10 Zulhijjah 1425 January 21, 2005 øR×ø¯ccm-inc.org/oldsite/iqra/pdf/0501jan.pdfyou follow Allâh or the taghoot (false deities) in this world? Allâh has described His friends

In the name of Allâh, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

A VOICE OF THE MUSLIM UMMAH

Asma ul Husna : Allâh’s beautiful names and attributescontinued on page 4

Muhammad : The Ideal ProphetA Historical, Practical, Perfect Model for Humanity

Sayyid Sulaiman Nadwi

AT-TAWWÂBU THE RELENTING

near). As for such, theirs will be twofoldreward for what they did, and they willdwell secure in lofty halls.” [Qur’ân, 34:37]

The Prophet had bidden his followers,on the day of the Farewell Pilgrimage:“Know that every Muslim is a brother untoanother Muslim, and that all the Muslimsare brethren unto one another.” [Ibn Is’haq,The Life of Muhammad, p.651]

This brotherhood still transcends all theman-made barriers of countries and nations.The blacks and the whites, the Iranians andthe Arabs, the Turks and the Mongols, theNegroids and the Europeans submerge theirdifferences in the brotherhood of faith. Thisis a great blessing from the Lord Most High.All become equals in the kingdom of Allâh;none is an untouchable or a noble; there areno sudrâs, no brahmins; the distinctions ofwealth and vocations fall down to theground. All can read the Qur’ân, anybodycan lead the prayers; all are equals in thematter of acquiring and diffusingknowledge. All are equals in the eyes of theLaw also—a life for life—becomes thegoverning principle whether one be asovereign or serf. There are many more

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10 Zulhijjah 142510 Zulhijjah 142510 Zulhijjah 142510 Zulhijjah 142510 Zulhijjah 1425 January 21, 2005January 21, 2005January 21, 2005January 21, 2005January 21, 2005

Vol. 17 Vol. 17 Vol. 17 Vol. 17 Vol. 17 No. 01 No. 01 No. 01 No. 01 No. 01

Then, on the occasion of the FarewellPilgrimage, the Prophet again taught thelesson of human equality and brotherhoodto a hundred thousand persons assembledround him:“The Arabs have no preference over thenon-Arabs, nor have the non-Arabs overthe Arabs; all of you are sons of Adam, andAdam was created of Clay.” [MusnadAhmad]

The Prophet also explained the reasonfor denouncing racial prejudices:“Allâh has abolished the pride andhaughtiness of paganism. Man is eitherpious or a sinner. All men sprang from Adamand Adam sprang from clay.” [Tirmidhi; AbuDawud]

The Qur’ân also repeats the samemessage:“O mankind! Lo! We have created you maleand female, and have made you nations andtribes that ye may know one another. Lo!the noblest of you, in the sight of Allâh, isthe best in conduct.” [Qur’ân, 49:13]

And also:“And it is not your wealth nor your childrenthat will bring you near unto Us, but hewho believeth and doeth good (he draweth

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EditorialEditorialEditorialEditorialEditorial

continued on page 3

MUSLIMS IN AMERICANow that the hypnotism of the American

national election is over Muslims in Americaneed to evaluate once again the role they haveor have not; should have or should not haveplayed in this drama. Many Muslim thinkershave attempted to define the best way thatMuslims can interact with the present-dayrealities of deciding what is right and what iswrong in human endeavors. This debate is notan easy one. It affects our social, economicand physical well being in this world but moreimportantly it will also decide our well-beingin the hereafter, when we stand in front of ourLord and Cherisher and face the question: didyou follow Allâh or the taghoot (false deities)in this world? Allâh has described His friendsand the friends of taghoot very clearly inthese words: “There is no compulsion inreligion. The right direction is henceforthdistinct from error. And he who rejecteth falsedeities and believeth in Allâh hath grasped afirm handhold which will never break. Allâh isHearer, Knower. Allâh is the Protector ofthose who have faith: from the depths ofdarkness He will lead them forth into light. Ofthose who reject faith the patrons are the falsedeities: from light they will lead them forth intothe depths of darkness. They will becompanions of the fire to dwell therein forever.” Al-Baqara, 2:256-257.

We reprint an article on this subject thatevery Muslim should carefully evaluate todecide his or her future. The past is alreadywith Allâh. (Ccontinued from last month)

MUSLIMS INVOLVEMENT IN THEAMERICAN POLITICAL PROCESS

Zaid ShakirThe Religious Argument.“Whoever Rules (Judges) by Other than WhatAllâh has Revealed They are Nonbelievers…Oppressors… Transgressors.”

One of the consequences of thesecularization of western society has been the

rejection of the role of religion in politics,economics, law, or any aspect of government.Muslims know that such secularization isunacceptable in Islamic society. However, weshould be aware that Allâh has also made thissecularization forbidden among the Jews andChristians! He says in His Noble Book:

“We have sent down the Torah, in it isguidance and light. By it judged the Jewsthrough the Prophets who submitted in Islam,the Rabbis, and the Jurists: they wereentrusted with the preservation of Allâh’sBook, and they were witnesses unto it.Therefore do not fear men, rather fear Me,and don’t sell my signs for an insignificantprice. Whoever doesn’t judge by what Allâhhas revealed, verily they are nonbelievers.”(Al Qur’an, 5:44)

“Let the people of of the Gospel rule (judge)by what Allâh has revealed in it. Whoeverdoesn’t rule on the basis of what Allâh hasrevealed they are rebellious transgressors.”(Al Qur’an, 5:47)

Ibni Mas’uud ( ) and Al-Hasan ( ) sayconcerning Allâh’s saying “Whoever doesn’trule (judge) on the basis of what Allâh hasrevealed they are nonbelievers... oppressors...rebellious transgressors”, “that it is generaland concerns anyone who doesn’t rule (judge)by what Allâh has revealed: be they Muslims,Jews, or Nonbelievers.” As the Christians andJews of this country have rejected the divinelaw and created their own secular system ofrule, the legal and political system of Americais sinful and constitutes open rebellion againstAllâh.

For a Muslim to join with the Jews andChristians in this system is to join them in theirrebellion against Allâh. Allâh explicitly ordersagainst this:

“Cooperate in righteousness and piety, anddon’t cooperate in sin and transgression.”(Al Qur’an, 5:2)Ibni Katheer says concerning this verse:

“Allâh orders His servants, the believers,with cooperation in doing what is right, thisis righteousness; and leaving that which is

3

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Sister Aisha Sayed Alam(Cheshire)Dr. Abdul Hamid(Hamden)Sister Bonnie Lynn Hamid (Hamden)Dr. Shujaat Ali Khan (New York)

MAILING ADDRESS:Connecticut Council of Masajid

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is Published Monthly by Con-necticut Council of Masajid, IslamicCenter of Hamden, Islamic Centerof Connecticut, Islamic Center ofNew Haven, Faran Club, United Mus-lim Masjid, Islamic Society of West-ern Connecticut, and Islamic Cen-ter of New London.

continued from page 2

continued on page 5

wrong, this is piety. He forbids them fromhelping each other in falsehood, andcooperating in sin and forbidden matters.”(Tafseer Ibni Katheer)

Muslims should consider well their actionsas we attempt to implement Islam in thiscountry. Jews and Christians have rejectedboth the guidance of Allâh and Hisadmonitions to them that they return to thepath of divine guidance. Are we to be theMuslims who fulfill the Prophet’s predictionthat we would follow them in their ways stepby step? We should ask ourselves, “Are ouractions guided by the Book of Allâh and theSunnah of His Prophet , or are we followingour own inclinations, implementing our ownshortsighted agendas?”

The argument presented above iscautionary and not definitive as a logicalquestion would be: “What if Muslims use anunIslamic system to obtain an Islamicallyacceptable ruling or policy?” This issue isdealt with in detail in the context of the followingdiscussion.Al-Walaa’ (Befriending for Support) Wal-Baraa’ (Disavowal)

As discussed above one of the definitivefeatures of the American political system is itsencouragement of factionalization. Becauseof the existence of numerous crosscuttingfactions, it is impossible for any one group,acting alone, to obtain from governmentalinstitutions an absolute policy, or one whichreflects their total desires on any particularissue. This is especially true if the issue to beresolved, or the interest to be attained, violatesthe general societal consensus as to theacceptable limits of political demands andrewards. For these reasons it is essential forany group or political faction to engage inboth compromise and coalition building if it isto even begin to attain its political interests.

This coalitional imperative is augmented bythe fact that nationally Muslims have virtuallyno direct Muslim representation in thegovernmental institutions most intricatelyinvolved in the creation of public policy,

namely the Congress, the White House andhigh-level executive ministries, and theSupreme Court. Therefore, the focus of Muslimpolitical action will inevitably involve seekingthe aid of others in order to achieve policieswhich bring some benefit to Muslims. Thoseothers are inevitably Jews, Christians ornonbelievers. This situation is replicated atboth the state and local levels.

This being the case, Muslims engaging inthe political process have to inevitablyconsider the Islamic concepts of Al-Walaa’(befriending to seek support)4 and Al-Baraa’(disavowal). The implication of these ideas isthat in most circumstances, it is forbidden toseek the aid of nonbelievers to achieve anIslamic objective. Furthermore, it is an Islamicobligation to not only reject the aid of certainparties, but to consciously distance oneselffrom those parties. The evidences from Qur’anand Sunnah on these issues are extremelynumerous. However, we will limit ourselves tothe ones most relevant to our position here inAmerica. Allâh the Most High says in HisGlorious Book:“Oh! You who believe, don’t befriend the

4


continued on page 5

aspects of Islamic canons of equity andequality; the rights it has conferred onwomen and slaves, to name only two, canconvince any fair-minded person that thepresent-day Europe with all its claims to lightand learning and liberalism, still lags behindIslam. The world can still learn a lot fromIslam but the limited time at my disposalwould not permit me to shed further light onthis question.

The dichotomy of human affairs intospiritual and temporal has been the greatestmischief played with the world by what weknow as modernism. This is the divisionfostered allegedly by a saying attributed toJesus Christ —render unto Caesar thethings which are Caesar’s; and unto God thethings that are God’s. [Mt. 22:21] This hasbeen the greatest trap into which the worldhas been drawn in but Islam smashes thissnare. It tells the world that every worldlyaffair undertaken with sincerity and inaccordance with the code of morals ismeritorious in the sight of Allâh. Everythingtemporal is, to put it the other way, virtuousif it is backed by morality and faith. It is wrongto think that religion demands withdrawalfrom the world for remembrance of Allâh orthat the earning of one’s livelihood, orlooking after one’s children, relations orcountrymen falls in the sphere of mundaneaffairs. Islam does not accept this view oflife; it tells that performance of one’s dutywith sincerity and fear of God is the highestreligion.

Faith in Allâh and good deeds are, thus,the two means of salvation according toIslam. Faith consists of belief in Allâh, Hisprophets, His angels, His scriptures, andretribution in the hereafter. For sincerity andtruthfulness depend on faith, no good deedis possible unless it is informed by a heart-felt realization of Allâh and acceptance ofHis commands. Action, in its turn, is dividedinto three parts. The first is the worship orglorification of Allâh. Next come the dealingswith fellow beings that cover all theindividual and social transactions and on

these depend the continuance of an orderlysociety as well as social and economicjustice. Morals comprise the third categoryof human actions which cover all thoseobligations which, although not legallybinding, must be discharged faithfully inorder to develop spiritually and to raise thelevel of society. These four: faith, worship,dealings and morals constitute the pathwayto salvation and success according to Islam.

It also needs to be made clear thatquiescence or inaction has no place in Islâm,which enjoins action and enterprise. Islam isnot death, but alive, for it declares:“And that man hath only that for which bemaketh effort.” [Qur’ân, 3:39]

And, also:“Every soul is a pledge for its own deeds.”[Qur’ân, 74:38]

Islam teaches exertion and struggle, notmerely in the recesses of one’s heart, butalso in the field of action. The life of the holyProphet as well as the lives of his caliphsand companions are too well-known to all ofus. They have shown the way of attainingsalvation and success and advancement inthis world and the world beyond.Muhammad’s message differs from thatof Buddha inasmuch as the former teachesnot the annihilation of desires but thedisciplining of desires. It is also different fromthe teachings of Christ . Muhammad does not scorn wealth and power, he teacheshow to make a proper use of the both. Thus,faith and virtuous action constitute thematrix of faith in Islam. It commends action,not inaction; exertion, not indolence;acceptance of responsibility and doing one’sduty instead of shrinking selfishly fromthese. The examples set by the Prophet ofIslam and his successors show the wayof correct behavior.“Muhammad is the messenger of Allâh. Andthose with him are hard against thedisbelievers and merciful amongthemselves. Thou seest them bowing downand falling prostrate (in worship), seekingbounty from Allâh and (His) acceptance.”

5


This article is part of a compilation of lecturesgiven by the author in 1925 at Madras, India.English translation by Mohiuddin Ahmad. Re-printed with permission of Academy of IslamicResearch and Publications, Lucknow, India.

[Qur’ân, 48:29]We find these noblest specimens of

humanity, the companions of Muhammad, waging war at times; at others engaged

in social service and doing good to theirfriends and companions; bowing downbefore God; praising Him very often andseeking their sustenance by hard labor onother occasions; yet, never unmindful oftheir Lord or His commandments. The Qur’ânportrays their lives in these words:-“Men whom neither merchandise nor salebeguileth from remembrance ofAllâh.”[Qur’ân, 24:37]

They carried on their trades andprofessions as well as sought the pleasureof Allâh. They did not give up one for theother, but applied themselves to both in thesame breath. Here is an instance preservedby history which illustrates how they spenttheir lives. At a time when hostilities weregoing on between the Muslims and theByzantines, a few enemy spies entered theMuslim camp to find out the morale ofMuslim soldiers. They went back andreported to their Commander that theMuslim soldiers were “hermits by the nightand fighters by the day.” This is the idealway of life taught by Islam and the worldneeds to learn it afresh.

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To establish foundations of worldKhilafah anew?

Search for the courage and heartof your ancestors

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Jews and the Christians seeking their support,they are supporting friends of one another.Whoever from among you turns to them forfriendship and support, he is of them; andAllâh doesn’t guide wrongdoing, oppressivepeople.You seek those in whose hearts is adisease (hypocrisy and doubt), rushing tothem (for support), saying we fear somecalamity might befall us. Perhaps Allâh willbring about the victory, or a command fromHimself, and they (those who doubted) willbecome repentent of the desire (for help andassistance) which they held in their souls.Those who believe will say, “Are these theones who swore their strongest oaths to Allâhthat they were with you.” Their deeds will belost and they will become great losers. Oh!you who believe, if any from among you turnsback on His deen then Allâh will bring a peoplewhom He will love and they will love Him.They will be humble before the believers,mighty against the nonbelievers. They willfight in the Way of Allâh and they won’t fearthe criticism of those who criticize. This isthe grace of Allâh which He bestows onwhoever He pleases. And Allâh is mostexpansive in His bounties, All Knowing.Rather your supporting friends are Allâh, HisMessenger, and the believers -those whoestablish regular prayer, pay the Zakah andbow down humbly in worship. And whoeverturns to Allâh, His Messengers and thebelievers for support, verily they are the Partyof Allâh. They will be victorious!” (Al-Qur’an,5:51-56)

These verses contain critical lessons forMuslims in America at this juncture of ourcommunal development, as they were revealedwhen the first community of belivers was at avery critical stage. In those early days ofIslam, in the unfolding struggle between Islamand its enemies, those hypocrites of dubiousfaith, led by Abdullah bin Ubey, were anxiousto seek the aid of the Jews, fearing that theMuslims would lose the battle between Islamand kufr, thereby exposing themselves toloss. At this juncture, Allâh warned theMuslims against seeking the aid of the Jews

continued on page 12


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6 continued on page 7

Chapter 6: Raising the HandsBoth practices of raising the hands and

not raising them are sunnah, and both havebeen quoted to the degree of tawatur fromevery generation of Muslims from the timeof the Sahâbah, Tâbi’un, and tabi’ Tâbi’eentill today. Therefore, there is no realdifference except a question of which oneof the two is preferred and desirable.

Allamah Anwar Shah Kashmiri writes:‘Since both practices of raising the hands

and not raising them are mutawatir thereare three possible methods: 1) Givingpreference to the practice of raising thehands. 2) Giving preference to the practiceof not raising them. 3) A choice of any oneof the two. Each of these options has beenadopted by certain ulama. As for theahadeeth, some of them are explicit inmentioning that the hands should not beraised, whilst the rest of the ahadeeth onthe topic of salâh are silent with no mentionof the raising of the hands. If we adhere tothe ahadeeth that are clear in mentioningthat the hands should not be raised, ourahadeeth will be fewer in number comparedto those that mention the raising of thehands, but if we add those ahadeeth thatare silent, then the number of ahadeeth fornot raising the hands is far greater. This isbecause the silence of a hadeeth on aparticular practice (whilst still elaborating oneverything else) is evidence that it shouldnot be adopted. And why not? We see theahadeeth of the description of salâh touchupon all the actions of salâh including itsarkaan, its obligatory, sunnah, and desirablemovements, and yet mention nothing of theraising of the hands except in the beginning.What else can be assumed when this is theposition of the ahadeeth?’1

Ahadeeth of not raising the hands exceptin the beginning.1. Alqamah reports that Abdullah bin Mas’ud

said, ‘Should I not lead you in salâh inthe manner of the Prophet ?’ He thenprayed and did not raise his hands exceptin the beginning.2

After narrating this hadeeth Imam Tirmidhiadds:‘There is a narration of the same meaningon the authority of Baraa bin Azib .Abdullah bin Mas’ud’s hadeeth is hasan,and many of the Prophet’s learnedcompanions are of the same view, i.e., thehands should not be raised during salâhexcept once in the beginning. This is alsothe view of Sufyan al Thawri and the peopleof Kufah.’Imam Nimawi says:‘This hadeeth has also been declared saheehby Ibn Hazm. Tirmidhi has quoted Abdullahbin al Mubarak as saying that the hadeethof raising the hands (and then he mentionedthe hadeeth of Zuhri from Salim from hisfather) is established, but the hadeeth ofAbdullah bin Mas’ud that “the Prophet

would not raise his hands except in thebeginning” is not.’Imam Nimawi answers this claim of Abdullahbin al Mubarak saying:‘There are two hadeeth reported fromAbdullah bin Mas’ud about raising thehands: one hadeeth which mentions his ownpractice as recorded by Abu Dawood, Nasai,Tirmidhi and others, and another hadeethdescribing the practice of the Prophet himself as reported by Tahawi and others.This second hadeeth is the report of aparticular narrator who has rendered thegeneral meaning of the words of Ibn Mas’ud

“Should I not lead you in salâh in themanner of the Prophet ” and thusattributed this directly to the Prophet .What is apparent, therefore, is that Ibn alMubarak has denied the authenticity of thesecond hadeeth which says that the Prophet

would not raise his hands except in thebeginning, not the authenticity of the first

The Salâh of a Believer in theQur’ân and Sunnah

Shaykh Abu Yusuf Riyadh ul HaqReprinted with permission of Shaykh Riyadh ul Haq.To obtain the complete book, contact: IslâmicSharîah Institute, PO Box 6008, Birmingham B100UW, UK. [[email protected]].

Continued from issue 16:10

7 continued on page 13

continued from page 6hadeeth describing Ibn Mas’ud’s ownpractice. Whatever the case may be, AllamahIbn Daqeeq al Eid al Shafiee has answeredthis by saying that even if this narration isnot established in the view of Ibn alMubarak, it does not prevent us fromstudying it. The authenticity of the reportrests on Aasim bin Kulaib and Ibn Maeenhas classified him as “thiqah” authentic.’Certain people have raised some very weakand unsustainable objections about thishadeeth. However, all their objections areincorrect and have been answered in greatdepth by the ulama.

Imam Nimawi also discusses thesequestions and finally says:

‘The conclusion, therefore, is that thishadeeth with this additional wording (of “Hedid not repeat the raising of the hands” or“He did not raise his hands except once”) issaheeh, and all criticisms leveled at it arerepudiated. Their claim that Ibn Mas’ud maypossibly have forgotten the raising of thehands except in the beginning just as heforgot about the placing of the hands onthe knees in rukû’ and other things is a verydespicable claim indeed. It is but an allegationwithout evidence, and there is no way ofknowing that Abdullah bin Mas’ud knewthis and then forgot it. In fact, reasondeclares it strange and improbable. The truthis that attributing forgetfulness about theraising of the hands in salâh, somethingwhich is a recurring practice morning andevening, day and night, to Abdullah binMas’ud who faithfully remained in thecompany of the Prophet , and who was apersonal attendant for a very long time, isnot void of insolence.

Abdullah bin Mas’ud’s placing hishands between his knees in rukû’ was notbecause he had forgot, but because this wasprescribed in the Sharî’ah and then laterabrogated, as has been clearly mentioned inreports, and he was not yet aware of theabrogation.3 Similar is the case with all theclaims of forgetfulness to Abdullah binMas’ud : they were because of other

reasons, but not forgetfulness, as has beenexplained by the scholars in the relevantplaces. The first person to ascribeforgetfulness to Abdullah bin Mas’ud inthese instances was Abu Bakr bin Ishaqwhose statement has been quoted byBaihaqi in his al Sunan and Ibn Abd al Hadiin al Tanqeeh. Ibn al Turkumani hasextensively refuted the words of this AbuBakr bin Ishaq in his al Jawhar al Naqiyy fial Radd ala al Baihaqi.’4

2. The earlier hadeeth has also been reportedby Nasai with the following wording:‘Should I not inform you of the salâh ofthe Prophet ?’ He then stood up andraised his hands once in the beginning.He did not raise them again.’5

3. Sayyiduna Baraa bin Azib relates thatwhen the Prophet would begin salâhhe would raise his hands close to his earsand then not raise them again.6

Abu Dawood has said after narrating thishadeeth with a different chain of narration,‘This hadeeth is not saheeh.’ It appears thathe has made this comment about thisparticular chain because it containsMuhammad bin Abdul Rahman bin AbiLayla. (Muhaddith Dhafar Ahmad al Uthmanihas declared the hadeeth to be hasandespite Ibn Abi Layla on the understandingthat he is suitable as a narrator for a shahid.Imam Tirmidhi has classified a number ofhis hadeeth [as] hasan.

As for the hadeeth, he quotes it beforethis with a number of chains and does notdeclare it to be dhaeef but merely observesthat some narrators have not included thewords ‘and then not raise them again’ in theirnarrations from Yazeed. Some have taken thisas evidence that these words are notestablished in the hadeeth. This is, however,incorrect. Sufyan reports this hadeeth fromYazeed with the same words as recorded byTahawi. Hushaim and Shareek both narratethis hadeeth from Yazeed with the abovewords as recorded by Ibn Adiyy in his alKamil (as quoted in al Jawhar al Naqiyy).The same is reported from Yazeed by Ismaeel

8

DAY FAJR SHURUQ ZUHR ASR———— MAGRIB ISHADWN SUNRISE Shafi’i Hanafi SNSET NGHT

Your (real)friend can

be onlyAllâh; and

His messen-ger and

those whobelieve--

who estab-lish prayerand pay the

poor dueand bowdown (inworship).

And whosoturns (for

friendship)to Allâh andHis messen-

ger andthose whobelieve: lo!the party ofAllâh, they

are thevictorious.(5:55-56)

L U N A RDAT E S

If you need prayer t imings for your town, pleasesend us a sel f -addressed s tamped #10 envelope.

Prayer timesare for theNew Haven

area and arebased on 18°for Fajr andIsha. Check

localnewspapers

for your localtime differ-

ence.

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JAN-FEB PRAYER TIMES, NEW HAVEN

January21 5:35 7:12 12:03 2:34 3:13 4:54 6:3122 5:35 7:12 12:03 2:35 3:14 4:55 6:3223 5:34 7:11 12:04 2:36 3:15 4:57 6:3324 5:34 7:10 12:04 2:37 3:17 4:58 6:3425 5:33 7:09 12:04 2:38 3:18 4:59 6:3526 5:33 7:09 12:04 2:39 3:19 5:00 6:3627 5:32 7:08 12:04 2:40 3:20 5:02 6:3728 5:31 7:07 12:05 2:41 3:21 5:03 6:3829 5:31 7:06 12:05 2:43 3:23 5:04 6:3930 5:30 7:05 12:05 2:44 3:24 5:05 6:4031 5:29 7:04 12:05 2:45 3:25 5:07 6:42

February1 5:28 7:03 12:05 2:46 3:26 5:08 6:432 5:28 7:02 12:05 2:47 3:28 5:09 6:443 5:27 7:01 12:05 2:48 3:29 5:10 6:454 5:26 7:00 12:06 2:49 3:30 5:12 6:465 5:25 6:59 12:06 2:50 3:31 5:13 6:476 5:24 6:58 12:06 2:51 3:32 5:14 6:487 5:23 6:57 12:06 2:52 3:34 5:15 6:498 5:22 6:56 12:06 2:53 3:35 5:17 6:509 5:21 6:54 12:06 2:54 3:36 5:18 6:5110 5:20 6:53 12:06 2:55 3:37 5:19 6:5311 5:19 6:52 12:06 2:56 3:38 5:20 6:5412 5:18 6:51 12:06 2:57 3:40 5:22 6:5513 5:16 6:49 12:06 2:58 3:41 5:23 6:5614 5:15 6:48 12:06 2:59 3:42 5:24 6:5715 5:14 6:47 12:06 3:00 3:43 5:25 6:5816 5:13 6:45 12:06 3:01 3:44 5:27 6:5917 5:12 6:44 12:06 3:02 3:45 5:28 7:0018 5:10 6:43 12:06 3:02 3:46 5:29 7:0219 5:09 6:41 12:05 3:03 3:48 5:30 7:0320 5:08 6:40 12:05 3:04 3:49 5:32 7:0421 5:06 6:38 12:05 3:05 3:50 5:33 7:0522 5:05 6:37 12:05 3:06 3:51 5:34 7:0623 5:03 6:35 12:05 3:07 3:52 5:35 7:0724 5:02 6:34 12:05 3:08 3:53 5:36 7:0825 5:01 6:32 12:05 3:09 3:54 5:38 7:0926 4:59 6:31 12:05 3:09 3:55 5:39 7:1127 4:58 6:29 12:04 3:10 3:56 5:40 7:1228 4:56 6:28 12:04 3:11 3:57 5:41 7:13

10 ZULHIJJA11121314151617181920

21222324252627282901 MUHARRAM020304050607080910111213141516171819

LACKING THE STRENGTH TO FLY TO THE HEAVENS

FLY AS HIGH AS YOUR STRENGTH WILL ENDURE

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REGULAR MASJID ACTIVITIESAND JUM’A PRAYER TIMES

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212, Hamden, CT 06514 (203-562-2757)Juma’ prayer time 12:30 PMThursday Halaqa 8:00 - 9:00 PMFriday Dars 8:00 - 11:00 PMMadrasah:Every Sunday 9:55AM - 1:30 PM Daily Afternoons, 5:00 - 7:00 PMCommunity Dinner 1st Sunday of each month.Contact: Dr. Abdul Hamid 203-562-2757

ICFC MASJID (JAMIA KARAM)57 Pepper St, Monroe. CT06468 (203-261-6222)Juma’ prayer time 1:15 PMContact: Br. Ahmed Reza 203-746-0683

MASJID AL-ISLAM624 George St. New Haven, CT 06511Juma’ prayer time 1:15 PMContact: Br. Dawood Yaseen 203-777-4008ISLAMIC CENTER OF NEW LONDON16 Fort St, Groton, CT 06340, (860) 405-8006Juma’ prayer time 1:00 PMContact: Br. Imran Ahmed 860-691-8015

AL-MADANY ISLAMIC CENTER OFNORWALK

4 Elton Court, Norwalk, CT 06851 (203-852-0847Juma’ prayer time 1:00 PMContact: Syed Mahmoud Hussain Qadri. 203-852-

0847).STAMFORD AREA INFORMATION

CENTER77 Judy Ln. Stamford, CT 06906 , (203) 327-5878)Contact: Br. Akhtar Usman 203-327-5878

STAMFORD ISLAMIC CENTER10 Outlook St. Stamford, CT 06902 (203-975-2642)Juma’ prayer time 1:00 pmContact: Br. Akhtar Usman 203-327-5878

ISLAMIC SOCIETY OF STAMFORD82 Harbor Dr, Stamford, CT 06902

Juma’ prayer time 1:00 pmContact: Hafiz AbdulSalam Sumra 203-255-4327

UNITED MUSLIM MASJID(MASJID RAHMAN)

132 Prospect Ct. Waterbury, CT. 06704 (756-6365).Juma’ prayer time 1:00 PMContact Br. Majeed Sharif. 203-879-7230.

WEST HAVEN MASJID2 Pruden St., West Haven, CT 06516, (203) 933-

5 7 9 9Juma’ prayer time 1:00 PMContact: Br. Mohammad Taroua 203-287-7561.

MADINA MASJID1 Madina Drive, Windsor, CT 06095, (860) 249-0112Juma’ prayer time 1:30 PMContact: Muhamed M. Haidara 860-655-9042Madina Academy:Full time School (860)524-9700ISLAMIC SOCIETY OF WESTERN

MASSACHUSETTS337 Amostown Rd. W. Springfield, MA01105

(413)788-7546Juma’ prayer time 1:15 PMContact: Dr. Mohammad Ali Hazratji(860-749-8859).

Visit Connecticut Council of Masajid website:ccminc.faithweb.com

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She placed a screen (to screen herself) fromthem: then We sent to her Our angel and heappeared before her as a man in all respects.

Maryam, Surah 19:17

10

THE CHILDREN’S CORNERTHE CHILDREN’S CORNERTHE CHILDREN’S CORNERTHE CHILDREN’S CORNERTHE CHILDREN’S CORNER


THE FINAL BLOWWe are going to backtrack in time this

month to the beginning of the Battle of theTrench, but this time we are going over tothe enemy camp. One might think thatwith a force of ten thousand men, theQuraish and their allies would have hadno worries. With over three times asmany soldiers as their opponents, it wouldbe difficult to lose. But, as the Muslimshad already proven at Badr, size is noteverything.

Difficulties arose from the moment thecamp was pitched outside the walls ofMadina. Ten thousand men, and thou-sands of camels and horses had to be fed,but the Muslims had managed to harvestall the crops of the oasis before the siegebegan. The camels could survive on thescrub and brush which grew around theoasis, but the horses and men were totallydependent on the supplies which hadbeen brought. This made speed an essen-tial element in the conclusion of the battle,before the food ran out.

The Muslims were not hidden behindthe walls of the city. They were campedout in plain sight on a level area justoutside the city. The Quraish should havebeen able to finish them off with noproblem. But, there was that trench be-tween the two armies. The trench hadbeen built well and was well-defended.The Muslims stood along its edge slingingarrows and other missiles at the enemy.They were inflicting much damage, es-pecially to the horses, while receiving noinjury to themselves. Attempts to crossthe trench proved futile, except in oneinstance when four men made it across,

but only two of them made it back safelyto their own side. The other two lost theirlives.

Several weeks passed without anyprogress having been made. Relation-ships became strained amongst the vari-ous groups of the alliance, and weremade worse by the clever tongue ofNu’aim, who managed to plant seeds ofdoubt and mistrust wherever he went.The Jews didn’t trust the Makkans, theMakkans didn’t trust the Jews or theBedouins, and the Bedouin tribes werefed up with the whole expedition.

Finally, the weather had turned unusu-ally nasty. Men on both sides of thetrench were cold, wet, and disheartened.Now a biting wind had picked up, sweep-ing across the plain and driving a peltingrain before it. Men were forced to takeshelter in their tents. The Muslim tentswere somewhat sheltered from the gustsof the wind, but the men gathered withinthem were stressed. The length of thesiege was beginning to take its toll. Theywere already tired and hungry, and nowthey were cold and soaked as well.

However, it was worse on the otherside of the trench. As night settled overthe camps of the Quraish and their allies,the wind howled through the campsites,lifting and carrying off every single tent.The men huddled together on the groundfor warmth but there was no escapingthat wind and rain. Abu Sufyan, theleader of the expedition, was so numbedwith discomfort that his only thought wasto leave. He forgot to remove the hobbleon his camel, forcing it to stand up onthree legs before he remembered to untie

11

it. He almost forgot to tell his men thatthey were leaving. The army broke camp,taking what little the wind had left behind,and started the long march home. TheBedouin tribes likewise had had enoughand in the course of the night one tribeafter another departed from the miser-able sodden plain and headed for home.

The following morning, the first lightrevealed to the Muslims an empty plain.The entire vast gathering of the enemyhad disappeared overnight, as if they, too,had been swept away by the mightywind. With great rejoicing the Muslimsabandoned their soggy campground, andmade haste back to the city of Madinaand their warm, dry dwellings. Surely inthis battle it was Allah who had deliveredthe final blow.

Bonnie L. Hamid


EID-UL-ADHA AND HAJJ

We celebrate Eid-ul-Adha and the Hajj,In which the rewards are much.

Eid-ul-Adha is a reminder of Ibrahim’s(PBUH) sacrifice,Which shows us in how many waysAllah is nice.

We run between the mountains of Safaand Marwa,

Since it was done by Bibi Hajira.Hajj is about equality,Forget your own individuality.

Doing the rituals in a few days,For cleaning your slate, this is one of the

ways.The reason for this Eid leads back toIbrahim’s (PBUH) story,But we must remember that only Allahdeserves all glory.

Obaid Ahmed10 years

Hamden, CT

FELIZ EID UL ADHA.EID-UL-ADHA BAYRAMINIZ

MUBAREK LOSUN.BARKA DA SALLAH.

EID MUBARIK.HAPPY EID.

*He who kneels before*He who kneels before*He who kneels before*He who kneels before*He who kneels beforeAllâhAllâhAllâhAllâhAllâh

can stand before can stand before can stand before can stand before can stand beforeanyone*anyone*anyone*anyone*anyone*

A Message to ChildrenThis is your page. If you would like tosubmit original stories, poems, puzzlesor games, send your contribution to: Newsletter, P.O.Box 4456,Hamden, CT 06514.Please include your full name, age,address and phone number.

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Jannah is beneath the

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To be continued

and the Christians. Furthermore, He warnedthat whoever sought support from thesegroups was in their camp.

This lesson is critical for Muslims as manyof us believe that Muslims are so weak that wewill never (or at least not in the near future) onour own accord be able to either vanquish ourenemies or bring benefit to ourselves. Allâhreminded those early Muslims, and He remindsus, that the victory and help comes from Him,and not those we seek help from. He says,“...perhaps Allâh will bring about the victory,or a command from Himself.” This makes itclear to us that even if we are deprived of somebenefit by not seeking the help of the Jews andChristians, it is best to do without that thinguntil Allâh chooses to bestow it upon us.Their path and ours is sincere patience, sabr-e- jameel. This latter lesson is crucial especiallywhen many Muslims who are eager to engagein the political process justify their action onthe grounds that by so doing they can bringtangible benefits to the Muslim community.

In these verses Allâh declares that it is adisease in the heart which pushes one to seekthe support of the non-believers: “You seethose in whose hearts is a disease rushing tothem seeking support...” Elsewhere in HisBook He challenges their very faith- as Hesays: “If only they believed in Allâh, and theProphet, and that which has been revealedunto him, they wouldn’t take them (theunbelievers) as their supporting friends” (Al-Qur’an, 5:81).

This idea of seeking the help of the kuffar,Jews and Christians, negating one’s iman(belief), is reinforced by the subsequent versesfrom Suratul-Maa’idah (5:54-55). In verse 54Allâh says: “Oh! you who believe, whoeveramongst you turns back on his deen (becomesa murtadd) Allâh will bring a people whom Hewill love, and they will love Him…” He thengoes on to say in Verse 55: “Rather yoursupporting friends are Allâh, His Messengerand the believers…”, rebuking those whoturned to the Jews and Christians for support.He subsequently declares that these are theones who will succeed: “…they are the Party

of Allâh. They will be victorious.”Having reminded the believers that their

supporting friends are Allâh, His Messengerand the believers, He mentions that these arethe true sources of their strength when Hesays: “Strength and dignity belong to Allâh,His Messenger and the believers. However,the hypocrites realize it not” (Al-Qur’an, 63:8).As for those who are deluded into seekingstrength from the nonbelievers, Allâh remindsthem: “Those who take the nonbelievers astheir supporting friends other than thebelievers, do they seek strength and powerfrom them? Rather unto Allâh is all strengthand power” (Al-Qur’an, 4:139). Elsewhere inHis Noble Book He reminds those who seeksupport from their idols: “Those whom youcall on other than Him (Allâh), they are unableto help you, nor can they help themselves”(Al-Qur’an, 7:197).


Editor’s notes:Footnotes at the end

...establish RegularPrayer: for Prayer

restrains fromshameful and unjust

deeds; andremembrance of

Allah is the greatest(thing in life)

without doubt. AndAllâhAllâhAllâhAllâhAllâh knows the

(deeds) that ye do.Al-Ankabut, 29:45

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bin Zakariyya in Daruqutni’s al Sunan, byIsraeel bin Yunus in Baihaqi’s al Khilafiyyatas mentioned in al Jawhar al Naqiyy andMabani al Akhbaar, by Muhammad binAbdul Rahman bin Abi Layla in his book asmentioned by Bukhari in his Juz’, and byHamzah al Zayyat in Tabarani’s al Awsat asmentioned in Mabani al Akhbaar. These arethen at least seven narrators, Sufyan,Hushaim, Shareek, Ismaeel bin Zakariyya,Israeel bin Yunus, Ibn Abi Layla and Hamzahal Zayyat, all of whom narrate the abovehadeeth with the words ‘and then not raisethem again.’ These words are thenestablished and are part of the hadeeth.Furthermore, Yazeed himself is not alone inreporting this hadeeth in this form. He hasbeen followed up in the narration of thesewords by Isa bin Abdul Rahman and Hakambin Utaibah as recorded by Bukhari in hisJuz’, Abu Dawood, Tahawi, Baihaqi, and bythe collectors of al Mudawwanah al Kubra.(Footnotes)1 Ma’arif al Sunan 2/458.2 Imam Abu Hanifah as recorded in Jam’i alMasaneed 1/3355. Also reported by Ibn AbiShaibah in his al Musannaf 2441 as well ashis Musnad 323; Ahmad 3672, Abu Dawood748, Tirmidhi 257; Nasai in al Mujtaba 1058and also in al Sunan al Kubra 645 & 1099;Abu Ya’laa 5040 & 5302, and Baihaqi 2531.Ibn Hazm 2/264, Ibn al Turkumani 2/113 andImam Nawawi 402 have all declared thehadeeth saheeh.3 Many ulama have given an alternativeexplanation which is that Sayyiduna Abdullahbin Mas’ud was aware of the abrogationof the original practice of tatbeeq butconsidered it to be merely a rukhsah(concession) and so rather than accept thebenefit of the concession he preferred tocontinue with tatbeeq and act upon azeemah(the concept of foregoing the concession inthe hope of receiving a greater reward foradhering to the original).4 al Ta’leeq al Hasan p206-209 with someamendments.5 Nasai 1026. Muhaddith Dhafar Ahmad

Uthmani says that its narrators are those ofboth Bukhari and Muslim except Suwaidwho is thiqah (authentic) and Asim who is athiqah narrator of Muslim (814).6 Abdul Razzaq 2531, Ibn Abi Shaibah 2440,Abu Dawood 749, and Abu Ya’laa 1689,1690, 1691 & 1692, and Tahawi 1/224.

ISLAM OUR CHOICEFROM JEHOVAH’S WITNESS TO

ISLAMA forty-two-year-old Latino, Raphael, is a

Los Angeles-based comic and lecturer. Hewas born in Texas where he attended his firstJehovah’s Witness meeting at age six. Hegave his first Bible sermon at eight, tendedhis own congregation at twenty, and washeaded for a position of leadership amongthe 904,000 Jehovah’s Witnesses in theUnited States. But he traded in his Bible fora Qur’an after having braved a visit to a localmosque.

On November 1, 1991, he embraced Islam,bringing to the Muslim community theorganizational and speaking skills hedeveloped among Jehovah’s Witnesses. Hespeaks with the urgency of a new convert,but one who can make immigrant Muslimslaugh at themselves.

He told his story mimicking a cast ofcharacters.

I remember vividly being in a discussionwhere we were all sitting in my parents’ livingroom and there were some other Jehovah’sWit-nesses there. They were talking about:“It’s Armageddon! The time of the end! AndChrist is coming! And you know thehailstones are going to be out here as big ascars! God is going to use all kinds of thingsto destroy this wicked system and removethe governments! And the Bible talks aboutthe earth opening up! It’s going to swallowwhole city blocks!”

I’m scared to death! And then my motherturned around: “See what’s going to happento you if you don’t get baptized, and if youdon’t do God’s will? The earth is going to

To be continued

14



swallow you up; or one of these hugehailstones is going to hit you on the head[klonk], knock you out, and you will not existever again. I’ll have to make another child”.

I wasn’t going to take a chance of being hitby one of those big hailstones. So I gotbaptized. And of course Jehovah’sWitnesses don’t believe in the sprinkling ofthe water. They submerge you completely,hold you there for a second, and then bringyou back up.

I did that at the age of thirteen, September7, 1963 in Pasadena, California, at the RoseBowl. It was a big international assembly.We had 100,000 people. We drove all the wayfrom Lubbock, Texas.

Eventually I started giving talks - tenminutes in front of the congregation. And acircuit servant recommended me to give thehour lectures that are done on Sunday whenthey invite the general public. They usuallyreserved those [sermons] for the elders ofthe congrega-tion.

[In an authoritarian voice:] “Sure he’syoung. But he can handle it. He’s a goodChristian boy. He has no vices, and he’sobedient to his parents and seems to havepretty good Bible knowledge.”

So at the age of sixteen I started givinghour lectures in front of whole congregations.I was assigned first to a group in Sweetwater,Texas, and then, eventually, in Brownfield,Texas, I got my first congregation. At agetwenty, I had become what they call a pioneerminister.

Jehovah’s Witnesses have a verysophisticated training program, and theyalso have kind of a quota system. You haveto devote ten to twelve hours a month todoor-to-door preaching. It’s like salesmanagement. IBM has nothing on theseguys.

So when I became a pioneer minister, Idevoted most of my full time to doing thedoor-to-door ministry. I had to do like 100hours a month, and I had to have seven Biblestudies. I started lecturing othercongregations. I began to get a lot of

responsibility, and I was accepted at a schoolin Brooklyn, New York, a very elite schoolthat Jehovah’s Witnesses have for the crèmede la crème, the top one percent. But I didn’tgo.

A few things no longer made sense to me.For example, the quota system. It seemed likeevery time I wanted to turn a corner and getinto another position of responsibility, I hadto do these secular material things to provemy godliness. It’s like if you meet your quotasthis month, God loves you. If you don’t meetyour quotas next month, God doesn’t loveyou. That didn’t make very much sense. Onemonth God loves me, and one month Hedoesn’t?

The other thing I started noticing is tunnelvision. Jehovah’s Witnesses are the onlyones who are going to be saved in God’s neworder, nobody else, because all of them arepracticing false religions.

We criticized the Catholic Church becausethey had a man. a priest, to whom they hadto confess. And we’d say, “You shouldn’thave to go to a man to confess your sins!Your sin is against God!” And yet we wentto a Body of Elders. You confessed your sinsto them, and they put you on hold, and said[Elder as telephone operator] “Hold on justa minute… What do you think, Lord? No?...Okay. I’m sorry, we tried our best but you’renot repentant enough. Your sin is too big, soyou either lose your fellowship in the churchor you’re going to be on probation.”

If the sin is against God, shouldn’t I directlygo to God and beg for mercy?

Probably the nail that hit the coffin wasthat I noticed that they started reading theirBible less. Jehovah’s Witnesses have booksfor everything that are put out by theWatchtower Bible and Tract Society. Theonly people on the entire planet who knowhow to interpret Bible Scripture correctly arethat group of men, that committee in Brooklyn,who tell Jehovah’s Witnesses worldwidehow to dress, how to talk, what to say, whatnot to say, how to apply Scripture and whatthe future is going to be like. God told them,

15

To be continued


Nasiha Fahmi, M.D.Board Certified Physician in Internal

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so they can tell us. I appreciated the books.But if the Bible is the book of knowledge andif it’s God’s instructions, well, shouldn’t weget our answers out of the Bible? Paul himselfsaid find out for your-self what is a true andacceptable word of God. Don’t let men tickleyour ears.

I started saying, “Don’t worry so muchabout what the Watchtower says-read theBible for yourself.” Ears started to prick up.

[Old Southerner’s drawl:] “I think we gotus an apostate here, Judge. Yup. I think thisold boy’s one taco short of something.”

Even my father said, “You better watch it,young man, that’s the demons talking rightthere. That’s the demons trying to get in andcause division.”

I said, “Dad, it’s not the demons. Peopledon’t need to read so much of these otherpublications. They can find their answerswith prayer and in the Bible.”

Spiritually I no longer felt at ease. So in1979 I left, knowing that I could not makeheadway, disgruntled and with a bad taste inmy mouth, because all my life I had put mysoul, my heart, my mind into the church. Thatwas the problem. I didn’t put it in God. I putit in a man-made organization.

I can’t go to other religions. As a Jehovah’sWitness, I had been trained, through theScriptures, to show that they are all wrong.That idolatry is bad. Trinity doesn’t exist.

I’m like a man without a religion. I was nota man without a God. But where could I go?

In 1985, I decided to come to Los Angelesand get on the Johnny Carson show andmake my mark as a great comedian and actor.I have always felt like I was born forsomething. I didn’t know whether it wasgoing to be finding the cure to cancer orbecoming an actor. I kept praying and it gotfrustrating after a while.

So I just went to the Catholic Church closeto my house, and I tried it. I remember on AshWednesday I had that ash cross on myforehead. I was trying anything I could. Iwent for about two or three months, and I justcouldn’t do it anymore, man. It was: Stand

up. Sit down. Stand up. Sit down: Okay, stickyour tongue out. You got a lot of exercise. Ithink 1 lost about five pounds. But that’sabout it. So now I’m more lost than ever.

But it never passed through my mind thatthere is a Creator. I have His phone number,but the line’s always busy. I’m doing my littlemovie shots-a film called Deadly Intent, atelephone commercial in Chicago, an Exxoncommercial and a couple of bank commercials.In the meantime I’m doing construction workon the side.

We’re working on this mall. It’s the holidayseason, and they put these extra booths in thehallways. There was a gal at one, and we hadto pass right in front of her. I’d say, “Goodmorning, how are you’?” If she said anything,it was “Hi.” And that was it.

Finally, I said, “Miss, you never sayanything. I just wanted to apologize if therewas something I said wrong.”

She said, “No, you see, I’m a Muslim.”“You’re what?”“I’m a Muslim, and Muslim women, we

don’t talk to men unless we have somethingspecific to talk about; otherwise we don’thave anything to do with men.”

“Ohhhhh. Muslim.”She said, “Yes, we practice the religion of

Islam.” “Islam-how do you spell that?” “I-s-1-a-m.”

At the time, I knew that Muslims were allterrorists. She doesn’t even have a beard.How could she possibly be Muslim?

“How did this religion get started?” “Well,there was a prophet “.

16 is issued on the 3rd Friday of each month. ISSN # 1062-2756

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Important Islamic daysASHURAH (Fast on 9th and 10th, or 10th and 11th of Muharram.)MAULUD-UN-NABI Birth of the Prophet Muhammad (Rabiul Awwal) - Death of the Prophet (12 Rabiul Awwal).ISRA and MIRAJ (The anniversary of the Night Journeyof the Prophet Muhammad to Jerusalem & his Ascensionthen to Heaven)(27 Rajab).NESFU SHABAAN (Shub-e-Barat)(middle of the monthof Shabaan)(night between 14 &15).BEGINNING OF THE MONTH OF Ramadan.LAILA TUL QADER (NIGHT OF VALUE) A night duringthe last 10 days of Ramadan.EID UL-FITR (1st. Shawwal)WAQFATU-ARAFAT (Pilgrims assemble on Arafat Plain,Makkah)(9 Zul-Hijj).EID UL-ADHA (Feast of sacrifice)(10 Zul-Hijj).

My Lord!Increaseme in knowledge. (20:114)

CONNECTICUT COUNCIL OFMASAJID

SERVICES AVAILABLEIslamic Center of Hamden has

set up the following committees tohelp the community to fulfill itsreligious obligations. CommunityDevelopment Committee;Fundraising Committee, Educa-tion Committee, Building Com-mittee, Matrimonial CounselingCommittee. Anyone interested inparticipating or taking advantageof these services should contactDr. Abdul Hamid P. O. Box 4456,Hamden, CT 06514.

CONNECTICUT COUNCILOF MASAJID

NEEDS HUFFAZ &TEACHERS FOR

QUR’ÂNIC AND ISLAMICSTUDIES

CCM is seeking applica-tions from individuals, bothmale and female, who arewilling to help establishmadaris for Qur’ânic edu-cation on a daily basis atvarious masajid and IslamicCenters in Connecticut.Qualified, interested indi-viduals should send theircurriculum vita to:Education Committee,P.O.Box 4456, Hamden,CT 06514.

Documents

10 Zulhijjah 1425 January 21, 2005 øR×ø¯ccm-inc.org/oldsite/iqra/pdf/0501jan.pdfyou follow Allâh or the taghoot (false deities) in this world? Allâh has described His friends