MEETING POINT

T H E N E W S L E T T E R O F T H E N E W M U S L I M S P R O J E C T ~ F E B R UA R Y 2 012

The Diseases of the Heart

by Shaykh Muhammad Maulud
Translated into English by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf

THE HEART
Allah subhanahu wa tala says, On that day
nothing will benefit the human being, neither
wealth nor children, only the one who
brings Allah a sound heart. A sound heart
is one that is free of defects and spiritual
blemishes. Though the spiritual heart is
centered in the physical heart, the heart
being referred to here is the spiritual heart,
not the physical heart. In ancient Chinese
medicine, the heart houses what is known
as chen which is a spirit. The Chinese
character for thinking, thought, love,
virtue, and intending to listen all contain
the ideogram for the heart. In fact, in every
culture in the world, people use metaphors
that deal with the heart; in English, we
call people who are cruel, hard-hearted
people. There is also the idea of having
a cold heart and a warm heart. People
who do not hide their emotions well wear
their hearts on their sleeves. When deeply
affected, we say, he affected me in my
heart or in my core. In fact, the English
word core means inner most, and in
Arabic, the equivalent lub comes from the
Latin word, meaning heart. Thus, the core
of the human being is indeed the heart. The
word courage also comes from the same
root word as for heart because courage
is centered in the heart. The most ancient
Indo-European word for heart means that
which leaps. The heart leaps or beats in
the breast of man. For example, people
say, my heart skipped a beat in reaction
to seeing somebody. Many such metaphors
are used for the heart.

IN THIS ISSUE

A man of earth 3

A higher ground for

our marriages 6

Dhikr by word and
by action 8

Three Types of People

The ancients were aware of the spiritual
diseases of the heart, and this is certainly
at the essence of the Islamic teaching. One
of the first things the Quran does is define
three types of people: the muminun, the
kafirun, and the munafiqun. The muminun
are people whose hearts are alive while
the kafirun are people whose hearts are
dead. The munafiqun are people who have
a disease or a sickness in their hearts;
thus, Allah subhanahu wa tala says, In
their hearts is a disease, and they were
increased in their disease. This is also in
accordance with another verse: When
their hearts deviated, Allah made them
deviate further. When somebody turns
away from Allah subhanahu wa tala, Allah
causes them to deviate even further from
the truth.
The Heart and the Brain
The actual physical heart in our breast beats
at about 100,000 times a day, pumping two
gallons of blood per minute, 100 gallons per
hour, 24 hours a day, seven days a week,
365 days a year for an entire life time! The
vascular system that sends this life-giving
blood is over 60,000 miles long: it is more
than two times the circumference of the
earth. Furthermore, it is interesting to note
that the heart starts beating before the brain
is formed; the heart begins to beat without
any central nervous system. The dominant
theory was that the central nervous system
is what is controlling the entire human being
from the brain, yet we know now that in fact

A warning 9

10 ways to avoid
marrying the wrong
person 10

Living Islam camp 14

Gil Scott-Heron saved
my life 16

the nervous system does not initiate the

heartbeat. It is actually self-initiated; we
would say, it is initiated by Allah subhanahu
wa tala.
The heart is the center of the human
being. Many people think the brain is the
center of consciousness, yet the Quran
clearly states, They have hearts that
they are not able to understand with.
According to the Muslims, the center of
human consciousness is the heart and
not the brain itself, and it is only recently
that human beings have learned there are
over 40,000 neurons in the heart; in other
words, there are cells in the heart that are
communicating. Now, it is understood
that there is two-way communication
between the brain and the heart: the brain
sends messages to the heart, but the
heart also sends messages to the brain.
The brain receives these messages from
the heart, which reach the amygdala and
the thalamus. The cortex receives input
from the amygdala and thalamus that it
processes to produce emotion; the new
cortex relates to learning and reasoning.
These processes are recent discoveries,
and although we do not fully understand
them, we do know that the heart is an
extremely sophisticated organ.
According to the hadith, the heart is
a source of knowledge. The Prophet,
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, said that wrong
action is what irritates the heart. Thus,
the heart actually knows wrong actions,
and this is one of the reasons why people
Continues on page 4

A Quran study in botany 19

Pilgrimage to Mecca 22

My first prayers 24

Announcements 26

Forgiveness & justice 27

New book etc 28

Editorial
Mind your manners
O you who believe! Raise not
your voices above the voice of the
Prophet, nor speak aloud to him
in talk as you speak aloud to one
another, lest your deeds may be
rendered fruitless while you perceive
not. Verily! Those who lower their
voices in the presence of Allahs
Messenger, they are the ones
whose hearts Allah has tested for
piety. For them is forgiveness and a
great reward. Q49:1-3
Manners are a learned process of our
upbringing from parents who want to instil
the etiquettes of good behaviour in their
children. Requests are therefore punctuated
by Please and Thank you, May I or, later
in our more modern vocabulary, Is it OK if
and so on. As the eldest girl in a family of ten
any request of my parents as to whether I
could participate in something, or not, was
tightly secured in the etiquette of politely
asking well into my mid to late twenties. At
that stage it was they who drew my attention
to the fact that I was no longer a child and
should go do what I thought right without
seeking their permission or approval. Meeting
one of my former teachers from high school
was a delightful surprise and yet, even after a
decade of having left school, I could not bring
myself to refer to him a Pat and could only
address him in the learned respected title of
Sir, which appeared to embarrass him much
more than referring to him by his first name,
which was uncomfortable for me.
When we enter Islam we tend to learn
all the rituals of worship, the rights and
wrongs of their performance as well as the
intricate aspects of what perfects them. We
consciously and consistently improve on
perfecting each movement until it reflects a
deeper understanding of how that particular
act of worship affects and shapes the lived
experiences we encounter in our daily lives.
There seems to be something missing
however and over the years I have frequently
heard the question posed, particularly
when behaviour does not reflect belief, as
to whether someone has simply adopted
Islam, conforming to the rules in a sort of
black and white approach, as opposed

MP 52

to becoming a Muslim where attitude,

character and manners reflect what it really
means to be a believer.
Adab is generally understood to be all that
is good in a person, noble characteristics,
habits and traits that beautify the character
and personality of the Muslim from their
personal private relationships to their general
discourse and interaction in the public
sphere. The growing concern is that Adab
has made a swift exit and appears to have
been well and truly replaced by a competition
for glory based on abundant knowledge,
Islamic or otherwise, and worldly gain
amassed and wielded as implements for
admiration and ultimately, the subjugation
of Muslims. Adab is usually something that
is learned from parents, teachers and the
elderly during ones upbringing and would
naturally emanate from an innate sense of
righteous behaviour instilled in all Gods
creation. It is no great wonder therefore,
when a society chooses to turn a blind eye
to the dissipating levels of respect towards
the elderly, parents and those whose work
falls within the category of what was and still
is considered to be vocational, high ideals of
morality and decency as well as the etiquettes
of good behaviour soon vanish into the cold
chill that sweeps the nation. What is of even
greater concern is that this lack of manners is
becoming more noticeable within the Muslim
community and not just amongst the youth,
but across the board.
It is indeed a great privilege to be
able to travel beyond the shores
of these Sceptered Isles and
perform Hajj or Umrah, or
visit countries like Turkey
and Oman and in doing
so meet with Muslims
who manage their
time with precision
and, on arriving at
various prearranged
destinations
throughout
such
trips, are met with
a hospitality that is
overwhelming for its
courtesy and generosity
of spirit. This is particularly

poignant when one reflects on how the Muslim

community in the UK regard punctuality
and where nothing starts or finishes at the
appointed time due to the way in which we
have allowed our mannerisms to become
skewed with the indignities of rudeness and
unacceptable behaviour. Of course we then
try to call upon all of the necessary excuses
such as being patient and making seventy
excuses for our brothers and sisters
while, worst of all, we indulge in drawing up
all the beautiful prayerful expressions, Insha
Allah God Willing, Masha Allah Just as
God ordained it, to cover our indiscretions.
Being met with the kind of adab expressed by
Muslims outside the UK is frequently cause
for consternation by those whose lack of
adab, even the knowledge of it, is so obvious
on such occasions.
It is said that knowledge without adab
is like fire without wood and adab without
knowledge is like a spirit without a body.
Abdullah Ibn Al- Mubarak said: Mukhlid
Ibn Al-Hussain once said to me, We are
more in need of acquiring adab (etiquettes)
than learning Hadith. Considerable time has
elapsed since these words of wisdom were
expressed. Clearly the need for acquiring
this Islamic beautification of behaviour has
never been greater when the most important
dress of the Mumin that of the etiquettes
and manners that surround our actions and
interactions, are often so visibly absent from
our lives.

A great man of the Earth

has departed fromit
A Man of the Earth
Ayman Ahwal, who passed away in August 2011, was a British journalist,
film-maker, craftsman and environmentalist who campaigned for the
protection of threatened rainforests in Malaysia and Indonesia. He
converted to Islam in the late 60s, while in the Moroccan desert. His
extensive travels across the world, and years spent living in wildernesses
reinforced his belief in the interconnectedness of all life. Here he spoke to
EcoIslam about frugal living and the importance of staying in touch with
the natural world.
How did your interest in
environmentalism first arise?
My love of the environment, combined with
horror at the way its being abused, began
with Islam. When living with traditional
Muslims living close to the land, I perceived a
harmony between men and nature that I had
not seen before. This symbiotic relationship
of man with nature extended right into
the cities at that time (some 40 years
ago). Things have changed now as urban
Muslims become slaves to consumerism.
Frugal, close to nature living fades
nowadays in the haste towards progress.
But perhaps the most environmentally vivid
experience of my life came from wandering
in the desert. Things are very clear in the
desert. Heaven and Earth, life (water) and
death (no water); from earth and water
stems every life form. Living in the forest
many years later, the memory of the desert
became an instantaneous reminder of
the priorities in the natural order. Then
one sees how interconnected every living
creature is and how Allahs pattern of life
is so supremely beautiful. In spite of our
sciences we have only understood 0.01%
of His creation on Earth. Yet the destruction
continues unabated. Who will stop it? Sadly
Muslims seem unconcerned.
Can you describe the different projects
you have been involved with over the
years?
Wherever and whenever I have the
opportunity, I do some gardening. To dig
a field or a garden is a very humbling and
spiritually rewarding occupation as well
as being good exercise. Perhaps the most
thought-provoking garden was one I made
in the tropical forest. Where the garden

becomes wilderness is a critical point of

understanding of ones relationship with
Creation. To be reminded of the earth is
a part of Islamic education. At present I
am involved with building an eco-village in
post-tsunami, post-war Aceh in Indonesia.
In collaboration with IFEES we are also
launching an ambitious project of tree
planting. Trees live in communities and
families like we do. Planting a tree is an act
of charity.
Your latest production is the
environmental campaign film, Clean
Medina. What potential do you think
film and music have to contribute to the
environmental cause?
Plenty. The media with film and music is the
culture of the day and has largely replaced
religion as the prime mover of public
attitudes in urban societies. Urban Muslims
are not immune to this and in any case
most have lost contact with nature except
perhaps as a recreational facility. Hopefully
the film Clean Medina has started the ball
rolling to get people, young and old, talking
about public cleanliness. Most ills of the
environment are caused by mans lack of
cleanliness in one way or another.
Do you think that Islamic
Environmentalism can make an impact
in the struggle to save our planet?
This word environmentalism sounds like
just another distorted pseudo-scientific
worldview
like
atheism,
humanism,
secularism, Islamism, etc! To be complete
(insan al kamil) a Muslim should be as
conscious of the natural environment as he
is about other temporal preoccupations, as
well as his nafs (ego), his ehsan (striving for
excellence) and his ibadat (worship). The

environment is about loving the Earth. To

serve the people is to love Allah; to manage
the Earth wisely is to love Allah. Its like the
other face of deen (faith). Without being
conscious of the natural world a Muslim is
out of balance. How then can he be expected
to be khalifah (guardian) and see when nature
is out of balance, as it truly is today?
What would you say is your greatest
environmental inspiration?
Surah Rahman in the Quran. Read it ten
times. You will see why.
If you could change one thing that
impacts the environment what would it
be?
Allah does not change people until they
change themselves.
What actions help you personally to live
a greener way of life?
Live as frugally as possible, throw away as
little as possible, be sparing with water and
remember the Garden. Lets make frugality
fashionable, as it was with the early Muslims.
A craftsman works materials with his hands
and learns patience, similar to farmers.
People who live on the land still live in the
fitrah. If you look at any person of faith who
has worked all his life on the land, when they
get to a certain age they have this wisdom.
The land itself, and harmony with the earth,
gives mankind wisdom. But we are deaf to
that. When Islam combines with the wisdom
of the Earth its like an inspirational spark
knowing mans relationship with the Earth
and the interdependence of both. Allah is
the ultimate conserver and may He accept
our efforts. Ameen.
(You can read more about Hajji Aymans work
to protect Acehs rainforests on his website:
www.upriverprojects.org)

MP 52

From page 1
can do terrible things, but, ultimately,
they are affected negatively. In Crime and
Punishment, the brilliant Russian author
Dostoevskys indicates that crime itself
is the perpetrators punishment because
human beings have to live with the result
of their actions: their souls are affected.
When people do something against the
heart, they act against the soul, and that
actually affects human beings to the
degree that they will go into a state of
spiritual agitation, and people will use
many ways to cover this up. This is what
kufur is: kufur means covering up. To
hide their agitation, people use alcohol,
drugs, and sexual experimentation;
they also seek power, wealth, and
fame, taking themselves into a state of
heedlessness, submerging themselves
into the ephemeral world which causes
them to forget their essential nature and
to forget their hearts. Thus, people become
cut off from their hearts.
Wrong Actions Sicken the Heart
One of the things about being cut off
from the heart is that the more cut off
from the heart one becomes, the sicker
the heart grows because the heart needs
nourishment, and heedlessness starves the
spiritual heart. When one goes into a state
of unawareness of Allah and the akhira,
one becomes unaware of the infinite world
in relation to the finite world, unaware that
we are in this world for a temporary period.
When we look at the infinite world in relation
to the finite world, suddenly our concerns
become focused on the infinite world and
not on the finite world. On the other hand,
when people are completely immersed
within the finite world, believing that they will
be here forever, believing that they will not be
taken to account for their actions, this action
in and of itself ultimately leads to the spiritual
death of the hearts. However, before it dies
and becomes putrid and completely fowl,
the heart will show many symptoms. These
are the spiritual diseases of the hearts.
Shubahat and Shahawat:
Two Types of Diseases
There are two types of diseases of the heart.

MP 52

The first are called shubahat, and these

are diseases that relate to understanding.
For instance, if somebody is fearful of his
provision from Allah, afraid he will not get
his food for the day, then there is a disease
in his heart because a sound heart has
complete trust in Allah subhanahu wa tala,
and a sick heart has doubt. For this reason,

a sound heart does not worry. It is the nafs

(ego), shaytan, hawa (caprice), and dunya
(the love of this ephemeral world) that lead
to this state of fear or of anxiety. The heart
in and of itself is an organ designed to be in
a state of stillness, but the stillness will only
come about by the remembrance of Allah
subhanahu wa tala. The Quran states,
Isnt it by the dhikr of Allah that the heart
is stilled? This is what the heart wants:
it wants to remember Allah subhanahu
wa tala. When Allah is not remembered,
the heart goes into a state of agitation: it
goes in a state of turmoil, and it becomes
diseased because it is not being fed. Just
as we need to breathe because cells need
life-giving oxygen and if we stop breathing,
cells die, similarly, the heart also needs
to breathe, and the breath of the heart is
the remembrance of Allah subhanahu wa
tala. Dhikr is what feeds and nourishes
the heart. The company of good people is
the food and exercise of the heart. All of
these things are necessary for the heart to
be sound and healthy, and this is basically
the purpose of Revelation. The Quran has
come to remind people that our hearts
need nourishment. Thus, Allah subhanahu
wa tala tells us that the human being who
will be in a good state in the next world is
the one who brings a sound heart.

When we are born, we enter the world

in a state of fitra: the original inherent
nature of the human being; then we learn
to be anxious. We learn anxiety from our
mothers, fathers, and society. Thus, the
Quran says that the human being is created
in a state of anxiety (hala), and the one
group of people who are removed from
this state of anxiety are the musallin:
the people of prayer. This prayer is
not the five daily obligatory prayers;
rather, it is the prayer of people who
are always in a state of prayer (dhikr);
they are always in a state of connection
with Allah subhanahu wa tala, and this
is the highest station. This is the station
of people who are not diverted from the
remembrance of Allah subhanahu wa
tala by buying, commerce, or anything
else. They are the ones who remember
Allah subhanahu wa tala, as the Quran
states, standing, sitting, and reclining
on their sides. These are the people
who are not the people of heedlessness
(ghafla).
The second type of the diseases of the
heart is called shahawat, and these are the
base desires of the self. For instance, food
and sex are shahawat; they are appetites.
These become diseases when they grow
out of proportion from their natural states.
In Islam, we have a method or a means
by which our hearts can be remedied and
return to their sound state again. The dhikr
that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam
did more than any other dhikr was Oh
Turner-Overer of the hearts, make my heart
firm on your deen, and it is important that
Muslims be reminded of this.
The Text: Mat-hartul Qulub
In Arabic, Mat-hara is ism makaan (a
noun of place), and it means a tool of
tahara (purification), and that is what Mathartul Qulub is. This text is the alchemy of
the heart: it explains how to transform the
heart. Mat-hartul Qulub was written by a
great scholar, Shaykh Muhammad Maulud
al-Musawir al-Yaqubi from Mauritania. He
was a brilliant scholar of West Africa who
mastered all of the Islamic sciences as
well as the inward sciences of Islam. He
wrote this didactic poem in order to teach

people the means to purify their hearts

because he looked around and realized
that everybody he saw had a diseased
heart. Though he recognized the benefit
in learning the abstract sciences of Islam,
such as grammar, rhetoric, and logic, he felt
that people may not have a great deal of
need for that knowledge given the fact that
on the Day of Judgment, the heart is the
only thing about which we will be asked.
The state of our hearts is the only thing
that may benefit us because actions are
by intentions as the hadith states. Since
all our actions are rooted in intentions, and
the place of intention is the heart, every
action we do is rooted in our hearts. Thus,
in reality when we are asked about our
actions, we are asked about the intentions
behind the actions, and given the fact that
intentions emanate from the heart, what
we are actually being asked about is the
human heart. When Shaykh Muhammad
Maulud realized this, he said that suddenly
Allah subhanahu wa tala inspired him to
write this text, and he based it upon many
of the previous texts that had gone before,
such as the last book of the Ihya Ulumudin
by Imam Abu Hamid al-Ghazzali.
Rectification Begins with the Self
If we look at the world today, the
tribulations, the trials, and every war
that we have, we will see that every bit
of human suffering is rooted in human
hearts. The reason people are aggressive
against other people is due to diseases
of the heart: covetousness, the desire
to conquer, the desire to exploit other
people, and the desire to steal their natural
resources are all from diseases of the
heart. A sound heart cannot commit such
acts. Every murderer, every rapist, every
idolater, every fowl person, every person
showing an act of cruelty has a diseased
heart because these actions emanate
from diseased hearts. If the hearts were
sound, none of these actions would be a
reality. Therefore, if we wish to change our
world, we cannot go about it by attempting
to rectify the outward; rather, we change
the world by rectifying the inward because
it is the inward that precedes the outward.
In reality, everything that we see outside

of us comes from the unseen world. The

phenomenal world emerges from the
unseen world, and all actions emerge from
the unseen realm of our hearts. Thus, if we
want to rectify our actions, we must first
rectify our hearts. Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr., the famous American preacher and civil
rights activist, said that in order for people
to condemn injustice, they have to follow
four stages: the first stage is that they
must ascertain that injustices are indeed
being perpetrated. People must point
out the injustices, and in his case, it was
injustices against the African-American
people in the United States. The second
stage is to negotiate: people must go to
the oppressors and demand justice. If
the oppressors refuse, then Dr. King said
that the third stage is self-purification. He
said that we must ask ourselves, are we
ourselves wrongdoers? Are we ourselves
oppressors? The final stage is to take
action once we have looked into ourselves.
One of the things the Muslims of the
modern world fail to recognise is that
when we look at all of the terrible things
that are happening to us, we often refuse
to look at ourselves and ask ourselves,
why are these things happening to us?
If we ask that in all sincerity, the answer
will come back in no uncertain terms
that this is all from our own selves. We
have brought all of the suffering upon
ourselves. This is the only empowering
position that we can take, and this is the
Quranic position. Allah subhanahu wa
tala says quite clearly that He places
some of the oppressors over other
oppressors because of what their hands
were earning. According to Fakharudin
ar-Razis explanation, radi Allahu anhu,
this verse means that whenever there is
oppression in the earth, it is a result of
other peoples oppression. Thus, those
people who are being aggressed upon are
being oppressed because of their own
oppression. However, this is obviously
with the exception of tribulation. There
are definitely times when the muminun
are tried, but if they respond accordingly
with patience and perseverance, Allah
subhanahu wa tala always gives them
victory.

The Impure Oppress and the

Pure Elevate
There is no doubt that the Prophet sallallahu
alayhi wa sallam and the sahaba were being
oppressed when they were in Makkah,
but Allah subhanahu wa tala later gave
them victory. Within 23 years, the Prophet
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was not only
no longer oppressed, he had conquered
the entire Arabian peninsula, and all of the
people who had previously oppressed him
were begging him for mercy. Even though
they deserved to be recompensed with
punishment, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi
wa sallam forgave them, and this is the
difference between somebody whose
heart is pure and somebody whose heart
is impure. The impure people oppress,
and the pure people not only forgive their
oppressors, they actually conquer them
by the power of Allah subhanahu wa tala,
and then they elevate them. This is what
Muslims must recognize: the only solution
to all of our problems is that we have to
purify ourselves, and this is what Mathartul Qulub is about; it is a book of selfpurification. If we take this book seriously,
work on our hearts, and actually implement
what we learn from it, we will begin to see
changes in our lives, around us, and within
our own family dynamics. It is a blessing that
we have this book and that this teaching still
exists in our community. All that is left is for
us to take this teaching upon ourselves and
to take it seriously.

Medicine for the Diseased Heart

If you use the techniques that are given by
the imams, you will see results. However,
it is just as the prescription that the
doctor gives you: the doctor can only
write the prescription; he can give you the
medicine, but he cannot force you to take
the medicine. It is left for us to take the
medicine. The imams have given us the
medicine: our teaching is there; it is clear;
it does work; and we can change ourselves
with it. If we do, Allah subhanahu wa tala
has promised that we will be rewarded in
this world and in the next. Thus, all that is
left for us to do now is to go through these
diseases and then set out to implement
their cures in sha Allah.

MP 52

A Higher
Ground
for Our
Marriages
By Imam Zaid Shakir

In the literature discussing Futuwwa, which has been translated as Muslim

chivalry, there is the story of a young man who was engaged to marry a
particularly beautiful woman. Before the wedding day, his fiance was afflicted
with a severe case of chicken pox which left her face terribly disfigured. Her
father wrote to him informing him of the situation and asking if he preferred to
call off the wedding. The young man replied to her father stating that he would
still marry his daughter, but that he had recently experienced a gradual loss of
sight, which he feared would culminate in blindness. By the wedding date he had
in fact completely lost his vision.

The wedding proceeded as planned and

the couple had a loving and happy relationship until the wife died twenty years later.
Upon her death the husband regained his
eyesight. When asked about his seemingly
miraculous recovery he explained that he
could see all along. He had feigned blindness all those years because he did not
want to offend or sadden his wife.
From our jaded or cynical vantage
points it is easy to dismiss such a story as
a preposterous fabrication. To do so is to
miss an important point that was not lost
to those who circulated and were inspired
by this and similar tales. Namely, our religion is not an empty compilation of laws
and strictures. The law is important and
willingly accepting it is one of the keys to
our salvation. However, the law is also a
means that points us towards a higher ethical end. We are reminded in the Quran,
Surely, the prayer wards off indecency and
lewdness (29:45).
The Prophet, peace and blessings upon
him, mentioned concerning the fast, One

MP 52

who does not abandon false speech and

acting on its imperatives, God has no
need that he gives up his food and drink
(Bukhari, 1903). These narrations emphasise that there is far more to Islam than a
mere adherence to rulings.
This is especially true in our marriages.
Too many Muslims are involved in marriages that devolve into an empty observation
of duties and an equally vacuous demand
for the fulfillment of rights. While such
practices are laudable in their proper context, when they are divorced from kindness,
consideration, empathy, and true commitment they define marriages that become
a fragile caricature. Such relationships are
irreparably shattered by a silly argument, a
few wrinkles on the face, unwanted pounds
around the waist, a personality quirk or a
whimsical desire to play the field to see
if one can latch on to someone prettier,
wealthier, younger, or possibly more exciting than ones spouse.
These are issues that affect men and
women. However, we men must step up

and do our part to help to arrest the alarmingly negative state of gender relations in
our communities. The level of chivalry the
current crisis demands does not require
that we pretend to be blind for twenty years.
However, it does require some serious soul
searching, and it demands that we ask ourselves some hard questions. Below are a
few areas where our inquiries might begin.
Why are so many Muslim men averse to
marrying older or previously married women? The general feeling among the women
folk in our communities is that if you are
not married by the age of twenty-five, then
you have only two chances of being married
thereafter slim and none. This sentiment
pervades our sisters minds and hearts because of the reality they experience. Many
brothers who put off marriage until they are
past thirty-five will oftentimes marry someone close to half their age, passing over a
generation of women who are intellectually
and psychologically more compatible with
them and would prove wiser parents for
their children.

Despite this problem, and the clear social, psychological and cultural pathologies
it breeds, many of us will hasten to give
a lecture reminding our audience of the
fact that Khadija, the beloved wife of our
Prophet, peace upon him, was fifteen years
his senior. We might even mention that she
and several of his other wives were previously married. Why is it that what was good
enough for our Prophet, peace upon him, is
repugnant to ourselves or our sons?
A related question would be, Why are
so many of our brothers so hesitant to marry strong, independent, intellectually astute
women? Many women in the West lack
the support of extended family networks,
which is increasingly true even in the Muslim world. Therefore, they must seek education or professional training to be in a position to support themselves, if necessary,
or assist their husbands, an increasingly
likely scenario owing to the nature of work
in postindustrial societies. This sociological
fact leads to women in the West generally manifesting a degree of education and
independence that might not be present
among women in more traditional societies even though such societies are rapidly
disappearing.
Many Muslim men will pass over talented, educated women who are willing to
put their careers and education on hold, if
need be, to commit to a family. The common reason given is that such women are
too assertive, or they are not the kind of
women the prospective husbands mother
is used to. As a result a significant number of our sisters, despite their beauty, talent, maturity, and dynamism are passed
over for marriage in favor of an idealised,
demure real Muslim woman. The social
consequences of this practice are extremely grave for our community.
Again, we can ask ourselves, To what
extent does this practice conform to the
prophetic model? Our Prophet, peace
upon him, was surrounded by strong, assertive and independent women. His beloved Khadija, who we have previously
mentioned, was one of the most successful business people in the Arabian Peninsula, and her wealth allowed the Prophet,
peace upon him, to retreat to the Cave of

Hira where he would receive the first revelation. Aisha, despite her young age was
an aggressive, free-spirited, intellectual
powerhouse who would become one of
the great female scholars in history. The
foundation for her intellectual greatness
was laid by the Prophet himself, peace
upon him. Zainab bint Jahsh ran a nonprofit organization. She would make various handicrafts, sell them in the market
and then use the proceeds to secretly

gions of women who have been relegated

to the status of unmarriageable social pariahs who would beg to differ.
God has stated that the basis for virtue
with Him is piety, not tribe, race, or national
origin (49:13). The Prophet, peace upon
him, reminded us that God does not look at
our physical forms, or at our wealth. Rather,
He looks at our hearts and our deeds (Muslim, 2564). We debase ourselves when we
exalt what God has belittled. God and his

Why are so many of our brothers

so hesitant to marry strong,
independent, intellectually
astute women?

give charity to the poor people of Madina.

Umm Salama, had the courage to migrate
from Mecca to Medina, unescorted, although she was ultimately accompanied
by a single rider. She also had the vision
to resolve the crisis at Hudaybiyya. These
were all wives of the Prophet, peace upon
him. To their names we could add those
of many other strong and dynamic women
who played a major role in the life of the
fledgling Muslim community.
Another issue that is leading to many
otherwise eligible women remaining single
relates to color. If a panel of Muslim men,
whose origins were in the Muslim world,
were to choose Miss Universe, the title
would never leave Scandinavia. No matter
how beautiful a woman with a brown, black,
or even tan complexion was, she would
never be quite beautiful enough, because
of her skin color. This attitude informs the
way many choose their wives. This is a sensitive issue, but it is one we must address if
we are to advance as a community. We may
think that as in other areas ours is a colorblind community. However, there are le-

Messenger, peace upon him, have belittled

skin color as a designator of virtue or distinction. What does it say about us when
we use it as a truncheon to painfully bludgeon some of the most beautiful women
imaginable into social insignificance?
Marriage is not a playground where the
ego thoughtlessly pursues it vanities. This
is something the chivalrous young man
mentioned at the outset of this essay understood. It is an institution that helps a
man and a woman pursue the purpose of
their creation: to glorify and worship God
and to work, within the extent of our capabilities and resources, to make the world
a better place for those we share it with
and for those we will leave it to. This role
is beautifully captured in the Quran, The
believing men and women are each others
supporting friends. They enjoin right, forbid wrong, establish regular prayer, pay the
poor due, and they obey God and His Messenger. They expect Gods Mercy. Surely,
God is Mighty, Wise. (9:71)
Imam Zaid Shakir

MP 52

al asma ul husna

Dhikr by
Word and
by Action

al jabbar

al `alim

al adl

al `aziz

al muhaymin

al mu`min

al fattah

al razzaq

al wahhab

al basir

as sami

al hakam

as salam

al quddus

al qahhar

al ghaffar

al muzill

al malik

al rahim

al musawwir

al bari`

al rahman

al khaliq

allah

al mutakabbir

al mu`izz

ar rafi`

al khafid

al basit

al qabid

al ghafur

al azim

al halim

al khabir

al latif

al mujib

ar raquib

al karim

al jalil

by Imam Ahmad Sirhindi

There are many

different ways of
dhikr, remembrance
of Allah, both
through obeying
Allahs Laws, and
through repeating
certain phrases.

al muqit

al hafiz

al ba`ith

al majid

MP 52

al wadud

al mu`id

al mubdi

al muhsi

al qadir

as samad

al ahad

al barr

al mughni

as sabur

Shaykh Ahmad Sirhindi helps to clarify the

relationship between the different ways
of dhikr in the following passage. Shaykh
Ahmad Sirhindi says:
Remember that dhikr means to avoid
forgetting Allah in any way that is possible.
Contrary to what people think it is not
confined to repeating the formula of nafi wa
ithbat, negation and affirmation i.e. la ilaha
illa Allah or repeating the ism dhat, the name
of Allah. In fact every act in compliance to
the commands of Allah, whether positive
or negative, is to remember Allah. Even the
buying and selling in which you observe
the regulations of the Shariah, the laws of
Allah pertaining to commercial interaction
in this case, is dhikr; similarly, the marriage
and divorce which is carried out according
to the laws of the Shari`ah pertaining to
marriage is dhikr. For those who perform
these acts according to the Shari`ah they
are not only conscious of the Giver of the
Shari`ah but do not forget Him.
To be sure, the dhikr which consists in

al kabir

al muta`ali

al wali

al ghani

al jami`

ar rashid

al warith

al `ali

al hakim

as shakur

al wasi`

al hamid

al wahid

al wali

al maajid

al batin

al muqsit

al baqi

al matin

al wajid

az zahir

al akhir

dhuljalalwalikram

al badi

saying the names and attributes of Allah

is more effective and more helpful in
generating the love of Allah, and winning
His nearness; and the dhikr which consists
in submitting to Allahs commands, in
carrying out His orders or abstaining
from His prohibitions, is less effective
in
producing
these qualities.
H o w e v e r ,
some
people
have acquired
these qualities
as a result of
practising dhikr
in the sense of
obeying Allahs commands and avoiding
His prohibitions. But such cases are few.
Khwajah Naqshband has said about Zain
l-Din Tabyadi that he reached Allah by way
of knowledge.
On the other hand, the dhikr which is
saying the names and attributes of Allah,
is a means or wasilah to the dhikr which

malikulmulk

al hadi

al qawi

al wakil

ak haqq

al quayyum

al hayy

akl mumit

al awwal

ar ra`uf

an nur

al mu`akhkhirt

al `afuw

an nafi

al hasib

ash shahid

al muhyi

al muqaddin

al muntaquim

ad darr

al muqtadir

at tawwab

al mani`

is obeying the rules of the Shari`ah in life.

For it is impossible to observe the rules of
the Shari`ah in all matters unless one has
a strong love for the Giver of the Shari`ah
and the strong love of Allah depends upon
the dhikr of Allah by repeating to oneself His
names and attributes. Hence one has to say

one has to say or verbalise

dhikr in order to do, or translate
into action, this noble dhikr
or verbalise dhikr in order to do, or translate
into action, this noble dhikr.
Quoted from Sufism and Shari`ah
by Muhammad Abdul Haq Ansari (The
Islamic Foundation, Leicester, UK, 1986),
pp. 232-3. Originally from Shaykh Ahmad
Sirhindis letters, Vol. II:46.

A Warning we Should Heed

Abdal Hakim Murad

The message of Islam is that pursuit

of money for its own sake is unnatural,
inhumane, and will lead us to catastrophe.
O you who believe! Let not your wealth
nor your children distract you from
remembrance of Allah. Those who
do so, they are the losers. (63:9)
This verse in the Quran is an invitation for
humanity to make a relatively small effort in
this world, in return for the eternal reward
of the hereafter. It is a call to save ourselves
from becoming fixated on our wealth and
on providing our children with the latest
gadget and games, which ultimately are
mere distractions from our remembrance
of the creator.
But humans are short-termist; we think
primarily of our pleasures now rather than
the harmony and serenity of the world to
come. Chapter 102 of the Quran says that
we are distracted by competing in worldly
increase, until we finally end up in our
graves where we will be questioned about
our excesses.
Does this mean that it is wrong to own
things? Of course not, as money and
offspring can be positive things in the life
of a believer, and we do of course have
basic needs which need to be met. But
we must remember that the pleasures of
consumption are quickly gone, while lasting
benefit comes only from using our wealth
to uphold the rights of others; namely the
orphan, the traveller, and the needy. Wealth
is thus truly ours only once it has been
given away.
Those who are genuinely distracted by
worldly increase, and who make it an end in
and of itself rather than as a means towards
something better are in effect guilty of a
form of idolatry. Ours is an age that has
made idols of the great banks and finance
houses, driven to frenzy by competition
amongst billionaires who are kept awake at
night by the thought that a rival might make
a business deal more quickly than them. A
banker who can asset strip companies and

throw its employees out onto the street is

someone who is in the grip of an obsession
that has thrown him beyond the normal
frontiers of humanity.
Neo-classical
economics
has
traditionally focused on four things: land,
labour, capital and money, the first three
of which are finite, while the fourth, money,
is theoretically infinite, and is therefore
where human greed has been particularly
focussed. Thus arose a system where
someone could, with approval, set up a
bank with only 1, and then lend 100
using property and other assets promised
by others as security.
The lender now has 100 including
interest, which they earned by just sitting
there and doing nothing. On the basis of
this 100, they can then lend 1000, and
on and on, until the cancerous growth
lubricated by greed becomes so huge
that it leads to a fundamental breakdown
in the system. Such a system based on
usury, with interest as the bizarre price of
money which itself becomes a commodity,
was once prohibited by all faiths. People
had a simple and natural intuition that
the commoditisation of a
measurement of value would
open the door to trading
in unreal assets, and
ultimately to a model
of finance that would
destroy
natural
restraints and even,
potentially, the planet.
In the classical Islamic
system, by contrast, money is the
substance of either gold or silver. With a
tangible and finite asset being the only

measure of value, there is a great deal

more certainty about the value of assets
and the price of money. This basic wisdom
was though not just a theoretical ideal; it
succeeded. Muslim society at its height
was mercantile, and it was successful.
Never was money assigned its own value
and never was it seen as an end in and of
itself.
Since the abolition of the gold standard
however, theoretical limits on the price
of money were removed. Last years
meltdown, whose final consequences
were unguessable, was a sign of the inbuilt
dangers of a usurious world. Humans are
naturally short-termist but in times of crisis
we must take stock. As with the related
environmental crisis, now is the time to
be smarter and more self-restrained.
The believer is in any case allergic to the
mad amassing of wealth, since he or she
expects true happiness and peace only in
the remembering of God and in the next
world.
Now is the time to think seriously about
finding an economic system to replace the
one whose dangers have just been revealed.
Upon the conquest of Mecca, a verse of
the Quran was revealed commanding
people to give up what remained of their
interest-based transactions, upon which a
new system based on the value of gold and
silver was initiated.
Those who relied so heavily on the
old system would of course
have been unable to
understand a system
without
banking
charges, but not only
was such a system
created but a successful
civilisation was created
using these ideas.
Last year we peered into the
abyss; now we must apply self-restraint
and wisdom, before complete catastrophe
ensues.

MP 52

10 Ways to Avoid
Marrying the
Wrong Person
by Dr Nasisa Sekandari and Hosai Mojaddidi
There is a right way and a wrong way to get to know
someone for marriage. The wrong way is to get caught up in
the excitement and nuance of a budding relationship and in
the process completely forget to ask the critical questions
that help determine compatibility. One of the biggest
mistakes that many young Muslims make is rushing into
marriage without properly andthoroughlygetting to know
someone. A common myth is that the duration of a courtship
is an accurate enough measure of how compatible two
people are. The logic follows that the longer you speak with
someone, the better you will know them. The problem with
that premise is that no consideration is given tohowthat
time is spent. Increasingly, young Muslim couples are
engaging in halal dating, which is basically socializing with
each other in the company of friends and/or family. This
includes going out to dinner, watching a movie, playing some
sport or other leisure activity, etc. Depending on the family or
culture, conversations are minimal and chaperoned or worse,
unrestricted and unsupervised. When you consider these
limitations it makes one wonder when exactly, if ever at all,
would the critical conversations take place? Unfortunately,
for many, the answer is never and they live to suffer the
consequences. If you or someone you know is in the getting
to know someone phase, the following guide offers advice
on exactly what to look for and avoid:

10 MP 52

Do Not Marry a Potential:

Oftentimes men consider marrying a
woman hoping she never changes while
a woman considers marrying a man she
hopes she can change. This is the wrong
approach on both accounts. Dont assume
that you can change a person after youre
married to them or that they will reach their
potential. There is no guarantee, after all,
that those changes will be for the better.
In fact, its often for the worse. If you cant
accept someone or imagine living with them
as they are then dont marry them. These
differences can include a number of things
such as ideological or practical differences
in religion, habits, hygiene, communication
skills, etc.

Choose Character over

Chemistry:
While chemistry and attraction are no doubt
important, character precedes them both.
A famous quote follows, Chemistry ignites
the fire, but character keeps it burning. The
idea of falling in love should never be the
sole reason for marrying someone; it is very
easy to confuse infatuation and lust for love.
The most important character traits to look
for include humility, kindness, responsibility,
& happiness. Heres a breakdown of each
trait:
Humility:The humble person never makes
demands of people but rather always does
right by them. They put their values and
principles above convenience and comfort.
They are slow to anger, are modest, and
avoid materialism.
Kindness:The kind person is the
quintessential giver. They seek to please
and minimise the pain of others. To know if
a person is a giver, observe how they treat
their family, siblings, and parents. Do they
have gratitude towards their parents for
all that theyve done for them? If not, then
know that they will never appreciate what
you do for them. How do they treat people
they dont have to be kind towards (i.e.
waiters, sales associates, employees, etc)?
How do they spend their money? How do
they deal with anger; their own anger and

their reaction to someone elses anger?

Responsibility:A responsible person has
stability in their finances, relationships, job,
and character. You can you rely on this
person and trust what they say.
Happiness:A happy person is content with
their portion in life. They feel good about
themselves and good about their life. They
focus on what they have rather than on what
they dont have. They very rarely complain.

Do Not Neglect theEmotional

Needs of Your Partner:
Both men and women have emotional
needs and in order for a partnership
to be successful those needs must be
mutually met. The fundamental emotional
need of a woman is to be loved. The
fundamental emotional need of a man is to
be respected and appreciated. To make a
woman feel loved give her the three AAAs:
Attention, Affection, & Appreciation. To
make a man feel loved give him the three
RRRs: Respect, Reassurance . It is the
obligation of each partner to make sure
the other is happy and this extends to
intimacy as well. As long as each partner
is fulfilled by the emotional needs of the
other, the intimate relationship will thrive.
When a husband and wife take seriously
each others emotional and physical needs
each will feel more encouraged to fulfil the
others desires and more encouraged to
give the affection, love and appreciation.
Working together in this way encourages
reciprocity.

Avoid Opposing Life Plans:

In marriage you can either grow together
or grow apart. Sharing a common purpose
in life will increase the chance that you will
grow together.
You must know what the person is into.
In other words, what are they ultimately
passionate about? Then ask yourself, Do
I respect this passion? Do I respect what
they are into?
The more specifically you define yourself,
i.e., your values, your beliefs, your lifestyle,
the better chance you have of finding your

life partner, your soul mate, the one you are

most compatible with.
Remember, before you decide who to take
along on a trip, you should first figure out
your destination.

Avoid Pre-Marital Sexual/

Physical Activity:
Recognize that there is incredible wisdom
in why God has ordered us to refrain
from intimacy before marriage; they are
to prevent great harms as well as to keep
sacred what is the most blessed part of a
relationship between a man and a woman.
Aside from the obvious spiritual
consequences, when a relationship
gets physical before its time, important
issues like character, life philosophy,
and compatibility go to the wayside.
Consequently, everything is romanticized
and it becomes difficult to even remember
the important issues let alone talk about
them.
Intellectual commitment must be
established before emotional or sexual
commitment.

Avoid Lack of Emotional

Connection:
There are four questions that you must
answer YES to:
Do I respect and admire this person?
What specifically do I respect and admire
about this person?
Do I trust this person? Can I rely on them?
Do I trust their judgment? Do I trust their
word? Can I believe what they say?
Do I feel Safe? Do I feel emotionally safe
with this person? Can I be vulnerable? Can
I be myself? Can I be open? Can I express
myself?
Do I feel calm and at peace with this
person?
If the answer is I dont know, Im not sure,
etc. keep evaluating until you know for
sure and truly understand how you feel.
If you dont feel safe now, you wont feel
safe when you are married. If you dont
trust now, this wont change when you are
married!

Pay Attention to Your Own

Emotional Anxiety:
Choosing someone you dont feel safe
with emotionally is not a good recipe for
a long-lasting and loving marriage. Feeling
emotionally safe is the foundation of a
strong and healthy marriage. When you
dont feel safe, you cant express your
feelings and opinions. Learn how to identify
whether you are in an abusive relationship.
If you feel you always have to monitor what
you say, if you are with someone and you
feel you cant really express yourself and
are always walking on eggshells, then its
very likely you are in an abusive relationship.
Look for the following things:
Controlling behavior:This includes
controlling the way you act, the way you
think, the way you dress, the way you wear
your hair/hijab and the way you spend
your time. Know the difference between
suggestions and demands. Demands are
an expression of control and if the demands
are implied, than you must do it or there
will be consequences. All of these are clear
indications of abusive personalities.
Anger issues:This is someone who
raises their voice on a regular basis, who
is angry, gets angry at you, uses anger
against you, uses put downs, and curses
at you, etc. You dont have to put up with
this type of treatment. Many people who
tolerate this behavior usually come from
abusive backgrounds. If this is the case

MP 52

11

with you or someone you know, get help

right away. Deal with those issues before
getting married or before even thinking
about getting married.

Beware of Lack of OpennessIn

Your Partner:
Many couples make the mistake of not
putting everything on the table for discussion
from the onset. Ask yourself, What do I
need to know to be absolutely certain I want
to marry this person? What bothers me
about this person or the relationship? Its
very important to identify whats bothering
you, things that concern you, and things you
are afraid to bring up for discussion. Then
you must have an honest discussion about
them. This is a great way to test the strength
of your relationship. Bringing up issues when
theres conflict is a great opportunity to
really evaluate how well you communicate,
negotiate, and work together as a team.
When people get into power struggles and
blame each other, its an indication they
dont work well as a team. Also important
is being vulnerable around each other. Ask
deep questions of each other and see how bring these issues into your marriage and
your partner responds. How do they handle hope your partner will fix them.
it? Are they defensive? Do they attack?
Do they withdraw? Do they get annoyed?
Watch Out For Lack of
Do they blame you? Do they ignore it? Do
Emotional Health and
they hide or rationalise it? Dont just listen
Availability in Your Potential
to whatthey say but watch forhowthey
Partner:
say it!
Many people choose partners that are
not emotionally healthy or available. One
huge problem is when a partner is unable
Beware of Avoiding Personal
to balance the emotional ties to family
Responsibility:
members, the marriage ends up having 3
Its very important to rememberno one else (or more) people in it rather than two. An
is responsible for your happiness.Many example of this would be if a man is overly
people make the mistake of thinking dependent on his mother and brings that
someone else will fulfill them and make relationship into the marriage; this is no
their life better and thats their reason for doubt a recipe for disaster. Also important
getting married. People fail to realise that to consider are the following:
if they are unhappy as a single person, they Avoid people who are emotionally empty
will continue to be miserable when they inside. These include people who dont
are married. If you are currently not happy like themselves because they lack the
with yourself, dont like yourself, dont like ability to be emotionally available. They are
the direction your life is going now, its always preoccupied with their deficiencies,
important to take responsibility for that insecurities, and negative thoughts. They
now and work on improving those areas of are in a perpetual fight with depression,
your life before considering marriage. Dont never feel good, are isolated, are critical

10

12 MP 52

and judgmental; tend to not have any close

friends, and often distrust people or are
afraid of them. Another clear indication
about them is they always feel their needs
are not getting met; they have a sense of
entitlement and feel angry when they feel
people should take care of them and they
dont. They feel burdened by other peoples
needs and feel resentment towards them.
These people cannot be emotionally
available to build healthy relationships.
Addictions can also limit the level of
availability of the partner to build a strong
emotional relationship. Never marry an
addict. Addictions are not limited to drugs
and alcohol. They can be about addictions
and dependency on work, internet, hobbies,
sports, shopping, money, power, status,
materialism, etc. When someone has an
addiction, they will not and cannot be
emotionally available to develop an intimate
relationship with you!
Additional Points to Consider:
The fact is no one looks 25 forever.
Ultimately, we love the person we marry

for more than their appearance. When we

get to know someone we love and admire,
well love them for their inner beauty and
overall essence.
Once we find someone, we consciously
or subconsciously want so badly for it all
to work that we decide not to question or
see what is clearly in front of our eyes: they
were rude to the waiter, speaks ill of others,
is rude to you, etc. We dont stop to ask,
What does all of this mean about their
character?
Never separate someone from their
family, background, education, belief
system, etc. Asking clear questions can
clarify this. Ask questions like, What
does it mean to have a simple lifestyle?
What are your expectations of marriage?
How would you help around the house?
Compare your definition with theirs.
Be flexible. Be open-minded!
Giving in a happy marriage should not
be confused with martyrdom. It should
be about taking pleasure and seeing the
other person as happy because of your
connection with them.
Morality and spirituality are the qualities
that truly define someone in addition to
beauty, money, and health. The morally
upright and spiritual person will stand by
your side during adversity and hardship.
If someone isnt God-conscience and
doesnt take themselves into account with
God then why should you expect them to
fulfill their rights owed to you? The ideal
partner is someone who considers giving
a gain and not causing a loss. Having a
mutual and shared spiritual relationship will
foster a successful marriage. Furthermore,
a successful marriage is one that keeps
the laws of family purity which require a
certain degree of self-control and selfdiscipline, as well as the belief that the
physical side of the relationship includes
the spiritual and emotional side as well.
Finding commonality and balance between
the spiritual and emotional aspects of a
relationship is a strong key to a healthy and
thriving marriage.

There are four questions

that you must answer
YES to:
Do I respect and admire
this person?
Do I trust this person?
Do I feel Safe?
Do I feel calm and at
peace with this person?

The above article was [in part] inspired by

and adapted from a presentation by Rabbi
Dov Heller, M.A

MP 52

13

LIVING ISLAM
FESTIVAL 2011
Liz from Bradford
describes her
experiences
Asalamulaikum I am still reeling from the
most amazing Islamic experience I have
had ever. I went along to just the Friday of
living Islam, a dear friend had encouraged
me to go, then things just happened to
make it possible for me to attend. I work
with Read Foundation and was invited
down there to meet with them. Also BBC
asked if I would take part in an interview. So
off I went. Where do I start? Well I guess
the first impression was the tranquillity, the
peace, the cleanliness of the site.
Then came the smiling faces, the
Salamulaikums that was said to me by
strangers, the amount of people that
approached me and said youre on Face
Book fame through Face Book well
I never! I listened to the most amazing
talk about how we wash and care for
our deceased, it was beautiful. Then the
presenter said remember the revert and it
hit home Yes! This is what its about.
Caring for each other, becoming a family.
I had tears on my cheeks. Then Jumah. Oh
how beautiful mashaAllah the Khutbah was
and just what I needed to hear. The smell of
the fresh earth and the feeling of the air as
you pray, subhanAllah. I laughed, I chatted,
I smiled, I fell in love all over again with
the religion I am new to. No segregation
everyone together, one ummah, one
family just as it is meant to be. Every
one conducting themselves with the
perfect Islamic manners. Then as the day
moved on I listened to the most beautiful
of story tellers and a talented young man
showing his football skills, such a contrast
and something for everyone. I had a brief
chat with Zain Bhika and Hassan Rasul.

14 MP 52

Then as the dusk came the Adhaan filled

the evening air, people started to wander
over to the field for prayer, again with tears
on my cheeks I joined them, Maghrib the
beautiful end of the day. Then Isha under
the stars it truly does not become more
romantic than that. After Isha prayer we
were welcomed to join the fireworks wow amazing absolutely amazing. I stood
alone, reflecting as I watched the night
sky shimmer with tiny stars, I watched
the delight on childrens faces and I gave
praise and thanks to Allah for opening my
heart and welcoming me into Islam. I then
joined my friends for supper in a marquee.
Tired children on parents laps and excited
chatter about the following days events
surrounded us. I bid my friends goodnight
and as I walked through the darkened
camp grounds I could see the orange glow
of the camp fire through the trees and
the hush and gentleness as dhikr began.
I stood for a few minutes and listened

knowing that no matter how lonely life may

be at times and as a revert I am blessed
to belong to this family. Jazakallah kahir to
the organisers and I look forward Inshallah
to the next time.

NEW MUSLIMS PROJECT

So many friends, acquaintances, new
and interested people in the services
provided by the NMP visited the NMP
stand in the large bazar marquee at
the Living Islam Festival. We would
like to share with you a photographic
memory of that weekend and the
warm and smiling faces of all those
who came along to say hello and
extend their greetings of peace.
Cheers
Batool

MP 52

15

Gil Scott-Heron saved my life

A modern day converts tale - Abdul Malik Al Nasir

After a traumatic childhood Abdul Malik Al Nasir seemed
to be heading for jail or an early death. Then, at the age
of 18, he met the famous poet and musician with
remarkable consequences

Malik with Gil Scott-Heron on tour in 2009

My brother Reynold introduced me to
the music of Gil Scott-Heron. Little did
I realise how it, and more importantly
Gil,would go on to shape my life.
I was 18, had just come out of a childhood
in care, was traumatised, illiterate and had
no prospects. Reynold, who was older,
showed me an album called Moving Target,
which had a picture of Gil running through
the streets of Washington seen through
the telescopic lens of a gun. Reynold was
politicised and well-read unlike me.
Ididnt take life too seriously, partly because
I couldnt face up to what had happened to
me. He made me sit down and listen to the
song Washington DC and the lyrics summed
up so much of my life: The symbols of
democracy pinned up against the coast,
the outhouse of bureaucracy surrounded by
amoat. Citizens of poverty are barely out of
sight - The overlords escape in the evenings,
brothers on the night.
Gil was talking about the White House
surrounded by the urban ghettos, the bits
the tourists dont see the reality of the
citys ghetto life. My brother explained what
the song meant. He drew a parallel between
what Gil was talking about in Washington

16 MP 52

DC and what we, as black people, were

facing in Toxteth, Liverpool, in the run up to
the riots of 1981.
Reynold was trying to wake me up to
consciousness. I had already got in with the
wrong crowd, and he was concerned that
if I didnt dissociate myself from them it
would only be a matter of time before I was
incarcerated again and this time not in a
care home.
Why had I been put in care in the first
place? My name back then was Mark
Trevor Watson, and when I was eight years
old my father had a stroke. Dad was black
from Guyana, my mum white Welsh. All the
family (there were four kids, and mum and
dad) were the butt of racist abuse. Dad,
a former merchant seaman, was a real
worker. Nothing could stop him. He even
volunteered to work on Christmas Day 1974
for the Netherley Property Guards, who
patrolled the warehouses on the Liverpool
docks. It was a horribly cold winter. He left
the house at 5am to wait for the bus to take
him to work. It never came. Dad waited
till 10am and eventually trudged home
defeated. That was the only time I saw this
big strong seaman cry. He didnt open his
Christmas presents, he just went straight to

bed. He had a stroke in his sleep and when

he woke up he was a quadriplegic, paralysed
from the neck down. He stayed like that for
the rest of his life, in and out of the geriatric
ward until he died four years later.
Mum, who worked in the Meccano
factory, continued to struggle with the
four of us. But she couldnt really cope. I
was a handful dyslexic and dyspraxic,
but undiagnosed. I hated school. We were
virtually the only black kids there, and
the pupils used to be brought into school
assembly to the sound of the headmasters
favourite recording Black Sambo: Black
Sambo, black Sambo, living in the jungle
alone, except for Big black Mumbo and
Big black Jumbo. No one considered it a
problem. After that everyone would turn to
me and my sisters and call us black sambo.
There were fights, and everyone called us
troublemakers. At nine I was expelled from
that school, which resulted in me being
taken into local authority care in 1975.
I was sentenced to nine years under
a care order having committed no crime.
They didnt see it like that, of course. They
labelled me maladjusted and told all of us
that we were menaces to society; that
society needed protecting from us. On the
night they took me into care, they put me in
an admission unit where they locked me in
a room with bars on the window for 14 days
and 14 nights. This practice later came to be
outlawed following the infamous pin-down
scandal in Staffordshire, but in the 70s it
was common. It was the most traumatic
experience of my life, for which I would later
seek justice in the courts.
Just before Christmas 1975 I was taken
to a place called Woolton Vale assessment
centre, otherwise known as Menlove. It was
a large, Victorian prison with bars on every
window, locks on every door and an isolation
cell inside. It had previously operated as
a remand home for prisoners. In 1974 it

I was a handful
dyslexic and dyspraxic,
but undiagnosed.
I hated school.

had been converted to an assessment

centre for kids, but still operated illegally
under the old rules. Confinement might not
havebeen permitted, but it didnt stop them.
Meanwhile, the local remand centre, Risley,
was full, so Menlove became an overspill
for prisoners. This meant they were mixing
children from broken homes with hardened
criminals and locking them up. Another
matter over which I would later sue.
From there I was moved to several
different community homes where Isuffered
varying degrees of physical and racial abuse
over the years until Iwas 18 and my care
order ceased. Iwas visited by my social
worker who gave me 100, made me sign
a form tosay I would never come back for
more money, and within a few months I was
living in a hostel for homeless black youths.
That was when Gil changed my life. He
was playing at Liverpools Royal Court
Theatre, and the gig was sold out. It was
1985, Gil had a record in the charts, and was
at the peak of his fame. A friend of mine,
the late photographer Penny Potter, got me
in she had a backstage pass and told his
team that Iwas her assistant. I watched the
show and was mesmerised. It was hard to
describe what he did exactly he rapped,
he played jazz, he was a poet, he educated
he was just singing a song, but it was as if
he was part of a collective soul that existed
in the room.
After the show I went backstage with
Penny. Gil was standing there with a bunch
of people around him photographers
snapping away, reporters stuffing mics
under his nose, promoters with bags of
money, and the band members trying to get
paid. Everybody seemed to want something
from him. Ishook his hand, thanked him for
the performance and turned round to leave.
He said: Hold on a minute brother, whats
going on round here? Iheard you had some
riots. I told himabout Toxteth and how the
black communities had rioted across the
country in the long hot summer of 1981.
He said: Yeah we had some of them back
in DC. He wanted to know about the
people of Toxteth so I offered to take him
to the scenes of the riots. The next day we
toured the area and Igave him a running
commentary of what had happened in each

place, all the places that had been burned

down and what had happened as a result.
Now if theres one thing they taught us
in care it was how to cook, and I offered
to feed Gil and the band. The trouble was
I didnt have a place to live. So I asked
my friend Dobbo if I could borrow his flat,
cashed my giro cheque, and spent my two
weeks money on food. Gil bought his whole
17-strong entourage back to the flat and I
fed them all. Entrees, starters, mango juice,
the works. He tried to pay me 100, which
was a lot of money then. Iwouldnt accept it;
he tried again and
I refused again.
When he realised
there was no point
in trying to pay
me, he said to his
promoter: Well
be back in England
in a few weeks. Give the brother the details
of the hotel where well be. Then he said:
Id like for you to join us on the tour. To
do what, I asked? Whatever you wanna do,
carry some drums, whatever you want, was
his response. And thats what I did.
Gil took it on himself to spend whatever
time he could in the evening mentoring
me, giving me encouragement and trying
to foster in me a sense of self-worth. I had
been indoctrinated by the care system to
believe that I was maladjusted and useless
from the age of nine, but Gil refused to
accept it. He saw something in me that I did
not see in myself my potential.
I had told Gil everything about my life.
Except for one thing I could hardly read.
I was just so ashamed. It was 1988 and Id
been on the road with him for four years.
This time we were touring America with
Richie Havens and Gil passed me a book
and asked me to read a page back to him.
Ifelt like my heart was going to stop. Id
always had the attitude that if Gil asked
me to do anything Id do it, and for the
first time hed asked me to do something
Icouldnt do. Id always made myself useful
by doing anything, from the bands laundry
to flogging Gils books at gigs, to helping
the roadies, to navigating for the driver. I
was always conscious of not trying to be a
burden because I was aware he was paying

for my flights and hotel rooms, and when he

asked me to read and I couldnt I felt cold,
and fumbled and fumbled, to the point when
he said Whats the problem? Are you not
fluent in reading? That was the first time
I ever knew a person could be fluent at
reading. Being a child of the streets, fluency
was something Id always associated with
talking; talking was my survival mechanism.
Gil made me take stock of the fact that
illiteracy was something not to be ashamed
of, but something to address. Itold him
Id never been taught that was the first

He saw something in me that I did

not see in myself my potential.
time Id admitted it even to myself. In the
care system education or literacy werent
encouraged, and most people came out of
it like me.
Not many people know that Gil was
a teacher he had a Masters degree in
English from Lincoln University. Despite not
having a first degree he was accepted on
to the Masters programme on the strength
of two books he had written as a teen; The
Vulture, a murder mystery, and The Nigger
Factory, which was about life on black
college campuses. Id been running with the
wrong crowd and he took it as a personal
challenge to turn me around; to take me
away from a life of hustling and make me
productive. If Id ended up like most of my
peers in care Id be dead or in jail by now.
Gils intervention saved my life.
He used to introduce me to people as his
son, despite the fact that he has his own
children. It was so touching. At the age of
12 I lost my father, and when I met Gil at 18
he took on that role and took it on seriously.
Back then, I had so many problems; my
mind was like a spaghetti junction. There
were so many narratives going on in my head
that I couldnt unravel them, and Gil would
listen to them all. At the end hed invariably
say one or two sentences that would sum
up what it had taken me so long to say, and
also direct me to what I should do about it.

MP 52

17

In 1987 we were on tour and Gil suggested

it was time for me to get a job. For two years
I went to sea, working as a steward on a ferry,
then on oil tankers, scrubbing decks, cleaning
toilets, serving food. Every night from 6pm to
midnight I taught myself to read and write. I
started experimenting with language by writing
poetry and songs. When I got to port Id write
to Gil, and enclose poems or songs for his
appraisal. In between stints at sea, Iwould
go on tour with Gil and he would appraise my
work. By 1990, at the end of a period at sea,
I had a considerable body of work; poetry,
prose and songs. But I just put them in a
box in a cupboard in my mums house and
left them for years. Gil then encouraged me
to go to college and university and educate
myself. The problem was, I didnt have any
qualifications. So in 1990 I took a job with
Littlewoods on a positive-action training
scheme where they took on four black kids
a year and trained them in management, and
through that they sponsored me to go to
college to study business and finance. I got
a degree in sociology and geography, which
seemed appropriate for a seaman with my
background, followed bya postgraduate
diploma in social research and a Masters
degree in mediaproduction.
I continued to tour with Gil when Icould.
He was so proud of me. My degree was the
culmination of everything he had invested in
me and Id invested in myself. What Gil gave
me was a reason to live. At the age of 18
Icouldnt see anything to live for.
In 1992 I met the Last Poets, a band that
had been Gils mentors and who are often
credited as being the first rappers. Gils
famous song The Revolution Will Not Be
Televised was inspired by the Last Poets
Niggers Are Scared of Revolution. There
was a yearning in my soul for spirituality. I
had lots of questions about religion, but Gil
was more spiritual than religious. Jalal and
Suliman from the Last Poets spoke to me
about Islam, it struck a cord and in 1992 I
became a Muslim and changed my name
from Mark Trevor Watson to Abdul Malik Al
Nasir and started managing The Last Poets
leader Jalal. Ilater started my own record
company and worked with the likes of Public
Enemy, Run DMC, Wyclef Jean, Sly Dunbar,
the Wailers and Steel Pulse.

18 MP 52

My degree was the culmination

of everything he had invested in me
and Id invested in myself.

Over the years

things took a toll on
Gil. For many years
he had preached
against the evil of
drugs, but he became an abuser himself,
and in 2001 he was sent to jail in New York
State for possession of cocaine. When he
got into trouble, it reminded me how much
hed helped me. So I flew to New York and
visited him in jail hed been pumping iron,
eating three square meals a day, which he
rarely got when we were on the road, and
looked more relaxed and fit than Id seen
him in years. I went through all the security
checks, and they told me to take a seat in
the visiting room while they got the prisoner.
He didnt know who was coming, and when
he saw me he had a huge smile on his face.
The guard called him over and said: Ah, the
famous Gil Scot Heron . . . tuck your shirt
in. Itwas just an attempt to humiliate him. I
bit my tongue.
By 2004, I had received substantial
compensation for what Isuffered in care. I
dug out my old poems from that box in my
mothers house, and showed them to my
wife Sarah. She said I should do something
with them, so I set up my own publishing
company, Fore-Word Press, and published
my first book, Ordinary Guy, in my original
name Mark T Watson. Gil was elated when
Isent him a copy. Not simply because it was
dedicated to him but also because he knew
without his mentoring, I wouldnt have been
able to read or write.
In 2008, I was producing an album at
Wyclef Jeans studio in New York and
there was a huge commemoration concert
at Radio City Music Hall for Martin Luther
King Day. Wyclef was performing, and he
introduced me to Stevie Wonder. Now
Stevie and Gil had been integral in fighting for
a national holiday to celebrate Martin Luther
King, and I told him about my relationship
with Gil. Is Gil out of prison? he asked.
Yes, I said. Well, bring him here now.
So I phoned Gil, and brought him to the
show. When we arrived at Stevies dressing
room and I announced Gil to Stevie, Stevie
Wonder stood up, and said: Gil Scott Heron
yall, and thewhole dressing room burst
into rapturous applause.

Last year Gil made a comeback album,

Im New Here, which got great reviews. I
joined him on what would be his final tour
of Europe.
Its three weeks since Gil died, and Im still
in shock. Im 45, married with five children,
and Gil has been the most important person
to me throughout my adult life. His funeral in
Harlem was a sombre affair. What touched
me most was all the love in the room. After
the band played a beautiful tribute and
Gils ex-wife Brenda delivered a eulogy, the
rapper Kanye West took to the pulpit and
sang Lost in the World, a song that contains
a sample from Gils poem Comment #1. It
was a beautiful tribute.
After the service, I told Kanye my story
and asked if he would take part in a tribute
concert for Gil in Liverpool, the place where
we met all those years ago and he took me
under his wing. This is my way of saying:
Thank you Gil. You saved my life.
Mark has been a dish washer, a toilet
cleaner, a milkman, a labourer, a potato
bagger, a salesman, a merchant seaman,
an advertising manager, a marketing coordinator, a tour manager, a roadie, a sales
and marketing manager, a researcher,
a research project manager, a business
advisor, the director of Merseyside Refugee
Support Network, a director of Hornby
Housing, a director of a housing CO-OP, an
author and a publisher. He holds a BA Hons.
in Geography & Sociology, a Post Graduate
Diploma in Applied Social Research and is
an Associate of The Institute of Business
Advisors.
As told to Simon Hattenstone
guardian.co.uk, Sunday 19 June 2011
Malik Al Nasir
reading for an
MSc. in Applied
Social Research
at Liverpool Hope
University (2002).

A Quran Study
in Botany
By the figs, by the
olives, by Mount Sinai,
and by this City of
Security
(Quran, The Figs: 1-3) 1

These verses, in Arabic ayahs, are the

opening verses of Surat at-Tin (the Chapter
in the Quran known as The Figs), a
Makkan Surah and one of the shortest in
the Noble Quran; it has only eight ayahs
after the Basmallah, the Arabic term for
In the name of Allah2, the All-Merciful, the
Ever-Merciful.
The theme of the Surah deals with two
main issues. Firstly, that Allah has honoured
man; he has created him in the best of
forms and with an instinct to act righteously.
He has honoured him with his lineage, which
goes back to Adam; Prophet Muhammad
(pbuh) informed us that Adam was created
from dust. Man was honoured with the
truth of belief in Allah as his Lord, in Islam
as His religion, and in the Prophethood and
the divine message as being the method of
spreading knowledge of Him. This religion,
Islam, brought with it clear answers to the
questions that confuse people throughout
their lives, irrespective of their status or
position. Some of these answers concern
beliefs, worship, manners and behaviour,
constituting the core of religion. Man
cannot establish any true rules for himself
concerning these issues, since they either
concern transcendental matters such as
faith and divine orders related to worship
or because they are rules concerning his
behaviour, such as ethical matters. Man
has never been able to establish rules
for his conduct based on his own ideas
and abilities, all of which makes religion a
necessary part of mans life on Earth.
Tenets of faith in Surat At-Tin:
1. Allah (SWT) has created man in the
best form. Those who believe and do

good deeds will be honoured by Allah; in

this life, they will be honoured with His
blessings, care, generosity and mercy. In
the hereafter, Allah will make them enter
Paradise and give them their due reward.
2. Islam is the religion Allah revealed
gradually to his apostles and sealed with
the Prophet Muhammad, preserving it in
the language of its revelation (Arabic).
3. True faith is exemplified by good deeds.
Signs of creation in Surat At-Tin:
1. Allah swore by both the figs and the
olives owing to them being complete
foods of high nutritional value for human
beings. He also mentioned the sanctity of
their native lands.
2. Allah swore by the Noble Mountain,
Tur, in Sinai where He spoke to His
Messenger and servant, Moses.
3. Allah swore by the City of Security,
Makkah, in which the first sanctuary for
mankind was built. Modern science has
proved that Makkah is the most unique
place on earth.
4. Allah refers to man as having been
created in the best of statures.
5. Allah warns people that they could be
reduced to be the lowest of the low in
this life and the hereafter. Allah makes
man the most honourable of all creation
when he is a good believer and the most
hateful when he is bad or a disbeliever.
Behavioural science recognizes such
depravation in many people nowadays.
Each of the issues mentioned above
require separate research. I shall limit my
essay to a discussion of the first three ayahs
of this Surah.

Scientific implications in the first three

ayahs of Surat At-Tin:
Allah swearing an oath by the figs
In swearing an oath by the figs, Allah
(who knows best) seems to be drawing our
attention to the miraculous creation of such
fruit and its high nutritional value.
Parts of the figs creation wonders
The fig is a complex accessory fruit
that is actually an inside-out flower cluster
called a synconium, formed as a result of
the growth of synconia in the shape of a
cone. Tiny female flowers (pistil) line the
inner surface of the synconia while male
flowers (stamens) spread out around the
outer layer which is narrow at the top.
The female flowers usually mature before
the male ones. Allah Has assigned the fig
wasp (blastophaga) to help pollinate the
fig flowers. The relationship is symbiotic;
fig flowers provide a warm safe place for
blastophaga larvae to stay and feed in until
they become adults. As the adult wasps
make their way out of the flower, their
bodies come into contact with the male
flowers, pollen sticks to the body of the
insects that then carry the pollen to the
female flowers, pollinating them and allowing
fertilization to begin. Three generations of
flowers are found in the fig tree. The first
generation contains the male and insecthosting flowers. The second generation of
flowers are female ones pollinated by the
insects coming out of the first generation
flowers. These insects fertilize the flowers
producing the main harvest of the fig tree.
The third generation flowers contain insecthosting flowers where the insects spend
the winter.

MP 52

19

Who else but Allah could set up such an

accurate reproductive system for the fig
tree? Who else but Allah could teach the
fig wasp that its home is in the flower of fig
tree to assist fertilization as it moves from
one flower to another? The relationship
between this insect and the fig flower is one
of the most amazing examples of symbiosis
between plants and insects.
The benefits of figs
Figs are rich in carbohydrates which form
53% of their overall mass. Monosaccharide
and carbohydrate compounds make up the
majority of carbohydrates present along with
a small amount of proteins (approximately
3.6%) and smaller amounts of potassium,
calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron,
copper, zinc, sulphur, sodium and chorine.
Figs also contain many vitamins, enzymes,
acids, antiseptic agents, high fibre content
(18.5%) and a high percentage of water.
Among the special enzymes found in the
fig is an enzyme called ficin which has been
found to play an important role in digestion.
Japanese scientists have discovered an
aromatic aldehyde compound, benzaldehyde
(C6H5CHO) in figs. This chemical compound
was extracted from figs and has proved
to be effective in fighting carcinogens.
Carbohydrates compounds known as the
soralins have also been discovered in figs;
these compounds play an important role in
fortifying blood against a number of diseasecausing viruses and parasites, such as
hepatitis C. This carbohydrate group is found
in large amounts in figs; in its syrup, juices
and jams.
Figs have also proved to be beneficial
for breastfeeding mothers, in treating
haemorrhoids, chronic constipation, gout,
chest diseases, menstrual disorders, epilepsy,
mouth ulcers, gingivitis, tonsillitis, pharyngitis,
leucoderma, removing warts, healing injuries,
and different kinds of ulcers. Thus, Abu
Darda narrated that the Messenger of Allah
(pbuh) said, If I were to tell you of a fruit that
has been sent from paradise, it would be the
fig. Fruits of paradise are without pits. Eat the
fig as it is a cure for haemorrhoids and gout.
Swearing an oath by the olives:
Olives and olive oil are mentioned in the
Quran seven times; one of these occasions

20 MP 52

is where Allah swears by

the fig and the olive at the
beginning of Surat At-Tin. The
olive tree is a blessed tree and
so is its fruit. It is a perennial tree
which can live for more than a thousand
years. It is considered an important source
of oil. Olive oil is one of the healthiest
oils; it contains very small amounts of fatty
acid and does not increase the amount
of harmful fats in the blood as other kinds
of oil do. This is because the fats in olive
oil are all unsaturated and do not cause
atherosclerosis, hypertension or any other
diseases. Olive oil is a yellow transparent
fluid rich with oleic acids, used in cooking or
added to salads. It plays an important role in
deoxidizing the cholesterol secreted by the
body. This is because it contains vitamin E as
well as other chemical compounds known
as polyphenolic compounds which prevent
the oil from autoxidizing; protecting the body
from the dangers of harmful lipid peroxides.
Regular consumption of olive oil decreases
the overall amount of cholesterol in the blood
and its other harmful kinds in particular. More
particularly, it reduces the possibility of heart
diseases and cancer. Aside from its use in
cooking, olive oil is an ingredient of many
medicines, ointments, hair oils, soap, and it
is also used in oil lamps because of the clear
flames it produces.
Curing olives preserves them for use
in food. The oil content of an olive is
approximately 67-84% of its mass. Olive oil is
made up of important chemical compounds,
including glycerol compounds and fatty acids
known as glycerides. Fatty acids make up a
high percentage of the oils mass; oleic acid
constitutes the largest percentage of the fatty
acids in olives and olive oil, along with small
amounts of palmatic acid, linolic acid, stearic
acid, and mystric acid. Moreover, olives
and olive oil contain a moderate amount of
proteins and smaller amounts of potassium,
calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron,
copper, sulfur and fibre. These elements
are needed to produce about a thousand
chemical compounds that are essential and
useful for the wellbeing of the human body.
For these reasons and for others unknown
to us about olives, Omar Ibn Al-Khattab
reported that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh)

said,
e a t
olives and use its ointment for it comes from
a blessed tree. Muadh Ibn Jabal reported
that the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said,
The best miswak3 is that of the olive tree as
it is a blessed tree. It is my miswak and that
used by Prophets before me.
Allah swears by the olive and mentions
it seven times in the Quran. Olive and
olive oil are rich in fats and proteins and
low in carbohydrates (sugar and starches)
whereas the fig is rich in sugar and starchy
compounds, and low in fats and proteins.
Therefore, figs and olives fulfil the human
bodys need for nutritional substances. The
oath sworn on them at the beginning of the
Surat is a scientific miracle revealed in the
Quran 1400 years ago.
Swearing an oath by Mount Sinai
This is Mount Tur in Sinai, or the Mountain
of Moses where the Torah was revealed to
Moses. It is mentioned in 12 ayahs in the
Quran (Surat Al-Baqara: ayahs 63, 93,
An-Nisa: 154, Al-Araaf: 143, 171, Maryam:
52, Ta Ha: 80, Al-Muminun: 20, Al-Qasas:
29, 46, At-Tur: 1 and At-Tin: 2). One Surah
(chapter) even bears its name (Surat At-Tur).
It is, of course, a blessed place worthy of
having an oath sworn by it.
Swearing by the City of Security
The City of Security is the Noble city of
Makkah where the first place of worship for
mankind was built. The Messenger of Allah
said, The Kaba was a small hill over water,
then the earth formed under it, meaning that
the earth under the Kaba is the first piece
of land to have appeared on the surface
of the huge ocean that covered Earth in
the beginning. Then land started to spread
around this blessed place to form a continent
called the mother continent (Pangaea).
Pangaea was then divided, forming the
seven continents. These continents were

much closer to each other than they are

now. Later, they started drifting away from
each other or colliding with each other
until they settled in their current locations.
Scientifically, it has been proved that Makkah
is and was the centre of land throughout all
phases of Earths development. In other
words, if one draws a circle with Makkah
at the centre, the circle would completely
surround the solid land on earth. Allah says
in the Quran what can be translated as,
The first house (of worship) appointed
for men was that at Bakka: full of blessing
and of guidance for all kinds of beings
(Quran, 96 Al-Imran).
These ayahs that compare the earth (in
its smallness) with the heavens (with its
large dimensions) point to the earth being
the centre of the universe as does the ayah
which talks about the separation and the
unification of the earth and the heavens.
If the earth was the centre of the universe
and the Kaba was the centre of the land
on the primary earth, then below it are six
layers of earth, above it seven skies, making
the Noble Kaba the centre of the centre of
the universe. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh)
said, The shrine of Makkah, is a midpoint
shrine; it is centralised between seven layers
of earth and seven layers of skies.
He further emphasises this fact by saying,
O people of Quraysh, O people of Makkah,
you all stand parallel to the centre of heaven!
Also, the Messenger of Allah once asked his
honourable companions, Do you know what
the Bait al-Mamur is? They replied, Allah
An amazing tale about fig wasps
Figs are pretty amazing. They have
many thousands of flowers but chances
are youve never seen them. Theyre
hidden away inside the fig fruit and are
pollinated by tiny fig wasps. Most of
the 750 species of fig have their very
own species of fig wasp which in turn
is completely dependent on that fig
species for food and shelter. Its where
they will grow up, meet their partner
and die.
It all starts when a female wasp finds
an unripe fig. She crawls through a tiny
hole in the fig (opposite the stem end,
you can see the mark on fresh figs), to

and His Messenger know best. He said,

It is a house in the seventh heaven exactly
above the Kaba, if it fell, it would fall right
over it. Seventy thousand angels enter into it
every day; when the last of them come out
they do not return there again.
All these miracles make Makkah the place
that Muslims turn to five times daily in
prayers and their place of pilgrimage in which
one prayer is equivalent to one thousand
prayers elsewhere. It was also the hometown
of many Prophets. The Messenger of Allah
(pbuh) said, When their nations perished,
Prophets used to migrate to Makkah, stay
there with their followers, and worship Allah
until they died. Noah, Hud, Salah, and Shuaib
all died in Makkah and were buried between
Zam zam well and the black stone. Prophet
Ismail and his mother Hagar were both
buried at Hajr Ismail, a place in Makkah.
Allah also chose Makkah to be the birth
place of His last Messenger. He swore by
the city in Surat At-Tin and Surat Al-Balad
(The City) which He named after Makkah.
Allah gave Makkah the epithet of the mother
of all cities, Ummul Qura, as it was the
place where land first appeared and is
subsequently the mother of all the earth.
Makkah is thus worthy of having an oath
sworn by it and of being called the City of
Security in Surat At-Tin, and was worthy of
having a Surat named after it, Al-Balad.
These scientific facts about the fig
and the olive, about Makkah, the city of
security and the historical and religious facts
concerning the meeting between Allah and
get to the flowers in the centre of the
fig. Its a tight squeeze and she usually
has her wings and antennae ripped off in
the process.
When she gets through she lays her
eggs and pollinates the flowers before
she dies fruit that isnt pollinated wont
mature and her young will die. The fig
detects the eggs presence and makes
a nutritious gall around them. When they
hatch the wasp larvae live inside the gall,
being fed by the fig tree. Then, once
theyre mature, the wasps emerge from
their galls into the central cavity of the
fig. Its here that they mate. The males
then work together to chew a tunnel

his servant, Moses, on Mount Tur, were

all facts unknown to the inhabitants of the
Arabian peninsula and to all mankind at
the time of their revelation 1400 years ago
and for many centuries after. The oath by
the fig and the olive could never be one
taken by man; it is the word of Allah and
the proof of the Prophethood of His last
Messenger, Muhammad (pbuh). It proves
that the Messenger of Allah received the
inspiration from Gabriel and was taught by
the Creator of the heavens and earth, Allah.
1. Translation of the Meaning of the Quran.
This translation is for the realised meaning, so
far, of the stated (Surah:Ayah) of the Quran.
Reading the translated meaning of the Quran
can never replace reading it in Arabic, the
language in which it was revealed.
2. The word Allah is the Arabic term for God.
Although the use of the word Allah is most
often associated with Islam, it is not used
exclusively by Muslims; Arab Christians and
Arabic-speaking Jews also use it to refer to
the One God. The Arabic word expresses the
unique characteristics of the One God more
precisely than the English term. Whereas the
word Allah has no plural form in Arabic,
the English form does, and the word Allah
in Arabic has no connotation of gender. Allah
is the God worshipped by all Prophets, from
Adam to Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and
Muhammad.
3. A twig of certain trees, used on a regular
basis by Muslims for centuries to maintain oral
hygiene.

through the fig wall.

After this is complete,
they die.
The females collect
some pollen from the
fig flowers inside the
fig and then use the
tunnel made by the males to leave and
set off in search of another fig in which
to lay their eggs. And then it happens all
over again ...
Amazing?
PS this shouldnt put you off eating figs most cultivated forms are self fertilizing so
no wasps get involved. Mores the pity.
by Jan

MP 52

21

Pilgrimage
to Mecca
The first British Muslim
woman on record to
have visited the Holy
Cities of Madinah and
Makkah
By Lisa Kaaki,
lisa.kaaki@arabnews.com
At her Glen Carron estate in northwest
Scotland, Lady Evelyn was known as a
superior deerstalker and hunter.

During the 19th century, many women, particularly

Englishwomen, were fascinated by the Arab world. Most
of these female travellers, like Lucie Duff Gordon, Lady
Ann Blunt, Gertrude Bell, Isabelle Eberhardt and Freya
Stark, to name but a few, are known to us through their
impassioned travelogues.
However, one name, Lady Evelyn Cobbold
(1867 - 1963) failed inexplicably to achieve
a proper recognition. William Facey finally
does justice to this remarkable woman,
the first British Muslim woman on record
to have visited the Holy Cities of Madinah
and Makkah and to have written about her
pilgrimage.
In the excellent introduction, co-written
with Miranda Taylor, Facey highlights for
the first time the family link between Lady
Evelyn and her great-aunt, the formidable
Jane Digby (1807-1881) who was
successively Lady Ellenborough, Baroness
Venningen, and Countess Theotoky before
she married her fourth and last husband,
a Syrian Bedouin, Sheikh Abdul Medjuel El
Mezrab. With him, she lived happily for 30
years until she died at the age of 74.
Both women shared a love of the Arab
world. Jane Digby swiftly adopted the Arab
way of life, smoking the narghile, wearing

22 MP 52

traditional clothes and outlining her blue

eyes with kohl. Unlike Lady Evelyn, the
highly unconventional Jane Digby, who was
equally at ease speaking nine languages
and milking camels, never wrote a book
and never intended to convert to Islam.
Lesley Blanch, who wrote her biography in
The Wilder Shores of Love, tells us that
her husbands deep inbred piety awoke
her own dormant religious principles and
she came to redouble her now active
participation in church affairs.
For Lady Evelyn, things were completely
different. In fact, she didnt even remember
the exact time when she decided to become
a Muslim. It seems that I have always been
a Muslim. This is not so strange when one
remembers that Islam is the natural religion
that a child left to itself would develop,
she said.
Lady Evelyn spent most of her childhood
in a Moorish villa perched on a hill outside

Algiers. She learned to speak Arabic, and

her favourite pastime was to escape her
governess and visit the mosques with her
Algerian friends.
A few years later, while staying in
Rome, she had the opportunity to visit the
Pope. She recounts in the introduction
of Pilgrimage to Mecca that when His
Holiness suddenly addressed me, asking
if I was a Catholic, I was taken aback for
a moment and then replied that I was a
Muslim A match was lit and I then and
there determined to read up and study
the faith. The more I read and the more I
studied, the more convinced I became that
Islam was the most practical religion Since
then I have never wavered in my belief that
there is but one God.
Indeed, this belief in the Oneness of God
never left her. And like many Westerners,
Lady Evelyn was deeply touched by Islamic
spirituality, the inner side of faith. Two
years before her marriage to John Cobbold
in Cairo, she wrote a poem in which she
evoked the fundamental principle of Tawhid
(belief in one God) in a prayer, To Him, the
One. The Essence of all and His Presence
within and around.
I was particularly moved by the passage
about her funeral. Lady Evelyn spent the
last twenty years of her life quasi-secluded
on her estate at Glen Carron, and then in a

Bell or Freya Stark

(or indeed Margaret
Thatcher in our own
day), as a kind of
honorary man.
Lady
Evelyn
Cobbold was also
known as Sayyidah
Zainab, her Muslim
name, and wrote an
honest and sincere
account
of
her
pilgrimage to Makkah.
She was excited to
be the first British
woman on record
Lady Evelyns permission to make her pilgrimage was arranged by
to have made her
Saudi Arabias ambassador in London, Shaykh Hafiz Wahba, shown here during
one of the visits to England (probably 1935) by HRH Prince Saud ibn Abd
pilgrimage, but that
al-Aziz. Wahba stands on the left and slightly behind the prince; Wahba wrote
gave way to a deeper
the original introduction to Lady EvelynsPilgrimage to Mecca.
emotion
as
she
prayed in the Haram
nursing home in Inverness. Yet it is obvious (the Holy Mosque) in Makkah.
that, despite the fact she had lost touch with
One cannot fail to be touched by the way
other Muslims, she must have insisted on she expresses her feelings in those sublime
many occasions that her written instructions moments: It would require a master
for her Muslim funeral be followed.
pen to describe that scene, poignant in
Sheikh Muhammad Tufail, the imam its intensity of that great concourse of
of the Woking Mosque, was dispatched humanity of which I was one small unit,
to Glen Carron, in Scotland, to perform completely lost to their surroundings in
the funeral prayer on Monday Jan. 28, fervour of religious enthusiasm. Many of
1963. When he arrived, he discovered Lady the pilgrims had tears streaming down their
Evelyns wishes. She had clearly instructed cheeks; others raised their faces to the
that a specific verse from the Surah Al Nur starlit sky that had witnessed this drama
(light), Allah is the Light of the heavens and so often in the past centuries. The shining
the earth, be inscribed on a flat slab and eyes, the passionate appeals, the pitiful
placed on her grave.
hands outstretched in prayer m o v e d
This verse reminds me of a beautiful me in a way that nothing had
passage she wrote, about the same surah, ever done before, and I felt
in Pilgrimage to Mecca: I read entranced, caught up in a strong wave
it is impossible to give a translation that can of spiritual exaltation. I was
convey the poetry, the subtle meaning that one with the rest of the
floods the soul when read in the original. To pilgrims in a sublime act
me the simple grandeur of the diction, the of complete surrender to
variety of the imageries, the splendour of the Supreme Will, which
the word painting differentiates the Quran is Islam.
from all other scriptures
Very little has been
Lady Evelyn was able to see and describe written about the
the way women lived in Madinah and history of Islam and
Makkah, something no writer had ever done British Muslims in
before her. Facey also remarks that, as an the United Kingdom,
eminent and distinguished personage in her and
this
book
own right, she had equal access to the male makes a valuable
side of life, being regarded like Gertrude contribution to a

little known subject. One often overlooks

the fact that becoming a Muslim in Europe
is still not easy. Islam dictates a way of life
whose social norms and legislations are
resented by secular regimes. A citizen has
the right to choose his faith, but is not given
the means to follow it. Converting to Islam
is also socially alienating, especially for
practicing Muslims whose refusal to drink
alcohol is too often seen as a rejection of
the most basic expression of Christianity
and, by extension, Western conviviality.
Even if Lady Evelyn was not a practicing
Muslim in Britain, her conversion to Islam did
not go well with her in-laws and worsened
after the death of her husband. However,
she hung onto her faith until the very end.
When I look into my journal I shall live it all
again. Time cannot rob me of the memories
that I treasure in my heart the countless
pilgrims who passed me with shining eyes
of faith, the wonder and glory of the Haram
of Makkah, the great pilgrimage through the
desert and the hills to Arafaat, and above all
the abiding sense of joy and fulfilment that
possesses the soul.
I cannot but imagine Lady Evelyn reliving
the exalted beauty of her Hajj toward the
end of her life. And she carried those
memories with her on the majestic slopes
of Glen Carron, where a humble headstone
is inscribed with the verse from Surah Al
Nur that moved her so much, Allah is the
light of the heavens and the earth.
William Facey(william.facey@arabia.
uk.com) the author of the book Pilgrimage
to Makkah: Lady Evelyn
Cobbold,
has
spent his career
as a museum
consultant, writer
and publisher on the
Arabian Peninsula. He
worked and travelled
widely there during the
1970s and 1980s, and
since then his books
have established him as
a well-known author on
the region. He is currently
director
of
Arabian
Publishing Ltd., London.

MP 52 23

My First Prayers at a Real Mosque:

A Young Woman Recounts why the Faith Fits

By Joan Elizabeth Mulholland

In my recent love affair with Islam, I often feel the weight of how it appears
to an outside observer. But even worse that tiny part of me that wonders
if they are right. I was one of a small number of children in this world who
were fortunate enough to have grown up without a religion. I say fortunate
because that upbringing has blessed me with the chance to choose myself.
When I hit my alcoholic bottom at twenty-two, and was finally able to reach
out to AA, I was told, essentially: find God or die drinking. To die young was
almost as scary as the prospect of going on living in the absolute hell I has
created for myself and so I went with the God thing.
This fall, three women in the prayer group
from our small-town university decided to
make our way to Noor. It would be my first
visit to a real Mosque: usually we worship
in a Multi-Faith-Prayer-Room. My friend
jokingly called it our all white trip to Noor.
I had not noticed any significance that it
was white members of our prayer group
who were free to make the trip. But the
comment had been bugging me. My tinge of
embarrassment is a Western one: in Islam
race is kind of a non-issue. Islam spreads,
mainly, not by birth but by conversion. The

24 MP 52

Muslim Students Associationthe group of

which ours is a splintermight say the three
of us are bad Muslims for many reasons,
but race is just not one of them.
No, this embarrassment come from my
own worry about how this looks to everyone
else; my fascination with Islam, my potential
conversion, my insistence that sharia is
not what people think, at least when you
look broadly enough, all this, I know, looks
childish, utopian and uninformed on my
part; the equivalent of how the young flirt
with communism or vote for Nadar. Thinking

about it, I decide that my olive skin and dark

hair means I could probably pass for Arab though thats a stretch. Certainly, Syrian or
Persian though. On the bus, we talk about
mothers, grad school, our plans for the
prayer group.
Ester returns from the bathroom and
warns us that the window is not frosted
and in fact you could see in through it I
feel the instant need to ask. What would
a hijabi girl do? Hold it. says Ester
definitively. I cannot help asking childishly
curious questions like these about hijabi

girls. Hijabi girls are the Muslim version

of a golden girl - who is above average in
every way.
We tease, but sometimes I envy
them, their sweetness and their simple
preservation of the status quo. They are
who they are, and unfortunately I am who
I am: a bunch of experiences that pull me
in different directions, force me to look for
more complex explanations.
Finally, we arrive at the mosque, a modern
Japanese-influenced building. This is not
how I imagined it. It just didnt scream
Mosque. I was expecting something
much more ornate, which is ridiculous, given
that the whole reason Islam is so compelling
to me is its lack of pomp and ceremony.
What did I expect from a faith that forbids
pictures of the Prophet Muhammad, and
has no religious props of any kind?
Perhaps my favorite things about Islam,
being a person who adores words and
books is that in Islam we worship nothing
but God with no intermediaries not even
Muhammad himself - save the words of
the Quran, which are direct from God.
Muhammad never healed the sick or parted
the sea, no, his words themselves are the
miracle and they, plus God make up Islam
completely. The words of the
Quran are all that belong in a
Mosque, however beautifully
they may be written on its walls,
or recited in a call to prayer, it is
them and only them that should
inspire the awe and make a
Mosque a glorious, God-filled
place.
Inside there is big open foyer
that holds an open guest book
which is not invitation enough for me to
sign. As one friend signs the book, the other
says to me, they are going to think we are
hijabi girls. Suddenly, I remember that I am
wearing a headscarf, as is Louise, making us
look like the kind of Muslims that wear our
Muslim garb full time and dont have friends
who dont. I think we liked the idea of being
hijabi girls, if only for a day, but worried about
perhaps making a wrong first impression at
a Mosque where most of the women who
pray know a great deal more than I do about
Islam and dont choose to wear their hijab all

the time. Later, in the bathroom washing my

hands, I remove my headscarf and begin to
wash for prayers.
Jenny, they have a whole Wudu room for
that, says Louise and Im visibly excited. I
have only ever washed in bathrooms since
our small splinter group is not set up with
all the amenities of the Multi-Faith-PrayerRoom to which the Muslim Students
Association lays claim.
The Wudu room is magnificent. Its like
a beautiful roman bathhouse. The whole
room is covered in white tiles and looks as
if it simply rose up from the floor, just for
you. It reminds me of that live shape-shifting
space ship from Star Trek that could simply
manifest for you all manner of creature
comforts. There is a comfortable stool to sit
on while you wash. In front of me there is
helpful signage: how to wash for prayers.
Ester treats us to each step aloud and we
wash first our hands - to the elbow, then
our face and neck, and because of the sign
says to: we do our ears. We dont usually
but it feels good and I like it. I dont wear
foundation on Fridays anymore but when I
wash my face I cheat a little by avoiding my
mascaraed eyes.
As I flick a few drops of water on my

Prophet, you are left with a core faith that

is more protestant than the Protestants
and was so long before they existed. This
insistence on a personal relationship with
God suits me perfectly.
The greatest sin a Muslim can commit
is shirk - the crime of joining others with
God. To do so is to forsake the personal
relationship with God that Islam supports.
This is why, whenever it mentions Muslims
as a group, the Quran defines them as those
who do the things that built that relationship,
like reading the Quran, doing their fivetimes-daily prayers, fasting during Ramadan
and making the pilgrimage to Makkah.
We all finish the ritual with a proper foot
wash and put our headscarves on again.
Most people have already begun to pray
and we leave our purses on the side and join
them. I lift my arms and say Allahu Akbar
then cross my heart with my hands looking
down. I think about the sameness and the
uniqueness of each persons prayers and
again how Islam is a well-tailored jacket structured, but in a way that supports you
- in my experience.
When I have finished two rounds before
Jumah - I do the physical motions since I
have not yet memorised the prayer and use
the time to silently thank God
for bringing me here - I take my
cue from others to sit. When
the Imam arrives I almost laugh
aloud at my earlier anxieties
about race. His name is Tim
short for Timothy and hes
Italian and a former Catholic
who, unlike me, wouldnt stand
a chance of passing for anything
but white. But he is a Muslim, like
I may be one day.
Islam helps thaw out my heart when it gets
frozen and keeps me on track in a way that
does not feel disciplinary; Im taking better
care of my home and putting money away
for the future and it feels easy and natural.
Islam supports me in becoming my most
beautiful self, helps me become a more
contented, humble, responsible person.

I imagine how today, I will bow

down, for the first time with many
other Muslims in a proper Mosque
with a proper Imam
hairline and I watch Ester douse hers
generously, I again think What am doing
here? and why Islam of all faiths? I
imagine how today, I will bow down, for
the first time with many other Muslims in a
proper Mosque with a proper Imam: will it be
everything I had been hoping for? Until now,
Islam has been anything but the straight
jacket I thought it was and much more like a
well tailored one that was made just for me,
or for someone very close to my size.
When you chip away everything that has
been added to Islam since the death of the

Joan Elizabeth Mulholland has an MA in

Philosophy and is pursuing her Ph.D. in
political science.

MP 52 25

Announcements
New to the readership
of Meeting Point
We welcome our new readers and hope
that in the contents of Meeting Point
all our readers will find something of
educational benefit and enjoyment. Please
do not hesitate to be in touch should you
require any assistance.
Aled Jamieson, Ceridigion
Michelle Louise, Huddersfield
Niomi Aretha, Halifax
Tracy Shoman, Camden
Rose Robinson, Wigan
Josie Luscombe, Stanwell
Robin Westwood, Cheltenham
Alistar Calendar, London
Monojit Choudhury, Slough
Sajida Aaron, Ontario, Canada
Alicia Blatiak, Bristol
Moneeb Hidrey, Stafford
Simon Davies, Birmingham

Births
To Soraya Hemmings and her husband
Ibrahim a baby girl Aishah and to Mustafa
Davies and family, a little girl Hafsa in
November last year we pray that little
Aisha and Hafsa will bring comfort to the
hearts and joy to the households and
that they both will enjoy good health and
strength of Iman throughout her long lives
God Willing

Deaths
Birmingham sadly witnessed the loss of
some of the great converts to Islam who
dedicated themselves and contributed so
much to the community there. Our regular
reader Yaqoob Johnson from London
wrote of the passing of his dear brother
and friend Ayman Abdalqadir Ahwal who
passed away in Birmingham after a long
illness. Yaqoob described Ayman as a
tower of strength to the Birmingham
Muslim community, alhamdulillah, and
to many people across the world. At his
funeral tributes were paid in Urdu and in
English by Shaykh Abd alHakim Murad.
(See page 3).
Dawood Burbank from Birmingham and his
wife were tragically killed in an accident

26 MP 52

which took place while both were travelling

from Jeddah to Makkah on Hajj 2011.
Dawoods friends said of him that the
sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh) was beloved
to him and was something he instilled into
his children. He was a softly spoken and
very polite brother.. Both were in Ihran at
the time of the accident and were chanting
the Talbiyyah which will, according to the
sources, be the way they will be raised
to meet their Lord on the Day of all days
when, God Willing, all of our departed will
be re-joined with their beloved families and
be granted the fruits of Jannat Al-Firdous.
From Allah we come and to Him is our
return.

Marriages
Warmest congratulations go to Sophia,
daughter of Yasmin Murphy from Leicester,
and her new husband Ilyas who were
joined together as husband and wife in
December. We wish them a very long and
happy union together.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Ramadan Retreat 2012 & EOD
This years Ramadan Retreat will
take place on the weekend of
August 10th 12th
Eid Open Day
Sunday, August 26th
Knowledge Seekers & NMP
August 24th Sept 2nd
Collaborative 10 day intensive
Arabic and Islamic Studies course
www.ks-courses.com
Look out for details for all of the
above in next issue of Meeting Point.
Islam Awareness week
12-18 March 2012
Join in the activities.
Details at: www.iaw.org.uk

NEW MUSLIM SURVEY

Despite increasing numbers of Muslim reverts, we are still viewed as
brainwashed or troubled people and this only complicates our lives
and dawah. With this in mind, a group of international sisters based in
London is writing a book about new Muslims around the world. However,
this is not a collection of stories but a social research where reverts
share their views and needs through an online survey (anonymously if
they wish).
This is a truly ground-breaking and unique study since nothing of this
large-scale has ever been done before. The focus of this thoughtprovoking book will be the intellectual dimension of conversion to
show non-Muslims that ours is a conscious choice based purely on the
teachings of Islam. You can give dawah through this project by taking the
survey, helping out with translations, research or writing inshaAllah.
Visit our website www.thenewmuslimsurvey.blogspot.com or contact
Safia on thenewmuslimsurvey@gmail.com or by telephone on
07817205400.

Forgivenes and Justice:

Meditation on Hadith
LETTERS

by Abdal Hakim Murad

Salaam Alaikum,
Thank you for putting me in touch with
Edward Seddon inCardif He contacted
me last week and offered me a lot of
support and advice. Last night I made my
Shahada and received my certificate at
DarulIsra Mosque/Islamic centre. It was
a very beautiful experience for me that
will stay in my heart for the rest of my life
Alhamdulilah. It was also an opportunity to
meeta small groupof very sincere and big
hearted muslims.
Thank you for making my transition to
Islam possible.
Lisa

Thank you again for yet another

wonderful Ramadan retreat.
We drove home reflecting on the weekend,
what we had learnt, new friendships
made and old ones renewed, and then
enjoyed the blackberries that the children
had picked in the grounds for iftar,
Alhamdulillah.
Although we are used to the retreat usually
taking place in the last 10 days, I think that
having it slightly earlier does afford us the
opportunity to put into practice what we
have learnt, generosity of spirit in Ramadan,
and with Sr Kathleens model we have
the skills to fulfil our goals inshaAllah!I
am also looking forward to rereading
Companions of the prophet, starting with
Musab ibn Umayr, May Allah be pleased
with him, with a renewed motivation
following the wonderful talk by Br Ismail
Sezgin.
Lastly I am forwarding the confirmation of
the donation made to Islamic reliefs East
Africa appeal for 90.00 raised entirely
by the children attending the retreat
for their lively and creative talent show,
MashaAllah.
Lena& family

The Prophet (pbuh) prayed for pardon for

his people, and received the reply: I have
forgiven them all but acts of oppression, for
I shall exact recompense for the one who is
wronged, from his oppressor. 1
In the Quran, God is just, and requires
justice; but he is also forgiving, and
requires forgiveness; in fact, its references
to the latter property outnumber those
on justice by a ratio of approximately ten
to one.2 Islamic theology has not always
been clear how the ensuing tension is
to be resolved. My Mercy outstrips My
wrath is a well-known divine saying,3
but one which nonetheless is far from
abolishing Gods wrath. Indeed, a
righteous indignation about injustice is
integral to the prophetic representation
of Gods qualities, and from the earliest
moments of its revelation the Quran
links Gods expectations of His creatures
to justice towards the weak. Often the
same texts are explicitly eschatological,
affirming that those who do not uphold
Gods justice in this world will be at its
receiving end in the next. Indigenous
Arab religion can expect a stern
retribution, given that its demands are
for tribal solidarity, not for the upholding
of universal canons of justice.4 The idol
cannot demand justice, only retribution
(thar); and the prophetic vocation
must therefore link the destruction of
paganism with the establishment of a
code of justice which overturns Arab
norms by refusing to discriminate
between the tribes. This hadith is to
be read against the background of clan
vendettas: instead of seeking collective
retaliation against a miscreants tribe,
the victim of injustice is to appeal to the
new law, and to recall that all apparent
imbalances will have a just settlement at
the judgement seat.

1. Tirmidhi, Imaam, 59.

2. Muhammad Fuad Abd al-Baqi
al-Mujam al-Mufahras li-alfaz al-Quran
al-Karim (Cairo: Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya,
1939): 234 occurrences of the root
gh-f-r, contrasted with 28 for -d-l.
The hadith literature also suggests a
major disparity: A.J. Wensinck, et al.,
Concordance et indices de la tradition
musulmane (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1936-88),
IV. 528-40 (gh-f-r); IV. 151-5 (-d-l).
Despite the crudity of this statistical
exercise the discrepancy is suggestive.
3. Bukhar, Taw^d, 13; Muslim,
Tawba, 14,
4. Cf. the pagan tribesmans cry: I am
of Ghaziyya; if she be in error, then
I will err; And if Ghaziyya is guided
aright, I go right with her! Toshihiko
Izutsu, Ethico-Religious Concepts in
the Quran (Montreal: McGill-Queens
University Press, 1966), 55. This is
precisely the my country right or wrong
of 20th century jahiliyya. For Arabian
tribalism see further ibid., 55-72; M.M.
Bravmann, The Spiritual Background
of Early Islam: Studies in Ancient Arab
Concepts (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1972), 67.

MP 52

27

Brilliant
The Guardian

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Hajj
journey
to the heart
of Islam

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Left: The Kaba. AP/PA. Right: Hajj certificate

(detail). 17th18th century AD. Nasser D. Khalili
Collection of Islamic Art (Khalili Family Trust).

Transcending Jerusalem
by Peter Stockton
Transcending Jerusalem considers the major
figures in the Jewish, Christian and Muslim
faiths, from Adam through Abraham and Moses
to Jesus and Muhammad, trying to find a way
of understanding their many paradoxes. These
include the three faiths/one God dilemma;
Jews as Chosen People; Christian Jesus as
Messiah; and Islams Perfected religion.
By understanding the way each faith tells us
something about who and where we are, where
weve come from and where were headed, we
can come to see religion not as the biggest part
of the problem but as the biggest part of the
solution. It is written from a Muslim point
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