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Ataturk was a devout  believer with a  profound respect for  Allah, the Qur’an and  Islam. One can see that  devotion in his words  and deeds. Ataturk said  it was impossible for an  irreligious person to live  and frequently describes the beauties of Islam,  the last and true faith.
… In my view, even irreligious types are believers. It is impossible for a person to be irreligious. Nobody can be irreligious. (02. 02.  1923, Izmir, Speech on  the Future of Turkey.)
"Religion is human beings’ nourishment. An irreligious man is like an empty house. He distresses people. We must always believe in something. This last of the faiths is of course the most perfect. Islam is superior to all faiths... (Ataturk and Religious Education, Ahmet Gürbaş, Department of Religious Affairs Press, p. 2)
'Our nation possesses a powerful virtue, religion. No power has ever removed that virtue from the heart and conscience of the nation, and never can.'
Religion is an essential element. Nations with no religion cannot survive.
The Turkish nation must be more devout. It must be devout in all simplicity. I believe this in the same way I believe in my faith...” (Ataturk’s Words and Statements, Vol. 3, p. 69-70, 29.10.1923, statement to the French author Maurice Pernot)
He said that Muslims must adhere to the path shown by our Prophet (pbuh) and live like our Prophet (pbuh) for the salvation of Islam:
"The Muslims of the  whole world must follow the path shown by  Muhammad (saas), the  last prophet of Allah, and fully obey all his  commands. All Muslims  must take the Prophet  Muhammad (saas) as a  role model and act like  him; they must obey all  the commandments of  Islam. Because only in  this way can people be  happy and  regenerated." (Ataturk in Urdu Publications,  Ankara University Faculty of Languages, History  and Geography, 1979, p.  70-71)
"One can only display one’s respect for the Prophet Muhammad (saas), who carried out a great revolution, by maintaining his ideas and essential values." (Şemsettin Günaltay,  Ülkü Magazine, No. 100,  p.)
Ataturk always carried a  copy of the Qur’an with  him and enjoyed  listening to the Qur’an.  He was sometimes  greatly influenced by the commentaries he read as he worked and would  ask,
`O My Lord... Those who  do not believe in the  Qur’an are unbelievers.  How can they show us  the way? We must  ensure that the entire  world reads this. My soul rejoices as I read it. Do  you feel the same?`
Ataturk frequently  expressed his love of  and admiration for our  Prophet (saas), and  described his moral  values, powerful faith  and leadership as  exemplary.
Those who doubt that he is a true prophet should look at this map and read the epic of Badr. The victory that the Prophet Muhammad (saas) won with a handful of devout Muslims against the vast and wealthy horde of the Qur’aysh is not the work of a mortal man. That battle is the most explicit proof of his prophethood. (Ataturk and Religious Education, Department of Religious Affairs Press, p. 2)
"He was the first and greatest servant of Allah. Millions of people today follow in his path. Your name and mine will vanish, but he is immortal to the end." (Dr. Utkan Kocatürk,  Ataturk’s Views and  Ideas, Ataturk and  Religious Education, A.  Gürtaş, p. 26)
Muhammad Moustafa  first gained the love,  respect and trust of his  people without being a  prophet … He worked  for twenty years, amid  countless dangers and  facing endless troubles  and difficulties, and  after succeeding in his  task as prophet of  building Islam... he  attained the loftiest  abode in paradise. ( 1922 (Ataturk's S.D. I, p.  262-263) )
Ataturk several times  expressed the  importance and  essential nature of  religion for the Turkish  nation.
... THERE IS NO POSSIBILITY OF NATIONS WITHOUT  FAITH SURVIVING. EVERY  INDIVIDUAL NEEDS A PLACe TO LEARN ABOUT  RELIGION, RELIGIOUS  MATTERS AND FAITH . That  place is school. But in  the same way that we  need higher schools, and people with higher  education in all subjects, we  must have high  institutions to raise true  scholars to establish the  truth of our faith, and  who have the  intellectual and scientific ability to engage in  profound research.
Ataturk also said that the Holy Qur’an must be  adopted as a guide in all spheres of life. In1923,  he entered a class on  moral values that was  being taught at the  Dar’ul Hilafat al-Aliya  Madrassa in Konya and  asked a student by the  name of Hamdi Zade  Hamdi to expound on  the verse“Allah commands you to return to their owners the things you hold on trust and, when you judge between people, to judge with justice. How excellent is what Allah exhorts you to do! Allah is All-Hearing, All-Seeing” (Surat an-Nisa, 58) and  clarify the moral  principles therein.
Once the student had  done this, Ataturk  expressed his feelings  and ideas by telling the  teacher and students “I  REGARD THIS VERSE AS THE SOLE PROOF OF OUR  SUCCESS.” (Ataturk in All  Respects, Altıner, Ankara, 1962, p. 487, related  from Mahmut Yağmur)
During the worst days of the War of  Independence, Kerim  Pasha expounded on the verse of the Qur’an  reading“THE HAND OF Allah IS UPON THEM” and  said that, as the verse  says, they would  overcome all difficulties  with His help. Ataturk  then replied:
“Beloved, THE HAND OF  ALLAH IS UPON THEM ALL... THE NATION WILL OBEY  ALLAH’S COMMAND AND,  AS YOU SAY, WHAT WE  OBTAIN AS THE NATION  WILL BE GOOD AND  AUSPICIOUS. I ASK YOU  NOT TO WITHOLD YOUR  PRAYERS. THE EFFORT  COMES FROM US, BUT ALL  HELP AND EASE COMES  FROM ALLAH, WHO IS  ETERNAL.” (Collected  Works of Ataturk, Vol. 4,  p. 137. Ataturk also  included this in his  Speeches.)
Ataturk emphasized the  importance of religious  education as follows:
... Our religion has never  demanded that women  lag behind men. WHAT  Allah COMMANDS IS FOR  MUSLIM MEN AND WOMEN  TO BE EDUCATED BY  LEARNING THE FAITH  TOGETHER. MEN AND  WOMEN HAVE AN  OBLIGATION TO SEEK THIS  KNOWLEDGE AND  EDUCATION AND GO WHERE THEY FIND IT AND EQUIP  THEMSELVES WITH IT.
PUBLISHER

Najimudeen M
 
 
 
 
 
 
    
   
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Our mother Hazrat  Khadija (ra), the first  wife of our beloved  Prophet (saas), was at  the same time the first  female Muslim.
Our worthy mother  made great efforts to  assist the spread of Islam through  her intellect,  foresight and wisdom.
With her submission,  courage and devotion,  our mother Hazrat  Khadija (ra), one of our  Prophet’s (saas) greatest supporters, was a role  model for all Muslims.
Our Prophet (saas) first  told Hazrat Khadija (ra)  of the revelation that  came to him; and she,  with her intelligence  and foresight, her  unquestioning  obedience to and trust  in our Prophet (saas),  realized that he had  been especially chosen  by Allah and believed  him straight away .  When the prophethood  was bestowed upon  him, Hazrat Khadija (ra)  said "I bear witness that  you are the Messenger  of Allah" and converted  to Islam.
Hazrat Khadija (ra) was  from the Quraysh, one of the leading Arab tribes,  and her family shared  the same line of descent  as our Prophet (saas).  And although she was  subjected to many tests  reflecting the moral  values of the ignorant  Arab society in which  she lived, she always   exhibited a most  powerful and  determined character in  the face of all  adversities.
·     According to  accounts, Hazrat Khadija (ra) died three years  before the hegira (19  April, 620 A.D.) and lived  at a time when Islam  had not yet become  strong and achieved  dominion. Despite the  difficult conditions of  the time, and all the  persecution by the  pagans of Mecca, she  maintained her  unquestioning  submission to Allah and  our Prophet (saas).
·       At a time when  there were quite  literally only three  Muslims in the world,  Hazrat Khadija (ra)  would sometimes  worship around the  Kaaba with the  Messenger of Allah (saas) and Hazrat Ali (ra), and  sometimes at home.
·       When the pagans of Mecca besieged the  Muslims at Shi'bu Abi  Talib, Hazrat Khadija (ra) withstood the siege  alongside our Prophet  (saas) with tremendous  courage, fortitude and  heroism.
·       The immaculate line of our Prophet (saas),  that will continue until  the Day of Reckoning, is  descended from our  mother Hazrat Khadija  (ra). With the exception  of Hazrat Maria (ra),  whose son Abraham  died subsequently, our  Prophet (saas) had no  children with any of his  other precious wives.
·       Our Prophet (saas)  had six children with  our mother Hazrat  Khadija (ra). The first of  these was Hazrat Fatima, who would continue the line, from whom Hazrat  Hassan and Hazrat  Husseinm whose lines  will also continue until  the Day of Reckoning,  were born.
·       Our mother Hazrat  Khadija (ra) was a  wealthy person  engaged in business;  but after becoming a  Muslim, instead of  seeking worldly  advantages, she happily  used everything she had acquired in order to  earn the approval of  Allah and was a role  model in terms of  spending her fortune  for the sake of Islam.
·       Hazrat Khadija’s (ra) purity and chastity were renowned even before  her conversion to Islam,  for which reason she  was known as "Tâhire" (the spotless and  immaculate woman).
PUBLISHER

Najimudeen M
 
 
 
 
 
 
    
   
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Lying is the source of all sins and it is the shortest way to Hell. The Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:“Beware of lying because lying leads to dissoluteness, and dissoluteness leads to Hell. A person keeps on telling lies until he is written before Allaah as a liar.”]Al-Bukhaari and Muslim[
Lying, in essence, is deliberately telling something that is other than the truth and is something dispraised by all sensible people. A liar is always in doubt and never truly believes anything. Had this been the only disadvantage of lying, it would have been sufficient. Some philosophers have stated,“The one who knows himself to be a liar will never believe people who tell the truth. Moreover, the one who is known to be a liar will never be believed, even when he tells the truth. Not only this, but when people hear lies, they may automatically attribute it to him, even if he is not the one who told it.”
Reasons and Signs
There are several causes of lying and various signs that indicate it. There is no doubt that knowing such causes and signs is of great help in treatment because the first step in the treatment of any disease is knowing its causes and determining its symptoms in order to eliminate them. Al-Maawardi , may Allaah have mercy upon him, mentioned some of these reasons as follows:
1-Bringing benefit and driving away harm. The liar thinks that lying is safer and more beneficial; hence, he resorts to lying as he is deceived and aspires to get something in return.
2-Preferring his speech to be pleasant and nice, thinking that the truth is neither pleasant nor nice. So, he prefers to lie as it is the easiest thing to do.
3-Intending to gratify one’s thirst for revenge. So, he may tell lies about his enemy and attribute falsities to him.
4-Getting used to lying, which turns into a habit because its reasons accumulate and a liar becomes familiar with them.
5-Having an inclination to domineer, as the liar thinks that he is superior to the others to whom he gives information, thereby believing himself to be like a righteous scholar.
Some of the Signs of Lying
When one tells a liar something, he cannot differentiate between what he tells him and what he made up.
One can make a liar doubtful of his own words to the extent that he might take them back.
If one argues with a liar about what he said, he would get confused and not be able to defend himself or refute what he says.
Doubt and suspicion would be apparent on his face. Some wise men have said that faces are like mirrors that expose the secrets that people conceal.
If a person becomes a liar, all unknown rumors would be attributed to him, in addition to other made up lies, to the extent that people would tell lies about him. Thus, he would combine two different things: the disgrace of being a liar and the harm of lying to him.
Types of Lying
There are various types of lying; be it lying in deeds, sayings or intentions.The firstis lying in sayings. It means deliberately telling something that is not true or real. This type has different forms that vary in the degree of guilt. The gravest and worst type is telling lies about Allaah the Exalted and/or His Messenger,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Allaah The Almighty Says )what means(:}And who is more unjust than one who invents about Allaah a lie{]Quran 6:21[
This also includes deciding what is lawful and what is unlawful according to personal whims and not according to theSharee‘ah. That is why Allaah The Almighty rebukes the disbelievers when they claim that what they say is the legislation of Allaah. Allaah The Almighty Says )what means(:
}And do not say about what your tongues assert of untruth, “This is lawful and this is unlawful,” to invent falsehood about Allaah{]Quran 16:116[
}Or have they other deities who have ordained for them a religion to which Allaah has not consented? But if not for the decisive word, it would have been concluded between them. And indeed, the wrongdoers will have a painful punishment.{]Quran 42:21[
Moreover, the Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, warned us against telling lies about him when he said:“Whoever tells a lie about me intentionally, let him settle in his seat in Hell.”]Saheeh Al-Jaami‘ As-Sagheer: 6519[
This type also includes inventing lies about the believers such as those who testify to falsehood do. The Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, considered testifying to falsehood one of the grave major sins. Nowadays, we find that many people sell their religion and conscience and testify to falsehood, thereby squandering or failing to give people’s rights or making false accusations against them out of greed for a worldly reward or to gratify their thirst for revenge.
Another example is lying when joking in order to make others laugh. The Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:“Woe to him who lies to make people laugh. Woe to him! Woe to him!”]Ahmad and Abu Daawood, At-Tirmithi -Hasan[
A believer cannot be a liar for faith and lying cannot be combined in one person. Hence, when the Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was asked if a believer could be a liar, he replied in the negative, in spite of the fact that he stated that a believer could be a miser or a coward. This is because lying is one of the signs of hypocrisy. The Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said:“There are three characteristics of a hypocrite: when he speaks he lies, when he makes a promise he breaks it and when he is trusted he betrays.”
Lying is not one of the characteristics of the noble rather a characteristic of the mean who despise themselves and find lying easy. If they had real self-esteem, they would have avoided lying.
‘Umar ibn Al-Khattaab, may Allaah be pleased with him, said,“It is better for me to tell the truth even if it would demean me - and it rarely does - than to tell a lie that may elevate me - and it rarely does.”
The second typeis lying in deeds. One may do something in order to deceive others into believing that something actually happened, while it did not, or to express the existence of something that does not really exist. Lying in deeds could be more dangerous or more effective than lying in sayings. An example of this is what was narrated in the Quran about the brothers of Yoosuf )Joseph(, may Allaah exalt his mention, when they came to their father at night weepingand with his shirt stained with false blood. So they lied both in their deeds and in their sayings. ]Al-Akhlaaq Al-Islaamiyyah:1/529[
The third typeis lying in intentions, and this is when one intends to do something for the sake of anyone or anything other than Allaah. This is supported by theHadeethof the three types of people who would be the first to be thrown in Hell: the martyr, the scholar and the one who used to give charity.
Each one of these three would claim that he did what he did for the sake of Allaah but they would be told that they are liars. The first would be told,“You fought so that people would say that you are courageous.’The second would be told,“You gave in charity so that people would say that you are generous,”and the third would be told,“You learned so that people would say that you are a scholar.Therefore, lying is indeed the source of all sins and it brings utter disgrace upon the liar.
PUBLISHER

Najimudeen M