Islam has often been translated as “submission to God” in various texts. However,
this is a common translation by those who have not any knowledge of the Arabic language. Submission does not always mean that it is voluntary. Thus this translation is not only inappropriate but also inaccurate. This is especially true when trying to express a broad and yet simplistic concept. Arabic is built on root letters. Many words have a root, which contain three or more letters. Sin (س) Laam (ل) and Meem (م) are the root letters in the word Islam and also form the word “salaam.” This is a common word and has the Hebrew equivalent of shalom. Islam is better translated as simply “peace.” Islam was the last of the great monotheistic religions to come out of the Middle East. However, Muslims view Islam as the final prophecy of God and the original authentic teachings of the prophets. From this position, Islam is not considered a new religion to Muslims. It is stated in the Quran that the essence of the ancient scriptures is within the Quran. The Quran is considered the most accurate and authentic word of God among Muslims. That is why it’s known as the final revelation. The Torah and Christian scriptures are considered to be revelations from God. The modern books in the hands of the Christians and Jews, which would include the Torah and New Testament, are thought of as being rewritten by mankind throughout the years and thus not the original words of God.
The Quran remains in classical Arabic and has remained so for over 1400 years. The Quran has been translated into many languages, although, the original Quran remains only in the Arabic language. The Arabic language of the Quran is quite different from conversational Arabic spoken throughout the Arab world. Arabic is related to the Semitic branch of languages, which also includes Hebrew, Aramaic and Ethiopian. Many Arabic words can be traced back to Aramaic and even much older languages such as Akkadian. An amazing aspect of the Quran is the poetic and rhythmic flow of the verses. There are Muslims known as Hafiz whom have memorized the entire Quran by heart. This seems to be a miracle within itself.
Islam has five pillars of faith and all but one are considered obligatory upon the believer. Tawheed is the first pillar and this word has been translated as “oneness” of God. Tawheed is actually the most important article of faith in Islam. The concept of God in Islam is the universally merciful and singularly compassionate creator. God is the all encompassing immaculate. All scientific discoveries and technologies that are discovered are considered to be the blessings of God. There are similarities to the Hebrew God in the sense that the Islamic concept of God is completely invisible without any physical attributes. Muslims consider Islam more of a universal message and Judaism was more a revelation for the Jewish people. To Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and earth and he has power over all things. There is no concept of Allah sharing dominion with a son, father or mother as within Christianity in Islam. The trinity concept is a very foreign and incompatible concept in orthodox Islam. There is only one God and he has not associates. This is the basis of the Islamic faith. God is not considered male or female but androgynous and the word Allah in Arabic even ends in the feminine “h-ه” which is often added to the end of an Arabic word to make it feminine. Though many Muslims refer to Allah as a he as Christians do, some Sufi Muslims have called Allah she in reference. Many names that are attributed to Allah are also feminine in the Arabic language.
It is appropriate to explain the etymology of the word “Allah” so that the reader does not identify the Islamic god as being different from the Christian or Jewish God. First we should elucidate that there is not concept of sympathy for Jesus or even much acknowledgement of him in traditional Judaism. As some Jews say “Jesus and Jews do not mix!” Allah comes from the Aramaic word for god “Allaha.” It is agreed by many Christian, Muslim and Jewish scholars that Jesus spoke Aramaic. Hebrew was only used in the synagogue during the biblical days and was not made a conversational language until the creation of Israel in 1948. Thus the word used for God in the days of the prophets would have been much closer to “allah”, “eloh”, etc than “god” which comes form the German Gott. This should clear up any confusion about Allah being a moon God or a different God from that of the Christians and Jews. Let us compare the word for God below in Arabic, Aramaic and Hebrew:
Allah
Allaha
Elaha
Please refer to “The Name of God” to view right to left fonts on my site. All of these antique languages were without vowels. Therefore, slight differences in pronunciation would be common. Prayer is an important pillar of faith in Islam. It is an obligatory act that is performed five times a day. Shia Muslims often combine their five prayers into three periods of time. There are other types of prayers that are optional and encouraged for a closer connection with God. Muslims make “zikir” with beads, which is a practice similar to the rosary with Catholics. It is a form of meditation and spiritual development. There is also a collection of invocations and prayers that Shia and Sufi say at the shrines of the Imams and holy Saints. This is done for spiritual blessing and as a form of pilgrimage. Sunni Muslims do not participate in this type of practice that is known as “ziarat” and many would consider it blasphemes. Many extremist Sunni or those that call themselves Wahabbie have attacked Shia shrines and killed innocents.
Charity is given to the needy and Islam has always encouraged a society where poverty is abolished. Hoarding and usury are forbidden in Islam. Khums and zakat are words used for charity. There are certain times of the year that this type of charity is performed. If not, Islam is very logical and practical in the way it allows other good deeds to make up for obligatory commandments that cannot be performed. A good example is how feeding the hungry is always encouraged and could be a blessing that holds weight if one cannot perform an obligatory act such as fasting. It’s always encouraged to feed the hungry and give additional charity whenever possible.
Ramadan is a special month in Islam where Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset. Muslims are not allowed to eat, smoke or drink any liquids or have sex during the fast. After sunset, Muslims are allowed to eat and participate in their normal routine. Many Westerners view the fast, which lasts around thirty days as a very uncomfortable and extreme practice. Fasting during Ramadan is not only about going without food but purifying the soul and refraining from bad speech and thoughts. It is considered a time of inner reflection and an opportunity to reconnect with God and seek forgiveness. It also allows one to feel what it is like to be hungry and creates more sympathy for those without food. The Quran is often recited and families visit each other and some of the most delicious foods and desserts are served during Ramadan. It is stated in the Quran that fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you. Many Christians and Jews also have certain times of the year when they will fast.
Hajj is the major pilgrimage in Islam. Hajj is highly encouraged if the Muslim is able to afford it and is healthy for the journey. The Hajj is symbolic of when Muhammad returned to Mecca after being in exile with his followers. This was a great event and is compared to a reference in the Quran when Abraham smashed several idols that were sold in his city. Muhammad entered the Kaba (black square- known as the house of god) and broke all of the idols that were worshipped in Mecca and declared that there was only one God. The Hajj is considered a very spiritual journey for the Muslim. Many Muslims describe it as a feeling so humble and at one with humanity as Muslims from all over the world of every color attend the Hajj in a simple white robe. Shia and Sufi Muslims often visit the shrines of saints for spiritual blessings and as refuge as mentioned beforehand. This is another form of Hajj that is not practiced in Sunni Islam. Shia and Sufi Muslims seek refuge at the shrines of Sufi Saints and the family of Muhammad to seek spiritual evolution and insight. Many Sunni do not understand this and have a radical view that this is idolatry and even say that Shiite Muslims worship the dead and make claims of necromancy.
Some Muslims consider “jihad” a part of the pillars of Islam and some consider it a separate act. Hereafter, leaving the scholarly Islamic disputes behind, it is an important concept and should be explained as it has received a radical and fundamental interpretation in the west. Jihad in Arabic simply means to struggle. The Muslim has an inner jihad in the morning when it is time to wake up and pray, as he would rather sleep. He has to fight with himself to get up and pray. This is a form of jihad. Traditions from Muhammad in what is known as “hadeeth” even state that the inner struggle against the animal instinct is the highest form of jihad. A famous tradition hadeeth reports that once after a battle Muhammad told his companions that they had just completed the minor jihad. The companions asked, “Oh prophet tell us what is the greater jihad?” The prophet of Islam quoted, “it is the struggle with yourself.” Your greatest enemy is your own self and it will be your greatest battle.
The concept of jihad as in holy war, which is the only interpretation most westerners have of the word jihad, has some validity. The physical battle or to wage jihad in Islam has always been for defensive means and not offensive. Contrary to what most non-Muslims might think Islam does not condone tyranny, terrorism, suicide bombing, or converting others by force to Islam. It is even stated in the Quran that there is no compulsion in religion. Islam states that if one tries to harm you or your family such as in an occupation or criminal activity one has the right to defend his or herself. This is another form of jihad. Because of the massive funding and support from hidden hands Arab extremists groups gain massive financial and military support from the west and Saudi Arabia. The west only sees the holy war concept of jihad.
Islam has two major denominations known as the Sunni and Shiites. There are other sects that have come out of the Sunni and Shia branches of Islam. The schism was born during the passing of Muhammad. Imam Ali is considered the first Imam in the Shia school of thought and Ali bin Talib (Imam Ali) was the first convert to Islam, he was Muhammad’s first cousin, and was raised by Muhammad as a young boy. He was later the husband of Muhammad’s daughter Fatemeh. The Shia Muslims follow twelve Imams and these Imams are even mentioned in the bible as twelve princes and in some translations as chiefs. Genesis 17:20 But as regards to Ishmael I have heard you. Look! I will bless him and will make him fruitful and will multiply him very, very much. He will certainly produce 12 princes, and I will make him become a great nation. Only the twelve grandchildren of Muhammad could fit this description throughout history. The Shia believe Islam is best approached through the family of Muhammad and the grandchildren of Imam Ali and Muhammad’s daughter Fatemeh. They are known as the 12 Imams as Jesus had twelve disciples.
The Sunni make up the majority of Muslims and they chose to follow the father-n-law of Muhammad known as Abu Bakr and the other Sunni caliphs, which were imperialistic and elitist. Shia and Sunni Muslims share many beliefs when dealing with the basic doctrines of Islam such as the five pillars. However, most Sunni do not have knowledge of the imams (grandchildren of Muhammad) and consider Shia Islam as a sect, and feel that Sunni Islam is the true Orthodox Islam. We will concentrate on the Shia interpretation of Islam and their practices, for the west has mostly been taught the Sunni view of Islam. With the rise of the Sunni caliphs after Muhammad’s death, the Shia Imams were treated as criminals and often placed on house arrest throughout the Sunni reign. Sunni leaders were always scared the Shia would revolt against them and thus persecuted many Shia and Sufi Muslims. This was especially true of the family of Muhammad. In fact all Shia that follow the 12 imams believe that they were all “shaheed” meaning martyred. The sword killed some; thereafter, the Sunni caliphs through deception poisoned the majority.
The Sufi branch of Islam developed as with many mystical movements in monotheism such as Christianity and Judaism. It was the response to have a direct connection with God and to oppose dogmatic and rigid doctrines. Secret knowledge, tolerance and open mindedness blossomed within their teachings. Sufi and Shia Muslims share more in common with Christianity and Eastern philosophies. Forgiveness and compassion are strong themes. The Sufi and Shia both visit the shrines of Saints and many Christians in the Middle East perform this practice. In Shiite Persia the tombs of family members are washed with rose water as prayers are made for the deceased. Some say Sufi comes from the Arabic word for wool and the Sufi wore cloaks made of simple wool. I imagine the word to be more associated with Sophia the Goddess of Wisdom and “Sefer” a Hebrew and Palestinian Arabic word meaning “book.” These are the traveling souls whom seek of male and female equilibrium or the positive and negative within. They are the lovers of knowledge and wisdom.
The Shia and Sufi share the ancient Aryan hero epic as within old Indo-Iranian and Aryan tales. The tale of the all universal all suffering savior is felt. Some Quotes from Sufi and Shia Muslims as well as compassionate verses in the Quran should be considered:
“Say: If you love Allah, then follow me, Allah will love you and forgive you your faults, and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” Al Imran 3:31”
“All the prophets of Allah were liberal.” Imam Jaffar As Saddi
“One who dies of love unrequited in this life shall die a martyr and shall be thus compensated. The Bektashi Sufi
The Illustrious Imam Ali said, “If man aspires to an everlasting state he should melt his own self for the sake of God’s love.” Imam Ali
“He who knows himself, knows his Lord.” Prophet Muhammad
I looked everywhere in vain to find the True God: I searched around and did not know I had him in my own heart. The famed Albanian poet Naim Frasheri-
“My heavens and my earth cannot confine me, but I can be contained within the heart of my faithful servant.” Bektashi Source-
The Best from of Worship is to contemplate about God and his Power. Imam al-Sadiq-
“And Jesus shall be a sign for the coming of the hour of Judgement. Therefore have no doubt about the hour. When Jesus came with clear signs, he said “Now I have come to you with wisdom, therefore fear Allah (God) and obey me, for Allah, he is my Lord and your Lord so worship him, for this is the straight path.” The Quran Surah 43
Commentary regarding Islamic prayer:
Psalm 95:6 O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Matthew 26:36-39 The cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gesthemane, and saith unto his disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder. 37 And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be very sorrowful and heavy. 38 Then saith he unto them, my soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me. 39 And he went a little father, fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as Thou Wilt.
Many Christians would not be aware of the high honor that is placed on Jesus and
Mother Mary in Islam. For example, Jesus is mentioned 93 times in the Quran and an
entire chapter is in the Quran titled “Maryam” which means Mary in Arabic. Muslims
believe in the virgin birth of Jesus, the miracles of Jesus and that he will appear again
toward the last days. Early Sufi movements that arose out of Persia, Turkey, Albania and
former Soviet countries had many similarities with Christians. Some Sufi sects that grew
out of Islam even believed in the crucifixion of Jesus. The Shiite Muslims identify with
the concept of a suffering savior as Christians. He is known as the third Imam and
given the honorable title “Prince of Martyrs.” His name was Hussein. Imam Hussein (the
grandson of Muhammad) was brutally killed along with family members and comrades in
the Iraqi deserts of Karbala around October 10, 1680. This was considered a great
sacrifice in the eyes of Shia Muslims and was what saved Islam. Every year the Shiite
Muslims commemorate this tragedy on the 10th of Ashorah and it has great similarities
with the Christian passion plays in Europe. The tragedy is reborn and people become
very sad and mourn. Sometimes fake blood is used and in countries like Iran and Iraq the
streets will be full of those that mourn for Imam Hussein. Ashora was originally Yom
Kippur for the Jews as well. However, the Jews modified their lunar calendar to coincide
with the western calendar. The Islamic calendar is one hundred percent lunar, and this is
the only known lunar calendar that is not modified in some way.
During the mourning of Ashora, which is the day of the tragic event of Karbala,
Armenian Christians even attend Shiite-mourning events and identify with this ancient
concept of a suffering savior. Shiite and Sufi Muslims share a history similar to
Protestants in many ways in the fact that the Sunni Empire had corrupted Islam and the
spiritual personal approach to religion just as the Catholic Church had. Many of the early
Shiite and Sufi Muslims were martyrs like many early Protestants. Even in India many
non-Muslims participate in the mourning of Ashora.
Ziarat was mentioned much earlier and described as invocation by shrines of
Saints and the Imams whom were the grandchildren of Muhammad. This is a very
antique practice that was practiced in similar ways in ancient Babylon and Egypt. The
chest beating (smiting of the chest) during mourning in Shiite Islam also has many
ancient origins. It is mentioned in “The Lost Books of Eden.” 5:2 And as they
prayed, Adam raised his eyes, and saw the rock and the roof of the cave that covered him
overhead, so that he could see neither heaven, nor God’s creatures. So he wept and
smote heavily upon his breast, until he dropped, and was as dead.
To explain the reasoning for extremism in any religion could take pages if not a
good book. However, we will explore alternative news and facts about some of the
reasons for extremism in Islam. Islam has received worldwide attention since 9-11 and
many have been exposed to a side of Islam that is foreign to Shia as well as Sunni
Muslims. As mentioned, it’s not possible to exhaust this topic. Although, some important
information should be addressed to help the reader continue his or her studies in this
subject. Arabs do not make the majority of Muslims as some may think. Indonesia,
Malaysia and India have Muslim populations that over-exhaust many Arab countries.
Extremism in Islam has roots in the desire for emancipation of western-secular
influences and was in many ways a fight against the occupation of countries like England, France, Israel and the USA. These countries have for years tempted to dictate the affairs within the governments of countries that have Muslim majorities. France has occupied Senegal, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and other parts of North and West Africa. England has colonized in Egypt and India and recently we have seen the US and England occupy Iraq and Afghanistan. Israel remains in Palestine.
Many Palestinian, Syrian and Lebanese Arabs live in Palestine or within the boarders of the occupying illegal state of Israel. They are in a perpetual state of desperation. Arabs see their families shot, raped, and tortured, their homes bulldozed over, and the most horrific nightmares by Israeli troops and settlers. The US has a history of installing puppet governments in the Middle East as with Saddam in Iraq and the Shah of Iran before the Iranian Revolution. To understand extremism in Islam, one must consider how western meddling in predominantly Muslim countries has backfired. It is accurate to say that Western society is considered to be very secular by Muslims both Shia and Sunni. Alcohol, strip clubs, gambling, prostitution, public nudeness and other common activities in the west are forbidden in Islam. When they do occur they will surely not be in public domain. To conceal rather than reveal is an Islamic principal. Muslims view the west as trying to secularize their strong morals in modesty, stable families and conservative societies. Muslims fear that Western ways are completely at odds with Islamic teachings. Muslims feel that if these practices have to take place, they should be hidden and in private. The question is why should their kids and most loved ones be subjected and forced to learn about these practices in schools and in public as in the West?
Saudi Arabia is a country that has funded Islamic extremism for years and the USA has military bases in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and has given them money and weapons numerous times. Much of this support is transferred into the hands of Arab, Pakistani and Afghani extremists. It is interesting to note that Saudi Arabia was not always known as such. In the time of Muhammad, it was the Arabian Peninsula. It was the great bridge to Africa and Asia. Saud is the name of a wealthy family and once they were able to consolidate power in Arabia, it was then known as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Abdul Whab was a Turkish Jew that received funding from the UK to help establish a new form of extremist Islam that would help create division and tear Islam apart from the inside out. It was in Arabia with support of the family of Saud whom also have Jewish origins that this movement grew into what we now know as Whabbie or the Al Salafee extremists branch of Islam. The CIA has supported and trained Mujadeen (Taliban fighters) as early as the war between Russia and Afghanistan.
In conclusion Islam sees itself in relation to Christianity more so than Judaism especially when movements such as Zionism are concerned. Many Arab Christian communities are suffering in the Middle East just as Arab Muslims are because of war and occupations. A long-term plan for peace relies on massive grass root movements, good independent journalism and the desire to truly learn and evolve from the brainwashing of contemporary mass media sources. Christians and Jews have to understand the atrocities that are being inflicted on innocents not only in Israel but also in Iraq and Afghanistan and the greater Muslim world. Muslims have to avoid extremist ideologies and understand that violence is not the answer; although, many Muslims feel that this is the only way Western and Jewish-Zionist forces will listen and correct themselves. The extremism in Islam is also generated out of fanatic pro-Arab peoples with little education. Groups and organizations that claim they fight extremism and terrorism fund these same extremist movements. It is the similitude of the Russian dolls. Once you open one doll there is another and then another. The corruption of it all is nested and encapsulated. Love is truly the answer. That is love under divine will.
