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Islaam for a Buddhist
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varshaken View Drop Down
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    Posted: 22 May 2005 at 12:50am
Hi All!!!!!!!!!!

I am a Buddhist. 

I have known some things from my Moslem friends.  I like the simplicity in Islaam.  I like the comcept of submission to God.

We do not have a comcept of God.  But I feel  that there is someone who take cares of whatever happens in the world.

I have read a little of Koran.  But I am unable to understand anything.  I dont understand why you believe that Muhamad is sent by God and Koran is the word of God or Allaah. 

If anyone is free, please answer my questions.  I am unable to move further in my quest because of these doubts.

Thanking you,

Varshaken, the Samurai.
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Suleyman View Drop Down
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Please take a look at that book,replying to your question is not available in the limits of the board...i believe that this book will insh'Allah give you some general meaning on Islam and Qur'an...

http://www.al-islamforall.org/litre/englitre/Undislam.htm 
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Tasneem View Drop Down
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Varshaken I have attempted to answer your question within my own limited capacity and I hope it will be of some use to you. The answer is too long and though I have tried to limit it I found it necessary to give some introductory background to why so many prophets were sent. I have put this under two posts, but please feel free to put any questions and I'll try to answer them if not I or someone else could refer you to some useful sources. Happy reading!

 

Every human being and everything in the universe is created by God. God has sent a great many messengers on earth to proclaim the simple truth that there is only ONE GOD. GOD who was neither begotten nor does HE beget and there is none like HIM. That they should put an end to idol worship and the practice of associating deities with God, they taught them the right way of living in accordance with God�s pleasure, and gave them laws to be followed and enforced in society. Throughout the history of mankind this message was sent by God through many messengers some very prominent ones being Abraham, Jesus, Moses, Yunus, Saleh, Noah, Hud, Lut etc. Each time a messenger came along and preached this truth, some people listened and followed him, but the great majority refuted the truth and some expelled them from the land and some even went to the extent of killing the messengers. Many of these populations who refuted the truth faced the wrath of God and were destroyed through severe calamities.

 

 Jesus (PBUH (peace be upon him)) was born of virgin birth and also brought this truth and also God gave him the power to perform many miracles such as he could speak in his cradle while an infant, he could heal the leper and perform many other great miracles. Eventhough he said � I am indeed a servant of Allah: He hath given me revelation and made me a prophet, "And He hath made me blessed wheresoever I be, and hath enjoined on me Prayer and Charity as long as I live�, many people followed him, but gradually they started worshipping him as God himself and fell into error.

 

Centuries after Jesus (PBUH), when the mind of man was craving for a world religion Mohammed (PBUH) was born in Saudi Arabia. The Arabs during that time were pagans with very narrow outlook and extremely ignorant. They were lawless and were devoid of morals without any ability to distinguish the right from the wrong. Mohammed (PBUH) lost his parents as a child and even his grandfather who brought him up for a few years also died when Mohammed (PBUH) was young. He was deprived of any training and upbringing and tended flocks of sheep and goats along with other bedouins. He was completely illiterate and unschooled. Despite that he was completely different from the people among whom he was born. Even his worst enemies never accused him of telling a lie. He never used abusive or obscene language and had a charming personality and winning manners. He was honest and just in his dealings in trade and commerce and everyone who dealt with him had full confidence in his integrity. They gave him the title of Al-Amin (the Truthful and Trustworthy).



Edited by Tasneem
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Tasneem View Drop Down
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Amongst a people given to drinking and gambling and steeped in immodest behaviour he was the embodiment of modesty. He helped orphans and widows and was  hospitable to travellers. But he had enough of the darkness and ignorance that surrounded him. He would isolate himself for days and nights in the hills in total seclusion and meditation. He was in search of a light to melt away the encompassing darkness. At the age of forty whilst he was  married to a wealthy widow by name of Khadija, he received his first revelation in the cave where he had sat meditating. The angel Gabriel came to him and announced that God had chosen him as a messenger to all mankind. The first message revealed to Mohammed (PBUH) was:

 

In the name of God, the Most Compassionate, the All-Merciful. 

Read: in the name of thy Lord Who created, 
Created man from a clot 
Read: and thy Lord is the Most Bounteous, 
Who taught by the pen, 
Taught man what he knew not. (Quran 96:1-5) 

 

Mohammed (PBUH) was shaken up with this first experience of revelation as it was no ordinary experience. (I would rather leave this part for you to find and read if and when you read the biography of the Prophet Mohammed). He continued to receive revelations for 23 years, on topics ranging from the Oneness of God and His wondrous handiwork, stories of earlier prophets, morality and ethics and life after death.

 

For forty years he had lived as an Arab amongst Arabs yet he had not uttered a word about God, the Angels, the Revealed Books, life after death or Hell and Heaven. When he began to preach his message the whole of Arabia stood in awe and wonder and was bewitched by his wonderful eloquence and oratory. It was so unique that the whole legion of Arab poets, preachers and orators of the highest calibre failed to match it in beauty of language and splendour of diction when he threw the challenge to his opponents to produce even a single line like the ones he was reciting. It was so impressive and persuasive that his worst enemies were afraid of hearing it, lest it should penetrate deep into their hearts and convert them from their old religion and culture.

 

These revelations became collectively known as the Qur�an and we Muslims believe it to be the literal word of God.

 

For a Muslim, a Prophet does not primarily imply someone able to foretell the future although most of Mohammed�s predictions have already been fulfilled in astonishing ways but a man sent by God to call people to repent, have faith, and dedicate their lives to doing good, thereby helping them rediscover the purpose for which they were created. Prophets are not considered to be Divine, and are not prayed to or worshipped though they were men of outstanding character and spirituality who were protected from committing sins, performed miracles, received revelation and communed with God.

 

The historian Michael H. Hart wrote: �

"My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of the world's most influential persons may surprise some readers and may be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular level."
Michael H. Hart, THE 100: A RANKING OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSONS IN HISTORY, New York: Hart Publishing Company, Inc., 1978, p. 33.

"Philosopher, orator, apostle, legislator, warrior, conqueror of ideas, restorer of rational dogmas, of a cult without images; the founder of twenty terrestrial empires and of one spiritual empire, that is Muhammad. As regards all standards by which human greatness may be measured, we may well ask, is there any man greater than he?" Lamartine, HISTOIRE DE LA TURQUIE, Paris, 1854, Vol. II, pp. 276-277.

 

May Allah Bless all those people whose writings I have used in answering this question.



Edited by Tasneem
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varshaken View Drop Down
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Hi Mr. Tasneem!!!

Thank you for your reply.

But how can we believe the words of a man when he says that he was sent by God etc.? Though he preached peace, he allowed to kill many people including women. He married many women, though this is not a bad quality, it lacks fidelity. How can we believe such a man?

Thank you,

Varshaken, the Samurai.
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MOCKBA View Drop Down
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Originally posted by varshaken varshaken wrote:

Hi Mr. Tasneem!!!

Thank you for your reply.

But how can we believe the words of a man when he says that he was sent by God etc.? Though he preached peace, he allowed to kill many people including women. He married many women, though this is not a bad quality, it lacks fidelity. How can we believe such a man?

Thank you,

Varshaken, the Samurai.

We believe the words of a man who did not claim to be God, even though (considering his credibility) he could and would have been followed. It is God who says that He has sent Muhammad (peace be upon him) and not Muhammad (peace be upon him) himself.

He preached submission to Allaah, peace was only a by-product of such submission... not the actual message. He never allowed to kill women, and he never allowed killing other than the one that would occur in the battlefield, or as an act of defence or an act of punishment for grave wrongdoings.

He married more than one woman, and was loyal to all of his wives without flirting around or commiting adultery... how can it possibly lack fidelity when his marriage was legal and his wives loved him dearly with much respect and cared for him. 

How can we not believe a man who gave without taking and who called not towards idolizing mortal-himself but to The Creator, The Eternal...? 

Muhammad - Peace and Blessings of Allaah be upon him!   



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Tasneem View Drop Down
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 JazakAllahKhair Mockba.

Thankyou Varshaken for your questions. Mockba has answered your questions in a nutshell. In addition to this I shall try to clarify some more for you from a historical context. You have asked three different questions and I shall attempt to answer each of them separately.

 

You have written: �Though he preached peace, he allowed to kill many people including women.�

 

First of all what is the source of your information? Can you please write to me where you obtained this information from or how you have come to this conclusion. You have to be very careful about the sources that you pick for gaining information on Islam. There are many sources whose aim is to discredit Islam through false and foul means. There are many websites on the Internet as well as publications which have been written by people who have no credibility in presenting historical facts. A lot of people fear the spread of Islam and try their very best to mislead those who seek to gain or improve their knowledge on Islam. So it is upto you to seek knowledge from the most authentic and credible sources.

 

First of all Mohammed (PBUH) did not allow Muslims to kill anyone unjustly. According to the Qur�an if you save one human being you have saved all mankind and if you have killed one human being unjustly, it is like killing whole of humanity. This is what Mohammed (PBUH) preached.

 

At the same time, unlike other religions we don�t turn the other cheek in submission. If oppressed God has permitted the Muslims in the Qur�an to retaliate and the retaliation should not exceed the injustice received. Also Muslims have been advised that forgiveness is better than retaliation. So, Mohammed (PBUH) did not allow Muslims to kill other people leave alone women unjustly.

 

Coming to the life of Prophet Mohammed, he faced a lot of hostility and persecution from his own people in the very city Mecca where he was born. He had to flee from Mecca to Madina as the enemies of Islam had resolved to kill him. But he was on a mission from God. He could not just sit in Madina to save his life. He had to face his enemies and cleanse Mecca of the idolatory that was being practised during that time. Despite all his kind words his enemies were bent on removing him to save the religion that there fathers and forefathers practised. Mohammed (PBUH) had no choice but to face these people (who had oppressed him and persecuted him) to fight them in the battle field. But there are no records to prove that he had been able to kill even one person!

 

The advice he gave his followers on military expeditions were not to do the following:

  1. Do not kill women or children or an aged or infirm person.
  2. Do not cut down fruit bearing trees.
  3. Do not destroy an inhabited place.
  4. Do not slaughter sheep or camels except for food.
  5. Do not burn bees and do not scatter them.
  6. Do not steal from the booty of war.
  7. Do not be cowardly.
  8. Do not attack people who take refuge in sacred places.
  9. Do not act treacherously.
  10. Do not mutilate.

There is no compulsion in religion in Islam. When a person reverts to Islam he/she should do so only from the bottom of their heart and not to please anybody. We do not go around giving goodies to people to convert to Islam. Even a person born to Muslim parents is not assured of God�s reward unless and until he/she believes and practises Islam.

I shall attempt to answer your other two questions soon.
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varshaken View Drop Down
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Hi Mr. Mockba!!!!!!!!!

Thank you for answering me. First of all forgive my english. I am not good at it, I am trying to improve.

You were saying "We believe the words of a man who did not claim to be God, even though (considering his credibility) he could and would have been followed." Its strange.........how can we believe a man when he says that he is God?
You said,"It is God who says that He has sent Muhammad (peace be upon him) and not Muhammad (peace be upon him) himself." To whom did God say that Muhamad was sent by Him?

Thank you for telling me the truth about peace. I thought Muhamad preached peace. I heard people saying Islaam means peace. So got confused.:)

By fidelity I said fidelity to oneself. I can never imagine marrying any other woman excepting my loved one. I can never imagine sleeping with another woman excepting my loved one. I did not say that he flirted.
Your meanings for fidelity, adultry, legal are totally different from mine. Legal means the law of the land. In Sri Lanka a man cannot have many wives or vice versa. What do you mean by fidelity and adultry?
Regarding love, respect and care there are many girls who want to marry film stars and cricket stars. So thats not an issue. the soul mate is only one.

You were saying "How can we not believe a man who gave without taking and who called not towards idolizing mortal-himself but to The Creator, The Eternal...?"
I did not understand what you meant. If you mean to say that he did not ask to pray him, then I say that praying to a man yields nothing. And anything cannot be taken, it can only be given. So even if Muhamad would have asked anything, he wouldn't have got. Hope you understand this. I mean to say when we ask for returns for what we do, then the sole purpose of our work will vanish and rendered useless.

I wonder one thing, one cannot give shape to God but one can give him names and call them "beautiful names". I feel its strange..........

Another question, isn't God omnipresent?

Thankng you

Varshaken, the Samurai.



Edited by varshaken
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