Discover islam



In Search of the Body Beautiful




[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]By ‘Ifrat Azad
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]There seems no limit nowadays to the extent that women (and men) are prepared to go to for that 'perfect look'. Forget false eyelashes and wigs, we are now talking scalpels, implants and liposuction!
Cosmetic surgery amongst film actresses has been commonplace for quite some time now, but these days, we wouldn't be too hard pressed to find ordinary women on the street who are more plastic than real! Indeed, in some circles, having multiple facelifts has become a status symbol: the more you have, the higher you are in the status rankings.
If questioned whether cosmetic surgery was Islamically correct or not, then without doubt, most Muslims would instinctively respond by saying that it isn't, for the simple reason that it would be interfering with Allah's creation. And certainly, this would be the correct response. [Scholars have noted several exceptions to this general rule if there is a genuine medical need for it. - Ed.]
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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The companion, Ibn Mas'ood radiaIaahu 'anhu, once said (quoting what he had heard the Prophet, sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam say): Allah has cursed the tattooers and those who have themselves tattooed, and those women who have their teeth filed for beauty and those who have their [facial] hair plucked and thus alter Allah's creation. A woman remarked, "What's all this?" So Ibn Mas'ood - radiAllahu 'anhu -said: "Should I not curse one whom Allah's Messenger cursed? And it is in the Book of Allah." She said: "I have read the Qur'an from cover to cover but I did not find that in it." He replied: "If you had read it thoroughly you would have found it. Allah says: Whatever the Messenger gives you take it; and whatever he has forbidden, refrain from it. [Qur'an ul-Hashr (59):7]"
So the Prophet Muhammad, sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam forbade women from performing these three practices which the women commonly did for the sake of beauty in those days - seemingly 'insignificant' practices for which they would incur the curse of Allah. And this forbiddance isn't just restricted to the procedures mentioned in the hadeeth. Because Allah says in more general terms in His Book: So set your face truly to the faith, Allah's handiwork according to the pattern on which He has made mankind; [Let there be] no change in the creation of Allah. [Qur'an Ar-Room (30):30].
Therefore, it is obligatory for us to accept the creation of Allah as it is, not making any alterations to it. More importantly though, it is also obligatory for us to believe that all of Allah's creation is beautiful, because Allah, the Khaaliq (Creator) does not create anything except with beauty and perfection, which is why He says to mankind: You can see no fault in the creation of Ar-Rahmaan [the Most Merciful]. Then look again: Can you see any rifts? Then look - again and yet again, your sight will return to you in a state of humiliation and worn out. [Qur'an Al-MuIk (67): 3-4].[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]This mayall sound quite strange when we consider how often we hear women complaining about their appearance. In fact, it is estimated that over half of the Western women today actually perceive themselves to be ugly. In addition, surveys show that nearly all women feel under pressure to "look good". As a result, the quest for beauty has become a serious preoccupation for many women. Open up any women’s magazine and you will not fail to find a single one which doesn't contain tips on how to 'look good", or which don't contain huge advertisements promoting new creams that halt the aging process or concealers to hide wrinkles etc.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Beauty today is big business. Beauty contests are very profitable and - contrary to popular belief - more are spawned every year. The cosmetics market is a multi-billion dollar industry; the demand for cosmetic surgery is growing at a tremendous rate. All three industries promote the same notions of beauty that woman everywhere are expected to meet: mainly a white, European, "Barbie-doll" like standard. The pressures on women to conform to these standards are enormous and few are able to withstand them. (Please read the follow-up to this article below-Ed.)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The fact is that Western women today may complain that they are not treated with equality and respect, but it is they themselves who have made it acceptable for society worldwide to see women merely as beauty-objects who are there to be ogled by the men who in turn are the (im) polite voyeurs. When viewed in this light, we find that beauty contests are not too dissimilar to reality itself: just as the tallest, slimmest blonde girl gets the title in the beauty contest, in the real world it's the tallest, slimmest blonde girl who gets the man![/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]In Islam, beauty is not just in the eye of the beholder. Beauty is in the whole of creation, because Allah - the One free of all imperfections - is the one responsible for it. And as Allah says: Your Lord creates whatsoever He wills and chooses: no choice have they. SubhaanAllah! And far removed is He from the partners they ascribe [to Him]! [Qur'an Al-Qasas 28:68].
So it is from the wisdom of Allah that He has chosen to create some of us short, others tall, some fat, some thin, some dark-colored, some light - all are beautiful and perfect in their own right. That is why we are taught from the Sunnah, the beautiful du'aa (supplication) that the Prophet sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam would say: 'O Allah, as You have made my appearance beautiful, likewise make my character beautiful. - ('Allahumma kama hassanta khalaqee fa hassin khuluqee").
As Muslims, we must believe that evil and imperfection cannot be attributed to Allah. The desire to change any aspect of ourselves means, in effect, that we are dissatisfied with Allah's choice and His handiwork, and that there is imperfection in what He has created. Thus to say about ourselves, or anyone else, that we or they are ugly is a great sin. This point was reinforced by the Prophet, sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam when he once saw the Companion, 'Amr Ibn Fulaan Al-Ansaaree radiallahu 'anhu, whose izaar (lower garment) was hanging low (to the ground), so he, sallallahu 'alaihi wa sallam, ordered that he raise it. 'Amr made an excuse saying that he had skinny shins (i.e. he was embarrassed to show them), so the Prophet responded by saying: O 'Amr! Verily Allah Azza wa Jal has created everything in the best form.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]All this is certainly not intended to discourage women to look after themselves and adorn themselves in lawful ways (e.g. wearing nice clothes, having nicely done hair etc.). Indeed, adorning oneself is something that the wives are obliged to do for their husbands and Allah rewards the woman who pleases the husband when he looks at her. But with these tremendous pressures on women to conform to the ideals set by the marketing media, it may be hard for Muslim women to resist feeling insecure or uncomfortable about their appearance. Consequently, many Muslim women have shed their hijabs for the sake of following fashion; Muslim women too develop inferiority complexes about themselves.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]We must bear in mind that this search for the 'body beautiful' is, in reality, a deception from Shaytaan. Shaytaan has vowed that he will create such false desires in mankind. He has said (as stated in the Qur'an): Surely I will arouse in them (mankind] false desires; and certainly I will order them to slit the ears of cattle, and indeed I will order them to change the nature created by Allah. [Qur'an An-Nisaa (4): 119].[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]May Allah always keep us safe from the false promises of Shaytaan, for verily Allah is the One Who guides to the Truth.
This article was originally published in 1995 in Ad-Da’wah IlAllah – The Magazine Featuring Women’s Issues
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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Follow-Up[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]May Allah reward sister ‘Ifrat for her thoughts and effort. We provide the following item taken from the October 19, 1998 issue of the English language daily Arab News published in Saudi Arabia. This is for anyone who has followed the articles in "From The Sister’s Pens" for the past several issues and has some doubt as to what the authors of those articles have expressed regarding the all-out battle for the Muslim woman’s heart and soul and ruination of her Islamic character. The article is a stark example of what occurs when Muslims are totally separated from any real understanding of their religion and being a Muslim merely represents an "ethnicity" and not a way of life to be learned, treasured and adhered to.[/FONT]

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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Dethroned Miss Croatia Hurt But Optimistic[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]ZAGREB, Oct. l8 (AEP) Beauty queen Lejla Sehovic, who was stripped of her title of Miss Croatia on Friday for being Muslim, is hurt but optimistic in her determination to press charges for religious discrimination. "I was very hurt by all of this, but now I am pretty relaxed after these last frantic days. I am an optimist and I hope for the best," 22-year-old Sehovic told Agence France-Presse in a telephone interview from her hotel room in Zagreb. Beauty contest director Milan Seckovic deposed Sehovic on Friday and proclaimed runner-up Ivana Petkovic, 17, as Croatia’s candidate in the next Miss World competition.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]There were "irregularities in the voting process," Seckovic told a press conference where Sehovic showed up uninvited, stunning organizers and getting applause from journalists. "I could never have believed such a thing could happen to me: that on a beauty contest one’s religion is checked. If I had known the ‘right’ religion was needed, I would never have applied," Sehovic said.
And she added: ‘I feel terrible when people look at me as if I was from another planet. I am just a human being made of flesh and blood."
Calling the contest "an absolute disgrace", Sehovic’s lawyer Vesna Alaburic told AFP she had requested Seckovic to hand over his evidence for dethroning Lejla. "We are going to press charges against the organizers, if it appears that Lejla was disqualified on the basis of religious discrimination. We will inform the world: From all legal institutions in the country, including the president, and human rights groups, up to the European human rights court," Alaburic said.
Lejla Sehovic was born and raised in Croatia’s southern city of Dubrovnik where her parents moved from Sarajevo in 1975. Her father Esad died when she was nine, leaving her and two other sisters, Anela and Djana. She is the niece of an eminent Sarajevo writer, Fedja Sehovic.
The election of a Muslim girl is seen as embarrassing to President Franjo Tudjman’s ruling Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ), which backed Bosnian Croats against Muslims during the recent Bosnian war. But in Dubrovnik, where the opposition won local by-elections last Sunday - the same day Sehovic was elected Miss Croatia - local people as well as her family support her, she said.
I was told that a big welcome party will be organized," she added. "Now I see how many people stand by me. My mum told me that the phone has not stopped ringing: everyone is calling, even the mayor, and people are calling local radio stations requesting songs for me," Sehovic said.
Meanwhile, runner-up Ivana Petkovic has not said whether she accepts Sehovic’s crown. Her family said she would go public in the next few days. "I will let Ivana decide. I think this is a very tricky situation for both of us," Sehovic said.
The incident has split public opinion in Croatia. "Because Croatia is predominantly Catholic, I believe we should be very proud of having a non-Catholic girl as our miss," said Davor Brezicevic, 45.
But another woman, who gave her name as Marija, 25, said Sehovic’s crown should be taken from her, "for even on her face you can see that she is not a true Croatian girl." Sehovic whose plans include, besides hanging on to her crown, following a management course in Dubrovnik, is confident things will work out for the best.
"I am the moral winner," she told AFP. "The things that do not kill you in life will only make you stronger."
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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]We hate to disagree with Miss Sehovic’s last statement because it is obvious that her morals are at a great loss as are those of other Muslim women who have been totally reconstructed to hardly resemble anything Islamic! Of course such a condition did not come about overnight but rather it has been a long historical process. This story should however verify to any thinking Muslim the truth of the ideological battleground referred to in our last issue (see Vol. 2, Issue 10 ‘Fataawa’) and the warnings and concern expressed by Nawaal Abdullah in her articles (see Vol. 2, Issues 8 – 10, ‘Sister’s Pens’).[/FONT]​
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Unfortunately, Miss Sehovic is not in the least unique, because we find beauty pageants held in different parts of the Muslim world with indeed Muslim women parading themselves in the most indecent of manner while their families take pride in their daughters’ achievements! Certain Muslim countries pride themselves on their liberality when it comes to women and one may witness women participating in any range of activities dressed in clothing that leaves nothing to the imagination! You may recall that the top fashion "supermodel" a while back was a statuesque Somali beauty ironically called Iman, and she was often described as being a "devout Moslem". She later married the British rock star David Bowie (who last time we heard had not converted to Islam). Throughout the Muslim world, you will find dozens of magazines featuring Arabian looking damsels on their covers (and I dare not look inside), in most of these countries.
Such is the sad reality, but perhaps even sadder is if any Muslims who read the article above are more upset by the blatant discrimination of the Croatian pageant authorities than the fact that a Muslim woman was participating in the first place! We are not sorry she was dethroned and we pray for her guidance and victory of the Muslims over their enemies for surely her loss on the Day of Resurrection is liable to be far greater than that of a crown.
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The Status of Woman in Islam

The Status of Woman in Islam

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]By Hammuda Abdul-Ati, PH.D. from "Islam in focus"

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The status of woman in Islam constitutes no problem. The attitude of the Qur'an and the early Muslims bear witness to the fact that woman is, at least, as vital to life as man himself, and that she is not inferior to him nor is she one of the lower species. Had it not been for the impact of foreign cultures and alien influences, this question would have never arisen among the Muslims. The status of woman was taken for granted to be equal to that of man. It was a matter of course, a matter of fact, and no one, then, considered it as a problem at all.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]In order to understand what Islam has established for woman, there is no need to deplore her plight in the pre-Islamic era or in the modern would of today. Islam has given woman rights and privileges, which she has never enjoyed under other religious or constitutional systems. This can be understood when the matter is studied as a whole in a comparative manner, rather than partially. The rights and responsibilities of a woman are equal to those of a man but they are not necessarily identical with them. Equality and sameness are two quite different things. This difference is understandable because man and woman are not identical but they are created equals. With this distinction in mind, There is no problem. It is almost impossible to find even two identical men or women.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]This distinction between equality and sameness is of paramount importance. Equality is desirable, just, fair; but sameness is not. People are not created identical but they are created equals. With this distinction in mind, there is no room to imagine that woman is inferior to man. There is no ground to assume that she is less important than he just because her rights are not identically the same as his. Had her status been identical with his, she would have been simply a duplicate of him, which she is not. The fact that Islam gives her equal rights - but not identical - shows that it takes her into due consideration, acknowledges her, and recognizes her independent personality.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]It is not the tone of Islam that brands woman as the product of the devil or the seed of evil. Nor does the Qur'an place man as the dominant lord of woman who has no choice but to surrender to his dominance. Nor was it Islam that introduced the question of whether or not woman has any soul in her. Never in the history of Islam has any Muslim doubted the human status of woman or her possession of soul and other fine spiritual qualities. Unlike other popular beliefs, Islam does not blame Eve alone for the First Sin. The Qur'an makes it very clear that both Adam and Eve were tempted; that they both sinned; that God's pardon was granted to both after their repentance; and that God addressed them jointly. (2:35-36); 7:19, 27; 20:117-123). In fact the Qur'an gives the impression that Adam was more to blame for that First Sin from which emerged prejudice against woman and suspicion of her deeds. But Islam does not justify such prejudice or suspicion because both Adam and Eve were equally in error, and if we are to blame Eve we should blame Adam as much or even more.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The status of woman in Islam is something unique, something novel, something that has no similarity in any other system. If we look to the Eastern Communist world or to the democratic nations, we find that woman is not really in a happy position. Her status is not enviable. She has to work so hard to live, and sometimes she may be doing the same job that a man does but her wage is less than his. She enjoys a kind of liberty which in some cases amounts to libertinism. To get to where she is nowadays, woman struggled hard for decades and centuries. To gain the right of learning and the freedom of work and earning, she had to offer painful sacrifices and give up many of her natural rights. To establish her status as a human being possessing a soul, she paid heavily. Yet in spite of all these costly sacrifices and painful struggles, she has not acquired what Islam has established by a Divine decree for the Muslim woman.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The rights of woman of modern times were not granted voluntarily or out of kindness to the female. Modern woman reached her present position by force, and not through natural processes or mutual consent or Divine teachings. She had to force her way, and various circumstances came to her aid. Shortage of manpower during wars, pressure of economic needs and requirements of industrial developments forced woman to get out of her home - to work, to learn, to struggle for her livelihood, to appear as an equal to man, to run her race in the course of life side by side with him. She was forced by circumstances and in turn she forced herself through and acquired her new status. Whether all women were pleased with these circumstances being on their side, and whether they are happy and satisfied with the results of this course is a different matter. But the fact remains that whatever rights modern woman enjoys fall short of those of her Muslim counterpart.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]What Islam has established for woman is that, which suits her nature, gives her full security and protects her against disgraceful circumstances and uncertain channels of life. We do not need here to elaborate on the status of modern woman and the risks she runs to make her living or establish herself. We do not even need to explore the miseries and setbacks that encircle her as a result of the so-called rights of woman. Nor do we intend to manipulate the situation of many unhappy homes which break because of the very "freedom" and "rights" of which modern woman is proud.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Most women today exercise the right of freedom to go out independently, to work and earn, to pretend to be equal to man, but this, sadly enough, is at the expense of their families. This all known and obvious. What is not known is the status of woman in Islam. An attempt will be made in the following passages to sum up the attitude of Islam with regard to woman.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]1. Woman is recognized by Islam as a full and equal partner of man in the procreation of humankind. He is the father; she is the mother, and both are essential for life. Her role is not less vital than his. By this partnership she has an equal share in every aspect; she is entitled to equal rights; she undertakes equal responsibilities, and in her there are as many qualities and as much humanity as there are in her partner. To this equal partner- ship in the reproduction of human kind God says:[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]O mankind! Verily We have created your from a single (pair) of a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes that you may know each other... [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Qur'an, 49:13; 4:1[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]2. She is equal to man in bearing personal and common responsibilities and in receiving rewards for her deeds. She is acknowledged as an independent personality, in possession of human qualities and worthy of spiritual aspirations. Her human nature is neither inferior to nor deviant from that of man. Both are members of one another. God says:[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]And their Lord has accepted (their prayers) and answered them (saying): 'Never will I cause to be lost the work of any of you, be he male or female; you are members, one of another... [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Qur’an 3:195; 9:71;33:35-36;66:19-2[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]3. She is equal to man in the pursuit of education and knowledge. When Islam enjoins the seeking of knowledge upon Muslims, it makes no distinction between man and woman. Almost fourteen centuries ago, Muhammad declared that the pursuit of knowledge is incumbent on every Muslim male and female. This declaration was very clear and was implemented by Muslims throughout history.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]4. She is entitled to freedom of expression as much as man is. Her sound opinions are taken into consideration and cannot be disregarded just because she happen to belong to the female *ex. It is reported in the Qur'an and history that woman not only expressed her opinion freely but also argued and participated in serious discussions with the Prophet himself as well as with other Muslim leaders (Qur'an, 58:1-4; 60:10-12). Besides there were occasions when Muslim women expressed their views on legislative matters of public interest, and stood in opposition to the Caliphs, who then accepted the sound arguments of these women. A specific example took place during the Caliphate of Umar Ibn al-Khattab.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]5. Historical records show that women participated in public life with the early Muslims, especially in times of emergencies. Women used to accompany the Muslim armies engaged in battles to nurse the wounded, prepare supplies, serve the warriors, and so on. They were not shut behind iron bars or considered worthless creatures and deprived of souls.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]6. Islam grants woman equal rights to contract, to enterprise, to earn and possess independently. Her life, her property, her honour are as sacred as those of man. If she commits any offence, her penalty is no less or more than of man's in a similar case. If she is wronged or harmed, she gets due compensations equal to what a man in her position would get (2:178;4:45, 92-93). [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]7. Islam does not state these rights in a statistical form and then relax. It has taken all measures to safeguard them and put them into practice as integral articles of Faith. It never tolerates those who are inclined to prejudice against woman or discrimination between man and woman. Time and again, the Qur'an reproaches those who used to believe woman to be inferior to man (16:57-59, 62; 42:47-59; 43:15-19; 53:21-23). [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]8. Apart from recognition of woman as an independent human being acknowledged as equally essential for the survival of humanity, Islam has given her a share of inheritance. Before Islam, she was not only deprived of that share but was herself considered as property to be inherited by man. Out of that transferable property Islam made an heir, acknowledging the inherent human qualifies in woman. Whether she is a wife or mother, a sister or daughter, she receives a certain share of the deceased kin's property, a share which depends on her degree of relationship to the deceased and the number of heirs. This share is hers, and no one can take it away or disinherit her. Even if the deceased wishes to deprive her by making a will to other relations or in favour of any other cause, the Law will not allow him to do so. Any proprietor is permitted to make his will within the limit of one-third of his property, so he may not affect the rights of his heirs, men and women. In the case of inheritance, the question of quality and sameness is fully applicable. In principle, both man and woman are equally entitled to inherit the property of the deceased relations but the portions they get may vary. In some instances man receives two shares whereas woman gets one only. This no sign of giving preference or supremacy to man over woman. The reasons why man gets more in these particular instances may be classified as follows:[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]First man, is the person solely responsible for the complete maintenance of his wife, his family and any other needy relations. It is his duty by Law to assume all financial responsibilities and maintain his dependents adequately. It is also his duty to contribute financially to all good causes in his society. All financial burdens are borne by him alone.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Secondly, in contrast, woman has no financial responsibilities whatsoever except very little of her personal expenses, the high luxurious things that she likes to have. She is financially secure and provided for. If she is a wife, her husband is the provider; if she is a mother, it is the son; if she is a daughter, it is the father; if she is a sister; it is the brother, and so on. If she has no relations on whom she can depend, then there is no question of inheritance because there is nothing to inherit and there is no one to bequeath anything to her. However, she will not be left to starve, maintenance of such a woman is the responsibility of the society as a whole, the state. She may be given aid or a job to earn her living, and whatever money she makes will be hers. She is not responsible for the maintenance of anybody else besides herself. If there is a man in her position, he would still be responsible for his family and possibly any of his relations who need his help. So, in the hardest situation her financial responsibility is limited, while his is unlimited.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Thirdly, when a woman gets less than a man does, she is not actually deprived of anything that she has worked for. The property inherited is not the result of her earning or her endeavours. It is something coming to them from a neutral source, something additional or extra. It is something that neither man or woman struggled for. It is a sort of aid, and any aid has to be distributed according to the urgent needs and responsibilities especially when the distribution is regulated by the Law of God.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Now, we have a male heir, on one side, burdened with all kinds of financial responsibilities and liabilities. We have, on the other side, a female heir with no financial responsibilities at all or at most with very little of it. In between we have some property and aid to redistribute by way of inheritance. If we deprive the female completely, it would be unjust to her because she is related to the deceased. Likewise, if we always give her a share equal to the man's, it would be unjust to him. So, instead of doing injustice to either side, Islam gives the man a larger portion of the inherited property to help him to meet his family needs and social responsibilities. At the same time, Islam has not forgotten her altogether, but has given her a portion to satisfy her very personal needs. In fact, Islam in this respect is being more kind to her than to him. Here we can say that when taken as a whole the rights of woman are equal to those of man although not necessarily identical (see Qur'an, 4:11-14, 176).[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]9. In some instances of bearing witness to certain civil con- tracts, two men are required or one man and two women. Again, this is no indication of the woman being inferior to man. It is a measure of securing the rights of the contracting parties, because woman as a rule, is not so experienced in practical life as man. This lack of experience may cause a loss to any party in a given contract. So the Law requires that at least two women should bear witness with one man. if a woman of the witness forgets something, the other one would remind her. Or if she makes an error, due to lack of experience, the other would help to correct her. This is a precautionary measure to guarantee honest transactions and proper dealings between people. In fact, it gives woman a role to play in civil life and helps to establish justice. At any rate, lack of experience in civil life does not necessarily mean that women are inferior to man in her status. Every human being lacks one thing or another, yet no one questions their human status (2:282).[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]10. Woman enjoys certain privileges of which man is deprived. She is exempt from some religious duties, i.e., prayers and fasting, in her regular periods and at times of confinement. She is exempt from all financial liabilities. As a mother, she enjoys more recognition and higher honour in the sight of God (31:14-15;46:15). The Prophet acknowledged this honour when he declared that Paradise is under the feet of the mothers. She is entitled to three-fourths of the son's love and kindness with one-fourth left for their father. As a wife she is entitled to demand of her prospective husband a suitable dowry that will be her own. She is entitled to complete provision and total maintenance by the husband. She does not have to work or share with her husband the family expenses. She is free to retain, after marriage, whatever she possessed before it, and the husband has no right whatsoever to any of her belongings. As a daughter or sister she is entitled to security and provision by the father and brother respectively. That is her privilege. If she wishes to work or be self-supporting and participate in handling the family responsibilities, she is quite free to do so, provided her integrity and honour are safeguarded.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]11. The standing of woman in prayers behind man does not indicate in any sense that she is inferior to him. Woman, as already mentioned, is exempt from attending congregational prayers, which are obligatory on man. But if she does attend she stands in separate lines made up of women exclusively . This is a regulation of discipline in prayers, and not a classification of importance. In men's rows the head of state stands shoulder to shoulder to the pauper. Men of the highest ranks in society stand in prayer side by side with other men of the lowest ranks. The order of lines in prayers is introduced to help every one to concentrate in his meditation. It is very important because Muslim prayers are not simply chanting or the sing-a-song type. They involve actions, motions, standing, bowing, prostration, etc. So if men mix with women in the same lines, it is possible that something disturbing or distracting may happen. The mind will become occupied by something alien to prayer and derailed from the clear path of mediation. The result will be a loss of the purpose of prayers, besides an offence of adultery committed by the eye, because the eye-by looking at forbidden things - can be guilty of adultery as much as the heart itself. Moreover, no Muslim man or woman is allowed during prayers to touch the body of another person of the opposite *ex. If men and women stand side by side in prayer they cannot avoid touching each other. Furthermore, when a woman is praying in front of a man or beside him, it is very likely that any part of her dressed body may become uncovered after a certain motion of bowing or prostrating. The man's eye may happen to be looking at the uncovered part, with the result that she will be embarrassed and he will be exposed to distraction or possibly evil thoughts. So, to avoid any embarrassment and distraction to help concentrate on mediation and pure thoughts, to maintain harmony and order among worshippers, to fulfil the true purposes of prayers, Islam has ordained the organization of rows, whereby men stand in front lines, and women behind the children. Anyone with some knowledge of the nature and purpose of Muslim prayers can readily understand the wisdom of organizing the lines of worshippers in this manner.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]12. The Muslim woman is always associated with an old tradition known as the "veil". It is Islamic that the woman should beautify herself with the veil of honour, dignity, chastity, purity and integrity. She should refrain from all deeds and gestures that might stir the passions of people other than her legitimate husband or cause evil suspicion of her morality. She is warned not to display her charms or expose her physical attractions before strangers. The veil which she must put on is one that can save her soul from weakness, her mind from indulgence, her eyes from lustful looks, and her personality from demoralization. Islam is most concerned with the integrity of woman, with the safeguarding of her morals and morale and with the protection of her character and personality (Qur'an, 24:30-31).[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]13. By now it is clear that the status of woman in Islam is extremely high (in comparison to other religions) and realistically suitable to her nature. Her rights and duties are equal to those of man but not necessarily or absolutely identical with them. If she is deprived of one thing in some aspect, she is fully compensated for it with more things in many other aspects. The fact that she belongs to the female *ex has no bearing on her human status or independent personality, and it is no basis for justification of prejudice against her or injustice to her person. Islam gives her as much as is required of her. Her rights match beautifully with her duties. The balance between rights and duties is maintained, and no side overweighs the other. The whole status of woman is given clearly in the Qur'anic verse which may be translated as follows:[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]And women shall have rights similar to the rights against them, according to what is equitable; but man have a degree (of advantage as in some cases of inheritance) over them [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif](Qur’an 2:228)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]This degree is not a title of supremacy or an authorization of dominance over her. It is to correspond with the extra responsibilities of man and give him some compensation for his unlimited liabilities. The above mentioned verse is always interpreted in the light of another (4:34).[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]It is these extra responsibilities that give man a degree over woman in some economic aspects. It is not a higher degree in humanity or in character. Nor is it a dominance of one over the other or suppression of one by the other. It is a distribution of God's abundance according to the needs of the nature of which God is the Maker. And He knows best what is good for woman and what is good for man. God is absolutely true when He declares:[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] O mankind! reverence your Guardian-Lord, Who created you from a single person, and created of like nature his mate, and from them twain scattered (like seeds) countless men and women. (Qur’an 4:1)[/FONT]
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Why Do You Dress Like That


[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Narrated by: Najiyah Umm Waheeb

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]As a Muslim woman I am occasionally asked about my manner of dress. I always try to give a friendly and informative answer, but often either I or the questioners are in a hurry, and they walk away as confused as ever. So allow me to share with you a bit about the Muslim woman's dress in this written form.[/FONT]
History

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Women's covering like this did not begin with Muslims. Both the Torah and the New Testament instruct women to cover their heads. Consider images of Mary the mother of Jesus. She is always dressed exactly like Muslim women dress today! Practicing Jewish women still cover their heads, although they now do it with wigs instead of scarves, and some Christian sects like the Mennonites and Amish have also retained the head covering. In God's last revelation to mankind, the Qur'an, He also instructs women to cover their beauty.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]"Say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof, that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers..." (Qur'an An-Nur, 30-31)[/FONT]
What it Signifies:

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Many Westerners associate this type of modesty with submission and the subjugation of women. The reason for this is two-fold. Firstly, they sometimes witness in the media truly oppressed Muslim women, who, ignorant of their own faith are treated poorly in the name of Islam by unscrupulous or equally uneducated men. Secondly, their own history and scriptures predispose them to this belief. Commonly called the "Eve complex" there is a school of thought in Christianity which blames Eve for Adam's sin of eating from the forbidden fruit. The Church's historical view of women as temptresses and soulless vessels of sexual evil is a result of this belief. Additionally Paul associates modesty on the part of women with submission to their husbands when he says in I Corinthians 11:3 "...the head of every women is the man....." But in Islam, although the husband is considered the leader of the family (as every organization has a leader), the two concepts of modesty and obedience are not linked as they were by Paul.
God says in the Qur'an that the believing women should "cast their garments over their persons (when abroad); that is most convenient, that they should be known (as such) and not molested. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." [Qur'an Al-Ahzab,59]
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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]So Muslim woman's manner of dress is not a symbol of her submission to man, but rather a symbol of her belief in God. It was prescribed by God to protect women from co modification, objectification and sexualization, which occur when they display themselves to all, and sundry rather than reserving their beauty as something private and precious.[/FONT]
Benefits:

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The benefits of covering are many. A Muslim woman forces people to deal with her on a person-to-person level. She is known for her talents, intellect and personality only, not as "fat", "beautiful" or "a red-head". She maintains dignity at a time when women are constantly being treated in a sexually degrading manner- she is not sexually harassed or date raped. A Muslim woman retains the respect and reverence that Western women gave up when they began to mistakenly associate lack of modesty with equality and freedom. Muslim women also retain a healthy body image- young Muslim ladies don't suffer from anorexia or bulimia, spend countless hours on manipulative "beauty magazines" or countless dollars feeding a piranha-like beauty industry in an effort to gain the acceptance of a society that values youth and *ex and unattainable perfection. Muslim women are comfortable with themselves, confident and dignified in their covering.[/FONT]
Equality:

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]In the West the Women' Lib movement was greatly needed. But in reality such a movement was not necessary, because God granted women all the rights they fought for and even more, 1400 years ago. Islam guarantees women the right to be educated, to choose their own spouses, to initiate divorce, to work outside the home, to own property, to own a business and to keep any money earned for themselves if they so choose. Under Islamic law, women have always voted, held public office, participated in society, and spoken out if they disagree with leaders. Muslim women are also the only women anywhere guaranteed inheritance.[/FONT]
The Face Veil:

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]At the time of the Prophet Mohammed (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), the "outer garments" with which the women covered themselves were sheet-like cloaks which covered everything, leaving only the eyes showing if necessary.[/FONT] [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]There is a difference of opinion among Muslim scholars as to whether the face must then, by definition, be covered.[/FONT] [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]I personally believe that in all matters the correct interpretation is that of the companions of the Prophet himself (peace be upon him) and the earliest scholars. By far most of them taught that the face must be covered. In my research of the Qur'an I also cannot see another interpretation! I am part of a growing movement of "modern", educated Muslim women who are striving to return to this spiritually uplifting practice.[/FONT] [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]God willing it will then lose its reputation as being oppressive and will come to stand for faith, dignity and respect, as it originally did.[/FONT]
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Why Are Women Turning to Islam



Why Are Women Turning to Islam


A[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]t a time when Islam is faced with hostile media coverage particularly where the status of women in Islam is concerned, it may be quite surprising to learn that Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world, and even more ironic to discover that the majority of converts to Islam are WOMEN

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The status of women is society is neither a new issue nor is it a fully settled one, and where Islam is mentioned, for many the term 'Muslim Women' prompts images of exhausted mothers chained to the stove, 'victims' suppressed in a life of indoctrination, frantic to be westernised and so on. Others will go to great lengths to explain how the hijab is an obstacle, clouding the mind, and comment that female converts are either brainwashed, stupid or traitors to their *ex. I reject such accusations and pose to them the following question: why is it that so many women who have been born and brought in the so called 'civilized' societies of Europe and America are willing to reject their 'liberty' and 'independence' to embrace a religion that supposedly oppresses them and is widely assumed to be prejudicial to them?[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]As a Christian convert to Islam, I can only present my personal experience and reasons for rejecting the 'freedom' that women claim to have in this society in favour of the only Religion that truly liberates women by giving us a status and position which is completely unique when compared with that of non-Muslim counterparts.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Before coming to Islam, I had strong feminist tendencies and recognized that where the women was concerned, a lot of shuffling around had been going on, yet without being able to pin her on the social map. The problem was ongoing: new 'women's issues' being raised without the previous ones being satisfactorily resolved. Like the many women who shared my background, I would accuse Islam of being a sexist religion, discriminating, oppressing and giving men the greater privileges. All this coming from a person who did not even know Islam, one who had been blinded due to ignorance and had accepted this deliberately distorted definition of Islam.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]However, despite my criticisms of Islam, inwardly I wasn't satisfied with my own status as a women in this society. It seemed to me that society would define such terms as 'liberty' and 'freedom' and then these definitions were accepted by women without us even attempting to question or challenge them. There was clearly a great contradiction between what women were told in theory and what actually happens in practice.
The more I pondered the greater emptiness I felt within. I was slowly beginning to reach a stage where my dissatisfaction with my status as a woman in this society, was really a reflection of my greater dissatisfaction with society itself. Everything seemed to be degenerating backwards, despite the claims that the 1990's was going to be the decade of success and prosperity. Something vital seemed to be missing from my life and nothing would fill this vacuum. Being a Christian did not do anything for me, and I began to question the validity of only remembering God one day a week - Sundays! As with many other Christians too, I had become disillusioned with the hypocrisy of the Church and was becoming increasingly unhappy with the concept of Trinity and the deification of Jesus. Eventually, I began to look into Islam. At first, I was only interested in looking at those issues which specifically dealt with women. I was surprised. What I read and learned taught me a lot about myself as a woman, and also about where the real oppression of women lies: in every other system and way of life outside of Islam. Muslim women have been given their rights in every aspect of the religion with clear definitions of their role in society - as had men - with no injustice against either of them. As Allah says:
Whoever does deeds of righteousness, be they male or female, and have faith, they will enter paradise and not the least injustice will be done to them
[Qur'an Nisa 4:124]
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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]So having amended my misconceptions about the true status of women in Islam, I was now looking further. I wanted to find that thing which was going to fill the vacuum in my life. My attention was drawn towards the beliefs and practices of Islam. It was only through establishing the fundamentals that I would understand where to turn and what to prioritise. These are often the areas which receive little attention or controversy in society, and when studying the Islamic Creed, it becomes clear why this is the case: such concise, faultless and wholly comprehensive details cannot be found elsewhere.[/FONT]
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The Status of Muslim Women in Life page 1



The Status of Muslim Women in Life



Dr. Jamal Badawi

I. INTRODUCTION
The status of women in society is neither a new issue nor is it a fully settled one.
The position of Islam on this issue has been among the subjects presented to the Western reader with the least objectivity.
This paper is intended to provide a brief and authentic exposition of what Islam stands for in this regard. The teachings of Islam are based essentially on the Quran (God's revelation) and Hadith (elaboration by Prophet Muhammad).
The Quran and the Hadith, properly and unbiasedly understood, provide the basic source of authentication for any position or view which is attributed to Islam.
The paper starts with a brief survey of the status of women in the pre-Islamic era. It then focuses on these major questions: What is the position of Islam regarding the status of woman in society? How similar or different is that position from "the spirit of the time," which was dominant when Islam was revealed? How would this compare with the "rights" which were finally gained by woman in recent decades?
II. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES
One major objective of this paper is to provide a fair evaluation of what Islam contributed (or failed to contribute) toward the restoration of woman's dignity and rights. In order to achieve this objective, it may be useful to review briefly how women were treated in general in previous civilizations and religions, especially those which preceded Islam (Pre-610 C.E.). Part of the information provided here, however, describes the status of woman as late as the nineteenth century, more than twelve centuries after Islam.
Women in Ancient Civilization
Describing the status of the Indian woman, Encyclopedia Britannica states:
In India, subjection was a cardinal principle. Day and night must women be held by their protectors in a state of dependence says Manu. The rule of inheritance was agnatic, that is descent traced through males to the exclusion of females.
In Hindu scriptures, the description of a good wife is as follows: "a woman whose mind, speech and body are kept in subjection, acquires high renown in this world, and, in the next, the same abode with her husband."
In Athens, women were not better off than either the Indian or the Roman women.
Athenian women were always minors, subject to some male - to their father, to their brother, or to some of their male kin.
Her consent in marriage was not generally thought to be necessary and "she was obliged to submit to the wishes of her parents, and receive from them her husband and her lord, even though he were stranger to her."
A Roman wife was described by an historian as: "a babe, a minor, a ward, a person incapable of doing or acting anything according to her own individual taste, a person continually under the tutelage and guardianship of her husband."
In the Encyclopedia Britannica, we find a summary of the legal status of women in the Roman civilization:
In Roman Law a woman was even in historic times completely dependent. If married she and her property passed into the power of her husband... the wife was the purchased property of her husband, and like a slave acquired only for his benefit. A woman could not exercise any civil or public office, could not be a witness, surety, tutor, or curator; she could not adopt or be adopted, or make will or contract. Among the Scandinavian races women were: under perpetual tutelage, whether married or unmarried. As late as the Code of Christian V, at the end of the 17th Century, it was enacted that if a woman married without the consent of her tutor he might have, if he wished, administration and usufruct of her goods during her life.
According to the English Common Law:
...all real property which a wife held at the time of a marriage became a possession of her husband. He was entitled to the rent from the land and to any profit which might be made from operating the estate during the joint life of the spouses. As time passed, the English courts devised means to forbid a husband's transferring real property without the consent of his wife, but he still retained the right to manage it and to receive the money which it produced. As to a wife's personal property, the husband's power was complete. He had the right to spend it as he saw fit.
Only by the late nineteenth Century did the situation start to improve. "By a series of acts starting with the Married women's Property Act in 1870, amended in 1882 and 1887, married women achieved the right to own property and to enter contracts on a par with spinsters, widows, and divorcees." As late as the Nineteenth Century an authority in ancient law, Sir Henry Maine, wrote: "No society which preserves any tincture of Christian institutions is likely to restore to married women the personal liberty conferred on them by the Middle Roman Law."
In his essay The Subjection of Women, John Stuart Mill wrote:
We are continually told that civilization and Christianity have restored to the woman her just rights. Meanwhile the wife is the actual bondservant of her husband; no less so, as far as the legal obligation goes, than slaves commonly so called.
Before moving on to the Quranic decrees concerning the status of woman, a few Biblical decrees may shed more light on the subject, thus providing a better basis for an impartial evaluation. In the Mosaic Law, the wife was betrothed. Explaining this concept, the Encyclopedia Biblical states: "To betroth a wife to oneself meant simply to acquire possession of her by payment of the purchase money; the betrothed is a girl for whom the purchase money has been paid." From the legal point of view, the consent of the girl was not necessary for the validation of her marriage. "The girl's consent is unnecessary and the need for it is nowhere suggested in the Law."
As to the right of divorce, we read in the Encyclopedia Biblical: "The woman being man's property, his right to divorce her follows as a matter of course." The right to divorce was held only by man. "In the Mosaic Law divorce was a privilege of the husband only.... "
The position of the Christian Church until recent centuries seems to have been influenced by both the Mosaic Law and by the streams of thought that were dominant in its contemporary cultures. In their book, Marriage East and West, David and Vera Mace wrote:
Let no one suppose, either, that our Christian heritage is free of such slighting judgments. It would be hard to find anywhere a collection of more degrading references to the female *ex than the early Church Fathers provide. Lecky, the famous historian, speaks of (these fierce incentives which form so conspicuous and so grotesque a portion of the writing of the Fathers... woman was represented as the door of hell, as the mother of all human ills. She should be ashamed at the very thought that she is a woman. She should live in continual penance on account of the curses she has brought upon the world. She should be ashamed of her dress, for it is the memorial of her fall. She should be especially ashamed of her beauty, for it is the most potent instrument of the devil). One of the most scathing of these attacks on woman is that of Tertullian: (Do you know that you are each an Eve? The sentence of God on this *ex of yours lives in this age: the guilt must of necessity live too. You are the devil's gateway: you are the unsealer of that forbidden tree; you are the first deserters of the divine law; you are she who persuades him whom the devil was not valiant enough to attack. You destroyed so easily God's image, man. On account of your desert - that is death - even the Son of God had to die). Not only did the church affirm the inferior status of woman, it deprived her of legal rights she had previously enjoyed.
III. WOMAN IN ISLAM
In the midst of the darkness that engulfed the world, the divine revelation echoed in the wide desert of Arabia with a fresh, noble, and universal message to humanity:
"O Mankind, keep your duty to your Lord who created you from a single soul and from it created its mate (of same kind) and from them twain has spread a multitude of men and women...". [Noble Quran 4:1]
A scholar who pondered about this verse states: "It is believed that there is no text, old or new, that deals with the humanity of the woman from all aspects with such amazing brevity, eloquence, depth, and originality as this divine decree."
Stressing this noble and natural conception, them Quran states:
"He (God) it is who did create you from a single soul and therefrom did create his mate, that he might dwell with her (in love)..." [Noble Quran 7:189]
"The Creator of heavens and earth: He has made for you pairs from among yourselves" [Noble Quran 42:11]
"And Allah has given you mates of your own nature, and has given you from your mates, children and grandchildren, and has made provision of good things for you. Is it then in vanity that they believe and in the grace of God that they disbelieve?" [Noble Quran 16:72]
The rest of this paper outlines the position of Islam regarding the status of woman in society from its various aspects - spiritually, socially, economically and politically.
1. The Spiritual Aspect
The Quran provides clear-cut evidence that woman is completely equated with man in the sight of God in terms of her rights and responsibilities. The Quran states:
"Every soul will be (held) in pledge for its deeds" [Noble Quran 74:38]
It also states:
"...So their Lord accepted their prayers, (saying): I will not suffer to be lost the work of any of you whether male or female. You proceed one from another..." [Noble Quran 3:195]
"Whoever works righteousness, man or woman, and has faith, verily to him will We give a new life that is good and pure, and We will bestow on such their reward according to their actions." [Noble Quran 16:97, see also 4:124]
Woman according to the Quran is not blamed for Adam's first mistake. Both were jointly wrong in their disobedience to God, both repented, and both were forgiven. [Noble Quran 2:36, 7:20-24]
In one verse in fact [20:121], Adam specifically, was blamed.
In terms of religious obligations, such as the Daily Prayers, Fasting, Poor-due, and Pilgrimage, woman is no different from man. In some cases indeed, woman has certain advantages over man. For example, the woman is exempted from the daily prayers and from fasting during her menstrual periods and forty days after childbirth. She is also exempted from fasting during her pregnancy and when she is nursing her baby if there is any threat to her health or her baby's. If the missed fasting is obligatory (during the month of Ramadan), she can make up for the missed days whenever she can. She does not have to make up for the prayers missed for any of the above reasons. Although women can and did go into the mosque during the days of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and thereafter attendance at the Friday congregational prayers is optional for them while it is mandatory for men (on Friday).
This is clearly a tender touch of the Islamic teachings for they are considerate of the fact that a woman may be nursing her baby or caring for him, and thus may be unable to go out to the mosque at the time of the prayers. They also take into account the physiological and psychological changes associated with her natural female functions.
2. The Social Aspect
a) As a child and an adolescent
Despite the social acceptance of female infanticide among some Arabian tribes, the Quran forbade this custom, and considered it a crime like any other murder.
"And when the female (infant) buried alive - is questioned, for what crime she was killed." [Noble Quran 81:8-9]
Criticizing the attitudes of such parents who reject their female children, the Quran states:
"When news is brought to one of them, of (the Birth of) a female (child), his face darkens and he is filled with inward grief! With shame does he hide himself from his people because of the bad news he has had! Shall he retain her on (sufferance) and contempt, or bury her in the dust? Ah! What an evil (choice) they decide on?" [Noble Quran 16:58-59]
Far from saving the girl's life so that she may later suffer injustice and inequality, Islam requires kind and just treatment for her. Among the sayings of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) in this regard are the following:
 
The Status of Muslim Women in Life page 2



Whosoever has a daughter and he does not bury her alive, does not insult her, and does not favor his son over her, God will enter him into Paradise. [Ibn Hanbal, No. 1957]
Whosoever supports two daughters till they mature, he and I will come in the Day of Judgment as this (and he pointed with his two fingers held together).
A similar Hadith deals in like manner with one who supports two sisters. [Ibn-Hanbal, No. 2104]
The right of females to seek knowledge is not different from that of males. Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
"Seeking knowledge is mandatory for every Muslim". [Al-Bayhaqi]
Muslim as used here including both males and females.
b) As a wife:
The Quran clearly indicates that marriage is sharing between the two halves of the society, and that its objectives, besides perpetuating human life, are emotional well-being and spiritual harmony. Its bases are love and mercy.
Among the most impressive verses in the Quran about marriage is the following.
"And among His signs is this: That He created mates for you from yourselves that you may find rest, peace of mind in them, and He ordained between you love and mercy. Lo, herein indeed are signs for people who reflect." [Noble Quran 30:21]
According to Islamic Law, women cannot be forced to marry anyone without their consent.
Ibn 'Abbas reported that a girl came to the Messenger of God, Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), and she reported that her father had forced her to marry without her consent. The Messenger of God gave her the choice... (between accepting the marriage or invalidating it). [Ibn Hanbal No. 2469]
In another version, the girl said:
"Actually I accept this marriage but I wanted to let women know that parents have no right (to force a husband on them)" [Ibn Majah, No. 1873]
Besides all other provisions for her protection at the time of marriage, it was specifically decreed that woman has the full right to her Mahr, a marriage gift, which is presented to her by her husband and is included in the nuptial contract, and that such ownership does not transfer to her father or husband. The concept of Mahr in Islam is neither an actual or symbolic price for the woman, as was the case in certain cultures, but rather it is a gift symbolizing love and affection.
The rules for married life in Islam are clear and in harmony with upright human nature. In consideration of the physiological and psychological make-up of man and woman, both have equal rights and claims on one another, except for one responsibility, that of leadership. This is a matter which is natural in any collective life and which is consistent with the nature of man.
The Quran thus states:
"...And they (women) have rights similar to those (of men) over them, and men are a degree above them." [Noble Quran 2:228]
Such degree is Quiwama (maintenance and protection). This refers to that natural difference between the sexes which entitles the weaker *ex to protection. It implies no superiority or advantage before the law. Yet, man's role of leadership in relation to his family does not mean the husband's dictatorship over his wife. Islam emphasizes the importance of taking counsel and mutual agreement in family decisions. The Quran gives us an example:
"...If they (husband wife) desire to wean the child by mutual consent and (after) consultation, there is no blame on them..." [Noble Quran 2:233]
Over and above her basic rights as a wife comes the right which is emphasized by the Quran and is strongly recommended by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him); kind treatment and companionship.
The Quran states:
"...But consort with them in kindness, for if you hate them it may happen that you hate a thing wherein God has placed much good." [Noble Quran 4:19]
Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
"The best of you is the best to his family and I am the best among you to my family."
The most perfect believers are the best in conduct and best of you are those who are best to their wives. [Ibn-Hanbal, No. 7396]
Behold, many women came to Muhammad's wives complaining against their husbands (because they beat them) - - those (husbands) are not the best of you.
As the woman's right to decide about her marriage is recognized, so also her right to seek an end for an unsuccessful marriage is recognized. To provide for the stability of the family, however, and in order to protect it from hasty decisions under temporary emotional stress, certain steps and waiting periods should be observed by men and women seeking divorce. Considering the relatively more emotional nature of women, a good reason for asking for divorce should be brought before the judge. Like the man, however, the woman can divorce her husband with out resorting to the court, if the nuptial contract allows that.
More specifically, some aspects of Islamic Law concerning marriage and divorce are interesting and are worthy of separate treatment.
When the continuation of the marriage relationship is impossible for any reason, men are still taught to seek a gracious end for it.
The Quran states about such cases:
"When you divorce women, and they reach their prescribed term, then retain them in kindness and retain them not for injury so that you transgress (the limits)..." [Noble Quran 2:231] [See also Quran 2:229 and 33:49]
c) As a mother:
Islam considered kindness to parents next to the worship of God.
"And we have enjoined upon man (to be good) to his parents: His mother bears him in weakness upon weakness..." [Noble Quran 31:14] [See also Quran 46:15, 29:8]
Moreover, the Quran has a special recommendation for the good treatment of mothers:
"Your Lord has decreed that you worship none save Him, and that you be kind to your parents..." [Noble Quran 17:23]
A man came to Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) asking:
O Messenger of God, who among the people is the most worthy of my good company? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, Your mother. The man said then who else: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, Your mother. The man asked, Then who else? The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, Your mother. The man asked, Then who else? Only then did the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say, Your father. [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
A famous saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is: "Paradise is at the feet of mothers." [In An-Nasa'i, Ibn Majah, Ahmad]
"It is the generous (in character) who is good to women, and it is the wicked who insults them."
3. The Economic Aspect
Islam decreed a right of which woman was deprived both before Islam and after it (even as late as this century), the right of independent ownership. According to Islamic Law, woman's right to her money, real estate, or other properties is fully acknowledged. This right undergoes no change whether she is single or married. She retains her full rights to buy, sell, mortgage or lease any or all her properties. It is nowhere suggested in the Law that a woman is a minor simply because she is a female. It is also noteworthy that such right applies to her properties before marriage as well as to whatever she acquires thereafter.
With regard to the woman's right to seek employment it should be stated first that Islam regards her role in society as a mother and a wife as the most sacred and essential one. Neither maids nor baby-sitters can possibly take the mother's place as the educator of an upright, complex free, and carefully-reared children. Such a noble and vital role, which largely shapes the future of nations, cannot be regarded as "idleness".
However, there is no decree in Islam which forbids woman from seeking employment whenever there is a necessity for it, especially in positions which fit her nature and in which society needs her most. Examples of these professions are nursing, teaching (especially for children), and medicine. Moreover, there is no restriction on benefiting from woman's exceptional talent in any field. Even for the position of a judge, where there may be a tendency to doubt the woman's fitness for the post due to her more emotional nature, we find early Muslim scholars such as Abu-Hanifah and At-Tabari holding there is nothing wrong with it. In addition, Islam restored to woman the right of inheritance, after she herself was an object of inheritance in some cultures. Her share is completely hers and no one can make any claim on it, including her father and her husband.
"Unto men (of the family) belongs a share of that which Parents and near kindred leave, and unto women a share of that which parents and near kindred leave, whether it be a little or much - a determinate share." [Noble Quran 4:7]
Her share in most cases is one-half the man's share, with no implication that she is worth half a man! It would seem grossly inconsistent after the overwhelming evidence of woman's equitable treatment in Islam, which was discussed in the preceding pages, to make such an inference. This variation in inheritance rights is only consistent with the variations in financial responsibilities of man and woman according to the Islamic Law. Man in Islam is fully responsible for the maintenance of his wife, his children, and in some cases of his needy relatives, especially the females. This responsibility is neither waived nor reduced because of his wife's wealth or because of her access to any personal income gained from work, rent, profit, or any other legal means.
Woman, on the other hand, is far more secure financially and is far less burdened with any claims on her possessions. Her possessions before marriage do not transfer to her husband and she even keeps her maiden name. She has no obligation to spend on her family out of such properties or out of her income after marriage. She is entitled to the "Mahr" which she takes from her husband at the time of marriage. If she is divorced, she may get an alimony from her ex-husband.
An examination of the inheritance law within the overall framework of the Islamic Law reveals not only justice but also an abundance of compassion for woman.
4. The Political Aspect
Any fair investigation of the teachings of Islam into the history of the Islamic civilization will surely find a clear evidence of woman's equality with man in what we call today "political rights".
This includes the right of election as well as the nomination to political offices. It also includes woman's right to participate in public affairs. Both in the Quran and in Islamic history we find examples of women who participated in serious discussions and argued even with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) himself (see the Noble Quran 58:14 and 60:10-12).
During the Caliphate of 'Umar Ibn al-Khattab, a woman argued with him in the mosque, proved her point, and caused him to declare in the presence of people: "A woman is right and 'Umar is wrong."
Although not mentioned in the Quran, one Hadith of the Prophet is interpreted to make woman ineligible for the position of head of state. The Hadith referred to is roughly translated: "A people will not prosper if they let a woman be their leader." This limitation, however, has nothing to do with the dignity of a woman or with her rights. It is rather, related to the natural differences in the biological and psychological make-up of men and women.
According to Islam, the head of the state is no mere figurehead. He leads people in the prayers, especially on Fridays and festivities; he is continuously engaged in the process of decision-making pertaining to the security and well-being of his people. This demanding position, or any similar one, such as the Commander of the Army, is generally inconsistent with the physiological and psychological make-up of woman in general. It is a medical fact that during their monthly periods and during their pregnancies, women undergo various physiological and psychological changes. Such changes may occur during an emergency situation, thus affecting her decision, without considering the excessive strain which is produced. Moreover, some decisions require a maximum of rationality and a minimum of emotionality - a requirement which does not coincide with the instinctive nature of women.
Even in modern times, and in the most developed countries, it is rare to find a woman in the position of a head of state acting as more than a figurehead, a woman commander of the armed services, or even a proportionate number of women representatives in parliaments, or similar bodies. One can not possibly ascribe this to backwardness of various nations or to any constitutional limitation on woman's right to be in such a position as a head of state or as a member of the parliament. It is more logical to explain the present situation in terms of the natural and indisputable differences between man and woman, a difference which does not imply any "supremacy" of one over the other. The difference implies rather the "complementary" roles of both the sexes in life.
IV. CONCLUSION
The first part of this paper deals briefly with the position of various religions and cultures on the issue under investigation. Part of this exposition extends to cover the general trend as late as the nineteenth century, nearly 1300 years after the Quran set forth the Islamic teachings.
In the second part of the paper, the status of women in Islam is briefly discussed. Emphasis in this part is placed on the original and authentic sources of Islam. This represents the standard according to which degree of adherence of Muslims can be judged. It is also a fact that during the downward cycle of Islamic Civilization, such teachings were not strictly adhered to by many people who professed to be Muslims.
Such deviations were unfairly exaggerated by some writers, and the worst of this, were superficially taken to represent the teachings of "Islam" to the Western reader without taking the trouble to make any original and unbiased study of the authentic sources of these teachings.
Even with such deviations three facts are worth mentioning:
The history of Muslims is rich with women of great achievements in all walks of life from as early as the seventh century (A.D.)
It is impossible for anyone to justify any mistreatment of woman by any decree of rule embodied in the Islamic Law, nor could anyone dare to cancel, reduce, or distort the clear-cut legal rights of women given in Islamic Law.
Throughout history, the reputation, chastity and maternal role of Muslim women were objects of admiration by impartial observers.
It is also worthwhile to state that the status which women reached during the present era was not achieved due to the kindness of men or due to natural progress. It was rather achieved through a long struggle and sacrifice on woman's part and only when society needed her contribution and work, more especially during the two world wars, and due to the escalation of technological change.
In the case of Islam such compassionate and dignified status was decreed, not because it reflects the environment of the seventh century, nor under the threat or pressure of women and their organizations, but rather because of its intrinsic truthfulness.
If this indicates anything, it would demonstrate the divine origin of the Quran and the truthfulness of the message of Islam, which, unlike human philosophies and ideologies, was far from proceeding from its human environment, a message which established such humane principles as neither grew obsolete during the course of time and after these many centuries, nor can become obsolete in the future. After all, this is the message of the All-Wise and All-Knowing God whose wisdom and knowledge are far beyond the ultimate in human thought and progress.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
The Holy, Quran: Translation of verses is heavily based on A. Yusuf 'Ali's translation, The Glorious Quran, text translation, and Commentary, The American Trust Publication, Plainfield, IN 46168, 1979.
'Abd Al-Ati, Hammudah, Islam in Focus, The American Trust Publications, Plainfield, IN 46168, 1977.
Allen, E. A., History of Civilization, General Publishing House, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1889, Vol. 3.
Al Siba'i, Mustafa, Al-Alar'ah Baynal Fiqh Walqanoon (in Arabic), 2nd. ea., Al-Maktabah Al-Arabiah, Halab, Syria, 1966.
El-Khouli, Al-Bahiy, "Min Usus Kadiat Al-Mara'ah" (in Arabic), Al-Waay Al-lslami, Ministry of Walcf, Kuwait, Vol.3 (No. 27), June 9, 1967, p.17.
Encyclopedia Americana (International Edition), American Corp., N.Y., 1969, Vol.29.
Encyclopedia Biblical (Rev.T.K.Cheynene and J.S.Black, editors), The Macmillan Co., London, England, 1902, Vol.3.
The Encyclopedia Britannica, (11th ed.), University Press Cambridge, England, 191 1, Vol.28.
Encyclopedia Britannica, The Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., Chicago, III., 1968, Vol.23.
Hadith. Most of the quoted Hadith were translated by the writer. They are quoted in various Arabic sources. Some of them, however, were translated directly from the original sources. Among the sources checked are Musnad Ahmad Ibn Hanbal Dar Al-Ma'aref, Cairo, U.A.R., 1950, and 1955, Vol.4 and 3,SunanIbnMajah, Dar Ihya'a Al-Kutub al-Arabiah, Cairo, U.A.R., 1952, Vol.l, Sunan al-Tirmidhi, Vol.3.
 


[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Why did they become Muslims?

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INTRODUCTION
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[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The Islamic religion is the final religion and is therefore at the zenith of perfection. This fact is acknowledged even by (George) Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) [Shaw's clever plays, e.g. Pymalion, are based on faults in moral attitudes and in society.], the well-known Irish writer and critic, whose personal comments on Islam can be summarized as, "Were we to choose a common religion for the entire world, it would definitely be the Islamic religion." This conclusion is quite natural. For the Islamic religion is the sole religion that has preserved its intact purity owing to the promised protection against the interpolations suffered by all the religious systems previous to it. Judaism, one of the greatest monotheistic cults, had foretold about the advent of a Messiah. Issa a.s. (Jesus) was hailed as the promised Messiah, yet the Injil (Bible), the heavenly book of the religion he spread, was lost. Later, various gospels were written in the name of Injil, and these new gospels, which were no more than interpolations themselves, were interpolated again and again. All these facts, along with various other portents, announced the coming of a final prophet, the real Messiah s.a.s. As a matter of fact, the name of this Messiah is literally written in the Gospel of Barnabas. Then, the Islamic religion is the last, the most true, the most perfect religion wherein all the true religions converge and which, therefore, reflects the full approval of Allahu ta'ala. A friend of ours, [namely, Dr. Nuri Refet Korur], who had spent his entire youth among Christians in Europe, said to us: "I am a Muslim born from Muslim parents. I spent my life in Europe, where I had the chance and time to study all religions and to compare them with each other. If I had seen that another religion was superior to Islam, I would have given up Islam and accepted that religion. For there was no one to force me to remain a Muslim. Yet, all the research and the comparative studies I carried on, reinforced by the debates that I, in the meantime, indulged in with Christians, revealed the fact that Islam is by far superior to all the world's present religions and that it is the only intact true religion, so clearly that I became attached to Islam with all my heart."

Sad to say, today's western world still accommodates Christians who insist on the wrong and call Muslims "heretics", "idle-minded", "devil-worshipers", "irreligious". These misconceptions are inculcated in the minds of Christian children by priests, whose real purpose is to distract their young and inquisitive brains. These interceptive activities are fed with the slanderous propaganda that the Islamic religion embodies aspects disagreeable with modern civilization. The fact, on the other hand, is that Islam is the only religion suitable for today's civilized world. Our book Islam and Christianity deals with and refutes these misconceptions. In addition to English, we translated that book into French and German and sent the translated versions to countries all over the world. Thereby we tried to countermand the falsifications spread by priests and thus to state the actual facts. It did not take us long to see how appropriate and useful our work had been. No sooner had we distributed the books to the world than they gave their fruits. We received a letter from India, in which wrote an Indian Christian: "When I read your book Islam and Christianity, I realized that Islam is the true religion and I decided to become a Muslim." We have been receiving similar letters from young Africans. Anyone who has the opportunity to study the pure, clean, civilized and humane aspects of Islam will feel an irresistible attraction to this religion. The Islamic religion is spreading over the world without any such media as propagation and organization. On the other hand, the missionary organizations belonging to those countries whose primary objective is to spread Christianity are spending huge amounts of money and offering various types of social aid, and yet achieving very little success in comparison with their tremendous efforts.

Despite all this wrongful and inimical volley of vituperations carried on against Islam and all the stupendous efforts put forth for the spreading of Christianity, there has been an ever growing increase in the number of Muslims on the earth. Later ahead you will find more extensive information on this subject. Some of these Muslims remained Muslims because they had been born in Muslim families. However, besides these people there are also people who accepted Islam although their parents had been in other religions and they therefore had been given their family education in other religions. Among these people are universally renowned diplomats, statesmen, scientists, scholars, men of letters, writers, and even men of religion. These people studied Islam well, admired its greatness, and became Muslims willingly. In addition to these people, many other universally known celebrities met the Islamic religion with deep respect and admiration although they did not officially become Muslims; they even believed in the fact that Islam is the true religion and did not hesitate to express this belief of theirs. Scientists, philosophers, and politicians, admired by the entire world, first of all believe in the fact that Allahu ta'ala exists and is One and that He is the Creator of all beings. In this chapter you will find the statements and observations belonging to some of these celebrities.

Among the people who accepted Islam, there may be those who became Muslims of necessity, for the sake of some advantages, or for advertisement. For instance, a non-Muslim woman may have accepted Islam without studying and learning Islam well for the purpose of marrying a certain man who happened to be a Muslim, or an Indian pariah may have done so in order to regain his lost civic rights. However, the fact that well-known scholars, scientists and writers accept the Islamic religion only after a long observation bears a lofty import. Selections from the explanations given by these cultured people on why they abandoned their religions and embraced Islam have been compiled from various sources and books and listed in the following pages. As you read them you will hear from the very tongues of these respectable people why the Islamic religion is superior to other religions. Perhaps a person who was born a Muslim and has spent his life among Muslims is totally oblivious of these superiorities. Yet when a person belonging to another religion studies Islam, he will see the difference clearly and will admire Islam. In fact, reading these explanations will provide you with an opportunity to see and admire once again the high merits of our religion, and thus feel and offer gratitude to Allahu ta'ala for having been Muslims.

A conclusion drawn from all these explanations, in other words, a summary of the reasons why Islam is superior to the other religions, has been added in an independent chapter.

We hold the belief that this work will give you fresh information about the Islamic religion and will confirm once again that Islam is a great and true religion.

A FEW WORDS

Allahu ta'ala created mankind. All people are the born slaves of Allahu ta'ala. Allahu ta'ala is the creator, the Rabb, not only of a certain nation or race or only of the world, but also of the entire humanity as well as of all the worlds of existence. In the view of Allahu ta'ala, all people are the same, and no one is different from another. In addition to a body, He has given a soul to each one of them. He has sent them Prophets 'alaihimus-salawatu wattaslimat' to lead them to spiritual and physical perfection and to guide them on the right way. The greatest ones of these Prophets are Adam, Nuh (Noah), Ibrahim (Abraham), Musa (Moses), Issa (Jesus), and Muhammad s.a.s. The tenets of belief that they taught are the same. The final and the most perfect system is Islam, taught by Muhammad a.s.. No Prophet will come after Muhammad a.s.. For the religion he brought is at the uppermost point of perfection and has no deficiency to be made up; and Allahu ta'ala has declared that mankind will never be able to change or interpolate this religion. The well-known German Writer Lessing (1729-1781), in his book Nathan der Weise (Nathan the Wise), likens the three (heavenly) religions to three identical rings made of sapphire. Yet he feels uncertain as to "whether one of them is genuine and the other three false?" Yet the fact is that all three of them are genuine essentially.

However, as a result of various personal interests, advantages, sordid and biased considerations, jealousies, superstitions, misinformation and misconstructions, men failed to understand this reality, inserted numerous wrong beliefs and ideas into the Musawi and Nasrani religions, and thus changed, defiled these true religions, which were based on Tawhid (unity, oneness of Allahu ta'ala). Only Islam remained in its original purity. Consequently, adherents of these three religions became hostile to one another. This hostile attitude they have assumed means to oppose to the Will of Allahu ta'ala. For, as we have already stated, Allahu ta'ala invites all people to the true religion. In the view of Allahu ta'ala, all people, regardless of race, are equal. All people are Ummat-I-da'wat. And the true religion is Islam, which is the only continuation of the original forms of Judaism and Christianity.

The following passage, which we have paraphrased from Prof. Robinson, reflects the opinions formed in the minds of today's people who are stuck fast in materialism:

"I joined a tour of Israel organized for the teaching staff and students of the University of Orel Roberts. Orel Roberts, the founder of the university and one of the notables of the Catholic Church, was with us. During our scheduled visit to Ben Gurion, a former premier of Israel, Orel Roberts presented a copy of the Holy Bible to Mr. Gurion. The first portion of the Holy Bible was the Old Testament, that is, the Torah. Roberts requested Ben Gurion to read the passage he liked best of that holy book. Ben Gurion met his request with a smile. We sat under a tree in the small yard in front of his house. We were all quiet and ready to listen intently. Ben Gurion opened the Holy Bible, turned one or two pages, and read the following passage: "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." [Gen: 1-27] I thought to myself, 'good Gracious! Is this the statement he has found after all?' I frowned because I had been expecting him to read a passage from one of the Pentateuchal parts with meanings of a higher level, such as a verse telling about creation or a passage from the Ten Commandments. I beckoned to the television cameraman shooting the event. This beckoning meant: 'Don't bother! These statements are not worth being televised the world over.'

"Sometime afterwards, however, Ben Gurion explained with enthusiasm verging on ecstasy why he had picked up this statement, as follows: 'Quite a long time before we became Americans, Russians, Israelis, Egyptians, or Christians, Muslims, Magians, Jews, etc., that is, before the formation of differences separating today's people from one another, such as nationality, state, religion, belief, and the like, we were all a man and a woman created by Allahu ta'ala. This is the greatest fact which all religious systems are primarily trying to teach us. Why don't we realize this and why are all these hostilities among us? Let us join hands and supplicate Allahu ta'ala to help us realize this fact.'

"We all hung our heads. Roberts, being a religious man, said, 'Amin,' on behalf of us all. The statement that Ben Gurion picked up really was the wisest choice.

"Throughout my way back from Israel this statement completely occupied my mind. We human beings are all the same. We are the born slaves of Allahu ta'ala. There is only one way leading to Him. This way is the way of belief guided by Abraham (Ibrahim), by Moses (Musa), by Jesus (Issa), and finally by Muhammad s.a.s. People who follow this way shall attain to salvation. By abandoning the way guided by Prophets, mankind has made the gravest error. It is for this reason that they have lost their way and their moral qualities and have even forgotten Allahu ta'ala. The earth's resuming its peace and salvation is dependent upon men's realizing that they have been on the wrong way and returning to the right way."

How right Prof. Robinson is in his statements paraphrased above! Today most people have left the way prescribed by the religions, and material values have become their only concern. These poor people do not know that material values are a mere nothing. They are doomed to destruction and extinction. What is immortal in man is his soul. And the soul, in its turn, will not feed on material nutritives. The soul's primary diet is a correct belief in Allahu ta'ala, who created all from nothing; next comes worshipping Him, observing the duties required from His born slaves. Today, all scholars, scientists and state presidents believe in the existence of Allahu ta'ala. Yet in matters pertaining to belief and worship they mostly get stuck in wrong and misguided thoughts and ideas and thus deviate from the right way. A beautiful description of this case is given by Prof. White, a brain surgeon who has won many scientific awards and has attained international fame for the various operational methods he has found, and who is presently a professor at the University of Cleveland and at the same time the director of the Clinic of Brain Surgery founded in the same city. See what he says, (as paraphrased):

"The child that was brought in for a surgical operation was a six-year-old lovely girl. She was very graceful, lively, intelligent, and cheerful. Yet after examination we spotted a big tumour in her brain. We took her in for operation. A cyst attached to the tumour had made It grow very big. I began to operate on the sac containing liquid. But, alas, the global cystic tumour suddenly contracted and the wide veins on its surface tore. blood was gushing out unto the operation bench. My friends and I were doing our utmost to stop the blood flowing as if from a water pump. It was of no avail. We saw in despair that we were losing the battle. The child was dying in our hands. We were under the hopeless oppression of profound sadness. I was trying to stop the bleeding by putting pieces of cotton on the torn veins. The bleeding seemed to come to an end. Yet I could not lift my hand off. For I knew that if I did so the bleeding would begin again and in that case nothing could be done any more. My assistants began to inject blood into the child's body. My fingers were still on the pieces of cotton. How incapable and powerless I felt! poor me, how did I dare to cut off a tumour formed in a small girl's brain? How on earth could I assume the responsibility of so tremendous a job? How could a pitiable human being even touch that stupendous work of art, which we call 'brain', which manages all the so many various functions, provides humankind with their personality and equips them with a variety of faculties such as intellect, memory, emotions, feelings, tastes, pains, thoughts and fancies, and which Allahu ta'ala, alone, could create? We term this tiny object 'brain'. Yet, in actual fact, it was this very child that lay helpless before us.

"Half an hour later. Utter silence reigned in the operation room. We were all extremely tense with anxiety. Everybody, and I myself, knew that were I to lift my hand the flood of blood would begin again, which meant the death of the child. At that moment I began to supplicate to Allahu ta'ala and trusted myself to His help. I begged, 'O my Allah, do give my fingers the strength I need so that I can prevent the bleeding!' Presently a strong feeling of relief suffused me. For I had now committed my trust to Allahu ta'ala. I had the belief that I could now lift my fingers off and there would be no bleeding any longer. I felt the existence of Allahu ta'ala with all my soul. Slowly, I lifted my fingers. The bleeding had stopped.

"It was now easy to perform the operation. The operation lasted for exactly four and a half hours. I did not leave the child for a whole week. I felt so happy as I observed that the child was gradually recovering. As of today, the child is ten years old, a perfectly healthful, cheerful and happy little dear.

"In 1974 I examined a child who had had a brain haemorrhage and I saw that there was a small tumour in the middle of its brain. Yet the tumour had begun to bleed and suppurate. The situation was dangerous and hopeless. We opened the skull, placed tubes on both sides of the brain, and began to wash the brain with antibiotics. This was quite a new method and I was the first to use it. Because the child was burning with fever, we placed it in a respirator and covered it with cold blankets. In the meantime we continued to wash the brain. This hopeless situation lasted for weeks. I kept praying and supplicating Allahu ta'ala to help me. In my supplications, I was begging Allahu ta'ala not only to have mercy on the child and its parents, but also to give energy and strength to those people who had undertaken this heavy responsibility and who had been working with me continuously for weeks.

"Eventually, the divine help reached us. This event, which had seemed to be a total hopelessness, ended in success. The child recovered. My friends were happy and they were saying that the new method we had used had 'yielded a very good result.' They thought that I did it and they prided on it. Yet I did not think so. I was of opinion that, no matter how hard we worked, no matter how new methods we found, no matter how new techniques we applied, success in operations of that sort depended only on the help of Allahu ta'ala. I have always felt this in my heart in the numerous operations I have performed up to now. However improved our technology may be, the result of a brain operation, like all other things, is within the power of Allahu ta'ala, and success is possible only with His help.

"During the brain operations I have performed for years, I have felt great excitement before the human brain. As I have dealt with the brain, and each time I have seen the brain, I have felt in my heart that it is impossible to solve the mystery of this tremendous work of art, that the power which created it is very great, and that it is necessary to believe in the existence of Allahu ta'ala. Even the most perfect computers made by people today can be only toys when compared to the tiniest brains.

"Now I believe that the brain is a case in which the human soul is preserved. As we perform an operation around this case we perform a religious rite. A brain operation, in my personal credo, is a religious rite, identical with performing an act of worship. The operator's technical knowledge and skill are not the only requirements. He should, at the same time, believe in the existence of Allahu ta'ala and beg Him for help and mercy for a successful operation.

"What happens to the soul kept in the case of the brain when a person dies? The soul is not in the body now, but definitely it is not dead. Where does it go, then? It is not for me as a doctor to speculate on where the soul goes or where it stays. For physical areas of knowledge cannot answer this question. The only guide that will help us in this respect is a religious book. I believe that inasmuch as their brains and souls possess the faculty for reasoning, the humankind should leave aside the material values, attach themselves to the religion with all their hearts and believe in the teachings written in religious books."

This comes to mean that even the world's famous and greatest surgeon sincerely expresses that he believes in the existence of Allahu ta'ala and that without His help nothing can be done.

Now let us lend an ear to a scientist:

You all know Edison,[Edison (Thomas Alva) died in 1350 [1931 A.D.]] the well-known American scientist. About this renowned inventor who, in addition to various discoveries, made the first electric bulb and thus illuminated the world, his closest colleague relates the following memory in a book published several years ago:

"One day, as I entered the room, I found Edison deeply plunged in thought, motionless, looking at some container which he was holding in his hand. An expression of utter astonishment tinted with deep signs of respect, admiration and adoration had suffused his face. He did not even notice me till I was quite near him. When he saw me he showed me the container in his hand. It was full of quicksilver. 'look at that,' he said. 'What a tremendous work of art! Do you believe that quicksilver is extraordinary?' I replied, 'Quicksilver is really wonderful substance.' Edison's voice quivered as he spoke. He murmured to me, 'As I look at quicksilver, I admire the greatness of its Creator. So many varying properties He has given to it! As I think of these I almost lose my mind.' Then he turned to me again, and said, 'People world over admire me. They presume that all these various inventions and discoveries I have managed are wonders and great accomplishments. They want to look on me as a superhuman. What a great error it is! I am a person who is not even worth a penny. My discoveries consist in uncovering only an infinitesimal part of the great wonders that actually exist in the universe but which people have not noticed so far. A person who says, "I made this," is the most abject liar, the most drivelling idiot. Man is an incapable creature who can do nothing by himself. Man is a creature who can talk a little and who can think a little. If he thinks well, he will, let alone being proud, see how void he is. So, as I think of these facts, I realize what a powerless, incompetent and weak creature I am. Me, an inventor? [He raised his hand and pointed to the sky.] The real inventor, the real genius, the real creator is He, Allah!' "

As is seen, scientists believe in the existence of Allahu ta'ala and hold fast to His religion with both hands. Materialists mostly cannot find solutions to their problems and give up hope. This is because their souls are empty. The human soul, like the body, needs food. And this, in its turn, is possible only when one has iman, and the only way leading to Allahu ta'ala is the religion. Even those who deny Allahu ta'ala will some day feel this need.

The famous Russian writer (Alexander) Solzhenitsyn (1918 - -), when he settled his home in the U.S., thought he would now be free from great troubles, mental depressions, and from the state of being only a mechanical tool. One day he summoned a group of American youth around himself in a university and said to them, "When I came here, I thought I would be very happy. Unfortunately, here, too, I feel myself in a vacuum. For we have become the slaves of material values. Yes, there is freedom here, and one can do whatever one wishes. But material values are the only important things. The souls are empty. However, what makes a human being a real human is its matured, refined soul. My piece of advice to you is this: Try to improve and beautify your soul! In that case only will those monstrosities that have infested your country and which have been worrying you begin to disappear. Pay the religion its due importance! The human soul is fed on religion. People adherent to their religion will be your greatest helpers in whatever you do. For the fear of Allah will keep them on the right way. On the other hand, your police forces, no matter how powerful, cannot establish a twenty-four-hour control over everybody. What deters people from iniquities is not the concept of police, but the fear that they feel in the permanent presence of Allah."

As we have stated above, religion is the only source of nutriment for the human soul. Of all the existent religions, Islam is the truest, the newest, and the most comprehensive so that it provides its adherents with an ever during adaptability to the world's changing conditions. In this booklet you will read selections from the autobiographical documents in which some cultured people, who, while formerly belonging to some other religion during their childhood, studied various religions and their books and finally embraced Islam on their own volition and without even any marginal outside influence, give their personal accounts on why they decided to change their religion and become a Muslim.

In addition to these highly cultured people, there are quite a number of celebrities who believe in the existence of Allahu ta'ala and who admire Islam for its greatness. There is mention of these people in the next chapter. In the so-called chapter, we shall paraphrase paragraphs from the reflections on the existence of Allahu ta'ala and the superiority of Islam selected from the statements of Emperor Napoleon (Bonaparte, 1769-1821), (Thomas) Carlyle (1796-1881), Prof. (Ernest) Renan (1823-1892), and the Indian hero (Mahatma) Ghandi (1869-1948), and the statements made by (Alphonso Marie de) Lamartine (1790-1869) about our darling Prophet Muhammad a.s..

As all these indicate, the religion is the most vital necessity for mankind. Those unfortunate people who do not believe in their own religion, and who have not had the chance to study Islam, either, will remain hollow-souled and will get hold of false credos fabricated by liars. For a person definitely needs to believe in the existence of a being superior to him and to attach himself to that being. Even those people living in the most improved and developed countries have sought ways to satisfy this need and finally attached themselves to aberrant ideas and fabricated beliefs. On November 17, 1978, nine hundred votaries of a heretical sect were taken to Guyana in North Africa by a miscreant priest named Jim Jones, the founder of the sect, which he called People's Religion, and thence to a camp which this eccentric priest, again, called Jonestown,[This event is widely known as the "Jonestown Massacre."] where he induced them to poison themselves (by drinking poison together). In Italy, a pair of parents who believed another similar priest killed their own child with their own hands because the heretic priest had told them to kill their child and the child would come back to life and would become even healthier than before upon his sending his prayers; it goes without saying how ruined the parents felt when they saw that the child would never return to this life. If these people, who had left their religion, had studied the Islamic religion like those people who embraced Islam, and whom you will get to know more closely further ahead, they would have found in it what they had been looking for, and the Islamic religion, whose lexical meaning also is 'peace and tranquillity, salvation, trusting oneself to Allah', would have given them the spiritual serenity they had been yearning for.

Very sad to say, we Muslims cannot propagate our brilliant religion to the world as efficiently as we wish to do. One of the deciding factors contributing to this failure is our own slackness in paying our religion due attachment and our contagious remission in carrying out its commandments. The Islamic religion enjoins, first of all, physical and spiritual cleanliness. Spiritual cleanliness is obtainable by believing first in the existence of Allahu ta'ala and then in the totality of His commandments and prohibitions which He sent to humankind through Muhammad a.s., His final Messenger. That the soul has been likewise cleansed is identifiable from the presence of certain characteristic signs, such as never lying, never deceiving anybody, habitual rectitude, not holding heretical dogmas, readiness to help others without discriminating among them, and full submission to the commandments of Allahu ta'ala. This is the sole behaviour expected from a Muslim. Then, if a person means to propagate the Islamic religion, first of all he himself has to be a model Muslim. If we exhibit this model and modest behaviour, people belonging to other religions will observe us with admiration, which in turn automatically prompt them to study the Islamic religion. Our newly converted Muslim brothers explained in their answers to the question, "Why did you become a Muslim?" that they decided to become a Muslim upon seeing true Muslims and their life-styles. These Muslims request us to try to spread and publicize the Islamic religion and to set an example, a model Muslim for others by holding fast with both hands to the commandments of our religion. For all our faults and our insufficient capacity of propaganda, the Islamic religion is growing piecemeal and spreading over the world. In 1954 the population of the world was 2.4 billion. By 1978 it reached 3.8 billion. Between 1954 and 1978 the number of Christians reached 150 million, while that of Muslims became 220 million. According to the statistics of the year 1978 written in the World Almanac, published by an international statistics center, there are 1.7 billion Buddhists and Magians, 950 million Christians (Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox Christians), 10 million Jews, 538 million Muslims 1,5 billions - 1996 - UNO statistics) on the earth. On the other hand, Time, (an American magazine), allotted its April 1979 issue to Islam. It was recorded in this issue that the real number of Muslims was 750 million and the existing statistics were incorrect. Christian statisticians make every endeavour to represent a lower number of Muslims on the earth.

- 2 - SELECTIONS FROM THE EXPLANATIONS MADE BY CELEBRITIES WHO WERE FORMERLY NON-MUSLIMS AND WHOSE ADMIRATION FOR ISLAM EVENTUALLY LED THEM TO BELIEVING IN Allahu TA'ALA

The following chapter contains a few paraphrased selections from the statements made by some of the many non-Muslim celebrities who believed in Allahu ta'ala and admired Islam; these statements reflect their views of Islam. So many are the people who share the same opinions that we have had to pick out only the famous ones. Among our selections are great commanders, statesmen and scientists whom you all know very well. Now let us read with attention to what they said:
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NAPOLEON (BONAPARTE):

Napoleon I (1769-1821 [1237 A.H.]), who went into history as a military genius and statesman, when he entered Egypt in 1212 [C.E. 1798], admired Islam's greatness and genuineness, and even considered whether he should become a Muslim. The following excerpt was paraphrased from Cherfils's book (Bonapart et Islam):

"Napoleon said:

The existence and unity of Allahu ta'ala, which Musa a.s., had announced to his own people and Issa a.s. to his own Ummat, was announced by Muhammad s.a.s. to the entire world. Arabia had become totally a country of idolaters. Six centuries after Issa a.s., Muhammad a.s. initiated the Arabs into an awareness of Allahu ta'ala, whose existence prophets previous to him, such as Ibrahim (Abraham), Ismail, Musa (Moses) and Issa (Jesus) a.s. had announced. Peace in the east had been disturbed by the Arians, [i.e. Christians who followed Arius], who had somehow developed a degree of friendship with the Arabs, and by heretics, who had defiled the true religion of Issa a.s. and were striving to spread in the name of religion a totally unintelligible credo which is based on trinity, i.e. God, Son of God, and the Holy Ghost. Muhammad a.s. guided the Arabs to the right way, taught them that Allahu ta'ala is one, that He does not have a father or a son, and that worshipping several gods is an absurd custom which is the continuation of idolatry."

At another place in his book he quotes Napoleon as having said, "I hope that in the near future I will have the chance to gather together the wise and cultured people of the world and establish a government that I will operate [in accordance with the principles written in Qur'an al-karim.]"

Prof. (THOMAS) CARLYLE:

Thomas Carlyle of Scotland (1210 [C.E. 1795]-1298 [C.E. 1881]), one of the greatest men of knowledge known world over, entered the university when he was only fourteen years old, studied jurisprudence, literature and history, learned German and oriental languages, exchanged letters with, and even visited, the well-known German writer (Johann Wolf-gang von) Goethe (1749-1832), was awarded by the King of Prussia with the medal of honour called 'pour le mérite', and was elected president by the University of Edinburgh. Among Carlyle's works are Sartur Resartus, The French Revolution, On Heroes, Hero Worship And the Heroic in History, Past and Present, Latter-Day Pamphlets, The Life of Friedrich Schiller, and Critical and Miscellaneous Essays.

The following passage was selected from one of his works:

"The Arabs, Muhammad a.s., and his age: Before the advent of Muhammad a.s., (the Arabs were in such a state that) if a big piece of fire spurted out at the place where the Arabs lived, it would have dIssappeared on the dry sand without leaving any traces behind itself. But after the advent of Muhammad a.s. that desert of dry sand turned into, as it were, a barrel of gunpowder. From Delhi to Granada, everywhere became rapidly rising flames. This great person was, so to speak, lightning, and all the people around him became explosives catching fire from him."

From his conference:

"As you read the Qur'an al-karim, you will presently realize that it is not an ordinary tome of literature. The Qur'an al-karim is a work of art that springs from a heart and instantly penetrates all the other hearts. All the other works of art are quite dull when compared with this tremendous masterpiece. The most striking characteristic of the Qur'an al-karim is that it is a truthful and excellent guide. To me, this is the greatest merit of Qur'an al-karim. And it is this merit that begets other merits."

From his memoirs of a trip:

"In Germany I told my friend Goethe about the facts I had gathered concerning Islam and added my personal reflections on the subject. After listening to me with attention, he said, 'If that is Islam, we are all Muslims.' "

MAHATMA GANDHI (Mohandas Karam-chand):

Gandhi (1285 [C.E. 1869]-1367 [C.E. 1948]) descends from a West Indian Christian family. His father was the chief ecclesiastic of the city of Porbtandar, and he was very rich. Gandhi was born in the city of Porbtandar. He went to Britain for his high school education. After completing his education he went back to India. In 1893 he was sent to South Africa by an Indian firm. Upon seeing the heavy conditions under which the Indians working there were and the utterly inhumane treatment they were being subjected to, he decided to put up a struggle for the betterment of their political rights. He dedicated himself to the Indian people. As he was conducting a vigorous campaign against the South African government for the protection of the Indians' rights, he was arrested and imprisoned. Yet he was too undaunted to give up struggle. He stayed in Africa till 1914. Then, quitting his perfectly lucrative job there, he returned to India to carry on his struggle. He waged a struggle in co-operation with the Indian Muslims Unity, which Muslims had established in 1906 for the liberation of India. All his personal property and his father's property he spent for the promotion of this cause.

When he heard that the British were going to launch a second operation of violence and cruelty similar to the one they had perpetrated in the state of Pencap in 1274 [A.D. 1858], he co-operated with the Muslims, induced his friends to withdraw from the civil service, and waged a silent protest and a passive resistance. By wrapping a white piece of cloth around his naked body and contenting himself with the milk of a goat which he continuously kept with him, he carried over his passive resistance. The first reaction on the part of the British was to laugh at him. It did not take them long, however, to see with astonishment and dismay that this man, who believed his own ideals with all his heart and who was ready to sacrifice all his existence with alacrity for the sake of his country, was with the entire India in tow and resounding with his speechless struggle. Imprisoning him proved to no avail. Gandhi's efforts resulted in India's attaining its independence. The Hindus gave him the name 'Mahatma', which lexically means 'blessed'.

Gandhi studied the Islamic religion and Qur'an al-karim with meticulous attention and finally found himself a sincere admirer of Islam. The following is his observation concerning this subject:

"Muslims have never indulged themselves in bigotry even in times of greatest grandeur and victory. Islam enjoins an admiration for the Creator of the World and His works. As the West was in a dreadful darkness, the dazzling star of Islam shining in the East brought light, peace and relief to the suffering world. The Islamic religion is not a mendacious religion. When the Hindus study this religion with due respect, they, too, will feel the same sympathy as I do for Islam. I have read the books telling about the life-style of the Prophet of Islam and of those who were close to him. These books generated profound interest in me, so much so that when I finished reading them I regretted there being no more of them. I have arrived at the conclusion that Islam's spreading rapidly was not by the sword. On the contrary, it was primarily owing to its simplicity, logicality, its Prophet's great modesty, his trueness to his promises and his unlimited faithfulness towards every Muslim that many people willingly accepted Islam.

"Islam has abrogated monastic life. In Islam there is no one to intervene between Allahu ta'ala and His born slave. Islam is a religion that commands social justice from the outset. There is not an institution between the Creator and the created. Anyone who reads Qur'an al-karim, [i.e. its explanations and books written by Islamic scholars], will learn the commandments of Allahu ta'ala and will obey Him. There is no obstruction between Allahu ta'ala and him in this respect. Whereas many ineluctable changes were made in Christianity on account of its shortcomings, Islam has not undergone any alterations, and it preserves its pristine purity. Christianity lacks democratic spirit. The need to equip that religion with a democratic aspect has necessitated an increase in the Christians' national zeal and the concomitant reforms."

Prof. ERNEST RENAN:

Now let us make mention of a French man of ideas: Ernest Renan was born in 1239 [C.E. 1923] in the Treguier city of France. His father was a captain. He was five years old when he lost his father. He was raised by his mother and by his elder sister. Because his mother wanted him to be a man of religion, he was sent to the church college in his hometown. Here he was given an efficient religious education. His strong interest in the oriental languages won him a full command of the Arabic, Hebrew and Syrian languages. Later he entered the university, where he studied philosophy. As he made progress in educational areas and carried on very minute comparative studies on the German philosophy and the oriental literature, he observed some flaws in Christianity. By the time he was graduated from the university in 1848, at the age of twenty-five, he was entirely defiant towards the Christian religion, and he compiled his thoughts in his book titled 'The Future of Knowledge'. Yet, because the book was of a rebellious nature, no printhouse dared to print it, and it was only forty years later, in 1890, that the book was printed.

Renan's primary objection was against the belief that Issa a.s. was the 'Son of God'. When he was appointed as a professor of philosophy in the university of Versailles, he began to gradually explain his thoughts on this subject. However, it was not till after he was appointed as a professor of the Hebrew language for the university of College de France that he voiced his most vigorous protest. By the time he finished his first class he had had the courage to say, "Issa a.s. was a respectable human being superior to the other human beings. Yet he was never the son of Allahu ta'ala." This statement had the effect of a bomb. All the Catholics, and especially the Pope, rose up. The Pope officially excommunicated Renan before the entire world. The French government had to dismiss him from office. Yet the world was already resounding with Renan's statements. Great numbers of people sided with him. He wrote books, such as 'Essays on the History of Religions', 'Studies on Criticism and Morals', 'Discourses on Philosophy' and 'Life of Jesus', and his books sold like hot cakes. Upon this the French Academy accepted him as a member (in 1878). Also, the French government invited him back to office and appointed him as the director of college de France.

Renan observed Issa a.s. as a human being in his work 'Life of Jesus'. According to Renan, "Issa a.s. is a human being like us. His mother Maryam (Mary) was betrothed to a carpenter named Yusuf (Joseph). Issa a.s. was a superior human being, so much so that, the statements that he made when he was only a small child were a source of astonishment for many a scholar. Allahu ta'ala deemed him as worthy of prophethood and gave him this duty. Issa a.s. never said that he was the 'Son of God'. This is a slander fabricated by priests."

The contention between Catholic priests and Renan continued for a long time. While the Catholics accused him of blasphemy, he in his turn indicted them for their mendacity and hypocrisy. Renan was saying, "The real Nazarani religion is based on the belief that Allahu ta'ala is one and that Issa a.s. is only a human being and a prophet." Before Renan had died, he had prepared a written will enjoining from a religious ceremony in the church and prohibiting priests from attending his funeral procession. So, when he died in 1892, a crowded congregation containing only friends who loved him and people who admired him attended his funeral procession.

LAMARTINE (Alphonso Marie Louis de):

One of France's universally known poets and statesmen, Lamartine (1204 [C.E. 1790]-1285 [C.E. 1869]) made official journeys through Europe and America, which gave him the opportunity to have been to Turkey, in the time of Sultan Abd-ul-majid Khan. He was admitted in an utterly friendly manner by the Padishah (Ottoman Emperor), and was also presented with a farm within the state of Aydin, (which is in the western part of Turkey). See what he says about Muhammad a.s. in his book Histoire de Turquie (History of Turkey):

"Was Muhammad 's.a.s. a false prophet? We cannot think so after studying his works and history. For false prophethood means hypocrisy. As falsehood does not have the power of trueness, likewise hypocrisy does not have convincing capacity.

"In mechanics the range of something thrown depends on the power of the thrust. By the same token, the power of a certain source of spiritual inspiration is assessed with the work it accomplishes. A religion, (i.e. Islam), which has carried so heavy a burden, which has spread to such distances, and which has maintained its full power for such a long time, cannot be a lie. It has to be genuine and convincing. Muhammad's a.s. life; his efforts; his courage in attacking and destroying the superstitions and idols in his country; his bravery and valour in standing against the fury of a fire-worshipping nation; his thirteen year endurance to the various attacks, insults and persecutions inflicted on him in Mecca, among his own citizens; his migration to Medina; his incessant encouragements, preaches and admonitions; the holy wars he fought against overwhelmingly superior enemy forces; his spirit for victory; the superhuman confidence he felt at times of greatest afflictions; the patience and trust he displayed even in victory; the determination he showed in convincing others; his endless devotion in worships; his sacred communings with Allahu ta'ala; his death, and the continuation of his fame, honour and victories after his death; all these factual events (and many others untold) indicate that he was by no means a liar, but, on the contrary, an owner of great belief s.a.s.

"It was this belief and this trust in his Creator that made him put forward a two-staged credo: The first stage consisted of the belief that 'there is one eternal being, who is Allah;' and the second stage inculcated that 'idols are not gods.' In the first stage he informed the Arabs about the existence of Allahu ta'ala, who is one and whom they had not known until that time; and in the second stage he shook from their hands the idols which they had looked on as gods until that time. In short, at a single stroke with the sword he broke the false gods and idols and replaced them with the belief in 'One Allah'.

"This is Muhammad a.s., the philosopher, the orator, the Prophet, the law-giver, the warrior, the enchanter of human thoughts, the maker of new principles of belief, the great man who established twenty gigantic world empires and one great Islamic empire and civilization s.a.s.

"Let all the criteria used by humanity for the judgement and evaluation of greatness be applied. Will anyone be found superior to him? Impossible." s.a.s.

I wish to free myself from fancies and whims;
My eccentric nafs will not leave me alone.
I wish to free what is good from the bad;
My eccentric nafs [1] will not leave me alone.

I wish to discipline my essence;
I wish to know what's good for me, 'n what's bad;
I wish to come to my senses;
My eccentric nafs will not leave me alone.

FOOTNOTES

1. Nafs is a malignant force in human nature. It is recalcitrant, stupid, and evil. It always urges man to behave against the commandments of Allahu ta'ala. It is the only creature whose all wishes are against itself.

If we behave in a manner befitting a true Muslim, the number of Muslims will increase even more rapidly, which in its turn means that, as will be stated in the following explanations made by people who converted to Islam from other religions, wrong beliefs will gradually disappear from the earth and the human race will attain their long-awaited peace and happiness.

PEOPLE WHO CHOSE ISLAM

There are a number of people who abandoned their former religion and accepted Islam. These people belong to various races, countries, nationalities, colours and professional groups. Forty-two of these people were asked several questions, such as, "Why did you become a Muslim?" "What are the aspects of Islam that you like best?" by some magazines or societies, or by their own friends. Their answers were quite clear and sincere. These noble people decided to embrace Islam after thinking over the matter for a long time and studying the Islamic religion with meticulous attention. Each and every one of their answers, which we have compiled from various books and magazines and we will paraphrase in the following passages, is of documentary value. There are many lessons to be taken from these answers, and those who read them will once again feel in their hearts the sublime nature of our religion.

These documents have been arranged in an alphabetical order of the initial letters of the nationalities to which our new Muslim brothers belong. These countries are:

America, Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, Holland, Hungary, Ireland, Japan, Malaya, Poland, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Zanzibar.

1 - MUHAMMAD ALEXANDER RUSSEL WEBB (American)
Diplomat, Author & Journalist

(Muhammad Alexander Russel Webb was born in 1262 [1846 C.E.], in Hudson, United States of America. He studied in the university of New York. In a short time he was a very much loved and admired writer and columnist. He published magazines named 'St. Joseph Gazette' and 'Missouri Republican'. In 1887 he was posted as the American consul in the Philippines. After embracing Islam, he thoroughly dedicated himself to the promulgation of Islam and presided over the organization in the United States. He passed away in 1335 [1916 C.E.].)

I was asked by quite a number of people why I, as a person who was born in the United States, a country with an overwhelmingly numerous Christian population, and who listened to the preaches, or, rather, foolish talks, made by Christian priests throughout his growing years, changed my religion and became a Muslim. The brief account I gave them on why I had chosen Islam as my guide in life: I became a Muslim because the studies and observations I carried on indicated that men's spiritual needs could be filled only with the sound principles established by Islam. Even as a child I had never had a disposition to completely dedicate myself to Christianity. By the time I reached the adult age of twenty, I was completely defiant towards the mystical and annoying church culture which interdicted everything in the name of sin. Gradually I disengaged myself from the church, and finally abandoned it for good. I had an inquisitive and curious character. I would always search for causes and purposes for everything. I would anticipate logical explanations for them. On the other hand, the explanations provided by priests and other Christian men of religion did not satisfy me. Most of the time, instead of giving satisfactory answers to my questions, they would dismiss the matter with evasive prevarications such as, "We cannot understand these things. They are divine secrets," and "They are beyond the grasp of human mind." Upon this I decided to study, on the one hand, oriental religions, and on the other hand, books written by famous philosophers. I read various works on philosophy, such as those written by John Stuart Mill (1806-73), English thinker; On Liberty.], by John Locke (1632-1704), English Philosopher], by Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), German philosopher; Critique of Pure Reason], by George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831), German thinker], by Johann Gottlieb Fichte (1762-1814), German philosopher], by Aldous Huxley (1894-1963), British writer; Brave New World.], and others. The books written by these philosophers always dealt with such subjects as protoplasms, atoms, molecules, and particles, and did not even touch on reflections such as "What becomes of the human soul?" "Where does the soul go after death?" "How should we discipline our souls in this world?" The Islamic religion, on the other hand, treated the human subject not only within the corporeal areas, but also along the spiritual extensions. Therefore, I chose Islam not because I had lost my way, or only because Christianity had incurred my displeasure, or as a result of sudden decision, but, on the contrary, after very minutely studying it and becoming thoroughly convinced about its greatness, singularity, solemnity and perfection.

Islam is based on belief in the existence and the unity of Allahu ta'ala, entire submission to Him, which spontaneously entails worshipping Him and thanking Him for His blessings. Islam enjoins fraternity, goodness, and friendliness upon all the human race, and advises them to be cleanly, spiritually, physically, verbally, and practically. Definitely, the Islamic religion is the most perfect, the most superior and the most conclusive of all the religions known to humanity so far.

2 - Colonel DONALD S. ROCKWELL (American)

Why did I accept Islam? For a long time I had been greatly impressed by Islam's clear logic and formal simplicity, by the magnetizing attraction felt towards its mosques, by the great solemnity and deep affection with which the adherents of that religion had devoted themselves to their faith, by the profound respect and pure sincerity in which Muslims all over the world had been prostrating themselves simultaneously five times daily. However, all these things were short of causing me to become a Muslim. Only after a thoroughgoing analysis of the Islamic religion, which resulted in my exploring a myriad of beautiful and useful aspects in it, did I become a Muslim. A solemn and, at the same time, sentimental, attachment to life, [which was Muhammad's a.s. personal approach]; a mutually consultative method in doing daily chores; a habitually soft behaviour flavoured with mercy and compassion in social lives, indiscriminately; charity for the poor; property rights, which women had been given for the first time; all these things, which were only a few of the many other revolutions that could only be evaluated as 'the most tremendous', and how aphoristical and concise a language it is through which Muhammad a.s. expresses these concepts! By cautioning, "Place your trust in Allahu ta'ala; yet do not forget to tie your camel!", Muhammad a.s. conveys also that Allahu ta'ala commands His born slaves to put their trust in Him only after taking all sorts of necessary precautions. Then, contrary to Europeans' assertions, the Islamic religion is not a religion for those idlers who expect everything from Allahu ta'ala without doing anything for their part. The Islamic religion commands everybody first to do their best and only then to put their trust in Allahu ta'ala.

The justice which Islam rendered to people of other religions was one of its aspects which had had a great impact on me. Muhammad a.s. commands Muslims to be benign towards Christians and Jews. Qur'an al-karim acknowledges the prophethoods of the other prophets as well, beginning with Adam a.s. and including Musa and Issa 'a.s. This is an exalted sense of faith and a great model of justice, which other religions do not possess. While the believers of other religions are casting inconceivable aspersions on Islam, Muslims are answering them favourably.

One of the most beautiful aspects of Islam is that it has completely purified itself of idols. Whereas pictures, icons and signs are still being worshipped in Christianity, things of this nature do not exist in Islam. This is an indication of how pure and unstained a religion Islam is.

The facts stated and taught by Muhammad a.s., the Messenger of Allahu ta'ala, have reached our time without any interpolation. And the Qur'an al-karim, which is the Word of Allah, has been preserved in its pristine purity, exactly as it was revealed, without losing anything from the limpidity it had in the time of Muhammad a.s.. The fabricated superstitions and legends with which Christians have defiled the religion of Issa a.s. are not the case with Islam.

Of the determinants that motivated me to become a Muslim, the last one was the fortitude and the will power that I observed in Islam. Islam induced an overall cleanliness, not only spiritually, but also physically. Examples of the features that make up this superior nature are not to overload the stomach when eating, to fast for one month every year, to be moderate in every respect, to be neither extravagant nor parsimonious in spending money, etc. In an exquisite style, facts that would guide humanity not only temporarily but also ever after were being inculcated into individuals. I visited almost all of the Muslim countries. I saw in person how all the Muslims in Istanbul, in Damascus, in Cairo, in Algeria, in Morocco, and in the other Muslim cities observed all these rules and thereby led a peaceful life. They did not need ornaments, pictures, icons, candles, music, or other trivialities of the same sort to initiate themselves into the life-style leading to the sympathy of Allahu ta'ala. The sense of awareness of the fact that they were the born slaves of Allahu ta'ala and their acts of supplication before Him afforded them the greatest source of spiritual peace, happiness and flavour.

The qualities of freedom and equity inherent in the Islamic religion have always magnetized me towards it. Among Muslims, a person occupying the highest rank position and the poorest member of the society are equal before Allahu ta'ala, and they are merely two individuals in the general recognition of fraternity. Muslims perform their acts of worship side by side in mosques. There are not any special places allotted for the leadership.

Muslims hold the belief that there is not a third person to act as an intermediary between Allahu ta'ala and His born slave. The Islamic acts of worship are performed between Allahu ta'ala and the slave. They do not appeal to men of religion for the forgiveness of their wrongdoings. Every Muslim is the only person responsible for his personal behaviour.

The mutual fraternity among Muslims has always been helpful in my personal life. This fraternity was one of the factors whereby I was charmed towards Islam. I know that, wherever I go, a Muslim brother of mine will help me and sympathize with me. All Muslims the world over, of different races, colours and political views as they may be, are brothers and they look on it as an obligation to help one another.

These are the causes for my becoming a Muslim. I wonder if it could be possible to conceive of causes more beautiful or more exalted than these?

3 - SALAHUDDIN BOART (American)

In 1338 [1920 C.E.], I was in the waiting-room of a doctor's office where I had gone for a medical examination, when I saw two magazines printed in London, namely 'Orient Review' and 'African Times'. As I was skimming through them I read a statement that said, "There is only one God," which impressed me deeply. Christianity dictated three gods, which we were compelled to believe although we could never explain it to our own minds. From that time on, that statement, "There is only one God," never left my mind. This holy and sublime belief, which Muslims bear in their hearts, is an invaluable treasure.

Now I grew more and more deeply interested in Islam. By and by, I decided to become a Muslim. After embracing Islam I assumed the name Salahuddin. I believed in the truth that Islam is the truest religion. For Islam is based on the fact that Allahu ta'ala does not have a partner and that Allah, alone, has the authority to forgive sins. How compatible this law is with the laws of nature! In a field, on a farm, in a village, in a city, in a school, in a government, in a state and, in short, everywhere, there is one single ruler. Dualism has always brought about separatism.

The second proof that showed me the fact that Islam is the truest religion was that the Arabs, who had been leading a completely barbarous life before Islam, had developed into the world's most civilized and the most powerful state in a very short time and carried the most ideal concepts of love of mankind from the Arabian deserts all the way up to Spain, and all this was owing to Islam. The Muslim Arabs had found Arabia as a wilderness. And they cultivated it into a rose-garden. John W. Draper (1226 [1811 C.E.]-1299 [1882 C.E.]), an honest historian, in his book 'The Intellectual Development of Europe', enlarges on the extremely great and important part that Islam played in the development of contemporary civilization, and adds, "Christian historians, on account of the grudge they have been nursing against Islam, try to cloak this truth and cannot seem to get themselves to acknowledge how indebted Europeans are to Muslims."

The following passage is (the paraphrase of) an excerpt from Draper's writings on how Muslims found Spain:

"Europeans of that time were completely barbarians. Christianity had proved short of delivering them from barbarism. They would still be looked on as wild people. They lived in filth. Their heads were full with superstitions. They did not even have the ability to think properly. They lived in roughly-made huts. A rush mat laid on the floor or hanging on the wall was the sign of great wealth. Their food consisted of vegetables like wild beans and carrots, some oats and, sometimes, even barks. In the name of garments, they wore untanned animal hides because they lasted longer, and therefore they stank awfully."

"Cleanliness was the very first thing that Muslims taught them. Muslims washed five times daily, which caused these people to wash at least once a day. Later on, they took the stinking, tattered, lice-infested animal hides off their backs, dumped them, and gave them their own garments, which had been made from textures woven with coloured threads. They taught them how to cook, and how to eat. They built houses, mansions and palaces in Spain. They established schools and hospitals. They instituted universities, which in the course of time became sources of light illuminating the entire world. They improved horticulture everywhere. The country was soon awash with rose and flower gardens. Gaping in astonishment and admiration, the uncivilized Europeans watched all these developments, and gradually began to keep pace with the new civilization."

Educating so wild a nation; imbuing them with sentiments of civilization; rescuing them from the depths of darkness, nascence and superstitions; all these inconceivably tremendous tasks were accomplished by the Arabs owing only and only to the Islamic religion. For the Islamic religion is the most genuine religion. Allahu ta'ala helped them for their success.

The Islamic religion, commanded by Allahu ta'ala and taught and publicized by Muhammad a.s., and the Qur'an al-karim, which is the Word of Allahu ta'ala, changed the course of the world's history and freed it from the fetters of darkness. Had it not been for the Islamic religion, humanity would not have attained the present heights of civilization, nor would knowledge and science be in such advanced levels today. Muhammad a.s. states, "Even if knowledge is in China, (go and) acquire it." This is the Islamic religion which I accepted willingly.


 
page 3 of why did they become muslim?




4 - THOMAS MUHAMMAD CLAYTON (American)

It was almost noon time. Dazed with the sweltering heat of the day, we were trudging along a dusty road, when, from afar, a singularly mellifluous voice began to caress our auditory senses. So rich a voice it was that the entire space seemed to be sated with it. As we walked past a cluster of trees, a bewildering scene came into sight. It was such a scene that we hardly believed what we saw. Mounted on a small, wooden tower, an elderly Arab in an extremely clean long robe and wearing a white turban was performing (calling) the adhan (or adhan). As he performed the adhan, he was in a trance, almost completely isolated from the world, and in the presence of his Creator, Owner. As if hypnotized by this noble sight, we halted, and then, slowly, sat down on the ground. We did not know what the sounds and words reaching our ears meant, yet they somehow moved us and instilled a mood of elation, relief into our souls. Afterwards, we learned that the sweet words uttered by the Arab meant, "Allahu ta'ala is the greatest. There is no god to be worshipped other than Allahu ta'ala." All of a sudden, many people appeared around us. Till hardly a moment before, however, we had seen no one around us. We did not know whence these people came, and there was an expression of great deference and love on their faces. There were people of all age-groups and classes among them. They were different in their clothing, in their manners of walking, and in their appearances. Yet they all had the same expression of earnestness, great dignity and, at the same time, geniality on their faces. The number of comers increased incessantly, so that we felt as if the process of their increasing would never come to an end. At last the comers assembled. They all took off their shoes and clogs and stood in rows. To our great amazement, no segregation of any sort was observed in the formation of the lines. White people, yellow people, black people, rich people, poor people, tradesmen, civil servants, workers stood side by side without any discrimination between their races or ranks, and performed their worship together.

I admired so many different people's brotherly coming together. It is three years now since I saw that sublime scene for the first time. In the meantime, I began to gather information about that lofty religion which brought people so closely together. The information that I collected about Islam brought me all the closer to this religion. Muslims believed in one Allah and professed that men were not sinful by birth, which was quite contrary to the Christian inculcation. They looked on them only as born slaves of Allahu ta'ala, displayed profound compassion towards them, and wished them to abide by the right path and thus lead a comfortable, peaceful and happy life. Whereas in Christianity even an evil thought was deemed as a sin, Muslims defined sin only as a result of disobeying Allahu ta'ala or violating the rights of born slaves, and acknowledged man free as to his thoughts. According to the Islamic religion, man was responsible "only for what he has done."

For the reasons I have cited above, I accepted Islam willingly. Despite the three years' time since, I sometimes dream of the Arab muezzin's touching and effective voice and multifarious people's running from all directions and standing in lines. It is a doubtless fact that these people, who prostrate themselves altogether and indiscriminately, are doing so sincerely to worship Allahu ta'ala.

Haqq ta'ala avenges Himself on the slave through the slave,
In the ignorant's eyes the avenger is the poor slave.
Everything belongs to the Creator, the slave's a mere tool,
Without the Creator's command you cannot move a leaf!

5 - DEVIS WARRINGTON (Austrian)

As the Spring's mellow, warm hand thaws out the earth after an awfully frigid winter, likewise Islam had a similar effect on me. It warmed my heart and clothed me with a new and lovely dress of knowledge. How beautiful, how true, and how logical Islam's teachings are! How clear, how genuine, and how charming a word it is to say that "Allahu ta'ala is one, and Muhammad a.s. is His Messenger." How could one ever compare it with the unbelievable, unintelligible Christian credo which imposes the absurdity of "Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit"? In contrast with these formidable, fearful and never satisfactory tenets of Christianity, this simple and logical belief draws you towards itself. Islam is an undefiled heavenly religion. Despite the centuries that have elapsed since its advent, it answers all the material and immaterial needs of humanity, not only today, but also forever. For instance, Islam clearly states that men are equal and that before Allahu ta'ala there is no difference of rank and position among men, and it enforces this equality in actual life. The Christian churches profess the same equality, yet there are various echelons among them, such as priests of different ranks, archdeacons, deacons, bishops, and many other ecclesiastics. These people intervene between Allahu ta'ala and the slave and use the name of Allahu ta'ala for their personal advantages. In Islam, on the other hand, no one can intervene between Allahu ta'ala and the slave. Allahu ta'ala communicates His commandments through the Qur'an al-karim to His slaves. In the following lines, I will quote a commandment of Allahu ta'ala. It is only an example. This example shows very explicitly how simple and clear the commandments are.

The two hundred and sixty-seventh ayat of Baqara sura purports: "O ye who believe! Give of the good things which ye have (honourably) earned, and of the fruits of the earth which We have produced for you, and do not even aim at getting anything which is bad, in order that out of it ye may give away something, when ye yourselves would not receive it except with closed eyes. And know that Allahu ta'ala is free of all wants, and worthy of all praise." (2-267) As I read and learned these profound and beautiful commandments of the Qur'an al-karim, my soul attained peace and I embraced Islam willingly.

6 - Mrs. CECILLA CANNOLY [Rashida] (Austrian)

Why did I become a Muslim?
Let me tell you sincerely that I became a Muslim without even noticing it myself. For, at a very young age I had already completely lost my confidence in Christianity and had begun to feel apathy towards the Christian religion. I was curious about many religious facts. I was disinclined to believe blindly the creed they were trying to teach me. Why were there three gods? Why had we all come to this world sinful, and why did we have to expiate it? Why could we invoke Allahu ta'ala only through a priest? And what were the meanings of all these various signs that we were being shown and the miracles that we were being told? Whenever I asked these questions to the teaching priests, they would become angry and answer, "You cannot inquire about the inner natures of the church's teachings. They are secret. All you have to do is to believe them." And this was another thing that I would never understand. How could one believe something whose essence one did not know? However, in those days I did not dare divulge these thoughts of mine. I am sure that many of today's so-called Christians are of the same opinion as I was; they do not believe most of the religious teachings imposed on them, yet they are afraid to disclose it.

The older I became the farther away did I feel from Christianity, finally breaking away from the church once and for all and beginning to wonder whether there was a religion that taught "to worship one single God." My entire conscience and heart told me that there was only one God. Then, when I looked around, the events showed me how meaningless the unintelligible miracles that priests had been trying to teach us, and the absurd stories of saints they had been telling us, were. Didn't everything on the earth, human beings, beasts, forests, mountains, seas, trees, flowers indicate that a great Creator had created them? Wasn't a newly born baby a miracle in itself? On the other hand, the church was striving to indoctrinate the people with the preposterous belief that every newly born baby was a wretched, sinful creature. No, this was impossible, a lie. Every newly born child was an innocent slave, a creature of Allahu ta'ala. It was a miracle, and I believed only in Allah and in the miracles He created.

Nothing in the world was inherently sinful, dirty, or ugly. I was of this opinion, when one day my daughter came home with a book written about Islam. My daughter and I sat together and read the book with great attention. O my Allah, the book said exactly as I had been thinking. Islam announced that there is one Allah and informed that people are born as innocent creatures. Until that time I had been entirely ignorant of Islam. In schools Islam was an object of derision. We had been taught that that religion was false and absurd and infused one with sloth, and that Muslims would go to Hell. Upon reading the book, I was plunged into thoughts. To acquire more detailed information about Islam, I visited Muslims living in my town. The Muslims I found opened my eyes. The answers they gave to my questions were so logical that I began to believe that Islam was not a concocted religion as our priests had been asserting, but a true religion of Allahu ta'ala. My daughter and I read many other books written about Islam, were fully convinced as to its sublimeness and veracity, and eventually embraced Islam, both of us. I adopted the name 'Rashida', and my daughter chose 'Mahmuda' as her new name.

As for the second question that you ask me: "What aspect of Islam do you like best?" Here is my answer:

What I like best about Islam is the nature of its prayers. In Christianity prayers are said in order to ask for worldly blessings such as wealth, position and honour from Allahu ta'ala through Issa a.s.. Muslims, in contrast, express their gratitude to Allahu ta'ala and they know that as long as they abide by their religion and obey the commandments of Allahu ta'ala, Allahu ta'ala will give them whatever they need without them asking for it.

7 - MUHAMMAD ASSAD LEOPOLD WEISS (Austrian)

This is a note from the webmaster - The file on Muhammad Assad /Leopold Weilss might contain errors. A brother has written with some facts that does not match these in this revert story. I'm not going to dig into this, but if anybody has any facts in either direction - please contact me!
/Ibrahim
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(Weiss was born in 1318 [A.D. 1900] in the Livow city of Austria [in Poland today], visited Arabic countries as a newspaper correspondent when he was twenty-two years old, admired and professed the Islamic religion, then visited all the Islamic countries, including India and Afghanistan, and published his impressions in 'Frankfurter Zeitung', one of the greatest newspapers world over. Weiss worked as the publication director for Frankfurter Zeitung for some time, then, after Pakistan's winning its struggle for liberation, he went to Pakistan with a view to co-operating with that country's government in the establishment of a system of a religious education, and later he was sent to the United States Center to represent Pakistan. He has two books, one entitled 'Islam at Cross-Roads', and the other 'The Way Leading to Mecca'. Recently he has rendered the Qur'an al-karim into English. His attempt to write a tafsir (translation of Qur'an al-karim) without the indispensably required background in the basic Islamic sciences indicates that he is not in the Madhhab of Ahl as-sunnat and that, consequently, his tafsirs and other (religious) writings may be harmful. Wahhabis and other groups outside (the right way guided by the four) Madhhabs present this ignorant heretic as an Islamic scholar.)

The newspapers for which I worked as a correspondent and writer sent me to Asia and Africa in the capacity of 'special correspondent' in 1922. In the beginning, my relations with the Muslims were no more than ordinary relations between two parties of foreigners. However, my long stay in the Islamic countries enabled me to know the Muslims more closely, which in turn made me realize that they had been looking at the world and the events taking place in the world from angles quite dissimilar to those of Europeans. I must acknowledge that their extremely dignified and composed attitude towards the events, and their approach that was much more humanistic than our own, began to stir up my interest. I was from a fanatical Catholic family. Throughout my childhood I had been inculcated with the belief that Muslims were irreligious people worshipping the devil. When I came into contact with Muslims I realized that they had been lying to me and I decided to study the Islamic religion. I acquired a number of books written on this subject. When I began to read these books with close attention, I saw in amazement how pure and how valuable a religion it was. Yet the manners and behaviours of some Muslims I had been in contact with did not conform to the Islamic principles that I was reading about. First of all, Islam dictated cleanliness, open heartedness, brotherhood, compassion, faithfulness, peace and salvation and, rejecting the Christian doctrine that "men are ever sinful," it substituted it with quite an opposite belief which tolerated "all sorts of worldly pleasures with the proviso that they should not cost someone else's harm and that they should not overflow the free area defined by Islam." But I also met some dirty and mendacious Muslims. To understand the matter better, I began to run an experiment on it, putting myself in the place of a Muslim and adapting myself to the principles I had been reading in the books, and thus examining Islam from within. I came up with the conclusion that the main reason for the increasing degeneration and decline of the Islamic world, which was already on the brink of a collapse, was Muslims' becoming increasingly indifferent towards their religion. As long as Muslims preserved their perfection as true Muslims, they always made progress; and a downfall began the very moment they relaxed their grips of Islam. In actual fact, Islam possesses all the qualifications required for a country's or a nation's progress. It contains all the essentials of civilization. The Islamic religion is both extremely scientific and very practical. The principles it lays down are completely logical, intelligible to everybody, and do not contain one single element that would run counter to knowledge, to science, or to human nature. There is nothing unnecessary in it. The grotesque passages, the sophistries, and the superstitious mysticisms, which are the common properties of other religious books, do not exist in Islam. I discussed these subjects with most Muslims and castigated them, saying, "Why don't you adhere more tightly to this beautiful religion of yours? Why don't you hold fast to it with both hands?" Eventually, in 1344 [A.D. 1926], as I was discussing these matters with a governor in Afghanistan, he said to me, "You have already become a Muslim without you yourself noticing it. Only a true Muslim would defend Islam as earnestly as you are doing now." Upon these words of the governor's a lightning flashed in my brain. When I was back home I plunged into deep thoughts, finally saying to myself, "Yes, I am a Muslim now." Presently I pronounced the statement called Kalima-i-sahadat.[The statement called Kalima-i-shahadat is: "Ash-hadu an-la-ilaha il'l'Allah, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan abduhu wa Rasuluhu," which means, "I testify to the fact that there is no god but Allah, and I testify, again, that Muhammad a.s. is His born slave and Messenger." Every Muslim has to make this statement at least once in his lifetime and has to believe in its meaning.] I have been a Muslim ever since.

You ask me, "What aspect of Islam attracted you most?" I cannot answer this question, for Islam has penetrated and invaded my entire heart. There is not a specific aspect, therefore, which affected me more than the others did. Everything I had not found in Christianity I found in Islam. I cannot tell what principle of Islam I feel closer to me. I admire each and every one of its principles and essentials. Islam is a gorgeous monument. It is impossible to separate any of its parts from its entirety. All its parts are pivoted, clenched on one another in a certain order. There is a tremendous harmony among the parts. There is not a single part missing. Each and everyone of its parts is in its proper place. Perhaps it was this extremely admirable order which attached me to the Islamic religion. No. What attached me to the Islamic religion was the love I had for it. You know, love is composed of various things: Desire, loneliness, ambition, elevation, zeal for progress and improvement, our weaknesses mixed with our strength and power, the need for someone to help and protect us, and the like. So I embraced Islam with all my heart and love, and it settled in my heart so as to never leave there again.

8 - Dr. 'UMAR ROLF FREIHERR VON EHRENFELS (Austrian)

(Rolf Freiherr (baron) von Ehrenfels is the only son of Prof. Dr. Baron Christian Ehrenfels, who is known as the founder of Gestalt psychology all over the world. He belongs to a well-known family. He was only a small child when he felt a growing concern for the orient and began to study the Islamic religion. His sister Imma von Rodmesrhof writes about this inclination of her brother's in detail in a book of hers, which was published in Lahore in 1953. At a very young age, Rolf travelled in Turkey, in Albania, in Greece, and in Yugoslavia, and joined prayers in mosques although he was a Christian. Eventually, the warm feelings of closeness that he had been harbouring towards Islam resulted in his embracing Islam in 1927, from then on he chose the name 'Umar for himself. In 1932 he visited India, and published a book entitled 'The Place of Woman in Islam'. When the Germans invaded Austria during the Second World War, Rolf fled to India. Accepted and supported by Akbar Haydar, he carried on anthropological studies in Assam, was appointed as a professor of anthropology for the University of Madras in 1949, and was awarded with a gold medal by the 'Royal Asiatic Society', which was located in Bengal. His books were also published in the Urdu language.)

You ask me why I became a Muslim. In the following lines I shall give an account of the factors that formed the cause of my becoming a Muslim and realizing that Islam is a true religion:

1) Islam contains the good aspects of all the world's religions known to us. All religions are intended for men's living in peace and tranquillity. Yet no other religion has managed to teach it to people as explicitly as Islam does. No other religion has been successful in imbuing with such deep love towards our Creator and towards brothers of the same faith.

2) Islam enjoins a perfect submission to Allahu ta'ala in a mood of peace and tranquillity.

3) A retrospective look into history will automatically expose the fact that the Islamic religion is the final true, heavenly religion and that no other religion will appear.

4) Muhammad a.s., who communicated the Qur'an al-karim, is the final prophet.

5) It is doubtless that a person who enters the Islamic religion will automatically have separated himself from his former religion. Yet this separation is not so big as it may be anticipated. The tenets of belief are the same in all the heavenly religions. Qur'an al-karim acknowledges the heavenly religions before itself. Yet it rectifies the wrong beliefs inserted into these religions afterwards, exposes the religion of Issa a.s. in its essential form, and declares that Muhammad a.s. is the final prophet and that no prophet will come after him. In other words, Islam is the true and perfect form of other religions. Various clashes of interests and contrasting ambitions have made men inimical towards one another. And this animosity, in its turn, has been exploited by other people, who have tried to change religions into rival camps and thus to build their worldly advantages on religions, which, in actual fact, are essentially paths guiding to knowing Allahu ta'ala. In fact, it takes a little alertness to see that the Islamic religion acknowledges the other heavenly religions and that it purifies them of the human interpolations that they had been subjected to in the course of time. To accept Islam, therefore, means to render a spiritual and material service which is needed by all people, men and women alike.

6) In no other religion has the concept of brotherhood among people been stated so expressly as it has been in Islam. All Muslims, regardless of their race, nation, colour and language, are brothers of one another. Whatever their political views are, they are brothers of one another. No other religion possesses this beauty.

7) Islam is a religion which gives women great rights. The Islamic religion has allotted women the most proper place. Muhammad a.s. stated, "Paradise is beneath a mothers' feet."

The Islamic religion respected the works of art made by people of other religions, and did not demolish them like barbars. As they were building mosques like Fatih and Sultan Ahmad (Blue Mosque) in Istanbul, they did not feel averse to modelling some of their architecture after that of Saint Sophia. Throughout history, Muslims have displayed greatest justice and mercy towards people of other religions.

For reasons such as these, I chose Islam for my faith.

9 - THOMAS IRVING (Canadian)

To tell you why I became a Muslim, I have to explain what I felt before and after embracing Islam, my first contact with Islam and the faith that it inspired into me. First of all, let me tell you that thousands of Canadians and Americans think exactly as I used to think before becoming a Muslim; they have the same feeling of dissatisfaction; and they are awaiting the scholars of Ahl as-sunnat who will teach them the essence of Islam.

As I was a child, I held fast to my faith, Christianity, with both hands. For I needed a religion to feed my soul. However, as I grew older, I began to see a number of faults in Christianity. The stories told about the life of Issa a.s. and his being the son of God, -may Allahu ta'ala protect us against saying so,- sounded like superstitious tales to me. My personal logic would never accept them. I began to ask myself questions, such as, "If Christianity is the true religion, why are there so many non- Christians in the World?" "Why do Jews and Christians share the same basic religious book and differ in other respects?" "Why are non-Christians doomed to perdition though they have no other apparent faults?" "Why do many nations choose not to become Christians?"

It was in those days when I met a missionary who had been serving in India. He complained to me, "Muslims are very obstinate. They insist that the true religion is Islam, and not Christianity. So all my efforts to Christianize them end up in failure." These statements were at the same time the first definition I had heard of Islam. A sensation of curiosity towards Islam, seasoned with a high degree of admiration for Muslims who had been so staunchly attached to their religion, began to blossom in my heart. I felt that I should observe Islam more closely, and began to attend lectures on 'Oriental Literature' in the university. I saw that what the oriental people had been rejecting in our belief was the doctrine of 'trinity', and that they accepted the belief of 'One God', which was perfectly agreeable with common sense. It was certain that Issa a.s. had announced his religion as one based on belief in One God, and himself as a mere born slave and Messenger of that One God. The God he had mentioned should be a merciful God. Nevertheless, that beautiful and true belief had been smothered with meaningless legends, superstitions and heresies inserted into Christianity by idolaters, and the pure belief in the One Merciful, Compassionate God had been adulterated into a tripartite godhood, which was accessible only to priests and which, so to speak, created mankind with a share from the original sin. Then, a new religion with a new prophet was necessary to restore the humanity with that pure and intact belief in One God. Europe, on the other hand, was awash in semi-barbaric cruelty in those days. As savage tribes were invading countries, on the one hand, a small minority was perpetrating all sorts of vices under the mask of religion, on the other. The human race was moaning desperately under the talons of idolatry and irreligiousness, when, [according to historians], seven centuries after Issa a.s., in the oriental horizons, there rose Muhammad s.a.s. the final Prophet of Allahu ta'ala, and he began to communicate to people the true religion of the true God, which was based on belief in One God.

When I read and learned all these facts, I believed in the fact that Muhammad s.a.s. was the final true Messenger of Allahu ta'ala, because:

1) As I have said above, people needed a new prophet;

2) All my thoughts concerning Allahu ta'ala conformed with the religion spread by that great Prophet s.a.s.

3) As soon as I read the Qur'an al-karim, I sensed that it was the Word of Allahu ta'ala. The facts communicated by the Qur'an al-karim and the hadith ash-Sharifs [utterances] of Muhammad s.a.s. satisfied me in every respect and infused a sense of peace into my soul. And this is the reason why I became a Muslim.

You can be sure that, as I have already said, thousands of Americans and Canadians sense the same deficiencies and errors in Christianity. Sad to say, though, they have not had the same chance I had to do a thorough research into the Islamic religion; they need a guide.

After attaining that belief in Islam, I embarked on a study of the books published about Islam. I would like to touch upon a few of the works that I could recommend in this connection. An Indian well-wisher sent me a book captioned 'What Is Islam?', written by Q.A. Jairazby H.W. Lovlegrove. I would specially recommend the book. It is a book that describes Islam in the best way. Spreading the book world over would be a useful service for the promulgation of Islam. I read an English version of Qur'an al-karim rendered by Maulvi Muhammad Ali, and I liked it. In addition, I read some other books, and I did not neglect magazines publicizing Islam. In Montreal, I found many works published in French about Islam. Some of them praised Islam, while others were intended against it. But Islam's greatness could not be buried even under books written for the purpose of reviling it. Instead, they were no more than other sources of evidence corroborating for me the fact that Islam is the true religion.


10 - Dr. BENOIST [ALI SALMAN] (French)

I am a doctor and I come from a fanatically Catholic family. Yet my vocational choice, medicine, provided me a career in positive, experimental, and natural sciences, which in turn caused me to develop a growing hatred against Christianity. With respect to religion, I was at complete loggerheads with the other members of my family. Yes, there was a great Creator, and I believed in Him, i.e. Allahu ta'ala. Yet the absurdities concocted by Christians, especially by Catholics, various mysterious gods, sons, holy ghosts, the preposterous fibs fabricated for the purpose of proving that Issa a.s. is the son of God, a myriad of other superstitions, ceremonies and rites pushed me away from Christianity, instead of attracting me towards it.

Because I held the belief in one God, I would never accept trinity, nor would I by any means recognize Issa a.s. as the son of God. That means to say that, long before knowing of Islam, I had already accepted the initial half of the Kalima-i-Shahadat, i.e. the part that says, "La ilaha il'l'Allah... (There is no God but Allah...)" When I began to study the Islamic religion and read the Ikhlas Sura of Qur'an al-karim, which purported, "Lo; Allahu ta'ala is One. He is not begotten, nor does He beget. There is no being bearing any likeness to Him," I said, "O my Allah. My belief is exactly the same." I felt immense relief. I realized that it was of paramount importance to study Islam more deeply. And as I studied Islam I saw with admiration that this religion was completely agreeable with my ideas. Islam looked on religious men, and even on prophets 'alaihim-us-salawat', as ordinary people like us; it did not divinize them. Giving a priest authority to forgive people's sins was something which Islam would never accept. The Islamic religion did not contain any superstitions, any irrational rules, or any unintelligible subjects. The Islamic religion was a logical one, exactly as I wanted. Contrary to the Catholics, it did not smudge human beings with the consequences of the so-called original sin. It enjoined physical and spiritual cleanliness on human beings. Cleanliness, which is an essential principle in medicine, was in Islam a commandment of Allahu ta'ala. Islam commanded to clean oneself before acts of worship, and that was a quality which I had never seen in any other religion.

In some Christian rites, such as Baptism and the Eucharist, people consume the bread and wine offered by the priest in the name of the flesh and blood of Issa a.s., which is intended, so to speak, as a simulated unity with Issa a.s., i.e. with God, [may Allahu ta'ala protect us from holding such beliefs!]. I saw the resemblance between these rites and those of the most primitive heathens, and hated them. My mind, which had improved under the guidance of positive science, vehemently rejected these puerile rites which did not suit to a true religion. Islam, on the other hand, did not accommodate any of those things. There was only truth, love, and cleanliness in Islam.

Eventually, I made up my mind. I visited my Muslim friends and asked them what I should do to become a Muslim. They taught me the (statement called) Kalima-i Shahadat, how to say it and what it meant. As I have mentioned earlier, before becoming a Muslim, I had accepted its first half, i.e. the part that meant, "There is no God but Allah,..." It was not difficult, therefore, to accept the remaining part, which said: "... and Muhammad a.s. is His (born slave and) Messenger." I was now studying momentous books written about the Islamic religion. When I read one of them, namely, 'Le Phénomène Coranique', a very lovely book prepared by Malak Bannabi, I saw with amazement and admiration what a tremendous book Qur'an al-karim was. The facts written in that book of Allah which was revealed fourteen centuries before now are in precise conformance with the results of today's scientific and technological research. Both from scientific and technological points of view and with respect to sociological activities, the Qur'an al-karim is a guide book not only today, but also forever.

On the twentieth day of February, 1953, I went to the Paris mosque and accepted Islam officially in the presence of Mufti Effendi and the witnesses, and I was given the name Ali Salman.

I love this new religion of mine. I am very happy and I emphasize the firmness of my belief in Islam by frequently saying the (statement called) Kalima-i-Shahadat and pondering over its meaning.

11 - CAPTAIN (JACQUES) COUSTEAU (French)

[In France Islam has been spreading at a high velocity among people who have made fame in various areas. The number of people who have abandoned Christianity and chosen Islam have reached one hundred thousand already. This score has been confirmed by the Archbishop of Paris, the highest Catholic rank in France.

It is noteworthy that people who have preferred Islam are not only from among workers and civil servants but also from among people renowned in every respect.

Among people who have chosen Islam is Captain Cousteau, whom the whole world closely knows for his explorations about life under water.

As the groundswell of embracing Islam was spreading among France's universal celebrities, Captain Cousteau, the world's most eminent undersea explorer, announced that by accepting Islam he had made the most correct decision of his life.

Captain Cousteau, who has revealed the secrets of oceans one by one with the films that he made and which are being televised world over in a program sub-headed The Living Sea, said that what actually prompted him to choose the Islamic religion was, after observing that the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean did not mix with each other, his seeing that the same phenomenon was written in the Qur'an al-karim which had been revealed fourteen hundred years before.]

Captain Cousteau told of the event that had caused him to become a Muslim, as follows:

"In 1962 German scientists said that the waters of the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean did not mix with each other in the Strait of Bab-ul-Mandab where the Aden Bay and the Red Sea join. So we began to examine whether the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean mixed with each other. First we analyzed the water in the Mediterranean to find out its natural salinity and density, and the life it contained. We repeated the same procedure in the Atlantic Ocean. The two masses of water had been meeting each other in the Gibraltar for thousands of years. Accordingly, the two masses of water must have been mixing with each other and they must have been sharing identical, or, at least, similar properties in salinity and density. On the contrary, even at places where the two seas were closest to each other, each mass of water preserved its properties. In other words, at the point where the two seas met, a curtain of water prevented the waters belonging to the two seas from mixing. When I told Professor Maurice Bucaille about this phenomenon, he said that it was no surprise and that it was written clearly in Islam's Holy Book, the Qur'an al-karim. Indeed, this fact was defined in a plain language in the Qur'an al-karim. When I knew this, I believed in the fact that the Qur'an al-karim was the 'Word of Allah'. I chose Islam, the true religion. The spiritual potency inherent in the Islamic religion gave me the strength to endure the pain I had been suffering for the loss of my son."

12 - MUHAMMAD AMIN HOBOHN (German)

(Muhammad Amin Hobohn is both a diplomat and a missionary. He is a man of knowledge and religion with a social career:)

Why are Europeans abandoning their religion and becoming Muslims? It has various reasons. Among them is the 'Haqq=Truth; Right; Reality'. The principles that Islam is based on are so logical, so true and honest that it is out of the question for a wise and educated person seeking for truth and reality in a religion not to accept them. For instance, the Islamic religion professes the existence of one god. It appeals to the human common sense, and never descends to inculcating people with superstitions. The Islamic religion states that people all over the world, regardless of their races, are the born slaves of Allahu ta'ala, equal and similar. We German people essentially believe in the fact that Allahu ta'ala is a great creator who gives us power and energy and who guides our souls to perfection. The concept of Allah infuses security and peace into us. Yet the Christian religion falls short of giving us this sense of peace. It is the Islamic religion, alone, that teaches us the greatness of Allahu ta'ala and which, at the same time, guides us in regard to where the human soul will go after death. The Islamic religion guides us not only in the world, but also in the Hereafter. It teaches in a plain and logical manner what should be done in the world in preparation for a comfortable life in the Hereafter. An awareness of the fact that Allahu ta'ala will subject human beings to an equitable interrogation in the Hereafter on what they have done in the world, will urge them that they should abide by justice and integrity in the world. For this reason, true Muslims never attempt to do something before thinking well and being firmly convinced that what they are going to do is really something useful. Thereby this great religion establishes control over human beings in such a degree as could be managed by no worldly police organization, and permanently keeps them on the right way.

Another aspect that makes Islam an attractive choice in the eyes of Europeans is its norms of worship. The namaz (the five daily ritual prayers) teaches punctuality to people, and fasting drills a strong sense of will power into them. What other factor could be as essential to success in life as punctuality and determination? Great men owe their accomplishments only to these two determinants. Now I come to a most beautiful aspect of the Islamic religion: While educating people in the ethical and humanistic areas in the most logical styles, the Islamic religion never compels them beyond their capacities. On the contrary, it offers them many opportunities to lead a prosperous and comfortable life. Allahu ta'ala wishes people to live in comfort and happiness. To this end, He commands people not to commit sins. Muslims believe that they are perpetually in the presence of Allahu ta'ala. They avoid committing sins. Neither in the other religions nor in any of the systems established in Europe is there another arrangement as lovely or as useful as this.

I have been to many places and districts of the world on diplomatic and religious missions. I have studied other religions and social systems minutely. I have seen neither a religion nor a social system as faultless or as immaculate as Islam. At first sight, communism may seem to be a correct system of thoughts. Likewise, the western-born democracy, which has been looked on as the most capacious administration system in worldly matters, and Nazism may contain some factual aspects. And then none of these aspects is complete in itself. All of them have a number of deficiencies. The one and only perfect and faultless system is Islam. It is for this reason that many a person with common sense and perfect reasoning accepts Islam without any hesitation. And so did I. Islam is a practical religion, not a theoretical one. Islam means submission to Allahu ta'ala, who is compassionate and forgiving and who always shows the right way. What on earth could be more beautiful?

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13 - Dr. HAMID MARCUS (German)

(Dr. Marcus is a renowned man of ideas, a writer, and the founder of a magazine, i.e. the magazine entitled Berliner Moslemische Revue.)

I was only a child when I took an interest in Islam and began to collect information about Islam. In the library of my hometown I came across an old translation of Qur'an al-karim that had been printed in 1164 [1750 C.E.]. According to a narrative, Goethe had read the same translation of the Qur'an al-karim during his research on the Islamic religion and had expressed his admiration for the book. As I read the Qur'an al-karim, I was deeply impressed by its exceedingly logical and fascinating style of expression that penetrated deep into the soul. How genuine and useful the principles formulated by Islam were, was manifest in the fact that nations honoured with Islam had been attaining the zenith of civilization in a very short time.

When I left my hometown and went to Berlin, I made friends with all the Muslims living there, joined them and attended with rapt attention the interesting and instructive conferences held by the members of the Islamic Mission. The more friendly I became with the members of the Islamic Mission, the more closely was I able to examine Islam. After a while I reached the conclusion that Islam was the true religion I had been aspiring after, believed in it, and accepted Islam.

According to Islam, Allah is One, and belief in One Creator is Islam's most sacred credal tenet. The Islamic religion does not contain any irrational or unbelievable tenet. There is not a creator besides Allahu ta'ala. In Islam you cannot find a single dot dIssagreeable with or contradictory to modern sciences. All its commandments and inculcations are entirely logical and useful. In Islam, belief and logic do not contradict each other, which is the common blemish of other religions. Consequently, for a person like me who has dedicated all his life-time to natural sciences, what could be more natural than preferring Islam, which is in full conformity with the scientific results that he obtained from his lucubrations, to the other religions that are quite the other way round?

Another reason I feel compelled to add is that the other religions are awash in a score of grotesque and ridiculous ideas that suggest only a far-fetched mood of spirituality. They have nothing to do with real life situations. Islam, on the other hand, is a practical religion which guides man also in his trek of life. Commandments of the Islamic religion lead a person to the right way not only in the Hereafter, but also in the world, and, in the meanwhile, they never restrict his freedom.

As a Muslim I have been studying my religion for many years. In every new situation I see even more clearly how perfect a religion it is, and this in its turn gives me all the more mental peace.

How exquisite a passageway it is that Islam lays between the individual and the social life! Islam arranges these two lives. Islam is a religion of perfect justice and its sole aim is to guide people to the good end. Islam embodies all the good aspects of all the world's social trends.

14 - Mrs. AMINA MOSLER (German)

Why did I become a Muslim?
My son was asking me various questions, and I was unable to answer them. When he asked me, for instance, "Mummy, why are there three gods?" I was at a loss as to what to say because I myself did not believe in trinity, and yet I could not find another answer to convince him. Eventually, it was sometime during the year 1346 [C.E. 1928], and my son had reached a maturer age, when, one day, my son came to me, his eyes welling up with tears. He begged, "Mummy, I have been studying Islam. They believe in one creator. Their religion is the truest one. So I have decided to become a Muslim. Join me!" Upon his request, I, too, began to study the Islamic religion. I went to the Berlin mosque. The imam of the mosque gave me a cordial welcome and told me the essentials of Islam. As he spoke, I saw how right and logical his words were. Like my son, I, too, began to believe in the fact that Islam was the truest religion. First of all, Islam rejected trinity, which I had never been able to understand or accept since my youth. After examining Islam thoroughly, I realized the absurdity of such things as redemption, looking on the pope as an innocent being never prone to sin, baptism and many other rites of the same sort, I rejected all these falsities and embraced Islam.

All my ancestors were fanatical Catholics. I was raised in a Catholic monastery. I grew up totally under Christian education. Yet this sheer religious education that I had received helped me to choose the true religion that would guide me to Allahu ta'ala. For, all the good things that I had been taught throughout my education I found not in Christianity, but in Islam. I am so lucky to have accepted Islam.

Today I am a grandmother. I am so happy because my grandchild has been born as a Muslim. I know that Allahu ta'ala will always guide those people whom He has brought to the right way.

15 - Hajji LORD AL-FARUQ HEADLEY (G.B.)

(Lord Headley possessed the title of excellency. Sir George Allanson was born in 1855 and descended from the oldest British family. He occupied very important political positions in Britain, and at the same time made fame as an editor. He graduated from Cambridge University. In 1877 he won the title of Lord. He served as a lieutenant colonel in the British army. He was an engineer by vocation, but a powerful writer by avocation. Among his publications, his work entitled 'A European's Eyes Are Being Opened And He Is Becoming A Muslim'. Lord Headley became a Muslim in 1913, performed Hajj (the Islamic pilgrimage), and adopted the name Shaikh Rahmatullah Faruq. In 1928 he visited India.)

Why did I become a Muslim? Perhaps, some of my friends and acquaintances are of the opinion that I became a Muslim as a result of persuasion on the part of my friends and acquaintances. But it is not the fact. My accepting Islam was the result of long-time research and contemplation. It was after a meticulous examination and forming an opinion about Islam that I made contact with Muslims and, seeing that their belief in their own religion was in conformity with mine, I realized and became happy that I had entered into a good religion.

The Qur'an al-karim commands that a person should accept Islam after his heart's full confirmation, rejects a conversion under coercion. Likewise, Issa a.s. said to his Apostles, "And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against them. ..." (Mark: 6-11)

During my former life-time, I had seen many bigoted Protestants. They would go to Catholic student hostels and try to force the Catholic students. These unwanted efforts and coercive attempts would cause various fights, offenses and controversies and would sow discord among people. The same meaningless methods Christian missionaries used with Muslims. They ran all sorts of risks for the purpose of Christianizing Muslims. They resorted to all sorts of stratagems to trap Muslims.

They promised them money, work, and posts. Those poor ignoramuses did not know that Islam was the religion where the commandments of Issa a.s. found the best practice and confirmation. Christianity has been defiled, to the extent that the real Nazarani religion communicated by Issa a.s. has been lost completely, and the tenets of humanity he preached have been forgotten. These things exist in Islam today. Then, by becoming a Muslim, I have also attained the Nazarani religion in its pristine purity. Principles commanded by Issa a.s., such as brotherhood, solidarity, good will, generosity and others, are observed not by Christians, but by Muslims today. Let me give you an example; The Christian sect of Athanasians insistently inculcates the tenet that Christianity is based on a belief in three gods (trinity), that a slightest doubt as to this belief will lead one to immediate perdition, and that a person who wishes to attain salvation in this world and the next should definitely hold a belief in the three gods, i.e. 'God, the Son of God, and the Holy Ghost'.

Another example: When I became a Muslim, I received a letter. It said, "By becoming a Muslim you have damned yourself to perdition. No one can save you. For you deny the divinity of God." The poor man thought that I no longer believed in Allahu ta'ala. According to his belief, the divinity of Allahu ta'ala depended on trinity. The idiot did not know that when Issa a.s. had begun to preach the pure Nazarani religion, he had stated the unity of Allahu ta'ala, and he had never claimed to be His son. Islam, by expressing that "There is only one Allah," rediscovered the original essence of Nazarani religion. Today, nothing could be as logical as a sane person's believing in the existence of one Allah. By becoming a Muslim, I believe in one real Allah and reject all the fibs that were inserted into the pure religion of Issa a.s. afterwards. The person who wrote me that letter and the other people who share his ideas are only pitiable. Day by day Christians are abandoning their religion and becoming atheists. For today's Christianity is no longer satisfactory for a normal and cultured person. People refuse a blind belief in superstitions and entertain doubts about the Christian creeds. On the other hand, all through my life-time so far, I have never heard of a Muslim feeling doubts about his faith. For the Islamic religion satisfies all the spiritual and physical needs of human beings in the most perfect and rational manner.

A fact I am positive about is that thousands of Christians, men and women alike, have examined Islam and have already identified themselves with Islam intrinsically. However, for the fear that they might lose their jobs or posts in case they officially announced their choice of Islam, or lest they should arouse derision on the part of their friends, they do not dare to become Muslims. In our schools Islam is still being taught as the religion of people who do not believe in Allahu ta'ala. Running the risk of being cursed as 'a man with a damned soul' by all my friends and acquaintances, I embraced Islam, and for twenty years I have been holding fast to Islam with both hands.

After giving this brief account of why I chose Islam, let me add that by becoming a Muslim I managed also to become a more true and pure follower of Issa a.s.. I wish to be an example for other Christians. choosing Islam will not make them enemies of Christianity, but, on the contrary, it will teach them the true Issawi religion, and it will raise them to a higher level.

16 - ABDULLAH ARCHIBALD HAMILTON (G.B.)

(Sir Archibald Hamilton, a well-known British diplomat, served as a naval officer during the First World War. Coming from a widely known family, he possesses the title of baronet, (which means a candidate baron). He was honoured with becoming a Muslim in 1923.)

Since reaching the age of puberty, I had been allured by Islam's simplicity and crystalline limpidity. I had been born as a Christian and I had been given a Christian education. Yet I had never believed in wrong credal tenets, and I had always preferred truth, right and reason to blind beliefs. I had been aspiring to worship one Allah sincerely and with a peaceful heart. Yet, both the Roman Catholic Church and the English Protestant Church had been short of serving this pure intention of mine. It was for these reasons that I answered the call of my conscience and accepted Islam, which satisfied me fully, and only after that did I begin to feel myself as a true and better born slave of Allahu ta'ala.

Sad to say, various Christians and ignorant people have misrepresented Islam as a religion of falsities and concoctions that are intended to induce torpor into the humanity. But the fact is that it is the only true religion in the sight of Allahu ta'ala. Islam is a perfect religion which brings about unity between the powerful and the weak as well as between the rich and the poor. Economically, there are two main classes of people. The first class contains people whom Allahu ta'ala has blessed with worldly riches. The second class is made up of those who have to work for a living. There is yet another class. People in this class live in utter destitution because they cannot earn enough, because they have lost their jobs, or because they can no longer work, none of which cases is their fault. Islam enables all these three classes to come together in a harmonized society. It commands the rich to help the poor. It provides a social setting where humiliations and afflictions are extirpated.

The Islamic religion lays emphasis also on personal abilities, efforts and skills. According to the Islamic jurisprudence, if a poor peasant, for instance, cultivates an ownerless piece of land on his own for a certain length of time, the land becomes his personal property. The Islamic religion is not destructive, but it is restorative.

The Islamic religion prohibits gambling and all the other vicious and deleterious games. The Islamic religion prohibits also all sorts of intoxicants. Indeed, the majority of afflictions people suffer in the world are caused by gambling or alcohol.

We Muslims are not people who hold the belief that everything is a slave in the hands of destiny. Destiny in the Islamic sense does not mean to sit idly with your mouth opened in the celestial direction and to expect that Allahu ta'ala will give you everything. On the contrary, Allahu ta'ala enjoins work in the Qur'an al-karim. Man should do his best and hold fast to all the apparent causes; only after that will he put his trust in Allahu ta'ala. Not without working, but while working, should he beg Allahu ta'ala to help him for success and earning. The Islamic credal tenet which says that "good and evil come from Allahu ta'ala" means, "Allahu ta'ala is the Creator of all." Islam does not contain a tenet encouraging people to idle away their time. Destiny means Allahu ta'ala's knowing in the eternal past all the events that will take place and His creating everything when the time in His knowledge comes.

Islam never accepts a credo based on the belief that human beings are originally sinful, that they are born with sins, or that they have to expiate their sins throughout their lives. Islam states that human beings are the born slaves of Allahu ta'ala, men and women alike, and that with respect to mental and moral qualities the two sexes are not very different from each other. Only, because men are more powerful and stronger by creation, onerous and tiresome duties such as supporting the family have been given to them, while women have been blessed with a more comfortable, more cheerful and happier life.

I do not want to say much on how Islam establishes brotherhood among all Muslims. For the entire world knows how Muslims love and help one another. In Islam all people, the rich, the poor, the nobles, villagers, civil servants, workers, merchants, are equal in the presence of Allahu ta'ala, and they are brothers. Throughout my travels in the Muslim countries, I felt as if I had been in my own home and among my brothers, wherever I went.

A final remark I would like to add is this: Islam invites people both to work honestly all the day long and to carry on his acts of worship, his duties as a born slave to Allahu ta'ala. Today's Christianity, on the other hand, induces into people a life style consisting in Masses in the name of worship only on Sundays and a complete oblivion of Allahu ta'ala covered with worldly occupations and sins throughout the rest of the week.

It was for these reasons that I became a Muslim, and I am proud of having become a Muslim.

17 - JALALEDDIN LAUDER BRUNTON (G.B.)

(Sir Brunton, who comes from an eminent family and who possesses the title of Baronet, graduated from the Oxford University and made fame with his publications.)

I am grateful to you for giving me the chance to explain why I became a Muslim. I grew up under the influence of Christian parents. Theology was one of the subjects that I was interested in when I was young. I met some missionaries and closely concerned myself with the activities they had been carrying on in foreign countries. My heart felt like helping them. Without being officially appointed, I joined them in their journeys. To say the truth, although I had taken religious lessons, the Christian theory that "People come to this world in a sinful state and they therefore must be sure to expiate," sounded bizarre to me. For this reason, I was gradually developing hatred against Christianity. I could not tolerate the idea that Allahu ta'ala, with all His infinite power to create anything He wished, would have to create only sinful creatures, which would run counter to His almightiness and compassion, and I therefore harboured doubts as to the genuineness of a religion that described Allahu ta'ala as such. These doubts developed into curiosity about the instructions that the other religions gave in this respect, and consequently I decided to examine the other religions as well. My heart was innerly craving for a just, merciful and compassionate god, and I was looking for such a creator, i.e. Allah. I was wondering whether that was the real Nazarani religion that Issa a.s. had brought. Or had the pure religion preached by him been polluted in the process of time? The more I thought about these, the stronger did the doubts in my heart become, so much so that more often than not I would pick up today's current Holy Bible, delve into the book, and at each time find more deficiencies and unintelligible discourses. Eventually, I reached the conclusion that that book was not the genuine Holy Book revealed to Issa a.s.. People had made a myriad of wrong accessions into the Bible, thus turning the pure heavenly book into an irreparable mixture of facts and fictions.

Having reached an absolute conviction as to this fact, I substituted Bible-reading with other sorts of preaching to the people that I met during the journeys I was making with the missionaries. Instead of mentioning their fictitious theory of 'God, the Son of God, and the Holy Ghost', for instance, I would inculcate the facts such as that when man died his soul would not die, that human beings were created by a great creator, that this great creator would punish men both in this world and in the next on account of their sins, and that this great creator, being extremely compassionate, would forgive men their sins in case they repented for their wrongdoings.

As days went by, my belief in the unity of Allah developed into an absolute conviction. In order to penetrate into the inner nature of truth, I tried to dive deeper and deeper into the subject. It was sometime during these efforts that I began to study the Islamic religion. This religion magnetized me so strongly that I dedicated my entire day to studying it. I happened to domicile myself in a forlorn Indian village, called Ichra, which was rather far from the urban areas and whose name almost no one knew. The inhabitants of this village belonged to a very poor and destitute caste. Only for the sake of Allahu ta'ala, I was trying to teach them the existence of a single and compassionate creator and the right way they ought to follow in this worldly life. I was also striving to inculcate into them such notions as religious brotherhood and cleanliness. So strange to say, all these notions I was doing my best to teach them existed in Islam, not in Christianity, and I was preaching them not as a Christian missionary, but like a Muslim religious man.

I am not going to enlarge on the details of the great efforts I made, the degree of self-sacrifice I achieved, or the severe difficulties I faced in that lonely and desolate village, among those unenlightened people. My only concern was to guide them to spiritual and physical cleanliness and to teach them the existence of a great creator.

Whenever I was on my own, I would study the life of Muhammad a.s.. Very few books had been written in English to reflect the facts about his life, yet no effort had been spared on the part of Christians to criticize and vilify that great Prophet and to incriminate him with lying. However, I was now able to study Islam fairly, without being influenced by those books that had been written under inimical motives. During the course of my studies, I came to the full realization that it was a definite fact that Islam was a true religion in which the concept of Allah and reality became manifest in its clearest identity.

Once you had been informed on the services which the great Prophet Muhammad s.a.s. had rendered for the good of humanity, it would be impossible for you to deny his prophethood. Definitely, he was the Messenger of Allahu ta'ala. As a blessing of Allahu ta'ala, he, alone, and in a very short time, transformed the Arabs from a mass of heathens who had been living in utter savagery and nascence, worshipping many idols, believing in superstitions, leading a bestial, semi-naked, and overwhelmingly polygamous life, into a civilized, morally upright and clean nation whose members were now believing in Allahu ta'ala, observing women's rights, and always trying to be good-natured and genial. A person never could have managed such a job without the blessing or help of Allahu ta'ala. As I thought about the strenuous efforts I put forth in that tiny village whose population was only one or two hundred, and how I still could not bring those wretched people to the right course, my admiration for the work accomplished by Muhammad s.a.s. grew all the greater. No. Something as great as that could be accomplished only by the Messenger of Allahu ta'ala. One ought to believe in his prophethood with all one's heart.

I do not want to make mention of all the other so many even much more beautiful facts about the Islamic religion. For, by acknowledging the existence of Allahu ta'ala and the prophethood of Muhammad a.s., a person has already become a Muslim. One of those days an Indian Muslim visited me. That polite person's name was Mian Amiruddin. We had a long conversation on the Islamic religion. That conversation was the decisive encouragement, and I accepted Islam.

I believe in the fact that Islam is the true religion of Allah, in its simplicity, forgivingness, compassionateness and sincerity, in that it establishes brotherhood among people, and in that one day it will unite the entire world.

I have reached the last stage of my life, and from now on I have dedicated myself to the service of Islam.

18 - Prof. Baron HARUN MUSTAFA LEON (G.B.)

(Prof. Baron Leon comes from a prominent British family and possesses the title of Baron. He owns a Ph. D. and other scientific titles. He became a Muslim in 1882. He had memberships in numerous scientific societies in Europe and America. Prof. Leon, who was a great authority especially in the linguistic and literary sciences, sprang into the universal limelight with his publication that was called 'Ethimology of the Human Lexion'. Upon this publication, the Potomac University of America gave him the degree of M.S. Prof. Leon is at the same time an expert geologist. He was invited by many famous institutions and gave conferences of these areas. He was elected as the Secretary General for the Société Internationale de Philologie=International Society of Philology, Science and Fine Arts, which had been founded in 1875. He began to publish a magazine titled (The Philomeths). He was awarded with various medals by the Ottoman Sultan Abd-ul-Hamid II, by the Shah of Iran, and by the Emperor of Austria.)

One of the most perfect essentials of the Islamic religion is that it never demands of Muslims to act against reason. Islam is a religion whose teachings are quite reasonable and perfectly logical. The other religions, on the other hand, force people to accept the tenets of creed that they can never understand, believe or find logical. In Christianity the church is the only authority in this respect. Contrariwise, Muslims are commanded to believe in anything only after mentally examining it (and finding it logical). Muhammad a.s. states, "Allahu ta'ala has not created anything irrational or illogical." He states in another hadith ash-Sharif, "I tell you with certainty that even if a person performs (his daily prayers of) namaz (regularly), fasts, pays (the prescribed alms called) zakat, goes on hajj (Muslim's pilgrimage to Mecca), and carries out all the other commandments of Islam, he shall be rewarded in proportion to the degree of his using the mind and logic Allahu ta'ala has endowed on him."

The pure religion preached by Issa a.s. also contained similar rules. For instance, 'First try everything! Accept only the good one." Yet, these rules were forgotten in the course of time. The fifth ayat al-karima of Sura-t-ul-Juma of Qur'an al-karim purports, "Those people who have been enjoined to learn the Torah and to adapt themselves to it, and yet who do not obey it, are reminiscent of an ass with a load of books on its back."

Ali 'radi-Allahu 'anh' states, "The world is dark. Knowledge is a nur (light)! However, knowledge which is not correct is obscurity."

Muslims hold the belief that "Islam is the very truth itself," and they state that Islam's light shines only with the energy it gets from knowledge and logic, that this knowledge ensues only from truth, and that truth, in its turn, is discovered by men owing to the common sense, which is a blessing Allahu ta'ala has conferred upon them.

The last Prophet of Allahu ta'ala, Muhammad a.s., who is the greatest blessing Allahu ta'ala has sent to humanity, showed them the path that they were to follow. It was during his final days (in this world), when the following incident took place:

It was a couple of days before Muhammad's a.s. passing away, and he was resting, half conscious, his head on the knees of Aisha r.a.a. his beloved wife. All the people of Medina were desperately sad about Rasulullah's illness, which enervated him day by day and against which they were helpless. Men, women, children were crying loudly. Among those who were crying were grey-haired, sallow-complexioned, aged warriors. Muhammad Mustafa al-amin s.a.s. was their commander, guide, leader, companion, shepherd, an intimate friend with whom they exchanged confidences, and, the most important of all, their great Prophet who had rescued them from darkness and guided them to the light of truth owing to the Islamic religion which he preached. This great Prophet s.a.s., who had brought them peace and security by means of Islam, was now bidding 'Farewell' to them. The lamentable thought that their Prophet was dying was gripping their hearts like an iron clamp, bringing tears into their eyes, and causing them to despair deeply.

At last, they risked losing everything, and entered into his presence in that mood of hopelessness. In tears they asked, "O the Messenger of Allah s.a.s.! You are gravely ill. Perhaps Allahu ta'ala will invite you to His presence and you will no longer be with us. Then, what can we do without you?"

Our Prophet Muhammad a.s. stated, "You have the Qur'an al-karim to consult." Then they asked, "O the Messenger of Allah s.a.s.! It is certain that the Qur'an al-karim will be our guide in many respects. Yet if we cannot find what we are seeking by looking up in it, and if you have already left us, who will be our guide?" Upon this, our Prophet s.a.s. stated, "Act in accordance with what I have told you." This time they asked, "O the Messenger of Allah s.a.s.! Since you will no longer be among us, what should we do if we encounter altogether new matters and cannot find anything about those matters in your hadiths?"

Our Prophet s.a.s. raised his blessed head slowly from the pillow, and said, "Allahu ta'ala has given a personal guide to each and every one of His born slaves. This guide is the common sense, and his heart, which embodies a conscience. If you use this guide well and properly, you will never deviate from the right path, and in the end you will attain to Allahu ta'ala." "Istafti qalbek, Fe-innaha teskunu bi-l-halal." Here is the Islamic religion which I boast of having chosen. This religion is the true religion of Allah, which is entirely based on reason and logic.

Beware boasting of wealth, nor say, "Who's there like me!"

Harvest-like, a cruel wind winnows all that belongs to thee.


 
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