to its duty? Can we imagine when their sense of responsibility goes beyond the prayers and covers all aspects of their life?
Equally fascinating is the unparalleled power of Islam in shunning social evils that are consuming the world. Despite their myriad problems, the Muslim lands even today shine as islands of virtue in a deep dark ocean of vice.
Where else but in a Muslim country (Saudi Arabia) one can find jewelry stores without armed guards, closed doors, and elaborate security systems? One of the major crimes against humanity and morality committed by the "First World" has been the exploitation of women in the form of prostitution. Whether it is legal or illegal, whether there are marked red light areas or not, it flourishes everywhere in the "First World" and has its way. In addition, every area visited by their armies has left behind these centers of filth. Again, the notable exception is the Muslim world.
This world was a dark place, having forgotten or distorted previous prophets' teachings, before Prophet Muhammad brought the light. He brought back the message of Tauheed, universal brotherhood, compassion, mercy, equality, justice, God consciousness, and morality. As Muslims turned away from Islam, the darkness started to increase again, dividing it into first, second, and third worlds. There is lot of arrogance and ignorance in these ranks. But, Islam again illuminates the way. The solution is there, if only we look in the right direction. Islam is the solution.
REFERENCES:
(1) The Life of Muhammad by Abdul Hameed Siddiqui
(2) Wahiduddin Khan at online: http://www.alrisala.org/Articles/mailing_list/social_change_in_islam.html
(3) Khalid Baig Islam is the Solution, Impact International, 4 Sha'ban 1422, 21 October 2001
(4) www.isna.net/fiqh
(5) The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America(IFANCA), 5901 N. Cicero Ste. 309, Chicago, IL 60646.TEL: (773) 283-3708.FAX: (773) 283-3973
The Muslims in America constitute about 6 million out of a total population of nearly 300 million. That is about 2 per cent. The Muslims are a tiny Island in the Ocean of America where the majority have non-Islamic values.
The world is plagued by all sorts of problems: social unrest, political instabilities, mass poverty and destitution, prostitution, homosexuality, sexual assaults on children, homicides, killings, drug addiction, alcoholism, domestic violence, family break-ups, juvenile delinquency, gun violence in schools and in the public, suicides and the so-called Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (Aids).
This article will analyze the two evils of society, namely slavery and alcoholism and compares its solution by Western methodology and Islamic solution
SLAVERY
As early as 1849, Abraham Lincoln believed that slaves should be emancipated, advocating a program in which they would be freed gradually. To gain support, he proposed that slave owners be compensated for giving up their "property." Support was not forthcoming because for Southern States slavery was an economic issue and for Northern States where lived the abolitionists, slavery was a moral issue. Slavery became the cause of American Civil War. 3 million Americans fought the war on American Soil and 600,000 were killed. Poor Farmers in the Northern States never saw a slave and poor farmers in Southern States could not afford to own a slave.
In September of 1862, after the Union's victory at Antietam, Lincoln issued a preliminary decree stating that, unless the rebellious states returned to the Union by January 1, 1863 freedom would be granted to slaves within those states. The decree also left room for a plan of compensated emancipation. No Confederate states took the offer, and on January 1, 1863 Lincoln presented the Emancipation Proclamation. The proclamation declared, "all persons held as slaves within any States, or designated part of the State, the people whereof shall be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free."
The Emancipation Proclamation did not free all slaves in the United States. Rather, it declared free, only those slaves living in states not under Union control. William Seward, Lincoln's secretary of state, commented, "We show our sympathy with slavery by emancipating slaves where we cannot reach them and holding them in bondage where we can set them free." Lincoln was fully aware of the irony, but he did not want to antagonize(upset) the slave states loyal to the Union by setting their slaves free.
The proclamation allowed black soldiers to fight for the Union -- soldiers that were desperately needed. It also tied the issue of slavery directly to the war. What the Muslims would have done during the Civil War. Slavery is a moral issue for the Muslims, hence they would have fought to preserve the Union and supported president Ibrahim Lincoln.
ISLAMIC SOLUTION
During the time of the Prophet of Islam there were so many evils in the social life of Arabia. The Prophet wanted to reform all those evils according to the Islamic scheme but
the method he opted was not a revolutionary one. Rather, it was what may be called, an evolutionary method.
An example of this evolutionary method can be seen in the case of slavery. At that time slavery was widespread everywhere in the world including Arabia. It even enjoyed the status of a highly established institution but the Prophet avoided a path that would seek to abolish slavery right in the beginning stage of his movement for reform. Instead, he adopted a gradual process of trying to remove the evils by way of education, teaching and explaining by peaceful means. God revealed verses in the Qur'an that enjoined the Prophet to persuade people to be kind to their slaves. These verses sought to change the very view of slaves in the eyes of slaveholders. The Qur'an referred to slaves not as slaves but as human beings no different from their "masters," equal to all other men and deserving of respect, dignity and treatment that is but the right of all human beings.
In those days slaves were a common commodity traded in the marketplace. So had slavery been immediately abolished, it was bound to create innumerable problems. It would have been as if a war were being waged with such chaos as would be the result of abolishing the ownership of all homes at a time when everyone owned their own house.
So Islam launched a two-fold movement. On one front, it continuously discouraged the making of new slaves. On the other front it also continuously ingrained into the mindset of society that freeing a slave was an incomparable virtue, even to the extent that one was encouraged to purchase new slaves solely for the purpose of freeing them. So the Prophet and his companions began to purchase slaves from their masters and set them free. This example clearly illustrates the Islamic method for removing social evils. This was the very method that was adopted by the Prophet to remove all the prevalent social
evils in Arabian society.
ALCOHOL
O you who believe! wine and gambling, stone altars and
divining arrows are filth from the handiwork of evil. Avoid
them completely so that hopefully you will be successful.
Devil wants to stir up enmity and hatred between you by
means of wine and gambling and to debar you from
remembrance of Allah and prayer. Will you not then give up? (al-Qur'an 5:90-91)
Consider Alcoholism.
In the USA alone, the economic costs of Alcoholism and drug abuse are reported to be at a quarter trillion dollars per year. The social and moral costs are additional. But the solution evades world's most technologically advanced and organized society.
18th Amendment
Consumption of alcohol was discouraged by law in many of the states over the first century of the United States under the Constitution. By 1855, 13 of the 31 states had temperance laws, or alcohol prohibition laws. The Civil War distracted the public from the temperance movement, but the proliferation of saloons after the Civil War, and the trappings of the saloons (like gambling, prostitution, and public drunkenness) lead to the so-called "Women's War" in 1873. Over time, the movement became more organized and the Anti-Saloon League was established in 1893. The ASL's goal was national prohibition, and it set up an office in Washington to that end - it even established its own publishing house in Westerville, Ohio.
The ASL polled candidates on their stand on the temperance question, endorsing candidates with a pro-temperance stance. In the election of 1915, ASL-sponsored candidates swept the elections for Congress, and on December 18, 1917, Congress passed the 18th Amendment. It quickly was adopted by the states, being ratified in just over a year, on January 16, 1919.This was after a century of grass roots efforts, which included thousands of societies for prohibition and abstinence pledges in churches. They also allocated $5 million for enforcement to turn USA into a liquor-free society. A few years later the estimate was $300 million and growing.
21st Amendment
The Prohibition era did have a certain sense of lawlessness; the very fact that consumption was not eliminated is testimony to that; and the fact that organized crime manufactured and distributed the bulk of the illicit alcohol of the 1920's and early 1930's is evidence that gangsters were aided by Prohibition. Enforcement was spotty, with stills (distilleries) and speakeasies(illicit drinking places) popping up in every population center. Over-zealous police and federal agents violated civil rights when searching for and destroying the paraphernalia of alcohol. While most Americans respected the law, were in favor of the law, the shine of "dry" began to wear off, especially as the Great Depression set in.(1929). Prohibition was widely evaded with 'bootlegging' falling under criminal control. This led to gang warfare particularly in Chicago. President Franklin Roosevelt urged the nation to practice moderation.
A movement began to form to repeal the 18th Amendment. Prohibition of alcohol was seen as an affront to personal liberty, pushed on the nation by religious moralists. Alcohol was also seen as a source of revenue for the local and national governments. The Congress passed the amendment on February 20, 1933. The ratification process was complete on December 5, 1933. The 21st Amendment repealed the 18th, the first time an amendment had been repealed by another. In 1933 America toasted farewell to 14 dry years. Hence fourteen years later Prohibition was repealed. The "Noble Experiment" had failed miserably.
In contrast, Islam banned alcohol 14 centuries ago among people whose love for alcohol was second to none. In three simple steps, spanning only a few years, alcohol was banished from the Muslim world. Today, despite small areas of infraction, a map of the dry world coincides with the map of the Muslim world. Islam has declared alcohol to be Ummul-Khabaith (the root of all evil) and no power on earth can change that designation.
We recently saw a small example of the same miracle with respect to drugs. One command by the Taliban Ameer achieved what hundreds of experts and millions of dollars could not. In the areas under Taliban rule the cultivation of opium has stopped.
ISLAMIC APPROACH
Prophet adopted this evolutionary or gradual method. According to al-Bukhâri, Áisha (RA), the wife of the Prophet says that in the early days of Islam only such verses were revealed that sought to change a person's heart and mind, not verses that laid down divine law. Only when the Qur'an had successfully inculcated in the believers an innate acceptance of the evil nature of alcohol and adultery were the two explicitly prohibited.
Describing this Qur'anic prohibition, Áisha (RA) says, " had such a ban been revealed right in the very beginning, the people would have immediately cried out, "Never shall we leave alcohol nor shall we ever leave adultery."
Gradual change is but the Natural way of change. Islam was able to establish an evil-free society for the first time in history only because it employed this natural method of gradual change. We cannot find an example of such comprehensive success in transforming society on the part of any reform movement in the history of social reform.
In other words, the Islamic scheme for social reform can be called a results-oriented method as opposed to a dogmatic method. Islam seeks to bring about change in a manner that takes into consideration the possible consequences of any action instead of simply imposing its laws without any regard to the results.
Study of the Prophet's life reveals the distinction that he made between his ideas and how he put them into practice. Although he was the greatest of idealists and loved perfection, when dealing with people he kept reality firmly in sight and remained ever practical. The Prophet's life is laden with examples such as those leading unto the prohibition of alcohol and adultery.
The Prophet's effort was always such that the people accepted the mores of Islam by their own choice, rather than be forced to accept it, at the command of some political power. One of the aspects behind the wisdom of the Prophet's method is that when people relinquish a certain social evil of their own accord then there is no negative psychology that results. If a certain standard is imposed upon society, however, the social evil in question may seem to have been removed but some other problem is sure to take its place.
Judging by the standard of results achieved, reform by persuasion is true reform while reform by force is simply an upheaval(turmoil, confusion) rather than real change.
Alcohol in Soft Drinks
It is well known that some soft drinks, such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi-Cola, contain among their ingredients a tiny amount of alcohol, which is used to dissolve some constituents of the drinks such as color, flavor, etc. Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola, for example, contain different types of flavors, considered to be secrets of the trade, these flavors dissolve in alcohol, which is no more than two to three parts in one thousand (0.3-0.2 %) in these drinks
Such soft drinks are considered to be permissible halal from the Islamic point of view, according to the rules for eating and drinking in the Islamic legal law.
The concept behind these rule is that if a small amount of a prohibited substance X is mixed with a dominant permissible substance Y till substance X loses all its attributes such as taste, color, and smell, substance x loses the qualifications of being impure and prohibited by having being dissolved in substance Y.
This conclusion is supported by a ruling by Ibn Taymmiah in his Fatawa (21/502), and by the recommendations of the ninth Medical Fiqh Seminar of the Islamic Medical Science Organization, which met in Aldar Albayda’ in Morocco in June 1997.
Natural and artificial flavors containing alcohol.
In the food industry, alcohol is the second common solvent after water. Some of the flavors like vanilla can not be made without alcohol. One can not imagine foods and drinks like, ice cream, cakes and cookies, soft drinks, etc. without the use of alcohol. IFANCA (The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America) considers alcohol as an unavoidable impurity in the food systems. Muslim countries, which import food products, accept foods containing small quantities of alcohol.
We have established two levels of control points for alcohol in foods and ingredients:
Less than 0.1 per cent in the food items.
Less than 0.5 per cent in food ingredients.
At the above levels, one can not detect the presence of alcohol by taste, smell or sight.
These guidelines are for the food industry to make halal certified products, however, where should one draw the line, is up to the individual Muslim consumer based on the available knowledge and his or her own commitment.
Islam is the Solution
Then there are armies of "experts" who have been convincing everyone that the real problem of the exploited countries is that they are too "traditional" and their salvation lies in aping the progressive ways of the West. This is the essence of the modernization theory that seeks to move societies from the "traditional" to the "modern."
Today there are generations of educated(in secular or western education) Muslims who have been convinced that progress means modernization, and modernization means westernization. For every problem they turn to the "First World" for answers, guidance, and assistance. They see their own societies as decadent and attribute this decadence to their adherence to traditions and religion. Most of the rulers in the Muslim world today, unfortunately, come from this group. At the same time they claim to be Muslims and servants of Islam.
May be we can invite them to shed this hypocrisy and take an objective look at their ideal (western) societies. They may find out that contrary to their thinking, whatever good is there in any society, it comes from Islam. Whatever evils are there come from hypocrisy and defiance of Islam.
It is generally observed that in Muslim societies today people are neither punctual nor value time much. Their leisurely ways are in direct contrast to the world where the creed is that time is money. Islam does not promote this materialistic notion of the value of time, which results in nobody having time for others. But it does teach the value of every moment of our life as providing the opportunity for earning the rewards in the hereafter. It does require us to be punctual and not to waste time. And it delivers.
In the vast Muslim world there is one activity that is extraordinary in its punctuality and discipline. In the big cities, as well as in the remotest rural areas, the azan is called five times a day and the people gather for the congregational prayers at the proper times without fail. Neither excessive cold in the winter nights nor excruciating heat during sizzling summer days keeps them from their sacred duty. This enterprise has not been financed by governments or big businesses. When most people are in their warm beds in their unheated homes, there is a muezzin in every neighborhood who never fails to wake up and remind everyone, "Prayer is better than sleep." "As-Salatu Khairun Min-an-Naum"
Here is a glimpse of the power of Islam. Can we imagine the situation when not just the muezzin and a small congregation, but the entire population becomes responsive to its duty? Can we imagine when their sense of responsibility goes beyond the prayers and covers all aspects of their life?
Equally fascinating is the unparalleled power of Islam in shunning social evils that are consuming the world. Despite their myriad problems, the Muslim lands even today shine as islands of virtue in a deep dark ocean of vice.
Where else but in a Muslim country (Saudi Arabia) one can find jewelry stores without armed guards, closed doors, and elaborate security systems? One of the major crimes against humanity and morality committed by the "First World" has been the exploitation of women in the form of prostitution. Whether it is legal or illegal, whether there are marked red light areas or not, it flourishes everywhere in the "First World" and has its way. In addition, every area visited by their armies has left behind these centers of filth. Again, the notable exception is the Muslim world.
This world was a dark place, having forgotten or distorted previous prophets' teachings, before Prophet Muhammad brought the light. He brought back the message of Tauheed, universal brotherhood, compassion, mercy, equality, justice, God consciousness, and morality. As Muslims turned away from Islam, the darkness started to increase again, dividing it into first, second, and third worlds. There is lot of arrogance and ignorance in these ranks. But, Islam again illuminates the way. The solution is there, if only we look in the right direction. Islam is the solution.
REFERENCES:
(1) The Life of Muhammad by Abdul Hameed Siddiqui
(2) Wahiduddin Khan at online: http://www.alrisala.org/Articles/mailing_list/social_change_in_islam.html
(3) Khalid Baig Islam is the Solution, Impact International, 4 Sha'ban 1422, 21 October 2001
(4) www.isna.net/fiqh
(5) The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America(IFANCA), 5901 N. Cicero Ste. 309, Chicago, IL 60646.TEL: (773) 283-3708.FAX: (773) 283-3973
QUR'AN INSPIRES MODERN SCIENCE
www.doshiza.com
Mankind has just entered the 21st century in terms of the Common Era. This age is rightly called the information age with computers, electronic mail and business and commerce and the Internet with WEB pages. To many thinkers religion is alien to science. Science simply means a specialized branch of knowledge. In Arabic it is called 'Ilm. A scientist in Arabic is called an 'Alim. The west is wrong in separating Science from Religion. The great universal Muslim scientists about thousand years ago were at the forefront of knowledge particularly in the sciences and technology without ever giving up their religion. In fact Islam in general and the Qur'an in particular inspired the Muslim scientists to seek and advance knowledge. Hence they achieved all these without any conflict with religion.
Today many western educated Muslims follow the western path of separation of religion from science. On the other hand those Muslims trained in Islamic theology have refrained from modern sciences.
By moving away from the reading and in depth study of the Qur'an Muslims have lost the golden opportunity of many a scientific discovery and advancement of knowledge. By moving away from their Scriptures the Western people made many scientific discoveries and inventions. This is because of the suppression and obscurantism practiced by the Church against the scientists and intellectuals in the past. Even the scriptures themselves were a hurdle to the cause of seeking the truth through observation and experimentation as lucidly pointed by Dr. Maurice Bucaille in his most popular book " The Bible, Qur'an and Science."
A study of the Qur'an reveals that in the various verses or Ayath one finds that it invites the believers to study the whole universe including the earth and everything in between and to discover the various natural phenomena and their schemes.
The Qur'an calls upon Muslims to observe around them and study the physical world, so that they might appreciate the majesty of Allah's creation. "Behold! In the creation of the heavens and the earth; in the alternation of the night and the day; in the sailing of the ships through the ocean for the benefit of mankind; in the rain which Allah Sends down from the skies, and the life which He gives therewith to an earth that is dead; in the beasts of all kinds that He scatters through the earth; in the change of the winds, and the clouds which they trail like their slaves between the sky and the earth -- (Here) indeed are Signs for a people that are wise." (Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:164)
This inspiring declaration of the Qur'an stimulated the Muslims in the medieval period to research and investigate nature and natural phenomena that resulted in laying the foundation of practical science. The Greek science before them was mostly theoretical. One of the most remarkable things about the Qur'an is that it contains many Ayath (verses), which correctly describe natural phenomena in various disciplines such as human embryology, meteorology, astronomy, geology, and oceanography. Many of the processes and functions mentioned in the Qur'an have been discovered only recently. Some examples are the Big-Bang Theory, Sex Chromosomes, Sex determination, solar orbit, human embryology, etc. However the Qur'an is not meant to be a "Textbook of Science".
Science is not a divine revelation but it provides a means for the welfare of man and to better understanding the creation of Allah (SWT), the natural phenomena and their function. In over 11,000 Ayath (verses), nearly 20 percent of the Qur'an there are references to natural phenomena. This article is a result of the inspiration the author derived by reading the Noble Qur'an. The Glorious Qur'an did inspire our ancestors, the universal Muslim Scientists who pushed the frontiers of knowledge and advanced the Islamic civilization that lasted nearly one thousand years. One can derive inspiration from a single Qur'anic Ayah (verse) or even a single word in the Qur'an. There are many such examples in this article. Many books are devoted to Qur'anic Inspirations on the understanding or advancement of Science and Technology. In simplest terms science means knowledge and Islam exhorts its followers to relentlessly pursue knowledge. In the Noble Qur'an, Allah (SWT) ordained His servants to pray to Him thus:
" O Lord! Increase me in knowledge." (20: 114)
It is reported that the Messenger of Allah (SWT) peace be upon him to have once said," Learning comprises treasure houses whose keys are queries." Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) encouraged the spirit of investigation and analysis of facts. One of the most inspiring Ayath (verses) in the Qur'an is the following:
"And He has subjected to you, as from Him, all that is in
the heavens and on earth: behold, in that are signs indeed
for those who reflect." (45: 13)
To reflect is really the scientific spirit, which leads to understanding and discoveries about Allah's (SWT) creation and natural phenomena. Allah (SWT) guides the efforts of the scientists to meaningful purposes. Rational thinking is emphasized throughout the Qur'an. Repeatedly, the Qur'an calls the believer to do tadabbur (deliberate), to do tafakkur (tafkir or think), and ta'qqul (reason).
The more one investigates the more one knows about Allah (SWT) and His design of the universe. The emphasis is on thinking which leads the way to the cherishing care of Allah to establish all things in nature to service for the benefit of mankind. Allah (SWT) has given us the faculties and the intellectual genius for this purpose. The Muslim should never regard the study of natural sciences as forbidden territory or "haram". According to the Muslim traditions he who seeks knowledge is blessed, but the seeker who also attains success is twice blessed. The Muslim intellectuals have proved this in the past and they already set the trend.
Islam was never antagonistic to observation and experimentation and it has never strangled science and knowledge. Instead the Qur'an and the Prophet of Islam (pbuh) energetically encouraged the study of science and its methodology-observation and experimentation.
The European Renaissance owes its enlightenment and scientific advancement to the observations, experimentation and research carried out by the Muslim Scientists during the period from 800 to 1600 CE. The exhortations to the believers in the Glorious Qur'an not only paved the way for the birth and advancement of modern sciences, but also laid the foundation for practical sciences.
This article is written to prove there is no conflict between science and Islam, based on the Qur'anic inspirations the author derived from reading different Ayath (Verses). Even at the dawn of the 21st century of the CE, the Muslims can derive inspiration from the in depth study of the Qur'an and make new scientific discoveries and push forward the frontiers of knowledge. I humbly believe that the younger generation of Muslims will get inspiration from the revelations in the Qur'an and do investigate and contribute to the bank of knowledge.
In several places, the Glorious Qur'an uses inquiring phrases such as 'do they not think,' 'do they not ponder,' or 'reflect,' and asks the Qur'anic reader 'to enquire about certain statements to those who have knowledge and expertise.' The approach of the Qur'an is to invite to reason, logic, rationality and intelligence. The more one researches on different verses in the Noble Qur'an, more deeper meaning one gets. Many books and articles have been published as a result of heeding to the Qur'anic Ayath exhorting the Qur'anic readers to think, reflect and ponder over Natural Phenomena both in the heaveans and the earth, including the human beings.
The Qur’an inspires man to observe, experience, and investigate. It acknowledges sense perception and experiential as rewarding. In short, the spirit of the Qur’an, unlike other religions, is scientific.
Allah says in the Quran,
"And hath made of service unto you whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is in the earth; it is all from Him. Lo! herein verily are portents for a people who reflect." 45:13
"And of His sign is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the difference of your languages and colors. Lo! Herein indeed are portents for men of knowledge." 30:22
That is why the Qur’an speaks of those who study nature and try to discover the laws that govern it as “men of knowledge and insight”; furthermore, the Noble Qur’an says: “Lo! In the heavens and the earth are portents for believers” (45: 3). In seeking knowledge, the believers are spurred on by their faith (Iman). …. They know that: The alternation of night and day and the provision that Allah sendeth down from the sky and thereby quickeneth the earth after her death, and the ordering of the winds, are portents for a people who have sense (45: 5). Our faith in Allah (SWT) does not follow from purely logical arguments; but it springs from the direct experience of order, harmony, and beauty in nature.
There are those who ponder over God’s creation, for they know that
“In the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of night and day, are surely signs to men of understanding”(3: 189). They are the men “who keep in their mind (the law of) Allah (SWT) sitting and standing and reclining, and reflect on the creation of the heavens and the earth” (3: 190). When they reflect on the grandeur of nature, they are deeply moved and exclaim: “Our Lord! (Rabb) Thou hast not created this in vain (7: 190)."
Anyone who approaches nature with the attitude of the believers (Mu’mins), that person feels it in his/her consciousness that it has a meaning and a purpose. A person with intellectual honesty cannot but admit that certain things in the Qur'an are incomprehensible to him/her at the present level of one's knowledge. With humility when one confesses one's ignorance, then that person will have a conviction that if he/she persists in seeking more knowledge, one day that person will perceive the meaning of incomprehensible things as well. Men or women who lack this conviction live “in a sort of hell” (7: 191)”, and the pity is that “no one can help them” (7: 191).
With regard to inspiration, Allah (SWT) says in the Qur'an: "Likewise Allah, the All-Mighty, the All-Wise inspires you (O Muhammad (SAW)) as (He inspired) those before you. 42: 3
The Noble Qur’an is a source of advice, healing, guidance and mercy for those who have faith. The Qur’an contains nothing that is uncertain or questionable. It is absolutely straight, and authoritative, and ‘Nur’ (enlightenment) for the Muslims or the believers. There are innumberable spiritual benefits from the Qur'an to the believers.
The Quran is a source of law to guide the practical life of man. The Qur'an is a source of knowledge, which inspires man's intellectual endeavors. It is a universe into whose shape both the natural and social environment of man are cast, a universe which determines the life of the soul of man, its becoming, fruition, death and final destiny beyond this world. Qur'an is the Divine manifestation of Islam. It would never have been revealed to mankind and never have been understood except for Rasoolullah- our Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), who was chosen as the messenger and commentator to men.
In his Book, "Way to the Qur'an", Khurram Murad says, " You must remember certain characteristics of the Quranic style. Firstly, that it appeals to reason and feeling, intellect and soul as one whole. Secondly, that it is short, precise, direct, personal, and evocative. Thirdly, that it confronts its listeners with choices and decisions and inspires them to heed and act. Fourthly, that its language is as powerful as the message, which penetrates deep inside you. Fifthly, that its argument is always what its listeners are able to understand, that it is always drawn from their everyday experience, that it always finds an echo inside them. Above all, that it is not abstract, logical, speculative."
The Qur'an is a book of guidance to mankind and it inspires justice, good manners, humility, honesty, sincerity, and all that is most righteous. Although the Qur'an is a book of guidance for all humanity, however not everyone who reads it will get guidance from it. Qur’an reserves its guidance for those who sincerely seek it and approach it in the appropriate way and with the right attitude. At the same time, the Qur'an urges and inspires the believers to an ethic of action. It is a moral accountability for Muslims to struggle for what is good and just. For Muslims, it is an obligation to enjoin good and forbid evil (3:104). The Noble Qur'an gives moral code for individuals as well as states. It gives the Law or Shariah for the States as well. The Glorious Qur'an addresses both the heart and the intellect. It educates; it inspires; it heals. It shows the Path and it gives us the energy and motivation to follow it. No one can go wrong who makes the Qur'an his or her guide. No one can succeed who ignores its guidance.
The Qur'an inspires us towards peace, purity and tranquillity and institutes closeness to God. Recitation of the Qur'an amazingly reduces the stresses and tensions or the hustle and bustle of life to disciplined magnitude. The recitation of the Qur'an both in the morning and evening tend to sustain a healing or beneficial level and practically leaves no room for mischievous thought or deed. It inspires human beings to be responsible and watchful against evils and immorality. Muslims are urged to recite the Qur'an regularly. No one should allow a day to pass in one's life in which one forgets to read the Qur’an. One must understand its message and contemplate over its teachings. We must cast our life based on its commands.
In his masterpiece work titled "Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam" (published by Iqbal Academy Pakistan, Lahore, 2000), Allama Sir Muhammad Iqbal the poet-thinker-philosopher of South Asia says, "The purpose of Qur'an is to awaken in man the higher consciousness of his manifold relations with God and the universe.” The character of the universe in the Qur’an, says Iqbal, is that of a dynamic, active, and ever-growing universe. It is not the result of mere creative sport.
Also one can read in the Qur’an, which says, “We have not created the Heavens and the Earth and whatever is between them in sport. We have not created them but for a serious end: but the greater part of them understands it not’ (44:38-39)
Thus this universe is not a finished creation. It is capable of rising, and, in fact, is growing every moment. It is not stationary and incapable of change; change and growth are the principal conditions of existence in the universe. The Qur’an says,
“Verily in the creation of the Heavens and of the Earth, are signs for men of understanding... God causeth the day and night to take their turn. Verily in this is teaching for men of insight.” 24:44
These Ayath (signs or portents) are forces of nature, which man should understand and master. Man has a focal point and critical position in this universe. The nature of man, according to the Qur’an, is also innovative and dynamic. Though created humble in the scale of life, and surrounded on all sides by the forces of impediments, he is capable of development and spiritual growth. He is gifted with the fidgety (restless) and energetic spirit, which always seeks new magnitude of self-expression. Iqbal says, “Thus in his inmost being, man, as conceived by the Qur’an, is a creative activity, an ascending spirit who, in his onward march, rises from one state of being to another.” “If man does not take the initiative, if he does not evolve the inner richness of his being, if he ceases to feel the inward push of advancing life, then the spirit within him hardens into stone and he is reduced to the level of dead matter. But his life and the onward march of his spirit depend on the establishment of connections with the reality that confronts him. It is knowledge that establishes these connections, and knowledge is sense-perception elaborated by understanding.”
This vibrant and innovative picture of the universe and man proved to be a channel in rousing the Muslims to action all over the world. Man is only dynamic, inventive and spirited. If he is not active, then, he is deceased. His survival and continued existence depend on his skills over the physical world through his accumulated information; and knowledge is information acquired through senses, observation, experimentation, and investigation, in short, knowledge is science. This is the concept of man in the Qur’an. Science and the free spirit of inquiry is not for the sake of query; it has to be guided by some splendid rationale in life.
According to Iqbal "Sense perception and observation give knowledge and power, and religion provides a purpose and balance in life. These are not two opposite experiences; they are two different, but organically related methods of reaching the Ultimate Reality. They complement each other; they need each other. Science reaches the Ultimate Reality piecemeal, step by step, through experience, observation, and investigation, while in religious or mystic experience; one gets the total view of Reality. They both endeavor to reach the same Reality." That is why, Iqbal says, a scientist is a mystic (saint) who is in search of God.(Syed, IB.: Sufism and Quantum Physics, The Fountain Magazine, July-September, 2002)
Another way to get knowledge is through ilham, which may be translated as 'Divine inspiration.’ Things are discretionary to the heart (mind) of a man whose soul is adequately developed in the qualities of justice, charity, impartiality, and compassion to others. Any person who devotes one's personality to God and tries to forget one's identity, there are instants of very short duration when the state of the presence of God bursts like lightning, wherein one realizes without endeavor that no other effort would have been successful in making him conscious. The human spirit is thus enlightened. Then there is a feeling of confidence, gratification and comprehension of reality. It is God Who directs him and reins him and his thinking as well as his dealings. The maximum amount of contact, the surest and the most perfect means of communiqué between man and his Creator, is called wahy by the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). This is not a common motivation, but a absolute revelation made to man from God - a extraterrestrial message.
No amount of description, however, can fully attain the awe-inspiring magnitude of the Qur’an to Muslims. Dispassionately, it is the innermost truth of the Islamic faith, the Word of God, the last and complete revelation or the final testament, the groundwork and structure of Islamic law, and the foundation of Islamic thinking, verbal communication, and accomplishment. It is the quintessence of Islam. Yet it is, in the intensely individual terms of a Muslim, something more as well. In countless, almost beyond description behavior, it is also the crucial reality of Muslim life. To a level almost unintelligible in the West it figures and paints largely, exclusively, and completely the feelings, sentiments, and principles of the pious Muslim's life from birth to death.
The pedestal of Islam is the sacred text, the Qur'an ( sometimes spelled "Koran" by non-Muslims). Muslims, believe the Qur'an to be the Word of God as communicated in the Arabic language by the Angel Gabriel, to the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).
In a very good judgment the Qur'an is the guide to millions of Muslims, both Arabs and as well as non-Arabs alike; it contour their everyday life, fastens them to a distinctive system of law, and arouses them by its guiding doctrines. Written in a splendid language, this Glorious Text has done more than move masses to tears and thrilling excitement; it has also, for almost fourteen hundred years, enlightened the lives of Muslims with its persuasive message of stubborn monotheism, human dignity, honorable living, individual accountability, and social justice. For innumerable millions, consequently, it has been the single most important influence in guiding their religious, social, and cultural lives. Indeed, the Quran is the foundation on which the structure of Islamic civilization has been built. The Qur'an states that God created the universe and caused it to be populated by men and women and peoples and tribes so that they may know each other, there was a quest for discovery and knowledge. The Noble Qur'an became the foundation of Islamic civilization and has had a vast power on world history.
For many centuries, Islamic civilization promoted cultural and scientific advances on a scale unparalleled since ancient times. Islamic scholars assimilated the ancient teachings of Persia and India and the conventional heritage of Greece, preserving and translating manuscripts in centers of learning as widespread as Cairo (Egypt), Baghdad (Iraq) and Cordoba (Spain). Not only did they preserve the legacy of Western civilization through Europe’s “Dark Ages,” but they also made significant contributions of their own in virtually every field. Islamic scholars invented Spherical trigonometry and algorithms and devised the decimal system. They made original discoveries in geometry and trigonometry, and they invented algebra, which is an Arabic word.
In medicine, Muslims systematized the existing body of scientific knowledge, demonstrated circulation of the blood, developed the theory of optics, and published the first clinical account of smallpox. Two medieval Muslim physicians—Ibn Sina (Avicenna) and Ibn Rushd (Averroes)-were considered by East and West alike to be the decisive medical authorities until modern times. Professor Keith Moore, one of the world’s prominent scientists of anatomy and embryology at the University of Toronto, Canada says, "It has been a great pleasure for me to help clarify statements in the Qur’an about human development. It is clear to me that these statements must have come to Muhammad from God, or 'Allah', because almost all of this knowledge was not discovered until many centuries later. This proves to me that Muhammad must have been a messenger of Allah." Muslim interest in astronomy stemmed from the need to fix times of prayer and the direction of Makkah. Muslim astronomers developed the quadrant and astrolabe, made star charts, and were the first to use the magnetic needle in navigation. Muslim architects excelled in the technique of vaulting, and their monuments provided the inspiration for some of Europe’s Gothic cathedrals.
By the sixteenth century, Islamic civilization was among the most widespread and important civilizations on earth. Then, with the Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution, the West grew to confront the supremacy of the Islamic world. The last of the great Islamic empires-the Turkish Ottoman Empire-finally buckled at the end of World War I.
"According to Muslim teachings, Allah (SWT) first revealed His word in the Glorious Qur'an to the prophet, Muhammad (pbuh), during the month of Ramadan. That word has guided billions of believers across the centuries, and those believers built a culture of learning and literature and science. All the world continues to benefit from this faith and its achievements." Remarks by the President of USA, George W. Bush at Iftaar Dinner, The State Dining Room, Washington, D.C. November 19, 2001.
The motivation for writing this article is the status of the Muslim Ummah in the world. No one can deny that the Muslim Ummah occupies a position, which is at the lowest rung of the ladder in the world. The share of the Muslims in Nobel Prizes and the Olympic games is close to nothing. Muslims' contribution to literature both general and scientific is marginal at the best. It is very sad to see the status of Muslims in the present world at the bottom. Muslims have been economically exploited and politically subjugated. Economically, Muslims are poor; in education they are backwards; and in science and technology they are marginal. Even very small countries export arms, medicine and technology to Muslim countries. Developing Muslims countries cannot manufacture very simple things such as pencils and bicycle tires; they import them from China. There should be a deep examination of what has gone wrong. Why non‑Muslims, particularly in the West, have achieved supremacy in every field of human endeavor?
The average literacy rate is around 35 per cent and in rural areas in Muslim countries, the illiteracy rate among Muslim women is 93 to 97 per cent. This is ironic because the first word revealed to our Prophet Muhammad (SAS) is "IQRA" ‑ read. Acquiring knowledge is a religious obligation for every Muslim and Muslimah. The Muslim educated in the western world knows about Western books and scholars but very little about Muslim books and the INTELLECTUAL.ACHIEVEMENTGS OF THE MUSLIMS.
With Qur'an as their guide and the teachings of our Prophet Muhammad (SAS) the early Muslims reached the zenith of civilization, which lasted over one thousand years. During this millennium Muslims contributed vastly to the enhancements of arts, science and cultural growth of mankind. The Islamic Empire for more than 1,000 years remained the most advanced and civilized nation in the world. This is because Islam stressed the importance and respect of learning, forbade destruction, developed in Muslims the respect for authority and discipline, and tolerance for other religions. The Muslims recognized excellence and were hungry intellectually. They were avid for the wisdom of the world. Baghdad, Cairo, Damascus and Cordoba became the learning centers of the world to which the Europeans flocked to learn in Islamic universities. Arabic became the international language of learning and diplomacy, like English today. Baghdad emerged as the capital of the scientific world. The Muslims became scientific innovators with originality and productivity.
This article attempts to revive the Muslims back to the glorious heights‑ a position of top of the civilization.
What were the reasons for the downfall of the Muslims. There were both external and internal causes. The internal causes appear to be the major reasons for the present status of Muslims in the world. One of the major reasons is obscurantism, which is the act of obscuring, or striving to prevent enlightenment or to hinder the progress of knowledge. This is exactly contrary to the teachings of the Qur'an‑the book of Wisdom and the teachings of our Rasoolallah (SAS). This article attempts to give some solutions as to how to revive FREETHINKING to re‑establish the brilliance and excellence of the ISLAMIC CIVILIZATION.
Once a person makes the declaration of faith (shahadah) and becomes a Muslim, he or she takes on these and other responsibilities in an effort to remain on the straight path of righteousness and success. Islam is a disciplined religion because it teaches personal responsibility and complete submission to God. A Muslim must work for the pleasure of his or her Creator and hope for His mercy and acceptance. It may be a struggle at times but the wise person only welcomes struggle because it is a means by which the human will can be purified and by which the human spirit can move closer to its Creator. Besides, hard work results in a stronger, more dignified individual who is grateful and deserving, not lazy and complacent. The struggle (jihad) that Muslims may endure in trying to submit themselves is also a test of their true faith. It's not a test for God to know because He knows all; it's a test for the individual to know whether he or she is a true servant of God. Islam is a disciplined way of life that inspires people to be productive citizens working in the higher cause of their Creator.
The Noble Qur'an is simply a abridgment, correction and improvement of all the scriptures that came prior to it since they were tainted with and changed by humans over time. What Muslims reject are the altered accounts that exist today because they contain only a portion of the original message. Human distortion of these original scriptures made it necessary for the Qur'an to come. And it has remained in its original structure to this very day:
"We have, without doubt, sent down the Message; and We will assuredly guard it from corruption" Qur'an 15:9
"This is a Glorious Qur'an, inscribed in a Tablet Preserved!" (The Noble Qur'an 85:21-22)
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) inspires us to learn and teach Allah's Book. He emphasises that if we hold on to the Qur’an we will never go astray: Hadrat Uthman Bin Affan (RA) narrated that the Prophet (pbuh) said, “The most superior among you (Muslims) are those who learn the Qur’an and teach it.” (Bukhari 6/546)
Hadrat Jabir Bin ‘Abdullah (RA) narrated that the Prophet (pbuh) said, “…I have left among you the Book of Allah, and if you hold fast to it, you would never go astray…” (Muslim 2803.1)
It is for our guidance that we must believe the whole of the Qur’an. We are not considered to be true believers if we doubt some parts of the Revelation. If we reject any part of it, we will suffer grievous scolding in the Hereafter. Allah (SWT) Says,
"Then is it only a part of the Book that you believe in. And do you reject the rest? But what is the reward for those among you who behave like this but disgrace in this life? And on the Day of Judgment they shall be consigned to the most grievous chastisement for Allah is not unmindful of what you do. These are the people who buy the life of this world at the price of the Hereafter: their chastisement shall not be lightened nor shall they be helped. (2:85-86)
In disseminating the knowledge of Islam to the non-Muslims, one should point out the virutes and inspirations of the Qur'an and that it is the only comprehensive book available to mankind for guidance. Allah says that nothing has been omitted from it (6:38). It is further explained in detail in other Ayath in the Qur'an (11:1 and 6:114).
Mankind has just entered the 21st century in terms of the Common Era. This age is rightly called the information age with computers, electronic mail and business and commerce and the Internet with WEB pages. To many thinkers religion is alien to science. Science simply means a specialized branch of knowledge. In Arabic it is called 'Ilm. A scientist in Arabic is called an 'Alim. The west is wrong in separating Science from Religion. The great universal Muslim scientists about thousand years ago were at the forefront of knowledge particularly in the sciences and technology without ever giving up their religion. In fact Islam in general and the Qur'an in particular inspired the Muslim scientists to seek and advance knowledge. Hence they achieved all these without any conflict with religion.
Today many western educated Muslims follow the western path of separation of religion from science. On the other hand those Muslims trained in Islamic theology have refrained from modern sciences.
By moving away from the reading and in depth study of the Qur'an Muslims have lost the golden opportunity of many a scientific discovery and advancement of knowledge. By moving away from their Scriptures the Western people made many scientific discoveries and inventions. This is because of the suppression and obscurantism practiced by the Church against the scientists and intellectuals in the past. Even the scriptures themselves were a hurdle to the cause of seeking the truth through observation and experimentation as lucidly pointed by Dr. Maurice Bucaille in his most popular book " The Bible, Qur'an and Science."
A study of the Qur'an reveals that in the various verses or Ayath one finds that it invites the believers to study the whole universe including the earth and everything in between and to discover the various natural phenomena and their schemes.
The Qur'an calls upon Muslims to observe around them and study the physical world, so that they might appreciate the majesty of Allah's creation. "Behold! In the creation of the heavens and the earth; in the alternation of the night and the day; in the sailing of the ships through the ocean for the benefit of mankind; in the rain which Allah Sends down from the skies, and the life which He gives therewith to an earth that is dead; in the beasts of all kinds that He scatters through the earth; in the change of the winds, and the clouds which they trail like their slaves between the sky and the earth -- (Here) indeed are Signs for a people that are wise." (Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:164)
This inspiring declaration of the Qur'an stimulated the Muslims in the medieval period to research and investigate nature and natural phenomena that resulted in laying the foundation of practical science. The Greek science before them was mostly theoretical. One of the most remarkable things about the Qur'an is that it contains many Ayath (verses), which correctly describe natural phenomena in various disciplines such as human embryology, meteorology, astronomy, geology, and oceanography. Many of the processes and functions mentioned in the Qur'an have been discovered only recently. Some examples are the Big-Bang Theory, Sex Chromosomes, Sex determination, solar orbit, human embryology, etc. However the Qur'an is not meant to be a "Textbook of Science".
Science is not a divine revelation but it provides a means for the welfare of man and to better understanding the creation of Allah (SWT), the natural phenomena and their function. In over 11,000 Ayath (verses), nearly 20 percent of the Qur'an there are references to natural phenomena. This article is a result of the inspiration the author derived by reading the Noble Qur'an. The Glorious Qur'an did inspire our ancestors, the universal Muslim Scientists who pushed the frontiers of knowledge and advanced the Islamic civilization that lasted nearly one thousand years. One can derive inspiration from a single Qur'anic Ayah (verse) or even a single word in the Qur'an. There are many such examples in this article. Many books are devoted to Qur'anic Inspirations on the understanding or advancement of Science and Technology. In simplest terms science means knowledge and Islam exhorts its followers to relentlessly pursue knowledge. In the Noble Qur'an, Allah (SWT) ordained His servants to pray to Him thus:
" O Lord! Increase me in knowledge." (20: 114)
It is reported that the Messenger of Allah (SWT) peace be upon him to have once said," Learning comprises treasure houses whose keys are queries." Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) encouraged the spirit of investigation and analysis of facts. One of the most inspiring Ayath (verses) in the Qur'an is the following:
"And He has subjected to you, as from Him, all that is in
the heavens and on earth: behold, in that are signs indeed
for those who reflect." (45: 13)
To reflect is really the scientific spirit, which leads to understanding and discoveries about Allah's (SWT) creation and natural phenomena. Allah (SWT) guides the efforts of the scientists to meaningful purposes. Rational thinking is emphasized throughout the Qur'an. Repeatedly, the Qur'an calls the believer to do tadabbur (deliberate), to do tafakkur (tafkir or think), and ta'qqul (reason).
The more one investigates the more one knows about Allah (SWT) and His design of the universe. The emphasis is on thinking which leads the way to the cherishing care of Allah to establish all things in nature to service for the benefit of mankind. Allah (SWT) has given us the faculties and the intellectual genius for this purpose. The Muslim should never regard the study of natural sciences as forbidden territory or "haram". According to the Muslim traditions he who seeks knowledge is blessed, but the seeker who also attains success is twice blessed. The Muslim intellectuals have proved this in the past and they already set the trend.
Islam was never antagonistic to observation and experimentation and it has never strangled science and knowledge. Instead the Qur'an and the Prophet of Islam (pbuh) energetically encouraged the study of science and its methodology-observation and experimentation.
The European Renaissance owes its enlightenment and scientific advancement to the observations, experimentation and research carried out by the Muslim Scientists during the period from 800 to 1600 CE. The exhortations to the believers in the Glorious Qur'an not only paved the way for the birth and advancement of modern sciences, but also laid the foundation for practical sciences.
This article is written to prove there is no conflict between science and Islam, based on the Qur'anic inspirations the author derived from reading different Ayath (Verses). Even at the dawn of the 21st century of the CE, the Muslims can derive inspiration from the in depth study of the Qur'an and make new scientific discoveries and push forward the frontiers of knowledge. I humbly believe that the younger generation of Muslims will get inspiration from the revelations in the Qur'an and do investigate and contribute to the bank of knowledge.
In several places, the Glorious Qur'an uses inquiring phrases such as 'do they not think,' 'do they not ponder,' or 'reflect,' and asks the Qur'anic reader 'to enquire about certain statements to those who have knowledge and expertise.' The approach of the Qur'an is to invite to reason, logic, rationality and intelligence. The more one researches on different verses in the Noble Qur'an, more deeper meaning one gets. Many books and articles have been published as a result of heeding to the Qur'anic Ayath exhorting the Qur'anic readers to think, reflect and ponder over Natural Phenomena both in the heaveans and the earth, including the human beings.
The Qur’an inspires man to observe, experience, and investigate. It acknowledges sense perception and experiential as rewarding. In short, the spirit of the Qur’an, unlike other religions, is scientific.
Allah says in the Quran,
"And hath made of service unto you whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is in the earth; it is all from Him. Lo! herein verily are portents for a people who reflect." 45:13
"And of His sign is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the difference of your languages and colors. Lo! Herein indeed are portents for men of knowledge." 30:22
That is why the Qur’an speaks of those who study nature and try to discover the laws that govern it as “men of knowledge and insight”; furthermore, the Noble Qur’an says: “Lo! In the heavens and the earth are portents for believers” (45: 3). In seeking knowledge, the believers are spurred on by their faith (Iman). …. They know that: The alternation of night and day and the provision that Allah sendeth down from the sky and thereby quickeneth the earth after her death, and the ordering of the winds, are portents for a people who have sense (45: 5). Our faith in Allah (SWT) does not follow from purely logical arguments; but it springs from the direct experience of order, harmony, and beauty in nature.
There are those who ponder over God’s creation, for they know that
“In the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of night and day, are surely signs to men of understanding”(3: 189). They are the men “who keep in their mind (the law of) Allah (SWT) sitting and standing and reclining, and reflect on the creation of the heavens and the earth” (3: 190). When they reflect on the grandeur of nature, they are deeply moved and exclaim: “Our Lord! (Rabb) Thou hast not created this in vain (7: 190)."
Anyone who approaches nature with the attitude of the believers (Mu’mins), that person feels it in his/her consciousness that it has a meaning and a purpose. A person with intellectual honesty cannot but admit that certain things in the Qur'an are incomprehensible to him/her at the present level of one's knowledge. With humility when one confesses one's ignorance, then that person will have a conviction that if he/she persists in seeking more knowledge, one day that person will perceive the meaning of incomprehensible things as well. Men or women who lack this conviction live “in a sort of hell” (7: 191)”, and the pity is that “no one can help them” (7: 191).
With regard to inspiration, Allah (SWT) says in the Qur'an: "Likewise Allah, the All-Mighty, the All-Wise inspires you (O Muhammad (SAW)) as (He inspired) those before you. 42: 3
The Noble Qur’an is a source of advice, healing, guidance and mercy for those who have faith. The Qur’an contains nothing that is uncertain or questionable. It is absolutely straight, and authoritative, and ‘Nur’ (enlightenment) for the Muslims or the believers. There are innumberable spiritual benefits from the Qur'an to the believers.
The Quran is a source of law to guide the practical life of man. The Qur'an is a source of knowledge, which inspires man's intellectual endeavors. It is a universe into whose shape both the natural and social environment of man are cast, a universe which determines the life of the soul of man, its becoming, fruition, death and final destiny beyond this world. Qur'an is the Divine manifestation of Islam. It would never have been revealed to mankind and never have been understood except for Rasoolullah- our Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), who was chosen as the messenger and commentator to men.
In his Book, "Way to the Qur'an", Khurram Murad says, " You must remember certain characteristics of the Quranic style. Firstly, that it appeals to reason and feeling, intellect and soul as one whole. Secondly, that it is short, precise, direct, personal, and evocative. Thirdly, that it confronts its listeners with choices and decisions and inspires them to heed and act. Fourthly, that its language is as powerful as the message, which penetrates deep inside you. Fifthly, that its argument is always what its listeners are able to understand, that it is always drawn from their everyday experience, that it always finds an echo inside them. Above all, that it is not abstract, logical, speculative."
The Qur'an is a book of guidance to mankind and it inspires justice, good manners, humility, honesty, sincerity, and all that is most righteous. Although the Qur'an is a book of guidance for all humanity, however not everyone who reads it will get guidance from it. Qur’an reserves its guidance for those who sincerely seek it and approach it in the appropriate way and with the right attitude. At the same time, the Qur'an urges and inspires the believers to an ethic of action. It is a moral accountability for Muslims to struggle for what is good and just. For Muslims, it is an obligation to enjoin good and forbid evil (3:104). The Noble Qur'an gives moral code for individuals as well as states. It gives the Law or Shariah for the States as well. The Glorious Qur'an addresses both the heart and the intellect. It educates; it inspires; it heals. It shows the Path and it gives us the energy and motivation to follow it. No one can go wrong who makes the Qur'an his or her guide. No one can succeed who ignores its guidance.
The Qur'an inspires us towards peace, purity and tranquillity and institutes closeness to God. Recitation of the Qur'an amazingly reduces the stresses and tensions or the hustle and bustle of life to disciplined magnitude. The recitation of the Qur'an both in the morning and evening tend to sustain a healing or beneficial level and practically leaves no room for mischievous thought or deed. It inspires human beings to be responsible and watchful against evils and immorality. Muslims are urged to recite the Qur'an regularly. No one should allow a day to pass in one's life in which one forgets to read the Qur’an. One must understand its message and contemplate over its teachings. We must cast our life based on its commands.
In his masterpiece work titled "Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam" (published by Iqbal Academy Pakistan, Lahore, 2000), Allama Sir Muhammad Iqbal the poet-thinker-philosopher of South Asia says, "The purpose of Qur'an is to awaken in man the higher consciousness of his manifold relations with God and the universe.” The character of the universe in the Qur’an, says Iqbal, is that of a dynamic, active, and ever-growing universe. It is not the result of mere creative sport.
Also one can read in the Qur’an, which says, “We have not created the Heavens and the Earth and whatever is between them in sport. We have not created them but for a serious end: but the greater part of them understands it not’ (44:38-39)
Thus this universe is not a finished creation. It is capable of rising, and, in fact, is growing every moment. It is not stationary and incapable of change; change and growth are the principal conditions of existence in the universe. The Qur’an says,
“Verily in the creation of the Heavens and of the Earth, are signs for men of understanding... God causeth the day and night to take their turn. Verily in this is teaching for men of insight.” 24:44
These Ayath (signs or portents) are forces of nature, which man should understand and master. Man has a focal point and critical position in this universe. The nature of man, according to the Qur’an, is also innovative and dynamic. Though created humble in the scale of life, and surrounded on all sides by the forces of impediments, he is capable of development and spiritual growth. He is gifted with the fidgety (restless) and energetic spirit, which always seeks new magnitude of self-expression. Iqbal says, “Thus in his inmost being, man, as conceived by the Qur’an, is a creative activity, an ascending spirit who, in his onward march, rises from one state of being to another.” “If man does not take the initiative, if he does not evolve the inner richness of his being, if he ceases to feel the inward push of advancing life, then the spirit within him hardens into stone and he is reduced to the level of dead matter. But his life and the onward march of his spirit depend on the establishment of connections with the reality that confronts him. It is knowledge that establishes these connections, and knowledge is sense-perception elaborated by understanding.”
This vibrant and innovative picture of the universe and man proved to be a channel in rousing the Muslims to action all over the world. Man is only dynamic, inventive and spirited. If he is not active, then, he is deceased. His survival and continued existence depend on his skills over the physical world through his accumulated information; and knowledge is information acquired through senses, observation, experimentation, and investigation, in short, knowledge is science. This is the concept of man in the Qur’an. Science and the free spirit of inquiry is not for the sake of query; it has to be guided by some splendid rationale in life.
According to Iqbal "Sense perception and observation give knowledge and power, and religion provides a purpose and balance in life. These are not two opposite experiences; they are two different, but organically related methods of reaching the Ultimate Reality. They complement each other; they need each other. Science reaches the Ultimate Reality piecemeal, step by step, through experience, observation, and investigation, while in religious or mystic experience; one gets the total view of Reality. They both endeavor to reach the same Reality." That is why, Iqbal says, a scientist is a mystic (saint) who is in search of God.(Syed, IB.: Sufism and Quantum Physics, The Fountain Magazine, July-September, 2002)
Another way to get knowledge is through ilham, which may be translated as 'Divine inspiration.’ Things are discretionary to the heart (mind) of a man whose soul is adequately developed in the qualities of justice, charity, impartiality, and compassion to others. Any person who devotes one's personality to God and tries to forget one's identity, there are instants of very short duration when the state of the presence of God bursts like lightning, wherein one realizes without endeavor that no other effort would have been successful in making him conscious. The human spirit is thus enlightened. Then there is a feeling of confidence, gratification and comprehension of reality. It is God Who directs him and reins him and his thinking as well as his dealings. The maximum amount of contact, the surest and the most perfect means of communiqué between man and his Creator, is called wahy by the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). This is not a common motivation, but a absolute revelation made to man from God - a extraterrestrial message.
No amount of description, however, can fully attain the awe-inspiring magnitude of the Qur’an to Muslims. Dispassionately, it is the innermost truth of the Islamic faith, the Word of God, the last and complete revelation or the final testament, the groundwork and structure of Islamic law, and the foundation of Islamic thinking, verbal communication, and accomplishment. It is the quintessence of Islam. Yet it is, in the intensely individual terms of a Muslim, something more as well. In countless, almost beyond description behavior, it is also the crucial reality of Muslim life. To a level almost unintelligible in the West it figures and paints largely, exclusively, and completely the feelings, sentiments, and principles of the pious Muslim's life from birth to death.
The pedestal of Islam is the sacred text, the Qur'an ( sometimes spelled "Koran" by non-Muslims). Muslims, believe the Qur'an to be the Word of God as communicated in the Arabic language by the Angel Gabriel, to the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).
In a very good judgment the Qur'an is the guide to millions of Muslims, both Arabs and as well as non-Arabs alike; it contour their everyday life, fastens them to a distinctive system of law, and arouses them by its guiding doctrines. Written in a splendid language, this Glorious Text has done more than move masses to tears and thrilling excitement; it has also, for almost fourteen hundred years, enlightened the lives of Muslims with its persuasive message of stubborn monotheism, human dignity, honorable living, individual accountability, and social justice. For innumerable millions, consequently, it has been the single most important influence in guiding their religious, social, and cultural lives. Indeed, the Quran is the foundation on which the structure of Islamic civilization has been built. The Qur'an states that God created the universe and caused it to be populated by men and women and peoples and tribes so that they may know each other, there was a quest for discovery and knowledge. The Noble Qur'an became the foundation of Islamic civilization and has had a vast power on world history.
For many centuries, Islamic civilization promoted cultural and scientific advances on a scale unparalleled since ancient times. Islamic scholars assimilated the ancient teachings of Persia and India and the conventional heritage of Greece, preserving and translating manuscripts in centers of learning as widespread as Cairo (Egypt), Baghdad (Iraq) and Cordoba (Spain). Not only did they preserve the legacy of Western civilization through Europe’s “Dark Ages,” but they also made significant contributions of their own in virtually every field. Islamic scholars invented Spherical trigonometry and algorithms and devised the decimal system. They made original discoveries in geometry and trigonometry, and they invented algebra, which is an Arabic word.
In medicine, Muslims systematized the existing body of scientific knowledge, demonstrated circulation of the blood, developed the theory of optics, and published the first clinical account of smallpox. Two medieval Muslim physicians—Ibn Sina (Avicenna) and Ibn Rushd (Averroes)-were considered by East and West alike to be the decisive medical authorities until modern times. Professor Keith Moore, one of the world’s prominent scientists of anatomy and embryology at the University of Toronto, Canada says, "It has been a great pleasure for me to help clarify statements in the Qur’an about human development. It is clear to me that these statements must have come to Muhammad from God, or 'Allah', because almost all of this knowledge was not discovered until many centuries later. This proves to me that Muhammad must have been a messenger of Allah." Muslim interest in astronomy stemmed from the need to fix times of prayer and the direction of Makkah. Muslim astronomers developed the quadrant and astrolabe, made star charts, and were the first to use the magnetic needle in navigation. Muslim architects excelled in the technique of vaulting, and their monuments provided the inspiration for some of Europe’s Gothic cathedrals.
By the sixteenth century, Islamic civilization was among the most widespread and important civilizations on earth. Then, with the Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution, the West grew to confront the supremacy of the Islamic world. The last of the great Islamic empires-the Turkish Ottoman Empire-finally buckled at the end of World War I.
"According to Muslim teachings, Allah (SWT) first revealed His word in the Glorious Qur'an to the prophet, Muhammad (pbuh), during the month of Ramadan. That word has guided billions of believers across the centuries, and those believers built a culture of learning and literature and science. All the world continues to benefit from this faith and its achievements." Remarks by the President of USA, George W. Bush at Iftaar Dinner, The State Dining Room, Washington, D.C. November 19, 2001.
The motivation for writing this article is the status of the Muslim Ummah in the world. No one can deny that the Muslim Ummah occupies a position, which is at the lowest rung of the ladder in the world. The share of the Muslims in Nobel Prizes and the Olympic games is close to nothing. Muslims' contribution to literature both general and scientific is marginal at the best. It is very sad to see the status of Muslims in the present world at the bottom. Muslims have been economically exploited and politically subjugated. Economically, Muslims are poor; in education they are backwards; and in science and technology they are marginal. Even very small countries export arms, medicine and technology to Muslim countries. Developing Muslims countries cannot manufacture very simple things such as pencils and bicycle tires; they import them from China. There should be a deep examination of what has gone wrong. Why non‑Muslims, particularly in the West, have achieved supremacy in every field of human endeavor?
The average literacy rate is around 35 per cent and in rural areas in Muslim countries, the illiteracy rate among Muslim women is 93 to 97 per cent. This is ironic because the first word revealed to our Prophet Muhammad (SAS) is "IQRA" ‑ read. Acquiring knowledge is a religious obligation for every Muslim and Muslimah. The Muslim educated in the western world knows about Western books and scholars but very little about Muslim books and the INTELLECTUAL.ACHIEVEMENTGS OF THE MUSLIMS.
With Qur'an as their guide and the teachings of our Prophet Muhammad (SAS) the early Muslims reached the zenith of civilization, which lasted over one thousand years. During this millennium Muslims contributed vastly to the enhancements of arts, science and cultural growth of mankind. The Islamic Empire for more than 1,000 years remained the most advanced and civilized nation in the world. This is because Islam stressed the importance and respect of learning, forbade destruction, developed in Muslims the respect for authority and discipline, and tolerance for other religions. The Muslims recognized excellence and were hungry intellectually. They were avid for the wisdom of the world. Baghdad, Cairo, Damascus and Cordoba became the learning centers of the world to which the Europeans flocked to learn in Islamic universities. Arabic became the international language of learning and diplomacy, like English today. Baghdad emerged as the capital of the scientific world. The Muslims became scientific innovators with originality and productivity.
This article attempts to revive the Muslims back to the glorious heights‑ a position of top of the civilization.
What were the reasons for the downfall of the Muslims. There were both external and internal causes. The internal causes appear to be the major reasons for the present status of Muslims in the world. One of the major reasons is obscurantism, which is the act of obscuring, or striving to prevent enlightenment or to hinder the progress of knowledge. This is exactly contrary to the teachings of the Qur'an‑the book of Wisdom and the teachings of our Rasoolallah (SAS). This article attempts to give some solutions as to how to revive FREETHINKING to re‑establish the brilliance and excellence of the ISLAMIC CIVILIZATION.
Once a person makes the declaration of faith (shahadah) and becomes a Muslim, he or she takes on these and other responsibilities in an effort to remain on the straight path of righteousness and success. Islam is a disciplined religion because it teaches personal responsibility and complete submission to God. A Muslim must work for the pleasure of his or her Creator and hope for His mercy and acceptance. It may be a struggle at times but the wise person only welcomes struggle because it is a means by which the human will can be purified and by which the human spirit can move closer to its Creator. Besides, hard work results in a stronger, more dignified individual who is grateful and deserving, not lazy and complacent. The struggle (jihad) that Muslims may endure in trying to submit themselves is also a test of their true faith. It's not a test for God to know because He knows all; it's a test for the individual to know whether he or she is a true servant of God. Islam is a disciplined way of life that inspires people to be productive citizens working in the higher cause of their Creator.
The Noble Qur'an is simply a abridgment, correction and improvement of all the scriptures that came prior to it since they were tainted with and changed by humans over time. What Muslims reject are the altered accounts that exist today because they contain only a portion of the original message. Human distortion of these original scriptures made it necessary for the Qur'an to come. And it has remained in its original structure to this very day:
"We have, without doubt, sent down the Message; and We will assuredly guard it from corruption" Qur'an 15:9
"This is a Glorious Qur'an, inscribed in a Tablet Preserved!" (The Noble Qur'an 85:21-22)
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) inspires us to learn and teach Allah's Book. He emphasises that if we hold on to the Qur’an we will never go astray: Hadrat Uthman Bin Affan (RA) narrated that the Prophet (pbuh) said, “The most superior among you (Muslims) are those who learn the Qur’an and teach it.” (Bukhari 6/546)
Hadrat Jabir Bin ‘Abdullah (RA) narrated that the Prophet (pbuh) said, “…I have left among you the Book of Allah, and if you hold fast to it, you would never go astray…” (Muslim 2803.1)
It is for our guidance that we must believe the whole of the Qur’an. We are not considered to be true believers if we doubt some parts of the Revelation. If we reject any part of it, we will suffer grievous scolding in the Hereafter. Allah (SWT) Says,
"Then is it only a part of the Book that you believe in. And do you reject the rest? But what is the reward for those among you who behave like this but disgrace in this life? And on the Day of Judgment they shall be consigned to the most grievous chastisement for Allah is not unmindful of what you do. These are the people who buy the life of this world at the price of the Hereafter: their chastisement shall not be lightened nor shall they be helped. (2:85-86)
In disseminating the knowledge of Islam to the non-Muslims, one should point out the virutes and inspirations of the Qur'an and that it is the only comprehensive book available to mankind for guidance. Allah says that nothing has been omitted from it (6:38). It is further explained in detail in other Ayath in the Qur'an (11:1 and 6:114).
