FRIDAY SERMON: Way of Life

In the Name of  Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

In Verse 2:193, the Qur'aan urges believers to fight till corruption/persecution ends و يكون الدين لله. The part of the Verse which I have purposely left in Arabic could well be rendered as 'and the way of life becomes (free) for Allah'.

I have so rendered it because Allah Almighty has obviously given mankind the freedom of choice. Any human is free even to deny the very existence of Allah! He/she will not be punished on this earth just because of such denial so long as that person does not indulge in the persecution of or oppression to others. It is for Allah Almighty to deal with such a person, in the Hereafter!

Believers are urged to fight persecution/oppression and not the personal belief of any individual. Compulsion on anything, by itself,  is persecution!

Mohammad Shafi 

Friday, the 28th of May 2021

O Muslims - 33

 

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

Extract from QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir PART I:

57. Ya ayyuha allatheena amanoo la tattakhithoo allatheena ittakhathoo deenakum huzuwan walaAAiban mina allatheena ootoo alkitaba min qablikum waalkuffara awliyaa waittaqoo Allaha in kuntum mu/mineena

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5:57. O you who believe! Do not consider persons – from among those who were given the Book before you and from among the suppressors of Truth – who take your religion for a mockery and fun, as your close friends. And fear Allah if you do believe.

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Mohammad Shafi

Friday, the 25^th of September 2020.

 

 

No Compulsion 1

Extract from QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir PART II:

Chapter 109: Al-Kaafiroon (The Suppressors of Truth)

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

1. Qul ya ayyuha alkafiroona

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109:1. Say, “O you who suppress the Truth!”

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2. La aAAbudu ma taAAbudoona

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109:2. “I worship not that which you worship,”

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3. Wala antum AAabidoona ma aAAbudu

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109:3. “And you worship not Him Whom I worship,”

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4. Wala ana AAabidun ma AAabadtum

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109:4. “And I shall worship not that which you worship,”

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5. Wala antum AAabidoona ma aAAbudu

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109:5. “And you worship not Him Whom I worship.”

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6. Lakum deenukum waliya deeni

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109:6. “For you your way of life and for me, mine.”¹

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1. It was indeed a very fair offer to the kaafiroon. The Prophet preached to them the Islamic way of life. If they accepted it, well and good; and if they did not, well, there was no compulsion. It was left for Allah to deal with their disbelief.

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Mohammad Shafi

Friday, the  10^th of May 2019

The Right Path

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

Extract from QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir PART I:

77. Qul ya ahla alkitabi la taghloo fee deenikum ghayra alhaqqi wala tattabiAAoo ahwaa qawmin qad dalloo min qablu waadalloo katheeran wadalloo AAan sawa-i alssabeeli

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5:77. Say, "O people of the Book! Commit no unjust excesses in your religion (way of life) and follow not the vain desires of people who went astray before, and who led many astray and (themselves) went astray from the Right Path."³²

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32. At the time of revelation of the Qur'aan, this divine directive was addressed to the Jews and the Christians. But now, it is equally applicable to the Muslims. They too are the people of the Book and they too are committing unjust excesses in their religion, as do the Christians and the Jews. Through the ahaadeeth and through the "learned" books of the fuqaha they have unjustly made additions to and subtractions from their Religion, and have thus polluted the pristine purity, clarity and beauty of Qur'aanic Islam.

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Mohammad Shafi

Friday, the 2^nd of November 2018.