The Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement Blog

Maulana Nur-ud-Din on abrogation (naskh) in the Quran

1. Maulana Nur-ud-Din wrote a book entitled Nur-ud-Din in response to a book Tark-i Islam by a former Muslim who joined the Hindu Arya Samaj and had explained the reasons why he had left the religion of Islam. In answering one of his objections against Islam, Maulana Nur-ud-Din wrote:

“I know of no verse in the Quran containing a command which permits something or which makes something compulsory and then it is stated about the same command that what it permitted or required is forbidden. No, no, certainly not. Our Quran has nowhere said to us that a certain command in a certain verse is now absolutely abrogated. Our guide, the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may peace and the blessings of Allah be upon him, has never said: Such and such a command of the Quran is now abrogated. His holy successors were Abu Bakr and Umar, about whom God said: “And the foremost, the first of the Emigrants and the Help­ers, and those who followed them in goodness  — Allah is well pleased with them and they are well pleased with Him” (9:100), and God declared obedience to them to be a way of earning His pleasure. They also never said that such and such a command of the Quran is abrogated, and it is not at all right to act upon it.

If naskh means to make a command void, i.e., a command is to be found in the Quran and it was abrogated, I know of no such command. If anyone claims to the contrary, he should provide evidence.”

— From the book Nur-ud-Din, p. 231–232, published from Qadian in 1904. News of its publication was announced in Badr, 1 March 1904, p. 8, foot of col. 3.

2. In his verbal teaching sessions on the Quran, commenting on verse 2:106 of the Quran (“Whatever ayat  We abrogate or cause to be forgotten…”), Maulana Nur-ud-Din said:

“As to the question whether there is abrogation in the Quran or not, as far as my understanding goes I will say that I have never, till today, seen any verse which is abrogated while it is found in the Quran. There is no statement reported from the Holy Prophet Muhammad or Hazrat Abu Bakr or Umar showing that such verses are to be found in the Quran.

God says the reason for this abrogation is not Me, but because your circumstances keep on changing so My commands have to be altered.”

— Badr, Appendix, 11 March 1909, p. 19, col. 2; session dated 15 February 1909. See also his collected teaching sessions in Haqa’iq-ul-Furqan, p. 216, where this verse is numbered as 107.

(Translator’s Note: An example of what is indicated in the last statement above is that after Hijrah Muslims were allowed to fight in battle to repel their enemies, whereas before Hijrah the only command was to bear the persecution. This is change of circumstances, not abrogation of an earlier command.)

3. In his verbal teaching sessions on the Quran, commenting on verses 16:101–102 of the Quran (“And when We change an ayat for another ayat…”), Maulana Nur-ud-Din said:

“From these verses some people try to prove abrogation of verses. They face two difficulties. Firstly, they take the word ayat as meaning a verse of the Quran. Secondly, they have to show that the abrogated verse exists in the Quran.”

— Badr, Appendix, 10 February 1910, p. 147, col. 1; session dated 2 February 1910. See also his collected teaching sessions in Haqa’iq-ul-Furqan, p. 512, where these verses are numbered as 102–103.

Newsreel film showing Chinese PM Chou En-Lai being introduced to Mr N.A. Faruqui

There is a silent newsreel film on Youtube covering the visit to Pakistan of Chinese PM Chou En-Lai, probably in 1964, in which he is welcomed by President Ayub Khan:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VSrV8Y3-c0

At 1.14 mins in the film he is seen being introduced by President Ayub Khan to Mr N.A. Faruqui. Mr Faruqui is also briefly seen a little later seated on a chair in a room.

At this link I have extracted three relevant screen shots from it.

Towards the end of the film, starting at 2.33 mins, Chou En-Lai visits the site where Islamabad was to be built and plants a tree there.

I believe the same tree planting photo is on Flickr at this link.

In this Flickr photo Mr Faruqui, wearing a dark-coloured cap, is standing next to Z.A. Bhutto as they watch the tree planting.

Pakistan government’s report to UN Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination

Readers may be interested in this link to the United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner.

The page is headed: Pakistan to face review by UN Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination, which is to be on 16th and 17th August.

Through this page I found reports submitted to this committee by some countries' governments. I downloaded the report submitted by the Pakistan government, which I have saved here.

Here are a few choice quotations from it:

"19. Safeguarding the rights of minorities is the priority of the Government of Pakistan. Pakistan is a democratic country and pluralism is the central pillar of our society. Under Articles 20, 21, 22, 26, 27 and 28 of the Constitution of Pakistan, minorities are equal citizens of Pakistan and are free to profess their religion and visit their places of worship."

"20. … All citizens of Pakistan are, thus, equal before law. Citizens of religious minority groups in Pakistan enjoy equal rights as citizenry of the State. … The contributions of minorities in Pakistan have been substantive and they have excelled in most spheres of professions. For instance, the first ever Law Minister, Jogendra Nath Mandal was a Hindu; Justice A.R. Cornelius, a Christian, was the 4th Chief Justice of Pakistan; … …  Dr. Abdul Salam, an Ahmedi, was a Nobel Laureate of 1979."

"22.  The prevalence of Racial Discrimination is, thus, non-existent in Pakistan."

"23. As mentioned above, racism is a rare phenomenon in Pakistan and, therefore, has little or no impact on the lives of the peoples of Pakistan as such."

"25. …  Racial Discrimination does not exist in Pakistan as such, and despite that the State has taken effective measures to prevent incitement to or acts of discrimination based on theories of superiority of race, color or ethnic origin."

"32…  Evidently, there is no apartheid and racial segregation/ discrimination in Pakistan. "

"43. In accordance with existing legal framework, it is also a crime to promote enmity between religious groups"

"61. In a case filed through the Ministry of Law & Justice, i.e. Pakistan Hindi Council v. Pakistan, the Supreme Court held that every citizen had a fundamental right to profess, practice and propagate his religion. 

 … the Lahore High Court held that “under Article 20 of the Constitution, it was the right of every citizen to profess, practice or propagate his religion…"

"62. The Supreme Court … held that every citizen of Pakistan is free to exercise the right to profess, practice or propagate his or her religious views, even against the prevailing or dominant views of his or her own religious denomination or sect."

"63. The aforementioned judgment accords protection to members of all religions and criminalizes incitement of religious hatred."

"64. The minorities are free to preach their respective faith."

"65. The laws in Pakistan cater genuinely to all people belonging to various beliefs."

 "106. Pakistani society is one of the least racist societies due to adherence to the tenets of Islam which prohibit discrimination and promote equality and human dignity."

Does anyone recognize this picture of Pakistan?

(almost) Hundred year old copy of Maulana Muhammad Ali’s translation of the Quran found in belongings of Englishman, who may have been British soldier of First World War

Please see this link on website of the Surrey History Centre in UK. The page is actually about Muslim soldier Mahrup Shah, who died in September 1915 and whose grave is in Brookwood cemetery, near Woking. Some material relating to him was purchased at an auction by Mr Kevin Smith of Woking, a keen military enthusiast. Along with that material, but obviously not belonging to this Muslim soldier (since he died in 1915), was found a copy of the 1917, first edition of Maulana Muhammad Ali's English translation of the Quran, belonging to an Englishman whose name is inscribed in it (B.W. Addison).

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf has Different Strokes for Different Folks

Submitted by Rashid Jahangiri

In a blog article ‘The Source of Muslim Extremism’ in The Huffington Post by Dr. Mike Ghouse, published July 11, 2016, he writes:

Contemporary Muslim scholar Hamza Yusuf writes, “This insidious disease has a source, and that source must be identified, so we can begin to inoculate our communities against it.”

Shaykh Hamza Yusuf co-founded liberal arts Zaytuna College: http://www.zaytuna.edu

His bio on faculty pages says:

“Hamza Yusuf is a president, cofounder, and senior faculty member of Zaytuna College. He is an advisor to Stanford University’s Program in Islamic Studies and the Center for Islamic Studies at Berkeley’s Graduate Theological Union. He also serves as a member of the board of advisors of George Russell’s One Nation, a national philanthropic initiative that promotes pluralism and inclusion in America. In addition, he serves as vice-president for the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies, which was founded and is currently presided over by Shaykh Abdallah bin Bayyah, one of the top jurists and masters of Islamic sciences in the world.”

See: https://www.zaytuna.edu/academics/faculty/

It is in my knowledge that in early 1990s Hamza Yusuf, after “testing the waters” with Professor Dr. Hibbatul Mannan Omar AKA Dr. Khalid Omar (son of Abdul Mannan Omar), highly praised Maulana Muhammad Ali English translation and Commentary of Holy Quran. Around half a dozen years ago I mentioned this to a former Quadiani, who was student of Hamza Yusuf in San Francisco Bay Area, on internet. Sometime later Hamza Yusuf was put on spot where he expressed somewhat appreciation of Maulana Muhammad Ali scholarly works. Recording of this came to public knowledge in a YouTube video. Dr. Zahid Aziz gave Eid Khutba (sermon) and quoted words of appreciation by Hamza Yusuf, see pages 4 – 5 of this link.

Eid Khutba by Dr. Zahid Aziz came into knowledge of opponents of Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement. They built pressure on Hamza Yusuf. He wrote a long article to dispel the impression that he considers Maulana Muhammad Ali as a Muslim. See: "Sticks and Drones May Break Our Bones, but Fitna Really Hurts Us".

In rebuttal Dr. Zahid Aziz wrote an article: Hamza Yusuf’s retraction of his praise for Maulana Muhammad Ali

On October 31, 2015, APPNA (Association of Pakistani Physicians of North America) winter meeting dinner was held at Fairmont, San Francisco. Hamza Yusuf was key note speaker. I twice met him after the speech. I told him what is wrong with his above mentioned article. I gave him copies of the Eid Khutba by Dr. Zahid Aziz, his own article, and Dr. Zahid Aziz's rebuttal article. I also gave my cover letter. I gave him my private phone number and email address. I requested him to please read the material I gave him and asked him to email me his reply. He promised he will, and during conversation he kept looking at me with a piercing look, perhaps to memorize my face. It has been more than eight months; he did NOT get back to me. Following is portion of text of my cover letter:

Dear brother Hamza Yusuf,

Dear brother, I feel that you have factual errors in your article ‘Sticks and Drones May Break Our Bones, but Fitna Really Hurts Us’. Brother I have full conviction that guidance only comes from Allah SWT, but as a Muslim brother of yours, I feel it is my responsibility ti at the very least point out your factual errors. With this I do my duty.

Brother, please email me your rebuttal of article by Dr. Zahid Aziz. I will forward it to him for posting on his blog. I look forward to your reply. Brother you know better than me, we all will die and we all will be accountable for our oral words, written words, actions and inactions. Ref Holy Quran 33:67, 34:31-38, and 40:47-48.

Brother Hamza you must have read about Mohammad Alexander Russell Webb. He was the first American Muslim convert. He converted to Islam after correspondence with Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the MUJADDID of 14th Islamic century. After his tenure as US ambassador in Philippines, on his way back to USA he visited India. His plan was to meet Hazrat Ahmad in Qadian. Before he could get to Qadian from the port city where his ship anchored, he met many Muslim scholars who advised him against visiting Qadian. They convinced him that as his plan is to propagate Islam in USA and open Isamic Centers etc., so by his visit to Qadian and meeting with Hazrat Ahmad will discourage Muslims in India to financially contribute towards his objective in USA. Anyways, Mr. Webb did not visit Qadian and returned to USA. He did get some funds from Indian Muslims but as history is witness they did not last and he could not fulfill his mission. Later he had regrets of not visiting the reformer of the age in Qadian, and kept contacts with LAM [Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement] elders and even edited book ‘The Teachings of Islam’ which is Hazrat Ahmad’s book translation by Maulana Muhammad Ali. Brother my point is, we humans sometime due to temporal [reasons] and fear of losing popularity stray away from our belief that source of all kinds of strength is Allah SWT. Holy Prophet Muhammad SAWS despite all the odds against him preached and practiced Holy Quran teachings that don’t call Kafir to anyone who says Asaalam Alikum, let alone a Kalima Shahada reciter. By the way one such person who discouraged Mr. Webb from visiting Qadian, himself accepted Hazrat Ahmad as Mujaddid of era and was an elder of LAM.

I wonder how administrations at Stanford University and Berkeley’s Graduate Theological Union will deal with Shaykh Hamza Yusuf when they come to know truth about him and find out he speaks from both sides of his mouth. On one hand he impresses people like Dr. Mike Ghouse and on other hand he endorses extremist ideologies of Pakistani Mullah-Mafia. How he will “inoculate our communities” when in principle he agrees with those ideologies?

Please read the following blog article that exposes Hamza Yusuf modus operandi: Reform In Islam To Come From Within, which says:

The economist has an interesting article on reform in Islam:

http://www.economist.com/blogs/erasmus/2015/01/reforming-islam

I commented as below (buried in 4 pages of comments to this economist article):

"Look, for example, at the personally courageous stance of Hamza Yusuf, an American-born scholar with a wide following in the Islamic heart-land"

Ah where was the courage of Hamza Yusuf when he backtracked and apostasized the Lahori Ahmadis and removed his youtube of half hearted praise.

Courage is exhibited when a scholar upholds principles that can be deeply unpopular at the time.   Hamza Yusuf did not pass this test.

Eid-ul-Fitr Khutba at Lahore Ahmadiyya Centre, London

Here is the Eid-ul-Fitr khutba (sermon), 6th July 2016, by your Blog Admin in London.

Zahid Aziz

Eid-ul-Fitr message by Dr A.K. Saeed, Head of Lahore Ahmadiyya

Please read here the Eid-ul-Fitr message, July 2016, by Dr A.K. Saeed, Head of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement.

And an Eid Mubarak to all our Blog readers and contributors.

Ramadan 2016

Here is the Ramadan Message by Hazrat Ameer Dr A.K. Saeed, Head of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement.

Welcome to the Ramadan Daily Quran Studies for 2016

(Note: Any new posts during Ramadan will be filed below this post.)

Prayers urged on LAM members for Ramadan by Maulana Muhammad Ali: English translation |  Urdu original

• Fast 1 — Significance of fasting
• Fast 2 — Fasting: Developing good qualities
• Fast 3 — Fasting in Religions before Islam
• Fast 4 — The month of Ramadan
• Fast 5 — Fasting: Conclusion
• Fast 6 — The quality of patience
• Fast 7 — More on the quality of patience

• Fast 8 — Women in Islam – 1: Their qualities
• Fast 9 — Women in Islam – 2: Recognized as possessing intelligence
• Fast 10 — Women in Islam – 3: Property rights
• Fast 11 — Women in Islam – 4: Spiritual position
• Fast 12 — Women in Islam – 5: Position in sight of God
• Fast 13 — Women in Islam – 6: Reward for good deeds
• Fast 14 — Women in Islam – 7: Husband and wife

• Fast 15 — Women in Islam – 8: Marriage and treatment of wife
• Fast 16 — Women in Islam – 9: A woman ruler in the Quran
• Fast 17 — Honest Dealing
• Fast 18 — Justice
• Fast 19 — Justice – Truthful evidence
• Fast 20 — Justice – Unbiased judgment, even in favour of enemy
• Fast 21 — Qualities for Leadership – 1

• Fast 22 — Qualities for Leadership – 2
• Fast 23 — Qualities for Leadership – 3: Leaders must be above suspicion
• Fast 24 — Qualities for Leadership – 4: Leaders to be gentle and lenient
• Fast 25 — Quran presents perfect concept of God
• Fast 26 — God: The One beyond all imagination
• Fast 27 — God: The oneness of God — 1
• Fast 28 — The oneness of God — 2
• Fast 29 — The oneness of God — 3. What it gives us
• Fast 30 — The oneness of God — 4. Depth of its meaning

Brief document on how the moon declines towards the end of the lunar month, with photos.

While we Muslims still insist on sighting the new moon by eye to determine if the new moon has appeared, a NASA spacecraft will reach near the planet Jupiter on 4th July. Please see this link.

Jupiter is at present 2000 times further from us than the moon, and man is able to send a spacecraft there with reamrkable accuracy! But we say we need to see the moon by eye.

It is Time for the Mujaddid of the Century. Says Tarif Khalidi.

Submitted by Rashid Jahangiri.

Tarif Khalidi is professor and Islamic scholar at American University of Beirut, Lebanon. Few days ago he gave a speech, in The Near East School of Theology in Beirut.

According to columnist Robert Fisk, of Independent newspaper, UK:

“The speaker was Dr Tarif Khalidi, one of Islam’s foremost scholars and translator of the latest English-language edition of the Koran, whose earlier works on Jesus in Muslim stories match his most recent anthology of Arab literature. The title of his address was an almost frightening world-beater: Does Islam need a Martin Luther?”

“Every 100 years in Islamic history, Khalidi observed, a renewer of faith – a mujaddid – would arise to breathe new life into the religion.”

The magnums scale at which Islam is distorted by Muslims and maligned by its opponents, to fix this problem is only the job and in power of Divine appointee i.e. Mujaddid.  Although Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement is boldly taking this challenge, I think it is punching above its weight. This problem will only be solved by a Mujaddid. With Mamur-min-Allah (Divine appointee) Malaika (angels) come that work like unknown and unseen hands to make work of Divine appointee easier. I pray may Allah SWT send his Divine appointee sooner than later. Ameen.   

Link to the article

Pharaoh and Z.A. Bhutto

"And Pharaoh said: Chiefs, I know no god for you besides myself; so kindle a fire for me, Hāmān, on (bricks of) clay, then prepare for me a lofty building, so that I may obtain knowledge of the God of Moses, and surely I think him a liar." (The Quran, 28:38)

Pharaoh = Z.A. Bhutto.
Chiefs = His ministers
"I know no god for you besides myself" — expresses accurately what he thought about himself.
Hāmān = Yahya Bakhtiar
lofty building = Pakistan National Assembly
Moses = Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
God of Moses = His beliefs

"And he was unjustly proud in the land, he and his armies, and they thought that they would not be brought back to Us. So We caught hold of him and his armies, then We cast them into the sea, and see what was the end of the wrongdoers." (28:39-40)