When Onion and Garlic Were Viewed As Foods Meant For Muslims and Dalits

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 27 June 2022 Discrimination Is So Deep-Seated In Human Psyche That Even Something As Innocuous As Food Is Categorised As Theirs and Ours Main Points: People of the subcontinent always considered Muslims as invaders with Tamsik (benighted) traits. Our food preferences are religion-based and socio-culturally conditioned. ----- The dietary world is loosely divided into two halves: Vegetarians and non-vegetarians. But in India, vegetarianism is a nuanced and extremely baffling concept as certain vegetables are considered as Abhakshya Bhojnam (forbidden food) and to the followers of Jainism, all root-vegetables are forbidden and religiously sinful! Kandam pratichhanam (the roots must be avoided) is the mantra in Prakrit (Jain aagams are written in Prakrit, which's a tributary of Sanskrit) that must be followed in Toto by all the followers of Jainism, irrespective of its numerous sects and sub-sects. But did you know, other than Jains, even many Hindus avoid onion and garlic? The reason for not eating onion and garlic is not just religious, it has its roots in the aversion to Muslims (mlechha) and untouchables (asprishya).The very concept of Saatvik Bhojan ( pure and clean) in Hinduism is the absence of onion and garlic as Hindu preachers tell their mutton-headed followers that onion and garlic are excreta of demons (Asurasya Mal). And the followers believe without questioning. But the interesting part is that despite religious texts (Manu Smriti and six Puranas) branding onion and garlic foods fit for untouchables and Shudras, even Brahmins and upper caste people were having onion and garlic centuries ago. Charak Samhita advised people to have onion and garlic for overall well-being and a healthy body. Acharya Kshitimohan Sen wrote in his Bangla essay, " Khaadyo, Dharmo o' Jaati " ( Food, Religion and Caste) that Hindus and even Jains were eating all edible roots despite religious prohibitions, but once Muslims started making their presence felt on the subcontinent after 1000 CE, onion and garlic became inedible to Hindus and Jains. Since onion and garlic (particularly, onion) have been integral to the food habits of Muslims, it was believed that these two things made Muslims so cruel despotic and lascivious. In fact, old Bangla had a proverb: Peyaji Turki, Mey Dekhe Dulki (onion-eating Turki salivates over a woman). All Turks, early invaders prior to Mughals, were considered lewd and their lewdness was imputed to excessive intake of onion and garlic. Readers may be amused that northern India's slang, Tharki (a priapic old man or Satyr) originated from the erroneously perceived ' oversexed ' Turki. An eleventh century manuscript in Sanskrit suggests that Hindus must avoid onion and garlic or else they'll become wayward like Turks! Slowly, eschewing onions and garlic set in. Despite that, Hindus were still having onions and garlic as both enhance the taste and aroma of the food. After all, old habits die hard. So, the clever priestly folks of Hinduism made the use of onion and garlic optional and conditioned that both the roots must at least be avoided during fasts. So, Hindus began to avoid onion and garlic during their fasts and some sects, like Maheswaris, totally dropped the use of both in their cuisine. People of the subcontinent always considered Muslims as invaders with Tamsik (benighted) traits. Their (Muslims) food habits and preferences were quite alien to the eastern folks. Though Hindus and Jains were already eating onions and garlic, Jain monks and Hindu priests were trying to dissuade their people from eating such foods. They got an excuse when early Muslims vandalised their shrines. Indologist A L Basham wrote that Jain monks began to put the cruelty of Muslims down to their excessive use of non-veg and onion/garlic. “Don’t emulate their (Muslims) example, you too will be like them," was the common refrain to wean onion and garlic-eating Hindus and Jains. Moreover, in all societies certain vegetables and food items suffered from resemblance factor. Pagan Greeks avoided aubergine or eggplant because it looked like a testicle! Greeks still call eggplant Fenaa Apollo (the scrotum of Apollo). A big chunk of Chinese thought that the clove of garlic reminded them of the clitoris of Yin (an anthromorphic female energy). So, nearly three thousand years ago, many Chinese wouldn't eat garlic, which's integral to their culinary culture. Humans, being inherently devolved, suffer from numerous dietary idiosyncrasies. Our food preferences are religion-based and socio-culturally conditioned. Instead of trying to become good humans, our priority is, what should be eaten and what's to be avoided to please our deities. Discrimination is so deep-seated in human psyche that even something as innocuous as food is categorised as theirs and ours. This is indeed so sad and irrational. ---- 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 world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/interfaith-dialogue/onion-garlic-foods-muslims-dalits-/d/127333 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

The Islamic Poetic Genre Naat Came into Existence as Reaction to Blasphemy

By S. Arshad, New Age Islam 27 June 2022 Kaab Bin Zuhair Composed the First Naat in Praise of the Prophet of Islam Main Points: 1. Kaab Bin Zuhair was a famous poet of Arab. 2. Before converting to Islam, he would compose satirical poems,against the prophet. 3. After converting to Islam he composed Naat titled Baanat Suad and won the prophet's mantle as reward. 4. His Naat is also called Qaseeda Burda. 5. Later Naat became the most loved poetic genre across the Muslim world. ----- This is an outstanding paradox of the pre-Islam Arab world that despite its moral degradation, it gave poetry a very special place in its society. Arab people loved poetry and an annual poetry fair or poetry festival was held in Okkaz where poets from the entire Arab world would participate and the winning poetic peace would be hanged on the wall of the Kaaba, a freat honour in those days. Such winning poetic masterpieces would be called Muallaqat. In the pre-Islam Arab society, two poetic genres were very popular. One was Hijw (satirical poetry) and the other was Qaseedah. Hijw was written against enemies and opponents, individual or tribal and most of the time the family members including women of the opponents were denigrated in filthy language. This would often cause bloodshed between tribes or individuals. The famous Arab poet Al Mutanabbi was very adept at writing Hijw and was killed by a man against whom he had written a Hijw. On the other hand Qaseedah was written to defend the honour of individuals or tribes or in praise of respected people or kings in the hope of receiving favours. Qaseedah later became an important poetic genre in Persian and Urdu as well. Poets wrote Qaseedah in praise of kings and powerful figures to get rewards from them. Kaab Bin Zuhair was one of the famous poets of Arab during the life of the prophet of Islam. He was a non-believer and so wrote satirical poetry against the prophet of Islam pbuh. The obnoxious language of the satires would hurt the prophet pbuh and his companions. Kaab's brother had converted to Islam and he would forbid Kaab from composing blasphemous poetry against the prophet pbuh but he continued with his satirical tirade against him. When the language got filthier and Kaab did not show any signs of relenting, the holy prophet pbuh ordered death punishment for him and authorised Muslims to execute him wherever he is found. This news reached Kaab and he realised his mistake. He wanted to meet the holy prophet pbuh and apologise to him but he feared that if any Muslim saw him on the way, he would be killed. So he wrapped his face with a cloth and met Hadhrat Abu Bakr, the senior most companion of the holy prophet pbuh and expressed his desire to apologise to the holy prophet pbuh and accept Islam. Hadhrat Abu Bakr escorted Kaab to the holy prophet pbuh where he apologised to him and accepted Islam. The holy prophet pbuh forgave him. Then Kaab recited a Qaseedah titled Baanat Suad in praise of the holy prophet pbuh. The prophet was so pleased that he rewarded Kaab with his mantle. The Qaseedah is known in Islamic history as Qaseedah Burdah. The poem is said to be the first Naat in Islamic literature. Earlier Naat meant any poem composed in praise of any one but in Islamic literature, Naat means poetry in praise of the holy prophet pbuh alone. Later the holy companion Hassan bin Thabit R.A. became famous for composing Naat and was honoured with the title the poet of the prophet pbuh. Whenever, enemies of Islam and detractors of the holy prophet pbuh made poetic attacks on the prophet pbuh, poets of Islam would defend him with Naat and Qaseedah praising the virtues of the prophet pbuh and singing and celebrating his greatness as a prophet. Thanks to the belief that writing and reciting Naat earns the blessings of the prophet pbuh and of God, poets around the Muslim world started writing and reciting Naat. Millions of Naats have been composed in almost all the languages of the world and it has become the most loved and the most popular poetic genre among the Muslims. Millions of collections of Naat have been published worldwide. One of the famous poets of Naat is Hadhrat Al Buseeri of the 13th century. He also composed a Naat which is also called Qaseedah Burdah. Hadhrat Al Buseeri was a great sufi. He was paralysed and so he lay in the bed all the time. Once he composed a Naat while in bed. One night he dreamt that he was sitting in the company of the holy prophet pbuh and was reciting the Naat he had recently composed. The holy prophet pbuh was pleased with Hadhrat Al Buseeri and gave his mantle to him as a reward. When Hadhrat Al Buseeri woke up he found the mantle lying on his body and he also found that his paralysis had been cured. A few days later, an ordinary looking man came to him and requested to him to recite the Naat he had recently composed. Hadhrat Al Buseeri was surprised because he had not recited the Naat before any one. He asked the visitor how he knew that he had composed a new Naat. The man replied that he was also present in the company of the prophet pbuh when he was reciting the Naat. Therefore, Naat and Qaseedah became the tools of the Muslims to peacefully defend the honour of the prophet pbuh without causing violence and bloodshed. Today Naats are more a sectarian tool to attack the opposing sects of the Muslims than a poetic tool to convey the greatness of the prophet pbuh to the world. More often they are used to make scathing attacks on those who do not subscribe to a particular ideology or belief. However, the majority of the Muslims who understand the true spirit of Islam and know about the true purpose of poetry, compose Naats that aim to express the love of the holy prophet pbuh and tell about his greatness. Amir Khusrau and other sufi poets have composed numerous marvellous Naats and poetry in praise of the holy prophet pbuh which are considered poetic masterpieces and are part of universal Islamic literature. ----- S. Arshad is a columnist with NewAgeIslam.com. URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-spiritualism/-islamic-poetic-genre-naat-blasphemy/d/127330 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

Putting an End to the Conflict about Hazrat Aisha’s Age at Marriage, It Was 19 and Not 9

By Dr. Mike Ghouse for New Age Islam 25 June 2022 The Origins Of Islamophobia Are Traceable To The Fear-Mongering Hadiths, Seerah, And The Wrong Translations Of A Few Verses In The Quran Main Points: 1. God did not deliver the Quran to a group called Muslims; it was for the Aalameen. 2. Quran is the only and only authentic book for Muslims, all others are opinions. 3. Sahih Hadith has many errors. 4. The marriage of Ma-Sita’s marriage to Shri Ram was also mentioned to be 6, but that is not true either and the arguments made are similar. ------- Putting rest to the conflict about Hazrat Aisha’s age at her marriage to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). A similar controversy is brewing about Ma Sita, Lord Ram’s wife. In both cases, the rumours are wrong; both Ma-Sita and Ma-Aisha married as adults. Links at the bottom Putting an end to the conflict about Hazrat Aisha’s age, it was 16 and not 6. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: “Despite The Highly Sexualized Image of Him in the West, The Multiply Married Muhammad Was Celibate” - Lesley Hazleton: A Fresh Insight Into Prophet Muhammad’s Conjugal Relations With His Later Wives That Has Spawned A Great Deal Of Controversy ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Muslims must take the responsibility to end the age-old controversy about Hazrat Aisha’s age at the time of her marriage to the Prophet (pbuh) – it was 16, not 6. (Minimum was 16, Max 23 per different calculations) The hadiths published were in good faith, but no one ever checked their authenticity, and they kept passing on from scholar to scholar and book to book. Thanks to 9/11, Muslims have started questioning and correcting the Hadiths, Seerah, and mistranslations of the Quran. Now, the Ulema have to issue an opinion, also known as Fatwa, to end it and remove those hadith entries. Mustafa Akyol, a scholar of Islam, implores Muslims to stop deifying “the received traditions” and critically study their religious past, shedding rigid legalism and close-mindedness. Someone else used the phrase “copycat Muslims” to identify scholars who copied what was given to them and passed it on without researching or questioning it. ----------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: Was Hazrat Aisha Married to the Prophet in Her Childhood? ----------------------------------------------------------- Muslims have witnessed grave mistakes in Hadiths and Seerah, and the Triumphalist Muslims did not even spare the Quran in mistranslating a few verses. Thanks to several sane scholars post 9/11, who have pointed out these mistakes and made the corrections, including the false translations in the copy of the Quran by Hilali Khan from Madinah, Saudi Arabia. Corrections are coming! Can we blame the average Muslim for believing that the Quran translations and Hadiths are words of God and the Prophet, respectively? No, we cannot. The ordinary Muslim believes that Maududi, Ibn Tamiya, and Ibn Kathir’s words are equal to the word of God. They are simple folks who want to live their lives in peace and don’t have the time to get rattled up determining what is right or wrong. Aisha's Age-Time Line.jpg ----- And because no one had the strength to correct the errors, they have become a source of Islamophobia, and harassment of Muslims every now and then, somewhere or the other. The controversy comes from the following Hadith, “That the Prophet (ﷺ) married her when she was six years old and he consummated his marriage when she was nine years old.” Sahih al-Bukhari 5134, Book 67, Hadith 70, and several other hadiths. ----------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: Hazrat Aisha’s Controversial Age at Marriage: Nine or Nineteen? ----------------------------------------------------------- The Prophet did not marry a six-year-old Hazrat Aisha; it goes against everything he has taught. A woman must be an adult to make her own decisions regarding faith, marriage, and divorce. Thanks to the Muslim scholars of post 9/11 for seriously questioning her age and digging into the history, cross-checking, and determining Hazrat Aisha’s age to be 16 (16-17) at the time of marriage to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). There is a line in the Urdu language, “Islam Zinda Hota Hai Her Karbala Ke Baad” meaning Islam comes alive after every Karbala. 9/11 was our Karbala and has led to many corrections of mistranslations of the Quran, but no one has dared touch the Hadiths and Seerah, they are our sacred cows. A quote from the article written by Faizur Rahman, “One Islamic preacher Abu Ammar Yasir Qadhi, has the temerity to write in his book, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Quran, that the Sunnah of the prophet can abrogate the Quran.” Zakir Naik has the guts to say that Hazrat Aisha was 6, and so did a Saudi Preacher. Do you blame the Islamophobes for pointing out the Hadith about Hazrat Aisha’s age? They are merely telling what is in our secondary books, like hadiths, even though they are called Sahih Hadiths, some of them are flawed. Once, Robert Spencer, said in an argument with me on Fox News with Sean Hannity, “As long as your books cite the Hadith, I will keep quoting it. Can any Muslim claim to know more than Ibn-Kathir?” ----------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: In Defence Of The Prophet's Marriage With Hazrat Ayesha Even If She Was A Minor, According To A Hadees Report Narrated By A Single Person, That Too A Senile Old Man ----------------------------------------------------------- The meanness in humans comes alive when someone creates an enemy out of someone or the other. The meanness among several of our fellow humans’ lit up when someone denigrates the prophet. Instead of condemning the individuals who have rattled up their peace of mind, they join the chorus. Shame on them, it is not good for their mental health. Until the Hadiths, Seerah, and Quran mistranslations are corrected, the right-wingers will keep throwing it at us. Our responsibility is to read, understand, and update the errors made in compiling the Hadiths; the Quran is the only perfect book for Muslims, not the secondary books. Your (the average Muslim) permission to talk about Islah comes from the Prophet himself when he said I am leaving this book to “you” to read, understand and follow. Did he say, you need to go Al-Azhar, Abu Bakr, Omar, Uthman, or Hazrat Ali? The Shia among us believe that he assigned that role to Hazrat Ali at Ghadeer Khum, and the Sunnis believe he did not assign it to anyone. Ultimately, the responsibility is placed on the individuals, each one of us is accountable for what we believe and how we act towards fellow humans. The test of the Hadith is – does it present the Prophet as Mercy to humanity? Is Allah the Rahman and Raheem? Do we see Allah as Rabb ul Aalameen and its full implications? Is Prophet “Ours” or belongs to all? Do Muslims limit him to a Muslim Prophet? Yes, they do? But he is the prophet of humanity. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: What's So Great About Celibacy? Could Prophet Mohammad Have Been Celibate In His Later Years As Mr. Mohammad Yunus Thinks? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Efforts continue worldwide to end the denigration of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), the man of peace and non-violence. The way Nupur Sharma narrated the Hadith in a derogatory manner is unacceptable. The poor woman was merely doing her job. So was her colleague Navin Kumar Jindal, though he went much further. The Quran calls Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) the Rahmat ul Aalameen (21:107) “We have sent you ˹O Prophet˺ only as a mercy for the whole world.” We can comfortably say the whole universe, the entire domain of the creator. To put this controversy to an end, Muslims have a few choices to consider: Forgive Nupur Sharma and Naveen Jindal and do what the Prophet did when the urchins pelted rocks at him on his way to Taif – he prayed that God helps the urchins with common sense. They need to know that Prophet was a mercy to humanity, and as his followers, Muslims will forgive the miscreants. A combination photo of suspended BJP spokespersons Nupur Sharma and Naveen Jindal./ ToI ---- Reject the Hadith as weak and full of contradictions. Remove it and highlight all such hadiths. Imam Bukhari’s collection of the sayings must be questioned and subjected to what Prophet stood for, mercy to humanity, and God, who is Rahman and Rahim. Remember, Quran is the only and only authentic book for Muslims, all others are opinions. Yes, Sahih Hadith has many errors. It is time for Muslims to follow the Quran, which the Prophet said was the book to follow after him, and review the Hadiths. We need not be copycats, deifying traditions and hanging on to the dished-out Hadiths. Hadiths, also called Hadees, are the sayings and practices attributed to Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). The Quran is a book of guidance to create cohesive societies where God’s creation, all humanity, lives securely regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, culture, or other uniqueness. God did not deliver the Quran to a group called Muslims; it was for the Aalameen, the entire universe*, and its elements to live in harmony. Those who follow the Quran are responsible for mitigating conflicts and nurturing goodwill to restore harmony. God created everything in peace and harmony and expected us to maintain it. The Nupur Sharma incident should wake Muslims up. The present-day Muslims are responsible for cleaning the secondary books – any book other than the Quran. The origins of Islamophobia are traceable to the fear-mongering Hadiths, Seerah, and the wrong translations of a few verses in the Quran. When you hear the Islamophobes misquote Islam, we get outraged, but our ire should be directed at those Hadiths and not the so-called Islamophobes. They are merely quoting what is in the books, and Muslims have a responsibility to correct the books. ----------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: Aisha bint Abu Bakr: A Fascinating Woman ----------------------------------------------------------- Interestingly, there is another controversy brewing – It is the marriage of Ma-Sita’s marriage to Shri Ram was also mentioned to be 6, but that is not true either and the arguments made are similar. References: https://centerforpluralism.com/age-of-sri-ram-and-devi-sita-marriage/ If it is not common sense, then it is not Islam. 1. Hazarat Aisha | Ma Sita’s age 6 when Shri Ram was 15 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wX67gglhvE 2. Here is info about Ma-Sita https://centerforpluralism.com/age-of-sri-ram-and-devi-sita-marriage/ Faizur Rahman https://www.hindustantimes.com/india/hazrat-aisha-was-19-not-9/story-G4kaBHqM0VXoBhLR0eI2oO.html Maulana Sabeel – Hazarat Aisha’ age 17 Min, 23 Max | Ma Sita’s age 6 when Shri Ram was 15 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wX67gglhvE Evolution of the controversy https://www.deccanherald.com/national/explained-evolution-of-the-nupur-sharma-controversy-1115742.html Pratap Bhanu Mehta – Beware of half victories https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/nupur-sharma-hate-speech-row-7955639/ 84% of 12 million children married are under 10 https://www.indiaspend.com/84-of-12-million-married-children-under-10-are-hindus-82446/ The Truth about Muhammad (pbuh) and Aisha (2012 Article) https://amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2012/sep/17/muhammad-aisha-truth?fbclid=IwAR1dkHphy3TVL17F5lYnhxR9HEUmQ-xHBUc7SJ2harwN9GdPoD4PnlRW6_w&fs=e&s=cl Omar Suleiman on Hazara Aisha’s age VIDEO – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5gDTh-6X9vo Aakar Patel – Nupur Sharma Fiasco – Society is numb to hate https://www.theindiacable.com/p/nupur-sharma-fiasco-reveals-party?s=r Ma Sita and Shri Ram’s marriage is similar to Hazrat Aisha’s controversy https://centerforpluralism.com/age-of-sri-ram-and-devi-sita-marriage/ How Old was Aishah (RA) at the time of her marriage? https://muslimmirror.com/eng/how-old-was-aishah-ra-at-the-time-of-her-marriage/ International pressure works finally with BJP https://indianexpress.com/article/india/bjp-suspends-nupur-sharma-naveen-jindal-7953884 If the links don’t open, please go to https://centerforpluralism.com/age-of-hazrat-aisha-at-her-wedding/ at the original posting for live links. ----- Mike Ghouse is a social scientist, author (American Muslim Agenda), director at World Muslim Congress, wedding officiant at Interfaith Marriages, and founder of the Centre for Pluralism. All about him is at www.TheGhouseDiary.com URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-personalities/conflict-hazrat-aisha-marriage-/d/127319 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

Old Age Homes a Blot on Muslim Society or the Need of the Modern Society

By S. Arshad, New Age Islam 25 June 2022 Old Age Homes Are Being Run By the Government in Islamic Countries like Pakistan And Bangladesh Main Points: 1. In Punjab province in Pakistan, the government runs 6 old age homes. 2. In Bangladesh, social welfare department runs a number of old age homes. 3. In India, old age homes in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Vadodra are run by Muslims. 4. Many old Muslim people land up in these old age homes. ---- Old Age Homes were said to be the product of the modern western society where nuclear family system did not have room for the elderly parents. It also existed in the non-Muslim societies of India where busy sons and uncaring daughters-in-law did not have any love and affection for the elderly people and so they left their elderly parents in old age homes. The subject of old age home was a taboo in the Muslim society because according to Islam a family is not complete without elderly parents. Islam enjoins on Muslims to treat well their parents and take care of them when they reach old age. "And We have commanded people to honour their parents. Their mothers bore them through hardship upon hardship and their weaning takes two years. So be grateful to me and your parents. To me is the final return." (Luqman: 14) Another verse also enjoins the Muslims to be good to the parents. “Be good to your parents and should both or any one of them attain old age, do not say even "fie" to them but speak to them with respect."(Isra: 24) According to a hadith in Sahih Muslim the holy prophet pbuh said that cursed was the one who found his parents in old age and did not serve them. According to another hadith in Sunan Tirmidhi, if parents are pleased with one, God is pleased with him and if parents are displeased, God is displeased. In Islam, paradise is under the feet of the mother and the father is its gate. During the life of the prophet pbuh those who had elderly parents to take care were exempted from going on jihad. All these verses and hadith make service to the parents a fundamental duty of every Muslim without fulfilling which he or she cannot attain salvation. This is the reason old age homes were thought to be an alien subject among the Muslims until a few years back. Elderly parents were taken care of in the family and were an essential part of the family. And the general notion was that old age homes did not exist in Muslim societies. However, not many Muslims are aware that old age homes not only flourish in Islamic countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan but are also run and managed by the social welfare departments of the Islamic countries. In Punjab province of Pakistan alone, 6 old age homes are run by the social welfare department of the Punjab government apart from ten private old age homes. It will be surprising to know that the oldest old age home run by the Punjab government was established in 1975. In Bangladesh too, old age homes are a reality of the modern times and so they are run and managed by the social welfare department of the government. Prabeen Hitoishi Sangha has 80 branches countrywide. The disintegrating family structure in the Muslim society due to urban development and socio-economic challenges, family relationships have suffered and old parents have suffered the most. In some cases, the elderly mother is compelled to leave the house because of the oppression, harassment and mental and physical torture by the daughter-in-law and the son finds himself helpless. In some cases, the son sends the parent to the old age home and pays a legitimate sum of money on monthly basis because he does not want an ailing parent in the house. This is an unfortunate aspect of the modern Muslim family. Sometimes, illiterate or old parent leaves the house without telling his or her son and is rescued by the police and brought to an old age home. However, there are some old men who happily choose an old age home because they feel lonely as their son lives separately. They do not have any grudges against their family. However in these old age homes, there are many who are not old but young people who do not have anyone to support. They are mentally sick people, or paralysed or with other disabilities. There are young girls who have been abandoned by their married brothers. Unmarried and childless old people who do not have any one to support them also land up there. In India too, old age homes for Muslims have come up due to the changing social scenario. Ashiana Old Age Home in Bangalore and Fatima Old Age Home in Hyderabad are two such homes. Fatima Old Age Home is a secular home but the majority inmates are Muslims. There are many Muslim families who abandon their parents despite wealth and prosperity only because they do not want an ailing mother or father in the house. There are many families who cannot take care of their parents because both the spouses work and cannot provide care for them. Some parents are left lonely because their sons have settled abroad with family. However, there are men in Bangladesh and Pakistan who happily leave their parent in an old age home only because they do not want quarrels between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. They pay monthly to the home for the services and occasionally visit them. This cannot be justified by any means. In short, the mind-set of the Muslim society is changing in face of fast the changing socio-economic conditions. Age old and much boasted Islamic family values have lost significance among the rich and the upper class Muslim society and they consider their old patents az burden and a liability. ----- S. Arshad is a columnist with NewAgeIslam.com. URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-society/old-age-blot-muslim-society/d/127318 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

“Despite The Highly Sexualized Image Of Him In The West, The Multiply Married Muhammad Was Celibate” - Lesley Hazleton: A Fresh Insight Into Prophet Muhammad’s Conjugal Relations With His Later Wives That Has Spawned A Great Deal Of Controversy

By Muhammad Yunus, New Age Islam (Co-author (Jointly with Ashfaque Ullah Syed), Essential Message of Islam, Amana Publications, USA, 2009) 20 June 2022 One Can Say with Fair Degree of Certainty That All of the Prophet’s Later Marriages Were Celibate Main Points: 1. Prophet Muhammad’s marriage with Aisha, daughter of Abu Bakr, gave him the clan protection that he needed for the security of his life. 2. Besides, in the tribal society of Prophet’s era and even in recent times female children are married off to ensure their security or for financial reasons or to move up in clan hierarchy. 3. Prophet’s marriage with Aisha, still a minor was merely of promissory nature to be consummated after she reached her adulthood. 4. The failure of all later wives of the Prophet – all widows, except Aisha, who had given birth to children to their erstwhile husbands only shows that he did not consummate marriage with any of them and that all his later marriages including the one with Aisha were celibate ------ At around age 50, Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) lost both his uncle Abu Talib and his first wife Khadija, and was thus left without any clan protection. This was about the tenth year of his prophetic mission in Mecca. The Quraysh, who had opposed him since the very beginning of his mission, now threatened to kill him. His marriage with Aisha, daughter of Abu Bakr, gave him the clan protection that he needed for the security of his life. The marriage also served as a strong testimony of the truth of his mission. Abu Bakr was a highly prestigious member of the Meccan society. He would never take Muhammad, a veritable pariah of the society at that moment in history, as his son-in-law, unless he was convinced of the truth of his prophetic mission." ----------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: Was Hazrat Aisha Married to the Prophet in Her Childhood? ----------------------------------------------------------- So Aisha's age was not any issue. Even if she were much younger than alleged in classical reports, Abu Bakr would have gone ahead with this marriage. Besides, in the tribal society of Prophet’s era and even in recent times female children are married off to ensure their security or for financial reasons or to move up in clan hierarchy. But such ‘child marriages’ remain merely on paper or oral commitment of the guardian of the child until the ‘child bride’ reaches her adulthood. Therefore, the Prophet’s marriage with Aisha, still a minor was merely of promissory nature to be consummated after she reached her adulthood. Absolutely nothing wrong or immoral about it and the Muslims must not feel ashamed or apologetic about it. Now the question is when was this marriage consummated. Regardless of colourful stories spun around this and the Prophet’s other marriages, we must take the Qur’an as the final authority on the status of the Prophet’s marriages – whether they were consummated at all or remained merely commitments to offer security and prestige to the spouses. This must be clearly understood before passing any judgment on the Prophet’s personal disposition towards all his later wives – their number not being important. ----------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: Hazrat Aisha’s Controversial Age at Marriage: Nine or Nineteen? ----------------------------------------------------------- The Prophet had lived with his first wife, Khadija, a widow many years older to him for some 25 years. After her death, he contracted some 10 or marriages – mostly widowed in their advanced ages who had children from their previous husbands. Aisha was the only exception. Around the middle of Medinite period when the Prophet had already contracted most of his later marriages the Qur’an declares: “Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but (he is) the Messenger of Allah, and the Seal of the Prophets: and Allah has full knowledge of all things.” (33:40). This forestalled any possibility of the Prophet having a male off-spring from any of his later marriages. That is to say, if the Prophet were to have any son born to any of his later wives, the Qur’an would have been falsified. The only way that the Prophet could stand up to the Qur’an’s verdict was by not consummating any of his later marriages. Besides, as the birth of a child would have given a very special honour and position to any of his wives who bore him a child, each of them must have done their best to attain a conjugal union which must have been averted by the Prophet’s profound spirituality and nightly vigil. ----------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: Aisha bint Abu Bakr: A Fascinating Woman ----------------------------------------------------------- Lesley Hazelton, one of the most eminent scholars and internationally acknowledged biographer of the Prophet of this era argues this in a compelling manner in her 2013 publication, The First Muslim, The Story of Muhammad, River Head books, New York (pg 220) Conclusion. The failure of all later wives of the Prophet – all widows except Aisha, who had given birth to children to their erstwhile husbands only shows that he did not consummate marriage with any of them for had he done so he must have had issues from them – given that each of them had children from their previous marriage. This must be true for Aisha as well who as a virgin bride had the strongest possibility of bearing a child for the Prophet. Hence one can say with fair degree of certainty that all of the Prophet’s later marriages were celibate. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Related Article: In Defence Of The Prophet's Marriage With Hazrat Ayesha Even If She Was A Minor, According To A Hadees Report Narrated By A Single Person, That Too A Senile Old Man Hazrat Aisha's Contribution In The Spread, Propagation And Legacy Of Islam Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati And Other Islamophobes' Attack On Islamic Prophet’s Marital Life Will Cease Only When Muslims Change Their Own Belief About Hazrat Aisha’s Very Young Marriage ----- Muhammad Yunus, a Chemical Engineering graduate from Indian Institute of Technology, and a retired corporate executive has been engaged in an in-depth study of the Qur’an since early 90’s, focusing on its core message. He has co-authored the referred exegetic work, which received the approval of al-Azhar al-Sharif, Cairo in 2002, and following restructuring and refinement was endorsed and authenticated by Dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl of UCLA, and published by Amana Publications, Maryland, USA, 2009. URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-personalities/sexualized-muhammad-celibate-hazleton-conjugal/d/127276 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

What's So Great About Celibacy? Could Prophet Mohammad Have Been Celibate In His Later Years As Mr. Mohammad Yunus Thinks?

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 22 June 2022 All Religions (Including Islam) Are Sadistically Anti-Pleasure and Have an Extremely Pervert Fear of Sex Main Points: 1. 1. Celibacy is an ineluctable condition for a religious person or a monk. 2. Islam being the youngest of three Semitic faiths, observed the sexul capers of the so-called celibate Rabbis and Christian priests. 3. I appreciate Islam for being in sync with nature. Celibacy is an ineluctable condition for a religious person or a monk, and Islam doesn't approve of Rahbaaniyat or monkhood either. 4. Not producing offspring is possible sans observing or practising celibacy in the usual sense of the word. ---- Mr Muhammad Yunus' most unctuous, speculative and a sort of might-NOT-have-been article on Prophet Muhammad's imaginary celibacy is against the fundamental tenets of Islam which JUSTIFIABLY discourages celibacy (Al-Euzuba in Arabic). In fact, on this count, I appreciate Islam for being in sync with nature. Celibacy is an ineluctable condition for a religious person or a monk, and Islam doesn't approve of Rahbaaniyat or monkhood either. So, what does Mr Yunus want to prove? ----------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: Was Hazrat Aisha Married to the Prophet in Her Childhood? ----------------------------------------------------------- Well, before that, it's better to understand the very concept of Celibacy or Brahmacharya. Brahmacharya is sexual abstinence due to religion. All religions (including Islam) are sadistically Anti-Pleasure and have an extremely pervert fear of sex. Having sex is tantamount to committing an unforgivable sin. That's why, the deluded Adi Shankaracharya wrote a long treatise on celibacy and when he defeated redoubtable Mandana Mishra and even his blue-stalking ( no doubt, she was very erudite) wife in a religious discourse, she asked him whether he (Adi Shankara) experienced Kama. When Shankar said he didn't experience Kama, Mishra's wife advised him to experience it to be a complete man. Shankara did some abstruse transmigrational sex (!), but didn't ' defile' his own body. The moral of the story is that sex was seen as a defilement of soul, spirit and sacredness. Celibacy put an emphasis on conserving Veerya (Sanskrit for Semen or Nutfa in Arabic). Eastern religions, esp. Hinduism and Jainism, made it a point to spread an erroneous notion that semen was the source of vital (divine) energy. So, it must be conserved in order to serve the god, as if your god had nothing to do except for finding the ' defilement of your loin' (an archaic 18th-century euphemism for the loss of semen). ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: “Despite The Highly Sexualized Image Of Him In The West, The Multiply Married Muhammad Was Celibate” - Lesley Hazleton: A Fresh Insight Into Prophet Muhammad’s Conjugal Relations With His Later Wives That Has Spawned A Great Deal Of Controversy ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Interestingly, there's still a word in Hindi/Sanskrit: Nirveerya ( Ni+Veerya) for an impotent man. Ergo, eastern religious practitioners tried their level best to retain semen as its emission in any form (even through nocturnal emission, Ehtelaam or Musht Zani/Jalaq: masturbation) was looked down upon as sin! Such sanctimonious people created a phrase Ojaswi (Oj: the 'divine glow' on the face that comes only to those who don't let their semen come out of their body!). Needless to say, it was all rubbish. Islam being the youngest of three Semitic faiths, observed the sexual capers of the so-called celibate Rabbis and Christian priests. Because of this, Islam prescribed marriage even for its clergy and there's no religiously sanctioned concept of a Salabit (an unmarried person, a priestly celibate or a person who abstains from sexual intercourse). ----------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: In Defence Of The Prophet's Marriage With Hazrat Ayesha Even If She Was A Minor, According To A Hadees Report Narrated By A Single Person, That Too A Senile Old Man ----------------------------------------------------------- So, when celibacy is not a laudable trait in Islam, why're you accruing it to Muhammad? Moreover, how can you be sure that Muhammad didn't indulge in sex after a certain period? He may have resorted to Al-Azl (withdrawal method or coitus interruptus) as he himself suggested this to his early followers as an effective contraceptive method. Furthermore, sex is not all about penetration or ejaculation. One can call oneself a celibate, indulging in non-penetrative or dry humping. Not producing offspring is possible sans observing or practising celibacy in the usual sense of the word. Lastly, what's so great about not having sex? You eat, when you're hungry. You drink, when you're thirsty. Likewise, you indulge in having sex when your body needs it. ----------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: Hazrat Aisha’s Controversial Age at Marriage: Nine or Nineteen? ----------------------------------------------------------- From the medical perspective, celibacy has many ill-effects. It may cause prostrate cancer among the male celibates and frigidity and hysteria among female practitioners. It also results in a raft of sexual perversions. World-renowned medical journal 'Lancet' carried an editorial on the stupidity and utter futility of celibacy in its January 1978 edition and urged people to abstain from practising celibacy. It went on to call it a Hormo-emotional masochism and a deliberate act of self-infliction. ---- 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 world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-personalities/celibacy-prophet-mohammad-celibate/d/127296 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

Narcissistic Netizens, Burnout Societies, Existential Angsts and the Bane of Social Media: A Psychological and Spiritual Assessment from the Perspective of Sufism

By Prof. Henry Francis B. Espiritu 23 June 2022 Happiness Is Never A Creation Of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tiktok Or What Have You In Today's Social Media; No Matter How These Social Media Platforms Are Helpful In Our Interconnectedness And Modern Communication In This Day And Age Main Points: 1. In this age of social media, people think that to be happy means to be affirmed, to be liked, appreciated, applauded and approved always by others and by society. 2. Happiness is in facing our life with hope despite the daily endeavours, struggles, conflicts and all the problems that we face in our daily grind for existence. 3. Toxic religion has also programmed our minds into believing that we have to earn our happiness by our hard efforts of pleasing God. 4. Happiness is a choice: a free decision that we have to make and a will that we have to face moment-by-moment in our lives. ----- Recently, I had finished reading a very insightful book entitled, "The Burnout Society” by a South Korean philosopher, Prof. Dr. Byung-Chul Han. This book argues that our present society is characterized by burnout, boredom, anxieties, hyperactivity, attention deficiency, depression, suicidal tendencies, existential ennui and narcissism caused by the constant feeding of our ego with social media expectations and unnecessary competitions caused by our incessant need to be affirmed, to be appreciated, to be applauded and to succumb to the tendency of comparing ourselves with social media personalities and influencers. The book says that if we want to escape burnout and depression, we just have to accept who we really are, simply do what we can do naturally, and appreciate ourselves without comparing ourselves and our achievements with that of others... In this age of social media, people think that to be happy means to be affirmed, to be liked, appreciated, applauded and approved always by others and by society. These social media markers by which many people use to measure happiness are both hazy and crazy! Happiness is never a creation of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok or what have you in today's social media; no matter how these social media platforms are helpful in our interconnectedness and modern communication in this day and age. Happiness is not even an absence of conflict and pain. Happiness is in facing our life with hope despite the daily endeavours, struggles, conflicts and all the problems that we face in our daily grind for existence. We have been conditioned to think that happiness is something earned by our hard efforts and by our trying our utmost to prove our mettle and to show to others our successes and achievements. This utilitarian-cum-capitalistic and instrumentalist view of happiness has made us extreme workaholics and having a tattered self-image that we are not enough and we do not have intrinsic value until we have delivered something huge like those great achievers who are projected by the social media. However, the hard truth is this: we cannot chase happiness. Happiness is in facing life despite the cramped and crappy circumstances that we are living. In the words of the physically blind yet great thinker Helen Keller: “From now on, let us cease chasing the merry-go-round ride of happiness and just be happy.”... It is really a great tragedy in our so-called contemporary civilized society that extractive capitalism and exploitative consumerism have programmed us to think that to be happy, one has to work like an abused donkey, accumulating loads and loads of banknotes and hoard them to no end. Toxic religion has also programmed our minds into believing that we have to earn our happiness by our hard efforts of pleasing God and wait for our happiness in the Hereafter as the reward of our good works that are somehow used as our means to bribe God so that God can let us enter into the Golden Portal of the Sweet-By-and-By. The great Turkish Sufi saint of Sunni Islam Hazrat Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi has a better view than these abusive perspectives of happiness and escapist salvationism peddled by toxic religions to us. Hazrat Maulana Rumi says that we cannot bribe our way to God since God has already loved each one of us from Eternity to Eternity and this Divine Love is bestowed by God through Grace alone without religious bribery and transactional business of being good so God can reward us. Hazrat Maulana Rumi says that we can never escape from God's Love and Grace; and it is this Grace from God that will see us through and not our own merits which we thought that we can use to buy God's approval, forgiveness and Love. God loves and forgives us unconditionally and solely by God's Mercy and Grace. In contrast to our capitalistic-consumeristic-utilitarian-instrumentalist society's skewed view that happiness is in being always applauded by others and in the obsessive seeking for the approval and affirmation of others, the great Turkish Sufi saint Hazrat Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi says that happiness is in letting ourselves be, in being content of who we are, of what we have, and of what we can realistically achieve without comparing ourselves with others and their accomplishments. In short, happiness is a choice: a free decision that we have to make and a will that we have to face moment-by-moment in our lives. Happiness is in simply choosing to be happy despite circumstances that life offers to us. Happiness is in the “Here-and-Now”... So how about it? Something to ponder in our onward journey through Life’s meaning and significance. ----- Prof. Henry Francis B. Espiritu is Associate Professor-7 of Philosophy and Asian Studies at the University of the Philippines (UP), Cebu City, Philippines. He was former Academic Coordinator of the Political Science Program at UP Cebu from 2011-2014. He was former Coordinator of Gender and Development (GAD) Office at UP Cebu from 2015-2019. His research interests include Theoretical and Applied Ethics, Islamic Studies particularly Sunni jurisprudence (Fiqh), Islamic feminist discourses, Islam in interfaith dialogue initiatives, Islamic environmentalism, Classical Sunni Islamic pedagogy, the writings of Imam Al-Ghazali on pluralism and tolerance, Islam in the Indian Subcontinent, Turkish Sufism, Central Asian Affairs, Ataturk Studies, Ottoman Studies, Muslim-Christian Dialogue, Middle Eastern Affairs, Peace Studies and Public Theology. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/narcissistic-existential-angsts-spiritual-sufism/d/127305 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

Look For the Quran in Science but Never Look For Science in the Quran

By Naseer Ahmed, New Age Islam 17 June 2022 This is a supplement to my article: Should Science And Religion Be Kept Separate? To which the answer was no, they shouldn’t be kept apart. This article adds a necessary refinement to it as a result of the discussions. The article cited, began with a quote from the Nobel Laureate Dr Abdus Salam and proceeded to say why he was wrong and why the Quran and Science should not be kept apart. The relevant quote is as follows: “There is a verse that says, We have created everything living out of water. There are words about heaven and earth were united together and We spilt them apart. A man who believes in the big bang will perhaps read the Big Bang. I do not. I do not believe that the Big Bang may last forever by our scientific thinking. It would be absolutely stupid to connect the science of today to what is essentially allegorical, religious, spiritual experience which I think is a totally different dimension” I had argued that Dr Salam’s diffidence betrayed the insufficiency of knowledge and faith in the Quran and that science is bound to converge with the Quran. If the current scientific thinking has converged with what the Quran says on the same subject, then that is the truth as far as that subject is concerned and there is no need for any diffidence. The subsequent article: Dr Abdus Salam, Science, the Big Bang Theory of Creation, and the Quran, was a detailed response to a probing question by a young commentator who had asked why I had said that Salam’s argument expressing doubts about the Big Bang theory was only rhetorical. I also gave my reasoned opinion on why I thought Salam was reluctant to endorse the accurate description of the creation event in the Quran. Why One Should Never Look For Science in the Quran Let us look at what Salam said and apply it to the situation when the astrophysicists and cosmologists had assumed a static universe with no beginning and no end, both in time and space. Any attempt to reconcile the “scientific thinking” then with what the Quran says on the subject would have been as Dr Salam has said, very stupid. This is looking for science in the Quran which we can see is stupid because science is not Al Furqan and is subject to drastic revision as happened when the Big Bang theory of the creation of the Universe replaced the earlier static view of a never-changing universe. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Also Read: Islam Does Not Inhibit Science: Islamic Culture Has Produced Many First-Rate Scientists Who Were Also Devout In Their Religious Observances ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Also, there are writers who try to reconcile the theory of evolution with the Quran when there are no verses that lead us to such thinking and they, therefore, reinterpret many of the Quran’s verses to prove the theory of evolution finds support in the Quran. This is again looking for science in the Quran treating science as Al Furqan which is an unwise thing to do. The theory of evolution may get discarded as a good theory which proved to be untrue. Moreover, the Quran is not a Book of either Science or history and therefore why look for science or history in the Quran? However, Always Look For the Quran in Science Consider the verse: 21:30 “Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before we clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing.” How does anyone see what the verse is asking the people to see? What the verse is saying is not out there for us to see except by collecting relevant data through methodical observations and its analysis as we do in science. The verse is therefore clearly asking us to see in science, (if necessary), what the verse has said. It is the right approach to look for the Quran in science since the Quran is directly and explicitly asking us to do so. Science is simply the name for a reliable and proven method of making observations and arriving at conclusions that are verifiable as to their correctness and the means to disprove if the conclusions are incorrect. We have discussed the verses relating to the creation of the universe with reference to the current scientific thinking in the article: The Al Furqan Prevails As It Must We discussed the significant difference between the Quran saying that there was something before the Big Bang creation and science saying there was nothing. This was discussed in the article: The Big Bang Theory and the Quran We showed how developments in physics since the Big Bang theory, are converging with what the Quran says about what existed before the Big Bang and also about the process of recreating the Universe afresh at a future date. We also explored the meaning of “(21:104) The Day that We roll up the heavens like a scroll rolled up for books (completed),- even as We produced the first creation, so shall We produce a new one: a promise….” without the help of science to begin with. We failed in our understanding of the verse although what it says is in very plain language and easy to understand. We failed because we imagined our universe to be spherical in shape and wondered how this could be rolled up like the scroll of a book that is completed. We then looked for an explanation in science and found out to our amazement, that the universe is not spherical in shape as we had imagined, but is flat. The universe is therefore like a roll of paper which is spread out gradually as its story unfolds, and when the story is finished, it will be rolled back as a book that is completed. The description is not only accurate but beautifully describes the expanding universe as the unfolding of its story and the end as the story getting completed and the book in the form of the scroll spread out then rolled back. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Also Read: Science Should Be Separated From Religion: No Point in Proving Changing Scientific Theories from Quran ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The learning from this small experiment is that our correct understanding of the Quran is prevented by the wrong notions that we have about the subject of the verse. This explains why many of the verses of the Quran get mistranslated because what the Quran is saying in plain language goes against the beliefs of the translator about the same subject. The series of articles cited and discussed above demonstrate a systematic methodology for discovering the meaning of the Quranic verses from the book of our life’s experiences which includes science. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Also Read: Islam, Science and the Muslim Predicament ------------------------------------------------------------------ Conclusion To conclude: 1. The first step is to get the literal meaning of the verse right. This is not a simple matter because a verse that is difficult to understand is likely to be also mistranslated. For example, the word “Samavat”, refers to the rest of the universe except the earth and never to the “blue sky above” but in many verses is translated as “the sky” which causes confusion. What falls from the “Samavat” to destroy is therefore not a piece of the sky but an object from above and perhaps a meteorite. Whenever “Samavat” is translated as “sky” the meaning makes little scientific sense. There is no word in the Quran that speaks of the sky. Trust the Quran to say the right thing the right way and never ever deviate from its literal meaning or resort to fanciful interpretations. If the word is frequently used in the Quran, determine its meaning from the Quran itself. If it is used only once or not frequently enough to facilitate determining its meaning from the Quran, then rely on the dictionary meaning. 2. If the verse does not make sense from what we know, look for its explanation in science or the relevant branch of knowledge 3. If a satisfactory explanation is found that fits the literal meaning of the verse then that is the correct explanation 4. If there is a difference between the meaning of the verse and what science tells us, the Quran is right and scientific thinking has yet to converge with what the Quran has said. 5. Do not look for science in the Quran even when the subject is covered in the Quran because science may not have caught up with what the Quran says. We discussed this in the context of the verses on the creation of the Universe. If we had looked for science in the Quran on the creation of the Universe, before the 20th century, we would have found that the two hold opposite views and are irreconcilable. In such a situation, it means that the Quran is right and science is yet to catch up. Until then the verses may remain enigmatic but their literal meaning will be proved right someday in the future. 6. The Quran is not a book of science and therefore do not even expect to find all of science in the Quran. 7. The Quran is Al Furqan or always right. Science is not Al Furqan or always right but converges to the truth eventually but we do not know when. Therefore, looking for an explanation in science if we can find one makes sense but not vice versa. Science is not Al Furqan with which we should “interpret” the Quran to bend it to yield a meaning that conforms with current scientific thinking. That is a very unwise thing to do. All my articles follow the methodology outlined. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Also Read: God-Realization and Modern Science ------------------------------------------------------------------ ----- A frequent contributor to NewAgeIslam.com, Naseer Ahmed is an Engineering graduate from IIT Kanpur and is an independent IT consultant after having served in both the Public and Private sector in responsible positions for over three decades. He has spent years studying Quran in-depth and made seminal contributions to its interpretation. URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-science/quran-science-god-abdus-salam/d/127269 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 does The Quran lay Equal Stress on Namaz and Zakat?

By S. Arshad, New Age Islam 23 June 2022 Islam Wants Muslims to Establish Financial Stability In Society Main Points: 1. Zakat is one of the five pillars of Islam. 2. Zakat was made obligatory in previous Abrahamic religions as well. 3. Namaz and Zakat are equally stressed in many verses. 4. Zakat is the right of the needy, the travellers and poor relatives. ----- Tauheed, (faith in one God), Namaz (five times prayers), Saum (fasting), Zakat (alms tax) and Hajj (pilgrimage to Kaaba in Makkah, if affordable) are the five pillars or fundamental traits of Islam. Among them, Zakat is a specific portion of a Muslims wealth to be spent on the needy in the society. All the other fundamental duties are directed towards pleasing God but Zakat is directed towards the needy of the society. Islam envisions a society where equality is achieved in all spheres of society, social, political and economic. In order to achieve financial and economic equality, Islam has mandated that the Muslims should care for the economic and financial prosperity of the members of the society he lives in. For that it has made paying of zakat to the needy and poor so that the gap between the rich and the poor is not so wide as to facilitate exploitation and starvation and give rise to crimes. Exploitation and depravity result in social restlessness and paves way for rebellion and social and moral crimes. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: The Zakat – A Pillar Of Faith, As Actualized Today Is A Grand Mockery, If Not Fraudulent Realization Of Qur’anic Message On Wealth Distribution And Social Justice. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- This was the objective behind zakat on which the Quran stresses so much that in many of its verses, it mentions zakat together with Namaz. The equal stress on zakat and Namaz demonstrates Quran's concern for the financial wellbeing of the individuals of the society. Harmony, peace and development cannot happen in a society where a section gets full meal and another section starves. The Quran makes it clear that the wealthy have been made the guardians of the poor, the needy and the downtrodden and so they need to take care of them. In some verses, the Quran tells the rich and the resourceful that the needy and the poor have a legitimate share in their wealth. Therefore, in many verses, the Quran enjoins the Muslims to establish Namaz and pay zakat in the same vein. "And establish Namaz and pay zakat and bow in Namaz with those who bow."(Al Baqarah: 43) The Quran assures the believers that what they spend on the poor and the needy will not go in vain but they will get their rewards in the Hereafter. God keeps account of every penny spent on his slaves. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: Reflections on Qur'anic Message - Part-12: Institutional Zakat - The Bedrock of Islamic Socialism Feeds Islamic Capitalism in This Era – God Witnessing ------------------------------------------------------------------- In surah Bani Israil, the Muslims are enjoined to give charity to those relatives who are needy, the destitute and the traveller. (Verse no.8) "And establish Namaz and pay zakat and whatever you will send in advance you will find it as a reward before Allah, indeed Allah sees what you do."(Baqarah: 110) "Those who believed and did good deeds and established Namaz and paid zakat for them their reward is with their Lord, they will neither fear nor grieve."(Al Baqarah: 277) In the Makkan society, zakat was not practiced though it had been enjoined on the earlier religious communities as well. The business of Riba was in vogue. Islam made zakat mandatory and it contributed to the prosperity of the Muslim society. However, after the prophet pbuh, some tribes around Madina said they would renounce Islam if they were forced to pay zakat. It had created a crisis but the first caliph Hazrat Abu Bakr dealt wih the situation with an iron hand. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: The Zakat Today Grossly Underplays the Qur’anic Emphasis on Zakat and Wealth Sharing ----------------------------------------------------------------------- The Quran says that the believers, men and women, are like friends to each other. A man always cares for the wellbeing of his friends. He does not want his friends to fall upon evil ways and so forbids him from doing evil deeds. Similarly, he always guides him on to the right path. He likes for his friends what he likes for himself. In the same way, he also takes care of the financial wellbeing of his friends. He provides financial support to his friends to stand up on their own feet. This is the role believers’ play in the society. The Quran says: "And believing men and believing women are friends of each other, they preach good and forbid evil and establish Namaz and pay zakat and obey Allah and His prophet they are those on whom God will shower mercy, indeed Allah is exalted in might and Wise." (Tawbah: 71) "So establish Namaz and pay zakat and hold on to Allah steadfastly, He is your Lord and the best Lord and the best supporter."(Al Hajj: 78) "And establish Namaz and pay zakat and obey the messenger so that you deserve mercy."(Nur::6) "Guidance and good tidings is for the believers who establish Namaz and pay zakat and believe in the Hereafter."(Al Naml:2-3) "Those who establish prayer, pay alms tax and have sure faith in the Hereafter."(Luqman: 4) "(O wives of the messenger!) And establish Namaz and pay zakat and obey Allah and His messenger."(Al Ahzab: 33) "You will not achieve success in righteousness until you spend a portion from your most precious possession and Allah knows what you spend."(Al-e-Imran: 92) Iman is not complete until a Muslim pays zakat along with offering five times prayers. Since zakat is one of the five pillars of Islam, a Muslim cannot be a true believer until he pays zakat. "And those who establish Namaz and spend from what provisions We have provided them are true believers."(Al Anfal: 3-4) Zakat is related to Huquq Ul Ibad (rights of the individuals of the society) and in Islam, the believers cannot achieve salvation if they only fulfil their duty towards God. Their piety and their prayers have no meaning if they do not fulfil their duty towards their neighbours and relatives, and other creations of God. The paying of zakat makes the society of the believers a well knit family in which every member takes care of others and provides help and support in need and in crisis. They preach one another piety, righteousness and moral values and prevent them from the evil path. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: Muslim Zakat: Reigniting the Fire of Camaraderie ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Since zakat has been made a fundamental pillar of Islam and a collective duty of the rich and well to do, it needs to create an efficient system for channelising the zakat money for a judicious distribution of the zakat money. In many Muslim minority societies, the zakat money is distributed individually and so does not contribute to the financial prosperity of the lower classes. If collected and channelised in an organised manner the zakat money can bring about financial and economic revolution in the society. ----- S. Arshad is a columnist with NewAgeIslam.com. Hindi Article: Islam Stresses both on Namaz and Zakat इस्लाम में नमाज़ के साथ-साथ ज़कात पर भी ज़ोर दिया जाता है Urdu Article: Islam Stresses both on Namaz and Zakat اسلام میں نماز کے ساتھ ساتھ زکوۃ پر بھی بہت زور دیاگیاہے URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-ideology/quran-namaz-zakattauheed-saum/d/127301 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

Rezaul Karim Fought Against the Partition of India

By Saquib Salim, New Age Islam 24 June 2022 “Let All The World Know That The Indian Muslims Are Not A Minority, As The Term Is Understood In European Politics. Excepting These Differences In Religious Creed, There Is Nothing That Can Distinguish A Hindu From A Muslim” Main Points: 1. The popular historiography lands us into a belief that except for Maulana Abul Kalam Azad no other Indian Muslim leader was fighting against the partition of India. 2. Rezaul Karim, born at Birbhum (West Bengal), was a nationalist Bengali Muslim leader who devoted his life to fight against the communal divisive politics. 3. Partition plan was nothing but a culmination of what started off as the partition of Bengal and separate electorates. ----- “Let all the world know that the Indian Muslims are not a minority, as the term is understood in European politics. Excepting these differences in religious creed, there is nothing that can distinguish a Hindu from a Muslim.” Rezaul Karim, a freedom fighter from Bengal, wrote these words in his popular book Pakisthan Examined with the Partition Schemes written in 1941 to convince Indian Muslims against the demand of Pakistan made by Mohammad Ali Jinnah and Muslim League. It is a tragedy of the Indian history writing that while a lot of space has been given to Muslims supporting Muslim League, the Indian Muslims who fought for a United India against the divisive politics of Jinnah were either forgotten or remained at the margins of our history books. The popular historiography lands us into a belief that except for Maulana Abul Kalam Azad no other Indian Muslim leader was fighting against the partition of India. The truth is far from this misconstructed notion. Maulana Husain Ahmad Madni, Allah Bux Somroo, Khwaja Abdul Hamied and Allama Mashriqi were few of those popular leaders who were ready to take militant measures to stop the partition of India. Rezaul Karim, born at Birbhum (West Bengal), was a nationalist Bengali Muslim leader who devoted his life to fight against the communal divisive politics. Today, our textbooks do not mention his name as among the founder of the nation. Karim wrote extensively in Bengali and English throughout his life to inculcate feelings of nationalism and Hindu-Muslim unity among the Bengali Muslims. His book For India and Islam argued how Islam and Indian nationalism were not in contradiction. When Vande Mataram written by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay was universally accepted as a communal issue, Karim dared to write Bankimchandra Nikat Musalmaner Rin, a Bengali essay defending Bankim’s writings as anti-colonial and not being anti-Muslim. In 1940, after the Lahore Resolution was adopted by Muslim League Karim wrote Pakistan Examined with the Partition Schemes to counter the idea of Pakistan. Karim argued that the idea that Hindus and Muslims are two distinct nations was ahistorical. Neilesh Bose of the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada, writes, “Rezaul Karim developed a Bengali Muslim composite nationalism that aimed to connect religion, region and nation in the context of a subjunctive, possible future India.” At the very outset of the book, Karim attacked the intentions of Muslim League leaders by saying, “Strange to say that all those persons who have always supported British imperialism in India, have become now the advocates of the Pakistan movement. But those Muslims who always supported the freedom movement of the country are almost to a man stoutly against this movement” He countered the argument that historically the region north of river Yamuna was distinct from other parts of India. Karim showed that from the times of Alexander till Mughals and the British Punjab and North West Frontier Provinces were part of India. In his view, if partitioning the land on the basis of religion was natural then it should have been done by medieval rulers. Instead, during medieval times Hindus and Muslims united behind rulers belonging to either religion. Karim believed that the partition plan was nothing but a culmination of what started off as the partition of Bengal and separate electorates. For him the idea of global Muslims as citizens of one nation was fictitious. He wrote, “the belief that Muslims of the world are of one nation, is only a fiction, an imaginary ideal which was never realised in practice, and will never be done so. Muslims outside India disown us as their kith and kin, they hate us as foreigners, they neglect us because of our slavery, and if they are placed in power, they will subjugate us, humiliate us like foreign conqueror. Why should we then allow ourselves to be subjugated by a foreign Power on the ground that that power is a Muslim Power. Therefore our position in India is just the same as it is with the Hindus of the land. We belong to India, and we are one nation with the people of the land.” Minority rights, in Karim’s view, were nothing but a tool to divide the nation. There could be several groups who would claim these minority rights thus, “minority protection in the ultimate analysis is not the protection of the Muslim interests ; it is the vivisection of India into various groups, sub-groups and parties so that any coherent action by the combined forces of the people will not be possible in India. Therefore minority interest does not mean Muslim interest. Minorities are always minorities; they can never be made majorities.” Karim asked the Indian Muslims to rally behind a united India and reject divisive communal politics of Muslim League. He wrote: “I take pride in India in all her past glories and honours. Robbed in splendour and dignity let our common mother regain once more her former freedom and majesty. Let India be our motherland in the truest sense of the term. All that grew on its broad bosom is our inheritance. Its Vedas, its Upanishads, its Rama, Sita, its Ramayana, and Mahabharata, its Krishna and Gita, its Asoka and Akbar, its Kalidas and Amir Khusru, its Aurangzeb and Dara, its Rana Pratap and Sitaram—all are our own inheritance. None of them is alien to us—Muslims, — or alien to our civilization and culture. Whatever is bad in it or whatever is good in it — all belongs to me. Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Parsis, Sikhs whatever community resides in India are brothers to me. With them I form one undivided nation and with them I fall and with them I rise. My fate has been linked up inseparably with the rest of India. Therefore we the Hindus and Muslims and other communities should stand before our Mother India in love and veneration and show respect to her. Our unhappy mother is in bondage and we should liberate her and make her free, happy and contented. Let us welcome the New India that is coming—the New India that is emerging out of the debris of one hundred and fifty years of foreign domination. Let us all salute our noble Mother India—not southern India and northern India, not Hindu India and Muslim India, but India as a whole, undivided India in its entirety—India the Universal mother of all civilization, and culture. Let us not partition our Motherland India, and cut to pieces the nerve-centre of her very existence. Let her remain one and undivided, and a single whole, so that we may call her children our own brothers, the bone of our bone and flesh of our flesh. And there lies our salvation.” URL: https://newageislam.com/books-documents/rezaul-karim-partition-india/d/127312 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

Recruitment of Child Soldiers in Yemen a Gross Violation of Human Principles

Houthi Militia Has Pushed Children into the War Field Main Points: 1. More than ten thousand children have been recruited by the Houthis. 2. More than 2,000 children have been killed in fighting. 3. Children aged six to 13 are forced into the war. 4. Parents are threatened with dire consequences if they refuse to send their children to training camps. ----- By New Age Islam Staff Writer 23 June 2022 Nearly 2,000 child soldiers died fighting for the Houthis between January 2020 and May 2021, according to the UN [File: Khaled Abdullah/Reuters] ----- The war in Yemen between the Saudi Arabia-led coalition and the Iran-backed Houthi militia has been going on since 2014 when the Houthis had captured Yemen's capital city Sanaa forcing the Yemen government to the South. In 2015, Saudi Arabia entered the conflict and since then the civil war has turned into a regional conflict. More than 150,000 people have been killed so far and the infrastructure of the impoverished country has been heavily damaged. The country is facing famine like situation. People of Yemen do not have safe drinking water, sufficient food, health facilities and medicines. Children are the worst affected lot in this war. They face starvation and death due to the war. The worst part of the crisis is that the Houthi militia has been pushing Yemeni children into the war as soldiers. Children as young as six years and as old as 13 years are being recruited by the Houthis and sent to the war front. This is a gross violation of child rights and of the international protocols. This is in violation of their own pledge taken in 2012. They had pledged to end the use of child soldiers in the war. In April 2022, the Houthis had again signed an action plan with the UN to stop the recruitment of child soldiers in the war but the aid agencies working in Yemen have reported that the Houthis have intensified recruitment of child soldiers due to the escalation of war in recent weeks. This is a serious breach of UN charter and amounts to committing war crimes. The Houthis go door to door in their captured areas and ask the parents to send their children to the training camps which they call 'summer camps'. In these camps, the children are first imparted ideological education and then given combat training before sending them to the battle field. Many children have died fighting the Yemeni government and Saudi coalition forces. The Houthis hold these 'summer camps' in schools and mosques. They threaten the parents that if they do not send their children to the summer camps, they will not receive food. In a country where food is scarce, parents are compelled to send their minor children to fight as professional soldiers. The Houthis say that 12 year old children are not children but true men who fight to defend their county and Islam. The children are taught to shout the slogans, 'Death to Israel', 'Death to America', Curse to the Jews' etc. The children are made to belive that they are fighting the Jews and the Americans who are the enemies of Islam whereas the truth is that the war is being fought on sectarian lines and the opponents are the Muslims. Though the Houthis are apparently fighting for Islam they are violating the principles of Islam and the tradition of the holy prophet pbuh who did not allow minor children in battles. Even in the modern age the age for enlistment in the army is 17 to 18 years in most of the Muslim and non-Muslim countries. The lowest is 16 years which is in Bangladesh. According to a report of the UN, from January 2020 to May 2021, 2,000 children have died in the war. According to a report of The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor and the SAM for Rights and Liberties, the Houthis have forcibly recruited 10,300 children in Yemen since 2014, warning of dangerous consequences failing to address this phenomenon might cause. The report stated that the Houthis use complex patterns to forcibly recruit children and put them in hostile areas under its control in Yemen. Many children were killed, as a result, and hundreds were injured. The report documented the names of 111 children who were killed during the battles between July and August 2020 only. The report, entitled “Militarizing Childhood”, highlighted the Houthis’ use of schools and educational facilities to lure children to recruitment. The group uses an education system that incites violence and teaches the group’s ideology through special lectures inside the official educational facilities to fill students with extremist ideas and encourage them to join the fight to support the group's military actions. The report indicated that during the past three years (2018, 2019, 2020) the Houthis began an open and compulsory campaign to recruit children. The group opened 52 training camps for thousands of adolescents and children in Saada, Sanaa, Al Mahwit, Hodeidah, Tihama, Hajjah and Dhamar, targeting children 10 years old or above. However, it would be wrong to hold only the Houthis responsible for this plight of the Yemeni people, particularly Yemeni children. All the stakeholders, Saudi Arabia, its allies, Yemen government and Iran and the US, are equally responsible for this humanitarian crisis. The atmosphere of insecurity fuelled by the US in the region is at the root of this crisis. The Saudi Arabia saw the emergence of Iran backed Houthi militia in its neighbouring Yemen as a threat to its economic and security. Iran has used the Houthis to further its economic and political interests in the region at the cost of Yemeni people. They should learn a lesson from Russia which despite its hostilities with Ukraine has sent humanitarian assistance for the people of Ukraine. Saudi Arabia, Iran and other Islamic countries have not done much to solve the crisis and help the people affected by famine and food shortage. The UN needs to take some concrete steps to stop recruitment of innocent children by the Houthis and also bombardment of schools housing children. Islamic countries, particularly, the OIC should intervene to stop the war and save Yemeni people from starvation. URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-human-rights/child-soldiers-yemen-human-principles/d/127302 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

The Muslim Response to Disney’s Light Year Is a Storm in a Teacup

By Junaid Jahangir, New Age Islam 22June 2022 Many Arab Muslim Men Greet Each Other With Kisses on the Cheeks, And Many Pakistani Muslim Men Hold Hands to Show Affection for One Another Main Points: 1. More than a dozen Muslim countries banned the Disney animation ‘Light Year’ for featuring a lesbian kiss. 2. Clash of civilizations seems to be strongest on LGBTQ rights. 3. Censor a lesbian kiss is not about homophobia but about upholding Muslim values of Iffat (chastity) and Haya (modesty). ----- Recently, more than a dozen Muslim countries banned the Disney animation ‘Light Year’ for featuring a lesbian kiss. The movie caused a kerfuffle on social media, as different Muslim individuals started posturing Muslim values on raising their children. On the other hand, there are those who categorically brand such Muslim positions as homophobic. This clash of civilizations seems to be strongest on LGBTQ rights. However, on deeper reflection the whole issue is much ado about nothing. First, public displays of affection (PDA) are frowned upon in Muslim cultures, as the focus is on Tazkiyya Nafs (purification of the soul). The idea is to confine sexual expression to the contract of marriage and to restrict elements that stoke Shahwa (desire) in public spaces. Thus, if the kiss between Cinderella and Prince Charming or generally between Disney Princes and Princesses is redacted, then to censor a lesbian kiss is not about homophobia but about upholding Muslim values of Iffat (chastity) and Haya (modesty). Second, homophobia in terms of two men holding hands is a feature of Anglo-Saxon societies. In contrast, many Arab Muslim men greet each other with kisses on the cheeks, and many Pakistani Muslim men hold hands to show affection for one another. This was noted by Muhammad Asad, who wrote about Arab Muslims in his book The Road to Mecca, that: “Their inner security could be observed in the way they behaved toward one another: in the warm dignity with which they met or parted; in the manner in which two men would walk together, holding each other by the hand like children -- simply because they felt friendly towards each other.” While Muslims may reject same-sex unions based on their reading of their religious texts, it does not necessarily mean that they are acting out of a callous hatred of LGBTQ individuals. All it means is that their morality is shaped by a tradition that does not allow space for such marriage contracts. This is not to say that there is no homophobia in Muslim countries. Indeed, homophobia is a universal prejudice that is virulently found in places like Russia and Jamaica, just as it is found in Muslim countries, where authoritarian leaders try to retain their legitimacy by targeting vulnerable sexual minorities. Thus, censoring the lesbian kiss is less about classic homophobia and more about Muslim leaders plucking a low hanging fruit to retain their legitimacy. Third, Muslim countries have their own way of addressing the concerns of sexual minorities. After all, notwithstanding societal discrimination, at least based on religious texts, transgender folks have been accommodated by the highest of the Sunni and Shia religious bodies at Al Azhar in Egypt and Qum in Iran. In other words, thoughtful Muslim religious scholars remain attentive to the human rights of sexual minorities. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Also Read: On Banning Disney's 'Lightyear' Over an Innocuous Kissing Scene -------------------------------------------------------------------- However, they also reject reshaping society by gender ideology or by a highly individualistic narrative of minority rights that trumps the concerns of traditional families in western spaces. Similarly, they reject what passes of as “activism”, which uses abstruse words like “heteronormativity” and “cisheteropatriarchy” and facilitates free sexual expression outside marriage (the so called “open relationships”) or nudity at Pride Parades, which are justified and celebrated in public spaces. Thus, censoring the lesbian kiss is less about human rights and more about maintaining traditional Muslim values against Fahisha (indecency) in Muslim spaces. All of this is not to say that Muslim religious authorities are vanguards of human rights. For they have much work to do to find a reasonable solution to the concerns of gay and lesbian individuals. While such scholars have every right to reject western approaches and unbridled desires of human beings, they do have the responsibility to offer Islamic equivalents on the issue of meeting genuine human needs of intimacy, affection, and companionship. This could entail multiple Islamic approaches like forbidding Muslims from spying on the private lives of gays and lesbians through cell phone and online technologies, covering their affairs through afw (forgiveness) and Darguzar Karna (overlooking), and working towards establishing Islamic rules to bring order into the lives of a hidden minority that is susceptible to sexual anarchy, narcissism, objectification, self-loathing, constant infighting and nit-picking, and sexual consumerism. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Read More: ‘Gay Rights’ Versus The ‘Human Rights Of Gays’ – A Fresh Insight Into The Broader Message Of The Qur’an --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Overall, the public discourse that is often polarized between charges of homophobia by so-called “activists” and by rigid callous behaviour of firebrand Muslims should give way to a more nuanced approach on the matter. After all, Islam is the religion of the Tariq Al Wasat (the middle path), which avoids extremities, and offers a balance between individual human rights and collective family values and responsibilities. ------ Junaid Jahangir is an Assistant Professor of Economics at MacEwan University. He is the co-author of Islamic Law and Muslim Same-Sex Unions. With Dr. Hussein Abdullatif, a paediatric endocrinologist in Alabama, he has co-authored several academic papers on the issue of same-sex unions in Islam. He contributed this article to NewAgeIslam.com. URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-society/muslim-response-disney-light-year/d/127291 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

Defeating Theological Construct of Radical Islam: Excerpts from the Book ‘How Sharia-Ism Hijacked Islam’

By Hasan Mahmud, New Age Islam 22 June 2022 (From a chapter of the book “HOW SHARIA-ISM HIJACKED ISLAM” by Hasan Mahmud) ---- Islam was not hijacked by the birth of Muslim Brotherhood in 1928 or by Jamat-e-Islami in 1941 in India or by Taliban in the 1980’s or in 2001 by the devastating event on 9/11. The brutal reality is all these radical organizations or groups herald the theology of Radical Islam that was created 1400 years ago. Early Muslim soldiers were mighty victors; they captured a vast area in the greater Middle East, North Africa and parts of Europe. This spectacular victory was unique in two distinct ways; (A) it took place in the name of God, and (B) it lasted for hundreds of years. Muslims experienced their explosive military victories for generations. So, it was natural for them to connect the Quranic verses of war with the verses of victory, such as, “(Muslims) must certainly triumph” and Allah will make Islam “superior over all religions.” Consequently, Islam was “explained” based primarily on aggressive war by theological cherry-picking. The Quran was “explained” and Sharia law was created in its support; a hundred plus verses of values, compassion, and peace were overshadowed by a few verses of war. Following is the text based on chapter Tawbah verse 29 (known as “Verse of Sword”). 1. “They (Muslims) were not permitted to abandon ‘the fighting’ against them (Pagans, Jews and Christian) and to reconcile with them and to suspend hostilities against them for an unlimited period while they are strong and are able to fight against them (non-Muslims). As it is obvious, at first “the fighting” was forbidden, then it was permitted and after that it was made obligatory – (1) against them who start “the fighting” against you (Muslims). (2) and against all those who worship others along with Allah…as mentioned in Sura Al Baqarah (ll), Al Imran (lll) and Tauba (lX) and other Surah (chapter of the Qur’an).” 2. “The Caliph fights all other peoples until they become Muslims.” - Sharia law. 3. As establishing Islamic State was made obligatory, lying for that was made obligatory too. • “Truth is one of the most important principles of Islam and lying is one of the greatest sins. But in real life some needs are such that telling a lie is not only allowed, in some circumstances it is decreed mandatory.” (Maududi) • “Lying is obligatory if the goal is obligatory.” (Shafi’i Law r.8.2) Obviously, lying is obligatory for Radical Islamists for the purpose of creating Islamic State. This is upfront violation of Quran chapter 2:42- “Do not mix truth with falsehood, or hide the truth when you know it”. Military victories, however, are destined to die out. In 732 CE, the Spanish Caliph Abdur Rahman invaded city of Tours in France. After a furious battle, he was defeated and killed on 10 of October by the French general Charles Martel, known as “The Hammer.” After this, Muslims were “never able to mount a serious offensive at Western Europe again. When the dream of global domination by war collapsed, a theological detour was undertaken. Previously, the “power of iron” in the verse, “And We sent down iron, wherein there is awesome power and many benefits for people” had been explained as “iron here is meant political and military power.” Now the same “power of iron” is explained in Sharia book as “Power of Islamic State.” The tragedy is deepened further by the contemporary Sharia-Bolsheviks such as Hasan Banna, Sayed Qutb, Maulana Maududi, and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini: 1. “The Qur’an has delegated to Muslims the duty of bringing humanity, which has gone astray, to the right course and granted them the leadership of the world……Therefore the duty of guiding and instructing humanity devolves on us and not on the West.” 2. “Nor could it (Islamic faith) be taken as a belief that promises a paradise in the next life to those who perform its rituals, without applying in their everyday life its distinctly unique institutions, jurisprudence and methodology.” Finally, from Maulana Maududi, the founding father of modern version of radical Islam in 1941 and Ayatollah Khomeini, the founding father of Islamic theocracy in Iran in 1979, came the following statements: 3. “The Muslim Party will inevitably extend invitation to the citizens of other countries to embrace the faith……..Even otherwise also if the Muslim Party commands adequate resources it will eliminate un-Islamic governments and establish the power of Islamic governments in their stead…... Islamic “Jihad” does not recognize their (non-Muslims’) right to administer State-affairs according to a system, which in the view of Islam is evil.” 4. “Although an Islamic State may be set up anywhere on earth, Islam does not seek to restrict human rights or privileges to the boundaries of such a State.” 5. “The system of this (Islamic) government is such that it does not leave much room for man to exercise his own free will.” 6. “Islam, speaking from the viewpoint of political philosophy, is the very antithesis of secular Western democracy.” 7. “(Regional) Nationality based on family, birthplace, language, race, etc., is a great danger for humankind…If there is any enemy to Islam’s call after Kufr (disbelief) and Shirk (multi-deities), it is the devil of nationality based on blood and birth-place…One has to shun feeling of land and blood (regional nationality) to remain a Muslim…… The ideas and bases on which the European Nationalism flourished are much against humanity…. Islam’s ultimate goal is to create (Islamic) World-State.” 8. “Islam makes it incumbent on all adult males, provided they are not disabled or incapacitated, to prepare themselves for the conquest of countries so that the writ of Islam is obeyed in every country in the world.…… What is the good of us asking for the hand of a thief to be severed or an adulteress to be stoned to death when all we can do is recommended such punishments, having no power to implement them?” (Khomeini) This Is Radical Islam. Recently, it forcefully attacked human civilization in the shape of Al Qaeda, ISIS, Boko Haram and Al Shabab. Crime and wrong-doings are ubiquitous and the West is no exception. Radical Islamists capitalize on this and propose the Islamic Caliphate is a divine alternative, denying the fact that the era of the Caliphate was mostly blood-stained anarchy. Radical Islamists in the West cleverly play victim-syndrome. They are adept in using the laws, multiculturalism and societal norms of their host countries to advance their objectives, even in instances when their nefarious deeds have been exposed. Mosques in London have been caught selling extremist materials and spreading violence. Furthermore, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation found 10% of US Mosques preach aggressive Jihad. Many Imams violate local law and openly perform polygamous marriages. After championing the rampant violation of rights of women and non-Muslims in Muslim countries, radical Islam has increased its pressure groups exponentially in the West, with most of them using their citizens’ rights as shields. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has succeeded in capturing the Human Rights Council of the United Nations (UN). Now its goal is to defeat Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) by using the Cairo Declaration of Human Rights in Islam (CDIUHR) and establish its own independent human rights commission. “In the last plenary of the Human Rights Council the Pakistani delegate claimed, ‘it is an insult to our faith to discuss the Sharia in this forum.’ The president of the Council agreed and ruled that it would no longer be permissible to discuss in detail any particular system of law.” The UN is in danger of creating a global blasphemy law that would make religious criticism a crime, even when these laws rampantly violate Human Rights as well as its own Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This is radical Islam. Its weakest front is its theology. All good forces of humanity should dismantle it with the progressive Muslims at the forefront. Next, we will discuss the theological construct of peaceful Islam, its historical development, and its impact on Muslim societies. ------ HASSAN AL-BANNA, WHAT IS OUR MESSAGE? (Islamic Publications, 1974). E.g. QURAN 2:193, 217, 244, 246; 3:146, 153, 154; 4:74-78, 84, 94, 95, 104; 5:94; 8:39, 65, 72, 73; 9:5, 14, 19, 29, 38, 88, 112; 47:4, 31; 48:16, 22; 61:2, 4, 11. See also QURAN 5:56. QURAN chapter 9:33. Sahih Al-Bukhari, page 1081, translated by Dr. Md. Muhsin Khan, Dar-us-Salam, Medina, KSA (1994). UMDAT AL SALIK (Shafi’i Law# o9.9 [and 0.9.8 based on 9:29 of the Quran]), translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller, Amana Corporation, (Revised edition, 1997). This chapter is added by the translator based on three other early Islamic texts. MAWLANA MAWDUDI, TARJAMANUL QURA’AN 54. UMDAT AL SALIK (Shafi’i Law# r8.2), translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller, Amana Corporation, (Revised edition, 1997). Nazeer Ahmed, The Battle of Tours, History of Islam, https://historyofislam.com/the-battle-of-tours/. QURAN chapter 57:25. CODIFIED ISLAMIC LAW 245, (Vol. 3. 1995). HASSAN AL-BANNA, WHAT IS OUR MESSAGE?, Islamic Publications, (1974). SAYYID QUTB, ISLAM, THE RELIGION OF THE FUTURE, International Islamic Publishing House, (1992). MAWLANA MAWDUDI, JIHAD IN ISLAM, The Holy Quran Publishing House, (1939). MAWLANA MAWDUDI, HUMAN RIGHTS IN ISLAM, Islamic Foundation, (1976). MAWLANA MAWDUDI, A SHORT HISTORY OF THE REVIVALIST MOVEMENT IN ISLAM, Islamic Publications, (1963). MAWLANA MAWDUDI, THE ISLAMIC LAW AND CONSTITUTION, Lahore: Islamic Publications, (1977). MAWLANA MAWDUDI, HISTORY OF JAMAT-E ISLAMI. Ayatollah Khomeini, many sources and citations. Video available at Truth Tube TV website. 10% of US Mosques Preach Jihad According to FBI, The Right Perspective (2009). Raheel's Reflections, RAHEEL RAZA, http://Hudud.raheelraza.com/raheelblog.htm, last accessed 22 April 2017. See e.g. Mary Abdelmassih, Forced Islamization of Christian Girls Supported by Egyptian State (23 Dec 2009), ASSYRIAN INTERNATIONAL NEWS ASSOCIATION, http://Hudud.aina.org/news/20091223164421.htm. See also Robert Spencer, Pakistan: Muslim groups threaten more violence against Christians (5 Aug 2009), JIHAD WATCH, https://Hudud.jihadwatch.org/2009/08/pakistan-muslim-groups-threaten-more-violence-against-christians. Quote originally published in the Saudi Gazette. Speaking Freely About Religion: Religious Freedom, Defamation and Blasphemy, INTERNATIONAL HUMANIST AND ETHICAL UNION, http://iheu.org/newsite/wp-content/uploads/Speaking%20Freely%20about%20Religion_0.pdf). ---- Links of free download of the book "How Sharia-Ism Hijacked Islam - The Problem, Prognosids and Prescription" Original English version, (available in amazon too):- http://hasanmahmud.com/index.php/books/how-sharia-ism-hijacked-islam URL: https://newageislam.com/books-documents/theological-radical-shariaism-hijacked/d/127289 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