Rehan,
Here begins the debate. The 5 pillars of Islam (which is a debate in itself – I was taught the 5 pillars include Jihad, not ‘Shahadah’, which is the foundation on which these pillars stand – I was taught this in Saudi Arabia, where I went to school in my formative years), while essential to our role as Muslims, no longer offer meaning to the average person – they are compromised by careful distinctions made in the meaning of Islam, and by a gradual acceptance of wrong as right. Remember that the talib of Lal Masjid too believed in their own righteousness. They all prayed, and I am sure they were careful to perform all of the pillars in the spirit in which they were intended. And because they did, they believed that they were good, and everyone around them was bad. They ended up violating the religion far more than their victims (read http://www.imedia-emagine.com/whisk/cast-ye-doubt-on-my-faith/ for the viciousness of their own actions). Pakistanis are intolerant and crooked for a reason: we believe in our own infallibility, and never question what we are taught. Let us recognize that what we are taught is not necessarily the right thing just because it comes with the tag of Islam. If it was, then you too should believe that suicide bombings are justified and that building 9 mosques will buy you a palace in paradise, and that every time you perform Hajj, even your murders are wiped clean from your slate. How naïve can you get? Sabahat. From: [email protected] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of rehan altaf Sent: Wednesday, September 24, 2008 1:52 AM To: [email protected] Cc: Syed Subject: [ankahi:899] Re: solutionS Dear Sabahat Muhammad, What debate are you talking about? Have we forgotten words of our Beloved Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him). He clearly stated "kum-o-besh" (more or less) "Namaz is the thandak of my eyes" & "Islam has 5 pillars: (Correct me if I am wrong) These duties are Shahadah <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahadah> (profession of faith), Salat <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salat> (ritual prayer), Zakat <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zakat> (alms giving), Sawm <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sawm> (fasting during Ramadhan <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramadhan> ), and Hajj <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hajj> (pilgrimage to Mecca <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mecca> )". If we cling, hold & embrace tightly on these 5 pillars, salvation will come sooner than we think. As per you "The answer is not so simple as praying and getting rid of interest from our banks". Prayer "NAMAZ" is the second MOST IMPORTANT pillar of our Great Religion. How can you (being a Muslim) ignore this? As per the INTEREST-SOOD/RIBA goes, Allah says in Quran: MEANING: "Those who involve (give or take) in Riba are at WAR with me (ALLAH)". Our Beloved Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him) stated "kum-o-besh" (more or less): Involving in Riba means having intercourse with you own mother 70 times! Now how can you ignore this? After reading this, are you ok with the idea of INTEREST "RIBA" as being. Yes my brother, it really is that simple to get rid of these. As far as rejecting technology is concerned, I agree with you. But we need to remember that it were Muslim scientist who invented first mechanical watch & pioneered Mathematics & Medicine. I don't call that era a Golden Age as The Golden Age was when our Beloved Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him) was alive. Our basic mistake in our own Muslim countries was that we turned a blind eye on our Masjids. We allowed Imam's & Moazan's who were not Mufti's & Aalim's respectively. Mufti is some one who is qualified enough to give Fatwa. An Aalim becomes a Mufti after atleast a practice of 3years under supervision of senior Mufti's. In order to do clean at our Grass Root level, we need to empower genuine Aalim's & Mufti's & appoint them as Imam's of ourMasjid's. Dear Readers, forgive me for some of the harsh statements in this mail. But truth is never sweet. Best regards, SRA ----- Original Message ---- From: Sabahat Muhammad <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [email protected] Sent: Tuesday, September 23, 2008 1:45:22 PM Subject: [ankahi:894] Re: solutionS “Our decay as society started the day we(Muslims) indulged ourselves in the comforts of this world” Actually, the downfall of Muslims was not that we indulged, but that we stopped evolving. We stopped learning, we stopped growing, both in this world and in our religion. We closed the doors of “Ijtehad’ and shunned all new technologies that were not created by Muslims. That was a thousand years ago. Muslims refused to acknowledge the value of paper, of printing, or any of the innovations that grew from non-Muslims. Instead, we embraced gunpowder and weapons of war. In every way possible, we are behind the rest of the world and we are continuing to look backwards instead of forwards. In over a 1000 years, no Muslim can be said to have invented a single thing – this from a people that once ruled the world! The answer is not so simple as praying and getting rid of interest from our banks. Those are surface rituals and traditions that this country has used for decades to present the face of Islam, and not the real depth of this great religion (where is simplicity, honesty, kindness, fairness, tolerance and understanding? Of all the things we learn from our Prophet, we only remember his clothes, his beard and his adherence to prayer!). The answer lies in serious debate of what it means to be a Muslim in the 21st Century. This takes courage, and may even result in bloodshed, but that is happening anyway, and by a force that is using a version of Islam that is distorted beyond understanding. Islam was never meant to be only studied by priests (which our Mullahs have succeeded in doing – we should admit that we have a hand in creating our own priesthood), but was a guide for every individual. Questioning the diktats of these Mullahs and their peculiar interpretation of Islam is not a sin, and we need to realize that we too are capable of understanding and joining the debate. We all have a brain. Why aren’t we using it? Sabahat From: [email protected] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of rehan altaf Sent: Wednesday, September 24, 2008 12:09 AM To: [email protected] Cc: Syed Subject: [ankahi:892] Re: solutionS Dear Brother Asim & respected Umma, I would like to take some minutes of your valuable time. Please bare with me & read this complete mail & do ponder what this unlearned brother of yours have written. We need to take this as a case. The question: Whats the Solution? Current Scenario: All Muslims are in great perils & in great Financial Debt to Non Muslims. Whats the Solution? You & we all talk & ask about SOLUTIONS. WHY ASK? This SITUATION was told & SOLUTIONS were given to us by our beloved Prophet Mohammad (Peace be upon Him) some 1400 years ago. We were told that "more or less" 'Non Muslims will never be your(Muslims) friends'. "How it all STARTED"? Our decay as society started the day we(Muslims) indulged ourselves in the comforts of this world This started right after the end of the real Khilafat (Khalifat that was run by the Sahabi's-the Followers who saw & learned directly from Prophet Mohammad (Peace be upon Him). The SOLUTION in some basic steps: I am sure we "including myself" do not have the time to learn the complete real teachings of our beloved Prophet Mohammad (Peace be upon Him). All we need to do is: 1. Get rid (RIBA-sood) of all loans from every bank (as quickly as possible) - We all know how in Quran & Hadiths (Ahadees) is sood explained 2. Get rid of all Credit Cards (which we consider to be such a big Status Symbol) 3. Start Namaz in Masjids 4. Read Quran with the easiest translations Inshallah, Allah will be merciful & get us out of this unfortunate situation that we have placed ourselves in. The MOST renouned Claims & Teachings of Non Muslim Scholors: * When Islam was spreading fast before & after the seige of Tatari's (Mongols), Christian & Jew Priests declared/encouraged all to cling to their Basic Believes & Fundamentals! Now we(Muslims) are called FUNDAMENTALISTS when we ask our Umma to stick to our Fundamentals * One more example & a very renowned phrase "How to enslave a society? Destroy its basic/grass root level Education System (look at our's) & place "Fikr-e-maash" (financial instability) in it - Look at our day to day financial situation? My brethren, time & again (Quran & Hadiths) have guided us towards Jihad. Jihad doesn't only mean kill & be killed by non Muslims. Jihad has many levels. Lowest level is to voice aloud the truth. Salvation may come to us if & when we spare even 1 Rupee to the real cause. Now whats the real cause? Finding one is also Jihad. Thank you for your time & best regards, Syed Rehan Altaf. ----- Original Message ---- From: Asim Shehzad <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: [email protected]; Faisal Qureshi <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, September 23, 2008 4:53:30 AM Subject: [ankahi:888] solutionS Faisal Bhai You have done fantastic programs. I believe we have had enough of talk shows by all of you, wonderful anchors. Now please focus your programs on SOLUTIONS. No body is talking about SOLUTIONS. Still you can sell your program by suggesting SOLUTIONS Give us SOLUTIONS REGARDS ASIM --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Loose Ends Pakistan" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/looseendspakistan?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
