How to be a good Muslim?
-
Peace supportpeacenotwar,
You are right. The Message is bookless, and I have written it before in other threads, but thanks for highlighting it here. I should perhaps have added that notion in my previous post.
Well, the hadith around Muhammad reveal themselves as bogus in a hadith where it states "do not write down anything from me but the Quran". Also, the Quran itself clarifies that the hadith is not to be followed when it gives teachings which were not from God. "Had he (Muhammad) written down anything else than the Quran we would have stopped the revelations to him", the phrase makes it quite clear that all Muhammad was allowed to have written down was Quran, no matter if by himself or those who followed him. The Quran is perfectly detailed, you need no rules from another source than it.
It was not allowed to be written down anything other than Quran as there was not to be any misunderstandings. Yet there emerged so many problems with hadith even if the Quran is very clear about this.
I use to read the Bible, but that is only to verify what is already with me and some in-depth analysis of the Message.
The Bible was only written through inspiration. It means the prophets wrote basically their own experiences during their life and some secrets revealed by God, like the birth of Jesus and the coming of Muhammad. As you may already know, the Bible is in fact a collection of many small books or most could barely be called book but just a piece of parchment, a scroll. It is the testimonies of the prophets, followers and scribes at the time. Remember, this is incredibly long ago and not everyone was literate.
Quran is the only exact wordings of God, apart from the stone tablets given to Moses which seem to be long gone.
The Injeel is Jesus presence on Earth and he did not bring any book by himself, but his followers wrote down their experiences. Unfortunately, I think many versions of the Gospel were lost, and they were probably the more accurate ones. Even between protestants and Catholic NT there are differences. Note that the Gospel in my native language is called something with -Evangeliet, ie Injeel.
The Torah I think was the Law which was given on stone tablets to Moses and was later preached and defined further by Jesus as the Injeel.
The Quran mentions the Psalms, but those seem to be severely perverted by Christianity. I have not checked the Jewish scripture though, but the Bible's psalms have blasphemous mentions of Jesus who was not even born when the Psalms were inspired to David.
You could say that individual stories, like the one about Jonah in the Bible is its own book and this part of the Message. I have not yet understood if the individual scrolls of parchment, like Jonah, is part of the Torah or simply should be regarded as in the Quran as "Al-kitaab". I regard this defined Arabic word rather as the Message than a book. It fits the thought of the scrolls as part of the grand Message.
Also, books did not exist as they are referred to today, for they were written on parchment and not on paper. I doubt that there is no such book but a set of scrolls which form the Message. The Message is not limited to a physical form for I think it means the Knowledge and Wisdom of the people currently alive on Earth who aim at unveiling the Truth.
Like I say elsewhere in this post, the Message simply has three basic rules. The Commandments allegedly written on stone tablets were part of God's covenant with the Children of Israel as well as anyone choosing to follow God's covenant. If you follow what God decides for you He will bless you plentifully. However, now the Law is the Quran, because God lifted some prohibitions He earlier laid on the Children of Israel due to their transgressions. The Quran portrays the actual set of rules today and the remnants of the old Mosaic law lives on through it.
In that sense, Quran is all we need for it is detailed with all we need to know about laws and regulations. But the Bible can help you understand the individual stories about Messengers of old and give you tips on how to be righteous. I find the story of Jesus in the NT to help me to some extent, especially when it comes to being humble and making righteous decisions.
Remember, even Jesus came with minor changes, or rather clarifications, to make the Law easier for people who over-interpreted it. And Jesus also said things that a Believer could become an even better one, by refraining from looking at a woman with desire as it is to commit adultery with your soul.
If one refrains from committing the sins God mentions in Quran, God will fulfill His covenant and one will receive blessings giving this person an advantage over those who choose to disbelieve and not follow God's simple rules.
What all these scriptures, possibly also Zoroastrian and Buddhist etc ones, have in common is that they together form the Message. From what you mentioned yourself, the Message itself is bookless since there is only one universal Message; worship God alone, believe in the eternity of creation and be good. Note the last few words, "... and be good", for it is the part most people forget regarding the Message. Good means gain a peace of mind through careful nurturing of the soul through prayers, meditation and righteous deeds.
Okey, I hope I answered your questions and questions you did not ask about. I ran out of patience to write more, but I suppose I wrote too much already. I should not try to care so much about my fellow brothers and sisters... naw, you are worth hours of my private time and you can clearly see it. Follow the best (of what I wrote) and ignore the rest (it is my new secondary motto after "Everything is possible nothing is impossible". And remember, always seek the Light, let the Light guide you.
May the Light be with you, always.
bumpity bump bump
-
@Tigrees, when first time I saw your profile picture, I was very shocked
I believe that Islam is essentially 'bookless' - I think that was a term I used here. However, I do believe in the Quran's preservation of the Message, so that changes things for me. (I also think the Quran refers to itself as the reminder, from what I've read, although I would need to examine this in further detail. etc etc)
Yes, why The Quran is shorter rather than another Scripture, because Quran not told stories in detailed way like the Bible.If want to read full story of Prophets and Bani Israel, we must read it from the Bible.
Quran's format is a Reminder book, and only take stories in fragment, just for an example, so we can take religious advice from the fragments of stories.
That sounds interesting and fascinating. Can you elaborate and maybe provide an example?
Yes I want to
Which translation are you using? I use corpus Quran, 5 different translations and there are differences in the translation and depending on which one, you walk away with different understanding. The one that you posted says "different rites". Y. ALi translates as "To each among you have we prescribed a law and an open way". Corpus quran translates as "clear way".
Corpus Quran translation is based from Sunni scholars's.Maybe we considered Corpus Quran is good translation sites, but still need to be careful.
Myself still using traditional translation, but I edited it, like remove the brackets, and fix the translation with comparing from Free-Mind and Reformist Translation
-
@Tigrees, when first time I saw your profile picture, I was very shocked o
teehee sorry to throw you off---it was actually a hand sketch by this really great artist whose name i forgot---i think its pretty original, always wondered what an iris-less eye would look like hmm
-
Peace StopS.
After the discourse i studied Laws of Nature, that there are Laws governing the universe, that every phenomenon existed has its function, theory of evolution, information theory, the concept of man, religion (deen=system), the origin and beginnings of man (Adam), to name a few. I wouldn't want to explain in detail which concept and which philosophical position to take for the examination or careful study which include logical positivism, logical empiricism, rules theory, constructivism. Suffice to say that there are certain rules and certain hypothethetical questions and certain theoretical positions to take and have with reference to the current scientific body of knowledge to refer to.
My objective of study at that time is to see whether the contents of the Koran makes sense in the light of scientific findings and by studying certain word, building inter-relationships among related words, concepts can be constructed clearly through scientific reasoning. Anyhow the findings are eye-openers to me which lead me to establish my own hypothetical position whether this Koran is really written by the Creator of the universe, the unseen God. I wouldn't want to delve on the details of the assumptions i made about a Creator or God.
I have written some of my discoveries in general magazines, presented in a seminar and supposed to be published in a journal based in London. But, i got into trouble with the religious authorities. From the information theory, the conclusion obtained challenged the relevancy of hadith and writings of traditional scholars as primary source in the building blocks of major concepts related to the God (Allah) Belief system.
They consider ayaats of Allah in the Koran and the universe in Truth as the frame of reference for an ethical man to discover Allah System is considered to be a destructive mechanism in the ability of man to know and uphold their traditional belief system, which they claim as the truth to be protected and preserved.
As for me, the question whether the Koran is the God's words to mankind is answered.
Many people may have observed something falling to the ground, Newton's conclusion and explanation make a breakthrough understanding of a phenomenon.
Hey, thanks.
You repeated the assertions using different words, but did not answer my questions.
That sounds interesting and fascinating. Can you elaborate and maybe provide an example?
Why, if the contents is consistent with man-made scientific findings, does this consistency point to or even prove divine origins?
After your comment, I understand even less what you mean by "after the discourse" or "Laws of Nature" or "phenomenon existed has its function". How are these related to what follows, which is religion and mankind?
What on Earth is "logical empiricism"? How can a book which is spiritual in contents and based on faith be even remotely compared to science, based on facts and no faith at all? What is "inter-relationships among related words"? What are religious authorities in Islam? Is there a Muslim Pope now?
I thought the Koran is ALWAYS the primary source and hadiths are ALWAYS secondary or even tertiary texts.
Would it be possible to take one easy example and argue it through from beginning to end rather than throw out huge words without any real meaning and context?
Thanks.
-
Hey, thanks.
You repeated the assertions using different words, but did not answer my questions.
That sounds interesting and fascinating. Can you elaborate and maybe provide an example?
Why, if the contents is consistent with man-made scientific findings, does this consistency point to or even prove divine origins?
After your comment, I understand even less what you mean by "after the discourse" or "Laws of Nature" or "phenomenon existed has its function". How are these related to what follows, which is religion and mankind?
What on Earth is "logical empiricism"? How can a book which is spiritual in contents and based on faith be even remotely compared to science, based on facts and no faith at all? What is "inter-relationships among related words"? What are religious authorities in Islam? Is there a Muslim Pope now?
I thought the Koran is ALWAYS the primary source and hadiths are ALWAYS secondary or even tertiary texts.
Would it be possible to take one easy example and argue it through from beginning to end rather than throw out huge words without any real meaning and context?
Thanks.
Why, if the contents is consistent with man-made scientific findings, does this consistency point to or even prove divine origins?
Peace.
I realize you are not familiar with philosophy of science when you ask what on earth is logical empiricism.Sorry if i didn't make it clear to you in the previous post. The study i made is my personal research to discover something for myself, whether the Quran is really from the God, by studying its contents. People claimed that the Quran and Hadith teachings are from God. I am very much exposed to the body teachings and at that time i just can't take it as the truth. Bcoz there are so many contradictions and many things did not fit into my scientific reasoning.
As i said, i went to a discourse, and was shown that there are many scientific facts and evidences can be found in the Quran. That motivated me to study the Quran in depth. This time it was just the Quran.
As i said i approached it with some background in science and theoretical positions, Covering Law and Logical Empirical, etc. What amazed amazed me is that i can derived and expand many more theoretical positions in the realm of scientific philosophy. In fact i managed to construct several concepts derived from the inter-related verses. Example, is the information theory and i quoted James Watson and Francis Crick to have derived about the same findings based on their study on phenomena of nature. It just happened that i studied the Quran and about the same time expose to their writings.
What Maurice Buccaile discovered are scientific facts and evidences which can be found also in the Quran. What i discovered are elements to arrive at constructing theoretical positions to expand the horizon of scientific philosophy which i share my findings in an academic seminar.
The discovery is enough for me to believe that the author of the Quran is a Supreme Intelligence, the Creator of the universe, Allah. Thus, i become a submitter and believer, as i see it from my position.
I am not here to prove to you anything, but to share my journey and discovery. Sorry.
-
Peace zone,
Glad to see someone else who became a Believer through science. I think if it was not for my philosophical thinking surrounding science I think I would never have become a Believer. It was not like the traditional religions were appealing to me back then with all their hocus pocus and fanatic rituals.
It has given me a pretty open attitude toward religion itself and I try to make my belief logical and rational rather than "blind faith". It means I want to think twice about what I am doing in my practice of the religion all the time.
My first religious "role models" were the jedis in Star Wars with their training on to be in maximum control of their own selves. I still am inspired by this kind of thinking when it comes to my spiritual development (as you can understand by all my gibberish about Star Wars in other threads). If Star Wars was true then a jedi is what every human should aim to become
Today when it was a great turmoil on this forum I was jokingly thinking "There is a great disturbance in the Force". jedi
I am far from an expert in science, but I am very interested and always like to learn more. I read science magazines and occasionally a book. Most of my time goes on reading psychology though.
God bless you
-
Peace Man of Faith.
Glad to be in connection with you. I have been reading your posts. Obviously there is a chemistry flowing, because we share the same wavelength and energy from the manifestation of God's ayats, embedded in His creations surrounding us and within us whilst communicating the words.As for the turmoil today, i experience it too, draining some of my energies reading the language of hostility. May the Force be with you.
I love science fiction movies like Star Wars, E.T., and tv series like Star Trek way back during my school days. Also, i love to observe nature, including ants and helping them to find food by putting a dead insect near its path and see how it gets near it and inviting others. Then i read in Discover magazine how an ant leaves a trail, a chemical substance to pattern its journey. Then i read about ants in the Quran, talking to each other, to give way for the Solomon troops to pass.
From that discovery, i became very careful not to hurt even an ant. Maybe, i am rambling off topic.
-
Peace.
I realize you are not familiar with philosophy of science when you ask what on earth is logical empiricism.Sorry if i didn't make it clear to you in the previous post. The study i made is my personal research to discover something for myself, whether the Quran is really from the God, by studying its contents. People claimed that the Quran and Hadith teachings are from God. I am very much exposed to the body teachings and at that time i just can't take it as the truth. Bcoz there are so many contradictions and many things did not fit into my scientific reasoning.
As i said, i went to a discourse, and was shown that there are many scientific facts and evidences can be found in the Quran. That motivated me to study the Quran in depth. This time it was just the Quran.
As i said i approached it with some background in science and theoretical positions, Covering Law and Logical Empirical, etc. What amazed amazed me is that i can derived and expand many more theoretical positions in the realm of scientific philosophy. In fact i managed to construct several concepts derived from the inter-related verses. Example, is the information theory and i quoted James Watson and Francis Crick to have derived about the same findings based on their study on phenomena of nature. It just happened that i studied the Quran and about the same time expose to their writings.
What Maurice Buccaile discovered are scientific facts and evidences which can be found also in the Quran. What i discovered are elements to arrive at constructing theoretical positions to expand the horizon of scientific philosophy which i share my findings in an academic seminar.
The discovery is enough for me to believe that the author of the Quran is a Supreme Intelligence, the Creator of the universe, Allah. Thus, i become a submitter and believer, as i see it from my position.
I am not here to prove to you anything, but to share my journey and discovery. Sorry.
All right, I can dismiss anything you say as absolute fabrication. I almost went and looked up what you could possibly mean by "logical empiricism" - but I know now that this must be some occult fabrication.
My goodness, are you for real? Dr. Maurice Bucaille? The inventor of Bucailleism 40 years ago? The corrupt French Catholic who caused so much damage to the reputation of Muslims and who is the reason why so many people laugh about the gullibility of some Muslims?
No, indeed, you don't need to prove anything to anybody. I just thought I need to take you seriously because your initial wording sounded interesting. Now I understand why you don't come clean and don't provide a single example or evidence for your claims.
Are you seriously saying that to be a good Muslim you need to believe what a Christian fraud has to say about your belief? A Christian who wrote lie after lie in his books and essays and he is the one who makes you realise that the Koran is of divine origin? Oh dear. I really don't know how to stay on a factual level and how to break it to you gently and without getting personal - but this is impossible. Come on, it's 2013 and nobody believes this any more. It has been proven to be fabricated and a bunch of lies over and over. Why do you need human-made science to verify the Koran anyway? I am totally flabbergasted.
-
Peace zone,
Do not mind 'stops', he is one of those ones who cause a "disturbance in the Force". Better ignore and move on. Discussions lead nowhere.
God bless you
-
Peace zone,
Do not mind 'stops', he is one of those ones who cause a "disturbance in the Force". Better ignore and move on. Discussions lead nowhere.
God bless you
I am truly sorry that you see me only as a disturbance. I really feel that I am making progress in understanding what believers believe - but still feel the need to show where people are being misled.
Would you tell a potential buyer of a car that the mileage had been manipulated if you knew this for a fact or would you keep quiet and let a fraudulent salesman get away with it?
-
All right, I can dismiss anything you say as absolute fabrication. I almost went and looked up what you could possibly mean by "logical empiricism" - but I know now that this must be some occult fabrication.
My goodness, are you for real? Dr. Maurice Bucaille? The inventor of Bucailleism 40 years ago? The corrupt French Catholic who caused so much damage to the reputation of Muslims and who is the reason why so many people laugh about the gullibility of some Muslims?
No, indeed, you don't need to prove anything to anybody. I just thought I need to take you seriously because your initial wording sounded interesting. Now I understand why you don't come clean and don't provide a single example or evidence for your claims.
Are you seriously saying that to be a good Muslim you need to believe what a Christian fraud has to say about your belief? A Christian who wrote lie after lie in his books and essays and he is the one who makes you realise that the Koran is of divine origin? Oh dear. I really don't know how to stay on a factual level and how to break it to you gently and without getting personal - but this is impossible. Come on, it's 2013 and nobody believes this any more. It has been proven to be fabricated and a bunch of lies over and over. Why do you need human-made science to verify the Koran anyway? I am totally flabbergasted.
Peace.
Maurice Buccaile discovered some relevant scientific facts also mentioned in the Quran, yes, that was 40 years ago, according to his understanding of the facts of his time. I mentioned in the context of scientific facts available in the Quran. I read his book more than 30 years ago. I didn?t follow what happened to him after that, whether he is a liar, beyond me. Scientific facts evolved with time due to better understanding and intellectual positioning.
Among the facets of science is classification, description, explanation and ??????? I have made a ????????.. on your reaction to my last post. Since science also helps the scientist to find a solution to a problem which includes in the realm of human behavior from the perspective of Rules Theory, therefore I am sure you can figure out what the blanks are for.
I have mentioned that my intention was not to prove to you anything. I am not here to serve your ............
I think Man of Faith is right. This discussion lead to nowhere. Sorry. Bye.
-
Peace stops,
Aww, then we will have to suffer from your presence still then. Glad to hear you are making progress in your understanding, better than stalemate and perhaps some day you can spend your spare time somewhere else.
I suppose that it a rhetorical question, but of course I would tell the buyer that someone had manipulated it.
I have the feeling you think that we have succumbed to the God delusion and that we make our lives miserable in our ignorance. I would say, for most part at least, that you are wrong. I live a wonderful and easy life myself with lots of time to study both any topic I want to read about and the best topic of them all, religion.
This is what I call life and I am grateful to God for it.
So what is the aim with your determination? Drive us away from a peaceful path?
God bless you
-
I wish you were right. The Koran says - I think it is 82 times - that non-believers will be toasted.
Kufr is NOT 'non believer', Kufr is "those who hide/cover something"..
Example
Abraham's daddy invented gods, idols and it's accompanying myth, he tricked people to earn a living.
Abraham's daddy know for certain that those gods are fabricated lies..
When his son came up clean to his society, uncovering the lies, he tried to cover his own lies..
Abraham's daddy is a KUFR!
Abraham walk the talk, he acted upon seeing a falsehood and received dire verdict, death by burning..Another example
A corrupt politician/policeman/priest named Ahmed received bribes.
George expose the bribery with clear evidence.
Ahmed tries to cover his crimes and blaming George for another crime and persecute him to death by impalement..
Ahmed is a KUFR
George walk the talk, he acted upon seeing a falsehood and received dire verdict, death by impalement..Salam / Peace
-
Peace.
Maurice Buccaile discovered some relevant scientific facts also mentioned in the Quran, yes, that was 40 years ago, according to his understanding of the facts of his time. I mentioned in the context of scientific facts available in the Quran. I read his book more than 30 years ago. I didn?t follow what happened to him after that, whether he is a liar, beyond me. Scientific facts evolved with time due to better understanding and intellectual positioning.
Among the facets of science is classification, description, explanation and ??????? I have made a ????????.. on your reaction to my last post. Since science also helps the scientist to find a solution to a problem which includes in the realm of human behavior from the perspective of Rules Theory, therefore I am sure you can figure out what the blanks are for.
I have mentioned that my intention was not to prove to you anything. I am not here to serve your ............
I think Man of Faith is right. This discussion lead to nowhere. Sorry. Bye.
If believing this makes you a better Muslim, then so be it. I don't even know why I care for the truth any more.
-
Peace stops,
Aww, then we will have to suffer from your presence still then. Glad to hear you are making progress in your understanding, better than stalemate and perhaps some day you can spend your spare time somewhere else.
I suppose that it a rhetorical question, but of course I would tell the buyer that someone had manipulated it.
I have the feeling you think that we have succumbed to the God delusion and that we make our lives miserable in our ignorance. I would say, for most part at least, that you are wrong. I live a wonderful and easy life myself with lots of time to study both any topic I want to read about and the best topic of them all, religion.
This is what I call life and I am grateful to God for it.
So what is the aim with your determination? Drive us away from a peaceful path?
God bless you
Ok, fine.
-
Peace,
How to be a good muslim continued
They ask you about intoxicants and gambling say, "In them there is a gross
sin, and some benefits for the people. But their sinfulness far outweighs their benefit."
They also ask you what to give to charity say, "The excess." GOD thus clarifies the
revelations for you, that you may reflect.peace
-
Thanks for posting this verse.
Which translation are you using? I use corpus Quran, 5 different translations and there are differences in the translation and depending on which one, you walk away with different understanding. The one that you posted says "different rites". Y. ALi translates as "To each among you have we prescribed a law and an open way". Corpus quran translates as "clear way".Peace justamuslim,
For that verse I used the khalifa translation because it simply makes sense and has the
proper flow. The Y. ALi translation as well as others regarding 5/48 are ambiguous.In my opinion, verse 2/213 must be understood to unravel the "once upon a time
there was one community" conundrum.The people used to be one community when GOD sent the prophets as
bearers of good news, as well as warners. He sent down with them the scripture,
bearing the truth, to judge among the people in their disputes. Ironically, those
who received the scripture were the ones who rejected any new scripture, despite
clear proofs given to them. This is due to jealousy on their part. GOD guides those
who believe to the truth that is disputed by all others, in accordance with His will.
GOD guides whoever wills in a straight path.peace
-
I'm new to Islam. I'd def consider myself more of a free thinking Muslim, progressive, liberal, etc.
I was just wondering, what is the best way to be a good Muslim?Simply try to grasp the meanings of Verbal Noun "Islam" from where the active participle "Muslim" is derived and its Root is Root " "
That the dominant and pervasive perception and meanings infolded in the Root are that of healthy state of exactitude, validity, truth, and absolved causing wellness and tranquility. And therein is no deviation, irregularity, oddity, and abnormality disturbing wellness and tranquility. It portrays a state of peace, safety, tranquility and dynamic balance when the Man is secure from all sorts of things causing damage and disablement of that state. Obviously, it is the unique state and only source-a ladder that could enable the Man to elevate to stability, prosperity, development and all sorts of ascensions.
You can adjudge whether you were a Muslim when you did anything by considering whether that action was aimed at securing peace and tranquility not for one's self but also for all others around. If one leaves a public wash room in dirty state which might cause irk to another visitor, he was not in the state of Islam at that point in time. Islam encompasses every second of one's life. Honestly speaking me and many others are not in the fold of Islam many a times during the currency of a day.