Why is it that people like this seem to be the ones telling us what our religion is all about and in power though when you read and understand the Quran, it certainly does not come anywhere near the kind of Islam these gentleman propose. Pasting a link for you to look at and would love to get your reactions
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7096814.stm
I post the link above so you can go to the original source of the story…I paste the whole story below
Saudi gang-rape victim is jailed
By Frances Harrison
BBC News
An appeal court in Saudi Arabia has doubled the number of lashes and added a jail sentence as punishment for a woman who was gang-raped.
The victim was initially punished for violating laws on segregation of the sexes – she was in an unrelated man’s car at the time of the attack.
When she appealed, the judges said she had been attempting to use the media to influence them.
The attackers’ sentences – originally of up to five years – were doubled.
Extra penalties
According to the Arab News newspaper, the 19-year-old woman, who is from Saudi Arabia’s Shia minority, was gang-raped 14 times in an attack in the eastern province a year-and-a-half ago.
Seven men from the majority Sunni community were found guilty of the rape and sentenced to prison terms ranging from just under a year to five years.
But the victim was also punished for violating Saudi Arabia’s laws on segregation that forbid unrelated men and women from associating with each other. She was initially sentenced to 90 lashes for being in the car of a strange man.
On appeal, the Arab News reported that the punishment was not reduced but increased to 200 lashes and a six-month prison sentence.
The rapists also had their prison terms doubled. But the sentences are still low considering they could have faced the death penalty.
The Arab News quoted an official as saying the judges had decided to punish the girl for trying to aggravate and influence the judiciary through the media.
The victim’s lawyer was suspended from the case, has had his licence to work confiscated, and faces a disciplinary session.
Ayeshah Alam's Weblog 
November 18, 2007 at 12:25 am
it’s good to know some muslims like yourself understand that this is a barbaric thing to do… but where is your sensibility when it comes to other unacceptable practices and beliefs within islam?
November 18, 2007 at 1:49 am
Which other unacceptable practices and beliefs are you referring to ? thanks for writing in by the way! 🙂
November 18, 2007 at 5:19 am
well… for example, slavery is not forbidden in the quran?
that man is made from clay?
and there’s all this stuff about magic… lol.
November 18, 2007 at 10:37 am
hmm… regarding magic.. or the unseen world…. is in the Quran and is mentioned in the Bible too…. there are some things that are not tangible… and i believe that unseen world does exist… but that is something my experiences and faith have taught me over time.
Regarding slavery… I don’t claim to know everything or understand everything but I do try… my way of dealing with that part of the Quran is …looking at the times then… .slavery was very much a part of life… and the Quran actually encourages freeing the slaves as well… having said that I also believe the Quran is the Living word… in the sense we also need to see how it applies to our lives today… and though we may no longer have slaves per se… but don’t we have people who work for us… could that be interpreted? its part of the social fabric atleast in this part of the world..domestic help… manual labour… etc… now you may not look at them as slaves, (which is a good thing) 🙂 but everyone can’t be a boss or the one in control…there is a certain order where everyone has their place and role to play… that’s the way i see it anyway… I think seeing the word “slave”shouldn’t automatically mean the old fashioned meaning of someone who is tortured and made to work inhuman hours, though i know many in the corporate world who would beg to disagree 🙂
November 18, 2007 at 12:09 pm
“could that be interpreted? i”
actually it couldn’t. it’s pretty specific about owning others as a piece of property…
but hey, i respect what you have to say and you seem to have a good head on your shoulders. *thumbs up* *smile*
November 18, 2007 at 7:57 pm
(sorry I keep bugging you 🙂 )
I have been exploring the process of collection of both the Holy Quran and the Sunnah. I would recommend that you do the same. Specifically the arguments given for why the Hadith and the Sunnah were “collected” two hundred years after the demise of the Prophet. I am considerably disturbed at what I am finding out. So disturbed that I am beginning to doubt the authenticity or validity or applicability of any of the Sunnah or Hadith. Which also brings into question the whole concept of “Shariah”
Pardons for being so vague. You see I am quite fond of my head and wish to keep it intact on my shoulders lol
Niazi
November 18, 2007 at 8:30 pm
This is always a tricky one as people get very emotional. I would like to start out by saying that it is healthy to ask questions and discuss religion in order to bring a better understanding. Let me begin by bringing your attention to something. No matter who quotes anything from the Quran… please always ask where it is written and go and see for it yourself. You must seek the knowledge and read for yourself. Now in order to read the Quran all you need is “When thou does read teh Quran, seek Allah’s protection from Satan the rejected one. ” Please do not take my word for it… it is in the Quran Surah 16:98
some people have a ritual of doing Vusu before you pick up the Quran etc… but the Quran itself says the above. How freeing!!!! Also the Quran is not to be wrapped in a decorative cloth and put on the top shelf to be forgotten…but have it somewhere close by so you can read it preferably every day and meditate on His word… and how He speaks to you through His word.
Having said that… I also have trouble with the Hadith. The one most often quoted is the Bukhari…which was written a 100 years after the death of our Holy Prophet (PBUH), therefore my point of reference is the Quran and the message God sent down directly for mankind to read. Nowhere in the Quran does it mention Bukhari coming in later to guide us… The Quran is a book complete unto itself. I have marked out some Surah’s that tell you about the importance of the Quran and how seriously we should take its teachings. I do not want you to take my word for it… again I encourage you to take out your Quran and look it up for yourself and see what these passages say.
Just remember everytime before you read the Quran to do what the Quran has asked you to do which i have outlined above
Surah 39:23, 27,28
Surah 56: 77, 79
Surah 21:10
Surah 40: 53
Surah 41: 41,42
Surah 43: 43,44,78
Surah 44: 58-59
Please read these and see for yourself
Peace 🙂
November 18, 2007 at 10:24 pm
Hey,
I totally concur with the reasoning you have about the Holy Quran. As far as I am concerned, The Quran is the only valid source of Islamic Law and should be used as such. I will definitely look up the Surah that yo have mentioned.
Having had said that, there is a major issue concerning the Hadith and Sunnah. Btw Bukhari was not published 100 years after the death of the prophet. Muhammad ibn Ismaiyl al Bukhari was born in 194 AH and died in 256 Ah. The other authors of the “Six books” were Muslim ibn Hajjaj al Qushayri (204-261 AH), Abu Dawud alSijistani (202-275 AH), Muhammad ibn Isa al-Tirmidhi (209-279 AH), Ahmad ibn Shuayb al-Nasaiy (215-303 AH) and Muhammad ibn Yazid ibn Majah (same time period). Hence we have a serious time gap between the death of the Prophet and the alleged compilations of his works. When reading the arguments presented for accepting these collections one is struck by a number of points. Firstly, the manner of transmission of the Hadith and Sunnah was by memory until their compilation by the above named authors. In the same vein numerous example are given extolling the great memories of each of the people in the chain or narration. That beggars the questions: Firstly, Why was the Holy Quran written down? Its transmission and narration could also have taken place by memory if that was the preferred mode of imparting knowledge. Could it have been written down because the fallibility of memories was recognized and it was considered preferable not to let discrepancies creep in? Secondly, Why were the Sunnah and Hadith NOT written down at the same time as the Holy Quran? Given that they are regarded presently as the second greatest source of Islamic Law, I would have thought that the compilers of teh Holy Quran would have paid the same amount of diligence in making sure that the words of the Sunnah and the Hadith were compiled. Was it not written down initially deliberately? That is, that it was forbidden to do so? Now let me tell u some judicial precedents. The Caliph Umar used to PUNISH people who used to keep the Sunnah and the Hadith as the Prophet himself had forbidden it. Are we committing hearsay?
Coming back to Bukhari. “Meritocracy” involves using a selection criteria. Now setting up of the selection criteria is a highly political act as the process entails making a politicized statement of what we consider as proper conduct/behavior/knowledge. Bukhari is credited with the most sahih Sunnah as he selected the most appropriate Sunnah. However his selection criteria was a a subjective statement of what he considered to be correct and appropriate. Hence instead of viewing these Sunnahs as the most appropriate, one should view them with even greater skeptism as they reflect the personal prejudice of a single person.
Phew! I am sure that I am gonna bore you lol
Cheers
Niazi
November 18, 2007 at 10:37 pm
not bored at all….thank you for your very indepth input…much appreciated
November 18, 2007 at 11:24 pm
If you notice problems in the hadith then you should be noticing problems in the Quran as well…
the hadith are not “bad” just because they were written 100-200 years after muhammad’s death… they’re bad on the merit of what they say. why not be honest to each other and actually admit that you can’t accept the hadith on this basis… and that the “100-200 years old” argument is simply a way to disregard them without compromising your faith… which in your heart already has been, if you reject it on its merit.
the same thing with the quran… and while it’s not as insanely as bad as the hadith, it too has a lot of issues in it. but muslims are unwilling to step forward and be honest to themselves by admitting that there are unacceptable things in the quran.
slavery as property for one thing, could not have come from a divine god that knows BEST… so he would have commanded everyone to free slaves. the argument that society was not ready for it, is a very poor excuse… especially considering that islam completely upturned society – revolutionized it. It would have been prudent for an all knowing god to have abolished slavery too… and then when we compare god to abraham lincoln, one can see that lincoln fought an entire war with society to end slavery…. but muhammad and god were in the best position to end slavery without fighting wars, yet they didn’t?
abraham lincoln is clearly more idealistic than god and muhammad combined… and that goes against the islamic understanding of what it means to be god… so those verses could not possibly have come from a divine source.
a little bit of honesty in your own heart may be difficult when subjecting your life long faith to it… but it’s the right thing to do
November 18, 2007 at 11:39 pm
Salahudin… I thank you for your comments and the time you took to add to this blog. I am certainly not going to get into a discussion on the validity of the Quran and its teachings as each soul answers for himself at the end of the day. You have a right to believe what you believe as do all of us. Peace to you and yours 🙂
November 19, 2007 at 1:14 am
aw… perhaps another time then. but i wouldn’t want you to debate and defend the quran because i wasn’t being argumentative. i was pointing out facts.
May 14, 2009 at 4:24 am
Salaam
Ayesha,You are the “MAN” LOL. Believe me i have become a great fan of u after reading ur posts and the quality of ur blog.I’m a paki student from London.I agree with what u have said about the corrupted Hadith literature.I would love to share my views here in detail sometimes soon but i do wanna comment on saluhidin’s post.
Mr salahudin even though we are not totaly unaware how the christian missionaries pretend to be “muslims” in order to mess up the muslim blogs.But i assume that u r not one of those.Regarding ur claim about slavery being “allowed” in the Quran i would only say that lack of “categorical” prohibition is the Quranic approval for an unelightened mind.
I hope it helps.
Keep up the great work Ayeshaalam.
May 14, 2009 at 10:53 pm
Quranic Stance On Slavery
There isn’t a single verse in which the Quran allows Muslims to own slaves under any circumstance. On the contrarty, it commands us to set them free in several verses:
[2:177] Righteousness is not turning your faces towards the east or the west. Righteous are those who believe in GOD, the Last Day, the angels, the scripture, and the prophets; and they give the money, cheerfully, to the relatives, the orphans, the needy, the traveling alien, the beggars, and to FREE the SLAVES; and they observe the Contact Prayers (Salat) and give the obligatory charity (Zakat); and they keep their word whenever they make a promise; and they steadfastly persevere in the face of persecution, hardship, and war.
The freeing of slaves is so important that it’s mentioned along with the fundamentals of Islam (believing in God, believing all the scriptures to be from God, etc.), so believing that God permits slavery is tantamount to believing that God also permits disbelieving in the fundamentals of Islam. 2:177 gives a direct command to free slaves, so clearly owning slaves is a violation of 2:177 and therefore a sin.
[58:3-4] Those who estrange their wives in this manner, then reconcile thereafter, shall atone by freeing a slave before resuming their sexual relations. This is to enlighten you. GOD is Cognizant of everything you do. If you cannot find a slave to free, you shall fast two consecutive months before resuming sexual relations. If you cannot fast, then you shall feed sixty poor people. You shall believe in GOD and His messenger. These are GOD’s laws. The disbelievers have incurred a painful retribution.
Freeing slaves isn’t only a command; setting slaves free also atones for one’s sins. We see from verses such as 58:3-4 that God’s provided many reasons and opportunities to emancipate slaves; there isn’t just the command to free slaves.
Note that 58:4 states that “Fast for two consecutive months if you can’t find a SLAVE to FREE”. It’s unlikely one would not know where to find one’s own slave, so 58:4 mentions freeing a slave that is owned by someone else (since owning a slave isn’t allowed in Islam).
[9:60] Charities shall go to the poor, the needy, the workers who collect them, the new converts, to FREE the SLAVES, to those burdened by sudden expenses, in the cause of GOD, and to the traveling alien. Such is GOD’s commandment. GOD is Omniscient, Most Wise.
True Muslim societies aren’t simply made up of believers; they’re also meant to be humanitarian organizations that collect money and use it to fight slavery. We should think of Mohamed and his followers as eager humanitarians who sought to improve the lives of all people and grant all people their rights, especially their right to freedom! Muslims blaspheme against God when they claim that slavery is lawful in Islam, and they do Mohamed a great disservice when they claim he condoned and encouraged slavery. Mohamed and his followers did the exact opposite of owning slaves.
Slavery was the major reason why God destroyed Pharaoh:
[23:44-49] Then we sent our messengers in succession. Every time a messenger went to his community, they disbelieved him. Consequently, we annihilated them, one after the other, and made them history. The people who disbelieved have perished. Then we sent Moses and his brother Aaron with our revelations and a profound proof. To Pharaoh and his elders, but they turned arrogant. They were oppressive people. They said, “Shall we believe for two men whose people are our slaves?” They rejected the two, and consequently, they were annihilated. We gave Moses the scripture, that they may be guided.
Given that God has so much abhorrence for slavery, there’s no logic in assuming that slavery is permitted in Islam.
More reasons to FREE SLAVES:
[4:92] No believer shall kill another believer, unless it is an accident. If one kills a believer by accident, he shall atone by freeing a believing SLAVE, and paying a compensation to the victim’s family, unless they forfeit such a compensation as a charity. If the victim belonged to people who are at war with you, though he was a believer, you shall atone by freeing a believing slave. If he belonged to people with whom you have signed a peace treaty, you shall pay the compensation in addition to freeing a believing slave. If you cannot find* a slave to free, you shall atone by fasting two consecutive months, in order to be redeemed by GOD. GOD is Knower, Most Wise.
[5:89] GOD does not hold you responsible for the mere utterance of oaths; He holds you responsible for your actual intentions. If you violate an oath, you shall atone by feeding ten poor people from the same food you offer to your own family, or clothing them, or by FREEING a SLAVE. If you cannot afford this, then you shall fast three days. This is the atonement for violating the oaths that you swore to keep. You shall fulfill your oaths. GOD thus explains His revelations to you, that you may be appreciative.
Major commandments:One of the most beautifull verses of the glorious Quran
[90:1-20] I swear by this land. And you remain committed to this land. And a father and what he begets. We have created man to struggle. Does he think that no one is able to best him? He says: “I spent so much money!” Does he think that no one saw him? Did We not make for him two eyes? And a tongue and two lips? And We guided him to both paths? He should choose the better path. Do you know which is the better path? The freeing of slaves. Or the feeding on a day of great hardship. An orphan of relation. Or a poor person in need. Then he has become one of those who have believed, and exhort one another to patience, and exhort one another to kindness. Those are the people of happiness. As for those who rejected Our revelations, they are the people of misery. Upon them is a Fire closed over.]]]]
One isn’t a believer unless one chooses the “Better path”. Walking the better path is, among many things, defined as freeing slaves. Those who don’t walk the better path are “The people of misery”. They’re the people of misery because they’ll burn in Hell.