Islam and Sufism : A Mysticism in Islam

I wonder
from these thousand of "me's",
which one am I?
Listen to my cry, do not drown my voice
I am completely filled with the thought of you.
Don't lay broken glass on my path
I will crush it into dust.
I am nothing, just a mirror in the palm of your hand,
reflecting your kindness, your sadness, your anger.
If you were a blade of grass or a tiny flower
I will pitch my tent in your shadow.
Only your presence revives my withered heart.
You are the candle that lights the whole world
and I am an empty vessel for your light.

Sufism is the core of Islam .Islam and Sufism cannot be separated in the same way that higher consciousness or awakening cannot be separated from Islam. Islam is not an historical phenomenon that began 1,400 years ago. It is the timeless art of awakening by means of submission love. Sufism is the heart of Islam. It is as ancient as the rise of human consciousness. Many mentors and scholars may join issue with the above statement. They perceive sufism as an unacceptable distortion of Islamic beliefs and way of life. They find the rituals and practices as well as the believe wonder of many sufis repugnant to the teachings of Islam. They argue that sufism has brought about a confusion in the minds of its believers leading them away from the simplicity and purity of the glorious faith. Many orientalists, on the other hand, do not accept that sufism has a direct link with Islam and reject the idea that it has evolved from the consciousness inspired by the Quraan or the teachings of Muhammad. They affirm that its origin is firmly embedded in the mysticism of the Jew and Christian hermits and monks of the time and that their traditions not only inspired but also dictated the evolution of sufism.  The historical links between the three major monotheistic faiths makes it inevitable for a measure of similarity in the spiritual experience in each of them and this commonality of experience is seen by many enlightened scholars as an important factor which might be constructively employed for engendering a better understanding between the three communities.  "If Judaism, Christianity and Islam have no little in Common in spite of their deep dogmatic differences," remarks the Editor of 'the Mysticism of Islam ' by R. A. Nicholson 1966 edition, "the spiritual content of that common element can best be appreciated in Jewish, Christian and Islamic mysticism, which bears equal testimony to that ever-deepening experience of the soul when the spiritual worshipper, whether he be follower of Moses or Jesus or Muhammad, turn whole- heartedly to God." The hostility from within Islam is always countered by the argument that mysticism is founded not only on Quraan but also the sayings of the Prophet and the Imaams from his progeny. While it is conceded that the rituals and the practices of certain Sufi sects may seem to be offensive to the purity of the spirit of Islam, sufism par excellence is the science of gnosis which like many other sciences has its roots in Islamic culture.  "This science can be studied from two angles, one of them being sociological and the other scientific...............From scientific point of view the adepts in gnosis (IRFAAN) are called gnostics ('ARIFS). From social point of view they are known as sufis.  Anyhow, the gnostics and sufis are not an organized separate sect, nor do they claim to have formed any such cult. They are scattered over all Muslim sects.  But from social point of view they form a separate group and a separate body, having its characteristic ideas and special manners of life. They wear aparticular type of dress and grow their hair in a particular style. They live in hospices etc. Thus the sufis have to a certain extent become a separate sect from religious as well as social point of view . Anyhow there have always been and there are still, especially among the Shiahs, gnostics who are not apparently distinct from others, yet they are closely associated with gnosis and spiritual journey." (3)  The author clearly has in mind many Shiah mujtahids and scholars both of the past and the present who have, as Shiah leaders, made major contribution to irfaan. The most notable amongst the recent ones are Ayatullah Khumaini, Ayatullah Khooi, Allamah Muhammad Hussain Tabaatabaai and the author himself, Allamah Murtaza Mutahharri. None of these or any other mujtahid has ever established or encouraged the establishment of a separate organization or promoted any of the recognized sufi rituals. They have always welcomed, and also contributed to, the development of gnosis as a science. Ayatullah Khumaini, in his lectures on the opening chapter of Quraan deals at length with the misunderstanding regarding sufism and concludes: "We find certain scholars denying the validity of mysticism. This is regrettable." (4) In these lectures we shall confine ourselves to the "scientific" aspects of sufism and make only such cursory references to the "social" aspects as may be relevant. BACKGROUND OF SUFISM "The function of religion is to bestow order upon human life and to establish an "outward" harmony upon whose basis man can return inwardly to his Origin by means of the journey towards the "interior" direction. This universal function is especially true of Islam, this last religion of humanity,which is a Direct injunction to establish order in human society and within the human soul and at the same time to make possible the interior life, to prepare the soul to return unto its Lord and enter the Paradise which is none other than the Divine Beatitude. God is at once the First (al-awwal) and the Last (al-akhir), the Outward (al-zahir) and the Inward (al-batin). By the function of His outwardness He creates a world of separation and otherness and through His inwardness He brings men back to their Origin. Religion is the means whereby this journey is made possible, and it recapitulates in its structure the creation itself which issues from God and returns unto Him." (5)  The Quraan states in II:156 "Lo ! We are Allah's and lo ! to Him is our return."  The practical aspect of gnosis describes man's relation with the world and with Allah and explains the duties of the seeker if he wishes to attain unity with Allah. This part of gnosis is called the spiritual journey (sayr wa sulook). It explains that man must attain total comprehension of monotheism and that to attain this he has to travel through various stages. This journey can be undertaken only under the supervision of a spiritual guide who has passed through all the stages of the journey. The monotheism which a gnostic seeks is not the monotheism which a philosopher would understand it to be. To a philosopher, unity or oneness of Allah means that there is only one Essential Being to the exclusion of any other. A gnostic maintains that oneness of Allah means that Allah is the only really existing being. The existence of everything else is illusory. The spiritual journey is a journey of the human being as the illusory being to the stage where he may not see anything but Allah. This journey can only be undertaken if one has purified one's heart and one's soul through constant spiritual effort.  It is easy to confuse Sufism with Asceticism (Zuhd). Asceticism is the renunciation of the world for the sake of spiritual upliftment and the attainment of the hereafter. Gnosis may involve a measure of asceticism but the objective is to undertake the spiritual journey.  To prove validity of spiritual journey and gaining proximity to Allah, various verses from Quraan are cited. a. From the Holy Quraan XXIV:35-38 Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The similitude of His light is as a niche wherein is a lamp. The lamp is in a glass. The glass is as it were a shining star. (This lamp is ) kindled from a blessed tree, an olive neither of the East nor of the West, whose oil would almost glow forth (of itself) through no fire touched it. Light upon light, Allah guideth unto His light whom he will. And Allah speaketh to mankind in allegories, for Allah is Knower of all things: (This lamp is found) in houses which Allah hath allowed to be exalted and that His name shall be remembered therein. Therein do offer praise to Him at morn and evening-men whom neither merchandise nor sale beguileth from remembrance of Allah and constancy in prayer and paying to the poor their due; who fear a day when hearts and eyeballs will be overturned; that Allah may reward them with the best of what they did, and increase reward for them of His bounty. Allah giveth blessings without stint to whom he will. b. The Holy Quraan refers to the appetitive soul (nafsul-ammarah), the admonishing soul (nafsul-lawamah) and the contented soul (nafsul-mutmainnah) and says in Sura Fajr (The Dawn): But ah! thou soul at peace! Return unto thy Lord, content in His good pleasure! Enter thou among my bondmen! Enter thou My Garden! The Holy Quraan LXXXIX:27-30 And again in Surah Shams (The Sun): And a soul and Him Who perfected it and inspired it (with conscience of) what is wrong for it and (what is) right for it, he is indeed successful who causes it to grow. And he indeed is a failure who stunteth it. The Holy Quraan XCI:7-8 c. The Quraan repeatedly exhorts mankind to strive for Allah's pleasure and in Surah Ankabut (The Spider): As for those who strive in us, We surely guide them to Our paths, and lo! Allah is with the good. The Holy Quraan XXIX:69 d. Also from the Quraan: "He is the First and the Last, and the Outward and the Inward; and He is the Knower of all things." The Holy Quraan LVII:3 e. From the Quraan: "We verily created man and We know what his soul whispereth to him and We are nearer to him than his jugular vein." The Holy Quraan L:16 In addition to the Quraanic references the gnostics also rely upon several sayings and sermons of the Prophet Muhammad and the Holy Imaams. a. The Holy Prophet has said: "He who has known his self has known Allah." Conclusion:  The following two quotations from the compilation of sermons and sayings of Imam Ali  are also relevant. "There is no doubt that Allah the Almighty has made His remembrance the polish of the hearts. By means of it the deaf begin to hear, the blind begin to see and the arrogant become submissive. In every age and period Allah the Almighty has created men in whose minds He puts His secrets and through whose intellect he talks to them." Sermon 220 "A godly person enlivens his heart and annihilates his ego till what is coarse becomes soft. A bright light like lightening shines in front of him, shows him the way and helps him in advancing towards Allah. Many doors push him forward till he reaches the gate of peace and safety and arrives at the destination where he has to stay. His feet are firm and his body contented, for he uses his heart and pleases his Lord." Sermon 218

Islam and Christianity: A Qur'anic and Scientific Journey.

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Islam is the modern and scientific religion.It is preached after the Christianity.Islam declared tat Allah is is the owner of the Sovereignty .Christians seem to have an incredible ego, especially when it comes to other religions. Almost without exception, a Christian believes that his is the only true religion.Judaism have come along beforehand, but to the Christian, it was simply a preparation for the faith of Christianity.To his way of thinking, God made the Jews His Chosen people. This designation meant that the Jews were set aside by God, and it was to them, and them only, He sent His revelations and prophets. Therefore, the Christian feels he can only believe in Israelite prophets, and all others are impostors.

Islam presents another matter altogether for the Christian. Almost as soon as Islam burst out of Arabia following the death of Prophet Muhammad, the Christians began to carry on about the fact that a man from Arabia actually had the audacity to go around claiming he was a Messenger from God.

Even though Islam emphatically stated that it would be a denial of universal providence to God by saying that He would raise prophets in only one nation, the Christians still would not listen. Prophet Muhammad was not a Jew, therefore, in their eyes, he was a false prophet bearing false witness from a false god.

At first, the Christians reaction to Islam was simply that of low grumblings. When the Fatimid caliph Hakim destroyed the Christians shrines In Jerusalem in 1010, however, the grumbles developed into a roar. The Christians in Europe were already living in fear of a Muslim invasion, and this was the last straw. When Pope Urban 11 called for a Crusade in 1095 to liberate the Holy Land from the infidel, the hate campaign against Islam took off like a rocket, coming into its heyday in the twelfth century.

In their verbal assaults upon Islam, many vile and shameful things were foisted off by the so-called "learned people" of that time upon the people at large.

Prophet Muhammad was considered to be the Anti-Christ; a false prophet; a nationalistic charlatan a bombastic egotist; a tyrant; and a sensualist, among other things.

The Qur'an was said to be a collection of harangues, insane drivel, and "toilsome reading that is wearisome, confused jumble". In the eyes of the Mediveal Christians, the Qur'an could not possibly be the Word of God, since Muhammad was a false prophet, so it was said to be a forgery; they went on to say that it was nothing more than the result of epileptic seizures on the part of Muhammad which he then proceeded to pass off as divine revelation.

Islam, the religion, was seen as nothing more than an aberration--a heresy--of Christianity; it was viewed as the "religion of the sword", and was insultingly termed "Mohammedanism".

Muslims themselves did not escape the wrath of the Medieval Christians, who called them infidels, pagans, Saracens and Mohammedans.

Unable to accept Islam, the Christians became downright hostile. In their verbal assaults, the Church leaders made full use of techniques such as bias ands distortion, mispresentation, inventing details in order to attack them, etc. Time has not made things better, unfortunately; the time of the Crusades is long gone, but Christians still cannot accept Islam. For many modern Christians, however, a new approach is being taken to what they consider "the menace" of Islam.

The Missionary Efforts

The violence against the Muslims that marked the Crusades was also coupled with a missionary effort on the part of the Christians in order "to return the pagans to the Lord". These missionary efforts, however, met with very little success, despite all the time and money that has been spent over the many hundreds of years that it has been going on.

First efforts at converting Muslims utilized the same polemic that was used on the Christians themselves, and the Muslims, naturally, refused to listen to such talk. Time has shown the Christians that insults do not gain interest, so the modern Christian missionary effort to the Muslims has taken a whole new direction, in that the Christians are now "reaching out to Muslims with love".

In the United States, an organization called "Center for Ministry To Muslims" has put out quite an array of material aimed at presenting the message of Christianity to a Muslim. Polemics are not used, but methods are still unsavory as distortions, mis-translations and even fabrications are being used. The truth of Christianity is covered up under a sugary coating, and CMM targets those Muslims who are alone in this country, without the spiritual and moral support of family and friends.

One of the more interesting efforts on the part of the folks at CMM is a magazine entitled "Noor Ul Haq", or "Light of Truth". Printed in English and Arabic, its format gives all the appearance of it being an Islamic publication, yet it is really a Christian missionary magazine aimed at reaching Muslims. It makes use of Islamic terminology and Quranic revelations, but subtleness is the key here, as these things are distorted and interpreted out-of-context in order to give the impression to a Muslim that they back up Christian teachings. For a Muslim with limited knowledge, this sort of thing can lead to a good deal of confusion.

CMM is small-time, however, in the face of the Zwemer Institute For Muslim Studies. This California-based institution, which takes its name from a Dutch Reformed missionary who spent approximately fifty years in the early part of this century ministering to Muslims in the Middle East, trains Christians in the technique of ministering to Muslims. The students at this institute study Arabic, Islamic history, Islamic culture, and the state of Islamic faith and practice. These people really have their act together, and are not, by any means, ignorant when it comes to Islam.

Biased, yes; ignorant, no.

This is a very thorough effort: Student ministers and missionaries enrolled at the Institute take all sorts of regular classes on Islam; in addition to study carried out at the Institute itself, nine-hour seminars on Islam are available for interested church groups, and the Institute has a publishing center that churns out all manner of flyers, newsletters, brochures, pamphlets, books, and even films and videotapes.

It is all quite impressive for the Christian, but dangerous for the Muslim. The Christian missionaries who come out of this place no longer attempt to show that Islam is a "mass of errors". They now try to show that Islam contains "fragments of disjointed truths", and from there, they try to convince a Muslim that these fragments of truth are made whole in Christianity. Verbal assaults have now been set aside in favor of trying to establish doubt in the mind of a Muslim regarding his beliefs. The Christians hope that this doubt will lead to dissatisfaction, which will then lead to a switch from Islam to Christianity.

The Christian missionaries look with great interest at the tensions within the Muslim world today. The Zwemer Institute tells its people:

"Such displacement of peoples and disruption of normal lives has shaken old traditions and brought new openness among many Muslims to hear the good news of Jesus Christ...the myth of an impregnable Islam is no longer valid."[31]

The figures given by the Zwemer Institute for converts are no doubt "enhanced"--after all, small numbers won't keep the students and the money coming in--but the fact does remain that this Christian "tree" IS bearing fruit.

Muslims are being enticed to leave Islam for Christianity.

As Islam continues to grow, organizations like CMM and the Zwemer Institute are getting stronger and more adept themselves at what they do. No longer can the Muslim sit back and ignore this; it will come knocking on his door sooner or later, and he must be prepared. He must be strong in his faith, and he must know about "the other guy" in order to stand up to it.

The Anti-Hate Campaign

Although organizations such as CMM and the Zwemer Institute are chugging along quite nicely with their "reach out to Muslims with love" campaign, in the background lurks the other method Christians use even frequently to deal with Islam; it is the one that began during the time of the Crusades, and one which never fully died out. Dubbed "the Crusades Mentality", these verbal assaults on Islam are simply a continuation of activities that began over 900 years ago when Pope Urban II whipped up the crowds at Clermont regarding the infidels in the East.

Evidence that this hate campaign still continues to rear its ugly head can be seen in bookstores--particularly the Christian ones--and on the shelves of public libraries.

So-called "orientalists" in the nineteenth and twentieth century have written some pretty disgusting things on the Islamic world: examples can be found in Durant's "Story of Civilization", Gibbons' "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire", Gunther's "Inside Asia", H.G. Wells' "The Outline of History" --all of which are considered to be "classics" in the world of history. Bias and hostility shine through in all cases, and one can only wonder why these men would choose, as their life's work, to study a region of the world for which they feel so much hatred. Even Albert Hourani's recent and celebrated "A History of the Arab Peoples" is replete with bias and hostility.

But the anti-hate material really comes its own in the hands of the fundamentalist Christians: take the book "Islam Revealed", written by an Arab Christian in 1988. On its back cover, it promises to give its readers "an eye opening look at the deadly beliefs of every one in five people on earth".

American author Robert Morey, an "internationally acclaimed scholar" in the field of comparative religions--and a fundamentalist Christian to boot--recently came out with a book entitled "Islam Unveiled: The True Desert Storm" (1991) which claims, on its back cover, to "prove" that all the rituals and beliefs of Islam can be traced to pre-Islamic pagan origins. Dr. Morey also has a radio show in which he regularly blasts Islam; in a recent show, he actually came out and said:

"...if Muhammad were alive today, he most likely would be diagnosed as a psychotic serial-killer mass-murderer and child-molester. " Material such as this, just a representation of the considerable volume of hate material being produced today, is despicable. It merely serves to strengthen and expand the stereotypes of Islam held by Christians, and to increase the levels of distrust and hostility between members of the two faiths. How is it possible to approach one another on a friendly basis when garbage like this is permeating one's mind?

As Islam continues to grow and spread, these attacks will increase. The Christians are afraid, and this is one way they have chosen to deal with that fear. It is a method that has been around for hundreds of years, and they are most comfortable with it. Rather than try to open the doors of dialogue, they lash out in vitriolic fury.

Portrayal In Other Forms of Media

Besides the books, pamphlets, radio shows, etc., that are aimed directly at Islam, there are the more subtle attacks made by Christians through main-stream works of fiction and non-fiction, along with television and movie portrayals of Islam and Muslims as a seething mass of terrorism and terrorists.

Books include such works as "The Source" by James Mitchner and the recent "The Sum of All Fears" by Tom Clancy; then there are the stereo-typing titles such as "Jihad", "The Holy Sword", and "Sacred Rage". One quite disturbing novel, "Holy of Holies", tells the story of how several Frenchmen, with Soviet backing and Israeli support, level the Grand Mosque during hajj. And of course, forget Salman Rushdie's infamous novel "The Satanic Verses"; he has said time and time again that insulting Islam was not his purpose, but the names and places he has used in his book are just too coincidental to believe what he says.

Attacks made through television are interesting. In the summer of 1991, for instance, a series of debates were held between two Muslims and two Christians on matters of difference between the two religions. The six debates were televised on a Christian gospel show over several weeks, and the Muslims did a very good job of representing their faith, even in the light of outright hostility from all sides, including the moderator, the two Christian debaters, and even the predominately Christian audience.

The people from the television show, however, managed to get "the last laugh". first of all, they "edited" the broadcast tapes in order to cast the Muslims in a particularly bad light, and secondary, they issued a booklet in conjunction with the debate series for home viewers that was entitled "The Facts On Islam". A more appropriate title for the booklet would have been "The Fallacies of Islam", since one finds very little truth therein, but a lot of distortion, misrepresentation and outright lies.

As for films, there is "Black Sunday", where Palestinian "Terrorists" plot to annihilate all those attending the Superbowl (annual professional football championship game), along with the movie "Not Without My Daughter", which paints a truly terrible picture of relationships within Muslim families.

Stereotypes are fostered and continued by things such as this; as long as such continues, Islam will have a difficult time being seen in anything but an unfavorable light.

 Conclusion:

As Muslim, we must be strong when it comes to attacks such as this upon our faith--be it by "methods of love", or outright venom. God tells us in the Qur'an:

"Ye Shall certainly be tried and tested in your possessions and in yourselves; and ye shall certainly hear much that will grieve you, from those who received the Book before you and from those who worship partners besides Allah. But if ye persevers patiently, and guard against evil, --then that indeed is a matter of great resolution." (3:186)

The Mission of Jesus:A Qur'anic Discussion

Jesus is to be called"Isha" in Qur'anic point of view."Injil was revelled on "Isha"'Upon beginning his ministry at the approximate age of 30, Jesus made it clear that his mission from God was to get the Jews back on track: "For the son of man is come to save that which was lost." (Matthew 18:11)  "For I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. " (Matthew 15:24)  Jesus also made it clear just what God wanted him to do: "For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, He gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak" (John 12:49)   "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets. I am not come to destroy but to fulfil." (Matthew 5:17)  A careful study of Jesus' words will show that, contrary to what Christians may think, Jesus had no intention of starting a new religion; he only came to reiterate the message that God had given to all prophets before him: man was to obey God's Laws and worship Him alone. At no time during his ministry did Jesus claim to be anything more than a human being, inspired by God. Indeed, he referred to himself as the son of man, and made it clear, in a number of verses throughout the Gospel, that he was merely a Messenger of God: "Why callest thou me good? There is none good but One, that is God." (Mark 10:18) "...whosover receives me, receives not me, but Him who sent me." (Mark 9:37) "And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou has sent." (John 17:3) "Now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard from God." (John 8:40) "I ascend unto my Father and your Father, my God and your God." (John 20:17) Despite all his efforts--wonderful words backed up with some pretty nifty miracles--Jesus was soundly rejected, especially by his own people. Three years after he began his ministry, he was arrested and charged with sedition and blasphemy. Success had eluded him--at the end of his life on earth, he left behind only a mere handful of followers, nor more than 500 at most. This all changed dramatically, however, when a new preacher, claiming to speak in the name of Jesus, came upon the scene only a few years later. THE TRUE FOUNDER OF CHRISTIANITY The followers of Jesus, who called themselves "Nazarenes", continued to incite controversy wherever they went after Jesus had left the earth; they did this by continuing to echo his words of doom ahead for the Jews if they did not get their act together very soon. One of these Nazarenes, a man named Stephen, finally pushed things too far by letting loose with an inflammatory speech when hauled up in front of the Jewish judges known as the Sanhedrin. Howling with fury at his "Blasphemous" words, the judges jumped up and dragged Stephen out of the city, where he was stoned to death. This story can be found in Acts chapter 7 in the Bible. The execution of Stephen was observed by a young Jew named Saul. Born in Tarsus, not much later than Jesus himself, Saul had become part of the Jewish sect of the Pharisees; these "legal eagles" had become fanatic in their pursuit of the Nazarenes; following the execution of Stephen, Paul himself began to take a very active role in this endeavor. His performance in this capacity was so good that he was made chief agent for this purpose in Jerusalem, and he was given the necessary documents to extend the purge into neighboring cities. Approximately five years after Jesus' ascension into heaven, this twenty-five-year old zealot was on his way to Damascus to pick up a group of Nazarenes for return to Jerusalem when he had a vision in which he claimed Jesus appeared, asking why Saul was persecuting him. Various theories have been advanced as to just what happened to Saul that day--such as sunstroke, a hallucination, and even an epileptic seizure--but nothing is for certain except that whatever did happen changed a zealous persecutor into an ardent preacher. Saul changed his name to Paul and went off into the deserts of Arabia in order to think about just how he was going to go about carrying out what he believed to be a command from Jesus to go out and preach. Exactly WHAT to do was quite a dilemma for him, however; since the Jews had rejected Jesus and his message, Paul didn't think he stood much of chance of getting through to them, either. He made up his mind that it would be best to simply dismiss them off and target the Gentiles (non-Jews) instead. In order to do this, however, some creative thinking was definitely called for. The Romans and the Greeks, who made up the Gentile population of Paul's world, were pagans who worshiped a plethora of gods and goddesses. Temples and statues of their deities abounded in the land, and Roman law had it that all people, with the exception of the Jews, must pay homage to the gods. Paul knew that people with such deep-reaching pagan beliefs were not going to accept the idea that grace and salvation could come from a person who was only considered to be a most upright and righteous human being. If Paul wanted quick results in his ministry, he knew that he would have to "modulate" things a bit, taking into account the culture of the Gentiles. Paul Maier, in his book "First Christians", tells us that thirteen years elapsed between the time Paul "received his calling" and the time that he began preaching. During that thirteen years, Paul's creative mind put in a lot of overtime; when he finally returned to Damascus, he came back armed with the knowledge that the Gentiles would demand a tangible god within their new religion, and he was prepared to give this to them. Paul was wildly successful in his subsequent missionary efforts, what with the accommodations he ended up making for the Gentiles. Although the religion of Christianity takes its name from Jesus Christ, Paul of Tarsus must be considered as its true founder, as he is the one who conceived all of its doctrines, and set up its churches throughout the world of his time. Christians don't deny this, either: "No figure in Christian history stands so tall or has had such a tremendous influence as has Saul of Tarsus..."[3] In his book "The 100: A Ranking of the most Influential Persons In History", author Michael Hart concurs in saying: "No other man played so large a role in the propagation of Christianity."[4] There is one big problem with this picture, however: the teachings of Paul, the true founder of Christianity, cannot be found anywhere in the teachings of Jesus or in those of prophets before him.  CONCLUSION: Not only that, but Paul had little contact with the true disciples of Jesus who also might have set him straight; they were not in agreement with Paul's innovative teachings, and let him know this as much as possible. In the end, however, Paul's brand of Christianity won out because, through his charismatic personality, not to mention the fact that he and his companions out-matched the true disciples of Jesus in important manners such as social rank, wealth and education, he gained such a large following among the Gentiles. Judeo-Christianity, that of the disciples of Jesus, didn't stand a chance.Let's take a closer look at all of the innovations that Paul introduced into "his" religion of Christianity.

The Rights and Duties between Man and Woma:A Qur'anic Analysis.

                 "Allah has made the one of them to excel the other,"

 

 The Mankind is the mysterious creation of Allah.The creation was originated from Adam and Eve.While men are the physically stronger sex, the woman's biological make-up has made her excel as the homemaker. She alone can be impregnated, carryand deliver the child, and then suckle the baby. Her gentle, caring and selfsacrificingtemperament is best suited to bringing up children and looking after the home.

 To say that she should also earn a living is an unacceptable injusticeand implies that everything she does for her home and children is worthlessand needs to be supplemented by an outside cover. A woman already has toplay in society a great and noble role as mother of a new generation, a role for
which no man can claim the honors. It is because of her supreme role asmother that she is entitled to three times the devotion given to the father fromthe children.

The roles of men and women in the Qur’aan are dealt as:
"Men are the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah hasmade the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend from their means. Therefore, the righteous women are devoutly obedient, andguard in the husband's absence what Allah orders them to guard." (V.4:34)

This Divine injunction describes the man as Qawwam (maintainer) and thewoman as Qanitah (obedient) and Hafizatun lil-Ghaib (preserver of the secret).The Verse gives two reasons as to whymen are described as maintainers.Firstly, because

"Allah has made the one of them to excel the other," which means that He hasexcelled men to be physically stronger and more inclined to have a careeroutside the home. The history of mankind has always shown that men, fromthe most primitive to the most technologically minded, have assumed the roleof providing food, maintaining law and order in the community, waging waragainst enemies, and going on expeditions in search of new lands, adventure,food and even hidden treasure. The women have primarily stayed at home toprovide a stable environment for the children.

The second reason is that "they spend from their means." It is the man's duty toprovide financially for his family, and it is also the man who is required to givea dower to his wife at the time of their marriage. In the castle of his home, thehusband is the ruler and the wife is his pillar of support. As in anyestablishment, there can only be one ruler; a car with two drivers, a countrywith two kings or an army with two generals would all be in utter chaos anddisarray. The husband has thus been put in charge of his home, but this is aresponsibility and not a privilege.

CONCLUSION:

The different roles of the sexes means that never is one sex burdened with allthe duties while the other enjoys all the privileges. Instead they both haveindividual duties and privileges. The Qur’aan says in this regard:

"And they (women) have rights similar over them to what is reasonable,but men have a degree over them. And Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise." (V.

An Outline of Creation Man and Woman :A Qur'anic View

The Major religions(theist) are supposed  to be believed that  the creation of man and woman  was originated from the Adam and Eve. The Muslim accepts that the main purpose behind the creation of jinn and mankind was that they should worship Allah, struggle against the forces ofSatan and live their life according to Allah' s Commandments in order toachieve eternal bliss in Paradise.

"And I (Allah) created not the jinn and men except they should worship
Me (Alone)." (V. 51:56)
Also Allah said:
"Nay! But worship Allah, and be among the grateful." (V. 39:66)
At another place He said:
"Say (O Muhammad !): 'Verily, I am commanded to worship Allah by
obeying Him and doing religious deeds sincerely for His sake only." (V.
39: 11)
Equality of Men and Women as regards Religious Obligations and
Retribution
In this spiritual regard, Islam makes no distinction between men and women.
Both have a soul, both were created for the same purpose in life, both have a
duty to fulfill their religious obligations, both will be judged by the All-
Mighty, and both will be rewarded or punished according to their individual
actions. Whenever the Qur’aan mentions those fortunate beings who will enter
the Gardens of Bliss because of their piety and good deeds, it mentions men
and women together.
"And whoever does righteous good deeds, male or female, and is a (true)
believer (Muslim)], such will enter Paradise and not the least injustice,
even to the size of a Naqira (speck on the back of a date stone), will be
done to them." (V. 4:124)
"Whoever works righteousness whether male female while he (or she) is a
true believer (of Islamic Monotheism) verily, to him We will give a good
life (in this world with respect, contentment and lawful provision), and We
shall pay them certainly a reward in proportion to the best of what they
used to do (i.e., Paradise in the Hereafter)." (V.16: 97)
"The believers, men and women, are Auliyā ' (helpers, supporters, friends,
protectors) of one another; they enjoin (on the people) Al-Ma'rüf (i.e.,
Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam orders one to do), and forbid (people)
from Al-Munkar (i.e., polytheism and disbelief of all kinds, and all that Islam
has forbidden); they offer their prayers perfectly (Iqįmat-as-Salat), and
give the Zakat, and obey Allah and His Messenger. Allah will have His
Mercy on them. Surely, Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise." (V.9: 71)
"Verily, the Muslims (those who submit to Allah in Islam) men and women,
the believers men and women (who believe in Islamic Monotheism), the men
and the women who are obedient (to Allah), the men and women who are
truthful (in their speech and deeds), the men and the women who are
patient (in performing all the duties which Allah has ordered and in abstaining
from all that Allah has forbidden), the men and the women who are humble
(before their Lord Allah), the men and the women who give Sadaqāt (i.e.,
Zakat and alms), the men and the women who observe Saum (fast) (the
obligatory fasting during the month of Ramadān, and the optional Nawafil
fasting), the men and the women who guard their chastity (from illegal
sexual acts) and the men and the women who remember Allah much with
their hearts and tongues (while sitting, standing, lying, etc.); Allah has
prepared for them forgiveness and a great reward (i.e., Paradise)." (V.
33:35)
There can thus be no doubt that in the Hereafter, men and women will both be
judged, each individual bearing the burden of its own acts, each soul will be
punished for its transgressions and each will be rewarded for its obedience to
Allah.
Biologically Men and Women are two different sexes but complementary
to each other:
One may well ask that if there is such a complete and comprehensive spiritual
equality between the two sexes, why is this identical treatment not found in
other rights, duties and privileges. Muslims and especially non-Muslims
question why men go out to work while women are encouraged to stay at
home, why women have to wear the Hijāb (veil), why a brother receives a
larger share of inheritance than his sister, why a man can be a ruler but a
woman can not, etc., and they then conclude that Islam treats women as
inferior beings. Laws can never be discussed without being explained first, so
we must first consider the fundamental Islamic ethos that men and women are
two different yet complementary sexes. It is an established medical fact that
men and women have different biological compositions and temperaments.
Allah the All-Mighty created and knows this biological difference better than
we do, and has thus assigned to men and women the roles that each excels in
due to its nature. Neither gender is inferior or superior to the other; instead they
complement each other like the two halves of a whole. In everyday life we see
that society consists of many different kinds of people, all of whom play their
particular roles to keep society intact. The farmer and the doctor make different
contributions to the society, but both are equally important. Each excels in his
own field, and each provides a service for the other. Similarly, men and women
are different sexes and play vital roles in their own areas of excellence.
Worth of Women in Islam:
The Prophet's narrations speak of women with praise and respect. He ! once
said:
"The world and all things in it are precious, and the most precious thing
in the world is a virtuous woman." (Ahmad and Muslim)
He ! also said:
"Shall I not inform you about the best treasure a man can have? It is a
virtuous woman who pleases him when he looks at her, who obeys him
when he commands her, and who guards herself when he is absent from
her."
The Prophet ! said:
"Made beloved to me from your world are women and perfume, and the
coolness of my eyes is in prayer." (Ahmad and An-Nasa 'i)
The Honour of Mother in Islam:
In a famous incident, a man came to the Prophet ! and asked:
"O Messenger of Allah, who is the person who has the greatest right on me
with regards to kindness and attention?" He replied: "Your mother." "Then
Who?" He replied: "Your mother." "Then who?" He replied: Your mother."
"Then who?" He replied: "Your father." (Ahmad and Abu Dawud)
The Qur'an also discusses the immense honor and respect due to both parents,
and especially to mother:
"And We have enjoined on man (to be dutiful and good) to his parents.
His mother bore him in weakness and hardship upon weakness and
hardship, and his weaning is in two years give thanks to Me and to your
parents, unto Me is the final destination." (V. 31:14)
The Reward of upbringing Girls:
In the days when it was a custom to cherish the birth of male children and to
bury the female children alive because of shame and poverty, the Prophet !
has said:
"Whoever looks after two girls till they reach maturity, he and I will enter
Paradise together like these two (fingers).” (Muslim and A t- Tirm idh

Basic Teachings on Behavior, Conduct and Attitude: A Qur'anic Point of View.

Islam is the complete code of life.Qur'an is the miracle of of the universe.In The Holy  Qur'an there are a number of verses which gives the clear indication of basic teachings on behavior,conduct and human attitude.These are given in the below: 

(4:86) When a ( courteous) greetings is offered to you,meet it with a greeting still more courteous.

or ( at least) of equal courtesy.

(24:61) Do it even if you enter your own houses.

(24:27) Or you enter other houses.

(25:63) Or even if an ignorant  man addresses you.

(4:94) Say not to anyone who offers you a salutation,"You are not a believer".

(49:9) If two parties among the believers  fall into a quarrel , make peace between them;but if one of them transgresses beyond bounds against the other, then you should fight the  against party that transgresses until the other party complies with commands of Allah. But if the other party complies, make peace between them with justice, and be fair.

(49:10) All believers are brothers to each other.

(33:70) Always say what is directed to the Right.

(22:30) Shun the world that is false.

(17:53) Say those things that are best

(31:19) Speak fair to the people.

(31:190 Lower your voice and be moderate in your bearing.

(6:152) Whenever you give words, do justice even though it be against a kinsman.

(24:27) Enter not any one's house without permission.

(2:42) Cover not Truth with falsehood, nor conceal the Truth when you know what it is.

(31:18) Turn not thy cheek away from men in scorn, and walk not in the earth exultantly; Allah loves not any man proud and boastful.

(6:151) Come not near shameful deeds, whether open or secret.

(7:33) Avoid shameful  deeds.

(23:3) Avoid vain talk..

(28:55) Do not listen to vain talk.

(25:72) Witness no falsehood. if you have to pass by futility, pass by it with honourable avoidance.

(24:19) Do not spread scandal.

(17:37) Walk not on earth with insolence, for you cannot rend the earth asunder, nor reach the mountains in height.

(25:73) Walk on earth in humility.

Jesus and The Holy Qur'an:A Creative Study

Jesus was sent not only to reform the Jewish people from their deviation from the path of Allah but also bring back the universal message of the unity of mankind and this particular feature of his preaching made the Jewish people antagonistic Jesus.It was their firm belief that they were the favoured people of Allah and that their Scripture,the Torah,confirmed it.

Allah sent the Gospel (Injil) through Jesus to put mankind back on the true path.The writtings we have which appeared from 70 C.E.onwards were based on oral traditios and were written by several people at different periods of time .Enevitably, given their distance in time from the real Jesus,the personal bias of each writer came into their writings.Many works with many countless contradictions between them were in circulation.Eventually,four works from this number were arbitrarily canonised, which today are known as the Gospels.These four works are certainly not the same Gospel(Injil) of Jesus as mentioned in the Qur'an.

Modern biblical scholars are also of the opinion that Matthew,Mark,Luke and John are not the authors of the four Gospels but rather titles attributed to compilations of diverse materials already collected by others.Obviously, the possibility clearly exists that in the process of  compiling these doubtful works, ideas directly repugnant to the preaching of Jesus entered the text.The so-called Gospels contain many contradictions,one prime example being the purported ascension of Jesus.  Neither 'Matthew' nor 'John' speak of Jesus ascension. 'Luke' mentions the ascension with  reference to time,whereas 'Mark' does not give any clue as to when this occurrence was supposed to have happened.

Considered literally, the birth of Jesus without his mother Mary having had any physical relationship with a man appears to be a miracle .However, to explain further we need to consider the circumstances in which Mary grew up. From her very childhood she was living in a sanctuary under the guardianship of  Zacharias. Below, I quote from The Holy Qur'an by Maulana Muhammad Ali,who in his commentary on his on his translation,says the following:

                                  (3:45) clearly gives her news of the birth of a child and therefore the particular incident referred to in 3:44 is the incident of her marriage. The casting of lots and the contention as to who would have her his charge could not mean anything but her charge as a wife. Lots were evidently cast because as a child she she had been dedicated to the sanctury,and it is now by a lot only that she could be given away in marriage. 

                                    Thus in verse (3:45) quoted below, when she was given the good news of a son being born to her, she was perhaps not informed that her marriage had been decided. And she was told in reply, 'Even so' i.e. the child will be born by Allah bringing about the circumstances which result in the birth of a child. The words do not show that she would conceive out of the ordinary course of nature. Nor do the words that follow prove anything beyond the simple fact that Mary must give birth to a son in accordance with the prophecy. The whole of creation is brought about, we vare told again and again,by the divine word kun (Be) , yet no one supposes that creation is not brought about according to the laws of nature.

                                  (3:45-47) (And remember ) when the angels said: O Mary ! Lo! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a word from Him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, illustrious in the world and the Hereafter, and one of those brought near ( unto Allah). He will speak unto mankind in his cradle and in his manhood, and he is of the righteous.She said: O my Sustainer How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me? The Angel answered: Thus it is: Allah creates what He wills: when He wills a thing to be,He but says unto it, 'Be'-and it is .

'It is remarkable that the Qur'an makes no mention at all of Mary's husband,and in this respect, these circumstances bear a strong resemblance to those connected with Moses' birth,for there,too, no mention at all is made of Moses' father. The mere fact ,therefore,that there is no mention of Jesus' father is not sufficient to show that Jesus had no father.