The Islamic Tradition Prohibits Revolt Even Against Despotic States

By Grace Mubashir, New Age Islam 13 December 2023 Radical Preachers Have Used Erroneous Islamic Political Ideas To Rise Against The Government And Sow The Seeds Of Anarchy. Still, Islamic Organizations And Jihadi Preachers Often Exhort The People To Revolt Against The Ruling Powers. Al Qaeda, Hizbul Mujahedeen, ISIS And Others Have Used The Same Call. This Article Refutes Such Political Ideas From The Perspective Of Both Classical And Modern Scholars. Main Points: 1. Classical scholars prohibited revolts against rulers if they caused anarchy and destruction 2. The crux of the debate is human rights and civil liberties are to be considered not the religiosity of rulers 3. The modern Jihadi organizations have exploited ambiguities in the political ideas of Islam to support their nefarious, debilitating acts ------ In Classical Islamic Discourses Imamat is one of the integral parts of Deen. Many Qur'anic verses and hadiths shed light on this. Imam Taftasani (RA) says: It is established by Ijma'in that the appointment of an Imam is obligatory. Imam Ghazali (RA) says: “Deen and Dunya are complementary. The Deen is the foundation and the Sultan is its guardian….There is no dispute that the Imamate is a Shariah obligation of the Muslims.” However, it is never one of the foundations of Iman/Aqeedah (الصول) like the belief in Allah and His Prophet but is of the optional matters (الفروع). Naturally, there can be differences of opinion and different positions on them. It is the accepted position of the Sunnism that such differences of opinion are never grounds for accusation of apostasy (تكفير). Imamat is mainly classified by scholars into three categories:- 1. A Righteous Muslim Ruler 2. A Violent Muslim Ruler 3. A Kafir/ Apostate Ruler Scholars have taken different positions on each of the categories mentioned above. They are briefly explained below: 1) A Righteous Muslim Ruler Obedience to a just Muslim ruler is mandatory in Islamic precepts. Allah says: “O you who believe, obey Allah. Obey the Messenger of God and those who are in charge of you. If there is a dispute between you about anything, refer it to Allah and His Messenger. This is best if you believe in Allah and the Last Day. This is also the best for better results.”(Sura Nisa, 59). The Prophet (PBUH) said: “Whoever obeys me, he obeys Allah. Whoever disobeys me, he disobeys Allah. Whoever obeys the Ameer (leader) obeys me. If anyone defies the Amir, he defies me.” (Al-Bukhari 2956) It is haram to make a revolt against them. If someone does so, he is not a kafir but he is wrong, and in Fiqh, they are addressed by the term 'باغي' (aggressor). That is, fighting against rulers who are on the side of injustice and falsehood does not fall within the scope of بغي, but one is considered a 'باغي' when he fights against the ruler while he is righteous and lawful. Fighting the 'baghi' is permissible. But this does not mean that one should remain silent if one finds fault with the rulers. It is the Ummah's responsibility to correct them, advise them with goodness and pray for them. 2) Aggressive Muslim Ruler Enjoining good and forbidding evil is one of the primary tasks of the Muslim Ummah. Allah says: “You have become the best community raised for mankind. You enjoin good, forbid evil, and believe in Allah”(Alu Imran, 115). This verse evokes that the socio-political system of Islam is not caliph-centred, but its primary point is the ummah. Imam al-Haramaini (ra) says: “Muslims are the addressees of the law. The Imam is only one of the common people when it comes to following the law. But he is the appointed authority to implement the law". Also, Owamir Anjum explains the concept of "Umma-centred Khilafah" (community-centred view) in his book 'Politics, Law, and Community'. The other side of it is that it is the responsibility of the Umma to prevent violence from rulers. That is why the addresses 'people' and 'umma' came into the hadiths about preventing violence. For example, the Prophet (PBUH) says: "If the people see the wrongdoer and then do not stop him, Allah will spread his punishment among them." (14) "Allah will not purify a community that does not buy the rights of the weak from the strong." (Ibn Maja, 2426) The basic principle is that if the ruler is violent and illegitimate, he should be deposed and replaced by a righteous person. It was because of their understanding of this basic concept that early Islamic greats, including Companions such as Husayn ibn Ali and Abdullah ibn Zubair (RA), led and supported revolutionary efforts. Historical records show that scholars such as Imam Abu Hanifa (RA) and Imam Malik (RA) supported anti-government struggles. According to Imam Shafi'i (RA) a ruler is deposed by violence and fornication (الفسق). In the view of Ibn Hajar Al Asqalani, “a military operation should be conducted against the exploitative ruler according to the line of the Salaf. However, the Salaf abandoned this position realizing that it would lead to great difficulties.” If the ruler is an aggressor, it is obligatory for the Ummah to reach one of two decisions: either expel him or straighten him out. However, major changes are visible from the position of the Salaf to the position of the later scholars. Imam Nasafi says: Violence and adultery do not depose a ruler. Imam Tahawi opines that military action against rulers is not to be violent, even if he is violent. Imam Ibn Taymiyyah (RA) explains that the position of Ahlu Sunnah is that whether the ruler is good or immoral, it is obligatory to follow him, whether it is difficult or easy. Below are the three important opinions of the respected Imams of the Ahlussunna tradition. Therefore, it is not only possible to consider these as isolated opinions, but this proves that most of the later scholars are of this position. Some, including Nawawi Imam (RA), are of the opinion that there is ijma (consensus) on the subject.(23) The change of opinion from resistance to adherence Why did later scholars come to accept the basic idea of losing power when the ruler is an aggressor and an adulterer? Why did the early Salaf, including the Companions, carry out rebellious military movements (الخورة), but later scholars ruled that it was forbidden? Orientalists have found the answer to this by saying that early Muslim scholars were idealists, but later scholars became realists and quietists, adapting to their contemporary circumstances. H. A. In R. Gibb's view, “The constant state rebellions and civil wars that arose in the first two centuries of Muslim history, the insecurity of the Khawarij and the strife caused by nepotism all led scholars to the idea of total subjugation to the state, whether the rule was just or not. Scholars not only accepted those who took power through coups (المتحبل), but also made obedience to them a legitimate and legally binding obligation. With that, fighting against the state became the most heinous crime in Muslim thought. In short, the Muslim scholars who were idealists in the early days became realists after taking into account the existing historical realities. In this way, scholars fully accepted the state and adopted a quietist approach that rejected even the struggle and struggles against the aggressive ruler. Gibb describes them as "idealists" because many great people like Husayn bin Ali, Abdullah bin Zubair, Ibn Ashas, Nafsuzakiyy (ra) made revolutionary efforts for the restoration of the Shariah caliphate in the early days. Imam Gazali As Quietist Scholar According to Khalid Abu Fadl, ignorance of the linguistic practice of the fuqaha led them to such a decision. Fiqh, like all subjects, has its language and practices. Ignorance of them leads to great misunderstandings and counter-knowledge. For example, the Orientalists present Imam Ghazali as one of the leading Quietist scholars. They also quote some of his quotes to support their argument. Let's check what was Imam Ghazali's position on this matter. Imam Ghazali says: “A violent ruler should be prevented from power. His removal is mandatory. Indeed, he is not a ruler". He continues: "If an aggressive ruler is assisted by authority and is difficult to remove, and if the appointment of another leads to fitnah, obedience to him is obligatory". On the face of it, what Imam Ghazali said may seem contradictory, but they both refer to two meanings. In the first, he states the basic Sharia principle and in the second he refers to the imperatives of his time. How can a faqih become a quietist if he believes that violence and immorality can cause one to be deposed from the ruling power but understands the circumstances of his time and takes the position that temporary acceptance of the state is better than fighting against it. Moreover, Imam Ibn al-Qayyim says that a “Faqih” is one who simultaneously considers the Islamic precepts (فقه الواجب) and the circumstances (فقه الوقع) in which he exists. This is the methodology that the Fuqahas have always adopted. While the early Salafs considered this methodology and supported the government's insurgent actions, the later ones discouraged it. But how can one group be idealists and the other group realists when both groups have come to different positions regarding the concept (Islamic precepts) and reality (existing time situation)? As mentioned earlier, ignorance of the workings and idioms of fiqh is seen here as well. Alternatively, the European epistemological discourse understands the Muslim scholarly tradition through terms such as 'quietist-activist' and 'idealist-realist'. However, the reality is that Muslim scholarly discourse is not limited to these facts. A number of reasons have been given for the change of attitude among Muslim scholars in their approach to the state. Below are some of the important ones:- Not only was it more unsuccessful than any previous government rebellion in Islamic history, but its outcome was tragic. The only exceptions to this are some revolutionary attempts like the Abbasid Revolution. As a result of this, there was great disappointment and concern among the distinguished scholars in the Muslim Umma. This is why the scholars called such struggles with the intention of re-establishing Islamic values as fitna. When the government changed according to the whim of the king instead of Islamic values, they were forced to come to one of two decisions - either accept the existing system of government to preserve the unity and cohesion of the Ummah, or fight against it in preference to the Islamic system of government. The unity and coexistence of the Ummah often became the first priority of the Fuqaha. Afraid of creating insecurity in the country, they viewed obedience to the state as a contextual imperative. That fear and sense of despair sometimes made them stay away from politics. 2. It is clear from Islamic political history and the positions of scholars of that time that Fiqhul Maqasid (the inner spirit and struggle of Sharia) and Fiqhul Ma'alat (the branch of the study of the consequences of deeds) are the basis of fighting against a violent regime/ruler without Sharia validity in practice and proceeding according to him. As mentioned above, the position of Imam Tawahawi is that even if the ruler is unjust and exploitative, he will not be deposed. The commentators explain that he took such a position based on the Fiqh principle of taking the relatively light one (ارتكاب اخف عردين) in order to avoid the more serious of the evils, as this can lead to great trouble and damage. Shaykh ul Islam Ibn Taymiyyah (RA) says: “When benefits and harms clash, the general principle is that the lesser of them should prevail over the greater. 3. The Fuqaha have theorized that it is not enough to have the ability to eradicate political evil but to achieve Sharia Maslahat (good) through it and not lead it to great Mafsadat (evil). Imam Ibn Taymiyyah says: “Sharia capacity for action (الاستطاعة الشرعية) does not mean mere capacity for action. Rather, the lawgiver considers its consequences. Even if a deed can be done, it is not considered in the Sharia if it leads to more mischief." In other words, the scholars have formed a position on the subject as in all subjects by considering Fiqhul Maqasid and Fiqhul Ma'alat. 4. Obligation makes the forbidden permissible (التعرفات تبيح المحزورة) is one of the recognized principles of Fiqh. Scholars (considering Fiqhul Maqasid and Fiqhul Ma'alat) who recognized that the prevailing system of governance, however un-Islamic, would lead to great calamities if not accepted, accepted it as a contextual concession (permission). That is why Imam Ghazali (RA) likened obeying a ruler who does not have Sharia to eating a corpse under duress. Imam Ibn Taymiyyah says: Based on this (the jurisprudential principle that compulsion makes the forbidden permissible) it is sometimes permissible to deviate from the Sunnah of the Khulafau Rashids. It is as if it is permissible to abandon some Sharia duties and to do some Haram. It is because they are unable to observe some of their Sunnas, or under duress, that harms and inconveniences should be minimized in the performance of duties related to the state.” However, citing Imam Ibn Hajar Asqalani, Mukhtar Sanqeeti asserts that when the fuqahas used the contextual exemption for a long time, the said exemption was misunderstood as being in the position of the basic law (العزيمة). The result of this is that it reached the level of accepting the administrative system no matter how unIslamic it may be. It's like eating a corpse even if the compelling situation goes away. It is slowly being forgotten that the source and fundamental source of fitnah is tyranny and political violence. Regarding the technical meaning of fitnah in the Qur'an, Imam Abu Zahra says: "It is the harm that prevents a believer from believing or continuing in what he is convinced is true." It is not fitna for those who are naturally prone to violence to stop the aggressor. It is not fitna to fight and revolt against the ruler killing them, but to prevent fitna. 3) Kafir/Apostate Ruler If a ruler becomes a Kafir/Murtad, it is not permissible to obey him. Narrated Junadatubn Abi Umayyah: “We went to Ubadatubnuswamit when he was ill. Said to him: 'May Allah bless you. Tell us a hadith that you heard from the Prophet, which Allah will make useful.' Then he said: 'The Prophet called us and we pledged allegiance to the Prophet. This is the covenant that He then took from us: the pledge that we will listen to them and obey them when they are willing and unwilling, difficult and easy, and when they (the ruler) act selfishly and that we will not oppose those who wield it in matters of authority and leadership. Then the Prophet added; "Unless you see in them a severe disbelief (Kufr) established with you by a clear proof from Allah".(Bukhari, 7055) Elaborating on this hadith, Imam Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani says: “If a ruler deviates as a kafir, it is not permissible to obey him. Moreover, those who are able should wage Jihad against him.” However, Fiqh al-Maqasid and Fiqh al-Ma’alat must be considered even when rebelling against him. Imam Aluddin al-Eji says: ” When a ruler is forced to be removed. But if it leads to fitnah, a relatively mild evil (أخف العربين) should be accepted”. So far, it has been explained how scholars have viewed the struggle against the state in the Islamic tradition. It could be clearly explained that classical scholars have refuted that revolt against the rulers is prohibited as long as they protect human rights. The crux of the debate is human rights and civil liberties are to be considered not the religiosity of rulers. If anarchy trails political upheavals it is prohibited to revolt against rulers. Seeking a redressal mechanism is the solution suggested by classical scholars. The modern Jihadi organizations have exploited ambiguities in the political ideas of Islam to support their nefarious, debilitating acts. ----- A regular columnist for NewAgeIslam.com, Mubashir V.P is a PhD scholar in Islamic Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia and freelance journalist. URL: https://newageislam.com/debating-islam/islamic-tradition-revolt-despotic-states/d/131306 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

Why The Issue Of Marital Rape Is So Serious And Sensitive

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 13 December 2023 "Biwi Apne Shauhar Ki Shahwat-Parasti Ka Saamaan Nahin Hai Ke Us Ka Khasam Use Kumhaar Ki Mitti Ki Maanind Raunde." (Wife is not someone whom her man will knead like a potter's earth for his lasciviousness) Late Fahmida Riaz, Pakistan Poet, Writer And Human Rights Activist "Wife's relegation to a mere sex object is a universal phenomenon prevalent in all societies and communities all over the world." Asma Jahangir In Conversation With Germaine Greer, Melbourne, 1999 "Mard Ne Aurat Ke Vajood Ko Rasoi Se Bistar Tak Mahdood Kar Ke Rakh Diya...." (Man limited a woman's role from kitchen to bed). A Female Character In A Story Written By Ismat Chughtai 'Rape has many a hue and shade One also finds it on a marital bed' Anon Observing that marital rape cannot be considered an offence if the wife is above 18 years of age, the Allahabad high court acquitted a person accused of committing an "unnatural offence" against his wife. "Protection of a person from marital rape continues in cases where his wife is of 18 years of age or more than that," the court said, adding that marital rape has not been criminalised in the country as yet. It sounds oxymoronic because within the purview of marriage, even the thought of rape doesn't arise because it's taken for granted that one's wife is an eternal sex slave. If the English philosopher and Nobel laureate in literature Bertrand Russell termed marriage as a 'legalised prostitution', he wasn't wide off the mark or exaggerating. Marital rape is an issue that has never been given that much importance and weightage. But that doesn't mean that it never existed in the human psyche. Vatsyayan, the high priest of sex, wrote in Kamsutra: 'Ritumati Bharya Chaiv Kadapi Na Maithunaam Asti. Iti Sambhogam Dhrashnaam Parihante' (Husband should never try to have sex with his menstruating wife. And if he does, it's tantamount to ravaging her). The guru of sex further says in the chapter 'Praak-Kreeda,' VII, that 'There're days when a woman (read wife) doesn't feel like indulging in love-making and having intercourse. Husband must refrain from having sex with her because such sex is 'forceful union'.' In other words or modern parlance, it's rape. A few years ago, a newspaper from Punjab reported that a bride left her husband in a huff when he tried to have unnatural sex with her on the very first night of conjugal intimacy. She luckily got divorce because she had the gumption to leave a rapist husband, but there're many wives who have to suffer silently and kow-tow to their husbands' never ending desires for sex at any time and occasion. IPC empowers women to file a case against husbands, who rape them or demand unnatural sex, e.g. sodomy, bondage or blind sex, from them. But hardly any woman files a case. It's time women protested and dragged such Satyr husbands to courts and taught them a lesson. Here, one social aspect does arise. In India, women are taught to be submissive to their husbands and it's hammered into their consciousness that whatever husbands do cannot be questioned. He's not just a 'Pati' (husband) but also 'Parmeshwar' (god). Wife's not supposed to question her husband's unreasonable demands for sex. She's required to be at his beck and call all the time. The problem is that this servile mentality is perpetuated by women themselves. Long ago, when Anil Dharker was the editor of Debonair, there was an account of an educated Gujarati girl, who wrote that when she told her mother that her husband wanted sex every night and she was unwilling to satisfy him at the drop of a hat, her mother told her with a sense of resignation and helplessness that it was 'Patni-Dharm' (duty of wife) because she too had to resign to her fate because her husband, the girl's father, would have sex with her whenever he wanted. Calcutta University's ' Dastidar survey,' 1998 categorically states that many men egg their wives on to have menage-a'trois (troilism or threesome), group sex and orgies. Isn't this debauchery a kind of marital rape because contrary to the general tenor, many a time, women aren't willing to experiment with other men other than their husbands? But they've to do it because it's what their kinky husbands want. And the very same husbands later resent when wives start taking interest in other partner/s! It's a veritable Catch-22 situation for women, who've to tolerate their husbands' sexual vagaries and whims. Mind you, these things often go unnoticed. As I've stated in the beginning, the sexual psyche of ancient India wasn't that skewed or lopsided as we find it today. Sage Yagyavalkaya sheltered the queen of Avantipur, when she left the palace because of her 'rapist husband'. Pre-Buddhist Ashok's first wife Nishidha left him because the emperor Ashok was an erotomaniac (refer to Dr Ramdhari Singh Dinkar's 'Sanskriti Ke Chaar Adhyay'). The late Professor and scholar of ancient History Dr Muhammad Amin conceded in one of his lectures that Muslim and English presence on the sub-continent for over a millennium, changed the sexual perceptions and undermined women of the sub-continent. In Islam, wife's a sex slave and she has to obey in bed what her husband orders. In other words, husband is the master in bedroom. A Pakistani Muslim woman wrote a few years ago, "Muslim wives are seen as sex objects to the extent that if their husbands want sex when the woman is busy looking after her child or cooking a meal for him, she has to drop everything and make herself available. There’re so many scholars saying how Islam came to liberate women and humanize them and give them high status, but not in a martial relationship. And if the wife refuses because her child is crying or the food could be burnt to ashes, the angels will curse her and the husband can threaten to divorce and marry another woman if he is not satisfied at that very moment." With this attitude came Victorian morality, that demanded that women ought not to have a say in bed. The Indian collective psyche was destroyed by the Muslims and English (I mean, English race). The erstwhile courageous women, who resisted their husbands' (violent) amorous advances became meek and timid and began to 'take their husbands' blows lying down' (literally, metaphorically and euphemistically). So, the immediate need is criminalization of marital rape under the Indian Penal Code. Mere declaration of a conduct as an offence is not enough. The real objective of criminalizing marital rape can only be achieved if the society challenges the prevailing myth that rape by spouse is not significant. Something more is required to be done for sensitizing the judiciary and police. Marital rape has to be regarded as sexual assault and Indian society cannot continue to tread on women in the guise of promoting social cohesion and protecting the sanctity of marriage (Courtesy, Criminalization of Marital Rape in India by Sumati Dhingra). ----- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/marital-rape-sensitive/d/131305 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

A Short History of Muslim-Jewish Harmonious Co-Existence: Negation of Islamic Anti-Semitism

By T.O. Shanavas, New Age Islam 12 December 2023 In the current portrayal within Western media, there’s a common belief that Muslims harbour intolerance towards Jews and other faiths. This myth originated from natives of some Western historians after Israel was establishment as nation. An example of such fabricated history is in the web site of the largest American Jewish organization (Anti-Defamation League). It states: “When Jews began arriving in Palestine en masse in the late 19th century, the land had an Arab presence. The number of Arabs in Palestine at the time and questions surrounding when many of the Arabs came to the land remain the subject of dispute among historians.” (REF: https://www.adl.org/resources/backgrounder/israel-arab-conflicts-creation-state-israel). Dismissing ADL’s propaganda of a minimal Arab presence is necessary, especially concerning Jerusalem and its surrounding areas—a place steeped in history and religious significance, making it among the most hotly contested religious centers in history. It is troubling for the ADL to inaccurately downplay the significant Arab demographics in this revered and contested region. When considering global population growth—rising from 2 billion in 1940 to 10 billion in 2024—a fivefold increase, the scale becomes clearer. With around 10 million Palestinian refugees today, a proportional estimation suggests that the Arab population in 1940 could have been around 2 million. These figures emphasize the potential magnitude of the Arab population before the creation of Israel and accurately portray historical demographics. The motivations behind this skewed history might be twofold: to mask past atrocities against Jews in the Western world and to validate our role in the creation of Israel, resulting in the expulsion of Palestinians from their homeland and to whitewash human rights violations by Israel. Regrettably, I find myself agreeing that the contemporary Muslim world exhibits a disturbing level of animosity towards Jews, a stark contrast to the practices of the Prophet and his early followers in Islamic history. This hostility doesn’t align with the core principles of Islam. Had this widespread hostility between Jews and Muslims originated from Islam itself, history would have witnessed the persecution and eradication of Jews and Christians from the Muslim world. In reality, Jews migrated to the Middle East from the West to escape European persecution and anti-Semitism, indicating a more complex dynamic than religious teachings fostering animosity. An examination of historical records illuminates the amicable relationships and goodwill that historically existed between Muslims and people of various faiths. This scrutiny discredits the narrative of inherent animosity between Muslims and Jews before the establishment of Israel. A comparative study of the historical events surrounding both the Crusader and Muslim invasions of Palestine reveals significant insights into the treatment of the Palestinian people. The observations of American historian and scientist John William Draper (1811-1882) are particularly illuminating: “[In] the capture of Jerusalem [by Crusaders], the brains of young children were dashed out against the wall; infants were thrown over the battlements; every women that could be seized was violated; men were roasted at fires; some were ripped open, to see if they had swallowed gold; the Jews were driven into their synagogue, and there burnt; a massacre of nearly 70,000 persons took place; and the pope’s legate was seen ‘partaking in the triumph.’ ” [REF: John W. Draper: “History of Intellectual Development of Europe.”1876. Vol.II. Page 23]. Draper then proceeds to describe the Muslim invasion and the arrival of Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab in the following manner: “When Calif Omar took Jerusalem, A.D. 637, he rode into the city by the side of the Patriarch Sophronius, conversing with him on its antiquities. At the hour of prayer , he declined to perform the devotions in the Church of Resurrection, in which he chanced to be, but prayed on the steps of the Church of Constantine; ‘for ‘said he to the patriarch, ‘had I done so, the Muselman in a future age would have infringed the treaty, under colour of imitating my example.’” [REF: John W Draper The Intellectual Development of Europe. 1876. Vol 1. page 23.) The American philosopher and historian Will Durant (1885-1981) provides a comprehensive overview of the lives of non-Muslims under Muslim rule: “To these Dhimmi-Christian, Zoroastrians, Sabaeans, Jews-the Umayyad caliphate offered a degree of tolerance hardly equalled in contemporary Christian lands. They were allowed free practice of their faiths, and the retention of their churches, on condition that they wear honey-coloured dress, and pay poll tax of from one to four dinars ($4.75 to 19.00) per year according to their income. This tax fell only upon non-Moslems capable of military service; it was not levied upon monks, women, adolescents, slaves, the old, crippled, blind, or very poor. In return the Dhimmi were excused (or excluded) from military service, were exempt from the two and a half percent tax for community charity, and received the protection of the government…Omar himself continued in Egypt the allowances formally made to the Christian churches by the Byzantine government. The Jews of the Near East had welcomed the Arabs as liberators. They suffered now diverse disabilities and occasional persecutions; but they stood on equal terms with Christians, were free once more to live and worship in Jerusalem, and prospered under Islam in Asia, Egypt, and Spain as never under Christian rule…Christians of western Asia usually practiced their religion unhindered; Syria remained predominantly Christian until third Muslim century; in the rein of Mamun (813-33) we hear of 11,000 Christian churches in Islam-as well as hundreds of synagogues and fire temples. Christian festivals were freely and openly celebrated; Christian pilgrims came in safety to visit Christian shrines in Palestine…Christian heretics persecuted by the patriarchs of Constantinople, Jerusalem, Alexandria, or Antioch were free and safe under a Moslem rule…In the ninth century the Moslem governor of Antioch appointed a special guard to keep Christian sects from massacring one another in church. Monasteries and nunneries flourished under the skeptical Umayyads…The Mohammedan administrative bureaucracy had hundreds of Christian employees…The Christians of the east in general regarded Islamic rule as lesser evil than of the Byzantine government and church. Despite or because of this policy of tolerance in early Islam, the new faith won over to itself in time most Christians, nearly all the Zoroastrians and pagans, and many of the Jews of Asia, Egypt, and North Africa…Where Hellenism, after a thousand years of mastery, had failed to take root, and Roman arms had left the native gods unconquered, and Byzantine orthodoxy had raised rebellious heresies, Mohammedanism had secured, almost without proselytism, not only belief and worship, but a tenacious fidelity that quite forgot the superseded gods.” [REF: Will Durant: “The Story of Civilization”. New York.1950. page 218] Before the spread of Islam from Arabia to Spain in the sixth century, Jewish communities primarily focused on agriculture and manual labor. However, with the ascent of Islam, Jews transitioned into roles as merchants, artisans, physicians, and scientists within the Muslim empire of the Prophet Muhammad and his early followers. This shift in the Jewish way of life during this period highlights that the early form of Islam was not the fanatical, chauvinistic, or ethnocentric cult that is sometimes portrayed in today's contemporary Muslim world. Historical records indicate that Muslims played a crucial role in safeguarding Jews from European persecution. Notably, in response to the Alhambra Decree expelling Jews from Spain by July 31, 1492, Sultan Bayezid dispatched the Ottoman navy, led by Kemal Reis, to Spain to offer refuge to the expelled Jewish population. Here are few Jewish Historian, S.H.Goiten states: “The Jews took their full share in this great Middle-eastern mercantile civilization [Islamic civilization], in particular from tenth to thirteenth centuries; and it was at that time and in that part of the world that Judaism itself received its final shape.” [REF: “A Mediterranean Society.” By S.H. Goiten. London: Cambridge University Press, 1967, Pages. 6-7]. Other historians repeat the same story. American historian philosopher, Will Durant, agrees with S.H.Goiten: “Saadia ben Joseph al-Fayyumi …grew up in Egypt…Saadia took a leaf or two from Moslem theologians, and followed their methods of exposition, even, now and then, the details of their argument. In turn his work permeated the Jewish world, and influenced Maimonides. ‘Were it not for Saadia,’ said ben Maimon, ‘the Torah would almost have disappeared.’” [Ref: “The Story of Civilization” by Will Durant. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1950, Vol. 4. Pages.367-368). The earliest Talmud commentaries were written by Rabbi Sa'adiah ben Yosef Gaon (c. 800 - 1000, CE) in Babylonia under the rule of Abasid caliphate. Heinrich Graetz, the leading 19th century Jewish historian, states: “Wearied with contemplating the miserable plight of the Jews in their ancient home and in the countries of Europe, and fatigued by the constant sight of fanatical oppression, the eyes of the observer rest with gladness upon their situation in the Arabian Peninsula. Here the sons of the Judah were free to raise their heads, and did not need to look about them with fear and humiliation, lest the ecclesiastical wrath be discharged upon them, or the secular power overwhelm them. Here they were not shut out from the paths of honour, nor excluded from the privileges of the state, but, untrammelled, were allowed to develop their powers in the midst of free, simple and talented people, to show their courage, to compete for the gifts of fame, and with practiced hand to measure swords with their antagonism.” [Ref: A History of Jews” by Heinrich Graetz (New York 1894) page p. 3: 236.] The Christian Patriarch of Jerusalem insisted with Caliph Omar to include a clause in the edict (see the edict above) preventing Jews living with Christians in Jerusalem . However, later Caliph Omar realized the injustice of this provision and invited Jews to live in Jerusalem. Karen Armstrong documents this: “Umar [the brother-in-law of Prophet Muhammad] invited seventy Jewish families from Tiberias to settle in Jerusalem…They were also allowed to build a synagogue—known as the ‘Cave’ near Herod’s western supporting wall…Muslims had not only liberated them [Jews] from the oppression of Byzantium but had also given Jews rights of permanent residence in their Holy City…Towards the end of the seventh century, a Hebrew poem hailed the Arabs as the precursors of the Messiah.” [REF: Jerusalem by Karen Armstrong. page.233] American historian Philosopher Will Duran repeats the story: “A rapid growth of Palestinian Jewelry followed the capture of Jerusalem by Saladin in 1187; Saladin’s brother, the Sultan Al-Adil, welcomed the 300 Rabbis who in 1211 fled from England and France…Despite conversion and occasional persecution, Jews remained numerous in Moslem Syria, Babylonia (Iraq) and Persia, and developed a vigorous economic and cultural life.” (REF: Story of Civilization by Will Durant. Age of Faith. Page 366). Jewish Historian, Max I. Dimont states: “The image of modern man holds of the Jew in the Islamic Age in no way corresponds to reality.” (REF: “Jews, God and History.” by Max I.Dimont. New York.1962. Page 193) “The improbable but true tale of a camel driver’s establishment of a world empire in the name Allah, wherein the Jews rose to their Golden Age of creativity, only to be plunged into a Dark Age with the eclipse of the Crescent and the ascent of the cross.” (Ref: “Jews, God and History.” by Max I.Dimont. New York.1962. Page 183). “Span of Jewish Golden Age in the Mohammedan civilization corresponded to the life span of the Islamic Empire itself.” (Ref: “Jews, God and History.” by Max I.Dimont. New York.1962. Page 192) “Within a hundred years the Mohammedan Empire rose to challenge Western civilization. Yet, within this religion, the Jews not only survived but rose to one of their greatest literary, scientific, and intellectual peaks…Seven hundred years passed and the pendulum swung. The Islamic world crumbled and the Jewish culture in the Islamic world crumbled with it.” [Ref: “Jews, God and History.” By Max I.Dimont:. New York.1962. Page 17]. So great was the fame of Rabbi Moses ben Maimonides (1134-1204 A.D), the author of Mishneh Torah (The “Second Torah”). When Richard the Lion Heart got sick during 3rd crusade against Calif Sulaiman the Magnificent, the Calif sent his physician, Maimonides. “Richard the Lion Heart, King of England, offered him a post as his personal `physician, but Maimonides refused, feeling more at home in the culture of Arabic civilization than in the barbaric atmosphere of feudal Europe.” [Ref: “Jews, God and History.” By Max I.Dimont: New York.1962. Page. 179]. Maimonides’s refusal of the offer shows that Jews felt more at home and free in Muslim empire than in the Christian empire. “Though the Mohammedan Empire is dead, the human elements which shaped its grandeur is still living…It sprang from a deep well of human creativity within the people themselves. For seven hundred years Arab and Jew lived side by side in peace and with mutual respect.” (REF: “Jews, God and History.” by Max I. Dimont. New York.1962. Page 205) “In Spain…King Reccared, with fearful zeal of a new convert, spread his newly found Christianity with sword so fierce that not only were the Visigoths baptized, but large number of Jews as well. When the Mohammedans conquered Spain and granted everyone religious freedom, many of these forcefully converted Jews did not return fully to the Mosaic religion”. (REF: “Jews, God and History.” by Max I. Dimont. New York.1962. Page 213) “Throughout North Africa, Egypt, and Ottoman Empire, Jews enjoyed almost complete religious and economic freedom for several centuries.”.” (REF: “Jews, God and History.” by Max I. Dimont. New York.1962. Page 223) “Even the Black Death, or bubonic plague (1348-1349), …was put into the service of killing Jews (in Europe). Before the Black Death swept Europe, it had hit Mongolia and Islamic Empire. Mongols, Mohammedans, and Jews had all died together without anyone having thought of blaming Jews”.” (REF: “Jews, God and History.” by Max I.Dimont. New York.1962. Page 237) “Technically, all non-Mohammedans had to pay a head tax for protection, which exempted them from military service and denied them the right to hold public office. But as far as the Jews were concerned, these were neglected laws, for the Jews seldom had to pay such a head tax, often served with great distinction and high rank Moslem armies and rose to the highest posts in government services, including grand viziers and princely rank.” .” (REF: “Jews, God and History.” by Max I.Dimont. New York.1962. Page 192) Jewish Historian, Ilan Halevi States☹ “It is true that the Arab world was much more tolerant than Christian West towards the Jews living within it, and that, in the land of Islam, especially in the Arab world, the concept of anti-Semitism such as it developed in Europe in the 19th century lacks the roots and encrustation that it has in Germany or Russia.” [REF: “A History of Jews, Ancient and Modern.” by Ilan Halevi. P. 199]. would not claim that there were intermittent persecution of Jews and Christians by some Muslims. However, according to Karen Armstrong, these persecutions occurred only during the time when the House of Islam was invaded by Christians and Jews. [REF:Holy War by Karen Armstrong. Page 30]. Karen Armstrong, Professor at Leo Baeck College for Study of Judaism and the Training of Rabbis and teachers, states in her book, Holy War: “Indeed, the word ‘Islam’ comes from the same Arabic root as the word ‘peace’ and Koran condemns war as abnormal state of affairs opposed to God’s will: when the enemies of Muslims ‘kindle a fire for war, Allah extinguishes it. They strive to create disorder in the earth, and Allah loves not those who create disorder’ (Koran 5:64). Islam does not justify a total aggressive war of extermination, as Torah does in the first five books of the Bible… Islam recognizes that war is inevitable and sometimes a positive duty in order to end oppression and suffering. The Koran teaches that war must be limited and be conducted in as humane way as possible… [Mohammad instructed Muslim army that] they must not molest priests, monks, nuns nor the weak and helpless people who were unable to fight. They must not massacre of civilians nor should they cut down a single tree nor pull down any building. This was very different from the wars of Joshua.” [REF: Karen Armstrong. Holy War. Page 25] Henry Grady Weaver from The Foundation for Economic Education, Inc, Irvington-On-Hudson, New York, states in his book, “The Mainspring of Human Progress:” “Prior to the Crusades, it had never occurred to the invaders that a strong man needs not be brutal. The Saracens (i.e., Muslims) were fierce in battle, but they were not cruel. They did not kill the wounded; they did not torture their prisoners. When they struck down an opponent, it was not uncommon to help them. (Read Sir Walter Scott). They did not persecute Christians. They were honourable. They told the truth; they kept their word. The English knights were especially impressed; and due in small measure to the lessons learned from the Saracens, the British aristocracy developed into one of the finest ruling classes the world has ever known.” [REF: Henry Grady Weaver: “The Main Spring of Human Progress.” New York 1984. Page 122] Bernard Lewis, contemporary American Historian in ““With few exceptions, whatever was creative and significant in Jewish life happened in Islamic lands. The Jewish communities of Europe formed a kind of cultural dependency on the Jews of the far more advanced and sophisticated Islamic world, extending from Muslim Spain in the west to Iraq, Iran, and Central Asia in the east.” (REF: Jews OF ISLAM” Bernard Lewis. page 66) These historical facts demonstrate that Muslims and their faith have historically been progressive and hospitable to others. They facilitated the uplifting of all people, not solely benefiting Muslims alone. But unfortunately, Israel relentlessly grabs Palestinian land, destroy their home, uproot trees and wrecks water cistern. Palestinians are not allowed to even The collection of drinking water from rain is made illegal for Palestinians. (REF: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2017/11/the-occupation-of-water/ https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/middle-east-and-north-africa/israel-and-occupied-palestinian-territories/report-israel-and-occupied-palestinian-territories/ https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/12/05/does-israels-treatment-palestinians-rise-level-apartheid The distressing reality in Gaza highlights a tragic situation where children have become victims, prompting questions from observers. It's puzzling how a nation that endured the Holocaust could be involved in practices reminiscent of apartheid, leading to persecution and hindering the delivery of essential resources like water, food, and fuel to a people who gave shelter when Western nations expelled ancestors of Israel. ---- T.O. Shanavas is a native of Kerala, but is now based in the USA. He is the author of “Islamic Theory of Evolution The Missing Link Between Darwin and The Origin of Species.” Co-author of the book, And God Said, "Let There Be Evolution!": Reconciling The Book Of Genesis, The Qur'an, And The Theory Of Evolution. Edited by Prof. Charles M. Wynn and Prof. Arthur W. Wiggins. URL: https://newageislam.com/interfaith-dialogue/muslim-jewish-existence-islamic-anti-semitism/d/131299 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

Gaza Is Karbala: Israel Is Killing Through Ethnic Cleansing and Genocide by Bombing the People of Gaza

By Mohammed Khaku, New Age Islam 12 December 2023 Holiday season is approaching, COP28 will end up as the greatest flop, genocide and no Christmas celebration in Holy land. What a sad way to end the year. COP 28 is nothing less than platforms for exaggerated empty promises and extensive lobbying for the fossil fuel industry. Representative image ------ There are powerful corporations who profit from fossil fuel extraction. It is ironic to see a climate summit happening in the Emirates whose ruler do not care of occupation by Zionist regime nor genocide in Palestine. All they care about is to safeguard their regime, money, and power. Moreover, they are the first line of defense against the Zionist rule in the holy land. Years after the battle of Karbala, one of the descendants of Imam Hussein stated, “Every day is Ashura; every land is Karbala.” Indeed, for anyone who cherishes truth and justice more than anything else, every day must be “Ashura, and every land is Karbala.” Today, there is a place where Muslims and Christians, including children and women, are bomb in concentration (death) camp and are being denied food, and water, just like at Karbala. A child stands next to a cooking woman, as displaced Palestinians, who fled their houses due to Israeli strikes, shelter in a tent camp near the border with Egypt, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, December 11, 2023. (REUTERS) ----- Many Arab rulers quote and pay tribute to Hussein’s principle to stand against injustice and oppression. Yet these same rulers perpetrate corruption, oppression, and injustice in their own societies. They are todays Pharaohs, and Yazid ibn Mu'awiya ibn Abi Sufyan. The truth is that Shia’s the followers of the Imam Ali have stood shoulder to shoulder for the liberation of Jerusalem (Al Quds) and against oppression while the Arab leaders have put Palestinians under the bus. This hypocrisy is at the root of the suffering of the Palestinians today. Unless and until we liberate the holy land of Mecca, we will not see a Palestinian state. As reported the Zionist plan is create greater Israel and annihilate the Palestinian people. Today, Karbala is Gaza, and we can see clearly in respect to Israel, which receives unconditional support from the USA, Europeans, and Arab governments in its genocide of the Christians and Muslims. What good are organizations like UN, Amnesty international, European Union, WHO, UNICEF, International Criminal Court, International Human Rights Organization and many others. Shame on all these organizations, they cannot even protect animal rights, how can you protect humanity? Dis-mantle your organization and save taxpayer dollars. The issue today is the same as it was at Karbala. Who has the right to authority, leadership, and guardianship over the Muslim Ummah (community)? Is it Israel, U.S., or corrupt Arab governments? Neither of them, but Muslim Ummah under the leadership of pious Islamic leaders. Which country today has the pious leader who can lead the daily Jamaa prayers with millions behind praying? Today, Gaza is Karbala. Israel is killing through ethnic cleansing and genocide by bombing the people of Gaza. The time has come for the Muslim Ummah to take the responsibility to end this illegal siege by attaching yourself with Ahlul Bayt. What good is the doom Bedouin kingdom, the monarchies, and dictatorial regime of Middle East and North Africa (MENA) done for last 75 years. All they have done is slept in bed with the Zionist. We must save the people of Gaza and break the siege not only upon Gaza but also upon Muslims everywhere who have been denied rights, persecuted, murdered, tortured, and humiliated. Today, it is our turn to answer the call of Imam Hussein on the Day of Ashura – “Is there anyone to help.” The freedom fighter and resistance groups around the Middle East have answered Labbaik Ya Hussain! Who will stand with the 2.6 million people of Gaza who are among those being killed today because they support and voted for the resistance movement. The bombing and blockade of Gaza by denying the food, water, electricity, and medical supplies is unlawful and unjustifiable; it violates Article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. World leaders, including Arab leaders and the U.N. remain silent on more than fifty resolutions vetoed by the U.S. since 1972. The color of the blood is same and all, including Biden, and those have remained silent or assist Zionist Israel have their hands tainted with Palestinian blood. The Zionist Jews did not have any mercy for the Prophet Jesus, how would they have any mercy for Christian or Muslim Palestinians. The Christian history narrates who killed Jesus Christ? And to research or debate is not antisemitic. In the Book of Matthew (27: 25-26) the Zionist Jews accept responsibility for the execution. One cannot rewrite the history. https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2001/04/did-the-jews-kill-jesus.html Human rights organization have condemned Israel’s bombardment of Gaza and bears all the hallmark of war crimes. What Israel is doing is wrong, and we need to Speak Up. Silent No More! Israel’s atrocity will continue as long international communities remain silent. But what pains me more is Muslims leaders who have the power to close the embassies of any country who support the genocide or use oil as a weapon to bring peace in the holy land. The Arab and Muslim leaders need unequivocal condemnation. They could have prevented the genocide but, instead are complicit in the Israeli war crimes But, they remain silent (Khamoshi) on this humanitarian tragedy. We are witnessing another Holocaust and Nazism in the holy land. Edmund Burke said, “Evil flourishes not because of evil men, but because good men do nothing about it.” Israeli attacks, in retaliation for rockets fired by Palestinians, are poor reasoning and do not contribute to Israel’s security. And when it comes to self-defence, the question is do Israel’s actions of denying food, water, electricity, and medicine to Gaza residents guarantee the security of Israel or does it create more forces of extremism? It gives rises to a new generation of Palestinians to seek arms to retaliate against their oppressors. The siege of Gaza neither advances the goal of Israel to have a permanent homeland in Middle East nor does it bolster the moderate Muslim states to have friendly ties with the Jewish state. The neo-cons and the Israeli lobby such as American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) have duped American administrations to give over 3.5 billion tax dollars annually to Israel. According to studies, op-ed columns and books, our Middle East policies is dictated by AIPAC, which does more harm to Israel than good and no benefits for American citizens. Israel is not an American state where we have a liberty to give billions of dollars. The genocidal occupying Zionist Military Force (ZMF) – I do not use word the word IDF, as it is an occupying force. The assault against Palestinians have further tarnished the U.S. image, and the U.S. is not seen as an honest broker between Palestinians and Israelis. The question of right to defend and condemning resistance movement is like a bug asking the spider for its freedom, not realizing the purpose of the web -Zionist! It has been around two months since resistance fighters destroyed the Iron walls of 75 years of open prison or concentration camp. The war, genocide or ethnic cleansing continues with over sixteen thousand dead mostly children with no sight of destroying Hamas. However, immediately Anglo-Saxon Imperialistic Zionist, colonialist, politicians, and social media platforms started asking two questions. Do you condemn the Hamas massacre and Israel has the right to defend? Do you condemn the oppressor, ask the oppressed? A foolish question to keep our mental state discombobulated. However, a wise person contemplates and ponders why the question is being asked. So, one begins to see the pattern by the Zionist media who want us to focus on Hamas, however, let us focus on the full picture. Do you condemn Hamas? We have heard this melody or the tune before. In fact, it has echoed across centuries. European settlers killed fifty-six million Indigenous people over one hundred years in South, Central and North America. It was genocide of native Americans, but the question was do you condemn the wild Red Indians? On August 6, 1945, A quarter of a million perished when a nuclear bomb devastated Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the question was do you condemn Pearl Harbor? Ho Chi Minh fought against French and Americans (colonial power) for independence and freedom, but the question was do you condemn communism? After three centuries of colonial rule in the continent of South America and Africa by the British. Portuguese, Spain, French, and Belgium, the question was do you condemn Socialism? After 9/11 over four million were killed in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, Somalia, Yemen & Libya with unquestionable cost to the US. taxpayer, and the question was do you condemn 9/11? Over a million killed in Iraq and the question was, do condemn the weapon of mass destruction (WMD.) The list is long, but you get the full image now. You get the bigger picture. One can never expect a solution from those who created the Web - Zionist Web. It is like a bug asking the spider for its freedom, not realizing the purpose of the web. Does Israel Have the Right To Defend Itself? Every country has the right to defend be it with nuclear technology, but Israel has no right to impose 75 years of occupation on people and drop two equivalent nuclear bombs on Gaza - the size of Philadelphia. 1953 Hungary revolution against Soviet occupation where millions become refugees, did Russia have the right to defend itself against the Hungarian Revolution as an occupier? No. Same goes with Ukraine war, does Russia have a right to defend the occupied territories of Crimea and parts of Donetsk, Kherson, and Luhansk. No! Then how can we talk of Israel as a right to defend when it is an illegal entity in Palestine and an occupying regime like Russia. So, Palestinians also have the right to defend against the Zionist occupation. I condemn all violence, but one must condemn the apartheid regime and genocide. In talking in the absence of historical awareness, it looks like Israel is defending itself, but against whom? Against the people who Israel has confiscated their land, farms, restricted water, food, fuel, imprisoned young children and tortured them. Israel has made GAZA a concentration camp and now a death camp. Unless we talk about Israel violating hundreds of UN resolutions, and committing war crimes, it looks like Israel is playing victim but, against whom? 2.6 million people who do not have running water and 90% of the water is polluted, unfit to drink. That is the history of 75 years of occupation documents by Israeli Nobel prize historians. Israel has no right to impose occupation nor any right to defend itself nor do I condemn Hamas the resistance fighter until Zionist Israel is brought to justice for its genocide and ethnic cleansing. I do not make this stuff! This is the inversion of the truth of reality! This is the big lie and media war against Palestinians, from the inversion of truth to the inversion of reality. This is propaganda – product of Nazi Germany's right to defend and condemn Hamas which is used by Anglo-Saxon Imperialist colonialist Zionist media. It is sad that once the victims of Nazism, are the oppressors (new Nazis.) How can one justify killing over 6,000 children, destroying over 20,000 homes, restricting food, water, fuel, and medical supplies. ----- Mohammed Khaku, who lives in Upper Macungie Township, is active in the Islamic community of the Lehigh Valley. URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-politics/gaza-karbala-israel-ethnic-genocide/d/131298 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

UGC-NCERT’s Right-Wing Drive: Educational System and Structure to Suit the Political Ideology of The Ruling Party

By Ram Puniyani, New Age Islam 12 December 2023 As the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party inches closer to completing two terms in office, its impact on institutions is more than evident. While the Enforcement Directorate, income tax authorities and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) have played their role in cornering the opposition parties, the Election Commission has sometimes been partisan. Now, it is evident that the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) are also not far behind in trying to change the educational system and structure to suit the political ideology of the ruling party. New instructions are regularly sent to educational institutes to introduce Hindu nationalist sentiments and ethos among students. When the present government was trying to intimidate and undermine student movements, it labelled their protests as anti-national. Former minister of Human Resource Development, Smriti Irani, proposed installing a tall pole in each university to hoist the national flag. Another idea was floated to place a decommissioned military tank on the Jawaharlal Nehru University premises, where students were publicly debating issues, a concept that goes against the grain of the government’s thinking. More circulars have been issued in recent days. One says students must participate in year-long celebrations of the birth centenary of Dattaji Didolkar, a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh pracharak who set up the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP). This cult-building exercise for a Hindu nationalist is mainly meant for colleges in Maharashtra. Is the UGC right in promoting the celebration of figures from the Hindu nationalist stable? Indeed, the UGC must promote those who stood for Indian nationalism or fought British colonial rule. But Didolkar was never part of either strand of the freedom struggle, nor does he represent the values enshrined in the Constitution of independent India. Yet another circular demands the setting up of ‘selfie points’ with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the backdrop. Such a step is being taken with the 2024 Lok Sabha election in mind and has no place in a democratic country. It amounts to propaganda for one party and its supreme leader. It violates the ethos of democracy, blatantly violates democratic and constitutional values, and is a gross abuse of power. That is not all. One recent instruction says that students from standards seven to 12 should be taught the Ramayana and the Mahabharata as part of the history curriculum and placed in the ‘classical period’. Per the NCERT expert panel, learning the Ramayana and Mahabharata will instil self-esteem, patriotism and pride. India’s two great epics are a part of our mythology and can impart tremendous knowledge about society and norms of the times they were written in. These great epics provide valuable insights into periods of history mired in vague understanding or incomplete knowledge. The Ramayana is popular beyond India, in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bali, Sumatra, and elsewhere. Interestingly, it has many versions. Originally written by Valmiki, it was further popularised by Goswami Tulsidas’s Avadhi epic Ramayana. It became part of popular culture in northern India from the 16th century onwards. The many versions of the Ramayana result from its diverse origins and geographic spread. But the Hindu nationalists promote just one version of the great epic. Paula Richman’s Many Ramayans: The Diversity of a Narrative Tradition in South Asia, first published by OUP in 1991, explores the diverse versions of Lord Rama’s story. The noted scholar AK Ramanujan’s remarkable essay, ‘300 Ramayans: Five Examples and Three Thoughts on Translation’, was included in the teaching at The University of Delhi until 2011, when Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad activists protested, and the university buckled under pressure. Hindu nationalists want to project just one particular version of Lord Rama’s story as authentic when Ramanujan tells us about its diverse tellings: the Jain, Buddhist, and women’s versions (the last by Ranganayakamma). Even the ‘Adivasi Ramayana’ has a different storyline than all others, a fact mainstream media and the government wish to paper over. BR Ambedkar drew our attention in his book, ‘Riddles in Hinduism’, to the killing of Shambuka during his penance by Rama, as the Shudras being denied scriptural equality. Rama also killed Bali, a revered ruler among some marginalised communities. The chant, ‘Eida Pida Javo: Baliche Rajya Yevo--Let our pains go, Let Bali return as king’. Ambedkar is critical of Rama banishing Sita into the forest on suspicion of infidelity. Periyar is also critical of Lord Rama for imposing North Indian Aryanism on the Dravidas. Similarly, Maharishi Ved Vyas’s Mahabharata, the longest poem ever composed, provides valuable glimpses into our past. All our epics are essential sources of historical knowledge, but to import them into the history syllabus does justice neither to history nor epics nor our understanding of mythology. It is linked more to the Hindu nationalist agenda than unravelling the truth about the past. Among other moves of the panel is one that instructs that the name India be replaced with Bharat on the ground that India denotes slavery, as it has British origins. What is being deliberately suppressed is the pre-existence of variations of the word India from times long before the British arrival. As early as BCE 303, the Greek traveller and diplomat Megasthenes used the word Indica. Derivatives signifying India that arrive from the river Sindhu have been in vogue from early times. That is why “Bharat that is India” in the Constitution is the perfect formulation for us all. But Hindu nationalism is uncomfortable with the diversity, inclusivity and openness that India/Bharat represents. They desire to re-periodise Indian history. The British called the early period of Indian history the ‘Hindu period’, while the Hindu nationals now want it to be called the ‘Classical Period’. The idea is to present the values of that period as the baseline for today’s society. Many of those values can be found in the Manusmriti, and the ones being promoted are precisely those which made Ambedkar rebel against this book. ----- Ram Puniyani is a human rights activist. The views are personal. URL: https://newageislam.com/current-affairs/ugc-ncert-right-wing-political-ideology/d/131297 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

A Comment on The Article ‘Why Don't a Majority of Muslims Use Their Brains and Prudence?" By Mr. Sumit Paul

By Ghulam Ghaus Siddiqi, New Age Islam 12 December 2023 Ye Maamla Muhabbat Ka Hai Sahib, Jo Banda Khuda Ki Muhabbat Aur Uski Rahnumaai Me Posheeda Raaz Aur Kaamyaabi Ko Samajh Lega, Jaisaake Quran Ke Mutaabiq Samajhte Hain Aql Waale, To Uske Liye Ek Hukm Aur Ek Rahnumaai Kya, Wo Apne Jism Ki Har Saans Aur Apne Qalb Ki Har Dharkan Ko Khuda Ki Itaa’at Aur Bandagi Me Lagaayega. Wo To Har Kaam Ko Anjaam Dete Waqt, Apne Rab Ki Riza, Likes And Dislikes Ko Hamesha Apne Pesh-E-Nazar Rakhega, Use To Wahin Sukun Milega, Kyonki Uska Imaan Hai Sukun To Sirf Allah Paak Ke Zikr Me Hi Hai. Sir! This is a matter of divine love. For the man who will understand the secret and success hidden in God's love and guidance—as understood by the wise according to the Qur'an—it is not just a matter of following one command and one guidance; he will also dedicate his entire being to God's service and obedience. If a person wants to dedicate his life to serving God, he will have to respect both human and divine rights to the best of his ability. He should be away from so-called political ‘promises’ and fabricated ‘reasons’ in terms of human rights. But with all sincerity, he needs to present his service. He will never undertake a duty without considering the commands, likes, and dislikes of his Lord. This is all he can do to find peace and solace since he believes that remembering Allah Almighty is the only path to solace for the faithful hearts. [Ghulam Ghaus Siddiqi] ------ I thought about this after I read the first few words of the article, "Why Don't a Majority of Muslims Use Their Brains and Prudence?" by Mr. Sumit Paul. I will just discuss one of the points he raised in the beginning sections of his article, despite the fact that I have a lot to say. Mr. Paul says, “First of all, the very article, ‘ ‘Are Jokes, Laughter and General Humour Allowed in Islam?' is strange, rather ridiculous.” Islam is a natural religion and addresses all conducts of life. It offers guidance in all spheres of life. The Muslims, who are believers, can follow its guidance pertaining to all conducts of life. The holy Quran says it is a book of guidance for the Muttaqeen [the Muslims who practice Taqwa are known as Muttaqeen]. Taqwa has several ranks. [Read this article on Taqwa: Is the Quran a Book of Guidance Only for the Pious (Muttaqeen)?] Having faith in Islam is the fundamental degree of Taqwa. Having faith in Islam means to believe in the Oneness of the Almighty Allah, to believe in all the Prophets and Messengers of Allah as true, to believe in all the Angels of Allah, all the Sacred Scriptures, including the Torah, Injeel, and the Quran, and to believe in the Hereafter, the Day of Resurrection, the Life after Death, and so on. These are the basic beliefs and necessities of the faith. Without these beliefs, one cannot qualify as a Muslim in accordance with the Quran. All the previous Prophets and Messengers of Allah Almighty, one after another, introduced these fundamental beliefs as shared beliefs, and when the people in their respective nations embraced these beliefs, they were referred to as believers. Conversely, people who alter the terms or meanings of the Sacred Books of God or who reject or deny the Speech of God are referred to as disbelievers, regardless of the names and languages of the Quran, Injeel, Torah, and so on. The Quran, the Torah, the Injeel, and other books of God addressed the disbelievers in various ways because they were revealed in different languages. The hearts of those who have a deep belief in Islam are content with this belief system, and they also want to seek guidance on other matters about the conduct of life. Following that, Islam guides them on how to walk, eat, sleep, work, wake up early, make ablution, perform Salah, pray, perform funerals, perform Hajj, give Zakat and Sadaqah, ask for forgiveness, do good deeds, abstain from forbidden acts, and develop into good human beings as well as obedient slaves of God Almighty. In its inclusivity and comprehensive nature, this religion is definitely unique. Only when we ask Allah for guidance on how to carry out these life-affirming behaviours will we be able to connect our hearts to the remembrance of the Almighty Allah. When a Muslim remembers the Almighty Allah, he or she experiences true contentment and peace in their hearts. This is stated very clearly in the holy Quran: “Only in the Remembrance of Allah Is the Solace of Hearts." (Quran13:28) I think that there is a big mystery of Remembrance [Zikr] when I consider why Islam has provided guidance related to all aspects of life. As we go about our daily lives, if we love our Almighty God, we will undoubtedly remember Him, His commands, and His likes and dislikes. This will make us seem like sensible and, at least to some extent comparatively, an ‘honest’ lover of God, and this remembering act is where our hearts truly find peace and comfort. There is a chance for the common Muslim to turn into a sincere, spiritual slave of God and a devoted follower of Islam. Just forget about imagining the so-called followers, or nominal Muslims. However, when a heart devoid of divine love, Islamic faith, and submission to the Almighty God encounters any guidance for life conduct, it may become offended and respond by labelling guidance as "strange" or "ridiculous." Throughout the lifetimes of the Last Prophet, Hazrat ‘Isaa, Hazrat Musaa, and Hazrat Ibrahim (peace be upon them all), the disbelievers had a common tendency to ridicule and make fun of the guidance of the Almighty God. The Quran mentions in several places how they ridiculed the guidance whenever they were given it. However, in the face of such behaviour, Muslim believers were told to remain composed and patient. “Why Don't a Majority of Muslims Use Their Brains and Prudence?” asks Mr. Paul, despite the fact that the Almighty Allah has frequently stated in the Holy Quran that people who rightfully apply their brains and prudence find the right guidance, light, and realities of life. ----- A regular columnist with NewAgeIslam.com, Ghulam Ghaus Siddiqi Dehlvi is a student of Islamic sciences; theology, jurisprudence, tafsir, hadith, and Islamic mysticism (tasawwuf), with a Sufi-Sunni background and an English-Arabic-Urdu translator. He has also done a B.A. (Hons.) in Arabic, an M.A. in Arabic, and an M.A. in English from JMI, New Delhi. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/comment-majority-muslims-brains-prudence/d/131296 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

Observing Proustian ‘After Death Sympathy'

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 12 December 2023 'Death often brings us together. Why can't life?' By Ghulam Mohiyuddin Hats off to Mr Ghulam Mohiyuddin for his brilliant question. Exactly the same question was put before Jiddu Krishnamurthy during his Madras Lectures in 1960. An erudite professor from the Madras IIT asked Jiddu, "Death and Destruction often bring us together. Why can't life? " The question stumped Jiddu and he tried to give an answer in his usual circumlocution manner which often proved to be unintelligible to most of the people! In short, the 'enlightened' Jiddu had no explanation for it. It's really strange, nay ironic, that all our benevolence and so-called magnanimity become obvious only after death which should have been there when life existed. Jean Paul Sartre called it, 'a gesture of tokenism.' Humans are cunning and opportunistic creatures. We want to eat the cake and have it too. We all suffer from Proustian 'After Death Sympathy'. Psychologists have also found that humans love to indulge in post-death eulogy. You all have seen and experienced that while living, a person, is reviled by all but the moment he dies, he becomes a hero or an icon. Paeans and plaudits are paid to him. You've the example of just departed Junior Mahmood. No one from Bollywood and media ever cared to know how he lived all these years. But all gathered to bid him a 'tearful' farewell. If only, they could show their 'fellow-feeling' when he was alive and lived in abject penury. This 'change of heart' is not because the departed person becomes a saint all of a sudden. It's society's attempt to exonerate itself of all the ill-treatment meted out to the ill-fated man. After death sympathy or post-death eulogy is a clever attempt to remove all traces of indifference and ill-treatment towards those who're no more. Humans are calculated animals. We're seldom altruistic. All our actions have hidden motives. Most of us will scream and shed tears over the drowning man but will not save him from drowning. "Saahil Ke Tamashai Har Doobne Wale Par/ Afsos Toh Karte Hain, Imdaad Nahin Karte" (All the bystanders on the shore feel sorry for the drowning person/ But don't come forward to help him). Albert Camus said, 'Death doesn't melt our hearts. It actually lends a ghastly romanticism. This 'romanticism' results in post-death eulogy and crocodile tears.' Though trenchant, you cannot disagree with the Frenchman's insightful observation. Can you? ----- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URl: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/proustian-death-sympathy/d/131294 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

"Lies Are Like Lice In The Hair Of Our Times"

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 11 December 2023 “We live in a moment where the truth has become problematic for all sorts of reasons, because the world is so full of lies. Readers really want to reassure themselves that what they’re reading is either true or deliberately not true." -Salman Rushdie Rushdie's latest statement at the Tata Literature Festival, 2023 is extremely relevant in these times when truth comes at a premium. "Lies are like lice in the hair of our times," stated Japanese writer Kenzaburo Oe in conversation with Milan Kundera a few years ago. Yes, our lives are infected with the 'institutionalised' lies of our times. The discerning and perceptive readers, despite being in a minority, want to know whether it's true or not. Lies have always found a way to enter our lives because acceptance of lies is always very easy and it needs no critical exercise. Lies being majority's Gospel Truths, come and stay forever. Day in and day out we're being bombarded with lies on social media and news channels, but most of the people are least bothered to verify them because verifications break illusions and humans love to live in the world of illusions. That's why, religious lies are so entrenched in our minds. We're not bothered or willing to verify them lest they debunk our cozy and comfortable existence of illusions. The current political dispensation's blatant lies appear to be truths because repeated lies assume the status of truth over a period of time. Truth is forever on the scaffold because lies are protected by a fierce majority with vested interests. To quote a renowned Urdu poet from Bombay, Dr Navroze Kotwal, “Jahaan Jhoot Ko Milti Rahti Hai Panaah/ Wahan Sach Ka Bolna Bhi Hai Gunaah" (Where lies are perpetually under (State) protection/ Stating the truth can land one in prison). Truth has always been an orphan and in these times, it's an orphan that has also been abused and assailed. Who knows this better than Salman Rushdie, the man who dared to make fun of religious lies of Islam in his book The Satanic Verses and lost his right eye? Yet, the man has the courage not to face the lies lying down but to bounce back to disrobe and denude them and show their warts. Whether it's politics, religion or the so-called spirituality, it's time to point out the lies these fields are fraught with. Don't be afraid of getting beheaded and killed: Main Jhoot Ke Maahaul Mein Sach Bol Raha Hoon/ Duniya Se Kaho Sar Mera Neze Pe Uchhale (I proclaim the Truth without fear/ Impale my head on your spear). Only those who're so fearless, can speak out the truth. The impotent rest may choose to wallow in the muck and turd of all sorts of lies. ----- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/lies-like-lice-hair-times/d/131288 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

Why Don't a Majority of Muslims Use Their Brains and Prudence?

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 9 December 2023 "Laughter and humour are healthy and natural. Islam is not a cult that dictates to us what we can do and what we can't do. However, mullahs have made it a cult for their empowerment." A Level-Headed, Thinking and Logical Muslim "If Islam says anything, it is right. It says laughter is permissible then it is what we need to accept. Muslims are happy with it." A Run-Of-The-Mill Follower of Islam First of all, the very article, ‘Are Jokes, Laughter and General Humour Allowed in Islam?' is strange, rather ridiculous. Does a Hindu seek Ram's permission to laugh? Does a Christian crack jokes after getting a go-ahead from Jesus or god? Does a Sikh think whether his Ten Gurus will be happy or angry before cracking his typical Sardar jokes? Do we all laugh or make a wry face because god or religion wants us to laugh or sulk? The point is: Why should any damn god, religion, prophet dictate terms to us even in the matters of laughing, cracking jokes or humour? All these things are so natural and spontaneous. Why bring in religion and Allah? Agreed, one should refrain from cracking bawdy and ribald jokes in public. But if in the confinement of four walls and in the company of close pals, one cracks naughty jokes once in a blue moon, will that anger your Allah or go against the 'teachings' of your faith? If yes, it's better to call your faith a Totalitarian religion. Islam, which isn't exactly a religion but a cult like Christianity, has been further relegated to the level of Mutawa (Arab Morality Police) by its village clerics and maulvis. Otherwise also, Islam is a totalitarian cult. Like fundamentalist Judaism and medieval Christianity, Islam is totalist. That's to say, it makes a total claim on the individual. Indeed, there's no individual; there's only the umma- the community of believers. Islam follows you everywhere, into the kitchen, into the bedroom, into the bathroom, and beyond death into eternity. Islam means- 'submission'- The surrender of independence of mind. That surrender now bears the weight of well over 60 generations and 14 centuries. The followers of Islam must use and apply their brains and prudence and stop relying on the Quran, Sunnah (Muhammad's way of life), Allah, Hadees (Muhammad's plagiarised teachings) and maulvis to live like free humans and not as religiously enslaved zombies. C G Jung rightly said, " If you want to ogle at a damsel with not much dirty intention, do that. If you feel like breaking wind, don't be afraid. All these innocuous acts amuse your god rather than make him angry." Are blinkered Muslim listening? ----- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/majority-muslims-brains-prudence/d/131279 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

Islam and Gender Questions: Ibn Arabi's Approaches to Divinity and Sexuality

By Grace Mubashir, New Age Islam 8 December 2023 By Adopting Sexuality As A Metaphor, Ibn Arabi Challenges Hierarchical Views Of Gender And Sexuality. Ibn Arabi Challenges Gender Hierarchies By Equating The Ultimate Reality Of Marriage, Called Fana' In The Technical Language Of Tasawwuf, With Sexual Intercourse. Ibn Arabi Questions Religious And Secular Understandings Of Gender. Main Points: 1. The teachings of Islamic Sufism need to be revived to advance inclusive and modern Islam. 2. Ibn Arabi articulates the gender: 'The relationship between man and woman is like the relationship between God and nature. 3. Duality does not exist in Ibn Arabi's masculine-feminine relationship. ----- Here I intend to present the views of Ibn Arabi on issues of gender and sexuality. It seems that we can start with the words of Prophet Muhammad Mustafa (PBUH). He said: 'Three things are dear to me in this world. They are women, perfumes and salutations.' Ibn Arabi ----- Humans live in a world of connection and separation. I take women and sex as an example. Sexual intercourse is commonly understood as an intense expression of love between a man and a woman. But for Ibn Arabi, the act of seeing and experiencing God is what a believer enables through sexual intercourse. Because there is an act of union challenging the fixation of duality. It is a desire that drives us to do it. It is through the instrumentality of desire that the search for union with the One arises in us. Ibn Arabi talks about desire by telling the story of Prophet Ilyas. He says: 'Prophet Ilyas (Idris) had a vision in a dream. In it, he saw Mount Lebanon. Prophet Ilyas, who climbed the hill, lost all his wishes. Thus Prophet Ilyas became a mere intellect without desires. Thus in him, God became merely transcendent. Because a self which is mere intellect could only see the transcendent God. Immanent God can never be experienced by such a self. Whereas for Ibn 'Arabi everything is God's revelation (Tajalliyat) and He is simultaneously transcendent and immanent. Only when these two realities of God can be understood can one experience Him. Ibn Arabi narrates the story of Prophet Ilyas to indicate the mystical realities inherent in human desires. When one abandons his desires, he becomes unable to experience the blessings of God. He can get only the transcendent God. Or, the intellect blocks the possibility of attaining God's presence through desires. Then the intellect exists as a veil between God and man. That veil is removed only when you travel in search of desire. Because it is through desire that one can attain the object of his quest by eliminating the ego self in him. Ibn Arabi also cites the story of Hazrat Maryam which refers to desire. He says: Maryam mistook the Angel Gabriel who came to her in human form to be someone who came to sleep with her. So they sought salvation from God. Through it, they were able to attain complete intimacy with God. Later, when Jibreel informed Maryam that he was only a messenger of God, they achieved inner peace. It was at that time that the angel Gabriel blew Isa to Maryam.' The story narrated by Ibn Arabi overturns Christian-Islamic formal understandings. It will become clear when Ibn Arabi is explained further. Ibn Arabi uses the word 'Shahwa' (carnal desire) when describing the story of Maryam and Ilyas in Ibn Arabi's Fusus al-Hikam. Shahva can be translated as desire or lust. Here, Ibn Arabi speaks by connecting lust with Prophet Ilyas and desire with Maryam. Through it, Ibn Arabi reads intercourse and sexual interests as manifestations of divine intimacy. 'Let's go back to Mary. When they first saw the angel Jibreel (in human form), they sought refuge in Allah (from what was forbidden). Through it, they rejected human emotions and sought complete merging with Allah. Or, Maryam's desire was with Allah. That is what happened to Prophet Ilyas. All that remained before him was the Wajh of Allah (Face of Allah). When the angel Gabriel announced to Maryam that he was the messenger of Allah, she came down from the transcendent state and felt desire. But even there (immanence) Maryam sought the presence of Allah. Because there is nothing in this world that is not His glory.' Here, Ibn Arabi presents the human emotions of desire and lust as the release of divine quality. That is why Ibn Arabi says that Maryam and Idris could see Allah in all physical and non-physical desires. Now let's talk about the ontology of femininity and masculinity. For Ibn Arabi, femininity is not just a biological condition. but also ontological. See how Ibn Arabi articulates it: 'The relationship between man and woman is like the relationship between God and nature (Ibn Arabi compares woman to nature.) Nature accepts divine commands. Nature cannot exist without divine orders. Or, nature means God's self-manifestation (Tajalliyat). Ibn Arabi here imagines divine commands as male and nature as female. Both elements converge ontologically at the point of love. On the other hand, activity is the self of a man, while a woman has the activity of receptivity. The activity of masculinity can be likened to the divine activity of 'Kun, Fayakun'. That is why Adam was created in the first place. But here the hierarchy involved in male-female relationships is only temporary. It means that there is no ontological or cosmological power relationship between man and woman. Or, man and woman do not exist as a power duality. Duality does not exist in Ibn Arabi's masculine-feminine relationship. Rather, the fusion between the two bodies takes place. Therefore the power does not exist there. Therefore, masculine and feminine activities are possible for both males and females. Because for Ibn Arabi, gender is performative. Hence masculine and feminine cannot be strictly defined. Or, gender does not exist because of biological differences. Man and woman overcome the male/female duality through sexual union. Love brings the two together. Ibn Arabi says: 'So Allah took out of man an image of Himself. That's the girl. It came from the desire of both of them to meet. That is why women became a favourite of the Prophet (PBUH). Because it is in Adam that Eve, created in Adam's image, is to be sought. Adam, on the other hand, had to seek Eve within himself. This can be read in conjunction with the Qur'anic saying that whoever knows himself knows God. For Ibn Arabi, men and women do not exist in the form of hierarchical authority. Rather, it is through longing. The physical form of this quest is physical union. It is the greatest possible combination of love in this world. It is said that bathing after sexual intercourse is due to the desire to meet and cover the body of the male and female. Because He does not want from creation any look other than Allah. Bathing after sexual intercourse is obligatory because one turns away from the face of Allah even for a moment during sexual intercourse (which means that one should seek Allah during sexual intercourse as well). With purification, he/she turns back to Allah. Ibn Arabi says that if a person sees the face of Allah in sexual intercourse, then he/she does not need to be pure. By adopting sexuality as a metaphor, Ibn Arabi challenges hierarchical views of gender and sexuality. Ibn Arabi challenges gender hierarchies by equating the ultimate reality of marriage, called 'Fana' in the technical language of Tasawwuf, with sexual intercourse. Ibn Arabi questions religious and secular understandings of gender. ----- A regular columnist for NewAgeIslam.com, Mubashir V.P is a PhD scholar in Islamic Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia and freelance journalist. URL: https://newageislam.com/debating-islam/gender-ibn-arabi-divinity-sexuality/d/131276 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

Prof. Kidwai's Urdu Work Refutes Western Scholars' View Of Islam And Muslims

By Dr. Zafar Darak Qasmi 8 December 2023 (Translated from Urdu by Ghulam Ghaus Siddiqui, New Age Islam) Orientalists Are Distorting The Global Perception Of Muslims, Portraying Them As Adversaries Of Humanity And Lacking Moral Principles. They Claim That Muslim Women Experience Humiliation And Misery In Islam, Disobeying Quran And Sunnah Teachings About Women. They Want To Convince Everyone That It Is In The Best Interests Of Humanity To Take Action Against Islam And Muslims. In This Regard, Prof. Abdur Raheem Kidwai's Urdu Work, “Islam: In The Eyes Of The West”, Analyses And Refutes Western Scholars' Works On Qur'an, Seerat Or Prophet Biography. Main Points: 1. Islam promotes peace in the universe, yet Orientalists are promoting nonsense and raising objections against it. 2. The global slander of Islam and Muslims is rooted in the orientalist ideologies, leading to widespread suspicions against the religion. 3. Professor Abdur Raheem Kidwai's book “Islam: In the Eyes of The West” highlights the harmful impact of Orientalists on Islamic values. 4. The book encourages academic balance, moderation among scholars, and accepting truth even when it goes against their ideas. ------ Everyone knows that Islam is the advocate of real peace in the universe. Despite this, the Orientalists are talking nonsense and raising objections against Islam. It is a good thing that due to their appeal, the scholars and Ulama have made efforts to resolve the doubts and suspicions that are arising in the society. In this regard, a recent Urdu work titled, Islam: in the Eyes of the West, by the renowned scholar Prof. Abdur Raheem Kidwai, has been kept in order by Maulana Rafiq Ahmed Raees Salafi. In this book, the analysis of the works of the Western scholars regarding the Qur'an, Seerat, biography of the Prophet, and English literature is presented. It seems appropriate to mention here that freedom of opinion is given great importance all over the world today. In the name of freedom of expression, they violate social, civilized and religious values. In the West, this process has become very common. Unfortunately, such things are happening in a pluralistic society like India. Why do we forget that freedom of expression does not mean that any religion, creed, beliefs and views should be hurt and emotions and feelings should be provoked? But all this is happening on this land. Of course, these factors and motivations are not only affecting human relations and social well-being, but nations and societies are facing each other. Therefore, we should not cause any kind of trouble to anyone in the name of freedom of expression. Maulana Rafiq Ahmad Raees, who compiled of Abdur Raheem Kidwai’s book “Islam: In the Eyes of the West”, writes: “What the Western scholars of Islam [orientalists] have been saying for a long time about the Holy Qur'an, the Seerat, and other Islamic teachings under the pretexts of free speech, impartial analysis, and independent research is distorting the global perception of Muslims. Because of this, Muslims are characterized as the adversaries of humanity and as lacking in all moral principles. They make an effort to show that a Muslim woman experiences humiliation in addition to misery in her life. They make this claim while disobeying every lesson about women found in the Quran and Sunnah. The goal of all these disgusting organizations is to persuade the world that taking any action against Islam and Muslims is in the best interests of humanity. They do this by portraying Islam and Muslims as enemies of humanity.” The terrible things that are happening all around the world against Islam and Muslims are the result of orientalist notions and ideologies. The majority started to argue against Islam because they accepted the Orientalist perspective as true, although it is an inaccurate or incomplete representation of Islamic literature. However, our experts and academics need to understand that this is a well-thought-out scheme by Orientalists. Prof. Abdur Raheem Kidwai asserts that every malicious attempt by Orientalists to undermine Islam and Muslims in the name of scholarship, discussion, and investigation needs to be strongly rebutted with honesty and knowledge. Unfortunately, there is a tendency towards sectarianism among the Muslim organizations operating in our circles today that claim to be focused on knowledge and research. The fact that the proprietors of madrasas and other religious educational establishments are unaware of the Orientalists' actions and their betrayals in both academia and research is one of the several reasons for this. Our Madrasas are generally not familiar with the language in which the Orientalists work. For all these reasons, it can be declared with absolute certainty that there is now no organized organization that methodically addresses and refutes the criticisms of Islam, both nationally and internationally. However, in order to keep Islam pure, it is also required to refute the criticisms made of it in the context of Da'wa sermons. For this reason, we must call attention to this. After studying Professor Abdur Raheem Kidwai's book “Islam: In the Eyes of The West”, it is felt that the Orientalists have badly tarnished Islamic values. Their allegations are very dangerous. This book fully exposes their roots. In the same way, some western thinkers have been balanced and moderate, and they have tried to rise above all prejudices of Islam and understand it. Maurice Bucaille etc. is a clear example in this regard. In today's scientific and research landscape, expansion and moderation are less visible. Almost everyone is somehow involved in this context. He tries to understand things and problems in the same way. Therefore, orientalism is a regular movement. Anyone who associates with it will see Islam through the lens that his elders have asked him to see. Therefore, this book also conveys the message that researchers today should adopt moderation and balance in their academic achievements. Truth should be openly acknowledged, even if that balanced inquiry is contrary to our own ideas, thought and practice. Professor Abdur Raheem Kidwai is also a supporter of academic and literary harmony and social frequency. So, he writes in the preface of the book: What is the impression of the followers of other religions about us, what is their level of understanding of Islam, what are their goals, what are the purposes, goals and effects of their demands, this is a mirror for self-accountability. Young Muslim students and researchers need to be diligent in this regard and participate in such academic projects that contribute to inter-religious and inter-cultural understanding and promote mutual unity and respect among mankind. In this way, we will all live in peace and harmony in a happy world. The Qur'an recognizes religious tolerance and respect for other religions, requiring us to abandon our prejudices, prejudices and reservations and engage in building a better world. ----- Urdu Article: The Conspiracy of the West against Islam اسلام کے خلاف مغرب کی سازش URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-west/kidwai-urdu-refutes-western-scholars-muslims/d/131275 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

Chomsky's Two Aphorisms We All Must Mull Over

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 8 December 2023 “We shouldn't be looking for heroes, we should be looking for good ideas.” ― Noam Chomsky “If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all.” ― Noam Chomsky These two very thought-stirring gems of Noam Chomsky have contributed to building my mental makeup. These aphorisms have a greater and wider scope and significance, esp. in today's context when hero-worship is at its pinnacle. December 7 is the 95th Birth Anniversary of Noam Chomsky ------ The personality cult is so overwhelming that an individual becomes the alpha and omega. When people are idolized, ideas are cauterized. This is happening in India at the moment. A leader is being idolized as a hero and all good or bad ideas have taken a back seat. Idol worship in any era and in any country has always eclipsed ideas. Once Shams Tabrizi and Maulana Rumi were discussing Bayazid Bastami (804 CE- 874 CE) and his mystical teachings. Hours elapsed and it dawned on both that they talked little about Bayazid's sublime thoughts and ideas but dwelt more upon his persona. If evolved humans like Rumi and Shams couldn't get rid of the addiction of personality cult, it's indeed very difficult for the masses to focus only on ideas and not on personalities, luminaries, celebrities and heroes. The world runs on ideas not on heroes. Men are important but musings are even more. When it comes to ideas and their fearless application as well as dissemination, we just cannot discriminate among humans. Your opponents can also be right and the right that you've to express yourself sans an iota of fear also applies to those you don't agree with. A democracy or a healthy society can thrive only when all individuals, whether friends or foes, have an equal right to express themselves without any apprehension of persecution. Is this happening in India? These intoxicated leaders, whether Modi or Rahul, must read Chomsky. But do they read? Have they heard this name? Both the bearded gentlemen give the impression of being wise but they're otherwise. ----- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/noam-chomsky-aphorisms/d/131273 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

Vegetarians Are Also Capable of Out-Heroding Herod

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 7 December 2023 "Paradoxically, the author does not advocate Vegetarianism." Anburaj "Though I don't eat meat, fish or even eggs, I don't go out and ask others to adopt my food habits. What you eat is your preference. I've no right to interfere with that.... Morality and compassion have many other ways to manifest themselves. " French existentialist Albert Camus to his daughter; she was a non-vegetarian "Muhabbat Jo Karte Hain Woh, Muhabbat Jatate Nahin/ Dhadkanein Apne Dil Ki Kabhi Kisi Ko Sunate Nahin" (Those who love, don't show their feelings/ Nor do they let others listen to their heartbeats). I'm a pure vegetarian but I don't flaunt my vegetarianism. Why should I blow my own trumpet or advocate something like vegetarianism which may be good from a health and hygiene perspective but certainly not as a moral compass or a basis to judge the alternative dietary choice or option, i.e, non-vegetarianism? Science has completely discarded the age-old belief that vegetarianism makes you a morally upright human and fills you with humane qualities like compassion and kindness. Rubbish! It's akin to saying that religion and god make you a moralist and without them one's a reprobate. The current political dispensation advocates vegetarianism. But can you find noble qualities in most of its leaders, adherents and votaries? Two of its frontline leaders call themselves vegetarians but they're capable of out-Heroding Herod. You quote Vivekananda and Ramakrishna at the drop of a hat. Both ate meat. In fact, Vivekananda was very fond of eating goat meat and Ramakrishna would love to eat fish. Hitler was a vegetarian and I needn't tell you what he did. A number of vegetarians, due to religious reasons, are outright unscrupulous people. Don't act in a condescending manner and look down upon those who relish meat. Calling them inhuman is an act of Moral Turpitude. Stop making a fetish of your idiosyncrasies. ----- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/vegetarians-capable-out-heroding-herod/d/131267 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism

Are Jokes, Laughter and General Humour Allowed in Islam?

By Kaniz Fatma, New Age Islam 6 December 2023 Islam Accepts Laughter and Joking Within Certain Boundaries, Reflecting Human Desires. It Values Happiness and Humour as Positive Aspects of Life. Sharing These Sentiments with Family and Friends Brings Pleasure and Honour. However, Excessive Humour That Harms or Denigrates Others Is Unpleasant and Dangerous, So It's Important to Balance These Qualities. Main Points: 1. Several reports hint at the humorous act of the beloved Prophet (peace be upon him). 2. According to the Quran and Hadith, while joking is acceptable, certain boundaries need to be maintained. 3. Islam prohibits jokes that can degrade, annoy, or insult others. ----- Islam is a natural religion that permits laughing and joking within certain bounds that correspond to the natural desires of humans. Happiness, vitality, and humour are positive aspects of human existence. To be devoid of these subtle sentiments is a flaw in a man, just as having too much of these things is unpleasant and dangerous and can occasionally make a person feel dry. The subtle grace and humour they share with their relatives and friends at different times might bring them considerable satisfaction and even honour. People are funny by nature, and there are plenty of justifications why this is the permissible case in Islam. Even the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) had a sense of humour, but his humour was clean, meaning it never involved lying or hurting someone's feelings. The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported to have spoken jokingly and pleasantly on several occasions. In addition to showing his most exquisite sympathy for those in need, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) occasionally cracked jokes with them. However, his humour was also very subtle and wise. Hazrat Abu Hurairah narrated: "They [the companions of the Prophet] said: 'O Messenger of Allah! You joke with us?' He said: 'Indeed I do not say except what is true.'" [Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1990] Once a large tray of dates was placed in front of Hazrat Abu Bakr, Hazrat Umar Farooque, Hazrat Uthmaan, and Hazrat Ali (may Allah be pleased with all of them), with the Prophet (peace be upon him) present. The Prophet took one of the dates and placed the seeds in front of Hazrat Ali. This is a common practice where people place seeds in front of themselves when eating dates. However, when the Prophet ate the date, he placed his seeds in front of Hazrat Ali. Everyone placed their seeds in front of themselves, and the Prophet placed his seeds in front of Hazrat Ali. When everyone finished eating, the Prophet smiled and said, "There are more seeds in front of 'Ali." Hazrat Ali replied, "Yes, O Prophet of Allah! Certainly, there are more seeds in my share." This event hints at the humorous act of the beloved Prophet (peace be upon him). An elderly lady once approached the Prophet (peace be upon him) and addressed him, saying, "O Messenger of Allah! Please make a supplicant for me. "What kind of Dua?" inquired the Messenger of Allah. "Pray that Allah grants me heaven," she uttered. The Messenger of Allah said, “O Mother of so and so! No old woman will enter heaven.” (Al-Shamail Al-Muhammadiyyah Li-Tirmidhi, Vol:1, Page:197, Hadith:241) When she heard this, she rushed outside and sobbed, saying, "This is very unfortunate." The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Go and inform the lady that no woman will enter heaven in her old age; rather, she will be made young and then enter". Joking around is acceptable, but some boundaries need to be discussed. The Almighty Allah says in the Quran: “O you who have believed, let not a people ridicule [other] people; perhaps they may be better than them; nor let women ridicule [other] women; perhaps they may be better than them. And do not insult one another and do not call each other by [offensive] nicknames. Wretched is the name of disobedience after [one's] faith. And whoever does not repent - then it is those who are the wrongdoers.” [49:11] Hazrat Ibn ’Abbas narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “Don’t dispute with your brother; don’t make jokes with him; and don’t make him a promise which you would break.” Related by At-Tirmidhi with a weak chain of narrators. [Bulugh al-Maram, Book 16, Hadith 62] It appears that jokes are prohibited by this hadith. However, this hadith only forbids jokes that degrade, annoy, or offend others. It is well known that under Islamic Shariat, jokes that don't even slightly allude to harassment or hurt sentiments are permissible. However, humour that verges on ridicule, diminishes the worth of other people, or uses derogatory language is not permitted. Anybody who has engaged in any of the forbidden actions mentioned above should humbly ask the Almighty Allah for forgiveness. If the people he has mistreated are still living, he should also request their forgiveness. ---- Kaniz Fatma is a classic Islamic scholar and a regular columnist for New Age Islam. URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-q-a/jokes-laughter-humour-islam/d/131262 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism