If there is only one God, then why are there so many religions?
All religions originated with Allah and then people began to add or take away from the teachings so as to take control over each other.
This day, those who disbelieved have given up all hope of your religion, so fear them not, but fear Me. This day, I have perfected your religious Way of life for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you to surrender and submit to me in peace as your religious way of life..[Noble Quran 5:3]
Allah does not force anyone to submit to Him. He has laid out a clear path and then made it known to them the two ways (Heaven or Hell). The person is always free to make his or her own choice.
There is no compulsion in religion. Verily, the Right Path has become distinct from the wrong path. Whoever disbelieves in taghut (false gods and false worship) and believes in Allah, then he has grasped the most trustworthy handhold that will never break. And Allah is All-Hearer, All-Knower.
Allah is the Wali (Protector or Guardian) of those who believe. He brings them out from darkness into light. But as for those who disbelieve, their Auliya (supporters and helpers) are Taghut [false gods and false worship.], they bring them out from light into darkness. Those are the dwellers of the Fire, and they will remain there forever.[Noble Quran 2:256-257]
There is no compulsion in the way of "Islam." Whoever chooses to worship Allah without partners and is devoted to Him and is obeying His commands as much as possible has grasped the firm handhold that will never break. Whoever denies God and chooses some other way to worship or not to believe at all, for them there is an eternal punishment that is most horrible (Hell).
People began to separate into different groups due to their rejection of truth and denial of clear proofs becoming evident to them from their Lord.
And the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) differed not amongst themselves until after clear evidence came to them.
And they were not commanded anything more than this; to worship Allah, alone (without making partners with Him in worship) and establish regular devotional prayers and pay the charity due to the poor; and this is the correct Way (way of life and religion). [Noble Quran 98:4-5]
Allah warns the Muslims not to fall into the same trap as the people before them, by disputing with each other and separating into different religious groups:
And be not as those who divided and differed among themselves after the clear proofs had come to them. It is they for whom there is an awful torment.
On the Day (i.e. the Day of Resurrection) when some faces will become white and some faces will become black; as for those whose faces will become black (to them will be said): "Did you reject Faith after accepting it? Then taste the torment (in Hell) for rejecting Faith."[Noble Quran 3:105-106]
People lied about the revelations, changed their scriptures and abused and even murdered the prophets whom Allah sent to them.
And verily, among them is a party who distort the Book with their tongues (as they read), so that you may think it is from the Book, but it is not from the Book, and they say: "This is from Allah," but it is not from Allah; and they speak a lie against Allah while they know it.
It is not (possible) for any human being to whom Allah has given the Book and Al-Hukma (the knowledge and understanding of the laws of religion, etc.) and Prophethood to say to the people: "Be my worshippers rather than Allah's." On the contrary (he would say): "Be you Rabbaniyun (learned men of religion who practice what they know and also preach others), because you are teaching the Book, and you are studying it." [Noble Quran 3:78-79]
Prophets of Allah only ask people to worship Allah, as One God without partners. They would never ask people to worship them or anyone or anything else. Allah tells us in the Quran:
Nor would he (a messenger of Allah) order you to take angels and Prophets for lords (gods). Would he order you to disbelieve after you have submitted to Allah's Will? [Noble Quran 3:80]
Man made religions are an abomination before the Lord and will never be accepted.
Do they seek other than the religious way of life of Allah (the true Islamic Monotheism worshipping none but Allah Alone), while to Him submitted all creatures in the heavens and the earth, willingly or unwillingly. And to Him shall they all be returned. [Noble Quran 3:83]
Allah will only accept true submission, obedience and in purity and peace to His commandments.
And whoever seeks a Way of life other than submission and surrender to Allah's Will (Islam), it will never be accepted of him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the losers. [Noble Quran 3:85]
To believe in Allah and follow His Commandments has been the message of all prophets of monotheism.
Source: http://www.godallah.com/why_many_religions.php
Always Innovating has taken a completely different approach to the burgeoning (and some might say cluttered) netbook market with their Touch Book tablet laptop… thing. Really, it’s a tablet computer that uses an 8.9″ touchscreen, but you can also use it with an attachable (more like, dockable) keyboard and touchpad that essentially turns it into more of a laptop.
There’s more besides the versatile form factor that differentiates the Touch Book from a netbook, though. Firstly, it’s always on, like a cell phone. No booting up, no shutting down, and it’s all solid state, so there’s no noisy fans. Somehow it manages to keep itself on for 10 hours with a single charge, thanks in part to a battery in the keyboard half as well as the screen half, although the entire package still weighs under 3 pounds. As you might expect, it has b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth, plus an accelerometer and 3 external USB ports.
The only potential downside is that the Touch Book was not engineered to run Windows. It’s not just that it doesn’t come with Windows, it’s that Windows won’t work it. At all. Except maybe mobile versions of Windows. It unsurprisingly runs a custom distribution of Linux off of an SD card, which should easily provide enough functionality to do more or less everything you’d want to do with a mobile computer (web browsing, media, and light document editing). If you’re not happy with that, they’re also working on an Android version.
The Always Innovating Touch Book should be available sometime this month for $300, plus an extra $100 for the keyboard… It’s not a powerhouse compared to other netbooks in the price range, but it really speaks to what the core principle of a netbook is (or should be): flexible, mobile, inexpensive, basic computing.
Source: E. Ackerman
How many Fir`auns (Pharaoh) were there according to Islam?
Thank you for your question.
One important point to note in the context of the question is that the title, "Pharaoh" (Firaun, in Arabic), is not used by the noble Quran for any king of the times of prophets Abraham and Joseph (peace be upon them). This is true whereas we see the Bible using that name to refer to kings of those times.
And it is to be underscored that the Quran calls the king of Egypt during Prophet Moses' time (peace be upon him), "Pharaoh".
In other words, according to the Quran, only one king of Egypt is called Pharaoh and he was the king of Egypt during Prophet Moses' time.
The Biblical narrative of Genesis mentions the king who was a contemporary of Abraham as Pharaoh several times such as the following:
Then Pharaoh gave orders about Abram to his men, and they sent him on his way, with his wife and everything he had. (Genesis 12:20, New International Version)
Similarly the king of Egypt during Prophet Joseph's time also is called Pharaoh a number of times.
So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon. When he had shaved and changed his clothes, he came before Pharaoh. (Genesis 41:14, New International Version)
And in the Book of Exodus, the king who ruled Egypt in Prophet Moses' time was also referred to as Pharaoh:
When Pharaoh heard of this, he tried to kill Moses, but Moses fled from Pharaoh and went to live in Midian... (Exodus 2:15 New International Version)
In contrast to the above, the noble Quran uses the title "Pharaoh" only for the King of Egypt during Prophet Moses' time.
*{Moses said: O Pharaoh! I am a messenger from the Lord of the Worlds.}* (Al-A`raf 7:104)
*{Then after them sent We Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh and his chiefs with Our Signs. But they were arrogant: they were a people in sin.}* (Yunus 10:75)
The most widely held view regarding the age of Abraham is that it was about 2000-1700 BC. For example, after a lengthy discussion of the historicity of the events surrounding the narrative of Abraham in the book of Genesis, the Anchor Bible Dictionary says:
To place Abraham at the beginning of the 2d millennium B.C. is, therefore, sustainable. (Anchor Bible Dictionary, 40)
Kenneth Kitchen dates the life of Abraham to the period between 1674-1553 BC during the time of the Hyksos, collating the Genesis evidence with ancient Egyptian history. (74)
The Hyksos belonged to a group of mixed Semitic-Asiatics who infiltrated Egypt and became rulers of Lower Egypt during the period between 1674-1553 BC. The majority of scholars support the view that Prophet Joseph's appearance in Egypt was during the time of the Hyksos.
Joseph's rise to an important position in the house of Potiphar (Genesis 39) and his appointment to the task of collecting grain during the years of plenty (Genesis 41) were possible because foreigners had significant places in the Hyksos government. (Lockyer, 324)
Furthermore, the Jewish Encyclopedia mentions that the Pharaoh who made Joseph the practical ruler of Egypt was one of the Hyksos kings. (The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia, 252)
As for Moses, The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia states that his period was the third or fourth quarter of the 13th century BC, and accordingly, Ramses II or Merneptah was the Pharaoh of the Exodus. (252)
"Pharaoh" is a term used by modern writers to refer to the Egyptian king. This word is the Greek form of the ancient Egyptian phrase per-aa ('the great house') which was originally used to refer to the royal palace rather than the king. From the New Kingdom onwards, the term was used to refer to the king himself. (Shaw & Nicholson, 222)
Historians divide the story of Ancient Egypt into three periods: The Old Kingdom (about 2615-1991 BC) the Middle Kingdom (1991-1670 BC) and the New Kingdom (1570-332 BC).
Concerning the name, "Pharaoh", The Encyclopedia of the Bible reads as follows:
Pharaoh: Ruler over Egypt also known as "the King of Upper and Lower Egypt." He lived in a palace known as the "great house," which was symbol of his authority. The Egyptian word for the palace was applied to the kings of the New Kingdom (c. 1550-1070 BC).... The use of the title Pharaoh in Genesis may be anachronistic in that Moses in covering the events of the patriarchs in relation to Egypt used the commonly accepted term "Pharaoh" even though the title was not in use at the time of the patriarchs. (Cf. Genesis 12:15-20; 37:36). (Encyclopedia Of The Bible,1668-1669)
Thus all the evidences show that the term "Pharaoh" used in the Hebrew Bible during the time of Abraham and Joseph (peace be upon them all) for the rulers of Egypt is anachronistic.
In short, referring to the Egyptian king who was a contemporary of Prophet Joseph, the Quran uses the title "king" (Arabic, malik). Also, the Quran does not call the king of Prophet Abraham's time, Pharaoh. And as for the king who ruled during the time of Prophet Moses, the Quran repeatedly calls him Pharaoh (Arabic, Firaun).
The Quran is not a book of history and it refers to whatever is relevant to its narrations either from history or from science. That is to say, the Quran's avoidance of the term 'Pharaoh' for the kings of Abraham and Joseph is historically correct. So is its calling the king of Egypt during Moses' time as Pharaoh.
For the references I have relied on the learned article entitled: "Quranic Accuracy Vs. Biblical Error: The Kings & Pharaohs Of Egypt" by M S M Saifullah, Abdullah David & Elias Karim.
I hope this answers your question. Please keep in touch.
Salam.
Works Cited:
Anchor Bible Dictionary. Vol. 1. New York: Doubleday, 1992.
Elwell, W. A. Encyclopedia of The Bible. Vol. 2. 1988.
Kitchen, K. A. The Bible In Its World: Archaeology And The Bible Today. Exeter: The Paternoster Press, 1977.
Lockyer, H. (Ed.) Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Thomas Nelson Publishers. 1986
Shaw, I & Nicholson, P. British Museum Dictionary Of Ancient Egypt. London: British Museum Press, 1995.
The Jewish Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. London & New York: Funk & Wagnalls Company, 1916.The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia. Vol. 8. New York: Ktav Publishing House, Inc., 1969.
Source: Islamonline.net
The Apostle of God (PBUH) occupied himself at his home like a common man. As 'Aisha relates, he used to clean his clothes, milch the sheep and himself do his odd jobs. She also says that he would mend his clothes, repair his shoes and do similar other works. When asked how the Prophet occupied himself at home, she replied, "He used to keep himself busy in household chores and went out when the time for prayer came."
In another report related on her authority, she is reported to have said, "The Prophet of God used to repair his shoes, mend his clothes and occupied himself at home even as any of you occupy yourself." 'Aisha relates, "God's Messenger was very softhearted, the kindliest of all. He laughed often and smiled much." Anas says that he had not seen a man who was more clement and nice to his household members than the Apostle of God." It is related on the authority of 'Aisha that the Prophet said, "The best of you is one who is most nice to his wife and children and I am the nicest among you." Abu Huraira said that the Prophet never expressed disapproval of any food, if he desired he ate it, and if he disliked he left it alone."
The Apostle of God occupied himself at his home like a common man. As 'Aisha relates, he used to clean his clothes, milch the sheep and himself do his odd jobs. She also says that he would mend his clothes, repair his shoes and do similar other works. When asked how the Prophet occupied himself at home, she replied, "He used to keep himself busy in household chores and went out when the time for prayer came."
In another report related on her authority, she is reported to have said, "The Prophet of God used to repair his shoes, mend his clothes and occupied himself at home even as any of you occupy yourself." 'Aisha relates, "God's Messenger was very softhearted, the kindliest of all. He laughed often and smiled much." Anas says that he had not seen a man who was more clement and nice to his household members than the Apostle of God." It is related on the authority of 'Aisha that the Prophet said, "The best of you is one who is most nice to his wife and children and I am the nicest among you." Abu Huraira said that the Prophet never expressed disapproval of any food, if he desired he ate it, and if he disliked he left it alone."
I like to think that I’m pretty good when it comes to troubleshooting computers. I’ve spent enough of my time solving error code mysteries and translating beep codes to know what’s up. However, when it comes to babies I’ll admit to being practically clueless. When they start crying it could mean any number of things. Sure, if they smell like poo then they probably need changed, past that I’m lost. Well thanks to a breakthrough in infant clothing, you’ll be able to tell if the child is running a fever just by looking at them.
The new Babyglow clothes contain a special ink pigment which are heat-sensitive. The clothes come in pink, blue and pastel green, however, once the baby’s temperature gets above 37c they turn white. Sure, you could probably feel that the baby is a bit warm and take their temperature, but some new parents might not know how warm is too warm, or any other number of factors could come into play. These clothes take out the guesswork and allow parents to rest just a little easier. You will be able to purchase these later this year for around $35 a pack.
Q: Is the Quran we have today the same as that was revealed to the Prophet (peace be upon him)? What proof do we have to ensure this? I heard it's only recorded by Muslim historians and not non-Muslims? Is the Arabic spoken today in Arabia the same as Quran? If so, why do we have so many different translations of the Quran? Please help.
A: Salam, dear questioner.
Let me first of all thank you for such a creative and innovative question that reflects your critical mind and your real search for ascertaining the authenticity of everything around you.
In fact, we are required to do so, since Almighty Allah has gifted us with minds to use in finding the truth and working hard to achieve the highest level of certainty about our beliefs. In our quest for this, we should stick to objectivity and be totally dedicated to truth.
Promise of Protection
You asked if the Quran we have today is the same one which was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). The simple and the clear answer is yes. It is the same exact one without any addition or omission and the evidence is self-evident inside the Quran as well as outside it.
Let me give you some explanation here. The first place we should go to ascertain the fact about the authenticity of the Quran should be the Quran itself. We can simply read in the Quran such a great and unfailing pledge in which Almighty Allah says:
*{Surely, We have revealed the Reminder and We will most surely be its guardian.}* (Al-Hijr 15:9)
Logically speaking, the Quran being the final message of Allah is going to be unchangeable till the Day of Judgment. For this job to be fulfilled, it has to remain the same because if, God forbids, any change occurs, there will be no point behind its being the final message of Allah.
Therefore, Almighty Allah Who knows the hearts and the nature of human beings has taken the responsibility of guarding and protecting the Quran from any change, so that it keeps on fulfilling its job and guiding all human beings till the Last Day.
Unanimity of Muslim Scholars
The unanimity of Muslim scholars throughout the ages has also proved that the Quran we have is the same which the Prophet had. The same holds true for some unbiased Orientalist scholars who studied the Quran and found the style and the wording exactly the same as that which was common during the time of the Prophet himself.
Another point that needs reflection is that the Quran contains many scientific miracles that were proven to be correct only recently; it therefore stands to reason that had there been any change in the Quran, such verses or many of them, would have disappeared and even changed, and thus proven wrong.
Oral Transmission
Moreover, the Quran has been handed down through generations and centuries by means of oral transmission alongside the written text and that one of the unique merits of Muslims is their ability of maintaining an unbroken chain proving the authenticity of their texts throughout all these centuries.
Many people memorize the Quran in various parts of the world. All of them meet in one place at one time and recite the same Quran. This leaves no doubt that the Quran we have today is the exact one that was recited fifteen hundred years ago when the Prophet was alive.
Language of the Quran
Another logical proof is the decline in the level of the Arabic language and the spoken dialects which we find everywhere in the Arab world.
The deterioration in the level of the spoken Arabic, although affecting the tongues of people, did not in fact come close to the Quranic text. It is because of this that we find the Quranic text being unique in the way it is recited and the way it is written.
It is different in the written form as well as the oral form from the other written or oral texts.
Why? Because it was protected against the factors of time and space.
And for this job to be completed, Allah has enabled many scholars who specialized in the Quranic text whether in the written or the oral form and made their vocation in life to transmit it as exactly as it existed in the Prophet's life.
Quranic Manuscripts
Another physical proof showing the authenticity of the Quran is the large number of Quranic manuscripts dating back to the early times of Islam. One of the manuscripts existing today is the personal copy of the mus-haf (physical copy of the Quran) that belonged to Caliph Uthman Ibn Affan.
This copy still carries the traces of the blood of Uthman who was killed when he was reciting the Quran not long ago after the death of the Prophet. The manuscript has been examined not only by Muslims but also by non-Muslims, and it exists till today as standing evidence of the authenticity of the Quran.
By bringing this manuscript and comparing it with all other manuscripts that have been written through different generations in different parts of the Muslim world, we can see how exactly the same they are.
We can also notice the difference between the text written there and the normal way of writing Arabic words and the question will rise: why did not the normal way of writing affect the way of writing the Quranic text? The simple answer to this is that the uniqueness of the Quran made it very special and as a way of keeping this specialty is keeping it in the same formula it was firstly written.
Challenging the Quran
A long time ago, the Quran challenged people to produce something similar to one verse or ten verses or one surah of it. The challenge was not met and people are still unable to meet the challenge which means the text is still the same miraculous one that was recited during the Prophet's lifetime.
Of course, some biased non-Muslim Orientalists have tried their best to raise misconceptions regarding the authenticity of the Quranic text we have today.
These attempts have been very old indeed and all of them have failed to prove anything.
Why So Many Translations?
As for the question why there are many different translations of the Quran, in fact, this has nothing to do with the text.
Rather, the translations are merely human attempts to understand the Divine text. Because they are merely human and not Divine, such attempts will be limited and imperfect.
Therefore, we can have many translations, since all of them are human contributions and attempts of conveying the message contained in the original text which was Divinely worded and arranged.
None of these translations is perfect, protected, or even considered to be "the Quran"; only the Arabic text which is inimitable is considered the Divine revelation.
I hope this answers your question. Please stay in touch.
Salam. (Source: islamonline)
Fabrication for Material Gains?
Is it reasonable to assert that Muhammad, upon him be peace, might have claimed prophethood to attain some material gains?
This question may be answered by looking into his financial status before and after prophethood. Before his mission as a prophet, Muhammad, upon whom be peace, had no financial worries. His loving and rich wife, Khadijah, may Allah be pleased with her, had made available to him all that he needed. As a successful and reputed merchant, Muhammad had a comfortable income. It is ironic that the same man, after his mission as a prophet and because of it, becomes worse off materially.
Describing their life, his wife, Aishah, may Allah be pleased with her, narrated that a month or two might have elapsed before fire was lit in the Prophet's house (to cook a meal), while the household subsisted on milk and dates. (Riyad al-Saliheen) After eighteen years of his mission, when Muslims emerged victorious, we still find a kind of revolt in Muhammad's household in protest to the difficult life characterized by a considerable self-imposed material deprivation. This incident took place at the time when the Muslim treasury was under his disposal (Bukhari, Muslim).
Asked about Muhammad's bedding Hafsah, may Allah be pleased with her, answered, "It comprised of a piece of canvas which I spread double folded under him." Bilal, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet never kept back anything for future use, that he spent what he had on the poor and needy, and that on one occasion, Muhammad received a gift of four loaded camels, yet he took nothing for himself and he further insisted that he would not go home until the whole lot was given away to the needy. (Riyad al-Saliheen) At the time of his death, and in spite of all his victories and achievements, Muhammad, upon whom be peace, was in debt, and his shield was in the hands of a Jewish citizen of Madinah as a collateral for that debt! (Riyad al-Saliheen)
One may then inquire: Are there any materialistic motives behind Muhammad's claim of Prophethood?
Compiled From:Islam: A Way of Life and a Movement, "Muhammad's Prophethood: An Analytical View" - Jamal Badawi, pp. 69, 70
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