THE PROPHET’S (SAAS) CALL TO RELIGION
The Prophet (saas) spent all his life, once the Qur'an had been revealed to him, calling people to the religion and guiding them to the true path. In one verse, Allah tells the Prophet (saas) how he should address people:
Say: "This is my way. I call to Allah with inner sight, I and all who follow me. Glory be to Allah! I am not one of those who associate others with Him." (Surah Yusuf: 108)
The Prophet (saas) encountered a number of difficulties when warning people and teaching them about the Qur'an and true morality. Since not everyone was on the true path, people made life difficult for the Prophet (saas), out of jealousy, hatred and envy. Some were slow to understand his words and dragged their feet when they did so, some behaved hypocritically, saying that they believed his words when they really did not. The Prophet (saas) continued to explain the religion with great determination, paying no heed to all those obstacles. Such people's attitudes are revealed in a verse:
… You believe in all the Books. When they meet you, they say, "We believe." But when they leave they bite their fingers out of rage against you. Say, "Die in your rage." Allah knows what your hearts contain. (Surah Al ‘Imran: 119)
Another verse discusses the Prophet (saas)'s determination in the face of those who opposed him:
Those to whom We gave the Book rejoice at what has been sent down to you but some of the parties refuse to acknowledge part of it. Say: "I have only been ordered to worship Allah and not to associate anything with Him. I summon to Him and to Him I will return." (Surat ar-Ra‘d: 36)
The Prophet (saas) continued to warn those who would not believe, and to use the most effective way of talking about the religion, in the hope they would find faith and abandon their hatred of him and his religion. Allah describes the attitude displayed by those people in the face of what he had to say in Surat an-Nisa':
Do you not see those who claim that they believe in what has been sent down to you and what was sent down before you, still desiring to turn to a satanic source for judgement in spite of being ordered to reject it? Satan wants to misguide them far away. When they are told, "Come to what Allah has sent down and to the Messenger," you see the hypocrites turning away from you completely. (Surat an-Nisa': 60-61)
Despite the two-faced behavior of those who opposed him, the Prophet (saas) spoke to them in terms that would enable them to see the truth and which would work on their consciences. One verse reads:
Allah knows what is in such people's hearts so turn away from them and warn them and speak to them with words that take effect. (Surat an-Nisa': 63)
It was of course a heavy responsibility to give advice to his enemies, to show them the error of their ways and to call them to the true path. Yet, for someone who, like the Prophet (saas), has put his trust in Allah, who knows that faith is a gift from Him, and fears Allah alone, and not anyone else, Allah will provide assistance and support.
In several verses of the Qur'an, Allah reveals that He has sent messengers in order to turn those who have strayed back to the true path, to purify them, and to teach them the holy verses. As we have seen above, throughout his life, the Prophet (saas) persevered in the responsibility that Allah had laid on him with great patience, fortitude and determination. Even in the final sermon that he gave, very shortly before dying, he continued to teach and instruct Muslims.
Allah sets out these beautiful responsibilities in a number of verses:
For this We sent a Messenger to you from among you to recite Our Signs to you and purify you and teach you the Book and Wisdom and teach you things you did not know before. (Surat al-Baqara: 151)
Allah showed great kindness to the believers when He sent a Messenger to them from among themselves to recite His Signs to them and purify them and teach them the Book and Wisdom, even though before that they were clearly misguided. (Surah Al ‘Imran: 164)
In one verse, Allah describes the Prophet (saas)'s advice and warnings as "things that will bring one to life":
You who believe! Respond to Allah and to the Messenger when He calls you to what will bring you to life! Know that Allah intervenes between a man and his heart and that you will be gathered to Him. (Surat al-Anfal: 24)
That is why the Prophet (saas)'s advice and exhortations are unlike those of anyone else. Abiding by these warnings is a means of salvation in this world and the next. Each of the Prophet (saas)'s exhortations are founded on wisdom that will save people from evil, cruelty, pessimism and suffering. Since all his advice is inspired and assured by Allah, a sincere Muslim will surrender himself to them and find faith.
The words of the Prophet (saas) that have come down to us contain the excellent advice he gave to the faithful. One example is the advice he gave to his companion Muadh. It is reported that he spoke thus:
"O Muadh, I advise you: fear Allah, speak the truth, fulfil promise, pay up trust, give up breach of trust, save your neighbour, show kindness to orphans, be modest in talk, spread peace, do good deeds, stick to faith, earn knowledge about the Qur'an, love the next world, fear rendering of accounts...
O Muadh, I forbid you: Don't tell a truthful man liar, don't follow any sin, don't disobey a just judge, and don't create disorder in land.
O Muadh, I give you instruction: Fear Allah while passing by each stone, tree, and heaps of earth. Make repentance anew after committing any sin. Repent secretly for secret sin and openly for open sin." 1
That is how the Prophet (saas) educated those close to him and Muslims, and called on them to have good character. (For further reading about the attributes of the Prophet (saas), see “The Prophet Muhammad (saas)” by Harun Yahya)
1. Imam Ghazzali's Ihya Ulum-Id-Din (The Book of Religious Learnings), Islamic Book Service, New Delhi, 2001, Volume II, p.236
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Saturday, November 29, 2008
Thursday, November 6, 2008
An Islamic Perspective on Stem Cells Research in Brief
I would like to congratulate and commend Dr. Muzammil H. Siddiqui for his painstaking efforts in studying and explaining to readers the difficult
subject of stem cells. I am very pleased at his comments and conclusions which are highly scientific and rational. The definition of the embryo is the age of the conceptus to the end of the 8th week (56 days). Hence the embryo is not a human being, whether grown in a petri dish (in vitro fertilization) or inside the uterus of a mother (natural environment) and according to Islam it does not have a soul. From the 9th week to the 38th week (full term) it is called “fetus”, which means the young one in Latin. In the beginning of the fetal period, the face has a human appearance and the head is formed, but one cannot say that the head is fully formed. The brain continues to grow in the fetal period and even after birth. In fact, the brain increases fourfold in size and weight from birth to maturity. The Qur’an does not say when the soul enters the body. However, a Hadith says, “the soul is breathed into the body” when the fetus is 120 days old in the womb .(Sahih Bukhari Hadith, Vol. 4 Hadith No. 549). Henc, according to Shariah it is permissible to abort the embryo or even the fetus in certain conditions such as rape, endangerment to pregnant mother’s health, or therapeutic abortion. I personally support the opinions and views expressed by Dr. Muzammil H. Siddqui in support of research on embryonic stem cells. In his article, I did not see anywhere the mention of fat cells that could be harvested as stem cells. I am herewith enclosing my article on stem cells from fat for favor of enlightening your readers and it throws new light on stem cell research. (The article will appear in a subsequent issue of Pakistan Link - Editor)
subject of stem cells. I am very pleased at his comments and conclusions which are highly scientific and rational. The definition of the embryo is the age of the conceptus to the end of the 8th week (56 days). Hence the embryo is not a human being, whether grown in a petri dish (in vitro fertilization) or inside the uterus of a mother (natural environment) and according to Islam it does not have a soul. From the 9th week to the 38th week (full term) it is called “fetus”, which means the young one in Latin. In the beginning of the fetal period, the face has a human appearance and the head is formed, but one cannot say that the head is fully formed. The brain continues to grow in the fetal period and even after birth. In fact, the brain increases fourfold in size and weight from birth to maturity. The Qur’an does not say when the soul enters the body. However, a Hadith says, “the soul is breathed into the body” when the fetus is 120 days old in the womb .(Sahih Bukhari Hadith, Vol. 4 Hadith No. 549). Henc, according to Shariah it is permissible to abort the embryo or even the fetus in certain conditions such as rape, endangerment to pregnant mother’s health, or therapeutic abortion. I personally support the opinions and views expressed by Dr. Muzammil H. Siddqui in support of research on embryonic stem cells. In his article, I did not see anywhere the mention of fat cells that could be harvested as stem cells. I am herewith enclosing my article on stem cells from fat for favor of enlightening your readers and it throws new light on stem cell research. (The article will appear in a subsequent issue of Pakistan Link - Editor)
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
The Honeybee
The reader of the Qur'an must have been wondering why Surah 16, An-Nahl or the Bee is named after a lowly creature.
In the scientific language all the honeybees belong to the genus Apis. The honeybee communicates with other honeybee using a dance language, which the scientists have discovered to be very complicated and highly developed. Karl von Frisch of the University of Munich in Germany, in the 1940s first discovered the significance of bees' dances. Once the honeybee discovers a source of food, it returns to the hive and the forager bee recruits other bees through both sound and dances and communicates information about the location of food.
More than 2,000 years ago, Aristotle himself documented the honeybee's ability to recruit her nestmates to a good food source but did not speculate on how the communication took place. It took over 2,000 years to understand the communication system of the bee. Frisch and his followers were able to recognize a pattern in the dance. The forager walks across the vertical sheets of comb hanging in the hive and traces out the shape of a figure eight (8); she pauses in each loop to shake her body from side to side. A few potential recruits chase after the dancer attentively for some time and then fly out on their own toward the target. In 1943 von Frisch discovered that the direction in which the dancer faced during her waggling run pointed toward the food site in relation to the sun; if she waggled while facing straight upward, toward the 12 on a clockface, then the food could be found in the direction of the sun; if she waggled 60 degrees to the left of 12, facing the 10' 'O' clock, then the food lay 60 degrees to the left of the sun. In addition, he noticed that how fast the dancer completed her circuits corresponded to the distance between the hive and the feeding site; the closer the food, the more frenzied her pace. Von Frisch and his colleagues made detailed accounts of the dance language. They could observe the dance, decipher its meaning and then locate the food supply of which it spoke. This is a stunning accomplishment for scientists.
The sounds it makes with its wings are truly an essential part of the honeybee's dance language. The dancer bee emits sound signals that help the dance followers to find out where the dancer is located and how she is moving, which in turn offers them critical information regarding the direction and distance to the feeding site. The dance attenders receive these signals through the Johnston's organs located in their antennae, which are always held near the dancer. Because these organs are bilateral-one on the left and one on the dance followers can use them to judge their position with respect to the dancer and therefore understand the direction to the food. At the same time, the followers emit sounds that vibrate the comb. The forager stops her dance when she receives these signals and delivers samples of the food she has collected. These appetizers give the dance followers additional information about the taste, smell and quality of the food source. The bees attend the dancing for a while and then fly out to determine the food source on their own. If they are fortunate, they will find the food. If they fail, they will return to the nest and try again.
The exactness of the Qur'anic words in their reference to scientific phenomena occurs in Surah 16, ayath 68, which states:
"And Thy Lord inspired the bee, saying: Choose thou habitations in the hills and in the trees and in (men's) habitations."
Yusuf Ali says: "Auha: wahyan ordinarily means inspiration, the Message put into the mind or heart by Allah. Here the Bee's instinct is refereed to Allah's teaching, which id undoubtedly is.
In the above verse, Allah (SWT) is commanding the bee to choose (to make a hive) a dwelling in the hills, trees and other places which man has built. In Arabic, the verb assumes a specific form when it is in the imperative form and can be either masculine or feminine according to the context. In the Qur'an, the Arabic command of ittakhizee (go choose) is given to the bee in the feminine imperative form. It is shockingly true that only the female bee finds a new home. The queen and the workers are the heart of the hive: the male drones exist solely to mate with the queen. Thus the Qur'an makes a very accurate statement when it refers only the female bee as the one which is being commanded from Allah (SWT) to make a dwelling. As we know the Qur'an is a book of Guidance and the theme of the Qur'an is "mankind" and it is not a book of science. However over 750 verses are found in the Qur'an which relate to scientific phenomena as an argument to invite the believers to the Truth. The noted scholar Afzalur Rahman in elaborating the interconnectedness between science and the Qur'an says:
The Qur'an clearly establishes the fact that science and Qur'an are two aspects of the same Truth and there is no contradiction between them... Thus the Qur'an introduces new dimensions into the study of religion and its philosophy and seeks to bring men of knowledge (scientists) closer to Allah through the study of His Attributes and manifestations in the material world.
In another verse in Surah 16, An-Nahl, the Qur'an says:
Then eat of all fruits (all produce of the earth), and follow the ways of thy Lord, made smooth (for thee). There cometh forth from their bellies a drink of hues (varying colors), wherein is healing for mankind. Lo! herein is indeed portent(Sign) for people who reflect. ......... 16: 69
Allama Yusuf Ali in his commentary states "The bee assimilates the juice of various kinds of flowers and fruit, and forms within its body the honey, which it stores in its cells of wax. The different kinds of food from which it makes its honey give different colors to the honey, e.g., it is dark-brown, light-brown, yellow, white, and so on. The taste and flavor also varies, as in the case of heather honey, the honey formed from scented flowers, and so on. As food it is sweet and wholesome, and it is used in medicine. Note that while the instinctive individual acts are described in the singular number, the produce of "their bodies" is described in the plural, as the result of their collective effort.
HONEY: A HEALING FOR MANKIND
As stated in 16:69, there is a natural healing power in honey of great benefit to mankind. This has been documented in the world's oldest medical literature. For example the Sumerans and the Egyptian physicians about 4000 years ago used honey to treat internal and external wounds, ulcers, diseases of the eyes, lungs, skin and in particular, diseases of the stomach and intestines. The Chinese, Indians, Greeks and Romans have recorded similar practices. Hippocrates, the father of Western Medicine, used honey to treat a number of diseases. Ibn Sina, the Prince among Muslim physicians listed several beneficial uses of honey in his monumental work of medicine "The Canon of Medicine". Among the uses he listed are: preservation of youthfulness, improvement of memory, a feeling of happiness, assists in digestion, increase in appetite and helps promote in one's rendering of speech.
Since 1937 it has been known that honey has antibacterial activity due to its high sugar concentration (76 g/100 ml), acidity (Ph=3.6-4.2) and the organic antibacterial compounds present in honey. The composition of honey is very complex containing a variety of biochemical compounds including vitamins, amino acids, enzymes, hormones, etc., It is used in the treatment of wounds and ulcers. Surgeons and physicians are suing honey in the treatment of gunshot wounds, ulcers, surface wounds, cuts and abrasions, in the treatment of gastroenteritis (diarrhoea). In the academia a number of Ph.D. dissertations have been written on honey, particularly on its biochemical properties. Endocrinologists say that glucose levels in blood of healthy volunteers are increased whereas among the diabetic patients it is decreased after consumption of honey.
SMARTNESS OF THE HONEYBEE
How smart is the common honeybee? It is far smarter than today's most powerful supercomputers. Modern computers can attain the amazing processing speed of 16 gigaflops or 16 billion simple arithmetic operations, such as adding two numbers, each second. On the otherhand the bee's brain shows that the lowly honeybee performs the equivalent of ten trillion operations per second. Very astounding!
In the spring of 1983, the Smithsonian Institution conducted a symposium on animal intelligence at which one of the researchers was Princeton ethologist James L. Gould, an internationally renowned expert on honeybee behavior. In one of his experiments he wanted to observe the ways bee locate new food sources. To achieve this Gould provided honeybees with desirable food sources. Once they were accustomed to feeding at the stations, he moved the food sources by a factor of 1.25 the distance of the previous move. What Gould found was that after a few such moves the honeybees no longer had to search for the new location, but anticipated Gould's behavior so accurately that he found the bees circling the new location before he had even arrived and waiting for their food. The honeybees were able to construct quite a complex simulation of reality in their tiny brains (less than 10 milligrams) and deduce from past experience where Gould was going to place the food next.
The bee does all of this while consuming a lot less power than a computer. According to Byte magazine, "a honeybee's brain dissipates less than 10 microwatts of energy... It is superior by about seven orders of magnitude to the most efficient of today's manufactured computers." What it means is that over ten million bee brains can operate on the power needed for a single 100-watt light bulb. The most efficient of today's computers uses hundreds of millions of times more energy to perform an equivalent number of operations. As shown above they are able to navigate across long distances to locate sources of nectar and then return to the hive and communicate directions to fellow bees. They prepare special food items such as royal jelly and beebread, for their young. They protect their home by recognizing and repelling intruders. They regularly remove garbage and other refuse from their hive. They control the climate in the hive by fanning the fresh air and sprinkling water during summer and by clustering together for warmth in the winter. When their hives become overcrowded, they are smart enough to know that some have to leave and establish new colonies and live independently. Yet, supercomputers require teams of programmers, engineers, and technicians. Bees truly are a marvel of Allah (SWT)'s creation. Is there any doubt why Surah 16, the Qur'an is called NAHL.
This article is based on Jumuah Khutbahs (Friday Sermons) the author delivered at the Islamic Center of Madison, Wisconsin, Al-Fajr Mosque, Indianapolis and Islamic Center of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky. The author is considered to be the world's foremost exponent for the interpretation of Al-Qur'an in the light of modern knowledge. The author encourages feed back from the readers.
FURTHER READING
1. Kirchner, W.H. and Towne, W.F.: The Sensory Basis of the Honeybee's Dance Language. Scientific American June 1994
2. Kamaruddin, M.Y.: Honey: a healing for mankind throughout the ages. THE FOUNTAIN July-Sep, 1993, Vol.1, No.3, pp. 4-6.
3. Bee versus Computer, AWAKE February 8, 1995, pp.24-25.
4. Michael Talbot, " BEYOND THE QUANTUM " (New York, Macmillian Publishing Company) 1990, pp. 178-179
In the scientific language all the honeybees belong to the genus Apis. The honeybee communicates with other honeybee using a dance language, which the scientists have discovered to be very complicated and highly developed. Karl von Frisch of the University of Munich in Germany, in the 1940s first discovered the significance of bees' dances. Once the honeybee discovers a source of food, it returns to the hive and the forager bee recruits other bees through both sound and dances and communicates information about the location of food.
More than 2,000 years ago, Aristotle himself documented the honeybee's ability to recruit her nestmates to a good food source but did not speculate on how the communication took place. It took over 2,000 years to understand the communication system of the bee. Frisch and his followers were able to recognize a pattern in the dance. The forager walks across the vertical sheets of comb hanging in the hive and traces out the shape of a figure eight (8); she pauses in each loop to shake her body from side to side. A few potential recruits chase after the dancer attentively for some time and then fly out on their own toward the target. In 1943 von Frisch discovered that the direction in which the dancer faced during her waggling run pointed toward the food site in relation to the sun; if she waggled while facing straight upward, toward the 12 on a clockface, then the food could be found in the direction of the sun; if she waggled 60 degrees to the left of 12, facing the 10' 'O' clock, then the food lay 60 degrees to the left of the sun. In addition, he noticed that how fast the dancer completed her circuits corresponded to the distance between the hive and the feeding site; the closer the food, the more frenzied her pace. Von Frisch and his colleagues made detailed accounts of the dance language. They could observe the dance, decipher its meaning and then locate the food supply of which it spoke. This is a stunning accomplishment for scientists.
The sounds it makes with its wings are truly an essential part of the honeybee's dance language. The dancer bee emits sound signals that help the dance followers to find out where the dancer is located and how she is moving, which in turn offers them critical information regarding the direction and distance to the feeding site. The dance attenders receive these signals through the Johnston's organs located in their antennae, which are always held near the dancer. Because these organs are bilateral-one on the left and one on the dance followers can use them to judge their position with respect to the dancer and therefore understand the direction to the food. At the same time, the followers emit sounds that vibrate the comb. The forager stops her dance when she receives these signals and delivers samples of the food she has collected. These appetizers give the dance followers additional information about the taste, smell and quality of the food source. The bees attend the dancing for a while and then fly out to determine the food source on their own. If they are fortunate, they will find the food. If they fail, they will return to the nest and try again.
The exactness of the Qur'anic words in their reference to scientific phenomena occurs in Surah 16, ayath 68, which states:
"And Thy Lord inspired the bee, saying: Choose thou habitations in the hills and in the trees and in (men's) habitations."
Yusuf Ali says: "Auha: wahyan ordinarily means inspiration, the Message put into the mind or heart by Allah. Here the Bee's instinct is refereed to Allah's teaching, which id undoubtedly is.
In the above verse, Allah (SWT) is commanding the bee to choose (to make a hive) a dwelling in the hills, trees and other places which man has built. In Arabic, the verb assumes a specific form when it is in the imperative form and can be either masculine or feminine according to the context. In the Qur'an, the Arabic command of ittakhizee (go choose) is given to the bee in the feminine imperative form. It is shockingly true that only the female bee finds a new home. The queen and the workers are the heart of the hive: the male drones exist solely to mate with the queen. Thus the Qur'an makes a very accurate statement when it refers only the female bee as the one which is being commanded from Allah (SWT) to make a dwelling. As we know the Qur'an is a book of Guidance and the theme of the Qur'an is "mankind" and it is not a book of science. However over 750 verses are found in the Qur'an which relate to scientific phenomena as an argument to invite the believers to the Truth. The noted scholar Afzalur Rahman in elaborating the interconnectedness between science and the Qur'an says:
The Qur'an clearly establishes the fact that science and Qur'an are two aspects of the same Truth and there is no contradiction between them... Thus the Qur'an introduces new dimensions into the study of religion and its philosophy and seeks to bring men of knowledge (scientists) closer to Allah through the study of His Attributes and manifestations in the material world.
In another verse in Surah 16, An-Nahl, the Qur'an says:
Then eat of all fruits (all produce of the earth), and follow the ways of thy Lord, made smooth (for thee). There cometh forth from their bellies a drink of hues (varying colors), wherein is healing for mankind. Lo! herein is indeed portent(Sign) for people who reflect. ......... 16: 69
Allama Yusuf Ali in his commentary states "The bee assimilates the juice of various kinds of flowers and fruit, and forms within its body the honey, which it stores in its cells of wax. The different kinds of food from which it makes its honey give different colors to the honey, e.g., it is dark-brown, light-brown, yellow, white, and so on. The taste and flavor also varies, as in the case of heather honey, the honey formed from scented flowers, and so on. As food it is sweet and wholesome, and it is used in medicine. Note that while the instinctive individual acts are described in the singular number, the produce of "their bodies" is described in the plural, as the result of their collective effort.
HONEY: A HEALING FOR MANKIND
As stated in 16:69, there is a natural healing power in honey of great benefit to mankind. This has been documented in the world's oldest medical literature. For example the Sumerans and the Egyptian physicians about 4000 years ago used honey to treat internal and external wounds, ulcers, diseases of the eyes, lungs, skin and in particular, diseases of the stomach and intestines. The Chinese, Indians, Greeks and Romans have recorded similar practices. Hippocrates, the father of Western Medicine, used honey to treat a number of diseases. Ibn Sina, the Prince among Muslim physicians listed several beneficial uses of honey in his monumental work of medicine "The Canon of Medicine". Among the uses he listed are: preservation of youthfulness, improvement of memory, a feeling of happiness, assists in digestion, increase in appetite and helps promote in one's rendering of speech.
Since 1937 it has been known that honey has antibacterial activity due to its high sugar concentration (76 g/100 ml), acidity (Ph=3.6-4.2) and the organic antibacterial compounds present in honey. The composition of honey is very complex containing a variety of biochemical compounds including vitamins, amino acids, enzymes, hormones, etc., It is used in the treatment of wounds and ulcers. Surgeons and physicians are suing honey in the treatment of gunshot wounds, ulcers, surface wounds, cuts and abrasions, in the treatment of gastroenteritis (diarrhoea). In the academia a number of Ph.D. dissertations have been written on honey, particularly on its biochemical properties. Endocrinologists say that glucose levels in blood of healthy volunteers are increased whereas among the diabetic patients it is decreased after consumption of honey.
SMARTNESS OF THE HONEYBEE
How smart is the common honeybee? It is far smarter than today's most powerful supercomputers. Modern computers can attain the amazing processing speed of 16 gigaflops or 16 billion simple arithmetic operations, such as adding two numbers, each second. On the otherhand the bee's brain shows that the lowly honeybee performs the equivalent of ten trillion operations per second. Very astounding!
In the spring of 1983, the Smithsonian Institution conducted a symposium on animal intelligence at which one of the researchers was Princeton ethologist James L. Gould, an internationally renowned expert on honeybee behavior. In one of his experiments he wanted to observe the ways bee locate new food sources. To achieve this Gould provided honeybees with desirable food sources. Once they were accustomed to feeding at the stations, he moved the food sources by a factor of 1.25 the distance of the previous move. What Gould found was that after a few such moves the honeybees no longer had to search for the new location, but anticipated Gould's behavior so accurately that he found the bees circling the new location before he had even arrived and waiting for their food. The honeybees were able to construct quite a complex simulation of reality in their tiny brains (less than 10 milligrams) and deduce from past experience where Gould was going to place the food next.
The bee does all of this while consuming a lot less power than a computer. According to Byte magazine, "a honeybee's brain dissipates less than 10 microwatts of energy... It is superior by about seven orders of magnitude to the most efficient of today's manufactured computers." What it means is that over ten million bee brains can operate on the power needed for a single 100-watt light bulb. The most efficient of today's computers uses hundreds of millions of times more energy to perform an equivalent number of operations. As shown above they are able to navigate across long distances to locate sources of nectar and then return to the hive and communicate directions to fellow bees. They prepare special food items such as royal jelly and beebread, for their young. They protect their home by recognizing and repelling intruders. They regularly remove garbage and other refuse from their hive. They control the climate in the hive by fanning the fresh air and sprinkling water during summer and by clustering together for warmth in the winter. When their hives become overcrowded, they are smart enough to know that some have to leave and establish new colonies and live independently. Yet, supercomputers require teams of programmers, engineers, and technicians. Bees truly are a marvel of Allah (SWT)'s creation. Is there any doubt why Surah 16, the Qur'an is called NAHL.
This article is based on Jumuah Khutbahs (Friday Sermons) the author delivered at the Islamic Center of Madison, Wisconsin, Al-Fajr Mosque, Indianapolis and Islamic Center of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky. The author is considered to be the world's foremost exponent for the interpretation of Al-Qur'an in the light of modern knowledge. The author encourages feed back from the readers.
FURTHER READING
1. Kirchner, W.H. and Towne, W.F.: The Sensory Basis of the Honeybee's Dance Language. Scientific American June 1994
2. Kamaruddin, M.Y.: Honey: a healing for mankind throughout the ages. THE FOUNTAIN July-Sep, 1993, Vol.1, No.3, pp. 4-6.
3. Bee versus Computer, AWAKE February 8, 1995, pp.24-25.
4. Michael Talbot, " BEYOND THE QUANTUM " (New York, Macmillian Publishing Company) 1990, pp. 178-179
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
NOTE on Ikhlaas – an act of the heart by Se7en
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Raheem
Are my intentions alright?
Am I doing it for Allah?
When I’m looking deep deep down inside
Do I have the right niyyah?
-- myna raps
al-ikhlaas – an act of the heart
- we need to understand that good/moral and bad/immoral actions are what Allah has defined as such – ‘ilm is important because we discover this by studying and learning this deen
Why is ikhlaas fundamental?
Because Allah has made it fundamental: Allah does not accept any action without two conditions: I’tibaa and Ikhlaas
(I’tibaa – the action committed must be in conformity with shari’ law. in major issues as well as minor, in ibadaat as well as mu’amalaat. )
What is ikhlaas? (usually translated as ‘sincerity’)
- from the word khaliss – pure, uncontaminated, unpolluted (“khaliss water”, “khaliss gold” – not mixed with any other substance or contaminant)
[“they have been commanded to show ubudiyyah to Allah with khaliss”]
- when inside our hearts and minds, our inner selves there is no other motivation to do something good except Allah. Anything with Allah in this desire removes ikhlaas.
- with ikhlaas comes shawq – longing. Longing for Allah, for jannah, fear of Allah’s displeasure and jahannam.
- if there is any other presence in the qalb, any contaminent in our motive/intention other than Allah or present with Allah – that is not ikhlaas
[…]
opposite of ikhlaas: ishraak
but from the Qur’an we know that whosoever practices shirk, Allah will never forgive it, and that whosoever practices shirk, Allah will never enter him/her into jannah..
How do we reconcile this with the fact that all of us have committed
ishraak? -> there are 2 types of shirk:
- shirk akbar [major shirk]
- shirk asghar [minor shirk]
Major shirk - shirk in tawheed of Allah [rububiyyah, asmaa’ was sifaat, uluhiyyah/ubudiyyah] – whether implicit or explicit. even slaughtering the wing of a fly in the name of shaytan is akbar – unforgiveable except with accepted tawbaah
- we need to stop having these grandiose discussions when we don’t have understanding of the basics of Islam – some of us are guilty of committing major shirk (something that literally takes us outside the fold of Islam) but we’re so concerned with other things
– we forget that the only ones who will be successful on the day of judgement are those who have a qalbus saleem which comes with tazkiya -> tawbaah is the gateway to tazkiya
“we need tawbaah from our tawbaah sometimes”
Minor shirk - divided into two:
- jaliy [obvious]
- khafeey [tacit, hidden]
this is something abominable, strips all actions from any reward or benefit.. leaves you bankrupt
shirk asghar also called ar-riyaa’ [from the verb 'to see', because it’s done for other people to see]
ex.) learning shariah and teaching it, when major motivating factor is building a reputation, gaining authority and respect among people – this is riyaa un jaliy – an epidemic among institutions of learning. Imagine Imam Ghazali admitting that all of his work was not for Allah alone (where does that put me?)
In this situation (riyaa un-jaliy) all of the amal [action] is invalidated – muhbattah – all reward is GONE (think about this!)
so why do we commit riyaa’ if we know the consequences are so severe?
Hubbud dunyaa [love and attachment to dunyaa], specifically two types:
1. al-maal – possessions, seeking material ownership of things
2. al-jaah – love to own hearts – wanting people to love, admire, respect you
this is normal to an extent, natural to want these things – but must be legitimate – we should not seek these things out..
in fact, for good people the presence of a reputation or the absence of one was the *same* for them – it made no difference in their hearts – that’s one aspect of a nafsul mutma’innah whether the world blames and criticizes them or praises them – it is the same for them because they acknowledge that all is from Allah
there are levels of riyaa:
khafeey is when the original motivator is Allah, but later on other people’s appreciation makes the work easier for me – when no one notices me, I did it though it was difficult – but more energy is gained due to people seeing me
An even more hidden riyaa:
the action is for Allah, and when people see me, my amount of energy does not change - but I feel joy when people see me. I don’t *want* people to see me, but when they do see me perform khayr it makes me feel good, my heart is in a different state
An even more hidden riyaa:
the action is for Allah, and there is no energy or change in my heart with people, and I hide my good deeds the way I hide my bad – but I feel like I should be shown respect – feel like I am entitled to it – expect it.. and feels that inkling of displeasure when it is not given
Look at how subtle and deep riyaa can be in the heart! Indeed it is deceptive…
[This type of shirk will continue to be in my ummah like the sound of an ant on a barren rock in the darkness of the night..] - hadeeth of Rasulullah
so beware of this!!
So how do I stop riyaa?
--- Think *deeply* about the consequences:
- losing the love of Allah
- being punished
- a life with no peace - never being able to please people because people change – constantly trying to please others, to get them to have a good image of you, causes hostility for jaa’a [recognition], pain with competition - every moment of enjoyment now has murkiness, anxiety – you're always on your toes, you’re always planning, designing, trying to keep people seeing you in good light – what kind of life is this? no rest, no comfort, no peace...
- “Anyone who drinks from the cup of riyaa will regret it” – you’re living your life for dunyaa – something deceptive, fleeting, and not worth that much effort and pain (and sacrifice of eternal pleasure in jannah)
If this riyaa' is in an something that is a fard kifayaa or sunnah, stop the action – because fard ayn takes precedent and it’s fard ayn to have ikhlaas...
But what if you commit riyaa with fard 'ayn?
Constant struggle against the nafs, fight off contaminants but don't stop
What is the origin of riyaa?
- the nafs likes to be praised.. hubbul hamd [love of praise]
- desire for what other people have [admiration, respect etc]
- fear of criticism and rejection
knowing the way the nafs operates helps us control and struggle agains it.
al madd – to celebrate one’s positive characterestics – praise and criticism should be on the same level, should have the same effect on us – because in our hearts we are at peace and know that Allah knows our true state.
Think about *who* you’re trying to impress – a person who sees only part of you, who knows so little of you? Or Allah, the All Knowing, the All Seeing, the One closer to you than your own jugular vein??
When you’re praised…
- think.. are you *worthy* of being praised? You know the sins you hide though others do not – seek forgiveness for what the person doesn’t know about you but that Allah knows about you
imam shafi'ii : "i love people of righteousness and i am not of them" <= if this is imam shafi'ii, who are *we* to accept praise?
- thank Allah for exposing your good and concealing your bad – and you should try to conceal both
When you’re criticized…
- ask Allah to grant rahma on the one who gives you the present of your own defeciencies – it keeps you humble and aware of your true state of self and how you truly look to Allah
- even if someone criticizes you for something that is incorrect, think about the bad things you've done that he or she doesn’t know about… you will not be so quick to defend yourself then
Set a contract with you and your nafs every morning Evaluate your deeds every evening
We need to watch our heart constantly – have a state of struggle against the nafs until I watch every beat of my heart for changes in feelings, motives…
this is a gradual endeavor, a lifetime endeavor - one we need to work on every time our heart beats...
and remember that Allah is pure and only accepts that which is pure.. so make sure your intentions are khaliss.
wAllahu 'alam..
Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Raheem
Are my intentions alright?
Am I doing it for Allah?
When I’m looking deep deep down inside
Do I have the right niyyah?
-- myna raps
al-ikhlaas – an act of the heart
- we need to understand that good/moral and bad/immoral actions are what Allah has defined as such – ‘ilm is important because we discover this by studying and learning this deen
Why is ikhlaas fundamental?
Because Allah has made it fundamental: Allah does not accept any action without two conditions: I’tibaa and Ikhlaas
(I’tibaa – the action committed must be in conformity with shari’ law. in major issues as well as minor, in ibadaat as well as mu’amalaat. )
What is ikhlaas? (usually translated as ‘sincerity’)
- from the word khaliss – pure, uncontaminated, unpolluted (“khaliss water”, “khaliss gold” – not mixed with any other substance or contaminant)
[“they have been commanded to show ubudiyyah to Allah with khaliss”]
- when inside our hearts and minds, our inner selves there is no other motivation to do something good except Allah. Anything with Allah in this desire removes ikhlaas.
- with ikhlaas comes shawq – longing. Longing for Allah, for jannah, fear of Allah’s displeasure and jahannam.
- if there is any other presence in the qalb, any contaminent in our motive/intention other than Allah or present with Allah – that is not ikhlaas
[…]
opposite of ikhlaas: ishraak
but from the Qur’an we know that whosoever practices shirk, Allah will never forgive it, and that whosoever practices shirk, Allah will never enter him/her into jannah..
How do we reconcile this with the fact that all of us have committed
ishraak? -> there are 2 types of shirk:
- shirk akbar [major shirk]
- shirk asghar [minor shirk]
Major shirk - shirk in tawheed of Allah [rububiyyah, asmaa’ was sifaat, uluhiyyah/ubudiyyah] – whether implicit or explicit. even slaughtering the wing of a fly in the name of shaytan is akbar – unforgiveable except with accepted tawbaah
- we need to stop having these grandiose discussions when we don’t have understanding of the basics of Islam – some of us are guilty of committing major shirk (something that literally takes us outside the fold of Islam) but we’re so concerned with other things
– we forget that the only ones who will be successful on the day of judgement are those who have a qalbus saleem which comes with tazkiya -> tawbaah is the gateway to tazkiya
“we need tawbaah from our tawbaah sometimes”
Minor shirk - divided into two:
- jaliy [obvious]
- khafeey [tacit, hidden]
this is something abominable, strips all actions from any reward or benefit.. leaves you bankrupt
shirk asghar also called ar-riyaa’ [from the verb 'to see', because it’s done for other people to see]
ex.) learning shariah and teaching it, when major motivating factor is building a reputation, gaining authority and respect among people – this is riyaa un jaliy – an epidemic among institutions of learning. Imagine Imam Ghazali admitting that all of his work was not for Allah alone (where does that put me?)
In this situation (riyaa un-jaliy) all of the amal [action] is invalidated – muhbattah – all reward is GONE (think about this!)
so why do we commit riyaa’ if we know the consequences are so severe?
Hubbud dunyaa [love and attachment to dunyaa], specifically two types:
1. al-maal – possessions, seeking material ownership of things
2. al-jaah – love to own hearts – wanting people to love, admire, respect you
this is normal to an extent, natural to want these things – but must be legitimate – we should not seek these things out..
in fact, for good people the presence of a reputation or the absence of one was the *same* for them – it made no difference in their hearts – that’s one aspect of a nafsul mutma’innah whether the world blames and criticizes them or praises them – it is the same for them because they acknowledge that all is from Allah
there are levels of riyaa:
khafeey is when the original motivator is Allah, but later on other people’s appreciation makes the work easier for me – when no one notices me, I did it though it was difficult – but more energy is gained due to people seeing me
An even more hidden riyaa:
the action is for Allah, and when people see me, my amount of energy does not change - but I feel joy when people see me. I don’t *want* people to see me, but when they do see me perform khayr it makes me feel good, my heart is in a different state
An even more hidden riyaa:
the action is for Allah, and there is no energy or change in my heart with people, and I hide my good deeds the way I hide my bad – but I feel like I should be shown respect – feel like I am entitled to it – expect it.. and feels that inkling of displeasure when it is not given
Look at how subtle and deep riyaa can be in the heart! Indeed it is deceptive…
[This type of shirk will continue to be in my ummah like the sound of an ant on a barren rock in the darkness of the night..] - hadeeth of Rasulullah
so beware of this!!
So how do I stop riyaa?
--- Think *deeply* about the consequences:
- losing the love of Allah
- being punished
- a life with no peace - never being able to please people because people change – constantly trying to please others, to get them to have a good image of you, causes hostility for jaa’a [recognition], pain with competition - every moment of enjoyment now has murkiness, anxiety – you're always on your toes, you’re always planning, designing, trying to keep people seeing you in good light – what kind of life is this? no rest, no comfort, no peace...
- “Anyone who drinks from the cup of riyaa will regret it” – you’re living your life for dunyaa – something deceptive, fleeting, and not worth that much effort and pain (and sacrifice of eternal pleasure in jannah)
If this riyaa' is in an something that is a fard kifayaa or sunnah, stop the action – because fard ayn takes precedent and it’s fard ayn to have ikhlaas...
But what if you commit riyaa with fard 'ayn?
Constant struggle against the nafs, fight off contaminants but don't stop
What is the origin of riyaa?
- the nafs likes to be praised.. hubbul hamd [love of praise]
- desire for what other people have [admiration, respect etc]
- fear of criticism and rejection
knowing the way the nafs operates helps us control and struggle agains it.
al madd – to celebrate one’s positive characterestics – praise and criticism should be on the same level, should have the same effect on us – because in our hearts we are at peace and know that Allah knows our true state.
Think about *who* you’re trying to impress – a person who sees only part of you, who knows so little of you? Or Allah, the All Knowing, the All Seeing, the One closer to you than your own jugular vein??
When you’re praised…
- think.. are you *worthy* of being praised? You know the sins you hide though others do not – seek forgiveness for what the person doesn’t know about you but that Allah knows about you
imam shafi'ii : "i love people of righteousness and i am not of them" <= if this is imam shafi'ii, who are *we* to accept praise?
- thank Allah for exposing your good and concealing your bad – and you should try to conceal both
When you’re criticized…
- ask Allah to grant rahma on the one who gives you the present of your own defeciencies – it keeps you humble and aware of your true state of self and how you truly look to Allah
- even if someone criticizes you for something that is incorrect, think about the bad things you've done that he or she doesn’t know about… you will not be so quick to defend yourself then
Set a contract with you and your nafs every morning Evaluate your deeds every evening
We need to watch our heart constantly – have a state of struggle against the nafs until I watch every beat of my heart for changes in feelings, motives…
this is a gradual endeavor, a lifetime endeavor - one we need to work on every time our heart beats...
and remember that Allah is pure and only accepts that which is pure.. so make sure your intentions are khaliss.
wAllahu 'alam..
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