Story of an idolator

Abdul Wahid b. Zaid (mercy be upon him) whobelonged to a lineage of
saints said, "We were once sailing in a boat. A gush of wind blew away
our boat to an island where we saw a man busy adoring an idol. We
asked him what he was worshipping. He pointed towards the idol. We
said to him that this idol was made with his own hands.How could he
worship it? The God whom we worship creates all such things Himself,
and so deserves to be worshipped, alone." He then asked us, who do you
worship? We told him, "We worship the Great God (Allah) who lives in
the highest heaven. He alone controls the heavens and the earth. All
other creatures whether human or animaldepend on Him for their
sustenance." He further asked how we came to know about this Glorious
God. We replied, "He sent His final Messenger (Peacebe Upon him) to
the whole of mankind to teach them about His Greatness." He proceeded
to enquire "Let me know of the place where this Prophet of God is?" We
replied, "After the Prophethad completed his mission by conveying the
message of God he died and returned to his Lord". He continued to ask,
"Did this Messenger of God leave behind a thing for your guidance?" We
explained, "Yes, he left behind a Book (the Qur'an), which was
revealed by God. He askedto see the book. We offered him the Holy
Qur'an. He told us he was unable to read and so we recited a few
verses for him instead. During the course of its recital he repeatedly
wept until we stopped. He finally asserted, "This can only befrom
Allah, the Most High", and immediately confirmed his Faith in Allah
and His Messenger. We informed him about the duties of Islam and also
explained some verses of the Holy Qur'an.
After the late night prayerwe went to bed and the man continued to ask
questions. "Does Allah sleep at night? he wondered aloud as we
laycomfortably in our beds."Our Exalted God is Everliving and
Everlasting.He does not sleep or rest!"we exclaimed. On hearing this
he cried, "What disobedient slaves you are! Your Lord keeps awake,
whereas you sleep!" We were dumbstruck by his remark.
When we were about to return from this island, hebegged us to take him
with us to allow him to learn more. We agreed. On reaching the city of
'Aabadan, says Abdul Wahid, I said to my companions, "This man is our
brother, therefore we should provide him with some livelihood". Some
dirhams were offered to him but he refused to accept them and
exclaimed, "What is this?"We replied, "These are some dirhams for your
expenditure." He said, "It is enough that you have shown me the right
path. I was upon error and Allah guided me. I did not even worship him
yet He neither destroyed nor killed me. I am so gratefulto Him and
you.
After a few days, we weretold that he was about to breathe his last.
We went to see him and asked him if there was any need of his to be
satisfied. He said no and that he was happywith all that he had gained
from Allah. Abdul Wahid said, "I was all of a sudden, overcome by
sleep and hence slept there. While sleeping, I saw a very fertile
garden wherein was a very fine vault; a throne occupied by a very
beautiful girl, a beauty that I had never seen before. She said to me,
'By Allah, I returned him to His Lord quickly', By seeing her in such
a state I became very anxious. He added, ''WhenI woke up, the man had
passed away. We managed to bury him immediately.'' Again at night,
said Abdul Wahid; ''I witnessed the same garden, the same vault and
the same girl sitting besides the man who had died. She was reciting
the following Qur'anic verse, the translation of which is''And the
Angels visit them from each door and send them their compliments, glad
tidings for peace and safety against each kind of misfortune. All this
is the fruit of your contentment (and steadfastness for the religion
of Islam). There is therefore a good reward for you in the
Hereafter.''
This story of the idolator shows the Greatness of Allah and His Mercy
towards the man who previously worshipped idols. He sent the people to
the island as a means to guide the idolator and thus rewarded him a
magnificent reward in thehereafter.
''O Master of the world ! Whom Thou giveth to, nobody can withhold and
whom Thou giveth not, no one can confer upon him.''

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Commentary on the verse in which Allaah says: “Verily, Allaah will not change the (good) condition of a people aslong as they do not change their state (of goodness) themselves (by committing sins andby being ungrateful anddisobedient to Allaah)” [al

Commentary on the verse in which Allaah says: "Verily, Allaah will not
change the (good) condition of a people aslong as they do not change
their state (of goodness) themselves (by committing sins andby being
ungrateful anddisobedient to Allaah)" [al-Ra'd 13:11]
-
What is the meaning of the words of Allaah, may He be blessed and
exalted, in Soorat al-Ra'd (interpretation of the meaning): "Verily,
Allaah will not change the (good) condition of a people as long as
they do not change their state (of goodness) themselves (bycommitting
sins and by being ungrateful and disobedient to Allaah)" [al-Ra'd
13:11]?.
Praise be to Allaah.
This is an important verse which indicates that Allaah, may He be
blessed and exalted, in His perfect justice and wisdom does not change
the condition of the people from good to bad or from bad to good, from
ease to hardship or from hardshipto ease, unless they change their
condition themselves. So if they are in a state of righteousnessand
goodness and they change, Allaah will changethings for them with
punishment, calamities, hardship, drought, famine,disunity and other
kinds of punishments as appropriate requital. Allaah says
(interpretationof the meaning): "And your Lord is not at all unjust to
(His) slaves" [Fussilat 41:46].
Or He may give them respite and give them time so that they might
truen to the right path, but if they do not then they will be seized
unexpectedly, as He says (interpretation of the meaning): "So, when
they forgot (the warning) with which they had been reminded, We opened
for them the gates of every (pleasant) thing, until in the midst of
their enjoyment in that which they were given, all of a sudden, We
took them (inpunishment), and lo! Theywere plunged into destruction
with deep regrets and sorrows" [al-An'aam 6:44]., meaning despairing
of all goodness -- we seek refuge in Allaah from the punishment and
wrath of Allaah. Or they may be given respite until the Dayof
Resurrection, when their punishment will be more severe, as Allaah
says (interpretation of themeaning):
"Consider not that Allaah is unaware of that which the Zâlimûn
(polytheists, wrongdoers) do, but He gives them respite up to aDay
when the eyes will stare in horror"[Ibraaheem 14:42], meaning that
they are given respite until after death, and that will be a greater
and more severe punishment.
Or they may be in a state of evil and sin, then they repent to Allaah
and turn back to Him, and they regret their sins and adhere to
obedience, so Allaah changes their state of wretchedness, hardshipand
poverty to ease, unityand righteousness because of their good deeds
and their repentance to Allaah, mayHe be glorified and exalted. It
says in another verse (interpretation of the meaning): "That is so
because Allaah will never change a grace which He has bestowed on a
peopleuntil they change what is in their ownselves" [al-Anfaal 8:53].
This versetells us that if they are in a state of ease, comfort and
goodness, then they change and turn to sin, their situation will be
changed -- there is no power and no strength except with Allaah -- or
they may be given respite, as stated above. The opposite is also true:
if they were in a state of evil and sin, or disbelief and misguidance,
then they repent, regret their sin and adhere to obedience to Allaah,
Allaah will change their situation from bad to good; He will change
theirdisunity into unity and harmony; He will change their hardship to
ease, well being and plenty; He will change their situationfrom
draught, famine, , lack of water and so on torainfall, fertile land
and other kinds of goodness. End quote.

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Nothing, Only Love

He comes to you with barbs in his skin
and blood on his cheek.
He comes with eyes of loam and gold.
He comes to you again andagain,
as a youth and a man.
He has never forgotten you.
He comes with burns on his back
but standing straight,
hiding his scars and his shame,
wearing a half-thawed grin.
He has never stopped thanking you.
He comes with no answers,
with nothing, only love,
a heart like a sun,
and a soul like an African rain.
Will you open your arms to him
and hold him so tightly
that when you let go
he falls down laughing
happy to be alive,
happy to be a father and a man,
happy for you
and for the first time, yearsago
that he heard your voice
like the whisper
of a summer wind?

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THE STATUS OF WOMAN IN ISLAM

The Spiritual Aspect
-
The Qur'an provides clear-cut evidence that woman iscompletely equated
withman in the sight of God interms of her rights and
responsibilities. The Qur'anstates:
"Every soul will be (held) in pledge for its deeds" (Qur'an 74:38). It
also states:
...So their Lord accepted their prayers, (saying): I will not suffer
to be lost the work of any of you whether male or female. You proceed
one from another ...(Qur'an 3: 195).
Whoever works righteousness, man or woman, and has faith, verily to
him will We give a new life that is good andpure, and We will bestow
on such their reward according to the their actions. (Qur'an 16:97,
see also 4:124).
Woman according to the Qur'an is not blamed for Adam's first mistake.
Both were jointly wrong in theirdisobedience to God, both repented,
and both were forgiven. (Qur'an 2:36, 7:20 - 24). In one verse in fact
(20:121), Adam specifically, was blamed.
In terms of religious obligations, such as the Daily Prayers, Fasting,
Poor-due, and Pilgrimage, woman is no different from man. In some
cases indeed, woman has certainadvantages over man. For example, the
woman is exempted from the daily prayers and from fasting during her
menstrual periods and forty days after childbirth. She is also
exempted from fasting during her pregnancy and when she is nursing her
baby if there is any threat to her health or her baby's.If the missed
fasting is obligatory (during the month of Ramadan), she can make up
for the missed days whenever shecan. She does not have to make up for
the prayers missed for any of the above reasons. Although women can
and did go into the mosque during the days of the prophet and
thereafter attendance et the Friday congregational prayers is optional
for them while it is mandatory for men (on Friday).
This is clearly a tender touch of the Islamic teachings for they are
considerate of the fact thata woman may be nursing her baby or caring
for him,and thus may be unable togo out to the mosque at the time of
the prayers. They also take into account the physiological and
psychological changes associated with her natural female functions.
The Social Aspect
a) As a child and an adolescent
Despite the social acceptance of female infanticide among some Arabian
tribes, the Qur'an forbade this custom, and considered it a crime like
any other murder.
"And when the female (infant) buried alive - is questioned, for what
crimeshe was killed." (Qur'an 81:8-9).
Criticizing the attitudes of such parents who reject their female
children, the Qur'an states:
When news is brought to one of them, of (the Birth of) a female
(child), his facedarkens and he is filled with inward grief! With
shame does he hide himself from his people because of the bad news he
has had! Shall he retain her on (sufferance) and contempt, or bury her
in the dust? Ah! What an evil (choice) they decide on? (Qur'an 16:
58-59).
Far from saving the girl's life so that she may later suffer injustice
and inequality, Islam requires kind and just treatment forher. Among
the sayings of Prophet Muhammad (P.) inthis regard are the following:
Whosoever has a daughterand he does not bury her alive, does not
insult her, and does not favor his son over her, God will enter him
into Paradise. (Ibn Hanbal, No. 1957).
Whosoever supports two daughters till they mature,he and I will come
in the day of judgment as this (and he pointed with his two fingers
held together).
A similar Hadeeth deals in like manner with one who supports two
sisters. (Ibn-Hanbal, No. 2104).
The right of females to seek knowledge is not different from that of
males. Prophet Muhammad (P.) said:
"Seeking knowledge is mandatory for every Muslim". (AlBayhaqi). Muslim
as used here including both males and females.
b) As a wife:
The Qur'an clearly indicates that marriage is sharing between the two
halves of the society, and that its objectives, beside perpetuating
human life, are emotional well-being and spiritual harmony. Its bases
are love and mercy.
Among the most impressive verses in the Qur'an about marriage is the following.
"And among His signs is this: That He created mates for you from
yourselves that you may find rest, peace of mind in them, and He
ordained between you love and mercy. Lo, herein indeed are signs for
people who reflect." (Qur'an 30:2 1).
According to Islamic Law, women cannot be forced to marry anyone
without their consent.
Ibn Abbas reported that a girl came to the Messengerof God, Muhammad
(P.), and she reported that her father had forced her to marry without
her consent. The Messenger of God gave her the choice . . .(between
accepting the marriage or invalidating it). (Ibn Hanbal No. 2469)

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