FAQS and FACTS
Now that we are more or less there with the basics of Islam, lets get deeper into the realm of the misconceptions it is faced with every now and then. Multiple versions of a concept, a belief or a principal of Islam, are often found and one cannot but feel helpless because you can't blame the one's who believe it.. the one's to be blamed here are actually the one's who've led the others to think in a certain fashion. And so we're often left with some FAQS which need attention in order to give people an insight to these. So let's counter some of those FAQS with the FACTS!
As I have stated earlier - it is never a faith that can go wrong, it is always, but always, the followers of that faith who can make or mar the image of the said faith in the eyes of those who follow other faiths. Taking Islam for instance, just because of misrepresentation of some of it's concepts, they are being ridiculed in the society.
One of them being the system of
Polygamy. And the questions remain; How can a faith allow you to marry so many woman? Is it an obligation?Why at all have it in place?
It is looked upon as a silly custom and for many people it seems disgusting to even think of someone marrying four women. However, most of these people do not have any idea how the custom came into existence and what purpose did it serve at the time of it's origin.
Going back to history, the custom dates back to the age when most of the men lost their life in battles and the ratio of men to women was quite alarmingly low. It was then that the custom of one man marrying more than one woman came into existence. In a society where a ratio of this sort exists, strict monogamy means that many women will never have a chance to marry at all, and could more easily be tempted into immoral relationships. This was thus done, in that age, to safeguard the chastity of a woman and to provide her financial support.
However, the rules for any Muslim man to marry a second woman or a third one, are very strict and must be adhered to.
To begin with, one ought to have his first wife's consent before marrying a second one and the later wives must not be a cause of distress to the previous ones.
Moreover, there are other regulations like, treating them alike in terms of gifts, clothing, food and giving them equal amount of attention - which must be followed in order for a man to marry more than one woman.
Polygamy is also allowed in a situation where a man's wife is so physically ill that she cannot look after her family and her husband or is not able to bear him children - but even here, the wife's consent is a must.
Although, just like any other rule or custom, this one has had it's share of abuse but the FACT remains that one must have his first wife's permission to marry another woman.
Watch this space for more FAQS and their address.
The Five Pillars of Islam
The 'Five Pillars' of Islam are the foundation of Muslim life:
- Faith or belief in the Oneness of God and the finality of the prophethood of Muhammad:
As mentioned in the previous post, Muslims rest their belief on the one statement which means the above "La Ilaha Illallah Muhammad-ur Rasull-allah" and declarartion of one's faith on this statement also forms one of the five pillars of Islam.
- Establishment of the daily prayers:
The Muslim worship is based on the concept of ihsan meaning realisation - which implies that the human being really is making an effort of to be 'in communication' with God Almighty. And so 'namaaz' is performed with complete peace of mind - five times in a day. The times determine the course of the day - dawn, mid-day, late-afternoon, sunset and nightfall, and thus it is expected of every Muslim to connect to God at the turn of each of these courses during the day. A call for Prayer or Adan is made at all five times to call people busy in their work to come and indulge in praising Allah and thanking him for his kindness.
- Concern for and almsgiving to the needy:
An important principle of Islam is that everything belongs to God, and wealth is therefore held by human beings in trust. And so zakah meaning both "purification" and "growth" is given away to the needy. The belief is that one's possessions are purified by setting aside a portion for those in need and for the society in general. Each Muslim calculates his or her own zakah individually. This involves the annual payment of a fortieth of one's capital, excluding such items as primary residence, car and professional tools.
- Self-purification through fasting:
Every year in the month of Ramadan, all Muslims fast from dawn until dusk (sunset to be precise)--abstaining from food, drink, and sexual relations with their spouses.
Those who are sick, elderly, or on a journey, and women who are menstruating, pregnant or nursing, are permitted to break the fast and make up an equal number of days later in the year if and when they are healthy and able. Children begin to fast (and to observe prayers) from puberty, although many start earlier. This practice is considered a way of self-purification and beneficial for health. It lays much emphasis on self-restraint from worldly pleasures-even if it's for sometime.
- The pilgrimage to Makkah for those who are able:
The fifth pillar of Islam is the Pilgrimage to Mecca, Hajj, literal meaning - to set out with a definite purpose. It is an obligation for those who are financially and physically able to perform it. Pilgrims wear special clothes: simple garments which strip away distinctions of class and culture, so that all stand equal before God.
The relevance of Quran
Muslims from an early age are taught to respect and regard the Quran as the Holy book and a source of guidance for life. Little boys and girls are sent to mosque schools or medarssas to learn to read the Quran in Arabic. They are also taught how to perform
wudu (procedure of cleaning and washing your mouth, nose, face, forearms, ears, and feet before worship) so that they touch the Quran with a pure and clean body. Moreover, keeping the Quran on the floor is considered disrespectful so a special stand (called the
reh'l is used to mount the Quran before one starts reading) A special position is adopted to read the Quran so that the body is alert and disciplined - often sitting on the floor and keeping the Quran on the
rehl.
Once read, the Quran is carefully kept back in a suitable place where it stays higher than the rest of the things in the house.Traditionally, people used to have a mount or a special prayer room where the Quran was kept.
Since the Quran is in Arabic, that is, to read Arabic verses and learn them. Some people however, learn the verses but do not know the meaning of the words - this can be done at a younger stage but older men and women are expected to know the translation of the Arabic verses and try and apply to their life.
Translations of the Quran in other languages (that is to read Arabic in another script) are not regarded as being quite the same thing as the Quran itself. The correct pronunciation can only be practiced in the correct script and language.
Islamic Scripture - The Quran
The Quran (Literal meaning: Reading or Recitation) is the Holy Book of Islam and is regarded by believers as the true word of God as revealed to Prophet Muhammad through the angel Gabriel. Divided into 114 s
urahs (chapters) of unequal length, it is the fundamental source of Islamic teaching. The Quran was revealed to the Prophet in bits and pieces and as mentioned above, contains the exact words of Allah revealed to the Prophet and in this sense is different from other Holy books which have edited/abridged versions however, the Quran contains nothing but the revelations of Allah, not one word being added or changed by the Prophet. He was nothing more than the transmitter for these revelations.
He would learn the verses revealed to him or maybe jot them down on whatever was handy at the time. These were later compiled properly - but then that was not done in the chronological order - the ordering of these was again done in compliance with the wishes of God as revealed to the Prophet. The Prophet had to recite the whole collection revealed so far to the angel Gabriel every Ramadan and the entire text was checked twice with angel, shortly before the Prophet died.
Since Islam had surfaced at a time when books were considered to be a luxury, afforded only by the rich, people had mastered the art of learning most things by heart. So anyone who knew the full text of the Holy Quran was known as a
Hafiz, however, since many of them were slain in battles, people began to worry as to how the accuracy of the text would be checked after the Prophet's death. They started reciting the verses trying to by heart them but this further became a cause for concern as it brought along the danger of personal interpretations, misinterpretations and alternative versions.
The first Caliph, Abu Bakr, thus requested the Prophet's companion Zaid ibn Thabit, to make a complete written version in one book. The messages were not altered or added to in forms of any translations/explanations or editorial comments. Any other versions were checked against this and the one's differing were destroyed. Numerous copies of this 'standard' text were made and circulated in all Muslim Centrex and all copies since then have been identical.
The earliest known Qurans that still exist are in Tashkent and Istanbul and the grammar of the Arabic language, its lexicon, its phonetic system and its phraseology, have remained intact for fourteen hundred years."
Christianity, Judaism and Islam
In response to the below post, I received a question from a young man who shows keen interest in finding out the truth about Islam.
So here's the answer to his question;
As mentioned earlier, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam have surfaced at around the same time and are monotheistic religions, that is, they believe that there is only one God. Jews and Muslims greatly stress the oneness and unity of God. The affirmation of the oneness of God by Christians is sometimes misunderstood, because Christians believe that the one God is triune (the Holy Trinity). However, this is not a denial of monotheism but an affirmation of the complexity of the Divine Being. All three religions believe that this God is the origin and source of all that exists.
The three religions believe that human beings are the highest creatures here on earth. We are the children of Abraham. God created us full of mystery, which means potential for continuous growth, both as a species and as individuals. We are capable of both good and evil. When we grow in goodness, righteousness, and love we become more like what God intended human goodness to be. When we abuse our freedom and do harm to other people, ourselves, and the environment it means that we are going against God's plans as we become evil-doers. Each person is capable, with God's help, to turn away from evil, repent, and do good. We owe God our devotion, glorification, and obedience.
Although a deeper study into the three faiths can also bring to fore the various differences they have in their ways of life and many other religious aspects, what remains of extreme importance is the fact that these three faiths do have a lot in common - irrespective of the human diversifications done to the ideologies by their respective followers.
Taking a step further...
My very first post received a comment which has now encouraged me to write with a new direction in mind... now I know that there are people apart from the one's I had in mind, who want to read about, know and maybe..understand Islam.
So.. moving forth in our journey, here's a brief introduction;
The word 'Muslim' simply means, "the one who submits" and the creed of Islam is a statement in two parts "
La ilaha ilallah - Muhammadur rasul al-Lah"
meaning, "There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his Prophet." Upon these, every Muslim builds up his thoughts, his beliefs and his way of life.
Talking of Islam, it is one of the three great faiths that sprang from the Middle Eastern deserts somewhere in the 7th century AD. The other two are Judaism and Christianity and all three are interlinked as they are, in reality, worshipping the same One God. The Arabic term
Islam illuminates the fundamental religious idea of Islam-that the believer (Muslim) accepts "surrender to the will of Allah (God)." And his will is known through the sacred scripture, the Quran, which Allah revealed to his last messenger, Muhammad. He is considered the last of a series of Prophets (Including Adam, Noah and Jesus and others) and it was the culmination of all the messages and the revelations made to Muhammad that gave birth to Islam as a way of life. Muslims follow the Holy Quran as Allah's will and for their reference to the way of life in Islam, comes from the Hadith (The sayings and teachings of Prophet Muhammad). However, the basis of Islam remains to be the belief in the existence of one God and Muhammad as his Prophet.
A humble beginning...
I set out today from a cul-de-sack..
to trudge on a travelled path to go back..
to find a way out other than this..
to prove to the world that my faith doesn't lack..
I have indeed set out today to an oft travelled road of finding out the truth and letting the world find it out as well. My aim.. to get the respect and glory of my faith back.. from people who claim to follow it but have robbed it of it's beauty and have left to the world an ugly and sorry figure to look at and be scared of.
I refer to the most talked about, yet, ironically, the most misunderstood faith of our times- Islam. All thanks to God, we're not born in a dark, unlettered age, which has made it easier for me to reach out to the world and let everone know the truth about Islam - it's thoughts, beliefs and of course some more talked about topics in today's world. My only wish is to have more and more people to read this because it is in no way a propoganda... but an honest sincere attempt to make most of us.. educated and well-known about the debatable topics that Islam has brought to the fore - or at least it's followers have!
This happens to be my first post on this blog.. which I have dedicated to
Islam.. the posts that would follow this one would talk about the small misinterpretations that many people have about Islam and it's culture before we delve into the more serious topics - and I would do my best to explain them to the best of my knowledge.
The idea behind this blog is
NOT to speak on sensitive issues or begin a blame game but to ensure that people who still give it the benefit of doubt should have something comprehensive to understand the true nature of this faith. I was forced to create this blog when I encountered many people (in college and at work) who would come up to me and ask.. hey..what is the relevance of this..? or why do you do that? And trust me.. the explainations/discussions that would follow.. usually took more than an hour.. and always left me exhauseted but content.. that I have been able to clear some fog from one more mind.
So.. here I am making a modest beginning to clear more and more fog and tell everyone.. that it's not really as complex as they think it is!
