Satan's Authority.

Allah lists out the points that constitute righteousness (Birr).

It is not righteousness that ye turn your faces to the East and the West; but righteous is he who believeth in Allah and the Last Day and the angels and the Scripture and the prophets; and giveth wealth, for love of Him, to kinsfolk and to orphans and the needy and the wayfarer and to those who ask, and to set slaves free; and observeth proper worship and payeth the poor-due. And those who keep their treaty when they make one, and the patient in tribulation and adversity and time of stress. Such are they who are sincere. Such are the God-fearing. (The Noble Quran 2:177)

To learn the true meaning of righteousness (Birr) we have to seek out all what we refer to as the connected Ayahs and then work out the message by using our Intellect (AQL). The Ayahs that describe Iblees who later on becomes an outcast is cursed by Allah, and where Shaithaan spells out his mission to lead mankind astray. In reading the Ayahs of the Quran it appears that there is only one Iblees, but there are many Shaithaans.

This probably means that all those who rebelled or rebel against Allah are referred to as ‘Shaithaans’ whether they are men or jinn. So it looks like Iblees from his exalted status as a Malaa’ikah has been cursed and demoted to the status of a Shaithaan. There is also indication that Iblees is the main Shaithaan and all others who are rebellious are referred to as Shaithaans especially because they get drawn in to being under his authority.

How would Shaithaan lead us astray or make us follow him?

This question is also answered by Allah. Remember Shaithaan can only do what Allah allows him. Allah is informing us of the strategies of Shaithaans.

And excite any of them whom thou canst with thy voice, and urge thy horse and foot against them, and be a partner in their wealth and children, and promise them. Satan promiseth them only to deceive. (The Noble Quran 17:64)

How do we recognise them?

Remember when we continue to read we find that Allah has given Shaithaan authority over those that get incited by his ‘callings’ So it is the Mukhlas or the ghibaadhies of Allah over whom Shaithaan has no SulTHaan or authority, but then we must remember that Shaithaan has authority over those who respond to his ‘callings’

Frightening isn’t it?

And the most frightening aspect of those under Shaithaans authority is that they would be entangled in an ever growing web of evil, but the victims would feel that they are really involved in careers of goodness. They would be utterly deceived in to believing that they are being virtuous in thought and deed.

So now, the most pressing question is, how do we recognise these schemes of Shaithaan?

Another way of trying to find out is to think ‘What is Shaithaans role?’ and ‘What would be the obstacles facing him?’ What would he do?

Shaithaan strategy

Let's look at how a military defense strategist would view.

Let's see how man is to seek guidance and then try to work out the crucial points in this flow, and figure out the crucial points at which Shaithaan would try to attack or sabotage.

Let's study the landscape.

Man arrives on Earth and lives here for a short period of time, maybe 60 to 80 years average. This period of time is for testing. There are basically a few paths that man can follow;

Look around him, excited by the many phenomena and processes that surround him, his needs have been created, controlled and sustained by some majestic and powerful being and realised that there has to be a purpose. So he devotes his life in searching for knowledge about God and also the purpose of life on earth and then desire that all these phenomena and processes work in his favour.

His life is spent in self-glorification which he seeks through desirable worldly materials and rising social status. He actually begins to believe that God is pleased with him and he also begins to believe that God is now working for him, in his favour.

For the seeker of the truth, God has sent down the Quran as a guidance. The seeker must seek guidance from the Quran and this guidance requires constant interaction with the Quran. The Quran instructs the seeker to use his ‘God given faculties’ in reading the Quran and to reflectively contemplate on the Ayahs of the Quran. For this reflective contemplation or ZIKR. God has bestowed man with many faculties or tools, which God describes as the Samgha or hearing, the Baswr or perceiving, the Af’idha or spiritual feeling, the Qalb or heart, the Swudhoor or chest and the AQL or intelligence.

The Quran also describes those who are distracted.

They would read all the Ayahs of Allah whether in the Quran or what is pointed out to us by the Quran, as material for their worldly advancement and self-glorification. They would wrongly use or misuse or even not use the faculties that God has bestowed them with for reflective contemplation or for the ZIKR of all the Ayahs of the Quran.

So the above points in brief is what would describe as the landscape.

So thinking as a military defense strategist, what should we anticipate Shaithaan to do?

Shaithaan has to stop or prevent man trying to work out as to what all the processes and systems working so wondrously around him are pointing out to him. Shaithaan has to make man think,

Of, all these wonderful systems and processes surrounding us, how can we utilise them, so all my desires are fulfilled. If my desires are being fulfilled it does not mean that God is pleased with me? It does not mean that God is favouring me?

The second (probably the most important point) is that Shaithaan would want to prevent man from processing the Ayahs of the Quran through his Samgha, Baswr, Af’idha, Qalb, Swudhoor and his AQL. Shaithaan would want man to read the Quran and then interpret it for worldly usage, because that is how Allah describes the losers.

If man reads the Quran and then processed the Ayahs through his faculties then he would benefit from the virtues of the Quran.

And We reveal of the Qur'an that which is a healing and a mercy for believers though it increase the evil-doers in naught save ruin. (The Noble Quran in 17:82)

The above Ayah Describes the benefits it provides to the Mu’min and the loss it confers on the Dhzalimeen or the unjust.

As we deduced in the earlier Ayahs, Allah confers authority to Shaithaan over those who are incited by his voice or his whisperings. The Quran also indicates that those under Shaithaans authority are both those from Mankind as well as the Jinn.

So, as a military defense strategist, We would think that not only would Shaithaan prevent man from processing the Ayahs of the Quran through his faculties, but he would marshal those under his authority to explain the Ayahs of the Quran to people in such a way that people would stop using their God given faculties for the Ayahs of the Quran and in fact would even begin to think that we should not use these faculties for this purpose.

Thinking as a military defense strategist we would also think how can Shaithaan and his troops do this?

It looks impossible. But then a good strategist does not dismiss potential ambush sites as ‘impossible’ He tries to ‘think out’ or even ‘out think’ the strategies of the enemy and is always alert watching out for the signs.

When Shaithaan has got man to work for desires, prevented man from processing the Ayahs of the Quran through the faculties God has given him, and then even got man to work under his authority to increase this type of thinking or mindset, then Shaithaan has to get man involved in evils which would make appear beautiful to man and make him think that he is being virtuous and that God is fully with him.

So Shaithaan gets this man to build on his wealth on his social status and as he keeps on climbing, man begins to now in turn marshal everything within his grasp and within his ownership to this evil empire that is growing around him.

In short Shaithaan would work in 3 steps

Step I - Incite man to work for his desires.

Step 2 - He would then bring them under his authority and marshal them as his forces and

Step 3 - He would then incite man to in turn marshal all his wealth and his children into the devious, speculative and ambitious plans that he now shares with Shaithaan.

Now is this not what Allah is describing to us through this very enlightening Ayahs?

In many other Ayahs of the Quran Allah describes to us the ploys of Shaithaan.

Why are we not reading these Ayahs and more important why are we not processing the instructions in these Ayahs through our faculties that Allah has blessed us with.

Why are we not reading and processing these Ayahs and also who are those people who are instructing us not to?

Revealing isn’t it?

So now, returning to the main point.

The Quran informs us that there are 2 ways of understanding Birr.

The first is what is read and preached and the second is what is understood by reading whilst using our AQL.

So now we are trying to understand Birr by reading the Ayah that describes Birr, and then processing the many points that are indicated to us through our AQL along with reading the many other connected Ayahs.

We are now trying to work out belief in the Aakhirah or the hereafter.

What the Quran is indicating to us is that if we read the Quran and the Ayahs or the Signs that the Quran is pointing out to us, by using our special faculties, especially our AQL, then we have to come to the conclusion, or the better word the conviction that there is a life hereafter. There is an Aakhirah and everything we see in this world should be pointing out to us this Aakhirah or the Yauwmil Aakhirah.

As far as we can discern, all this evidence or these Ayahs that point out to Aakhirah or the Yauwmil Aakhirah can be classed in to many categories, however we shall discuss just 3 of these categories;

In other words by looking at all the amazing systems and processes surrounding us and then by reading the and looking at what the Ayahs point out to us whilst processing this information through our faculties, we should be convinced that there is a life after death or an Aakhirah and therefore there has to be a day of judgement (Yauwmil Aakhirah).

Classifying all these ‘observed’ and ‘Quran' pointed out evidence in to 3 broad categories.

Category 1 and its evidence;

We look around the world and observe the many wonderful and amazing systems and processes working for our benefit and realise that all this cannot come together without some great and majestic power and magnificent design. Everything is synchronised everything works in concert and everything works for our benefit. So there has to be a planner, a designer, a creator, an evolver, a sustainer and so on and so on.

This has to be God.

But then with this realisation asks many questions;

We cannot see or interact with God in a perceptible manner, in a manner that satisfies us.

Why is that?

If God has planned, designed, created and is sustaining all these amazing countless systems and processes, then there has to be purpose.

What is that purpose?

Whilst grappling with all these questions the realisation also dawns on us that

'Yes we are going to see God’ or ‘Yes, we are going to be in His presence and we are going to see the fulfillment of the objectives or the purpose of all this creation, the systems and the processes that surround us’

Then the realisation also dawns on us, that we too are part of that purpose in fact it appears that we are at the very centre of that purpose and also that that purpose has to be fulfilled whilst we are alive on Planet Earth. That purpose or the purpose of our lives cannot be accomplished after our death.

So Yauwmil Aakhirah is the day on which we realise as to whether we have accomplished the purpose of our lives and remember that by the time we reach the Aakhirah our lives would be over.

The Aakhirah is our hereafter or our life after death.

So the evidence and study of this evidence and the conclusions we reach is what we would refer to as Category 1.

Category 2 and its evidence;

The evidence and the processing of evidence from this category require more intense thinking than for the earlier category. Let's call it more intense because now we have to deeply engage all our God bestowed faculties contemplating as to what the message really is.

We read an Ayahs from the Quran about what happened to Iblees. we also read an Ayahs from the Quran about what Shaithaan (formerly Iblees) takes on as his role, and Allah gives him the OK, he now has authority over those who respond to his incitement or enticement.

Allah provides us with many Ayahs that help us identify the schemes of Shaithaan and to keep away from them. When we begin to contemplate on what Shaithaan is doing and we try to identify and recognise his traps and his network on earth, our thoughts go through many thought grappling processes.

Suddenly we realise that Shaithaan is beautifying our evils.

Now that is a big clue.

What would be the beauty in a deed?

Finally it comes down to virtue.

The more virtuous we think a deed is the more beautiful it appears to us.

So we begin to think ‘What are those deeds that we are performing that we think are full of virtues?

And then we begin to realise. Now ‘that’ realisation puts our mind in to huge turmoil. It takes quite a few months to sort out these thoughts and for the mind to settle. Now we realise that all this time what we were thinking virtuous, was really evil. Evil garbed in virtue!

The logic behind this reasoning process would all be based from the Ayahs of the Quran. We keep on reading and re reading the Ayahs of the Quran. We keep on checking and re checking the meanings to these Ayahs. We check through so many translations and web sites that explain the grammatical nuances of each word. And then step by step our vision, the ability to discern evil that is disguised as good becomes clearer.

So many things that we thought were virtuous is actually seeped in evil. Then it follows that many things that we thought were offensive or not what Allah wants, is what we now realise is the real virtue. People do not like what we are doing and what we are trying to explain to them. This takes us by surprise. Because we think that people would be interested in this insight. But then when we try to explain, people give us answers that immediately remind us of the retorts that Allah explains to us, through the Ayats of the Quran and these retorts, though taking us by surprise actually strengthens our beliefs and our perception of what is actually good and evil.

It is a contrast of emotions

On one hand we are not happy that people are not wanting to see what we are showing them, and on the other hand their rejection gives us that elation that the Ayahs in the Quran are making more sense. That emotion is really very reassuring.

Then we begin to think that there are so many people generating so much evil, immersed in so much evil and apparently they are being rewarded with material wealth and status in society. Then we begin to think that those few who avoid this environment of sin and are trying to seek out the message in the Ayahs of the Quran, they are being humiliated and are not even having access to the material wealth of the world and then we begin to realise the wisdom of all this. There is great wisdom behind this amazing setting which Allah has arranged. And when we realise, ‘Allah is most just’

There has to be justice

Then we realize that all of us are going to be tried in a great Court and that Court would be the Day of Judgment. This is how we are convinced about the Aakhirah, through learning about Shaithaan and then detecting his schemes and then wondering at how so many people are caught in Shaithaans trap and then realising that those sins they are now engulfed in has to have its reckoning, and that reckoning would herald in the Aakhirah or the hereafter.

Category 3 and its evidence

This is again the evidence collected by a curious thinking mind. We see the world, we see all its amazing phenomena and processes and then we realise that everything in this world is temporary, speculative and delusional. Everything simply everything!

It is at this stage that we begin to try and find things that are not temporary, speculative and delusional and that leads us to seek GOD.

Then we begin to realise if everything surrounding us is temporary, speculative and delusional then there has to be a world or a life where everything is permanent, everything is orderly to an extent that there is no speculation or deception and then we begin to think then that world is where we are going to after our death.

So how would that world be?

Why are spending limited time in this temporary, speculative and delusional world?

There has to be a purpose and then this conviction of the truth of the hereafter or Aakhirah keeps on getting strengthened. This would be the brief introduction to what we have termed ‘Category 3 and its evidence’ 

Belief and Behaviour, an Astute Observation

"Our belief reflects our behaviour and vice versa. As we think in our heart so are we" . Not only we embraces the whole of a man‘s being, but is so comprehensive as to reach out to every condition and circumstance of our life. We literally behave as we believe, and our faith being the complete sum of all our behaviours. As the plant springs from and could not be without the seed, so every act of a Human being springs from the hidden seeds of faith, and could not have appeared without them. This applies equally to those acts called "spontaneous" and "unpremeditated" as to those, which are deliberately executed. Act is the blossom of our faith, and joy and suffering are its fruits; thus does Human beings garner in the sweet and bitter fruitage of their own husbandry. Thought in the mind hath made us, What we are by thought was wrought and built. If a our mind that has evil thoughts and causes pain and sufferings in life. If one endure in purity of faith, joy follows us as our own shadow.

Man is made or unmade by himself; in the armoury of thought he forges the weapons by which he destroys himself; he also fashions the tools with which he builds for himself heavenly mansions of joy and strength and peace. By the right choice and true application of thought, man seeks to the Divine guidance; by the abuse and wrong application of thought, he descends below the level of the beast. Between these two extremes are all the grades of character. Of all the beautiful truths pertaining to the soul which have been restored and brought to light in this age, none is more gladdening or fruitful of Divine promise and confidence than this. Man is the master of thought, the moulder of character, the maker and shaper of condition and environment. As a being of Power, Intelligence, and Love and the master of his own thoughts, he holds the key to every situation contains within himself that transforming and the regenerative agency by which he may make himself what he wills.

Man is always the master, even in his weaker and most abandoned state; but in his weakness and degradation he is the foolish master who misgoverns his "household." When he begins to reflect upon his condition, and applies the Islamic Shariah diligently, for the Law upon which his being is established, he then becomes the wise master, directing his energies with intelligence, and fashioning his thoughts to fruitful issues. Such is the conscious master. Thus he can become by discovering within himself the laws of thought which is totally a matter of application, self analysis and experience.

Only by searching and mining gold and diamonds are found and man can find every truth connected with his being, if he will dig deep into the mine of his soul; and that he is the maker of his character, the moulder of his life, and the builder of his future. He may unerringly prove; if he will, watch, control and alter his thoughts, tracing their effects upon himself, upon others, and upon his life and circumstances, linking cause and effect by patient practice and investigation, and utilising his every experience, even to the most trivial, everyday occurrence, as a means of obtaining that knowledge of himself which is Understanding, Wisdom and Power. In this direction, as in no other, is the law absolute that "He that seeks finds and to him that knocks it shall be opened;" for only by patience, prayer, and ceaseless supplicaion to his Creator, he enters the door of Jannah. (Paradise)

The Islamic Shariah

IN THE NAME OF ALLAH – THE SOURCE OF MERCY – THE MOST MERCIFUL

The law plays a central role in Islam and yet, the law is also the least understood aspect of the Islamic faith by Muslims and non-Muslims alike. Some even go as far as thinking that a Muslim who believes in Shariah law is by definition a fanatic or fundamentalist. Yet to accuse every Muslim who believes in Islamic law of fanaticism is akin to accusing every Jew who believes in Rabbinic or Talmudic law to be a fanatic as well. The truth is that so much hinges on the particular conception that one has of Islamic law and the interpretation that one follows.

Islamic law is derived from two distinct sources: the Noble Quran and the traditions of the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) (known as the Hadith and Sunnah). Traditions purporting to quote the Prophet (pbuh) verbatim are known as Hadith. The Sunnah, however, is a broader term; it refers to the Hadith as well as to narratives purporting to describe the conduct of the Prophet (pbuh) and his companions in a variety of settings and contexts.

In Islam, the Noble Quran occupies a unique and singular status as the literal word of Allah transmitted by the Angel Gabriel to the Prophet Muhammed (pbuh). The Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) did nothing more than communicate word for word God's revelation and Muslims preserved the text and transmitted it in its original form and language to subsequent generations. Muslims believe that Allah warranted and promised to guard the text of the Noble Quran from any possible alterations, revisions, deletions, or redaction, and therefore, while Muslims may disagree about the meaning and import of the revelation, there is a broad consensus among Muslims on the integrity of the text. At times the Noble Quran addresses itself to the Prophet (pbuh), specifically, but on other occasions the Noble Quran speaks to all Muslims or to humanity at large. In different contexts, the Noble Quran will address Jews or Christians or the polytheists. After the Noble Quran, most Muslims consider the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh) as the second most authoritative source of Islam. Although the Noble Quran and Sunnah are considered the two primary sources of Islamic theology and law, there are material differences between them.

The Noble Quran is primarily concerned with ethics and morality; the Sunnah, however, contains everything ranging from enunciation of moral principles, to detailed prescriptions on various matters of personal and social conduct, to mythology and historical narratives. Not all of the Sunnah can easily translate into a set of straightforward normative commands, and therefore, Muslim jurists argued that parts of the Sunnah are intended as legislative and binding, while other parts are simply descriptive and for the most part, not binding. Most importantly, the huge body of literature that embodies the Sunnah is complex and generally inaccessible to the lay person. In order to systematically and comprehensively analyse what the Sunnah, as a whole, has to say on a particular topic requires a considerable amount of technical knowledge and training. In part, this is due to the fact that the Sunnah literature reflects a rather wide array of conflicting and competing ideological orientations and outlooks that exist in tension with each other. Selective and non-systematic approaches to the Sunnah produce determinations that are extremely imbalanced and that are highly skewed in favour of a particular ideological orientation or another. And yet, such selective and imbalanced treatments of the Sunnah are commonplace in the contemporary Muslim world. Nevertheless, it is important to note that many of the basic rituals of Islam were derived from the Sunnah traditions. In addition, the Sunnah helps in contextualising the Quranic revelation, and also in understanding the historical framework and role of the Islamic message. Consequently, it is not possible to simply ignore this formidable oral tradition, or focus exclusively on the Noble Quran, without doing serious damage to the structure of the Islamic religion as a whole.

When the Noble Quran and Sunnah are considered together, they tell a complex story. They can be a source of profound intellectual and moral guidance and empowerment. However the opposite is also true: if approached with the wrong intellectual and moral commitments, or even if approached from within a hedonistic and non-committal moral framework, they could contribute to a process of ethical and intellectual stagnation, if not deterioration and putrefaction. For instance, the Sunnah contains a large number of traditions that could be very empowering to women, but it also contains an equally large number of traditions that are demeaning and deprecating towards women. To engage the Sunnah on this subject, analyse it systematically, interpret it consistently with the Noble Quran, and to read it in such a fashion that would promote, and not undermine, the ethical objectives of Islam calls for a well informed and sagaciously balanced intellectual and moral outlook.

Other than the Noble Quran and the traditions of the Prophet, (pbuh) there were various methodologies used by jurists for producing legal rulings. Jurists used rule by analogy and principles such as equity and public interest in order to make the law responsive to changing circumstances and conditions.

Importantly, what is called Islamic law is not contained in a single or few books. Islamic law is found in an enormous corpus of volumes that document the rulings and opinions of jurists over the span of many centuries. At one time, there were 130 schools of legal thought in the Islamic civilisation but most of them became extinct for a variety of reasons. On any point of law, one will find many conflicting opinions about what the law of Allah requires or mandates. The Islamic legal tradition is expressed in works that deal with jurisprudential theory and legal maxims, legal opinions (fatawa), adjudications in actual cases, and encyclopaedic volumes that note down the positive rulings of law (ahkam). Islamic law covers a broad array of topics ranging from ritual practice to criminal law, personal status and family law, commercial and transactional law, international law, and constitutional law.

The question is: How does this substantial body of jurisprudence relate to Divinity or to God's law? In what way can this tradition of juristic disputations, judgements, and opinions claim to be sacred or Divine law?

These questions bring us to a crucial distinction that is central to the very logic of Islamic law. What is customarily referred to as Islamic law is actually separated into two distinct categories: Shariah and fiqh. Shariah is the eternal, immutable, and unchanging law, or Way of truth and justice, as it exists in the mind of God. In essence, Shariah is the ideal law as it ought to be in the Divine realm, and as such it is by definition unknown to human beings on this earth. Thus human beings must strive and struggle to realise Shariah law to the best of their abilities. In contrast, fiqh is the human law it is the human attempt to reach and fulfill the eternal law as it exists in God's mind. Fiqh, unlike Shariah, is not eternal, immutable, or unchanging. By definition, fiqh is human and therefore, subject to error, alterable, and contingent.

The moral and ethical objectives of the  Noble Quran play a central and pivotal role in the process of legal analysis. The point of the legal analysis is not to unthinkingly and blindly implement a set of technical rules, but to seek after the ultimate objectives of the Noble Quran. All Quranic laws reinforce and promote moral and ethical objectives, such as racial and ethnic equality, freedom from compulsion in the conduct of human affairs, freedom of conscience, or the right of women to own property, and it is the duty of Muslims to apply themselves intellectually in order to comprehend and fulfill these objectives. These moral objectives are related to the obligation to seek Godliness in oneself and in society. The specific rulings of the Noble Quran came in response to particular problems that confronted the Muslim community at the time of the Prophet. (pbuh) The particular and specific rules set out in the Noble Quran are not objectives in themselves. These rulings are contingent on particular historical circumstances that might or might not exist in the modern age. At the time these rulings were revealed they were sought to achieve particular moral objectives such as justice, equity, equality, mercy, compassion, benevolence, and so on. Therefore, it is imperative that Muslims study the moral objectives of the Noble Quran, and treat the specific rulings as demonstrative examples of how Muslims should attempt to realise and achieve the Quranic morality in their lives.

At the most basic and fundamental level, what is Shariah for, and what does it aim to do? What are the ultimate objectives of the Shariah (the eternal law as it exists in God's mind)? Historically, legal schools of thought disagreed on many issues, but they agreed on the response to these questions. According to all the jurisprudential schools the purpose of the Shariah is to serve the best interests of human beings (tahqiq masalih al-ibad). Put differently, the objective of the law is not to apply technicalities regardless of their consequences, but to achieve the ultimate moral and ethical objectives that represent the essence of Godliness on this earth.

Will Power

IN THE NAME OF ALLAH – THE SOURCE OF MERCY – THE MOST MERCIFUL

TRAIN YOUR WILL POWER

MANY PEOPLE FAIL TO GET AHEAD BECAUSE THEY HAVE NO WILLPOWER TO DO WHAT THEY KNOW THEY SHOULD BE DOING. NOR CAN THEY HELP THEMSELVES TO AVOID THE THINGS WHICH THEY KNOW WILL RUIN THEM. MANY SUCH PEOPLE WOULD LIKE TO GIVE UP SMOKING, TO STOP USING DRUGS, OR TO AVOID AFFAIRS OUTSIDE OF MARRIAGE. MANY FIND THAT GAMBLING OR ALCOHOL ADDICTION IS WRECKING THEIR LIVES. YET THESE PEOPLE HAVE NO WILLPOWER TO SET THEIR LIFE ON THE RIGHT COURSE. THEY FEEL HELPLESS, AND THEY HAVE TO DEAL WITH A NAGGING CONSCIENCE THAT PRICKS THEM WITH WHAT THEY COULD HAVE DONE, OR SHOULD HAVE DONE.

YET THERE ARE SOME STRONG-WILLED PEOPLE WHO SEEM TO BE ABLE TO DO WHAT THEY KNOW IS RIGHT AND AVOID WHAT THEY KNOW IS WRONG. SUCH PEOPLE EXPERIENCE PEACE OF MIND KNOWING THAT THEY ARE DOING THE RIGHT THING. THEIR WILLPOWER IS OBVIOUSLY WORKING FOR THEM. BUT HOW DO THEY DO IT? WHAT IS THE SECRET? THE SECRET IS THAT YOU CAN TRAIN YOUR WILLPOWER.

SUPPOSE YOU MADE A RESOLUTION TO SKIP LUNCH FOR A MONTH AND ACTUALLY STUCK TO YOUR DECISION. YOU MAY SAVE YOUR LUNCH MONEY, LOSE A FEW POUNDS, DEVELOP SYMPATHY FOR THE POOR, AND GIVE YOUR DIGESTIVE SYSTEM A MUCH-NEEDED REST. MORE IMPORTANTLY, YOU WILL STRENGTHEN YOUR WILLPOWER.

THE REASON THIS WORKS IS THAT YOU TEACH YOURSELF TO AVOID LUNCH EVEN WHEN YOU KNOW YOU COULD HAVE IT IF YOU DECIDE. YOUR STOMACH MAY GROWL, BUT YOU WON'T LISTEN. THUS YOU TRAIN YOURSELF TO IGNORE THE CALLING OF YOUR LOWER PHYSICAL SELF AND REACH FOR THE HIGHER GOALS OF REAL HUMAN ACHIEVEMENT. IF YOU STICK TO YOUR DECISION DAY AFTER DAY FOR A MONTH YOU CAN DEVELOP A REGULAR HABIT OF DOING THE RIGHT THING EVEN WHEN YOUR DESIRES ARE CALLING FOR SOMETHING ELSE.

EVERY YEAR, FOR ONE MONTH, ABLE MUSLIMS GO THROUGH A SIMILAR FASTING EXERCISE. THEY OBSERVE THE FAST AS A COMPULSORY PRACTICE WHICH GOD PRESCRIBED IN HIS REVEALED MESSAGES, ESPECIALLY IN HIS LAST REVEALED BOOK. ONE OF THE MANY BENEFITS THEY EXPERIENCE FROM FASTING IS ITS TRAINING ASPECT. THE WILLPOWER THEY DEVELOP IN THE ONE MONTH HELPS THEM TO CONTINUE DOING THE RIGHT THING AND AVOIDING THE WRONG THROUGHOUT THE YEAR. 

THEY FIND THE FAST SUCH AN EFFECTIVE METHOD OF SPIRITUAL TRAINING AND OF ACHIEVING A CLOSENESS WITH THEIR CREATOR THAT MANY MUSLIMS ALSO KEEP SOME ADDITIONAL, OPTIONAL, FASTS ON OTHER DAYS OF THE YEAR. THEY EAT AN EARLY BREAKFAST BEFORE DAWN AND A LATE DINNER AFTER SUNSET. FROM DAWN TO SUNSET THEY WOULD HAVE NO FOOD OR DRINK; THEY WOULD ALSO REFRAIN FROM SEXUAL ACTIVITY. MUSLIMS TRAIN THEMSELVES WITH THE HELP OF GOD TO FULFILL THEIR NATURAL NEEDS IN THE TIME AND MANNER WHICH GOD DECLARED SUITABLE FOR HUMAN DIGNITY AND WELL-BEING. DURING THE FAST MUSLIMS ALSO TRAIN THEMSELVES TO AVOID LYING, CHEATING, BACKBITING, AND ALL MANNER OF FALSE SPEECH AND IMMORAL ACTIONS. THE MONTH OF RAMADAN IS AN IDEAL TIME TO STRENGHEN AND TRAIN YOUR WILL POWER.

Writer

IN THE NAME OF ALLAH – THE SOURCE OF MERCY – THE MOST MERCIFUL

Your Rights Will Remain Ceased, until ...Ink of a Scholar is mightier than the Sword of a Soldier ...and all the variations there of ... nevertheless ...the idea is powerful. 

A recent survey of career choices reveal young Muslims' top three pursuits as: Medicine, Computer Science and Law. We all know too well, the world needs others too. How about Journalism? If you think; Why Journalism, you are not alone.

The answer is because of Double Standards. It is a justified crusade when few lives are lost, but it is not when entire generations are killed. Euphemisms like "collateral damage" and "civilian casualties" heightens these double standards to painful proportions. 

A Just & Universal Standard is badly needed. When a human being dies, a Journalist must write, a "human being" died. It is that simple. But in the real world it is not happening. 

If your antenna is fine tuned, you pick up signals of injustice, corruption, exploitation and you boil with rage. If you are a Cowboy, you go out or send someone out for you and physically force changes. But if you are not and we hope you are not, you deal with the Cowboys. And the most noble way to deal with them is with knowledge and words.

Journalism involves the huge responsibility of providing accurate information and reporting the truth. In the search of which, no hurdle is too high, no danger so perilous to retreat. A journalist is spurred by an inner pain about an outer reality and addresses it with the only weapon of wisdom - knowledge and words. Journalism is a quest for truth, a crusade to expose injustice and wrongdoing by getting to know the true facts and then using words to communicate them effectively.

Journalists are also spurred by angst: how can you let people suffer, how can you allow reality to be buried, how can you allow a lie to be perpetuated. You can and will make a difference with the weapons you have, with knowledge and with words.

A Journalist's moment of triumph is when usurped land is restored to the rightful owners, the guilty are punished, when citizens selflessly watch over each other, when food is distributed to the famine-stricken, when a corrupt minister or a careless King is dethroned and so on.  

Today we face a new angst: Neither many parents are encouraging their children to pursue Journalism or Mass Communication, nor many young men and women are willing to opt for higher ideals rather than higher earnings.  

Our rights to protest double standards will remain ceased unless we begin to learn to side step landmines, escape from tank fires and duck the bullets. The choice is yours ... Doctors, Engineers and Lawyers alone cannot save the world and bring peace, harmony and justice for all.

ZamZam

IN THE NAME OF ALLAH – THE SOURCE OF MERCY – THE MOST MERCIFUL

MAKKAH'S WATER

Comes the Hajj season, and I am reminded of the wonders of Zumzum. Let me go back to how it all started.

In 1971, an Egyptian doctor wrote to the European Press, a letter saying that Zumzum was not fit for drinking purposes. I immediately thought that this was just a form of prejudice against the Muslims and that since his statement was based on the assumption, that since the Ka'aba was a shallow place (below sea level) and located in the centre of the city of Makkah, all the waste water of the city collecting through the drains fell into well holding the water.

Fortunately, the news came to King Faisal's ears who got extremely angry and decided to disprove the Egyptian doctor's provocative statement. He immediately ordered the Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources to investigate and send samples of Zumzum to European laboratories for testing the pot-ability of the water. The ministry then instructed the Jeddah Power and Desalination Plants to carry out this task. It was here that I was employed as a desalting engineer (chemical engineer to produce drinking water from seawater). I was chosen to carry out this assignment.

At this stage, I remember that I had no idea what the well holding the water looked like. I went to Makkah and reported to the authorities at the Ka'aba explaining my purpose of visit. They deputed a man to give me whatever help was required. When we reached the well, it was hard for me to believe that a pool of water, more like a small pond, about 18 by 14 feet, was the well that supplied millions of gallons of water every year to Hajjis ever since it came into existence at the time of Hazrat Ibrahim, many, many centuries ago. I started my investigations and took the dimensions of the well. I asked the man to show me the depth of the well.

First he took a shower and descended into the water. Then he straightened his body. I saw that the water level came up to just above his shoulders. His height was around five feet, eight inches. He then started moving from one corner to the other in the well (standing all the while since he was not allowed to dip his head into the water) in search of any inlet or pipeline inside the well to see from where the water came in.

However, the man reported that he could not find any inlet or pipeline inside the well. I thought of another idea. The water could be withdrawn rapidly with the help of a big transfer pump which was installed at the well for the Zumzum storage tanks. In this way, the water level would drop enabling us to locate the point of entry of the water. Surprisingly, nothing was observed during the pumping period, but I knew that this was the only method by which you could find the entrance of the water to the well. So I decided to repeat the process. But this time I instructed the man to stand still at one place and carefully observe any unusual thing happening inside the well. After a while, he suddenly raised his hands and shouted, "Alhamdollillah! I have found it. The sand is dancing beneath my feet as the water oozes out of the bed of the well." Then he moved around the well during the pumping period and noticed the same phenomenon everywhere in the well. Actually, the flow of water into the well through the bed was equal at every point, thus keeping the level of the water steady. 

After I finished my observations, I took the samples of the water for European laboratories to test. Before I left the Ka'aba, I asked the authorities about the other wells around Makkah. I was told that these wells were mostly dry. When I reached my office in Jeddah, I reported my findings to my boss who listened with great interest but made a very irrational comment that the Zumzum well could be internally connected to the Red Sea. How was it possible when Makkah is about 75 kilometres away from the sea and the wells located before the city usually remain dry?

The results of the water samples tested by the European laboratories and the one we analyzed in our own laboratory were found to be almost identical. The difference between Zumzum and other water (city water) was in the quantity of calcium and magnesium salts. The content of these was slightly higher in Zumzum. This may be why this water refreshes tired Hajjis, but more significantly, the water contains fluorides that have an effective germicidal action. Moreover, the remarks of the European laboratories showed that the water was fit for drinking. Hence, the statement made by the Egyptian doctor was proved false.

When this was reported to King Faisal he was extremely pleased and ordered the contradiction of the report in the European Press. In a way, it was a blessing that this study was undertaken to show the chemical composition of the water. In fact, the more you explore, the more wonders surface and you find yourself believing implicitly in the miracles of this water that God bestowed as a gift on the faithfuls coming from far and wide to the desert land for pilgrimage.

Let me sum up some of the features of Zumzum.

a.. This well has never dried up. On the contrary, it has always fulfilled the demand for water.

b.. It has always maintained the same salt composition and taste ever since it came into existence.

c.. Its potability has always been universally recognised as pilgrims from all over the world visit Ka'aba every year for Hajj and Umrah, but have never complained about it. Instead, they have always enjoyed the water that refreshes them.

d.. Water tastes different at different places.

e.. Zumzum's appeal has always been universal.

f.. This water has never been chemically treated or chlorinated, as is the case with water pumped into the cities.

g.. Biological growth and vegetation usually takes place in most wells. This makes the water unpalatable owing to the growth of algae causing taste and odour problems. But in the case of the Zumzum well there wasn't any sign of biological growth.

h.. Centuries ago, Hajra searched desperately for water in the hills of Safa and Marwa to give to her newly born son Ismail. As she ran from one place to another in search of water, her child rubbed his feet against the sand. A pool of water surfaced, and by the grace of God, shaped itself into a well which came to be called Zumzum.

Wisdom

IN THE NAME OF ALLAH – THE SOURCE OF MERCY – THE MOST MERCIFUL

DEFINING WISDOM - WISDOM HAS BEEN DEFINED AS ...

THE ABILITY TO MAKE CORRECT JUDGEMENTS AND DECISIONS, FORESEEING CONSEQUENCES AND ACTING TO MAXIMISE BENEFICIAL RESULTS, MAKING THE BEST USE OF AVAILABLE KNOWLEDGE, THINKING WHAT IS BEST AND DOING WHAT IS BEST IN ANY GIVEN SITUATION. HIKMAH (DENOTING 'WISDOM') IS A POSITIVE TERM USED REPEATEDLY IN THE NOBLE QURAN AS A CHARACTERISTIC OF THE RIGHTEOUS [THE NOBLE QURAN 2:251; 4:54;  5:110], AS A QUALITY OF THOSE WHO TRULY UNDERSTAND [THE NOBLE QURAN 31:12].

THE NOBLE QURAN IS REFERRED TO AS THE WISE QURAN [THE NOBLE QURAN 36:2]; THE BOOK OF WISDOM THE VERSES OF A BOOK OF WISDOM [THE NOBLE QURAN 10:2; 13:2] 

WISDOM IS REFERRED TO AS AN INTEGRAL COMPONENT OF THE MESSAGE AND GUIDANCE PROVIDED BY DIVINE REVELATION ... TAUGHT THE BOOK, THE WISDOM, THE GOSPEL AND THE TORAH [THE NOBLE QURAN 5:110] AND EVEN THE ALMIGHTY REFERS TO HIMSELF AS THE MIGHTY, THE WISE [THE NOBLE QURAN 2:209]. 

WHEN PROPHET ABRAHAM PRAYED FOR THE FULFILMENT OF THE MISSION OF PROPHETS, HE PRAYED FOR ONE WHO WOULD "RELATE SCRIPTURE TO THE PEOPLE, CONVEY HIKMAH (WISDOM) AND PROVIDE A MEANS OF PURIFICATION." [THE NOBLE QURAN 2:129] 

HIKMAH IS THE LOST PROPERTY OF THE BELIEVER; THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD (P B U H) SAID AND HE ENCOURAGED US TO TAKE WISDOM FROM ANY SOURCE IN KEEPING WITH THE SHARIAH. IN THE CASE OF DEBATING AND ARGUMENTATION, HIKMAH SHOULD BE THE PRIMARY INSTRUMENT [THE NOBLE QURAN 16:125] HIKMAH (WISDOM), 'AQL (MIND)

AT TIMES THE WORD HIKMAH IS INTERCHANGED WITH 'AQL; AS EVIDENCED IN THE SAYING OF, THE TONGUE OF A WISE PERSON IS BEHIND THE HEART AND THE HEART OF A FOOL IS BEHIND THE TONGUE. 

HIKMAH & 'ILM.

THOUGH 'ILM (KNOWLEDGE) MAY OPEN THE DOORWAYS TO HIKMAH, BUT HIKMAH IS DISTINCT FROM 'ILM. KNOWLEDGE AND INFORMATION PROVIDES MEANS FOR ENLIGHTENMENT; REMEMBER ALLAH'S BLESSINGS AND THE (TRUTHFUL INFORMATION) SENT THROUGH THE BOOK AND THE WISDOM IT PROVIDES BY WHICH YOU MAY BE ENLIGHTENED. [THE NOBLE QURAN 2:23]

THE PROPHET SAID: ASK THE LEARNED, CONSULT WITH THE WISE AND ACCOMPANY THE POOR. THERE ARE MANY WHO KNOW MANY THINGS, YET ARE LACKING IN WISDOM. IN OUR AGE... PEOPLE SEEM MORE THAN EVER PRONE TO CONFUSE WISDOM WITH KNOWLEDGE, AND KNOWLEDGE WITH INFORMATION. 

PHILOSOPHY IS HARMONISED KNOWLEDGE MAKING A HARMONIOUS LIFE; IT IS THE SELF-DISCIPLINE, WHICH LIFTS US TO SERENITY AND FREEDOM. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER, BUT ONLY WISDOM IS LIBERTY.

THE SADDEST ASPECT OF LIFE RIGHT NOW IS THAT SCIENCE GATHERS KNOWLEDGE FASTER THAN SOCIETY GATHERS WISDOM. THOUGH 'BOOK KNOWLEDGE' ENHANCES THE POTENTIAL FOR WISDOM; WISDOM IS OFTEN ATTAINED BY LEARNING IN OTHER WAYS; THE THREE METHODS WE MAY LEARN WISDOM: FIRST, BY REFLECTION, WHICH IS NOBLEST; SECOND, BY IMITATION, WHICH IS EASIEST; AND THIRD BY EXPERIENCE, WHICH IS THE BITTEREST.

VIRTUE & WISDOM 

ETHICS IS THE BRANCH OF PHILOSOPHY, WHICH ATTEMPTS TO UNDERSTAND THE NATURE OF MORALITY; TO DEFINE THAT WHICH IS RIGHT FROM THAT WHICH IS WRONG. THE FUNCTION OF WISDOM IS TO DISCRIMINATE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL. THE FOUR CARDINAL VIRTUES ARE WISDOM, COURAGE, SELF-CONTROL AND JUSTICE.

IN ISLAM, WISDOM IS ALWAYS LINKED TO VIRTUE. "YOU SHALL NOT ACCEPT ANY INFORMATION, UNLESS YOU VERIFY IT FOR YOURSELF. I HAVE GIVEN YOU THE CAPACITY FOR HEARING, SIGHT, AND THE INTELLECT, AND YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR USING THEM EFFECTIVELY. YOU SHALL NOT WALK WITH ARROGANCE ON EARTH, YOU CANNOT BORE THROUGH THE EARTH, NOR CAN YOU BE AS TALL AS THE MOUNTAINS. ALL IMPROPRIETY IS CONDEMNED BY YOUR LORD. THIS IS OF THE WISDOM INSPIRED TO YOU BY YOUR LORD. YOU SHALL NOT SET UP ANOTHER OBJECT OF WORSHIP BESIDE ALLAH, LEST YOU END UP IN HELL; BLAMED AND DEFEATED." [THE NOBLE QURAN 17:36-39]

THE CARDINAL VIRTUES TO LIVE BY ARE ... PIETY, CONTENTMENT, PATIENCE, GRATITUDE, HUMILITY, MODESTY, GENEROSITY, COURAGE, ENTHUSIASM, BENEVOLENCE, TRUTHFULNESS AND TRUSTWORTHINESS. 

EFFECTIVE WISDOM

THE HEIGHT OF WISDOM IS TO PROPORTION OUR WANTS TO OUR POSSESSIONS, OUR AMBITIONS TO OUR CAPACITIES, OUR EMOTIONS TO OUR CONSCIENCE AND OUR DEEDS TO OUR VALUES. IT IS UNWISE TO BE TOO SURE OF ONE'S OWN WISDOM. IT IS HEALTHY TO BE REMINDED THAT THE STRONGEST MIGHT WEAKEN AND THE WISEST MIGHT ERR.

THE BEST AND SAFEST THING IS TO KEEP A BALANCE IN YOUR LIFE, ACKNOWLEDGE THE GREAT POWERS AROUND US AND IN US. IF YOU CAN DO THAT AND LIVE THAT WAY, YOU ARE REALLY A WISE MAN. WISDOM IS A BOUNTEOUS THING THAT IS INVALUABLE AND ALLAH REMINDS US IN THE NOBLE QURAN:

WHOEVER IS GRANTED WISDOM HAS INDEED BEEN GRANTED SOMETHING TREMENDOUSLY BENEFICIAL; BUT NONE REFLECT EXCEPT PEOPLE OF INSIGHT. [THE NOBLE QURAN 2:269]