A Muslim Convert Once More

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The following is by Shaykh Nur ad-Din  Abu ‘Ubadah   ‘Ali ibn Juma’ah.  The following are the answers to miscellaneous questions.   My company takes money away from my salary to give me compulsory life and medical insurance.  I cannot change it as they have said that this is compulsory.  I do not know whether there is any riba’ involved in these insurances or not, and also do not know if they invest the money in haram activities.  What should I do?   In Islamic law, insurance is permissible and thus you are not blameworthy.   Is borrowing money on credit card haram if they give you 0% interest free deal for a period of time but charges you a balance transfer fee for it.  After the introductory period the bank would charge interest, riba’ , if one did not pay back all the money?   This is permissible in Islamic law so long as you abide by the prescribed time for paying back.   ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The following is by Shaykh Nur ad-Din  Abu ‘Ubadah   ‘Ali ibn Juma’ah.   Since insurance in its various forms is a novel transaction which the shari‘ah has not provided specific evidence concerning their legality or lack thereof – in this respect it is like bank transactions – engaging in it falls under the judgement of scholars and their research deduced from the general meaning of textual evidence, such as Allah ( s.w.t. ) Saying:   سُوۡرَةُ المَائدة ... وَتَعَاوَنُواْ عَلَى ٱلۡبِرِّ وَٱلتَّقۡوَىٰ‌ۖ وَلَا تَعَاوَنُواْ عَلَى ٱلۡإِثۡمِ وَٱلۡعُدۡوَٲنِ‌ۚ وَٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَ‌ۖ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ شَدِيدُ ٱلۡعِقَابِ (٢)   … Help you one another in righteousness and piety, but help you not one another in sin and rancour: fear Allah: for Allah is Strict in Punishment. (Surah al-Ma’idah:2)   The Messenger of Allah ( s.a.w. ) said, “The example of believers in their love, sympathy, and compassion for one another is simil...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Imam Abu Zakariya Yahya ibn Sharaf an-Nawawi ( r.a. ), in describing the manners and etiquette of making pilgrimage to the shrine of Prophet Muhammad ( s.a.w. ), wrote, “The pilgrim should face the shrine of the Messenger of Allah ( s.a.w. ), make him a means towards reaching Allah ( s.w.t. ), and seek his wasilah as intercession, in the same manner as the Bedouin who visited the Prophet’s ( s.a.w. ) shrine and standing beside it said, ‘Peace unto you O Messenger of Allah, I have heard Allah ( s.w.t. ) Says:   سُوۡرَةُ النِّسَاء … وَلَوۡ أَنَّهُمۡ إِذ ظَّلَمُوٓاْ أَنفُسَهُمۡ جَآءُوكَ فَٱسۡتَغۡفَرُواْ ٱللَّهَ وَٱسۡتَغۡفَرَ لَهُمُ ٱلرَّسُولُ لَوَجَدُواْ ٱللَّهَ تَوَّابً۬ا رَّحِيمً۬ا ( ٦٤ )   … If they had only, when they were unjust to themselves come unto you and asked Allah’s Forgiveness and the Messenger had asked Forgiveness for them, they would have found Allah, indeed, Oft-Returning, Most Merciful. (Surah an-Nisa’:64)  ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Imam Abu Manswur Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Maturidi ( r.a. ) said that Allah ( s.w.t. ) Wills obedience or disobedience for all beings, be they essences or accidents, however; obedience occurs by Allah’s ( s.w.t. ) Will and Decree, and His Pre-Ordainment and Predestination, Pleasure, Love and Command.  Disobedience occurs by Allah’s ( s.w.t. ) Will and Decree, and His Predestination and Pre-Ordainment; not with His Pleasure, Love or Command.  In contrast, Imam Abu al-Hasan ‘Ali ibn Isma’il al-Ash’ari ( r.a. ) said that Allah’s ( s.w.t. ) Love and Pleasure are inclusive of all things just as His Will.   Shaykh Sa’id ‘Abd al-Lathif Fawdhah wrote, in Sharh Risalah al-Ikhtilaf bayn al-Asha’ira wa al-Maturidiyyah , “As for Imam al-Ash’ari, the ustadz reported that he believed that Allah’s ( s.w.t. ) Love is inclusive of every accident, be it an act of obedience or an act of disobedience.  This general statement suggests that Allah...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ When having a discussion about Islam, and someone brings up a fatwa , please remember that a fatwa is only a legal opinion, and not necessarily binding.   A fatwa , legal opinion, is not a hukm , legal ruling.   This is particularly so when the fatwa in question has no context, or if it is from a different era, or a different geographic region.   For example, in the time of the Reconquista, the scholars of the Maliki madzhab issued a fatwa banning marriage with the Christians.   Unless we are living in a circumstance where a Christian army is invading Muslim lands such as what happened in al-Andalus, that fatwa does not apply.   For example, there used to be fatawa that made blood transfusion haram .   There used to be fatawa against Muslims living in non-Muslim lands.   There used to be fatawa against collecting the zakat with money.   There used to be fatawa that Christians are not the same a...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ In the Qur’an, the number of times the words “man” and “woman” are Mentioned are the same: 23 each, 46 altogether.  The human genome is the complete set of human genetic information, stored as DNA sequences, within 23 chromosome pairs in the nucleus of the cell.  During the formation of the human embryo, the total number of human chromosomes is 46; 23 each from the mother’s egg and the father’s sperm.

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The following is my answer to a Quora question: “ What is the role of ‘al-Ghazali’ in the downfall of the ummah ? ”   None whatsoever.  Imam Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Ghazali ( r.a. ) was one of the greatest Muslim theologians.  There is a reason why he is known as al-Hujjatullah , “the Proof of God”.  Regardless, one man cannot possibly be that influential.   The decline of the ummah came about because of one thing, which the Prophet ( s.a.w. ) prophesied, that is the Muslims would choose dunya over akhirah , and Allah ( s.w.t. ) would Take Away their success.  In real terms, it is due to the ossification of Muslim thought, and the decline of civic society, which rotted out civilisation from within.  It is the same with all civilisations.

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ When someone quotes a scholar, or mentions a hadits , people will ask for a dalil , evidence, down to the page of the book. This, even though they might not even be able to understand the sciences of verification of chains and transmitters.  But when it comes to spreading stories about people, unverified “scientific facts”, conspiracy theories, and insane pronouncements by this or that shaykh , nobody cares about verifying anything.   If we treated what we hear about other people the way we treated ahadits , asking for the actual words said, and the context in which it was conveyed, asking for the chain of transmission and then verifying the narrators and their character, the Muslim ummah would have a whole lot less fitnah , and not be beset with stupid.   We talk about a time when a Muslim said something or made a promise, it was considered a sacred oath.  Now, when a Muslim says something, we would all double check it. ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The following is extracted from “The Purification of the Soul”, compiled from the works of Imam Zayn ad-Din Abu al-Faraj ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn Ahmad ibn Rajab al-Hanbali ( r.a. ), Imam Shams ad-Din Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah ( r.a. ), and Imam Abu Hamid Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Ghazali ( r.a. ).   Loving Allah ( s.w.t. ) is the ultimate aim of all stations, and the summit of all states.  Having attained the state of true love for Allah ( s.w.t. ), each station that follows it, is one of its fruits and a branch from its roots - such as longing, intimacy and contentment.  Each station that precedes it, is a step towards it - such as repentance, perseverance and zuhd , doing without.   The most beneficial, the most sincere, the most elevated, and the most exalted kind of love, is most certainly the love of the One Whom hearts were Created to love, and for Whom Creation was Brought into existence...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The following is my answer to a Quora question: “ Why is it our fault that we sin? ”   This question actually comes back to free will versus Divine Omniscience from a Christian perspective.  Instead of going into the details of every major Christian denomination, this is a general position based primarily on Thomas Aquinas and Augustinian theodicy, but greatly simplified.   Firstly, Divine Foreknowledge does not mean free will is absent.  It only means that God Knows what is going to happen before it happens.  And that is why there is a Divine Plan.   Secondly, perfection in Creation refers to Divine Sustenance and Gifts.  Whatever we have is Decreed Perfectly for us and us alone.  Whatever is withheld, something else is Given.  That does not mean we are aware of it, or that we utilise it correctly.   Finally, Divine Judgement is based on what we are Given, and how we have utilised them in...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Islam is not under attack by anti-Muslims and atheists.  We should expect “Islamophobes” to besmirch the faith.  We should expect scepticism from atheists.  Islam is under attack by people who claim to speak on behalf of God, who claim authoritative interpretations of Scripture, and who claim to represent the ideals of the faith - and then support oppression, prejudice, anti-intellectualism, tribalism, misogyny, paedophilia, domestic violence, and hatred.   Islam is under attack from within, not without.  And mainly by people who are elevated as scholars and preachers, supported by the masses as long as they hate the right “others”, and entrenched in a system that sacralises even outrageous narrations and opinions.   The manner in which to address this is to be quick and firm to call out every manner of injustice and oppression, and say that it is not in our name, that this is not our Islam, and we are not be...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Imam Abu Zakariya Yahya ibn Sharaf an-Nawawi ( r.a. ) wrote, in at-Tibyan fi Adab Hamalat al-Qur’an , that the Qur’an was compiled during the lifetime of the Prophet ( s.a.w. ), corresponding to what is in the maswaḥif today.  But it was not gathered as a muswḥaf ; rather, it was preserved in the hearts of men.  There were groups of the swahabah who had memorised its entirety, and others who had memorised its parts.   During the caliphate of Sayyidina Abu Bakr ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Utsman asw-Swiddiq ( r.a. ) many of the bearers of the Qur’an were killed.  He was alarmed at their deaths, that people after them would disagree about the content of the Qur’an.  Therefore, he sought counsel from the swahabah regarding gathering of the Qur’an into a muswḥaf .  This was, in fact, their counsel; so he had the Qur’an written down in a muswḥaf , and placed it in the house of Sayyidatina Hafswah bint ‘Umar ( r.a. ).   Islam...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   One of the incongruencies of the Bible is in the identities of the Apostles.   Jesus ( a.s. ) had twelve Apostles, but the various gospels throw up many more names.   For example, we consider two identical passages, from the synoptic Gospels according to Matthew and Mark:   Matthew 9:9 9 As he passed further on his way, Jesus saw a man called Matthew sitting at work in the customs-house, and said to him, “Follow me”; and Matthew rose from his place and followed him.   9 Καὶ παράγων ὁ Ἰησοῦς ἐκεῖθεν εἶδεν ἄνθρωπον καθήμενον ἐπὶ τὸ τελώνιον, Μαθθαῖον λεγόμενον, καὶ λέγει αὐτῷ, ἀκολούθει μοι. καὶ ἀναστὰς ἠκολούθησεν αὐτῷ.   9 Et, cum transiret inde Jesus, vidit hominem sedentem in telonio, Matthæum nomine. Et ait illi: Sequere me. Et surgens, secutus est eum.   Mark 1:14 14 And as he passed further on, he saw Levi, the son of Alphaeus, sitting at work in the customs-house, and said to him, “Follow ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Shaykh Muhammad al-Hasan ibn ‘Alawi al-Maliki ( q.s. ) wrote, in al-Insan al-Kamil , “The upright tabi’i , Wahb ibn Munabbih, from whom Imam al-Bukhari, Imam Muslim, and others, narrated ahadits , said, ‘I read seventy-one scriptures, and deduced from all of them that Allah ( s.w.t. ) did not Give to any of humanity, from the world’s beginning to its end, an intellect comparable to Muhammad’s ( s.a.w. ) intellect, except as a single grain of sand compared to all the sand in the world; and that Muhammad ( s.a.w. ) is the most intelligent and soundest of all humanity.’   The perfection of his intellect was manifested in how he confronted a world whose every realm was infested with ignorance to the extent that the people had utterly lost their minds, and changed this mentality into a sound and righteous mentality.  To do this, requires sound intellect and correct thought; and there is no doubt that this was achieved by means of the Teachin...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ The point of taswawwuf is true sincerity, which is to feel no self-satisfaction at anything done so as not to aggrandise the nafs .  It was Imam Abu ‘Abdullah Muhammad ibn Idris ash-Shafi’i ( r.a. ) or one of his students who said, “ an-Naas halik illa al-amin.  al-Umana’ halik illa al-‘alim.  al-‘Ulama halik illa mukhalis. ”  This translates roughly as, “All mankind is doomed for destruction, except the one who has faith.  The ones who have faith are doomed for destruction, except the one who has knowledge.  The ones who have knowledge are doomed for destruction except the one who is sincere.”  “The one who is sincere” is in the singular while the ones “doomed for destruction” is in the plural, a literary device to highlight the rarity and elevated state of the truly sincere.   Such a level of sincerity, where the self is not even aware of its existence requires the annihilation of that self, such that ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Ustadz Sa’id Ukur Nursi ( r.a. ) wrote, “The principles of present-day civilisation are almost wholly negative.  Its foundations and its values rest on five main principles, and its machinery runs on these.  They are as follows.  Firstly, its central point of reference and support is force instead of right, and the mark of force is aggression and hostility, and their result is treachery.  Secondly, its goal is self-interest instead of virtue, and the mark of self-interest is rivalry and dispute, and their result is criminality.  Thirdly, its guiding law of life is conflict instead of cooperation, and the mark of conflict is contention and mutual repulsion, and their result is poverty.  Fourthly, its principle for social interrelationships is racialism, which flourishes through harming others and is nourished through devouring others.  The mark of racialism and nationalism is the existence of endless clashes and di...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ When ‘Abd al-‘Aziz ibn ‘Abdullah ibn Baz, the Wahhabi mufti , was overall president of the Directorships of Scholarly Research, Ifta’ , Da’wah & Irshad ; he issued a fatwa declaring the Palestinian people’s uprising against the Jewish State of Israel to be kufr .  He supported the kuffar against the Muslims.  He was silent on the practices of gambling, horse-racing, and usury by the Saudi monarchy in his own country.  He also never condemned Saudi oppression of the people.  In fact, he abetted it.   In the late sixties, he declared any and all forms of cooperation with the kuffar prohibited, and said that the 2 nd President of Egypt, Jamal ibn ‘Abd an-Naswr Husayn, was a murtad , an apostate, for employing a several hundred Russian engineers to build the Aswan dam.  He never said anything about the thousands of American troops that were later based in Saudi Arabia.  He was a hypocrite.   In the e...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ   The following was taught to us by our shaykh .   This is the ayat for those who have been hurt and aggrieved, those affected by slander and fitnah .   سُوۡرَةُالاٴنفَال وَإِذۡيَمۡكُرُ بِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ لِيُثۡبِتُوكَ أَوۡ يَقۡتُلُوكَ أَوۡيُخۡرِجُوكَ‌ۚ وَيَمۡكُرُونَ وَيَمۡكُرُ ٱللَّهُ‌ۖ وَٱللَّهُ خَيۡرُٱلۡمَـٰڪِرِينَ (٣٠)   Remember how the unbelievers plotted against you, to keep you in bonds, or slay you, or get you out, (of your home).   They plot, and plan, and Allah, too, Plans, but the best of planners is Allah. (Surah al-Anfal:30)   The portion that is recited is this, with the transliteration for those who cannot read Arabic:   وَيَمۡكُرُونَوَيَمۡكُرُ ٱللَّهُ‌ۖ وَٱللَّهُ خَيۡرُ ٱلۡمَـٰڪِرِينَ   They plot, and plan, and Allah, too, Plans, but the best of planners is Allah.   Wa yamkuruun wa yamkuru Allah wa Allahu khayru al-makiriin.   The recitation of this ayat is ...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Imam Abu al-Faraj ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn ‘Ali ibn al-Jawzy ( r.a. ) wrote, in Thib ar-Ruhani , that the best of discipline is that which is done at a young age.  On the other hand, if a boy is left to his own characteristics, and matures possessing these characteristics, then changing him would be difficult.   A poet said, “If you straighten the branches they will straighten up, but wood does not soften if you bend it.”   Discipline benefits children gradually, but it will not benefit those who have aged.   Perseverance in discipline is a significant principle, particularly in regard to children as it benefits them in that good becomes a habit to them.   A poet said, “Do not neglect disciplining a child, even if he complains of the pain of exhaustion.”   Know that a doctor considers the age of the patient, his place, time and then he prescribes the medicine.  Likewise discipline should be suited to each chil...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ According to a study from Princeton University, the memories of an entire people may be altered to justify atrocities committed by their side in a war.  This includes overtly inhumane actions, like beatings, rapes, and waterboarding.  The researchers believe that people are motivated to remember information in a way that absolves them — or their side — from moral responsibility for their actions.   In this study, 72 European and Americans read four stories about soldiers committing wartime atrocities in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Each story contained some justification for the soldier’s actions.  Two of the stories were about American soldiers; two were about Afghan soldiers.  The study participants then watched a video retelling two of the four stories, but without justifications for the atrocities.  When tested, the participants were more likely to recall atrocities for both American and Afghan soldiers from the v...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Once, there was a great pipe made of reed in the Temple of Jerusalem.  The pipe dated back to ancient times, and played exquisite music.  The king, knowing how valuable the pipe was, ordered it to be covered in gold.  But after it was, it no longer played great music.  So, they took the gold off, and it once again played well.   There was also a pair of copper symbols in the Temple that made an extraordinarily pleasing sound.  One day, the cymbals were damaged, and the people brought artists to repair them, and put gold on them.  But after they did that, the cymbals no longer produced such a magnificent sound.  So, they took the gold off, and then once again it made a great sound.   It is the same with our deeds.  It is the same with our worship.  It is the same with everything of virtue.  When we perform them with sincerity, they enhance us.  And when we extoll ourselves, we dimi...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Imam Abu al-Faraj ‘Abd ar-Rahman ibn ‘Ali ibn al-Jawzy ( r.a. ) wrote, in Thib ar-Ruhani , that spitefulness is the traces remaining of others unpleasant actions and words, in the inner self, of the one was spited.  For indeed, the mind decides the traces of others unpleasant deeds to remain, as it decides for the traces of others pleasant deeds to remain.   Shaykh ‘Abdullah ibn Ka’b ( r.a. ) narrated his father’s, Sayyidina Ka’b ibn Malik’s ( r.a. ) story when he did not join the Messenger of Allah ( s.a.w. ) in Tabuk, and the Revelation of the Acceptance of his repentance.  Sayyidina Ka’b ibn Malik’s ( r.a. ) said, “I entered the Masjid , while the people were gathered around the Messenger of Allah ( s.a.w. ), so Thalhah ibn ‘Ubaydullah ran to me, shook my hand, and congratulated me.  By Allah!  He was the only man of the Muhajirun who did that.”  Shaykh ‘Abdullah ibn Ka’b ( r.a. ) added, “So Ka’b never forgot Tha...