Reflections on the Ft. Hood Shooter

It's been a while since I last blogged but I've been busy and such. One recent event that brought Islam and Muslims into more media attention was the tragic events at Ft. Hood, Texas. Maj. Hasan, who had been an officer in the US Army open fire and killed 13 people in what appeared to be simply a "nut" that had "cracked". However, it was brought up that Maj. Hasan had particular problems with idea of Muslims in the US military going to war in places like Iraq and Afghanistan to fight against other Muslims. So, this begs the question, what is the Islamic position on fighting other Muslims? It prompted me to do a bit of research on the issue and has brought me to a conclusion that some might find unexpected.

Allah says in the Qur'an, "Oh you who believe, stand out firmly for justice, even if it be against your own selves, or parents, or kin, or whether they be rich or poor. It is Allah who protects both. Follow not the lusts of your hearts least they make you stray, and if you distort justice or refuse to do justice, truly Allah knows well what you do" (4:135)

and Allah also says in the Qur'an, "It is not for a believer to kill another believer except for by mistake..." (9:42)

In the second verse, Allah is not necessarily referring to Muslims killing Muslims who have committed crimes punishable by death such as murder, adultery, etc... The kind of killing being referred to here would be killing for an unjustifiable reason or in a war with an unjustifiable cause. Which brings me to my next point; are the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan justifiable? Well in the case of Afghanistan, it was most certainly justified for the US to go to Afghanistan considering the US had been attacked by people planning from that country. Iraq was a different story as we, the American people, were led into that war based primarily on a lie. However even in Iraq we must remember that though going in may have been a mistake, we now have a responsibility to ensure that the people of Iraq can live securely. Likewise the war in Afghanistan has been handled stupidly, but we still have a responsibility to see that things don't just get worse after we leave. Of course I'm drastically over-simplifying a lot of the details of this situation mostly for the sake and time.
The bottom line is that for the most part, the people who American troops are fighting primarily, namely the Taliban in Afghanistan and Al Qaeda in Iraq, are the same people who are suicide bombing market places and mosques across Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. One must ask the question, "Who have these people killed more of....Americans or Muslims?". By far Al Qaeda and the Taliban have killed many more Muslims than they have killed non-Muslim Americans. So with that in mind I would have to say this... While Muslims should always strive to avoid conflict with other Muslims, we also have a responsibility to protect innocent brothers and sisters from other deviant Muslims who would do them harm for political gains or religious fanatisism. This is something that the more powerful Muslim countries such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan etc... should be doing anyway (yet they do virtually nothing to oust these deviants). The American troops that are currently in Iraq and Afghanistan are not there to occupy the land or to rape them of their resources as some conspiracy theorists might suggest, ultimately they are there to secure American safety by ensuring that Iraqis and Afghans can live in peace, prosperity and freedom. This mission is something that a Muslim soldier in the US Army should be proud to be a part of.
Ultimately the problem is that we, the Muslims, have developped a "club" or "gang" mentality in which we protect our own no matter what they do. While most Muslims do recognize that there are extremists that kill innocents in the name of Islam, we don't talk enough about what to do about them, or of taking a stand against them; ideally in non-violent ways, but when necessary, Muslims must be willing to protect innocents Muslims or otherwise even if it means fighting other Muslims. The brave Muslim soldiers (who aren't corrupt) who fight in the Iraqi, Afghan, and Pakistani armies against the Taliban and Al Qaeda know this all too well, and too often don't receive the support they need from the greater Muslim Ummah. We must realize that it is our responsibility to take ownership of our problems and of those who kill innocents in the name of Islam. We must stop constantly trying to blame our problems on others and except that our Ummah is in a sad state and dealing with lunatics who blow themselves up in market places and mosques is one of many things we need to do to help ourselves out of this funk. I can only wish that Maj. Hasan would have come to this realization before he did what he did.

The Three Deadly Sins of Islam!!! pt. 2

بسم لله الرحمان الرحيم

In the name of Almighty God, the All Merciful, the Beneficent. Last week I discussed two of the "three deadly sins of Islam". These being shirk and kufr. These two are definitely the greatest sins, as they involve our faith, and what is in our heart. However the third deadly sin is also extremely dangerous but not just because of what it does to our faith, but how it affects our behavior towards our fellow man. This is of course nifaq, or "hypocrisy".
The word Hypocrisy is defined in Webster's dictionaries as: an act or a practice of feigning to be what one is not, or to feel what one does not feel; especially, the false assumption of goodness. Therefore, a hypocrite is a false pretender and dissembler to virtue or piety. In the Islamic terminology, the word Hypocrisy is a substitute for 'Nifaq'. This word Nifaq has been mentioned in the Qur'an thirty-one (31) times in different forms.
In the Qur'an, God makes one thing abundantly clear, at that is that for those who leave this world in a state of nifaq, they have been promised a place in the fiery depths of Hell. God says in the Qur'an,
God hath promised the hypocrites, men and women, and the rejecters of Faith, the fire of Hell; therein shall they dwell; sufficient is it for them: for them is the curse of God, and an enduring punishment. (9:68)
Notice that God puts the hypocrites right there on the same level with the "rejecters of faith" or the kefir, one of sins I mentioned last week. So this leaves no doubt that hypocrisy is a tremendously dangerous sin. God Almighty says in another part of the Qur'an,
When the hypocrites come to thee, they say, 'We bear witness that thou art indeed the Apostle of God.' Yea, God knoweth that thou art indeed His Apostle, and God beareth witness that the hypocrites are indeed liars. (63:1)
God says it here that the hypocrites are "indeed liars". Ask yourself now how common is it today to see Muslims lie about things? The prophet Muhammad (sws) said in an authentic hadith,
The signs of a hypocrite are three: when he speaks, he lies; when he gives an agreement, he does not fulfill his commitment; and when he is entrusted, he betrays the trust.
Now honestly we must look around at our Ummah, and seriously ask ourselves the question, how much of these things are we seeing now-a-days in the Muslim world? Quite a bit I would say. The prophet (sws) also said about hypocrites, quote
You will find that the worst person is double-faced; he meets one group of people with one side of his face, while another with the other side.
When we look around our world today we see a lot of this. We see this kind of behavior in markets where goods are bought and sold. We see this in the masajid when people will show up for salah (prayer) on Friday, and on Saturday night their partying it up at the clubs and so fourth. We especially see it in politics. We see these politicians who when talking to one group of people they say one thing, and when talking to another group they say another thing. I mean if the most powerful and richest amongst us Muslims, are acting in such a way that is clearly a sign of nifaq, what does that say about our Ummah. At the time of the prophet (sws) lying was considered a horrible act even by the mushrikeen (pagan Arabs) of that day. This is why it was such a huge insult when they called the prophet (sws) a liar, because at that time in Arabia, lying was considered uncouth, undignified, and cowardly. However, today, lying is so common, that in many arenas it is simply accepted as the norm. In politics it is accepted as fact that lying is just part of the game. If you go into a shop in most Muslim countries and ask how much a shirt or something like that is, it is commonly accepted that the shop owner will tell you at least three times what it's actually worth, because the expectation is that it will be negotiated, when what should happen is that the shop owner should have enough integrity to give a reasonable and accurate price from the beginning, and the one buying the product should understand what would be an acceptable price and not try to short change the shop owner either. So when these things, which are described by the prophet (sws) as signs of hypocrisy, are so common place in Muslim countries that they are accepted norms, then what does that say about the level of iman (faith) of our Ummah (people)? I'll tell you what it says. It says that we as the Ummah of Muhammad (sws) have reached a point that we are utterly failing to uphold even the most basic of Islamic principals. Why is it that many Muslims have to come to the non-Muslim western countries in order to escape economic, and cultural slavery, or even to simply be able to practice Islam freely? Why is it the non-Muslim leaders of the world who are actually "doing something" about the suffering people in Gaza, or in Kashmir, or in Nigeria, or in Somalia? And, by "doing something", I mean actually getting involved, sending food, sending supplies, taking people in, and when necessary standing up against oppressors. Why was it that it was the non-Muslim administration of the United States that eventually committed it's military to stopping the genocide in Bosnia? Where was Saudi Arabia, where was Jordan, where was Egypt? Where were the wealthy and powerful Muslim countries? Sitting on their hands, that's where. Why? Maybe because they stood to loose to much money by doing so. Maybe, they didn't want to risk being seen as radical "jihadists". Whatever their outward reason, ultimately it boils down to the fact that by all indications, and God knows best, we, the Muslim Ummah are in the midst of a disgusting, rancid, blistering plague of nifaq. A plague that dwarfs the black death of Europe, or any other historical plague.
So, I mention again that the prophet (sws) said that the primary indicators of nifaq in a persons behavior are
1. He lies when he speaks ~ We must ask ourselves if we've ever lied to anyone, even a little lie. Lying is a tremendous sin in Islam, even the smallest of lies can be deadly to one's soul and one's akhirah (afterlife). The next time someone asks you about Islam, and if they have any doubt in what your saying, just educate them that lying in our faith is absolutely forbidden and we can go to Hell for doing so.
2. He does not keep promises~ God only knows, but I'd bet that we've all broken a promise at one time or another. We must remember that this can very easily constitute nifaq if it is a common occurrence.
3. He does not take care of that with which he is entrusted~ In other words this is someone who is given something to take care of it, and he abuses that privilege. Again, this also very easily can be applied to some of the so-called "leaders" of the Muslim world, who are entrusted with the lives and liberty of the people of their country, and instead of honoring that amanah (trust) they abuse it for their own personal gain.
We need to start holding ourselves, the Muslim Ummah, accountable to ourselves and to our deen (religion). If we are in this plague of nifaq, then how can we ever hope to be successful in combating the problems we face. God Almighty says in his Qur'an,
The hypocrites, men and women, (have an understanding) with each other: They enjoin evil, and forbid what is just, and are close-fisted with their hands. They have forgotten Allah so He has forgotten them. Verily the hypocrites are rebellious and perverse.
(At-Tawbah 9:67)
One part of this verse really sticks out to me, They have forgotten Allah so He has forgotten them. If we, not necessarily as individuals, but as an Ummah, have forgotten God, and forgotten to put God in His proper position in life, then what do we expect to happen to our brothers and sister in Palestine, or Iraq, or Afghanistan, or Pakistan, or Somalia, or even to brothers and sisters right here in the US? The plight of the Muslims in this day in age is nothing more than a test from Him. A test that I fear, we are failing miserably. I once heard it said, if you want to know where you stand with God, then look to where God stands with you. Where are you putting God in your life? Are you brushing Him under the rug, only to be seen when you go "clean" yourself out spiritually? Are you putting Him in a convenient little drawer where you can go to him when you want but forget him when you don't. Or, are you putting Allah in His proper place, which is at the center of everything. At the center of your life, in the forefront of your mind, and at the core of your heart. Doing this is what protects us from shirk. It is what protects us from kufr, and it is what protects us from nifaq.
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As a final note, everyone by now knows that we in the US have a new President, Barack Hussain Obama. I think it's important that we extend du'a for him, his family, and for his administration that Allah might firstly guide them to the siratul mustaqeem or the "straight path" of Islam. But also, that Allah, God Almighty, guide them to lead this country away from the self-destructive path that we have been on, and to once again make America represent the beacon of freedom and democracy that we profess to be. Ameen.
....And Allah Knows Best....

The Three Deadly Sins of Islam!!! pt. 1

بسم لله الرحمان الرحيم

In the name of Almighty God, the All-Merciful, the All-Beneficent.

A couple weeks ago I noticed that the History Channel was doing a week long documentary special on the "Seven Deadly Sins", of Christianity. A friend of mine who also saw this asked me if we as Muslims have anything like this in our faith. At first my answer was no, but then I thought about it. We do have something like that, but they would be narrowed down to three rather than seven. These are shirk, kufr, and nifaaq. These three things are sins that are considered extremely dire sins and it is important that we all, from time to time, remind ourselves of these things, and of how easy they sometimes can be to fall into.
The first of these sins is shirk. This concept can be summed up in a riddle a good friend of mine once told me, and I'll share it with you today. What is it that a common man sees all the time, a king sees every once in a while, and God never sees, and God sees all?...........................jeopardy song....................................give up? The answer is, rivalry. God never experiences rivalry because their are no gods except Him, and shirk is to associate ANYTHING else, with God. It is the very foundation of all of Islamic doctrine and spirituality. La ilaha illa Allah, "There is no god, but God"; the utterance of this statement, along with Muhammadun Rasoolullah "Muhammad is the messenger of God", is what makes someone Muslim. To worship anything besides God, to associate any kind of partner with God is shirk. This sin is considered the greatest sin of all, because it is the only sin in which God says that it will NOT be forgiven. God says in the Qur'an,
"Verily, Allah forgives not that partners be ascribed to Him, but He forgives anything except that; and whoever sets up partners with Allah in worship, has indeed invented a tremendous sin". (Qur'an 4:48)
God Almighty also says,
"Then when the trumpet is blown, there will be no kinship among them on that day, nor will they ask of one another.
Then those whose scales (of good deeds) are heavy, these! they are the successful.
The fire will burn their faces, and therein they will grin with disfigured lips.
Were not My verses recited to you and then you used to deny them?
They will say 'Our Lord, our wretchedness overcame us and we were an erring people.
Our Lord, bring us out of this. If we ever return to evil, then indeed we shall be wrongdoers.'
He (Allah) will say, 'Remain you in this with ignominy! And speak not to me!'
(Qur'an 23:101-108)
Then again Allah says,
"And whoever invokes something in worship besides Allah, any other god of whom he has no proof, then his reckoning is only with his Lord. Surely, those who disbelieve will not be successful. (Qur'an 23:117)
Shirk is most commonly associated with polytheistic religions such as Hinduism or ancient Greek or Roman religions. It can also be seen in religions like Buddhism were people may pray to or invoke the presence of the Buddha. Even amongst the Ahl al Kitab, or the "People of the Book" it can be found. Even though the Bible recounts the ten commandments of Moses (pbuh), the first of which is "thou shall have no other gods but Me", still many Christians, not all but some, fall into the trap of calling Jesus Christ (pbuh) God! God talks about the Christians calling Jesus His son in the Qur'an. However many Christians will take it a step further and actually say that Jesus was "God in human form". This is also shirk. Also you can see it in the Nation of Islam. Don't let the name fool you, their beliefs are not Islam. You can go to the Nation's website and see very plainly there the continuation of the teachings of Elijah Muhammad who said that Allah had come to Earth in human form, in the person of Wallace Fard, that Elijah Muhammad was a prophet of Allah, and that the "white man" is the direct physical descendant of Iblis and is fundamentally evil.
There are a couple different manifestations of shirk that we can see demonstrate both in scripture and in present day situations.

SHIRK AL AKBAR (The Major Shirk)
This is the most severe and deadliest shirk, and by deadly I don't mean physically but spiritually. For an example this we can turn to the Qur'an in 29:65.
"And when they embark on a ship, they invoke Allah, making their faith pure for him only, but when he brings them safely to land, behold, they give a share of their worship to others".
This verse reminds me of the saying, "there are no atheists in fox holes". In other words, when people are starring down the prospect of death at any moment, they will turn to God, and say "Oh God please save me!", but then when God does save them, they will turn back to their old ways; showing absolutely no gratitude to God for being sparred.
Also another way that this form of Shirk is manifested is when people render "complete" authority to anything but God. Again when we look to the Qur'an, in 9:31,
"They took their rabbis and their monks to be their lords besides Allah, and also the Messiah, the son of Mary, while they were commanded (in the Torah and the Gospels) to worship none but one God. There is none worthy of worship but Him. Glorified is He from having the partners that they associate with Him."
In this particular case, God is talking about the Ahl al Kitab or the "People of the Book" (i.e. the Jews and Christians). In addition to the worship of Jesus Christ (pbuh), God mentions the rabbis and the monks. This is to say the establishment of a priesthood. This is one of the most beautiful things about Islam, is that there is no concept of priesthood. Every human being is equal to God in terms of their ability to understand his commands and discern right from wrong. However, in Muslim history, a type of "priesthood" has been set up in many ways by both Sunni and Shia groups. Many people will say "I'm a Hanafi" or "I'm a Shafi'i", and they take their religion from these imams, and no one else, even though these imam's themselves never said that they ought to be followed blindly. In fact all of them were quoted as to saying that if anything they say contradicts what can be proven of the Sunnah (way of prophet Muhammad 'pbuh') then we are to disregard it. Being a scholar of Islam means that you have memorized the Qur'an and/or memorized entire collections of hadith, or have mastered one or more of the sciences of Islam, and this is a tremendous accomplishment that should not be downplayed in any way, shape or form. However, none of this necessarily makes you more capable of "reasoning" then any other human being. I have often found that sometimes a major problem with very "educated" people is that they over-think things. God Almighty told us in the Qur'an, that this book has been given to us in plain Arabic, or plain language. Likewise the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said that he left us two things, The Qur'an and his Sunnah. This means that these two things are all we really need in to be successful in this life and the next. So we must be careful that we do not fall into the same trap that our Jewish and Christian brethren did, by taking our imams as lords, or "authorities" besides God.
SHIRK AL ASGHAR (The Minor Shirk)
This is to perform any act of worship, simply for gaining benefit or praise in this world. This is much more common than folks think. Many people when praying on their own will pray "sloppy". They may rush through it, just "going through the motions". However, when they are with people, they are very serious and hold themselves very confidently and piously during prayer. Why, because they want those other people to think that they are a good religious person. In some cases they may not even pray at all when they are alone. So, this is performing acts of worship that are designed for God alone, for the "entertainment" of others.

The next major/deadly sin, is the sin of kufr. In pre-Islamic Arabia, the word kufr was often used to refer to a farmer, who would plant a seed in the ground and then "cover" in up with earth. This "covering" was called kufr. When the Qur'an came, God Almighty used the word kufr to refer to those who had heard the message of Islam and the message of Muhammad (pbuh), refused to accept it, and "covered" it with their backward sense of reasoning.
One major problem that Muslims have now-a-days, is that many of us are in the habit of using this label, calling someone a kafr, far too lightly. Many Muslims automatically call anyone other than Muslims kafrs. Horribly, some will even call other Muslims kafrs if they don't believe in or practice Islam exactly how they do. This is very bad, both for the Muslim calling people that as well as for the entire Ummah (Muslim people's of the world).
To clarify, kufr, is to "knowingly" disbelieve and/or reject any of the six pillars of faith. which are:
-Believe in God
-Believe in Angels
-Believe in ALL the prophets (Adam, Moses, Jesus Christ, Muhammad, etc)
-Believe in God's revelations (Torah, Psalms, Gospel, & Qur'an)
-Believe in the Day of Judgment
-Believe in Divine Pre-Destination (God knows past, present, future).

Anyone who rejects or disbelieves in these things, who fully and completely understand them is a kafr. If they don't fully understand them, or don't have any knowledge of them at all, they are not a kafr, they are jahil or "ignorant". Remember, in order to "cover" the truth as the kufar (plural of kafr) do, they must first "have" the truth. There are several different manifestations of kufr, just as there are with shirk.
KUFR AL TAKDHEEB- This is to reject or "invent a lie" against any of the fundamental tenants of faith. God says in the Qur'an,
"Then who does more wrong than one who utters a lie against Allah, and denies the truth when it comes to him! Is there not in Hell, an abode for the disbelievers". (Qur'an, 39:32)
KUFR OF ARROGANCE- This is to refuse to obey God's commands when they have been made apparent to you, as Iblis (Satan) did when God created the first man, Adam. God says in the Qur'an,
"And remember when We said to the angels, 'Prostrate yourselves before Adam'. And the prostrated except Iblis, he refused and was proud and was one of the disbelievers." (Qur'an 2:34)
As the prophet Muhammad said, Satan has given up misleading you in large things, so beware the small things. Most of us don't go so far as to deny the obligation of the salah (five daily prayers), or of the obligation to fast, however many Muslims will try to find ways around many of the other commands of God. For example you'll see many Muslim shop owners who sell alcohol and liquor, and when you ask them why do you do this when you know it's haram they say, "well we have to be able to compete with other stores". Or, when you see sisters going without their hijab, they say that "they don't want to stand out", or "they don't want to be harassed". Sometimes they "sheikh shop" for imams or so-called scholars who will say that it's not obligatory. Sometimes Muslims engage in partying, gambling, fornication, and other sorts of activities and when you remind them of their duty to God, they just kind of shrug it off, as if they may live forever and never face God for the things they did in this life. This is arrogance in the face of God, and it to is a form kufr. Not necessarily the kind that completely excludes you from Islam, but nonetheless it is a form of kufr.
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One more form of kufr is Kufr an Nifaaq. This is hypocritical disbelief. God Almighty says in the Qur'an,
"They have made their oaths a screen. Thus they hinder people from the path of Allah. Verily, evil is what they used to do. That is because they believed, and then disbelieved, therefore their hearts are sealed, so they understand not." (Qur'an 16:112)
This form of kufr implies being a hypocrite. Saying that you are a believer only to gain worldly gains, while inwardly still maintaining your disbelief, and this will lead us into the next "deadly sin", nifaaq or hypocrisy, which, God willing, I will continue with next week.
......And Allah Knows Best......

The Pursuit of Happiness

بسم لله الرحمان الرحيم

In this life, and especially in the materialistic world that we live in, everyone, Muslims included, always seem to be trying to find "happiness". Happiness at work, happiness at home, happiness here and happiness there. I once heard from one of the great American imams of our day, Imam Suraj Wahaj, that one day about ten years ago, a woman had come to him in his office and asked him "imam, do I have the right to be happy?". It's amazing really. Most of us don't ever think about this issue in those terms. "Do I have the right to be happy". Most of us ask questions like "Am I happy?" or "How can I be happier". However, this sister, whoever she was, had enough humility to ask the question, "do I have the right to be happy?". Now in the story I heard related by the Imam he said that this sister then proceeded to tell him about the many struggles that she faced in her life. It was obvious by the imams somber expression that this sister had truly faced some difficult times. Many of us, at one time or another, have faced difficult times, and if we haven't, we could almost bet, that someday in some way or another we will.
If I can I'd like to take a moment to reflect on the very beginning of our creation, when we were in the wombs of our mothers. When we were there, Allah sent an angel down to us and instructed that angel to write down several things that will determine our life on this earth including the kind of work that we will do, how long we will live and, one of these two words "sa'eedun or shaqee'un"; Happy, or Miserable. You see, it doesn't matter how much money you have or don't have. It doesn't matter whether you've been with your spouse for fifty years, or have been divorced more times than you can count. It doesn't matter your social status, your good or bad looks, your education or anything. Whether or not you will generally be happy or miserable in this life is determined right there in your mother's womb, from the very beginning. This is a small part of Allah's Qadr or "Pre-destination", one of the arkaan sitaa' ul iman or the "six pillars of faith".
We know that every human being is born with a pure fitra or "original nature". We all start in jennah. We all start pure, as pure servants and creatures of Allah. But somewhere along the line, sooner or later, we have an encounter with who? Iblis! The devil, cursed Shaitan who refused to bow to our father Adam (as) by Allah's command, because of his wicked arrogance and pride. Allah (swt) tells us in the Qur'an, in Surah Ta-Ha verse 116, "And remember when we said to the angels 'prostrate yourselves to Adam' They prostrated themselves; all except Iblis. He refused." Then Allah continues, "Then we said 'Oh Adam, verily this is an enemy to you and your wife. So do not let him lead you out of Paradise, or you will be miserable".
So you see Allah said to Adam, DO NOT allow Iblis to misguide you and drive you and your wife out of Paradise, because if you allow him to do that, you WILL be miserable. Then, listen to what Allah tells him right after that. He says, "Verily you have a promise that you will never be hungry or naked therein. And you will not suffer form thirst there, nor from the sun's heat." This is what Adam and Hawa (Eve) could have had if they had kept away from the whispers of Shaitan, but then listen to what Allah says happened. It goes on saying, "Then Shaitan whispered to him 'Oh Adam, shall I lead you to the tree of eternity and to a kingdom that will never waste away?'" Then they both ate of the tree, and so their private parts became manifest to them, and they began to cover themselves with the leaves of Paradise. This did Adam disobey his Lord and went astray."
Right now, today, in countless places all over Allah's earth, there are millions of people who die because they can't find enough bread to eat or water to drink. There are people who die from different types of exposure because they don't have proper clothing or shelter to shield them from the elements. There are people who sweat and toil and work their fingers to the bone day in and day out, everyday of their lives, and still barely have enough to get by. Why? Allah tells us right there in the Qur'an, as he told our father Adam (as), that outside the Paradise, we will undoubtedly be miserable.
So now, let us ask OURSELVES that question, "Do we have the right to be happy?" Some 230 years ago, the author of the United States Declaration of Independence said, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. That they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, and among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness"; The "pursuit" of happiness. He didn't say "life, liberty, and happiness". He said "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness". Why did he say pursuit? It's because in this life, in this dunya, happiness is not something that is ever truly and completely realized. That's just the nature of this life and of this world. We will never truly know complete and utter happiness until we, insha'Allah, reach that ultimate destination, Jennah or Paradise.
Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that Allah completely deprives us of happiness in this life. If anything, we deprive ourselves. We deprive ourselves by doing what? Evil. Disobeying Allah (swt). Not living up to the responsibilities that we have to our Lord. To the covenant we made when we declared "La ilaha illa Allah, Muhammadun Rasoolullah". Make no mistake that statement is not just a statement. It is a pact that you make with Allah (swt). By making that pact, we have an immense responsibility; to live our lives according to Allah's will, on his terms, and not our own. To pray when He and his messenger told us to pray, not when we feel like it. To fast, not initially because of any benefit to us, but because our Lord commanded us to do so. To accept the fact that the Creator knows much more about the creation than the creation knows about itself, and that the creation must ultimately accept the hikmah or wisdom that comes to it through the Creator's messengers like Muhammad (sws), like Jesus Christ (as), like Musa (as) and like Ibrahim (as). There is a famous quote, and I'm not sure who said it, but it says, " No man chooses evil because it is evil. He only mistakes it for happiness". Eric Hoffer an American social writer and philosopher said, " The search for happiness, is one of the chief sources of unhappiness". This is oh so true.
Many people think that they will find happiness by being successful in their work. Leaving a legacy at their company or organization. Many people think that having a great deal of wealth, and never having to worry about money will make them happy. Still some others might say that they'll be happy when they find that special someone who will love them forever and ever and ever. The truth is that true, complete and utter happiness does not lie in ANY of these things. The only real happiness in this world, the only REAL happiness, is always keeping ourselves ready to leave this world, hopeful of attaining Paradise. By doing what? Peacefully, sincerely, and obediently submitting our own will, to the will of Allah (swt).
We do have the opportunity to catch glimpses of true happiness in this life. We can catch glimpses of it when we get married and enjoy those first precious days with our new spouse. We catch a glimpse of it when we hold our newborn child in our arms for the first time. We catch glimpses of it when we spend quality time with our parents and relatives. We glimpse it when we see people we love enter into the fold of Islam. These are all glimpses of happiness.
But, how can we truly be happy, when marriages end in divorce. Many of us face burying our children, just as our beloved prophet Muhammad did with his son Ibrahim. Our parents die, our relatives die. Those blessed brothers and sisters that we seen embrace Islam, sometimes leave it just as quickly.
Happiness in this life is fleeting as they say. It comes and it goes. The absolute only way to guarantee true happiness in this life and/or the next is to always obey Allah in every way that you can, and when you make a mistake, sincerely make tawbah (repentence) and strive to avoid that mistake again. And remember that Allah (swt) said, as per a hadith qudsi that his mercy prevails over his wrath. And if you are a person who obeys Allah in this life as much as you possibly can, and you still are very unhappy, your still facing tough times, then take comfort in the fact that Allah rewards those who are patient in hardship, just as is illustrated in the story of Ayub (as) (Job) in the Qur'an.
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I'd like to conclude with another story I had heard from Imam Siraj Wahaj. The story was about an incident back in 1972 when a bomb was exploded aboard a commercial jetliner, while it was cruising at 32,000 feet. The plane was full of people, and everyone on that plane died, except for one 22 year old woman. Now can you imagine falling to earth from 32,000 feet in a piece of a blown up plane, hitting the ground, opening your eyes and realizing you were still alive? When people talk about these types of stories they often say they "cheated death". If you've ever seen the Final Destination movies, those films are all about "cheating death". But this is a very wrong choice of words. No one ever cheats death. That woman on that plane didn't die because Allah had not written for her to die in that place, in that time. No soul can die without the permission of Allah. Your life cannot be taken by someone else except by the permission of Allah. You cannot even take your own life, except by the permission of Allah. Just like this A.U. student just a few weeks ago, who plummeted to her death just outside of where we meet for Jummah. People were asking the questions "why would she do such a thing?" and "how could this happen?". It happened because that is what Allah had written for her. Just as Allah had written for that woman on the plane that she would not day that day.
Like I said before this is a part of Allah's Qadr. We cannot escape Allah's sovereignty over us, whether we like it or not. Allah is the Lord of all creation. He is even the God and Lord of the atheist. Whether someone believes in Allah or not is of no consequence. Whether someone really wants to obey Allah or not is of no consequence at least not to Allah. But, if we really care about happiness, then we need to stop investing so much time and resources into things in this life that wont accompany us to the next life. We need to stop running around like chickens with our heads cut off trying to find true happiness in this world, because that is nothing but a wild goose chase. We need to take care of business in this world. We need to take care of our families. We need to do a lot of things in this world. However, we must never, EVER, allow those things to distract us from what really matters, which is our relationship to Allah. We must keep our eye on that ultimate goal of Paradise, so that someday, insha'Allah, we might finally realize true happiness.
...And Allah Knows Best...

The Season of Giving

بسم لله الرحمن الرحيم

In the name of Almighty God (Allah in Arabic), the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. All praise be to God, the Lord of all creation. We give him our praise, we seek his guidance, and we seek refuge in Him from the evil Satan, and the evil within ourselves and in our deeds. I bear witness that there is nothing worthy of worship except Almighty God without partners, and I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God.
Yesterday, families across the United States came together around dinner tables, in front of TV broadcasts of football games and passed out on couches from the tryptophan in roasted turkeys. Yes yesterday was Thanksgiving. It is a celebratory feast that has taken place in this country since the very first immigrants landed in the little known, mysterious wilderness known as North America. It has been a day of giving thanks to Almighty God for the bountiful blessing of having reached the "new world", a world of promise, opportunity, and freedom. We as Muslims also have much to give thanks to Allah for. For many of us, having arrived in this land meant being given the tremendous opportunity to make better lives for ourselves then our ancestors had. For others, we have the opportunity to celebrate the progress we've made, having elected the first African American president this year, while there are people alive today who's grandparents were slaves or possibly slave owners. For all of us, we give thanks to Allah to be able to live and thrive in a place where we can raise our families in relative peace, security and dignity. Many of our brothers and sisters around the world aren't so fortunate.
Tonight, insha'Allah (God willing), we will begin the month of Dhul Hijja. It is a month of great significance because this is the month of the Hajj, the great pilgrimage to Allah's house in Mecca. It is also the month of the Eid ul Adha, or the festival of Sacrifice, commemorating the willingness of prophet Ibrahim (Abraham, peace be upon him), to sacrifice his son Isma'il (Ishmael, peace be upon him) by the command of Allah. This season of worship, represented in this holy month, commemorates the beginning of the great Abrahamic tradition extending into Judaism and the Children of Israel and prophets like Musa (Moses), Sulaiman (Solomon), and Dawood (David) to name a few; then leading to Christianity, stemming from the teaching of prophet Isa al Mesih ibn Maryam (Jesus Christ, Son of Mary); and culminating in the final revelation of the Qur'an to Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and the establishment of Al-Islam.
The first ten days of Dhul Hijja are so profound that Allah swore by them in Surat al Fajr, when He said "By the dawn, and the ten nights", thus indicating the tremendous importance of them.
The prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) said "There are no days in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allah than these ten days." (meaning the first ten days of Dhul Hijja) The people asked, "Not even Jihad (striving spiritually and defending the Muslims from those that seek to harm them) for the sake of Allah?" He said, "Not even Jihad for the sake of Allah, except in the case of a man who went out to fight, giving himself and his wealth up for the cause, and came back with nothing." (Reported by Al-Bukhari)
Just as Christians remember the holiday season, including Advent and Christmas, as a time for charity and giving, so should we remember to think of our fellow human beings who are struggling. If these first ten days are so highly regarded by Allah than we should strive to perform the deeds most loved by Allah.
Allah says, "Righteousness is not turning your faces towards the east or the west. Righteous are those who believe in GOD, the Last Day, the angels, the scripture, and the prophets; and they give the money cheerfully, to the relatives, the orphans, the needy, the traveler, the beggars, and to free the slaves; and they observe the Prayers and give the obligatory charity; and they keep their word whenever they make a promise; and they steadfastly persevere in the face of persecution, hardship, and war. These are the truthful; these are the righteous." (2:177)
During these first ten days of Dhul Hijja, seek the pleasure of mercy of Allah not just by fasting, doing extra prayers or other forms of worship, but by reaching out to those in need. We are now in the midst of not only a national, but a worldwide financial crisis, afflicting people across the spectrum of race, social status and field of work. People are loosing their jobs. They are loosing their homes. They are being overwhelmed by debt and other financial hardships. We've seen it right here in our own community. We've seen the closing of a major factory here in just the past few months, and other major industrial employers here in Ashland are struggling, and workers' futures are uncertain. Even people at Ashland University have lost jobs. Perhaps this year's holiday season, there are more people than ever (in recent history) in need of sadaqah (charity).
Charity, more so than almost anything else, is the essence of faith and piety. Allah says in his Qur'an, "By no means shall you attain righteousness, unless you give of that which you love." (3:92)

"That which you love" refers of course to your wealth and your possessions; things that often give us a false sense of security. Abu Zar Ghifari, a companion of the Prophet, reported that the Prophet, while sitting in the shade of the Kabah wall once said, "They are the losers." Abu Zar enquired, "who are they, O Messenger of God?" The Prophet replied: "Those who pile up heaps of wealth and (pointing in all directions with his hands) do not spend like this and this." (Bukhari and Muslim) Hording wealth is one of the most despicable of human acts, and it isn't just hording money in bank. For example, it can be buying a $500 Iphone, when you could buy a $50 cell phone that functions just as well and give the $450 you just saved in charity. Look around you; at your possessions. Your car, things in your home, your clothes, your various other things, and ask yourself, "do I really need to have to these things? Or, can I live just as well with less?" If you can, then I suspect you are more than capable of giving.
Now of course there are two fundamental types of charity in Islamic doctrine; obligatory, known as Zakat (one of the five pillars of Islam), and optional, known as Sadaqah. Zakat is only due on those who have accumulated a certain degree of wealth. They must, pay 2.5% of their accumulated wealth to the poor. Make no mistake, to neglect this obligation is a severe sin, and to deny the obligation is an act of kufr (disbelief/to cover the truth), and subsequently takes one out of Islam all together. Now many of you as students, may not have any substantial wealth of your own, so Zakat may not apply to you. However, the lessons taught to us by Allah in his Qur'an, and by Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), in the hadith, in regards to giving Sadaqah, are numerous. So all of us, whether we are eligible to give Zakat or not, should remember that we all can and should give charity, no matter how poor we may seem.
A common misconception is that a person who has little to no money isn't capable of giving charity. This is absolutely not true. Even if you are truly incapable of giving money, there are other ways to give charity. The prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, said, "It is imperative on every one to render acts of charity every single day that sun shines in the sky in order to express gratitude to Allah for every single joint or faculty in his body. It is charity to restore peace between two people with strained relations, it is charity to give a stranded person a ride on his mount or lift his load onto it, it is charity to utter a good word, every step one takes towards the mosque for prayer is charity, to remove litter or objectionable things from people's path is charity." Charity, as we see here, is not only giving money, but even the virtue of helping one's fellow man, notice it says nothing about just helping "Muslims", but it applies to not only our brothers and sisters in Islam, but also our brothers and sisters in humanity. The prophet, peace be upon him, on another occasion even said, "even smiling at someone is a charity". This is why charity is such an important concept to us as Muslims, because it's not just about writing a check or dropping a bill into the donation box, it's about truly and whole-heartedly care and loving our fellow human beings. It's about seeing the orphans in the more desperate places on our planet, and feeling real pain in our hearts, whether anyone is watching or not. It is about seeing people who have been oppressed and sincerely praying to Allah that they might be avenged and that their oppressors would face justice. It is about joining people of all backgrounds, Christians, Jews, Hindus, Atheists and Agnostics, hand in hand, to lift up the downtrodden and deprived. Don't allow the bounty of Allah to pass you buy because you were too "busy" or "poor" or whatever other excuse people find not to give charity. Allah says in the Qur'an,
The parable of those who spendof their substance in the way of Allahis that of a grain of corn:It grows seven ears, and each ear has a hundred grains.Allah gives manifold increase to whom He pleases;And Allah cares for all and He knows all things. (2:261)
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Many of you have most likely seen the events unfolding in Mumbai, India this past week. According to reports, a group calling itself the Deccan Mujihadeen, claimed responsibility for these attacks. When I read that a group by this name had claimed responsibility, in made me feel sick to my stomach. I can't imagine a person who believes in Allah, who believes in Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, could ever do such a thing as point an AK-47 into a crowded train station and just randomly pull the trigger. I don't care how oppressed Muslims may be in parts of India; I don't care what beef these people may have had with American, Great Britain, or Israel. There is NO JUSTIFACATION for committing these types of atrocities. Not Islamically or otherwise. And, the fact that they would call themselves "mujihadeen". These people are anything BUT mujihadeen. Mujihadeen are people who strive in the cause of Allah against the evil that confronts them. Mujihadeen are people who defend the weak, their faith from those who seek to destroy it, and above all OBEY the teachings of Allah and His messenger, including the command to NOT EVER target non-combatants, and to never take military jihad in their own hands and judgment. These people are not mujihadeen, they are nothing more than terrorists, monsters and murderers, and may Allah curse them in this life and the next.
As the holiday season starts for people all over the world, we all, Muslims and otherwise, need to focus on coming to the aid of people in need and to remember the immense importance of charity in our faith. These events in India show us that as Muslims we are not doing enough to get this message across to our brothers and sisters across the sea. We have a lot of work to do, and we need to not only preach this message of love towards humanity, but we need to be examples of it. So please, for the sake of Allah, take advantage of these holy days in the month of Dhul Hijja, to be that example to our community, to our country, and to humanity. Let's not let those images of India this past week, be the image we as Muslims leave the world with this holiday season.
...And Allah Knows Best...

The Qur'an: The Incomprehensible's Communication with Man

بسم لله الرحمن الرحيم

In the name of Almighty God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. All praise be to God, the Lord of all that exists. We give him our praise, we seek his guidance, we seek his forgiveness, and we seek refuge in Him from the evil within ourselves and in our deeds. No one whom the Almighty gives His divine guidance, can be misguided, and no one whom the Lord allows to go astray, will be guided (except by his grace). I bear witness that there is nothing worthy of worship except Almighty God alone, without partners, and I bear witness that Muhammad is the slave and messenger of Almighty God.
Today Scientists spend a lot of time pondering the wonders of the universe and the origins of all that "is". Millions of dollars have been spent in the pursuit of the quote "truth" of our existence, and the origins of the universe and all that is in it. While doing this no doubt brings about countless amazing discoveries about us as a people, and the world around us, they have never, and can never "scientifically" know the answer to that most fundamental question, "What is the origin of all of "this".
When the word "God" is mentioned to many of these people, many of them will smile, offer an anecdotal "could be", and write off whatever else you say as "legend", "myth", or maybe even "superstition". The fact is that someone with a "scientific" mind (i.e. one that deals with tangible and testable evidence) often times cannot except the simple fact that there are just some things that the human mind is incapable of comprehending.
Civilizations and religions of the past have come up with many ways to explain the unexplainable. Most people's of the Earth have always recognized the existence of a "supreme being", that was ultimately incomprehensive to humans. So, in order to bring the incomprehensive into comprehension, they developed intercessors between them and that supreme being; thus idol worship was born. People would view these intercessors as earthly representations of that incomprehensible supreme being. The Hindus of India have intercessors such as Shiva, and Krishna. The Buddhists have Guatama Buddha, The Mayans had Chac and Yum Cimil, and the Christians have Jesus Christ, peace be upon him. People throughout time have developed these intercessors because the incomprehensible, inconceivable supreme being was to them, too lofty of a concept to grasp in worship. Even the Children of Israel, who, with us, are one of the only true monotheistic faiths, at one time feel into this trap, with the famous story of the Golden Calf. However, that inconceivable incomprehensible supreme being (which in Arabic translates as Allah) has continually, since the first man, communicated with a select few human beings known as prophets, so that mankind might be reminded of the real source of all that "is". While many of these communications have since been distorted, altered, or even lost forever, the last of these communications, sent to a 7th century Arab whom We know as the beloved prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, has miraculously survived the ages, through the protection that the Almighty, Allah, promised in the communication itself.
Allah teaches us in this communication, the perfect prayer, in the very first chapter, Al Fatihah or "The Opening". In it, it says,



In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
All praise be to Allah, the Lord of all the worlds
The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful
Master of the Day of Recompense
You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help
GUIDE US TO THE STRAIGHT PATH
The path of those whom You have favored
Not the path of those who have earned Your anger
or those who have gone astray.
(1:1-7)
Then, in the beginning of the very next chapter, known as Al Baqarah or "The Cow", He answers this pray when He says,
This is the book wherein there is NO DOUBT,
A guidance to those who seek Allah's favor.
(2:2)
This communication, known as Al Qur'an Kareem, or in English the Holy Recitation, is a book in which there truly is no doubt. It confirms and at the same time corrects previous communications, and unlike manmade works, flows seemlessly without contradiction or flaw. It is through this book that we see, in the words of Allah Himself, how to truly understand who He is.
In the famous verse known as Ayat ul Kursi, or the "Verse of the Throne", Allah, the Almighty, provides us with an emaculate describtion of Himself, that we might be able to start to understand His incomprehensiveness. It says...
Allah! There is none worthy of worship except Him, the Ever Living, the One who sustains all that is. Neither slumber nor sleep overtakes Him. To Him belongs all that is in the Heavens and the Earth. Who is he that can intercede with Him except by His permission. He knows what happens to his creatures in this world, and what will happen to them in the next, and they will never encompass any knowledge except by His permission. His Throne extends over the Heavens and the Earth and He feels no fatigue in guarding and preserving them, and He is the Most High, the Most Great.
(2:255)
In this verse Al Hayyul Qiyuum means "The Ever Living, The One who Sustains all that is". This very concept is beyond our comprehension. We are not able to comprehend something "ever living" because everything in our world has a beginning and an end. We live in a finite world, and as the great French philosepher René Descartes said, "the finite is incapable of understanding the infinite".
Also the verse says "neither slumber nor sleep overtakes him". This is also beyond our comprehension because everything in our world rests and awakes periodically. Even the Earth itself does. Finally it also reminds us that we will never attain any knowledge, except what He, Allah, permits us to attain.
This final communication from Allah, the supreme incomprehensible, inconceivable creator also reveals to us another scientifically unanswerable question, that is the creation of the universe and our planet; the Heavens and the Earth. Allah says in the Qur'an,
Have not those who disbelieve known that the Heavens and the Earth were joined together as one unit, then we cleaved them? And we have made every living thing from water. Will they not then believe?
(21:30)
These are things that science only recently has discovered, and as Allah says, "will they not then believe?" This is the guidance from that one inconceivable, unimaginable God.
This glorious revelation in addition to being divine guidance, is also divine protection. It is recorded in the authentic hadith collection of Imam Bukhari, that once the prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, had ordered Abu Harairah, may Allah be pleased with him, to guard the Ramadan charity stockpiles. That night a man came by and tried to steal from the stock. Abu Harairah caught him and said "I'm going to take you to rasoolullah (messenger of God)." The man replied saying, "Please don't take me to rasoolullah! If you don't I'll tell you something by which you will benefit." The thief went on saying, " If you recite Ayat ul Kursi at night before you sleep, it will serve as a guard against the Devil, and he will not be able to come close to you till morning". Later, Abu Harairah related the story to the prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, the prophet replied by saying, "indeed what the thief said was truth, although he is a liar. He was the Devil."
This story shows us the emmense power that this recitation has. If you've ever seen an Islamic exorcism, you'd see this power. When someone has been possessed by a Jinn or Demon, the Ayat ul Kursi is often used as a most effective weapon. When the verse is recited it often burns the Jinn or Demon so severely that they throw the human being they are possessing into harsh and often violent convulsions. This is because this holy verse reminds then that no matter how powerful they may seem to a human being, they are nothing compared to Allah, and they are no match for a true believing human or jinn who has the words and commands of Allah in their arsenal. All praise be to He, who gives us, his servants this emaculate and divine guidance and this most powerful of weapons against the evils we face in this dunya (present life).
We often forget about the truly miraculous nature of the Holy Qur'an. The Holy Qur'an is so much more than words on a page, or utterances in our prayers. It is a code of conduct; an owner's manual for our lives as human beings. It's a sword, mightier than any one made of steel. It is a medicine for any sickness. It is a comfort for sorrow, a celebration in times of joy. During Ramadan we are often reminded of the importance of the keeping the Qur'an, but it is also important to do so the whole year. We go to work and class day after day, week after week, where we read countless things that benefit either our job or our degrees, but how much time do we make for reflecting on this most glorious of books? The best of guidance and the key to Jennah (Paradise/Heaven). This khutbah (sermon) today is nothing more than a reminder firstly to myself, and to all of you to keep this holy book near and dear to our hearts every day of our lives.

...And Allah Knows Best...

Fall in Ohio: A Time to be Reconnected with the Land

بسم لله الرحمن الرحيم

This time of year is, in my opinion, a very magical time of year. There is something about the colors of the leaves, the crispness in the air, and all the wonderful traditions that surround this season that somehow invigorates the senses and inspires the soul. It seems that in almost every agricultural culture across the world, people during this time of year, feel a sense of connection with the land and the Earth then they do other times of the year. Perhaps it's because for most people around the world, Fall is the time of the harvest, when the crops from summer are harvested, and for people in cooler climates, it is when communities traditionally come together to stock pile foods and other necessary supplies for winter. For people of European descent, there are many traditions that surround this season. The Halloween holiday, while itself having some pagan origins, many of the traditions that surround the “holiday” like trick or treating, bobbing for apples, hay rides and carving pumpkins were originally not necessarily pagan rituals, but were simply celebrations of the season. The season of Fall, in any case, brings people back to their origins, the Earth itself.
Allah tells us in the Qur'an, "He created man (Adam) from sounding clay like the clay of pottery." (Chapter 55:Quran).
It is narrated that the prophet Muhammad (sws) said, "Allah created Adam (the first human being) from soil from different lands of the Earth, so the children of Adam have been created according to the composition of the land. Thus, from mankind we have white, red, black and yellow ones. We have good and evil, ease and sorrow, and all that comes in between."
If you ask any scientist, what materials primarily make up the human body, what will they say? They will most likely say, "carbon and water". This is true we are carbon based life forms as they say, and wouldn't you know it, the Earth too, as far as the soil, is primarily composed of carbon, and this is why ash and soot can be used to increase the agricultural productivity of soil, such as the natural effect of forest fires. So these scientific facts confirm these miraculous signs from Allah (swt).
So what about the other primary element we are created from, water?
Allah (swt) says in the Qur'an, And We have made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe? (21:30)
These verses confirm what scientists are only recently finding out, that we as human beings are absolutely, fundamentally joined and attached to the Earth. Without the Earth, we would simply perish. All of the fundamental things we need to survive, ultimately come from the Earth.
Allah (swt) says again in the Qur'an, "And the Earth has been put down for the creatures. Therein are fruits, date palms producing sheathed fruit stalks. And also corn, with leaves and stalks for fodder, and sweet smelling plants."
(55:10-12)
This verse, once again points to our utter reliance on the products of the Earth.

While we are undoubtedly tied directly to the Earth, what is our purpose to it? If we are tied to the Earth, is the Earth tied to us? Well yes and no. The Earth existed before there were human beings on it and certain types of plants and animals thrived on it before Adam (as).
However Allah (swt) says in the Qur'an "And He has sent down generations (after generations) of vice-generates on the Earth". The word khalaa'if is used in Arabic which means "vice-generate", but what does vice-generate really mean? Sometimes we think of a khaleefa as ruler or king, but really this is not the true spirit of the word. The truer spirit of the word is someone who is a trustee, or in other words, someone who is entrusted with looking after a particular post. So just as the khaleefa of the Muslim Ummah (nation) is someone "entrusted" by Allah and the Muslim people to look after Muslim affairs, we, mankind, as khulayfa (plural of khaleefa) of the Earth, are "trustees" and "custodians" of this magnificent planet. We are entrusted by Allah (swt) to take care of the Earth, and to preserve the delicate balance that Allah (swt) has set up for this Earth. Allah says in the Qur'an, "And observe weight with equity and do not make the balance deficient". (55:9)
This is one of the primary areas where we as the khulayfa of the Earth have come up far short of the goal. Today, experts in the field of meteorology are increasingly more and more convinced that our own misconduct in regards to the environment is contributing to the destabilization of the Earth's balance. We see it everywhere. Snow in the Middle Eastern deserts. Increasingly stronger and deadly hurricanes in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. Shorter Falls and Springs. The Melting of polar ice caps, and the recession of the worlds major glaciers. All of these things are making it more and more obvious that we are failing as trustees and custodians of this Earth, and we, the Muslims of the world, are not only among the one's contributing to the problem, but even the issue is hardly raised in Muslim countries, where trash lined streets are common place.
We, the Muslims of the world, with our guidance in the Holy Qur'an from the Lord, Creator, and Sustainer of the Earth, should be leading the charge to combat the degradation of our planet, and the squandering of our precious resources. Most of the biggest fossil fuel producing countries in the world are Muslim countries. The burning of these fossil fuels has been proven to reek havoc on our environment; to the point where it is no longer a scientific or even political issue, it is a direct moral issue. However, unfortunately greed and blind lust for wealth has replaced the teachings of the Qur'an and the Sunnah of our prophet Muhammad in these oil rich countries. We need to all do our part to stop all injustice including the injustice that is being committed against the very Earth that allows us to thrive. The prophet Muhammad (sws) said, "When one sees munker (wrong/injustice) they should stop it with their hand, and if they cannot stop it with their hand, they should stop it with their tongue, and if they can't stop it with their tongue, then they should hold hatred for it in their hearts, and that is the least of faith". My brothers and sisters in Islam, this is not something beyond our grasp. We CAN stop it with our hands simply by picking up pieces of trash that we see on our way to class or work, or carpooling to save gas and cut emissions. We can stop it with our tongues by voicing our opinions to politicians and others in a position to regulate and change environmental policies, and for all the rest we CAN, at least, hold hatred in our hearts against those who are too dumb and blind to realize that they are destroying the very planet that brings them life.
Now moving away from the doom and gloom of global warming and climate change, we can and should refresh ourselves with the beauty of the Earth that we can experience in our every day lives; even right here in Ashland, OH. When European settlers first laid eyes on the land that is now Ohio, they said that a squirrel could travel from Lake Erie all the way to the Ohio river, without touching the ground. Ohio was once a lush, thick, and beautiful forest land.
The native tribes that once lived here including the Shawnee, the Iroquois, and the Delaware to name a few, saw this land as not only beautiful but also sacred. You see they understood who Allah (swt) was. They referred to Him as "The Great Spirit", and they were not only well aware of their connection to the Earth, they're entire lives revolved around honoring, keeping, and protecting the Earth. Europeans eventually came and settled the land, and while some Europeans equally treasured the land and the crops it produced, many squandered it's resources to the point where today northern Ohio would no longer be recognizable to those native peoples who lived here so many years ago.
We are instructed by Allah (swt) and our prophet (sws) to stay connected to land, and all that is in it. Why do you think it's important for a Muslim to actually slaughter their own sacrifice on Eid ul Adha, or for Aqeeqahs, as opposed to having someone else do it for them? Because it keeps that Muslim connected with that which nourishes him. Why is it the Sunnah of Muhammad (sws) to eat with the fingers of our right hand, as opposed to using utensils? Because it keeps us connected with the Earth. The prophet Muhammad (sws) said, "If any Muslim plants any plant and a human being or an animal eats of it, he will be rewarded as if he had given that much in charity." Given this hadith imagine the reward you might get if you were a farmer, but unfortunately we don't see many Muslim farmers here in the US. But why do we receive reward for planting a crop? Because it keeps us connected with the land. He, the prophet (sws) also said, "For charity shown to each creature with a wet heart, there is a reward". And, Allah tells us in the Qur'an, "There is not an animal in the earth, nor a creature flying on two wings, but they are nations like you." (6:38) So this reminds us that we, humans and animals, are in this together. We serve each other. They serve us by providing meat, milk, labor, protection, etc. We serve them by ensuring their survival and prosperity, and respecting them as the noble creatures of Allah that they are. I'm reminded of two stories about two different women. In one story, A women who was generally regarded as a pious woman had left a cat locked away with no access to food or water, until it eventually died. The prophet (sws) said that Allah will punish her and throw her into the fire of hell on the Day of Judgment. In the other story, the prophet (sws) related that a prostitute had seen a dog nearly dying of thirst, so out of kindness, she drew water from a well to quench it's thirst. The prophet (sws) said that on the Day of Judgment, this women's sins will be forgiven. All because of this simple act of kindness shown to a dog.
There were animal rights in Islam, long before that concept was ever conceived in the West or most other parts of the world. The prophet (sws) forbade overloading beasts of burden such as camels, horses, oxen and the like. He forbade the killing of animals for sport. He ordered that when you slaughter an animal, to put the animal at ease, not allowing other animals to see the slaughter, and making sure the knife is as sharp as it can be, for the sake of causing the least amount of suffering. And, when hunting an animal, using the sharpest of spears or the most effective bullets to also ensure that the animal has a minimal amount of suffering. All of this is because we and animals are both in this together. We both share this world, and as Allah's vice-generates on this Earth, it is our responsibility watch over and treat all of its creatures with the utmost respect and dignity.
There is so much reward in "experiencing nature". For those living in larger cities, it is becoming increasingly harder to view and appreciate nature. However, we in this small rural community, have the unique opportunity to experience the wonders of Allah's Earth first hand. We can stroll through the countless nature preserves and parks that dot the countryside. We can buy fresh produce grown at the very farms that we drive past on a daily basis. We can hunt wild game for fresh meat, and fish in nearby lakes and ponds. So the next time you feel bored in our sleepy little town because there aren't as many "man made" attractions as we may be used to, try appreciating the numerous attractions that Allah (swt) has made available to you, for the sake of remembering His power and majesty and mercy, and for the sake of gaining the reward of being part of the very Earth from which we all come.

...And Allah Knows Best...