WHAT IS ISLAM

The 25 Most Frequently Asked Questions About Islam For The New Millenum

2009-12-13T14:09:00.002+02:00

by Dr. Shahid Athar

INTRODUCTION:
The pluralistic American society has changed from being a "melting pot" to a "salad bowl" where all ingredients are encouraged to preserve and display their distinct tastes and flavors. However, even though Islam is a major religion with over 1.25 billion followers worldwide and over 8 million in the U.S., some Americans still mistake it for a cult, or that all Muslims are terrorists, or that every Muslim has 4 wives. The really naïve among my compatriots ask me if my wife puts on a veil, walks behind me, and belly dances for me! Misconceptions about Islam and Muslims continue because of the lack of availability of correct information about the basic teachings of Islam.

The misrepresentation of Islam by the media, especially Hollywood, often challenges Muslims to answer questions put forth by their non-Muslim neighbors, colleagues, and friends. I have been blessed by the opportunity of speaking about Islam and Muslims to non-Muslims in schools, colleges, churches, synagogues, inter-faith gatherings, and on radio and TV talk shows. Such experiences have been most rewarding, often resulting in friendships. In addition, these experiences have enabled me to put together 25 frequently asked questions about Islam, and of course my answers to them

List of Questions

What is Islam?

Who is Allah?

Who is a Muslim?

Who was Muhammad (salla Allah 'alayhi wa sallam - Peace and Blessings be upon him)

Do Muslims worship Muhammad?

What do Muslims think of Jesus?

Do Muslims have many sects?

What are the pillars of Islam?

What is the purpose of worship in Islam?

Do Muslims believe in the Hereafter?

Will the good actions of non-believers be wasted?

What is the dress code for Muslims?

What are the dietary rules in Islam?

What is Jihad?

What is the Islamic year?

What are the major Islamic festivals?

What is Shari'ah?

Was Islam spread by the sword?

Does Islam promote violence and terrorism?

Is there such thing as "Islamic Fundamentalism"?

Does Islam promote polygamy?

Does Islam oppress women?

Is Islam intolerant of other religious minorities?

What is the Islamic view on dating and premarital ***, abortion, homo***uality and AIDS, euthanasia and suicide, and organ transplantation?

How should Muslims treat Jews and Christians?

1. What is Islam?
"Islam" is an Arabic word that means peace and submission. The "peace" in Islam means to be at peace with oneself and your surroundings and "submission" means submission to the Will of God. A broader meaning of the word "Islam" is to achieve peace by submitting to the Will of God.
Islam is a unique religion with a name that signifies a moral attitude and a way of life. Judaism takes its name from the tribe of Judah, Christianity from Jesus Christ, Buddhism from Buddha, and Hinduism from the Indus River. However, Muslims derive their identity from the message of Islam, rather than the person of Muhammad (salla Allah 'alyhi wa sallam-peace and blessings be upon him). Therefore, Muslims should never be called "Mohammedans".

2. Who is Allah?
Allah is the Arabic word for the "One God." Allah is not a deity specific to Muslims alone. He is God of all creations, because He is their Creator and Sustainer. An Arabic speaking person of any religion would only call God by His name in Arabic, which is Allah. After all Moses and Jesus did not speak English, and the English-language word "God" was not in their vocabulary!

3. Who is a Muslim?
The word "Muslim" means the one who submits to the Will of God, declaring that "there is no one worthy of submission except the One God and Muhammad is the messenger of God." In a broader sense, anyone who willingly submits to the Will of God is a Muslim. Thus, all the prophets preceding Prophet Muhammad are considered Muslims. The Qur'an specifically mentions Abraham who lived long before Moses and Jesus that, "he was neither a Jew or a Christian but a Muslim," because, he had submitted to the Will of God. Thus, there are Muslims who are not submitting at all to the Will of God and there are Muslims who are doing their best to live an Islamic life.
One cannot judge Islam by looking at those individuals who have a Muslim name but in their actions, they are not living or behaving as Muslims. In fact, many Muslim Americans have not even adopted traditional Muslim names and there are good Muslims. The extent of being a Muslim can be according to the degree to which one submits to the Will of God in his beliefs and his actions.

4. Who was Muhammad?
Muhammad was born in a noble tribe of Mecca in Arabia in the year 570 CE. His ancestry goes back to Prophet Ishmael, son of Prophet Abraham. His father died shortly before his birth and his mother died when he was six. He did not attend school and was thus unable to read and write.
In accordance to the prevalent custom, he was raised first by a nurse, and then by his grandfather and uncle. As a young man, he was known as a righteous person, a trait that earned him the title of Al-Amin-the trustworthy. He often used to retire to meditate in a cave near Mecca. At age 40, he was given the prophethood when the angel, Gabriel, appeared in the cave with God's Command. Subsequently, the revelations came over 23 years and were compiled in the form of a book called the Qur'an which Muslims consider as the final and the last word of God given to humankind. The Qur'an has been preserved in its original form and confirms the truth in the Torah, the Psalms, and the Gospel.

5. Do Muslims worship Muhammad?
No. Muslims do not worship Muhammad or any other prophets. Muslims believe in all prophets including Adam, Noah, Abraham, David, Solomon, Moses, and Jesus. In fact, the belief is all prophets of God are an integral part of the faith. Muslims believe that Muhammad was the last of the prophets. They believe that God alone is to be worshiped, not any human being.

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6. What do Muslims think of Jesus?
Muslims hold Jesus and his revered mother, Mary in great esteem. The Qur'an says that Jesus is the outcome of a miraculous birth without a father. "Lo! The likeness of Jesus with God is the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust, and then He said unto him: Be and he is" (Qur'an 3.59). He was given many miracles as a prophet, which includes speaking soon after his birth in defense of his mother's piety. God's other gifts to him included healing the blind and the sick, reviving the dead, making a bird out of clay and most importantly, the message he was carrying. These miracles were given to him by God to establish him as a prophet. According to the Qur'an, he was not crucified but was raised into Heaven. (Qur'an, Chapter Maryam)

7. Do Muslims have many sects?
Muslims have no sects. In Islam, there are two major schools of thought, the Shia and the Sunni, which have more in common than differences. They follow the same book-The Qur'an; the same prophet Muhammad, offer their prayers 5 times a day, fast in the month of Ramadan, and go for Hajj--pilgrimage to Mecca. Those who follow Prophet Muhammad, in accordance with his sayings and actions, are called Sunni and those who in addition also follow the sayings and views of Ali (Muhammad's son-in-law), whom they consider as the rightful successor to Prophet Muhammad, are called Shia.
The word Shia means a partisan (party of Ali) and it started more as a political party to help Ali in his conflict with his political adversaries. Most Shias live in Iran, Iraq, and Azerbaijan while the rest of the Muslim world is mostly Sunni. Shias comprise about 16 percent of the Muslim population.

8. What are the pillars of Islam?
There are 5 pillars of Islam, which are the articles of faith. 1) Belief (Iman) in one God and that Muhammad is His messenger. 2) Prayer (Salat) which is prescribed 5 times a day. 3) Fasting (Siyam) which is required in the month of Ramadan-9th month of the Islamic Hijri calendar. 4) Charity (Zakat) which is the poor-due (2.5%) on the wealth of the rich.5) Hajj--the pilgrimage to Mecca once in a lifetime if one can afford it physically and financially.
All the pillars should be of equal height and strength in a building in order to give it due shape and proportion. It is not possible that one would do Hajj without observing fasting or without practicing regular prayers. Now think of a building that has pillars only. It would not be called a building. In order to make it a building, it has to have a roof, walls, doors, and windows. These things in Islam are the moral codes of Islam such as honesty, truthfulness, steadfastness, and many other human moral qualities. Thus in order to be a Muslim, one should not only be practicing the pillars of Islam but should also have the highest possible attribute for being a good human being. Only then, the building is completed and looks beautiful.

9. What is the purpose of worship in Islam?
The purpose of worship in Islam is to be God conscious. Thus worship, whether it is prayer, fasting, charity, or Hajj, is a means to achieve God consciousness so that when one becomes conscious of God, in thought and in action, he is in a better position to receive His bounties both in this world and the Hereafter.

10. Do Muslims believe in the Hereafter?
God who is Just and manifests His justice has established the system of accountability. Those who do good deeds will be rewarded and those who do wrong will be punished accordingly. Thus, He created the Heaven and Hell and there are admission criteria for both. Muslims believe that the present life is a temporary one--a test and if we pass the test, we will be given a life of permanent pleasure in the company of good people in Heaven.

11. Will the good actions of the nonbelievers be wasted?
No. The Qur'an clearly says that, "anyone who has an atom's worth of goodness will see it and anyone who has done an atom's worth of evil will also see it" (Qur'an 99:7-8). By that, it is meant that the nonbelievers who have done good will be rewarded in this world for their good deed. On the other hand, those who do good if they are also sincere in submission to God (that is Muslims), they will be rewarded not only in this world but also in the Hereafter. However, the final Judgment is up to God himself. (Qur'an 2:62)

12. What is the dress code for Muslims?
Islam emphasizes modesty. No person should be perceived as a *** object. There are certain guidelines both for men and women that their dress should not reveal body forms. Men must cover at least the area from the knee to the navel and for women should cover all areas except the hands and face. The veil is not essential.

13. What are the dietary prohibitions in Islam?
Muslims are told in the Qur'an not to eat pork or pork products, meat of the animals that died before being slaughtered or carnivorous animals (as they eat dead animals), nor drink blood or intoxicants such as alcoholic beverages or use any illicit drugs. Muslims are also advised to be balanced in their intake of foods and beverages. The Prophet advised that one should a portion of the stomach empty.

14. What is Jihad?
The word "Jihad" literally means struggle, which in Islamic terms means to strive in the way of God. Any struggle done in day-to-day life to please God can be considered Jihad. One of the highest levels of Jihad is to stand up to a tyrant and speak the truth. The control of the self from wrongdoings is also a great Jihad. One of the forms of Jihad is to take up arms in defense of Islam or a Muslim country when Islam is attacked. Such a Jihad has to be declared by the religious leadership or by a Muslim head of state who is following the Qur'an and Sunnah.

15. What is the Islamic Year?
The Islamic year started from the migration (Hijra) of Prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE. It is a lunar year of 354 days. The first month is called Muharram. Muslims do not celebrate a "new year" and like each day, pray for God's good pleasure and bounty

16. What are the major Islamic festivals?
'Idul Fitr marks the end of fasting in the month of Ramadan and is celebrated with congregational prayers, feasts, and exchange of gifts. 'Idul Adha marks the end of the Hajj or the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. After congregational prayers, those who can afford, sacrifice an allowed animal such as lamb, goat, or cow to signify Prophet Abraham's obedience to God, shown by his readiness to sacrifice his son Ishmael.
Muslims live as a majority in some 52 countries and as minorities worldwide, and after 'Id celebrations vary from cultures, but remain within the confines of the Islamic moral code and dietary regulations.

17. What is the Shari'ah?
The Shari'ah is the comprehensive Muslim law derived form two sources: the Qur'an and the Sunnah-the Traditions of Prophet Muhammad. It covers every aspect of individual and collective living. The purpose of Islamic laws are protection of the individual's fundamental rights to include right to life, property, political and religious freedom and safeguarding the rights of women and minorities. The low crime rate in Muslim societies is due to the application of the Islamic laws.

18. Was Islam spread by the sword?
The Qur'an declares, "There is no compulsion in religion" (2:256), thus, no one can be forced to become a Muslim. While it is true that in many places where Muslim armies went to liberate people or the land, they did carry the sword as that was the weapon used at that time. However, Islam did not spread by the sword because in many places where there are Muslims now, in the Far East like Indonesia, China, and many parts of Africa, there are no records of any Muslim armies going there. For instance, instance Muslims ruled India for over 1,000 years and yet on 15% of Indians are Muslims. If the 'sword' had been used, the statistics would have been otherwise. Despite 1,400 years Muslim presence in the Arab world, some 10% of all Arabs are Christians.
In the U.S., Islam is the fastest growing religion and, according to a 2001 study, it has 7 million followers obviously without any sword around.

19. Does Islam promote violence and terrorism?
No. Islam is religion of peace and submission and stresses on the sanctity of human life. The Qur'an (5:32) says: "anyone who saves one life, it is as if he has saved the whole of humankind and anyone who has killed another person (except in lieu of murder or mischief on earth) it is as if he has killed the whole of humankind."
Islam condemns all the violence. Muslims were and are the victims and not perpetrators of the violence that happened in the Crusades, Spain, the World Wars, Dr. Baruch Goldstein, the atrocities committed in Bosnia and Kosovo by the Christian Serbs, in the former Soviet Union, in Palestine, and Kashmir.
Anyone who is perpetrating violence is not practicing his religion at that time. However, sometimes violence is a human response of oppressed people as it happens in Palestine. Although this is wrong, these oppressed people think that this is a way to get world attention. Of course, there is a lot of terrorism and violence in areas where there is no Muslim presence, such as Ireland, Latin America, and Sri Lanka. Sometimes the violence is due to a struggle between the haves and have-nots, or between the oppressed and the oppressors. We need to find out why people become terrorists. Unfortunately, the Palestinians who are waging a resistance movement are called terrorists, but not the armed Israeli settlers and even the Israeli government. Too often Muslims are blamed for things they did not do, for instance, the Oklahoma City bombing.

20. What is "Islamic Fundamentalism"?
There is no concept of "fundamentalism" in Islam. The western media has coined this term to brand those Muslims who wish to return to the fundamental principles of Islam and mould their lives accordingly. Islam is a religion of moderation and a practicing God fearing Muslim can neither be a fanatic nor an extremist.

21. Does Islam promote polygamy?
Polygamy in Islam is permission not an injunction. Historically, all the prophets except Jesus, who was not married, had more than one wife. For Muslim men to have more than one wife is a permission which is given to them in the Qur'an, not to satisfy lust, but for the welfare of the widows and the orphans of the wars. In the pre-Islamic period, men used to have many wives. One person had 11 wives and when he became Muslim, he asked Prophet Muhammad, "What should I do with so many wives?" and he replied, "Divorce all except the four." The Qur'an says, "you can marry 2 or 3 and up to 4 women if you can be equally just with each of them" (4:3). Since it is very difficult to be equally just with all wives, in practice, most of the Muslim men do not have more than one wife.
Prophet Muhammad himself from age 24 to 50 was married to only one woman, Khadija. In western society, some men who have one wife have many extramarital affairs. Americans had a president who was adept at such behavior! A survey published in USA Today (April 4, 1988 Section D) asked 4,700 mistresses about their preferred status, and they said that "they preferred being a second wife rather than the 'other woman' because they did not have the legal rights, nor did they have the financial equality of the legally married wives, and it appeared that they were being used by these men."

22. Does Islam oppress women?
No. On the contrary, Islam elevated the status of women 1,400 years ago by giving them the right to divorce, the right to have financial independence and support and the right to be identified as dignified women (Hijab) when the rest of the world, including Europe, had no such rights. Women are equal to men in all acts of piety (Qur'an 33:32). Islam allows women to keep their maiden name after marriage, their earned money that they can invest or spend as they wish, and asks men to be their protector as women on the street can be molested. Prophet Muhammad told Muslim men, "The best among you is the one who is best to his family."
However, some Muslims warp Islamic teaching seemingly to oppress women in the name of "religion" an aberration deriving from cultural habits or ignorance about their religion. Female Genital Mutilations (female circumcision) has nothing to do with Islam. It is a pre-Islamic African custom practiced by non-Muslims including Coptic Christians.

23. Is Islam intolerant of other religious minorities?
Islam recognizes the rights of the minority. To ensure their welfare and safety, Muslim rulers initiated a tax (Jazia) on them. Prophet Muhammad forbade Muslim armies to destroy places of worship such as churches and synagogues. Caliph Umer did not even allow them to pray inside a church. Jews were welcomed and flourished in Muslim Spain, and when they were persecuted in Spain the rest of Europe after the exit of Muslims, Turkey gave the Jews refuge. The Jews consider that part of their history as the Golden Era. In Muslim countries, Christians live in prosperity, hold government positions, and attend their church. Pakistan has had a Christian chief justice of the Supreme Court. Even Iraq has a Christian senior vice president. Christian missionaries are allowed to establish and operate their churches, schools, and hospitals.
However, the same religious tolerance is not always available to Muslim minorities as seen in the past during Spanish Inquisition and the Crusades, or as seen now by the events in Bosnia, Israel and India. Muslims do recognize that sometimes the actions of a ruler do not reflect the teachings of his religion, and in fact, many of the Muslims being accused of terrorism are struggling against such undemocratic regimes.

24. What is the Islamic view on:

a. Dating and Premarital ***:
Islam does not approve of intimate mixing of the ***es, and forbids premarital and extramarital ***. Islam encourages marriage as a shield to such temptations and as a means of having mutual love, mercy, and peace.

b. Abortion:
Islam considers abortion as murder and does not permit it except to save the mother's life when advised by competent medical professionals (Qur'an 17:23-31, 6:15 1).

c. Homo***uality and AIDS:
Islam categorically opposes homo***uality and considers it a major sin. However, Muslim physicians are advised to care for AIDS patients with compassion just as they would for other patients.

d. Euthanasia and Suicide:
Islam is opposed to both suicide and euthanasia. Muslims do not believe in heroic measures to prolong the misery in a terminally ill patient.

e. Organ transplantation:
Islam stresses upon saving lives (Qur'an 5:32). Thus, transplantation in general would be considered permissible provided donor consent is available. The sale of the organ is not allowed.

25. How should Muslims treat Jews and Christians?
The Qur'an calls the Jews and Christians as "People of the Book", i.e., those who received Divine scriptures before Muhammad. Muslims are told to treat them with respect and justice and do not fight with them unless they initiate hostilities or oppose their faith. The Muslims ultimate hope is that they all will join them in worshipping one God and submit to His will.

" Say (O Muhammad): O people of the Book (Jews and Christians) come to an agreement between us and you, that we shall worship none but Allah, and that we shall take no partners with Him, and none of us shall take others for Lords beside Allah. And if they turn away, then say: Bear witness that we are those who have surrendered (unto Him)." (Qur'an 3:64)

What about Hindus, Bahai, Buddhists, and members of other religions? They should also be treated with love, respect, and understanding to make them recipients of the invitation to Islam.

Biography of the Prophet

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Story of Adam

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The creation of man is referred to in the Koran in many places. Adam was the first man God created. Then He created Eve, and they lived together in heaven.

God regarded man as his noblest creation. He sent him as His vicegerent on earth. Before creating Adam, He told the angels in the heavens that He was creating 'man from clay, moulding him from earthly substance', and asked them to 'fall down before him in prostration, when I have given him form and breathed into him My spirit'. The angels were aghast:

They asked: 'Pray, will you put man there Who will do mischief and shed blood? Why not send us instead who worship and glorify You? [2:30]

They prayed to the Lord not to humiliate them. God told them to obey His command, for, he said, 'You know not what I know.' The Koran states:

So each one of them obeyed except Satan. God asked him: 'Why did you not prostrate?' Satan replied: 'Because I am worthier, my Lord, than Adam. Of fire You have created me, from clay you have created him.' [7:12]

God thundered: Begone from My presence! There is no place for you here. Your arrogance makes you the meanest of My creatures. [7:13]

Satan bowed before the Lord, and made one plea: Grant me, my Lord, a reprieve until the day man is raised again. [7:14]

God granted Satan the reprieve. Satan then said: Since you have thrown me out, I shall now waylay man on the straight path you have laid and make him commit sin, from the right hand to the left, from before and behind him; You will not find in Adam and in most of his progeny, gratitude for Your bounties. [7:16-17]

God told Satan that he was disgraced, and banished him from paradise: Those of My creatures who follow you they shall be consigned to hell with you. [20:123-124]

Turning to Adam, God said: You and Eve can reside in the garden of paradise. Eat fruits from any tree you like, but there is one to which you shall not go nor shall you eat its fruits. For, indeed, it will be a transgression. [2:35]

Adam and Eve began to live blissfully in paradise, but Satan would tempt them so as to swerve them from the right path. He whispered into their ears that they should enjoy their bare bodies, which until then they had not perceived. He told them that their Lord had asked them to keep away from the prohibited tree because He did not wish them to become angels and thus immortal. He asked them to swear that they would not betray his trust and then urged them to eat the forbidden fruit. He assured them that he was their 'true friend'.

He used all his guile to entice them. Eventually, Adam and Eve succumbed to his enticements and tasted the forbidden fruit. They covered themselves with leaves in order to conceal their shame. On seeing this transformation, their Lord asked them:

Did I not forbid you to go near that tree? Did I not warn you that Satan is your enemy? [7:20-22]

Adam and Eve realized their mistake and begged forgiveness of their Lord: O Lord, we have sinned grievously. Please grant us Your forgiveness or else we shall be lost forever. [7:23]

The Lord in His mercy forgave them, but cast them down to live on earth. He told them that there shall be eternal enmity and feuding between them and Satan. The Lord reminded Adam and Eve, and their progeny who followed them, that clothing might cover their shame, but what was more important for them was to cover themselves with the 'garment of true piety':

O Children of Adam! Let Satan not be your guide as he has been of your parents. He misled them and drove them out, stripping them of their nakedness. [7:27]

Satan made Adam and Eve commit indecency. Thus they disobeyed the command of their Lord. They were warned of Satan's designs; they were asked to tell Satan:

Our Lord commands us to do what is right and just. He is to be worshipped in every place and prayed to with all the sincerity of faith. It is He who has brought us to life, and it is He who will raise us again. After we die we shall return to Him. Some of us have been guided right. But some have taken to Satan's ways. They are, indeed, in the wrong. [7:29-30]

Referring to Cain and Abel, the two sons of Adam, the Koran says that each of them made an offering to God; the offering of Abel was accepted and that of Cain was rejected:

Cain said to his brother: 'I will kill you.' But his brother replied: 'Only from those who truly fear the Lord does God accept an offering. If you try to kill me, I will not do the same to you. For I fear my Lord, Who is the Lord of all beings. If you kill me, the sin will be on your head and you will be consigned to hell.' [5:27-29]

Abel's words had no effect on Cain. He murdered his brother without any cause and 'took his place among the lost'. God sent a raven who dug the ground to cover the corpse of Abel. Seeing this, Cain felt most remorseful and cried, 'Woe to me. I am worse than this raven, for I cannot hide the evil that I have done to my brother.' The Koran admonishes:

O Children of Israel! If anyone kills another without just cause, except in retaliation for a murder or for causing corruption in the land, it is as if he has killed the whole of mankind. And whosoever saves a life, it is as if he has saved the whole of mankind. [5:32]

Story of Noah

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God sent Noah to his people and asked him to tell them to worship none but the One, who was the Creator of all. He was also told to warn them that 'stern retribution will overtake them' if they did not heed his call.

The nobles among them refused to believe him. They said: You are just a human being like us; why should we follow you? Except the vulgar who may thoughtlessly hasten to listen to you, you have no superiority over us; in fact, you are nothing but an impostor [11:27]

Noah beseeched them not to misunderstand him: I have a clear message from the Lord Who in His mercy has granted me this task. I ask you not to be deaf to what I have to say. I am not coercing you nor am I asking you for wealth. My reward is with my Lord. I will not turn away believers. Only pause and think of your future. I do not claim to possess God's treasures nor have I the knowledge of the Unseen; I am also no angel. But do not be scornful of those who believe in God or talk ill of them. [11: 28-31]

These people, however, remained adamant in their opposition and told Noah bluntly: You have raised a dispute between us; we have heard your contentions and also the warnings of dire consequences. Bring upon us the calamity that you threaten; let us see what your God can do to us. [11:32]

Noah warned them that if God so willed, He would do what He wanted and nothing could frustrate it. He pleaded with them again to come out of their 'persistent delusion'. But they refused to listen to him.

In desperation, Noah told the Lord: O my Lord, night and day I have pleaded with my people, but instead of listening to me they have fled away from me. Each time I have asked them to seek Your forgiveness, they have put their fingers in their ears and wrapped their heads with rich garments; they have persisted in their arrogance. Even so I pleaded with them, privately as well as publicly, in all earnestness, entreating them to seek Your forgiveness and to remember Your bounties and Your Awesome Majesty. But they have said 'no' to me. On the contrary, they have asked people not to abandon the worship of their gods. [71:5-23]

God then asked Noah not to be distressed and to construct an ark 'under Our eyes and by Our inspiration'. As he began the work, the chiefs of his people mocked him. He told them that soon they would realize who was in for 'lasting doom'.

And so it happened; under a decree from the Lord, the waters gushed forth and flooded the earth. Noah was commanded by the Lord to take into the ark two creatures of each species, a male and a female, members of his family, except the wrongdoers among them, and all the believers who numbered just a handful. Noah's son refused to board. The father pleaded with him, but he said, 'No, I will climb the mountain and take shelter there and protect myself.'

Noah cried out: This day there shall be no protection from the wrath of God, save for those who will receive His mercy. The waves came gushing forth in torrents and swept off Noah's son and all unbelievers; when Noah saw his son drowning, in a moment of weakness he asked God to forgive his son and to save him.

The Lord said: 'He was not a true son of yours; what he did was wrong. Do not ask for something which is wrong and of which you have no comprehension. Otherwise, you may be counted among the ignorant and the willful.' Noah realized his folly and was repentant.

He asked for God's forgiveness, and the blessings came: Noah! Take to the way of peace; Our blessings are upon you and upon people descending from you. We will give satisfaction to believers and retribution to unbelievers. the future is only known to Us; neither you nor your people have an inkling, hence be patient and fear your Lord. [11:48]

As the floods overwhelmed the unbelievers and took them to their doom, Noah prayed to the Lord: O my Lord! Forgive me and all believers who have taken shelter under my roof, but do not leave on earth a single unbeliever. For if You spare any one of them, He will lead Your servants astray and also their offspring and make them faithless wrongdoers. [71:26-28]

Noah and his companions in the ark were safely conveyed to the shore. God kept them steadily under His grace and granted them His bounties.

Story of Hud

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To the industrious and hardworking people belonging to the tribe of Aad, God sent Hud as His messenger. He told them:

O my people, worship God. There is no one other than Him. The other notions you have are all false. He is the only true God. I ask you to worship Him, I ask nothing for myself. My reward is with Him who has fashioned me. Will you not understand this? Seek His forgiveness and remember His bounties, and do not revert to your evil ways. [11:50-52]

The elders of the tribes rebuked Hud: We think you are a simpleton. Nay, worse, a liar. [7:66]

Hud assured them: I am not a simpleton; I am God's apostle. I bring His message to you, hence, heed the warning I give, for you are Noah's people. If you have God's blessings, everything will go well with you. [7:67-69]

But they persisted in their unbelief and told Hud: You have brought us no clear Signs save what you are telling us. How can we abandon our gods? It seems some of our gods have smitten you with evil so that you go on the wrong path. [11:53-54]

Hud answered them: I swear by my Lord that I am not guilty of your charge. I believe only in my Lord; To me no one else matters and none can delude me and make me go against Him. Nothing moves without His will; His path alone is the right path. If you do not respond to my call and turn away from the Lord, the loss will be yours, not His. In your place He will bring others, for He has control over all things, He watches over all that happens. [11:54-57]

Hud reminded the elders of the tribe of how God gave them tenure of the land upon which they built their castles and homes. They had forgotten all His bounties and resorted to corrupt dealings and evil ways. Eventually, they had to pay the price of their unbelief: they were overwhelmed by a raging tempest. The fury lasted for seven nights and eight days; the people of Aad perished and their castles and dwellings became like 'stumps of hollow palmtrees'.

Story of Salih

2009-12-06T12:42:00.000+02:00

For the good of the people of Thamud, God sent Salih as His messenger. He asked them to believe in the Oneness of God and to worship none but Him. He told them that God had sent a Sign to the arrogant oppressors of the poor in the form of a she-camel. Water was scarce at the time, and the privileged class tried to prevent the poor and their cattle from having access to the springs and pastures.

The she-camel was made a test case to see if the haughty, rich people would come to see reason. Salih wanted them to allow the she-camel to graze without any let or hindrance. He warned them that they should have no evil intentions toward her, or the wrath of God would fall upon them.

He reminded them that the Lord had been kind to them in the past and had made them successors to the people of Aad, who were destroyed for their evil deeds. They had been given land, so as to build palaces and castles on the plains and homes in the mountains. Salih beseeched them not to spread disorder in the world, to remain ever-conscious of God's power and to be grateful for His kindness.

But the chiefs of the tribes jeered at him; they asked the people not to believe in what Salih said. Some did not listen to them and heeded Salih's call, but many followed the advice of their chiefs. And as a mark of their defiance, they hamstrung the she-camel and killed her, challenging Salih to bring upon them the calamity which he had threatened them with.

Salih grieved for his people, for he knew what lay in store for them. He therefore left Thamud with his followers, and soon thereafter there was a dreadful earthquake, which destroyed the inhabitants of Thamud, burying them along with their castles and palaces.

Story of Abraham

2009-12-06T12:41:00.000+02:00

After Noah, Abraham was selected by God to be His Prophet. Abraham first preached in his own country, now known as Iraq. Then he moved to Syria, Palestine and Egypt. Finally, he settled down in Arabia.

In carrying on with his mission, he was assisted by other messengers appointed from his own family by God: Lot, his nephew, who lived in the midst of the people of Jordan, and Abraham's two sons, the elder son Ishmael [or Ismail], and the younger Isaac [or Ishaq].

Isaac preached in Syria and Palestine. Ishmael assisted his father in Arabia and is credited with having helped him in building the Ka'aba, which is now the religious center of the Islamic world. Ishmael and Isaac founded two sects, the Ismailites and Israelites respectively.

The tribe of Quraish, to which Muhammad belonged, is said to be Ismailite in origin, while the Jews and the Christians are said to be descendants of Jacob, whose other name was Israel, the son of Isaac and the grandson of Abraham. Hence Abraham is regarded as the father of all Semitic peoples; from him were born not only Jews and Christians but also the Muslims. He is the common bond who links them all. After him, God transferred the leadership to Isaac and Jacob, and their descendants are collectively described in the Koran as 'the Children of Israel'.

As soon as Abraham received the commission from the Lord to propagate the Oneness of God and preach His worship among the people, he called upon the Lord to preserve the Ka'aba that he had built to eradicate the worship of idols, which had led many people astray. Abraham asked them, 'What is it that you worship?'

They replied: We worship the idols, as did our fathers. And in devotion to them we shall remain steadfast. [26: 72, 74]

Abraham asked them: Do they hear you when you call them? Have they the power to do anything, either good or bad for you? [26:73]

He reminded them that there was only one God, the Lord of all creation, who controlled Life, death and resurrection. He told his own father, Azar, to desist from worshipping idols. He said he had learned from his own experience that God alone was worthy of worship. He was shown by God 'the Kingdom of the heavens and the earth so that he might be convinced of the faith' in his Creator.

The Koran narrates: When the night was dark, Abraham saw a star; he said to himself, 'This must be the Lord.' But soon the star set and his faith was shaken. Then he saw the moon rising in the sky. 'This is the Lord,' he said. However, when it waned, he lost faith in it. Likewise, when the sun rose, brighter than everything, he was convinced that it was the Lord. But the sun also set, and Abraham cried: 'I set my face against all these. I repudiate every other kind of worship except the worship of God, Creator of all that is in the heavens and on the earth.' [6:76-79]

The people jeered at Abraham and remonstrated with him, and even stoned him; they tried to frighten him into believing that their idols would destroy him and his God would not be able to save him.

But Abraham responded: Will you dispute with me about God who has guided me? I have no fear of the idols you worship. Unless my Lord wills nothing can happen. [6:80-81]

Turning to his father, Abraham asked what the images were to which he and his people were devoted. Azar replied that they worshipped what their fathers had worshipped. Abraham said: 'Then assuredly, you and your fathers are clearly in error.' Earlier, he had told Nimrod, the King of Iraq, not to forget that it was God who gave him the Kingdom and power and glory; but the King, in his arrogance, had denied it and had declared that he determined the life and death of his subjects.

Abraham had then asked him: 'God makes the sun rise from the east; can you make it rise from the west?' The King had no answer. He sentenced Abraham to be burnt alive.

Abraham bore all the hardships but remained firm and steadfast in his loyalty to God. One day he broke all the idols in the Ka'aba, one by one, except the largest. As soon as the people heard of the destruction, they rushed to the temple and, seething with rage, cried: Who has done this to our idols? This is, indeed, an outrage. [21:59]

They were told that young Abraham was the culprit. 'Fetch him,' they demanded. 'And let everyone witness what we do do him.' When Abrahm was brought before them, they asked him: 'Who has done this to our idols?' 'Not I; it is that big idol over there. Why don't you question him?' They replied that idols did not speak.

Abraham said: Isn't it strange that you should worship these idols which can neither speak nor do anything. They can neither help nor harm anyone. Shame on you and on your idol worship. How foolish of you to worship them. [21:60]

They were fashioned, he reminded them, by their own hands. He beseeched them to worship the One God who created and fashioned everything. They were so angered by his words that they decided to throw him into a pyre of blazing fire. They could not succeed, however, because God 'made them bite the dust'.

Abraham prayed to the Lord to grant him an heir, who 'will be numbered among the righteous'. So God gave him a gentle boy, Ishmael. But Abraham had pledged to God in a dream that if he had a son, he would offer him in sacrifice to the Lord. Abraham told his son of his dream and his pledge. 'Then, Father, ' said Ishmael, 'you should honor your commitment and surrender me to the will of God.'

So Abraham laid him down, and as he was about to slay him, he heard the Voice commanding him: Enough, Abraham! You have kept your word with Us. You have already fulfilled the vision. [37:105]

The Lord had intended merely to test Abraham; He now declared that he had fulfilled his commitment: We redeem Abraham's son with a great sacrifice and We give Our benediction to him and bless him through generations to come and shower Our peace upon him. [37:107-109]

Thus God rewarded the righteous and His 'believing servants'.

In Isaac, Abraham's other and younger son, the Lord gave to the world 'one of the best of prophets'. Among their descendants some did good deeds, but some who did bad, 'were blatant evil-doers, who sinned against themselves' . [37:110-113]

The Koran clarifies: Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian. He was a hanif, a man of pure worship, he was not an idolator but a believer in One God; only those who follow him are entitled to claim relationship with him. Muhammad and his followers are nearer to him. God is the protector of all believers. [3:67-68]

Referring to the House of Mecca, 'the place of sanctuary and serenity for the people', God asked Muhammad to 'make it your House of prayers'. Thus God's covenant given to Abraham and Ishmael was fulfilled and the Ka'aba became for the believers 'the pilgrim circuit' for worship and for prostration. Abraham and Isaac had prayed to God to 'send among our people after us a messenger of our own kin who recites to the people Your revelations, teaches them the Book and the wisdom it contains and purges them of all evil' [2:129].

God admonishes: Tell the people, O Muhammad! that to be rightly guided one need not be a Jew or a Christian. The righteous belong to the community of Abraham, who was pure in his worship of God. So were Ishmael, Jacob and the tribes, and Moses, Jesus and the rest. They are all Our messengers; We make no distinction between them. [2:135-136]

Story of Lot

2009-12-06T12:40:00.002+02:00

Lot lived among a people who practiced naked lewdness; they went lustfully after men instead of women. God chose him as His messenger to tell them to give up their perversity and fear Him. He told them: My people, ask forgiveness of your Lord and repent for your evil ways. [27:55]

But instead of listening to him, they jeered at him, calling him and his family 'these despicable, puritan folk'. They hounded them out of the town. God rescued all of them except Lot's wife, who turned back and decided to be with the unbelievers. Suddenly a rain of fire and stones fell on the inhabitants of the place and they were destroyed.

The Koran reminds: In your travels either by morning light or the fain glimmer of the fall of night you can see their ruins as you pass by. [37:136-138]

Story of Shuyab

2009-12-06T12:40:00.001+02:00

Shuyab was sent as a messenger by God to the people of Madyan, who were mostly merchants. they lived in an area surrounded by thick forests. He told them: I beseech you, my people, to worship God and fear the coming of the Last Day. Do not take to perverse habits and generate corruption in the land. [29:36]

Instead of heeding his call, they called him a liar; he reminded them that they should fear the Lord, who had sent him as His faithful apostle. He asked them to give up their practice of cheating in business: Fear the One who has created you and listen to what I have to say. Pay in full measure and do not defraud by stinting and giving short measure and weight. Use the right balance, and be honest and cease to be perverse. [26:179,181-183]

The people scolded Shuyab and called him 'bewitched'; they said to him: How can we forsake what our fathers taught us and abandon the methods which have come down to us? [37:136-138]

They praised his gentle nature and asked him to follow his forebears and give up his new fangled ideas. Shuyab told them he did not wish to cross swords with the people of Madyan, but he could not do what they were asking him to do.

He explained: My mission is to set things right and to fulfill God's will. My trust in Him is implicit. I always turn to Him in need. I beseech you not to disobey His call lest the same fate befalls you as befell the detractors of Noah, Hud and Salih. The people of Lot, who lived near by, also suffered because of their unbelief. [11:89]

The people of Madyan were deaf to his plea: You are weak in the head; but for your family, we would stone you. [11:91]

Shuyab answered them resolutely: My people, do what you like; I hold on to my belief; you will know who is a liar when God's punishment comes to you. [11:93]

The elders of the tribe warned Shuyab: We will expel you from our city and all those who follow you. [7:88]

Shuyab replied that his Lord controlled everything. The people jeered at him: If you are speaking the truth let pieces from the sky fall on us. [26:187]

Shuyab told them: Watch me then; and I am also watching you. [11:93]

Soon thereafter, Shuyab left the city with his followers. One night, a blast struck the inhabitants of Madyan and by next morning they lay lifeless, as if they had never lived.

Story of Joseph

2009-12-06T12:38:00.000+02:00

Joseph was the eleventh of the twelve sons of Jacob. One day, he told his father that in a dream he had seen eleven stars, the sun and the moon prostrating before him. Jacob realized that Joseph, who had always impressed him as a noble and gentle soul, was blessed by God. Sensing the greatness that lay ahead of his son, Jacob became more protective of him and asked him not to narrate his dream to his brothers, who, out of jealousy, might try to harm him.

He told his son: The Lord has chosen you, O Joseph, for a much loftier purpose; He has given you His power to interpret dreams and foretell events; He has blessed you with His grace, as He had likewise blessed your forebears from Abraham to Isaac, for He is All-Knowing and full of wisdom. [12:6]

The other sons were aware of their father's extreme fondness for Joseph and were resentful of it. They decided that they would either have to 'kill Joseph or cast him out to some unknown land in order to win Jacob's favor'. One of the brothers pleaded with the others not to kill Joseph; instead he suggested that they should find a pit or well and leave him there for some passing caravans to take him away.

The others agreed. They asked Jacob to let Joseph go out and play with them, assuring him that Joseph would be taken good care of. Jacob was not happy at the suggestion; he told them that he feared they might not attend to him, and a wild animal such as a wolf might devour the young Joseph. But the brothers told their father not to worry, for there were so many of them that even if a wolf were to attack them, it would have to devour them first before it could do harm to their little brother.

So they took Joseph along with them, far away from home, threw him into a well and returned home weeping. They told Jacob that while they were away, racing with one another, a wolf, as the father had feared, has seized Joseph and devoured him. 'We searched for him but in vain; all we could find was his blood-stained shirt.' This they showed to Jacob, who refused to believe their story. In his distress he turned to God; he had a strong feeling within him that no harm could have come to Joseph, for God was sure to protect him.

Meanwhile, a caravan passed by the well into which Joseph had been cast. Halting to draw a bucket of water, a water-carrier saw the handsome young boy struggling to get out of the well. He dragged the boy out, took him along with him and hid him in his merchandise. When he reached Egypt, he sold Joseph for a few dirhams to an Egyptian nobleman of high rank, an officer in the royal court.

He took Joseph home and told his wife, Zuleikha, a lady of great beauty and charm, to take good care of him. As they had no children, he told her that they could adopt him as a son. And so Joseph was brought up in happy surroundings. He was given the best of training in the affairs of the world. The Almighty was working out His objective -- of which no one was aware -- of equipping Joseph with worldly wisdom and spiritual knowledge, with a view to making him His messenger.

Zuleikha felt deeply and passionately attracted to Joseph, but he maintained his distance and did not respond to her overtures. One occasion, when her husband was out, Zuleikha called Joseph to her room. As soon as he entered, she locked the door and said, 'Now come to me, my dear one.' Taken aback by this advance, Joseph told her: 'God forbid. My master has been generous to me; I cannot betray his trust. Those who do evil can never prosper.' So saying, he rushed towards the door and tried to unlock it.

Zuleikha caught hold of his tunic from behind and, in the tussle, it was torn. Joseph managed to unlock the door, but only to find his master outside. Zuleikha cried: What is the fitting punishment, my master! against one who has evil design against your wife, but prison and chastisement! [12:25]

Joseph denied the charge and said that it was Zuleikha who had sought to seduce him. An advisor from the household, a lady of reputation, was asked to settle the dispute. If Joseph's tunic was torn from the front, she said, then he was guilty; but if it was torn from the back, then Zuleikha should be held accountable. The husband saw that the tunic was torn from the back; he told his wife that she had been at fault. He asked her to seek forgiveness, for truly it was she who had sinned.

The news of the incident spread through the city like wildfire, and women in particular began to gossip about Zuleikha having gone astray. When she heard of their malicious talk she was furious. She invited all the noble ladies to a banquet at the palace; when they sat down for the feast she gave each of them a knife to hold in their hands, and then ordered Joseph to present himself.

The women were so struck by the extraordinarily good-looking young man that they could not take their eyes off him; in the excitement they cut their fingers with their knives in their hands. They exclaimed: O God preserve our chastity. He is not a man! He looks an angel. [12:31]

Zuleikha retorted: This is the man about whom you noble ladies blamed me. It is true I tried to seduce him, though he resisted me and remained guiltless. Even now I shall not give him up. If he does not respond, he shall be cast into prison and He will be with the vilest. [12:32]

Joseph prayed to God: Help me, O my Lord! Prison will be better than what I am asked to do. Do not desert me. The snare is such that in my youth I may succumb to temptation. [12:33]

Joseph was all the same jailed, since the master could not displease his wife. In prison, Joseph had two young men as his companions, who became friendly with him. One day, one of them told Joseph that he had dreamt that he was pressing grapes to make wine. The other prisoner narrated his dream, in which he saw himself carrying bread on his head while a flock of birds were pecking at it.

Joseph interpreted these dreams for his companions. He told the first that he would pour wine for his master, while the other would be beheaded and birds would peck at his head. That was what the future held for them. Joseph asked the one who was to serve wine not to forget him when he took service in the royal court. But after his release, when he became cup-bearer to the King, the young man forgot to mention Joseph, and so he continued to languish in jail.

One day, the King told his counselors that he had had a strange dream. He saw seven lean cows devour seven fat cows, and he saw seven green corns being replaced by seven dry, withered ones. He asked the wise men to tell him what this dream foretold. The counselors tried, but had to admit that they did not have the knowledge to interpret dreams. At that time the cup-bearer informed the King of his erstwhile friend Joseph and his uncanny ability to interpret dreams.

The King sent the cup-bearer to the prison with orders that Joseph should be freed at once. The King asked for Joseph to be brought before him, but Joseph refused, saying that unless the false charge of seducing Zuleikha was investigated and he was exonerated, he would not appear at the royal court.

The King agreed and ordered and investigation into the matter. The charge was found to be false, and Zuleikha admitted that she had tried to seduce Joseph and that Joseph was innocent. The King acquitted Joseph with honor. Joseph was happy that his innocence had been proved and that everyone now knew that he had not betrayed his master.

He cautioned the people, however: 'I do not want to justify myself or boast about my innocence. for any man can succumb to temptation and give in to evil; it is by the mercy of God that I was able to resist it and remain pure.' In his case, he said, the Lord was more than merciful to him.

Joseph then appeared before the King, who was so impressed by his honesty and candor that he declared that henceforth he would be his most trusted minister. Joseph asked the King to put him in unfettered charge of the storehouses of the kingdom, so that he could look after the needs of the people. the news of Joseph's appointment spread far and wide, and people from every part came to him for grain. His brothers were among those who came in search of food.

They did not know Joseph's real identity, but Joseph recognized them and asked them to bring their youngest brother, Benjamin, who was Joseph's only real brother. He would then, he said, give them the full measure of their requirements, warning them at the same time that if they failed to bring Benjamin, they would get no supplies. They promised to bring Benjamin with them on the assurance that Joseph accepted their money and kept it as a deposit against future sales of grain.

The brothers returned home and told their father what had happened. They begged him to send Benjamin with them, for otherwise they might all have to starve and die of hunger. They promised to take good care of him. 'No', said Jacob angrily. 'How can I trust him with you, knowing what you did to his brother Joseph?'

The brothers persisted, pleading with their father to let Benjamin go with them, so that 'we can secure what we need to keep our families alive'. Jacob reluctantly relented, but on one condition: that they would take a solemn oath before God that they would bring Benjamin back unless some dire calamity overtook each one of them. The brothers readily took the oath.

Jacob advised them 'not to go to the city through the same gate; each one of you should enter from a different gate.' So they entered the city through different gates and went straight to Joseph.

Joseph was happy to see Benjamin; he called his younger brother aside and informed him that he was his long-lost and only brother; the others were his step-brothers. He told Benjamin that he was deliberately putting the King's drinking-cup into his saddlebag so that Benjamin could stay back with him. Joseph then directed the attendants to search every visitor since the King's cup was missing.

Before doing so a reward was announced: whoever brought the cup back would get a camel-load full of corn. The brothers were upset; they told the attendants that they were no thieves, nor had they come to do any wrong. They agreed that whoever was found guilty should be punished.

Everyone was searched, and of course the cup was discovered in the saddlebag of Benjamin; the brothers told the minister that they were not surprised, as his brother Joseph was also a thief. Little did they realize that the person they were addressing, the King's minister, was none other than Joseph himself. But they were worried about how they would face their father, who had made them take a solemn pledge that they would bring back Benjamin.

They pleaded that Benjamin be freed: O powerful minister! we have a father old and venerable; he will grieve for him. Please take one of us in his place as a surety. Grant us this request, for you are most gracious. [12:78]

But Joseph refused. He told them: God forbid that we take someone other than the one with whom our property was found. That would be against the law, and we cannot act wrongfully. [12:79]

The brothers returned with the grain but without Benjamin. They told their father what their youngest brother had done, but he refused to believe them, saying that it was the evil in their hearts that was the real cause of the trouble. They had done the same with Joseph as they had now done with Benjamin. He scolded them for their lapse but said that he would also bear this loss with fortitude, for he knew the Lord would bring both his sons back and thus unite the family.

But he wept so bitterly that his eyes grew weak and weary. He told his sons that God had endowed Joseph with knowledge of which they were not aware. 'Hence,' Jacob said, 'go and search for Joseph and Benjamin. God's spirit is protecting them.'

So the brothers were back in the city once again. They told the King's minister of their father's state of health. 'He is heartbroken; he cried so much that he has lost his eyesight.'

Joseph then revealed his true identity and the reason for keeping Benjamin with him. The brothers felt ashamed of their past conduct and their evil ways. They begged Joseph's forgiveness.

Joseph embraced them and said: This day let us forget the past and let me not reproach you. God will forgive you for what you did for He is, indeed, Most Merciful. [12:92]

Joseph asked them not to worry about the condition of their father. 'Take this shirt of mine,' he said, 'place it on his eyes, and he will recover his eyesight. Then all of you -- our parents and you, my brothers -- come to me, and we will once again be one family and live together.'

The brothers went back and brought their parents to Egypt, where Joseph embraced and welcomed them. He asked them to live with him in safety. He brought his father and mother on to the royal dais, and all of them prostrated before the Lord in gratitude. Joseph reminded his father of his dream, long long ago, and told how it had come true.

Then, raising his hand in supplication to God, he prayed, 'O my Lord, you have given me power and taught me to interpret events. I beseech You to guide me to the right path so that I may die in peace and be among the righteous.' He was well aware that all he encountered in life was in fulfillment of God's plan.

He told his father: God has indeed been good to me all along; even when I was in prison it was He who took me out. Again He has brought all of us back together here. Though Satan had sown enmity between me and my brothers, God wiped out everything and united us in one family. Verily, He understands the worst of our miseries and arranges to remove them, for He is Wise and All-Knowing. [12:100]

Story of Moses

2009-12-06T12:28:00.000+02:00

A hundred years after the passing away of the Prophet Joseph, the rulers of Egypt passed a decree that a son born to an Israelite parent would be put to death; only daughters would be spared to serve the followers of Pharaoh. This was a 'dreadful torment' inflicted on Israelites.

During this dreaded era, Moses was born; his mother was, however, commanded by God 'not to cast the child into the river on birth, but to suckle it' till such time as she felt that there was real danger to his life.

For about three months she reared him and then she put him in a box and lay it in the river. God promised her that her child would be safe, that he would soon be restored to her, and that he would be made 'one of our apostles'.

The box was carried by the river Nile to the banks close to the palace of Pharaoh. A servant of Pharaoh who was passing by picked up the box and took the child to the Queen. Pharaoh was informed, and he ordered that the child be put to death.

But the Queen, who was childless, was enchanted by the baby, for, she said, God had made him 'such a lovely child that the beholder could not but love him'. She beseeched Pharaoh to spare his life. 'Let us adopt him. He will be raised in our palace and would never know that he was an Israelite. He will be one of us and will, in fact, be useful in our fight against the Israelites.'

Pharaoh relented. The Queen took to Moses as a mother would to her own new-born son. But the baby was restless and cried incessantly; no nurse was able to feed him.

Moses' mother, who felt utterly bereft without her child, had asked ten-year-old daughter to follow the course of her brother's journey in the box, and to keep a watch on him. The little girl did as she was told. She entered the palace after the baby was taken there and managed to get close to the Queen, eventually gaining her confidence.

As the child became weak through lack of nourishment, she talked to the Queen of a 'particular' nurse who might be able to suckle the child, to feed him with great affection and to bring him up. 'Thus', says God in the Koran, 'We restored Moses to his mother, so that her eyes might be cooled and she would cease to grieve and would know that God's promise was fulfilled.'

Moses grew up in Pharaoh's household under the benevolent care of the Queen. When he reached manhood, God 'gave him the power of knowledge and judgement'. Once, while on a visit to the city, he saw two men fighting; one was an Israelite, the other an Egyptian. The Israelite asked Moses for help, so Moses came to the rescue and struck the Egyptian forcefully. The Egyptian collapsed and died instantly.

Moses was most perturbed and asked God for forgiveness, saying, 'I shall never come to the help of those committing wrong.' The next morning, the man he had helped again called out for assistance. Moses realized that he was a quarrelsome person and rushed to lay his hands on him. 'Do you intend to kill me as you had killed the man yesterday?' the man shouted. 'Do you wish to become a tyrant in the land?'

Moses prayed to the Lord. 'Oh, my Lord, saave me from such people who are given to wrongdoing.' Then a man came running and informed Moses that Pharaoh's chiefs were planning to hang Moses and advised him to run away.

So Moses left Egypt in the direction of Madyan, praying to the Lord to guide him to the right path. On reaching the waters of Madyan, he saw a number of men drawing water for their animals, while two women stood by quietly, holding back their animals. Moses asked them why they were waiting.

They replied, 'We cannot water our animals until the men have left; that is our misfortune. Our father could not come to draw water for our animals as he is too old.' Moses drew water for both of them, and the women were grateful for his help. One of them went home and informed her father of what Moses had done. The father asked her to fetch Moses so that he might pay him the wages for the work.

Moses told the old man the circumstances under which he had had to leave Egypt. 'Have no fear any more,' he assured Moses, 'It is good you have escaped from those wicked people.' He was impressed by Moses and offered one of his daughters in marriage, provided Moses promised to live with them for eight years, or even longer if he so wished. Moses agreed and started his life in Madyan.

After eight years, Moses left with his wife and family. On their journey he saw a fire in the direction of Mount Tur. He made his family halt there, while he ran towards the fire hoping to obtain some information about the neighborhood, or at least get a burning firebrand to keep his family warm.

When Moses reached the spot he heard a voice from above the trees on the right side of the sacred valley. 'What have you in your right hand?' the voice said. Bewildered, Moses replied: 'It is my staff, with which I bring down the leaves for my sheep and do many other things.'

The voice spoke again: O Moses, I am the Lord of the Universe. Cast down your staff and listen to me. [20:19]

Moses threw it down, and there before his eyes it became a writhing serpent. The Lord spoke again: [ Draw near it and fear not: now seize the serpent and do not be afraid. It will become a staff again. [20:21]

Moses did as he was told. God then asked him to place his right hand into his bosom and to bring it out again; it was shinging white and without any stain. God then blessed him with supreme revelations and commanded him to go to Pharaoh and his people and to preach to them the Oneness of God and the glory of righteous conduct.

Moses prayed to God: Oh my Lord, enlarge my heart and strengthen me by curing my speech so that people may understand what I say. Also lighten my burden by assigning Aaron, my brother, to assist me. [20:25-32]

The Lord granted his prayer and asked him to proceed with His Signs: Go, you, O Moses and your brother, with Our Signs to Pharaoh. Speak gently to him but make him see the truth and fear Us. [20:43-44]

Moses and Aaron told the Lord that Pharaoh might subject them to violence, as Moses was wanted by his chiefs for killing one of their men.

The Lord assured them not to have any fear in their hearts: I am with you; I hear and see everything. Tell Pharaoh that you are My messengers. Ask him to let the Israelites be with you, and to torture them no more. [20:46-47]

Armed with the divine mission and the Book that was sent down to him which was to be the 'means of enlightenment to the people and a guidance and mercy to mankind', Moses left for Egypt with Aaron. They first went to the people and asked them to worship the true God. Moses showed them His Signs, but the people dismissed these as 'nothing but false magic' and laughed at him.

He asked them to sacrifice a cow as an offering to God. 'What sort of cow?' they asked him in jest. Moses told them that God wanted a cow which was neither young nor old but of middle age. 'What about its color?' they asked. Moses said it should be deep and bright yellow. There were several cows of this color, they told Moses.

He clarified that it should be a cow that was neither yoked nor had ploughed any field; further, it was to be of sound mind and wholesome body. The people then realized what Moses meant; he wanted them to kill the golden cow that they and their forefathers had been worshipping. They asked Moses first to approach Pharaoh, their King, and if he agreed, they too would follow him.

Moses approached Pharaoh and appealed to him to give up his arrogance and high and mighty ways and to bow before the Lord, who was indeed the ruler of the world. Purify yourself, O Pharaoh, so that I may guide you to the right path. [29:18]

Pharaoh was furious and asked Moses who was this God of his, whose messenger he claimed to be. Moses replied: Our Lord is the one who creates all things; He gives them form and then guides them. [20:50]

Pharaoh enquired about the generations that had passed away. Knowledge of them, Moses said, was with God alone. He then asked Pharaoh to look around and see the variety of God's creations -- the rain, the wind, the cattle and the plants, all were the signs of His supremacy. Pharaoh asked Moses whether he had any proof of his prophethood. Moses threw down his staff and it became a live serpent. He then drew his hand out of the pocket of his cloak, and it shone with dazzling brightness.

Pharaoh's chiefs said Moses was no more than a magician; they told Pharaoh: 'Call the best of magicians from our cities to counter his magic'. Moses agreed to face them, and the Festival Day was fixed for the event. Two of the best magicians confronted Moses. They threw their ropes and staves at Moses, which turned into serpents and coiled around him.

Moses prayed to his Lord for help. The Lord told him not to lose nerve, and commanded: Throw your staff down and it will swallow everything which they have faked here; theirs are only magic tricks, what you have is real. No magician ever thrives, whatever he may do or wherever he may go. [20:69]

Moses threw his staff on the ground and it turned into a bigger serpent which swallowed all the other serpents. The magicians were wonderstruck and at once prostrated themselves, declaring that they believed in the God of Moses and Aaron.

Pharaoh thundered with rage: 'How dare you do so without my leave?' He warned them that he would cut off their hands and feet on alternate sides and crucify them on the trunks of palm trees if they did not desist from following Moses.

The magicians showed no fear and told Pharaoh that he could do what he liked with them but they would not retract from the clear path shown by Moses. They believed that his God was superior to Pharaoh. They asked for the forgiveness of the Lord for the sins of sorcery that Pharaoh had compelled them to commit.

Pharaoh grew more furious, and decided to wipe out every trace of the teachings of Moses. He issued a proclamation: O my people, I am the sovereign of Egypt; even rivers flow beneath my feet. Are you to listen to a man who cannot even speak properly? If he is really the Almighty's messenger, why is he not loaded with gold or attended upon by angels? [43:51-53]

Moses warned him that, if he disobeyed his call, 'we have been told by God that a grievous punishment awaits you.' But Pharaoh and his men paid no heed to Moses' warning.

Thus they were struck by the plague and other diseases; they begged Moses to save them from the scourge. But no sooner were they cured than they went back to the worship of Pharaoh. Two of Pharaoh's chiefs, Qaran and Haman, behaved particularly abominably; greed for wealth and lust for power blinded their vision.

With the passage of time, the attitude of Pharaoh towards Moses worsened: he denounced him publicly and tortured his followers. He declared that there was no other god except he. He told Haman: 'Build me a high tower, so that I may go to the top and find out who this God of Moses is.'

He ordered his chiefs to show no mercy to Israelites; they should be driven out of Egypt. A reign of terror was unleashed. As a result, many of Moses' people left him, while only a few remained as his followers. But Moses was not dismayed; he remained steadfast in the pursuit of his faith.

Then God came to Moses' rescue. He was told to gather his followers and take them through the midst of the seas, on a path that would be specially carved for them by God. Pharaoh and his men, fully armed, attempted to pursue them along the same path. As soon as Pharaoh and his men set foot on the path, however, it vanished, and they were drowned in the raging seas.

Israelites then settled in a secure habitation provided with all amenities and comforts. After some time, Moses, accompanied by seventy of his followers, ascended to the heavens to see God, leaving his people in the charge of his brother, Aaron. He bade Aaron to have no dealings with evil-doers and to perform his task with 'an honest heart'. Moses had what the Koran describes as 'a communion with God for thirty nights'. Subsequently, ten more nights were added, to make forty nights in all, which was the appointed time of communication with the Lord.

When Moses came to the appointed place, the Lord blessed him. Moses prayed: 'O my Lord, let me look at You.' The Lord said, 'You cannot see Me when I manifest My glory. But look upon the mountain; if it stays firm in its place, then you shall see Me. Now turn towards it.' And in an instant the mountain crumbled and became dust. Seeing this, Moses fell down in a swoon. [7:143]

When Moses recovered, God enquired: 'Why have you come in such haste to Us?' 'My people have taken to the path shown by You, my Lord,' he replied. 'I have come to seek Your blessings.' 'In your absence your people have gone astray,' God told him. 'They have been misled by a person called al-Samiri.'

Moses was grief-stricken. He begged God to forgive his followers and not to destroy them for their betrayal. God granted his wish and gave him tablets of stone bearing precepts that his people were to follow in order to achieve the best, both on earth and in the hereafter.

Moses returned to earth with a heavy heart and found that, under the guidance of al-Samiri, his followers had begin to worship the image of a calf made out of their ornaments. More in sorrow than in anger, he chided them and asked why they had broken their pledge to him. They said that al-Samiri had asked them to throw their ornaments into a fire, out of which had an effigy of a golden calf which made a lowing sound.

They were misled by this and began to worship the calf, believing that it was the God of Moses. Moses asked them if they were so naive to think that the calf had life? It could neither hear nor speak, nor do any good or harm to them. Aaron had warned them of the wrong they were doing, but they had insisted that until Moses returned they would continue to worship the calf.

Moses threw down the tablets, telling his people that they were not worthy of them. He dragged Aaron by the hair and asked him why he had flouted his command and not prevented his people from being misled. Aaron replied that the people had become so rebellious that they would have killed him had he tried to restrain them. Besides, he did not want to create a division in their ranks.

Moses asked God to forgive Aaron, and then turned to al-Samiri. 'Begone,' said Moses. 'You will remain an untouchable all your life, and hell shall be your destination.' Taking the effigy of the calf in his hands, Moses consigned it to the fire, which soon reduced it to ashes.

He told the Israelites that he had been chosen as the messenger; God had said to him: O Moses! I have chosen you in preference to others, and entrusted you with the mission to convey My words as contained in My revelations to all the people around, and to join the ranks of these who are grateful to Me. [7:144]

God imparted knowledge to Moses for the good of Israelites, and inscribed on the tablets 'detailed precepts' of faith in His oneness and the code of righteous conduct. In the tablets We have ordained laws concerning all matters, and We command you to hold to them firmly and be among those who are faithful to the best of the precepts they contain. [7:145]

Moses warned his people that those who repudiated God's Signs and the judgment to come were bound to meet their doom; no one would be able to save them then. He also asked them to remember the grace of God, because of which prophets were raised among them and were made rulers. No other people in the world had had such benevolence from the Lord. God had assigned Palestine to them, and so Moses called on his followers to enter this holy land.

They hesitated and told Moses: 'How can we? The land is inhabited by a mighty people. Until they leave, we cannot possibly enter it.' However, two among them, who were brave and God-fearing, volunteered. Moses asked God for his direction.

He answered: To those who have defied your command, O Moses! this land is proscribed for forty years. They will wander around the world but will have no home of their own. You need not sorrow over them, for that is the fate of rebellious people. [5:29]

The Israelites were divided into twelve tribes: The Lord commanded Moses to strike the rock with his staff. No sooner was this done than twelve springs gushed forth. Each group then took its own spring to drink, and to each the Lord gave shades of cloud as cover and manna and quail to eat, and all other good things. But the unbelievers rebelled and did not follow the command; they only harmed themselves. The Lord is, indeed, above all harm. [7:160]

Story of Jonah

2009-12-06T12:27:00.001+02:00

Jonah was a simple man who lived in a large town on the shores of the sea. He was appointed by God to be His messenger and to preach faith in His unity and virtuous conduct. But the people jeered at him and paid no heed to his call. Jonah became angry and lost patience; he was so disgusted with the attitude of his people that he decided to leave his town and take to the sea.

When his ship was in deep waters, it was rocked by storm and Jonah was thrown overboard and swallowed by a big fish. As he lay in the belly of the fish, Jonah wondered why he was being punished when God had chosen him to be His messenger; where had he gone wrong? He then realized that he should not have acted in anger, because God wished that he be patient and more persuasive.

He prayed for forgiveness and for another opportunity to prove himself. Thus did his Lord choose him and make him of the company of the righteous. [68:50]

God listened to his prayers and miraculously took him out of the belly of the fish and cast him, albeit in a sickly condition, upon a deserted shore. Having recovered in the shadow of a gourd-tree, he went to the nearby town, where he pursued his mission, this time with greater persuasion and forbearance and despite all the jeers of the people, continuing with his work to bring them to the right path.

God told Jonah: Had your Lord so wished, all people everywhere would have been believers. But that is not His way, hence do not force anyone to take to Our path unless they do so willingly. No one can believe except by the will of God; only those who are skeptics do not understand His message. [10:99-100]

Story of Job

2009-12-06T12:26:00.000+02:00

Job was the epitome of suffering. He was made a messenger by God not only to preach the true faith revolving around the oneness and supremacy of God, but also the demonstrate how a believer should never lose faith despite all the tribulations he might have to go through in its pursuit.

He was asked to take in his hand 'a bundle of rushes to strike with' and under no circumstances 'to go back on the oath' he had taken. He remained steadfast and firm in his commitment to his Creator. He was afflicted with a great deal of pain but he never wavered in his faith in God.

Finally, the Lord relieved him and his family of their suffering; they were dying of thirst, when God asked Job to strike the ground and cool water gushed from the earth.

Story of David

2009-12-06T12:23:00.000+02:00

David was a shepherd whom God chose to be not only His messenger but also the King of His people. This came about in a strange way.

After Moses passed away the chiefs of the Israelites approached the aged Prophet Samuel and asked him to appoint a king who would lead them in their fight for the cause of their Lord. Samuel told them he was not convinced they would want to fight Goliath, the powerful enemy. 'How can we not fight him,' they replied, 'when he has driven our people out of their homes and separated parents from their children?'

Samuel, under God's command, appointed Saul as king. The chiefs were not happy with the appointment, but Samuel said that Saul would get them back the Ark which contained the sacred relics of the house of Moses and Aaron and fragments from the divine tablets given to Moses. The chiefs were satisfied and joined the army of Saul.

Saul warned his army that God had commanded them not to drink the water of the river when they halted by it; one could at best take a sip of it. But despite the warning, most of them drank to their fill to quench their thirst. With their bellies full and bloated, they were unable to fight Goliath and his army.

Saul was left with just a few believers who decided to put up a fight against Goliath. David, then a young man with hardly any experience in fighting, was one of those who stood by Saul. He challenged Goliath, who laughed at his audacity. But in the encounter, David slayed Goliath and his men were routed. As a reward for his bravery, David was made King of the Israelites.

David's rule was just and good; the mountains praised him at sunrise and sunset and the birds sang his praises while in flight. His Kingdom prospered and became strong because of his wisdom and vision. He was given Zabur, or the Psalms, and he was in particular charged by God to keep the scales of justice even. As the Koran says:

O David! God made you a vicegerent on earth so that you may judge properly between men and men and not be misled by lust within your heart. Remember, those who stray from the right path will suffer grievous penalty when accounts are taken. [38:26]

Two intruders broke into David's private sanctuary one day, climbing the high walls surrounding it. He eas taken aback, but before he could apprehend them, they pleaded with him, for they had come to him, they said, only to get justice. A quarrel had taken place between the two brothers and one had injured the other. They wanted David to decide who was at fault. One of the brothers had ninety-nine ewes, and the other had only one. The former demanded that the latter hand over his ewe; when his brother refused, he overpowered and assaulted him.

David told the injured one that he had been wronged, but life is like that: the strong always oppressed the weak. The oppressors were no doubt in the wrong, and they would be punished by God. He explained that only believers were on the right path, for they feared the wrath of God and thus acted justly.

On another occasion, a herd of sheep belonging to one person had wandered at night into somebody else's field and eaten up the crops. The owner of the field approached David for justice: David's son, Solomon, was with him at the time. David decreed that, as compensation, the owner of the sheep must hand over the sheep to the person who had lost his crops.

Solomon disagreed with his father; he said the compensation was not fair. For the loss of just one year's crops, it would not be just for the whole herd of sheep to be handed over. The owner should get back the sheep as soon as the owner of the field had recovered the loss of his harvest. David upheld Solomon's view, because it was, as the Koran points out, based on 'fuller understanding of the matter'.

Story of Solomon

2009-12-06T12:22:00.000+02:00

Solomon was the youngest son of David; he succeeded his father, according to some traditions, in 965 BC, almost a thousand years before the birth of Jesus. Like his father before him, Solomon was chosen as God's messenger.

The Lord granted him knowledge of the speech of birds and many other bounties, as well as an 'abundance of wealth'. He could harness the winds at his bidding; he could summon up demons and those fettered in chains. His army consisted of men, jinn and birds. As he told his people: We have been taught the speech of birds and on us God has bestowed knowledge of all things in this world. Indeed, He has been most gracious to us. [27:16]

One day, while Solomon was passing through the Valley of Ants, one of the ants, seeing Solomon and his army, cried: 'Get into your anthills, all you ants, lest you be crushed unwittingly.' As Solomon knew their language, he smiled and prayed to God that he might be guided right, as were his parents. He should be prevented from committing any wrong and be ever mindful of doing good, so that God might be pleased with him and take him into the ranks of 'His righteous servants'.

While inspecting his army of birds once, Solomon found the hoopoe missing. He was upset and said he would punish the hoopoe unless it gave good reason for its absence. The hoopoe did not take long to return. On arrival, it informed Solomon that it had seen a prosperous kingdom called Sheba, which was ruled by a powerful queen who possessed a magnificent throne. But neither she nor her people were rightly guided: they worshipped the sun and not God, the Lord of the universe.

Solomon promptly dispatched the hoopoe with a letter, calling upon the Queen to take to the true faith and to give up the worship of everything else except the Creator of all beings. On receiving the letter, the Queen consulted her council of advisors. The asked them to give their considered view so that she might take a correct decision.

They told her she was powerful enough not to bow before anyone, and further that they were prepared at her behest to fight against Solomon. She pondered for a while: wars, she said, only resulted in destruction. She would therefore resort to a peaceful method: she would send a precious gift to the King as a gesture of goodwill and await his reaction.

Her envoys took the gift to Solomon, who was very angry. 'Do you want to bribe me with this wealth?' he asked. 'God has given me much more than what your Queen possesses. She will now have to face our armies and her people will suffer an ignoble defeat.'

Solomon asked his nobles which of them would be the first to bring the Queen's throne to him. One from among the jinn assured Solomon that before he rose from his seat, the throne would be at his feet. And within the twinkling of an eye, the throne was brought and placed before him. Solomon bowed his head in gratitude to God for the esoteric power with which he was blessed.

Meanwhile, the Queen decided to see Solomon personally. When she came, Solomon asked her whether the throne that she saw in his palace was hers. The queen was dumbfounded, for it did indeed look like hers. Solomon then asked her to enter the palace. At the entrance, there seemed to be a lake. The queen lifted her skirt and bared her legs in an attempt to cross it. But Solomon stopped her, saying that it was no lake: the way was paved with glass, and hence what looked like something was really not. It was a mere reflection in the glass.

Likewise, there was only one reality and that was God. Everything else was an illusion. Hence the Queen should give up the worship of the sun and worship the One who created everything. She understood the significance of Solomon's message and at once embraced the new faith.

Such was Solomon's power of persuasion: He enjoyed a nearness to God, for which he has been granted a beautiful abode in the Hereafter. [38:40]

Story of Zachariah

2009-12-06T12:21:00.000+02:00

Zachariah was very old when God made him His messenger. His wife, who had borne him no children, had also reached an advanced age, and it was no longer possible for her to have a child.

One day, while praying in the Ka'aba, Zachariah beseeched the Lord: 'Please hear my prayer, My Lord! Grant me an offspring. I am a feeble old man. My hair has become snow-white. My wife is forlorn without a child. Both of us yearn for an heir. I am afraid my kinfolk will harm the cause I have served all my life if I die without an heir.'

When Zachariah finished his supplication, angels descended from above and told him: 'O Zachariah! god has granted your prayer. You will soon be blessed with a son. He will be called John [Yahya]; he will be a prince among men, chaste and virtuous, and he will be a messenger of God.'

Zachariah himself before God and thanked Him for granting a son to an old man and his barren wife. He declared, 'God does what He wills and so it shall be.' Zachariah then asked the Lord: 'What should I do now?' 'Do not speak to anyone for three days,' the voice replied. 'Convey whatever you have to only by gestures.'

Zachariah followed the instructions faithfully and waited for the happy event. As ordained by God, a lovely son was born to his wife. Zachariah and his wife doted on John. He brought great happiness to his aged parents. When he was still a child, God blessed him with the Book and asked him to hold it 'with all your strength'.

John grew up to be straightforward, humble and gentle-mannered. He was loving, caring and compassionate to all creatures; he was especially kind to animals. The Koran refers to him fondly: God's blessings were upon him from the day John was born to the day he passed away and his blessings will be upon him, the day he is raised again. [19:15]

Story of Jesus

2009-12-06T12:17:00.000+02:00

When the wife of Imran gave birth to a daughter, she had already vowed to God that her unborn child would be offered to Him. She was disappointed not to have a male, but the Lord told her, 'We have named her Mary and entrusted her to your care and her seed after her.'

From then on, the Lord made Mary grow in purity and beauty, and he assigned her to the care of Zachariah. Whenever Zachariah went to her chambers, he found her well provided with food. 'Who provides you with this?' asked Zachariah. '

The Lord Almighty,' replied Mary. ' He gives in plenty to whom He pleases.' the angels told her: O Mary! God has purified you and chosen you above all women. Hence worship Him with devotion and prostrate yourself before Him. [3:42-43]

Apart from the fact that Mary had all her needs taken care of, she also had angels attending to her. They informed her that she was the purest of the pure; she had been placed above every woman in the world.

One day, they told her that she was to give birth to a son: The Lord gives you glad tidings that you shall be blessed with the Word. His name will be Jesus. He will be honored by Him in this world and in the Hereafter and he will have his place among the nearest to His Lord. [3:45]

Mary was taken aback. 'O my Lord,' she asked in bewilderment, 'how shall I bear a son when no man has touched me?' 'It is God's will,' came the reply. 'He creates as He wishes. When He decrees something, He has only to say "Be" and it is done.'

But how would she face the world? The Voice declared, 'Your son is Our responsibility. We will teach him the Scripture, the Torah, the Gospel and the Wisdom, and he shall be Our messenger.' He would be, Mary was assured, 'a sign to humanity and a token of Our mercy.'

As Mary's pregnancy became more evident, she withdrew to a remote spot. When she suffered the pains of labor she cried out to the Lord in anguish. She heard a Voice that came from above a palm tree: 'Be not depressed. We have provided a stream beneath you and fresh ripe dates on the palm tree. Look around and enjoy Our bounties. If anyone accuses you of anything, tell them that you are under an oath to Us and that you will not converse with anyone.'

After the birth of her son, who was named Jesus [Isa], she took him to her family. 'Mary! What have you done?' they rebuked her. 'You are the sister of prophet Aaron. Your father was not a man of evil, nor your mother an unchaste woman.'

The child, from the cradle, spoke to them: I am the slave of God. The Lord has given me the Book and made me His messenger. I am blessed by Him wherever I be. He has commanded me to worship Him and show compassion to all. It is my duty to serve my mother and not be overbearing or miserable. I am blessed now, at my birth, and I shall be blessed on my death and on my resurrection. [19:30-33]

On achieving manhood, Jesus went forth among the people and told them: [ Verily, I have come to you to show you the path of wisdom and make clear to you things which may cause you confusion. So listen to me and fear the Lord. Fear Him, for He is my Lord and yours; worship Him and be steadfast in your belief. [43:63-64]

In order to convince them about the truth of his mission, Jesus was endowed by the Lord with powers of life and death; he was asked to tell them: I have come to you with my Lord's blessings. Out of clay, I will shape for you the form of a bird; and as I breathe on it, it will become a bird by God's will. I will heal the blind and the lepers, and bring the dead to life by God's authority. [3:49]

Jesus showed in practice what the Lord had endowed him with; he cured the ailing and brought many people to life. He gave eyesight to the blind. He made birds out of clay and breathed life into them. Despite these signs the people of Israel mocked him and accused him of sorcery. His disciples asked him whether his Lord could send down a table from the heavens so that they could have a feast and thus be assured of a good life ahead; such was their skepticism and their love of hedonism.

Jesus warned them to fear the Lord and not be enamored with the pleasures of this world. The disciples protested that they had asked for the table so that their minds might rest in the knowledge that Jesus had spoken the truth and that they might themselves be witness to the miracle.

Jesus then prayed to the Lord: O Lord, send us from Above a Table spread with food so that we may have a solemn celebration. Provide amply for our sustenance, as You are the Supreme Provider for all. [5:115]

And the Lord granted Jesus his prayer. At the same time He warned that whoever resisted faith in Him would suffer the severest retribution. Jesus told his people: O People of the Book! Do not indulge in excesses; Remain steadfast in truth. Resist vain desires and do not follow people who were in the wrong and who strayed from the even path. [5:80]

Among the disciples of Jesus, only one group stood by him; the rest betrayed him. So God helped the former and made them victorious, while the non-believers suffered chastisement.

The Koran does not endorse the concept of Trinity; Jesus himself repudiates it in one of its verses. He asks Christians to stop associating anyone with God. God describes Jesus as 'the son of Mary' and 'Our messenger and Our Word - which We imparted to Mary - and Our Spirit'.

The Koran states: Proclaim to all: God is One. He is the only one. He is the Eternal. He is the Absolute. He has begotten none and of none has He been begotten. There is, indeed, none to compare with Him. [112:1-4]

The Koran also does not accept the Christian belief that Jesus was killed on the cross. It states that he was neither killed nor crucified: There are people who boast that they killed Jesus Christ, the son of Mary and apostle of God; but that is not really so though it was made to appear so. The truth is that God lifted him up and brought him closest to Himself. God is, indeed, wise and exalted in power. [4:157-158]

Islam: For All Mankind

2009-12-06T12:14:00.000+02:00

RELIGION

Religion itself is derived from the word 'religio' which means to bind. It is that which binds man to the truth. As such every religion possesses ultimately two essential elements which are its basis and foundation: a doctrine and a method.

These two elements, the doctrine and the method, the means of distinguishing between what is Real and what appears to be real, exist in every orthodox and integral religion and are in fact the essence of every religion. No religion, whether it be Islam or Christianity, Hinduism or Buddhism, can be without a doctrine as to what is absolute and what is relative. Only the doctrinal language differs from one tradition to another. Nor can any religion be without a method of concentrating on the Real and living according to It although the means again differ in different traditional climates.

Every religion believes in a transcendent Reality that stands above the world of change and becoming. The doctrine is thus a discrimination between the Absolute and the relative, between grades of reality, degrees of universal existence. And the method is precisely the means of attaching the relatively real to the absolutely real once one realizes that the reality of the soul and the world that surrounds it is not absolute but relative, that both the soul and the world derive their sustenance from a Reality that transcends both the soul and the world.

This relation between man and God, or the relative and the Absolute is central in every religion.

The Islamic perspective is based upon the consideration of the Divine Being as He is in Himself not as He is incarnated in history.

There are certain religions which emphasize a particular incarnation of the Divinity or various manifestations of the Absolute.

Islam is a religion based not on the personality of the founder but on Allah Himself.

THE NATURE OF MAN

Islam legislates for man according to his real nature as he is with all the possibilities inherent in the human state as such. But what does 'man as he is' mean? Seen in his ordinary condition man is a weak and negligent being. He is usually subservient to his surroundings and a prisoner of his own lust and animal passions. He does not know what it really means to be man and does not live to the full potentialities of his human condition.

INTELLIGENCE, WILL and SPEECH

The Islamic revelation conceives of man as this theomorphic being and addresses itself to that something in man which is in the form of the 'Divine'. That something is

INTELLIGENCE
An intelligence that can discern between the true and the false or the real and illusory and is naturally led to Unity or tawhid. Islam asks what is intelligence and what is its real nature. The real nature of intelligence is ultimately to come to realize that La ilaha ill'Allah, that is to come to know that in the end there is only one Absolute Reality. It is to realize the absolute nature of Allah and the relativity of all else that is other than He. The Qur'an calls those who have gone astray from religion as those who cannot intellect, 'la ya'quilun', those who cannot use their intelligence correctly. It is very significant that the loss of faith is equated in Qur'anic language not with the corruption of the will but with the improper functioning of intelligence.

WILL
A will to choose freely between the true and the false. What is the nature of the will? It is to be able to choose, to choose freely between two alternatives, between the real and the unreal, between the true and the false, between the Absolute and the relative. Were man not to be free religion would have no real meaning. Free will is necessary to the religious conception of man and this is as much true of Islam as of any other religion.

SPEECH
The power of speech, of the word to be able to express the relationship between the Divinity and man. Speech is the most direct manifestation of what we are, of our innermost being. We cannot express our being in any way more directly than speech. Speech is in a sense the external form of what we are inwardly.

KNOWLEDGE

Christianity is essentially a mystery which veils the Divine from man. In Islam, it is man who is veiled from God. The Divine Being is not veiled from us, we are veiled from Him and it is for us to try to rend this veil asunder, to try to know God.

Islam is essentially a way of knowledge; it is a way of gnosis [ma'rifah]. Islam leads to that essential knowledge which integrates our being, which makes us know what we are and be what we know. In other words, Islam integrates knowledge and being in the ultimate unitive vision of Reality.

REVELATION

Man needs revelation because although a theomorphic being, he is by nature negligent and forgetful; he is by nature imperfect.

Man cannot alone uplift himself spiritually. He must be awakened from the dream of negligence by one who is already awake. Man is thus in need of a message from heaven and must follow a revelation in order to realize the full potentiality of his being and have the obstacles which bar the correct functioning of his intelligence removed.

The most profound reason for the need of revelation is the presence of obstacles before the intelligence which prevent its correct functioning. More directly, the fact that although man is made in the 'image of God' and has a theomorphic being he is always in the process of forgetting it. He has in himself the possibility of God-like but he is always in the state of neglecting this possibility. That is why the cardinal sin in Islam is forgetfulness. It is negligence [ghaflah] of what we really are. It is a going to sleep and creating a dream world around us which makes us forget who we really are and what we should be doing in this world. Revelation is there to awaken man from the dream and remind him what is really means to be man.

THE HUMAN CONDITION

Man's central position in the world is not due to his cleverness or inventive genius but because of the possibility of attaining sanctity and becoming a channel of grace for the world about him.

The Islamic conception of man is that man participates fully in the human state, not through the many activities with which he usually identifies himself but by remembering his theomorphic nature. And because he is always in the process of forgetting this nature he is always in need of revelation.

There is no single act which has warped and distorted human will. Rather, many by being man is imperfect, only God being perfection as such. Being imperfect man has the tendency to forget and so is in constant need of being reminded through revelation of his real nature.

Man is in absolute need of religion without which he is only accidentally human. It is only through participation in a tradition, that is, a divinely revealed way of living, thinking and being, that man really becomes man and is able to find meaning in life. It is only tradition in this sense that gives meaning to human existence.

The privilege of participating in the human state, in a state which contains the opportunity and possibility of becoming God-like, of transcending the world of nature, and of possessing an immortal soul whose entelechy lies beyond the physical world, carries with it also a grave responsibility.

The very grandeur of the human condition is precisely in that he has both the possibility of reaching a state 'higher than the angels' and at the same time of denying God.

Being given the possibility of being God-like through the acceptance of the 'trust of faith', man can also play the role of a little deity and deny God as such. Therein lies both the grandeur and seriousness of the human condition.

Each being in the Universe is what it is. It is situated on a particular level of existence. Only man can stop being man. He can ascend above all degrees of universal existence and by the same token fall below the level of the basest of creatures. The alternatives of heaven and hell placed before man are themselves an indication of the seriousness of the human condition.

Man is presented with a unique opportunity by being born in the human state and it is a tragedy for him to fret away and waste his life in pursuits which distract him from the essential goal of his life which is to save his immortal soul.

COVENANT

There is in Mecca in the house of God a black stone which is in fact a meteor. In the Islamic tradition, this stone which fell from heaven, symbolizes the original covenant [al-mithaq] made between man and God. God taught man the name of all the creatures as we are told in the Qur'an ass well as in the Old Testament. This means that God gave man the possibility of dominating over all things, for to possess the 'name' of a thing means to exercise power over it.

It is a miracle that human existence is given the possibility of denying its own source. But man is given all this and much more in return for something which God wants of him and the black stone is the symbol of this covenant made between man and God.

By accepting the covenant man has in turn certain duties to perform:

make his intelligence conform to the Truth which comes from the Absolute
make his will conform to the Will of the Absolute and his speech to what God wants of man

In return for all the blessings and gifts that God has given man, man must in turn remember his real nature and always keep before him the real goal of his terrestrial journey. He must know who he is and where he is going. This he can do only by conforming his intelligence to the Truth and his will to the Divine Law.

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE MUSLIM

To accept the Divine covenant brings up the question of living according to the Divine Will. The very idea of Islam is that through the use of intelligence which discerns between the Absolute and the relative one should come to surrender to the Will of the Absolute.

This is the meaning of Muslim: one who has accepted through free choice to conform his will to the Divine Will.

Islam is actually like a several storied mountain and everything in it has different degrees and levels of meaning, including the concept of Muslim itself.

Firstly, anyone who accepts a Divine revelation is a 'Muslim' in its universal sense, be he a Muslim, Christian, Jew or Zoroastrian. In its first meaning, Muslim refers to that human being who through the use of his intelligence and free will accepts a divinely revealed law.

Secondly, 'muslim' refers to all creatures of the Universe who accept Divine law in the sense that they conform to the unbreakable laws which the Western world calls 'laws of Nature.'

It is the Will of the Creator that expresses itself in what is called 'laws of nature' in Western thought, and everything in the Universe is in a profound sense Muslim except for man who, because of this free choice given to him as a trust to bear, can refuse to submit to His Will.

It is only man who can stop being Muslim in this second meaning of the term 'muslim', whereas all other beings are 'muslim' in this sense by virtue of their complete submission to the Divine Will which manifests itself as 'laws of nature'.

Finally, there is the highest meaning of Muslim which applies to the saint. The saint is like nature in that every moment of his life is lived in conformity with the Divine Will, but his participation in the Divine Will is conscious and active whereas that of nature is passive

In summary,

The first meaning of Muslim pertains to nature;
The second meaning of Muslim pertains to man who has accepted a revelation;
The third meaning of Muslim pertains to the saint who not only has accepted revelation, but lives fully in conformity with the Divine Will.

UNITY

Islam is a universal concept that comprehends man and the Universe about him and lies in the nature of things. In a more particular sense, as a religion which was revealed nearly fourteen hundred years ago, it continues to base itself on what is in the nature of things, concentrating particularly on the Divine nature itself. For this reason Islam is based from beginning to end on the idea of Unity [tawhid], for God is One.

Unity is the alpha and omega of Islam.

In addition to being a metaphysical assertion about the nature of the Absolute, Unity is a method of integration, a means of becoming whole and realizing the profound oneness of all existence.

Every aspect of Islam rotates about the doctrine of Unity which Islam seeks to realize first of all in the human being in his inner and outward life. Every manifestation of human existence should be organically related to the Shahadah, La ilaha ill'Allah, which is the most universal way of expressing Unity. This means that man should not be compartmentalized either in his thoughts or actions. Every action, even the manner of walking and eating, should manifest a spiritual norm which exists in his mind and heart.

Unity expresses itself socially in the integration of human society which Islam has achieved to a remarkable degree.

Unity manifests itself politically in Islam's refusal to accept as the ultimate unit of the body politic anything less than the totality of the Islamic community, or the ummah.There is only one Muslim people, no matter how scattered and far removed its members may be.

In the realm of arts and sciences, Islam has always sought to unify all domains of knowledge, and its function is to integrate. The history of Islam has demonstrated this aspect in both philosophy and science as well as in art, in which forms were elucidated and elaborated to display Unity.

MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT ISLAM

Being based on Unity, Islam has envisaged a total way of life which excludes nothing. Its legislation is quite realistic in conformity with its perspective, which is based on the real nature of things. Islam envisages not only the saint but also the usual man with all his strengths and weaknesses. For this very reason it has been falsely accused by many Christians as being worldly or being the religion of the sword.

It is true that Islam has legislation for even war whereas Christianity orders man to turn the other cheek, and is mild and gentle in its teachings. But what is forgotten is that

either a religion is made for saints, as Christ said, 'My Life is not of this world' in which case it leaves aside political, social and economic questions and envisages all of its followers as potential saints and, in fact, can only function in a society of saints;
or a religion tries to encompass the whole of man's life, in which case it must take into account the whole of man's nature with all the weaknesses and shortcomings it has, and legislate for the political and economic life of man as well as the purely religious aspect of his existence.

The criticism against Islam as a religion of the sword is thus not a valid one. Islam, by legislating war, limited it whereas Christianity left it outside of its consideration. It is not accidental that the most devastating wars of this century have begun in the West where Christianity has been the dominating religious influence.

War, in a limited sense at least, is actually in the nature of things and Islam, rather than leaving it aside as if it did not exist, limited it by accepting it and providing religious legislation for it. One can at least say that the terrible wars of this century have not come out of the Muslim world, but out of what some people have called the 'post-Christian' West.

A religion which seeks to encompass the whole of life must consider all of its realities.

Christianity, concentrating on man's spiritual life, did not consider his political and social needs;
Islam, basing itself on Unity, had to integrate all of human life and could not overlook any aspect of it.

CHARACTER OF ISLAM

The character of Islam is directly connected with the fact that it is both the 'primordial religion' and the last religion in the present life of humanity. Islam considers itself as the primordial religion [al-din al-hanif] because it is based on the doctrine of Unity which has always existed and which lies in the nature of things. It sought to accomplish this by its uncompromising emphasis on Divine Unity and by seeking to return man to his original nature [fitrah] which is veiled from him because of his dream of negligence.

According to the Islamic perspective, God did not send different truths through His many prophets but different expressions and forms of the same fundamental truth of Unity, using as a basis the three elements of intelligence, will and speech which makes the realization of Unity possible.

Mankind did not evolve gradually from polytheism to monotheism. Man was originally a monotheist who fell gradually into polytheism, and has to be reminded periodically of the original doctrine of Unity.

History consists of a series of cycles of decay and rejuvenation. The Islamic conception of history is one of a series of cycles of prophecy, each cycle followed by a gradual decay leading to a new cycle or phase.

Islam believes itself to be the third great manifestation of the Abrahamic tradition, after Judaism and Christianity. Now, as Christians know so well, trinity is a reflection of unity so that this third manifestation of the Abrahamic tradition is in a sense a return to the original Unity, to the 'religion of Abraham'. As Judaism represents the law or the exoteric aspect of this tradition and Christianity the way or the esoteric aspect of it, so does Islam integrate the tradition in its original unity by containing both a law [shari'ah] and a way [tariqah]. It can be said that essentially

Judaism is based on the fear of God;
Christianity is based on the love of God;
Islam is based on the knowledge of God.

If Islam is the 'primordial religion' it is also the 'last religion' and in fact it is through this particularity that it becomes not just religion as such but a particular religion to be accepted and followed.

By re-affirming what all the prophets have asserted over the ages, Islam emphasized its universal character as the primordial religion and by considering itself as the last religion [a claim no other orthodox religion before Islam ever made], Islam attained its particularity which distinguishes it and gives it its specific form as a religion.

No religion can in fact be the universal religion as such. It is so inwardly, but outwardly it must be a particular religion which induces men to accept and follow it through specific forms and rites. Man, living in the world of the particular, must begin from the particular in order to reach the universal. The beauty of revealed religion is precisely that although externally it is a form, it is not a closed form but one which opens inwardly towards the Infinite.

THE PROPHETIC CYCLE

Islam also had to have a particular form and that came from its character as the last religion. With the Prophet the prophetic cycle came to an end. The Prophet who was the 'Seal of Prophecy' [khatam al anbiya'] announced that there would be no prophets after him and history has gone to prove his claim.

Islam does not envisage an indefinitely prolonged march of history for eons on end. It believes that the history of the present humanity has a beginning and an end, marked by the eschatological events described in the Qur'an and Hadith. It is until the occurrence of these events that no new prophet shall come. At the end of the cycle Islam believes, like Christianity, not in the coming of a new prophet but in the second coming of Christ. Until such a happening Islam is the last religion and the Prophet the last prophet, not to be followed by another revelation from heaven.

This particularity of Islam as the last religion in the prophetic cycle gives it the power of synthesis so characteristic of this tradition. Being the final message of revelation, Islam was given providentially the power to synthesize, to integrate and absorb whatever was in conformity with its perspective from previous civilizations. Islam integrated in its world-view what was ultimately in conformity with the Shahada, La ilaha ill'Allah, which is the final criterion of orthodoxy in Islam. Coming at the end of the prophetic cycle, Islam has considered all the wisdom of traditions before it as in a sense its own and has never been shy of borrowing from them and transforming them into elements of its own world view.

In Islam, as in every orthodox tradition, originality means to express the universal truths that are perennial in manner that is fresh and bears the fragrance of spirituality, indicating that the expression comes not from outward imitation but from the source of the Truth itself.

Spiritual vitality, like organic, comes not in creation from nothing but in transformation and integration into a pattern which comes in essence from heaven.

SUMMARY

Islam is based on the universal relation between God and man, God in His Absoluteness and man in his profound theomorphic nature.

Islam bases the realization of this central relationship on intelligence, will and speech and consequently on equilibrium and certitude..

Islam has sought to establish equilibrium in life by channeling all of man's natural needs and inclinations, all those natural desires and needs such as that for food, shelter, procreation, etc. given by God and necessary in human life, through the Divine Law [Shariah].

Upon the firm foundation of this equilibrium Islam has enabled man to build a spiritual castle based on contemplation and the certainty that there is no divinity other than the Absolute.

Islam is a Divine revelation which was placed as a seed in the heart of man who was the receptacle of this Divine message.

Man is the container. He cannot break this container; he can only purify it and empty it of the pungent substance that fills it so that it can become worthy of receiving the Divine nectar.

The seed of Islam was placed in the heart of man through the Qur'an and the instrument of its propagation among men, the Prophet. From this seed there grew that spiritual tree which has created one of the greatest civilizations in history, a tree under whose shade a sizeable segment of the human race live and die today and find meaning and fulfillment in life.

THE LAST PROPHET Muhammad: Seal of the Prophets

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The Prophet as the founder of Islam and the messenger of God's revelation to mankind is the interpreter par excellence of the Book of God; and his Hadith and Sunnah, his sayings and actions are, after the Qur'an, the most important sources of the Islamic tradition.

Spiritual Nature

The spiritual nature of the Prophet is veiled in his human one and his purely spiritual function is hidden in his duties as the guide of men and the leader of a community. It was the function of the Prophet to be not only a spiritual guide, but also the organizer of a new social order with all that such a function implies. And it is precisely this aspect of his being that veils his purely spiritual dimension from foreign eyes.

Outsiders have understood his political genius, his power of oratory, his great statesmanship, but few have understood how he could be the religious and spiritual guide of men and how his life could be emulated by those who aspire to sanctity. This is particularly true in the modern world in which religion is separated from other domains of life and most modern men can hardly imagine how a spiritual being could also be immersed in the most intense political and social activity.

Social Nature

The Prophet did participate in social life in its fullest sense. He married, had a household, was a father and moreover he was ruler and judge and had also to fight many wars in which he underwent painful ordeals. He had to undergo many hardships and experience all the difficulties which human life, especially that of the founder of a new state and society, implies. But within all these activities his heart rested in contentment with the Divine, and he continued inwardly to repose in the Divine Peace. In fact his participation in social and political life was precisely to integrate this domain into a spiritual centre.

Contemplative Nature

The Prophet entertained no political or worldly ambition whatsoever. He was by nature a contemplative. He often spent long periods in the cave of Hira' in solitude and meditation. He did not believe himself to be by nature a man of the world or one who was naturally inclined to seek political power among the Quraysh or social eminence in Meccan society, although he came from the noblest family. It was in fact very painful and difficult for him to accept the burden of prophecy which implied the founding of not only a new religion but also a new social and political order.

Marriages

The marriages of the Prophet are not at all signs of his lenience vis-a-vis the flesh. Multiple marriage, for him, as is true of Islam in general, was not so much enjoyment as responsibility and a means of integration of the newly founded society. The multiple marriages of the Prophet, far from pointing to his weakness towards 'the flesh', symbolize his patriarchal nature and his function, not as a saint who withdraws from the world, but as one who sanctifies the very life of the world by living in it and accepting it with the aim of integrating it into a higher order of reality.

Harshness, Kindness and Compassion

The Prophet exercises the utmost kindness possible and was harsh only with traitors. Now, a traitor against a newly founded religious community, which God has willed and whose existence is a mercy from heaven for mankind, is a traitor against the Truth itself. The harshness of the Prophet in such cases is an expression of Divine Justice. As to what concerned his own person, the Prophet was always the epitome of kindness and generosity.

Also the Prophet was not certainly without love and compassion. Although the Prophet was in a sense a king or ruler of a community and a judge and had to deal according to justice in both capacities, he was at the same time one whose being was anchored in the love for God.

From the Muslim point of view, the Prophet is the symbol of perfection of both the human person and human society.

Piety, Combativeness, Magnanimity

The universal characteristics of the Prophet are not the same as his daily actions and day to day life. They are, rather, characteristics which issue forth from his personality as a particular spiritual prototype. Seen in this light there are essentially three qualities that characterize the Prophet.

First of all the Prophet possessed the quality of piety in its most universal sense, that quality which attaches man to God. The Prophet was in that sense pious. He had a profound piety which inwardly attached him to God, that made him place the interest of God before everything else including himself.

Secondly he had a quality of combativeness, of always being actively engaged in combat against all that negated the Truth and disrupted harmony. Externally it meant fighting wars, either military, political or social ones, the war which the Prophet named the 'little holy war' [al-jihad al-asghar]. Inwardly this combativeness meant a continuous war against the carnal soul [nafs], against all that in man tends towards the negation of God and His Will, the 'great holy war' [al-jihad al-akbar].

If a religion is to be an integral part of life it must try to establish peace in the most profound sense, namely to establish equilibrium between all the existing forces that surround man and to overcome all the forces that tend to destroy this equilibrium. No religion has sought to establish peace in this sense more than Islam. It is precisely in such a context that war can have a positive meaning as the activity to establish harmony both inwardly and outwardly and it is in this sense that Islam has stressed the positive aspect of combativeness.

The Prophet was faced from the beginning of his prophetic mission with the task of wielding the sword of Truth, of establishing equilibrium and in this arduous task he had no rest. His rest and repose was in the heart of the holy war [jihad] itself and he represents this aspect of spirituality in which peace comes not in passivity but in true activity. Peace belongs to one who is inwardly at peace with the Will of Heaven and outwardly at war with the forces of disruption and disequilibrium.

Finally, the Prophet possessed the quality of magnanimity in its fullness. His soul displayed a grandeur which every devout Muslim feels. He is for the Muslim nobility and magnanimity personified.

Strength, Nobility and Serenity

To focus more sharply on the personality of the Prophet, the qualities can be enumerated as strength, nobility and serenity or inner calm.

Strength is outwardly manifested in the little holy war and inwardly in the great holy war. It is this great jihad which is of particular spiritual significance as a war against all those tendencies which pull the soul of man away from the Centre and Origin and bar him from the grace of heaven.

The nobility or generosity of the Prophet shows itself most of all in charity towards all men and more generally towards all beings.

The aspect of serenity, which also characterizes all true expressions of Islam, is essentially the love of truth. It is to put the Truth before everything else. It is to be impartial, to be logical on the level of discourse, not to let one's emotions color and prejudice one's intellectual judgment. It is not to be a rationalist, but to see the truth of things and to love the Truth above all else. To love the Truth is to love God who is the Truth, one of His Names being the Truth [al-haqq].

In Islam, when one thinks of the Prophet who is to be emulated, it is the image of a strong personality that comes to mind, who is severe with himself and with the false and the unjust, and charitable towards the worlds that surrounds him. On the basis of these two virtues of strength and sobriety on the one hand and charity and generosity on the other, he is serene, extinguished in the Truth.

He is that warrior on horseback who halts before the mountain of Truth, passive towards the Divine Will, active towards the world, hard and sober towards himself and kind and generous towards the creatures about him.

The second Shahadah, Muhammadun rasul Allah [Muhammad is the Prophet of God] thus implies by its sound the power, generosity and serenity of reposing in the Truth characteristic of the Prophet. This repose in the Truth is not based on a flight from the world but on a penetration into it in order to integrate and organize it. The spiritual castle in Islam is based on the firm foundations of harmony within human society and in individual human life.

Hadith and Sunnah

How can the Prophet become a guide for human life, and his life, deeds and thoughts serve as a guide for the Muslim in this terrestrial journey? The answer to this fundamental question, which concerns al the individual and collective life of Muslims of later generations, lies in the sayings which he left behind and which are known as Hadith and his daily life and practice known as Sunnah.

When man meets an extraordinary person he carries the impression of this meeting always. This end is achieved through the fresh interpretation that each generation makes of his life [siyar], through the litanies and chants repeated in his priase [mada'ih] and though the celebrations marking his birth [mawlid] or other joyous occasions.

The Hadith literature, in both Sunni and Shi'ite sources, is a monumental treasury of wisdom which is at once a commentary upon the Qur'an and a complement to its teachings. The prophetic sayings concern every domain from pure metaphysics to table manners. In addition, in this literature many questions pertaining to metaphysics, cosmology, eschatology and the spiritual life are discussed. Altogether, after the Qur'an, the Hadith and the prophetic Sunnah which is closely bound to it are the most precious source of guidance which Islamic society possesses, and along with the Qur'an they are the fountainhead of all Islamic life and thought.

The Hadith is, after the Qur'an, the most important source of both the Law, Shari'ah, and the Spiritual way, Tariqah. And it is the vital integrating factor in Muslim society, for the daily lives of millions of Muslims the world over have been modelled upon the prophetic Sunnah and Hadith.

Through the Hadith and Sunnah Muslims come to know both the Prophet and the message of the Qur'an. Without Hadith much of the Qur'an would be a closed book. We are told in the Qur'an to pray but were it not for prophetic Sunnah we would not know how to pray. Something as fundamental as the daily prayers which are the central rite of Islam would be impossible to perform without the guidance of the prophetic practice. This applies to a thousand and one other situations so that it is almost unnecessary to emphasize the vital connection between the Qur'an and the practice and sayings of the Prophet whom God chose as its revealer and interpreter to mankind.

Within the vast corpus of prophetic sayings there are forty which are called 'sacred sayings' [Hadith qudsi] which are not a part of the Qur'an but in which God speaks in the first person through the Prophet. These sayings, although small in number, are of extreme importance in that they are, along with certain verses of the Qur'an, the basis of the spiritual life in Islam. Sufism is based on these sayings and many a Sufi knows them by heart and lives in constant remembrance of their message. These sayings all concern the spiritual life rather than social or political matters. They deal with man's direct relation with God.

The presence of these sayings indicate how deeply the roots of Islamic spirituality are sunk in the sources of the revelation itself. Far from being just a legal and social system devoid of a spiritual dimension, or one upon which a spiritual dimension was artificially grafted later on, Islam was, from the beginning, both a Law and a Way. The two dimensions of Islam, the exoteric and the esoteric, are best demonstrated in the case of the Prophet himself who was both the perfection of human action on the social and political plane and the prototype of the spiritual life in his inner oneness with God and in his total realization in which he saw nothing except in God and through God.

Prophetic Tradition and the Cycle of Prophecy

Prophethood is, according to the Islamic view, a state bestowed upon men whom God has chosen because of certain perfections in them by virtue of which they become the instrument though whom God reveals His message to the world. Their inspiration is directly from Heaven. A prophet owes nothing to anyone. he is not a scholar who discerns through books certain truths, nor one who learns from other human beings and in turn transmits this learning. His knowledge marks a direct intervention which is not, from the Islamic point of view, an incarnation but a theophany [tajalli]. This definition of prophethood holds true for every prophet, not just in the case of the founder of Islam.

Although all prophecy implies a meeting of the Divine and human planes, there are degrees of prophecy dependent upon the type of message revealed and the function of the messenger in propagating that message.

There is first of all the nabi, a man who brings news of God's message, a man whom God has chosen to speak to. But the message that the nabi receives is not necessarily universal. He may receive a message which is to remain within him and not be divulged openly or is meant to be imparted to only a few in the cadre of an already existing religion. Of the prophets in this sense [anbiya], there are, according to tradition, one-hundred and twenty-four thousand whom God has sent to every nation and people.

The universality of prophecy so clearly enunciated in the Qur'an means the universality of tradition, of religion. It means that all orthodox religions come from heaven and are not man-made. It also implies by its comprehensive formulation the presence of Divine revelation not only in the Abrahamic tradition but among all nations.

Among the anbiya there are those who belong to another category of prophets, or a new level of prophecy, namely those who not only receive a message from heaven but are also chosen to propagate that message for the segment of humanity providentially destined for it. The prophet with such a function is called rasul.

Above the rasul stands the prophet who is to bring a major new religion to the world, the 'possessor of firmness and determination' [ulu'l-'azm].

There are then altogether three grades of prophecy, that of the nabi, the rasul and the ulu'l-'azm. The Prophet was at once a nabi, a rasul and an ulu'l-'azm and brought the cycle of prophecy to a close. After him there will be no new Shari'ah or Divine Law brought into the world until the end of time. There are to be no revelations [wahy] after him, for he marks the termination of the prophetic cycle [da'irat al-nubuwwah].

It may on the surface appear as a great tragedy that man seems to be thus left without any possibility of renewing the truths of the revelation through new contact with the source of truth. But in reality the termination of the prophetic cycle does not mean that all possibility of contact with the Divine order has ceased. Whereas revelation [wahy] is no longer possible, inspiration [ilham] remains always as a latent possibility. Whereas the cycle of prophecy [da'irat al-nubuwwah] has come to an end, the cycle of wilayat [da'irat al-wildyah], which for want of a better term may be translated as the 'cycle of initiation' and also sanctity, continues.

Actually wilayah means the presence of this inner dimension within Islam which the Prophet inaugurated along with a new Shari'ah and which will continue to the end of time. Thanks to its presence, man is able to renew himself spiritually and gain contact with the Divine although a new revelation is no longer possible.

Far from there being a need for any new religion, which at this moment of time can only mean a pseudo-religion, the revelation brought by the Prophet contains in itself all that is needed to fulfill in every way the religious and spiritual needs of Muslims, from the common believer to the potential saint.

Universal Man

The Prophet, besides being the leader of men and the founder of a new civilization, is also the perfection of the human norm and the model for the spiritual life of Islam. He said 'I am a human being like you' [ana basharun mithlukum], to which Muslim sages over the ages have added, yes, but like a precious gem among stones [ka'l-yaqut bain al-hajar]. The profound symbolism contained in this saying is connected with the inner nature of the Prophet. All men in their purely human nature are like stones, opaque and heavy and a veil to the light that shines upon them.

The Prophet also possesses this human nature outwardly. But inwardly he has become alchemically transmuted into a precious stone which, although still a stone, is transparent before the light and has lost its opacity. The Prophet is outwardly only a human being [bashar], but inwardly he is the full realization of manhood in its most universal sense. He is the Universal Man [al-insan al-kamil], the prototype of all of creation, the norm of all perfection, the first of all beings, the mirror in which God contemplates universal existence. He is inwardly identified with the Logos and the Divine Intellect.

Islam considers all prophets as an aspect of the Universal Logos, which in its perspective is identified with the 'Reality of Muhammad' [al-haqiqat al-muhammadiyyah], which was the first of God's creation and through whom God sees all things. As the Muhammedan Reality the Prophet came before all the other prophets at the beginning of the prophetic cycle, an it is to this inner aspect of him as the Logos to which reference is made in the Hadith 'He [Muhammad] was prophet [th Logos] when Adam was still between water and clay.'

So did the cycle of Prophecy begin with the Muhammedan Reality, with the inner reality of Muhammad, while it ended with the human manifestation of him. He thus is inwardly the beginning and outwardly the end of the prophetic cycle which he synthesizes and unifies in his being. Outwardly he is a human being and inwardly the Universal Man, the norm of all spiritual perfection.

The Prophet possessed in himself that reality which later gained the technical name of Universal Man. But the 'named' was there long before this name was given to it.

Summary

The Prophet is human equilibrium which has become extinct in the Divine Truth. He marks the establishment of harmony and equilibrium between all tendencies present in man, his sensual, social, economic, political tendencies, which cannot be overcome unless the human state itself is transcended. He displays the integration of these tendencies and forces with the aim of establishing a basis which naturally leads towards contemplation and extinction in the Truth. His spiritual way means to accept the human condition which is normalized and sanctified as the ground for the most lofty spiritual castle.

The spirituality of Islam of which the Prophet is the prototype is not the rejection of the world but the transcending of it through its integration into a Centre and the establishment of a harmony upon which the quest for the Absolute is based. The Prophet in these qualities that he displayed so eminently is at once the prototype of human and spiritual perfection and a guide towards its realization.

The Prophet is the perfection of both the human collectivity and the human individual, the norm for the perfect social life and the prototype and guide for the spiritual life. He is both the Universal Man and the Primordial Man [al-insan al-qadim].

The Prophet possessed eminently both the human [nasuf] and spiritual [lahut] natures, and for this very reason his example makes possible the presence of a spiritual way in Islam. He was the perfect ruler, judge and leader of men. He was the creator of the most perfect Muslim society in comparison with which every later society is a falling away. But he was in addition the prototype of the spiritual life. That is why it is absolutely necessary to follow in his footsteps if one aspires towards spiritual realization.

The love of the Prophet is incumbent upon all Muslims and especially upon those who aspire towards the saintly life. This love must not be understood in an individualistic sense. Rather, the Prophet is loved because he symbolizes that harmony and beauty that pervade all things, and displays in their fullness those virtues, the attainment of which allow man to realize his theomorphic nature.

THE LAST BOOK The Qur'an: Word of God

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THE HOLY QUR'AN

The Divine Presence in the text provides food for the souls of men. The Qur'an is like existence itself, like the Universe and the beings who move through it. It contains all the elements of universal existence. It is in itself a universe in which a Muslim places his life from beginning to end.

The Divine Word

The covenant made between man and God by virtue of which man accepted the trust [amanah] of being an intelligent and free being with all the opportunities and dangers that such a responsibility implies, is symbolized physically by the stone by the stone of the Ka'ba. Spiritually the record of this covenant in contained in the Qur'an, that central theophany of Islam which is itself the eloquent expression of this eternal covenant between God and man.

The Qur'an contains the message with the aid of which this covenant can be kept and the entelechy of human existence fulfilled. It is thus the central reality in the life of Islam.

The Qur'an is the tissue out of which the life of a Muslim is woven; its sentences are like threads from which the substance of his soul is knit.

The Qur'an for the Muslim is the revelation of God and the book in which His message to man is contained. It is the Word of God revealed to the Prophet through the archangel Gabriel. The Prophet was therefore the instrument chosen by God for the revelation of His Word, of His Book of which both the spirit and the letter, the content and the form, are Divine. Not only the content and meaning comes from God but also the container and form which are thus an integral aspect of the revelation.

In other religions the 'descent of the Absolute' has taken other forms, but in Islam as in other Semitic religions but with more emphasis, revelation is connected with a 'book' and in fact Islam envisages the followers of all revealed religions as 'people of the Book' [ahl al-kitab].

A man who understands religion metaphysically and intellectually must either accept religion as such, that is, all orthodox tradition, or be in danger of either intellectual inconsistency or spiritual hypocrisy.

The unlettered nature of the Prophet demonstrates how the human recipient is completely passive before the Divine. Were this purity and virginity of the soul not to exist, the Divine Word would become in a sense tainted with purely human knowledge and not be presented to mankind in its pristine purity.

Sacred Text, Sacred Language

The form of the Qur'an is the Arabic language. Arabic is sacred in the sense that it is an integral part of the Qur'anic revelation whose very sounds and utterances play a role in the ritual acts of Islam.

The formulae of the Qur'an read in prayers and acts of worship must be in the sacred language of Arabic which alone enables one to penetrate into the content and be transformed by the Divine presence and grace [barakah] of the Divine Book. That is also why the Qur'an cannot be translated into any language for ritual purposes. The very sounds and words of such a sacred language are parts of the revelation.

Religion is not philosophy or theology meant only for the mental plane. It is a method of integrating our whole being including the psychical and corporeal. The sacred language serves precisely as a providential means whereby man can come not only to think about the truths of religion, which is only for people of a certain type of mentality, but to participate with his whole being in a Divine norm. This truth is universally applicable, and especially it is clearly demonstrated in the case of the Qur'an whose formulae and verses are guide posts for the life of the Muslim and whose continuous repetition provides a heavenly shelter for man in the turmoil of his earthly existence.

The text of the Qur'an reveals human language crushed by the power of the Divine Word.

The Qur'an, like every sacred text, should not be compared with any form of human writing because precisely it is a Divine message in human language.

It is not the sacred text that is incoherent. It is man himself who is incoherent and it takes much effort for him to integrate himself into his Centre so that the message of the Divine book will become clarified for him and reveal to him its inner meaning.

The whole difficulty in reading the Qur'an and trying to reach its meaning is the incommensurability between the Divine message and the human recipient, between what God speaks and what man can hear in a language which despite its being a sacred language is, nevertheless, a language of men. But it is a sacred language because God has chosen it as His insrurment of communication, and He always chooses to 'speak' in a language which is primordial and which expresses the profoundest truths in the most concrete terms.

The Qur'an is composed of a profusion and intertwining of plant life as seen in a forest often combined suddenly with the geometry, symmetry and clarity of the mineral kingdom, of a crystal held before light. The key to Islamic art is in fact this combination of plant and mineral forms as inspired by the form of expression of the Qur'an which displays this character clearly.

Power

The power of the Qur'an does not lie in that it expresses a historical fact or phenomenon. It lies in that it is a symbol whose meaning is valid always because it concerns not a particular fact in a particular time but truths which being in the very nature of things are perennial. Of course the Qur'an does mention certain facts such as the rebellion of a certain people against God and His punishment of those people as we see also in the Old Testament. But even those 'facts' retain their power because they concern us as symbols of a reality which is always present. The miracle of the Qur'an lies in its possessing a language which has the efficacy of moving the souls of men now, nearly fourteen hundred years since it was revealed, as much as it did at the beginning of its appearance on earth.

The Book

The Book is first of all al-Qur'an, namely a recitation from which its common name is derived. It is a recitation in the sense that it is a means of concentration upon the truth for 'recitation' is a concentration in which ideas and thoughts are directed towards the expression of a certain end. It is also al-Furqan, that is a discernment, a discrimination, in that it is the instrument by which man can come to discriminate between Truth and falsehood, to discern between the Real and the unreal, the Absolute and the relative, the good and the evil, the beautiful and the ugly. Finally it is Umm al-kitab, the mother of all books. As the 'Mother of books' the Qur'an is the prototype of all 'books', that is, of all knowledge. From the Islamic point of view all knowledge is contained in essence in the Qur'an, the knowledge of all orders of reality. But this knowledge lies within the Qur'an potentially, or as a seed and in principle, not actually.

The Qur'an is then the source of knowledge in Islam not only metaphysically and religiously but even in the domain of particular fields of knowledge.

The Message

The Qur'an contains essentially three types of message for man.

Firstly, it contains a doctrinal message, a set of doctrines which expound knowledge of the structure of reality and man's position in it. As such it contains a set of moral and juridical injunctions which is the basis of the Muslim Sacred Law or Shari'ah and which concerns the life of man in every detail. It also contains metaphysics about the nature of the Godhead, a cosmology concerning the structure of the Universe and the multiple states of being, and an eschatology about man's final end and the hereafter. It contains a doctrine about human life, about history, about existence as such and its meaning. It bears all the teachings necessary for man to know who he is, where he is and where he should be going. It is thus the foundation of both Divine Law and metaphysical knowledge.

Secondly, the Qur'an contains a message which on the surface at least is like that of a vast book of history. It recounts the story of peoples, tribes, kings, prophets and saints over the ages, of their trials and tribulations. This message is essentially one couched in historical terms but addressed to the human soul. It depicts in vivid terms the ups and downs, the trials and vicissitudes of the human soul in therms of accounts of bygone people which were not only true about such and such a people and time but concern the soul here and now.

Every event recounted about every being, every tribe, every race bears an essential meaning which concerns us. All the actors on the stage of sacred history as accounted in the Qur'an are also symbols of forces existing within the soul of man. the Qur'an is, therefore, a vast commentary on man's terrestrial existence. It is a book about whose reading reveals the significance of human life which begins with birth and ends with death, begins from God and returns to him.

Thirdly, the Qur'an contains a quality which is difficult to express in modern language. One might call it a divine magic, if one understands this phrase metaphysically and not literally. The formulae of the Qur'an, because they come from God, have a power which is not identical with what we learn from them rationally by simply reading and reciting them. They are rather like a talisman which protects and guides man. That is why even the physical presence of the Qur'an carries a great grace or barakah with it.

Divine Presence

The Qur'an possesses precisely a barakah for believers which is impossible to explain or analyze logically. But because of this Divine presence and barakah it endures from generation to generation. The Divine presence in the text provides food for the souls of men. It is in fact a sacred act to recite the Qur'an. Its reading is a ritual act which God wishes man to perform over and over again throughout his earthly journey.

Existence and Creation

Taken as a whole, the Qur'an is like existence itself, like the Universe and the beings who move through it. It contains all the elements of universal existence and for this reason is in itself a univerese in which a Muslim places his life from beginning to end.

In a metaphysical sense, the Qur'an contains the prototype of all creation. Metaphysically, the Qur'an has an aspect of knowledge connected with its text as a book and an aspect of being connected with its inner nature as the archtypical blueprint of the universe.

Multiplicity and Unity

The Qur'an corresponds to the world we live in from day to day. Man lives in a world of multiplicity and before he becomes spiritually transformed, he is profoundly attached to this multiplicity. The roots of his soul are deeply sunk into the soil of this world. That is why he loves this world and finds it so difficult to detach himself from it and attach himself to God.

The Qur'an, being like the world, is also a multiplicity in its chapters and verses, words and letters. The soul in first encoutering it discovers the same differentiation and multiplicity to which it is accustomed through its experience with the world. But within the Qur'an is contained a peace, harmony and unity which is the very opposite of the effect of the world as such on the souls of men. The external multiplicity of the world is such that in it man runs from one thing to another without ever finding peace and contentment. His soul runs from one object of desire to another thinking that it will find contentment just around the corner. Yet, it is a corner which he somehow never reaches.

The Qur'an begins by also presenting to the soul the possibility of running from one 'thing' to another, of running around corners, of living in multiplicity, but within lies a peace and contentment which leaves the very opposite effect on the soul.

The Qur'an does present itself as the world but a world in which there is not differentiation and dissipation but essentially integration and unification.

Signs and Realities

The Qur'an is the cosmos, the vast world of creation in which man lives and breathes. God displays his 'signs' the vestigia Dei, on the horizons, that is, the cosmos and more specifically the world of nature and within the souls of man until man comes to realize that it is the Truth.

The Qur'an corresponds in a sense to nature, to God's creation. That is why when a Muslim looks at a natural phenomenon he should be reminded of God and His Power and Wisdom. Man should be reminded of the 'wonders of creation' and constantly see the 'signs' of God upon the horizons. This attitude which is one of the essential traits of Islam is enextricably tied to the correspondence between the Qur'an and the Universe.

Human experience is based on a world and a subject that lives in this world and travels through it. Man's existence can be analyzed in terms of two realities, a world, a background, an environment, and a being, a traveller, who journeys through this background and lives in this environment.

The Qur'an again reflects this reality. The chapters of the Book are like worlds and we who read them like the traveller journeying through them. Or from another point of view the chapters are like the worlds, or realms, and the verses like the subject passing through them. In this aspect as in so many other essential ones the Qur'an corresponds to the very structure of reality; it corresponds in its external and inward aspects to all degrees of reality and knowledge, of being and intellection, whether it be practical or theoretical, concerned with social and active life or with metaphysical knowledge and the contemplative life.

Besides containing the basis of the Divine Law, the Qur'an expounds also a metapysics, a cosmology and an eschatology whose expression and formulation is what it should be.

Levels of Meaning

The Qur'an is meant for both the simple peasant and the metaphysician and seer and of necessity contains levels of meaning for all types of believers.

Many people in fact who read the Sacred Book receive no more from it than the literal message. This is because no sacred text opens itself to human scrutiny and reveals its secret so easily. The Qur'an is like the Universe wtih many planes of existence and levels of meaning. One has to be prepared to be able to penetrate its meaning. It is, moreover, particularly in the inspired commentaries, that man comes to understand explicitly and in more extended form what is contained often implicitly and in a contracted form in the Qur'an.

The inner meaning of the Qur'an can be understood, but for certain exceptional cases, only through the inspired commentaries each of which seeks to elucidate and elaborate certain aspects of the Book.

This type of commentary which is a penetration into the inner meaning of a sacred text is written by a traditional authority who has himself penetrated into the inner dimensions of his own being.

Man sees in the sacred scriptures what he is himself, and the type of knowledge he can derive fromt he texts depends precisely on 'who' he is.

It is essential to realize that we cannot reach the inner meaning of the Qur'an until we ourselves have penetrated into the deeper dimensions of our own being and also by the grace of heaven. If we approach the Qur'an superficially and are ourselves superficial beings floating on the surface of our existence and unaware of our profound roots, then the Qur'an appears to us also as having only a surface meaning. It hides its mysteries from us and we are not able to penetrate it. It is by spiritual travail that man is able to penetrate into the inner meaning of the sacred text by that process which is called ta'wil or symbolic and hermeneutic interpretation, just as tafsir is the explanation of the external aspect of the Book.

The Arabic term ta'wil contains etymologically the meaning of the process involved. It means literally to take something back to its beginning or origin. To penetrate into the inner mysteries of the Qur'an is precisely to reach back to its Origin because the Origin is the most inward, and the revelation or manifestation of the sacred text is at once a descent and an exteriorization of it. Everything actually comes from within to the outside, from the interior to the exterior and we who live 'in the exterior' must return to the interior if we are to reach the Origin.

When intellectual intuition is present and under the guidance of revelation one can penetrate the appearance to that reality of which the appearance is an appearance, one can journey from the exterior to the interior by this process of ta'wil, which in the case of the Qur'an means coming to understand its inner message.

The idea of penetrating into the inner meaning of things is to be seen everywhere in Islam, in religion, philosophy, science and art.

There is an inner meaning to the Qur'an not meant for anyone except those who are qualified to hear and understand it.

The Qur'an possesses an inner dimension which no amount of literal and philological analysis can reveal. And it is precisely this aspect of the Qur'an that is least known to the outside world.

Religion, Science and Symbols

Qur'anic commentary was the meeting ground for the knowledge derived from science and from the tenets of revelation.

The whole process of penetrating the inner meaning of the Qur'an, of discovering that wisdom which alone is the common ground between religion and science, is based on this process of ta'wil, which does not mean seeking after a metaphorical meaning or reading into the text. Ta'wil in the sense used by Sufis and Shi'ite sages is the pentration into the symbolic -- and not allegorical -- meaning of the text which is not a human interpretation but reaching a divinely pre-disposed sense placed within the Sacred Text trhough which man himself becomes transformed. The symbol has an ontological reality that lies above any mental constructions. Man does not make symbols. He is transformed by them. And it is as such that the Qur'an with the worlds of meaning that lie hidden in its every phrase transforms and remakes the soul of man.

Qur'anic Phrases

First Shahadah
Basmallah
Second Shahadah
Alhamd
Allahu Akbar
Insha' Allah and Masha' Allah

First Shahadah

The most fundamental formula of the Qur'an is the first Shahadah, that is, witness or testimony, La ilaha ill' Allah, which is the fountainhead of all Islamic doctrine, the alpha and omega of the Islamic message. In it is contained all of metaphysics. He who knows it knows everything in principle. It is both the doctrine and the method, the doctrine because it negates all relativity and multiplicity from the Absolute and returns all positive qualities back to God, the method because it is the means whereby the soul can combat against the enemies within. The very la at the beginning is a sword -- and in Arabic calligraphy the lam in fact resembles a sword -- by which the soul is able to kill al the evil tendencies within itself which prevent it from becoming unified and which endanger it towards polytheism, or shirk, by making it see the relative as Absolute. A Muslim repeats the Shahadah, not only because it reaffirms over and over again Divine Unity but also because, through its repetition, this Unity comes to leave its permanent imprint upon the human soul and integrates it into its Centre. It is a sword with which the 'deities' that keep springing up in the soul are destroyed and all multiplicity and otherness is negated.

Basmallah

After the Shahadah the most cardinal and often used formula is Bismillah al-rahman al-rahim, which is usually translated as 'in the Name of God, the Most Merciful and Compassionate'. Al-rahman is the transcendent aspect of Divine Mercy. Al-rahim is the immanent mercy of God. It is like a ray of light which shines in our heart and touches individual lives and particular events. The two qualities combined express the totality of Divine Mercy which envelopes us from without and shines forth from within our being.

The basmallah opens every chapter of the Qur'an except one which is really the continuation of the previous chapter. It also opens the Surat al-fatihah, the opening chapter of the Qur'an, which is recited over and over again in the daily canonical prayers, and which contains the essence of the Qur'anic message. 'Ali, the representative par excellance of esotericism in Islam, said that 'all the Qur'an is contained in the Surat al-fatihah, all this Surat is contained in the basmallah, all of the basmallah in the letter ba' with which it begins, all of the letter ba' in the diacritical point under it and I am that diacritical point.'

Like the point which generates all geometric space, this point is the symbol of the Origin of all creation, as the basmallah itself marks the beginning of things. Its recitation at the begining of an act relates that act to God and sanctifies it. Even if every Muslim is not aware of all the metaphysical implications of the formula, yet its sanctifying power is known and felt by all and for that reason every act which is necessary and legitimate in life should begin with the basmallah, such as eating a meal or beginning a journey. In fact that act is illicit at whose commencement a devout Muslim cannot pronounce the formula. Otherwise all that is acceptable before the eyes of God can be sanctified by it. Through the basmallah the Divine joy and bliss enters into human life to bless and sanctify it.

Second Shahadah

Closely connected with the basmallah in meaning is the second Shahadah, Muhammadun rasul Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of God, which again expresses the Divine mercy for the world, for the Prophet is mercy for this world and the next [rahmat Allah li'l-alamin]. He is the mercy of God for all worlds and through his aid man is able to lead a life of happiness here below and felicity in the world to come. The second Shahadah is the complement of the first. The first negates all otherness from God, the second asserts that all that is positive in creation, of which Muhammad -- Upon him be peace -- is the symbol, comes from God.

Alhamd

The Alhamduli'-llah, Praise be to God, is the complement of the basmallah. It ends an act as the basmallah begins it. The Alhamd integrates the positive content of every act into its Divine Origin and makes man conscious of the fact that whatever he has done that is good comes from God and returns to Him. This formula again cannot be iterated except after an act that is pleasing to God and that leaves a positive imprint upon the soul and again it is the criterion of the spiritual value of an act.

Allahu Akbar

The formula, Allahu Akbar means fundamentally that whatever one says of God He transcends it and is greater than it. It is thus a way of asserting the Infinite nature of God that transcends all limited descriptions and formulations of Him.

Insha' Allah and Masha' Allah

Finally, among the most common formulae used are the two insha' Allah and masha' Allah, 'if God wills' and 'what God has willed', which are heard so often in daily speech.

The first refers to the future and expresses man's confidence in God's Will and the realization that nothing can be achieved without His Will. No matter how much we plan we do not know whether tomorrow we shall be here or elsewhere, or whether we shall be in the same state as now, and so we plan and act but fully conscious of the dependence of this action on the Divine Will, that Will which infinitely transcends ours.

As for the masha' Allah it comes at the end of an act and again reminds us that, ultimately, whatever occurs comes from God, and that whatever is realized is not by human effort alone but through His Will.

Through these Qur'anic phrases the life of man, which is scattered in multiplicity, becomes integrated by a thread of 'remembrance' which runs through it.

Summary

The Qur'an is both a source of law to guide the practical life of man and of knowledge which inspires his intellectual endeavors. It is a universe into whose contours 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. As such it is the central theophany of Islam, but one which would never have come to men and never been understood save for him who was chosen as its messenger and commentator to men.

And it is in studying the life, teachings and significance of the Prophet that the full meaning of the message of Islam as contained in the Qur'an can be understood.

Three Question on ALLAH

2009-12-06T11:56:00.000+02:00

I recvd this as a Power point presentation from a friend,i really liked it,so ofcource how can I forget to share with you!

There was a young man who went overseas to study for a quite a long time. When he returned home, he asked his parents to find him a religious scholar or any expert who could answer his 3 Questions. Finally, his parents were able to find a Muslim scholar.

Young Man : Who are you? Can you answer my Questions?

Scholar : I am one of Allah’s (SWT) slaves and Insha Allah (God Willing), I will be able to answer your Questions.

Young Man: Are you sure? A lot of Professors and experts were not able to answer my questions.

Scholar : I will try my best, with the help of Allah (Subhanahu Wata’ala).

Young Man: I have 3 Questions

Question # 1 Does God Exist? If so, show me his shape.

Question # 2 What is Taqdeer (Fate)?

Question # 3 If shaitan (Devil) was created from the fire, why at the end he will be thrown to hell that is also created from fire. It certainly will not hurt him at all, since shaitan & the hell were created from Fire.

Suddenly, the Scholar slapped the young man’s face very hard.

Young man (Felt Pain) : why do you get angry at me?

Scholar : I am not angry. The slap is my answer to your questions.

Young Man : I really don’t understand.

Scholar : How do you feel after I slapped you?

Young Man : Of course, I felt pain

Scholar : So do you believe that pain exists?

Young Man : Yes.

Scholar : Show me the shape of the pain!

Young Man : I cannot.

Scholar : That is my first answer. All of us feel God’s existence without being able to see His shape…Last night, did you dream that you will be
slapped by me?

Young Man : No.

Scholar : Did you ever think that you will get a slap from me today?

Young Man : No.

Scholar : That is Taqdeer (fate) my second answer…my hand that I used to slap you, what is it created from?

Young Man : It is created from flesh.

Scholar : How about your face, what is it created from?

Young Man : Flesh.

Scholar : How do you feel after I slapped you?

Young Man : In pain.

Scholar : That’s it. This is my third answer, even though Shaitan (Devil) and also the hell were created from the fire, if Allah wants, the hell will become a very painful
place for Shaitan.

Names of God

2009-12-06T11:44:00.000+02:00

The people of Christianity have been taught to refer to their deity as "God." If you were to ask one of them: "What is your god's name?," they would respond "God!" (there are some exceptions). They object to Muslims worshipping "Allah," and usually picture "Allah" as some pagan god. Some of them will even go so far as to curse "Allah," not realizing that they are cursing "God."

Now the question becomes: where did the name "God" come from? Did Jesus (pbuh) ever say "God"? Did Moses (pbuh) ever say "God"? No! The Jews and Arabs are both Semitic tribes which descended from one father, Abraham (pbuh). Their languages are quite similar.

The Old Testament tells us that Moses (pbuh) referred to God as "El" or "Elohiym." Jesus (pbuh) too, referred to God using a similar construct. Jesus (pbuh) spoke Aramaic, however, the ancient copies of the Gospel available to us today are mostly written in Greek.

Very little of Jesus' actual words have been preserved to this day. However, we do know from Mark 15:34 that Jesus (pbuh) referred to God as "Eloi." "Eloi" is an Aramaic word which means "My God." It is pronounced as {el-o-ee'}. The Arabs would say the same word as "Elahi," pronounced {el-ah-ee'}. So Muslims refer to God with virtually the exact same word Jesus (pbuh) used.

Muslims are taught that Allah Almighty has more than one hundred names, the most well known among them being "Allah." These names are to be found in many places throughout the Qur'an. They embody the major characteristics of Allah Almighty such as "The Gracious," "The Merciful," "The Majestic," "The Supreme"...etc.. These names are usually considered adjectives, unless they are applied to Allah Himself, in which case they are treated as proper nouns. For instance:

"Allah's are the fairest names. Invoke Him by them. And leave the company of those who blaspheme His names. They will be requited what they do." The noble Qur'an, Al-Aaraf(7):180.

"Say (unto mankind): Supplicate unto Allah, or supplicate unto the 'Rahman' (Compassionate/Merciful/Gracious), unto whichever you supplicate (it is the same). His are the most beautiful names." The noble Qur'an, al-Isra(17):110.

"Allah! There is no god save Him. His are the most beautiful names." The noble Qur'an, Taha(20):8.

"Not equal are the Companions of the Fire and the Companions of the Garden: The companions of the Garden, they are the triumphant. Had We sent down this Qur'an on a mountain verily you would have seen it humble, rent asunder for fear of Allah. Such are the similitudes which We propound to humanity that they may reflect. He is Allah, other than whom there is no other god, He is the 'Knower' of (all things) both the unseen and the seen; He is the 'Gracious' the 'Merciful'. He is Allah, other than whom there is no god, the 'Sovereign' the 'Holy One' the (source of) 'Peace,' the 'Guardian of Faith' the 'Overseer,' the 'Majestic,' the 'Irresistible,' the 'Supreme': Glory be to Allah! (highly exalted is He) above the partners they attribute to Him. He is Allah the 'Creator,' the 'Innovator,' the 'Fashioner'. His are the Most Beautiful Names: Whatever is in the heavens and on earth do glorify Him: and He is the 'Mighty' the 'Wise'." The noble Qur'an, al-Hashir (59):20-24.

A Just But Merciful Law

2009-12-06T11:02:00.000+02:00

Islam, as mentioned above, involves a structured set of laws and acts of worship. Some are more strict and rigid than others. For instance, there can be no excuse whatsoever for worshipping any entity other than Allah alone. Here there is no room for compromise. On the other hand, Islam is designed to also be flexible and lenient.

For instance, if a Muslim is sick and can not fast during the month of Ramadhan without incurring bodily harm to himself, then even though this is one of the five pillars of Islam , he is not mandated to fast. In fact he is encouraged not to fast. The law allows for leniency in this, and most other cases.

Muslims are taught that each good deed is multiplied by Allah Almighty till it becomes the equivalent of anywhere from ten up to seven hundred similar good deeds (sometimes more). An evil deed, however, is either counted as a single evil deed or is forgiven by Allah.

A Muslim is further taught that as long as there is life there is hope. So long as death has not yet overcome him, he can still repent from his evil deeds and, if his intentions are sincere, Allah is willing to forgive all of his past evil deeds no matter if they exceed the drops of water in the ocean.

Islam teaches Muslims that God holds them responsible for their INTENTIONS and not necessarily for their DEEDS. This is revealed by the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in the following saying which was narrated by Umar ibn al-Khattab in Sahih Al-Bukhari:

"The Prophet (pbuh) said, "O people! The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions, and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended. So, whoever emigrated for Allah and His Messenger, then his emigration was for Allah and His Messenger, and whoever emigrated to achieve a worldly benefit or for a woman to marry, then his emigration was for that which he emigrated for".

"The good deed and the evil deed are not alike. Repel the evil deed with one which is better" The noble Qur'an, Fussilat(41):34

"Verily! Allah does not forgive that a partner should be ascribed unto Him. He forgives (all) save that to whom He will. Whoso ascribes partners to Allah, he has indeed invented a tremendous sin." The noble Qur'an, Al-Nissa(4):48.

"Whatever of misfortune strikes you, it is what your right hands have earned. And He forgives much." The noble Qur'an, Al-Shurah(42):30

"And those who, when they do an evil thing or wrong themselves, remember Allah and implore forgiveness for their sins. Who forgives sins save Allah only? and they do not knowingly repeat (the wrong) they did. The reward of such will be forgiveness from their Lord, and Gardens underneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide for ever, a bountiful reward for workers!" The noble Qur'an, A'al-Umran(3):135-136.

"He knows the treachery of the eyes, and that which the chests do hide." The noble Qur'an, Ghafir(40):19.

"He is the One that accepts repentance from His Servants and forgives sins: and He knows all that you do." The noble Qur'an, Al-Shurah(42):25.

"The likeness of those who spend their wealth in Allah's way is as the likeness of a grain which grows seven ears, in every ear a hundred grains. Allah gives manifold increase to whom He will. Allah is All Embracing, All Knowing." The noble Qur'an, al-Bakarah(2):261

"Say: My slaves who have been prodigal to their own hurt! Despair not of the mercy of Allah, Who forgives all sins. Lo! He is the Forgiving, the Merciful. Turn unto Him repentant, and surrender unto Him, before there comes unto you the doom, when you cannot be helped. And follow the better (guidance) of that which is revealed unto you from your Lord, before the doom comes on you suddenly when you know not, Lest any soul should say Alas, my grief that I was unmindful of Allah, and I was indeed among the scoffers! Or should say: if Allah had but guided me I should have been among the dutiful! Or should say, when it sees the doom: Oh, that I had but a second chance that I might be among the righteous! (But now the answer will be): Nay, for My revelations came unto you, but you denied them and were scornful and were among the disbelievers." The noble Qur'an, Al-Zumar(39):53-59.

Abu Hurairah narrated that Allah's messenger (pbuh) said

"When Allah completed the creation, He wrote in His Book which is with Him on His throne: Verily, 'My Mercy has overcome my Anger'." Narrated in Sahih Al-Bukhari.

Abu Hurairah furhter narrated : I heard Allah's messenger (pbuh) saying:

"Allah has divided His Mercy into one hundred parts, and He kept ninety nine parts with Him and sent down one part on the earth, and because of that one single part, His creatures are merciful to each other, so that even the mare lifts up it's hoof away from it's baby animal, lest it should trample it." Narrated in Sahih al-Bukhari.

The Way of Life

2009-12-06T10:53:00.000+02:00

Islam is not the same as some other religions from the point of view that it is not confined to a certain place of worship or a certain act, or acts, of worship. Islam teaches it's followers that every single aspect of their life, from eating, to drinking, to sleeping, and everything in-between can be done in one of two ways: Either a way that pleases God, or one that displeases Him.

Islam is also a social, economic, and political way of life. Every single aspect of human existence is governed by the law of Islam. A Muslim is commanded to respect his elders and to show humility and respect to his parents. He is also commanded to show kindness and mercy to those who are younger or weaker than himself as well as all of God's beasts.

A Muslim is commanded to have nothing whatsoever to do with usury, gambling, or alcohol. A Muslim, however, is not passive and weak. He is commanded that if he sees the laws of God being violated or an injustice being committed, he must stand up for the truth and fight to establish the law of God, defend the oppressed, and establish justice and peace.

The Law

2009-12-06T10:52:00.000+02:00

Islam, like Judaism, is a structured set of laws and commandments. The basis of Islam is the five pillars mentioned previously. Anyone who dies observing the five pillars will enter heaven. Anyone who does not may enter Hell (there are exceptions). However, there are many subtle levels both above and below these. These levels are governed by the law.

Islam teaches us that Muslims will be rewarded in proportion to their good deeds, their restraint from evil deeds, and their faith. In this manner we will have people who will enter different levels of heaven, as well as different levels of hell, in direct proportion to their faith and deeds.

We learn about the laws of Islam from the Qur'an and the Sunnah. The Qur'an is the Holy book of Islam which contains the words of Allah Almighty and the broad guidelines of Islam. The Sunnah, is the traditions of the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) which included both his words and his actions.

The Sunnah usually provides the details for those laws which are drawn out in broad outlines in the Qur'an. Each one of these two sources has a dedicated and very complex science associated with it.

"And We have sent down unto you (O Muhammad) the Reminder (one of the names of the Qur'an), that you may clarify to mankind that which was sent down to them" The noble Qur'an, Al-Nahil(16):44

Al-Bukhari narrated upon the authority of Abu Hurairah, that he said: Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) said:

"Allah said: 'I will declare war against him who shows hostility to a pious worshipper of Mine. And the most beloved things with which My slave draws nearer to Me is that which I have ordained upon him. My slave continues to draw closer to Me through performing 'Nawafil' (supplementary worship) till I love him.

So I become the sense of hearing with which he hears, and the sense of sight with which he sees, and the hand with which he grips, and the leg with which he walks. And if he asks Me, I will give him, and if he asks my protection, I will protect him'"

No Monasticism (monkhood)

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Islam commands Muslims to obey Allah and follow his command. It specifies acts of worship which are acceptable. It encourages Muslims to work and be industrious. It forbids 'monkhood ' and excessive 'spritualization' or 'Zen' and other such practices. A Muslim is commanded not to forbid upon himself that which was made lawful by Allah, nor to introduce new and innovative acts of worship into the religion.

This means that a Muslim should not decide that even though Islam allows marriage, he will forbid it upon himself and remain celibate (he may choose not to marry, but he can not forbid it upon himself). If he wishes to perform extra worship, there are many avenues open to him, such as nightly prayer, charity, abstinence from sin....etc.

Muhammad (pbuh) once gave the example of two men. One was practicing monasticism and excessive worship, totally detaching himself from this worldly life. The other was working for a living and paying for the food and drink that the "monk" was consuming each day. Muhammad (pbuh) told his followers that the man who was making an honest living and supporting the 'monk' was greater in reward in the eyes of Allah.

No 'Religious' Hierarchy

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In Islam, there is no hierarchy of religious leadership such as the people of some other religions may have come to expect. There are no priests, bishops, monks, Popes, ...etc. Muslims define a scholar of Islam as an 'Imam' (not to be confused with the "Imams" of Iran who claim to have boundless supernatural powers and divine attributes). In any given neighborhood, the Imam is the person that a Muslim seeks for religious rulings.

For example, if a Muslim dies and his sons want to distribute his inheritance, they go to the Imam and he presents them with the verses of the Qur'an and the Sunnah which describe the required procedure. This man will also usually give religious lectures to teach the Qur'an and the Sunnah.

The Muslim Imams and scholars have no special divine powers. They cannot forgive sins. They do not receive divine "inspirations." They cannot issue passes to heaven. They do not have knowledge of the unseen. The can not change the law. They are just regular Muslims who have distinguished themselves with their study and their knowledge.

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)

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Muslims are taught that prophets are humans who have been selected by God for a special purpose. They are given miracles to assist them in their message but these miracles are not performed through their own power, but through the power of God. The prophets of God have no divine powers of their own, nor even the power to decide who will go to heaven or to hell. They are merely there to convey the message entrusted to them by God to the best of their ability.

In a similar manner, Muhammad (pbuh) was assisted by God with a number of miracles and entrusted to convey His message to mankind. Muhammad (pbuh) himself, however, was just a regular human being. He could not issue passes to heaven. He could not condemn people to hell. He could not change what was in people's hearts. He could only convey the message and hope that they would believe.

Muhammad (pbuh) lived like any other man or woman of his people. He dressed like they dressed. He ate the same food they ate. He lived in the same manner and in the same sort of houses they did. It would be impossible for someone who did not know him to pick him out of a crowd.

Muhammad (pbuh) taught his followers through example. If he commanded his followers to do something, he would be the first to abide by this command. He never broke his word, he was by far the most charitable man among his people. He was the most God-fearing and the least attached to this life.

He never in his life accepted charity, but worked for a living. He never lied. It was not at all uncommon for him to spend months on end enduring severe hunger never seeing a single cooked meal. He taught his followers to be merciful to their children and respectful to their elders. He commanded them to never taste alcohol, gamble, engage in usury (interest), fornication, envy, deceit, or back-biting.

Muhammad (pbuh) taught that no human being needs any other human being to intercede for him with God. He showed them that God is within the reach of all his creation. He hears and sees all and answers His servant's prayers.

Muhammad (pbuh) further severely cautioned against promoting any of God's creation or groups thereof to higher levels of divine authority and closeness to God than others, or the excessive glorification of any human being. This includes the prophets of God themselves. He taught that the very best of God's servants are those who continuously seek out knowledge and that God sees all that they do.

Muhammad (pbuh) taught his followers to be industrious and to earn an honest living. He taught them that the best Muslims are those who are not overly obsessed with earthly wealth since excessive wealth usually leads to corruption.

However, he also taught that a wealthy person who is not blinded by his wealth is not condemned by God and may even be able to utilize his wealth in acts of worship not available to the poor. In other words, Muhammad (pbuh) taught moderation in all things.

There is much more that could be said about the teachings of Muhammad (pbuh), however, probably one of the most general summaries made by Muhammad (pbuh) in this regard was:

"Righteousness is good conduct, and sin is that which weaves inside your chest and you hate for it to be revealed to mankind."

What Are The Pillars of Islam?

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Islam is built upon five major pillars. A Muslim is taught that anyone who dies observing these five basic pillars will enter heaven. As mentioned, they are:

(1) To bear witness that there is no entity worthy of worship except Allah(God) alone, and that Muhammad (pbuh) was His messenger. This establishes obedience to God Almighty alone.

(2) To perform five prescribed prayers to God every day according to a specific prescribed method and at specific prescribed times. This continually reminds us to bear God in mind in all actions, either before or after any given prayer.

(3) To pay two and a half percent (2.5%) of ones wealth to charity every year if their savings exceed a certain minimum level which is considered above the poverty level. (This is the basic concept, the actual calculation is a little more complex).

(4) To fast the month of Ramadhan (from the Islamic Lunar calendar) every year from sun rise until sunset. This involves not eating, drinking, or having marital relations, from sun rise until sun set.

(5) To perform a pilgrimage to Makkah (in the Arabian Peninsula) once in a Muslim's lifetime if it is financially possible and their health permits. During this period, Muslims come from all over the world to join together for six days in a prescribed set of acts of worship. All Muslim men are mandated to wear the same garment which was designed to be very plain, simple, and cheap to obtain.

Mu'ad ibn Jabal said: I said to Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him): Inform me about an act which would entitle me to enter into Paradise, and distance me from the Hell-Fire. He (the Prophet) said:

"You have asked me about a matter [which ostensibly appears to be] difficult but it is easy for those for whom Allah, the Exalted, has made it easy. Worship Allah and do not associate anything with him, establish prayer, pay the Zakat, observe the fast of Ramadhan and perform Hajjto the House (Ka'aba)." (Narrated by Ahmed, al-Tirmathy, and ibn Majah)

Levels of Islam

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Islam consists of three levels, each building upon the lower ones. They are:

1) Islam:

Testify that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah
Establish the daily prayers
Pay Zakat (Obligatory charity due the poor)
Observe the fast of Ramadan
Perform pilgrimage to the Ka'aba (in Makkah ) once in your life if you are able

2) Faith (Iman):

To believe in Allah
To believe in His angels
To believe in His Books (Scriptures)
To believe in His Messengers
To believe in the Day of Judgment
To believe in the Divine Decree (Divine fate) whether good or evil

3) Excellence/Goodness (Ihsan )

To worship Allah (God) as if you see Him, for if you can not see Him, He assuredly sees you.

In Sahih Muslim, Abdullah ibn Umar ibn al-Khattab narrated:

"My father, Umar ibn al-Khattab, told me: One day we were sitting in the company of Allah's Apostle (pbuh) when there appeared before us a man dressed in pure white clothes, his hair was extraordinarily black. There were no signs of travel on him, but none among us recognized him.

This man came and sat beside the Apostle (pbuh) kneeling before him and placing his palms on his thighs. He then said: Muhammad, inform me about al-Islam.

The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said: Islam implies that you testify that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah, and you establish prayer, pay Zakat, observe the fast of Ramadan, and perform pilgrimage to the (House) if you are solvent enough (to bear the expense of) the journey.

He (the inquirer) said: You have told the truth.

He (Umar ibn al-Khattab) said: It amazed us that he would put the question and then he would himself verify the truth.

He (the inquirer) said: Inform me about Iman (faith). He (the Holy Prophet) replied: That you affirm your faith in Allah, in His angels, in His Books, in His Apostles, in the Day of Judgment, and you affirm your faith in the Divine Decree, either good and evil.

He (the inquirer) said: You have told the truth. He (the inquirer) again said: Inform me about al-Ihsan (performance of good deeds).

He (the Holy Prophet) said: That you worship Allah as if you are seeing Him, for though you don't see Him, He, verily, sees you. He (the inquirer) again said: Inform me about the hour (of the judgment).

He (the Holy Prophet) remarked: The one who is asked knows no more than the one who is inquiring (about it).

He (the inquirer) said: Tell me some of its indications.

He (the Holy Prophet) said: That the slave-girl will give birth to her mistress and master, and that you will find barefooted, destitute goat-herders vying with one another in the construction of magnificent buildings.

He (the narrator, Umar ibn al-Khattab) said: Then he (the inquirer) went on his way but I stayed with the messenger of Allah for a long while. The prophet Muhammad then, said to me: Umar, do you know who this inquirer was? I replied: Allah and His Apostle know best.

He (the Holy Prophet) remarked: He was Gabriel (the angel). He came to you in order to instruct you in your religion."

What Is The Basic Concept of Islam?

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Islam teaches us that this life is a life of worship. We are placed on this earth in order to worship Allah and obey His command. During this earthly life we are subjected to a series of trials. We have the option of enduring these trials and conforming to certain laws, and our reward will be great in the next life, or we may decline to endure these trials and choose to not conform to the law, then we will be made to regret it in the next life.

Each person will be solely and completely responsible for their own final reward. We are also told that God has designed these laws to make this life a better, safer, and more tolerable one for us. If we elect to conform to them then we will see the result in this life even before moving on to the next.

We are told that the earthly life is a life of faith and work, and the next life is one of reward and no work. We have been placed on this earth to worship God, fast, pray, be industrious, good, kind, respectful, and a source of uprightness and morality. We are told that God has no need of our worship. Our worship can not increase the kingdom of God nor add to His power, however, it is in our best interests both in this life and the next that we do.

Unlike some other religions which claim that God entered in a covenant with a certain group of people and that this group is genetically better than all other human beings, or closer to God, Islam on the other hand teaches that no color, race, tribe, or lineage is better than any other. Islam teaches that all humans are equal in the sight of Allah and that the only thing that can distinguish them in His sight is their piety and worship.

"O humankind! Verily! We have created you from a male and female, and have made you nations and tribes that you may know one another. Verily! the noblest among you in the sight of Allah is the most God-fearing. Verily! Allah is The Knower, The Aware." The noble Qur'an, Al-Hujrat(49):13.

In the name of Allah the most Gracious the most Merciful

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"Did you think that We had created you in play, and that you would not be returned unto Us?" The noble Qur'an, Al-Muminoon(23):115.

What Does "Islam" Mean ?

The word "Islam" itself means "Submission to Allah." The religion of Islam is not named after a person as in the case of "Christianity" which was named after Jesus Christ, "Buddhism" after Gutama Buddha , "Marxism" after Karl Marx, and "Confucianism" after Confucius.

Similarly, Islam is not named after a tribe like "Judaism" after the tribe of Judah and "Hinduism" after the Hindus. The Arabic word "Islam" means the submission or surrender of one's will to the will of the only true god worthy of worship, "Allah" (known as God "the Father" in Christianity).

Anyone who does indeed submit to the will of Allah as required by Islam is termed a "Muslim," which means one who has submitted to the will of Allah. Many people in the West have developed the sad misinformed trend of calling Islam "Muhammadenism" and it's followers "Muhammadins." This is a totally foreign word to Muslims and unrecognized by them. No Muslim has ever called his religion "Muhammadenism" or called himself a "Muhammadin."