In a season of consumerist madness,let’s be grateful, and give

At this time of year the stores are pushing their sales at us.
Advertising is everywhere. There if a frenzy to buy, buy, buy. Let's
realize that this is nota spiritual way of life. It's not an
appropriate lifestyle for someone who is dedicated to God. The
consumerist madness is a deception. There's no joy or peace attached
to it. It's a shallow illusion.
Look at what society has done to itself in the name of consumerism. A
day of thanks (Thanksgiving) has become the prelude to "Black Friday",
the biggest shopping day of the year. It used to be that Black Friday
did not begin until Friday morning, out of respect for Thanksgiving.
Then the starting gun was moved to midnight, and now it has crept into
Thursday evening. Nothingis sacred.
The Prophet 'Isa ibn Maryam (Jesus the son of Mary), peace be upon
him, has been turned into a marketing strategy. His purported birthday
has become a month of shopping insanity, presided over by a mythical
sub-deity named Santa. People go into debt,they fight over sale goods…
no mention is made of faith.
We Muslims fall prey to the same consumerist lifestyle. Sometimes the
holy month of Ramadan becomes a month of shopping, sleeping and binge
eating, astaghfirullah.
Let us – Christians, Muslims, Jews and all people of God – not
followthis path. Let's hew to a way of sacrifice, zakat
(purification), sadaqah (charity), zuhd (giving up material luxury).
We don't have to be monks, but we must focus on the things that
matter: faith and family.
There are movements thatadvocate a simple living, back-to-nature,
low-impact lifestyle. In Islam this is called zuhd , which could be
translated as detachment or asceticism. Zuhd is a choicethat a person
makes to give up the hunger for material possessions and transgressive
carnal experiences, and live a simple lifestyle dedicated to God.
That's what we need.
The faith in our hearts is more important than the brand name of the
clothes we wear. Where our feet carry us – to someplace good or bad –
is more important than the cost of our shoes. The sincerity in our
hearts is more important than any gift. May Allah help us to see what
is important in life.
The Enjoyment of Delusion
There's a powerful verse from the Bible, Proverbs 30:8-9:
Give me neither poverty nor riches,
grant me only my share of bread to eat,
for fear that surrounded by plenty, I should fall away
and say, "Yahweh – who isYahweh?"
or else in destitution, take to stealing
and profane the name of my God.
(Yahweh is an ancient Hebrew name for God).
If you visit the shopping malls at Christmastime, and read the news
stories of people lining up from the night before and huddling in
sleeping bags in order to buy the latest gadgets, then trampling each
other in the rush; if you turn on the TV to the usual Christmas
comedies and "Frosty the Snowman"cartoons, you see that God has been
forgotten, and has even become taboo. It's not politically correct to
speak of God. Just watchwhat we broadcast, be hypnotized by our
Christmas elevator music, buy and forget…
Allah says about this:
"Know that the life of this world is but amusement and diversion and
adornment and boastingto one another and competition in increase of
wealth and children – like the example of a rainwhose [resulting]
plant growth pleases the tillers; then it dries and you see it turned
yellow; then it becomes debris. And in the Hereafter is severe
punishment and forgiveness from Allah and approval. And what is the
worldly life except the enjoyment of delusion." – Quran, Surat
Al-Hadeed, 57:20
This theme is struck repeatedly in the Quran. The amusement and
adornment of the dunya isan illusion that dries up and crumbles like a
corn stalk, and becomes dust. It is empty, the enjoyment ofdelusion .
Wow. That phrase, "enjoyment of delusion", makes me think of a madman
alone in a room, tied in a straight jacket, engaged in a pleasant
delusion playing only in his mind.
I know people who have abedroom devoted to all the junk that they have
bought but do not use. They never enter that room and the door is kept
locked. Isn't that a kind of mental illness?
Gratitude
How do we resist the onslaught of the season? How do we remember Allah?
The greatest tool in our toolbox is gratitude. By looking at what
we've been blessed with, our hearts become content. Socrates commented
that contentment is natural wealth, while luxury is artificial
poverty. Contentment does not mean complacency or passivity; it refers
to a state of awareness of our blessings, and gratitude for the
smallest to the greatest provisions – the tiniest cells in our bodies,
to the grand earth itself.

Tafsir Aayatil Kursi

All Praise is due to Allah. We praise Him, and seek His help and
forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah, Most High, from the evils of our
own selves and from our wicked deeds. Whomever Allah guides cannot be
misguided, and whomever He leads astray cannot be guided. I testify
that there is no true God worthy of being worshipped except Allah,
alone, without partner or associate. I further testify that Muhammad
is His slave and Messenger. [1] May Allah's salah and salaam also be
granted to the Prophet's pure family and to all of his noble
companions.
Know, O Muslims, may Allah bestow upon us fromHis Mercy, that
knowledge is the basis for the understanding and application of
Islamic principles and laws. This is in accordance with the sayings of
Allah, the Exalted:
So know [O! Muhammad] that la ilaaha illaAllah [none has the right to
be worshipped but Allah]. [Qur'an, Surah Muhammad (47:19)].
In a related context, the Prophet affirmed that:
" He upon whom Allah intends goodness, He confers upon him a true
understanding and keen insight into the din ," and [in the narration
by Imam Al-Bukhari], he said: " Trulyknowledge is attained by learning
." [4]
Imam Al-Bukhari commented: "So Allah stated that one should acquire
knowledge first, and scholars are the inheritors of the Prophets (i.e.
they inherit knowledge)." He added: "Itis essential to know a thing
first before saying oracting upon it." [5]
Imam ibnul Qayyim said:
"The salaf did not generalize the name "fiqh"except on the knowledge
which is associated with action." He further added: "al-'ilm
Imamul-'amal (Knowledge is the Imam ofactions) and its leader,
andal-'amal is adherent to knowledge and is led by it.Every action
which is not led by knowledge is of no benefit for the one who
initiates it. On the contrary,it inflicts harm upon him, just as some
of the salaf said "Whoever worships Allah without knowledge, the
mischief he causes is more than the goodness he may bring about." He
also stressed that: "Deeds vary with respect to their acceptance or
rejection respectively depending upon their adherence or opposition to
knowledge. Action which is in accordance with 'ilm is an approved
thing, and what opposes al-'ilm is repudiated. Knowledge, therefore,
is the measure and is the test. Allah said:
[Blessed be Allah] Who has created death that He may test you as to
which of you is best in deeds, andHe is al-'Aziz [Who subdues
everything by His Might; the Mighty in His Revenge; the
Unapproachable, none willprevail against Him; none is like unto Him],
al-Ghafur [The One Who is Oft-Forgiving]. [Qur'an, Surah Al-Mulk
(67:2)].
Al-Fudail bin 'Iyad explained that, "The best of deeds are those which
are done with sincerity [seeking Allah's Face] and are upright." They
said, "What is considered sincere and right of the deeds?" He replied,
"Deedswhich are sincere but not correct are not accepted, and if they
are correct but not sincere then they are also not accepted, until
they are sincere and right. In order to be sincere, theymust be done
for Allah alone, and for them to be correct, they must comply with the
[authentic] sunnah. Indeed Allah, MostHigh, says:
Whoever hopes for the meeting of his Rabb let him work righteousness
and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Rabb [Allah].
[Qur'an, Surah Al-Kahf (18:110)].
The doer will not be able to act in a way which comprises both
qualities (sincerity and rightness) except by the way of knowledge.
For if he does not know what the Messenger brought, he willnot be able
to follow him in the straight way. On theother hand, if he does not
know of the One Who deserves to worshipped alone [Allah], he will be
unable to seek Him solely." [6]
In the absolute sense, what is meant by al-'ilm (knowledge) is the
Islamic knowledge, based upon kitaabullah [the Book of Allah, the
Qur'an], and the authentic sunnah in accordance with the understanding
and methodology (manhaj) of as-salaf as-salih Shaykh 'Abdul 'Aziz bin
Baz (hafithahullah: May Allah preserve him) explained: "When
generalized, al-'ilm,pertains to the intended knowledge in the Book of
Allah and the sunnah of His Messenger. It is knowledge of Allah, His
Names and Attributes, knowledge of His rights over His creation, and
what He (subhanahu wata'ala: Far is He removed from every
imperfection, the Most High) has prescribed for them. And it is the
detailedknowledge of the path that leads to Allah; knowledge of the
purpose of our creation, and the final outcome, in the Hereafter,
which the 'ibad/

3b. - Islamic politics @ Does Islam regard non-Muslimswith mercy and compassion?

3b.
It is not part of Islam to force the non-Muslim to enter this religion, because sincerity is oneof the conditions of accepting Islam. And Allah, may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
“There is no compulsion in religion”
[al-Baqarah 2:256].
(d)
Islam prescribes stoning for the married adulterer, cutting off the hand for the thief, and flogging for the one who slanders the honour of a woman who is chaste. We do not feel ashamed of these laws; rather we firmly believe that thewhole world is in need of application of these laws. If theydo that, they will live in an atmosphere of safety with regard to their honour, their wealth and their lives, safe fromtransgressions against them. Any wise person who ponders these rulings will realise that they were prescribed, first of all,so that no one will dare to do these things. Anyone who looks at the state of other nations, andsees how widespread the crimes of rape, theft and murderare, will realise that there is an urgent need to put a stop to that, and that the rulings of Islam are based on wisdom, mercy, justice and care.
And Allah knows best./ - - - :-> Transtors: 1.http://free-translation.imtranslator.net/lowres.asp 2.http://translate.google.com/m?twu=1&hl=en&vi=m&sl=auto&tl=en

3a. - Islamic politics @ Does Islam regard non-Muslimswith mercy and compassion?

3a.
What is meant is one who has a deal with the Muslims, whether that is by paying jizyah or a peace treaty with the Muslim ruler or a guarantee of safety from a Muslim.
There is a hadeeth that speaks of that. The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “If anyone wrongs a mu‘aahid, detracts from his rights, burdens him with more work than he is able to do or takes something from him without his consent, I will plead for him (the mu‘aahid) on the Day of Resurrection.” Narrated by Abu Dawood, 3052;classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood.
If any of the non-Muslims comesto our country for work or business, and has permission (from the authorities), he is either a mu‘aahid (one who has a treaty with the Muslims) or a musta’min (one who has been granted security by the Muslims). So it is not permissible to transgress against him. It is proven that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “Whoever kills amu‘aahid will not smell the fragrance of Paradise.” We are Muslims who submit to the command of Allah, may He be glorified and exalted, and we respect those whom Islam instructs us to respect of those who have treaties and guarantees of security. Whoevertransgresses against them has misrepresented Islam and has given Islam an image of terrorism, treachery and betrayal. The one who adheres to the rulings of Islam and respects treaties and covenants is one for whom it is hoped thathe will do well and succeed.
Concerning that Allah, may He beexalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
“and let not the hatred of some people in (once) stopping you from Al-Masjid al-Haram (at Makkah) lead you to transgression (and hostility on your part)”
[al-Maa’idah 5:2]
“and let not the enmity and hatred of others make you avoid justice. Be just: that is nearer to piety”
[al-Maa’idah 5:8].
Look at what these verses contain of noble characteristics and the command to respond tothe one who disobeys Allah concerning you by obeying Allah concerning him.
However, in addition to what has been stated above, it is essential to confirm some important points:
There is no comparison whatsoever between what this world has seen the “non-Muslims” do and what the Muslims have done. The two World Wars in which 70 million people were killed were “Christian” wars.
Then there is the occupation of Muslim lands and the exploitation of their resources, which was and still is happeningat the hands of “non-Muslims” of all religions. This should be borne in mind when speaking of the Islamic view of humanity and of love and compassion. Fair-minded historians should compare the Islamic conquests of other lands with the Crusades, for example, and whathappened in each case. They willsee a clear difference between compassion and cruelty, love and hatred, life and death.
What was mentioned above about Islam and how it regards non-Muslims, and what was mentioned about rulings is the highest level of love, compassion and mercy. However, that does not mean that we should neglect some rulings that some ignorant people want us to neglect.
For example:
(a)
In Islam it is forbidden to love non-Muslims and take them as close friends. Anyone who has common sense can distinguish between kindness, fairness, compassion and mercy, on the one hand, which we have been enjoined to show towards a non-Muslim who is not in a stateof war with us, and love on the other hand, which we are not allowed to feel towards disbelievers because of their disbelief in Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, and because of their notbeing Muslims.
(b)
It is not permissible for us to give our daughters, sisters and other womenfolk in marriage to any non-Muslim, no matter whathis religion is, whereas it is permissible for us (Muslim men) to marry only women from the People of the Book, Jews and Christians, who are chaste. Undoubtedly ‘aqeedah (belief) and Tawheed (affirming the Oneness of Allah) play a major role in this ruling, because it is very likely and possible that a kitaabi (Jewish or Christian) woman who is married to a Muslim may become Muslim, whereas it is very possible and likely that a Muslim woman may be tempted away from her religion by marrying a non-Muslim. This ruling is entirely in accordance with the compassion and mercy of the rulings of this great religion: it represents compassion towards the Jewish or Christian woman in the hope that she might become Muslim and towards theMuslim woman lest she leave her religion.
(c) ...
/ - - - :-> Transtors: 1.http://free-translation.imtranslator.net/lowres.asp 2.http://translate.google.com/m?twu=1&hl=en&vi=m&sl=auto&tl=en