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AWAITED SAVIOUR – IMAM AL-MAHDI

Posted by | Jun 15, 2013 | , |

AWAITED SAVIOUR – IMAM AL-MAHDI Al-Mahdi is not only an embodiment of the Islamic belief but he is also the symbol of an aspiration cherished by mankind irrespective of its divergent religous doctrines. He is also the crystallisation of an instructive inspiration through which all people, regardless of their religious affiliations, have learnt to await a day when heavenly mission, with all their implications , will achieve their final goal and the tiring march of humanity across history will culiminate satisfactorily in peace and tranqulity. This consciousness of the expected future has not been confined to those who believe in the supernatural phenomena but has also been reflected in the ideologies and cults which totally deny the existence of what is imperceptible. For example, dialectical materialism which interprets history on the basis of contradictions believes that a day will come when all contradictions will disappear and complete peace and tranqulity will prevail. Thus we find that this contradiction experienced throughout history is one of the widest and the commonest psychological experience of humanity. The religion when it endorses this common consciousness and stresses that in the long run this world will be filled with justice and equity after having been filled with injustice and oppression, gives it a factual value and converts it into a definite belief in the future course of humanity. This belief is not merely a...

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WHAT PEOPLE EXPECT OF IMAM MEHDI (a.s.)

Posted by | Jun 15, 2013 | , |

WHAT PEOPLE EXPECT OF IMAM MEHDI (a.s.) The last of all prophets of God, Muhammad, May Allah bless him and give him peace, made a very significant prophecy when he said that: – “How can my Ummah perish when I am at it’s beginning, Jesus, son of Marry, at its end and the Mehdi from my progeny will be in the middle of it. But in between this, there will be a large detracted group. Neither I belong to them nor they belong to me.” The above tradition has been quoted in Musnad of Imam Ahmad from Ibn Abbas (RZ), by Abu Nu-aym Isphahani from Ibn Abbas, in Kanzul Ummal from Ali, in Mishkat and it’s commentaries Mirqat and Lumu-at from Imam Jafar and Razeem, by Hakim from Abdullah Ibn Umar (RZ), and in Tafseer-e-Madarik with some variance in words. The tradition elucidates the following: (i) that Mehdi (pbuh) and Jesus (pbuh) are not one and the same person as a group tries to make people believe; (ii) that they will not come or live at the same time, one being in the middle and the other at the end of the Ummah; (iii) that they would be saviors of Ummah in the middle and the end of it as the Prophet (pbuh) himself was at the beginning; (iv) Imam Mehdi (pbuh) and Jesus (pbuh) would follow the Prophet...

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The Knowledge of the Unseen & the Knowledge of the Book

Posted by | Jun 15, 2013 | , |

The Knowledge of the Unseen & the Knowledge of the Book This article aims at clarifying two concepts namely “Ilm al-Ghayb” (the Knowledge of the Unseen) and “Ilm al-Kitab” (the knowledge of the Book) which both seem to be confusing in many people’s mind. The article provides references to Quran and both Shi’ite and Sunnite collections of traditions. The Knowledge of the Unseen The original meaning of “Ghayb” in Arabic is “that which has been concealed”, and it is with this meaning which has appeared in the Holy Quran (4:34, 12:52, etc.) It signifies a meaning opposite to “Hadhir” which means “present to the senses”, and thus denotes with things to the external world (i.e., Ma’lumat; known things). This opposition of Ghayb/Hadhir (unseen/present) should not be confused with the opposition of Ilm/Jahl (knowledge/ignorance) in which the latter pair is concerned with the internal act of knowing. So it may happen that something is “Ghayb” in the dimension of time which does not exist now but it will be or it was; or in the dimension of place that is the knowledge of something which is located elsewhere but not here. Thus we can divide own our knowledge into two parts: A) The knowledge of something which is present to us right here and right now (Ilm bil Hadhir), B) The knowledge of something which we know but is not...

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The Last Luminary

Posted by | Jun 13, 2013 | , |

The Last Luminary There is no doubt that the Holy Quran is the book of Allah and that all Muslims of the world are required to accept its teachings and instructions. When one opens Quran and casts a glance at its verses he will come across to what seems to be a clear landscape of an extraordinary, sensational, and exciting future and the end of the universe. Quran indicates that the ultimate mission of the Prophet of Islam was to make this religion prevail over all other religions in the world; and one day this holy aspiration will finally be fulfilled. Allah stated in Quran: “It is He who has sent His messenger (Muhammad) with the guidance and the Religion of truth, to prevail over all religions, even though the idolaters may detest.” (Quran 9:33) The Holy book of the last Messenger of Allah gives the glad tidings that the rule over the earth shall finally belong to the righteous and virtuous servants of Allah: “The earth is Allah’s. He gives it as a heritage to whom He wills, and the good end is for the righteous people.” (Quran 7:128) ان الارض لله يورثها من يشاء من عباده و العقبة للمتقين And He, Exalted, also said: “And We wrote in Psalm (Zabur) after the Reminder that surely My righteous servants will inherit the earth.” (Quran 21:105) و لقد كتبنا...

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THE MIRACLE AND THE LONG LIFE

Posted by | Jun 13, 2013 | , |

THE MIRACLE AND THE LONG LIFE Up to now we have seen that the prolongation of life is scientifically possible. But let us suppose that it is not, that the process of old-age and decrepitude is quite rigid, that it cannot either now or in the long run overcome nor alter its conditions or circumstances – what will this mean? It will mean that the prolongation of human life – as is the case of Noah, or al-Mahdi – runs contrary to the natural laws which science confirmed thanks to modern instruments of experimentation. Thus this condition becomes a miracle that has hindered the applicability of a natural law under a certain circumstances, in order to preserve the life of a particular individual whose role is to cherish the Divine message. Yet this is not the only miracle of its kind, nor is it remote from a Muslim’s faith, which derives from the Quran and the sunnah. Moreover the process of old-age is no more rigid than is the process of the passage of heat from a body of higher temperature to another of lower temperature until both of them become equal. This had occurred in the case of lbraheem (peace be upon him) when the only way to preserve his life was by hindering that process, when it was said to the fire in which he was thrown:...

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