Islam is submitting and surrendering to one God (Allah). He is the Creator and the Owner of all that exits.“Say: He is Allah, the One and Only! Allah, the Eternal, Absolute; He begetteth not nor is He begotten. And there is none like unto Him”. Quran 112: 1-4. This is what Muslims believe in. And believing and understanding the oneness of Allah leads to believing in and understanding the oneness of man that is we are all equal before Allah regardless of our differences in color, race, or nationality. “O Mankind, We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know each other. Verily the most honored of you in the sight of God is he who is the most righteous of you” (Quran 49:13).
In His wisdom, Allah has made mankind into different peoples and tribes so that they may know one another, not so that they may despise one another. He tells us that our differences in color, language , and race are a sign of His greatness and power in creation. And to Him, all submit and surrender.This can be seen clearly in many aspects of Muslim societies. For example, in prayer, Muslims stand together before Allah without allocating any special place for a king, great man ,or scholar.In fasting, all people feel the same hunger with no favors shown to a ruler or rich man or noble.Also, in Hajj, Muslims of different colors, nationalities, and races wear the same clothes, stand in one place and do the same rituals. They are all one and worshipping one God.
Even when it comes to criminal laws, punishment is the same no matter who has committed the crime. It does not matter if it’s a king or even a weaver of clothes. They are all equal before the law.
A woman from the tribe makhzum committed theft at the time of the prophet peace be upon him and she was brought to him to be punished. This upset Quraish and they said ” who will intercede with us with the messenger of Allah so that she is spared the punishment?” Then they remembered that Usamah Bin zaid was dearly beloved by the messenger of Allah.. They spoke to him and asked that he intercede for that woman. So he spoke with the prophet but the prophet peace be upon him became very angry and said to him:Are you interceding concerning one of the haad punishments decreed by Allah?” Then he stood up and addressed the people , saying “Those who came before you were only destroyed because if a nobleman among them stole they would let him off but if one of the weak stole, they would carry out the punishment on him. By Allah, if Fatimah the daughter of Muhammad were to steal, I would cut off her hand.”
Some disagreement occurred between two companions of the prophet peace be upon him, Abu Dharr and Bilal. Abu Dharr said to Bilal, “You son of a black woman.” The Messenger of Allah peace be upon him was extremely upset by Abu Dharr’s comment, so he peace be upon him rebuked him by saying, “That is too much, Abu Dharr. He who has a white mother has no advantage which makes him better than the son of a black mother.” This rebuke had a profound effect on Abu Dharr, who then put his head on the ground swearing that he would not raise it until Bilal had put his foot over it.
Indeed, Islam is a religion of justice. It calls to worshipping one God without invoking anyone or anything besides Him.
“Allah is He, than Whom there is no other god;- the Sovereign, the Holy One, the Source of Peace (and Perfection), the Guardian of Faith, the Preserver of Safety, the Exalted in Might, the Irresistible, the Supreme: Glory to Allah! (High is He) above the partners they attribute to Him.He is Allâh, the Creator, the Inventor of all things, the Bestower of forms. To Him belong the Best Names . All that is in the heavens and the earth glorify Him. And He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise. Quran 59: 23-24
.It’s understanding the oneness of God that leads to understanding the oneness of man.
I wrote the article based on the chapter 'Human Tendency" from the book Civilization of Faith by Dr. As-sibaii
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Friday, December 25, 2009
Farman Ali Khan
Jeddah was afflicted last month by heavy rains that caused deaths of hundreds of people. What happened is Allah's will but what's shocking is a city like Jeddah in the rich country Saudi Arabia still has no sewage system and it has neighborhoods built arbitrarily.So when the rainstorm hit , the city became flooded.
It's the corruption we have in Arabia that caused this catastrophe. But this post is not for expressing my anger or talking about the corruption we have in Arabia. It's for sharing an article I've translated from Arabic into English.
Farman Ali Khan saved 14 people during Jeddah flood, and on his way to save the 15th person, he drowned.
Of all articles I've read about him in our newspapers, I only loved Maram Makkawy's "Let 'Farman' be against discrimination".
This is the translation of Maram Makkawy's article
Even though we know in our hearts that our country and the Arabian gulf have been built and still are by the hands of Asian workers who work under scorching sun , live in overcrowded and poorly ventilated places , and wait months before they are paid, some say they have come to our country out of greed and they don't do anything for free. And that they are the source of all evils in our angelic societies!. Some even shamelessly demanded their deportation of the two holy cities as if they are terrorists or invaders..
I can say the media has contributed a lot to the spread of this negative image. It focuses on their crimes and mistakes extensively but when it comes to their positives and the great services they provide for our country, it's almost nonexistent. Even when one of those ordinary workers is a victim of greed ,extortion ,or mistreatment by a Saudi citizen or an institute, it is not difficult for our conscience to justify their crimes and present them as exceptions and not worthy of attention.
Then Wednesday flood came and people showed their true colors. Some recorded their heroic actions in gold, others marked them with shame and disgrace.
Today I will talk about the first kind, about the hero of Jeddah.
I will talk about a man whose face exudes light as his picture shows.
He was 32 years old. He saved 14 people before the flood swept him away on his way to rescue the 15th person .Our hero's name is Farman Ali Khan, a hero from Pakistan. His mind was occupied with one thought when he saw people crying for help…what could he do to help them? He did not say I'm a foreigner and I don't care. He did not stand by as some of our men did only taking pictures by their expensive cell phones of people fighting when they could help. He did not even justify himself as many did by saying he had a house full of women and that he was their only breadwinner.
The need made Farman, the university graduate, travel and work in a grocery store to support his family financially. He has a wife, and three daughters Zubaidah (3 years ), Madihah ( 6 years), and Jarirah ( 4 years). He hadn't seen them for years to the extent that his youngest daughter does not remember him. And for this reason, his brothers insisted on having his body airlifted to his home so his family could take a good bye look at him after he died a martyr in a country far away from home saving his brothers in religion and humanity.
On the other hand, a few days after the disaster, a video showed us something that makes any Saudi ashamed .A clip of a Saudi man shouting at Saudi volunteers in Jeddah distributing humanitarian aid to people in affected areas and saying " Give to Saudis but not to foreigners".
Back to our hero, Farman. People in Jeddah agree that this man's memory must live on in the city. And here they are demanding a street or a square be named after him. They are also demanding that his family be taken care of financially for life. Others requested that his family be given the Saudi nationality in gratitude for his sacrifice. Is there anything more nationalistic than giving your life for your country and for your people?
Let our men be like a man with a lion's heart as Farman Ali Khan.
Let this sad occasion be an opportunity for us to rethink our treatment of expats both at the individual level in our daily interaction with them and at the state level with regard to their rights and sponsorship laws, etc.,
Let our appreciation of Farman's sacrifice be " Let 'Farman' be against discrimination".
Allah grant you paradise , Farman
It's the corruption we have in Arabia that caused this catastrophe. But this post is not for expressing my anger or talking about the corruption we have in Arabia. It's for sharing an article I've translated from Arabic into English.
Farman Ali Khan saved 14 people during Jeddah flood, and on his way to save the 15th person, he drowned.
Of all articles I've read about him in our newspapers, I only loved Maram Makkawy's "Let 'Farman' be against discrimination".
This is the translation of Maram Makkawy's article
Even though we know in our hearts that our country and the Arabian gulf have been built and still are by the hands of Asian workers who work under scorching sun , live in overcrowded and poorly ventilated places , and wait months before they are paid, some say they have come to our country out of greed and they don't do anything for free. And that they are the source of all evils in our angelic societies!. Some even shamelessly demanded their deportation of the two holy cities as if they are terrorists or invaders..
I can say the media has contributed a lot to the spread of this negative image. It focuses on their crimes and mistakes extensively but when it comes to their positives and the great services they provide for our country, it's almost nonexistent. Even when one of those ordinary workers is a victim of greed ,extortion ,or mistreatment by a Saudi citizen or an institute, it is not difficult for our conscience to justify their crimes and present them as exceptions and not worthy of attention.
Then Wednesday flood came and people showed their true colors. Some recorded their heroic actions in gold, others marked them with shame and disgrace.
Today I will talk about the first kind, about the hero of Jeddah.
I will talk about a man whose face exudes light as his picture shows.
He was 32 years old. He saved 14 people before the flood swept him away on his way to rescue the 15th person .Our hero's name is Farman Ali Khan, a hero from Pakistan. His mind was occupied with one thought when he saw people crying for help…what could he do to help them? He did not say I'm a foreigner and I don't care. He did not stand by as some of our men did only taking pictures by their expensive cell phones of people fighting when they could help. He did not even justify himself as many did by saying he had a house full of women and that he was their only breadwinner.The need made Farman, the university graduate, travel and work in a grocery store to support his family financially. He has a wife, and three daughters Zubaidah (3 years ), Madihah ( 6 years), and Jarirah ( 4 years). He hadn't seen them for years to the extent that his youngest daughter does not remember him. And for this reason, his brothers insisted on having his body airlifted to his home so his family could take a good bye look at him after he died a martyr in a country far away from home saving his brothers in religion and humanity.
On the other hand, a few days after the disaster, a video showed us something that makes any Saudi ashamed .A clip of a Saudi man shouting at Saudi volunteers in Jeddah distributing humanitarian aid to people in affected areas and saying " Give to Saudis but not to foreigners".
Back to our hero, Farman. People in Jeddah agree that this man's memory must live on in the city. And here they are demanding a street or a square be named after him. They are also demanding that his family be taken care of financially for life. Others requested that his family be given the Saudi nationality in gratitude for his sacrifice. Is there anything more nationalistic than giving your life for your country and for your people?
Let our men be like a man with a lion's heart as Farman Ali Khan.
Let this sad occasion be an opportunity for us to rethink our treatment of expats both at the individual level in our daily interaction with them and at the state level with regard to their rights and sponsorship laws, etc.,
Let our appreciation of Farman's sacrifice be " Let 'Farman' be against discrimination".
Allah grant you paradise , Farman
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
The Injustice Has Become Justice
It seems we have forgotten we are human beings. Our world has become value-free. The injustice has become justice, and only the fittest survive to us.
The world watches Palestinians being massacred in Gaza but they justify all these acts of terrorism ,violence ,brutality, and inhumanity the Israelis are committing in the name of self-defense. How could those Jews defend themselves on a land they occupied? Because the American government says so? Yes .The world belongs to the American government and Muslims and Arabs are not part of this world.
Muslims and Arabs are suffering and dying and if they try to fight against the oppression and injustice they are called terrorists. How just is that? So either they are slaves of the ones oppressing them or they are killed and called terrorists?
And what is worse is Muslims today see their own leaders betraying them to the ones killing them. Is there anything worse than that?
I do not know how cruel and brutal those people could be. I feel nothing but pain and betrayal like all Muslims and Arabs, but I do believe injustice does not last. What lasts is justice and freedom..
The world watches Palestinians being massacred in Gaza but they justify all these acts of terrorism ,violence ,brutality, and inhumanity the Israelis are committing in the name of self-defense. How could those Jews defend themselves on a land they occupied? Because the American government says so? Yes .The world belongs to the American government and Muslims and Arabs are not part of this world.
Muslims and Arabs are suffering and dying and if they try to fight against the oppression and injustice they are called terrorists. How just is that? So either they are slaves of the ones oppressing them or they are killed and called terrorists?
And what is worse is Muslims today see their own leaders betraying them to the ones killing them. Is there anything worse than that?
I do not know how cruel and brutal those people could be. I feel nothing but pain and betrayal like all Muslims and Arabs, but I do believe injustice does not last. What lasts is justice and freedom..
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