Key Concepts in Surah Maidah (The Repast)
1. Dietary rules explained (5:1, 3, 4–5, 87–88, 93)
2. Honoring the signs of God (5:2)
3. Avoiding transgressions and maintaining justice at all times (5:2, 8–10)
4. The perfection of faith and guidance (5:3, 11)
5. Marriage to people of faith (from other religions) (5:5)
6. Ablution for prayer detailed (5:6–7)
7. Lessons to be learned from people of previous revelations (5:12–26, 41–47)
8. Lessons from Abel and Cain (5:27–31)
9. The killing of human beings and corruption on land is forbidden (5:32)
10. Success requires sacrifice and a sense of purpose (5:35)
11. The punishment for disrupting social order (mischief, loss of life, and property) (5:33, 38–40)
12. The Torah, the Bible, and the Qur’an all lead to the same God and goodness (5:44–48, 69)
13. God’s warning about failing to remain true to His guidance (5:54–56)
14. Warning against the excesses of clerics (5:59,62–66, 68)
15. The nature of Jesus explained (5:72–77, 109–118)
16. Christian priests and monks are praised for humility (8:82–85,66)
17. The importance of keeping oaths and promises (5:89)
18. Injunction against intoxicants, gambling, and fortune-telling (5:90–92)
19. Good and bad are distinct (5:100)
20. The desire for overclarification is discouraged (5:101)
21. God’s protection (5:67,105)
22. The need to draw up a will and protect it with witnesses (5:106–108)
1. Dietary rules explained (5:1, 3, 4–5, 87–88, 93)
Dietary rules in Islam are relatively simple and few in restrictions, in contrast to Jewish and Orthodox Hindu practices, for examples where complicated rules have been in place with a fervent attitude against the food of other people (or even sharing the same pots and utensils), irrespective of their faith. Christianity and Buddhism, on the other hand, have almost no restrictions or concept of dietary rules, though Christians were supposed to follow the Jewish rules regarding pork, for example.
Dietary restrictions in Islam include: (1) carrion or animals that died on their own, (2) blood, (3) pork, (4) any sacrificial animal other than what is sacrificed with God’s grace, (5) animals strangled or beaten to death, and (6) animals killed by a fall, wild beasts, or being gored to death. Also, based on prophetic traditions (Hadith), all quadrupeds with split hoofs that are vegetarian (not eating other animals) are allowed. All birds (other than birds of prey) and fish are allowed. In general, anything other than what is explicitly prohibited is allowed, and the food of Christians and Jews is also allowed. With the advent of science and the understanding of the nutritional contents of various animal foods, one should make wise choices, use a variety of food types, and be moderate in food intake. Being moderate in consumption is also spiritually and physically responsible in view of widespread poverty around the world today, even in developed countries.
All plant-based food and fruits are allowed, except what might be toxic or poisonous or might alter the human brain (such as opium and alcohol), or any synthetic chemical or drug that is addictive and adversely and seriously affects the human body and mind functions, such as cocaine, LSD, and other drugs that are proliferating in the world today. The consumption of tobacco and cigarettes, though it poses no immediate danger, is addictive and leads to long-term harm to the body. Based on Qur’anic principles of wholesomeness and purity of diet and potential for long-term harm to individuals and societies, we need to create clearer guidance regarding substance such as tobacco, and so on. I am personally not in favor of tobacco, chewing or smoking, and discourage others from doing so. Smoking is very common in many Muslim societies around the world, mostly among men.
2. Honoring the signs of God (5:1–2)
Honoring and showing respect to the symbols of God is mentioned soon after the very first statement in this surah—every human being has to be respectful and mindful of our covenant with God and with fellow human beings. A covenant (aqd) is a natural commitment that exists between the Creator and the created being and among the created beings by virtue of our common relationship with the Creator. Some people also include the natural covenant that exists between our physical self and the spiritual self. This guidance is given in the context of pilgrimage and Kabah, where the sole purpose is to visit the principal house of God’s worship on earth for a faithful person and to confirm our relationship with God as His created being. Such a gathering of humanity from all corners of the earth, where race, color, gender, ethnicity, wealth, and so on have no bearing and we are asked to be mindful of God’s grace and His symbols of worship and creation.
As stated in volume 1 (page 206), during Hajj there is specific guidance on mutual respect and the absence of any altercation or ill behavior with another human being, as well as prohibitions against hunting, cruelty to animals, profit motives from transactions, and so on. Symbols of God are His creations and those that are specifically made to honor and remember God. Every human being, every creature that walks and moves on earth, every tree that burst forth from the seed and reaches out to the sun, every atom of oxygen and nitrogen that constantly enters our body, every fruit that we long to relish, every grain that we eat to nourish ourselves, the sun that touches every one of us, the moon that defines our calendar and causes tides, and so on and so forth, are all markers for us to think about God and to remind us of our mutual responsibilities, not only to living beings but also to the natural world.
3. Avoiding transgressions and maintaining justice at all times (5:2, 8–10)
Justice and fairness in our dealings with one another, a society based on justice and equality, and an absence of moral or ethical transgressions are fundamental to faith, and without these commitments, faith is not very meaningful. As an analogy, there is a verse in the Qur’an that says your prayer (Salat) to God should keep away from evil and shameful acts. In other words, if you perpetrate or participate in evil and shameful things, then your worship of God or your faith has no meaning. Being able to connect our faith to basic moral and ethical tenets and to establish a society based on justice is something missing in many Muslim societies. There are Muslim countries whose rulers or judges, in the name of Sharia Law, want to cut off the hand of someone who, out of poverty, has stolen, whereas these same leaders and judges spread corruption in the land and abuse national wealth for their personal benefit and consumption.
Several basic tenets of a society are provided here:
1. No individual or society should violate these tenets out of hatred of another people or society, no matter how badly they have been treated. The end does not justify the means, no matter what a terrorist might think as he or she murders innocent civilians—or, for that matter, what a leader of the free world might think as he justifies water boarding and torture to prisoners under US custody.
2. One should support others in matters of righteousness, with a sense of duty to others.
3. One should not perpetrate or participate in aggression and sinful acts against others, even if one disagrees with or hates them.
4. Be just and establish justice; do not commit acts of injustice, even to those you may dislike or hate.
All of these are requirements of faith, and being just is a testimony for faith and one’s sense of duty to one’s Creator and fellow humans.
At the end of all this firm guidance, God reminds us that He is fully aware of all our intentions and our acts so that we do not have any false notion that transgressions and acts of injustice will go unnoticed or unaccounted for by God, even if such acts go unpunished or undeterred for some time due to lack of countering by other human societies. God also promises in these verses that those who have faith and follow the tenets of faith for justice and peace will have His forgiveness and reward even beyond what will be awarded in this world. And as for those who violate such tenets due to lack of faith, or even if they claim to have faith, God will take accountability even beyond being accountable to fellow humans on this planet during one’s life.
4. The perfection of faith and guidance (5:3, 11)
Verse 5:3, by all accounts, is the last revelation that came to the Prophet Mohammad during his last pilgrimage, and he lived for another eighty-one or eighty-two days beyond this revelation. This revelation confirms that God had finally completed the guidance in the Qur’an and to this last Prophet, guidance that came to people throughout history (ref 2:213), about which they have differed time and again, separating into different religions. But people of conscience always go back the basic tenets of faith and goodness and question the emphasis on and distortion of rituals. They all want to go back to the universal guidance toward faith and goodness. Faith in God and our natural endowment to connect with God and His guidance is self-evident and further corroborated in verses such as 7:172 and 30:30.
Verse 7:172 states: “When your Sustainer (God) brings forth from children of Adams their descendants from their wombs, We[God] made them be aware: ‘Am I not your Sustainer?’ To which they replied: ‘Yes, we bear witness.’ Lest one say on the Day of Resurrection that s/he was unaware of such truth and reality.” This awareness of God is built into each one of us, and every human being, at one time or another in his or her life, asks such questions. Verse 30:30 further corroborates how that happens: “Set yourself to the guidance with commitment and purity to truly align with the nature of God into which human nature has also been created. This alignment is the true guidance, but most people are ignorant of it.”
Verse 5:3 not only conveys the completion of guidance but also confirms that God’s blessings and favors have also been completed in the sense that the generation that received and accepted this final guidance will prevail in the long run, as well as those who come after them as long as they also continue to be guided by such messages of faith and goodness, and they will continue to receive God’s blessings and favor. This verse also confirms that Islam (complete commitment to faith and goodness) is the only acceptable means to God’s grace and human salvation, as opposed to any other forms of belief in deities or human beings without regard to One God and any form of society that does not ensure goodness and justice for its members. Such a concept is also reflected in various other parts of the Qur’an, and assurance is given that if we stay true to the faith and goodness, then we cannot fail. “Whoever commits to guidance from the Book (Book of Revelations such as Qur’an) and commits to serve (God and fellow humans), for such who perform and reform themselves, God will never make their effort go to waste.” (7:170)
One piece of evidence of such grace and support from God is stated in 5:11, when God reminds the faithful that there were people who were determined to stop the spread of guidance and eliminate the prophet and his followers, which the early followers were acutely aware of since they suffered with their lives, their property, and their well-being to remain steadfast in the cause. Such a situation has been equally true of other followers such the Christians and the Jews—Jesus was dishonored and crucified, and Moses suffered from the Pharaoh as well as from his own followers. Human history is full of such struggle and sacrifice. God, by finally declaring the completeness of His guidance and His favor, is confirming that such will remain true for the entire stay of the human race on this planet. If we remain true to the commitment to God, God will reciprocate with His grace and abundance.
5. Marriage to people of faith (from other religions) (5:5)
In this verse, the Qur’an opens up the single most important human relationship outside of blood relationships, which is the marriage relationship. In a society and at a time when marriage within the same tribe or extended family was the norm (some of it is still true in some counties, where the marriage of first cousins is encouraged despite known scientific reasons against such marriages), Islam made the broad proclamation that marriage among people of faith, irrespective of color, social status (including slaves), language, ethnicity, or religious affiliation, is allowed. Opening up marriage with the People of the Book as indicated in this verse implies any people who have faith in One God. Some conservative Muslims takes the literal meaning of the sentence and impose the restriction that such marriage is allowed only for a Muslim male with a female from Judaism or Christianity.
I personally believe that such interpretation is too narrow and should be applicable to both males and females and should include people of faith (in One God and who subscribe to guidance from the books of revelation) from any religious affiliation. Historically, Muslims have spread around the world and adopted local cultures and built relationships with local people in large numbers and with an openness that was indicative of its inclusiveness and its alliance with all that is good in any society, a trend from which contemporary Muslims (especially since the colonial times) have retrenched considerably. Our scholars and social leaders have to take the responsibility to reverse this trend rather than leave it to so-called mullahs and imams to continue to propagate narrower interpretations of our Book of Guidance.
6. Ablution for prayer detailed (5:6–9)
Verse 5:6 is the most detailed verse regarding the instructions for physical cleanliness (ablution) and mental preparedness for formal prayer and worship (Salat) to achieve spiritual cleanliness and nearness to God and to justice. We are instructed to use clean water to wash our face, wash our hands up to the elbows, wipe our head and ears, and wash the two feet up to the ankles. This assumes that we are already in a state of general purity—that is, we have taken a shower after engaging in sexual intimacy or washed ourselves after responding to call of nature (using the toilet). If not, we need to do those first before ablution, as instructed here. This is a further measure of cleanliness and getting mentally prepared for the formal act of worship and prayer.
In the event water is not available, the Qur’an has allowed the use of pure dust (soil) by touching it symbolically and then simply wiping the face and the hands to fulfill the need for ablution. In the Prophet’s tradition, he also allowed just wiping one’s feet, if the person is wearing socks or shoes. In the first instance, God has allowed alternative provisions if the first provision is not easily available, and in the second instance, the prophet of God allowed one not to use water when one’s feet (a relevant part of the body) are already covered and clean. In both instances, not imposing undue hardship and using a simple, commonsense approach to achieve cleanliness is stressed and provided for.
Many people have asked me, since most of them work and live in relatively clean environments (white color workers and telecommuters) and most of the time are not engaged in activities between prayers in which they get dirty from soil (such working in the field or in construction, etc.) or other materials that will call for the need to use water to clean themselves, if they have to use water to perform ablution. My recommendation is as follows: be honest with yourself and not use the excuse of being lazy. If you know and feel that you are clean, then just wash your hands (if water is easily available) and then simply wipe (pass over) your face, hands, and feet with your hands and say the intention (niyat) for prayer in your mind. There is no need to find a piece of earth, but if you choose to do it that way, it is a choice you can make. But you should not feel that it is a necessity given where you might be at the moment.
In our current world condition, in many places available water or soil will do more harm than good, or where drinkable water is in short supply, doing symbolic ablution (tayammum) is adequate and recommended, in my opinion. Each one of us can make his or her own choice. We should not impose or require one way of performing our ablution, and never think less of or judge in a negative way someone who might do it differently than you might do. Be humble, reflective of the purpose of the worship you are preparing to engage in, and conscious that God always know the true state of our mind and our intention in all that we do. We should be critical of ourselves before we even feel that we have the right to be critical of others, especially in matters of the worship of God, Who alone can make those judgments.
7. Lessons to be learned from people of previous revelations (5:12–26, 41–47)
The Qur’an confirms the books of previous revelations, namely the Torah and the Bible, as well as all other guidance that came to people through numerous prophets who came in different generations and different geographic areas. One God means one faith and a singular purpose to do good to others and maintain peaceful coexistence among people. Every generation is given its challenges and is asked to be faithful to the guidance that came to them from God, especially Jews, Christians, and now the Muslims in the books that are still present among us, namely the Torah, the Bible, and the Qur’an. From each group God took covenant by their faith and by their commitment to follow the guidance in their Book of Revelations. In these verses God reminds the Muslims, who now offer allegiance to the last Prophet, that others broke previous covenants with God and with their prophets, and Muslims should not follow the same path.
The Prophet Moses came to the Jewish people and brought with him the Torah, which is called a Light and a Guidance for people. Many of his followers refused to obey him (and by implication God) during his presence, broke the covenant made for Sabath and dietary rules, worshipped idols while worshipping God, refused to fight for their own rights and justice, and ignored the rule of justice and social order laid out in the form of the Ten Commandment and other guidance in Torah. Their priests and rabbis became powerful and oppressed people for their own benefit and ignored the message of the Torah and messages from other prophets who came to them, such as Jesus. The opposition of the Jewish priests to Jesus is well documented in the Bible and historical records. The Torah itself documents the lawlessness and persistent denials of faith and goodness by the followers of Moses in his own time, and subsequent history has plenty of examples to reflect on.
Similarly, Jesus came with the same message as did Moses and brought the Bible, being a Light and a Guidance to the Jewish people and to people at large. His early followers did not have the courage or the commitment to defend him against the wrath of the rabbis or the Romans, who were the rulers of the land at the time. His followers introduced new concepts such as Jesus being the Son of God or being God Himself or being one of the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Ghost)—all concepts that are considered false and without intellectual merit or grounded in reality by many, including some Christians. The Qur’an is very emphatic about such false notions, as explained in these verses. The Christians turned into numerous sects and groups based on divergent interpretations of theology and the nature of Jesus, who was a mere mortal, a prophet and a guide for people who wish to believe in one God and to do good to others.
Each sect developed its own churches, introduced its own methods of worship, and embarked on serious theological conflicts among themselves, which led to physical conflicts among various Christian rulers, groups, and nations on a scale that human societies had never witnessed before. The atrocities of the Crusaders, repeated a number of times; the Spanish Inquisition; the horror of slavery on the American continent; the two world wars, which caused millions of lives to be lost; the horror of the Holocaust; the ethnic cleansing in Bosnia; and the effect of the war on terror on innocent civilians in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria, and so on are some examples of the excesses of the part of the world dominated by Christianity.
The course of action that is more pertinent at the moment is not to dwell on the past and continue to point fingers at one another but to do the following two critical assessments of our current conditions:
a. First and foremost, for most Muslims the critical question is, as much as the Qur’an wants us to understand the failings of the previous receivers of the revelations so that we can learn from and avoid their mistakes and misdeeds, have we fallen victim to the same sort of corruption, injustice, and ignorance despite God’s guidance on faith, social justice, human progress, sectarian differences, violence against one another. It would serve better if Muslims all over the world were to focus on their own condition, be mindful of their responsibilities as people of faith, and focus on doing good rather than blame their condition on other nations or people of other faiths.
b. All people of faith and good consciousness need to come together; celebrate our different religious traditions and modes of worship in synagogues, churches, mosques, and temples; recognize our collective failure over the course of history, no matter what the justifications might be; and renew our focus to have faith in a God Who is our common God and to truly reflect on the collective messages from revelations and our collective wisdom and knowledge to charter a better course for the human race.
It would be very useful to remind ourselves of two verses from the Qur’an that should be very instructive and compel us to act accordingly: “For every group (of people) We (God) had allowed different rules and different ways of life (as they opted for). If God had willed, He could have made all into a single community, but He wanted to test each group in what they find themselves. Therefore, compete for goodness (no matter who you are, what faith you subscribe to). Since to God all of you will return, He will then inform you in all that you were differing.” (5:48). The other verse is explained in volume 1: “Surely, those who believe (meaning Muslims), and those who are Jews, and the Christians and the Sabians, whoever believes in God and the Last Day (accountability and Afterlife) and does good work, they have their reward from their Lord; there is no fear for them, and they will have no regret.” (2:62).
8. Lessons from Abel and Cain (5:27–31)
Based on revealed scriptures such as the Torah (Genesis 4:3–12) and the Qur’an, Abel, a farmer, and Cain, a shepherd, two of the sons of Adam and Eve, had a dispute that led to the first unjust murder of a human being by another. Their being brothers made this act of murder even more heinous, and that the thought of killing another could reach the consciousness of Cain is another example of the evil that resides in all of us; it can lead to horrible conduct if we are not driven by our faith and commitment to do only good on this earth.
Their dispute was not substantive by any measure; it was more a case of jealousy and envy. Cain felt that God had accepted the offering from Abel and not from him. This caused him to be angry at his brother and at God also. When the thought of killing his brother came to his mind, according to the Torah, God asked him why he was feeling that way, reminding him that God would accept only offerings that were pure and made with good intentions. In the Qur’an, God reveals further that when Abel realized that his brother was harboring evil intentions against him, he reminded Cain to be conscious of God and that Abel would never do to Cain what Cain was contemplating against Abel. Abel finally succumbed to his evil desire and killed his brother, which eventually brought intense remorse, but the evil was done. The Qur’an further adds to the story by relating that a bird (a crow) came to show Cain how to dig in the ground and bury his brother, increasing his remorse even further because he did not know how to bury his brother while a bird knew better.
The killing of a human being by another has become a daily routine in our world today, and in Hollywood and Bollywood, killing and torture are becoming a form of entertainment. Trivializing human lives for entertainment or killing a person out of envy or jealousy or unjust causes are things we have succumbed to. It appears that no one is immune—from superpowers to tiny terror units, from political operatives to gangsters, from farmers and relatives in land/property disputes to landlords with rent disputes, from husbands accusing their wives of disloyalty to their own secret promiscuity, from rich businessman denying living wages to laborers who want proper wages—the world finds too many reasons to kill other human beings, a crime that is told time and again in all Books of Revelations and by all people of wisdom to be uncharacteristic of a human being who should believe in God and commit to goodness and justice on this planet.
The Prophet Mohammad, in his last sermon during Hajj prior to his death, reminded people that the life and property of another human being is sacred and should not be violated and that no person or race is superior to another person or race except by means of God consciousness and good works. Today we all accept from scriptures and science that all human beings are cousins of one another, and we have come to comprehend and accept equal rights and equal opportunity for every human being. The question remains: How are we going to put into practice what we have come to accept as the truth and as the human norm? That is the test for our generation. God is watching, and so are people who are oppressed and humiliated each day on this planet.
9. The killing of human beings and corruption on land is forbidden (5:32)
Respect for human life, personal property, and social norms is an important part of faith and commitment to goodness that resonates in all revealed texts, and it is found in all religious and human discourse. The Qur’an mandate on safeguarding human lives as stated here is a fundamental human right and a right that should be extended to every creature of God. This verse specifically mentions that the Torah contains similar guidance that says that killing one human being without just cause (manslaughter or containing social order and peace against mischief, violence, corruption, and oppression) is like killing the entire humanity. In a similar vein, saving a human being is like saving all of humanity. Such a declaration of human dignity and human rights is truly the foundation of all faith—certainly that of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—and to find ourselves killing one another is a testimony to what God says in this same verse: that many of us commit excess in the land.
The level of corruption in many Muslim countries and the lack of civil rights and human rights are indeed alarming. It is precisely such conditions that lead to extremism and terrorism, which exploit vulnerable human beings who are caught between corrupt leaders and a corrupt society that does not give its citizens the kind of dignity and safety that each human being aspires to have. The wholesale glorification of so-called Jihad and the sale of Paradise by clerics and terrorists to innocent, impressionable, and restless youths who are yearning for freedom and dignity are causing havoc in many failed states. This is not a situation that can be solved by more autocratic rules and counterterrorism but by restoring social justice, responsible leadership, freedom to pursue life’s dreams, and education for the masses for social consciousness that is deeply rooted in faith and God’s guidance.
Even though the dialogue in this book is based on the Qur’an, other people of faith, as already stated in the Qur’an, have fallen victim to and continue to perpetuate similar oppression—if not in their own land, then certainly by supporting autocratic leaders or turning away from oppression in the name of political expediency or material and business-related greed and preoccupation. Each human has the responsibility and accountability to restore such imbalance in our society, irrespective of whichever faith that person belongs to or does not belong to. It is a human issue and an issue that takes prominence in all revealed books and enlightened human discourse. We have no choice but to address this among the nations, in every society, as people of faith and goodness.
10. Success requires sacrifice and a sense of purpose (5:35)
This is important advice given to a person of faith:
1. God consciousness (and by implication social consciousness) should permeate his or her day-to-day life and define the purpose of one’s pursuits and efforts.
2. Seeking alignment with God implies alignment with His creation in human societies and in the natural world.
3. One has to strive hard and dedicate one’s purpose and efforts to establish the guidance on which God intends to found human society, a peaceful society that respects each human being, creates a level playing field for all human beings, makes education and seeking of knowledge within the reach of every citizen, and staunchly resists any temptation to evil, oppression, and injustice.
These three things are defined as the conditions for achieving success. Time and again history has proven to give credence to such human conditions, human development, and the creation of human civilization. The emergence of the modern world manifests some of these conditions: our collective struggle against colonialism, the French Revolution, the American Civil War, and the fight against the evils of communism on one hand and the advancement of human knowledge and the proliferation of democratic values brought about by the American Revolution and the American Constitution on the other hand, along with a general sense of empowerment by ordinary citizens due to communication technology, the rise of small to medium businesses, and micro financing.
But there have been setbacks as well. Technology has emboldened autocratic rulers and even democratically elected governments to put their citizens under surveillance, large businesses are routinely using monopolistic tactics to thwart competition and pollute our environment and our food supplies with toxic chemicals, weapons of mass destructions have been stockpiled, used in preference to social goods, and special-interest groups are infringing on the democratic foundation of our societies—these are cause for concern, and the above advice from verse 5:35 goes a long way to show us how to reverse the tide of such setbacks in the face of immense human possibilities and potential evident in our world today.
11. The punishment for disrupting social order (mischief, loss of life and property) (5:33, 38–40)
The sanctity of human life, protection of property and environment, the safety of individuals, the preservation of social orders, justice and equality for all citizens, equitable distribution of social wealth, and so on is of fundamental importance, and societal norms should be built upon these things and preserved. The rule of law, civil society, human dignity, human rights, leadership, the representation of such rights, and the corresponding obligations by citizens are incumbent on us as individuals and as a social entity.
The Qur’an encourages us not only to understand and internalize such human and societal norms but also to implement them in a way that can be sustained and nurtured in tune with human progress and our ever-expanding knowledge of the human condition, natural laws, and sense of purpose. It is important in this context to reflect on the verse in chapter 3 (3:7) where God reminds us that as we read, study, and understand Qur’anic guidance and instruction, we have to sort out the fundamentals, such as the Oneness of God, human equality, justice for all, equitable distribution of wealth in a society, and so on, versus rules and examples, such as social laws or inheritance laws that were given in the context of the time and can be and should be, if needed, adjusted with the passage of time and evolving human conditions based on consensus building and vigorous debates and intellectual discussions among citizens. People of scholarship should be forthcoming in providing their sincere, humble, and informed opinion but should avoid the arrogance of knowledge or the presumption of being the superior voice as some of the so-called scholars, imams and political leaders have done and continue to do so in many societies, including Muslim countries, societies, communities, and numerous Islamic centers. A sizable segment of Muslims, especially from Middle Eastern countries, have been conditioned to believe that these imams and so-called scholars (sheikhs) are the only ones who can interpret and pass judgment or rules by so-called fatwas in the name of God—a shameful practice that was shunned by true Islamic scholars such as Imam Hanifa, Imam Malik, Imam Gazzali, and others of high scholarship and wisdom, who understood their position as students of God’s guidance, demonstrated genuine humility, were truly concerned about human welfare, and were keenly aware of their human failings.
The verses in question provide guidance for deterrence and punishment, if such deterrence fails in the long run, for those who refuse to accept social norms and laws established by people (not by autocratic rulers, which, by itself, is a tyranny and mischief) and create mischief and disharmony, destroy lives and property, and steal unlawfully. Various forms of punishment have been prescribed with the caveat that time, opportunity, and environment have to be extended first for remorse, repentance, and potential correction of personal and collective deviant behaviors. Counseling and education, family intervention, confinement in prison based on proper judicial processes, and even physical punishment if the individual is guilty of harming others physically are options to consider before irreversible punishment can be rendered, such as death for creating anarchy and mischief (to be duly defined) or cutting off the hands for persistent thievery when the social conditions do not warrant such behaviors.
It is important to note that those who are blind proponents of such punishment at the slightest excuse are also the ones who live under autocratic and corrupt regimes and do not condemn the crimes of the powerful and wealthy but use the excuse of so-called Sharia Law to inflict punishment on the weak and vulnerable, such as women or petty thieves. It is also unfortunately true that some of the most corrupt and autocratic Muslim countries or communities adopt and impose so-called Sharia Law, which the political leaders and their religious counterparts conveniently declare themselves immune from, a practice not much different from what the kings, queens, popes, clergy, and rabbis have done in Christianity and Judaism. This is an unfortunate human condition that tempts every generation and every society unless people are diligent about social consciousness and commit to the true purpose of our existence on this planet. For Muslims in particular, there is a serious responsibility, given the current level of corruption and lawlessness and the rise of extremist groups, to refocus on the core values and principles found in the Qur’an on faith and goodness and reexamine rules and regulations to govern our lives in true harmony with those values and principles. We need to use our collective understanding to harmonize our differences in each community, one at a time.
Human history is full of examples of false religious doctrine being used to thwart those who are true to God and to their fellow human beings or the powerful and wealthy using one means or another, including religion, to exploit people and increase their power and wealth. Burning Galileo for saying that the earth is round, putting Jesus on the cross for asking the Jews to go back to the teachings of Moses, branding our founding fathers and American revolutionaries as mischief makers by the King of England, imprisoning Nelson Mandela for speaking out against apartheid, and abducting innocent girls from their school by Boko Haram are some examples that we all are aware of, and we need to work hard to prevent any repetition.
12. The Torah, the Bible, and the Qur’an all lead to the same God and goodness (5:44–48, 69)
One of the distinct features of the Qur’an is that it proclaims the unity of God’s guidance. It confirms time and again that the Torah and the Bible and other books that were revealed to previous generations through prophets and messengers—some of whom are clearly mentioned in the Torah, the Bible, and the Qur’an—contain God’s guidance for mankind and that the carriers of these revelations and their followers were expected to follow that guidance, establish their society accordingly, and judge using the standards put forth in those revelations. It refers to each book with its core attributes of guidance (for life) and light (of human knowledge and social consciousness). It adds the further attribute of caution and admonition regarding the Bible, as it came to direct its attention to the excesses of the rabbis and Jewish priests in their faith and social practices, contrary to the teachings of Moses and those contained in the Torah. The Qur’an, while confirming the same guidance and light, is given the further attribute of being the guardian of the books—it will continue to exist in its original form (something that cannot be said of the other Books of Revelations) and will continue to guide human societies, if we choose to follow it and not deviate from the foundational guidance of human relationships with God and with one another in regard to human equality, justice, and freedom.
Despite God’s ability to make us all conform to His guidance and light (as is evident in the rest of the creation) and as a consequence of the fact that He has given humans the gift of knowledge and freedom of choice, He allows us to differ in our religious discourse and create different religions and customs and rituals, as is very evident in our current time among the Jews, Christians, Muslims, and other religions. In verse 5:48, God makes the point that He will inform all of us where and how we have created differences about faith and ritual, but at a human level, we all should try to do good and compete with one another in preserving human dignity, equality, justice and freedom for all. We should work equally hard and lead one another in eliminating oppression, poverty, social and income inequality, environmental degradation, and anything else that adversely affects us in our physical, mental, intellectual, and spiritual existence. In each of these books of revelation, there are sound judgments for social justice and human dignity such that, if one were to follow them exclusive to other books, one could establish a just society, as had been evidenced from the long history of Jews, Christians, and Muslims. It is when a group deviates from its teachings that we find turmoil in the world, as we have seen during the Crusades, world wars, apartheid, ethnic cleansing, and modern-day income inequality and environmental degradation.
As if such admonitions and urgings to do good and to avoid evil were not enough, in verse 5:69 God formally declares, as He did in verse 2:62, that He will reward anyone—whether that person calls himself or herself a Muslim, a Jew, a Christian, or a member of any other religion—who believes in God and commits to do good to others. This is the universal truth and assurance that we all can subscribe to without dwelling on our petty religious and ritualistic differences. The Muslims have not done a good job in adhering to these principles in the recent past, and the world has not fully accepted such broad principles at large in their relationships among nations, communities, and people of different ethnicities, races, and religions. Such human conditions will inevitably lead to chasms, violence, injustice, the diminution of democratic values, the loss of human dignity, and a reduction in human potential as a species.
13. God’s warning about failing to remain true to His guidance (5:54–56)
The essential characteristics of human beings are that we are made in the same nature as God, and we are made His representatives on this planet to establish peace, justice, equality, and human dignity for all. These are essentially the capabilities that each of us is built with and attuned to as our human nature. This harmony with goodness and truth is innately human, and to deny such predisposition in our character is to deny our own existence and purpose as a human being. In these verses, God wants us to realize that as people of faith and goodness, we have a responsibility to fulfill our purpose to build communities and nations aligned with such guidance and principles that God had programmed us with and endowed in our very nature. If after having such endowment and periodic guidance, we as people of faith are unable to fulfill our human obligations to God and to one another on this planet, then God will bring about new generations and new nations who will exceed others in fulfilling such obligations, and they will be given the mantle of leadership and human progress.
Human history is full of such examples. The Jewish people were removed from the slavery of the Pharaoh and given freedom and prosperity under Moses, David, and other leaders in their long history prior to Christianity. Their failure to maintain justice and moral standards led to the rise of Jesus the prophet, and his followers, who were committed to faith and human dignity despite severe persecution by the Jews and the Romans, continued to prosper and build empires and civilizations that exceeded all that preceded. But in time Christians corrupted their faith and partnership with God and failed to uphold the principles of human equality and social justice as leaders became corrupt and oppressive. Clerics and preachers became more aligned with power and wealth but less with the teachings of Jesus to uphold human dignity and social justice. This gave way to the coming of the Prophet Mohammad and his followers, who came to unite the faith of all faithful and to bring back all people to one God and to one message of human equality, human dignity, social justice, and protection of the most vulnerable in contemporary societies. For over a thousand years, Muslims demonstrated commitment to human values in their different societies, whether in Egypt, Iran, Turkey, India or Spain, and they were able to bring harmony to people of all faiths—Jews, Christians, Muslims, and people of other faiths.
There is a similar turn of events and God’s ways of dealing with people when they commit to goodness as opposed to when they fail to preserve the covenant of human beings with God, and this has been played out in constant repetitions in various parts of the world—be it in China, or India or Africa or Europe—from times of antiquity to the present generations that we are witnessing ourselves with our own eyes. The excesses of the Muslim rulers, overreliance on wealth, inability to continue the march of human knowledge, and general failure to uphold human dignity and social justice for its own citizens led to their gradual demise throughout the world. The story of Bolshevik Russia, the rise of Mao in China, the two world wars, the rise of American Revolution, the French Renaissance, the fall of apartheid in South Africa, and so on all point to this constant upheaval and reversal of the human condition in favor of more justice and equality, however flawed those efforts and leadership might be. God’s directives and guidance have been to align with faith and goodness in our endeavors, to deter all evils and injustice, to be firmly committed to such guidance, and to be undeterred by any opposition against such goodness. We can look at the world today, irrespective of what faith we practice, and see that societies that follow such norms are progressing at a faster rate than societies that do not value education, social justice, and human freedom, which are the cornerstones of faith and the teachings of all great leaders, including Moses, Jesus, and Mohammad.
Verse 115 is a final reminder that the more favor a nation or a group of people has gotten from God, the worse will be their downfall if they fail to appreciate such favors and fulfill their obligations to be a better society. This is something each one of us as Jews, Christians, and Muslims can attest to and look back at our long histories to draw lessons from.
14. Warning against the excesses of clerics (5:59, 62–66, 68–69)
Islam came to unify the religious discourse among the Jews, Christians, and Muslims—it is a theme that is constant in the Qur’an. Moses came to take people back to the beliefs of Abraham, provide them (the people of Israel) with a way out of Egypt, and establish their own just society. Jesus came when the Jews and the world at large (the Romans) were ignoring the message contained in the Torah and the rabbis, in collaboration with the Romans in power, were oppressing their own people and acting contrary to what the Torah was teaching them to do. Over time the Christian clerics and followers of Jesus corrupted their faith in one God and oppressed people on a large scale, some of which we have witnessed in the rise of Papal Institution, contemporary world wars, during colonialism and in the large-scale slavery practiced on the American continent. The Prophet Mohammad came and brought the Qur’an to confirm the truth that is contained in the Torah and the Bible and reconfirmed our faith in One God and our common purpose to create a peaceful and just world for everyone.
In these verses the Qur’an recounts some of the excesses committed by people of previous faiths, namely Jews and Christians, and perhaps it is time for the Muslims to reflect to see if they have gone down the same path that the Qur’an so strongly condemns. The Qur’an asks the People of the Book (Jews and Christians) what faults they find in the teachings of the Prophet Mohammad when he is asking people to believe in One God and to be true to the teachings of the Torah, the Bible, and the Qur’an—three major sources of revelations that reinforce one another. Despite the clear guidance from their prophets and the books that are present, they ignore these teachings; compete in creating chaos, mischief, and evil in the world; destroy life and property; and devour the property (and profit) of others with means that are not legal or wholesome, thereby destroying the essence of life and social justice. The Qur’an further asks the rabbis and the clerics who claim to be men of God why they support such evil and excess in their conduct while they read the books and claim to know better. The arrival of the Qur’an and the Prophet Mohammad, to some extent, created further divisions and enmity among the people who claimed to faith rather than uniting them. This was due to their own envy, enmity, lack of understanding and devotion to God, and lack of commitment to social consciousness and the human condition. The Qur’an further mentions that the people who lack faith and understanding of human purpose are constantly creating fires of chaos and mischief in the world, and God is constantly putting out such fires to preserve human society by overpowering one group with another and by inspiring people to the truth.
Knowing the conditions that the Qur’an finds unacceptable for the People of the Book, it is time to reflect on the conditions and the conduct of the Muslims after 1,500 years to see if we as people of faith, our so-called clerics and scholars (imams and sheiks), and our leaders are committing the same kind of excess and tyranny in our societies while claiming the guidance of God and the Qur’an. In many parts of the Middle East, North Africa, and East Asia, Islam and so-called Sharia Law are used to oppress citizens, dehumanize women, and punish people for petty crimes while the powerful and the wealthy are scot-free, stealing national wealth, devouring people’s property, and building palaces and businesses to enrich themselves to a level that human societies have not seen before. Many Muslim societies have failed to make education a national priority for its citizens. Political and social corruption have destroyed the basic fabric of society, and everyone is for himself or herself. Fringe groups with extreme views have sprung up in a number of nations where the government and people are unwilling or unable to control such aberrant behaviors, injustice, and oppression of average citizens, partly because the government and society have created conditions of despair, injustice, and contradiction, which fuel such extreme behaviors.
Despite such repeated failures, it is important to note the optimism that the Qur’an declares for the human race with God’s repeated assurances that (1) if they observe the Torah, the Bible, and the Qur’an and keep a moderate course, God will certainly bless them all with abundance from the earth and the sky (ref 5:66) and (2) irrespective of who you are—a Muslim, a Jew, a Christian, or a Sabian (a representative of any person of faith)—if you believe in God and do good things and have firm faith in the Day of Judgment, there is no reason to fear or have regrets. These are assurances that we all can feed from and nourish our mind and soul with to become better human beings and create a better world for all of us.
15. The nature of Jesus explained (5:72–77, 109–118)
This chapter in the Qur’an, like several other chapters in this volume and volume 1, as well as in Chapter 19 in the Qur’an, titled “Mary (Mother of Jesus),” contains various aspects of information about Jesus to confirm his stature as a prophet (second to the last Prophet, Mohammad) to the Jews and the guidance that came to him in the form of revelations known as the Bible or the New Testament. The verses also refute any concept of divinity that many sects of Christianity ascribe to Jesus or the notion of Trinity that is also prevalent among certain, if not most, Christian sects.
Verses 75–77 draw attention to the fact that both Jesus and Mary were human in origin, they lived among people, ate the same food, and died just like any other human. People who claim to follow Jesus are cautioned in verses 72–73 not to exaggerate in matters of faith by ascribing Godhead to Jesus or to create multiple godheads and not to go down the path of people who have corrupted the truth to seek their own narrow and deviant views about God and His teachings that came through prophets such as Jesus and Moses.
In verses 109—118, God comes back to resolve the issue of Christian belief about Jesus by foretelling the events that will unfold on the Day of Judgment. On that day, all the prophets will be gathered around God, and He will ask them about their knowledge of their followers, to which they will respond that they had no knowledge after their death. God will recall the favor that was bestowed on Jesus and his mother, how God strengthened Jesus with the help of the Holy Spirit (Angel Gabriel), how Jesus was given knowledge and wisdom with revelations such as the Gospel and the Bible and the books that came to Moses (the Torah), the various healing powers that God endowed Jesus with, and how God had helped Jesus prevail in argument with Jewish priests and rabbis about faith and the guidance in the Torah and the Bible. The narrative of Jesus with respect to his disciples is then recounted, as is how God sent food requested by the disciples as an extraordinary favor but also with a caution that should they not live up to the guidance that came to them through Jesus, they would also be faced with similarly extraordinary consequences. Throughout Christian history, ordinary Christians have suffered at the hands of oppressive kings and queens; the Crusaders who killed Jews, Christians, and Muslims indiscriminately in the land of Jesus’s birth; the excesses of the Pope and the clergy even to this day; the constant battle among themselves, as was evident in the two world wars, which were fought primarily among Christian nations that pulled other nations into the mayhem. The horror of large-scale colonialization of people, apartheid in South Africa, and the slavery of Africans on the American continent provide further evidence of faith gone wrong.
Social justice is a cornerstone of all faiths, especially the faith of Abraham, to which Jews, Christians, and Muslims subscribe. As the Qur’an repeats many times, faith without social justice is no faith at all, and history is full of examples where people of faith failed to uphold social justice. The Muslim world today has many nations and societies that are filled with the lack of social justice, where corrupt practices prevail, sometimes in the name of Islam and perpetrated by leaders who rule not with legitimacy but on the claim of birthright, by forceful autocratic leaders who gain power under the guise of democratic institutions, or by political parties that perpetuate corruption and personal wealth accumulation. This social injustice is also creeping up in developed countries in the form of increasing polarization of political processes, campaign financing that gives rise to disproportionate influence by the wealthy, rising income disparities that leave a large segment of the population uncared for, and unprecedented abuse of the environment with indiscriminate means of production and consumption. When we begin to act like God ourselves without the humility and wisdom that can govern our belief and behavior as created beings, when we falsify the notion of truth and justice with or without affirmation of faith in God, and when personal ambition and accumulation of wealth and power overshadow social justice and concerns for human condition, we violate the teachings and guidance of God and all prophets and ignore our own innate human nature. This is a trend that people of faith and goodwill needs to address with a sense of urgency in our world today.
16. Christian priests and monks are praised for humility (8:82–85, 66)
Islam aspires to create a community of faithful who walk the moderate course, devoid of any extremism. The presence of several extremist groups in different parts of Middle East, North Africa, and Southeast Asia is given more attention in the media than what their numbers would indicate. These groups’ use of Islam and so-called Sharia Law are nothing but a way to garner support from groups of people who are subject to corrupt rule in countries that lack basic human rights, the rule of law, and a functioning civil society and have extreme poverty though the countries may have a wealth of natural resources. In other instances, in some of these countries (notably Afghanistan by Russians and Iraq by US forces), outside powers have intervened on false pretexts and disrupted the social order within the country, acerbated the divisions among various ethnic groups, caused death and dislocation on a scale that has seriously damaged people’s faith in humanity and social consciousness, and led to rise of extremist groups that provide simplistic solutions on a small scale and express their suppressed anger and anxiety on innocent civilians or corrupt governments and their institutions in their countries.
Unfortunately, these types of extremism are not isolated events in human history, and every religious group has suffered from within and from without and has also practiced such extremism on a larger scale, as was evident in the Holocaust, the Spanish Inquisition, the practice of slavery on the American continent, and the IRA atrocities in Northern Ireland and the response of the British army. Even groups that are devoid of faith, such as the Bolsheviks in Russia, the communists in China, and the Japanese army during Second Word War, committed atrocities and destruction against their own people or their enemies on a scale that human societies had not seen before.
The Qur’an has always taken a strong position against social injustice, human indignity, and oppression and anarchy in societies and in human conditions, which was predicted by the Angels when Adam (i.e., the human race) was being prepared to inhabit the planet. The Qur’an’s condemnation of Jews and sometimes of Christians are not against their faith but against the conduct of individuals and societies that exceeds the limit set by God with regard to social justice, human equality, and human freedom. As we look at the world today, such condemnation would also be rendered against many Muslim communities and countries that have corrupted their social order, created corrupt government and leadership, and pay lip service to their faith in God and human goodness. The Qur’an in these verses praises the middle course taken by many followers of the Torah and the Bible and makes special mention of Christian priests and monks for their humility, sincere devotion to God and His message, and genuine desire to lead and establish a peaceful and purposeful life. It is time that people of faith, especially Jews, Christians, and Muslims, renew our vows to our common faith in one God and follow the guidance that Moses, Jesus, and Mohammad provided to the world that corroborate, support, and build on one another, rather than be at odds with one another. As the Qur’an says earlier (5:48), God has allowed different people to create different ways (rituals) to worship God, but they all should vie with one another in doing good in societies where everyone can peacefully coexist.
17. The importance of keeping oaths and promises (5:89)
The keeping of one’s promises and mutual trust are critical as a foundation of faith and for any functioning relationship and society. God’s guidance in 2:177 makes it very clear in a very assertive manner that turning east or west (in prayer, orientation, or ideology) is not the fundamental thing, but one must have faith in
· God;
· human accountability (during life and in the Afterlife);
· Angels who operate under God’s command;
· the Books of Revelations;
· the prophets who guided people to faith and goodness;
· charity without expectation;
· taking care of relatives, orphans, the needy, fellow travelers, and those who seek help or support;
· freeing a human being in bondage;
· worshipping God;
· sharing wealth with fellow beings as a condition of living;
· keeping promises when they are made; and
· exercising patience in times of difficulties, calamities, and conflicts.
This is an expansive list of twelve attributes that define a person of true character and humanity and one who acts responsibly. In this list, keeping promise is a critical element that too often gets overlooked in human societies, which leads to all kinds of conflicts, large and small, in personal life or in international relations. Lack of trust is at the core of the long-standing Palestinian-Israeli conflicts, where neither party trusts the other party and neither party believes that other party is genuine in its intention to make good on the promises that it proposes to make. Isaac Asimov, in his book, demonstrated through game theory and real experiment that when parties in conflict put forth their intentions clearly (without trying to deceive each other) and act in accordance with their commitment (and promises), conflicts get resolved with the least amount of damage or waste, and this can lead to peace in shortest amount of time.
The verse in question and another verse (2:224–225) relate to personal oaths and promises that one makes to oneself in moments of anger and sometimes deliberately (perhaps without adequate reflection) when one denies one’s own or others’ obligations. In such an instance, if it was done in a moment of emotional disturbance, one should upon reflection not follow through on such a vow, oath, or promise. But if it was done with adequate deliberation and the person realizes that such an oath was inappropriate and a better course of action is more advisable or breaking the oath is appropriate, then the notion of atonement for irrational behavior is upon him or her. The Qur’an suggests several ways to atone for it: feeding ten needy persons in a manner similar to how you would feed your family, clothing them in the same way, or freeing a person from any form of bondage. But if one is unable to do such things due to lack of material possessions, then that person should fast for three days to suffer the pain of hunger and have time to reflect on the irrational decision so that next time he or she can be more deliberate and thoughtful about it. In today’s context, doing community service, volunteering in a homeless shelter, helping with other social causes for underprivileged children, visiting nursing homes, and so on can be used to expand the list of ways one can atone for such rash and poor judgments in our day-to-day social interactions.
18. Injunction against intoxicants, gambling, and fortune-telling (5:90–92)
In this one verse (5:90), prohibitions against several substances due to their mind-altering capabilities and several social practices based on games of chance or the use of arbitrary means to define future events or outcomes has been pronounced. Islam came to define social justice in a more holistic way, to remove any form of superstition or arbitrariness in our social conduct and to restrain anything and everything that gets in the way of inhibiting human intelligence, human responsibility, and social justice and destroys or diminishes human lives and compromises our meaningful and purposeful existence on this planet.
The prevalence of drinking or the use of opium or other natural substances that are altered to form drinks or powders that can be inhaled, snorted, eaten, or, in more recent times, injected into our bodies and are habit forming can alter our mind, senses, intelligence, and awareness of our surroundings and mutual conduct in ways that are harmful to us individually and to our families, our communities, and our nations. The ill effects of drinking are well documented and established in terms of slowly and sometimes violently destroying lives—causing highway fatalities, spousal and children abuse, binge drinking and gang rapes on college campuses, the loss of productivity from hangovers, and so on. The list is quite long, and it only gets longer when one considers other substances such as cocaine, LSD, and various forms of manufactured and synthetic drugs that lead to organized crime and violence on our streets and communities, especially poorer communities; sexual abuse of women; and destruction of lives in general. In more recent times and in developed countries, the fatalities from overdoses of prescription drugs, powerful pain killers and mental-health-related treatment leading to increased incidence of addiction, undue impairment in life, mental imbalance, suicide, and accidental death to the extent that abuse of prescription drugs has become the leading cause of death in the population, exceeding highway fatalities due to drunken driving.
Gambling and games of chance persist in societies and in many developed countries such as the United States. Legalized gambling exists and is being voted on, on the pretext that it generates revenue for the state or the community that permits it. We all know that this is an unfair trade, with the odds stacked against the gamblers in favor of the operator/owner, and it is an indirect form of shifting income from the poorer part of society, who form the majority of gamblers, rather than the few rich and attractive gamblers profiled in Hollywood movies, and giving it to another part of the community, mostly touted to benefit senior citizens. Such an equation is very misleading when one considers the well-being of the entire society as opposed to isolated groups within a society, and an end should not justify an unfair and unwholesome means of achieving it. Not to mention that many socials ills such as fraud, abuse and organized crime seem to be become part and parcel of the gambling industry.
Superstitious practices with respect to fortune-telling or predicting the future by occult means and practices of sacrificing to idols or ascribing any form of divinity to something that has no claim to divinity are all considered harmful, unwholesome, and unethical from an Islamic perspective. All such substances, meaningless practices, and religious rituals without foundation are labeled as inspired by the Devil and contrary to godliness and are an affront to human intelligence and human dignity. Every human being should avoid, and every society should discourage, such practices.
These things are clearly stated, but despite clear statements, these substance and practices persist in many parts of the world, including Muslim societies. We all have a role to play not only in avoiding such substance and practices but also in joining hands with others to speak against substance abuse, gambling, and superstitious practices.
On a related note, let me also mention that at some level human beings and human societies can see the impact of this, yet they persist in such abuses in a way that causes substantial harm to individuals and communities. Our inability to abstain and curb such evils is a stark reminder of our own human folly and lack of resolve to rid ourselves of such evils. There are other harmful practices that are equally prevalent. Illiteracy, lack of political and social freedom, political corruption, corporate greed, and wanton disregard of human and environmental health are becoming even greater as destructive forces, and on a wider scale than was ever imagined possible. These things will require even stronger resolve to address and solve.
19. Good and bad are distinct (5:100)
The notion of good and evil or what is moral versus what is immoral or what is just versus what is unjust is already built into our innate senses. This is in fact a reflection of our origin as creatures of God made in God’s image or as creatures into which God breathed His essence, as was the case with Adam and Eve and with every child that is born. Each and every human being is endowed with such predisposition and has been wired to distinguish between good and evil. So when the Qur’an says that good and evil are not the same, we fully comprehend such a statement as self-evident, and it requires no further proof. Such statements in the Qur’an also confirm its own truth as a Book of Revelations from the Almighty, and it is with the utmost consistency that the Qur’an brings out the self-evident truths in our universe and in our makeup that define us as human and define our common humanity.
But having such a predisposition, innate understanding, and natural affinity to good does not provide a guarantee that good will prevail or dominate society or our human condition or actions. As a matter of fact, throughout human history, we have had periods or geographically dispersed communities or nations in which evil dominated in a society, by will or by coercion, such as apartheid in South Africa, the persecution of Jews in Nazi Germany, discrimination and racism during the colonial rules in large of parts of the world, autocratic rule in parts of Middle East, communist rule that resulted in loss of life and human dignity in countries such as Russia and China, and widespread corruption in countries such as Pakistan and Nigeria. Other times, there have been societies where good has prevailed but there were systemic evils in isolation, such as slavery on the American continent and hegemony and immoral excesses of the ruling class or ruling family, such as Gaddafi of Libya, to name a few examples.
It is easy for a person to fail to distinguish sometimes the evils of society if it dominates the social norm, or for intelligent and cunning men to exploit such evils deliberately for their personal benefit. The Qur’an warns against such failings of human beings and urges people of knowledge and understanding to be mindful of such guile and deceit and to be true to their moral and ethical bearing, which God has ingrained in all of us so that as a society we can be successful. Each and every Muslim, each and every person of faith, and each and every person of goodwill has a responsibility to seek out good and oppose evil no matter how temping evil might be or how abundant such evil may be in our contemporary life or society.
20. The desire for over-clarification is discouraged (5:101)
In matters of laws, regulations, and social norms, Islam had laid out a set of broad guidelines that resonate with human nature, again reflecting the fact the Qur’an came from the Creator Himself. The Prophet Mohammad and all other prophets such as Jesus, Moses, Abraham, Noah, and so on were human beings who deeply understood the nature and make of the human species, its potential, and its limitations, with the result that their teachings and the revelations that supported their endeavors confirmed human nature, human yearning, and human dislikes, again confirming the fact that human beings are endowed with the essence of God’s sublime attributes but with inherent limitations that each one of us is intimately aware of and experiences each day.
There are rules about worshipping God, which comes in the form of worship, personal discipline, and the basic demands of social consciousness, as exemplified in the Five Pillars of Faith in Islam, namely:
· Declaration of Faith (Shahada). The Declaration of Faith brings crystal-clear and simple but deepening clarity around our nature and our relationship with God, the Creator—we are His creation, made in His nature and bound by His cosmic, moral, and social laws, and prophets such as Mohammad, Jesus, and Moses came to communicate such understanding and to gain commitments in human terms. Every faith demands such clarity, but most have fallen short, including today’s Muslims, which is also inherently human since our failings are as much of us as our accomplishments. Judaism has marginalized its relationship with God and revolted against prophets time and again, whether with Moses or Jesus, as is well known and documented. Some sects of Christianity, in their excess of love and adoration for Jesus and Mary, have positioned God Almighty as one of three rather than the only God and have imposed celibacy, monastery, papal hegemony, and so forth on people who were not in accordance with the teaching of Jesus. Muslims, despite spectacular success during their first millennium (600 AD to 1600 AD) in all spheres of human endeavor—godliness, moral clarity, social consciousness, science and technology, governance—have fallen behind most civilized countries despite adherence to rituals and Qur’anic memorization by one group and marginalization of faith and Qur’anic guidance by another group. Holism of God and Prophet, the spiritual and the material worlds, the human and the natural universes are becoming less of a norm, whereas our Shahada was meant to unite these two aspects of our existence.
· Worship of God (Salat). The Worship of God is meant to align us with the spiritual and to continually renew our commitment to expand what is good and diminish what is evil. As the Qur’an says, the Salat should keep you away from evils and shameful acts. Yet I have seen too many worshippers and too much corruption coexist in many religious communities and nations; some Muslim countries and many Muslim communities are no exception.
· Fasting (Sawm). Fasting as a way to develop self-discipline—training one’s mind and body to deal with deprivation, to deny instant gratification and mindless consumerism, to focus on the spirit, and to temporarily forgo the material aspects of our lives—is an important pillar of human development and spiritual awaking. Yet many of us, as the Prophet warned, only experience hunger but do not gain the spiritual upliftment as it was meant to be, just the way worship (Salat) was meant to develop consciousness and natural affinity to be good and to do good. In many religious communities, ritual prayer and fasting have become a source of showmanship and arrogance, to hide their evil deeds. In a similar vein, many leaders in communities and nations use prayer and fasting to fool citizens as to their godliness and to mask their evils.
· Obligatory Charity (Zakat): Islam made charity a form of commitment to acknowledge that all the resources (wealth, businesses, natural resources, source of labor, etc.) we gain or take control of are a gift and a trust from God, and unless we dedicate a portion of that to better the lives of the less fortunate, we cannot claim to be worthy of God’s creation and the beneficiary of His grace. This is distinct from regular charity and requires community and institutional commitments based on collective and purposeful undertaking. I see the leaders in many Muslim countries go on charity shows to distribute clothing and food to the poor, but they fail to institutionalize improving the conditions of the less fortunate citizens through legislative mandates such as social security and entitlement grants, which I have seen in the United States—for example, to take care of the orphans, single mothers, vulnerable children, the old, the handicapped, and so on.
· Pilgrimage (Hajj): The once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage to Makkah, the place where Kabah is situated, is meant to draw people of faith, irrespective of wealth, status, color, race, gender, age, and so forth on an equal and universal footing in our common humanity to come to God with a penitent and purposeful mind to reflect on our past; to seek God’s forgiveness and grace in the midst of millions of other faithful; to reenact the footsteps of the great Patriarch, Prophet Abraham, his wife Hagar and his son, Ishmael in rebuilding the first house of worship and dedicating it to the benefit of mankind as a reminder of our perpetual quest to serve God and to serve fellow human beings; and to renew our commitment to lead a socially purposeful life when we go back to our respective communities after Hajj. Yet this great institution of godliness and equality has become a source of corruption when one sees the disparity in the way the poor and the rich are given accommodation for Hajj, how the leaders segregate themselves from the masses when performing Hajj, how one adds the title Al-Hajj to one’s name after Hajj, how one becomes arrogant thinking that one is better than those who did not perform Hajj, how rich people perform multiple Hajjes while neglecting what is due to their poor neighbors or their employees, how they commit more sins and corruption and then perform another Hajj to cleanse themselves, and so forth.
I have revisited above the basic and often-repeated Pillars of Faith (also known as Pillars of Islam—see the appendix in this volume for more details) just to make the point that as important as the Pillars are, they themselves can become devoid of life and meaning unless one is consciousness of the essence of faith and its implications in our lives. Similarly, when one looks at the all guidance (legal, moral, and social) that is contained in the Qur’an and the teachings of the Prophet Mohammad, which builds on top of all teachings contained in other Books of Revelations and propagated by other prophets, this guidance is broad, constitutional, and builds a framework for practical implementation. When specifics are given, they are meant as examples to help one understand the meaning and put such guidance into practice. The specifics are never meant to confine the meaning or to deprive continuing generations from applying their God-given intellect and evolving human knowledge to continually reflect on the guidance in the context of time, the situation, and the complexities that will inevitably arise. Hence the reason for this verse: when guidance is given, we should take it in the broadest meaning and not try to confine or unduly specify its meaning and application so that it becomes burdensome, loses its essence, and leads people to question faith and become disengaged, which is contrary to its enunciation in the first place.
So-called Muslim scholars and clerics have contributed much to the multitude of rituals and mundane details while neglecting the essence that drives Islamic faith and its Pillars, its guidance, and its rules and regulations. In addition to this verse, another verse that points to the same thing is 3:7, where it is categorically stated that the guidance given in the Qur’an is foundational in nature, and the specifics are examples to be used for further elucidation by each generation with due scholarship and collective consent. Let me cite an example to make the point.
In the context of setting Hajj as a pillar, the following incident took place with the Prophet and his community: In one of his town-hall meetings (sermons), the Prophet said: “O my people, God has ordained pilgrimage (hajj) (to the house of Kabah) for you; therefore, fulfill your obligation.” At that point, a person in the audience asked: “Is it every year, O Prophet of God?” The Prophet remained silent as the person repeated the question two more times. Finally the Prophet responded: “Had I said yes, it would become obligatory on you (to perform Hajj every year), and it would have been beyond your ability to do so. Do not ask me about matters that I leave unspoken; for, behold, there were people from previous generations who failed because they put too many questions to their prophets (and leaders) and then disagreed (about those details). Therefore, if I ask you to do anything, do as much as you can, and if I forbid something, then abstain from it.” The implication of this simple exchange and the principle are profound and overarching. The emergence of Shia versus Sunnis and the different alliances with imams such as Hanafi, Maliki, and so on and the consequent sectarian differences or differences about how one performs the rituals are the very essence that the Prophet cautioned against.
21. God’s protection (5:67,105)
Belief in God and the fulfillment of our human obligations to God and to fellow humans are the essence of our human existence. The guidance of God that is contained in the Qur’an, the Bible, the Torah and other revealed scriptures is meant to aid in our personal and collective efforts to live up to the intent of God for our creation—a creation that is made in the nature of God and to represent God on this planet.
Our commitment to God and to His guidance also comes with some assurance that if we truly commit to the ideals that are contained in the Qur’an and other Books of Revelations and encourage one another to realize these ideals in our lives and in our communities, then God will aid and facilitate such efforts and afford personal protection and community enlightenment after a period of trial and testing, which is the way for us to demonstrate our commitment to such ideals and guidance. In these verses, on two different circumstances, God makes the following commitments:
· The Prophet should continue his vigorous efforts to educate and guide people, and God would protect him in his struggle against the forces of evil and opposition, which were making attempts to stop his movements and personally harm him. The history of his life and the lives of subsequent generations of Muslims proves the point that as long as we have maintained individual and collective commitment to the ideals of true faith, we have prevailed and made contributions to contemporary human societies on an unprecedented scale. The same has been true for Jews, Christians, and people of other faith communities who have followed the path of truth, justice, and human dignity coupled with God consciousness.
· In verse 5:105, God makes a similar commitment to individuals—that if we take care of our souls, meaning we remain true to our innate nature, the nature of God that our souls are tuned to, and struggle to establish God’s guidance as our way of life on this planet as a way to bring peace and prosperity to human societies, then God will make such endeavors and visions successful and render this help to secure such souls from harm, from temptation, from despair, and from laziness. The lives of prophets, great leaders, and ordinary citizens who are driven by God-given ideals and who pursue avenues to build peaceful and just societies have always been successful despite periodic setbacks and times of intense conflict.
We should take lessons from history and rely on the assurance that God provides in His Books of Revelations so that we can strengthen our resolve and seek spiritual and physical nourishment from God’s grace that our effort will in the long run be successful and will have staying power as long as our effort and resolve is present. Our resolve and effort have to be uncompromisingly just and based on truth; they have to be executed in the most effective way without violating any of the moral and ethical standards of our relationships with fellow human beings and with God.
22. The need to draw up a will and protect it with witnesses (5:106–108)
The guidance of the Qur’an has been far reaching and over-encompassing in terms of not leaving any part of our human condition out. One of the last rights and obligations is to document a will or testament to bequeath or distribute properties and possession after one’s death. With the purpose of minimizing confusion and discontent among the heirs who are entitled to such inheritance, the person approaching death should prepare or instruct others to prepare a will or testament and seek two witnesses from within his kinship—or, if away from home, find suitable and trustworthy individuals to witness the intents of the person as documented in the will. While the person preparing the will has a responsibility to find witnesses, an equal responsibility falls on those who formally witness to provide truthful testimony regarding the will if and when called to. They are forbidden morally and legally to deviate from the truth. Here is first reliance on human dignity and trust that is first order of peace and justice in a society.
Considering our human condition, it is likely that some of these witnesses will fail to uphold the truth and try to benefit in a personal way or benefit their favored ones by changing their testimony in regard to the will. In such event, it is encouraged and allowed that individuals who are being harmed by such falsehood to provide testimony, based on truth that might contradict the testimony of the witnesses, to correct the situations and uphold the truth. This form of checks and balances should be established in every society in matters of legislation and the execution and rendering of justice. Human societies rise and fall based on our adherence to speaking the truth in the first place and then safeguarding it in the event attempts are made to falsify the truth. The behavior and conduct of the Trump administration in USA and the truth telling or lack thereof around the death of Saudi-American Journalist are two living examples of where lies are put in equal footing with truth. If that is not bad enough, attempts are made to let lies overwhelm the truth.