{Quick Reflections 45} Corrupted Islam 4

Clarification:

Last time we stopped at the classification that divided people into 4 groups; “Theoretical scholars”, “Average Muslims”, “Extremists” and “Hypocrites”. I would like to clarify that this classification includes the different parties whose actions and interactions in life form what we have called “Corrupted Islam”. This is by no means a comprehensive classification of all the Muslims. Of course there are millions who participate to form the picture of “True Islam” and can be divided into “True Scholars”, “True Leaders” and “True Average Muslims”. Unfortunately their voice and impact is less loud and difficult to identify amongst the chaos.
Similarly when I say that nowadays Islam is corrupted does not mean that there is no correct or true Islam nowadays but it just means that the general picture or presentation of Islam is corrupted. This is because the percentage of corruption dominates the percentage of true or correct Islam. Just like when we say that Egypt is a Muslim country does not mean that none of its people are non-Muslims. It just means that the majority (90%) and the governing authority are Muslims. Similarly when we say that Islam is corrupted it means that a major part of the presented and practiced picture of Islam is corrupted by a great percentage of Muslims and their leaders, be that intentionally (due to personal motives) or due to ignorance.
Generally throughout this series when I mention Muslim, or Scholar, I mean the ones contributing to the corruption and not all Muslims or all Scholars. Only in the last episode, if God wills, will I talk about the True Muslims that are struggling to hold some ground.


Enemies:

It is very well known that outsiders will never defeat true Muslims and true Islam but the defeat comes from within, which has been the case for nearly four hundred years now. This can be explained by defining what are the main themes of Islam and how have Muslims dropped them and what are the main enemies of Islam and how Muslims have not fought them as ferociously as they should have.

The three main themes of Islam are the Oneness of God, Perfection of Manners and Pursuit of Knowledge. I will discuss these themes in separate articles later if God wills.
On the other hand the two main enemies of Islam that are within us and that I am going to focus on in this article are the Hypocrites and Idol Worshiping.


The Hypocrites (Fifth Columnists):

When Allah first introduces the readers and listeners to Qur’an to the main three different types of people in Surat al-Baqarah (2; 2-20) He uses 4 ayat to describe the believers followed by 2 to describe the non-believers and then 13 to describe the hypocrites. Thirteen to describe a group that is a small percentage of people and 6 to describe the rest of the people on Earth! All that stress and detailed description of one type in contrast to the other two is because they are the worst and most complicated. They know the truth, they live amongst ones who practice it and they are given the freedom to choose yet they insist on pretending what they are not. Later on in the Qur’an there is a whole Surah in their name. They are a group of people who live in all ages and their main aim is to corrupt Islam from within. There is no logic to explain their attitude especially that Islam gives the freedom to every human being to choose. They could have simply chosen to be atheists or anything else they wish. They could just leave the place they grew up in and immigrated to live with whomever their ideology they agree with yet they do not. The only explanation for their attitude is the one given by God. Their hearts are sick.

They could be average Muslims or even scholars. Usually they are successful and have a high IQ. (I prefer not to use the word intelligent, as the true definition of that word is different in Islam than what it is commonly known for.)
We are not allowed in Islam as individuals to judge other people. This is left to certain authorities in certain situations and individual judgment is left to only God. Unfortunately one of the main diseases corrupting Islam nowadays is that most people most of the time tend to openly judge not only other average people but even scholars whom they do not agree with.
During the time of the Prophet, peace be upon him, although he was informed by God about the names of the hypocrites living amongst them he did not openly declare them. He, peace upon him, mentioned their names secretly to one of his companions so that when each hypocrite dies he would prevent the Muslims from offering prayers for mercy on his soul. He did not do that while they were alive for three main reasons. The first is not to shock the Muslims confidence in some people whom they thought were good people and leaders and hence spread a sense of insecurity and mistrust amongst Muslims. The second is not to create chaos that would result if those people were confronted openly. They would become defensive and start mentioning many acts of good deeds they participated in with the Prophet, peace be upon him, to try to prove that he is mistaken. This would result in an escalating argument and up to a civil war amongst Muslims. The third is to teach the Muslims not to judge other people on individual basis openly. He, peace be upon him, was told by God, the All-Knower, about these people, so there is no doubt about that judgment yet he, peace be upon him, did not openly mention them. Accordingly, we, as very less knowledgeable human beings, should not judge anyone person and spread that judgment around.
However that does not mean that we trust everyone completely and act as if that category of people does not exist. We have been warned about the hypocrites and our Prophet, peace be upon him, mentioned their criteria to us so we can avoid them and not follow them if they call for one thing or another. When we spot those criteria in someone we do not accuse them openly of being hypocrites but we avoid them and do not trust them.
Basically, per the Prophet, peace be upon him, they are liars, who do not keep their promises and are traitors. However they can be shrewd enough to cover up for their defects at least temporarily for everyone or all the time for a certain audience of people.

An average one would usually be seen as very strictly adherent to the “looks” but when it comes to true practice he is nowhere to be seen. For example, he could have a beard, or she could wear hijab or even niqab, and always talking about God and his Prophet and shows up on most religious occasions telling you what to do and what not to do. On the other hand he would have a terrible relationship with his parents, treats his spouse and children offensively, does not give a damn about his neighbor and has foul manners in general. S/he is always judging others and is on the offensive towards others. S/he talks about prayers all the time and gives you a hard time if you miss one. However when you ask them to participate in hidden voluntary work they are no where to be found.

A real life example that I have experienced with some of these people is very interesting. Let us say he is called Smiley. Smiley starts a religious group in college. He is very active and attracts many people with him. Some of the people who join are also dishonest like Smiley while the majority is sincere. It is very democratic in that group and some of the sincere people rise to power but they are not aware of the insincere ones amongst them who also have the chance to rise to power. The group grows and grows with many true sincere successes. However there are always setbacks and punitive actions taken against the sincere from time to time. Thanks to Smiley and friends who originally started the group to be able to keep track of the sincere and keep them checked back.
A lesson to learn is to always have an open eye for the causes of setbacks. Do not trust people who are responsible for them and at the same time work hard to accomplish your goal enduring the hardship you will suffer in the process. God is there for you and will support you but you have to take all possible human measures to ensure success of the work.


On the other hand one who is a leader or in a high rank or even a scholar would act as follows. He focuses on minor issues that are the source of argument amongst people for centuries. He does not talk about major issues that concern the wellness of Islam and Muslims. He is very hard on the public and never says a word of truth or advice to stop the rulers or political leaders from their corruption. He tends to spend a lot of time in attacking other scholars. When he sees that Muslims are uniting on a certain action or opinion, which is a rare event nowadays, he discourages that and tries to disperse that unity. They also tend to relate themselves to important very early Islamic figures. They discourage advancement and thinking and tend to be very productive in terms in the amount of books they write and spread.
Unfortunately their followers nowadays are in the millions due to their ignorance. We need to watch out for those kinds of “scholars” and avoid them.

Here is an imaginary exemplary quiz with 6 examples to try to see for ourselves whom to trust and whom not to, whom to follow and whom to avoid (be that due to them being dishonest or theoretical -continuously misguided- scholars).

1- Two men agree to split the political leadership and religion leadership between them such that each one of them leaves the other to do what he wishes and not to harm each other.

2- A scholar praises the ruler and indulges in minor details that make people’s daily life hard and avoids major issues that concern Islam and Muslims.

3- A scholar is constantly praising the ruler and pleasing him and does not care about the welfare of Muslims.

4- A scholar is avoiding the authorities and working on reform amongst the general population with an eye on the general welfare of Muslims.

5- A scholar does not aggressively oppose the ruler but tends to be polite and advises him wisely and is working hard on teaching Islam to the people.

6- A scholar is a “troublemaker” with the authorities through his harshness with them while trying to stop their corruption, and tends to be very patient and polite with the average people and at the same time caring for their advancement and ease.

The difference between the first 3 examples and the last 3 is very clear.

{Quick Reflections 44} Corrupted Islam 3

To set the records straight and make sure we are all on the same page I would like to reiterate the following.
Islam is a very practical and realistic way of life. Nothing in its teachings or directions is theoretical. Definitely any topic or issue that is managed theoretically is not Islamic and if it is said to be then it is part of the corrupted Islam.

To understand in depth the difference between theory and practice and hence between corrupted and authentic Islamic topics or authorities I will relate a couple of experiences I went through. Each one of them could be considered a phase in my life that lasted for several years in my journey in trying to understand and filter through the ruble the diamond from the brass. After that understanding we will be able to recognize whom to trust and whom not to in terms of Islamic authorities or leaderships with a very high accuracy. Once we reach that stage of recognition we can then start believing and thinking about a plan for reform. Until then the corruption will further erode through all of us lead by the fifth column (whom we will extensively talk about at a later stage if God wills).


The first phase was experiencing “Islam the theory” which started as early as I can remember until college, around 18. The second phase is what I call “Real Life Islam” or “True Islam” that has started since then is on going until now.


Phase I: The Genius of Muhammad (Peace be upon him)

Unfortunately adults often underestimate children's memory and understanding. Hence many talents and potentials are buried underneath heaps and heaps of stereotyped school curricula and an unending list of meaningless do's and don’ts being learnt either at home or in school. Even worse they are usually misused to serve the most shallow meanings or causes. In the few instances that parents have recognized and well directed their children how to think and believe those children grew up to be great men who have a noble mission and a smart cause. For example Ralph Nader’s father, when he was 10 he asked him: “Well, Ralph, what did you learn in school today? Did you learn how to believe or did you learn how to think?”
That is not what I intended to talk about here, perhaps later!

When I was 4 years old I remember hearing my father discussing with my mother how they want to raise my brother and me. I remember him focusing mainly on morals and ethics. He continued to raise us in a “protected environment” where almost everything was perfect and there was minimal chance for any form of corruption or evil to cross our path until I was 12 years old. I did not realize that I was raised in a protected (unreal or theoretical) environment until years later when I went out to the “Real Life”. At that point I was reading the series of the “Geniuses” by Abbas el-Aqaad like, “The Genius of Omar”, “The Genius of Khalid” and others. The most intriguingly simple of which, at that time to me, was “The Genius of Muhammad” (peace be upon him). Of course Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) has the most humanly perfect manners. However the way el-Aqaad presented it, in light of being raised in a protected environment on the same concepts, it seemed simple.

Phase II: Morals of the Muslim

After I was released from my protective cage to the real world, every day and every encounter with others was a test to all what I had learnt. I was around 18 when I started reading “Morals of the Muslim” by el-Ghazaly (may God’s mercy be upon him). It took me almost 2 years to finish the book. After each chapter discussing one moral or another I would stop and evaluate myself to see where I stand from that based on my daily interactions with others. After some achievement on the relevant moral in real life I would then move to the next chapter. It was the simplest book and most difficult one I have ever read in my life. Only then I started to realize the genius of Muhammad (peace be upon him) and that I know nothing and understand nothing. I had to start learning for real….

Only then I understood how easy it is to talk and preach and how difficult it is to practice what you preach in real life. Only then I slowly started to realize the difference between a preacher and a real practical Muslim living life at its fullest. Only then I realized the genius of Omar Ibn-el-Khattab as a man of actions not words.
You will notice that the most prominent companions of the Prophet (peace by upon him) and leaders of early Islam where not scholars and have not narrated many ahadeeth. On the contrary they all had tough jobs through which they earned money with which they helped Islam. They were not there all the time sitting at the feet of the Prophet (peace be upon him) listening to him. They would hear from him (peace be upon him) and be out there in life implementing what they learnt. That is how tough and strong they were. They were leaders from, and in, real life. They were not theoretical heroes and carriers of immense amounts of knowledge.

One of my best friends, who is a physician, was much stricter than me, in religious terms, when he was in a certain “research” position where life is easier and time is more abundant. Once he moved to another much more demanding clinical job with less free time and much more interaction with people he started to loosen up more and his views became more lenient, practical and applicable. Real life is not a protected environment like that entertained by most researchers and scholars.

It is easy to lock yourself up in a room amongst a pile of Islamic scholarly books and then come out every once in a while to tell people what to do and what not to do. After all you “learned” much more than them and they would not have the knowledge to argue with you. It is easy to direct people and judge them when you are living in a protected environment, where you receive your salary in a protected job, with everyone looking up to you and respecting you because of your knowledge. However that knowledge is mostly theoretical. You have not experienced the hardships of true life that an average man faces. Accordingly your “opinions” and “directions” to the poor average man are not practical or realistic.

With time the rift between the “theoretical scholars” and the “average Muslim” widens because most what the former directs to the later is not applicable and does not address real life. After a while some average people who try to listen to the theoretical scholars lose balance and become extremists in one part of the religion or another and totally abandon another part. The majority of other people lose interest in whatever those theoretical scholars say and slowly sway away from religion. After centuries of that practice you end up with the current situation of corrupted Islam. You have “knowledgeable unrealistic scholars”, “extremists to one end or another” and a majority of Muslims losing trust in Islam as a whole because of the 2 other groups.

However that is not the whole story. There is a very important fourth group that ensures the maintenance of the status quo; the hypocrites or the fifth columnists.

{Quick Reflections 43} Corrupted Islam 2

· Gaza and Corrupted Islam:

It is very sad and disheartening to watch the news and see our brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers and children being killed in cold blood. Why is this happening? Not only because the Israeli occupier wants to crush the resistance, just like throughout history, but because Hamas is not just a resistance movement to occupation but even worse; it is an Islamic one. The situation is aggravated even further by the fact that the Palestinians dared to democratically vote for that resistance movement as their legal representation. Accordingly, they all had to be punished and slaughtered by the Israeli occupation in one of many holocausts against different Muslim populations across the world that the media chooses to twist and underreport.
Now the Gaza situation is not a unique one. Thousands of Muslims are being persecuted, jailed and killed around the world, in China, Burma, Philippines, Chechnya, Bosnia and elsewhere in an organized and steady fashion, but we don’t have enough media coverage to hear about the details. Gaza is not an exception or a transient situation. It is but part of a more global process.
Why is this happening to Muslims globally? It is because they are living, as a whole, a corrupted version of Islam that renders them weak and vulnerable. The Muslim response to daily events across the world has generally always (for almost 10 centuries now) been a short-lived reactionary one that barely does anything to fix the problem. Moreover, it, of course, has nothing to do with analyzing its cause and working on preventing its recurrence. Accordingly we live in a vicious circle of temporary reactionary responses that weakens Muslims more and more and deepens the corruption of Islam further.

Accordingly the ultimate solution for the current crisis in Gaza, and elsewhere in the world, is a root cause analysis and a strategic view of how to reform the Corrupted Islam and come back to life with a proactive rather than a reactionary Islam. This is how this series relates to the current events in Gaza.

· Concepts:

Before proceeding with the analysis we need to recognize 5 basic concepts the middle 3 of which all human beings accept as facts.


Sources:

Most Muslims will agree that the only 2 uncorrupted sources of Islam that are 100% pure are the Qur’an and Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). All other presentations of Islam have some degree of corruption or inaccuracy. The accuracy could range from 99% to 0% but never 100%. This is based on the fact that none of the presenters of Islam has 100% knowledge or 100% comprehensive view. No human being is perfect and hence all Muslims share in the corrupted presentation of Islam, albeit some more than others. Some do that out of ignorance, others out of arrogance and the majority out of narrow-mindedness. Some do that deliberately and others by virtue of their personal attitude in life in general. Accordingly besides the Qur’an and Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) one can learn Islam through facts rather than through people. In other words, whatever is said or done in the name of Islam, be it by a scholar or an average Muslim, needs to be filtered and analyzed before reaching a sound conclusion. Human error and bias are always factors that should be on one’s mind when reading anything about Islam, or any other topic open for discussion that actually includes everything in life!

Starting Angle and Projection Line:

This will sound very childish and irrelevant in the beginning but please bear with me! Get a pen and draw a small bullet (point A). Extend a straight line from it to the end of the paper (point C). Now start another line 1cm from the original starting point but from the same line albeit with a very small deviation. In the beginning the distance between both lines is very small but as you get further from the starting point the distance widens. If you start at a bigger angle the distance between the new line and the original one increases faster with further projections of both lines. See below.



Now let us consider the original line the pure form of Islam along a time line starting from A and C being our current time. The distance from point A to B would be the life of Prophet Muhammad and a little less than 3 decades after that. At point B (and many other points along the road from the original line) different Islamic schools of thought came into existence with deviations that vary from minor to major. If one picks one school of thought and chooses to stick to it, with time and through centuries one will deviate further and further away from the original. However if you relate back to the A-B interval you will be sure to stay on the original line. If the A-B interval is not clear then the best thing to do is pick from contradicting schools (lines that deviated at opposite angles) and average them in order to come as close as possible to the original line (the summation of the top most and bottom most lines in the above demonstration will result in a line that is much closer to the original than any of the deviations.

Of course the above example is very simplistic and the issue of change and corruption (and hence reform) is much more complicated than that but it is based on the same principle.


On Going Process:

Complicating the above diagram further and further we can draw multiple lines deviating from the already deviated lines starting at different points along the time line from point B to our current time at C. Depending on which line you choose to look at you sill see a different version of corrupted Islam. Amongst the thousands of lines the vision will be very murky and it will become a struggle to see the original line. Corruption is an ongoing process until the end of time. Hence reform is an ongoing process of meticulous research and hard work.


Point of View: A shocking experience!

We are all familiar with the term “different point of view” but how deep do we realize and appreciate that meaning and apply it in any argument or discussion?
I was 10 years old when I was exposed to a very simple and not noteworthy event that to me was brain shattering. From my bedroom window in our apartment I used to talk with my neighbor in the building right next to us while he was standing in his balcony. This was almost a daily process for years and from my vintage point the view is engraved in my mind. After years I went up to his balcony and looked across to my bedroom window. I was shocked that in spite of sharing the same surroundings the view from his balcony was like seeing totally different surroundings! I had a hard time, for days, accepting that we were actually looking at the same objects albeit from different angles. From that day I understood that the simple change of “point of view” towards the same object could show you a completely different picture that you never thought existed.

The only comprehensive view that sees Islam from all angles at the same time was that of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). All other views are just part of the picture that need to be combined in order to see a more holistic and authentic picture. Sticking with one point of view is never comprehensive.


Who:

There are 4 main groups of people responsible for the corruption that I will elaborate upon later namely Islamic scholars, average Muslims, extremists and hypocrites.

{Quick Reflections 42} Corrupted Islam 1

Introduction

Audience:
The audience targeted by this series includes people from all walks of life who are interested in their own well-being as well as that of humanity as a whole. Arrogant people, who take themselves, rather than ideas, too seriously are discouraged from reading further. Looking at the big picture, life in this universe is not about mortal individuals’ egos but about eternal concepts that outlive any single individual’s very short and temporary success. Readers are invited to think, contemplate and share with positive constructive criticism rather than act on well established and taken-for-granted-paradigms. You are encouraged to think outside the box and put on-hold all sacred and firm frames of thought, whatever they are. Give it a shot at another way of thinking and another angle of focus that steps back and tries to put events in their true perspective.

Islam:
Contrary to common belief by non-Muslims and many Muslims, Islam is not a blind set of rituals and do’s and don’ts. The rituals are a constant reminder of the facts of life and ethics that Islam is all about amongst the daily materialistic distractions. Islam is a comprehensive way of life that starts with one while one is still an embryo and accompanies you all the way through to the other life.

It is the way of life chosen by God for His human creatures that suite them most. It is fit for all cultures and all time. Through its correct application one achieves happiness, serenity and success in both the current temporary worldly life and the next permanent one. It focuses equally on the individual and the community. This is not an advertisement for true Islam but I firmly claim it is a fact clear to some people in this age, just like the fact that Earth is not the center of the Universe was clear to Galileo and opposed by all others in his age.

A manufacturer of a complicated electronic device provides you with a manual that guides you to operate the device and make the best out of it. You can still operate the device without the manual but your non-guided operation will be sub-optimal. Moreover in addition to the manual and way of operation called "Islam" provided by the manufacturer "God" for optimal operation of the most sophisticated creature, human beings, He also provides you with an insurance policy for the next and permanent life, or "function after expiration", or “replacement with an eternal substitute”.

Me:
I am a 31 year-old surgeon born in Egypt and raised in different parts of the world amongst tens of different cultures and ideologies. I am proud to have been raised by a wise enough Muslim father who when I was 7 years-old asked me to chose my own religion and belief after researching all other systems of belief. He also advised me to base my decision on logic and sense only and never let any religious or political authority, present or past, influence my decision. He did not believe that being born to a Muslim family makes you a Muslim, or born to a Christian family makes you a Christian and so forth as that defeats the purpose of being provided with a mind that thinks and a will that chooses. He believed that before one can claim s/he belonged to one system of belief or another and start lobbying for it or defending it blindly one has to research different systems first and then reach his/her own conclusion. Also he did not believe in different cults and sects of different religions. He was wise enough to advise me in my search for the truth to trace everything back to its origin and that any addition to the very first original system, whatever system it is, is but mere human corruption that only leads to tinting the picture and dividing people further. Accordingly I was raised to question all dogmas, stereotypes and traditions. After years of observing, reading and researching I came to his same conclusion.

Why:
I am writing this small series now after I reached that conclusion because I believe in neither temporary fixes nor burying my head in the sand. Islam is in deep trouble and so are Muslims, and actually so are non-Muslims, because Islam has been hijacked and continuously corrupted within around 3 decades after Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him) death. Corruption is now so deep seated in the belief system, sparing only a few basic facts, that only very few will see what I mean. I do not claim to be a savior or a visionary but rather a humble soul struggling everyday to see the pure original light behind the ground glass that was placed in a false attempt to protect the light.

{Quick Reflections 41} Menz!

In the following link you will find an example of how parents in this era in history are the cause of destruction of the Ummah through the way they raise their children.
All most of them care about is the professional career and financial welfare of their children (even after they have grown up and are no more children). No attention is paid at all to the development and raising of a well integrated and responsible personality that is independant and has an identity and principle-based-goal in life.
In order to raise true men and women who are capable of being of any true use to themselves, community and the whole Ummah a very important concept has to be adopted by the parents.
Once their "child" reaches puberty (9-13 years) he/she is responsible for all his/her acts in front of the Al-Mighty Allaah (SWT). They can not protect their children from Allaah's Judgment whatever they do because they cannot do that themselves in the first place. If they really care about them they have to prepare them since day one in their lives to be able to answer to Allaah (TWT) about all their thoughts and actions when the time comes and they reach puberty (9-13 years). One who is truly prepared to defend his/her cause when asked by Allaah (TWT) once he/she is 9-13 years old is one who can live and die in dignity, one who can live in endurance and die in patience. That is the only way to have a generation of true men and women who are truly responsible and have a principle-based-mission in life. That is the only way to replicate Abu-Bakr, Omar, Ali, Mus"ab, Abu-Zarr, Salmaan, Kutz, Khadeejah, Fatimah and whole generation of true "ahbab rasool Allaah (SAWS)".

Personally i have seen hundreds of the provided repulsive example in real life amongst colleagues in college. Plz do not repeat that mistake with YOUR children.
http://www.amrkhaled.net/multimedia/multimedia906.html

May Allaah use us and our children and not replace us.

Inheritance ‎

The definition of the word “Inheritance“, according to Merriam Webster’s ‎Dictionary, under the main entry “quantitative inheritance, noun” is: ‎
Genetic inheritance of a character (as human skin color) controlled by polygenes ‎with each allelic pair of genes at a given locus having a specific quantitative effect ‎‎– ‎
and under the main entry “blending inheritance, noun” is:‎
The expression in offspring of phenotypic characters (as pink flower color from ‎red and white parental plants) intermediate between those of the parents.‎
Also means: the act of having or taking into control, or occupancy of property ‎without regard to ownership -- something owned or possessed; specifically : a ‎piece of real estate b: the exclusive right to possess, enjoy, and dispose of a thing. ‎
Once, there was a man in his fifties who had four children, two boys and two girls. ‎He was a self-made billionaire who had to struggle all his life to build a huge ‎empire only for strangers to inherit. His eldest son had a baby boy but died ‎shortly after in an accident. The man had to mourn his second son too because he ‎was not able to have children of his own, who would carry his NAME! The man’s ‎two daughters would have children but would carry their fathers’ names. ‎
Why do people put such great efforts in their lives striving to build empires that ‎would eventually vanish no matter how long their heirs even live? ‎What would their wealth, children, family and friends do for them after they die ‎and become replaced by other generations who would in the best of scenarios ‎follow their ancestors’ footsteps only to meet the same destiny!‎
Have such people ever paused to think about what “Inheritance” really means ‎and how to make it eternal?‎
Let us look at a different version of inheritance and try to understand what it ‎really means; an inheritance that never vanishes, an inheritance that our children ‎and we could reap even after we die.‎
‎“Who inherits what” is one important question; other questions are what do we ‎inherit? Who has the most to give? Does it ever decrease? Is it exclusive? Can one ‎control its amount or quantity? Etc...‎
If we would rephrase those questions into only one, we would ask, where are our ‎priorities? ‎
Everyone likes to have a small fortune because it makes life much easier, ensures ‎good education and a nice life for our children and makes us look good in our ‎community; it makes us feel superior too. Can we guarantee a good fortune in ‎life? What kinds of fortunes are there to endeavour? Can we obtain an assurance ‎and from whom?‎
Ultimately, God inherits heavens and earth and the believers inherit the fruits of ‎their deeds. (“... when unto Allah belongeth the inheritance of the heavens and ‎the earth?...”, Al-Hadid (The Iron): 10) ‎

Who are the losers of wealth? They are those who lost their true goal in life and ‎those who forgot why they were there in the first place. They are those who ‎concentrated only on themselves and lived only to realize a selfish dream of ‎building an empire that would remain eternal – in their own limited mind's eye – ‎forgetting the needy and neglecting their role and duty toward humanity, they ‎forgot why God created them in the first place! (“Blessed is He in Whose hand is ‎the kingdom, and He has power over all things; Who created death and life ‎that He may try you-- which of you is best in deeds; and He is the Mighty, the ‎Forgiving”, al-Mulk (The Sovereignty): 1-2)‎
How can a businessperson be shortsighted and successful at the same time? ‎Would he not be shortsighted if he did not include the future of his fortune? ‎
This is precisely what he would be doing, if he only thinks of himself, his family ‎and heirs. The truth is that: (“And unto Allah belongeth the Sovereignty of the ‎heavens and the earth; and on the day when the Hour riseth, on that day those ‎who follow falsehood will be lost; And thou will see each nation crouching, ‎each nation summoned to its record. (And it will be said unto them): This day ‎ye are requited what ye used to do.”, al-Jaatheyah (Crouching): 27-28)‎

What happens to such losers, like Moses’ Pharaoh for instance? The Pharaoh and ‎his followers were ruined and “other” people inherited their homes and land ‎‎(“How many were the gardens and the water springs that they left behind; ‎And the cornfields and the noble places; And pleasant things wherein they ‎took delight!; Even so (it was), and We made it an inheritance for other folk”, ‎ad-Dukhan (The Smoke)25-28)‎

On the other hand, what happens when one has the balanced mind of working in ‎the path of God as well as to ensure his future? (“We are your protecting friends ‎in the life of the world and in the Hereafter. There ye will have (all) that your ‎souls desire, and there ye will have (all) for which ye pray; A gift of welcome ‎from the Forgiving, the Merciful; And who is better in speech than him who ‎prayeth unto his Lord and doeth right, and saith: Lo! I am of those who ‎surrender (unto Him).”, Fussial 31-33)‎

Some of the concepts that ruin a good fortune are the desire for possessions, ‎frivolous greed, one’s id ‎, eternal existence, strengthening one’s ego ... etc. ‎If we could understand the bad concepts in the culture of businessmen that ‎deprive them and their families from enjoying life along with the fortunes they ‎build, we would do them and us a great favour by protecting them from going ‎astray when they forget the best part of their life, their true religion. We could ‎achieve that gradually by making of ourselves a role model for them. Consider ‎these verses, (“And when Allah alone is mentioned, the hearts of those who ‎believe not in the Hereafter are repelled, and when those (whom they ‎worship) beside Him are mentioned, behold! they are glad (45); ... Now when ‎hurt touches a man he cries unto Us, and afterward when We have granted ‎him a boon from Us, he saith: Only by force of knowledge I obtained it. Nay, ‎but it is a test. But most of them know not (49) Those before them said it, yet ‎‎(all) that they had earned availed them not (50); But the evils that they earned ‎smote them; and such of these as do wrong, the evils that they earn will smite ‎them; they cannot escape. (51); ... Say: My slaves who have been prodigal to ‎their own hurt! Despair not of the mercy of Allah, Who forgiveth all sins. Lo! ‎He is the Forgiving, the Merciful (53); Turn unto Him repentant, and surrender ‎unto Him, before there come unto you the doom, when ye cannot be helped ‎‎(54); And follow the better (guidance) of that which is revealed unto you from ‎your Lord, before the doom cometh on you suddenly when ye know not (55); ‎Lest any soul should say Alas, my grief that I was unmindful of Allah, and I was ‎indeed among the scoffers! (56); Or should say: if Allah had but guided me I ‎should have been among the dutiful! (57) Or should say, when it seeth the ‎doom: Oh, that I had but a second chance that I might be among the righteous! ‎‎(58), al-Zomar (The Groups): 45, 49-51, 53-58). ‎

The main problem is that great percentage turn into fortune worshippers; they ‎should rather elect a balanced mind of worshipping God and follow His rules in ‎building an “uncontaminated” fortune. (“Who so doeth right it is for his soul, ‎and who so doeth wrong it is against it. And thy Lord is not at all a tyrant to His
slaves.”, Fussilat (Explained in Detail): 46)‎
‎ ‎
The renowned Mr. Amr khaled, said about having God’s bounty at a later phase in ‎life: if a father was a righteous person then he should not worry about the future ‎of his offspring because God will guarantee it. He further added that behind such ‎lateness there is a mercy but a human being is so in a hurry. In explaining this, he ‎narrated the story of Moses (pbuh ‎): ‎
Prophet Moses (pbuh) once met a wise man and asked to learn some of his ‎wisdom. The wise man asked the prophet to follow him and observe without ‎asking questions or interrupting him. At one time, the wise man and the prophet ‎passed through a small village where their people refused to welcome them. The ‎wise man found a building that was about to collapse so he fixed it. Prophet ‎Moses (pbuh) found this puzzling! When the time came for the wise man to clarify ‎what did seem insensible, he explained that the building had a treasure buried ‎underneath that belonged to a fine man who died and left two orphans. God ‎Almighty did not want them to suffer; therefore, He ordered the wise man to ‎preserve the building so that when the boys become old enough they would find ‎the treasure, which would then well sustain them.‎
Thus, the important matter is to believe in God’s judgement and His destiny. He ‎who accepts God and depends on Him would never be let down. Why would we ‎worry when God promised us his bounty! (“... We give them sustenance and ‎yourselves (too)...”, al-Israa’ (The Night Journey): 31). There is no repelling of ‎the bounty if God is the Giver and there is no bestowal if He did not provide it. ‎Therefore, all what we have to do is to work toward our goals in a manner that ‎pleases Him, we should not worry and dedicate all our lives searching or stacking ‎treasures ruining our chance to enjoy life along with our duty of worshipping ‎God, thus losing both our life and the hereafter too. ‎
If we looked at businessmen we would see constant anxiety and worry about ‎losing their fortune. God said, (“... and My mercy encompasses all things; ...” al-‎A’raaf (The Heights): 156) and he wrote under His Throne “My mercy preceded ‎my wrath”. This should be our true goal, let’s confront ourselves for the true ‎contentment is God’s superior door, the shelter of worshippers and life’s ‎paradise; God’s destiny is above everything and “...and whomsoever Allah ‎makes err, there is no guide for him (36); and whomsoever Allah makes err, ‎there is no guide for him”, al-Zumar:36-37)‎
Therefore, God the Omnipotent is the One and Only Who will inherit heavens an ‎earth, not any of us. That said I would like to clarify that that does not mean in ‎any way that we should not work to build a fortune for our families and ‎ourselves. That means, however, that it should not become our first priority. In ‎addition, we should not be thinking of this money as “our own” fortune and no ‎one else has the right to it. “Believe in Allah and His Messenger, and spend out ‎of what He has made you to be successors of; for those of you who believe and ‎spend shall have a great reward” (al-Hadid: 7); it is God’s money because He is ‎the One Who created it. ‎
We need to be thinking how to use some of this fortune in projects that would ‎help others and use it in social interdependence and solidarity, which in the end ‎would please God and serve Him, not to mention the many rewards in life as well ‎as in the hereafter. This would be our first priority.‎
Hence, why do we not spend our money in God’s path when we are certain that ‎we will die and leave our fortunes anyway to God? ‎‎“Who is there that will offer to Allah a good gift so He will double it for him, ‎and he shall have an excellent reward (11); On that day you will see the ‎faithful men and the faithful women-- their light running before them and on ‎their right hand-- good news for you today: gardens beneath which rivers flow, ‎to abide therein, that is the grand achievement. (12)” and “Know that this ‎world's life is only sport and play and gaiety and boasting among yourselves, ‎and a vying in the multiplication of wealth and children, like the rain, whose ‎causing the vegetation to grow, pleases the husbandmen, then it withers away ‎so that you will see it become yellow, then it becomes dried up and broken ‎down; and in the hereafter is a severe chastisement and (also) forgiveness ‎from Allah and (His) pleasure; and this world's life is naught but means of ‎deception.”, (al-Hadid: 11-12, 20). ‎
Wouldn’t that be the greatest success of all?‎

Ressources:‎
The Holy Qur’an
Psychology- definitions.‎
From Mr. Amr khaled’s lectures

Footnotes:‎
‎1- Id = in Psychoanalytical theory, the part of the personality which contains our primitive impulses ‎such as sex, anger, and hunger. (http://allpsych.com/dictionary/i.html)‎
‎2- Pbuh = peace be upon him

Power!

Think quickly: who has power over you? Who is it that rules and controls your life through fear, respect, love, or adoration; the one you put into consideration in every move you make or thought you have? Who do you look up to for inspiration and or simply run to? That was the simple question that our Organizational Behaviour instructor started the class with. And each of us had a different answer: my dad, my mom, my boyfriend, my kids, my boss, both of my parents, my friends, even my cat was once brought up! Kerry narrated to us how a cat was so dear to one of his students that she considered it to be ruling her life. It would run to her when spoiled with toys and preferred treats, comfort her and give her warmth when she needed it, and ignore her when upset. “Talk to the paw,” Kerry raised his hand imitating the cat, “cause I’m not talking to you today!” And we all laughed.

I am sure that by now you already have a name in mind. But let me make that easier for you and “empower” you with the tools of making the right choice. The figure you deem most powerful in your life should fall into one or more of the following bases of power:

- One that has the legitimate right, considering his or her position and your responsibilities, to expect you to comply.
- One that has the experience to earn your respect and you need the wisdom of.
- One you do like and enjoy doing things for very willingly.
- One that you try to avoid getting him or her angry for they have the power to punish you or make things more difficult for you. That is the power of coercion or compulsion.
- One that has the power to reward you or give you special benefits.
- One that has the knowledge you need.

Each one of us had to ascribe one of the above bases of power to the choices we made. Parents have that legitimate power of course. Kids do control your life decisions. Your boss has the power to reward or punish you. Your dear ones: boyfriend, spouse or close friends, moderate your actions and you do need their companionship and the joy of being around them.

But how powerful is any of those choices really and are we really that powerless? Reflecting on this, we found that it is our decision to give this or that the right to control and guide us. We allow others to have power over us. We empower them with the authority of our own decision; that we are unaware of sometimes. We can, very politely if we wish, stop any of those powerful figures from controlling our lives. After all, we are the ones living our lives and responsible for our actions and decision-making. We are the ones who choose to be dependent on any of those figures when we assume that they are important, scarce and non-substitutable. But are they? The key to dependency is “to believe that what others offer you is too important to let go of”. But how important or reliable can others be, when we all human beings change, err, turn selfish and needy most often than not.

Let us unravel the mystery of power now and analyze some of the influence tactics used by the “powerful”. They can persuade us rationally and subtly that they control us. They can inspire us, appealing to our goals, values and ideas. They can flatter us and become very warm and friendly to paralyze our ability to simply say, “No”. They appeal for loyalty and that we owe them. I do that most of the time with my kids! “Am I not the one who bore you for long tiring months? Am I not the one who stayed up all night for you when you were helpless little babies?” But I am afraid that I have abused this tool with my whining that it will become very inefficient too soon!

Powerful ones also demand, pressure and threaten us sometimes. They exchange favours for benefits or claim the authority to make a request. Have you hated them yet? Do you realize now how much power we willingly give them? This is exactly what an abusive relationship is like, Kerry explained. The ones subject to domestic violence or bullying for example never stand up, fight back or even disengage themselves from abusive relationships because they are simply brainwashed to believe that they are deprived of all power and that they cannot live without that bully.

When Kerry asked us the question the first time, he asked us to write our answer on paper so that we go back to it as we analyze further the concept of power. I was the second one to answer at the very beginning and had to think quickly. “Power over me? You wish,” I thought to myself! I ran quickly through all the names I know of, all the dear and significant ones, and found no one to play that role. I love my dear ones dearly, cherish, enjoy and deeply respect them, but I know that I am responsible for my life and that no one rules it but my own decisions. Yet, the answer came as simple, flowing and logical as this: God! Only God has power over me. Kerry raised his eyebrows and said, “Hmm, I like that!”

And I had to go back to my answer every time to defend my choice. It perfectly made sense that when each student had only one or maybe more of the aforementioned bases of power to defend his or her choice, all bases of power fell into place when I said that God indeed has the power over me. He has the legitimate right that to Him only I comply. I certainly need His guidance, wisdom and knowledge. I do enjoy doing things for Him and even sacrifice and self-discipline myself for Him. It is not only fear of His punishment that I acknowledge and deserve when I err, and it is not only Paradise that I seek, but it is the peace and spiritual fulfillment that all the pleasures of this life fail to even come close to.

Does that contradict with the concept of our own power and right to choose? Not at all. The rule is very clear in Islam. Observe what is clearly stated in Qur’an,

- There shall be no compulsion in [acceptance of] the religion. (3 [Al-Baqarah]: 265).
- The truth is from your Lord, so whoever wills - let him believe; and whoever wills - let him disbelieve. (18 [Al-Kahf]: 29).
- So remind, [O Muhammad]; you are only a reminder. {21} You are not over them a controller. {22} (88 [Al-Ghashiyah]: 21-22).

And on and on go the examples by which we are rather empowered by the right to choose for ourselves. Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, confirmed this concept by saying, “A strong believer is better and more lovable to God than a weak one…”[1] It is true that Islam comes from the Arabic word taslim, which is submission to the Lord. Yet, this submission has to come from the heart and mind. We believe in it and actually chose to submit. This is the dignity and power provided to us by a loving and merciful Lord. This is the “power of belief”! What oppression then do they talk about when you have the right to think, choose, question and walk in your Lord’s way with all that He filled your soul with?

What about the influence tactics then? Which of them does God use to rule us? Well, God does not need to claim the authority or right to make a request. God does not form coalitions for support. God does not exchange favours or use flattery. God does not even need to persuade us rationally or threaten us. God only inspires us to think and reason when he says in Qur’an; So have they not traveled through the earth and have hearts by which to reason and ears by which to hear? For indeed, it is not eyes that are blinded, but blinded are the hearts… (11 [Al-Hajj]: 46). This loving and wise leading manner respects humanity and endows it with the characteristics of empowered people; i.e. having self-determination, a sense of meaning, a sense of competence and a sense of impact.

Moving to dependency then, and testing whether it contradicts with Islam’s empowerment, we find that we have seen how unpredictable and defective dependency on human beings can be. The rule of dependency is to avoid choosing a substitutable figure. Having God on our side indeed spares us the need for mortals. But what if we decide to substitute Him and surrender to our whims and desires instead; gratifying bodily needs and ignoring our souls? Here is what God says in the Qur’an; Have you seen the one who takes as his god his own desire? Then would you be responsible for him? (25 [Al-Furqan: 43). Once again we are empowered by being our own judges and guardians, responsible for our own actions; There has come to you enlightenment from your Lord. So whoever will see does so for [the benefit of] his soul, and whoever is blind [does harm] against it. And [say], "I am not a guardian over you." (6 [Al-An’am: 104).

Furthermore, the very concept of depending on God is part and parcel of that of “locus of control”. If we fast forward to personality attributes and how they affect our behaviour, we find that there are two kinds of people when it comes to locus of control; i.e. the degree to which people believe they are in control of their fate. Internals believe that they have control over their destiny. Those are the ones with greater motivation believing that their efforts will result in better performance and are universally reported to be in a better well-being. Externals, on the other hand, believe that they have no say on their destiny and that their lives are controlled by outer forces. Those are the ones less involved, rather alienated from their settings and feel that they have no impact on their surroundings.

Depending on God does not at all mean that we turn into idle passive externals, it is rather the balance of striding with confident steps into the challenges life puts in your way with the boosting relief and security knowing that God is there on our side rewarding us for each step with the success we deserve. An empowering dependency!

Does it make sense now to have God and only God as my ruling, moving and empowering power?

[1] Authentic hadith reported by al-Albaniy in Sahih Ibn-Majah page/number 3379, and narrated by Abu-Hurayrah (RA).

{Quick Reflections 39} Whose Time?!

The dimension of “time” is always fascinating to me. Unlike “place” with its three dimensions (length, width and height) which you can always see from inside and outside by changing your position “time” is always accompanying you and moving with you. As a human being you can never see it from outside.
To standardize the position or the place of things and try to find and describe the positional relationship between objects in space man invented the co-ordinate system. As an outsider viewer you can choose a certain spot and determine that it has the x:y:z co-ordinates of 0:0:0 and then relate the position of any object in space around that spot and its exact x:y:z co-ordinates accordingly. These 3 dimensions are independent of the ever mysterious fourth dimension; time.
Man does not know when “time” started and when will it end. Even the use of the term “when” to describe the absolute start or end of time is not correct because before it started and after it ends there will be no “time” to compare to and hence no “when”!! I will elaborate further on this if God wills 6 articles from now when we discuss the issue of “Eternity”.
Due to man’s limited capability of understanding and describing the ever changing time dimension it was more difficult for him to standardize time like he did with space. Hence in the process of standardizing time on Earth man opted to always correlate it to space or place. Accordingly he invented the “Time Zone” system which defines time in relation to your “position” in place on Earth.

Almost a year ago I was involved in a lot of traveling to and fro between East and West in a short period of time using different modalities of transportation including ground and air.
When I thought about it during my travel I found that one’s time of arrival is determined by three factors.

First is the time zone at your destination point. In the USA you are governed by 6 different time zones depending on which part of the country you are in. On the main land in the extreme East, where I currently reside, you lie in the Eastern Time zone which is GMT-5. As you head towards the West you gradually cross time zones starting with Central Time, then Mountain Time and finally Pacific Time on the West Coast which is GMT-8. Off the main land you have Alaska Time Zone which is GMT-9 and finally Hawaii Time Zone which is GMT -10.

The second factor that determines your time of arrival is of course the type of transportation used as it determines the speed by which you reach your destination.

The third factor is even more complicated. It is your direction of travel. Are you heading East or West?
Earth rotates in an anti-clock wise direction relative to the Sun and hence the generation of East and West and Day and Night as we see it and hence East is ahead of West in time. In other words if you choose a point in the middle between East and West and say that it is the “present”, East will be the “past” and West will be the “future”. Accordingly when you head East you are relatively trying to go to the “past” while Earth is always rotating towards the “future” and hence you “lose” time due to your relative adding to the effect of time on yourself. Let me provide and example here. If you are in the San Francisco, Pacific Time Zone (relatively West) and the time now is 3pm it will be concurrently 6pm in New York, Eastern Time Zone (relatively East). If there is a mode of transportation that would move you between these 2 time zones in only one minute and you leave San Francisco at 3pm you will arrive in New York at 6:01 pm. You would have already lost 3 hours in addition to the time it took you to get there (one minute).
On the other hand if you are heading West you are relatively trying to go to the future along with Earth which is always rotating towards the “future” and hence you “gain” time due to your relative canceling of the effect of time on yourself. If you reverse the above example and travel from New York to San Francisco you would gain 2 hours and 59 minutes (3 hours minus the one minute it took you to get there).

Theoretically speaking if you manage to travel around Earth heading West along with Earth, and hence canceling the effect of time on yourself, with the same speed Earth rotates around itself time will not change for you and it will remain constant. However there is a catch here! Even if you travel with the same speed at which Earth rotates around itself you are consuming time to do that so again you are forced to move to the “future” albeit at a slower speed than people sticking to the regular movement of Earth.

Practically we do not travel that fast but we certainly do gain or lose time when we travel by air. For example if you travel from Chicago (Central Time) heading East to Cleveland (Eastern Time) you are losing time. If you take off from Chicago at 9am (concurrently 10 am in Cleveland) and it takes you one hour to get to Cleveland you will reach it at 11am Cleveland time so you would have lost 2 hours (the one hour traveling time in addition to one hour time zone difference).
On the other hand if you take off from Cleveland at 9am and head West to Chicago (where the time is concurrently 8am) and it takes you one hour to get there you will arrive at 9am Chicago time. So you would have gained one hour time zone difference but lost one due to travel time and ended up with a net stationary time.

Now where am I heading with this complicated and confusing time analysis issue?!

When I was a teenager I was told by one of my mentors that shortening and uniting of prayers and aborting fasting during traveling was a merciful lightening of duties from God in the past on travelers due to the hardships of traveling people used to face in the past. In light of the development of relatively very fast and easy air transportation modalities (the second factor mentioned earlier which affects our time of arrival at our destination), there is no need to use that specific “mercy” in our age.
However my dear mentor was mistaken in his analysis. He took into account only the speed of transportation in reaching his conclusion. He forgot about the other 2 important factors; time zones and the direction of traveling with its consequent loss or gain of time issues. According to which time zone will you determine your prayer time or your start or break of fast time? The starting point or the ending point or somewhere in between? What about the lost or gained time? How will you account for that in your calculations? Certainly it is a very controversial issue that would cause a lot of havoc and debate amongst people.
Accordingly God’s merciful and wise lightening of worshiping duties, prayers and fasting, during travel also applies to our time in spite of all advancement in transportation modalities to avoid unnecessary confusion or argument that could arise due to the above mentioned new two factors that were not present in the past; time zones and gain or loss of time when traveling fast enough.

Correction: I received the following comment about when time stops absolutely, rather than relatively, "by the way time would only stop when u are equal in speed to light and then mass becomes infinite if that was applicable. i am physically speaking. read one two three infinity. it is a nice book"

{Quick Reflections 38} The Devil; Live!

If you believe in the devil (or evil powers) please continue to read. If you do not believe in the devil that is even a stronger reason to continue to read this reflection!
Let us start by addressing the group that believes it has only one life to live; the atheists. If you believe that you will live only once and that there is no other life after death then it makes perfect sense that you make the best out of this life for 2 reasons. The first being that it is the only life you have. The second being that if you were wrong (which is definitely a “chance” since you believe in the concept of “chance” and “probability” which is the corner stone that the theory of evolution and hence all this life and universe is built on) and there happened to be a God and an afterlife, and as the scriptures you do not believe in say, you will eternally live in hell in the other life so you better make the best of this one.
In order to make the best of this life then you better live in a most peaceful place and stay away from any conflicts that could negatively affect your social or financial life. Accordingly you will have to minimize the differences between you and other people to avoid conflicts of interests as much as you can. This will lead you to try to find “guidelines” to differentiate good from bad. Now in the absence of “Divine” “guidelines” and due to the variability of way of thinking on individual basis from time to time, place to place and culture to culture it will be impossible to reach a consensus on these guidelines. Now the absence of these clear cut definitions or guidelines to the exact definition of good (or lawful) and bad (or unlawful) does not negate the fact that they are present. Now the moving force behind “evil” or “bad” that religions or “Divinity” define as both the devil and evil inclinations present in everyone do not mater to you so you will not bother pushing it away or fighting it. However you are still stuck in the struggle present between living beings in which the survival is for the most fit according to the evolutionary theory. Now since the chance of perishing in such a struggle is almost 50% then it is better not to have such a struggle in the first place. This leads us to the first point which is to try and live in peace with all others as much as we can.

Now let us get back to the people of the monotheistic religions be them Jews, Christians or Muslims. Needless to say that this group of people believe in the presence of the devil(s) and his (their) evil ways and how he (they) want(s) us to do as much wrong as possible and commit as many sins as possible.
One of his (their) main goals is to make us not believe in God and hence in his (their) presence in the first place and this way they can get us with no resistance what so ever on our part. You can not fight what you do not believe in!
If he (they) fail in the above goals he (they) move on to the second most important one; spreading hatred, arrogance, prejudice and negative feelings amongst a group of people towards another group of people. They start with a group from one sect of a certain religion towards another group belonging to another sect of the same religion (amongst Christians Catholics against Baptists, Orthodox against Catholics, amongst Muslims Sunni against Shiite and so forth). If they fail in that they move on to people from one religion to another group from another religion although both religions are monotheistic (Christians against Muslims, Muslims against Jews, Jews against both Christians and Muslims, and so forth)! The fact is that non of the scriptures in any of the three monotheistic religions tells you to hate any other human being. On the contrary there is always a stress on how much you should love all other human and living beings. It is the personal interpretation and hijacking of the scriptures by some ill intentioned or ill minded or both that pushes the masses into believing that they should hate and fight people from other religions. The devil wins by dividing and ruling.
If the devil fails in the above he moves on to the next step which is spreading of negative feelings amongst individuals for any petty reason. It could be simple paranoid thoughts of no basis what so ever or thoughts based on different social or economic or even egoist basis.
If he fails in the above he moves onto making you just “forget” about God and the devil and the whole issue. Yes you continue to believe in God but you actually stop thinking, feeling and living that belief. Yes you are not harming anyone but you are totally unaware that you should be, with a direct true intention, living your life building and earning your way to a better afterlife.
Finally if he fails in all the above he moves on to pushing one into committing sins in which one disobeys God in one way or another without necessarily harming other people (like not performing certain religious rituals) or with things that have a long term negative impact on the whole society (like committing adultery).

Now the above mentioned sequence is not necessarily what truly happens with each one of us but certainly it is put in an order of what is most harmful to what is least harmful to both this life and your afterlife.
Now the question that arises is how does the devil(s) do that? One very important fact that we should keep in mind all the time is that the devil(s) is(are) not less smart than you are. A second fact is that that’s their only job, they have nothing to do until the day of Judgment but to push you further away from God. A third fact is that they have no control over you, you have total control over yourself, they just throw ideas or thoughts in your way and you choose either to follow it or decline.
Now back to the same question, how do they do that? They have a running biography of your life, what you like, what you dislike, what are your weak points, when are you most susceptible to obey them, different trends in your personality and so forth. In order to push you into making a certain mistake it does not have to be an impulsive action but they could plan for a sequence of events that could take hours, days or even months until you fall into a certain trap or another.
So now what is the way out and how to fight and defeat them in a most efficient way?
First of all you have to be aware of what really God wants from you; obedience to Him, love to all others manifesting in being most useful, giving and forgiving to them, hate of bad deeds but not to people who perform them and very good manners in dealing with any “other”.
Second, just like the devil studies your personality and keeps a running biography of you, keep an autobiography. Notice patterns in your personality, record when you are most susceptible to fall into traps by the devil and commit any of the above mentioned mistakes of negative thoughts, feelings or acts whether with God, people of your religion or any other religion. Based on that biography modify your thoughts, feelings and practice such that you are less vulnerable for the devil and his traps.

To conclude the above “live” demonstration of the devil and his ways I would like to mention the verse in the Qur’an in which God says what can be translated into, “Indeed, Satan is an enemy to you; so take him as an enemy” (Qur’an, 35:6). He is plotting all the time against you so take the time to plot for yourself in defense and never give your back to your enemy or under estimate him. Be aware of your enemy and be on your guard and deal with him in the same manner you deal with any enemy by being alert, aware and in a continuous smart proactive fight.
Accordingly do not ever be fooled by the Devil into thinking that other human beings are your enemies. Your only true enemy is the Devil. If human beings from all walks of life live with that mentality we would have been living in a much more peaceful world as it should have been if only people listened to God and His messengers. Here is a saying by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)that in one sentence sums up how to defeat your enemy, the devil, “None of you truly believes until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself.” Brother here refers to brother in humanity. If you want to be a good God-oriented person you should truly wish the best for all other human beings without ever looking down on any human being let along making any enemy out of him/her.

Embracing Change

Battling with the wind is as futile as refusing change. Holding tight to our safe zones and clinging to our loved ones and precious things simply won’t stop the wheel from turning on and on. Change, the only stable fact on earth, might not be our enemy after all.

I had my own battles with the winds of change, in which, of course, I was defeated. I simply hated change. At one stage, I liked my life the way it was and I did not want it changed. At that time I was foolish enough to believe in the possibility of forever. Gradually, and after receiving many blows and knockouts, I started to believe that you do have to accept change and to expect it, in order to reduce the intensity of your fall when change knocks on your door next time. Change is bound to happen, whether you like it or not, so you better see it coming and not be blinded by a temporary triumph that life is giving you, because soon and before you know it will be taken away. However, this was also a limited vision that stems out of fear of loss, and not out of faith or resolve.

When one of my most important pillars of strength and sources of joy was taken away from me, I fought fiercely to get it back but in vain; it was time to move on. When I realized that it had really gone, I felt that I had lost everything and that I was standing in the middle of nowhere with my hands empty and my heart void. My heart was being ripped apart and I totally refused, without noticing, to accept the reality that this road ended here. At that stage, I froze completely, living in the memories of the happy past, refusing to go on, and rejecting any other source of joy. Nothing could fulfill me anymore, and I was ruining my life with my own hands. I was torturing myself with denial, feeling that I left my happiness behind and that I would never be happy again except if I were back where I used to be. Eventually I miserably started to try, not to forget how happy I was then, but to accept God’s command without understanding it. I still believed that my happiness lay there, but I was trying to tame my soul and to train myself to believe in the words we say superficially of trusting in Allaah’s judgement. My solace was that if I truly believed that the Lord would guide me to the right thing and grant me patience, if I could endure the pain and go on, if I turned out to be a good person, He would bring me back what I had lost.

I have learnt that it is not right to ask God to do you a specific thing since you know not where goodness lies like He does. I kept on supplicating to Him to either bring it back to me if that were better for me, or take it out of my heart so that I could rest and carry on. Yet, I was almost certain that my supplication's answer would lie in the first part; having it back, because naturally I still believed that my happiness was there. However, to my ultimate surprise, my supplication was indeed answered, but not the way I had expected. It was out of my heart, and I was able to have my peace of mind again.

Nothing in the world except Allaah is worth dying for or hanging to forever. When it is not meant to be, it is really not meant to be, no matter how we want to twist it, or how we block our ears or close our eyes to the truth. God indeed knows best, and loves us much more than we may think or even deserve sometimes. I felt so little, so very little when I realised how things had evolved, and how foolish I was to think that life had turned its back on me the day my life had changed. Our happiness is not hidden in one place or one person or one direction; it is divided in many paths and among many people, thoughts and commitments. Refusing the other parts of this share of happiness is the mistake we often fall into when we think, narrowly, in one direction trying to force our happiness from where we want it.

Even our attachment to such important aspects of our lives is bound to change. When everything else around is changing, we must not expect our hearts to keep looking where nothing is to be found anymore. However, when our own feelings change, we seldom question change. We do this only when we are affected by the change and not initiating it. Therefore, combing the two sides of change; of circumstances and of heart, and not allowing one to surpass or overshadow the other, may save us a lot of pain and breakdowns.

Recently, I cultivated the habit of walking everyday, to calm my soul, to walk peacefully and enjoy the air and the sun and the trees. It might seem so trivial, but it gives me great pleasure and serenity. It is a small part of the hidden bits of happiness scattered here and there along the road, and I am not intending to miss any of mine.

I have learnt that everything is precious, not just our preferred things. Everything will go, and especially our dearest things. Clinging to anything won't bring it back if it is not ours to have. Still, enjoying it when it is here and enjoying it when it is gone is how we can keep our sanity. Appreciating the bits and pieces of joy that the Lord sends our way, the small gestures and hidden signs that tell you that you are not alone and definitely not forgotten, is the remedy of loss.

I now know that it is not just about accepting change as this invincible enemy. It is not about staying alert that nothing is here to stay, for this will definitely ruin one’s appreciation of the beauty of the moment. It is about embracing change; not as the wicked thief that steals one’s happiness and ruins one’s life, but as the wise visitor who comes every once in a while to renew our lives, open new doors and close the obsolete ones. A blow is likely to happen and something very dear is always hard to lose, but God will never leave our wounds open, His healing light is always there to guide us throughout the journey. Going on and exploring the new ways the Lord is opening and leaving our area of confidence and security is very hard, but it is meant to take place so that we continue leading our way and becoming who we are; the sum of all the choices and experiences, the sum of everything that is gone and all that is to come.

"All that (exists) upon it (i.e., the earth) is vanishing. And there (still) remains (forever) The Face of your Lord,The Owner of Majesty and Munificence." 1.

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1. Qur'aan: Ar-Rahmaan 55: verses 26 - 27.

{Quick Reflections 36} Choose, Exchange!

With some contemplation and logic reasoning, we will see very clearly how everything in this vast universe moves and acts according to laws that ensure complete harmony between the billions of its elements. Absence of these very intelligent laws will result in chaos and collapse of each and every element in existence. Moreover, their absence would have never permitted the universe to come into existence in the first place.
These Divine laws not only govern materialistic elements but also inter-human relations and Divine-human relations.

Almost every second of our lives, each and every one of us makes a choice. Every second, we choose what to think of, what to say, what to look at, what to listen to, what to do, and how to direct our feelings. This life for humans, being intelligent creatures, is all about choices in every minute single detail in our lives. The set of billions of choices we make throughout our lives in every single second of it all adds up to determine our life stories and hence our eventual ends.

We will discuss one of the Divine laws that determine the consequences of our choices from the very smallest detail all the way until the concluding result, in our lifetime of choices.

At one time in history, God bestowed upon His chosen people, sons of Israel, food and drink from heaven so that they would eat it on earth. Instead of being thankful and grateful to their Lord they asked Prophet Moses to ask God to provide them with earthly food in exchange for the heavenly one. "And (remember) as you said, “O Mûsa, (Moses) we will never (endure) patiently one (sort) of food; so invoke your Lord for us that He may bring out for us of what the earth grows of its green herbs and its cucumbers, and its garlic, and its lentils, and its onions.” He said, “Would you wish to exchange that which is most charitable for that which is meaner? Get you down to (any) township; (Some say that it is Egypt) then surely you will have (there) what you asked for.” And they were stricken with humiliation and indigence" (Qur'aan, 2:61).

The Divine law here shows very clearly the consequent effects of our choices on our lives on Earth even before we die and have to face the final and eternal consequences in the next life. The choice of something mean in exchange for something charitable leads to humiliation and indigence. Now this exchange ranges from exchange of very minute and simple things to very grave and complex things. Moreover, the Divine law is about the intentions and ideas behind such exchanges rather than the exchanged objects themselves.

Let us expand further upon this cause-effect relationship through providing examples from our everyday life. First let us start by giving general examples, and then move on to more specific ones.

The majority of our wrong choices that lead to humiliation stem from our tendency to do what is easy in stead of what is right; from details like choosing to sleep and miss fajr prayer, delaying prayer because of being indulged in some sort of earthly matters, or lying to avoid troubles all the way up to the big picture of treading in the way of God versus following one’s arrogance and desires and ignoring God’s presence in the first place. Choosing the easy way out instead of fighting one's way through, sticking to one's safe zone despite its unrewarding potential and obsolete opportunities in stead of exploring new lands of abundance and trials are examples of our major life choices.

Another kind of wrong yet easy choices is the result of following one's desires (alhawa) and personality defects despite one's subconscious knowledge of their wrongfulness like following one's arrogance, refusing to confess being wrong, scarcity in spending on charity and choosing one's own luxury in stead, laziness in helping others, to the extent of indulgence in sin.

The outcome of these choices usually leads to an ugly feeling of empty-heartedness, shame, and cowardness. Following the ways of God leads to dignity and resolve, though the path to it is not paved. The way out, though not as easy as words are, is to contemplate before choosing to exchange; whether it is the right exchange, whether this is what God wants us to do.

Now all this is general talk and sounds like preaching, which most of us do not like. Accordingly, let us take this a step further and move to our everyday life and dig out examples of our choices and their consequences.

Some people face great difficulties in earning their living, like most people residing in poor underdeveloped countries. In the process of earning their living they might submit to higher authorities and exchange honesty, straightforwardness and perfection of their work for lying, humiliation and bribery. They exchange their submission to God for submission to human beings. The end result is continuous humiliation and eternal submission to other humans. They lose their God-given freedom and enslave themselves to other humans. They spend the rest of their lives asking for help from other helpless people who can do them no good. Even if they manage to attain higher living standards through unethical ways and become somehow independent of other humans they end up losing more important things like their own children who would stray and evidently grow up to be losers and even more dishonest.

On the other hand, others living under the same conditions who stick to honesty and perfection of their work enduring all the hardships in the process manage to preserve their dignity and do not depend on other humans for sustenance. No one can claim that this is easy. However, their sense of tranquility, dignity and true freedom cannot be calculated in terms of financial wealth no matter how great it is. Some of them manage to break through by the help of more powerful and rich others who actually go to them to offer help. When they submit to God only, people get attracted to their glow and wish to keep this glow shining. Even if this does not happen in every case, we would find that their kids grow up to be respectable and successful people in their communities, standing tall despite the wind of poverty and corruption.

Actually one of the main criteria that I personally use to assess the honesty and truthfulness of people above 40 (even if they “seem” to be good religious people) is by assessing how well their children are doing. If they are well mannered and truly successful then their parents are most probably trustworthy and vice versa. This criterion has never failed me in my assessments. Some might argue that it is not the children’s fault if their parents were not good people. If their parents were bad people why do they have to grow up to be bad people? A reply to that is that you do not choose your children. You might do your best in raising them up according to the most perfect standards yet they end up being failures and nuisances to the community. On the other hand, you might not give much attention to raising them up, like the first group of exchangers does, yet they might grow up to be good people even if after a while. The key here is that God matches different personalities together in a way that results that usually good people end up to be descendants of good people. He chooses for you either children who are innately good people or innately bad people. You find out about that choice 20-30 years after their birth.

If we move to another category of people mostly those living in the West or in the East but are very well to do, we will see another common example.

Some choose following their desires, mainly ignoring the presence of God and submission to Him, running after their materialistic gains in the form of more money, fame and satisfaction of their sexual desires through different unethical routes. The whole community ends up living in a continuous sense of insecurity, increased crime rate, broken families, high rate of depression and suicide and a continuous sense of spiritual emptiness.

On the other hand, others who do not make the above exchange continue to live in serenity, prosperity and contentment with a continuous sense of security.

Look carefully into your own life and that of the surrounding people and see for yourself how every choice and exchange we make affects our lives either towards more humiliation and indigence (amidst the presence or absence of life hardships) or more dignity and serenity (usually amidst hardships).

Look, think, choose and exchange -- having the Divine law that determines the consequences of your choices and exchanges in front of your eyes all the time.

40 Days

When Prophet Moses secluded himself away from his people to receive Allaah's divine orders, his people turned from complete faith to complete infidelity in a matter of 40 days only. Knowing that those are the same people who crossed the sea with him and who defied the Pharaoh, those who remained steadfast in the face of huge tests, it is really shocking to see how they could change that drastically in such a short period of time when they lost the sense of direction and guidance.

Were they hypocrites? Is it a question of how deep they believed before the 40 days? Or is this not a parameter in the first place? No one can endure such hardships without truly believing in the cause behind them. Were they steadfast only because of Moses’ profound effect on them, and when they lost that everything else was forgotten? How can a true believer turn into a rejecter of faith in 40 days? 40 days and not years, 40 days; a month and 10 days?! A period that is too short to be felt in the first place. How could they forget all about the One Almighty God who created everything and who has the sovereignty above every creature in the worlds and replace HIM with a statue of gold, in just 40 days?

Was it too much self-confidence? Or was it too much reliance on having a faithful heart and a concrete creed? I believe this was the reason why they strayed. This is also why we have to remain conscious of our hearts and not rely too much on present steadfastness, even if we are true believers hence no one can even claim this and be so sure about it.

Balance; Messengers and Messages

When his people disobeyed him and turned a deaf ear to his teachings and to Allaah's orders, Moses (Peace be upon him) appealed to his Lord saying, "Lord! Surely I possess (no authority) on anyone except myself and my brother. So distinguish between us (Literally: part between us and "between") and the immoral people. Said He, "Then surely it will be prohibited for them for forty years (while) they go astray in the earth. So do not feel sad about the immoral people." [1]


In a similar occasion, Jesus (Peace be upon him) said, addressing Allaah, "In case You torment them, then surely they are Your bondmen; and in case You forgive them, then surely You, Ever You, are The Ever-Mighty, The Ever-Wise ." [2]

Contrastively, when Prophet Muhammad (Peace and Blessings of Allaah be upon him) was stoned by his people and injured in his face and feet, he prayed to Allaah to forgive them, saying, " O Allaah, forgive my people, for they do not know". [3]

Looking at these three attitudes tells us a lot about the personality of each of the noble Prophets, and consequently the nature of their call. According to the Qur'aan, Prophet Moses was a strong well-built man, whose miracles were of a compelling kind that would appeal to the temperament of his people and to the culture of the era.

Prophet Jesus was a kind-hearted man known for his mercy and gentle soul. His miracles, though different from Moses's magical marvels, matched the humanitarian nature of his call, yet they still surpassed the boundaries of the human mind.

Prophet Muhammad is a model of moderation; despite him being a man who depends on logic and wise judgment, he was very affectionate towards his people, his companions, followers of his message, and even the believers of other religions. His strength lies in his ability to balance between having a kind heart, and a compelling reason and force. In contrast to those of his predecessors, Prophet Muhammad's grand miracle, the Qur'aan, addresses the mind of his interlocutors as well as their hearts. He was not provided with enchanted wonders or breathtaking supernatural phenomena. However, his miracle is the only everlasting one of all.

While Moses supplicated against his people, and Jesus left it for Allaah to decide whether to treat them with mercy or with anger, it is Prophet Muhammad who supplicated for his people, asking Allaah to forgive them. Far from the extreme of asking for punishment, or leaving the whole issue altogether, Prophet Muhammad was rather more proactive than Jesus, and more compassionate than Moses.

The nature of these noble Prophets goes in parallel with the colour of their call. Therefore, as we can see Moses' complex history with his people moving from one extreme to another: from total submission and belief to total disbelief and mistrust. A nation of this kind needed a strong man to lead them and to correct their path. As Jesus became a symbol of forgiveness due to his sympathetic nature; an era of such a dark history of hatred and injustice needed a man who is different from Moses who can teach them how to be humans again. Whereas Muhammad, the compassionate yet steadfast, came to tie both threads together in a unique balance, offering a blend of guidance and mercy to all.

Being the last Prophet to be sent to the world, Prophet Muhammad's message is dedicated to all mankind, with no astounding miracles that lasts in memories for a few decades only, but rather with a true convention of all time. His moderation even in his personal traits is an unmistaken sign of Allaah's humbling wisdom in choosing him to be the last Prophet and to be sent not to a particular tribe or nation, but to all human beings : "And in no way have We sent you except as a mercy to the worlds ." [4]

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[1] Qur'aan 5 : 25, 26.
[2] Qur'aan 5 :115.
[3] Authentic hadeeth reported by al-Bukhariyy in al-Jaami` as-Saheeh (3477), and narrated by Abdullaah ibn-Mas`ood (RA).
[4] Qur'aan 21: 107

{Quick Reflections 28} Time

Allaah (SWT) created time and place. Moreover a creation can never encompass its creator. Accordingly, as we all know, Allaah (SWT) is not limited by and can not be talked about in the terms of time and place. However He (SWT) uses explicable terms, which corresponds with our familiar sense of time and place in the Qur'aan, to describe His presence, the Day of Judgment and other issues that are unseen to us.



To elaborate further upon this issue and in an attempt to illustrate how limited we are in our perception and how unlimited He (SWT) is, I will provide the following 2 live pictures.



In order for us to see anything (which is a representation of things in place) light, reflected from (non-illuminating objects e.g. everything except stars, sun, fire and light sources) or emerging from (illuminating objects e.g. stars, sun, fire and light sources), has to enter our eyes. Now that light takes time to travel from place to place, from an object to our eyes. For example light takes approximately 8 minutes to travel from the sun to earth. Accordingly the moment we see the sun it is in a position it used to be 8 minutes earlier. On a wider scale, as light takes thousands of years to reach us from the much further stars; we are actually looking at them through time. We are seeing them in a position they used to be in thousands of years ago. Some of them now might have exploded or moved very far from where we see them. Accordingly we are looking at places and things which we think are there now but which are actually their past. So this is how we see things or places through the window of time.



On the other hand, we have all watched movies and know that they are imprinted on a roll of film which has static pictures printed next to each other in a sequence such that when you move it with the appropriate speed we generate a dynamic movie with different events taking place in a certain time frame having a past, present and future within the movie while you are watching it.

However if you take that roll and spread it out in front of you you will be able to see all the events that occur at different times (in the movie) at the same time. i.e . to you as an outside observer of the film roll, that another human like you made, you can see the past, present and future of the events in that movie at the same time very simply. Also you can see different places at the same time. That can be done by humans amongst humans.

Now imagine the Al-Mighty Creator of place and time looking from outside the place and time at us in our place and time. Allaah (SWT) is the creator of this movie roll that has all our lives spreading over it from the day Adam lay foot on earth until the Day of Jugdment. For Him (TWT) He can see all the places and all the times (past, present and future) at the same time while for us, who are limited by these 2 dimensions, time and place, we have different places and different time frames that govern our very limited perception.

And Allaah is Most High Most Knowledgeable.

May Allaah guide us all to live in His ma3iyyah regardless of our time and place.

{Quick Reflections 17} 6 Days

Allaah (TWT) describes His Will and Power saying, "The Ever-Innovating of the heavens and the earth; and when He has decreed a Command, then surely it is only (that) He says to it, "Be!" so it is"(TMQ, 2:117) . Moreover He (SWT) says about the creation of the universe, "Surely your Lord is Allaah, Who created the heavens and the earth in six days"(TMQ, 7:64). On the other hand, while He (TWT) tells us about the different stages through which Adam (AS) was created in different ayat dispersed throughout the Qur'aan, He (AWJ) did not specify the exact time frame in which He (SWT) created him. However He (SWT) says about the creation of human beings, "Man was created of haste" (TMQ, 21:37).

According to the first ayah in which Allaah (SWT) states very clearly that it is all a matter of Him (TWT) saying to something to be and it becomes immediately with no need for a time frame as He (SWT) created time itself in addition to things. However, He (SWT) willed that the creation of the universe be within a certain time frame and that of humans be of haste for certain wisdom that only He (AWJ) knows.

We will try here to contemplate about that wisdom, and with our very limited knowledge ask for His guidance to show us a glimpse of His wisdom (AWJ).



Let us imagine the following 3 scenarios.

First scenario: Man was created out of the same nature as the universe, i.e. within the same time frame.

He will be living on Earth and surviving in this universe with the same pace as the universe neither affecting it nor being affected by it and neither being proactive nor being reactive to it. He will be simply flowing with the current of events occurring in nature around him neither innovating something new (being creative) nor falling back behind it.

Second Scenario: Man was created out of a slower nature than that of the universe, i.e. within a longer time frame.

He will be living on Earth and surviving in this universe at a slower pace than the universe being always affected by it and the ongoing events around him never having the chance to react properly. Of course, in this case being innovative will be out of the question. With time, the nature of the Universe will overpower the slowly reacting humans and they will perish.

Third Scenario: Man was created out of haste with a nature faster than that of the Universe which is the real and actual case scenario.

This way man will be able to learn from his mistakes and react to events happening in nature appropriately. Not only that, he will even be faster than nature and be constantly innovative and creative, trying to overcome the surrounding adversaries and beat nature through learning more about it and superseding it. On the other hand, his hasty nature will subject him to be tested for his patience when things in nature around him do not change as he wishes and move at a pace slower than his will and power.

Accordingly the third case scenario is the best case scenario that would suite the goal for which both the Universe and Man were created; worshipping Allaah (TWT) through first being able to survive then being creative and productive while being tested for his patience.

N.B. Jinn were also created to worship Allaah (AWJ) but we know very little about their creation and nature in spite of them being created long before man.

And Allaah is Most High Most Knowledgeable.