Why an authoritarian rule is against Islam

Forcing people to believe in a religion or to adopt its forms of
belief is completely contrary to the essence and spirit of Islam. That
is because according to Islam, true faith is only possible with free
will and freedom of conscience.
In the contemporary world, there are people who envisage or
supportauthoritarianism in the name of Islam. However this is a great
misconception. Islam is areligion which provides and guarantees
freedomof ideas, thought and life. It has issued commands to prevent
and forbid tension, disputes, slander and even negative thinking among
people. In the same way that it is determinedly opposed to terrorism
and all acts of violence, it has also forbidden even the slightest
ideological pressure to be put on them:
There is no compulsion in religion. True guidance has become clearly
distinct from error. (Surat al-Baqara: 256)
So remind them! You areonly a reminder. You arenot in control of them.
(Surat al -Ghashiyya: 21-22)
Forcing people to believe in a religion or to adopt its forms of
belief is completely contrary to the essence and spirit of Islam. That
is because according to Islam, true faith is only possible with free
will and freedom of conscience. Of course, Muslims can advise and
encourage each other about the features of Qur'anic morality. All
believers are charged with explaining Qur'anicmorality to people in
thenicest manner possible. They will explain the beauties of religion
in the light of the verse, "Call to the way of your Lord with wisdom
and fair admonition..." (Suratan-Nahl: 125), however, they must also
bear in mind the verse, "You are not responsible for their guidance,
but God guides whoever He wills." (Surat al-Baqara: 272)
Thus true Muslims will never resort to compulsion, nor any kind of
physical or psychological pressure. Neither will they use anyworldly
privilege to turn someone towards religion. When they receive a
negative response to what they say, Muslims will reply along the lines
of: "To you your religion, and tome, mine" (Surat al- Al-Kafirun: 6)
The world we live in contains societies with all kinds of beliefs:
Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu, atheist, deist and even pagan.
Muslims living in such a world must be tolerant of all beliefs they
come up against, no matter what they may be, and behave forgivingly,
justly and humanely. This responsibility placed on believers invites
people to the beauty of the religion of God by means of peace and
tolerance. The decision whether or not to implement these truths,
whether or not tobelieve, lies with the other party. Forcing that
person to believe, or trying to impose anything on him, is a violation
of Qur'anic morality. In fact, God issues a reminder to believers in
the Qur'an:
If your Lord had willed, all the people on the earth would have
believed. Do you think you can force people to be believers? (Surat
Yunus: 99)
We know best what theysay and you [O Muhammad] are not a compeller
over them. But warn by the Qur'an whoever fears My warning. (Surat
Qaf: 45)
A model of society in which people are forced to worship is a complete
contradiction to Islam. Belief and worship are only of any value when
they are directed to God by the free will of the individual. If a
system imposes belief and worship on people, thenthey will become
religious out of fear of that system. From the religious point of
view, what really counts is thatreligion should be lived for God's
good pleasure in an environment where peoples' consciences are totally
free.
When we look at the history of Islam, the way that Muslims have
translated this importantfeature of Qur'anic morality into the life of
society can be seen quiteclearly. Since the Prophet Muhammed, true
Muslims have always brought with them an atmosphere of freedom and
tolerance wherever they have gone. They have enabledpeople whose
religions, languages and cultures are completely different from one
another to live together in peace and harmony under one roof, and
provided peace and harmony for its own members. One ofthe most
important reasons for the centuries-long existence of the Ottoman
Empire, which spread over an enormous region, was the atmosphere of
tolerance and understanding that Islam brought with it. Within this
multi-national structure, all ethnic and religious groups have been
free to live according to theirown religions, and their own rules.
Barbarism in the name of religion, that is so preoccupying the world
at present, is the work ofignorant and fanatical people, completely
estranged from Qur'anic morality, and who have absolutely nothing to
dowith religion. The solution to these people and groups who try to
carry out their savagery under the mask of religion is the teaching of
true Qur'anic morality.
Islam and Qur'anic morality are solutions to the scourge of bigotry,
barbarism and terrorism,not supporters of it.

A leader in the hive: The queen bee

There is an astonishing order in every stage of the social life of
bees, with their many miraculous characteristics. The rules in the bee
hives and bees' scrupulous implementation of theserules is just one of
these miraculous features. In addition to the rules in the hive, there
is another important factor that regulates andsupervises the order in
their social life: the bees'leader, in other words the queen.
It can be seen from a short examination of thebee hive that the
workerbees devote very special attention to one bee much larger than
themselves. This bee, thefeeding, cleaning, and protection of which,
as well as all its other needs, are taken care of by other bees, is
the queen, who ensures the continuity of the colony.
The Queen: A Very Different Bee
The number of worker bees in a hive may be in the tens of thousands,
though there is only onequeen. The presence of the queen is of vital
importance for the bees,because it is she who lays the eggs that
ensurethe survival of the colony. The privileged status of the queen
begins right from the larva stage. Queens are raised in places with
different features to those of other cells. This place where the queen
is reared consists of specially prepared cells that hang down from the
comb. Since the queen is larger in size than the other bees, it is
natural that these cells should be built to be larger than other
cells. (1)
The miraculous point here is that the egg that produces the queen is
no different to those that produce worker bees.
Due to feeding differences, during the six-day larva stage, a queen
bee with a very different appearance and functions to those ofa normal
female bee emerges. Worker bees are only given royal jelly for three
days, whereas the queen is fed with this very valuable substance
throughout the entire larval period (six days). (2) The content and
amount of the royal jelly fed to the queen are carefully regulated.
Research has shown thatwhile the queen is given10 mg of royal jelly
throughout the larval stage, worker bees are only given 3 mg. Two
living things, the queen bee and the worker bee,with various
morphological (structural) differences between them emerge as a result
of this feeding difference alone. (3)
Differences between the Queen and Other Bees
The queen differs from other bees in general structure and external
appearance. For example, although the worker bees are female, so is
the queen. Their ovaries do not develop; in other words, they are
sterile. A queen's head and thorax (body section) are not much larger
than those of worker bees. In total contrast to worker bees, the
queen's jaw lacks the appropriate structure for building wax cells.
The queen alsolacks the tough hairs that constitute the workers'
pollen sacs. Oneof the important differences is that, although the
queen emerges from an identical egg, she has a life span of four to
five years rather than the five to six weeks, (a few months in those
around in the winter), of workerbees. This is again solely due to
feeding differences.
These are just a few examples of the general differences between the
queen and other bees. One point worthy of note here is that female
bees emerge as queens or workers solely on the basis of nutritional
differences.
How Does the Queen Regulate the Gender of Other Bees?
One of the most extraordinary attributes of the queen bee is her
ability to regulate the genders of the bees in the hive. The queen
regulates gender by opening and closing the mouth of the sac in which
sperm are preserved. This sac is connected to the egg laying tube by a
thin channel. When the queen wishes to lay a female egg she
contractsher muscles, drawing a few sperm from the small sac connected
to the egg passage channel, and these fertilise the egg there. Asa
result of this function given to the queen, female bees hatch from
fertilized eggs and malesfrom non-fertilised ones. (4) Despite the
queen bee's regulation of the eggs, it is actually the workers who
determine the egg's gender. Because the egg-laying performed by the
queen is carried out in accordance with the cell type prepared by the
workers. If the cell the queen approaches is a 5.2 mm standard cell,
shewill lay a female egg, whereas if it is 1 mm larger, she will lay a
male egg in it. (5)
Queen Bees Behave under Allah's Inspiration
All of the details in the lives of queen bees we have examined so far
reveal the existence of exceedingly conscious behaviour, a perfect
social order, and of designs appropriate to that order. The
organismreferred to as the queen bee is actually an entity just a few
centimetres inlength with a brain consisting of very simplesynapses.
How is it possible for this animal to comprehend why the cells will be
constructed and to lay the appropriate egg withoutconfusing them,
throughits own will and intelligence?
From the moment she hatches to the moment she leaves the hive, the
queen bee knows exactly what she has to do. In the verse, " Your Lord
revealed to the bees …" (Surat An-Nahl, 68), Allah reveals that all
the animal's actions and the conscious behaviour it displays take
place under His inspiration. As with all other living things, Almighty
Allah has created queen bees with bodily systems that are completely
appropriate to the lives they lead. He is the Creator of all. In one
verse from the Qur'an, our Lord reveals: Is He who creates like him
who does not create? So will you not pay heed? (Surat An-Nahl, 17)
The Queen's Authority Substance
Worker bees do not construct queen cells under normal conditions. The
presenceof the queen in the hive prevents this. This only changes
under exceptional circumstances. It will be useful here to examine the
secretion known as queen's substance, in order to understand for what
reason workers feel the need to construct a queen cell when they
already have a queen at their head. It is this substance that ensures
discipline in the hive. For that reason, if all the functions in the
hive are to be fully carried out, the queen has to secrete enough ofit
every day to go around all the bees in the hive. This has been
calculated as an average of 0.1 mg per bee. (6)
Any reduction in this substance sets the worker bees in action. That
is because a reduction in the royal secretion is regarded as a sign
either that the queen is aging or that the colony is too large. In
either case, there are certain steps the workers have to take. (7) It
is the substance secreted by the queen which prevents the workers from
raising a new queen. In the event of a drop in this substance, the
workers immediately begin constructing new queen cells. Immediately
after the queen lays an egg in these cells, the workers go into action
to rear new queens. When conditions suddenly alter and the danger of
the colony being left without a queen raises its head they begin
feeding some of the already existing larvae on royal jelly and tearing
down other cells around. (8)
REFERENCES:
1. Thomas A. Sebeok, Animal Communication, Indiana Univ. Press, London; p. 437
2. Compton's Pictured Encyclopaedia. Vol. 2, Compton &Comp. Chicago,
USA, 1961, p.106
3. Prof. Ali Demirsoy, The Fundamental Laws of Life,
Invertebrates/Insects, Entomology Vol. II / Part-II, Ankara; p. 212
4. Prof. Karl von Frisch, The Life of Bees, p. 55-56
5. Prof. Karl von Frisch, Aus Dem Leben Der Bienen, Verständliche
Wissenschaft Band 1, 8.Auflage, p. 57
6. Edward O. Wilson, The Insect Societies, Harvard Unv. Press,
Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1972,p. 96
7. Mark L. Winston, The Biology of the Honey Bee, Harvard Univ.
Press, 1991, p.130
8. Murray Hoyt, The World of Bees, Coward Mcnann Inc, New York, 1965; p. 40

There are 571 years between the Prophet Jesus (as) and the Prophet Muhammad (saas), Ulu al-'azm Prophets (the Resolute Messengers), and Hazrat Mahdi (as) will come some 400 years after Imam Rabbani

Some people think that the fact that Hazrat Mahdi (as) will come some
400 years after Imam Rabbani will somehow diminish the worth of Imam
Rabbani and claim that Hazrat Mahdi (as) will come 1000 years after
the imam. The fact is, however, that Hazrat Mahdi's (as) coming around
400 years after Imam Rabbani in no waydiminishes his value. Allah sent
our Prophet (saas) just 571 years after the Prophet Jesus (as), a
Resolute Messenger. The Prophet Muhammad (saas) came soon after the
Prophet Jesus (as), with a new law and book. In other words, there are
571 years between the two Resolute Messengers. Hazrat Mahdi (as) will
come some 400 years after Imam Rabbani. Indeed, Imam Rabbani declared
as such himself,saying that Hazrat Mahdi(as) will come 1000 yearsafter
the death of our Prophet (saas):
The end of this Ummah will begin WITH THE BEGINNING OF THE
SECONDTHOUSAND. IN OTHER WORDS, AFTER THE DEATH OF RASULULLAH... The
full implementation of the moral values of the Qur'an and the renewal
of the Islamic world IS INTHIS SECOND THOUSAND. THE JUST WITNESSES OF
THE TRUTHFULNESS OF THIS CASE ARE THE EXISTENCE OF JESUS (AS) AND THE
MAHDI (AS) IN THIS MILLENNIUM (IN OTHER WORDS, IN THE THOUSAND YEARS
FOLLOWING THE DEATH OF OUR PROPHET (SAAS)). (Imam Rabbani, Letters of
Rabbani, p. 261)
Here, Imam Rabbani is clearly and explicitly speaking of NOT AFTER HIS
OWN DEATH, BUT AFTER THAT OF OUR PROPHET (SAAS).
As Imam Rabbani says, the end of the Islamic world will begin with the
second millennium and Imam Rabbani, the Prophet Jesus (as) and Hazrat
Mahdi (as) will be in the second millennium after the death of our
Prophet (saas).

Physical characteristics ofAngels -

The great size of the bearers of the Throne:
Prophet Muhammad said: "I have been granted permission to speak about
one of the angels of Allaah, one of the bearers of the Throne. The
distance from his earlobes to his shoulders is the distance of a seven
- hundred year journey." [Abu Daawood]
Anas Ibn Maalik narrated thatthe Prophet said: "I have beengranted
permission to speak to an angel, one of the bearers of the Throne. His
feet are in the lowest earth and the Throne is resting on his horn.
The distance from his earlobe to his shoulder is like that of a bird
flying for seven hundred years. That angel says, 'Glory be to You,
wherever You are. '" [At-Tabaraani]
The wings of the angels:
The angels have wings, as Allaah Almighty has informed us. Some of
them have two wings, some have three or four, and some have more than
that.
Allaah, the Most Exalted, Says in the Noble Quran (what means): "[All]
praise is [due] to Allaah, Creator of the heavens and the earth, [Who]
made the angels messengers having wings, two orthree or four. He
increases in creation what He wills. Indeed, Allaah is over all things
competent." [Quran 35:1]
Moreover, We have already mentioned (in part one) the narration in
which the Messenger stated that Jibreel (angel Gabriel) has six
hundred wings.
The beauty of the angels:
Allaah has created them in a noble and beautiful form, as Allaah Says
of Jibreel (what means): "… [The Quran was] Taught to him by one
intense in strength [i.e. Jibreel] —One of soundness. And he rose to
[his] true form." [Quran 53:5-6]
Ibn `Abbaas said: "(one of soundness) means one whose appearance is
beautiful." Qataadah said regard the same verse: "One whose form is
tall and beautiful." There is no contradiction between the two views,
for he (Jibreel) is both strong and of a beautiful appearance.
The idea that angels are beautifulis well-established in people's
minds, just as the idea that devilsare ugly is also well-established.
Hence, we often hear people likenbeautiful human beings to angels.
Look at what the women said when they saw Prophet Yoosuf (Joseph) in
the verse (which means): "And when they saw him, they greatly admired
him and cut their hands and said,"Perfect is Allaah! This is not a
man; this is none but a noble angel!' [Quran 12:31]
Similarity in appearance and formbetween angels and humans:
The Messenger of Allaah said: "The Prophets were shown to me (during
his ascension), and I saw Moosaa (Prophet Moses), a man of average
build, looking likeone of the men of (the tribe of) Shanu'ah. And I
saw `Eesa Ibn Maryam (Prophet Jesus, son of Mary), and the person I
have seenwho most resembles him is `Urwah Ibn Mas'ood. And I saw
Ibraaheem (Prophet Abraham), and the one who most resembleshim is your
Companion (meaning himself). And I saw Jibreel; the person I have seen
who most resembles him is Dihyah." [Muslim and At-Tirmithi]
Is this a similarity between Jibreel's true form, or the form which
Jibreel took when he appeared in human form? Certainly, it is the
latter, because as we shall see, Jibreel often usedto appear in the
form of Dihyah Ibn Khaleefah . This is proven by the narrations in
which the Prophet described Jibreel in his real shape having six
hundredwings.
Variations in their physical shape and status:
The angels are not all the same intheir physical shape and status.
Some of them have two wings, some have three, and Jibreel has six
hundred wings. They vary in their status before their Lord, Most High.
Allaah Says (what means): "[The angels say], 'There is not among us
any except that he has a known position'". [Quran37:164]
As concerning Jibreel, Allaah Says (what means): "[That] indeed, it
[i.e. the Quran] is a word [conveyed by] a noble messenger [i.e.
Jibreel]. [Who is] possessed of power and with the Owner of the
Throne, secure [in position]" [Quran 81.19-20]
This means that he (Jibreel) has a high status and important rank before Allaah.
The best of the angels are those who were present at the battle of
Badr. Rafaa'ah Ibn Raafi' narrated that Jibreel came to the Prophet
and said: "What do you think of the people of Badr among you (i.e.,
who were present at Badr)?" He said, "They are the best of the
Muslims" or similar words. Jibreelsaid: "The same is true regarding
the angels who were present at Badr." [Al-Bukhaari]