Comments on Chez Chiara: (Auto-) Biography of a Saudi Fraud: “Non-Original”...

Dear Mr. Usman, What I said about Quraan and Hadi...

2010-05-19T07:16:28.975-04:00

Dear Mr. Usman,

What I said about Quraan and Hadith is not my invention. It is based on what the Muslim scholars agreed on.

There are four cornerstones to refer to in Islam:
Quraan
Sunna and Hadith
Ijmaa
Qiyas

This is agreed upon by all Muslim scholars. the Hadith was not written until the prophet died but it was memorized and practiced during his life.

Read for great scholars like Ibn Katheer, Ibn Taymiya, Al-Qurtubi, and the four Imams (Abu Hanifa - Ibn Hanbal - Ibn Malik - Al-Shafiei)

Read also Fiqh Al-Sunna by Sayed Sabiq...I don't know if you are an arab or not, but if you are not, you should start looking for good translations of these scholars' books.

Quraan is the complete book, and hadith explains it. When the aya of prayer was inspired to prophet Mohammad, he had to explain it to the Sahaba the way it is right now. As for Ibrahim, we don't know the way he used to pray.

Islam compliments other religions that came before and perfects them, so it is illogicl to have the exact same teachings and details. Islam is a very felxible religion and it is for all times and places.
There are also some verses in Quraan that are called الآيات المنسوخة which were inspired to serve a purpose at the time of the prophet, but were followed by ayas and explanations of Hadith that state they are not workable anymore.

Anyway, this is a long and complicated issue. I just wish that you consult notable Islmaic scholars who are experts at both the Arabic language and the Quraanic studies.

Thanks

Dear Maha Noor Elahi, It is the belief of Muslims...

2010-05-09T03:30:23.345-04:00

Dear Maha Noor Elahi,

It is the belief of Muslims and the assertion of Quran itself that Quran is complete and self explanatory. The verses of Quran are to be taken on its face value. History or hadiths play the role of context and background, only. Thus, You cannot claim that certain verses of Quran have shortcomings or are confusing and hence in order to fully understand them, we have to use hadiths. Hadith do not stand as reason or explanatory supporter for any verses of Quran. Hadith at best will give us context, nothing else!

Only those matters where Quran is silent, Hadith will come into play for explanation and reason. But we have to be careful in judging if the hadiths is compatible to the teaching of Quran or if it comes to clash with Quran in anyway. It is the hadith of Prophet (PBUH) that if you come across a hadith which is attributed to me but is in even a slightest way contradictory to Quran, throw it away.

You said; "The Hadith and Quraan compliment each otehr and there are many things the Quraan hasn't elaborated on and Hadith explained it."

NO, and I have explained it above that Quran is self explanatory. Ane where Qurna is silent, we will take the hadith in such a way that it does not clash with any teachings of Quran..

You said; “ If you take prayers for instance, from Quraan, you will not pray like the rest of us, and probably you won't understand how to pray. “

Hadith were compiled some over a hundred years after the death of prophet. People were performing salah even before then. In fact, Salah is being performed since the time of prophet Ibrahim.

You said; “Unfortunately, many Muslims misunderstand Islam because they disregard Hadith and look at the Quraan superficially without trying to understsnd it through Hadith. “

Astaghfirullah!
Quran does not need any help through hadith. You can take the verses of Quran to understand hadith. But you cannot take hadith to explain the verses of Quran. It is one way function only. Hadith, as I said, when it comes to talk about something which is given in Quran, will play the part of background or context, only. It will not provide any additional meanings to the message of Quran.

You said; “ Besides, Muslims have four basic resources to refer to: Quraan, Sunna (Hadith), Ejmaa (agrrement of most scholars on a certain issue), and Qiyas (applying a general Quraanic rules on new issues or problems). “

Fundamental source is Quran only! The other three things you listed are secondary and are subject to guidance from Quran. They will be Judged and made through the teaching of Quran. Quran will not be judged by anything other than Quran itself. Hence, Muslims got only ONE source, which is Quran. Nothing else!

I personally hold to the Quran only. I don't mix it with any other “source” for the sake of explanation. Hadith or history will give me context, not the explanation, reason or justification. If it is said in Quran that no man can claim that Prophet(PBUH) is his father or ancestor, then no man can claim it. Plain and simple. No apologies, no spin here. I challenge you to bring any alternative explanation of it, Which I am sure you can never!

On a side note, you should be proud that you belong to a noble family. The Family of Hazrat Ali. Don't take it further than that.

Salaam.

Dear Usman, you seem to have misconceptions about ...

2010-05-09T00:05:05.412-04:00

Dear Usman,
you seem to have misconceptions about the verse, which was clarified by Hadith.
I wish that you could read the a book called Al-Albayt by Dr. Mohammad Abdo Yamamni and books by Mohammad Alawi Malki, who are both prominent Hijazi authors and Islamic scholars, and are both dedicated sunnis. The prophetical family story is well-known and acknowldged all over Saudi Arabia and it is acknowldeged by the government (which is sunni). It is also acknowldged by a huge number of other Saudi, Egyptian, and Yemeni Sunnie Islamic scholars. Maybe I am not the right person to explain it to you in English. It needs a lot of elaboration to explain it, but you should search for the Islamic Sunni scholars on this topic.
The Hadith I mentioned is only one example of many Hadiths, which are proven to be true by many scholars.
The Hadith and Quraan compliment each otehr and there are many things the Quraan hasn't elaborated on and Hadith explained it. If you take prayers for instance, from Quraan, you will not pray like the rest of us, and probably you won't understand how to pray.

Prophet Mohammad's famous Hadith says: hold on to Quraan and my Hadith, and you will never be lost.
He didn't say "hold on to Quraan only".
Unfortunately, many Muslims misunderstand Islam because they disregard Hadith and look at the Quraan superficially without trying to understsnd it through Hadith.
Besides, Muslims have four basic resources to refer to: Quraan, Sunna (Hadith), Ejmaa (agrrement of most scholars on a certain issue), and Qiyas (applying a general Quraanic rules on new issues or problems).

I know some people have exaggerated the family of the prophet issue, but this doesn't mean to cross out the whole thing or deny just because a few people misused it. Many Islamic principles and basics have been misused, so does this give us the right to deny these basics?

Please, read more about this issue from Sunnis and Arab scholars, not just contemoraries.

Thanks
Maha Noor Elahi

Maha, I am well aware of Fatima( (May Allah be pl...

2010-05-04T13:37:34.792-04:00

Maha,

I am well aware of Fatima( (May Allah be pleased with her) and her sons. But you are completely missing the point. First of all, the verses of Quran have exclusive and ultimate priority over any hadith. That hadith you quoted is considered zaeef (week) and taken completely out of context. Such hadith are usually used by our Shia brothers to boost the personality of Ali and to bring him as close as the Personality of Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) himself (God forbids).

In the verse I quoted, Allah has said clearly that no man on earth can claim that Muhammad(PBUH) was his father or ancestor. period. Then why insisting otherwise?

"This whole issue of belonging the Prophetical family is because of the descendants of the Prophet's daughter Fatima, which shows a great deal of Islam's respect to women."

NO, It does not come from Islam. It comes from some of us Muslims, who want to take false pride over each other. To score the point that I am Arab, hence better than you. I am "descendant" of Muhammad(PBUH) hence have a prestigious status as compare to you. My ancestors were Muslims when nobody else was Muslim hence I am better than you, etcetera.

If they are that grateful of Fatima then why don't they say that they are Al e Fatima ?.

Going back to your quoted hadith of Al e Albait, they have no exclusive priority over anybody by merely the relationship to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).And whoever claims otherwise, goes against the basic teaching of Quran itself.

@Usman Thank you for your words, and let me explai...

2010-05-04T08:04:57.118-04:00

@Usman
Thank you for your words, and let me explain the Prophet's descendants issue. We all know that the Prophet's sons died, but his daughter Fatima hasn't died. The word "descendants" here means the offspring of his grandsons from Fatima (May Allah be pleased with her) with her husband Ali (May Allah be pleased with him). The descendants are the children and grandchildren of Al-Hasan and Al-Hussain, who are the sons of Fatima and Ali.
There is a well-known hadith by the prophet that urges all Muslims to take care of (The People of the Prophetical house) who include , according to the Hadith (the descendants of Ali Bin AbdlMuttaleb, Al-Abbas Bin AbdlMuttaleb, Jaafar, and Akeel)
They are called in Arabic آل البيت
Unfrtunately, I can't think of a better translation for the word than what I have explained. It's like when you say in English the Kidneys….so it might be something like the "Mohammads".
This whole issue of belonging the Prophetical family is because of the descendants of the Prophet's daughter Fatima, which shows a great deal of Islam's respect to women. It's not his sons who had the descendants, rather it was his daughter.
I am sorry for my misleading translation. Thank you for adding your comment because it opened my eyes to my misleading wording. I will surly change it in the book and the blog.

Regards,
Maha Noor Elahi

It is a great biography and I really enjoyed readi...

2010-05-03T20:24:41.556-04:00

It is a great biography and I really enjoyed reading it. But I can't resist on correcting on thing you said:

"I am so proud to have married a man who is a descendant of the Prophet; so proud because I love the Prophet Mohammad, and it honors me to be the mother of his descendants;"

NOWAY!!
Nobody is descendant of Prophet Muhammad, Nobody! Descendant are recognized by male lineage. Prophet Muhammad's sons died in his own time. He is left with no descendants. And if this is not enough to convince you then here is the verse of Quran to blow this descendant argument:

"Muhammad is not the father of any man among you, but he is the messenger of Allah and the Seal of the Prophets; and Allah is ever Aware of all things." (Quran, Al-Ahzab)

Maha--PS It was my pleasure to interview you, and ...

2009-12-18T18:15:31.147-05:00

Maha--PS It was my pleasure to interview you, and a real bonus for you to share your insights here.

Maha--thanks for all your comments. Yes that story...

2009-12-18T18:13:30.588-05:00

Maha--thanks for all your comments. Yes that story really stuck with me, and I was glad her daughter is both on medication and in therapy, is growing stronger and is getting appropriate support from her psychiatrist who takes on the role of explaining to the husband, and reinforcing that these things must be done for his wife's health. In that sense it is an advantage that the psychiatrist is a man, as that particular husband probably wouldn't follow the recommendation of a woman. It remains sad that it took a clinical depression for the husband to make even a minimal change. Despite this woman holding an MBA, and having educated parents (her father was an engineering prof in Pakistan, then in KSA for 18 years to retirement) and a subspecialist dr for a brother, she has been subjected to this type of marriage. Her parents were caught between trying not to interfere, trying to help their daughter, and trying not to aggravate the husband into worse behaviour. The good news is that her mother is now paying for the ABA therapy for her autistic son (who is 5), which she simply informed her husband was going to happen (with the psychiatrist's support) and she seems well enough to make other changes to her life.

On immigration some people become more conservative to hold on to the old ways, and in fact are sometimes a generation behind the evolution in their own country.

@Chiara Thanks a lot for interviewing me..... and...

2009-12-18T04:56:13.681-05:00

@Chiara
Thanks a lot for interviewing me.....

and your story about the Pakistani lady is really horrible...I can't imagine that some people still live this way...even in Saudi Arabia where that was the case in older generations, it wasn't as bad as this story...maybe because the women weren't educated at that time..
Luckily now Saudi girls write a basic condition in their marraige contracts (never to live with the in-laws) and to work if they wanted to...

Thanks once again Chiara..

@mariam Well...late meetings? not in my agenda..wh...

2009-12-18T04:51:05.480-05:00

@mariam
Well...late meetings? not in my agenda..whether people agree or disagree...that's why i have chosen a group of freinds who are early birds and who hate late gatherings...

Now i sound snobbish :) but it's just impossible to live in both worlds...

Thanks for your comment

Thanks, Salma for your comment. women all over the...

2009-12-18T04:47:23.679-05:00

Thanks, Salma for your comment.
women all over the world, I beleive, are faced with different challenges whether they are educated or not.
It's just that somw give up easily and conform to their society's norms.

Mariam--thank you for persisting and leaving the c...

2009-12-15T16:08:25.133-05:00

Mariam--thank you for persisting and leaving the comment here. For some reason the settings on that post were "odd" and didn't allow comments. I fixed it. So please try again.

If you are signed in to Google your name should pop up, but I will try to find an alternate commenting format (bearing in mind that I am IT challenged myself LOL :) ) because this one has a "comment jinn" that gives everyone grief (including me) it seems. I hope all will persist in the meantime.

"Ma poupée" would be an old-fashioned but standard term of endearment from a man to a woman. I think her voice is supposed to be girlie-child sexy but perhaps the men would be better able to assess that! LOL :)

Chiara - I wanted to post on your latest - re: the...

2009-12-15T14:36:46.574-05:00

Chiara - I wanted to post on your latest - re: the camping experience, and I could not find a place to post. Coming from a third world country I guess I am a little PC challenged, lol. BTW, didn't the actress sound like a young boy? Peut-etre that is why Gabin called her une poupee?? She sounded child-like.

PS it would be lovely if our names popped up as we commented a la bedu, so we wouldn't have to keep selecting profiles, et al. Or am I again being "challenged"??

Mariam--Great! I am so glad you found my blog! I r...

2009-12-14T18:17:30.965-05:00

Mariam--Great! I am so glad you found my blog! I really look forward to your comments on older and newer posts.

Thank you for sharing your insights into this as a Saudi woman. You do raise some very good practical issues that are tied to cultural norms. Other Arab Muslim countries have shifted their habits somewhat in line with European or Mediterranean European norms, partly under the influence of colonization.

I do think that, at least in those countries, when the spouse and family are supportive, it is almost easier than in Europe and North America, because there are more family members available to share childcare, and it is the norm for grandmothers and aunts to be highly involved in raising the children. Also, at least in Morocco, there is an excellent system of French style nursery schools from the age of 3 on, so the children are accustomed to this type of socialization and routine early on. It is also much easier,cheaper, and more customary to have live-in help with housework.

I hope others will share their views on this topic as well, it is such and important one for men and women.

Salma--Thank you for your comment. I am glad you f...

2009-12-14T17:58:52.266-05:00

Salma--Thank you for your comment. I am glad you found my new blog! You are very right that these challenges of work/home balance are faced by all career women, but I do believe they are easier in some contexts than others.

It is very hard to transpose the lifestyle of a previous generation into current lifestyle demands especially if the previous one was very traditional, and the new one far less so, or they are from different countries, societies.

Some women wave degrees and have no common sense, but then others are forced not to use their degrees, even professional ones. I just heard from a Pakistani Canadian woman that her daughter who holds an MBA is clinically depressed. She married right after her degree, moved in with her inlaws, was not allowed to work, suffers non-stop abuse from her MIL, and has a son who is autistic and epileptic, and her husband won't pay for therapy for the son or let her family pay for it. She finally ended up in a psychiatrist's office and her husband made her switch from the female psychiatrist she liked to a male psychiatrist because he felt the woman was biased against him. The male psychiatrist convinced him to move them out of his parents' home, so he moved them to an apartment nearby, to far in the burbs for her to get a job easily. It is one of the worst stories I have heard, and it was her mother telling me, and that it is part of Pakistani culture; and that girls are raised from childhood that they will live with their MIL and be abused (verbally,psychologically, and sometimes physically) and the husbands say nothing. Hopefully that is a generalization, exaggeration, or becoming less true.

Thanks again for your inspiring comment! I hope everyone checks out your great blog, as well.

hello, chiara, this is mariam fro bedu's blog....

2009-12-14T17:11:22.762-05:00

hello, chiara, this is mariam fro bedu's blog. I was thrilled to find you blogging!! Pretty soon I won't be getting any work done...
re: Maha - you cannot imagine how hard it is for women in saudi to have a social life and work. I empathize with her greatly. We do not usually get together until late at night, and this just does not meld well with working. Furthermore, when you work, you wish to spend time with your immediate family, especially children!! Non-working saudi women have a very hard time dealing with this. They think working women are "snobbish". I can't wait for the day when saudi society adopts the western custom of earlier meetings or only on the evenings of non work days. Salam.

Well I don't know about being a Saudi or marri...

2009-12-14T15:38:20.954-05:00

Well I don't know about being a Saudi or married to one, but I know as a young professional with children and a home it is not easy.

My hubby is old-fashioned and has been influenced by a mother who dedicated her whole life to her family...I would like to think that I am doing the same things, just not in the same way.

Being educated means different things to different people and I too see people waving degrees without much common-sense. I don't know this just seems to hit home for me, being in a marriage that has forced me to chose between things that I thought were necessary and things that I thought I could compromise on.

And Maha you are right...all our decisions have advantages and disadvantages. Great interview.