Civility in Religious Debates

Be it writing on social media, or appearing on television channels on public debates; the persons exercising their free speech rights have a duty to observe civility and courtesy, and not to fan hatred between different classes of people, nor spread bigotry among religious communities, especially so when they are leading politicians and spokespersons of a party ruling a country. When political elites fail to observe restraint and cross the red-lines in public discourse on people’s beliefs, or faith-related controversies; it invariably generates public resistance and political backlash, muddying the social relations- nationally and internationally.

Recently, two leaders of the ruling BJP in India, Nupur Sharma and Naveen Jindal, indulged in wanton anti-Muslim tirade, in public television and on social media. In their visceral hatred of the Muslim community in the country, these ruling politicians went to the extreme extend of attacking and vilifying the religion of Islam, and insulting the sacred memory of the Holy Prophet (sa) and his family. Making hurtful comments about the Holy Prophet’s life with his young wife Hazrat Ayesha (ra), these thugs from the majority community in the land sought to humiliate the minority community by insulting their religious beliefs. With the Muslims in India holding angry public demonstrations against the culprits, and many Muslim majority-nations in unison calling out the Islamophobia on full display in India, the episode involving the gross misconduct of its spokespersons embarrassed not only the governing party but also caused deep humiliation for the country’s image and standing internationally. [Inset: People hold posters during a protest demanding the arrest of suspended Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokeswoman Nupur Sharma and expelled BJP leader Naveen Jindal. Credit: Reuters photo/ Deccan Herald/ PTI, June 10, 2022]. 

Poem: 'Bon Voyage, O Hajjis'

 

The Beautiful Days are approaching,

When you will be in the Holy Land, O Muslims,

In the garb of pilgrims,

You will get to taste the elixir of life,

Which purifies one from all sins

And brings one to the pinnacle of submission,

To the Lord’s Will;

This fortune has been opened for you,

O you travellers to Arabia,

Let the sight of the Holy Ka’aba bedazzle you

Into submission to the Almighty;

Khalifatullah's Dream

 

Reproduced below is a very important dream made by Hazrat Muhyiuddin Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim (aba) of Mauritius on 16 June 2022 ~15 Dhul Qaddah 1443 AH, before the Tahajjud prayers. The pious dream has several layers of information contained within it. The Khalifatullah's dream, in its own way, to begin with, calls attention to a world gone upside down: where escalating prices of essential fuels is forcing people to value the traditional modes of transportation and living. Likewise, the spiritually-infused dream throws profound light on several other matters of special importance in this era, especially the decline of spiritual values in society and the revival of Faith and its rulings through a grand Divine Manifestation which is linked to the pure ancestry of ancient prophets and their holy teachings. Two points are especially noteworthy in this context:

Hindustan, the ancient land of India, was the historical abode of many prophets and saints and other Avtaars from time immemorial. Despite the tumultuous torrents of time and the inevitable corruption of the original mores of religion as taught by the pious ancestors, the core of Divine teachings left behind by those holy men and women remain in the sacred memory of the people. Thoughtful Indians, however, now acknowledge that the value systems are all in disarray in the country. Indeed, the tentacles of power and pelf, or the prevalence of injustice and unfair takings, viciously threaten the very moral fabric of the social order. Moreover, India's ancient scriptures testify that when Dharma ( righteousness) disappears from society in the Last Days, a Divine Elect or an Avtaar will appear among the people to remind and restore the higher and truer values of life.    

Secondly, despite belonging to different races and tribes, all humans are from one another, the children of Adam;  like one family, as it were.  Indeed,  prophets and messengers of God are linked to one another, across generations, through their absolute faith in, and preaching about, the Uniqueness and Lordship of Allah (swt). To guide human communities around the world, Allah (swt) raised many prophets in the line of Hazrat Nuh (as) and Hazrat Ibrahim (as), including our beloved Holy Prophet Muhammad (sa). Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah, the present dream contains glad tidings relating to the holy ancestry of the Elect of God in our times, the Muhyiuddin Al Khalifatullah of this era Hazrat Munir Ahmad Azim (aba) of Mauritius, and the dream as well foretells the brilliant future that awaits the Divine Manifestation in the days to come, Insha Allah, Aameen.  

Illnesses of the 'Ummah'- 2

 

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah, Allah has given me the Tawfeeq to continue my Friday Sermon on the illnesses which are affecting Islam nowadays, on their causes and the solutions which can be brought forward to trigger a change in the present situation. Insha-Allah, I will come on this subject, step by step.

 

Like I cited before you last Friday; Allah says in the Quran: “Those of the Children of Israel who went astray were cursed by the tongue of David, and of Jesus, son of Mary. That was because they rebelled and used to transgress. They used not to forbid one another any malfeasance that they performed. Miserable indeed was whatever they were performing!” (Al-Maida 5: 79-80)

 

The Hadiths of our beloved prophet Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) give more details about these Quranic verses and shed more light [i.e. understanding] on them:

 

Hazrat ‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud (ra) reported: The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said, “The first defect (in religion) which affected the Children of Israel in the way that man would meet another and say to him: ‘Fear Allah and abstain from what you are doing, for this is not lawful for you.’ Then he would meet him the next day and find no change in him, but this would not prevent him from eating with him, drinking with him and sitting in his assemblies. When it came to this, Allah led their hearts into evil ways on account of their association with others.”

Ahmadis: Boycotting Family

 

The Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya (Qadian) today faces a deep crisis of faith. There is a yawning gap between their preaching of Islam and the practices within. Even as they seek to ‘institutionalize’ a separate and distinct community identity under the exalted office of a Khalifatul Massih, the Nizam-e-Jamaat misrepresents and compromises Islamic teachings on a number of searing issues, including on the sanctity of family relations. While the Nizam-e-Jamaat preaches ‘Love for All’ as its ‘brand’ logo, yet it virtually practices hatred against fellow Ahmadis: it applies social boycott against the brothers in faith whose only ‘crime’ is that they believe in Divine revelations being vouchsafed through a pious Ahmadi among them- Hazrat Imam Muhyiuddin Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim of Mauritius!  

To protect their assembly-elected or institutional ‘Khalifa’ as against the Divinely-raised and inspired Khalifatullah, the Nizam-e-Jamaat feels the need to extinguish the Light of Allah among them, God Forbid! What an irony of faith!! The Holy Qur’an says: ‘O Children of Adam! Whenever there come to you Messengers from amongst yourselves relating to you My Messages, then whosoever (by accepting them) becomes secure against evil and amends, there shall remain no fear on them nor shall they grieve’ (7:36). Instead of helping and assisting an Elect of God who is sent among them to reform and purify them and to remove the filth of institutional excesses and doctrinal exaggerations from among them, today’s Ahmadi chiefs are following the worst enemies of the prophets and the saints in history! They seek to isolate and boycott the Messenger and his humble disciples and devoted followers!

 

Indeed, the Nizam-e-Jamaat follows a policy of socially boycotting the Elect of Allah and his disciples in Mauritius, India and elsewhere. Indeed, stupidity has no limits, apparently, within the Nizam-e-Jamaat when it comes to boycott policies. Consider, for instance, the following: to satisfy the prejudice and arrogance of the Jamaat chiefs and the priests, these small men go to the extent of separating and preventing a mother from being with her daughter on the occasion and place of her Nikaah. With such men at the helms of leadership in the Nizam-e-Jamaat, it is only natural that Allah (swt) in His infinite wisdom raised someone among the people- someone who speaks with the Holy Spirit; someone who explains Divine teachings among Ahmadis who are under the spell of Jahaalat in these turbulent times.  

Illnesses of the 'Ummah'- 1

 

In his Friday Sermon of 03 June 2022~ 02 Dhul Qaddah 1443 AH, Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam Hazrat Muhyi-ud-Din Al Khalifatullah Munir A. Azim (aba) of Mauritius profoundly examines the spiritual health of the Muslim Ummah today. Whereas early Islam produced men and women of outstanding ability, extraordinary drive and exemplary personal initiative, willing to sacrifice their all for the progress of their deeply held convictions, in the service of their Faith and thereby brought victory, grandeur and power which lasted for many centuries altogether; the Ummah today faces pitiable fortunes and grim conditions. It appears as though  the original spirit and dynamism of the Faith is missing from the conscience and character of the Muslims that made them the world-beaters. Contrasting the Muslim grandeur of the past with its dismal fortunes in our times, Hazrat Khalifatullah (aba) notes in the discourse: ‘A people who had brought strength and stability, prosperity, peace and honour to the whole world, now you find them demoralized, completely asleep, empty and helpless. People who once taught moral lessons and good conduct to the whole world are themselves lacking these qualities today.’

Islam preserved and perfected in itself the true purpose of all religions which preceded it. By destroying the impurity of idolatry and restoring the sublime faith in the Lord of mankind, Islam helped to mould purified and refined humans who strived hard to reflect Divine attributes in their way of being, doing and living through the centuries. Indeed, like the communities who were bestowed Divine Law in the past, leading the world on spiritual purification was the heavy responsibility cast on the shoulders of the Muslim Ummah by the Creator of the Universe through His best Prophet, the Holy Prophet of Islam, Hazrat Muhammad Mustafa (sa). Muslims who walked in the path of God became beneficiaries of Divine bounties as they were helped and assisted by God and His angels in their strivings. Indeed, the preservation of the true Faith and real spirituality is a Divine Promise engraved upon the Holy Qur’an by Allah the Almighty Himself.

 

At a time when severe misfortunes have engulfed the Ummah, and sectarian disputes and violence destroy social peace in several lands, Muslims ought to recognize the extraordinary magnitude of the task in front of them in the service of their noble Faith: of preserving the good legacy and fair names of the pious ancestors- by repossessing and displaying the solid Imaan (faith of the early Muslims)- in their everyday lives; by being a force for good- enjoining good and forbidding evil in their own communities wherever they are, Insha Allah, Aameen.   

Read the Friday Sermon Below: 

A 'Khalifatullah' to Revive True Faith

  

In his Friday Sermon of 27 May 2022 ~25 Shawwal 1443 AH, Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam Hazrat Muhyi-ud-din Al Khalifatullah Munir A. Azim (aba) of Mauritius continues his  exposition upon a great spiritual malady afflicting almost all the world of religion today: the problem of worshipping false gods, or the practice of 'Shirk': people joining several deities- an angel, prophet or saints- along with the worship of the True Lord of Humankind. Unfortunately, idolatry has consumed much of the ancient religions. In several Muslim lands even today, the Dargah-related rituals mirror the practices of idolatrous communities of the past- away from the true legacy of Islamic monotheism. In this discourse, based on Qur'anic revelations and Prophetic traditions, Hazrat Khalifatullah (aba) eloquently elucidates the correct spiritual doctrine of Tawheed and urges folks to avoid 'Shirk' and associated  Satanic practices of deviance in everyday life, in religious practices. 

Moreover, in this era of moral and spiritual corruption where people have lost their inner compass of righteous living, and consequentially, the world is afflicted with many maladies and calamities of all kinds, Hazrat Saheb points out that it is all the more important for humanity to move away from the frenzy of hedonism and return to its sense of balance and moderation by rediscovering the value of Divine-restraints and other higher values of spiritual realization. To guide human kind through this darkness, the All Merciful Lord, our God, has raised a chosen spiritual guide in our midst. In this context, Hazrat Khalifatullah (aba) in this discourse, once again acknowledges his spiritual mission and Divine mandate, and brings forth to all our collective attention the Divine revelations that were vouchsafed to him almost 14 years ago concerning the appointment of a 'Khalifatullah', the model-exemplar of Faith; the high representative of Allah (swt) in the mantle of the prophets of the past- with all the spiritual titles attached with it, with a view to renew the true legacy of 'Tawhid' and to combat 'Shirk' in all its manifestations,  Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah.