Islam Story

maro · Jan 7, 2010

The story begins with Adam....

The story of Adam can be found in different verses of the Qur'an:

Reflection on the verses ( 2:30–39 )

Verse 30 begins the story of man. we will proceed slowly here line by line since this have a strong bearing to our questions.The ancient qur'anic commentators would endorse such an approach , for they used to speak of the ijaz of the scripture_its inimitable eloquence that combines both the most beautiful and yet the most economical expression. They would advice us not to rush hastily , but to allow every verse ,every word ,every sound to penetrate our heats and minds in order to reap its greatest possible benefit .otherwise ,we would deprive ourselves of essential keys to unlocking truths buried deep within us.

[2:30] Behold, thy Lord said to the angels: "I will create a vicegerent on earth." They said: "Wilt Thou place therein one who will make mischief therein and shed blood? Whilst we do celebrate Thy praise and glorify Thy holy (name)?" He said: "I know what ye know not."

The opening scene is heaven as god informs the angels that he is about to place man on earth. Adam, the first man , has not yet appeared. from the verses that follow ,it's clear at this point of the story Adam is free of any wrongdoing . Nevertheless , God plans to place him and his descendants on Earth (6:165 - 27:62 - 35:39) in the role of vicegerent or vicar ' khalifa ' . There is no insinuation here that earthly life is to serve as punishment . The word 'khalifa' means 'a vicar' 'a delegate ' ' a representative ', ' a pesron authorized to act for others ' .therefore it is appears that man is meant to represent and act on behalf of God in some sense. The angels' reply is both fascinating and disturbing .In essence ,it asks ' why create and place on earth one who has it within his nature to corrupt and commit terrible crimes ? Why create this being who will be the cause and recepient of great suffering? it's obvious that the angels here are refering to the very nature of mankind , since Adam , in the quran , turns out to be one of God's elect and not guilty of any major crime.The question is considered all the more signifiacant when we consider who and from where it comes.
When we think of angels , we imagine peaceful ,pure and holy creatures , in perfect and joyous submission to God. They represent the model to which we should aspire .In our daily speech ,we reserve the word angel to the noblest of our species . Mother Theresa is often called an ' angel of mercy ' by the press . Our image of an angel is of a perfect human being .This is what gives the angels' question such force . for it asks : why create this patently corrupt and flawed being when it's within your power to create us ? ,thus they say ' while we celebarate your praises and glorify your holiness? ' .Their question is given further amplification by the fact that it originates in heaven ,for what possible purpose could be served by placing man in an enviroment where he could freely excercise his worst criminal inclinations ? . All of this considerations culminate in the obvious objection : why not place man with a suitable nature in heaven from the start ? . We are not even one verse into the story of man and we have already confronted our (the atheists') main complaint ,and it's put in the mouths of angels.
The verse ends with not an explanation ,but a reminder of god's superior knowledge , and hence the implication that man's earthly life is part of a grand design .Many western scholars have remarked that the remark ' I know what you don't know ' merely dismisses the angels' question. However ,as the sequence of passages will show ,this is not the case at all.

Our initial encounter with the quran has been anything but pleasant ; it has been distressful and irritating .Either the author is unaware of possible philosophical problems and objections or he is deliberately provoking us with them ! we are a mere 37 verses into the quran and our anxiety and resentment has been aroused to a fever pitch. we ask : " why indeed sunject us to earthly suffering ? why not remove us to heaven or place us there from the first ? why must we struggle to survive ? why create us so vulnerable and self destructive ? why must we suffer broken hearts and broken dreams ,lost lovers and lost youth , crises and catastrophes ? why must we experience pains of birth and pains of death ? why? " we beg in our frustration ." why ? " we plead in all our sorrow and emptiness "why ? " we insist in our anguish " why ?" we scream out to the heavens ."why ?" we plead with the angels "if you are there ,and you hear us ,tell us ,why create man ? "

We move now to verse 31 where we find that the quran continues to explore the angels' question

(2:31) And He taught Adam the names – all of them. Then He showed them to the angels and said, "Inform Me of the names of these, if you are truthful."

Clearly ,the angels' question is being addresses in this verse. Adam's capacities for learning and acquiring knowledge ,his ability to be taught ,are the focus of this initial response . The next verse demonstarates the angels' inferiority in this repect. Special emphasis is placed on man's ability to name ,to represent by verbal symbols " all things" that enter his concious mind : his thoughts ,Fears and hopes ,in short , all that he can percieve or concieve. This allows man to communicate his experience and knowledge on a relatively high level ,compared to other creatures about him ,and gives all human learning a preeminent cumulative quality .In several places in the quran ,this gift to mankind is singled out as one of the greatest bounties bestowed on him by god

(2:32)They said, "Exalted are You; we have no knowledge except what You have taught us. Indeed, it is You who is the Knowing, the Wise."

In this verse the angels plead their inability to perform such a task ,for, as they plainly state ,it would demand knowledge and wisdom beyond their capacity .They maintain that its perfermance would ,of course ,be easy for god as his knowledge and wisdom is supreme ,but the same couldn't be expected from them .In the next verse we will discover that Adam posseses the level of intelligence nessecary to accomplich the task,and hence, his knowledge and wisdom are less than God's ,yet greater than the angels .

maro · Jan 7, 2010

(2:33) He said, "O Adam, inform them of their names." And when he had informed them of their names, He said, "Did I not tell you that I know the unseen [aspects] of the heavens and the earth? And I know what you reveal and what you have concealed."

Here we have an emphatic statment that man's greater intellect figures into an answer to the angels' question . We are informed that god takes all into account ,in particualr ,all aspects of the human personality : Man's potential for evil ,which the angels' question "reveals " ,and its complemetary and related capacity for moral and intellectual growth ,which the question "conceals " .To drive this point home , the next verse has the angels demonstrate their inferiority to Adam and shows that man's more complex personality makes him a potentially superior being

(2:34)And [mention] when We said to the angels, "Prostrate before Adam"; so they prostrated, except for Iblees. He refused and was arrogant and became of the disbelievers.

we also find in this verse the birth of sin and temptaion. The quran later informs us that iblis (satan) is of the jinn.(18:50) , a being created of smokeless fire (55 :15) ,and who is insulted at the suggestion that he should humble himself before a being made of "putrid clay" (17:12 ,17:6 , 38 :76) .Satan is portrayed as possessing a fiery ,consuming and destructive nature .He allows his passions to explode out of control and initiates a pernicious rampage .We are even told that money is at the root of all evil , but here the lesson appears to be that pride and self centredness is at its core .Indeed ,many terrible wrongs are committed for no apparent material motive

(2:35) And We said, "O Adam, dwell, you and your wife, in Paradise and eat therefrom in [ease and] abundance from wherever you will. But do not approach this tree, lest you be among the wrongdoers."

The famous and fateful command .Yet, the tone of it seems curiously restrained .There is no suggestion that the tree is in any way special ;it almost seems as if it were picked at random .Satan will later tempt Adam with the promise of eternal life and "kingdom that never decays "(20:121) ,but this turns out to be complete fabrication on his part .There is not the slightest hint that God is somehow threatened at the prospect that Adam and his spouse violating the command ;instead , he voices concerns for them , because then , "they will be among the wrongdoers "
This is probably an appropriate place to reflect on what we have learned so far .We saw how God originally intended for man to have an earthly life. we then observed a period of preparation during which man is "taught ' to use his intellectual gifts .Now , Adam and his spouse are presented a choice ,of apparently no great consequence , except for the fact that it is made to be a moral choice . it thus seems that man has gradually become -or is about to become - a moral being .

(2:36) But Satan caused them to slip out of it and removed them from that [condition] in which they had been. And We said, "Go down, [all of you], as enemies to one another, and you will have upon the earth a place of settlement and provision for a time."

Once again the quran seems to have a penchant for understating things .the arabic verb azalla means to cause someone to unintentionally slip or loose his footing .but how can one of the most terrible wrongs ever committed be described as a momentary 'slip' ? yet perhaps we are letting our own religious backgrounds ,even though we rejected them , distort our reading . Perhaps the quran considers this sin as nothing but a temporary slip .After all ,it's only a tree ! its only significance may be that it signals a new stage in man's development ,that it causes man to depart from a previous state .
The words " some of you being enemies of others " apparently refers to all mankind and echo the angels' remark regarding man's earthly strife .
Under normal circumstances ,we would know now what to excpect . We have been terified with it ever since we were children . It shook us from our sleep and required our mothers to calm our fears and , unlike other nightmares ,it never went away when we awoke ,because it was confirmed with everyone we trusted . We know that there is about to unleashed on mankind a rage , a violence , a terror , the like of which has never been known either before or since .Like a huge ,thundering , black and terrifying storm cloud ,looming on the horizon and heading straight for us .Mankind is about to be engulfed by an awesome fury. and when the smoke clear ,man will find himself sentenced TO LIFE on earth where he and all his descendants will suffer and struggle to survrive by their sweat and toil .
So we wince and shudder as we return to the terror we have always known .We cringe and cower as we peek to the next verse .

(2:37)Then Adam received from his Lord [some] words, and He accepted his repentance. Indeed, it is He who is the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful.

What is this ? what is this talk of mercy and turing compassionately towards man ? Where is the passion , the jealousy , the anger erupting out of control ?
In this verse ,those that follow , and others in the quran that relate to the same episode , the tone is first and formost consoling and assuring .God immediately pardons Adam and Even with no greater blame assigned to either of them .

( 2 :38)We said, "Go down from it, all of you. And when guidance comes to you from Me, whoever follows My guidance there will be no fear concerning them, nor will they grieve.

The command issued in verse 2:36 is repeated here ,but this time with special emphasis put on God's assurances and promises to mankind , thus further precluding the interpretation that man's earthly life is a punishment . Nonetheless ,the quran will insist ,as we read through it , that life serves definite aims and ,as the next verse warns ,it has grave consequences and must be taken seriously

(2:39)And those who disbelieve and deny Our signs those will be companions of the Fire; they will abide therein eternally."

Source : Even Angels Ask : by jeffrery lang ( ÔÈßÉ Èä ãÑíã ÇáÅÓáÇãíÉ - Úä ÇáãÓíÍ ÇáÍÞ )

maro · Jan 7, 2010

The Vicegerent

The word istikhlaf (vicegerency) is derived from the root (istakhlafa) (yastakhlif) (istikhlafan.) It is a verbal noun and means to take on the vicegerency, to represent or deputize in the realm where one has been appointed as vicegerent. When God wanted to create Adam, he informed his angels that he would appoint him as vicegerent on the earth, to assume responsibility of knowledge, option and commandment, and carry out his mission of populating and civilizing the earth. As the Holy Quran says :

Behold, thy Lord said to the angels : "I will create A vicegerent on earth." They said :
"Wilt Thou place therein one who will make Mischief therein and shed blood ? - Whilst we do celebrate Thy praises And glorify Thy holy (name)?"
He said : "I know what ye know not."

This vicegerency over the earth, which God (To Whom be ascribed all Perfection and Majesty) has intended for man, is the most precise and most accurate expression of man's position in the universe and about man's mission in this life, and about the divine framework which governs man's conduct throughout his life in this world.

Whoever entrusts a man with some task, must inevitably define this task, and the sphere of his vicegerency, and the basic principles which he requires man to observe as a framework for his freedom as he rises up to assume this vicegerency. As vicegerent, then, man holds an intermediate position, not attaining to the heights of the person who entrusted him with this vicegerency, nor as low as someone who enjoys no rights as agent, deputy or vicegerent.

In this meaning of vicegerency is defined the position of man - from the Islamic perspective - in this universe, the position of vicegerent who is delegated to populate and civilize the earth, free, chosen, commissioned and responsible. Having these privileges was a necessary condition for him to be able to undertake the mission of populating and civilizing the earth. On the other hand, his freedom was governed by the terms of the contract and covenant of vicegerency, i.e. Divine Law.

This meaning of istikhlaf and this status of the vicegerent, man, constitute the philosophy of the Islamic concept concerning man's status in this universe - the status of vicegerent for the creator of this universe and the creator of this man. The materialist philosophies and civilizations strayed from this understanding when they deified man and made their heroes gods, or made God a man, claiming that he had come down and been incarnated in a man. The first trend is exemplified by the Greeks, who, in the ancient Greek civilization, made their heroes, who were men, gods. The second trend is exemplified in the Romans, who, when they became Christians, put this pagan content in the place of Christianity's original oneness and exaltation of the creator, deifying the Christ, Issa bin Miriam (peace be upon him), claiming that the divinity had entered into his humanity! Both processes, the deification of man and the incarnation of God, stray from the philosophy of vicegerency and make man lord of the universe, rather than the vicegerent for the Lord of the universe!
Straying from the philosophy of vicegerency is what has made man in this materialist civilization, either in its pagan Greek guise or in its western secular guise, give free rein to his freedom, without any restraints or limits or horizons deriving from the heavenly law. If the idea of vicegerency is denied, the restraints, limits and landmarks of the contract of vicegerency are also denied. This is what has created a sort of freedom, in the west, and hence a western democracy which does not respect the religious limits of what is forbidden (haram) and what is allowed (halal) in regulating the freedom of man!

Contrary to this erroneous materialist theory regarding the status of man in this universe, some philosophies connected with the religions invented by man, like the Hindu philosophy of Nirvana and some schools of esoteric and philosophical Sufism, came and denied man any freedom or innate capabilities. They regarded him as despicable and ephemeral, unable to achieve salvation, progress or exaltation except through fatalism and absorption into the absolute or into the being of God/Truth! Through shackling and marginalizing man so excessively, and by denying his freedom, they have strayed from the mediating Islamic conception, which regards man as the vicegerent of God on this earth, commissioned to populate and civilize it. He has been given the qualities necessary to be free and capable. These do not, of course, remove him from the created order and the position of deputy and agent, for he is not the lord of the universe. At the same time, however, they make man more than an object of scorn who will be absorbed into the other, who has no freedom, ability or right of choice.

Between these two visions - the materialist and the esoteric - stands the Islamic philosophy of vicegerency. It makes man, in this universe, the pinnacle of God's creation, and a slave of God, his vicegerent, whose freedoms and capabilities are governed by the terms of the contract and covenant of vicegerency, God's Sharia. In the words of Sheikh Muhammad Abduh (1849-1905), when defining istikhlaf and the status of man as God's vicegerent in this universe ; " Man is a slave of God alone and the lord of everything else."

This is the meaning of istikhlaf as it relates to the status of man in this universe.

maro · Jan 7, 2010

Vicegerency over the riches :

From this comprehensive meaning of istikhlaf, comes the distinctiveness of the Islamic view of the extent of man's freedom, of his vicegerency over its riches. Over them too he is the vicegerent, his freedom of behaviour governed by the terms of the contract and covenant of vicegerency.
The true, absolute owner of the world's riches is their creator and their bestower, God (To Whom be ascribed all Perfection and Majesty). He it is who has submitted them, like the other forces and treasures of nature to the use of man, to use as creatures made by God like himself, rather than as expendable slaves to be heartlessly exploited, in order to fulfil his commission of vicegerency, populating, civilizing and beautifying this earth.

Man has the virtual, usufruct right to possess this wealth for the benefit of society, which bestows on him the freedom to specialize, to invest, develop and profit from it, within the terms of the contract and covenant of vicegerency on behalf of the real owner (To Whom be ascribed all Perfection and Majesty). This meaning of vicegerency over the riches of the world, as is characteristic of Islam's mediating position, does not strip man of the right of ownership of them, nor does it lift off him the restraints on his freedom of ownership and disposal. This freedom stops at the same bounds as those of the vicegerent, governed by the will, the orders, and the prohibitions of the true owner of these riches.
This meaning of vicegerency is expressed in the term haqq referring to the right of others to one's wealth, as in the following verses from the Holy Quran :

"And those in whose wealth Is a recognized right For the (needy) who asks And him who is prevented (For some reason from asking)." (Ways of Ascent 24-25)

In addition, it was recognized that man was the vicegerent of these riches, as in the following verses, where the word heirs (Arabic mustakhlifina) should be read as vicegerents :

"Believe in God And His Apostle, And spend (in charity) Out of the (substance) Whereof He has made you Heirs. For, those of you Who believe and spend (In charity), - for them Is a great Reward." (Iron 7)

The word mal (wealth) is used in 47 verses in the Holy Quran in conjunction with the plural pronoun, thus indicating that men in the plural are the vicegerent, and only in seven verses with the singular pronoun, so that he might not take exclusive possession of it, going off alone and doing without others, and also so that he might not be deprived of the right of jurisdiction, tenancy, and ownership, governed by the philosophy and the restraints of vicegerency!
Man possesses wealth, but at the same time it is the wealth of the state (Arabicumma. here and throughout this paragraph) As Sheikh Muhammad Abduh said : "Solidarity of the Ummah means that your wealth is the wealth of the Ummah you belong to."
As Zamakhshari (1075-1144 A.D.) said in his Kashshaf in his commentary on the verse :

"And spend (in charity) Out of the (substance) Whereof He has made you Heirs." (Iron 7)

"What God meant by this verse was that he [the Prophet] was to tell people : the wealth you possessed belonged to God because he had created it and made it grow. However, he had bestowed it upon you and vested in you the enjoyment of it and made you his vicegerents in disposing of it. So it is not really your wealth, but rather you are trustees and representatives." This is the meaning of vicegerency as applied to the world's riches and wealth.

From this meaning, and from this philosophy, the materialist civilizations have departed, making man the lord of the universe, with absolute freedom, and allowing him to give free expression to his freedom of ownership of the world's riches, as individuals in the liberal capitalist world, and as the proletariat class or party in the totalitarian communist world, which forces man to turn his back on the prospect of benefiting personally from the world's riches and wealth.

Between these two false teachings stands the mediating philosophy of Islam, as represented in the theory of vicegerency.

maro · Jan 7, 2010

The Vicegerency and the relationship between religion and the state :

There is another sphere where the distinctiveness of the Islamic philosophy of vicegerency stands out from other philosophies : the relationship between religion and the state (Arabic dawla here and throughout most of the rest of the text).
Because man is the vicegerent of God, and is free within the limits stipulated in the contract and covenant of vicegerency, the state (which is a human invention) and civil institutions are governed (from the Islamic point of view) by the divine standard, the Sharia, which is of divine invention. Human consultation sets up the state governed by the religious Sharia, thus the authority of the state and the sovereignty of Divine Rule meet in association and conformity. Under this sovereignty, jurists devise the conventions of social conduct, where their judgements in are governed by the fixed points of usul and the divine laws.

Thus, the model of the Islamic state - the caliphate - was distinguished from the theocratic state which was sanctified by the sanctity of religion and established on the firm basis of divine invention. The Islamic model of the state is also distinguished from the secular model of the state, which is the opposite of the theocratic state, in that it separates state and religion and cuts the legislative links in all matters to do with populating and civilizing the earth.

In the light of the fact that the Islamic state was based on the foundations of the philosophy of vicegerency, it was called the caliphate. Its head, the Caliph, was not, unlike the Pope, a representative of God, because the vicegerency belongs to the state, to man, and the head of the Islamic state is the caliph, the regent of God. For this reason, it is the state that chooses its caliph, pledges him allegiance, empowers him, supervises him, and calls him to account. By contrast, in the theocratic state, the leader is infallible as the representative of heaven.

Because of this sense of vicegerency in the philosophy of government in the Islamic state, the following tradition of the prophet was given, teaching us how distinct was the philosophy of the caliphate from the philosophies of the states which preceded it in the laws and civilizations which they produced. In the hadith related by Abu Hurayra, the Prophet (Peace and Blessings be upon him) said, "The children of Israel were governed by the prophets. Whenever a prophet perished, he was succeeded by another prophet, but there will be no prophet after me. but rather there will be caliphs." (This is related by Al-Bukhari, Ibn Maja and Imam Ahmad). The Islamic philosophy of the caliphate is the philosophy of vicegerency.

maro · Jan 7, 2010

Vicegerency and Knowledge :

If materialist philosophies and civilizations, including western civilization, have restricted the paths of knowledge to two - reason, and experiments which can by grasped by man's senses -, it is because of the absence of the philosophy of vicegerency from these civilizations. They do not grant man any means of knowledge outside himself and the world of the senses, the world of experiment, because it sees him as the lord of his existence, not as the vicegerent of a God who is separate from this world, free of involvement, incarnation, or unity with this world.

By contrast, the Islamic attitude towards the paths of human knowledge, based as it is on the philosophy of vicegerency, does not belittle the power and status of reason and the senses, but rather adds to them and controls them. It adds to them the guidance of divine revelation, which is displayed in the proclamation of the Quran and the prophetic commentary on this proclamation, the Sunna of the Prophet, considering this revelation a divine guidance for man from the omniscient Lord (To Whom be ascribed all Perfection and Majesty), bearing to man news of the unseen world, and of decrees which human reason cannot grasp unaided and which do not come within the scope of human senses or experimentation. This is because human reason and human senses are contingent in their abilities and comprehension, in line with the contingency of all man's capabilities.

In addition, it also adds to the paths of human knowledge, the path of spiritual perception, the illumination of the heart, that knowledge which does not come as a fruit of reason or the senses, but rather consists of divine insinuations and celestial lights which shine into the heart.

Thus, upon the philosophy of vicegerency is based a distinctive theory of epistemology, seeing man as the vicegerent of God (To Whom be ascribed all Perfection and Majesty), and therefore seeing his knowledge as standing not just at the level of what he can comprehend for himself, and what he can experience of the world as perceived by his senses, but rather seeing him as having other paths of knowledge bestowed on him by his Creator (who has no equal), who made him his vicegerent to populate and civilize the world he lives in.

Conclusion :

Thus, in the realm of the state, as in the realm of the world's riches and wealth, and in the paths and sources of human knowledge, and in fact in all spheres, the Islamic philosophy of vicegerency stands out, beginning as it does with its distinctive view of the status of man in the universe and his position in the created order.

In conclusion, man is the vicegerent, the possessor of the qualifications for vicegerency, but his liberties, abilities and right of ownership are at the same time governed by the terms of the contract and covenant by which God appointed him as vicegerent, the divine Sharia. This concept of vicegerency is what distinguishes Islam from other systems of thought in all spheres of life. It also distinguishes Islamic civilization, modelled on Islam, from the materialist civilizations which have deviated from the divine model and from the natural disposition which God has endowed them with.

The Vicegerency of Man

maro · Jan 8, 2010

maro said:
The story begins with Adam....

maro said:
The Vicegerent...

Actually , the story can be told from a stage earlier than the vicegerency stage...the stage of the primordial Convenant

The Primordial Covenant

"And [remember] when your Lord brought forth from the Children of Adam, from their loins, their seed, and made them testify of themselves, [He asked]: "Am I not your Lord?" They said "Yes, we testify!" Lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection: "Of this we were unaware."
<Quran, The Heights 7:172>

The definitive attribute of man is his ability to forget. The very word used in the Quran for "man," insan, is related etymologically to the word nisyan, or forgetfulness. Thus the human as he is initiated into the world progressively loses his awareness of the immediate presence of God. It is the function of religion to make us remember.
This is related to the five stages of the lives of man, one of which, is the 'preconceptual life', which took place before we came into this world. This world, known as dunya in Arabic, is derived from the word 'low' and is seen in Islamic cosmology as the lowest world. Indicating that there are worlds above this one, and that man descended from the highest, which is from the presence of God. This stage of preconception is when, according to the Quran, God took all the created souls, and brought them together where He said to them "Am I not your Lord?" and the souls responded in affirmation, "Yes, we testify!" "Where then, are you going?" <Quran, The Darkness 81:26>

Thus when the soul is breathed into the womb it has a primordial recording or recollection of this initial contract made with the Creator of the heavens and the earth. When conception takes place, it is the movement from the soul into the lower world and at that point the movement of the primordial recording into the subconscious, no longer being present at the conscious level. A similar theory can be found in Western tradition, which Plato referred to as the primordial memory - in having forgotten, life is a process of remembering. It is for this reason that the first thing the Muslim father does is to read the adhan (Muslim call to Prayer) in the new born babe's ear. Contained within the adhan is the testimony of faith, or Shahadah which professes that 'there is no deity save God and Muhammad is the Messenger of God', reminding them of their origin and indicating their return to that origin through this life, the movement from conception to death, a movement back to our origin, to the Presence of God. The Quran, one of its names being 'the reminder', implies rekindling awareness already present. An awareness present in the heart of hearts of every human being in recognising their Creator. And an awareness that is retrievable in this world, hence the role of the Divine Messengers, one after another, to arouse it from its veiled and dormant state.

"Men are sleep, and when they die they wake up"
- (saying of the Prophet, pbuh)

This offers a clue to the deeper meaning of the term kafir, usually translated as "infidel," "unbeliever," or "denier of the truth." The word kafara means "he covered," and a kafir is 'one who covers' as the night 'covers' the visible world in darkness. In their abstract sense both the verbs and the nouns derived from it have a connotation of "concealing" something that exists or "denying" something that is true. Hence in the usage of the Quran a kafir is "one who denies" (or "refuses to acknowledge") truth in the widest spiritual sense of this latter term; that is irrespective of whether it relates to a cognition of the Supreme Truth - namely the existence of God - or to a doctrine or ordinance enunciated in the Divine Writ, or to a self-evident moral proposition, or to acknowledgement of, and therefore gratitude for, favours received. This should in fact be obvious as soon as one recognises that the truths in question are inherent in human nature, though 'forgotten', as the Quran asserts again and again. It is not a matter of being unable to accept something we are told, but rather of refusing - from self-interested motives to admit something we already know. The act of concealing something even from oneself is an act of will.

"I was a hidden treasure and I desired to be known; therefore I created Man"
- Hadith Qudsi

The Primordial Religion

Islam is also known as the din al-fitrah, which might be translated as the "religion of primordiality" or even as "the original religion," since it refers back to a time before the different "religions" were revealed or crystallized, and is thus the "perennial philosophy," which is to be found behind the veil of every authentic religion. Islam, however, claims by implication a particularly direct relationship to this "perennial philosophy," since it defines itself as the final revelation of a timeless message of which mankind has been "reminded" again and again by countless "messengers of God." The Quran acknowledges without ambiguity that the laws and practices of the different crystallizations of the din al-fitrah have differed according to time and place, but the truth of the Divine Unity and the decisive principles that are derived from this do not change, have not changed, and can never change. "The doctrine of Unity is unique", so it is said. All else is illusion.
The connection between the "Primordial religion" and the final one is underlined by the first and the last prophets, Adam and Muhammad (pbut), the beginning of the story and the end of it, stressing the closing of the circle as represented by Muhammad's mission. History has unfolded and humanity had pursued its predestined course. There had to be-and there was-a return to the origin. In this sense, there is no such thing as a new religion. Past Prophets sent to different peoples throughout history all bore the message of Eternal Truth, which in order that it may be fully understood, must present itself differently to different worlds. Thus Islam, despite certain real but superficial differences, is also the faith of Jesus, Abraham, and Moses (pbut). With the message of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) being sent to all humanity.

Man as vicegerent

"[Recall the time] when your Lord told the angels: 'I am setting on earth a vicegerent.' They asked: 'Will you put therein one who will work evil and shed blood, when we praise You and sanctify Your name?' He replied: 'Surely I know what you know not.'" <Quran, The Cow 2:30>

Modern science has reduced the natural world to a field of matter where chaos prevails at the most elemental level of the system. While order - baffling to the atheist - appears at the molecular level with each moment and every particle in this higher system bound by the immutable laws of physics. In religious language, all things move in submission to God's ordering of His creation. Into this flawless, elaborate system He has set man, His viceroy. Now, although man's physical elements are in themselves intrinsically bound to obey the inexorable laws of creation, he is set apart in having been endowed with a soul. And it is only through his realisation of the Primordial pact with his Creator, that man can hope to attain to this function, and the projection, as it were, of the vertical dimension onto the horizontal plane. In being gifted with intelligence, he alone of all creatures is capable of knowing the Reality and of rising above his own earthly and contingent self hood. The Muslim, recognises that to be human is to be the channel of transcendent intervention in running the world's mechanisms. He is, potentially if not actually higher than the angels, for his nature reflects totality and can be satisfied with nothing less than the Total.
This is one side of the human coin. A simple change of perspective shows the other, for it is precisely this situation - man's 'centrality' - that offers him the possibility of committing monstrous crimes and rather than see himself as a servant of God, man attempts to make himself a god beside God; the vicegerent usurps the place of the King. He is then alone in creation and all other creatures are either toys to play with or obstructions blocking his way. Man is the only creature who kills his own kind as a matter of course.

maro · Jan 8, 2010

Thus, religion recognises man's essential inability to deal with his world. A social contract based on belief in spiritual growth and final judgement is the best foundation for a caring society. Wherever this belief is strong, and this of necessity becomes increasingly rare, then alone can man hope to become what Muslim's call God's viceroy, His Khalifa on earth. But this status, which is what we were created to strive for, nevertheless recognises that man cannot deal with his situation unaided. Outside help is indispensable.
This state is none other than mans fitra, or "natural disposition" which is in harmony with God and the created world over which he has been given authority. His fitra nature is to love God, beauty, and all humanity, and to feel revulsion towards selfishness, ugliness, and evil. Muslim ethical thought starts with this assumption, that man is fundamentally a creature of goodness and faith, and that, as the Prophet (pbuh) said, "Every child is born with the fitra," and that evil is only the product of his environment and upbringing. Yet the harsh realities of the world are usually quite different. Man is evidently not in harmony with anything. Wars, injustices, and intolerance are the rule rather than the exception. Distance from the sources of revelation brings about a kind of hardening in the spiritual ether; tyranny becomes more usual than tranquillity. This is not to say, however, that the religious project has failed; it merely means that it has become the concern of individuals rather than societies. And indeed, we see that the older and more ineffectual religious tradition becomes, the more it relinquishes its claims to a conditioning role in the political and social process.

Conversion: Islam, the growing religion

maro · Jan 9, 2010

Vicegerency and the comprehensive concept of worship

The concept of worship in Islam is misunderstood by many people including some Muslims. Worship is commonly taken to mean performing ritualistic acts such as prayers, fasting, charity, etc. This limited understanding of worship is only one part of the meaning of worship in Islam. That is why the traditional definition of worship in Islam is a comprehensive definition that includes almost everything in any individual's activities. The definition goes something like this:
"Worship is an all inclusive term for all that God loves of external and internal sayings and actions of a person."
In other words, worship is everything one says or does for the pleasure of Allah. This, of course, includes rituals as well as beliefs, social activities, and personal contributions to the welfare of one's fellow human-beings. Islam looks at the individual as a whole. He is required to submit himself completely to Allah, as the Quran instructed the Prophet Muhammad to do:
"Say (O Muhammad) my prayer, my sacrifice, my life and my death belong to Allah; He has no partner and I am ordered to be among those who submit, i.e.; Muslims." (6:162, 163)
The natural result of this submission is that all one's activities should conform to the instructions of the one to whom the person is submitting. Islam, being a way of life, requires that its followers model their life according to its teachings in every aspect, religious or other wise. This might sound strange to some people who think of religion as a personal relation between the individual and God, having no impact on one's activities outside rituals. As a matter of fact Islam does not think much of mere rituals when they are performed mechanically and have no influence on one's inner life. The Quran addresses the believers and their neighbors from among the People of the Book who were arguing with them about the change of the direction of Qibla in the following verse:
"It is not righteousness that you turn your faces toward the East or the West, but righteous is he who believes in Allah and the Last Day and the Angels and the Book and the Prophets, and gives his beloved money to his relatives and the orphans and the needy and for the ransoming of captives and who observes prayer and pays the poor-due; and those who fulfill their promises when they have made one, and the patient in poverty and affliction and the steadfast in time of war; it is those who have proved truthful and it is those who are the God-fearing." (2:177)
The deeds in the above verse are the deeds of righteousness and they are only a part of worship. The Prophet told us about faith, which is the basis of worship, that it "is made up of sixty and some branches; the highest of which is the belief in the Oneness of Allah, i.e., there is no God but Allah and the lowest in the scale of worship is removing obstacles and dirt from people's way." Decent work is considered in Islam a type of worship. The Prophet said:
"Whoever finds himself at the nightfall tired of his work, God will forgive his sins."
Seeking knowledge is one of the highest types of worship. The Prophet told his companions that "seeking knowledge is a (religious) duty on every Muslim." In another saying he said:
"Seeking knowledge for one hour is better than praying for seventy years."

Social courtesy and cooperation are part of worship when done for the sake of Allah as the Prophet told us:
"Receiving your friend with a smile is a type of charity, helping a person to load his animal is a charity and putting some water in your neighbor's bucket is a charity."

It is worth noting that even performing one's duties is considered a sort of worship. The Prophet told us that whatever one spends for his family is a type of charity; he will be rewarded for it if he acquires it through legal means. Kindness to members of one's family is an act of worship as when one puts a piece of food in his spouse's mouth. Not only this but even the acts we enjoy doing very much, when they are performed according to the instructions of the Prophet, are considered as acts of worship. The Prophet told his companions that they will be rewarded even for having sexual intercourse with their wives. The companions were astonished and asked: "How are we going to be rewarded for doing something we enjoy very much?" The Prophet asked them: "Suppose you satisfy your desires illegally; don't you think that you will be punished for that?" They replied, "Yes." "So," he said, "by satisfying it legally with your wives you are rewarded for it." This means they are acts of worship. Thus Islam does not consider sex a dirty thing that one should avoid. It is dirty and sinful only when it is satisfied outside marital life.

Conclusion :

It is clear, from the previous discussion that the concept of worship in Islam is a comprehensive concept that includes all the positive activities of the individual. This of course is in agreement with the all inclusive nature of Islam as a way of life. It regulates human life on all levels: individual, social, economic, political and spiritual. That is why Islam provides guidance to the smallest details of one's life on all these levels. Thus following these details is following Islamic instructions in that specific area. It is a very encouraging element when one realizes that all his activities are considered by God as acts of worship. This should lead the individual to seek Allah's pleasure in his actions and always try to do them in the best possible manner whether he is watched by his superiors or he is alone. There is always the permanent supervisor, who knows everything, namely, Allah.

Concept of Worship

maro · Jan 11, 2010

In the First scene of the stroy of Man ,two types of creatures appear ,the Angels and the jinn (represented by Iblis )
Both were created before humans , and both didn't welcome the new creature , Adam...The angels were concerned about his unique nature and the conseuences it can lead to ,as discussed earlier....while Iblis was envious of him

So, what is the differernce between both ? Let's find some answers here

Islam Online
http://www.islamreligion.com/articles/669/
Reading Islam

maro · Jan 15, 2010

The Arrogance of Iblis

Allah created the angels and jinn before He created the Prophet Adam. They were glorifying Allah with praise. Then, Allah created Adam (as), the first human being, and commanded the angels to prostrate themselves to him.
With wholehearted obedience, the angels complied with Allah's command and prostrated themselves to Adam. Yet, Iblis (Diabolis), one of the jinn, rebelled against this command. That is because, he believed that he was superior to Adam (as). Out of this arrogance, he replied to the question posed to him by Allah: "Iblis, what prevented you prostrating to what I created with My own Hands? Were you overcome by arrogance or are you one of the exalted?" (Surah Sad: 75), as follows:
"I am better than him. You created me from fire but You created him from clay."(Surah Sad: 76)
Iblis, who dared such a disobedience to Allah's command, was denounced by Allah and was destined to the eternal torment of Hell.
The reason why Iblis revolted against Allah was due to his "arrogance" or to put it in other words, "vanity". What instilled these feelings of pride in Iblis was a vice he had allowed to grow within himself: "Ego"…
The equivalent term of "ego" in Arabic (enaniyet) is a derivative of the word ene. It means attributing a separate existence to one' s self, seeing one' s existence apart from and independent of Allah, and orienting one' s deeds, attitudes and outlook by it.
Arrogance, on the other hand, is merely one of the manifestations of "Ego" Once a person builds an "ego-centered attitude", eventually he will begin to boast about the qualities and means Allah had granted to him as blessings, such that, these means become the presumed justification of his flawed mindset. As the Prophet Muhammad (saas) said in a famous hadith, "Arrogance means ridiculing and rejecting the Truth and despising people.' (Muslim)
No matter the circumstances, such a person sees himself superior and greatly valuable. In the Qur' an, such a person is said to deify himself.
Consequently, arrogance and, in connection with it, vanity, equals to associating partners to Allah and disbelief. In fact, this vice of Iblis' is explained thus: "... Iblis who was arrogant and was one of the disbelievers." (Surah Sad: 74)
The arrogance of Iblis, which made itself evident when he was commanded to prostrate to Adam (as), ultimately resulted in eternal torment for him. This account indicates how great a danger arrogance is to those who harbour this evil feeling in their heart.
Arrogance is Satan's most fundamental character flaw. Consequently, "arrogance" and "vanity", which is its derivative, are the source of all evil and perversion. As it was the case with millions of people who have lived in the past, these flaws for which Satan was guilty have also seized control of the base natures of innumerable number of people living today, drag them into the same evil ways of Iblis.
An arrogant person, that is, someone who attributes an independent power to himself, and thus shows an undue arrogance towards Allah, and turns his back to His verses, is continually vulnerable to Satan' s wiles. The purpose of this book is to present all the aspects of arrogance and the character flaws of a person who is seized by this malady, and to summon all, upon whom Satan exerts his influence, to avoid him and to cleanse themselves of this evil.
With these aims in mind, throughout the book, we will consider the psychological condition of vain people, in relation to the fault of "arrogance", which is their inherent flaw.
We hope that this book serves as a strong warning to all of our readers to shun this evil vice of Iblis'
Harun Yahya - The Arrogance of Satan - Introduction

Subjugation of the universe to Man

"And He has subjected to you, as from Him, all that is in the heavens and on earth: behold, in that are Signs indeed for those who reflect."
Relevant to man's high standing is the subjugation of the universe to him, in the sense that the universe is prepared to help man undertake his role as God's vicegerent. The dimensions, laws, and proportions are set in such a way that human beings can interact with the universe in a positive and productive manner. Thus a favourable atmosphere is created, one in which human beings can release their potential, to venture and develop the universe.
This belief in man's exalted nature lays the foundation for human potential and encourages individuals to act in ways that lead to their improvement. It also banishes the feeling of inferiority toward the universe (nature), a feeling that led many people to fear nature to the extent of worshiping some of its symbols. Many times, human resources and potential were exhausted in such services and related sacrifices, which are in direct contravention to vicegerency (Khilafah). The belief in a subjugated universe generates a confidence and optimism that consider success attainable.
Issue 522 - Subjugation of Universe, Dua, Reasons for inaction

Successful Vicegerent

we have to remind ourselves that a vicegerent and representative has a duty to fully follow the instructions of his master. His personality and precept should reflect the values of his master. To act as a vicegerent of Allah on earth requires that man must inculcate in himself His qualities which should mould his manners. We have been taught that the qualities and attributes of Allah include knowledge, mercy, appreciativeness, administrative ability, forgiveness, benevolence, justice, love, grandeur, beauty, and power to protect- and punish. Prophet Muhammad, blessings and peace be on him, taught mankind to acquire Allah's attributes ("Adorn yourself with the qualities of Allah").
In spite of inherent limitations, man can, on the limited human scale, develop in himself attributes of Allah. He can never be God, but he can exhibit Allah's great attributes in his character as Allah's vicegerent. One can imagine that if man becomes mindful of his responsibility as Allah's vicegerent on earth and thus strives to inculcate in himself divine moral attributes, how high he can rise as a human being and how pleasant and prosperous the world can become under his vicegerency. Religion, as a matter of fact, provides man with the sublimest and most balanced concept of life. It grants him a position as Allah's vicegerent, responsible for administering things on earth as His representative and functioning as a caretaker of this great trust, which brings upon mankind an unprecedented honor.

Mankind in Islam::visit-islam.com

maro · Jan 16, 2010

Eve
(ISlam Vs Judeo-christian traition )

The three religions agree on one basic fact : Both women and men are created by God The Creator of the whole universe. However, disagreement starts soon after the creation of the first man, Adam and the first woman, Eve. The Judaeo-Christian conception of the creation of Adam and Eve is narrated in detail in Genesis 2:4-3:24. God prohibited both of them from eating the fruits of the forbidden tree. The serpent seduced Eve to eat from it and Eve, in turn, seduced Adam to eat with her. When God rebuked Adam for what he did, he put all the blame on Eve "The woman you put here with me --she gave me some fruit from the tree and I ate it." Consequently, God said to Eve "I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband and he will rule over you." To Adam he said,"Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree .... Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life..."
The Islamic conception of the first creation is found in several places in the Quran, for example 7:19-25 "O Adam dwell with your wife in the garden and enjoy as you wish but approach not this tree or you run into harm. Then Satan whispered to them your Lord only forbade you this tree lest you become angels and he swore to them both that he was their sincere adviser. When they tasted the tree their shame became manifest to them..Their Lord called unto them did I not forbid you that tree...They said: our Lord we have wronged our own souls and if You forgive us not and bestow not upon us Your mercy, we shall certainly be lost..." A careful look into the two accounts of the story of the Creation reveals some essential differences. The Quran, contrary to the Bible, places equal blame on both Adam and Eve for their mistake. Nowhere in the Quran can one find even the slightest hint that Eve tempted Adam to eat from the tree or even that she had eaten before him. Eve in the Quran is no temptress, no seducer, and no deceiver. Moreover, Eve isn't to be blamed for the pains of childbearing. God, according to the Quran, punish no one for another's faults. Both Adam and Eve committed a sin and then asked God for forgiveness and He forgave them both.

Eve's legacy

The image of Eve as temptress in the Bible has resulted in an extremely negative impact on women throughout the Judaeo-Christian tradition. In order to understand how negative the impact on women was we have to look at the writings of some of the most important Jews and Christians of all time. Let us start with the Old Testament and listen to excerpts from what is called the Wisdom Literature in which we find," I find more bitter than death the woman who is a snare, whose heart is a trap and whose hands are chains. The man who pleases God will escape her, but the sinner she will ensnare....while I was still searching but not finding, I found one upright man among a thousand but not one upright woman among them all." (Ecclesiasticus 7:26-28) One has to ask what is the wisdom in denying the existence of even one upright woman on earth ? In another part of the Hebrew literature which is found in the Catholic Bible we read," No wickedness comes anywhere near the wickedness of a woman.....Sin began with a woman and thanks to her we all must die"(Ecclesiasticus 25:19,24) Orthodox Jewish men in their daily morning prayer recite "Blessed be God King of the universe that Thou has not made me a woman." The women, on the other hand, thank God every morning for "making me according to Thy will."
The same severe tone is found also in the New Testament. Listen to St. Paul," A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. I don't permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam wasn't the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner, but women will be saved through childbearing...."(I Timothy 2:11-15) St. Tertullian was even more blunt than St. Paul, while he was talking to his 'best beloved sisters' in the faith, he said," Do you not know that you are each an Eve? The sentence of God on this sex of yours lives in this age: the guilt must of necessity live too. You are the Devil's gateway: You are the unsealer of the forbidden tree: You are the first deserter of the divine law: You are she who persuaded him whom the devil wasn't valiant enough to attack. You destroyed so easily God's image ,man." St. Augustine was faithful to the legacy of his predecessors, he wrote to a friend, " What is the difference whether it is in a wife or a mother, it is still Eve the temptress that we must beware of in any woman." Centuries later, St. Thomas Aquinas still considered women as defective, "As regards the individual nature, woman is defective and misbegotten, for the active force in the male seed tends to the production of a perfect likeness in the masculine sex; while the production of woman comes from a defect in the active force or from some material indisposition, or even from some external influence." Finally, the renowned reformer Martin Luther couldn't see any benefit from a woman but bringing into the world as many children as possible regardless of the possible side effects," If they become tired or even die, that doesn't matter. Let them die in childbirth, that's why they are there" Again and again all women are denigrated because of the image of Eve the temptress, thanks to the Genesis account.
If we now turn our attention to what the Quran has to say about women, we will soon realize that the Islamic conception of women is radically different from that of the Judaeo-Christian tradition. Let the Quran speak for itself. "For muslim men and women, for believing men and women, for devout men and women, for true men and women, for men and women who are patient, for men and women who humble themselves, for men and women who give in charity, for men and women who fast, for men and women who guard their chastity, and for men and women who engage much in Allah's praise-- For them all has Allah prepared forgiveness and great reward''(33:35) "Whoever works evil will not be requited but by the like thereof, and whoever works a righteous deed -whether man or woman- and is a believer- such will enter the Garden of bliss"(40:40) "Whoever works righteousness, man or woman, and has faith, verily to him/her we will give a new life that is good and pure, and we will bestow on such their reward according to the best of their actions" (16:97) It is clear that the Quranic view of women is no different than that of a man. They, both, are God's creatures whose sublime goal on earth is to worship their Lord, do righteous deeds, and avoid evil and they, both, will be assessed accordingly. The Quran never mentions that the woman is the devil's gateway or that she is a deceiver by nature. The Quran, also, never mentions that man is God's image, all men and all women are his creatures, that's all. According to the Quran, a woman's role on earth isn't limited only to childbirth. She is required to do as many good deeds as any other man is required to do. The Quran never said that no upright women had ever existed. To the contrary, the Quran has instructed all the believers, women as well as men, to follow the example of those ideal women such as the Virgin Mary and the Pharoah's wife (66:11-13)

Women in Islam vs. Women in Judeo-Christian Tradition

maro · Jan 17, 2010

There is no 'original sin' in Islam

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica]Every Person is Responsible for Their Action.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica][SIZE=-1]This is what Islam preaches. This is what people throughout the world preach. We consider fair that no person be held accountable or responsible for someone else's mistake. That if blame is due, then it is due on who deserves it. That if punishment is to be made, it ought to be on the one who wronged. We consider that to be fair.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica][SIZE=-1]The Quran states:[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Helvetica][SIZE=-1]"That no burdened person (with sins) shall bear the burden (sins) of another. And that man can have nothing but what he does (of good and bad). And that his deeds will be seen, Then he will be recompensed with a full and the best recompense [fair] " (Quran 53:38-41)[/SIZE][/FONT]

[SIZE=-1][FONT=Arial,Helvetica]The Quranic message is: whatever it is that you do, you are alone will be held responsible for, not your brother, not your father, not your children. This is only fair, and God is Fair.[/FONT] [FONT=Arial,Helvetica]Adam sinned, we agree. But why do his children have to bear something they took no part in? Why is a sacrifice needed to please a Most Merciful God? A Muslim will answer there is no need for any of that[/FONT][/SIZE]

Adam: The original Sin

maro · Jan 18, 2010

Life on Earth

Adam knew he bade farewell to peace when he left Paradise. On earth he had to face conflict and struggle. No sooner had one ended than another began. He also had to toil to sustain himself. He had to protect himself with clothes and weapons and protect his wife and children from the wild beasts.
Above all, he had to struggle with the spirit of evil. Satan, the cause of his expulsion from Paradise, continued to beguile him and his children in an effort to have them thrown into the eternal hellfire. The battle between good and evil is continuous, but those who follow Allah's guidance should fear nothing, while those who disobey Allah and follow Iblis will be damned along with him.
Adam grasped all of this, and, with the knowledge of this suffering, he started his life on the earth. The only thing that allayed his grief was that he was master of the earth and had to make it yield to him. He was the one who had to perpetuate, cultivate, construct and populate the earth. He was also the one who had to procreate and raise children who would change and improve the world.

Prophet Adam (pbuh)

The First Generations Were upon Monotheism

After Adam and Eve came to the Earth, they and their progeny were upon pure monotheism.

Allah says: Humanity had been a single community, and Allah sent (unto them) Prophets as bearers of good tidings and as warners, and revealed therewith the Scripture with the truth that it might judge between people concerning that wherein they differed. [Sûrah al-Baqarah: 123]

When Allah says that humanity had been a single community, He is referring to a community of faith. All people were upon monotheism and the religion of truth.

Abû Umâmah relates that once, a man asked Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and asked him: Had Adam been a Prophet?

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) answered: Yes.

The man asked: How much time passed between him and Noah?

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) replied: Ten centuries

[Sahîh Ibn Hibbân (6190). Mu`jam al-Tabarânî al-Kabîr (8/188-119 #7545). Mustadrak al-Hâkim (3093). Al-Hâkim says: This hadîth is authentic according to the conditions set forth by Muslim. Sheikh Muhammad Asad al-Dârânî says: Its chain of transmission is authentic. marginal notes to Sahîh Ibn Hibbân (14/69)]

Ibn `Abbâs said: between Adam and Noah were then centuries, all of which were upon Islam. [Tafsîr al-Tabarî (2/335-336)]

If we assume that the century being referred to here is one hundred years, then we are dealing with at least 1000 years. It might even have been longer, since Ibn `Abbâs specifies the meaning to be ten centuries upon Islam. There might have been more centuries wherein deviation had occurred.

It is also possible that the Arabic word qarn that means century is being used here in this hadîth to mean generation. The word appears with this meaning in the Qurân.

Islamtoday.com: Humanity had been a single community Did Religious Beliefs Evolve Over Time?

Islam began with Adam

Islam began with Adam, gradually evolved though the different covenants and progressive revelations given to the various prophets, and finally culminated in the final revelation given to Prophet Muhammad. In this regard, the contrasts between the Judeo-Christian and Islamic perspectives are dramatic. The Judeo-Christian perspective posits a few stages of religious evolution, each of which is markedly different than the one before it. Metaphorically, one can compare the Judeo-Christian perspective to the drastic revolutions involved in the developmental stages of the caterpillar, cocoon, and butterfly. Each stage is fundamentally different in appearance than the stage before it. In contrast, the metaphor for the Islamic perspective would be that of the budding and opening of a flower, in which the message of Adam represents the first budding , and in which the final message of Muhammad represents the flower in full bloom. However, even within that first bud of Adam's message, there were two fundamental truths, which have never been abrogated of modified, and which continued to be the centerpiece of the message of every later prophet: 1) there is no god but Allah, Who has no partners, and Allah is to be worshiped and served; and 2) avoid evil and wickedness, for there will be a day of final judgement.

IslamiCity.com - Did Islam just copy from Judaism & Christianity?

maro · Jan 23, 2010

Vicegerency and the dual nature of Islam

The concept of vicegerency (as discussed earlier ) necessitates a bipolar islamic approach. “Bipolar unity” , as was coined by Ali Izet Begovic, is the fact that Islam is a religion that unites in its path the spiritual and the material, the individual and the social, the soul and the body. Unlike other religions such as Christianity or Hinduism in which the emphasis is only on the spiritual and the non-material. According to the logic of certain monastic orders in the latter religions, the disregard and neglect of the body reinforces spirituality. It assumes that the less the physical is present, the more the spiritual is stressed. In Islam, body and soul, physical and spiritual, individual and social, are united in the Muslim way of life. Take Prayer (salah) as an example. There is no prayers without cleanliness and no spiritual efforts without the accompanying physical and social efforts. Salah is useless without wudu’ (ablution). The movements of ablution constitute the rational side of salah. Because of them, salah is not only a prayer but a discipline and hygiene as well; it is not only mysticism but also a practicality. And if we focus upon the rational aspect of salah we will also find it dual. “The duality is repeated: ablution is hygiene, but hygiene is not only a practice but also a virtue”. The statement that physical cleanliness is one aspect of faith could only appear in Islam. In all other religions, the body is “out of grace”. The fact that salah is connected to a definite time and day and a geographical direction means that prayer is bound – contrary to religious logic – to nature and its movement. All the more, the individual act of salah is accompanied by a social one. The social tendency of salah is demonstrated in the collective practice of prayer jama`h. The jama`h prayer includes a gathering of people and a sort of socialization. Opposite to conceiving prayer as only an individual ritual, here we see that “life segregates people, mosques bring them together”.

Source :Islam between East and west , by Ali Alija Izetbegovic "with slight modification "

maro · Jan 23, 2010

The Human Nature

(An islamic perspective )

Islam does not presuppose any inherent wickedness of human nature. Any negative representation of man’s basic nature as a source of evil and wickedness is clearly rejected. According to Islam, the human being is born in the state of fitrah, the original inherent nature of the human being. At birth, the baby is totally innocent and is not responsible for the sin of his parents or any of his ancestors. Environmental and other external influences keep on modifying his blueprint. The Holy Prophet (PBUH) said: “Every child is created in the state of fitrah, it is the parents, culture, and society that make him a Christian, a Jew, or a fire-worshipper.”
Islam is declares man as the most superior of the creatures and the masterpiece of the Creator. According to Islam, man is potentially capable of rising higher than the angels, that is why Allah has commanded angels to bow down before Adam. But, at the same time, he is equally capable of sinking lower than the animals. The Holy Qur’an says: "We have indeed created man in the best shap, then We reduced him (to be) the lowest of the low, except those who believe and do righteous deeds: for they shall have a reward unfailing." (95:46)
These verses indicate that Allah has given man the purest and best nature while man’s duty is to preserve the pattern on which God has made him. However, when he neglects his duty and goes in the wrong way, he will be reduced to the lowest possible position.

To sum up the point, man comes into the world with a pure and wholesome nature. Whereas sin and corruption in human being are merely accidental and violation of his original nature. The role of prophets and the scriptures is just to help human nature to flow in its true channel and to guide human nature to its ultimate goal of eternal felicity. This Qur’anic theory of human nature also implies the fact that if man consciously decides to submit himself to the will of Allah, he experiences no conflict in his personality. while, on the other hand, if he misuses his freedom of choice by denying God and not submitting to His will, would be in a state of inner conflict and his personality gets disintegrated.
Man has been given the freedom of choice to do good or evil. This freewill gives him independence of intention, choice and action in various situations of moral conflict. Man has also been granted potentialities to acquire knowledge of how everything else in the universe functions as well as the knowledge required for his felicity. (al-Qur’an, 2:33). This knowledge along with the faculty of reason and intellect, are man’s primary guide that distinguishes him from other animals and help him recognize the path of his ultimate felicity.
Man’s hopes are often related to various comforts and joys of physical and worldly kind while Islam does not deprive him of these. Islam, however, redirects him from false and transitory joys and values to real values and everlasting joys. The Holy Qur’an says:
“This life of the world is just a pastime and a game. And, indeed, the home of the Hereafter is the real life, if they know.” (29:64)

The Unrefined Human Nature

After mentioning the position of human nature in its basic and the pure form, it is necessary to point out how man’s nature gets corrupted
Although man has been created with a natural tendency towards the righteousness, he (excluding the prophets) cannot be free from all sins and mistakes since his declared enemy, Satan, tries to divert his attention by all possible ways and means. He always encourages man to satisfy his urges and desires in an uncontrolled way, like animals, and to become submissive and a slave to these urges. Therefore, the human instinctive tendencies, unless refined and trained, could easily overwhelm any humanely cultivated qualities conducive to spiritual enhancement. This is because the uncontrolled and unrefined urges within him would weaken and subjugate the forces of reason and conscience.
Describing some aspects of the unrefined human nature, the Holy Qur’an says: “Surely man was created anxious, fretful when evil visits him, and grudging when (some thing) good visits him, except the worshippers.” (70:19-21)
In another surah it says:
“As for man, whenever his Lord tries him by honouring and blessing him, he says: ‘My Lord has honoured me.’ But whenever he tries him by straitening his provision, he says: ‘My Lord has humiliated me.’ (89:15-16)
The Qur’an explains another weakness in human nature which impedes self development, is the weakness of will. While narrating the story of Adam, Allah informs:
And, indeed, long ago We made Our covenant with Adam; but he forgot and We found no firmness of purpose in him. ( 20:115]
God tells us in the Qur’an that the most honorable trust, that of knowledge of Allah the all Mighty, was offered to the heavens, the earth and the mountains but they refused it, recognizing that they could not take up such a weighty truth (33:72). Mankind, however, took it on, but since weakness and forgetfulness are part of the spectrum of human being, he sees himself at all times and forgets his source. This weakness which Allah has placed within human being is to make him remember Him who is Strong .
Bad manners like injustice, stinginess, cunning, jealousy, greed, ingratitude and so on are considered as spiritual illness and should be treated exactly like any other disease. The Holy Qur’an considers the hypocrites as sick persons saying:
There is a sickness in their hearts. (2:10)

http://science-islam.net/article.php3?id_article=458&lang=en

maro · Jan 28, 2010

All prophets delivered the message of Islam

All Prophets brought same message of submission and obedience to Allah . All the Prophets submitted to Allah and accepted Islam as their Deen:

وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ مِن رَّسُولٍ إِلَّا نُوحِي إِلَيْهِ أَنَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا أَنَا فَاعْبُدُونِ

And We did not send any Messenger before you (O Muhammad (pbuh)) but We inspired him (saying): La ilaha illa Ana (none has the right to be worshipped but I (Allah)), so worship Me (Alone and none else)." Al-Anbiya 21:25

Prophet Abraham, the father of all muwahideen said: إِذْ قَالَ لَهُ رَبُّهُ أَسْلِمْ قَالَ أَسْلَمْتُ لِرَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ - When his Lord said to him, "Submit (i.e. be a Muslim)!" He said, "I have submitted myself (as a Muslim) to the Lord of the Alameen (mankind, jinns and all that exists).“ Al-Baqara 2:131

Abraham & Ishmael said: رَبَّنَا وَاجْعَلْنَا مُسْلِمَيْنِ لَكَ وَمِن ذُرِّيَّتِنَا أُمَّةً مُّسْلِمَةً لَّكَ وَأَرِنَا مَنَاسِكَنَا وَتُبْ عَلَيْنَآ - Our Lord! And make us submissive unto You and of our offspring a nation submissive unto You, and show us our Manasik (all the ceremonies of pilgrimage - Hajj and Umrah, etc.), and accept our repentance. Al-Baqara 2:128

Queen of Sheba accepted Religion of Solomon: قَالَتْ رَبِّ إِنِّي ظَلَمْتُ نَفْسِي وَأَسْلَمْتُ مَعَ سُلَيْمَانَ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ - She said: "My Lord! Verily, I have wronged myself, and I submit (in Islam) together with Sulaiman (Solomon), to Allah, the Lord of the Alameen (mankind, jinns and all that exists). An-Naml 24:44

Prophet Moses said: وَقَالَ مُوسَى يَا قَوْمِ إِن كُنتُمْ آمَنتُم بِاللّهِ فَعَلَيْهِ تَوَكَّلُواْ إِن كُنتُم مُّسْلِمِينَ - 10:84 And Moses said, "O my people, if you have believed in Allah, then rely upon Him, if you should be Muslims."

Prophet Isa (Jesus) said: فَلَمَّا أَحَسَّ عِيسَى مِنْهُمُ الْكُفْرَ قَالَ مَنْ أَنصَارِي إِلَى اللّهِ قَالَ الْحَوَارِيُّونَ نَحْنُ أَنصَارُ اللّهِ آمَنَّا بِاللّهِ وَاشْهَدْ بِأَنَّا مُسْلِمُونَ – 3:52 Then when Iesa (Jesus) came to know of their disbelief, he said: "Who will be my helpers in Allahs Cause?" Al-Hawarioon (the disciples) said: "We are the helpers of Allah; we believe in Allah, and bear witness that we are Muslims (i.e. we submit to Allah).

Prophet Isa said: إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ رَبِّي وَرَبُّكُمْ فَاعْبُدُوهُ هَذَا صِرَاطٌ مُّسْتَقِيمٌ –43:64 Indeed, Allah is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him. This is a straight path.

Prophet Mohammad فَإنْ حَآجُّوكَ فَقُلْ أَسْلَمْتُ وَجْهِيَ لِلّهِ وَمَنِ اتَّبَعَنِ وَقُل لِّلَّذِينَ أُوْتُواْ الْكِتَابَ وَالأُمِّيِّينَ أَأَسْلَمْتُمْ فَإِنْ أَسْلَمُواْ فَقَدِ اهْتَدَواْ – 3:20 So if they dispute with you (Muhammad (pbuh)) say: "I have submitted myself to Allah (in Islam), and (so have) those who follow me." And say to those who were given the Scripture (Jews and Christians) and to those who are illiterates (Arab pagans): "Do you (also) submit yourselves (to Allah in Islam)?" If they do, they are rightly guided;

Noah said: وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا نُوحًا إِلَى قَوْمِهِ فَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَهٍ غَيْرُهُ أَفَلَا تَتَّقُونَ – 23:23 We have sent Noah to his people, and he said oh: my people worship Allah, the One who you have no other God but Him"

Shu’ayb said: وَإِلَى مَدْيَنَ أَخَاهُمْ شُعَيْبًا قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُواْ اللّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَـهٍ غَيْرُهُ - 11:84 And to Madyan [We sent] their brother Shu'ayb. He said, "O my people, worship Allah; you have no deity other than Him…

Prophet Hud:وَإِلَى عَادٍ أَخَاهُمْ هُوداً قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُواْ اللّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَـهٍ غَيْرُهُ أَفَلاَ تَتَّقُونَ – 7:65 And to the 'Aad [We sent] their brother Hud. He said, "O my people, worship Allah; you have no deity other than Him. Then will you not fear Him?""

Prophet Saleh: وَإِلَى ثَمُودَ أَخَاهُمْ صَالِحًا قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ اعْبُدُواْ اللّهَ مَا لَكُم مِّنْ إِلَـهٍ غَيْرُهُ - 7:73 And to the Thamud [We sent] their brother Salih. He said, "O my people, worship Allah; you have no deity other than Him. There has come to you clear evidence from your Lord.

Prophet Yousuf: مَا تَعْبُدُونَ مِن دُونِهِ إِلاَّ أَسْمَاء سَمَّيْتُمُوهَا أَنتُمْ وَآبَآؤُكُم مَّا أَنزَلَ اللّهُ بِهَا مِن سُلْطَانٍ إِنِ الْحُكْمُ إِلاَّ لِلّهِ أَمَرَ أَلاَّ تَعْبُدُواْ إِلاَّ إِيَّاهُ ذَلِكَ الدِّينُ الْقَيِّمُ وَلَـكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ النَّاسِ لاَ يَعْلَمُونَ – 12:40 You worship not besides Him except [mere] names you have named them, you and your fathers, for which Allah has sent down no authority. Legislation is not but for Allah. He has commanded that you worship not except Him. That is the correct religion, but most of the people do not know.

BLESSINGS AND PEACE BE UPON ALL MESSENGERS OF ALLAH

Hence, Allah (swt) mentioned them in one place:

شَرَعَ لَكُم مِّنَ الدِّينِ مَا وَصَّى بِهِ نُوحًا وَالَّذِي أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ وَمَا وَصَّيْنَا بِهِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَمُوسَى وَعِيسَى أَنْ أَقِيمُوا الدِّينَ وَلَا تَتَفَرَّقُوا فِيهِ كَبُرَ عَلَى الْمُشْرِكِينَ مَا تَدْعُوهُمْ إِلَيْهِ اللَّهُ يَجْتَبِي إِلَيْهِ مَن يَشَاء وَيَهْدِي إِلَيْهِ مَن يُنِيبُ

42:13 He has appointed for you the same Way of life which He had ordained for Noah and which (O Muhammad) We have now revealed to you; and which We had already enjoined on Abraham and Moses and Jesus, stressing: "Establish this Way and be not divided in it." The same thing to which you (O Muhammad) are calling the mushriks has set them ill at ease. Allah chooses for Himself whomever He wills, and He guides to His Way only him who turns to Him (in penitence).

وَلَقَدْ بَعَثْنَا فِي كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ رَّسُولاً أَنِ اعْبُدُواْ اللّهَ وَاجْتَنِبُواْ الطَّاغُوتَ

16:36 And We certainly sent into every nation a messenger, [saying], "Worship Allah and avoid taghoot."

The summary from the history of all these Nobel Prophets and Messgengers of Allah is that :

The Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) did not found a new religion. Nor did any other Prophet. They all brought the same religion from same God (Allah)
They were all Muslims (مُسْلِ&#1605. They all submitted (أَسْلَمْت&#1615 to Allah (swt).
They accepted Allah (swt) as Rabb (اللَّهَ هُوَ رَبِّي وَرَبُّكُم&#1618.
They all asked their followers to become slave to Allah (swt) (اعْبُدُواْ اللّه&#1614.
They all accepted Allah as Illah (إِلَه&#1613, and accept Allah as legislator (إِنِ الْحُكْمُ إِلاَّ لِلّه&#1616, and they proclaimed la illaha illa Allah (لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا الل&#1607.
They all asked their followers to reject the rebellious (وَاجْتَنِبُواْ الطَّاغُوت&#1614.

This in essence is summary of Proclaimation of Tawheed, Tahweed-ur-Ruboobiya, and Tawheed-ul-Uloohiyah.

All Prophets delivered message of Islam

maro · Feb 1, 2010

Adam forgot , so his successors forgot

Allah says : " We had already, beforehand, taken the covenant of Adam, but he forgot , and We found on his part no firm resolve. " [20:116]

And in al hadith al qudsi , it's said " ....Adam forgot ,so his successors forgot "

Heedlessness and forgetfulness

We have entered a state of heedlessness, forgotten our purpose, our function, our promise to Allah while living in this world. We have allowed ourselves to love the ephemeral aspects of the world to the point that it surpasses our spiritual yearnings.
Many of us today are choosing a way of living that is allowing divine signs to pass by. The Holy Qur’an warns that Satan seeks to adorn things before the human eye, so that we do not see things for what they truly are.
A true Believer however, looks beyond himself and focuses on Allah (swa). By doing so, he moves towards fulfilling the purpose for which he was created, and thus is able to attain peace with his Creator and within himself.
It is said that no man was allotted two hearts in his breast; this means that we are unable to feel two things at the same time. We are also unable to simultaneously pursue two things at the same time, especially when they are at two opposing poles in the Universe.
Hence those who make worldly pleasures their objective do so at the expense of the hereafter, such people suffer in this world and in the hereafter. Our Holy Prophet (saw) has said “If anyone’s intention is to seek the hereafter and Allah (swa) pleasure then, Allah (swa) will place sufficiency in his heart and will order his affairs and the world will approach him submissively, but if anyone’s intention is to only seek worldly benefits, Allah (swa) will place poverty before him and disorder in his affairs”. According to Imam Ghazzali, the desire for the quests for the provisions of the hereafter appears in the one who knows that the world causes misery and is but of a few days in duration, while the hereafter is pure and everlasting. It is not difficult for him to exchange something despicable for something valuable .Some people’s aim in life is to collect money, property, to have perfect careers and perfect families, whilst other people desire name, fame and power. However, as there is no permanence to our world the nature of our worldly desires is also transitory. In other words all these aims are temporary and lusts for wealth, power, name, fame, and family can never wholly satisfy an individual.
Despite what many people believe, the acquisition of wealth, power, prestige and fame does not bring happiness. We often hear of famous celebrities who have attempted suicide or suffer from depression. This is because all worldly pleasures are ephemeral and self-destructive.
Vain pursuits wear out the soul. Those who pursue transitory worldly pleasures exhaust themselves, working for them day and night. The culture of wanting more and more for the sake or more can literally occupy a person for life. The needs of the seeker of worldly pleasures are insatiable. So what should our aim in life be? One of our ultimate aims should be love for Allah (swa), and love for the sake of Allah (swa), so that we are able to recollect the covenant that we made in another world to one we love

The company of the righteous

In order to reaffirm to ourselves the real purpose of our existence we need to seek the company of the righteous and develop special attachments with them. It is recognized in virtually all traditions and cultures that the company one keeps has inroads to ones heart and morality.
When a person is surrounded by people who are sincere and pious, and has no ulterior motive out of his association; he only stands to benefit from them. Scholars have always encouraged visiting the righteous people as part of the protocol of the spiritual ascendancy. Hadhrat Isa (AS) once said “ Do not sit with the dead people”. When he was asked who are the dead people, he replied “ Those who desire this world”. According to some linguists, the Arabic word for human being is insan, which means to forget. This suggests that one of the characteristics of man is forgetfulness. This implies that we need to be reminded often. Which is why the importance of attaching ourselves with the righteous, who are always busy in the remembrance of Allah (swa) can not be emphasised enough.
When sitting in the company of the righteous, feelings of peace and wellbeing wash over us. A dim flame within us flickers and lights up. Our souls faintly recollect a covenant that was made in another world to one we love. For a short moment, we feel disgusted with ourselves for occupying ourselves with petty, trivial worldly affairs; these feelings strike a chord inside us and we reaffirm to ourselves the real purpose of our existence.
These blessed individuals are described as being the perfume of Allah (swa) upon this world, however only the true, sincere believers have noses to smell them. They smell that beautiful perfume and follow that smell. That perfume creates a yearning in their hearts for their Lord, and as a result the sincere believers increase their pace, efforts and devotions. To sum up, our beloved Prophet (saw) knew what would come when He said “my pain is for my beloved people who will come in later times”. We are living is such a time in which the abnormal is seen as normal. We have forgotten the true purpose of our existence, and are in a state of Ghafla (heedlessness). We need to reaffirm to ourselves the true objective of human life This can be achieved by permanent attachment with those who are Allah (swa) friends. Only then will we be blessed with the yearning and longing to return to the true home.
One must bear in mind that patience, perseverance, and persistency are indispensable in the quest of Allah’s (swa) . It is said that he who seeks something and is industrious shall find it, and he who knocks at the door and is persistent shall enter. A person should also remember that one always reaches whatever they desire-only to the extent that they pursue it.
May Allah (swa) give us the ability to reaffirm to ourselves the real purpose of our existence and may He keep us in the company of those Blessed individuals whose hearts are illuminated with His (swa) light. Ameen

http://www.minhaj.org/english/tid/2948/What's-Our-Aim-In-Life?.html

maro · Feb 1, 2010

Seeing with both eyes , an excellent article about the dual nature of islam , by Abdul Hakim Murad

Abdul Hakim Murad: Seeing with Both Eyes

maro · Feb 7, 2010

Man

by : Ali Ezzat begovic'

(an author , philosopher , and a former president of Bosnia
and herzegovina )

The origin of man is the cornerstone of every view of the world. Any discussion about how man should live takes us back to the question of man's origin. The answers given by science and religion contradict each other, as is the case with many other issues.

Science looks upon man's origin as the result of a long process of evolution from the lower forms of life where there is no clear distinction between animal and human. The point at which science considers man a human being is determined by external material facts: walking upright, making tools, or communicating through articulate speech. Here, man is a child of nature and remains a part of it.

On the other hand, religion and art talk about the creation of man. It is not a process but an act of God - not something continuous but an abrupt, painful, and catastrophic act. All religions and all art have created the visions of man thrown into matter, of his fall to earth, and of the antagonism between man and nature, of mans clash with a strange and unfriendly world.
Whether man is a product of evolution or is created becomes the question: who is man? Is he part of the world or something different from it?

to be continued...

Islam Story

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