I remember a winter night when I was discussing Islam with my ex. He said that Islam was easy to follow because Allah loves his creation and He wouldn't want to make it difficult for us. I think there is also a hadith saying that you should take a middle path, when it comes to practicing, rather than go to extremes.
Anyways, I have been frequenting various blogs since January 2010 and in all honesty I must say that there are as many Islams as there are Muslims. One Muslim will tell you that Islam is easy to follow, the other one will tell you it is not. The same person will tell you that the Qur'an is simple to understand but at the same time it contains meanings that we as humans cannot possibly understand (go figure!).
Every single place I go, be it youtube, blogs, islamic forums etc. I read or hear that Islam is misunderstood. But is it really? Muslims don't seem to have good understanding of Islam themselves but they are first to point out ignorance of others. They can't even agree on a simple issue of hijab, let alone terrorism or jihad, or other important aspects of their faith. However, non-Muslims still should take the beating for their "ignorance" and/or "hatred". As if when you call somebody ignorant and full of hate, it will change his/her perception of Islam (quite to the contrary cause it only indicates that you are not able to prove them wrong or support your own argument). It happened to me many many times when talking to my ex or people online and I'm sick and tired of it...
So... What IS Islam?
11 comments:
Islam is the middle road. Usually those that indicate that their way is the only way...well I have to say he/she is wrong. They have to understand that diversity is what Allah (swt) loves.
The problem isn't with Islam itself. As you say PEOPLE can't agree with this or that. It's people who put more rules and regulations in to play. To be honest, if you look at the Holy Quran and follow as it says you can't go wrong. It's not hard to understand. The problem comes when those who thing they are smarter make it more difficult to understand and put interpretation to it that what is there.
The way I see it is that while I get the guidelines for what should be done, I try to be a good person and do what is asked of every Muslim (the Five Pilars). I think that Allah (swt) knows what is in your heart and it is not up to man to say what is wrong or right for you because they are not Him to judge.
I hope this helps a little.
Assalamu'Alakum
Thank you for your comment :-)
you say the problem is not with Islam but with people who can't agree.
what i've been told and what puzzles me is that to understand the Qur'an you need a body of hadiths and tafseers to understand 'the true meaning'.
so Islam is not only the Qur'an, or so it seems. if the Qur'an contains all possible information, why do you need hadiths and tafseers to 'make it clear'?
then you have scholars of Islam, schools of thought who agree on the most important parts (I think) and the rest is subject to interpretation, no?
on one hand I like the flexibility of Islam cause it gives you room to wiggle but on the other hand I observe Muslims following their religion in different ways and I can't determine who is following it the right way.
I find it a little confusing I must say..
I really like your blog : ) I'm interested in your story and journey. You're just in the beginning and we have a lot in common m'dear even with the man from the Mid East.
One tip ... read the Qu'ran. Yourself. Completely. Go to whyislam.org and they will mail you a free one. The translations are good. I advise though reading a couple different versions of the Qu'ran with different translations. Decide for youself. Islam is actually extremely personal. Don't listen to any scholars etc. The Qu'ran says itself don't follow anyone expect Allah and Prophets Muhammd (Pbuh). There are many ilegit hadiths. But there are ones that are of the sunnah and life of the prophet and give advice and guidelines for how Muslims should live. I believe these are the Sahih Al-Buklhari hadiths.
Nothing is complicated actually. Don't listen to other's opinions. I feel this might be why you're so confused. You're getting involved with cultural and emotional tied opinions from other people. The Qu'ran does state clearly what is right and what is wrong but people like to change them based on their own desires and wants.
Read the Qu'ran, highlight your doubts, then research. I also would recommend the video series The Arrivals on youtube. It's a well put together documentary about Islam and conspiracy's about the truth. It might not be up your ally but it was very helpful in helping me find the answer for myself.
I wish you all the luck and pray you find an answer. xx
thank you very much for your kind words :-) i'm glad you like it :-)
I made up my mind already BUT I do leave some space to change my opinions should I be presented with new evidence :-)
Chiiqu, I read the Qur'an. I will be rereading it and posting my thoughts on it (it might not be a pleasant read for you as a Muslim even though I will try to be as respectful as possible).
I already read a couple of surahs in various translations and with tafseers. I also read some hadiths. Well, let's just say that I wasn't impressed (i want to write a separate post on it).
Do you accept Bukhari and Muslim as a collection of uncorrupted hadiths?
I will ask you the same question I posed to Muslim Butterfly: if the Qur'an is easy and clear, why do you need a whole body of tafseers to understand it? there are also different schools of islamic thought. If the Qur'an is clear in its commands why so much disagreement between Muslims?
I will check up the vid series, cheers for that! :-)
thank you again and look forward to hearing from you :-) take care!
I am excited for these posts :D And your honesty is good~ I don't take it harshly. I feel your opinions do matter because you're curious, you're learning. You're not being closed minded like many people, unfortunately, are.
I believe Bukhari is pretty legit. But I don't think it's really right of me to say what's right or wrong. Allah wants us to educate ourselves and decide for ourselves in sincerity. So I kind of feel silly for saying that IT IS right. The Qu'ran just says to follow the Qu'ran and Hadith. And that the day of judgement will come when people stop following the Hadith/Sunnah.
I don't pay attention to tafseer's. I don't think a lot of the Qu'ran is to be taking literally while other parts are. Language is complex and perhaps Allah just wants us to do our best in how we interpret the Qu'ran and to pay attention to our own deeds? That's what I like to think... I see myself putting in a lot of personal opinions and it's funny because this is what everyone does. But the bottom line I think all Muslims are right, in fact all people are for what they believe in. I personally though think Islam is right for me and it's the truth for me.
The Qu'ran does state however that there will be over 70 something different sects. Allah told us this. That Muslims will fight and try and separate. I see this happening due to cultural issues.
There's a lot of disagreement but there's also a lot of bonding in Islam. A lot of cultural issues lead the ummah to fighting with one another. It seems bad but it's getting better. It's been predicted so all I can do is let people know that and to stop fighting about it and just live how you want and help when someone simple asks for it.
Please let me know what you think of the series! :D
Take care too!
hi again!
yes, i try to keep an open mind but i also know that my opinions are tainted with my not-so-positive experiences.
"Allah wants us to do our best in how we interpret the Qu'ran"- uhh no, I'm sorry but when we are talking about eternal damnation in hellfire, there is no room for "trying to interpret". The commands might be challenging to fulfill but shouldn't be subject to interpretation, don't you think?
can the Qur'an be understood on its own, without hadiths and tafseers you think? is it clear enough?
literal vs metaphorical Qur'an. how do you distinguish which verses should be taken literally and which not, and why you think so?
have a good day! :-)
Hey Peace!
Thank you very much for visiting my blog and following :). (I think it was you).
I very much like your blog! It provides food for thought.
In regards to your post above, there are a few points I would like to make.
I totally and wholeheartedly agree with the points you have raised. We Muslims are quick to blame the ignorance of non-Muslims, yet we do not look in our own community and notice our shortcomings. Today's Islam has become very diluted in some places. The distinction between religion and culture is so blurred that for some people religion is culture and culture is religion. In other places the greed for political power and or wealth means so called Muslims do things that are anti-Islamic.
This I don't think is blame-able (is that even a word) on the Qur'an itself. That is the same. However as converts from other religions entered Islam over the centuries, they bought along with them some of their own understandings, their own customs which in some cases were not entirely Islamic as such. It is the same for all religions. Look at Christianity, which was a revival of Judaism, and today there are so many different sects. The same with Judaism, Hinduism etc etc. There is a saying of the Prophet (pbuh) which goes along the lines of, one day my Ummah will be divided into 72 sects. 72 of which will be hell-bound and 1 of which will be heaven-bound." So I guess this disparity and disagreement was bound to happen.
Though I was born in the East, I have been brought up in the West, and one of the most valuable lessons I have learnt is to think critically, and understand the context of a source and who it is being said by, all of which can greatly influence what is being portrayed. Though there are problems within the Ummah, ignorance is also an issue. For example, there are people who get a lot of their information from the 10 o'clock news on the BBC etc, and Islam in the media is normally associated with terrorist activities, and other negative things. In such cases there are some people who see those, and make up their minds about Muslims based on that. Which I think is wrong.
Lastly, hell is not an eternal concept. It has been described in the Qur'an as a nursing mother. [101:9] It clearly tells us that as a mother carries a baby in her womb and after completion of 9 months baby comes out, similarly after getting cleansed from all sins, man shall come out of hell. That is why "HAWIYA" is called "MOTHER".
Apologies for such a long first comment.
Have a lovely weekend.
Take care!
:)
hey Nas,
thank you for stopping by and following, and compliments :-) I read your comment on Usagi's blog and left mine but it hasn't been approved yet.
I go by the name Almost a Muslimah :-)
I wholeheartedly agree with you on mixing religion/Islam and culture. It took me some time to differentiate it between these two. I guess it comes with reading, a lot of it :-)
my 'problem' pertains more to the fact that for a book that claims to be perfectly clear, there are so many different interpretations (see my new post on it if you are interested)
Again, I couldn't not agree more that there is certain amount of bias in the media. However, if the crime is done in the name of religion or religion is used as a motive then...
That's why I think any kind of open debate about islam and what islam is should be present. No throwing unsubstantiated claim, a debate about Islam and what it is. But first Muslims would have to reach some kind of agreement, I guess. You know "God helps those who help themselves" :-)
I will get back to you on the issue of hell later, need to go for now!
stay well :)
hi again Nas :-)
i checked that verse you provided 101:9 and this is what it says (the entire sura):
1. The terrible calamity!
2. What is the terrible calamity!
3. And what will make you comprehend what the terrible calamity is?
4. The day on which men shall be as scattered moths,
5. And the mountains shall be as loosened wool.
6. Then as for him whose measure of good deeds is heavy,
7. He shall live a pleasant life.
8. And as for him whose measure of good deeds is light,
9. His abode shall be the abyss.
10. And what will make you know what it is?
11. A burning fire.
it's talking about the abyss... If there is some word play I'd appreciate if you could direct me towards some reading materials :-) thank you!
http://quran.al-islam.org/
A different interpretation that you might not have come across.
I think this is the only post I did not reply to.
It seems your biggest concern is about going to the hell fire and that you feel some people don't deserve to go? For me and many I think that doing your best is what counts. Your intentions. It seems harsh, but I personally feel God has warned us so if don't do our best that's one's own issue. And the major things that send us to hell are pretty clear.
That's why there is the hadiths. To show the way that the prophet lived so we can understand deeper how to live. It is even said in the Qu'ran about the sunnah.
I seen someone reply on your newest post about interpretations and I agree with her. Things are basically the way they are for a reason. I'm sorry I couldn't give a more detailed reply. I'm really burnt out from a busy weekend and starting of fasting.
I wish you all the best and hope someone can give you better answers. I tried my best in my opinions and my beliefs/why I believe. I look forward to your future posts.
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