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Saturday, November 2, 2013

Dought & clear, - How can the Qur’an bea miracle for the non-Arabs when it is Arabic and they do not know Arabic?

The Qur'an came as a miracle from Allah to His Prophet (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him), as it says in the verses of the Qur'an
and in the hadeeth of al-Bukhaari, no. 7274. Hence I want to ask: How
can the Qur'an be a miracle for the non-Arabs who do not know Arabic,
and who formed the majority of inhabitants of the world at that time?
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
The hadeeth referred to in the question is as follows:
It was narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said:"There is not a single
Prophet who was not given signs so that the people would believed in
him because of them. What I have been given is a Revelation that Allah
has revealed to me, and I hope that I will be the one with the most
followers on the Day of Resurrection."
Narrated by al-Bukhaari (1044) and Muslim (152).
Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) said: There are
several possible interpretations of the hadeeth:
It was said that what is meant is that the miracles of the Prophets
have come to an end with the end of their time, and no one witnessed
them except those who were present, but the miracle of the Qur'an is
ongoing and will continue until the Day of Resurrection. It is
extraordinary in its style and eloquence, and in what it foretold of
future events of the unseen, so that no era passed except something
appeared that the Qur'an said would come to pass, which proves the
truthfulness of its claim. This is the strongest of the
interpretations of the hadeeth.
It was also said that what is meant is that the miracles of the past
were visible and could be seen with the eyes, such as the she-camel of
Saalih and the staff of Moosa, whereas the miracle of the Qur'an may
be comprehended with the intellect, so the number of those who
followed the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) because of it were more numerous, since that which can be seen
with the eyes comes to an end when the looking ends, whereas that
which may be comprehended with the intellect will continue to be
understood by those who come after the first generations.
Fath al-Baari, 9/70
Secondly:
The answer to the question, How can the Qur'an be a miracle for the
unlettered non-Arabs who formed the majority of inhabitants of the
world at that time? is as follows:
it is known that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon
him) was sent among the Arabs, who were distinguished by their great
eloquence and beautiful style in speech, so Allah, may He be exalted,
made the miracle or sign of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah
be upon him) of the same nature of that by which his people were
distinguished, so that the miracle and challenge would be more
effective, just as the sign of Moosa (peace be upon him) was his staff
or stick, with which he overcame the deceit of the sorcerers, and the
sign of 'Eesa (peace be upon him) was the healing of those who had
been born blind and of the lepers, because knowledge of medicine was
widespread at his time.
With regard to the non-Arabs, in the past and at present, and how the
Qur'an may be a miracle for them, and whether they were included in
its challenge, this may be explained from several angles:
-1-
Not all Arabs have great knowledge of the Arabic language and its
style and eloquence, just as not all non-Arabs are ignorant of the
Arabic language. Hence it is known that the miracle and the challenge
is addressed to all those who know Arabic, whether they learned it
from birth, like the Arabs, or they learned it later on, like the
non-Arabs. Thus it is clear that the case of the non-Arabs is like
that of Arabs who have no knowledge of their language.
Abu 'Abdullah al-Qurtubi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
If it is said: "With regard to reviving the dead, turning the staff
into a snake and other, similar miracles, they are very clear and no
one who observes that will have any doubt about it. It will be clear
to all rational people and no doubt will remain; rather they will all
reach a definitive conclusion after seeing that. But this is not the
case with regard to your Prophet's claim of the miraculous nature of
the Qur'an, because not everyone will be able to understand its
miraculous nature; rather it is only you (Arabs) who can see that, and
this applies only to those Arabs who have a good command of the
language, as you claim. As for those who do not have a good command of
the language, or non-Arabs who do not understand Arabic, they will not
understand its miraculous nature. If a non-Arab is asked to speak a
word of Arabic, he will not be able to do so, so the fact that he is
not able to do that, does not prove that what you are challenging him
with is true. Similarly, if an Arab who does not have a good command
of Arabic is asked to speak proper Arabic, he will not be able to do
so; therefore for him the Qur'an is not miraculous."
The answer to that is:
We will explain, insha Allah, some aspects of its miraculous nature,
of which there are many, some of which can be understood by ordinary
people, town dwellers and desert dwellers alike, and these aspects are
as clear as turning the staff into a snake and raising the dead. If we
assume, for the sake of argument, that it is only miraculous with
regard to its eloquence and style, which is different to the style of
the speech of ordinary people, then we say that the miraculous nature
of the Qur'an, raising the dead and turning the staff into a snake are
not going to be understood equally or at the same time by rational
people. Rather the one who appreciates the miraculous nature of any
miracle is the one who knows how and why that thing is a miracle, as
he knows that it is something that cannot be achieved by human tricks
and cannot be reached by discovering some material with special
characteristics.
It may not be far-fetched to say that a specious argument may be
developed in the mind of one who is ignorant of medicine or magic,
which prevents him from seeing the miracle; therefore he may say:
Perhaps Moosa had some extra knowledge of magic that the sorcerers did
not know and had never learned, and by the same token, perhaps 'Eesa
had found some stones with special qualities or some other material
with special qualities by means of which he was able to achieve what
he achieved. Such a specious argument can only develop in the mind of
one who is ignorant of medicine and magic. As for the one who has any
knowledge of medicine or magic, no such confusion will arise in his
mind, because he realises, on the basis of his knowledge and
experience, that the miracle performed by a prophet is something that
cannot be achieved by means of professional tricks or finding some
materials with special characteristics; rather it is a miracle that
happens by the will of the Creator of the universe, by means of which
He intended to give proof of the authenticity of the one who called
people to Him. Thus we conclude that understanding of the miraculous
nature of raising the dead and turning the staff into a snake was
first reached by the sorcerers and magicians, and it may not have been
understood by many of the fools who were ignorant of medicine and
magic. The same may be said of the miraculous nature of the Qur'an,
without any differences: understanding of it came to those who had
knowledge of the Arabic language and would see, based on their
knowledge of Arabic, the difference between the Qur'an and regular
Arabic speech. Thus they would conclude that it was not within the
ability of the Arabs to say things in the same style. If the eloquent
Arabs and those who were well versed in Arabic were unable to match
it, then others are more unlikely to be able to do so. As we say, if
the doctors are unable to raise the dead and heal those who were born
blind and lepers, people other than doctors are more unlikely to be
able to do so; and if the sorcerers were unable to turn a stick into a
snake, then people other than sorcerers are more unlikely to be able
to do so.
The statement that matching the Qur'an is something that the Arabs are
not able to do, and non-Arabs are not involved in this challenge, is
similar to saying that only doctors are unable to raise the dead, and
people other than doctors are not involved in this challenge, or
saying that only sorcerers are unable to turn a stick into a snake,
and people other than sorcerers are not involved in this challenge. As
the challenge in the other two cases (raising the dead and turning the
stick into a snake) is expected to be undertaken by those who have the
relevant skills, the same applies in the case of the Qur'an. Rather,
in the case of the Qur'anic miracle, it has aspects that we will
discuss which everyone can understand, whether he is a non-Arab or an
Arab, a Magian or a Jew or Christian. We will discuss it below, in sha
Allah.
So we may conclude from what we have said that Muhammad (blessings and
peace of Allah be upon him) brought the Qur'an, challenged people with
it and it is a miracle, and anyone who brings a miracle and challenges
others with it is truthful. Therefore the certain conclusion is that
Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) is true.
Al-I'laam bima fi Deen an-Nasaarah min al-Fasaad wa'l-Awhaam wa Izhaar
Mahaasin al-Islam, p. 326
-2-
Some of the scholars said that the miracle in the Book of Allah, may
He be exalted, is not only in the wording, but also the meanings, the
sequence of meanings and the way in which ideas are presented. So the
miracle and challenge for the Arabs has to do with the style, and for
others it has to do with the fact that no one among the speakers of
any other language is able to come up with something similar to the
Qur'an in any other language.
Al-Jassaas (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The words of Allah, may He be exalted, (interpretation of the
meaning): "Say: 'If mankind and the jinns were together to produce the
like of this Qur'an, they could not produce the like thereof, even if
they helped one another'" [al-Isra' 17:88]prove the miraculous nature
of the Qur'an. Some people say that its miracle is in the wording and
style on the one hand, and in the meanings and the sequence in which
ideas are presented, on the other hand. They quote as evidence for
that the fact that in this verse the Qur'an challenges both the Arabs
and the non-Arabs, the jinn and humans. It is well-known that the
non-Arabs could not be challenged on the aspect of the wording and
style, therefore the challenge for them should have to do with the
meanings and the sequence in which ideas are presented.
Some of the scholars insist that its miraculous nature is limited to
its style and eloquence of expression. They say: The miraculous nature
of the Qur'an has many aspects: its beautiful style, its eloquent and
concise wording, the way in which it combines many meanings in few
words, in addition to the fact that it is completely free of any words
that sound ineloquent or any ideas or meanings that are out of place,
as well as being free of any contradictions. All of it, from beginning
to end, is consistent, as described above. The words of people, on the
other hand, especially if they speak at length, cannot be free of
cheap words, corrupt meanings and contradictions. What we have
mentioned of the flaws in people's speech are present in the speech of
people of all languages; it does not apply only to those who speak
Arabic. Thus it is possible that the challenge of the Qur'an may be
applicable to the non-Arabs in that way: challenging them to bring
something that is free of the faults and flaws referred to above,
because saying things in an eloquent manner is not something that is
limited only to Arabic, to the exclusion of other languages, even
though the Arabic language is the most eloquent. We know that the
Qur'an is the pinnacle of eloquence, so it is possible that the
challenge to the non-Arabs is by way of challenging them to produce
words at the highest level of eloquence in their own languages.
Ahkaam al-Qur'an, 5/34, 35
-3-
There are many aspects to the miraculous nature of the Book of Allah;
it is not limited to style and eloquence only. Hence some of the
scholars said that the miraculous nature of the Book of Allah which
all people, not only the Arabs, may understand, and that Allah's
challenge to produce something like it, is only applicable to these
aspects. Hence Allah issued this challenge to the jinn as well as to
mankind, to produce something like this Qur'an. One of these aspects
is that it foretold events that would happen and foretold the time at
which they would happen, for example.
Abu 'Abdullah al-Qurtubi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
… The third aspect of the miraculous nature of the Qur'an is what it
includes of news of the future before any human even knew anything
about it, and foretelling events before they happened. This is
something that cannot be known except via the truthful ones who are
conveying from Allah, may He be exalted. We will refer to some events
just to prove this point in brief, with no need for a lengthy
discussion.
For example, Allah, may He be exalted, said (interpretation of the meaning):
"Certainly, you shall enter Al-Masjid al-Haram; if Allah wills,
secure, (some) having your heads shaved, and (some) having your hair
cut short, having no fear"
[Muhammad 47:27].
This verse is one of the clearest miracles of the Prophet (blessings
and peace of Allah be upon him). Allah, may He be exalted, promised
him that He would cause him to enter al-Masjid al-Haraam, him and his
people, in safety, and that He would grant them the conquest of Makkah
in the best state. They kept waiting for that until its time came and
Allah fulfilled His promise. Then they entered it as He had promised,
and conquered it as they had been foretold.
Al-I'laam bima fi Deen an-Nasaarah min al-Fasaad wa'l-Awhaam wa Izhaar
Mahaasin al-Islam, p. 337
There are other opinions too, but what we have quoted above is
sufficient, and it is the strongest view concerning this matter.
To sum up: the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) was
an Arab and the Qur'an is Arabic. He was sent to eloquent, well-spoken
Arabs, hence his greatest miracle was the Book of Allah, may He be
exalted. They were unable to match its wording, phrases, style and
eloquence. Thus the rational people among the eloquent and well-spoken
realised that this was not the words of a human being, hence they
believed.
As for those Arabs who were not eloquent or well spoken, and the
non-Arabs, what is to be mentioned to them is the meanings and rulings
of the Qur'an, and those aspects of its miraculous nature that they
are able to understand. Thus they may develop conviction based on the
knowledge and understanding that this is not the words of a human
being. Hence many of the non-Arabs became Muslim because of coming
across the meaning of a verse. In such cases, this non-Arab could not
understand its eloquence and style, but its meaning is the reason why
he became Muslim. Many such stories have been passed down by numerous
narrators, and in our own time there are many more. Those people only
became Muslim after they learned what there is in these verses that no
human being could have produced, and that at the time of the Prophet
(blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) there was no technology and
no scientific discoveries that could enable him to tell people about
these matters. Thus they accepted that this was revelation from
heaven, so they became Muslim. Hence we can see the extent to which
the hadeeth the questioner referred to is applicable to real facts.
And Allah knows best.

Dought & clear, - Ruling on offering congratulations at the beginning of the Hijri year

What is the ruling on offering congratulations on the occasion of the
Hijri new year and saying "Kull 'aam wa antum bi khayr" or praying for
blessing, or sending a card with best wishes for blessings in the new
year?
Praise be to Allah
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Saalih al-'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on
him) was asked: What is the ruling on congratulating people on the
occasion of the Hijri new year, and how should one reply to a person
who offers congratulations?
He replied:
If someone offers you congratulations, then respond to him, but do not
initiate such greetings. This is the correct view concerning this
matter. So if a person says to you, for example, "Happy New Year",
then you can say, "May Allaah make it a good and blessed year for
you." But you should not initiate such a greeting, because I do not
know of any report that the salaf [early generations of Islam]
congratulated one another on the occasion of the new year, rather the
salaf did not regard the first of Muharram as the first day of the new
year until the caliphate of 'Umar ibn al-Khattaab (may Allaah be
pleased with him.
Shaykh 'Abd al-Kareem al-Khudayr said concerning offering
congratulations on the occasion of the hijri new year:
Praying for another Muslim in general terms, in phrases that are not
meant as a kind of ritual on special occasions such as Eid, is
acceptable, especially if what is meant by this greeting is friendship
and to show a friendly face to one's fellow Muslim. Imaam Ahmad (may
Allaah have mercy on him) said: "I do not initiate the greeting but if
someone greets me I return the greeting, because responding to the
greeting is obligatory. But being the first to offer congratulations
is neither Sunnah nor forbidden.

Dought & clear, - He works as a nurse, which means that he may do some things thatare not acceptable according to sharee‘ah

What is the permissibility of being a male nurse in a non muslim
country? Im currently studying to become a nurse and I'm worried about
several things concerning this career. Often times we need to feed
patients ( maybe even female patients) food that may contain pork
other haram foodstuff. Sometimes the patients are olso served alcohol.
We may also need wash the (female) patients and change their clothes.
Also in this country this is a predominantly femele occupation. In my
current practical training there only one other male. Only two of the
patients are male. Also all of my teachers and majority of my
classmates are female. We may also have to bring them activity which
may include (religious) music and non-muslim religious activities. I
also have to have a practical training period concerning female health
and maternity care where the patients will be female. Also in elderly
care 2/3 of the patients are female. I don't think it is possible to
work in this field and uphold all the religious teachings strictly and
work in this field at the same time. What is the ruling on this
matter? Could reply swiftly to my guestion so I can change my field of
study if it is necessary.
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
The basic principle is that medical treatment of women should be done
by female doctors and nurses; if there are no female doctors or
nurses, it is permissible for them to be treated by a man, but that
should be in accordance with Islamic guidelines as mentioned in the
answer to question no. 127491
Secondly:
Free mixing between men and women is a great evil that leads to
serious negative consequences in both religious and worldly terms.
Similarly, work that involves serving pork and haraam drinks to people
is not permissible, because it comes under the heading of cooperating
in sin and transgression.
See the answer to question no. 3288
Thirdly:
According to what the questioner mentioned in his question, this work
is haraam and is not permissible, for the following reasons:
1.haraam mixing between men and women in school and work
2.offering pork and haraam drinks to patients
3.uncovering of 'awrahs and touching them unnecessarily, as there are
women around who can do these tasks
4.taking part in activities that include singing, music and mixing
5.treating women and taking care of them when there are female nurses
who could do that.
What you must do is look for work that is appropriate for you, far
removed from things that are contrary to Islam, and choose the best
and the next best, according to what you can do.
And Allah knows best.

For children, - Power of Positive Talk or Avoiding Toxic Self-Talk (Negative Talking)

Allah (SWT) the Exalted says in Noble Qur'an: "O you who believe! Be
careful of (your duty to) Allah and speak the right word." (33:70)
I remember my dad teaching me the power of language at a very young
age. Not only did my dad understand that specific words affect our
mental pictures, but he understood words are a powerful programming
factor in lifelong success.
One particularly interesting event occurred when I was eight. As a
kid, I was always climbing trees, poles, and literally hanging around
upside down from the rafters of our lake house. So, it came to no
surprise for my dad to find me at the top of a 30-foot tree swinging
back and forth. My little eight-year-old brain didn't realize the tree
could break or I could get hurt. I just thought it was fun to be up so
high.
My older cousin, Tammy, was also in the same tree. She was hanging on
the first big limb, about ten feet below me. Tammy's mother also
noticed us at the exact time my dad did. About that time a huge gust
of wind came over the tree. I could hear the leaves start to rattle
and the tree begin to sway. I remember my dad's voice over the wind
yell, "Bart, Hold on tightly." So I did.
The next thing I know, I heard Tammy screaming at the top of her
lungs, laying flat on the ground. She had fallen out of the tree.
I scampered down the tree to safety. My dad later told me why she fell
and I did not. Apparently, when Tammy's mother felt the gust of wind,
she yelled out, "Tammy, don't fall!" And Tammy did fall.
My dad then explained to me that the mind has a very difficult time
processing a negative image. In fact, people who rely on internal
pictures cannot see a negative at all. In order for Tammy to process
the command of not falling, her nine-year-old brain had to first
imagine falling, then try to tell the brain not to do what it just
imagined. Whereas, my eight-year-old brain instantly had an internal
image of me hanging on tightly.
This concept is especially useful when you are attempting to break a
habit or set a goal. You can't visualize not doing something. The only
way to properly visualize not doing something is to actually find a
word for what you want to do and visualize that. For example, when I
was thirteen years old, I played for my junior high school football
team. I tried so hard to be good, but I just couldn't get it together
at that age. I remember hearing the words run through my head as I was
running out for a pass, "Don't drop it!" Naturally, I dropped the
ball.
My coaches were not skilled enough to teach us proper "Self-Talk."
They just thought some kids could catch and others couldn't. I'll
never make it pro, but I'm now a pretty good Sunday afternoon football
player, because all my internal dialogue is positive and encourages me
to win. I wish my dad had coached me playing football instead of just
climbing trees. I might have had a longer football career.
Here is a very easy demonstration to teach your kids and your friends
the power of a toxic vocabulary. Ask them to hold a pen or pencil.
Hand it to them. Now, follow my instructions carefully. Say to them,
"Okay, try to drop the pencil." Observe what they do.
Most people release their hands and watch the pencil hit the floor.
You respond, "You weren't paying attention. I said TRY to drop the
pencil. Now please do it again." Most people then pick up the pencil
and pretend to be in excruciating pain while their hand tries but
fails to drop the pencil.
The point is made. If you tell your brain you will "give it a try,"
you are actually telling your brain to fail. I have a "no try" rule in
my house and with everyone I interact with. Either people will do it
or they won't. Either they will be at the party or they won't. I'm
brutal when people attempt to lie to me by using the word try. Do they
think I don't know they are really telegraphing to the world they have
no intention of doing it but they want me to give them brownie points
for pretended effort? You will never hear the words "I'll try" come
out of my mouth unless I'm teaching this concept in a seminar.
If you "try" and do something, your unconscious mind has permission
not to succeed. If I truly can't make a decision I will tell the
truth. "Sorry John. I'm not sure if I will be at your party or not.
I've got an outstanding commitment. If that falls through, I will be
here, Insha Allah. Otherwise, I will not. Thanks for the invite."
People respect honesty. So remove the word "try" from your vocabulary.
My dad also told me that psychologists claim it takes seventeen
positive statements to offset one negative statement. I have no idea
if it is true, but the logic holds true. It might take up to seventeen
compliments to offset the emotional damage of one harsh criticism.
These are concepts that are especially useful when raising children.
Ask yourself how many compliments you give yourself daily versus how
many criticisms. Heck, I know you are talking to yourself all day
long. We all have internal voices that give us direction.
So, are you giving yourself the 17:1 ratio or are you short changing
yourself with toxic self-talk like, "I'm fat. Nobody will like me.
I'll try this diet. I'm not good enough. I'm so stupid. I'm broke,
etc. etc."
If our parents can set a lifetime of programming with one wrong
statement, imagine the kind of programming you are doing on a daily
basis with your own internal dialogue. Here is a list of Toxic
Vocabulary words. Notice when you or other people use them.
*.BUT: Negates any words that are stated before it.
*.TRY: Presupposes failure.
*.IF: Presupposes that you may not.
*.MIGHT: It does nothing definite. It leaves options for your listener.
*.WOULD HAVE: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't
actually happen.
*.SHOULD HAVE: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't
actually happen (and implies guilt.)
*.COULD HAVE: Past tense that draws attention to things that didn't
actually happen but the person tries to take credit as if it did
happen.
*.CAN'T/DON'T: These words force the listener to focus on exactly the
opposite of what you want. This is a classic mistake that parents and
coaches make without knowing the damage of this linguistic error.
Examples:
*.Toxic phrase: "Don't drop the ball!"
*.Likely result: Drops the ball
*.Better language: "Catch the ball!"
*.Toxic phrase: "You shouldn't watch so much television."
*.Likely result: Watches more television.
*.Better language: "I read too much television makes people stupid.
You might find yourself turning that TV off and picking up one of
those books more often!"
Exercise:
*.Take a moment to write down all the phrases you use on a daily basis
or any Toxic Self-Talk that you have noticed yourself using. Write
these phrases down so you will begin to catch yourself as they occur
and change them.
Forge a positive relationship with the world around you and the world
will become a better place for you to live. And remember: Make
positive Self-Talk a daily practice.