THE ISLAM OF THE PROPHET-MESSENGERS

THE ISLAM OF PROPHETS-MESSENGERS

By: Kassim Ahmad

24^th February, 2016

darul_hikmah333@yahoo.com.my

            Therefore, you shall devote yourself to the religion of strict monotheism. Such is the natural instinct placed in the people by God. Such creation of God will never change. This is the perfect religion, but most people do not know. – Quran, 30: 30.

            Recall  that your Lord summoned all the descendents of Adam, and had them bear witness for themselves: “Am I not your Lord?” They all said, “Yes, we bear witness.” Thus you cannot say on the Day of Resurrection , “We were not aware of this. Nor can you say, “It was our parents who practiced idolatory, and we simply followed in their footsteps. Will you punish us for what others have innovated?” – Quran, 7: 172-73.

            Surely, those who believe, those who are Jewish, the Christians, and the converts; anyone who believes in God, and believes  in the Last Day, and leads a righteous life, will receive recompence from their Lord. They have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve. – Quran, 2: 62.

            It does seem from the above verses  that the monotheistic religion taught by all divine prophet-messengers, ending with Prophet  Muhammad, is implanted in man’s nature. It is natural and most unlike the Islam that has come down to us from our ancestors, the inherited Islam. This Islam is so beautifully inclusive and so beautifully universal in nature.

            It is the Islam practiced by Prophet Muhammad, so profoundly and far different from the current “Islam” that is spewed by the like of Jawi and Jakim, which want to control every aspect of Muslim lives in Malaysia, pronouncing this and that to be approved or disapproved religiously, by order of the current religious officialdom.   

            It is better that we do away with such authoritarian interference with our lives. It is furthermore  sectarian Islam (Sunnism), forbidden by God and the Prophet.

            It is true that once you freely choose to be a Muslim, you should carry out all the religious obligations, like the five daily prayers, fasting in the month of Ramadan, and so on. You should also try to live righteously. All these obligations are mentioned in the Quran.

            Islam is so simple that it does not burden its adherents. It allows flexibility in carrying out religious obligations

            Also there are things that the Quran leaves to one’s individual judgement.

            All these rulings are proofs of divine mercy. There is a Quranic verse stating that God decrees upon Himself the quality of mercy. (See Quran, 6: 12)

            Of course, all these obligations are not imposed on the adherents, except to teach them to live righteously. God does not need our worship. He is Great whether we worship Him, or not. On the contrary, it is we who need Him.

KASSIM AHMAD is a Malaysian author. His website is www.kassimahmad.blogspot.com

THE STORY OF MAN

THE STORY OF MAN

By: Kassim Ahmad

17 February, 2016

darul_hikmah333@yahoo.com.my

            One day the father of Man said to his son, “I want to write the last chapter of the story of Man. “Is it short, or long?” asks his son. “Neither too short, nor too long,” answered the father. “Is it a tragedy, or a comedy?” asks his son. “Decide for yourself,” answered the father. “Please write it quickly. Maybe I will benefit from it,” said his son.

            Here is the story.

            After the greats of all nations, ancient, medieval and modern, secular and religious, across all civilizations have come and gone, are we any better? Are we any safer? The answer is a big, “No.” We kill one another every day. One nuclear power  threatens another nuclear power with nuclear destruction. We live under threat of total or near-total destruction.

            Why, oh Lord? Are the protesting angels right? Are we shedders of blood and causers of destructions? But You still went on to create us, saying You know better. Are You wrong? It cannot be, You being All-Knowing. Are we wrong to believe in You? Please help us humans!  Where is our promised helper, Imam Mahdi? When is the Second Coming? Oh Lord, please help us.

            You must help yourselves, says the Lord. I have given you My Book and the mind. Read My Book and use your mind.

But all our great minds have come and gone. There is the tomb of books in all the world’s libraries. Still we are no more knowledgeable, nor more safe. Why? The great bullies remain bullies. The aged, the women and the children suffer, become refugees. Oh Lord, where is the justice You promised us? Where is Your compassion?

The fault lies not in your stars, but in yourselves, as said Mr Shakespeare. You choose the easy road of sports and amusements; not the difficult road of struggle for justice and truth. You choose to degenerate, instead of to progress. It is your fault.

But, Lord, it is You Who make us like this. How can I believe in You now? Even the geniuses among us, like Prof. Stephen Hawking, do not believe in You.

Did not Jesus, one of your greats, said that you cannot live by bread alone? You have to believe in something. Better that something be the Ever-Living, the All-Powerful, the All-knowing, the Perfect, even if He does not exist. But what if He does exist?

Yes, He does exist. Even if you cannot know Him, he does exit. Otherwise, how can you exist? You exist because He created you. How do you know that He created you? As far as I can see, the world creates itself, although I did not see it happen. I deduce it logically. If I were to say that Someone Else creates the Universe,  it makes logical sense. But in the end you will come to the Uncaused Cause. What causes the uncaused cause? If you answer the uncaused cause, causes itself, you put yourself  outside the bounds of logic. You become illogical, which is unacceptable. 

You have to surpass the boundaries of logic, not into the world of the illogical, but into the world of supra-logical. God is not illogical. He is supra-logical.

Epistemology is the combination of sensory, logical and supra-logical evidences. Period.

KASSIM AHMAD is a Malaysian author. His website is www.lassimahmad.blogspot.com      

             

WHAT IS MAN?

MAN – WHAT IS MAN?

By: Kassim Ahmad

5^th February, 2016

Darul_hikmah333@yahoo.com.my

            What a piece of work is man! How noble in reason! How infinite in faculties! In form and moving, how exspress and admirable! In action, how like an angel! In apprehension, how like a god! The beauty of the world! The paragon of animals! And yet, to me, what is this quintessence of dust? Man delights not me – no, nor woman neither.

                                                                                                    HAMLET,  Shakespeare.  

            Recently I promised my readers to write on Man. In the Bible, God said that He created man in His own image. In the Quran, man is His vicegerent on Earth (Arabic: khalifah). The meaning is essentially the same: ruler. Man is the ruler and the re-maker of the Universe. That has, of course been done. Man has created cities and civilizations, from ancient Babylon and Egypt, through ancient Greece, and Rome, through modern Arabian monotheism, and lastly through modern Europe and its extension in the United States of America.

            In a beautiful allegory in the second chapter of the Quran, the angels protested against the creation of Man, saying that Man is a shedder of blood and spreader of corruption in the world. God simply said that He knew better. (See Quran, 2: 30)

            The angels were partially right. Man did shed blood in the two World Wars. (God forbid that there will be a third!). After the Second World War, there was a period called “Cold War” when a strategic balance was struck between the American-led so-called Democratic block and the Soviet Communist-led Eastern block prevailed. In the meanwhile, Man’s knowledge advance, slowly at first, then by leaps and bounce,   and we are now at the threshold of colonizing outer space. In two generations we shall indeed be living in outer space!

            So it does seem that God’s optimism about Man has been amply demonstrated. If I am not mistaken, more miracles are coming. Anti-aging, for one. We shall soon be forever young!

            There is no doubt that man cannot escape reaping the harvest of what he had sowed. He will be punished to the extent of his criminality, i.e. disobedience to his own Maker.  Unless my reading of the Quran is at fault, this means man will punish his own wrong-doing. What incredible beauty!

            In the end, man will have punished himself enough, and he will be freed from his own Hell, and enter Paradise. Such is God’s incredible power and wisdom. No wonder we are asked always to remember God’s graciousnes and mercy.

KASSIM AHMAD  is a Malaysian author. His website is www.kassimahmad.blogspot.com  

     

MALAYSIA: ITS PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS

MY COUNTRY MALAYSIA: ITS PROBLEMS

AND RECOMENDED SOLUTIONS

By: Kassim Ahmad

3th February, 2016

darul_hikmah333@yahoo.com.my

            I am a patriot, a plain Kassim Ahmad, who a long time ago politely refused an UMNO offer for a datukship. Being from a poor oppressed class, I began early as a rebel (with cause, of course!) and soon became the leader of the Malayan People’s Socialist Party (1968-1984). In 1984, seeing the collapse of international socialism in the world, I left the party and made a strong patriotic statement by joining UMNO in 1986. My aim of reforming UMNO from within could not take off. I am still an UMNO member, albeit very critical one. I have also written to the UMNO president suggesting to him how to reform UMNO. I did not expect him to be able to do it; still I tried.

On the same day when my application was approved, my widely discussed book Hadis – Satu Penilaian Semula came out. After two months of extensive discussions, including an ABIM-organized public dialogue, and through cunning and deceit, it was pronounced deviationary and was banned by the religious establishment in the country.

Several state muftis penned books to rebut my book, repeating their tired old arguments, which I have already refuted in the first place. However, I wrote another book entitled, Hadis – Jawapan kepada Pengkritik (1992), briefly dismissing the muftis’ several books, but giving more details about the Quran.

This started the movement for the review of Hadith as well as for going back to the Quran, not only in Malaysia, but internationally. Hadis – Satu Penilaian Semula has since been translated into English and Arabic. I am glad to say that today the Turkish Governmet is undertaking a major project of Hadith re-evaluation.

The title of my essay is touching on Malaysia’s problems and my recommended solutions. I admitted that I was a rebel, and still am.

At the core of Malaysia’s problems is UMNO, the backbone of its ruling BN Government. In 1946 when UMNO was first formed it was a poor idealistic Malay party embraced en mass by the Malays in their enthusiasm and quest for Merdeka.

To cut the story short, via the bloody Mei 13, via great Razak’s Mageran (the Council for the  Regeneration of the Country) and his extraordinary vision, Malaysia is what it is today, one of the most progressive countries among the developing world.

At the same time, as it is wont in human affairs, deterioration sets in, as complacentcy grows among the ruling elite. UMNO became corrupt, and has perhaps reached the point of no return today. In this atmosphere of gloom when financial scandles abound, pessimism is in the air. Oh Lord! Do we need a second Mageran, ask the thinking part of Malaysia.

The people ask, “What are we to do? Can anything be done? Such voices rise from the depths of the soul of the people, voiced by their intellectuals, the likes of Tun Mahathir, HRH Dr. Nazrin Shah, HRH the Crown Prices of Johor, and others.

Yes, indeed. What is to be done? Can corrupt UMNO be reformed? Can weak Pakatan Rakyat take over? Where is our Saviour? Where is our Imam Mahdi? When is the Second-Coming (of Jesus Christ)?

Unfortunately, all these wailings are of no avail. Man has been created as God’s vicegerent on earth, to rule the earth and change it to his liking. Oh Man! Rise up to your calling! “I created you free,” God said. So wait no more! Act!

Enumerate the things you must do in order of importance. Firstly, you must reform UMNO. This has to done through education and constant vigilance by the yearly UMNO general assembly to criticize and correct from within. This is a better way than the Western concept of two-party system of check and balance. A would-be UMNO member must go through an appropriate course,  and so would a cadre for various levels of UMNO leadership.

Once the difficult task of reforming of UMNO is over, all other problems will be resolved: wastage in manpower in Government, increasing productivity by optimum use of assets, trimming the Government, the need for good governance, increasing salaries of lower-rung Government servants, overcoming corruption, overcoming periodic floods in some states, eliminating traffic jams by decreasing private cars and increasing and improving public transport, and doing away with tolls, and such like actions, to make life more comfortable for all Malaysians.

Of course, we should not miss learning from  our good traditions. We have the Prophet’s great Madina Charter to model our constitution on.   

KASSIM AHMAD is a Malaysian author. His website is www.kassimahmad.blogspot.com