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RELIGION                                                                                                           MAY 17, 2019  –  PAKISTAN LINK  –  P25
                Being a Muslim: What Does It Mean?                                                                                 Gems from the

                                                                                                                                    Holy Qur’an


         n By Dr Muzammil H. Siddiqi

              ye who believe! Enter
              into Islam whole-heart-
        O edly; and follow not the
        footsteps of the Evil One; for he
        is to you an avowed enemy. (Al-
        Baqarah 2:208)
               A Muslim is a  person
                    who is all the time
                    submitting  and                                                                                                  From the translation by
                    surrendering  to                                                                                             Muhammad Asad (Leopold Weiss)
                    Allah.    A  Mus-
                    lim enters into                                                                                                 About the translator:
                    Islam, walks on                                                                                                 Muhammad Asad, Leopold
                    the straight path,                                                                                          Weiss, was born of Jewish parents
                    step by step moves                                                                                          in Livow, Austria (later Poland)
        ahead, goes higher and higher                                                                                           in 1900, and at the age of 22 made
        and never stops this movement                                                                                           his fi rst visit to the Middle East. He
        until the  end  of  his/her  life.  Be-                                                                                 later became an outstanding foreign
        ing a Muslim is a process.  It is a                                                                                     correspondent for the Franfurter
        continuous struggle within one-                                                                                         Zeitung, and aft er his conversion to
        self and with the outside world                                                                                         Islam travelled and worked through-
        to transform and to make every-                                                                                         out the Muslim world, from North
        thing better.                                                                                                           Africa to as far east as Afghanistan,
            Ibn Kathir, the famous com-                                                                                         India and Pakistan. Aft er years of
        mentator of the Qur’an explains                                                                                         devoted study he became one of the
        the above ayah with these words:                                                                                        leading Muslim scholars of our age.
            Allah commands His servants                                                                                         His translation of the Holy Qur’an is
        who believe in Him and who have                                                                                         one of the most lucid and well-refer-
        accepted His Messenger to hold                                                                                          enced works in this category, dedi-
        fast to all the principles and laws                                                                                     cated to “li-qawmin yatafakkaroon”
        of Islam, to do all His commands   Being a Muslim is to know   terrible.                  sad.  It is to care for them, strug-  (For people who think).
        and to avoid all His prohibitions as   that Allah chose from amongst   Being a Muslim is to wor-  gle for their rights and protect
        much as they can.             the human beings some individu-  ship Allah and to make Allah, His   them wherever they are.  Chapter 32, verses 19 – 21
            Being a Muslim is not just a   als.  He gave them His message   Messenger and His Deen the pri-  Being a Muslim is to be good   As for those who attain to faith
        label or an ethnic or family iden-  and made them guides of hu-  ority of life.           to all human beings and to all the   and do righteous deeds – gardens of
        tity. To be a Muslim is to belong   manity.  Th  ere were many Proph-  Say: If it be that your fathers,   creation of Allah.  It is to deal with   rest await them, as a welcome [from
        to Allah, to accept Islam as a way   ets and Messengers and Prophet   your sons, your brothers, your   every person, friend or foe with   God], in result of what they did; but
        of life and to mold one’s behavior   Muhammad was the Last and Fi-  mates, or your kindred; the wealth   fairness and justice. It is to be tol-  as for those who are lost in iniquity
        on the pattern of Prophet’s Mu-  nal among them. May the peace   that ye have gained; the commerce   erant and peaceful, kind and cour-  – their goal is the fi re: as oft  as they
        hammad’s Sunnah. It means to   and blessings of Allah be upon   in which ye fear a decline; or the   teous to neighbors, to coworkers,   will try to come out of it, they will
        be a Muslim in one’s beliefs, wor-  him and upon all His prophets   dwellings in which ye delight -   to associates and to strangers. It   be thrown back into it; and they will
        ship, morals, manners, family re-  and messengers.  Messengers   are dearer to you than Allah, Or   is to be involved in humanitarian   be told, “Taste [now] this suff ering
        lations, social relations, business   came to guide human beings and   His Messenger, or the striving in   work, building relations with all   through fi re which you were wont to
        pursuits, private and public, every   to tell them the purpose of their   His cause - then wait until Allah   people. It is also to covey Allah’s   call a lie!”
        aspect of life.               existence.  Messengers must be   brings about His decision: and Al-  message to all people, with wis-  However, ere [We condemn
            Being a Muslim is to know   followed and their teachings and   lah guides not the rebellious. (Al-  dom and without any coercion   them to] that supreme suff ering, We
        that Allah is One, to have deep   examples must be taken seriously.  Tawbah 9:24)         and compulsion. It is to invite   shall most certainly let them taste
        and strong faith and trust in Al-  Being a Muslim is to know    Being a Muslim is to have   them to join the brotherhood of   of a suff ering closer at hand, so that
        lah, and to love Allah more than   that this life is not the only life.    good character, good morals and   Islam, become the people of Allah,   they might repent and mend their
        anything  and everything.    Allah   Th  ere will be life aft er death and   manners.  It is to be truthful, hon-  but it is also to respect them and   ways.
        is the Creator, Owner, Master and   all  human  beings  will  stand  be-  est, patient, humble, kind, courte-  deal with them with justice even if   Chapter 32, verses 23 - 34
        Lord of this whole universe, but a   fore Allah to give the account   ous, generous, and hospitable.  It   they do not accept Islam.
        Muslims says further that Allah is   of their lives.  Th  e righteous will   is to live pure and clean life with   Being a Muslim is to care   And, indeed, [O Muhammad,]
        my Lord, my Master, my Creator   be rewarded with eternal bliss in   no alcohol, drugs, fornication,   for all creatures and for the en-  We did vouchsafe revelation unto
        and my Owner. Allah is Loving,   Jannah. Th  ose who rejected Al-  adultery, homosexuality or any   vironment, without wasting the   Moses [as well]: so be not in doubt
        Kind, Compassionate and Merci-  lah and His Messengers will be   evil.                    resources and without hurting or   of [thy] having met with the same
        ful. He is also Powerful, Just and   punished in Jahannam.  It is our   Being a Muslim is to love and   harming anyone.   [truth in the revelation vouchsafed
        He knows everything.  All the   choice to choose whatever path   care for one’s family.  It is to be   Being a Muslim is to be opti-  to thee].
        Good Names belong to Him.  It   we want.  If we choose the right   a good spouse, loving, kind and   mistic, never lose hope and never   And [just as] We caused that
        is to know that Allah created and   path, Allah helps us to move in   caring to children, obedient and   give up.  It is to be sure that in the   [earlier revelation] to be a guidance
        creates everything for a purpose.    that  direction.  However,  if  we   respectful to parents, kind and   end the truth will prevail and the   for  the  children  of  Israel,  and  [as]
        He created us, human beings, for   choose the wrong path, it is our   loving to brothers and sisters and   falsehood will vanish.  It is to re-  We raised among them leaders who,
        a purpose.                    choice and consequences will be   to all relatives - members of our   main steadfast and work hard with   as long as they bore themselves with
                                                                                   extended fam-  wisdom and patience.          patience and had sure faith in Our
                                                                                   ily.               A Muslim scholar gave ten   messages, guided [their people] in
                                                                                          B eing  qualities of a Muslim:        accordance with Our behest – [so,
                                                                                   a Muslim is        1. Salim al-‘Aqidah: A person   too, shall it be with the divine writ
                                                                                   to love other   of sound faith,              revealed unto thee, O Muhammad.]
                                                                                   Muslims.  It is    2. Sahih al-‘Ibadah: Worship-
                                                                                   to consider ev-  er in a correct way             Chapter 33, verse 35
                                                                                   ery Muslim a       3. Qawiyy al-jism: Strong     Verily, for all men and women
                                                                                   brother or sis-  physically                  who have surrendered themselves
                                                                                   ter. It is to have   4. Matin al-khuluq: A person   unto God, and all believing men
                                                                                   no racial, eth-  of solid character          and believing women, and all truly
                                                                                   nic, color, or     5.  Muthaqqaf  al-fi kr: A  per-  devout men and truly devout wom-
                                                                                   language prej-  son of refi ned mind         en, and all men and women who are
                                                                                   udice. It is to    6. Qadir ‘ala al-kasb: Able to   true to their word, and all men and
                                                                                   love to be with   earn                       women who are patient in adver-
                                                                                   Muslims    as      7. Mujahid linafsihi: Self dis-  sity, and all men and women who
                                                                                   much as pos-   ciplined                      humble themselves [before God],
                                                                                   sible, live with   8. Haris ‘ala waqtihi: Consci-  and all men and women who give
                                                                                   them,    deal  entious about his time        in charity, and all self-denying men
                                                                                   with    them,      9. Munazzam fi  shu’unih: Or-  and  self-denying  women,  and  all
                                                                                   interact with   ganized in his aff airs      men and women who are mindful
                                                                                   them, feeling      10.Nafi ’  lighairihi:  Benefi cial   of their chastity, and all men and
                                                                                   happy   when   to others                     women who remember God un-
                                                                                   they are happy     (Khutbah at Islamic Center   ceasingly: for [all of] them has God
                                                                                   and feeling sad   of Hawthorne, CA – Jumadal Ula   readied forgiveness of sins and a
                                                                                   when they are   17, 1434/ March 29, 2013)    mighty reward.
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