Conspiracy

Conspiracies

The Diana Conspiracies (1st posted MySpace 26/10/07)

10 years after the untimely death of Princess Di and the British public are finally getting to hear certain facts that have always been dismissed as false rumour by the establishment.

The funny thing about the nature of the relationship between the establishment and conspiracy theories is that whilst the establishment always brands conspiracy theories and their proponents as irrational, their treatment of them is far from rational.

Rational or Irrational Methodology?

After 7/7 the media representative of the MCB (Muslim Council of Britain) whilst on the one hand talking of engaging Muslims in dialogue, sought to mock the very real majority of the Muslims who believed in a Conspiracy. He said, in all seriousness (and in complete mockery), that British Muslims should stop blaming the French for 7/7, just because Britain had just beaten France at being nominated to host the 2012 Olympics.

Likewise I have read in a periodical devoted to the thinking classes (either the Spectator or the News Statesman) an article written, once again in all seriousness, of conspiracy theorists who claim that the 9/11 planes were not really planes, but missiles made to look like planes by having holographic images superimposed on them.

Of course conspiracy theories come in all shapes and sizes, from the plain ridiculous to the uncomfortably plausible. 

And yet the establishment, at every turn, seeks to disprove and ridicule the whole of that wide spectrum, by not taking the best example of it, but by taking the worst.

And that is irrational!

It is an unspoken rule of the adversarial nature of debating that, when you argue against a point, you should always argue to the best example that your opposition has to offer. 

And this should especially be so when the opposition do not have the opportunity to present their case.

Such treatment does little to answer credible conspiracy theories.

And there are credible theories! 

Mostly, all you have to do is to read the press with a view to ironing out conflicting testimony. That is to THINK!

7-7.....

With 7/7 all you had to do was to take the testimony of Christophe Chaboud at face value, and everything else would fall into place neat as a jigsaw puzzle.

He was head of The French Anti-Terrorism Coordination Unit and one of five senior officials sent by the French government to London immediately after the attacks. 

He reported in Le Monde on the days following the attack, and spoke of military grade explosives, lower limb trauma and hinted that the perpetrators were known to the authorities.

That is as opposed to home made fertilizer explosives, upper body trauma (consistent with back-packs) and aHUNT!

Of course he later retracted his statements, which only added to their poignancy.

Taking his statement as the cornerstone of any theory, one could build a very plausible narrative of events which could just as easily fit what we know, as the narrative produced later by the government, but with drastically different conclusions.

That our government will not cave in to the very real need for a public enquiry into 7/7 only adds credibility to any and all conspiracies.

A Conspiracy to kill the People's Princess?

As for Princess Di, and Dodi Fayed, the attention of the inquest this week shifted from the testimony of observers to the behaviour of the paperazi, with a view to once again blaming them.

1) Last week we were told that....Princess Di was poised to make a very important celebratory announcement. The media who were privvy to this assumed it to be either her pregnancy or imminent marriage.

2) There was a black car, evidently, jostling with her car as they entered the tunnel at high speeds. This was seen by members of the public as the cars entered the tunnel. These people also mentioned 2 distinct types of sounds as if the cars collided before the crash.

3) A driver of a car towards the front of the Tunnel testified that he did also saw a black car. And that he saw a blinding flash in the tunnel. And that after the crash a motorcycle carrying a passenger, which was in front of Diana's car, stopped. 

One man got off, looked inside, remounted and they sped off away. The way the flash was described was more akin to the blinding flashes that the military use to stun, than to flash photography.

4) Another man was woken up by the noise of crash, went to his window and saw two cars exiting from the tunnel at high speed. A black car exited and appeared to be being shielded by a white car. They went hurtling around a corner bumper to bumper, the white car behind the black car.

The focus of the inquest may have turned toward the Papparazi. However, I for one do not think the Papparazi capable of driving with such skill!

"Unexplainable FACTS?"

It will probably be 10 or so more years before more unexplainable facts emerge out of both the 9/11 and the 7/7 quagmires. 

Unexplainable, of course, by the "established" fact of what actually happened.

However, even now explainable by majority us (British, American and Citizens of the World) who believe that there are things that we are not being told. 

More for the good of the powers that be, than for our own good.

XXX

Do Muslims Love to Hate?

Do Muslims have a Hate Gene?
(originally published MySpace 4/11/07)

Most anyone could believe that Muslims are born with a HATE gene. Such a theory could easily explain much of what our Politicians and Media tells us. However this theory belies the fact that most Muslims are the happiest people.

The Evidence.No matter wherever you go in the World from Sub-Saharan Africa to Timbuktu, you will find that Muslims are both happy and generous with their food and company.

The Reason.
This fact is borne of a ritual and habit that makes a Muslim, the five times daily prayers. The first vocalization of this, following God is Great and the start of Prayer, is "Hamd" Praise/Thanks be to God.

This forces you to find something to be grateful for, irrespective of your circumstance, five times daily. Whether you are in Abu Gharib Prison without cause or reason, or left destitute without home or family in Palestine, it is this "hamd" that forces you to remember what you have, and be grateful and happy for it.

The first Command.
This phenomenon of happiness was the first command issued to the Prophet Muhammad (saw) to make people happy, by reminding the orphan, the destitute and poor of Gods mercy and favour upon them (S. Ad-Duha). And if you can make them happy, then most anyone can be made happy except the ungrateful and the arrogant.

Strength!
And it is this happiness that is the strength of the Muslims, because you cannot break a man unless you make him despair.

Even in these desperate times when the Palestinian People have suffered 37 years of crimes and terrorism that is the Israeli occupation, and the Iraqi People have suffered similarly under the Wests one time ally, Saddam Hussein, and still continue to suffer under American and British Occupation, Muslims have not been broken and cannot be broken.

This because of the thankfulness that is the body and soul of their religion. Even when they have nothing else to give other than their lives, it is their religion that decrees that they go in the hope that God will accept their offering. Despair may be the cause but it is their Islam that ensure that they leave this life in the hope of meeting God in happiness.

Thus it is that Muslims are to todays Machiavellian Politics, employed by todays World Powers, a nightmare. They will never go away and they can never be conquered.

The strength of Islam lies in it being contrary to hate and on it beings based upon thankfulness and happiness.

No Hate, but not LOVE!
However, unlike Christianity, Islam is not about love but about obedience to God and acting on the things that He values and loves being Truth and Justice, but not vengeance.

Vengeance!
It is true that some Muslims do seek redress by vengeance and use Islam as a means of doing so.

But pity these, whoose religion showed the World freedom of conscience and generosity unprecedented. In that their Muslim forbears withheld nothing of what they knew, and sought to educate without regard for gain. For they knew that knowledge belongs to no man, and calls none master, save God alone. And it is the same for Islam, it belongs to no man and yet some of us are privileged to be called Muslim.

Shafee...Sweet and Simple!

PS. I do not normally do Dawa, for me the concern is changing perceptions and seeking true words.

There were TEN Heads in a Row.. Tra-la-laa-la-laa

10-Heads in a Row (tralala...)

A friend of mine, Pesh by name, recently asked me the following question:

"If a man throws a coin 10 times and it comes up heads each time. What can you say about the next throw?''

Depending on you level of education your response should be 1 of 3.

However the standard answer is often non-intuitive. The people who give it often do not feel comfortable giving it. They often answer so, because they have been taught to say so. And it is this that makes this an interesting question.

If you know a child ask them too, see what their response is and ask them why?

SimplicityIf they have no understanding of probability but a real experience of tossing coins, they probably would exclude the information and rely on their experience and say either heads or tails.

Some EducationIf they have some rudimentory knowledge of probability theory and how it's taught in schools, they'd probably say TAILS. Because in School you're taught to look at the average, long term, ratio of events.

Highly EDUCATED
Still more education.... Gives people like you and me who give the "correct" answer of it being 50:50, an either-or with an equal chance. But even though you've been educated to say that answer... Doesn't it feel wrong! It's not intuitive, is it? And don't you feel uncomfortable saying so?

We say it because of course the coin has got no MEMORY of what it did on the previous other 10 throws.

So why doesn't it feel right?
Is it because we are too much ingrained with the traditional concept of probability as a measure of long-term ratios?
Or is there some deeper significance?

A Deeper Significance?You see there is another school of statistics and probability theory that is called Bayesian. Bayesians say that probability measures not some objective number (a platonic ratio) but a state of belief or unbelief. Where 1 and 0 are states of certainty, and all in between are varying states of uncertainty. They use a theorem (suprisingly called Bayes Theorem) to update their beliefs (probabilities) based on the occurrence or non-occurrence of events. The relative significance of events for the belief or non-belief is given by a ratio... Known as the likelihood ratio.

Whereas the traditional school doesn't have the power to question beliefs unless you formally construct a hypothesis and an alternate hypothesis, Bayesians are given over to questionin their beliefs of things. Traditionally you have to formally construct alternate hypotheses and then both design and carry out an experiment. Granted you can then measure your confidence in your decision. But what a bolava... A 3 step process... Which only allows you to do so after you've formally considered that you might just be holding an ereonous belief.

The POWER of Questions!Once again we've come to a traditional point in my thought..."The power of questions!

"The traditional question is "What can you say about what happens next?"
The Bayesian question is "What can the 10 heads in a row tell you about the nature of things (in this instance being the coin)?"

I believe that the latter question is far more important... powerful than the former!

What's the likelihood of getting 10 Heads in a row with an un-biased coin?
Answer =1/(2^10)... Not very likely is it?

Questioning your beliefs yet?

I didn't cheat as so many traditionalists would have you believe.I never said that I was tossing a traditional coin... Of course with me being who I am... I was tossing a Bayesian's "Head-Head" coin... Just to make a point!

What's the point?

Well if you're into probs and stats... Then I believe that Bayesian Theory is a hell of a lot more powerful than traditional theory.

And if you're not.... Then Questions are a lot more powerful than answers.

But just make sure that they are real questions... Not I told you so ones?

One last Powerful Question!Last but by no means least.... I'd like to ask just one more tiddily lil question, and that is: What's the likelihood of a man announcing to the World, some 1400 years ago, that the Sun has a term fixed?

Yes, you can say that there have been many doomsday predictors throughout the centuries. When they saw the eclipse of the Sun, they said the end of the World was nigh because of the Sins of Man.

This man said something similar but profoundly different, he said that the Sun had a fixed term... that the sun would expire after a fixed period of time.

And then he told us of waters boiling, of mountains vanishing, of the earth convulsing (to it's very core) and of the stars falling...And on the Day of Reckoning, the Sun would be 1 mile above the Earth. And people will be called forth from their graves...

Ask any cosmologist what would happen when the Sun's power gives out....

Would it not implode and then explode into a SuperNova....
Would not the seas burn and boil....
Woul not the sky become red like ointment....
Would not the stars fall....

In the 1920s Einstein witnessed the phenomenon that verified his general theory, and that explains the stars falling! The phenomena was a gravitational lens that bends light, and when the Sun explodes the stars we see in the heavens will fall. But not to the ground, but to the Horizon!

That man was Muhammad (saw) who taught that God was ONE and of the coming Day of Decision...
the Day of Sorting!

May Allah t'ala reward him exceptionally, magnanimously and increasingly!

P.S. The above is my interpretation only... And people are subject to limitations and errors..!

The Torah (Taurat) and The Qur'an (Koran), a comparison

Subject : The POWER of Questions!

Posted Date: : 03 Nov 2007, 13:53 (1st posted MySpace)

The Power of Questions

Some Questions?
There is one thing that all three of the great monotheistic religions can agree upon. And that is that the Children of Israel rejected and denied Jesus (as). But there the agreement both begins and ends.

The Jews denied him, the Christians believed in him and deified him, and the Muslims coming some 600years later affirmed the truth of his Prophethood.

However, his denial by the Children of Israel should be a source of confusion for both us and the Christians. 

That confusion bears of the fact that both of us believe the Children of Israel to be the possessors of the Taurat (Torah), a book full of knowledge which we call "A book that contains an exposition on all things!".

Given this how could they not fail to recognize him?
How could they not fail to serve and aid him?
And if they did not, as they did not, how could they not fail to recognise that they ran the risk of angering God?
(*1 SEE BELOW)

A ClarificationFor clarification I had better add that I am not asking these questions in order to heighten religious tensions, or to demonise a faith. By no means. I ask only to better understand.

Why?
Of course their denial of Muhammad (saw), can be understood in the light of their racial arrogance and pride. But such an argument cannot hold for Jesus (as), who was himself a Jew.

At the time of the coming of Jesus (as), there was a resurgence in the faith of the Jews. They eagerly awaited the coming of their foretold King-Liberator. And when it came to pass that a Messenger of God came to them, they failed to recognize him and denied him.

But Why?
Why, when they awaited a Messenger from God?
Why, when they possessed a Book that was an exposition of all things?

We know from the mission of Jesus (as), and the parables that he articulated to his Jewish audience, that he was sent to a people who had ossified their religion.

For them the religion was all law and no spirit,
all about hierarchies of authority and not about the people,
all pride and arrogance and no humility,
all Jewish superiority and no humanity. 

It's Relevance!These attributes could quite easily apply to any and all of the Worlds religions, from Islam as it is practiced today to the Christianity that was an answer to that ossification. And that is what makes these questions pertinent to all faiths.

The POWER of Questions!
Part of the answer lies in the Power of Questions to stop such an ossification.
For the Torah had answer to all questions, but there was no-one there who would ask the pertinent question! 

The HEIFER. (S. Baqara v67 onward)
In fact, even whilst Musa (Moses) (as) their foremost Prophet lived, the Children of Israel were apt to only ask impertinant questions regarding the nature of the cow they were commanded to sacrifice.

This is the kernel of the first chapter of the Qur'an (al Baqara- the Heifer).

The command was simple, and the execution for the pious was obvious, so obvious that it was a return to the story of Cain and Abel.

That when you intend a sacrifice for GOD, you give the best you can give and do not withhold your hand, for GOD is the most generous of those who give.

But for the Children of Israel the possessors of knowledge, such a command brought for them only complexity where there should have been both simplicity and piety. And so they questioned and questioned.

The Qur'an:
The First Revelation
In contrast the revelation of Quran began with a question!

Angel Gabriel appeared to Muhammad (saw) in cave Hira, whilst he was sojourned there in contemplation. He embraced and pressed him (saw) and said "Read!" a command! And Muhammad (saw) replied "I cannot read", for he could not read nor write. The angel Gabriel once again pressed him hard and held him and commanded him "read!", and once again Muhammad (saw) said "I cannot read!". Once again this happened, and Muhammad (saw) was gripped so tightly that he relented and said in question "What shall I read?".

A most pertinent question given that there was no book!
And the revelation came in response to that question!

And later Muhammad (saw) said that it was as if the revelation had been written on his heart.

Was he (saw) then reading what Allah t'ala (GOD, Most High) had written on his heart?
Is this part of the enigma of the first revelation, whose second sentence is "Read, for your Lord is most gracious, Who taught by the pen?"

That Allah tala had written with a pen on Muhammad (saw) heart and thus taught him directly?

Or is it in reference to the first written languages to have appeared amongst humanitys long history?

Were the first books...revelations, like the scripture of Abraham (as), now lost?

The Qur'an's first verse
The first sentence of the Quran, a vocalisation that we repeat a minimum of 17 times a day, begs a question.

"All praise belongs to Allah the Sustainer/ Provider of the Worlds".

What Worlds?
The Worlds of Men, Djinn and Angels?
This World and other Worlds in this Universe?

The Qur'an's structure
The very structure of the Quran begs questions.

We know that Muhammad (saw) informed us of the ordering of the Quran, which comprises a series of revelations over 23 years.

Every time we read it, the seasoned man of the Seerah is forced to ask the questions of when, where and why.

The Quran is not ordered in chronological order, and there are reasons for that.

One of those reasons is that every verse is a question of when, where and why!

Replete with Questions!
At every turn the Quran is a book replete with questions, and it calls itself a book of guidance for the pious!

Not a book of answers, nor a book that claims to be an exposition of all things.
Quite unlike the Torah!

However within it is contained a reference or guidance upon all things however brief.

And it is our job to fathom it depths.

Every book requires to be internalised before it can hold meaning for the reader.

The Quran goes further than any other book because it requires indeed demands, by its constant questioning, to be made relevant!

The Living Qur'an
It is a living Quran that belongs to us all.

It is for this reason that Muhammad (saw) so ordered it so that when it was eventually written down we would know the beginning from the end. So that it would remain for as long as possible a living Quran!


And Muhammad (saw) although he fathomed it better than all of us combined could do so, left much of it unexplained. And left it for us to seek it's explanation.


May be that was part his reason for forbiding us to ask too many questions.
A means of keep the Qur'an both living and relevant.

Tafseer al-Qur'an.. the Science of seeking to Understand the Qur'an
And it is for this reason that throughout every age the Muslims have sought to understand the Quran in the light of their experiences.

But today the Muslims see the only fluidity in the religion as being with regards to Fiqh (jurispudence and the law) and tend to forget the mother of all sciences, Tafsir al-Quran.

The understanding and the making relevant of the Quran is the most important of all Religious Sciences, that requires an understanding both of language and most importantly the Seerah of our Prophet Muhammad (saw).

May Allah t'ala reward him exceptionally, generously and without measure!

I could go on about the miracles of the Quran, but this blog has gone on long enough!

PEACE Shafi

*1: In fact it is an article of faith expounded in the Quran that Muslims are to believe in all of the Prophets (as). From Adam to Noah to Abraham to all of the Prophets sent to the Children of Israel, including Moses, David and Jesus (as), Muslims believe in them all. And furthermore Muslims believe in all of the books sent down to Mankind, including the scriptures given to Abraham, the Torah to Moses, the Psalms given to David and the Gospel (which we call Injeel) given to Jesus. The Muslims go even further than that and believe that the Torah contained an exposition upon all things!

The Quran testifies that they knew Muhammad (saw) better than their own sons. That he (saw) was mentioned in detail in their books.

Shia or Sunni ?

(originally posted on MySpace)

My good friend Josh asked me this question. But what does it mean to be either?

Purists will say they are neither, but they then eschew the reality that some people do call themselves Sunni, and some Shia. Is sunnism the alter-ego of shiaism, is it everything that shiaism is not? Or is it something in it's own right, I think not!

Shia's say that they are the Party (lit: shia) of Ali (ra). And yet if I were alive at that time I would be the first to stand shoulder to shoulder with Ali (ra) against Muwaiyyah (ra). And yet I would not call myself Shia.

The Shia would scorn me for suffixing the name of Muwaiyyah with the honorific ra= may God be pleased with him. But I do, and I can do so whilst believing that he was wrong and fighting against him. And I can do so whilst also believing that Ali (ra) was one of the ashara mubashara (the blessed 10, who were given the good news of certain paradise even whilst they lived!).That is the essential difference between Sunni and Shia.

Personailites v/s Community
Until very recently I thought of the difference between them was one of emphasis and not necessarily substance. The Shia focus on individuals and personalities, being the family and descendants of the Messenger of God. Whereas the Sunni focus on the community or nation (ummah) of the Messenger of God.

It all comes down to not just history, the history of 1400 years ago, but the interpretation of history. And it is that, that is of vital importance.

The Importance of History ... and it's interpretation.
That is why with practically every important event that occurred to Muhammad (saw) and his family (as) and his companions (as), Allah t'ala revealed after the event the correct intrepretation of those events.

When the Muslims were shaken to the core by the shouts of Quraish on the battleground of Uhud; "Muhammed is dead!"; Allah t'ala revealed afterwards the famous passage that Abu Bakr (as) used so effectively when he did die. So that the Muslims could feel it in their bones, for indeed experience is the dearest teacher. The most costly, but most definitely the best.

And by fatah Mecca (the conquest of Mecca) they were well versed in that lesson. That to win is nothing, but to fight is everything.

Yet another reminder of the power of intrepretation is the treaty of Huddabiyah. Only after they returned did the revelation come announcing that it was a clear and manifest victory. And with it Allah t'ala declared that HE was pleased with the oath they had taken, even after they had disputed with Muhammad (saw) with respect to it.

How you interpret history manifestly affects both your world-view and your behaviour. And the difference between shia and sunni... is in the interpretation of our history.

God's right to TRY us.Muhammad (saw) declared that if his blessed daughter Fatima (ra) were to steal, then her hand would be forfeit. So then if his family (as) were subject to the same earthly laws that bind us all together in this mundane sphere of life, would they not be subject to the cosmological laws that God has over His slaves.

That God gives without measure and retains the right to try us, to see which of us will remain true.
In short the Shia withdraw that right of GOD, and substitute in it's place privilege.

Whereas for the Sunni the right remains with GOD, the Creator, Sustainer and ever Giver.

This is the story of Islam's first family, the story of our Hajj.
Abraham's family, that we might be like Ismail when he (ra) said :"God willing, you will me patient and persevering"...and like Bibi Hagar(ra) whom we honour both in the Sai and in the stoning of the Jamraat Kabeer.

But this does not mean that we are push-overs, and take all that life thows at us! By no means no! We submit to Gods way, and stone the devil. And never relent in asking from Him who gives without measure.

So it was with Muhammad (saw).
The son (of so many generations) of Qusai who united the Quraish and brought them into Mecca. The great-grandson of Hashim who broke the bread in the broth of the pilgrims (an act of generosity unheard of), who made Quraish rich by organizing both the Winter and Summer Caravans. The grandson of Abdul-Muttalib who found zam-zam, the blessed water, and the Chief who dealt with Abraha of the Elephant. The son of Abdullah, worth a hundred camel.. slaughtered for charity and left so that any man could partake. The most kingliest geneology and heritage of his people! For each of his ancestors, fathers and fathers, were Kings (unspoken) in their own rights.

To be hunted, sought to be murdered, run out of his town for saying that God is One. To be hated, reviled, abused... Muhammad (saw) the one who loved hospitality, kinship and friendship. To have no son... whilst he, himself, loved children. Trials by the dozen...And then God rewarded him with a home-coming like no other, a nation that loves him dearly to this very day, and two grandsons whom he loved dearly. May Allah t'ala reward him like no other, abundantly, for that he (saw) taught us belief and how to live!


So it will be with his family (as).
God will try them as He tries us all! And the greatest of trials for them was the succession to leadership after Muhammad (saw).The Shia do not understand this simple fact.

That even if you live in the most desolate land, in a cell 4x4 and devote yourself to His service... even then God will find a way to try you. If you spend without regard on the poor, God will try you not with money but with something dearer than money to your heart.

Then what of the 10,000 saints foretold in the scriptures of old (bible) who took Mecca, the blessed city, with Muhammad (saw)?

Khalid (ra), saif ullah, sought death a thousand times in the thick of battle. When he died, a peaceful death, there was not an inch of him without a scar or wound. And his trial was not death on a sword but disgrace before Umar (ra). With 10,000 saints would not God try them one with another?

With the family of the Messenger of God (saw) would not God try them with the Ummah (nation) of the Messenger of God (saw)?

Imam Ali (ra).
And for me I am happy that Ali (ra) did not succumb to his trail of what he thought was his right and later did give bayah to Abu Bakr as-Sadiq (ra).

And during his own time was when the Ummah needed him most.
The greatness of a person is often shown when GOD chooses to raise them, and each of the Khulafah Rashidun GOD blessed with phenomenal energy, strength, patience and the ability to negotiate.

And yet we pray for them all and the ahl ul-bait (the family of Muhammad (saw)), daily!

May God bless them and give them understanding of His ways, and the ways to HIM.

Shafi

PS.. I do not write to spoon-feed, any that wants to know what I say, let him study.

a Celebration of the Prophet Muhammad's Life.

Milad un-Nabi, a Celebration of the Prophet’s Life. (SAW)

(a blog that leads into a poem)

Last month I was invited to a Milad celebration, and whilst they recited from first part of the Barzanjee I read it just a little.

Afterwards, I could not help but speak my mind. The wrong footedness of it all irked me, way more than some.

For, not only did I notice that the Barzanjee had got it wrong, but that even at one time dishonoured the one it sought to honour.

But that the celebration did no justice to the one it claimed to praise,

forgot his achievements and his faith.

That he was chosen,

and he did not shirk God's command.

That when warned of hardship's persistence,

kept faith with  a quiet insistence.

He, who was offered the sun and the moon,

knew not the greatness which lay in store.

Whom God chose for blessed Miraj,

And gifted with five daily Salat.

He who exemplified goodness in every respect,

Did not fail his trust, even when he wasn't there.

When they sought to kill him by a poisoned plot,

They unfurled the cloth and gaped in shock.

For they forced him by their inequity from the ancient City, he loved.

Refuge he found in a people of maternal patronage.

There forged a community from their splintered city.

That forged a Nation that would change the course of history.

Quraysh would not let up,

three battles they fought.

They wished to kill him outright,

so they gathered their hosts.

The whole of Arabia laid siege.

At that time of strife and hunger,

whilst some of the believers thought,

"What has God in store for us?"

In that time three promises were struck.

Three horizons were lit up.

A storm coursed through,

And the hosts were vanquished.

The Quraysh were subdued,

Medina was safe.

"How difficult could it be to kill just one man?"

And the Prophets heart ventured homeward.

Mecca, Mecca, Mecca.

The hallowed sanctuary.

That houses bayt ul atiq.

The place of Ibrahim and Ismail.

In a dream he saw the honour of shaven heads.

And resolved to make the lesser of twain,

that would in favour turn the eyes

 of Arabia,

to the honoured one.

Who honoured the sacred places and rites.

At Hudabiyyah his greatest triumph lay in store,

For in that contradictory moment his sincerity would shine through.

The unlettered Prophet would show himself to be true, forever true.

And because of that the doors of Arabia swung wide,

Persian and Rome noticed a turning of the tide.

A people unlooked for, stirred in their South.

Some trembled, some laughed before the emissaries of God.

All felt his presence far and wide,

But if they but ventured to Medina they would find,

A man who would not suffer any to stand for him,

A Messenger of God, who cared deeply for his people.

Quraysh betrayed their trust,

Broke armistice, and knew that their time had come.

He marched on Mecca and took it peacefully.

Riding on Qaswa, with bowed head did he enter.

The sacred city,

And demolished all three sixty.

There idolatry fled,

and taqwa was bred.

His generosity knew no bounds,

He restored and confirmed ancient privilege,

He forgave those who sought forgiveness,

No matter how many atrocities afore time they had purchased.

And he borrowed,

Where a king would have taken as his own.

Thence to the third of the three,

Thaqif of Taif.

At the battle of Hunayn,

Where arrows in droves did fly,

 None could scathe,

And he called all the hosts to bear witness.

Whilst his army fled,

He stood,

Brave.

And called them back one by one.

Whilst Thaqif looked on,

Unable to fathom,

That the Messenger of God had come.

That none could touch him until his time was done.

Even whilst they were but a stone’s throw away,

And he stood there on the dividing line.

They were struck dumb and could not divine,

That it was that their time had come.

At the farewell Pilgrimmage,

Did he teach us the rites.

And there it was that he espoused the rights,

That men hold over men.

That none, not even an Arab,

Could claim superiority,

That each should be governed by a universality,

Of spirit

That dictated,

An open society of a type, unprecedented.

Where all men are free by virtue of the true religion.

Peace reigned in Arabia.

But not for long.

For Rome feared the Arabian throng,

And their illustrious armies threatened from the North.

In that precarious moment,

The Lord of all extended an invitation,

And the one most beloved of Him,

chose to accept it.

And that above all shows the truth of his faith.

Because he loved his people dearly,

And did not wish that what he brought,

To be but a flutter on the echoes of time.

And his faith proved true, won through.

For, the greatest proof of God is Muhammad,

And the greatest proof of Muhammad is his life.

To celebrate it is to celebrate him, and to celebrate him is to do justice to God's ultimate goodness.

the END

Indeed ALL Glory and Praise belongs to ALLAH alone, and I bear witness that Muhammad (saw) has indeed fulfilled his trust and delivered the message in truth.

O ALLAH, the most gracious, the abundant giver, reward Muhammad (saw) with the most excellent of rewards for never would we have believed but that You sent him to teach us the way. Ameen.

As I explained in the last stanza, the best way to celebrate Muhammad (saw) is to recall his achievement and his wonderful life. For never was there such a life that changed the whole course of history other than his.

I have taken artistic licence in the poem, and many of the verses will only resonate with the people who have read the biography of Muhammad (saw). I have not touched on the many proofs of his prophethood, which are proofs from an historico-analytic formulae and not with reference to that which he brought (the holy Qur’an).

Probably the greatest of this is his success in transforming a tribal- warrior nation.

And this a people who at several points in his life tried unsuccessfully to kill him, mock him, insult him, deride and even ignore him. Anyone who has any intelligence would realise that with him being off them, then they would have been the best to deal with him. But they could not.

For thirteen years of his mission he was persecuted in Mecca and his followers were killed, and for 10 years he fought to keep his political community safe first from Quraysh and the Arabs and then Rome. And yet he passed from us being blessed with happiness, and this is but a single of his many great achievements.

As the greek sage Solon said once, fortunate is he who dies happy.

I sincerely hope that whoever reads this taking instruction from it will eventually read the biography of an outstanding life.

PEACE,