A Muslim Convert Once Before

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 self is loved and the flaws of the beloved might not be apparent to the lover. However, some people are so resolute in their struggle against themselves that they consider their selves as their enemy in opposing it, and so they are able to see its flaws.   Qadhi Iyas ibn Mu’awiyah ibn Qurrah al-Muzani ( r.a. ) said, “He who does not know his own demerits is a fool!”   He was asked, “So what are yours?”   He answered, “Excessive talking.”   However this is very rare, because people usually hide their own flaws, but we do not mean that a person does not know of his flaws, for a person of sound mind recognises his flaws, we rather mean the concealed flaws.   For they are like internal diseases that a doctor does not know of, and so cannot prescribe a medicine for, because they do not have symptoms.   Also, a person’s...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ A man came to Qadhi Iyas ibn Mu’awiyah ibn Qurrah al-Muzani ( r.a. ), the tabi’in qadhi , and asked, “What is the ruling regarding wine?”   Qadhi Iyas ( r.a. ) replied, “It is haram .”   The man then asked, “How about water?”   Qadhi Iyas ( r.a. ) replied, “It is halal .”   The man then asked, “How about dates and grapes?”   Qadhi Iyas ( r.a. ) replied, “They are halal .”   The man then thought himself clever and asked, “Why is it that all these ingredients are halal , and yet when you combine them, they become haram ?”   Qadhi Iyas ( r.a. ) asked, by way of reply, “If I hit you with this handful of dirt, do you think it would hurt you?”   The man replied, “Of course not!”   Qadhi Iyas ( r.a. ) then asked, “How about if I hit you with this handful of straw?”   The man said, “It would not hurt me.”   Qadhi Iyas ( r.a. ) asked, “How about a handful of water?”   The ma...

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Qadhi Iyas ibn Mu’awiyah ibn Qurrah al-Muzani ( r.a. ) was a tabi’in qadhi in the 2 nd Century AH, who lived in Basra.  He was renowned for his wit and intelligence.  One time, two men came before him.  The complainant claimed money received by the defendant, who denied the debt.  Qadhi Iyas ( r.a. ) asked the plaintiff where he had given it, and was answered, “Under a certain tree.”   The qadhi told him to go there by way of refreshing his memory and, in his absence, asked the defendant if his adversary could have reached it.  “Not yet,” said the rogue, “it’s a long way off”; forgetting himself, and convicted himself by that answer.

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ Qadhi Iyas ibn Mu’awiyah ibn Qurrah al-Muzani ( r.a. ) was a tabi’in qadhi in the 2 nd Century AH who lived in Baswra.  He was renowned for his wit and intelligence.  He is a favourite in Arabic folk-lore.  Imam ‘Abd al-Ghany ibn Thalib al-Ghunaymi ad-Dimashqi al-Maydani ( r.a. ) related a story about Qadhi Iyas ( r.a. ), where he once heard a dog bark and he declared that the beast was tied to the brink of a well; he judged so because the bark was followed by an echo.   Another time, two men came before him, the complainant claimed money received by the defendant who denied the debt.  Qadhi Iyas ( r.a. ) asked the plaintiff where he had given it, and was answered, “Under a certain tree.”   The qadhi told him to go there by way of refreshing his memory and, in his absence, asked the defendant if his adversary could have reached it.  “Not yet,” said the rogue, “it’s a long way off”; forgetting himself, and...