'Sirat Allah' and Women

Two distinct strands are visible in male attitudes towards women in different cultures before Islam. At one end of this spectrum, in idolatrous nations, in the rituals of religion, we see the celebration of women as daughters of God, making them deities and goddesses on a lofty pedestal. On the other end, in real life, women face discrimination and injustice and ‘glass ceilings’ everywhere. This glaring contradiction in religious outlook and social practice abounds, on a much larger scale, in the traditional patriarchal frameworks of our societies: the male elites claim to respect and 'worship' women deities, yet they relegate their women to an inferior position- ignoring their dignity and identity, and denying them their interests and rights on an equal footing. 

Islam emerged in an Arabian social order that was already grappling with these broad trends on the status of women. In the pre-Islamic Arabia, many people worshipped female deities and goddesses as well as angels with female names such as al-Lat, al-Uzza and Manat, etc. In spite of such religious practices, like many other patriarchal societies around the world at that time and later, in pre-Islamic Arabia, the dominant male gaze betrayed a contempt for women- reflective in their preference for male progeny and regarding daughters as no more than a necessary evil. While the gender of the child should make no difference in the flow of parental love, it is the decadent social order that hinders the true appreciation of, and gratitude towards God, for the miracle of life in their midst. Indeed, to expound on its progressive outlook on women’s role and function in the social order of the believers, the Qur’an condemns the manifest contradictions in the pre-Islamic Arab attitudes on the question of women: 

‘They ascribe daughters unto God, who is limitless in His glory- whereas for themselves (they would choose, if they could , only) what they desire (male issue): for, whenever any of them is given the glad tiding of (the birth of) a girl, his face darkens, and he is filled with suppressed anger, avoiding all people because of the (alleged) evil of the glad tiding which he has received (and debating within himself:) Shall he keep this (child) despite the contempt (which he feels for it)- or shall he bury it in the dust? Oh, evil indeed is whatever they decide!’ (16: 58-60). 

‘Why for yourselves (you would choose only) male offspring, whereas to Him (you assign) female: that, lo and behold, is an unfair division!’ (53: 22-23). 

Hence, the Qur’an utterly condemns the pre-Islamic male attitudes towards the suppression of women. Female infanticide and foeticide are among the evil practices that continue to exist even in our times. The pre-Islamic practice of burying girls alive may or may not be happening on a larger scale now. However, its modern equivalents such as denying girls’ access to opportunities for developing their qualities and potentials continue to be a bane of several societies. For instance, it was only recently that the Taliban regime wanted to close down women’s education in Afghanistan. It is ironic that Muslim communities privilege pre-Islamic practices that ignore or evade or seek to bend Islamic teachings to suit their social conservatism. In the name of religion and customary practices, women are being denied ‘an equal sky’. 

'Duah': Invocations to Allah- XIII

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah, Allah by His grace, mercy and kindness has once again given me the opportunity to continue on the subject of my sermon on the duahs, more specifically the duahs which are found in the Holy Quran.

By the grace of Allah - I do not know how to thank Him for the blessed opportunities He has granted me to speak on this important subject and at the same time to take the opportunity to recite these duahs to you, and for your good and mine also. 

Certainly, all of this is the result of the Spirit [i.e. the Holy Spirit], which has been caused to descend like a flame upon me and which will intoxicate you with the love of God which flows through my heart. Caught in this state, I spend my time remembering God, not to complete some formalities or to appear so, but because God is going to make my spiritual life, which I love, dependent on this food which is the remembrance of God, just as he made the bodily life of man dependent on physical food. Just as he would swallow an unpleasant-tasting medicine to cure himself, in the same way, it is important that man persevere in his practice of Salat (prayers), and continue to beg God even if he does not derive any pleasure from it.

Faced with such a situation, we, the human race, believers in the Unique God, will have to, through the following supplication, seek pleasure and joy in our Salat, in our supplications to God. This pleasure will come little by little and that too in an illuminating way. We must pray for the mercy of Allah [Bismillah-ir-Rahman-ir-Rahim]:

Rabbana zalamna anfusana wa il-lam taghfir lana wa tarhamna la-na-kunanna minal-khaasirin.

Our Lord, we have acted unjustly towards ourselves! If You don’t forgive us and if You don’t have mercy on us, we will certainly be among the losers!

When you desire victory, success, and divine judgment in difficult situations, call upon God as follows:

Rabbanaftah baynana wa bayna qawmina bil-haqqi wa anta khayrul-faatihin.

Our Lord, make a decision between us and our people. You are the best of judges/ arbitrators!

Rabbana afrigh ‘alayna sabran wa tawaffana muslimin.

Our Lord, pour endurance on us and grant us death in complete submission to You!

Rumi's Poem: 'When I Die'

'I know that the day will come 

when my sight of this earth shall be lost, 

and life will take its leave in silence, 

drawing the last curtain over my eyes.

Yet stars will watch at night,

and morning rise as before,

and hours heave like sea waves 

casting up pleasures and pains.' 

                                          -------Tagore, 'Last Curtain'.

“We have indeed decreed that death shall be ever-present among you: but there is nothing to prevent Us from changing the nature of your existence and bringing you into being anew in a manner as yet unknown to you.”--- (HQ, 56: 61)

Born on 30 September 1207 and died on 17 December 1273, Hazrat Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi (ra) is among the greatest saints of medieval Islam. One of the finest minds of the last millennium, Rumi’s works have truly travelled far: from the Persian-Islamic world, finding its admirers among human communes around the world,the writings are widely-read  today. Rumi means many things to many different people, and attempts are also being made to ‘secularize’ Rumi by declaring him a ‘new age poet’ in the West today; yet the fact remains that Rumi famously counselled everyone to ‘sacrifice your intellect at the feet of the Prophet.’  

His greatest work, the ‘Masnavi’ is, in many ways, a commentary to the Qur’an in the Persian language; explicitly  acknowledging at the very beginning that the Book is an exploration into the heart of Faith- in terms of unveiling the mysteries of attainment to the Truth and of certainty. Almost eight centuries after his lifetime, Rumi continues to speak to every generation through his spiritually-infused writings and poems, reminding us about the human condition through the parables and images of everyday life. Indeed Rumi’s words are quintessentially rooted in Zikrullah, in order for us to remember God and to reform our individual and social morals, and to benefit from the Divine promises for the truly devout in the life to come.

Reproduced Below is a poem from The Dîwân-é Kabîr (also known as "Kulliyat-é Shams" and "Dîwân-é Shams-é Tabrîz"; Ghazal 911):

When I Die

when my coffin

is being taken out

you must never think

I am missing this world

don't shed any tears

don't lament or feel sorry

I'm not falling

into a monster's abyss

when you see

my corpse is being carried

don't cry for my leaving

I'm not leaving

I'm arriving at eternal love

'Duah': Invocations to Allah- XII

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah - By the Grace of Allah, it is the twelfth week today since I have been speaking to you about “duahs” (invocations or supplications to Allah, The Unique God) in my Friday sermons. Today I present to you some “duahs” that are found in the Holy Quran. All the movements in prayers [be it in Salat & duahs] express the deepest humility before God. The tongue and heart, body and soul come together to sing the praises of God and to praise His Glory and Greatness, and to express verbally and concretely the most complete state of weakness and humility of man. In the Holy Quran Allah (swt) has shown us many duahs through His Messengers. Now I present to you these few Quranic duahs. 

To seek the good of this world and the hereafter:

Rabbana aatina fid-dunya hasanataww wa fil ‘akhirati hasanataww waqina ‘azaaban-naar. Our Lord, grant us good in this world and good in the hereafter, and save us from the chastisement of the fire!  

Rabbana hablana min azwaajina wa zurriy-yatina, qurrata ayuniww-wa-jalna lil-muttaqeena Imaama. Our Lord! Grant unto us wives and offspring who will be the comfort of our eyes, and give us (the grace) to lead the righteous. 

Rabbi innii limaa anzalta ilayya min khayrin faqiir. My Lord, I am in great need of whatever good You bestow on me.  

'Duah': Invocations to Allah- XI

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah I continue on the series of sermons on “duahs” (invocations). Today, we shall hear the invocations which the Promised Messiah Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) used to pray. He gave importance to Salat (prayer) and how to beautify our Salat with duahs (invocations) and praises of Allah and His Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh).

The Promised Messiah (as) says: Salat is very important and it is the apex of the spiritual exaltation of the true believer. Salat is the best medium of interacting with God in prayer.  

Salat is nothing but presenting oneself before God Almighty, and it is a combination of praising God and an attempt at the expiration of one’s sins. One who does not keep these purposes in view, derives no benefit from Salat. Therefore, you must perform Salat in the best possible manner. When you are in the standing posture, your whole appearance must reflect the fact that you are standing before God in all humility. When you bow before Him in Salat, it must be a reflection of the bowing of your heart. When you fall prostrate, your manner must be that of a man who is inspired by fear of God. And pray a lot for your spiritual as well as material uplift. (Al-Hakam, 31 May 1903).

‘Darsul Qur’an’ in Malayalam

Qur’an for Soul Illumination

As the religion established by the Creator Himself, Islam’s teachings display an inherent awareness about human nature. It shows an intuitive understanding about the sublime heights to which a humble soul can soar high- or rather, be lifted up by the Heavenly Grace. It also indicates the darker depths to which the arrogant self would be brought down by the raging fires of Hell within when it moves away from its truer moorings. 'Did We not give him two eyes, a tongue, two lips, and point out to him the two clear ways (of good and evil)?' (HQ, 90: 9-11). 'Truly We guided him upon the way, be he grateful or ungrateful' (76: 4).   

According to the Book of God, what lays ahead for the human soul as well as for the wider fortunes of a nation is entirely based on the choices they prefer; the informed decisions they make concerning their own material and spiritual futures. Indeed, the God-gifted free will allows the humans to choose their life journeys: both the highways of righteousness and moderation, and of evil and injustice are open for selection by individuals and their communities and nations. The Holy Prophet (sa) clearly advised, 'O people! There are only two highways: the highway of good and the highway of evil. Make not the highway of evil more beloved to you than the highway of good'. Whether to become a people of moral responsibility and ethical restraint, who prefer racial and religious amity, tolerance of other ways of life, compassion for the less privileged, and show residual goodwill for all fellow beings- including animals and nature; or to become a society of maniacs who thrive on conquest, disorder and triumphalism- each could pursue what one prefers in this world for as long as Allah (swt) wills it so. After all, the final outcome or the eventual judgement of all matters are in the Hands of Allah (swt).   

In the perplexing surroundings of life on earth, the human soul craves for pure guidance: it is to aid and help in this latent human quest for illumination that Allah (swt) sends His messages through His chosen representatives in every era- a sublime act of mercy for His earthly creatures. Indeed, the advent of the Holy Prophet (sa) and the exemplary model of patience and steadfastness and Divine consciousness he left behind as his life in this world is a perennial source of inspiration for all those who are at crossroads of life, but remain in awe of God at all times: 'The Messenger of God is an excellent model for those of you who put your hope in God and the Last Day and remember Him often' (HQ, 33:22). 

Indeed, the Book of God left behind by the Prophet (sa) provides all encompassing guidance to the human soul, illuminating the correct and straight path to tread in the contingent circumstances of our earthly life. According to the Promised Messiah Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as), there are over 700 verses of clear rulings in the Holy Qur’an and it is only by being aware of, and following them in full measure, that we become believers. Hazrat Mirza (as) wrote:

 ‘...beware and do not take a single step contrary to the teaching of God and the guidance of the Quran. I tell you truly that anyone who disregards even a small injunction of the seven hundred commandments of the Quran, shuts upon himself the door of salvation’.(Noah’s Ark, p. 42, UK edition, 2018). 

Faith and Life in the Covid-Times

Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam-Tamil Nadu, India has just published a new edition of their spiritual journal, the 'Voice of Imam', first issue of the new Hijri era 1442 AH, Alhamdulillah. 

The journal is a veritable treasure trove of distilled spiritual wisdom, providing in a succinct way the enduring teachings of Islam as reflected in the writings and sermons of our spiritual masters, the Promised Messiah Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as) of Qadian; the Musleh Maoud Hazrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad (ra); and the Imam of the present era, Hazrat Khalifatullah Munir A. Azim (aba) of Mauritius. Likewise, members of the Jamaat in Tamil Nadu, including Naib Amir KM Saleem Saheb, contributed their spiritual writings through its pages. The present issue of the Journal can be accessed here. 

Reproduced below for the benefit of all our readers is the Editorial to the present issue of the Journal from the blessed pen of Hazrat Khalifatullah (aba):

'Dear Readers, 
May the peace, grace and blessings of God Almighty be upon you. 

The times that we are presently living are really difficult times, but it is also a time to reflect on one’s deeds and to reform oneself in the best way. The world is heading towards destruction and unfortunately, this destruction has been brought by the hands of man himself. Humanity is in danger, and it is humans who are bringing about this destruction upon themselves.

Human life is very sacred, and all people, especially the true believers of God Almighty should strive to preserve humankind and the essence of humanity in themselves. That humanity should not be marred by evil whisperings, thoughts and deeds. 

We are in such an era, a blessed era wherein Allah has sent His Messenger as a guide and leader for you all, yet it is also a critical time whereby if mankind does not heed the divine message and call, this can bring about destruction after destruction for the human race.

My humble advice as a Messenger of God Almighty, the Sole God, our Benefactor to Whom belong all dominion of the heavens and earth is that you should turn to Him alone in worship and abandon all evils, in deeds and thoughts.