Muslim Woman

The political objective In this world, as laid down by the Quran for humanity, Is Universalism which shall be achieved by adopting a common code of life, obtainable from the Quranic Injunctions, laws and permanent values.

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Imams and religious leaders emphasize the importance of Zakat explaining that the economic problems of Muslims would be solved if we start practicing, in earnest, this much-neglected pillar of Islam. Most religious Muslims on the other hand conceive of Zakat as charity. They are content with implementing the religious Shariah and Fiqh that was developed by religious leaders and jurists (Imams and Fuqahaa) more than a thousand years ago. Even with the reality of global economics, many religious Muslims not only do not understand the complexities and underlying dynamics of the Western economic system, but also do not deem it worthwhile or necessary to study and know it in depth. Although many religious Muslims express displeasure with the Western economic system, blaming it for sucking Muslims’ wealth, they themselves do not shy away from trying to profit from it. Many Muslims are heavily involved with stocks, bonds, and other investment instruments offered by this purely capitalistic system, but they continue to expound the benefits of the Shariah.  They hold conferences on Islamic economics in such bastions of capitalism as Harvard University, but fail to see the contradiction.  They twist the Shariah to suit the interests of the rich and the powerful in the name of adaptation to “our times.” They give fatwa's about halal (allowed) and haram (forbidden), identifying halal stocks on Wall Street as opposed to haram interest in banks. One wonders if they really fail to understand that the very interest, which they consider haram, is, in fact, the foundation of capitalism on which stands Wall Street. How can the branch of a tree be halal if its root is haram ?

At the moment the only thing we can say is that whenever today's Muslims thought will be free from rituals shackle, the first task worth completing for the ummah will be to critically examine the traditions, Messenger Muhammad peace be upon him biography, history and Quranic exegesis and fiqh in the light of Quranic teachings. All the material which is in accordance with the Quran should be accepted and that which is against the teachings of the Quran should be discarded. Then within the framework of the Quranic laws, principles and guidelines, the ummah should by mutual consultation, reconstruct the shariah according to the needs and demands of modern time. Only at such a time will the state truly be called an Islamic state and its laws the laws of shariah. Such a task can only be performed by a great revolutionary, who in the words of Dr. Iqbal approaches the problem in the spirit of Caliph Omar, the first critical and independent mind in Islam who at the last moments of the Messenger Muhammad peace be upon him had the moral courage to utter these remarkable words, ‘The Book of God is sufficient for us.’

The immense changes in life have brought about such conditions where the opinions of the past (ancient) jurists badly needs a revision. It is not my intent to suggest that because of some inherent weaknesses the religious principles can no longer fulfill the needs of the present civilization. My point is the past jurists from time to time made rules based on the broad principles of the Quran and hadith. Those rules were suitable and practicable in those particular periods of time, but are unable to satisfy the needs and demands of the present time. Just like, at present, there is a need of modern language and terminology to explain the religious principles, similarly there is a need for a jurist of high caliber for the latest interpretation of Islamic law. On the strength of his intellectual capabilities and power of his imagination, this great jurist should be able to rewrite and compile the Islamic law based on religious fundamentals in a modern fashion; with the sheer strength of his imagination, interpret the principles on such broad bases so as to satisfy the demands of modern times.

The word Quran according to Arabic linguistic (ibn-e-faris) means
"collecting". The Holy Quran is a collection of surahs (chapters) and
these surahs are linked with one another in a very synchroned
formation. Another reknown arabic Linguistic (Raghib) has described
that Quran is a gist of all divine scriptures (books) which Allah
Almighty (God) has sent for mankind. Many other linguistics believed
that the root of Quran has derived from hebrew language which means
"announcement".

O Messenger! You should proclaim the attribute of Rabubiyyat
(nourishment) of your Rabb (God), Who is the Creator of the universe.
Proclaim that the One who has created living beings has also created
means for their nourishment. chapter 96, verse:1.

Therefore the word Quran mean's "global, universal announcement" or
declaration. The gist of Holy Quran teachings is, that an individual
subdue his-her will to the laws of Allah Almighty (God) which is in
the book (Quran). But this kind of obedience does'nt abide due to any
fear and force (like the fear of tyrants).

Here Allah Almighty (God) has said that obedience should be come
straight from heart. The one who follows according to Quranic
definition of obedience is called Muslim and the system which these
muslims establish is known as "Islam".

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If Islam teaches these noble ideals, why is there such a frightening
image of Islam in the West? The answer lies in one word: "jihad," and
its misrepresentation and misinterpretation in the media. But Muslims
are no less responsible for this frightening picture of jihad either.
Tyrant Muslim regimes and terrorist organizations routinely invoke
jihad, or holy war, to terrorize or kill innocent people to achieve
their political agendas. The Arabic word "jihad" means struggle or
exertion. There are many levels of jihad: struggling to remove poverty;
fighting against material and moral corruption; struggling against
social, political, and economic injustices; struggling to restore basic
human rights; fighting against tyranny and oppression; constantly
exerting to advance human knowledge; fighting against environmental
pollution, etc. And jihad in terms of war must be declared and must be
for defensive purposes only. No covert operations are allowed in Islam.
Above all, jihad must be done for the good of humanity which, in Islam,
is referred to as fighting for the cause of God. Under no
circumstances, are they allowed to exploit the weak and the vulnerable.
That is why Islam teaches Muslims to honor treaties and to do justice
­ even to their enemies. It teaches them to establish their system
based upon free consultation, justice and equality. These are the
teachings of the Quran. However, it is a sad reflection that Muslims
seem to have turned away from the above teachings of Islam. American
people who are striving for the above ideals are nearer to Islam than
many Muslims. Islam is not the custodian of Muslims only. God says in
the Quran that if Muslims were to turn away from its ideals and
teachings, then He will raise another people to replace them. Whatever
Muslims have done (and are doing) in the name of jihad that is contrary
to the above teachings of their holy Book, the Quran, Islam is not
responsible for. They are. And this is truly unfortunate. Because such
a beautiful religion as Islam gets maligned in the world because of
their terrorist acts.

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The very question seems strange at first. But this will help us in
drawing meaningful conclusions as there is a parallel argument in our
search for an answer to our original question, Does Allah Almighty
misguide anyone?

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There are many Muslims though who simply want to move with the times

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