as we find in this incident, is a clear indication that woman has been granted her full rights in Islamic society.HOME MANAGEMENT IS NOT AN INFERIOR TASKA certain woman called Nasibah once came to Prophet

rewards of the Hereafter. They join the Friday prayer, attend congregations and perform jihad. Then what is left for us women to do?” The Prophet replied, “O Nasibah, if your manner of living with your husband

of perverted thinking, managing a home is considered inferior to work done outside the home. But Islam gives the same place of honor to both kinds of work, it being a fact that both are equally important

taken place and will continue to do so in the near and distant future. So what we must do is accept these things as a part of nature and turn our full attention to seeking out alternative possibilities

for us in spite of all the apparently adverse circumstances in which we strive to perpetuate our Islamic heritage. The hadith which mentions Dajjal appearing close to the time of Doomsday is doubtless

western civilization. In this the Prophet has made the prediction that close on Doomsday the message of Islam will enter every hut or mansion. (Musnad Ahmad) The truth is that western civilization has emerged

easily distinguished from each other. By Islamic standards, this is designed to facilitate social and national interaction. The sole basis of superiority in Islam is taqwa—the earnestness with which one

reserves a place in Paradise only for those found deserving in terms of their inner worth. According to Islam, all greatness belongs to God. God as the Supreme Being is ineffably superior to all men. While there

man and man.AUGUST 30 Concerning ZakatZakat, or the alms-tax, is one of the five basic tenets of Islam. Its payment is obligatory, at the rate of 2.5%, on all wealth that is subject to growth. Eight categories

CHAPTER ONE Peace and IslamIn February 1998, I participated in a symposium at the American University in Washington, where I spoke on the topic of Islam and Peace. In the course of my speech, I said:

It is no exaggeration to say that Islam and violence are contradictory to each other. The concept of Islamic violence is so obviously unfounded that prima facie it stands rejected. The fact that violence

enough to support the belief that violence as a principle is quite alien to the scheme of things in Islam. Islam claims to be an eternal religion, and an eternal religion cannot have a principle in its scheme

OCTOBER 1 De-Islamizing IslamWhen I visited Afghanistan during the last days of communist Russia’s political domination, I found Kabul, Afghanistan’s capital, entirely intact, but today, under the so-called

so-called Islamic regime of the Taliban, the greater part of Kabul has been destroyed. And now the people of Afghanistan are faced with such great hardship as they have never before faced in their entire

while regarding themselves to be the representatives of Islam. How strange it is that “kufr” inflicted only minimal harm upon Afghanistan, while “Islam” has almost totally ruined the country—to such an extent

Khanam is an author, editor, translator, public speaker and former professor of Islamic Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. Among her books are ‘A Simple Guide to Sufism’ and ‘A Study of World’s

complete conviction. It is truthfulness in your personality that would subjugate your opponent is what she believes in. In spite of the complete incompatibility of the environment she found herself in

is presented before his Lord he will have nothing to offer. It is this feeling which makes him feel what is expressed by the words of Abu Hurayra. On the one hand, God being the most merciful, produces a

person sees only his minus points. This is what separates the awakened soul from the unawakened soul. Discovering God on Every Occasion The fourth caliph of Islam, Ali ibn Abi Talib, said, ‘I recognized

secrecy. And this is what he did during the campaign of the conquest of Makkah. He left Madinah for Makkah along with ten thousand of his companions, without confiding in them where he was heading. The

only when they reached the point from where the path led directly to Makkah, that they the realized what their ultimate destination would be. In matters of strategy, the observance of secrecy is of the

the fact that the rival party remains completely unaware of one’s plans in advance. The Prophet of Islam showed this wisdom all his life.Accepting the Status QuoWhenever a controversy arises between two

secrecy. And this is what he did during the campaign of the conquest of Makkah. He left Madinah for Makkah along with ten thousand of his companions, without confiding in them where he was heading. The

only when they reached the point from where the path led directly to Makkah, that they the realized what their ultimate destination would be. In matters of strategy, the observance of secrecy is of the utmost

the fact that the rival party remains completely unaware of one’s plans in advance. The Prophet of Islam showed this wisdom all his life.Accepting the Status QuoWhenever a controversy arises between two

In this tradition, what is meant by ‘less’? It means acknowledgement. If man had been asked to give gold as the price of Paradise it would have been the material price of Paradise. But a material price

required of man. What was asked from man was nothing but acknowledgement, but man was so engrossed with things other than God that he could not pay this price of acknowledgement. What is acknowledgement

world itself, where it can never be found. This for man is a real deprivation. The Prophet of Islam once observed, “Those who should be striving to attain such a precious thing as Paradise are sleeping