Imam Al-Ridha (P) And Do Not Harm the Feelings
Respect For Humanity of Your Guest!
Imam Ali Al-Ridha (P) is the eighth successor
and leader after Prophet Muhammed (M). His
behavior with the poor, the slaves, the servants,
and the destitute, was humane in the deepest
Thursday, November 29, 2007. Vol. 2 Issue 39
sense of the word. Imam Ridha (P) looked
on them as his co-religionists and brothers
in humanity. One of his followers related the
following:
I was with Imam Ridha (P), when he traveled
to Khorasan (a province in Iran). One day he
laid the table-cloth and gathered all his servants.
“May I be your ransom”, I said, “would not it
be better if you lay a separate table-cloth for
these?” “Do not say that,” the Holy Imam
Ridha (P) replied, “The Lord, the Blessed and
High, is One, and all the human beings are
the children of Adam and Eve, and everyone
shall be rewarded or punished according to
his deeds.”
One of his servants Nadir, says: Imam Ridha
(P) would never assign a task to any of us, the
servants, while we were eating, until we had
finished.
Another servant, Yassir, reported the same about
Imam Ridha (P), saying, Imam Ridha (P) said
to us: “If I request you to do something and
you are eating, do not get up until you have
finished”. Sometimes he called for some of us,
but when he was told that we were eating, he
would say. “Leave them till they finish their
food”.
When Imam Ridha (P) had spare time, he would
gather all his servants, and talk to them. Imam
Ridha (P) would show his pleasure with them,
which he did to please them. And when he sat at
the dining table-cloth, he would invite all those
around him, to eat food with him.
Footnote:
(P) Peace be upon Him / Refers to Angels, Prophets,
Imams, and Infallible Ladies.
8 The Truth
Abu Jahl was an inveterate enemy
of the Holy Prophet (M).
At his hand, the Holy Prophet (M)
suffered severe persecution
and humiliation.
In the Battle of Badr, there were
850 foot soldiers and 100 horses in
command of Abu Jahl.
After his death, his son Ikramah
fled from Makkah to Yemen
leaving his wife behind. His wife,
Ummu Hakim converted to Islam,
sought amnesty for her husband,
and set out to Yemen. She brought
him back to Makkah where
Ikramah later accepted Islam.
But just as he was approaching
Makkah, the Holy Prophet (M)
instructed his companions:
“When Ikramah
arrives, do not speak
ill of his father. Do
not harm his feelings,
for he is our guest.”
Vol. 2 Issue 39 Thu. Nov 29, 2007
The Truth
ina (Avice Abu Ali al-Hussain Ibn Abdallah Ibn Sina was born in 980
n S (980-1037 C.E.) n C.E. at Afshana near Bukhara. The young Bu Ali received his
na
Ib
early education in Bukhara, and by the age of ten had become
)
well versed in the study of the Qur’an and various sciences. He
started studying philosophy by reading various Greek, Muslim
and other books on this subject and learnt logic and some other
subjects from Abu Abdallah Natili, a famous philosopher of the
time. While still young, he attained such a degree of expertise
in medicine that his renown spread far and wide. At the age of
17, he was fortunate in curing Nooh Ibn Mansoor, the King of
Bukhhara, of an illness in which all the well-known physicians
had given up hope. On his recovery, the King wished to reward
him, but the young physician only desired permission to use his
uniquely stocked library.
CONT’D ON PAGE 2
L I B E R AT I O N B Y T H E V E I L
Modesty and chastity , very important ideologies with Islam, are achieved by
prescribing standards on behavior and the dress of a Muslim. A woman who
adheres to the tenets of Islam is required to follow the dress code called Hijab,
other synonyms are Veil, Purdah, or just Covering. It is an act of faith and
establishes a Muslim’s life with honor, respect and dignity. The Hijab is viewed
as a liberation for women, in that the covering brings about “an aura of respect”
(Takim, 22) and women are recognized as individuals who are admired for
their mind and personality, “not for their beauty or lack of it” ( Mustafa ) and
not as sex objects.
Contrary to popular belief, the covering of the Muslim woman is not oppression
but liberation from the shackles of male scrutiny and the standards of
by Sehmina attractiveness. In Islam, a woman is free to be who she is inside, and immune
from being portrayed as sex symbol and lusted after.
Jaffer Chopra
CONT’D ON PAGE 3
A Muslim is Like
Soft Rain
Compiled and edited by Cyril Anderson,
with thanks to the participants in the 2007 Path of Light Family
Camp, who contributed to the activity in which the sketching out
of the ideas underlying this article took place. Undoubtedly that
moment will be remembered always as a magical night when
Muslim youths came together to put their creativity and dedication
forward and the barriers that laid between them aside. CONT’D ON PAGE 7
 IF YOU WANT TO Ibn Sina (Avicenna)
From PAGE 1
RECEIVE YOUR WEEKLY
After his father’s death, Bu Ali
DIGITAL COPY left Bukhara and traveled to
(PDF FORMAT) Jurjan where Khawarizm Shah
welcomed him. There, he met
PLEASE SUBSCRIBE his famous contemporary Abu
TO THE TRUTH’S Raihan al-Biruni. Later he moved
to Ray and then to Hamadan,
MAILING LIST @ where he wrote his famous book
HTTP://GROUPS.GOOGLE. Al-Qanun fi al-Tibb. Here he
treated Shams al-Daulah, the
COM/GROUP/THET- King of Hamadan, for severe
RUTH110 colic. From Hamadan, he moved
to Isphahan, where he completed
many of his monumental
writings.
Nevertheless, he continued
traveling and the excessive
mental exertion as well as
IF YOU WANT ANY political turmoil spoilt his health.
Thursday, November 29, 2007. Vol. 2 Issue 39
MATERIAL TO BE Finally, he returned to Hamadan
where he died in 1037 C.E.
PUBLISHED PLEASE He was the most famous
SEND US AN E-MAIL. physician, philosopher,
encyclopedist, mathematician
and astronomer of his time. His
PLEASE NOTE THAT WE major contribution to medical
science was his famous book
HAVE THE RIGHT al-Qanun, known as the “Canon”
TO ACCEPT, in the West. The Qanun fi al-Tibb
is an immense encyclopedia
EDIT OR REFUSE of medicine extending over
a million words. It surveyed
ANY CONTENT. the entire medical knowledge
available from ancient and
Muslim sources. Due to its
EDITOR IN CHIEF: systematic approach, “formal
HASSAN TABATABAI perfection as well as its intrinsic
value, the Qanun superseded
EDITOR: Razi’s Hawi, Ali Ibn Abbas’s
AHMAD AL NAJJAR Maliki, and even the works of
Galen, and remained supreme
DESIGNED BY: for six centuries”. In addition
NAGI GIRGUIS to bringing together the then
available knowledge, the book
is rich with the author’s original
contribution. His important
PLEASE SEND US original contribution includes
YOUR FEEDBACKS, such advances as recognition of
the contagious nature of phthisis
COMMENTS, and tuberculosis; distribution of
AND SUGGESTIONS diseases by water and soil, and
interaction between psychology
TO THE FOLLOWING and health. In addition to
E-MAIL: describing pharmacological
methods, the book described
thetruth110@gmail.com 760 drugs and became the most
authentic materia medica of
2 The Truth
the era. He was also the first to
describe meningitis and made
rich contributions to anatomy,
gynecology and child health.
His philosophical encyclopedia
Kitab al-Shifa was a monumental
work, embodying a vast field of
knowledge from philosophy to
science. He classified the entire
field as follows: Theoretical
knowledge: physics, mathematics
and metaphysics; and Practical
knowledge: ethics, economics
and politics. His philosophy
synthesizes Aristotelian tradition,
Neoplatonic influences and
Muslim theology.
Ibn Sina also contributed to
mathematics, physics, music
and other fields. He explained
the “casting out of nines” and
its application to the verification
of squares and cubes. He
made several astronomical
observations, and devised
a contrivance similar to the
vernier, to increase the precision
of instrumental readings.
In physics, his contribution
comprised the study of different
forms of energy, heat, light and
mechanical, and such concepts
as force, vacuum and infinity. He
made the important observation
that if the perception of light
is due to the emission of some
sort of particles by the luminous
source, the speed of light must
be finite. He propounded an
interconnection between time
and motion, and also made
investigations on specific gravity
and used an air thermometer.
In the field of chemistry, he did
not believe in the possibility of
chemical transmutation because,
in his opinion, the metals differed
in a fundamental sense. These
views were radically opposed to
those prevailing at the time. His
treatise on minerals was one of
the “main” sources of geology
of the Christian encyclopaedists
of the thirteenth century. Besides
Shifa his well-known treatises
in philosophy are al-Najat and
Isharat.
A Muslim is Like Soft Rain
From PAGE 1
Let us reflect for a moment on the characteristics of
soft rain. In the Qu’ran, there are many instances in
which we are called to observe the phenomena of nature
so as to be able to take lessons and signs from these
phenomena, and in so doing gain knowledge of spiritual
truths. The phenomenon of soft rain allows for such
lessons to be learned. Rain is something so seemingly
simple and mundane that we often take it for granted.
But when we look more deeply, we can see that there
is something very rich and amazing about it. Many
characteristics come to mind, after some reflection.
First of all, soft rain is not overwhelming, but soft, and
gentle. It comes down and gives just what is needed
to wet the dry earth, coming with a forcefulness that is
neither too weak nor too overpowering, but just enough
for the job it needs to do.
It comes from high above, and comes all this way to
us, from such a height if you dropped anything else,
it would kill you when it hit you. But when the rain
drops hit you, you can barely feel it, and if you do, it
is a relief. The soft rain is a relief that comes when it is
needed, where it is needed. The rain drops are small on
their own, but together come down in unison, all falling
together, and together, bring nourishing water to the
earth. The water comes to the dry earth and penetrates
into the soil and mixes in with it in a beneficial way; it
does not hold back from the earth that needs moisture,
does not keep itself isolated, but allows itself to mix in
with the soil. The raindrop is not uniformly shaped; its
largest part is directed toward the ground toward which
it comes. Its smaller end is directed toward the source
from which it comes. The rain brings cleanness to what
it touches, purifying it through its influence.
The rainwater is unlike the groundwater which has
been long detached from its source in the sky, and in
contact with the ground in which it sits, taking on the
characteristics and flavor of its surroundings. The
rainwater is fresh from its source, and always has the
same pure taste, untainted by the surroundings
Finally, the rainwater comes from its source to the
earth, and then must later evaporate and return back to
its source.
Now at this point, the question one may ask is, “that
is nice, but what is the significance of all this?”
The significance and meaning of this reflection is seen
in a famous narration from the Prophet Muhammed
(May Allah’s Peace and Blessings be upon him and
his Progeny), in which he said, “al Muslim kal ghayth
– A Muslim is like soft rain.” This is a very simple
statement, yet it is also one which is incredibly deep,
given the discussion of rain given above.
Let us reflect for a moment again on what we have
discovered about soft rain, and make the connections to
our lives as Muslims, to gain some better understanding
of what the Prophet was trying to teach us.
Like the rain that has its source from above in the sky,
Muslims have the source of their power from God.
Just as the rain comes pure from the sky above, the souls
of humankind come pure into this earth at birth. By
The Truth
keeping or by re-establishing contact with our heavenly
source in the form of prayers, fasting, and other forms
of purification, we can become “reborn” in a sense, re-
attaining this initial state of purification through our
devotion to and study of the religion. As Muslims,
we find ourselves in a world that is impure spiritually,
and is in need of spiritual nourishment, just as the dry
earth needs rain. As Muslims, however, we cannot be
overbearing or aggressive with people. Instead, we
must be soft in our relations with people, kind and gentle
and polite. Indeed, as the analogy indicates, the most
significant part of our existence as Muslims, in terms of
the effect, whether positive or negative, on those around
us, is our actions, the part of our being through which
we meet and interact with other people. In another
narration, it is recorded that Muhammed (M) said that
he had come to mankind to perfect their manners
(makarimil akhlaq). To do this effectively, we need a
connection with our source, God.
Thursday, November 29, 2007. Vol. 2 Issue 39
Rain is considered a cleansing agent in Islamic law.
However, part of this process is that the sun must shine
on the earth after the rain to complete the cleansing. By
the analogy, if we Muslims are the rain, the Prophet and
his guidance are the sunlight which illuminates us and
our work, completing it.
We as Muslims are supposed to bring cleanness and
purity to those we meet through our good manners,
our good actions, and our good ways of speech,
acting as an example for people me meet, drawing
them toward Islam and purity, much as rain brings
cleanness to what it meets.
To be effective in this regard, we need to be immersed
and well-integrated into the society. We need to have
meaningful contact with the people to be able to fulfill
this duty of being agents of cleanness and purification,
just as the rain must come in contact with the earth
to bring nourishment and purification. At the same
time, like the rain that is the same wherever it goes ,
not taking on the taste of the land on which it falls, but
rather purifying the earth on which it falls, we must not
be unduly influenced by the culture to which we come in
service, but must try ourselves to be a positive influence.
We must do our best to move and inspire people we
meet with good examples of actions and speech, while
not being ourselves tainted by bad actions or speech of
those we meet.
For Muslims to work well as a society, it is necessary
that the component community members must behave
as the rain falls, with all the raindrops falling together in
unison. In the same way, Muslims must work together
in unison to be effective. Although by ourselves we
are small, while we work together, we become very
powerful. Let us try to learn from this parable, so as to
help our community and its members to be as pleasant
and beneficial and refreshing to the people as soft rain
is to those stricken by drought. May we strengthen and
purify ourselves, and draw together, so that we may be
like a refreshing rain shower, washing away uncleanness
from our nation and raising it to its full potential.
Footnote:(M) May Allah’s Peace and Blessings be upon
7

Sayings of Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib (P)
• That knowledge is very superficial which remains only on your
Thursday, November 29, 2007. Vol. 2 Issue 39
tongue; the intrinsic merit and value of knowledge is that you act
upon it.
• Whenever a tradition of the holy Prophet (P) is related to you,
examine it carefully and think over it deeply, do not be satisfied
with mere verbatim repetition of the same, because there are
many people who repeat the words containing knowledge, but
there are few who ponder over them and try to fully grasp the
meaning they convey.
• Those who give up religion to better their circumstances in life
seldom succeed. The wrath of Allah makes them go through more
calamities and losses than the gains they gather for themselves.
• There are many educated people who have ruined their future on
account of their ignorance of religion. Their knowledge did not
prove of any avail to them.
• Only such a person can establish the Divine Rule, who, where
justice and equity are required, will neither feel deficient nor weak
and who is not greedy and avaricious.
• When a community is composed of really honest, sober and
virtuous people then your forming a bad opinion about any one of
its members when nothing wicked has been seen of him is a great
injustice to him; on the contrary, in a corrupt society, to form a
good opinion of anyone out of those people and to trust him is
doing harm to yourself.
6 The Truth
L I B E R AT I O N B Y T H E V E I L
From PAGE 1
Islam exalts the status of a woman by commanding
that she “enjoys equal rights to those of man in
everything, she stands on an equal footing with man”
(Nadvi, 11) and both share mutual rights and obligations
in all aspects of life.
Men and women though equal are not identical, and
each compliments the other in the different roles and
functions that they are responsible to. “From an
Islamic perspective, to view a woman as a sex symbol
is to denigrate her. Islam believes that a woman is
to be judged by her [virtuous] character and actions
rather than by her looks or physical features” (Takim,
22). In the article, “My Body Is My Own Business”, Ms.
Naheed Mustafa, a young Canadian born and raised,
university-educated Muslim woman writes, “The
Quran [which is the Holy Book for Muslims] teaches
us that men and women are equal, that individuals
should not be judged according to gender, beauty,
wealth or privilege. The only thing that makes one
person better than another is his or her character.”
She goes on to say, “In the Western world, the Hijab
has come to symbolize either forced silence or radical,
unconscionable militancy. Actually, it’s neither. It is
simply a woman’s assertion that judgment of her
physical person is to play no role whatsoever in social
interaction.”
Muslims believe that God gave beauty to all women, but
that her beauty is not be seen by the world, as if the
women are meat on the shelf to be picked and looked
over. When she covers herself she puts herself on a
higher level and men will look at her with respect and
she is noticed for her intellect, faith, and personality,
not for her beauty. In many societies, especially in the
West, women are taught from early childhood that their
worth is proportional to their attractiveness and are
compelled to follow the male standards of beauty and
abstract notions of what is attractive, half realizing that
such pursuit is futile and often humiliating (Mustafa).
“Chastity, modesty, and piety are promoted by the
institution of veiling. The Hijab in no way prevents
a woman from playing her role as an important
individual in a society nor does it make her inferior.”
(Takim, 22)
A Muslim woman may wear whatever she pleases in the
presence of her husband and family or among women
friends. But when she goes out or when men other than
her husband or close family are present she is expected
to wear a dress which will cover [her hair and] all parts
of her body, and not reveal her figure. What a contrast
with Western fashions which every year concentrate
quite intentionally on exposing yet another erogenous
zone to the public gaze! The intention of Western dress is
to reveal the figure, while the intention of Muslim dress
is to conceal [and cover] it, at least in public (Lemu,
25). The Muslim woman does not feel the pressures to
be beautiful or attractive, which is so apparent in the
Western and Eastern cultures. She does not have to live
up to expectations of what is desirable and what is not.
Superficial beauty is not the Muslim woman’s concern;
her main goal is inner spiritual beauty. She does not
have to use her body and charms to get recognition or
acceptance in society. It is very different from the cruel
methods that other societies subject women, in that their
worth is always judged by their physical appearance.
There are numerous examples of discrimination at the
The Truth
workplace where women are either accepted or rejected,
because of their attractiveness and sex appeal.
Another benefit of adorning the veil is that it is a
protection for women. Muslims believe that when
women display their beauty to everybody, they degrade
themselves by becoming objects of sexual desire
and become vulnerable to men, who look at them as
“gratification for the sexual urge”(Nadvi, 8). The Hijab
makes them out as women belonging to the class of
modest chaste women, so that transgressors and sensual
men may recognize them as such and dare not tease
them out of mischief” (Nadvi, 20). Hijab solves the
problem of sexual harassment and unwanted sexual
advances, which is so demeaning for women, when
men get mixed signals and believe that women want
their advances by the way they reveal their bodies.
The western ideology of, ‘if you have it, you should
flash it!’ is quite opposite to the Islamic principle, where
the purpose is not to bring attention to one’s self, but to
be modest. Women in so many societies are just treated
as sex symbols and nothing more than just a body who
“display themselves to get attention” (Mustafa). A good
Thursday, November 29, 2007. Vol. 2 Issue 39
example is in advertising, where a woman’s body is used
to sell products. Women are constantly degraded, and
subjected to reveal more and more of themselves. .
The Covering sanctifies her and forces society to
hold her in high esteem. Far from humiliating the
woman, Hijab actually grants the woman an aura of
respect, and bestows upon her a separate and unique
identity (Takim, 2). According to the Qu’ran, the same
high standards of moral conduct are for men as it is for
women. Modesty is essential in a man’s life, as well,
whether it be in action, morals or speech. Islam also
commands proper behavior and dress of men, in that
they are not allowed to make a wanton show of their
bodies to attract attention onto themselves, and they too
must dress modestly. They have a special commandment
to lower their eyes, and not to brazenly stare at women.
In Sura Nur of the Holy Qu’ran it says, “ Say to the
believing men that they should lower their gaze and
guard their modesty; that will make for greater purity for
them, and God is well acquainted with what they do”.
Many of the misconceptions of the Muslim woman in the
west, particularly her veil stems from Arab and Muslim
countries that have deviated from the true doctrines of
Islam, and have “mixed up Islamic principles with pre-
Islamic pagan traditions” (Bahnassawi, 67)
In this present period of decline from Islam, many
Muslim women are alienated, isolated from social life,
and are oppressed by Muslim men and rulers who use
the name of religion for their injustices. (Bahnassawi,
65) In this instance, the Hijab is used as a means of
keeping many Muslim women away from society,
with the misconception that it signifies isolation and
weakness. But as many Muslim women come back
into the fold of the untainted and true Islam, they are
able to recognize the injustice of men who have for
so long stripped them of their rights to be an integral
part of society and “deserving the same dignity, honor,
progress and prosperity as the men” (Nadvi,26). Women
regaining their true identity and role in society, are
now wearing Hijab and embracing its concept of
liberation for women, and are taking their rightful
places that Islam had endowed upon them fourteen
hundred years ago.
3
>>>> >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

>>>>
Pledge Allegiance A Sharing Society

Few months after the Holy Prophet (M)

had arrived in Medina, he asked the
Ansars (the residents) of Madinah to
take up the Muhajirin (the immigrants)
from Mecca as their brothers. “Become
brothers for the pleasure of Allah, and
pair yourselves,” he said. Every one
of the 45 immigrants from Mecca was
connected into brotherly accord with
Abdur Rahman bin Ka’b bin Malik used to lead his blind father 45 men of Medina. If an Ansar was a businessman he took an
to Jumu’a (Friday) prayers regularly. Every time his father immigrant as equal partner in his trade, in case of his being a
Thursday, November 29, 2007. Vol. 2 Issue 39

Thursday, November 29, 2007. Vol. 2 Issue 39

heard Adhan (Call for Prayer) on Friday, he would say: ‘May farmer, half his land he gave to his brother from Mecca; till the
God bless As’ad bin Zurarah.” This continued for many years, system grew so common that when a man from Medina died, his
till one day Abdur-Rahman asked: immigrant brother was included among the heirs.

“Father, why do you remember As’ad and pray for him at But the noble Meccans were
Jumu’a (Friday) prayers?” unwilling to take undue
advantage of their hosts. Abdur
His father said: “My son, the first person to establish and lead Rahman bin Auf, for example,
us all in Jumu’a prayers in Madinah was As’ad. At the time, the became a brother to Sa’ad bin
Prophet was still in Makkah, and forty of us used to assemble Rabi’, and Sa’ad offered him
>>>>

half of what he owned. He declined the offer with thanks and

at the foot of the mountain and pray. “As’ad bin Zurarah was
among those twelve who secretly accepted Islam one year
before Hijrah at the mountain road to Mina, and pledged loyalty
to the Prophet (M) on the following terms:
To worship no other God but Allah;
To commit neither theft nor adultery nor child-murder;
To utter no monstrous falsehoods,
To bring forth no illegitimate offspring
And not to disobey in matters just or reasonable.
>>>>
only asked the way to the market place, where he soon started a
small business independently. Gibbon gives the account in the
following words:
“To eradicate the seed of jealousy, Muhammed judiciously
coupled his principal followers with rights and obligations
of brethren, and when Ali found himself without a peer, the
Prophet tenderly declared that he would be the companion
and brother of the noble youth. The expedient was crowned
with success; the holy fraternity was respected in peace arid
war, and the two parties vied with each other in a generous
emulation of courage and fidelity.”

4
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The Truth The Truth