Towards a strategy for Muslims in Europe
Background Since their main immigration after the Second World War, Muslims in Europe have been living a relatively easy life. However, the proliferation of Islamic symbols and Muslim numbers has changed the mood of the establishments that really control most European states. Liberal Europe woke up to see another way of life, parts of which are at odds to its norms, competing to shape its domestic and foreign policies. The steadfast rise in the numbers of young people who refuse to live as immigrants as their forefathers did, makes the situation all the more interesting and complicated. Unexpectedly to some,…
The start of Ramadān & the days of ‘Īd
All praise is due to Allāh, may peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family and all his Companions. Many questions are asked by Muslims residing in non-Islamic countries concerning how one assures the start of the month of Ramadān and the days of ‘Īd al-Fitr and ‘Īd al-Adhā. So what course is one to follow? It is because of these questions that this clarification becomes necessary. I am able to mention the following and Allāh is the One, without any partner, Who grants accord and aids to arriving at what is correct. The Muslims in non-Muslim countries…
[al-Taḥawiyyah Pt 36] Ta’wīl as used in the Qur’ān 2 of 2
Concerning His words: ‘No one knows its ta’wīl except Allāh and those truly grounded in knowledge’, there are two readings of this verse. One reading stops after the words, "except Allāh", and a second reading that does not stop at that point. Both of these readings are correct. What is referred to in the first reading are the equivocal verses, the knowledge of whose ultimate reality is hidden by Allāh (al-mutashābiha fī nafsihī). The second reading, however, refers to the relatively unequivocal verses (al-mutashābiha al-iḍāfī) whose tafsīr the scholars know, otherwise labelled by them as ta’wīl. Those who pause after…
[al-Taḥawiyyah Pt 36] Ta’wīl as used in the Qur’ān 1 of 2
The belief of a person in the seeing of Allāh by the people of Paradise is not correct if that person tries to imagine what it is like or if he tries to interpret it according to his own understanding, since the interpretation of this seeing or the meaning of any of the subtle phenomena which are in the realm of Lordship, is by avoiding its interpretation and strictly adhering to submission. This is the faith of Islam. Those who do not refrain from negating Allāh’s attributes or conceiving them on human patterns are surely mistaken, they are unable to…
Time for Action
Background Imagine if tomorrow there were to be a survey asking whether Halāl meat should be allowed in Britain. Would you take part? What would you say to those Muslims that sat on the side-lines and expected others to act for them? Well, at the moment, an arguably more important question is being surveyed among the Muslim community, and it is time for us to speak out. After years of discussing a potential Sharī’ah compliant student loan, the government’s Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has recently issued a consultation on a potential model that has received preliminary approval…
[al-Taḥawiyyah Pt 35] ‘Ilmul Kalām
He sways between faith and disbelief, confirmation and denial, and acceptance and rejection. He will be subject to vain suggestions, perplexed and lost, neither a sincere Believer nor an open denier. فَيَتَذبْذبُ بَيْنَ الكُفْرِ وَالإِيْمَانِ، وَالتَّكْذِيبِ، وَالإِقْرَارِ وَالإِنْكَارِ، مُوَسْوَسَاً تَائِهَاً، زَائِغَاً شَاكَّــاً، لاَ مُؤْمِنَاً مُصَدِّقاً، وَلاَ جَاحِداً مُكَذِّباً. When a person turns away from Revelation he turns his back on a guiding light emanating from the heavens. After this there are only darknesses of misguidance, discontentment, and doubt. Allāh, Exalted is He, referred to His Revelation as light when He told the Prophet (Ṣallāhu 'alayhi wa salam) that: ‘This is…
[al-Taḥawiyyah Pt 34] Don’t debate about Islam without sound knowledge part 2/2
Points of Benefit: 1) The statement of Ṭaḥāwi: ‘He who seeks knowledge that has been barred from him, and whose intellect is not prepared to surrender...’ was meant to further explain the previous point about the Beatific Vision. Point number 32 clarified the belief of Ahl al-Sunnah and pointed out some of the other misguided views. Point number 33 then sought to explain how such misguided views were formulated. The following point now adds further detail to this and broadens it out into a timeless principle, and so the author concluded his point by stating that such deviants will always:…
[al-Taḥawiyyah Pt 34] Don’t debate about Islam without sound knowledge part 1/2
فَمَنْ رَامَ عِلْمَ مَا حُظِرَ عَلَيْهِ، وَلَمْ يَقْنَعْ بـِالتَّسْليمِ فَهْمُهُ، حَجَبَهُ مَرَامُهُ عَنْ خَالِصِ التَّوْحيدِ، وَصَافِي المَعْرِفَةِ، وَصَحِيحِ الإِيمَانِ، He who seeks knowledge that has been barred from him, and whose intellect is not prepared to surrender, will find that endeavour preventing him from acquiring a pure understanding of Allāh’s unity, clear knowledge and correct faith. Ibn Abi al-‘Izz (d.792H) in his famous explanation of al-Aqīdah al-Ṭaḥāwiyyah began expounding on this point by saying: ‘This is an elaboration of the earlier point along with a warning that one should not discuss the principles of the faith or any other aspect…
[al-Taḥawiyyah Pt 33] Raising the Conflict Between Reason & Revelation part 2/2
It is not the role of the intellect to legislate and formulate religious prescriptions independent of revelation. Regarding the case of the scholars (mujtahidūn) who are able to exercise legal reasoning (ijtihād) based on their intimate knowledge of the Sacred Texts and the legislative reasonings (‘illal) behind injunctions, the intellect does plays a greater role here. However, it is still operating within the realm of revelation and not independently. Moreover, revelation itself commands that legal reasoning be applied in certain cases. True intellectual liberation cannot come from following the philosophies and ideas of one’s mind or from disbelieving nations, for…
[al-Taḥawiyyah Pt 33] Removing the Conflict Between Reason & Revelation part 1/2
وَلا يَثْبُتُ قَدَمُ الإِسْلامِ إِلاَّ عَلَى ظَهْرِ التَّسْليمِ وَالاسْتِسْلامِ The foundation of Islām is not made firm except with the support of unreserved assent and submission to Allāh. The author meant by this statement that the matters of faith (imān) and Islām; be that from the fundamentals (usūl) or from the secondary matters (furū’), will never be planted firmly inside a believer until and unless he shows unreserved reverence and submission to the Lord of the Worlds. The more compromised a person’s submission is to Allāh, the more problematic and troublesome he finds aspects of His Religion. This is a…