h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: FAQ about Islam - A2244502
Author: Muzaakboy - Better than the right thing is one who does it - U208494

Any thing wrong with this?

Looks interesting

A few points though:

The first header doesn't need to be there - the title forms the first header.

You say 'where was the prophet buried?' and then 'as was the practice of all prophets' - you need to say which prophet you are talking about in the question.

'Do Muslims believe all Christians will go to Hell? Muslims do not decide who goes to Hell or to Paradise. It is only Allah who does this, depending on whether or not people accept His message of guidance sent through his messengers.' - this doesn't answer the question of whether Muslims believe Christians go to hell, it just says Muslims don't choose whether they do or not.

'How do you see traditional law v Islamic law i.e. Turkey v Saudi Arabia? (Differences in dress code)' - is difference in dress code the only difference? If not, why do you mention it?

'tayammum (dry ablution) instead of wudu' - what are tayammum and wudu?

You talk about the Ka’bah, and Ramadhan, along with other terms, but don't say what they are.

Ok sorry, but:

'Do Muslims believe all Christians will go to Hell? Muslims do not decide who goes to Hell or to Paradise. It is only Allah who does this, depending on whether or not people accept His message of guidance sent through his messengers.' - this doesn't answer the question of whether Muslims believe Christians go to hell, it just says Muslims don't choose whether they do or not.'

This is actually correct as what I was saying is that Muslims do not know who is going to hell or not and only God knows who is.

Adib

There that should sort those.
But you know where you say about the differences in shar'ia its not only the dress code that is different. It is just an example of one of the differences.

Oh, OK

No worries, my own fault though as in my stupidity I did not put for example before putting the dress code bit in.

Adib

"the atheist observed that a lion had been to the farm. The farmer said that he did not believe, as he could not see any tiger"

Is it a lion or a tiger?

Errrrr ok you got me!

I don't really ike that story any way its just some thing I remember being told a while ago. I will chane it to a tiger. Thanks

Adib

Ok its all changed.

Adib

Great! Except...

A few things grate, here.

1. The discussion of evolution. You're really wasting your time and the readers' trying to defend the Creationist stance of Islam. All the reader really needs to know is that Muslims are Creationists. The arguments for and against creationism are something separate that you could address in another entry.

2. Why do birds fly??? I find it hard to believe that this is a "frequently asked question" about Islam. It seems a complete non-sequitur. Unless that question has some significance I'm not aware of, in which case, could you include an explanation?

3. The discussion of the existence of god. Much the same objection as the discussion of evolution. In a FAQ about Islam, it is surely enough to explain the characteristics of the god you believe in. It's a given, isn't it, that you think he exists?

On that subject, you do not, in fact, describe your god. Is he omniscient, omnipresent and omnipotent? Is he male? Did he create himself, was he created by some other entity, is he eternal? Is there a Satan figure in Islam? Who created him? etc.

I think you've left out some pertinent questions and answers.

Examples: (these are my questions only):

Do all Muslims speak Arabic?
Is it forbidden to translate the Koran?
Is it Koran, Q'uran, or what is it, and why the various spellings?
If prayer is a direct conversation with god and intermediaries are bad, what is the role of the Imam?
What is an Ayatollah?
What is a fatwa?
What is the meaning and aim of jihad?
Is it true that it is the duty of any Muslim living in a non-Muslim country to work towards the overthrow of the government and its replacement with a Muslim one?
Which countries of the world are primarily Muslim?

These are all questions I'd like to see answered. This entry is already good, I hope you agree that my suggestions could make it better.

Well I have answered some of them questions you asked.

As for the bird one its a wierd story ok.

I am the Islamic expereince exhibition co ordinater of Birmingham and on the science and Islam part we read this book with birds in to the young children of say 4 to 8 and we always get asked at least once why birds fly.

I agree with a lot of your comments.

Adib

I have left the Evo bit as it is in agreement with evolution, I just took of the end bit that was not really needed.

And I have left the belief one as it is some thing I get asked all the time.

Adib

Let me answer some of your qouestions ( i am an ortodoxs i guess but i think i am closer to ortodox-budhist i am tolerant) i have a lot of muslim friends and i am interested in subject also) so hear it from independent person.well things that i know....
Not all of muslims speak arabic(turks are not arabs also not are iran ppl) but things are not clear there couse islam IS primary arabic religion, something like judes(if i dont spell it right dont think i mean evil it is just english is not mine primary lenguage)
Imam teach,
Ayatollah is spiritual leader
fatwa is word given to do something.Then we get to interested question. Jihad. Fundamentalists will say that jihad is holy war against infidels(that mean all non muslims) and not only fndamentalists will say you that, but the other part will say that jihad is every day struggle with your iner self to be better person so that is interesting diference is small but big at same time just like beetwen freedom fighters and terrorists.
Yes every fndamentalist will say that duty of an muslim is to overthrow governmant and replace it with muslim one and you realy can find that part in Koran. it from independent person.well things that i know....
Not all of muslims speak arabic(turks are not arabs also not are iran ppl) but things are not clear there couse islam IS primary arabic religion, something like judes(if i dont spell it right dont think i mean evil it is just english is not mine primary lenguage)
Imam teach,
Ayatollah is spiritual leader
fatwa is word given to do something.Then we get to interested question. Jihad. Fundamentalists will say that jihad is holy war against infidels(that mean all non muslims) and not only fndamentalists will say you that, but the other part will say that jihad is every day struggle with your iner self to be better person so that is interesting diference is small but big at same time just like beetwen freedom fighters and terrorists.
Yes every fndamentalist will say that duty of an muslim is to overthrow governmant and replace it with muslim one and you realy can find that part in Koran.
About countries that was first take islam look on map and you will see...what are the hard core muslim countries.well dhey did(not hole truth but close inough).
Well if i miss sometrhing or make some error plese notify me and tell me.i dont want to dont now something about it....

'What is inside the Ka’bah(The black structure in Mekkah God)?

Nothing'

So what's that meteorite doing embedded in the corner of it?

Can you give me the reference from the Quran for the over throwing the goverment part, as I don't know any thing about it.

I'm sure that what ever ayaat your talking about is taken out of concept, I have spoken to the brothers I work with and they all agree with me, and I do work for a Islamic company promoting Islam.

If you are living in acountry where they stop you from worshiping you are told to leave that country, be realistic how can you over through the goverment.

Ok you got me there.

There is a black stone in the eastern corner, there is also wooden supports for the roof.

What I ment there was nothing religiously inportant inside of it.

Also Kabah actually derives from the Arabic term for a cube.

Adib

As salaam alaikum brother/sister supernaut007

Ok regarding your statement about over throwing the government as an obligation on all Muslims I would like to point out a few references for you.

First of all have you heard of Shiek Ahmad Deedat in the video Deedat speaks on Rushdie he says that if a country is worth living in it is worth dying for.
What is meant by this is that if a country is not stopping you from practising your faith and they come under attack from a enemy then you should help defend them and if you in a country where you are stopped from practising your deen then you have no right to be there and you should leave it.

He goes on to say that in the Qur’an Allah says that he has made the world as a vast expanse and so if we can not practice some where we should hijrah to some where we can practice.

Also in a book called British Muslim, loyalty and belonging edited by Mohammad Siddique Seddon, Dilwar Hussain and Nadeem Malik it says and I quote:

The Muslim migrant community in Abyssinia was not inward looking for there was trust with the wider community. The Muslim community in Abyssinia was also loyal to its ruler (Negus) and recognised him as their sovereign. This is proved by the fact that the prophet addressed him as Najashi Azim al-Habashah, 'Negus the stately(great) ruler of Abyssinia'. There was no problem for the Muslims in recognising his authority.
There was also a concerted expression of loyalty by the Muslim community to the king of Abyssinia. This is confirmed by Tariq Ramadan when he states:

The Muslims thus lived in a non-Islamic environment under the authority of a leader they respected for he was fair, trustworthy and generous. Umm Salamah, who lived in Abyssinia for several years within the small group of Muslim immigrants, explained later how they had appreciated this ruler and how they had hoped that his army, although he and his people were not Muslim, would defeat its enemies.’

Page 31.

So you can see if the country is not stopping you from practising then you should stay there and live under its rules, if it stops you from practising you should leave.

I hope this is of some help.

Va alaikum salaam
Adib

I've still got a few niggles with this.

1. "the Darwinian proposition that the universe came in to existence not by an act of creation but through evolution"

Darwin proposed nothing about the beginning of the universe. There is nothing Darwinian AT ALL about the big bang theory, and to suggest there is merely shows ignorance of what "Darwinian" means. Science has never suggested that the universe came into being by any process even slightly resembling evolution. Please either correct or remove this egregious fallacy.

2. "for example that human beings evolved from apes, then no. Muslim’s reject this completely."

As I pointed out before, it is enough merely to say that Muslims are Creationists. You don't need to reinforce the impression of ignorance and rejection of science by spelling it out. I think it really would be better for the entry to keep discussion of this subject to an absolute minimum.

3. "there is a lack of expressiveness in the English language compared to Arabic"

This is merely hilarious. To dismiss the language of Shakespeare thus smacks of the kind of ignorant cultural arrogance with which Muslims may be, perhaps unfairly, stereotyped. There's no need to perpetuate the stereotype with this pointless and highly offensive value judgement.

4. "there are many countries in the world that are primarily Muslim like Saudi Arabia, Yeman, Iran, Iraq etc "

Surprisingly, you fail to mention the largest Muslim country in the world - Indonesia. Also, is not Saudi Arabia a "proper" Muslim state? It seems to describe itself as such.

Finally, in the section explaining about Muslims duty or otherwise to overthrow the government of a non-Muslim country, if as you contend this is untrue, it might be worth addressing the question of why this is a commonly held view. Where does this impression come from? I've forgotten where I heard it first, but I've heard it more than once...

I'm sorry to tell you this, but I am a White guy, I have lived in England all my life. I did Shakespeare at school and I know what your saying. But the truth is that English is not as expressive as Arabic and that is the honest truth. If you pick up a copy of the Qur'an and read it in English you will see at the bottom of the page you will find loads of footnotes on what it is actually saying and meaning, which are not in the Qur'anic version.
This is because the words it uses actually explain every thing while the closest you can get in English can only give a rough idea.

I am not saying English is a poor language or a no good one, it is just the plain simple truth that Arabic is more expressive, it’s the same for French, German and what ever. Not even Urdu is as expressive.


<<<"there are many countries in the world that are primarily Muslim like Saudi Arabia, Yeman, Iran, Iraq etc "

Surprisingly, you fail to mention the largest Muslim country in the world - Indonesia. Also, is not Saudi Arabia a "proper" Muslim state? It seems to describe itself as such.

Finally, in the section explaining about Muslims duty or otherwise to overthrow the government of a non-Muslim country, if as you contend this is untrue, it might be worth addressing the question of why this is a commonly held view. Where does this impression come from? I've forgotten where I heard it first, but I've heard it more than once...>>>

Well I will add Indonesia if it makes you happy.
As For the Saudi think, its says it is a proper Islamic state along with a load of countries, but they all have mixed culture with Islamic and so it is not.

I to have no idea where the misconception of Muslims having to over throw the government comes from either.

Was it the Media?

Adib

I have taken out the bits you don't like, but what is left of that question is not going to course a debate as it is mainly in agreement with modern ideas accept where I say we believe in creation.

This question has to be included other wise I am just going to get asked it anyway.

Adib