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Tak diragukan lagi, wajib bagi kita semua menegakkan Khilafah. Apalagi para ulama seluruh mazhab telah menyepakati hal itu. Imam Ibnu Hazm dalam kitab Al-Fashlu fi al-Milal wa al-Ahwa‘ wa an-Nihal, (4/78) menyebutkan, “Telah sepakat semua Ahlus Sunnah, semua Murjiah, semua Syiah, dan semua Khawarij tentang kewajiban Imamah (Khilafah).”
Khusus dalam lingkup empat mazhab Ahlus Sunnah, Syaikh Abdurrahman al-Jaziri menyebutkan, “Para imam mazhab yang empat (Imam Abu Hanifah, Imam Malik, Imam Ahmad dan Imam Syafii] rahimahumulLah telah sepakat bahwa Imamah (Khilafah) itu fardhu, dan bahwa kaum Muslim harus mempunyai seorang imam (khalifah) yang akan menegakkan syiar-syiar agama dan menolong orang yang dizalimi dari orang zalim. Mereka juga sepakat bahwa kaum Muslim dalam waktu yang sama di seluruh dunia tidak boleh mempunyai dua imam, baik keduanya sepakat atau bertentangan.”
Oleh karena itu, kita wajib bersungguh-sungguh melaksanakan kewajiban itu. Syaikh Abdul Qadim Zallum (Amir kedua Hizbut Tahrir) dalam kitab Nizham al-Hukm fi al-Islam (hlm. 34) menyebutkan, “Mengangkat seorang khalifah adalah wajib atas kaum Muslim seluruhnya di seluruh penjuru dunia. Melaksanakan kewajiban ini—sebagaimana kewajiban manapun yang difardhukan Allah atas kaum Muslim—adalah perkara yang pasti, tak ada pilihan di dalamnya dan tak ada toleransi dalam urusannya. Kelalaian dalam melaksanakan itu termasuk sebesar-besar maksiat, yang pelakunya akan diazab oleh Allah dengan azab yang sepedih-pedihnya.”
Tentang tegaknya Khilafah, memang bukan perkara mudah mengingat besarnya hambatan, tantangan, gangguan dan rintangan yang terus menghadang. Namun, kita harus yakin, semua itu bisa diatasi dan Khilafah pasti akan tegak. Mengapa? Karena tegaknya Khilafah adalah janji Allah. Semua janji Allah pasti akan terwujud asal kita memenuhi semua syarat-syarat bagi terwujudnya janji-janji itu.
Jatuhnya Ibukota Romawi Timur, Konstantinopel, ke tangan Islam sebagai contoh, memang sangat sulit. Namun, karena keyakinan para sahabat dan pejuang Islam pada waktu itu bahwa jatuhnya Romawi Timur ini adalah sebuah kemestian, maka misi yang sangat sulit itu tetap saja dilakukan. Ekspedisi untuk menaklukkan Konstantinopel sudah dimulai sejak Khalifah Usman bin Affan. Sejarah kemudian membuktikan Konstantinopel akhirnya jatuh pada tahun 1453M atau lebih dari 700 tahun kemudian oleh pasukan yang dipimpin oleh Muhammad al-Fatih. Ketika Panglima Muhammad al-Fatih masuk ke benteng Konstantinopel, ia teringat pada hadis yang berbunyi Fala ni’ma al-amir, amiruha. Fala ni’ma al-jaiz fadzalika al-jaiz (Sebaik-baik panglima perang adalah panglima perang yang menaklukkan Konstantinopel, dan sebaik-baik tentara adalah tentara yang menaklukkan Konstantinopel).
Hadis itu dibaca oleh Muhammad al-Fatih seolah-olah Nabi saw. memuji dirinya. Padahal hadis itu diucapkan pada 700 tahunan sebelum peristiwa besar itu terjadi.
Bila untuk menaklukkan Konstantinopel yang merupakan jantung adikuasa Romawi Timur saja akhirnya bisa dilakukan, apalagi untuk sebuah Khilafah yang sudah pernah ada, dan tinggal membangkitkan memori umat, tentu insha Allah juga akan bisa diwujudkan. Bahkan tidak sedikit pengamat dunia internasional pun memperkirakan Khilafah Islam akan segera tegak. Bila mereka yang notabene non-Muslim saja memprediksi bahwa Khilafah Islam akan berdiri, mengapa kita masih saja ragu?
Khilafah adalah kepemimpinan umum bagi seluruh kaum Muslim di dunia untuk menegakkan hukum syariah dan mengemban dakwah ke seluruh dunia. Keberadaannya akan menjamin perwujudan rahmat bagi seluruh alam atau rahmatan lil alamin melalui penerapan syariah Islam secara kaffah, persatuan umat dan dakwah Islam ke seluruh penjuru dunia.
Penerapan syariah secara kaffah akan mewujudkan kebaikan bagi semua, baik Muslim maupun non-Muslim, karena risalah Islam memang diturunkan untuk semua manusia (rahmatan li al-‘alamin). Penerapan syariah secara kaffah itu akan melahirkan perlindungan terhadap agama, akal, harta, jiwa, keturunan, keamanan serta perwujudan keadilan, kedamaian dan kesejahteraan. Muslim maupun non-Muslim akan merasakan kebahagiaan hidup di dalamnya.
Fakta sejarah peradaban Islam yang membentang selama lebih dari 1400 tahun menjadi bukti nyata kemampuan Islam untuk memberikan kerahmatan itu. Sejarahwan terkemuka seperti Will Durant, dalam The Story of Civilization, vol. XIII, mengakui kehebatan peradaban Islam. Ia menulis:
Para khalifah telah memberikan keamanan kepada manusia hingga batas yang luar biasa besarnya bagi kehidupan dan kerja keras mereka. Para khalifah itu juga telah menyediakan berbagai peluang untuk siapapun yang memerlukan dan memberikan kesejahteraan selama berabad-abad dalam wilayah yang sangat luas. Fenomena seperti itu belum pernah tercatat (dalam sejarah) setelah zaman mereka. Kegigihan dan kerja keras mereka menjadikan pendidikan tersebar luas, hingga berbagai ilmu, sastera, filsafat dan seni mengalami kemajuan luar biasa, yang menjadikan Asia Barat sebagai bagian dunia yang paling maju peradabannya selama lima abad.
Oleh karena itu, tidak ada yang perlu ditakutkan dari syariah dan Khilafah karena keduanya adalah bagian dari ajaran Islam yang akan membawa kebaikan. Ibarat orang sakit, keduanya adalah obat yang bakal menyembuhkan sakit parah yang sudah amat lama kita derita. Kita juga tidak perlu ragu untuk mencampakkan sekularisme, baik sistem politik demokrasi maupun sistem ekonomi liberal. Sistem itu telah nyata-nyata menimbulkan berbagai persoalan dan penderitaan kepada seluruh rakyat seperti yang saat ini kita alami, juga menjadi jalan bagi penjajahan gaya baru (neoimperialisme) atas negeri yang kita cintai ini.
Ketika hukum-hukum Allah ditegakkan secara sempurna di dalam Khilafah, kebaikan dan keberkahan pasti akan dilimpahkan Allah SWT. Rasulullah saw. bersabda, “Satu hukum had (sanksi syariah atas kejahatan tertentu) yang ditegakkan di muka bumi lebih baik bagi manusia daripada mereka diguyur hujan selama 30 atau 40 hari.” (HR Ahmad).
Maka dari itu, siapapun Anda, pegawai negeri atau swasta, pejabat pemerintahan, polisi, tentara, pengusaha, intelektual, buruh, mahasiswa, pelajar ataupun rakyat biasa, marilah kita bersama-sama berjuang menegakkan syariah dan Khilafah. Hizbut Tahrir mengajak saudara-saudara semua untuk bersungguh-sungguh secara konsisten memperjuangkan perkara yang sangat penting ini, yang akan menentukan tegak tidaknya hukum Islam yang akan menjamin penyebaran rahmatan lil alamin dan akan menentukan perwujudan kemuliaan Islam dan umatnya atau ‘izzul Islam wal Muslimin.
Songsonglah janji Allah SWT dan berita gembira Rasul-Nya akan kembalinya Khilafah di muka bumi dengan penuh semangat dan rasa optimis. Penuhilah panggilan Allah SWT dengan penuh kesungguhan dan keikhlasan.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَكُونُوا مَعَ الصَّادِقِينَ
Hai orang-orang yang beriman, bertakwalah kepada Allah, dan hendaklah kalian bersama orang-orang yang benar (QS at-Taubah [9]: 119).
hizbut-tahrir.or.id/2015/06/03/syariah-khilafah-untuk-isl... heniputra.my.id/syariah-dan-khilafah-untuk-rahmatan-lil-a...
All the actions of the prayer apply equally to men and women.
There is nothing in the Sunnah to necessitate the exception of women from any of these descriptions.
It's a major misconception in Islam, that women pray different than men.
Outside of the dress code,
women do not pray different then men.
Men and women pray equally in the same manner.
BLUE MOSQUE
ISTANBUL
Photography’s new conscience
Hold on to the Qur'an!
I pray that we all stick to the Qur'an and Sunnah even after Ramadan insha'Allah
I never realised how pale my sister's skin tone was =/
Jashn e Eid Milad un Nabi Wallpapers made for lovers of 'International Islamic propagational
movement of Quran and Sunnah Dawat-e-Islami on the blessing event of 12 Rabiul un Noor Sharif
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Today I met Mr. Mokter in one of the busiest river port namely Shadarghat in Dhaka. He was talking with his fellows as I approached him. He didn't disagreed. So I took his picture. During the discourse he informed he has been living in Dhaka for last 26 years. He has two school going kids and his ancestors lived in the north side of Bangladesh namely Rangpur.
Thanks for being part of my project.
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(Constructive) Criticism is welcome as usual.
This picture is #6 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page
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His Holiness Younus AlGohar makes observations about the state of the Muslim World today and what led to their decline. He compares the characters of modern day Muslims with the teachings and life of Prophet Mohammad. He discusses at length some of the sensitive verses from the Quran that Wahhabis have used to mislead their disciples, exposing the grave errors made by their interpreters.
Full transcript: rariazgoharshahi.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/new-video-state-o...
A beard that naturally grows is a good example of piety and commitment. All the individual must do is follow his appearances with good actions and kind words. Only then can you know if he is truly pious.
A Brief Look at ‘Eesa (Jesus) – peace be upon him
Praise be to Allaah.
·Maryam the daughter of ‘Imraan was a pious and righteous woman… She strove hard in worship until she had no peer in matters of worship… The angels gave her the glad tidings that Allaah had chosen her:
“And (remember) when the angels said: ‘O Maryam (Mary)! Verily, Allaah has chosen you, purified you (from polytheism and disbelief), and chosen you above the women of the ‘Aalameen (mankind and jinn) (of her lifetime).’
O Maryam! ‘Submit yourself with obedience to your Lord (Allaah, by worshipping none but Him Alone) and prostrate yourself, and bow down along with Ar-Raaki‘oon (those who bow down)’”
[Aal ‘Imraan 3:42-43]
·Then the angels gave Maryam the glad tidings that Allaah would bestow upon her a child, whom He would create with the word “Be! And it is.” This child’s name was the Messiah ‘Eesa ibn Maryam (Jesus son of Mary)… He would be held in honour in this world and in the Hereafter, and he would be a Messenger to the Children of Israel… He would teach the Book and wisdom, and the Tawraat (Torah) and Injeel (Gospel) … And he would have attributes and miracles that no one else would have, as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“(Remember) when the angels said: ‘O Maryam (Mary)! Verily, Allaah gives you the glad tidings of a Word [“Be!” — and he was! i.e. ‘Eesa (Jesus) the son of Maryam (Mary)] from Him, his name will be the Messiah ‘Eesa (Jesus), the son of Maryam (Mary), held in honour in this world and in the Hereafter, and will be one of those who are near to Allaah.
He will speak to the people, in the cradle and in manhood, and he will be one of the righteous.’
She said: ‘O my Lord! How shall I have a son when no man has touched me.’ He said: ‘So (it will be) for Allaah creates what He wills. When He has decreed something, He says to it only: “Be!” and it is’” [Aal ‘Imraan 3:45-47]
·Then Allaah tells us the rest of the glad tidings of the angels to Maryam of her son ‘Eesa (peace be upon him), and of the honour of ‘Eesa, and how He would support him with miracles:
“And He (Allaah) will teach him [‘Eesa (Jesus)] the Book and Al-Hikmah (i.e. the Sunnah, the faultless speech of the Prophets, wisdom), (and) the Tawraat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel).
And will make him [‘Eesa (Jesus)] a Messenger to the Children of Israel (saying): ‘I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, that I design for you out of clay, a figure like that of a bird, and breathe into it, and it becomes a bird by Allaah’s Leave; and I heal him who was born blind, and the leper, and I bring the dead to life by Allaah’s Leave. And I inform you of what you eat, and what you store in your houses. Surely, therein is a sign for you, if you believe.
And I have come confirming that which was before me of the Tawraat (Torah), and to make lawful to you part of what was forbidden to you, and I have come to you with a proof from your Lord. So fear Allaah and obey me.
Truly, Allaah is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him (Alone). This is the Straight Path’”[Aal ‘Imraan 3:48-51]
·Allaah is absolutely perfect in His powers of Creation. He creates what He wills, how He wills… He created Adam from dust without a father or a mother, and He created Hawwa’ from the rib of Adam from a father but without a mother. He has caused the descendents of Adam to have both a father and a mother, and He created ‘Eesa from his mother without a father… Glory be to the All-Knowing Creator.
·Allaah has explained clearly in the Qur’aan how ‘Eesa was born. He says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And mention in the Book (the Qur’aan, O Muhammad, the story of) Maryam (Mary), when she withdrew in seclusion from her family to a place facing east.
She placed a screen (to screen herself) from them; then We sent to her Our Rooh [angel Jibreel (Gabriel)], and he appeared before her in the form of a man in all respects.
She said: ‘Verily, I seek refuge with the Most Gracious (Allaah) from you, if you do fear Allaah.’
(The angel) said: ‘I am only a messenger from your Lord, (to announce) to you the gift of a righteous son.’
She said: ‘How can I have a son, when no man has touched me, nor am I unchaste?’
He said: ‘So (it will be), your Lord said: ‘That is easy for Me (Allaah). And (We wish) to appoint him as a sign to mankind and a mercy from Us (Allaah), and it is a matter (already) decreed (by Allaah)’ ”[Maryam 19:16-21]
·When Jibreel told her that, she submitted to the will and decree of Allaah, and Jibreel breathed into the sleeves of her garment:
“So she conceived him, and she withdrew with him to a far place (i.e. Bethlehem valley about 4-6 miles from Jerusalem).
And the pains of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a date palm. She said: ‘Would that I had died before this, and had been forgotten and out of sight!’”[Maryam 19:22-23]
·Then Allaah provided Maryam with water and food, and commanded her not to speak to anyone:
“Then [the babe ‘Eesa (Jesus) or Jibreel (Gabriel)] cried unto her from below her, saying: ‘Grieve not: your Lord has provided a water stream under you.
And shake the trunk of the date palm towards you, it will let fall fresh ripe dates upon you.
So eat and drink and be glad. And if you see any human being, say: “Verily, I have vowed a fast unto the Most Gracious (Allaah) so I shall not speak to any human being this day”’”[Maryam 19:24-26]
·Then Maryam came to her people, carrying her child ‘Eesa. When they saw her, they thought that she had done a terrible thing and they denounced it, but she did not respond to them. She indicated that they should ask this infant, and he would tell them. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Then she brought him (the baby) to her people, carrying him. They said: ‘O Mary! Indeed you have brought a thing Fariyy (a mighty thing).
O sister (i.e. the like) of Haaroon (Aaron)! Your father was not a man who used to commit adultery, nor your mother was an unchaste woman.’
Then she pointed to him. They said: How can we talk to one who is a child in the cradle?’”[Maryam 19:27-29]
·‘Eesa replied to them straight away, even though he was a child in the cradle:
“He [‘Eesa (Jesus)] said: ‘Verily, I am a slave of Allaah, He has given me the Scripture and made me a Prophet;
And He has made me blessed wheresoever I be, and has enjoined on me Salaah (prayer), and Zakaah, as long as I live.
And dutiful to my mother, and made me not arrogant, unblest.
And Salaam (peace) be upon me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I shall be raised alive!’”[Maryam 19:30-33]
This is the information about ‘Eesa ibn Maryam, the slave and Messenger of Allaah. But the People of the Book differed concerning him. Some of them said that he was the son of God, and some said that he was the third of three (“trinity”), and some said that he was God, and some said that he was a slave and Messenger of God. This last view is the correct view. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Such is ‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary). (It is) a statement of truth, about which they doubt (or dispute).
It befits not (the Majesty of) Allaah that He should beget a son [this refers to the slander of Christians against Allaah, by saying that ‘Eesa (Jesus) is the son of Allaah]. Glorified (and Exalted) be He (above all that they associate with Him). When He decrees a thing, He only says to it: “Be!” and it is.
[‘Eesa (Jesus) said]: ‘And verily, Allaah is my Lord and your Lord. So worship Him (Alone). That is the Straight Path. (Allaah’s religion of Islâmic Monotheism which He did ordain for all of His Prophets).’
Then the sects differed [i.e. the Christians about ‘Eesa (Jesus)], so woe unto the disbelievers [those who gave false witness by saying that ‘Eesa (Jesus) is the son of Allaah] from the Meeting of a great Day (i.e. the Day of Resurrection, when they will be thrown in the blazing Fire)”[Maryam 19:34-38]
·When the Children of Israel deviated from the Straight Path and overstepped the limits set by Allaah, they did wrong and spread corruption on earth, and a group among them denied the resurrection, Reckoning and punishment. They indulged in their desires and in physical pleasures without expecting to be brought to account. At that point, Allaah sent to them ‘Eesa ibn Maryam as a Messenger, and taught him the Tawraat and Injeel as He says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And He (Allaah) will teach him [‘Eesa (Jesus)] the Book and Al-Hikmah (i.e. the Sunnah, the faultless speech of the Prophets, wisdom), (and) the Tawraat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel).
And will make him [‘Eesa (Jesus)] a Messenger to the Children of Israel”[Aal ‘Imraan 3:48]
·Allaah revealed to ‘Eesa ibn Maryam the Injeel (Gospel) as guidance and light, confirming that which had come before it in the Tawraat:
“and We gave him the Injeel (Gospel), in which was guidance and light and confirmation of the Tawraat (Torah) that had come before it, a guidance and an admonition for Al-Muttaqoon (the pious)”[al-Maa’idah 5:46 – interpretation of the meaning]
·‘Eesa (peace be upon him) foretold the coming of a Messenger from Allaah after him, whose name would be Ahmad. This is Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And (remember) when ‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary), said: ‘O Children of Israel! I am the Messenger of Allaah unto you, confirming the Tawraat [(Torah) which came] before me, and giving glad tidings of a Messenger to come after me, whose name shall be Ahmad.’ But when he (Ahmad, i.e. Muhammad) came to them with clear proofs, they said: ‘This is plain magic’”[al-Saff 61:6]
·‘Eesa (peace be upon him) called the Children of Israel to worship Allaah alone, and to obey the rulings of the Tawraat and Injeel… He started to dispute with them and to explain the error of their ways. When he saw how stubborn they were and how the signs of disbelief were manifest among them, he stood among his people, saying, Who will be my helpers in the cause of Allaah? The disciples believed in him, and their number was twelve. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Then when ‘Eesa (Jesus) came to know of their disbelief, he said: ‘Who will be my helpers in Allaah’s Cause?’ Al-Hawaariyyoon (the disciples) said: ‘We are the helpers of Allaah; we believe in Allaah, and bear witness that we are Muslims (i.e. we submit to Allaah).’
Our Lord! We believe in what You have sent down, and we follow the Messenger [‘Eesa (Jesus)]; so write us down among those who bear witness (to the truth, i.e. Laa ilaaha illallaah — none has the right to be worshipped but Allaah)”[Aal ‘Imraan 3:52-53]
·Allaah supported ‘Eesa with great miracles which remind us of the power of Allaah, lift the spirit and promote faith in Allaah and in the Last Day. He made something like the shape of a bird from clay, and blew into it, and it became a bird, by Allaah’s leave.He healed the blind and the leper, and brought the death back to life by Allaah’s leave. He told the people what they were eating and what they were storing in their houses. So the Jews to whom Allaah had sent ‘Eesa became hostile towards him and tried to guide the people away from him, so they disbelieved in him and accused his mother of immorality.
·When they saw that the weak and poor believed in him, and were gathering around him, they formed a plot to kill him. So they provoked the Romans against him, and they made the Roman governor think that the call of ‘Eesa contained a threat against (Roman) power. So he (the Roman governor) issued orders that ‘Eesa should be arrested and crucified. But Allaah caused a hypocrite who had betrayed him to the Romans to look like ‘Eesa. The soldiers arrested him, thinking that he was ‘Eesa, and crucified him. But Allaah saved ‘Eesa from the cross and from death, and Allaah tells us about the Jews (interpretation of the meaning):
“And because of their saying (in boast), ‘We killed the Messiah ‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary), the Messenger of Allaah,’ — but they killed him not, nor crucified him, but it appeared so to them the resemblance of ‘Eesa (Jesus) was put over another man (and they killed that man)], and those who differ therein are full of doubts. They have no (certain) knowledge, they follow nothing but conjecture. For surely; they killed him not [i.e. ‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary)]:
But Allaah raised him [‘Eesa (Jesus)] up (with his body and soul) unto Himself (and he is in the heavens). And Allaah is Ever All Powerful, All Wise”[al-Nisaa’ 4:157-158]
·So Eesa (peace be upon him) did not die, rather Allaah raised him up to Himself, and he will descend before the Day of Resurrection and will follow Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). He will prove the Jews to be wrong in their claim to have killed ‘Eesa and crucified him. And he will prove the Christians to be wrong who exaggerated about him and said that he was God, or the son of God, or the third of three. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “By the One in Whose hand is my soul, the son of Maryam will descend among you as a just judge. He will break the cross, kill the pigs and abolish the jizyah (tax paid my non-Muslims in an Islamic state), and money will become so widespread that there will be no one who will accept it.” (Agreed upon; narrated by Muslim, no. 155).
·When ‘Eesa comes down before the Day of Resurrection, the People of the Book will believe in him, as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And there is none of the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) but must believe in him [‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary), as only a Messenger of Allaah and a human being] before his [‘Eesa (Jesus) or a Jew’s or a Christian’s] death (at the time of the appearance of the angel of death). And on the Day of Resurrection, he [‘Eesa (Jesus)] will be a witness against them”
[al-Nisaa’ 4:159]
·‘Eesa ibn Maryam is the slave of Allaah and His Messenger. Allaah sent him to guide the Children of Israel and to call them to worship Allaah alone, as Allaah says to the Jews and Christians (interpretation of the meaning):
“O people of the Scripture (Christians)! Do not exceed the limits in your religion, nor say of Allaah aught but the truth. The Messiah ‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary), was (no more than) a Messenger of Allaah and His Word, (‘Be!’ — and he was) which He bestowed on Maryam (Mary) and a spirit (Rooh) created by Him; so believe in Allaah and His Messengers. Say not: ‘Three (trinity)!’ Cease! (it is) better for you. For Allaah is (the only) One Ilaah (God), glory is to Him (Far Exalted is He) above having a son. To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth. And Allaah is All Sufficient as a Disposer of affairs”[al-Nisaa’ 4:171]
·Saying that ‘Eesa is the son of God is a monstrous saying and a great evil.
“And they say: ‘The Most Gracious (Allaah) has begotten a son (or offspring or children) [as the Jews say: ‘Uzair (Ezra) is the son of Allaah, and the Christians say that He has begotten a son [‘Eesa (Jesus)], and the pagan Arabs say that He has begotten daughters (angels and others)].’
Indeed you have brought forth (said) a terrible evil thing.
Whereby the heavens are almost torn, and the earth is split asunder, and the mountains fall in ruins,
That they ascribe a son (or offspring or children) to the Most Gracious (Allaah).
But it is not suitable for (the Majesty of) the Most Gracious (Allaah) that He should beget a son (or offspring or children).
There is none in the heavens and the earth but comes unto the Most Gracious (Allaah) as a slave[Maryam 19:88-93]
·‘Eesa ibn Maryam is a human being, a slave of Allaah and His Messenger. Whoever believes that the Messiah son of Maryam is God is a disbeliever (kaafir).
“Surely, they have disbelieved who say: Allaah is the Messiah [‘Eesa (Jesus)], son of Maryam (Mary)’”[al-Maa’idah 5:72]
·Whoever says that the Messiah is the son of God or the third of three is also a disbeliever:
“Surely, disbelievers are those who said: ‘Allaah is the third of the three (in a Trinity).” But there is no Ilaah (god) (none who has the right to be worshipped) but One Ilaah (God —Allaah). And if they cease not from what they say, verily, a painful torment will befall on the disbelievers among them”[al-Maa’idah 5:73]
·The Messiah son of Maryam was a human being. He was born from a mother; he ate and drank, got up and went to sleep, suffered pain and wept… and God (Allaah) is far above all of that, so how could he be God? Rather he is the slave of Allaah and His Messenger:
“The Messiah [‘Eesa (Jesus)], son of Maryam (Mary), was no more than a Messenger; many were the Messengers that passed away before him. His mother [Maryam (Mary)] was a Siddeeqah [i.e. she believed in the Words of Allaah and His Books]. They both used to eat food (as any other human being, while Allaah does not eat). Look how We make the Ayaat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.) clear to them; yet look how they are deluded away (from the truth)”[al-Maa’idah 5:75]
·The Jews, Christians, crusaders and their followers distorted the religion of the Messiah, and deviated and changed it. They said that Allaah sent forth his son the Messiah to be killed and crucified as a sacrifice for mankind – so it doesn’t matter if anyone does whatever he wants, because Jesus will carry all his sins for him… And they spread that belief among all the Christian groups until it became a part of their beliefs. All of this is falsehood and is lies against Allaah, and speaking about Him without knowledge. Rather “every soul will be (held) in pledge for its deeds”. Man’s life cannot be sound or correct unless they have a path to follow and limits at which to stop.
·Look at how they fabricate lies against Allaah, and speak about Allaah with no guidance:
“Then woe to those who write the Book with their own hands and then say, ‘This is from Allaah,’ to purchase with it a little price! Woe to them for what their hands have written and woe to them for that they earn thereby” [al-Baqarah 2:79]
·Allaah has taken from the Christians the pledge that they will follow ‘Eesa and follow that which he brought, but they changed and distorted that; they differed then they turned away. So Allaah will punish them with enmity and hatred in this world, and with torment in the Hereafter, as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And from those who call themselves Christians, We took their covenant, but they have abandoned a good part of the Message that was sent to them. So We planted amongst them enmity and hatred till the Day of Resurrection (when they discarded Allaah’s Book, disobeyed Allaah’s Messengers and His Orders and transgressed beyond bounds in Allaah’s disobedience); and Allaah will inform them of what they used to do”[al-Maa’idah 5:14]
·On the Day of Resurrection, ‘Eesa will stand before the Lord of the Worlds, Who will ask him before the witnesses what he said to the Children of Israel, as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“And (remember) when Allaah will say (on the Day of Resurrection): ‘O ‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary)! Did you say unto men: “Worship me and my mother as two gods besides Allaah?”’ He will say: ‘Glory be to You! It was not for me to say what I had no right (to say). Had I said such a thing, You would surely have known it. You know what is in my inner-self though I do not know what is in Yours; truly, You, only You, are the All-Knower of all that is hidden (and unseen).
Never did I say to them aught except what You (Allaah) did command me to say: “Worship Allaah, my Lord and your Lord.”’ And I was a witness over them while I dwelt amongst them, but when You took me up, You were the Watcher over them; and You are a Witness to all things. (This is a great admonition and warning to the Christians of the whole world).
If You punish them, they are Your slaves, and if You forgive them, verily, You, only You, are the All Mighty, the All Wise”’
[al-Maa’idah 5:116-118]
·Allaah has created kindness and mercy among the followers of ‘Eesa and the believers. They are closer in friendship to the followers of Muhammad than anyone else, as Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):
“Verily, you will find the strongest among men in enmity to the believers (Muslims) the Jews and those who are Al-Mushrikoon (polytheists), and you will find the nearest in love to the believers (Muslims) those who say: ‘We are Christians.’ That is because amongst them are priests and monks, and they are not proud”
[al-Maa’idah 5:82]
‘Eesa ibn Maryam was the last of the Prophets sent to the Children of Israel. Then after him Allaah sent Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), from among the descendents of Ismaa’eel, to all of mankind. And he is the last of the Prophets and Messengers.
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Kitab Tauhid (3 Jilid)
Judul asal: At-Tauhid Li as-Sof al-Awwal al-A'li
Penulis: Syeikh Dr. Soleh bin Fauzan bin Abdullah al-Fauzan
Penerbit: Darul Haq, Jakarta
Buku ini membicarakan secara komprehensif dan menyeluruh aqidah dan tauhid Islam mengikut metodologi dan kaedah Ahlussunnah wal Jamaah, dan menyentuh segenap isu-isu yang terkait dengan masalah aqidah yang menjadi batu asas dan teras kepada agama Islam itu sendiri. Buku ini juga menjawab penyimpangan-penyimpangan golongan yang menyalahtafsir dan menyalahgunakan Al Quran dan Hadith dalam memahami aqidah Islam yang akhirnya melahirkan kelompok-kelompok dan firqah-firqah yang terkeluar dari Ahlussunnah wal Jamaah seperti Syiah, Muktazilah, Khawarij, Jahmiyah, Qadariyah dan banyak lagi. Antara perkara-perkara yang dibicarakan di dalam buku aqidah ini ialah persoalan di mana Allah, sifat-sifat Allah, alam semesta hanya dicipta hanya oleh Allah, ibadah hanya kepada Allah, kecintaan sesama Muslim, ketaatan kepada pemimpin, kesetiaan untuk kekal di dalam jemaah Islam di bawah pemimpin, sumber agama dan cara pendalilannya dan banyak lagi.
Saudaraku, jangan terburu-buru untuk sedih dan putus asa ketika orang tua tak kunjung paham. Mungkin memang belum sekarang Allah berikan hidayah kepada mereka. Tugas kita berbakti dan sebatas menyampaikan. Saudaraku, jangan pernah merasa bebanmu terlalu berat. Barangkali ada saudaramu yang jauh lebih berat memperoleh ujian. Keluarga yang semestinya beri dukungan tapi malah berikan permusuhan. Memang tak gampang, tapi apapun alasannya sunnah harus dipegang. Untuk saudaraku yang dikarunai keluarga yg mengenal sunnah, maka berbahagialah!. Bantulah saudaramu yang saat ini masih terseok-seok memperjuangkan sunnah dalam keluarganya. Jangan terburu-buru untuk memusuhinya bila ada syariat yang belum istiqomah ia jalankan. Berikanlah pengertian, ia butuh dukungan. . . . Terinspirasi dari obrolan ikhwah ba'da ta'im di Masjid Agung Cimahi, kemarin 3 Rajab 1437 © @happyislamcom Tags: #inspirasi #cerita #sabar #istiqomah #manhaj #salaf #salafy #ahlussunnah #ilmu #islam #quran #sunnah #bandung #cimahi #keluarga #semangat #minggu #pagi via Instagram ift.tt/1VIuwvt
Imam Hussain Ibn Ali (AS) the third Imam.
Second son of Fatima (SA) and Ali (AS) Hussain (AS) was born on 3rd Shabaan, 4th year of Hijri (10.1.626 AD) When he was born the Holy Prophet was given the news of the birth of his 2nd grandson. He arrived at the house of his daughter, took the little baby in his arms, said the Azan and Iqamah in his ears. People around the Prophet saw tears in his eyes. Fatimah asked what was the reason for this, he told her that this boy of hers will achieve martyrdom, but consoled her by adding that God will create a nation who will mourn Hussain till the Day of Judgement. Another famous saying of the Prophet at the same time became synonymous with the name of his grandson Hussain. “Hussian-o-Minni wa Ana Minul Hussain”. Hussain is from me and I am from Hussain. One can explain this Hadith that Hussain, being the grand son of the Prophet was from him biologically. How a grandfather was from his grand son needs to be explained. Prophets of God speak spiritually rather than materially. He was talking about Islam the Deen he was assigned by God to propagate God's religion.. He was for Islam and his whole life was for Islam and its establishment on earth. Any break in this mission would subvert this mission which was the purpose of his creation. The message of the Holy Prophet in this saying was that Hussain will, in some near future save this mission from destruction, hence the very purpose of his being will be saved by the sacrifice of his grandson. He was giving the news of a future occurrence. The story of Kerbala unfolds.
SHAH USTO HUSSAINO BADSHAH USTO HUSSAIN
DEEN UATO HUSSAINO DEEN PANAH USTO HUSSAIN.
SURDAD,NADAD DUST DUR DUESTE YAZID,
HAQQA KE BENAYE LA ILAH HUSTO HUSSAIN.
Hussain is the king , indeed he is the king of kings,
Hussain is Deen and also the protector of Deen,
He gave his head but not his hand of allegiance in the hand of Yazid.
Indeed he was the founder (Like his grandfather) of the concept of One God.
This quartet of Shah Moinuddin Chishty Ajmeri is the exact meaning of the Hadith of “Hussaino Minni” as mentioned above.Imam Hussain(AS) has saved Islam from oblivion by offering his timely sacrifice to draw the line of demarcation between Truth and Falsehood, between good and evil, between Right and Wrong, that after this event in Kerbala in 61 Hijri, no one inside or outside Islam dare to challenge the truth of the Holy Qur'an or try to subvert its meanings.
The story of Kerbala begins with the birth of Hussain. The Holy Prophet had shown affection and love for his grandson as any grandfather should show,but there was something more positive and profound in this love. Several times when Hussain entered the mosque as a small child the Holy Prophet will put him in his lap and tell his companions that this is Hussain, look at him and remember him. The Prophet’s insistence to remember Hussain shows that those who will forget this event will cause trouble in Islam.
It was just seven years of his life with his grandfather that the Holy Prophet died and soon after,Hussain’s mother Hazrat Fatima (SA) also died.. The next 25 years of his life in Madinah was with his father Ali,his brother Hasan and many other brothers and sisters in the family. He grew up to be loved by the companions of the Holy Prophet. During the period of 2nd Khilafat-e-Rasheda, Omar Ibne Khattab had always shown his love and respect for Hussain. Whenever Hussain entered the mosque, the Caliph would let him sit beside him and tell the companions to listen to what this young man says. They all valued his advice even at that young age. His main activity in Madinah was to see that the people there know true Islam. He also managed the Trust set up by his father, to help the poor of the city by giving them food and many necessities of life. This was the true Islamic Welfare State in progress where every hungry mouth must have food, every naked person must have clothes and a shelter over his head.
Apart from administering the Trust set up by his father Ali (AS), Hussain's(AS) main occupation during these 25 years in Madina was to teach the newly converted muslims real Islam through the Qora'an and Sunnah of the Prophet. He has performed Hajj 24 times during this period. He has also travelled to Yemen and most of the southern part of Hejaz and Najd. It is clear that he did not take any part in any of the expeditions by the muslim forces under the directions of the three Kholafa.
After the death of the 3rd Caliph Osman, Husain’s father Ali(AS) was compelled by the people of Madinah overwhelmingly to take the reigns of power. Ali(AS) was reluctant and waited for three days before accepting the mantle of worldly power along with the authority of Imamah. (see life of Imam Ali )(AS). Circumstances changed rapidly and within the first 6 month of Ali’s Khilafat he had to leave Madinah for Basra and the battle of Jamal took place. We see that Hussain(AS) who took no part in any battles before, was a commander of Ali’s forces in this first battle under his father’s leadership. Fighting began and ended in just one day, the battle was over, Ali(AS) performed funeral prayers on dead of both sides and buried them. Victors and vanquished were treated the same way. Hazrat Ayesha was returned to Madina under the escort of her brother Muhammad Ibne Abibakr and 40 other men. She repented her participation in the battle all her life and never forgave Talha and Zubair who deceived her into this battle against Ali(AS). She also realized that the true instigator of this battle was Muawiya under whose directions both Talha and Zubair started this whole adventure against the legitimately elected Caliph of Islam. It was to destabilize the power base of Islam which was the Khilafat of Ali(AS). When he did not succeed in this he began other tactics to do thsame. His bands of soldiers raided many parts of Iraq to burn and loot villages and destroy communities. Ali(AS) had no choice but to prepare for battle with Muawiya. The battle of Siffin took place in the 2nd year of Ali’(AS) Khilafat and Hussain(AS) took full part. He was the commander of a garrison of 10,000 men along with his elder brother Hasan(AS) and Muhammad (Hanafiya). It was Ali’s practice to put his other son Muhammad-e-Hanafiya in the forefront and save the lives of these two grandsons of the Prophet. Nevertheless they took full part in these battles and fought with great bravery.
The 3rd battle during the Khilafat of Ali (AS) was the battle of Nehrwan fought against the Khawarij. This was also over in just one day with total defeat of Khawarij. Ali (AS) returned to Kufa and the main administration of the Islamic Welfare State began. Both brothers were the chief administrators of this Welfare State where they would seek out those poor adestitute within the state and provide them with the necessities of life. While living with his father in Kufa, Hussain (AS) visited various northern part of the Islamic State. One story goes to say that he visited Azerbaijan and part of Iran of that time.
Four years and 10 months of his father’s Khilafat were over quickly and his life with his elder brother Hasan(AS) began in Madina. They still have the Trust state which was established by his father and both brothers administered it jointly. Hussain (AS) visited Makka and performed Hajj 9 times during the life time of his brother. After the martyrdom his brother Hasan (AS) Hussain (AS) took the mantle of Imamat and spiritual guidance of the Ummah. It is during this period that during one of his journeys to Makka for pilgrimage, his famous Duas (Supplication) of Arafah became famous. This is a Dua which at the place of Arafat during the Hajj ritual that Imam recited and many pilgrims heard it and instantly memorised it as was the practice of the people of that time. Qur'an was also memorised in the same manner and many Sermons of Imam Ali(AS) were also memorised by people. This Dua of Arafa became famous because of its deep insight into the realms of spirituality of Islam and its total dependence upon Allah’s Will and Power. This also gives insight into the reasons why Imam Hussain(AS) left Makka for Kerbala. The following extract shows this feeling of the Imam towards reform of the Umma of his grandfather,
“O’God: you know that our struggle, moves, protests, and campaigns have not been, and are not, for the sake of rivalry and for obtaining power, neither are they for the sake of personal ambition nor for wordly ends, nor for the purpose of accumulating wealth and acquiring wordly advantages. “ Then what is their purpose? Imam states the purpose in these words.
“To establish the landmarks of Your Deen, to make reforms manifest in Your lands, so that the oppressed among Your servants may have security, and Your laws, which have been suspended and cast into neglect, may be reinstated.”
Further on in this same Dua the Imam calls upon his creator to show his total dependence upon Him.
O’He, upon whom I called when I was sick and He healed me, when naked, He clothed me, when hungry He fed me, when thirsty He gave me drink, when abased He exalted me, when ignorant, He gave me knowledge, when alone He provided companion, when away from home He returned me home, when empty handed He enriched me, when in need of help He helped me, when rich He took not from me”. This kind of complete dependence upon God which is the Hallmark of Islamic teachings, was taught by the Imam to the people of Madinah and Makka, and the whole of Hejaz he visited..
Once a baduin asked Imam what is the best thing to do. Imam replied,” Belief in God”. He asked again, what is the best means of deliverance from destruction, Imam said,”Trust in God”.The man asked,what is man’s ornament, Imam replied,” knowledge associated with intelligence”. The man insisted, if this be not available, what then, Imam replied,” Wealth accompanied with generosity”. What if this be out of reach, Imam said, “Poverty allied with patience”.What if this be not practicable?, Imam smiled and said, let the lightening consume the man to ashes. He then gave whatever money he had with him to fulfil his needs.
It was in the month of Rajab 60 Hijri that Moawiya died and his son Yazid succeeded his father on the throne of the Arab Empire with Damascus as its capital.Moawiya in his cleverness had told Yazid that” whatever you do when you become ruler after my death, do not ask Hussain Ibne Ali for the oath of allegiance. Leave him where he is and you will have no problems.” But Yazid in his arrogance of power did not bother to remember the wishes of his father. The very first thing he did was to write a letter to his Governor in Madinah informing him of his succession to the throne of his father and ordering him to take the Oath of Allegiance from Hussain Ibne Ali (AS). Yazid realized that although he had full temporal power and is the virtual ruler of the Arab Empire, but he has no spiritual strength unless the grandson of the Prophet accepts him as such. People in Makka and Madinah would still regard Hussain(AS) as their leader if only spiritually. Walid Ibne Ataba the Governor of Madinah receives this letter on 26th of Rajab 60 Hijri. It was dusk and people were getting ready for Maghrib prayers. Walid immediately sent a messenger to Imam’s house and called him to the palace.Imam realised the seriousness of the situation and took his brothers and sons with him. When they arrived at the gate of the palace Imam asked to stay outside and wait and only enter the gates when they hear Imam speak loudly.After these instructions Imam entered the palace. There was Walid sitting in his high chair with Merwan Ibnul Hakam by his side. Imam asked, “What is the matter that I was called at this hour”. Walid mentioned Moawiya’s death, Yazid’s accession to the throne and the demand for Imam’s oath of allegiance.Imam replied that this is not the matter which can be done in the solitude of the palace, let this matter be brought before the people of Madinah next day in the mosque of the Prophet. Imam stood up to leave while Merwan who was listening to this conversation did not like it and warned Walid that if he lets Hussain go he will loose him. Take the oath now or cut his head off as Yazid suggested in his letter. Imam after hearing this remark from Merwan told Walid loudly,”A person like me would not give the oath of allegiance to a person like Yazid who had violated all tenets of Islam”.As Imam said these words loudly, his brothers and sons entered the palace and they all left safely.
Imam realised after consulting his friends and relatives that the life of peace for them in Madinah was over.
A question is asked sometimes,that why Imam Hussain(AS) had not chosen to come to terms with Yazid as his elder brother,Imam Hasan(AS) had done earlier while dealing with Moawiya. The question does not take into account the difference in the situations of the two brothers. Ali (AS) as the Imam left his elder son the mantle of Imamat which he at the time of his death passed it on to his brother Imam Hussain(AS). Imam Hasan(AS) had also been installed as the Caliph. Finding that Moawiya had succeeded in,secrertly, sowing the seeds of discord and dissent among the muslims, and had induced the feeling of great insecurity by undermining the machinery for the maintenance of peace, law and order, Imam Hasan(AS) had deemed it expedient to enter into a treaty with him under which the Imam abdicated in favour of his adversary only the adjuncts of wordly power. He did not dissociate himself from the spiritual primacy at all and continued to be the spiritual leader and the Imam of the Ummah.
Second point which is equally important is that when Yazid enforced his oath of allegiance over the muslims, he insisted the people must swear allegiance to him which was totally different from the oath of allegiance of Kholafae Rashidoon. Previously they swore the oath of allegiance that the Khalifa should rule according to the verdict the Qoran and the Sunnah of the Prophet. But Yazid’s impertinence and arrogance made it an abject acknowledgement by the swearer that he was the slave (ABD) of Yazid who would dispose off his life, property and offspring in any manner deemed fit. One of the companions of the Prophet in Madinah named Ibn Rabia Al Aswad was prepared to swear allegiance to Yazid in accordance with the old practice but refused to swear allegiance in the form proposed. He was summarily executed. This happened inside the city of Madinah.
Where then was there any point in Imam Hussain(AS) trying to make up to Yazid. This is where Imam Hussain(AS) found himself placed in circumstances which were markedly different from those which confronted his elder brother who had abdicated only his temporal power in favour of Moawiya for the restoration of peace and order on the domain of Islam. This kind of oath was entirely out of question for Imam Hussain(AS) to accept. This would have totally degradedIslam as ordained in the Qoran and as it was practised by the Prophet of Islam. When settlement with Yazid being wholly out of question, the only alternative course open to Imam Hussain(AS) was to oppose Yazid to save and protect the values of Islam from further degradation and to protect the faith itself from destructive inroads of pre-Islamic revivalism. He could, however, have entertained no illusions about the kind of support he could hope to enlist for himself in any conflict with Yazid. The exceedingly unhappy position in which his elder brother had found himself through the treacherous withdrawal of the support given to him in his confrontation with Moawiya,Imam Hussain(AS) therefore thought of entirely new strategy of war with Yazid, for in any case war it had to be. He made no attempt to meet Yazid’s military might with his own martial strength. He build no hopes on numerical strength for the success of his cause which was entirely the cause of Islam and saving Islamic values. Imam decided to battle with Yazid on the spiritual plane, to oppose Yazid’s might with his nobility of character, confront power with powerlessness, meet multitudes with want of material support and defy oppression with suffering and martyrdom.
The proof of this line of thought became so clear in Imam Hussain’s sermons and letters to his brother Muhammad-e-Hanafiya when the Imam was leaving Makka for Iraq.
Imam, after leaving Madinah in the month of Rajab, stayed in Makka for about 5 months. It was in the month of Zilhijja 60 Hijri when he noticed that there were Yazid’s soldiers in Makka in the garb of Ahram to kill the Imam inside the Masjidul Haram. Imam changed the rituals of Hajj into Umra and decided to leave Makka. The date was 8th of Zilhijja 60 Hijri. When people saw the Imam leaving before completing the Hajj they began to ask questions as to why he was leaving in such a hurry. Some doubted his motives, saying that he might be leaving Makka for Iraq to confront Yazid and take power into his hands.To quell these doubts he left a letter with his brother Muhammad-e-Hanafiya which clearly states his purpose of leaving Makka. He wrote in the letter, “I have not come out to stir emotions, to play with discontentment, to provoke dissension or to spread oppression. I wish to bring the Umma back to the path of Amr-bil-Ma’arouf and Nahyi Unil Munker. I wish to bring them back to the path of my grandfather the Messenger of Allah and of my father Ali Ibne Abi Talib”.
The momentous journey of Imam Hussain(AS) begins from Makka towards an unknown destination which eventually ended at Kerbala.
The Map on the next page showing the Route of Imam Hussain (AS) from Makka to Kerbala was prepared by the writer of this book in 1984 and was presented at the Imam Hussain Seminar organised by the Muhammadi Trust. This map has been regarded as a pioneering effort and a land mark in Islamic history. The journey which began from Makka on the 8th of Zilhijja 60 Hijri ended in Kerbala on 2nd of Muharram 61 Hijiri and took about 22 days in all. Imam stopped at 14 places on his way to Kerbala. He met various people and delivered various sermons. What the Imam talked about to these people he met and said in his sermons at various places reflects the true motives he had in his mind. The names of these places Imam passed were mentioned in history books but their exact locations were not traceable in modern geographical maps. After searching in the archives of the British Museum Library a map of 9th Century Hijri was found in which all these names were clearly shown.
The reader will see in the following pages the exact map of Hejaz and Iraq of that time and the exact route the Imam and his Caravan took in 60 Hijiri.
Map of Hejaz and Iraq showing the Route of Imam Hussain from Makka to Kerbala.
There were 14 places in all where the Imam was known to have passed during this journey.
The first place was called Saffah. Here the Imam stayed for the night. The next morning when he was preparing to leave for his next Manzil that he met the famous poet Farazdaq who was coming from Iraq and was going to Makka for pilgrimage. When he learnt that Imam was proceeding for Iraq he tried to persuade him not to go there. Imam asked Farazdaq about the conditions in Kufa and the poet replied,” Peoples hearts are with you but their swords are against you.” Imam told him,”Allah does what he wishes, I leave it to Him who proposes the just cause”. Farazdaq left the place for Makka and Imam’s caravan proceeded towards its next Manzil. The 2nd Manzil was Dhatul - Irq. Here the Imam stayed the night. Here he met Abdullah Ibn Jaafar who was Imam’s cousin and husband of his sister Hazrat Zainab. Abdullah brought his two sons Aun and Muhammad to accompany the Imam.Abdullah also tried to persuade the Imam to postpone his journey and return to Madina. But Imam replied,” my destiny is in the hands of Allah” These words which mention his destiny were repeated at many places during this journey and clearly indicate that he had a mission in his mind and he was proceeding towards that mission without fail.
The 3rd stage in the Imam’s journey was the small town called Batn-ur-Rumma. From here the Imam sent a letter to one of his friends in Kufa asking about the situation there. Qais Ibn Mushahir took the letter for the Imam. He also met Abdullah Ibn Mutee who was also coming from the troubled land of Iraq. He also tried to persuade the Imam not to proceed any further. He said that Kufans were not faithful to anyone -” Al Kufi La Yufi “- they could not be trusted. But Imam continued with his fateful journey with the same words that his destiny is in the hands of Allah.
The 4th Stage of Imam’s journey took him to Zurud. This was a small town just over the hills of Hejaz separating from the province of Najd. From here the mountains change into arid desert. At this place Imam met Zohair Ibne Qain. Zohair, until that time, was not the follower of Ahlul-bayt. He was undecided and considered himself as a person in middle not able to decide which side was the right one. Imam saw Zohair’s tent pitched in the distant and sent his emissary with a note. Zohair read the note, realized for the first time in his life that time for decision to chose the right path has arrived. Something happened to him inside that has changed his entire life. What was written in the note is not clear, but Zohair told his friends to take his wife and children back to his tribal lands, and he himself set out to join the Imam and his caravan.
Here it is important to mention that when the Imam was leaving Makka he was trying to persuade the hoards of people who wanted to come out with him, to go back to their homes.. Imam was telling them that there is no reward of wordly goods at the end of the journey. But at the same time he wrote letters to some people inviting them to accompany him to the end of his journey. One of them was Zohair as mentioned above. Imam wrote another letter to his childhood friend Habib Ibn Mazahir al -Asadi in Kufa inviting to join him in his journey of destiny. Habib was an old companion of the Prophet, was much o then the Imam. Some historians mention Habib’s age at 82.
Another important point worth mentioning here is that these additional people invited by the Imam were each from different tribes of Arabia. Out of total number of 72 male warriors with the Imam, 18 were from his own family, all descendents of Abu Talib. But rest of the martyrs were from all places and all creeds, almost from all Islamic lands of that time. There were men from Sham (Syria), from Jaba el Amul (Lebanon), from Armenia, from Azerbaijan, from Yemen, Abysiniya and Egypt. It appears that Imam was taking special care that whoever is martyred with him on the Day of Ashura comes from different tribes and different lands, different culture and creed so that the message reaches all corners of the Islamic lands through their relatives and friends.
The 5th stage of Imam’s journey was a small town called Zabala. Here the Imam learnt from two tribesmen coming from Kufa, about the death of Hazrat Muslim Ibn Aqeel. Imam uttered the words,”InnLillahe wa Inna Ilaihe Rajeoon”, loudly that all around him hear these words and know that something momentous has happened. When all his companions gathered around him he said,”Indallah Nahtasib Unfosana”, which means that before God we all are accountable to our actions and deeds”. Asadi Tribesmen tried to dissuade the Imam from proceeding any further, but to no avail. He told his companions of the death of his cousin Hazrat Muslim. In a very touching way he told Hazrat Muslim’s 4 year daughter of the death of his father. He called her, put her on his lap and gave her a pair of ear rings to put on. She asked why? then she replied herself, it looks like that her father has died and that she is an orphan now. Imam hugged her, consoled her and told her that he will look after her in place of her father. There was a commotion inside the ladies camp as they all realised that Kufa cannot be their destiny any longer. They also learnt that with Hazrat Muslim, his two small children and his friend Hani were also killed along with many friends of Ahlulbayt. Hoards of tribesmen who were still with the Imam's party left him as they all realized for sure that there was not going to be a war for victory over Yazid but the purpose was something else. By this 5th stage only about 50 people were left with the Imam and many of them were women and children.
Imam left Zabala and arrived at Batn-e-Aqiq at his 6th Manzil. Here the Imam met a man from the Tribe of Akrama who told him that Kufa was not a friendly town, that Yazid’s army has surrounded this garrison town, no one was allowed to leave or enter the town. But Imam carried on toward his destiny.
The 7th Manzil was Sorat. Imam stayed the night here and in the morning after Fajr prayer he asked his companions to store as much as water as possible in all possible containers and sheep skins they had. The Wells were underground, and the Imam’s companions filled all possible containers, jars, sheepskins with water. The next day they arrived at a place called Sharaf. While the Imam was passing from this valley that one of his companions called out that he could see the approach of any army through the dust storm. Imam asked for a safe place, preferably a hill at their back. A guide took them near a hill where Imam asked everyone to dismount while kept the hill at their back. The name of the place was Zuhasm. It was here that Imam met Hur’s army of 1000 men. They were coming from Kufa and appeared to be without water for sometime. Imam asked his companions to give them water in spite of the fact that they were hostile to Imam’s party. Everyone drank to their fill, even horses and camels drank. One soldier was so thirsty that he was unable to drink the water himself and the Imam went to him and poured water in his mouth. Hurr who was the leader of that brigade from Kufa came to the Imam and wanted to get hold of the reins of his horse to which Imam replied not to be impertinent. Hur then refrained from doing that, but told the Imam he will take him to Kufa under escort to which Imam did not agree. While they were discussing these matters that the time for the Zohr arrived and all of them, friends and enemy alike stood behind the Imam to complete their prayers. After the prayers Imam told Hurr and his soldiers that he had received many letters from Kufa inviting him to go there as an Imam and guide in all matters religious or secular. The actual words of Imam’s Khutba as mentioned by Tabari is as follows.
“ O’people of Kufa, you sent me delegations and wrote me letters that you had no Imam and that I should come to unite you and lead you in the way of God. You replied that we Ahlulbayt are more qualified to govern your affairs than those who claim things to which they had no rights and act unjustly., But if you have changed your mind, have become ignorant of our Rights and have forgotten your promises, than I shall turn back”.
But the Imam and his companions were denied by Hur’s soldiers to turn back. Imam did not wish to go to Kufa now, and Hur’s army did not want them to return to Madina. So a compromise was reached by both parties to bye- pass Kufa and turn towards north. Imam and his party was leading and the Hur’s army was behind them. In two days journey they arrived at a place called Baiza.
Baiza was the 10th Manzil. At Baiza Imam delivered his most memorable sermon. History recorded this sermon fully. The words of this sermon clearly indicate the very purpose of the Imam for leaving Makka and his reasons of opposing the oath of allegiance to Yazid.He said,
O’People,The Prophet of Islam has said that if a believer sees a tyrannical ruler transgressing against Allah and his Messenger and oppressing people, but does nothing by word or action to change the situation, then it will be just for God to place him where he deservingly belongs. Do you not see to what low level the affairs have come to.., do you not observe that truth has not adhered and falsehood has no limits. And as for me, I look upon death but a means of attaining martyrdom. I consider life among the transgressors an agony and an affliction”.
This Khutba of the Imam at Baiza is a landmark in history. This was 60 Hijri, about 681 AD. Twelve hundred years later in Gettesburg Abraham Linclon delivered a speech in which he said, “ To suffer in silence while they should protest makes cowards of men”. These words of Lincoln reflect exactly what Imam said some over 1200 years ago that oppressors and transgressors from the true path of justice will emerge all the time. If there remains no one on earth to object over their transgressions that they will go unchecked. One should always point out to these tyrants of the Right path of justice. This is the lesson we should all learn from Imam Hussain (AS).
The next Manzil was Uzaibul Hajanat. Here Imam stayed away from the escorting army of Hur. He met Trimmah bin Adi. After having known about the Kufan abandonment of his envoy Hazrat Muslim, it became clear that Imam had no hope of support or even survival in Kufa. Nevertheless, he refused an offer of safety extended to him by Trimmah bin Adi. Ibn Adi was the leader of a powerful Tribe of Adi in the area. He pleaded the Imam to accept his offer of 20,000 armed soldiers from his Tribe to help him if he wishes to go to Kufa to fight with the army of Yazid. Adi even offered the Imam and his small entourage to a hideout in the Tribal hills away from Kufa. But Imam rejected all such offers of safety and indulgence in war.Imam replied to Ibn Adi,”Allah will bless you and your people for your good intentions. I cannot go from my word.Things are destined”. It is clear from this reply that the Imam was fully aware of the impending dangers he and his family and friends would face if he continues with his journey without any help from outside forces. He had a certain strategy and plan in his mind to bring about a revolution in the conscience of the Muslim Ummah. He did not mobilise military support which he could easily have mustered in Hedjaz, nor did he try to exploit whatever physical strength was available to him. On the othand he was discouraging any such suggestions of an army to fight physically.
Imam’s twelvth Manzil was Qasre- Bani Maqatil. It was evident here that Kufa was no more his destination. As Hur did not want him to leave for anywhere else, a compromise was reached and they bye passed Kufa and took a new route. Resting in the heat of the afternoon, Imam uttered a sentence which is said in circumstances when someone hears of death. His elder son Ali Akber came forward and enquired about this sentence. Imam replied that while he was half a sleep he saw in his dream that some one was shouting loudly that this caravan was destined towards death. Ali Akber asked, are we not on the Right Path. An unusual question so it seems. But when the Imam replied that they were indeed on the Right Path, his son’s reply was again typical of this family of the Prophet. Father, when we are on the Right Path,” we have no worries whether death takes us or we fall upon death”. The young son of the Imam was satisfied as long as their Paths were Right. Death meant nto them for they were fully aware that death of this kind trans forms into the glory of martyrdom.
Their Thirteenth Manzil was Nainawah. At this place a messenger from Ibn Ziad the Governor of Kufa came to meet the army of Hur and told them not to leave the Imam and his party under any circumstances. The battered Caravan passed through Ghaziriyah and arrived at a place by the river Banks of the Euphretes. Imam asked the name of this place and he was told the name “KERBALA”. Imam replied, this is the place of Kerbin-wa-bala, i.e. the place of torture and pain. Let us stop here, Imam ordered to dismount. We have reached our destination. Tents were pitched near the River Bank. The date was 2nd of Muharram 61 Hijiri (3rd October 681 AD).
Hurr’s soldiers surrounded the Imam’s camp. but no one knew what was going to happen until two days later on the 4th of Muharram that another contingent of 4000 men arrived from Kufa. The next day Shimr arrived with another 10,000 men to fight an army of about 40 people, among them were men of over 80 and children of 13 and 11 and even a 6 month old baby, the youngest son of the Imam who was only a month old when Imam left Madina in the Month of Rajab 5 months ago. Shimr ordered the Imam and his entourage to leave the River Bank and pitch their tents away from it. Imam’s brother Abbas and others refused,but Imam told them to move the tents. The tents were moved about 200 yards away from the River Bank and the river was immediately occupied by the soldiers of Yazid newly arrived from Kufa.
Next day 7th, All water supply was stopped for the Imam’s party and soon the cry of thirst heard from the children in the camp. ~Whatever water they would have stored was finished within a day and by the 8th there was no water left in the camp. In the scorching heat of the desert even a few hours without water was impossible yet for three days these people were without water. On the afternoon of the 9th, Yazid’s army moved forward in a formation of attack. Imam was informed and he sent Abbas and Ali Akber to enquire about this. The reply was that orders were from Kufa to commence fighting and finish off with the family of the Prophet. Imam asked them to give them a stay of one night for they all wished to spend their last night in meditation and prayers to God. The night was dark and horrible, flickering lights from the Camp of the Imam was showing few people busy in prayers. The sound of their prayers in unison was coming out of the camp as if Honey bees were busy to build their nest. Whereas on the enemy side music and dancing had gone on all night. Many soldiers from Yazid’s army saw this difference and realised in awe who was on the path of God and who was not. Some soldiers slipped away from Yazid’s camp towards the Imam’s camp knowing fully well that if fighting started the next morning they would surely perish. About 30 such people moved to Imam’s camp. Imam held a meeting of his battered and thirsty companions and told them that the enemy wanted only his life. They have no animosity with any one else. When no one moved Imam asked that the candles should be put off, in case some of them were ashamed to show themselves running away from the Imam. The Imam also said that he was taking away the burden of the Oath of allegiance from them and made them free to go. “Take few of my relations with them” But when the candles were lit again, all were there, no one moved. One of the older companions named Muslim Ibn Awsajah came forward and declared that they were all one solid rock to fight for the Imam. If they were killed 70 times and then were made alive again they would still prefer to achieve martyrdom with the Imam rather than live with the oppressive rulers like Yazid.
Morning appeared and before Sunrise Ali Akber gave the Azan and all of them completed their morning prayers behind their Imam.
Imam made his brother Abbas as the flag bearer of the tiny army of 70 persons in all when all of a sudden two more soldiers defected from Yazid’s army. One was Hur who was the leader of the contingent who brought the Imam’s party to Kerbala and also his son. Both of them arrived with their hands tied to apologise to the Imam for what they had done and asked his permission to fight for them and become first martyrs. Imam did not give orders to commence fighting until arrows came from the enemy camp. Then Hur went out to fight. Overwhelmed by the numbers on the other side, he soon died.His son went and he also died. Then one by one each companion of the Imam went and died until Zohr time when Saeed ibn Abullah al Bijilly came forward and informed the Imam that it was prayer time for Zohr. Battle was raging, arrows were coming towards the Imam’s camp, how could they have formed lines for prayers. But they stood in single foil to perform their last prayers while two companions of the Imam Saeed and Zohair stood in front of this line to hold back all the arrows that were coming towards them. Once the Imam finished the last words of the prayers these two soldiers died of exhaustion. The Last of the companions of the Imam died and only the relatives remained. First to go was Imam’s son Ali Akber who fought bravely but thirst for three days was the most important factor in the fall of these martyrs. He was also killed and then Imam’s nephew Qasim went and was killed. Then four of his brothers, Osman, Jafar, Abullah and Abbas were killed. Imam then brought his 6 month old son Ali Asgher. He brought him in his arms under the shade of his cloak. He told the audience, "this baby has not done any harm to you. He is thirsty, give him some water." The Commander of Yazid’s army ordered Hurmula who was the best marksman to kill the baby. Hurmulah pulled the bow and the arrow killed the baby instantly. Imam brought the baby near the camp, informed his mother of the martyrdom of the baby. He then buried the baby in the sand. Afterwards Imam himself went for battle. But before that he introduced himself again that he was the grand son of the Prophet in case anyone had any doubts about him and that his guilt was only to refuse to accept the Oath of allegiance of the Tyrannical ruler Yazid.The enemy was thirsty for the blood of the Imam, they were blind in their eagerness to kill the last of the family of the Prophet. They fell upon his injured and tired body like blood hounds and soon the Imam was also killed. The battle ended in one day.
The evening of the 10th was the darkest for the women and children of the family of the Prophet. Camps were set alight and burnt, their possessions were looted. It was Late at night while they were huddled together waiting for further tortures from the enemy side, that they saw the wife of Hur coming towards them with food and water. They were hungry and thirsty but none of them was keen to take anything, not even the youngest of the children. Imam Hussain’s youngest daughter Sakina took the tumbler of water and ran towards the open field. Her aunt Zainab asked where was she running to and she replied, her little brother Ali Asgher was thirsty, she wastaking some water for him, not knowing that little Ali Asgher was already dead, being the victim of Hurmula’s arrow.
Night passed and the morning came with more pain and grief when they saw that the bodies of the enemy were buried but the grand son of the Prophet with all his sons and brothers and companions lie unburied on the desert sand. The Women and children were taken prisoners with the ailing son of Imam, the 22 year old Ali, leading this battered caravan towards Kufa as the Imam of the family. He was now the 4th Imam.
The Bodies of these Martyrs were buried on 3rd day by tribesmen of Bani Asad, guided by the fourth Imam who was with them miraculously while in prison in Kufa.
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Siapa Sebenarnya Ahlus Sunnah Itu?
Siapa Sebenarnya Ahlus Sunnah Itu?
Nabi shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam bersabda:
«افْتَرَقَتِ الْيَهُودُ عَلَى إِحْدَى وَسَبْعِينَ فِرْقَةً فَوَاحِدَةٌ فِي الْجَنَّةِ وَسَبْعُونَ فِي النَّارِ، وَافْتَرَقَتِ النَّصَارَى عَلَى ثِنْتَيْنِ وَسَبْعِينَ فِرْقَةً فَإِحْدَى وَسَبْعُونَ فِي النَّارِ وَوَاحِدَةٌ فِي الْجَنَّةِ، وَالَّذِي نَفْسُ مُحَمَّدٍ بِيَدِهِ لَتَفْتَرِقَنَّ أُمَّتِي عَلَى ثَلَاثٍ وَسَبْعِينَ فِرْقَةً وَاحِدَةٌ فِي الْجَنَّةِ وَثِنْتَانِ وَسَبْعُونَ فِي النَّارِ» قِيلَ: يَا رَسُولَ اللّٰهِ مَنْ هُمْ؟ قَالَ: «الْجَمَاعَةُ»
وَفِى رِوَايَةٍ: «مَنْ كَانَ عَلَى مَا أَنَا عَلَيْهِ الْيَوْمَ وَأَصْحَابِي»
“Yahudi terpecah menjadi 71 golongan, satu di surga dan 70 di neraka. Nashrani terpecah menjadi 72 golongan, 71 di neraka dan 1 di surga. Demi Dzat yang jiwa Muhammad di tangan-Nya, sungguh benar-benar umatku akan terpecah menjadi 73 golongan, 1 di surga dan 72 di neraka.” Ditanyakan, “Wahai Rasûlullâh, siapakah mereka?” Beliau menjawab, “Al-Jamaah.” [Shahih: HR. Ibnu Majah (no. 3992, II/1322), ath-Thabarani (no. 129) dalam al-Mu’jam al-Kabîr, al-Lalika`i (no. 149) dalam Syahrul Ushûl dari ‘Auf bin Malik radhiyallahu ‘anhu. Dinilai shahih al-Albani. Hadits tentang perpecahan umat ini banyak sekali redaksinya dan diriwayatkan oleh para imam dalam kebanyakan kitab induk hadits mereka. Menurut kami yang paling sempurna redaksinya dan mencukupi adalah hadits yang diriwayatkan Ibnu Majah ini]
Dalam riwayat lain, “Siapa yang berada di atas ajaranku dan para shahabatku hari ini.” [Hasan: HR. Ath-Thabarani (no. 7840, VIII/22) dalam al-Mu’jam al-Ausath. Di dalamnya ada perawi bernama ‘Abdullah bin Sufyan yang dinilah tsiqah oleh Ibnu Hibban. Lafazh yang lebih ringkas ada di Sunan at-Tirmidzi (no. 2641) dan dinilai hasan oleh al-Albani]
Dalam hadits agung tersebut, Nabi shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam mengabarkan golongan yang selamat adalah siapa yang mengikuti para shahabat Nabi shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam dalam beragama baik dalam keyakinan, perkataan, maupun perbuatan. Mereka disebut jamaah karena mengikuti jamaah kaum muslimin dari kalangan shahabat Muhajirin dan Anshar meskipun seorang diri. Ukuran jamaah di sini bukan dari segi jumlah tetapi kesesuaian dengan al-Qur`an dan sunnah sesuai pemahaman para shahabat.
‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud radhiyallahu ‘anhu berkata:
الْجَمَاعَةُ مَا وَافَقَ الْحَقَّ وَإِنْ كُنْتَ وَحْدَكَ
“Jamaah adalah yang sesuai kebenaran meskipun kamu seorang diri.” [Syarhul Ushûl (no. 160) oleh al-Lalika`i]
Syaraful Haq Abadi menjelaskan dalam syarah Sunan Abî Dâwûd:
«الْجَمَاعَة» أَيْ أَهْلُ الْقُرْآنِ وَالْحَدِيثِ وَالْفِقْهِ وَالْعِلْمِ الَّذِينَ اجْتَمَعُوا عَلَى اتِّبَاعِ أَثَارِهِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فِي جَمِيعِ الْأَحْوَالِ كُلِّهَا وَلَمْ يَبْتَدِعُوا بِالتَّخْرِيفِ وَالتَّغْيِيرِ وَلَمْ يُبَدِّلُوا بِالْآرَاءِ الْفَاسِدَةِ
“Jamaah adalah ahli al-Qur`an, hadits, fiqih, dan ilmu yang berkumpul dalam mengikuti jejak Nabi shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam dalam semua keadaannya dan tidak berbuat bid’ah dengan tahrif dan taghyir dan tidak pula mengganti dengan pendapat-pendapat yang rusak.” [Aunul Ma’bûd (XII/223) oleh Syaraful Haq Abadi]
Oleh karena itu, pemicu pertama munculnya aliran sesat adalah tatkala mereka memutuskan untuk berpaling dari para shahabat Nabi shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam dalam memahami agama menurut akal mereka. Akhirnya, muncul banyak sekali perpecahan dan perselisihan di akhir umat ini. Nabi shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam telah mengabarkan hal ini sekaligus memberi solusi jalan keluar dalam sabdanya:
«فَإِنَّهُ مَنْ يَعِشْ مِنْكُمْ بَعْدِي فَسَيَرَى اخْتِلَافًا كَثِيرًا، فَعَلَيْكُمْ بِسُنَّتِي وَسُنَّةِ الْخُلَفَاءِ الْمَهْدِيِّينَ الرَّاشِدِينَ، تَمَسَّكُوا بِهَا وَعَضُّوا عَلَيْهَا بِالنَّوَاجِذِ»
“Barangsiapa yang hidup sepeninggalku, pasti ia akan melihat banyak sekali perselisihan. Maka, wajib atas kalian berpegang kepada sunnahku dan sunnah Khulafa Rasyidin (para shahabat Nabi shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam terkhusus penghulu mereka khalifah yang empat: Abu Bakar, ‘Umar, ‘Utsman, dan ‘Ali radhiyallahu ‘anhum) yang terbimbing. Pegang teguh ia dan gigitlah ia dengan gigi geraham.” [Shahih: HR. Abu Dawud (no. 4607, IV/200), at-Tirmidzi (no. 2676), Ibnu Majah (no. 42), Ahmad (no. 17144) dalam Musnadnya, Ibnu Hibban (no. 5) dalam Shahîhnya, dan al-Hakim (no. 329) dalam al-Mustadrâk dari Abu Najih ‘Irbadh bin Sariyah radhiyallahu ‘anhu. Dinilai shahih oleh al-Albani, al-Arna`uth, at-Tirmidzi, al-Hakim, dan adz-Dzahabi]
Imam Malik (w. 179 H) berkata:
لَنْ يُصْلِحَ آخِرَ هَذِهِ الْأُمَّةِ إِلَّا مَا أَصْلَحَ أَوَّلَهَا
“Tidak akan bisa memperbaiki umat sekarang ini kecuali apa yang telah menjadikan baik generasi pertamanya.” [Lihat as-Syifâ (II/87-88) oleh al-Qadhi ‘Iyadh]
Generasi pertama umat ini berada dalam puncak kejayaan dan puncak keimanan dan ketaqwaaan, karena mereka berpegang teguh kepada al-Qur`an dan sunnah-sunnah Nabi shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam serta mengikuti bimbingan Khulafa Rasyidin sepeninggal beliau shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam.
Wajib Menjadi Ahlus Sunnah dan Mengikuti Para Shahabat
Dalil dari al-Qur`an:
«فَإِنْ آمَنُوا بِمِثْلِ مَا آمَنْتُمْ بِهِ فَقَدِ اهْتَدَوْا»
“Jika mereka beriman seperti keimanan kalian (para shahabat), tentulah mereka akan mendapat petunjuk.” [QS. Al-Baqarah [2]: 137]
«وَمَنْ يُشَاقِقِ الرَّسُولَ مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا تَبَيَّنَ لَهُ الْهُدَى وَيَتَّبِعْ غَيْرَ سَبِيلِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ نُوَلِّهِ مَا تَوَلَّى وَنُصْلِهِ جَهَنَّمَ وَسَاءَتْ مَصِيرًا»
“Barangsiapa yang menentang Rasûlullâh setelah jelas baginya petunjuk dan mengikuti selain jalan orang-orang beriman (para shahabat), maka Kami akan palingkan ia ke mana dia berpaling (biarkan sesat) dan Kami akan memasukkannya ke Jahannam dan itulah seburuk-buruk tempat kembali.” [QS. An-Nisâ` [4]: 115]
«وَالسَّابِقُونَ الْأَوَّلُونَ مِنَ الْمُهَاجِرِينَ وَالْأَنْصَارِ وَالَّذِينَ اتَّبَعُوهُمْ بِإِحْسَانٍ رَضِيَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُوا عَنْهُ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُمْ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي تَحْتَهَا الْأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا أَبَدًا ذَلِكَ الْفَوْزُ الْعَظِيمُ»
“Dan orang-orang yang bersegera dan pertama-tama (masuk Islam) dari kalangan Muhajirin dan Anshar serta orang-orang yang mengikuti mereka dengan baik, Allâh ridha kepada mereka dan mereka ridha kepada-Nya, dan menyediakan untuk mereka surga-surga yang mengalir di bawahnya sungai-sungai, mereka kekal di dalamnya. Itulah keberuntungan yang besar.” [QS. At-Taubah [9]: 100]
Dalil dari Sunnah
«خَيْرُ النَّاسِ قَرْنِي، ثُمَّ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَهُمْ، ثُمَّ الَّذِينَ يَلُونَهُمْ»
“Sebaik-baik manusia adalah pada masaku (para shahabat), kemudian orang-orang setelah mereka (para tabi’in), kemudian orang-orang setelah mereka (para tabi’ut tabi’in).” [Muttafaqun ‘Alaih: HR. Al-Bukhari (no. 2652, III/171), Muslim (no. 2533), at-Tirmidzi (no. 3859), Ibnu Majah (no. 2362), Ahmad (no. 3594), dan Ibnu Hibban (no. 7222) dalam Shahîhnya dari ‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud radhiyallahu ‘anhu]
Dalil dari Ucapan Ulama`
Imam al-Auza’i berkata:
عَلَيْكَ بِآثَارِ مَنْ سَلَفَ وَإِنْ رَفَضَكَ النَّاسُ، وَإِيَّاكَ وَرَأْيَ الرِّجَالِ وَإِنْ زَخْرَفُوهُ بِالْقَوْلِ
“Wajib atasmu berpegang kepada jejak kaum salaf meskipun manusia menolakmu. Waspadalah terhadap pendapat manusia, meskipun mereka menghiasinya dengan ucapan yang indah.” [Diriwayatkan al-Baihaqi (no. 233, I/199) dalam as-Sunan al-Kubrâ, Ibnu Abdil Barr (no. 2077) dalam al-Jâmi’, dan adz-Dzahabi (VII/120) dalam as-Siyar]
Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal (w. 241 H) berkata:
أُصُولُ السُّنَّةِ عِنْدَنَا: التَّمَسُّكُ بِمَا كَانَ عَلَيْهِ أَصْحَابُ رَسُولِ اللّٰهِ صَلَّى اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَالِاقْتِدَاءُ بِهِمْ، وَتَرْكُ الْبِدَعِ وَكُلُّ بِدْعَةٍ فَهِيَ ضَلَالَةٌ
“Prinsip sunnah menurut kami adalah berpegang teguh dengan apa yang dijalani para shahabat Rasûlullâh shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam dan meneladani mereka, serta meninggalkan bid’ah dan setiap bid’ah adalah sesat.” [Syarhul Ushûl (no. 317, I/176) oleh al-Lalika`i]
Hal ini dikarenakan para shahabat belajar langsung kepada Rasûlullâh shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam dan beliau benar-benar membimbing mereka dengan sebaik-baik bimbingan. Juga mereka adalah kaum yang paling tahu tentang tafsir al-Qur`an dan ucapan Nabi shallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam dan selamat dari kesesatan.[AZ]
PAHIT... Terkadang nasehat terasa pahit bagi seorang hamba. Sangat tidak mengenakkan sebab diri tak melangkah di atas jalan yang sama. Kenapa pahit? Tak ada yang pantas untuk disalahkan kecuali diri seorang, sebab terlalu lama bermain dengan lumpur dosa bermuara nista. Inilah kebenaran dan keselamatan, mau tidak mau harus diterima, meski diawali dengan keberatan, harus dipaksakan ! ❝Kebenaran itu pahit bagi kebanyakan manusia kecuali orang yang Allah berikan taufik pada mereka.❞. -ImamRabee- by ASK Kepada Allah, minta dan terus minta. Semoga diberikan hidayah-Nya. Memberikan nasehat bukanlah upaya untuk menyakiti, tapi upaya untuk pembersihan diri. Bukankah muslim bagai satu tubuh? Yup, seperti tangan satu membersihkan tangan lainnya meski terkadang harus digosok hingga terasa sakit. Bukan salah tangannya, melainkan noda membandel yang susah dibersihkan. Pokoknya harus terus digosok hingga bersih cemerlang, itulah wujud kasih sayang. Allahu a'lam bishshawab Bandung, 24 Jumadil Awal 1437 Fawaaid lainnya, silakan kunjungi www.happyislam.com #medicine #ukhuwah #dosa #islam #quran #sunnah #ahlussunnah #salaf #salafy #nasehat #renungan #sore #obat #write #notes #health #heart #sehat #website #blog #web via Instagram ift.tt/21bal95
Min al Jinnati wa Naas
(From the Jinn and Mankind)
Part II – The Cure
And what did it encompass; a warning!
قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ
مَلِكِ النَّاسِ
إِلَٰهِ النَّاسِ
مِن شَرِّ الْوَسْوَاسِ الْخَنَّاسِ
الَّذِي يُوَسْوِسُ فِي صُدُورِ النَّاسِ
مِنَ الْجِنَّةِ وَالنَّاسِ
Say, O Beloved (peace be upon you), "I seek refuge in (the) Lord (of) Mankind,
The King of Mankind,
The God of Mankind,
from the evil (of) The Whisperer, the one who withdraws (after his whisper),
who whispers in the hearts of Mankind,
from the Jinn and Mankind.” – Surah An-Naas, Verse 1-6
“Introduction: Let it not be hidden upon the one for whom the secrets and Oneness have been opened. And for whom have been disclosed the world of the secrets of faith and Sirat e Mustaqeem (The Right Path), the one who holds on to the rope of ability from God and remains steadfast with his grip; It is necessary tha protect his nafs from the satanic fitna (temptations which causes adversity, affliction, ordeal) of Nafs e Ammara, which always inserts doubt (waswase) in the heart of Man.
The Nafs e Ammara traps him in different states of tightness and false thoughts (waham), until the hearts become crooked and then astray. That is why Allah has given advice by providing training to the Mo’min so that they can be warned and granted to them guidance.”
Uzair said once told me that nothing in the Quran repeats itself. Even when the words are the same the meaning is different. The Tafseer e Jilani was the most spectacular evidence of that fact. For each surah in the Quran, Ghaus Pak (ra) gives a completely different tafseer (exegesis) for the repeating verse, Bismillah Ar Rahman Ar Rahim, which was entirely related to the content and context of the specific body of text that was to follow. 114 different meanings of the words, “In the Name of Allah, The Entirely Merciful, The Especially Merciful!”
Bismillah: In the name of Allah who is the Planner of the rightness of His Servants because His Blessings and Forgiveness warrant that.
Ar-Rahman: He protects them with the most special veils of His Protection.
Ar-Rahim: He warns them against the one, Satan, which gives them pain and tempts them as a well-wisher so that they may remain steadfast on the Right Path.
Min Sharr al-Waswase: From the doubts that rise in the hearts of Mankind and cause them to feel strife.
Al-Khannas: The one who runs away and then returns to the people because he sits in the hearts of Man. When they are conscious of God (in zikr Allah), he runs away and feels base.
And when Man is ghaafil (forgetful of God), he takes possession of their heart.
Thus the adversity, the unrest, the turmoil, the strife leaves and returns to the heart. For that is the nature of Iblis, to enter and leave and enter and leave.
Ghaus Pak (ra) continues:
Between the zikr of Allah and the doubts from Satan lies a veil such as there is between light and darkness. When one appears, the other disappears, like waham about that which is about to happen. When the result comes and it actually happens, the fear, the paranoia disappears. In the state of remembrance of God there is light. In its absence, there is darkness. So goes back and forth, the heart of man.
And then the last line:
Min al Jinnate wa Naas: The waswase, the doubts from Khannas want us to believe that Jinn and Man have the ability to affect by giving benefit or harm and that their effect is independent of God’s Will. So we place our hopes and wants with them, Jinn and Man, instead of Allah. And if we do that we fall into a state of eternal regret and an abyss of loss.
At the end of the Surah he closes with: “Be warned, be warned, O desirer of sincerity! Don’t run after desires and temptation. Satan’s tactic is to heighten the heart’s consciousness of the world, zikr ad-duniya, and the ways to attain it. That is what gives him the opportunity to enter the waswase that results in hell right here. But when a person stays away from desire to the best of their ability and is obedient to Allah to the best of their ability, angels whisper into their hearts and guide them away from the traps.”
(End Excerpt “The Softest Heart”)
And finally all the pieces of puzzle fit!
قَالُوا سُبْحَانَكَ أَنتَ وَلِيُّنَا مِن دُونِهِم ۖ بَلْ كَانُوا يَعْبُدُونَ الْجِنَّ ۖ أَكْثَرُهُم بِهِم مُّؤْمِنُونَ
When asked by God on the Day of Judgement if they were worshipped by Man, the angels replied, “They, in fact, worshiped the Jinns, not us. It was in them that most of them believed – Surah As-Saba, Verse 41
I decided to look up a more recent video of Sheikh Nurjan post virus. Technology wasn’t going anywhere. People had already established that their first love was their phone. It used to make me laugh how the Shiekh would, in the middle of his speech, sometimes with a smile, raise his own smart phone and wave it around, as if pointing to the demon in his device. The other noticeable element about his speech was that, unlike me who was jumping and down name calling, he never named any human, any organization or corporation. Nothing and no one!
I guess I knew why. For people like him the world holds zero significance. What others are doing and why was immaterial. He was following the Sunnah of the Prophets. No judgement of another, no matter who they are and what they do! That was left only to God. I made a mental note to be clearer about my own intention behind calling people out in my writing. I think I was telling myself it was to inform others but really it was contempt.
Funnily enough he did mention movies, Viper for one which I have not seen. Throughout his videos there were flashes of clips from various Hollywood flicks of the summer blockbuster variety. He was totally unfazed by demonic presence of Jinns anywhere. And why not? He knew exactly what they were up to and why. What was their mode of attack and how it could be repelled.
وَقَدْ مَكَرُوا مَكْرَهُمْ وَعِندَ اللَّهِ مَكْرُهُمْ وَإِن كَانَ مَكْرُهُمْ لِتَزُولَ مِنْهُ الْجِبَالُ
And they devise that false imagery of theirs - and all their false imagery is within God's knowledge, even if their false imagery were so (well devised and so powerful] that mountains could be moved thereby – Surah Ibrahim, Verse 46
Sheikh Nurjan’s message only reiterated Surah An-Naas. Taking anyone other than Allah as a helper only lead to inevitable suffering. The Quran spoke of it endlessly, from the day the rebellion began.
وَإِذْ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ اسْجُدُوا لِآدَمَ فَسَجَدُوا إِلَّا إِبْلِيسَ كَانَ مِنَ الْجِنِّ فَفَسَقَ عَنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّهِ ۗ
أَفَتَتَّخِذُونَهُ وَذُرِّيَّتَهُ أَوْلِيَاءَ مِن دُونِي وَهُمْ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ ۚ بِئْسَ لِلظَّالِمِينَ بَدَلًا
And when We said to the Angels, "Prostrate to Adam," so they prostrated except Iblis. (He) was of the Jinn, and he rebelled against the Command of his Lord. Will you then take him and his partners (as) protectors other than Me, while they are to you enemies? Wretched for the wrongdoers is the exchange – Surah Al-Kahf, Verse 50
فَلَوْلَا إِذْ جَاءَهُم بَأْسُنَا تَضَرَّعُوا وَلَٰكِن قَسَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَزَيَّنَ لَهُمُ الشَّيْطَانُ مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ
Yet when the misfortune decreed by Us befell them, they did not humble themselves. But rather their hearts grew hard, for Satan had made all their doings seem goodly to them – Surah Al-Anam, Verse 43
What was bad appeared as good. And the hearts grew hard. Who else but the Prophet (saw) gave the cure.
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “Indeed, the hearts rust like iron rusts.”
They said, “So what will polish them?”
He replied, “The abundance of remembrance of Allah, recitation of the Quran and remembering death.
I used to think when I was reciting the Quran I was remembering Allah. From the hadith I learnt the abundance of remembering God was different and I realized remembrance was about mindfulness. It was about being aware of my deeds, my thoughts, my intentions. The effect they had on others and me. It was about acknowledging wrongfulness as it came about then repenting, praying to be instilled with ability to change. It was living within oneself in a state of truthfulness. For it was the Quran that affirmed that, at all times, I knew what I was doing anyway. Be it right or wrong.
So often in life I had heard the explanation given for those who were self absorbed that they “were not self-aware” even though when it came to anything inflicted upon them, the state of sensitivity was sky high. Surah Ash-Shams states that everyone is aware, that the self is programmed to differ between its right and wrongfulness. That meant I was in control of my behaviour at all times. If I relinquished control to Iblis or caved to my own decisions to do wrong, I knew it all times. I had just gotten used to living in a state of self-deceit and blaming others.
فَأَلْهَمَهَا فُجُورَهَا وَتَقْوَاهَا
وَقَدْ خَابَ مَن دَسَّاهَا قَدْ أَفْلَحَ مَن زَكَّاهَا
And Allah inspired it (to distinguish) between its wickedness and its righteousness. Indeed he succeeds who purifies it. And indeed he fails who buries it – Surah Ash-Shams, Verse 4-5
The mindfulness part was true because just this Ramadan I had started the practice of asking for forgiveness every morning and night. Sometimes I felt remorse for my acts, especially my tongue, all day long. I had started asking Nabi Kareem (saw) to pray for me and ask God to forgive me so that He would be the Acceptor of my repentance and grant me ability to be better the next day. The forgiveness came so quickly I felt overwhelmed. Describing it as relief is an understatement. Shedding the unbearable weight of anxiety and disturbance within minutes, that’s nothing short of a miracle. In repeat no less!
Even remembering death, I used to think it meant being conscious of the Day of Judgment and therefore my actions in light of that. And I’m sure it is but in this world, that Day was easily forgotten by me most of the time. Everyone takes life for granted and assumes they will live well into their 70s, if not longer. My cousin, who I once, told the hadith to said that beyond the Last Day, she thought it was about not taking others for granted. It was about valuing them and loving them while they are around remembering that death would one day take them away, who knows when. But only those who lose loved ones early in life think like that.
“What you have to understand,” says Sheikh Nurjan, “is that you can battle this negative energy and defend yourself… Our life was to copy one reality which is the Prophet (saw), whose one side faces Allah and the other faces humanity. The Auliya Allah, the Friends of God, they want us to connect back to the Prophet (saw) who connects us to God. Those who are fusing with that reality are being blessed by that reality.”
حَقًّا عَلَيْنَا نُنجِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ
Thus, it is an obligation upon Us (Allah) that We save the ones who believe in Us – Surah Yunus, Verse 103
I felt the deepest sense of reassurance from that verse the first time I heard it. If I had an iota of faith in my heart and only God judges faith, then He was obligated to take care of me. It was a certainty!
One thing was crystal clear. Technology was here to stay. It could not be avoided and was no doubt useful. I would not have been able to write this piece without king Jinn Google for one, if for no other reason than the speed with which I can include the Arabic. Like any other addiction however, if it became one, it just had to be admitted. I had read articles about those who had made break-through contributions in terms of innovations in their 20s only to deeply regret them later and admit it publicly.
Oct 6th, 2017, The Independent: “The man who invented the Facebook ‘Like’ button has removed the app from his mobile phone. Justin Rosenstein was the engineer who created the ‘awesome’ feature in 2007, but now fears the psychological effects apps are having on people around the world. “It is very common for humans to develop things with the best of intentions and for them to have unintended, negative consequences,” Mr Rosenstein told the paper.”
And that wasn’t the worst of it!
“As well as making users addicted and effecting their mental health, there is growing concern social media makes people more stupid. Known as ‘continuous partial attention,’ it is feared apps limit the ability to focus and potentially lower IQ.”
But these are lost battles. I have friends who say that being physically away from their phone brings on a panic attack. I don’t think they’re kidding. How can they possibly discipline their children? Nor can they police them. Especially now that many schools require iPads to do assignments. I found unsurprisingly that the elite had mainstreamed a thing for others and then sidestepped it for their own children.
Feb 18th, 2018 Business Insider: “The Koduris' life is that of the quintessential Silicon Valley family, except for one thing. The technology developed by Koduri and Shahi's employers (Google) is all but banned at the family's home.
There are no video game systems inside the Koduri household, and neither child, 10-year-old Saurav and 12-year-old Roshni, has their own cell phone yet. Saurav and Roshni can play games on their parents' phones, but only for 10 minutes per week. (There are no limits to using the family's vast library of board games.) Awhile back the family bought an iPad 2, but for the last five years it's lived on the highest shelf in a linen closet.
“We know at some point they will need to get their own phones,” Koduri, 44, told Business Insider. “But we are prolonging it as long as possible.”
Koduri and Shahi represent a new kind of Silicon Valley parent. Instead of tricking out their homes with all the latest technology, many of today's parents working or living in the tech world are limiting — and sometimes outright banning — how much screen time their kids get.
“You can't put your face in a device and expect to develop a long-term attention span,” Taewoo Kim, chief AI engineer at the machine-learning startup One Smart Lab. A practicing Buddhist, Kim is teaching his nieces and nephews, ages 4 to 11, to meditate and appreciate screen-free games and puzzles. Once a year he takes them on tech-free silent retreats at nearby Buddhist temples.
In 2007, Gates, the former CEO of Microsoft, implemented a cap on screen time when his daughter started developing an unhealthy attachment to a video game. Later it became family policy not to allow kids to have their own phones until they turned 14.
Jobs, the CEO of Apple until his death in 2012, revealed that he prohibited his kids from using the newly-released iPad. "We limit how much technology our kids use at home," Jobs told reporter Nick Bilton.
Around Silicon Valley, a number of low-tech schools have popped up in an effort to reintroduce the basics. At the Waldorf School of the Peninsula, a private school in Los Altos, California, kids use chalkboards and No. 2 pencils. Faculty don't introduce kids to screen-based devices until they reach the eighth grade.”
The Eighth Grade! That’s age 13-14. No video games, no
phone, no iPad! But increasingly for most and their infants, the possibility of a life without a chip in it, which for some is already in their fridge and toilet, doesn’t exist. Still, if the cure becomes known, at least a choice presents itself. Then it was about exercising it. The infamous free will that humans possess could finally come into play for some good!
Sheikh Nurjan’s words about protecting one’s self, the choice to do so, echoed the sentiment; “The energy you radiate around you becomes your shield of protection. The Sunnah is our insulation. When you make wudu (ablution) you seal this energy. It doesn’t escape. This energy is your safety and it emanates in your home and protects your home and your loved ones around you. If you don’t have the shield, ask the one who has it to come to help you.”
The one who has it is the Friend of God. Like Asif Bin Barkhia who was chosen over the Jinn. Many Muslims have difficulty getting their head around this category of chosen ones, the Auliya. Certain influences have programmed them in a way that causes confusion for them if they attach themselves to someone other than God. Even the Prophet (saw). Despite that the Quran specifically instructs to connect with them in order to attain to faith.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَكُونُوا مَعَ الصَّادِقِينَ
O you who believe! Consciously revere Allah and be with those who are truthful – Surah At-Tauba, Verse 119
Then it illuminates the exact placing of these “truthful ones,” obedient to the Commands of Allah and in strict emulation of the Prophet (saw), as enjoying a status just one under the Prophets, higher than the martyrs.
وَمَن يُطِعِ اللَّهَ وَالرَّسُولَ فَأُولَٰئِكَ مَعَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِم مِّنَ النَّبِيِّينَ وَالصِّدِّيقِينَ وَالشُّهَدَاءِ وَالصَّالِحِينَ ۚ وَحَسُنَ أُولَٰئِكَ رَفِيقًا
And whoever obeys Allah and the Messenger then they will be with those whom Allah has bestowed His Favor - of the Prophets, and the truthful, and the martyrs, and the righteous. And excellent (are) those companion(s) – Surah An-Nisa, Verse 69
My personal bond with the Auliya Karaam was most strengthened by a single verse in the Quran.
أَلَا إِنَّ أَوْلِيَاءَ اللَّهِ لَا خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ
No doubt! Indeed, the Friends of Allah, no fear will be upon them and nor will they grieve – Surah Yunus, Verse 62
No fear, no grief, what a life that would be! If there was a reason to seek them for someone like me who can’t seem to do anything without an ulterior motive, it was for a life devoid of fear and sadness.
In my 30’s I started reading the writings of many Auliya Karaam given to me by my Mamu and fell in love with them. Everything about them was imbued in grace and softness. Their reactions to pain and suffering left me bewildered. But nothing about my actions changed until I arrived at the Door of Wisdom, Imam Ali (ratu). For no one enters the City of Knowledge without entering the Door.
اَنَا مَدِيْنَةُ الْعِلْمِ وَ عَلِيٌ بَابُهَا فَمَنْ اَرَادَ الْعِلْمَ فَلْیَاْتِهَا مِنْ بَابِهَا
Said the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) “I am the City of Knowledge and Ali is the Door to enter it so the one who desires knowledge should come through this door.”
Otherwise all of my life I had felt I had a connection to God. Since my teens, on and off, I prayed, I fasted, I even read the Quran. The rituals disciplined me because it inculcated refraining in my sub-conscience but it was rote nonetheless so I didn’t change at all. Not until I loved His Beloved (saw). An excellent example; before him I never paid attention to my zaka’t, the only ritual I conveniently ignored.
Till I studied his person, I didn’t understand the exalted status of sadqa (voluntary alms) either, which is much higher than zaka’t because voluntary acts of love far surpass those dutied. Feeding the hungry is the best of those voluntary deeds which today forms a significant focus of my life. It changed me in ways I can barely count. I learnt that from Ghaus Pak (ra) because he said it was one of two things he focused on in his life. The other was excellence in behaviour.
God had made clear something I never knew until I wrote my book. Not only did I have to love His Beloved (saw), I had to love him more than everything else that mattered to me in the world. A rule was set.
قُلْ إِن كَانَ آبَاؤُكُمْ وَأَبْنَاؤُكُمْ وَإِخْوَانُكُمْ وَأَزْوَاجُكُمْ وَعَشِيرَتُكُمْ
وَأَمْوَالٌ اقْتَرَفْتُمُوهَا وَتِجَارَةٌ تَخْشَوْنَ كَسَادَهَا وَمَسَاكِنُ تَرْضَوْنَهَا أَحَبَّ إِلَيْكُم مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَجِهَادٍ فِي سَبِيلِهِ فَتَرَبَّصُوا حَتَّىٰ يَأْتِيَ اللَّهُ بِأَمْرِهِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ لَا يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الْفَاسِقِينَ
Say, (O Beloved), "If your fathers and your sons and your brothers and your spouses and your clan, and the worldly goods which you have acquired, and the commerce whereof you fear a decline, and the dwellings in which you take pleasure – (if all these) are dearer to you than God and His Apostle and the struggle in His cause, then wait until God makes manifest His will; and (know that) God does not grace iniquitous folk with His Guidance.” – Surah At-Tauba, Verse 24
The ask is sky high. From a hadith I knew that each person in the world as a rule loves themselves more than anyone else.
That is the nature of the nafs, the ego.
We were with the Prophet (peace be upon him) and he was holding the hand of Hazrat Umar bin Al-Khattab (ratu). Hazrat Umar (ratu) said to Him, "O Allah's Apostle! You are dearer to me than everything except my own self."
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "No, by Him in Whose Hand my soul is, you will not have complete faith till I am dearer to you than your own self."
Then Hazrat Umar (ratu) said to him, "Now, by Allah, you are dearer to me than my own self."
And the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Now, O Umar, now you are a Believer."
Anybody who has followed any Command of God, any instruction of His Last Prophet (saw) knows it has a guaranteed self-benefit. The asking to follow, to emulate Rasool Allah (saw), begins the journey to explore capacity as a human being in terms of elevating manners and morality, acquire that which does not previously exist.
The Order to love him more than myself, however, is something else. Loving ourselves the most means we are naturally inclined to be obedient to our desires and our demons. But when a person loves someone else more than themselves, then the desires of that person become more important. They take precedence over our own and we find ourselves becoming obedient to them, we do things for their sake. In the world, if people don’t experience this with parents, they certainly do in friendship and if not then, at some point in romantic love. In that love comes the sacrifice of one’s own needs and lust, desire and wants, both emotional and physical.
So if I wanted to love the Prophet (saw) more than myself, the evidence of that love would lie in my obedience to his wishes over my own.
When Hazrat Umar (ra) was asked what he had done to increase his love for the Prophet (saw) in such a short period of time, he said, “I asked myself who did I need more, myself or the Prophet of Allah (saw)? I found that I needed the Prophet (saw) more. I will not intercede for myself on the Day of Judgment, but the Prophet of Allah (saw) will. My deeds will not place me at the highest of levels, but my love for the Prophet (saw) will. I did not take myself from the darkness to the light, but the Prophet of Allah (saw) did. Accordingly, the love of the Prophet (saw) deepened in my heart as compared to my love for myself.”
After that love sprouted in my heart, every time I tried to inculcate a rule or a principle of behavior, the Friend of God who taught it to me became my helper. Since they had learnt the practice from Nabi Kareem (saw) I kept getting closer to him. All of them had passed centuries ago which meant that the help always came from the World of the Unseen, Aalim al Ghaib. If I didn’t understand anything, I ask them to help me, to even explain it to me.
When I felt distressed they showed me why. They lent me their eyes to see myself because my justifications rendered me blind. Who would have thought actually being in the right could also nail one to the ground? But it wasn’t so surprising when I peeled the layers behind it. There stood either self-pity or judgement and both converged at one point; pride. The cardinal sin! But that too is another story.
Imam Ali (ratu), Bibi Fatima (ratu), Imam hassan (ratu), Imam Hussain (ratu), Ghaus Pak (ra), Hazrat Muhuyddin Ibn e Arabi (ra), Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya (ra), Hazrat Rabia Basra (ra), Baba Farid Ganj Shakar (ra), Hazrat Bayzaid Bastami (ra), Maulana Rum (ra), the list went on and on. When I regressed in bringing their teaching to action, I found them dislodging me from my stuckness. They rendered my relapses short and infrequent. They had received God’s Love like no one else.
قُلْ إِن كُنتُمْ تُحِبُّونَ اللَّهَ فَاتَّبِعُونِي يُحْبِبْكُمُ اللَّهُ
وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ذُنُوبَكُمْ ۗ وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
Say, O Beloved, (peace be upon you), “If you love God, follow me and God will love you and forgive you your sins for God is Much-Forgiving, a Dispenser of Grace.” - Surah Aal e Imran, Verse 31
It was an incredible promise; …God will love you…
Did He not love me otherwise? Of course He did. One of His Names is Al-Wadood, The Loving One, my favourite of them. My heart was just veiled in darkness so nothing pure reached it.
Without a “healer,” as Maulana Rum (ra) calls them, there in once again reliance on the self. The self that even a Prophet declares in only willful of that which is wrong and that which is forbidden. The Prophet Yousuf (as):
وَمَا أُبَرِّئُ نَفْسِي ۚ إِنَّ النَّفْسَ لَأَمَّارَةٌ بِالسُّوءِ إِلَّا مَا رَحِمَ رَبِّي ۚ إِنَّ رَبِّي غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
And yet, I am not trying to absolve myself. For, indeed, the inner self does incite to evil, and saved are only they upon whom my Sustainer bestows His Mercy. Behold, my Sustainer is much forgiving, a Dispenser of Grace! – Surah Yusuf, Verse 53
For someone like me who seems to be a Luddite of the times, I began to realize that the problem was going to be less about Jinn or Iblis. My own likes and dislikes, my biases were so cemented, I was beyond rigid. Perhaps the time for new overtly forbidden sins was behind me but in the end it boiled down to my behaviour, my character, my sense of defining myself as a human being, “the best of Creation.” The most dangerous trap was set my own nafs.
أَفَرَأَيْتَ مَنِ اتَّخَذَ إِلَٰهَهُ هَوَاهُ وَأَضَلَّهُ اللَّهُ عَلَىٰ عِلْمٍ وَخَتَمَ عَلَىٰ سَمْعِهِ وَقَلْبِهِ
وَجَعَلَ عَلَىٰ بَصَرِهِ غِشَاوَةً فَمَن يَهْدِيهِ مِن بَعْدِ اللَّهِ ۚ أَفَلَا تَذَكَّرُونَ
Have you ever considered the one who makes his own desires his deity, and whom God has let go astray, knowing (that his mind is closed to all guidance), and whose hearing and heart He has sealed, and upon whose sight He has placed a veil? Who, then, could guide him after God (has abandoned him)? Will you not, then, reflect upon yourselves? – Surah Al-Jathiya, Verse 23
Could I become my own god?
In one of his lectures, the Sheikh made an interesting comparison of the lockdown we all experience to the Surah Yousaf. “Allah trains us in many ways and He points to the Surah Yousaf as the path of the seeker. First the Prophet is thrown in a well by his brothers. Then in the second phase of his life to save himself from that which the world wanted him to become, impure, he asked God to send him to prison where he remained for many years.”
“Today you are confined to your home. Use this time to contemplate and meditate. Use the apps that are for your benefit instead of being like where do I find this and that prayer, the zikr, the auraad? They are tools for you that are useful, they support you. Hear the talks that motivate you and take you away from the fear. Hear the heavenly channels that are broadcasting. Faith and fear don’t co-exist. Faith conquers fear. Focus on your love for Sayaadna Muhammad (saw).”
Then he came to the scary part ringing all kinds of bells in my head from my own past.
“Anger is the door in which Iblis will come to kill you. Your anger will be your death. It is the door that Shaitan is coming through. It’s the black spot on your heart. The worst fire of all the fires is anger. When it comes there’s no justification, it just brings disbelief. And when that happens Iblis over-rides the person. Through meditation focus on why you have it. With your wudu the fire goes down.”
The Sheikh was recounting the words of the Prophet (saw);
“Anger comes from the devil, the devil was created of fire, and fire is extinguished only with water; so when one of you becomes angry, they should perform ablution.”
On another occasion he told a man who asked him for advice;
أَنَّ رَجُلاً، قَالَ لِلنَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَوْصِنِي. قَالَ " لاَ تَغْضَبْ ". فَرَدَّدَ مِرَارًا، قَالَ "
لاَ تَغْضَبْ ".
The Prophet ﷺ said, “Do not become angry.” The man asked (the same question) again and again, and each the Prophet ﷺ gave the same answer, “Do not become angry.”
Once Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddique (ratu) was sitting with Nabi Kareem (saw). A man in their midst started attacking Hazrat Abu Bakr (ratu), maligning him. He listened to him quietly and did not react. When the man went overboard, Hazrat Abu Bakr (ratu) gave him a sharp reply. Upon this the Prophet (saw) left.
Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddique (ratu) went after him.
“Ya Rasool Allah!” he said. “When the man was saying things against me you stayed and when I responded to his words, you left. Why?”
Nabi Kareem (saw) replied, “When you were silent and exercised patience and restraint, I saw an angel sitting next to you who was responding on your behalf. When you started replying the angel left and a shaitaan, (evil Jinn), came and I don’t sit in the company of shayateen.”
“Identify your sickness,” said Sheikh Nurjan, “Because when Shaitan comes he will ravage you and destroy everything about you. We have been thrown into the fire of Sayaadna Ibrahim (as). We are asking God to make the fire cool for us. Who do you think is bardan wa salaman, coolness and safety? Sayyadna Muhammad (saw)! The coolness of Sayyadna Muhammad (saw) came to save Sayyadna Ibrahim (as). His light encompasses his soul to be in a state of ecstasy even in the fire. How will we seek refuge? Sayyadna Muhammad (saw) is the master of that reality. If you were heedless before don’t be heedless now.”
From darkness into light or from light into darkness?
Everything was a choice. If machines were false deities or my nafs was a god, both were pushing me into an abyss.
اللَّهُ وَلِيُّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا يُخْرِجُهُم مِّنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّورِ ۖ
وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا أَوْلِيَاؤُهُمُ الطَّاغُوتُ يُخْرِجُونَهُم مِّنَ النُّورِ إِلَى الظُّلُمَاتِ ۗ
Allah is the Protecting Guardian of those who believe. He brings them out of darkness into light. As for those who disbelieve, their patrons are false deities. They bring them out of light into darkness. Such are rightful owners of the Fire. They will abide therein – Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 257
The rightful owners of fire! It was Iqbal who shed a brilliant insight to what the fire of Hell actually is. For unlike whatever people imagine in their heads and then easily dismiss as over the top, it is entirely different for it lies within one’s own self.
“Heaven and Hell are states, not localities. Their descriptions in the Qur’an are visual representations of an inner fact, i.e. character. Hell, in the words of the Qur’an, is ‘God’s kindled fire which mounts above the hearts’ - the painful realization of one’s failure as a person. Heaven is the joy of triumph over the forces of disintegration. There is no such thing as eternal damnation in Islam. The word ‘eternity’ used in certain verses, relating to Hell, is explained by the Qur’an itself to mean only a period of time (78:23). Time cannot be wholly irrelevant to the development of personality.
Character tends to become permanent; its reshaping must require time. Hell, therefore, as conceived by the Qur’an, is not a pit of everlasting torture inflicted by a revengeful God; it is a corrective experience, which may make a hardened ego once more sensitive to the living breeze of Divine Grace.
Nor is heaven a holiday. Life is one and continuous. Man marches always onward to receive ever fresh illuminations from an Infinite Reality in which every moment appears in a new glory. And the recipient of Divine Illumination is not merely a passive recipient. Every act of a free ego creates a new situation and thus offers further opportunities of creative unfolding.”
وَمَن جَاهَدَ فَإِنَّمَا يُجَاهِدُ لِنَفْسِهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَغَنِيٌّ عَنِ الْعَالَمِينَ
And whoever strives then only he strives for himself. Indeed, Allah (is) Free from need of the worlds – Surah Al-Ankabut, Verse 6
The coming of the Beloved of God (saw) is most beautifully marked in the Quran as the coming of truth. It’s destiny is only one; to prevail.
وَقُلْ جَاءَ الْحَقُّ وَزَهَقَ الْبَاطِلُ ۚ إِنَّ الْبَاطِلَ كَانَ زَهُوقًا
And say, "The truth has come and perished the falsehood. Indeed, the falsehood is (bound) to perish." – Surah Al-Isra’, Verse 17
Sheikh Nurjan: “The false cannot obliterate the truth but are we on the truth? The best power, the most powerful presence is the presence of Sayyadna Muhammad (saw). The focus is to bring his light on your soul. The Darood shareef, the salawat. As soon as this Haqq enters your heart, your soul, your energies this is what is frightening for devils.”
When Iblis vowed to making all things worldly that are in fact harmful appear beautiful and get us hooked on them he himself made an exception himself of those who he would not be able to deceive.
قَالَ رَبِّ بِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأُزَيِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَأُغْوِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ
إِلَّا عِبَادَكَ مِنْهُمُ الْمُخْلَصِينَ
Iblis said: "O my Sustainer! Since You have mislead me, I shall indeed make (all that is evil) on Earth seem goodly to them and shall most certainly beguile them-into grievous error.
Except, Your slaves among them the ones who are sincere – Surah Al-Hijr, Verse 39-40
Those Mukhliseen are the ones God says are the ones on the Straight Path, the Sirat e Mustaqeem. In an extraordinary lecture by Uzair, I had learnt that there are only three beings in the Universe on the Straight Path, ala Sirat e Mustaqeem. Everyone else, be they Prophets, the Auliya Karaam or ordinary individuals ask to be lead to it, ila Sirat e Mustaqeem.
The first is God;
إِنَّ رَبِّي عَلَىٰ صِرَاطٍ مُّسْتَقِيم
Indeed, my Lord (is) on a path straight - Surah Hud, Verse 56
The second is Rasool Allah (peace be upon him):
فَاسْتَمْسِكْ بِالَّذِي أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ إِنَّكَ عَلَىٰ صِرَاطٍ مُّسْتَقِيمٍ
So hold fast to that which is revealed to you (O Beloved (peace be upon you)). Indeed, you (are) on a Straight Path - Surah Az-Zukhruf, Verse 43
The third, Iblis.
قَالَ فَبِمَا أَغْوَيْتَنِي لَأَقْعُدَنَّ لَهُمْ صِرَاطَكَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ
Whereupon Iblis said, "Now that You have thwarted me, I shall most certainly lie in ambush for them all along Your Sirat e Mustaqeem (the Straight Way).” - Surah Al-A’raf, Verse 16
It made sense. The Sheikh was saying was that the fastest way to repel Iblis’ efforts was reciting the Darood. “As soon as this Haqq (Truth) enters your heart, your soul, your energies its frightening for devils.”
I guess that must be because reciting the prayer of the Darood is not an ordinary thing. It is a Sunnah of Allah, a prayer recited by God;
(Begin excerpt “The Softest Heart”)
إِنَّ اللَّهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ ۚ
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا صَلُّوا عَلَيْهِ وَسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيمًا
Indeed Allah sends prayers on the Prophet (peace be upon him) and the angels send prayers on him as well. So O ye who believed, send prayers on the Prophet (peace be upon him) and give yourselves up to his guidance in utter self-surrender.” - Surah Al-Ahzaab, Verse 56
Uzair once asked me, “Without getting into the double emphasis of the order to “surrender” to his guidance (sallimu tasleeman), let me ask you this. When we do send prayers and blessings upon His Blessed Messenger’s (peace be upon him) being, what exactly do we say?”
I started reciting the prayer to send blessings upon the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his Blessed Family, the Darood Shareef. For in all of its variations, the beginning is the same. He stopped me at the first word:
Allahuma!
Dear God!
“Do you see?” he said smiling, “When we want to send blessings upon the being of His Beloved (saw), in fact in our utterance, we are asking God, in turn, to send the blessing even though He tells us to. Our own tongues are not deemed worthy by Him to send the prayers upon His Beloved (saw) directly. God wants only God to do it! To praise someone you need to realize the merits of the one being praised. We are not capable of comprehending Rasool Allah’s (saw) merits, hence the utterance of the Darood belongs only to God Himself.”
The prayer sent upon the Prophet (saw) is unlike the five sala’t which are obligatory for the Muslims. This is an act of love for the would-be Believers. It is not limited to any particular time of the day. Or night. For Himself and the angels, Allah uses the present tense in the Quran: a state of constant continuation in terms of its happening. Never ending! In the same vein, following the instruction becomes a following of Allah Ash-Shaheed, The All Witnessing One’s Sunnah, for it is His Act. How many acts in my life were going to hold such a direct sharing with my God? The thought itself had a dizzying effect.
(End excerpt The Softest Heart)
In another lecture, Uzair made a different point of the verse, stellar again of course.
“(In the verse) why is Allah using the word “an-Nabi”? He could say Muhammad or Abdullah or Ar-Rasool. Why not one of those?”
إِنَّ اللَّهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ ۚ
Indeed Allah and His Angels send prayers on the Prophet (peace be upon him).
“Because,” he said smiling in anticipation of the reaction of the listeners, “Muhammad is his birth name. That would mean Allah is sending the prayers upon him since he was born. And Abdullah is the name he was bestowed on the Night of Ascension. Meaning it would have started then. If He had said Ar-Rasool then it would mean He began sending prayers upon him when he was 40 and announced his prophethood.
But He is saying “An-Nabi” and the Prophet (saw) said ‘I was a Nabi (Prophet) when Adam was between clay and water.’ So even when there was nothing, there was Allah’s Darood upon His Beloved (saw). There was no Adam, no earth, no heaven, no hell, no time, no space, no Jinn and no Man.”
The Sheikh had said the prayer dispelled demons. I believe it takes care of everything else as well. Whether read out of fear of something or the need of something or purely love, I believe the words take care of everything. No wonder we are asked to recite the Darood in every raka’t of every prayer all day long. It’s a gift of kindness for even the one who doesn’t appreciate it.
According to Ghaus Pak (ra), the second prayer that Allah sends upon His Beloved (saw) is the salam, also an utterance in the namaz. Tradition states that it was how the Prophet (saw) was greeted by God on the Night of Ascension.
السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ
(As-Salam o alayka ayyoha nabiyyo wa rahmatullah e wa barakata hu)
Upon this greeting, God Almighty said to His Prophet (saw), “Peace, the Mercy of Allah and His Blessings be on you, O Prophet!”
The effect of the words was intense. It certainly changed my prayer which for many years I performed so quickly it was as if I had a gun to my head. As I learnt the context for each word and each word was so carefully placed, it blew my mind and my pace slowed. The Quran is a book of intense imagery and I was told (by Uzair) to ignite imagery in my head when I said the Darood at least if nothing else. Mine was of a Universe swimming in light!
But there was something else. A blessing unlike any other was received each time this second prayer of God was recited. The salam was returned!
أَنّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، قَالَ:
مَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ يُسَلِّمُ عَلَيَّ، إِلَّا رَدَّ اللَّهُ عَلَيَّ رُوحِي حَتَّى أَرُدَّ عَلَيْهِ السَّلَامَ
The Prophet of Allah (saw) said, “No one sends salam upon me without that Allah has returned my soul to me, so that I can return his salam.”
Subhan Allah!
In writing this piece, I asked Qari Sahib to explain the picking process on Iblis’ end. Who does he target and why?
“Let’s ask God,” he said.
هَلْ أُنَبِّئُكُمْ عَلَىٰ مَن تَنَزَّلُ الشَّيَاطِينُ
تَنَزَّلُ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ أَفَّاكٍ أَثِيمٍ
يُلْقُونَ السَّمْعَ وَأَكْثَرُهُمْ كَاذِبُونَ
Shall I inform you upon whom descend the devils?
They descend upon the slanderer and the sinner.
They pass on (what is) heard, and most of them (are) liars - – Surah Ash-Shu’ra, Verse 221-223
Again my mind went to the control of information. What went up and what was taken down. Those who controlled what we read and what we saw and therefore what we thought. Even the billionaires in Pakistan bought a tv channel and a newspaper as soon as they hit it big.
For the human being caught in this web the key lay in creating a balance. Or perhaps returning to the balance we were created in originally that made us worthy of “preference” over all else.
Uzair explained in one of his lectures that according to wisdom, there are five main motivators of actions for a human being: need, desire, lust, emotion and finally, the soul. They lie in a pyramid-like structure and the layering begins with need forming the base of the pyramid. Then comes desire which dominates need. Then is lust which over-rides desire. Fourth is emotion which prevails over the other three: lust, desire and need. Atop all of them is the soul. If one gains access to it, and it’s a big if, the soul over-rides everything else. That is nirvana!
All humans experienced all four states of need, desire, lust and emotion while alive. Suppressing them entirely was not possible. On top of that I read that ending a desire was itself a desire, hence desire could never be gotten rid of entirely by one’s own self! What was needed was for the four variables to be in a state of balance, to exist within limits, a hadd.
I was reminded again of the verses in the Quran endlessly pointing to the ones who only indulge every whim and emotion and remain stuck in a perpetual state of darkness. The punishment was severe: obedience of indulgence rendered one undeserving of aid from where it was essential, God.
وَكَذَٰلِكَ أَنزَلْنَاهُ حُكْمًا عَرَبِيًّا ۚ
وَلَئِنِ اتَّبَعْتَ أَهْوَاءَهُم بَعْدَمَا جَاءَكَ مِنَ الْعِلْمِ مَا لَكَ مِنَ اللَّهِ مِن وَلِيٍّ وَلَا وَاقٍ
Thus have We revealed it, a decisive utterance in Arabic, and if you should follow their desires after that which has come unto you of knowledge, then truly would you have from Allah no protecting friend nor defender - Surah Ar-Ra’d, Verse 37
Hence was made clear that the one who made their likes and dislikes their master, their gods, became incapable of receiving guidance.
فَإِن لَّمْ يَسْتَجِيبُوا لَكَ فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّمَا يَتَّبِعُونَ أَهْوَاءَهُمْ
If they do not respond to you, O Beloved (peace be upon you), then know that they follow only their own desires – Surah Al-Qassas, Verse 50
For anyone who was on a path of spirituality, the dominance of the soul over the rest was the ultimate goal. Listening to the soul, doing what it says, what it wants, that was the way to live in order to be close to Allah Al-Haqq, The One who is the Truth. For the soul was in a permanent state of attachment to Him.
I thought about what would become the reason to abandon one’s own will for God’s? Over the years I had discovered that it would be the awareness, the ability, to be informed about the source of one’s own wellbeing. The only sustainable cause to give up that which was a source of pleasure once, despite being harmful, despite being forbidden, was to differentiate between one’s state of peace and calm versus one of anxiety and distress as result of it. Only when the source of the restlessness was known could it be abandoned.
إِيَّاكُمْ وَحَزَّازَ الْقُلُوبِ وَمَا حَزَّ فِي قَلْبِكِ مِنْ شَيْءٍ فَدَعْهُ
The Prophet (saw) said, “Beware of what disturbs the hearts. If something unsettles your heart, then abandon it.”
A friend of mine asked me if I don’t own a tv and I don’t use a smart phone, if connect to the internet via my laptop twice a day with its camera covered with a piece of paper, why I write a 50 page piece on Jinn. I thought about it. It started out as curiosity of something unknown to me but then it became more about the future. A future that I will not be in and therefore endure but my niece, Sameena, who is only 9 will. I leave it for her like a love letter, an atypical one but still, its inspiration lies in heeding her and perhaps someone else as I have been heeded.
Ghaus Pak (ra) says the goal of the blessed human being is singular; awaiting a meeting with their Creator. Not going to Heaven and escaping Hell which is fear and need driven but to be worthy of meeting Allah zul Jalal e wal Ikram out of love.
يَا أَيُّهَا الْإِنسَانُ إِنَّكَ كَادِحٌ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ كَدْحًا فَمُلَاقِيهِ
O Mankind! Indeed, you are laboring to your Lord with exertion and you will meet Him – Surah Al-Inshiqaq, Verse 6
The call is to every human being, insaan! He says it is a warning as well as meant to be an awakening. “You, who is formed in the manner of Allah, are the one chosen from all Creation to be His Vicegerent. You are the one who will be granted recognition of your Lord. So know yourself, your stature and don’t be forgetful of God’s Reality.”
“The one who strives for nearness of Allah, the striving ends in the dissolution of your self in His Essence. You are the one who will meet Him as a function of your striving. It is obligated upon you to not separate yourself from that which is the cause of your connection to Him. The longing will come to you from God, the ability will come through Him, and render you of the honoured.”
In the absence of that connection darkness prevails.
أَوْ كَظُلُمَاتٍ فِي بَحْرٍ لُّجِّيٍّ يَغْشَاهُ مَوْجٌ مِّن فَوْقِهِ مَوْجٌ مِّن فَوْقِهِ سَحَابٌ ۚ
ظُلُمَاتٌ بَعْضُهَا فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ إِذَا أَخْرَجَ يَدَهُ لَمْ يَكَدْ يَرَاهَا ۗ
وَمَن لَّمْ يَجْعَلِ اللَّهُ لَهُ نُورًا فَمَا لَهُ مِن نُّورٍ
Or like the depths of darkness upon an abysmal sea, made yet more dark by wave billowing over wave, with clouds above it all, depths of darkness, layer upon layer, (so that) when one holds up his hand, he can hardly see it.
For he to whom God gives no light, no light whatever has he! – Surah An-Nur, Verse 40
Tafseer e Jilani: The depths of darkness is a drowning in forgetfulness of God. The waves upon it come from turning away from God in rebellion and self-deceit. The clouds are veils from refuting God’s existence. The blindness is to the signs of the One-ness of God, deliberate ignoring of His Attributes and refusal to see His astonishing Creation, new and ever changing. The problem lies in a deep fixation on one’s worldly self in vanity and conceit. There is no room left for anything else. Therefore there is no possibility of receiving His Light.
According to Ghaus Pak (ra) the real tragedy and source of deepening torment for the human being was a state of self-imposed deprivation.
وَذَٰلِكُمْ ظَنُّكُمُ الَّذِي ظَنَنتُم بِرَبِّكُمْ أَرْدَاكُمْ فَأَصْبَحْتُم مِّنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ
And that (was) your assumption which you assumed about your Lord. It has ruined you, and you have become of the lost – Surah Al-Fussilat, Verse 23
A state of mahroomi, a state of loss, vis-à-vis God. Not being able to see His Signs in the world and not being able to see Him in the Afterlife. That was the real azaab, the punishment that wreaked havoc in this world and that would last an eternity on the Last of Days. The real darkness was selfishness and adherence to the ego that rendered one unable to alter.
In this world, my actions had deprived me of the company of some that I would have liked to have had in my life. Sometimes I prayed for love and then received it within days, only to kick it hard in the face also within days for no reason other than rage and restlessness. I was out of control and I learnt that people aren’t as kind as God. Not as forgiving. Most have a one strike rule. God was different. He gives chance after chance for a return to Him.
قُلْ يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَىٰ أَنفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا مِن رَّحْمَةِ اللَّهِ ۚ
إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا ۚ
إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
Say, O Beloved (saw), "O those who have transgressed against themselves! Do not despair of the Mercy (of) Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives the sins all. Indeed He, He (is) the Oft-Forgiving, the Most Merciful – Surah Az-Zumar, Verse 53
And Allah says that knowing of course that many will not return except for on that Day of Regret when nothing but remorse will drown them.
وَيَوْمَ يَعَضُّ الظَّالِمُ عَلَىٰ يَدَيْهِ يَقُولُ يَا لَيْتَنِي اتَّخَذْتُ مَعَ الرَّسُولِ سَبِيلًا
And a Day on which the wrongdoer will bite his hands (in despair), exclaiming: “Oh, would that I had followed the path shown to me by the Apostle! – Surah Az-Zumar, Verse 27
Sometime I think my favourite word in the Quran is “Qul” (Say). Throughout the Book the word starts a verse. It is a bestowing of honour and the clear indication that the Book was revealed upon one heart. I only see in it an intense expression of love. Even when it came to informing us about even His Own Self, Allah says to the Prophet (saw), “You say, you tell them, O Beloved (saw), because I allowed only you to know Me as no other, tell them that I am One. You tell them what I am and what I am not.”
قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ - اللَّهُ الصَّمَدُ
لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ - وَلَمْ يَكُن لَّهُ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌ
Say (O Prophet (saw)), "He is Allah, the One (God). Allah, the Eternal, the Absolute. He begets not and neither is He begotten. And there is nothing that can be compared to Him. – Surah Ikhlas, Verses 1-3
In a lecture Uzair magnificently highlights the mission and universality of Nabi Kareem’s (saw) distinguished being through just two verses of Surah Juma’.
هُوَ الَّذِي بَعَثَ فِي الْأُمِّيِّينَ رَسُولًا مِّنْهُمْ يَتْلُو عَلَيْهِمْ آيَاتِهِ
وَيُزَكِّيهِمْ وَيُعَلِّمُهُمُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَإِن كَانُوا مِن قَبْلُ لَفِي ضَلَالٍ مُّبِينٍ
He it is who has sent unto the unlettered people an apostle from among themselves, to convey unto them His Messages, and to cause them to grow in purity, and to impart unto them the divine writ as well as wisdom - whereas before that they were indeed, most obviously, lost in error – Surah Juma’, Verse 2
وَآخَرِينَ مِنْهُمْ لَمَّا يَلْحَقُوا بِهِمْ ۚ وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ
And others among them who have not yet joined them and He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise – Surah Juma’, Verse 3
For all peoples of all of the Universes, this Prophet (saw) brings the conveyance of a message. He is the purifier for everyone. He imparts wisdom to all. He discloses the secrets veiled in the Quran. He is marked as a warner for everyone (from everyone and everything that will be harmful) for all times, his era and all the ones to follow till the end of the world. He is the bringer of good news to all of humanity. He releases all to be released of shackles (of society) and burdens (of other people). He knows all societies and the means of enslaving people.
He is the light!
Tafseer e Tustari; “He (God) made the gushing forth of the wellsprings of the heart of Muhammad (saw) with the lights of knowledge of different kinds, a sign of Mercy for his nation because God, Exalted is He, honoured him with this honour. For the light of the Prophets is from his (Muhammad’s (saw)) light, the light of heavenly dominions is from his light, and the light of the world and the Hereafter is from his light.”
Subhan Allah!
يَأْمُرُهُم بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَاهُمْ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ وَيُحِلُّ لَهُمُ الطَّيِّبَاتِ وَيُحَرِّمُ عَلَيْهِمُ الْخَبَائِثَ
وَيَضَعُ عَنْهُمْ إِصْرَهُمْ وَالْأَغْلَالَ الَّتِي كَانَتْ عَلَيْهِمْ ۚ ف
الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا بِهِ وَعَزَّرُوهُ وَنَصَرُوهُ وَاتَّبَعُوا النُّورَ الَّذِي أُنزِلَ مَعَهُ ۙ أُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ
Who enjoins upon them what is right and forbids them what is wrong and makes lawful for them the good things and prohibits for them the evil and relieves them of their burden and the shackles which were upon them. So they who have believed in him, honored him, supported him and followed the light which was sent down with him - it is those who will be the Successful - Surah Al-A’raaf, Verse 157
Then came the revelation from Uzair; “When he ‘who enjoins upon them what is right and forbids them what is wrong and makes lawful for them the good things and prohibits for them the evil,’ it isn’t random. It is in line with the intrinsic fitrat, nature, of all people.” As in each and every individual.
وَآخَرِينَ مِنْهُمْ
Including those who have not been born yet!
If he has to guide all of Mankind, then he also is given the knowledge of all people’s natures before him and after him to provide that guidance. What he forbids only contradicts the welfare of the body and makes it diseased. What he prohibits is what corrupts the soul causing it anxiety, anger and despair.”
Tradition states that the following revelation came to certain Prophets from God; O Children of Adam! Where is your gratitude for that which I bestowed you? If there is no gratitude then how will there be acceptance and contentment of that which has been destined for you? If you will not surrender and be content, how will you practice patience when troubles befall you? Without patience how will you deny your nafs, your eg0? And if there is no negation of the ego, how will you be able to become one of the faithful?
I was struck by how the process began. Gratitude. The first line of the Quran in the first Surah, Fateha, was just that; the expression of gratitude.
الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ
Alhamdolillah e Rab il Alameen!
All praise is due to God alone, the Sustainer of all the worlds – Surah Fateha, Verse 1
A secret became unveiled in more ways than one for in the Quran the order of the verses is also their significance before God. It’s the perfect expression of His Munificence that God starts His Book with gratitude for it is the only source of peace of mind for a human being. The only one!
It is also the only thing Iblis is interested in not making humans practice. For on the day he rebelled, throwing down his gauntlet, his parting words to his Creator were;
وَلَا تَجِدُ أَكْثَرَهُمْ شَاكِرِينَ
“And You will not find most of them grateful” - Surah Al-A’raf, Verse 17
Not, “I will not let them worship you, pray to you, fast for you, perform Umra/Haj for you. Nothing to do with ritual, nothing to do with worship. He doesn’t care about either. Most people miss the fact that Iblis never had a problem with God, in believing in Him. What he did wrong was refuse to accept the one Allah chose to be his His Khalifa on Earth. He denied His Appointees, us. Many don’t realize that when they downplay the significance of Allah’s favoured, especially His Beloved (saw) they follow him inadvertently.
But gratitude requisites a unique expression before God. For one, it isn’t about words, thank you for this and that, as Uzair taught me. It was about deed. Allah wants gratitude towards him expressed through an act of kindness for another being. Ghaus Pak (ra) defines it as sharing the blessings which God has bestowed upon one. That act of goodness for another was what counted as the expression of my gratefulness before Him. But even that was only half of it. The other part was even more significant.
The gratitude is expressed for taufeeq to do the act, for ability, which is only and only granted by God. There is no “I.” There can be no “me.” Therefore there is no, “Look, I’m so good,” either. I once went through the typical chain of my thoughts behind a benevolent act; if I would look at a needy person, then I would think about whether I would like to give them anything or not, do something for them or not. Then I would likely decide to help them, thus giving them some money or emotional assistance. Then I would think that I did a good thing and feel happy about it for exactly how long that thought
was. I counted the “I”s. In that one act, there were five.
Every act of goodness that I was committing was so overly filled with pride it was killing any joy, which is defined by the Greeks as peacefulness, I could receive. My self-glorification was decimating it entirely. Frequency of acts of kindness was not the issue. I learnt through practice that my raising those numbers was pointless. The problem was being supremely conscious of my own self-importance connected to the act and entirely missing The One who made it possible for me to even be generous by giving me wealth yes, which I certainly did absolutely nothing to deserve, but infinitely more important than that, endowing me with the ability to do the right thing, God!
I once asked Qari Sahib what is worse, shirk, making another a partner with Allah in one’s worship or being a worshipper of one’s own ego, the nafs. He pointed me to a hadith that surprised me.
ما أبغض اله أبغض على الله من الهوى
Allah dislikes even more than someone worshipping another than Him is the one who worships his own bias and vain desires.
He told me why as well.
Tafseer e Jilani. “When Allah says ‘Aqtalu anfosakum – kill yourselves,’ it is meant in the context of your nafs. It was his own prejudice that made Pharoah declare himself as a god not someone else, that made the people of Bani Israel worship the calf. It was his own ego that made Iblis refuse Allah’s Command and become proud.”
Bulleh Shah says it most beautifully in verse. Till the “I” dies is there even a beginning?
(Recitation by Imran Jafri @the.softest.heart)
مکے گیاں گل مکدی ناہیں پاویں سو سو جمعے پڑہائیے
گنگا گیاں گل مکدی ناہیں پاویں سو سو غوطے کھائیے
بلھے شاہ گل تائیوں مکدی جے "میں" نوں منوں مکائیے
Visiting Mecca will not give you the final answer,
even if we offer hundreds of Friday prayers.
Visiting the Ganges is no culmination,
even if we take hundreds of dives.
Bulleh Shah! You will only unveil The Secret,
if, from your heart, you erase the “I.”
(End of Part II in link below)
www.flickr.com/photos/42093313@N00/49918994051/in/datepos...
This is brother Ajaz from Bolton, England. I took this while in Fez, Morocco.
As you can see, he has a Sunnah length beard, he is wearing a black turban and a brown shawl, all according to the Sunnah (tradition) of the Prophet Muhammad, Peace and Blessings be Upon Him.
Two (2) days religious education gathering will be held on 23rd & 24th of December 2017 at Global Madani Markaz Faizan-e-Madina, Karachi, for the people who relate to the education industry.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Day_of_Ashura#Significance_of_Ashur...
The Day of Ashura (عاشوراء (transliteration: ʻĀshūrā’, Ashura, Ashoura, and other spellings) is on the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar and marks the climax of the Remembrance of Muharram.
It is commemorated by the Shi‘a as a day of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala on 10 Muharram in the year 61 AH (October 10, 680 AD[2]). Sunni Muslims believe that Moses fasted on that day to express gratitude to God for liberation of Israelites from Egypt. According to Sunni Muslim tradition, Muhammad fasted on this day and asked other people to fast.[3][4]
In some countries and regions such as Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Lebanon, Bahrain, Trinidad and Tobago and Jamaica, Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali has become a national holiday and most ethnic and religious communities participate in it.
Etymology of Ashura
The word ashura means simply tenth in Arabic language; hence the name of the remembrance, literally translated, means "the tenth day". The day is indeed the tenth day of the month, although some Islamic scholars offer up different etymologies. In his book Ghuniyatut Talibin, Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani writes that the Islamic scholars have a difference of opinion as to why this day is known as Ashura. The consensus is that the day is the tenth day of the month of Muharram. Some scholars, however, suggest that this day is the tenth most important day that God has blessed Muslims with; hence the name Ashura. How ever the real aspect in the Islamic perspective is that when Mohammad found the Jews and Christians fasting that day in rememberence of the God saved Moses from the sea and he said to Firaun "We, the Muslims, have more right in the day to fast than any other," and ordered his followers to fast the same day. Later one of his companions asked whether there should be a difference in the way from Christians and Jews, he orderd them to fast the 9th day of Muharram also starting the next year. But he was not alive to fast the following year.
[edit] Commemoration of the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali
Mourning of Muharram
Events
* Battle of Karbala
Figures
* Imam Husayn
* Ali Akbar ibn Husayn
* Ali Asghar ibn Husayn
* al-Abbas ibn Ali
* Zaynab bint Ali
* Sukayna bint Husayn
* Muslim ibn Aqeel
Places
* Imam Husayn Shrine
* Hussainia
Times
* Day of Ashura
* Arba'een
Customs
* Majlis-e-Aza
* Marsia
* Noha
* Soaz
* Ta'zieh
* Tabuik
* Hosay
Main article: Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali
[edit] History of the commemoration
See also: Battle of Karbala
This day is well-known because of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali the grandson of Muhammad and the third Shia Imam, along with members of his family and close friends at the Battle of Karbala in the year 61 AH (AD 680). Yazid I was in power then and wanted the Bay'ah (allegiance) of Husayn ibn Ali. Many Muslims believe Yazid was openly going against the teachings of Islam in public and changing the sunnah of Prophet Muhammad.[5][6][7]
Husayn in his path toward Kufa encountered the army of Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad, the governor of Kufa. On October 10 680(Muharram 10, 61 AH), he and his small group of companions and family members, who were between 108 and 136 men of Husayn ibn Ali (the grandson of Muhammad).[8][9] fought with a large army of perhaps more than 4,000 men under the command of Umar ibn Sa'ad, son of the founder of Kufa. Husayn and all of his men were killed. The bodies of the dead, including that of Husayn, were then mutilated.[2]
Commemoration for Husayn ibn Ali began after Battle of Karbala. After the massacre, the Umayyad army looted Husayn's camp and set off with his women and children for the court of Ibn Ziyad. A moving oration delivered by Zaynab in Kufa is recorded in some sources. The prisoners were next sent to the court of Yazid, Umayyad caliph, in Damascus, where one of his Syrian followers asked for Husayn's daughter Faṭimah al-Kubra, and once again it was Zaynab who came to the rescue and protected her honour. The family remained in Yazid's prison for a time. The first assembly (majlis) of Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali is said to have been held by Zaynab in prison. In Damascus, too, she is reported to have delivered a poignant oration.[10]
"Zaynab bint Ali quoted as she passed the prostrate body of her brother, Husayn. " O Muhammad! O Muhammad! May the angels of heaven bless you. Here is Husayn in the open, stained with blood and with limbs torn off. O Muhammad! Your daughters are prisoners, your progeny are killed, and the east wind blows dust over them." By God! She made every enemy and friend weep."
Tabari, History of the Prophets and Kings, Volume XIX The Caliphate of Yazid.[11]
Just few years after Husayn's death his grave became a pilgrimage site among Shi'a. A tradition of pilgrimage to the Imam Husayn Shrine and the other Karbala martyrs quickly developed, which is renown as Ziarat Ashura.[12] The Umayyad and Abbasid caliphs tried to prevent construction of the shrines and discouraged pilgrimage to the sites.[13] The tomb and its annexes were destroyed by the Abbasid caliph Al-Mutawakkil in 850-851 and Shi'a pilgrimage was prohibited, but shrines in Karbala and Najaf were built by the Buwayhid emir 'Adud al-Daula in 979-80.[14]
It did not take long for public rites of remembrance for Husayn's martyrdom to develop from the early pilgrimages. Under the Buyid dynasty, Mu'izz ad-Dawla officiated at public commemoration of Ashura in Baghdad. These commemorations were also encouraged in Egypt by the Fatimid caliph al-'Aziz. From Seljuq times, Ashura rituals began to attract many participants from a variety of backgrounds, including Sunnis. With the recognition of Twelvers as the official religion by the Safavids, Mourning of Muharram extended throughout the first ten days of Muharram.[12]
[edit] Significance of Ashura for Shi'a Muslims
Shi'a devotees congregate outside the Sydney Opera House, Australia to commemorate Imam Hussein.
This day is of particular significance to Shi'a Muslims, who consider Hussein (the grandson of the Prophet) Ahl al-Bayt the third Imam and the rightful successor of Muhammad. Many Shi'as make pilgrimages on Ashura to the Mashhad al-Husayn, the shrine in Karbala, Iraq that is traditionally held to be Imam Hussein's tomb. On this day Shi'a are in remembrance, and mourning attire is worn. They refrain from music, since customarily in Islam when death has occurred music is considered impolite. It is a time for sorrow and respect of the person's passing, and it is also a time for self-reflection, when one commits oneself to the mourning of the Imam Hussein completely. Weddings and parties are also never planned on this date by Shi'as. Shi'as also express mourning by crying and listening to poems about the tragedy and sermons on how Hussein and his family were martyred. This is intended to connect them with Hussein's suffering and martyrdom, and the sacrifices he made to keep Islam alive. Hussein's martyrdom is widely interpreted by Shi'a as a symbol of the struggle against injustice, tyranny, and oppression.[15]
Shi'a Muslims in Malir, Pakistan starting the procession of the Mätam.
Shi'as believe the Battle of Karbala was between the forces of good and evil. Imam Hussain represented good while Yazid represented evil. Shi'as also believe the Battle of Karbala was fought to keep the Muslim religion untainted of any corruptions and they believed the path that Yazid was directing Islam was definitely for his own personal greed.[citation needed]
Shia Imams strongly insists that the day of Ashura should not be taken as a day of jos and festivity. According to a hadith which is reported from Ali some people fabricated a hadith claiming it was on that day the God forgave Adam, Noah arc rested on dry land, The Israelites were saved from Pharaoh's army, etc. The day of Ashura, according to eight Shia Imam, Ali al-Rida, must be observed as a day of inactivity, sorrow and total disregard of worldly cares. [16]
Shia refrain from drinking and eating in commemoration of Imam Hussein. This is known as Fakah, which is not a formal fast.[citation needed]
Many of the events associated with Ashura are held in special congregation halls known as "Imambargah" and Hussainia.[citation needed]
As suffering and cutting the body with knives or chains (matam) have been prohibited by many Shi'a marjas like Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader of Iran,[17] some Shi'a observe mourning with blood donation which is called "Qame Zani"[17] and flailing[18].
Certain rituals like the traditional flagellation ritual called zanjeer zani or zanjeer matam, involving the use of a zanjeer (a chain) are also performed[19]. These are not religious customs but are popularly done for the sake of Imam Hussain and his family.
At least many Shia believe that taking part in Ashura is to be absolved of sin. A popular Shia saying has it that, `a single tear shed for Hussain washes away a hundred sins.`[20]
[edit] Popular customs
A pilgrimage to Karbala for the celebration of Arba'een, 28 March, 2005.
For Shi'as, commemoration of Ashura is not a festival, but rather a sad event, while Sunni Muslims view it as a victory God (Allah) has given to his prophet, Musa. This victory is the very reason, as Sunni Muslims believe, Muhammad mentioned when recommending fasting on this day. For Shi'as, it is a period of intense grief and mourning. Mourners, congregate at a Mosque for sorrowful, poetic recitations such as marsiya, noha, latmiya and soaz performed in memory of the martyrdom of Hussein, lamenting and grieving to the tune of beating drums and chants of "Ya Hussain." Also Ulamas give sermons with themes of Hussein's personality and position in Islam, and the history of his uprising. The Sheikh of the mosque retells the Battle of Karbala to allow the listeners to relive the pain and sorrow endured by Hussein and his family. In Arab countries like Iraq and Lebanon they read Maqtal Al-Husayn. In some places, such as Iran, Iraq and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, Ta'zieh, passion plays, are also performed reenacting the Battle of Karbala and the suffering and martyrdom of Hussein at the hands of Yazid.[citation needed]
Tabuiks being lowered in to the sea in Pariaman, Indonesia, by Shia Muslims.
For the duration of the remembrance, it is customary for mosques and some people to provide free meals (Niazz) on certain nights of the month to all people. Many people donate food and Middle Eastern sweets to the mosque. These meals are viewed as being special and holy, as they have been consecrated in the name of Husayn, and thus partaking of them is considered an act of communion with God, Hussain, and humanity.[citation needed]
Many participants congregate together in public processions for ceremonial chest beating (matham/latmiya) as a display of their devotion to Husayn, in remembrance of his suffering and to preach that oppression will not last in the face of truth and justice[21]. Others pay tribute to the time period by holding a Majilis, Surahs from the Quran and Maqtal Al-Husayn are read.[citation needed]
Today in Indonesia, the event is known as Tabuik (Minangkabau language) or Tabut/Tabot (Indonesian). Tabuik is the local manifestation of the Shi'a Muslim Remembrance of Muharram among the Minangkabau people in the coastal regions of West Sumatra, particularly in the city of Pariaman. The festival includes reenactments of the Battle of Karbala, and the playing of tassa and dhol drums.[citation needed]
In countries like Turkey, there is the custom of eating Noah's Pudding Ashure as this day in Turkish is known as Aşure.
[edit] Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali by non-Muslims
A tadjah at Hosay in Port of Spain during the 1950s
In some countries other religious communities commemorate this event.
In Trinidad and Tobago[22] and Jamaica[23] all ethnic and religious communities participate in this event, locally known as "Hosay" or "Hussay", from "Husayn".[citation needed]
[edit] Significance of Ashura for Sunni muslims
According to Sunni Hadith, Ashura was already known as a commemorative day during which some Meccans used to observe customary fasting. In hijrah event when Muhammad led his followers to Medina, he found the Jews of that area likewise observing fasts on the day of Ashura. At this, Muhammad affirmed the Islamic claim to the fast, and from then the Muslims have fasted on combinations of two or three consecutive days including the 10th of Muharram (e.g. 9th and 10th or 10th and 11th)[24][25].
A companion of the prophet, Ibn Abas reports that the prophet went to Medina and found the Jews fasting on the tenth of Muharram. Muhammad inquired of them, "What is the significance of this day on which you fast?" They replied, "This is a righteous day. On this day God saved the Israelites from their enemy. Therefore Moses fasted on this day." Muhammad said, "I am more worthy of Moses than you." (taken from Muslim) [26]
From then, Muhammad fasted on the tenth of Muharram.[citation needed]
The Shariah law however, shuns acts that resemble Jews and Christians. Thus it is reported in Mishkaat that Muhammad said, "Fast on the day of Ashura and oppose the Jews regarding it. Thus fast on the day before it and on the day after." (Taken from The Significance of Muharram by Rafique Valli, lecturer at the Islamic University for Girls, Johannesburg)
All Sunni Muslims believe that the fast on Ashura is optional.
The Ashura is commemorated for the following occasions which may have happened on the 10th Day of the Muharram:
* God had mercy on Adam[27][unreliable source?]
* The deliverance of Noah from the flood[citation needed]
* Abraham was saved from Nimrod's fire[citation needed]
* Jacob's blindness was healed after Joseph's shirt was brought to him on this day (Quran)[citation needed]
* Job was healed from his illness[citation needed]
* The Israelites were saved from Pharaoh's army.[citation needed]
* Jesus was brought up to heaven after attempts by the Romans to capture and crucify him failed.[citation needed]
All the above incidents are not confirmed to have taken place on Ashura in the Koran, nor by any strong Hadith. These have been reported in the weaker Hadith, but are nevertheless regarded possible by majority of the Sunni Muslims. The most authentic is the 5th incident where God saved Moses and the Israelites from Pharaoh. This is the reason why many muslims fast on the 10th of Muharram.[citation needed]
Today, Sunnis regard fasting during Ashura as recommended, though not obligatory, having been superseded by the Ramadan fast.[28]
Oddly, Sunnis in Egypt customarily eat a pudding (also known as Ashura) after dinner on the Day of Ashura; it is a rice pudding with nuts, raisins, and rose water, and it is also known in Turkish as Aşure. Given that Egypt was ruled by the Shi'ite Fatimid Caliphate and subsequently conquered by the Sunni Ayyubid dynasty, it may be that the (bitter) fast of Ashura was turned on its head after the Fatimid regime was toppled.
[edit] Socio-political aspects
Commemoration of Ashura has great socio-political value for the Shi'a, who have been a minority throughout their history. "Al-Amd" asserts that the Shiite transference of Al-Husayn and Karbala ' from the framework of history to the domain of ideology and everlasting legend reflects their marginal and dissenting status in Arab-Islamic society.[original research?][citation needed] According to the prevailing conditions at the time of the commemoration, such reminiscences may become a framework for implicit dissent or explicit protest. It was, for instance, used during the Islamic Revolution of Iran , the Lebanese Civil War, the Lebanese resistance against the Israeli occupation and in the 1990s Uprising in Bahrain. Sometimes the `Ashura' celebrations associate the memory of Al-Husayn's martyrdom with the miserable conditions of Muslims in other non-Islamic third-world nations, on the pretense that every nation and era has their own Husayn.[29]
From the period of the Iranian Constitutional Revolution (1905-11) onward, mourning gatherings increasingly assumed a political aspect. Following an old established tradition, preachers compared the oppressors of the time with Imam Hosayn's enemies, the umayyads.[30]
The political function of commemoration was very marked in the years leading up to the Islamic Revolution of 1978-79, as well as during the revolution itself. In addition, the implicit self-identification of the Muslim revolutionaries with Imam Hosayn led to a blossoming of the cult of the martyr, expressed most vividly, perhaps, in the vast cemetery of Behesht-e Zahra, to the south of Tehran, where the martyrs of the revolution and the war against Iraq are buried.[30]
On the other hand some governments have banned this commemoration. In 1930s Reza Shah forbade it in Iran. The regime of Saddam Hussein saw this as a potential threat and banned Ashura commemorations for many years. In the 1884 Hosay Massacre, 22 people were killed in Trinidad and Tobago when civilians attempted to carry out the Ashura rites, locally known as Hosay, in defiance of the British colonial authorities.[citation needed]
[edit] Violence during Ashura
The Sunni and Shi'a schism is highlighted by the difference in observance by Sunni and Shi'a Muslims. The violence is perpetrated by Sunni and Shia extremists. In countries that have significant populations of both sects, there is often violence during the holiday.
On June 20, 1994 the explosion of a bomb in a prayer hall of Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad[31] killed at least 25 people.[32] The Iranian government officially blamed Mujahedin-e-Khalq for the incident to avoid sectarian conflict between Shias and Sunnis.[33] However, the Pakistani daily The News International reported on March 27, 1995, "Pakistani investigators have identified a 24-year-old religious fanatic Abdul Shakoor residing in Lyari in Karachi, as an important Pakistani associate of Ramzi Yousef. Abdul Shakoor had intimate contacts with Ramzi Ahmed Yousef and was responsible for the June 20, 1994, massive bomb explosion at the shrine Imam Ali Reza in Mashhad."[34]
The 2004 (1425 AH) Shi'a pilgrimage to Karbala, the first since Saddam Hussein was removed from power in Iraq, was marred by bomb attacks, which killed and wounded hundreds despite tight security.
On January 19, 2008, 7 million Iraqi Shia pilgrims marched through Karbala city, Iraq to commemorate Ashura. 20,000 Iraqi troops and police guarded the event amid tensions due to clashes between Iraqi troops and members of a Shia cult, the Soldiers of Heaven, which left around 263 people dead (in Basra and Nasiriya).[35] Dawoodi Bohra a Sect of Shia Claim the successor of Imam Husayn is Imam Taiyab is underground authorized his Assistant Dai -Syedna Dr. Mohammad Burhanuddin to Lead the Islam - which lead to violence in Mumbai between Bohra and Sunni muslims
[edit] Ashura in the Gregorian calendar
Main article: Islamic calendar
While Ashura is always on the same day of the Islamic calendar, the date on the Gregorian calendar varies from year to year due to differences between the two calendars, since the Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar and the Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar. Furthermore, the method used to determine when each Islamic month begins varies from country to country.
* 2009: January 8 and December 28 (estimated)
* 2010: December 16 (estimated)
[edit] See also
* Husayn ibn Ali
* Remembrance of Muharram
* Battle of Karbala
* Azadari
* Mätam
* Hussainia
* Shahid (martyr)
* List of Dawoodi Bohra Ashura Locations
* Tabuik
* Hosay
[edit] Footnotes
The Dying of Will
Tafseer e Tustari: "Hazrat Sahl (ra) was [then] asked about a man who repents and renounces a certain sin, but then it occurs to his heart, or he sees it or hears of it and finds sweetness in that vile sin. What is to be done in such a case?
He replied: The feeling of sweetness pertains to [his] nature (ṭabʿ) and is not susceptible of change, such that a thing which is loved could become something detestable.
However, the heart’s determination can be coerced so that he can return to God, Mighty and Majestic is He, and place his dilemma before Him. Then he should force on himself and on his heart a state of rejection [of that sin] which should never leave him, for if he becomes inattentive to that state of rejection for just the blinking of the eye, it is to be feared that he will not remain safe from it."
Ramzan! The month Allah calls His Own. When Satan is shackled and the nafs is bound, at least superficially, through fasting. My routine per instruction from Qari Sahib was set; Reading the Quran as much as possible. My intention was to write one piece for the month.
The choice of topic was spectacular; the Quran. I had collected a gazillion gems for it from different lectures by Uzair. I wanted to post it on the 27th night, Laila tul Qadr. The night that the first verse was revealed upon the heart of the Beloved (peace be upon him) in the Cave of Hira where he went to meditate for years and where his beloved wife, Bibi Khadija (ratu) brought him his food.
عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ رضي الله عنه قَالَ: أَتَي جِبْرِيْلُ النَّبِيَّ صلي الله عليه وآله وسلم
فَقَالَ : يَا رَسُوْلَ اﷲِ، هَذِهِ خَدِيْجَةُ قَد أَتَتْ مَعَهَا إِنَاءٌ فِيْهِ إِدَامٌ أَوْ طَعَامٌ أَوْ شَرَابٌ،
فَإِذَا هِيَ أَتَتْکَ فَاقْرَأْ عَلَيْهَا السَّلْامَ مِنْ رَّبِّهَا وَمِنِّي،
وَ بَشِّرْهَا بِبَيْتٍ فِي الْجَنَّةِ مِنْ قَصَبٍ، لَا صَخَبَ فِيْهِ وَلَا نَصَبَ
As narrated by Hazrat Abu Huraira (ratu):
Hazrat Gibrael (as) came to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and said, “Ya Rasool Allah (peace be upon you)!
This is Khadija (ratu) who is bringing with her a bowl with soup or food or drink.
When she comes to you, say to her that her Lord God sends upon her Salam and so do I and give her glad tidings of a palace in Paradise wherein there will be no noise or any fatigue.”
I honed in on the words “noise and fatigue” and how they were the harbingers of difficulty in the world.
The incident of the revelation in recorded in the following manner in Fatih ul Bari ;
Begin excerpt “The Softest Heart”
أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ:
أَتَانِي جِبْرِيلُ بِنَمَطٍ مِنْ دِيبَاجٍ فِيهِ كِتَابٌ قَالَ اقْرَأْ
قُلْتُ: مَا أَنَا بِقَارِئ
Said the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), “Gibrael came to me with a book placed on a sheet of silk, and said, ‘Read!’
I said, “I do not have a reader.”
It is true that as soon as the Quran was recited by the Prophet of God (peace be upon him) in front of the Kuffar who felt spellbound by its beauty, the first accusation they leveled against him was that he was a poet, then that he was a magician, then that he was Majnun.
ن ۚ وَالْقَلَمِ وَمَا يَسْطُرُونَ
مَا أَنتَ بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّكَ بِمَجْنُونٍ
وَإِنَّ لَكَ لَأَجْرًا غَيْرَ مَمْنُونٍ
وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَىٰ خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ
بِأَييِّكُمُ الْمَفْتُونُ فَسَتُبْصِرُ وَيُبْصِرُونَ
Nun. (I swear) by the pen, and all that which they write (therewith)! You are not, by your Sustainer's grace, a madman! And, verily, yours shall be a reward never ending.
And you (stand) on an exalted standard of character. And (one day) you will see, and they (who now deride you) shall see which of you is afflicted with madness.
Surah Al Qalam, Verses 1-4
The most common understanding of the incident of the first revelation to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is different from what I have written above.
It is that when Hazrat Gibrael (as) came to him and said, “Iqra,”
“Read,” he replied, “I cannot read” as opposed to “I do not have a reader.”
After the dialogue repeating thrice, Hazrat Gibrael (as) said:
اقْرَأ باسم رَبك
“Read in the Name of your Lord God.”
People have never understood why the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was an Ummi,’ the one who does not read or write. They don’t understand that the God who can do anything, if He chooses to make His Beloved (peace be upon him), the manifestation of perfection, then there has to be a significant reason behind it. The trite explanation for this that I have seen is that he didn’t read or write so that when he would reveal the Quran to the Meccans, he would not be accused of writing it himself. But he was accused of thinking it up himself regardless so what’s the difference?
Pir Naseeruddin Naseer (ra) offers another explanation for why the Prophet (peace be upon him) is created as Ummi’ by God:
God makes His Last Messenger (peace be upon him) share His own Sunnah (habit/actions): God also does not read, He has others do it for Him. He does not write, others do it for Him. He wanted the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), the one who he created in His Image more than anyone else, to share that attribute with Him.
It’s a very subtle point that only a certain kind of mind can appreciate. Personally I love it! It reminds me of a line of a couplet of Jigar Muradabadi.
میری کیا مجال جو دخل دوں ، میں کسی کے راز ونیاز میں
Who am I to interfere in His Secrets and His Bestowing, how much to whom?
Another Sufi thought that I heard behind why the one who possesses all the knowledge and wisdom of the Universe since its Creation does not write is that it is simply a matter of love. If The Beloved (peace be upon him) did write, what he would write most is the word “Allah.” Since the pen would be above and the word written below it, it was not acceptable again in the realm of adab, regard.
Later in the year, I would read in the Tafseer e Jilani the explanation for the verse in which Allah Ar-Rafi’, The Elevating One, says to His Prophet (peace be upon him):
سَنُقْرِئُكَ فَلَا تَنسَىٰ
We shall teach you, O Muhammad (peace be upon you) and you will not forget (of what you have been taught).
Surah Al-A’la, Verse 6
Tafseer e Jilani: We will make you from Ourself a reader who watches and reads Our Revelations and Inspirations even though you are an Ummi’ for I created you to be above the norms of reading and writing. So you will memorize and safeguard all of it and you will express your gratitude continuously for it so that there will never be any lessening or addition or alteration to it.
End excerpt “The Softest Heart”
In any case, those who think of the angel Gibrael (as) as the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) teacher have not read the following hadith again invoking the same verse.
سَنُقْرِئُكَ فَلَا تَنسَىٰ
We shall teach you, O Muhammad (peace be upon you)
and you will not forget (of what you have been taught).
Surah Al-A’la, Verse 6
The exegesis of the verse in the Tafseer Ruh Al Bayan is as follows: When Gibrael (as) came to the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) with the verse of Surah Maryam and recited it, (the first verse being four letters of the Arabic language);
كهيعص
Kaf, Ha, Ya, 'Ayn, Sad.
Surah Maryam, Verse 1
the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “I know its meaning and intent.”
Gibrael (as) said, “Kaaf.”
The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “I know its meaning and intent.”
Gibrael (as) said, “Haa.”
The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “I know its meaning and intent.”
Gibrael (as) said, “Yaa.”
The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “I know its meaning and intent.”
Gibrael (as) said, “‘Ain.”
The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “I know its meaning and intent.”
Gibrael (as) said, “Suaad.”
The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) said, “I know its meaning and intent.”
Gibrael (as) said, “O Prophet of Allah (peace be upon you)! What majesty is this? I myself don't know the meaning of this and you know it.”
But nothing I had planned for the month came to pass. For starters Qari Sahib got Corona. That alone sent me into a tailspin. My ablutions became more intense. I couldn’t write anything. He is the one who helps me with my references. I need the original text which is in Arabic or Urdu books in his online archive. Then I always need to study and translate the tafaseer with him.
The second happening that threw a wrench into the desire of worship was my building outdoor table tennis tables in a local park in Lahore. It wasn’t just any park either. It was the Kohinoor of all 800 parks in the city; Bagh e Jinnah. I had pitched the idea to the PHA (Parks and Horticultural Authority) on April 10th. They had been extremely enthusiastic about it. Two weeks later on the 27th I presented them with my plan and another two weeks later, a day after Ramzan started, we broke ground.
I went to the site every day at 7:30 am and stayed there for hours. I didn’t know the first thing about construction so my input was zero. I sat there like a dummy. The contractor and other workers would say, “Baji, go home” but I stayed. I don’t know why. I felt like I should be there. It felt hotter because of the fast but the heat wasn’t unbearable. I don’t mind heat. If I was an animal I would be a camel. Still, by the time I got home in the afternoon I was exhausted. I would collapse on my bed with alarms ringing an hour later for other stuff I had to do. For the first time in years I barely had time to even check email once a day.
For the next three weeks, I was deeply immersed in all things worldly. I joked with a friend of mine that I didn’t have a single experience at the site that motivated me to write even a sentence. Otherwise if I traveled anywhere for just a weekend, a story emerged from within me. The whole experience was physically arduous. But the real test of the month was spiritual and it came totally out of the blue.
The best I can explain what happened is this; a ghost from my past appeared. That’s all it was; an apparition. I was supposed to stay still. That was the test, my reaction was being watched. Instead of remaining where I was and letting destiny play itself out, caving to impulse, I ran towards it and all hell broke loose. Maulana (ra) writes about it perfectly;
What you seek is seeking you.
When I run after what I believe I want,
my days are a furnace of stress and tension.
But if I sit in my own place of patience,
what I need flows to me itself, without any pain.
From this I understand that
what I am seeking is also seeking me
is looking for me and attracting me.
There is a great (Divine) Secret here
for those who can comprehend it.
The weird thing is I had successfully applied the principle in the past. Usually I waited and watched. Precisely because of the poem and obeying the instruction given in it in no uncertain terms. But for some reason my zahir and batin, overt and inner beings, were in acute separation.
In all my writing for years I have been using the words zahir and batin without knowing exactly what they meant. My understanding of the two words was limited to the zahir being my superficial intention and the batin my deeper, real intention. The first could sometimes be falsehood but the latter was always the truth. The first was rooted in the nafs, the latter in the qalb, the seat of recognition of God in the heart.
Since they were never aligned, I felt the dichotomy between them when nothing went according to expectation. I thought I would be doing things for one reason but they would be for entirely another! This time they were moving in polar opposite directions, ripping me apart in the process.
I had recently come across the definitions of both words from Hazrat Najmuddin Qubra (ra), an honored disciple of Ghaus Pak (ra) in the Tafseer e Jilani;
“Know that for each thing that exists in the Universe there is a zahir and a batin.
The different forms of zahir: Sometimes it is the jism, a mass, because it has a length and a width and a height so it takes space and can be split into parts. Sometimes zahir is the duniya, the world, because it comes from the root donow, which means becoming near. Therefore the world is called duniya because it is near ehsaas, our feelings.
Sometimes zahir is the surat, the face, because it has a form and it can be felt through the five senses. Sometimes zahir is the shahadat, witnessing, because through it something can be testified to. Sometimes zahir can be mulk, a kingdom, because it comes in an ownership and it can be controlled and made subordinate.
The different forms of batin: The batin of each and every thing is sometimes called roohaniyat, spirituality, because it has no length, width and depth that takes space and splits into parts. Sometimes batin is called akhirat, because akhirat means that which comes after. In terms of sensing something, the inner (batin) becomes known after the overt (zahir), hence batin is called that which comes in the end.
Sometimes batin is called ma’ana, essence or reality, because it does not have an apparent form and it cannot be felt physically. Sometimes it is called ghaib, unseen, because it is absent for the overt senses. Sometimes it is called malakut, the kingdom where there is no possession or control, but it is connected with the outer world.”
As soon as I ran after what I believed I wanted, my days became “a furnace of stress and tension.” And I knew exactly why. Prior to taking the misstep, I had done an istakahara to know how to behave in the situation and the verse that had come for me was this;
وَإِذَا قَرَأْتَ الْقُرْآنَ جَعَلْنَا بَيْنَكَ وَبَيْنَ الَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْآخِرَةِ حِجَابًا مَّسْتُورً
And when you recite the Quran, We place between you and between those who (do) not believe in the Hereafter a veil hidden.
Surah Al-Isra’, Verse 45
In the tafseer of the verse I read that Allah is saying that sometimes Nabi Kareem (peace be upon him) would be so deeply engrossed in reading the Quran, delving in its depths, searching for the pearls of benefits in Divine Commands, that he would forget about safeguarding himself from harm. Then Allah would, in order to protect him, from those who do not believe in the Afterlife, place a thick barrier between them and him as a veil. They would not be able to see him through that veil and therefore became unable to do him harm.
The only part of the verse that I felt was for me was the "veil." Allah had veiled me but in following my desire, I had ripped what was protecting me and exposed myself to a nightmare. For what, one might wonder? Nothing! Because when I did finally reach what I was chasing, it was literally nothing. The apparition disappeared like it was never even there but by then the veil was gone and for the first time in my life after decades, I felt alone. It was devastating because I live my life alone and have for a long time. But this was something else.
After that feeling came the real fruit of my disobedience; bitterness. I have been wayward most of my life yet never felt bitter. Or even felt punished. I realized then the difference was because in those days I was in the category of those who didn’t mean to be defiant.
ٱلَّذِينَ يَجْتَنِبُونَ كَبَـٰٓئِرَ ٱلْإِثْمِ وَٱلْفَوَٰحِشَ إِلَّا ٱللَّمَمَ ۚ
إِنَّ رَبَّكَ وَٰسِعُ ٱلْمَغْفِرَةِ ۚ
هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِكُمْ إِذْ أَنشَأَكُم مِّنَ ٱلْأَرْضِ وَإِذْ أَنتُمْ أَجِنَّةٌ فِى بُطُونِ أُمَّهَـٰتِكُمْ ۖ
فَلَا تُزَكُّوٓا۟ أَنفُسَكُمْ ۖ
هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَنِ ٱتَّقَىٰٓ
Those who avoid major sins and indecencies, except for minor lapses excepted.
Indeed, your Lord’s Forgiveness is vast.
He knows you well, ever since He created you from the earth and ever since you were embryos in your mothers’ wombs. So do not attest to your own virtues. He knows best as to who is conscious of Him.
Surah An-Najm, Verse 32
But knowing something, following it and then being disobedient, striving towards closeness with God and then turning away from Him, that had consequences unforeseen.
One might then ask, “So what is bitterness like?”
For me it was two things. First I became unable to be happy for someone else. Even when what happened to them was something I myself had wished for them for ages. Like this one friend of mine who called me and said there was shift in her marriage. For the better. After a decade of misery and anger flung around the house, trapping the spouses and the children in its ugly vortex. My reaction to the news was totally muted.
It was so unlike me I noticed it immediately. I didn’t say one positive thing to her. All that left my mouth was “You know you could have done this sooner.” And perhaps more strictly, “Obedience is the prerequisite for guidance” which is a fact but there was no need to say it. It was such a happy occasion. Instead of laughing with her about it and congratulating her, I was numb. Caught up in my feelings of misery. I was too busy gouging my soul.
روی نفس مطمئنه در جسد
زخم ناخنهای فکرت میکشد
Like nails, evil thoughts scratch the face of the Nafs e Mutmainna, your soul.
فکرت بد ناخن پر زهر دان
میخراشد در تعمق روی جان
Know that your wicked thoughts are as if dipped in poison.
Delving into them deeper only damages the face of the soul more.
I wonder if the reverse applied. Does bitterness prevent one from being able to feel another person’s sadness as well?
The other manifestation of the feeling for me was the appearance of badgumani, a word I had been unfamiliar with personally here to forth. It loosely translates as misunderstanding. For me it was the insertion of paranoia into my own heart by my own self, sowing seeds of mistrust and doubt about the sincerity of another person. Except when bitterness prevails, then the badgumani starts applying to everyone.
I have been on the receiving end of the emotion but not felt the emotion myself. Or if I had I couldn’t remember when it last happened. Without question, distrust is one of the heaviest, most negative feelings in the world. Being suspicious about others, second guessing their motive and intention, the whole thing was exhausting, both physically and mentally.
Taking that one step on my own made me feel more alone than when members of my family died in succession within months of each other. Because then I was under that veil. Difficulty ceased to exist or was always bearable. Then it would always pass.
In these days, I was reading Surah Al-An’am when I got the chance. When I reached the end, I came across a line that explained what was happening.
قُلْ أَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ أَبْغِي رَبًّا
وَهُوَ رَبُّ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ
وَهُوَ رَبُّ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَلَا تَكْسِبُ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ إِلَّا عَلَيْهَا
Say, “Why would I look for a lord other than God when He is the Lord of all things?”
Each soul is responsible for its own actions and no one bearer of burdens will bear the burdens of another.
Surah Al-An’am, Verse 164
Hazrat Najumiddin Kubra (ra) in the Tafseer e Jilani; “O you who is unaware! Why would I want anyone other than Allah when He is my Beloved and the lover never wants anyone else except their beloved. If the lover happens then to desire anything other, then Allah is still the Lord of each thing. When the Lord is mine, then the thing is also mine. Whereas if I embrace anyone or anything other than Him, I will never attain it. Even if I gain some goodness from it, it will eventually become a difficulty upon me.”
Subhan Allah!
Even when I wasn’t religious I had a relationship with Allah in which He protected me. Now when I look back at the hardest times, I see how I brought them all upon myself. But then I didn’t know how to behave. My E.Q. was zero. I was all bravado caught up in a repetition of patterns that continually deepened the grooves of my dysfunction.
I can’t say that through this experience I didn’t gain wisdom. Confucius’ promise finally came true; Wisdom can be gained through experience, as opposed to emulation which is easy or reflection, hard, but only with bitterness. I had never chosen “experience” before. I focus all my attention on the stress-free route; emulation.
Tafseer e Tustari: "Sahl (ra) was asked about the words of the Prophet , ‘Seeking knowledge is an obligation (farīḍa) for every Muslim’.
He said, ‘This refers to the knowledge of [one’s] state (ḥāl).’
He was asked, ‘What is the knowledge of [one’s] state?’
He replied: 'Inwardly it is sincerity (ikhlāṣ) and outwardly it is emulation (iqtidāʾ). Moreover, unless a person’s outward [self] (ẓāhir) is leading his inner [self] (bāṭin), and his inner self is the perfection (kamāl) of his outward self, he will merely be fatiguing his body.'"
I related to a friend of mine my experience of the week. She looked at me amazed.
“It sounds like magic.”
I didn’t understand what she meant.
“Magic?”
“Yes. For all that to happen in days. For you to realize what was happening so quickly. People live in that state for so long.”
I pondered upon her words. Then I realized at least one reason why I had been so quick to understand what was going on. At the end of the day what saved me was that I’m a wuss, an emotional weakling. I cannot bear or sustain emotional pressure for very long. I think it runs in my family.
My mother had weak nerves. She was prone to nervous breakdowns from a young age. She couldn’t sustain emotional pressure at all. Maybe that’s why she was married thrice during a time when a single divorce carried heavy stigma in society. Even her family, her father and brother, despite being from an extremely conservative feudal background, never forced her to stay in a situation that was unhappy for her. That made a huge impact on my life in terms of moulding my personal outlook. In my relationships, if I felt lovelessness making roots, I had no choice but to exit. Long-term facades were not happening for me.
In this case, my bitterness and badgumaani, my silent reproach, didn’t last more than four days. It was by far the worst four days of my life. Worse than the times I felt intense depression and couldn’t get out of bed for weeks. Because that was more self-pity than anything else. There was little recognition, much less admission, of any personal transgression.
This trial ended because I couldn’t stop crying about what I had done wrong. There it was again appearing as the savior; repentance. Who would have thought just feeling truly badly about doing something brought with it the heavenly ease of salvation.
I was reminded that one of Iblis’ favourite tactics of misguiding is not letting people admit their error and instead just buckling down obstinately on their position. I had heard a story in one of Uzair’s lectures that once Iblis came to Pharoah and said to him, “What is it that you think you have come to possess that you have claimed to be god? I have immeasurable knowledge and much more power than you but never have I even thought to make such a claim.”
His words alarmed Pharoah. He thought about it in the night and made a decision. The next day when Iblis came he said to him, “I have decided that I will continue everything as is. Do whatever I wish to whoever I want. But I will no longer call myself god.”
Iblis looked at him sorrowfully and said, “I think it’s too late for such a reversal. If you now say that, you will lose much more than your credibility. If I were you, I would now just continue as you have been.”
Strangely enough, a lot of clerics have the same attitude as well. I know of people who went to many in Lahore, one after another, looking for redemption, seeking forgiveness, wanting to express repentance, explore change and instead were told that it was too late. They were older in years so they heard the same thing Iblis said to Pharoah. “You're too far gone. You may as well just stay as you are.”
I recalled a hadith which I have otherwise only focused on again and again in my writing because of the first part; controlling the tongue. But there it was; redemption and deliverance lay in crying in recognition of a mistake.
عَنْ عُقْبَةَ بْنِ عَامِرٍ، قَالَ: قُلْتُ: يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ، مَا النَّجَاةُ؟
قَالَ: أَمْسِكْ عَلَيْكَ لِسَانَكَ وَلْيَسَعْكَ بَيْتُكَ وَابْكِ عَلَى خَطِيئَتِكَ
As narrated by Hazrat Uqba Bin Amir (ratu):
I asked, ”Ya Rasool Allah (peace be upon you)! Where lies salvation?”
He replied, “Keep your tongue in control, have your home capable of holding you and shed tears upon your mistakes.”
Then I remembered the line I had used in the video I had made for Maulana (ra) from the Masnavi;
تا نگرید ابر کے خندد چمن
تا نگرید طفل کے جوشد لبن
Till rain doesn’t fall from the clouds, the deadness of the earth remains.
Till the child doesn’t cry, the mother doesn’t nurse it.
گفت "ولیبکوا کثیرا " گوش دار
تا بریزد شیر فضل کردگار
And remember that Allah said, “they should weep a lot,”
so that the Mercy of God is showered upon them.
My test really ended when I wrote a letter to God. I told Him that I felt like I had been in a boat by myself, sailing blissfully through an ocean calm, then rowed myself into a vortex voluntarily. Now I needed help to get out of it because I was drowning with no end in sight. I wasn’t alive and I wasn’t dead. I wept and wept and invoked Nabi Kareem (peace be upon him) asking for forgiveness for the sake of His Beloved. That is when feeling of being distraught dissipated and I felt calm.
And thus I returned under the veil. I started feeling like myself again. The hardness of my heart cracked. I wrote to my friend whose marriage was changing and told her how elated I was for her. I felt happy. I sang out loud and twirled around in my room.
In the days after when someone I loved disappointed me, I noticed my reaction became different. Before I would be irritated for sure, even if I was able to exercise silence and not react. My heart thought badly of them because what they did was unprovoked and clearly unfair.
Now, though, having taken a ride on the train that they were spending most of their time on in their present, I didn’t think of them negatively. I would just stare at them and think how it was exactly like how I had been feeling and behaving. Perhaps there was no other way for me to soften my stance towards them without being exactly the same as them.
Later I thought about what happened deeply. I wondered why I had regressed so badly after so long. After all that blissful while that I had sat in my place of not wanting anything and seeing what I needed flow to me. A thought occurred to me. I had been brandishing my latest video as my “masterpiece.” There was a line in it that went a little something like this; whatever you pursue and make your destiny, the striving for it will not let you have any peace in your life.
No wonder Nabi Pak (peace be upon him) and all the Auliya Karam in his emulation, prayed fervently for their free will to be taken from them forever.
اللَّهُمَّ رَحْمَتَكَ أَرْجُو فَلَا تَكِلْنِي إِلَى نَفْسِي طَرْفَةَ عَيْنٍ
وَأَصْلِحْ لِي شَأْنِي كُلَّهُ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَا أَنْتَ
The most honored Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him) said, “O Allah, it is Your mercy that I hope for so do not leave me in charge of my affairs even for a blink of an eye and rectify for me all of my affairs.
None has the right to be worshiped except You.
Even for a blink of an eye!
I wondered with sadness what would happen to the ensuing generations who can’t seem do anything except what they want, when they want, impatient for full charge of their affairs as early as possible.
The “veil” I keep referring to is in fact the prize of surrendering one’s free will. Submerging one’s wishes into the irada, Will, of Allah and following that lead.
Ghaus Pak (ra) in Al-Fath Ar-Rabbani; “When the possibility of rejecting destiny, changing it, erasing it, going against it doesn’t exist, then why do you make a will contradicting Allah’s Will? When only that reaches you which He wills, then you should not want anything at all yourself. And when that cannot happen which He does not wish for you, then don’t put your nafs and your qalb, your self and your heart within the heart, in baseless difficulty by desiring it.
Surrender everything to your Lord. Turn your focus towards Him and with the hand of repentance hold on to His Mercy. Then you will always be in the state when bearing all the hardships of the world will become easy. Leaving desires and lusts will become easy and you will not complain about it and you will not be stung by it.”
I guess in that state then it doesn’t matter what comes one’s way. If it is happiness one is grateful. If it’s sadness, one is patient while not thinking of the ordeal as difficult and not wanting it to end. And if it happens to be humiliation, then even that has its upside most supreme.
Hazrat Bayazid Bastami (ra) sought His Lord for 40 years.
“I tried everything I knew to find My Lord but I did not find Him. Finally one night, during Tahajjud, I went into sajda (prostration) and continuously wept. And I said to Him;
ما وجدت شياء يتقرب به اليه تعالى إذ رأيت كل نعمت يتقرب به للا لوهية فيه مدخل
“I did not find anything that drew me closer to my Lord when I saw that all blessings that create closeness to Allah have, in them, some distortion."
فقلت يا رب بماذا أتقرب إليك؟
So I said, “O Lord! By what do I come closer to You?”
That night was the first time I heard The Voice and He said to me;
تقرب الي بما ليس لي
“Come towards Me with that which is not Mine and not for Me.”
I was astonished by the words and I asked;
ما الذي ليس لك يا رب
“What is there in this Universe that is not You and not for You?”
He said;
الذلة و الافتقار
“Humiliation and humility."
When I first heard the story I couldn’t get over the first word; humiliation. But there is a difference between humiliation borne for the self and the zillat borne for Allah’s Sake. In the first, which is part of everyone’s life in one relationship or another, there is martyrdom, then self-righteousness and almost always a limit of tolerance.
When crossed one explodes and retreats, sometimes forever. Or stays and repeats the cycle becoming even harder than before. In the second, there is surrender to Divine Will and therefore infinite patience even when the pain is intense. That is gifted for the chosen few who know that the source of all things is only God.
I learnt from Ghaus Pak (ra) the reason to lend understanding to anyone who is overtly doing something wrong.
“For example, when you see someone who doesn’t pray, then you tell them to do so because it is the command of the Sharia’ but understand that in the Knowledge of Allah, if the person had been written as a Namazi, the one who says their prayers, then for sure they would have done so. But they are ma’zoor i.e. they are excused because no one has the ability to go against their taqdeer, their ordained destiny.
So in this way, when they were not able to listen and obey to advice and orders and instruction, whether it was given gently or firmly, then in the rank of your own knowledge, know that they are ma’zoor, not accepting guidance, so don’t become prideful on your own deeds (for having been granted ability) and stay firm in your belief of having been chosen.”
The read, which was actually a footnote, was a remarkable find for me who has trouble not interfering in other people’s spiritual journeys. Again it was about surrender! Except this time it’s not for one’s own self but in the acceptance of the journey of another. That if it is incongruent to one’s own, it’s ok.
Qari Sahib explained it wonderfully. “Think of it like the Azaan,” he said. “Some come to pray, others don’t and the call of the Azaan continues.”
And of course there was a reference from the Quran. The verse was different because in it Allah has Nabi Kareem (peace be upon him) address not the Muslims but every single human being.
قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ قَدْ جَاءَكُمُ الْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّكُمْ
فَمَنِ اهْتَدَىٰ فَإِنَّمَا يَهْتَدِي لِنَفْسِهِ
وَمَن ضَلَّ فَإِنَّمَا يَضِلُّ عَلَيْهَا
وَمَا أَنَا عَلَيْكُم بِوَكِيل
Say, “O Mankind! The Truth has come to you from your Lord.
Whoever chooses to follow the path of guidance, it is for his own good. And whoever chooses to go astray, does so to his own loss. I am not responsible for your conduct."
Surah Yunus, Verse 108
Funnily enough is the hard thing was supposed to be the tables in the park. Everything about the execution of the project was unknown to me. We were doing something for the first time. There was nothing but X factors from start to finish. But for that Qari Sahib had me read two nafal on Day One surrendering everything to Allah and Nabi Pak (peace be upon him). After that even when things seemingly didn’t go right, I didn’t feel bad or angry or worried. Everything about it was fine with me.
In the end everything is in a balance whether we see that or not. Everything is placed in the place it deserves to be placed in; that is the classical definition of adl, justice. Each single thing is held accountable for its own actions. Even inside the same person different parts, like the nafs and the qalb, cannot be blamed for one another.
Hazrat Najmuddin Kubra (ra) in the Tafseer e Jilani; “By its nature, the ease and satisfaction of the nafs lies in the world and its artificial and false adornments. The nafs desires the opposite of that which is commanded by God and this is what becomes its burden. In this state, it travels towards the most base of ranks and none other than the nafs can carry the weight of its weakness.
The qalb will not be held accountable or answerable for the encumbrances of the nafs as long as it is safeguarded from the regretful negativity of the nafs and possesses the light of imaan, faith. For in the intrinsic nature of the qalb is placed the love and desire of Allah.
Only when the qalb follows the nafs does Allah, in His Wrath, make the two equal. In this case, the mirror of the qalb becomes rusted by the habits and attributes of the nafs. When the qalb follows in the footsteps of the desires of the nafs and becomes trapped by its lusts, it loses its original intended purpose.
By Allah’s Command it was supposed to be the seat of taharat (purity), safa (cleansing), salamati (peace), zikr (remembrance), fikar (reflection), tauheed (One-ness), imaan (faith), tawakul (reliance), sidq (truth), ikhlas (sincerity) and bandagi (obedience). When it rejected this Command and fell into waywardness, it became liable for the burden of its sins.
Just as Allah has said;
كَلَّا بَلْ رَانَ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِم مَّا كَانُوا يَكْسِبُون
Nay! But, their hearts have been corroded by what they do (earn).”
Surah Al-Mutaffifin, Verse 14
In my 30s I used to say to people if there was something that wiped the slate clean, no matter what someone did before, it was marriage. In my 50s, I learn repentance does the same. Within that it’s one thing when someone apologizes for something and entirely another when they do so with tears. It’s unlikely I will ever know the feeling of being the vice-regent of Allah on Earth, having been “created in the best mould” but this Ramzan I certainly experienced the asfala safileen, the depths of despair;
ثُمَّ رَدَدْنَاهُ أَسْفَلَ سَافِلِين
Then We returned him to the lowest of the low.
Surah At-Teen, Verse 5
Tafseer e Jilani; “Because of their own misdeeds, when Our Will decided it, we deprived Man from his highly exalted status and relegated him to the lowest of states where his fulfillment, desires and hopes are tied to the world.”
Still in the last ashara’, last 10 days of the month, which is exclusively for escape from the fires of Hell, I experienced Allah as Al-Ghafoor and Al-Wadood.
وَهُوَ الْغَفُورُ الْوَدُود
And He is Oft-Forgiving, the Most Loving.
Surah Al-Burooj, Verse 14
Tafseer e Jilani; “He is bound by His Mercy to be the Forgiver and The One who hides sins. He erases the sins of those who repent with sincerity and become obedient, no matter what the sins are, in number or type. He loves the repentance of the sinner who asks for forgiveness with sincerity. When they plead before Him, when they are bent in fear and shame, when they are regretful of their sins, that ask for forgiveness is beloved to Him.
In the end, I felt sad that on the 27th of Ramzan I was not able to post the piece on the Quran that I had intended. Qari Sahib was still not well. Still we managed a phone call and I discussed some of my translations for this writing. Instead, I read the Quran. It so happened that I reached the last verse of Surah Al-An’am.
وَهُوَ الَّذِي جَعَلَكُمْ خَلَائِفَ الْأَرْضِ
وَرَفَعَ بَعْضَكُمْ فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ دَرَجَاتٍ لِّيَبْلُوَكُمْ فِي مَا آتَاكُمْ
إِنَّ رَبَّكَ سَرِيعُ الْعِقَابِ
وَإِنَّهُ لَغَفُورٌ رَّحِيم
It is He who has made you His Vice-regent on this Earth and has raised some of you in rank above others so that He might test you by means of what He has given you.
Your Lord is swift in punishment but He is also forgiving and Merciful to all.
My eyes read the tafseer of the verse and wept as I translated it, the words piercing my heart.
وَهُوَ الَّذِي جَعَلَكُمْ خَلَائِفَ الْأَرْضِ
“It is God who has sent you as His Appointee on this Earth as the one who is able to become the reflection of His Attributes.
وَرَفَعَ بَعْضَكُمْ فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ دَرَجَاتٍ
In gaining those Attributes He has made given some of you preference over others.
لِّيَبْلُوَكُمْ فِي مَا آتَاكُمْ
So you will be tested on the capabilities and strengths that were bestowed upon you to see if you are using them to consummate the purpose of your creation or for other means.
إِنَّ رَبَّكَ سَرِيعُ الْعِقَابِ
The one who destroys their natural ability without purpose will be punished swiftly.
وَإِنَّهُ لَغَفُورٌ رَّحِيم
Similarly, the one who heeds advice and seeks forgiveness and makes the intent to come towards the right path through repentance will find that Allah is Benevolent towards them.”
The road towards Tauheed, the One-ness of Allah, is paved with the dying of the will. Over and over, again and again. This Ramzan I learnt that quite literally. I experienced Hell but for an instant and it was unbearable. Prayers I uttered entirely in obedience to Nabi Kareem (peace be upon him), copying his words exactly, saved me from myself. The one that became my favourite was this;
قُلْ إِنَّ صَلَاتِي وَنُسُكِي وَمَحْيَايَ وَمَمَاتِي لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِين
Say, O Beloved (peace be upon you), "Indeed, my prayer and worship, and my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the worlds.”
The words were so intense I had to look up Ghaus Pak’s (ra) tafseer of it.
Tafseer e Jilani: “Oh Messenger who completes prophet-hood, who is the reflection of the essence of Allah’s Tauheed, One-ness, say, while entrusting your entire affairs and all that which is happening with you and by you to your Lord, “Indeed, the inclination of all my organs and parts, my entire being (zahir and batin) and all my worship, which is the means of my gaining closeness and connection with my Lord in my life in this world and the Hereafter, are only and only for Allah, The One who is The Controller of all His Kingdoms by His Will in every aspect, for everything belongs to Him and He is the Lord of all the Worlds.”
It was a comforting relief for me to discover that which I love cannot become detestable to me. A feeling my nature considers sweet is not susceptible to change. The apparition was not my enemy. I did not have to dislike it if I loved it. My "sin" was my lunging towards it for the umpteenth time instead of patiently standing where I was and letting the ghost play its test out, whatever it was. After all, it appeared for a reason.
At each point in the journey when one stumbles, hope appears. If one is attached to those who stand at the destination as a result of being guided by Allah's Beloved (peace be upon him), there is always a beckoning from them to get up and move forward. There is no prolonged self-pity. There is no extended distress.
Ghaus Pak (ra) says that the batin is the bird, the qalb its cage. The qalb a bird, the body its cage. The body a bird, the grave its cage. The grave is the cage for all creation that everyone has to enter. Before that dying come a thousand deaths for the seeker. And as I learnt, a thousand lives. Only through each does one edge towards fulfillment of purpose.
Sahel Tustari (ra): "The heart has a thousand deaths, of which the ultimate is being cut off (qaṭīʿa) from God, Mighty and Majestic is He; and the heart has a thousand lives, of which the ultimate is the encounter (liqāʾ) with God, Mighty and Majestic is He. Furthermore, with each sinful act the heart undergoes a death, and with each act of obedience it receives [new] life."
That Allah is His Infinite Generosity offers vice-regency to all human beings astonishes me. Even acquiring a single attribute of The Divine seems invisibly far. The hand of repentance, however, that reaches His Mercy via Nabi Kareem (peace be upon him) brings everything in one's reach. Fresh starts, clean slates, new choices, different endings. In every moment, in every day. In the end, inspired by the hadith Qudsi I have learnt recently, I will find myself to be only that which I think I am.
Tafseer e Tustari: "Hazrat Sahel (ra) said: Struggle against your lower self with the sword of opposition! Place upon its [back] the burdens of remorse (nadam), and guide it through the desert plains of fear (khawf), so that you may turn it back to the path of repentance (tawba) and contrition (ināba). Repentance is not acceptable except from one who feels perplexed at his plight, grief-stricken at this situation, and confounded in his heart at what has happened to him."
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Day of Ashura (Arabic: عاشوراء ʻĀshūrā’, Ashura, Ashoura, and other spellings; Turkish: Aşure Günü) is on the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar and marks the climax of the Remembrance of Muharram.
It is commemorated by Shia Muslims as a day of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala on 10 Muharram in the year 61 AH (October 2, 680 CE).[2] According to Sunni Muslim tradition, Muhammad fasted on this day and asked other people to fast.[3][4] Sunni Muslims also remember the day claiming that Moses fasted on that day to express gratitude to God for liberating the Israelites from Egypt.
In some shia regions of Muslim countries such as Albania, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Lebanon, and Bahrain, the Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali has become a national holiday and most ethnic and religious communities participate in it. Even in predominantly Hindu country like India, Ashura (often called Moharram) is a public holiday.
The root for the word ashura has the meaning of tenth in Semitic languages; hence the name of the remembrance, literally translated, means "the tenth day". According to the orientalist A.J. Wensinck, the name is derived from the Hebrew ʿāsōr, with the Aramaic determinative ending.[5] The day is indeed the tenth day of the month, although some Islamic scholars offer up different etymologies.
In his book Ghuniyatut Talibin, Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani writes that the Islamic scholars have a difference of opinion as to why this day is known as Ashura, with some scholars suggesting that this day is the tenth most important day that God has blessed Muslims with.[citation needed]
his day is well-known because of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad and the third Shia Imam, along with members of his family and close friends at the Battle of Karbala in the year 61 AH (680 CE). Yazid I was in power then and wanted the Bay'ah (allegiance) of Husayn ibn Ali. Muslims believe Yazid was openly going against the teachings of Islam in public and changing the sunnah of Muhammad.[6][6][7]
Husayn in his path toward Kufa encountered the army of Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad, the governor of Kufa. On October 10, 680 (Muharram 10, 61 AH), he and his small group of companions and family members, who were between 72 men [8][9] fought with a large army of perhaps more than 100,000 men under the command of Umar ibn Sa'ad, son of the founder of Kufa. Husayn and all of his men were killed. Before he died, he said "if the religion of Mohammad was not going to live on except with me dead, let the swords tear me to pieces."[10][unreliable source?]. Some of the bodies of the dead, including that of Husayn, were then mutilated.[2]
Commemoration for Husayn ibn Ali began after the Battle of Karbala. After the massacre, the Umayyad army looted Husayn's camp and set off with his women and children for the court of Ibn Ziyad. A moving oration delivered by Zaynab in Kufa is recorded in some sources. The prisoners were next sent to the court of Yazid, Umayyad caliph, in Damascus, where one of his Syrian followers asked for Husayn's daughter Faṭimah al-Kubra, and once again it was Zaynab who came to the rescue and protected her honour. The family remained in Yazid's prison for a time. The first assembly (majlis) of Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali is said to have been held by Zaynab in prison. In Damascus, too, she is reported to have delivered a poignant oration. The prison sentence ended when Husayn's 3 year old daughter, Janabe Rukaiyya, died in captivity, unaware of her father's martyrdom. She often cried in prison to be allowed to see her father. She is believed to have passed away when she saw her fathers mutilated head. Her death caused an uproar in the city, and Yazid, fearful of a potential resulting revolution, freed the captives.[11]
"Zaynab bint Ali quoted as she passed the prostrate body of her brother, Husayn. " O Muhammad! O Muhammad! May the angels of heaven bless you. Here is Husayn in the open, stained with blood and with limbs torn off. O Muhammad! Your daughters are prisoners, your progeny are killed, and the east wind blows dust over them." By God! She made every enemy and friend weep."
Tabari, History of the Prophets and Kings, Volume XIX The Caliphate of Yazid.[12]
Husayn's grave became a pilgrimage site among Shi'a only a few years after his death. A tradition of pilgrimage to the Imam Husayn Shrine and the other Karbala martyrs quickly developed, which is known as Ziarat Ashura.[13] The Umayyad and Abbasid caliphs tried to prevent construction of the shrines and discouraged pilgrimage to the sites.[14] The tomb and its annexes were destroyed by the Abbasid caliph Al-Mutawakkil in 850-851 and Shi'a pilgrimage was prohibited, but shrines in Karbala and Najaf were built by the Buwayhid emir 'Adud al-Daula in 979-80.[15]
Public rites of remembrance for Husayn's martyrdom developed from the early pilgrimages[citation needed]. Under the Buyid dynasty, Mu'izz ad-Dawla officiated at public commemoration of Ashura in Baghdad[citation needed]. These commemorations were also encouraged in Egypt by the Fatimid caliph al-'Aziz[citation needed]. From Seljuq times[citation needed], Ashura rituals began to attract participants from a variety of backgrounds, including Sunnis[citation needed]. With the recognition of Twelvers as the official religion by the Safavids, Mourning of Muharram extended throughout the first ten days of Muharram.[13]
[edit] Significance of Ashura for Shi'a Muslims
Taziya procession carried out by Shiite Muslims in Indian town of Hallaur on the Day of Ashura.
Shi'a devotees congregate outside the Sydney Opera House, Australia to commemorate Husayn.
This day is of particular significance to Shi'a and Alawite Muslims, who consider Husayn (the grandson of Muhamad) Ahl al-Bayt the third Imam and the rightful successor of Muhammad. Shi'as make pilgrimages on Ashura, as they do forty days later on Arba'een, to the Mashhad al-Husayn, the shrine in Karbala, Iraq that is traditionally held to be Husayn's tomb. On this day Shi'a are in remembrance, and mourning attire is worn. They refrain from music, since Arabic culture generally considers music impolite during death rituals. It is a time for sorrow and respect of the person's passing, and it is also a time for self-reflection, when one commits oneself to the mourning of the Husayn completely. Weddings and parties are also never planned on this date by Shi'as. Shi'as also express mourning by crying and listening to poems about the tragedy and sermons on how Husayn and his family were martyred. This is intended to connect them with Husayn's suffering and martyrdom, and the sacrifices he made to keep Islam alive. Husayn's martyrdom is widely interpreted by Shi'a as a symbol of the struggle against injustice, tyranny, and oppression.[16]
Shi'a Muslims in Malir, Pakistan performing zanjeer--ritual flagellation.
Shi'as believe the Battle of Karbala was between the forces of good and evil with Husayn representing good while Yazid represented evil. Shi'as also believe the Battle of Karbala was fought to keep the Muslim religion untainted of any corruptions and they believed the path that Yazid was directing Islam was definitely for his own personal greed.[citation needed]
Shia Imams strongly insist that the day of Ashura should not be taken as a day of joy and festivity. According to a hadith which is reported from Ali some people fabricated a hadith claiming it was on that day the God forgave Adam, Noah's Ark rested on dry land, The Israelites were saved from Pharaoh's army, etc. The day of Ashura, according to Eighth Shia Imam, Ali al-Rida, must be observed as a day of inactivity, sorrow and total disregard of worldly cares.[17]
Some of the events associated with Ashura are held in special congregation halls known as "Imambargah" and Hussainia.[citation needed]
As suffering and cutting the body with knives or chains (matam) have been prohibited by Shi'a marjas like Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader of Iran,[18] some Shi'a observe mourning with blood donation which is called "Qame Zani"[18] and flailing.[19] Yet some Shi'ite men and boys, considered heretics by some Muslim scholars, slash themselves with razors (zanjeer) or swords (talwar) and allow their blood to run freely.[19]
Certain rituals like the traditional flagellation ritual called Talwar zani (talwar ka matam or sometimes tatbir) using a sword or zanjeer zani or zanjeer matam, involving the use of a zanjeer (a chain with blades) are also performed.[20] These are religious customs that show solidarity with Husayn and his family. People mourn the fact that they were not present at the battle to fight and save Husayn and his family.[21][22]
Shia commonly believe that taking part in Ashura is to be absolved of sin[citation needed]. A popular Shia saying has it that, `a single tear shed for Husayn washes away a hundred sins.`[23]
For Shi'as, commemoration of Ashura is not a festival, but rather a sad event, while Sunni Muslims view it as a victory God has given to his prophet, Moses. This victory is the very reason, as Sunni Muslims believe, Muhammad mentioned when recommending fasting on this day. For Shi'as, it is a period of intense grief and mourning. Mourners, congregate at a Mosque for sorrowful, poetic recitations such as marsiya, noha, latmiya and soaz performed in memory of the martyrdom of Husayn, lamenting and grieving to the tune of beating drums and chants of "Ya Hussain." Also Ulamas give sermons with themes of Husayn's personality and position in Islam, and the history of his uprising. The Sheikh of the mosque retells the Battle of Karbala to allow the listeners to relive the pain and sorrow endured by Husayn and his family. In Arab countries like Iraq and Lebanon they read Maqtal Al-Husayn. In some places, such as Iran, Iraq and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf, Ta'zieh, passion plays, are also performed reenacting the Battle of Karbala and the suffering and martyrdom of Husayn at the hands of Yazid.[citation needed]
Tabuiks being lowered in to the sea in Pariaman, Indonesia, by Shia Muslims.
For the duration of the remembrance, it is customary for mosques and some people to provide free meals (Niazz) on certain nights of the month to all people[citation needed]. People donate food and Middle Eastern sweets to the mosque[citation needed]. These meals are viewed as being special and holy, as they have been consecrated in the name of Husayn, and thus partaking of them is considered an act of communion with God, Hussain, and humanity.[citation needed]
Participants congregate in public processions for ceremonial chest beating (matham/latmiya) as a display of their devotion to Husayn, in remembrance of his suffering and to preach that oppression will not last in the face of truth and justice.[24] Others pay tribute to the time period by holding a Majilis, Surahs from the Quran and Maqtal Al-Husayn are read.
Today in Indonesia, the event is known as Tabuik (Minangkabau language) or Tabut (Indonesian). Tabuik is the local manifestation of the Shi'a Muslim Remembrance of Muharram among the Minangkabau people in the coastal regions of West Sumatra, particularly in the city of Pariaman. The festival includes reenactments of the Battle of Karbala, and the playing of tassa and dhol drums.[citation needed]
In countries like Turkey, there is the custom of eating Noah's Pudding (Ashure) as this day in Turkish is known as Aşure.
[edit] Commemoration of Husayn ibn Ali by non-Muslims
A tadjah at Hosay in Port of Spain during the 1950s
In some countries other religious communities commemorate this event.
In Trinidad and Tobago[25] and Jamaica[26] all ethnic and religious communities participate in this event, locally known as "Hosay" or "Hussay", from "Husayn".
The Sunni and Shi'a schism is highlighted by the difference in observance by Sunni and Shi'a Muslims. The violence is perpetrated by extremists. In countries that have significant populations of both sects, there is often violence during the holiday.
On June 20, 1994 the explosion of a bomb in a prayer hall of Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad[35] killed at least 25 people.[36] The Iranian government officially blamed Mujahedin-e-Khalq for the incident to avoid sectarian conflict between Shias and Sunnis.[37] However, the Pakistani daily The News International reported on March 27, 1995, "Pakistani investigators have identified a 24-year-old religious fanatic Abdul Shakoor residing in Lyari in Karachi, as an important Pakistani associate of Ramzi Yousef. Abdul Shakoor had intimate contacts with Ramzi Ahmed Yousef and was responsible for the June 20, 1994, massive bomb explosion at the shrine Imam Ali Reza in Mashhad."[38]
The 2004 (1425 AH) Shi'a pilgrimage to Karbala, the first since Saddam Hussein was removed from power in Iraq, was marred by bomb attacks, which killed and wounded hundreds despite tight security.
On January 19, 2008, 7 million Iraqi Shia pilgrims marched through Karbala city, Iraq to commemorate Ashura. 20,000 Iraqi troops and police guarded the event amid tensions due to clashes between Iraqi troops and members of a Shia cult, the Soldiers of Heaven, which left around 263 people dead (in Basra and Nasiriya).[39]
On December 27, 2009, tens of thousands of opposition protesters in Iran demonstrated in conjunction with the day of Ashura. Clashes between anti-riot forces and demonstrators occurred in several Iranian cities. Among others, the nephew of the opposition leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi was killed.[40]
On December 28, 2009, dozens of people were killed and hundreds injured (including both Shia and Sunni commemorators) during the Ashura procession when a massive bomb exploded at the procession in Karachi, Pakistan (See: 2009 Karachi bombing). Reuters[41]
On December 15, 2010, 200 Shia followers were detained by the Selangor Islamic Department (JAIS) in a raid at a shop house in Sri Gombak known as Hauzah Imam Ali ar-Ridha (Hauzah ArRidha). According to the Selangor Mufti's fatwa, Shiisme is considered a deviant from Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jamaah or Sunni as some of its teachings contradict from aqidah and syariah views of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah. Khusrin said all those who were detained will be charged under Section 12 © of the Selangor Syariah Criminal Enactment 1995 which are insulting, rejecting, or dispute the violation of the instructions set out and given a fatwa by the religious authorities. ABNA[42]
[edit] Ashura in the Gregorian calendar