Islamic Viewpoint - Knowledge for Guidance

The Islamic Viewpoint

There are many questions raised by the West on the Islamic Teachings nowadays, sometimes to understand them and sometimes they are just forwarded to make a jest of Islamic teachings. However, as the West does not really understand Islam and this statement goes well even for their intelligent minds, I have tried here to address those questions as best as I can, with a hope that those who really want to seek the Truth as it is, would find clear answers to their questions here insha Allah (if Allah wills).

Concepts by Islamic Viewpoint

ISLAM is a very powerful code of life as its commands, which are given by ALLAH, complement each other. Indeed, this true path is set by Allah Himself. To know these commands, there are 3 sources (1) The Holy Quran (2) Traditions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad P.B.U.H. (3) Consensus (IJMA). The fourth source is said to be IJTEHAD (this term means an Islamic Decision which takes place when a true Muslim exercises his power of making decisions through a high degree of knowledge of Islam in a matter which is not clearly defined in KITAB i.e. the HOLY QURAN and/or SUNNAT i.e. the TRADITIONS of the HOLY PROPHET) but it is not necessary for all Muslims to accept one IJTEHAD on a certain matter. Insha Allah, I would give the details ahead on Ijtehad and in fact I would put my remarks here on many things that need Islamic Attitude today (Medicine & Surgery included that badly need consideration of Islamic Moral Values) by the Blessing of Allah so as to make the understanding of Islam easy. Let us understand clearly that the true aim of life is that a person must worship ALLAH only as is said "I have created JINN & INSAN only so that they worship Me" (Sura ZARIAAT-56). When the aim of life is only this then this must be kept in view at every place and at every time. Islam is not only a religion that a person can call himself a true Muslim if he happens to fulfill some rites of Islam. Our Holy Book Quran says "Only Islam is the true path in the eyes of Allah" (Sura AAL-E-IMRAN - 19). That means to neglect Islam in any matter relating to life, degrades the value of a person in front of ALLAH. Islam is clearly stated as more than a religion in the Holy Book Quran and to obey its commands regarding all fields of life is a necessity for a true Muslim. It is said that "To issue Commands is only for ALLAH" (Sura Yousuf - 40) and these commands are known from the Holy Quran (KITAB) and traditions of MUHAMMAD P.B.U.H. (SUNNAT). The qualities of these Commands and power and emphasis on each is known by IJMA, the third source. Outside these 3, there is no value of anything said, in the view of Islam. It is said in the Holy Book Quran that "whoever obeyed the Prophet, obeyed ALLAH and who did not, then we have not made you their Guardian (Sura NISA - 80). There are many other Ayaat too for this Islamic point. Also the respect of IJMA is clearly stated "And whoever opposes the Holy Prophet when the true Guidance is known to him and takes another route than what is of Muslims, We will let him go where he goes and We will enter him in JAHANNUM, very bad place to enter" (SURA NISA - 115). Now, whoever wants to learn Islam, will certainly try to know ARABIC uptil at least that extent where he or she may easily understand the Holy Book Quran without any translation. There are great number of books and indeed great books written, for understanding of the Holy Quran & Ahadees, but there often rises confusion about IJMA & IJTEHAD and I will try here to clarify these 2 briefly so that the Islamic teachings can clearly be understood.

IJMA, in brief, means the decision of all Muslims united about a matter or a situation. This meaning is derived from the Ayat I have just quoted i.e. Sura Nisa - 115. Now, this meaning opens the question whether such a decision ever came into existence or not. Let me clearly state here that IJMA can take place by the consensus of the scholars of Islam on a certain matter and IJMA does not give any command but it clarifies & explains the commands of Islam. It is related to the defining of the qualities of the Islamic Commands so that these may remain clear and Muslims may easily practice Islam. It shows what commands are the principles of Islam and what are the branches of those principles. It clearly denotes on what commands, Muslims have to believe with all heart without any question (and such commands are the "ESSENTIAL FEATURES OF ISLAM") and on what, they may exercise their choice uptil a certain extent taking one of a few things acceptable to Islam regarding a matter. Also, it clarifies whether a command is to be obeyed individually or has to be fulfilled collectively. Then, this also is denoted through IJMA that if a command is to be taken collectively, whether it can be observed by an individual on behalf of a collection of Muslims or whether each & everybody has to see to it to fulfill its demands. All this defining of the qualities and the position of Islamic Commands is the field of IJMA. Here, I would take the opportunity to point out some matters about the Essential Features of Islam. All the principles are certainly included in this term but not only these principles, all the features relating to these principles in such a way that after leaving them, it is impossible to understand these principles or to practice them, are included in this term indeed. For example, to believe and observe SALAT (Namaz) is necessary then all the detail about Namaz given in Ahadees must be taken into account for that is equally necessary as after leaving this detail there is no way of observing this principle. This goes for SAUM (Roza), ZAKAT, HAJJ etc. too that their true explanation must be had from Ahadees (SUNNAT; these both terms are interrelated as Sunnat is the deeds of the Holy Prophet Muhammad P.B.U.H. and Ahadees is the narration of Sunnat) and must be observed accordingly. The Holy Book Quran gives all principles of Islam indeed for it is a complete code of life but whoever considers taking Guidance from the Holy Quran only, leaving the last Prophet Muhammad PBUH certainly will lose the true path as the terms Quran uses to give the commands of Allah, can never be understood correctly by such attitude. Whereas the Holy Book Quran clearly defines Islam completely in theory for all times and all places, the person of Muhammad PBUH clearly defines Islam completely in practice for all times and all places for this great man & messenger of Allah was the last Prophet and it was announced in the Holy Book Quran by Allah near the close of his worldly life, that the Islamic Commands have been given in the Book Quran totally and thus Islam has been defined completely in theory & practice to the world to know, believe & practice. This is a point to note and that is why Islam is based on Kitab & Sunnat and the qualities and details of the Commands received are known by the Consensus (commonly known as IJMA-e-UMMAT or simply IJMA). None of these 3 must be neglected, if Islam is clearly to be understood. IJMA is also stated in Ahadees. There is a Hadees that the Holy Prophet said "Allah will not collect my Ummat on anything wrong, He puts His Hand on a guided group of people. Whoever leaves the guided group, he goes into the Fire" (TIRMAZI, one of the six important and authentic books of AHADEES). The same book reports that the Holy Prophet PBUH said that "When even two men from you Muslims recommend (or show appreciation for) a deceased person, then JANNAT surely is clear for him as you are the witnesses of Allah on earth". By this, it can be understood how powerful that word would be upon which all the Muslims are united. However, mind it please, that IJMA does not give commands but defines them only. After IJMA, let us consider IJTEHAD.

It must be noted here that IJTEHAD is a matter of "Subject & Object" as Islam indicates. There are some matters in which this Subject & Object works in such a way that once this is understood, those matters become exceptionally clear. See SHAFA,AT (i.e. Recommendation of somebody for Jannat at the JUDGMENT DAY) for instance, that everybody who will be given the right to make SHAFA'AT will have a high standing in view of Islam such as Hafiz, Aalim, Shaheed etc. Such people only will have this right of Shafa'at and moreover, they can use it only for the faithful people who led themselves to JAHANNUM by their wrong deeds and not because of their faith, for that must be correct. Here, we find the rule of Subject & Object clearly applying as the permission of Shafa'at by Allah will only be granted to the Muslims of high standing and its benefits will only be to those sinners who never lost their True Faith. The matter of dreams is also like this that the more truthful among people gets more true dreams than the others. Ahadees of Tirmazi and other authentic books of Ahadees prove this application of the rule clearly and the related chapters may be seen for detail. Here, I took up this rule of Subject & Object as it also applies in the matter of IJTEHAD. The rule of Subject & Object must be observed here as it is necessary for a Muslim (Subject) to be on a high degree of the knowledge of Islam for IJTEHAD and the power of IJTEHAD can only be exercised in those matters (Object) which are not definitely stated in Kitab and/or Sunnat. TIRMAZI reports that when Mu'az Bin Jabal were going to Yemen as Hakim the Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH asked how will you judge (make decisions). He replied "By the book of Allah". The holy Prophet PBUH asked "how will you judge, if you don't find the concerned matter there". He replied "then by the traditions of Muhammad PBUH". The Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH again asked "And if you don't find it there". He replied "then I will judge by Ijtehad (by my own understanding)". Upon this, the Holy Prophet praised Allah and showed his appreciation for what Mu'az has said. Here then, is the rule clearly put and it should be observed in Ijtehad. If a question is to be answered by Ijtehad then it should be open to debate in view of Islam. Please note that Ijtehad also like Ijma defines the commands of Allah as it is completely based on Kitab & Sunnat because total Islamic Commands are present in theory & practice in Kitab & Sunnat. The difference between Ijtehad & Ijma is that Ijma has to be accepted by all Muslims, for leaving any matter based on Ijma or not giving it the rightful place it has, puts an unfavorable mark on Faith according to the power of that Ijma, while for Ijtehad Muslims have a choice to accept it or leave it, after considering it & weighing it as it is based with an understanding that MOST PROBABLY, this is the right attitude to take in a given matter or a given situation in view of Islam. However, this must be noted well that in a matter where some Ijtehad must be taken immediately for practical purpose, Muslims must take a stance and not leave the matter open to debate for long as this may cause a lot of unnecessary complications and much undue hardship for the Muslim people. By our foolishness of this type, Islam is face to face with hypocrisy. We all, excluding no one at all, are responsible for this troublesome situation. Let us try to eliminate the evil now which has occurred by our delay and work for the good so much as to let a true Islamic Society come into being by our words and our deeds (May Allah grant us His Mercy and gives us the power to enlighten the whole world by His permission AMEN).

At the time of Creation of Adam, Satan who was a Jinn (being created from fire by Allah) forwarded this argument that he was created by fire and man by mud so why should he bow to a lower creature. Though the argument seems valid at face yet this argument was completely based on a great misunderstanding. Surely, a higher being should not bow to a lower creature but Allah had created the Man better than him. Allah had blown a high Spirit in Adam and had given him a great knowledge and had placed him in a position of enforcing His Law so now there was no way to disobey for Iblees but he only saw the physical things and totally disregarded the spiritual side. It is not at all possible for a person to get to the Truth, neglecting the spiritual traits totally. Man is created in such a way that by his Rightousness, he can rise even above angels and if he takes up the life of caring about his physical needs only disregarding his spiritual side totally, he can fall even below the dirty animals for sure. Today, the Western world due to this very mistake of neglecting the spiritual side (and keep aside the psychic study for it is only observation through which they consider getting at the bottom of the psychic matters and that also is a form of giving weight to the physical side), has got into a life where a confusing glamour clearly denotes that they seem to have forgotten totally that there is a true life after this one of examination. Men have forgotten their commanding position there and women have disregarded their duties at home; both degrading themselves uptil an extent where only a great sacrifice can return them their true peace of mind (and piece of mind also because invention of scientific & technical commodities specially sophisticated war weapons is not a sign of intelligence but surely the neglect of one's true identity is a great foolishness). The true understanding can only come by giving value to both ZAAHIR (the physical side) and BAATIN (the spiritual side) as to leave any one causes wrong assessment of any matter relating to man. Muslims must always keep this in view as this point needs attention.

I would take the opportunity to write something about Jinn here. These are such creatures of Allah who are created from fire mainly as man has been created from mud mainly. There are good and bad in them just like human beings and they possess the physical strength much more than human beings. They have the power to keep hidden from people even when they are among them. They can see the people being hidden and the Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH used to ask Allah to guard him from all evil whenever he went to the toilet. Jinn do not attack men even when they are much stronger as angels are guarding the people by the order of Allah who are more powerful even in physical strength than Jinn and moreover, men are given much more spiritual power than Jinn indeed. Sometimes, the guard is put away for someone and at such occasions if the spiritual power of the person concerned fails to meet the challenge, some satan i.e. a troublesome JINN does get a chance to make mischief for him and sometimes even to get hold of him. Men, when they try to attack JINN put to use spiritual power and apply special words and specific terms known to cause effect on Jinn repetitively so that they may come under their control though attack from Jinn on men and the attack of men on Jinn both is totally against Islam. Solomon, Salam on him, was allowed as an exception to enslave Jinn and make them work for him and this must not be cited for attacking Jinn as the Hadees clarify that to control Jinn is not allowed. Like the event of creation of man, Sura Namal - Ayat 39 & 40 also clearly state the point that the spiritual power is much more a blessing than the physical power indeed.

Allah has created the world in such a way that all good leads to peace and true pleasure while all which is bad leads only to disaster, a complete disintegration of the setting of life. Please note that the Truth has always been one while evil took many colors to fight it and never succeeded. This clash of good & evil has been going on at every place. This is the same story which is repeated again & again and we are all part of it but certainly success is for the right ones. Now, the great story has assumed an international character, having somewhat a same sequence in the whole world. It seems that it is just a century or two before the end of the world and surely before the end, the Word of Allah will reign, as is written. This must be noted that all messengers of Allah were the healers of all spiritual ailments. To go for cruelty or to submit oneself for shamelessness in any form is indeed a spiritual disease which the messengers of Allah tried their best to cure by spreading the right concepts about all matters and the right attitude to take in all situation. Now, when there are no more messengers of Allah to come (as the Holy Prophet MUHAMMAD PBUH was the last one), we must do the job collectively and even individually in the same manner by indicating the right way to take according to Islam in every matter of life and must not be discouraged by what we have to face. This is the only correct way to get the job done, and please note here that this is an Islamic concept that every person has been born with a sense of Truth and so as we go on putting the right way in front of people, time will come when the voice inside will answer. For that time, we must wait and go on patiently with the work of spreading the teachings of Islam.

Here, I am presenting the Islamic concept regarding twelve things as their understanding will cause the total understanding of Islam easily. These twelve are :- (1) TRUST (2) TAUFIQ (3) STOPPING OF MEANS (4) WEIGHT (5) WISDOM (6) EQUALITY (7) JIHAD (8) RIGHTS OF NON-MUSLIMS (9) KNOWLEDGE (10) PSYCHOLOGY (11) MEDICINE & SURGERY (12) PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

TRUST :- The Islamic teachings give the concept of TRUST. This means that the true possession of all things is of ALLAH only and men have actually been relied upon to use it in accordance with the teachings of Islam. Strength, Wealth, Fame etc. all are the gifts of Allah which must be put to use by a person's efforts only for Allah. The Holy Book Quran demands that all the things which a man wants to get must be had by keeping Islam in view and all the things which he possesses or earns must also be used in accordance with the Islamic teachings, the Commands of Allah.

TAUFIQ :- This is of course very clear that whatever a man does with true faith will pay him greatly after this life but even in this world a special return of a good deed is presented to the person doing good. Take the matter like this that where a man practices NAMAZ, he gets an immediate reward of getting the TAUFIQ of another Namaz. In other words, when a man says the prayers of MAGHRIB he gets the Taufiq of the prayers of ISHA, and because of ISHA he gets the Taufiq of FAJAR and because of that, gets the Taufiq of ZOHAR & ASAR. Thus a good deed brings another good deed and so a good person goes on to become a symbol of righteousness and with that, of humanity. The Holy Quran states "Whoever believed in Allah and clutched Him properly, so very soon He will enter them in His Blessing and His Care and will guide them towards Him the right way" (Sura Nahal - 97). So a clean life is promised in the world for good deeds committed with Faith while good return will also be had after this life. In the same way, wrong type of deeds attract all evil and when a person persists on such practice, a time comes when that person considers only evil as good and this is the place where the true Guidance is totally put away from him. An AYAT says "Indeed the people who believed, then rejected the Truth, then believed then again rejected the Truth then went on ahead in this rejection, Allah will certainly not forgive them nor will He guide them to the right way"(Sura Nisa - 137). Taufiq may be understood more by the study of the works of the great scholars of Islam, if desired.

STOPPING OF MEANS :- This third concept to be understood here is known as SADD-e-ZARAI which means the stopping of means. Islam commands to keep away from all those things which have the potentials to lead to some big evil just as it orders to take up all things which make the right deeds easy. This keeping away from certain things for the sake of not falling into big sins is the stopping of means. Adam, Salam on him, was ordered to keep away from certain tree to avoid any chance of eating the prohibited fruit while an Ayat says "And do not go near any shamelessness, may they be open or may they be hidden" (Sura ANAAM - 151). At another place the Holy Book says "And do not go even near adultery for it is a great shamelessness and a very wrong way" (Sura BANI ISRAEL - 32). The stopping of means is in truth a strong barrier against all kinds of shamelessness and this is the reason for the command of not making or taking pictures of living beings except for necessity and the command of HIJAB.

WEIGHT :- One of the Islamic teachings is that weight always remains in favor of the Truth, though the supporters of evil may be present in a great number. The point is that there always remains a sense of Truth collectively. This Islamic concept tells us to take the argument and the stance of those who base their reasoning on the three basic sources of the Islamic Commands and neglect the number of people which a matter may have at its back. It is the weight which has to be considered, not the number for a matter to make it acceptable. In the day of judgment, the verdict will be based on weight and a few good deeds done with complete faith may be able to defend a person from Jahannum, though he may have the number of sins much more than the good deeds. The Holy Quran points out "Say that filth and purity is not equal though the quantity of filth may amaze you so fear Allah, O persons of understanding, so that you may achieve success" (Sura Maida-100).

WISDOM :- This is the fifth Islamic concept I would like to put into my discussion here. This also like others, is a wonderful concept. According to Islam, the definition of this term is that "To put the knowledge of Islam into practice correctly is WISDOM". This means that to apply the knowledge of Islam, a person must have the understanding of the situation that person is in, of the place he wants to impress, of the power of acceptance of the people he is with and in fact all the matters relating to making easy the practice of Islam. To educate in HIKMAT (Wisdom) was one of the tasks given to the great man & the last messenger Janab Muhammad PBUH and the definition I have just written about Wisdom can be seen with total adherence to Islamic teachings in the Holy Quran (See Sura Baqara-269, Sura AAL-e-IMRAN - 164, Sura Nahal - 125).

EQUALITY :- I consider this concept so important that I have devoted a whole book to the subject of EQUALITY in Urdu and in fact that was my first writing by the name of "MUSAWAT KA ISLAMI TASAWWUR" (The Islamic Concept of Equality - published 1983). The first thing to note here is that "All persons are equal in the eyes of Allah regarding the things which a person is unable to change by efforts". Thus, a person must not worry about things like why was she born a woman, why was he or she born at this time or at this place, why was he or she born crippled and so on as in regards to AKHIRAT (true life after this life), these things are unimportant. The second thing to note here is that "Each & every person is getting examined here, which will clarify whether he or she deserves JANNAT or not and that asks to pay total attention to keeping the True Faith and to the power of action guiding it towards the collection of good deeds". The third thing to note here is that "Each person has his or her rights and duties and those are totally interrelated and must be observed accordingly". With these three points in view, the Islamic concept becomes quite clear that Islam values that person, man or woman, who has a more pious nature and the true success i.e. of AKHIRAT (true life after this life) is only for those who are given JANNAT due to their complete belief in Allah and the good deeds according to that belief. This can be achieved by putting the efforts in a right way and everybody, man or woman, has a full chance to get the true success so nobody must complain (though the rights & duties are laid taking into account whether a person is a man or woman of course but the aim of life is same for both). Please note that, in this world, woman has been given in the custody of man and that is a shelter for her taking the point positively as Allah has given command to some over some naturally for the sake of examination (See Sura ANAAM - the last Ayat). This is not because woman is a lower creature than man or cannot achieve high status in Akhirat but this is a way things are set by Allah our True Lord so that the worldly matters may proceed in a smooth manner and so that He may put all persons into an examination by the rights & duties laid for each other to know the true color of each & everyone for the Judgment after this worldly life. I would repeat, for the sake of clarification, that if a person is not the father of his father or the elder one in the house, this is not a matter of complain. Such is the matter of man & woman. Each one has been appointed his or her own duties to fulfill and male or female characteristics respectively to aid in the fulfillment of those duties to achieve glory. Here, women have been put into man's care and he indeed possesses a commanding position over her but success with a higher status in AKHIRAT is based on the True Faith and the right efforts and that is what matters.

JIHAD :- The term according to Islam means to use one's abilities extensively and to put one's efforts exhaustingly in the way of Allah. Commonly, it is used to denote the war against non-Muslims for the sake of the glory of Islam. Keeping this common use of the term in view, I would comment that Islam has not spread by sword but whenever & wherever sword has come into action, it has been used for punishment and for creating fear for mischievous people but never for spreading Islam as is wrongly assumed by the non-Muslims due to the little understanding of Islam and the history of Muslims after Muhammad PBUH. The truth is that Islam has spread by good faith, sacrifice and tolerance as can be easily verified by history. Even common sense confirms the statement as the places where Islam took hold are still with the Muslims in these times when they are totally in the state of disorientation (with the exception of Spain which was lost due to Muslim's own foolishness and disintegration at that time. In fact, it was the beginning of the end of glory for Muslims as the New World was found by the support of Spain when non-Muslims gain its control and though it took a few centuries for the downfall yet Muslims were in for a hard time from that period) and the places where Muslims have lost power to govern, even there a good many people have saved their true faith and are living as Muslims. What Islam teaches is that all the world is actually of Allah and in the world man has to enforce only His Law. The true Muslims have to act on His orders in such a way that lives of every people may be for Allah only. Whatever knowledge of the truth they have, they must spread it with wisdom in all corners of the world. Before the conveying of the message of Islam, there can be no Jihad but however, once the Truth as is clarified by the Islamic teachings is fully known, the wrong people must accept the same and if they reject it, then it is asked of Muslims to make a respectable pact with them or to fight them so as to punish them as the appointed force of Allah though they must have a specific Islamic leader at the head of affairs whom they must follow with total heart. This is JIHAD which may even take place as an attack just like defense for the cause of Islam. If the true Muslims do not find enough strength to fight the wrong people, they must ask for mercy from Allah who will certainly protect the true Muslims and will punish the wrong-doers HIMSELF (in the present situation where amazingly deadly weapons have been introduced in warfare and killing of innocent people can not be avoided even though not desired at all with the sincerity of heart, I have my leaning towards this attitude of keeping away from non-Muslims after they have been shown the Teachings of Islam). Jihad in actual is the elimination of all evil and it does not mean killing of innocent persons at all but whenever and wherever it takes place the enemy has to be openly challenged stating the reason for them clearly. Rather it has always been a great blessing in truth if you read the History of Muslims though at the present situation it is better for Muslims to keep away from non-Muslims neither asking any assistance from them in any matter nor challenging them in any way. This is the attitude we must take in the present situation and no other indeed.

RIGHTS OF NON-MUSLIMS :- There is a principle which Islam gives in the matter of non-Muslims that they must not be stopped from earning their living in any way except when they become a danger to the Islamic society. Non-Muslims, even though they are on the wrong path as Islam takes it, have the physical needs like all people and this world is a place of examination (DAR UL IMTEHAN) not the place of judgment (DAR UL JAZA). If they live in an Islamic Society with an agreement with Muslims, they must never be troubled in such a way that they may not find themselves able to earn their living or find problems in fulfilling the requirement of their own belief. This has to be noted here that non-Muslims can fulfill their physical needs by their efforts and though we must help them even in that yet we must see to this specially that they are called towards Islam for sure & this true path of life must fully be presented to them (this in fact is their right on all the Muslims for sure). It is however, their own wish to accept it or reject it. Please note that the teaching of JIHAD would not be applied here as these are ZIMMI (non-Muslims living with an agreement with the Muslims) and in fact as I wrote we must ask Allah to take His Revenge directly by His Own Great True Power as there is no way by which we may become able to punish wrong doers specifically in today's world without wasting or killing innocent lives. We must keep away from all enemity even in the answer of enemity and also avoid making friends with people who base their attitude on hypocrisy only but must give total care to Zimmi for sure.

KNOWLEDGE :- Knowledge, as all gifts of Allah, must be used for the betterment of human beings in accordance with the teachings of Islam. Today, it is seen that knowledge is mostly used and imparted for worldly benefits. Although the subjects presently taught in education may be adopted in an Islamic society giving it an Islamic touch here & there yet I would take the opportunity to comment that an Islamic Educational set-up also must be established well for all education. All study must remain somehow connected with the study of man as that in truth is knowledge and therefore General Knowledge, History & Geography, Medicine, Law of the Islamic country, Economics, Accounting, etc. and above all, the study of the Islamic teachings will be given a special attention; males must be educated by male teachers when they achieve adulthood and similarly female students must be educated separately by female teachers at adulthood. There must be no examination preferably in this set-up and certainly there must be no beatings for the sake of study in this set up of education in the Islamic society.

PSYCHOLOGY :- As far as Psychology is concerned, the error of the students of psychology is that they don't have a sketch of a right person (the symbol of perfection) by which they may understand how a right person must be and treat the affected one accordingly; They talk about understanding the inside of people but they don't even know this fact or overlook this fact purposely that Human Beings have an inclination towards the Right and the spirit takes to what is correct as is clearly stated in Hadees. This is why it seems that they themselves show a psychic tension when they try to heal someone suffering from psychic tension. Let me put the point this way that as man has a system of defense in his body with Leukocytes fighting against the attackers on body with anti-bodies and even without them, eating the foreign bodies for sake of health of the body, the spirit of man also has the ability to fight against those things which are disastrous to the spiritual health and a defense mechanism to keep man into a healthy form in the spiritual sense. Jealousy, pride of being high among all people, hatred of the right ones and even the right teachings, untimely anger and in a nutshell all kinds of cruelty and all kinds of shamelessness are included in the spiritual ailments. Spirit achieves power by good deeds and gets weak by evil deeds just as the body of a person remains healthy when the principles for the physical fitness are observed and gets unhealthy if they are totally neglected. Allah has indeed made the world in such a way that all good leads to peace of mind while all evil brings to man total disintegration & complete confusion in life with no guidance remaining for him whatsoever. I would like to point out the placement of a few things here according to the Islamic teachings which have their effect on psyche (though they are often taken as of no value & with no influence in the lives of men which is not correct). From the Islamic viewpoint, there are three conditions to fulfill in these matters specially Astrology, Numerology, Tarot cards etc. which are taken to see the hidden matters relating to man, that "The faith must be correct i.e. Allah only is truly Powerful and these things like others, can put an effect only by His permission". The second thing is that "The rules of such things if & when a man understands them by observation, devotion and total application of self, must not be disclosed except where some cause of Humanity asks for it, because such disclosure may cause the foolish people to lose the way and mislead others without consideration of HIKMAT (Wisdom)". The third thing is that "These must not be put to use for worldly profits but must only be used for the benefits of AKHIRAT by applying these things for the study of man". This also implies that such things must not be used for casting a bad spell as some people do with these things. Here, I would point out that Astrology in particular must be studied and applied with total care as the rules here are great in number though basics are limited which when come into grasp, the judgment of the person greatly benefits his understanding in this matter. Those who consider such things just a pastime or who want to seek future through these things considering them as some kind of fortune telling system must not study such things due to SADD-e-ZARAI as this can easily cause tensions to them putting them into a state of wishful thinking or in a state of a useless fear of some unknown fate.

MEDICINE & SURGERY :- First, note that a very important Islamic teaching is being omitted in today's living much and that is the mixed working of the male & the female in not allowed unconditionally. This however is found extensively in the Medical & Surgical field. Now, this teaching also implies that women are not allowed to nurse men and men are not allowed to tend women by the Islamic Viewpoint and that statement also goes for surgery as must be understood by all male & female medical students if we really want to make some advancement in our own way in medicine or surgery in an Islamic Society (please read Surah Noor and Surah Ahzaab in total). In today’s situation of Big Hospitals of Big Cities in Pakistan, I am totally positive that females must not become in-patients for any reason whatsoever. The only exception may be where the female is more than sixty years presenting with an affliction needing immediate surgery and needing much post operative care but only by the female personnel though it is better even for them too that they accept death rather than exposing themselves to a great probability of totally un-Islamic attitude. So even then, it must be seen that no male medical practitioner or staff worker or any other, nurses the female in any way and this must be seen by the hospital personnel as it is very difficult for the patients’ relatives to speak out bluntly at such emergency situation or they may not even have much control of the patients attitude to the situation. However, I personally would go for the heroic attitude seeing the situation that is seen in the Big Hospitals clearly with physical practitioners, surgeons and staff workers interested but little in the Islamic Teachings, that death must be accepted by heart even by males at such emergencies so that a tradition of keeping away from big hospitals may become strong particularly by females, only asking for pain-relief and that also at small clinics (with males for males and females for females), rather than saving or extending life for a couple of years or so and though I understand that surgery may drastically decrease if this Islamic point of not becoming in-patients at big hospitals is accepted by females as admission to hospitals is taken a must nowadays for surgery but let this be, as we must not sacrifice our Islamic moral & spiritual values just for the sake of betterment of physique that is still doubtful. Quality of life with safety of Islamic Moral Values is more important than extension in quantity of life for a few years with omission of great Islamic moral values to which doctors and surgeons give no consideration or very little if any, but that are highly important for good muslims indeed. We must spread this word as much as possible and very fast as to make things better in a good time. May Allah help us in all our good endeavors and righteous deeds. Amen. Secondly, note that there is a rule to observe in matters regarding Medicine and Surgery by the Islamic viewpoint that by the medical or surgical treatment, the assistance of the body must be in view and no addition of any part from any other human being must take place in the body as that is against the natural way of living i.e. Islam. This type of attitude comes under the changing of creation which is not allowed (Sura NISA - 118 & 119). Keeping this rule in view, it must be understood that blood may be given & taken as it does not cause any reduction or any addition in the body parts as its transfusion is due to necessity and must be upto necessity and also the use of skin of one place for other place in the body (grafting) is quite all right due to the necessity faced but transplantation of any part is totally against Islam indeed. The organs transplanted are not grown by the body again and this kind of surgery is against the great respect given to man by Islam and therefore totally prohibited in my opinion after much study of Islam. This goes well even if the organ is donated and that is taken from the cadaver, as the body of everybody is the property of Allah in which a person must not put commands of his own self as that is totally against Islam. Thirdly, note that a Muslim patient is allowed to take whatever cure he deems fit for his ailment if the Islamic moral values are not challenged yet to ask for any method of cure that was not present in the times of Prophet Muhammad PBUH is not obligatory. So, if any cure challenges Islamic moral values then for the sake of spiritual integrity, it must better be discarded only asking for pain-relief as death is inevitable and it has to come sometime and somewhere so it must be faced and must not be avoided at all cost.

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE :- As for Physical Appearance, please note that to keep beard for a Muslim adult man is a necessity and whatever dress he chooses to wear can be taken as quite well if that is not too "fashionable" as Simplicity is one of our basic traits. Though shirts and trousers are quite well with men, women must always wear eastern closed dresses with a long cloth above as other than these, no dress really fulfills the demands of Islamic teachings. It is indeed not necessary for a Muslim to wear always a cap or turban and put a cloth on shoulders and wear a lose pajamas above the toes. Though even this one is quite well, but it is not necessary and only optional indeed. I would like to put the matter in three points keeping a Muslim person in view so that the concerned issue becomes totally clear. The first one is that "Beard must be kept". The second one is that "No such similarity with Non-Muslims must be taken that they consider as their religious symbol (due to this, some scholars of Islam do not like the usage of Neck-ties taking it a symbol for cross that the Christians consider holy, while some scholars of Islam do not find any problem in its usage as they do not take it as related to cross). Here, I would like to mark a great difference between Islam and Christianity. While Christianity takes man as impure at birth needing baptism, Islam does not. In fact, on the contrary, Islam takes a child very pure at birth and born on Fitrat (or in other words with a natural tendency towards the Truth). That is why AZAAN (call towards prayers) is given in the child's ears so that he or she may feel at ease after birth. This difference is actually a result of the view about the error of Adam & Eve on the basis of which our Christian fellow beings take the world as a place where the bad consequences of this error must be faced or in other words, they take the world as a punishment whereas Islam takes it as an examination. Again, they take that Jesus Christ, Salam on him, has given a great sacrifice, as he was crucified so that the wrong doings of all men & women may be washed away, while Islam clarifies about this great man & messenger of Allah that, like his birth, his departure from the world too was amazingly unique. He was not crucified but taken above totally alive as stated in Sura NISA and the teachings of Islam indicate that everybody has to face his deeds alone. This difference of viewing the man's place has made a lot of difference and though good Christians have a great inclination towards the love of Humanity (which I hope sincerely would lead them to see the Truth as it is, someday), this view does put an effect upon their ability of collecting good deeds. May Allah guide every wise person towards Islam. The third one of the three points to note regarding the Physical Appearance is that "A Muslim man must not put an emphasis upon fashions for what he wears but put emphasis on covering his body parts that are SATAR as specified by Islam (the body parts that must necessarily be covered are called SATAR and satar for men is from the stomach to the knees while satar for women is her whole body except for face, basic hands and basic feet)". If these simple three points are observed, I understand that a Muslim man can achieve a correct appearance as Islam demands and this will make him more conscious, I consider, of being a Muslim at every time and at every place, making him care about Islam in all walks of life and all matters of men indeed.

These are the twelve things which if understood clearly can make the study of Islam completely easy and also can make the application of Islam in practice very convenient for all those who really are interested in the making of an Islamic Society. From the times of Adam, Islam has come as the Truth uptil this day winning all struggles with evil and it will again no doubt, for the final settlement. With many negative points present against the coming of an Islamic Society into being, I am sure this is the very time when Islam would manifest its light to the whole world for the sake of making everyone right. The Will of Allah would be done on Earth as in Heavens for sure and by the study of Islamic history, I am totally convinced that it does not need much waiting now.

Al-Hamdu-Lillah

More Concepts by Islamic Viewpoint

(Q-1)Why are Muslims involved in Terrorism? Does Islam profess Terrorism?

(A)-Islam is truly a path of life that asks for peace. Islam is not only a religion but a complete code of life. It is the collection of Commands of Allah and as Allah is from all times, His collection of Commands "Islam" as His Attribute is from all times and from the first messenger of Allah namely Adam PBUH to the last messenger of Allah namely Muhammad PBUH, these Commands were clearly presented to Human Beings but most people rejected the Truth and only a few accepted it by the teachings of the Messengers and it was only fully accepted and applied at the golden time of Muhammad and the specific name "Islam" (to surrender one's desires to the Will of Allah) was given to these Commands. Islam was not founded by Muhammad PBUH and that is why Islam is not named for any man like many other paths of life but it is the Truth from all times indeed and please note that the Truth must always be ONE. It must not change with time and place and must not be based on any man's name (that is why Islam is surrender to Allah's Will and not Muhammadenism as some westerners do term it without any knowledge, thinking that Muhammad was the founder of Islam). We do not like to be called by the name of any person though we Muslims do respect Muhammad greatly as he was the last messenger of Allah conveying the same message of Allah that was given by Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon, Daniel, Zechariah, Yahya (John) and many other messengers that are between these all great men and messengers and of course Jesus the symbol of Love and Peace who was born 600 years before Muhammad and no other messenger is between these two great messengers of Allah (salaam on all these great Messengers of Allah). It's a pity that due to terrorist actions that are totally against Islam, of such individuals who call themselves Muslims and even have the appearance of good Muslims, Islam is being projected by its ill-wishers as a path of terrorism. Note that terrorism has two faces; one is where it targets innocent persons without any alarm so as to make them weak, totally oblivious of the grave danger they face and the other is where it targets people already weaker in physical powers than itself even by information for whatever reason it deems fit just to better their matters by its own viewpoint by force. May Allah curse both these faces of terrorism that we find today around us. Believe me we would have to fight against Terrorism together (not in the sense it is said in the West but in the sense that we have to defend the weak people of the world without claiming lives of our attackers only asking them to live apart) and if we don't win this fight now, Humanity & Love have little chance to survive. We Muslims are in a problem as we have to defend Islam too and fight terrorism too but Westerners have only to target terrorism so they must not drag Islam to become a side of terror as terrorism is a problem that humanity is facing. The problem that we Muslims face is that much injustice according to our viewpoint is being done to us in today's world just on the basis of martial strength and much of that injustice is related to the territories that Muslims had held for centuries. Although the claim of Muslims is being accepted by many a people now as valid and these people do care for the peace in the world and understand that the world is for everyone of us to live yet practically their support goes to those unconditionally for this reason or that who are responsible for this situation of political turmoil all over the world. This hypocrisy of those who could have made the situation better due to the political status they enjoy today, have led to such desperation in some small factions of the Muslim Society that they have decided to take the matters in their own hands mostly in the name of Islam (and this is an error of judgment on their part and not an error in Islamic Teachings) not caring about how many innocent lives might be lost or how it would affect their Muslim brothers. On the other hand, there are people who consider themselves as Super Power professing that for their self defense it is totally just for them to take up the philosophy "I would kill your brother if you kill mine" and the matter has assumed a status of "egg and chicken" but here both the concepts are totally wrong by the Islamic Perspective as both target innocent lives for sure. The reason behind both these concepts is intolerance and though we all talk about tolerance, patience, sacrifice, forgiveness, justice, love and humanity, nobody is ready to give his due practical share to these great concepts of life. Also, I do wonder what this phrase "Super Power" really means, as it is such foolishness to consider one's own self superior than others and without any doubt it is related to Inferiority Complex that itself stems from a sense of deprivation of necessities of life. This complex can make a man very dangerous if he achieves power and if you read recent history you would find that those who were known as totally heartless people, had a childhood that was a collection of deprivation of all sort and when they got some power they went on to inflict great disaster to all the people around without any feelings of humanity at all as their psyche asked for a revenge for what they had gone through, not caring at all about who was really responsible for that. All such persons justified their actions by philosophies and concepts that were based on hatred towards a number of people for this reason or that and its a blessing of Allah that all such hatred has found its fall now yet its a real worry if phrases like Super Power are applied in a regular fashion to some nation and I ask humbly all peoples of the world if my words are heard and that also without any prejudice not to use such terms please, as these are again giving rise to other philosophies of hatred like the ones we have just managed to get rid of, so such terms must better be avoided even if someone takes their application in language as valid for any reason whatsoever.

(Q-2)What is Jihad?

(A)- Jihad has nothing to do with terrorism. Jihad means to fight in the way of Allah those people who pose a great danger to the life style of Islam to punish the wrong-doers then and there and end such threat. It is a manner to punish those people who after getting the message of Islam, the collection of commands of Allah, reject it because Muslims are the appointed force of Allah in the world but this attitude is not to impose the viewpoint of Islam on others as where and when it becomes clear that the mischievous people that have been presented the Islamic Teachings clearly would not accept it and in addition, would not make a respectable pact of peace with Muslim, then Muslims have to take action for their punishment challenging them openly clarifying that Muslims are commanded to fight those who are a threat to the Islamic Way of Life in the world being the appointed force of Allah upon the Earth. Please note that the first option is to ask for a respectable pact from the enemy of the Islamic Values but if no pact of peace is made where the enemy of Islam clarify clearly that they would not pose any threat to the Islamic way of life and would try to keep away from Muslims as much as possible and also show this attitude in practice clearly, Jihad has to be initiated as this rejection by such mischievous people to the Message of Allah is a Fitnah (trouble created by satan) that must be ended by force so that such non-Muslims who pose a threat to the Islamic way of life, live in the world only remaining without any value not having much of a say in the matters of the world. Please note here that ZIMMI, the non-Muslims living with Muslims, would not be challenged at all though they would be presented the teachings of Islam clearly for which acceptance or rejection depends on their own free will. Jihad may be fought in defense or initiated where no option seems available (though the Islamic Teachings must be fully conveyed to all before taking any initiative) yet in today's world I have written clearly in my books and at the net too that we must not take the initiative for Jihad as that would cause Muslims to kill innocent persons unintentionally due to the very deadly weapons in use at war that can not be guided exactly at target with all caution a person can take. The best way to deal with enemies in today's world is to ask Allah to take His revenge directly for He is capable of doing anything He wants and even though Muslims are the appointed force of Allah, Jihad at present is not much of an option for us except for defense. Jihad is to save weak and innocent people and also to pave way for the existence of an Islamic Society and its defense and it is not meant to kill any innocent person intentionally or unintentionally. It also needs an Islamic Commander who is wise, courageous, daring, caring about Humanity and who also has a good support for the good cause of defending Islam. So, in brief, Jihad is to fight openly challenging the enemy (that rejected Islam when it was clearly presented to it and also refrained from making a respectable pact with Muslims) at face clarifying the reason of the combat to punish the enemy, remaining loyal to a Commander of Islam who has the support of a great number of staunch Muslims, without applying any tactic to attack and hide without caring what harm it would cause to their brothers due to the inhuman thinking and martial power of any such enemy who considers the philosophy of Might is Right as the corner stone of its culture and society. In short, initiative for Jihad is not an option for us Muslims in today's world and if Jihad does exist somewhere it is purely in self-defense to which nobody can raise an eyebrow except where he considers Muslims as vicious animals due to hatred, and not human beings.

(Q-3)Why Muslims have not made a mark in Recent Scientific Pursuit and why don?t they show gratitude to the West for the scientific commodities that are in use today taking the Western life-style as superior to their own?

(A)-This is a good question and many Muslims try to avoid it not knowing what to say. Let me be frank in my answer and note here that without any intention of insulting the West in any way, I just want to point out the Islamic Viewpoint in this regard. There are quite a few things taken as discoveries leading to some opening in the knowledge of the study of man, mostly in the field of Psychology due to its affinity with the spiritual side of man, which have been put forward by Muslims many centuries before in true nature and the "Meaning of Dreams" by Ibn-e-Sereen (available even now) is one of the greatest works of Muslims in this regard that has been done centuries before Freud wrote his "interpretation of dreams". Muslims have much contributed to the knowledge of Medicine and Astronomy too (Averros, Farabi, Avissenna and many others are big names in these matters) and in fact these 3 subjects have been studied by Muslims very deeply a few centuries ago and even today they are at a better position to clarify the commands in these three regarding moral side. Note that the Holy Quran has pointed out that by the study of AAFAQ (universe) and ANFUS (self), non-Muslims would be convinced of the Holy Quran being the Truth particularly about QAYAMAT (See Surah HA-MEEM AS-SAJDA-53) and therefore there is no doubt that concentration on these 3 subjects would indeed pave way for the non-Muslims to respect Islam, if not accept it fully. This is a prophecy that is fulfilled now proving that the Holy Quran is Truth indeed and this also clarifies that it was destined that the non-Muslims achieve an advancement in the matters of Science and Technology but with all said and done, I would point out the fact that every people do have intelligent persons who are capable to achieve advancement in different fields though it needs much support from influential people to present their findings and achievements to general public as the history points out. We Muslims are having a total hard time since a century or two with no support from influential people (and this position stands at present too when Muslims have regained independence from the British and others in the last century, as our administrators are still much impressed by the Western thought) and that caused us to be at the receiving side only in the matters of science & technology. My personal opinion in this regard is that the events have taken a good shape by Islamic viewpoint as according to the Holy Quran, it was clear that advancement in Science & Technology was destined for people other than Muslims (and the no-care attitude of non-Muslims for moral limitation about the scientific gadgets and technological achievements have put world into a chaos that was never seen before in the history of mankind) so I must write here that we must now clarify the Spiritual Teachings according to Islam about whatever physical advancement the Man has made today as we are the ones who can do that much better. Please note here that strictly by the Islamic viewpoint, the concentration must only be through the power of observation and laboratory experiments must totally be avoided as much of the wrong has been committed through lab. in these 3 fields of knowledge as the recent history points out clearly. We have seen and are seeing that the West has given the world all good and bad at one time in the name of Science and Technology so we Muslims have to remain cautious about what to take and what to leave. To point out a few atrocities about Science & Technology, I would mention that the astronomical ventures that have been undertaken until this time have caused a huge amount of human resources that could have made the situation better for many a hungry people of the world facing famine totally deprived of basic necessities of life. We could have done without many a useless gadgets and scientific commodities that are taken as necessities in today's world due to propaganda and advertisement (of medical nature and others) as people can remain healthy without such things and there are attitudes and acceptance of attitudes in the Medical Field that Islam does not appreciate at all so those have to be indicated and have to be changed. We find amazingly deadly weapons just due to the desire to rule and be at the head of things and what a foolishness this thinking and attitude is, that has put all the people of the world into an unwanted fear. Apart from atrocities in the field of Astronomy, Medicine and Psychology that clearly denote moral deterioration, there are other fields too where Science and Technology has provided appliances in the good name of making life easier that have caused stress to a huge number of people as no care has been taken to see moral deterioration those gadgets might cause (specially the gadgets that work on the basis of satellites). There are much useless scientific appliances for entertainment (computer not included as it can be used for much educational work and this is a wonderful gadget no doubt specially when its working is not based on satellite), that could have been avoided without any loss to the development of humankind. For the psyche of an ordinary man too, these scientific commodities have provided a shock coming so many so fast in a short time that to keep them in a necessary moral limit is a challenge now. I remember that some thirty six years back or so in my childhood, radio transistor was the main source of news, information and entertainment and now in these few years taking only the communication field, we got Audio Cassete Players (first with big cassettes and then small in size with same or even more space), Television, Video Cassete Players, Video Games Machines, Computer with many amazing softwares and then it developed with inclusion of net and now there are scientific gadgets that work on the basis of satellites (and these satellite gadgets have brought a lot of social & moral problems with them by the Islamic Viewpoint) so these number of gadgets have come very fast in a short time and have affected the social values regarding morals all over the world. We have to stop somewhere sometime in regards to the inventions though discoveries (if they are truly discoveries and not just vague satanic theories) don't worry an ordinary man as those find their place well by morals & ethics. These scientific commodities have also made a psyche of showing off and those who can afford and have little care regarding morals, feel that they must let others know by accumulating all sorts of scientific and technological items that they are capable of managing all this by their money, time and effort. This has caused many to get into some complex and even the life style that these scientific commodities have brought about, is causing much deadly infections and diseases that were never heard of before. But everyone has his work in the world and here we Muslims come in. We are much better in providing how to deal with all the chaos that Science & Technology has created in the world by the Blessing of Allah. The point I intend to convey is that iron, wood, bronze and other metals have indeed developed a lot but Man has not truly developed for it needs development of psyche keeping morals and values for that which Man has achieved in the history for sure. We Muslims would show our gratitude to the West only if it accepts us at a better position to better the situation regarding spiritual, moral and ethical side of the scientific commodities they have presented to us. West has done an outside job and we Muslims have a great capability to see to the inside work by the Blessing of Allah as that would be the true development of Humankind but only when everybody do accept us at the better status for that with total heart. If the West is ready to give us credit for the spiritual development (and we have always shown our worth in many thousands of years that have gone in the past), we would show our gratitude for its material development though taking from it only what we deem fit or else, we would have to leave all these playful inventions for which they seem to demand much respect (and in fact there are foolish voices in the West who consider that due to these scientific commodities that they have presented, we must take their evil lifestyle of cruelty & shamelessness too). Only time would tell how the things turn out yet this is totally obvious that without the support of Muslims' wit about the morals that have the power to satisfy the inner self of all the people of the world and keep them away from all stress and strain as it has much more sense of Truth, there is no way for the true development of Man for sure. Alhamdu-Lillah.

(Q-4)What is an Islamic Society? What would be the basic concepts in its Economic System, Political System and Educational System?

(A)- Islamic Society is a gathering that in Belief, is based on the fact that Allah is the only True Authority so only His Commands must be obeyed and where there is a clash of some command with His Commands, that command must not be obeyed; and in deeds, it is based on Justice and Hejab. Actually, there are two main categories of sins, cruelty and shamelessness, in which all the sins can be grouped. When men abuse their physical power (this means the power of their influential status in today's world), cruelty and injustice and even terrorism, take place and when the women take to wrong types of fashions and display their beauty without any care about moral values whatsoever, shamelessness takes place. With satanic philosophies that are well suited for an animal life-style rather than a human life-style, like "might is right" and "consent of adults is enough to commit sexual act", the society does not remain a humane society but becomes a society of animals where a hatred between the male & the female develops leading towards a great mental tension & a high moral deterioration. Islamic Society, on the contrary, would ask for care about the weak not in words only but in practice too, without fail. The institution of marriage would be developed even more (and by the Blessing of Allah, it is strong even in these trying times in the Muslim world) and kept intact and a tie between all family members would be seen by laws that would enhance such culture. It would be preferable for the men to marry more than one woman as more than one marriage with total responsibility, trust and announcement is much better than committing any wrong and I am totally sure that even women after seeing where West has led its women to, would fully support this system by their total regards to it. The law would be totally Islamic based on the Holy Quran and the Sunnah (the sayings & deeds of the Prophet Muhammad PBUH as they also clarify the Commands of Allah only) in the Islamic Society and courts would make their decisions fully in accordance with Islam (and this implies that judges would be well-versed in the Islamic Law for sure). Hejab would be seen for the Political, Economical and Educational System at the Islamic Society. The financial responsibility of the female lies upon man (father when unmarried and husband when married), so she does not have to worry in this matter and if she earns something taking care about Hejab, she is liable to keep that amount in total too in addition to what she receives from her father or husband though she must be at 30 years of age or more if she wants to work outside her home. She can keep property if she deems fit and with Hejab, she can even run a business if she is at or more than 30 years of age though such activity is not much appreciable in Islam as she would have to deal with males (but still it is not prohibited). She would not be allowed to hold any political office though she would be asked her opinions time and again for political matters and where seems fit, her opinion would be taken into practice specially in matters that relate to the female in the Islamic Society. It is a matter of trust and that is how it would remain insha Allah. She can go for a high education too though subjects for her would be specified so that she finds them useful in practical life (not because of any discrimination or her inferiority as even though she is regarded in a man's care in the world for her security according to Islamic Viewpoint yet she is equal to man in the matters of AKHIRAT, the true life after this life). However, after coming to adulthood, her education would remain separate from men except for medical education where she must have a specific male study partner as her guide. All private co-educational institutions, coaching centers or other academic establishments would totally be eliminated after Matric as we find in the Pakistani educational set-up and the Govt. institutions would also not provide education at co-education after matric for the first year and second year though after that only those girls who excel in studies, can go on with their Medical or Arts & Commerce studies in a co-educational set-up at Medical Colleges or Universities if they want. Girls would not be allowed to persue the study of Science except for Medical after Matric as it leads their minds to confusion only and that is also a waste of time and money on their part. They can take up nursing & teaching as professions for them as they do now in the Pakistani set-up, when they are at 30 years of age or more yet in nursing, they must not tend male patients and must take care of the teachings of Hijab; while at teaching, they must not develop a tendency of beating children for education and must take care of the teachings of Hijab. The Film Industry can not remain in the Islamic Society so it would be eliminated totally though a few TV channels would operate that can present female actresses in decent dramas as clarified in a question ahead in this writing. The Economic System at an Islamic Society would be totally clear of interest in all transactions and Qarz-e-Hasanah would be appreciated and developed in this Society. Qarz-e-Hasanah means to extend loan to needy persons telling them in writing that this would be returnable when the debtor feels at ease. Mind it that the Islamic Society would be totally clear of interest and the Bait-ul-Mall (the National Treasury) would also extend such loans with the same statement. Islam develops a character that values the True Faith and Good Deeds and it works to discourage the love of material possessions as selfishness has no place in an Islamic Society. "Live with Necessities as much as possible" is its motto regarding Economics (and not that human wants are unlimited and resources to fulfil them are limited; we do not appreciate such thinking) and this would be clarified time and again so as to have such persons that might show angelic character all the time at all the place. The Political System would be based on the votes of all the people as Islam does value democracy as a political system, though it might seem a surprise to the West. However, it is much better to carve a better system for elections of the members of the parliament as Islam does not appreciate competition among Muslims in getting the leadership of the common people. One of the ways the evil effect of this competition can be nuteralized is to give a seat to the successful candidate and also a seat to the runner-up, the second in line. If there are two parliaments like the National and the Provincial from where the persons are competing, each can be allotted a seat in one of the parliaments respectively. The point I intend to make, is that the evil effects of competition in the voting system must be nuteralized as competition in worldly matters is not appreciated in Islam which asks to compete in the matters of Akhirat but not in the matters of this world. Also, there would be no compromise on Islamic Principles that would be totally clarified so that no one finds a way to impose his own thinking in the name of democracy. Note that the obedience to any person is based on condition that there would be no disobedience to Allah and this attitude would be the basis of the Islamic Society. Nobody in the whole world can be so open minded and tolerant than a True Muslim when his principles are not challenged and its a pity that due to some factions of Muslims, Islam is taken as intolerant of any other view than its own. When Muslims are not challenged and they find leading their lives totally easy upon Islam collectively without any kind of injustice, they would never interfere in the matters of others in today's world as this attitude is totally in accordance with the teachings of Islam clearly. We Muslims are not Nosey Parkers as many "developed persons" have shown themselves to be, and in fact we do not appreciate such attitude anytime anywhere. Personally I do not even like secret services and posing enmity to any country today yet as it takes two to make for this attitude, it must be seen how people deal with us. If people don't only talk about peace but do really care about it, it would be a Blessing of Allah on the world indeed. The Educational System would ask for all that could be learnt by an individual and there would be no imparting of knowledge by force. Examination would be avoided preferably and basics of all the subjects like Astronomy, Medicine, Psychology, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, History, Geography, Math (Algebra included), Statistics, Economics, Business Dealings (Banking and Correspondence included), Law of the country and many other subjects with the most necessary inclusion of Islamic Teachings (the Holy Quran, Sunnah and great works of the great scholars of Islam) to put everything onto its place, would be totally imparted for the sake of strength of the Islamic Society. In brief, we all must note that for an Islamic Society, we don't need to take actions that are sudden or imposed by force as Islamic Values command a respect naturally that don't need such a forced way of manifesting themselves so Insha Allah the current society can be changed into an Islamic Society by taking the following steps of elimination into practice by the persons in authority or in any powerful position to influence the current society easily while the necessary good attitudes that would develop for the consolidation of Islamic Values would take place as a matter of common sense. Mind it that this authority is the AMANAT given by Allah that must be used to put Allah's Commands into practice as much as possible; Al-Hamdu Lillah:

-a- It is a matter of Belief that Allah is the only True Authority.
-b- All forms of injustice would be eliminated with ADAL (power of the Law that Islamic Teachings give us Muslims) for which firstly, the clauses of the law of the land that are un-Islamic would be eliminated; secondly, beatings to children for the purpose of their education and beatings to the accused persons for their confession of crimes specially putting them in shameful condition, would be eliminated; thirdly, post mortem of human bodies for the sake of education or in the name of justice would be eliminated; fourthly, much paper work and documentation needed for official purposes would be eliminated plus bribery to Government officials for the works that Government pays them to do or even for any other reason, would be eliminated; fifthly, usury & interest by other good type of substitutions in the Economics Field, would be eliminated; sixthly, extreme poverty (MEHROOMEE), where one does not even find basic necessities to fulfil one's need and the needs of those who are dependant on one, would be eliminated; seventhly, by TABLEEGH of taking up good activities (AMAR BIL-MAROOF) and of giving up bad activities (NAHI ANEL-MUNKAR), the evil effect of the current environment would be eliminated and in fact, such a good environment would be established in its place where a Muslim person would find totally easy insha Allah, to fulfil the Islamic minimum requirement of Belief practicing Zikr-e Elahi and fulfilling the command of Salat by practicing at least FARZ SALAT five times a day at home or at mosque and SAUM (Fasting) in the holy month of Ramazan, Zakat once a year and Hajj once in the life-time if a person is rich (in fact, we all must try to fulfil at least the minimum requirement that Islamic Belief asks from us in all circumstances any time anywhere) so insha Allah with these seven points, injustice would be eliminated from the current society.
-c- All matters that Islam takes as shameful matters would be eliminated with EHSAAN (asking humbly the Muslim women-folk to fulfil good Islamic Traditions of HIYA & HEJAB) for which firstly, indecent clothing, as Islam takes it, for the women-folk when they come out for necessities, would be eliminated (and for this teaching of Hijab would be spread far & wide as the Holy Quran teaches it); secondly, treatment for women in gynecological afflictions and in all major afflictions by men, would be eliminated; thirdly, co-education at the first year & the second year of the college education, keeping the Pakistani educational set-up in view, and also further study after the second year (that is only possible at medical college for medicine & surgery or at University for Arts & Commerce) for girls who have not shown excellence in their study, would be eliminated; fourthly, service in public or private sector by women-folk that are not at or above the age of 30 years, would be eliminated; fifthly, dancing of women anytime anywhere that is becoming so common nowadays at TV, would be eliminated; sixthly, film industry, indecent dramas and a host of TV channels that transmit their programs & features all day long, would be eliminated; seventhly, still photos & pictures for un-official reasons plus videos that are intended for private use, would be eliminated so insha Allah, with these seven points, shameful matters would be eliminated from the current society.

Now, if we Muslims try to fulfil even the minimum requirements of Islamic Teachings and go on spreading those wonderful teachings asking for the application of all good deeds and for the avoidance of all bad deeds, Insha Allah the current society would soon turn into an Islamic Society providing us a further guidance of how to consolidate it well by the Blessing of Allah. It is necessary that in all matters, all the people though ordinary or at office in the Government Institutions, do take care that Islamic Values prevail in the Society with love, hope and humanity so as to make even this worldly life totally pleasant that becomes a representation of the peace at gardens of Paradise that insha Allah, would be its reward after this life. Al-Hamdu Lillah.

(Q-5)What is Hejab? How would women proceed with their lives in the Islamic Society?

A-By the Islamic command of Hejab, it is meant that the Muslim women must remain in their houses except for necessities which they themselves must decide with a true devotion to Islam. Whenever and wherever in an Islamic Society she decides that some necessity permits her to leave the house to see to it, she can leave her face, her hands up-to wrists and her feet up-to her toes uncovered. A big CHADAR or BURQA must be used in addition to usual garments for the sake of HEJAB. Hejab must be observed in an Islamic Society though on the level of EHSAN (good natural tendency; this means that, besides the law of the land that would not interfere in this matter except where the aberration seems collective, women must observe Hejab by their own good judgment and respect for Islamic Values). So there are three points to note regarding Hejab and among them the first is Hejab in actual means that Women must not leave their homes without any Islamic reason and the second is that when they do leave their homes on necessity that they would decide themselves keeping Islamic Teachings in view, they must not leave with make-up & fashions and take a Chadar hiding their hair and themselves totally and the third is that as soon as the necessity ends, they must return to their homes without waste of time. If Muslim women do take care about these points specially about how to leave the homes on necessity keeping a negative and a positive element in view that is they must take care about this negative element that no make-up should be done while facing Na-Mehrum persons and about this positive element that a Big Chadar must be taken when they leave their homes for some necessary work, which must hide all the body except for face, hands and feet, then there would not be much left to ask from a Muslim woman regarding Hejab. Note that Na-Mehrum for a woman are those men anyone of whom can ask her into marriage if she is, or would have been, unmarried. Men having enough resources, should marry more than one woman as Islam allows keeping in marriage four women at one time for the Muslim men with total responsibility and announcement. They must not worry about the gossip such attitude may cause as we Muslims must care about the word of Allah and not the words of people when it falls against it. I am sure this will put an end to many social problems which Muslim women are facing in today's world and the Muslim women would insha-Allah honor this attitude themselves in the Islamic Society by their own. Hejab should be felt in the society by the setting of traditions and for this we must ask humbly the Muslim women to set traditions and fulfill them by asking attention of each other towards those. No force at all but with good faith, sacrifice and tolerance. As for how would women fare in the Islamic Society so this matter depends on their own-selves as they can set Islamic traditions to live within and as they live in big Muslim cities now, they would have to make just a few necessary adjustments in that living style particularly relating to Hejab yet nothing would be imposed and every attitude would be asked to be developed with total counseling keeping to Islamic Teachings with total heart.

(Q-6) Why do Muslims take the Quran as totally unchanged from the time it was sent?

A- The Holy Quran is in its pure form due to the fact that from the time of its revelation, it was learnt by heart by many of the listeners. That is why when the advice to put Holy Quran into writing was forwarded in the term of the First Caliph Abu-Bakr because many HAAFIZ (persons who can recite the whole Quran by heart without seeing it in writing) were killed in a war (Battle of Yamama), he did not appreciate it at first but ultimately accepted the idea and assigned Zaid Bin Thabit for the task to put the Holy Quran in writing at one place. Like many Sahaba (Companions of the Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH), he was also a HAAFIZ (a person who can recite the whole Quran by heart without seeing its writing and we still have thousands of such persons in our fold). In the West learning even a small booklet word by word is taken as an astonishing feat yet little does the West know that since the time the Holy Quran descended on Muhammad to this time, we always have had many a persons who could recite the whole of the Holy Quran without seeing it in writing. Zaid Bin Thabit could have written the whole Book by his memory yet he took the caution by putting this condition for the writing that he would only write the verses when he could get them in writing somewhere. That is why he had to travel a lot specially for two verses that he could not find anywhere near (and of course he knew that they were also the part of the Book due to HIFZ i.e. memorizing the whole Quran by heart) and found them only with one of the Sahaba in writing. When he got all the book in writing, that total and compiled form was put first in the custody of Abu Bakr and after him, in the custody of Umar, the second Caliph. After him, this compilation was given in custody of his daughter BIBI HAFSA (one of the respectable wives of the Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH) from where Usman, the third Caliph, was able to make copies when needed. After many years, AARAB (that work as vowels in English) were given to the words for non-Arabs to understand the Holy Book as there were a great number of people coming to Islam who did not have ARABIC as their native language and though ARABS understood the Holy Book even without AARAB clearly due to their style of speech and as a great number of HAAFIZ were present among them yet the increase in Muslims made it necessary to provide AARAB for its easy reading and understanding among the non-Arabs. Due to the presence of HAAFIZ persons at all times and places (even in non-Arabs in thousands) since the revelation of the Holy Book Quran, we Muslims believe that the Holy Quran is totally the same as it was revealed. This is an important point to note as I have recently read an article of a western person in a widely circulated magazine, who has commented about the compilation of the Holy Quran in a most unscholarly way and due to missing of AARAB, he tried to put doubts about the authenticity of the words of the Holy Book Quran. He did not give even a passing comment that Arab Muslims have from the first day kept the record of the Quran's words, memorizing it as was their custom about important texts, and also he never once commented even casually that it is a well known fact that the memory of Arabs at that time was amazingly astounding. This is the quality of the "scholarly attempts" that the West presents to us on such delicate matters. There is so much to say about these kind of things yet I know that with all the democratic values that the West sings for itself, it would be useless to call West to care about Justice in matters of Islam as the prejudice the West holds regarding Muslims would not let them accept the Truth as that prejudice is far more impressive than any kind of clear presentation of Islam truthfully.

(Q-7) Why did Muhammad marry so many women?

A- There are some important points to note in this matter and once those are understood well, the criticism on the marriages of the Holy Prophet PBUH would be clearly found as baseless. The first point to note is that the Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH married 12 women in total and though some historians have written that he had 3 concubines too besides these 12 wives yet this is a debatable point. All these respectable women are given the high status of "Mothers of True Muslims". It is said that two of his wives (Egyptian Mariah, who was presented to him by the leader of the Copts Al-Muqawqis as was the custom of that time and Jawairiyah Bint Al-Harith, who was the daughter of a chief of a Jewish Tribe) were concubines while other 10 were his wives but that is incorrect as he had freed those two and had taken them as his respectable wives so all 12 were his wives and most probably, he had no concubine though the point is debatable. Still it would bring the figure to 15 women and even that is small when we find that he was totally permitted by Allah to take any number of wives he wished. The second point to note is that the Holy Prophet PBUH married his first wife Khadijah when he was at the age of 25 and she was at the age of 40 accepting her proposal given to him. He is known to preserve his purity well without any inclination towards girls who roamed without Hejab at that time when early marriage was common, when taking concubines from the women that came into custody by wars was normal and when more than one marriage was the custom of the day among men of high standing. He did not marry for the second time in the life of his beloved wife Khadijah who had given birth to all his children (and afterwards he only had a son Ibrahim who was born to Mariah the Egyptian) and only after Bibi Khadija's death when he was at the age of 51, he married the aged woman Sawdah who was even much older than him so that she could take care of his children and the household. It is totally clear even by common sense that there could be no sexual inclination towards a woman of such age for a man at the age of 51 or so and this marriage took place for her security and the better care for the household of the Holy Prophet PBUH. The third point to note is that the Holy Prophet PBUH gave his word in Makkah to Abu-Bakr, one of his very close companions and the First Caliph, that he would marry his daughter Bibi Ayesha, who is said to be at the age of 9 at that time. Please note that there were no written record of the births of any person, male or female, at that time and ages used to be estimated by guess-work specially keeping important incidents in the year of birth so that was not an exact way of knowing the age. Although Arabs had an amazing memory yet they gave but little attention to ages of girls so they did not care much about remembering their ages correctly and only cared about their marriages as they came to puberty. When the Holy Prophet established himself at Madinah as the Leader at the place, he married Bibi Ayesha who is said to be at the age 13 at that time. Note the discrepency that if the Holy Prophet gave the word for marriage at the age of 51 or so when Bibi Ayesha was at the age 9 or so and married her when he was at the age 53, her age should have been 11 yet it is said to be 13 proving that it was only a guess-work and Arabs had no concern for small ages of girls (and ripe ages of men) as that was not given much attention at that time for marriage but the attention was only given to puberty of girls. Bibi Ayesha might have been of 14 or 15 years for all we know and she was his only wife that was virgin, at the time when the Holy Prophet married her and though he took his time to make the decision to take her into his marriage yet after the marriage, she always remained very near and dear to him. Its a point to note that though the enemies of the Holy Prophet called him a magician and a lunatic as we are informed in the Holy Book Quran (May Allah curse the faces of such enemies of Islam), yet they never criticized any of his marriages as they all were perfectly normal by the standard of morals pevailing at that time and Islam clearly endorsed all his marriages. Please note that Islam did not and does not prefer taking slaves from men and women and other such customs that made women live at the feet of men and paved out ways to end such practice gradually as is clear by the Islamic Teachings that asked to free men and women at that time at all situation faced by a Muslim person where some compensation for not fulfilling any required action, was to be made. Also, there used to be no restriction on any number of wives taken by a man but Islam commanded to keep four women only at one time in marriage and to try to treat them equally as much as possible and to give them total respect as human beings providing ample security to them financially, morally and socially as that was their main right on husbands. Please note that it is not obligatory to marry more than one woman and it is only a permission given to men if they can fulfil its demands. In fact, a person who can tolerate the pressure of his desires easily, is allowed not to marry if he so wishes though this type of man is rare in Muslims yet this is a matter that is written in scholarly books though not much known even to many Muslims. Please note that all the women the Holy Prophet married, were very happy with him and in fact, when they were given an option to leave him if they want so, by Allah in the Holy Quran (see Surah Ahzaab-28 & 29), all of them chose to stay with him without exception. He never did any wrong to any woman at any time anywhere and in fact, he was never even charged for any such thing even by his worst enemies all his life. Although he was given an option to marry any number of women he wanted, by Allah in the Holy Quran (see Surah-Ahzaab-50 to 52), he married 12 women only and it is a point to note that as we are informed he had 12 wives, then there were only these 12 respectable women for sure and no more to whom his sexual matter was totally related to, though the reason for marriage to all of these was never sex or lust. Please note that though some historians writing on the life of Muhammad PBUH have written that he also had 3 concubines besides these 12 wives yet this is a moot point. I think Muhammad PBUH, the Last Messenger of Allah, should be given credit on this very matter as with a permission to marry any number of women, he never chose beyond these 12 woman or, if the debatable point of 3 concubines be accepted, these 15 women and never chose any one for the reason of animal desires for there was none present in that great man, possessor of a beautiful angelic character, and whenever he married it was either for the benefit of the woman he married or for the benefit of Islam, the greatest truth in the whole Universe, his act never being a selfish act ever. The fourth point to note is that the Holy Prophet PBUH married 9 women from the age 56 to the age 60 (his worldly life ended at the age 63 and he did not take any wife in the last three years of his life). The period of these five years was very trying as the Holy Prophet PBUH was guiding the companions in all matters of life trying to spread the word of Islam all over the Arab land and even beyond, and the enemy of Islam was trying very hard to end the impression of Islamic Teachings. The verses of the Holy Quran were descending on all matters of life and a good Islamic Society was in the making then and there. These marriages of the Holy Prophet PBUH provided a good relationship of the Muslims with the warring tribes of Arab as at that time, there was a custom in every tribe to respect the person who married a woman from that tribe and gave her respect. This custom prevails in many Islamic Lands even today and at some places, old enemity is settled by taking women of the other side into marriage providing them total respect as their right onto their husbands. This provided defence to Islamic Teachings at that time as the persons who were ready to combat those teachings became guards to it converting to Islam and also, it provided security to those women who were left alone due to the SHAHADAT of their husbands in wars and no one was extending support to them due to the general hard financial situation of Muslims at that time and due to the age of these women and also their hard financial situation. These marriages also provided a moral guidance how to live a life of virtue remaining a normal good Muslim in ordinary business of life. This moral guidance is clearly found when we consider the fact that the Holy Prophet married Widow or Divorced Women except for Bibi Ayesha and he never divorced any of the woman he married, though marrying widow or/and divorced women was seen as immoral in some countries of the known world at that time and this view had some of its influence in the Arab Land too while he also provided a difficult guidance by marrying Zainab bint Jahsh, who was divorced by his adopted son as the adopted sons were taken just like real sons at that time. Now, by the command of Allah, he made the situation better by marrying Zainab and clarifying by this action that the relations that man makes by his tongue are not such lawful as to put commands of real relations onto them.

(Q-8) Does the Islamic Society ask for Dictatorship that we have seen in Talibaan, not letting anyone say his thoughts and what about Fine Arts like Music, Cinema, TV, CD's, Computer (specially net) and what about Hudood that ask for cutting hands of thieves and 100 lashes to those who commit adultery? In simple words, what would be the Human Rights situation in the Islamic Society?

A- No, Islam does not ask for Dictatorship. As I have said that Islamic Society is based on Justice & Hijab so it is totally impossible that any dictatorship becomes appreciable in a True Islamic Society. Islam does not even appreciate an ordinary dictatorship so there is no question that might arise of attitudes like Talibaan about forbidding people to speak other than what the state tells them though there were a few good traits too that they displayed yet there is seldom any remark given on those. However, such dictatorship is totally out of question in a True Islamic Society. Differences to the Government might be present and this must be considered as a normal phenomenon and must not be worried about as that would never take hold in the general public when the State is based on the True Islamic Values and then these dissenting voices would automatically work to provide for any betterment in the attitude of the Government by Islamic Principles or to ask for more leniency in the matters that the dissention asks attention to, remaining inside the Principles of Islam. However, the problem arises when an open challenge to Islamic Principles takes place on some disciplined manner by quite a number of people as that is not dissention but an asking for a practical revolution against Islam that is the basis of the Islamic State and this disciplined opposition to Islam is intolerable. Even then, such people must not be killed just because they became members to such opposition but they must be given an open trial and must be given a chance to betterment in their attitude according to the Islamic Teachings by the law of the Land without any force. However, if these people kill other people for their own black cause then they would be dealt by the law accordingly. There must be no ban on saying or writing anything whatsoever yet it must be seen that only those attitudes develop in the society that ask for a better Islamic Living by a psychological guidance rather than a political stance. LOVE of Humanity in total practice, must be the basis of all general attitude here as this is the True Islam. The attitude for democracy plus the respect for Islamic Principles on which the Islamic State comes into existence both must be present simultaneously in the general attitude. This does happen all over the world that a person appreciates the honour of the place he lives in with all the thinking he has for a good living, without any force or an unnatural burden on his psyche. This position would take some time to develop here due to the effect of much rumors that have been spread by the ill-wishers of Islam (so this delay is understandable) yet this position is not unachievable as it is most natural to the Human Psyche. However, to take Islamic Society as intolerant to all types of dissention is something totally alien to Islamic Teachings itself. The regular accusations against Islam that have no basis denote an inappropriate political attitude. This attitude is mostly taken by politicians against their opponents blaming them for this and that only in a vague manner relating to future, specially when their opponents are incapable to answer adequately due to personal incompetence, due to problem in communication or due to any other reason whatsoever. The examples might be seen where and when politicians blame their opponents for planning to kill a prominent personality or planning to commit some other big criminal act, without providing any valid proof for such statements so that they might validate their black actions against their opponents through force with an appreciation in response or at least with a silence in response from the general public. This political way of dealing things must not be taken into practice at any scholarly discussion where the matter in consideration must be dealt fully and truthfully so the best medicine for such invalid psyche is to prove practically that a True Muslim is never a dictator and hears everything taking what his Principles allow without challenging his opponent leaving him on his own even if he has Power to put him into trouble. The greatest man, the last messenger of Allah, the Holy Prophet Muhammad PBUH gave pardon to all the prominent and ordinary persons of Mecca when he conquered the city, though these people had given such trouble to the Messenger that he had to leave Mecca and settle in Madina and they had tortured Muslims a lot. Our traditions are to give pardon even to enemies and not to kill our fellow country-men just because their views seem to collide with the Islamic Values that we want to implement. This attitude runs in our blood and that is why Muslims feel an obligation to support and care for the security of the non-Muslims of the land they rule in the best way possible for them, remaining inside the Principles given by Islam. However, it would be clarified in plain terms that a disciplined opposition to Islamic Principles would not be tolerated in the Islamic Society as that would pave way to a chaos in the peaceful Islamic Society and as such, it would cause a mutiny against Islam itself. This is called FITNAH in the Islamic terms which is plainly and clearly, totally intolerable in the Islamic Society and that would be openly challenged and cleared from the Islamic Society with as much care for humanity as possible. Al-Hamdu Lillah. As for MUSIC, I really feel that many Islamic persons go to height in its opposition. The problem arises when at one side, we find total opposition to any type of music and at the other side, we find total liberal attitude towards music as when it comes to entertainment by music, it is taken for granted that this means a messy mixed gathering having a fast music with a lot of noise without any care for the Islamic Values. These both attitudes have to be termed as extremism according to what I have learnt by the Kitab and Sunnah after many years of study by the blessing of Allah. Please note that there are some points to consider in this regard without fail. Each point has some Islamic reasoning at its base that is easy to understand and if needed, I would provide that with pleasure. However, here I would present the points in brief and even an ordinary Muslim would understand their validity well only by their mention insha Allah. The first point is that Islam does not allow men to converse with women un-necessarily and vice versa as that is against the command of Hijab so the songs that are spread in the Islamic Society must be clear of the voice of women. The second point is that the words of the songs must not challenge Islamic Morals in any way and this matter must be decided by ordinary Muslims yet with total devotion to Islam. The third point to note in this regard is that the singers, players of instruments and musicians must not be professional as their occupations must be some other works while Music remains a pastime and a matter of relaxation to them and to all those who enjoy music. The fourth point is that the music must be soft and not a rhythmic din of some kind as a fast music is not appreciable in an Islamic set-up. The fifth point is that dancing of women is totally unacceptable in the Islamic Society so that must not be present at the songs though presence of women in a romantic video song sung by a male person might be tolerated where she remains in decent clothes with a decent attitude. The sixth and the last point in this regard is that the instruments used for the songs must not be more than two or at most, three because high number of instruments give the impression of the song being a professional kind of a thing and also breaks the rule of making the song a presentation of a soft music. Please note that this last point does not mean that two or three category of instruments might be used in any number but it means that the total number of instruments must be two or three. It is even better if a computerized gadget that is able to provide different musical voices, is used for the song with a set-up of the voices of two musical instruments that fulfil the minimum requirement of the music (yin and yang) in the song that must remain soft in nature. The Holy Quran does not ban music by any Ayat and one Ayat that is taken to prohibit music is not directly related to the matter (Surah Luqman-6). It tells about the evil of taking useless stories that the true knowledge would never appreciate. In fact, this clarifies well that when the points given are taken with total heart without any inclination towards accepting any fictious statements, it is tolerable in the Islamic Society. The whole universe is manifesting a rhythm and this rhythm must rather be appreciated even by the Islamic persons and not discarded without any rhyme or reason. There are Ahadith that show some reservation regarding music yet some of them do not fulfil the criterion set by MUHADDISEEN for the words to be taken truly as Ahadith while others have the margin to be interpreted as prohibiting professional attitude towards Music or prohibiting a total engagement in it taking it more than a form of relaxation. As for the Cinema, please note that there would be no film industry in an Islamic Society as that violates much of the Islamic Values. However, there can be a Dramatic Club or two (run by the Government only and these must not be high in number in any way) that might provide for the Drama programs run at different channels of TV in the Islamic Country. This automatically clarifies that TV and TV channels would operate in the Islamic Society though their channels must be very few in number and registered. Foreign Channels must be discouraged until they comply to the requirements of the Islamic Society. These TV channels must care about Islamic Morals with total commitment to Islam and besides decent drama and musical programs, they must air open political discussions as they do now, give Islamic advices and also provide necessary education to shape good attitudes that Islam asks for in a decent Islamic Society. They must also air programs where reading of fictious, educational, biographical and Islamic books is presented as that would be most beneficial when the Islamic Morals are kept in view. Please note that regarding TV and other places in the Islamic Society, there must be no dancing of women or any modelling of women or any advertisement that presents women in a vulgar form or any free kind of attitude of women towards men as this all is indecency in Islam that must be totally avoided, both at the individual and at the collective level in the Islamic Society. Computers would be used openly and net would be available though Government must see that all sites that present nudity and vulgarity must be banned in all ways possible one being obstructing such sites to open at screen by net by technical applications yet the best being that people must be asked regularly to avoid all such sites by their own good choice. Cd/s offered at market must be cleared by the Islamic Government so that there remains no immoral or un-Islamic material in them and if they have songs, those must not be sung by women-folk but comply to the points given about music. Please note that liberty does not mean independence from Islamic Values but it means to live in accordance with good Islamic moral values without any pressure from outside. A person does have to conform to some order and if he does not conform to the Order set by Allah, he would conform to other orders that are only satanic leading himself to total mental pressure that would make his life and lives of others that are dependent on him for their requirements, totally miserable for certain. The Truth is only One that is the way of Allah while satanic philosophies are many in number though the One Truth has the power to satisfy the inner self of a person totally well while the satanic philosophies increase mental tensions only, without offering any guidance towards an honourable inner satisfaction. Please note well that the Islamic Teachings do not ban music but they put a check on the evil presentation regarding music as specified while TV can operate at homes with some necessary adjustments as many of the scholars of Islam have tolerated photos for official needs by the Islamic reasoning and this leniency does provide an opening to tolerate the operating of TV in an Islamic Society though its programs must not violate the Islamic Morals in any way. Al-Hamdu Lillah. In the crimes of Hudood, there are 5 things and their punishments have been specified in Islam. -1- BURGLARY -2- DACOITY & MUTINY -3- ADULTERY -4- WRONG ACCUSATION OF ADULTERY (QAZF) -5- BEING A DRUNK. The first two are mentioned in Surah Mae'da, the second two are mentioned in Surah Noor and the last one is based on Consensus. The hands of the burglars must be cut (though they must be engaged in burglary as a profession so please note that the punishment must be relaxed in the case when the burglary is for the first or even for the second time or an isolated event in their lives as the punishment is for burglars as the Holy Quran specifies and not for burglary for that matter and then this punishment must be for a burglary of great valuables and the crime must not have been committed because of hunger and thirst or any basic human necessity). The dacoits will be killed or will be crucified or one of their hands and one of their legs (opposite sides) will be cut or/and they will be ordered to leave the land. The persons involved in adultery will be given 100 lashes each in public (men in front of men; women in front of women) if they were not married but if they were married and their respective spouses were with them without any indication of any obstruction in getting sexual satisfaction from their respective spouses when the crime was committed, their punishment is that they are shot in public as the bullets of guns have been given the same value in Islamic teachings as stones (mind it that the verdict against these criminals is stoning to death but I am certain that this punishment that is termed as RAJAM can be relaxed in the current time giving the same punishment of 100 lashes to all such persons without considering their marital status if the learned scholars of Islam provide a consensus on this matter as the Holy Quran asks for 100 lashes only without such specification though in the Hadith, we find the implementation of RAJAM for the married persons but such crimes were very few at that time and the Holy Prophet PBUH might have dealt with them in an exceptional way as he had that authority for making some exception without violating the actual judgment and he had used this authority in some other matters too, not intending to make it a specific law, yet the consensus of the scholars of Islam would provide for ease in this matter clearly and I have my leaning towards this ease), the persons wrongly accusing someone of Adultery will be punished in public by 80 lashes and one who is used to drinking will also be punished by 80 lashes in public (again this punishment is not for isolated events and is quite changable by the consensus of the scholars of Islam as it is basically based on consensus and not particularly & directly on Kitab and Sunnah). These punishments do seem harsh yet if one puts one's attention to the crimes mentioned and the evil effect they cause to the society, one has to agree that these punishments are just what the criminals have asked for themselves due to their total disregard for the Islamic Values that are the basis of the Islamic Society. As the punishment of cutting hands for theft is for professional thieves that must be judged with total care giving any benefit of doubt to the accused, I consider that it is not any violation of any Human Right. If the crime is proven and the punishment is given accordingly, it would be on the account of violation of Human Rights that was committed by the professional thieves rather than any such violation by the Judges who give the verdict by the Islamic Reasoning. So, taking all the five one by one strictly keeping to Islamic Teachings, the judgment for Dacoity proven even when it seems an isolated event in the lives of the accused would be an order for them to leave the Islamic land, the judgment for Professional Burglars proven would be cutting of both hands providing them with hands made of some modern material according to their size while those persons who have committed this crime due to basic human necessity or it is an isolated event in their lives as it is the first or the second time they have committed such act or there is some kind of suspicion due to the wrong assessment of the situation by the accused or due to the circumstances of theft being vague indicating that this might not be a theft at all but the the precious thing/s taken were lying openly or if the objects taken are not precious at all then such persons must be pardoned but with an official warning to them so that no injustice takes place though this official warning would not be enough to give them punishment for some other accusation of theft at some other time and place that would need a fair trial again, the judgment for Adultery (and even fornication) proven even if it seems to be an isolated event in the life of the accused would be 100 lashes that are tolerable for the accused even in total at one time yet provided in instalment in front of all, the judgment of Qazf proven even if it seems an isolated event in the life of the accused would be 80 lashes that are tolerable for the accused even in total at one time yet provided in instalment in front of all, the judgment of Drinking Wine proven (when it is not an isolated event) would be some moderate beating given in front of all though with care that no vital organs are affected and the beating must not be much and must not be hard administered only by 2 or 3 responsible official persons who must know by training how to execute such beating. I am certain and I hope that you would agree that these punishments are not abnormal or harsh seeing everything in its context. In fact, I feel that the scholars of Islam are lenient where the evidence for adultery is asked as they take the Ayaat in Surah Noor that specifies the punishment for this shameful crime as asking for four EYE witnesses for the proof of this crime. For me, these Ayaat seem to convey that a person that has witnessed such a crime by his eyes must have four witnesses to his personal integrity and his strength of character. I have my reasoning by Islam yet as I am not at a status where I can ask a following, I would only advice scholars of Islam to consider the matter in this manner too as to provide any other punishment than what is specified for these specific crimes respectively is not right by the Islamic Viewpoint.

These are the questions that arise in the Western mind and I have tried to answer them to the best of my capability as a Muslim studying Islam for more than 30 years now by the Blessing of Allah. To me, it seems strange that the West feels that Islam is a challenge to it as in today's world, we Muslims are better while living our lives totally unrelated with the West as there is much for us to worry about from its side and not the other way round. Again it is strange that the West knows so little about us Muslims and our Belief yet there are people who without any touch of shame, present such teachings about Islam hearing which even a layman in Muslims would feel amused or shocked. I don't know if things like Islam is 1500 years old and Muhammad was the founder of Islam and the Holy Quran was compiled after a century of its revelation and Jihad is terrorism that Islam asks for to get Jannah (paradise) so Islam professes terrorism and Muhammad was obsessed with animal desires and he was always ready to wage a war on enemies of Islam and music is banned in Islam as it does not appreciate fine arts and Islamic Punishments are totally vicious & against Human Rights and women are actually slaves in Islam (in fact, the high respect we have for women is something the West would not understand due to its current set of morals though we do take the Female as given in the Male's care for her own betterment and security and it is a matter of trust yet both have only one aim of life and that is to obey Allah everytime everywhere so regarding the life after this one, both are equal), are being presented by some conspiracy or the West has such fools as think-tanks who even after presenting some document for themselves denoting a degree of being learned in Islam, are unaware of even the basic matters of Islam. At least, I would not try to present Christianity to Christians or anyone for that matter, though I do understand its salient features, for the simple reason that it is not my status being a Muslim to comment on this matter. If I would like to say something about Christianity, the simple way is that I would ask some Practicing Christians who have respect and name for being religious men, about it and then forward their words to anyone who wants to know about Christianity and I would certainly not take the life-style or thinking of ordinary Christians to put my remarks on that religion. But, contrary to this simple manner, the Western think-tanks might be unique in this strange attitude as to give comments on how we should treat our women in the good name of democracy whatever our religious views might be, and how we should live our lives presenting a new version of Islam directly to us Muslims without any shame putting their reasoning for Islam by the practice of any Fatty or Skinny among us, taking it positively or negatively according to their own liking. Please note that the best way to understand Islam is to read the Holy Quran about which every Muslim believes that not even a dot has changed in it since its revelation upon the Last of Prophets Muhammad PBUH and reading even a good translation of this Holy Book of ours, would reveal clearly what Islam is all about. Why leave this simple manner of understanding Islam and project misunderstandings about Islam as its teachings, misguiding all without any rhyme or reason. If all the inhabitants of the planet Earth have to live with total peace then we all must respect each others views, solving our political problems by the application of Justice and not by abuse of power as that would worsen the problems for sure. May Allah help all the peace loving people to make a working partnership among all peoples of the world so that the world does prosper like a garden with many colorful flowers that, though different in color and odor, are the essential element for its beauty and charm.

Completed this writing
at the night of 18th Rabi-ul-Awwal 1427
(April 17, 2006)

Muhammad Saleem Dada

e-mail: saleemdada@yahoo.com
e-mail: sdada111@yahoo.com