Historical Issues
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Books that influenced Gandhi
“A friend of the poor and the underdog, humble and bold, sincere and frank, simple and austere, non-violent and truthful in thoughts, words and deeds; frail in body but mighty in spirit”. This is how Satish Kumar describes Mahatma Gandhi. This great leader shook the foundations of British Empire and tried to liberate India in the real sense of the term. He tried emancipating the “untouchables” in the way he deemed the most appropriate, gave the message of peace, love, brotherhood, truth and non-violence. It is important to know what shaped such great a leader and what thoughts inspired him. Gandhi’s thought started developing and getting shaped in London where…
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3. Historical Experience Shaping How West Views Islam
The book “Islam at Crossroads” by Muhammad Asad deals with the fall of the Muslim world. It laments the imitation of the West which is in its spirit (materialistic) diametrically opposite to the Islamic spirit (spiritual and harmony between subtle and mundane). It argues that the imitation of the West can only be at the cost of Islam, the two being incompatible. It discusses the attitude the Muslims must adopt towards the West. It further argues that the practical aspect of the spirit of Islam lies in the Sunnah of the Prophet, which has been shunned for the visible impossibility of implementing its seemingly trivial aspects in life, the weakening…
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Q&A: If Prophet of Islam preached peace and tolerance how come there are so many war mongers amongst Muslims who take cues from the same life?
If Prophet of Islam preached peace and tolerance how come there are so many war mongers amongst Muslims who take cues from the same life? A short answer: It is a questions that bothers many a people and we do need to consider why such is the case. Like any other social phenomenon there are many perspectives to be investigated. Let us begin with the Arab Custom of narrating tales. The pre-Islamic Arab society was a war torn community wherein a murder was remembered for generations and vengeance was sought for decades generation after generation. The Arabs would compose poems and ballads on this theme, narrating the tales of a…
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Battle of Hunayn and the Pride in Numbers
Fought in 630 CE between Muslims and the non-Muslim Bedouin tribe of Hawazin in the outskirts of Mecca, the Battle of Hunayn is an important battle that has somehow not found a place in everyday Muslim discourse if compared to the battles of Badr, Uhud, or Trench. Battle of Hunayn, among other battles, is one good example that tells us numbers don’t matter. In the earlier battles such as those of Badr, Uhud, or Trench the Muslims were vastly outnumbered, however in this one which took place after the Treaty of Hudaybiah and the Fall of Mecca, the number of Muslims was huge. It was the largest ever Muslim army…
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The Khwarij of today
The Messenger of God, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “There will be division and sectarianism in my nation and a people will come with beautiful words and evil deeds. They will recite the Quran but it will not pass beyond their throats. They will leave the religion as an arrow leaves its target and they will not return to it as the arrow does not return to its bow. They are the worst of the creation. Blessed are those who fight them and are killed by them. They call to the Book of Allah but they have nothing to do with it. Whoever fights them is better to Allah than them.”
