Passive Aggressive Attack

In the Name of Allah,

All praise is due to Allah, the one who accepts the Salah

Note: Islamic Center of Orlando has helped a poor family with funeral, and asked for donation to offset that. If you are a believer, and love Allah, please give some money for the funeral. http://icorlando.org/

Say, "Call upon Allah or call upon the Most Merciful. Whichever [name] you call - to Him belong the best names." And do not recite [too] loudly in your prayer or [too] quietly but seek between that an [intermediate] way. (Quran 17:110)

Last night I was attending the tafseer, and witnessed a smack down of other madhaib with passive aggressive tone. Imam was doing tafseer for the above verse, and after giving the authentic tafseer, he went on a rant that was very hurtful, and divisive. I stayed quite, as I have promised one of the person there that I will not disrupt the class. So, I would like to bring the truth forward and shatter the attacks against the Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH).

First, let me share what he said. In the second part of the verse above, Allah gives an order to use an intermediate level voice when praying Salah. Imam first said that whoever says Ameen aloud is correct, and whoever doesn't also correct, but in the same breath he said that you don't have to shout Ameen aloud. Well, if you accept the difference of opinion, then why disrespect them with this comment. He went on to repeating and mocking the loudness of the Ameen in the Salah from the other group. I could see the anger in his eyes, and saw the passive aggressive fire behind the remarks. It is certainly not befitting an Imam to attack other opinions like that.

So, lets look at the Tafsir ibn kathir (the most authentic of them all).

(And offer your Salah neither aloud nor in a low voice,) Ibn `Abbas said: "When he prayed with his Companions, he would recite Qur'an loudly, and when the idolators heard that, they insulted the Qur'an, and the One Who had revealed it and the one who had brought it.


(but follow a way between. )'' This was also reported in the Two Sahihs. Ad-Dahhak also narrated something similar from Ibn `Abbas, and added: "When he migrated to Al-Madinah, this no longer applied, and he recited as he wished.''


(but follow a way between. )'' This was the view of `Ikrimah, Al-Hasan Al-Basri and Qatadah that this Ayah was revealed concerning recitation in prayer. It was narrated from Ibn Mas`ud: "Do not make it so soft that no one can hear it except yourself.''

First, the verse prohibits reciting in Salah silently, so this Imam should start saying Ameen in audible sound, if he is applying this verse to saying Ameen (violation of fiqh rule). Second, this order was abrogated, after hijra, as it was no danger in saying Salah loud (abrogation rule of fiqh). Third, there are authentic ahadith where the Prophet (PBUH) ordered us to say Ameen, and in other ahadith the masjid ranged with the sound of Ameen (meaning it was very loud and together) (rule of takhsees).

Following are sahih.


"Pray as you have seen me praying, and when it is the time of prayer, one of you should pronounce the call (Adhan) for the prayer and the eldest of you should lead the prayer.
(Bukhari 9:91:352)


Narrated Abu Huraira:
Allah's Apostle said, "When the Imam says: 'Ghair-il-Maghdubi 'Alaihim Walad-Dallin (i.e. not the path of those who earn Your Anger, nor the path of those who went astray (1.7)), then you must say, 'Ameen', for if one's utterance of 'Ameen' coincides with that of the angels, then his past sins will be forgiven." (Bukhari 60:6:2)

Yahya related to me from Malik from Ibn Shihab that Sa'id ibn al-Musayyab and Abu Salama ibn Abd ar-Rahman told him from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "When the imam says 'Amin', say 'Amin', for the one whose 'Amin' coincides with the 'Amin' of the angels - his previous wrong actions are forgiven him."
Ibn Shihab said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, used to say 'Aameen' (extending it)."  (Muwatta 3.12.47)


Following are ahsan


Reported Nafa', "Ibn 'Umar did not encourage the people to say it aloud, nor did he discourage them. I have heard him report that." Reporting on this same subject, Abu Hurairah said, "When the Messenger of Allah, upon whom be peace, would recite, '...Not with those with whom You are displeased and not of those who have gone astray,' he would say, 'ameen such that those close to him could hear him." (Related by Abu Dawud.) Ibn Majah's version is, "Until the people in the first row would hear him, and the mosque would ring with the sound." Al-Hakim also relates this hadith, and says that it is sahih according to the criterion of al-Bukhari and Muslim. Al-Baihaqi calls it hassan sahih. Ad-Daraqutni considers it as hassan. 


The Jews do not envy you over anything as much as they envy you over the salutation and aameen [behind the imaam] (al-Bukhaaree in al-Adab al-Mufrad, Ibn Maajah, Ibn Khuzaymah, Ahmad and Siraaj with two saheeh isnaads)

So, it is clear that saying Ameen is the Sunnah of the Prophet (PBUH), and all scholars agree on this fact. Scholars disagree on saying it in audible sound, but saying it in audible voice is proven from the authentic ahadith. Scholars diagree on the isnaad of the ahaidth, but saying it in a loud voice is supported by ahadith that are "ahsan".

Twisting the meaning of the Quran to fit our desire is a great sin, and I urge them to stop this, as this was the second time. If they truly believe that this verse is addressing saying Ameen in the Salah, then the Imam should follow the order and say it in soft but audible sound. If the Imam say it in the audible sound, I will certainly lower my sound to match the Imam, but until then the truth stands that saying Ameen in a loud voice is not prohibited, rather a tradition of the Prophet (PBUH) and the companions.

And Allah knows best.

JazakAllah Khairin

A follower of Muhammad ibn Abdullah (PBUH)
AbuArman Jumani

Come to Islam! Come to ease!

In the Name of Allah,

All praise is due to Allah, who made life easy for us.

"Ta Ha. We did not send down the Qur'an to you to make you miserable," ( Quran 20:1)


"Allah desires ease for you; He does not desire difficulty for you." (Quran 2:184)

Abu Hurayra reported that the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "The deen is easy. Anyone who makes the deen too hard on himself will find it becomes too much for him. So aim for what is right, follow a middle path, accept the good news of the reward for right action, and seek help [to reach your goal by being constant in worshipping] in the morning, evening and some of the night."[al-Bukhari]


"God desires to lighten things for you, for the human being has been created weak" (Quran 94:28).

A few nights ago, I went to Masjid, and arrived late, and missed the jamat. It is the worst feeling in the world when I miss the jamat. I was about to start on my own when a brother came up and asked if we can make jamat. I was very happy, and we lined up. I asked him to lead and insisted, but he wrestled me into leading it. As we finish, he turns around and tells me that I didn't read the surahs in the rakat as they are in the Quran. I know that he meant sincerely, so I told him that I will look it up. When I did look it up, there is no hadith regarding this, but there are some opinions saying that it is "Makrooh" to do what I did. However, there is no evidence for them to support this either, and this purely a superstitous belief, I think. If any of you know the evidence, please do share.

Makrooh means something that is not liked. Now, what is the place for Makrooh in the Fiqh. We can hardly follow the Halal and Haram today, and they want us to keep track of Makrooh, and Mubah, and others. So, the first act for compiling the common fiqh is to sort out these labels. Students of knowledge can use 1500 categories if they like to sort out the evidences, but when it comes to giving a ruling on an issue,  following are the categories I propose.

- Fardh (Obligation)
- Haram (anything that is explicity prohibited)

When people came to the Prophet (PBUH) with an issue, the answers were not given in complicated terms, but in very simple yes, no, or silence (which also meant yes). I am going to use the term "Believer" from now on, and stop using the term "Muslim", as Islamic sharia does not address Muslims , but it uses "Believers". So, believers should not be concerned about something that is liked or disliked by the scholar, rather what action will take them to Jannah. There are only two things that are important for us. One is to know what are the obligations upon us, so we don't disobey Allah. Second is to know what are the prohibitions, so we can avoid them. Now, we still should learn all the good acts that can help us become a better person, or that which are Makrooh, but they are not necessary. They can be taught in improving the character scope.

So, lets examine everything moving forward using these categories, and leave the rest to the scholars of four or five madhaib (or whatever the count is nowadays), which I am sure will keep them busy. If you need to buy a home, you should ask if there are any obligations that I would neglect because of this purchase, then you should ask what is prohibited for me during buying the house. If these two are taken care of, there is no scholar in the world, who tell you that you are not fulfilling the rights of a believer, if Allah wills.


I am sure many of you have come across people who are eager to talk to you about a certain ingredient that has been ruled haram, and to tell you to stop eating it. Well, I have, and I feel really sad when they tell me that, because it brings us closer to Jews, as they are champion of this sort of thing.

Once I was standing outside the masjid, and someone just stop by and told me that I shouldn't eat bagel, because there is something being used which may not be pure. I didn't know what to say, and didn't want to argue, so I thanked him and said farewell.  In fact, when I tell some to take loans from Islamic financing, they will say oh it is not 100% halal, and there is a doubt, so they would rather stay with Bank of America. A What! You would rather commit sin for sure then follow what is concluded to be not Haram by some students of knowledge. Yes, it is better to leave what is doubtful, and to rent, but I am talking about people taking direct loans instead of going to a company like Ijara.com. Allah did not define all business transaction, because they change as time passes, and we should allow the basic guiding principal to dictate Haram, and just follow the conclusions with confidence, or avoid the transactions altogether.

Abu Hurayra said, "The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, addressed us and said, 'O people. Allah has made the hajj obligatory for you, so go on hajj.' A man said, 'Every year, Messenger of Allah?' He was silent until the man had said it three times. The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, then said, 'If I said yes, it would become obligatory and you would be unable to do it.' Then he said, 'Let me be when I refrain from mentioning something to you. Those before you were destroyed by the quantity of their questions and their disagreement with their Prophets. When I command you to do something, then do it as much as you can. When I forbid you to do something, then leave off doing it.'" [Muslim]

See, Islam was intentionally left open ended on certain issues, so it is not too strict on us. For example, one person wanted to know from the Prophet (PBUH) if Hajj is compulsary every year, but he ignored him. Finally, he answered and told him that if he says yes then it will become obligation every year which will be very difficult, so leave him alone on the things that he did not explain intentionally.

What we learn from it is that we don't need to go into too much details trying to find prohibition, and accept what has been told to us as permitted, unless it goes against Quran and Sunnah that we can easily see. If we go to a restaurant, and the person says that it is Zabiha, we just have to take his word and eat, and there is no need to go inside the office and demand the receipt for meat. This was the method of Sahaba (RA), and it is the correct path. 0.01 % pork entering your body will not harm you if your intention was to avoid pork in general.

Interestingly, there are books published in USA declaring products Haram, and sometimes it is so ridiculous that all you can do is laugh. Mostly, this is created by career Imams who went to school and want to become imprtant. They will declare that women can not work unless there is a financial need. Why is that? If the husband allows it, then there is no prohibition.

Anyways, we should make life easy for ourselves, but I see people making it difficult for themselves. I say to them Come to Islam! Come to Ease!

JazakAllah Kharirin

A simple person
AbuArman Jumani

No Excuse Left.

In the Name of Allah,

All Praise is due to Allah, The King of mankind.

"And hold fast, all together, by the rope which God (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves; and remember with gratitude God’s favor on you; for ye were enemies and He joined your hearts in love, so that by His Grace, ye became brethren;and ye were on the brink of the pit of Fire,and He saved you from it. Thus doth God make His Signs clear to you: That ye may be guided"(Quran 3:103)

"As for those who divide their religion and break up into sects, thou hast no part in them in the least: their affair is with God: He will in the end tell them the truth of all that they did."(Quran 6:159)

Last Night, topic of my blogs came up, and I was told that there are more than one correct way to follow the Sunnah, and if we follow any of them, we can't deem others wrong. I replied that if all of these different ways to follow the Sunnah lead back to Muhammad ibn Abdullah (PBUH) with authentic chain, then I agree them to be correct, however, if one school of thought goes against the Sunnah on the basis of their "Aql" or "Ijtihad" or "New World Understanding" while the Sunnah is clear, then they have certainly gone astray. I gave the example of "Hanafis" from Pakistan have ruled that women shall not come to masjid which is against the order of the Prophet (PBUH). In that case, their opinion is wrong and should be rejected from Islam. There can never be more than one correct opinion on a matter of Fiqh, rather more than one Sunnah to follow. It is fallacy to support the division of Muslims on the basis of difference of opinions.

Recently, a brother asked me for opinion on a issue, and I was able to find the answer quickly for him. While looking for the answer, I read somewhere that said that we should honor the difference of opinion between the Four Aima because they ruled according to the information available during their time. This pierced through my heart. So, the excuse for Taqleed is that infromation was not easily available for all the Muslim scholars to unite on one opinion. Now, they give the excuse that level of piety is not as high so we should not do ijtihad.

Well, brothers and sisters, the excuses have run out, because now I can setup a conference between Saudi , Paksitani, and South African Scholar, and provide them all the text and opinions from the past, and get them to resolve every single difference of opinion one by one.  I doubt that scholars are willing to discuss the differences though.

In reality the differences are very few, and most of them can be reconciled, and rest can be left for people to chose from. Bigger issue is that we have no Imam. Everyone is taken back at this when I say it, but when I explain it that Imam at masjid is not in charge today. There is no authority given to them. Community doesn't follow their orders. Even the masjid shura does not heed to their opinions. In Islamic Center of Orlando, for example, Imam is over ruled by the shura, and the shura is overruled by the Ameer, and the Ameer is overruled by the trustees. This is against the Sunnah. Creating puppet Aima (plural of Imam) is a mistake.

So, creating a common fiqh will be useless unless we have an Imam with authority. For example, European countries took the first step to unite on the Currency, but there is no Imam of Europe, so now they are fighting over the Currency. Germany would like to take charge, but last time they tried to rule Europe, it did not turn out good. So, Islamic Sharia without a single Muslim ruler is like an army without commander in chief.

Yes, we do have career priests who mimic Christian and Jews in leading the worship, and resign on the decisions. Then, we have people with authority who can't even understand the three level of Tawheed, let alone make a decision according to Islam. If there was a war, and if an enemy priest walks up the military line today and ask Muslims for their priest, I guarantee you that the Muslim generals will have someone with a beard and a funny hat to go meet him. However, with Khalid bin Waleed, there was no "Imam", as he was the leader and Imam, and the General.

In conclusion, there are no excuses now to not consolidate the Fiqh or have local Imam who are appointed with authority for the community, and who are obeyed in every order except when they go against the Quran and the Sunnah openly. All the tools are here now to communicate at the global level. I will be the first to take bayah on his hand in Orlando, or globally, and surrender my differences. With puppet Imam, and fractured Fiqh, I do not feel obligated to surrender my objections.

I am trying to verify this, but it seems that Saudi moonsighting was a hoax, and millions in USA followed and did Taqleed. People who give you lecture on not doing Taqleed were caught in this act, and now it seems that Saudis have ordered their citizen to make up for the missed fast. And Allah knows best. Please let me know if you can confirm or deny this.

May Allah destroy the ones who divide us in the name of the Fiqh.

JazakAllah Khairin

A person in wait
AbuArman Jumani

Talk or English Speech Before Jumaa Adhan is Prohibited

In the name of Allah,

I was standing with some brothers, and one complained that it is hard for him to come to masjid before the english speech starts on Fridays, because it takes away too much time from work. It reminded me that we were standing in a Pakistani/Indian culture center and not a masjid. I have been struggling with this issue for a while and finally decided to follow the sunnah on this. Another choice for me is to travel to a far masjid but it is not feasible right now.

As we know that any speech given by anyone before the Adhan and Arabic Khutbah is prohibited. There is no stronger evidence to contradict this, as I have seen yet. There is a narration of Umar (RA) allowing Tamim Al-Darri to lecture before Khutbah which has no reference attached to it, and it doesn't overturn the prohibition of the Prophet (PBUH) anyways.

There is no prohibition for the speech to be given after Jumaa Prayer, and thus should be the option.

I will not participate in this violation of sunnah any longer, and suggest that you don't either. Reach the masjid right before the Adhan to avoid this.

عن عبد الله بن عمرو بن العاص أن النبي صلّى الله عليه وسلّم نهى عن التحلّق قبل الصلاة يوم الجمعة


صحيح أبي داود 991، صحيح الجامع 6885


From Abdullah bin Amr bin al-Aas that the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) forbade making circles [for knowledge or remembrance] before prayer on Friday. (Saheeh Abu Dawud #991, Saheeh al-Jami’ #6885)

Dawud :: Book 3 : Hadith 1074

Narrated Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-'As:
The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) prohibited buying and selling in the mosque, announcing aloud about a lost thing, the recitation of a poem in it, and prohibited sitting in a circle (in the mosque) on Friday before the prayer.


According to Tirmidhi
عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَنَّهُ نَهَى عَنْ تَنَاشُدِ الْأَشْعَارِ فِي الْمَسْجِدِ وَعَنْ
الْبَيْعِ وَالِاشْتِرَاءِ فِيهِ وَأَنْ يَتَحَلَّقَ النَّاسُ يَوْمَ الجُْمُعَةِ قَبْلَ الصَّلَاةِ
Amr ibn Shu’ayb reported from his father and he from his grandfather that Allah’s
Messenger disallowed recital of poetry in mosque, buying and selling therein, and
people sitting in circles there before Friday prayers.
[Ahmed 6688, Abu Dawud 1079, Nisai 713, Ibn e Majah 749]

Yet another activity of the desi cultural center that I say farewell too. I will still go there for Salah, and tafseer class as it is better than praying at home. I will focus more on my BA in Islamic studies which will give me more knowledge, inshAllah. Also, need to start the website for compiling corrections and a common fiqh.

And Allah knows best.

JazakAllah Khairin

AbuArman Jumani

What was the madhab of the Prophet?

In the Name of Allah, The Most Beneficent, The Most Merciful.

If I say something wrong it is from my ego, and if it is the truth, it is from Allah.


“And hold fast, altogether, by the rope Which Allah (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves.” (Qur’an 3:103)

I was approached by someone confused with different rulings of different madhaibs, and wanting to know which madhab to follow. This is one issue that I have struggled with in the past, and it is my motivation to go through the formal education to confirm my answer to it. This issue does not come up when everyone is brainwashed to follow a certain fiqh, and told that praying behind the Imam of another fiqh will invalidate their salah. However, in USA, for example, we interact with Muslims from every part of the world, and these differences come into light. If we are living in a community where there is a Masjid following a certain fiqh, it becomes uncomfortable for others to perform their obligations, and are alienated.

Now, if we pay attention to the above verse, which rope Allah is asking us to hold on to. Can we unbound the rope in four threads and hang on to each. May be. It will weaken the strength of our ropes for sure. Hanafi say that wudu is not broken when we touch our wives, but Shafee say that it does. So, how can the wudu be broken and not be broken at the same time. It is impossible. What they say is that to follow your madhab and you will be guaranteed Jannah. It is a mess. On top of that they claim that unity is not broken, as we all are Ahl-us-Sunnah-wal-Jammah. Wow what a scam. Whatever that term means, it does not mean what Allah call us and that is "believers".

So, what should we follow? Answer is very easy. We should follow the madhab of the Messenger of Allah (PBUH). His madhab is what is recorded in the Sunnah. In order for us to enumerate his Sunnah as he followed, we need to setup one fiqh which will be a dynamic fiqh that will accommodate all existing madhaibs and reject the incorrect rulings from all of them. This sounds like a tall order, but it is possible and can be done. Interestingly, I just read my course book on Fiqh, and this is the conclusion Abu Aminah Bilal Philips also reached. So, my conclusion continues to be confirmed by the scholars, and seems to be the only way out of this swamp.

I know what you all thinking. What do we do until this fiqh is setup. Here are some advises for people to follow meanwhile.

- Everyone (including women) should study fiqh and keep increasing their knowledge so one doesn't need to ask anyone for most rulings. If one stays uneducated, they deserved to be treated like cattle.

- While one is increasing the knowledge, a family should follow the fiqh of the local masjid. A local masjid is where one performs majority of their salah and not the far corner masjid which you may prefer.

- Within a family, head of the household ( a man) will be responsible for provide rulings, and family members should follow it, except when it goes against the basic Aqeedah (beliefs). family members can  present counter evidences for non-Aqeedah rulings, but mutiny is not allowed.

- If the local masjid has ruling that goes against the Quran and Sunnah, then one can judge with their ability, they should avoid following that ruling.

- Never use a label to refer to the fiqh one follows, rather the person they refer to for guidance should be mentioned that is alive and accessible. Of course, as one's knowledge grows, one should ween off that scholar.

- If one has a doubt on a local ruling, one should ask the local scholar to provide some evidence which can be read in simple terms. Every human should be able to read and understand basic logic concepts that is required to function as a human. If the scholar is not able to provide evidence, this will be a sign of incompetence, and one should consider finding a better scholar to follow.

- Minor issues within community should be deferred to a local scholar and his ijtihad should be followed, and major issues should be debated by an open forum with all evidences considered (this may be difficult to implement)

- All fiqh ruling should be decided by the Imam of the masjid who leads the salah, and not the shura council or trustees. They are responsible to run the masjid and not capable to rule in fiqh.

- If one was born in a different fiqh then the local masjid, then he should either move or surrender to the rulings of locality.

- If it becomes clear to one that the local ruling is a major deviation from the madhab of the Messenger of Allah (PBUH). However, it has to be an irrefutable evidence and has to be brought to the local Imam first, and if he refuse to change the ruling due to Taqleed, one should abandon the Imam for that ruling. This is because authority of Imam is weak in USA, but authority of Father is strong in the family. If the authority becomes stronger in a community, and it is part of a global Islamic rule, one should follow the local Imam on all non-Aqeedah rulings.

- Once the common fiqh is setup, all the above rules are cancelled, and one should participate in the dynamic fiqh and select local Imams as strong authorities to implement and debate the common fiqh in the weekly or monthly fiqh reviews. Imam should do a weekly review during the Jumaa Khutba.

I will be following these rules, and I advise others to follow these rules, and avoid fitnah in the community as much as possible, but never compromise your deen (Islam) to the madhab (fiqh) of your forefathers, who may be mistaken.

JazakAllah Khairin

A muttabi and not a muqallid.
AbuArman Jumani

Ummah Of Lame.

In the Name of Allah,

"So high [above all] is Allah , the Sovereign, the Truth. And, [O Muhammad], do not hasten with [recitation of] the Qur'an before its revelation is completed to you, and say, "My Lord, increase me in knowledge." (Quran 20:114)

Abu Umamah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, "The superiority of the learned over the devout worshipper is like my superiority over the most inferior amongst you (in good deeds).'' (Imam Al-Nawawi's Riyad-us-Saliheen # 1387)

Some asks me why I wasn't at Taraweeh, and I tell them that I pray at home sometimes, and don't pray other times, as it is not an obligation. It is certainly a sad situation among Muslims that this superficial gathering has become the focus of Islam, and seeking the knowledge has become untouchable, because if they have a question, they will just ask the Imam, and he will provide the answers. So, if he passes away, basically the knowledge from the society is lifted, until they can find another person who was foolish enough to go to Alim course for eight year instead of Medical School. It is really pathetic. I am sick and tired of this attitude.

Tonight, millions will go to Masjid for one purpose and that is to celebrate their superstitious belief that Night of Qadr is tonight, but there is no evidence to show that. I wish they will go some day just to worship Allah, and not to worship their tradition. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) did not give any importance to 27th night over 21st or 25th, yet Muslim effort is being spent cooking and preparing for this grand event.

In fact, Islam keeps seeking knowledge superior to optional worship, and anyone who performs their faraidh, and seek knowledge is better than the one who worships in the night and fasts in the day. So, if one goes to Taraweeh every night like a clock work, and sacrifice things to get there, but avoid the opportunities to gain and exercise knowledge is following the path to mis-guidance, as it will lead to a society similar to Jews, where only a few handful people understand the knowledge and they can fool others easily.

Specifically Indo-Pak masajid has become similar to the worship houses of Hindus, where lame people come in droves and just shake their bodies for a few minutes and walk out, and back to their lives without sitting down and reading a translation of Quran or tafseer, or debating over a fiqh question or correcting someone over their mis-understanding. When I went to India, I saw the masses of people worshipping idols, and if you ask them why? they will say that this is what they found their ancestors doing, and if you point them to their scripture, they will say, "Oh I am not learned on this, talk to a swami". Basically, it is the same with this Ummah of lame people who tell me that you should follow one of the four schools, and when I ask why? They say we are not learned, so we need to do Taqleed. Well, if you are not learned then you should stay quite.

According to the definition of Taqleed presented by scholars who do Taqleed of other scholars. There are two types of Muslims. One is a scholar, and the other is a lame person who need to do Taqleed of a scholar. You know what, lets accept this definition for a second. So, who among us is a scholar and who is a lame person. Majority of the Muslims will fall into the category of lame people. Basically we are an "Ummah of Lame". Someone says lets go protest about Prophet's cartoon, we are ready with matches and baseball bat. Someone says today is Night of Qadr, we are ready with our optional Salah to surrender to that call. Someone says your wife should not work unless you need more money, we are ready with lock and key to cage her.

In "lame" terms, we are the slaves of the scholars and not the slaves of Allah. Well, I do not want to be lame. I say there are many levels of learned people, and lame is either a new Muslim or the worst Muslim who does not want to learn. I may not be a scholar, but I reject the life of lame. I reject the oppression of this religion. I reject this religion of Indian sub-continent. If you like to be lame, so be it. I will avoid the gatherings of Lame in the Islamic Center of Orlando tonight. So much dedication, but so much waste. I will try my best to change it.

In fact, everyone of us should strive to be learned person more than we strive to be a devout worshiper. If we go for Taraweeh every night like a religion, we should attend an Islamic school regularly as well. If we read Quran everyday, we should understand and implement those verses. If we take refuge in Masjid for Itikaf, it should include the study of fiqh along with worship.

JAK

Not a lame person
AbuArman Jumani

Next Step: Compiling A Common Fiqh

In the Name of Allah,

All Praise is due to Allah, The All Knowing, The Wise

Recently, I was sitting with a brother that I admire, and somehow the discussion lead to following one of the four religions (madhaibs) in Islam. As I told him that I do not do taqleed, as it is a form of shirk. His jaw dropped, and he looked at me with his eyes wide opened. After a few second, he told me that a Muslim need to follow one of the four madhaibs. I asked him who decided that. He had no answer. I asked him if he considered me a Muslim. He just smiled. I leave this matter to Allah as he ordered me below.

"As for those who divide their din (religion) and break up into sects, thou hast no part in them in the least: their affair is with Allah: He will in the end tell them the truth of all that they did." (Quran 6:159)

Main reason for the division among the Muslims is following different sects. Once we connect a group of Muslims to an ideology that is enclosed from all side, it becomes a new sect. It is healthy to have difference of opinion, and following a single scholar is permissible, even when he makes a mistake. What is not permissible is to close the door to Ijtihad, and that is what has caused the progress to stall. Even free thinkers like Albani fell in that trap and end up closing the circle to a label named "Salafi", but there is already division among Salafis that are visible. Following is the order of Allah in the matters of Fiqh.

“O ye who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Apostle, and those charged with authority among you. If ye differ in anything among yourselves, refer it to Allah and His Apostle, if ye do believe in Allah and the Last Day: That is best, and most suitable for final determination.” (Quran 4:59)

I know most of you are not interested in learning about the differences, and think that bickering over minor things is waste, but I assure you that Islam can never progress with divided Ummah, and the division is on the fiqh. Once we establish the fiqh that is the middle path, as ordered by the Prophet (PBUH), unity is all but guaranteed.

During my presentation, someone asked me a very important question. "Isn't Saudi Arabia an Islamic State?" My answer was no, because they are implementing the flawed version of fiqh which is corrupted by the culture. Women's right, Monarchy, etc Similarly, Iran has implemented its version of fiqh and it is a disaster. So, everything comes down to having the fiqh based on Quran and Sunnah.

Current Taqleedi Scholars are bounded by the circle that they cannot cross to go pick up the essential law which will balance the society, hence living a life of pre-Islamic Meccan who claimed to follow the fiqh derived from the Prophet Ismael. They believed in Allah as the supreme God, but they could not go against the traditions handed down by their forefathers. Their argument to Muslims was that their scholars received this fiqh of "intercession to Allah through others", generation to generation, and it is a consensus. How can Muslims claim to go against it? What finally convinced the masses at the end of the Prophet's life was the completion of a system that produced results, and people entered Islam in droves. Following is the proof that Mushriks believed in Allah as the only God, but their understanding (fiqh) got corrupted allowing them to follow rulings that included intercession.

Say: Unto Whom (belongeth) the earth and whosoever is therein, if ye have knowledge? They will say: Unto Allah. Say: Will ye not then remember? Say: Who is Lord of the seven heavens, and Lord of the Tremendous Throne? They will say: Unto Allah (all that belongeth). Say: Will ye not then keep duty (unto Him)? Say: In Whose hand is the dominion over all things and He protecteth, while against Him there is no protection, if ye have knowledge? They will say: Unto Allah (all that belongeth). Say: How then are ye bewitched? (Quran 23:84-89)

I see alot of talk but no results, so lets try to implement what people also write about. Lets reform the Ummah. Lets compile the fiqh that is the middle path. All the modern fiqh is based on the principles set by Imam Abu Hanifah, and they provide the most flexible framework, so we will use those principal, but will consider all other madhaib's ruling, and select the best one. Purpose is not to produce new rules of fiqh, but to reform some of the rulings that have been corrupted by bias views and opinions. I will take upon myself to setup a website and data storage, so this progress can be tracked. If you like to participate, you will be able to go to the site and do so. At the very least, it will help me sort out the correct fiqh for me to follow. That is my primary motivation. I have enough of listening to the rhetoric, and its time to roll up our sleeves and get our hand dirty.

I have registered to Islamic Online University http://islamiconlineuniversity.com  to learn the principles formally, and I will encourage you to do the same. It is almost free of cost service with a minimal fee.

Next step starts now, and May Allah help us complete this step.

JazakAllah Khairin,

a slave of Allah
AbuArman Jumani

How can we unite?

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful,

All praise is due to Allah, the lord of the worlds,

If I say something wrong, it is from my ego, but If I am correct, it is from Allah.

Note: I will be making a presentation on August 14 at MAGO at 11 AM, if you like to come and support me, please let me know. 

  I need to respond to an earlier blog http://nofirqazone.blogspot.com/2011/08/either-pay-zakat-or-buy-diamond-part-2.html

  One of my dear brother brought to my attention that some Imam from local community avoid to come to his radio show, because they may think that he is affiliated with a certain group of Muslims or Imam. This was heart breaking to hear. Here, this brother who came to Islam as a choice, trying to make a difference by the radio show, and instead of supporting him, we are avoiding him. This is unacceptable.

  His show is LaMagica 1220 AM every Thursday 1:10 PM which discusses Islam, and is a great opportunity for Muslims in metro Orlando area to make dawa. I would like to ask all of you to listen to it, and participate.

"And hold fast, all together, by the rope which Allah (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves;" (Quran 3:103)

This incident highlights the disunity that has crawled into all of us. Another example is the speech of Shaikh Albani, where he basically allowed the use of the term Salafi to  idenitfy a group of people. Following is a link to it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HGOcX-mUfc

 It is a direct violation of the verse above, as we are prohibited to divide into groups, and the first step to divide into group is to come up with a name for our group, and all these madhaib have names. Now, there is nothing wrong with using a group name to organize the people, but if the grouping is based on the Quran and Sunnah and Fiqh, it basically creates a circle around certain rulings, and anyone that goes against one ruling, they end up outside the circle.

So, now we have Salafi as another madhab, along with hundreds of other madhaib. What happens now is that if I ask someone to visit the masjid from another madhab, they will excuse themselves, so basically these factions are getting deeper as time goes on. Everyone is happy in their little masjid where everyone is from same country or at least follow the same madhab. So, I, along with all the new Muslims are confused outside these circles, and thinking which circle is Islam. Honestly, all seem misguided, as all claim a name other than Islam. I may be misguided as well, but for a different reason.

Every deviant group starts with labelling based on a dogma or principles. It may not be deviant in the first generation, but in later generations, it will deviate, as the flexibility to steer back to the right path will be a violation of the group membership. I have a news for Salafis that Salaf did not label each other with any names.

A good friend of mine gave me a book about ahle-hadeeth, which claimed that some earlier muslims used the term ahle-hadeeth for grouping, and they are correct that the term was used, but it was used to praise the individuals for their service in the science of hadith. Ahle-hadeeth doesn't mean that a person uses a hadeeth to establish fiqh. A Muhaddith is not same as a faqi, and a faqi may or may not to be muhaddith. For example, a pharmacist knows about medicine, but he cannot prescribe the medicine, because he is not an expert on cases of diseases, but a doctor could know alot about the medicine and can prescribe the medicine.

Imam AlBukhari is the top most muhaddith in the history, but he is not a top faqi, because he did not provide solution to specifiq fiqh issues extensively. He did however assert his opinions by headings and organization of ahadith in his compilation, which is a great source for fiqh students. So, anyone who looks at a hadeeth in a vacuume and follows it as a fiqh is certainly misguided.

We should dissolve the notion of madhaibs, and setup committees that include scholars of every school of thought in the community, and hear arguments based on the evidences, and make rulings as they come along.

We should include members from each school of thought in the shura.

We should setup think tanks to tackle the problems of humans today and provide solutions to local govts.

We should setup a community wide meeting for Imams for all masajid to sit and discuss differences.

I hear alot about following the Sahaba from Tableeghi Jamat, Salafis, Ahle-Sunnah-WalJamah, etc., but Sahaba would change the ruling, if someone recited an authenticate hadeeth and convinced them that they were on the wrong. Are they willing to do that?

I doubt most of you know that USA is suffering from the effects of Riba, and Muslims in Somalia are hungry, while you are setting up lavish Iftar and laughing and backbitting. Shame on all of us. We should cancel the iftars, and send the money to Somalia. Do we really need to eat Biryani, and Quorma every night?

I know that Imams are on the payrolls, so they dare speak, and I know the Trustees are intoxicated with power, so they care not stop the iftar, and I know people are happy filling their stomach, so they may ignore this plea, and I know some will say "Nafsa Nafsi", "let me concentrate on my deeds". Alright, leave everyone to their madhaibs, and drive to the masjid of your madhab, and sip the tea of your ethnicity and come back to your home, but remember that our kids may not have this luxury, if we don't unite.

Just a thought!

JazakAllah Khairin

An unlabelled Muslim
AbuArman Jumani

Either pay zakat or buy a diamond? Part 2

Part 1 is found at http://nofirqazone.blogspot.com/2011/07/either-pay-zakat-or-buy-diamond.html

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful,

All praise is due to Allah, All wise,

If I say something wrong, it is from my ego, but If I am correct, it is from Allah.

In the above blog, I claimed that Allah did not leave a loop hole for us to hide our money from Zakat by buying diamonds, and challenged that  anyone can provide source for the hadith that is used as basis for exception. What I meant was to provide source which will authenticate the hadith.

One of our community elders responded to my challenge and send me the following email.
 I am glad to see the passion to learn and challenge, which has always been the core of Islam, and it was all but gone from our nation due to Taqleed.

Please see the reference of Hadith at the link below, and for further clarification you may write them directly, Was'slam. XXXXX

Rasulullah [sallallaahu alayhi wasallam] said, ‘There is no Zakaat on stones.’

http://www.askimam.org/fatwa/fatwa.php?askid=397ae7b235615d84318b2b95d3e22bff

According to Respected Mufti "The narration in reference has been established from the tabi`īn. The narration attributed to Nabi (Sallallahu `alayhi wasallam) is for strengthening the fact and not establishing it. Therefore, it is quoted despite the criticism on some narrators."

What he is saying is that we can not use this hadith for establishing the exception but only to strengthen the argument. Well, how do we establish the exception for stones in the first place?  Interestingly, this fatwaa points to another fatwaa which only refers to this hadith. So, basically a circular argument being used and all arguments are weak if not false. Of course, they point to the verse which I already refuted to be supporting this idea.

Henceforth, by default, Diamonds stay liable for zakat as any valuable item that can hold money for 1 year and can be liquidated. We should stop providing loop holes to Qaroons of our society. Challenge stands. Please provide any authenticated evidence to establish this exception.

I have posted the fatwa here and if it convinces you, please follow it, and don't pay zakat on your precious stone, and may Allah make it easy for us. I don't see any authenticated evidence for it, so for me Diamonds are liable for Zakat. And Allah knows best.

JazakAllah Khairin

A struggling Muslim
AbuArman Jumani

Either pay zakat or buy a diamond?

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful,

All praise is due to Allah, All wise,

If I say something wrong, it is from my ego, but If I am correct, it is from Allah.

On Last Sunday, I was given a scolding that times have changed and we should re-examine the rulings of Islam according to new times, and disallow women from entering masjid, although it goes against a direct command of Allah. However, when trying to learn about Zakat, I came across a ruling. Same folks would allow hiding wealth in diamonds because Quran did not list Diamond with gold and silver. So, their logical mind goes to sleep when it comes to going against the status quo.

Oh Come on people! Do you think you can fool Allah by hiding your wealth in Diamonds, so you don't have to pay Zakat. What an absurd ruling. Lets look at this hypocritical ruling from the current scholars.

"And those who hoard up gold and silver and do not spend them in the way of God, announce unto them a painful punishment. One day that (treasure) will be heated up in the fire of hell and their foreheads, their sides, and their backs will be branded with it: “This is the treasure that you hoarded up for yourselves. Now taste what you used to hoard up". (Quran 9:34)

Many scholars quote this verse as part of the evidence that there is zakah on gold and silver. But it seems clear that here gold and silver are mentioned merely as age-old symbols and forms of wealth. If at any time wealth could be possessed in other forms, the obligation to spend out of it in the way of God would still apply. Today wealth can be possessed in the form of paper money and diamonds, so believers are duty bound to spend out of this wealth in the way of God. It would be a very superficial interpretation of the verse to say that if we have gold or silver worth $2000 we should spend out of it in the way of God but if we have a million dollars in paper money or an equivalent amount in diamonds, then we have no obligation to spend out of it anything in the way of God.

To interpret the verse (9:34) by restricting it entirely to gold and silver would be like insisting that we should always use horses to build our armed forces, since God says:

And make ready for them whatever you can of (military) force, including steeds of war, to deter the enemy of God and your enemy, and others whom you may not know but God knows. (Quran 8:60)

Here God has mentioned horses because in the time of the Holy Prophet they greatly enhanced the fighting power of an army. Today, of course, horses would not deter any of the numerous enemies of Islam and Muslims, armed to the teeth with weapons of mass destruction. Most scholars would agree that today the commandment in 8:60 requires us to acquire weapons like tanks, war planes, missiles, and nuclear weapons[2]. Similarly, 9:34 should be interpreted to mean that we should spend in the way of God out of whatever wealth we possess, be it gold or silver or some other form of wealth.

Today wealth clearly includes diamonds, for, wealth may be defined as what we possess of money or of items that are bought and sold often enough to acquire a market value. Today diamonds and many other precious stones are clearly items that have a determinable market value.

Thus the letter and the spirit of the Qur`an suggests that in our age diamonds are subject to zakah.

Turning now to the Sunnah/Hadith, we note that there is no authentic hadith stating that precious stones are not subject to zakah. Fiqh al-Sunnah does not mention any such hadith. Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani, however, quotes the hadith:

(“There is no zakah on a stone”).

But he mentions no source for it and does not say whether the hadith is sahih or not. The fact is that this hadith is absent from almost all the books of ahadith, including such sahih collections as Bukhari and Muslim. In view of this, the probability is very high that it has been falsely attributed to the Holy Prophet.

[I extracted this argument from this source http://www.islamicperspectives.com/zakah-diamonds.htm it seems well written and to the point]

I would like to appeal to you to think for a second that if diamonds have a resale value today, and people transfer their wealth from gold into diamonds, does that mean that we have found a loop hole in Allah's wisdom? After all people have been forced to pay zakat in the past, but if the precious stone were exempt from the Zakat, Qaroon would have done that, and Abu Bakar (RA) would have been looking at the piles of diamonds instead of a war for zakat.

Please do not be fooled into not paying zakat on items that are not a neccessity and worth above Nisab. If anyone can provide the source of the above hadith, may be we can reconsider the exception, but until then pay your zakat on precious stones.

And Allah knows best.

JazakAllah Khairin

A reasonable person.

AbuArman Jumani

Last Straw...

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful,

All praise is due to Allah, who sent us deen of Islam,

Narrated Ibn Umar: The Prophet (p.b.u.h) said, "Allow women to go to the Mosques at night." (Bukhari Volume 2, Book 13, Number 22)

Ibn 'Umar reported: Grant permission to women for going to the mosque in the night. His son who was called Waqid said: Then they would make mischief. He (the narrator) said: He thumped his (son's) chest and said: I am narrating to you the hadith of the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him), and you say: No! (Sahih Muslim Book 004, Number 0890)

Last night, after the tafseer, I asked to the Imam, "Wives of Muhammad ibn Abdullah (PBUH) used to come for i'tkaf, why do you stop women in Jamah Masjid?". Answer was that this is the age of fitnah, so we should stop women from coming to masjid. No kidding. Fitnah is here alright, but not sure if it is the women, or men, or both. May be we should prohibit people without beard from coming to the masjid, or lets check their background to see if they are commiting any sins. Allah told the Prophet (PBUH) that you are not their manager, and he understood. I guess Allah have made these scholars, the manager of Fitnah, and allowed them to overturn his order by their opinion.

If we look at the hadith above, ibn Umar (RA) who was the best emulating companion of the sunnah thumping his own son, and his son is presenting the same argument. Now, we don't have Ibn Umar who can stand up and thump the chest of this Imam, and say "Are you above the last prophet? Do you have authority to overturn the command of the one who Allah has asked us to obey?"  I tried to thump the chest of Imam yesterday, but I have no support. Everyone is a coward or scared to loose their club membership in this private organization. I don't blame them, because this world seems to be all that matters to them, and I don't mind being outcasted at the expense of following Ibn Umar. I only wish to see him and meet him, so i can kiss his hands for him having the courage to thump his son.

For me this was the last straw. I overlooked all the faults in the leadership of our community, but a direct disobedience of the command of the Prophet (PBUH) is the last straw on my back. That is it! That is it! That is it! I know they will not listen to me or anyone who brings the signs of Allah to them. The traditions of their forefather are more dearer to them then the command of the prophet and the companions.

When I came home, I thought may be it is not so bad in the small cage upstairs for women, so I ask my wife, and she attested that, she can't even see Imam or ask him any question, or challenge him. She told me further that she has been trying to reach Imam to discuss my son's progress, for days now but everytime she comes close to the door of the masjid, some men will block her and point to the corner leading to the prison for women. I wish I was there. How dare these men prohibit women from entering the house of Allah? Don't women have right to Allah's house?

Interestingly, the same Imam wonders why our societies are going down the drain. Well, brother, if you imprison the teachers of the Ummah (women), and discourage them from coming to Masjid, who will teach the young generation. Men are too busy, making tea and serving biryani in the masjid. They don't go home and train the women, so if anything, changing time ask us to encorouge women to come to Masjid to reduce the fitnah.

So, if the fitnah is the motive to overturn Islamic rulings, why not stop the iftar dinners, where people gossip and women come in large numbers without hijab. I certainly will not host Iftar in this masjid this year. Probably look for a more deserving Masjid, where women have at least some rights.

Or, how about prohibiting women on Eid, because there is more fitnah on Eid day in Islamic Center of Orlando then any other street on USA. Flirting and invitations are flying for men to look at the young ladies standing 20 feet away from jamat of men. Even women are ashamed looking at this scene on Eid day.

Then, I asked the second Imam of the masjid about my suggestion that trustee asked a while ago and I provided. He told me that Shura is already established. I was surprised. So was he, since Imams were not part of the selection. I did not receive any reponse. The trustee didn't even told him, just posted on the board. There was no announcement. There was no public meeting. So, I guess Islamic center of Orlando is not a muslim jamaat, but a business entity who is owned by four trustees. You know what. That is fine. I will consider it as a private charity organization from now, and pray to Allah to remove the status of the masjid from that building and take away the blessings a masjid should have. It is not a masjid, it is a meeting place for some men who happen to be born to Muslims.

My back is borken now. Anywhere, my wife and mother is not welcome, and the Prophet is insulted, I don't want anything to do with it. I love them too much to see this everyday. I will have to find a masjid where Islam is practiced, and not where traditions are worshiped. I am sure that they are not interested in any suggestion or opinions from me, because they have already figured out the deen, and they are on the right path, so anytime I bring up a question, a man in white beard will wave me off. I rest my case from here and moving on to more important tasks at hand of increasing my taqwa, and speading the word of Islam. Pray for my guidance.

If I am wrong on this, May Allah punish me for it, but if I am right, May Allah take away all the blessings from this Masjid, and dry up the resources like water is missing from desert. 

JazakAllah Khairin

A follower of Ibn Umar, 
AbuArman Jumani

That Cancers that are Impeding Al-Islam.

In the Name of Allah,

All praise is due to Allah, the most high.

If I make a mistake, it is from my ego, if I am correct, it is from Allah.

"Invite to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided." (Quran 16:125) 

In the last six month, I visited Makkah, and then visited Iriga City, Philippines. I received shock in both places. In Makkah, I saw the stubborn Saudis, and in Iriga, I saw people who have gone stray. These two extremes has shocked my physically and spiritually. My back was hurt in Iriga, but soul was uplifted, and my soul was damaged in Jeddah, but my body was cleansed. I don't know which was worst. Arrogant Muslims who have narrowed their religion to a few handful twisted strict rules, or ignorant catholics, who are slipping towards complete idolatry as we speak.

However, I knew these two extremes existed and survived them, but I couldn't survive the shock of looking through an open wound on Islam's body and discovering a few cancers spreading silently under the skin. It left me numb, and I still can't shake the horror of what I perceive the last gasps of the body of Al-Islam trying to fight these cancers. These cancers are what is impeding the growth and health of Al-Islam.

Each cell in this body have to multiply to regain life in the body, and it multiplies by absorbing oxygen (worship) and nutrients (practical application). More importantly, the cells are normal (interacting with non-Muslims) and well controlled (follow Islamic Sharia). Sometimes cells mutate and alter their purpose to just grow and not be controlled, which is called a cancer.

If we look back, Early conquered lands did not convert, because Muslims impose it on them, but they accepted Islam with open hearts.They saw a system in action that can provide a complete life-style free of sins. Also, it happened due to the example they saw in these sincere fellow humans who have no interest in worldly wealth, but rather every motivation initiates from Allah's order. When they traded, they did because of Allah's order, when they mated, they did because of Allah's order, when they loved they did because of Allah's order. All non-Muslims saw in them was the natural harmony in early Muslim's life, and whoever could fight their ego they became Muslims.

Today, Islam is not spreading like it did, but why? Has Islam become outdated? Or, is the message lost? No. In my observation, following are the major factors impeding the spread, and it will not resume until we remove these cancer.

• Asabiyah/Firqa (divisions)
• Round Robin Jamaat
• In-human terrorism
• Vanila Muslims

Asabiyah/Firqa:
When everyone you speak to labels every masjid with a race, then you know that Asabiyah (divisions) has spread like a cancer. One person approached me while I was busy, and he asked me a bold question "Are you from Rawalpindi?" I smiled and said "No". When I told him that I am from Karachi, I could see the changing color, and told him that this should be the last thing in our mind when we see each other. Another time, a dear brother of mine start classifying the masajid in Orlando as Hanafi, Shafi, Salafi.... I am sure his research is accurate, but that's the point. We are divided, and the cancer is too strong.

So, how is this impeding Islam. As always, an example. I was sitting in Manila airport waiting for my flight. There was a non-Muslim sitting on my side, and we started chatting. Of course, I wanted him to hear the message of Muhammad (PBUH). As I started to invited him, he told me that he worked in Saudi, and have been learning about Islam there. He asked me why are there so many different sects in Islam, and which one is true. I tried to explain that all of them are wrong, except who follow the Quran and Sunnah. I could see how confused he was, and I realized that non-Muslims are ready to accept Islam, but which Islam "Hanafi", "Maliki", "Salafi", "Ahl-e-Hadith", "Devband" etc. I mean there are more sects in Islam then clothes in my closet, and probably more colorful. So, unless we drop this notion of making Imams God, and rejecting Sunnah over what Imam Muhammad said (i do not exaggerate this), this cancer will not leave. We can kill it by listening to Imam Abu Hanifa, as he said that look at the source of the opinion and not the opinion. Cure is in this sentence.

Messenger of Allah (saw) said, narrated by At-Tirmidhi and Abu Dawud, "There are indeed people who boast of their dead ancestors; but in the sight of Allah they are more contemptible than the black beetle that rolls a piece of dung with its nose.

Round Robin Jamaat:

It has many names such just "Jamaat" or "Tableeghi Jamaat". This I found to be the # 2 in the list that is Impeding Islam. What happens is that once someone becomes one of them, they get cut off from the learning, inviting non-Muslims, Quran, Sunnah, and Family. 

I will present an example. I visited the masjid in Iriga city, which is in the dark valley of shirk and very hard to find. I was so happy to see it and couldn't control my excitement. Then, I visited the library of Iriga city. I was surprised to see that there was no Quran in the library. I asked brother Abdu*****, why not? He looked at me like I have asked the secret pin for his ATM card. Instead, he started telling me that there is a jamaat of four brothers came from Pakistan and I miss them. Don't these 4 people find enough in Pakistan to reform that they are visiting far away. I told him that I am going to donate some books, and if he has a Quran in Tagalog that I can have. He looked around and said no. I said alright brother do u want to go for dawah and present some English Quran to the priest of the main church, where my wife used to study. He said he was busy. So, bottom line is that the dawah these cancer cells are interested in is just to Muslims, and that is only to make them a dead bead. I have listed reform for this Jamat many times here, so I am not going to repeat it.

Narrated Anas bin Malik: "A group of three men came to the houses of the wives of the Prophet asking how the Prophet worshipped (Allah), and when they were informed about that, they considered their worship insufficient and said, "Where are we from the Prophet as his past and future sins have been forgiven." Then one of them said, "I will offer the prayer throughout the night forever." The other said, "I will fast throughout the year and will not break my fast." The third said, "I will keep away from the women and will not marry forever." Allah's Apostle came to them and said, "Are you the same people who said so-and-so? By Allah, I am more submissive to Allah and more afraid of Him than you; yet I fast and break my fast, I do sleep and I also marry women. So he who does not follow my tradition in religion, is not from me (not one of my followers)." (Bukhari Volume 7, Book 62, Number 1)

In human Terrorism:
This should be an easy one, but can catch you right off-guard. Islam has been associated with Muslims who are ready to react on everything with uneducated, and ignorant hatred. They have harmed the image of Islam so much that, even my mother asked me to shave my beard, because I looked like a terrorist. Of course, I smiled, and explained to her that it is fardh upon every men, and shaving it is Fisq.

Once, my brother in law visited, who is a non-Muslim, and I started to talk to him about Islam, and he liked what he heard. Out of nowhere, he asked me "What about these terrorist?" why do they not follow this peaceful message? I explained to him that they are following their sects and leaders and if these Imams contradict Quran and Sunnah, these people will not challenge them, so hence they follow this twisted ideology, but he was not convinced because who to say that they are following the true Islam and I am telling him the fantasy tales. This cancer is very painful, and it will not stop by itself, and we will have to fight it. I suggest to make a negative opinion in our heart of these terrorist acts and then talk against it, then try to stop it if possible.

"Fight in the cause of Allah those who fight you, but do not do aggression, for Allah loves not the aggressors. Fight in the way of Allah against those who fight against you, but begin not hostilities. Lo! Allah loveth not aggressors." (Quran 2:190)

Vanilla Muslims:
This is a term I think best describe these Muslims, who were born in a Muslim family, but never truly accepted Islam. They are not concerned about Halal and Haram. World has taken a special place in their heart, and the highest priority for them will be improving their life in this world.

If a non-Muslim look at them, they will not recognize them as Muslims. Men most likely shave, and women follow Paris Hilton's fashion, so the Hijab does not fit in. They will skip Jumaa if there is an important meeting. So, Islam for them is a part time hobby that happens on Eid, Maghrib on Sundays. I was one of them, so I understand the thinking. In most cases, their thinking has a curtain, which keeps them in the state of intoxication for this world. Of course, there will be no motivation to spread Islam. It is like a foreign tissue cancer, which just sit there. Reminding of death, and reminding Allah is the cure for it.

Thauban reported that the messenger of Allah said: "It is near that the nations will call one another against you just as the eaters call one another to their dishes." Somebody asked: "Is this because we will be few in numbers that day?" He said: "Nay, but that day you shall be numerous, but you will be like the foam of the sea, and Allah will take the fear of you away from your enemies and will place weakness into your hearts." Somebody asked: "What is this weakness?" He said: "The love of the world and the dislike of death." (Abu Daud)

There is one hope in Orlando, and it is a gathering on Sundays at 11 AM at MAGO school. These four cancers are not present there in big force, and there is an opportunity to fight back these cancers, if Allah wills.

JazakAllah Khairin
A cancer fighting cell

AbuArman Jumani

Jumaa: A running Joke!

In the Name of Allah, the most Merciful, the most Beneficient.

All praise is due to Allah, the focus of all true worship.

If I say something wrong, it is from my ego, and if I say something good, it is from Allah.

عن عبد الله بن عمرو بن العاص أن النبي صلّى الله عليه وسلّم نهى عن التحلّق قبل الصلاة يوم الجمعة


صحيح أبي داود 991، صحيح الجامع 6885


From Abdullah bin Amr bin al-Aas that the Prophet (sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam) forbade making circles [for knowledge or remembrance] before prayer on Friday. (Saheeh Abu Dawud #991, Saheeh al-Jami’ #6885)

I walk in the Islamic Center of Orlando on fridays, and it breaks my heart to see Imam speaking before the khutbah. It is a direct violation of the command of the Prophet (PBUH) above. After the english speech, Imam will sit down, thinking that a good message has been delivered, but the true message that was delivered is that it is more important for us to follow the culture then follow the Prophet (PBUH).

The whole day of Jumaa has become a joke which repeats like an old comedy film. Some come for Biryani that is sold outside. Some come to meet friends. Some come to add their name to the list of 1 billion Muslims. Some come to just hang out. Some come because other Muslims won't call them names. Some come to increase business contacts. Some come in a box, and have no say in it. Some come through a back door in a closed room thinking why are they second grade citizens. Some Come to remember how it was in their childhood to go to masjid once a week...

Even Angels are confused. Allah told them to write the names of every person who enters before Imam stands up. So, Angels are sitting outside writing the names, and all of a sudden they hear the Imam stood up and start making Zikr of Allah (speaking good). At that moment, they closed the books and came inside to listen the zikr. As they enter, they see only a few people in, and some are reclining to past time. Angels thought that it must be a tough town. After 20 minutes people streaming in, but everyone starts sitting at the back like women or like scared of coming close to Allah that may be he will ask about their deeds today.

Finally, Imam ends the zikr (english speech), and sits down, and the maudhin gives the adhan. After a few minutes, instead of starting the salah, Imam stands up and starts the Arabic zikr. At that moment Angels are completed caught off-gaurd, and rush to their books and start writing peole's names who are already in the masjid. They don't know what to do. What is happening? They don't know who should be counted as on time and who should be absent from the list. They sit down once agains for the zikr of Allah.

One thing for sure, they will ask for a re-assignment to another masjid where it is less confusing. However, they don't realize that this forbidden format has been adopted by many masajid, and now part of the culture.

After the Jumaa, people streaming out like christians stream out of church on Sundays. One thing for sure that most of them will not come back to the masjid until next Jumaa, and that is if there is no meeting conflict. Of course, they can see the boss so can't make the boss angry, but Allah is unseen, so "out of sight, out of mind" method is employed.

On Fridays, there are more than 600 people, but at Asar only a handful return. May be we need a permanent Biryani stall outside? Just a thought.

On top of all this, some are rude to the non-muslim cops who are helping with parking. One woman cursed the policeman and this grown man cried because of that. So much ignorance. So much pride. So much disobedience. If I didn't know that Islam is truth, I would have left Islam in a heartbeat.

Wallah! We deserve the leaders we got who opress us, and press us, and kill us, and then rape us, and then plunder our wealth. All the duas at the end is useless, because the inside of us have died. Jumaa is nothing but a tradition now, and in the next generations, these kids are learning from us will not know how the companions felt when Prophet (PBUH) would mount the pulpit once on Jumaa with the purpose of mentioning Allah's name and teaching people. How many of us can feel the tears during the khutbah, or start shaking, or so ashamed that heads touch the ground. This is Jumaa. Have the soul absorb the knowledge and blessing and ready for the whole week. Rust is removed for a week. This is how the companions felt. I am sorry but between an early english speech and same Arabic Khutbah, it is very hard to feel this way.

There is no hope until we have the courage to go against the traditions that defy Allah and his messenger.

I pray to Allah to destroy me if I am wrong, or destroy this tradition that branches out away from the Sirat ul Mustaqeem.

JazakAllah Khairin

An observer to the demise of Muslims
Abu Arman

Family with two fathers

In the Name of Allah.

All praise is due to Allah, who is the owner of the day of judgement.

"O believers enter into Islam completely ..." (Quran 2:208)
I have been asked many times what I beleived to be the cause of the disunity in muslim Ummah today. We can articulate many reasons, but one reason is the root of this current situation. For example, muslims complain about western media comparing muslim countries to western countries in treatment of women. Their argument is that the media should compare Quran with Bible instead. I disagree, because the abuse of women is happening in real life and not in a book, so the accusation of western media is correct and we should accept the truth and deal with it, instead of denying it. We should put up (establish such community) or shut up (stop complaining).

Islam was established in Medina the first time as a system, where there was a single leader who was the secular authority as well as religous authority, and the qualification to become a leader included complete grasp on Islamic Sharia. Somewhere along the lines, muslim Ummah has degraded to a level where the political leaders have been chosen without any consideration of their Taqwa or Islamic knowledge. Also, the "religous" leaders like Mawlvis or Imams have accpeted this situation, and are enjoying their authority by avoiding secular issues. Some even claim that no one follows Islam in their life anymore, so it is impossible to show an example of a community to compare with US treatment of women.

If it is true, then the movement started with Muhammad bin Abdullah (PBUH) has died, and Islam is no more. Messenger of Allah (PBUH) never made that differentiation in his life nor did his companion. I do not recall any instance where any of them said that Islamic laws don't apply to a certain aspect of our life and we need a secular law to govern it. On the contrary, this was the mian argument that non-beleivers could not accept. They were willing to worship Allah every other year, as long as they can keep the laws of ignorance intact. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) refused to accept Islam as a ritual and insisted on applying it globally in every part of our lives. For this, he was rejected by the political leaders in Makkah, who did not want their authority to slip away.

I am not sure when this thinking seeped into Muslim Ummah, but muslims now see a separation of religion and state, and like to have a religious leader, and a secular leader. In essence, muslims want two fathers for themselves. One father will take them to masjid and teach them about Islam, and the other father will take them to school and play sports with them. Even in our local masjid, Imams avoid every political issue, and defer to Shura and Trustees who are uneducated in Quran and Sunnah. How can a person with no knowledge in Quran and Sunnah lead us politically? I say that no family can afford two fathers, and it is absurd to have two head of the family, and each pulling in the different direction.

In the battle of Yarmuk, Khalid bin Walid was the Ameer, and was fighting with Roman Army. Romans sent their bishop (religious leader) to give a proposals to muslims. Bishop came to the frontline, and asked to see his religous counterpart in muslim Army. Khalid came forward to meet bishop. Bishop asked to speak to religous leader instead like a Mawli or Maulana or Imam. Khalid told him that there is only one Ameer of muslims here, and it is him. Bishop had hard time understanding this new concept of one Ameer leading muslims militarily and spritually.

If Pope makes the same request today, I can assure you that political leaders will step aside and someone with white beard and white turban will go out to mee him. What a shame? Muslim Ummah is in disunity due to the separation of religious and secular laws. Quran is not a book to be read like a novel, and memorized like a poetry. It is to be followed. If we follow it, then there is no place for a separate law in Islam. Hence, any law that governs human life is comparable to Islam, and vice versa.

We should blame ourselves for the treatment of women under muslim authority, and not the western media, who is doing their job in identifying the faults in Muslims. If there is not a single community that is following Quran as it is to be followed, which we can put forth to Sean Hannity, then Quran is nothing but a pipe dream, but I know that is not be true.

If someone to be blamed for this, it is the scholars who are holding monoply on Islamic Sharia, and who does not allow open debate because of their Taqleed of four Imams even if their rulings are against the will of Allah and will of Muhammad bin Abdullah (PBUH).

Let us compare our practice of Islam to the implementation of US constitution, and see if Quran has any say whatsoover in our lives. If the women have more rights in USA then the most sacred city, Makkah, I don't see how Sean Hannity has to be blamed, rather we should hide our faces due to shame until death reaches us.

Oh Allah! provide us leaders who implements Quran and Sunnah as law, and protect us from the fitnah of two fathers who split laws in secular and religous parts.

JazakAllah Khairin

A person with one father
Abu Arman

Wudu: Do we need to wash the feet?

In the Name of Allah,

All praise is due to Allah, the one whose hands is my life.

If I make a mistake, it is from my ego, and if I say something good it is from Allah.

After my last blog, I receive the following question. I will try to answer it with my limited knowledge. I know there are many readers who are more learned than I, so please correct me with evidence.

"Can you also read the aya of quran about the method of wudu and guide me if the word "wamsahu" is used for both feet and head, then why do we wash our feet. (please dont mention the bracket interpretation of the translator who have added the washing later. Please read the actual arabic language. I think whenever and for whatever reason hadeeth and quran conflict we have to go by quran. As authencity of quran is guaranteed by Allah but hadeets could be changed later by humans."

First, Quran has reached us through ahadith, so Quran is nothing but a hadith itself, because no one but Prophet (PBUH) received, and he conveyed. So, authentic ahadith that we have no doubt over it, are at the same level as Quran, except when there is a direct contradiction, which is very rare. If Allah wanted to provide just a 300 pages book to us, it was very easy to do without the trouble Prophet (PBUH) had to go through. In short, we cannot understand Quran without the explanation in the ahadith. It is true that some ahadith are weak or fabricated, which we should try to avoid, but an authentic hadith has the same binding on us as the Quran does.

 يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓاْ إِذَا قُمۡتُمۡ إِلَى ٱلصَّلَوٰةِ فَٱغۡسِلُواْ وُجُوهَكُمۡ وَأَيۡدِيَكُمۡ إِلَى ٱلۡمَرَافِقِ وَٱمۡسَحُواْ بِرُءُوسِكُمۡ وَأَرۡجُلَڪُمۡ إِلَى ٱلۡكَعۡبَيۡنِ‌ۚ وَإِن كُنتُمۡ جُنُبً۬ا فَٱطَّهَّرُواْ‌ۚ وَإِن كُنتُم مَّرۡضَىٰٓ أَوۡ عَلَىٰ سَفَرٍ أَوۡ جَآءَ أَحَدٌ۬ مِّنكُم مِّنَ ٱلۡغَآٮِٕطِ أَوۡ لَـٰمَسۡتُمُ ٱلنِّسَآءَ فَلَمۡ تَجِدُواْ مَآءً۬ فَتَيَمَّمُواْ صَعِيدً۬ا طَيِّبً۬ا فَٱمۡسَحُواْ بِوُجُوهِڪُمۡ وَأَيۡدِيكُم مِّنۡهُ‌ۚ مَا يُرِيدُ ٱللَّهُ لِيَجۡعَلَ عَلَيۡڪُم مِّنۡ حَرَجٍ۬ وَلَـٰكِن يُرِيدُ لِيُطَهِّرَكُمۡ وَلِيُتِمَّ نِعۡمَتَهُ ۥ عَلَيۡكُمۡ لَعَلَّڪُمۡ تَشۡكُرُونَ

 O ye who believe! When ye rise up for prayer, wash your faces, and your hands up to the elbows, and lightly rub your heads and (wash) your feet up to the ankles. And if ye are unclean, purify yourselves. And if ye are sick or on a journey, or one of you cometh from the closet, or ye have had contact with women, and ye find not water, then go to clean, high ground and rub your faces and your hands with some of it. Allah would not place a burden on you, but He would purify you and would perfect His grace upon you, that ye may give thanks.

I think the following explanation from Muhammad ibn Sâlih al-'Uthaymîn is the best

There are two correct ways of reciting the saying of Allaah (wa Arjulikum) ‘and your feet’ having reached us from the Messenger of Allaah (SAW):

1. Reciting it as ‘wa Arjulakum’ with a fatha on the laam, hence linking it in meaning to ‘wa wujoohakum’ (and your faces), i.e. wash the feet.
2. Reciting it as ‘wa Arjulikum’ with a kasra on the laam, hence linking it in meaning to ‘bi ru’oosikum’ (your heads), i.e. wipe the feet.

And that which explains when one should wipe the feet and when one should wash them is the sunnah, for the Messenger (SAW) used to wash his feet when they were uncovered, and wipe over them when they were covered by khuffs.

Quran was not revealed or written down with  "fatha" or "kasra", and Uthman ibn Affan added these harakat to help non-Arabs to read properly. Similar to modern dictionary have pronunciation helpers. So, the fatha was selected for this word, and it attaches the feet to washing. If kasra would have been selected, it would have reflected the other meaning. We should accept the translation of "wash" and not wipe.

However, it does not make a big difference whether it was wiping or washing, because both are acceptable.  What people consider washing nowadays is bathing the feet with running water. If the word "Faghsilu" means pouring running water over that body part, then please try doing that to your face at any wudu place. "Faghsilu" here menas clean thoroughly. In the following hadith companions were wiping/washing their feet.

Narrated 'Abdullah bin 'Amr:

Once the Prophet remained behind us in a journey. He joined us while we were performing ablution for the prayer which was over-due. We were just passing wet hands over our feet (and not washing them properly) so the Prophet addressed us in a loud voice and said twice or thrice: "Save your heels from the fire."  (Bukhari Vol 1, 3:57) 

Prophet (PBUH) did not say "wash your feet" or "save your foot from the fire". He said "save your HEELS from the fire", which means that companions were not wiping over heels and just wiping in the front of the foot in a hurry. What would make the wudu invalid is leaving any part dry on the foot up to the ankle.

Quran does not go into details of implementation of the rules, rather Prophet (PBUH) was charged with that task, and he clarified by his tongue and his action. Taking water in the hand and wiping the feet with water is enough, as long as there is no dry portion of the feet up to and including the ankle. Bathing the feet under running water is the best way to clean them, but not fardh.

Arabs didn't have enough water to bath the feet in running water like us, so we can't take washing the feet in that meaning. If there is someone who believes that Prophet (PBUH) used running water on his feet regularly for wudu, please contact me with evidences.

Moreover, face is washed by taking water in our palms and rubbing the surface, and not by spraying water on our face. It is hard to believe that the Prophet (PBUH)  "washed" the feet with running water, because it would have been waste of water to try to bath the feet.

So, if one has running water, it is better to bath the feet in it, but it is not fardh to bath the feet. It is however fardh to make sure the feet is free of dirt and filth and everything is wet below ankle, and that could be easily done with taking water in the palm and rubbing vigorously over the feet all over.

I have stopped using sink for a while now, because it does not suite a civilized person to put their feet in the sink, unless it is below waist height. My feet are clean when I am done "washing" them (taking water in my hand and rubbing all over).

One brother got hurt recently washing his feet in the sink, and another had issue with his private parts for stretching the leg for years to wash in the sink.

If you think, it is necessary to bath the feet with running water, please go ahead and do it, and Allah will judge you for your intentions, but there is no Sunnah where Prophet (PBUH) bath his feet in running water.

Please do not make things difficult for yourself. Purity is the intention of the wudu and not water wash, because wudu is even allowed with dirt, if water is not available. So, if running water is not available at a lower height, do your best to clean your feet.

It is acceptable to wipe the feet with water, but it is forbidden to leave any portion of the feet dry. So, if one can remove the filth (not dirt) from the feet with several wipes, then washing is not necessary. However, if washing is not possible, why not wash (bath) the feet?

Narrated Humran

(The slave of 'Uthman) I saw 'Uthman bin 'Affan asking for a tumbler of water (and when it was brought) he poured water over his hands and washed them thrice and then put his right hand in the water container and rinsed his mouth, washed his nose by putting water in it and then blowing it out. Then he washed his face and forearms up to the elbows thrice, passed his wet hands over his head and washed his feet up to the ankles thrice. Then he said, "Allah's Apostle said 'If anyone Performs ablution like that of mine and offers a two-rak'at prayer during which he does not think of anything else (not related to the present prayer) then his past sins will be forgiven.' " (Bukhari 1:161)

And Allah knows best.

JazakAllah Khairin

A person who clean the feet with any means necessary.

Abu Arman