Qur'an: God does not burden a soul

"God does not burden a soul

with more than it can bear."

(Surah 2, Verse 286)

Meaning:

man is not taken to account for involuntary thought

but for intent.

"Each gains whatever good it has done,

and suffers its bad."

Umar's advice to the judges

Here's a summary of some timeless advice prepared by Umar (God be pleased with him) for his judges. It's taken from Dr Ali Muhammad as-Sallabi's book about the life and times of Umar Ibn al-Khattaab. A small example of the fruit of the faith which the Prophet (peace and blessings of God be upon him) planted in his heart!..

Try to understand when cases are presented to you,

for there is no use in a person presenting a case if it is not understood.

Treat people equally when you address them

so that no noble man will hope for your unfair siding with him

and no weak man will despair of your justice.

Be gentle with the weak one

so that he will have the courage to speak.

The burden of proof rests with the plaintiff,

the oath is required of the defendant,

and judgement must be based on evidence and oaths.

Strive to bring about reconciliation,

unless it becomes clear to you who is in the right and who is in the wrong.

If you passed a judgement yesterday

then examined it further and are guided to a different conclusion,

let it not prevent you from returning to the truth.

And returning to the truth is better than persisting with falsehood.

The verses of Riba in Surah Al Baqarah

Here's some points taken out from Ma'aariful Qur'an about the verses of Riba (interest/usury) in Surah Al-Baqarah. Worth a ponder!

1. The verses of Riba (verses 275-279) are surrounded by the verses of charity (verses 261-274 and verse 280), signifying perhaps that the two concepts are related to and at odds with each other. One is to do with giving (decreasing one's stock), and the other is to do with taking (increasing one's stock).
2. God does not respond to the reasoned argument that "Riba is similar to trade" with a counter-argument but, rather, responds by stating that one is allowed and the other is not. (See verse 275.)
3. God has stated that one who lived his life in the consumption of Riba will be raised on the Day of Judgement like one tormented by Satan's touch. Raising the consumers of Riba in this state is perhaps indicative of a certain parallelism: They lived their lives in pursuit of money, senseless & unaware of the harms of their actions, and thus they will be raised.

The etiquettes of giving in charity

Here's some lessons on giving charity taken out from verses 261 to 274 of Surah Al-Baqarah:

1. Give to attain God's approval, and as an affirmation of your faith, and not to be seen by people.
2. Do not follow your giving with reminders of benevolence or hurtful words.
3. A kind word and forgiveness is better than a charitable deed followed by hurtful words.
4. Give from the good things you have acquired and not from the bad things which you yourself would not accept.
5. To give openly is good, and to give in secret is even better, and know that God is well aware of all that you do.

Book Review: FOSIS Islamic Society Khutbah Guide

This is a gem of a book! And shocking how few people seem to know about it. And sadder still how poor the Friday sermons up and down the country (and across the Muslim world) are! There are exceptions but they're few and far between. By and large, Khutbahs are attended by the masses because it's a must and not in excitement for what is to be heard. It needn't be this way :( Here's nine points which stuck out for me on my third reading (since its publication back in 2003) of the FOSIS Islamic Society Khutbah Guide. (The book covers the Islamic, Fiqhi aspect of the Khutbah too but I've left this out from the points below.) The Khutbah...

1. Should give Muslims hope, encouragement and teach them the best of manners.
2. Should be concise, clear and rich of meanings. Excessive speech causes people to forget many details.
3. Should have one main topic. The speaker who talks about many issues distracts the audience from a focus. Clarity is crucial for education.
4. Should flow in a logical sequence. The audience should feel as though they are ascending steps towards a conclusion.
5. Should be supported by Qur'anic verses, authentic traditions, and acceptable facts.
6. Should be revised, practised and built on consultation with others. Good preparation is a sign of respect to oneself and one's audience. Insufficient preparation causes the speech to be long and boring.
7. Should be well defined, well presented and respectful of the time available. Conciseness requires making choices, cancelling some parts, and confirming other parts.
8. Should be delivered in a warm, pleasant tone, with expressiveness and enthusiasm, and in neither too slow a pace nor too fast a pace.
9. Should be prepared and delivered with the best of intentions, to convey the Good Word of God Almighty and the perfect example of His Messenger Muhammad, sallAllahu 3alayhi wa sallam.

Love is...

To find small

that which you give,

though it is great.

To find great

that which you receive,

though it is small.

Number of Ayahs in each Juz

Here's a count of the number of Ayahs (verses) in each Juz of the Qur'an...

Juz 01 - 148 verses
Juz 02 - 111 verses
Juz 03 - 126 verses
Juz 04 - 131 verses
Juz 05 - 124 verses
Juz 06 - 110 verses
Juz 07 - 149 verses
Juz 08 - 142 verses
Juz 09 - 159 verses
Juz 10 - 127 verses
Juz 11 - 151 verses
Juz 12 - 170 verses
Juz 13 - 154 verses
Juz 14 - 227 verses
Juz 15 - 185 verses
Juz 16 - 269 verses
Juz 17 - 190 verses
Juz 18 - 202 verses
Juz 19 - 339 verses
Juz 20 - 171 verses
Juz 21 - 178 verses
Juz 22 - 169 verses
Juz 23 - 357 verses
Juz 24 - 175 verses
Juz 25 - 246 verses
Juz 26 - 195 verses
Juz 27 - 399 verses
Juz 28 - 137 verses
Juz 29 - 431 verses
Juz 30 - 564 verses

... That's 6236 verses in total.

Why I pray

Because God will be increased if I do?
Because God will be diminished if I don't?
For the world around me to be changed?
That's not why I pray!

Because it's my challenge.
Because it's my joy.
For the strength to be that change.
That's why I pray.

Ikhlaas

Some say, it's
sincerity,
good faith
and a pure intention.

Ultimately, it's
that secret
none knows
but God and I.

Abu Bakr's advice

I found a most comprehensive, concise and compelling advice in Shaykh Muhammad Al-Khudari Bak Al-Bajuri's The History of the Four Caliphs (translated by Turath Publishing). No joke: The book is worth buying for this one page alone! It is the counsel of Abu Bakr (God's pleasure be upon him) at the time of appointing one of his men to a position of leadership. I've pulled out only some bits of the advice and, even that, I've re-worded in parts. Buy the book for the complete, original translation of this counselling masterpiece!

Be conscious of God,
for surely your inner self is apparent to Him as is your outer.

Know that the most eminent in God's sight
is he who entrusts his affairs to Him the most.

And the closest to God
is he who desires most to gain proximity to Him.

When you go to your men,
be a good companion to them.

And be good to them from the outset,
promising them that you will be of benefit.

When you lecture, be concise,
for much of a long speech is forgotten.

And set yourself right,
for your people will set themselves right in tow.

When the time for prayer comes,
pray, humbly, with perfection in bowing and prostrating.

And when you seek counsel, speak the truth,
so that you are given an honest response.

Do not conceal anything from your advisor,
saying all that you have to say.

Nor spy on your people,
for you will humiliate them.

Nor examine your men's secrets,
sufficing instead with what is outwardly observable.

Nor sit in the company of the idle,
choosing instead the company of the truthful and loyal.

When you meet the enemy, stand firm,
showing no cowardice, or your people will become cowardly.

And when you deal with the spoils, avoid all deception,
for it will bring on poverty and drive away victory.

The three dimensions of revelation

Recital.
Understanding.
Practice.

(Extraction from Surah al-Baqarah, Verse 129 of the core functions of a Messenger who would be inspired by God. Namely, to recite upon people the revelation, to teach them its meanings by means of instruction & example, and to purify them by means of their realising & practising it.)

Moses, the children of Israel, and cows

I can't believe I didn't see this til now! The story of the cow in the second Surah of the Qur'an (Verses 67 to 73). In brief: Moses instructs his people that God commands them to slaughter a cow, and they are reluctant, going off and coming back each time asking for specifics - what type of cow? what colour cow? what size cow? and so on and so forth. I passed this off, as I'm sure most people do, as his people simply being petty, slightly rebellious in nature perhaps.

However! This story and its real significance takes on a whole new meaning when understood in the context of other stories involving Moses, his people and cows! When Moses leaves his people to meet the covenant of God (at a time later to the above-mentioned story), what did his people do? Construct an idol, right? And what shape did that idol take? Exactly! That of a cow. You'll see that Moses' people had been freed from Pharaoh in person but they had yet to be freed from Pharaoh intellectually. A part of them still held those things deified by Pharaoh and his leadership as sacred. Another example of this of course is, after leaving Pharaoh and passing a group of people worshipping idols, they asked Moses to make for them a "God" like these people had "Gods".

So! Going back to the story under discussion: The coming back-and-forth of Moses' people and their questioning for specifics was not simply down to pettiness, or a rebellious nature. It was to buy time. In hope perhaps that Moses, or his God maybe, would change his mind! And, likewise, the command from God for Moses' people to slaughter a cow was not random. It was to be for them a step towards liberation.

Be, like the world around you

Generous, like the river from which you drink.
Bountiful, like the sun by which you see.
Hospitable, like the earth on which you tread.

(Play on words of something I saw in Maulana Muhammad Mian's 'The Prisoners of Malta')

Jesus

He ate.

He slept.

He prayed.

He was, a man.