Thursday 8 December 2011

The Faith for all Humanity




The Faith for All Humanity

Islam confers immeasurable blessings upon those  who prime themselves  to True Faith. 
Islam is a lifestyle best suited to the modern human personality.

 The Holy Qur’an is, in truth, the latest and final version  of the Eternal Message that Allah, the One and Only God, the God of Abraham and Moses and  Jesus and Mohammed S.A.W.S., bequeathed to humanity.

It is our pride as Muslims that we have kept Allah’s Authentic Bequest , The Holy Qur’an, unaltered and inviolate over  14 centuries and more. It is the repository of all the best and truest of sciences.  As a Guide, it is the indispensable “how-to” manual for everyone who is interested in making a great success of his life.
It is the lifetime mission of every Muslim to be a real blessing unto all: an ideal citizen,  a righteous person, a caring son/daughter,  a loving spouse, a devoted parent, and a sincere, true and dutiful servant of Allah. We inspire ourselves to be the best as Muslims and Allah fufills ur aim.

We abide by Islam all through our lifetime and even beyond. We call ourselves Muslims. We believe there is One and Only Lord: Allah! (“The One and No Other!”). And Islam is the faith that all the Prophets from Abraham to Moses to Jesus to Mohammed Sallallahu Alaihi va Sallam conveyed to humanity. Each prophet was given a Holy Book by revelation from Allah, through Archangel Jibrayeel.

Allah closed the line of Prophets and Holy Books with Syedina Mohammed S.A.W.S. Sallallahu Alaihi va Sallam who is designated the Prophet of the Last and Final Era of Human Life On Earth. The Holy Qur'an that was conveyed to him between 610 and 623 C.E. has been preserved in its pristine and authentic form till now. And Allah has promised to keep it inviolate and unalterable till the end of the world.

We treasure with equal devotion the Hadith, the authentic record of the sayings and the life account of Prophet Mohammed Sallallahu Alaihi va Sallam. There are six collections that have been fully researched and certified correct by the highest ranking scholars. 

Among them, the Sahih Bukhari collection is most revered and is the best for our guidance. It is the working manual for our day to day living. It is also the best guide for all humanity to solve all problems, defuse all crises and chart the way to happiness and triumph in life and to pave the way to a glorious hereafter. The Holy Qur'an and the Sahih Bukhari are available in English translation.

The Founts of Faith: We are Muslim when we proclaim without fear or hesitation our sincerest belief: There is no god except Allah and Mohammed Sallallahu Alaihi va Sallam is His Prophet.   By this declaration, we confirm to ourselves and to the world that there is only One God and we worship Him as Allah, the Glorious and Supreme Lord of the entire Universe.
                From the Holy Qur’an we know that in the beginning there was nothing except Allah.  Man was entirely unknown. Allah’s Magnificent Throne was on water. Allah’s has always been the absolute Power to create, sustain, destroy, recreate, reward and punish anything and anyone at any time of His choosing.  Allah does not have to strain the least for all this. His Will is Supreme. He says “Kun” that translates as “Be!” And “Fa Yakoon”! It comes into being within the miniscule atom of a split second.

In two days Allah created the world, the sun, the moon, the planets, the entire universe. (He has programmed this celestial miracle to be on an ever expanding mode till the Day of Judgment.) And over the next four days Allah created, programmed and perfected the human being, not just one but all the trillions of human beings from the beginning of time to the end of time.
 Allah says that from all of them, at the time, He secured the pledge of allegiance to Him and to His Prophet Syedina Mohammed S.A.W.S. Sallallahu Alaiyhi va Sallam.

                Allah created everything, living as well as inanimate everywhere. The universe Allah created and continues to expand, modify and sustain, is immeasurable by our present standards and it extends light years beyond the reach of our perceptions and our advanced telescopes. We shall never believe that any object, living or dead, a manmade idol in human or other form or a natural source of energy like the sun or any other phenomenon, can be equated with Allah.

 Allah's is the Absolute and Ultimate Power over everything. Allah created the earth and the oceans, the seven layers of the sky, the human beings, the animals and in fact everything on earth, in the seas and in the vast open skies and in outer space. It is indeed easy for Him to create, sustain and bring to an end anything and everything as and when He chooses. Allah wills and whatever He wills, just happens at once by the miracle of Kun (the Command), Fa yakoon (the Fulfilment).

The Holy Book is also our Ultimate Text Book on Science and on everything else that is of importance to us. Muslims rose to the highest echelons in scientific discovery and invention and also in technology through the First and Second Millennia. These achievements resulted from their study and meditation on the meaning of Allah's Message conveyed to us in the Holy Qur'an.

With these as the bedrock of knowledge they researched the extant sources, analyzed and improved upon whatever was based on scientific evidence and was not the result of guesswork. Humanity was accorded the highest advancement with the thousands of volumes that Muslim scientists and research workers wrote in Arabi, Farsi and Urdu and bequeathed to posterity. The later European scholars who translated them into Latin and other languages, chose to change all the names of the Muslim scientists and researchers, into Latinized form, for reasons best tknown to themselves..

However, thanks to the internet, people in Europe and America and in Muslim lands too are today learning the truth: It was Islam that inspired, initiated and sustained the extensive investigations, debates, discoveries, inventions and research that  went into these compilations.
Modern civilization is, indeed, an Islamic bequest to the rest of the world. Ours indeed the vast knowledge and literature that humanity has availed from and before the Muslim presence and rule over most of Europe, North Africa and South Asia.

The very first Command, with which the revelation of the Holy Qur'an commenced, was: “Read! In the name of your Lord and Sustainer, Who created, creates man from a mere clot of congealed blood. Proclaim! And your Lord is Most Bountiful. He, Who taught (the use of) the Pen, taught man that which he knew not.” (Surah Alaq) .

We therefore reject the theory that human beings might have evolved from apes or that they had an origin other than what the Glorious Creator Himself has conveyed to us as above. Long after the universe had been created by Him. Allah created Adam, the first human being and breathed life into him and to the human race through him. The Prophet S.A.W.S has told us : “Allah moulded the human face with His Own Glorious Hands and so no one should slap it. “

Allah is closer to each one of us than the jugular vein that is our lifeline. “Indeed We created Man and We know what his soul whispers to him and we are nearer to him than his jugular vein”. (Holy Qur’an: Surah 50, Al Qaf, verse 16). Yet we are not gifted to see Him physically in our earthly life. This limitation applies to every person, however holy and exalted he or she is in the eyes of his/her admirers.

But there is no bar to anyone seeking the Vision of His/Her Glorious Creator. This is an entirely private experience, a rapport between the Creator and the created, that is possible in a moment of tensed emotions, utmost danger or total despair, when something from within us reaches out unseen and Allah's Help arrives instantaneously.
               
The Prophet of Islam S.A.W.S. has said that Allah is “Noorun Alaa Noor”, Light Encompassing Light!  Neither we nor any of our ancestors nor our successors are programmed by Allah to see Him actually with our eyes.

 The Holy Qur'an informs us in the Sixth Surah, al An'aam, verse 103: "No vision comprehends Him (Allah) but His Vision encompasses all creation. He is the Most Subtle, the Most Gracious and (He Alone is) Best Aware of everything".
Syedina Mohammed S.A.W.S. Sallallahu Alaihi va Sallam has, however, comforted us with the promise that in our after life, as dwellers of heaven, we will be able to see Our Gracious Creator and Benefactor, the way we are able to see the full moon from here on earth.

It is our glory as Muslims that we worship Allahu Sub'hanahu va tha Aalaa with true devotion as we stand before Him for Salaah, clean in body and mind and clothing, on a clean surface and face His Abode, the Holy Ka'abah in Makkah. We do not worship the House but its Glorious Inmate, Who is there and everywhere and He is settled and treasured within our hearts.

The Holy Qur'an informs us in verse 115 of Surath al Baq'r: "To Allah belong the east and the west. So, wherever you turn, there is the Glorious Face of Allah. Allah is Enough (as the Magnificent) Provider for all His creatures' needs. He is the All Knowing!"

Our Prophet S.A.W.S. has asked us to be certain in our mind that we are seeing Allah as we pray to Him. If this proves difficult for us, we must imagine how we appear to Him as we pray to Him. And everyone is familiar with his/her own mirror image. It pleases Allah the Magnificent, that we Muslims pray to Him and concentrate on His Glorious Presence and perform Salaah without seeing Him in the physical sense.

From our study of the Holy Qur'an and Hadith, we derive the inspiration to feel and be sure and respect Allah's Glorious Presence with us all through life. Through our prayers and in utmost humility, love and devotion to Allah, we earn His Approval, His Support and His Love. Allah is the source of all the good things that we enjoy. And it is to Allah that we return when the moment arrives.

Allah and His Chosen Messenger Syedina Mohammed S.A.W.S. SallAllahu Alaihi va Sallam are dearer and more beloved to us than anyone else -- our parents, the wife whom we married and to whom we are truly devoted in love, our children and their families, our pets and the wealth and power that Allah has endowed on us out of His Infinte Mercy.

The true Muslim fears none but Allah. And even this fear turns into love for Allah as we realize as His Gracious Awards all the success and triumphs and glory we earn in life. From being His humble creation, we rise to be Friends of Allah, the Vice-Regents of Allah on Earth.

Our Duties to Allah and to Humanity


 The great duty we owe to ourselves is to acquire knowledge and expertise in any positive field of achievement that is dear to us. We are called upon to realize our highest potential and to rise to the highest rank possible among all the benefactors of humanity.

 From the Holy Qur'an and the Hadith we imbibe knowledge of the duties we owe to Allah, His Rasool S.A.W.S., to our ancestors, to our parents, to the partner in our married life, to our children, to our teachers, to our neighbors, to our brothers, sisters and friends, to our employers, to our government and to all humanity. Those of us who recognize, respect and adhere faithfully to these duties, rank high in Allah's Evaluation and also in public esteem.

The glory of Islam is first, the Command that we worship none other than Allah. Nor should we equate anyone with Allah. And the very next Command is that we must not kill or maim any human being. Islam considers murder a crime not only against humanity but also against Allah. No assassin or terrorist who kills innocent people will ever go to heaven, unless he or she opts to undergo the punishment specified and also compensates fully the family of the bereaved.

Perjury, theft and corruption of every kind is punishable. Adultery is punished with death or an equally severe punishment. Justice is never delayed.

Social awareness and civic responsibility are inbuilt in the Muslim character: Everyone who is affluent must give away 2.5% of his annual savings and liquid assets as Zakaah to the indigent among his community. It is heartwarming to observe that all Muslims are dedicated to this ideal.

To collect and disburse the Zakaah with integrity and devotion to the cause of Islam is the responsibility of all organizations engaged in the noble task. They earn for the donors and for themselves the Approval and Rewards from Allah . Muslims worldwide look to Zakaah donors and distributors to bring about the fastest economic transformation in the Commonwealth of Islam.

Islam has the highest regard for women: The Holy Prophet S.A.W.S. has commanded us to be most considerate and compassionate to women. He has exhorted us: "The best man is he, who is the best (in his gracious treatment and love) to his wife".

Islam ended the practice of burying alive the girl child. The Holy Qur'an commands us not to kill children out of fear of poverty. With every child's birth, the Mercy of Allah endows prosperity and affluence on the family.

In Allah's glorious universe, creatures wake up hungry in the morning and go to sleep well fed in the night. The message of Allah to all of us, is: Never lose faith in the Rah'math, Compassion, of Allah! Allah's Help is reaching you and yours will be the triumph soonest!