MUFTI TAQI’S BAATIL VACCINE ‘FATWA’

The following Istifta’ (questionnaire) was submitted to Mufti Taqi Uthmani:

Is it permissible to take the corona vaccination? Is it incumbent for the government to compel everyone to submit to vaccination? What if someone acquires a fake vaccination certificate?

Mufti Taqi’s Response

While a fatwa was requested, Mufti Taqi Sahib merely made some comments in his statement camouflaged as a fatwa. His statement is not a fatwa. The one who posed the question remains in the same darkness in which he was at the beginning.

In his response to the question of permissibility or impermissibility of the covid/corona vaccination, Mufti Taqi Uthmani stated:

“It is permissible per se to use any halaal medicine or food as a precaution against sickness on condition that at the time (of its use) no haraam and impure substance had been added. Regarding the corona vaccine, if it is not established by means of some reliable source that it is contaminated with impure substances nor is its harm for the health been confirmed by reliable medical research or by compelling presumption (zann-e-ghaalib) nor is there solid evidence that it is being used for an unlawful objective, then taking the vaccine will be permissible according to the Shariah although not incumbent.”

Comment by Mujlisul Ulama:

The aforementioned averment is typical of Zig Zag muftis whose liberal and misleading ‘fatwas’ are the effects of dubious and even sinister agendas. That halaal medicine uncontaminated with haraam substances is permissible, is known to every Muslim, even to the most ignorant one.

The one who had posed the question is aware that halaal and pure substances are halaal and permissible. His question does not pertain to pure substances. The question relates directly to the satanic covid/corona vaccine and the satanic vaccination methodology of the atheists.

Taqi Sahib building his case of support for the Pakistani government who bootlicks the atheist West, has presented the above introduction to provide the kuffaar Pakistani government with a licence to justify with its satanic covid oppressive programme. It is indeed lamentable that Taqi has grovelled in a cesspool of inequity to provide cover for the vaccine which has been confirmed by the research of top medical experts and scientists to be an evil, dreadfully harmful potion or a devil’s cocktail.

It is difficult to believe that Mufti Taqi is ignorant of the innumerable research results which condemn vaccination by medical experts, doctors and scientists who have and are vehemently cauterizing the false satanic vaticination of this haraam covid vaccination. Thousands of pages have been published by experts regarding the horrible side effects, maiming and deaths caused by this potion of Iblees which Mufti Taqi is marketing on behalf of the government and other sinister western satanic forces.

It is quite obvious that Mufti Taqi is fully aware of the opposite view – the anti-vaccine view of innumerable medical experts. His feigning ignorance in this regard is pure chicanery designed to mislead. Despite being aware of the researches of the experts and scientists, he speaks ambiguously, without issuing a straightforward, simple fatwa. He does not inform whether the covid vaccination is halaal or haraam. He sits on the fence zigzagging without providing guidance.

The factors of permissibility stated by Mufti Taqi in his abovementioned averment are all non-existent in so far as the covid vaccine is concerned. Contrary to the deception perpetrated by Mufti Taqi, the facts are:

(1) The vaccine is impure

(2) It is poisonous. It is laced with poisonous and impure substances.

(3) It does not cure. On the contrary, it harms, maims and kills.

(4) It is never a precautionary method for saving from the disease.

The conditions which he has enlisted for the vaccine to be halaal are all non-existent. There is emphatic reliable research studies of by top class atheist experts, which prove beyond any shadow of doubt that the vaccine is absolutely harmful. But, Mufti Taqi deems it prudent to submit to the atheist view which is in diametric conflict with the Shariah. And, he feels constrained to tow the government line because of his close association with the fussaaq, fujjaar and kuffaar rulers. Yet, Mufti Taqi does not commit himself since being a molvi/mufti he has to look behind him where the Ulama-e-Haqq are hounding him. He leaves the conclusion to be made by the one who posed the question.

The texts which Mufti Taqi Sahib quotes from the Fiqh Kutub merely state some principles. But these are not helpful for the masses. A fatwa should state whether the issue is permissible or not. If a Mufti is truly unaware of the issue, he should not zigzag and talk drivel. He should not flaunt expertise by citing Arabic texts from the Kutub, which do not assist the one who posed the question. If Mufti Taqi Sahib is genuinely ignorant of the ear-piercing dins of condemnation of the vaccine by innumerable experts, he should state his unawareness and refer the questioner to other Muftis who are versed in the matter.

In another zigzagging exercise, Mufti Taqi states:

“It is not necessary for the government to compel every citizen to take the corona vaccine. However, if the relevant institution regards the corona vaccine to be necessary protection against the disease, then the government may advise every citizen to be vaccinated. Nevertheless, if anyone abstains from the vaccine due to personal reasons, he will not be a sinner.”

Comment by Mujlisul Ulama:

Firstly, Taqi Sahib has not determined whether the vaccine is halaal or haraam. Due to feined ignorance, he is silent on this issue. Despite his non-committal stance, he justifies the government’s endeavour to have all citizens be vaccinated with the potion of Iblees. His advice to the kaafir government of Pakistan is devoid of Shar’i substance. Advice is permissible only on sound basis – on understanding of the issue, not on conjecture.

He says that if a person abstains from vaccination for some personal reason, then he will not be sinful. This implies that abstention from vaccination for no validreason renders a person sinful. But this is manifestly baatil. In the very first instance, vaccination is HARAAM, hence the issue of valid reason for abstention does not arise. It is haraam to adopt a haraam method.

Secondly, even if we should hallucinatingly assume that vaccination is indeed 100% beneficial and bereft of any harm, then too the higher option of merit is abstention since it would be the demand a man’s Taqwa. In substantiation, the Maaliki Fuqaha explained:

“There is no doubt that the refusal of medical treatment, placing one’s reliance upon Allah and acceptance of what He decrees, is among matters endorsed by the revealed law. This is supported by what Al-Bukhari reports from ‘Ata b. Abi Rabah from Ibn ‘Abbas that a woman came to the Prophet—upon him Allah’s blessing and peace—and said, “I suffer from seizures to the point that my body becomes exposed. So, pray to Allah for me.” He said, “If you would like, you can endure it and be rewarded with Paradise. And if you would like, I can ask Allah to cure you.” She responded, “I will endure it.” She, then, said, “I become exposed. So, pray to Allah for me not to become exposed.” So, he prayed for her. Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani said in Fath al-Bari while commenting on this hadith,

The hadith indicates the merit of the one who suffers seizures, that the reward for enduring the tribulations of the world is Paradise, and that embracing the more difficult is superior to taking dispensations for those who know what they can withstand and are not too weak to cling to adversity. It also contains evidence of the permissibility to refuse medical treatment, that treatment of all ailments with supplication and taking refuge to Allah is more beneficial than treatment with prophylaxis (aqaqir), and that the effect of that and the body’s reaction to it is greater than the effect of medicine on the body. It, however, benefits for only two reasons: (1) with respect to the sick person, it is [from] sincerity of intention; (2) The other, with respect to the one seeking medical intervention, is the strength of his spiritual focus and the strength of his faith (taqwa) and trust (tawakkul).”

In At-Tamhid, Ibn Abdul Barr (Rahmatullah alayh) says:

“Among the best of this Nation (this Ummah) were its Salaf (Predecessors and Fuqaha who were people who endured sicknesses until Allah Ta’ala took them away. They abstained despite having access to physicians. But none of them was condemned for having refused medical treatment.”

Imaam Ahmad Bin Hambal (Rahmatullah alayh) said:

“I prefer for a man who has Tawakkul and pursues this path to abandon medical treatment such as consuming medicine, etc.”

Thus, Qaadhi Iyaadh (Rahmatullah alayh) recorded Ijma’ on medical treatment being non-obligatory. It is therefore haraam to compel any person to submit to even valid, halaal medication, leave alone haraam vaccination. Further, in their Fatwa, the Maaliki Ulama of Mauritania say:

“And Al-Nawwawi said in Al-Majmu’, “And it is recommended that the sick not be forced to medicate and to consume other things like food.” And if it is not permissible to force the sick who is suffering from extreme illness to medicate, then how is it permissible to force the healthy who has not been afflicted with any sign of illness? And how can trust and surrender to the divine decree be something desirable for the sick who suffers from an actual illness and that not be desirable for a healthy person who is fearful of an expected illness?”

Once when Hadhrat Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu) was confined to bed by sickness, he was advised to call a physician. In response, Ameerul Mu’mineen said: “If I know that my cure is to simply place my hand on my head, I shall then too desist from so doing.” This was his Taqwa and Tawakkul.

Therefore, those who collude with the kuffaar governments and the atheist devils, and issue satanic ‘fatwas’ designed to stampede the ignorant masses to submit to haraam ‘medical’ treatment such as satanic vaccination are all agents of Iblees.

False vaccination certificates

On the issue of acquisition of false vaccination certificates, Mufti Taqi said:

“To acquire false corona vaccination certificates is deception and falsehood which is not permissible. It is necessary to abstain from this.”

While this response is a fatwa for the question, it is highly erroneous and baatil. Firstly, from what Mufti Taqi has mentioned in his statement, he feigns ignorance of the vaccine. Whether it is beneficial or destructive, he pretends not to know. Therefore, he has no Shar’i basis for unequivocally claiming that it is sinful and not permissible to acquire false vaccination certificates.

If a rapist/robber enters your home and searches for your wife/daughter who has gone into hiding somewhere in house, will it be sinful to LIE to the scoundrel and say that there are no women in the house? Or will it be rewardable to speak the ‘truth’, reveal her whereabouts and condone the violation of her chastity by the rapist/robber while you, the scoundrel dayyooth stands by cowardly such as these spineless Muftis and Shaikhul Islams and Grand Muftis of today?

If a robber wants to steal your money or harm you physically, will it be permissible or impermissible to LIE in order to save yourself from the evil of the robber? Only the likes of Mufti Taqi has the erudition to say that it is not permissible to lie even in these circumstances.

This is exactly what Mufti Taqi’s fatwa pertaining to false certificates imply. Let the scoundrel rape your wife and rob you of your money on the basis of your ‘truth’. According to him, observance of his conception of the ‘truth’ is imperative regardless of the injury and harms stemming from the satanic potion of Iblees. Thus, obedience to the kuffaar government is incumbent in terms of his warped logic which is nothing but chicanery designed to mislead Muslims and to bootlick the rulers.

In an abortive bid to justify obedience to the kuffaar government, Mufti Taqi cited an Arabic test without presenting its translation. The translation is:

“It is incumbent on the Muslim to obey his ameer in all permissible things. Therefore, if the ameer orders commission of a mubah (permissible) act, then it is incumbent (Waajib) to act accordingly. If the ameer prohibits a mubah act, then it is haraam to do it……Hence, the Fuqaha have stated explicitly that obedience to the ameer in acts which are not sins is Waajib……Ibn Aabideen said: ‘When the ameer instructs to fast on the days which are not prohibited, then this becomes incumbent………

But, this obedience is Mashroo’  (is of Shar’i significance and import) when the order (of the ameer) is due to a maslahah (valid expedient), not stemming from hawaa (base desire) zulm (oppression/injustice), for verily the haakim (ruler) should not be obeyed per se (li thaatihi).He has to be obeyed from the perspective of him being the mutawalli for the benefit of the masses.”

Even a cursory glance at this text will dispel the basis Mufti Taqi claims for his corrupt fatwa of obedience to the kuffaar Pakistani government. The ‘incumbency’ to obey the ameer in terms of the aforegoing text is conditioned with the following stipulations:

(a) The act must be mubah, i.e. permissible in the Shariah

(b) The ameer’s decree must not be motivated by his base desire (hawaa) and zulm (oppression/injustice)

(c) There must be maslihat (an expediency which is for the benefit of the masses).

Germane to the satan’s potion (vaccine) and the satan’s method (vaccination), all three stipulations are missing. The vaccine is haraam. There exists overwhelming and tumultuous evidence for the hurmat of the potion of Iblees.

The law compelling vaccination is pure zulm motivated by hawaa, and there is no valid maslihat for the people in this dreadfully harmful satanic vaccination which the governments have acquired from Bill Gates in lieu of millions of dollars.

The hallucinated ‘benefit’ of the potion of Iblees has been lapped up from the vomit of the atheists. All the noise, sound and fury which these wayward molvis and muftis have churned up are designed to appease the atheists and kuffaar governments. They are misinterpreting Qur’aan and Ahaadith not for reconciling superficial contradictions in the texts, but to justify the kufr and satanic protocols of the atheists. Their very motive is corrupt and kufr.

Furthermore, the principle stated above is not cast in Wahi or in the Qur’aan and Sunnah. Men of intelligence are entitled to scrutinize the decrees of the ameer and to determine for themselves the validity of the imposition. Should they dissent from the claimed validity, they will have the Shar’i right to differ and to disobey and to reject what Mufti Taqi seeks to convey as if it is the effect of Wahi.

Consider the example of fasting on permissible days. The ameer will firstly have to have a really strong and viable basis for ordering the populace to keep Nafl fasts on certain days on which the Shariah has not made it Waajib to fast. In our opinion a valid reason would be to act against Zindeeqs who believe that it is not Masnoon to fast on Mondays and Thursdays, rather it is bid’ah and haraam. If such an idea of zandaqah embedded in the masses, then the ameer will have the right to order the masses to fast on Mondays and Thursdays until the evil corrupt idea of the zanaadqah has been eradicated. However, despite this validity, it will not be sinful for individuals to silently abstain from fasting, that is, without opposing the decree of the ameer.

Qadha’, i.e. the post of being a Qaadhi, is Fardh-e-Kifaayah. Despite the extreme importance of this position and despite the order of the Khalifah, Imaam Abu Hanifah (Rahmatullah alayh) and Imaam Muhammad (Rahmatullah) resolutely refused to submit to the command of the Khalifah.

Imaam Abu Hanifah opted for imprisonment and being flogged rather than obeying the Khalifah on this extremely important and Waajib issue. And, so did Imaam Muhammad, Imaam Nisaa’i and other illustrious Ulama of the Salafus Saaliheen.

The eminent Sahaabi, Hadhrat Abdullah Ibn Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu) disobeyed the Khalifah and refused to take the oath of allegiance, despite this being mubah and even necessary, and so did Hadhrat Abdullah Bin Zubair (Radhiyallahu anhu) disobey the Khalifah to the extent of declaring his own Khilaafat in Makkah Mukarramah. There are many episodes of the Salafus Saaliheen disobeying the oppressive orders and commands of the tyrannical rulers who were NOT kuffaar such as the rulers and regimes in sway of Muslim countries.

The government of Pakistan is decidedly kuffaar. It has abolished the Shariah and substituted in its place the western kuffaar concept of baboonic democracy. Mufti Taqi and all molvis of similar thought should hang their heads in shame for satanically labouring to make Muslims subservient to even the haraam and kufr demands of the kuffaar regime. At the minimum, he should weld his lips and remain silent if he is unable to stand up in opposition to the oppression and tyranny of the kaafir government. It is absolutely despicable and treacherous for an Aalim to lick the boots of the kuffaar government, and worse to mislead the ignorant masses with corrupt fatwas camouflaged with Qur’aanic verses, Ahaadith and texts from the Fiqh Kutub which have no relevance to the situation and scenario for which guidance is sought.

The principle overriding the rule cited by Mufti Taqi, and that too baselessly, is the declaration of Rasulullah (Sallallahu alayhi wasallam):

“There is no obedience to any makhlooq (created being) in any act which involves disobedience to Khaaliq (Allah, The Creator).”

CONCLUSION

(1) Mufti Taqi’s discourse is not a Fatwa. It is merely a statement which provides no guidance for Muslims. Only the portion pertaining to false certificates is a fatwa, but a baseless one.

(2) The entire discourse is baatil in that it is irrelevant to vaccines and vaccination. He feigns ignorance, hence he remains non-committal sitting on the fence.

(3) The conditions listed by Mufti Taqi for permissibility of medication are all non-existent regarding vaccines and vaccination. Vaccines are laced with poisons and haraam substances. Vaccines cause dreadful harms and injury.

(4) Mufti Taqi is guilty of chicanery designed to delude the Muslim masses and to bootlick the government.

(5) His fatwa pertaining to false certificates is absolutely baseless, stupid and treacherous. There is no daleel whatsoever in the Shariah for claiming that such false certificates are haraam and sinful.

(6) The Arabic texts cited by him do not support his baatil contentions.

Islamic View on Paranormal

Throughout history people have reported supernatural phenomena. Stories of ghosts, demons, and the like are present in virtually all cultures, transcending language and religion. Are all these supernatural experiences independent phenomena, or are they somehow related? In this article we will see that Islam provides a “theory of everything”, an all-encompassing, coherent explanation that ties all these seemingly unrelated phenomena together.

The world of the Paranormal

In modern times all such supernatural incidents are collectively labelled as ‘the paranormal’. The paranormal is defined as events that are beyond the scope of normal scientific understanding. The list that follows details the most commonly reported occurrences of paranormal activity:

Ghosts

Believed to be spirits of people who have died and haunt the living. Ghosts are mentioned in the oldest literature that we know of. The Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the oldest known works of all, references them. In table 12 of the Epic of Gilgamesh we are told that Enkidu descends into the underworld and comes back to earth as a “shadow”, informing Gilgamesh about his experience of death and the afterlife. Related to the concept of ghosts is the practice of necromancy which involves communicating with the dead. Necromancy was popular throughout the ancient world. The oldest literary account of necromancy is found in Homer’s Odyssey, the second oldest surviving work of Western literature [1]. The rituals varied from the mundane to the grotesque. The necromancer might wear the deceased’s clothing, and some even went so far as to take part in the consumption of corpses.

Demons

Believed to be non-human forces of evil. The conflict between good and evil can be found in every culture, mythical tradition, and religion throughout history. These entities are believed to operate outside the boundaries of the physical world, tormenting and leading people astray. References to these entities can be found in the writings of the most ancient of civilisations. As far back as the third millennium BCE the ancient Mesopotamians had an elaborate demonology. Their writings listed different types of demons, together with their harmful effects, and rituals that one can adopt to protect oneself. They believed that the world was swarming with malevolent demons. These beings threatened to disrupt health, business, family, in fact every department of life, and a great part of practical religion was devoted to keeping them away. Related to the concept of demons is the practice of magic. Demons are believed to be the mechanism by which magic works, with magicians making devilish pacts in order for spells and curses to harm their intended targets. The Code of Hammurabi, one of the oldest deciphered writings of significant length in the world, mentions magic and the punishment for magicians who lay curses on others [2].

UFOs

Unidentified flying objects. Today they are popularly believed to be advanced technology such as alien spacecraft or secret government weapons. Although reports and even video footage of UFOs have increased substantially in recent times, they are not a modern phenomenon. There are reports of strange aerial objects going as far back as ancient Rome. If one rules out natural sky phenomena such as solar and lunar eclipses, comets, and the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis), there are still numerous reports in the ancient world of aerial objects that bear a striking resemblance to modern sightings of UFOs. Although the descriptions of these “objects in the sky” vary in morphology, consistent patterns have emerged. Some of the essential features of the ancient UFO phenomenon is their silence, as no sound was reported, and their hovering motion, including rapid disappearance [3].

Near-death experiences

An occurrence described by people who have been close to death, in which the person experiences leaving their body and watching themselves from above. From a medical perspective, when the heart ceases to function, you stop breathing, and the brain shuts down. This is when a person is considered to be dead and should no longer have any conscious awareness. Yet a small percentage of cardiac arrest victims who have been resuscitated claim to be able to accurately recall details about their circumstances while they were unconscious, such as their hospital room and the medical professionals who treated them.

Past-life recall

Feelings of oneself as another person in a previous life. People who claim to have these experiences say that they are inexplicably familiar with places and events relating to people of whom they have no prior knowledge. They may even have body defects such as birthmarks that correspond to physical features of the person whose life they remember. Reincarnation is usually put forward as the best explanation for this phenomenon. Buddhism is a world religion in which past-life recall plays a major factor in selecting its leader. When the current Dalai Lama dies, it is believed that he is able choose the body into which he is reincarnated. If a child is born and they are suspected to be the next Dalai Lama, there are a series of tests to ensure that they are the genuine reincarnation. One means by which they assess the child is to present them with various objects to see if they can correctly identify those which belonged to the previous Dalai Lama.

Extrasensory perception

Also called sixth sense, is the ability to acquire information without the use of the five physical senses of sight, touch, hearing, smell, and taste. This covers a range of phenomena such as telepathy, clairvoyance, psychokinesis, and precognition. Telepathy is the ability to read another person’s thoughts. Clairvoyance is the ability to “see” events happening somewhere else. Psychokinesis, also known as telekinesis, is the ability to have a direct effect on another object without the use of any physical energy. Precognition is the ability to see into the future and is the most ancient and widespread of psychic phenomena. All known ancient cultures had the concept of special individuals – known by different names such as prophets, oracles, diviners, and soothsayers – who claimed to have a special insight into the future. This fascination with unveiling the unseen is not solely the domain of the religious, as even atheists, those who claim there is no God, are drawn to trying to peer into the future, with horoscopes being more popular than ever in secular societies.

In this section we have covered the most commonly reported paranormal activity through history. Although the nature of these different phenomena varies greatly, many of them go back to the most ancient of civilisations, transcending language, culture, and religion. They have survived the passage of time and the increase of human knowledge.

Islam and the world of Jinn

Islam informs us about many characteristics of entities known as ‘jinn’. The jinn are said to be a creation of God, distinct to that of human beings. God informs us in the Qur’an:

And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me. [51:56]

The Qur’an also tells us that jinn were created before man:

And We did certainly create man out of clay from an altered black mud. And the jinn We created before from scorching fire. [15:26-27]

The world of jinn is an independent and separate world that is hidden from our world. The default state of jinn is one of invisibility, we cannot see them when they are in their natural form. The word ‘jinn’ comes from an Arabic root meaning “hidden from sight”. The Qur’an states:

Indeed, he sees you, he and his tribe, from where you do not see them. Indeed, We have made the devils allies to those who do not believe. [7:27]

Unlike human beings, jinn are of different types. Among them are some who resemble dogs and snakes and some who can fly. Prophet Muhammad, may God’s peace and blessings be upon him, said:

The jinn are of three types: a type that has wings, and they fly through the air; a type that looks like snakes and dogs; and a type that stops for a rest then resumes its journey. [4]

God has granted jinn powers that He has not given to humans. The Qur’an tells us about some of their powers, such as the ability to travel at great speed. Here the Qur’an relates a story about Prophet Solomon in which a jinn is said to have moved a throne from Yemen to Jerusalem in the blink of an eye, indicating that they can traverse vast distances in a very short amount of time:

A powerful one from among the jinn said, “I will bring it [the throne] to you before you rise from your place, and indeed, I am for this [task] strong and trustworthy.” Said one who had knowledge from the Scripture, “I will bring it to you before your glance returns to you.” And when [Solomon] saw it placed before him, he said, “This is from the favour of my Lord to test me whether I will be grateful or ungrateful…” [27:39-40]

Jinn can also take on human form. They are so skilled in shape-shifting that they can take the appearance of specific people, even those who are dead. Prophet Muhammad said with regards to the trials of the coming Anti-Christ:

Part of his trial will be that he will say to a Bedouin, “Do you think that if I resurrect your father and mother for you that you will testify that I am your lord?” He will say, “Yes.” So two devils will appear to him in the image of his father and mother, saying, “O my son, follow him for he is your lord.” [5]

Prophet Muhammad revealed that every human being has a jinn who has been appointed to be our close companion, so they are aware of our speech and actions:

There is not one of you who does not have a jinn appointed to be his constant companion. [6]

Prophet Muhammad also revealed that jinn are able to flow through the bodies of human beings:

Verily, Satan flows through the human being like the flowing of blood. [7]

If you are wondering why Satan has been mentioned in the above narration, it’s because Islam teaches that Satan is a jinn. The concept of Satan as a fallen angel is a teaching of Christianity, not Islam. Here the Qur’an states that Iblees, which is the personal name of Satan, is a jinn:

They [the angels] prostrated, except for Iblees. He was of the jinn… [18:50]

The Qur’an reveals that jinn can plant thoughts and suggestions in people by means of whispering:

Say, “I seek refuge in the Lord of mankind, the Sovereign of mankind. the God of mankind, from the evil of the retreating whisperer – Who whispers [evil] into the breasts of mankind – from among the jinn and mankind.” [114:1-6]

They can even influence us to the point of altering our perception of reality. The Qur’an tells us that magicians can make use of jinn in order to sow discord between a husband and wife:

And they followed [instead] what the devils had recited during the reign of Solomon… they learn from them that by which they cause separation between a man and his wife… [2:102]

There is a notable incident where the Prophet Muhammad was bewitched to the extent that he started to imagine things that had not taken place. Aisha, the wife of Prophet Muhammad, said:

A spell was put on the Prophet until he imagined that he had done a thing when he had not done it… [8]

Jinn can not only interact with living things, they can also manipulate inanimate objects. Prophet Muhammad said:

Cover your utensils and tie your water skins, and close your doors and keep your children close to you at night, as Jinn spread out at such time and snatch things away… [9]

Jinn are also said to eavesdrop on the heavens for news that they can pass on to fortune-tellers here on earth, and this news they mix with falsehood. Prophet Muhammad said:

While the angels talk amidst the clouds about things that are going to happen on earth, the devils hear a word of what they say and pour it in the ears of a soothsayer as one pours something in a bottle, and they add one hundred lies to that (one word). [10]

When God decrees a matter in heaven, the angels beat their wings in submission to his decree (with a sound) like a chain beating a rock. Then when fear is banished from their hearts, they say: “What is it that your Lord has said?” They say: “The truth. And He is The Most High, The Most Great.” Then the eavesdroppers (from among jinn) listen out for that, one above the other, so (one of them) hears the words and passes it on to the one beneath him. The shooting star may strike him before he can pass it on to the one beneath him and the latter can pass it on to the soothsayer or sorcerer, or it may not strike him until he has passed it on. And he adds one hundred lies to it, and only that word which was overheard from the heavens is true.” [11]

The 72^nd chapter of the Qur’an, called “The Jinn”, goes into great detail about them. Jinn are said to have different beliefs and are followers of different religions. The Qur’an has recorded their conversations, and from this we can conclude that they are intelligent beings with sophisticated language and are capable of independent thought.

The Theory of Everything

These characteristics of jinn put forward by Islam can account for every paranormal incident that has been reported. Their ability to fly and move at great speeds accounts for aerial phenomena such as UFOs. Their ability to shape-shift, appearing in different forms, as well as their ability to disappear at will, accounts for ghosts as well as sightings of any other strange creatures. The fact that each of us has a jinn assigned to us from birth, a close companion who is with us at all times and knows our darkest secrets, explains how some people are able to reveal personal knowledge about not only ourselves but also the deceased. Magicians simply make contact with jinn who will divulge the information they have learnt about people. The ability of jinn to influence us by means of whispering suggestions, as well as their ability to alter our perception of reality, accounts for phenomena like past life recall. If they can make a person ‘see’ or ‘feel’ things from the past, then that can lead one to think that they have personally lived that other person’s life. What about body defects, such as birth marks, which correspond to physical features of the person whose life they remember, how can jinn account for that? It is simply a case of match-making, the jinn selects a historical ‘target’ with body defects that match those of their human companion. The ability of jinn to influence us also accounts for near-death experiences. If they can make a person who is unconscious imagine that they are looking down upon themselves, then that can lead a person to think they have left their bodies. Their ability to physically interact with us by flowing through us is the mechanism by which a magician’s spell may harm their intended target, as jinn may be able to impact our health. Jinn can account for the psychic phenomena of telepathy, clairvoyance, psychokinesis, and precognition. Since jinn can influence our thoughts, information can be transmitted telepathically from one person to another. All it takes is for a jinn to plant a thought in one person and then communicate that same thought to a telepathist which allows them to ‘read’ minds. Since jinn can move at great speeds, they can endow clairvoyants with knowledge of events happening elsewhere. Since jinn can manipulate inanimate objects, they can move objects on behalf of psychokinetics. Since jinn can eavesdrop on the heavens it means that they have access to some knowledge of the unseen. People who claim to possess precognitive abilities can make contact with these jinn in order to gain access to this information about the future. Jinn don’t pass on this information to us in uncorrupted form, they are said to mix each truth with numerous lies. This explains the often hit-and-miss nature of the predictions that people make, as for each thing they predict correctly they also get many things wrong. In conclusion, you can take literally any paranormal event and the Islamic concept of jinn will be able to account for it.

Theories that are consistent and have great explanatory power are much sought after when it comes to understanding life and the universe around us. In the world of science, physicists have for decades been involved in a race to discover a unifying ‘theory of everything’ that fully explains and links together all physical aspects of the universe. This quest to explain all reality is considered the Holy Grail of modern physics and remains one of the major unsolved problems. The need for a theory of everything has arisen because two of the most celebrated successful theories in physics are contradictory. The theory that describes very big things – general relativity – and the theory that describes very small things – quantum mechanics – each work amazingly well in their own realms, but when combined, break down. Physicists hope to find a unified theory that resolves this incompatibility and describes everything in the universe in one fell swoop. When it comes to the paranormal, we’ve seen that Islam reveals aspects of the unseen that can explain all of the paranormal activity throughout human history. The teachings of the Qur’an and Prophet Muhammad about jinn represent an all-encompassing, coherent explanation – that much sought-after theory of everything – which ties all these seemingly unrelated phenomena together.

The meaning behind the paranormal

Explaining what is responsible for the paranormal is one thing, but understanding the meaning behind the paranormal is an entirely different matter. Why would jinn want to be behind such events, what is their motivation? Islam informs us that just like human beings, they have free will, and there are both the good and evil among them. The Qur’an reveals:

[Some jinn said:] And among us are the righteous, and among us are [others] not so; we were [of] divided ways [72:11]

The good among jinn are righteous in their conduct. They believe in God and are obedient to Him. The devils among jinn, however, are disobedient to God and interfere in the affairs of human beings. Why would the devils among jinn want to interfere in the affairs of human beings? The Qur’an teaches that the supreme leader of these devils is a jinn called Iblees, which is the personal name of Satan. The ultimate goal of Iblees, as well as that of his followers, is to mislead mankind by taking us away from God. The Qur’an states:

[Iblees] said, “Because You have put me in error, I will surely sit in wait for them [mankind] on Your straight path. Then I will come to them from before them and from behind them and on their right and on their left, and You will not find most of them grateful [to You].” [7:16-17]

Jinn existed before the creation of man, and Iblees was the most righteous among them, so much so that he dwelled in Paradise and was elevated to a high position amongst the angels. All of this changed with the creation of the first human being, Adam. The Qur’an tells us that when God created Adam, He ordered Iblees to show respect to Adam by prostrating to him. Iblees, out of his own pride and arrogance, refused this command because he thought he was superior to Adam. God then cast Iblees out of Paradise as a punishment for his disobedience. The Qur’an tells us:

And when your Lord said to the angels, “I will create a human being out of clay from an altered black mud. And when I have proportioned him and breathed into him of My [created] soul, then fall down to him in prostration.” So the angels prostrated – all of them entirely, except Iblees, he refused to be with those who prostrated. [God] said, O Iblees, what is [the matter] with you that you are not with those who prostrate?” He said, “Never would I prostrate to a human whom You created out of clay from an altered black mud.” [God] said, “Then get out of it [Paradise], for indeed, you are expelled. And indeed, upon you is the curse until the Day of Recompense.” [15:28-35]

Ever since this incident, Iblees has blamed Adam for his own downfall and has had a personal vendetta against mankind. Iblees has sought revenge by leading Adam and his descendants astray through deception. Here the Qur’an relates to us the story of how Iblees went on to trick Adam by lying to him, causing him to also be cast out of Paradise:

And [God said] “O Adam, dwell, you and your wife, in Paradise and eat from wherever you will but do not approach this tree, lest you be among the wrongdoers.” But Satan whispered to them… He said, “Your Lord did not forbid you this tree except that you become angels or become of the immortal.” And he swore [by God] to them, “Indeed, I am to you from among the sincere advisors.” So he made them fall, through deception… [7:19-22]

The deception of Iblees continues to this day. The following narration informs us that Iblees sends out his followers to the far ends of the earth to spread mischief among mankind. Prophet Muhammad said:

Verily, Satan places his throne over the water and he sends out his troops. The closest to him in rank are the greatest at causing tribulations. One of them says: “I have done this and this”. Satan says: “You have done nothing”. Another one says: “I did not leave this man alone until I separated him from his wife”. Satan embraces him and he says: “You have done well.” [12]

These Islamic claims about the mischievous conduct of jinn is reflected in the paranormal. If we analyse the paranormal events that have been reported, we will find that although they differ greatly in nature, there is one commonality – the entities behind them are generally elusive and secretive. They are notoriously difficult to capture on camera and offer only fleeting glimpses of themselves. If these entities were forces of good, for the sake of argument let’s say for example that they were intent on benefiting mankind, then why do they conduct themselves with such elusiveness and secrecy? It seems that these entities are mischievous in nature, they intend to cause confusion and fear among people. We can see that Islam is comprehensive in its claims, because it explains both the ‘what’ and the ‘why’ when it comes to paranormal activity.

Conclusion

Islam is a complete way of life. It provides guidance not only for our worldly affairs, but also the world of the unseen. God has given us this detailed information about jinn not for the purpose of entertainment or to draw us into the world of the occult, but rather for our physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. Whatever God has chosen not to reveal to us regarding the world of jinn we do not need to know. If knowing it was essential for us, God would have told us. Hence, we should not concern ourselves with looking into the mysteries of jinn as this is knowledge which can only be known through revelation. Rather, we should reflect on jinn as another example of the magnificence of God’s creation, and we should also take benefit from the Qur’an and traditions of Prophet Muhammad which arm us with the knowledge we need to protect ourselves from the devils among jinn and mankind.

References

1 – See Homer’s Odyssey, Book X, Lines 10–11, and Book XI.

2 – See first two sections of Code of Hammurabi.

3 – Richard Stothers, Unidentified Flying Objects In Classical Antiquity, The Classical Journal 103.1 (2007) pp. 79 – 92.

4 – Reported by al-Tahawi in Mushkil al-Athar, 4/95, and by al-Tabarani in al-Kabeer, 22/214.

5 – Ibn Majah, #4067.

6 – Sahih Muslim, #2814.

7 – Sahih Muslim, #2174.

8 – Sahih Bukhari, #3268.

9 – Sahih Bukhari, # 3316.

10 – Sahih Bukhari, #3288.

11 – Sunan Ibn Majah, Vol. 1, Book 1, #194.

12 – Sahih Muslim, #2813.

Source: many prophets one message

وجوب الفصل بين المفاهيم الإسلامية والغربية

الكاتب: ياسين بن علي

الحمد لله والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله وعلى آله وصحبه ومن والاه

يقول الله سبحانه وتعالى: {وَلا تَلْبِسُوا الْحَقَّ بِالْبَاطِلِ وَتَكْتُمُوا الْحَقَّ وَأَنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ (42)} (البقرة)، أي لا تخلطوا الحقّ بالباطل ولا الصدق بالكذب. وذكر السيوطي في الدر المنثور عن ابن عباس في قوله {ولا تلبسوا الحق بالباطل} قال: “لا تخلطوا الصدق بالكذب…”. وذكر أيضا عن قتادة في قوله {ولا تلبسوا الحق بالباطل} قال: “لا تلبسوا اليهودية والنصرانية بالإسلام وأنتم تعلمون أن دين الله الإسلام وأن اليهودية والنصرانية بدعة ليست من الله”. قال القرطبي: “وقول ابن عباس أصوب لأنه عام فيدخل فيه جميع الأقوال”.(1)

واللبس –كما قال الشيخ الطاهر بن عاشور-:”خلط بين متشابهات في الصفات يعسر معه التمييز أو يتعذر… ويطلق على اختلاط المعاني وهو الغالب… فلبس الحق بالباطل ترويج الباطل في صورة الحق. وهذا اللبس هو مبدأ التضليل والإلحاد في الأمور المشهورة… وحرف أقوام آيات بالتأويل البعيد ثم سموا ذلك بالباطن وزعموا أن للقرآن ظاهرا وباطنا فكان من ذلك لبس كثير، ثم نشأت عن ذلك نحلة الباطنية. ثم تأويلات المتفلسفين في الشريعة كأصحاب الرسائل الملقبين بإخوان الصفاء… وللتفادي من هذا الوصف الذي ذمه الله تعالى قال علماء أصول الفقه إن التأويل لا يصح إلا إذا دل عليه دليل قوي، أما إذا وقع التأويل لما يُظن أنه دليل فهو تأويل باطل فإن وقع بلا دليل أصلا فهو لعب لا تأويل…”.(2)

ومن أشكال اللبس الخلط بين المفاهيم الإسلامية والغربية باستعمال المصطلحات الغربية في وصف الإسلام وأحكامه؛ إذ عمد بعض الناس إلى مصطلحات غربية تحمل دلالات حضارية وثقافية غربية، فاستعملوها بحجة أنها من الإسلام قلبا وقالبا أو بحجة تقريب مفاهيم الإسلام إلى أذهان الناس التي ألفت المصطلحات الغربية واستحسنتها، ومن ذلك قول الشيخ محمد الغزالي: “وأعترف بأنني تجوزت في التعبير أحيانا، وقبلت بعض العناوين الشائعة، كالديمقراطية في ميدان الحكم، والاشتراكية في ميدان الاقتصاد، لا لإعجابي بهذه العناوين، ولكن لأجعل منها جسرا يعبر عليه الكثيرون إلى الإسلام نفسه… وقد جاء من بعدي الأستاذان سيد قطب ومصطفى السباعي عليهما رحمة الله، فألف الأول “العدالة الاجتماعية في الإسلام” وألف الأخير “اشتراكية الإسلام” وهما يقصدان ما قصدت إليه من رد المفتونين بالمبادئ الجديدة إلى مواريث أسمى وأغنى…”.(3) ومن هذه المصطلحات الغربية الدخيلة على ثقافتنا الإسلامية ما بقي على أصله أي بقي على حروفه الأجنبية مع تعريبه كالديمقراطية والليبرالية، ومنها ما ترجم إلى العربية كالاشتراكية والحريات العامة والعدالة الاجتماعية وحقوق الإنسان والدولة المدنية وغير ذلك.

والأصل في هذه المصطلحات أنها وضعت للتعبير عن معان ووقائع تدل عليها عند أهلها؛ لأن من وضعها واصطلح عليها من اليونانيين والفرنسيين والإنجليزيين وغيرهم، إنما قصدوا بها مفاهيم ودلالات معينة. ونحن، إنما نقلناها واستعملناها لتدل على المعاني التي عيّنها الواضعون لها، فإن استعملناها لتدل على معان غير معانيها الأصلية الموضوعة لها، أوجدنا حتما لبسا وخلطا في الفهم والمفاهيم يؤدي إلى أخذ المعاني والأفكار التي تناقض الإسلام. هذا إن استعملنا المصطلحات في غير معانيها الموضوعة لها، فما بالك إذا استعملناها وفق معانيها الأصلية المناقضة للإسلام ونسبناها له كمن يتحدث عن “مشروع سياسي للإسلاميين يكون ديمقراطيا لا شبهة فيه” أو من يتحدث عن مسحة جمالية أضفتها الليبرالية على الإسلام ويدعو إلى “تأسيس تيار ليبرالي إسلامي وسطي”.

إنّ استعمال المصطلحات الغربية في وصف الإسلام وأحكامه يؤدي إلى ضرر كبير حيث تختلط مفاهيم الإسلام بمفاهيم الغرب فلا يدرى بعدها ما هو الحد الفاصل بينها، وما هو الحقّ المحض والباطل المحض. وعادة ما يؤدي هذا الخلط الذي تخفى تفاصيله عن عامة الناس إلى تركيز المفهوم الغربي في أذهان الناس، وضياع الفاصل بينه وبين المفهوم الإسلامي خصوصا إذا كانت الحضارة الغربية هي الحضارة السائدة في العالم والمهيمنة كما هو الحال اليوم. وقد يؤدي الخلط بعرض المفاهيم الإسلامية في قوالب غربية إلى استفادة أعداء الدين منه، فيتخذون من تلك القوالب أو المصطلحات المعتمدة حجة تثبت صدق مفاهيمهم وعدم تعارضها مع الإسلام مما يسهل لهم عمل بثّ أفكارهم غير الإسلامية بين الناس؛ إذ عادة ما تلتفت الناس إلى قوالب الأفكار دون معانيها. وفي هذا السياق يقول الشيخ محمد الغزالي وهو رائد الاتجاه التوفيقي بين المفاهيم الإسلامية والغربية: “وأذكر أن صديقي مصطفى السباعي ألف كتابا عن اشتراكية الإسلام ضمنه حقائق كثيرة لصرف الشباب عن الشيوعية، وقد ندم على العنوان الذي اختاره لكتابه.. وأنا أعلم سر ندمه؛ لأنني خضت مثله هذه المحنة… قد ظهر لنا أن هؤلاء الاشتراكيين العرب يريدون كلمة الاشتراكية وحدها، ولا يهتمون بعد ذلك بالعقائد والعبادات التي هي لباب الإسلام. وعندما كنا نبرز لهم من تعاليم الإسلام ما يغني عن المبادئ والتطبيقات التي سحرتهم من ثقافة الغرب والشرق، كانوا يأخذون هذا البدل المعروض ويجردونه من صيغته الإسلامية”.(4)

وقد دلت جملة من النصوص في الكتاب والسنة على أن استعمال المصطلحات محكوم بقاعدة توافقها مع الشرع، وأن الألفاظ التي يختلط فيها الأمر ويلتبس بحيث يحصل من استعمالها تشوش واضطراب، يكره استعمالها، وقد يحرم إذا كانت مناقضة للإسلام صراحة ويؤدي استعمالها إلى تحريف المفاهيم الإسلامية:

وقد دلت جملة من النصوص في الكتاب والسنة على أن استعمال المصطلحات محكوم بقاعدة توافقها مع الشرع، وأن الألفاظ التي يختلط فيها الأمر ويلتبس بحيث يحصل من استعمالها تشوش واضطراب، يكره استعمالها، وقد يحرم إذا كانت مناقضة للإسلام صراحة ويؤدي استعمالها إلى تحريف المفاهيم الإسلامية:

قال الله تعالى: {يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لا تَقُولُوا رَاعِنَا وَقُولُوا انظُرْنَا وَاسْمَعُوا وَلِلْكَافِرِينَ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ (104)} (البقرة).

وقال: {الَّذِينَ يَأْكُلُونَ الرِّبَا لا يَقُومُونَ إِلاَّ كَمَا يَقُومُ الَّذِي يَتَخَبَّطُهُ الشَّيْطَانُ مِنْ الْمَسِّ ذَلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ قَالُوا إِنَّمَا الْبَيْعُ مِثْلُ الرِّبَا وَأَحَلَّ اللَّهُ الْبَيْعَ وَحَرَّمَ الرِّبَا… (275) (البقرة).

وأخرج مالك في الموطأ عن زيد بن أسلم عن رجل من بني ضمرة عن أبيه أنه قال: “سئل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عن العقيقة فقال: “لا أحب العقوق” فكأنه إنما كره الاسم”. قال الخطابي (في شرح سنن أبي داود): “وليس فيه توهين العقيقة ولا إسقاط لوجوبها وإنما استبشع الاسم وأحب أن يسميه بأحسن منه كالنسيكة والذبيحة”.

وهذا كما كره الرسول صلى الله عليه وسلم تسمية العشاء بالعتمة، وتسمية المدينة النبوية بيثرب، وتسمية العنب بالكرم.

وعليه، “فلا يجوز أن نقول في الإسلام حريات عامة، لأنها مصطلح غربي رأسمالي، يعني حرية العقيدة والرأي والتملك والحرية الشخصية، وهذا المعنى غير موجود في الإسلام، فالمسلم إن ارتدَّ عن الإسلام وأصر على ذلك كانت عقوبته القتل، وإن كان رأيه يؤذي الآخرين دون حق عوقب، ويحرم عليه التملك إلا بالأسباب التي بينها الشرع، وهو مقيد بسلوكه الشخصي بأحكام الإسلام، فالحريات الأربعة غير موجودة في الإسلام، فالدعوة إليها وممارستها حرام شرعاً. وكذلك الديمقراطية، وهي حكم الشعب للشعب وبالشعب، كما عرفها أصحابها، فلا يجوز الدعوة إليها أو أخذها، لأن الواقع والمعنى الذي تدل عليه مخالف للإسلام، لأن الحكم في الإسلام لله وليس للشعب، وأيضاً لا يجوز تزيينها بتغيير معناها، كمن ادعى ((بأن الديمقراطية وسيلة، وآلية من آليات اتخاذ القرار والحوار، وهي ليست مذهباً أيدلوجياً يتناقض مع الإسلام … ولذلك يجوز أخذها من قبل المسلمين)) بينما الديمقراطية فكرة أساسية مرادفة لعقيدة فصل الدين عن الحياة، وهي عقيدة كفر لا يجوز أخذها، ولا التحاكم لما يصدر عنها من نظام”.(5)

وكذلك أيضا الليبرالية، فهي مذهب فلسفي سياسي اقتصادي اجتماعي يقوم على أساس الحرية المطلقة والعقلانية والعلمانية. يقول منير البعلبكي في تعريفها: ” الليبرالية فلسفة سياسية ظهرت في أوربا في أوائل القرن التاسع عشر… تعارض المؤسسات السياسية والدينية التي تحد من الحرية الفردية، وتنادي بأن الإنسان كائن خيّر عقلاني، وتطالب بحقه في التعبير وتكافؤ الفرص والثقافة الواسعة…”(6)، فهي كما هو واضح من تعريفها مناقضة للإسلام في أصوله وفروعه.

إن الله سبحانه وتعالى سمى القرآن بالفرقان؛ لأنّه يفرق ويفصل بين الحقّ والباطل. قال الله تعالى: {تَبَارَكَ الَّذِي نَزَّلَ الْفُرْقَانَ عَلَى عَبْدِهِ لِيَكُونَ لِلْعَالَمِينَ نَذِيراً (1)} (الفرقان). وإنّ الإسلام سمّى فرائضه وأحكامه بالحدود؛ لأنّها قمّة الدقة والوضوح في الفصل بين الأمور. فهي كما قال القرطبي في تفسيره “تمنع أن يدخل فيها ما ليس منها، وأن يخرج منها ما هو منها”. قال تعالى: {تِلْكَ حُدُودُ اللَّهِ فَلا تَعْتَدُوهَا وَمَنْ يَتَعَدَّ حُدُودَ اللَّهِ فَأُوْلَئِكَ هُمْ الظَّالِمُونَ (229)} (البقرة). لذلك فالأصل في المسلمين أن يحافظوا على صفاء الثقافة الإسلامية ونقائها باجتناب ما من شأنه أن يكدّر هذا الصفاء فيؤدي إلى الخلط بين مفاهيم الإسلام والكفر أو بين الصدق والكذب.

(1) تفسير القرطبي، ج1 ص380

(2) التحرير والتنوير، ج1 ص470-472

(3) قذائف الحق، للشيخ محمد الغزالي، ص155

(4) الدعوة الإسلامية تستقبل قرنها الخامس عشر الهجري، للشيخ محمد الغزالي، ص119

(5) نقلا عن مفاهيم إسلامية، للدكتور محمد حسين عبد الله، ج2 ص4

(6) ينظر موسوعة المورد العربية، ج4 ص1050

DECONSTRUCTING ANTI-BLACKNESS IN ISLAM

by Shaykh Muhammad Shareef bin Farid

This false idea that Islam is inherently anti-black is a notion that has been made popular by modernist scholars and academics since the 19th century. It has long been weaponized by the enemies of Islam, as a means of prejudicing people of African against lslam. One of the most famous prophetic traditions that these pundits of colorism in Islam use to justify their misunderstanding, is the unbroken and successively transmitted traditions of the Prophet, upon him be peace where he said:

“Hear and obey even if there is placed over you an Abyssinian, whose head is like a dried raisin.”

This prophetic tradition was related six times by Imam al-Bukhari in his al-Jamee’ as-Saheeh; four times by Imam Muslim in his al-Jamee’ as-Saheeh and once by Imam at-Tirmidhi in his al-Jamee’ as-Shaheeh (also called the as-Sunnan). This prophetic tradition is thus, a sound and unbroken successive transmission (mutawaatir); which means that whoever rejects this prophetic tradition has in effect rejected an aspect of prophethood and has become disbeliever.

From the time that Imam al-Bukhari narrated this prophetic tradition there have been more than sixty-six commentaries by an intergenerational line of rights acting scholars. As for the Saheeh of Muslim there have been more than twenty-one commentaries on his stellar collection. As for Imam at-Tirmidhi, there have been more than eight commentaries on his work.

These commentaries start from the time of the above authors up until the period of the industrial age of the 18th century; so, this particular prophetic tradition was thoroughly examined by successive generations of scholars. In none of their commentaries did they insinuate, suggest or openly state that this prophetic tradition is a critique of “blackness’, and where you read a prejorative interpolation of this hadith, it is simply a projection of the racism or xenophobia of the author; not of the hadith or the Prophet, upon him be peace.

So, let’s unpack this prophetic tradition in order to assess whether it is indeed anti-black or racist. I will look at this prophetic tradition as it was related by Imam al-Bukhari, since I have sanad (chain of authority) in it and his al-Jamee as-Saheeh is considered by the consensus to be the soundest book after the Infallible Qur’an.

My teacher, the jurist Shaykh Muhammad al-Amin ibn Adam narrated to me with license; on the authority of his father Shaykh Adam Kari’angha ibn Muhammad Tukur; on the authority of Shaykh Mallam Musa al-Muhajir; on the authority of Shaykh Ali Dinba ibn Abi Bakr Mallami; on the authority of SHEHU

Uthman Dan Fodio; on the authority of his paternal and maternal uncle Shaykh Abu Muhammad al-Haj Muhammad ibn ar-Raj ibn Modibo ibn Hamm ibn Aal; on the authority of his teacher Abu’-Hassan as-Sindi al-Medini; on the authority of Shaykh Abdullah ibn Saalim al-Basri; on the authority of Shaykh Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Ala’d-Deen al-Balbili al-Misri; on the authority of Abu’n-Najaa Saalim ibn Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Ali al-Qeeti; on the authority of the Shaykh’l-Islam Abu Yahya Zayn’d-Deen Zakariyya ibn Muhammad al-Ansaari; on the authority Shihab’d-Deen Abu’l-Fadl Ahmad ibn Ali ibn Hajr al-Asqalani; on the authority of lbrahim ibn Ahmad at-Tanuukhi; on the authority of Abu’l-Abass Ahmad ibn Abi Talib al-Hijar; on the authority of as-Siraj al-Husayn al-Mubarak az-Zabidi al-Hanbali; on the authority of Abu’l Waqt Abd’-Awwal ‘Isa ibn Shu’ayb as-Sajzi al-Hawari; on the authority of Abu’l-Hassan Abd’r-Rahman ibn Madhfar ibn Dawud ad-Dawuudi; on the authority of Abu Muhammad Abdullah ibn Ahmad as-Sarakhsi; on the authority of Abu Abdallah Muhammad ibn Yusef ibn Matr ibn Salih al-Farabri; on the authority of the Amir’-Mu’mineen in the science of prophetic traditions Abu Abdallah Muhammad ibn Isma il ibn lbrahim ibn al-Mughira ibn Bardizba al-Bukhari al-Ja’afi; on the authority of Muhammad ibn Bashar; on the authority of Yahya; on the authority of Shu’ ba; on the authority of Abu at-Tiyaah; on the authority of Anas ibn Malik [93 A.H.] who said the Messenger of Allah may Allah bless him and grant him peace said:

“Hear and obey even if there is placed over you an Abyssinian, whose head is like a dried raisin.”

Imam lbn Hajr said in his Fat’h’l-Baari: “His words, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: ‘Hear and obey..’ means in those matters which there is obedience to Allah. His words, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: ‘… even if there is placed over you an Abyssinian’, means if he is placed Over you as a governor (aamil).

It is related in the al-Ahkaam on the authority of Musaddid on the authority of Yahya, that he, may Allah bless him and grant him peace said: ‘…even if there is placed over you an Abyssinian slave’. This expression is much clearer in expressing the meaning of the narrator.”

The scholars of the Sunna differ regarding the meaning of the expression ‘slave’. Some uphold that it actually refers to the acceptance of the authority of an actual enslaved individual or a prisoner of war, as a governor. However, this view is obscure, because one of the conditions of the ruler is that he be a freeman (hurr). Some of the scholars interpolate this expression to mean a person who was at once a slave, but was freed, distinguished himself and was then appointed as ruler.

This view is the majority opinion as was actually practiced during the early days of Islam, which prompted Umar ibn al-Khataab to ask the question: “Why have the freedmen superseded the Arabs in authority?” It was said: “It is because they are more knowledgeable of what is permitted and what is forbidden” He then said: “All praises are due to Allah who has elevated some people by means of this Qur’an and humiliated others by means of It.”

Umar ibn al-Khattab was referring to men like Ada ibn Abi Rabah, an ex-slave who ruled Mecca because of his superb erudition in lslam; Ta’us ibn Kaysan, an ex-slave, who ruled the Arabs of Yemen; Yazid ibn Abi Habib, an ex-slave, who ruled the people of Egypt; as well as Makhut al-Damasqi, a Nubian ex-slave, who ruled Syria. The ruler of Mesopotamia was an ex-slave named Maymun ibn Mahran; and the ruler of Basra was none other than the illustrious scholar and mystic al-Hassan ibn Abu’l-Hassan al-Basri also a descendant of freedmen.

All this occured within a short time after the time of Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace and it exemplified a pattern that would continue with the spread of Islam in Africa. The great Soninke/Turudbe ruler of the Songhay Empire, Amir’-Mu’mineen Askia Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr Ture’ was an ex-slave of the Sosso leader Sonni Ali. The trusted secretary of state of Askiya Muhammad, Ali Fulani, was an ex-slave who had distinguished himself by his erudition and piety among the scholars of Timbuktu.

Some of the scholars hold the opinion that the expression ‘slave’ is not speaking of the social status of the person but to the general attribute of ‘servitude’ to Allah (Abdallah), thus the meaning of the prophetic tradition being: ‘..even if there is placed over you an Abyssinian who is a servant of Allah, that is to say he is considered just and upright.’

Their evidence being what was related by Muslim on the authority of Umm al-Hissein that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace said: “Hear and obey even if there is placed over you a slave who compels you by the Book of Allah.”

In this tradition there is no referent indicating social status for the expression ‘slave’, but could mean ‘servant’ or ‘worshipper, as in Abdallah (the slave of Allah).

In these days of hyper-racism and ethnocentrisms, the above prophetic tradition could be interpolated to imply denigration of African people on the part of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. This view is far from the truth and is in fact a denigration of the Prophet himself, may Allah bless him and grant him peace because it lowers his status as a Prophet, by attributing unfounded prejudice and racism to him.

I myself questioned several shuyuukh on the meaning of this prophetic tradition and asked if it implied a natural inferiority to the Abyssinian or if it indicated some racial prejudice on the part of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace towards them.

Both Shaykh Faraj ‘t-Tayyib and Shaykh Dr. Abdallah at-Tayyib of Sudan, agreed that what the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace was highlighting was the prejudice of the Arabs themselves and was applying a remedial cure to it by ordering them to hear and obey a person that they deemed beneath them in status.

By doing so he was able to eradicate racial prejudice on their parts which is affirmed by the prophetic tradition: “The white is not superior to the black; nor is the Arab superior to the non Arab except by taqwa.”

My teacher, Shaykh Muhammad al-Amin ibn Adam confirmed this interpolation and added that the prophetic tradition is considered by the scholars to be one of the miraculous prophecies of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. He added that the conditional verbal particle ‘even if (in) in the prophetic tradition can be interpolated as a form of prophecy, like when a person is aware that the people in an assembly do not like people who wear red garments, and he was aware that a person wearing red garments would be entering the assembly and that this person should be followed in spite of their prejudice. He would say: “I advise you to hear and obey the next person that enters this assembly, even if he is wearing red garments.” And then suddenly a person wearing red garments enters the assembly.

This advice indicates that the speaker was aware that the people of the assembly were prejudiced against people wearing red garments, that such garments did not constitute a substandard quality in itself, and that a person wearing such garments could be the cause of benefit for the entire assembly. Thus, the speaker advises the assembly in such a manner as a prescriptive remedy for their unfounded chauvinism as well as informing them of what will transpire in the future.

Shaykh Muhammad al-Amin, rahimahu Allah, said that the prophetic tradition: “Hear and obey even if there is placed over you an Abyssinian, whose head is like a dried raisin” is a prescription against racism as well as a prophecy regarding the nature and character of the just Muslim rulers in the Last Days before the appearance of the Mahdi.

Shaykh Mahnud Ka’ti said in his Tarikh el-Fattash that the last of the Khulafa before the appearance of the Mahdi will be men of African origin. If we exclude the plebian origins of the Ottoman authorities and examine the character of the rulers of the Muslim lands just prior to the appearance of the Zaman ‘n-Nasaara (the Hour of the European Christians), most if not all of the just rulers were men of African origin.

Among them were Amir Muhammad ibn Abdallah ibn al-Hassan of Somalia; Amir Umar Tall ibn Sa’id of Segou and his vicegerents; Shekhou Ahmadu Lobbo of Hamdullahi and his vicegerents; Amir’l-Mumineen Shehu Uthman ibn Fuduye’ and his 12 vicegerents (including the author Sultan Muhammad Bello ibn Shehu Uthman); as well as those rulers who made the hijra to the east and settled in the Sudan, such as the descendants of Amir Umar Tall in Galadima and the present Amir l-Mu’mineen and Sultan of Maiurno, al-Haj Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad Tahir ibn Muhammad Bello Maiurno ibn Muhammad Attahiru ibn Ahmad Zaruku ibn Abu Bakr Atiku ibn Shehu Uthman ibn Fuduye’.

Thus, the prophetic tradition, far from being a chauvinistic assessment of African people, it is an affirmation of their humanity and a testament to the role they will play in the future establishment of Islam in the world. And Allah knows best.

Imam Ibn Hajr said that the meanings of his words, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: “..whose head is like a dried raisin’, it is said that this refers to smallness of the head because small heads is well known with the Abyssinians. It is also said that it refers to the blackness’ because most raisins when dried are black in color.

It is also said that it refers to the hair of the head and its resemblance to black pepper. One legal evidence which is drawn from this prophetic tradition, although contrary to the majority opinion is the validity of the imamate of a slave, if he is ordered to by obeyed, as Ibn Bataal said: ‘This is when it is ordered to perform the prayer behind him; since it is the Supreme Imam who either leads the prayer or appoints a representative (naib) to lead the prayer on his behalf.

It is well known that the Supreme Imam is specifically stipulated for a man from the Quraysh, if he can be found. Thus, when the Imam appoints a slave to lead the people in prayer, or appoints him over another sector of the government like collecting the obligatory alms or overseeing the preparation for war, it becomes obligatory to hear and obey him in that.

Our evidence for this and for the fact that this prophetic tradition was apart of the miraculous prophecies of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace is what was related by al-Hakim, al-Bayhaqi, Muslim and others that when Abu Dharr was exiled to Rabaada, he found the people establishing one of the prescribed prayers and was being led by a slave. It was said: ‘That is Abu Dharr, step back and let him lead. Then Abu Dharr said: ‘Verily my bosom friend, may Allah bless him and grant him peace advised me to hear and obey even if it is to an Abyssinian slave with mutilated limbs of the body'”

Thus, Abu Dharr establishes that the
objective of the prophetic tradition was to validate the authority and leadership of a slave if he is appointed by a ruler; and as prophetic miracle of the Prophets, knowledge of future events.

The words of the Messenger of Allah, mnay Allah bless him and grant him peace:

“Hear and obey even if there is placed over you an Abyssinian, whose head is like a dried raisin”; is a clear indictment of Arab xenophobia. The Messenger of Allah, is letting his followers know that he is aware of their racism and he calls them out on it; by declaring that leadership and sovereignty is not based upon ethnicity or race. It is also a prophecy about the nature of Islamic sovereignty in the future.

I believe that any African who reads this prophetic tradition as a denigrating of his Blackness of Africanity is projecting their own cognitive dissonance resulting from centuries of white supremacist domestic colonization.

African Muslim scholars and sages who had a healthy sense of historical consciousness never extracted from this prophetic tradition, any idea of denigration or prejudice. On the contrary, they saw this prophetic tradition as an affirmation of their Africanity and their right to sovereignty. In this prophetic tradition, our master Muhammad, upon him be the best blessings and peace, basically came in on the side of Blackness and Africanity against the xenophobia of the Arabs and others against Blacks.

So be proud of being an Abyssinian whose head is like a raisin; they have been destined to independent sovereignty, as the Messenger of Allah foretold!

Pagan origin of the Shia Ritual of Maatam (Self-Flagellation)

Typically, flogging is imposed on an unwilling subject as a punishment; however, it can also be submitted willingly for sadomasochistic pleasure, or performed on oneself, in religious or sadomasochistic contexts. This article will deal with the link between self-flagellation in Shi’ism and Christianity, particularly in Catholic societies.

Native American sun dances have sometimes involved piercing and suspension by flesh and some esoteric and mystic Sufi orders also practice various forms of self-flagellation.

Back in 1530, the Whipping Act was brought about in England which allowed for the whipping of thieves, blasphemers, poachers, and those who committed a crime or an offense, as well as those who were deemed insane.

Self-flagellation is the disciplinary and devotional practice of flogging oneself with whips or other instruments that inflict pain. In Sunni Islam, this vile savagery paganism is strictly forbidden (just like the depiction of saints is), not so in the Rafidi religion, in fact, various forms of self-flagellation have become an integral part of religious Shia rituals throughout the year, especially in the month of Muharram.

Self-flagellation rituals are said to be first found practiced among the members of several Greco- Roman and Egyptian cults and the Sparta Arthemis Orthia. The cult of Isis in Egypt and the Dionysian cult of Greece practiced flagellation. Women were flogged during the Roman Lupercalia to ensure fertility.

There is a view that flagellants experience altered states of mind because of the endorphins that are released during extreme pain, a view that gives also an explanation to sadomasochism.

Today, the main religions that practice self-flagellation include Christianity, Hinduism, and, of course, Imamism (Twelver Rafidi Shi’ism). The ritual has also been practiced among members of several Mediterranean cults, like Egyptian and Roman.

Self-flagellation In Christianity

Self-punishment in the form of self-flagellation known as the mortification of the flesh in Christianity has its origins in fourth-century Europe and was a common practice until the medieval era. The Roman Catholic Church has often held mortification of the flesh (literally, ‘putting the flesh to death’ by practicing fasting, abstinence, as well as pious kneeling, self-flagellation, etc.), as a worthy spiritual discipline.

Mortification of the flesh is undertaken in order to repent for sins and share in the Passion of Jesus and the imitation of his suffering and death by alleged crucifixion, similar to how self-flagellation is understood in Shi’ism as a means to imitate saint Hussain in bleeding and to share some of his pain.

The Catholic Church has a long history of self-punishment and asceticism, and self-flagellation was just one of the many acceptable forms of penance. In addition to atoning for personal sins, there was a belief during the Middle Ages that economic and social struggles were a sign that God was unhappy and mankind needed to make amends.

Some Christians have made a great show of self-abuse. The Flagellants were a famous Catholic group that in the 13^th century began marching around Europe, staging processions that included whipping themselves. The Pope banned the movement in 1261, and later popes cracked down on them as heretics. In the early 15^thcentury, the Spanish Inquisition burned many Flagellants at the stake.

The outbreak of the Black Death in 1347 led to a mass resurgence of flagellants. Pope Clement VI is known to have permitted it for this purpose in 1348 and Martin Luther, the Protestant Reformer, regularly practiced self-flagellation as a means of mortification of the flesh.

According to medieval chronicler Robert of Avesby, hundreds of flagellants made their way to England in 1349 where he described, they formed a mostly-naked mob as they whipped, chanted, and prostrated themselves in a systematic fashion:

‘Four of them would chant in their native tongue and another four would chant in response like a litany. Thrice they would all cast themselves on the ground in this sort of procession, stretching out their hands like the arms of a cross. The singing would go on and, the one who was in the rear of those thus prostrate acting first, each of them in turn would step over the others and give one stroke with his scourge to the man lying under him.’

The Catholic Church does not officially sanction self-flagellation. But some Popes have spoken favorably of it, and passages of the New Testament have been interpreted as approving of the practice and thus self-flagellation remains common in many Catholic countries such as Colombia, the Philippines, Mexico, Spain, and Italy.

Devout Catholics have practiced mild self-flagellation for centuries, often with a simple belt but sometimes using the cat-tailed whip known as a ‘discipline.’ Although the practice has become rare since the Vatican II reforms in the 1960s, and it’s rarely discussed in public, it is still vividly practiced in many Catholic countries.

Self-flagellation Rites In Spain

As mentioned, the practice of flagellation was widespread among monastic orders in medieval times in Europe, including in Spain. It spread steadily to the laity as well, where brotherhoods of penitents were formed among the craft guilds. In the early 1400’s Franciscan monks took to processing through the streets of Seville flagellating themselves during holy week in penance. So by the early 1500s flagellating processions of penitents were well institutionalised by the Church.

Holy Week in Spain is the annual tribute of the Passion of Jesus Christ celebrated by Catholic religious brotherhoods and fraternities that perform penance processions on the streets of almost every Spanish city and town during the last week of Lent, the week immediately before Easter.

The passion of Christ as the Church calls it has been turned into an annual show of bizarre rituals (self-flagellation, theatrical play and re-enactments, exactly like in Shi’ism) which have evolved over centuries.

One of the very potent rituals that evolved was the ‘stations of the cross’, the ‘via crucis’. This sequence of 14 events, is supposedly based on the real passage of Jesus’ route to Calvary through the streets of Jerusalem. Catholics everywhere still parade and venerate fourteen different images of this journey to execution, whether it is in the parish church, or, as in many Spanish towns, the icons are scattered around the town itself. A Semana

Self-flagellation Rites In Italy

Gruesome and sadomasochistic self-punishments rituals are conducted in the name of Jesus (peace be upon him) on an annual basis in parts of Italy (due to Spain’s influence). One disturbing and macabre procession (not less disturbing than Shia ones) is conducted each year the religious festival, known as the Riti Settennali di Penitenza (Rites of Penance every Seven Years) which commemorates the discovery of a Madonna and Child statue (idol) in a field hundreds of years ago. Similar processions are conducted annually on the occasion of Easter time.

Self-flagellation Rites In Mexico

The South Americans have inherited the paganism and savagery of the Europeans in the name of ‘loving and following Jesus’.

Each year, throngs of Catholic faithful descend on Mexico’s colonial city of Taxco, some 112 miles south of Mexico city with whips and thorns for a graphic procession commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus.

Self-flagellation Rites In The Philippines

Each year, some streets of the Philipines are speckled with blood. On every Good Friday, The flagellants, who often cover their faces with red or black cloth, beat their bodies with chains and whips in remembrance of the suffering of Jesus Christ (peace be upon him).

Penitents are also willingly flogged by others and crucified in imitation of Jesus Christ’s suffering and death, while related practices include carrying wooden crosses, crawling on rough pavement, and other disturbing rituals.

Self-Flagellation is practiced in many pagan religions and societies. Hindus have a number of self-punishment rituals and festivals such as Garudan Thookkam and Thaipusam. Garudan Thookam is one of the traditional festivals that are celebrated in Kerala. It is a very strange tradition that is still believed and performed with great spiritual and religious beliefs. According to this festival, people hang hooks unto the back of their bodies and hang themselves down horizontally from a shaft.
The history behind attempting to do such strange activity is that goddess Kali killed the Demon Darika and after that, she was extremely thirsty and was not able to quench her thirst, as a result, Lord Vishnu sent her Garuda which is an eagle to quench the thirst of Goddess Kali but she was not able to quench her thirst until she drank the bleeding blood of Garuda. Hence in order to pray, people hang themselves from hooks, the hooks are pierced unto the back of their skin then these are taken out for the procession in the vehicles. They also dress like Garuda and perform different dance forms.

Thaipusam or Thaipoosam is a festival celebrated by the Tamil Hindu community on the full moon in the Tamil month of Thai(January/February), usually coinciding with Pushya star, known as Poosam in Tamil or Pooyam in Malayalam. The festival is also observed among Keralites and is vernacularly called Thaipooyam.

The Thaipusam festival includes a ritual known as Kavadi Attam (‘kavadi dance’) in which people pierce their bodies with skewers and hooks in honour of Murugan (Hindu god of war, brother of Ganesha, and son of Shiva).

The devotee makes the pilgrimage (the nadai payanam) with bare feet, bearing food offerings on the kavadi. Depending on the location of the temple, this walk to the temple can take more than a week (similar to Shia Arbaeen walks). The temple of Murugan in Palani is a popular destination, as it is one among the arupadai veedu(“six houses” – the sites sacred to Murugan). The Palani Murugan temple also has a reputation as a place of healing.

Thaipusam Festival of Hindus is celebrated remembering the occasion that the son of Lord Shiva and Parvati, Kumaraswamy killed asura Surapadma. This Thaipusam festival celebration is seen along with the Tamil Nadu region of South India…And this festival is celebrated mostly in countries such as Sri Lankan Tamils, Indonesia, Singapore, Malasia, and Thailand.

The disturbed mushriks pierce their body with spears, hooks, and inflicted all sorts of pain on themselves.

There are many more examples of pagan self-flagellation rituals in various pagan beliefs and cultures. Ji-Tong (Dangki) is yet another disturbing pagan ancient Chinese (Taoist) self-punishment ritual still practiced in Taiwan that could be mistaken for Ashura rituals in Karbala if it wasn’t for the Chinese facial features of its practitioners.

Ji Tong 乩童 (aka Tong Ji 童乩 or Tang-ki in Taiwanese), is a rarely seen event of old Taiwanese religious belief. It’s a type of shamanism, where the “spirit-medium” human is possessed by the spirit of a god. After doing so, the god can live for a short while in the body of the medium to prove his existence or even answer questions to the benefit of believers. The more visually interesting aspect of Ji Tong is when the ‘gods’ allegedly take possession at a temple festival. That’s when the spirit-medium often starts self-flagellating himself with spiked bats, swords, and other medieval pain and blood inflicting devices.

Self-flagellation Rites In Sufism

Sufism, has a long history in the Kurdistan Region. There are four main tariqas: Qadiri, Naqshbandi, Chishti, and Suhrawardi (admin note: for the historical perspective on the insertion of Shirkiyyah influences into Sufi tariqahs, please read my book: The Corruption of Sufism – An Historical Overview) . All of them are known for bizarre rituals and excessive saint veneration (just like in Shi’ism). Some extreme forms of Sufism are even known for their bizarre self-flagellation rituals that are yet again strikingly similar to those in Shi’ism.

Each year in spring in the Kurdistan regions of Iraq and Iran, thousands of followers of the Qadiriyyah Sufi sect gather for a traditional religious ceremony and pierce their tongues and cut themselves with swords.

Similar grotesque rituals can be found in other countries, from Albania to India, wherever you find heretical forms of Sufism you will find some forms of bizarre Shi’ite-like rituals.

Shiite rituals were brought into the Balkans in the 15th century during the Ottoman invasion (who like all fake Sufis had Shia tendencies) in the town of Prizren in Kosovo.

Members of the Rifa’i Sufi tariqah (order) celebrate Nowruz with a ritual that lasts hours and is extremely exacting. The followers must go through a great test of physical and mental exertion.
The dervishes pray, dance and sing and try to attain a state of trance. At the culmination of the ritual, the feats of Fakirism take place. Whilst some of the dervishes play and sing, their leader takes long skewers and begins to pierce the mouths of the dervishes who willingly undergo this test, beginning with the children. The older dervishes, the braver and more expert, are pierced with a real sword. A blade is placed on their throat and the shaikh climbs on top of it.
To further east we go, the crazier these satanic rituals get.
At India’s largest Sufi festival, thousands gather at Ajmer for the annual ‘Urs festival commemorating the death of Moinuddin Chishti, also known by Sufis (who invoke him for their needs in their prayers) as ‘Gharib Nawaz’ (Benefactor of The Poor).
The Sufis can be seen performing eye-popping rituals, self-flagellation, and pulling metal wires through their cheeks. Men are believed to perform the grisly acts of self-torture as acts of devotion to the saint. Indian Eunuchs dance at the procession and are an integral part of the festival.

His shrine has become a pilgrimage destination for millions of people. Each year swarms of pilgrims from various parts of India and the world descend upon the lake town in Rajasthan state to celebrate the life of the famous saint and founder of the Chishti order of Sufism.

During the week-long festival, devotees offer prayers, flowers, food, money, and other donations at the shrine where the tomb of Saint Moinuddin Chishti lies.

Self-flagellation Rites In Shi’ism

Christian-like passion plays and re-enactments (that also have a history in Zoroastrian methodology) and self-flagellation rituals as found in other pagan religions and societies have become and an intrinsic part of religious Shia culture.

Although not all Shias practice extreme forms of self-harming and Self-flagellation rituals such as Tatbir/Qameh Zani (the striking of one’s head with blades, swords, knives, etc.) or Zanjeer Zani with blades (repeatedly striking the back with a chain of blades), yet a number of major ‘Ayatollahs’ of Qom, Iran, do sanctify, condone and encourage extreme self-harming rituals, even on infants!

And whether it includes bloodletting or not, whipping oneself with chains (as done in many regions of Iran) is a pagan heresy unknown to Islam, brought to Iran by the Safavids who copied it from the Christians and spread it to the rest of the Shia communities from Iraq to the Indian Subcontinent.

In the 16th-century the (anti-Sunni) Iranian Safavids established Twelver Shi‘ism as the official religion of Iran and forcefully converted its predominantly Sunni population to Twelver Shi‘ism. As perfect allies of the West, the Safavids forged an alliance with Catholic Europe, Portugal, Venice, and the Habsburg Empire, which saw an affinity between Catholicism and Shi‘ism against the Ottomans and Sunni Islam in general.

Self-flagellation rituals were unknown to the Arabs (in the jahiliyyah, excessive wailing rituals were conducted by the womenfolk) and Muslims and were popularised by Twelver Rafidi Shia Safavids who adopted it from the Catholic Church as Flagellantism was common in Christian Europe during that era.

The Safavids fostered the mourning rituals of Ashura by adopting the heresies of the Christians that are alien to Islam, yet have become an integral part (whether in bloody or non-bloody form) of Twelver Shia religious culture.

Not a single companion or family member of the Prophet () had ever ritualised excessive mourning ceremonies, let annual alone pre-planned self-flagellation rituals.

True, as Muslims we do not reject everything non-Muslims do and believe on the basis that they are non-Muslims. That would be a logical fallacy. For example, we agree with Jews and Christians that Prophet Abraham was a righteous man and Prophet of God and that the Day of Judgement is true. However, we do not agree with them (let alone with other non-Muslims) on matters that have not been sanctified and condoned by Islam. Excessive mourning, especially in the form of self-flagellation is not just alien to Islam but severely condemned by the Prophet (), his family, and companions. It’s the Sunnah of the pagan polytheists, not the Sunnah that we know in Islam.

In fact, there is no doubt that the excessive mourning rituals are satanic. Yes, millions have been deceived in seeing in evil ‘good’ and ‘spirituality and ‘devotion’ but it doesn’t change the fact that they have been deceived; what they perceive to be good is in reality evil and of demonic nature, evil deeds which Shaytan (Satan) has beautified for the misguided.

{Satan made their foul deeds seem alluring to them and barred them from the right way, though they were capable of seeing.} [Qur’an, 29:38]

May Allah guide the deceived Shia masses to the truth.

By Ebn Hussein

Are Afghans Fleeing In Terror From The Taliban?

By brother Umar Rumi

As is being shown by the crazy footage from Kabul airport, there is quite a commotion caused by some people trying to leave Afghanistan.

These images (together with totally unproven reports of totally improbable crimes filled of “it’s being said, there are voices..”) are being used by anti-Taliban, anti-Shari`ah and anti-Islamic propagandists to propagate more hysteria under the banner of worn-out idea that the average Afghan are in absolute dread of “Taliban tiranny” and are trying to escape from their rule.

But if we analyse who is actually trying to leave the country, and why, a very different picture will emerge.

We can individuate a few different groups with different motivations:

-the members of the past administration, filled with entitled “diaspora Afghans” (children of ex-communists who after the Soviet retreat had fled to ..the West), who came to loot their grandparents country and spread fahsha under the name of “cultural and artistic projects” by western NGOs, while speaking broken Dari/Pashto and detesting the local culture, and as quickly as they came as vultures, as quickly are fleeing back to the west with their double nationality now that the party is over, and who are being caught with luggages full of dollars stolen from the Afghan nation.

-thieves, drug traffickers, rapists and other criminals, who are the only one to fear from Shari`ah.

-random “punks”, as they have been aptly defined in some reports, who heard some purportedly-spread voices about western countries organising free flights to take people without visa to the “Mighty western countries or milk and honey” (very likely shared on purpose to have more people amassed and showing how “OMG people are so desperate trying to escape from the darkness!”).

Unfortunately the “mighty west” exerts an extremely powerful tool over non-Westerners (even included non-Muslim countries), such that basically the lifedream of a huge part of world population is to be able to live in the west whose prosperity and merits are vastly exaggerated (ever heard about the famous wall that Trump wanted to build on the Mexican border? Well, there are no Taliban in Mexico or Southern America.

So, take any non-Western country, spread a voice that people will be just taken for free and without visa to UK/Canada/USA, and you’ll see the same scenario repeating as we have seen in Kabul airport.
Nothing about Taliban.

And in fact, hasn’t the same been happening across the Mediterranean, with dozens of thousands of people trying to reach Europe on boats (and thousands dying in the way, undergoing rape and torture, etc)?
Yet, there is no war or “Taliban menace” in Bangladesh, Tunisia, Morocco (countries of origin of many of such immigrants).

Going back to Afghanistan: Afghans have been emigrating for decades already, with literally millions of Afghans living in Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Germany, where they have been fleeing from the decades-old continuous war, and trying to find job to sustain their families back in Afghanistan.

It’s not something which has started last week with the supposed “fleeing from Taliban/Shari`ah”, yet that’s exactly what they’re trying to show, as if it was something new and purely motivated by fear and terror

Now, add to this decades-old phenomenon purposely-spread voices of “free flights to the West without visa” (and a bunch of traitors and looters trying to flee from their responsibilities in enabling 20 years of foreign occupation) and you will naturally get what we’ve seen yesterday.

Hiroshima & Nagasaki: Secularism Failing Humanity

Note: This is an old article shared here from 2010.

By Hamza Tzortzis

Last Friday (6th August 2010) marked the 65th anniversary of the slaughter of 220,000 innocent human beings from the first atomic bombs in history. The bombs landed in Japan, destroying the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This cowardly act has remained symbolic of secular regimes’ modus operandi in trying to achieve their foreign policy goals. The outdated political cliché, as expressed by Lord Louis Mountbatten, “if the bomb kills Japanese and saves casualties on our side I am naturally not going to favour the killing our people unnecessarily…” must now stand to scrutiny as it obviously avoids the fact that Japanese soldiers were largely murdering soldiers, while American soldiers were largely murdering Japanese civilians.

This is no different to the massacres in Fallujah where the American army decided to use white phosphorous on the civilian population, and let us not forget the stealth nuclear war in the region due to the depleted uranium bombs which created uranium dust in the atmosphere, subsequently effecting the region’s population for decades.

We have all seen the pictures of deformities and the anguish of mothers not knowing where and how to breastfeed their children as they couldn’t recognise or find the innocent baby’s mouth. In spite of this secular foreign policy, there is another policy of ‘desensitising’ by using cold abstract words like “collateral damage”. So why does this happen? Why do secular regimes have a repeated history of slaughter and murder, cowardly wiping out civilian populations when their military objectives seem distant and unobtainable? The answer lies in the concept of a worldview.

A worldview is a philosophy of living that enables us to make sense of life and our daily experiences. The worldview we adopt affects the way we process ideas, and allows us to understand society and our place in it. A worldview is important especially in our society today – this is because the contemporary world has had a huge effect on human psychology. We seem unable to deal with the unpredictable changes and increased complexity of life – subsequently stress, uncertainty and frustration become common and our minds are overloaded with information. A worldview is the framework that ties all of this together, and allows us to understand life’s complexity and unpredictability, it helps us make the critical decisions that will shape our future and our own selves, and it aids us in providing a picture of the whole. Worldviews vary and can range from being shallow to comprehensive.

A shallow worldview is one that just gives us the framework to react to day-to-day experiences, such as work and friendships. This type of worldview is usually formed via our previous experiences in life and it develops by creating templates of understanding the world from our history with it. This type of worldview is problematic as it makes us stuck in the past with no possibility of viewing the world in a positive or different way that will enable our transformation. It is limited in its scope as it becomes only as comprehensive as your experiences, and individually our experiences are every limited.

A comprehensive worldview, as discussed by the philosopher LeoApostel, encompasses everything in life and it includes various components. For instance, it provides a model for the world by answering the basic question “who are we?” In addition it provides an explanation usually answering “why is the world the way it is?” and “where did we come from?” Another important part of a comprehensive worldview includes extrapolating from the past into the future to answer the question “where are we going?” It should also answer “what is good and what is evil?” In other words, to include morality and ethics, while giving us a sense of purpose, direction and goals for our actions. Additionally, the answer to the question “what for?” may help us to understand the real meaning of life and a comprehensive worldview must answer “how should we act?” thereby helping us to solve practical problems. Lastly a comprehensive worldview should answer the question “what is true and what is false?”, this is equivalent to what in philosophy is called “epistemology” or “the theory of knowledge”, therefore it would allow us to distinguish between what is correct and what is incorrect.

The slaughter of innocent civilians in Hiroshima and Nagasaki are practical examples of how worldviews affect our outlook on life. The secular worldview views nationalism and self preservation as key values, in addition to the fact that, according the secularist, human beings have no purpose other than the one we make for ourselves. So from this worldview the senseless killing of hundreds can be justified. In contrast to this, the Islamic worldview perceives the fulfilment of our purpose for existence as a key value – which is to worship God and therefore be moral. Therefore someone adopting the Islamic worldview would argue: that if our existence is to worship God and in order to preserve our existence we have to break our purpose for existing, then what is the point of our existence in the first place? In other words the killing of innocent lives en mass could never be justified. As the companion of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said, which can be found in the hadith collection of Imam Malik’s Muwatta in the Book of Jihad,

“I advise you ten things: Do not kill women or children or an aged, infirm person. Do not cut down fruit-bearing trees. Do not destroy an inhabited place. Do not slaughter sheep or camels except for food. Do not burn bees and do not scatter them. Do not steal from the booty, and do not be cowardly.”

In light of above it can be seen why the secular regimes destroy humanity in order to ‘preserve’ humanity. Something that deservedly should be called the ‘humanity of inhumanity’ – in other words the paradox of the secular worldview.

Sheikh Jarrah Expulsions

Palestinian families reject court proposal to stay in homes as ‘protected tenants’ if they recognise Israeli ownership.

Israel’s Supreme Court adjourned an appeal from four Palestinian families against their forced expulsion from the Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood in occupied East Jerusalem, as the families say they have rejected a court proposal for them to stay as “protected tenants” but recognise Israeli ownership.

The cases examined on Monday involved four Palestinian families, numbering a total of about 70 people.

Lower Israeli courts have approved the expulsions of the four families to make way for Jewish settlers. They ruled that their houses were built on land owned by Jews before Israel was established in 1948.

But weighing a last-ditch appeal from the residents, the court suggested a deal that would give them status as “protected tenants” who would recognise Israeli ownership of the homes and pay a symbolic annual rent, but they refused.

Justice Isaac Amit called for further documentation and said, “We will publish a decision later,” but did not set a date.

Al Jazeera’s Hoda Abdel-Hamid, reporting from the court in West Jerusalem, said the judge offered the Palestinian families the option to sign a document stating that the land belongs to the Jewish settlers.

“In return, they have guaranteed rent in that house for the next three generations,” Abdel-Hamid said.

Palestinian resident of Sheikh Jarrah, Nabeel al-Kurd, centre, arrives at the hearing on possible forced expulsions of Palestinian families at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem [Maya Alleruzzo/AP]

“They placed a lot of pressure on us to reach an agreement with the Israeli settlers in which we would be renting from the settler organisations,” said Muhammad al-Kurd, from one of four Palestinian families at the heart of the case.

“Of course, this is rejected,” he said.

Sami Ershied, a lawyer representing the Palestinian families, also told Al Jazeera that the proposal was unacceptable.

“So far, we did not hear an offer that was fair enough and preserves the rights of residents. Therefore, we did not reach any compromise,” Ershied said.

Still, he said the hearing was “a good step forward”.

“The judges indicated that they will invite us for a second hearing. They did not reject our appeal yet; this is a good indication,” he said.

“We hope that the judges will continue listening to our arguments and take into consideration all the new details we’ve submitted and at the end of the day, conclude in favour of the residents of Sheikh Jarrah,” he said.

Ershied added that the court will decide when to schedule the next hearing, and that it could be held in a matter of weeks or months.

Long legal battle

The Supreme Court had been scheduled to issue a ruling in May, but it delayed its decision after the attorney general requested more time to consider the cases.

The threatened expulsions fuelled protests that met a harsh crackdown by Israeli security forces in April and May and pose a test for Israel’s new governing coalition, which includes three pro-settlement parties and a small party representing Palestinian citizens of Israel. For the sake of unity, the government has tried to sideline Palestinian issues to avoid internal divisions.

Weeks of unrest – highlighted by heavy-handed Israeli police tactics against residents and demonstrators who supported them – captured international attention before the 11-day Israeli bombardment of the besieged Gaza Strip in May.

A ceasefire took effect on May 21, but the long-running campaign by Jewish settlers to evict dozens of Palestinian families has continued.

The settlers have been waging a decades-long campaign to expel the families from densely populated Palestinian neighbourhoods just outside the walls of the Old City, in one of the most sensitive parts of occupied East Jerusalem.

The settlers have claimed the homes are built on land that was owned by Jews prior to the 1948 war surrounding Israel’s creation. Israeli law allows Jews to reclaim such property, a right denied to Palestinians who lost lands and homes in the same conflict.

Jordan controlled East Jerusalem from 1948 to 1967. The families, who were made refugees during the 1948 war, have said that Jordanian authorities offered them their homes in exchange for giving up their refugee status.

Israel occupied East Jerusalem, along with the West Bank and Gaza, in 1967 and annexed it in a move not recognised internationally. The two-state solution laid out by the 1993 Oslo Accords envisioned the three areas as part of a Palestinian state.

In 1972, settler groups told the families that they were trespassing on Jewish-owned land. That was the start of a long legal battle that in recent months has culminated with expulsion orders against 36 families in Sheikh Jarrah and two other neighbourhoods in occupied East Jerusalem.

Rights groups said other families are also vulnerable, estimating that more than 1,000 Palestinians are at risk of being evicted.

“Whatever the judge rules for both the settlers and the Palestinian families is going to set the tone for what happens next,” Abdel-Hamid said.

Aljazeera

Islamising Pagan New Year Resolutions

By Mawlana Sulayman Kindi

عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ الْخُدْرِيِّ، قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏”‏ لَتَتَّبِعُنَّ سَنَنَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ شِبْرًا بِشِبْرٍ وَذِرَاعًا بِذِرَاعٍ حَتَّى لَوْ دَخَلُوا فِي جُحْرِ ضَبٍّ لاَتَّبَعْتُمُوهُمْ ‏”‏ ‏.‏ قُلْنَا يَا رَسُولَ الله آلْيَهُودَ وَالنَّصَارَى قَالَ ‏”‏ فَمَنْ

ʾAbū Saʿīd ʾal-Khudrī (may Allāh be pleased with him) narrated:

Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ said, “You will most certainly follow the Sunan (ways) of those before you, handspan by handspan, armlength by armlength until if they should enter a lizard hole you would definitely follow them.”

“O Messenger of Allāh,” we asked, “The Jews and the Christians?”

“Who else,” he replied.

Muslim

As we approach the Islāmic year 1443 there are those who seek to push us ever further into the lizard hole. If our heads are not already squeezed in, these kind folks would push us in all the way to the toes.

Significance of Muḥarram

1^st Muḥarram heralds a new Islamic year for our dating purposes. This is significant in itself.

Furthermore that date is the first day of a month in which fasting is greater than any month other than Ramaḍān. [Muslim]

The tenth of the month is also of added significance, and I assume that that does not need elucidation.

Beyond these basics, Allāh and His Messenger ﷺ has not prescribed any specific deed and importance to “New Year’s Day”. Festivities and celebrating of a new year have no origin in our Sharīʿah. It is the way of “those before you” and “those before you” were not original in this, but were walking in the footsteps of the pagans before them.

Muslim laity might engage in “Islamic” New Year activities, but at least they do not pretend it is some command of Allāh and His Messenger ﷺ. Of greater concern is when Muslim celebrities/ popstars / entertainers / scholars (the distinction becomes ever more vague in our times) seek to promote their fame amongst Muslims and ingratiate themselves amongst non-Muslims by pushing us ever deeper into the lizard hole. Thus amongst their arsenal of tricks is painting an Islamic veneer over the pagan concept of New Year Resolutions.

Origin Of New Year’s Resolutions

I shall gladly retract if our entertainer-scholars can present a single narration, however weak, that Allāh’s Messenger ﷺ promoted special acts to 1^stMuḥarram which can justify their media blitz of New Year Resolutions. Even his teaching us to fast, is general for the month, not specific to the day.

Failing this, can they provide the statement of any significant scholar of the pre-colonial period as the origin of their lizard hole fad? I aver that they cannot. For Muḥammad ﷺ and those who sincerely walk in his footsteps do not teach us the ways of the pagans. New Year Resolutions originate with the pagan Babylonians and Romans and reached us through the western colonialists who still colonise the minds of many Muslims – including the educated (in both secular and religious sciences).

The ancient Babylonians are said to have been the first people to make New Year’s resolutions, some 4,000 years ago. They were also the first to hold recorded celebrations in honor of the new year—though for them the year began not in January but in mid-March, when the crops were planted. During a massive 12-day religious festival known as Akitu, the Babylonians crowned a new king or reaffirmed their loyalty to the reigning king. They also made promises to the gods to pay their debts and return any objects they had borrowed. These promises could be considered the forerunners of our New Year’s resolutions. If the Babylonians kept to their word, their (pagan) gods would bestow favor on them for the coming year. If not, they would fall out of the gods’ favor—a place no one wanted to be.

A similar practice occurred in ancient Rome, after the reform-minded emperor Julius Caesar tinkered with the calendar and established January 1 as the beginning of the new year circa 46 B.C. Named for Janus, the two-faced god whose spirit inhabited doorways and arches, January had special significance for the Romans. Believing that Janus symbolically looked backwards into the previous year and ahead into the future, the Romans offered sacrifices to the deity and made promises of good conduct for the coming year.

For early Christians, the first day of the new year became the traditional occasion for thinking about one’s past mistakes and resolving to do and be better in the future. In 1740, the English clergyman John Wesley, founder of Methodism, created the Covenant Renewal Service, most commonly held on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day. Also known as known as watch night services, they included readings from Scriptures and hymn singing, and served as a spiritual alternative to the raucous celebrations normally held to celebrate the coming of the new year. Now popular within evangelical Protestant churches, especially African American denominations and congregations, watch night services held on New Year’s Eve are often spent praying and making resolutions for the coming year.

https://www.history.com/news/the-history-of-new-years-resolutions

Imitation

So what’s the big deal? Am I just bored and looking for problems? Granted that New Year’s Resolutions will not sink the ship of Islām. However, the phenomenon is symptomatic of greater diseases which we face. Turning our religion into entertainment, seeking the pleasure of the enemies of Allāh, and insincerity of our leaders are but a few related issues which any sincere Muslim should be concerned about.

Of singular significance is the fact that the prohibition of imitating non-Muslims in our religious affairs is becoming an ever more unheard-of topic. The discussion has so disappeared from amongst us, that here I do not have to cite the entertainer scholars, but must confess that I too share guilt in this matter. Our predecessors paid heed to every utterance of Muḥammad ﷺ, including the following narration of ʿAbdullāh bin ʿUmar (may Allāh be pleased with him):

مَنْ تَشَبَّهَ بِقَوْمٍ, فَهُوَ مِنْهُمْ

He who imitates a people is of them.

ʾAbū Dāwūd

Note that the Ḥadīth of ʾAbū Saʿīd ʾal-Khudrī (may Allāh be pleased with him) at the beginning of this article uses the word Sunan (plural of Sunnah) in describing the ways others. A believer is thus presented with a choice between the Sunnah of Muḥammad ﷺ and that of others. The choice is yours. You will win or lose. Choose correctly.

Do We Have Resolutions?

Muslims do in fact resolve to better themselves and avoid what is negative. We do not have a prescribed day for this, because it is something we should do daily, not once a year. Unlike the entertainer-scholars, our spiritual masters have bases for this teaching. For example, ʿUmar bin ʾal-Khaṭṭāb (may Allāh be pleased with him) said:

حَاسِبُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ قَبْلَ أَنْ تُحَاسَبُوا وَزِنُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ قَبْلَ أَنْ تُوزَنُوا فَإِنَّهُ أَهْوَنُ عَلَيْكُمْ فِي الْحِسَابِ غَدًا أَنْ تُحَاسِبُوا أَنْفُسَكُمُ الْيَوْمَ

Take account of yourselves before your accounting is taken. Weigh your (deeds) before you are weighed. There will be a lighter accounting for yourselves tomorrow, should you rather (start) accounting yourself today.

Muḥāsabah ʾan-Nafs li ʾIbn ʿAbī ʾad-Dunyā

Should the entertainers argue that they are but making the best of a bad situation, then why do they not teach daily reckoning instead? Less entertaining? Less exciting?

May Allāh grant us sincerity and every form of success.

All Actions are by Intention

By Jamiatul Ulama Gauteng

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

We begin, aptly, with the following hadith:

On the authority of the Commander of the Faithful Abu Hafs Umar ibn al-Khattaab رضي الله عنه who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saying, “Surely, all actions are but driven by intentions and, verily, every man shall have but that which he intended. Thus, he whose migration was for Allah and His Messenger, then his migration was for Allah and His Messenger; and he whose migration was to achieve some worldly benefit or to take a woman in marriage, his migration was for that which he migrated.”(Bukhari and Muslim)

To begin:

“Surely, all actions are but driven by intentions and verily, every man shall have but that which he intended.”

This hadith is one of the comprehensive hadiths of the Prophet صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّم. It touches upon every deed of Islam, and encompasses all of the affairs of the Hereafter in one sentence.

The basis of any good deed is sincerity in pleasing Allah. If we lack this intention an act may appear ‘good’ but it will be devoid of true meaning and therefore reward. If we are seeking Allah’s pleasure, we need to have the intention of pleasing Him, but we also need to be sure that our action is in line with the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and the Shareeah.

The beauty here is that this hadith can refer to any action, no matter how simple. So for example, even washing the dishes, with the intention of pleasing Allah by looking after our families, can earn us reward.

If, before going to sleep you make wudhu and the intention to rest so that you can get up and worship Allah, EVEN YOUR SLEEP can earn you reward with Allah. Imagine, a third of your life is taken up with sleep but with the right intention you can make this earn you reward with Allah! SubhanAllah Allah is Merciful and He provides us with so many ways to draw near to Him.

So remember – pause a moment before you act and remind yourself Who you are doing this for…