I renounced my faith in the divinity of the Qur'an today

justamuslim

It's about submission, reflection, prayer, and purity as well. While Islam has many rituals, the rituals symbolize certain ideals.

Really? or is it that people have made Islam to have many rituals?

Fasting is something all the prophets have done. The Qur'an confirms that Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad all fasted for 40 days at some point if I recall correctly.

True fasting is mentioned in the Koran but going without food and water from sunrise to sunset for 40 days? hmmm......

Faithful-Jinn

What is true fasting to you?

You think they went 40 days without food or water?

GODsubmitter

I also did the Ramadan fast properly, last year, as taught by Masjid Tuscon website i.e. Dr. Rashad Khalifa.

This year I think I am not going to do it that traditional way, because I read some different opinions about both the calendar and Ramadan in this Forum. -\

Presently I am confused about that matter. Didn't even get to that level to think about the Hajj. ???

confused

sushi1992

I also did the Ramadan fast properly, last year, as taught by Masjid Tuscon website i.e. Dr. Rashad Khalifa.

This year I think I am not going to do it that traditional way, because I read some different opinions about both the calendar and Ramadan in this Forum. -\

Presently I am confused about that matter. Didn't even get to that level to think about the Hajj. ???

confused

Selam GODsubmitter ),

I feel your thoughts, to be honest this will be my first time doing Ramazan. I did promise myself though that if i'm unbearably starving to death then i'll eat a small snack to keep my body physically alive LOL xD. And hajj? Well I recommend the pilgrimage/feast/debate discussion in the Hajj section of the website where Ayman and Wakas are posting some VERY good points ). It should be quite obviously though by reading the Quran and the chapter Al-Hajj that what is in Mecca does not meet Quranic requirements of hajj ). But thats another story for another day ).

Also @ faithful-jinn,

Firstly selam lol,

Secondly, sometimes I think the exact same way. I feel that I have some form of 'truth' revealed to me and my conscience is at peace and harmony with the rest of myself... To be perfectly honest? I would take it as a possible sign. That's some serious mind-concuction of the story of life if it wasn't atleast SOME form of revealed truth. Noone knows what will happen on JD except Allah... but I too have had the same thoughts... us being celestial energies floating through other parts of matter possibly in another dimension. But hey, knowledge is the key to unlocking the heart of the human mind no? Keep reading the Quran (the free-minds Quran or the Quran from OurBeacon.com as I find them translated well) ).

Hope you find peace within yourself Faithful-Jinn, I've been there and trust me, I also find it difficult sometimes, but talk/call-out to God ).

Peace ) peace

justamuslim

What is true fasting to you?

You think they went 40 days without food or water?

fasting to me is what God said

2183 O you who believe, fasting has been decreed for you as it was decreed for those before you, perhaps you may be righteous.

Asad translated it as 'remaining conscious of God".

the next verse, states to fast certain number of days. Doesn't say 30 days, 40 days....
and God says if you find it difficult to fast then feed the needy. God makes it clear he wishes ease not hardship.

And that's all there is to it. Just a few verses in the Koran where God talks about fasting and making it clear why he enjoined fasting. God doesn't make a big deal. Didn't make it a symbol or ritual or tradition as people have made it to be. God sure didn't say to be a muslim, you have to fast for 30 days in the month of Ramadan. God didn't say that fasting is a test of your faith or whatever.

Zulf

Fasting has a tendency to give you more energy to the mind, letting you feel more pure in mind and body, and lets you think more clearly and makes it easier to go 'deeper' into spiritual matters. At least for me, and after the first initial days when the body gets used to the change.
When things get complicated, and we get confused, and frustrated... it's better to just relax, ask/pray for insight and understanding, and just wait... and not rush or push. Just leave everything. Also when we get frustrated and confused in trying to understand the quran... we should relax. Confusion arises from us being mixed up from all sorts of influences and faulty understanding. Truth is never causing confusion. There is no need to keep the quran as the foundation or center of one's faith or belief or whatever you call it. It's better to go inside yourself and pray to your creator, without preconceived ideas and conditions. Just ask for better understanding and to be shown the truth, whatever it may be. And we should ask to be able to handle it, and to love it. What's not to love about truth? We can return to the quran later, with better understanding. One should not underestimate the quran.

)

peace

justamuslim

Fasting has a tendency to give you more energy to the mind, letting you feel more pure in mind and body, and lets you think more clearly and makes it easier to go 'deeper' into spiritual matters. At least for me, and after the first initial days when the body gets used to the change.

going without food, gives me a headache. makes me tired. can't focus/concentrate. sure can't think straight. and physically, feel sick. not being able to fast can also lead one to feel humble, grateful and appreciative.

Yosemite

I tend to agree with the great sage Maimonides (who wrote almost all his works in Arabic and knew Quran thru and thru) that God (Jews) created Christianity and Islam to bring low, primitive, illiterate people to the idea of God.

Is this dude for real?

Christianity and islam created for low, primitive, illiterate people?

I mean, seriously?

Jafar

Is this dude for real?

Christianity and islam created for low, primitive, illiterate people?

I mean, seriously?

I just realized it... perhaps it's true...

Christianity and Islam was created for low, primitive people BY another low, primitive people who were trying to take advantage of their naivety and ignorance rotfl rotfl

And Jesus didn't invented Christianity, it was a bunch of clerics who did that centuries after he died , in similar manner as Muhammad didn't invented Islam, it was a bunch of clerics who did that centuries after he died..

Salam / Peace

savage_carrot

I just realized it... perhaps it's true...

Christianity and Islam was created for low, primitive people BY another low, primitive people who were trying to take advantage of their naivety and ignorance rotfl rotfl

And Jesus didn't invented Christianity, it was a bunch of clerics who did that centuries after he died , in similar manner as Muhammad didn't invented Islam, it was a bunch of clerics who did that centuries after he died..

Salam / Peace

This is for you Jafar. Substitute Jesus for whoever you want.

maxamad

I believe in the Holly Quran from A-Z. We are all so different and that is the main reason i come here. To read and see all the different thoughts. I may or may not agree with some but i do respect all. There is wisdom in all of Allah?s creations. We all interpret everything so different, our thought processes are as different as or bodies chemical balances or in balances.

The Holly Quran has scientific evidence in it and its not hidden like a magic number 19,
Im talking about embryology, atoms and so on and so forth.
The other thing is that it has remained the same since the first Holly Quran was written.

There is a reason why that islam is the fastest growing religion today. The Holly Quran has a universal truth with in it, then people get transported to hadith north-korea style. I hope the truth goes viral!

Jafar

There is a reason why that islam is the fastest growing religion today.

Better cross check your source for that..

As they always change the statement in accordance to season...

If the mode is "Go people! Sell! Sell! Sell! Expand! Expand! Gain more customers believers"
They say what you said above..

Yet if the mode is "Our bottom line is not good... gain more $$$ from existing customers believers"..
Then they will say "Our competitor (can be either Christians, Shiites, Catholics or others but usually it's Christians) started to gain market share is turning our people into a 'murtad', our source of money religion is at threat, support us people! donate all of your $$$ to us in the way of Allah! for the religion of Allah! Otherwise in X years all of our people will be a murtad.. (apostate)".

Salam / Peace

Yosemite

I just realized it... perhaps it's true...

Christianity and Islam was created for low, primitive people BY another low, primitive people who were trying to take advantage of their naivety and ignorance rotfl rotfl

And Jesus didn't invented Christianity, it was a bunch of clerics who did that centuries after he died , in similar manner as Muhammad didn't invented Islam, it was a bunch of clerics who did that centuries after he died..

Salam / Peace

When thinking about it it's not so far fetched indeed... This maimonides is true.

Maha

There is a reason why that islam is the fastest growing religion today.

yes and the reason is that muslims give birth to a lot of children. Just look at how overpopulated most muslim countries are like bangladesh and egypt

mubashir55

Those with a rational bent of mind in overdrive, may find some comfort in reading G A Parwez's Exposition of the Qur'an which is way off the beaten track.

Author of many books including "Islam, a challenge to Religon" he has been responsible in Indo Pak to wake people up to a reading of the Qur'an without reading secondary sources into it.

http//www.tolueislam.org/Parwez/expo/exposition.htm

mubashir55

Fasting has a tendency to give you more energy to the mind, letting you feel more pure in mind and body, and lets you think more clearly and makes it easier to go 'deeper' into spiritual matters. At least for me, and after the first initial days when the body gets used to the change.
When things get complicated, and we get confused, and frustrated... it's better to just relax, ask/pray for insight and understanding, and just wait... and not rush or push. Just leave everything. Also when we get frustrated and confused in trying to understand the quran... we should relax. Confusion arises from us being mixed up from all sorts of influences and faulty understanding. Truth is never causing confusion. There is no need to keep the quran as the foundation or center of one's faith or belief or whatever you call it. It's better to go inside yourself and pray to your creator, without preconceived ideas and conditions. Just ask for better understanding and to be shown the truth, whatever it may be. And we should ask to be able to handle it, and to love it. What's not to love about truth? We can return to the quran later, with better understanding. One should not underestimate the quran.

)

peace

That, Zulf was a good post. We all have our questions and doubts. We also get clarity with confusion.

We all have our ups and downs; those who don't are the dead in graves!!

mubashir55

I will try to answer your post by my TheCreator's permission, inshaAllah.

Problem with you brother is you are solely based on translation. 419-10 talks about "earth" only, making of it is 2 days , then keeping mountains in it and other things, all in 4 days . Then 4112 says 2 days for making of heavens and other thing in it .

Hence only 6 days in all. If you imagine there are not even small contradictions, how come such a big contradiction is left out? You may understand it if you take a close look.

Again problem with your understanding. You don't see the words used in AlQuraan, you took it as general understanding. 262 and 569 never said that Christians and Jews go to paradise. And also you missed all three conditions, 1) have to believe in Allah, 2) believe in hereafter 3) do corrected deeds, then their reward will be with their Lord and they will not fear nor they grieve. Where is paradise came in between?

929 asked you to slay Christians and Jews? Very well translated bro. Check again.

Again! You did not look at AlQuraan or its words used properly. Please look at Arabic words because "you" is used for singular as well as plural in English, this is a problem of English language not a problem of AlQuraan.

478 says whatever evil comes to THEM is from their hands, and everything good is from Allah.

479 says whatever good comes to YOU is from Allah and whatever evil comes to you is from your own hands .

Aayat needed!

Anyways, please check 225 and compare it so called science.

Again translation problem. Please check 1334, 1990 , 594.

True, FINALLY God is the One who guides or misguides whom He wills. This is a big but concept you have to understand. God is the final channel for everything. Every deed has to get approval from God, either be it good or bad. If a person decides to get away from the path of Allah, until and unless Allah approves it, he is no way can get away from His path and vice versa.

Hence Allah is the one who guides or misguides whom He will, if He don't approve, the case gets back to normal. And He always try to protect and try to keep His servants on track. But people chose their way by force.

Hope you understand what I am saying.

This is also a big concept. I agree, this makes no logical sense, but it is not Allah who punishes you but it is you who put yourself in punishments.

We are in a huge program, designed by Allah, based on formulas. Everything is on your finger tips, clearly saying if you press this button, it will delete your files, if you press this button, it will format your hard disk, if you press this button, virus spread over all your contacts, etc.

Same way for goods, if you press this button, your system gets cleaned from viruses, if you press this button, all unnecessary files will be deleted from your hard disk, etc. etc.

Now its your choice to click what buttons you like, if you click wrong buttons knowingly, and if it effects your system, how can you blame Allah?

For example A Calculator based of formulas. If you click willingly 2 + 2 and love to get 5, you are not gonna get it, how much you try. This is how Allah system works. Everyone has the program on their finger tips and all are given free will to click what they want. So, please don't blame my and your TheCreator.

Your rest of the post also having problem with translations or your understanding. Please check or discuss in detail.

May Allah protect us and increase us in knowledge and guide us to His true path pr
mmKhan

"...God has sealed their hearts and their hearing, and over their..."

26 BEHOLD, as for those who are bent on denying the truth 6 it is all one to them whether thou warnest them or

dost not warn them they will not believe. (27) God has sealed their hearts and their hearing, and over their

eyes is a veil; 7 and awesome suffering awaits them.

Footnotes

6 In contrast with the frequently occurring term al-kafirun ("those who deny the truth&quot,

the use of the past tense in alladhina kafaru indicates conscious intent, and is,

therefore, appropriately rendered as "those who are bent on denying the truth". This

interpretation is supported by many commentators, especially Zamakhshari (who, in his

commentary on this verse, uses the expression, "those who have deliberately resolved upon

their kufr&quot. Elsewhere in the Qur'an such people are spoken of as having "hearts with

which they fail to grasp the truth, and eyes with which they fail to see, and ears with

which they fail to hear" (7179). - For an explanation of the terms kufr ("denial of

the truth&quot, kafir ("one who denies the truth&quot, etc., see note 4 on 7410, where this

concept appears for the first time in Qur'anic revelation.

7 A reference to the natural law instituted by God, whereby a person who persistently

adheres to false beliefs and refuses to listen to the voice of truth gradually loses

the ability to perceive the truth, "so that finally, as it were, a seal is set upon

his heart" (Raghib). Since it is God who has instituted all laws of nature - which, in

their aggregate, are called sunnat Allah ("the way of God&quot - this "sealing" is

attributed to Him but it is obviously a consequence of man's free choice and not an

act of "predestination". Similarly, the suffering which, in the life to come, is in

store for those who during their life in this world have wilfully remained deaf and

blind to the truth, is a natural consequence of their free choice - just as happiness

in the life to come is the natural consequence of man's endeavour to attain to

righteousness and inner illumination. It is in this sense that the Qur'anic references

to God's "reward" and "punishment" must be understood

To read online please visit

http//asadullahali.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/the-message-of-the-quran.pdf

GODsubmitter

I recently stopped doing the ritual prayers, as taught by Dr Rashad Khalifa PhD, altogether.

Particularly reading the following thread confirmed my doubts about Islam and specially salat

http//free-minds.org/forum/index.php?topic=8029.msg17311#msg17311

So, as the title of this thread says, I am doubting the divinity of Qur'an, and I do not know what to think about Islam anymore... if I look at the reality and the end-result of today Muslims, my impression is appalling.

mubashir55

Peace Godsubmitter,

I looked up the prayers of Zaroastrians on Youtube. They don't even remotely resemble the Muslim prayers.

Here, take a look

http//www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoZ1nFfUUpQ

Faithful-Jinn