Qur'an Related, - Conclusion

Throughout history, people to whom Allah sent messengers and prophets demanded miracles so that they could see something extraordinary that would convince them to believe. Allah graced some of the prophets with the power to perform miracles; He helped them, thereby enabling them to proclaim His message and engage in a clash of ideas with all sorts of unbelievers. However, people of conscience and intelligence do not need a miracle in order to believe, for those with understanding see everything as an evident proof of His existence.
Even though all of creation is filled with signs of Allah's existence and wondrous creative power, some people continue to demand at least one miracle. But their real intention is not what it seems, for instead of believing in these miracles, they falsely accuse those who perform them of such things as witchcraft or corruption.
They have sworn by Allah with their most earnest oaths that if a Sign comes to them, they will belive in it. Say:
"The Signs are under Allah's control alone." What will make you realize that even if a Sign did come that they would still not believe? We will overturn their hearts and sight, just as when they did not believe in it at first, and We will abandon them to wander blindly in their excessive insolence. Even if We sent down angels to them, the dead spoke to them, and We gathered together everything in front of them right before their eyes, they would still not believe, unless Allah willed. The truth is that most of them are ignorant. (Surat an-An'am: 109-111)
As Allah proclaims, those without faith who insist on seeing miracles do not really want to believe; rather, they want to test the prophets by making things difficult for them. In their own shallow minds, they want to show that the prophets are liars so that they can excuse their own rebelliousness. Such people do not believe even in a miracle when they see one; they simply increase their accusations that they have been bewitched.
When they see a Sign they only laugh with scorn. They say: "This is just downright magic." (Surat al-Saffat: 14-15)
If they see a Sign, they turn away saying: "There is no end to this witchcraft!" (Surat al-Qamar: 2)
It is a grace from Allah that many people have their faith strengthened by miracles. But people of conscience and intelligence believe in Allah because of the extraordinariness of creation, and thus do not expect a special miracle from the prophets. If the Lord manifests Himself in certain miracles, they see such events as blessings that stir up eager enthusiasm in them and strengthen their resolve. Throughout history, unbelievers have never expected such a thing and, as a result, have lost much. In order to find an excuse for their rebelliousness, they have disregarded the truths announced by the prophets in their search for something extraordinary. The Lord says that He could make these people submit to Him with just one miracle: "If We wished We could send down a Sign to them from heaven, before which their heads would be bowed low in subjection" (Surat al-Shu'ara': 4). But all things happen according to what is required by the nature of this world as a place of testing.
The miracles of our Prophet (saas) are a source of great joy for all Muslims. They increase the believers' faith and cause them to be more enthusiastic in their attachment to the sublime Qur'an.
They said, 'Glory be to You!
We have no knowledge except what You have taught us.
You are the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.'
(Surat Al-Baqara, 32)

Qur'an Related, - Damming the Euphrates

Soon the river Euphrates will disclose the treasure [the mountain] of gold. So, whoever will be present at that time should not take anything of it. (Sahih al-Bukhari.)
Other hadiths reveal important information on this subject:
The Messenger of Allah (saas) said: "The Hour will not come to pass before the river Euphrates dries up to unveil the mountain of gold, for which people will fight. Ninety-nine out of 100 will die [in the fighting], and every man among them will say: 'Perhaps I may be the only one to remain alive.'" (Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim.)
The Prophet (saas) said: "The Euphrates reveals the treasures within itself. Whoever sees it should not take anything from it." (Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi, Al-Burhan, 28.)
Damming the flow of water in the Euphrates and the emergence of a treasure as valuable as gold are both mentioned in many hadith collections.
Let's examine some important statements revealed in the hadiths one by one:
The Messenger of Allah (saas) said: "The Hour will not come to pass before the river Euphrates dries up and unveils the mountain of gold." (Sahih Muslim.)
(1)… the river Euphrates dries up …
As-Suyuti mentions this hadith as "the stopping of water." The Keban dam, built in 1975, has accomplished this.
(2)… unveils the mountain of gold…
The surrounding land has become as valuable as gold for various reasons, for the Keban dam has enabled electricity production and higher soil fertility through irrigation and transport facilities. The Keban and other dams lining the Euphrates resemble a concrete mountain, and wealth as valuable as gold comes out of it. Therefore, they take on the properties of"the golden mountain."(Allah knows the truth.)
Our Prophet (saas) also gave other information about this time, which can be found in Harun Yahya's The Signs of the Second Coming of Jesus, The End Times and the Mahdi, Signs of The Last Day, and other books. Among these signs are the following: lunar and solar eclipses during Ramadan, the rise of a comet, storming the Ka'bah and the subsequent bloodshed, sighting a flare in the east, a sign coming out of the Sun, the beginning of widespread slaughter, the killing of the rulers of Damascus and Egypt, the enslavement of the Egyptians, the destruction of great cities, the rebuilding of ruined places, the fourth peace and Arab-Israeli peace agreement, the destitution of the Iraqi people, the burning of Baghdad, an embargo against Iraq and Damascus, the restructuring of Iraq, confusion and disorder in Damascus as well as in Iraq and Arabia, conflict between Muslims and Jews, the killing of innocent children, pervasive corruption, religious prohibitions gaining acceptance, open denial of Allah, increasing numbers of earthquakes, the collapse of moral values, an increase in urbanization, the greening of deserts, and the appearance of false messiahs.
These are only a few of the signs. Since our Prophet's (saas) death, they have been observed at various times and in different places. However, since 1400 AH, all of them have occurred in the same period one after another. This means that another of his predictions has come true:
Signs following one another, like the pieces of a necklace falling one after the other when its string is cut.103
1. Hürriyet Daily, 04.11.1973, The Great Euphrates Came to a Halt Where it was Born

Discover Islam, - Scientific pride and prejudice

Evolution scientists pass off personal prejudices as scientific truth
Most people accept everything they hear from scientists as strictly
true. It does not even occur to them that scientists may also have
various philosophical or ideological prejudices. The fact of the
matter is that evolutionist scientists impose their own prejudices and
philosophical views on the public under the guise of Science. For
instance, although they are aware that random events do not cause
anything other than irregularity and confusion, they still claim that
the marvelous order, plan and design manifested in the Universe and in
living organisms arose by chance.
For instance, such a biologist easily grasps that there is an
incomprehensible harmony in a protein molecule -- the building block
of life -- and that there is no probability that this might have come
about by chance. Nevertheless, he alleges that this protein came into
existence under primitive earth conditions simply by chance, billions
of years ago. He does not stop there; he also unhesitatingly claims
that not only one, but millions of proteins were formed by chance and
then incredibly came together to create the first living cell.
Moreover, he defends his view with a blind stubbornness. This person
is an "evolutionist" scientist.
If the same scientist were to find three bricks resting on top of one
another while walking along a flat road, he would never suppose that
these bricks had come together by chance and then climbed up on top of
each other, again by chance. Indeed, anyone who did make such an
assertion would be considered insane.
How is it possible that people who are perfectly capable of assessing
ordinary events rationally, adopt such an irrational attitude when it
comes to thinking about their own existence?
It is impossible to claim that this attitude is adopted in the name of
science: Science requires taking both alternatives into consideration
wherever there are two alternatives equally possible concerning a
certain case. If the likelihood of one of the two alternatives is much
lower, for example if it is only one percent, then the rational and
scientific thing to do is to consider the other alternative, whose
likelihood is 99 percent, to be the valid one.
Let us continue, keeping this scientific basis in mind. There are two
views that can be set forth regarding how living beings came into
existence on earth. The first is that all living beings were created
by Allaah in their present complex structure. The second is that life
was formed by unconscious, random coincidences. The latter is the
claim of the theory of evolution.
When we look at scientific data, that of molecular biology for
instance, we can see that there is no chance whatsoever that a single
living cell -- or even one of the millions of proteins present in
this cell, could have come into existence by chance, as evolutionists
claim. As we will illustrate in the following chapters, probabilistic
calculations also confirm this many times over. Hence, the
evolutionist view on the emergence of living beings has zero
probability of being true.
This means that the first view has a "one hundred percent" probability
of being true. That is, life has been consciously brought into being.
To put it in another way, it was "created". All living beings have
come into existence by the design of a Creator exalted in superior
Power, Wisdom, and Knowledge. This reality is not simply a matter of
conviction; it is the normal conclusion that wisdom, logic and science
take one to.
Under these circumstances, our "evolutionist" scientist ought to
withdraw his claim and adhere to a fact that is both obvious and
proven. To do otherwise is to demonstrate that he is actually someone
who is sacrificing the spirit of scientific inquiry to further his own
particular philosophy, ideology and dogma rather than being a true
scientist.
The anger, stubbornness and prejudices of our "scientist" increase
more and more every time he confronts reality. His attitude can be
explained with a single word: faith.Yet it is a blind superstitious
faith, since there can be no other explanation for such blatant
disregard of all facts that leads to a lifelong, fanatic allegiance to
the preposterous scenario constructed wholly in his imagination.
The Quran appeals to "men of knowledge" to exercise their faculties
and appreciate the wonder of Allaah's creation in the world around
them and within themselves. It is a sad reflection on the manifest
unbelief of modern times, that evolution scientists are using the
intellect and senses that Allaah has granted them to do just the
opposite : negate the wonder of His creation. By disguising their
delusions of grandeur as scientific theories, evolution scientists are
doing a great disservice to the true spirit of scientific inquiry.

Discover Islam, - Justice: Islam's ultimate value

Allaah The Almighty Says )what means(:"And the heaven He raised and
imposed the balance. That you not transgress within the balance. And
establish weight in justice and do not make deficient the
balance."]Quran 55:7-9[
These verses of the Quran, which are mentioned in the
chapterAr-Rahmaan, or")God( the All-Merciful" stand out in their
emphasis of the importance of justice because they unite justice with
the important theological principle of Allaah'sKhalqandAmror His
"Creation and Command." These verses make justice both the basis of
the creation and its source of continuity )by commanding justice(.
This is true because, in essence, the balance is the symbol of justice
and its means of realization at the same time.
Heavens and earth were originally created with justice in a balanced
way and they can only )or were meant to( continue with it. Muslims
accepted this magnificent guidance and ultimate value of life, more
than 1400 years ago. The great Commentator of the Quran, Imaam Abu
Ja'far At-Tabari )d. 310 AH( expounded the aforementioned verses,
saying,"Allaah created Heavens and Earth by )and in( justice so that
all things in them exist )and interact( by )and in( justice."
And there is not a single nation, past or present, but that it has
asserted its claims of honoring justice and being just. Yet, the
justice they claimed, at times, meant nothing more than what the
"powers that be" wanted. Or sometimes justice represented what is
recognized and utilized by a majority or a certain religion or
ethnicity. What humans mean by justice, in other words, may differ in
its meaning and means from one nation to another. It is interesting to
note that Socrates )killed in 339 BC( defined justice as the, "Will of
the powerful," and it is also interesting that this applies the vast
majority of the time in situations when religious values are absent or
weak. It is even more interesting that some of the theories man has,
overtime, developed using 'rationality' and empiricism, and which
exceedingly tilt the balance of justice in favor of the powerful or
the rich, still flourish in modern times and continue to find
advocates or even unabashed supporters who will kill or die for them.
In one of the 100 or so verses which deal with theessentials of
justice and fairness, the Quran tells us of this perversion of justice
that sometimes occurs in the course of human events. Verse 25 of the
chapter )57(Al-Hadeed,"the Iron," pregnant with meanings and profusely
poignant, lay bear the reality about the roots of injustice among
people. Many people mention being motivated by hearing this verse
recited just once. Allaah Says )what means(:"We have already sent Our
messengers with clear evidences and sent down with them the Scripture
and the balance that the people may maintain ]their affairs[ in
justice. And We sent down iron, wherein is great military might and
benefits for the people, and so that Allaah may make evident those who
support Him and His messengers unseen. Indeed, Allaah is Powerful and
Exalted in Might."]Quran 57:25[ So many points of benefit, so much to
learn and live by. For one, the balance of justice is mentioned along
with the Books, guidance from Allaah, to indicate that true justice
needs a compass to save itself from relativism and free judgment from
personal drive. This also means that the interpretation of Allaah's
Guidance must be free from whims and ignorance, and this effort to
free one's self from whims and ignorance is what Muslim scholars--who
are the interpreters of Allaah's Final Message-- termIjtihaad. Thepoint
is that Allaah's Guidance entails that only people of knowledge who
are able and honest may interpret Divine texts. Ignoring this
prerequisite has led--in many times and places--to gross justifications
and evil consequences. Without this guidance, man has done enough to
give Socrates' definition of justice precedence over any other.
Another point worthy of our attention here is the fact that Allaah is
reminding us that He has provided the messengers with iron to go along
with the guidance and the command to establish justice. Man has known,
for untold centuries, that he cannot institute justice in almost any
walk of life, or protect justice whenever needed, without the power of
iron.
But the intent of the message of this verse is unambiguous.
Allmessengers from Allaah, who were sent to various nations throughout
history, came with the very same message.
The implication of this is so profound, especially for today's Muslims.
We must acknowledge and respect that loving and establishing justice
is a human trait, not an attribute of the Muslim Ummahalone. In fact,
our scholars have long asserted, based on the aforementioned verses
among many others, that Allaah grants supremacy to a just government
or nation even though it may be disbelieving, and He takes away
supremacy from an unjust government or nation even though it may be
believing. This is how just the Islamic worldview is.
And a Muslim would not be completely truthful to his belief without
accepting this view. Muslims should support justice and those who seek
it and they should feel happy every time justice triumphs.
But judging by the current situation of most Muslim countries and
communities around the world, itis not difficult to see that we have
strayed from justice.
To lure itback home, we need to mend our ways and make them coincide
with the guidance of ourKitaab)the Quran( first.