One Day At a Time

..... fasting makes a man gassy, but doesn`t necessarily make him a good insaan.........

............ actually it can make him irritable, bloated, depressed, sexually impotent, schizophrenic and in extreme cases suicidal - that`s when he straps on an explosive belt and goes for a walk after asar ............. but seldom, almost never, does depriving oneself of food, water and sex make anyone more spiritual or, to quote temporal, a good insaan ........

............ now, personally i don`t have anything against getting up for an early breakfast and gorging on parathas and paye, but it is the heartburn and bad breath that sets in around nine in the morning that is a little troublesome .......... and, in my case, since lunch is the most important thing i do all day, it ruins my day .......... so i try to have a light salad instead which, as a good muslim, is bad for my self-esteem because eating meat is what differentiates me from the horrible hindoos and other foul vegetarians ......... if my ancestors had wanted to eat ghass bhoons they would have stayed hindoo ......... talking about my ancestors - their poor spirits must be in terrible agony during the holy month of ramadhan as they watch their progeny starve thmselves because of some alien arab god`s silly injunctions ..............

....... but somehow i can survive lunch, or the absence thereof, but it is nigh impossible to go through thirty plus happy-hours without incurring a major financial loss ......... according to a conservative estimate by the muslim libation society it can cost a moderate muslim about 10 dollars extra, or 300 for the month, to drink after iftaar .......... so i decided to take a page out of my rebel catholic friend`s book - you see, he had a serious falling out with the church over vatican-II and left the seminary to get his mba ......... anyway, he gives up tonic for lent and for ten days drinks gin straight up - mind you, no martinis since that would be cheating!.........

.......... i have a lot more to say, specially about sex during ramadhan, but i am feeling a little gassy ............

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Salams Temporal Sahib and Ramadan Mubarak

I read this before reading your article, Anas bin Malik(r.a) says, ``The aim of the ulema is to understand and of fools to quote`` :)

I think there are plenty of true ulema around, who have also inherited the spiritual knowledge from the Prophet SAW , its just that these days we take pseudo ulema`s to be ulema and ignore the true ones. Its our ignorance and pride that does not allow us to learn from the true ulema. If we sincerely search for the Truth, it will surely be revealed to us.

Perhaps the fault lies not within the Ulema, but within ourselves


For some reason the majority of Chowkies have limited knowledge of Islam and its spirituality. Everyone here seems to be ranting:) rather than acting. Chowk isnt the intellectual place that it once used to be.

By the way, none of this was directed at you Temporal Sahib. Hope you have a spiritual Ramadan:)

``A hungry inner self is dearer to God than seventy heedless worshippers`` Prophet Muhammad SAW

Good posts generally on this thread. particularly sameer and ralph.

I see Hamidm hasnt changed a bit. I would bet my year`s paycheck (not much) that you are probably the most religious muslim on this site.

Absolutely correct. We need to read the message ourselves rather than waiting for others to explain things to us. How many times do you consult somebody befor commiting a crime a sin an act you know is wrong. So how come to make a correction in your behaviour u need to consult an intermediary and that also after the manual on how to correct yourself ha been provided to you. Picking up the Quran and reading it for oueselves is the most difficult thing for most of us. Why. Because we are sacred to let go of our own fallicies and wrong beliefs and traditional hand me downs, scared to react and to accept that we might have been wrong and even more sacred of standing up and correcting ourselves because we don`t have the guts to face upto the criticism we will attract in doing so. The example we need to take from the Prophet is that he stood up to adverstiy in its highest form for his beliefs. Not how long his beard was how haigh his shalwar was when he prayed and whether he said 20 nafils or 50 nafils during his prayers.

t,
Ramzan Mubarak!
I feel the month of Ramazan was meant as a month in training for God, with his profound wisdom, was aware of our weakness to divert ourselves from the desired path. Hence, He must have made it compulsory each year, year after year! If only we carried forward atleast 1/8th of what we practiced in this one month!
I do agree: we need to be good human beings first and foremost. The reason why we Muslims fare badly is because there is a zameen aasman ka farq in our words and deeds. We simply do not practice what we preach. We just chadao our trousers and pyjamas till the taqnas and grow a beard or cover ourselves up in our burqa. These are the easiest of practices; if only we followed other religious teachings in our daily lives, we would ceratinly be not only good Muslims but good humans too.

As for the Ulema/Mullahs, being the learned few they were meant to enlighten the ignorant many. It no longer seems to be the case; rather, it shouldn`t be so now. With information at our finger tips and educational levels increasing, we should seek religion on our own. we should do our own learning, research and analysis. We could also do well to abide by the basics to begin with. Indepth knowledge will come on its own with conitiued reading and learning.

While on Ulemas, this is a point of digression, but nevertheless, allow me state my opinion.
So far I was under the impression that the Friday Qutbah was delivered in the native language. It came as a surprise to know that most, nay all ulemas continue with the tradition of delivering it in Arabic! No wonder, people are so disillusioned and wary of attending them! Why can`t we understand that the prophet delivered the Friday sermons in Arabic because it was the language spoken then? Wouldn`t it make more sense to deliver it in a language all followers congregating for the said prayers understand?
Wish the ulemas understand these simple facts.

Wish you have a good day too!

drumz,

...... good to see you are still around ....... you are right - i am the most religious muslim on this site ....... during the month of ramadhan i retire to a cave and wait for the archangel to put in an apearance - unfortunately, my fortieth birthday was rather uneventful and that is when i decided to put in a wireless network in the cave ............. i am giving it another ten years before i quit on my mission to reform islam ...........

...... happy flatulence !

My knowledge is limited, so i cannot be termed any authority on Islam. But i think that the one thing that Islam has emphasized over EVERYTHING else and what really differentiates it from EVERY Other Religion or concept out there is the DIRECT Communion with GOD. There are NO Intermediaries between man & God, and this is only present in Islam. Christianity has their priests without whom you cannot attain Heaven, Hindus have Pundits, Jews their own. Only ISLAM emphasizes that direct communion in that God asks man to pray directly to him and not through anyone else.

There is no concept of CLERGY in Islam. You can ask others of course, when you have problems, but again, not required on their own. Islam is the only religion that expects its followers to understand the religion and the concept fully on their own.

This is something that we all have forgotten. Who says what the Mullahs says is right. I don`t see any `Endorsed by God` stickers on any one of them or or anything they say. Most of them are just normal men like ourselves. Yet, many make them the Supreme Authority on EVERYTHING. Half of our country`s troubles can be resolved if you do what Attaturk did. Take them on a boat and drown them.

Comments Welcomed.

Leave the Mullahs alone for God sakes. Take responsibility for your own moral and religious bankruptcy, negligence, and malaise. If you consider yourself so upright then you don`t need Mullah and if you feel inedequate in yourself then shouldn`t you be reforming your own self first before you try to reform him.

Cat Ji #23

I will build on what samankhan, a good Muslim and a good person, wrote: ``we need to be good human beings first and foremost. The reason why we Muslims fare badly is because there is a zameen aasman ka farq in our words and deeds.``

There is a zameen aasman ka farq in the words and deeds of all of us, no matter what religion we may follow. Why then does this problem bedevil Muslims so much more acutely?

Look at the examples:

Muslims claim that their religion is the `religion of peace.` Yet Islam`s history has been and continues to be full of indescriable violence (naturally, Muslims see it as the non Muslims` fault).

Muslims claim that there is no clergy in Islam. But Muslim lives and Muslim societies are the most hopelessly gagged in fatwas and firmans. People are supposed to decide things for themselves, but read the thousands of such cornucopias of questions and answers, and if you are a person of any self respect, you will have tears in your eyes:

http://www.pakistanlink.com/religion.html


I could go on, about the position of women, treatment of minorities, attitude toward knowledge, free inquiry, in fact, almost any of the life`s myrial facets.

Why is this so? I refuse to buy that every child born in a Muslim household is genetically inferior, or genetically wired to grow into a bigger hypocracrite than the children born to the rest of mankind.

The answer lies in the deeper structures and mandates of Islam itself. Don`t get me wrong. No religion is perfect. But other religions have a certain capacity to recognize their problems and reform themselves.

hamidm writes ``happy flatulence !``

hamidm sahib, after having read your interacts for the last few months, I can say for sure that your flatulence problems exist regardless of whether you are fasting or not. As soon as i click on an article to read, I can tell from the stink that you had just deposited your post there. It is as if ``hamidm was here`` is written all over it.

malik99,

....sorry......... in future i will post my comments only if invited by those who yearn for truth and freedom (to quote w) ............ so please send in your request and i will do my best to comply

…i read Progressive Muslims challenge tradition by LESLIE SCRIVENER-FAITH AND ETHICS REPORTER of the star…this was the main story on page 1 of the weekend edition…am not aware of this group…it would be interesting to find out who finances it…

Temporal

Good article. Display of religiosity is a disease more common in we Pakistanis than others. People not fasting hesitate or even can tell a lie that they are fasting.

Everyone is welcome to follow his belief. But it is not right to give an impression that you are doing a big favour to the entire mankind. The office working timings are reduced even when in an air-conditioned cozy environment. The workers move about as if they are on a devine mission. The most inefficient worker tends to become the most religious to derive the sympathy/compassion factor. In other societies, people leave their God at home.

Off course, the people eat more and high quality food in Ramzan. They put on weight and prices of commodities go sky high.

Many years back, the restaurants used to be open with shutters down. Now there is no food available in the afternoon for any traveller/visiter.

Farzana. Good Ilog by you on this subject. And Hamidm2 - great with your high quality satire.

Arn`t we carrying this show of religiosity a bit too far?

NHK

Hamidm: Reminds me of rumi: ``for years I knocked on the door, when it opened I realised i was knocking from within.`` There is no need to wait in the cave, you hamidm are the one true god. Anyone who disagrees shall be asked to produce a post similar to yours.

Anyways how are the children? I hope we didnt forget the Arrangement (no pun intended).

INTROSPECTION:

PEOPLE: ALL people have a belief system. It is influenced by perhaps their genes, and likely their environment. Nature and Nurture combine to shape ones beliefs.

RELIGION: IS a large system containing a set of agreed upon ideas based upon Revelation or the Path of a particular person(s).

The system of a person is almost NEVER inherently in agreeance with a religion or political ideology. The person here tends to suppress their internal belief system. In areas where it contradicts the beliefs of their adopted faith, the faith will win out.

MODERATE RELIGIOUS FOLK: KNow that they disagree with some of the rules of their religious system but are not courageous enough to embrace and admit this discrepency. They know muhammed didnt fly on a magic horse or that men can beat women etc. But they wont admit it.

FUNDAMENTALISTS: Completely shut down their internal systems (as opposed to moderates who reppress it) and let mommy and daddy think for them.

Free Thinkers: Think for their own selves. (interestingly, ALL Religious leaders have been free thinkers.