Notes from Institute of Islamic Education Alumni Reunion 2014
(for more information about IIE, please visit: http://iieonline.org/)
kr’s note: I was very fortunate to have attended the annual IIE Alumni Reunion earlier today. It was great to see old friends; it was even better for this wayward student to meet his old teachers. What follows are some notes I took from the talk. May God allow us to benefit from this. Any mistakes in translation and transcription are undoubtedly mine.
Topic: Concerning Ramadan and the Qur’an
–The relationship between the Qur’an and Ramadan is an inseparable one, Allah establishes this in 2:185 by showing how this month is defined by the sending down of the Qur’an. The greatness of both these entities is linked to one another. Whenever we read the Qur’an, we should be reminded of Ramadan, and whenever we think of Ramadan, we should be reminded of the Qur’an. Both honor one another. The month is like a vessel that contains a precious commodity (the Qur’an).
–Previous nations were also given fasting, and this was also given to them in Ramadan. Previous nations were also given Books, and these were also always revealed in Ramadan.
–So fasting is prescribed in Ramadan because it is a “preparation” in order to receive the Words of Allah. Hence, when Allah called Musa (A) (7:142) to Him, he spent 30 days fasting (which was the month of Ramadan) as preparation to receive Wahy. So when the 30 days were complete, he cleaned and groomed himself, including washing his mouth. Allah asked Prophet Musa (A) why he did this, and he (A) replied that he did this as preparation to recite the coming Revelation. Allah told him that He wanted him to be in this state, “bad breath” and all, to receive the revelation, so He told him to fast 10 more days to “re-prepare” (hence making the 40 days on Mt. Sinai) to receive revelation. So from this, we understand that fasting is basically a preparation to receive and recite the Words of Allah.
–This is also why the Prophet (S) would go for long periods of time, 10-20 days, in the Cave of Hira when he was in Makkah. His wife, Khadijah (R), would pack for him a small amount of food because he was fasting. He was in a state of fasting, in Ramadan, when Wahy came to him as well. Allah wanted to prepare His Messenger (S) for the task of reciting the Qur’an.
–The Qur’an was the first speech of the Lawhe-Mahfuz (Well-Preserved Tablet). When there was nothingness, Allah created the Pen and told it to write the Lawhe-Mahfuz. The Qur’an was the first part of it. It came down to Bayt al-Ma’mur initially. Bayt al-Ma’mur is the House of Allah in the Highest Heaven. The Prophet (S) saw Ibrahim (A) during the Mi’raj seated with his back rested on this House with hordes of children playing around him. Abdullah b. `Abbas (R) said that if a bucket were lowered from Bayt al-Ma’mur, it would fall directly onto the roof of the Ka’bah. And then on Laylat al-Qadr when the Prophet (S) first received revelation, it came to the Lowest Heaven, and then was revealed over a period of 23 years.
–Allah sent down this Qur’an, starting in Ramadan, to be a guidance for people. The Qur’an is meant for us down in this world. It is not meant for us to raise it back up by wrapping it in cloth and putting it in a high place. Allah sent it down and we “send it back up”. We should be weary because Allah said that He will raise the Qur’an before the mass destruction of the Day of Judgment, so when we raise the Qur’an like this (ie, not use it and simply keep it for display), we are asking for destruction. Allah will remove the Qur’an before this destruction, just as a nation protects its assets before a war and resulting destruction.
–We should be weary because Allah can do away with us (4:133) and bring another people who will value this Qur’an.
–The analogy of reading the whole Qur’an is like praying all the rak’ahs of a prayer. When we read only one part, it’s like praying only the obligatory portion of the prayer. So reading one part of the Qur’an is like only praying 4 rak’ahs of fard for Zuhr. Yes, your obligation is fulfilled, but you should feel incomplete that you’ve missed out on the perks of the Sunnah and Nafl of Zuhr; this is how we should feel when we miss out on parts of the Qur’an in recitation, especially if we miss parts during Taraweeh.
–The Prophet (S) loved the Qur’an so much; oftentimes, he would recite from Surah al-Baqarah to Surah al-Ma’idah in one rak’ah(!), and this was outside of Ramadan, so imagine how much more he loved to recite during Ramadan, especially his recitation to Jibril (A) during this month.
–The Companions (R) therefore also loved the Qur’an. It was for this reason that `Umar(R) established the Taraweeh, putting forth Ubay b. Ka’b (R) as the first Imam of Taraweeh.
–Those who claim knowledge of hadith and say that Taraweeh was not done during the time of the Prophet and Companions should not even use the term hadith, they have no right to even use it! They should know that the Prophet (S) led this prayer for two nights in congregation, each night there were more Companions (R) than the previous night. On the third night, the entire masjid was filled with Companions (R) who were eagerly awaiting him (S) to come out and lead them. But he did not lead them because he feared Taraweeh might become fard upon the Ummah. So appreciate the Adab (respect) of the Companions that they patiently waited until sahur time for him to come out. No one left or began asking where he was. Today, we get nervous and upset if the Khateeb is even 2 minutes late. None of them left, and then when he came out and told them why, they understood. But those who claim to know hadith, they should know that our Mother, Aisha (R), said that the Prophet (S) never started a prayer and then stopped it. So he would not have stopped the Taraweeh on that third night, he merely prayed it in his home.
–How can they say Taraweeh is not Sunnah when the Prophet (S) said, “Hold fast to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of Rightly-Guided and Rightly-Guiding Caliphs”. So when `Umar established this, none of the Companions (R) objected. If this was against the Sunnah, wouldn’t they have raised an objection?
–We should appreciate that Taraweeh is a vessel that is inside another vessel (Ramadan) for the honoring of the Qur’an. All of this is to make it easier for us to build and strengthen a relationship with Qur’an.
–Mawlana Qasim Nanotwi (RA) commented on the verse, “Indeed, the Qur’an of Fajr is witnessed.” Usually, we read longer portions in Fajr, and if this longer portion is so honored, imagine how honored the longer portions that we recite in Taraweeh must be?
–Memorizing the Qur’an is mustahabb (recommended and praiseworthy), but forgetting what one has memorized is haram.
–Revise what you have memorized in preparation for Ramadan, not in preparation for Taraweeh
–All the great scholars of the past would leave all other subjects (Fiqh, etc) in Ramadan and immerse themselves with the Qur’an, especially with recitation, but also with anything to do with the Qur’an. The great Tafseer al-Jalalayn was written by two authors; Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti started his half on the 1st of Ramadan and finished it on the 10th of Shawwal, so it took him 40 days to write a tafseer on 15 juz, imagine the barakah that was in his time. This was because of his love for the Qur’an and also because of the month of Ramadan.
–The reward for reciting the Qur’an is tremendous. We know the famous hadith that says for every letter one recites, one will receive 10 rewards, and that alif is a letter, laam is a letter and meem is a letter. The scholars of the past were so enamored with this that they counted the verses, words, letters, dots, vowel marks, diacritical marks, etc., to catalog how many rewards the reciter will receive. One can find these exact numbers in books such as Itqan of al-Suyuti and Mawlana Na’eem’s (RA) Tafseer al-Kamalayn
–Advice to huffaz: you must recite the entire Qur’an in Taraweeh, you cannot lead with 4-5 people and think you have led Taraweeh. Ramadan is a time for you to make up for any deficiency in revision you may have had in the other 11 months. Even if you have to take time off from school/work to do this, you must do your revision. You don’t have to lead in a large masjid, just get 2-3 people and read in your home.
–The month of Ramadan is a time for being involved with the Qur’an. Recitation of the Qur’an is a priority, but you may wish to supplement it, if you have time, with reading any Qur’an-related materials, such as Tafseer, etc. But most of us need to prioritize recitation this month over all else.
Notes from Mawlana Arshad Madani (hafizahullah) Talk at IIE, June 16, 2014
kr’s note: I recently came across this poem that’s a wonderful example of the richness and depth of the Arabic language. It’s certainly a tongue twister, but it’s also filled with useful wisdom and advice that is still relevant to us in these times. Also, you probably should not read this out loud because many people will think you’re using bad language =). A special thanks to two very close mentors who helped me refine this translation.
kr’s note: The previous post regarding a balaghah(rhetoric) question I asked one of my teachers about the Qur’an was quite well received, so I figure another post on a similar topic might be of interest to my readers.
For two reasons, “Inna” is not mentioned the second time:
1) It was already mentioned in Ayah 105…as you mentioned…
2) In the other stories, the “Inna Kadhalika”…usually comes at the tail end of the story. It usually comes in the second to last verse in each sequence, but in this story of Ibrahim (A), after verse #110. There is still a bit more of the story left with mention of Ishaq (A) so no “Inna” mentioned here otherwise one might think the story has ended.
Now the question arises: why is that type of verse (ie, كَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُحْسِنِينَ) mentioned two times and for other prophets, it is only mentioned once? Well, because Ibrahim (A) is Ibrahim (A), he deserves the extra mention to distinguish him exclusively among all the other Prophets.
So the next question is, OK fine, the above points are understood, so why wasn’t the “Inna Kadhalika” mentioned at the tail end of the Surah as the other stories? Well…Ibrahim (A) is special and deserves to be treated differently from others. His whole family made tremendous sacrifices in submitting to Allah, He was ready to sacrifice his son just because it was the order of Allah — that’s what you call submission! And that submission was so beloved that his story had to be distinguished accordingly, so the language had to reflect that Divine Acceptance.
kr’s note: I recently asked one of my teachers a question that I had been thinking about for a while. He gave such a fantastic response that I asked him permission to share it with everyone and he agreed. I personally was blown away by his excellent answer, and perhaps you all may find some benefit in this explanation as well.
—–
My Question: Quick question for you: usually we see the word “fitrah” (فطرة) is written with a ta-marbuta. But in Surah al-Rum, verse 30 (see below), it’s written with a ta rather than ta-marbutah. Any significance for this? I’ve read that certain Arab tribes would write it like this so the Qur’an uses this as well, but any specific reason that why within this particular ayah (which is a pretty powerful ayah) this spelling is used?
Then set your face upright for religion in the right state– the nature made by Allah in which He has made men; there is no altering of Allah’s creation; that is the right religion, but most people do not know–
My teacher’s reply:
ok..coming to your Fitrah question… a really really interesting question… a wonderful question… ok words of praise out of the way…
Next point…there are a few words which are written in a similar manner: words like ni’mat, rahmat, masiyat, lanat, etc. So yes, there are many words which are written like fitrat (فِطْرَتَ) , where the Taa is muftoohah or mabsootah, and they are not marbutah or maqboodah.
why have they been written as mubsootah? well…that’s how it was in the Rasm Uthmani (script) or there were tribes who wrote those words that way.
Also, a person can use their own logic to come up with reasons why those words have been written in every single place of its mention or only in certain places why it is mabsootah…so use your logic and do Qiyas….
So why was the word fitrah here written with an open taa in this ayah (فِطْرَتَ) ? The word Fitrah (فطرة) denotes the innate nature present in every human to be inclined towards the worship of one creator if they make an effort to seek the
truth, i.e. worship of Allah. So every human should be open to accepting the truth because the pathways have been opened for him.
So the Taa in fitrah in this ayah (فِطْرَتَ) is open and spread out because the soul is open to accepting the truth. That is how the soul has been created. That open acceptance is innate. If the soul was not created in such a manner, then the disbelievers would say that we never had the ability to accept the truth because our hearts and souls were sealed and we were created in this locked up chained up marbootah fashion. But in this verse, it is being pointed out that…no…your souls and your hearts and your minds were created in a manner that they would openly accept the truth because that is how they were created. You had the ability within you to cast away those shackles and chains of kufr and you didn’t need to stay locked up and closed up because the fitrah of Allah is open to every single human.
So that’s that…fascinating eh?
The next part…interesting stuff here…the letters FAA TAA RAA (فطر) give the meaning of opening up something after a prolonged closure. That is why we have IFTAR (افطار) in Ramadhan. We open up our fast because we have been fasting so Fatoor/futoor (فطور) means to open our fast after fasting all day. So the amazing point here is that the Taa is open (ie, فِطْرَتَ) and not closed and the word fitrah itself denotes and gives that meaning of being open! So the word fitrah with the open taa (فِطْرَتَ) here…is giving the meaning of “open” twice: once with the word fitrah with the three root letters and then secondly with the open taa.
The message here is simple: “Mankind! Humanity! Accept the “open” invitation from your creator and humble yourselves and submit!”
so carrying on… the root letters of fitrah giving the meaning of being opened after being closed. So we can say that the person’s soul is really closed till it opens up with the acceptance of Islam, and once the person returns to the fitrah state, it is only then that the soul and the heart are truly open. Otherwise, a person out of his own choice has sealed the mind/soul/heart by not opening up to the fitrah. So when a person accepts Islam, he has finally came out of that closed state and opened up and did iftar and maximized his fitrah.
Finally, the openness of the letter taa and the root meaning of fitrah conveying the meaning of “open”, both also hint towards this point that the religion of Allah (Islam) is open for everybody. It is not restricted like some religions and cults are.
kr’s note: This post was inspired by several talks I recently heard wherein I found the popular translation to be problematic. I think that most people hear these translations and don’t make much of it, and consider to be a part of the normative dialogue. And it is true that while words have multiple interpretations and going between two complex languages such as Arabic (far more complex) and modern day English (filled with peculiarities) is a difficult task, it is important to understand how we come to understand seemingly unassuming ideas as well. Finally, this is not referring to academic translations but rather to refer to our everyday conversations, including our weekly Friday sermons.
The abundance of translation resources has opened new doors of accessibility in understanding sacred texts, especially the Qur’an. This is a useful thing, in most cases, given the seeker has an understanding a priori of what he is trying to find, and that accessing a particular resource is more a confirmation of what was already known, rather than an effort to inductively learn. The popular translation that results from this, especially in the discourses of those without knowledge of Arabic, can become problematic under certain conditions. Foremost among these problems is if a translation or understanding of sacred text violates theology, either implicitly or explicitly, and this spreads among the popular discussions as a result.
This is not a matter of semantics, I believe, for Arabic is the most precise and scientific of languages. In the study of sacred texts, especially the Qur’an, one must understand that each word has a role in the overall understanding, that there is no randomness as to why a certain word was used in a given verse when perhaps several other words would have indicated the same thought. There is an academic as well as spiritual implication for these words, which is beyond the scope of this essay, but the larger point is to ask ourselves that in our efforts to understand divine texts in non-Arabic languages, not only must we ensure accuracy in translation, we must ensure our theology is preserved in the process.
For the sake of brevity, I will illustrate two examples of where the popular translation may undermine theology.
The first example is the popular translation of Surah al-Duha, Verse 7. The verse ( وَوَجَدَكَ ضَآلاًّ۬ فَهَدَىٰ ) is often translated as “And He found you (O Prophet(S)) lost (wandering) and He guided you” or some variation of the sort. [1] Indeed, looking at even the popular written translations (eg, Yusuf Ali, Pickthall, etc), there is a preponderance of using the word “found”. In Arabic, the verb (وَجَدَ) indeed means to find, which implies that the one finding has lost something. This works well for humans, for we lose things all the time and then find them.[2] But it doesn’t work so well for God, because He doesn’t “find” in the way we find things because that would imply He has lost something in the first place, which we all know would be completely antithetical to Allah’s All-Knowingness. Now, there is room for nuance in English as well because we use the word “find” in non-literal senses as well, for example, “I found Assassin’s Creed 3 to be ridiculously awesome” or something similar, so one can make the argument that the translation implies this sense of the word “found”, and if so, then that’s OK, because then (وَجَدَ) would be understood as “He knew” (عَلِمَ). This is similarly how we should view this word in this verse.
A more problematic one is how to translate/explain the word ( ضَآلاًّ۬). Here the translations again mainly use a similar word “lost/unguided/wandering”, which is a literal translation of the word. For example, (ضَآلّة) literally refers to a lost camel that wanders in the desert. People get lost all the time, and that’s fine in the sense of traveling and not knowing directions. And people may be lost and wandering religiously before they come into Islam, and that’s fine too. But we can’t use this same word or have a similar understanding–ḥāsha-lillah–for the Prophet (S). He was not “wandering” or “unguided” before the formalization of his Prophethood. Our theological understanding is that Prophets are always Prophets since the time of spiritual creation (in the rūḥ state), and that the Prophet (S) was the first of creation. [3] It is blasphemous to think that the Prophet (S) was misguided or not aware of Allah before Prophethood. While several of the translations on the above link do a better job [4] with this verse, our overall understanding must not be one wherein we equate the Prophet’s (S) pre-Prophethood state to a pre-convert state.
A second example is the popular verse (2:152) (فَٱذۡكُرُونِىٓ أَذۡكُرۡكُمۡ وَٱشۡڪُرُواْ لِى وَلَا تَكۡفُرُونِ). The popular translation, including the one often mentioned by our neighborhood khateebs (may Allah bless and preserve them) is along the lines of “So remember me and I shall remember you…”. For humans, we tend to forget [5], so remembrance for us is necessary. The Qur’an reminds us that in essence, all of Revelation is to remind human beings of the primordial truth of Allah’s Oneness that they already knew and testified to long before they came into this world. The word remembrance therefore includes a prerequisite of forgetting. For Allah, clearly He is All-Knowing and His Knowledge is absolute and He never forgets. So our understanding of “I shall remember you” cannot include a sense of Him “remembering” us because He never forgets about us(20:52), even when we forget about Him. A more holistic understanding of this verb is needed here as well, one that includes ideas such as Allah elevating us when we remember Him; causing us to be remembered by the Angels when we remember Him; etc.
Again, these are beyond semantics because I have heard in both sermons and popular conversation people talk about these ayahs with an understanding that violates theology. For example, I recently heard one well-intentioned khateeb state that if one does not remember Allah, Allah will “forget” that person. He was clearly trying to inspire the audience to make more dhikr, which is great, but the idea that Allah will “forget” was problematic.
I believe we can use the popular translation terms (eg, “found”, “remember” as used in the above examples) but there needs to be an explanation when using these terms to avoid casting doubt or misunderstanding into the minds of the audience. This may require a few more sentences by a speaker to clarify, especially in public settings, but seems to be a necessary addition. Translation allows for people to understand and appreciate sacred texts in their respective languages, but we must ensure that theology is preserved at all costs. There is no benefit to understanding a verse if that leads to misunderstanding God.
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Footnotes
[1]
For a comparison of 40+ translations of this verse, this webpage is useful
[2]
Or in my case, my wife, mom, etc., end up finding them for me since I never know where “x” is.
[3]
It is related that Jabir ibn `Abd Allah said to the Prophet : “O Messenger of Allah, may my father and mother be sacrificed for you, tell me of the first thing Allah created before all things.” He said: “O Jabir, the first thing Allah created was the light of your Prophet from His light, and that light remained (lit. “turned”) in the midst of His Power for as long as He wished, and there was not, at that time, a Tablet or a Pen or a Paradise or a Fire or an angel or a heaven or an earth. And when Allah wished to create creation, he divided that Light into four parts and from the first made the Pen, from the second the Tablet, from the third the Throne, [and from the fourth everything else].”
[4]
For example, Mufti Taqi’s translation “And He found you unaware of the way (the Shari‘ah ), then He guided you” is better. For a slightly more mystical understanding, this is good: “He found you lost in (His) love (and that of His people), and gave you guidance (so as to enable you help the people reach the goal).” I believe our understanding here must be a holistic one, but more importantly, we cannot think that the Prophet was “not guided”.
[5]
It is part of human nature to forget. The scholars of language state the word for man (insān) is related to the verb (نَسِىَ) which means “to forget”
KR’s note: Call this a posting binge if you like but figured this was of relevance at this particular time. I received multiple requests to write more about the naẓam of Quranic verses, so perhaps this will be useful to discuss the inter-connectedness not just of the Qur’an itself, but also among the pillars of Islam as well.
—
There is an unmistakably consistency between the various pillars of Islam. Not only are they acts of worship, but they are connected to one another on multiple levels: as preludes, as symbiotes and as complements, to name a few of these connections. A relevant connection for our purposes here is that the lessons from one pillar are often important and incorporated into the performance of another.
It is interesting that the verses of fasting (Surah al-Baqarah, verses 183-187) are followed by a discussion about Hajj (verses 193-202). [1] The intelligent reader should ask why are the verses of Hajj intertwined with the verses of fasting?
A starting answer is that both are abstract forms of worship. The pillars of ritual prayer and charity are regimented forms of worship, as there are many rules and regulations associated with these specific actions. Moreover, there is a prescription of how these must be performed even during the action itself: for example, every step of the prayer is described and the believer is told what to recite in each of the cardinal positions. Similarly, zakat has a well-defined system of calculation and distribution that makes its performance much more reproducible among the general population. But when one looks at fasting and the pilgrimage, other than a few rules, there aren’t any prescribed supplications, actions or rituals that must do, minute by minute, during any of these performances. The books of Sacred Law are filled with rulings concerning what a Muslim must NOT do during these two acts of worship, but there is no insistence that a certain du’a or a certain dhikr or something specific has to be done. It’s left unrestricted for a reason.
When the pilgrims go to Mina on the 8th of Dhu’l-Hijjah (may we be among them in our lives!), it signifies the start of Islam’s greatest communal act of worship. Yet, the interesting reality is that there is absolutely nothing that is required for the pilgrim to do once he gets there. Certainly, one is encouraged to busy one’s self in individual worship, but this is not a legal requirement. If one wishes, one can simply eat and sleep the whole time; you get credit for simply showing up. This obviously doesn’t work in prayer: one has to recite certain tasbīḥs for the prayer to be valid, one can’t just show up and do whatever one wishes. The same holds true for `Arafat and Muzdalifah: these are totally empty valleys with no script given to the pilgrim for what he must do once he arrives there. He is told to simply show up at a certain time and place before going to another. He gets rewarded for sitting around or even for sleeping. Obviously, the merits of supplication and individual worship at these places is well-known but the pilgrim has fulfilled his legal obligation by simply showing up.
The same holds true for fasting: the believer is given a general set of principles that are in place from sunrise to sunset and he is then left to his own devices. He is told not to do certain things, but other than performing the ritual prayer, the believer has no obligation to do anything else during the fast itself. He too gets rewarded even for sleeping. And he too has fulfilled his legal obligation by simply showing up.
In this light, one marvels at the wisdom of this naẓam between the fourth and fifth pillars of Islam, as well as the locations of the verses concerning each, not just in the Qur’an, but within Surah al-Baqarah itself. This is no mere coincidence and should be reflected upon: that Allah can string together not just verses and pillars, but also the overarching themes within each. We should marvel at this theme of abstractness that permeates ṣawm and ḥajj.
As Muslims in the modern world, this abstractness is a difficult concept for us to grasp and appreciate. In our busy lives, we wish to have planning, structure, and of course, distraction and entertainment. We are creatures of habit and we love being told what to do, we being the generation of turn-by-turn navigation and subliminal advertising. We cling to structure and regimentedness, and there is nothing wrong with this when it comes to organizing many aspects of our lives such as work, school, family, etc. And clearly, structure is part of certain forms of worship such as prayer and alms-giving. But the fourth and fifth pillars are examples of times and events (Ramadan and Hajj) when God wishes to break us of our cycles, embrace the abstract and become totally dependent upon Him. Whereas the modern mind needs to be occupied with something (usually 140 characters or less since we have lost the ability to read with focus for long periods of time…), the Muslim mind will not become uncomfortable with the abstract. Even when there is nothing to do or nothing to think about, the Muslim mind is at rest, content that abstractness allows for introspection, silence, reflection and individual worship. The beautiful irony of `Arafat and Ramadan is that both are the grandest displays of communal acts of worship, but ultimately at their core, both encourage the believer to disconnect from everyone and everything around him in order to connect with Him: we are told to come together so that we can go off and be alone with Him.
In this light, it makes sense why many of the prohibitions (such as no marital relations) are similar between these two acts; it makes sense why communal worship during both is really meant to stimulate more individual worship; and, fittingly enough, why those who are not fortunate to be on the Pilgrimage in a given year are encouraged to “be one” with the pilgrims with a simple formula: to fast on the 8th and 9th so that both groups are engaged in abstract worship. We should appreciate that abstract worship (compared to regimented worship) is something that pleases God the most and harms the Devil the most. [2] For Iblis, he who is the master of distraction, this is a day that he is the most afflicted with pain, simply by the unstructured-yet-structured standing of a sea of humanity in the desolate plains of `Arafat.
The Companions understood the logic of letting go of your logic. The vast majority of times it is easy for one to understand, but there are times when you don’t understand, and that is OK– but there are also times when you are supposed to not understand. Removing this self-imposed responsibility to understand is the last wound a believer has to inflict on the demon that is his ego and sense of self-importance. Fasting and the Pilgrimage are the epitome of not trying to understand everything about the situation: their abstractedness implies there is a lack of logic present, and when the believer shows up, embraces this and makes the most of these events, this is what pleases God and harms His enemy the most.
Ultimately, the purpose of abstractness is to foster within the believer a sense of total dependency on Allah. The fasting person realizes how much he is in debt to Allah for his food, drink and other comforts that he often takes for granted. The pilgrim realizes how totally dependent he is on Allah before and during the pilgrimage.[3] Both the pilgrim and the one who fasts realize that his sense of control is but an illusion, and instead of despairing about this, he embraces it, enjoys it and ultimately comes out of it a better person. Hence both of these actions have an unimaginable reward. The fast is rewarded according to whatever Allah wishes [4], whereas the pilgrim returns like the day his mother gave birth to him.[5] The popular explanation is that he returns sinless like a newborn child, and this is certainly true, but the scholars of the inward sciences offer a supplementary interpretation as well: just as the newborn is dependent on his parents (he is not concerned about when he will eat, who will change him, who will comfort him), the pilgrim returns realizing that he is completely dependent on Allah. And just as the baby sleeps comfortably, he too will sleep comfortably — he did so in the midst of abstractness in `Arafat and can do so now back in his life of structure.
The system matches macroscopically and microscopically. These are abstract forms of worship, so don’t strain yourself trying to make sense of it all. Any extra good deeds are wonderful, but we should be consoled that Ramadan and Hajj both offer the ultimate participation prize. All we have to do is show up.
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Footnotes:
[1]
It is also fascinating that the interluding verses that mention the Companions’ asking about the crescent-moons come AFTER the verses concerning fasting, as if to say that if this whole moon business was so important so as to be scientific, why don’t these verses come BEFORE the verses of fasting? There is more on this for another time, but should serve as reflection fodder for the introspective.
[2]
ما رؤيالشيطان في يوم أصغر ولا أدحر ولا أحقر ولا أغيظ منه يوم عرفة
“Satan has never been seen as to be more mean, or humiliated, or miserable or vexed that on the day of ‘Arafat.” (a Mursal Hadith, cited by Imam al-Ghazali in the Ihya, Kitab Asrar ‘l-Hajj)
[3]
I think this is why everyone has the (affectionately) “crazy Hajj stories”, wherein sheer acts of randomness happen to make the journey more challenging, yet ultimately more interesting: people/luggage getting lost, getting kicked out of your tents, losing passports/documents, etc. I mean, doesn’t everyone have these personally or know of someone with similar stories? I remember one family that was scheduled to leave for Hajj and as they are sitting in the plane, on the runway, and the plane gets hit by lightning. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but there was irreparable damage to the plane’s machinery and they had to have everyone get off the flight — and this was the last flight that was to be allowed in for the Hajj season that year. Simply incredible. It makes no sense — but then again, I think that’s the point. God doesn’t want us to make sense of it when it comes to visiting His House.
[4]
كل حسنة بعشر أمثالها إلى سبعمائة ضعف إلا الصيام ، فإنه لي وأنا أجزي به
“Every righteous action will be rewarded ten to seven hundred fold except fasting, for it is (endured) for My Sake and which I will reward (however I wish)”
[5]
من حج البيت فلم يرفث ولم يفسق خرج من ذنوبه كيوم ولدته أمه
“Whoever performs Pilgrimage to the House without foul talk or iniquity is free from sin [literally: departs from his sins] as [he was] on the day his mother bore him.”
kr’s note: I know, you must be thinking, two posts in two weeks? Yes, I’m scared as well… but felt this is perhaps useful at this time given the pending Hajj as well as the current discussions on (political) power.
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It is well known that the blessed days of Dhu’l Hijjah serve as a reminder for many magnificent things. In the preceding days and in those that are to come, one will undoubtedly be reminded of the history and lessons associated with these days. Foremost among these discussions is the connectedness with our forefather, Prophet Ibrahim (`alayhi ‘l- salām), but this is not the story for this particular post. Instead, perhaps what is even more fascinating is the story of our mother Hajar, for this is an undeniable chapter in a wondrous tale: a mother running between two nondescript mountains for the sake of her crying infant in an act that became a cornerstone for Islam’s greatest ritual act of worship.
The naẓam (interconnectedness) of the Qur’an is a wonderfully but woefully under-appreciated topic in our popular discussions. It is important to understand that the Qur’an is holistically sound because each verse is not only connected to every other verse, but the location of a given verse in relation to the verses around it is also of significance. The verb naẓama literally means “to string together pearls on a necklace”, suggesting that while there is beauty in a single pearl, there is a greater beauty when a pearl is joined with other pearls on a necklace, and that its beauty is enhanced not only by the entire necklace, but also by the pearls around it. The verses of the Qur’an are the same.
The interconnectedness of these verses is significant because Hajar’s seminal act is mentioned by name only once in the Qur’an (Surah al-Baqarah, verse 158), but comes immediately after a larger discussion regarding fear, safety, patience and a sense of establishing power (verses 153-157), which ends with a theme of willingness to sacrifice. This, of course, implies that one has something to give in the first place; we often assume that sacrifice involves giving up something tangible and real. The law of the cosmos dictates that everyone is tested and tried, regardless of religion, gender, status, etc., and different levels of sacrifice are required for different situations. If one doesn’t appreciate this, then one hasn’t understood the way the world works. For the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) of the early Madinian days, this was a lesson to acknowledge this reality as it was the only way to become less anxious in an uncertain climate. And as for sacrifice, the example given to them–they who had already given much–is that of a seemingly unlikely type, but it was an example that was accepted and beloved to Allah above all else. This is the wisdom of why verse 158 comes at the end of this discussion on sacrifice, as if to say that if you don’t understand sacrifice, God will now relate an example of sacrifice of nothingness.
It is the nothingness of Hajar that makes this story even more amazing. It is this nothingness that should also be appreciated: a new mother finding herself in the middle of the desert with her newborn child left with nothing other than the promise that God will take care of them. When her meager provisions ran out, she did not look to the heavens with a sense of entitlement asking for the so-called promise of Divine Help. She did not lament her husband leaving her in this desolate valley. She did not despair that no one was there to help her in this abject state of absolute weakness. The brilliance of Hajar was not only that she didn’t panic, but she realized that when Divine Help was needed, human effort was necessary, a human struggle was required.
Marvel at the situation: this is not a Prophet or king asked to give something that he possessed. Instead, here is a woman, a mother who has just given birth, with her newborn child in the middle of a place so-named because it broke all those who entered. At this time and space, she is arguably the weakest of all human beings in the harshest of places. So when her supplies ran out and when she realizes that some effort is required, marvel further at her actions: she didn’t stand up in prayer or make dhikr or have a mawlid or even apply an intellectual logic to the situation. She realized that at the bare minimum, a show of effort and struggle was required to give the Divine an excuse to make good on His Promise. And marvel further that this effort was completely illogical to the so-called educated mind: why not light a fire or shout from a mountain? Or if one must run, why not run in a circle to cover a greater distance? Why run back and forth between two points when the likelihood of finding water over ground one has already traversed is unlikely? And her running from one mountain to the other seven times implies that she ended up right where she started (read: in mathematical terms, her net distance traveled was actually zero), so what good did it do?
But the Divine appreciates the effort of even the most fragile being, and if done properly, it will be blessed with perpetual acceptance. Herein lay the epitome of struggling when one is powerless and has absolutely nothing: that in reality, when one has nothing but faith in the Divine Promise and puts forth whatever struggle one is capable of at the time, that even if one has nothing, one will get everything. Allah wants His servants to go through the motions, even if they seem illogical, He will take care of the details of what happens next. And what happened next? The result of that seemingly illogical struggle that was infused with a willingness to give everything when one has nothing was that He made good on His Promise:
He created an entire civilization nourished by a well that sprung forth from the heel of an infant whose mother demonstrated the power of nothingness.
And herein lies the lesson for the modern Muslim: we’ve built ourselves on secular models rather than understanding our grandmother’s model: with Divine Grace, even when one has physically nothing, one will receive everything if one is willing to give up everything including one’s sense of nothingness. The two distortions of Islam today demonstrated by the extremists and secularists are devoid of any understanding, appreciation or implementation of this model. Hence, true Islam is only represented by those that understand the lessons of verses 153-158: gratitude, patience and sacrifice. These three qualities were epitomized by that weak woman who demonstrated a strength that we still admire today.
For the Companions, this verse explained to them the significance of these two mountains: Divine Providence is indiscriminate because the act of a powerless woman became a cornerstone for Hajj and `Umrah–while ṭawāf can be done at any time, the sa`y can only be done within the confines of these two acts of worship–so do not feel low, guilty or powerless because of this. It is appropriate her struggle of running between the two hills of Ṣafā’ and Marwah became known as the Sa`y, which literally means “struggle”. Whereas the sacrifice of Ibrahim (peace be upon him!) is celebrated because of his willingness to sacrifice all that he held dear; the sacrifice of his wife struggling in the face of seeming powerlessness became an act of worship and a Symbol of Allah Himself. “Indeed (the mountains) of Ṣafā’ and Marwāh are from the Symbols of Allah…”. The sacrifice of a Prophet and a woman both became Symbols of God.
We should appreciate that the roots of Muslim civilization lie in making effort, especially when one is seemingly powerless and has nothing to give. This is crucial because we find ourselves in a place in time where we are often physically and politically powerless to a degree never before seen in our 1400 year history. This has manifested itself with many faces: apathy, pessimism, desire for radical change, confusion, lamentation, anger, and in the worst of all cases, violent extremism. Those that appreciate the story of Hajar must shun each of these equally and understand her legacy of sacrifice. Sacrifice is about giving up everything and anything that we hold dear, but it is also to give up one’s sense of nothingness, which is often the last remaining possession of one who has nothing. To put it another way, it means to sacrifice your sense of being a victim and giving up even your feeling sorry for yourself. Sometimes, giving this up is more difficult that giving up everything in the world.
But perhaps this is why this sacrifice is required: to bring in the power of the Divine, the power of nothingness must be given up in return. Hajar understood this. So must we.
kr’s note: It’s been nearly five months since I’ve done this. I’ve been meaning to write about several things during this timespan, but have never managed to sit down and get all my thoughts together. I finally decided I had to sit down and write on this topic before something else came up. It feels good to write again, especially being able to write and not having to whittle one’s thoughts into a clever statement 140 characters or less. Also, my recent hashtag character of #OverzealousUncleGuy is to use humor as a vehicle to point out certain idiosyncrasies demonstrated by a small minority of immigrant uncles; it certainly is not meant to classify all immigrant uncles into this stereotyped character.
We live in an interesting period of American Muslim history. It is a time when a critical number of first generation, young indigenous and convert Muslims comprise a significant portion of the American Muslim community. Undoubtedly, this is a good thing. With a background of uniquely American life experiences, levels and types of education and commonalities, this younger generation is able to speak across cultural and social borders as well–this is not to say we have reached a Muslim utopian community. But at least the conversation is civilized (generally speaking) and has started. Add to this a growing discussion and awareness in conversations, both scholarly and lay, regarding a variety of never-before-discussed social and religious topics. Sprinkle in a pinch of institutionalized revival in learning the sacred sciences and a dash of social-media, bake for 20 years and voila, you have a new generation with its own ideas and desire for change.
These conversations, by and large, are well-intentioned and stem from a desire to improve the American Muslim community. Many of these conversations, such as a critical examination of race issues and developing an understanding of healthy sexuality, are long overdue. But among these topics, an unfettered wave of criticism directed towards a certain group within the American Muslim community has reared its ugly head. Recently, it has become popular and commonplace to cast the immigrant uncles (and by extension, immigrant aunties, but for the sake of this essay, I will refer to this demographic with a male pronoun and abbreviate this using IU) as a major problem with our communities. Social media feeds, speeches and common conversations are filled with an invective directed against the IU as a backward, over-the-hill figure that doesn’t understand the needs of today. And while the IUs are not without blame, I believe we must understand the story of the IUs, how they brought us here and how to interact with them during this transition phase wherein the banner of American Islam, for better or worse, will be passed to our generation. Before we take this baton, we must understand where they have run first.
To recount how we got here would involve a re-telling of recent American Muslim history, with a particular attention devoted to the inevitable effects of 9/11, but that is not the scope of this essay(side note: perhaps this is a topic for a future essay). Instead, I wish to highlight a few key components of this story to address an issue that has been gaining steam for quite some time now.
We should first understand that the vast majority of the IUs did not come here to spread Islam or escape persecution in their homelands. This was certainly no hijrah. The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 opened the doors for immigration from the Middle East and South Asia, heralding a wave of immigrants who came to the United States with the quintessential of American niyyahs: to have a better life for themselves and their families. Many of them came to pursue higher education while others came to find better careers. As is well known by now, the IUs gravitated towards engineering and medicine. This did not happen by mere coincidence: a shortage of skilled professionals in these fields served as an impetus for these fields being filled by the IUs. In general, these early IUs were incredibly intelligent, ambitious, resourceful and possessed an ability to leave behind family, delay marriage and immerse themselves in studies to an admirable degree of dedication. The stereotype wealthy-doctor-uncle worked his tail off in the early 1970s to get to where he is today. And we must not be foolish to think there were no temptations at this time–while there may have been no FaceBook and social media, America as a nation was discovering free love, drugs and rock & roll and healing from the scars of the psychological scars of Vietnam with a revolt against the relative conservatism that had dominated its social history. Trust me, there were plenty of temptations for that generation.
For many of the IUs, coming to America was not unlike Prince Akeem’s character in the movie by the same name. While they didn’t come to find a queen to take back home per se, the vast majority of them had no real long term plans of staying. They wanted to go back home, and initially, they never thought America could ever be home. I find it historically fascinating and inspiring that in this backdrop of transience and temptation, these IUs soon realized they had to establish something to hold onto their identity. In this context, in Champaign, IL, the first Muslim Students’ Association was formed, eventually spreading to other campuses and serving as the father that sired ISNA and other American Muslim organizations. And lest we forget, it wasn’t a glamorous, convention-holding, rally-organizing, fastathon-sponsoring Muslim Singles/Shadi Association (relax, kidding on that last one…) that we know and love today. For many of the IUs, it was their only connection to their Muslim identity. And for many of the IUs, it was a rediscovery of a religion that they had not fully appreciated in their native lands. Indeed, many IUs learned, came back and committed to the deen as a result of their experiences in the MSAs, and as a result became better educated and practicing Muslims than they were in their native lands.
It is a miracle that Allah brought about a change of hearts and intentions in this generation of (mostly) young men whose initial intentions were not to propagate Islam or establish institutions, but rather to make a quick buck and return home. But Allah brings about change when, how and where He wills. And so the IUs, the most unsuspecting of characters, were cast as the lead actors in the play of their lives. They were not given any script, there were no directors and they didn’t even know they were being filmed by the lens of history.
An interlude is necessary here. The above narrative thus far should not not diminish the existence of Islam already present in the indigenous American population (especially amongst the African American community; for more on this, Dr Sherman Jackson’s Islam and the Blackamerican and Richard Brent Turner’s Islam in the African-American Experience are essential reads), but this is not the focus of this essay.
So while Islam remained a presence in the inner cities of America, the suburbanization of American Islam was a uniquely IU-led phenomenon. An influx of wealth into the IUs made it possible to bring Islam into a completely new arena of the suburbs, that part of America where it had never gone before. (Side note #1: one could argue that the concept of suburban Islam is a uniquely American one since Islam in the old world was either urban or countryside as the concept of suburbs really didn’t exist until very recently. Side note #2: I wish someone, much smarter than me, would write a PhD thesis on this subject). These same IUs had the inspiration and foresight to start building masjids, stores and restaurants. Whether they knew it or not, their works led to the formal arrival of Islam into this part of America. And by Allah’s Grace, it flourished in this new landscape all across the country.
Were mistakes made? Undoubtedly so. Were there mistakes made in planning masjids? Was there overt racism directed towards Americans, especially African-Americans (including, embarrassingly enough, African-American Muslims)? Were many political and cultural differences unfortunately the reason for splintering of groups into different organizations? Did ego play a role (and continues to play a role) in mismanagement of affairs within mosques and organizations? Did they not figure out a way to effectively engaged the youth, minorities, converts and women? Did they not establish better transfer of leadership within institutions and masjids, including developing leadership training programs? Do our institutions suffer from a lack of professionalism and trained professionals to deal with social, psychological and cultural issues that plague the Muslim community? Yes, yes and yes to all of the above.
But we also cannot deny the obvious good that came from this generation. The Qur’an tells us: “Say: The evil and the good are not alike even though the plenty of the evil attract thee. So be mindful of your duty to Allah, O men of understanding, that ye may succeed(Sūrah al-Mā’idah, Verse 100).” This suggests that any beneficial goodness, no matter how small, still outweighs the harm of a thing, no matter how plenty and should be appreciated. Of course, its application to matters of Sacred Law is different (for example, one cannot say that alcohol is now permissible because good is present and it outweighs the harm). Furthermore, a ḥadīth states: “What is small and sufficient is better than that which is numerous and diverting ( أَلهَى) driving this point home. In this case, the contributions of the IUs to the American Muslim community are beyond just “good”: they are sufficient and good because they have brought us to where we are today.
Again, let me be clear: this is not to condone them for the mistakes, but this is an unpayable debt that we owe to the IUs. We are privileged to pray in masjids now while many of them actually did pray jumu’ah in basements and closets. We are blessed to have Muslim schools and stores while these were only a fantasy when they were our age. And even some of our advanced discussions, such as machine-slaughtered meat vs. hand-slaughtered meat and moon sighting methods–we are fortunate enough that we are in a position to even have these discussions now (never mind the rulings or the positions on such matters), because in their days, it was not even possible to fantasize about these matters. There were no zabihah meat stores. There wasn’t awareness regarding moon sighting methods. (Some may argue these were simpler, better times, and I can’t disagree). Efficacious Islam, not necessarily a “more authentic” Islam, dominated the discourse. More real, tangible things had to be done so that today we can have the luxury of sending our kids to Islamic schools, buying zabihah meat, praying in luxurious masjids and even having these discussions. Like the coffee drinker who sips his morning caffeine unaware of how it got there, we sometimes forget all that happened that even makes it possible for us to enjoy our position. We see further because we stand on the shoulders of recent giants — unwilling at first, and perhaps not the tallest — but we stand on them nonetheless. And I would dare argue that if my generation was in their place, it would not have been able to do what they were able to accomplish. God knows best.
And so while we criticize the IUs as doctors and engineers as wealthy suburbanite fobs whose times have passed, let us not forget who funded the masjids, schools and projects in the first place. While we criticize them for “hanging on too long”, let us not forget who worked tireless hours at masjids, taking them from humble beginnings to the mega-masjids we see today, not taking a salary for their work. And while we find fault with them for a hundred other things, let us not think that we would have done a better job had we had to do it all over again.
The first step is to show appreciation and give credit where it’s due for what they have done. The second step is for us to study this recent history, taking notes of the successes and shortcomings and keeping these as references as we begin our own community services. We should also embark on this transfer of leadership giving the utmost attention to maintaining their dignity and propriety, recognizing them for their services and allow them to graciously exit into the sunset as heroes, instead of unceremoniously tossing them aside like milk past its expiration date. Yes, this transfer may often happen with a great deal of tension, as some of them may stubbornly hold on even when its time to leave… but we should ask ourselves if we would not do the same if we were in that same position? We would do the same exact thing. Only a foolishly self-righteous person would think he would behave otherwise. When you have been doing something so long, it’s hard to let go. This is a human flaw and we are all flawed beings in a flawed world. So gentleness and understanding must dictate our speech and actions rather than anarchy and an indignation of demanding what we think is rightfully ours at the American Muslim table.
Whereas the IUs faced the challenge of establishing a Muslim identity and building institutions, our generation’s trial will be to honor their legacy by building upon their foundations, fixing the cracks in the wall and making beautiful the overall construction. Eventually, we will be in these positions of leadership and we should appreciate a simple fact and embrace a subsequent responsibility:
By the overwhelming Grace of God, they succeeded. History will bear witness whether our efforts are similarly blessed.
kr156's Blog 
Who is Really Insulting the Prophet (S)?
Concerning Cartoons, Insulting the Prophet and the Way Forward
Muslims’ Love for the Prophet (S)
For a Muslim, the act of loving, honoring and cherishing the Prophet (S) is an inseparable part of one’s faith and one’s identity. Historically, the Muslim Ummah has unanimously agreed that a Muslim must follow the Prophet (S) in all affairs; indeed, one cannot obey God unless one obeys His Messenger (S).[1] Muslims understand that their Islam rests upon the central figure of the Prophet (S): one cannot worship God unless he worships Him in the same manner that His Messenger (S) worshipped Him. For this reason, Muslims hold the Prophet (S) as a beloved central figure, and they know that their faith is incomplete unless he is more beloved to them than anyone else in existence.[2]
Given this background of the centrality of love for the Prophet (S), Muslims may be confused when they have to deal with the following scenario: what should we as Muslims do when the Prophet (S), who is more beloved to us than all of humanity combined, is insulted, mocked and denigrated? For a lover, there is nothing more painful than to hear his beloved’s name be insulted.
The Legal Position of Muslims Living in Non-Muslim Lands versus Muslim Lands
All Muslims living in non-Muslim lands must abide by the law of the land in which they reside. Muslims are not permitted to break the law in the land in which they reside. If the Prophet (S) is insulted or mocked by non-Muslims in non-Muslim lands, Muslim citizens in such lands should resort to other means, such as political influence, protests, education of others, etc., in order to combat attacks and satire against the Prophet (S). They can and should exercise the rights afforded to them within that non-Muslim land, such as freedom of speech, freedom of press and freedom of assembly, to make their voices heard. If they feel the law of a given land does not allow them to practice their religion, then they must no longer reside in that land. With this understanding, it is important for us to reiterate that Muslims do not ever condone or justify the use of violence by private citizens in non-Muslim lands under the banner of protecting the religion or the Prophet (S).
This should be a well-known fact, but since reading comprehension is not what it used to be, it should be restated in clear and unequivocal words: violent acts by Muslims living in non-Muslim lands are not sanctioned or permissible by Islamic Law.
As for Muslim lands, if the Prophet (S) is insulted or mocked by any group of people, then it is considered as a crime against the state itself. However, it is not the duty or the prerogative of private citizens to take such matters into their own hands. Muslim citizens cannot play Batman – crimes must be dealt with by the existing legal authority, and private enterprises to deal with criminals are considered to be illegal as well. Rather, it is the duty of the Muslim legal system, vetted by a Muslim government, to implement the official process of apprehending such criminals for blasphemy, bring forth a due legal process, and mete out punishment if a remorseless guilty verdict has been reached (including up to the death penalty). As Muslims, we do not apologize about the extent of these punishments that are applicable in Muslim lands. A government has the right to implement whatever laws it wishes to implement within its own borders—for people not living within that land to insist that a Muslim government follows another law is arrogance of the highest and most pathetic order.
The Freedom of Speech Issue
We must also understand that the term “freedom of speech” has been grossly misunderstood by both Muslims and non-Muslims. Our faith encourages us to speak out against oppression and injustice, and we should support the rights of human beings everywhere to be able to speak freely on such matters. However, just because someone can say something doesn’t mean they should say something, especially when that speech is emotionally hurtful to 1.5 billion human beings. Freedom of speech affords an oppressed group of people to speak up without fear of reprisal; it does not mean that a group already in power further humiliate their defeated opponents by attacking the symbols they hold dear—that is simply rubbing salt into the wound.
For example, a person has the right to use the “N” word, but it doesn’t mean that a cultured and intelligent American citizen would use this term to refer to black-Americans. It is a term filled with racism, denoting hatred and signifying the humiliation of numerous generations of a historically cultured people; in short, it is the ugliest word in the English language. Similarly, insulting the Messenger of God (S) is even more hurtful to Muslims; we should not apologize about feeling emotionally upset by such statements. We have every right to respectfully yet passionately voice our opinion on this matter.
It is troubling, therefore, to see some Muslims adopt the position of “je suis Charlie”. While we will not stop the rights of non-Muslims in non-Muslim lands to say things, we will not and must not voice our acquiescence that this is a good thing—the mantra these days seems to be that if you are a “moderate Muslim”, you will utter this phrase in solidarity. As Muslims, we must be nuanced in our stance on this matter. Just as we would not stop non-Muslims from drinking alcohol, gambling or committing adultery in their own lands, we also would not encourage or support people doing such things. For example, if there were plans to build a casino in my neighborhood, I would politically oppose this proposition to the fullest of my legal ability, but I would not violate the local laws in order to bring about my goals. Similarly, even though they must not take such matters into their own hands, Muslims cannot support the alleged “rights” of people to denigrate and mock the Prophet of Islam (S). Supporting such a stance would be tantamount to abandoning the very faith that he brought.
The Spiritual and Moral Position of Muslims in All Lands
While we may become understandably upset when the Prophet (S) is mocked or insulted, we should also take solace that any attempt to insult him is ultimately futile. Allah has promised to protect the Prophet (S), so he can never be insulted, even if all of mankind were to gather together and attempt to insult him.[3] Since Allah has said that He will protect him (S), Muslims must believe that Allah’s Words are true. If Muslims believe that any attempts to insult the Prophet (S) have succeeded, then they must be wary lest they commit a theological crime: in essence, if you feel that the Prophet (S) has been insulted and need to violently do something to defend his honor, then you are saying that Allah isn’t doing a good job at protecting him, so you have to get involved. And when that happens, the irony of defending the Prophet (S) by breaking the very Law he brought and violating the very rights of that Creator that he sought to reconnect us with is indeed mind-boggling.
A useful side discussion is for Muslims to ask: if we are angry that the Prophet (S) is insulted, why are not similarly angry when Allah is being insulted by similar foul speech and actions? Modern times are filled with countless and unfortunate examples where God is mocked and ridiculed on a daily basis. Millions of people sin against God and deny His Religion, yet Allah doesn’t obliterate these people. The greatest human enemy of Allah, the Pharoah of Musa (A), went so far as to declare himself as God. Allah didn’t immediately destroy him; instead he sent to him a Noble Messenger (A), with the instructions to speak a “kind word” to him.[4] This is the patience of God before He executed His Plan; Muslims must take solace that Allah is not “asleep” at the post, and He will continue protecting His Messenger (S) in the manner in which He deems best.
We should also understand that this is not the first time the Prophet (S) has been insulted. A cursory reading of the Prophet’s (S) biography has dozens of examples of insults, abuse and attempts at humiliation that were carried out by his enemies. We have not read properly read the Sīrah if we think that this is the first time he has been insulted. In each of these situations, he dealt with these insults with compassion, displaying a dignity that was more damaging to his opponents than any weapon. For example, when the Quraysh, in their clever attempts to insult him, decided to refer to him as “Mudhammam” (one who is blamed/scorned), a word play on his name instead of “Muhammad”. When he heard this, he replied with joy that Allah was protecting him: “Are you not amazed at how Allah turns the insults and curses of Quraysh away from me? They insult Mudhammam, they curse Mudhammam, and I am Muhammad!” [5]
The Prophet’s (S) Tradition in the face of attempts to insult is one of self-restraint and contentment with God’s Protection. The epitome of this is found in the famous incident when the Prophet (S) and Abu Bakr (R) were sitting near the Ka`bah and some of the Quraysh began to insult him. The Prophet (S) remained silent and said nothing. Abu Bakr (R) could only restrain himself for so long as his Beloved was being insulted, so he got up and defended the Prophet (S). Shortly thereafter, the Messenger of Allah (S) walked away from the area. Later on, Abu Bakr (R) asked him why he went away; the Prophet (S) replied that while Abu Bakr (R) had been silent, the Angels were protecting him, but when he began defending the Prophet (S), the Angels left, so the Prophet (S) left as well.
Historically, Muslims have been respectful to academic and intelligent refutations against the Prophet (S) and Islam. For example, John of Damascus (d. 749), a Christian monk living in Muslim lands, was a scholarly opponent of Islam and felt that the Prophet(S) was a false Prophet.[6] Muslim scholars did not condemn him, but instead engaged in respectful academic debate with him. As for disrespectful insults towards the Prophet (S), Dante Alighieri’s (d. 1321) Inferno is but one historical example of mockery against the Prophet (S).[7] At a time when the Muslim empire was the dominant superpower in the world, there were no calls for Dante’s head or emotional public outcries. Muslims were sophisticated enough that they knew they had other matters to attend; they were content that God would deal with those who mocked His Beloved (S). It is useful for us to reflect upon the same.
Can He Really Ever Be Insulted?
We must first affirm to ourselves that the Prophet (S) can never truly be insulted by any enemy of Islam. When Allah has declared Himself as his Protector, what other protection does he need?[8] Can he whose name is inscribed on the Throne of God ever truly be insulted? Can he whose very name means “one who is highly and excessively praised” every truly be insulted? Can he for whom God and His Angels send prayer and salutation upon ever truly be insulted?
In the previously mentioned Mudhammam example, we should remind ourselves that the name Muḥammad (including the guttural ḥā) has only one meaning. Thus, when we hear the enemies of Islam say his name as “Ma-ham-med” (or some other pronunciation), we should rejoice that they’re referring to someone else, and that Allah is protecting His Prophet (S) by not allowing his enemies to even properly refer to the object of their attempted derision. How pathetic is that: they’re not able to succeed in their evil intent because they can’t even say his name properly.
As for caricatures and cartoons, these imply that a real image exist in the first place. This is the beautiful wisdom in there being no real image of the Prophet (S) in existence. What can mere paper hope to capture of the beauty of the best of creation; he who was more beautiful than the full moon[9]; and he who was so handsome that had the women of Zulaykhah seen him, they would have cut out their very hearts?[10] Thus a cartoon image that allegedly depicts the Prophet (S) can never be considered as depicting him; it is as close to representing him as a stick figure representing a human being. Muslims should be secure that their Prophet’s (S) beauty, honor and legacy can never be tarnished by his enemies. When no real image exists, no caricature can exist.
The way forward for Muslims begins with asking ourselves this very important question. Instead of being preoccupied with the question, “how dare they insult the Prophet?”, we should ask ourselves, “how dare we insult the Prophet?”. We should ask ourselves if we have been insulting the Prophetic legacy through our speech and actions long before any cartoons. We should feel that our sins and inadequacies are more embarrassing and hurtful to the Prophet (S) than any cartoon. We should know that every Muhammad the liquor store owner, Muhammad the wife-beater or Muhammad the fraudulent businessman is more insulting to the Prophet’s (S) name than any satire. And we should feel guilty that our failure to uphold his beautiful legacy in our practice, speech and thoughts is more offensive to him than any picture could be. In short, let us not think that this attack on the Prophet (S) started with these recent cartoons; the insult to his legacy began long ago. They didn’t start the fire; we did.
The Real Issue at Hand: Cartoons and Spiritual Toddlers
It is ironic that cartoons, a form of entertainment for children, can elicit such anger among the Muslim community, turning adults into worse than unruly children. Perhaps this is more a reflection of our collective spiritual toddler state, indicating we have much ethical and moral self-reform work to do if we ever hope to grow up. The childish actions of some Muslims in response to childish actions of others betrays a larger sense of political impotence that Muslims have in the current global state of affairs. Just as children learn lessons from certain events in their childhood, we as Muslims should collectively learn and move forward from events such as this.
Our first order is to recommit ourselves back to honoring the legacy of the Prophet (S). This starts with learning about his life story, his physical description (shamā’il) his characteristics, his likes/dislikes and his practices, implementing as many of these as we possibly can. We must learn about the lives of his family, his Companions and the inheritors of the Prophetic Legacy, and appreciate how they practiced this—spiritually, socially and politically—throughout Muslim history. Only by learning, can we start practicing, and only by practicing, can we renew our goal of honoring the Prophet rather than tarnishing his legacy.
Finally, it is said that revenge is a dish best served cold. The aim of those who attempt to insult the Prophet (S) is to take people away from him and hate him. We must counter this aim by telling others about the Prophet (S), the Perfect Human Being who taught us how to be human beings. If Muslims can use such events to spread his message, in our speech and in our actions, in such a way that more people come to this religion (and in turn, more people love him (S)), then we have done our job. We must enthusiastically re-dedicate ourselves to this task, so that we have some proof before God that we at least tried to do something, and we at least have some excuse with the Lord of Muhammad (S). They want to make people hate him; we, by God’s Permission, will make more people love him.
What greater revenge do we want?
[1] Surah al-Nisā’, Verse 80.
[2] Paraphrased from the well-known ḥadīth: On the authority of Anas b. Mālik, the Prophet (S) said: “None of you have complete faith until I am more beloved to him than his children, his parents and all of mankind combined (Kitāb al-Īmān, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim).
[3] Surah al-Mā’idah, Verse 67.
[4] Surah Ṭā Hā, Verse 44.
[5] Narrated by Abū Hurayrah, recorded by Imam al-Bukhārī.
[6] John of Damascus authored a famous work, The Fountain of Wisdom, of which the second section, Concerning Heresy, primarily deals with refuting Islam. For example, he wrote: “From that time to the present a false prophet named Mohammed has appeared in their midst. This man, after having chanced upon the Old and New Testaments and likewise, it seems, having conversed with an Arian monk, devised his own heresy. Then, having insinuated himself into the good graces of the people by a show of seeming piety, he gave out that a certain book had been sent down to him from heaven. He had set down some ridiculous compositions in this book of his and he gave it to them as an object of veneration.”
[7] Dante went so far as to place the Prophet(S) in Hell along with the Schismatics. For details, see Canto 28. It should also be noted that Dante suffered much humiliation later in life, spending most of his later years in exile, before dying of a fatal infection.
[8] Sūrah al-Taḥrīm, Verse 4: “…then indeed Allah, He is his Protecting Friend, and Jibrīl, and the righteous believers; and furthermore, the Angels are his helpers.”
[9] Narrated Jābir b. Samurah: “I saw the Messenger of Allah (S) on the night of the full moon, and he was wearing a red cloak. I began to look at him, and I began to look at the moon, and indeed he was more beautiful to my eyes than the moon (al-Dārimī).”
[10] The Mother of the Believers, `Ā’ishah (R) famously wrote a couplet that if the companions of Zulaykhah had seen his beautiful face, they would have cut out their hearts instead of their fingers.