Selam Wandering
I would try to answer your experiences/questions from a book I have read, which has left a positive influence on me. If you get a chance download it from http//www.aididsafar.com/pdf/Mental%20Bondage.pdf
Must warn you its not everyones cup of tea. So you make your own mind up.
Background
When it came to religion, everyone has to ask "why?". It's a part of the human psyche to question things on a level beyond our comprehension.
Religion is there to fill the gaps and satisfy that need.
Since Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad and all
prophets could not bring anyone towards God - how is it
then the pope, priests, scholars, ayatollahs, rabbis, monks,
mullahs, are all claiming they can bring others toward God?
Surely something must be wrong with their claim or
something is not right with their followers - or people are
simply deceived without their knowledge. However, the
Reading gives the best advice to every man and woman to
overcome this predicament
You shall return to Him, observe Him, and uphold
your commitments. Do not become idol-worshipers
like those who change the way of life into
?religion?, each sectarian is happy with what they
have. (3031-32)
Follow those who do not ask from you any wage,
they are guided. (3621)
Religion is a false creation of men. Religion?s devotees
are happy with what they practice. There are so many
religions today but only one Creator. The fact is these
religious torchbearers survive through various forms of
income. The Reading is against such a system. (Aidid Safar, Mental Bondage)
Growing up, reciting the Quran was considered paramount but understanding was something not to be dabbled in. Whenever I did pose any questions, I would be rebuked and told to go on reading and that I was not smart enough to comprehend it's meaning.
From what little I did understand, I found the book as extremely peaceful and soothing.
The first and fundamental rule in understanding the
meanings of the Quran is the testimony of one word from
the Quran itself. CONSISTENCY.
?Why do they not ponder over the Quran? Had it been
from anyone other than God, they would surely find many
contradictions therein? (482)
In simple term the message of the Quran is consistent or
inerrant. Any misunderstanding or inconsistency of
interpreting the words is the results of humans? errors.
When humans interptret a word or a verse of the book he or
she must determine if the intepretation supports the
meaning of similar words or verses in other parts of the
Quran. If such an interpretation contradicts with each other
? then the interpretation is incorrect. (Aidid Safar, Mental Bondage)
No court in the world accepts a plea of ignorance as
vindication ignorance of the law is no excuse. By the same
token, we cannot plead ignorance on the Day of Judgement
or blame someone else for the wrong things that we have
done. Nothing could be clearer than the statement in the
Reading when it says
So that you will not say on the Day of Judgement,
?Indeed we did not know about this.? (7172)
Muslims on the whole ? and the modern Arabs in
particular ? are grossly ignorant of God?s message in the
Reading. They read without comprehension, believing that
they gain merit for just chanting the Arabic verses aloud.
They leave the understanding to the u?lema. On the whole,
they are sincere and simple people who feel that they need
to serve their Lord and lead a righteous life. They have been
born into a suffocating inheritance of religion. While it is
easy to empathise with this situation, we all have to take
responsibility for what we do. We cannot blame our parents
for our lot on Judgement Day.
Or you may say, ?It was our parents who set up
idols, and as descendants we followed their
footsteps. Will You punish us because they
strayed?? (7173)
Today, people depend on the u?lema for guidance, but
more often than not, the u?lema misguides them. By their
deeds, and words we know that these u?lema are agents of
the same wicked religionists who invented the Arab religion. We have seen how these fanatics twisted the meaning of the words deen, ?abd, and Sol-laa. They also
twisted the word zakaa (so often mentioned with the word
Sol-laa). (Aidid Safar, Mental Bondage)
The hadiths, on the other hand, were like a poison.
Most of my family isn't really religious except for one.
He would go about bashing people with hadiths and a holier than thou attitude. He would use this condescending tone when it came to religion. His attitude was disgusting at best. What i still find frightening to this day was how he celebrated 9-11 and declared it a great victory for Islam (the only time i've ever physically assaulted a person).
For sincere Muslims, the Reading clearly says
Shall I seek other than God as a source of law when
He revealed to you the Scripture fully detailed?
Even those who receive the previous Scripture
recognise that it came down from your Lord
truthfully. Therefore you shall not harbour any
doubt. (6114)
The word of your Lord is complete in truth and
justice. Nothing can abrogate His words. He is the
hearer and the knower. (6115) If you follow the
majority of people on earth - they will divert you
from the path of God. They only follow conjecture -
and they only guess (6116).
After reading the above verses - try to pose a question to
any rabbi or priest in the Arab religion - why do they need
the extra Quranic laws in Islam? They will pick some verses
from the Reading and quote it out of context like 'Obey God
and obey the messenger' implying that Obeying God is to
obey the Quran and obeying the messenger means to obey
the sayings (hadith) of the prophet written by their imams
who appeared more than 150 years after his death. These
imams admitted they collected these sayings from sources
who claimed they heard the stories from others. All the
sharia laws in the Islamic countries are formulated from
these extra Quranic writings and none of them can be found
in the Quran. (Aidid Safar, Mental Bondage)
After that incident, I stopped believing in my faith. For about 9 years, I believed that if god ever existed, he had failed humanity.
Those who believe in God and His messenger are called
to focus sincerely and consent to God?s prescribed way. The
Last Prophet was made to declare
Say, ?My Lord advocates justice. And be upright in
your centre of attention by consenting fully, and
invoke Him sincerely as a way of life (deen) the
same way He created you that you may
return.? (729)
Whatever good happens to you is from God.
Whatever bad happens to you are the consequences
of your own deeds. (479)
In other words, whilst a person is given the total freedom
of choice in charting their way of life, God stresses the
distinction between right and wrong, and there the golden
rule applies God advocates only justice. (Aidid Safar, Mental Bondage)
Fast forward to may 20th 2010.
The facebook page was a massacre of sorts. I felt an extreme disgust for the Muslims posting holocaust jokes. I hated how the Muslims came across as ignorant and unwillling discuss. Most would resort to threat of sodomy.
On the other hand, hadiths were being launched from both sides. I kept reading hadith upon hadith of perversion. At this point, I was completely disillusioned with Islam, not because of the insulting hadith but because of the ignorance of my fellow muslims.
4911 O you who believe, let not any people ridicule other people, for
they may be better than they. Nor shall any women ridicule other
women, for they may be better than they. Nor shall you mock
one another, or call each other names; miserable indeed is the
name of wickedness after attaining faith. And anyone who does
not repent, then these are the transgressors.
(The Message)
During this crises of faith, I received a revelation. An atheist friend goes "there is no better hadith than the Quran why don't you follow it for a change?". I guess this was one of those born again moments but I felt it was more of a blessing from above
Studying the Quran brought me a little closer to myself and made me understand that god doesn't really care whether I pray or not, he only wants me to become a better person.
The message of the Reading
The basic message of the Reading is to observe God the
Lord of Universe by consent. It is to believe in the One God
and the Last Day and to work righteousness; it is to fulfil
one?s obligations by upholding the covenants one commits
oneself to.
In God?s consented decree (mas-jidil-lah) there are also
God?s laws and God?s limits which are the sha?iral-lah and
hududul-lah respectively.
For example, in 53 God prescribes the limits of
restrictions about food. He says, prohibited for us is the
consumption of
blood
carrion
the decaying meat
food dedicated to other than God
animals that die through violent death.
The subject of food is among God?s consented decrees.
He decreed that only five types of foods are sanctioned as
prohibited. Those who consent themselves to the deen are
required to focus on these sanctions.
You shall focus towards the sanctions in the
consented decree. Wherever you may be, you shall
focus on it. Even those who received the previous
Scripture recognise that this is the truth from their
Lord. God is never unaware of what you do. (2144)
God says He is aware of everything we do. He is not
concerned with where we live or where we go. But
wherever we are we must focus on the consented sanctions
revealed by Him.
Each time God instructs His servants to observe a certain
set of commitments He indicates this by saying, ?these are
the limits of God?. For example
Divorce may be retracted twice. Thereafter, you
shall allow them to stay in your home amicably if
they so desire, or allow them to go amicably. You
shall not take anything back you have given to them,
unless the couple fears the violation of God?s limit
(hududul-lah). If they fear the violations of God?s
limit (hududul-lah) then they incur no sin if the wife
forfeits anything voluntarily. These are God?s limits.
You shall not transgress them. If anyone
transgresses God?s limits (hududul-lah), then they
are wicked. (2229)
These are God?s prescribed limits for individuals to
uphold in this domestic institution. The prescribed limits (or
hududul-lah) are mentioned 14 times and they are confined
to domestic issues. The religionists have abused the word
hudud by introducing a set of barbaric laws of their own
contrivance which they have named the hudud law.
Naturally, it has nothing in common with sane and balanced
Qur?anic injunctions.
This is how they abuse God?s name. In the hudud law
they invented ? which goes by the same name God chose
for His limits ? they can stone people to death, annul
marriages arbitrarily without hearing the parties involved,
declare you an apostate measured against their Arab
religion, incarcerate you for not professing the Arab
religion, banish you from the state and confiscate your
property. And this they do in the name of God!
Here is another challenge to the u?lema priests. There is
not a single hudud law in the Arab religion implemented by
the so-called Islamic countries, which is derived from the
Reading. Not one. Can you prove otherwise? If not then
hang up your robes and do something more useful with your
lives before it is too late.
The Arabic tribal laws (which they call hudud laws)
were not prescribed by God in the Reading. The true
prescribed limits or hudud in the Reading are fair principles
which are meant to be interpreted and applied by
individuals without any religious elements. These are the
facts. (Aidid Safar, Mental Bondage)
Well this is my experience, I would love to hear from other people
Hope the reply was useful. May Allah guide us on the right path.
Peace
