By SHAMIM A SIDDIQI, NY

WORLD AT THE THRESHOLD OF HIS (S) APPEARANCE

AT the end of the sixth century AD humanity was facing a very depressed and deprived condition. There was no Guidance from its Creator and Sustainer to guide its destiny as all were “lost” or mutilated due to human interpolation. There was no Kingdom of God on earth to deliver justice and equity to human abode. There was no concept of human rights and no court of justice to take care of their violations every now and then. It was the age of tribalism and that of monarchy. Tribal rules and words of monarchs were the law of the day. Worst was the condition of womenfolk. In Christianity they were like the untouchables and in the pagan world of Hinduism they had no life of their own. They were forced to die alive with the departing husband and were totally deprived to inherit either from father or husband. Human rights were just for the ruling coterie and the rest of the people were treated like serfdoms. Two super powers, the Roman and the Persian Empires were dominant and fighting against each other for their respective supremacy at frequent intervals.

Simultaneously, there was no peace and security in the Arabian Peninsula except in and around the Haram. No trade route was safe either on land or on sea. Quraish of Makkah has the monopoly over the trade from Yemen deep in South to Syria in North and beyond as they were the custodian of Haram and thus Makkah became the Clearing House of trade. This was the situation when Muhammad Ibne Abdullah was born in Banu Hashim of Quraish in Makkah in 572 AD. The geopolitical and economic situation in and around the Arab lands was very precarious. There was no justice, no peace and no security. He was extremely worried to get the situation corrected. In this pursuit, he expended all his personal possessions and that of his beloved wife Khadija but to no respite till he was appointed as the Messenger of God in 610 AD after the departure of Prophet Jesus [pbuh], leaving a long gap of about 550 years when there was no Prophet of God and no Guidance for man as how to act, live and behave on this earth for living in peace and harmony with others.

HOW PROPHET MUHAMMAD (PBUH) CORRECTED THE SITUATION

The mission entrusted to him (S) by our Lord was to deliver the Guidance to humans in the form of the Qur’an as how to live, act and behave, establish His authority on earth and administer justice to mankind. To fulfill his (S) mission:

* He (S) called the humanity to the fold of its Creator and Sustainer who created this universe and what it contains and harnessed it for man and his species as His vicegerent on earth and be always obedient to Him;

* As His vicegerent, the humans are not the “masters of all that they survey” but its trustee and hence, to use them as He commands through the last and the final Book of Guidance that he (S) delivered to mankind in the form of the Qur’an;

* Man must always feel accountable to Him for the manner he uses His countless bounties of this cosmos - expecting either reward of His eternal pleasure in Jannah for his good deeds or constant punishment in Hellfire for misdeeds. Man will get this ultimate verdict of his Creator and Sustainer after death. This ever-consciousness was to keep his worldly life in moderation and fill his life with justice, peace and harmony for all.

* Presented his life, as the Messenger of God, to serve as model and to show how to live act and behave on this earth and live in harmony with self and others.

* Those who accepted his call/invitation, he (S) organized them into a Jamaah, trim and polish their character and prepared them to be the benevolent citizens of their society as father, as husband, as neighbor, as trader, as brother and sister and the hope of mankind, doing good to everyone honestly and sincerely to the extent that all the minorities, the deprived, the depressed and the have-nots feel contented. All were getting justice at par and living in peace and harmony with others.

* He (S) established a self-sustained welfare society for the poor, the needy, the orphans, the unemployed, the underemployed, the incapacitated – for the have-nots which the most developed nations of today couldn't establish so for anywhere in this world in spite of their best efforts and tall talks of establishing a modern welfare state. .

*Prophet Mohammad (pbuh] thus, established an Islamic society and a state where justice was prevailing everywhere free of cost; where minorities, both religious and ethnic, were enjoying their human rights at par with Muslims; where the womenfolk were meeting their “socio-economic-political” rights at par with men with no distinction at all; where peace was rampant everywhere so much so that an old lady could travel alone playing with gold in her hands from Sana’ to Hazermaut ( a distance of 1,000 miles) with no fear except that of God; where he (S) and his (S) Caliph had no body-guards and everyone even the aggrieved animals could meet him (S) with their “complaints”, if any, and get redress forthwith.

*Such was the benevolent society that Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) established in the Arabian Peninsula within 23 years of his (S) appointment as the Messenger of God, in between 610 and the year 632 AD, with the help of the Guidance that came to him (S) from God in the shape of the Qur’an and the Team of the Trustworthy Da’ees that he (S) built painstakingly in that tribal society of old Jahiliyah. Humanity got its zenith in all respects within that brief period of 23 years. Since then it stands as a challenge to human endeavors to attain its equilibrium.

THE QUESTION:

Can any modern egalitarian societies of Europe, America or Asia show even a replica of that model established and demonstrated by Muhammad Ibne Abdullah (pbuh) 1400 years ago? Those who pronounced Islam as backward, and conservative can they produce a model like that in the context of modern world any where in this world? Communism died in pursuing that effort in Moscow and China has resorted to Socialistic Capitalism and, in consequence, is now reaping all the inherent evils of the materialistic system whereas Capitalism itself is counting its days sitting in the lapse of the Whit House, 10 Downing Street , the Ely se Palace , the Red Squire, and the Red Fort. When all the materialistic systems couldn't reach that zenith of mankind in their prime time what can be expected from them while they all are facing their lean period and all the secular systems are in the process of withering away.

In fact, humanity has lost its hold on the march of time as it has no sense of accountability in any of its affairs which was the corner stone of the society that Muhammad (S) built and the character that he (S) promoted and demonstrated to the world 1400 years ago. The modern man feels free to live as per his wild wishes desires and caprices with greed and lust and fill the earth with all kinds of injustices in every walk of human life. Hence it couldn't and cannot even produce a replica of that pattern of life. Materialism has lost the “battleground” to the Islamic System that was brought and established by Mohammad Ibne Abdullah (pbuh) through the Qur’an and accountability in the Akhirah. It has no choice but to recall the life pattern of Mohammad Ibne Abdullah (pbuh) and live the life that Qur’an recommends to live as obedient to the Creator and Sustainer and feeling always accountable to Him after death for all that man does on earth.

Human societies, both Muslims and non-Muslims, have NOW no choice but to surrender to the Sustainer of this cosmos, behave like the trustees of what they possess not masters and feel accountable to their Supreme Lord and live as per the pattern of life demonstrated by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). This is now the only way left for mankind to survive with justice, peace, honor and dignity for some time more. It is an open challenge both for the Muslim and the secular world to survive with respect in the community of nations. Hope the saner elements of both will think over this challenge and behave as God commands through the Qur’an, the last and the final Book of Guidance for mankind till eternity.

This is the last hope of mankind to survive. Muhammad (S) is now the only leader for mankind to follow till eternity. Will the arrogant leadership of materialistic world see it through? The fate of humanity hinges on this fatal question. Will the good sense prevail over their obstinacy and the urgency of time over their hate against Islam and the benevolent life pattern of Muhammad Ibne Abdullah (pbuh)?

Br. Shamim Siddiqi can be reached at TSidd96472@aol.com

His web is  WWW.dawahinamericas.com

By SHAMIM A. SIDDIQI, New York

THE moment the VP of Egypt Omar Suleman announced that the President General Hosni  Mubarak has stepped down following the will of the mass uprising, the masses at the Tahreer Ground and every nook and corner of the country were echoing with the captioned slogan in an endless chain of enthusiasm and ecstasy. These were the rightful moments of deliverance from the clutches of a total dictatorship and the people were quite honest to acclaim it with their spontaneous welcome.

It is the glorious reward of 17 days and nights of constant fighting of young “kids” of Egypt who were dauntless and fearless in smashing the mightiest Pharos of 21 Century. Their sincerity of purpose, the haunting memories of three decades of deprivation of human liberties, the total denial of human rights under false emergency for long 30 years, their miserable living condition hardly meeting body and soul together just pulsating anyhow within less that two dollars a day and the mockery of the Western democracies that nourished and maintained the image of Mubarak as stable power under false sense of stability and keeping the hoax of Islamism away from the tentacles of power. Ultimately the oppressed people broke it into pieces under the immeasurable mighty weight of Egyptian youth. The despotic Mubarak who constantly tried his best to break the courage and stamina of youth on false pretensions, evasive promises and dictatorial mockeries has no choice but to surrender to the will of Egypt brave sons, daughters, students, labor, doctors, law students and the common folks. He is now hiding his “ugly” face in the “waters” of Sharm-al-Sheikh at the boarders of Saudi Arabia where the Muslim rulers take refuge generally when ousted from power and his bosom friend Israel, the other potential “safe” harbor for Mubarak.

This is the open success of mass movements against sitting tyrants and the resounding replica of Tunisia where Mohammad Bouazizi,  the fruit vendor of Sidi Bouzid,  the city 200 miles South of Tunis laid down the foundation of mass uprising by putting his body on fire in protest against the oppressive regime of Zine-el-Abidine  who ruled that country ruthlessly for 23 years and ultimately people forced him to run away to SA as a refugee. The dominant role of military was very constructive in Tunisia as was in Egypt. Now it has become the fact of history that a national army could not and cannot shoot her own patriotic people when on revolt against the oppressive regime of their own kith and kin. Pakistan military refused to shoot the young demonstrators on the streets of Karachi when PM and Martial Law Administrator Zulfiqar Ali Shah ordered to fire. As a result, he has to go and General Zia-ul-Haq came to power.  Like wise in Iran, military refused to fire his own people in Tehran and the Shah of Iran had to leave the country and take refuge ultimately in Egypt and where he is buried in a mosque in Cairo. .

These are the encouraging signs as how to bring revolution in a country where the sons of the soil through wrongful means usurp the power and then try to perpetuate their regime as their life long episode under martial law, or emergency, keeping the fundamental human right, the election process, democratic institutions all suspended at the behest and active support of the so-called democratic countries of the West. The Mass Movements get momentum only when the masses are hard pressed, human rights are denied, elections if held at all are marred with fraud, rigging, forced balloting accompanied with a lot of disqualifications both of the candidates and the voters making the election a farce. Simultaneously, people suffer from mass scale unemployment, higher cost of living, increase in foreign debts and face extremely harsh and hard terms of loan if IMF is involved in it. Thus the country is ruined and the masses have no choice but to come to street in protest and agitation demanding the change of regime in power and they succeed very often when the national army becomes neutral and refuses to take any action against general uprising.

The success of mass movements in Tunisia and then Egypt foretell the trend that is likely to be repeated in almost every Muslim country with a few exceptions only of Turkey, Malaysia and to some extent Indonesia. The rest are the bad stigma in the name of Islam that guarantees all the aforesaid rights, freedom and liberties to all its citizens within its jurisdiction irrespective of the fact whether Muslim or non-Muslim, in majority or minority. As such, mass uprisings are knocking at the doors of Syria, Jordan, Yemen, Pakistan, Algeria, Bangladesh and Sheikhdoms of Persian Gulf States. Everywhere the regimes are shaky and they are likely to face their masses uprising sooner than later for their human and democratic rights and falling standard of living.

In these mass movements and the would be uprising in the near future the role of Islamic Movements have been very nominal or marginal. Unfortunately, they could not feel the pulses of their youth who organized the mass uprisings through Internet services on mass scale and have given new dimensions to the use of Internet services which enabled them to contact millions and millions of people in no time and call them to assemble at a given point for mass rallies and demonstrations, picketing and public meetings. They with flash button could tell the public to attend such and such places in such and such number where they will be addressed by such and such people. It is a kind of mass whispering campaign secretly and silently and no despotic ruler could or can disturb their program or agenda.

Islamic Movements could not muster this system so for and hence were no where there in their orbits. As such these mass uprising were neither pro nor anti Islam. They were simple younger generation of their country and played havoc with the well-establish dictatorship of their respective countries, even beyond the imagination of their western masters in America and Europe.

Muslim leadership is now to get lesson from the organized efforts of Tunisia and Egypt and immediately reset their strategies and programs towards creating mass uprising by taking the full advantage of Internet services. They have to do home work for the countries listed above and prepare their movement oriented youngsters for this job and spread it to the grass route levels of the targeted countries. All these countries are now well set for mass uprising on the pattern set by the two African predominant Muslim countries. If they delay they will be the losers and will be no where in taking part in the reshaping these countries on ideological lines. The time is very short for them and they have to get the lost lessons updated.

The second task before them is to build the team of Da’ees and increase its numerical strength to the level that when the uprising happens and mass awakening takes place, the team of Da’ees, irrespective of age factor should and must be in the field to cover and sustain the results of these uprisings in favor of Islam and the Islamic Movement and the opportunists and secular leadership is not able to pocket the results of mass uprising. This is the game of preplanning, precaution and preparation for the preemptive “attack” when the iron is hot. This is also called the wisdom of a Mumin who foresees the events before hand and makes himself or herself ready to face all the eventualities in no time.

May Allah bless the Muslim Ummah every where.

WWW.dawahinamericas.com

By SHAMIM A. SIDDIQI

Introduction: The age through which we are passing is very challenging for the Muslims throughout the world, especially in America. Our adversaries are presenting Islam with many distorted and “ugly” faces, due to their centuries old prejudices and ever-growing ignorance about Islam, the Qur’an and Prophet Muhammad [peace be upon him -pbuh]. But one thing that I have noticed remarkably astonishing is the fact that there are a lot of Christian brothers and sisters who are serious and want to understand the true picture of Islam. On the other hand, the "ugly" faces of Islam that are being depicted frivolously by the missionary zealots and Evangelical preachers are simply baseless and are propagated out of context in concocted form. I will try my level best to help these critics in discovering the truth to the extent possible.

Unfortunately, Islam in its truest form was never presented to the West and what one understands through his or her own commendable efforts needs a lot of explanation, putting the Qur'anic verses in correct perspective in which they were revealed. It is equally important to know the stages through which the Islamic Movement as launched by Prophet Muhammad [pbuh] reached to the point of climax [perfection] in the ninth/tenth year of Hijrah with what natural end-results. These are vast topics and need elaborate discussion. I, therefore, request my readers to bear with me up to the last line with patience. God, the Almighty, may open their hearts and minds for the acceptance of the truth.

UNDERSTANDING ISLAM IN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE:

But before I talk about the Qur'an and what it presents and what one understands through his or her personal studies, it is desirable to revisit the history of Islam and that of mankind form Adam to Muhammad (pbut) as the continuity of the process ordained by God.

1.  Islam was the Deen [the way of life] of all the Prophets of Islam from Adam - Abraham to Jesus [pbut]. It was neither Judaism nor Christianity [Yahudiyat or Nasraniyat]. All the prophets were the Prophets of God [Allah] and their Deen was "Islam" [obedience to God] to which they all invited the mankind to follow. Their God was only one God, Allah [God is correctly translated in Arabic Bible as Allah]. It were the people, their respective followers who subsequently deviated into different channels and called or pronounced themselves “Jews” and “Christians.” In fact, all were "Muslims" and their "Deen" [the System of life] was "Islam". Prophet Moses and Jesus (pbut)] never called themselves Jew and Christian respectively.

2.  Similarly, the mission and the process of establishing the authority of God on this earth [the Kingdom of God] of each Messenger were the same. All invited their fellow human beings to *Monotheism [Oneness of God], *Accountability on the Day of Judgment and *Accepting the authority of the Prophet of the time. Through continuous and ceaseless efforts, all the Prophets of God called the people of their respective time to these basic concepts of the Deen of Islam. It was their "Dawah Ilallah" [calling the people to the fold of their Creator and Sustainer]. Whosoever responded to their call became their companions and formed into the Party of God. The Prophet of the time helped them individually and collectively to purify their character and make them trustworthy people of the society. Some people joined the Party of God but most of them denied, opposed it tooth and nail. They were the tyrants, the secularists and the opportunists. Even some Prophets were killed by the vested interests of the age. Even some were killed. Only Prophet David and Solomon [pbut] succeeded in establishing the Kingdom of God on earth.

3.  Prophet Jesus [pbuh] departed from this world at a very early stage of his life due to conspiracy hatched by his own people. He had no time to establish a society, even in terms of the Ten Commandments of Torah. He could not lead a married life and give the requisite socio-economic-political system to his people. [Had there been any, the Christian societies would have never failed to establish it in their countries, rather than keeping Christianity restricted within the four walls of the church only and adopting the secular system of life. Can anyone deny these facts?] It meant that this big gap was to be filled by some other Prophet after Jesus [pbuh] in order to deliver Justice and a comprehensive system of life to mankind. As planned by God, Prophet Jesus [pbuh] was elevated to heaven but before that he [pbuh] professed that another Prophet, the “Comforter” [Ahmad or Mohammad], was to come after him [Jesus]. One can read John - 14: 16, 15: 26 and 16: 7. The word "Comforter" pinpoints directly to the coming of the next Prophet of God and he could be none but Muhammad, the son of Abdullah of Makkah. But it is the greatest human tragedy that the arrival of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), after a lapse of about 600 years after Jesus [pbuh] and the Book of Guidance [the Qur'an] that was revealed to him by God were and are being denied knowingly by the Jews and the Christians together, just to suit their political expediencies. History confirms it. The end-result is that most of humans and their societies are living a life of imbalances on earth and heading to encounter an uncertain future in the life Hereafter.

4. This world does not belong to any Bush, Obama, Blair, Putin, Mubarak, Abdullah or anybody else. It belongs to God. He is not only the Creator but Sustainer, controlling this universe meticulously since its creation. We are not its masters at all but only trustees of what we possess for a very temporary phase of life. He is not only our Creator and Sustainer but Lawgiver too. He has ordained a system of life for mankind as how to live, act and behave on this earth. That Guidance He has been sending through His appointed messengers. The Job of each Prophet of God, as explained earlier, was to deliver the Guidance to his people, purify the character of his followers, present his life as model to his people, explain the difficult situations that occur in this process and establish a model society as it is envisaged in the Book of Guidance of the time. The only Prophet of God, after David and Solomon [pbut] who succeeded in establishing the Kingdom of God on earth was Prophet Muhammad [pbuh].  He had left a practical model for all of us to follow till eternity.  Muhammad (pbuh) was the prophecy of Prophet Jesus [pbuh] and the last prophet of God on earth as no prophet was to come after him. After Prophet Jesus, Prophet Muhammad [pbuh] undertook the mission of the Prophets of Allah in order to establish the Kingdom of God on His earth.

5. We have no choice but to study the process and the stages through which the movement of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) towards establishing the Kingdom of God passed during 23 years of his struggle: - 13 years in Makkah and 10 years in Madinah. Only then, will one be able to understand what Verse of the Qur'an was revealed to him and at what time: what was the situation of the movement when it was revealed; what were the conspiracies being hatched against the Prophet and his mission by the people at the helm of affairs and the vested interests of the time; how the inside and outside hypocrites were behaving to harm the Movement; what armed resistance was let loose against the growing Islamic State [the kingdom of God] to get it annihilated from the surface of the earth and how Allah guided His Messenger at each occasion through revelations of the Qur'anic Verses in dealing with those situations. Islam was and is a Movement irrespective of time and place.  The Prophet had to face all the eventualities with wisdom, acute sense of responsibility, justice and compassion for mankind, thereby setting and leaving a Model for humanity to follow till eternity.

In clarifying the aforesaid situation I would like to add that every verse of the Qur'an will tell the reader when and under what condition or circumstances it was revealed: whether in Makkah or in Madinah as the situation and the conditions of the Movement at Makkah were quite different from those of Madinah. In Makkah Islam was just a movement but in Madinah it was gradually becoming a state with its own policy, program, strategies and a well-defined system of life both at individual and collective levels.

6.  It is, therefore, essential that one who wants to understand the Qur'an and what it contains must equally labor hard to study the life of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in detail. The Qur'an was revealed to him [pbuh] to guide the destiny of mankind under the strict guidance of Allah, coming in bits and pieces in 23 years of time. If the life pattern of the Prophet Muhammad [pbuh]] is ignored, the reader will never reach the depth of the Qur'an and will remain just like one who recites its verses like a parrot. These people get nothing out of the Qur'an and remain "fishing" in "shallow" waters and make its understanding worse and worse for themselves and others. That is the reason the orientalists and the missionaries who claim to have “studied” the Qur'an do get nothing except some twisted facts, wrong connotations and misguided conclusions out of their “shallow" knowledge of the Qur'an that leads them to nowhere except some false "pretensions" of knowing Islam and the Qur'an as they do not corroborate the revelations through the Qur'an with the actual situation in which Muhammad [pbuh] was piloting the movement under the guidance of Allah. Thus, they do disservice to Islam, their own destiny and the destiny of mankind.

THE EVOLUTIONAY PROCESS OF OF REVEALATION OF THE QUR’AN:

At this stage, I would like to put some fundamental questions to anti-Islam forces for understanding the situation that appears anomalous to their limited concept of Islam as a “religion” [the way they treat Judaism and Christianity] and not as a Deen, a way of life. It will make the position of Islam crystal clear for those who want to understand it with sincerity than those whose hearts are “crocked” and who are bent upon to find faults with it one way or the other.

i. Every State worth its name does have an ideology, a declared state policy, program and objective to struggle for its existence and survival. It prepares its citizens to be worthy of that idealism. If one revolts, denies or works against the declared policy of the state, will anyone tolerate that individual within the parameters of that state? If the communist Russia could not tolerate the preaching of capitalism within its bounds; if the USA could not tolerate the preaching of communism in the midst of capitalism, how can an ideological Islamic State give full liberty to its individuals to preach against its ideology, policy and program and let them damage the very genesis of its foundation? Where will one put the people committing rebellion against an established state? Islamic State gives them at least some time to think and reconsider their attitude evens during midst of war. [Reference: Qur’an 9: 6]
ii. For example: The verses 1 to 9 of the Qur'an from Chapter 9 [Al-Tauba - Repentance] were revealed in the ninth year of Hijrah while Prophet Muhammad (pbuh]  was on his return journey from Tabuk,  where the Roman emperor of the time was amassing his troops in hundreds of thousands, but retreated seeing the Messenger of Allah advancing towards him with only 30,000 Muslim army. The Christian Emperor Heraclius  was well aware of Rasulullah's position as the Prophet of Allah and he could not dare to face him. The Emperor left the scene of the battlefield without giving any resistance. Those verses pertain to that stage when the Islamic State had practically been established in the entire Arabian Peninsula and in its outskirts. Its diehard opponents, the   idolaters [Mushrikin]  who were bent upon to overthrow it by all possible means and conspiracies were given a clear final notice of four months time to become Muslim, accept the authority of Allah, offer five time prayers [Salah],  pay Zakah,  2 ½% of their accumulated wealth to poor and needy and live in peace in the society without any fear. Could there be any better offer for them to live in peace with the dominant ideology of the age? So was the case of Ahlul Kitab - the people of Scriptures - the Jews and Christians, that if they want to retain their faith, they can live in peace within the bounds of the Islamic State just by paying only a poll tax of about five to ten Dirham  per head, enjoying all their civil and religious rights. Now an Evangelic priest of today, without having any idea under what circumstance these verses were revealed stands up, pronounces and concludes that these verses from the Qur’an  are “oppressive” and Islam “promotes” coercion. Only ignorance will cry at their wisdom.

iii. Similarly, Verses 12 to 16 from the same Chapter 9 of the Qur’an pertain to the settlement with Jews and Christians. As stated above, the choice was left in their hands. Could there be any other just solution than what is ordained by Allah in both the cases: the idolaters and that of the Jews and Christians? It was the best solution to enable the Muslims, the Jews and the Christians to live together. The history of Muslim Caliphate subsequently showed that both the communities of Abrahamic  faith always lived in peace and prospered living with Muslims side by side. But unfortunately, the People of Bani Israel are proving otherwise in the country of their domination and the behavior of our Christian American brothers has become lately shrouded with "doubts and presumption" simply on unproven "flimsy" grounds. I invite the Jewish and Christian Communities to think about this anomalous situation and declare how much these priests are bigoted and far from the truth.

iv. So is the case of the Qur'anic  verses form Chapter Al-Baqarah  (2),  Al-Nissa (4) and  Al-Maidah  (5) that deal with the condition of hypocrites. If I start taking each verse and deal with its historical perspective, the article will become unmanageable. Mostly, in these Verses, Allah has dealt with the condition of Hypocrites [Munafequoon]  of the time who were fast becoming a menacing danger for the nascent Muslim society. So Allah has dealt with them decisively and you know it would have never been good if they were left as an integral part of an ideological society without purification and correcting their attitude of life. In such situation, I would suggest that our Christian priests must study some Exegetical explanation or Tafseer of some prominent Islamic scholars like Maulana Maudoodi:  English Translation of his “Meanings of the Qur'an”. Then they will be able to speak about Islam with some authority and knowledge from the original source.

v. From the above discussion, at least, one can gather the impression that the propaganda which is going on against Islam, the Qur’an  and Prophet Muhammad (pbuh])  is based only on hearsay, false “allegations” and quoting them out of context. None cared to verify the so-called “allegations” from the original text and ascertained the references and the background in which each verse was revealed as one can see in the cases referred to above.

vi. Similarly, the derogatory remarks that are usually passed against Prophet Muhammad (S) are simply made without any knowledge of his character and the enormous contributions that he had made to human history and civilization. At least our “knowledgeable” priests, before opening their mouths, could go through the reading material about the life of Muhammad (S) written by Toynbee,  M Watts, Professor Hitty , Prof,  T R Irving, Haykal  latest by Y. Emerick  and learn about his [pbuh]  contributions in enriching human history, whose many visible signs one can find in our American Constitution too. The First Charter for multiethnic communities to live together in peace and harmony was presented by Muhammad [pbuh] , when he executed the Covenant of Madinah with Jews and Arab tribes and the first Charter of Human Rights was presented by him [pbuh]  during his first and the last pilgrimage [Hajj] to Makkah in 632 AD. Equally, the concept of equality, justice and fair play, consultation, accountability of the rulers and the executives, respectability of law, liberty and freedom of expression, all were introduced by Islam and practiced by Muhammad [pbuh]  and his first four Caliphs. Europe and America learned these values and virtues from Islam flourished and maintained them magnificently but unfortunately the undemocratic regimes of the Muslim world have lost them and so they are nowhere to be reckoned with. My only request to my readers is to read the life of Prophet Muhammad [pbuh]  in detail and I am sure they will love him [pbuh]  more than any thing else in this world.

vii. The foregoing discussion will go a long way in confirming the truth that Islam has nothing to do with terrorism of any sort under any circumstances. If one studies what I have presented above, he or she will try to raise himself or herself above the propaganda stunts going on against Islam and Muslims. The “misguided” war of USA -UK to capture the heart of the Muslim world and control its oil-rich resources is to guarantee its free flow for the oil-hungry west. It appears that this wild and uncivilized game of neocolonialism will go on unabated on “flimsy and fake” grounds for decades to gather. History will soon give its unbiased verdict about these wars of “greed” and “domination” over the weeks and the innocents. And that will be very harsh.

viii. But for the brothers and sisters who are following the same God or Allah, the Lord of this cosmos, are monotheists and believe in His indivisible and inalienable Supreme authority, I would like to put before them another scenario that is reasonable and just.

Just ponder over this proposition: Our God is One, our universe is one, the humanity is one - its biological and moral needs are one and the same, irrespective of time, place or age - How, then, can the system of life for man [the Guidance] be more than one? It must be one and only one for the entire human race and for all times. And it is nothing but the Islamic system of life that God [Allah] has delivered for humans till eternity. In fact, there is no other system of life available to man except Islam that is perfect and comprehensive in all respects. It is the obstinacy of men and women who deny this truth and have, thus, divided the humanity in so many watertight compartments of faith, creed and “dogmatic followings.

The Torah and the Bible were the "prescriptions" from God for human needs for their respective time. They could not be maintained intact in their original form and shape. So the Qur'an was revealed as the Book of Guidance for mankind. It is now available in its original language, completely intact in live, richest and the most comprehensive spoken Arabic language. They should think over this phenomenon. It appears to be the planning of God. Both the Guidance, the Qur'an and the life of the guide, Prophet Muhammad [pbuh],  now available in minutest detail. The rest stands either lost or innovated through human innovations or corruption.

It is for this purpose, God maintained the continuity of Prophethood and the continuity of the Message through His appointed Messengers in a chain from Adam to Muhammad [pbut]. Thus, Muhammad [pbuh] was the last Prophet of God and the Qur'an is His final and complete message to humans to show them how to live, act and behave on this earth.

ix. The only course now open before the followers of the three Abrahamic faiths to change the course of history is to struggle individually and collectively for the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth. It is a widely open game and needs a lot of study in depth, organizational coordination, pooling of human resources, and educating the masses - Muslims, Christians and Jews, on these lines. Developing model human societies on this pattern and building a team of dedicated and committed brothers and sisters with trustworthy character must be their goal. All must be involved in the service of mankind without any discrimination of color, cast, creed, race, language or ethnic affinity. Working together for a few decades on a common platform, signs of hope will be visible on the horizon. May God give us courage to think on these lines, develop a common understanding and a feasible program for the deliverance of suffering humanity!

x. To begin with, we will have to study Islam as the only way of life [Al-Deen], the Qur'an as the last Book of Guidance for mankind to live in peace with justice to all and emulate the life pattern of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh]),  the only perfect model now available to mankind till eternity. This is the climax of Abrahamic faith  and we all are committed to uphold and struggle for the establishment of God’s Kingdom on earth. Our job is just to make serious efforts. The rest rests with the Lord of this cosmos..

For Shamim A. Siddiqi's other articles visit;                                                                              WWW.dawahinamericas.com

By SHAMIM SIDDIQI, New York

DR. ISRAR Ahmed Saheb is no more in this world but he left a name that will always be associated  in rendering eloquent services to the Qur'an and its introduction at mass level through his "Daroos-e-Qur'an", lectures, cassettes,  Friday sermons, presenting in easy and understandable language  the meanings of the entire Qur'an during Taraviah in Ramadan for years together, addressing mass meetings  of hundreds and thousands of people in India and Pakistan and writing Tafseer-e-Qur'an in fluent Urdu and English both for the common man and the students at large.

This all was possible for him to accomplish because of the fact that he was a Da'ee Ilallah through and through with all its inherent qualities of heart and mind. He was born in 1932, was an active Muslim Youth during Pakistan  Movement and then joined Islami Jameeat -e- Tulaba , Pakistan and became its vibrant President in early fifties. That paved his way to become an active Rukn [Member] of Jamaat-e-Islami and moved to Lahore , the hub of Pakistan politics.

Jamaat participated in the Provincial Elections of Punjab and could not do well. The controversy started that it should not participate in elections. It became a crisis and, therefore, to resolve the issue an all  Pakistan Conference of Jamaat's Arkan [Members] was held at Machigot in Rahimyar Khan District of Punjab in a ginning factory in February 1958. 1035 Arkan [Members of JIP] attended this meeting, including 15 from East Pakistan and, fortunately, I was one of them, to decide whether JIP should participate in elections or not? The meeting continued for five days where Merhoom Israr Saheb opposed and presented his paper that took three hours undisturbed to complete. Maulana Maududi (RA) replied his view points in six hours with logical arguments by thread bear discussion of the history of JIP till that time and soundly proved that election participation was correct for the change of leadership of the country. Out of 1035, Arkan 1015 supported Maulana’s viewpoint and the Resolution was adopted to continue the Methodology that JIP was pursuing towards the change of leadership through election process.

Late Dr Israr Saheb differed and resigned from JIP along with Maulana Amin Ahsan Islahi (RA) and nine other members of Jamaat. Later on he published his speech of Machigot Ijtemaa and started his own Movement In the name of Tanzeem-e-Islami , Pakistan (TIP) and published Magazines like Meesaque, Hikmat-e Qur'an and many other Institutions to augment his Movement and establishing Khilafah in Pakistan  to serve the cause of the Qur'an.

He used to visit the USA on regular basis but stopped subsequently after the unfortunate tragedy of 9/11. He started an extended organization of TIP as TINA in the USA  which is alive still in some pockets of this country.

He has a great desire that I should join TINA but I asked him: has he any Program for the USA? He replied in negative.  I, therefore, declined respectfully. However, I am a regular subscriber of his papers and periodicals that help a lot in understanding the on-going Islamic Movements of Indo-Pak subcontinent.

One may differ from his political views but his contribution to popularize the message of the Qur'an in Pakistan, India, ME and around the world is voluminous and a record by itself. The young generation can reach to the message of the Qur'an directly through his various efforts and eloquent cassettes in different languages of the world.

His legacies will be paramount for centuries to come. He has left behind a team of trained and trusted workers like Dr Sami Ali and his entire family which he groomed patiently for the Iqamah of Allah's Deen in Pakistan and elsewhere in the world.

May Allah pardon his sins, if any, multiply reward of his good deeds manifold, place his soul in Jannatul Firdaus and give Tawfeeq to Br. Hafiz A'kif  Sayeed who is now the current Amir of TIP to continue his legendary work incessantly and try to cooperate with his parent body, the JIP, to get his agenda of Iqamatuddeen fulfilled. It was his earnest desire and he put me to that task to materialize in early eighties by developing a working cooperation between the two Movements but it could not materialize due to negative attitude of some of Jamaat's leaders.

The field is still wide open in the context of Pakistan and Mohtram A’kif Bhai should explore every opportunity to attain that end. This is the need of time.

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By SHAMIM A SIDDIQI

HUMAN society has reached to the state of complete moral bankruptcy, especially after great global economic disaster of 2008-09. It needs men of character in every field of life to set its house in order and deliver goodness in each and every sector to make its abode worth living with dignity and honor.

We see today that morally world stands in a collapsing situation. Trust in its leadership is touching the zero point. Corruption in all its shape has defaced it face. Greed and fraudulent practices are rampant everywhere and in each sector of our social, economic and political life. Exploitation in its wake has emerged as the fashion of the day. Maximization of personal profit, gains and fame has empowered individuals in every field of trade, commerce, business enterprises and entrepreneurship to run their affairs with total greed and temptation. In consequence, poor is getting poorer and rich richer day by day. It is producing only Zulm (oppression) and denying even two square meals to millions and millions inhabitants of poor, underdeveloped countries and vast regions of Asia, Africa, Latin America and many parts of Europe and America too.  There are 36 Million people who are leading a life of below poverty level alone in the USA what to say of the sub-Sahara regions of Africa and teaming millions of India who hardly sleep with their belly full. The situation around the world has, thus, reached to a very precarious point and needs immediate attention towards getting it corrected.  But who could do it – not the corrupt and deceitful secular leadership around the world – then who?

To correct this disastrous situation, it needs dependable trustworthy character and honest leadership in power in each and every country of the world and in every   sector of world economy – in trade, in commerce and in industry both at individual and collective levels. The question is: *who can do this job? *Where is its blue print? *Where is its inspiring model for all times to come? This agenda is also missing from the development plan of each and every country and nation around the world. Different faiths and religious practices too lack in this respect except Islam and the life pattern of Prophet Muhammad (S) where it is present in a predominant form but, unfortunately, the Muslims too stand nowhere for doing good to others.

Prophet Muhammad (S) carried out his plan of character building as the basic need of the Islamic System that he (S) introduced and established in the human society for delivering justice and fair play to human species. Let us see how he (S) did it and he (S) did it, of course, as the paramount need of the System that he (S) was assigned to profess, practice and deliver to mankind for attaining eternal bliss in both the worlds.

When the Second Wahi [revelation] came to him (S) after the gap of a few months [called “Fitrah”], he (S) was assigned the Mission of his life in these words: “Rise and warn. And glorify thy Lord [by establishing His authority]” – The Qur’an – Al-Muddassir: 74: 2-3]  Along with it the Kalimah “LA Ilaha Ilallah” was also entrusted to him (S) for calling the humanity to the fold of Allah (SWT), the Creator and the Sustainer of this cosmos.

Rasulullah (S) now needed three things to accomplish the mission of his (S) life:

1. The Guidance – the Blue Print of the System that he (S) was to establish on earth for the deliverance of mankind;

2. A Team of dependable and Trustworthy character to work as the founder workers of the System and the builders of the edifice of the Islamic society and state  and to serve as models for mankind till eternity;

3. The land where to establish the System in the form of a society and state to serve as its model.

Now let us see how it worked out:

1. The Creator and Sustainer Himself managed to send the details of the Guidance – the System, the Blue Print as What to do and how to do and completed it in gradual process in 23 years and perfected it with His last words during the first and the last Hajj of Rasulullah (S): “This day I perfected your Deen for you and completed My favor unto you and have chosen for you Al-Islam as your Deen” [Ref: Al-Qur’an. Surah Al-Maidah 5: 3]

2. Rasulullah (S) himself started building the requisite Team of Trustworthy men of character in ones and twos through his “person to person” contact – inviting each to the fold of Allah, trimming and molding their life to be obedient to their Sustainer, feeling always accountability to Him in the life after death for all their actions and deeds and following his (S) own life pattern as its model. He (S) was remarkably assisted in his (S) efforts by his beloved companions, especially Abu Bakr Siddiq (RA), Musab bin Umair (RA) and others like them. Through this process he (S) built his team of trusted workers [we call them Sahabah [May Allah be pleased with them] out of reverence] who were always ready to sacrifice their time, talents, energies and resources (wealth) for the mission of Rasulullah (S). Thus, he (S) built his (S) team of dependable and trustworthy characters to accomplish his (S) mission of the Iqamah of Allah’s Deen on earth. They were the luminaries of the time and for all times to come. They carried away the mission of Rasulullah (S) within the next hundred years to the vast tract of Asia, Europe and North Africa and delivered justice and equity to every corner of lands that came under the sovereignty of the Islamic State.  Human rights were well protected and taken care of in every field of life. All citizens were equals before law. No discrimination and no exploitation in any from with basic needs of each citizen was guaranteed through Islam’s own self-sustained welfare system. Corruption was rooted out altogether. Service to humanity was the fashion of the day. It was all a boon for the human society.

Through these efforts, Rasulullah (S) got 124 team mates in Makkah, and through the magnificent Dawah efforts of Musab bin Umair (RA) in Madinah, he (S) got 63 from the tribe of Aus and 176 from the tribe of Khazraj. He arranged this team in the battle of BADR and prayed to Allah on the eve of the battle day: O Allah! Your promised help must come, otherwise, You will not be worshipped [“La Tabud”]. His promised help came and the idolaters of Makkah who attacked Madinah arrogantly were routed out.  Seventy of the stalwarts were killed and 70 became POW in the hands of Rasulullah (S). They were all set free after paying some nominal ransom either in cash or in kind.

3. Land: While at Makkah, Rasulullah (S) tried his best to find out a place to make the HQ of the Islamic Movement. First he tried for Ethiopia . Then he (S) himself went to T’aif but could not succeed due to stiff opposition of the idolaters. Allah (SWT) then prepared the ground in Madinah where he (S) migrated with his companions in the thirteenth year of his Prophethood.

The Trustworthy Character that Rasulullah (S) built in his beloved companions delivered justice, peace and equity to human society, the suffering humanity of his time and for many centuries together its blessings continued. However this job was subsequently neglected, rather given up, causing decay and decadence to Muslim societies. It paved the way towards the emergence of kingdoms, empires, tyrants and many corrupt oppressive regimes within the body politics of Muslim Era, surrendering ultimately to the secular West that excelled in science and technology only over the Muslim world and not in character and moral standards that were set by Rasulullah (S). As such, in spite of the fact, that west is dominating the world’s socio-economic-political scene for the last two hundred years it could not deliver justice to mankind in any form. Its civilization stands on some secular “values”, the shifting sands if time. I have drawn its fathomless condition in the beginning to depict that it could not and cannot deliver good to mankind as it has nothing to offer to man except lust, greed and false sense of arrogance with military and economic superiority to subjugate the weak and the poor.

Hence man needs the character that Rasulullah (S) built at the outset of seventh century AD, if humanity today wants justice, peace and fair play in every field of life at individual and collective levels. This is the job of Muslim Ummah to fulfill this paramount human need as Allah has commissioned it to do so. Now let us see what Ummah possesses today out of the three requisites that were the prime need of Rasulullah (S) to accomplish his mission. Let us examine what we have to do towards meeting our obligation in the midst of conflicting rival ideologies and dogmas and the extraordinary selfish behavior of man that is full of all kinds of greed and caprices.

What Muslim Ummah possesses today out of the three requisites that Rasulullah (S) needed to fulfill his (S) mission towards establishing the authority of our Lord can be traced out as follows:

1. The Guidance – the Blue Print [the Qur’an]is available, Alhamdulillah, with us intact in its original form, language and shape and the life pattern of Prophet Muhammad (S) in its minutest detail to follow as the most perfect model till eternity;

2. The Land: There are currently 57 countries where Muslims are in majority and have their own governments but has nothing to do with the Islamic System of life though they all claim that they are Muslims and their state “religion” is Islam.

3. The trustworthy leadership that Rasulullah (S) built for the attainment of his (S) mission: That is missing altogether at each level in the context of modern world whereas it is the most urgent need of Muslim Ummah and that of the human society at large. World cannot solve any of its ever surmounting problems in absence of that honest, God-conscious and trustworthy leadership.

The Islamic Movements around the world have been conscious of this fact from their very outset and were and are trying their best to build the requisite team of trustworthy Da’ees but not in the same proportion as the time needs and the Ummah requires. All the movements are bogged down practically in the day to day problems of their respective countries, the legacies of colonial rules, and, as such, could give little concentration to this basic requirement of the Movements. This is one of the basic reasons that why so for they could not succeed in their genuine efforts to get the Deen of Allah established anywhere in the Muslim world and its possibility in near future too looks like a distant dream as the West is constantly and consciously putting stumbling blocks in their way everywhere and creating problems after problems every now and then,

The above discussion confirms, beyond any shadow of doubt, the need and urgency of dependable and trustworthy characters for human society in every walk of life and in every country to deliver justice and equity to entire humanity, both to the affluent and the have-nots. It equally shows that meeting this requirement is the ultimate responsibility of the Muslim Ummah to get themselves first out of the mess that is infested in every segment of Muslim societies. The Ummah, especially the Islamic Movements and the Muslim leadership has to fulfill this obligation without making any delay to get their own house in order and set the model before the suffering humanity to follow. If Muslims can devote their time and energy solidly in building the requisite Team with the ennobling character on the pattern Rasulullah (S) inculcated in his beloved companions and set models for others to follow, human societies will rush to them for guidance and the Muslim leadership will then be able to lead the destiny of mankind afresh in the way the Muslim of the first Century Hijrah did. The life pattern of Rasulullah (S) was the model for his (S) time as well he (S) is the most perfect model for our time and for all times to come till eternity. Muslims of today have to undertake it as the universal challenge of the time. Allah (SWT) will then shower His blessings all around us as per His “commitment” through the Verse # 69 of Surah Al-Ankabut: “As for those who strive in Us [struggle for His Deen] We surely guide them to Our path, and Lo! Allah is with the Mohsineen.”

This path to struggle in the way of Allah is wide open and the passage to the goal is equally surmountable if we could muster equivalent will, courage and stamina to accomplish it within the next decade or so at the most.  Muslims in the West, especially their leadership, have greater responsibility to prove themselves as trustworthy models to their fellow citizens. Only then they will be able to wash away the hate campaign against Islam and the Muslims when they prove that their character is of 24 caret gold and they are extremely sincere and honest in doing well to the people of the land.  Muslim’s survival in all the pluralistic societies in the East like India and in the West like the USA rotates on how fast they follow the foot prints of Rasulullah (S) and transform themselves into trustworthy characters in the midst of other Abrahamic faiths at one hand and the pagan world on the other. Only then the human race will open its heart and mind to accept the leadership of Rasulullah (S) as the most perfect model and the Muslims as the saviors of mankind.

Shamim Siddiqi is a regular contributor to theMuslim.ca. He maintains his website on Dawah; www.dawahinamericas.com .