Islam, the most misunderstood religion

Purpose: The Quran is Islam's sacred scripture revealed by almighty Allah through the angel Gabriel to the prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in Mecca and Medina, beginning in 610 and ending with his death in 632 CE. It contains 6236 verses, all of which are the literal words of Allah. Allah says, "It is a book of perfect guidance for mankind and mercy for the doers of good, and it consists of clear teachings which show the right way and are a criterion of truth and falsehood (31:3+2:185). [It is a book] by which Allah guides those who pursue His pleasure to the ways of peace, brings them out from darknesses into the light by His will, and guides them to a straight path. (5:16). It confirms the Scriptures revealed before it and is a guidance and good tiding to the people of Faith (2:97). It is a guidance and healing to the believers. But to those who do not believe, it serves as a plug in their ears and a covering over their eyes." (41:44)

Origin: The written compilation of the holy Quran began during the prophet's lifetime. The usual practice was when the angel Gabriel used to recite the divine revelations to the prophet; he memorised it entirely, followed by many of his companions. In addition, his scribes wrote them on pieces of leather, bone and palm leaves and put them in order as the angel said as per the desire of Allah. Soon after the prophet's death, the Qur'an was first compiled into a book format by the first caliph of the Muslims, Abu Bakr Siddique (RA), who reigned during 632-634 CE. This copy followed the written form of consonants practised locally at that time. As the Islamic Empire began growing and differing recitations were being heard in far-flung areas, modification of the written form of consonants became necessary for the uniform recitation of the Quran. The third caliph, Uthman Bin Affan (RA), reigning during 644-656 CE, transcribed the original copy of the Quran by the four most knowledgeable scribes with modification of its consonantal skeleton (rasm) and sent the copies to provinces to replace all other collections in circulation. A little later, signs for vowels (harakat) were also added to the original text to facilitate the non-Arab people to read the Quran correctly, and it is the version we currently read.

Authenticity: Whereabouts of the Qurans transcribed under the direction of Hadrat Uthman (RA) is difficult to answer, but numerous manuscripts dating back to the period are available in small pieces in many museums, ancient mosques and research centres around the world. They are surprisingly the same as what we read at present. Allah says, "Indeed, it is We¹ who sent down the message [Quran], and indeed, We will be its guardian [protector] (15:9)." It is noteworthy how He made it happen. The Quran is astonishingly the only book in the known history of mankind that innumerable people have been seen memorising in all the ages since its revelation. It is far more surprising to see the Arabs speechless in reply to the challenge of Allah saying, "And if you are in doubt about what We have sent down [Quran] upon Our Servant [Prophet], then produce a surah the like thereof and call upon your witnesses [helpers] other than Allah, if you are truthful (2:23)." A surah can be as short as comprising only three sentences, for example, Surah Kawthar (108:1-3) and two more. This challenge was given not once but five times². The Arabs who took pride in the eloquence of their speech in prose or poetry were startled and shocked as the perfect amalgam of poetry and prose in which the Quran was revealed was something they had never seen or heard from anyone. The Arabs were understandably reluctant to accept the challenge; otherwise, Islam could not spread so fast.

These are not surprises, but miracles, and the Quran is the miracle of miracles for all times. For example, let's consider the event of the Pharaoh when chasing the prophet Moses (RA) and his followers and drowning; he said, "I believe that there is no god but Allah in Whom the Children of Israel believe, and I am also one of those who submit to Allah. [But Allah replied] Now you believe, although you disobeyed earlier and were one of the mischief-makers. We shall now save your corpse that you may serve as a sign of warning for all posterity, although many men are heedless of Our signs (10:90-92)". How could Muhammad (PBUH) know that the dead body of Pharaoh was preserved and not destroyed before its discovery in 1898 CE, particularly when both the Old and New Testaments were silent about it. It is nothing but a miracle. Besides, the Quran reveals numerous scientific truths, many of which are unearthed only in the recent past, mostly not earlier than 100 years. Like many other researchers, Dr. Maurice Bucaille, a French Physician, has discussed in detail the authenticity of the Bible vis-a-vis the Quran with emphasis on the Quranic verses dealing with modern science in his book, The Bible, the Quran and Science. The most important part of this book is the general conclusion on pages 162 to 164 which, if expressed in one line, would sound like nothing could be more authentic than the Qur'an.

Allah promises Jannah (Heaven) for those who believe and do righteous deeds at least at 33 places³ in the Quran.

a) Believers: He introduces the believers⁴ as,

• Those who believe in Allah, the Last Day [the day judgement], the angels, the book [of revelations], and the prophets (2:177P),
• Those who believe the unseen⁵ and also what has been revealed to you [prophet], and what was revealed before you, and of the Hereafter (2:3P,4),
• Those whose hearts become fearful when Allah is mentioned, and when His verses are recited to them, it increases them in Faith; and upon their Lord, they rely (8:2),
• Those who believe in Allah and His Messenger [prophet] and strive in the cause of Allah with their wealth and lives. That is best for them if they would know. (61: 11).

As regards righteous deeds, Allah mentions them in various verses in the Quran, which for this discussion shall be divided into two groups as follows,

b) Righteous people in consideration of spending wealth in the way of Allah are -

• Those who give wealth, in spite of love for it, to parents and relatives, orphans, the needy, the travellers, and those who ask [for help], and for freeing slaves, for feeding on a day of severe hunger; [and who] establishes prayer and gives Zakah⁶, (2:177P+2:215 + 90:14),
• Those who spend their wealth in the way of Allah and then do not follow up what they have spent with reminders [of it] or [other] injury (2: 262),
• Those who spend their wealth [in Allah's way] by night and by day, secretly and publicly, during ease and hardship (2: 274+3: 134P),
• Those who loan Allah a goodly loan, He will multiply it for you and forgive you. And Allah is Most Appreciative and Forbearing (64:17),
• Those who give food in spite of love for it to the needy, the orphan, and the captive. [Saying], "We feed you only for the countenance [i.e., approval] of Allah. We wish not from you reward or gratitude. Indeed, we fear from our Lord a Day austere and distressful." (76:8-10),
• That who gives [from] his wealth to purify himself. And not [giving] for anyone who has [done him] a favour to be rewarded. But only seeking the countenance of his Lord, Most High. And he is going to be satisfied. (92:18-21),

c) Righteous people, in consideration of human attributes, are -

• The Muslim and the believing men and women, who are obedient, truthful, patient, humble, charitable, fasting, and those who are during their prayer humbly submissive and observant of Zakah, and who remember Allah often and turn away from ill speech and who treat their parents well, and who guard their private parts except from their wives or those their right hands possess [bondwomen] (33:35+23:2-6+46:15),
• The believing men and women [who] are allies of one another; they enjoin what is right, forbid what is wrong, establish prayer, give Zakah, and obey Allah and His Messenger (9:71),
• Those who fulfil their promise when they promise; and remain patient in poverty and hardship and during battle (2:177P),
• Those who keep their trusts and covenants and who are upright in their testimonies, and who take due care of their prayer (70:32-34),
• Those who believe and fear Allah and speak the words of appropriate justice (33:70),
• Those who believe and advise one another to be patient and compassionate (90:17),
• Those who fear to stand before their Lord and restrain themselves from evil desires (79:40),
• Those who fulfil the covenant with Allah and do not break it, and who join that which Allah has ordered to be joined, fear their Lord and are frightful of evil reckoning, and who observe patience in order to seek the pleasure of their Lord and establish Salat and spend secretly and openly from what We have given to them, and repel evil with good. (13:20-22),
• Those who repent, worship, praise [Allah], travel [for His cause], bow and prostrate [in prayer], enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong, and observe the limit set by Allah (9:112),
• Those who restrain anger and pardon others and when they commit an immorality or wrong themselves [by transgression] instantly remember Allah and seek forgiveness for their sins - who can forgive sins except Allah? – and who do not wilfully persist in the wrong they did. (3:134P,135),
• Those who avoid the major sins and immoralities, forgive others when angry, obey their Lord and establish prayer, conduct their affairs in consultation with each other, spend out of what We have bestowed upon them, and defend when tyranny strikes them (42:37-39),
• Allah has purchased the lives and properties of the believers in exchange for (a promise) that Paradise shall be theirs. They fight in the way of Allah [under the direction of a lawfully constituted Islamic Government], kill and are killed (9:111).

Identity of the Muslims: The indicators of the righteous people eligible for Jannah as listed above may not cover all but are hopefully nearing it. From the list, it is easy to understand that these people shall also remain in peace in their earthly lives, which Allah also assured. The people who are opposite by nature and are pleased to remain so will be punished. But they aren't who repent, seek forgiveness of Allah and get rectified, no matter how big their sin is. Since the Muslims, by definition, are followers of Islam, and the Quran is their sacred scripture, the righteousnesses mentioned in the Quran are, therefore, valid indicators of the Muslim. It may be noted that inheritance is not on the list. It means offspring of the Muslim parent may not be Muslim if they don't possess the desired qualities listed in section 2.

Muslim Rituals: Faith (Shahada), Salat (Namaz), Fasting, Hajj and Zakah are the five pillars of Islam, out of which the first three are mandatory for all Muslims, while Hajj and Zakah are mandatory only for the rich. At least 23 verses⁷ in the Quran talk about Hajj and Umrah, but nothing is told about the reward. Almost the same is the situation regarding Fasting. There are at least nine verses⁸ about it in the Quran, but Allah commits reward only once in verse 33:35 for those who are fasting and also believing, obedient, truthful, patient, humble, charitable, and two others. There are at least 67 verses in the Quran talking about Salat, or "Aqimus Salah" (establish prayer), which is very much in the list of the righteous deeds, but it alone does not ensure Jannah. How strong are these three pillars which can't ensure Jannah even jointly? If the difference in the meaning of Salat and 'Aqimus Salah' are considered, Salat may not even be an indicator of Muslims. Of the five pillars, Faith is well covered in section 2.a. and Zakah in 2.b. The remaining in the list is the human attributes as listed in section 2.c, which must have some relation with the remaining three pillars. Yes, they have. The human qualities including charity are the goals to achieve, the said three pillars are the means to reach the goal, and Faith (Shahada) is the inspiration.

Effectiveness of the rituals: After the Faith, Salat is the most important ritual in Islam. Salat is regulated so strictly that what to say and how to move the body in Salat need to follow a standard practice except selecting text to recite from Quran.

Salat: Purity of body by washing face, hands and feet or by bath under specific situation is a precondition for Salat. I call it cleansing the body from dirt and harmful microorganism, which are the precondition of good physical health. A Muslim stands five times a day for Salat, imagining Allah in front of him and recites at least 17 times a day the first surah (Fatiha) plus some other text from the Quran. To me, surah Fatiha looks like a dialogue between Allah and His servant, which may be imagined as follows,

Servant: All praises be to Allah, the Lord of all that exists. The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful (1:1,2).

Allah: That's true. But I saw you doing just the opposite of what you are saying. I saw you praising a powerful man in your area, knowing well that he didn't deserve it. Your job was to help him to get rectified, but you did the reverse. I know you fear him. Is he more fearful than Me? I know you want his favour to flourish your business. Is he more helpful and merciful than Me? How can I accept praise and acknowledgement of a hypocrite like you unless you repent for what you did and make a firm commitment with me to abstain from such a misdeed?

Servant: The Master of the Day of Recompense (1:3)

Allah: Yes, I am. But are you ready for that day? Are you sure your income is halal, and you cheated none to earn it? Be careful because I may be unable to help you if any of my servants raise a valid complaint of cheating or deprivation of rights against you.

Servant: It is You we worship, and it is you we ask for help (1:4).

Allah: Really! Do you mean that you worship only Me and nobody else? Are you not involved in many misdeeds under the direction of your employer. You do so in fear of losing your job as if it is not Me but your employer who feeds you and your family. It is nothing but shirk [considering Allah a partner of someone or something], which is totally unacceptable to Me, and you know that. So, to ask for help from Me, you must choose only Me to worship and commit firmly to abstain from shirk.

Servant: Guide us to the straight path. (1:5).

Allah: Paths are very much shown in the Quran. They are straight in deed and the shortest route to reach Me. Recite the Quran more and more and keep on practising what it teaches. I am nearer to you than you can imagine, and it is only to help you. Unless you try hard to follow the paths already shown, how can I guide you to the straight path?

Servant: The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favour. Not of those who have earned [Your] anger or those who went astray (1:6,7)

Allah: You are My best creation. It can not be My pleasure to see you going astray. I can definitely protect you from going astray. But I shall not do it because it neither proves your ability to protect yourself from the harm of various tempting situations nor does it help Me in ranking all of you in terms of ability to do so and making it visible to everyone. So, don't blame Me. It is the rules of the game, which you call the law of nature.

The dialogue is only a sample showing its pattern that may have many variations depending on the situation. Muslims go through this process five times a day, namely at dawn, noon, afternoon, after sunset, and an early night. They recite surah Fatiha followed by some other texts from the Quran 17 times a day in five prayers, which is a minimum, but the common practice is almost double. In addition, they recite a good number of supplications, Takbir, Tahleel, Tasbeeh etc. Muslims begin Salat not later than ten and continue until death. As it is said earlier, the Muslims begin Salat by giving importance to the purity of the body. But the rest of the activities described above are only to ensure the purity of mind and self-control, which are essential to achieve the human attributes listed in section 2.c. A pure body and pure mind make a person perfectly healthy. They are the real assets of the society, and such a society is least dependent on the police.

Fasting: Fasting in the Arabic month of Ramadan is mandatory for all Muslims 12 years of age and more. Allah says, "The month of Ramadan is the one in which the Quran was revealed as guidance for mankind and as clear signs that show the right way and distinguish between right and wrong. So those of you who witness the month must fast in it (2:185P)." He also says, "O Believers, the Fast has been made obligatory on you just as it was prescribed for the followers of the Prophets before you. It is expected that this will produce piety in you (2:183)." During this month, fasters let their sense organs, particularly the tongue, eyes, and ears fast against whatever is prohibited in Islam. Some of them detach themselves from almost everything other than Allah during this month.

Hajj: When the pilgrims get closer to Mecca, they enter a state of Ihram, which consists of wearing only two white pieces of cloth and removing all worldly adornments. Hajj is almost like a rehearsal for death symbolised by leaving home, the shroud represented by the Ihram and the day of resurrection and the judgment indicated by the large ocean of people gathering in Mecca. Wealth, colours, clans and nationalities don't matter at this time. It is one's nearness to Allah that only matters.

Hajj and its venue are commemorations of many incidents of spiritual interest, namely,

• Adam and Eve met here long after they descended to earth.
• Young Hagar, the wife of Abraham, had to strive alone in a desert for water to quench the thirst of her infant son Ismail and finally, they were miraculously blessed with a well-named zam-zam and a new settlement in Mecca.
• When Ismail grew up, Abraham was asked to slaughter him. Despite all persuasion of the devil not to do this, both father and son submitted to the divine command and prepared themselves to carry it out until Allah sent a ram to be sacrificed in place of Ismail. Pilgrims reenact this moment by throwing pebbles in the same location where Abraham pelted the devil.
• This is the place of birth and work of prophet Muhammad (PBUH) until he migrated to Medina ten years before his death.

It may therefore be concluded that Salat, Fasting and the Hajj are very effective for physical and mental health if practised with the right spirit; otherwise, they may even be completely useless. That Allah commits no reward for them is understandable because it looks unnecessary, and He is probably more interested in the final product than the manufacturing process. One who practices the rituals correctly will automatically be guided to achieve the qualities listed in section 2, for which Allah is committed to awarding him Jannah. If one takes care of a sapling properly, it will give him fruits in return. Fruit is the reward for taking care of the sapling. However, Allah knows the best.

If righteousness is considered as the goal of a religion, then every religion may be considered comprising of (i) goal, (ii) means to achieve the goal and (iii) faith on unseens that inspires the people to be religious. Comparing the religions with each other is beyond my ability. I shall try only to show the major differences between Islam and other religions. Since every religion is committed to the welfare of its followers, the goals of other religions may not differ much from Islam. Means to achieve the goals, namely, prayer, meditation, Fasting, pilgrimage, sacrifices etc., are usually seen in different religions in one form or the other. Since all these rituals are Faith oriented, they are likely to differ as much as they differ in Faith. For example, Allah says, "Say [O Muhammad], He is Allah, the One and Unique. He needs none, but all need Him. He neither begot any nor was He begotten, and none is comparable to Him (112:1-4)". He also says, " No visual perception can encompass Him, even though He encompasses all visual perception. He is the All-Subtle, the All-Aware (6:103)". The verses completely negate the Christian doctrine of the trinity, suggesting one God present in three entities Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They also reject the idolatry of Hinduism, proposing many Gods and Goddesses. Believing in the unity of Allah is very important because Allah wants the Muslim to stand firmly for the oppressed against the oppressor, no matter how powerful he may be. It is possible only when a Muslim considers none to fear except Allah. That's why a Muslim can't think of any co-sharer of Allah.

Regarding the prophethood of Muhammad (PBUH) and its acknowledgement in the Bible, Allah says, "And remember, when Jesus, the son of Mary, said, 'O Children of Israel, I am Allah's Messenger to you, I verify the Torah which has come before me, and I give you the glad tiding of a Messenger who shall come after me, his name being Ahmad [the other name of the prophet given by his mother]'. Yet when he came to them with Clear Signs, they said: 'This is sheer trickery." (61:6)

Regarding the previous prophets, Allah says, "Say, We have believed in Allah and in what was revealed to us and what was revealed to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Descendants [al-Asbat], and in what was given to Moses and Jesus and to the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and we are Muslims [submitting] to Him (3:84)." He also says, "And whoever desires other than Islam as religion – never will it be accepted from him, and he, in the Hereafter, will be among the losers (3:85)." The combined meaning of these two verses (3:84,85) is that the Muslims believe the said prophets and what was revealed to them. Still, they are not interested to know what the previous revelations were because they are given the latest version of the book of revelations, and the prophet sent as the last one. Verse 3:85 has put the non-Muslims on the horns of dilemmas because they have their religion obtained by inheritance, whereas the Muslims claim that Islam is only acceptable to Allah. Since everybody is obligated to be good and religion can immensely be helpful for it, nobody can deny the importance of choosing the most suitable religion. To do this, one may think to go through the following process.

Step 1: It is true that law does not work when a significant number of people in society are involved in immoral activities. Considering this fact and what is discussed above, do you consider religion essential for every individual for a peaceful society? Stop here if your answer is 'no'. Good luck.

Step 2: Which religion is the best to follow? Is it what you have inherited, without questioning how purposeful it is? Stop here if your answer is 'yes'. May God bless you.

Step 3: Which religion do you like to try first? Let it be Islam, the fastest-growing religion followed by the second highest majority of the people of the world. The next question is, how do you want to start? Before taking the pains of reading and understanding a book like Quran, it may be wiser and much easier to read reviews of the book. I recommend a book named 'The Bible, the Quran and Science', written by a non-Muslim physician. It reviews three religions, two of which ranking first and second in terms of the number of followers, and it is only 170 pages long. If you are interested only in the Quran, you may start reading from page 77, or if you want to have a preliminary idea about the book, the 'General Conclusions' from pages 162 to 164 may be sufficient. In addition, you may browse the internet to have a bird's eye view of relevant topics. But please remember that Islam had to spread, fighting mainly with Christianity. There was a bloody crusade between them lasting more than two centuries. Not all can always speak the unbiased truth in this situation. Now, what do you think? Do you feel curious to know more about Islam? Stop here. Congratulation, if you have got what you were looking for. Otherwise, go to step 5.

Step 4: There are many sites from which the Quran in English may be downloaded. If you find any verse difficult to understand, you may visit this site to see it translated by 28 different translators along with word by word meaning. For an in-depth discussion, you may also see 'Tafseer Ibn Kathir' at the end of the list on this site. The one pre-requisite for understanding the Quran is to study it with an open and detached mind. Whether one believes it to be a revealed book or not, one should, as far as possible, free one's mind of bias in favour of or against it and get rid of all preconceived opinions and then approach it with the sole desire of understanding it. Those who study it with preconceived notions of their own read their own ideas between its lines and cannot grasp what the Quran wants to convey. This method of study can never be fruitful, even with other books. Keeping it in mind, you keep on reading until you are convinced that the Quran is a book of divine revelation or it is not. Congratulation if your answer is in the affirmative. Otherwise, go to step 5.

Step 5: Take another religion and repeat the steps from step 3 with necessary modifications of the procedures depending on the religion. Since I know almost nothing about religions other than Islam, I cannot modify the steps suitably for other religions, so I leave this task for the readers.

I know how shallow my knowledge is about Islam. That's why I often thought but didn't dare to write an article like this. What forced me to write and publish it is a recent incident in India, my second home. Yes, I mean it because I married an Indian, my only son-in-law is an Indian, and I served in India for seven years until I became invalid to work. I got upset to see one Ms Nupur insulting my prophet and another Mr Nabin supporting her. But I am pleased to see the common Hindus standing so firmly in support of the Muslims on this issue. The accused are also Hindu, and one may question how they differ from the other Hindus. The only difference that matters in this connection is their involvement in politics. They are fond of enjoying the people's loyalty and benefitting from it. Telling lie is a sin, but they are not usually seen to suffer from this prejudice. Politicians usually don't criticise religion. But what to do if they have nothing to sell except religion to get the loyalty of the common people. That's why I am vehemently against the political parties having any declared or undeclared inclination to any religion. But I don't oppose religious organisations having no political motive.

Ms Nupur is a highly educated lady. That she would not know the truth about Muhammad (PBUH) marrying a teenage girl is very difficult to believe because tonnes of information about him is available on the internet. I shall make it crystal clear taking the help of a website which is only one of many of this type available on the internet.

• Muhammad (PBUH), when he got married, was the most wanted bachelor of unmarried Arab girls for his unparalleled honesty and physical look. He was popularly called 'Alamin' (truthful) from his boyhood. His reputation as a depositor was also proverbial.
• When he was 25, he married a 40 years old lady who became a widow twice before this marriage. As we know from their biographies and Hadiths, they were very happy and respectful to each other all through their lives. It is also evident from the fact that he married none until the death of his first wife at the age of 64 when he was 49. Is it not enough to overrule Ms Nupur's attempt to defame Muhammad (PBUH)?
• Within ten years of the death of his first wife, he married 12 women, all but two of whom were aged 35 to 50. Aisha (RA) was the youngest of all and the only virgin. Muhammad (PBUH) was Allah's messenger for both males and females, but the females didn't have easy access to the prophet because of the compulsion of pardah in Islam. So, to work with women, he required some female trainees who had no way but to be his wives because of pardah. Since all of his wives were elderly women, he married a teenage girl as desired by Allah understandably to get long-time service for the Muslim Ummah. Aisha (RA) served the Muslims for 44 years after the prophet's death and narrated 2210 Hadiths, the second-highest in number among all male and female narrators.

Solution: Giving Ms Nupur these arguments is useless. The people like her will keep on finding one after another similar to it. One way to discourage them is not to debate with them on anything related to religion. If one unexpectedly faces such debate, he may avoid it by saying, "I am not an expert in it, and I don't consider you an expert too. On principle, I shall tell nothing on it. But if you really want to know you may look for it in internet”. Saying that you can give him the link below. Alternatively, you can ask for time to find a suitable expert answer for him.

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