Inshirah Abdel Jaleel, 59, of Tampa, Fla., who was Rodney Evans when he graduated from Copiague High School in 1968.
So much was going on. Martin Luther King had been assassinated. The community was bubbling with turmoil and the war. A neighbor's son, Ronnie Pannell, had been killed in 1965, and that's when I became aware of the war. But it hadn't really hit home until they enforced the draft and I had high school friends who were getting killed over there. Woody Adams was only 18 and he was killed.
There was definitely the feeling that the draft was an injustice. We didn't feel we had rights when someone could hover over you and say you are going to follow orders and fight our war or you are going to go to jail. There was definitely some anger behind it, because this was a war I didn't believe in in the first place. I took the attitude of Muhammad Ali, who said these people have never done anything to me, whereas the very people who had enslaved my people were claiming the right to draft me and send me thousands of miles from home for an unworthy war.
By that summer, the war had become a principal focus of our lives because people we knew were getting drafted and people we knew were getting killed. Everyone had their eyes on the [draft] lottery. . . .
الاثنين، يوليو 13، 2009
YouTube - Exclusive: US Afghan forces bomb own base - 13 Jul 09
seems like the Taliban are NOT losing, nor do they hide behind women and children, but are standing up and chasing the Paper Tiger out of their country
الجمعة، يوليو 10، 2009
الخميس، يوليو 09، 2009
Vietnam voices: Inshirah Abdel Jaleel -- Newsday.com
SUMMER OF '69
Vietnam voices: Inshirah Abdel Jaleel
Inshirah Abdel Jaleel from Copiague.
I went to Cheyney State that fall, but dropped out to help out after my father passed. I was drafted almost immediately. I didn't want to go, but my folks didn't have money to send me to Canada. My mother wanted me to go AWOL.
The war changed people. You took on a whole 'nother character once you got there. The first time I was in combat, I ran. I threw my helmet off, dropped my gun and started running. And I remember a guy from Texas knocked me down. He said "You're from New York. Do you really think you can run that far?" And I knew then that I was either going to rumble or I wasn't going to make it. I couldn't be the nice guy I had been on Long Island.
الأربعاء، يوليو 08، 2009
Defenseless Muslims Run for their Lives - Ummah.com - Muslim Forum
Defenseless Muslims Run for their Lives
URUMQI — With thousands of rampaging, armed Han Chinese mobs, running amok in the streets of Urumqi city, helpless Uighurs had no other option but to run for their lives.
"There is too much hatred around now," Ali, an Uighur man, told Agence France Presse (AFP) on Wednesday, July 8.
Thousands of Han Chinese mobs, armed with bats and other weapons, are roaming the streets, hunting down Uighurs.
"Get them! Strike! Strike! Strike!" dozens of Han Chinese armed with makeshift weapons screamed as they saw three Muslim Uighur men.
Hearing the chants of the Han mob, the terrified trio began running but only two managed to escape leaving the third to face horror and dozens of attackers.
Not far away in central Urumqi, about 20 armed Han mobsters beat and kicked a Uighur man nearly to death.
"I'm too afraid to go home tonight," said Halisha, a 30-year-old eye doctor, insisting that he prefers to sleep in his small clinic rather than venturing into the dangerous streets.
"Who knows if I can trust my neighbors or the people on the street? It's safer here for now."
Urumqi has been boiling since Sunday, when nearly 1000 Uighurs took to the streets to protest discrimination and cultural and religious controls.
At least 156 people were killed and more than 1,000 wounded when police unleashed a massive crackdown on the Turkish-speaking minority of more than eight million.
The unrest has drawn global condemnation, with organizations and Western leaders urging China to exercise self restraint.
Several human rights groups have expressed concern over the fate of 1,434 people who were taken into police custody over Sunday’s unrest, saying they could be tortured or mistreated.
Genocide
The rampage of Han Chinese continued as Beijing poured thousands of troops into the city in a massive show of force.
According to eyewitnesses, none of the Han attackers was arrested by the security forces, who only worked on dispersing the mob.
Exiled Uighur groups warned of a "genocide" against Muslims in the Xinjiang region.
"A true genocide of the Uighur people is in progress," Torgan Tozakhunov, deputy director of the Uighur cultural centre in Kazakhstan, home to 220,000 Uighurs, told AFP.
"The Chinese authorities will have to answer for these crimes in front of the international community."
Turkish Prime Minister Racab Tayyib Erdogan demanded on Wednesday an to "savagery" committed against Uighur Muslims.
"Our expectation is for these incidents that have reached the level of savagery to be rapidly stopped," he said in televised remarks.
"Necessary measures must be taken to prevent this brutality. We are temporary member of the UN Security Council for 2009-2010. We will also take these events into consideration there."
Uighur Muslims accuses the government of settling millions of ethnic Han in their territory, a vast region with large oil and gas reserves, with the ultimate goal of obliterating its identity and culture.
They also cite a recent government plan that has brought the teaching of Mandarin Chinese in Xinjiang schools, replacing their local dialect.
URUMQI — With thousands of rampaging, armed Han Chinese mobs, running amok in the streets of Urumqi city, helpless Uighurs had no other option but to run for their lives.
"There is too much hatred around now," Ali, an Uighur man, told Agence France Presse (AFP) on Wednesday, July 8.
Thousands of Han Chinese mobs, armed with bats and other weapons, are roaming the streets, hunting down Uighurs.
"Get them! Strike! Strike! Strike!" dozens of Han Chinese armed with makeshift weapons screamed as they saw three Muslim Uighur men.
Hearing the chants of the Han mob, the terrified trio began running but only two managed to escape leaving the third to face horror and dozens of attackers.
Not far away in central Urumqi, about 20 armed Han mobsters beat and kicked a Uighur man nearly to death.
"I'm too afraid to go home tonight," said Halisha, a 30-year-old eye doctor, insisting that he prefers to sleep in his small clinic rather than venturing into the dangerous streets.
"Who knows if I can trust my neighbors or the people on the street? It's safer here for now."
Urumqi has been boiling since Sunday, when nearly 1000 Uighurs took to the streets to protest discrimination and cultural and religious controls.
At least 156 people were killed and more than 1,000 wounded when police unleashed a massive crackdown on the Turkish-speaking minority of more than eight million.
The unrest has drawn global condemnation, with organizations and Western leaders urging China to exercise self restraint.
Several human rights groups have expressed concern over the fate of 1,434 people who were taken into police custody over Sunday’s unrest, saying they could be tortured or mistreated.
Genocide
The rampage of Han Chinese continued as Beijing poured thousands of troops into the city in a massive show of force.
According to eyewitnesses, none of the Han attackers was arrested by the security forces, who only worked on dispersing the mob.
Exiled Uighur groups warned of a "genocide" against Muslims in the Xinjiang region.
"A true genocide of the Uighur people is in progress," Torgan Tozakhunov, deputy director of the Uighur cultural centre in Kazakhstan, home to 220,000 Uighurs, told AFP.
"The Chinese authorities will have to answer for these crimes in front of the international community."
Turkish Prime Minister Racab Tayyib Erdogan demanded on Wednesday an to "savagery" committed against Uighur Muslims.
"Our expectation is for these incidents that have reached the level of savagery to be rapidly stopped," he said in televised remarks.
"Necessary measures must be taken to prevent this brutality. We are temporary member of the UN Security Council for 2009-2010. We will also take these events into consideration there."
Uighur Muslims accuses the government of settling millions of ethnic Han in their territory, a vast region with large oil and gas reserves, with the ultimate goal of obliterating its identity and culture.
They also cite a recent government plan that has brought the teaching of Mandarin Chinese in Xinjiang schools, replacing their local dialect.
الثلاثاء، يوليو 07، 2009
Afghans prefer Taliban to US troops?
US forces engaged in a massive anti-Taliban military operation in southern Afghanistan have become the target of Afghan resentment.
While some Afghan villagers have joined the Taliban out of poverty or fear, others, enraged by the loss of relatives in US air strikes, have taken up arms to seek revenge on foreign troops or to protect their homes
Residents and local officials warn that Operation Khanjar -- which sees the advancement of 4,000 US Marines to eliminate militant elements in the south -- could fuel tensions.
The Taliban virtually rule much of the southern provinces such as Kandahar and Helmand, with seven districts out of the latter's 13 districts controlled by the militants.
Still worse, many Afghans believe they would be better off under the Taliban extremism and view artillery fire and air strikes by foreign forces as more dangerous.
"People are hostages of the Taliban, but they look at the coalition also as the enemy, because they have not seen anything good from them in seven or eight years," said Hajji Abdul Ahad Helmandwal, a district council leader from Nadali in Helmand Province.
In opium-producing Helmand, many hold grudges against NATO soldiers for mistreating them during counter-narcotics operations. They complain that the troops carried out nighttime raids on houses, killed people inside their homes, and turned their sniffer dogs on them.
US military officials say Marines will seek opportunities to talk to village elders upon their arrival to explain their presence there.
While some Afghan villagers have joined the Taliban out of poverty or fear, others, enraged by the loss of relatives in US air strikes, have taken up arms to seek revenge on foreign troops or to protect their homes
Residents and local officials warn that Operation Khanjar -- which sees the advancement of 4,000 US Marines to eliminate militant elements in the south -- could fuel tensions.
The Taliban virtually rule much of the southern provinces such as Kandahar and Helmand, with seven districts out of the latter's 13 districts controlled by the militants.
Still worse, many Afghans believe they would be better off under the Taliban extremism and view artillery fire and air strikes by foreign forces as more dangerous.
"People are hostages of the Taliban, but they look at the coalition also as the enemy, because they have not seen anything good from them in seven or eight years," said Hajji Abdul Ahad Helmandwal, a district council leader from Nadali in Helmand Province.
In opium-producing Helmand, many hold grudges against NATO soldiers for mistreating them during counter-narcotics operations. They complain that the troops carried out nighttime raids on houses, killed people inside their homes, and turned their sniffer dogs on them.
US military officials say Marines will seek opportunities to talk to village elders upon their arrival to explain their presence there.
Cover-Up Charged in 1996 Killing of French Trappist Monks in Algeria - TIME
Cover-Up Charged in 1996 Killing of French Trappist Monks in Algeria - TIME: "Cover-Up Charged in Killing of Algerian Monks"
Proof of the Duplicity of Governments in Demonizing the Mujaahideen
Here we have even kuffar acknowledging in a specific instance, 2 governments colluding with one another in the murder of civilians while casting the blame on Mujaahideen groups in order to inflame the populace against the Jihaad.
Please, please read this Time report:
Here is an except:
Well, now those claims have been substantiated by officials:
http://www.time.com/time/world/artic...=rss-world-cnn
There are even reports of planting double-agents who lay claim to attacks as well as declare themselves as part of the efforts of Mujaahideen, all the while working for the government in order to: "...(fuel) an escalation of terrorist violence and (serve) as its face for the public to revile
Proof of the Duplicity of Governments in Demonizing the Mujaahideen
Here we have even kuffar acknowledging in a specific instance, 2 governments colluding with one another in the murder of civilians while casting the blame on Mujaahideen groups in order to inflame the populace against the Jihaad.
Please, please read this Time report:
Here is an except:
اقتباس:
| The Algiers regime has long been dogged by unsubstantiated claims that it has exploited — or at times staged — spectacular violence assigned to jihadist groups as a means of provoking popular reaction in support of the state. ... |
http://www.time.com/time/world/artic...=rss-world-cnn
There are even reports of planting double-agents who lay claim to attacks as well as declare themselves as part of the efforts of Mujaahideen, all the while working for the government in order to: "...(fuel) an escalation of terrorist violence and (serve) as its face for the public to revile
الأربعاء، يوليو 01، 2009
People Delude Themselves - Ummah.com - Muslim Forum
Human Beings Have a Great Capacity for Self-Delusion
By Imaam ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah rahimahullaah
Taken from 'al-Jawab al-Kafi li-man sa'al `an al-Dawa' al-Shafi'
There are two things one should be take heed of if one wishes to attain success and felicity:
1) To know the details of the means of attaining good and evil, and to beclear about these through witnessing them in the world around, through one'sown experience and that of others, as well as through reports one has heardabout earlier and latter nations. One of the most effective means for attaining this is pondering over the Qur'an, for along with the Sunnah, it clearly explains the paths to good and evil. If you turn your attention to
them, they will suffice you. They will inform you of Allah's treatment of the obedient, and of the sinners. Moreover, apply what you read to practical experience, and you will see the illustration of this - that Allah is true,
the Messenger is true, the Qur'an is true, and that Allah fulfills His promise. History contains details of the paths to good and evil mentioned in the Qur'an and Sunnah.
2) Beware of deceiving oneself with regard to these paths. This is very important, for the servant knows that sin and heedlessness are harmful to him in his world and the Hereafter, and yet he may deceive himself through relying on Allah's pardon and forgiveness, by procrastination of repentance, by performing istighfar only verbally, by doing good deeds [after impetuously sinning], by knowledge, by justifying his sins by the argument of destiny, by citing exam ples of people committing similar sins, or by following in the footsteps of ancestors and elders.
Many people think that they can perform some sin, and then if they say Astaghfirullah" the sin will disappear. Or, they may deceive themselves with ahadith such as:
"Whoever says "SubHaanallaahi wa-biHamdih" one hundred times in a day, his sins are taken off from him, even if they be like the foam of the ocean." Or:
"A servant committed a sin and then said, 'O Lord! I have committed a sin, so forgive me,' and so he was forgiven . . . . then Allah says, 'My servant knows that he has a Lord Who forgives sins, and takes [to task] for them. I have forgiven My servant, so let him do as he wishes.'"
Such people cling to the texts of hope, and hold fast to them with both hands, and put [all] their reliance in them, such that if they are reprimanded for committing some sin, they will recite all that they known about Allah's mercy and forgiveness. Some went to excessive limits in this, such that they claimed that to remain free of sins is being ignorant or under-estimating Allah's mercy and pardon.
Some deceived people cling to the notion of fatalism; that the servant has no free-will and that he is compelled to commit sins. Other cling to the notion of irja' (false hope), claiming that faith is merely affirmation, and that deeds are neither a part of faith nor have any effect upon it. According to their claim, the iman of the most sinful of believers is just like the eeman (faith) of the angels Gabriel and Michael.
Some are deceived by their fathers and elders, thinking that they have a rank before Allah, such that they would not leave them to perish. They take this by analogy from the behavior of worldly kings, who might grant a favor or pardon to someone based on the merits of his father or relatives. Such people are used to being taken out of difficult situations by their fathers, and are under the impression that this may happen in the Hereafter too.
Others deceive themselves by reasoning that Allah has no need of punishing them since He gains nothing from it, and He does not lose anything by showing them mercy. Such a person may say, 'I am in dire need of His mercy, and He is not at all needy of [anything]. if a poor, thirsty person were in dire need of a drink of water from someone in whose premises there flows a river, he would not be denied it, and Allah is more generous, and more expansive in mercy.'
Others are deceived by ridiculous misinterpretations / misunderstandings, e g.
"Your Lord will give you, so that you become pleased." [Surah Duha, 5]
He says : I am not pleased to enter the Fire. This is despicable ignorance, and clear lies, for he should be pleased by what Allah is pleased by, and it is not against Allah's pleasure to punish the oppressors, wrong-doers, evil-doers, traitors and those persistent on major sins.
"Allah forgives all sins." [Surah Zumar, 93]
This is also despicable ignorance, for this verse refers to those who repent otherwise it would imply invalidation of the verses threatening punishment for the sinners. This is specified by another verse,
"Allah does not forgive that partners be associated with Him, and He forgives anything beneath that to whomever He wills." [Surah Nisa,48],
Also, "None will burn in it except the most miserable one who rejected and turned away [from the truth]." [Surah Layl, 15-16].
This is a specific fire from among the various levels of Jahannam, and moreover the fact that only the rejecters will burn in it does not rule out that others may enter it. "[Hell] has been prepared for the unbelievers." [Surah Baqarah, 24] . The fact that it has been prepared for the unbelievers does not rule out that sinful Muslims may also be punished in it, just as the fact that Heaven "...has been prepared for the pious" [Surah Aali-`Imran 133] does not rule out that people with the smallest grain of faith may enter it even if they were not pious.
Some are deceived by fasting the days of `Ashura and `Arafah, such that some may even say that the fast of `Ashura' expiates the whole year, and the fast of `Arafah remains as a surplus of reward. Such people have failed to realize that the fast of Ramadan and the 5 daily prayers are greater and more noble than the fasts of `Arafah and `Ashura, and that [it is understood that] sins are [only] forgiven as long as major sins are avoided. So, [fasting] from one Ramadan to another, [praying] from one Jumu`ah to the next, act in a mutually strengthening manner to achieve forgiveness of minor sins, provided major sins are avoided. So, how then can an optional fast expiate every major sin of a person while he still persists upon the sins, and has not repented from them? Also, it is possible that these two optional fasts expiate all sins in totality, but that this has certain prerequisites and conditions, such as avoidance of major sins, or that the expiation is achieved in conjunction with other good deeds, much the same as the 5 daily prayers and the fasting of Ramadan expiate minor sins in conjunction with the avoidance of major sins. "If you abjure the major things which you are prohibited from, We shall expiate you your evil deeds." [Surah Nisa, 31]
Some are deceived by the Hadeeth Qudsi, "I am according to the good expectation/thought of My servant, so let him think of Me as he wishes." i.e. that whatever he thinks I will do to him, I will. But, good expectations can only be with good conduct, for one who does good expects that his Lord will deal with him well, will not break His promise, and will accept his repentance. As for the one of evil conduct, who persists upon major sins, oppression and other evils, the desolation of sin, wrongdoing and [other] prohibited things prevent him from having good expectations of his Lord. This is something we witness in everyday life. A disobedient employee who has run away with company property will not have a good expectation of his boss. The evil of wrong deeds cannot coexist with good expectation. The best in expectation of his Lord's mercy is the most obedient to Him. Al-Hasan al-Basri said, "The believer has good expectation of his Lord, so he make his deeds good. But, the evil person has bad expectation of his Lord, so he does evil."
How can someone claim to have good expectation of his Lord when he is like a runaway, and is doing things which displease and anger his Lord, and has abandoned His orders, and is at war with Him. How can one have good expectation of his Lord if he thinks that He does not see him? "And, you used not to conceal yourself, lest your hearing, sight and skin testify against you, but you though that Allah does not know much of what you used to do. And that, your expectation which you entertained about your Lord, has destroyed you, so you have become among those lost/ruined." [Surah Fussilat, 23] So, these people, who thought that Allah did not know much of what they did, actually had ill-expectation of their Lord, and that destroyed them. Such people are deceived if they think they will directly enter Heaven; they are fooling themselves; Satan is leading them astray and beguiling them.
Ponder over this.
Consider : how is it possible for one's heart to be certain that one is going to meet Allah, that Allah sees and hears all that he does, and knows his secret open affairs, and that he will be made to stand before Allah, answerable for all his deeds - how can one be certain and aware of all of this, and yet persist upon things which displease Allah; persist upon abandoning Allah's orders, neglecting His rights, and yet claim that he has good expectation of Allah?!!
Abu Umamah Sahl ibn Hanif reports: `Urwah ibn al-Zubayr and I entered upon `A'ishah and she said : If only you had seen the Messenger of Allah in one of his illnesses; [when] he had 6 or 7 dinars. The Messenger of Allah ordered me to distribute them [in charity?], but the pain of the Messenger of Allah kept me from doing that, until Allah cured him. Then, he asked me about them : "What have you done? Had you distributed the 6 dinars?" I said, "No, by Allah. Your pain had kept me from doing so." He asked for them to be brought [to him], and put them in his hand then said, "What would be the expectation of Allah's prophet if he met Allah with these in his possession?
What, then would be the expectation of the people of major sins, and the oppressors, if they were to meet Allah with these sins and forfeited rights of people on their backs? If their claim that they entertained good expectations that Allah would not punish evil and wrongdoing people, were to benefit them, then everyone could do as he wished, doing everything that Allah has forbidden, provided he kept good expectation of Allah, thinking that the fire will not touch him. Subhanallah! How deceived can one be? Prophet Ibrahim said to his people, "Is it a lie, gods besides Allah, that you desire? What then is your expectation of the Lord of the Worlds?" [Surah Saffat, 86] i.e. what is your expectation of Allah, what do you expect He will do to you if you meet Him having worshipped other than Him?
So, if we reflect over this, we will realize that good expectation of Allah is equivalent to good deeds, for one is moved to good deeds by good hope of Allah, that He will reward him for his efforts and accept them. Otherwise, good expectation along with pursuit of whims and desires and lusts is incapacity.
In short, good expectation can only occur if the means for salvation are pursued. Pursuit of the means to destruction cannot accompany good expectations.
Someone might claim : It might, based on the expansiveness of Allah's mercy and forgiveness and generosity, and that His mercy exceeds His wrath, and that punishing does not benefit Him, nor does forgiveness harm Him. The reply is : Allah is indeed most generous and merciful, but this is in the appropriate place. Allah is also described as possessing wisdom and might and inflicting retribution, seizing with might, and punishing those deserving punishment. So, if the good expectation is based merely on some of Allah's attributes, then the righteous and the evil, the believer and the unbeliever, would equally be candidates for it. But, the names and attributes of mercy do not benefit the unbeliever or similarly one who has neglected his duty and exposed himself to Allah's curse. Rather, good expectation of Allah is for one who repents, regrets his sins and desists from the. This is good expectation, whereas the first is deception.
"Those who believe, and those who perform hijrah and jihad in the path of Allah - they are hopeful of Allah's mercy." [Surah Baqarah, 218]
So, these people are the ones who can be truly hopeful of Allah's mercy; not the evil and sinful people. "...then, your Lord is, to those who make hijrah after they have been persecuted, and then perform jihad and are patient/steadfast - indeed, your Lord is, after that, Most Forgiving, Most Merciful." [Surah Nahl, 119]
So, the knowledgeable one is he who puts hope in its correct place, whereas the deceived one is he who puts it elsewhere
People Delude Themselves - Ummah.com - Muslim Forum
MISGUIDED CHARACTER: TYPES OF SELF-DELUSION
By Abu Hamid Al-Ghazali (D.505 AH)
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2007 19:31:42 +0300
Self-delusion is not peculiar to non-believers; it happens to believers as well. The following is a sincere look and discussion of self-delusion, its subtleties and how it could possibly happen to believers of varying degrees of faith, be they worshippers, men of learning, men of wealth, etc.
Among the self-deluded are those who are extremely "fastidious about certain things like wudhu (ablution before prayers)" for example. They obsess about typically unnecessary and minute details of making wudhu -as regards the purity of the water for instance, so much so that that scrupulousness sometimes leads them to delay obligatory Salaats (Prayers) beyond their prescribed times, or to ignore authentic legal evidences on how wudhu should be performed. Yet, when it comes to matters of higher urgency like earning money and provision, those very same people tend to be lax and licentious, ignoring legal restraints in this regard and employing all sorts of ploys and artifices.
Were they to display this meticulousness in matters of wealth and finance, they would advance a step closer to the behavior and attitude of the Companions of the Prophet Muhammad, (PBUH). It was narrated that on one occasion Umar, (RAA) performed wudhu from a water pitcher belonging to a Christian woman; he did that despite the apparent likelihood that that water might be impure. However, it is reported that this very same Umar used to abstain from partaking of some legal gains when he feared they might lure him unto illegal ones.
Self-delusion also afflicts some of those who are good at reciting the Quran, which they do a great deal of that they sometimes finish reciting the whole Quran in a single day! But those people seldom ponder over the meanings inherent in the verses they are busy reciting, nor attempt to bring their life and conduct in line with their spirit. Anyone who does not heed the divine commands and prohibitions stated in the Quran, his or her recitation will not carry much weight in the eyes of Allah nor will it bring him any closer to His mercy, no matter how many times or how beautifully he or she recites the Quran.
Of the self-deluded are some of those who have taken to fasting – in addition to mandatory fasts, they accumulate have little bearing on their conduct-they do not, for example, rein in their tongues from backbiting or hurting others, rid their minds of evil thoughts or abstain from haram provisions. Theirs is certainly a grand self-delusion. For they heed the recommended acts and disregard the mandatory ones and yet entertain a false belief that they are treading the path of the righteous! How far, how far is that which they are deceiving themselves unto getting!
And there are those who appropriate the undertaking of enjoining good and forbidding evil. They go around breathing down people’s necks and engaging in intense preaching. But they do not really practice what they preach. Rather, their eyes are on the spotlight, leadership and prestige; and if criticized or corrected, pride in the sin takes hold of them, show resentment and tell their critics to shut up. They harbor this bogus feeling that their standing as enjoiners of good and forbidders of evil places them above criticism and correction when the truth of the matter is that they are just showing off and are in fact after certain personal ambitions.
Self-delusion also misleads some into thinking that frequenting the sacred sites in Makkah and Madinah is the utmost act of devotion. They boast of frequent visits to and sojourns in those shrines. But if you vet their attitude, you will find them unobservant of the rights and limits of Allah and His Prophet (PBUH) whom they claim to esteem. Those are truly deluded ones who think journeying to those sanctoriums will guarantee them salvation. How far, how far that which they seek. And how could such people achieve salvation when they are incapable of a righteous deed as tiny as feeding a hungry soul.
From among the self-deluded are the ones who attach great importance to the voluntary acts of worship and devotion while neglecting or giving little attention to the obligatory acts. For instance, they find pleasure and fulfillment in performing Salatul-Dhuha (midday salah), tahajjud (night salah), etc., but only little delight or satisfaction do they find in doing obligatory salahs. This attitude of their runs counter to a great Prohetic teaching that “nothing brings the servant closer to Allah than his observing of the things Allah has made obligatory on him.” (Bukhari).
Disregarding the principle of prioritization of devotional acts relative to the importance, rank and urgency of each one of them is a kind of self-delusion. For at times a person may encounter two obligatory acts, with one of them being more urgent than the other, and if he can’t decide which act to give precedence to and which act to sacrifice, he is sure doomed to commit egregious blunders. Examples of such tricky situations that call for fiqh and knowledge are endless. Moreover, acts of disobedience or sins are normally distinct and can easily be detected, but the same doesn’t hold for acts of obedience which tend to be mixed up at times, and only those conversant with fiqh, particularly the fiqh of prioritization, are capable of sorting them out.
Self-delusion is also noticeable among those who believe that they can achieve true asceticism just by renouncing material comforts and bodily pleasures, while their hearts are still gripped by love of prestige and celebrity. The problem with those pseudo-ascetics is that they attach unduly importance to the ostensive trappings or righteousness while giving no or little thought to the far more significant act of ridding the heart of spiritual maladies like conceit, showing-off and pride, to name but some. Those folks fail to understand that an atom weight of conduct of a truly God-fearing person outweighs tons of apparently good deeds done by someone whose inner soul is not yet touched by the light of faith.
.................(Courtesy: Al Jumuah Magazine)
By Abu Hamid Al-Ghazali (D.505 AH)
Date: Sun, 25 Mar 2007 19:31:42 +0300
Self-delusion is not peculiar to non-believers; it happens to believers as well. The following is a sincere look and discussion of self-delusion, its subtleties and how it could possibly happen to believers of varying degrees of faith, be they worshippers, men of learning, men of wealth, etc.
Among the self-deluded are those who are extremely "fastidious about certain things like wudhu (ablution before prayers)" for example. They obsess about typically unnecessary and minute details of making wudhu -as regards the purity of the water for instance, so much so that that scrupulousness sometimes leads them to delay obligatory Salaats (Prayers) beyond their prescribed times, or to ignore authentic legal evidences on how wudhu should be performed. Yet, when it comes to matters of higher urgency like earning money and provision, those very same people tend to be lax and licentious, ignoring legal restraints in this regard and employing all sorts of ploys and artifices.
Were they to display this meticulousness in matters of wealth and finance, they would advance a step closer to the behavior and attitude of the Companions of the Prophet Muhammad, (PBUH). It was narrated that on one occasion Umar, (RAA) performed wudhu from a water pitcher belonging to a Christian woman; he did that despite the apparent likelihood that that water might be impure. However, it is reported that this very same Umar used to abstain from partaking of some legal gains when he feared they might lure him unto illegal ones.
Self-delusion also afflicts some of those who are good at reciting the Quran, which they do a great deal of that they sometimes finish reciting the whole Quran in a single day! But those people seldom ponder over the meanings inherent in the verses they are busy reciting, nor attempt to bring their life and conduct in line with their spirit. Anyone who does not heed the divine commands and prohibitions stated in the Quran, his or her recitation will not carry much weight in the eyes of Allah nor will it bring him any closer to His mercy, no matter how many times or how beautifully he or she recites the Quran.
Of the self-deluded are some of those who have taken to fasting – in addition to mandatory fasts, they accumulate have little bearing on their conduct-they do not, for example, rein in their tongues from backbiting or hurting others, rid their minds of evil thoughts or abstain from haram provisions. Theirs is certainly a grand self-delusion. For they heed the recommended acts and disregard the mandatory ones and yet entertain a false belief that they are treading the path of the righteous! How far, how far is that which they are deceiving themselves unto getting!
And there are those who appropriate the undertaking of enjoining good and forbidding evil. They go around breathing down people’s necks and engaging in intense preaching. But they do not really practice what they preach. Rather, their eyes are on the spotlight, leadership and prestige; and if criticized or corrected, pride in the sin takes hold of them, show resentment and tell their critics to shut up. They harbor this bogus feeling that their standing as enjoiners of good and forbidders of evil places them above criticism and correction when the truth of the matter is that they are just showing off and are in fact after certain personal ambitions.
Self-delusion also misleads some into thinking that frequenting the sacred sites in Makkah and Madinah is the utmost act of devotion. They boast of frequent visits to and sojourns in those shrines. But if you vet their attitude, you will find them unobservant of the rights and limits of Allah and His Prophet (PBUH) whom they claim to esteem. Those are truly deluded ones who think journeying to those sanctoriums will guarantee them salvation. How far, how far that which they seek. And how could such people achieve salvation when they are incapable of a righteous deed as tiny as feeding a hungry soul.
From among the self-deluded are the ones who attach great importance to the voluntary acts of worship and devotion while neglecting or giving little attention to the obligatory acts. For instance, they find pleasure and fulfillment in performing Salatul-Dhuha (midday salah), tahajjud (night salah), etc., but only little delight or satisfaction do they find in doing obligatory salahs. This attitude of their runs counter to a great Prohetic teaching that “nothing brings the servant closer to Allah than his observing of the things Allah has made obligatory on him.” (Bukhari).
Disregarding the principle of prioritization of devotional acts relative to the importance, rank and urgency of each one of them is a kind of self-delusion. For at times a person may encounter two obligatory acts, with one of them being more urgent than the other, and if he can’t decide which act to give precedence to and which act to sacrifice, he is sure doomed to commit egregious blunders. Examples of such tricky situations that call for fiqh and knowledge are endless. Moreover, acts of disobedience or sins are normally distinct and can easily be detected, but the same doesn’t hold for acts of obedience which tend to be mixed up at times, and only those conversant with fiqh, particularly the fiqh of prioritization, are capable of sorting them out.
Self-delusion is also noticeable among those who believe that they can achieve true asceticism just by renouncing material comforts and bodily pleasures, while their hearts are still gripped by love of prestige and celebrity. The problem with those pseudo-ascetics is that they attach unduly importance to the ostensive trappings or righteousness while giving no or little thought to the far more significant act of ridding the heart of spiritual maladies like conceit, showing-off and pride, to name but some. Those folks fail to understand that an atom weight of conduct of a truly God-fearing person outweighs tons of apparently good deeds done by someone whose inner soul is not yet touched by the light of faith.
.................(Courtesy: Al Jumuah Magazine)
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