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Fortnightly Newsletter |
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Compiled by: Azeem Ayub |
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| Reflection | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In the Name of Allah, |
Courage Courage is an enviable trait. It is also elusive because mustering courage requires courage. Instances which call for courage abound:
Courage is needed not only to speak the truth but also to support the weak who speak the truth; Courage is also required to point out the faults of loved ones whose anger we fear; Courage is also needed to admit one’s faults; without courage we cannot say no to questions we have no answer to and without courage we cannot ask questions we are afraid to ask and which may open up new knowledge frontiers for us; Facing the trials of life requires courage; Forgiving others also needs courage; To never give up in the face of adversity also requires a captain courageous; Saying no to commitments we very well know we will not be able to honour also needs courage; Refraining from venting anger on the weak asks for loads of courage;
Finally, most feats of physical courage spring from the moral courage within.
If courage is elusive and the instances to exercise it also are plentiful, how can we then acquire this enviable trait? Some measures may be helpful in this regard.
1. The opposite of courage is fear and if we want to be courageous we need to conquer our fears. Perhaps the greatest way of conquering our fears is to fear God alone and make other fears subservient to His fear. If the love of God and love of the cause of God take root in us, if the love of the truth is more than the love of any other thing and if we ourselves try to be honest and morally upright, this will hopefully instill courage in us.
2. We should also look for people in our society who are courageous. If possible we should befriend such individuals and seek their company. It is a common experience that a person s gets inspired by remaining near such people. Every now and then, even in our own society and surroundings, we do get to know of such people. It is only a question of remaining on the lookout for such individuals.
3. We should also try to gather anecdotes of people of the past which reflect courage. One receives motivation from such tales. We know that there were people in the past who stood up to and never gave up even when faced with repeated adversity. They wrote tales of courage from the way they led their lives. People like Malik ibn Anas and Ibn Taymiyah, Ahmad ibn Hanbal and Shah Wali Ullah, Socrates and Galileo were nothing but courage personified. They adhered diligently to the views they held correct and no amount of persecution could waver them from their stance.
Author: Dr Shehzad Saleem
URL: http://www.monthly-renaissance.com/issue/content.aspx?id=1300
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In this Issue |
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Reflections
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Read & Reflect
* The Real
Responsibility |
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Debate & Discuss
Express & Explain
Pause & Ponder:
Announcements
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| Read and Reflect: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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God commands you to hand back trusts to their rightful owners and to always pass judgement upon men with fairness. Verily this is from God an excellent admonition. For God is He who hears and sees all things. (4:58)
A look at the context of the above mentioned verse shows that it is related to the state. It says that the real responsibility of an Islamic State is to strive to establish justice in its ultimate form at every level. My mentor Amīn Ahsān Islāhī comments on this verse in the following words:
This is a delineation of the most important aspect of the trust referred to as well as an explanation of the responsibility attached to political authority. The foremost responsibility of the people who are blessed with political authority by the Almighty is that they should decide all disputes that arise among their people with justice and fairness. There should be no difference in the eyes of the law between the various classes of the society like the rich and the poor, the high and the low. Justice should not become a commodity that can be bought or sold. Partiality and bias should not creep into it nor should indifference and apathy arise in dispensing it. No power or influence, greed or fear of any kind should affect it in any way.
Whoever in this world are blessed with political authority by the Almighty are done so that they may discharge justice. Therefore, this is the primary responsibility. A just ruler will receive great reward from the Almighty, and an unjust will be punished grievously [on the Day of Judgement]. Consequently, the verse says that this is an excellent admonition from the Almighty to the believers, who, therefore, must not show slackness in following it. The attributes of the Almighty mentioned at the end of the verse caution us that even the most concealed injustice is in His knowledge. (Amīn Ahsan Islāhī, Tadabbur-i-Qur’ān, 5th ed., vol. 2, [Lahore: Faran Foundation, 1994], p. 323)
It is to this responsibility that the Companions of the Prophet (sws) referred to when they launched an offensive on the Roman and the Persian empires. They proclaimed to the world that whoever among the people wanted, he could leave the servitude of man by entering into the servitude of Allah, and whoever among them wanted he could leave the narrowness of this world and enter into its vastness and whoever among them wanted he could leave the oppression of various religions and enter into the folds of Islam to get justice1.
The Prophet (sws) on this very basis insisted that a person who has greed for a public office should never be considered eligible for it, since justice cannot be expected from such a person. He is reported to have said:
By God! we shall not grant any person a post in this system who asks for it and has greed for it. (Muslim, Kitābu’l-Imārah)
The Prophet (sws) also warned his companions to fear Allah in such matters and never ask for a public office:
Do not seek a post. If it is granted to you because of your desire you shall [find yourself] being handed over to it, and if it is granted to you without your desire, the Almighty shall help you. (Muslim, Kitābu’l-Imārah)
Consequently, history bears witness that in order to establish justice, the Rightly Guided Caliphs always kept their doors open for criticism and for petitions and appeals from the public, adopted the lifestyle of the destitute to the extent that they even wore patched-up clothes and administered their realms with utmost simplicity and austerity. In short, the heavens and the earth bore witness that they lived among the masses like the masses and for the masses: they were like kings even in indigence and princes even in poverty. _______________
1.Tabarī, Tārīkhu’l-umam wa al-Malūk, 2nd ed., vol. 4 [Beirut: Dāru’l-Fikr, 1979 ], p.107.
URL: http://www.monthly-renaissance.com/issue/content.aspx?id=705
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| Debate and Discuss: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Course
ihsan In module 1, there is not mention of shaking hands when greeting others. Is this also considered part of the sunnah also?
Jhangeer Hanif (Moderator) Shaking hands is a cultural practice and does not have a religious significance attached to it. In other words, shaking hands does not have the status of Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (sws). Nevertheless, I find myself appreciating it as a cultural practice since it portrays warmth and friendly connection in your relationships. We must know that Allah and His Prophet (sws) has left many traditions to the discretion of the Muslims. It does not mean that such traditions are worthless.
ihsan
One of the reasons I brought this particular
point up is because, from my experience with various Muslim countries, their
greetings incorporate the taslim, along with their own respective cultural
traditions. For example, in UAE, the men touch their noses together, and in
other countries, they may kiss the cheeks three times. So what do you think of these varying practices? Can you tell me what criteria should be applied to determine the appropriateness of cultural practices?
ihsan I believe that these cultural practices are expressions of human nature and make things more "exciting". All societies, even those that have similar religious traditions, have unique practices. I would think such practices fall under the verses "We have gathered you into tribes and nations so that you may come to know one another."
In terms of criteria in accepting them, then, in
my view, they should not entail:
falumujib
Assalaamu Alaikkum
The Holy Prophet (sws) prescribed the words 'Assalamu
alaykum' for the time when two persons meet. As he explained, the best way to
initiate your dialogue is to first send the blessings upon the other person. When I found out what 'Assalamu alaykum' meant I truly felt it in my heart. After years of being brought up in a Catholic church, I had never had anyone say something so sweet to me.
Yes, it is the most beautiful supplication that we make for each other.
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| Express and Explain: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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rimsoo:
[29: 45]:
Surely prayer keeps (one) away from indecency and evil.
ibrahim (Moderator):
No, it does
not mean. This Verse Just means that the Prayer has the Potential to do So
Provided it is offered in the best possible way.
rimsoo:
I am very
much grateful to brother ibrahim for your kind reply!
waseem:
023.1-5
See:
http://www.studying-islam.org/forum/topic.aspx?topicid=2599&lang=&forumid=1
return to the top ^ |
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| Pause and Ponder: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Significance of the Worldly Life
Question:
Answer: The truth of the matter is that we are expected to earn our rewards for the Hereafter from this very life. That would require us to get involved not only in ibadat but also in ‘‘mundane worldly affairs’’. However, in the case of the latter activities, we are expected to abide by the rules laid down by Islam. Thus if we carry out our worldly obligations in accordance with the injunctions and the spirit of Islamic shari‘ah, we will be leading a fully akhirah-oriented life. As for the question of how an individual should allocate his time for various possible engagements that would enable him to get the best results (from the point of view of the afterlife), there can be no one answer for everyone. It depends on many factors: one’s circumstances, abilities, and natural inclinations. However, whatever one does, one should be obsessed with the concerns of the life hereafter. Allah Almighty, it is hoped, will be kind in forgiving our minor blemishes. wassalam Dr Khalid Zaheer
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Announcements: |
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"Quran for All" Series: Surah Kafirun Uploaded
After Surah Mulk, Surah
Qalam, Surah Haaqqah,Surah Ma'aarij, Surah Nuh, Surah Jinn, Surah Muzzammil,
Surah Muddaththir, Surah Qiyamah, Surah Dahr, Surah Mursalat, Surah Naba, Surah
Nazi'aat, Surah Abas, Surah Takweer, Surah Infitar, Surah Mutaffifin, Surah
Inshiqaq, Surah Buruj, Surah Tariq, Surah A'laa, Surah Ghashiyah, Surah Fajr,
Surah Balad, Surah Shams, Surah Layl, Surah Duha, Surah Alam Nashrah, Surah
Teen, Surah Alaq, Surah Qadr, Surah Bayyinah, Surah Zilzal Surah ‘Adiyat, Surah
Qariah and Surah Takathur, Surah Asr, Surah Humazah, Surah Feel,
Surah Quraysh, Surah Ma'un, Surah Kawthar we have uploaded Surah Kafirun in the
“Quran for All” series.
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