GOING SWIMMING FULLY CLOTHED A Brief Introduction to Islamic Law | The Ulema (2nd Draft) The body of Islamic knowledge from which the Ulema (scholars of the Faith i.e. Islamic scholars) can argue points of law is extensive. First and foremost is the Koran, followed by the books of hadiths, then the Sahaba (biographies of the Prophet’s companions) and last, but not least, the reports of the Tābi'ūn (the next generation who learned from the companions of the Prophet) – all subject to the nuances of classical Arabic. The Ulema is not expected to formulate new doctrine for the Koran and the hadiths are considered the definitive and final say on such matters. For example, it is an article of faith in Islam that a husband has a God-given right to beat his wives if she has sin or he fears she will sin if not beaten. 4:34 Men are in charge of women, because Allah has made some of them excel the others, and because they spend some of their wealth. Hence righteous women are obedient, guarding the unseen which Allah has guarded. And those of them that you fear might rebel, admonish them and abandon them in their beds and beat them. And need not justify the beating to anyone. Umar reported the Prophet as saying, "A man will not be asked about why he beat his wife." Abu Dawud Even lifelong scholars of the Faith cannot deny what the Koran allows, but like the Prophet, they can interpret some of Allah's more punishing decrees so as to mitigate against their impact (puns intended). The Koran does not offer any guidance as to whether implements such as sticks, rocks and/or whips are appropriate in some circumstances where a particular severe beating is called for, and where fists and feet might not be adequate to the task. The Prophet was asked a question to that effect, and answered in the affirmative, but added, that whatever was used in the beating should not be bigger than a toothbrush thereby limiting the extent and severity of the injuries that such a beating might cause to a defenceless female. The toothbrush in question was probably some kind of reed, therefore a small whip would probably be allowed. Leather merchants in Kabul, it was reported, did a brisk business in near meter long studded leather straps when the Taliban (Students of the Koran) were in power. Taliban were shown in televised news stories using this type of strap prior to Friday prayers to herd the reluctant and the slow towards the Mosque. These straps were probably not meant strictly to beat up on the fairer sex, therefore not subject to the Prophet's limitation as to their size. As to the studs, I don't think the Prophet would approve, but that is a question for the Ulema. The Does and Don'ts of Wife Beating According to the Ulema The Ulema, as is evident from the many YouTube videos on the subject, is very much pre-occupied with the does and don'ts of wife beating. Of course, none of it can be about outlawing the practice or the use of whips and such. A sample: On Lebanese television, it was explained to three young men that, you don’t hit a camel or donkey about the face to get it to do what you want and your wives deserve the same consideration when at the mercy of your fists, or whatever weapon you might have in your hand. Don’t beat their faces, especially if it will make them ugly. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yl8g8S6F3do A cleric on Bahrain TV warned wife beaters about not pounding the wife in front of the kids, and to be careful not to break any bones or cause bleeding or bruises. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wp3Eam5FX58&feature=related On Qatar TV, one of the participants in a discussion on wife beating, argued that Allah, when he decreed that a man could beat his wife, was simply suggesting “a therapy” to the husband, to whom Allah had given the superior “judgment”. The lukewarm, almost non-existent protest from the women on the program would suggest that Muslim women are not in complete disagreement or have been afflicted by the Stockholm Syndrome. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nUI3TUdFCk&feature=related On another TV program, it was suggested that, if it was a choice between beating your wife or divorcing her, beating her was better. Remember, in Islam a man can divorce his wife by simply telling her twice that he is divorcing her. For a wife, it is next to impossible to obtain a divorce without her husband’s consent even if she is willing to pay him a ransom to obtain her freedom. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iw9AAL-AjI8 The Mufti of Egypt, appearing on Arab television, said that “Wife beating is associated with the cultural status of women in different societies. Women in some cultures are not averse to beatings. They consider it a sign of masculinity and as a kind of control which she herself desires.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fb6D9G4gpW8&feature=related More “beatings as therapy” from another scholar of the faith, but no more than ten blows per session. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wh7qiO3Ygnk&feature=related Spare the rod and spoil the wife! There are three types of wives who deserve to be beaten on a regular basis with a rod, according to a scholar appearing on Qatar television: 1) a woman who was beaten as a child, 2) condescending women who ignore their husband's needs, 3) any woman who will not obey her husband unless he beats her, and yells at her. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWGA8i6scYY&feature=related As I mentioned earlier, Islamic scholars cannot modify or create doctrine, they can only pontificate and make rulings, as the sample of eminent religious experts have done here, on the application of Allah's Law. What if a revelation, taken at face value, as the author of the Koran expects you to*, stretches credibility to the breaking point? ------------ * Allah praising the Koran for its clarity and His skill as a poet. 11:1 [This is] a Book with Verses which are elaborately formulated and clearly expounded from the Wise, the All-Aware. Believing in Things You Know to Be Untrue My favourite definition of Faith is a definition allegedly articulated by a twelve year old boy who was asked during filming of some British television documentary on religion, what he thought having faith meant. He said: "Faith is believing in something you know to be untrue." A literal interpretation of the Koran puts Paradise just above the clouds held up by invisible pillars anchored to a flat earth (see appendix Alexander the Great and a Flat Earth), with meteorites being stones thrown by angels to stop the jinn (from which we get our concept of the Jinni, see appendix The Jinn) from flying up to Paradise and eavesdropping on Allah’s conversations 13:2 Allah is He Who raised the heavens without pillars that you can see; there He sat upright on the Throne and made the sun and the moon subservient, each running for an appointed term. He manages the [whole] affair and makes clear the Revelations so that you may be certain of meeting your Lord. A literal interpretation supported by the Prophet. "The creation of the stars is for three purposes, i.e. as decoration of the sky, as missiles to hit the devils, and as signs to guide travelers. So, if anybody tries to find a different interpretation, he is mistaken and just wastes his efforts..." (Bukhari) Just like the Greek who first climb Mount Olympus and discovered that it was not the residence of the Gods, Neil Armstrong's walk on the moon should have raised serious questions about the accuracy of the Koran and the Prophet's description of the earth's starlit canopy. What is a Islamic scholar to do when evidence that what he believes to be true is in complete contradiction with what is "true"? He could claim that it is all an illusion created by Allah, and Paradise is just above the clouds, you just can't see it because Allah does not want you to see it until Judgement Day. If Allah can create the illusion that Jesus died on the Cross while He spirited the living Jesus to heaven, surely creating the illusion of "space" is not beyond the capabilities of such a powerful god as Allah. 4:157 And their saying: “We have killed the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary and the Messenger of Allah.” They neither killed nor crucified him; but it was made to appear so unto them. Indeed, those who differ about him are in doubt about it. Their knowledge does not go beyond conjecture, and they did not kill him for certain; 4:158 Rather Allah raised him unto Him. Allah is Mighty and Wise. Modern Islamic scholars have found ways to accommodate Dark Age superstitions about the earth's starlit canopy, and what can be found beyond the clouds with the reality that space travel has proven beyond the shadow of a doubt for those who don't subscribe to the grand illusion theory. You do what that probably apocryphal boy said you did, you continue to believe in what you know to be untrue while adapting to the reality that you know to be true and telling the believers that, because of your eruditeness, you have found a way forward out of a scriptural dead-end. They must, less they lose their Faith, or their Faith becomes irrelevant. Muslims in Space Before the first Malaysian (the first Muslim in space was Prince Sultan ibn Salman ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz Al Sa'ud of Saudi Arabia) blasted into space on board a Russian rocket in October 2007, on his way to the International Space Station (ISS), serious questions as to how Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor of Malaysia was going to perform the mandatory five daily prayers had to be answered such as: - how do you prostrate yourself in zero gravity; - should it be eighty prayers or five, the space station circling the earth approximately 16 times in a 24 hour period, with a sunrise and sunset occurring about every 90 minutes; - in what direction is Mecca; - how do you perform the ritual ablution (the ritual washing) as prescribed by Allah when water in space is so precious that sweat and urine are recycled and using the only Koran authorized substitute, sand, would wreck havoc with the instruments. 5:6 O believers, if you rise to pray, wash your faces and your hands up to the elbows and wipe your heads and your feet up to the ankles. If you are unclean, then cleanse yourself; and if you are sick or on a journey, and if one of you has come from the rest-room, or if you have touched women and cannot find any water, then take some clean earth and wipe your faces and hands with it. Allah does not wish to burden you but to purify you and complete His Grace upon you, that you may be thankful. Most of the questions regarding the five daily prayers and other issues such as fasting were addressed at a seminar attended by 150 Malaysian scholars, scientists, and astronauts and resolved to the satisfaction of all, including, one has to assume, Allah and His Messenger. After the get-together a booklet of guidelines for Muslim astronauts was published. Some of the guidelines: - a Muslim in space need only pray three times during a 24 hour period and need not perform the ritual washing; - he can pray facing any direction; - he can forgo fasting while in space but he will have to make it up when he returns to earth. The first Malaysian Muslim in space forced a re-evaluation of dogma which led, for all intents and purposes, to accommodations which the orthodox scholars must consider blasphemy: 1) that a ritual prescribed by the Koran e.g. verse 5:6, therefore inviolate, could be ignored or modified to meet changing circumstances which Allah and/or His Prophet did not foresee (for the orthodox scholar this is impossible in itself); 2) that Allah’s understanding of a day (that it begins at sunrise and ends at sunset) did not apply to outer space, and therefore, His instructions pertaining to the daily prayers could be generously interpreted so that a Muslim orbiting the earth would not have to spend almost all his time at prayer. 2:238 Attend regularly to the prayers including the middle prayer, standing up in devotion to Allah. 11:79 And during the later part of the night, pray as an additional observance. For your Lord may raise you to a praiseworthy position. 11:114 And perform the prayer at the two ends of the day and [the first] watches of the night. Surely the good deeds will wipe out the evil deeds; that is a reminder for those who remember. 17:78 Perform the prayer at the declining of the sun till darkness of the night and recite the Qur’an at dawn. Surely the recital of the Qur’an at dawn is memorable. 30:17 So, glorify Allah in the evening and in the morning. 30:18 He is the praise in the heavens and on earth at sunset and at noontide. The Ulema has also been known, like the Prophet, to give what could be considered its silent approval to that of which it had knowledge but did not object. In February 2007, Mohammad Sarwar shot and killed Pakistan’s Punjab provincial minister for social welfare Zilla Huma Usman, 35. He did it, according to police, because she had sinned. Quoting Sarwar: "Islam did not allow women to hold positions of leadership." Mohammad Sarwar is technically correct based on a strict interpretation of verse 2:228 ""... women have rights equal to what is incumbent upon them according to what is just, although men are one degree above them. Allah is Mighty, Wise." The Malaysian Ulema had to know that the Commander of the mission to the International Space Station and who would assume command of the Station upon arrival would be a woman by the name of Peggy Whitson, Yet the issue of a woman holding a leadership position over a believer going into space was never addressed i.e. no objections were raised. Another inconvenient reality overlooked for the occasion was Sheikh Shukor possibly committing the sin of Khalwat or "sin of close proximity.” Under Sharia Law you are guilty of Khalwat if you are too close to a person of the opposite sex who is not a close relation.
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