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Vol. VIII October, 19 3 5 No. 2

A Q u a r t e r l y . M a g a z i n e

Annual Subscripti0~, $1.00 (England 5 / - I n d i a Rs. 31-) Single Copy 25c Founded • by DR. M. M. SADIQ. Published b y SUFI M. R. BENGALEE

56 E. Congress St., Suite 1307. Chicago, I!1., U. S. Amer.

~ ~ ] ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Ahmadiyya Movement The Ahnmdiyy a Movement ~vas fgunded by Hazrat Ahmad, the

Promised Messiah and Mahdi and t h e expected Messenger of all • nations, Irt the spirit mid power of all the earlier prophets, he came

to serve and re-interpret the final and eternal teaching laid down by God in the •Holy Quran. The Movement-therefore represents the T rue and. Real I s lam-and geeks to upl i f t humanity a n d to establish peace throughout the wor ld . Hazrat Ahmad died'"in 1908, and the present Head of the.Movement ishis second successor, Hazrat Mirza Bashirttd-l)in Mahmud Ahmad Under whose directions the Move- ment Ires established Missions in many parts of the world, the following heing the addresses of some of them:

T H E I : ONDON " r i t e AHMADI~ 'YA- MOSQUE, M O S L E M .MISSION,

63 M/dr0se Road. - 928 \V. 7 th S t r e e t , Southfields, Cincinnati. O.,

kondon..S: \V.!8, " : U.. S,, America. : England. ) T H E AHMADIYYA

T H E A H M A D I Y Y A / " M O V E M E N T IN I S L A M

Sufi M.R:. Bengalee, M.A. , 56 E. Congress St:, '

M O S L E M M I S S I O N , 216 S. Euclid Ave.,

Dayton , Ohio. U. S , America

T H E A H M A D I Y Y A : Suite 1 3 0 7 , M O S L E M M I S S I O N .

Chicago, 'Illiflois, - 5311 .~Voo(lland Ave.. U. S., America.

M O S L E M M I S S I O N , T H E A H M A D I Y Y A

14!9 Roosevelt Ave., Indianapolis, Ind.,

U. S., America.

T H E A H M A I JIYYA M O S L E M M1SSION.

913 Woodland Avenue, :Kansas City. Missour i .

U . S.¢ America

T H E - A H M A D I Y Y A :

i - Cleveland. Ohio. U . S., America

: T H E A H M A D I Y Y A M O V E M E N T .

Gold Coast. West Africa. Commercial Road.

• Salt Pond. T H E A H M A D I Y Y A .MOVEMENT.

R0se Hill._ - Mauritius. -

T I I E A H M A D I Y Y A M O V E M E N T .

Box No. 305. G. P. O.. M O S L E M M I S S I O N . 537 Hendf ie Street. Perth. W: Aus t ra l ia .

Detr9it, Michigan. M A L A N A ABUL-ATA - U . ' S .... ~nlerica - [ U L L U N D A R I , .

:Mt. Karmad. T H E A H M A D I Y Y A Haifa. Palestine. M O S L E M M I S S I O N . M A U L V I R A H M A T

2008 \Vvlle ¢ Avenue, ALI , ' • Pittsburgh, Pa.. " Careof I~eved Kampoeng.

U. S.. America Djawa. Padang. S. Vg. C. - . . . . -

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T H E

° C M o s l e m S u nr .x s . I I I l l l 13 I I I I J I I I I ~ I I I I ~ I I I I I I I I I I I ~ I I I I I I I ~ I I I I I ~ ~ I I I I a I f I I I I S I I I I I I a l I I I I ~ I I I I I J l ~ I I I I I I I I I I ~ l l l I I I S I ~ I I I Z l I I I I I I ~ I I I l l l I ~ I I I l I I I I I B I I I I I I I I l l l l l l l I l ~ I I I I l l a I I i "

56 E. CONGRESS ST., SUITE 1307 CHICAGO, ILL., U. S. A.

Vol, V I I I O c t o b e r , 1 9 3 5 N o . 2

. . . . n t e n t s

F , u r V e r s e s f r o m t h e ! H 0 i y - Q u r a n . . . . . . ~. : ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . ; . = . . ~ . . . . ' : 3

The S a v i n g s o f t h e M a s t e r P r o p h e t M u h a n m a a d . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Call to T r u t h . . . . . . . . . : . . : . . . . . . . . . . : . ; . . . . : - - - . . . . . : i , - - . i~-~- : :" 5 I I a z r a t M i r z a G h u l a m : ~ l h m d d ( T h e P ~ ' o m i s e d

M e s s i a h . a m t M a h d i ) '~ • ~: •

Kt.vs tn M , r a l E v o l u t i o n . , . . + i . . - . . . . . . . : ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - . . . . . . . . . 7 " l t a z r a t M i r z a B a s h i r - u d - D e e n l M a h m u d M h m a d -

(lh'ad o f lift" , 4 h m a d i v v a M m , e n w n t . Q a d i a l l , I n d h t ) ~

T , w m ' d I M a m . . . " ~ ' : . i : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 " : S u f i M . R . Bengah,~; ' ~

M , , h a m m e d . the : D e s i r e d o f A l l N a t i . n s . . . . . . . ; . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 M a n l v P , t l a l l "

\ V h v I A m a M o s h ' m . . . . . . ~ . ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - , - , - . . . . . . . . : . : . . . . 2 3 O m i J r C l e z , e l a n d

" ' \ \ v s l e i ' n \ \ ' r i t e r s f i n d I s l a m " : . . . . . . : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~ ; . - . . ; : . . . . : ~ 2 4

l~l:tm on M a r r i a g e . . : . : . . . i . . . . . . . . i . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 6 - J a m e s l V i l l h t m s M u l i a m m a d _ • :

\ l',,-+.,,, ( , , l e . : . i . . . . : . . . : . . . . . . . : . : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : : . . . . 2 8

: \ 3 h ' e t i n g in t h e A h m a d i v v a M o s q u e ~ i n . C h i C a g o , : . . . . : : . : : . . , . . - 29 ' "Dr. l t a r l a n T a r b e l l : . . . . . . . :

P r e s s N o t i c e s : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : . . . . : . . . . - . . . . . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . . . . 3 2

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T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E 3

- • I .

~ - . . . . . " " T r a n s l i t e r a t i o n . . . . .

• .AllahU No0rus-Samawat i wal "Ardh. (XXIV-34 . ) : : L : . -,

• . innal ladl ieet ia Qa lo0 Rabi ,una- l lahU t l i u i h m a s t a q a m o . i a t a f i az - - z a l u a l a i h u m u l M a i a i k a t u a l l a . t a k h a f o o X~ala TahZano~y:wa' absiair6o bil J anna t i l l a t ee Ktiiiltum too-adoon N a l m u .Awiiau ~Kum fil h aya t i d - duniy a w a f i l A k h i r a h . ( X L I - 3 0 ) i . ' " ~ . : . "

- X V a n l i n a n n a s i m a n - y a s h r i nafsalau. i b t i g h a - a n maradha t i l l a l i Whllahu Ra-ufum-l ) i l Ibad . ( I I -203) " " - . - -

Man ami l a . ~ a l i h a n m i n Zaka r in a w u n t h a wa h u a m u m i n u m fala m i h i v a y a n n a l m hav-atafi . t~tyvebatan w a l a n a j z i y a w n a - h u m ajl~ahum bi . ahsalii n m knoo vamhl0on. . (X.\:.[~97) ~ " ' ~ : " -

- i :i - . ; : " T r a n s l a t i o n ' " ; - . i . : i ' : :~,L,.:.2. . . . .

• . God is**.tl~ e l ight of the l~ea~-ens a n d the em

-i . i T l lose ~:h6 sa~; " G o d - i s o t t r ;Lo t ' d" and a de~,Cend ui)bnl t h e t n ' a n d . s a v , "Fcmr ve not, liei

: 'be iofg0"0d c h e e r t lmt x:oU~will lye m a d e heirs heen pronrised, t o yo u ; : \ V e Willl lye G u a r d i a n s • o v e r . you in this. wor ld . - and in the next . ( X L I - 3 0 1 ) ". : " " " "

- .A i ld of . :mankind is he Who SellS (SacrifiCes) l a i n i s e l f s e e k i n g . t h e pleasuri~ 0 f God.a l id God i:s merc i fu l u n t 0 H i s serVanfs . (I~-203) :

- . WhoSOever does good, ' ma le or fen~ale;-iS t he f t rue lJelievet-. \ re r~ ih--fiim shall- we g i~e :h,'ipp~; and p u r e life. -~ ~Nnd ver i ly we sliali g ive

t l iem r e w a r d for t he :be s t 0f w h a t - t h e ~ did: (XV.I-97) ": ~

4 T H E M O S L J E M S U N R I S E

J

The Sayings of the Master Prophet Muhammad

Abdullah Ibn U m a r re la tes .how once the Hol3,Prophet told this little s t o r y : -

Three persons, ~ long ago, were journeying thr0ttgh the land. These three staved for the night in a niountain ravine: In thernight a huge st~me rolled over the mouth 0f the r~tvine and imprisoned t'iae three. The unfor tunate men conferred on what w a s t o be done, until theylagreed that if the5' prayed to God, reminding I-Iim of thqir past go0ddeeds , H e might release them.

Then th'e first m a n hegan thus: "O r " " God, my father and nay mother are very aged, and I love them so much that I feed them before I feed my children. Once, coming home With my flock af ter a johrney, I .fotmd m y father and :mother asleeI). I milked nay animals, and with the milk by nay side I kept vigil by nay parents ' hedside till dawn. Then my parents woke up and drank gi-atefully.. Even as I waited for their waking nay children clamoured r0und, .crying fo r food, so hu.ngrv were the)-. O God, if I d i d t h i s to Win Thy pleasure, su re ly Thou wilt help us in our distress." ~ •

Lo! the stone slid back a fraction, not leaving.enough space, however, through which tO pass.

Then the second man.prayed- " . thus :- O God,.I had a cousin • and she was very dear to me. O God, m y passion ruled me, and I wanted to sleep with h e r . She hecame mos t indignant and did not consent. A famine Came Up6n Our ~:ountr3~. and my cousin came t o m e f o r hell), as she starved. I reminded her of my desire, and told her that I would give her a sum of money if she would agree to sleep with me. The ?unfortunate lady agreed, However ; just as yve :made ready'~ she said. 'O cousin, fear God and d o not commit the unlawfif lac t . ' ~Vith tha t . I set her f ree and left her. O God, if I have done

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E $

Call to Truth

ti " " . . . . B y

H a z r a t Mirza G h u l a m A h m a d -The P r o m i s e d Messiah and Mahdi , .

1 8 3 6 - 1 9 0 8 . . . .

"Thc only religion Which can now redeem .mankind and lead .thenl to salvation is. Islam, and the last divine Word by which man can find God is contained in the H01y Quran, and the las t - D i v i n e L a w - g i v c y is Muhammad (peace :and the blessings of God b e upon: him !.~.

"The. Lord o f Heaven and Earth. h a s s e n t m e t o bring i tilt: world back to G o d a n d His-wo. rd and H i s P r 0phe t , whom. they had forsaken, and to preach His word to the nations and t. lead them back i n t o H i s ldngdom a n d tO bring those •that had became separated f romII ina : and to give faith to the faith, less, e y e s to the bl ind and ears 1~o the dea f ; and tO heal those whose b0dies, had been corrupted by- leprosy; and to raise tl{e dead ; and to awaken those that slmnber ; and to conciliate those that are disaffected: and. to reform those that are corrupted; and to r~ise those •that a r e fallen ;. and to look af ter those, that are helpless: and tO open the gates of the k ingdom .of heaven unto tfiose t h a t are rejected.

"Ye men, whatever vonr religion, t h e gates 0f God's

this to seek Thy pleasure, wiit Thdu not help us in Our dis, tress ?"

LO! the stone g a v e w a y a li t t le more, yet t he r e was n o t .enough room through which to pass to the opefi air. ~. Then the third man:prayed t h u s : " O God, I had a la- boUrer and I paid h i m : Once, however, he went way, with- OUt wages. "In t he meanwhile I invested his w a g e s in many ways. Soon I got much wealth, and became exceeding!ypros- perous. : Then the labourer returned and asked for his wages.

I gave him it, and with it all the weal th I had accumulated honi it. I - t e thought ! jested, but .became assured of my seriousness and took it all 'gratefullvi 0 God, i:f I have done this to secure Thv pleasu.re, wilt. ;I'hou no t help us in our .hstress. . - "

L o t the stone rumbled, and rolled back, and t he three men stepped out and went on their way. (Bukhar i )

6 T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

mercy are open unto ;,ou" believe in the one God and ol)ev. Muhanunad (o11 whona be peace and the blessings of~God! i and the heaven shall shower its blessings upon you and the earth shall bring forth its abundance.

"Ye • who call vourselves Moslems, think not that ye shall please God by your name. God is not pleased b y w o r d s but bY the righteousness of your. hearts, and by vouractions. Purifx- your thoughts mad watch over.your actions, for these-are the things fo r w h i c h a - m a n is himoured by the-Lor:tk Say not unto yourselves: "~Ve are, the chosen of }he Lord, He will not punish us, but will destrqy our e n e m i e s . He will destroy you before He will de.str¢)y your enemies anti condenin y0u before He will condemn" them fro" ve knew His will and thev knew : not. and ye w e r e i n the Ligfit and knew t ru th from darkness bu t the)" being i n t h e dark knew not.

"Ye Moslefi~s and Sons of MoslemS!. remove the hard- hess of your hearts and adopt humility for His s akeand draw no t yoursWords for the faith: for thus are ye not the elect of tlae Lord lint are condenmed hr .Him, for-ve d ishonour God a n d His Prophet and His Book a n d H i s F a i t h :to fulfil your own selfish desires and tO gain spoil f o r yourselves; ~ind to feed yourselves you cut the throats, of theirs: and ~ u dis- grace the name i-ff the Lord and seek honour for. yourselves.

"Tt/Tn:k-ye that the word of God Stands i n need o~ rob- bery and murde r to be juStified and honoured? Does not even the word 'o f man :extort deservi~d praise from the mouths of men? \Vhv then must ye kill:and plmader to coral)el men to p ra i se the 6"ord~0f God? • .-

"Ye men, ye..cannot find happiness in goods and money; but he that: looks after the poor and the needy will find. hal )=- piness, a n d h e that succours the helpless will be helped by the Lord; and he that protects the ;weak Will be guarded in heaven, so that ~vheia he sleeps God will keep awake for h im, and when he is-ungamrded God. will watch over him: ~nd when- he is not aw;ire of his enemy God will fight for him, for out of his l i m i t e d means .he helped God's poor .creatures and saved them from destruction. Shall the Lord, then, be miserly with .him and shall h e shut agailist him His .unlimited treasures ? . . . . . .

"And speak not that Which is not t r u e , f o r untruth i s a poison, and God accepts the righteou,s alone. Be honest and- s h u n d i s h o n e s t y . .

.1

T H E M o s L E M S U N R I S E 7

Keys-to Moral. Evolution . . . . . B y

Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Deen Mahrnud Abroad _ . ' ~ - •

(Head of theAhmadiyya Movement, Qadian, India)

The function of religion is not merely to point out good and bad moi-a! quallties, bu t ,also: to pr0vid~-or:devise means by the aid t)f which men may be able to renounce evil and A~lopt g0od morals, f o r wi thout th i s all o u r efforts a r e vain and our research profitless. \~re give below some of the means as prescril~ed-byi-Islam for nloral improvement.

The first m e a n s of m o r a l nnprovement furnished by Islam is through the manifestation of D i v i n e attributes, without which the: at tainment of moral perfection is impossible.

i n everyth ing mari stands i n need of demonstration, and can easi-lv learn through demonstrations what he cannot :acquire thrc~t'l~h books. In the. absence o f demonstration al lsciences and arts would be lost to the world. Can anyone, for instance,- learn chemist ry or .engineering without (he help of

:experiment s and demonst~rations? - -

The same is t he case with moral t rainings M a n cannot a t ta in to moral perfection without the help of per fec t models and demonstrations. I t is necessary, therefore, that perfect models should appear again and again in the world to demon- strate to mankind a life of-m0ral perfection. It is also necessary that these models should themselves be men, for a being that is no t hmnan Cannot Serve the purpose o~ a model for men- The conduct of such a being cannot encourage mankind to imitation. So w e nmst have perfect men to imitate and such men must appear f requent ly to enable . 0ther men ~ to mould their conduct i n imitation o f t hem. I s l am claims that such perfect men. appear f requent ly .on earth and they are the Prophets and Messengers of God~ " • . . . . i

-This is the only:complete.perfect me,ms of at taining m0ral perfection, and all o ther means are only subsidiary tO it, for, the benefits which we can derlVe froth the for iner are certain, and those that can be derived from an): other means cannot be en t i re ly free f r o m the .possibility- of doubt and error. But as. this lneans cannot .be provided by man a t h i s own will and pleastire, Islam has. pointed ou t other means, by the aid of

| T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

which a man might discard evil morals and.acquire good ones.- The second means .provided by is lam f.or the moral iln-

provement of man, is the lnethod adopted by it in classify- ing all moral qualities into different grades and. stages. : By indicating these different stag~/s of virtue and vice, Islam has rendered it easy .ior ever), pe r son to ascertain his t rue position in the lnoral scale, a n d t o take s teps and.adopt measures £or his moral improvement. :At every stage a man has a deti- n i te Object pu t before, hin !, Which does no t appear to him to be impossible of a t ta inment afld wh iqh , the re fo re , d0cs ilot-: discourage him. " For instance,-nothing would appear stranger or more hopeless to a man .who is so s teepe d in vice that he does not retain the slightest conception o f v i r tue and morality, than to be ~ told that he must so re form himself as to 1hake virtue a par t of his na ture and to spend the rest of his life in the service of humanity. The~guli between his present position

. o " . . . .

and. that. which he as asked, to. a t tam to, would. . aP.t)ear insuper2 able, and he would probably despair of e v e r beiilg a better lnan. But if we were to tell him that everys tep taken towards virtue makes him more virtuous a n d tha t iF he cannot alto-.: gether renounce vice he should a t least feel ashamed oF it, h e would eageHy fol low our suggestions a s being practicable arid easily attainable. When. h e begins tO Feel. remorse and is a sh a m ed Of his Conduct, we can tell him t h a t h e lias achieved the: first s tep toward v i r tue , io r the renouncing o f the graver ' forms of vice is als6 a form of vir tue. T h e encouragement which he derives frOm this we can Use as an a id towards his . fur ther progress on the path of Virtue. "\-\re can next ask h im tha t i~I he is yet unable to do good, he should .a t least avoid evil, a n d shoutd reFu.se to ~ ' t upon-the evil promptings and suggestions o f h i s mind;-ai ld slmuld try that no evil acts a re done by him, so that he shonhl no t l )yhis evil deeds cause pain or unpleasantness t o o thers . . !-Ie wi l l find this easier than the first stage, and when he has accoml)lished this he will be more than ever eager to advance towards Virttle and to renounce hisl fol-meg .career o f vice. -H i s mind s~,ill, still be full o f evil / / " " " " thoughts,- but can anybody doub.t that he will have attained a cer ta in stage of vil'tUd.-for he is constantly ad.vancing towards it and had refiounced tlm greater p o r t i o n o f his vices ? \~re shall then ask him t~?take the next step and t o cleanse . his mind of evil. thoughts mad to shtm all imlmrity and vice. This-wil l surely be touch,easier for h i m than the first two stages and when/he I{as accomplished this, his m i n d will be

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E •

like that of a new-bol-n child a c l e a n plate on which no im- - . r e , ' . prcssion has ) t been inade. Af ter he is saved f rom the st.fi.te of moral degradation, we can next p u t h i n l to the f i r s t s tage

, ,f ,,norality and lead him on and on to the highest pinnacle" ,,f m o r a l e v o l u t i o n . .

The third means provided by Islam for this purpose is |ha t it has explained: the reasons why good moral qualities should be adopted a n d evil ones eschewed, so tha t men, be- c~min.~ axcare of the real i{ature of. these qualities should of

• lhemselves be pron{pted to acquire good mora ls and to eschew evil ones. -. . . . . " . . . . . . . - .

The f o u r t h nleans provided bv Islam for . this purpose is I,~ alter the p o i n t 0 f view 0f man concerning s0me of the evil mora ls , and to substitute hope f o r despair in this con- ilection: ManVeviiS:are committed by men.because they believe that thev caml0t possibly avoid them. -The people who

..propagate such ideas .among their children, lav the founda- tic,ns of the nloral depravity: Of fu tu regene ra t ions . A man wh~ does not believe that a certain object is attainable will uever s tr ive af ter i t . A nation that believes tha t its an- t ' t ' s l o r s had exhatlsted al l possible discoveries and inventions is not likely;, to make a discovery o r i n v e n t i o n : a n d a nation

thai: beliex;es t h a t it cannot possibly effect, a n improxTement in its condition is not likel.v.to attempt it. Similarly, people .who lielieve that evil is inhef'ent i n them a n d t h a t they cannot pos ~°' siblx; resist it, and tlaat i t is impossible for. them t o a c h i e v e moral perfection, are t.hemselves providing the means of their Own destruction. The Holy p rophe t (on whom.be peace and lhe blessinfs 0f G o d ) h a s laid ~reat stress~ on this point and has altogether forbidden despair: H e s a y s : "\,Vhen a man saysconcerning a people that they have been destroyed, he is the person who des t r0ys them." T h a t is?to say, no material calamities and misfor tunes dan b e so fatal t o a man as the

• impression on h l s .mind that the doo r !of improvement, and p rogresshas beei~ shut u p 0 n . h ! m . - Despair and disappoint- ment prevent a l~aan from making an eff0rt for success and lead to certain f a i l u r e and destruction. Is lam does not cotmtenance the idea that ma'n Can ever be-debarred f rom self- improvement and progxess, and i t . h a s thfls opened the door to moral development . : . . . . . . .

' There can bel n o d o u b t t h a t man i s b o r n into this world with a pure and sinless nature, and:hOwever deep he micht plunge into sin, his nature retains some Of its original purity,


so that if at any time he turns towards virtue, he can discard all his vices, which are all acquired, and can?attain to the perfection of virtues, which is iiiherent in man. I s l a m has, by putt ing forward this truth, completely a l t e r e d 1nan's point of view towards g o o d a n d e(,il, and given hini hope and courage. Religions o t h e r than I s l am are e i ther silent on this point, or represent man as entering this world under such bur- dens that they are enough to submerge him without the ad- ditional weight of his Own misdeeds,-

The fifth means prescribed by I s l a m for moral . reforma- t ion appears at first sight to be inconsistent with the fourth. but in reality it i s ,merely sl{pplementary to it. This is the effo'rt, which Islam .nmkes to uproo t . the evil influences of, ! heredity. N o d o u b t m a n is.bona with a pure nature, but he also in]aerites from his parents o r - remote ances tors certain inclinations towards vice. 'Th i s statement is not inconsistent. Nature and inclination ar:e two different t h i n g s . . N a t u r e or conscience is ahvavs pure. Even the child o f a rohher or n m r d e r e r . i s . b o r n with a pure nature, lint if h is .parents possessed an evil mind, he wilt be influenced by it, and will be easily led away by such thoughts if he Subsequently encounters them. just as theTchildren o f confirmed invalids a r e p rone to fall 'an easy prey. to diseases from which their parents suffered. Such inclinations and tendencies in the mind of a : ch i l d are the result of the ithought which fill t he ,uinds of the parents at tl~e time o f Copulation, The effect of these thoughts on the min~l of the child is in most cases very slight an~l m a y x ery often be overcome b y environments and trainin,o', lint Islam

.has prescribed a means of turn ing even such influences into instruments of good. The husband and wife a r e taught to offer a lqrayer when: they meet each other . in private, which runs, "Secure us, . 0 Lord, and our children ;igainst evil promptings arfd evil i.coinpanions.'.' Apar t f rom its .effect:as a prayer,, this prayer s tar ts .a current of pure~houghts in the- minds of the parents, even in cases i n which they a r e not- ordinari ly ~ v e n to such thoughts; f o r n o t on ly : the mere act of prayer but also the words o f ¢his par t icular prayer as well as tile concern which most people feel for the .welfare of their issue, and the natural desire of all parents that their children should lead pure . l ives , produce this - effect. \Vhen. . there : fore, parents offer p r a y e r for the pur i ty of their children. ~ their own minds are -bound to be affected by it and to incline


t6wards pnrity and virtue, and as the child is likely to in- herit the thoughts entertained by his .parents at the moment, he will be saved frona inclinations which his parents might have entertahaed prior to this prayer. The Itoly Prophet (on whom be peace and the blqssings of God) says:--"Children whgse parents offer this prayer a t the time.of their conjugal relation are saved from the touch of Sat.an, ~ meaning that they are saved fronl t h e evil influences which they we.re, liable to iuherit~ from their parents. This would be so whether the prayer is accepted or not. If it is accepted it will also secure the child against other evil influences.

The sixth means prescribed by Islam for the moral improvement of man is that if has opened ways by which s u c h ttioughts enter themind of man as ' may exci teandquicken in him "lais natural instinct Of virtue. Some of these ways, e.g., prayer, worship, fasting, remembrance of God etc. W e will explain [a-ere three of those ways :.

(a). The first of these i s .mentioned in ~the following words of the Holy Quran: i.e., "O, Ye Muslitns, keep company with therighteous." (IX:119) I t cannot he denied that

m a n is influenced.byhis environment, and a man who keeps • - . . . • , • , . - . . •

company with the righteous is bound tO experience a rapid ¢ 1 " " * " ° * and wonderful-chan,,,e m .hmaself. ~hlch draws him towards

virtue a n d helps him :to get rid of vices and evil thoughts. • i ' n Islam .lays so nmch stress upon the effect.of a man s compa y.

upon his. morals:, that the Moslems have ever been fond of resorting to the company of the righteous men. They often undertakeilong and arduous journeys f o r this purpose and bear Separation f r o m their homes and dear:ones, and by. the help of. the magnetic influence of such men they arrive at their goat wi th ina wonderfully short period of time.-

(b) :The second way for moral improvement is Contained in the-laws relating to lawful and prohibited things, such as fo~d. \Ve are constantly surprised to find that the World has ncit vet realised the wonderful truth that a man's morals are deel;ly affected by the fgod he takes. On the contrary, the laws 0f Islam"regulating food are. critiCised as entirely pur- poseless. The fact, however, that the-fo0d .one takes affects one's morals Can hardly be tleniedi The Holy Quran says: "0 Apostles,-eat those things that are pure;::and you will be enabled to act righteously." " . . . . .

( c ) . The third way of moral development devised by- I s lam is that a child shouldbe subjected to .goodinfluences

j ~

,/

12 T H E ]~iO S L E M S U N R I S E

Toward Islam By

Sufi M. R. Bengalee

Islam is .the most misrepresented and the least understood Of all religions. F o r centuries,, this noble faith has

f rom its infancy. - Islam-possesses the. unique dist i 'nct ionof having appreciated this principle. In other religioias it is- generally understood-that :religion ought to regulate the conduct of a child only af ter it has attained to years of discretion. According t o Isl~tm, t h e injuctions of religion, no doubt, become binding on a child Only af ter - i t has at tained discretion bu~: in mat ter of habit and r o u t i n e a child will not be able to conform to the comman~lments of his f a i t h unless he is t rained from his very infancy to act in accordance with them. Accordingly, I s l am enjoins upon parents the t ra ining of a child f rom the m o m e n t of. his birth. As soon as a child is ' i ~ horn 'to a Moslem,-the Azan; (i.e., t he words used. for calling the faithful to prayer). .whicla conta ins a n abstract o f the essential .doctrines Of Islam, .is. recited into • his"right a-nd left ear. The recitat ion:of the Azan i m o the ears Of newly-born infant indicates that• the .di.~retion. o f a ch.ild g rows steadily and graduall), f rom the monient of his birth, and that he does not attain to•full discretion, at any given moment.

The seventh means devised by /s lam £or~ the- moral iin- provement of man is to Close t h e avenues tt:rough which sin finds an .entrance into the hun)an mind,. - .. -. "

EVil, according to Islam, is extraneous to man and enters f rom outs~ide. The, :nature of man is pure and loves virtue and abhors vicel Keeping this principle i n view Islam h a s laid down.instruct ions, whereby al l . those avenues by which evil thoughts or vices c a n eliter the human mind-have been closed. W e are surprised, however, t o find, that. this psycho- logical t ruth :on which Islam h a s b a s e d these injunctiolis whereby it ha s -made a material addition to the volume of moral and iniellectual debt w h i c h t h e world owes it, has pro- voked the fiercest opposition to, Islam and has ,failed to re- ceive due appreciation .even a t the hands of those who value all things by the s tandard of intellect.

l


bc~n mercilessly assailed by the Christian missionaries and the nfi,iiifonned and the preverted western writei-s as the most militant and spiritually and ethically .unedifying religion. The enemies of Islam have painted an extremely (lark and gloomy picture of the noble-faith with the avowed object of poison- ing- the minds o£ the unenlightened: westernpublic. Conse- quently grossest ignorance about and a deep-seated and wide- spread antipathy against this holy-faith and its votaries are to be found among the: occidental people.

~ r " " " " % * It is highl)/grat ifying to note that as a result of the rapid

.,rowth of contact between the east a n d the west and through-.the noble.efforts of t h e Moslem missionaries of the :\lmmddiva m6vement, the light Of Islam-is.:.penetrating the .western world. Occidental people have begun to: have a better understanding.of the fa i th of Islam and its lofty principles.' :\s the veil of misrepresentation, misunderstanding and ignorance ls being lifted,, people are g-radually becoming at~ tracted tmvard i t as t h o u g h b y the law .of gravitation. And the. west is consciously Or unconsciously adopting, the prin, -ciples of Islam.. Manifest signs.are visible: in. the .horizon, Which promise a magnificent future for .Islam in the west. The day is not far when the west .will find i tssalvation at the

-. feet of Islam. ' I n - t h i s article, we propose tO discuss briefly certain

trends of the western world toward Islam. " - :Divinil/y or-God-head o f Jesus, Trini ty , vicarious atonement and.that man ~s born in Sin and shaped in ifiiquity are !he important Christian ' beliefs and doctrines upon whieh the Chris t ianchurchis built. - . . . . .

: A careful study-of the radical changes through which Christianity,. is passing for a long time, revea l s tha t a con- .qderable port ion of the Christians. have Summarily-repudi- ated the above mentioned: traditional and Orthodox Christian beliefs. Beginning with the Unitarian sect, innumerable Christian denominations have sprung up, which flinging God- head. of Jesus and. Trinity to..the winds, have accepted the. purely Islamic truth of Monotheism--belief in one and the only C, od. Like the MOslems; they believe in Jesus as a man and a great prophet, nothing more than that. : ' Similarly many ChriStians have realized'the absurdity of the doctrine of the .vicarious atonement. They have become -convinced that.salvation of man cannot depend Upon the blood


of Jesus. Man has to work out his mvn salvation bY submitting himself to the will of God and through his own good works. This is Islamic belief.

Asid~ from t h e i g n o r a n t and the blind followers,_ the up- per strata of. the Christian fiiith have recoglfized the hnmoral- ity of the monstrous, docti'ine that man is bo rn in S in and shaped in iniquity. The ; t ru th h a s dawned upon them that. man is born p m ' e a n d Sinless. E v i l , i s no t inborn, innate or natural with man. T h e sheet of h u m a n nature is perfectly: clean. T h i s means clearly a gr.eat t r iumph ~f Islam.

Monasticism--iS virttle,'in Chris t iani ty-- . In sharp and vivid contrast i t is t r ice in Islam. The Holy Ouran proclaims; "There is. no inon~sticisnl in Islam." T h e Holy prophet Mutiammad says, "Marr iage i s m y precept and example~ Those )vho do not follow my precept" and example are nor mY followers." Thus Is lam has emphasized and exalted the sanctity of t h e institution Of marr iage as the mar r i ag e life is the moFt righteous life.

Wi th the march of progress the .Christians had to s u b - mit to this Moslem .princilfie w h i c h has ga ined ground in Christ iandom with the result that Monasticism h a s been practically ~xting-uished.

There is no ~ Sanction of' divorce i n Christ ianity. The- , i 1" I Christian Bible says~ \ \ hosoever shall p.lt awav his wife, sav ~

ing for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: a n d whosoever shall ma( ry her that is diw.~;ced, commit- teth adultery." (Math. \"-32) : . . . . - .

In striking contrast, Islam allows divorce u n d e r certain circumstances when itbeComes an unavoidaNe necessity. At - the same time, Islam takes every precaution and lmts stringent restrictions upon it so tha t it may not become a menace to the sacred institution of m a r r i a g e m l d thus break the home l i f e .

The saying of :Mt!hammad is deeply s ignif icant in t h i s regard. /The Holy Prophet says. "Of all hra,fM things, di.vorce is the most al)omuaab e.

So I s l a m allows diWwce but ImtS a great clleck upon it with its wise laws and teachings. The result is: that t he re :is no marr iage and divorce problem i n t h e work] of Islam.

For centuries,- the Christians hax;e brought accusation of b lasl~hemy against Is lam on account of its sanction of divorce:

It is not possible to oppose the law of nature which is the law of God forever. T h e Christians h a d to admit defeat at


the hands of Islam in this particular. Most of the Christian gm'ernments were.forced t o annul the indisolubility of marriage and to adopt th e Islamic principle of divorce by laws, tlmugh without .the wise and effective restrictions of Is lam.

" The result is that the l)enduhml has swung to the other extreme . and divorce has bee{role so common that it has shaken the very

foundations of the whole social s t r u c t u r e . . H e r e again, Islam secures another great victor),.

The contribution of . Christianity .toward removing the great evil of drinking i s n e x t tonollhing. On the contrary, t h e . New.Testament furnishes abundant wa r r an t ,for indulgence.

• Jesus' dr inking:of wine gives. i t the s tamp.of sanction . Islam has lint absolute veto on all into.kicants.; The success o f I s l a m in eradicating this evil is unparallelecL Since.its dawn. wherever Islam has.got!e, drinking.has vanished.

The Christian w o r M h a s come to recog-nize that drinking is a grea t stumbllng block to the growth of civilization, There is a"tmiversal con'demnation, ot: this igiant evil. America adcipted the law of prohibition, Though it m e t w i t h c o m p l e t e and tragic failure it set a n o b l e precedent in impressing upon the wo.rld the supreme importance and utmost necessity of adopting the Islamic law of prohihition.

This i s a flagranl: adniissi0n of the moral superiority of Islam and a great step forward toward the noble faith. •

T h e main l~roblem - -of o u r generat ion :is the economic " liaral) ., which is deepl,~; rooted "in concentration of wealth. This is fast-ldriving the so-called .civilized world toward Islmn which alone holds the key fo the solution Of the vexedeconomic disorder. By its law of inheritance, by its.ban on interest and by-the. ins t i tu t ion o f Z a k a t or poor rate. I s l am removes the " " evils of capitalism and effects an rapproachment between capital and labor.

There has awakened a tremendous consciousness for wide and equitalJle distribution o f :,vealth all over the world. The recent :American: proposition 0f. share-the-~wealth -tax plan tellS the same story. This share-the-wealth proposition i s the near- est approach to the l s l amic institution of ZaEat or poor rate,

according to which two ancl. one-half percent of all k inds of surplus wealth of every.individual is to be collected by t he state and. spent: exclusively, for the wel.fare of the poor and needy.

All the above mentioned examples are siareindications of the Swi~ft d r i f t of t he world toward Islam.


Mohammed, the. Desired of All Nations

By Manly P. Hall

Mohalmned, the Prophet of Ishtn'm, ."tlie Desired of nil nations," was born in Mecca, A. 17). 570 and died in Medina. A. D.: 632, or in the eleventh yea r after the Itef]h'a ( H i j r a h ) .

In his youth ~Iohammed: tr,'iveled wi th the~I4ccan carat xian, on one occasion, acted as armour-bearer for: his uncle, and spent a considerable time amonff the Bedouins.

\Vi th the. Passing years Mc~hannued attained marked success in business antl when about twenty-five years ohl married- one of hisenlplo3;ers, a wealthy X~q(10w nearlY' fifteen years his senior. The widow. Khadijah by name,, greatly fascinated by Mohammed, resolved to retain the young efficient manager for life. Khadi jah was a woman-of exceptional mentality ai{d to her integrity and devotion must be ascribed the early success of the Islamic cause. By his mar r i age .Mohammed was elevated from a position of comparative poverty to one of great wealth and power, and so exenlplary was his conduct that-he became known throughout MeCca as "the faithful and true.":

Mohammed Unhestitatingly sacrificed both his wealth and social position in the se rv iceof th:e God whose voice he heard while meditat ing in the cavern on M o u n t Hi ra in the month of Ramadan. Year after: 3'ear Mohammekt cl imbed the rocky and-desolate-slgpes of M o u n t Hira (since called Jebel-Nur, "The Mountain o f Light") and here in his loneliness cried-out to God to reveal anew the pure religion.of Adam, that spiritual doctrine lost to mankind through the dissensions o f religibus factions. Khadijah,.solicitous over her husband's ascetic prac- tices which were impairing his physical health, sometinles ac- conlpanied him in his Weary v.igil, and with Womanly ' intuit ion sensed the travail of his soul. At last one night in his f.ortietti . year as he lay upon the floor- o f the cavern, .enveloped in his cloak, a great ligh t burst upon him. Overcome with a sense

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E lY

of perfect peace and understanding in the blessedness of the celestial presence, he lost consciousness. \Vhen he came to himself again the-Angel Gabriel stood before him, exhibiting a silken shawl with mysterious characters traced Upon i t . From these characters Mohammed gained the basic doctrines later embodied in the Koran: Then Gabriel spoke in a clear and w~mderful voice, declaring Mohammed to be the. Prophet of the. living God. "

In awe and trembling, Mohammed hastened to Khadijah. fearing the vision to have been inspired-by the same evil .~liirits who Served the pagan inagicians so ,greatly despised by him. Khadijah assured him that his own virtuous life would lie his protection and that he need fear no evil. Thus reas- sure& the Priq~het awaited further visitations from Gabriel. When these did not . . . . . come: however, such a despair filled his s~ul that .he attempted Self-destructic;n, only to be stopped in the very act of casting himself over a cliff by-the sudden re- apl~eai-~nce .of flabriei, who again assured"the Prophet that the revelations needed by his people would be given to him as necessity arose, .

Possibly as a result of his lonely per iodsof meditation, • .M~,hammed seemingly- was subject to ecstatic trances. On the occasions when the" xarious stira2ro)f the Koran.were dictated hc is said to have fallenunconscious, and; regardless of the chill:of the surrounding air, tO have been coveredwith beads of perspiration. Often these attacks came. without warning; at other times he--W0uld sit wrapped in-ablanket to prevent a chill from the copious perspiration, and while apparently unconscious would dictare the various passageslwhich a small. circleof trusted frlends would either commit-to memory or re- .duce to Writing. o n one occasion in later, life when Aim Bakr referred to the gray hairs in his beard, Mohamnaed, lifting the end of his-beard:and lookingat it, declared its whiteness to be. due ~ to the phvsicai agony attendant upon his .Periods o£ in- spirati0n.

If the writings attributed to Mohammed .bi~ considered as nierely the hallucinations of anepileptic----and for that:reas0n discounted his Christian detractors should beware lest with the doctrines of the ' Pr0phet - they also undermine the very

-teachings which they themselves affirm, for many of the dis-_ ciples, apostles, and saints of. the early church are known to havebeen subject to nervous disorders.

~s T H E M O S L ~ : M S U N R I S E

Moha,mned's first convert was his own wife, Khadijah,. who was followed.by other nlembers of his immediate family; a circumstance which moved Sir William-Muir to note:

Mohmnmed s sincerity "It is strongly corroborative of ' that the earliest :converts to Islam were not only of uprigh't character, but his own bosom friends and people o fh i s household i who, intimately acquainted with his private life, could not fail otherwise to have detected those discrepancies whiEh ever more or less exist between the professions of the hypo- critical dgceiver abroad and his actions at' home . " (See The Life of Mohamnaed.)

Amol{g the f i r s t to accept the faith of Islam was Abu . - , , .

Bakr. who becgme ;lohammed s. closest and mos.t faithful friend2 Abu'Bakr, a man of brilliant attainments, contributed materi/illv to the. success of the Prophet's enterwises , and in accord with the exWeSs wish of the Prophet became the leader of the faithful after Mohammed's death. A'isha, the daughter of Aim Bakr, later becaine the. wife of :Mohammed, thus still further cementing the bolad of fraternity between the two men. Quietly, but industriously, Mohammed l~ronmlgated his doctrines among a snmll Circle of. powerful, friends. When the enthusiams of h is fisllowers finally forced his hand and he Imblicly announcedhis mission, he Was already the leader of a - strong and v,~ell-organized faction. Fearing Mohammed's growing prestige; the pe0i~le, o f Mecca, waiving the-time-hon- i ored tradition that blood could not be spilt within the holy., city, decided to exterminate'Islam by assassinating.the.Proph- et. All the differefit groups combined in this undertaking S O that the g-uilt fdr the crime might thereby h.c more evenly dis- rilmted. Discovering the danger in time, Mohammed left his friend Ali in his bed and fled.with Aim Bakr from the city, and after adroitly eluding the Meccans, joined the main' body of his foll~owers that had preceded hini t0 Yathrib (afterwards called Medina ). )L:'l~on this incident-,-called the Hcqira (Hi j - rah) or. "flight" is based the Islamic chronological system.

Dating from the Hegira, (I t i j rah) the power of the Prophet steadily gr~ew until in the eighth 3,ear Mohammed entered Mecca after practically abloodless victor), and estab- i lished it as the spiritual center Of his faith: Planting his stand ~ ard to the north Of Mecca, he.rode into the city, and after circling seven times the sacred Kaaba. ordered the 360 images within its precincts to be destroyed.: He then enl/ered the Kaaba

T H E M O S L E M . S U N R I S E . 1 9

• itself, cleansed i to f its idolatrous associationsl.and rededicated the s t rnctureto Allah. the monotheistic God. of Islam. Mo-

-hammed next granted amnesty to all his enemies for their at- tempts to destroy him. Under his prote'ction Mecca increased in power and-glory, becoming~the focal point of a great annual pil~r.image; which.even-tO this day winds.ac~)ss the desert in theTmonths of pilgrimage-and numbers over threescore thou- sand in its train.

In ' the tenth year after the Hegh'a (Hi j rah) , Mohammed led the valedictory pilgrimage and for the last t imer0de at the

.hea.d of the faithful along the sacred way l e a d i n g t o Mecca -an¢[ the Black • Stone. As the premonition bf death was strong upon .him, he desired this pilgrimage: t o be the perfect model for all-the thousands that Would follow.

~ - . .

Conscmus that life was waning away within him," wrote Washington Irving, "Mahomet, during this last sojourn in ihe sacred city of his faith, sought to engrax~e h i s doctrines deeolv in the,minds and hearts of hisfollowers. For this purpose:' lae preached frequently in the Kaaba from the imlpit, or in the openair from the.back of his camel. 'Listen toniy words,' he would say, 'for ~[ know not whether, af ter this year, we shall ever m e e t h e r e a g a i n . O h , m y hearers, I am but a man like yourselves: the angel Of death may at. any. time appear, and I must obey his stnnmons'." Having completed the valedictory pilgrimage; Mohalmned returned to Medina. - " In the seventh year after the Hegii'a (Hi j rah) (A- . H. 7 ) an attempt was made at Kheibar to poison the Prophet. As .XIohainmi~d took the first mouthful of the poisoned food, the evil design.was revealed to him by divine intercession.

It is related that during his last sickness he rose one night and visited a burial ground on the outskirts Of Medina, evi- dently believing that he, .too, would soon be numbered with

)he dead; A t this 'time he told an attendant that the choice had been offered him of continuing his physical life or going to his Lord, and that he had chosen to. meet his Maker.

Mohammed Suffered greatly with h i s head and side and also f rom fever, but on june 8th. Seemed convalescent. He joined his followers in prayer and, seating himself in the court- yard, deli~-ered a lecture to-the faithful in a-clear and powerful voice. Apparently he-0vertaxed his strength, fo r it was necessary to assist him into the house of A'isha, which opened into the court of t h e mosque. Here upon a rough pallet, laid

2 0 T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

on the bare tloor the Propliet of Islam spent lris last hours ~m earth. \ \ ;hen she saw t h a t her aged husband was sufferin.~ with intense pain, A'isha snl)l)orted him in her arms until the end. Feeling that death was Ul)On him. Mohammed prayed: "O Lord, I beseech Thee, assist me in the agonies of death." Then ahnost in a whisper fie repeated three times: "Gabriel. come Close unto me." I n The Hero as Prophet'. Thomas Car- lyle writes thus of the dearth o f M o h a m m e d : : 'His last Words were a prayer, broken ejaculat ions of a heart~ struggling-u 1) in trembling-hope towards its Maker."--

Concerning' the character Of Moliammed there have been the grossest misconcel)tions. No, evidence exists t o sui)l)ort. the charges of extreme cruelty and licentious!li~ss laid.at his door. O n the contrary, the more closely the life o f M o h a m - med is scrutinized by dispassionate investigators, the more al)- l)drent become the finer qualities of his nature. In the words of Carlyle: "

i lahomet hmlself, af ter all that can b e s a i d abotlt him. was not a sensual man. \ v e so err wi'dely if we consider this man as a c0mmon;voluputary, intent mainly cJn base enjoy- men t s~nay , on enjoyments of any ikifid. H?is household _ivas one of the frugalest, his conamon ~liet barely bread and water. Sometimes for months there was not a fire once lighted On his hearth• . A poor, hard-w0rking, ill-pr0vided man" care- less of w h a t v u l g a r man toiled for• -. The~; Called h i m a

• = . . .

Prophet, yon say? \Vhy; he stood there face to face with them; there, not enshrined in any mystery, visibly clouting his. own cloak, cobbling his own shoes; fighting, counselling, ord ~ : ering in the midst o f them, they must have seen ~k;hat kind of a man he was, let him be called what you.like! NO emperor with his tiaras was obeyed as this man in.a_cloak:0f his own clouting?'

i~onfused by the apparentl3,- Hopeless task o f feconciling the life of the Prophet. with the absurd statements long accepted,as-authentic, \V'ashington Irving weighs him m the scales of fairness.

"His military triumphs awakened no pride nor vain glotw. as they. wou ld have done had they been effeCted f o r Selfisfi i purposes• In the time of his greatest power, hema]nta ined the same' simplicit3; of manners and appearan.ce as i n t h e days 9 f hig adversity. . . It is t!lis perfect abnegation, of seJf. connected with this apparent heart-felt piety, running through-

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E 2 1 -

,ut the various phases of his fortune, which perplex one in forming a just estimate of Mahomet's character . . . . \Vhen he hung over the death-bed of his infant son Ibrahim, resig-na- ~i0n to the will of God was exhibited in his conduct under this kecnest of afflictions; and the hope of soon rejoining his child in Paradise ~was his Consolati6n." (See Mahomet and.His Suc- cessors.) . . _ - o -

" A'isha. questioned after the deal~h o f - the Prophet con- ceming, his habits, replied .that he mended his own. clothes, col)bled his own shoes, and helped hei--in the household. duties. [low fa r removed:from Western concepts of Mohanimed's !anguinary character is A'isha'S simple admission that he loved most of all to sew! Hea l so accepted the invitations of slaves and sat at meals with servants, declaring himself to be ,~ servant. Of all Vices he hated lying the most. Before his - ,loath he freed a l l h i s slaves. He never permitted his family t0 tfse for personal ends any. of the alnls or the money given ILv his people. H e was fond of sweetmeats and used rain water for drinking purposes. His time he divided into three )arts, ll~.lilely.: the first he gave to God, the secon d to his-family. and the th i rd to himself. T h e latter l;ortion however-, he later Sacrificed to the service of his people. He dressedchiefty in white but also wore. red, yellow, and green. Mohammed entered Mecca ~/earing a black turban and bearing a black standard. He .wore on ly the plainest of garments, declaring that. rich and conspicuous raiment did not become "the pious, and did not remoVe his .shoes at prayer. I-Ie was particularly concerned with the cleanliness of his teeth and.at the time of his death, when .too weak to speak, indicated his desire for a toothpick. \Vhen fearful of forgetting something, (~he Prophet tied a thread toh i s ring. He once had a very fine gold ring . t)ut, noting that his folloivers had taken.to-wearing similar rings i n emulation Of him, he removed his own. and. threw it awav les this fNlowers form an evil habit. (See The Life of • llol~ammad. ).

The most 'frequent, and apparently the most damaging, accusation brought against Mohammed is that o f polygamy. Those who sincerely believe the. harem to be irreconcilable ~tith.spirituaHty should with consistency move for the expur- Ntion, o f the Psalms 0f David and the Proverbs of Solomon from ihe list of inspired writings," for the harem of Islam's

_22 T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

l ' rophet was insignificant COmlmred with that Inaintained by Israel s wl. est king and the relmted favorite of the Most ~tigh'! The polmlar conception that Mohamnled t a u g h t that Wonmn had no soul and could attain heaven only through marr iage is not substantiated by the words and a t t i tude o f the Prophet dur ing his lifetime. In a lmper entitled " T h e Influence Of Is- lam on Social Condit ionsj ' read at the \Vor ld ' s .par l iament 0f Religions held in Chicago. in lg93, Mohammed \Vebb states the charge and answe, rs i t . thus:

"I t has been said that Mohammed a n d t h e Koran denied a soul to WOlnan and ranked her with the animals~ The Koran places h e r on a p.erfect and comlflete equality with man. and the Pgophet's tea6h!ngs oftela place her in a l~osition superior to the man in some re° pects. Mr. \Vebhinst if ies his stand by quoting from the thir ty-third sltrt t o f the Koran :

" \ ;e r i ly the Moslems of either sex: a n d the . t rue believers of either sex, and the dew'out men. affd the dewmt women, and the men of veracity, and the women of veracit)~ and the patient men, and the 1)atientwomen. and the h u m b l e men, ,.and the humble women, and the alms-givers o f either sex, and the men who fast, and the women who fast, and ti le chaste men, and the chaste women, and t h o s e o f either sex Who remember Al- lah f r equen t ly : for them hath Allah prepared forgiveness and a grea~ reward." Herd the a t t a inmen t o f heaven is clearly set forth as a problem iwhosc only solution-is that of individual merit. . -

On the day of his death Mohammed told Fatima~ his be- loved daughter, and Safiya, his ~mnt: " \Vork ~,-e out that which shall g-ain acceptance for you with the .Lord : ~f,,or I verilY have no power with Him. to save v0u in any wise..' T h e l:~:ophet did not advise either women to rely upon-the wr tues of her hushand nor in any m a n n e r d i d he.indicate women'S Salvation to be dependent upon the lmman, f r a i l t y . o fhe r spouse.

"The :uussunnans. writes Sir V~rflham Jones, "are already a s o r t o f heterodox Christ ians: they are Christians, i f Locke reasons justly, becatlse they firmly believe the immacu- late conception and divine character : but thev are het~rod6x, in denying vehemently his character of Gon. and .his equality, as God, with the ]:ather, of-whose absolute:uni ty the 3, have firm belief: while they consider our doctrines as perfect 151as- phemy, a~ld ins is t that our copies of the Scriptures have been corrupted both by Jews and Christians."

T H E . M O S L E M S U N R I S E 23

-Why I Am a. Moslem ' B y

Omar Cleveland

I was brought Up in the teachings o£ Christ ianity f r o m m y earliest ch i ldhood. I studied the Bible, read chuI:ch magazines, and at tended the Methodist EpisCopal Church a n d Sunday Schools regular ly until I a t ta ined nay majority.

I felt assured that- I could subscribe to all of its funda- mental principles its trappings of ritualisnl and superstitions in its entirety. ...

About this time~, I came across an 01d copy of "The A b dlemy of Happiness," by. Ghazzali. an early Moslem writer . It was a. treatise on the teachings of Is lam.

There is nothing to compare t he book iEo, for in:all the world there have lived few h u m a n beings who so found their

manifest destiny, so completely fulfilled it, and were so spiritually enriched and humbled by that fulfilhnent. Yet h e w a s able to paint in words t ha t i)hfsical, mental ahnost psychic un- fol~Iment. I t seems to stand as a masterpiece of life that trans- scerids l i terature i ~-. thoughts w r a p p e d in incomparable, clear- nessl that had j ou rneyedd0wn the long reaches of the centuries to me. I was thirsty and it g a v e m e drink; I was h u n g r y and it gave me food. . .- .

La te r I c a m e in contact with Sufi M.-R. Bengalee, the Head Df the Ahmadiyya Movement in I s lam in America . H e b rough t to me a wealth of inf0rnia t ion and placed at my dis- posal ninny splendid books and magazines, for which. I am very grateful to him. - . . . .

The simp!ici.ty of Islam,. the powerful appeal a n d com- pelling atmosphere o f .its Mosques - the five. dailY, cal ls to prayer ~ the earnestness of its adherents, and the:mellow con- cept of life ~0uched the a~espons!ve Chord of my hear t and .won my unclualified approbation. ....

~ N o other religion can be coral)areal with :Islam, dicta ted as it was by t h e A n g e l Gabriel, to Mohammed in a cave in Mount

iHi ra , not fai- from. Mecca, ' whence he had .gone to lose himself.in meditation and solitudei

This message which is c a l l e d t h e H o l y Quran , contains.

l . what every soul craves for its Spiritual e levat ion-- i t is truly the gift of Al la h, the Book E t e r n a l .


"Western Writers and Islam" ~ ' ~ Y o n g e

I1a Spain music was greatly, cultivated, aud there was very extensive musical litei-ature.

Poetry flourished with music. Everyone was :a poet. Th6 extraordinary richness of the languag"e, which is So fllll that the dictionary is in sixty volmnes, and the n a t u r a l cadences lend themsel('es,,to verse: and the tone of mind of the nation was poetical, and tleli,qhted in figurative i n i a g e r v a n d in de- scriptive or romantic pieces. P ro fe s sed poet, s were Sure of renown and wealth, and even pr inces .sent letters and chal5 lengds in poetry to one another. ~to!iv-tellers,,-ere also in h igh honour, and tfiei-e were an immense'nmnl~er of ~ romances, of which w e m a y gues s the s ty leby lheir Eastern.kindred.

History, ~geneal0gy, g ramnmr, - rhe tor ic , and philosophy were great ly Cultivated, and many treatises on them were written. " '

Mathematics were studied earnestly, andthe:subs t i tu t i0n of the nifle A r a b i c f igures:f0r ihe cun~brousRoman method. enabled the operat ions to be carr ied much fa r ther than befor.e. Gebr, the Arab term for ari~;hmetic, is t he source of our term a l g e b r a . . * " 'i " " " " The sages of Cordova carmed their calculatmns into astronomy, ant i ' improved on the systems of- l?tolemy. A1 ;Batany, who was b0rn. in ~77; was!the first to measure the~ obliquity Of the ecliptic, and made other great discoveries Of pract!cal value. T h e n a m e s of most of the individual, stars remain as monuments of our debts to these Arabs, from whom we learnt to talked of the Zenith and nadir, Geography was also studied. The Arab descriptions o f Spain are s t i l l valu- able; and-travellers were sent out t o bring home accounts of the scenery, inhabi tants , productions, and naturai h i s t o r y of different countries. Treatises on all the. branches of nat'ural history abounded, and a few of theni still remain, including one on all the methods o¢ the chase with dogs, horses, falcons, etc.

Agr icul ture was especially studied. Great :treatises on !r .r igationand crops, cattle, grafting~ and gardening still eMst,

~. - , , ,, for~the motto of the .~ rab |andoxxner x~ as :. H e who planteth and soweth, and maketh the earth br ing forth fruit for man and beasL hath done ahns tha t shall be reckoned to him in heaven." Even the Khalifs w o r k e d i n their gardens with their own hands, and Andalusia was like one vas t highly-cultivated farm.


Many plants were introducedby the t(ha.lifs, which Spain lost and neg'lected after the discovery of America" saffron and mul- bcr~2wtrees, ginger, myrrh, bananas, and dates: The Spanish names of many plants show their origin, and some have trav- eled e~,en to us. suchas the ap/-icot, from ALBARIC A Q U E : -the artichoke, from ALCA C H O F A " cotton, from AL G()DON; Medicinal plants were greatly:stUdied, and the :\tab physicians; Working on from the d!scoveries of Celsus and Galen, divided wi th the Jews all there was of healing skill or knmvledge; and though anatomicalstudies were impossible to a devout believe÷, their surgeons made some progress in discoverv. Cheniistry:and alchemy alike a r e derived from their Wo]-ds AL KYMIA, al teredfrom the Greek. The terms aleiubic, alcohol, and alkali mark their progreSS in discov- er~:: and the signs of ap0thecaries"weight; only nowfa l l ing in{o disuse, a r e a remnant of the days. when tiae leech was either a Moor or a Jew.

Nor were Women excluded from all these Studies. They sludied enough tO be. companions to their husbands, and a lady nmned .Maryam had a school :for young maidens at Seville, where thevcould acquire science, matheinatics, and history, as well as lighter arts. They went about veiled up to the eyes, and nevm: a t ewi th .men ; b u t t h e y .were allOWed to associate willi, them-in.thecourts and gardens of their beautiful houses, and join in their~c0nversations, music, and poetry.

Cordova; the .seat of a great . l i terary society; where the ,descendants of Arab Sheiks by turns opened their gorgeous pal- :tees in the evenings to poets, phi!osophers,.and men of science,

iwli~, debated mad recited.as in the golden days 0f Pericles or • Maecenas. jew alld ChriStian ~0uld be freely admitted, and travelers and. discoverers related their adventures, showed the curiosities they had brought home, and.descriSed the:places flmv had seen. Or anecdotes-were related, when story-tellers vied with each Other i n relating instances of~courage, gener- ~,sit.v,adroitness, or the-like; poems were recited, .or ar~lments heldon abstr~mt subjects or mystic, explanations of' the. Koran, .~tretching-its meaning as Mohammed never intended. The imliulse he had given h a d carried these .Arabs to the highest lJoint, and their progress was.stiown in the exquisite taste of all their productt0ns, fr0nl their bu!ldings down to the lovely ilhmfinations which enriched the beautifnl Arabiclwriting .Of their manuscripts.

- - T h e Augustan Age of COrdova.

2 6 T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

Islam on. Marriage . B y .

James Williams (Muhammad Ahmad)

America has a difficult i)roblenl to meet, a prohlena which has sounded from the very heart of its society and re-echoed th roughout the len,~h and breadth -of its 'cities and states: T h a t is the prohlem of marriage . . . . . -

In the-Uni ted States. Federa l L a w s d o n.o' tgovern the contracts of marriage. Each state, being soverigm, constructs the laws o f marriage to suit itself. : In t'0rty-eight states, there are forty-eight distinct and separate codes, in Which this most important phase of life is clealt with.

The Laws of. Some states are protective; in others, peril- ously insecure. In most cases, the), are inconapetent and. ill: constructed. Div0rce is rampant. F.asv marriage and equall.v easy divorce leave in theft wake. sufferil~g Won{en and children. whose-onl~:ecourse is to throw themselves Ul)On the mercy of the state for charitable maintenance, in case the father does- not or 'cannot contribnte to their support. I n an)" case, the situation is la,nentahle.

ISLAM offers a direct ~ antl comprehensible answer to this situation. I t s code of.ethics, in .regard to marriage, was set forth in the I-tolv Ouran th i r t eenhundred and fifty years ago and has , unto, tfiis'-daY, acted as a working principle for a l l mankind.

It has no loop-holes. It is unique, in that it, is complete within itself.

First:: I s l a m unreservedly protects the rights of w o m e n . Second: Islam protects the rights o f children through

marriage. " - Third: Istam enjoins the economic security 0f both. In the first instance/, Islam says that "Not italy should the

parties Of a contemplated ma.rriage satisfy, each Other as to their respective merits., hut the relat ives Of the br ide should also satisfy themselve s that t h e i)roposed bridegroom is a person Who .x~,ould be a suitable husband fo r the bride and a de- sirahle father of herchih l ren ." (Ah|nadivvat- . | )ae-e ~81-289 ) ] That as to Say, among other things; he has the visible means to ] take care of a family, once he has entered into the. marriage ,]


st;ire. The wife will not then l~e pernfitted to take unto herself a husband Who would be a burden, and that She might even have to support herself.

In addit ion to this, the presiding magistrate or jtidge must • satisfy h imsel f ' tha t no fraud Or deception .is being practiced -flpon the bride.

At the time Of marriage, I s lam requires a marr iage settle- m~'nt to bemade upon the wife. The nmtter o f "dowry", is one of the most f lmdamental laws of Islam. I t s object is to provide the wife wi th an independent proprietary position, and shoukl be free to spend as her discretion allows. T h e institu- ti~in is a practical acknowledganent by the husband of the independent proprietary position of t h e v)ife a n d h e r r i g h t to nmin- rain and acquire separate property, w h i c h t h e husband cannot use to his own purpose.

Divorce is practically unheard Of in Moslem countries. It is allowed, but only under extreme circmnstances. The ob- taining o f divorce on trunlped-up charges, such as mental cruelty, etc., would be laughed at and derided. For every one hmldred divorces in America, there is hardly one in Islamic cotmtries. : . .

\Vith regard to children: Upon the father devolves the .full repsonsibility of ~the

maintenance of his children. ~Strict laws :govern their support. ] f a wonmn marries, she is relieved o f all anxiety with rcsi~ect to the maintena.nce o f h e r s e l f and her.children, and if she does not. marry, which Islam does not approve o f , s h e has 0nh'.hersel£ to m~iintain out Of her property.- I f a man marries, and Islam bicls him so, he will beresponsible for the maintenance of his wife andqhi ldren. K e e p i n g this in view, Islam has fixed the share of-the :hnsband as double tha t of the wife.

This is a g o 0 d d e a l differeut in America, .where today, numbers and numbers of women work, so that their children may be aml)ly provided for. It is, in truth, a j ig-sawed system.

\ V h a t A m e r i c a needs is universal laws, of Islamic origin, that will satisfactorily meet . the crying need o f - t he situation at hand. Iristead of being choliped u l ; i n t o f0rtv-eight different kinds of law, it needs O N E governing principle~ which will eliminate past mistakes and s~flidifv into O N E golden standard.

America has a c ry ingneed for the ethics-of Islam. How soon she-will adopt them, time will ouly tell.

~8 T H E M O S L E M " S U N R I S E

A Persian Ode B y

:The D e r v i s h - p o e t , Baba K u h i o f Shiraz

" In the market, in the cloister--=only God I saw. In the valley and on the m o u n t a i n n o n l y God I saw Him I have seen beside me oft in trilmlation :

'In favour and in fortune_-:-only God I saw. In prayer and fasting, in praise and contemplation, In the religion of the Prophe t - -on ly God I saw. - Neither soul nor body, accident nor substance, Qualities n o r causes---only God I saw. " " I opened mine eyes and-b3, t he light of His f ace around me In all the eye discovered only God I saw. Like a c a n d l e I Was melt ing in His fire: Amids t the flames outflashing'--only God I saw. Myself w i t h m i n e own eyes I saw mostc lear ly , " " But when I looked wi th God's eyes only God I saw.

' . (Trans la ted)

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I THE MOSLEM SUNRISE 29

A Meeting in the Ahmadiyya Mosque in Chicago

- ' B y D r . H a r l a n T a r b e l l M e t a p h y s i c i a n and' Psycholog i s t"

Ever since I have been a youngster I have been interested in t r u t h . I realized at an early age that we were living in a world of illusion due tO greed and the selfishness of man, and that greed and selfishness were not interested in humanity as whole but i n : s e l f , i " :

GreatTeachers and Masters cameto the world at times when they W e r e . most needed and brought U s greater understanding of life, accenting ithings most needed during their respective periods on earth. Muhammad, Jesus, Moses, Con- lucius, Buddha, Zoroaster and all the other founders of religion taught the science Of life with great strength and vivid- l l e S S . - _

I first became actively interested in Muhammad through :Carlyle' s excellent e s s a y on this great prophet and teacher. Hisgreat and unique sei-vlce to humanity is but little realized by.tl~e Western wOrld. -

Sufi Bengalee has been my neighbor for about seven years and-we have become intimal~ely acquainted-with one another. We have worked side by s i d e as .brothers.. I .have learned

many things of Islam:from him : and whereas :Islam had been held up to me as a religion of. the Sword I found .it was a religion of peace. The remarkable contributions o f Islam toward thesolution of human problems were start.ling revelations to me. : - -

" It .was with ardent interest that I v i s i t e d the Ahmadiyya Mosque in Chicago., On the eighth ofSeptember I was fortu- nate to attend a special meeting there . .The_delegates from i'ari0us American cities came to attend the meeting which was represented by six races of people~ All were working .in the interest of God through the teachings of ~Iuhammad and had

-forgotten whe the r they were brown, .yellow, black or white. The meeting was opened with a melodious chant from

the OUran by a n e w American MoSleln,'Abdur Rahman. Sister Fatima was then introduced and she spoke in be-

half of the Society of the Maids of God. She greeted ttie audi-

30 T H E M O S L E M . S U N R I S E

ence,Sand told of the wonderful progress the Mosqt.ie has made and expressed great sincerity and g r im determination to go forward to estahlish Islam peace upon earth.

Then .qufi Bengalee made the Opening speech saying," ,~ "A few years ago a .meet ing was held under .the auspices of the \Vorld Fellowship of FaithS a n d the subject o f discussion was 'How Can We Overcome Color and Race .Prejudice?'

"There were some important Chi'istian ministers includ~ ing the Dean of the Universi ty of Chicago. I had the pleasure of representing I s l a m . ClarfenCe Darrow:was on e t~f. the Speak- ers. H e made t h e statement that religion was n0t :going to overcome color and race prejudice. The Christian ministers instead of refut ing this statement .admitted the failure of ChriStianity in overcoming color and r ace prejudice.

• "At that tiifie I met the {:hallenge and stated, "$~11 through the ages wherever I s lam has gone, 1.41am has exterminated color and race prejudice. Now that we are in America 3re Will solve this problem in this country also.

, " I do not say tha t xve have solved the i~rol)lem but we have certainly laid a solid foun~lati0n toward the solution. As a humble proof of this I present to-night two Moslems, one white and one colored." .

' . r #

Omffr Khan, a colored Moslem, Was then introduced and h e spoke very convincingly . . . .

BrsJther Omar K h a n was followed bv a white Moslem, 3itihammad: Ahmad, who told of the great henefit tha t Isiani had heel] to him and his wife, and that it had opened such a beautiful viewpoint of life which he had never had before em- bracing the faith of Islam. Now he saw all men as brothers, all things asGod ' s , had a perfect Code Of ethics and he was so

t . • .. ~ o . ,

much .farther, m ttme with the mfimte. Sufi then introduced Mr. Charles F. \Veller, head of the

\Vorld Fellowshil~ of Fai ths . Mr. \Velk, il-said that wli{le he had been raised a Christian, vet he could call himself a 310s- lem, for Muhan.unad's teachings were so much in tune with his own ideas and ideals o f 1i%, and it was with l)leasure that he called himself a Mo.slem. l-te gave tribute to the Prophet Muhammad, his helief in God and in prayer, lJrotherhood, prohibition and in raising the status Of women.

Next Sufi called, me to say a few words. I. was happy tO respond to the call and speak on. the truth. " \Ve-are of God


and created by God, we should live for God, follow the laws of God: And we nmst n o t b e sidetracked from the main purpose Of life by i l lus ions . W e are not children of the m o m e n t but children of eternity and we nmst live so as to:root ourselves int- eternity in tune with the Divine p l a n . I s l a m is d o i n g a stupendous work, if it only worked for the brotherhood of man. B u t it deals with li{e as a whole .and in complete-- the life of happiness and progress, the .natura l automatic result of being submissive to the will of God.

"God desigxled the workl for the happiness of man. Man himself has br6ught f o r t h all the troubles and hardships through selfishness, Man nmst re turn to Al lah to find t rue happiness. T h i s i s wha t -Muhammad and other great prophets triefJ to make man unders tand. The), came to teach L i f e abundant fo r a l l men; for all nien were created in the image of God. - . . . . "

Sufi Berigaiee closed the meet ing with a .br ief but inspir- ing address. H e said in part, " A n old Greek legend tells the story of a demon, who af ter he waylaid his intended victims, asked them various questions.: I f his prey was so un fo r tuna te as to give the wrong answer, he was-immediately.devoured by this monster . A n d so does each age have, i ts questions Which each faith and religion nmst answe.r correctly O r perish.

"This age.is also a demon a n d putsques t ions to the different religions. The religion which will answer the questions correctly will b e saved. :Islam answers the questions !~'

Staff Bengalee discussed briefly how Is lam .leads men to the realization of God, makes peaceamong al.l religions, estab-

fishes brotherhood and solves economic problems and answers all:the questions of the day. H e told how the work of Islam

• is spreading like a Wild conflagration in Amer ica and showed thai the salvation of the world lies at the feet of Islam.

A n A m e r i c a n observer not iced that there was no clapping of hands but overflowing enthnsiasna was expressed by Arabic

: prayers ,Al lah-0-Akbar , A1-Hamdu-l.illah" (G0dis most great, All praise belongs I~o God).

At the conclusion of . the meeting, the faithflfl retired up- stairs when the Moslem call to prayer Was given, and prayer was performed i n congregation. I t was. -an impressive spec- tacle to see the Moslems s tanding side by side, s h o u l d e r to shoulder, forming s t ra ight lines in-prayers and kneeling and bowing down symbolizing obedience to God.

~2 T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E

Press Notices S I O U X C I T Y . T R I B U N E

J an u a ry I1~ 19J5

I S L A M C U R E F O R E C O N . O M I C ILLS, L E A D E R S A Y S H E R E

I00 S i o u x City Moslems Greei

which his discililes m o v e d . h i m at night, taking h im to di3e 6f t l leir houses.- "

"Thei-e h e x~'~s tninisiered and brought- hack to health. ~ I n d i s g u i s e , h e slipped. out of Pales t ine and v~'ent to uorthwest

" ,MiSsionary He re . India. XVe have found h is tomb there at S ioux Ci ty Syr ians , of the Is lam r e - Sr inlgar , C a s h m e r e ; L I n d i a . "

ligion greeted Sufi',X[Utlur Rahman Ben2- " Jes/~sh to the : i s l a m . religion , was a galee, leader of ttie I s l a m miss ionary g rea t teacher. However , m the light Of movement in the Uni ted States, when he the t i m e s , Sufi Bengalee's chief interest came to Sioux City f rom Chicago, Seemed to lie in tim. ecoilomy o f Iris re-

W i t h the v i s i t of the Islam t e a c l i e r - !igi°n. - and how . the appl icat lon of the and minister, Sioux City. h a s - b e c o m e th ree grea t laws. of l s lam would b e a conscious t h e r e are near ly 100 Moslems pana¢c~t to tlle economic ills of file nlod, nmnbered iu the. cosmopoli tan g roup ern. westeruized world. which comprises the city: ., These. .a re t b e " s a m e laws xvlfich were

The youthful miss ionary , who w a s .in. effect du r ing the period in the Four- b o r n and educated in India, gravely ex- teenth and Fifteentli centuries when the plained the objectives .o f I s l a m as a re- Moslenls were .a t theheiglR, of their pow- ligion, destined to obffterate sucli calami- " .er. V f i t h thei r re t rea t be fo re the west- ties as depresslolas . a n d r e s u l t i u g unbap- . , ern World, t he . l aws were.sul ,erseded by piness. " . . . . tile moderfi laws, wlligh pr6*~'ide a. capi-

The title "Sufi ," the minis ter Said, means spiritual l e a d e r a n d a t ta inment of lmri ty . . Sufi Bengalee Was educated in

talistic wor ld , l_le explained. ; 'The resul t .tff. tile =application of these

laws ~.woutd not.~be c o m m u n i s m , because the Utiiversities of Caldu[ta a n d P u n j a b ~ Is lam belieces ill the possession of prop: in hidia. H e ~left Ind ia six years ago erLv.. Nei ther _would. i t . b e capitalism t o l e a d tim Ahmadivva tnovenlent iti tlie w h i c h . m e a n s the lahoritilz class is tile.

' " Sufferer, the g radua l e x t i n c t i o n of the Unitexl States. " . Of tile 35,000 Moslcnls h l l t h e United middle Class and tile assnnlptio,l of few

• States, tim major i ty a r e Syyians, Sul] - r isks .by tl~e capitalists." " Bengalee said2 A m o n g these-35,000 are --The--thi'ee grea t laws o f Islanl a re : about 10,000 cdnverts, he said.- prideful L ~: Law o f inheritance. " I s l a m law o f t h e acl l ievetnents ( i f " his movement:. p r o v i d e s t lfe. .estates mus t be : divided There are 25 orga,lized mission groups ' e q u a l l y a lnong all the re la t ives o£ tim in the U n i t e d S t a t e s and t h r e e m o s q u e s , deceased. Under th is : law, a l l .g rea t for- a t ,Michigan City, IIid.. Chicago a n d ?.tUnes are divkled and w i t h i n . t h r e e gen- Brooklyn. . . . " - " :. . " eratio,is cease to exi~ti Th i s prevents tile I

SUfi Bengalee showed w h e r e really o 1 - acctufiulation 6 f . v a s t ~.'ealth and its-ti l t i-i the principles of ~ Christ ianity. and Is iam - m a t e usnrpt iou of power. " coincide .lint p o i n t ed out One difference 2. Zakat. Tim lmrifying tax~ On which: he believes siguificant and i n t e r - ;all- wea l th , • including cash and ,all esting t o Christians. . properHes a n d possessions; l s lani pro-

"~Are do not believe Jesus. d i ed on rim: . v i d e s a 2t/_, per cent tax p e r annum. cross," .said SUfi Benag!ee . ." " I t : i s our . i Tiffs revenue d0t's not go to the opera- belief and supported by history, J e s u s " t ion :of g a v e r m u e n t b n t is distributed .wasonly wounded on~thecross . H e was. among tile poor and the ileedy. t aken unconscious to tile sepulcllre, f l o r a . "Needy . is . not " synonynlous " with i

T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E ~; :

poor," Sufi Bengalee pointed out. "Shou ld l - lack funds, ye t really not be classed as poor, and I was seeking h igher educa= tion, this fund would provide me the motley." .

3. Usury . The re is no u su ry in Is- lain.

":Xll economis ts agree t h e r e s h o u l d be no interest paid on loans to be used for c~nqtmption. The difference het~,een I s : lain and western ecouoiny lies--.in the 0pinio,ls cotlceruing luaus for profit and pr.duction.

"In capital ism the owner . f the wealth d.es n o t a s s u m e e n o u g h o f the r isk and labour nlust a s s u m e too grea t a percent- age. Under the Islant law. capital would prolit if the investment is successfu l but it must bare as m o t h loss in case of fail. ure," Sufi Bengalee said. "The Is lamic

province of Punjab . H e speaks Engl i sh fluently.

Suf i Bengalee left two impress ions in his r emarks about religion and econom= ics. namely :

T h a t the Uni ted States, as well as oth-

er nations, m u s t change its economic system if dep re s s i ons are to be prevente~, and

T ha t Amer i cans do not have the prop- er conception of t rue religion.

" T h e t r o u b l e w i t h you r country ," Sufi .llengalee said, ':'is not l a c k 0 f food and cl,~thing and money. You have more food than Can be.eate,,, more clothes than ca l l be v¢orn, and more money than you can spend. T h e difficulty is in coucen- t ra t i -n of wealth and lack of distr ibu- tion.

"'In Islam, which i s the religion wrong- economic sys tem gives wide aml e q u i t - . - l y called Molmmmedan i sm, . a re three ablc dis t r ibut iou~of wealth. '~ taws set doxsal b y . t h e prophet M o h a m -

S I O U X C I T Y J O U R N A L January" I I , 1934

M O S L E M M I S S I O N A R Y F R O M I N D I A O F F E R S C U R E F O R

E C O N O M I C I L L S O F T H E W O R L D

~ttfi .Xl, R. Bengalee l~xl)lains Religion of I s l am.

By Merril l Burnet te

lake a breath fr¢~m the far east. t inged perhaps, with .the a t m o s p h e r e of the oc- cident. Snli Mutinr- Rahmai l Bengalee. ,M.slem miss innary from India .to the United States. visited The Journa l edi-

reed, which , if they were observed in your" nation, would fi~rever solve you r economic problems."

One of the specific peculiari t ies of Is- l a m i s m is absolute prohibit ion of the use of in toxicants .

In explaining his s ta tement that A m e r - . icans do not h a w the p r o p e r conception of t rue religion, the Sufi summar ized the differences between Chris t iani ty and Is- lam, briefly, in the fol lowing line of t hough t : I s l a m is uncoinpromis ingly m-,mtheist~c, whereas Chr is t ians believe in t h e Tr ini ty , the de i ty of Christ , v i - car ious a t o n e m e n t ' a n d other related doc-

torial rooms T h u r s d a y , explained" the trifles. T h e Moslem worshipper :believes religion of I s l a m and presented his paua. i l l Christl only as a man and a proi~het tea for the wor ld ' s ills. " of God, not the son of God except a s a l l

I l ls picturesque silken turban, f ram- prophets and followers are sons of God. ing a bearded countenance in which da rk Is lam places Je sus in a classification ,,yes sparkled and white tee th flashed, l~e- with A b r a h a m . Moses. Kr isbna . Buddha spoke the or ient ; smar t ly shined o x f o r d s a n d Confucious . and g ray spats revealed the Amer i can :,Xccordiug to I s lam. l i f e - a f t e r death influence. " " is the cont inuat ion of life on earth. Heav -

The miss ionary is be ing entertained in en is eternal and ever las t ing whereas Si. t ,x City ill the home of Mr. aud Mrs . hell is only temporary . Hell is as a hos- D. Joseph, 1411 Virginilt Street. He is pita~l xtreatmellt for the h u m a n soul. a g raduate of two universit ies, one i n . w h i c h , as sokm as it ' is cured, goes to ( 'ah'utta and the o t h e r in I .ahore in the heaven.

A Rare and Unique Opportunity Specia l r educed rates for a d v e r t i s i n g in the q u a r t e r l y m a g a -

zine " T H E M O S L E M S U N R I S E " which goes all o v e r t h e wor ld .

W h o l e page 7 ~ b y 4 ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : . . . . . . $30.00 H a l f page o r one c o l u m n . . ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 5 . 0 0 H a l f c o l u m n 3 ~ by 2 ~ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . , 8 .00 Q u a r t e r c o l u m n 1 ~ by 2 ~ .. . . 5.00 P e r line (5 w o r d s ) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ~. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : . 1 . 0 0

T h e r a t e s . .will c h a n g e - i f the q u a r t e r l y ' . i s s u e becomes a month ly .

S U F [ M . R . B E N G A L E E , M. A.

E d i ' t o r M o s l e m S u , , r i s e

: Books for Oriental Scholars I n t e r e s t e d : i n " " : . . . . . " : " ~

I s l a m , A r a b i c a n d P e r s i a n

T h e H o l y Q u r a n , P a r t 1 . :$2.00 ( E n g l i s h t r ans la t ion wi th c o m m e n t a r y ) : "

T h e TeaChings o f : I s l a m : Eng l i sh Clo th . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.00 D0. P a p e : ; . . . . . . . ; . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 0

T h e I s l amic M o d e of. \,~i o r sh ip ( i l l u s t r a t e d ~ . . . :.. '. . . . . .50 ~ T h e T r u e I s l am . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2.00

A h m a d i y y a l~ lovement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ) : . . . . 1.00 A P r e s e n t to the P r i n c e . o f VCales. A Shor t L i f e o f A h m a d : . . : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . L 0 0 • 1 . 0 0 E x t r a c t s f r o m the H01y Q u r a n and the. Say ings o f the

Ho ly P r o p h e t M u h a m m a d . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i ' " "" " ' " 1~25 L i f e a n d T e a c h i n g s o f t l ie H o l y P r o p h e t M u h a m m a d . . .25

\ \ o m e n . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ,25 M u h a m m a d , tlae L i b e r a t o r o f "- r

TO be had from-=--

A h m a d i y y a M o v e m e n t ' i n I s l a m .

56 .East C o n g r e s s S t r e e t . S u i t e - 1 3 0 7 . ". " . -

I C H I C A G O , ILL .

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mile -SU.F G-ALEE 2.' · • kbl • . . ." , . THE M o s lem S u nr.x ° s.C I I I lll 13 I I I I J I I I I ~ I I I I ~ I I I I I I I I I I I ~ I I I I III ~I I III ~ ~ I I I I a