29 November 2009

Seerah of Muhammed*

*: May the peace blessings & Mercy of Allah be upon him
TMQ: Translation to the nearest meaning of the Qur’an

Prophet Visits at-Taif....
Updated soon (I/A)


Hadith (Riyadh as-Salihin): Steadfastness

Abu Hurayra reported that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "The strong man is not the one who throws people in wrestling. The strong man is the one who has control of himself when he is angry." [Bukhari, Muslim]

Sulayman ibn Surad said, "One day I was sitting with the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, while two men were quarreling. The face of one of them turned red and his veins stood out. The Messenger of Allah said, 'I know a word which, if you say it, will remove what you feel.' (Or he said '"I seek refuge with Allah from the accursed Shaytan' will remove from him what he feels.') They told him that the Prophet and two men were were quarreling said, 'Seek refuge with Allah from the accursed Shaytan.'" [Bukhari, Muslim]

Mu'adh ibn Anas reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "If someone restrains his anger when he is able to give vent to it, Allah ­ glory be to Him and may He will exalted!­ will summon him at the head of creatures on the Day of Rising so that he can chose whichever of the wide-eyed houris he wishes." [Abu Dawud and at-Tirmidhi]

Abu Hurayra reported that a man said to the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, "Give me counsel." He said, "Do not get angry." He repeated his request several times and he said, "Do not get angry." [Bukhari]


Lessons from Hajj

"For Hajj are the months well known. If anyone undertakes that duty therein let there be no obscenity or wickedness nor wrangling in the Hajj. And whatever good you do Allah knows it. And take a provision for the journey but the best of provisions is right conduct. So fear Me. O Men of understanding." [TMQ Al-Baqarah:197]

Abu Huraira narrated that Allah's Messenger was asked, "What is the best deed?" He replied, "To believe in Allah and His Messenger." The questioner then asked, "What is the next (in goodness)?" He replied, "To participate in Jihad in Allah's Cause." The questioner again asked, "What is the next?" He replied, "To perform Hajj 'Mubrur." [Bukhari]

Abu Huraira narrated that the Prophet said, "Whoever performs Hajj for Allah's pleasure and does not have sexual relations with his wife, and does not do evil or sins then he will return as if he were born anew." [Bukhari]

Some of the lessons that can we learn from the Hajj:

1) Unity
If we look to Islam we see that many of the Shariah rules demonstrate the concept of unity of the Ummah, Hajj is one of them. It is a time where the believers gather in unison to worship their Lord reciting the Talbiya which the Messenger recited.

Abdullah bin 'Umar narrated that the Talbiya of Allah's Messenger was : 'Labbaika Allahumma labbaik, Labbaika la sharika Laka labbaik, Inna-l-hamda wan-ni'mata Laka walmulk, La sharika Laka'. "I respond to Your call O Allah, I respond to Your call, and I am obedient to Your orders, You have no partner, I respond to Your call All the praises and blessings are for You, All the sovereignty is for You, And You have no partners with you." [Bukhari]

Indeed one of the astonishing things about the Hajj even for the non-Muslims is that people from all colours, the black and white; people from all races - from Europe, Turkey, Indonesia, India, Africa; people from all ages - the young and the old are united in the worship to Allah and are all equal before Him. Hajj symbolises the concept of 'Ummatun Wahida' 'One Ummah'. The Muslims from all parts of the world who speak different languages and have different looks upon their faces, all perform the various obligatory acts together like the Tawaf around the Ka'ba, the running between Safa and Marwa, the stoning of the Jamarat and the wearing of the Ihram. Indeed the concept of one united Ummah with no distinction, with no racism or nationalistic divisions is a fundamental concept in Islam. Allah says: "And hold fast all together by the rope which Allah and be not divided among yourselves." [TMQ Al-Imran 3:103]

Abu Musa narrated that the Prophet said, "A believer to another believer is like a building whose different parts enforce each other." The Prophet then clasped his hands with the fingers interlaced (while saying that). [Bukhari]

The letter that Al-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz otherwise known as Malcolm X wrote from Makkah after performing the Hajj expresses beautifully the brotherhood of Islam, he wrote:

• "Never have I witnessed such sincere hospitality and overwhelming spirit of true brotherhood as is practiced by people of all colors and races here in this ancient Holy Land, the home of Abraham, Muhammad and all the other Prophets of the Holy Scriptures. For the past week, I have been utterly speechless and spellbound by the graciousness I see displayed all around me by people of all colours."
• "I have been blessed to visit the Holy City of Mecca, I have made my seven circuits around the Ka'ba, led by a young Mutawaf named Muhammad, I drank water from the well of the Zam Zam. I ran seven times back and forth between the hills of Mt. Al-Safa and Al Marwah. I have prayed in the ancient city of Mina, and I have prayed on Mt. Arafat."
• "There were tens of thousands of pilgrims, from all over the world. They were of all colours, from blue-eyed blondes to black-skinned Africans. But we were all participating in the same ritual, displaying a spirit of unity and brotherhood that my experiences in America had led me to believe never could exist between the white and non-white."
• "America needs to understand Islam, because this is the one religion that erases from its society the race problem. Throughout my travels in the Muslim world, I have met, talked to, and even eaten with people who in America would have been considered white - but the white attitude was removed from their minds by the religion of Islam. I have never before seen sincere and true brotherhood practiced by all colours together, irrespective of their colour."
• "You may be shocked by these words coming from me. But on this pilgrimage, what I have seen, and experienced, has forced me to rearrange much of my thought-patterns previously held, and to toss aside some of my previous conclusions. This was not too difficult for me. Despite my firm convictions, I have always been a man who tries to face facts, and to accept the reality of life as new experience and new knowledge unfolds it. I have always kept an open mind, which is necessary to the flexibility that must go hand in hand with every form of intelligent search for truth."
• "During the past eleven days here in the Muslim world, I have eaten from the same plate, drunk from the same glass, and slept on the same rug - while praying to the same God - with fellow Muslims, whose eyes were the bluest of blue, whose hair was the blondest of blond, and whose skin was the whitest of white. And in the words and in the deeds of the white Muslims, I felt the same sincerity that I felt among the black African Muslims of Nigeria, Sudan and Ghana."
• "We were truly all the same (brothers) - because their belief in one God had removed the white from their minds, the white from their behaviour, and the white from their attitude."

[Extract from ‘The Autobiography of Malcolm X']

The rules (Ahkam) of Islam promote unity and collectivism not nationalism and individualism. The rules of caring for your neighbours, visiting the sick, helping the believers and keeping relations with the relatives all demonstrate this. Nationalism is a concept alien to Islam because it calls for unity based on family and tribal ties, whereas Islam binds people together on the ‘aqeedah, that is, belief in Allah and His Messenger In other words, Islam calls for the bond of Islam/Deen binding us.

It was reported by Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi that the Prophet said: "Undoubtedly Allah has removed from you the pride and arrogance of the Age of Jahilliyah (Ignorance) and the glorifications of ancestors. Now people are only of two kinds: Either believers who are aware or transgressors who do wrong. You are all the children of Adam and, Adam was from clay. People should give up their pride in nations because that is a coal from the coals of hell-fire. If they do not give this up Allah will consider them lower than the lowly worm which pushes itself through dung."

It is narrated by Abu Dawud that the Messenger of Allah said, "He is not one of us who calls for ‘asabiyyah, (nationalism) or who fights for ‘asabiyyah or who dies for ‘asabiyyah."

It is transmitted by at-Tabarani and al-Hakim that in one incident some people spoke very lowly about Salman al-Farsi. They spoke of the inferiority of the Persian in relation to the Arabs, and upon hearing this the Messenger of Allah declared, "Salman belongs to ahl al-bayt (the Prophet's family)." This statement of the Messenger of Allah disassociates all links based on lineage and tribal considerations.

Some disagreement occurred between Abu Dharr and Bilal and Abu Dharr said to Bilal, "You son of a black woman." The Messenger of Allah was extremely upset by Abu Dharr's comment, so he rebuked him by saying, "That is too much, Abu Dharr. He who has a white mother has no advantage which makes him better than the son of a black mother." This rebuke had a profound effect on Abu Dharr, who then put his head on the ground swearing that he would not raise it until Bilal had put his foot over it.

2) Story of Ibrahim and his adherence to the Shariah

We should take a lesson from the well known story of Ibrahim (as) and his son Ismael (as). Allah informs of his story in the Quran, "O my Lord! grant me a righteous (son)! So We gave him the good news of a boy ready to suffer and forbear. Then when (the son) reached (the age of) (serious) work with him he said: 'O my son! I see in vision that I offer thee in sacrifice: now see what is thy view!' (The son) said: 'O my father! do as you are commanded: you will find me if Allah so wills one practicing Patience and Constancy! So when they had both submitted their wills (to Allah) and He had laid Him prostrate on his forehead (for sacrifice) We called out to him 'O Ibrahim! You have already fulfilled the vision!' thus indeed do We reward those who do right." [TMQ As-Saffat: 100-105]

If one we ponder over the story of Ibrahim carefully we find that Allah ordered His believing slave, Ibrahim, to slaughter his beloved son! Both the father and the son fully submitted to the order of Allah without questioning it. Ibrahim didn't look for a reason for the command that Allah gave him, nor did Ismael knowing that he was going to be sacrificed. Rather they both willingly accepted the decision of Allah, because they realised that He was the creator and that their purpose was to worship Him. The lesson we can learn from this is to submit to the orders of Allah whether Allah has given us a reason for them or not.

3) Eid - a celebration from Islam

As Muslims we have a unique Deen and have our own celebrations, the two eids. We should not fall into celebrating non-Muslim festivals as this is haram such as Christmas, Divali, celebration of independence days, etc. Ibn Abbas reported that the Messenger said, "He is not one of us who imitates other than us. Do not imitate the Jews and the Christians." [At- Tirmidhi]

Al-Baihaqi reported in his Sunan that Anas Bin Malik said: When the Prophet came to Medina, the people had two holidays from the days of Jahiliyyah. He said: "When I came to you, you had two days which you used to celebrate in Jahiliyyah. Allah has replaced them for you with better days, the days of slaughter (Adhaa) and the day of Fitr." Also Imam Ahmad in his Musnad reported that Uqbah bin Amir reported the Prophet to have said: "The day of Fitr and days of Tashriq are our holidays, the people of Islam."

Indeed, Eid al Adha is a time of celebration for over one billion people around the globe. Although we will perform the slaughter, pray the Eid Salah and play with the children on this day our hearts and our minds will not be at ease due to suffering felt by our brothers and sisters around the world.

22 November 2009

night journey

15 November 2009

Seerah of Muhammed*

*: May the peace blessings & Mercy of Allah be upon him
TMQ: Translation to the nearest meaning of the Qur’an


Some of the extra-ordinary and miraculous events surrounding the Prophet*

The greatest miracle that the Prophet* was given and presented to the people of Arabia was the Qur’an – the Absolute Word of Allah. We have covered its miraculous nature in previous study circles. Here we will deal with some additional events that were signs for the people at the time.

A couple of weeks ago we covered the dissolution (cancelling) of the boycott of the Muslims and some of the tribes. When the people went to tear up the document that was hanging on the Kaaba wall it had been eaten up by insects, all apart from the first words: ‘In the name of Allah our Lord’. This demonstrates that the helpers of Allah come in all shapes and sizes.

Another sign was the strength and ability of the Prophet* when he wrested with Rukaana – the undisputed & undefeated wrestling champion of Mecca. He had asked the Prophet* to challenge him in order to discredit the Prophet* and claim superiority over him – and they settled on a bet of 100 sheep (in the time before betting was made Haram) for the winner. Thrice the Prophet* defeated Rukaana who had never been overturned and put on his back. After that he professed Islam and was given back his 100 sheep by the Prophet*.

In the time between the migration to Abyssinia and the conversion of Umer, the Prophet* performed one of his greatest miracles by the leave of Allah. The Quraish knew that prophets came with miracles and wanted a sign other than the Qur’an and so the Prophet* told them to gather one night and observe the splitting of the moon. Many people gathered, Muslims & non-Muslims, and saw the moon split in two on either side of the mountain of Mina. The Prophet* asked them to behold the majesty of Allah but the disbelievers made excuses – and this is mentioned in the Qur’an: “The hour of Judgement in near and the moon is cleft asunder, but if they see a sign they say this is but transient magic.”

Some scholars say this is one of the greatest miracles of any of the prophets as it was witnessed both in the heavens and on earth. So, why isn’t this documented in any other place if the moon did split, ask some people even today:
- As this happened at night it would not have been visible to the half of the globe in daylight.
- in the area covered by night, some parts would have been too early or too late to see the moon
- in the area covered by night, some parts may have been cloudy
- in the area covered by night, people do not generally run around looking at the moon
- documentation of the peoples in that era was not great and many important things that happened were not always recorded
- some scholars have heard rumours that this event was documented in places like India and China, where people refer to events happening ‘in the year the moon split’. There needs to be more evidence of this documentation and other arguments about astronomy and a rift on the moon being observable.

In the early years the Quraish teased the Muslims about many things (see previous circles) and they were particularly delighted when the Persian Empire defeated the Christians from the West. They taunted the Muslims saying that it was now the time of the pagans as they were winning, and as the Persians were victorious so the Quraish would defeat the Muslims. The sympathies of the Muslims were with the Christians as they were ‘people of the Book’ and were originally worshippers of the one True God (although many had since gone astray). Then Allah revealed a prophecy in the Qur’an: “The Romans have been defeated but they will be victorious within 10 years in the nearest land, and on that day the Muslims will be happy with the victory of Allah.”

On hearing this Abu Bakr placed a bet with Abu Jahl for 100 camels (again, in the time before betting was prohibited) that the Romans would win within 10 years. Abu Jahl agreed as the general news was that the Persians were so strong that they would roll over and obliterate the Christians. About 8 years later the Persians were indeed defeated in a major battle near the Dead Sea and news of this victory reached the Muslims on the very day that they defeated the Quraish in the battle of Badr. In addition, the word in Arabic (ard-nal ard) was previously translated as ‘the nearest land’ but could also mean ‘the lowest land’ which would refer to the Dead Sea area – as it is below sea level.

[The other extra-ordinary event was the Night Journey & Ascension....more next week]


Choosing friends and feeling good as Muslims

The Prophet* once said: ‘The Muslim is a mirror to a Muslim…’ There are many lessons from this short statement that highlight how we should chose our friends, how important good friends are and how we can start to feel good about ourselves.

• a mirror helps to complete you: you can notice if your hair is straight or if your shirt is buttoned properly. It helps you to perfect yourself. Likewise, a Muslim friend would point out the good and negative elements in a person so that they can improve themselves – and this is done by friends for the best of intentions.
• a mirror is fair and it doesn’t exaggerate or belittle features – it will show your nose as it is, neither bigger nor smaller. Likewise, a Muslim friend will always be honest to another Muslim friend and reflect things as they are.
• a mirror provides a ‘secret image’ – one that is for those that are present and looking. The mirror does not store the image (especially if not nice) and show it to other people later on. Hence, Muslim friends are friends to each other and keep their secrets safe and between each other, and does not go behind his friend and start backbiting or putting his friend down. So, friends keeps confidence for each other.
• a mirror is always polite and says so much by saying so little, hence the mirror does not overpower someone with criticism if they look bad in the mirror. A friend wouldn’t slap another friend just because of the way they look but they would be polite and get the message across effectively.
• the closer you get to a mirror the clearer the image can become and so, any defect can be fixed more easily. Hence, with a good Muslim friend, the closer they are in friendship the more honest they are and the better they know each other, especially their good points and faults. Hence, their advice would be sincere and for the best of intentions.
• when you stand back from the mirror it can also give you a sense of the whole picture – more than just the face. With good Muslim friends they are also able to tell each other not just about the small aspects of life but the wider picture – including complimenting on the overall objectives of life and where each action fits into the scheme of life & worship.

These are just some of the ways in which some of the scholars have explained this part of the Hadith, and how looking in the mirror should never be the same again! It also highlights the importance of choosing good Muslim friends.

How we feel about ourselves should not be based on our colour, height, physique, place of birth as we did not, as individuals, put much effort into being these. If we base our worth on these that would be shallow. If a good-looking person had and accident and became disfigured, they should not go from being proud to ashamed because of how society or other people see them. We should not live our life for the approval of other people as all of us are flawed. Muslims should have a positive identity about themselves based on something better and more lasting than the identity that western society gives us. Our reference point for feeling good is not ‘what people think’ but something greater.

If parents keep telling children that they are silly or stupid, then over time the children will start to believe it and act according to it. Also, if friends or society always tell people to behave in a certain way or are something bad then people will start to believe that themselves. We shouldn’t let western society judge us as Muslims because their values can be different to many Muslim values. The Prophet* did not criticise people or always put them down. Infact, the Prophet* used to praise people whenever he found good in them and there are books dedicated to the compliments the Prophet* paid to his followers. Hence we should not belittle people with constant criticism as this may crush their confidence over time, but we should sincerely compliment each other.

When children are approaching their teen years then they are very impressionable and there is a danger they will change their behaviour to gain approval from friends – such as starting to smoke, dressing a in ceratin way or talking/swearing in a particular fashion. Then children will act differently with friends, with parents, with the opposite sex, with relatives, and when they are by themselves. They never get settled and develop different personalities rather than being consistent and true to themselves. People may even want to change their names because they are ashamed of the name or what others may think about them because of it.

Last week we talked about a story where the followers of Musa felt very negative about themselves. But our Prophet* forbade Muslims to be disrespectful about themselves and he said tat is was haram to belittle ourselves. On one occasion he said that Muslims shouldn’t say they are ‘like pigs or donkeys’ in a way that is derogatory (saying very negative things). Today we may say that we are ‘so stupid and always foolish’, but this is wrong. We should mention what we have done wrong and try to improve on it but not to lower our self-worth. On another occasion, Abu Hurairah was very late for a gathering and the Prophet* sent for him. He reported that he didn’t come to the meeting because he thought he was unclean following a dream he had. The Prophet* told him off saying that a believing Muslim is never impure.

Another companion stayed away from the Prophet* and went to see Abu Bakr complaining that he felt like a hypocrite because when he was around the Prophet* he felt really good but when he got home he would go back to normal and be caught up in worldly affairs. Abu Bakr said that the same happened to him. So they went to the Prophet* who reassured them that it is not humanly possible to feel so good all the time. This lifted their morale and self-confidence.

So, where do we get our confidence from? Where do we get our self-belief or esteem from? What should we be proud of?

Our worth comes from our relationship with Allah. Allah informs us that He “has honoured the son of Adam”. We have all been honoured by Allah. Indeed, Allah says that “We have preferred them over many of Our creation”. Furthermore, the Prophet* said that the destruction of the Kaaba is less evil in the eyes of Allah than the death of an innocent Muslim. They drop of blood of Muslims is sacred and we should feel proud because of that.

We would naturally feel some joy if we get a specific personal mention & praise by important people such as a headmaster, a community leader, or the Prime Minister or even Obama! However, if we mention the name of Allah in an assembly of people, the Prophet* informs us that Allah – the Creator of the heavens and earth – will make a mention of us in a better assembly. Also, the Prophet* tells us that even if we make a mention of Allah (such as ‘SubhanAllah’ or ‘Alhadulillah’) then Allah will make a mention of us in Himself. That must be one of the best power-up boosts we can imagine! Saying the Kalimah gives us a personal relationship with Allah. As our belief (Aqeeda) and actions are based on Islam, something we think about and put our effort into – this would be something we should truly feel proud of!

Proud to be Muslim!

To finish off and linking the two themes from today: friendship and esteem. The Prophet* mentioned that the parable of friendship is like the perfume seller and the blacksmith – hanging around the latter will be associated with smelly and dirty clothes whereas being with the former and we will smell nicer! Also, we will begin to be judged by the company we keep and are seen to be with –and we should have self respect in this regard too.

In addition, Ali gave advice to his son, saying: “Oh my son! Be selective with your friends and do not enslave yourself to others as Allah has created you a free man”. Enslavement to others could mean changing ourselves (personality, behaviour, habits, clothes etc) for the approval of others.

Ali also mentioned that we should be careful with our friends as they can be our helpers in this life and the Hereafter. People asked him how could friends help us in the hereafter, as the former is fairly obvious. Ali replied by quoting from the Qur’an where “friends in the Hereafter will be the enemies of each other except the righteous”. Those ‘friends’ in Hell will be cursing each other and blaming each other for their situation, and those friends in Paradise will be thanking each other – for eternity – for the friendship they had and how it helped them reach a more settled place. All that is left to say is Alhamdulillah – and praise Allah in ourselves or in a group!!

8 November 2009

Seerah of Muhammed*

*: May the peace blessings & Mercy of Allah be upon him
TMQ: Translation to the nearest meaning of the Qur’an

Death of Abu Talib

About 6 months after the end of the boycott (embargo/siege) the Uncle of the Prophet* became very ill and was lying on his deathbed. He had supported the Prophet* for 42 years since the Prophet* was 8 years old and the Prophet* was very close to Abu Talib. Unsurprisingly, the Prophet* was at the bedside. Again, unsurprisingly, so was Abu Jahl on the other side.

The Prophet* would say: “oh my uncle! Say ‘la illaha illallah’ so I can witness for you on the day of Judgement.” Then Abu Jahl would say: “oh son of Abdul Muttalib! Are you going to die on another religion and denounce the religion of your father?” Abu Talib had mentioned to the Prophet* that if it were not for the Quraish insulting him (and his honour) after his death he would have professed Islam just to please the Prophet*. He was too proud to admit this up until the end and the exchanges between the Prophet* and Abu Jahl continue until Abu Talib spoke his last words before dying: “I am dying on the religion of my father Abdul Muttalib.”

The Prophet was distraught after losing someone so close and the Quraish were ecstatic with their propaganda coup claiming that the Prophet* could not even convert his Uncle. The Prophet* would then say that he would continue to ask Allah for the forgiveness of his Uncle Abu Talib unless he was forbidden from doing so. Indeed, Allah did send down a revelation stating: “It is not befitting for the Prophet and those that believe that they should invoke Allah for the forgiveness of the pagans even though they are relatives, after it has become clear to them that they are the companions of the fire.”

Other verses revealed to the Prophet* highlighted the fact that is was not the job of the Prophet* to convert the people but only to convey the message: “You cannot give guidance to those who love but it is Allah who gives guidance to the ones He Wills.” There is no compulsion in religion and people should be free to choose Islam and so judgement would be fair on the Day of Resurrection. Hence, Muslims have never had a history of forcing people to convert to Islam like the Christians used to convert people to Christianity.

Shortly after the death of Abu Talib, Khadija - the beloved wife of the Prophet* died. She had supported the Prophet* throughout his mission both emotionally and financially. She was 65 years old and this death, combined with the death of his uncle who had provided physical support to the message, made the Prophet* and Muslims very vulnerable to the Quraish. They had to become reliant solely upon Allah and develop ‘tawakkul-Allah’. This time was know as the ‘Year of Grief’ and later the Prophet* would say that they worst time of his mission was this period shortly after the death of these two. But Allah would then reveal a verse reassuring the Prophet* that ‘with every difficulty comes ease.’



Hadith (Riyadh as-Salihin): On Steadfastness

Suhayb reported hat the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Among those before you there was a king who had a sorcerer. When he was old, he said to the king, 'I am old, so send me a lad to whom I can teach sorcery.' He sent him a lad for him to teach. When the boy was on the way, he came upon a monk. He sat down to listen to his words and liked what he heard. Whenever he went to the sorcerer, he would pass by the monk and sit with him. When he came to the sorcerer, the sorcerer would beat him. He complained about that to the monk who said, 'When you are afraid of the sorcerer, say, "My family kept me." And when you are afraid of your family, say, "The sorcerer kept me."'

"While all this was going on, he came upon a great beast which was barring the people's way and said, 'Today I will find out who is better, the sorcerer or the monk.' He took a stone and said, 'O Allah, if what the monk does is preferable to You to what the sorcerer does, then turn this beast aside so that the people can pass.' He threw it and killed the animal and the people went on. He went to the monk and told him and the monk said to him, 'O my boy, today you are better than I am. I see the point that your business has reached. You will be tested and, when you are tested, do not point me out.'

The boy used to heal the blind and the lepers and treat people for all their ailments. A companion of the king who was blind heard this and brought him many gifts. He said, 'All that I have gathered for you here is yours if you heal me.' He said, 'I do not heal anyone. It is Allah Almighty who heals. If you believe in Allah Almighty, I will pray to Allah to heal you." So he believed in Allah Almighty and Allah Almighty healed him.

He went to the king and sat with him as he used to do. The king said to him, 'Who has returned your sight to you?' He said, 'It was my Lord.' He said, 'You have a Lord other than me?!' He said, 'My Lord and your Lord, Allah.' So he seized him and did not stop torturing him until he pointed out the boy. The boy was brought and the king said to him, 'O boy, your sorcery has reached the point where you heal the blind and the lepers, and you do such-and-such and such-and-such.' He said, 'I do not heal anyone. It is Allah Almighty who heals.' He seized him and did not stop torturing him until he pointed out the monk.

The monk was brought and told, 'Renounce your religion.' He refused. He called for a saw and placed the saw on the centre of his head and split it until the two halves fell apart. Then the companion of the king was brought and told, 'Renounce your religion!' He refused, and the the saw was placed on the centre of his head and split it until the two halves fell apart. Then the boy was brought and told, 'Renounce your religion,' and he refused. He handed him over to a group of his companions and said, 'Take him to such-and-such a mountain, and take him up the mountain. When you reach its summit, if he has not renounced his religion, throw him off.' They took him and brought him up the mountain and he said, 'O Allah, save me from them in whatever way You will.' The mountain shook and they fell. He walked to the king and the king said to him, 'What has happened to your companions?' He said, 'Allah Almighty saved me from them.'

He handed him over to a group of his companions and said, 'Take him and put him in a ship and take him to the middle of the sea. If he does not recant, then throw him into it.' They took him and he said, 'O Allah, save me from them in whatever way You will.' The ship capsized and they were drowned. He walked back to the king and the king said to him, 'What has happened to your companions?' He said, 'Allah Almighty saved me from them.' He said to the king, 'You will not kill me until you do what I command you.' He said, 'What is that?' He said, 'You should gather the people together on one plain and crucify me on a palm trunk. Then take an arrow from your quiver and put the arrow in the centre of your bow and say, "In the name of Allah, the Lord of the boy," and then shoot it. If you do that, you will kill me.'

So he gathered the people together on one plain and crucified him on a trunk and then took his arrow from his quiver and placed the arrow in the middle of the bow and then said, "In the name of Allah, the Lord of the boy," and then shot it and the arrow struck his temple. He put his hand on his temple and then died. The people said, "We believe in the Lord of the boy." The king was brought and told, "Do you not see that, by Allah, your fear has brought about the very thing you were afraid of! The people have believed." So he commanded that a trench be dug with openings onto it and had fires lit in it. He said, 'Throw into it, anyone who does not renounce his religion or tell him to jump.' They did that until a woman came with one of her children. She hesitated to jump into it and the child said to her, 'Mother, be steadfast! You have the truth.'" [Muslim]


How we see ourselves as Muslims today

Allah mentions a story about Musa (Moses) in the Qur’an, after Musa had taken the children of Israel out of Egypt and on the way to the Holy Land. He wanted the people to go and fight to get the land that Allah had promised them. Allah says: “And when Musa said to his people: Oh people! Remember the blessings of Allah upon you, for He has designated Messengers & Prophets from amongst you, and kings from amongst you and He gave you that which He did not give to the other people around your time. Oh my people, Go to the Holy Land that Allah has promised you and do not turn your backs on the commands of Allah otherwise you will be the losers” and the people replied: “Oh Musa! In it (the Holy Land) are men who are exceedingly powerful, and we will not enter that land until they leave. If they leave we will enter the city. As long as they are therein we will not attempt to go to that city.”

The Bible contains the same story and has some additional information that does not contradict or disagree with the Qur’anic version. The Bible adds that the Jews said to Moses that the Holy Land contained ‘people who are exceedingly powerful, and to them we [the Jews] are like grasshoppers, and they see us the way we see ourselves’.

Here, despite having the power and might of Allah behind them, the followers of Musa (who had delivered them from the evil Pharaoh) refused to obey Musa’s commands partly because they had such a negative image of themselves. Their self-esteem and self-belief was very low. They did not value themselves nor believe strongly in their message and the power of their Lord.

Today, many Muslims see themselves in a similar way. We have a negative and apologetic opinion of ourselves and are always defending our beliefs, distancing ourselves from the evil actions of a few bad people. Our confidence in ourselves, beliefs and each other is low, and battered by the media constantly picking upon Muslims in the UK and abroad. How can we change this and start to feel good about ourselves and our Islam?

The media and politicians are always attacking Muslims and we often say that we cannot change it because they are too powerful. We are saying that we are like grasshoppers to them! This attitude is wrong.

Allah mentions in the Qur’an: “Pharaoh has indeed transgressed on the land. He made the people with dignity humiliated”. And in another verse, talking about evil kings: “And when the kings move into a locality they spread corruption and made the dignified amongst the most humiliated and dishonoured”.

These verses talk about how the ruling elite target those with some self-dignity and pride. This may be because those who have self-confidence may stand up to tyranny and oppression and stand up for their beliefs. These people will not ‘go with the flow’ but stand for what is right. These people are potentially rebellious to the ruling people.

How do we feel good about ourselves? The Western media & society tells us that if we look good we deserve to feel good about ourselves. It promotes physical beauty for both men & women: you have to be a certain figure, or have muscles, or dress in a suggestive skimpy manner to look attractive. There are many programmes that promote the physical look, and how to look better. Hence, we should get our self-worth and confidence from the way we look. This is how many adverts sell their products. The side effect is that if you do not look good you shouldn’t feel good about yourself. Thus, we see many people with eating diseases (such as anorexia & bulimia) or people may go to the extreme and start harming themselves because they don’t look or feel good. Those that can afford it then have cosmetic surgery whilst the others feel worse. Again, we are like grasshoppers to this onslaught! Some others then derive their self-belief from their place of birth (e.g., ‘English’), others from their skin colour (‘proud to be black’), or their football team, or their looks. And should we take pride in these things that we made little effort in – how hard did we try to be born where we were or to be ‘black’ or ‘asian’?! So, how did the early Muslims see themselves…

A few short lesser known stories can shed some light on this: Haakim bin Hizam was a non-Muslim and he gave the Prophet* a beautiful gown that had once belonged to the ruler of Yemen. The Prophet* wore this and Haakim said that he had never seen someone more beautiful and handsome as when the Prophet* was wearing this gown. The next day, whilst in the street of Medina he came across Ussama bin Zaid wearing that gown. Ussama was not known for his good looks! Haakim said that is must have been an honour for Ussama to wear the gown that had once belonged to the ruler of Yemen. Instead of being apologetic Ussama replied: ‘By Allah! I am better than that king, and my mother is better than his mother, and my father is better than his father because we say la illaha illalah whereas none of his family ever did’.

On another occasion, Ubaid ibn Samit had been invited by an emperor to talk and explain Islam. He approached on a horse and the courtiers said that he could not address the king on his horse. He said that he had been invited and he will address him as he sees fit. The emperor allowed Ubaid to enter and he was asked what the Muslims were about and what they wanted, Ubaid replied to the emperor’s face: ‘We came to take the creation of Allah out of serving other creatures to the worship of Allah; out of the injustice of other religions to the justice of Islam, and out of the narrowness of this life to the vastness of this life and the Hereafter’.

A quote from the last century goes: ‘no-one can make you feel inferior without your permission and consent’. That is, no-one can actually physically go inside your heart and force you to feel inferior unless there is something for them to feed off. As Muslims, we should be feeling positive about our deen (Islam) and positive about ourselves. Next week we will cover this topic in greater detail (I/A).

1 November 2009

Seerah of Muhammed*

*: May the peace blessings & Mercy of Allah be upon him
TMQ: Translation to the nearest meaning of the Qur’an

The Boycott of the Muslims

The Quraish realised that something drastic had to be done to stop the spread of Islam and the activities of the Muslims. They were disheartened because they now saw that many prominent and noble people were now Muslims, including Hamza & Umer ibn al-Khattab. In addition, the Muslims were now operating as a distinct group in an organised fashion. Furthermore, there was now a distinct and separate group was based in Abyssinia. Hence the Muslims could not be ignored or wiped out so easily now.

So the leaders of Quraish formally requested Banu Hashim to hand over the Prophet* so that they could deal with him (that is to kill him). This went against all the known values in the society of Mecca and was an unprecedented request. Therefore, Banu Hashim refused to hand over the Prophet* and the Quraish then decided to start a comprehensive boycott of all the Muslims and the tribe of Banu Hashim and Banu Muttalib - which included all the Muslims and not Muslims from these tribes. The boycott was like a siege and started in Muharram of the seventh year of Prophethood and its terms were that there was to be no dealing with both the tribes at all, no trading or marriage. The terms of the embargo were documented and pinned on the wall of the Kaaba.

They would stop people going in or out or taking any food supplies where the tribes were and guarded the entry points and exit points. This terrible siege lasted for about two or three years at the Muslims and not Muslims were suffering so much so that, it is reported, there used to eat the leaves of the trees and chew on animal hides. Even when they were allowed to enter Mecca during the pilgrimage seasons of the food would be of poor quality and priced very expensively.

Some of the non Muslims were against this boycott because it contradicted the values they held dear and in their society such as loyalty to the tribe and family. One of these people was Hisham bin Harith who would occasionally try to sneak food into the enclave where the tribes were staying or would send in a camel full of food late at night. He had relatives on his mother's side who were being boycotted. He later approached Zuhair bin Abi Umaiyah who he felt was sympathetic to Banu Hashim & Banu Muttalib and asked him if it pleased him that he could eat and drink whilst his uncles were in distress. If this boycott was against the uncles of Abu Jahl he (Abu Jahl) would never agree to the terms, and so is this not very hypocritical of them all? Zuhair replied 'Shame on you! I only one person and what can I do. You need to find someone else and then I will try to cancel this evil agreement.' Hisham mentioned he was on his side but was asked to finda third person. This was Mut'am Ibn-Adey who has asked by Hisham: ' are you pleased that two clans suffer and you look on in agreement with the suffering? By God, if you let them get away with this then they will treat you in the same way some day.' Hisham was asked to find another who was Abu-Al-Bukhturi Ibn-Hisham and later a fifth Zamaa bin Aswad who were then all agreed to meet secretly at night to devise a plan to cancel the boycott.

The next day Zuhair put on his ceremonial clothes and visited the Kaaba before approaching the Quraish in their meeting house (an-Nadwah) where he stated: "Oh Quraish, does it please you to eat well and dress at will while Banu Hashim & Banu Muttalib are after distress? I will not sit down until this evil document is torn up." Then one of the other co-conspirators stood up and agreed with him whilst denouncing the boycott. Then the third stood up followed by the fourth and fifth person. Abu Jahl view that they had conspired this but the public opinion had now swung against the boycott and everybody agreed to cancel it. When they went to retrieve the document they found that that all of it had been eaten up (by insects) apart from the opening sentence which stated ' in the name of Allah'.

Some lessons from this incident:
1. This highlights the importance of organised efforts for good
2. Great change can occur by a few people (although originally started in the mind of one person)
3. The importance of action - doing things not just talking about them
4. There is good in most people - where the non-Muslims conspired to overturn an evil against the Muslims because it went against their own values
5. The helpers of Allah come in all forms - with ants/termites eating the document



Hadith (Riyadh as-Salihin): On Steadfastness (dependable, reliable, patient)

Allah Almighty says, "O you who believe! Be steadfast; be supreme in steadfastness"
"We will test you with a certain amount of fear and hunger and loss of wealth and life and fruits. But give good news to the steadfast,"
"The steadfast will be paid their wages in full without any reckoning."
"But if someone is steadfast and forgives, that is the most resolute course to follow."
"Seek help in steadfastness and the prayer. Allah is with the steadfast"
"We will test you until We know the true fighters among you and those who are steadfast"

Abu Malik al-Harith ibn 'Asim al-Ash'ari reported that the Messenger of Allah* said, "Purity is half of belief. 'Praise be to Allah' fills up the balance, and 'Glory be to Allah and praise be to Allah' fills up everything between the heavens and the earth. The prayer is a light. Sadaqa is a proof. Steadfastness is an illumination. The Qur'an is a proof for you or against you. Everybody goes out and trades with his own self, either seting it free or destroying it." [Muslim]

Abu Sa'id Sa'd ibn Malik ibn Sinan al-Khudri said, "Some of the people of the Ansar asked for something from the Messenger of Allah* and he gave it to them. Then they asked him again and he gave to them until he had used up everything he had. He said, 'If I had anything more, I would not keep it from you. Whoever refrains, Allah will spare him from needing to ask. Whoever wants to be independent, Allah will make him so. Whoever shows fortitude, Allah will increase him in that. No one can be given any better and greater gift than fortitude.'" [Bukhari & Muslim]

Abu Yahya Suhayb ibn Sinan said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, 'What an extraordinary thing the business of the believer is! All of it is good for him. And that only applies to the believer. If good fortune is his lot, he is grateful and it is good for him. If something harmful happens to him, he is steadfast and that is good for him too.'" [Muslim]


Topic: Al-Qadhaa wal-Qadr

The Five Pillars of Islam are the five duties obligatory on every Muslim:

• Shahadah (Profession of Faith)
• Salah (prayers)
• Zakah (Giving to the poor and needy)
• Sawm (Fasting during Ramadan)
• Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca)

The Six Articles of Belief (Aqeeda) for all Muslims are:

• Belief in God (Allah), the one and only one worthy of worship (tawhid)
• Belief in all the Prophets (nabi) and Messengers (rusul) sent by God
• Belief in the Angels (mala'ika)
• Belief in the Books (kutub) sent by Allah (including the Qur’ān)
• Belief in the Day of Judgment (qiyama) and in the Resurrection (life after death).
• Belief in Divine Fate & Destiny (Al-Qadhaa wal-Qadar).

We have covered in previous study circles the Five Pillars and most of the Articles of Belief or parts of them, other than Al-Qadhaa wal-Qadar. This is a difficult topic to grasp but an important one as it is part of our fundamental beliefs.

One way in which to understand this is to focus on what we (as humans) control and what controls us. This needs to be viewed with respect to our ‘Accountability’ – that is what we will be asked about on the Day of Judgement and what things Allah will not hold us to account for.

This topic today will not deal with the ideas that vexed many Muslims in olden times that even caused fighting between different groups of Muslims over their ideas. I will not be dealing with ‘who created actions’, nor fatalism; neither will I explore the ideas of groups like the Mu’tazilla, Ahl-e-Jabriyya or Ahle-e-Sunnah.

What I will focus is on intentions (niyah), reward & punishment and free will. As human beings we live in two bubbles:
1. One that we fully control
2. One that fully controls us

The things that happen in the first bubble are our actions that we think about (niyah) and then start. These things we have control over and undertake at our choice, or free will. These are things like eating or drinking; walking, praying or not etc. We make the intentions and then start the actions according to this. Allah will judge us according to this by rewarding us for the good things and punishing us for the bad things. We are accountable for our actions. We start the actions but the outcome is with Allah if he allows us to fulfil them. There is no excuse for committing sins and we cannot blame Allah or His knowledge of our actions for the choices we make. If Allah decides to write these down in a book (al-Lawh Mahfuz) that is His Wisdom and we do not act because it is written. Similarly, Allah has power over all things (His Will) and if He decides to allow our actions because of our choices (free will) they still happen in accordance with His Will but not because of it. The actions are still ours and we will still be judged.

Al-Qadhaa does not relate to this, but relates to the second bubble that we live in. In this bubble there are things which happen to us that we did not do nor control. These are things that we consider are from Allah and thus are Qadhaa. Hence, we are not accounted for these (rewarded or punished as there is no Free Will) but Allah will judge how we react to these. We may feel these are good or bad but must realise that they are from Allah and He is the Wise.

There are two parts to this bubble: one that are part of the universal laws that Allah has made (we cannot walk on water, fly unaided, change the colour of the eyes when born, grow to 100feet tall etc) and the second part that happens through/by other people but effects us (such as being a passenger in a train accident, or somebody kicking a ball at us or swearing at us as we walk by, etc). We did not start these actions nor had any control over them. Hence, we should consider these as being from Allah for each of us. Allah knows the Good & Bad in these actions.

Some scholars define Qadr as being the properties or innate attributes of material objects. For example, fire has the ability/property of burning with fire and a sharp knife as being able to cut, and a stone having some weight. These properties are not produced by the objects themselves but are given to the objects by Allah alone. When these properties are removed by Allah we see miracles: such as when Ibrahim* did not burn in the fire, nor when his knife would sacrifice his first-born son Ismail.

The Prophet* said: “if something befalls you do not say ‘if only I had done so-and-so’ but say Allah determined (qadhaa) this and He did what He willed.”