Jamaat al-Muslimeen International Press Release
[www.newtrendmag.org
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Jamaat al-Muslimeen]
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was Born on Rabi'
al-Awwal 12 (approx. April 571 c.e.)
A Brief Look at the Greatest Teacher,
Spiritualist and Jihad Leader of All
Times
by Kaukab Siddique
Today is 12 Rabi' al-Awwal in Baltimore,
Maryland, and
Masjid Jamaat al-Muslimeen
has about a hundred people in it,
mostly from the Senegalese
community
(West Africa),
gathered to remember and
honor the messenger of
Allah, the Chosen one (peace be on him). The
gathering started at 10:30 pm
and will probably go on till 1 AM or more. Sis.
Ashira, the administrator of
the Masjid, says the African sisters and brothers
are coming in well dressed
and with plenty of good food. There will be
presentations on the message and
personality of the Prophet (pbuh).
On Friday, May 9, an African-American
brother, Muhammad Noor, gave the
Juma' khutba
at Masjid Jamaat al-Muslimeen, in
which he emphasized, with the
help of extensive quotations from the
Qur'an
and
the
Hadith
that Muslims must
ingrain the love of Muhammad (pbuh) in
themselves. Knowledge and Sunnah of
the Prophet (pbuh) is essential but it must
develop into love of Muhammad
(pbuh) above mother, father, children and all
human beings.
Among many Muslims, unfortunately, 12
Rabi' al-Awwal has been viewed
in two ways which are both away from the spirit
of the Qur'an and the Hadith.
The Saudis have projected an Islam in which
the Prophet (pbuh) is no
more than a law giver and a ritualist. The Saudis
are largely concerned with
externals, the length of the beard, the
dimensions of the woman's outer
garments, the man's trousers should be above the
ankles, hands should be
folded on the chest for prayers rather than on
the navel.
For the Saudis, the memorialization of the
birth of the Prophet (pbuh)
is Bidah or innovation in religion and must be
rejected.
Others among the Muslims, particularly in
India,
Pakistan
and
Turkey
have gone to the other extreme. They have turned
the Prophet (pbuh) into an
angel, miraculous and above human beings, almost
like God. In their Rabi
al-Awwal 12 celebrations, they will often even
forget the obligatory prayers
while they are singing songs about the
perfections of the Prophet's (pbuh)
personality.
We, in Jamaat al-Muslimeen, urge Muslims to
follow the middle path. We
reject the idea that remembering and honoring the
Prophet (pbuh) is Bidah or
an innovation in religion. It would be Bidah only
if it became a form of
worship, or if it were done in a ritualized form
which could become permanent
or if it replaced or was added to any of the
prescribed forms of Islamic
prayer.
The other extreme too is wrong too in which
the Prophet (pbuh) is
extolled so much above human beings that his
humanity is lost. As a result,
many Muslims simply admire him but do not study
and follow his example as
ordained in the Qur'an.
Br. Muhammad Noor was right that central to
Islam, second only to the
Oneness of Allah, is the love of the Prophet
(pbuh). This love can be
attained if we understand the revolutionary and
transformational nature of
his example (uswa) and his character (khulq). For
instance:
1. He freed the slaves.
2. He gave equality to
women
with men.
3. He struck devastating blows at
racism,
tribalism and loyalties based on
blood.
4. He taught and practiced a DIRECT connection
between the Creator and the
created, putting an end to priesthood and
elitism.
5. He insisted on the distribution of wealth and
an end to economic
disparities.
6. He put an end to the idea that honor, merit
and nobility should be based
on wealth, class (tribe) or gender. God-conscious
endeavor (TAQWA) alone
counts.
7. He opened the doors for scientific
understanding of the heavens and the
earth.
8. He taught a holistic style of life,
indigenous, healthy, without waste and
without harm to any of the creatures who share
the world with humanity.
9. He was the first animal rights advocate of the
modern era, compassionate
to all.
10. He was the first environmentalist and the
first to teach the planting
and nurturing of trees as part of worship.
11. He taught peace with all peoples and war
against oppressors and
exploiters.
12. He put an end to the idea that religion can
be imposed on anyone by force.
13. He struck at the ideas of inherent impurity
of people such as
menstruating women, or people who are scavengers.
14. He taught preventive medicine and the
safeguarding of water resources.
15. He connected the idea of this World with that
of the Hereafter in such a
way that a person of religion would NOT leave
worldly pursuits but use them
for reward in the Hereafter.
16. He helped to remove the fear of the powerful,
the despots, the kings from
peoples souls. Hence the history of Islam has
been a history of uprisings
against kings, despots and exploiters.
The principles of these revolutionary
concepts were revealed to
Muhammad (pbuh) in the form of an inimitable Book
called the Qur'an. His
entire life was commentary on the Qur'an. His
example is practical and
livable because it has been documented with great
precision and with
tremendous scholarly honesty in the books of
Hadith.
We must know the Prophet's (pbuh) life
through study. As we know him
more, we will learn to love him. And God's
promise has been summarized by the
poet Iqbal in these two lines of Urdu poetry:
"Kee Muhammad say wafa toonay to hum taray hain
Yeh jahan cheez hay kiya, loh-o-kalam taray
hain."
[Trans: [Allah says] If you are faithful to
Muhammad, I am yours
What is this world! The Pen and the Tablet it
writes on (Destiny itself) is
yours.]
In conclusion, here is a a sample of how the
Prophet (pbuh) used the
respect he had attained to uproot the ideas of
racism and ethnic superiority
prevalent among arrogant Arab chiefs:
"Fear Allah in the matter of the nappy haired
Black people of Madra because
they are related to me both as ancestors and as
in-laws." [Hadith of
Muhammad, pbuh, narrated in Ibn Hisham's SEERAH
or life of the Prophet,
pbuh.]
[Ibn Hisham was using the text of the original
book collected by Ibn Ishaq,
who lived 83 A.H. to 150 A.H. 704-770 c.e.
These dates are important
because they point to the existence of Hadith
narrations in the First Century
after the Prophet, pbuh, passed away.]
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2003-05-15 Thu 19:40ct