Monday 27th November 2006
On 27th November 2006, at 19:44pm PKT, Adnan Siddiqi said:
This is somethng which I covered in my blog a week back. I couldn't confirm with anyone over there in Islamabad.
On 27th November 2006, at 20:52pm PKT, Mustafa said:
It is unfortunate, no doubt about it, but we have to question ourselves as well that what has gotten us to this point?
On 27th November 2006, at 23:15pm PKT, Atif said:
Quite worrisome situation. May God have mercy on us.
On 4th December 2006, at 18:34pm PKT, Iftikhar Ajmal Bhopal said:
History tells us that when British ruled India, Muslims were never stopped from Azaan or Prayer. Now our so-called entightened moderate government has drooped down that low.
Let me add to the above. The normal Nmaaz with Jma'at was not allowed. A few persons of their own said Azaan at low tone and prayed.
On 19th July 2007, at 00:41am PKT, Smitty said:
The only reason that Islam was created was so that SATAN could have representation here on earth. This is true.
On 17th August 2007, at 16:10pm PKT, Musavir said:
Asalaam-o-Alaykum,
Dear Frenz,One of my non-Muslim friends has raised some questions on the Quraanic prescriptions of marriage but due to my ignorance, I was not able to give a convincing reply. I request to kindly reply the queries from authentic sources.
1. Why has Islam permitted a maximum of just 4 marriages and not more like 5 or 6? What is the reason behind that, he says if Quran is based on logic there must be some reason for this too and if not then it is not a Divine Book.
2. If Islam prohibits adultery and any relation outside marriage, then what is the concept of Slave girls, war girls and temporary marriage. How can they be permitted?
Hope to receive early response so that I can give back the reply to him.
Fee Amanillah
Respect for Islam
In most cultures, other people's beliefs are respected, at least on an official level. In this country, not even the official religion is safe so you can forget about the freedoms others have. According to the below article (in Urdu), the iconic Faisal Mosque in Islamabad was closed by the authorities and the public, including the Imam, were disallowed from entering. All prayers were stopped and the use of loudspeakers for the Azan, or call to prayer, was also denied.
Why was such a step taken? What was so utterly important that it was worth risking God's wrath? Ok, maybe you don't believe in God or have different views about this, but does it make sense to offend the very people that form the huge majority of your country? (not that this hasn't already been done). The reason was simple: A tour of the mosque by the visiting British Prime Minister, Tony Blair.
(Click to see full image)
I'm not going to translate the whole thing, but to summarize, it talks about the consequences of stopping prayers in such a way, as stated in the Quran. It also contains an account of a British journalist who noted the whole thing and compared it to the religious freedoms that everyone, including Muslims, have in the West. In most other countries, there is full freedom to perform prayers and the Azan, whether it is a normal day or if there is a VIP visit. That even after 9-11. I think simply allowing a non-Muslim into a mosque was enough to warrant condemnation from the public. One can only imagine the response for denying the right to pray.
It has become the norm for the government to have pro-Western policies for everything from punishments for petty crimes to support for foreign regimes, regardless of the effect it will have within the country itself. But taking such steps to appease your Western allies, steps that are considered unacceptable by the allies themselves, is ridiculous.
Some of us realize that extremism should be eradicated and we should have a more moderate view of things, but how does this sort of desecration fit into progress? It is just extra fuel for the extremists to use for their call to arms and propaganda.
18:54pm