MIRAGE
The Love Language of Islam
By: David Ibrahim
CHAPTER EIGHT
UNDERSTANDING ISLAMIC TERMS AND NAMES
Islam, Muslim, Muhammad, Quran, Mosque, and Madrassa
The name “Islam” simply means “Self-surrender to the Will of God/Allah.” According to Muslims, Islam is the way of life that all prophets throughout history have taught. They believe the last and final Guide was Muhammad. A “Muslim” (i.e. a self-surrendered one), is a follower of this faith.
Islam is an Arabic word which means to accept “surrender” or “submission” and it comes from the root word “Salem” which means “surrender.” The word “salaam” means peace.
The primary “truth” of Islam is found in the first pillar of Islam, known as the “Shahada” or the “Kalama,” which states:
“There is no true God except Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.”
It controls every aspect of one’s life from birth to death. It teaches how to be a faithful devotee, how to be pleasing in Allah’s sight and how to live among the non-Muslims. Furthermore, Islam has guidelines for education, attire for men and women, marriage, politics, business, the military and the legislative and judiciary structure of government, dealings with one’s “enemies” and the conduct of war.
Based on the Islamic history, there were three main groups of early converts to Islam: younger brothers and sons of great merchants; people who had fallen out of the first rank in their tribe or failed to attain it; the weak and mostly unprotected foreigners.
The spread of Islam may be chronologically divided into three periods, and the dates when Islam entered the lands where it is now predominant fall into three groups. The first period is from the death of Muhammad in 632 to 800; a later period, under the Ottomans and Moguls, from 1280-1480; and lastly the modern period of Islam, from 1780 onward.
A Muslim is an adherent of the religion of Islam. A Muslim is a follower of Muhammad. Literally, the word means “one who submits to the teachings of Allah found in the Quran.” All Muslims are united by their common belief, irrespective of class, location, race, or gender. Therefore, they have an especially strong bond of unity and equality. Muslims consider making ritual prayers five times a day a religious duty.
In the Qur’an, Jesus’ disciples tell Jesus, “We believe in God’ and
You be our witness that we submit and obey.” Surah 3:52
Muhammad, is the founder of the Islamic religion. The name of Muhammad, joined to that of Almighty (Allah), was called in then thousand minarets five times daily from the Persian Gulf to the Atlantic, and his new religion was sweeping everything before it in three continents.
Muhammad Iban Abdullah, (“The Prophet of Allah”), was born in 570 AD in Mecca and died in Medina 632 AD. He is considered by Muslims to be the Final Prophet of God/Allah to the world. By Muslims he is viewed as the uncorrupted restorer of the original monotheistic faith of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and other prophets.
***The name Muhammad means “Praiseworthy” and occurs four times in the Quran.”
He was also active as a diplomat, merchant, philosopher, orator, legislator, reformer, military general, and according to Muslim belief, an agent of divine action.
The revelations (or Ayat, lit. “Signs of God”) – which Muhammad reported receiving until his death-from the verses of the Qur’an, regarded by Muslims as the “Word of God/Allah” and around which the religion is based. Besides the Qur’an, Muhammad’s life (sira) and traditions (Sunnah), are also upheld by Muslims.
In Muhammad’s Own Words (Pages 133-134)
The Hadith is a documentation of oral traditions relating to Muhammad’s words and deeds according to his wives, relatives, followers, and companions. The Hadith is recorded in many books, and by many individuals. The Hadith collection is regarded by all traditional schools of jurisprudence as important tools for determining the Muslim way of life, the Sunnah.
The “Sahih Al-Bukhari” Hadiths comes in nine volumes and most Sunni Muslims view this as their most trusted collection of Hadiths and it has been called “The most authentic book after the Qur’an.”
How repulsive and disturbing are the sayings of Muhammad! How beautiful are the words of the LORD! Psalm 119:105 states: “Thy Word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.” Verse 130 of the same Psalm says: “The entrance of Thy Words give light; they give understanding to the simple.” The psalmist in Psalm 19:10 declares: “More to be desired are they (the Words of the LORD) than gold, yes, more than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” Indeed, God’s true WORD is wonderfully encouraging and nourishing!
Ten of Muhammad’s eleven wives: (Pages 135-139)
1. Khadijah Bint Khumalid 6. Zaynaab Bint Jahsh
2. Sa’uda Bint Zama 7. Juwayriyya Bint al-Harith
3. Ayesha Bint Abu Bakr 8. Safiyya Bint Huyay
4. Hafsa Bint Umar 9. Maymuna Bint al-Harith
5. Zaynab Bint Khuzayma 10. Ramlah Bint Abi Sufyan, aka Umm Habiba
(3)
In addition to his eleven wives, Muhammad had three concubines. Here are two of them: (Page 139)
1. Rayhana Bint Amribn Khunafa
2. Maria al-Qibtiyya or Maria the Copt
The Quran, referred to as “Mother of the Book” (Surah 43:4) means: The Koran or Qur’an is derived from an Arabic root word “qara’a” that means “he read: or “he recited.” The angel Gabriel delivered the Quran to Muhammad over a twenty-three year period. According to Muhammad initial encounter with Gabriel took place in a cave Hira some three miles from the city of Mecca, in 610 AD when he was forty years old.
The Koran or Qur’an which means: “the reading” in Arabic is the sacred book of Islam. It is divided into 114 chapters (called Surahs) that cover the subjects of ethics, history, low and theology. The Koran is highly revered by Muslims. It is considered to be the direct, literal Word of God.
It is believed that Gabriel commanded thrice to Muhammad “read and recite” during those encounters. The Quran was written down by Muhammad’s companions while he was alive, although the primary method of transmission was oral.
The Quran was complied 15 to 20 years after Muhammad’s death in 632 AD. Muslims regard the present form of the Qur’an as God’s revelation to Muhammad. When showing great reverence to the Quran, they kiss the book, touch it to their forehead and lay it in the highest place in the house. It is arranged from the longest Surah to the shortest. The Surahs are classified as Meccan and Medinan. Eighty-six surahs were revealed in Mecca while twenty-eight were revealed in Medina. The Quran is difficult to understand without the Hadiths (saying of Muhammad).
Adam is regarded in Islam as the first prophet, and prophets continued with Suhuf Ibrahim (Scrolls of Abraham), the Tawrat (Torah or Pentateuhs), the Zabur (Book of Psalms), and the Injeel (Gospel).
Mosque – a place for worship, justice, war strategy, and government: The word mosque in Arabic is known as “Masjid” and is derived from the root word “sajada” meaning “bow down,” which is normally viewed as worship. This concept eventually leads to maintaining, obeying, and executing the superior law of Allah which is “Sharia Law.”
Muhammad has declared that the whole World is a Mosque (Page 141)
Muhammad himself introduced mosques (Pages 141-142)
According to his instructions the prayers presented in the scared mosque, the Ka’aba in Mecca, are equivalent to one thousand performed elsewhere. Since the mosque serves as the
Muhammad himself introduced mosques (continued) [Pages 141-142]
headquarters, it makes community announcements. They are not only the place where Muslims practice their beliefs, but are also the place that promotes and fosters hatred and terrorism. In the past whenever there was an order to fight, the mosque announced it. Gatherings in mosques have always been used to incite mistrust, hatred, and violence toward non-Muslims.
In the Islamic world women are not allowed to go and worship in the mosque; however, they must pray in the privacy of their homes. They are also prohibited to pray during their menstrual cycle. According to teachings of Quran, they are unclean and diseased during that period (Surah 2:222). In the West the women are allowed to come to the mosque for prayer, but they are segregated.
The Madrassa – a religious school following an Islamic curriculum
These schools teach Quranic studies and create a class of people for whom education is simply the Holy Book, “the Quran.” Scholars, preachers, religious community leaders who conduct the religious affairs of a community have graduated from the Madrassas and become an Imam or religious leader. The madrassas have a single – minded focus that is simply to teach their students what the Islamic teachings requires from the.
Informal teachers – shaykhs
Religious education sessions – majalis
Madrassas did not exist in the early beginnings of Islam. Their formation can probably be traced to the early Islamic custom of meeting in mosques to discuss religious issues. At this early stage, people seeking religious knowledge tended to gather around certain more knowledgeable Muslims.
Different types of Madrassas:
· Madrasah aamah translates as “public school.”
· Madrasah khasah translates as “private school.”
· Madrasah diniyyah translates as “religious school.”
· Madrasah Islamiyyah translates as “Islamic school.”
· Madrasah Jamiah translates as “university.”
The Fort of Islam
Pakistan, since its birth (in 1947) has been called “The Fort of Islam”! It is known for its “universities of jihad’, is considered to be “the hub of terrorism”, (AK Antony) and “the training ground of future terrorist.” Pakistan is the only Muslim state that has nuclear technology.
The Fort of Islam (continued)
The instability is coming from the religious element within Pakistan, which is killing innocent civilians in the name of Jihad for the spread and domination of Islam. Christians and Muslims alike are suffering from the wrath of terrorists. Behind all these terrorist attacks is a powerful motivation, a brainwashing that is coming from the religious institution know as madrassas.
A Brief history of Madrassas in Pakistan (Pages 144-145)
Definitions and information concerning The Mujahideen, The Taliban, The Pashtuns, and Al-Qaeda (Pages 145-147)
The Mujahideen – (literally “struggler”) is a person involved in a jihad. The western world calls it “Islamic terrorists” and “Islamic terrorism”
The Taliban – (meaning “students”) – The Taliban implemented one of the strictest interpretations[s] of Sharia Law.
The Pashtuns – are an Eastern Iranian ethno-linguistic group. They are an important community in Pakistan, where they are prominently represented in the military and are the second-largest ethnic group.
Al-Qaeda – (translation: The Base) is an Islamic group that operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless arm and a fundamentalist Sunni movement calling for al-qaeda al-sulbah (a vanguard of the strong).
Characteristic techniques include suicide attacks and simultaneous bombings of different targets.
Al-Qaeda’s objectives include the end of foreign influence in Muslim countries and the creation of a new Islamic caliphate.
Madrassas have been used to spread Islam’s aggressive doctrines for centuries (Pages 147-149)
There is an undercurrent of terror and fanaticism, which goes hand in hand with Islamic doctrine.
The greatest tragedy is that the Saudi Arabians are exporting their hatred (through religion) by financing the Madrassas all through the Islamic World.
Teaching Arabic (Pages 149-150)
One way of achieving Islam’s goal globally is to bring into their agenda the teaching of the Arabic language throughout the world. The problem is not the language but the rationale and the motivation behind all this. This is not a matter of learning a new language but a matter of how the language is being taught and the end result.
A 2008 Report on an Islamic School in Virginia (Page 151)
My Observation (Pages 151-152)
I realize that people who have lived as a minority in the Muslim world have a much better understanding of what Islam wants to accomplish through the madrassas and Islamic schools that have been and are being established in the West. We must realize that Islam is not a peaceful, loving religion. This is a mirage. Instead, it is an all-encompassing, all-consuming faith that demands absolute allegiance to Allah from its followers. Mosques and madrassas are not just simply places of worship and education. They are centers for training and promoting Islamic teachings with one goal in mind-to rid the world of all who are not Muslims and thus achieve world domination.
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