by a Tamilian Ex-Muslim
This is perhaps the first book of its type in the world ever authored by Dr. Ali Sina, subjecting Muhammad to modern scientific psycho-analysis, solely based on, and with references from, original Islamic Holy texts: Qur’an, aHadiths (Sunnah, Traditions) and prophetic Sira (biographies).
As Ali Sina has written so vividly, that the people would easily realise how the concepts of Islam based on Holy Books were the spontaneous overflow of a sociopath/psychopath Muhammad to meet his own selfish needs and impulses to suit his nature.
But Ali Sina finally entreats the Muslims to join the main stream of entire world to co-exist in peace with all others by casting away their Islamic garb, which is tutoring the Muslims into terrorism and violence. He only wants the concept of Islam to be destroyed. He bears no ill-will to anyone.
This is not at all a book to be just brushed aside (as usually done only by Islamic fanatics) as preaching hatred against Muslims, but should be considered as a book of unimpeachable and convincing facts. My statement can be confirmed by any reader of this book, once he reads the entire contents of the book. This will leave on the readers stunned with a chilling effect.
Surely this book is bound to create an unprecedented revolution & ripples and shake the very foundation of Islamic edifice based on slippery grounds. Islam succeeded so long in surviving based only on autocracy silencing all criticism from any quarter, whether from Muslims or non-Muslims only by violence and terrorism. If democracy or any form of criticism would have been allowed, Islam would have ceased to exist very long time ago.
This Tamil version is a ‘Must read book’ for all Tamil people (buy it from Amazon).
Mona Malik Mustafa, the Tamil Translator, deserves special Kudos for her communicative written skills to produce the best Translation so faithful to the English original. This I can say with utmost confidence because I have read both the English and the Tamil versions very carefully.
The Tamil Translation is very superb with Translator’s comments wherever necessary. This is an added attraction for Tamil masses that are told in such a way as they speak or understand.
Why I beseech people to read this book for the following reasons:
The prophet of Islam bragged, “I have been made victorious with terror”. [Sahih al-Bukhari: 4.52.220] This same process inaugurated by the Muhammad in Madina then, is still continued for the past 1400 years by his faithful followers even to this day.
Islam is Muhammadanism and Muhammadanism is Islam. Islamic Mind is nothing but the mind of Muhammad. In fact Islam is the brainchild of Muhammad. Whatsoever he so revealed or said or did on various occasions and to various people, were recorded meticulously by all Sahih Hadiths and Sunnahs / Siras uniformly apart from his own so-called revelations through Qur’an, are considered, as Holiest of Holiest by all Muslims throughout the world. Whatever written in these Holy books have become the Shariat Law too as applicable to all Muslims!! If all Sahih Hadiths and Sunnah can uniformly write the same subject in different forms without change in the central subject, viz., Muhammad, it cannot be construed as untrue. These incidents might have been true definitely. Such statements alone have been considered in this book for the purpose of references.
This book of Psycho-biography of Allah’s prophet, unveils the hidden mysteries of one of the most influential, controversial and enigmatic personalities of the world. Once Muhammad came running home, shivering with fright believing that he was possessed by demons, his wife Khadijah convinced him just to satisfy and quietening him for the moment that he had became Allah’s prophet. But he took it seriously and he liked this name, title and role too. Thereafter, he started living and behaving like Prophet of Allah.
His childhood was very miserable as he was born after his father’s death and mother was too poor to meet both ends. He was brought up in a love-less atmosphere of an orphan, as a child. After the death of his mother subsequently, though he was reared by his grandfather, and finally his Uncle with love and affection, he could not overcome his childhood indelible memories and fantasies. His marriage with the rich lady, Khadijah was more convenient live his chosen way of life. This was a beginning of his developing narcissist mentality, which in later life fully blossomed into a full Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD). Thus he believed that he must be obeyed unquestionably, brook no opposition, and at the same time wanted to be extolled at all times.
Besides the above he had Temporal Lobe Epilepsy (TLE), since he was living in his own world of fantasy and its idiosyncrasies which he developed during infancy.
Next, he was suffering from Obsessive Compulsory Disorder (OCD), as he was very much obsessive with rituals, and performing them meticulously with a particular pattern in an odd number if times. He was ever enforcing, very demanding, and made his followers to follow them very strictly and scrupulously. You can observe this from his absurd rules in all walks of Islamic life.
More cruelly, Muhammad had Acromegaly very late in his life, a disease caused by excessive production of a particular hormone, resulting in large bones, cold and fleshy hands and feet, coarse facial features such as enlarged lips and nose. This disease unfortunately resulted in impotence but with awfully intensified libido. This created panic in his personal life style of sexual indulgence with all his number of wives, very many concubines and innumerable slave women. As he was by nature very jealous, greedy, and very possessive, he fancied that his women might be seeking sexual satisfaction with someone other than himself under these circumstances. So, Muhammad ordered Hijab / Nijab / Naqaab as a rule for his women. This was so recorded in the Holy Islamic books, thereby the Islamic world started veiling their women and it came into vogue in their lives. Consequently, Muhammad’s malady became an Islamic trend for the past 1400 years. You can understand now why half a billion Muslimas (Muslim women) of the world, have to veil themselves. It’s because Muhammad was impotent and insecure. What can be a worst tragedy to all Muslim women?
The compounding and combining effect of all the above deadly psychological disorders of Allah’s prophet, Muhammad had in fact, has resulted in the Islamic miseries of 20% of world’s population of Muslims afflicting the other 80 % of non-Islamic world population too.
We now live in perilous world. With one-fifth of World’s population being Muslims, which follows a sociopath / psychopath who had only preached murder, loot, rape and terror other detestable acts, are now determined to make the life of the non-Muslims miserable and unsafe.
This psychopath Muhammad has taught his followers that giving-up one’s own life for looting, raping and terrorizing non-Muslim is an act of Jihad, which entails automatic admission to Jannat, Allah’s heaven, wherein every martyr is supplied with 72 young crystal-like girls called ‘Houris’ for fulltime sex and young boys for sodomy, with wine flowing in a river for easy consumption at all times and many other comforts which a normal human earthling can never even hope to dream on earth. Another funny aspect of this is, these comforts are strictly prohibited by Muhammad for tellurians.
Another miserable fact is that in the open democratic world, Muslim immigrants make use of democracy to undo the democracy.
All the above are not gaffes but proved with authoritative quotes from extracted references to the authentic Islamic Holy books of the Qur’an, Hadiths, and Sunnahs vis-à-vis with quotes from modern scientific giants like Dr. Sam Vaknin, W.R. Van Furth, I.G. Wolteink-Donselaar and J.M. Van Ree, (The Netherlands), Dr. Rhawan Joseph, Henri Jean Pascal, Gastuat (French Neurologist) Dr. V.S. Ramachandran, Director of Center of Brain and Cognition, Calif., etc., with other research papers.
There is nothing better to shame and slam Islam than the Islamic Holy books themselves, created out of the mind of one psychopath. This book is just a beginning to enlighten the world towards this direction. This book will just kindle the raging fire inside already simmering.
“Understanding Muhammad: A psychobiography of Allah’s Prophet” gives all the above facts convincingly and leaves you thinking that you can also contribute your mite to the cause as propounded by Ali Sina, i.e. wiping out Islam from the face of this world in about twenty years.
When asked whether Islam has a future, Ali Sina’s response is: “Yes! It belongs in the dustbin of history.
Source: http://www.faithfreedom.org/2009/08/26/review-of-tamil-edition-of-understanding-muhammad/
IHS
Tuesday, 28 December 2010
Review of Tamil Edition of Understanding Muhammad
Are You An Islamophobe?
Take This Test To Be Sure
Posted By Phyllis Chesler
The greatest danger is a closed mind and a finger-on-the-trigger. The minds are closing all over
Americans (students, professors, journalists, film stars, media talking heads, left-liberal bloggers) are especially sensitive to the wrongs done to the Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims–and, no doubt, wrongs have been done. But these same Americans are a lot less sensitive to the sorrows, nay, the atrocities, that these very groups (Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims) have inflicted upon their very own and upon all infidels, for 1400 years.
Try to talk about this, try to raise the issue of Islam’s long history of colonialism, genocide, and gender and religious apartheid and you will quickly be demonized as a “racist” or as an “Islamophobe.” Google notes 616,000 references to “Islamophobia.” What is really going on? Why is “racism” not a good enough word to describe prejudice towards people with different skin colors, if that indeed is the case? Or is “Islamophobia” more complicated, or more specific in terms of Muslims and Islam?
Lorna Saltzman, a really good writer, an environmentalist, and once a Green Party Presidential candidate, has written a tongue-in-cheek Test Guide for all those who are worried about their own racism or Islamophobia. She writes:
Are you an Islamophobe? Here is a simple test.
Lorna Saltzman’s Test
Do you favor equal rights and treatment of women and men?
Do you oppose stoning of women accused of adultery?
Do you favor mandatory education of girls everywhere?
Do you oppose slavery and child prostitution?
Do you support complete freedom of expression and the press?
Do you support the right of an individual to worship in her chosen religion?
Do you oppose government- and mosque-supported anti-Semitic publications, radio, TV and textbooks?
Do you oppose the wearing of burqas in public places, schools and courts?
Do you oppose segregation of the sexes in public places and houses of worship?
Do you oppose the death penalty for non-Muslims and Muslims who convert to another religion?
Do you oppose “honor” killings?
Do you oppose female genital mutilation?
Do you oppose forced sexual relations?
Do you oppose discrimination against homosexuals?
Do you support the right to criticize religion?
Do you oppose polygamy?
Do you oppose child marriage, forced or otherwise?
Do you oppose the Qur’anic mandate to kill non-Muslims and apostates?
Do you oppose the addition of sharia courts to your country’s legal system?
Do you disagree with the Qur’an which asserts the superiority of Islam to all other religions?
If you answered most or all of these affirmatively, you are a vile Islamophobe and deserve to be beheaded as the Qur’an instructs.
If you answered one third or more of them affirmatively, you are a borderline Islamophobe and need to receive brainwashing to become a full-fledged dhimmi.
If you answered a quarter or fewer affirmatively, you need a few private lessons in dhimmitude to scrub yourself clean of those remnants of Islamophobia.
If you answered affirmatively to NONE of these, Congratulations! You are a worthy observant (radical–PC addition) Muslim and have a bright future vilifying Jews, torturing women or, inshallah, becoming a suicide bomber.”
Thank you Lorna for laying it all out.
FYI: Lorna Saltzman has been a environmental writer, lecturer and organizer since the early 1970s and was a candidate for the US Green Party’s presidential nomination in 2004. Her articles on evolution, energy, Green politics and secularism can be found on her website: www.lornasalzman.com
Source: http://pajamasmedia.com/phyllischesler/2009/08/26/are-you-an-islamophobe/
IHS
Open Letter to Saudi Muslims
Rest in Peace, the blood of the Martirs bless us!
I recently read of the martyrdom of Fatima Al-Matayri who was killed in August, 2008, because of her belief in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God, the Savior from sin.
Saut Ul-ukdud 12/8/2008 – 1:11am
A Saudi citizen working for the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice in the Eastern Province dared to kill his sister for allegedly converting to the Christian religion. According to sources close to the victim, the murderer attacked the girl by burning her and then he cut out her tongue. When the news broke about the murder of the girl, Christian Internet sites, which the victim had been participating in under pseudonyms, grieved. These sites set apart special pages to mourn the girl’s death, while some of them closed down to mourn her death. Several days before her murder, the victim had written to the “Arab Christians Forum”, of which she had been a member under the pseudonym “Rania”. The girl indicated through her correspondence with the forum that she was living in a very difficult situation, being that her family had begun to doubt her after an argument about religion---and in addition to that, the argument intensified, making her brother demand that she repent. This gave way to her receiving a flood of insults from her brother, who rebuked the Internet, which had contributed, in his view, to the changing of his sister’s morals and religion. This is after his finding a folder containing Christian thoughts, in her pen, as well as a symbol of the cross on her personal computer. The Free Copts site publicized a message and reported that it was received from the victim’s friend. She indicates that obscurity enshrouds the crime, and she confirmed that the killer was behind bars and was under investigation on the notion that the case is related to honor. (Source)
Pascal wrote a long time ago about people who do terrible evils thinking that they are doing a good service to God. “Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious convictions.” (894) He also wrote, “If it is an extraordinary blindness to live without investigating what we are, it is a terrible one to live an evil life, while believing in God.” (495) The death of
Her brother declared: "This Internet changed you, changed your behavior, and changed your religion." This is only half true. What changed her was reading the Bible and learning the truth about it as well as about the Qur’an. She wrote:
During the past few weeks, I have been doing an honest and comprehensive study of Christianity. Muslims say in their Islamic forum that according to the Qur’an, the Christian and Jewish Holy Books both mention Muhammad. I read all of the verses, references, and evidence that Muslims use to support their assertion. I found nothing! I wondered, where did the Bible mention Muhammad? Where did the Bible speak about the message of Muhammad? In doing this search, I was honest with myself for the first time in my life! I felt that the Bible was intact and that the evidence offered to support the corruption of the Bible was unreasonable and meaningless. While I was reading the Bible, I felt that God was very near, that there were no barriers between us and that I had no fears. (Source)
What is significant about her comments is this: in her reading of the Bible not only did she find it credible, but God spoke through the words of the Bible and “that there were no barriers between us and that I had no fears.” This is one of the major differences between Islam and commitment to Jesus – no barriers and no fears. Muslims do not have a sense of the presence of Allah, but the believer in Jesus has a sense of His presence. The Bible is the book most feared by the Saudi government, for it brings everlasting life to those who trust in Jesus.
There are others in SA who have given their hearts to Jesus. One person was discussing the death of
If you will check these pages (1, 2) you will discover a large number of people who leave Islam and become atheists or agnostic. There are a number of them who progress from delusion about Islam to faith in Jesus.
There are a number of other sites in which former Muslims give their stories of the journey away from Islam. You can compare them in the following:
http://answering-islam.org/Testimonies/index.html
http://bibleprobe.com/islamapostates.htm
http://www.muslimjourneytohope.com/watch.asp
http://www.faithfreedom.org/Testimonials/ali1940.htm
http://www.apostatesofislam.com
http://www.islam-watch.org/LeavingIslam/index.html
http://www.islamisnotwhatyouthink.com/xmuslims.html
http://www.arabicbible.com/testimonies/testimonial.htm
http://www.wikiislam.com/wiki/Muslims_Leaving_Islam
If you wish to read more about Fatima, some of her poems and story can be found on this page. This is available in English and Arabic.
There are many people praying for the Muslim world. They are praying that Muslims may be liberated from the slavery of Islam. They are praying for freedom for Muslims to make decisions about God on their own. They are praying that the culture may be changed so that women are not second class citizens, and female children will no longer be “cut” at an early age.
They are praying that rape victims may no longer be viewed as bringing dishonor to the family, but people will pursue the rapists and bring them to justice. There is a litany of concerns that people share in praying for the Muslim world, and
May the presence of Jesus come to your lives.
Dallas M. Roark, Ph.D.
Source: http://answering-islam.org/authors/roark/open_letter_saudis.html
IHS
Wednesday, 8 December 2010
Anyone Who Claims that Jihad Does Not; Originate from Religion (Islam) Is Lying!
Some Truth
By Jacob Thomas
This bold headline, perhaps meant to shock conventional belief, appeared on the online daily Alawan, on,
A photo was included alongside the statement which exploded the myth of Jihad as mere personal “spiritual struggle” which some of the men and boys who follow Mohammed claim to experience. This crowd of men was being led by a grim-faced and determined young boy wielding a sword, with “Allahu Akbar” emblazoned on his headband! The writer then sets out to prove his assertion that Jihad comes directly from Islam and is most often not a mere “spiritual struggle” at all but a grand organizing concept encompassing Islamic world conquest, and subjugation and sometimes death to Islam’s enemies – all of which come under the category of the unbelieving “Other.” One can only hope it will be read with good effect among thinking Islamists. One obvious effect of his essay, at least to this reviewer, is how his thesis explodes the often repeated claim of certain Muslims seeking accommodation from Western leaders to Islam’s tenets, that Jihad is primarily a spiritual struggle within a Muslim’s soul, and should not be interpreted as an aggressive ideological concept meant to wreak havoc against non-Muslims.
The author develops his thesis by referring to the authoritative Islamic texts, the Qur’an and authentic Hadiths, as well as pointing out the special radio and television programs that are prepared with the purpose of entertaining Muslims during the long summer evenings of Ramadan! The meaning of Jihad and its incorporation into the ceremonies of Ramadan indicates an attempt by true believers to further their aims of not allowing Jihad to be forgotten by others amongst them who might conceivably be questioning its validity. This evidence the writer accumulates all points to an unhappy overriding fact that in most instances Jihad means war against the Infidels of the world.
Quoted below are excerpts from the article, followed by my concluding analysis and comments.
Educated Muslims, and others from various traditions who agree with them, tend to describe “Jihad in the Pathway of Allah” as a struggle against human passions, and the soul’s inclination to evil. But does this emphasis on the spiritual aspect of Jihad, while concealing its combative nature, help non-Muslims to feel more secure? Actually, the Fuqaha (legal authorities) of Islam, as well as the majority of Muslims, understand Jihad as a holy war against the enemies of Allah and His prophet.
Islam has practiced Jihad from its earliest days. The war against the Kuffar was not simply a just war, but it was a religious duty, depicted as a good deed that guarantees a Muslim’s entry into Paradise. Furthermore, Muslims have never hesitated to advocate the duty of spreading their religion throughout the world; and thus Jihad became the ideal way to accomplish that goal. While there are certain Ayaat in the Qur’an that call for tolerance toward Christians and Jews, other Ayaat call for fighting them. As for those who are neither Christians, nor Jews, they face no choice but embracing Islam, or migration, or death. The Qur’an addresses the Arab nation as a unique and chosen nation entrusted by Allah with the task of spreading his knowledge and will all over the world:
“Ye are the best community that hath been raised up for mankind. Ye enjoin right conduct and forbid indecency; and ye believe in Allah. And if the People of the Scripture had believed it had been better for them. Some of them are believers; but most of them are evil-livers.”
Since Muslims have been united in the belief in the universality of Islam, they have adopted Jihad as the ideal method for the worldwide propagation of their faith. Anyone reading the Qur’an will soon discover those Ayaat that manifest intolerance vis-à-vis Christians and Jews.
“A party of the People of the Scripture long to make you go astray; and they make none to go astray except themselves, but they perceive not.” Al-‘Imran (The House of ‘Imran) 3:69
“Let those fight in the cause of God who sell the life of this world for the Hereafter, to him who fighteth in the cause of God, whether he is slain or gets victory, soon shall We give him a reward of great (value).” An-Nisa(Women) 4:74
“O ye who believe! take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors: They are but friends and protectors to each other. And he amongst you that turns to them (for friendship) is of them. Verily God guideth not a people unjust.” Al-Ma'ida (The Table)
“O Prophet! strive hard [wage war] against the unbelievers and the Hypocrites, and be firm against them. Their abode is Hell, - an evil refuge indeed.” Al-Tawba (Repentance) 9:73
“O Prophet! make war on the infidels and hypocrites, and deal rigorously with them. Hell shall be their abode! and wretched the passage to it!” At-Tahrim (Prohibition) 66:9
“Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the last day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and his apostle nor acknowledge the religion of truth of the people of the Book (the Jews and the Christians) until they pay the Jizya [tax on non-Muslims] with willing submission and feel themselves subdued.” Al-Tawba (Repentance) 9:29
One of the results of Jihad was the ordeals of the Dhimmis (Christians and Jews living under Islam). Another consequence of Jihad was the punishment of Apostates (Murtaddeen). And beginning with the 10th century A.D., Jihad became an institution in the Pathway of Allah (Fi Sabeel Allah), as celebrated by the jurist Ibn Taymiyya.1 According to him, Jihad was one of the most important duties in Islam, even better than the Hajj, or fasting during Ramadan, or the ritual prayers! Rashid Rida, a disciple of Muhammad ‘Abdu, declared as Kuffar (Infidels) all those “westernized” Muslims such as Salameh Musa, Muhammad Hussein Haykal, and Taha Hussein. Then Hasan al-Banna(founder of the Muslim Brotherhood) continued the tradition of Rashid Rida. As to Abul ‘
All that one needs to learn about Jihad is to go on the Internet, and using a search engine, type the word “Jihad,” to find all kinds of information dealing with war, fighting, and suffering in the Path of Religion (i.e. Islam). The picture of a Shaheed (martyr) is embedded in the consciousness of Muslims. A Shaheed is glorified, anyone who is killed in a battle for the spread of Islam is considered as a soldier in the army of Allah. To engage in armed Jihad in order to enlarge the Islamic Empire is an integral part of the Qur’anic teachings. It was actually a great factor in that unusually rapid spread of Islam. Jihad is extolled in the highest levels of Islam. Just listen to the words of Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,‘If we want to build our country, maintain our greatness, and solve all our economic problems, all we need is martyrdom; it’s the shortest route to arrive at the summit of grace!’
Here are also some well-known Hadiths that extol Jihad:
Hadith 1.24 “Narrated Ibn `Umar: Allah’s Apostle said: ‘I have been ordered (by Allah) to fight against the people until they testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and that Muhammad is Allah’s Apostle, and offer the prayers’”
Hadith 1.25 “Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah’s Apostle was asked, ‘What is the best deed?’ He replied, ‘To believe in Allah and His Apostle (Muhammad). The questioner then asked, ‘What is the next (in goodness)?’ He replied, ‘To participate in Jihad (religious fighting) in Allah's Cause.’”
Sahih Muslim 4363: “You (the Jews) should know that the earth belongs to Allah and His Apostle and I wish to expel you from this land (
Sahih Muslim 4366: “Narrated by Umar ibn al-Khattab. Umar heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) say: “I will expel the Jews and Christians from the
The concept of an aggressive and military Jihad has dominated the conscience and sub-conscious minds of Muslims. The reason for Jihad is not really attacks made against Muslims, but is required by the very unbelief of the Infidels. Jihad’s goal is to manifest Islam’s superiority over all other religions. No matter how hard some observers of Islam have attempted to hide the real face of Jihad, and to conceal its aggressive nature, still fighting in the Pathway of Allah remains closer to the spirit of Islam; since it is readily supported by the Qur’an, and the Sunna, as we have already noticed.
In the final analysis, the goal of Jihad remains, namely, to occupy the whole world and make it submit to the rule of the Shari’a, through the instrumentality of “the best community that hath been raised up for mankind,” the community chosen by Allah to guide all of humanity. This is the true meaning of Jihad; and every other definition amounts to a planned deception. Therefore, there is no use to attempt to play with the etymology of the word “Jihad,” and describe it as a spiritual exercise in piety! Its place remains in the very heart of Islam; it is even better than prayers, and it was through it that the Apostle gained victory over the Infidels.
We should also remember that both ancient and modern Islam recognize only two realms. One is already Islamized and the other is on the way to Islamization. This explains the classical division of the world into “Dar’ul-Islam”(The House of Islam), and “Dar’ul Harb,” (The House of War.)
It was quite revealing [as we have been discussing the true nature of Jihad] that in April, 2008, the Society of the Algerian Muslim ‘Ulema (Religious Authorities) organized a special written contest for Algerian young people. They were to compose an essay (but not to debate it!) on the following theme: “The Law of Muhammad will conquer the whole world, since it is compatible with reason and wisdom.” Equally worth noticing is that the statues of the national hero, Emir Abdel-Kader, as seen in many Algerian public squares, portray him as yielding a threatening sword; whereas in his real life he was, fundamentally, a Sufi poet!
Analysis
It is quite evident that the above words did not come from an Islamophobe, but from a frank and reforming North African Muslim. Such a reforming spirit as this writer exhibits is shared by other Muslim moderates. He is seeking to show how Jihad has become imbedded in the very psyches of Muslim men and boys. They feel superior to the “Other” and an aggressive worldview is instilled in them from an early age out of their very own sacred texts. The militaristic aspects of such Jihad should not be underestimated or ignored. World domination is the goal. The writer is anxious for others to ponder how the violent texts in their holy book still move men and boys to become “true believers” who harbor violent and aggressive tendencies and thoughts of Islam’s future world domination.
Comment
The article is a reminder to all that the power of Jihad lies predominantly in its sacred texts. And the working out of those texts in real life makes for aggressive, domineering and sometimes violent actions by boys and men who are captivated by being part of what they deem to be total truth and the importance of seeking in every way possible to bring about the world domination their religious texts set forth as inevitable. Those in the West who redefine Jihad only to mean “spiritual struggle” are deluding themselves. Such people found predominantly in politics, the liberal academy and among liberal churchmen, exhibit how indebted they are to the late and highly controversial Palestinian-American scholar Edward Said. The
I end by quoting the words of the late Professor Samuel P. Huntington, who was for many years director of the John M. Olin Institute for Strategic Studies and chairman of the
In all these places, [reference is to Middle East and Africa] the relations between Muslims and peoples of other civilizations --- Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Hindu, Chinese, Buddhist, Jewish --- have been generally antagonistic; most of these relations have been violent at some point in the past; many have been violent in the 1990s. Wherever one looks at the perimeter of Islam, Muslims have problems living peaceably with their neighbors. The questions naturally rises as to whether this pattern of late- twentieth-century conflict between Muslim and non-Muslim groups is equally true of relations between groups from other civilizations. In fact, it is not. Muslims make up about one-fifth of the world’s population but in the 1990s they have been far more involved in intergroup violence than the people of any other civilization. The evidence is overwhelming.2
Post Script
Internal Jihad Never Stops in Iraq; 19 August, 2009. Just a few days before Ramadan, Islamic terrorists attacked the Iraqi Government building complex housing several ministries, killing 95 people, and wounding around 563!
Source: Al-Sharq al-Awsat Online Daily, 20 August 2009, with the top headline: "Terrorists get through to the very heart of Baghdad leaving hundreds of dead and wounded."
Footnotes
1 Ibn Taymiyya lived during the times of the Crusader and Mongol invasions, a circumstance that conditioned his theories on the jihad. When the Mongols invaded Dar al-Islam they eventually converted to Islam. The dilemma arose as to whether the war against them should be considered a jihad or a war between two Muslim entities. In his fatwa on the Mongols, Ibn Taymiyya acknowledged that they practiced the five pillars of Islam, but this did not automatically make them true Muslims. The mainstream view was that under the Shari’a they were Muslims, but Ibn Taymiyya introduced a new evaluation criterion: Whether or not they respected the five pillars, if someone did not follow one of the precepts of the Shari’a, they ceased being Muslim and could therefore be declared kafir. (Source)
2 Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, [Simon & Schuster,
Source: http://answering-islam.org/authors/thomas/jihad_lies.html
IHS
The Kabah - PartII
The Great Idol of Islam Pt. 2
by Sam Shamoun
From Part I
In an attempt to defend the Islamic practice of bowing towards the direction of the Kabah, a pagan shrine, in the five daily prayers performed by Muslims some Islamic apologists appeal to the Holy Bible to show that even the Israelites had a prayer direction, namely Jerusalem. These dawagandists will often quote examples where Yahweh’s prophets like Daniel would face the direction of Jerusalem when they prayed:
“When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber opentoward Jerusalem; and he got down upon his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously.” Daniel 6:10
They also appeal to texts where Jesus’ Apostles would go to the
“Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour.” Acts 3:1
However, is this a valid comparison? Does this justify what Muslims are doing in their daily acts of worship? Or is this nothing more than a false analogy aimed at diverting attention away from the crucial problems with the Islamic practice of worshiping towards a shrine?
In this article we are about to find out. [See alsoPart 1.]
The Tabernacle/Temple as God's
According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tent of Meeting/Tabernacle and Solomon’s
“These are the statutes and ordinances which you shall be careful to do in the land which the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess, all the days that you live upon the earth. You shall surely destroy all the places where the nations whom you shall dispossess served their gods, upon the high mountains and upon the hills and under every green tree; you shall tear down their altars, and dash in pieces their pillars, and burn their Ashe'rim with fire; you shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy their name out of that place. You shall not do so to the LORD your God. But you shall seek the place which the LORD your God will choose out of all your tribes to put his Name and make his habitation there; thither you shall go, and thither you shall bring your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and the offering that you present, your votive offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herd and of your flock; and there you shall eat before the LORD your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your households, in all that you undertake, in which the LORD your God has blessed you. You shall not do according to all that we are doing here this day, every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes; for you have not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance which the LORD your God gives you. But when you go over the Jordan, and live in the land which the LORD your God gives you to inherit, and when he gives you rest from all your enemies round about, so that you live in safety, then to the place which the LORD your God will choose, to make his Name dwell there, thither you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and the offering that you present, and all your votive offerings which you vow to the LORD.” Deuteronomy 12:1-11
Yahweh even descended upon these places in a cloud, thereby filling the Tent of Meeting/Tabernacle and the Temple with his glory, as a sign that these were objects signifying Yahweh’s house where he dwelt among his people:
“Then the LORD said to Moses: ‘Set up the tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the first month. Place the ark of the Testimony in it and shield the ark with the curtain. Bring in the table and set out what belongs on it. Then bring in the lampstand and set up its lamps. Place the gold altar of incense in front of the ark of the Testimony and put the curtain at the entrance to the tabernacle. Place the altar of burnt offering in front of the entrance to the tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting; place the basin between the Tent of Meeting and the altar and put water in it. Set up the courtyard around it and put the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard. Take the anointing oil and anoint the tabernacle and everything in it; consecrate it and all its furnishings, and it will be holy. Then anoint the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils; consecrate the altar, and it will be most holy. Anoint the basin and its stand and consecrate them.'… Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the Tent of Meeting because the cloud had settled upon it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out; but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out—until the day it lifted. So the cloud of the LORD was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of
“Then King Solomon summoned into his presence at Jerusalem the elders of Israel, all the heads of the tribes and the chiefs of the Israelite families, to bring up the ark of the LORD's covenant from Zion, the City of David. All the men of
“Then Solomon said, ‘The LORD has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud; I have built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever.’” 2 Chronicles 6:1-2
The Temple in Jerusalem would also be a sign to the Gentiles that this is the place on earth where the God of Israel lives, and if they wanted to worship him they would have to travel there or turn in its direction:
“As for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your Name—for men will hear of your great Name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm—when he comes and prays toward this temple,then hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your Name and fear you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.” 1 Kings 8:41-43
Interestingly, after Solomon finished consecrating the Temple Yahweh spoke to him in a dream informing him that he had accepted this place as his house:
“When Solomon had finished building the temple of the LORD and the royal palace, and had achieved all he had desired to do, the LORD appeared to him a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. The LORD said to him: 'I have heard the prayer and plea you have made before me; I have consecrated this temple, which you have built, by putting my Name there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.’” 1 Kings 9:1-3
And:
“When Solomon had finished the temple of the LORD and the royal palace, and had succeeded in carrying out all he had in mind to do in the temple of the LORD and in his own palace, the LORD appeared to him at night and said: 'I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices. When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, if my people, who are called by my Name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.’” 2 Chronicles 7:11-15
The Lord Jesus himself confirmed that the
“And he who swears by the temple swears by it and by the One who dwells in it.” Matthew 23:21
In light of this we can see why Jerusalem is said to be the place where Yahweh lives on earth, since that is where his Temple or house was located:
“O LORD, remember David and all the hardships he endured. He swore an oath to the LORD and made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob: 'I will not enter my house or go to my bed- I will allow no sleep to my eyes, no slumber to my eyelids, till I find a place for the LORD, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.' We heard it in Ephrathah, we came upon it in the fields of Jaar: 'Let us go to his dwelling place; let us worship at his footstool- arise, O LORD, and come to your resting place, you and the ark of your might. May your priests be clothed with righteousness; may your saints sing for joy.' For the sake of David your servant, do not reject your anointed one. The LORD swore an oath to David, a sure oath that he will not revoke: 'One of your own descendants I will place on your throne- if your sons keep my covenant and the statutes I teach them, then their sons will sit on your throne for ever and ever.' For the LORD has chosen Zion, he has desired it for his dwelling: ‘This is my resting place for ever and ever; here I will sit enthroned, for I have desired it-’” Psalm 132:1-14
“Praise the LORD. Praise the name of the LORD; praise him, you servants of the LORD, you who minister in the house of the LORD, in the courts of the house of our God… Praise be to the LORD from
This also helps us to understand why the prophets and the Israelites would bow down or pray facing the Tent of Meeting or the
“Now Moses used to take a tent and pitch it outside the camp some distance away, calling it the 'tent of meeting.' Anyone inquiring of the LORD would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp. And whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people rose and stood at the entrances to their tents, watching Moses until he entered the tent. As Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the LORD spoke with Moses. Whenever the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance to the tent, they all stood and worshiped, each at the entrance to his tent. The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young aide Joshua son of Nun did not leave the tent.” Exodus 33:7-11
“Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them; and he came down from offering the sin offering and the burnt offering and the peace offerings. And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting; and when they came out they blessed the people, and the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people. And fire came forth from before the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat upon the altar; and when all the people saw it, they shouted, and fell on their faces.” Leviticus 9:22-24
“Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the tent of meeting, and fell on their faces. And the glory of the LORD appeared to them, and the LORD said to Moses, 'Take the rod, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water; so you shall bring water out of the rock for them; so you shall give drink to the congregation and their cattle.' And Moses took the rod from before the LORD, as he commanded him.” Numbers 20:6-9
“When Solomon had ended his prayer, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the temple. And the priests could not enter the house of the LORD, because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD's house. When all the children of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the LORD upon the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the earth on the pavement, and worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying, ‘For he is good, for his steadfast love endures for ever.’ Then the king and all the people offered sacrifice before the LORD. King Solomon offered as a sacrifice twenty-two thousand oxen and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the people dedicated the house of God. The priests stood at their posts; the Levites also, with the instruments for music to the LORD which King David had made for giving thanks to the LORD -- for his steadfast love endures for ever -- whenever David offered praises by their ministry; opposite them the priests sounded trumpets; and all Israel stood.” 2 Chronicles 7:1-6
“But I through the abundance of thy steadfast love will enter thy house, I will worship toward thy holy temple in the fear of thee.” Psalm 5:7
“Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the belly of the fish, saying, "I called to the LORD, out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and thou didst hear my voice. For thou didst cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the flood was round about me; all thy waves and thy billows passed over me. Then I said, `I am cast out from thy Presence; how shall I again look upon thy holy temple [i.e. the place where Yahweh’s Presence dwelt in a unique way]?' The waters closed in over me, the deep was round about me; weeds were wrapped about my head at the roots of the mountains. I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me for ever; yet thou didst bring up my life from the Pit, O LORD my God. When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the LORD; and my prayer came to thee, into thy holy temple. Those who pay regard to vain idols forsake their true loyalty. But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to thee; what I have vowed I will pay. Deliverance belongs to the LORD!’ And the LORD spoke to the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.” Jonah 2:1-10
This leads us to our next section.
Jesus' Physical Body - The Human Tabernacle of God
According to the New Testament, the eternal Word of God became flesh in order to make that his Tabernacle/Temple:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made… He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him… And the Word became flesh and tabernacled/pitched his tent (eskenosen) among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:1-3, 10, 14
The Evangelist connects Jesus’ flesh or physical body with the OT Tent of Meeting/Tabernacle and
Jesus himself spoke of his body as being the
“Jesus answered them, ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.’ The Jews then said, ‘It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?’ But he was speaking about the temple of his body. When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.” John 2:19-22
Thus, Jesus’ physical body is the living and abiding Temple of God according to the NT, the One in whom all the fulness of the Divine glory and essence dwells:
“For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,” Colossians 1:19
“For in Christ all the fullness of Deity dwell in bodily form,” Colossians 2:9
This means that Jesus is the eternal God who became flesh for the purpose of making his physical body his Tabernacle!
This helps explain why throughout the NT Jesus is worshiped even as a man since the believers were not worshiping his flesh or human nature, but rather they were worshiping the eternal Divine Person who had made flesh his Tabernacle:
“And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, ‘It is a ghost!’ And they cried out for fear. But immediately he spoke to them, saying, ‘Take heart, I am (ego eimi); have no fear.’ And Peter answered him, 'Lord, if it is you, bid me come to you on the water.’ He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus; but when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, ‘Lord, save me.’ Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, ‘O man of little faith, why did you doubt?’ And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshipped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’” Matthew 14:25-33
“And behold, Jesus met them and said, 'Hail!' And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshipped him… Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshipped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age.'" Matthew 28:9, 16-20
“And whenever the unclean spirits beheld him, they fell down before him and cried out, ‘You are the Son of God.’” Mark
“They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. And when he had come out of the boat, there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who lived among the tombs; and no one could bind him any more, even with a chain; for he had often been bound with fetters and chains, but the chains he wrenched apart, and the fetters he broke in pieces; and no one had the strength to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always crying out, and bruising himself with stones. And when he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped him; and crying out with a loud voice, he said, ‘What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I adjure you by God, do not torment me.’” Mark 5:1-7
“Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, ‘Do you believe in the Son of man?' He answered, ‘And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?’ Jesus said to him, 'You have seen him, and it is he who speaks to you.’ He said, ‘Lord, I believe’; and he worshipped him.” John 9:35-38
In a similar manner, the prophets and the Israelites were not worshiping the Tabernacle or the
In light of this we need to once again ask the Muslims why do they bow to the Kabah in their daily worship? Do they believe that, like Yahweh in the
Source: http://answering-islam.org/authors/shamoun/kabah_idol2.html
IHS