#What Does the Quran Say about Protecting the Environment?

[learnarabiconline]

What Does the Quran Say about Protecting the Environment?

Although it really shouldn't be, climate change has become one of the most contentious subjects of the past decade. Despite ample evidence pointing to its legitimacy, countless people deny it is a threat, with some even brushing off its existence entirely. We have even seen politicians - people who are supposed to devote their lives to the betterment of the planet and its inhabitants - labeling climate change a "hoax". This is often done in an attempt to justify business deals which will have a negative impact on the environment.

Make no mistake about it, climate change is a very real threat, one which the majority of humanity is only waking up to. However, the danger of global warming has been discussed as far back as 1500 years ago. Our devoted Muslim readers will not be surprised to learn that some of the earliest mentions of climate change and the importance of protecting the environment can be found in the Quran. We will be discussing the Quran's most noteworthy references to climate change and our duty to prevent it in this article.

Ozone Depletion​

​One of the most commonly cited examples of the Quran discussing man's potential to negatively impact the planet reads:

"And We made the sky a protected ceiling, but they, from its signs, are turning away."

-Quran, 21:32

For the eco-minded Muslim - or even anybody who considers themselves a friend to the environment - this can be seen as a prediction of humanity's damage to the atmosphere. We know that the ozone layer is crucial to the survival of not just the human race, but of all life on this planet. It acts as a barrier between our atmosphere and the harmful ultraviolet radiation produced by the sun. Without it, the DNA of all life on Earth would be warped beyond recognition. Plants would die, leaving us with no food. This would be swiftly followed by the deaths of almost all animals, most likely starting with the herbivores and quickly followed by the carnivores who feast on them. Human beings would not be far behind, with starvation wiping out much of our species. Those of us who manage to survive long enough would likely succumb to skin cancer as a result of the unobstructed rays of the sun beaming down upon the Earth.

With the above in mind, it is no major jump to say that the ozone layer is the "protected ceiling" referenced in the aforementioned Quran verse. When we look at the damage we have caused to the ozone layer, especially in the past 100 to 200 years, it is similarly reasonable to say that mankind is "turning away" from it. Thankfully, it seems that the human race has finally started to heed the warnings of the Quran, whether we realize it or not. Be it out of a sense of religious obligation or merely a desire to create a better world for future generations, mankind has been making a concentrated effort to repair the damage caused to the ozone layer. Over the past 30 years, more than 98% of ozone-damaging substances have been eradicated from use. This has caused the hole to shrink to its lowest size since the late 1980s. Interestingly, it was around this time that Islam finally started to firmly establish itself in the Western world.

Water Conservation

​Over the past couple of years, the importance of conserving water has been somewhat overlooked in favor of additional acts that may benefit the environment. However, water conservation remains an important issue. It may, in fact, be an eternal issue. This may well be the reason we find a number of passages in the Quran detailing the importance of not being wasteful when it comes to water. In the surah Al-Araaf (The Heights), one can expect to find the following verse:

"O Children of Adam! Look to your adornment at every place of worship, and eat and drink, but be not prodigal. Lo! He loveth not the prodigals."

-Quran, 7:31

In the above passage, the word "prodigals" is generally taken to mean people who eat or drink to excess, or who are wasteful with their food and water. But why exactly is the Quran concerned with enjoying water in moderation and not being frivolous with one's water supply? Some say the answer to that question can be found in an additional Quran verse, which reads:

"And We send down from the sky water in measure, and We give it lodging in the earth, and lo! We are able to withdraw it."

-Quran, 23:18

The passage immediately following Quran, 23:18 goes on to say:

"Then We produce for you therewith gardens of date-palms and grapes, wherein is much fruit for you and whereof ye eat."

-Quran, 23:19

When looked at separately, both of the above passages paint a clear picture of the importance of water conservation. When taken as a whole, however, they give us a robust and comprehensive understanding of why Allah encourages reasonable use of water. In Islamic belief, not only is water sent down from the Heavens by order of Allah, but it is sent down for the sole purpose of sustaining life on Earth. As detailed in Quran, 23:19, the water we receive is intended to facilitate the growth of fruit and vegetables, providing nourishment for mankind and animals alike. When water is used carelessly or unreasonably, there is less to go around. This means the plants and animals who rely on it for life may have to go without it so a human being can wash their car or leave the tap running while they brush their teeth.

The Quran's teachings on water conservation complement contemporary secular knowledge of the subject. For example, we now know that although 70% of the Earth is made up of water, much of that water is undrinkable or otherwise unusable. In fact, only 0.03% of accessible water is freshwater. This is a staggeringly low number and goes to prove our earlier point that water conservation is still very much an issue we should be concerned about. By being mindful of the Quran's passages on the importance of conserving water, and by following some modern tips on how to do so, Muslims and non-Muslims alike can ensure a continued supply of freshwater for future generations.

Save The Trees

​The chances are you're familiar with the old comedic trope of a "hippy" tying themselves to a tree in order to prevent some land developer from tearing it down. While such situations are undeniably ripe for satire, these so-called "tree huggers" are performing a deed commended by the Quran, although they may not be aware of it. In the Quran, Allah talks at length about the extreme care that was put into crafting the plants and trees that play such a crucial role in our environment and survival. One example of this can be found in surah Al-An'am (The Cattle). In this surah, Allah declares the following:

"He it is Who sendeth down water from the sky, and therewith We bring forth buds of every kind; We bring forth the green blade from which We bring forth the thick-clustered grain; and from the date-palm, from the pollen thereof, spring pendant bunches; and (We bring forth) gardens of grapes, and the olive and the pomegranate, alike and unlike. Look upon the fruit thereof, when they bear fruit, and upon its ripening. Lo! herein verily are portents for a people who believe."

-Quran, 6:100

While it is certainly one of the longer verses of the holy book, Quran, 6:100 provides a valuable insight into some of the primary purposes of trees and plants. Once they have been brought forth by the rain - another example of the importance of water - our trees and plants produce a great many types of fruit and vegetables to ensure the survival of all the creatures of the Earth. Allah even takes the time to make mention of pollen, which ensures the survival of bees. Although presumably not known at the time the Quran was sent forth, bees play a crucial role in our delicate ecosystem. Without them, we would see a drastic decrease in the number of seeds maturing into plants. We would also see the decline - and eventual extinction - of the many animals who rely on bees as prey. This would trigger a reaction throughout the food chain which would culminate in the destruction of the human race. With this in mind, we can easily understand why Allah saw the need to place trees and vegetation upon the Earth and why we, as the planet's dominant species, have an obligation to care for it.

Accept Responsibility

​As mentioned at the end of the previous section, as the dominant species on the planet, human beings have an obligation to maintain it and ensure all life on Earth continues to thrive. For some reason, this is an idea many people have trouble with. Form big-game hunters to billionaires in the oil industry, a worrying number of human beings seem to be operating with a "them versus us" mentality. They justify causing damage to the Earth and other creatures on it by telling themselves and anybody who will listen that if they didn't behave in such a manner the planet would somehow cause harm to them. Ironically, it is harming the planet which leads to harmful reactions, such as ozone depletion and global warming. On the other end of the spectrum, we have those who do not consciously commit any misdeeds against the planet or its inhabitants. However, they continue to waste water and use plastic straws and purchase cosmetics from companies which test on animals, along with any number of other subtly damaging acts. The large distance between such people and the consequences of their decisions allows them to ignore the negative impact their actions are having on the planet. However, the Quran clearly states that everybody, regardless of their intentions, must accept responsibility for any damage they cause to the environment, however small. This is never more evident than it is in surah Ar-Rum (The Romans). The forty-first verse of the surah reads as follows:

"Corruption doth appear on land and sea because of (the evil) which men's hands have done, that He may make them taste a part of that which they have done, in order that they may return."

-Quran, 30:41

Given the name of the thirtieth surah, many are quick to brush the above passage off as a reference to the Romans and the many misdeeds which they committed during their time as the world's premier civilization. More broadly, however, it can be seen as a condemnation of the human race as a whole. Our hands have caused damage to virtually every other living thing on Earth for our own advancement and, in some particularly depraved cases, our own entertainment. Of course, as the above passage points out, our actions have consequences. Through things such as ozone depletion and smog we have been forced to "taste a part of that which we have done". Thankfully, these repercussions have left us with little option but to acknowledge the error of our ways and accept responsibility for our actions. Over the past couple of decades, we have recognized and embraced our obligation to care for the planet through movements such as the United Nations and the Paris Agreement. These, along with countless other climate change initiatives introduced in recent decades, have allowed us to right the wrongs we have committed as a species "in order that we may return".

[asma-al-husna]

Allah calls Himself Al-Mujeeb, the one who responds, the answerer of prayers, on one occasion in the Quran. He is the One who responds to needs, answers prayers and He is the One who penetrates each obstacle in order to respond!

Mujeeb comes from the root jeem-waw-baa, which points to three main meanings. The first meaning is to answer, reply, respond, and accept. The second main meaning is to cut, pierce, or penetrate and the third is to have a dialogue or conference.

This root appears 43 times in the Quran in five derived forms. Examples of these forms are ujeebu (“I respond”), jaboo (“carved out”), istajaaboo (“respond”) and jawaabaa (“(the) answer”).

Al-Mujeeb Himself says: … Indeed, my Lord is near and responsive [Quran, 11:61] and … [We are] the best of responders.[Quran, 37:75]

Responding to Each Request with Ease

The name Al-Mujeeb is related in meaning to Al-Hakeem (The All-Wise), Al-‘Aleem (The All-Knowing), As-Samee’ (The All-Hearing), Al-Baseer (The All-Seeing), Al-Wahhaab (The Giver of Gifts) and Al-Kareem. He responds to our requests in a way that displays His ultimate wisdom and knowledge. While we call out to Him He is All-Hearing and All-Seeing and He often gives us more than we deserve or even ask. He is the Most Generous.

His amazing power and wisdom in responding to our requests is demonstrated in this part of a beautiful hadith qudsi:
. . . O My servants, were the first of you and the last of you, the human of you and the jinn of you to rise up in one place and make a request of Me, and were I to give everyone what he requested, that would not decrease what I have, any more that a needle decreases the sea if put into it.. [Muslim, at-Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah]

How Can You Live By This Name?

1.      Respond to the call of Al-Mujeeb.
Al-Mujeeb says: When my servants ask thee concerning Me I am indeed close (to them); I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calls on Me; let them also with a will listen to My call and believe in Me; that they may walk in the right way. (Quran 2:186) Your share in this Name is that you are responsive to the commandments of Al-Mujeeb!

2.      Know the art of asking.
Ask for His forgiveness before you ask for anything, as was the formula of the Prophet Yunus ‘alayhi sallam when he desperately needed his supplication to be answered to be saved from the belly of the whale. Ask Al-Mujeeb for everything (halal) you wish in the Hereafter but also in this world. He loves it that you ask Him for everything you need in your deen and dunya (worldy matters). Ask him for clothing, a house to live in, food, drink, guidance, success etc.

3.      Think good of Al-Mujeeb.
Al-Mujeeb does not disappoint a believer who calls upon Him, however don’t be hasty as His delay is not His denial. The answer to your dua’ might come in a different form or time you wanted or expected. Made under the right circumstances – such as not earning haram income when asking Him or asking Him for something haram, like cutting of family ties – Al-Mujeeb responds to your dua, postpones it or prevents something bad from happening.

4.      Practise four powerful Quranic supplications for four powerful responses.
Al-Mujeeb relates to you the responses He gave after being supplicated to in different types of hardship. So whenever you are in a similar situation, apply the same dua’ and have faith in the response of Al-Mujeeb!

When you feel sad, say: There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers. [Quran, 21:87] The response: So We responded to him and saved him from the distress. And thus do We save the believers. [Quran, 21:88]

When you feel scared say: Sufficient for us is Allah, and [He is] the best Disposer of affairs. [Quran, 3:173] The response: So they returned with favor from Allah and bounty, no harm having touched them. [Quran, 3:174]

When you are ill say: Indeed, adversity has touched me, and you are the Most Merciful of the merciful [Quran, 21:83] The response: So We responded to him and removed what afflicted him of adversity. And We gave him [back] his family and the like thereof with them as mercy from Us and a reminder for the worshippers [of Allah]. [Quran, 21:84]

When you feel hurt by other people say: I entrust my affair to Allah. Indeed, Allah is Seeing of [His] servants (Quran 40:44) The response: So Allah protected him from the evils they plotted, and the people of Pharaoh were enveloped by the worst of punishment. [Quran, 40:45]

5. Do good to strive for your prayers being answered.
Do as many good deeds as you can, check yourself in having a balance of hope as well as fear and be humble and not arrogant in your relationship with Allah and in your dealings with others. Al-Mujeeb says about responding to the request of Zakariyyah: Indeed, they used to hasten to good deeds and supplicate Us in hope and fear, and they were to Us humbly submissive. (Quran 21:89-90)

6. Respond to the servants of Al-Mujeeb.

Be of those who don’t just respond to the plight of those in need but of those who also actively look themselves for those who are in need of support. Have an active attitude in relation to the requests of the environment you live in and of the Ummah as a whole!

Wallahu ta’alaa ‘alem.


O Allah, Al-Mujeeb, we know that You are the answerer and fulfiller of prayers. Guide us to respond to Your call and be responsive to those in need and make us call upon and supplicate to you in the best manner. Don’t let our prayers be unanswered and adorn us with certainty in Your response, ameen!

[sidewalkeyes]

I shed some tears this morning, thinking about how protective Islam actually is towards its women and children, and how the culture of patriarchy and misogyny actually misinterpreted and twisted what the Quran has said about women and children.

It’s exhausting to hear conversations about how ‘Islam treats women’, when in actuality the person lecturing us doesn’t even know how Islam says women should be treated.

It’s hard for many people to make the distinction between Islam as a religion and Muslim culture. And sometimes, it’s our own Muslim community that makes things worse.

We can continue to point out that they are two different things, but until men stop using religion as a tool of oppression we’re not going to get that far.

And women really need to acknowledge and reclaim their rightful legacy by educating themselves.

Islam is fully protective of its women and children, the Quran says so. Do not let others tell you otherwise.

Because Islam actually gives a women a right to:

1. Education

2. To equality, even the sin of stealing and other sin for both men and women is equal.

3. It isn’t permissible in Islam to force the niqab / burqa upon women. What we wear for our God is a choice for the individual.

4. To work, to keep her property, earnings, even her own name after marriage

5. To be free of harm and to have her choice respected

6. To choose her own partner

7. Islam introduced compulsory legal marriage over 1.400 years ago to protect women and children in the event of death and divorce.

8. While men needs to state his desire to divorce his wife on three separate occasions, women need only make the request once. There is a misconception that Islam does not allow a woman the right to divorce her husband when actually Islam does gives her the right and He must release her with kindness and return to her what is hers.

9. A father has to fulfil his duty to raise and care for his daughters, and that obligations go beyond providing financial support. He must provide a safe, peaceful environment conducive to his daughters overall spiritual and moral development.

My knowledge of all of this is still shallow, and I really think we need to continue educate ourselves. Educate ourselves so that we can look clearly and we can empower ourselves more. 

[questionsonislam]

Could you please describe the characteristics of a Muslim According to the Qur’an?

A person who lives in accordance with the Qur’an will devote his/her love for the ones who also live in accordance with the Qur’an; that is to say, for believers. Believers have some characteristics due to their belief in Allah and that make them worthy of being loved. A believer will search these characteristics in other believers and will love them as a result of seeing them. The more these characteristics exist in someone, the more his/her love increases.

We can list the main characteristics of a believer that are informed by Allah in the Qur’an as follows;

• Believers worship only Allah. There is no other being that they accept as god in their minds. (al-Fatiha, 1-7; an-Nisa, 36)

• They fear Allah. They avoid doing something that Allah has forbidden and that is contrary to His consent. (Aal-i-Imran, 102; Ya Seen, 11; at-Taghabun, 15-16; az-Zumar, 23)

• They trust only in Allah. (al-Baqara, 249; at-Tawbah, 25-26)

• They fear none but Allah. (al-Ahzab, 39)

• They thank Allah. Therefore, it does not cause them any sorrow or boasting whether they are in trouble or in welfare economically. (al-Baqara, 172; al-Isra, 3; Ibrahim, 7)

• They have absolute belief in Allah. They never have any feelings like abandoning seeking the consent and pleasure of Allah. They continue to work for Allah with more enthusiasm and excitement every day. (al-Hujurat, 15; al-Baqara, 4)

• They hold fast by the Quran. They arrange all their acts according to the Quran. They immediately abandon an act that they understand to be contrary to the Quran. (al-Araf, 170; al-Maida, 49; al-Baqara, 121)

• They always mention the name of Allah. They know that Allah sees and hears everything; they always remember the endless power of Allah. (Aal-i-Imran, 191; ar-Rad, 28; an-Nur, 37; al-Araf, 205; al-Ankabut, 45)

• They know that they are weak before the presence of Allah. They are modest. (However, this does not mean to seem weak in the presence of people and to present downtrodden attitudes.) (al-Baqara, 286; al-Araf, 188)

• They know that everything comes from Allah. Therefore, they never make a fuss when something happens; they act coolly and trust in Allah. (at-Tawbah, 51; at-Taghabun , 11; Yunus , 49; al-Hadid , 22)

• They tend toward the hereafter; they determine the hereafter as the real target. However, they also make use of the bounties of the world; they try to form an environment that is similar to that of Paradise in the world. (an-Nisa , 74; Sad , 46; al-Araf , 31-32)

• They accept only Allah and believers as friends and confidants. (al-Maida , 55-56; al-Mujadala , 22)

• They are clever. They are always careful and alert since they always have the consciousness of worshipping. They always serve believers and the religion of Islam cleverly. (al-Mumin , 54; az-Zumar , 18)

• They always struggle with their thoughts and ideas against deniers and especially the leaders of deniers with all their strength on behalf of Allah. They continue their struggle without losing heart. (al-Anfal , 39; al-Hajj , 78; al-Hujurat , 15; at-Tawbah , 12)

• They never avoid telling what is right. They never ignore telling the truth due to their fear of people. They never care what the deniers say about them; they do not heed their mockery and attacks; they do not fear those who condemn or blame them. (al-Maid , 54, 67; al-Araf , 2)

• They call people to the religion of Allah in many ways and convey them the religion of Allah. (Nuh , 5-9)

• They are not oppressive. They are merciful and lenient. (an-Nahl , 125; at-Tawbah, 128; Hud , 75)

• They never lose their temper; they are tolerant and forgiving. (Aal-i-Imran , 134; al-Araf , 199; ash-Shura , 40-43)

• They are reliable people. They present strong personalities; they inspire confidence to the people around them. (ad-Duhan , 17-18; at-Takwir , 19-21; al-Maida , 12; an-Nahl , 120)

• They suffer compulsion and oppression. (ash-Shuara, 49, 167; al-Ankabut , 24; Ya Seen , 18; Ibrahim , 6; an-Naml ,49, 56; Hud , 91)

• They put up with difficulties. (al-Ankabut , 2-3; al-Baqara , 156, 214; Aal-i-Imran, 142, 146, 195; al-Ahzab , 48; Muhammad , 31; al-Anam , 34)

• They do not fear oppression and being killed. (at-Tawbah , 111; Aal-i-Imran, 156-158, 169-171, 173; ash-Shuara , 49-50; as-Saffat , 97-99; an-Nisa , 74)

• They suffer the attacks and traps of the deniers and they are made fun of. (al-Baqara, 14, 212)

• They are under the protection of Allah. All of the traps that are set up for them are eliminated by Allah. Allah protects them from all kinds of slander and traps; He makes them superior. (Aal-i-Imran, 110-111, 120; Ibrahim , 46; al-Anfal , 30; an-Nahl , 26; Yusuf , 34; al-Hajj , 38; al-Maida , 42, 105; an-Nisa , 141)

• They are cautious against the deniers. (an-Nisa , 71, 102; Yusuf , 67)

• They take Satan and his followers as enemies. (Fatir , 6; az-Zukhruf , 62; al-Mumtahina, 1; an-Nisa , 101; al-Maida , 82)

• They struggle against munafiqs (hypocrites); they do not sit together with hypocritical people. (at-Tawbah , 83, 95, 123)

• They prevent the oppression of the deniers. (al-Ahzab , 60-62; al-Hashr , 6; at-Tawbah , 14-15, 52)

• They conduct their affairs by mutual consultation. (Shura, 38)

• They do not envy the luxurious lives of unbelievers. (al-Kahf , 28; at-Tawbah , 55; Taha , 131)

• They are not affected by wealth and ranks (posts). (al-Hajj , 41; al-Qasas , 79-80; an-Nahl , 123)

• They pay attention to their worshipping; they perform daily prayers, fasting and similar worshipping carefully. (al-Baqara , 238; al-Anfal , 3; al-Muminun , 1-2)

• They act not in accordance with the majority but with the criteria of Allah. (al-Anam , 116)

• They try hard to be close to Allah and to become a believer to serve as an example. (al-Maida , 35; Fatir , 32; al-Waqia , 10-14; al-Furqan , 74)

• They are not affected by Satan. (al-A'raf , 201; al-Hijr , 39-42; an-Nahl , 98-99)

• They do not imitate their parents blindly. They act in accordance with the Quran. (Ibrahim , 10; Hud , 62, 109)

• They avoid extravagance. (al-Anam , 141; al-Furqan , 67)

• They act chastely and get married in the way as Allah wants. (al-Muminun , 5-6; an-Nur , 3, 26, 30; al-Baqara , 221; al-Maida , 5; al-Mumtahina , 10)

• They do not go to the extremes in the religion. (al-Baqara, 143; an-Nisa , 171)

• They are altruistic. (al-Insan , 8; Aal-i-Imran, 92, 134; at-Tawbah , 92)

• They pay attention to cleanliness. (al-Baqara, 125, 168; al-Muddaththir , 1-5)

• They do not backbite believers and do not search for their mistakes. (al-Hujurat , 12)

• They avoid being jealous. (an-Nisa , 128)

• They ask forgiveness from Allah. (al-Baqara, 286; Aal-i-Imran, 16-17, 147, 193; al-Hashr , 10; Nuh , 28)

[muhammadan-path]

A Small Reminder

The Messenger of Allah(Saas), who is the teacher of wisdom and the governer of the conscientious ones, warns his young ummah against deeds that do not conform to Islamic standards and how not to behave towards those with virtuous wisdom.

As the Devil catches and hunts young people he wants to bring down through women. A woman who has given her own soul to the Devil, sells her chastity, who drives young man into the trap of that Devil. This devil is a like the Devil and becomes a predator for young people.

Satan uses women, who are followers and practitioners of bad ambitions and ugly deeds. They are like bait used by fishermen, provoking the idolatrous feelings of the youth, and dragging them into the valley of rebellion. The damage of these women, who are used as the capital of the prostitute market, in selling out the youth is enormous.

In young peoples' understanding of their own whims and desires, they think the path they follow is "sirat-i müstekim" (the straight path). The young man gets used to spinning around like a propeller in his environment under his influence and the pleasures he is attracted to. He makes it a goal to attain these pleasures. To prevent him from getting caught in such a folly, he must be taught at a young age what true faith is and how to obtain it.

People in the age of adolescence are a source of energy that lives far from faith, manners, and mentality. People who see the might and think about the future of their country should endeavor to keep this energy within the framework of wisdom and national values. Otherwise, the adolescents become a group that is hostile to their religion, strangers to their history, unaware of their love of the homeland, and furthermore, rebellious. When young people make these matters of vital importance, they need a guide. Moral virtues should not be sacrificed for selfish pleasures, these morals may be confused if they are not taught.

A young man who has faith in his heart, wisdom in his head, and conscience in his chest, should not be caught in drama, should not seek wretched ideas, should not sacrifice his knowledge to the devils, and should fear Allah for the sake of his heart

Young people of our Ummah of the future can only be protected by "fear of Allah," from evil things and people that will harm them and spoil their morals.

M. Akif expressed: It is neither elevation nor conscience that gives guidance, and the sense of virtue is from fear of Allah in people. If forgotten, it is assumed that you are away from faith, and neither of the persuasion remains, nor your conscience.

"Allah (c.c.) likes the young person who is not inclined to his nafs (internal) desires" (Feyz'ül-kadir vol. 2, p. 263).”

The days of youth, the first of his life, are very precious. A young person who knows the value of this age should use his energy following the principles of our religion. If the blessings given by Allah are not known and used appropriately, they will be in vain and he will be in ingratitude towards Allah Almighty.

The Prophet, who did not want his Ummah to fall into such a situation, he told us to warn the young people.

"The young man who believes in my Qadr (divine predetermination,) who is willing to hold on to my book (which is the judgment of the Qur'an), who (whom I choose) who has abandoned his (illegitimate) lust for my sake is like the angels in my presence." (Divine Hadiths p.26).

Being able to rise to the level of some angels in the presence of Allah is not an easily accessible rank.

"O young people, community, whoever has the power to marry (physical and financial) should marry immediately. For, marriage is more protective of the eyes (against haram) a prevention against his lust. " (Bukhari v.6, p.117).

Those who disobey this advice of the Messenger of Allah, who walk around in the halls where naked female bodies are exposed, and who are used to committing sins in places where women who have become prostitutes are marketed, cannot relieve themselves of responsibility in the court of eternal life, which is the absolute judgement of Allah.

It is stated in a hadith that reveals the responsibility of a young person who wastes his abilities on haram and reduces his morals to zero:

"On the Day of Judgment, unless he is questioned about five things in the presence of his Lord, the two feet of the son of Adam cannot be separated (from the place he stepped on). From where he destroyed his life, where he destroyed his youth, where he earned his wealth and where he spent his money, and what deeds he did with his knowledge. 7, p.100).

Both men and women are expected to show modesty

Allāh stated: “O children of Adam, We have bestowed upon you clothing to conceal what should be concealed, and as a fine adornment — and the garment of righteousness, that is best.” (Al-A’rāf 7:26)

Allāh has mentioned here reasons for clothing: to cover the body and conceal what should not be revealed in public, and to beautify the body so the person looks better. Islamic clothing is known by its modesty. A Muslim is allowed to wear whichever clothes he wishes, so long as they are modest, free from impurities, not made from forbidden materials, and within textual guidelines. Textual guidelines means that it must abide by the commandments of the Qur’ān and Prophetic Tradition.

In Surat an-Nur, Allah says to believing women:

"And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and guard their chastity, and not to reveal their adornments except what normally appears. To let them draw their veils over their chests, and not reveal their ˹hidden˺ adornments, except to their husbands, their fathers, their fathers-in-law, their sons, their stepsons, their brothers, their brothers’ sons or sisters’ sons, their fellow women, those ˹bondwomen˺ in their possession, male attendants with no desire, or children who are still unaware of women’s nakedness. Let them not stomp their feet, drawing attention to their hidden adornments.

Turn to Allah in repentance all together, O believers, so that you may be successful. Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran" (24 / Nûr, 31)

A believing woman can wear a bracelet on her hand, an anklet on her foot, a necklace around her neck, and an earring in her ear. She can be decorated as much as she wants, however, Allah says when you go out with these ornaments, do not hit your feet or your heels on the ground so that the sound of your ornaments will go to people.

Allah (ac) turns to the wives of the Prophet, O women of the prophets! "O women of the Prophet! You are not like any other woman.

O wives of the Prophet! You are not like any other women: if you are mindful ˹of Allah˺, then do not be overly effeminate in speech ˹with men˺ or those with sickness in their hearts may be tempted, but speak in a moderate tone. Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran"(33 / Al-Ahzab, 32)

It says that if you are pious and if you are afraid of Allah, do not speak in a feminine way by emphasizing your femininity.

If you are going to say a word, speak well and in a well-mannered way.

Allah (ac) says. In other words, when a woman is speaking, a righteous woman does not speak randomly. People should be careful not to attract other people's attention outside.

The Prophet (saas) says: "Whatever woman perfumes herself in her house and leaves her house so that men can smell her, that woman is an adultress, that woman is an adultress, that woman is an adultress." When a Muslim woman perfumes herself and leaves the house randomly, a Muslim woman should not leave the house without checking her body and clothes for the smell of perfume.

Before the arrival of Islam, before the Prophet of Allah came, there was a view of women in the world.

In India, they said a woman is an animal. What about what Europeans today call as our Roman civilization? In that Roman civilization, the woman was a slave, and the woman couldn't gain freedom unless all slaves found freedom. They are now telling us new things about the civilization of those Pharaohs in Egypt.

When the Messenger of Allah came, they were saying about women in Egypt: They were saying that women are impure, women are dirty. What were Christians doing in Europe? They believed women were witches. Christian clergymen also believed that the existence of women is a crime. Why? Because she deceived Adam, the reason why all mankind was expelled from heaven because of women.

Therefore, the woman is the biggest criminal in society. They said that women are the mother of all sins.

What did women do to survive in these ignorant societies? Women used their femininity to get into men's eyes. They broke their voices. They hunched in their walk. So that the needs of men come to mind, so men would treat women well. How many years have passed? 5000, 6000, or 7000 years have passed.

Has anything changed? Nothing has changed.

Again, women have to undress to exist in this society. Again, women have to appeal to men's eyes to exist in this society. In order to see value in this society, women have to take care of, decorate, open up and show their bodies.

Well, what did Allah (ac) say to women when Islam came? When Islam came, He said to the woman:

You are valuable because you are a woman.

You are precious because Allah created you.

You are precious because you are a mother.

You are valuable because you are a servant to Allah.

Do not try to emphasize your femininity like animals and gain value with your femininity. If you want to gain value, serve Allah. If you serve Allah, you will be valuable in the sight of Allah. Furthermore, you will be valuable with Allah's servants.

Women are required to wear one more outerwear over their normal indoor clothing outside or when they are next to foreign men. The following is stated in the verse: "O Prophet! Tell your wives, your daughters and the women of the believers to wear their outer garments on their outer garments. This is more appropriate so that they should be recognized and not be molested. Allah is very judgmental and very merciful." (Al-Ahzab, 33/59).

The Exalted Allah commands: "Children of Adam! Come wearing your beautiful clothes every time you come to the mosque" (al-A'raf, 7/31).

It is stated in the verse that man's need for veiling started with Adam and Eve and that nakedness is an ugly thing: "O children of Adam! Do not let the devil do you any harm, just as Satan pulled your mother and father out of Paradise to show them their bad places" (al-A 'râf; 7/27).

"O children of Adam! We have sent you a garment to cover your ugly places, and a garment that you will wear and be adorned with. The cover of piety is better" (al-A'raf, 7/26).

The necessity of using animal wool for clothing is pointed out as follows: "He Who Created the deeds, there are warming and protecting agents and many other benefits for you"

Allah instructed the men, “To lower their gaze from looking at women with desire other than their wives, and to protect themselves from fornication. That is purer for them.” (An-Nūr 24:30)

Men are commanded to dress modestly in loose garments that do not reveal what is between their navel and knees. All lower garments such as trousers or long shirts (i.e. thawb) must be above the ankles just as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) has commanded, “What is below the ankles of a lower garment will be in the Fire.” (Reported by Al-Bukhārī, no. 793) And he said, “The lower garment of the believer should come to the mid-calf, but there is no sin on him if it comes between that point and the ankle. But whatever is lower than the ankle is in the Fire.” And he said three times, “Allah will not look at the one who lets his lower garment drag on the floor out of vanity.” (Reported by Ibn Mājah, no. 3704)

Among the youth, we see a bad habit of young boys calling females "whores", "bitch" &, etc. This is not the way Muslims should act nor speak towards someone, keep in mind the following verse.

Those who accuse chaste women ˹of adultery˺ and fail to produce four witnesses, give them eighty lashes ˹each˺. And do not ever accept any testimony from them—for they are indeed the rebellious—Dr. Mustafa Khattab, the Clear Quran (24:4)

Allah (swt) said, "Whatever the Prophet brought and gave you, accept it, take it and beware of what he prohibited you from" (al-Hashr, 59/7) and "There are good examples for you in the Messenger of Allah"

(al-Ahzab , 33/21), he ordered the believers to follow the Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH) form, morality, custom and all branches of life.

Complying with the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh) is the only way to understand Islam more accurately and to live more accurately.

Consider that obedience to the Prophet (PBUH) is first of all obligatory, based on what Allah (swt) said in the verse: "Whoever obeys the Prophet will obey Allah" (an-Nisa, 4/80). ,

The Prophet (PBUH) prevented his ummah from resembling polytheists in terms of their clothing and appearance; He warned Muslims with the hadith, "Whoever resembles a tribe is one of them" (Abu Dawud, Libas, 4). He advised believers to grow a beard in particular and stated the importance of a beard for a Muslim with various hadiths.

Hz. In a hadith narrated by Aisha (may Allah be pleased with him), "Ten things are from nature:

To cut the mustache; to release the beard; to clean the mouth and teeth with the miswak; to clean the nose with water; to cut the nails; to wash the places where dirt can be sheltered; to remove the hair under the armpits, to shave the groin To do is to make the way of najasat pure with water. "(Muslim, Tahare, 56; Abu Davud Tahare, 29; Nasai, Zine, I). In other hadiths, "Shorten the mustaches very much, leave the beards"; "Oppose the polytheists; shorten the mustaches, increase the beards"; They said, "Cut off mustaches, grow beards. So do not resemble Magi" (Bukhari, Libas, 64; Muslim, Tahare, 54) and encouraged believers to grow beards.

Beard, as it is stated in the hadith, is a fitrah (part of nature) that must be found in men by default and is the sunnah of previous prophets.

Having no beard doesn't negate you of being a believer, likewise with the scarf, everyone will grow in his phase.

In conclusion, it is important for us to realize that modesty in Islam is not only for women, but for men as well, if not moreso. Men are required to maintain decorum and respectful distance from marriable (ghair mehrem) females. Women must do their part to save their bodies and their affections for husbands.

In an increasingly liberalized society, it is even more important for us to keep these gender rules in mind.

Not heeding to them will bring ruin on not only you, but the wider Muslim Ummah in general, and it is one of the causes of our loss from our once pre-eminient global position.

Remember that the success of Muslims and Islam lies with you.

An article by Jonas Şahin.

[queuepeaceandcandy]

Take Down That

I wrote most of this post up for private consumption, but given the recent news about: http://blog.archive.org/2019/04/10/official-eu-agencies-falsely-report-more-than-550-archive-org-urls-as-terrorist-content/ it spurred me to make it more public.

So reposting with some minor edits, plus one large additional note, to my zen blog to try and find some zen by venting. I’m just so very tired of the world right now. 

So firstly I just want to say I like the Internet Archive a lot. I find it very soothing for the "is my memory faulty or is this person saying something that is untrue"  - http://web.archive.org/ 

So when they do their fundraiser I generally donate to it these days as I have the cash flow to support it, and it’s helped me out significantly over the years, even when I didn’t have the cash flow. So here is a cup to The Web Archive, who’s helped protect many sanity for many years, and I hope will continue for many years to come. They accept donations year round here: https://archive.org/donate/

This is a correction to a bit of misinformation that I’ve seen lately that’s annoying me, even though some of the posts that talk about it are quite nice. Disclaimer: while I was in fandom at the time, I was not involved in OTW and in fact at the time all of this happened I was a bit skeptical of it’s chances of long term success - I’m glad to have been proven wrong. I do volunteer for OTW now but not for either of their Policies or Legal teams. Ao3/OTW is also not affiliated as far as I’m aware to Internet Archive in any way.

OTW was not started because of https://fanlore.org/wiki/Strikethrough_and_Boldthrough where a lot of stuff was being deleted from LJ, especially if it was LGBT content, including things that should have been fine according to their terms of service. Much like Tumblr insisting on banning the truth emerges from her well, even though technically it should be find if you took the CEO's letter seriously about classic art being fine.

OTW was started because of https://fanlore.org/wiki/FanLib - this pre-dates strike through. You can see this in the very initial post where they were talking about OTW here: https://fanlore.org/wiki/An_Archive_Of_One%27s_Own_(post_by_astolat)

Think of it as like Pillowfort - Pillowfort was not created because of the https://fanlore.org/wiki/Tumblr_NSFW_Content_Purge, it predated it significantly, but it got a lot of support because of said tumblrpocalpse, since people had a specific need that they were concerned about, which meant that an alternative being available was super useful!

Who was fanlib? Fanlore article here, https://fanlore.org/wiki/FanLib but to summarise... Fanlib was a couple of dudes who wanted to basically incorporate fandom for purposes of making money.

A lot of people at the time, were extremely concerned that this was going to get fandom sued out of existence, and increase the likelihood of militant take down notices. There was also the concern that by submitting work there, you lost any future rights to it - because that’s what the TOS effectively said.

If you wonder if that seems a bit extreme, yeah well, here is a news article from May 1, 1989, about disney suing a, day care center, for putting up some art of disney characters on the walls of the center. https://www.apnews.com/4d98c8dee1c72fa5ac42ce01dff143fd

Like, this is effectively fanart done on the walls. The way it's described - it's not in advertising, not sold directly, just to help make the place brighter and more friendly.

I always remember this example because it's one that tends to get people outraged, but I really want to emphasis that it wasn’t a once off situation, this used to be extremely common that people would link or gossip to me about these kinds of things.

That’s still an issue, by the way. Now days it's less about "fandom" stuff - but take down notices for "criticism" which are protected by fair use*, the same thing that OTW claims helps enable fandom, are still not that uncommon here’s one that’s quite recent with some of the publicity that it’s gotten: https://torrentfreak.com/vox-targets-the-verge-critic-with-dubious-youtube-takedown-190215/

In fact in some countries, criticism technically has more protection via fair use equivilents than fandom does.

This is Anne Rice: https://fanlore.org/wiki/Anne_Rice

I have nothing to say about Anne Rice that has not already been said. She’s not an isolated case.

In general I’ve found if people want to take down one thing - they won’t stop at one, they won’t draw boundaries, they won’t use judgement, because they don’t care - they’ll try to take down everything they can. It’s become an emotional issue in some cases, or a financial one. Neither provide incentive for trying to be diplomatic or fair.

Effectively if people don’t like you, they will try to find a way to make your voice go away and turn take down notices into a bully tactic even if everything you do is fine, and technically could help benefit them. There’s no incentive to not be a dick, if you want to be a dick, other than bad publicity, and the people who want to try really hard to get everything taken down will find the one thing that could be considered “acceptable to remove” to try and push the other stuff off the internet table.

If you can’t get it by hook, then you can get it by crook and they will add as much grease to the slippery slope as they can if they think it will benefit themselves. 

New Note: This is why the Internet Archive being threatened on being blocked in France really concerns me, because it helps provide a lot of information and history. I know that they do respond to take down notices, but the fact that Gutenberg project is being asked to be removed in it’s entirety, and the push with the recent EU Single Market Directive makes me concerned that this is not about legitimate concerns such as terrorism, and more using buzzwords to help push copyright boundaries, even on things where that has lapsed.

Basically given the very short time frame - only one hour from receiving the notice to successfully removing the content, with the ruling their trying to implement, is basically setting it up so only one thing can be implemented to resolve - upload filters, of which, Tumblr is an excellent example of why I am extremely skeptical, given that it’s also definitely targeting platonic LGBT content at times. Also, given the stretch of what their demanding - seriously, commentary on the Quran is now considered a terrorism item.

This just in, Muslims are not allowed to talk about their religion in any way shape or form - because all of this is supposed to be taken down: https://archive.org/details/002Baqarah_201712

First comes that beautiful Surah, 15. Each chapter or portion of the Quran is called a Surah, which means a Degree Or Step, by which we mount up. Sometimes whole Surahs were revealed, and sometimes portions, which were arranged under the Prophet's directions.

That means that a lot of information is going to become harder and more expensive to find, and we’ve seen historically used to limit information the public has to make decisions. https://www.freetibet.org/news-media/na/blog-great-firewall-china 

You can decide where your judgement falls on that.

I don’t really want to go into the if’s that’s about censorship which is usually why people yell about OTW and make reference to Strikethrough in the tweet/post. People generally make a choice about where they fall on it. I think that some websites may choose to be more restrictive, and some sites may choose to be less and that’s fine. I think that there should be multiple websites out there to met different peoples needs. In fact I really want there to be multiple websites - I think that makes for a much healthier fandom environment.

 … I just also think it really sucks when 30,000+ sailor moon fanfics get deleted with no warning (that’s the 2012 one): https://fanlore.org/wiki/FanFiction.Net%27s_NC-17_Purges:_2002_and_2012 It also sucks when people try to make themselves an online home and are forced to move on - even when they were responsible for helping to make a product a success to begin with.

This is Ao3’s terms of service: https://archiveofourown.org/tos 

If you actually read it, Archive of our own doesn’t host things that illegal in the US. That means if it’s legally defined as something that is illegal, it’s not allowed on the archive. There are also many things which the archive is willing to host, but  has decided need to be marked in some way to stop people from clicking it accidentally.

Additionally some of the things that the archive may be illegal in other countries. For example, all same sex stories that are told in a way that is promotes “homonormativity — content presenting homosexuality as being a norm in society”  are illegal in some countries.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_gay_propaganda_law 

I think that the latter is profoundly wrong, and if you think that the Russian law I linked to is an ideal then I don’t even know why you got to this point in my post. There’s literally nothing we have to talk about. Plus! Russia is not the only country that has these kinds of laws! It’s just one of the physically largest ones. 

Also in my experience, in general, even if the censorship applies to all kinds of relationships “fairly” in theory, in practice it’s often unfairly applied.

It can be used to bully women: : https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/global-opinions/wp/2018/03/01/xi-jinpings-authoritarian-rise-in-china-has-been-powered-by-sexism/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.a4174f02a74c 

And it will far more often be applied to minorities than the majority: https://www.advocate.com/commentary/2018/12/11/straight-male-gaze-rules-sanitized-social-media 

Just.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/jan/18/stonewall-defends-vital-lgbt-childrens-books-after-spate-of-ban-attempts

So if you’re someone who is very tired of having censorship applied unfairly to you, you’ll often when you make a new service wonder, “how can I fairly police this” and you’ll draw up some lines.

Because Ao3 is not actually interested in hosting everything - they’re specifically a non-commercial archive for fandom. Things that fall outside of that aren’t allowed to be hosted there and can/will be taken down. Ao3 decided one of it’s lines would be “is this legal in the US?” 

This is to try and remove as much judgement as possible, attempt to be consistent with rulings. Not the boss says this, but the minion says that. Not, the user is reporting this, but the person they’re complaining about is the founders best friend so we’re going to give them an exemption. It’s also trying to minimise the debate points. For example a length debate I’ve seen online: where “holding hands” now has to be debated over whether it’s shippy (and thus banned) or just “cute” (and thus allowed).

My example is not an exaggeration. That’s an actual argument I’ve seen in the wild, where I genuinely believed that parties implementing an adblocker to image block stuff probably would have been a lot better off mentally; rather trying to fine tune the argument with a rules lawyer who was very dedicated to the cause of annoying a particular individual and/or community. (It’s also why some maid costume outfits are banned on reddit! Like, here is an example of a banned image which I personally think is quite a bit of a stretch: https://i.imgur.com/GBxopor.jpg )

So if you’re wondering what I'm getting at… When I say that it’s not inspired by Strikethrough and instead by fanlib and then spend a lot of time talking about cases where censorship has been abused. 

Yes censorship is important to many people in the OTW. But it’s not “some works being deleted” that inspired it.

It’s being tired of the threat of having all fan works being deleted.

[jagadeeshkrishnan]

[26/08, 10:10 PM] 98 41 121780: Awesome Without Allah: Why These Muslims Are Leaving Islam And Are Proud Of It

How a North American group is building public support for those who seek to leave, or have left, the Muslim faith.

For the past few days, the hashtag #AwesomeWithoutAllah is trending on Twitter. Ex-Muslims across the world are celebrating leaving Islam and sharing with ‘twitterati’ their happiness on being free from the shackles of Sharia and acquiring newfound freedoms which they could only imagine before.

Ex-Muslims of North America (EXMNA), a non-profit organisation, is spearheading this campaign online as well as offline. It has put up billboards at various public places. “Nearly one in four Muslims raised in the United States have left Islam,” reads one. “Godless. Fearless. Ex-Muslim,” it adds.

One of the goals of EXMNA is to reduce discrimination faced by those who leave Islam. It promotes secular values and is working towards making religious dissent acceptable. The initiative was founded in 2012 by Muhammad Syed, a human rights activist.

Islam is a one-way street as far as its affiliation is concerned. It allows, no, insists, on converting people of other faiths. But no one can leave it for the punishment decreed by Sharia (Islamic law), for apostasy is death.

And killing someone for leaving Islam is not a mere disturbing theory. It is regularly enforced across the Muslim world and that includes even the Western nations where Sharia is not the law. Where the state is not Islamic, zealous Muslims take it upon themselves to punish those who ‘stray’ from the path of Allah. Last week, two Muslim men were arrested by the authorities in the UK for plotting to kill a female relative who had renounced Islam.

"This is why @ExmuslimsOrg works to normalize dissent in Muslim communities. This is why we run campaigns like #AwesomeWithoutAllah," tweeted Sarah Haider, executive director at EXMNA.

In such a scary environment where apostates have to live in constant fear of getting killed, what the organisation is doing is quite courageous.On its call to trend #AwesomeWithoutAllah on Twitter, many ex-Muslims have shared their stories on why they are happy to leave Islam. And it should come as no surprise that most of them are women, given their secondary status in the religion.

Nik, a co-founder of Ex-Muslim Support Network of Australia and who goes by the Twitter handle @HereticalGray, explains why she is awesome without Allah. “Because no child should be forced into a hijab/niqab. Because my worth is not determined by a cloth. Because by removing my hijab, it does not mean I am an immoral person that deserves to be raped. Because I believe everyone has a choice,” she tweeted.

“Now we are free to enjoy life as we want. Our minds are free to think what we want. Our hearts are free to love who we want. We are no longer under the commands of some narcissistic demanding being,” tweeted Yasmine Mohammed. Her profile reads: think outside the kaaba (which is depicted in form of an emoji).

‘Unapologetic Madow Lover’ (@gabariskufilan), an honour killing survivor, says she left Islam for feminism. “Because as a radical Black feminist, I can NOT be simultaneously Muslim and feminist. I choose women’s liberation. I love to travel solo, wear whatever I want without victim blaming and support LGBTQIA rights," she tweeted.

"My mother wanted me dead for removing hijab & leaving her house. She endlessly prayed for God to kill me from the moment I left & honestly believes I'm going to die soon bc "allah listens to her prayers"," tweeted Jinan Murtad, a Muslim-turned atheist, sharing her deeply personal story. “Its been 2 yrs now, I'm still alive & well but mostly #AwesomeWithoutAllah," she added.

The best part about leaving Islam, according to Meriem who recorded a video for the EXMNA campaign, is that she doesn't simply pray or fast anymore. “I am breaking free from a toxic, abusive and patriarchal environment,” she said, adding that, “No one can force me to wear something, or do something, or feel something, or be something that I'm not.”

Zara Kay, a Tanzania-Australian, tweeted a picture with her dog. “I am #AwesomeWithoutAllah Because puppies! No more feeling like I shouldn't touch dogs because they're najis," she gave her reason. She is getting a lot of abuse and threats on Twitter for coming out as an Ex-Muslim. But she is not deterred.

“I woke up to 30 messages in my inbox, people wishing death to me, calling me a bitch, talking about hellfire, or wanting to kill me. This is exactly why we need to keep fighting,” she tweeted. She also posted screenshots of some of the abuses coming her way.

In all the backlash that the 'Awesome without Allah' campaign is getting, EXMNA executive director Sarah Haider said she was 'amused by the many "omg it's the end of timess!!!" comments by believers in response to our billboards and the trending of #AwesomeWithoutAllah. I have good news! It's not THE end of times! It's the end of A time — the end of a time of religious privilege, abuse, persecution."

"If #exMuslims speaking up about their persecution, legalized murder in 12+ countries, their jailing & torture, myriad other horrors they face due to Islam makes YOU uncomfortable, it's because you can't bear to look at yourself in the mirror, have some shame!," EXMNA founder and president Muhammad Syed tweeted.

It's not just women who are speaking out and coming out of the closet. Muslim men are also doing so in droves.

Sohail Ahmed, an Ahmadi Muslim by birth, says that 'the best part of leaving Islam was in no longer having to defend verses of the Quran where the inequality of men & women is baked in.

Ali Malik, who is an atheist now, tweeted that is awesome without Allah 'because how independent, human, humble and compassionate it made me.'

"The best part of leaving Islam is to be free from mental shackles." said Abdullah Sameer in a video he shot for the EXMNA initiative.

Alireza Azami posted a photo with the hashtag showing his middle finger.

Supporting these voices of dissent, Ali A. Rizvi, a Pakistani-Canadian and author of The Atheist Muslim, said that Muslims are not immune to reason, secularism, and enlightenment. “We normalised lapsed Catholics, secular Jews, and ex-Mormons. Now it’s time to normalize ex-Muslims,” he tweeted.

Islamic theology has no love lost for the non-believers. It decrees unrelenting hostility towards kafirs. The believers must shun all kinds of relationships with them and if they are to be engaged then that should be done strictly out of necessity. They cannot be accorded any position of respect.

Even saying words of respect to them is not allowed. Not even in their death. To ask dua for them is haram. Their places of worship are places of the devil. Their festivals are haram. They are physically detestable and untrustworthy.

It is no wonder then that when a believer leaves Islam and becomes a non-believer, it is considered a great affront to the religion. That's why the punishment for apostasy is nothing short of death.

If some ex-Muslims are daring to come out in the open and speak against the problematic aspects of their former religion, their dissent not only must be fiercely protected but also promoted.

They are doing a great service to humanity and even Islam itself. Criticism and dissent is the first step toward reform. And Islam needed reformation yesterday

By

Jagadeesh krishnan

Psychologist and International Author

[26/08, 10:11 PM] 98 41 121780: அல்லாஹ் இல்லாமல் அற்புதம்: இந்த முஸ்லிம்கள் ஏன் இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு வெளியேறி பெருமைப்படுகிறார்கள்

ஒரு முஸ்லீம் நம்பிக்கையை விட்டு வெளியேற விரும்புவோருக்கு அல்லது வெளியேறியவர்களுக்கு ஒரு வட அமெரிக்க குழு எவ்வாறு பொது ஆதரவை உருவாக்குகிறது.

கடந்த சில நாட்களாக, #AwesomeWithoutAllah என்ற ஹேஷ்டேக் ட்விட்டரில் ட்ரெண்டாகி வருகிறது. உலகெங்கிலும் உள்ள முன்னாள் முஸ்லீம்கள் இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு வெளியேறி, ஷரியாவின் பிடியில் இருந்து விடுபட்டு, தங்களுக்கு முன்பு கற்பனை செய்து பார்க்க முடிந்த புதிய சுதந்திரங்களைப் பெற்ற மகிழ்ச்சியை 'டுவிட்டர்' உடன் பகிர்ந்து கொண்டாடி வருகின்றனர்.

வட அமெரிக்காவின் முன்னாள் முஸ்லிம்கள் (EXMNA), ஒரு இலாப நோக்கற்ற அமைப்பு, இந்த பிரச்சாரத்தை ஆன்லைனிலும் ஆஃப்லைனிலும் முன்னின்று நடத்துகிறது. இது பல்வேறு பொது இடங்களில் விளம்பர பலகைகளை வைத்துள்ளது. "அமெரிக்காவில் வளர்க்கப்பட்ட நான்கில் ஒரு முஸ்லிம்கள் இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு வெளியேறினர்" என்று ஒருவர் வாசிக்கிறார். "கடவுள் இல்லாதவர். அச்சமற்ற. முன்னாள் முஸ்லீம், ”அது மேலும் கூறுகிறது.

EXMNA இலக்குகளில் ஒன்று இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு வெளியேறுபவர்கள் எதிர்கொள்ளும் பாகுபாட்டைக் குறைப்பதாகும். இது மதச்சார்பற்ற மதிப்புகளை ஊக்குவிக்கிறது மற்றும் மத எதிர்ப்பை ஏற்றுக்கொள்ளும் வகையில் செயல்படுகிறது. இந்த முயற்சி 2012 இல் மனித உரிமை ஆர்வலர் முஹம்மது சையத் என்பவரால் நிறுவப்பட்டது.

இஸ்லாம் அதன் இணைப்பைப் பொறுத்தவரை ஒரு வழிப் பாதை. மற்ற மதத்தினரை மாற்றுவதற்கு இது அனுமதிக்கிறது, இல்லை, வலியுறுத்துகிறது. ஆனால் ஷரியா (இஸ்லாமிய சட்டம்) விதித்த தண்டனைக்காக யாரும் அதை விட்டுவிட முடியாது, ஏனெனில் துறவறம் மரணம்.

இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு வெளியேறியதற்காக ஒருவரைக் கொல்வது வெறும் குழப்பமான கோட்பாடு அல்ல. இது முஸ்லீம் உலகம் முழுவதும் தவறாமல் அமல்படுத்தப்படுகிறது மற்றும் ஷரியா சட்டம் இல்லாத மேற்கத்திய நாடுகளையும் உள்ளடக்கியது. அரசு இஸ்லாமியமாக இல்லாத இடத்தில், வைராக்கியமுள்ள முஸ்லீம்கள் அல்லாஹ்வின் பாதையில் இருந்து ‘வழிதவறி’ வருபவர்களைத் தண்டிக்கிறார்கள். கடந்த வாரம், இஸ்லாத்தை துறந்த பெண் உறவினர் ஒருவரை கொல்ல சதி செய்ததாக இரண்டு முஸ்லீம் ஆண்கள் இங்கிலாந்தில் அதிகாரிகளால் கைது செய்யப்பட்டனர்.

"இதனால்தான் @ExmuslimsOrg முஸ்லீம் சமூகங்களில் கருத்து வேறுபாட்டை இயல்பாக்குகிறது. இதனால்தான் நாங்கள் #AwesomeWithoutAllah போன்ற பிரச்சாரங்களை நடத்துகிறோம்" என்று EXMNA இன் நிர்வாக இயக்குனர் சாரா ஹைதர் ட்வீட் செய்தார்.

துரோகிகள் கொலை செய்யப்படுவார்கள் என்ற பயத்தில் தொடர்ந்து வாழ வேண்டிய ஒரு பயங்கரமான சூழலில், அந்த அமைப்பு என்ன செய்கிறது என்பது மிகவும் தைரியமானது. ட்விட்டரில் #AwesomeWithoutAllah ட்ரெண்டில் அதன் அழைப்பில், பல முன்னாள் முஸ்லீம்கள் தங்கள் கதைகளை ஏன் மகிழ்ச்சியாக பகிர்ந்து கொண்டனர் இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு. அவர்களில் பெரும்பாலானவர்கள் பெண்கள், மதத்தில் இரண்டாம் நிலை அந்தஸ்து வழங்கப்பட்டதில் ஆச்சரியமில்லை.

நிக், ஆஸ்திரேலியாவின் முன்னாள் முஸ்லீம் ஆதரவு நெட்வொர்க்கின் இணை நிறுவனர் மற்றும் @HereticalGray என்ற ட்விட்டர் கைப்பிடியின் மூலம், அவர் ஏன் அல்லாஹ் இல்லாமல் அற்புதமாக இருக்கிறார் என்பதை விளக்குகிறார். ஏனென்றால், எந்த குழந்தையும் ஹிஜாப்/நிகாப்பில் கட்டாயப்படுத்தப்படக்கூடாது. ஏனென்றால் என் மதிப்பு ஒரு துணியால் தீர்மானிக்கப்படவில்லை. ஏனென்றால், எனது ஹிஜாபை நீக்குவதன் மூலம், நான் பாலியல் பலாத்காரம் செய்யப்பட வேண்டிய ஒழுக்கமற்ற நபர் என்று அர்த்தமல்ல. ஏனென்றால் அனைவருக்கும் ஒரு தேர்வு இருக்கிறது என்று நான் நம்புகிறேன், ”என்று அவர் ட்வீட் செய்தார்.

"இப்போது நாம் விரும்பியபடி வாழ்க்கையை அனுபவிக்க சுதந்திரமாக இருக்கிறோம். நமக்கு என்ன வேண்டும் என்று சிந்திக்க நம் மனம் சுதந்திரமாக உள்ளது. நாம் விரும்பியவரை நேசிக்க எங்கள் இதயங்கள் சுதந்திரமாக உள்ளன. நாங்கள் இனி சில நாசீசிஸ்டிக் கோட்பாடுகளின் கட்டளைகளின் கீழ் இல்லை, ”என்று யாஸ்மின் முகமது ட்வீட் செய்தார். அவளுடைய சுயவிவரம் பின்வருமாறு கூறுகிறது: காபாவுக்கு வெளியே சிந்தியுங்கள் (இது ஒரு ஈமோஜி வடிவத்தில் சித்தரிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது).

‘Unapologetic Madow Lover’ (@gabariskufilan), ஒரு க honorரவக் கொலையில் உயிர் பிழைத்தவர், அவர் பெண்ணுரிமைக்காக இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு வெளியேறினார். "ஏனெனில் ஒரு தீவிர கருப்பு பெண்ணியவாதியாக, நான் ஒரே சமயத்தில் முஸ்லீம் மற்றும் பெண்ணியவாதியாக இருக்க முடியாது. நான் பெண் விடுதலையைத் தேர்வு செய்கிறேன். நான் தனியாக பயணம் செய்ய விரும்புகிறேன், பாதிக்கப்பட்டவரை குற்றம் சாட்டாமல் நான் விரும்பும் எதையும் அணிய விரும்புகிறேன் மற்றும் LGBTQIA உரிமைகளை ஆதரிக்கிறேன், ”என்று அவர் ட்வீட் செய்துள்ளார்.

"ஹிஜாபை அகற்றிவிட்டு வீட்டை விட்டு வெளியேறியதற்காக என் அம்மா என்னை இறக்க விரும்பினார். நான் போகும் தருணத்திலிருந்து கடவுளைக் கொல்லும்படி அவள் முடிவில்லாமல் பிரார்த்தனை செய்தாள், நான் விரைவில் இறந்துவிடுவேன் என்று நம்புகிறேன்" அல்லா அவளுடைய பிரார்த்தனைகளைக் கேட்கிறார் "என்று ஜினன் முர்டாட் ட்வீட் செய்துள்ளார். ஒரு முஸ்லீம் நாத்திகர், தனது ஆழ்ந்த தனிப்பட்ட கதையைப் பகிர்ந்து கொண்டார். "இப்போது 2 வருடங்கள் ஆகிறது, நான் இன்னும் உயிருடன் இருக்கிறேன், ஆனால் பெரும்பாலும் #AwesomeWithoutAllah," என்று அவர் மேலும் கூறினார்.

EXMNA பிரச்சாரத்திற்காக ஒரு வீடியோவைப் பதிவுசெய்த மெரீமின் கூற்றுப்படி, இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு வெளியேறுவது பற்றிய சிறந்த பகுதி, அவள் இனி பிரார்த்தனை செய்யவோ அல்லது விரதம் இருக்கவோ இல்லை. "நான் ஒரு நச்சு, துஷ்பிரயோகம் மற்றும் ஆணாதிக்க சூழலில் இருந்து விடுபடுகிறேன்," என்று அவர் கூறினார், "யாராவது என்னை ஏதாவது அணியவோ, ஏதாவது செய்யவோ, அல்லது உணரவோ அல்லது நான் இல்லாத ஒன்றாக இருக்கவோ கட்டாயப்படுத்த முடியாது."

தான்சானியா-ஆஸ்திரேலியரான ஜாரா கே தனது நாயுடன் ஒரு படத்தை ட்வீட் செய்தார். "நான் #அற்புதமானவன் அல்லா ஏனெனில் நாய்க்குட்டிகள்! நாய்கள் நாஜிகளாக இருப்பதால் நான் அவர்களைத் தொடக் கூடாது என உணர்கிறேன், "என்று அவர் தனது காரணத்தைக் கூறினார். அவர் முன்னாள் முஸ்லீமாக வெளிவந்ததற்காக ட்விட்டரில் நிறைய துஷ்பிரயோகங்களையும் அச்சுறுத்தல்களையும் பெறுகிறார். ஆனால் அவள் தடுக்கப்படவில்லை.

"நான் என் இன்பாக்ஸில் 30 செய்திகளை எழுப்பினேன், மக்கள் எனக்கு மரணத்தை விரும்புகிறார்கள், என்னை ஒரு பிச் என்று அழைக்கிறார்கள், நரக நெருப்பைப் பற்றி பேசுகிறார்கள், அல்லது என்னைக் கொல்ல விரும்புகிறார்கள். இதனால்தான் நாங்கள் தொடர்ந்து போராட வேண்டும், ”என்று அவர் ட்வீட் செய்தார். அவள் வரும் சில முறைகேடுகளின் ஸ்கிரீன் ஷாட்களையும் அவர் வெளியிட்டார்.

'அல்லாஹ் இல்லாமல் அருமை' பிரச்சாரம் பெறுகின்ற அனைத்து பின்னடைவுகளிலும், எக்ஸ்எம்என்ஏ நிர்வாக இயக்குனர் சாரா ஹைதர் கூறுகையில், "ஓம்ஜி இது நேரத்தின் முடிவு !!!" எங்கள் விளம்பர பலகைகளுக்கு பதிலளிக்கும் விதமாக விசுவாசிகளின் கருத்துகள் மற்றும் #AwesomeWithoutAllah இன் போக்கு. என்னிடம் நல்ல செய்தி உள்ளது! இது காலத்தின் முடிவு அல்ல! இது ஒரு காலத்தின் முடிவு - மத சலுகை, துஷ்பிரயோகம், துன்புறுத்தல் ஆகியவற்றின் நேரத்தின் முடிவு. "

இஸ்லாமியர்கள் தங்களின் துன்புறுத்தல்கள், 12+ நாடுகளில் சட்டபூர்வமான கொலை, அவர்களின் சிறை & சித்திரவதைகள், இஸ்லாமியர்களால் அவர்கள் எதிர்கொள்ளும் எண்ணற்ற பிற கொடுமைகள் பற்றி பேசினால் உங்களுக்கு அசableகரியம் ஏற்படுகிறது என்றால், கண்ணாடியில் உங்களைப் பார்க்க நீங்கள் பொறுத்துக் கொள்ள முடியாது. சில அவமானங்கள்!

வெளியே பேசுவது மற்றும் வெளியே வருவது பெண்கள் மட்டுமல்ல. முஸ்லீம் ஆண்களும் கூட்டமாக செய்கிறார்கள்.

சோஹைல் அகமது, பிறப்பால் அஹ்மதி முஸ்லீம், 'இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு வெளியேறுவதன் மிகச் சிறந்த பகுதி குர்ஆனின் வசனங்களை பாதுகாக்க வேண்டிய அவசியமில்லை, அங்கு ஆண்கள் மற்றும் பெண்களின் சமத்துவமின்மை சுட்டப்படுகிறது.

இப்போது நாத்திகராக இருக்கும் அலி மாலிக், அல்லாஹ் இல்லாமல் அற்புதமானவர் 'ஏனெனில் அது என்னை எவ்வளவு சுதந்திரமாகவும், மனிதனாகவும், மனத்தாழ்மையாகவும், கருணையுடனும் ஆக்கியது.'

"இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு வெளியேறுவதில் சிறந்த பகுதி மனக் கட்டுப்பாட்டிலிருந்து விடுபடுவதாகும்." எக்ஸ்எம்என்ஏ முன்முயற்சிக்காக அவர் படம்பிடித்த வீடியோவில் அப்துல்லா சமீர் கூறினார்.

அலிரேசா ஆசாமி தனது நடுத்தர விரலைக் காட்டும் ஹேஷ்டேக்குடன் ஒரு புகைப்படத்தை வெளியிட்டார்.

இந்த எதிர்ப்புக் குரல்களை ஆதரித்து, பாகிஸ்தானிய-கனடியரும், நாத்திக முஸ்லீம் ஆசிரியருமான அலி ஏ.ரிஸ்வி, முஸ்லிம்கள் பகுத்தறிவு, மதச்சார்பின்மை மற்றும் அறிவொளி ஆகியவற்றிலிருந்து விடுபடவில்லை என்று கூறினார். "நாங்கள் கத்தோலிக்கர்கள், மதச்சார்பற்ற யூதர்கள் மற்றும் முன்னாள் மோர்மான்ஸை இயல்பாக்கினோம். முன்னாள் முஸ்லீம்களை இயல்பாக்க வேண்டிய நேரம் வந்துவிட்டது, ”என்று அவர் ட்வீட் செய்துள்ளார்.

இஸ்லாமிய இறையியல் நம்பிக்கை இல்லாதவர்கள் மீது அன்பை இழக்கவில்லை. இது காபிர்கள் மீது தீராத பகைமையை வெளிப்படுத்துகிறது. விசுவாசிகள் அவர்களுடனான அனைத்து வகையான உறவுகளையும் தவிர்க்க வேண்டும், அவர்கள் நிச்சயதார்த்தத்தில் ஈடுபட வேண்டும் என்றால் அது கண்டிப்பாக தேவையின்றி செய்யப்பட வேண்டும். அவர்களுக்கு எந்த மரியாதையும் அளிக்க முடியாது.

அவர்களுக்கு மரியாதை வார்த்தைகள் சொல்வது கூட அனுமதிக்கப்படவில்லை. அவர்களின் மரணத்தில் கூட இல்லை. அவர்களுக்காக துஆ கேட்பது ஹராம். அவர்களின் வழிபாட்டுத் தலங்கள் பிசாசின் இடங்கள். அவர்களின் பண்டிகைகள் ஹராம். அவர்கள் உடல் ரீதியாக வெறுக்கத்தக்கவர்கள் மற்றும் நம்பமுடியாதவர்கள்.

ஒரு விசுவாசி இஸ்லாத்தை விட்டு வெளியேறி, நம்பிக்கையற்றவராக மாறும்போது, ​​அது மார்க்கத்திற்கு பெரும் அவமானமாக கருதப்படுவதில் ஆச்சரியமில்லை. அதனால்தான் துறவுக்கான தண்டனை மரணத்திற்கு குறைவாக இல்லை.

சில முன்னாள் முஸ்லீம்கள் வெளிப்படையாக வெளியே வந்து தங்கள் முன்னாள் மதத்தின் பிரச்சனையான அம்சங்களுக்கு எதிராக பேசத் துணிந்தால், அவர்களின் கருத்து வேறுபாடு கடுமையாகப் பாதுகாக்கப்படுவது மட்டுமல்லாமல் ஊக்குவிக்கப்பட வேண்டும்.

அவர்கள் மனிதகுலத்திற்கும் இஸ்லாத்திற்கும் கூட ஒரு சிறந்த சேவையைச் செய்கிறார்கள். விமர்சனமும் கருத்து வேறுபாடும் சீர்திருத்தத்திற்கான முதல் படியாகும். இஸ்லாத்திற்கு நேற்று சீர்திருத்தம் தேவைப்பட்டது

மூலம்

ஜெகதீஷ் கிருஷ்ணன்

உளவியலாளர் மற்றும் சர்வதேச எழுத்தாளர்

[meeedeee]

http://ift.tt/2hZOxgO

January 5, 2017 Kabul, Afghanistan—It is Friday noon in Kabul, Afghanistan, and men dressed in traditional clothes hurry to mosques to pray in congregation. Friday prayers are usually men’s business, and during the Taliban rule in the 1990s, women were not allowed in mosques. But in one neighborhood in the city, an imam has kept the doors of his mosque open to women for 12 years now. He often preaches about women’s rights in Islam – that women are equal to men and have the right to work and study.

This is all because of a woman named Jamila Afghani and the gender-sensitivity training program she has created.

Ms. Afghani has a friendly smile that hides all that she has had to endure in life. A women’s rights activist and Islamic scholar in Afghanistan, she has battled discrimination, as well as disability, since childhood. But it was access to education and being able to read the Quran herself that made her realize Islam could be used to empower women in Afghanistan.

Today, according to Afghani, about 20 percent of Kabul’s mosques have special prayer areas for women, whereas only 15 years ago there were none. The sermons delivered by imams about the importance of education have also helped many women persuade their families to let them study. In fact, some 6,000 imams in Afghanistan have participated in Afghani’s training program.

Afghani was born in Kabul in 1974, a few years before the Soviet invasion of the country. When she was only a few months old, she contracted polio, which left one of her legs disabled. But for Afghani the disability became a blessing in disguise. Her family was conservative and did not approve of education for girls. Her sisters played outside, but Afghani was not able to; she became easily bored and spent her days crying. Finally, at the suggestion of her doctor, her father enrolled her in first grade.

“I became very happy. When I got to school, it was my whole world,” she says.

Afghani was in fifth grade when the fighting between the mujahideen and the Soviet Union became so fierce that her family left Afghanistan for Pakistan. In Peshawar, she enrolled in master’s-level classes in Islamic studies and began learning Arabic. Once there, she came to see an Islam that was not what she had been familiar with.

“When I started learning Arabic and studying by myself, I found out that Islam is totally different from what my family was saying, what my environment was teaching,” she says.

“Everything was always a discrimination in our family,” says Afghani, who observed how her brothers behaved with their wives. “They were educated women, but my brothers stopped them from continuing their education and working,” she recounts. “I thought, if [my brothers] can go outside, why not my sisters-in-law?”

Gradually, Afghani got involved with an Afghan women’s rights group in Peshawar. And over time, she formed her own organization, later named the Noor Educational and Capacity Development Organization (NECDO). She decided to take an Islamic approach, which made it possible for her to teach literacy classes for women in refugee camps. “It was not easy to enter into those communities,” she explains. “But when we used Islamic education as an entry point, we had a very good experience.”

Returning to Afghanistan

After 2001, when the Taliban were ousted from power in Afghanistan, scores of refugees started returning to the country, Afghani among them. She began setting up women’s centers where literacy was taught.

But when the project was taken to Afghani’s native Ghazni province, she ran into problems with the community – especially the imams of the mosques. She decided to invite one of the imams to her center, but he was embarrassed to meet a woman and said he wished nobody would find out. Afghani couldn’t believe his attitude: “I thought, my God, what is this?” But she chose to take a respectful approach and explained that she was educating women about Islam. “I said, ‘If you can find a single verse from the Quran or the hadith that education is bad, then I’ll stop right now and hand over the key of this center to you.’ ”

Slowly, she says, the imam became impressed with Afghani’s knowledge of Islam, and he started encouraging men to let their wives and daughters go to the center. Suddenly, the space was crowded with women hungry for education.

In 2008, Afghani was invited to a conference in Malaysia organized by the Women’s Islamic Initiative in Spirituality and Equality (WISE), a network for Muslim women. There she learned about a Filipina woman who was writing Friday sermons for imams about women’s rights. This gave Afghani the idea about gender-sensitivity training for imams. With the support of WISE and female Muslim scholars, “we developed a manual for the training,” she says.

A clever approach

Afghani knew the task ahead was not going to be easy. Initially, imams were shown the manual without them knowing it would be used for their own training. Afghani and her colleagues told the imams they wanted input on what they had developed. This is how the discussions began, and suddenly the training was in full swing. “Sometimes women are very clever. More than men,” Afghani laughs.

Some of the imams were immediately receptive to Afghani’s ideas. But with others, some issues proved very difficult. “Women’s political participation was the hardest thing,” she says. “Even ... now, some of the imams are not on the same page as [us].”

Of the 6,000 imams who have been trained by NECDO, one is Mohammed Ehsan Saikal, the imam in Kabul who has kept his mosque open to women for 12 years. He has been working with Afghani during this time and often preaches about the importance of education for girls. “I have three daughters, and all of them are highly educated and go to work,” he says. “The best thing I have received from this organization is enlightenment and awareness.”

Nargis Hamdard, age 20, is a female student at Mr. Saikal’s madrasa, which operates alongside his mosque. Her family used to be against education for women, but since she started coming to the madrasa, their opinion has changed. “I have learned that in Islam, women have the right to work and study. Now my family also believes this,” she says.

Katharina Hild, a former team leader at the German Society for International Cooperation, worked closely with Afghani, training women who served on local councils. According to Ms. Hild, Afghani “knows exactly how to find the best leverage for women’s rights.... Before the project, the women had no clear idea what it means to be a local councilor, but after an intense training program managed by NECDO they were much more confident.”

The cost

But going against extremist interpretations of Islam has come at a price. Saikal and others regularly receive threats from the Taliban and the Islamic State group. “Two of our imams were killed, and I have gotten threats and warnings,” Afghani says. Because of this, she has had to limit her movements.

A year ago, Afghani was appointed a deputy minister in the Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs, Martyrs and Disabled. But there is still not enough political will to address women’s issues in the government, she says.

At the same time, she says, the international community does not see the potential in Islam: “They think that working with Islam is a problem. But it’s not true. I think it’s very important, especially in Afghanistan, which is a very conservative country. Islamic knowledge should be used as a tool to convince the people.”

Despite the obstacles and threats, Afghani is committed to continuing her work. “This is our country, and we have to do something better for the next generations. If not me, then who will do it?”

How to take action

UniversalGiving helps people give to and volunteer for top-performing charitable organizations around the world. All the projects are vetted by UniversalGiving; 100 percent of each donation goes directly to the listed cause. Below are links to three groups supporting girls:

Plan International USA is part of a global network that works side by side with communities in 50 developing countries to end the cycle of poverty for children. Take action: Help protect girls from sexual exploitation.

Develop Africa is committed to sustainable development in Africa through education and other means. Take action: Donate for girls’ schooling.

Nepal Youth Foundation assists girls who were rescued from the kamlari system of child slavery in becoming independent young women. Take action: Support the Empowering Freed Kamlaris program.

[specialchan]

Reinterpreting the Qur’an and Sunnah to suit the age? via /r/islam

Reinterpreting the Qur’an and Sunnah to suit the age?

Article can be found here on islamqa.info

Question : 238616

These days a lot of people say: "We dont ride horses and camels anymore, we have trains and cars now. We watch TV, have cellphones and high tech health care. So why cant we interpret Quran and Ahadith to fit in todays society?" How does a Muslim reply to this

Answer

The call to interpret the Holy Qur’an and the Prophet’s Sunnah in a manner that is appropriate for our modern era may be right or it may be wrong. In other words, it may be understood in a proper way or in a wrong way, depending on what the questioner intends thereby, and depending on whether its aims and goals are genuine (Islamic) or are alien ideas.

If the aim is to reinterpret what is proven and clear (of Islamic beliefs and principles) in such a way as to make them drift from the original, definitive meaning, and twist the meanings and objectives of these principles in such a way as to suit the people’s changing whims and desires, thoughts and ideas, then in that case the purpose behind it (reinterpreting basic Islamic beliefs and principles) is undoubtedly wrong. That approach will never stop at cancelling the Qur’anic text and concealing its light only; rather it will go beyond that to cancelling the reason through which we think and understand what we read and hear.

That is because language, which is something common to all people and which may vary from one region to another, is a trustworthy transmitter of goals and meanings, and is the basic means of communication between people. This is something clear in people’s minds and hearts. So whoever hears praise from some person, or lampooning, or criticism, or a command or prohibition, in a clear statement, with a clear meaning, then it makes no sense to understand it as the opposite of the meaning indicated by the language and to change its meaning in a manner that is appropriate to his environment, as he claims. So he understands praise as criticism, a command as a prohibition, a true report as something imaginary, and so on, for that interpretation will lead to real confusion and loss.

Why do such people want to interpret the Qur’an and Sunnah in such a manner, when they know that the basic objectives of the Qur’an are stated in clear texts, and cannot be undermined by interpretations that are based on illusions, and cannot be changed by the interpretations of those who have ulterior motives?

Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And thus have We sent it (the Qur’an) down to be a judgement of authority in Arabic. Were you (O Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)) to follow their (vain) desires after the knowledge which has come to you, then you will not have any Walee (protector) or defender against Allah”

[ar-Ra‘d 13:37]

“And indeed We have put forth for men, in this Qur’an every kind of similitude in order that they may remember.

An Arabic Qur’an, without any crookedness (therein) in order that they may avoid all evil which Allah has ordered them to avoid, fear Him and keep their duty to Him”

[az-Zumar 37:27, 28].

The knowledge and guidance with which the Qur’an and Sunnah were sent down is guidance that is based on fundamental principles and sublime goals, that enable man to learn about the reason for his existence and the purpose of his creation, and the nature of his relationship with his Creator, may He be glorified and exalted, and what will happen after death of the resurrection and reckoning; it explains to people the path of virtue, good manners and noble values. Moreover it is based on the objectives of sharee‘ah, which aim at protecting people’s essential and fundamental needs. In the Qur’an and Sunnah we also find stories of the Messengers and Prophets who carried the torch of light throughout human history, and examples of the sacrifices that they made, and what they had to endure of suffering and persecution at the hands of their nations and peoples, so that these stories might offer lessons for all subsequent generations, in order that humanity will not forget the purpose of their existence, which may be summed up in the verse in which Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Who has created death and life, that He may test you which of you is best in deed. And He is the All-Mighty, the Oft-Forgiving”

[al-Mulk 67:2].

It is the right of all people to question in this regard what would be changed of these great basic principles with the change of time and place.

How can it be possible to turn around these holistic objectives to suit our time and present, when they are – in their content and wording, and in their nature – fixed and original values that are not subject to change with changes in time, place and circumstances. Rather these objectives are well-established in the messages of all the Messengers and Prophets, and will remain so until Allah inherits the earth and all who are on it.

What this (the call to reinterpret the religious texts) implies is that the Islamic texts, and the commands and prohibitions they contain, were only addressed to the people who lived at the time when the revelation was sent down, or whose situation is similar to that of those among whom the Qur’an was revealed. As for those who came after them and lived in a world different from theirs, these Islamic texts are not applicable to them.

When people’s circumstances and way of life in general change – as is the case with people nowadays – then (as this call implies) these rulings that are included in the Islamic texts are not applicable to them, whether in terms of commands or prohibitions, and (it implies that) they may interpret the texts in a manner other than the original meaning, and live their lives accordingly, and regard this new interpretation as the correct understanding of the religion in their case, just as the original interpretation represented the correct understanding of the religion in the case of those who were addressed at the time of revelation.

One of those who have this mentality said: The Qur’anic attitude towards women was an attitude that was connected to a particular era, and these rules and regulations were appropriate for a particular era. It is very possible that such rulings and regulations may not be suitable to be applied in the era in which we live. [Hiwaar hawla Qadaayaa Islamiyyah, by Iqbaal Barakah, p. 102].

Another one said: We know that the ancient religious texts were not disconnected from the ancient societies, and that the system of rule, the status of women, man’s rights and duties, and the relationship between religion and political authority in these texts is an expression of the reality of ancient societies, that no longer exists and there is no longer any need for it.

Some of them think that the rules and regulations that have to do with worship and business dealings were dictated by the simple environment of the Hijaz at the time of the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), and they are not connected to any other environment. [Islam Bayna ar-Risaalah wa’t-Taareekh by ‘Abd al-Majeed ash-Sharafi, p. 61]. So man today is not obliged to adhere to these rules and regulations, as a result of the new circumstances he is living in, and when the Qur’an addresses people (“O people…”), what is meant by the people here is the first community that surrounded the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) and that heard the Qur’an from his lips for the first time. [al-Fikr al-Usooli by Arkoon, p. 30].

One of them said: Similarly, it is appropriate here to re-examine some Islamic rules and regulations that were appropriate at that time, but we cannot imagine implementing them nowadays, after the development of international political thought, foremost among which is what is known as fiqh ahl adh-dhimmah (jurisprudence regarding non-Muslims living under Muslim rule)…. There is no way to implement this chapter of fiqh which was produced in particular circumstances in the past.

He also demands re-examination of some economic shar‘i rules and regulations that were introduced in response to a social reality that is completely different from our contemporary reality, foremost among which is that which has to do with bank dealings that form the basis of contemporary economics, such as returns on capital that is loaned, where the aim of prohibiting such returns at that time was to protect the weak and needy, lest the need for money to buy their daily food be exploited, and thus debts would accumulate and the lender would end up seizing their houses and fields.

Something similar may be said about the hadd punishments which were dictated by the circumstances of society at that time, as society at that time was primitive and there was no state or government to ensure safety and security; rather people at that time would pounce on one another for revenge. Therefore establishing the hadd punishments was the least evil and the least harmful of options, because even though they were barbaric, they offered protection to the society of that era from that which was worse, more violent and more barbaric. [Al-Islam wa’l-Hurriyyah al-Iltibaas at-Taareekhi, by Muhammad ash-Sharafi, p. 89].

The hijab is no longer appropriate in the modern era, according to their claim, and it is not befitting to the status and freedom that women have attained, as they are now involved in all fields of public life, such as schools, universities, factories, management and business. Indeed, even acts of worship are subject to change in the modern era, because the way in which the Muslims used to worship at the time when the Qur’an was revealed is not binding upon those who come after them, if their life circumstances change. Rather they can select of these acts of worship those that are appropriate to their circumstances.

if – for example – the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) used to perform his prayers in a certain way, that should not mean that the Muslims in all places, times and circumstances are obliged to adhere to this method. [al-Islam bayna ar-Risaalah wa’t-Taareekh by Muhammad ash-Sharafi, p. 62-63].

Based on this understanding, the conclusion will be that there is no fixed meaning to the Islamic texts, so what the people of a particular era understand as being required of them may become something that is not required for others, and what they understand to be not required of them may be understood by others as being required, as a result of changes in cultures from one time to another. [an-Nass, as-Sultah, al-Haqeeqah, by Nasr Haamid Abu Zayd, p. 139].

The reason for this misguided approach is because they view the texts of the Qur’an and Sunnah as texts written by humans that are to be dealt with like any other texts; therefore they may be subjected to what other texts are subjected to, and may be examined in the light of history and the changes and developments that affect societies!?

Therefore Nasr Haamid Abu Zayd said: The Qur’anic text – even though it is a divine text – does not go beyond being a text; therefore it should be subject to the rules of literary criticism, like any other literary text. [Mafhoom an-Nass: Diraasah fi ‘Uloom al-Qur’an, by Nasr Abu Zayd, p. 24].

Arkoon said: The Qur’an is no more than one text among others, and is the same in terms of complexity and the rich and powerful meanings that it contains, like the Torah, Gospel, and Buddhist and Hindu scriptures. Each of these fundamental texts was subject to various interpretations at different times of history, and may be subject to further interpretation in the future. [al-Fikr al-Usooli by Muhammad Arkoon, p. 36].

This is clearly a specious argument. How could you equate the Book of Allah with these distorted books or those that were written by humans? How can you compare the words of the Lord of the Worlds, Who has knowledge of what was and what shall be, with the words of humans who have but little knowledge? The words of Allah cannot be limited and restricted to a particular time, because Allah revealed it to be a constitution and guidance for all people in every time and place, and He knows what is best for His slaves and what is appropriate for them in all times and circumstances; nothing is hidden from Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing. We say to these people (interpretation of the meaning): “Do you know better or does Allah?” [al-Baqarah 2:140]. End quote from Bid‘at I‘aadah Fahm an-Nass, by Shaykh al-Munajjid (p. 51-56).

But if what is meant by his question is understanding new developments in the light of Islamic teachings by applying the texts of revelation to these developments in our own time, and trying to examine these new developments, whether minor or major, in the light of the Islamic texts and in a manner that serves the objectives and fundamentals of the Qur’an and Sunnah, and in a manner that respects the basic principles of Islam in general, and emphasises the importance of adhering to the commands and prohibitions of sharee‘ah, whilst taking into account the changes in time, place and circumstances in issues that are subject to ijtihad and the weighing up of pros and cons, where there is no specific text concerning these issues, then that should be done in a manner that is based on proper understanding of the spirit of Islam and its core message, in such a way as to deal with the concerns of modern man and enable him to adhere to the rules and regulations prescribed by Allah for His slaves. This is a sound aim that we should all strive for, and it is approved by all scholars, who have all striven to achieve it in all times and eras.

The scholars discussed – for example – the value of truthfulness and sincerity, and how that may be achieved and applied within the variables of their societies, and how belief in the unseen and in the resurrection and life after death may present an integrated framework for dealing with the concerns of our time and the troubles that people are facing, and the impact that this belief may have in achieving justice in the rules and regulations that govern people’s lives, if their constitutions and systems of law were based on the principles of justice and mercy and the objectives of the last message to humanity, namely the message of Islam. There are many similar examples and details that we could discuss, with no end. All of these are noble aims and a sound approach, and we call for and support all of it, as the teachings of Islam themselves call for it and support it, because the teachings of Islam include factors that make it suitable for every time and place, and qualify it to give answers for new developments throughout the ages, helping the scholars to understand the changing social dynamics and to avoid being frozen in some traditional mould. This is a matter the reality of which cannot be understood except by one who understands the sciences of usool al-fiqh (basic principles of Islamic jurisprudence), qawaa‘id at-tafseer (foundations of Qur’anic exegesis) and the philosophy of ‘aqeedat al-Islam (Islamic doctrine).

This type of reinterpretation should be subject to many guidelines, as the scholars, mufassireen and fuqaha’ are well aware, among the most important of which are the following:

Adhering to scholarly consensus, for whatever the scholars agree upon is constant and cannot be changed or altered; whatever the scholars differed about may be subject to re-examination and review, which gives us space for renewal.

Adhering to the rules of the Arabic language with regard to the meaning of individual words and understanding the context of those words as they were understood by the first generation, in whose language the Qur’an was revealed, and avoiding any interpretation that is contrary to the guidelines on the language and sound understanding of the Arabic language.

Examining all the shar‘i evidence that helps us to understand a particular text and interpreting the Qur’an in the light of the Qur’an itself and in the light of the Prophet’s Sunnah and the views of the Sahaabah and Taabi‘een, for the sources of sharee‘ah – as explained by the scholars of usool – are several; the mufassir must examine them and understand them so that he may develop a sound understanding and so that his conclusion will be based on sound methodology, otherwise his conclusion may not be sound and correct.

One of the most important guidelines in this type of reinterpretation is that those who take on this task must be qualified people who combine knowledge with fear of Allah, and people whom the people of knowledge testify are well-versed in knowledge and are specialists who are well-versed in the religious texts and the objectives of sharee‘ah, in addition to having a sound religious commitment, piety and fear of Allah, may He be glorified. Thus the way will be blocked to those who want to violate the sanctity of the Holy Qur’an (by misinterpreting it), those who claim to have knowledge but are ignorant, and pretend to possess what they do not have of knowledge of religious texts and wisdom.

And Allah knows best.

Source:

Islam Q&A

Submitted August 26, 2020 at 05:12AM by Ta1w0 via reddit https://ift.tt/3gtl90L

[learnarabiconline]

The Sunnah of Social Media?

We know the Quran is an incredible resource from advice on relationships, and inheritance to cleanliness and behavior. This is not to mention all the scientific miracles that only became known as such hundreds of years later.

So what does the Quran say about social media behavior? How does a Muslim navigate that sea within the bounds of Islam?

Lower your gaze - not just from visually inappropriate content.

​In Surah An-Nur, Allah says: "Tell the believing men to lower their gaze (from looking at forbidden things), …"

This advice, for both men and women requests that we protect our eyes (and as a result our hearts) from seeing that which is immodest. The obvious online connotation of this would be abstaining from viewing pornography. But there is a much more prevalent and subtle immodesty that is often ignored. With the introduction of Instagram and Facebook as a means for people to share their lives pictorially, online content has become increasingly visual.This has resulted in a huge percentage of content that is designed to be visually stimulating and often times immodest. A fully or decently clothed individual is made to look a certain way. Your innocent browsing on Instagram may go from casual browsing to a slow decay.

We 'feed' ourselves content that can often not only make us and our lives feel inadequate. The advice to lower our gaze has a significant meaning if we are to protect our hearts.

Purify/Renew your intention & use it for good

​The first of the 40 Nawawi hadeeth states that "actions are judged by intentions." With the online world full of stimuli and distraction, our mind hops from one story to another and we may lose sight of time and purpose. Being conscious of this and ensuring that we are acting with (good) intention is a great way to take benefit and limit the harms.

Social media in and of itself is not inherently evil. It does, like many things come down to how we use it. If you focus your efforts on using it to spread good and it can be a source of ajr for you. The angels on your shoulders don't take a break when you take a social media one.

Behave like you would offline

​The introduction of social media has meant that it is so easy to have alternate personalities and realities. Since our actions and our words are no longer limited to where we are physically, we need to pay close attention to our behavior in that online realm. Is this something I would say or do in person? If not, we certainly should not be doing so behind a screen.

Keep your gratitude list in check

​Linked to the previous point about alternate realities, know and remember that you are human. Constantly consuming another person's life's best moments (because that's often they all are) can be damaging to our internal gratitude-meter. It isn't an overnight shift but it certainly is one that can have a significant impact over time. Allah has bestowed us all with certain blessings, so try to focus on what you have and not what you don't. Expressions like FOMO, (Fear Of Missing Out) are a manifestation of a culture where we are less focused on ourpresent and more on someone else's.

Advise in private

​Of the many sunnah etiquettes of giving advice is to make sure we advise a person in private and conceal their sins. If you see something that you disagree with on Facebook, it's unlikely your public comment will make a difference to the person's understanding because it probably comes across as disingenuous. If you're sincerely seeking to advise someone, than do so in private as it will almost always have more impact. Not only are you able to connect with them on a personal level, you are also able to purify your intention as you aren't doing it to put up a public debate.

The saying 'only dead fish go with the flow' is an important one for Muslims. With the world evolving and new technologies and eases at our fingertips it is important we reflect on our behavior and not simply flow like dead fish. Whatever the majority is doing is certainly not the best way, and will become increasingly less so. We must be active not passive members of the environment, culture and society at large if we are to make the best of our limited time on this Earth.

[asma-al-husna]

Allah calls Himself Al-Hafeedh— The All-Preserver, The All-Heedful, The All-Protecting— on three occasions in the Quran. He is the One Who created and preserves the worlds and what they contain. Al-Hafeedh is heedful of all we do and He protects us from things we do not even realize, giving believers many opportunities to earn His special protection!

The Ultimate Preserver, Guardian, and Protector

Hafeedh and Haafidh come from the root haa-faa-dhaa, which points out to three main meanings. The first meaning is guarding, protecting, retaining and taking care of. The second main meaning of this root is to prevent from perishing or becoming lost and the third is to be watchful, mindful, attentive, and vigilant.

This root appears 44 times in the Quran in eight derived forms. Examples of these forms are haafidheen(“guardians”), mahfoodh (“guarded, protected”), and wahaafidh’naahaa (“and We have protected it”).

Linguistically, haafidh is used for someone who memorized the Quran. Al-Hafeedh is the Ultimate Preserver, Guardian and Protector of the whole creation.

Al-Hafeedh Himself says: “. . . and you will not harm Him at all. Indeed my Lord is, over all things, Guardian. [Quran 11:57] . . . We might make evident who believes in the Hereafter from who is thereof in doubt. And your Lord, over all things, is Guardian. [Quran 34:21]

Knowledge, preservation, and recompense

Allah ‘azza wajall negated forgetfulness on Himself; He will protect and guard knowledge and never forget it. Musa ‘alayhi sallam testified to this fact, saying: The knowledge thereof is with my Lord, in a Record. My Lord is neither unaware nor He forgets. [Quran 20:52]

We should know that haafidh is made of three aspects; first knowledge (‘ilm), then preservation (hifdh) and then recompense (hisaab). For example, removing a small piece of dirt from the floor so it wouldn’t make someone slip. Even though no one saw it, you need to be sure Allah knows about it, then you should be sure He will preserve it (hifdh) and finally you should be certain that Al-Hafeedh will recompense you for it.

This goes for anything anyone does for Allah’s Sake! Therefore there’s a relation between the beautiful names Al-‘Aleem (the All-Knowing), Al-Hafeedh (The All-Preserving) and Ash-Shakoor (The Appreciative).

How Can We Live By This Name?

1. Be motivated by Al-Hafeedh.

Al-Hafeedh is heedful of everything you do by His knowledge, He orders His angels to record everything you do. Even the smallest deeds, like coming to an Islamic lecture, sitting nicely, and making notes— Al-Hafeedh will preserve and appreciate it. When you know this you will really be a slave of Allah ‘azza wa jall and not of people.

2. Fear Al-Hafeedh.

He is also Al-Hafeedh when you do bad actions. Remember even with your “very small” wrong deed He sees, preserves, and will recompense you for it unless you repent. For example in prayer you need presence of the heart; khushoo means presence of the heart (hudoor al qalb) plus understanding (fahm).

Maybe in only one rukoo you remember Allah and the rest of the time your heart is distracted or heedless. Allah is hafeedh and He even knows you only remembered Him in rukoo’; then He will keep this remembrance in rukoo’ for you and will reward you according to this. Depending on whether your deed was good or bad al-Hafeedh will reward you or punish you, so this name gives you both hope (rajaa) and fear (al-khawf or khashiyah).

3. Remember people.

One of the sifaat ul mu’mineen – attributes of the believers— is being mindful and attentive to others. Maybe you met someone once and you lent her your pen and she remembers that so many years later, you would feel happy. The best example of this quality of remembering is the Prophet sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, who never forgot Khadeejah radiyallaahu ‘anha.

4. Memorize the Quran.

Work hard to be of those who preserve His Book, the Quran, by memorizing it. When memorizing His Book call upon Al-Hafeedh and ask Him to preserve and keep it in your mind.

5. Purify your heart.

For example you talk bad about someone just because you dislike them. Al-Hafeedh will never forget what you did; this knowledge will be preserved with Him and maybe after a period of time you will be put in the same situation where you are innocent and yet someone accuses you wrongly or says something untrue about you. When this happens it is for you to recall and repent for what you did to someone else. Al-Hafeedh is giving it as a test to nurture you because He has this knowledge preserved whereas maybe you forgot or saw it as insignificant.

6. Strive for the special protection of Al-Hafeedh.

Aboo Tayyib At-Tabaree , an early scholar, was about hundred years old and he was physically strong like the young man. Once after an exhausting journey, Aboo Tayyib At-Tabaree jumped off the boat on the land. People were amazed. He said: When I was a young man, I preserved these bodily limbs from the disobedience of Allah and Allah preserved them for me in my old age. [Ibn Rajab]

To receive the special protection of Al-Hafeedh in your religion and your worldy affairs, the Prophet said: Guard Allah (His commands) and He will guard and protect you. [Ahmad, At-Tirmidhee]

7. Be thankful to Al-Hafeedh.

Al-Hafeedh preserves your body in an amazing way; only imagine if your blood would freely flow into your brain. Be thankful to Al-Hafeedh for the way He preserves you and protects you in ways you don’t even realize.

8. Reflect on your environment and increase your awe for Al-Hafeedh.

Look around you and be amazed by the way Al-Hafeedh is able to preserve even the biggest creations. It is He Who preserved the sky from falling on us. We come up with ways by His leave to preserve even the food in fridges and by salt so we can use it longer, as well as the money in the bank. Allah is Al-Hafeedh and He guides humans for a means to even preserve food, health, and wealth.

9. Repent to Al-Hafeedh.

This name should shake you even more than the name Al-‘Aleem, because Al-Hafeedh not only implies that He knows everything, He even remembers the smallest things. You need the forgiveness of Al-Hafeedh, so another important impact of this name is that it will make you not delay but hasten to repent.

O Allah, Al-Hafeedh, we know that You preserve all there ever was, is, and will be. Give us your special protection by aiding us to fulfill Your commands, help us to be mindful of even the smallest sins, and make us rush to repent and be thankful to You for Your protection. Honour us by making us of those who memorize the Quran and support us in our belief and awareness of Your knowledge, preservation and recompense so we will strive to please You and earn Your Gardens, ameen!

[beautifulislam]

MashAllah what an absolute warrior ❤ well worth the read, such an inspiration.....

From Kavita to Nur Fatima

“Yes! I have converted to Islam.” Hearing this he started to beat me. Hearing the noise my sister reached there. She tried to rescue me. But when my husband narrated the entire story she too advanced to beat me."

It is the story of a girl who, before embracing Islam, belonged to a family associated with extremist Hindu organization Shiv Sena. Here is a brief interview of the girl named Kavita. Her name was later changed to Nur Fatima when she converted to Islam.

Question: What was your name before embracing Islam?

Answer: My name was Kavita. While my nickname was Poonam.

Question: And what is your Islamic name?

Answer: I have been named as Nur Fatima after embracing Islam.

Question: Where were you born and what is your age now?

Answer: I was born in Mumbai and I am 30. But I consider myself as a five-year-old because my knowledge about Islam is not more than a five-year-old Muslim kid’s knowledge.

Question: Would you please tell us about your education?

Answer: After schooling from Mumbai, I went to the Cambridge University for higher education. After completing my masters there I did many a computer courses. I regret that I have attained a number of degrees for this world but have done nothing for the world hereafter. Now I want to do some-thing for the purpose.

Question: Would you share with us some facts of your life?

Answer: I had joined a school in Mumbai. The school is big enough and only children of royal families studied there.

Question: Where were you married and how many children you have?

Answer: I was married in Mumbai but later I came to Bahrain along with my husband. I’ve got two sons.

Question: How did you convert to Islam?

Answer: First of all I shall love to pay my gratitude to Allah for His blessings. As Allah’s Messenger? said: “When Allah wishes well for someone He grants him under-standing of Deen.” I say Allah has showered me with His blessings. The environment in which I grew up was extremist Hindu where Muslims were severely hated. I embraced Islam after my marriage but I disliked worship of idols since my adolescence. I remember that once I had removed an idol to a washroom in my house. When my mother admonished me on it, I replied that if it cannot protect it-self then why do you seek bless-ings from it? Why do you bow be-fore it? What does it grant you? There is a ritual in our family that when a girl is married, she washes feet of her husband and drinks that water. But I refused to do so on the very first day due to which I was severely admonished. As I told you that I had joined a school (for teaching purposes) and since I was alone and used to drive my car; I started visiting a nearby Islamic centre. I heard their conversation and knew that Muslims did not worship idols. They were seeking blessings from some other person. Their Bhagwan was someone else. I liked their views. I knew later that this is Allah Who accomplishes everything.

Question: How did you attract to Islam?

Answer: the prayer (Namaz) of Muslims impressed me. I did not earlier know that it is called as prayer. However, I was aware of the fact that all the Muslims do like that. At first I thought it was some sort of exercise. I learnt that it was called as Namaz when I started visiting the Islamic centre. I dreamed of one thing whenever I went to bed. It was a four-dimensional room that I dreamed daily. I would get harassed and wake up sweating. The same room would re-appear in my dreams when I would sleep again. I learned much later about this room.

Question: How your family learnt about your conversion to Islam?

Answer: After marriage I shifted to Bahrain which helped me a lot in understanding Islam. As it is a Muslim country, our house was surrounded by Muslims. I befriended a Muslim girl. She seldom visited me but I used to visit her mostly. One day she forbade me from visiting her for it was Ramazan, the month of worship. “My worship is disturbed due to your visit” she told me. As I wanted to know about the rituals of worship performed by Muslims I got more curious and requested her not to forbid me from visiting her house. I said: “Do whatever you want to. I shall just see you doing all that. I would say nothing and would rather hear whatever you would recite.” So she did not forbade me from visiting her house. When I would see her worshipping, I my-self would be attracted to copy it. Then I asked her about the “exercise.” She told me that they call it Namaz. And that the book she used to recite is the Holy Quran. I wished to do this all. I would lock a room of my house and copy my friend in private though I did not know much about it. One day I forgot to lock the room and started offering Namaz when my husband entered there. He asked me what I was doing. I replied: “Offering Namaz.” He said: “Are you in your senses? Do you know what are you saying?” At first I got harassed. My eyes were closing out of fear. But, suddenly, I felt a huge power in my inner self that made me courageous enough to face the situation. I cried out that I had converted to Islam so I was offering Namaz. He said: “What! What have you said? Would you repeat your words?” I repeated my words with an added emphasis: “Yes! I have converted to Islam.” Hearing this he started to beat me. Hearing the noise my sister reached there. She tried to rescue me. But when my husband narrated the entire story she too advanced to beat me. I stopped her saying: “You should not come in my way. I know what is good for me and what is bad. I shall walk on the way I have adopted.” Hearing this my husband got furious. He tortured me so much that I lost my senses.

Question: Where were your children when you were being tortured? What was their age? And how did you manage to escape from there?

Answer: My children were at home when this gory drama was being played. My elder son was in 9th and younger son in 8th at that time. But after this incident I was not allowed to meet anyone. I was locked in a room. Though I had not formally embraced Islam, I had uttered these words that I had converted to Islam. One night when I was there locked in the room; my elder son came there and burst into tears in my arms. I asked where the other family members were. He said they had gone to attend some function and no one was at home. (There was our religious festival on that night.) My son requested me to escape from the house for the family wanted to kill me. I consoled him that nothing such would happen. They would not hurt me. And he should take care of himself and his younger brother. But he continued to insist amid sobs that I should escape from the house. I tried to make him under-stand that then I would be unable to meet them. But he replied that you could meet us only if you were alive. “Go away, Mama, they will murder you.” At last I decided to leave. I could never forget those harsh moments when my elder son went to wake up his younger brother and said to him: “Get up. Mama is leaving. Meet her now for who knows that whether she will meet us again or not.” The younger one had met me after many days. He was rubbing his eyes while looking at me. But when I stepped forward, he clung to me and burst into tears. The children perhaps al-ready knew all. He just asked me, “Mama, are you leaving?” I nodded in affirmative saying we would meet again. My both sons were seeing me off on that dark and chilly night. I was crushing the love of mother under my own feet. On one hand was the love of children and their separation and on other was the love for Islam which was overcoming the former. I was moaning, clinging to my children.... crushing my love for them. My injuries were fresh. I was un-able to walk on foot. However, I somehow managed to do so. Both the children were waving their hands to me with tears in their eyes at the gate. I could never forget those moments. Whenever I recall this scene, I remember the Muslims who had abandoned their homes and families for Islam.

Question: Where did you go then and where did you embrace Islam?

Answer: From my house I headed straight to the police station. My biggest problem there was that they did not know my language. One of them, however, could understand English. I was out of breath and was unable to speak for I was nervous. I requested him to let me take rest until I collect my-self. Then after a while I collected myself and told him that I had left my house and wanted to embrace Islam. I was anxious to narrate all these facts. However, he consoled me and said that he too was a Muslim and would help me as much as possible. He took me to his family and provided me shelter in his home. In the morning, my husband reached the police station to seek help saying his wife had been kid-napped. But he was told that his wife had not been kidnapped rather she herself had come there. As she wanted to embrace Islam, he did not have any relation with her (being a non-Muslim) so she could not go with him. He insisted and hurled threats. But I myself refused to go with him. I said he could take all my jewellery, bank balance and property, but I would not go with him. At first he did not give up, but seeing my consistent refusal he got a written statement to obtain all my belongings.

The person who had given me shelter said that now your family would not harm you and you might embrace Islam. I thanked him and went to a hospital for my whole body was wounded. I remained admitted to the hospital for some days. Once a doctor asked me: “Where have you come from? No one from your family had ever visited you at hospital.” I remained quiet and did not reply. For I had left my house in search of only one thing...... Now I neither had any home nor any family..... Now my only relation was Islam which had extended me affection on the very first step.

The Muslim policeman had called me his sister and kept me at his home like a sister. He had provided me shelter on that chilly night when I had lost all my relations. I could never forget his favour. When I was hospitalized, I was anxious about my next step. Where to go in search of peace and protection? After being discharged from the hospital I straightaway went to the Islamic centre. There was no one at that time except an elderly person who perhaps lived there. I went to him and narrated my account. He hesitated for some moments and then said: “Daugh-ter! This sari is not the dress of Muslims. Go, wear headscarf and clad yourself like Muslims.” I had some money with me when left the police station. I purchased a suit with this money and returned to the centre. He told me how to per-form ablution. As I performed the ablution he took me to a room. Entering the room, I found a big picture hanging on a wall. Seeing the picture I halted as it contained the room that I used to dream in my dreams. I immediately cried out: “That’s it which I have been seeing in my dreams.....which have been disturbing my sleep.” He smiled and said it is the house of Allah. Muslims from across the world come to this house for Hajj and Umra. It is called Baitullah. I was surprised to learn it. I asked, “Does Allah live in a house?” He was answering my questions with a smile and affection. Perhaps he knew a lot about Islam. I was facing no difficulty in talking to him. He was explaining each and every thing in my own language. I was feeling a strange happiness which I could not understand at that time. He made me recite the Kalima and then told about Muslims and Islam. Now I was neither anxious nor feeling any burden on my mind. I was feeling myself very light. I felt like I had swum from polluted to clean waters. The owner of this centre where I had embraced Islam adopted me as his daughter and took me to his home. Later, he arranged my marriage in a Muslim family. My first desire was to see the “house of Allah.” And then I performed Umra.

Question: Did you go to India after embracing Islam?

Answer: No, I neither went to India after that nor I want to go there. My family has links in political as well as religious organizations there. They have announced head money for me. I am a Muslim, a Muslim daughter.... and I am proud to be a Muslim..... I want to lead my life in the light of Islam.

[questionsonislam]

Will you explain the verse: "Say: I have no power over any good or harm to myself except as Allah willeth" (al-Araf, 7/188)? According to that verse, does the human will have no importance?

Man or jinn wills and Allah creates. It means nothing takes place without the will of Allah in the sense of creation. Satan chose to rebel and not to prostrate using his own will, and Allah created his choice.

“Say: I have no power over any good or harm to myself except as God willeth” (al-Araf, 7:188) emphasizes creational willing. According to that verse, does the human will have no importance?

Allah has got two ways of willing.

First: Creational willing.

Second: Juridical willing.

Juridical willing: Allah shows through the prophets He sent what he likes and dislikes. This will of His manifests Allah’s orders and prohibitions. The Quranic verse which is translated as “If ye reject (God), Truly God hath no need of you; but He likes not ingratitude from His servants.” (az-Zumar, 39:7) indicates this “juridical will” of Allah’s.

The feature of this willing is that it is an order which only shows Allah’s contentedness and satisfaction and which does not include enforcement. The Quranic verse “The truth is from your Lord: Let him who will believe, and let him who will, reject (it)” (al-Kahf, 18:29) emphasizes people’s freedom in the presence of this willing. This freedom is also a requirement of the testing which people are put through.

Creational willing: This kind of willing means Allah’s creating, making and inventing. This willing is a reflection of might; it is creative, forcing and it cannot be opposed. It is possible to see the most gnomic statement about this willing in the verse which is translated as “Verily, when He intends a thing, His Command is, "be", and it is!” (Ya Seen, 36:82).

The verse which is translated as “Say: I have no power over any good or harm to myself except as God willeth” (al-Araf, 7:188) emphasizes creational willing.

As explained above, creational willing cannot be opposed or avoided as it is the last decision of Allah. However, it does not mean that it does not leave any options for human beings and forces them into things which they do not want to do with their own free-will because besides this kind of willing, there is also juridical willing. For instance, a murderer wants to kill someone without a fair reason; he puts his will into action and shoots the man to death. It happens in spite of Allah’s juridical willing which does not give consent to and which forbids that act. However, that man will not die and nobody can kill him unless the creational willing, which is the last decision of Allah, allows it.

When one evaluates the truth from this point of view, it will be seen that there is not a statement which restricts people’s freedom, in the Quranic verses regarding Allah’s creational willing. To sum up, human beings do something good or evil using their own free-will, power and self-control. And Allah creates the thing one wants to do if He wills to create it.

2. In the verse above, Hazrat Prophet (pbuh) is ordered to say clearly that he can obtain what is good for him and be protected from what is harmful for him only by the will and wish of Allah; the Messenger of Allah fulfilled that order; thus he informed people, without having any complex, that his means and abilities were limited with what Allah gave him because he was a human being and that he did not have any extraordinary power on his own. Thus, he showed his sincere allegiance to Allah indirectly and displayed an exemplary attitude as to what kind of consciousness of servitude man needs to have in the presence of Allah.

To know when the Doomsday is means to know the ghaib (unseen, unknown). A person who knows the ghaib may have the power to know what will bring good and what will bring bad things for him in the future and may act accordingly. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) stated that he did not have such a power and that his main function was to convey people information containing good news and warning in such a way to help them.

As it is seen here, our Prophet (pbuh) did not like to be attributed some qualities independent of the bounties and grants of Allah; he always emphasized that his duty was to be a good servant to Allah, to fulfill his duty of prophethood and conveying the message of Allah fully and to try to help people find the guidance. Regarding the issues like life in the hereafter, Hell, Paradise, angels, devil, which are in the scope of the ghaib and which are beyond man’s knowledge, he informed people as much as Allah let him know based on His permission; however, since he was not given any information about when the Doomsday would strike, he was ordered to tell people that he did not have any information about it.

It is not stated in the verse that Hazrat Prophet (pbuh) does not know anything about the future by any means but it is stated that he knows nothing about the future except what Allah informed him. Not everything relating to the future is regarded as the ghaib; man can have some definite information about the future and can know something based on his information about the laws of Allah regarding the universe called the laws of nature, his experience and his mind. What is emphasized in the verse is not that the future is completely dark for human beings but that man cannot have any knowledge about the beings and events and about what is useful and what is harmful unless Allah lets him.

3. In another verse regarding the issue, the following is stated: "But ye will not, except as Allah wills; for Allah is full of Knowledge and Wisdom." (al-Insan, 76/30)

While in the previous verse in the same chapter, it is stated that a person who wills will take the path to his Lord, in the 30th verse, it is stated that Allah will encompass those that He wills with His mercy. That is, sincere believers surrender themselves to the will of Allah with all of their belongings.

We were not created based on our own will; we were not born in the country where we were born based on our own will, either; the family and the environment that we belong to were not chosen based on our own wish and will. They all took place with the manifestation of the divine will. Everything takes place in accordance with the plan He has made in the pre-eternity based on His infinite knowledge and His will.

After coming to the world and reaching the age of “responsibility”, that is, the age of discretion, our wills start to take part in our lives. We are desired to be led by being notified with divine commands. At this point, we need to stop and think. After the notification and being shown the right way, a person is let choose using his own will; on the other hand, God’s will prevails as it is stated in the verse “But ye shall not will except as Allah wills”. We see the conclusion that “man is bound by the divine will within a certain limit”. A person can find the right path if He wills, but if not, he cannot. In this case, what are people held responsible for? If we just look only at the outer appearance of the verse without analyzing the indicated meaning, we might think that the claims of the Qadariyyah and Jabriyyah schools turn out to be correct. However, the matter is of ultimate importance and subtlety. It is hard to come to a conclusion unless its wisdom is comprehended. As it is stated in the 30th verse, Allah tells us about the limit of possibility and will that He has put between Him and His servants; in other words, the border of the right path. Unless a person reaches the level of that border with the help of his mind, intelligence and will, and religious advice and knowledge, Allah will not manifest His supreme will; and for this reason, the door of guidance path will not open for him.

Do we not encounter this limit regarding almost every matter? Without plowing and without any strife, by only sprinkling seeds onto dry soil, how can we expect yield from these seeds? People are obliged to do what they are expected to regarding this matter, and then, the rest depends on the divine will. At that point, we cannot will unless God Almighty wills. Unless He manifests His guidance and help, we cannot enter the right path and cannot benefit from the thing we have started.

We can summarize the issue as follows:

There is no such a decree like compulsion or invalidity of human will. What this is all about is the situation of crossing the limits of possibility and will that we have mentioned above. When that limit is reached, the divine will and guidance of the Almighty God play their roles above all sorts of will; He opens the door of guidance for the ones whom He wills or He does not open it for those whom He does not will. The door of guidance will not open for the ones who have not been able to use the will, and as a result, who will not be able to take themselves to the mentioned border.

The statement “You cannot will unless Allah wills” describes the ability to choose and to wish which Allah has installed in the creation of human; no extra meaning is included because bestowal of this kind of ability on the humankind is emphasized in a number of verses in the Qur’an with definite and clear expressions. Thus, we can count this as a strong principle of Islamic teaching. Moreover, the one who desires this will and ability to be available in man is Allah, the Exalted, Himself. For this reason, the choice of guidance or deviation by a person is within this extent. That is to say, as far as we comprehend, there is no contradiction. The fact that the verse consoles the Prophet (peace be upon him) due to negative reactions he received, that the deniers are described as “evil ones” as if it was their basic quality is a strong clue of their deviation from guidance and deserving Allah’s punishment because of their evil intentions and unjust deeds. And it stands as a message for us to interpret the statement “He takes the ones whom He wills to a right path” as “the ones with well-intentions and who desire to enter the right path.

If Allah had not granted us will in this world as a requirement of the position and the trial of this world and if He would not have let us choose whatever we wanted, then nobody would have had this kind of right to choose. O people! That is, you should know that your ability to choose denial or rebellion depends on God’s permission, too. If He had taken hold of the rope around your necks from the time you were born onwards, like He did with angels, mountains, rocks, sky, the moon, stars, the sun and plants and so on, in other words, if you had been created without your wills, none of you would have had the right to choose whatever you wanted.

Only man is provided with this opportunity. Freedom of rebelling and challenging has only been given to man based on Allah’s law. Therefore, the obedience of man is much more different than other creatures. That is, man’s obedience to Allah is different from the slave’s obedience to his master. Since freedom to rebel has been granted, man’s obedience is a lot more precious. Angels, mountains, skies, stars, the moon, animals and plants are also Allah’s servants but their obedience is their nature.

[dinahalim-blog]

Perception Of Modesty In Different Societies

Modesty is a term that has varied meaning depending on religion, region and cultural influences. The specific set of behavior and habits that is expected of people in a society along with the average appearance, especially clothing, is what usually comes under the expression of modesty.

Anything provoking, whether it’s the manners, dressing or verbal expression, comes under this domain. .

Anyone attracting attention by way of dressing or behaving differently than others in society and causing a sense of restlessness is considered going against the social norms and the set standards of modesty. Different people are subjected to different standards of modesty under varied circumstances.

However, it is agreed upon that exceptional situations like medical emergencies etc., do not call for the strict following of these societal norms and maybe looked over as per need of the time. It’s usually the modern fashion trends that are considered a threat to modesty in most cultures around the world and those following them are tagged as rebellious.

Different societies have a different interpretation of the term as per the age-old beliefs in the respective region.

Despite nudity being looked down upon, it is acceptable in the art form in many societies, either verbally or in the form of statues or sculptures. Explicit poetry has been a norm in almost all parts of the world in almost all languages.

Physical Exposure

The extent of physical exposure differs for men and women in different societies. Some consider covering certain body parts enough, and the rest is up to the individuals while others may require loose-fitting clothes to cover the whole body to obscure the shape of certain parts. These standards vary depending on the region, gender, which parts, when and where; the context and variables apply.

The conditions are different at one’s own place than a friend’s home or a public place, also depending on the people present around. Similarly, nudity is acceptable in changing rooms or public baths for same-sex but is not tolerable for most people in a decent environment.

Public nudity is considered illegal in the majority of the countries across the globe, yet man countries have their own rules and regulations where more exposure than common norms prevailing around is taken as a public offence.

Modest Dressing

The most concerned domain of modesty is dressing. Though the acceptable standards have changed throughout the world with the passage of time, but even those changes have been resisted in some cultures and religions. Now women are allowed to wear more revealing clothes than ever like swimsuits and shorter casual and formal wears with more fitting etc. Most people follow the guideline of their respective religion when it comes to dressing. The secondary influences are of the culture, age, event and others around them.

Some cultures have different standards of modesty for different social classes. However, there are cultures like aboriginal Australians and Africans that consider nudity as normal and natural. Body painting is considered modest attire in some tribes.

Gender Distinction

The standards of modesty are different for men and women almost everywhere. Both men and women are required to keep their intimate parts always appropriately covered in public and women, in addition, have to keep their breasts covered. However, many places and societies consider topless men to be ok but is not the same for women.

Religious Influence

All the major religions have a specific code of conduct that caters the dressing and behavior of their followers. These rules have been basically devised to define the ethics and keep the sexuality and morality of people in check. They help to regulate decent and modest behavior and interactions in public and seek to protect individual self-respect as well. The believers of various religions have strong rooted beliefs about general practice, speech, communication and clothing according to their religious teachings.

Christianity

Different sects of Christianity have considerable differences when it comes to standards of modesty.

Trinitarian Christians

Modesty is deemed extremely important. The New Testament strongly says not to show off or boast anything, including hair, dresses, gold, pearls and such. It emphasizes on improving inner beauty and piety.

Women are supposed to be clad in a modest dress from head to toe, that does not catch attention. Religious entities of most Christian sects, both men and women, cover their head, though this is out of practice in Europe and North America in other parts of the world, the Christian dignitaries still use a head covering ardently. A lot of Anabaptist Christians follow a strict plain dress code with Christian head covering. To date, these communities adhere to their modest dressing style, despite dwelling in Western countries.

Catholics Christians

By and large, they have more reformed and relaxed suppositions relating to modesty and they have come to a systematic kind of approach based on traditional authorities and Church dignitaries in their social perspectives. Church fathers and popes also articulate opinions which are generally followed by masses. Most churches do have a minimum dress code both for men and women.

Methodists Christians

On the contrary, Methodists have a stricter dress code, especially for women. The length of dresses along with long sleeves and no slits or opening or tight-fitting are advised by the church. No immodest or transparent apparels as well as swimming suits and shorts in public. Furthermore, body piercing, body art and tattoos are also prohibited.

Buddhism

Modest dressing is a must in Buddhism. The Buddhist Monastic have Sekhiya rules with clear guidelines for the monks regarding their dressing. There are recommended hues and ways of dressing all including covering the lower body at least as low as knees, covering the thighs usually and wrapping the robe on the upper torso. The monks are supposed to be extra cautious about covering their bodies, wrapping the robes even more modestly when visiting inhabited areas out of their monastery.

Hinduism

Modesty in Hinduism has evolved through ages. Early Vedic period witnessed two-pieced flexible drapes for men and women. Stitched two-piece dresses consisting of bodice and skirt were worn commonly by the upper class. The norms of modesty in Hinduism were more influenced by the local culture, traditions and also varied according to social status, profession and occasions.

The modern Hindu sari for women has evolved from these old day drapes which are wrapped over a bodice nowadays. The dhoti for men is also a drape wrapped skillfully around the waist to cover the lower body. The upper class men use different sorts of shirts with it while the lower class and labourers usually wear this single piece.

The dresses are used as a symbol of celebration and festivity in Hinduism more than just a covering. The colours are used to symbolize the occasions like red associated to wedding and white worn to show the state of mourning. These norms were updated in the 12th Century with the arrival of Islam. The sari was extended to cover the face and the previously exposed navel and legs were required to cover completely.

The colonial rule in the sub-continent saw another wave of evolution. The oriental attire imposed on the locals helped to identify their assigned roles and the relative social status along with modesty. The Hindu temples witness mass rituals and gatherings with both men and women wearing modest clothing. Women often cover their heads.

Local variations and regional influences have dominated the trends of modesty. Orthodox Hindus are highly offended by revealing dresses and explicit sexual behavior or verbal notions in public. On the contrary, Hindu literature and statues of Hindu deities celebrate human sexuality and eroticism.

Islam

Modesty and civility are highly deemed in Islamic norms. The dress code devised for both men and women is obligatory. There is a whole set of dos and don’ts for men and women on how to interact with the opposite gender. The orthodox Muslim societies want their women to wear a loose garment called burqa over their dresses, to cover their whole body.

The heads are to be covered with a headscarf, and a veil is used to cover the face, except their eyes. Men are supposed to cover their bodies from navel to the knees. The Islamic cap worn by men varies according to region, tradition and local cultures.

Quran, the holy book of Muslims and scholars pronounce the Islamic standards of modest clothing as mandatory but Muslim countries do not enforce them by law. However, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Afghanistan impose the Muslim dress code by law.

Judaism

Judaism emphasizes the behavior of its followers needs to be modest as much as their attires. Women usually wear skirts covering their knees with shirts covering their collar bones and sleeves no shorter than elbows. Unmarried Jewish girls are also required to keep their hair covered. Tight-fitting dresses and sheer material is not appreciated and is deemed provocative. Modern Jews, however, usually conform to the latest fashion trends and dress up according to their regional influences.

Different schools of thoughts have different standards of modesty for men. Loose clothes that cover the top and the legs are usually ok for most men, while conventionally knee-length shorts and short sleeves are not much appreciated. The head covering called ‘kippah’ is a must for all men and distinguishes them from other people.

There are a number of examples throughout the world where people assume the norms of modesty of the locals though they themselves do not belong to that particular ethnicity or race. These non-religious followers conform to the local cultural and traditional influences as they settle down in their area.

[thetruthseekerway]

Islamic Perspective on Animal Welfare

New Post has been published on http://www.truth-seeker.info/quran-science-2/islamic-perspective-on-animal-welfare/

Islamic Perspective on Animal Welfare

By Asma Jarad

According to Census of Marine Life scientists, there are an estimated 8.7 million living species on earth, and yet the Qur’an teaches us that humans are the highest of creation. With this elevated status comes an elevated responsibility. This responsibility encompasses not only how we treat our own bodies, actions, and interactions with each other, but also how we treat other creations such as animals. Yes, animals have rights and a legitimate place in Islam. The Qur’an refers to animals as independent communities to be acknowledged and respected: “And there is no creature on [or within] the earth or bird that flies with its wings except [that they are] communities like you. We have not neglected in the Register a thing. Then unto their Lord they will be gathered” (Al-An`am 6:38). At the same time, many animals serve numerous purposes; some of which are for our direct beneficial use, consumption, and companionship while others are part of the circle of life and benefit us indirectly. Regardless of whether we gain any benefit from the animals around us, the Islamic perspective on animal welfare includes treating all animals as independent communities sharing this earth, finding the balance between respecting their independence while at the same time enjoying their benefits and friendship as God intended, all the while avoiding any type of cruelty toward animals.

Despite not having the free will or brain power that is bestowed upon humans, animals nonetheless live their lives the way God created them to obey His laws and follow the natural cycle of the earth. We are reminded in the Qur’an, “Do you not see that God is exalted by whomever is within the heavens and the earth and [by] the birds with wings spread [in flight]? Each [of them] has known his [means of] prayer and exalting [Him], and God is Knowing of what they do.” (An-Nur 24:41). This verse shows us that animals have duties and connections with the larger world, including praising God. Hence, we must respect their independent existence without infringing on their rights and responsibilities.

When Prophet Nuh (Peace Be Upon Him [PBUH]) built his ark, he was not only commanded to save the believers among his tribe, but also to preserve the existing animal species by collecting a pair of each. This shows us the importance and value of animals within our living cycle. In the Qur’an, it says, “[So it was], until when Our command came and the oven overflowed, We said, ‘Load upon the ship of each [creature] two mates and your family, except those about whom the word has preceded, and [include] whoever has believed.’ But none had believed with him, except a few” (Hud 11:40).

In addition, many animals provide us with food, fertilize our plants, as well as inedible, yet similarly valuable products, such as wool, fur, and leather. These benefits are mentioned in the Qur’an: “Do you not see that God has made subject to you whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth and amply bestowed upon you His favors, [both] apparent and unapparent? But of the people is he who disputes about God without knowledge or guidance or an enlightening Book [from Him]” (Luqman 31:20). An important piece of information here is that despite the overwhelming benefits we gain from animals, God has commanded us to nonetheless share the earth with all living creatures. Therefore, although we gain many benefits from animals, we must remember that we are obligated to care for them and treat them as blessings and with compassion, for the Prophet (PBUH) said, “Anyone who shows mercy, even to an animal meant for slaughtering, will be shown mercy by God on the Day of Rising.”–Al-Adab Al-Mufrad, Book 20, Hadith 10.

According to the Prophet’s (PBUH) teachings, farmers and caretakers must abide by certain guidelines when dealing with animals:

Provide appropriate food and fresh water

Provide a safe and comfortable shelter

Separate them from aggressive behaviors of each other

Allow males and females to mate during mating seasons

Not to harvest them for food faster than their ability to breed

Not to overburden them

Not to neglect them, especially in sickness and advanced age

These Islamic directives came to us over 700 years ago. Similarly, in more modern times, we have what is internationally known as the Five Freedoms outlining five aspects of animal welfare as developed in the United Kingdom in 1965 and formalized in 1979 by the United Kingdom Farm Animal Welfare Council. Subsequently, these Five Freedoms were adopted by internationally prominent animal welfare societies, including the World Organization for Animal Health and the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The Five Freedoms are:

Freedom from hunger or thirst by ready access to fresh water and a diet to maintain full health and vigor

Freedom from discomfort by providing an appropriate environment including shelter and a comfortable resting area

Freedom from pain, injury or disease by prevention or rapid diagnosis and treatment

Freedom to express normal behavior by providing sufficient space, proper facilities and company of the animal’s own kind

Freedom from fear and distress by ensuring conditions and treatment which avoid mental suffering

When most people in the West hear the term, “animal protection from cruelty,” they may think of domestic pets such as dogs and cats with little to no regard for livestock, birds, and wild animals. It seems that these types of animals are held in less esteem since most of the time we see them not as living, breathing creatures, but as butchered pieces, packaged for sale, or hung up as hunting trophies. In Islam, we are taught that all animals—livestock, birds, pets, and wild—must be treated kindly and respectfully. Even the animals we slaughter have rights. It was narrated by Shaddad bin Aws that the Prophet (PBUH) said: “Indeed Allah has decreed Ihsan [responsibility to obtain excellence in worship] in everything. So when you kill, then do the killing well, and when you slaughter, then do the slaughtering well. Let one of you sharpen his blade, and let him comfort his animal (before slaughtering)”–Jami at-Tirmidhi, Vol. 3, Book 14, Hadith 1409.

The provisions of respect and anti-cruelty also extend to animals that we do not consume. In some ways, hunting wild animals can be seen as a form of corruption since these animals are not hunted for sustenance, but for amusement and arrogance. It was narrated from Abdullah bin ‘Amr, who attributed it to the Messenger of God (PBUH), who said, “There is no person who kills a small bird or anything larger, for no just reason, but God will ask him about it.” The companions then asked, “O Messenger of God, what does ‘just reason’ mean?” He replied, “That you slaughter it and eat it, and do not cut off its head and throw it aside.”–Sunan An-Nasa’i, Chapter 42, Hadith 4450. Indeed, killing an animal for no beneficial reason, or treating them with cruelty is a sin and a violation of their rights. Even birds that are killed unjustly will come beseeching God for justice on the Day of Judgement. It was narrated that Amr bin Sharid heard the Messenger of God (PBUH) say, “Whoever kills a small bird for no reason, it will beseech God on the Day of Resurrection saying: O Lord, so and so killed me for no reason, and he did not kill me for any beneficial purpose.”–Sunan An-Nasa’i, Chapter 42, Hadith 4451.

In another instance, it was narrated that Abdullah bin Ja’far said, “The Messenger of God (PBUH) passed by some people who were shooting arrows at a ram. He denounced that and said: ‘Do not disfigure animals (by using them as targets).’” –Sunan An-Nasa’i, Chapter 42, Hadith 4445. Indeed, cruelty against animals for the purpose of sports and entertainment is forbidden. Islam teaches us to be careful and respectful to our animals. There is a great reward for treating them kindly and great punishment for violating their rights. For example, it was narrated from Abu Hurairah, that the Prophet (PBUH) said, “A prostitute was forgiven by God, because, passing by a panting dog near a well and seeing that the dog was about to die of thirst, she took off her shoe, and tying it with her head-cover she drew out some water for it. So, God forgave her because of that.” –Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 4, Book 54, Hadith 127. Despite her lifestyle, her mercy toward the dog elevated her in the eyes of God, as He rewarded her with forgiveness from her sins.

All living creatures are created to survive and communicate under certain guidelines and ethics; this most prominently includes the wide array of animals who function seamlessly in a circle of life. Before the boom of human civilization, animals and other living habitats did not have to suffer from overfishing, hunting, destruction of habitats, human agriculture, urbanization, and the use of toxins such as pesticides and herbicides. Animal extinction is an unfortunate side effect of our own sprawling existence. Despite all of this, many animals learn to adapt and even thrive. By God’s grace and wisdom, He continues to show us our elevated status among living things by having other species adapt to our continuously evolving lifestyles. Therefore, it is our responsibility to return not with arrogance and a sense of superiority, but with compassion and deference to our fellow creatures.

In the end, animal welfare is not only a valid topic of discussion but a serious issue we must address and ponder within our lifestyles. Just as we are created on this earth to serve a purpose, so have animals, plants, and all other known and unknown living species. We must take our place in this circle of life and try to leave it behind a little better than what we inherit.

———-

About the Author: Asma Jarad is a freelance writer, an editor, and a YouTube creator at Sami & Amro Reading Time.

Reprinted from the Fall 2018 issue of Halal Consumer© magazine with permission from the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America (IFANCA®) and Halal Consumer© magazine.

[angrycollectordaze-me-blog]

Paper代写：Islamic marriage

本篇paper代写- Islamic marriage讨论了伊斯兰的婚姻制度。在世界多元的婚姻法律文化中，伊斯兰婚姻制度极具特色。在诸如婚姻关系的缔结和解除等方面都无不深深打上了宗教的烙印，但不可否认的是其理念与内涵也具有一定程度的价值上的合理性。随着婚姻法律文化的碰撞与交融，伊斯兰婚姻制度也必将面对世人好奇与质疑的目光，面对人类社会发展所积淀下来的共有的婚姻价值观念。本篇paper代写由51due代写平台整理，供大家参考阅读。

​In the pluralistic marriage law culture in the world, the Islamic marriage system is very distinctive. In concluding relationship such as marriage, maintain and remove all deeply marked by religion, but it is undeniable that the concept and connotation of also has a certain degree of value rationality. The moral content of faithful, tolerant, conscientious and other marital relations has been elevated by Islam to a high level of belief, where people urge themselves and regulate their behaviors because of sincere belief.

The marriage system of Islam is often criticized by the world, but it is undeniable that it has always been showing the connotation of kindness and generosity to human society. From sorting out the lost morality of the society in the founding period to maintaining the stability and harmony of the Islamic family, it has proved that its connotation is reasonable in value to a certain extent. As the collision and blending of the marriage law culture, Islamic marriage system will face the curious and questioning gaze, in the face of the accumulation of human social development value concept of marriage.

Marriage in the Islamic marriage system is seen as a natural responsibility, an act of faith. The quran talks about the "creation" of Allah, which refers to the evolution of human creation and the continuation of the evolution by endowing human beings with the nature of male and female union. In addition to the Koran, the sermon also expresses the naturalness and responsibility of marriage. In addition, the Islamic marriage system emphasizes the importance of the family. When the Islamic marriage system is used to build social stability, it highlights the importance of the family and is a common concern for the individual and the society.

First of all, marriage in the Islamic marriage system is based on the will of men and women. Marriage self-selection is revered. Marriage self-selection is one of the important factors to create a happy marriage. A marriage of one's own will can raise the expectation of a harmonious and happy family, thus ensuring macro-social stability. Therefore, it is consistent with the values of the society. Secondly, in the Islamic religious system, there is still room for marriage under the will of men and women, that is, the system of consent of guardians. This is used to supplement the marriage since the selection system, the opinions of the guardian goodwill should get the respect of the parties, carefully listen to and accept, let the guardian is more rational and realistic to fill the lack of thinking by the parties. Third, the Islamic marriage system opposes the sale of marriage, arranged marriage. This marriage is respect the will of self reflection, its practical significance lies in carefully to reduce the possibility of a conflict in marriage, so the possibility of marriage, family and social shake was also decreased.

What does the spirit of the Islamic marriage system express that is truly worthy of admiration, based on such value orientations as the initial motivation and ultimate goal of marriage

Admittedly, some factors based on desire often influence some people's choice of marital value, such as the desire for power and money. Islam, however, marriage is a union between a man and a love to believers that is rejected on the grounds of wife color, rich choice of value orientation, it is to maintain purity of marriage, is to protect the value of marriage.

Going back to its historical roots, polygamy, which was permitted by the Islamic marriage system, was initially a last resort act of benevolence. After the battle of Woodward, Muslim men died so much that many of their wives and children were left alone. Investigate its nomadic economic social background, widow hardly and orphans live independently, how to make much of widows and orphans live on and became a difficult problem, at the same time and to avoid social relationships so no chapter caused confusion. It is against this background the polygamist system has carried on the legalization, giving the widow id depend on legal identity and existence, life, and that women can get social recognition under lawful wife should have the rights and interests. Polygamous consent comes with severe restrictions. On the one hand, "four names" is the limit on the number of wives you can marry. On the other hand, "fair" is necessary to have multiple wives, otherwise there will be corresponding punishment.

Therefore, polygamy is not a religious obligation, but a religious tolerance reflected in the marriage system of Islam. In the initial stage is not indulgence to encourage more wife, just under the specific environment for fixed family structure, clear relationship between members, safeguarding the rights and interests of women a "permit", comes out of the widow of Islam to the social orphans and slave kind caring allow expediency properties, are not permanently advocate.

The quran talks about the equality between men and women without any difference, which is to equate the status and personality of men and women. Before religion came into being, women in Arab society had a low status and could be trampled on by others until the whole society trampled on their personality. The concept of equality in Islam is precious, and such spirit is reflected in the establishment of marriage system of Islam, which is a glorious system of human nature.

At first, the status of marriage parties was unmatched, husbands could abuse freely, wives had no right to resist. Islam exhorts couples to love and cherish each other, so as to achieve marital harmony and social moral awakening, in line with the pursuit of social values.

Peaceful and secure families are what Islam seeks, and divorce is anathema. But divorce is still tolerated in Islamic legislation, because divorce is a consequence, not a cause. If divorce is absolutely not allowed, then if the conflict is indeed irreconcilable, it will continue and may worsen indefinitely. Divorce is allowed, disputes that are difficult to resolve can be stopped, and the parties are given the opportunity to re-enter into marriage.

In the process of divorce in Islam, there is a series of redeeming processes, among which the reconciliation between husband and wife is valued. Under the mediation of a third party, I will calm down my emotions, adjust myself and redeem myself, so as to achieve family happiness again and reduce the divorce under the impulse of emotion.

The divorce rules of Islam are complicated, especially in the system of pending marriage. The marriage rights and obligations of both parties are still required to continue during the marriage period, giving sufficient time for both parties to treat divorce cautiously and conservatively. The unique design of the waiting period has profound significance. Ethically, this is more care and protection for pregnant women, and it is a way to avoid harm to weak pregnant women and their newborn children. It is also a public statement of the birth lineage of the child. In emotion, it is mainly manifested in recovery and redemption. On the one hand, in the process of counting and passing the pending marriage period, the couple should weigh the marriage and think about the family with a new attitude. On the other hand, it prompts introspection to understand that divorce can cause great loss and harm to oneself, the other party and family members.

Number and remarried object limit to overcome a casual attitude towards divorce, the parties before the divorce, especially for the wedding in precipitated the estrangement, pain, carefully treat reality, give up the idea of divorce.

Loyal, tolerant, responsible, such as the moral content in a relationship, has been upgraded to the height of faith of Islam, people pushed himself, because of the sincere faith standard behavior, with the gentle character as the guidance of marriage and family life, to overcome the long marriage life difficult bumpy, maintaining family peaceful and stable. We also recommended the obligations and virtue, although we don't have such a belief, but only can be "promoted" the extent of the rise, in the field of ethics to strengthen it, to become a widespread recognition and practice values, make the party in the consciousness of subject, cognitive, emotional bias on mandatory as by morality, which can affect what we say.

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