21 Dec 2009

El Messiri Biography



Abdelwahab Elmessiri (1938–2008) an Arab Islamic intellectual and professor Emeritus at the Department of English Language and Literature, Ain Sham University. Born in Damanhour, he obtained his primary and secondary education there.
In 1955, Elmessiri joined the English Department of Alexandria University, graduated in 1959 and was appointed as a teaching assistant.
In 1963, he travelled to the U.S.A where he obtained his M.A. in 1964 from Colombia University and his Ph.D. in 1969 from Rutgers University.
Upon obtaining his Ph.D., Elmessiri returned to Egypt where he taught at Ain Shams University and remained affiliated for the rest of his life.
He also taught at other Arab universities including King Saud University in Saudi Arabia (1983–1988). Besides, he worked as a visiting professor at Naser Military Academy and Islamic Malaysian University.
From 1970 to 1975 he was an advisor at the Center of Political and Strategic Studies in Al-Ahram Newspaper. After traveling to the U.S. again (1975–1979) he worked as an advisor of Cultural Affairs, Permanent Delegation of the Arab League to the United Nations, New York.
From 1990 till 2008, he was a Member of the Board of Directors, School of Islamic and Social Sciences, Leesburg, Virginia, U.S.A. and an academic advisor for International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT), Washington, D.C, USA. He lectured and wrote on politics, religion, culture and literature.
The magnum opus of Elmessiriis Encyclopedia of the Jews, Judaism, and Zionism: A New Explanatory Paradigm (eight volumes) and his autobiography My Intellectual Journey – Seeds, Roots, and Fruits: A Non-Subjective Non-Objective Autobiography. In addition, he authored several books in different fields.
His theoretical and philosophical works include: Partial and Comprehensive Secularism (two volumes); The Problematic of Bias: An Epistemological View and an Invitation to a New “Ijtihad” (Interpretation) (two volumes). The books he authored on western and American culture include The Earthly Paradise; Materialist Philosophy and the Deconstruction of Man;Modernity and Post Modernity and Epistemological Studies in Western Modernity. Among his linguistic and literary studies are The Rime of the Ancient Mariner: An Illustrated Bilingual Edition (English-Arabic); Language and Metaphor Between Monotheism and Pantheism; Studies in Poetry; On Literature and Thought: Studies in Poetry and Prose; Songs of Experience, Perplexity and Innocence: A Poetic Semi-subjective Semi-objective Autobiography. Elmessiri also published several children stories and poems.

19 Dec 2009

Appeal lodged against Swiss minaret ban



Source: Islamonline

The European Court of Human Rights has received an appeal against a Swiss ban on minarets which has provoked international controversy.

The appeal was submitted to the court by former spokesman for the Geneva Mosque Hafid Ouardiri in an effort to overturn the decision made by the Swiss citizens who voted in a referendum for imposing a ban on the construction of minarets in the country.

Ouardiri filed the complaint in Strasbourg, saying the referendum violates the right to religious freedom and contravenes international laws against discrimination.

The Algerian-born Muslim also sent an open letter to the federal cabinet and all the members of the Council of Europe to inform them of the legal action against the ban, said Pierre de Preux, one of Ouardidi's lawyers.

The Swiss government has also voiced concerns over the minaret ban, a move initially supported by far-right Swiss People's Party — the country's largest party — and the Federal Democratic Union.

"We will have both the plaintiff Hafid Ouardiri and the defendant, [the Swiss government], saying the same thing," de Preux told the Reuters news agency. "The court is still free to decide whatever it wants, but it sure is going to help the request."

The right-wing Swiss People's Party says the government would be better off backing its people's voice than adhering to international treaties.

The Swiss referendum on the minaret ban drew sharp criticism from the Muslim states, the European countries, the United Nations and the Vatican.

17 Dec 2009

The New Hijri year 1431 H


Happy new year, Allah we ask to be full of joy and happiness for All people of the world.

Story of the Prophet’s Hijrah*

When the persecution of the people of Makkah against the Muslims grew intense, Allah commanded them to emigrate so that they could establish the religion of Allah in a land where they could worship Him.

Al-Madina the destination:

Allah chose Madinah as the land of Hijrah (emigration for the sake of Allah). The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) saw in a dream that he was immigrating to that city. It was narrated from Abu Musa that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “I saw in a dream that I was emigrating from Makkah to a land in which there are date palms, and I thought that it was Al-Yamamah or Hajar, but it turned out to be Madinah, Yathrib.” (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

Al-Bukhari also narrated on the authority of `A'ishah that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the Muslims: “I have been shown the land to which you will immigrate: it has palm trees between two lava fields, two stony tracts.” So, some people immigrated to Madinah, and most of those people who had previously immigrated to the land of Ethiopia, returned to Madinah.
Commenting on this hadith, Al-Hafiz wrote: "The harrah (stony tract) is land whose stones are black. This dream was different from the dream mentioned above in the hadith of Abu Musa in which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was not sure where that land was. Ibn At-Teen said: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was shown the land of immigration in a way that could apply to Madinah and to other places; then he was shown the feature that is unique to Madinah so it became clear which land that was.”

The 1st immigrants:

With regard to the first Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to emigrate, Al-Bara' (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "The first ones who came to us of the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) were Mus`ab ibn `Umayr and Ibn Umm Maktum. They started to teach us the Qur’an. Then `Ammar, Bilal, and Sa`d came, then `Umar ibn Al-Khattab came with twenty others. Then the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came, and I never saw the people of Madinah rejoice more than that. They rejoiced so much that I saw the girls and boys saying, ‘This is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), he has come’” (Al-Bukhari).

The following hadith sums up many of the events of the Prophet’s emigration: It was narrated on the authority of `A'ishah that he Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said to the Muslims: “In a dream I have been shown your place of immigration, a land of date palm trees, between two lava fields, the two stony tracts.” So, some people immigrated to Madinah, and most of those people who had previously immigrated to the land of Ethiopia returned to Madinah. Abu Bakr also prepared to leave for Madinah, but the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him, “Wait for a while, because I hope that I will be allowed to emigrate also.” Abu Bakr said, “Do you indeed expect this? May my father be sacrificed for you!” The Prophet said, "Yes." So Abu Bakr stayed behind for the sake of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessingsbe be upon him) so that he could accompany him. He fed two she-camels he owned for four months.

One day, while we [`A’ishah is still narrating] were sitting in Abu Bakr's house at noon, someone said to Abu Bakr, "This is the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) with his head covered, coming at a time at which he never used to visit us before." Abu Bakr said, "May my father and mother be sacrificed for him. By Allah, he has not come at this hour except for something important." So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) came and asked permission to enter, and he was admitted. When he entered, he said to Abu Bakr: "Tell everyone who is present with you to go away." Abu Bakr replied, "There is no one here but you are my family.

May my father be sacrificed for you, O Messenger of Allah!" The Prophet said, "I have been given permission to emigrate." Abu Bakr said, "Shall I accompany you?" The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Yes." Abu Bakr said, "O Messenger of Allah, may my father be sacrificed for you, take one of these two she-camels of mine." The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) replied, "(I will accept it) with payment." So we prepared the baggage quickly and put some journey food in a leather bag for them. Asma’, the daughter of Abu Bakr, cut a piece from her waist belt and tied the mouth of the leather bag with it, and for that reason she was named dhat al-nitaqayn, the One with Two Waistbelts.

Then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and Abu Bakr reached a cave on the mountain of Thawr and stayed there for three nights. `Abdullah ibn Abi Bakr, who was an intelligent and wise youth, stayed (with them) overnight. He would leave them before daybreak so that in the morning he would be with the Quraysh, as if he had spent the night in Makkah. He would keep in mind any plot made against them, and when it became dark he would (go and) inform them of it. `Amir ibn Fuhayrah, the freed slave of Abu Bakr, used to bring the milch sheep (of his master, Abu Bakr) to them a little while after nightfall. So they always had fresh milk at night, the milk of their sheep. `Amir ibn Fuhayrah would then take the flock away when it was still dark (before daybreak). He did the same on each of those three nights. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and Abu Bakr had hired a man from the tribe of Banu Ad-Dayl from the family of Banu `Abd ibn `Adiy as an expert guide, … he was of the religion of the polytheists of the Quraysh, but the Prophet and Abu Bakr trusted him and gave him their two she-camels and made an appointment with him to bring their two she-camels to the cave of the mountain of Thawr in the morning after three nights had passed. And (when they set out),`Amir ibn Fuhayrah and the guide went along with them and the guide led them along the coast.

Ibn Shihab said: `Abdur-Rahman ibn Malik Al-Mudliji, who was the nephew of Suraqah ibn Malik, told me that his father informed him that he heard Suraqah saying: The messengers of the Quraysh came to us declaring that they had assigned for the persons who would kill or arrest the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and Abu Bakr, a reward equal to their blood-money. While I was sitting in one of the gatherings of my tribe, a man from them came to us and stood while we were sitting, and said, “O Suraqah! I have just seen some people far away on the shore, and I think they are Muhammad and his companion.” Suraqah added: I realized that it must have been them. But I said, “No, it is not them, but you must have seen so-and-so, and so-and-so whom we saw setting out.” I stayed in the gathering for a while and then got up and left for my home. I ordered my slave-girl to get my horse, which was behind a hillock, and keep it ready for me.

Then I took my spear and left by the back door of my house dragging the lower end of the spear on the ground and keeping it low. Then I reached my horse, mounted it and made it gallop. When I approached them (i.e., Muhammad and Abu Bakr), my horse stumbled and I fell down from it. Then I stood up, got hold of my quiver and took out the divining arrows and drew lots as to whether I should harm them or not, and the lot which I disliked came out. But I remounted my horse and let it gallop, giving no importance to the divining arrows. When I heard the recitation of the Qur’an by the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) who was not looking around although Abu Bakr kept doing that, suddenly the forelegs of my horse sank into the ground up to the knees, and I fell down from it. Then I rebuked it and it got up but it could hardly lift its forelegs from the ground, and when it stood up straight again, its forelegs caused dust to rise up in the sky like smoke. Then again I drew lots with the divining arrows, and the lot which I disliked came out. So I called to them to let them know they were safe. They stopped, and I remounted my horse and went to them. When I saw how I had been hampered from harming them, it came to my mind that the cause of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) would become victorious. So I said to him, "Your people have assigned a reward equal to the blood-money for your capture." Then I told them all the plans the people of Makkah had made concerning them. Then I offered them some journey food and goods but they refused to take anything and did not ask for anything, but the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Do not tell others about us." Then I requested him to write for me a guarantee of security. He ordered `Amir bin Fuhayrah to write it for me on a piece of animal skin, then the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) went on his way.

When the Muslims of Madinah heard that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) had departed Makkah and was heading towards them, they started going to the harrah (stony tract formed of lava) every morning. They would wait for him till the heat of the noon forced them to return. One day, after waiting for a long while, they returned home, and when they went into their houses, a Jew climbed up onto the roof of one of the forts of his people to look for something, and he saw the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and his companions dressed in white clothes, as if they were emerging out of a desert mirage.

The Jew could not help shouting at the top of his voice, "O Arabs! Here is your great man whom you have been waiting for!" So all the Muslims rushed to pick up their weapons and went to meet the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) on the lava field. The Prophet turned to the right and alighted in the land of Banu `Amr ibn `Awf. This was on a Monday in the month of Rabi` Al-Awwal. Abu Bakr stood receiving the people while the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) sat and kept silent. Some of the Ansar (Helpers), who came and had not seen the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) before, began greeting Abu Bakr, but when the sunshine fell on the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) and Abu Bakr came forward and shaded him with his cloak, only then did the people recognize the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).
The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) stayed with Banu `Amr ibn `Awf for ten nights and established the mosque that was founded on piety, the Mosque of Quba'. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed in it and then mounted his she-camel and moved on, accompanied by the people till his she-camel knelt down at the place where the Mosque of the Prophet now stands in Madinah. Some Muslims used to pray there in those days, and that place was a yard for drying dates belonging to Suhail and Sahl, two orphan boys who were under the guardianship of As`ad ibn Zurarah. When his she-camel knelt down, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "This place, Allah willing, will be our place." The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) then called the two boys and told them to name a price for that yard so that he might take it as a mosque. The two boys said, "No, but we will give it as a gift, O Messenger of Allah!" The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) refused to take it as a gift and insisted on buying it from them.

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) built a mosque there. He himself helped in the construction. He started carrying unburned bricks for its building and while doing so, he would say, "This load is better than the load of Khaybar, for it is more pious in the sight of Allah and purer and better rewardable." He was also saying, "O Allah! The actual reward is the reward in the Hereafter, so bestow Your Mercy on the Ansar and the Muhajirun (Immigrants)."

* Excerpted with modification from: www.islam-qa.com.

2 Dec 2009

Was Muhammad a true prophet

Muhammad the son of `Abdullaah, is Allaah's Prophet and the Final Messenger sent by Allaah to the inhabitants of the earth. You should know that he is Allaah's Messenger in reality and truth. The evidences that show his veracity are abundant. None but an infidel, who out of arrogance alone, could deny these signs.

Among these proofs:

1. Muhammad was raised illiterate, unable to read or write, and remained like that till his death. Among all his people, he was known as being truthful and trustworthy. Before receiving revelation, he had no prior knowledge of religion or any previously sent Message. He remained like that for his first forty years. Revelation then came to Muhammad with the Quran that we now have between our hands. This Quran mentioned most of the accounts found in the previous scriptures, telling us about these events in the greatest detail as if he witnessed them. These accounts came precisely as they were found in the Torah sent down to Moses and in the Gospel sent down to Jesus . Never the less, neither the Jews nor the Christians believed anything that he said.

2. Muhammad also foretold of everything that would occur to him and his community after him, pertaining to victory, the removal of the tyrannical kingdoms of Chosroes [the royal title for the Zoroastrian kings of Persia] and Caesar, and the establishment of the religion of Islam throughout the earth. These events occurred exactly as Muhammad foretold, as if he was reading the future from an open book.

3. Muhammad also conveyed an Arabic Quran that is the peak of eloquence and clarity. The Quran challenged those eloquent and fluent Arabs of his time, who initially belied him, to bring forth a single chapter like the Quran. The eloquent Arabs of his day were unable to contest this Quran. Indeed, till our day, none has ever dared to claim that he has been able to compose words that equal-or even approach-the order, grace, beauty and splendor of this Glorious Quran.

4. The life history of this Noble Prophet was a perfect example of being upright, merciful, compassionate, truthful, brave, generous, distant from all evil character, and ascetic in all worldly matters, while striving solely for the reward of the Hereafter. Moreover, in all his actions and dealings, he was ever mindful and fearful of Allaah.

5. Allaah instilled great love for Muhammad in the hearts of all who believed in and met him . This love reached such a degree that any of his companions would willingly sacrifice his (or her) self, mother or father for him . Till today, those who believe in Muhammad honor and love him. Anyone of those who believe in him would ransom his own family and wealth to see him even if but once.

6. All of history has not preserved the biography of any person in the manner it has preserved the life of Muhammad who is the most influential human in history. Nor has the entire earth known of anyone whom every morning and evening, and many times thereafter throughout the day, is thought of by those who believe in him. Upon remembering Muhammad the believers in him will greet him and ask Allaah to bless him and exalt his status. They do such with full hearts and true love for him .

7. Nor has there every been a man on earth whom is still followed in all his doings by those who believe in him . Those who believe in Muhammad sleep in the manner he slept; purify themselves (through ablution and ritual washing) in the manner he purified himself; and adhere to his practice in the way they eat, drink, and clothe themselves.

Indeed in all aspects of their lives, the believers in Muhammad adhere to the teachings he spread among them and the path that he traveled upon during his life. During every generation, from his day till our time, the believers in this Noble Prophet have fully adhered to his teachings. With some, this has reached the degree that they desire to follow and adhere to the Prophet's way in his personal matters regarding which Allaah has not sought of them to adhere to in worship. For example, some will only eat those specific foods or only wear those specific garments that the Messenger liked.

Let alone all that, all those who believe in Muhammad repeat those praises of Allaah, special prayers, and invocations that he would say during each of his actions during day and night, like: what he would say when he greeted people, upon entering and leaving the house, entering and leaving the mosque, entering and leaving the bathroom, going to sleep and awaking from sleep, observing the new crescent, observing the new fruit on trees, eating, drinking, dressing, riding, traveling and returning from travel, etc.

Moreover, all those who believe in Muhammad fully perform - even to the minute detail - every act of worship, like prayer, fasting, charity, and pilgrimage, as this Noble Messenger taught and as he himself performed. All of this allows those who believe in him to live their lives in all aspects with this Noble Messenger as their example, as if he was standing before them, for them to follow in all their doings.

8. There has never been, nor will there ever be, a man anywhere upon this earth who has received such love, respect, honor, and obedience in all matters, small and large alike, as has this Noble Prophet .

9. Since his days, in every region of the earth and during every period, this Noble Prophet has been followed by individuals from all nations, colors and peoples. Many of those who followed him were previously Christians, Jews, pagans, idolaters, or without any religion. Among those who chose to follow him, were those who were known for their sound judgment, wisdom, reflection, and foresight. They chose to follow this Noble Prophet after they witnessed the signs of his truthfulness and the evidences of his miracles. They did not choose to follow Muhammad out of compulsion or coercion or because they had adopted the ways of their fathers and mothers.

Indeed many of the followers of this Prophet chose to follow him during the time when Islam was weak, when there were few Muslims, and when there was severe persecution of his followers on earth. People who have followed this Prophet have not done so to acquire some material benefits. Indeed many of his followers have suffered the greatest forms of harm and persecution as a result of following him. Despite all this harm and persecution, this did not turn them back from his religion. All of this clearly indicates, to anyone possessing any sense, that this Prophet was truly and really Allaah's messenger and that he was not just a man who claimed prophethood or spoke about Allaah without knowledge.

9. With all this, Muhammad came with a great religion in its creedal and legal make-up. Muhammad described Allaah with qualities of complete perfection, and at the same time in a manner that is free of ascribing to Him any imperfection. Neither the philosophers or the wise could ever describe Allaah like such. Indeed it is impossible to imagine that any human mind could conceive of an existing being that possesses such complete ability and greatness Who has subdued the creation, Who has encompassed everything in the universe, small or large, and Who possesses such perfect mercy. Nor is it in the ability of any human being to place a perfect law based upon justice, equality, mercy and objectivity for all human activity on earth like the laws that Muhammad conveyed to all spheres of human activity - like buying and selling, marriage and divorce, renting, testimony, custody, and all other contracts that are necessary to uphold life and civilization on earth.

10. It is impossible that any person conceive wisdom, morals, good manners, nobleness of characters as what this honorable Prophet brought. In a full and complete manner, Muhammad spread a teaching regarding character and manners toward one's parents, relatives, fiends, family, humanity, animals, plants and inanimate objects. It is impossible for the human mind alone to grasp all of that teaching or come with a similar teaching. All of that unequivocally indicates that this Messenger did not bring any of this religion from his own accord, but that it was rather a teaching and inspiration that he received from The One Who created the earth and the high heavens above and created this universe in its miraculous architecture and perfection.

12. The legal and creedal make-up of the religion that the Messenger Muhammad brought resembles the engineering of the heavens and the earth. All of that indicates that He Who created the heavens and the earth is The One Who sent down this great law and upright religion. The degree of inimitability of the Divine law that was sent down upon Muhammad is to the same degree of inimitability of the Divine creation of the heavens and the earth. For just as humanity cannot create this universe, in the same manner humanity cannot bring forth a law like Allaah's law that He sent down upon His servant and messenger Muhammad .

18 Sept 2009

Farewell ...


Farewell our blessed month..


Farewell our blessed guest..


We shed tears in your departure ..


You were a blessing for the muslim oummah..


May Allah accept our deeds in those days, may Allah bring it again and again. Farewell our beloved month.