Muhammad (P)– A Mercy to The Worlds

Muhammad (P) the Messenger of Allah (SWT)

Written By Abidali Mohamedali based on a Lecture by Sheikh Mansour Leghaei

As has previously been established (Al-Fajr 4:3) the Prophet (P) was a reciting unto them His Signs, and purifying them, and instructing
prophet prior to the advent of Islam and later on became a (‫)ﻧﺒﻲ‬ them (in) the Book (the Quran) and wisdom while before that they
messenger. There have been many Prophets in history that have not had been in manifest error.” [3:164]
been bestowed with the divine revelation of a book and therefore
The issue that will be discussed here will be the story of when and
were not messenger but were Prophets. This paper shall outline the
how this message came to the Prophet.
beginnings of this Message of the Holy Prophet (P) focusing on criti-
cally analysing only the ahadith narrated about the very first revela- Story of Revelation According to Mainstream Narrators
tion that came to the Prophet (P) in the cave of Hira in the Mount of
It is established that the Prophet received the first revelation in the
Hira or as it is now known as Noor (‫ )ﺟﺒﻞ ﻧﻮر‬.As a prelude to this
cave or “alcove” on the mount Hira at the age of 40. But the exact se-
introduction, it is imperative that the stages of the fulfilment of the
quence of events that occurred as narrated by most historians’ needs
message be analysed.
scrutiny and analysis as it almost borders on blasphemy. Some orien-
Stages of Fulfilment talists have concluded that the Prophet (P) received the message be-
cause he was contemplating and meditating excessively at this cave.
The very fist proof is that the
The simple fact is that by mere meditation once cannot become a
Prophet Muhammad (P) was
Prophet! If this were true, the numbers of Prophets we would have to
appointed even before the crea-
date would be innumerable!
tion of the universe was in Alam
Dhar (‫ )ﻋﻠﻢ ذر‬as Allah says in the Almost all narrators and historians both Sunni and Shi’a have relied
Quran “And when Allah made a on only one hadith narrated by Aisha as to what happened on the
covenant through the prophets: mount of Hira (Bukhari 1:3, Muslim 1:141, Tabari 2:47, Behar Al An-
Certainly what I have given you waar 18:206). The hadith as narrated in Bukhari is as follows
of Book and wisdom-- then an “Narrated 'Aisha through
messenger comes to you verify- Urwa Ibn Zubayr, Ibn Muhammad (P): The Messenger of
ing that which is with you, you Shihaab(Zuhri) : The com- Allah (SWT)..………………………….. 1
must believe in him, and you mencement of the Divine
must aid him. He said: Do you Inspiration to Allah's Editorial………………………....…….. 2
affirm and accept My compact Apostle was in the form
in this (matter)? They said: We of good dreams which Race For Mercy..………………………. 4
do affirm. He said: Then bear came true like bright day
witness, and I (too) am of the light, and then the love of The True Story of Jesus (AS)– crucifix-
bearers of witness with you.” (3:81) seclusion was bestowed
ion or Cruci-fiction …………………….5
upon him. He used to go
On the earth, the very first indication f the fulfilment of the promise of
in seclusion in the cave of
the coming of the Prophet was the prayer of Prophet Ibrahim who Fiqh of Ahlul Bayt (Dealing in meat)..6
Hira where he used to
prayed after building the house of Allah (Kaaba) “Our Lord! and raise
worship (Allah alone)
up in them a Messenger(‫ )رﺳﻮل‬from among them who shall recite to Work Etiquette in Islam.…………….. 7
continuously for many
them Thy communications and teach them the Book and the wisdom,
days before his desire to
and purify them; surely Thou art the Mighty, the Wise.” (2:129)
see his family. He used to Tafsir of Qur'an …..……..…..……….. 8
The third incident was the prophecy given by Prophet Isa (P) of the take with him the journey
coming of Ahmad as said in Surat Saff verse 6 “And when Isa son of food for the stay and then Our Ulamaa ………………………..…10
Marium said: O children of Israel! surely I am the messenger of Allah come back to (his wife)
to you, verifying that which is before me of the Taurat and giving the Khadija to take his food
good news of an Messenger who will come after me, his name being like-wise again till sud- DISCLAIMER AND CAUTION
Ahmad, but when he came to them with clear arguments they said: denly the Truth descended The articles published in this paper are
This is clear magic.” upon him while he was in not the views of Al-Fajr or any particu-
the cave of Hira. The an- lar Islamic centre but of the Author.
And finally the message was fulfilled in its entirety for the believers gel came to him and Please handle with care as it contains
which closely matches the prayer of Prophet Ibrahim (P) where Allah asked him to read. The names of Allah and His Prophet
says, “Indeed Allah conferred a great favor on the believers when He Prophet replied, "I do not
sent among them a Messenger (Muhammad) from among themselves, (Continued on page 2)
1
Editorial...
Salaam Alaykum!
I wish to welcome you again to a
new issue of Al-Fajr. As you proba-
bly have already noticed, this issue
is bigger and inshallah we are striv-
ing hard to make it better. In this
and subsequent issues, we will en-
deavor to complete the true story of
Prophet Jesus (AS) which we had
begun in volume three of Al-Fajr in
2005. We have also begun a new
segment entitled the Fiqh of Ahlul
Bayt. We hope, inshallah, that this
particular segment will assist us all
in ensuring we practice our faith as
it is meant to be practiced and that
we become aware of areas of our
Faith that we often assume to know.
This weeks cover story, dealing with
the story of the first revelation is a
poignant reminder to us that it is
often we need to reevaluate our-
selves and our beliefs to ensure we
are not misguided by what others
tell us or what is written in any
book. Allah has blessed us with this
incredible intellect which often,
when it comes to religion is aban-
doned. In addition to the innumer-
able blessings Allah has bestowed,
by far the most important and
weighty of them is the Ahlul Bayt.
"(All) praise be to Allah who guided
us to this and we would not have
been guided had not Allah guided
us." (7:43) This theme is carried into
all the articles especially the feature
article by Ali, who had very suc-
cinctly outlined an age old problem
and how Islam helps us solve it.
We hope you enjoy this issue and if
you have any contributions, sugges-
tions or comments or would like to
be included in the mailing list to
receive an electronic copy of the
magazine or to request old issues,
please do not hesitate to contact us
on abidalim@gmail.com
Wassalaam
Abidali Mohamedali - Editor
Al– Fajr ‫ اﻟﻒﺠﺮ‬4(4) ‫׀‬Pg 2
know how to read.
The Prophet added, "The angel caught me
(forcefully) and pressed me so hard that I could
not bear it any more. He then released me and
again asked me to read and I replied, 'I do not
know how to read.' Thereupon he caught me
again and pressed me a second time till I could
not bear it any more. He then released me and
again asked me to read but again I replied, 'I do
not know how to read?' Thereupon he caught
me for the third time and pressed me, and then
released me and said, 'Read in the name of your
Lord, who has created (all that exists) has cre-
ated man from a clot. Read! And your Lord is
the Most Generous." (96:1, 96:2, 96:3) Then Al-
lah's Apostle returned with the Inspiration and
with his heart beating severely. Then he went to
Khadija bint Khuwailid and said, "Cover me!
Cover me!" They covered him till his fear was
over and after that he told her everything that
had happened and said, "I fearful of my-
self"[Sunni scholars have provided 12 different
suggestions as to the meaning of this statement
and the first and the most important one is that
the Prophet (P) was scared of loosing his sanity]
Khadija replied, "Never! By Allah, Allah will
never disgrace you. You keep good relations
with your Kith and kin, help the poor and the
destitute, serve your guests generously and as-
sist the deserving calamity-afflicted ones."
Khadija then accompanied him to her cousin
Waraqa bin Naufal bin Asad bin 'Abdul 'Uzza,
who, during the Pre-Islamic Period became a
Christian and used to write the writing with
Hebrew letters. He would write from the Gospel
in Hebrew as much as Allah wished him to
write. He was an old man and had lost his eye-
sight. Khadija said to Waraqa, "Listen to the
story of your nephew, O my cousin!" Waraqa
asked, "O my nephew! What have you seen?"
Allah's Apostle described whatever he had seen.
Waraqa said, "This is the same one who keeps
the secrets (angel Gabriel) whom Allah had sent
to Moses. I wish I were young and could live up
to the time when your people would turn you
out." Allah's Apostle asked, "Will they drive me
out?" Waraqa replied in the affirmative and
said, "Anyone (man) who came with something
similar to what you have brought was treated
with hostility; and if I should remain alive till
the day when you will be turned out then I
would support you strongly." But after a few
days Waraqa died and the Divine Inspiration
was also paused for a while.” It continues in
volume 9 book 87 (Interpretation of dreams)
number 111 “and the Prophet became so sad as
we have heard that he intended several times to
throw himself from the tops of high mountains
and every time he went up the top of a moun-
tain in order to throw himself down, Gabriel
would appear before him and say, "O Muham-
mad! You are indeed Allah's Apostle in truth"
whereupon his heart would become quiet and he
would calm down and would return home. And
whenever the period of the coming of the inspi-
ration used to become long, he would do as be-
fore, but when he used to reach the top of a
mountain, Gabriel would appear before him and
say to him what he had said before.”
In addition to this hadith there have been sev-
eral modifications and additions such as that by
Ibn Sa’d who added: “O Khadija I hear a voice
and see a light. I am afraid of insanity for my-
self!” [al-Tabaqat- Ibn Ishaaq 1:195] A further
addition is inserted in this hadith by Ibn
Hisham and Ibn Atheer: “Khadija performs a
test and ensures Muhammad (P) that what he
has seen was an angel not a devil!” [al-Kaaeml
2:31] This test was to confirm whether the being
(Gabriel) was a devil or an angel and was such
that Khadijah asked the Prophet to sit on her left
then right lap when the angel appeared and if
he disappeared when she took off her Hijab it
means that he was an angel! It is unfortunate
that many Shi’a scholars actually quote this
when they want to prove the merits of hijab
such that the angels also do not come close to
one who does no wear Hijab!!
It is unfortunate that many contemporary schol-
ars and historians have accepted this hadith! Dr.
M. Haykal (Hayaat Muhmmad) , Gostav Lobon
(History of Islam and the Arabs) & Will Durant
(History of Civilisations) have narrated the
story. Even the author of ‘The Message’ has
partially accepted the narration of Aisha claim-
ing that it is mutawaatir (accepted by most his-
torians)!
Analysis and Criticisms of the story
The narrators of the story
The first step of any analysis such as this is to
study the chain of the narrators to determine its
validity (ilm-Rijaal). Studying the narrators of
the story, 2 names come up , Abudullah Ibn
Umair and Abdullah Ibn Shaddad, neither of
whom were at the time of the Prophet (P) and
therefore must have hard it from some-
one.Aisha was not even born at the advent of
Islam and therefore could not have directly nar-
rated the hadith unless he narrates from the
companions of the Prophet or from the Prophet
himself. According to the narration, neither of
these occurred and in fact, technically it is not
even a hadith! Later analysis tends to the likeli-
hood that Aisha did not even utter these words.
Zohri was a supporter of Bani Marwan and the
teacher of the children of Hisham Bin Abdul-
Malik the enemy of Ahlul-Bait, although he
repented later in his life it cannot be ascertained
when this hadith was narrated, at the beginning
of his life when he was a hater of the Ahlul Bait
or later, and therefore on this paradigm alone
this hadith has to be rejected.
Orwa was the nephew of Aisha and was among
the enemies of Ahlul-Bait. Zohri from Orwa
from Aisha narrated: “ I was sitting with the
Holy Prophet and Abbas and Ali (Ibn Abi Talib)
walked in the Prophet told me ‘surely these two
will not die as muslims’”!!! Certainly if a person
narrates such obviously false hadith from both
Shi’a and Sunni perspectives, cannot be trusted
to narrate anything!
This hadith therefore is a khabar waahid
and therefore is very suspect. Narrators
have narrated it citing that this is the only
hadith about the incident. This feeble reason
is not reason enough to degrade and humili-
ate the greatest of man.
The Story Contradicts the Quran
In the sciences’ of hadith, the golden rule to
determine the authenticity of any hadith is
to compare it to what he Quran says, and if
it does contradict the Quran, its disregarded.
This story contradicts the Quran in many
instances such as
• Allah says in the Quran “Say: Surely I
have manifest proof from my
Lord…” (6:57) meaning that the message
that was given to the Prophet is clear and
manifest, without doubt! The hadith
claims that the Prophet (P) was doubtful
of the message!
• Allah says, referring to the prophets of
the Israelites, “And We made of them
Imams to guide by Our command when
they were patient, and they were certain
of Our communications.”(32:24) If the
prophets of Israel were certain about their
message, how can the last messenger, the
seal of the prophets be doubtful!
• In another
place Allah
says “The mes-
senger believes
in what has
been revealed
to him from his
Lord…”(2:185)
How can some-
one have faith
in what has
been revealed
to him go to his The cave of Hira is small enough for one person and faces the Qibla from this hadith
wife and an old Christian to seek reassur- that the prophet is a naïve little child and
ance!
• Again in Surah Najm verse 10-12 Allah
says “And He revealed to His servant
what He revealed. The heart was not un-
true in (making him see) what he saw.
What! do you then dispute with him as
to what he saw?” This verse not only
proves that the prophet was certain about
his message and its communication; on
the contrary, it goes further to suggest
that there were others around him who
were doubtful!
This narration contradicts other narrations
Numerous narrations have been found to be dal for His Mission?! This does not even
contradictory to this narration in the Sunni
books of hadith such as the fact that imme-
diately after this hadith in Bukhari and in
numerous other places , it is narrated that
the first verse revealed to the Prophet (P)
were those of surah Muddathir! After understanding and analysing this
hadith, it becomes clear that those who write
Gabriel’s Torture
and profess ill of the Prophet and the relig-
It is narrated in this hadith that Gabriel tor- ion of Islam, really cannot be blamed as the
tured the prophet 3 times, why did he do rotten fruits lie right within us. They obtain
that? This is reminiscent of torture and inter- their ammunition from books such as the
rogation; did he do this on the command of ‘sihah’.
God as all angels work only under the com-
From the Narrations of Ahlul Bayt
mand of Allah? Being this as the case did
Allah not know that the Prophet did not Imam Ali (AS) says in Nahjul Balagah ser-
read!? mon 192 “From the time of his weaning,
Allah had put a mighty angel with him…
The revelation to Muhammad (P) has been
Every year, he used to go in seclusion to the
similar to the previous Prophets:
mount of Hira, where I saw him but no one
(4:163) ‫ اﻧﺎ اوﺣﻴﻨﺎ اﻟﻴﮏ ﮐﻤﺎ اوﺣﻴﻨﺎ اﻟﯽ ﻧﻮح و اﻟﻨﺒﻴﻴﻦ ﻣﻦ ﺑﻌﺪﻩ‬else saw him…I used to see the Light of Di-
Allah says “Surely We have revealed to you vine Revelation and Message, and breathed
as We revealed to Nuh, and the prophets the scent of Prophethood. I heard the moan
after him, and We revealed to Ibrahim and of Satan when the revelation descended on
Ismail and Ishaq and Yaqoub and the tribes, him (P)…” Comparing this to the drivel fed
and Isa and Ayub and Yunus and Haroun to us in Bukhari, it becomes so clear that
and Sulaiman and We gave to Dawood” Imam Ali (AS) was also certain about this
Yet, such a story is not mentioned about message how in the world the Prophet him-
them. Prophet Musa received the revelation self can be doubtful!? Imam Ali in the intro-
fist and the medium was a tree and yet he duction of the sermon 161 says “Allah de-
did not cower and get scared! puted him (Muhammad) with a sparkling
light, and a clear proof and an open path
Other points that invalidate this hadith and a guiding Book.” The message was
Waraqah was a Christian but he assures CLEAR with no doubt whatsoever. This
Muhammad (P) that this is similar to what certainly is the truth!
Moses received (not Jesus) why?! This is the Zorarah one of the companions of Imam
very poof that this hadith is indeed a forgery Sadiq (AS) asked the epistemological ques-
or fabrications made by the Jewish monk tion as to how was the Messenger of Allah
and has infiltrated sure that what has been revealed to him was
the Muslim books not a Satanic thought? Imam Sadiq (AS)
of Hadith. replied “Indeed when Allah chooses a slave
Where did as His Messenger He will descend to him
Khadija learn that tranquility and gravity. Thus, what comes
test? Was Muham- to him from the Almighty Allah is like what
mad (P) so heed- he just sees.”
less that he could Imam Hadi (AS) said on this issue “…When
not tell the differ- Muhammad (P) reached the age of forty,
ence between a Allah looked at his heart and found it the
devil and an an- brightest and the softest heart. Thus, He
gel? It seems that, ordered the Gates of Heaven to be opened
for him. Then Allah sent the angels down to
him. Muhammad (P) saw them. Muhammad
that Waraqa and Khadijah are there to guide (P) looked at Gabriel who was within an
him through his difficulties! Are angels re- aura of brightness around him. Gabriel came
sponsible like men for gazing their look? to him and shook his hand and said to him:
Angels do not even have whim or desire Recite! He said what should I recite? The
and are not therefore responsible for lower- angel said: Recite in the name of your Lord
ing their gaze! They are just as inanimate who created… Muhammad (P) was over-
with their feelings as the paint on the bath- joyed and excited. He came down from the
room wall is! mount and was wondering if the pagans of
Qoraysh would deny him. Thus, Allah
Who is really insane: the Messenger of Allah willed to empower his Messenger with more
or those who accuse him with insanity?! The certainty and hence he did not pass by any
simple fact is that the person who has nar- vegetation or rock but they greeted him as
rated this is more likely to be insane than the the ‘Messenger of Allah’... [Behar 18:205]
Prophet for the Prophet was the perfect in-
The clear contrast between the narrations
tellect. Finally, why did Allah choose a suici-
makes it clearer than ever the respect and
need a response as it not only is childish but reverence accorded to the Holy Prophet (P).
utterly ridiculous and in fact derogatory to We are blessed measure to be of the follow-
the personality of the Prophet and his mes- ers of the pure Islam!
sage.
Al– Fajr ‫ اﻟﻒﺠﺮ‬4(4) ‫׀‬Pg 3
The Race For Mercy 1
Man has been equipped with an astonishing
amount of love for himself. This self-love
leads him to compete with his fellow human
beings for the pleasures of this world, and
they, being also equipped with self-love, put
up quite a challenge. The severity of the
struggle leads man to find new and often
unscrupulous avenues towards winning
these competitions. Gradually, as the prizes
become more valuable and the temptations
more seductive, man begins to ignore his
conscience and its whispers of morality. The
world becomes his playground, and like a
child who sees himself as the king of his
playground, he does as he wishes.
Yet what if man was offered a prize infi-
nitely greater than what this world holds?
What if he was promised wealth, peace,
pleasant companionship and all the sensible
pleasures he could imagine- for eternity?
Would he not compete desperately? Would
he not cut throats and steal from the blind?
Would he not tread on kith and kin to get
what he desired? Would not morality be-
come a weak and distant voice that pleads to
be heard but is slapped across the face and
thrown against the wall?
But then again, what if the set of rules for
this absolute competition was morality it-
self? What if now man has to pick up the old
friend he insulted, and honour it, and find
again a place for it in his heart? What if all
depended on that? What if making sacrifices
for others became the capital that would
gain him interest that grew forever? What if
abstaining from the illegal seductions of this
world became the business that would earn
him profit that would never end? What
would man do then?
What if to feed the burning fire of his desires
forever, man had to extinguish this fire with
the cool water of self-deprivation? What if
man had to give in order to take? What if he
had to go hungry in order to be fed? What if
he had to keep himself awake in order to
sleep? What if he had to work tirelessly in
order to rest? What if he had to die in order
to live? What is he had to love for others in
Al– Fajr ‫ اﻟﻒﺠﺮ‬4(4) ‫׀‬Pg 4
order to love for himself?
Yet there lies no paradox in all this, for the
rules of this competition reward a moment
of pain with an eternity of bliss. They reward
a moment of patience with an eternity of
pleasure, they reward a moment of struggle
with an eternity of peace. In this competi-
tion, man is no longer dealing with only this
world, and no longer competing with its
inhabitants. This new struggle is hand-
cuffed to life itself and these cuffs are with-
out any key. This struggle has no respect for
time or place, it knows no reputation and
cares for no past. Truce is a concept that is
foreign to it. The enemies it offers are ruth-
less and relentless, they do not sleep and do
not tire.
One enemy marches on always and never
turns back to see what it has left in its path. in his ear.
It hears no cries of pain and sees no tears of
regret. It has no respect for emotions or des-
peration. It is exact and mean, it is deceptive
and merciless. It's name is time. The other is
a learned scholar of the excuse. A sophist; a
soft sweet voice that weaves a shining glis-
tening cover over the contaminated pitfalls
on the paths of this struggle. It knows the
weaknesses of man and tickles, caresses and
then hijacks them. Then when man is busy
fortifying these weaknesses, it eats away at
others, so that man never feels safe and
never rests. It's name is desire.
Yet these are not enemies that are to be de-
stroyed. Their power is not to be locked up
or shattered, for that would be a tragedy in
itself. These are enemies that are made to be prefection through this struggle, the One
loved and cherished, not hated and impris-
oned. They are precious enemies; vital, nec- man will return. These friends introduce the
essary enemies that must be loved. To be
loved, though, they must be tamed, and to
be tamed, they must be fought, without com- him on the path towards this ultimate target;
promise or procrastination.
The struggle in not so unjust though as to
offer enemies without supplying allies and
friends. Selfless, constant and loyal allies
with a powerful secret.
One friend wakes man up every morning,
paints a smile on his face, introduces him his Creator in all His Glorious Attributes,
to people, formulates plans for him, lends and carry him on the tortuous and narrow
him imagination and ambition and makes path towards his Almighty and Perfect aim,
for him a mirror that shows him a more
perfect man than himself and pulls him
every second towards that more perfect
man. It's name is hope.
The other keeps him awake at night, forces
him to reflect, lends him the tears that
wash his heart, introduces him to modesty
and discipline, teaches him efficiency and
dirties and breaks that mirror of perfection
so that the new one will hold a more per-
fect man than the last- so that man will
never dare to stop. It's name is fear.
by Ali Al Samail
These two friends know their roles to perfec-
tion. When man has won a small battle, fear
comes to remind him that this is a monstrous
war where battles can mean nothing. When
man rides time to reach a more perfect state,
fear comes to remind him that he has just
brought closer death, a certainty that he is
not yet ready for. When man tames his de-
sire in one field, fear comes to remind him of
the thousand others that he must guard.
When man loses a battle hope comes to re-
mind him that there will be more battles and
that the war is not lost. When times runs
away from man and mocks his helpless at-
tempt to catch it, hope comes to remind him
that there is yet more time and yet more life.
When man is pushed to the ground flat on
his face by his desire, hope comes to pick
him up and whisper reminders of his dignity
These friends are not fazed by the magni-
tude of the victory or the defeat. They are
not overawed by the persistence and cun-
ning of the enemy, for they hold a secret that
humbles all that comes before it. It is the
secret of their origin, the secret of their
source, the secret of all, of everything, of eve-
rywhere and every time. It is the secret of All
of Might with All of Mercy, the secret of All
of Power with All of Kindness, the secret of
All of Revenge with All of Forgiveness, the
secret of All of Punishment with All of For-
bearance. Their secret is the First, the Last,
the Ever-Present, the Ever-Existent, the
Unique, the All-Encompassing. Their secret
is the One; the One who pulls man towards
from whom man originated and to whom
limited and deficient man to the Absolute
and Perfect Creator. They guard and protect
they encourage and nurture him; they ward
off the evils of the enemies that lie waiting
on this path and help man to tame them.
They inspire and petrify him, they promise
and threaten him, they leave him not until
life has left him and the final breath of time
he was gifted is taken away. They show him
his final return and his eternity of bliss and
peace.
1-Surah Al-Hadeed, Verse 21
[57:21] Race one with another for forgiveness
from your Lord and a Garden whereof the
breadth is as the breadth of the heavens and
the earth, which is in store for those who
believe in Allah and His messengers. Such is
the bounty of Allah, which He bestoweth
upon whom He will, and Allah is of Infinite
Bounty.
The True Story of Jesus (AS)
Written by Sheikh Mansour Leghaei
Crucifixion or Cruci-Fiction?
Crucifixion is an ancient method of execu- resurrection Christianity itself is rendered night that Allah had promised to raise Jesus
tion, in which the victim was tied or nailed meaningless. Paul in his first letter to Corin- to Him, Jesus invited his disciples, who were
to a large wooden cross (Latin: crux) and left thians claims: “But if Christ has not been twelve men, to a house. Jesus came out to
to hang there until dead. Thus, crucifixion raised, then our preaching amounts to noth- them from a corner of the house whilst he
does not necessarily guarantee the death of a ing and your faith is futile.” (1 Cor 15:14) was drying his head from water. He then
victim. It could also be a means of severe Therefore, the extra emphasis of the Quran said: Surely, Allah revealed to me that He
torturing. on denouncing the dogma of crucifixion will raise me this time to Him and will clear
means more than a mere historical correc- me from the Jews, so which one of you is
The mainstream Christians today strongly willing to have my image cast upon him to
tion. It aims at denouncing the illogical
believe in the crucifixion of Jesus. The stan- be killed and crucified and he will be with
dogma of ‘atonement’.
dard account of what historically is claimed me in the hereafter? A young man from
to have happened during the crucifixion of The Holy Quran and the Crucifixion among them said: I (will accept) O Ruhul-
Jesus in today’s Christianity, is based on the lah! Jesus replied: So, you will be the
The holy Quran in its unique style de-
accounts in the four canonical gospels al- one.” [Tafsir al-Qomi, vol.1 p.111]
nounces the crucifixion of Prophet Jesus, in
though their authors are generally regarded
Chapter 4 (Surah al-Nisa). Almighty Allah Does the Quran Contradict Itself?
as anonymous. In these accounts Jesus was
does so, along with the reasons why the
crucified, died on the cross and buried out- Some Christians claimed that the Quran is
Jews were reproached by Allah, as follows::
side of Jerusalem during the thirty third year contradicting itself when it gives the story of
of his life. Then he arose from the dead and the crucifixion of Jesus. They usually refer to
he was raised up to heaven. two references in the Quran to prove the
death of Jesus. In the following I shall deal
Contrary to this Christian account, however,
with them separately. “And when Allah
the Quran strongly states that Jesus was not
said: Jesus! I will take you (Motawafiyaka)
crucified or killed, but instead God raised
and raise you to Myself.” [3:55]
him unto Himself. As we shall see there is
no statement in the Quran more explicit, They assume that the term ‘Motawafiyaka’
emphatic and uncompromising in rejecting in the Ayah equals ‘death’. The term ‘Wafat’,
the dogma of a faith than this. Why? which is the root of the term
‘Motawafiyaka’, means to collect something
I have been asked by many Christians and
thoroughly. When a creditor collects all his
some new reverts as to why the Quran so
money it is said in Arabic “Tawaffa Day-
strongly denotes the dogma of the crucifix-
nah”. Similarly, with reference to sleeping,
ion of Jesus? What is the big deal about it?
the Quran states: “It is He Who takes
Many Prophets have been tortured to death
(Yatawaffa) your souls by night (when you
in the past. Prophet Yahya (John the Baptist) “And because of their saying: We
are asleep), and has knowledge of all that
was historically the closest prophet to Jesus killed Messiah, Jesus; son of
you have done by day.” [6:60] Thus, the
who was beheaded and died as a martyr. Mary, the Mes- senger of Allah,
but they killed him not, nor crucified him, term ‘Tawaffa’ does not by itself mean
Thus, what is wrong if Jesus was also killed
but it appeared so to them, and those who death. Moreover, to avoid any misinterpre-
by his enemies?
differ therein are full of doubts. They have tation Almighty Allah has coupled the term
The answer is, firstly, the holy Quran con- no (certain) knowledge, they follow nothing under consideration with the phrase ‘and
tains ‘the true story of Jesus’ as well as other but conjecture. For, surely they killed him raise you to Myself’ which is an explanation
prophets. Thus, any distortion ought to be not. But Allah raised him up unto Himself. for ‘Motawafiyaka’. “And Salam (peace) be
corrected. According to the Quran the accu- And Allah is Ever All-Powerful, All- upon me the day I was born, and the day I
sation of the crucifixion of Jesus is as grave Wise.” [4:157-158] die, and the day I shall be raised
as the false charge they uttered against Mary alive!” [19:33] The above Ayah is part of a
in terms of illegal sexual intercourse. Nearly every single word in the above Ayah Quranic quotation from Jesus when he mi-
contains an emphasis on the issue. Al- raculously spoke in the cradle. Quoting the
Secondly, the crucifixion of Jesus is not a mighty Allah has even denounced both ‘the above Ayah some Christians claim the Ayah
mere historical event in today’s Christianity. killing’ and ‘the crucifixion’ in separate confirms the death of Jesus (on the cross)
It is of fundamental importance to the theol- terms to leave no room for any type of claim and his resurrection (after three days).
ogy of most contemporary Christians. As a for the killing of Jesus, whether by crucifix-
result the cross has become the primary ion or execution or hanging as claimed by Interestingly, a very similar Ayah is re-
symbol of Christianity. ‘Atonement’; the the anonymous author of Acts of Apostles peated in the same Chapter about Prophet
dogma of reconciliation between God and 5:29-30. Yahya (John the Baptist). “And Salam
humans by the redemptive life and death of (peace) be on him (Yahya) the day he was
Jesus, lies under the cross of Jesus. To them, The Jews and the Christians believe that born, and the day he dies, and the day he
Jesus died on the cross so that the sins of Jesus was crucified yet they disagree in that will be raised up to life.” [19:15]
those who believe in him can be forgiven Christians maintain that Jesus was resur- Undoubtedly, there has never been any
and thus they can gain salvation. They re- rected three days after his crucifixion. Thus, claim for the resurrection of Prophet John in
gard the suffering, death, and resurrection of the Quran states: “those who differ therein this world after his death. Thus, the meaning
Jesus with the conviction that all took place are full of doubts”. [4:157] of ‘will be raised’ in both the statements re-
‘according to the scriptures’. (1 Cor. 15:3-5) According to the above Ayah it was ‘so ap- fer only to the Day of Resurrection in hereaf-
According to the teachings of Paul (not peared to them’ to think that they killed Je- ter. The verb in ‘the day I die’ (not the day I
Prophet Jesus) without crucifixion, resurrec- sus. Imam Baqir (AS) in an authentic Hadith died) is for the future which indicates an
tion of Jesus becomes irrelevant and without narrated from him states: “Verily, in the action yet to happen. Moreover, Christians

Al– Fajr ‫ اﻟﻒﺠﺮ‬4(4) ‫׀‬Pg 5

do not believe in the natural death of Jesus
whereas the Ayah quoting from Jesus states:
“the day I die”, not the day I will be killed or
crucified.
Crucifixion of Jesus in the Gospels
All the present four Gospels, although with
some differences, have narrated the fiction of
crucifixion. Nonetheless, the testimony of
none of them can be accepted in any court of
law for the following reasons:
1. Unfortunately none of the authors of the
Gospels are living for cross examination of
their narrations. Hence, we can only refer to
their texts available to us as their sworn affi-
davit. The main problem of the present
Gospels is their authors are anonymous. As
we discussed in the previous chapters, the
authors, the date and the language of the
Gospels are unknown. Thus, as Ahmed
Deedat adequately expressed, ‘no civilized
court of law would pay any heed to the pre-
sent gospels as attested documents.’
2. None of the anonymous authors of the
gospels were eyewitnesses of the crucifixion.
So, where did they get their information
from? For instance, it is believed that Mark
had been the disciple of Peter; the chief disci-
ple of Jesus. Nonetheless Mark says that at
the time of the arrest of Jesus ‘all his disci-
ples forsook him and fled.’ [Mark 14:50] So,
either we have to agree that Mark is lying or
‘all disciples’ including Peter had left Jesus.
Then again who narrated the arrest and the
crucifixion of Jesus to Mark? Yes, Mark nar-
rates that Peter followed Jesus from a dis-
tance, but then again to safeguard himself he
stayed outside the entrance of the court, even
blaspheming so that people would not ac-
cuse him of being one of the disciples. Thus,
Peter was not an eye witness either. As a
result, Mark could not even be an 'ear-
witness' to the scene. Thus, his Gospel is
more of a community gossip. As a matter of
fact, the present gospels are technically less
reliable than a history book such as ‘The His-
tory of Tabari’. For, Tabari at least mentions
the chain of the narrators through whom he
narrates the historical events, a process
which enables scholars to examine and verify
the authenticity of the narrations.
3. Gospels narrate different phrases for the cross.
last words of Jesus. The last word of Jesus
The account of the gospel of Peter suggests
according to John was ‘it is finished’. (John
that Jesus was not killed. Chapter 5 verse 5
19:30) Luke on the other hand narrates:
reads:“And the Lord cried, saying: My
“With a loud voice Jesus cried: Father, into
power, my power, you have abandoned me.
Your hands I entrust my spirit! And with
When he said this, he was taken up. And at
these words he died.” [23:46] The last words
that moment the veil of the Jerusalem temple
Mark narrates from Jesus is ‘My God, My
was torn into two.”
God, why have You forsaken me?' [Mark
15:34, Matt. 26:14-16] Keep in mind the fact The phrase ‘he was taken up’ as it could
that that the reason why the narrations of mean death; it can also refer to ‘ascension
Mark and Matthew are practically the same into heaven’ which is very close to what the
is due to Matthew’s narration depending Quran states, although the Quran even de-
largely upon that of Mark's. Thus, it should nounces the crucifixion.
not be treated as a separate historical source.
Independent Sources
4. It is very unlikely for a Messenger of Allah
Is there any non-Christian and non-Biblical
to have expressed such a complaint, as nar-
source that has narrated the crucifixion of
rated by Mark, in the last minutes of his life,
Jesus?
questioning Allah as to why He had forsaken
him. Flavius Josephus who lived from 37AD to
about 100 AD was a Jewish historian. His
Narrations of other Gospels
book ‘Antiquities of the Jew’ is the account of
As discussed in the previous chapters, the Jewish history from its early beginnings to
present four canonical gospels are not the the revolt against Rome in 66AD. His book is
only existing gospels. Once upon a time generally considered a reliable source and
there had been many gospels. The present the nearest to the time of Jesus. Fortunately,
four gospels were the only ones acknowl- his book is available today even on the inter-
edged by the Roman Emperor Constantine net. In Book 18 Chapter 3 he mentions Jesus
and his successors following the triumph of with high praise. Although he touches upon
the Trinitarian branch of Christianity. the issue of the persecution of Jesus, he does
not mention anything about his crucifixion.
One of the historical gospels which is avail-
Book 18 Chapter 3 Paragraph 3 of his book
able today, though in fragments, is the gos-
reads:
pel according to Peter. If he be Peter the dis-
ciple, then he is Simon whom Jesus called “Now there was about this time Jesus, a
Peter. Biblically, he is the first disciple that wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man;
Jesus chose and he is the chief disciple. for he was a doer of wonderful works, a
teacher of such men as receive the truth with
The gospel of Peter was used by the church pleasure. He drew over to him both many of
at Rhossus and often quoted by Christian the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was
writers during the latter part of the second [the] Christ. And when Pilate, at the sugges-
century. The fragments of the gospel of Peter tion of the principal men amongst us, had
were found in a Christian monk’s grave in condemned him to the cross, (9) those that
Egypt in 1886 and were published in 1972. loved him at the first did not forsake him;
They have been dated to the late second or for he appeared to them alive again the third
early third century. (i.e. around 200 C.E) For day; (10) as the divine prophets had foretold
more information about the gospel of Peter these and ten thousand other wonderful
visit: www.earlychristianwritings.com/ things concerning him. And the tribe of
gospelpeter.html Christians, so named from him, are not ex-
tinct at this day.” http://www.ccel.org/j/
The Gospel of Peter was eventually branded
josephus/works/ant-18.htm
as heretical, if for no other reason, because it
seemed to deny the suffering of Jesus on the

By Sayd Farouk

As part of Imam Husain Islamic Centre’s
(IHIC) program of educating it guests of the
jurisprudential issues related to transactions
(muamalat), we are pleased to provide the
edited transcript of Sheikh Mansour’s lecture
concerning food items, in particular dealing
with alcohol and impermissible meat items
(maytar). It is essential before we undertake
any sort of business venture to query the
validity of that type of business in Islam.
This can be done in two methods since the
rules of what types of businesses are permis-
sible are generally uniform across our schol-
ars (Mujtahid). In first instance, you can di-
Al– Fajr ‫ اﻟﻒﺠﺮ‬4(4) ‫׀‬Pg 6
rectly consult your own religious authority
(Mara’aja) or his rulings. Alternatively or in
the event that he is not accessible, you can
consult the religious leader at your local Is-
lamic centre, and perhaps also ask him to
verify if it is permissible by your religious
authority. Explain the business venture in
detail to the religious scholar/leader so that
he can give you an informed report on the
permissibility of each part of the business.
Further, if you are faced with transactions
that differ from the ordinary course of busi-
ness, consult either the religious scholar or
leader to verify if the transaction is permissi-
ble in Islam.
Levels of permissibility
In Islam there are three levels of permissibil-
ity when it comes to transactions: the first
level is totally forbidden (haram), the second
level is not recommended (makrooh), and the
third level is permissible (mubah). A relevant
example of forbidden transactions would be
those that involve wine or beer (khamar).
Truck drivers involved in transporting bot-
tles of wine are equally responsible as those
selling bottles of wine, even though neither
of them drink the wine.
Continued on pg 10
Work Etiquettes in Islam: Striving to achieve the intricate balance between reli-
gious duties and material existence by Sayd Farook based on a Lecture by Sheikh Mansour Leghaei
1. Both material life and religious duties are The balance is also well demonstrated in this
important verse. The Qur’an specifically mentions those
who are occupied with trade take a break
Islam encourages that every adult should
from their work to attend to their religious
work for his own living unless you are men-
duties. Imam Sadiq (AS) further said that
tally or physically impaired. There is no
those who make an effort to leave their work
good in an individual who does not want to
and attend religious duties are more virtuous
produce and earn money. To Muslims, the
in the sight of Allah (SWT) than those who
unproductive hand is an unclean impure
are unemployed and have no other activities
hand. Imam Sadiq (AS) refers to a specific
other than to going to the mosque.
verse in the Holy Qur’an that sheds light on
the significance of earning a livelihood for Imam Ali (AS) again encouraging the follow-
oneself: ers of Ahlul Bayt (AS) asks us to be inde-
pendent by attending their business. On a
“Our lord! Give us in this world that which
personal level, this refers to independence of
is good and in the Hereafter that which is
good, and save us from the torment of the individuals from having to depend on others
fire!” (2:201). for their own sustenance and therefore re-
taining their dignity. However, this also has
In the context of this verse, Imam Sadiq (AS) a deeper societal meaning. As Muslims, we
mentions that the ‘good’ of this world refers often wonder why certain segments of the
to earning of a livelihood and sustenance, so population/races are successful and how
that you can live comfortably with your fam- they can control so many political, legal and
ily while at the same time avoiding destitu-
social spheres. The key is not having a
tion and poverty. It also refers to living with ‘downtrodden’ attitude towards life where
good manners in this world. As for the we always consider ourselves as the under-
‘good’ of the hereafter, Imam Sadiq (AS) dog. Those who have made it anywhere have
mentions that it refers to achieving paradise worked hard for it. . If we are to have a voice,
and gaining the pleasure of Almighty Allah if we as Muslims are to be independent, if we
(SWT). are to be able to support other Muslims
around the world, we need to be strong,
2. Striving to achieve a balance while work-
whether it be financially, socially, or politi-
ing hard
cally. For that to happen, we have to work
The Qur’anic verse points to an overwhelm- hard consistently and aim for the highest in
ing theme in Islam of what the aim of Mus- life and not be content with our current posi-
lims should be: to strike a perfect balance tion as the weak downtrodden race. For in-
between the activities geared for this world stance, if the Muslim communities are strong
and the activities geared for the hereafter. To enough, they do not need to depend on other
that extent, there are numerous ahadith that countries for aid in emergency situations or
state that those who sell the world for the
in general such as the IMF who impose oner-
hereafter are not from one of us. Vice versa,
ous and unjust conditions on Muslim na-
those who sell the hereafter for this world
tions. If we don’t need to depend on aid,
are not from one of us.
then the political and social voice of the Um-
mah will not be constrained to act for justice.
In Surah Noor, Allah (SWT) refers to those
When independence is impaired through our
whom no worldly matter diverts from re-
dependence on others, our actions will
membrance of Allah and
closely follow those who we depend on
prayers (referring to the
rather than follow our inert Islamic princi-
Ahlul Bayt (AS)):
ples.
“In houses, which Allah
One of the companions of Imam Sadiq (AS)
has ordered to be
raised, in them His said that one day a man came to Imam Sadiq
name is glorified in (AS) and the Imam (AS) asked him why he
the mornings and in has not been to the Pilgrimage (Hajj) as yet.
the afternoons or The man replied that he didn’t have any
the evenings. Men money. The Imam (AS) stood up from his
whom neither sitting position and responded by asking him
trade nor sale why he didn’t work hard to achieve it. The
diverts them from Pilgrimage (Hajj) is one of the obligations of
the Remembrance Islam in the same rank as prayers and we
of Allah, nor from must work for it to the extent we work for
performing Salat, our prayers. The main point of this tradition
nor from giving in the context of this lecture is that Imam
the Za- Sadiq (AS) reiterated the need to work to
kat.” (24:36-37) achieve material goals and spiritual goals.
Imam Musa Kazim (AS) in a tradition tells us
that those who work hard and have a decent
occupation to protect their dignity and the
dignity of their family are like( ‫ﻣﺠﺎهﺪ ﻓﻲ ﺳﺒﻴﺎﷲ‬
Struggling in the path of God)
The Prophet Muhammad (P) said that wor-
shipping Allah has seventy portions. The
most virtuous part of worshipping Allah
(SWT) is earning a Halal living for oneself. A
key aspect to note about this is that in the
Eyes of Allah (figuratively speaking), any
employment you undertake, whether it be
cleaning or manual labour work, is honor-
able so long as it is a Halal means. As a Mus-
lim, it is worthless to have the most prestig-
ious job in the world if it means that you will
be involved in Haram (for instance dealing
in riba or alcohol).
The Qur’an again reiterates the importance
of working and seeking Allah’s bounties that
he has blessed us with in this world:
“Then when the (Jumuah) Salat (prayer) is
finished, you may disperse through the land
and seek the Bounty of Allah, and remember
Allah frequently that you may pros-
per” (62:10).
As with most of these verses, all of them re-
peat the theme that while you are encour-
aged to come to pray in congregation, after
congregation nothing should stop you from
your activities in trade and employment.
3. Teaching your children to value work
The French philosopher Jean Jacques Rous-
seau wrote a book on how best to train men.
Emile (or On Education) published in 1762, is
a semi-fictitious book that follows the story
of a boy growing up under the instruction of
Rousseau and the book is divided into the 4
significant parts of the early phase of the
boy’s life. In that book, Rousseau asserts that
it is important for young people, particularly
men to understand how it is to work and
earn one’s own living. He prescribes appren-
ticeships for them as a method by which they
can integrate into society as effective mem-
bers, and he condemns those who feel that
they need to shelter their children from the
hardships of life, because they themselves
have experienced. The key point he mentions
is that without those hardships, the child
would not learn some key lessons in life,
including independence, responsibility and
societal interaction.
The trend of wealthy people where they try
their best to shelter their children is over-
whelmingly present now and is not an effec-
tive method of learning even by Islamic stan-
dards. Men are the vanguards of their fami-
(Continued on page 9)
Al– Fajr ‫ اﻟﻒﺠﺮ‬4(4) ‫׀‬Pg 7
Surah Fath - Verses 8-17
The first few ayaat of this Surah refers to the
treaty of Hudaibiyyah. As some of the con-
ditions of the treaty seemed to be against the
Muslims, some of the companions of the
Prophet went to the extent of questioning
the authenticity of the message of the H.
Prophet (P) .This was when Allah revealed
to His Prophet the knowledge that infact it
was a great victory being that Makkah was
conquered without a drop of blood being
shed. As a continuation to that scenario,
Allah continues to tell the Prophet (P) that:
(8) Surely We have sent you as a witness
and as a bearer of good news and as a war-
ner,
In this day and age, with the advancements
in technology and surveillance, most claim
that there is no privacy any more. One can-
not have a telephone conversation or an e-
mail communication without it being wit-
nessed by an external party. What most fail
to realise that in essence the word privacy
does not exist as the Almighty is the wit-
ness to all that is happening both in
thought and action. Imam Ali (AS) says
“Be careful, as on the day of Judgement,
the witness against us is the judge!”. But
due to His immense bounty and mercy,
Allah has also sent witnesses to us, the first
being the H. Prophet (P) followed by our
Aimmah (AS). Apart from that, time,
earth, the day, the night etc. will also wit-
ness out actions and in addition our own
organs and parts will witness to our mis-
deeds or virtues. It is as if there are micro-
phones and cameras in each and every
single atom each diligently recording out
actions and will replay them unedited on
the day of Judgement. Therefore, in the
sight of Allah, there is absolutely no pri-
vacy. Allah in this verse succinctly tells His
messenger his purpose, that of being a
bearer of good news for the righteous and
the Warner for the evil. This is not only
practically but psychologically the most
effective technique for teaching that of re-
ward and punishment. The purpose of send-
ing the messenger therefore is that:
(9) That you may believe in Allah and His as this happened the news filtered to Mak-
Messenger and may aid him and revere him; kah and created fear for the Makkans and
and (that) you may declare His glory, morn- they came up with the peace treaty. Allah
ing and evening.
These characteristics in the Prophet (P) are
so lofty that it is deserved that he be treated pledging their allegiance to the ‘hand’ of
with respect and reverence. When the H.
Prophet is insulted in the books of the Sun-
nis, this very verse is quoted as it is decreed (11) Those of the dwellers of the desert who
that honouring the Messenger is compul-
sory. Accusations that the Prophet (P)
attended parties here music was prominent
or that he became insane or delirious are all
examples of disrespect to the Prophet.
Al– Fajr ‫ اﻟﻒﺠﺮ‬4(4) ‫׀‬Pg 8
Presented by Sh. Mansour Leghaei written by Abidali Mohamedali
(10) Surely those who swear allegiance to
you do but swear allegiance to Allah; the
hand of Allah is above their hands. There-
fore whoever breaks (his faith), he breaks it
only to the injury of his own soul, and who-
ever fulfils what he has covenanted with
Allah, He will grant him a mighty reward.
As the other verses this verse has a very
profound meaning especially for the Mus-
lims. When the rumours of the death of Us-
man were relayed to the Prophet (P) while
he was at
Huaibiy-
yah, he
sought
allegiance
from his
companions to be with him till the end if it
comes to a situation where a battle needs to
be waged. All the Muslims there expressed
their loyalty and gave their pledge. As soon
(SWT) in this verse states that although the
Muslims were pledging their allegiance to
the Prophet (P), they were in essence
Allah.
were left behind will say to you: Our prop-
erty and our families kept us busy, so ask
forgiveness for us. They say with their
tongues what is not in their hearts. Say:
Then who can control anything for you from
Allah if He intends to do you harm or if He
intends to do you good; nay, Allah is Aware
of what you do:
(12) Nay! you rather thought that the Mes-
senger and the believers would not return to
their families ever, and that was made fair
seeming to your hearts and you thought an
evil thought and you were a people doomed
to perish.
(13) And whoever does not believe in Allah
and His Messenger, then surely We have
prepared burning fire for the unbelievers.
(14) And Allah's is the kingdom.
of the heavens and the earth; He
forgives whom He pleases and
punishes whom He pleases, and
Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
When the Holy Prophet (P)
returned from this trip, he en-
countered those of his compan-
ions and others who remained back in Me-
dina citing excuses and justifying why they
could not come. This tool of justification
unfortunately is a tool often misused and
abused by people. It is a psychological de-
fence mechanism just as the body protects
itself from physical insult or injury auto-
matically. In general, this technique is in-
built into our psyche and does protect our
dignity and sanity but often it is misused
especially in the case of justifying a sin
which is worse than committing it. This dis-
ease no only effect the sinners but effects the
so called ‘pious’ people who justify their
misdeeds by convincing themselves and
others of the legitimacy of their actions ac-
cording to the fatawa or their interpretation
of the Quran. This form of justification
blocks one from the truth and salvation as it
does not allow one to see or accept what one
is doing wrong. Often, we justify not fulfill-
ing the command of Allah (SWT) or in doing
good citing work commitments or family
commitments when in reality we are cow-
ardly and gutless or suffering from greed for
this dunya.
Often when we make the wrong decision in
terms of our work, our children etc. we do
not want to admit that it was our mistake
but instead justify it or put it down to ‘fate’
or ‘destiny’. Allah (SWT) in many places in
the Quran condemns this attitude such as is
done in this ayah where Allah (SWT) is re-
minding us that in essence we have no con-
trol over anything good or bad that may
befall us and that He knows what is in our
hearts which is the truth. In this case the
people who gave the Prophet (P) these
hollow excuses were merely cowardly as
they presumed that those who went with
the Prophet (P) as he went unarmed) would
not return. How often do we look into our
(Continued on page 9)
 own hearts to find the real truth buried un-
der the layers of justification? How often
have we justified not praying at work with
excuses such as ‘I had no time’ or ‘there is
no space’ or ‘I cannot do wudhoo” when in
reality all these are just mere excuses?
A few years after the incident at Hudaibiy- cannot partake in the victory and the booty, will punish you with a painful punishment.
yah the Muslims were involved in another
battle in which they were granted victory
without significant efforts. The battle of
Khaybar (‫)ﺧﺎﻳﺒﺮ‬as a battle against the Jews
whom, after lengthy negotiations, refused to understand enough, although they under-
desist in their agenda. Upon the victory,
substantial war booty was collected from
the Jews and was distributed to all the
troops and their families. It was then the
following verse was revealed which said
that that booty is reserved for only those of
the followers of the Prophet (P) who were
with him and stood by him during the peace
treaty of Hudaibiyyah. The hypocrites, who
were cowardly and did not join the Prophet
(P) and/or doubted the Prophet (P) at the
treaty of Hudaibiyyah, realising that the
victory was achieved without any blood-
shed, lined up with the Prophet to join him
in Khaybar!
(15) Those who are left behind will say
when you set forth for the gaining of acqui-
sitions: Allow us (that) we may follow you.
They desire to change the world of Allah.
Say: By no means shall you follow us; thus
did Allah say before. But they will say:
Nay! You are jealous of us. Nay! They do continues:
not understand but a little.
Allah here refers to those people who when
the time of difficulty comes they hide and
cower and when the rewards come they line
up for their share or want to bask in the
glory of the victory. When told that they
instead of admitting their fault and decep-
tion say justify their actions and deeds by
accusing the real victors of jealous. Allah
says that these are the people who don’t
stand a little! The subtle pint made here is
that often when speaking to others and try-
ing to justify our actions, we insist that the
other party ‘does not understand’ what the any and all including women are permitted
situation is. More often than not either they to defend their property, family, and
understand fully and we don’t or they un-
derstand little and therefore we have to be
cautious with our expressions. Allah then
(16) Say to those of the dwellers of the de-
sert who were left behind: You shall soon be
invited (to fight) against a people possess-
ing mighty prowess; you will fight against
them until they submit; then if you obey,
Allah will grant you a good reward; and if
you turn back as you turned back before, He
(17) There is no harm in the blind, nor is
there any harm in the lame, nor is there any
harm in the sick (if they do not go forth);
and whoever obeys Allah and His Messen-
ger, He will cause him to enter gardens be-
neath which rivers flow, and whoever turns
back, He will punish him with a painful
punishment.
Ayah number 16 is harsh to those who have
a cowardly soul, giving them an opportu-
nity to redeem themselves in a real and dif-
ficult situation. In the next ayah, Allah, in
his infinite mercy gives definite hope to
those who have a valid excuse such as blind,
lame, sick and in obedience to the messen-
ger and Allah (SWT). The jurisprudential
rule that is extracted form this ayah is that
those in the categories mentions are not
obliged to participate in war BUT this rules
does not apply in the defensive war where
religion in the most effective manner.
‫رﺑّﻨﺎﺁﻳﻨﺎ ﻓﺪّﻧﻴﺎ ﺣﺴﻨﺔ وﻓﻶﺧﺮت اﻟﺤﺴﻨﺔ وآﻨﺎ ﻋﻈﺎ ﺑﻨّﺎر‬

Continued from page 7

lies as the principal breadwinner and as such
bringing them up to be responsible should be
encouraged from a young age. Many
wealthy families spoil their children by giv-
ing them everything while they are doing
their studies; from mobiles, to cars to even
houses. This only makes them dependent on
their parents. While parents should support
their children by providing them a ‘safety
net’, they do not necessarily have to spoon
feed them. Guidance is the greatest security a
youth can have beyond all material posses-
sion. An irony is that a large proportion of
people who have been really successful in
life have been successful not because they
were spoon fed up to their education and
given everything they wanted. They were
successful because they learnt things the
tough way: by experiencing life. You rarely
see the most successful people in the history
of mankind coming from an inherited back-
ground.
From the Islamic perspective, it is essential
that children learn how to live life on their
own under the guidance and supervision of
experienced elders, instead of being spoilt
through consistent material and emotional
smothering.
4. Permissible and Forbidden nomic rationalism and extreme capitalism
that they are sacrificing their spouses, their
Finally, no matter how important it is to
families, their relationships and the social
work hard as encouraged in Islam, one must
rubric of their existence. These people do not
observe Islamic etiquette in all transactions.
even have the time to enjoy the things that
Without this, work will not have the blessing
they can buy with their money. Even from a
that it would otherwise have as a pure form
materialist perspective, is it worth it to sacri-
of worship (ibadah). The main rule is that
fice your life’s material pleasures such as
livelihood must be earned decently or in a
families, social relationships to gain only
permissible (halal) way: (‫)اﻷﺟﻤﺎﻟﻔﺘّﻠﺐ‬Your
material wealth? ‘The worst loser is those
livelihood is already decided for you, it is
who lose themselves’.
your choice how you obtain it . The main
issue is ensuring that it is earned in a permis- From an Islamic perspective on the other
sible (Halal) way as opposed to a forbidden hand, it is completely abhorrent to the bal-
(Haram) way. While it may not affect your anced nature of the Islamic aqeedah to lay so
livelihood as it is already determined before much emphasis on material comfort, sacrific-
you, do not make the mistake of choosing ing your eternal comfort and pleasure. Islam
Haram over the Halal as this will mean that recommends a balanced perspective where
you will face dire consequences in the Here- earning a living for yourself is only one as-
after. pect of your life, which should be comprised
of time with family, time for social activities
5. Being wary of tipping the balance
and time for your religion. Haven’t you seen
Another conception of ‫اﻷﺟﻤﺎﻟﻔﺘّﻠﺐ‬is that do not those men who are like silk worms, spinning
put so much emphasis on work because of and spinning until it is trapped within its
greed, that you sacrifice your worship of own cocoon that it has produced? They are
Allah and other important social obligations. so rich yet they are stingy. Like a silkworm,
Worshipping Allah is not all about work. he is so busy spinning until he dies when he
People nowadays have gone to such an ex- finally realizes (if at all) that he has wasted
tent to maximize their wealth, driven by eco- his life away.

Al– Fajr ‫ اﻟﻒﺠﺮ‬4(4) ‫׀‬Pg 9

 Continued from page 6

Permissibility of alcohol as a cooking ingredient

Ayatullah Sayyid Husain Burujardi
In that context, it is worthy of being aware that a lot of non-Muslim
Ayatullah Sayyid Husain foods and dishes recommend utilising wine in preparing the dish.
Burujardi was born in Bu- One of the ingredients might be a drop of red wine for flavour. But
rujard in 1292 AH as is regardless how small the drop is, less than a drop will render the
considered by most as one entire pot of food unpure (najis) and thus forbidden (haram) to con-
of the last major Marja’ sume. The assumption that some have is that the quantity of one
whom the vast majority of drop or one teaspoon of wine is not a lot particularly seeing that
the Shi’a population at the that food is being boiled. Even if you put a needle into the bottle of
time followed. He was a wine and put that needle in the pot, the whole pot becomes unpure
student of masers such as (najis) and Muslims can no longer consume it. It is not permissible
Akhund Kurasani and Aqa under any circumstances to include even a tiny bit of wine in a
Zia Iraqi. He was particu- dish. Regardless of how little the wine is or how it is boiled or
larly interested in jurispru- transformed etc, the whole dish is impure (najis) and it is forbidden
dence (Fiqh) and therefore for us to eat any portion of it.
studied fiqh from all
schools of thought. He was Impermissible meat items and its relation to employment and
one of the few people to business
bring logical deduction to Another significant issue in Islamic jurisprudence of transactions
the interpretation of the (muamalat) is the handling of impermissible meat items (mayta) in
ahadith of the Aimmah and employment or business. Mayta is an expression in Islamic jurispru-
thus shed light on numer- dence for any type of meat that is not Islamically slaughtered. As
ous enigmas. In addition to his interest in fiqh he was brilliant in such, any meat that is not subject to Islamic slaughtering falls
the science of Al-Rijaal (biographies of the narrators) and thus within the meat referred to in Sura Al Maidah, 5:62: “And you will
most of the major current Ulamaa studied under him including see many of them striving with one another to hasten in sin and
ayatollah Khamanei, Shaheed Mutahhari, Ayatollah Al Sistani exceeding the limits, and their eating of what is unlawfully ac-
and numerous others. quired; certainly evil is that which they do.”-Sura Al Maidah. The
As part of his major achievements was the revival of the Hawza in income of a person dealing with the transaction of the meat that is
Qum in 1364/1945, after the death of its founder, Shaykh Abdul not Islamically slaughtered is not permissible (haram). The author-
Karim Ha’iri in 1935. He was the very first Marja’ to look beyond ity for this, other than what is found in the Quran is related from
Iraq and Iran in the spread of the message of Islam. He sent Sayid Imam Al Sadiq (A.S) who asserts that “It is impermissible to earn
Muhaqqiqi to Hamburg, Germany, Aqa-e-Shari’at to Karachi, money through selling meat that is not Islamically slaughtered”.
Pakistan, Al-Faqihi to Madinah, and Sayyid Musa Sadr to Leba- However, there are three categories of un-Islamically slaughtered
non. Being a firm beliver in Islamic unity, he established cordial meats which therefore mean that different rules applies to each.
relations with Sheikh Mahmud Shaltut, the Grand Sheikh of Al-
Azhar University in Cairo. In the first instance, there are those meats that are slaughtered by
cutting the blood supply, i.e. beef, lamb, chicken, turkey etc. While
Sheikh Shaltut and Ayatollah Sayyid Husain Burujardi estab- income derived from it is impermissible, an important related ques-
lished the ‘House of bringing Muslim Sects nearer’ in Cairo. It tion is whether it is permissible to sell that un-Islamically slaugh-
was because of the influce of Aytollah Burujardi that Sheikh Shal- tered meat to non-Muslims, who are not forbidden from eating this
tut issued his famous fatwa accepting thr J’afari faith as one of the type of meat. Most of the religious authorities (Maraja) say that
recognised sects of Islam. Ayatollah Burujardi vehemently op- meat that is unpure (najis) cannot be sold even to non-Muslims.
posed those who attacked the caliphs in the speeches and writ- Ayatollah Al Sistani declares that according to compulsory precau-
ings. He also opposed the Pahlavi regime’s so called agrarian tion, you should not take part in such a transaction, however he
reforms. keeps the choice open to his followers to consult a more learned
leader on this issue. It must however be noted that the rest of the
religious authorities (Maraji) have provided a religious ruling
(fatwa) declaring that such a transaction is impermissible (haram).
For example, even if one is working in a supermarket such as
Coles, it is prohibited to deal in any transaction that involves the
sale of un-Islamically slaughtered meat (mayta) to non-Muslims,
including those which are contained within canned products.
The second type of meat is those seafood items that do not require
cutting of blood supply in order to kill them such as crab, lobster
and calamari, which are not inherently unpure (najis) in the same
sense as un-Islamically slaughtered meat like beef and lamb are.
Since it is not unpure (najis), it is possible to serve such seafood to
non- Muslims.
The third category of un-Islamically slaughtered meat is a mixed
category, i.e. those cases where you cannot ascertain whether is is
permissible (halal) or impermissible (haram). There is a tradition
(hadith) related by Imam Sadiq (a.s) which has been the basis of
religious rulings (fatwas) presented by the religious authorities
(maraji) that indicates that where the product is mixed between
permissible (halal) and impermissible (haram), a Muslim can sell it
to non-Muslims.

Al– Fajr ‫ اﻟﻒﺠﺮ‬4(4) ‫׀‬Pg 10