Jethmalani Praises The Prophet.

Jethmalani praises the Prophet .

A conference sponsored by the International Human Rights Protection Council was held in Delhi’s Malvankar Hall on 10^th December. Speaking on this occasion, noted Supreme Court lawyer, Ram Jethmalani said that all of us should work together for the protection of rights of all men and fraternities of the world and as long as I am alive I will continue fighting for human rights. 

Praising Islam and its Prophet, he said that a Prophet like Muhammad was not born in any religion. He said that I am a Hindu but I am also a worshiper of Islam and I read the Gita as much as I read the Qur’an. He said that during the Caliphate of Islam, maximum work was done on human rights. He said that putting the blame for terrorism on Muslims was wrong and because of some elements no community or religion as a whole can be branded. 

He said that many people talk about Jihad in a wrong sense because they do not know what Jihad is. He said that taking a life is a great sin in Islam. He also said that whoever believes in the teachings of the Prophet automatically begins to work for the protection of human rights but today we are afraid of calling a thief a thief, which Islam never permits. He said that the status and importance of knowledge in Islam is higher than that of martyrdom.

Milli Gazette, 1-15 January, 2012.

Article by N.A.Ansari. (Shortened and corrected)

'Alaykum Salam.

Beauty Of Islam.

American poet, critic and author Colonel Donald S. Rockwell writes: "The simplicity of Islam, the powerful appeal and the compelling atmosphere of its mosques, the earnestness of its faithful followers, the confidence inspiring realization of millions throughout the world who answer the five daily calls to prayer, these factors attracted me from the first.

But after I had determined to become a follower of Islam, I found many deeper reasons for confirming my decision. The mellow concept of life -- fruit of the combined course of action and contemplation, the wise counsel, the admonitions to charity and mercy of the Prophet, , .

The broad humanitarianism, the pioneer declaration of women's rights, these and other factors of the teachings of the man of Makkah, were to me among the first obvious evidence of a practical religion so tersely and so aptly epitomized in the cryptic words of Prophet Muhammad, : 'Trust in God and tie your camel.' He gave us a religious system of normal action, not blind faith in the protection of an unseen force in spite of our own neglect, but confidence that if we do all things rightly and to the best of our ability, we may trust in what comes as the Will of God...

When I stood in the inspiring mosques of Istanbul, Damascus, Jerusalem, Cairo, Algiers, Tangier, Fez and other cities, I was conscious of a powerful reaction -- the potent uplift of Islam's simple appeal to the sense of higher things, unaided by elaborate trappings, ornamentation, figures, pictures, music and ceremonial ritual. The mosque is a place of quiet contemplation and self-effacement in the greater reality of the true God.

The democracy of Islam has always appealed to me. Potentate and pauper have the same rights on the floor of the mosque, on their knees in humble worship. There are no rented pews or special reserved seats.

The Muslim accepts no man as mediator between himself and his God. He goes direct to the invisible source of creation and life -- God -- without reliance on a saving formula of repentance of sins and belief in the power of a teacher to afford him salvation. The universal brotherhood of Islam, regardless of race, politics, color or country, has been brought home to me most keenly many times in my life, and this is another feature which drew me towards the Faith."

The baseless claim that Islam converted the peoples it had 'conquered by force' has also been refuted by prominent non-Muslims.

From: A Glimpse at the Beauty of Islam.

Wa'laykum Salam.

The Salam Deficit.

Al Salamu 'Alaykum.

The salam deficit

UmmIbrahimIsa, sunniforum.com

Narrated `Abdullah bin `Amr (RA): A man asked the Prophet (SAW), “Whose Islam is good, or what sort of deeds of Islam are good?” The Prophet (SAW) replied, “To feed others and to greet those who you know and those who you do not know.”
(Bukhari, Book of Beliefs)

On that account, why is it that whenever we go anywhere, we only greet the people we know, without saying a thing to the other Muslims that walk by us? Or if you're in a masjid and people are ‘salaming’ each other, they only go to the people they know, and even if you pass on the salams to them with a ‘how are you?’, they give you an odd look, ignore you and walk away, or say 'are you talking to me?'

“Yes, I’m saying Assalamu alaikum. How are you?” They look at me like they don’t understand Arabic or like they don’t know how to say ‘salam’ or ‘how are you?’ Then they just give me this really odd look and walk away.

I think to myself, “why bother? I did my part.” Then I wonder, “was it my clothes? Were they wrinkly? Did they have a good scent or a bad scent? Was my hair showing or not showing for her not to respond? Perhaps she doesn’t like speaking to people that wear hijabs, or maybe it was because of my Bell’s Palsy. Perhaps she didn't know about my situation or maybe she didn't want to talk to a nice person like me because she thought I was a freak or something…”

Yeah, it hurts. But that's a part of life.

That happened to me for a reason. Allah's testing me to see how committed I am to Him and if I'm still remembering Him and believing in Him. Yet, yes still, I am. Others are being tested too by Allah to see how they handle this, and how they treat me, as to how I treat others with this test and to see how patient I am in dealing with it. It happens, and it's only for a little bit of a struggle.

But still, I would like people within my community, especially the aunties and uncles, to make me feel welcomed when I come to the masjid. Instead of me sending out a great greeting of salams, I would like a great greeting in return, instead of a silent nothing where they just mumble a ‘oh hello’ or say something like ‘Khuda Hafiz’… ‘OK, bye bye, go now...’

Whenever this happens, I remember this hadith (quoted above), and how we should greet people we know, as well as greet the ones we don't know. Because after all, the people you do know, you didn't know them before, and by you talking to them, you now know them. By greeting the ones you don't know, you make them feel welcomed, as well as follow the sunnah of the Prophet (SAW) in being kind towards your Muslim brothers and sisters.

Insha'Allah we can all remember this and benefit from this. The next time someone sends you  salams in a mall, on the street, at a halal restaurant, at a masjid or anywhere else, return their salams, whether you know them or not, as a smile is 100 times more pleasing than a sour face.
Allahu Alam.

Taken from: http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/showthread.php?114-Article-The-salam-deficit/page2

'Alaykum Salam Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh.

Losing My Islam.

Al Salamu 'Alaykum.

Indian celebrities, Muslim faith

By Ekram Haque.

From time to time, we hear about some Muslim celebrities in India engaging in practices that is akin to compromising their faith. A recent case in point is news reports of cricketer Zaheer Khan worshiping in a temple. There are also several cases of young Muslim men and women marrying spouses from other faiths. This is a serious problem, and the Muslim celebrities in the sports and entertainment world as well as the Muslim youth must be reminded about the implications of their actions.

As is well known, the Muslim testimony of faith – “I testify that there is no god, except Allah” – begins with the negation of all deities and affirmation of Allah as the only God. Worshiping anyone else, whether for political correctness or expediency, breaks this covenant. The struggle of all prophets throughout history, including the Prophet Muhammad (S), was to invite people to the worship of one true God. In the pursuit of this goal, some of the prophets and their followers went through severe persecution, including expulsion from their homelands.

The very first pillar of a Muslim’s faith is to testify to Allah’s lordship with the tongue, believe in it in the heart, and manifest it through actions. Faith without action is meaningless, and action without faith is deficient. It is often the last part where people fall short the most.

The pagans of Makkah had pleaded with Prophet Muhammad (S) to worship their gods in return for them worshiping Allah. In response came a small chapter of the Qur’an completely rejecting any bartering of the faith:

“Say: O disbelievers, I worship not what you worship,
Nor will you worship what I worship,
Nor will you worship whom I worship,
And I shall not worship that you are worshipping,
Nor will you worship whom I worship,
To you, your religion, to me, mine.” Sura 109, verses 1-6

In another famous incident, some of the nobles of Makkah offered the Prophet Muhammad (S) the kingship and wealth of the Quraysh if he renounced his faith in one God. The Prophet response: I will not do that even if you gave me sun in one hand and moon in the other.

Islam acknowledges the existence of other faiths and encourages cooperation with them for the common good. The Prophet Muhammad (S) worked with the pagans of Makkah before his prophethood to maintain a treaty of common goodwill, known as Hilf ul Fudhul. Many years later as a Prophet he said that if he were to be invited to join such an endeavor again he would gladly do so.

While Muslims are encouraged to have good relations with people of other faiths, they are forbidden to worship anyone other than Allah. In Islam, there is no sin greater than associating partners with God. The Qur’an categorically states that while Allah can forgive all sins, there is no forgiveness for those who die on polytheism, called shirk in Arabic.

In all fairness, the celebrity world is a study in contrast. On the one hand we have seen some Muslim celebrities engaging in unislamic practices, at the same time we have witnessed several high-profile non-Muslim figures embracing Islam. Cases in point: Kamala Das, Maulana Umar Gautam, Malcolm X, Yvonne Ridley, Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens), Imam Jamil Al-Amin (H. Rap Brown) and Kareem Abdul Jabbar. In fact, there are far more examples of the second kind. These celebrities found Islam to be the self-evident truth and liberator.

So for the Muslim celebrities who have worshipped in temples or taken spouses that Islamically are not allowed to them, it is time to take a fresh look at their priorities. It is possible that some celebrities and Muslim individuals in general may be put in a situation by the non-Muslim friends where they are expected to participate in their rituals. These Muslims may oblige with the intention to not hurt their sentiments. Instead, these celebrities should use wisdom and convey politely to their non-Muslim friends that they cannot participate in any ritual that is contradictory to their Islamic faith. They will not only earn the respect from their non-Muslim friends for adhering to his/her religious belief but also avoid such situations in the future.

These celebrities should learn from the great example of Caliph Umar (R). He was invited by the Christian leaders to directly negotiate the handover of Jerusalem to which he had agreed and entered Jerusalem in 637 AD on foot without any bloodshed or massacre. When it was time for prayer, the priests offered him the Church of the Holy Sepulcher to perform the prayer. Umar refused to pray in the Church, Had he done so, he explained, the Muslims would have wanted to build a mosque there to commemorate the first Islamic prayer in Jerusalem. So, he made it clear to the Christian priests without hurting their sentiments.

In conclusion, life and its pleasure are short-lived and temporary – for everyone. Someday, entertainment careers will end and sports prowess will wither away. The fans they care so much about will desert them. The only companion and helper that will remain with them is a faith they had not contaminated with disbelief.

Source: Two Circles.

'Alaykum Salam.