A Muslim is known from his deeds not from his appearance

Date:        16 Oct 2008 06:12:05 -0000 [10/16/2008 11:42AM IST]

From:      Jamsheed Basha Abumohammed

To:           editor@newageislam.com

This is in response to Sultan Shahin's article, India: Wahhabi Taliban onslaught on Sunni Muslims - Clean-shaven Muslim’s daughter killed, 4 injured

(http://www.newageislam.com/ArticleDetail.aspx?ArticleID=709 )

If what was reported that the daughter of a clean shaven Muslim was killed and four others were injured by the Wahhbis Taliban wherever they are, is totally a reprehensible act bordering on insanity. First of all the so called puritans of Islam should understand that sporting a beard is not compulsory or obligatory or Farz on a Male Muslim. You can see clean shaven Muslims in Palestine, Egypt, Lebanon and scores of other Islamic countries. Even President Moammer Qadaffi, Allma Iqbal, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and others were clean shaven. Can these Wahhabis wage a war against unbearded Muslims all over the world? What is this happening to the Taliban in this age of globalisation and internet fantasy? It is totally backward class thinking and medieval practices that they are trying to impose.

A Muslim is known not from his appearance but from his deeds.

Allama Iqbal said, "Khirad Ne Keh Bi Diya ho to Kya Hasil; Dilo Nigah Musalman Nahi to Kuch Bhi Nahi" meaning, even if your intellect says you are a Muslim, it is worth nothing unless your heart and vision are Islamic.

Apparel often proclaims a man, of course and here people of different cultures have adopted Islam and to impose upon them the Arabian dresses and other related practices, is uncalled for and unwarranted. Jaisa Desh Vaisa Bhes, is the call of the religion and that is why it has spread all over the world.

The radical elements in the Muslim Ummah are making the life of the ordinary Muslim very difficult. It is sure to boomerang on them and there will be rebellion against such practices. If this happened, then it is a danger to the very religion. Islam is a simple and down to earth religion. It does not impose harsh practices for the fear of losing the faithful. If such restrictions are imposed by such extremist elements from the radical elements of Jamaat-e-Islami or Taliban, then it has to be resisted tooth and nail. The first and fore most thing one should do is to drive these Mullahs away from the Mosque. There must be a local vigilant committee to oversee that those associated with Jamaat-e-Islami and Tableeghi Jamaat, are not allowed to preach in these mosques.

 If they wanted to spread their form of Islam, let them hold the congregation in their homes or in private. Let them not pollute the atmosphere in the mosques and disturbed the serenity of the place. This is what we did in our school and college days in our Mohallah mosque. I never allowed these people to have their say in our mosque.

Likewise, every Muslim Namazi should shoulder this responsibility to get rid of these Jamaat-walas from their mosque. If they are allowed to continue their form of preaching of Islam, they are bound to create disenchantment among the Muslims. They may forward thousand alibis to spread the six point programme of the Jamaat like there will no more prophethood in the world and all the young Muslims have to shoulder the onerous responsibility of spreading the tenets of Islam etc. These Jamaat-e-Islami and Tableeghi-walas are hypocrites as they do not practice what they preach. They think they are doing a service to the cause of Islam, but on the other hand they are doing a great disservice to the entire Muslim community as they are creating more and more extremists who have taken to the path of violence in the recent times. It is now time for all right thinking Muslims to denounce the activities of these Jamaats, though they may claim to be doing it peacefully. If we get rid of these jamaats, the Muslims would not be as infamous in India as they are today.

Killing a clean shaven man and his daughter by the extremists Talibans is nothing but barbarism and an act of insanity and extremism. It is reprehensible and condemnable in strongest terms. Muslims should wake up to the danger of these radical elements and nip them in the bud or else they will spread like a wild fire as they did in Afghanistan and slowly taking over the Pakistani society.

Some people came in defence of these Talibans saying they are Muslims. Who said they are Kafirs, but they way they are spreading the extremism they are more to be feared as they are preaching with half-baked knowledge of Islam. Islam is not confined to Mosques or Madrasas or Beard sporting Muslims. Islam is a way of life. Muslims have exhibit Islam in in its totality through deed.

There is story narrated by Moulana Abdul Huq sahib when he visited Chennai for the last time some years back. Speaking in the Periamet mosque in Chennai one night, he narrated how the Roman Emperor had sent an emissary to Arabia to study the causes of the rise of the Muslims there. The Ambassador visited the Arab land and returned to Rome. When he appeared before the Emperor, the Ambassador reported that what he had seen in Muslims, he had not seen anywhere in the world. He broke the suspense and said that he went to the Bazaar of the Arabs where he found one unique character among the Muslims. Muslims never cheat others nor get cheated. This is the unique character that was in full flow in the markets.

Moulana Huq sahib concluded that the emissary of Roman Empire never visited your mosques, never observed your fasting, nor your zikr nor he went to your houses, but what he observed was your character in the market, where your Iman would be tested and Muslims proved to the world that they never cheat. This is the moral of the story. This is what is required of the Muslims and not extremism of the kind spread by these Jamaat-walas.

URL: https://newageislam.com/radical-islamism-jihad/a-muslim-known-his-deeds/d/887