WUKUF,
at Arafah,
Makkah :
On this very eve of the opening of the 'veils within the seven heavens' between the abdals and 'The Master', when there is no 'check and balances between your prayer and doa and HIM, on this very important moment in time that only occur for a few hours in any one year, I find Prof T J Winter's discourse on ' Living with Ourselves' very succinct.
We live in an age where forms over rides substance, where words no longer carry its proper meaning, where being politically correct seem to be more important than being true.
We live in an age where we know the particulate and the subatomic, the vastness of the universe is so and so billion light years from one extreme edge to the opposite extreme edge.
But we also live in an age where the souls are subjugated to the body and mind, at least in people who still believe they do have souls at the centre of it all. We live in an age where the profane and the secular take center stage. As to the sublime, who cares ?
Let us listen to this December 2010 lecture by one of my favourite Muslims in the West. Prof T J Winter :
click here
Showing posts with label Faces in Islam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Faces in Islam. Show all posts
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Friday, July 22, 2011
Faces in Islam : Prof Seyyed Hossien Nasr on The Pursuit of Happiness, An Islamic Perspective
'Pope' is dead!
'Pope' aka Prof Wan Burhanuddin, one time dean of USM School of Architecture, sufi disciple, streetwise philosopher of sort, school day rebel, self-stlyed Lingzi exponent,died yesterday after a long, very private and painful struggle with cancer.
Pope, my classmate from form four science 2, at the Malay College from 1968, lead a very colorful multifaceted life veering to the extreme left in his schooldays experimenting with all that need to be experimented in the whirling and dizzying days of the 60's and the 70's to the extreme right in the 90's and the 10's in his later day life, with Quran and tafseer oozing out like water filled to the brim ! I am already missing him.........his oft tangent comments, his sharp and witty rebuttals and above all his criticism without barbs and poison.
May his soul be amongst those accepted by The Beloved. May God be content with him.
In essence, Life, is just truly a collection of breath. If we already have used up X numbers of breath, mathematically, the number Y of what is left of it, grow less and less in actual numerical significance. This does not require the IQ of Albert Einstein or rocket science to know but we, collectively, do continue to live on in almost total heedlessness. We are just like those cows and goats in the abattoir, munching on hay and chaff 'happily' regardless of the fact that our turn is just a few very precise moment away, all already predetermined, to the precise millisecond,by the cogwheel already in motion.....
Last night,myself, my new-found relative Nadzru Azahari,CEO of Ranhill Worley and long-time classmate during my Sultan Ismail College days in the early 60's and an 'Arabist' par excellence,[ I just discovered he is also a Rao from the Mandor Diman lineage of Kelantan, 'click here' for Rao of Malaysia ], Prof Wan and Prof Zainey were supposed to 'dissect' Rene Guenon, Fritjof Schuoen, Prof Nasr and Perennial/Traditional Philosophy at our 'mandi' dinner at an Arab restaurant just outside Masjid Al Falah, Taipan USJ. Our two knowledgeable professors 'politely' called back earlier to say they were not able to attend. I suspect the subject matter must be deemed too heavy. It is my bad habit to throw 'heavy stuff at these academic friends of mine!
Me and Nadzru, we ended up discussing 'Happiness' instead.
The nature of happiness is oftentimes discussed within Islamic milliue. The pursuit of happiness, however, is very much a Western and secular concept. True Muslims do not pursue 'happiness' per se as a 'station'. The wise ones from amongst us celebrate the remembrance of God in zkir, prayer and doa an in every move of our lives and in the process acheive the higher states of Contentment and Rida. 'Happiness' that comes with being in these states is just regarded as incidental 'collateral' damage !.
From the perspective of Prof Syed Muhammad Naguib al Attas, our very own home-grown philosopher, Happiness in Islam has to do very much with having the proper 'ADAB' but this would be addressed in future discussion.........
For the present, let us listen to what Prof Seyyed Hossien Nasr has to say :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6p8kSiNLnEQ&feature=related
The journey to God is the journey of our Qalb to free themselves from the 'naf'.
Superior freedom is not the freedom of the 'naf', but freedom from the 'naf'.
Happiness is not happiness distant from the Source of happiness but rather nearness to The Source of happiness.
Knowledge is not knowledge of created things but knowledge of the Creator.
Shaykh Mukhtar al Maghraoui,
Al Medina Institute, USA
Double PHD in Physics and Electronics Engineering.
PS :
The 'mandi' in USJ is not that great. I have yet to find an ideal 'mandi' here in KL. An ideal 'mandi' rice should not be too dry and neither should it be too wet but the 'piece de resistance' is really in the meat: the mutton should still be slightly dripping in its own juice, but again not too wet, just nicely wet. I had that some years ago in Jeddah at a friend of friend's house, Salleh al Patani. A home cooked 'mandi'.
I have been searching for that kind of'mandi' all these years. Ideal things in your mind are always illusive ! One of the pleasures of life is the search, they say.....
For a short sojourn on Prof Naguib al Attas, click here
For part 2, click here
'Pope' aka Prof Wan Burhanuddin, one time dean of USM School of Architecture, sufi disciple, streetwise philosopher of sort, school day rebel, self-stlyed Lingzi exponent,died yesterday after a long, very private and painful struggle with cancer.
Pope, my classmate from form four science 2, at the Malay College from 1968, lead a very colorful multifaceted life veering to the extreme left in his schooldays experimenting with all that need to be experimented in the whirling and dizzying days of the 60's and the 70's to the extreme right in the 90's and the 10's in his later day life, with Quran and tafseer oozing out like water filled to the brim ! I am already missing him.........his oft tangent comments, his sharp and witty rebuttals and above all his criticism without barbs and poison.
May his soul be amongst those accepted by The Beloved. May God be content with him.
In essence, Life, is just truly a collection of breath. If we already have used up X numbers of breath, mathematically, the number Y of what is left of it, grow less and less in actual numerical significance. This does not require the IQ of Albert Einstein or rocket science to know but we, collectively, do continue to live on in almost total heedlessness. We are just like those cows and goats in the abattoir, munching on hay and chaff 'happily' regardless of the fact that our turn is just a few very precise moment away, all already predetermined, to the precise millisecond,by the cogwheel already in motion.....
Last night,myself, my new-found relative Nadzru Azahari,CEO of Ranhill Worley and long-time classmate during my Sultan Ismail College days in the early 60's and an 'Arabist' par excellence,[ I just discovered he is also a Rao from the Mandor Diman lineage of Kelantan, 'click here' for Rao of Malaysia ], Prof Wan and Prof Zainey were supposed to 'dissect' Rene Guenon, Fritjof Schuoen, Prof Nasr and Perennial/Traditional Philosophy at our 'mandi' dinner at an Arab restaurant just outside Masjid Al Falah, Taipan USJ. Our two knowledgeable professors 'politely' called back earlier to say they were not able to attend. I suspect the subject matter must be deemed too heavy. It is my bad habit to throw 'heavy stuff at these academic friends of mine!
Me and Nadzru, we ended up discussing 'Happiness' instead.
The nature of happiness is oftentimes discussed within Islamic milliue. The pursuit of happiness, however, is very much a Western and secular concept. True Muslims do not pursue 'happiness' per se as a 'station'. The wise ones from amongst us celebrate the remembrance of God in zkir, prayer and doa an in every move of our lives and in the process acheive the higher states of Contentment and Rida. 'Happiness' that comes with being in these states is just regarded as incidental 'collateral' damage !.
From the perspective of Prof Syed Muhammad Naguib al Attas, our very own home-grown philosopher, Happiness in Islam has to do very much with having the proper 'ADAB' but this would be addressed in future discussion.........
For the present, let us listen to what Prof Seyyed Hossien Nasr has to say :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6p8kSiNLnEQ&feature=related
The journey to God is the journey of our Qalb to free themselves from the 'naf'.
Superior freedom is not the freedom of the 'naf', but freedom from the 'naf'.
Happiness is not happiness distant from the Source of happiness but rather nearness to The Source of happiness.
Knowledge is not knowledge of created things but knowledge of the Creator.
Shaykh Mukhtar al Maghraoui,
Al Medina Institute, USA
Double PHD in Physics and Electronics Engineering.
PS :
The 'mandi' in USJ is not that great. I have yet to find an ideal 'mandi' here in KL. An ideal 'mandi' rice should not be too dry and neither should it be too wet but the 'piece de resistance' is really in the meat: the mutton should still be slightly dripping in its own juice, but again not too wet, just nicely wet. I had that some years ago in Jeddah at a friend of friend's house, Salleh al Patani. A home cooked 'mandi'.
I have been searching for that kind of'mandi' all these years. Ideal things in your mind are always illusive ! One of the pleasures of life is the search, they say.....
For a short sojourn on Prof Naguib al Attas, click here
For part 2, click here
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Faces in Islam : Shaykh Hussien Yee on Parenting etc and etc
Shaykh Hussien Yee
click here
Ya Fattah, ya Razzaq,ya Wahhab, ya Ghaniyu, ya Mughni.
Ya Qadim, ya Daim, ya Ahad, ya Wahid, ya Samad.
Ya Rahman, Ya Raheem, ya Latif,ya Salaam,ya Hayyu, ya Qayyum,
ya Rabb, ya Dzaljala li-wal ikram.
...give us goodness in this life and the hereafter.
A'u zubikalimatillah hittam mati min syarrima qolak
...I seek refuge in kalimah Allah from the evils of creatures HE created.
Related articles in the blog:
A Journey of Worship by Shaykh Yasir Qadhi
click here
A Dichotomy of Perspective: The Sublime and The Secular
click here
click here
Ya Fattah, ya Razzaq,ya Wahhab, ya Ghaniyu, ya Mughni.
Ya Qadim, ya Daim, ya Ahad, ya Wahid, ya Samad.
Ya Rahman, Ya Raheem, ya Latif,ya Salaam,ya Hayyu, ya Qayyum,
ya Rabb, ya Dzaljala li-wal ikram.
...give us goodness in this life and the hereafter.
A'u zubikalimatillah hittam mati min syarrima qolak
...I seek refuge in kalimah Allah from the evils of creatures HE created.
Related articles in the blog:
A Journey of Worship by Shaykh Yasir Qadhi
click here
A Dichotomy of Perspective: The Sublime and The Secular
click here
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Faces in Islam......Charles Le Gai Eaton
Charles Le Gai Eaton (Hasan le Gai Eaton or Hassan Abdul Hakeem) (1 January 1921 – 26 February 2010)[1] was born in Lausanne, Switzerland and raised as an agnostic by his parents.He received his education at Charterhouse and at King's College, Cambridge. He worked for many years as a teacher and journalist in Jamaica and Egypt. He then joined the British Diplomatic Service.
Eaton converted to Islam in 1951. He served as a consultant to the Islamic Cultural Centre in London. In 1996 he served on a committee that drafted the constitution of the Muslim Council of Britain.
Authored the following books:
Islam and the Destiny of Man
King of the Castle
Remembering God
A Bad Beginning
A Path to Islam
Kristiane Backer interview with Le Gai Eaton
click here for part 1
click here for part 2
The Radical Middle Way : Charles Le Gai Eaton
click here
" God alone can read hearts "
Charles Le Gai Eaton
Eaton converted to Islam in 1951. He served as a consultant to the Islamic Cultural Centre in London. In 1996 he served on a committee that drafted the constitution of the Muslim Council of Britain.
Authored the following books:
Islam and the Destiny of Man
King of the Castle
Remembering God
A Bad Beginning
A Path to Islam
Kristiane Backer interview with Le Gai Eaton
click here for part 1
click here for part 2
The Radical Middle Way : Charles Le Gai Eaton
click here
" God alone can read hearts "
Charles Le Gai Eaton
Monday, April 25, 2011
Faces in Islam : A Journey of Worship by Yasir Qadhi
I thought earlier that I have finally done and finished with the topic, 'Faces in Islam', but on second thought that would not be a good ending, with issues of bidaah and contending personalities [ and I have not touch on Shiite yet ! ] .
'A Journey of Worship' by this young ulama', Shaykh Yasir Qadhi, is probably the best ending, tying up what have been a perfect ending in our rather pedestrian and fleeting journey across the Muslim spectrum across time and peoples across continents.
Journey of Worship, Yasir Qadhi, click here
Mashaallah ! How beautiful. It is back to ilm, ilm ilm ilm and ilm.....and connectivity 24/7 ! This is inward spirituality. Quality of deed , spurred by knowledge.
" I expect to be rewarded for my sleep as I expect to be rewarded for my tahajjud "
Muaz bin Jabal, a companion.
.............................
Related utube on Prophet's prayer :
Shaykh Hussien Yee, a scholar with 'salafi' leaning.
click here
Ustaz Ismail Kamus, known for his more 'liberal' views, has more humour talking on the same subject, he is forever young at heart, having just remarried recently. He is one of my favourite local ulama'. Incidentally , both are correct.....fullstop.
click here
And of course we cannot leave Prof Harun Din out of the picture. I will always remember him for his most profound statement some 26 years back to a group of us 'medicos' about to embark to Mekkah for The Haj. I was leading the medical team ,looking after 26,000 Malaysian pilgrims.
" The spirit and inner meaning of Haj is a rehearsal of your own Death, the loneliness and desperation of Padang Mahsyar, the calamity of facing and crossing the Sirat ". Reminded me of my earlier reading of the Shiite intellectual/ulama', the late Ali Shariati, also on 'Haj'.[ I was a young man in a hurry then, the usual regime and regimentation given by other ustaz on haj bored me ].Ali Shariati's small treatise on 'Haj' was excellent reading, the best in fact on Haj so far that I have read. He touched on the spirit of the haj rather than the various method and the fuqaha aspect. As a sunni one just need to avoid the last chapter, when he went 'ballastic' on us.
For Prof Harun Din,click here
'A Journey of Worship' by this young ulama', Shaykh Yasir Qadhi, is probably the best ending, tying up what have been a perfect ending in our rather pedestrian and fleeting journey across the Muslim spectrum across time and peoples across continents.
Journey of Worship, Yasir Qadhi, click here
Mashaallah ! How beautiful. It is back to ilm, ilm ilm ilm and ilm.....and connectivity 24/7 ! This is inward spirituality. Quality of deed , spurred by knowledge.
" I expect to be rewarded for my sleep as I expect to be rewarded for my tahajjud "
Muaz bin Jabal, a companion.
.............................
Related utube on Prophet's prayer :
Shaykh Hussien Yee, a scholar with 'salafi' leaning.
click here
Ustaz Ismail Kamus, known for his more 'liberal' views, has more humour talking on the same subject, he is forever young at heart, having just remarried recently. He is one of my favourite local ulama'. Incidentally , both are correct.....fullstop.
click here
And of course we cannot leave Prof Harun Din out of the picture. I will always remember him for his most profound statement some 26 years back to a group of us 'medicos' about to embark to Mekkah for The Haj. I was leading the medical team ,looking after 26,000 Malaysian pilgrims.
" The spirit and inner meaning of Haj is a rehearsal of your own Death, the loneliness and desperation of Padang Mahsyar, the calamity of facing and crossing the Sirat ". Reminded me of my earlier reading of the Shiite intellectual/ulama', the late Ali Shariati, also on 'Haj'.[ I was a young man in a hurry then, the usual regime and regimentation given by other ustaz on haj bored me ].Ali Shariati's small treatise on 'Haj' was excellent reading, the best in fact on Haj so far that I have read. He touched on the spirit of the haj rather than the various method and the fuqaha aspect. As a sunni one just need to avoid the last chapter, when he went 'ballastic' on us.
For Prof Harun Din,click here
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Faces in Islam.......Hearts looking for Ihsan
[ the last of a series of seven mini thesis ]
Traveling along the way into the 'Muslim inner hinterland' we cannot miss this centuries-old debate and dichotomy between Islamic orthodoxy as represented by the 'fuqaha' of every period and the sufis, those 'unsettled hearts' wanting to get out of the strait jacketing of Islam into a 'series of rules and regimentations' to one of experiential Islam aiming towards Ihsan and 'love of HIM'.
Imam al Ghazali was the most well known of those who tried to unify Islamic orthodoxy with Sufism in the 11th century, well known for this in his late life voluminous writings of the Ihya. He was partially successful, if we were to judge by the perception now in the 21st century when the difference seem to be more distinct.
The truth of the matter, I suspect, most probably must lie somewhere in between:
The Quran, Sunnah Rasullallah and hadith represent mainstream Islam....the progress to Ihsan is about Hearts. This is where the 'fight' is. The sufis , throughout the ages traditionally stake a claim that they are the 'doctors of the hearts'. What blurrs the whole picture were the presence of charlattans and false ulama' on both sides of the divides claiming only they have the monopoly of true knowledge.
Huwallahualam.
Let us have an open view and listen to a scholarly discourse on Sufism by Dr Saleh al Saleh, representing a salafi view on the discourse.
Part 1, click here
Part 2, click here
Part 3, click here
Part 4, click here
Part5, click here
The 'salafis' and the fuquhas contend that for Ihsan you 'just' play the ball game and follow the rules, you will get Ihsan.
The sufis , to my understanding thought otherwise,'one need to be guided', 'one need to belong to a tarikat' so as not to stray.....and stray many did since the path from 'strict regimentation and rules' as in the Syariah, avoiding the 'haram' and sticking to the 'halals' and giving a wide berth to the 'makruh', onwards towards love of observing all these and finally creating love for the DEITY Himself and spiritual pleasure in the Islamic faith, are 'peppered' with many slippery slopes and deep ravine.
The 'salafis' and the 'wahabis' take the simple route : Just follow and you will get there. The sufis thought these are matters of the hearts, not any 'donkey' can reach there without proper guidance, especially if one is in a hurry . Compounding this dichotomy was the incessant political struggle to be near the centre of power of that time, the sultanates and the caliphate. Hallaj was the most famous sufi to be executed for 'crime' against Islam.[ I think he was burned alive, such was the anger between the two groups even then ]
His crime ? "Wahdatul Wujud", for claiming he was one with Allah....whether it was truly that we do not know.
Dr Muhammad Tahir, click here
part 2, click here
Historically the 'salafis' could not shake off the 'sufis' that easily because Islam as it is known in this Nusantara and the Indian subcontinent was not brought here by conquest but rather by sufi traders in the 13th and the 14th century.It is these 'colouring' that have remained to the present day.Things such as 'maulidarasul',' talkin','tahlil',group zikr, specific post prayer awrad, etc and etc are the 'bidaah hasanah' historical leftovers of the sufis, I believe.
In the 20th century the axis of influence in the Muslim world shifted from the Ottomans to the Nedj peninsula helped also by power of the Petrodolar. With the increasing influence of ulama' from the Nedj peninsula specifically from both Medinah and Makkah school of thought, the 'debate goes on', and in the Malaysian scene, it gets hotter.
And yes the debate really goes on, just listen to this young man :
click here
......I wish life is that simple as this young man think!
Thanks Allah though, Islam is The Middle way.......one do not need to belong to any group. Ilm, Ilm Ilm and ilm would, insyallah, lead us on to the Middle way, insyaallah.
It is not enough that one follow a specific teacher. In the 21st century abounds with books and ready available information, one need to study the Quran, read the Tafseer, read the hadith [ may I suggest you start with Imam Nawawi's 2 volume,Riyadis Solihin ].
Enjoy your journey and adventurism my friends and do not allow people to put blinkers over your 'eyes' or force you to put on their 'tinted' glasses.Certainly not the young 'punk' who gave the lecture above, not Ustaz Rasul Dahri. Not even scholars like Shaykh Hamza , Shaykh Muhammad al Yacuobi or Prof TJ Winter aka Abdul Hakim Murad.Do not swallow whole what Ustaz Harun Din or Ustaz Abdullah Yasin say or did not say. It is good practice in this short life of ours to lose our reverence to all these people sometime. You may find this quite liberating.
Set your own course and enjoy the journey. You may even get yourself lost sometime but with a compass based on the Quran and Sunnah, you cannot go very far wrong from the main course.
Faith is a journey. Make that journey a spiritually pleasurable one for you.
Huwallahualam.
Post Script :
Face to face with Hisham Kabbani : Disregard where he come from, or the size or colour of his turban, or what Tarikat or 'ter-ikat' he is affiliated to, just listen to him......
click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQNE-GcHhHU&feature=related
click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84TSSY8sjzk&NR=1
click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFjYlV8YRNY&NR=1
click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERo5Rb_qGBo&NR=1
click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkY4644Tv9Y&NR=1
......and with this ends my mini thesis on 'Faces of Islam' and I hope this has been an illuminating and educational journey for us all across the diversity of what we call peoples of the Muslim faith. As an observer of LIFE itself , I 'officially' do not take any position except that I am a Muslim first and last and the Quran and Sunnah are my compass.
Big turban, small turban, white kopiah, green kopiah, short beard and long beard, professors with long degrees and young 'wahabi' punks with small brains and minds....all of them come with something ,some message that we can benefit from, but if we stick to one only, we are looking to the world with blinkers and through their 'tinted' glasses. It is all right if you love it that way....the other way is to be more open but one need to work harder..it is back to ilm, ilm ilm and ilm.
Traveling along the way into the 'Muslim inner hinterland' we cannot miss this centuries-old debate and dichotomy between Islamic orthodoxy as represented by the 'fuqaha' of every period and the sufis, those 'unsettled hearts' wanting to get out of the strait jacketing of Islam into a 'series of rules and regimentations' to one of experiential Islam aiming towards Ihsan and 'love of HIM'.
Imam al Ghazali was the most well known of those who tried to unify Islamic orthodoxy with Sufism in the 11th century, well known for this in his late life voluminous writings of the Ihya. He was partially successful, if we were to judge by the perception now in the 21st century when the difference seem to be more distinct.
The truth of the matter, I suspect, most probably must lie somewhere in between:
The Quran, Sunnah Rasullallah and hadith represent mainstream Islam....the progress to Ihsan is about Hearts. This is where the 'fight' is. The sufis , throughout the ages traditionally stake a claim that they are the 'doctors of the hearts'. What blurrs the whole picture were the presence of charlattans and false ulama' on both sides of the divides claiming only they have the monopoly of true knowledge.
Huwallahualam.
Let us have an open view and listen to a scholarly discourse on Sufism by Dr Saleh al Saleh, representing a salafi view on the discourse.
Part 1, click here
Part 2, click here
Part 3, click here
Part 4, click here
Part5, click here
The 'salafis' and the fuquhas contend that for Ihsan you 'just' play the ball game and follow the rules, you will get Ihsan.
The sufis , to my understanding thought otherwise,'one need to be guided', 'one need to belong to a tarikat' so as not to stray.....and stray many did since the path from 'strict regimentation and rules' as in the Syariah, avoiding the 'haram' and sticking to the 'halals' and giving a wide berth to the 'makruh', onwards towards love of observing all these and finally creating love for the DEITY Himself and spiritual pleasure in the Islamic faith, are 'peppered' with many slippery slopes and deep ravine.
The 'salafis' and the 'wahabis' take the simple route : Just follow and you will get there. The sufis thought these are matters of the hearts, not any 'donkey' can reach there without proper guidance, especially if one is in a hurry . Compounding this dichotomy was the incessant political struggle to be near the centre of power of that time, the sultanates and the caliphate. Hallaj was the most famous sufi to be executed for 'crime' against Islam.[ I think he was burned alive, such was the anger between the two groups even then ]
His crime ? "Wahdatul Wujud", for claiming he was one with Allah....whether it was truly that we do not know.
Dr Muhammad Tahir, click here
part 2, click here
Historically the 'salafis' could not shake off the 'sufis' that easily because Islam as it is known in this Nusantara and the Indian subcontinent was not brought here by conquest but rather by sufi traders in the 13th and the 14th century.It is these 'colouring' that have remained to the present day.Things such as 'maulidarasul',' talkin','tahlil',group zikr, specific post prayer awrad, etc and etc are the 'bidaah hasanah' historical leftovers of the sufis, I believe.
In the 20th century the axis of influence in the Muslim world shifted from the Ottomans to the Nedj peninsula helped also by power of the Petrodolar. With the increasing influence of ulama' from the Nedj peninsula specifically from both Medinah and Makkah school of thought, the 'debate goes on', and in the Malaysian scene, it gets hotter.
And yes the debate really goes on, just listen to this young man :
click here
......I wish life is that simple as this young man think!
Thanks Allah though, Islam is The Middle way.......one do not need to belong to any group. Ilm, Ilm Ilm and ilm would, insyallah, lead us on to the Middle way, insyaallah.
It is not enough that one follow a specific teacher. In the 21st century abounds with books and ready available information, one need to study the Quran, read the Tafseer, read the hadith [ may I suggest you start with Imam Nawawi's 2 volume,Riyadis Solihin ].
Enjoy your journey and adventurism my friends and do not allow people to put blinkers over your 'eyes' or force you to put on their 'tinted' glasses.Certainly not the young 'punk' who gave the lecture above, not Ustaz Rasul Dahri. Not even scholars like Shaykh Hamza , Shaykh Muhammad al Yacuobi or Prof TJ Winter aka Abdul Hakim Murad.Do not swallow whole what Ustaz Harun Din or Ustaz Abdullah Yasin say or did not say. It is good practice in this short life of ours to lose our reverence to all these people sometime. You may find this quite liberating.
Set your own course and enjoy the journey. You may even get yourself lost sometime but with a compass based on the Quran and Sunnah, you cannot go very far wrong from the main course.
Faith is a journey. Make that journey a spiritually pleasurable one for you.
Huwallahualam.
Post Script :
Face to face with Hisham Kabbani : Disregard where he come from, or the size or colour of his turban, or what Tarikat or 'ter-ikat' he is affiliated to, just listen to him......
click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQNE-GcHhHU&feature=related
click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84TSSY8sjzk&NR=1
click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFjYlV8YRNY&NR=1
click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERo5Rb_qGBo&NR=1
click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkY4644Tv9Y&NR=1
......and with this ends my mini thesis on 'Faces of Islam' and I hope this has been an illuminating and educational journey for us all across the diversity of what we call peoples of the Muslim faith. As an observer of LIFE itself , I 'officially' do not take any position except that I am a Muslim first and last and the Quran and Sunnah are my compass.
Big turban, small turban, white kopiah, green kopiah, short beard and long beard, professors with long degrees and young 'wahabi' punks with small brains and minds....all of them come with something ,some message that we can benefit from, but if we stick to one only, we are looking to the world with blinkers and through their 'tinted' glasses. It is all right if you love it that way....the other way is to be more open but one need to work harder..it is back to ilm, ilm ilm and ilm.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Faces in Islam : Sheikh Abd al -Qadir al Jilani
Sheikh Abd al-Qadir al Jilani[ born 471 Hijrah- died 561 Hijrah ]
Many present day people remembered him from the wrong perspective, walking on 'water' and ability to be in Mekkah at the wink of an eye etc etc. In essense he was one of Islam's greatest teacher, an ulama' par excellence, and a prolific writer of his time. Amongst his many pearls and gem are:
Futuh al Ghaib ie Revelations of The Unseen, a collection of seventy eight short discourses, translated into beautiful English by Muchtar Holland, one of the foremost leading translators of classical Arabic. Highly recommended reading, as a primer to al Jilani's voluminous work.
Malfuzat ie Utterances [ of Sheikh Abdul Qadir al Jilani ]
Jala' Al Khawatir [ The Removal of Cares ], a collection of forty five discourses.
Al Fath Al Rabbani, ie Sublime Revelations, a more voluminous work consisting of a collection of 62 longer discourses.
If you would like to enjoy al Jilani for 'dinner' may I suggest you start him with Futuh al Ghaib as a starter, then progress to Malfuzat and proceed to Jala al Khawatir and only after that finally 'wash up your thirst' with the much longer Sublime Revelations.
This will open a bright new world to Sufism and give you a different perspective, rather an academic one instead of the usual 'pseudo magical and pseudo religious' impression one usually attach to the higher 'gurus' of the sufis.
Ustaz Rasul Dahri's negative views and impression of the sufis are quite well known in this Nusantara . The 'Wahabbis' people or people with 'Wahabbi leaning' or for want of other terms, 'THE PURISTS' take it as their God given duty on this face of the earth to keep reminding others of 'bidaah, bidaah and bidaah' in order to safeguard other people's aqidah.'If you do not think my way, your aqidah is suspect! '. What better way to know more on al Jilani than to listen to Rasul Dahri [ the purist ] himself......
This is 'Faces in Islam', an educational academic trip into posterity, and thus we need to open ourselves to the various spectrum within what encompasses the Muslim world today with our eyes and mind open :
Rasul Dahri on Sheikh Abd al Qadir al Jilani[ part 1 of 6 parts]
click here
Sheikh Abd al Qadir al Jilani : A life story [ translation in Malay ]
click here
Related Articles in the blog :
Muhammad Ibnu Abdullah, messenger of God
click here
Prof Muhammad al Mahdi : Quantum physics validating God, and the nature of Reality
click here
Science and Islam
click here
The Power of Doubt
click here
Imam al Ghazali
click here
Quotable Quote:
" ..all I have been acquiring throughout my life is a bunch of lecture notes and knowledge,it is of no use to me if all these have not transformed my life ! "
al Ghazali
Many present day people remembered him from the wrong perspective, walking on 'water' and ability to be in Mekkah at the wink of an eye etc etc. In essense he was one of Islam's greatest teacher, an ulama' par excellence, and a prolific writer of his time. Amongst his many pearls and gem are:
Futuh al Ghaib ie Revelations of The Unseen, a collection of seventy eight short discourses, translated into beautiful English by Muchtar Holland, one of the foremost leading translators of classical Arabic. Highly recommended reading, as a primer to al Jilani's voluminous work.
Malfuzat ie Utterances [ of Sheikh Abdul Qadir al Jilani ]
Jala' Al Khawatir [ The Removal of Cares ], a collection of forty five discourses.
Al Fath Al Rabbani, ie Sublime Revelations, a more voluminous work consisting of a collection of 62 longer discourses.
If you would like to enjoy al Jilani for 'dinner' may I suggest you start him with Futuh al Ghaib as a starter, then progress to Malfuzat and proceed to Jala al Khawatir and only after that finally 'wash up your thirst' with the much longer Sublime Revelations.
This will open a bright new world to Sufism and give you a different perspective, rather an academic one instead of the usual 'pseudo magical and pseudo religious' impression one usually attach to the higher 'gurus' of the sufis.
Ustaz Rasul Dahri's negative views and impression of the sufis are quite well known in this Nusantara . The 'Wahabbis' people or people with 'Wahabbi leaning' or for want of other terms, 'THE PURISTS' take it as their God given duty on this face of the earth to keep reminding others of 'bidaah, bidaah and bidaah' in order to safeguard other people's aqidah.'If you do not think my way, your aqidah is suspect! '. What better way to know more on al Jilani than to listen to Rasul Dahri [ the purist ] himself......
This is 'Faces in Islam', an educational academic trip into posterity, and thus we need to open ourselves to the various spectrum within what encompasses the Muslim world today with our eyes and mind open :
Rasul Dahri on Sheikh Abd al Qadir al Jilani[ part 1 of 6 parts]
click here
Sheikh Abd al Qadir al Jilani : A life story [ translation in Malay ]
click here
Related Articles in the blog :
Muhammad Ibnu Abdullah, messenger of God
click here
Prof Muhammad al Mahdi : Quantum physics validating God, and the nature of Reality
click here
Science and Islam
click here
The Power of Doubt
click here
Imam al Ghazali
click here
Quotable Quote:
" ..all I have been acquiring throughout my life is a bunch of lecture notes and knowledge,it is of no use to me if all these have not transformed my life ! "
al Ghazali
Sunday, March 20, 2011
The Universe : A Dichotomy of Perspective .. Same Physics..
Knowledge is double edged. Knowledge, divinely blessed by wisdom and 'fihrasat' leads to 'Makkah' while if it is peppered by a big dose of insolence, false pride and arrogance, will lead one to 'Rome'.
There is nothing wrong with being in 'Rome' except that it represent a complete dismal state of 'LOSS'. Those in Rome are not only 'lost!', but they cause others to be 'lost' with them. In linguistic Malay, "anda bukan saja sesat tapi bahkan menyesatkan ! Mashaallah !
The former is total enlightenment , the latter, despite superficially looking good and very clever,leaves one being, 'Deaf , Dumb and Blind '.
In my daily discourse with people,I have the displeasure of meeting many seemingly 'super' bright guys with even tertiary and brilliant post tertiary education; in the higher echelon of civil service and private sector; from all walks of life, who unfortunately fall into this latter category.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hi6yPJvCFU0&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ftF8sXzoWk&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEQouX5U0fc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xE7xRgfPjAI&feature=fvwrel
aaaahhhhh ! multiple universes but no God ! How quaint and romantic these scientists are.....!
Let us move over from Prof Michio Kaku to Prof Dr Muhammad al Mahdi.
"Prof. Dr. Muhammad al'Mahdi devoted his last days to training others in the knowledge and techniques he acquired during his lifetime. He was for over half of his life an atheist, convinced by the materialist science he knew so well that God did not exist. After he came to understand the non-materialist science of Einstein, particularly the necessary logical implications of Einstein’s General and Special Theories of Relativity, he realized that if he wanted to be honest as a scientist he had to accept that scientific data now very powerfully proclaimed that God did exist. It was his study of theoretical physics which changed him from a non-believer into a believer in God and it was the perfection of the revealed truth of Islam in the Qur’an and the Sunnah of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) that resulted in him becoming a Muslim almost twenty five years ago. Before he became a Muslim he gave years of serious study to all of the world’s major religions and found that no other religion but Islam offered him the opportunity to remain both an objective scientist, and a true believer in God. Allah has indeed Blessed him greatly by His guidance."...quote unquote from www.islamic world.net
Professor Muhammad al'Mahdi passed away on 29th April 2006 after battling cancer of the pancreas for over 2 years. I find his profound insight on ' Scientific Proof to the Existence of God ','The Creation of the Universe' and 'The True Nature of Reality', very sublime, especially the ones on 'The Creation of the Universe'. Most beautiful insight indeed and I do agree with him, given the level of ignorance and the inherent natural tendency within our ummah to negate and pulverize any attempt at scholarship and original thinking, it would be a matter of time when someone would stand up and point out that this is 'kufr' and false 'theology' . 'Bidaah' to think this way , etc and etc.Most of these clowns forget that Islam, thinking and science,once were compatible terms !
A major portion of our problem today is that most in our ummah still hold on dearly to the mistaken notion that thinking and ijtihad ends with the 14th century. All that need to be thought and ponder had been done way back 6 centuries ago. That to me is the malaise and stumbling block within our ummah !
May Allah have Mercy on his soul and place him among the righteous.
http://www.islamic-world.net/videos/creation.htm
"We created not the heaven and the earth and all that is between them in play. If We had wished to find a pastime, We could have found it in Our presence - if We ever did."
22:16-17
"Have not those who disbelieve known that the heavens and the earth were of one piece, then We parted them, and we made every living thing of water? Will they not then believe? And We have placed in the earth firm hills lest it quake with them, and We have placed therein ravines as roads that haply they may find their way. And we have made the sky a roof withheld (from them). Yet they turn away from its portents. And He it is Who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. They float, each in an orbit. We appointed immortality for no mortal before thee. What! if thou diest, can they be immortal! Every soul must taste of death, and We try you with evil and with good, for ordeal. And unto Us ye will be returned.
22 : 30-35
Related Articles,
Click here Divine Decree : "al qada' wal qadar"
Click here Of Big Bang, Stephen Hawkings and Arash
Click here An Aidil Azhar Letter to an Agnostic Friend
There is nothing wrong with being in 'Rome' except that it represent a complete dismal state of 'LOSS'. Those in Rome are not only 'lost!', but they cause others to be 'lost' with them. In linguistic Malay, "anda bukan saja sesat tapi bahkan menyesatkan ! Mashaallah !
The former is total enlightenment , the latter, despite superficially looking good and very clever,leaves one being, 'Deaf , Dumb and Blind '.
In my daily discourse with people,I have the displeasure of meeting many seemingly 'super' bright guys with even tertiary and brilliant post tertiary education; in the higher echelon of civil service and private sector; from all walks of life, who unfortunately fall into this latter category.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hi6yPJvCFU0&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ftF8sXzoWk&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEQouX5U0fc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xE7xRgfPjAI&feature=fvwrel
aaaahhhhh ! multiple universes but no God ! How quaint and romantic these scientists are.....!
Let us move over from Prof Michio Kaku to Prof Dr Muhammad al Mahdi.
"Prof. Dr. Muhammad al'Mahdi devoted his last days to training others in the knowledge and techniques he acquired during his lifetime. He was for over half of his life an atheist, convinced by the materialist science he knew so well that God did not exist. After he came to understand the non-materialist science of Einstein, particularly the necessary logical implications of Einstein’s General and Special Theories of Relativity, he realized that if he wanted to be honest as a scientist he had to accept that scientific data now very powerfully proclaimed that God did exist. It was his study of theoretical physics which changed him from a non-believer into a believer in God and it was the perfection of the revealed truth of Islam in the Qur’an and the Sunnah of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) that resulted in him becoming a Muslim almost twenty five years ago. Before he became a Muslim he gave years of serious study to all of the world’s major religions and found that no other religion but Islam offered him the opportunity to remain both an objective scientist, and a true believer in God. Allah has indeed Blessed him greatly by His guidance."...quote unquote from www.islamic world.net
Professor Muhammad al'Mahdi passed away on 29th April 2006 after battling cancer of the pancreas for over 2 years. I find his profound insight on ' Scientific Proof to the Existence of God ','The Creation of the Universe' and 'The True Nature of Reality', very sublime, especially the ones on 'The Creation of the Universe'. Most beautiful insight indeed and I do agree with him, given the level of ignorance and the inherent natural tendency within our ummah to negate and pulverize any attempt at scholarship and original thinking, it would be a matter of time when someone would stand up and point out that this is 'kufr' and false 'theology' . 'Bidaah' to think this way , etc and etc.Most of these clowns forget that Islam, thinking and science,once were compatible terms !
A major portion of our problem today is that most in our ummah still hold on dearly to the mistaken notion that thinking and ijtihad ends with the 14th century. All that need to be thought and ponder had been done way back 6 centuries ago. That to me is the malaise and stumbling block within our ummah !
May Allah have Mercy on his soul and place him among the righteous.
http://www.islamic-world.net/videos/creation.htm
"We created not the heaven and the earth and all that is between them in play. If We had wished to find a pastime, We could have found it in Our presence - if We ever did."
22:16-17
"Have not those who disbelieve known that the heavens and the earth were of one piece, then We parted them, and we made every living thing of water? Will they not then believe? And We have placed in the earth firm hills lest it quake with them, and We have placed therein ravines as roads that haply they may find their way. And we have made the sky a roof withheld (from them). Yet they turn away from its portents. And He it is Who created the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. They float, each in an orbit. We appointed immortality for no mortal before thee. What! if thou diest, can they be immortal! Every soul must taste of death, and We try you with evil and with good, for ordeal. And unto Us ye will be returned.
22 : 30-35
Related Articles,
Click here Divine Decree : "al qada' wal qadar"
Click here Of Big Bang, Stephen Hawkings and Arash
Click here An Aidil Azhar Letter to an Agnostic Friend
Friday, March 18, 2011
Faces in Islam : The Power of Doubt.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RG0gOMq4ihE&NR=1
The power of reasoning and scientific advancement were elements that kept the bludgeoning Muslim empire of that time going. When in the 14th century while the capitals of Europe were still dark at night,infested with rats and pestilence, the Muslim cities of Servile, Cordoba and Baghdad were in comparision , cities of light and enlightenment.Between the 8th to the 14th century the pursuit of 'ilm, ilm and ilm' was what that kept them apart.
When the light of Islam subsequently faded, when Muslims of that time thought ijtihad and thinking ended with the 14th century, that what need to be discoursed were already well discussed and what need to be discovered had all been discovered, the thinking caps moved on to Europe. The 'photostat' machines of Europe was busy working overtime. Indeed European renaissance that catapulted them to present day Western hegemony of knowledge was initially build on the template of science founded by the early Muslim pioneers.
Now in 2011, Muslims must get permission from The UN Security Council before they can go back to study the 'atom'. The Council likewise can sit and discuss at their time and convenience how to divide a Muslim country in whatever ways and size the want. The Barbarians of the 14th centuries have finally taken over the Main Table.
We Muslims must watch,wait and fight for crumbs handed down......
Such is the power of 'ilm, ilm and ilm'.
The power of reasoning and scientific advancement were elements that kept the bludgeoning Muslim empire of that time going. When in the 14th century while the capitals of Europe were still dark at night,infested with rats and pestilence, the Muslim cities of Servile, Cordoba and Baghdad were in comparision , cities of light and enlightenment.Between the 8th to the 14th century the pursuit of 'ilm, ilm and ilm' was what that kept them apart.
When the light of Islam subsequently faded, when Muslims of that time thought ijtihad and thinking ended with the 14th century, that what need to be discoursed were already well discussed and what need to be discovered had all been discovered, the thinking caps moved on to Europe. The 'photostat' machines of Europe was busy working overtime. Indeed European renaissance that catapulted them to present day Western hegemony of knowledge was initially build on the template of science founded by the early Muslim pioneers.
Now in 2011, Muslims must get permission from The UN Security Council before they can go back to study the 'atom'. The Council likewise can sit and discuss at their time and convenience how to divide a Muslim country in whatever ways and size the want. The Barbarians of the 14th centuries have finally taken over the Main Table.
We Muslims must watch,wait and fight for crumbs handed down......
Such is the power of 'ilm, ilm and ilm'.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Faces in Islam, [ 2]: Science and Islam
first part of a 6 u-tube presentation on Science and Islam.
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
Read: In the name of thy Lord Who createth,
Createth man from a clot.
Read: And thy Lord is the Most Bounteous,
Who teacheth by the pen,
Teacheth man that which he knew not.
96 : 1-5
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Faces in Islam , Jewels from The Quran
Beginning early this month and most probably stretching up to June insyaalah I would venture into 2 aspect of our Ummah.
Firstly, from time to time I would introduce Shaykh Ismail bin Musa Menk, the present mufti of Zimbabwe, who will take us on a most beautiful journey from Surah Al Fatihah up to probably Juz 22 of the Holy Quran. The Holy Quran and its correct interpretation and oftentimes reinterpretion, along with Seerah Nabi and hadith, are pivotal to our survival and 'hasanah' here and the hereafter . In this context, Shaykh Ismail Menk is certainly very qualified to guide us towards the Straight Path.He certainly has a great sense of humour and tremendous knowledge and wisdom. This is probably the non controversial part of my presentation.
In 'Faces in Islam', I am going to take you guys on an intellectual journey across the vast so-called diverse and sometime confounding Muslim hinterland, probably starting first with the glorious days Of The Abbasid era, Muslim Spain, The Ottomans, and current Ummah. Currently there are an estimated 1.5 billion Muslims on this planet ie one out of every four human being is a Muslim. We carry a massive amount of cultural, historical and often times, pseudo religious baggage which when amplified and 'dissected' further with microscopic vision and intent, tend to divide and weaken us further.Jackals and hyenas are just out there to take advantage of our inherent and perceived weakness for indeed the opposite of Truth is Kufr and TRUTH has many enemies. Present day Abu Jahals, Abu Lahabs and Abdullah bin Ubays have unlimited funding, massive armoury including nuclear weopens and knowledge behind them. We just have TRUTH.
May I suggest you leave behind your views and 'position' and travel along with me. We will take that interesting journey, Insyaallah........Starting March !
Firstly, from time to time I would introduce Shaykh Ismail bin Musa Menk, the present mufti of Zimbabwe, who will take us on a most beautiful journey from Surah Al Fatihah up to probably Juz 22 of the Holy Quran. The Holy Quran and its correct interpretation and oftentimes reinterpretion, along with Seerah Nabi and hadith, are pivotal to our survival and 'hasanah' here and the hereafter . In this context, Shaykh Ismail Menk is certainly very qualified to guide us towards the Straight Path.He certainly has a great sense of humour and tremendous knowledge and wisdom. This is probably the non controversial part of my presentation.
In 'Faces in Islam', I am going to take you guys on an intellectual journey across the vast so-called diverse and sometime confounding Muslim hinterland, probably starting first with the glorious days Of The Abbasid era, Muslim Spain, The Ottomans, and current Ummah. Currently there are an estimated 1.5 billion Muslims on this planet ie one out of every four human being is a Muslim. We carry a massive amount of cultural, historical and often times, pseudo religious baggage which when amplified and 'dissected' further with microscopic vision and intent, tend to divide and weaken us further.Jackals and hyenas are just out there to take advantage of our inherent and perceived weakness for indeed the opposite of Truth is Kufr and TRUTH has many enemies. Present day Abu Jahals, Abu Lahabs and Abdullah bin Ubays have unlimited funding, massive armoury including nuclear weopens and knowledge behind them. We just have TRUTH.
May I suggest you leave behind your views and 'position' and travel along with me. We will take that interesting journey, Insyaallah........Starting March !
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Muhammad Ibnu Abdullah, messenger of God
Faces in Islam............
In our first journey across time and space in 'Faces in Islam',let us acquaint ourselves with the principal actor, Muhammad ibnu Abdullah, messenger of God. Born some 1450 years ago in Makkah, orphaned at birth, illiterate but full of wisdom even during his youthful days,preordained in Loth Mahfuz in a distant 'land beyond land' at a 'time' before time' to lead the whole of mankind from kufr to TRUTH.
Let us listen to this presentation by leading orientalists and erudite scholars of Islam in the world on the subject of Muhammad Ibnu Abdullah, messenger of God. I find their perspective very fair and balanced.
Click here
Click here for part 2
Al-Alaq
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
Read: In the name of thy Lord Who createth, (1) Createth man from a clot. (2) Read: And thy Lord is the Most Bounteous, (3) Who teacheth by the pen, (4) Teacheth man that which he knew not. (5) Nay, but verily man is rebellious (6) That he thinketh himself independent! (7) Lo! unto thy Lord is the return. (8) Hast thou seen him who dissuadeth (9) A slave when he prayeth? (10) Hast thou seen if he relieth on the guidance (of Allah) (11) Or enjoineth piety? (12) Hast thou seen if he denieth (Allah's guidance) and is froward? (13) Is he then unaware that Allah seeth? (14) Nay, but if he cease not We will seize him by the forelock - (15) The lying, sinful forelock - (16) Then let him call upon his henchmen! (17) We will call the guards of hell. (18) Nay, Obey not thou him. But prostrate thyself, and draw near (unto Allah). (19)
Click here for part 3
Al-Fatiha
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful (1)
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, (2) The Beneficent, the Merciful. (3) Owner of the Day of Judgment, (4) Thee (alone) we worship; Thee (alone) we ask for help. (5) Show us the straight path, (6) The path of those whom Thou hast favoured. Not (the path) of those who earn Thine anger nor of those who go astray. (7)
Click here for part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8
Part 9
Part 10
Part 11
Part 12
Prophet Muhammad's last sermon [ Khutbah ]
Click here
...and by the way, 1.5 billion people on this small planet earth are some kind of raving lunatics to have followed Muhammad Ibnu Abdullah, messenger of God according to this lady!!
Click here
Mashaallah, there is no limit to being Deaf, Dumb and Blind ! Hearing this apparenyly much 'educated' lady's ranting ,full of barbs and poison and anger, I felt blessed waking up every morning with my soul and faith intact to yet go through another day insyaallah with my faith in HIM unblemished and insyaallah when the time come for Izrail to pull my soul out of my 'halkum' I would still have the strenght to say: La ila hailllah, Muhammada rasullallah.
There is no god but God. Muhammad is HIS messenger.
In our first journey across time and space in 'Faces in Islam',let us acquaint ourselves with the principal actor, Muhammad ibnu Abdullah, messenger of God. Born some 1450 years ago in Makkah, orphaned at birth, illiterate but full of wisdom even during his youthful days,preordained in Loth Mahfuz in a distant 'land beyond land' at a 'time' before time' to lead the whole of mankind from kufr to TRUTH.
Let us listen to this presentation by leading orientalists and erudite scholars of Islam in the world on the subject of Muhammad Ibnu Abdullah, messenger of God. I find their perspective very fair and balanced.
Click here
Click here for part 2
Al-Alaq
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
Read: In the name of thy Lord Who createth, (1) Createth man from a clot. (2) Read: And thy Lord is the Most Bounteous, (3) Who teacheth by the pen, (4) Teacheth man that which he knew not. (5) Nay, but verily man is rebellious (6) That he thinketh himself independent! (7) Lo! unto thy Lord is the return. (8) Hast thou seen him who dissuadeth (9) A slave when he prayeth? (10) Hast thou seen if he relieth on the guidance (of Allah) (11) Or enjoineth piety? (12) Hast thou seen if he denieth (Allah's guidance) and is froward? (13) Is he then unaware that Allah seeth? (14) Nay, but if he cease not We will seize him by the forelock - (15) The lying, sinful forelock - (16) Then let him call upon his henchmen! (17) We will call the guards of hell. (18) Nay, Obey not thou him. But prostrate thyself, and draw near (unto Allah). (19)
Click here for part 3
Al-Fatiha
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful (1)
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, (2) The Beneficent, the Merciful. (3) Owner of the Day of Judgment, (4) Thee (alone) we worship; Thee (alone) we ask for help. (5) Show us the straight path, (6) The path of those whom Thou hast favoured. Not (the path) of those who earn Thine anger nor of those who go astray. (7)
Click here for part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8
Part 9
Part 10
Part 11
Part 12
Prophet Muhammad's last sermon [ Khutbah ]
Click here
...and by the way, 1.5 billion people on this small planet earth are some kind of raving lunatics to have followed Muhammad Ibnu Abdullah, messenger of God according to this lady!!
Click here
Mashaallah, there is no limit to being Deaf, Dumb and Blind ! Hearing this apparenyly much 'educated' lady's ranting ,full of barbs and poison and anger, I felt blessed waking up every morning with my soul and faith intact to yet go through another day insyaallah with my faith in HIM unblemished and insyaallah when the time come for Izrail to pull my soul out of my 'halkum' I would still have the strenght to say: La ila hailllah, Muhammada rasullallah.
There is no god but God. Muhammad is HIS messenger.
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