Voice-of-Quran

ive programs from Holy Makkah and Madeena on your desktop

2010-11-06T03:32:00.001-07:00

ASSALAAMUALAIKUM

For live programs from Holy Makkah and Madeena on your desktop.

Please do the following steps:
Come to the Desktop First
· Right Click -> New -> Shortcut
New Window Will Appear
· Type mms://38.96.148.74/Quran2
· Then Click Next
· Type Any name as “Makkah”
· Then Finish
Open The Short Cut. Now its playing Makkah Live Program. just wait for a while for bufferning.

Do the Same Procedure for Madeena Live Program Using the url mms://38.96.148.74/Sunna2

Don’t forget to Forward it to our other Brothers and Sisters in Islaam, insha'Allaah.

GUJCOC -- A tough law only for Muslims

2009-07-14T04:17:00.000-07:00

Before analysing the Gujarat government's position and the effectiveness of a law like (Gujarat Control of Organised Crime Act) GUJCOC in dealing with terrorism, let us look at some of its provisions.
Every offence punishable under GUJCOC is cognizable. Anticipatory bail provision is excessively stringent so as to keep the accused behind the bars for a substantial period of time without a trial. Confession made before a superintendent of police is admissible evidence, irrespective of how much an accused is tortured. Valid intercepted communication is also admissible evidence. An accused can be kept in police custody for up to 60 days.
The failure of police to charge sheet an accused does create a technical ground for bail.
There will be special courts and special public prosecutors to expedite the trials. The history of the accused shall have a bearing on the evidence against him. Special courts are permitted to have summary trials. Protection of witness and property of the accused will be on a reasonable ground liable to be forfeited. Having gone through some of the main provisions of GUJCOC, one question that comes to mind is “Is GUJCOC an anti-terrorist Act, meant to deal sternly with terrorism?”
Sections pertaining to interception were also scrapped from MCOCA following a petition in the Mumbai High Court in the case involving film financier Bharat Shah. The GUJCOC Bill in its new avatar, too, is without these sections. Further, in sections referring to harbouring of criminals and holding property acquired from the said crime, POTA appears more compassionate than GUJCOC. For example, while the minimum imprisonment for harbouring a terrorist under POTA was three years, in the case of GUJCOC it is five years for harbouring a member of an organised crime syndicate. Besides, while POTA distinguishes between voluntary and forcible harbouring, GUJCOC has done away with the distinction.
Chief minister Narendra Modi may have upped his ante demanding immediate approval of the bill, but the Centre seems to have reservations on the draconian provisions it envisages that make it vulnerable to human rights abuse. Some of the controversial provisions provide for death sentence to even persons who may have unknowingly helped a criminal involved in organised crime. GUJCOC also provides for intercepting telephone calls, letters, emails and other communication and admitting them as evidence. The provisions also give wide powers to seize the property of the accused.
GUJCOC equates terrorist activity with murder and provides for death sentence or life imprisonment, besides a penalty of Rs. 10 lakh for terrorists. Gujarat Congress president Siddharth Patel has said, the BJP should tell the people the provisions that have been included in the bill. He added, "The provisions put the onus on citizens to prove themselves innocent, rather than the police proving the guilt of the criminal". It allows a police remand of 30 days without producing the culprit in the court and gives the police 180 days to frame the chargesheet.
Congress spokesperson Arjun Modhvadia called the GUJCOC law as hot as chilly and said it gave wide powers to police, something that even the British did not have during their rule in India. Like POTA, the provisions are bound to be misused, particularly against Muslims in the state. He pointed out that if one read the statement of objects given by the state of Gujarat, it did not appear to be so. It says, ‘the organised crime has for quite some years now come up as a very serious threat to our society.’ It knows no national boundaries and is fuelled by illegal wealth generation by contract killing, extortion, smuggling in contrabands, illegal trade in narcotics, kidnappings for ransom, collection of protection money and money laundering etc.
The illegal wealth and black money generated by organised crime is huge and has serious adverse effects on economy. It is noticed that the organised criminal syndicates make common cause with terrorist gangs and foster macro terrorism extending beyond the national boundaries. There is reason to believe that organised criminal gangs are operating in the state and thus, there is immediate need to curb their activities. It further states that the existing legal framework is inadequate to curb the menace of organised crime.
Does the statement of object not read more like justification for seeking a new law against organised crime than terrorism? Is it meant to deal with Dawood Ibrahim and his friends in Mumbai and not a bunch of Jamia Millia Islamia students who have no criminal history? But should not an Act that is being touted as Gujarat's answer to terrorism focus on these faceless, nameless men who are killing innocent people, seeking to avenge what they perceive to be collective failure of the state to protect religious minorities?
Do we mean to say that the terrorists in India are involved blowing up trains, killing innocent people in crowded markets, hospitals and theatres for pecuniary benefit and to get undue economic advantage? The answer is no. TADA was in force when terrorists killed more than 35,000 people, POTA could not prevent suicide bombers. Therefore, the question “are blasts taking place across the country because we do not have a law to deal with terrorists, or because of a failure on the part of state to respond to this new threat from those who actually belong to us?”
If the Gujarat police want to keep the accused behind the bars without prosecution, it has preventive detention laws. If it wants to prevent anti-socials from committing crimes, Gujarat has the Prevention of Anti-social Act. If we want to deal with terrorism we have the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, which was amended at the time of repeal of POTA and which can further be amended. What we need is strengthening of the existing preventive, prosecuting and punishing mechanisms in India. We need to strengthen the institutions that can prevent young men from taking to terrorism. We need to strengthen the institutions that can effectively prosecute those who stray. And this can happen only when every individual who has not lost any near and dear one in a terrorist act feels the pain of those who did. And he or she should understand that we will continue to lose our loved ones to terrorist acts if we do not act like a citizen of India.
The country needs to collectively respond to this national problem beyond the politics of the two national parties, BJP and Congress and their everyday engagement in allegations and counter-allegations. There may be many a slip before the Gujarat Control of Organised Crime (GUJCOC) (Amended) Bill, 2003, passed in the State Assembly and becoming an Act. Framed on the lines of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), 1999, it may be the Modi government's riposte to the Centre, but the birth pangs were evident when former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam directed the deletions of all sections pertaining to communication interception when the NDA was still in power at the Centre.
Vipul Vijoy Singh says, “people involved in terrorist activities usually advocate some ideology and are not mercenary, while the motive in organised crime is money. But now underworld dons like Dawood Ibrahim have begun supporting terrorist organisations.” Vadodara-based rights activist Rohit Prajapati refers to the attitude of the Gujarat government during the 2002 riots and says, “I have a strong feeling that in the name of countering “terrorism” Gujarat is becoming a terrorist state by looking for indiscriminate power in its hands.” According to him, the GUJCOC Bill will “legalise state terrorism.”
Now, President Pratibha Patil is still undecided about a green signal to this GUJCOC. Unlike MCOCA, whose raison detre is explained as tackling organised crime “fuelled by illegal wealth generated by contract killing, extortion, smuggling in contrabands, illegal trade in narcotics, kidnappings for ransom, collection of protection money and money laundering, etc,” GUJCOC does not bother to explain what comprises organised crime.
Sections pertaining to interception were also scrapped from MCOCA following a petition in the Mumbai High Court in the case involving film financier Bharat Shah. The GUJCOC Bill in its new avatar, too, is without these sections. Further, in sections referring to harbouring of criminals and holding property acquired from the said crime, POTA appears more compassionate than GUJCOC. For example, while the minimum imprisonment for harbouring a terrorist under POTA was three years, in the case of GUJCOC it is five years for harbouring a member of an organised crime syndicate. Besides, while POTA distinguishes between voluntary and forcible harbouring, GUJCOC has done away with the distinction.
POTA also clarifies (which GUJCOC does not) that the sub-section on harbourers shall not apply to any case in which the harbouring is done by the husband or wife of the offender. POTA says, “Whoever knowingly holds any property derived or obtained from commission of any terrorist act or has been acquired through the terrorist funds shall be punishable” whereas GUJCOC does not mention the term “knowingly”. GUJCOC reads much like POTA, with only “terrorism” and “terrorist organisation” being replaced by “organised crime” and “organised crime syndicate”.
After deletion of 12 sections pertaining to interception of communication and its treatment as evidence, GUJCOC's section 27, like POTA, allows a confessional statement by an accused before an officer not below the rank of superintendent of police, to be admitted in a court for trial, but is being severely opposed. Says Gujarat High Court lawyer Mukul Sinha, “the fact that they were eager to enact this law shows that it might be misused, just like POTA to differentiate their scope”.
Inspector-General of Police of the Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS), Vipul Vijoy Singh says, “people involved in terrorist activities usually advocate some ideology and are not mercenary, while the motive in organised crime is money. But now underworld dons like Dawood Ibrahim have begun supporting terrorist organisations.” Vadodara-based rights activist Rohit Prajapati refers to the attitude of the Gujarat government during the 2002 riots and says, “I have a strong feeling that in the name of countering “terrorism” Gujarat is becoming a terrorist state by looking for indiscriminate power in its hands.” According to him, the GUJCOC Bill will “legalise state terrorism.”

Gujarat is on jungal raj

2009-07-02T06:52:00.000-07:00

BY Abdul hafiz lakhani Ahmedabad / Surat
Close on the heels of Surat gang rape in Gujarat, the Modi land is once on boil as people of all sections have started to put the queastion mark on Gujarat's vibrancy as claimed by publicity hungry Narendra Modi over the years. At Present< Gujarat's law and order situation is worsening day by day. Murders, rapes, suicides and robberies are on the rise alarmingly and CM Modi is in no mood to bring the end of people unsafety. It looks that CM is not for CM (common Man). Women activists say that Gujarat is not safe for women anymore and the police needs to get more serious about tackling crime against women in the stateCrime statistics of 2009 show at least one woman was raped in the state everyday. The audacity of the Surat rape case where the victim was picked up from a main road of the city, raped for two hours on the roads and then dumped at the same place, without anybody noticing anything amiss has shocked activists. The Surat gangrape has brought to fore another disturbing trend - that of the lucrative business out of selling MMS clips of gangrapes. This has made rape a business to earn money, sometimes even through blackmailing the victim's blackmailing.As many as 267 cases of murder, 1,254 of loot and 59 of robbery were registered from the Ahmedabad city alone between June 2006 and May 2009. Of the total 860 culprits booked in the murder cases, 121 are still absconding. State Home Minister Amit Shah said this in a written reply to a question by Congress MLA Gyasuddin Shaikh in the Assembly. According to Shah, of the total 1,798 culprits involved in the 1,254 loot cases, 1,139 have been arrested. As many as 45 of the total 301 people involved in robbery cases are still at large. The minister told the House that the police could not arrest the culprits booked in these crimes in the absence of their residential addresses. The police have intensified the search of the absconding persons.
in reply to another question by Kanjibhai Talpada of the Congress, the minister said that 191 cases of murder, rape, robbery and loot had taken place in Ahmedabad district in the last two years, with Daskroi taluka recording the highest number of murder cases (26), loot (40), robbery (11) and rape (six). Gujarat government admitted in the state Assembly recently that Ahmedabad city police have no clue about 41 cases of murder, 11 cases of robbery and 735 cases of loot in the areas falling directly under Ahmedabad Police Commissioner. In a written answer to Giasuddin Sheikh, Congress MLA, who sought figures of the last three years, the government said, between June 1, 2006 and May 31, 2009, in all 267 cases of murder, 59 cases of robbery and 1,254 cases of loot were registered. In a separate answer, government said, in the last two years, as on May 31, 2009, there were in all 191 cases of murder, loot, robbery and rape in Ahmedabad district. Of these, the cops have no clue of 43 cases. Largest number of cases was registered in Daskroi taluka of Ahmedabad 26 cases of murder, 40 cases of loot, 11 cases of robbery and 6 cases of rape. Participating in the debate on the issue, senior Congress leader Arjun Modhwadia asked why was the government trying to express satisfaction over law and order situation when realities were quite different? In his reply on the floor of the House, State Home Minister Amit Shah tried to explain, amid uproar from opposition benches, that the number of serious crimes had been going down over the years, but it would be wrong to say that the government was satisfied' with the results. "We have asked senior police officials to get directly involved in solving the 43 cases about which there is still no clue about crime," the minister claimed. A separate written reply on the failure of the government to solve criminal cases in the Ahmedabad Police Commissioner jurisdiction area said, in several cases the accused have been identified but not caught, and now efforts are on to track the criminals by questioning relatives'. It further said, the state home department has begun a night round scheme', with intensive effort to check vehicles. "There is also intensive patrolling with the help of special police vehicles," it added. Also, there is intensive checking of railway stations, hotels, guest houses, ST stands, among others.
Gujarat registered an increase of 10.8 per cent in suicide rate in 2007, according to a recently released report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). The report titled ‘Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India—2007’ said the number of suicides in Gujarat increased to 5,580 in 2007 from 5,035 in 2006, an increase of 10.8 per cent. The national average was 3.9 per cent. arat, where 4.6 per cent of the total suicides in the country took place, ranked 8th after Maharashtra, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh. Family problems topped the list of causes that led to suicides in the state. About 18 per cent suicides, i.e. 1,016 incidents, were committed because of family-related problems. The second reason was prolonged illness (15 per cent), followed by insanity (11 per cent). The report further says that 198 suicides, that is 3.5 per cent of the total, were committed because of unemployment. 1,016 incidents, were committed because of family-related problems. The second reason was prolonged illness (15 per cent), followed by insanity (11 per cent). The report further says that 198 suicides, that is 3.5 per cent of the total, were committed because of unemployment. . We have gloated enough in the Gujarat is safe for women' tag. We need to accept that things have changed drastically and strict measures are needed to prevent innocent girls being victimised," says leading women's rights activist, Ila Pathak, of Ahmedabad Women's Action Group (Awag). According to Pathak, like in New Delhi, police need to have early morning and late night mobile police vans and also have an easily accessible emergency helpline number like 108 to come to the rescue of the victim. "I saw a girl being harassed on the city road in the afternoon. There was no policeman in the vicinity, the crowd came to the girl's rescue but the teaser fled. This is the stark reality of the city considered safe for women where women can be raped on the main road in broad daylight," said Pathak.
Activist Sheba George of Sanchetna said that the system in the state has taken the safety of women for granted since long by dubbing it a safe place as compared to New Delhi and Mumbai. "Women's organisations will get together and write to the state police chief to come out with concrete proposals to safeguard women safety in the state," said George. George said that rapists should be tried in fast-track courts and justice delivered quickly to ensure that rapists are scared of the system. While, Usha Rada, assistant commissioner of police (crime) says, "Comparatively, cities of Gujarat are safer for working women and students. We have not got any complaints about serious offences such as rape against the women operating in early or late hours. However, the incidents of harassment and molestation are on rise. So we are setting up second woman police station for western city areas. If needed, the staff members will be asked to patrol the attack-prone areas."In a span of twelve years, more than 50,000 cases of violence against women have been reported from 12 districts of Gujarat. With 640 dowry deaths and 1,443 rape cases, the chart is topped by a staggering 14,998 cases of cruelty by husband and in laws, followed by accidental deaths, which is pegged at 14,631 cases. Navsarjan, a city based NGO has made a compilation of these numbers from across the 12 districts of Bhavnagar, Banaskantha, Kutch, Junagadh, Sabarkantha, Patan, Surat, Rajkot, Valsad, Amreli, Vadodara and Gandhinagar for the period from January 1, 1995 to October 31, 2007. The data also shows that as many as 4,030 cases of attempted rapes have surfaced during the same period. The report said 7,894 women committed suicide and 3,006 women were abducted during this period in these districts. "In all, we have 53,395 cases of violence against women registered during this period," said Manjula Pradeep, executive director, Navsarjan. "These are the data from just 12 districts, which we obtained through filing applications under the RTI Act, and even then most of the cases of violence against women go unreported," said Pradeep. "If these figures are anything to go by, one can easily reach the conclusion on how safe women are in Gujarat, which is projected as one of the safest sates for women," she added.
Talking to this journalist , Pradeep further said that while cases of violence against women are rather large in number, there has been a significant rise in the cases of atrocities on Dalits by members of dominant castes. "In a span of nine months, that is between April and December 2007, there were as many as 225 cases of atrocities against Dalits in Gujarat," said Pradeep, adding that while 6 dalit women were raped in Banaskantha, Mehsana, there have been nine cases of attempted rape and four murders and four cases of social boycott in the state with one each in Patan and Bharuch and two cases in Surendranagar. "Raising slogans for justice, more than 300 social activists from over 20 NGOs and voluntary organisations took out a rally at Sardarbaug, Khanpur. Among the eminent personalities who joined the rally were Ela Pathak, president AWAG; Lila Desai, president, Gujarat Stree Kelvani Mandal; Suwarna, a social activist; Professor Nalini Trivedi and Saraben Daldiwala."We organised the rally to lodge our protest against the indifferent attitude of police and government towards rape cases. It is time to take strict action against the culprits because the rape victims don't only go through physical and mental trauma but also face social stigma," said Meenakshi Joshi, convener, All India Mahila Sanskrutik Sangathan. Gujarat for long was regarded a safe place for women, a myth which has been shattered by some rape cases in recent times.In 2008, 374 cases of rape, 1,110 of abduction, 122 of sexual harassment and 6,094 cases of domestic violence were reported in Gujarat, with 132 rape cases reported in Ahmedabad alone, claimed the woman organisations. "The government should take appropriate action against such grave crimes," said Ela Pathak. The Surat gangrape has brought to fore another disturbing trend - that of the lucrative business out of selling MMS clips of gangrapes. This has made rape a business to earn money, sometimes even through blackmailing the victim's blackmailing.

The wind is fast changing in Gujarat after infamous 2002 Gujarat riots on education front.

2009-06-07T21:44:00.000-07:00

BY Abdul hafiz lakhani Ahmedabad

The wind is fast changing in Gujarat after infamous 2002 Gujarat riots on education front.Muslims have focused heavily on this most ignored sphere before genocide of muslims in that fateful year as the results of Gujarat state education Board's results of Std. 10 and 12 showed very recently. In Std 12, the general sream there are atleast 10 Muslimsstudents including nine girls who are among toppers in as many as 7 districts of state. While in science stream std 12 , there are 8 Muslims including a girl who ar among topppers in as many as 6 districts of state. In Ahmedabad in Std 12 th General stream. Sheikh Azrabanu od F.D. girls gigh school of Jamalpur is ninth in city with 92% marks while Saiyed Zakia with 91.86% marks is tenth in the city. Azrabanu wants to be a professor while zakia wants persue a career in MBA. More importantly, Zakia is from very poor family. Despite heavy odds she got such a wonderful achievement. she was clever fronm her childhood. In New SSC, exam two years before she passed with shining colours. There are two Muslim students who got more than 90 percent marks in science stream Std 12. Bhan Kasim od Rander, surat dist scored 92 percent while sharsiya Arsad romped home with 92.2% In NewSSc results there 14 Muslims who are among toppers in various districts of state. Patel Rozmin of Bharuch who got 95% while kanuga shams maksud of Surat who scored 94.46% Apart from these students there are 10 students who got more 90% marks which was dream before 2002 riots. By going this results it loks that there is considerable change happening among the Gujarati Muslims, particularly the youth today. the same time, there is process of modernisation underway. For many Muslim youth the core issues are unemployment, poverty, illiteracy, strained inter-communal relations, and the feeling of being haunted and branded because one has a Muslim name.Young educated Muslims are also stressing the need for social reforms, including in matters such as gender relations. Even some ulema are talking about the need for girls' education, not only for its own sake but also to empower the community as a whole. “There is definitely a rising trend of Muslim students, both boys and girls, getting admitted to medical institutes in the last couple of years’’, points out Dr Jayshree Mehta, dean of the SBKS Medical Institute and Research Centre at Waghodia in Vadodara district. Though she was not able to give the exact figures of Muslim students in her institute, Mehta, who taught for about three decades in Baroda Medical College before moving over to this institute, said strength of Muslim students was very negligible in the past but the trend had completely changed now. “More and more Muslims are securing admissions on merit basis’’, points out Dr Mehta. Dr GN Shukla, Principal of Vivekanand Institute of Medical Sciences and Research at Valia in Bharuch district, also fully supports the findings of the NGOs. “In my institute, I have noticed an increase in Muslim students strength. And what is more amazing is that Muslim students from financially poor background have secured admission on merit basis’’, commented Shukla. He hold the rising educational awareness, of late, among Gujarati muslims responsible for increase of muslim students strength in professional, particularly, medical institutes. Kamal Pathak, Dean of Baroda Medical College, said he had noticed some increase in the number of Muslim students in medical courses in the last couple of years but expressed his inability to give increase in percentage saying that such datas were not maintained in medical institutions. The literacy rate among Muslims in Gujarat has increased by 10 per cent in the last decade and at 73 per cent is higher than the overall literacy rate in the state.Julaya Shabnam is the first literate in her family and now she recently got honours to be the first graduate in her family . Living in Jamalpur in the walled city of Ahmedabad, Julaya's parents ensured that their daughter got a proper education. education is the only solution to the problems faced by Muslims. "We have to stand on our own legs. The situation is not what it used to be. You can no longer remain an illiterate," said Shamima Bano, a student.While a college f. D. girls for Muslim women in Ahmedabad, which had only 80 students in 1993, today has over 1,000 students.This goes to show the increasing consciousness about importance of education in the community.The Census data too reflects the growing significance of this trend. The literacy rate of Muslims in Gujarat has increased by over 10 per cent in ten years to 73.9 per cent.This is much higher than the state's average of 69.1 per cent and the all-India Muslim literacy rate of 59 per cent. Female literacy too is higher than the national average at 54 per cent.It's a response, social activists say, to the insecurity the community has faced in Gujarat for many years. But instead of being pushed into ghettos, access to colleges and awareness campaigns have meant that even the orthodox sections, chose more liberal education systems to madrasas."After the Babri mosque demolition there has been a growing consciousness amongst the community on the importance of liberal secular education and this has forced even orthodox people to send their children to liberal education systems," said MOhammed Husain Joher director of SPART an Ahmedabad based NGO Another reason for the high literacy rate among Muslims is due to the rapid urbanisation in Gujarat with Muslims concentrated in many of the bigger cities like Ahmedabad, Vadodra and Surat"Naturally in urban areas the literacy rate is higher and so in Gujarat the literacy rate amongst Muslims is higher than the all-India Muslim literacy rate," said Baroda based social activist and senior ofice bearer of WMO Zuber Gopani .While the scars of the communal frenzy of 2002 have not quite healed, the silent literacy revolution in Gujarat is a powerful rejoinder to those who have tried to stereotype the Gujarati Muslim. In the last few years, especially since 1992, when the Babri Masjid was destroyed and Gujarat witnessed considerable violence, Muslims have been giving particular attention to education. In fact, today Muslims in Gujarat have a higher overall literacy rate than Hindus, although their relative representation at the higher levels of education is much less. There are a number of new Muslim schools coming up today in Gujarat today. On the one hand, setting up modern schools is, of course, a good thing. It shows that Muslims are awakening to the importance of education. But, on the other hand, often because Muslims often are denied admission in Hindu-managed schools, they are setting up their own schools which may not be of very high standard and which are culturally exclusive. There is, in addition, the fact that some groups who claim to speak for all Muslims or for Islam also don't want Muslim children to study with others.Now, the problem is that this might further increase cultural ghettoisation and that students will grow up without ever having had the chance to make friends with people of their age from other communities. In such community-specific schools, Hindu as well as Muslim, there is also the danger that this would further entrench communal stereotypes and all sorts of obscurantism and feelings of insularity. For instance, some people associated with the Tablighi Jamaat are now setting up Muslim schools in different parts of Gujarat.If those working in the field are to be believed, more than 500 students belonging to wealthy families have sought admission in private medical colleges in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala last year. And some have moved over to Central Asian countries and a few to Russia. Karnataka, Muslims intelluals told that “Post-Godhra, lot of churning has gone into Muslim minds in Gujarat. Muslims are realising that they can’t live with dignity and respect, and prevent incidents like Godhra if they are not equipped with the best of education’’. This trend is driving Muslim parents to send their children to educational institutions rather than teaching them crafts just to earn a living.

Black magic of Modi fails

2009-06-04T03:38:00.000-07:00

5/22/2009 4:05:59 PM
Black magic of Modi fails

News Analysis
Abdul Hafiz Lakhani from Ahmedabad

analyses LS polls in Modi’s state
Lok Sabha poll results have not only put to rest all talk about Narendra Modi's "mass appeal" and "charisma", but have also prompted attacks on him from within the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). BJP leaders are also saying it was probably a mistake to have projected him as a future prime minister. In the status quo lies a major loss of face for Narendra Modi. Unlike in 2004, this time Modi assumed the role of one of the lead campaigners for the BJP, was touted as a dynamo of development and projected as the party's next prime ministerial aspirant. Considering his top billing, the fact that under him the party actually lost vote share in his state shows the limits of his appeal.

Results of Lok Sabha seats in Gujarat have nothing much to console the BJP and its star campaigners, the prime ministerial candidate LK Advani and Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi. The BJP has won 15 seats in Gujarat, one more than it had got in 2004 elections. The increase of one seat may give a numerical edge to BJP to boast about its “achievement,” but the performance of candidates in the election battle reflects a sad story. The state has 26 parliamentary constituencies.

For almost one year the BJP has been projecting Advani as its prime ministerial candidate, and like US presidential elections it wove its entire campaign round Advani. However, from the word go, the anti-Advani mood of voters of Gandhinagar constituency was evident, and became a tough challenge by the last week of the elections.

Advani, Modi and a team of senior BJP leaders had to work overtime on crisis management to plug the holes Congress candidate Suresh Patel drilled into Advani’s bastion. Even after the polling, BJP managers were panicky about the possibility of Advani’s defeat. Though Advani has won, his margin has been drastically reduced, giving Suresh Patel a sense of satisfaction of dignified defeat by 1,21,747 votes. Last time, Advani had won this seat by 2,17,000 votes.

Advani polled 4.34 lakh votes while Patel got 3.12 lakh votes. Reduction in victory margin by almost half in the background of extra efforts by BJP leaders is certainly a costly victory for the prime ministerial candidate.

BJP leaders are trying to project the defeat of two Union ministers, Naran Rathwa and Shankarsinh Vaghela, as achievement. Vaghela is no doubt a big gun. He lost in Panchmahal to Prabhatsinh Chauhan of the BJP by over 2,000 votes. It was not a keen tussle between Vaghela and Chauhan that brought humiliation to the great BJP rebel, Vaghela. Two candidates, one of BJP and a Muslim candidate of LJP, got 34,000 votes in Panchmahal. That proved a fatal blow to the prospectus of Vaghela.

Of the 26 seats Congress has won 11 and BJP 15. It is a mixed outcome for the Gujarat CM. While on one hand he has helped increase the BJP's LokSabha tally in his state, on the other some party colleagues say his extensive campaign failed to provide the desired results nationally. With Advani likely to walk into sunset, Modi may make a pitch for the mantle. But his path is paved with thorns since the party's allies will not be too happy to work with this Hindutva hardliner.

The poll results have not only put to rest the talk about Modi's "mass appeal" and "charisma", but have prompted attacks on him from within the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). BJP leaders are also saying it was probably a mistake to have projected him as a future prime minister.

Some BJP leaders of Gujarat, in muffled voices, said projecting Modi as the party's next prime ministerial candidate was a mistake. Bringing up Modi's name in the middle of the campaign was a serious error of judgment, according to them.

Even Sharad Yadav, chief of NDA ally Janata Dal (United), blamed Varun Gandhi's hate speech and the projection of Modi as future PM for the BJP's poll debacle. "The projection of two leaders [Modi and LK Advani] as prime minister created confusion in the mind of voters," he said.

At times during the campaign, Modi threatned to loom larger than Advani himself. But now is the time for some sobering thoughts. First, the coming UPA government would be more stable, so all the talk about Modi starting his “Chalo Delhi” campaign has become redundant. Second, Modi cannot be overly proud of his vote gathering abilities any longer.

Jubilant over its performance in the Lok Sabha elections, the Gujarat Congress has lashed out at Narendra Modi and said that his “black magic” failed to woo voters. Leader of opposition Shaktisinh Gohil said that NDA would have to suffer the consequences of projecting Modi as their star campaigner.

He added that, looking at the results, it was the beginning of the end of Modi’s balck magic in Gujarat. Addressing mediapersons here he said that the CM was now hiding like a fox in the hole. He further said that Modi should have the grace to accept defeat. Out of the 200 parliamentary constituencies that he addressed outside Gujarat, BJP has won in only 38.

Gohil said that it was the charisma of Rahul Gandhi, sacrifice of Congress president Sonia Gandhi, and faith of people in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that had worked in favour of the party State Congress president Siddharth Patel said that his party was satisfied with its performance in the Lok Sabha elections. He said that the “imported candidates” of BJP had lost elections. He was referring to candidates of Patan, Surendranagar and Dahod who had switched over to BJP from Congress. On the other hand, two candidates namely Rajendrasinh Rana and Harin Pathak of BJP won despite Modi’s opposition to them.
Modi managed to improve -- though just by a token seat -- the BJP tally in Gujarat, irrespective of this party's phenomenal fall elsewhere in the country.
But what must surely hurt the man is that his experiment with selecting young candidates had only a partial success. This is likely to dent his credentials and his plan to move to the Delhi throne.

The Congress, too, has much to worry about. It has won 11 seats, less than the 12 it got in 2004. But the real bad news is that its Union ministers Shankersinh Vaghela and Naran Rathwa lost. So has the Congress chief whip in the LS, Madhusudan Mistry. Modi's decision to bring in fresh faces has partially failed, as only eight of them won from the 15 fielded. Another gamble that failed was the fielding of Congress defectors and candidates with criminal background.

The biggest blow came from the BJP stronghold in Saurashtra, where the Congress won four of the seven seats. The real slap in the face was the Congress victory in Rajkot, a constituency where the BJP had never lost. The young, rich Kadva Patel BJP candidate, Kiran Patel, who had all the credentials to win, lost to the Congress Koli Patel candidate, Kunvarji Bavaliya. The primary reasons being attributed to the BJP's not-so-good win is removal of popular BJP leader Dr Vallabh Kathiriya, arrest of Bavaliya earlier in the year, the rape and murder of a Koli Patel girl Chandani, and the disenchantment of Saurashtra strongman and former chief minister Keshubhai Patel.

LK Advani suffered the humiliation of seeing his victory margin come down to 1.21 lakh from 2.17 lakh in 2004. The victory margins have come down indicating that some core BJP supporters are moving away. If there is any message that this election has given is that good governance and the competence of a prime minister far outweigh communal, emotional and sentimental issues, particularly when the country is facing recession. In absence of a Hindutva wave, issues like terrorism and personal attacks have had little impact. Voters in Gujarat, who had given a thumping mandate to Modi in the December 2007, perhaps felt that Modi was good for the state just as Manmohan Singh was good for the country. Sections of the BJP’s cadre would also be happy over the split verdict of 15-11 in favour of BJP in Gujarat, an improvement of just one seat over 2004, as it would chasten Modi.

It is apparent that unless Modi whips up communal issues–like in 2002 Assembly elections by making “Miyan Musharraf” the symbol of hate and slain gangster Sohrabuddin Shaikh the symbol of terror in 2007–he is unable to bring about sufficient polarisation. During rallies, his talk of the “Gujarat model” didn’t draw the response from audiences his earlier hate speeches had done, turning him from a “maut ka saudagar” into “vote ka saudagar”.

His attempts at replacing hate with humour in his speeches drew squeals of laughter, but did not have real impact. As BJP hoped for a clean sweep, or at least 19 seats, this result cannot be considered as up to the mark performance. Congress has done neither poorly nor remarkably. Congress’s greatest achievement is its victory in Rajkot seat, which has been BJP bastion for a long time. BJP’s achievement is defeat of Shankarsinh Vaghela. BJP had not expected losing Rajkot, Banaskantha and Kheda.

Due to poor selection of candidates, BJP has lost at least four seats. Candidates for Patan, Rajkot, Jamnagar and Porbandar were faulty. While selecting Rajkot and Patan candidates, local cadre was not consulted. Darshna Jardosh(BJP Surat), Jayshriben Patel(BJP Mehsana), Punamben Jat(BJP Kutch) and Prabha Taviyad(Congress Dahod) are victorious female candidates from Gujarat.

LK Advani has secured 4,34,044 votes. His wining margin is 1,21,747. Advani has secured around 54% votes. In 2004 elections he had secured around 60% votes. Thus his percentage margin has come down to 6 percent. Compare to 2004 elections, Gandhinagar has 7 lakh lesser voters, so Advani’s lead in numbers is obviously less.

Shankarsinh Vaghela lost Panchamahal seat due to two Muslim candidates who cut down Vaghela’s Muslim votes. Vaghela was a bit overconfident about his victory. He spent huge time canvassing for other candidates in Gujarat. Vaghela has lost Panchamahal by margin of 260 votes.

Gordhan Zadaphia’s Mahagujarat Janata Party couldn’t perform up to expectations. His very optimistic Surat candidate could secure around 15,000 votes only. However, Gordhan Zadaphia’s Bhavnagar performance was remarkable. Single handedly and with a shortage of funds, he secured 1,56,000 votes. On Patan seat, Mahagujarat Janata Party’s Patel candidate cut prospects of BJP’s Bhavsinh Rathod’s victory. Bhavsinh lost by a margin of 18,501 votes.

There will be by-elections for Gujarat’s Sami-Harij, Dehgam, Jamkandorana, Jasdan, Danta and Chotila Assembly seats within 6 months. From Sami-Harij, Bhavsinh Rathod has resigned as he had changed his party to fight election. Patan’s victorious Congress candidate will vacate Dehgam seat, Congress’s successful candidate from Porbandar Lok Sabha seat Viththal Radadiya will vacate his Jamkandorana Assembly seat, Rajkot’s new MP Kunvarji Bavalia will leave Jasdan seat, Danta would be vacated by Banaskantha’s new Congress MP-elect Mukesh Gadhvi. Chotila’s Congress MLA passed away recently due to ill health.
for Gujarat(india) news and news stories please contact

lakhani63@yahoo.com
00-910799228746770

YOUR HALAAL-HARAAM GUIDE

2009-06-03T08:19:00.000-07:00

YOUR HALAAL-HARAAM GUIDE
HALAAL AND HARAAM issues constitute a vital part of Imaan and of the Muslim’s moral character. It is imperative for advance and progress in the spiritual domain to know and act according to the demands of halaal and haraam. These are issues which should affect every Muslim. Indulgence in haraam and mushtabah (doubtful) severely corrodes and corrupts the Rooh.
HALAAL FOOD
Nowadays, the term ’halaal’ is of topical import. It is a word which is greatly misused and misdirected for pecuniary motives. It is no longer discussed in relation to its Shar’i concept. Its importance nowadays is confined to two avenues:
(1) Advertising and promoting the sales of non-Muslim business-houses.
(2) Filling the coffers and pockets of self-styled ‘halaal authorities’.
There is no other dimension of halaal known to the masses in general and to unscrupulous molvis, sheikhs and imaams. Halaal is no longer understood in the context of Taqwa because the term Taqwa itself has become a detestable concept to the molvis and sheikhs of the dunya and to the purveyors of the scrap papers dubbed ‘halaal certificates’.
ACCURSED
These accursed scraps of paper have opened up a wide avenue for consumption of haraam food substances. Haraam meat, haraam chickens and haraam processed foods churned out by non-Muslim factories are all marketed as ‘halaal’. With such carrion the purveyors of these accursed scrap certificates have eliminated whatever little inhibition Muslims of weak Imaan had in the matter of haraam food.
THE GUIDE
Thousands of products are manufactured and marketed by non-Muslims. It is quite natural and necessary for Muslims to desire an awareness of what they are consuming. But, the ‘halaal authorities’ in the haraam certificate game cannot offer true guidance to Muslims in this field.
The best guide is to check the list of ingredients which appears on the wrappers. This is a better and a surer method of knowing what one will be consuming. The ‘halaal’ marking and certification is totally unreliable, in fact, misleading. Even pork has been marketed as ‘halaal’ and ‘certified’ by the jaahil unscrupulous ‘halaal’ authorities, intentionally or unintentionally. In the former case it is a matter of kufr. In the latter, it is gross dereliction of duty which is fisq of a dastardly kind.
‘HALAAL’ PORK
A report from Malaysia states:
"In one case, cans of minced pork from China have carried halal logos. In Kuala Lumpur, a restaurant has been raided and sausages and burgers from two food processing plants have been seized and tested for pork……. ‘This kind of thing is going to kill our reputation,’ said Nadzim Johan, chief of a Muslim consumer group that says it has 30,000 members nationwide…...The habitual abuse of this logo is not doing a good thing for the country..’ he added, referring to the halaal certification mark food manufacturers use…… Lawmakers have demanded that manufacturers who falsely claim to meet the standards be whipped…"
In South Africa there has been massive abuse in this field over the decades by both manufacturers and so-called ‘halaal authorities.’ In fact, the worst marauders of the Imaan and Akhlaaq of the masses in this sphere were and still are the haraam ’halaal authorities’.
In view of these haraam authorities being commercially-motivated, the criterion will always be money. Since the focal point of the ‘halaal’ certificate game is money, the different ‘halaal authorities’ have developed deep-rooted antagonism for one another, not on the basis of any Deeni issue, but purely pecuniary considerations. one ‘halaal authority’ even offered ‘halaal certificates’ at cut price in its bid to expand its nefarious trade.
Muslims should understand the following facts to avoid being bamboozled by the ‘halaal authorities’:
• A Muslim trader does not require a halaal certificate from anyone. It is accepted that a Muslim will stock only halaal. However, if it transpires that any Muslim trader is dishonest and violates his Imaan by stocking haraam as well, then it becomes the duty of those who are aware to expose the miscreant.
• Paying a fee for the scrap of paper called ‘halaal certificate’ is baatil— not permissible. If anyone wishes to inspect one’s premises, such inspection should be unhesitatingly allowed. only one who has haraam to conceal will object to an inspection.
• It is haraam to pay for such inspections. The miserable haraam ‘authorities’ perpetrate major sins by their extortion of tens of thousands of rands for their scraps of paper and outings.
• It is not permissible to buy any meat products and chickens from any non-Muslim business irrespective of any ‘halaal certificate’ which the business possesses. A ‘halaal’ certificate does not transform the non-Muslim’s meat products into halaal. It is Waajib to totally refrain from purchasing any meat products from non-Muslim shops and outlets.
• Place no credence on ‘halaal’ certificates, ‘halaal’ emblems, logos and the like. Do no consume products on the strength of anyone’s scrap certificate nor on the basis of a ‘halaal’ logo, stamp or emblem appearing on a label. Pork has been marketed under ‘halaal’ emblems on a number of occasions.
The Arab countries are notorious for importing meat products from a variety of kuffaar countries, from even communist countries. It is impossible to adequately supervise the numerous plants manufacturing thousands of different products. Abuse, malpractice and downright crookery have happened and happens frequently at the plants and within the ranks of the haraam ‘halaal’ authorities.
Not so long ago, Kuwait had to ban certain products when pork was discovered mixed in the meat. Pork sausages were also once given to a South African Muslim at a shop in Makkah Mukarramah.
• Check the list of ingredients on the labels of products. If gelatine or alcohol is listed, the product is obviously haraam. There is no such thing as halaal animal gelatine in South Africa. All South African gelatine is haraam carrion. This haraam carrion has been certified ‘halaal’ by the haraam ‘halaal’ self-styled authorities.
• If the ingredients consists of a string of chemical names or symbols which you are unable to decipher, the best course is to abstain. If a haraam ingredient is recognized in the cleverly disguised list, then obviously the product is haraam.
If unable to ascertain whether camouflaged ingredients are haraam, then the product enters the mushtabah (doubtful) zone. It becomes mushtabah, not on account of unawareness of the ingredients, but on the basis of awareness of the widespread use of haraam ingredients, and the fact that many substances with these chemical symbols are haraam animal products.
The rule pertaining to mushtabah, is abstention by the command of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam).
• Canned fruit and canned vegetables of plants processing only fruit and vegetables may be consumed. Contamination with haraam meat substances occurs at plants which process both meat and vegetables at the same facility.
• All synthetic juices are made with alcoholic concentrates. Therefore, consume only 100% pure fruit juice.
BE YOUR OWN HALAAL AUTHORITY. DO NOT RELY on THE PURVEYORS OF SCRAP PAPERS WHICH ARE USED TO EXTORT MONEY FROM TRADERS AND MANUFACTURERS.

कांग्रेस ने एक ही मुसलिम को कैबिनेट मंत्री बनाया

2009-06-03T04:28:00.000-07:00

केंद्र में कांग्रेस कोटे से मात्र एक सांसद को कैबिनेट मंत्री बनाने पर मुसलमानों को काफी मलाल है। आजादी के बाद पहली बार सिर्फ एक मुसलिम सांसद को कांग्रेस कोटे से कैबिनेट मंत्री बनाया गया है। हालांकि अटल बिहारी वाजपेयी के नेतृत्व वाली एनडीए सरकार में सैयद शहनवाज हुसैन भी इकलौते कैबिनेट मंत्री थे। मंत्रिमंडल में संतुलन नहीं बनाने से मुस्लिम संगठनों में नाराजगी है। स्वतंत्रता के बाद पं। जवाहर लाल नेहरू के नेतृत्व में बनी पहले मंत्रिमंडल में मौलाना आजाद और रफी अहमद किदवई जैसी हस्तियों को जगह मिली थी। उसके बाद इंदिरा गांधी के मंत्रिमंडल में फखरुद्दीन अली अहमद और मुईनुल हक चौधरी को कैबिनेट मंत्री बनाया गया था। इस बीच महाराष्ट्र के मुख्यमंत्री पद से हटाए जाने के बाद एआर अंतुले भी श्रीमती गांधी के मंत्रिमंडल में शामिल कर लिए गए थे। 1980 में राजीव गांधी के प्रधानमंत्री बनने पर मोहसिना किदवई, अबुल बरकात गनी खां चौधरी और गुलाम नबी आजाद को मंत्रिमंडल में महत्वपूर्ण विभाग दिए गए थे। वहीं गैर कांग्रेसी प्रधानमंत्री बनने के बाद वीपी सिंह ने पहली बार किसी मुसलिम को गृहमंत्री बनाया था। मुफ्ती सईद देश के पहले मुस्लिम गृहमंत्री बनाए गए थे। इसके अलावा आरिफ मुहम्मद खां और रशीद मसूद कैबिनेट मंत्री थे। अब तक सबसे अधिक मंत्री किसी प्रधानमंत्री के कार्यकाल में बने हैं तो वे पीवी नरसिंह राव थे। उनके मंत्रिमंडल में गुलाम नबी आजाद, सीके जाफर शरीफ और एआर अंतुले कैबिनेट मंत्री थे, जबकि छह मुसलिम सांसद राज्यमंत्री थे। संप्रग की पिछली सरकार में भी कांग्रेस कोटे से गुलाम नबी आजाद, पीएम सईद और एआर अंतुले कैबिनेट मंत्री थे। गुलाम नबी आजाद को कश्मीर भेजने के बाद सैफुद्दीन सोज को कैबिनेट मंत्री बनाया गया था, लेकिन इस बार कांग्रेस अपनी रिवायत से चूक गई है। इसका मुसलमानों को बेहद मलाल है। कांग्रेस को भी पता है कि मुसलमानों ने इस बार क्षेत्रीय पार्टियों को काफी हद तक नकारकर कांग्रेस की तरफ अपना रूख किया है। दूसरी तरफ एक प्रतिशत से भी कम आबादी वाले सिख समुदाय से प्रधानमंत्री तथा एमएस गिल को कैबिनेट तथा परणीत कौर को राज्यमंत्री बनाया गया है, जबकि देश की 15 प्रतिशत आबादी को कैबिनेट में नेतृत्व के नाम पर सिर्फ एक जगह दी गई है। वही देश की डेढ़ प्रतिशत आबादी वाले ईसाई समुदाय से दो कैबिनेट मंत्री बनाए गए हैं। इनमें एके एंटोनी और ऑस्कर फर्नाडिस शामिल हैं।

http://indiainternationaltimes.com/hindi/story.aspx?storyid=10046&descid=10045

2009-05-17T04:05:00.000-07:00

Successful Muslim Lok Sabha Candidates
Submitted by admin2 on 17 May 2009 - 7:13am.
Successful Muslim Candiates
Sr No
State
Constituency
MuslimCandidate
Party
1
Andhra Pradesh
Hyderabad
Asaduddin Owaisi
All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen
2

Assam
Dhubri
Badruddin Ajmal
Assam United Democratic Front
3

Assam
Barpeta
Ismail Hussain
Indian National Congress
4

Bihar
Kishanganj
Mohammad Asrarul Haque
Indian National Congress
5

Bihar
Begusarai
Dr. Monazir Hassan
Janata Dal (United)
6

Bihar
Bhagalpur
Syed Shahnawaz Hussain
Bharatiya Janata Party
7

Jammu & Kashmir
Baramulla
Sharief Ud Din Shariq
Jammu & Kashmir National Conference
8

Jammu & Kashmir

Srinagar
Farooq Abdullah
Jammu & Kashmir National Conference
9

Jammu & Kashmir

Anantnag
Mirza Mehboob Beg
Jammu & Kashmir National Conference
10

Jammu & Kashmir

Ladakh
Hassan Khan
Independent
11

Kerala
Malappuram
E. Ahamed
Muslim League Kerala State Committee
12

Kerala

Ponnani
E.T. Muhammed Basheer
Muslim League Kerala State Committee
13

Tamil Nadu
Vellore
Abdulrahman
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
14
Tamil Nadu

Theni
Aaron Rashid.J.M
Indian National Congress
15

Uttar Pradesh
Kairana
Tabassum Begum
Bahujan Samaj Party
16

Uttar Pradesh

Muzaffarnagar
Kadir Rana
Bahujan Samaj Party
17

Uttar Pradesh

Moradabad
Mohammed Azharuddin
Indian National Congress
18

Uttar Pradesh

Sambhal
Dr. Shafiqur Rahman Barq
Bahujan Samaj Party
19

Uttar Pradesh

Kheri
Zafar Ali Naqvi
Indian National Congress
20

Uttar Pradesh

Farrukhabad
Salman Khursheed
Indian National Congress
21

West Bengal
Maldaha Uttar
Mausam Noor
Indian National Congress
22

West Bengal

Maldaha Dakshin
Abu Hasem Khan Choudhury
Indian National Congress
23

West Bengal

Murshidabad
Abdul Mannan Hossain
Indian National Congress
24

West Bengal

Basirhat
Sk. Nurul Islam
All India Trinamool Congress
25

West Bengal
Uluberia
Sultan Ahmed
All India Trinamool Congress
26

West Bengal

Burdwan - Durgapur
Sk. Saidul Haque
Communist Party of India (Marxist)
27

Lakshadweep 1
Lakshadweep
Muhammed Hamdulla Sayeed
A.B
Indian National Congress

इंडियन Muslim dismayed at Justice Katju’s “Talibanisation” remarks

2009-05-02T21:20:00.000-07:00

India: Muslim mushawarat dismayed at Justice Katju’s “Talibanisation” remarks
PRESS STATEMENT
New Delhi, Saturday, 31 March 2009: The All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat [umbrella body of Indian Muslim organisations] has expressed its dismay at the observation attributed to Supreme Court’s Justice Markandeya Katju while rejecting a Muslim student’s right to sport beard, that “Talibanisation of the country cannot be permitted”। This bizarre and uncalled for opinion flies in the face of the religious, civil and human rights of every Indian citizen guaranteed by our Constitution. A Muslim’s request to be allowed to grow beard cannot be equated as “Talibanisation” of the country. Justice Katju has further opined that “tomorrow a girl student may come and say that she wants to wear a burqa, can we allow it?” Expression of such opinion from the bench of the Supreme Court is a very serious matter as it is a clear infringement of the religious, civil and human rights of millions Muslims and others who have kept beards and observed purdah, a tradition continuing for over a thousand years in our country, long before anyone heard of the word “Taliban” or its current connotations.Dr Zafarul-Islam Khan, President of the AIMMM, said that it is very unfortunate that a Supreme Court judge should nurse such biased and communal ideas and hide behind his claim that he is “a secularist to the core”. Our idea of secularism does not deny religious people their right to abide by their religion in a peaceful way which does not hurt anyone else in any way. Rather, true secularism means that the State will not have an official religion and that it will not interfere in the religious beliefs of its citizens. Dr Khan added that the AIMMM believes that such biased persons should not serve as judges of any court, lower or superior. Such biased minds are not fit to dispense justice which must be neutral and fair. If this logic is true then all similar manifestations by believers in other religions should be banned like turban and kirpan for Sikhs, qashqa and choti for Hindus and wearing of crosses by Christians. Is Judge Katju ready to ban such manifestations too, Dr Khan asked. He said that AIMMM is studying this matter and may decide to appeal against the said opinion expressed by an apex court judge while hearing a legal case involving religious and civil rights.

[All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat is an umbrella body of Indian Muslim organisations]

Are we FUNDING Israel to kill?

2009-04-05T07:55:00.000-07:00

Are we FUNDING Israel to kill?
"Each riyal, dirham …etc. used to buy their goods eventually becomes bullets to be fired at the hearts of brothers and children in Palestine.. To buy their goods is to support tyranny, oppression and aggression." - Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi
You too can fight against Israeli oppression. Help fight the war on terror. Stop Buying goods that support Israel and its terrorist activities. Stop supporting companies which support Israel.
Information about the companies & brands associated with Israel has been gleaned from the following websites: inminds.co.uk; imemc.org; muslimtents.com; boycottisrael.co.uk; caiaweb.org; boycottisraelnow.com; israel-palestina.info; boycottisrael.org.uk
Click here to download the Boycott Israeli Supporters Flyer
Companies / Brands to boycott
20th Century FOXAOL Time WarnerApax Partners&CoArsenal FCBanana RepublicCATCNNCoca Cola Co.DanoneDelta GalilDisney CorpDKNYEstée LauderGAPGroup 4 FalckHarper CollinsHome DepotHuggiesHugo BossIBMIntelJohnson &JohnsonKimberly-ClarkKotexLaboraties GarnierLewis Trust GroupL'OrealMarks & SpencerMcDonald'sNestleNokiaOmrixRalph LaurenRevlonRupert Murdoch'sNews CorpSara LeeSelfridgesSKYSTARStarbucksThe LimitedTimberlandTIMETime WarnerTommy HilfigerVirgin Drinks

Arrogance and Humility

2009-04-02T10:56:00.000-07:00

The Seat of Love and Knowledge : Allah the Glorious created Hadrat Adam (A) from clay, the angels from pure light (nur), and Shaitan and the jinn from fire. The Holy Quran states that Shaitan was from among the jinn, and he disobeyed Allah the Glorious. His original name was Azazeel, and he earned the title Ta'us ul-Mala'ika because of his consistency in the worship and obedience of Allah the Glorious. He was not the leader of the angels, as is how many misinterpret the meaning of ta'us. Ta'us means peacock, which is a most handsome creature from among Allah's feathered creation. Shaitan hence stood out from among the angels (mala'ika) like a beautiful peacock among ordinary birds because of his exemplary worship. Allah the Glorious had created the jinn prior to creating mankind, and the jinn had a history of spreading corruption and bloodshed in the earth. Hence, when Allah the Glorious communicated His intention of creating Hadrat Adam (A) to the angels, we learn from hadith that the reply of the angels reflected their knowledge of this tainted history of the jinn. The angels asked Allah the Glorious why He wanted to create another species that would cause havoc and bloodshed throughout the earth, when the angels were already there to praise Him. Allah the Glorious asked Azazeel his opinion, and the latter closely examined the yet lifeless body of Hadrat Adam (A) before him. After studying the outside of this figure he requested permission to examine it from the inside, and Allah the Glorious allowed him to do so. He then entered the body and studied every single part in detail, but there was one organ he could not enter, and he asked Allah the Glorious about this when he came out. Allah the Glorious said, "That is the heart of Adam and the seat of my love (muhabbah)." The heart is the seat and central receptor for the grandeur (tajalliyaat) of Allah. Allah the Glorious says that the Holy Quran was revealed onto the heart of the Messenger (A) of Allah. Subsequently, all revelation (wahi) and inspiration (ilham) descends upon the heart.The Transmission of Wahi Modern science has revealed that the human heart has a transmitter that sends and receives signals, something that the Messenger a of Allah told the community of believers more than fourteen hundred years ago. It functions as a receiver in that the heart of the Messenger of Allah would receive wahi and ilham from Allah u. This was not in words, but we know from the Messenger of Allah himself that he would hear something resembling the distant toll of a bell when the wahi would descend upon his noble heart. The scholars of hadith (muhaditheen) have deduced two crucial points from this statement of the Messenger (A) of Allah. The first point is that the Prophet (a) was specific in his analogy of a distant bell. Since the precise source of a distant sound cannot be located, the scholars drew the conclusion that the Messenger (a) of Allah intended to convey that wahi and ilham are multi, and not unidirectional. The second noteworthy point is that a bell toll is produced by a periodic motion, traveling on a wavelength at a certain frequency. All messages travel at a certain frequency that can only be received by a particular piece of electronic equipment such as a radio or a television. These concepts are very easy to understand in today's technological age, but the Messenger (a) of Allah introduced it more than fourteen hundred years ago to a nomadic culture that could not even imagine it. Thus the divine messages received by the Prophet (a) were not only multidirectional but also signals of a specific wavelength traveling on a specific frequency.Recognizing the Importance of Humility Hadrat Umar (R) used to beg Allah to be elevated in the eyes of others but to become humble in his opinion of himself. People only occupy a lofty position in the hearts of those around them if they are deeply respected, and the arrogant rarely inspire such sincere reverence. Allah will honor people and elevate them in creation only if they are sincere in their humility, and their actions reflect this quality. The branches with the sweetest and most valuable fruit are the ones hanging closest to the ground; attaining humility is the means by which man is deemed worthy in front of Allah . Humility is a gift from Allah that is to be sought and begged for, just as we implore Allah for such blessings as houses or wives. Man is deprived of a great blessing if he is deprived of humbleness. Our nafs tries its best to instill arrogance in us, which ultimately leads to our destruction. Our best weapon against our nafs is to remind ourselves of our origins. The Holy Quran says that the servants of The Most Merciful should walk with humility upon the earth. Hence we should ask Allah to inculcate this humility deep in our hearts and allow it to b e reflected in all our actions, and we should inculcate the same in our children. Allah created clay to be intrinsically humble, and created man from that clay so man would also be humble because He loves humility. Man needs to purge his heart of pride and arrogance and acquire a humble posture before he faces Allah on the Day of Judgment......

Court backs expulsion of Muslim pupil over beard

2009-04-02T10:32:00.000-07:00

Court backs expulsion of Muslim pupil over beard
Shaikh Azizur Rahman, Foreign Correspondent
http://www.thenational.ae/article/20090401/FOREIGN/888939327/1002
NEW DEHLI // A Supreme Court ruling that dismissed a Muslim boy’s case against his school after he had been expelled for wearing a beard, saying it would not allow the “Talibanisation” of the country, has drawn mixed reactions from Indian Muslims.Justice Markandeya Katju, a member of the Supreme Court bench that delivered the verdict on Monday, said: “We don’t want to have Taliban in the country. Tomorrow a girl student may come and say that she wants to wear a burqa [in the school] – can we allow that?”
While students and teachers supported the verdict, others detected Islamophobia in Mr Katju’s comparisons to the Taliban. Aziz Mubaraki, a Muslim community leader in Kolkata, said the judge’s comments were “unpleasant and painful”.“If growing a beard is akin to being a Taliban then I would like to ask, were Rabindranath Tagore, Karl Marx and Abraham Lincoln, and more recently, our prime minister, Manmohan Singh, and [Hindu extremist leader] Bal Thackeray also terrorists?”
Mohammad Salim, 16, a former Grade 10 student at Nirmala Convent Higher Secondary School in the Bidisha district of Madhya Pradesh, was expelled in December when he refused to obey orders to shave off his beard. Being clean-shaven is mandatory for all students at the school.The boy’s family filed a petition in Madhya Pradesh’s highest court, which ruled in favour of the school. They then brought their case before the Supreme Court in New Delhi this month.
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Mr B A Khan, Salim’s lawyer, contended in his petition to the Supreme Court that the Indian constitution guarantees all citizens the right to pursue their religious practices and the right to keep a beard was a fundamental part of a Muslim’s religion.Any regulation making it mandatory for a Muslim student to shave his beard violated this provision, he said, urging the court to quash the school rule and order the school to take Salim back.
Salim’s petition also said the school allowed Sikh students to have beards and wear turbans but, in his case, had insisted that he either be clean-shaven or leave. This was clearly discriminatory, Mr Khan argued. Mr Katju said an individual’s religious beliefs should be respected but within reason. “I am a secularist to the core. We should strike a balance between rights and personal beliefs. We cannot overstretch secularism either,” he said.
The Supreme Court also said religious minority institutions, like Nirmala Convent school, which is Christian, should have the right to have their own sets of rules as outlined in the constitution.However, Monday’s ruling is not the first time a Muslim has been turned down in moving to be allowed to wear a beard in an institution where doing so is forbidden.Last year, the Punjab and Haryana High Court turned down a plea by a Muslim Indian air force serviceman for the right to grow a beard. In a letter to the court the IAF had said only Sikhs were allowed to grow beards in the air force and Muslims were forbidden since the “practice” is “not universally recognised in Islam” as a religious duty.
“Growing beards can be at the most said to be a personal choice, but the same is not a compulsive requirement of a person professing Islam. Even if it is presumed to be so, it can be regulated, restricted, if public order, morality and health so requires,” the high court ruling said. Several Muslim leaders expressed concern over the way the Supreme Court worded its verdict, equating bearded Muslims with members of the Taliban.
Mumbai-based journalist Hasan Kamaal said few would agree with Mr Katju’s view that every Muslim who keeps a beard supports the Taliban or extremism. “Several non-Muslims also sport beards. The beard is not a sign of orthodoxy, extremism or fanaticism. The remark of Justice Katju, hinting that all bearded men are Talibans, is absolutely unjustified and discriminatory.”Zafarul Islam Khan, president of the All India Muslim Majlis-e Mushawarat, an umbrella body of Indian Muslim organisations, said the sentiment of Mr Katju’s remarks contravened basic human rights.
“This bizarre and uncalled for opinion flies in the face of the religious, civil and human rights of every Indian citizen guaranteed by our constitution. A Muslim’s request to be allowed to grow beard cannot be equated as ‘Talibanisation’ of the country,” Mr Khan said in a statement yesterday.“It is very unfortunate that a Supreme Court judge should nurse such biased and communal ideas and hide behind his claim that he is “a secularist to the core.”
aziz@thenational.ae

ISLAM-MUSLIMS AND TERRORISM

2008-08-05T20:37:00.000-07:00

ISLAM-MUSLIMS AND TERRORISM

April 16-30, 2008

by Asghar Ali Engineer

Islam is being invariably associated with terrorism both in media as well as in political circles, especially in Western countries. When they hear it being condemned by Muslim theologians, it is celebrated as something unusual. It is strange irony of both misunderstanding and motivated propaganda that if a small band of Osama's followers give call for jihad, it is taken as authentic Islamic call and if it is condemned by mainstream Islamic theologians, it is accepted with mixed feelings of celebration and skepticism. The mainstream condemnation of terrorism is somehow not accepted with conviction.

When the Darul Ulum Deoband, a leading Islamic seminary in Asia, held an anti-terrorism conference the media spotlighted it and number of articles and editorials were written in mainstream media. There was underlying skepticism that how thousands of 'Ulamas and imams could gather together in such large numbers, to denounce terrorism. In fact when media unceasingly targeted Islam for terrorism, these 'Ulamas thought it necessary to do so to convince their non-Muslim friends that Islam does not stand for terrorism.

In fact it was hardly necessary to do so as all Muslim theologians know fully well that there is no link, whatsoever, between Islam and terrorism but due to such continuing attacks, Muslim theologians had to issue a declaration condemning terrorism. Let it be noted that not only Osama bin Laden but not a single leading member of Al-Qaida is a qualified theologian. They are all modern educated youth or politicians. Among Taliban too, there is no theologian of any credible standing. Some of them may be product of madrasas in North West Frontier province of Pakistan but they never went for higher Islamic studies. They never got beyond preliminary Islamic education. It was their political bosses who decided course of action and formulated policies invoking 'jihad' to justify their acts of terrorism.

Never any major theologian ever justified acts of terrorism. One of major Islamic thinker and theologian from West Asia issued any fatwa approving of terrorism as jihad. Yusuf Qardawi, a well-known theologian and highly respected by orthodox Muslims, condemned terrorism and suicide bombing killing of innocent people. A conference of leading Muslim scholars also condemned suicide bombing as un-Islamic. Qur'an is so clear on the issue along with hadith literature that save on political grounds, no one can approve of acts of terrorism.

There are in all 41 verses in Qur'an on jihad and not a single verse uses it for war or violence. In early twentieth century when terrorism, like today, was not the issue, a noted scholar of Islam Maulavi Chiragh Ali wrote a scholarly book on Jihad and showed that not even once word jihad has been used for war or violence in Qur'an. It is really a landmark work for those who want to understand meaning of jihad in Qur'an.

The prophet of Islam (PBUH) himself ...............

Video : Islam Denounces Terrorism

2008-07-29T22:37:00.000-07:00

This film, produced by the Science Research Foundation, a Harun Yahya institution, presents the Muslim response to and denunciation of terrorism. Beginning with the event of September 11, the film explains that all kinds of violence against civilians are crimes against humanity and grave sins in religious terms. It is also stressed that terrorism is an inherent feature of secular ideologies like communism, fascism and racism. In contrast, all theistic religions - Islam, Christianity and Judaism - are opposed to terrorism and their ultimate goal is to bring peace and brotherhood to mankind.

Audio Book, Islam Denounces Terrorism , Audio Book

2008-07-29T22:10:00.000-07:00

Islam is a religion revealed to mankind to present a peaceful life through the infinite compassion and mercy of God. In the Qur'an, God has forbidden all acts of wickedness committed against mankind. So, it is quite impossible for someone who fears God and has grasped the true morality of Islam to support violence or wickedness, or to take part in such actions. That is why Islam is the solution to terrorism, not the source of it.

God is All-Gentle, Most Merciful to mankind

2008-07-29T21:46:00.000-07:00

…God is All-Gentle, Most Merciful to mankind.
(Qur'an, 2:143)

Question: What does the Qur'an say about terrorism?

2008-07-29T21:30:00.000-07:00

....if someone kills another person - unless it is in retaliation for someone else or

for causing corruption in the earth - it is as if he had murdered all mankind.

And if anyone gives life to another person, it is as if he had given life to all mankind...

(Qur'an, 5:32)

Question: What does the Qur'an say about terrorism?

Muslims claim that their faith promotes justice, peace, and freedom. Critics of the faith (and some Muslims themselves) cite verses from the Qur'an that seem to promote violent, armed warfare. How can these different images be reconciled?
Answer: The entire Qur'an, taken as a complete text, gives a message of hope, faith, and peace to a faith community of one billion people. The overwhelming message is that peace is to be found through faith in God, and justice among fellow human beings.
At the time the Qur'an was revealed (7th century A.D.), there was no United Nations or Amnesty International to keep the peace or expose injustice. Inter-tribal violence and vengeance was commonplace. As a matter of survival, one must have been willing to defend against aggression from all sides. Nevertheless, the Qur'an repeatedly urges forgiveness and restraint, and warns believers not to "transgress" or become "oppressors." Some examples:
If anyone slays a person- unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land -it would be as if he slew all people.And if anyone saves a life,it would be as if he saved the life of all people.Qur'an 5:32
Invite all to the way of your Lordwith wisdom and beautiful preaching.And argue with themin ways that are best and most gracious...And if you punish,let your punishment be proportionalto the wrong that has been done to you.But if you show patience, that is indeed the best course.Be patient, for your patience is from God.And do not grieve over them,or distress yourself because of their plots.For God is with those who restrain themselves,and those who do good.Qur'an 16:125-128
Oh you who believe!Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to God,even against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin,and whether it be against rich or poor,for God can best protect both.Follow not the cravings of your hearts, lest you swerve,and if you distort justice or decline to do justice,verily God is well acquainted with all that you do.Qur'an 4:135
The recompense for an injuryis an injury equal thereto (in degree),but if a person forgives and makes reconciliation,his reward is due from God,for God loves not those who do wrong.But indeed, if any do help and defend themselvesafter a wrong done to them,against such there is no cause of blame.The blame is only against those who oppress menwith wrongdoing and insolently transgressbeyond bounds through the land,defying right and justice.For such there will be a penalty grievous (in the Hereafter).But indeed, if any show patience and forgive,that would truly be an affair of great resolution.Qur'an 42:40-43
Goodness and evil are not equal.Repel evil with what is better.Then that person with whom there was hatred,may become your intimate friend!And no one will be granted such goodnessexcept those who exercise patience and self-restraint,none but people of the greatest good fortune.Qur'an 41:34-35
But what about those passages of the Qur'an that seem to promote wanton violence? For a full discussion of such verses, please visit the FAQ page: Are there verses of the Qur'an that condone "killing the infidel?"

The Meaning of Al-Fatihah and its Various Names

2008-07-25T19:06:00.000-07:00

1, In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
2, Praise be to Allah, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the worlds;
3, Most Gracious, Most Merciful;
4, Master of the Day of Judgement.
5, Thee do we worship, and Thine aid we seek.
6, Show us the straight way,
7, The way of those on whom Thou hast bestowed Thy Grace, those whose (portion) is not wrath, and who go not astray.

This Surah is called Al-Fatihah, that is, the Opener of the Book, the Surah with which prayers are begun. It is also called, Umm Al-Kitab (the Mother of the Book), according to the majority of the scholars. In an authentic Hadith recorded by At-Tirmidhi, who graded it Sahih, Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah said,
«قَسَمْتُ الصَّلَاةَ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَ عَبْدِي نِصْفَيْنِ، فَإِذَا قَالَ الْعَبْدُ:الْحَمْدُدِلله رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ، قَالَ اللهُ: حَمِدَنِي عَبْدِي»
(`The prayer (i.e., Al-Fatihah) is divided into two halves between Me and My servants.' When the servant says, `All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of existence,' Allah says, 'My servant has praised Me.')
Al-Fatihah was called the Salah, because reciting it is a condition for the correctness of Salah - the prayer. Al-Fatihah was also called Ash-Shifa' (the Cure).
Virtues of Al-Fatihah
Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal recorded in the Musnad that Abu Sa`id bin Al-Mu`alla said, "I was praying when the Prophet called me, so I did not answer him until I finished the prayer. I then went to him and he said, (What prevented you from coming) I said, 'O Messenger of Allah ! I was praying.' He said, (`Didn't Allah say),
[يأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ اسْتَجِيبُواْ لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُمْ لِمَا يُحْيِيكُمْ]
(O you who believe! Answer Allah (by obeying Him) and (His) Messenger when he () calls you to that which gives you life) He then said,
«لَأُعَلِّمَنَّكَ أَعْظَمَ سُورَةٍ فِي الْقُرْآنِ قَبْلَ أَنْ تَخْرُجَ مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ»
(I will teach you the greatest Surah in the Qur'an before you leave the Masjid.) He held my hand and when he was about to leave the Masjid, I said, `O Messenger of Allah! You said: I will teach you the greatest Surah in the Qur'an.' He said, (Yes.)
[الْحَمْدُ للَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَـلَمِينَ ]
(Al-Hamdu lillahi Rabbil-`Alamin)''
(It is the seven repeated (verses) and the Glorious Qur'an that I was given.)''
There is a similar Hadith on this subject narrated from Anas bin Malik Further, `Abdullah, the son of Imam Ahmad, recorded this Hadith from Abu Hurayrah from Ubayy bin Ka`b, and he mentioned a longer but similar wording for the above Hadith. In addition, At-Tirmidhi and An-Nasa'i recorded this Hadith from Abu Hurayrah from Ubayy bin Ka`b who said that the Messenger of Allah said,
«مَا أَنْزَل اللهُ فِي التَّورَاةِ وَلَا فِي الْإِنْجِيلِ مِثْلَ أُمِّ الْقُرْآنِ وَهِيَ السَّبْعُ الْمَثَانِي وَهِيَ مَقْسُومَةٌ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَ عَبْدِي نِصْفَيْنِ»
(Allah has never revealed in the Tawrah or the Injil anything similar to Umm Al-Qur'an.
It is the seven repeated verses and it is divided into two halves between Allah and His servant.)
Al-Fatihah and the Prayer
Abu Hurayrah was asked, "[When] we stand behind the Imam'' He said, "Read it to yourself, for I heard the Messenger of Allah say,
« قَالَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ: قَسَمْتُ الصّلَاةَ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَ عَبْدِي نِصْفَيْنِ وَلِعَبْدِي مَا سَأَلَ فَإِذَا قَالَ:
[الْحَمْدُ للَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَـلَمِينَ ]، قَالَ اللهُ: حَمِدَنِي عَبْدِي وَإِذَا قَالَ:
[الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ ]، قَالَ اللهُ: أَثْنى عَلَيَّ عَبْدِي، فَإذَا قَالَ:
[مَـلِكِ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ ]، قَالَ اللهُ: مَجَّدَنِي عَبْدِي وَقَالَ مَرَّةً: فَوَّضَ إِلَيَّ عَبْدِي فَإِذَا قَالَ:
[إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ ]، قَالَ: هذَا بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَ عَبْدِي وَلِعَبْدِي مَا سَأَلَ، فَإِذَا قَالَ:
[اهْدِنَا الصِّرَاطَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ - صِرَاطَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ الْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلاَ الضَّآلِّينَ ]، قَالَ اللهُ: هذَا لِعَبْدِي وَلِعَبْدِي مَا سَأَلَ»
(Allah, the Exalted, said, `I have divided the prayer (Al-Fatihah) into two halves between Myself and My servant, and My servant shall have what he asks for.' If he says,
[الْحَمْدُ للَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَـلَمِينَ ]
(All praise and thanks be to Allah, the Lord of existence.)
Allah says, `My servant has praised Me.' When the servant says,
[الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ ]
(The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.)
Allah says, `My servant has glorified Me.' When he says,
[مَـلِكِ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ ]
(The Owner of the Day of Recompense.) Allah says, `My servant has glorified Me,' or `My servant has related all matters to Me.' When he says,
[إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ ]
(You (alone) we worship, and You (alone) we ask for help.) Allah says, `This is between Me and My servant, and My servant shall acquire what he sought.' When he says,
[اهْدِنَا الصِّرَاطَ الْمُسْتَقِيمَ - صِرَاطَ الَّذِينَ أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ غَيْرِ الْمَغْضُوبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلاَ الضَّآلِّينَ ]
(Guide us to the straight path. The way of those on whom You have granted Your grace, not (the way) of those who earned Your anger, nor of those who went astray), Allah says, `This is for My servant, and My servant shall acquire what he asked for.').''
These are the words of An-Nasa'i, while both Muslim and An-Nasa'i collected the following wording, "A half of it is for Me and a half for My servant, and My servant shall acquire what he asked for.''

The Battle of Badar

2008-07-06T22:20:00.000-07:00

The Battle of BadarThe first battle between the believers of truth (Islam) and the forces of evil was fought on the battle field of Badar, 60 miles from Madinah towards Makkah. On one side stood a small group of 313 men of whom merely 60 of them wore armour, while facing them was arranged an army of one thousand warriors well armed and equipped. The believers had the strength of their Faith in Allah and His Prophet. They knew that Truth must prevail and falsehood must be destroyed. Thus it was this very Faith which brought about the Miracle and Truth did triumph.

As soon as Abu Sufyaan got his caravan safely away from the Muslims, he sent another message to Makkah that they were safe and no longer required assistance. Abu Jahl was looking for an excuse to attack the Muslims. He had been making preparations for almost a year, thus he was not prepared to turn back after receiving the message from Abu Sufyaan. He marched towards Madinah with an army of 1000 men, 700 camels and 300 horses. Abu Jahl's men were well trained and well armed with spears, swords, bows and arrows, and shields.
On hearing the news that the Kuffaar of Makkah had left with 1000 men to destroy the Muslims, Rasulullah made mushwarah (consultation) with the sahaba at Masji-e-Nabwi in Madinah. At the Mashwarah, Hazrat Abu Bakr Siddique (R.A.), Hazrat Umar (R.A.) from Muhajireen and Hazrat Saad bin Mu'az from the Ansaar and the rest of the Muslims showed their willingness and desire to defend Islaam against falsehood.
When Rasulullah was satisfied with the decision, he began preparations for the defence of Islaam. Rasulullah left Madinah with 313 men including some teenage boys. They only had 3 horses, 70 camels and a few swords. When they reached BADR, which was a mountainous region, Rasulullah made dua to Allah and pleaded : 'O Allah! should this small group of believers perish this day, no one will be left on earth to worship you and carry your message to the world'.
The battle took place on the 17th of Ramadhaan 2 A.H. Allah sent His mercy and the Kuffar lost the battle at the hands of the Muslims. Seventy of the Kufaar including the arch enemy of Islaam, Abu Jahl were killed and as many as seventy were taken as prisoners-of-war. Fourteen Muslims were martyred in the battle.
It was a battle between good and evil, falsehood was defeated and Truth triumphed. The success of the Battle of Badr considerably strengthened the Muslims and their cause.

ISLAM HISTORY, 6th Century (500-599) C.E.

2008-07-06T22:15:00.000-07:00

6th Century (500-599) C.E.
545: Birth of Abdullah, the Holy Prophet's father.
571: 22 , April, Birth of the Holy Prophet. Year of the Elephant. Invasion of Makkah by Abraha the Viceroy of Yemen, his retreat.
577: The Holy Prophet visits Madina with his mother. Death of his mother.
580: March, Death of Abdul Muttalib, the grandfather of the Holy Prophet.
583: The Holy Prophet's journey to Syria in the company of his uncle Abu Talib. His meeting with the monk Bahira at Bisra who foretells of his prophethood.
586: The Holy Prophet participates in the war of Fijar.
591: The Holy Prophet becomes an active member of "Hilful Fudul", a league for the relief of the distressed.
594: The Holy Prophet becomes the Manager of the business of Lady Khadija, and leads her trade caravan to Syria and back.
595: The Holy Prophet marries Hadrat Khadija.

Mohammed The Prophet , By Prof. K. S. Ramakrishna Rao,

2008-07-06T04:50:00.000-07:00

Mohammed The Prophet

By Prof. K. S. Ramakrishna Rao,

Head of the Department of Philosophy,Government College for Women University of Mysore,

Mandya-571401 (Karnatika).

Re-printed from "Islam and Modern age", Hydrabad, March 1978.

In the desert of Arabia was Mohammad born, according to Muslim historians, on April 20, 571. The name means highly praised. He is to me the greatest mind among all the sons of Arabia. He means so much more than all the poets and kings that preceded him in that impenetrable desert of red sand. When he appeared Arabia was a desert -- a nothing. Out of nothing a new world was fashioned by the mighty spirit of Mohammad -- a new life, a new culture, a new civilization, a new kingdom which extended from Morocco to Indies and influenced the thought and life of three continents -- Asia, Africa and Europe. When I thought of writing on Mohammad the prophet, I was a bit hesitant because it was to write about a religion I do not profess and it is a delicate matter to do so for there are many persons professing various religions and belonging to diverse school of thought and denominations even in same religion. Though it is sometimes, claimed that religion is entirely personal yet it can not be gain-said that it has a tendency to envelop the whole universe seen as well unseen. It somehow permeates something or other our hearts, our souls, our minds their conscious as well as subconscious and unconscious levels too. The problem assumes overwhelming importance when there is a deep conviction that our past, present and future all hang by the soft delicate, tender silked cord. If we further happen to be highly sensitive, the center of gravity is very likely to be always in a state of extreme tension. Looked at from this point of view, the less said about other religion the better. Let our religions be deeply hidden and embedded in the resistance of our innermost hearts fortified by unbroken seals on our lips. But there is another aspect of this problem. Man lives in society. Our lives are bound with the lives of others willingly or unwillingly, directly or indirectly. We eat the food grown in the same soil, drink water, from the same the same spring and breathe the same air. Even while staunchly holding our own views, it would be helpful, if we try to adjust ourselves to our surroundings, if we also know to some extent, how the mind our neighbor moves and what the main springs of his actions are. From this angle of vision it is highly desirable that one should try to know all religions of the world, in the proper sprit, to promote mutual understanding and better appreciation of our neighborhood, immediate and remote.

http://www.witness-pioneer.org/vil/Articles/Prophet/Ramakrishna_Rao_on_Prophet.html

Prophet Muhammed's Last Sermon

2008-06-30T19:34:00.000-07:00

Prophet Muhammed's Last Sermon

This Sermon was delivered on the Ninth Day of Dhul Hijjah 10 A.H in the Uranah Valley of mount Arafat
"O People, lend me an attentive ear, for I don't know whether, after this year, I shall ever be amongst you again. Therefore listen to what I am saying to you carefully and take these words to those who could not be present here today.
O People, just as you regard this month, this day, this city as Sacred, so regard the life and property of every Muslim as a sacred trust. Return the goods entrusted to you to their rightful owners. Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you. Remember that you will indeed meet your Lord, and that He will indeed reckon your deeds. Allah has forbidden you to take usury (Interest), therefore all interest obligation shall henceforth be waived...
Beware of Satan, for your safety of your religion. He has lost all hope that he will ever be able to lead you astray in big things, so beware of following him in small things.
O People, it is true that you have certain rights with regard to your women, but they also have right over you. If they abide by your right then to them belongs the right to be fed and clothed in kindness. Do treat your women well and be kind to them for they are your partners and comitted helpers. And it is your right that they do not make friends with any one of whom you do not approve, as well as never to commit adultery.
O People, listen to me in earnest, whorship Allah, say your five daily prayers (Salah), fast during the month of Ramadhan, and give your wealth in Zakat. Perform Hajj if you can afford to. You know that every Muslim is the brother of another Muslim. You are all equal. Nobody has superiority over other except by piety and good action.
Remember, one day you will appear before Allah and answer for your deeds. So beware, do not astray from the path of righteousness after I am gone.
O People, no prophet or apostle will come after me and no new faith will be born. Reason well, therefore, O People, and understand my words which I convey to you. I leave behind me two things, the Qur'an and my example, the Sunnah and if you follow these you will never go astray.
All those who listen to me shall pass on my words to others and those to others again; and may the last ones understand my words better than those who listen to me direcly. Be my witness oh Allah that I have conveyed your message to your people."

QURAN

2008-06-25T19:35:00.001-07:00

For Muslims, or followers of Islam, the Quran is the actual Word of God revealed through the archangel Gabriel to the Prophet of Islam during the twenty-three-year period of his prophetic mission. It was revealed in the Arabic language as a sonoral revelation which the Prophet repeated to his companions. Arabic became therefore the language of Islam even for non-Arab Muslims. Under the direction of the Prophet, the verses and chapters were organized in the order known to Muslims to this day. There is only one text of the Quran accepted by all schools of Islamic thought and there are no variants.
The Quran is the central sacred reality of Islam. The sound of the Quran is the first and last sound that a Muslim hears in this life. As the direct Word of God and the embodiment of God's Will, the Quran is considered as the guide par excellence for the life of Muslims. It is the source of all Islamic doctrines and ethics. Both the intellectual aspects of Islam and Islamic Law have their source in the Quran. Perhaps there is no book revered by any human collectivity as much as the Quran is revered by Muslims. Essentially a religion of the book, Islam sees all authentic religions as being associated with a scripture. That is why Muslims call Christians and Jews the "people of the book".
Throughout all its chapters and verses, the Quran emphasizes the significance of knowledge and encourages Muslims to learn and to acquire knowledge not only of God's laws and religious injunctions, but also of the world of nature. The Quran refers, in a language rich in its varied terminology, to the importance of seeing, contemplating, and reasoning about the world of creation and its diverse phenomena. It places the gaining of knowledge as the highest religious activity, one that is most pleasing in God's eyes. That is why wherever the message of the Quran was accepted and understood, the quest for knowledge flourished.

A MASSAGE TO ALL THE ISLAM HATERS (YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS)

2008-06-20T02:58:00.000-07:00

a video about quran & Islam

A MASSAGE TO ALL THE ISLAM HATERS (YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS)

To learn the non provincial and others languages In Islam

2008-06-18T04:39:00.000-07:00

To learn the non provincial and others languages In Islam,

मुफ्ती अहमद देवला

In Islam the languages are not unrelated and non provincial. All of languages have been created by Almighty Allah. As the Holy Quran States :

Aनद of His signs are the creation of the heavens and the earth, the difference of your languages colors.
The different types of languages are spoken in the different provinces and countries. Like Arabic, Persian, Turkey, Hindi, Gujarati etc. It is not only but the style and the method of speaking languages are also different. These all are the signs of Allah Almighty's strength.(Maariful Quran written by Mufti Shafi Sa. (R.A.) Part: 6 Page: 46, Chapter: 21)(Maariful Quran written by Maulana Idris Kandhalvi Sa. (R.A.) Part: 6 Page : 144)
Mufakkir-e-Islam Hazrat Maulana Abul Hasan Nadvi (R.A.) has stated in his own speech that no languages are considered non-provincial and unrelated Islam. All languages are created by Allah. The prejudice against the language is ignorance. No language is able to worship and disgusted. Indeed! If any language is the greatest and has high rank, it is only Arabic. All other languages are generally equal.
The holy prophet (S.A.W.) ordered hazarat Ziad bin Sabit (R.A.) to learn the Hebrew language which was only Jews' language. If we don't care about the languages and its literature, The non-islamic countries will engage his monopoly and than we will have to suffer great loss. (Khutbat-e- Ali miyan Part: 6 Page: 109)

Non-provincial languages and the well known Indian scholars:In near past, there was great Qadhee (justice) at Chiryacot in 12th century Hijri. It is mentioned in "Tazkira-e-Ulma-e-Hind" about him that : " Having gotten the current education, he felt a desire to learn Sanskrit language. So he learnt it deeply and got high position in Banaras city which is the place of great skilful scholar of Sanskrit. (Tazkira-e-Ulma-e-Hind Urdu : page 253) (Hindustan main Muslamano ka Nizam-e- Talim -w- Tarbiyat : Page : 57)
Maulana Munazir Ahsan Gilani (R.A.) says that he listened the intresting story from Maulana Hafiz Muhammad Ahmed Sa. (The former principal of Darul Uloom Deoband) "When my father (Hujjatul Islam Mualana Muhammad Qasim Nanotwi R.A.) was going in his last hajj. Looking his lovable behavior the captain who was Italian asked that who he is." A hajee who know English gave the introduction about Maulana Qasim (R.A.). So he wished to meet him and Maulana met him sincerely. The captain took the permission to talk about the religious matter and Maulana granted him. A hajee who know English well was translator between them. The captain was wonder struck, and looks that he will declare his acceptance of Islam, when he listened religious thought of Hazarat Maulana Qasim Sa. At that time Maulana (R.A.) was very impressed and intended to learn English language just when he will come back, but fixed moment of the death came and he couldn't complete his intention. (Hindustan main Muslamano ka Nizam-e- Talim -w- Tarbiyat : Page : 59)
It is mentioned in Tazkira-e-Ulma-e-Hind about Maulana Inayat -r asul Chiryacoti (R.A.) that he went to Calcutta for learning Hebrew language. And stayed there many years and learnt it from Hebrew Scholars until he became skill in Hebrew.(Hindustan main Muslamano ka Nizam-e- Talim -w- Tarbiyat : Page : 57)
Allama Tafajjul Husain Khan has learnt English and Roomy language which is called Latin. (Hindustan main Muslamano ka Nizam-e- Talim -w- Tarbiyat : Page : 57)
Hazarat Maulana Nasiruddin sa. (the father of Maulana Nusrat Ali Dehlvi) used to do controversy. Therefore he was famous by the name Imam-e-Munazara (the chief of controversy). When he would do controversy to Jews he would recite the commentary of Pentateuch and Testament in Hebrew language. (Hindustan main Muslamano ka Nizam-e- Talim -w- Tarbiyat : Page : 57)
This tradition is included in the Malfuzat of Hazrat Maulana Shah A.Aziz R.A in his own tongue that the well known Hebrew scholar came in Delhi in his time. Shah Sa. states that he enquired about Pentateuch in Hebrew language. This says that he learnt Hebrew language to him directly. It is also mentioned in Malfuzat that he recited some verses of Pentateuch and translate them. (Hindustan main Muslamano ka Nizam-e- Talim -w- Tarbiyat : Page : 57)
Darul Uloom Deoband as a centre of All Asian religious Madaris has passed the rule to learn English language.
It is come to know by above mentioned matters that Islam does not consider non-provincial and unrelated. A man can learn any languages either it is English or Sanskrit, for the holy purpose of the protection of Islam and Muslim from the misguiding of Anti Islam power and astray parties, similarly, for the printing and publishing Islamic literatures. And it is necessary that we should not accept the civilization and culture of Anti Islamic related that language. Regarding to learn language, If any chapter is opposite according to Islamic thought, it should be learnt and taught as the learning.There is a misunderstanding shown in India that (Unani) Grecian Medicine is tradition of Muslim and Ayurvadic Medicine is a Hindus' tradition. Nowadays, the government has going to establish the centre of Vedas in the different parts of country. In regarding it the learning of Sanskrit language is necessary.
Mufti Ahmed Devalvi Sb.

JAMIA@SATYAM.NET.IN

Peace in Islam

2008-06-17T05:23:00.000-07:00

Peace in Islam
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate
Introduction
Praise be to Allah, and may His peace and blessings be upon Muhammad, and upon his family and companions, and all those who follow him.
‘Peace in Islam’ is an essay written by Imam Hasan Al-Banna in 1948 in the monthly magazine known as Shihaab.
It is the right of the new Muslim generation to have access to the writings of this great reformer; especially on this important topic. The attention of western writers, in particular the orientalists, has been directed at this crucial topic; the majority of them view Islam as a religion which was established and spread by the sword. They are certainly mistaken.
The Imam’s argument in this essay is that Islam is a religion of love and peace, and indeed, the true manifestation of human brotherhood. In an age of violence and instability, this conception of the role of Islam in establishing world peace and human camaraderie, as it did in the past, is needed very much and it is also an inspiring call for mankind.
This book is of two parts, the first part elaborates on the reformist movements in the Islamic World, the causes, then the answer to the question: Is the Islamic threat- a myth or reality? Then he describes the Human Brotherhood concept of Islam.
In the second part, the Imam elaborates on Jihad, and why fighting is allowed in Islam. He defines the purposes of war in Islam and answers the commonly asked question: Was Islam spread by the sword? and what steps Islam has taken in terms of guaranteeing peace.
The Imam, may Allah bless him, shows us that ultimately, and insha’ Allah (God-willing) time will be a witness to this, only Islam can save mankind from itself.
Reformist Feeling in the Islamic World
Many political and social analysts as well as scholars, especially those interested in studying the development and evolution of nations, notice that the Islamic world (spearheaded by the Arab world) is pursuing an Islamic path in its fresh resurgence, and this new direction is gaining increasing momentum.
Many writers, thinkers, scholars, and leaders who were advocating conformity with the values of western civilisation and adherence to its norms and the complete adoption of its principles, began rethinking their ideas and started to change their tone and replace it with a new more cautious and wary approach. The call for the return of Muslim society to the fundamentals and teachings of Islam became more powerful, paving the way for the re-islamisation of all aspects of life.
The Causes
It worries the Islamists that the governments and nations of the west have lived for centuries ignorant of Islam, knowing nothing about Islam except fanaticism and stagnation, and viewing the Muslim nations as nothing more than weak societies which can be easily led and conquered. When Islamic revival emerged, they began to analyse and explain this phenomenon according to many frameworks and theories totally alien to the true essence of this religion. Some researchers said that this Islamic resurgence was a result of the rising tide of extremist Islamic tendencies and intolerant Islamic organisations. Others argued that it was a reaction to the political and economic pressures felt by the Islamic nation. Still others saw the cause for the rise of this phenomena as a means by which those who seek power will achieve their desired goal. All these speculations are very far from the truth because this Islamic direction is due to three main developments:
Materialism in the West
The materialist pillars upon which modernity was established achieved an economic and technological advancement, but failed to satisfy human needs and fulfil the conditions of a stable social life. The western way of life which was founded on material knowledge, technical know-how, innovation, invention and the dominance of the world markets with its products, was not able to give the human soul a ray of light, a hint of (spiritual) inspiration or a strand of faith. It was not able to provide any means of peace and tranquillity for anxious souls. This is why it was natural for a man living in these conditions to seek happiness in the purely material world and look for ways of alleviating his suffering in ways consistent with it. Indeed all that western life could offer him was material pleasure: an excess of wealth, sex and other corrupted vices, with which he temporarily indulges himself, only to find that he is not satisfied. With the decline of family values and the rise of individualism, the modern man, along with the ‘modernised’ one, felt his soul crying out for freedom from this material prison, searching for a release into the vastness of faith and spiritual light.
The Perfection of Islam
Secondly, and this is the positive aspect, the Islamic thinkers rediscovered the fundamental virtues of Islam and the comprehensiveness of its teachings; and they realised that Islam offers the most detailed, most complete, all-encompassing system compared to all other social philosophies that have ever emerged. For a long time the Muslims had forgotten this fact, but when Allah allowed them to compare the social principles of their religion with what the greatest of social scientists and the most prominent of thinkers have discovered, they found that the difference between the treasures of their great heritage and human attempts of thinkers and philosophers was vast. In light of this, they found themselves responsible for calling all people to this righteous path, Muslims and non-Muslims alike.
The Course of Modernity
After two destructive world wars, new principles, norms and social systems emerged, shaping the political, social and economic life of various nations. However, it was not long before these new standards were put into question and in some circumstances even abandoned or changed. All this took place at a time when Islamic thinkers were busy theorising, monitoring, weighing and returning to the Holy Book of their Lord, the clear guidance of their Prophet and the bright history of their civilisation. They found that there wasn’t a virtue in any worldly system that was not already affirmed by Islam. As for social, economic and political problems, related to these systems, Islam prescribes the route of prevention and cure.
The democratic system led the world for a while, encouraging many intellectuals as well as the masses to think of it as the ideal system. Nobody can ignore the freedom it has secured for peoples and nations alike, and the justice it has introduced to the human mind in allowing it to think freely, and to the human being as a whole in allowing him the freedom to fulfil himself; and, apparently, giving power to the people. Indeed, international relations after the First World War came as a proof of the legitimacy of these ideas and most of the world turned towards them wholeheartedly. However, it was not long before people realised that individuality and unlimited liberty can lead to chaos and many other short-comings, which ultimately led to the fragmentation of the social structure and family systems, and the eventual re-emergence of totalitarianism.
Nazism came to power in Germany, Fascism in Italy and both Hitler and Mussolini began to force their people to conform to what they thought; unity, order, development and power. Certainly, this system led the two countries to stability and a vital international role. This cultivated much hope, reawakened aspiration and united the whole country under one leader.
Then what happened? It became apparent that these seemingly powerful systems were a real disaster. The inspiration and aspirations of the people were shattered and the system of democracy did not lead to the empowerment of the people but to the establishment of chosen tyrants. Eventually after a deadly war in which innumerable men women and children died, these regimes collapsed.
Concurrently, socialism and communism gained adherents. Soviet Russia came onto the scene propagating its ideology and its system, which changed remarkably during thirty years. The democratic/liberal power, or to be more accurate, the old ‘colonial’ powers (or the new ambitious ones), started thinking very seriously about stopping this rising tide. The struggle between the two powers intensified while the nations and countries not yet aligned to this camp or that, wandered aimlessly, and did not know whether to turn here or there. Among these countries were the Islamic nations.
This social development and seemingly inevitable confrontation reawakened the inspiration of Muslim thinkers which motivated them to start weighing and comparing all the available options and they ended up, after much contemplation, with the final conclusion: the need to pursue the path of freedom independent of all these alien systems, and the absolute necessity for a return to Islam.
The Three systems in Prayer
I once said, humorously, to an audience, "This prayer that we offer five times a day is nothing more than a daily exercise on a practical social system which contains the best of communism and democracy." In total surprise they asked: "How can that be?" I said that the best that the communist system has to offer is its promotion of equality, its attack on social classes, and its war on pride in private ownership upon which class is based. All these elements are present and completely felt by a Muslim when he enters the mosque. For when he first enters the mosque he knows that this holy place belongs to Allah, and Allah alone; and that there is no difference between one who finds shelter in it and one who only passes through. In it there is no young or old, no lord or slave and no discrimination nor classification.
When the Mu’adhin intones, "The prayer is due, the prayer is due", the masses line up behind the Imam in one straight line as if they were one solid wall. Nobody bows before the Imam does, and no one prostrates before him. In every little movement the masses are obliged to follow the Imam and not to supersede him in any way. This is the best that any autocracy has to offer - everyone united, orderly and well organised.
However, the Imam does not act as he pleases. On the contrary, he himself is bound by the instructions and constitution of the prayer. If he should divert or make a mistake in a recitation or an action, it is upon the young boy, the old man and the women who prays behind him to correct his short-comings. It is their every right to remind him, correct him and guide him to the right path during their prayer. Moreover, it is obligatory on the Imam, whoever he shall be, to bow down to the truth, and correct his mistake in the light of their instructions. There is nothing in democracy that is better than the virtues we have just cited.
Hence, what is in these man-made systems that elevates them above Islam when Islam has so marvellously blended the best of them together, to come up with one complete system?
‘Indeed, if it was from any other than Allah then they would have found in it many contradictions’

(Surat-al-Nisaa’ (4), ayah 82)

www.youngmuslims.ca/online_library/books/peace_in_islam/index.htm

Hijab In The Al-Quran And Sunnah

2008-06-16T04:59:00.000-07:00

The Requirements of Women's Hijab in Accordance with the Qur'an, the Authentic Sunnah and the Practice of the Pious Predecessors.
Introduction:
This essay will attempt to briefly yet concisely enumerate the basic requirements regarding Muslim women's dress (Hijab) as stipulated by the Shari'ah (Divine Law) of Islam. The term Hijab, includes not only dress and covering the body, but methods of behavior before members of the same and/or opposite sex, promoting privacy for females and prohibiting loose intermingling between males and females, and thereby encouraging modesty, decency, chastity and above all, respect and worship of Allah.
Minor differences exist among the scholars regarding the actual number of the requirements because of varying methods used by them in codifying. The ones mentioned here represent the ones agreed upon by the overwhelming majority of scholars and are all solidly backed by firm evidence taken from the Qur'an, the Sunnah and the practice of the Sahabah (the Companions).
The First Requirement: The Extent of Covering
The dress worn in public must cover the entire body except what has been specifically excluded, based upon the following proofs:
Allah Ta'ala says: "And tell the believing women to lower their gaze and guard their private parts from sin and not show of their adornment except only that which is apparent, and draw their headcovers over their necks and bosoms and not reveal their adornment except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers, or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons, or their women (i.e., their sisters in Islam), or their female slaves whom their right hands possess, or old male servants free of physical desires, or small children who have no sense of women's nakedness. And let them not stamp their feet so as to reveal what they hide of their adornment. And turn unto Allah altogether, O you Believers, in order that you may attain success.[An-Nur, 24:31]
The word zeenah in the aayah above, literally means "adornment", and includes both (a) that which Allah has adorned, i.e., the woman's natural and/or physical beauty, and (b) that with which they adorn themselves, i.e., jewelry, eye shadow, attractive clothing, hand dye, etc. Soorat An-Nur spells out specifically the commands concerning the fact that a woman's natural beauty and her adornments are to be concealed from strangers except by (1) What may show due to accidental or uncontrollable factors such as the blowing of the wind, etc., and (2) What has been exempted (see explanation at end of this section). Allah also says:
O Prophet, Tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to draw their outer garments about themselves (when they go out). That is better so that they may be recognised and not molested. And Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. [Al-Ahzaab, 33:59]
Abu Dawood narrates that `Aishah (RAA) said: "Asmaa' the daughter of Abu Bakr (RAA) came to see the Messenger of Allah (SAAWS) wearing a thin dress; so Allah's Messenger (SAAWS) turned away from her and said: O Asmaa', once a woman reaches the age of menstruation, no part of her body should be seen but this-and he pointed to his face and hands.
The word khumur (pl. of khimar) refers to a cloth which covers the head (including the ears), hair, neck and bosom. The esteemed mufaasir (Quranic interpreter) Al-Qurtubi explains: "Women in the past used to cover their heads with the khimar, throwing its ends over their backs. This left the neck and the upper part of the chest bare, in the manner of the Christians. Then Allah commanded them to cover those parts with the khimar."
Allah states further in this aayah:
...And let them not stamp their feet so as to reveal what they hide of their adornments The women in the time of the Prophet (SAAWS) wore anklets which could be employed to attract attention by stamping their feet, thereby making the anklets tinkle. This practice is not only forbidden by Allah, but moreover, shows that the legs and ankles are to be covered as well. Some of the modern day Hanafi scholars are of the mistaken view that a woman can display her feet, a portion of her forearms and her ears; yet there is NO authentic proof from the practice of the Prophet (SAAWS) or his Sahabah to uphold such a view.
Amongst the authentic hadeeths which clarify this point is the following: Ibn `Umar (RAA) reported that the Messenger of Allah (SAAWS) said: On the Day of Resurrection, Allah will not look at the man who trails his garment along out of pride. Umm Salamah then asked: What should women do with (the hems of) their garments? He replied: Let them lower them a handspan. She said: Their feet would be exposed! He then said: Let them lower them a forearm's length but no more. [Reported by At-Tabarani-Sahih]
The aayah of Soorat An-Nur also lists in detail those with whom a woman is permitted to be more at ease. Furthermore, the ayah from Soorat Al-Ahzab orders Muslim women to draw their outer garments about themselves when they go out. Abu Dawood related that `Aishah (RAA) said: "After this Aayah was revealed the women of the Ansar appeared like crows." (because of the color and shape of the cloaks they wore).
Hence, an outer garment or cloak must be worn by a Muslim woman whenever she goes out in public or if she is in the presence of strangers within her own home or the home of a close relative. Slight differences have arisen amongst the scholars concerning the precise meaning of ...except only that which is apparent... from Soorah An-Nur which according to Ibn `Abaas (RAA), includes "the face, the two hands, and rings. This view is shared by Ibn `Umar, `Ata'a, and others from the Tabi'een." [Tafseer Ibn Kathir]
Also, Imam Ash-Showkani states concerning this same ayaat, that it includes: "The dress, the face, and the two hands"; Ibn `Abaas and Qatadah have stated: "The adornments include eye shadow (i.e., Kuhul), bracelets, hand dye, and rings, and it is permissable for women to (uncover) them." [Fateh Al-Qadeer]
The major point of difference among the scholars concerns the hadeeth of Asmaa' (RAA) i.e., that the face and hands need not be covered; a number of the scholars have maintained that the face and hands must also be covered, because it was the practice of the wives of the Prophet (SAAWS) and the wives of the Sahabah to cover themselves completely according to authentic hadeeths. The above point has been a topic of debate amongst the scholars both past and present and will be dealt with, Insha' Allah at the end of this essay.
to read for more Requirement go : http://islamic-world.net/sister/hijab_in_quran.htm

MASSAGE OF QURAN FOR ALL DAUGHTERS AND SONS

2008-06-06T02:01:00.000-07:00

MASSAGE OF QURAN FOR ALL DAUGHTERS AND SONS

Allah say in the Quran: (Sura Luqman verses 13-17)

"And (remember) when Luqman said to his son when he was advising him: "O my son! Join not in worship others with Allah. Verily! Joining others in worship with Allah is a great Zulm (wrong) indeed"

"And We have enjoined on man (to be dutiful and good) to his parents. His mother bore him in weakness and hardship upon weakness and hardship, and his weaning is in two years- give thanks to Me and to your parents onto me is the final destination"

"But if they (both) strive with you to make you join in worship with Me others that of which you have no knowledge, then obey them not, but behave with them in the world kindly, and follow the path of him who turns to Me in repentance and in obedience. Then to Me will be your return, and I shall tell you what you used to do"

"O my son! If it be (anything) equal to the weight of a grain of mustard seed, and though it be in a rock or in the heavens or in the earth, Allah will bring it forth. Verily, Allah is Subtle (in bringing out that grain) Well-aware (of its place)."

"O my son! Aqim-is-salat (offer prayers perfectly), enjoin (people) for Al-Ma'ruf (Islamic Monotheism and all that is good), and forbid (people) from Al-Munkar (i.e. disbelief in the Oneness of Allah, polytheism of all kinds and all that is evil and bad), and bear with patience what ever befalls you. Verily! These are some of the important commandments ordered by Allah with no exemption."

Do they not consider the Qur-an (with care)?

2008-06-05T04:31:00.000-07:00

Do they not consider the Qur-an (with care)? Had it been from other than Allah, they would surely have found therein much discrepancy.
HUD : 82)

BISMILLAH

2008-06-01T22:37:00.001-07:00

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful.