Reading the Holy Qur’an

The Holy Qur’an is the central text of Islam and it has a cherished position in the lives of the Muslims. By learning and reciting the verses of the holy text in its classical Arabic on a regular basis since childhood, devout Muslims develop a poignant and intimate relation with it. Yet, the fact remains that the Qur’an is a complex text: the verses are inter-related and interconnected and were revealed in a specific context. What it actually says is shrouded in veils of assumptions and opinions as the Sacred Text is often quoted to derive or invoked in support of directly contradictory meanings.

In his Friday Sermon of May 17, 2013 the Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius gave a profound discourse on the underlying norms and principles applicable for both believers and truth seekers in developing an interpretative relationship with the Qur’an. Purity of heart, an open mind capable of perceiving the larger truth, an understanding of the Divine scheme of things for the world, sincere striving in pursuit of the sublime meaning of the Divine verses-all these are essential starting points, indicates the Messenger of Allah of our times.

Read the Extracts from the Friday Sermon:

“This is an honourable Quran; in a protected record. None can grasp it except those pure; a revelation from the Lord of the worlds.” (56: 78-81)

‘Scheming Ahmadis, Allah shall turn you Upside Down!’

When a people enjoy a period of peace and mundane security, and are blessed with material wealth and numerous children, they often drift away from the path of purity and prudence and fairness. It is in such times that Allah raises a Messenger among them to invite them back to the path of spirituality. Yet, when such a Messenger does appear among the people, their arrogance will exalt their pride in defiance against Allah. Invariably, they seek to oppose the Messenger and oppress the early believers who bear witness to the truth of the Messenger. Thus, those who follow the Messenger shall find themselves thrown into the maelstrom of trials and tests of faith whenever and wherever they seek to raise the flag of the Divine Messenger.

It is but a tragic irony of history that often the persecuted themselves behave like their tormentors when they become affluent and influential in the land. Today Ahmadi Muslims in the Indian state of Kerala-where they enjoy religious freedom and the liberty of preaching- have acquired the ingredients of their tormentors in Pakistan. And they seek to torment the other Muslims-members of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam who follow the Messenger of Allah of our times, Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) of Mauritius. The Sahih Al Islam Blog itself has witnessed and recorded a number of such incidents in the past couple of years whereby members of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam have come under various kinds of persecution tactics by the mainstream Ahmadis in the state.   

In recent times, Kerala Ahmadis have set afoot evil plans intended to humiliate and harass the believers in the new Messenger of Allah. In their war against the new Jamaat, the Ahmadiyya establishment in Kerala is seeking to co-opt and deploy all indirect means of confrontation. They attack the common sense of intelligent people by preaching goodness and practicing hatred by other means. The methods they prefer include the conduct of hostile propaganda against the Jamaat by inciting anti-social elements in the villages where the new Jamaat is present. They seek to confuse the members of other religious communities- Hindus and Christians in Kerala- by keeping deafening quiet when these elements describe the new Jamaat as an international “terror” group and the members as having a secret agenda.

Remembering Asghar Ali Engineer (1939 – 2013)

One of India’s leading Muslim scholars, Asghar Ali Engineer, passed away on Tuesday, May 14, 2013. Innaa Lillahi Wa Innaa Ilaihi Raajiuun...As a reformist scholar, Engineer’s was an important voice in the debates on issues concerning Muslims in India in the last couple decades.

In the post-partition India, the Muslims became a vulnerable minority in a sea of Hindus. While the country’s secular Constitution and the Laws professed equality before law and the equal protection of the laws in terms of status, rights and opportunities for Muslims, these were not borne out by the facts of their representation and visibility in the public sphere, including in education and employment avenues in the country. Issues of identity and personal law have taken an emotional dimension at a time when communal riots raised the physical security and safety and protection of Muslims under a shadow of uncertainty. The members of the community have ingrained a ‘siege’ mentality where by Muslims looked at with suspicion on any reform proposals aimed at the community. The governments in India were unable to bring about internal reforms to the Muslim personal law system because of a credibility-deficit and resistance within the community.

In the 1970’s, as a member of the Dawoodi Bohra (Shia Muslim) Community, Asghar Ali Engineer stood for internal reforms and democratic deliberations and resisted the authority of the Syedna Burhanuddin, the ‘Khalifa’ of the Community. In later years, Engineer worked on several aspects of “social engineering, dedicating himself to three things that defined his life — helping interpret and explain Islam from a modern perspective, emphasising gender justice within Islam, and working for inter-community harmony”. While Engineer resisted the views of the Hindu right wing in India, which sought to treat the Muslims as “second- class citizens”, as it were, he also stood up for reforms within the Muslim community, including for the freedom of conscience of the Ahmadis in Pakistan and elsewhere in the Muslim world.

Reproduced below is an Op-Ed Article by Meena Menon, published on May 15, 2013, in The Hindu, one of India’s leading newspapers, paying tribute to the memory of the departed soul.