Islam and the World around

Once, Imam Kadhim (a.s.) was passing by the house of  Bishr Haafi , when he heard the sound of dance and music coming from inside. At that very moment a slave-girl came out of the house to throw some garbage. “Is the owner of this house a free person or a slave?” the Imam (a.s.) asked her. The slave-girl replied, “He is a free man.” Hearing this, the Imam (a.s.) remarked, “You speak the truth, for had he been a slave, he would have feared his Master.” When the slave-girl came back inside the house, Bishr, who had been consuming wine, asked her what took her so long. As soon as the slave-girl related what had happened, Bishr immediately got up and ran bare-footed after the Imam (a.s.). Once he had caught up with the Imam, he expressed shame and repentance over his acts, sought forgiveness and amended his wrongful ways.

The blessed month of Ramadan is a time for inner reflection, self-discipline and self-improvement. If put into proper practice, these self-checks lead to purification of the inner-self. The fasting performed in Ramadan is one of the most successful ways to formulate good habits. When conducted for the worship of God, fasting gives one control over personal desires and drives. Based on research conducted by philosophers and psychologists, and as described in “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens”, it takes two to four weeks to develop a habit or to change one. This is exactly what happens in Ramadan, even though one may not realize it. One’s inner-self gives birth to good habits and there is an overall self-improvement. This includes a heightened sense of patience, generosity, helping others, utilizing time more effectively and developing healthy eating habits. The most significant change of all is that, through practicing self-restraint in Ramadan, Muslims become spiritually closer t...

Islam views life as a compact whole and does not divide it into many separate and conflicting parts. The economic aspect is one of the most important parts of our life, while not being the whole of it. The Islamic system is balanced and places everything in its right place. Islam has given detailed regulations for the conduct of our economic life which concerns mainly the earning and use of wealth.  Man needs bread to live but he does not live for bread alone. This means that earning and spending money is essential for our living, but we do not live only for this. We have a greater purpose in life. We are Allah’s agents (Khalifah) on earth. We not only have a body but we also have a soul and a conscience. Without our soul and conscience, we would be considered little more than animals.  Everything in Islam is for the benefit and welfare of mankind. The economic principle of Islam aim at establishing a just society wherein everyone will behave responsibly and honestly, and not ...

Tolerance means ‘’to bear.’’ As a concept, it refers to respect, acceptance and appreciation of the rich diversity of cultures, forms of expression and ways of being human. In Arabic, it is called  tasamuh . Words like  hilm  (forbearance) or  ‘afw  (forgiveness) or  saf-h  (overlooking) also convey the meaning of tolerance. In Persian and Urdu, we use the word  rawadari  which is derived from  rawa  meaning acceptable or bearable and dashtan  meaning “to hold”. Thus it means to hold something acceptable or bearable. Intolerance has become the culture of the day. It is causing death, genocide, violence, religious persecution as well as confrontations at different levels. Sometimes it is racial and ethnic, sometimes it is religious and ideological, and sometimes it is political and social. Whatever may be the reason, intolerance is painful in each situation. How can we solve the problem of intolerance? How can we bring tolera...

Thirteen representatives from  Thajeeb  tribe of Yemen, came to visit Prophet (May peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Prophet hosted them nicely and assigned Bilal (May Allah be pleased with him) to help them. They learned many things from prophet and were ready to return to their tribe to teach them what they have learned. Prophet advised his companions to present each of them with gifts better than what he used to give to any other representative groups. He inquired if any one had left to get the gift. “Yes, the boy who guards our vehicles outside” “Please ask him to come over”. They took that boy to Prophet. He introduced himself. “I am from  Abadee  tribe. You have given all members of our group with whatever they need. Will you give me what I need too?” “Indeed, What are your needs?” My needs are different from that of my friends. Though they came out of their love for Islam, I came here so that Allah’s prophet will pray for me to get my sin...

When it comes to  Zakat , many a time people discuss only about items, rates and the difference of opinions among scholars about these. But, they tend to ignore the very important side- that is establishing a  Zakat  system in place.  Many times, Qur’an discusses  Zakat  right after mentioning Salah. The very first problem arose in the Islamic society after the demise of beloved Prophet, who established an ideal  Zakat  system, was some people declining the payment of  Zakat . Some hypocrites claimed that Prophet is no more, so they don’t have to pay  Zakat . This is how Khalifa Abu Bakr(R) responded to them: I swear upon Allah, I will declare war against those who distinguish (offering one and denying another) between Salah and  Zakat . And the Companions of Prophet supported him. The hesitation in giving out wealth is a human nature. Remember what Qur’an says: Indeed mankind, to his Lord, is ungrateful. And indeed, he is t...