Worldly Riches, Gossip, Interpreting The Quran
Issue 385 » June 30, 2006 - Jumada-al-Thani 4, 1427
General
| Living the Quran |
Al-Adiyat
(The Courses)
It is a fact that man reacts with ingratitude to all the bounties of his Lord. He denies the favours which Allah confers on him. His thanklessness and ingratitude is reflected in a host of actions and verbal statements which will serve as witness against him. Or perhaps, on the Day of Judgement, he may testify against himself, admitting his ingratitude: "and of this he himself is a witness". For on the Day of Judgement he will speak the plain truth even against himself, without any contentions or excuses. "And truly, he is passionate in his love for worldly riches". Man is a passionate self-lover. But he loves only what he imagines to be good for him: wealth, power and the pleasures of this world. This is his nature unless he has faith which changes his concepts, values and even his concerns. Faith changes his ingratitude to humble thankfulness. It changes his greed and miserliness to benevolence and compassion. It makes him aware of the proper values which are worthy of being the object of ambition and hard competition. Indeed these are much more exalted than money, power and mundane pleasures. Man without faith is an ignoble creature having only trivial ambitions and petty concerns. However big his desires, however strong his ambitions and high his objectives may seem, he remains sunk in the cesspool of this earth, confined within the limits of this life, imprisoned in self. He cannot be freed or elevated except by an attachment to a world superior to this earth, extending beyond this life; a world which originates from Allah who is the First Being and returning to Allah the Eternal; a world into which this life and the life hereafter converge and which has no end. Source: |
| Understanding the Prophet's Life |
| Spreading Gossip Gossiping usually accompanies backbiting and is strictly prohibited. This means passing on to others what you hear from someone in such a manner that will cause dissension among people, sour their relationships, or increase already-existing bitterness between them. From the very early Makkah period of revelation, the Quran condemned this trait (68: 10-11). And the Prophet (peace be on him) said, "The one who spreads gossip which he has overheard will not enter the Garden" (Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim.), and, "The most evil among Allah's slaves are those who go about spreading gossip dividing those who love each other and desiring to defame those who are innocent." (Reported by Ahmad.) In order to foster peace and reconciliation, Islam permits a mediator to conceal the bad words said by one person against another and permits him to add some good words which, in fact, neither of them has said. This is not considered to be lying, for the Prophet (peace be on him) said, "He is not a liar who makes peace between two persons, saying what is good or adding something good." (Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim.) Islam's anger is particularly directed against those people who, as soon as they hear something bad, hasten to recount it for the sake of carrying favour or merely out of love of causing trouble and dissension. Indeed, many such people are not satisfied to simply repeat what they have heard but add to it or invent something of their own. Source: |
| Blindspot! |
Interpreting The Quran In interpreting one of the primary sources of Islam, a number of essential and universal rules must be observed. They include the following: 1. The realization that the Quran has been preserved in the original language in which it was revealed (Arabic). In the process of translation into other languages, tones of the original language may be lost or not fully communicated. Outright mistakes in translation do occur. Therefore, deep knowledge of the Arabic language is a must for any scholarly interpretation. It should be noted that certain terms used in the Quran carry differing meanings depending upon the context. For example, the term Ahl Al-Kitab or “People of the Book” is sometimes used to refer to Jews, other times to Christians, and in other instances to both. The same applies to terms like Jews or Christians. Such terms may refer only to some but not all Jews or Christians. 2. The Quran explains itself. Since the Quran is not ordered by topic (like textbook chapters), it is necessary for a scholar to be thoroughly familiar with other texts in the Quran which deal with the same topic or relate directly to it. Failure to do so may lead to selectivity, which may distort the overall message of the Quran concerning that topic. In fact, other texts in the Quran may be highly significant in determining the true meaning of a given text. 3. In addition to the overall Quranic context, consideration should be given to the section in which a particular verse occurs. One of the most common serious mistakes is to quote only a part of a verse or one verse in an interrelated section of a surah (chapter) in such a way as to change its meaning. 4. Consideration of the occasion of revelation (asbab al-nuzul) of certain verses, if known and authentic, affects the interpretation of that verse. 5. If there is an authentic hadith dealing with the same topic as the Quranic verse, the hadith takes precedence over mere opinion or speculation. 6. Keep in mind that some Quranic verses were revealed to deal with certain historical challenges facing the emerging and besieged Muslim community. Some of these challenges may not be present today, and if they are, they may take a different form. Some verses revealed to deal with such situations should not be unnecessarily generalized. For example, referring to verse 5 in surah 9 without any regard to its historical context may give the misleading impression that the Quran condones the killing of all idolatrous people, rather than only those who committed or conspired with others to commit murder in violation of their treaties. 7. The few texts must be interpreted in the light of the many texts. For example, the Quran repeatedly affirms the freedom of conscience and rejects compulsion in religion. However, we encounter some verses in the Quran which allow fighting non-Muslims. To understand these later verses as permitting fighting against others because of their rejection of Islam or in order to force or coerce them to accept Islam is to disregard many Quranic texts that are inconsistent with that interpretation. The question then, is whether the permission to fight is because of their faith choice or because of their aggression and/or oppression, with religious choice being incidental, not the cause of fighting. 8. Even an authoritative and authentic text of the primary sources of Islam may have more than one possible meaning (mutashabih) and must be interpreted in the light of the more definitive text (muhkam), not the reverse. Source: |
