Worse than the Cartoons

Submitted by Al-Haq Publication of the insulting and offensive cartoons is to be entirely expected from the enemies of Islam. While the insults which the kuffaar hurl at Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) are hurting to every Muslim, there should be no surprise in our ranks when the crusaders engage in invective and vilification. The Qur’aan clearly informs of the attitude of enemies such as the godless editors who are spiritually bankrupt and morally decadent. About their hatred for Muslims, the Qur’aan Majeed: “O People of Imaan! Do not take as bosom friends (confidants) those besides your own people. They leave no stone unturned (to harm you). They desire that which will cause suffering to you. Verily, hatred (for you) has poured from their mouths, but what their breasts conceal is worse. Verily, We have explained the Signs to you, if indeed you have intelligence.” (Surah Ibraheem, Aayat 118) There is therefore no need for Muslims to express surprise and astonishment when the kuffaar desecrate our holy relics and insult our holy personages with their blasphemous utterances, depictions and caricaturing. OUR MISDEEDS Muslims should understand that their own misdeeds are worse than the cartoons of the enemies. Worse than the insulting cartoons is the vile appearance of clean shaven faces of Muslim males. Such appearances are more abhorrent than the cartoons. While the kuffaar cartoons cause no hurt to Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam), the razor the Muslim man puts to his face to shave his beard cuts at the heart of Nabi-e-Kareem (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). Worse than the insulting cartoons are the women of Islam who have abandoned their homes for prowling on the streets like their lewd western counterparts. The wanderings and meanderings in the streets and the markets, in flagrant violation of the Qur’aanic prohibitions pain the heart of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam), not so the insulting cartoons. Worse than the insulting cartoons is the abandonment of Hijaab by Muslim women and men. Worse than the insulting cartoons is the emulation of the styles and fashions of the kuffaar and fussaaq. Dressed in the styles of the enemies, the appearance of Muslims is worse than the appearance of the cartoons. Worse than the insulting cartoons is the wholesale slaughter of the Institution of Salaat by Muslims. Ninety percent of the Ummah have abandoned regular performance of Salaat. This destruction of the central Pillar of Imaan causes the greatest grief oof Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). The cartoons recede into oblivion in relation to the treacherous neglect of Salaat by the Ummah. Worse than the insulting cartoons is the Bid’ah in which the Ummah is wallowing Worse than the insulting cartoons are the Ulama-e-Soo’ who subvert the Deen; who undermine Islam with their false interpretations for the sake of worldly and nafsaani motives. Worse than the insulting cartoons are the evil Ulama who practise Kitmaanul Haqq (Concealment of the Truth of the Ahkaam of the Shariah). Worse than the insulting cartoons is the total abandonment of Amr Bil Ma’roof Nahy Anil Munkar (Commanding righteousness and prohibiting evil) by even those Ulama who are supposed to belong to the Fraternity of Ulamae-Haq. Worse than the insulting cartoons are the Muslims who enter kuffaar universities for gaining cheap scrap degrees for so-called Islamic studies. Worse than the insulting cartoons are the droves of Muslim girls and boys attending the immoral secular institutions of western learning where Muslim female modesty and Akhlaaq in general are prostituted. Worse than the insulting cartoons are the Muslim women in long flowing gowns, and Muslim men with beards and kurtahs frequenting the immoral dens of vice—the casinos. And Worse than the insulting cartoons are the numerous other acts of flagrant transgression, immorality, treachery, dishonesty, riba, consumption of haraam, etc., etc. perpetrated by both the elite and the masses of this Ummah. HURT & GRIEF In comparison to the gruesome insult Muslims pile on the Nabi and Islam, the insult of the cartoons is of mediocre standard. Furthermore, the insult of the cartoons of the kuffaar cause grief to us Muslims, not to Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). What hurts and grieves Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) every Monday and every Friday evening when the A’maal (deeds) of the Ummah are presented to him for viewing is the wholesale massacre of the Shariah and the defilement of the Ahkaam of Allah Ta’ala committed by this rebellious and treacherous Ummah which claims to stand up to defend the honour of Allah’s Nabi (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). Hooliganism and Thuggery!!! Submitted by Al-Haq “These are the limits of Allah. Do not transgress these limits.” (Qur’aan) The pain, grief and anger which Muslims feel and suffer when any facet of Islam is subjected to insult and vilification, are understandable and in fact necessary. A man whose heart is not grieved by any kind of insult directed against Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) cannot be a Muslim. If he verbally professes to be a Muslim while his heart is not jarred by the invective and insults inveighed against Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam), he should understand that Imaan has departed from his heart. DISPLAYING ANGER When Islam is insulted, the immediate and spontaneous reaction of Muslims is naturally anger and a burning yearning for revenge. But, at the same time we have the Divine Shariah to contend with. Allah Ta’ala has prescribed limits for everything. Islam is a systematic and a codified sacred Law. It is not a concept of anarchy. Actions and reactions have to be compulsorily channelled within the bounds of the Shariah. Exceeding the limits is never lawful. In fact, transgression of the Divine limits and proscriptions is a punishable offence. ACTION The desire to do something and to avenge the honour of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) sullied by the insulting cartoons of the godless editors of slut newspapers, is perfectly understandable and cceptable. However, the excesses committed in the aftermath of the protests are unacceptable and intolerable in Islam. “Proclaim the Truth even if it be bitter.” — Hadith The truth is generally unpalatable. But it must be told. The Ummah should understand that the honour of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) and of Islam cannot be redeemed by acts of hooliganism and thuggery. PAKISTAN The riotous behaviour of the mobs of protesters, is not a service to Islam. It neither enhances nor upholds the honour of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). Among the acts of hooliganism perpetrated by the protesters in Pakistan are: Burning of buses and cars Torching Ships and building Burning foreign businesses - Targeting Europeons in general Brains are not really an imperative requisite for understanding the immorality and hurmat (prohibition) of these acts of thuggery and hooliganism. In the first instance, whose buses, and cars were gutted by the protesters? The rampaging mobs burnt vehicles and property belonging to Pakistanis—Muslims. By what stretch of sanity and Islamic logic is the burning of Muslim property justified for an act of insult perpetrated in Denmark by a godless editor five months ago? And, even if the property belonged to non-Muslims, by which principle or teaching of the Shariah is it permissible to burn and destroy the property of non-Muslims in Pakistan for a crime committed by a hooligan in Denmark? VENGEANCE Extracting vengeance from people unconnected with the crime is transgression of the divine limits. It is a cruel sin, a grave act of injustice inflicted on innocent people. Burning buses, cars, trucks, property and injuring non-Muslims living in a Muslim country for the crime of the editor of a Danish paper are not permissible acts of protest. In fact, the honour of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) and Islam are defiled and desecrated to a greater extent than the insulting cartoons. ZULM The Qur’aan Majeed strictly forbids zulm (injustice and cruelty). It is a despicable act of cowardice totally at variance with Islamic honour and chivalry to gang up against a minority non-Muslim community living in peace in a Muslim country, and subjecting them to fear and terror. Such conduct is expected of non-Muslims—of Bush and Blair, not of those who truly follow the beautiful pattern of life taught to the wor ld by Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). It should be borne in mind, that in a Muslim state, the life, property, blood and honour of non-Muslim citizens are accorded the same sanctity and protection by the Shariah as it does to Muslims notwithstanding the betrayal of Islam by the fussaaq rulers holding the reins of government in Muslim lands. CHURCHES, PRIESTS In Beirut, in addition to torching the Danish embassy, stones were lobbed at a Christian church and a priest was killed in Turkey. Similar disturbances occurred in Syria and elsewhere in the Muslim World. What role did the church and the priest play in the publication of the offensive cartoons in Denmark five months ago by an atheist editor? Why was the priest murdered , and why were churches attacked for a crime committed in another country by another man? BESTIAL LUSTS Even in a valid Jihad campaign, Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) forbade molesting and killing of priests, women, children and people unconnected with the fighting. The horrible acts of hooliganism committed by the protesters never represent Islamic justice nor do they redeem the honour of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) nor do they defend any institution of Islam. Such acts of wanton destruction and cruelty are perpetrated to satisfy the bestial lusts of the evil nafs of man. The sad dimension of the hooliganism and thuggery is the religious façade with which the zulm is draped. ALLAHU AKBAR! The perpetration of zulm and the commission of acts of thuggery under the slogan of Allahu Akbar!, and the Name of Allah Azza Wa Jal, do not confer legality and religiosity to the criminal acts of the protesters. On the contrary, the commission of such crimes in the name of Islam is in fact profanity, outrageously unjust and an insult to Islam. Torching the Embassies Submitted by Al-Haq In the light of the Shariah, what is the ruling regarding the stoning, damaging and burning of the Danish and Norwegian embassies by Muslim mobs in Muslim countries? ISLAM NEITHER subscribes to nor tolerates kangaroo courts and mob justice. Islam has its own lofty Divine Code of Justice which operates on the basis of defined and strict rules and regulations. The embassy of a foreign country, including non-Muslim countries, in a Muslim land enjoys the protection of the state. The presence of an embassy signifies the existence of a treaty or pledge between the Muslim and the non-Muslim state. It is haraam for the Muslim state or its inhabitants to treacherously violate the terms of the treaty/ pledge, and attack or damage the embassy or its staff. It is furthermore, haraam to attack , kill or injure any non-Muslim who lives legally in the Muslim state. In fact, it is haraam for the ordinary people in the land to harm or kill even a non- Muslim who lives unlawfully in the Muslim state. Due process of the Shariah will takes its course and mete out the correct punishment decreed by the Qaadhi. Any ordinary Muslim citizen who takes the law into his hands and injures a non-Muslim or damages his property is guilty of grave crimes for which the Islamic court will mete out the appropriate punishment prescribed by the Shariah for such cowardly and dastardly offences. In Islam there is absolutely no room for rampaging mobs running amok, driving fear into the hearts of people, pillaging and plundering. What we are witnessing today in Muslim countries by way of strife and anarchy re the fruits of western civilization. Muslims have adopted western culture, hence they act in emulation of the barbarism which they have inherited from the West. The stoning and burning of building and vehicles in the aftermath of the insulting cartoons are not teachings of Islam. Yes, the anger is fully justified. It is simply the Muslim spirit and the love of Islam which impel us to react with spontaneous anger. But this holy anger does not justify the acts of anarchy we have observed taking place in Muslim countries. Islam commands its adherent to restrain themselves and prevent their anger from spilling beyond the prescribed confines and parameters of the Shariah. The Shariah is a sacred concept— a glittering way of life. Islam targets all mankind with its mission of Tableegh and Da’wa t (Propagation). Islam has come for the salvation of mankind—for the betterment of mankind on earth and for its everlasting salvation in the Hereafter. Elsewhere in this issue of Al-Haq the episode of Hadhrat Amr Ibnul Aa’s (radhiyallahu anhu) graphically portrays the character expected of Muslims. Those who profess to be devotees of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) render the Deen and its goals devastating disservice with misdeeds which are expected of only barbarians or characters like Bush and Blair who wantonly and calculatingly commit genocide, murdering tens of thousands of unarmed civilians with their chemical and cluster bombs. Blasphemy and the Shariah Submitted by Al-Haq Among the capital sins of blasphemy in Islam is to revile and insult Allah and His Messenger, Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). Such blasphemy is punishable with death. However, a conviction for blasphemy and execution of the punishment are lawful only after the due process of the Shariah. Only the Qaadhi (the Islamic court) is empowered to try, convict, sentence and execute the accused. No institution other than the Qaadhi, has the right or the power to invoke the Islamic Penal Law to punish the blasphemer. FATWA The blasphemer cannot be punished on the basis of a fatwa issued by a Mufti nor by the decision of any private tribunal or committee of Ulama, whether in an Islamic state (Darul Islam) or in a non-Muslim country (Darul Harb). Only the decree of the Qaadhi in an Islamic state is valid for the crime committed within the borders of the Land of Islam. DARUL-ISLAM An essential requisite for the jurisdiction of even the Qaadhi (or an Islamic Court of Law) is that the court must be a properly constituted court in Darul Islam. The jurisdiction of the Islamic Court does no extend beyond the geographical boundaries of the Islamic state. Thus, an Islamic Court in an Islamic state does not have the power nor the status to try, convict and sentence a man who commits blasphemy in a non-Muslim country. From this position of the Shariah, it will be understood that ‘edicts’ of death such as the one which the Ayatullah Khomeini of Iran had issued against the apostate, Rushdie, and the calls of death for the blaspheming editors who had published the insulting cartoons, have no Islamic legality. It is haraam for Muslims to respond to such Islamically illegal edicts and calls. How Should We Protest? Submitted by Al-Haq Voicing our indignation, anger and grief when our Deen is insulted is permissible. This right is not contested. But the methods of protest have to be within the bounds of the Shariah. Even peaceful, non-violent methods will not be permissible if any of the limits of the Shariah are transgressed. The Qur’aan Majeed states: “These are the limits of Allah. Therefore do not transgress them. Those who transgress the limits of Allah, verily they are the oppressors.” (Surah Baqrah) FEMALES Thus, a protest march in which females participate is haraam. The perpetration of a haraam act in the name of Islam is haraam. It is not permissible. The Qur’aan commands women: “And, remain steadfastly in your homes, and do not make an exhibition (of yourselves) like the displays of the (times of) Ignorance.” INTER-FAITH A protest which involves interfaith prayer services is not permissible. Islam does not apologise for its claim that only Islamic Tauheed is the sole repository of salvation in the Hereafter. Islam teaches that all religions besides this Deen of Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) are false. While we are required to refrain from showing any disrespect for the religion of others, it is not permissible to jointly participate with them in their prayer services. PROHIBITED METHODS Taking photos, shouting profanity against others, reviling their religions and their holy personages, injuring people, damaging property, hurling stones, reprisal acts targeting innocent people who may be related to the criminals by race, looting and similar acts of anarchy are all haraam. PERMISSIBLE METHODS Although protest marches are not Islamic nor admirable ways, nevertheless, if maintained within the bounds of the Shariah, will be permissible. Other permissible ways are trade boycotts, petitions, legal action, and any method which is lawful in the country of protest, and which does not conflict with the Shariah. --- Mujlisul Ulama of South Africa P.O. Box 3395 Port Elizabeth, 6056 South Africa