I don't think that will be necessary. I look like the average Mittelsinid Han Chinese.

Dude a Han Muslim is nothing special. There's a grip of them in China.

Peace



What about Hadiths that deal with things that the Quran don't speak on? For example, Quran talks about cleaning yourself for Wudu. I know that there are Muslims that add on to the Wudu and claim that you have to do it that way, such as brushing the teeth and such. Not quite sure if thats Hadith or Sunna however Id figure its Sunna.

Ive come to the place where I think that Islam as it is today is corrupted like Christianity. Islam has invited many Christian beliefs, such as Jesus being resurrected and being born of a virgin. Ive had some talks with other people who have studied Classical Arabic and have found completely new meanings to what other Muslims seems to teach. Whats your thought on all those miracles that are apparently mentioned in the Quran (or that Muslims seem to believe they see there)? Like for example, the hoopoe that King Solomon threatened. After hearing from another brother, he told me that a lot of bedouins had bird names which makes it more logical that Solomon perhaps knew other languages/dialects instead of the proposed talking to animals. Same with An Naml.

I never said there's anything special about it. It's just the first time I've met a Han Muslim. That's all.


I think the general idea behind the Sunnah is that since Muhammad was the one who received the Quran, he must therefore be the most knowledgable about the Quran. If a certain authentic Hadith is traceable to Muhammad through multiple reliable chains of transmission, then I think it's worth taking into account. However, I only view the Sunnah's teachings as recommendations rather than requirements, as I don't think it's necessary to always follow Muhammad's example. The way in which some Muslims view him as a perfect example would be bordering on idolatry in my opinion.

Many of the Islamic laws now practiced, as well as many of the miraculous interpretations of the Quran, are based on rulings given by Islamic jurists in medieval times. Islamic laws and interpretations are supposed to be updated along with the times through ijtihad, but many Islamic scholars these days have given up on ijtihad and simply follow whatever medieval Islamic scholars have said without casting any doubt. I think that is why Islam just isn't as progressive as it used to be in medieval times, but has instead become more dogmatic like Christianity was back then.

Peace



Thats true, but doesn't the Quran state that Muhammad was to utter nothing except the Quran? Theres even a Hadith that says that Muhammad said not to make a hadith about him, since it can get corrupted over time ie Chinese Whispers. I personally think that the Isnad isn't fool proof at all. There are some good Hadiths though, yet Im not inclined to put them above Quran. Its like reading philosophy IMO. Lots of Muslims utter Muhammads name and the Sahaba more than God, its a shame. Your god is what occupies your mind most of the time.

Ijtihad would mean that the meanings get changed over time, which I think means that the religion itself is flawed. It shouldn't change from when it was revealed to now. I believe this is why the Quran states that it was revealed in perfect arabic. That means that it has no connotations to other beliefs, like how many Muslims now relate Malikat to angel when in Arabic it really means Force. Whats your thoughts on Jesus being born of a Virgin? Last time I checked in Quran, it never mentioned such a thing. Again, I find that the corrupted Islam where it borrowed Judaic and Christianity principles in order to make it more viable. Astagfirallah if I am wrong.

you can add me on the list.

One Love,One Blood.
Jah bless.

Peace bro,

Do you have a reference to that Hadith where he says not to make a Hadith about him? I agree that most Hadiths probably were corrupted over time, especially considering the fact that they were transmitted through oral tradition, but I'm sure that some of them were not changed, like much of the Mutawir ones (which only make up a tiny fraction of all the Hadiths). Nevertheless, I agree that the Hadiths should never be given more priority than the Qur'an, but it's unfortunate that some Muslims treat the Hadiths as if they were equal to the Qur'an.

Ijtihad doesn't mean that the Qur'an itself should be re-interpreted over time, but it means that logical reasoning should be used to deduce new rulings for new situations that did not exist in the early 7th century Arabian context when the Qur'an was revealed. When the early Ummah came into contact with different cultures, environments and technologies, they had to rely on Ijtihad to deduce new rulings related to those new situations. There's an interesting journal article called "The Islamic Origins of the Common Law" by John Makdisi which describes how the methods used by early Islamic jurists (including Ijtihad) formed the basis of the common law system now used in English-speaking countries.

I'm not really sure whether Jesus was born of a virgin... do you have any references elaborating on your point of view? There's also differing opinions on how Jesus died. The Qur'an states that Jesus did not die from crucifixion, which some Muslims metaphysically interpret as him somehow being raised to heaven by God, while some other Muslims interpret it as meaning that he was simply saved from crucifixion without any miracles involved. What is your opinion on this? Do you think the former view may have been influenced by pagan ideas?

Welcome, brother in Islam.

For more guidance of Islam online, I suggest you go to Islamonline.net. Arguably, its one of the best Islamic reference site for you. Besides, the famed ulema Sheikh Yusof Al-Qadharawi is the consultant for the site.

Independence Day: The Appreciation and Annual Celebration

By Dr Mohamad Asri Zainul Abidin
Mufti from the State of Perlis, Malaysia

A true independence is achieved when a man gets to liberate himself from being a slave to other being to submitting himself only to the Lord of all beings.

There is no such thing as total independency in a human’s life. If a person is being submissive to each other or disdainful of each other, then he cannot be a true slave to Allah, God of all existences. If a person can be a true slave of Allah whose faith is sincerely dedicated to Him, then he will be able to free himself from the clutch of slavery among human beings. In another words, if a person possesses a truly sincere faith to Allah, consequently he is liberated from the lowly feeling and disgraceful soulfulness towards other than Allah, and vice versa.


No one is completely independent in living his life. Even those who claim that they do not believe in God and are free from any man made laws are still slaves to their own desire and convoluted thoughts that in the end demolishes their true human nature. Just look at what happened to the followers of the Communist block and teachings. In the end, Lenin and Karl Mark became the new Gods in their life. Allah says in surah al-Jathiyyah verse 23 (translated as): “Then seest thou such a one as takes as his god his own vain desire? Allah has, knowing (him as such), left him astray, and sealed his hearing and his heart (and understanding), and put a cover on his sight. Who, then, will guide him after Allah (has withdrawn Guidance)? Will ye not then receive admonition?”

That is why when the Muslim army entered a certain country it was not called colonialism or a conquest. Instead, it was called al-Fath meaning the opening, such as Fath al-Makkah meaning the Opening of Mecca. Therefore, when the Muslim crusade, in their grand era, entered a certain region, it was named as al-Futuhat al-Islamiyyah that is the Islamic Opening Up. This means that the arrival of Muslims into a certain region or country was with the objective of liberating the souls from oppression, vilification and cruelty bringing them into a just system that is founded on the true faith to Allah. If this did not materialize, then it indicated that they had committed subjugation or conquest. This in turn denies the genuine nature of Islam because Islam is not a religion that is sent down to subjugate others but instead, the function of Muslims is to liberate human’s life wholly from slaving among themselves to prevailing the system of Allah that is just to all. This is what was affirmed by Rib’i bin ‘Amir in front of the Persian army: “Allah has awakened us so that we emancipate whoever He wishes from the slavery to others towards the slavery to Allah, from the cruelty of religions to the justness of Islam and from this narrow world to the vastness of this world and Hereafter.” (Refer to: Ibn al-Athir, al-Kamil fi al-Tarikh, 1/413)

This was the mission attempt to be executed by the Muslim community during its grand era. Thus, when the Muslims were in power over the world during that period, they developed liberated souls and led the rise of a civilization that was shared among all humankind. Under the emblem of Islam, the Arab Muslims had succeeded in bringing the brilliant torch of Islam to all human races. The empire of Islam advanced and it became a haven for all humans regardless of race and religion where justness was for all to relish. Go and ask the Jews this, when did their writings get to expand? It was no other than during those times when they were living under the Islamic government in Baghdad. All the while, before that, they were always being oppressed by various races and religions. However, they were a group that had a strong tendency to forget about other people’s kindness towards them. Go and ask the followers of other religions, have they been hunted down and killed mercilessly under a government that utilizes Islam as its foundation? Unfortunately, the Muslim community consistently has to endure experiences of being hunted down and killed ferociously under the system of authority that uses other than Islam as its principle.

As for the Muslims themselves, without regarding ethnic background since al-ukhuwah al-Islamiyyah (Islamic Brotherhood) is more important, they shared a grand civilization. Subsequently, prominent scholars of Islam who were not Arabs were born while the Muslims government was in the hands of the Arabs. In the field of hadith which is the great source of knowledge of Islam for example; al-Imam al-Bukhari whose real name was Abu Abdillah Muhammad bin Ismail (deceased in 256H), the author of Sahih al-Bukhari was not an Arab. His origin was from Bukhara, Uzbek. Al-Imam Abu Isa, Muhammad bin Saurah al-Tirmizi (deceased in 297H), the author of Sunan al-Tirmizi was also not an Arab. He came from Tirmiz. The author of Sunan Abi Daud, Sulaiman bin al-Asy’ath al-Sajistan (deceased ib 275H) was not an Arab and came from Sajastan. Similarly, the author of Sunan al-Nasai Ahmad bin ‘Ali bin Syu’aib al-Nasai (deceased in 303H) was also not an Arab. He was from Nasa, one of the states in Khurasan. Similarly, the author of Sunan Ibn Majah, Muhammad bin Yazid al-Qazwaini (deceased in 279H) was not an Arab but was from Qazwain. As for al-Imam Muslim bin al-Hajjaj (deceased in 261 H), the author of Sahih Muslim, the scholars have different opinions regarding whether he was an Arab or not. Many stated that he was also not an Arab. Even though they are all not Arabs, Islam honored them as the prominent scholars of Hadith for this Ummah, a revered position that is acknowledged by the Arabs and non-Arabs. In the field of politics, Salahuddin al-Ayubi (deceased in 589H) was also not an Arab. He was from the ethnic group of Kurdish. Nevertheless, he succeeded in becoming the sultan who was loved by the Arabs and non-Arabs. He succeeded in administrating the Islamic government during his time until they managed to return al-Masjid al-Aqsa to the Muslims.

However, when the Muslims failed to execute this mission, they would become a humiliated community. Just imagine this, how was it possible for a small country like Denmark to be able to cross the vast ocean and occupied a big country like Indonesia? In similar condition were the Portuguese people who came from a great distance with a few vessels capable to occupy Malacca. As such, the condition must have been more devastating for the Arab countries. A community that was once able to build a brilliant civilization in the end turns out to be a nation under defeat that kneels down shamefully in front of the conqueror. Alas! You are right Amirul Mukminin Umar ibn al-Khattab when you uttered you divine statement upon the opening of Masjid al-Aqsa: “We were once a humiliated race and Allah honored us with Islam. If we look for honor with other than what Allah has honored us with, we will be humiliated by Allah.” (The chain of reporters of this narration is judged as sahih (sound) by al-Hakim and was supported by al-Zahabi, refer to: Al-Mustadrak, 1/237: Dar al-Ma’rifah).

Nevertheless, with Allah’s blessing, most of the occupying forces have left the land of the Muslims. Yet, it was after they have confiscated the land’s bounty and drained the sweat and blood of this Ummah. Probably, due to the teaching of Islam, this Ummah cannot accept the prevalence of occupation. Allah says in surah al-Nisa’ verse 75 (translated as): “And why should ye not fight in the cause of Allah and of those who, being weak, are ill-treated (and oppressed)?- men, women, and children, whose cry is: “Our Lord! Rescue us from this town, whose people are oppressors; and raise for us from Thee one who will protect; and raise for us from Thee one who will help!” Al-Qurthuby (deceased in 671H) said: “Allah urged the Muslims to perform Jihad (holy war) to save those (among the Muslims) being oppressed by the infidels who tortured them with the worst torture there was and slandered their religion. Thus, Allah commanded Jihad to uphold His Word, to bring victory to His religion and to save His slaves who were weak.” (Al-Qurthuby, al-Jami’ li Ahkam al-Quran, 5/279, Beirut: Dar al-Fikr)

Either due to religious consciousness or politics, the rise to fight the occupying forces happened in almost all occupied countries. However, their departure from a certain region did not mean that it was the end of occupation in all aspects. A conquered race, if they failed in upholding their own sanctified identity, would be much affected by the race that had once conquered them. Even after the conqueror had left their land, a weak race would consistently look up to and like to be with a race that was strong and magnificent. Or, when humans were oppressed, some would only think of their own interests and not that of their community. Thus, it was not surprising to see that for each conqueror, many among the locals would be willing to be their loyal assistances. They are the ones who bring about the mission and policy of occupation. That is why if we succeeded in defending our identity, we would be liberated even though our land was being occupied by others. In the history of Islam, the Mongolians who conquered the Muslims’ land became Muslims themselves. Although there were many shortcomings, that phenomenon represented the resilience of a community, whose country was being occupied, even after their military strength fell and broke into pieces.

Speaking of having low self-worthiness, it is like when we meet with some Malays who have only stayed in the ‘white people’s country’ for only a few years but claim that they are now less capable to speak in Malay. In fact, I have met with a lecturer in the university that I work with who said that it is hard for him to speak in Malay since he has stayed in England for a year and half and has a ‘white man’ as a foster father. He supposedly has forgotten the language that he has lived with for over 20 years and the language of his real father who took care of him since he was a baby. Anyhow, that is an example of a degradation of the soul. The real issue is that a weak race will feel proud if they are able to be a part of a strong race. If a Bangladeshi who has only been in Malaysia for a few months is able to speak in Malay, can a Malay tongue become stiff only because of a few slices of cheese? Clearly, it is not about language but rather it is about the lowliness of soul and the failure to liberate one’s own notion. Therefore, in this world without borders, occupation does not necessarily require military and war artillery but instead, it only requires strength in identity and propaganda. It is in such a way that the Hollywood thought succeeds in occupying the minds of our youths. Realistically, in many cases, this world is continuously being occupied by the Western propaganda through the media, economic power and the un-emancipated souls of other nations.

Therefore, for the Muslims, building a Muslim identity as well as an emancipated soul as a symbolization of independence is critically important. It is not that we cannot take any benefit from the West but most importantly, the identity of Islam must be preserved. I was exhilarated when Tun Ahmad Fairuz suggested that the English Common Law be replaced with a set of law that originates from our homeland and corresponds with the syariah (the way of belief and practice of Muslims). This matter was subsequently supported by the Attorney-General and the government top leaders. This is a symbol of emancipated souls and the return to the original identity. Yet, this intention must be kept burning and not be left as mere information in newspapers.

This particular meaning of independence must be consistently employed. The celebration of independence itself is good. However, for a Muslim, his manner of celebration should adopt the identity of Islam. Because of that, I get very upset over a television commercial that displays a salute of respect being performed to the National Monument. Even though it is actually not an act of worship but the teaching of Islam is very sensitive towards any such element, and that culture does not even originate from our people but it was a legacy from the occupation regime.

Happily celebrating the day of independence so that we know how to be thankful of what we have now is not wrong. Similarly, we are also allowed to entertain ourselves as long as it is done using the guideline provided by Islam. However, the celebration of independence itself should not overshadow the real meaning of independence. Our youths should not gather and shout words of independence driven not by their independent souls but doing it as a mere celebration without feeling the meaning of it. Their style and manner should symbolize a soul that is independent from the conquering grip of humans and is tied to the one divine faith. We certainly cannot accept the implementation of religious related matters without first understanding the evidences and meanings. Definitely, we also cannot accept those that celebrate the day of independence but lacking the understanding of being an independent nation. The gathering of youths for Independence Day celebration will not achieve its objectives if it is only to watch entertainment performed on stage. Instead, they should be gathering to represent their honest love to the country that has been providing a safe haven to the nation, religion and dignity, and not do it as a mere yearly event. After understanding this fact, then shout the words ‘Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka!’

Determining the Muslims’ standpoint towards the West

By Dr Mohamad Asri Zainul Abidin
Mufti from the State of Perlis, Malaysia

Within this atmosphere of celebrating Independence Day, we should have a re-look at the world that once conquered us with the right stand. It is very difficult for some groups to adopt a fair attitude on this issue due to a few factors. One factor is the strength and grandeur of the West that has succeeded in influencing the humans’ minds. Another factor is the degeneration or weakness of the world of Islam that causes the great philosophy of Islam to seem as if it is a fairy tale that does not belong to the real world.


I always make an analogy, if there is a certain product in which one type is produced by the West without them listing its advantages and the other type is produced by the world of Islam with them listing all its advantages, the general perception will be that the one produced by the West is of greater quality.

This is because the West in general has succeeded in building an impressive trademark for their block of the world while the world of Islam has always been perceived in a cynical way in various matters.

The world of Islam that is supposed to be the forerunner in human and material development has degraded and lost its function to others. As a resultant of losing our self-identity that is a divine faith that functions as the basis of the Muslims civilization, we lost the civilization that we had once built. Furthermore, a part of the Muslim community are still living in a severe state of shirk (joining others in worship with Allah) and khurafat (superstitious notion). Just look at what is now exist in Indonesia, Egypt and Morocco and the likes of them. They are not only falling behind in time but they are also lacking the genuine Islam. Deviant belief in charms, sorcerers, mysticism, khurafat, holy men and the likes of it is controlling the life of some of the Muslim community.

Though they claim that they are Muslims but their fortress of faith has long been destroyed.

In addition, some ethnic traditions and principles that contradict the system of Islam have overridden the religion’s function. The Muslim women in some societies for instance are being so oppressed in regards to their rights as women or even as human beings. Daughters are like a commodity for their fathers who have the total authority to marry them to whomever they (the fathers) wish without allowing the rightful owners of those bodies to voice their objections. Similarly, wives are like slaves of their husbands whom have been given by the local culture the authority to enslave their wives in true sense of the words.

The ugly faces of these ethnic groups that adopt Islam have actually tainted the beauty of Islam seen through the eyes of the world. After depicting the grandness of previous Muslim generations, ‘Ali Tantawi said: “The majority of the Muslims today, due to their careless attitude in executing the obligations of this religion, are falling behind the other societies and they become the reasons for the enemies of Islam to degrade Islam.” Jamal al-Din al-Afghani, also known as Muhammad Abduh, said these great words: “Islam is being concealed by its followers.” (Ali Tantawi, Mauqifuna min al-Hadarat al-Gharbiyyat, pg. 45, Jeddah: Dar al-Manarah).

Thus, the spreading of development and the changes in certain norms that are happening in the Western world is influencing the world of Islam. The West that was previously falling far behind compared to the development that was once achieved by the Muslims. The same West has now succeeded in controlling the civilization of materials and is trying to emerge as the symbol for a successful civilization of modern humans.

This is actually as a resultant of the negligence of the Muslims especially the religious group and leaders. The unlearned religious cluster has made the religion to become very narrow that rejects modernism and only concentrates on issues of fardhu ‘ain (self obligation). Whereas, many leaders in the world of Islam are self-interested and abandoning their duty in developing the society.

Consequently, for most races including the Muslims, all perceptions that they have are focused towards the West. Supposedly, the West is perceived as the symbol of lifestyle of the modern time as well as the advocators for human rights and freedom in this era.

In confronting this challenge, four major attitudes have surfaced in the middle of the Muslim society who has been falling far behind:

First group: Among them, some just accept whatever that comes from the West, disregarding the religion and not heeding to the religious authoritative texts. It is like the prominent figure in literature of Egypt named Taha Hussain. He called for Egypt to copy the West and abandon its Islamic way in order to progress ahead. He stated in his book Mustaqbal al- Thaqafat fi Misr (The Future of Knowledge and Culture in Egypt): “We must follow the footsteps of the Europeans and their way. We must be their allies and partners in civilization, be it good or bad, be it sweet or bitter, be it well-liked or abhorred.”

Even more than that, he stated: “All these show that we, in this modern time, wish to associate with the West in a relation that keeps getting stronger each day. That is until we become a part of them in words and meanings, in essence and in appearance.”

He also stated: “We have to make the West feels that we see everything the way that the West wants, we evaluate everything the same way that the West does and we judge everything the same way the West does.” (Quoted from Abu al-Hasan Ali al-Nadwi, Al-Sira’ Bain al-Fikrah al-Islamiyyah wa al-Fikrah al-Gharbiyyah fi al-Aqtar al-Islamiyyah, pg. 111, India: al-Majma’ al-Islami al-‘Alami)

Second group: They do not specifically state that they reject the religion but they try to interpret the authoritative texts of Islam to suit the modern life in the West. Whatever text from al-Quran and al-Sunnah that contradicts the West will be interpreted as much as possible in such way so that it suits the way of life in the West.

To them, the way of life of the West is the foundation and the religious authoritative texts must be adapted to it. Whereas in the principles of Islam, the authoritative texts from al-Quran act as the foundation and life must be adapted to it and not the opposite. It is like what was mentioned by al-Qaradawi: “They demand that Islam changes but they do not demand that changes be Islamized.” ((Al-Qaradawi, al-Marji’iyyat al-‘Ulya fi al-Islam: li Al-Quran wa al-Sunnah, Beirut: Muassasat al-Risalah).

For example, they attack the modesty of the Muslim women’s clothing because it contradicts the lifestyle of the Western women. However, trust that if the Western women wore the Hijab, they would definitely do their best to find the evidence to support that practice. If the Western women wore the veil, they would surely do their best to gather the evidences to proof the requirement to wear veil.

Because they see the women of the Western world are exposing their bodies unlike the Muslim women, therefore they try to interpret all religious authoritative texts to suit that condition. It is like the cluster of liberalists that are proliferating in some Arab countries and Indonesia. They do not state that they intend to abandon the religion but they are interpreting the religion in such way that it mirrors the general perceptions accepted by the Western community. Whereas, the basic discipline in the study of religious authoritative texts is that the texts determine the verdict and not the verdict determines the texts.

Dr. Salah al-Khalidi said: “In truth, some people have erred in their interaction with al-Quran. They enter the vast world of al-Quran using the wrong method. Among them, some bring with them (in entering the world of al-Quran) a compilation of knowledge, culture, manners, tradition and attitude that is in contrast with the commands of al-Quran and consequently, the light of al-Quran is shielded from them. Some enter the world of al-Quran with a certain pre-conceived thinking that disturbs his thoughts when he sees the al-Quran and thus, his vision is obstructed and he falls into a state of haziness and confusedness. Some take up the al-Quran with a certain intention and background as well as a specific objective to achieve and subsequently, he deviates his way, manipulates and squeezes religious evidences and texts, and toils in producing religious commentaries to be used as justifications for him.” ((Salah Abd. al- Fattah al- Khalidi, Mafatih li al-Ta’amul ma’a al-Quran, pg. 90, Jordan: Dar al-Manar).

Through this wrong method, all religious evidences will be interpreted to suit the pre-determined need. They do not intend to follow al-Quran but instead, they take action beforehand and later look for the evidence from al-Quran and al-Sunnah and they interpret it in such way that it conforms to the action that they have taken.

Thus, al-Quran and al-Sunnah do not have a guiding function anymore but instead it is used only as a ‘stamp’ to justify their actions. Whereas, the actual yardstick for their actions is the general principle that they see is being accepted in the West.

The third group: This group rejects anything coming from the West. To them, everything that originates from the West is kufr (of infidelity) or misguided or, at least, contradicts Islam. They do not differentiate between attitude, culture and other values that do not contradict Islam with the elements that conflict it. Once, they even got the extent of protesting against neckties clothing, eating using forks and spoons, speaking the ‘white men’ language and the likes of it.

Their reasoning was that it all originates from the West. Moreover, in some religious learning center, up until these days, some regard the study of Science, Mathematics, Geography and the likes of it as secular and worldly study. Thus, they do not emphasize it and some even look at it repulsively.

Their extreme enmity towards the West causes them to forget that those fields of study have contributed a lot to the Muslim society and most of the foundations were even laid down by the Muslims themselves during their golden era. Islam is a religion for this world and Hereafter. In actual, their attitude of segregating those elements from the religion is in itself has a secular quality to it. They also forget that the bosom of Islam is wide to absorb benefits from any angle that can bring goodness to humankind. Of course, it is with the condition that those elements must not contradict the al-Quran and al-Sunnah.

The fourth group: They filter everything in the West with the filter of Islam. Progress is acknowledged. Even the progress being enjoyed by the West is actually a scoop of the progress once enjoyed by the world of Islam. Islam never states that it opposes to the West or East, North or South. Not all that are in the West have to be rejected. Similarly, not all that are in the East have to be accepted. Who knows how much of the attitude and culture in the West is close to the requirements of Islam such as hardworking, punctuality, cleanliness and many more of similar nature.

Likewise, who knows how much local culture such as gossiping, resentment, laziness and the likes of it very much contradict the teachings of Islam. The scale of measurement for all these is the right interpretation of the texts in al-Quran and al-Sunnah.

Islam is a religion that can live in and is applicable for all times and era. The development achieved by the West should be given its rightful respect as well as a fair filtering process. It has to be acknowledged that in the teachings of Islam, some matters are determinate and cannot be changed. On the other hands, there are certain matters that are opened to the changes of place and time. I have in fact touched on this issue in my previous writings.

This kind of comprehension is the standpoint of the Muslim community that is truthful to their religion. The perception and principle of the West should not be rejected bluntly and similarly, it should not be swallowed wholly.

It is with a full consciousness that we state some matters involving the understanding and practice of the Muslim community do require some reviews. The door of ijtihad (study, interpretation and opinion) is kept opened until the Day of Resurrection. No one has the right to close it.

However, for the researchers of this religion, their souls need to be supplied with the feeling of fear to Allah in expounding the religious rulings. Ijtihad is based on knowledge and not on ignorance and desire. Many new elements brought up by the Western development need to be evaluated with a just and impartial notion. Furthermore, many virtues in the West are nearer to Islam compared the occurrences and practices in the world of Islam.

The attitude of prejudice and narrowness towards all Western elements only degenerate the Ummah and causes us to become stagnant from taking advantages from others. On the other hands, the attitude of liberalism that lacks of any principle only destroys the genuine teaching of Islam.

A Pure Soul Searches for the Truth

By Dr Mohamad Asri Zainul Abidin
Mufti from the State of Perlis, Malaysia

The human journey to search for the truth is necessary for the pure fitrah (human innate nature). A person who has a sublime soul will not find satisfaction in his heart until he finds the true path that is trusted by both his mature mind and wholesome fitrah.

Even if a person possesses wealth, it will not bring tranquility to his soul so long as he does not find the path leading him to his true God. That is because Allah has disposed in a person’s soul the need to acquire the truth and the desire to live life the way that He Blesses.

If a person deviates from this fitrah, his soul will suffer even though he is wealthy and possesses power. Although he seems to be happy and cheerful but deep down in his heart there is an excruciating emptiness. A person who does not live his life the way that God has stipulated will always feel emptiness in his soul or feel as if his search in life is incomplete. If left untreated, it can turn into a sore cancer.

We always read stories about famous artistes getting involved in drug abuse or celebrities killing themselves. It is not as if they are lacking of wealth, influence or have lost the chances to party. They have actually lost the pure fitrah. Thus, a true faith, an honest religious hold and a life guided by the rulings of Allah are necessary for a soul and function as a remedy for emotional sickness. If a person does not take this medicine, although we can see his sweet smile, but deep down inside his feeling, there seems to be a rebellion of his soul and never ending disturbance to his tranquility. If he realizes this, he will in turn try to search for the truth.

That is the reason behind the stories we usually read about many prominent public figures in the West and the East who try embracing different religions until, in the end, some embrace Islam. If he were not conscious of it, he would try to cure his emotional sickness by indulging in life frenzy getting involved in various activities in his effort to find serenity for his soul.

That is why some people endeavor in pursuing various weird activities like performing self-endangered stunts while riding motorcycles, jumping from high places in a dangerous manner and many more of the same nature. Otherwise, they may get involved in noble activities like the fight to defend the life of a certain animal or plant.

Although some of those activities are very commendable and befitting Islam, but they are in truth in search of something to fill up the void that they cannot comprehend in their souls. Allah says in Surah Taha verse 124 (translated as): “But whosoever turns away from My Message, verily for him is a life narrowed down, and we shall raise him up blind on the Day of Judgment.”

Restriction in life is not because of restricted wealth or power but it is when a soul fails to find the true meaning of happiness. It seems to be suffocated and restless, groping for something that it feels to be missing. That something is actually the light of guidance from Allah.

I read in a ‘white man’ magazine a story that exposed the suffering of Mother Theresa who was a prominent religious figure among the Christians and dedicated her life towards the noble effort in aiding the poor people all her life. However, the letters that she wrote to the Christian high authority depicted the suffering of her soul that failed to feel the presence of the true God in her soul. She seemed to be in doubt over the existence of her God. (Refer to Letters Reveal Mother Theresa’s Secret, cbsnews.com)

Actually, to me, she did not doubt the existence of God. Rather, she was confused between her failure to find the path towards the true God and the existence of God. Her soul suffered not because God did not exist but instead it was because the address that she was after was not accurate. A pure soul is one that searches for the direction towards the true God.

As such, al-Quran tells the story about the holy Apostle of Allah, Ibrahim, when Allah said (translated as): “Lo! Abraham said to his father Azar: “Takest thou idols for gods? For I see thee and thy people in manifest error. So also did We show Abraham the power and the laws of the heavens and the earth, that he might (with understanding) have certitude. When the night covered him over, he saw a star: He said: “This is my Lord.” but when it set, He said: “I love not those that set.” When he saw the moon rising in splendor, he said: “This is my Lord.” But when the moon set, he said: “Unless my Lord guide me, I shall surely be among those who go astray. “When he saw the sun rising in splendor, he said: “This is my Lord; this is the greatest (of all).” But when the sun set, he said: “O my people! I am indeed free from your (guilt) of giving partners to Allah. For me, I have set my face, firmly and truly, towards Him who created the heavens and the earth, and never shall I give partners to Allah.” (Surah al-An’am, 74-79)

That is an example of a pure soul. In the end, Allah appointed Ibrahim as one of His Messengers.

May be this topic is different from my previous discussions. However, I believe that it is important to discuss this topic after realizing that many non-Musims are reading my writings. Based on their spiritual experience, they must admit that there is a need for a person to struggle in searching for the true religion.

Similarly, this is also as important to the Muslims, who have been following this column, whose themes in life are not yet based on the religion. Even though I am thankful of their support but we must realize that Islam is not a mere debate of the minds.

The delighted feelings they have over my previous views, I hope, will bring everybody to come closer to the genuine Islam. Islam is not just philosophy and theory but instead, the genuine Islam must flow through the veins of our life.

In addition to that, one thing to be realized is that one who knows about the truth will not necessarily follow the truth. I have met with many people who agree to what I have written and stated but they said that, “If we accept what you have mentioned, it means that we degrade our status”. Still, I am thankful since at least they admit their agreement. That is indeed the typical behavior of some people. Not all will adhere to the good elements that they themselves understand and know about.

Because of that, Allah disclosed the immoral attitude of the Jewish religious scholars by saying (translated as): “The people of the Book know this (Prophet Muhammad and his truth) as they know their own sons; but some of them conceal the truth which they themselves know.” (al-Baqarah:146). It means that through the knowledge that they received from Torah and Bible, they knew that Muhammad bin Abdillah was a Messenger sent forth by Allah. However, their arrogance or their tendency to guard their own self-interest overshadows their knowledge of the truth.

It is similar with some of our religious groups in that their knowledge about the truth sometimes is not any stronger than their intention to guard their self-interest or normal way of life. For example, I have seen a person with a religious label attached to him who forbids others from performing the tarawih (optional prayer performed only in Ramadan month) prayer for less than 20 rakaat (number of bows in prayers). Moreover, he considers the prayers of those that do 11 rakaat (8 tarawih and 3 witir) as invalid. Even harsher is his statement that deems whoever does not perform 20 prayers as a follower of the young group and is deviant. To that I say, who knows how many people perform the tarawih prayers until 8 rakaat before getting out of the mosques without them knowing about what is the young group and what is the old group. Probably they have other matters to attend to or simply because that is the limit of their ability. Unfortunately, humans tend to have prejudice. Moreover, the tarawih prayer is optional and there is no need to enforce a strict instruction such as that, much less to judge that the prayer is invalid. Then, some people show the person that there is hadith reported by al-Bukhari, Muslim and others indicating that Allah’s Messenger s.a.w performed the tarawih prayer only for 11 rakaat and in another narration, for 13 rakaat. He answered, “I don’t care if there is a sahih (sound) hadith or from sahih al-Bukhari or from sahih Muslim, what is more important is that this is the decree issued in our state.” I sighed deeply. Due to his fanaticism, he rejected the hadith and forced the masses to follow a specific ruling without providing a strong reasoning to it. If he only stated they encouraged 20 rakaat then that would sound more acceptable. What should happen is that because the hadith is very clear regarding this issue, people should be presented with the options. There is no need for bickering. Even more interesting is the fact that he pointed fingers towards others by saying that the young group is being very obstinate about their opinions. Alas! As the saying goes, “He hits others but he is the one crying. He curses at others but he is the one making complaints.” Thus, knowing the truth does not necessarily mean following the truth. He even rejected the hadith bluntly. This is to the extent that when some people heard an Ustaz stating that if the tarawih prayer is performed for less than 20 rakaat then it is invalid, they would quickly cancel their intention to perform the tarawih prayer since they are only able to do it up to 8 rakaat.

All these indicate that a person requires additional strength to execute the duty towards the truth. Consequently, hidayah or guidance exists in various forms. One type is named Hidayah al-Taufiq. It is when after realizing about the truth, a person is subsequently bestowed with the hidayah in the form of strength to follow the truth. That is the reason for us to recite, in our prayers, Ihdina al-Sirat al-Mustaqim (show us the straight way). Why do we still ask for guidance when we are already Muslims and performing the prayers? It means that we are asking for a guidance that can give us the strength to follow the true path. Allah mentioned in surah al-Ahqaf verse 15-16 (translated as): “ ……… At length, when he reaches the age of full strength and attains forty years, He says, “O My Lord! grant me that I may be grateful for thy favor which Thou has bestowed upon me, and upon both my parents, and that I may work righteousness such as Thou mayest approve; and be gracious to me in my issue. Truly have I turned to Thee and truly do I bow (to thee) In Islam.” Such are they from whom we shall accept the best of their deeds and pass by their ill deeds: (They shall be) among the companions of the Garden; a promise of truth, which was made to them (in this life).”

That is how Allah portrayed a righteous person. He is the one who pleads to Allah to give him the strength to be grateful to Him and to perform righteous deeds. This means that without the help from Allah, a person will not be able to realize his duty towards the truth. Therefore, in this juncture of Ramadan, I call upon all the advocators and supporters of the voice of change towards practicing the purer religion to plead to Allah as much as possible , after trying to understand the truth, so that He will give us the strength to not only know the truth but to also hold on to it. It is so that our intent to choose the true path and our characters as the advocators of the truth is radiated from our looks.

If not, Islam will only be seen in the form of philosophical writings without any embodiment and impact in a humans’ life. Thus, the pure and calm soul that should have been molded by the beauty of Islam will not materialize. In the end, this religion will become mere intellectual debates and sharpness of minds. Islam must emerge and set a deep impact in our life. Our faith must abide by what Islam has stipulated and free from any elements of shirk (joining others in worship with Allah), khurafat (superstitious notion) and nonsense. Similarly, the specific acts of worship such as salaat, fasting and hajj must be performed in their original forms as taught by the Prophet without any add-ons. Any form of innovation in worship is like a mockery on the function of the Prophet who was appointed as a role model. Similarly, we should try as much as possible to ensure that our life affair, speech and motion do not violate the rulings of Islam. Similarly, our spiritual being must be barren of envy, the much hated greed, prejudice towards others without any good reason and many more of similar nature. Our soul must always rely on Allah and hope for His Blessing only. A steadfast thinking and a sharp gaze of the mind, if combined with all these, will make us Muslims with a harmonious soul and a reputable life.

The Path To Return To The Grace of God Is Very Wide

By Dr Mohamad Asri Zainul Abidin
Mufti from the State of Perlis, Malaysia

Among the special attributes of this majestic Islam is that the path leading back to its embrace is so widely open and undemanding. The opportunity for a person to turn back to the bosom of forgiveness and blessing of Allah is never impeded by any distance, time, background, family origin or wealth.

This religion never stops anybody who wishes to turn back to attain the grace of Allah due to his sin or family origin, his old age or anything at all.


A person who wishes to turn back to Allah will be accepted by His Grace with a condition that the person really regrets his mistakes, truly begs for His forgiveness and is determined not to repeat his past mistakes. If that mistake is towards other person, then he has to ask for forgiveness from the one he has pained. If he cannot afford to do so for fear his request for forgiveness will invite a much greater harm, he should just leave that matter to Allah and Allah is Most Knowing of the capability of His servants.

Allah said in surah Ali ‘Imran verse 135-136 (translated as): “And those who, having done something to be ashamed of, or wronged their own souls, earnestly bring Allah to mind, and ask for forgiveness for their sins,- and who can forgive sins except Allah.- and are never obstinate in persisting knowingly in (the wrong) they have done. For such the reward is forgiveness from their Lord, and Gardens with rivers flowing underneath,- an eternal dwelling: How excellent a recompense for those who work (and strive)!”

Islam is not like some other religions that command a sinful person to perform a confession in front of a religious man, or perform a self-torturing ritual for eliminating his sins like hurting himself or walking on embers or make a redemption payment to purge his sins.

Similarly, the practice of some groups who make a living by accumulating fees for purging the sins of not performing prayers or fasting or other acts of worship is not from the teaching of Islam. Islam has never known of any such practice. Just as Islam cannot accept completely the practice of certain religions that issue paid letter for purging sins, Islam also cannot accept the practice of similar nature by its followers who issue out forms of reward sold in conjunction of Ramadan or other similar practices.

The forgiveness and blessing of Allah is not sold on the streets. It is closely related to the pureness of the soul that desires to return to Allah the Oft-Forgiving. If forgiveness is attained only by making payment to a specific group then all the rich people will surely have their places in Heaven.

While for the poor who cannot afford to pay the religious group, he will not get a share of pardon for himself. Thus, a person does not have to hold on to the religion because only by accumulating money, he will have a safe position alongside Allah. Alas! Surely it is not like so!

Allah said in surah al-Syu’ara verse 88-91 (translated as): “The Day whereon neither wealth nor sons will avail, but only he (will prosper) that brings to Allah a sound heart; to the righteous, the Garden will be brought near, and to those straying in evil, the Fire will be placed in full view.”

A person who has committed sins is not instructed to disclose his sins to other people even in front of ulama or anyone among humans. Moreover, he is instructed to repent to Allah only and conceal his faults from the knowledge of others. Allah’s Apostle s.a.w said: “He who conceals (the faults) of a Muslim, Allah would conceal his faults in the world and in the Hereafter.” (Reported by Muslim)

Included in the word Muslim itself is a person who has committed sin and he is definitely also a Muslim. Therefore, he is obligated to conceal his own shame. Thus, in Islam, there is no ‘confession in front of the priest’. Whoever feels that he has committed sin and wishes to return to Allah he then repents wherever he may be.

Allah’s Apostle s.a.w said: “Verily Allah accepts the repentance of His servant as long his soul has not reached his Adam’s apple (as it leaves the body).” (Reported by al-Tirmizi, ranked as hasan (good) by al-Albani). Ah! So vast is the blessing of Allah in this religion.

Furthermore, in one hadith qudsi (Sacred Hadith – the meaning is from Allah and the wording is from the Messenger) Allah said, “O the sons of Adam! As long as you keep asking and hoping from Me, I will forgive you for whatever sins (that you have committed) and I do not care. O the sons of Adam! Even if your sins reach the highest sky and you beg for My Forgiveness, I will forgive you and I do not care. O the sons of Adam! If you meet Me in the state that your sins fill the earth, but not associating anything with Me, I would meet you full with forgiveness.” (Reported by al-Tirmizi, ranked hasan by al-Albani)

What is more, we are forbidden from feeling frustrated in life because of our previous sins. Instead, we are commanded to always beg for forgiveness from Allah and do not lose heart over His Mercy. Allah said in surah al-Zumar verse 53 with an overwhelming message (translated as): “Say: “O My servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah, for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.”

Al-Imam Ibn Kathir (deceased in 774H) when interpreting this verse stated: “This divine verse is a calling for all sinners among the non-believers and other than them to repent and turn back to Allah. This verse is also an announcement from Allah the Most Blessing and the Most High that He pardons all sins of whomever wishes to repent and leave the sins behind regardless of how big or how abundant the sins are, even if they are as abundant as the froth in the sea.” (Tafsir al-Quran al-‘Azim, 4/74, Beirut: Mussasah al-Rayyan).

Therefore, no feeling of frustration should be suffered by a sinful person. Although sometimes some sins are hard to be forgiven by other person but Allah never closes the door of forgiveness as long as the sinful person feels regretful over his sins and really wishes to turn back to Him.

I am discussing this topic in tune with the serene atmosphere of Ramadan. Besides, it is so that in discussing the religion, we do not cause people to feel discouraged in searching for the road leading back to the embrace of God.

This religion is so mellow. The door to approach God has never been specially allocated for a specific person only. Even more, whoever accepts Islam and strives to bring himself closer to the path of Allah’s Messenger will attain the Blessing of Allah.

There is not any difference between mufti, ustaz, imam and a common person. God never judges a person based on the titles given by other human beings. He looks at the pureness of the soul and the authenticity of one’s good deeds. Who knows how many common people who hold a much more noble position alongside God compared to those who depend on various titles and ranks? The road leading back to the embrace of God is never discriminative to humans.

Sometimes, it can get very scary when we hear some people talking. I have heard someone saying, “The sins of so and so will not be forgiven by Allah.” Although that sentence feels light to our tongue but it is considered as a serious misconduct alongside Allah.

Since when did we become the representative of God in determining the blessedness or damnation of His servants? We spurn people’s attempt to turn back towards the plateau of Allah’s forgiveness due to our emotion whereas Allah Himself announces the vastness of His blessing to all.

Let us all campaign to invite people to obtain this gracious forgiveness of Allah. This campaign is not just for the congregation of mosque and musalla (place of prayer) but it is also for the youngsters on the streets, artists on stage, political leaders and so on. Do not hastily judge a person of not having the chance to receive the Mercy of Allah whereas his soul still resides in his body and the judgment of Allah has not been known.

Allah’s Apostle said: “If someone says: Damnation to humans, then he is the one most damned.” (Reported by Muslim) This hadith indicates that when someone makes a statement with the intention to stoop others and glorify himself as if other people will not receive Allah’s blessing then he is the one who will be destroyed by Allah. The calling for Islam must pass beyond the man made borders. The blessing of Allah must be spread throughout all regions of life regardless whether it is in the sport arena, movie stages, in political sphere or whatever field.

Do not let the discussions on religion only portray as if all humans will enter into Hell while forgetting the fact that Allah is the Most Blessing. The rightful expressions of this religion are the kinds that give hopes and do not incite disappointment.

What is more, Allah’s Apostle said in a hadith: A person committed a sin and he said: O Allah, forgive me for my sins, and Allah (the Exalted and Glorious) said: My servant committed a sin and then he came to realize that he has a Lord Who forgives the sins and takes to account (the sinner) for the sin. In another narration, it was added: I forgive his Sins. He then again committed a sin and said: My Lord, forgive me for my sin, and Allah, the Exalted and High, said: My servant committed a sin and then came to realize that he has a Lord Who would forgive his sin or would take (him) to account for the sin. In another narration, it was added: I forgive his sins. He again committed a sin and said: My Lord, forgive me for my sin, and Allah (the Exalted and High) said: My servant has committed a sin and then came to realize that he has a Lord Who forgives the sins or takes (him) to account for sin, and I forgive this servant of Mine. 0 servant! Do what you like. I have granted you forgiveness. (Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim)

This hadith does not exactly encourage people to commit sins but it describes a servant who repented with all his might but still he failed to restrain himself and kept falling into the trap of sins. Every time he committed a sin, he would truthfully ask for Allah’s forgiveness and he kept being forgiven by Allah s.w.t.

This hadith provides the motivation needed by those who have repeatedly made mistakes to keep on repenting and not to give up and continue following the steps of Satan. Even though other may say to him, “There is no use for you to repent anymore since you have tried many times before but you keep failing to maintain your repentance.” However, Allah has never said as such. He, the Oft-Forgiving, still leaves His door open as long as His servant is truthful and sincere in begging from Him.

If Allah closes His door, then frustration would blanket the soul of such servant and in the end, he would continue to drown in evilness. However, when the door is open in such way, a person will keep on tying to turn back to Allah every time he slips.

I am perplexed by the claim that says a certain religion is tempting the emotions of some of our youths due to the elements of lovingness and blessing being projected by that religion. It is as if our youths have never heard of the vastness of blessing and forgiveness of Allah in Islam. Because of that, they become amazed with other religion and forget about their own religion sent down by Allah.

Is it because they have not been learning about the true teachings of Islam, or probably because our campaign for Islam is lacking in projecting the elements of blessedness of this religion?

We must realize that the calling for Islam executed by the Prophet s.a.w did not just describe the punishment of Hell but also the blissfulness of Heaven. It was also not just about the Wrath of Allah to those who disobey Him but also His Blessing to those who turn back to Him.

Allah said in surah al-Hijr verse 49-50 (translated as): “Tell My servants that I am indeed the Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful; and that My penalty will be indeed the most grievous penalty (to those that stay in disobedience).”

During this sacred ambience of Ramadan, it is hoped that the act of repentance occupies a big space in our life. Humans are told to be afraid of committing sins but not to feel disheartened when they make mistakes. On the other hand, a person must also always remember that by committing sins excessively even after being given good advices, he can lose sight of the one thing inside of him that reminds him to turn back to God.

Allah said in surah al-Baqarah verse 6-7 (translated as): “As to those who reject faith, it is the same to them whether thou warn them or do not warn them; they will not believe. Allah hath set a seal on their hearts and on their hearing, and on their eyes is a veil; great is the penalty they (incur).”

Peace




"Do not write anything from me except the Qur'an. Whoever wrote must destroy it." (Muslim, Zuhd 72; Hanbel 3/12, 21, 39). And Umar' b. al-khattab also said: "The Qur'an is enough for us, do not write anything from the Prophet." (Bukhari, Jihad 176, Gizya 6, Ilim 49, Marza 17, Megazi 83, Itisam 26; Muslim, Vasiyya 20, 21, 22).

Also, theres ayat that states that Muhammad will say "My people have deserted THIS Quran". My question is, what exactly is there in Hadith that isn't answered in Quran?

I think that legal laws that are based off of the Quran should never change due to whatever reasons, be it 100 years ago or 100 years from now. If the Quran is the last revelation to mankind as many Muslims believe, then it should be forever. Again, this is the reason why we shouldn't base a lot of our beliefs off of Judaic or Christian principles or even pre-Islamic (when I say that I mean Islam as a religion, not the way of life as Quran teaches) life, which is what some Islam seems to follow to some extent ie. Stoning

My point of view is that he wasn't born a virgin. Nowhere does it say in Quran that he was born of a virgin, this is solely based on the myths from Christianity and/or the other pagan beliefs that share it. The Quran does state that Mary was pure in that she didn't sleep around but it doesn't say that Jesus was conceived through virginity either, its all speculation. Its like saying in one verse talking about Jesus as a child and in the next verse it speaks of him as a man preaching. One could speculate based on myths that he grew up almost instantaneously since there are "gaps" and it doesn't talk about his teen life, much like the bible does, yet everyone knows that he lived a normal life. Its the same with the virgin birth. It doesn't mention the father since his father is not important to the message of Islam. Theres even an ayat that speaks of the prophets all together and THEIR fathers. Whether it's their literal fathers or their ancestors, thats something to ponder on as well. Just like how Abraham is the father. There are many prophets whos father isn't mentioned but we don't regard them as a miraculous birth.

The same goes for Adam. I don't believe he was created out of thin air. I believe in evolution in that he came from the ground and was evolved into man. To say that miracles existed THEN and not NOW would put Islam in a hefty predicament. Also, how can God break his laws some times and then not other times? It would confuse humans. Im not saying that God couldn't make Jesus out of thin air or from a Virgin, but when Allah says "Be, and it is" I don't take it literal that it all just happens at once. Its also noted in Quran that everything wasn't made just for fun. The stars, everything has a purpose. Exploding stars make the iron in the universe, which is a part of our physical makeup. Even us as a person are most likely aren't the final creation. Im not even sure if there will ever be one at all.

What doesnt make sense to me is that Muslims like to be scientific in a lot of aspects, such as Cosmology and Embryology thats displayed in Quran. At the same time, they accept things that make no scientific sense. Not saying that they are wrong or anything (even though I dont believe in the so called miracles) but its like taking one stance on an issue and taking the opposite stance at the same time. I notice that Christians have been doing this as of late as well. Another miracle would be Jesus making a bird out of clay, resurrecting the dead, or curing those of leprosy. Going back to the classical arabic of the words, it seems more as bringing people from the dark to the truth, resurrecting their belief that was instilled in their being back.

Peace

Salams bro,


Interesting. Those two hadiths seem to be from the authoritive Sahih Muslim and Sahih Bukhari collections, and yet they seem to be ignored by so many Islamic scholars. What do you think might be the reason for this?

There are many peaceful hadiths covering things like environmentism, seeking knowledge, human rights, feminism, physical and mental illness, treatment of prisoners of war, etc., but at the same time there are a few extreme ones (like death for apostacy or adultery), although I personally feel these ones are fakes.


The legal laws directly based off the Quran only account for a small fraction of Islamic law. Another fraction is based on the Sunnah, while the vast majority of Islamic law is based on rulings given by Islamic jurists who deduced these rulings for new situations using the methods of Ijtihad (reason), Ijma (consensus), Qiyas (analogy), etc. (similar to the modern English/American common law) but many of these deduced rulings occurred centuries ago and haven't been updated ever since Ijtihad was abandoned. In my opinion, I think the reason why the Islamic world was so advanced for the first thousand years (before becoming backwards) may have been because of Ijtihad.

I think an Islamic scholar can explain it better:

"It must be understood that when we claim that Islam has a satisfactory solution for every problem in any situation in all times to come, we do not mean that the Holy Quran and Sunna of the Holy Prophet or the rulings of Islamic scholars provide a specific answer to each and every minute detail of our socioeconomic life. What we mean is that the Holy Quran and the Holy Sunna of the Prophet have laid down the broad principles in the light of which the scholars of every time have deduced specific answers to the new situations arising in their age. Therefore, in order to reach a definite answer about a new situation the scholars of Shariah have to play a very important role. They have to analyze every question in light of the principles laid down by the Holy Quran and Sunna as well as in the light of the standards set by earlier jurists enumerated in the books of Islamic jurisprudence. This exercise is called Istinbat or Ijtihad. ... [T]he ongoing process of Istinbat keeps injecting new ideas, concepts and rulings into the heritage of Islamic jurisprudence." (Mahmoud A. El-Gamal, Islamic Finance: Law, Economics, and Practice)


I don't doubt that Jesus did not have a virgin birth, but do you maybe have any references I could look into for further reading?

Actually, the theory of evolution (in its pre-Darwin form) already had plenty of Muslim supporters in medieval times. It's only after the Christian reaction to Darwinism that many Muslims also started rejecting evolution as well.

P.S. I'll give a full reply to this part later after I finish watching the finale of The Apprentice (UK version).

I think you people really ought to get to get to know muslims and there culture before you go off and pretend like your going to join them. I think you will find when you go to any place in arabia that the racism and discrimination will be a lot harsher towards you asians than under europeans.

For example look at how they even treat there own kind. The Kurds in Turkey and arabia in general are discriminated upon very very harshly. They are not considered arab by the arabs. If you know anything about Afghanistan you will realise there was a race war there between the arabic Pashtun and the more chinese looking Hazara which race had a significant factor in triggering. If you look at the fact they are killing each other because some are Sunni and others are Shia. Get to know the people, the region the culture and i think you will realise this whole islam thread is nonsense. You think you have it harsh in the west? Atleast you dont have to worry about getting killed for what you believe or the way you look, ask a Hazara Afghan and he will say how his kind was murdered by the majority Arab pashtun and the Hazara are only half asian looking, imagine what you full asians would go through.

Its a bit like how asians affiliate with blacks when all they get in return is Ching Chong comments. Just because you may feel alienated by whites does not mean the others are on your side either. Sometimes they can be a lot worse.

Oh dont be ignorant all religions are friendly on paper. What is important is the context of reality to which they are applied. If you look all around the muslim world the people are full of strife and prejudices. Islam may have let the barbaric arabs become progressive and civilised initially but like most good things it eventually tuned inward and became decadent.

If you are going to be muslim you have to do it within the context of the islamic world as it is today unless you plan to interpret and learn from the koran completely by yourself and let me tell you the muslim world has fallen very far from its glory days. The people are prejudiced, racist, ignorant and hyper sensitive. All the hall marks of a decadent society, a decadent people and a decadent culture.

There are some very extreme problems in the muslim world that most of the world has gotten over such as oppression of minorities. And by oppression i mean death.
The Kurds in Iraq where gassed to death. The Kurds in Turkey are also oppressed.
The Hazara and Pashtun killed each other over because one was shia and asian looking while the other were sunni and arab. The arab majority did not want the other minorities to be represented in any real way.

It is the culture of some muslim nations to circumsize women so they dont enjoy sex, there are honour killings arranged by the womans relatives because she has gone out and dated someoone they dont approve of! Women are very oppressed. Muslim men generally feel western women are sluts and the muslim youth in all the countries they go to have a reputation for being unruly and resorting to criminal behaviour.

If you want to be a muslim then you have to realise the cultural context with which you will be practicing this once great but now decadent culture and religion. The culture is now intolereant, inward looking with an inferiority complex with a militant streak to boot.

They may all be muslim but they are clearly not brothers in the real sense. In there hearts the arabs all hate each other and they look down on all other non arabs even more.

Do yourself a favour and stop this nonsense.

Here's some quotes on evolution from a few medieval Islamic scholars:

Al-Jahiz (c. 776-869)

"Animals engage in a struggle for existence; for resources, to avoid being eaten and to breed. Environmental factors influence organisms to develop new characteristics to ensure survival, thus transforming into new species. Animals that survive to breed can pass on their successful characteristics to offspring."

Ibn Miskawayh (932-1030)

"God first created matter and invested it with energy for development. Matter, therefore, adopted the form of vapour which assumed the shape of water in due time. The next stage of development was mineral life. Different kinds of stones developed in course of time. Their highest form being mirjan (coral). It is a stone which has in it branches like those of a tree. After mineral life evolves vegetation. The evolution of vegetation culminates with a tree which bears the qualities of an animal. This is the date-palm. It has male and female genders. It does not wither if all its branches are chopped but it dies when the head is cut off. The date-palm is therefore considered the highest among the trees and resembles the lowest among animals. Then is born the lowest of animals. It evolves into an ape."

Al-Khazini (fl. 1115-1130)

"When common people hear from natural philosophers that gold is a body which has attained to perfection of maturity, to the goal of completeness, they firmly believe that it is something which has gradually come to that perfection by passing through the forms of all other metallic bodies, so that its gold nature was originally lead, afterward it became tin, then brass, then silver, and finally reached the development of gold; not knowing that the natural philosophers mean, in saying this, only something like what they mean when they speak of man, and attribute to him a completeness and equilibrium in nature and constitution - not that man was once a bull, and was changed into an @$$, and afterward into a horse, and after that into an ape, and finally became a man."

Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201-1274)

"The organisms that can gain the new features faster are more variable. As a result, they gain advantages over other creatures. [...] The bodies are changing as a result of the internal and external interactions.

Look at the world of animals and birds. They have all that is necessary for defense, protection and daily life, including strengths, courage and appropriate tools [organs] ... Some of these organs are real weapons, ... For example, horns-spear, teeth and claws-knife and needle, feet and hoofs-cudgel. The thorns and needles of some animals are similar to arrows. ... Animals that have no other means of defense (as the gazelle and fox) protect themselves with the help of flight and cunning. ... Some of them, for example, bees, ants and some bird species, have united in communities in order to protect themselves and help each other.

Animals are higher than plants, because they are able to move consciously, go after food, find and eat useful things. ... There are many differences between the animal and plant species, ... First of all, the animal kingdom is more complicated. Besides, reason is the most beneficial feature of animals. Owing to reason, they can learn new things and adopt new, non-inherent abilities. For example, the trained horse or hunting falcon...is at a higher point of development in the animal world. The first steps of human perfection begin from here.

Such humans [probably anthropoid apes] live in the Western Sudan and other distant corners of the world. They are close to animals by their habits, deeds and behavior. ... The human has features that distinguish him from other creatures, but he has other features that unite him with the animal world, vegetable kingdom or even with the inanimate bodies. ... Before [the creation of humans], all differences between organisms were of the natural origin. The next step will be associated with spiritual perfection, will, observation and knowledge. ... All these facts prove that the human being is placed on the middle step of the evolutionary stairway. According to his inherent nature, the human is related to the lower beings, and only with the help of his will can he reach the higher development level."

Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406), Muqaddimah (1377)

"This world with all the created things in it has a certain order and solid construction. It shows nexuses between causes and things caused, combinations of some parts of creation with others, and transformations of some existent things into others, in a pattern that is both remarkable and endless.

One should then take a look at the world of creation. It started out from the minerals and progressed, in an ingenious, gradual manner, to plants and animals. The last stage of minerals is connected with the first stage of plants, such as herbs and seedless plants. The last stage of plants, such as palms and vines, is connected with the first stage of animals, such as snails and shellfish which have only the power of touch. The word 'connection' with regard to these created things means that the last stage of each group is fully prepared to become the first stage of the newest group.

The animal world then widens, its species become numerous, and, in a gradual process of creation, it finally leads to man, who is able to think and reflect. The higher stage of man is reached from the world of monkeys, in which both sagacity and preception are found, but which has not reached the stage of actual reflection and thinking. At this point we come to the first stage of man. This is as far as our (physical) observation extends."


Uh... the vast majority of Muslims on this planet are Asians, not Arabs. In fact, the largest Muslim population in the world is in Indonesia.

As for Kurds and Pashtuns, those are Iranic ethnic groups, not Arabs.

Peace Jagger



I think it may be due to the authority that many of the hadiths have over women for example. Many muslims tend to ignore lots of the Hadith that actually do some good, as you pointed out about environmentalism. One thing that infuriates me is how Muslims tend to treat dogs. Some see them as a dirty creature while some just see them as a servant for man, so long the saliva doesn't touch them. I do have a Sunni friend though who says that in Pakistan his family lives with the dogs and they live in the house. At the same time, I read what Egypt does to them and its sick. So much for reading the Hadiths about animal rights. Then again, the ones that they do read are from Abu Hurairah who writes good things about cats but bad things about dogs. Go figure.

Another thing that gets to me is how they see pigs. Pigs are such a dirty creature and they don't even want to look at them. Its funny because that is a creation of Allah. Where did He/She go wrong? Just because it says not to eat the flesh for it is unclean doesn't mean that the creature itself is bad. The Ummah seems to have a set of Hadiths that they follow already.





Ah I see thanks for the clear up. I really don't follow how they make laws, except for things like Fatwas which make no sense in a lot of cases. Still, I think they should be held in two separate accounts. I dont think it should be consider Islamic Law or have relation to it if it keeps on changing.



My question to Muslims is (and even Christians), where does it state that Jesus was born A virgin birth? Mary was a virgin because she was pure and had no man PRIOR to Jesus' birth. This is why it says that she was one of the best among women. Also, theres the Sura that has Mary asking how can she have a child when no man has touched her. God then says that He creates whatever he wills. That can be alluded to a virgin birth but if we want to go that route we would have to do the same with all the other ayat in Quran, such as how ships sail by Allahs will and such. Also, we have to remember that it can be misconstrued since they are all just translations and more than likely the meaning is different from Classical Arabic, which Allah states the Quran was revealed "perfectly" in that language.

A good example is of King David and his horses. In one translation, it states that he massaged the horses and sent them away because he forgot his Salat. Second translation said that he slaughtered the horse because he forgot the salat. In the Classical Arabic, Masihi is used and M-S-H means to rub or anoint, same as Messiah, Anointed One.

Heres some reading material that I find invaluable from Arnold Yasin Mol:

http://www.19.org/index.php?aid=548 - You can either read the whole thing or go to "Jesus Miracles"
http://www.19.org/index.php?id=91,552,0,0,1,0 - Malikah in Quran

I must say that not all the authors there share the exact same views on Quran, like some believe in the 19 code or just say its "possible".

I also am aware of the medieval thoughts on evolution. The thing is, it was already there in Quran. Lifeforms are created out of water? Same with the Mary issue, are we to say that instead of being born of sexual reproduction that we were born straight out of water?

Ive got a question, how did you quote each section of my post like that? The way I do it is just hit reply and then break off the quotes for each section. How do you do it the way you did? Shukran.

Long time no see.

I found some Islamic information in chinese if someone wants to see:

http://darulfatwa.org.au/content/category/4/125/283/

subHaanallaah,

Did you know that when I come to this forum I am stunned to see people saying things waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy different to what most Muslims say.

Where do you people come from? Who teaches you? Or do you read books written by non-Muslims?

I really do not understand why you people seem like you are miles away from any person who preaches the truth about Islam.

If you are in indonesia, there are heaps of scholars who preach the truth about Islam.

Where are you people from???????

sorry I don't understand chinese ...

in Islam
jesus (Isa al masih) not died , so its not about resurrection and saving people.
yes he will come in judgement day, but just to confirm to deserted people "only one god and its is only Allah" thats it nothing more ...

lol @ indonesia
we are mild dude ....still in the streamline.



check out lebanon or vietnam
some even allow eat pork ....
in afghan is wild wild middle east rule of hardliners ...

alHamdu lillaah in Indonesia there are many proofs and great scholars who form part of the link in the chain back to what the Prophet taught. There is also a strong opposition to extremists like wahhabis.

In Australia where I am, wahhabis are active but alHamdu lillaah there are people working against them and against other extremists who do not only kill non-Muslim civilian women and children but they also kill MUSLIMS.

Even a mufti from Malaysia came to visit us and talked about this topic.

See this: http://darulfatwa.org.au/content/view/816/142/

A simple search would show you that alqaradawi is being considered by scholars of Islam around the world as a heretic. Check this out:

http://amislam.com/qaradawi.htm

Also,
I want to ask you all a question. How do you think that historians gather proofs about some of the past events they speak about such as wars etc.

Have you ever heard of primary sources being from the narration of a person who was there, who has been tested to be trustworthy and accurate, their story fits the puzzle and matches other people's narrations??

Or do you not believe anything any historian says?

A simple search will also shows you that Dr. Yusud Al-Qadharawi is highly respected & admired around the world, including by that MY Mufti, Datok Noh Gadot.

Dr Yusuf Al-Qadharawi is moderate Salaf, unlike the other Saudis Salaf ulemas. In fact, most Saudi ulemas considers Qadharawi with contempt bcos Qadharawi's views tend to favor 4 Sunni Schools, rather than conservative Salafist ideology (aka Saudi-Wahhabi brand).

Islamic religious authorities in Malaysia, Indonesia, Jordan, Egypt, UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Morocco, Algeria, European Union, United States, Canada & even Australia consulted with Qadharawi. His ISLAMONLINE site is important for Islamic da'wah on the Net. He is one of the most progressive Ulema in this Age, most often compared to the late As-Shahidul Sheikh Hasan Al-Banna, another reformist ulema from Egypt.

The problem with some hardcore Sunnis is that they believed all Wahhabi aka Salafis are bad. Samsparky, that kind of opinion also led Sunnis labled Shia as unbelievers, much like Shiites accusing Sunnis as kufr. Or much the same when hardcore Saudist Wahhabi labled all Sunnis schools as wrong & committed unnecessay bid'ah (bid'ah hasanah notwisthstanding).

Remember, many Western reverts are moderate Salafs, still part of Sunnis, although refused to be affliated with any 4 Sunni schools of thought (aka madhab). Salafi movement are credited with da'wah all over Western world, which is a unifying factor to new reverts ummah there.

Just bcos some Salafs spoiled up, we put up blanket accusation to them all.

Can I join.

Thanks.

I want to bomb this thread!!!!

But why exactly does Al-Ash'ari label Al-Qadharawi as a kufr? The article hasn't even given any evidence to justify it. I thought it was haram to slander someone without evidence?


You're referring to the hadiths, right? The hadiths, or at least the sahih ones, are certainly far more reliable than most other ancient historical documents, but that doesn't necessarily make them infallible. If a hadith is mutawatir with multiple isnads, then there is no doubt that it extremely reliable. However, if a hadith, even if it's sahih, is not mutawatir, then there is a small possibility that it might not be true. In that case, I don't think there's anything wrong in having a little doubt, although it would be best to still follow them to be on the safe side. I'm not an expert on Islam, but that's just my opinion. If I've said anything wrong, maybe you could educate me a little more about it?

Look,

When I speak about a radical person or radical group, I speak about their core teachings.

Those who claim to be salafis and those who are wahhabis are taught by people who believe that God has a shape, form and place. Anyone who believes that is not only non-sunniyy but also not Muslim.

One of the basic beliefs of Muslims is that God does not resemble the creations. (Surat ash-shura, Verse 11).

God exists and His Existence is unlike the existence of the creations. He Existed before all creations existed (including place) and after creating them He does not change. The imagination does not conceive Him because he is not attributed with attributes of the creations like size, shape, colour, and place.

When I accuse wahhabis of being not Muslim, I am accusing about 2 million people because they went astray. But when they accuse the whole Muslim nation of being non-Muslim, they are accusing hundreds of millions of Muslims of having gone astray. There is a big difference between my accusation and their accusation.

As for al-qaradaawi, he is considered as radical because of his radical fatwas. For example, he says that it is halal to eat a choked chicken and that is clearly against the Qur'aan. He also comes up with sayings that are against the ijmaa^ (scholarly consensus) which categorises him as radical.

Al-Qaradawi was scrutinized after he wrote his books in which he clarified his views. He also has recordings.

If you know Arabic, this contains his voice:

http://www.shiyat.com/play.php?vid=1972

It is proof that he has said that the Prophet makes mistakes in matters of Islamic rulings.

In Islam, it is an obligation to warn against those who misguide people.

Be Warned from the following Devious Misguided Sects/People

Bismillaah, praise be to Allah the lord of the worlds, the most-powerful, the creator of all the creations, the one who is not a body or form and has no beginning and the one who exists without a place, I ask Allah to raise the rank of our beloved prophet and leader, Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him.

Know that the prophet peace be upon him said what means “whomever amongst you sees a Munkar let him change it by his hand, if he was unable, then by his tongue, if he was unable then by his heart and that is the least that one can do”. Related by Muslim.

Many individuals emerged with extreme misconceptions and decided to form groups of their own, in which they started to oppose the religion of Islam. We are obligated in Islam to warn against such groups for opposing Islam. Among those extreme groups:

1. The Wahabis (followers of Ahmad Ibn Taymiah and Muhammad bin Abdul-Wahhab). They liken Allaah to His creations, they believe that Allaah is a physical body with physical organs, and they consider visiting the Prophet and seeking blessings from his traces as shirk.

2. Hizbul-Ikhwan, a group who deviated from its founder Sheikh Hassan al-Banna and followed the extremist Sayid Qutub. They believe that anyone who deals with the government even in the slightest matter is a blasphemer mushrik and should be killed. One must be warned also from fatwas of:

Al-Qaradawi: He claims that the Prophet makes mistakes in Islamic teachings. He follows Wahhabis in some issues, and is in love with Sayid qutub and his extreme beliefs. He has many fatwas that breached the Ijma^ of Ahlus-Sunnah.

3. Hizbut-Tahreer (Followers of Taqiyud-Deen an-Nabahaniy). They deem anyone that commits any large sin as a blasphemer, and they claim that the people are creators on their own; that they create whatever they do.

One must be warned from those who claim to be sufis and oppose the true sufi fundamentals. Those who oppose the explicit text of al-Qur’an and the teachings of the Prophet peace be upon him such as al-Hululiyah and al-Qadariyah and others such as:

Hassan Qatirjiy: Follows Sayid Qutub in his extreme beliefs. Claims that no matter how many times one curses Allah, he is still a Muslim as long as he does not choose another religion. He claims that Women must cover their faces otherwise they are enormous sinners. Calls for extreme beliefs that permits the killing of Muslims for following the local governments even in the smallest maters.

Khaled al-Jundiy: He says that there’s no harm in choosing any religion, and the one who wants to apostate is most welcome. He claims that there’s not such thing as al-Qur’an is a cure. He claims that a non pious Muslim does not benefit from the Qur’an. He claimed that Allah dwells in things, and that Allah resides in a direction. He accused Prophet Ibrahim with shirk (associating partner to Allah) and other blasphemous beliefs.

Muhammad al-Buti: claims Allah dwells in things, and that Allah is a body and that souls are attached to Allah, and accuses the Prophet with doubt in his prophethood, and that it’s permissible to watch pornography.

And one must be warned from those called Munirah Qubaysi and Muhammad Ameen Sheikho and Ahmad Hassoon and Muhammad Rajab Deeb as they collect money by the name of Islam and issue fatwas that oppose the Ijma^ of Ahlus-Sunnah.

Nazim al-Qubrusliy: Claims to be the head of sufis and sultan of 'Awliya' today. He has many sayings that oppose al-Qur'an and the hadith. He opposes the true meaning of Sufism. He and his misguided sheikh ad-Daghistaniy claims that his people could be better than the Prophets. They believe that Allah dwells in the creations (wal-^iadhubillah) which is kufur to belief. He claimed that it's permissible for him to look at the nakedness of the woman. This is not Islam nor sufism.

The Yashrutiyah Shadhiliyah: It’s said that they claim to follow Sheikh Aliy Noorud-Deen al-Yashrutiy from Tunisia who lived in ^akka, Palestine. He had followers, some of them deviated during his life and so he disowned them. They claim that Allah dwells in everyone, male or female. They claim Allah is in everything, in fact one said to other you are Allah, this wall is Allah.. this is severe blasphemy. Allah is clear of dwelling in things, and from things dwelling in him, Allaah has no shape or limit or body, Allaah exists without a place. Sheikh Ali Noorud-Deen, Allah guided by him some people. But the others misguided, those Yashrutiyah when they gather men and women they shake hands of the marrigable woman and they say: We are the sufi people of Tariqah, they deemed a haram matter as halal wal^iyathubillah. A women among them said: I move my hand because Allah is in it. They are disbelievers.

The Tijaniyah: It was said that Abul-^abbas at-Tijani during the occupation of morocco, his Tariqah was changed and perverted between his followers. it’s possible that he is not like them, it’s possible that they are like the Yashrutiyah. They have a statement they say “O Allah raise the rank of the prophet the one who is really You” they claim that Muhammad is Allah Himself wal^iyathubillah. They claim they are sufies, they claim that anyone who takes their Tariqah becomes better then the Qutub Waliy. They sit in a circle and recite their Wird and claim that the prophet sits with them. They have other strange false beliefs.

The Dandrawiyah: The origin of it is correct, but those who follow it now they have perverted ideas. Abul-^abbas ad-Dandrawiy was Egyptian, he was not like the Dandrawiyah today. Those are lost, they don’t know Islam, they say: “O Allah raise the rank of every creation and their creations” this is blasphemy, they claim that creations create. Al-Qur’an says what means: “Allah is the creator of everything”. So there’s no creator other than Allah. Strange, these people read al-Qur’an and oppose it.

The Burhaniyah: Their sheikh is Ibrahim al-Burhaniy, was a bank agent, and then claimed to follow the Sufi Tariqah. He shakes hands of marriageable women, and women kiss his hand. Both matters are forbidden in Islam. They have a book called: “Awrad of al-Burhani Tariqah” on page 30/31 they say: “Allah inhabits the creations, and it’s possible for the slave to dwell in Allah” we seek refuge by Allah from this kufur. This Tariqah is not from the Tariqahs of the true sufies, in fact true sufies warn people against it.


There are other sufi claimers who have false beliefs. Like those who claim that the prophet knows everything that Allah knows, or the ones who say that Prophet Muhammad is inhuman, and that he is physical light. This belies the Qur’an and the teachings of the Prophet. The Prophet peace be upon him said: “I only know what Allah conveys onto me”. Beware from those who claim to be sufis and oppose the Qur’an and the Sunnah of the prophet peace be upon him.

We ask Allah to protect us from misguidance and keep us stead fast on Islam.


As for the Sahih Hadeeth, every person who is in the chain of narration is described. The people who narrated the Prophet's sayings were even classified according to their reliability, forgetfulness, etc.

So no one has an excuse to declare a Sahih Hadeeth as weak. There are weak Hadeeths where one of the narrators for example might have been forgetful.

Get what I'm trying to say?

You only show differentiation & opinionated views of current ulemas. Even Al-Albani & Al-Qadharawi, despite both being of Salafs, strongly disagree with each other.

But differing views has always been the facets of Sunnis since Islam grew, post Khulafak ur Rashiddeen era. Before Saudi Arabia was even a nation, the Muslims on Hajj once prayed to Kaaba according to their own Imams - which means eg, Zuhur prayer was conducted 4 times to cater to 4 different madhabs (Shafie / Hanbali / Maliki / Hanafi).

The Wahhabis (aka the Saudi Salafists) is still considered as part of Sunnis, as they cleverly claimed theirs of Maliki madhab. But learned Muslims know better.

As for moderate Salafists, well, they're on the rise now. As most Muslims becoming knowledgeable, some of them feel that why must they blindly follow a particular Sunni madhab. This current thinking is a driving factor in garnering new reverts & credited with blossoming of Muslim da'wa in Western world. In Asia, moderate Salafs are a little bit different from their Western counterpart, they still cling to their respective madhabs, but ditching unnecessary traditions (bidaah hasanah). For eg, in Malaysia, one can still be a proud Muslim whose taqleed is Shafie, but still clings to Salafist ideals.

al-Qaradawi and al-Albani are far from being classed as from the Salaf. The Salaf are those who lived in the first 300 years after the Prophet's migration.

If you read Arabic, here is a book that has been published about alQaradaawi: http://www.sunna.info/qardawi/

and al albani is a wahhabi so of course alqaradawi and al albani would differ.

By the way, the wahhabis claim to follow Imaam ahmad ibn Hanbal despite the fact that Imaam ahmad ibn Hanbal said what means: "Whoever claims that Allaah is a body (even if he adds) not like other bodies is a blasphemer" as related about him in the famous Hanbaliyy book "al-KhiSaal".

Wahhabis as well as those who claim to be salafis are classed as mujassimah and takfeeris. That is, they consider God to be a body and they also consider all those Muslims who do not follow them as blasphemers.

It is said that the one who does not have an Imaam, then the devil will be his imaam.

Those who claim to be salafis these days are not moderate. They are the ones suicide bombing Muslims and non-Muslims in both Islamic and non-Islamic countries because of their ideology that all those who do not follow them are blasphemers.

Check this out:

Sunnis against extremism: http://darulfatwa.org.au/content/view/81/142/

http://darulfatwa.org.au/content/view/85/140/

Samsparky, I beg to differ. It seems here we've different opinions regarding the Salafists movement.

We can always agree to disagree regarding Al-Qadharawi, because he is a respected figure in Malaysia within Islamic establishments, especially in academic circles.

I consider myself as a staunch Sunni whose taqleed is Shafie, but with Salafi ideals.

If you want to know about the opinion of Malaysians in general about al-Qaradawi then do yourself a favour and step out of the outlets of the group who call themselves jama^ah islaamiyyah or JI and find out what true scholars say about al-qaradawi, the ones who don't really go on tv much.

The people who call themselves salafi today are not sunniyy, they are wahhabi mujassima (they think God is a body).

I would like to share an article with you.

Surat Al-^Imran, Verse 7 means:



[Allah is the One Who has sent down to the Prophet the Book that contains muhkam Verses, which are the foundation of the Book, and other Verses which are mutashabih. Those who have perversity in their hearts, follow the mutashabih Verses, seeking discord and searching for unbefitting meanings based on their delusions. No one knows their true meanings except Allah and those who are firmly rooted in the knowledge of the Religion. The latter {i.e, those firmly rooted in the knowledge} say: "We believe in it, all of it is from our Lord" and none will understand the message, except the men of comprehension.]




So, know firmly that whoever says God is a seated body with hands, face and shin is for sure not interpreting the Qur'aan correctly and has perversity in their heart.







The Qur'an contains two types of Verses:


1. Muhkam Verses: These are the ayahs (verses) that, according to the rules of the Arabic language, have only one meaning or are those with a clear meaning. Examples of this type of Verse are:





Surat ash-Shura, Verse 11 which means: [There is absolutely nothing like Allah],





Surat al-Ikhlas, Verse 4 which means: [Nothing is equal to Him], and





Surat Maryam Verse 65 which means: [Do you know of anything which is similar to Him? There is none.]


2. Mutashabih Verses: These are the Verses that, according to the rules of the Arabic language, can have many meanings. Assigning acceptable meanings to these Verses requires proper Knowledge of the Arabic Language and thorough thinking. Examples of this type of Verse are:
Surat Taha, Verse 5 and Surat Fatir, Verse 10. According to the rules of the Arabic language, these Verses are mutashabih; so they can have many meanings. Assigning meanings to them must be done in a manner which complies with the Arabic language and the Religion. The assigned meanings must not contradict the Verses that are muhkam. Surely, the Verses of the Qur'an do not contradict one another! Likewise, the hadiths (sayings of the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam,) neither contradict one another, nor the Verses of the Qur'an.




There are two methodologies for explaining the mutashabih Verses of the Qur'an, and both of them are valid. They are:









1. The Methodology of the Salaf: The Salaf were the scholars who lived during the first three centuries after the Hijrah (Immigration) of the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam. Most often, this methodology consisted of giving general explanations, since the scholars of the Salaf believed that these Verses have meanings befitting to the perfection of Allah. Rather than saying what these meanings are, they referred these mutashabih Verses to the muhkam Verses. A good example is the saying of Imam ash-Shafi^iyy which means:



"I believe in what Allah revealed according to the meaning that Allah willed, and in what the Messenger of Allah conveyed according to the meaning that the Messenger of Allah willed."

In other words, the proper befitting meanings are not according to the sensuous and physical meanings that delusions would lead to, such as places, shapes, limbs, movements, sitting, colors, directions, smiling, laughing, or any other meanings which are not permissible to be attributed to Allah.

Furthermore, the Arabs during the first three Hijriyy centuries spoke the Arabic language with a natural disposition and great eloquence. Their understanding of its meanings was so sharp that they did not need to attribute specific meanings to the mutashabih Verses. Instead, they understood that these Verses have meanings that befit Allah, and that it is impossible that they would have sensuous and physical meanings which do not befit Allah.

Nevertheless, it is well known that some of the scholars of the Salaf did attribute specific meanings to mutashabih Verses. In his Sahih, in the chapter Tafsirul- Qur'an (Explanation of the Qur'an,) Imam al-Bukhariyy attributed a specific meaning to the term "illa wajhahu" in Surat al-Qasas, Verse 88. He said: "illa mulkahu," i.e., he said that word "wajh", which is an attribute of Allah, means "Mulk" or "Dominion." Note that he did not say that it means Allah has a face as those with perversity in their hearts say.






2. The Methodology of the Khalaf: The Khalaf were the scholars who lived after the first three centuries after the Hijrah. For the most part, this methodology consisted of giving specific meanings to the mutashabih Verses. The scholars of the Khalaf lived at a time when the people started to lose their natural disposition for the Arabic language. Seeing that the people had become weaker in the language, the scholars of the Khalaf feared that those with perversity in their hearts would read meanings into the mutashabih Verses which do not befit Allah. They feared what is mentioned in Surat Al-^Imran, Verse 7 above. In order to protect the creed of Islam, the scholars of the Khalaf followed the example of the scholars of the Salaf who gave specific meanings to the mutashabih Verses. Referring them to the muhkam Verses, they gave specific meanings to the mutashabih Verses in compliance with the language and with the Religion. They gave correct, acceptable meanings to the mutashabih Verses.


Among those who have perversity in their hearts are the mushabbihah, those who liken Allah to His creation. The followers of Ibn Taymiyah and Muhammad Ibn ^Abdil-Wahhab are among the group of the mushabbihah. They falsely claim that it is prohibited to assign specific meanings to the mutashabih Verses and especially to those that pertain to the attributes of God. Moreover, they innovated a devilish rule which states that assigning specific meanings to the Verses would lead to cancelling these attributes of God. Their claim leads to interpretations of the Verses of the Qur'an that contradict one another. It leads to interpretations of the hadiths of the Prophet that contradict one another and contradict the Verses of the Qur'an. Furthermore, their claim accuses the Islamic scholars of the Salaf and the Khalaf of denying the attributes of God. Such scholars include: Ibn ^Abbas, Sufyan ath-Thawriyy, Mujahid, Sa^id Ibn Jubayr, Malik, Ahmad, al-Bukhariyy, an-Nawawiyy, Ibn Rajab al-Hanbaliyy, Ibn-ul-Jawziyy, Ibn Hajar al-^Asqalaniyy, al-Bayhaqiyy, Abul-Fadl at-Tamimiyy, ^Abdul-Qahir al-Baghdadiyy, the linguist and scholar of Hadith Murtada az-Zabidiyy, and others.



If one were to interpret the mutashabih Verses and hadiths literally, one would be claiming that Allah moves up and down through the skies while sitting on the ^Arsh and encircling the creations. This is clearly unbefitting of Allah, the One Who does not resemble the creations in any way and is not contained by directions or place .


Rest assured that the methodologies of both the Salaf and the Khalaf are correct and neither attribute anything to Allah that does not befit Him.

In simple terms, the first correct way of explaining the mutashabih Verses in the Qur'an is to say that one believes in them according to the meaning that Allah willed without saying what that meaning is; and without a ‘how,' i.e., without attributing to Allah sitting, standing, occupying places, sensuous attributes, or any of the meanings that apply to humans and other creations. Following this method, one would say: "Allah has an istiwa' which befits Him, which is not sitting, and Allah has a yad which befits Him, which is not a hand, and a wajh that befits Him, which is not a face." One cannot interpret the word saq as shin. Not one meaning for the word shin in the English language is appropiate to attribute to Allah.

The second correct way of explaining the mutashabih Verses in the Qur'an is to give to them specific meanings, which are in
accordance with the Religion and the language. Following this method, one would say: "Allah's istiwa' means 'He preserves the throne,' Allah's yad means ‘Allah's Care,' and Allah's wajh means ‘Allah's Self,' ‘Allah's Dominion,' or ‘Allah's Qiblah.'"

May Allah protect us from falling into the trap of likening Allah to His creation. Imam Abu Ja^far at-Tahawiyy, in his book Al-^Aqidatut-Tahawiyyah, said what means:


"Whoever attributes to Allah a human characteristic commits blasphemy."




Beware of books that are claimed to be interpretations of the Qur'aan, or translations of its meanings and in which Allah, the Exalted, is likened to His creation, by attributing to Him light, hands, eyes, shins, faces, sitting, directions, places, and the like. Allah is clear of all imperfection and of any resemblance to the creation.


Praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds, the One Who is clear of resembling the creation, all non-befitting attributes, and all which the blasphemers unrightfully say about Him.

Asalama Alaikum waramatulahi wabarakatuhu.

When I first saw this thread I thought mashallah I would really like to join but it seems that you guys are very anti-salafi?

Why is this?

Also what is this myth surrounding 'Wahabism'?

Alhamduliah I follow the Salafi dawah and I'd be happy to clear the misconceptions.

Also please note that we do not follow Shiekh ul Islam ibn Abdul Wahab Rahemahu'Allah nor Ibn Taymiyya rather we follow that on which they are right in e.g. Quran and Sunnah and we reject that in which they erred, we follow the Sunnnah of the Messenger or Allah sallahu alyewasalam literally upon the Interpretations of the Salafus Saleh meaning the The Messenger and his Companions May Allah be pleased with them.

Ibn Taymiyya likening Allah to his creation...acudubillah indeed you utter a great lie akhii Ibn Taymiyya have refuted the likes of you hundreds of years ago, inshallah bring me proof where he is likening Allah to his creation, He is merely acknowleding the third category of Tawheed which is Asma was siffat (names and attributes of Allah) and whoever rejects this then he/she has become a disbeliever.

Believing in the Attributes of God such as Yad means believing that Allaah is Attributed with Yad without a how. It is NOT believing that Allaah is Attributed with a physical hand, as the wahhabis of today claim. The word Yad which was used in the Qur'aan has many many meanings - ONE of which is a physical hand. True Muslims choose the correct meaning of Yad when speaking about Allaah, so they do not choose to attribute a body or body parts to Allaah.

wa 3alaikum assalaam wa RaHmatullaahi wa Barakaatuh

The wahhabis of today call themselves salafis and try to say that wahabism is a myth. They follow the teachings of muhammad ibn abdulwahhaab and ahmad ibn taymiyah despite the rejection of these 2 figures by the authorities of the Muslim nation of their times.

In the chapter, Tafsirul-Qur'an, (Explanation of the Qur'an), Imam al-Bukhariyy says that the term wajhahu in Surat al-Qasas, ayah 88, means "His Dominion." However, the mushabbihah who liken Allah to His creation say: "We do not interpret, but rather we go by the literal meaning," and hence (they say) wajhahu means "His face."

That is just one example out of many that I can give you.

And Allaah Knows best

You are wrong akhii I follow the salafi manhaj and I do not say this neither does Ibn Taymiyya or any other scholar who follows the correct and saved sect.

Where is the proof that Ibn Taymiyya or any salafi's claim this?

We affirm the names and attributes but without likening it to the creation so we say yes Allah subhana'wataala has a hand, a face etc but nothing like the human form we accept these attributes without likening them to the creation.

This lie about the Dawah us Sallafiyya has existed many centuries and funny enough no one has actually asked the salafi's themselves in regards to this matter but lie and claim things we do not do.

Inshallah Sam if you can provide me with the daleel that actually says that the saved sect likens Allah to his creation then I would like to see it as you know in Islam everything is judged by daleel rather than assumption.

And please refrain from using the term Wahabi as that is offensive and as salafi's are the only ones who follow the sunnah according to the Messenger sallahu aleywasalam and the 3 pious generations which were the best.

For more info please do not hesistate to ask

You said it yourself. People like you (1 million or so compared to the hundreds of millions of Muslims who do not follow your way) say that Allaah has a hand instead of saying Allaah is Attributed with Yad.

Yad in Arabic has more than just 1 meaning. It can mean care, power and many other meanings.

People like you say Yad means hand when talking about Allaah. Why? Because people like you believe that God is a body - in contrast to the hundreds of millions of Muslims who say Allaah is not a body.

The hundreds of millions of Muslims are the saved ones - not some group that consists of 1 or 2 million and believes that all who do not follow them are not saved.

Asalama Alaikum Samsparky...I don;t know if you are wilfully misunderstanding my point.

Yes I affirm the attributes and names of Allah but when we say hand that doesn't mean as in human hand rather it is part of the Qayb (the unseen) and Allah subahana'wa'taala doesn't resemble his creation acudubi'Allah and only Allah knows his own true form.

People like me are the only ones upon the correct path and Alhamduliah Ahlul sunnah wal Jamaah is spreading here in the UK

Akhii please do not spread these lies against the Dawah of the salaf us salih.

I repeat under no circumstances do we liken Allah to his creation rather we bear witness to his names and attributes like the Messenger of Allah sallahu alewasalam taught us.
We follow only the Quran and Sunnah upon the understanding of the Salaf which are the Prophet and his companions May Allah be pleased with them

For more info inshallah go on: http://www.qss.org/articles/salafi/text.html

And next time Sam please gain knowledge before you speak regarding that which you do not know as was the case with the salafi dawah.

Also look at this inshallah and maybe then will your misconceptions be cleared inshallah

http://www.thewahhabimyth.com/

Are YOU wilfully misunderstanding?

Let me make it easy for you. Do you know what an Arabic dictionary is?

Look up the word "Yad" in that dictionary. NOT hand because "hand" was not attributed to Allaah in the Qur'aan, "yad" was.

And come back and tell us how many meanings you found and what they were.

.........................................

Sam what Madhab do you follow if you follow any that is and have you read my post and the links I've provided?

Do you take your knowlegde from the Ulema such as Al-Albani Raheemahu'Allah, Ibn Baz Rahemahu'Allah Sheikh ul Islam Abdul Wahab Raheemahu'Allah, Shiekh Ubayd Al Jabiree Hafidahu'Allah etc?
These Ulema are upon the Sunnah

Who do you take you knowledge from or do you interpret the deen yourself?

I ask this in order to understand where you've gone wrong in your assumptions?
For judging by your posts it doesn't seem like you have much knowledge in issues of figh or deen.
No offence meant

I follow the Shaafi^iyy math-hab. The links you posted are not new to me - wahhabis have posted links like those to me before to try to deny that they are known by that name.

Most of the people you listed are classed by the Muslim nation as : wahhabis, and I do not take my knowledge from wahhabis.

I do not take the knowledge by merely reading books, conducting an internet search or watching satellites. I take my knowledge in person and most of the people who read this thread will testify to the fact that I never make my own interpretations of Islam.

In conclusion, you have avoided my question about the dictionary.

Is that because your wahhabi leaders do not believe that there is any correct Arabic dictionary that was written by the scholars of Islam?

Sam I see you are bent on insulting me by calling me Wahabi when we do not ascribe ourselves to this name.

I see you blind follow Imam Shaffii Rahemahu'Allah....

It funny that you think Ahlul Sunnah wal jamaa'h are misguided when all we do is follow the Sunnah and the Quran according to the salaf us salih.

Pray tell who do you take you 'knowledge' from in person...no doubt ukhtii you are misguided.

The Ulema I mentioned are upon the Haqq and knowing that you don't take from them has confirmed that you are upon misguidence and what a great evil this is.

All I can do is direct you to a an authentic source which is the Quran and Sunnah and the Pious Ulema upon the correct way.

I fear for you ukhtii...no innovation is good innovation.

For someone who says they take ilm in person you do not seem to possess a great deal...for if you did you would not based your sole point on the name 'Wahabi' when I have already refuted you and told you that we do not call ourselves that name.

Know ukhtii that when you slander an Ulema its like eating poison according to the Messenger of Allah sallahu alyewasalam

hey guys, Assalamualaikum

Islam and Science: Notes on an Ongoing Debate
Ibrahim Kalin
College of the Holy Cross

http://www.muslimphilosophy.com/kalin/Isla...d%20Society.doc

Nefer,

Ahlussunnah waljamaa^ah are not only 1 or 2 million in number.

Rather, Ahlussunnah waljamaa^ah were mentioned by the Prophet to be as-sawaad al-a^THam and alJamaa^ah.

Do not say that hundreds of millions of Muslims are kaafirs just because muhammad ibn abdilwahhaab, ahmad ibn taymiyah and those who follow them today believe that every innovation is a bad one.

Those people who follow these 2 are KNOWN AS wahhaabis and of course they do not call themselves that straight out, otherwise they would be known to the people as radicals, deviants and a group that believes that all those who claim to be Muslims are kaafirs except for them.

If I follow Imaam ash-shaafi^iyy blindly, I would be better off than following muhamad ibn abdil-wahhaab and his supporters blindly.

At least Imaam ash-shaafi^iyy is praised by most of the Muslim nation whereas ahmad ibn taymiyah and muhammad ibn abdilwahhaab are dispraised by most of the Muslim nation.

Ukhtii trying to have a valid discussion with you is useless as you have yet to bring Daleel to support your views from the Quran and sunnah the links I gave you have sufficient proofs from the Quran and sunnah and yet you persist in in airing your pwn biased personal views.

I have yet to call a muslim a kafir pray tell where did you see me declaring takfeer on a muslim?
Do not get me confused with the Kawarijj!

As for you saying that you blind follow Imam Shafi'ii Rahemahu'Allah then alas you are upon misguidence ukhtii.

In Islam we do not blind follow and no I don't blind follow any Ulema but rather I do as they've said countless times 'Take from me that in which I am correct and leave that in which I am incorrect'

Remember Imam Shafi'ii Rahemahu'Allah was only Human and humans make mistakes!


People such as yourself insists on calling us names which we have not affirmed for ourselves but alhamduliah the Messenger of Allah sallahu alyewasalam said 'Islam shall return as something strange so give glad tidings to the strangers'
Our Dawah seems strange to people because we follow the Quran and Sunnah literally and upon the understanding of the Salaf, and we are harsh against innovation.

Ukhtii I am saddened that you are not open minded and that you are biased so much so that you have not even taken the time to read the link i gave you called 'introduction to the salafi dawah' and that you continue to discuss without any proof other than calling me a 'wahabi' when once again I have refuted you.

As Ahlul sunnah wal jamaaha then we follow all the Ulema upon the manhaj of the salaf us salih including Imam Shafi'ii, Imam Malik, Imam hanafi and Imam Hanbal Rahemahu'Allahu
And we do not blind follow as you have admitted you do.

I leave this pointless discussion sister and May Allah have mercy upon you and guide you ameen...for any questions do not hesitate to pm me.