Family Issues, - Guidance for the Muslim Wife - Complete book. (Part 1)

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SAYINGS OF RASULULLAH (SALLALLAHU ALAIHI WASALLAM)
Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam was extremely merciful upon the ummah. He said "You all are about to fall into the fire and I am holding your backs and preventing you from falling into it". Rasulullah's Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam favour upon the ummat was that he showed men and women the way to lead their lives. Here are a few Ahaadith advising women:
HADEETH 1. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said that the woman who performed her five daily prayers and kept the fast of Ramadan and protected herself from evil acts i.e. adultery and obeyed her husband, has a choice to enter heaven from whichever door she pleases.(HULYA)
HADEETH 2. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "A woman has two veils: the first is the husband and the second is the grave. The one that conceals more is the grave." (TABRANI)
HADEETH 3. Nabi Kareem Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "A religious widow is addressed as a martyr in the heavens" i.e. she is remembered with the honourable title of a martyr in heaven for any act she performs.
HADEETH 4. Ibn Abbas Radhiallahu anhu narrates that a woman came to Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam and said: "I have come as a representative of all women. We want to present a petition to you. Jihaad is fardh (compulsory) on men and only they obtain the reward of martyrdom. We women are deprived of it although we take responsibility for all their domestic affairs". Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "Convey this message on my behalf to all the women that they can achieve the reward of jihaad by obeying their husbands, but very few women consider this to be a reward."
HADEETH 5.It is reported from Hazrat Ibn Umar Radhiallahu Anhu that Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said that when a woman leaves her home without her husband's consent then all the angels of the skies and the entire universe curse her for this act until she returns home. (TABRANI).
HADEETH 6.Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said that the fragrance of heaven will be forbidden for a woman who asks her husband for divorce without any valid reason. (TIRMIZI)
HADEETH 7. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said that if a woman died and her husband was pleased with her during her life, undoubtedly she has entered heaven.
HADEETH 8. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "O woman, your heaven and hell is your husband" (i.e. a woman will enter heaven if the husband is pleased, and hell if he is displeased with her). (TARGEEB)
HADEETH 9. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said that the best woman is the one that pleases her husband. When he looks at her, she pleases him. When he commands her, she obeys him. When he absents himself (goes away on a journey etc.) she protects his wealth and his honour. (BAIHAQI)
HADEETH 10. The Messenger of Allah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said that Shaytaan (the devil) sits on his throne daily and dispatches his agents to work among human beings. One of the agents returns and says that I made a certain person commit a sin, another says I got so and so involved in this offence. Upon listening to all this Shaytaan says that you have done nothing great. Eventually one representative comes and says that I saw a husband and wife extremely devoted to each other. I sowed the seeds of enmity between them. On hearing this Shaytaan becomes happy and embracing his agent says that you have achieved something great. (MISHKAT)
The love between husband and wife is the biggest blow to Shaytaan. From this it is apparent how meritorious this love is.
HADEETH 11. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: The woman who applies perfume and passes by men is an adulteress. (TIRMIZI).
Today the woman who applies perfume and goes to the shopping centres, alleys and cinemas should ponder how grave a sin she is committing.
HADEETH 12. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: Once I saw a ghair mahram (strange) man and a young woman together in a place. Consequently I had a strong fear that Shaytaan will make use of this opportunity i.e. he will besmirch their character and destroy the honour of the woman.
HADEETH 13. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: Keep yourselves away from strange women. One companion asked: "O Rasul of Allah, tell me, can the husband's brother mix freely with his sister-in-law." Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam replied : "He is like death for a woman." (Bukhari and Muslim)
i.e. just as partaking of poison leads to death in this world, similarly the brother-in-law's mixing with a woman is poison for their character and a cause of destruction of the life of the hereafter.
HADEETH 14. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "It is haram for the women of my Ummah to take a bath in the public baths". (HAKIM)
i.e. women should keep away from places which are frequented by ghair mahram (strange) males. What purpose do they have in a place frequented by males?
HADEETH 15. Rasulullah (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: Whichever woman applies scent should not join us for the Esha prayers. (ABU DAWOOD)
During the early Islamic era, women used to perform salaat behind Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam in congregation. On that occasion Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "Those women who apply perfume should not come to the musjid for salaat," because there is a fear of instilling desire in the hearts of men due to the sweet fragrance of the perfume and this will be a cause of corruption. If Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam prevented women who applied perfume from attending the musjid during his noble era, there will be a greater need for precaution in this age of corruption.
HADEETH 16.Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "The woman who boastfully parades in front of males after adorning herself is like the darkness of Qiyamat."
HADEETH 17. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "A woman whose 3 children die in infancy or before reaching the age of puberty and who bears the loss with patience, hoping for reward will most certainly enter heaven. (MISHKAT)
Therefore if we are confronted with such a calamity, we should have patience and forbearance. To wail and mourn is not the habit of a Muslim wife. It (the child) was the property of Allah which He took back. However, it is not sinful to shed tears.
HADEETH 18. Nabi Kareem Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "The best women of my ummah are those that are beautiful and whose dowry is less". (Dailami)
What wisdom is there in unnecessarily burdening the husband with an extravagant dowry especially if he cannot afford it? The success of the marriage is the mutual love of the partners which cannot be purchased by wealth.
HADEETH 19. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: Whoever consoled a woman that lost her child will be given the clothes of Paradise to wear. (MISHKAT)
i.e. when you go to offer your condolences to a woman who lost her child, do not join her in wailing and crying. On the contrary, speak to her in such a manner so as to induce patience in her. Allah has promised a person who does this the garments of Jannah.
HADEETH 20. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said that Allah Subhanahu Taala says "Sight is a poisonous arrow of the devil. Whosoever, whether male or female protects himself or herself from evil glances will be granted a sweet Iman (faith) which will please his/her heart." (TABRANI)
The disease of glancing at men without regarding it as sinful is common among women. This can occur even though they (the woman) may be fully concealed. The arrow of Shaytaan works discreetly.
HADEETH 21. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "The worst person on the day of Qiyamah will be the one who reveals the private life of his wife to others." (Muslim)
Similarly some women have the habit of revealing their private matters to their friends. This is a major sin which should be abstained from.
HADEETH 22. Nabi Kareem Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "When a husband calls his wife at night to have relations with her and she refuses without a valid Shari reason, she is cursed throughout the night by the angels." (BUKHARI)
HADEETH 23. Nabi Kareem Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: There are 3 persons whose salaah is not accepted nor does any good act of theirs reach the sky. Firstly, a runaway slave until he returns to his master. Secondly, a woman whose husband is displeased with her and thirdly an intoxicated person as long as he does not repent from using intoxicants. (BAIHAQI)
Imagine how serious it is to displease the husband that the wife's salaah is not accepted nor any other good deed of hers.
HADEETH 24. Hadhrat Aisha Radhiallahu Anha says that Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam was sitting amongst the Muhajireen and Ansaar when a camel came and prostrated before him. Upon this the Sahaaba Radhiallahu Anhum said "O Prophet of Allah, if the animals and trees prostrate to you, then we have more rights to prostrate to you." On hearing this Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said "Worship your Sustainer and honour me. Had I given the command to anyone to prostrate, I would have commanded the wife to prostrate to her husband. The husband's right is so great that if he commands her to carry a stone from the yellow mountain to the black mountain and then from the black mountain to the white one, she has to fulfil this duty."
HADEETH 25. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said "No woman should ask her husband to divorce his second wife in order to achieve her rights because she will only receive what has been preordained for her." (BUKHARI and MUSLIM)
For example, a person who is married intends to marry a second woman. This woman tells him to divorce the first wife before she will marry him , or there are two women in one person's nikah and one says that she will only live with the husband on condition that he divorces the other. This has been prohibited by Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam because each one has her own destiny and should be thankful for that.
HADEETH 26. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "The rights of the husband on the wife are so great that if pus flows on the husband's body and the woman licks it clean, then too his rights will not be fully fulfilled." (TARGHEEB)
HADEETH 27. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "The world is a commodity and its best commodity is a pious woman who assists her husband in matters concerning the hereafter." (RAZEEN)
By being patient and enduring a life of poverty, women can grant their husbands more spare time for religious duties. However this is not prevalent today. If the husband intends to do religious work, the wife presents a whole list of requirements to him which forces him to become engrossed in secular matters.
HADEETH 28. Whenever a strange man and woman meet in seclusion Shaytaan definitely is the third one by joining them. (TIRMIZI) i.e. Shaytaan arouses their passions and incites them to commit evil.
HADEETH 29. Nabi Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: Make purdah (i.e. conceal yourselves) from a blind man. Ummul Mumineen Hadhrat Aisha Radhhiallahu Anha said "O Prophet of Allah, he is blind. How can he see us?" Rasulullah Sallallahu Wasallam replied: "He may be blind, but you are not blind". (AHMAD,TIRMIZI)
Some women do not make purdah from blind people because of their inability to see. From this hadeeth we can deduce that just as it is forbidden for a man to look at a woman, similarly it is forbidden for a woman to gaze at a strange man.
HADEETH 30.Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "A woman should be kept concealed. When she emerges from the home without necessity, Shaytaan makes her appealing in the sight of men." (TIRMIZI)
Evil persons are attracted to her and begin following her or mention her in the gathering of men. This implies that she should leave the house only out of dire necessity. Today it has become a fashion to adorn the burqa and to embroider the trousers so as to attract men. The burqa was originally made for the purpose of purdah, but we have made it an object of adornment.
HADEETH 31. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "The most blessed nikah is the one with the least expenses." (BAIHAQI- IN SHUABUL IMAN)
Today, many of the destitute destroy the youth of their daughters because of not being able to uphold petty customs. They do not possess anything to give nor do they want to have the nikah without an extravagant dowry in fear of being criticized by the other family members. In order to make our nikahs more blessed we should abandon these futile customs and on such occasions take a lesson from the simple nikah of Hadhrat Fatima al- Zahra Radhiallahu Anha whose dowry was one water-bag and one bed.
HADEETH 32. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "O women, after sitting in a gathering of women do not go home and explicitly describe any woman to your husbands." (MUSLIM)
This may incline your husband towards her and his affection for you may diminish. What noble advice has been given to us by our Rasul Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam.
HADEETH 33. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "May Allah curse those women who imitate men in appearance and those men who imitate women." (MISHKAT)
Women should not appear like men in their attire and physical appearance.
HADEETH 34. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said : "When heaven and hell were shown to me I saw that the majority of the inmates of hell were women." (MISHKAT)
The reason for this is that women are ungrateful and disobedient to their husbands. Although they will be leading a comfortable life but as soon as there is a minor problem, they will, on the slightest pretext show ingratitude.
HADEETH 35. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "Shall I inform you which woman will enter heaven?" The Sahaba replied: "Yes most certainly". Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said "The woman who has children, is lovable, when she becomes angry the husband consoles her and when the husband becomes angry she says that as long as you do not become pleased with me, I will not even apply surmah (antimony) to my eyes." (TABRANI)
HADEETH 36. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "It is not permissible for any woman to fast optionally without her husband's permission, and it is not permissible for her to allow anyone into his house without his consent." (BUKHARI)
HADEETH 37. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "When any woman troubles her husband, the celestial bride (hur) of heaven calls out "Woe to you. Do not trouble him. He is temporarily with you. He is going to leave you and be our guest. Why do you trouble our beloved?" (IBN MAJAH)
HADEETH 38. The Messenger of Allah said that women are married for their lineage, wealth, beauty and piety. You should marry one who is pious (BUKHARI).
HADEETH 39. Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said: "It is extremely abominable for a woman's shoulder to touch a man. It is better to touch a pig that is all messed up than for a woman to touch the body of a strange man." (TABRANI)
HADEETH 40. Nabi Kareem Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said "A woman cannot fulfill the rights of Allah without fulfilling the rights of her husband. Even if a woman is busy at the stove and the husband calls her, in that busy period also she must leave all her work and answer his request." (TABRANI)
If Muslim wives mould their lives in the light of the above-mentioned 40 ahaadeeth, every Muslim house can become a model of Jannat. All kinds of quarrels will cease and the misfortune of divorce will not prevail. Children brought up in such an environment will be an example of piety, discipline, love and sympathy. May Allah make every Muslim house practice upon this.
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Family Issues, - A Wedding Speech

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I have been asked to speak a few words for this joyful occasion of the wedding of Abdullah and Zaynab (fictional names). Indeed, my very best wishes and prayers are for them, that they have chosen each other wisely, and that they will find genuine happiness and contentment, and will discover that Abdullah will be to Zaynab, and Zaynab to Abdullah, a partner who will stand by you through thick and thin and be your most loyal supporter and comfort in life.
So many people in the west these days decide to form relationships without marriage, perhaps because they fear the seriousness of the commitment, or have observed the marriages of others hit the rocks. Many others take the plunge, but the marriage breaks up alarmingly swiftly.
This is not what any of us want – we want to be happy, and loved, and respected and cherished, from the moment we commit ourselves to each other, for the rest of our lives. Dear brothers and sisters, that is what Allah intended for us – that we should be happy and strong together, so that we might become powerhouses for Islam both in our homes, which are refuges from the world, and in the world.
Our Blessed Prophet taught that marriage, in Islam, is ‘half the faith’. For some people, I am sure it must be even more than half. It depends how much of their life they spend ‘within’ the family, and how much ‘outside’ it. For many wives, as we know, the marriage is nearly 100% of the practice of their faith.
The goal of married life in Islam is much greater than just two people trying to live successfully together. It is to practise Islam within a set group of people (your family – spouse, offspring, dependants), to bring about peace, love, security and happiness, and having achieved this in the microcosm of your own family, to then reach out to the world at large and spread Islam to all.
None of this just comes naturally – it has to be created with love, patience and compassion, and practised without ceasing, and protected at all costs against the selfishness, laziness and temptations and taking for granted that will inevitably beset your relationship. We can see all around us the effects of people neglecting and abusing their relationships. As Muslims, we are requested by Allah to do our utmost to create happy, pious, content and secure households, following thesunnahof our Prophet (pbuh).
We all know that some people are fine in public, but rotten behind closed doors. When the Prophet’s wife Aishah was asked about the way the Prophet lived at home, she replied simply: ‘His way of life IS the Qur’an.’ He was exactly the same beloved person, noble and compassionate, within the privacy of his home as he was in public outside it!
Zaynab and Abdullah, the first and main aim of your Muslim marriage should beibadah, your worship of Allah. By this, I don’t mean you should spend hours praying together, but something rather different.Ibadahto me means believing without question that Allah is Lord, and is aware of every thought, intention and action that passes between you; and that everything you have been granted in this life, even your next breath, is a gift – which could be withdrawn at any moment should Allah so wish. You do not know how long you will have together on this earth, or when you or the one you love will be snatched away. Your loved one may live to be 100, or be taken from you this very night.
The second aim is to respond to the basic biological instincts and needs for sexual fulfilment, personal companionship, safety and security, and procreation – to do your utmost to create the most wholesome and happy atmosphere for each other, and for bringing up the new human beings who may, insha’Allah, be brought into this world by you.
Every job, every walk of life needs skills. Most skills do not just come to us naturally – we have to take the trouble to learn them. Exactly the same is true for marriage in general, and for newly-weds, the sexual skills too. Sexual intimacy can be carried out on the purely animal level, and male satisfaction sometimes achieved in seconds - a highly disappointing matter, particularly for the wife. What turns sex intosadaqahis to make it unselfish, and perform it in the best possible way for the sake of Allah – to take care of your partner, and put your partner’s needs above your own. Kindness and consideration. The famous Imam al-Ghazzali recorded a relevant hadith of the Prophet (pbuh) about this: ‘He is not one of us who takes his need of her before he fulfils her need of him.’
You will also need tolerance and patience, and to realise thatyou do not have the right to be loved or respected.These things are not rights – they have to be earned. You need to remember that fathers and mothers (God willing) love their children without reservations, and forgive them all sorts of awful conduct, and plead for them, and make allowances for them. Even if their children are awful, they (God willing) never cease to love them. Abdullah and Zaynab, your parents love you and make allowances for you simply because they are your parents. They will excuse every failing, stick up for you through thick and thin, and love you even though you might be a completely horrible person. They will never ‘divorce’ you. But now, as you leave them and start your new life together, you must remember thatyour partner will not make the same allowances for you as your parents did.If you don’t take your new role seriously, your partner will soon feel upset, offended and become critical of you, andtheirparents might even become their allies against you.
Nobody has therightto be loved if they are not making themselves lovable.You cannot force someone to love you. You cannot force someone to respect you. Love and respect have to be earned – both from your chosen life-partner, and also from your in-laws (who will not see you in the same light as your own parents).
Remember that newlywed husbands and wives really are ‘new’ to each other. No matter how well they think they know each other beforehand, every married person here would tell you that there will soon come that moment when you are on your own, and you cannot run to your parents for comfort and help.
Abdullah, a new husband needs to remember that his wife is not his mother – Zaynab may notevercook like your mother, or do for you the things your mother did, or think like your mother, or make allowances for you like your mother.
Zaynab, a new wife needs to remember that her husband is not her father – Abdullah may never think like your father, make allowances for you like your father, guard and guide you like your father, do the things your father did, or have any of the same skills that your father had.
And also remember, Zaynab, that if it ever comes to a fight between a man’s wife and his mother, it is nearly always the mother that wins! I remember being told that a man could have a hundred wives, but he only has one mother! There is nothing you can do about this – but God willing, you will be the mother of his children, and it will be your turn!
And if there is love between you now, remember it is a precious thing, like a very expensive pot-plant; it will not grow if you don’t look after it. If you don’t treat it right, it will soon fizzle out, dry up and rot away. Once that has happened, it is a mighty difficult task to get it going again.
Remember, you areyoungerpeople. And nobody is perfect. Don’t be too critical of each other when you start discovering all the ‘faults’. It is pointless expecting a young bride or groom to have all the skills and talents and expertise when they start out that it took their parents years to learn. If you feel a complete fool because you burn a meal or turn all the washing pink, remember that your parents may have made even more mistakes than you when they started out together.
You arepoorerpeople. It is pointless to expect to have straight away all the earnings and status of your elders. It may come to you in due course, if you earn it, and if God wills, you may exceed their status and wealth. If you are starting in a new home, build it together – and don’t expect to have everything all at once.
You areinexperiencedpeople. A young husband taking on the responsibilities of a manager in his household, needs to learn how to manage. Abdullah, you would do well to go on a management course, and learn how to deal with people, how to avert trouble, how to give orders without offence, how to reward those who work for you. Zaynab, you would do well to learn how to cope with the household – the budget, the care of the family health, cleanliness, etc – even if you have a career of your own and hire in other people to do these things for you.
I can tell you now what the most frequent complaints are of men and women who are struggling to live together - the most frequent complaint of women about men is that they never listen, and the most frequent complaint of men about women is that they are always trying to change them.
I suppose you will try to change each other – but be warned. If you think your partner has any faults now, which you hope you might be able to put right later on – think again. Any irritants only become worse with age, and even more irritating. If you spend all your time trying to stop your partner being what he or she is, you will get as much pleasure out of it as banging your head against a brick wall. The only thing you can successfully adjust is your own attitude to it. I wasted 23 years when married to my first husband trying to get him not to leave his dirty socks rolled up in a ball under the bed when he took them off. I never managed it. In the end we were divorced, (not just because of the socks), and then he died. These days I remember him with a smile, and wonder why looking after his laundry had annoyed me so much.
So, be noble, be kind, be tolerant, compassionate and generous as possible in all your dealings, and perform as nobly as possible in your marriage all the promises regarding sexual fulfilment and companionship. And may Allah bless you and keep your souls safe in His hands, and send his angels to guard you and guide you, and keep away from you all harm of those things that would harm you, and bless your marriage with trust, and joy, and every good thing – we ask it, O Lord, because we know that You love us and want only the best for us. Help us to be aware of Your presence always. Amin.
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Welcome to Islam, - What western thinkers said about Islam

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it illumined the entire environment. Its charm captivated so many that they moved into its fold – but those who, for a variety of reasons, did not enter its fold, were also spellbound. They could not help admiring its beauty, splendor and grandeur. They confessed its greatness and paid tributes to it. Their evidence is important in one respect – it comes from those who are not within it, from many who have, on the whole, been rather antagonistic; but they too had to admit its unique features, its serenity that casts its spell on all and sundry. It is a selection of such evidence that we now present.
ISLAM – A Simple, Humanitarian and Attractive Religion
“Islam had the power of peacefully conquering souls by the simplicity of its theology, the clearness of its dogma and principles, and the definite number of the practices which it demands. In contrast to Christianity which has been undergoing continual transformation since its origin, Islam has remained identical with itself.”
)Jean L’heureux, Etude sur L’Islamisme P.35(
“Two features in the Creed of Islam have always specially attracted me. One is the God conception, the other is its unquestionable sincerity – a tremendous asset in human affairs, the religious aspect of them especially. After all, sincerity is almost divine and like love covers a multitude of sins.”
)Major Arthur Glyn Leonard,Islam – Her Moral and Spiritual Value,London, 1927(.
“Sense of justice is one of the most wonderful ideals of Islam, because as I read in the Quran I find those dynamic principles of life, not mystic but practical ethics for the daily conduct of life suited to the whole world.”
)Sarojini Naidu, Lecture onThe Ideals of Islam vide Speeches and Writings of Sarojini Naidu,Madras, 1918, P 167(
“The rise of Islam is perhaps the most amazing event in human history. Springing from a land and a people alike previously negligible, Islam spread within a century over half the earth, shattering great empires, overthrowing long established religions, remolding the souls of races, and building up a whole new world – the world of Islam.”
“The closer we examine this development the more extraordinary does it appear. The other great religions won their way slowly, by painful struggle, and finally triumphed with the aid of powerful monarchs converted to the new faith. Christianity had its Constantine, Buddhism its Asoka, and Zoroastrianism its Cyrus, each lending to his chosen cult the mighty force of secular authority. Not so Islam. Arising in a desert land sparsely inhabited by a nomad race previously undistinguished in human annals, Islam sallied forth on its great adventure with the slenderest human backing and against the heaviest material odds. Yet Islam triumphed with seemingly miraculous ease, and a couple of generations saw the Fiery Crescent borne victorious from the Pyrenees to the Himalayas and from the deserts of Central Asia to the deserts of Central Africa… Muhammad, an Arab of the Arabs, was the very incarnation of the soul of his race. Preaching a simple, austere monotheism, free from priest-craft or elaborate doctrinal trappings, he tapped the wellsprings of religious zeal always present in the Semitic heart. Forgetting the chronic rivalries and blood feuds which had consumed their energies in internecine strife, and welded into a glowing unity by the fire of their new-found faith, the Arabs poured forth from their deserts to conquer the earth for Allaah, the One True God…”
“They )Arabs( were no bloodthirsty savages, bent solely on loot and destruction. On the contrary, they were an innately gifted race, eager to learn and appreciative of the cultural gifts which older civilisations had to bestow. Intermarrying freely and professing a common belief, conquerors and conquered rapidly fused, and from this fusion arose a new civilisation, the Saracenic civilisation, in which the ancient cultures of Greece, Rome and Persia were revitalised by the Arab genius and the Islamic spirit. For the first three centuries of its existence )650-1000 CE( the realm of Islam was the most civilized and progressive portion of the world. Studded with splendid cities, gracious mosques, and quiet universities where the wisdom of the ancient world was preserved and appreciated, the Muslim world offered a striking contrast to the Christian West, then sunk in the night of the Dark Ages.”
)A.M Lothrop Stoddard, Ph.D.,The New World of Islam,London 1932, p. 1-3(.
“There can be no question but that, with its pure monotheism, and a code founded in the main on justice and humanity, Islam succeeds in raising to a higher level races sunk in idolatry and fetishism, like those of Central Africa, and that in some respects, notably in that of temperance, it materially improves the morality of such peoples.”
)Sir William Muir, Mohamed and Islam,London, 1895 p.246(
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ISLAMIC BROTHERHOOD – ALL ARE EQUAL
“Take away that black man! I can have no discussion with him,” exclaimed the Christian Archbishop Cyrus when the Arab conquerors had sent a deputation of their ablest men to discuss terms of surrender of the capital ofEgypt, headed by ‘Ubaadah as the ablest of them all.
“To the sacred Archbishop’s astonishment, he was told that this man was commissioned by General ‘Amr, that the Muslims held black and white men in equal respect – judging a man by his character and not by his colour.”
“Well, if the Negro must lead, he must speak gently,” ordered the prelate, “so as not to frighten his white auditors.”
“There are a thousand blacks, as black as myself, amongst our companions. I and they would be ready to meet and fight a hundred enemies together. We live only to fight for God, and to follow His Will. We care naught for wealth, so long as we have the wherewithal to stay our hunger and to clothe our bodies. This world is naught for us, the next world is all.”
“Such a spirit of class distinction is certainly the greatest hindrance to missionary work in the East, as every impartial observer has noted. How, for instance, can any other appeal stand against that of the Muslim who, in approaching the pagan, says to him, however obscure or degraded he may be: ‘Embrace the faith, and you are at once an equal and a brother.’ Islam knows no ‘colour line’.”
)S.S Leeder, Veiled Mysteries of Egypt,London, 1912,pp.332 – 335(
“The Islamic brotherhood which they proclaimed was a real thing, and a new thing among eastern nations. It is doubtful whether Christian Syrians ever felt the same sense of brotherhood with Christian Persians as Muslim Syrians did with Muslim Persians.”
)Lawrence E. Browne,The Prospects of Islam,London, 1944, p.12(
“But Islam has yet a further service to render the cause of humanity… No other society has such a record of success in uniting in an equality of status, of opportunity and of endeavour so many and so various races of mankind. The great Muslim communities of Africa,IndiaandIndonesia, perhaps also the small Muslim community inJapan, show that Islam has still the power to reconcile apparently irreconciliable elements of race and tradition. If ever the opposition of the great societies of the East and West is to be replaced by co-operation, the mediation of Islam is an indispensable condition.”
)H.A.R. Gibb. Whither Islam,London, 1932 p. 379(.
“But above all—and herein is its supreme importance in the missionary history of Islam—it ordains a yearly gathering of believers, of all nations and languages, brought together from all parts of the world, to pray in that sacred place towards which their faces are set in every hour of private worship in their distant homes. No stretch of religious genius could have conceived a better expedient for impressing on the minds of the faithful a sense of their common life and of brotherhood in the bonds of faith. Here, in a supreme act of common worship, the Negro of the West coast of Africa meets the Chinaman from the distant East; the courtly and polished Ottoman recognises his brother Muslim in the wild islander from the farthest end of theMalayanSea. At the same time throughout the whole Muhammedan world the hearts of believers are lifted up in sympathy with their more fortunate brethren gathered together in the sacred city, as in their own homes they celebrate the festival of ‘Eed al-Ad-haa’ or )as it is called in Turkey and Egypt( the feast of Bayram.”
“Besides the institution of the pilgrimage, the payment of the legal alms is another duty that continually reminds the Muslim that ‘the faithful are brothers’ )XLIX-10( – religious theory that is very strikingly realised in Muhammedan society and seldom fails to express itself in acts of kindness towards the new convert. Whatever be his race, colour or antecedents he is received into the brotherhood of believers and takes his place as an equal among equals.”
)T. W. Arnold, The Preaching of Islam,London, 1956, pp. 415-416(.
“It was the first religion that preached and practised democracy; for, in the mosque when the call from the minaret is sounded and the worshippers are gathered together, the democracy of Islam is embodied five times a day when the peasant and the king kneel side by side and proclaim: “God Alone is Great”. I have been struck over and over again by this indivisible unity of Islam that makes a man distinctively a brother. When you meet an Egyptian, an Algerian, an Indian and a Turk inLondon, what matters thatEgyptwas the motherland of one andIndiathe motherland of another.”
)Sarojini Naidu, Lecture on “The ideals of Islam” videSpeeches and Writings of Sarojini Naidu,Madras, 1918, p.169(.
ISLAMIC LAW—THE MOST ENLIGHTENED JURISPRUDNCE
“ The Muhammadan Law which is binding on all -- from the crowned head to the meanest subject is a law interwoven with a system of the wisest, the most learned and the most enlightened jurisprudence that ever existed in the world.”
)Edmund Burke, in his Impeachment of Warren Hastings(.
ISLAM IMPARTS KNOWLEDGE AND CREATES INTELLECT
“To seek knowledge is a duty of every Muslim man and woman.”‘Seek knowledge even though it be inChina’. ‘The savants are the heirs of the Prophets.’These profound words of the great reformer are an indisputable contradiction to those who seek and exert themselves in putting the responsibility of the intellectual degradation of Muslims upon the spirit of the Quran. Let them read and meditate upon this great Book and they will read that the Prophet incessantly called the attention and the meditation of his people to the splendid marvels, to the mysterious phenomenon of creation. The incredulous, sceptical and unbelieving may convince themselves that the importance of this Book and its doctrine was not to throw back, eventually, the intellectual and moral faculties of a whole people. On the contrary, those who have followed its counsels have been, as we have described in the course of this study, the creators of a civilisation which is astounding unto this day”.
)Dr. A. Bertherand,Contribution des Arabes au Progress de Sciences Medicales, Paris 1883, p.6(.
“It is to Mussulman science, to Mussulman art and to Mussulman literature thatEuropehas been in a great measure indebted for its extrication from the darkness of the Middle Ages.”
)Marquis of Dufferin and Ava,Speeches Delivered in India,London, 1890, p. 24(.
“It may be boldly asserted that no people in the world give the impression of being so religious-minded as do Moslems. All of life is saturated with the consciousness of God.”
)Charles R. Watson,What is this Moslem World?London, 193, pp. 38-39(
JIHAAD AND MUSLIM CONQUESTS
“The Crusades, the Turkish wars, and the great expansion ofEuropewidened the gulf between Christianity and Islam, while as the East was gradually brought under ecclesiastical influence the contrast grew deeper. The theory, however, that the Muhammadan conquerors and their successors were inspired by a fanatical hatred of Christianity is a fiction invented by Christians.”
)C.H. Becker, Christianity and Islam,London, 1909, pp. 28-33(
“Incidentally these well-established facts dispose of the idea so widely fostered in Christian writings that the Muslims, wherever they went, forced people to accept Islam at the point of the sword.”
)Lawrence W. Browne, The Prospects of Islam,London, 1944, p.14(.
“The Jihaad was not really obligatory except against peoples who had no revealed religion or who menace the existence of Islam… Jihaad had to be waged to defend Islam against aggressions… Once the war was terminated, the Muslims always displayed a great tolerance towards the conquered peoples leaving them their legislation and religious beliefs.”
)O. Houdes,La Grade Encyclopaedia, 1894,Tome 20, p. 1006(
“No other religion in history spread so rapidly as Islam… The West has widely believed that this surge of religion was made possible by the sword. But no modern scholar accepts that idea, and the Quran is explicit in support of the freedom of conscience. The evidence is strong that Islam welcomed the peoples of many diverse religions, so long as they behaved themselves and paid extra taxes. Muhammad constantly taught that Muslims should co-operate with the ‘People of the Book’ )Jews and Christians(.
“True, there were often wars between Muslims and either Christians or Jews )sometimes because the older religions insisted on battle(, and the Quran contains passages of primitive violence relating to those wars. But testimony is overwhelming that “followers of the Book” were usually given decent treatment, sanctuary and freedom to worship as they wished.
“Many Westerners, accustomed by their history books to believe that Muslims were barbarous infidels, find it difficult to comprehend how profoundly our intellectual life has been influenced by Muslim scholars in the field of science, medicine, mathematics, geography and philosophy. Crusaders who invaded the Holy Land to fight Muslims returned toEuropewith new ideas of love, poetry, chivalry, warfare and government. Our concept of what a university should be was deeply modified by Muslim scholars, who perfected the writing of history and who brought toEuropemuch Greek learning.
“Although Islam originated inArabia, today only a small percentage )7 percent( of the world’s Muslims are Arabians, and less than a quarter )20 percent( speak Arabic as their native language.
“More than most religions, Islam preaches the brotherhood of all races, colours and nations within its fold. Muhammad himself probably had exactly the same skin colouring as Jesus – a very suntanned white – but today his followers embrace all colours: black men from Africa, yellow men fromChina, brown men from Malaya, white men fromTurkey.
“Islam permits no priesthood, and because Muhammad had to fight so bitterly against idols, his religion discourages portraiture. Mosques are decorated with geometrical patterns only.”
)James A. Michener, “Islam – The Misunderstood Religion”,in the Reader’s Digest )American Edition, May 1955(.
“History makes it clear, however, that the legend of fanatical Muslims sweeping through the world and forcing Islam at the point of the sword upon conquered races is one of the most fantastically absurd myths that historians have over repeated.”
)De Lacy O’Leary,Islam at the Crossroads,London, 1923, p.8(.
“In their wars of conquest, however, the Muslims exhibited a degree of toleration which puts many Christian nations to shame.”
)E. Alexander Powell, The Struggle for Power in MuslimAsia.New York1923, p.48(.
“The nobility and broad tolerance of this creed, which accepts as God-inspired all the real religions of the world, will always be a glorious heritage for mankind. On it could indeed be built a perfect world religion.”
)Duncan Greenless, M.A. )Oxon.(,The Gospel of Islam,Adyar 1948, p.27(
“As a religion the Mohammedan religion, it must be confessed, is more suited toAfricathan is the Christian religion; indeed, I would even say that it is more suited to the world as whole….
“It is undeniable that polygamy, or to speak more accurately, the principle underlying it, is not confined to Moslem peoples. To put the matter plainly, who can honestly say that the sexual morality of the West is superior to that of the East? A fair comparison would, I believe, very much favor the latter. Then it is undeniable also that faith in the power of the sword is by no means restricted to the Islamic world. Who can bear more telling witness to the truth of this assertion than Moslems themselves who have suffered greatly from the sharp swords of the Western nations? Putting aside these two points of resemblance, the achievement of the Moslem faith enjoys, I maintain, a definite superiority, in proof of which may be cited Moslem abstinence, sense of fraternity, condemnation of usury, and recognition of prophets other than its own. Its quality may be summed up saying that it takes a man as he is, and while it does not pretend to make a god out of him, it seeks to regulate his conduct so that at least he shall become a good neighbor.”
)Lancelot Lawton, The Sphere,London, May 12, 1928(.
“In Muhammad’s day there was no Arabic version of the Bible from which he could obtain accurate knowledge of Christ…. Therefore some maintain that the very existence of Islam is due to the failure of the Church.”
)Angus Nicolson, Ph. D., A Guide to Islam,Stirling, 1951, p. 16(.
“I have always held the religion of Muhammad in high estimation because of its wonderful vitality. It is the only religion which appears to possess that assimilating capability to the changing phases of existence which can make itself appeal to every age…
I have prophesied about the faith of Muhammad that it would be acceptable tomorrow as it is beginning to be acceptable to theEuropeof today. The Mediaeval ecclesiastics, either through ignorance or bigotry, painted Muhammadanism in the darkest colours. They were, in fact, trained to hate both the man Muhammad and his religion. To them Muhammad was anti-Christ. I have studied him, the wonderful man, and in my opinion far from being an anti-Christ he must be called the Savior of Humanity. I believe that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that he would bring it the much-needed peace and happiness.Europeis beginning to be enamored of the creed of Muhammad. In the next century it may go still further in recognising the utility of that creed in solving its problems and it is in this sense that you must understand my prediction.”
A collection of Writings of Some of the Eminent Scholars,published by the Working Muslim Mission, 1935, p.77(.
ISLAM CAN FILL THE SOCIAL AND SPIRITUAL VACUUM CREATED BY THE WEST
" While Christianity in recent years has moved towards a social gospel, Islam has been a social gospel from the start.
A significant distinction between the two religions is that in the New Testament is a revelation of God; in the Quran is a revelation from God… Any religion that has lasted fourteen centuries must have some thing fundamentally significant and meaningful to say to every man whether he is a millionaire or a pauper, a prince or a slave. And Islam undoubtedly does.”
)Wilfred Cantwell Smith.Islam in Modern History,London, 1946, pp.22-24(.
“In these recently and rapidly opened up tropical territories, the Western civilisation has produced an economic and political plenum and, in the same breath, a social and spiritual void.
“If ever the ‘natives’ of these regions )Central Africa andIndonesia(
succeed in recapturing a spiritual state in which they are able to call their souls their own, it may prove to have been the Islamic spirit that has given fresh form to the void. This spirit may be expected to manifest itself in many practical ways; and one of these manifestations might be a liberation from alcohol, which was inspired by religious conviction and which was therefore able to accomplish what could never be enforced by the external sanction of an alien law.
“Here then in the foreground of the future, we can remark two valuable influences which Islam may exert upon the cosmopolitan proletariat of a Western society that has cast its net round the world and embraced the whole of mankind.”
)A. J. Toynbee,Civilisation on Trial,
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Welcome to Islam, - What they said about Islam

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The Islam that was revealed to Prophet Muhammad,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, )may Allaah exalt his mention( is the continuation and culmination of all the preceding revealed religions and hence, it is for all times and all people. This status of Islam is sustained by some obvious facts.
Firstly, there is no other revealed book extant in the same form and content as it was revealed. Secondly, no other revealed religion has any convincing claim to provide guidance in all walks of human life for all times. However, Islam addresses humanity at large and offers basic guidance regarding all human problems. Moreover, it has withstood the test of 1400 years and has the potential to establish an ideal society, as it did under the leadership of the last Prophet Muhammad,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.
It was a miracle that Prophet Muhammad,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, could win over even his toughest enemies to the fold of Islam without adequate material resources. Worshippers of idols, blind followers of the ways of forefathers, promoters of tribal feuds, abusers of human dignity and blood, become the most disciplined nation under the guidance of Islam and its Prophet,sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Islam opened before them vistas of spiritual heights and human dignity by declaring righteousness as the sole criterion for merit and honor. Islam shaped their social, cultural, moral and commercial life with basic laws and principles which are in conformity with human nature, and hence applicable in all times, as human nature does not change.
It is so unfortunate that instead of sincerely trying to understand the phenomenal success of Islam during its earlier time, the Christian West considered it as a rival religion. During the centuries of the Crusades, this trend gained much force and impetus and a large body of literature was produced to tarnish the image of Islam. However, Islam has begun to unfold its genuineness to the modern scholars whose bold and objective observations on Islam belie all the charges levelled against it by the so-called ‘unbiased’ Orientalists.
Here we furnish some observations on Islam by renowned non-Muslim scholars of modern times. The truth needs no advocates to plead on its behalf. However, the prolonged malicious propaganda against Islam has created great confusion even in the minds of free and objective thinkers.
We hope that the following observations would contribute to initiating an objective evaluation of Islam.
"It )Islam( replaced monkishness by manliness. It gives hope to the slave, brotherhood to mankind, and recognition of the fundamental facts of human nature.”
CanonTaylor]Paper read before the Church Congress at Walverhamton, Oct. 7, 1887 CE, Quoted by Arnond inThe Preaching of Islam, p. 71-72.[
“Sense of justice is one of the most wonderful ideals of Islam, because as I read in the Quran, I find those dynamic principles of life, not mystic but practical ethics for the daily conduct of life suited to whole world.”
Sarojini Naidu ]Lectures onThe Ideals of IslamseeSpeeches and Writings of Sarojini Naidu,Madras, 1918,p.167.[
“History makes it clear however, that the legend of fanatical Muslims sweeping through the world and forcing Islam at the point of the sword upon conquered races is one of the most fantastically absurd myths that historians have ever repeated”.
De Lacy O’Leary ]Islam at the Crossroads,London, 1923 p. 8.[
“But Islam has a still further service to render to the cause of humanity. It stands after all nearer to the real East thanEuropedoes, and it possesses a magnificent tradition of inter-racial understanding and cooperation. No other society has such a records of success in uniting in an equality of status, of opportunity, and of endeavors so many and various races of mankind… Islam has still the power to reconcile apparently irreconcilable elements of race and tradition. If ever the opposition of the Great societies of East and West is to be replaced by cooperation, the mediation of Islam is an indispensable condition. In its hand lies very largely the solution of the problem with whichEuropeis faced in its relations with the East. If they unite, the hope of a peaceful issue is immeasurably enhanced. But ifEurope, by rejecting the cooperation of Islam, throws it into the arms of its rivals, the issue can only be disastrous for both”.
H.A.R. Gibb ]Whither Islam,London, 1932,p. 379[
“I have always held the religion of Muhammad in high estimation because of its wonderful vitality. It is the only religion, which appears to me to possess that assimilating capacity to the changing phase of existence, which can make itself appeal to every age. I have studied him -- the wonderful man -- and in my opinion far from being an anti-Christ, he must be called the Savior of Humanity. I believe that if a man like him, were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world, he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it the much needed peace and happiness. I have prophesied about the faith of Muhammad that it would be acceptable to the Europe of tomorrow as it is beginning to be acceptable to the Europe of today.”
G. B. Shaw ]The Genuine Islam, Vol. 1, No. 81936[
“The extinction of race consciousness as between Muslims is one of the outstanding achievement of Islam and in the contemporary world there is, as it happens, a crying need for the propagation of this Islamic virtue.”
A. J. Toynbee ]Civilization on Trial,New York, 1948, p. 205[
“The rise of Islam is perhaps the most amazing event in human history. Spreading from a land and a people previously negligible, Islam spread within a century over half the earth, shattering great empires, overthrowing long-established religion, remolding the souls of races, and building up a whole new world – the world of Islam. The closer we examine this development the more extraordinary it appears. The other great religions won their way slowly, by painful struggle and finally triumphed with the aid of powerful monarchs converted to the new faith. Christianity had its Constantine, Buddhism its Asoka, and Zoroastrianism its Cyrus, each lending to his chosen cult the mighty force of secular authority. Not so Islam. Arising in a desert land sparsely inhabited by a nomad race previously undistinguished in human annals, Islam sallied forth on its great adventure with the slenderest human backing and against the heaviest material odds. Yet Islam triumphed with seemingly miraculous ease, and a couple of generations saw the Fiery Crescent borne victorious from the Pyrenees to the Himalayas and from the deserts of central Asia to the deserts of central Africa….”
A. M. L. Stoddard ]Quoted inIslam: The Religion of all Prophets, Begum Bawani Waqf,Karachi,Pakistanp. 56.[
“Islam is a religion that is essentially rationalistic in the widest sense of this term considered etymologically and historically. The definition of rationalism as a system that bases religion beliefs on principles furnished by the reason applies to it exactly. It cannot be denied that many doctrines and systems of theology and also many superstitions, from the worships of saints to the use of rosaries and amulets, have become grafted on the main trunk on Muslim creed. But in spite of the rich development, in every sense of the term, of the teachings of the Prophet, the Quran has invariably kept its place as the fundamental starting point, and the dogma of unity of God has always been proclaimed therein with the grandeur, a majesty, an invariable purity and with a note of sure conviction, which it is hard to find surpassed outside the pale of Islam. This fidelity to the fundamental dogma of the religion, the elemental simplicity of the formula in which it is enunciated, the power that is gains from the fervid conviction of the missionaries who propagate it, are so many causes to explain the success of Muhammad’s missionary efforts. A creed so precise; so stripped of all theological complexities and consequently so accessible to the ordinary understanding might be expected to possess, and does indeed possess, a marvelous power of winning its way into the consciences of men.”
Edward Montet ]La Propagande Chretienne Et Ses Adversaries Musulmans, Paris 1890, Quoted by T. W. Arnold inThe Preaching of Islam, London 1913, p. 413-414[
“I am not a Muslim in the usual sense, though I hope I am a “Muslim” as one surrendered to God, but I believe that embedded in the Quran and other expressions of the Islamic vision are vast stores of divine truth from which I and other Occidentals have still much to learn; and Islam is certainly a strong contender for supplying of the basic framework of the one religion of the future”.
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