General
From Issue: 275 [Read full issue]
| Living the Quran |
Al-Anam
(The Cattle)
Soothsaying and fortunetelling are things that belong to the realm of occult and have no religious or scientific basis. About the astrologers (manajjimun) it is correctly said, “They are liars even if what they say turn out to be true.” Whatever they say is based on illusion and imagination and not any solid knowledge. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade Muslims from going to the fortunetellers. It is reported by Abu Hurayrah and Hasan (may Allah be pleased with them) that the Prophet said, “Whosoever went to a soothsayer or fortuneteller and believed in him, he disbelieved in what is revealed upon Muhammad.” (Reported by Ahmad) Believing in those who foretell the future constitutes Kufr (disbelief). Islam's campaign was not confined to the soothsayers and diviners but included all those who go to them, ask their help, and believe in their superstitions and errors. The Prophet said, "The prayer of one who goes to a soothsayer, asks him something and believes in what he says, will not be accepted for forty days." (Reported by Muslim) One should avoid going to fortunetellers even for amusement purpose, because this might lead to believing in them or supporting them in their falsehood. However, scientific predictions on the basis of calculations and analysis, which are required for all future planning, and preparations do not come in the prohibition of fortunetelling or soothsaying. Source: |
| Understanding the Prophet's Life |
Second Major Sin The first commandment in Islam as revealed to all prophets is to worship Allah and the second is to treat one’s parents kindly. Accordingly, the first major sin is Shirk (association of partners with Allah), and the second major sin is mistreating one’s parents. The Prophet (peace and blessings be on him) said: “Shall I tell you of the three most heinous sins?” He repeated this question three times and then said, “They are: to associate partners with Allah, to mistreat one’s parents, and to bear false testimony.” In another tradition, the Prophet (peace and blessings be on him) said, “One who mistreats his parents cannot hope to enter Paradise.” Also, he said, “The pleasure of Allah is in the pleasure of one’s parents and the wrath of Allah is in the wrath of one’s parents.” Source: |
| Tough Times! |
Soldiers Are Not Robotic Machines What is common between the images of American soldiers laughing at naked and humiliated Iraqi prisoners, the video of a terrorist group in Iraq slaughtering an American civilian, and the photos of an Iraqi mob desecrating and hanging the bodies of four American private commandos on March 31st in Fallujah? It is the hatred and inhumanity of the people doing it. Whereas one can find a mob and a terrorist behaving inhumanly, the same cannot be expected of soldiers of an organized, trained army like that of the United States. Considering that these cases are not isolated but instances of systemic abuse as the International Red Cross puts it, one must ask why did soldiers do it? Why did only one or two complain about it? Why did our military leaders and political leadership tolerate it? Soldiers are neither perfect people nor robotic machines. They are a part of our society. Their minds are set by the same media as that of civilians. They are just as likely to be influenced by Hollywood, where Arabs and Muslims are almost always the villains, and where talk show hosts can issue advisories to "kill all Muslims" and "bomb Mecca" and get away with it. Although soldiers are professionals who are expected to behave in better ways, they are also subject to the same hate waves against Islam and Muslims as other citizens. Source: |
