Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Quran & Hadith...
- Amazing Quran- by Gary Miller
- Way to the Quran by Khurram Murad
- AL-QUR`AN, The Miracle of Miracles - Deedat
- Who Wrote the Holy Quran ?
- Quran: A teacher to Modern Scientists
- Intro to a Quran
- Most Frequently Found Quranic Words & their Meanings Archive new!
- * 25 Duas from the Holy Quran *
- True love of the Prophet SAW
- Some Hadith (Traditions) of Islam
Prayer...
- Summary of the Lessons, Rewards and Benefits of Prayer
- Prayer : It's significance and it's benefit
- Has the prayer lost its power? Mawdudi
- A reminder on The Fourth Major Sin
- Why are we not able to wake up for Fajr? (and some helpful tips)
- Go back and pray, for you have not prayed!
- Value Of Two Raka'At Salaah
- Some Adhkaar (supplications) for Morning & Evening Word Document
Hajj & special occasions...
- * Road to Makkah | Hajj Page NEW !
- * Ramadan & Other Islamic Holidays
- Ramadan and Fireflies
- Significance and Sunnah's of Eid
- Virtues of the Day of Arafat
- 13 Blessed Days of Dhul Hijjah
- The Hajj - A journey of a Lifetime
- Read about one brothers beautiful and emotional journey to Hajj last year (includes pictures of the great fire)
- The Kaaba
- Lailatul Qadr- the Night of Power
- How the Salaf observed Ramadan
- The Virtues of Muharram and Fasting the Day of Ashura
- Muslim's Survival Guide to Christmas
To be a better muslim...
- Letter to a Muslim Student Going to Study in the West -by Hassan al Banna
- Ten Things Every Muslim Must Do
- A message to parents...
- What every Muslim should believe by necessity
- How to Lower our Gaze
- Benefits of Becoming Muslim
- Signs of weak imaan, and ways to increase imaan
- Tricks of the Shaytan and 10 Sicknesses of the Heart
- Promises, Promises...
- Ten things we waste
- A Reminder...
- Repentance
- Five Steps to Effective Dawah
- How to not make Dawah-2 ie
- Charity- the Upper Hand
People & Places...
- Precolumbian Muslims in the Americas
- Muslim Native Americans
- Biography of Hassan al Banna
- The Ten Principles of Hassan al-Banna
- The Seven Under the Shade of Allah (SWT)
- My mother, my best friend
- Brief Biographies of the eminent Scholars of Hadeeth
- Who was Ibn Taymiyyah ?
- Advice from Abu Dharr Al-Ghafari
- Some Advice from Umar (ra)
- Once upon a time in Andalusia
- The Importance of Masjid al Aqsa to Muslims
- Ticket for the Great Journey
- Al-Madinah Al Munawwarah
- Makkah the Blessed
- Al Taif
Thoughts & ideas of today...
- Muslims on the Internet: the Good, the Bad... the Ugly
- Muslim Schools: A View From The Inside
- Good article on Islam in America by Yahiya Emerick
- Muslim College Life: Dating, Drinking and Deen
- A new generation of revolutionaries...
- Western Education vs. Muslim Children
- Kosova & Kashmir: Muslims Must Share the Blame
- Based on a true story
- Selective Islam by Imran Khan
- Thoughts During a Lecture
- The Future of Islam-Abdullah Hakim Quick
- Hamza Yusuf on TV, Truth, and Technomania
- The Media and Islam
- The Space Age and the Future of Islam
- The Call of the Creator of Earth and Light
- True Love by Khadija Lin
- The Question of Good Bidah
Thoughts & ideas of today...
- Muslims on the Internet: the Good, the Bad... the Ugly
- Muslim Schools: A View From The Inside
- Good article on Islam in America by Yahiya Emerick
- Muslim College Life: Dating, Drinking and Deen
- A new generation of revolutionaries...
- Western Education vs. Muslim Children
- Kosova & Kashmir: Muslims Must Share the Blame
- Based on a true story
- Selective Islam by Imran Khan
- Thoughts During a Lecture
- The Future of Islam-Abdullah Hakim Quick
- Hamza Yusuf on TV, Truth, and Technomania
- The Media and Islam
- The Space Age and the Future of Islam
- The Call of the Creator of Earth and Light
- True Love by Khadija Lin
- The Question of Good Bidah
Some of the (rare) better media coverage...
- LA Times: New Islamic Movement Seeks Latino Converts
- USA Today: Employers adjust to Muslim customs: Ignorance, not prejudice cited in cases
- Hajj 99
- Newsweek: article on the next generation of Muslims in the U.S.
- ABC News: Islam Bursting on American Scene
- NY Times: Muslims Schools in U.S, A voice for identity
- U.S. News: The Muslim Mainstream
- American Muslims find strength, comfort in unity at conference
poems & short stories...
- Some (alot of) Islamic Poems!
- Some poems about Bosnia
- Imam Ghazali's Last Words
- Life's Index Cards
- Road to Mecca - Muhammad Asad - not so short, but a nice excerpt from the beautiful story of Muhammad Asad's journey to Islam
- Destination Jannah: Are you ready?
- The Traveler
- Islam's Brave New World
- And So I Bow...
- Stop, I'm Muslim!
- A Twist of Faith
- Lost of the Desert Sand
- Funny how...
- Muslim Contributions to Science, Philosophy and the Arts
- Distribution of Muslims in the U.S. and Beyond
- Ibn Taymeeya's Essay on the Jinn
Monday, June 15, 2009
Bazm-e-Tolu-e-Islam
Bazm-e-Tolu-e-Islam
The Ahle Qur'an
Jihad
Jihad means "to strive or struggle" (in the way of God) and is considered the "Sixth Pillar of Islam" by a minority of Sunni Muslim authorities.[58] Jihad, in its broadest sense, is classically defined as "exerting one's utmost power, efforts, endeavors, or ability in contending with an object of disapprobation." Depending on the object being a visible enemy, the devil, and aspects of one's own self, different categories of Jihad are defined.[59] Jihad, when used without any qualifier, is understood in its military aspect.[60][61] Jihad also refers to one's striving to attain religious and moral perfection.[62] Some Muslim authorities, especially among the Shi'a and Sufis, distinguish between the "greater jihad", which pertains to spiritual self-perfection, and the "lesser jihad", defined as warfare.[63]
Within Islamic jurisprudence, jihad is usually taken to mean military exertion against non-Muslim combatants in the defense or expansion of the Islamic state, the ultimate purpose of which is to universalize Islam. Jihad, the only form of warfare permissible in Islamic law, may be declared against apostates, rebels, highway robbers, violent groups, un-Islamic leaders or states which refuse to submit to the authority of Islam.[64][65] Most Muslims today interpret Jihad as only a defensive form of warfare: the external Jihad includes a struggle to make the Islamic societies conform to the Islamic norms of justice.[66]
Under most circumstances and for most Muslims, jihad is a collective duty (fard kifaya): its performance by some individuals exempts the others. Only for those vested with authority, especially the sovereign (imam), does jihad become an individual duty. For the rest of the populace, this happens only in the case of a general mobilization.[65] For most Shias, offensive jihad can only be declared by a divinely appointed leader of the Muslim community, and as such is suspended since Muhammad al-Mahdi's[67] occultation in 868 AD.[68]
Articles of faith
The Qur'an states that all Muslims must believe in God, his revelations, his angels, his messengers, and in the "Day of Judgment".[16] Also, there are other beliefs that differ between particular sects. The Sunni concept of predestination is called divine decree,[17] while the Shi'a version is called divine justice. Unique to the Shi'a is the doctrine of Imamah, or the political and spiritual leadership of the Imams.[18]
Muslims believe that God revealed his final message to humanity through the Islamic prophet Muhammad via the archangel Gabriel (Jibrīl). For them, Muhammad was God's final prophet and the Qur'an is the revelations he received over more than two decades.[19] In Islam, prophets are men selected by God to be his messengers. Muslims believe that prophets are human and not divine, though some are able to perform miracles to prove their claim. Islamic prophets are considered to be the closest to perfection of all humans, and are uniquely the recipients of divine revelation — either directly from God or through angels. The Qur'an mentions the names of numerous figures considered prophets in Islam, including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus, among others.[20] Islamic theology says that all of God's messengers since Adam preached the message of Islam — submission to the will of God. Islam is described in the Qur'an as "the primordial nature upon which God created mankind",[21] and the Qur'an states that the proper name Muslim was given by Abraham.[22]
As a historical phenomenon, Islam originated in Arabia in the early 7th century.[23] Islamic texts depict Judaism and Christianity as prophetic successor traditions to the teachings of Abraham. The Qur'an calls Jews and Christians "People of the Book" (ahl al-kitāb), and distinguishes them from polytheists. Muslims believe that parts of the previously revealed scriptures, the Tawrat (Torah) and the Injil (Gospels), had become distorted — either in interpretation, in text, or both.[6]
Islam
Islam (Arabic: الإسلام al-’islām, pronounced [ʔislæːm] ( listen)[note 1]) is a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion originating with the teachings of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, a 7th century Arab religious and political figure. The word Islam is a homograph having multiple meanings and a triliteral of the word salam, which directly translates as peace. Other meanings include submission, or the total surrender of oneself to God (Arabic: الله, Allāh) (see Islam (term)).[1] An adherent of Islam is known as a Muslim, meaning "one who submits [to God]".[2][3] The word Muslim is the participle of the same verb of which Islām is the infinitive. There are approximately 1.8 billion Muslims, making Islam the second-largest religion in the world, after Christianity.[4]
Muslims believe that God revealed the Qur'an to Muhammad, God's final prophet, through the angel Gabriel, and regard the Qur'an and the Sunnah (words and deeds of Muhammad) as the fundamental sources of Islam.[5] They do not regard Muhammad as the founder of a new religion, but as the restorer of the original monotheistic faith of Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets. Islamic tradition holds that Jews and Christians distorted the revelations God gave to these prophets by either altering the text, introducing a false interpretation, or both.[6]
Islam includes many religious practices. Adherents are generally required to observe the Five Pillars of Islam, which are five duties that unite Muslims into a community.[7] In addition to the Five Pillars, Islamic law (sharia) has developed a tradition of rulings that touch on virtually all aspects of life and society. This tradition encompasses everything from practical matters like dietary laws and banking to warfare and welfare.[8] Almost all Muslims belong to one of two major denominations, the Sunni (85%) and Shi'a (15%). The schism developed in the late 7th century following disagreements over the religious and political leadership of the Muslim community. Islam is the predominant religion in much of Africa and the Middle East, as well as in major parts of Asia.[9] Large communities are also found in China, the Balkan Peninsula in Eastern Europe and Russia. There are also large Muslim immigrant communities in other parts of the world, such as Western Europe. Of the total world Muslim population, about 20% live in the Arab countries[10] (where Muslims comprise majority populations, with Christian and other religious minorities of differing sizes by country), 30% in the countries of the Indian subcontinent, and 15.6% in Indonesia alone, which is the largest Muslim country in absolute numbers.[11]
Qur'an
Qur’an[1] (Arabic: القرآن al-qur’ān, literally “the recitation”; also sometimes transliterated as Quran, Qur’ān, Koran, Alcoran or Al-Qur’ān) is the central religious text of Islam. Muslims believe the Qur’an to be the book of divine guidance and direction for mankind, and consider the original Arabic text to be the final revelation of God.[2][3][4][5]
Islam holds that the Qur’an was revealed to Muhammad by the angel Jibrīl (Gabriel) from 610 CE to his death in 632 CE.[2][6][7] Followers of Islam further believe that the Qur’an was written down by Muhammad's companions while he was alive, although the primary method of transmission was oral. It is maintained that in 633 CE, the written text was compiled, and in 653 CE it was standardized, distributed in the Islamic empire and produced in large numbers.[8] The present form of the Qur’an is regarded by Muslims as God's revelation to Muhammad. Academic scholars often consider it the original version authored or dictated by Muhammad.[9] Muslim tradition agrees that it was fixed in writing shortly after Muhammad's death by order of Umar and Abu Bakr.[10]
Muslims regard the Qur’an as the culmination of a series of divine messages that started with those revealed to Adam, regarded in Islam as the first prophet, and continued with the Suhuf Ibrahim (Sefer Yetzirah or Scrolls of Abraham)[11], the Tawrat (Torah or Pentateuch)[12][13], the Zabur (Tehillim or Book of Psalms)[14][15], and the Injeel (Christian Gospel).[16][17][18] The contents of the aforementioned books are not physically affixed within the Qur’an, but are recognized therein.[19][20] The Qur’an also refers[21] to many events from Jewish and Christian scriptures, some of which are retold in comparatively distinctive ways from the Torah and New Testament respectively, while obliquely referring to other events described explicitly in those texts.
The Qur'an itself expresses that it is the book of guidance. Therefore it rarely offers detailed accounts of historical events; the text instead typically placing emphasis on the moral significance of an event rather than its narrative sequence.[22] Muslims believe the Qur'an itself to be the main miracle of Muhammad and a proof of his prophethood.[23]