The story of the Great Sejuk Empire

Seljuk Turks

The Seljuqs (also Seljuk or Seljuq Turks) were a Muslim dynasty of originally Oghuz Turkic descent that ruled parts of Central Asia and the Middle East from the eleventh to fourteenth centuries. They set up an empire known as "Great Seljuk Empire" that stretched from Anatolia to Punjab and was the target of the First Crusade. Increasingly fractured by fighting among independent Seljuk principalities, the once great Seljuk Empire was weakened during the first two crusades, gave way to the Ayyubid dynasty under Saladin, and finally crumbled during the Mongol invasions. It was ultimately succeeded by the Ottoman Empire, which inherited much of his cultural foundation.

The dynasty marked the beginning of Turkic power in the Middle East. The Seljuks are regarded as the cultural ancestors of the Western Turks, the present-day inhabitants of Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Turkmenistan. They are also remembered as great patrons of Persian culture, art, literature, and language.[1][2]

Early History

Originally, the House of Seljuq was a branch of the Kinik Oghuz Turks who in the ninth century lived on the periphery of the Muslim world, north of the Caspian and Aral seas.[3] In the tenth century the Seljuqs migrated from their ancestral homelands into mainland Persia, where they adopted the Persian culture and language in the following decades.

The traditional ancestor of the Seljuqs was their bey (cheiftan) Seljuq who was reputed to have served in the Khazar army, under whom, the Seljuks migrated to Khwarezm, near the city of Jend also called Khujand circa 950 C.E., where they converted to Islam.[3]

Great Seljuk

The Seljuqs were allied with the Persian Samanid Shahs against the Qarakhanids. The Samanids however fell to the Qarakhanids and the emergence of the Ghaznavids and were involved in the power struggle in the region before establishing their own independent base.

Toğrül Tower in the old city of Ray, Iran, commemorates the Seljuk leader Toğrül.

Toğrül Bey (c. 990 – September 4, 1063) was the grandson of Seljuk. He united the Turkomen warriors of the Great Eurasian Steppes into a confederacy of tribes. He and his brother Çağrı wrested the empire from the Ghaznavids. Initially the Seljuks were repulsed by Mahmud and retired to Khwarezm but Toğrül and Çağrı led them to capture Merv and Nishapur (1028-1029). Later they repeatedly raided and traded territory with his successors across Khorasan and Balkh and even sacked Ghazni in 1037. In 1039 at Battle of Dandanaqan they decisively defeated Mas'ud I of the Ghaznavids resulting in him abandoning most of his western territories to the Seljuks. In 1055 Toğrül captured Baghdad from the Shi'a Buyids under a commission from the Abbasids.

Alp Arslan was the son of Çağrı and expanded significantly upon Toğrül's holdings by adding Armenia and Georgia in 1064 and invading the Byzantine Empire in 1068 from whom he annexed Anatolia after defeating them at the Battle of Manzikert. He ordered his Turkoman generals to conquer the Byzantine lands and allowed them to carve principalities of their own as atabegs that were loyal to him. Within two years the Turkomans captured Asia Minor and went as far as the Aegean Sea establishing numerous "beghliks" such as: the Saltuqis in Northeastern Anatolia, Mengujeqs in Eastern Anatolia, Artuqids in Southeastern Anatolia, Danishmendis in Central Anatolia, Rum Seljuks (Beghlik of Süleyman, which later moved to Central Anatolia) in Western Anatolia and the Beghlik of Çaka Bey in İzmir (Smyrna).

Under Alp Arslan's successor, Malikshāh, and his two Persian viziers,[4] Nizām al-Mulk and Tāj al-Mulk, the Seljuk state expanded in various directions to former the Persian border before the Arab invasion, so that it bordered China in the East and the Byzantines in the West.

He moved the capital from Rayy to Isfahan. The Iqta mililtary system and the Nizāmīyyah University at Baghdad were established by Nizām al-Mulk, and the reign of Malikshāh was reckoned the golden age of "Great Seljuk." The Abbasid Caliph titled him "The Sultan of the East and West" in 1087. The Assassins of Hassan-e Sabāh however started to become a force during his era and assassinated many leading figures in his administration.

Governance

Seljuqs at the time of their largest extent.

The Seljuk power was at its zenith under Malikshāh I, and both the Qarakhanids and Ghaznavids had to acknowledge the overlordship of the Seljuks. The Seljuk dominion was established over the ancient Sassanid domains, in Iran and Iraq, and included Anatolia as well as parts of Central Asia and modern Afghanistan. The Seljuk rule was modeled after the tribal organization brought in by the nomadic conquerors and resembled a 'family federation' or 'appanage state'. Under this organization the leading member of the paramount family assigned family members portions of his domains as autonomous appanages.[5]

Division of empire

When Malikshāh I died in 1092, the empire split as his brother and four sons quarreled over the apportioning of the empire among themselves. In Anatolia, Malikshāh I was succeeded by Kilij Arslan I who founded the Sultanate of Rum and in Syria by his brother Tutush I. In Persia he was succeeded by his son Mahmud I whose reign was contested by his other three brothers Barkiyaruq in Iraq, Muhammad I in Baghdad and Ahmad Sanjar in Khorasan.

When Tutush I died his sons Radwan and Duqaq inherited Aleppo and Damascus respectively and contested each other as well, further dividing Syria amongst emirs antagonistic towards each other.

In 1118, the third son Ahmad Sanjar took over the empire. His nephew, the son of Muhammad I did not recognize his claim to the throne and Mahmud II proclaimed himself Sultan and established a capital in Baghdad, until 1131 when he was finally officially deposed by Ahmad Sanjar.

Elsewhere in nominal Seljuk territory were the Artuqids in northeastern Syria and northern Mesopotamia. They controlled Jerusalem until 1098. In eastern Anatolia and northern Syria a state was founded by the Dānišmand dynasty, and contested land with the Sultanate of Rum and Kerbogha exercised greeted independence as the atabeg of Mosul.

First and Second Crusades

A Seljuk ewer from Iran, dated 1180-1210 C.E.

The Seljuks had already lost Palestine to the Fatimids before their capture by the crusaders. The fractured states of the Seljuks were thus, on the whole, more concerned with consolidating their own territories and gaining control of their neighbors than with cooperating against the crusaders when the First Crusade arrived in 1095 and successfully captured the Holy land to set up the Crusader States.

Before and during the Second Crusade, Ahmed Sanjar had to contend with revolts of Qarakhanids in Transoxiana, Ghorids in Afghanistan and Qarluks in modern Kyrghyzstan, even as the nomadic Kara-Khitais invaded the East, destroying the Seljuk vassal state of the Eastern Qarakhanids. At the Battle of Qatwan of 1141, Sanjar lost all his eastern provinces up to the Syr Darya River.

During this time, conflict with the crusader states was intermittent, and after the First Crusade, the increasingly independent atabegs (governors) would frequently ally with the crusader states against other atabegs as they vied against each other for territory. At Mosul, Zengi succeeded Kerbogha as atabeg and successfully began the process of consolidating the atabegs of Syria. In 1144 Zengi captured Edessa, as the County of Edessa had allied itself with the Ortoqids against him. This event triggered the launch of the second crusade. Nur ad-Din, one of Zengi's sons who succeeded him as atabeg of Aleppo and created an alliance in the region to oppose the Second Crusade which arrived in 1147.

Ayyubid conquest and disintegration

In 1153 the Oghuz Turks rebelled and captured Sanjar, who managed to escape after three years, but died within a year. Despite several attempts to reunite the Seljuks by his successors, the Crusades prevented them from regaining their former empire. Atabegs such as the Zengids and Artuqids were only nominally under the Seljuk sultan, they basically controlled Syria independently. Ahmed Sanjar's death in 1156 fractured the empire even further, rendering the atabegs effectively independent:

Khorasani Seljuks in Khorasan and Transoxiana. Capital: Merv

Kermani Seljuks

Sultanate of Rum. Capital: Iznik (Nicaea), later Konya (Iconium)

Atabeghlik of Salgur in Iran

Atabeghlik of Ildeniz in Iraq and Azerbaijan. Capital Hamadan

Atabeghlik of Bori in Syria. Capital: Damascus

Atabeghlik of Zangi in Al Jazira (Northern Mesopotamia). Capital: Mosul

Turcoman Beghliks: Danishmendis, Artuqids, Saltuqis and Mengujegs in Asia Minor

Khwarezmshahs in Transoxiana, Khwarezm. Capital: Urganch

After the Second Crusade, Nur ad-Din's general Shirkuh, who had established himself in Egypt on Fatimid land, was succeeded by Saladin who then rebelled against Nur ad-Din. Upon Nur ad-Din's death, Saladin married his widow and captured most of Syria, creating the Ayyubid dynasty.

The Middle East, c. 1190. Seljuk territory is indicated in yellow. Saladin's empire and its vassals are shown in red; territory taken from the Crusader states 1187-1189 is shown in pink. Light green indicates Crusader territories surviving Saladin's death.

On other fronts the Kingdom of Georgia emerged as a regional power and extended its borders at the expense of Great Seljuk as did the revival of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia under Leo II of Armenia in Anatolia. The Abbasid caliph An-Nasir also began to reassert the authority of the caliph and allied himself with the Khwarezmshah Ala ad-Din Tekish.

Toğrül III succeeded briefly in consolidating Seljuk power under his sultanate, with the notable exception of Anatolia. In 1194 Toğrül was defeated by Ala ad-Din Tekish, the shah of Khwarezmid Empire, and the Seljuk finally collapsed. Of the former Seljuk Empire, only the Sultanate of Rüm in Anatolia remained. As the dynasty declined further in the middle of the thirteenth century, the Mongols invaded Anatolia in the 1260s and divided it into small emirates called the Anatolian beyliks, one of which, the Ottoman, would rise to power and conquer the rest.

Rulers of Seljuk Dynasty 1037-1157

Toğrül I (Tugrul Beg) 1037-1063

Alp Arslan bin Chaghri 1063-1072

Jalal ad-Dawlah Malik Shah I 1072-1092

Nasir ad-Din Mahmud I 1092-1093

Rukn ad-Din Barkiyaruq 1093-1104

Mu'izz ad-Din Malik Shah II 1105

Ghiyath ad-Din Muhammad/Mehmed I Tapar 1105-1118

Mahmud II 1118-1131

Mu'izz ad-Din Ahmed Sanjar 1131-1157

Seljuk Rulers of Kerman 1041-1187

Kerman was a nation in southern Persia. It fell in 1187, probably conquered by Toğrül III of Great Seljuk.

Qawurd 1041-1073

Kerman Shah 1073-1074

Sultan Shah 1074-1075

Hussain Omar 1075-1084

Turan Shah I 1084-1096

Iran Shah 1096-1101

Arslan Shah I 1101-1142

Mehmed I (Muhammad) 1142-1156

Toğrül Shah 1156-1169

Bahram Shah 1169-1174

Arslan Shah II 1174-1176

Turan Shah II 1176-1183

Mehmed II (Muhammad) 1183-1187

Seljuk Rulers in Syria 1076-1117

Abu Sa'id Taj ad-Dawla Tutush I 1085-1086

Jalal ad-Dawlah Malik Shah I of Great Seljuk 1086-1087

Qasim ad-Dawla Abu Said Aq Sunqur al-Hajib 1087-1094

Abu Sa'id Taj ad-Dawla Tutush I (second time) 1094-1095

Fakhr al-Mulk Radwan 1095-1113

Tadj ad-Dawla Alp Arslan al-Akhras 1113-1114

Sultan Shah 1114-1123

Sultans/Emirs of Damascus:

Aziz ibn Abaaq al-Khwarazmi 1076-1079

Abu Sa'id Taj ad-Dawla Tutush I 1079-1095

Abu Nasr Shams al-Muluk Duqaq 1095-1104

Tutush II 1104

Muhi ad-Din Baqtash 1104

Atabegs of Aleppo:

Lulu 1114-1117

Shams al-Havas Yariqtash 1117

Imad ad-Din Zengi 1128-1146

Nur ad-Din 1146-1174

Seljuk Sultans of Rüm (Anatolia) 1077-1307

Kutalmish 1060-1077

Süleyman Ibn Kutalmish (Suleiman) 1077-1086

Dawud Kilij Arslan I 1092-1107

Malik Shah 1107-1116

Rukn ad-Din Mas'ud 1116-1156

Izz ad-Din Kilij Arslan II 1156-1192

Ghiyath ad-Din Kay Khusrau I 1192-1196

Süleyman II (Suleiman) 1196-1204

Kilij Arslan III 1204-1205

Ghiyath ad-Din Kay Khusrau I (second time) 1205-1211

Izz ad-Din Kay Ka'us I 1211-1220

Ala ad-Din Kay Qubadh I 1220-1237

Ghiyath ad-Din Kay Khusrau II 1237-1246

Izz ad-Din Kay Ka'us II 1246-1260

Rukn ad-Din Kilij Arslan IV 1248-1265

Ala ad-Din Kay Qubadh II 1249-1257

Ghiyath ad-Din Kay Khusrau II (second time) 1257-1259

Ghiyath ad-Din Kay Khusrau III 1265-1282

Ghiyath ad-Din Mas'ud II 1282-1284

Ala ad-Din Kay Qubadh III 1284

Ghiyath ad-Din Mas'ud II (second time) 1284-1293

Ala ad-Din Kay Qubadh III (second time) 1293-1294

Ghiyath ad-Din Mas'ud II (third time) 1294-1301

Ala ad-Din Kay Qubadh III (third time) 1301-1303

Ghiyath ad-Din Mas'ud II (fourth time) 1303-1307

Ghiyath ad-Din Mas'ud III 1307

Where do rich British people live?

The first thing you should know is that mansions inside of London, the capital city of England is not common although there are some. 

We know that rich people own mansions. But most rich people in the UK choose to have a mansion out of London, in the countryside because its much cleaner outside and more beautiful.  This is not to say rich people do not live in London, they do. 

The 3 types of properties rich british people live in, in the UK:  

1. Mansions outside on London: 

The smaller versions of these are called country villas. These have lots of rooms, like 15 or 20, surrounded by a large land usually and a beautiful garden tot he front and back. 

2. Mansions inside of London- 

These are actually a large city house which has extra luxury features. they are not stand alone buildings usually; there are part of a terrace (row) of houses. 

3. Luxury apartments in London- 

They are full of state of the art facilities inside the flat and service all the time like hotels and have underground car parking facilities.  They almost all the time have a fantastic views. 

Uyghur Scholar killed in Chinese Concentration Camp

88-year-old Uyghur scholar, Sheikh Abdul Ahad Mehsum was killed in a Chinese concentration camp in 2017.

Sheikh Abdul Ahad Mehsum was born in 1930 in Karakash County, East Turkestan and was a prominent Uyghur religious scholar and a well-respected figure in the Uyghur community. His father, Sheikh Barat Akhun was killed in Chinese police custody in 1937. 

From 1950 to 1958, Sheikh Mehsum studied Islam in Kashgar and after finishing his studies, returned to Hotan to teach. Six months after his return he was arrested and sentenced to 15 years in a Chinese labour camp. 

After being released in 1974 and despite being forced underground, he continued teach Islam, though was arrested again in 1979 along with around 1,000 Islamic Scholars and was released after one year.

In 2001, he was re-arrested along with his son and was released after two months, but was officially banned from speaking in public.

In January 2004, he was arrested for the fourth time and served a five year sentence for teaching Islam, after which he spent the rest of his life under house arrest, until he was finally arrested by police at the beginning of November 2017 and sent to a concentration camp along with other family members. 

The Chinese authorities deliberately delayed the news of his death for 6 months.

Despite being imprisoned and tortured many times, Sheikh Abdul Ahad Mehsum rahimuAllah remained steadfast and continued to preach and teach #Islam. 

May Allah grant him Jannatul Firdous, Ameen! 

#Stand4Uyghurs

Important Campaign Message from Naz Shah MP

RE: recent concerns about the new law proposed to strip British Nationals of their citizenship without notice ‼️

I have added my name to support an amendment tabled by David Davis MP to remove clause 9 in the ‘Nationalty and Borders Bill’

Please use the template email below to write to your MP and ask them to support the amendment. 

You can find out who your MP is and their email address by using your  postcode in this search link ;

🔗 Link: https://members.parliament.uk/FindYourMP

Dear (insert your MP’s name )

You will be aware that the Nationality and Borders Bill is going through Parliament and is currently at report stage. 

I am writing to you as my MP asking that you please support the amendment tabled by David Davis MP  to remove clause 9 which strips people of their citizenship without notice.

I am very concerned that if this clause  is not removed,  it would give the Home Secretary the ability to deprive UK nationals of their citizenship without notice. 

I look forward to hearing from you. 

*please include your full name and address* 

BIGGEST STUDY OF BRITISH IMAMS

TAKE PART IN THE BIGGEST STUDY OF BRITISH IMAMS EVER!

https://cardiff.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/imams-community-survey

السلام علیکم و رحمة الله و بركاته

Dr Riyaz Timol, Maulana Dr Haroon Sidat, and Professor Sophie Gilliat-Ray invite you to complete the most important and comprehensive survey ever conducted about British imams. We want to know the views of British Muslims from all walks of life and backgrounds, whether you regularly attend a mosque or not. What do you think the role of imams should be? How much should an imam be paid? How important is it for the imam to engage with the wider society? Answers to these kinds of questions will necessarily be lengthy – it will take 15-30 minutes of your time – but the findings will be crucial in addressing many issues relevant to the future of British Muslim religious leadership.

The survey is part of a larger three-year research project – Understanding British Imams – based at Cardiff University’s Islam-UK Centre. It is entirely funded by the Jameel Research Programme and completely independent of government. We have already surveyed more than two thousand imams and completed extended interviews with another 40 around the country. Now, we want to hear from people in the Muslim community. Your answers will be vital to British Muslim organisations

and educational institutions, and recommendations will be presented back to Muslim communities 

to support their development. 

_Please take out some time to complete this survey. Thank you._

جزاك اللهُ خيرًا

For more information about the project, please visit: https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/research/explore/find-a-project/view/understanding-british-imams

Steps to success

If you are a Muslim.and want to be successful in life do these things.

1. Fix up your 5 daily prayers, pray on time everyday

2. Amend your sleeping and waking up routine which reflects the Isha and Fajr time

3. Get rid of social media or anything that is not beneficial in your life and wastes time

4. Read Qur'an everyday

5. Remember Allah all the time, every action you do know that he is watching and hearing everything

6. Avoid chit chat, and unnecessary gossip or talking about other people, it will not help you in this world or the next

7. Don't blame others for your mistakes, if you made any mistakes, accept them and learn not to do that again

8. Have a routine, a proper timetable

9. Control your budgets

10. Control your eating habits, eat what is only necessary that your body needs

11. Lose weight if you are overweight or obese, 80% of weight loss is portion control of food

12. When you make a promise, keep it

13. Don't put burden on any other soul as that soul will complain to Allah and you will be in trouble in front of Allah when you meet him in Akhira

Remember these points, I'm sure there are plenty more.

One important thing to remember is anything that we do, we should always think if that thing is halal or haram, if Allah will be happy with it or not.

By: Aminul Hussain 

Non-meat eater or vegetarian?

Can I become vegetarian as a Muslim?
Is that the same as becoming a 'non-meat eater'?Where can I find pure and Halal meat?

A peculiar question was forwarded for discussion among some scholars. 

Scholar 1- Question:  

One of my close relative believes that she will be answerable to Allah if she eats meat or chicken or even fish if they are not ethically bred or looked after even if sheep and cows and chicken are slaughtered the halal way. She is thinking of becoming a vegetarian. Please comment if she is doing the right thing.

The young Ulama commented as below: 

Scolar 2: My simple answer would be that a Muslim may be a vegetarian.  only as long they do not regard eating meat as prohibited. Allah knows best. 

Scholar 1: How about the point "ethically bred and looked after". It looks like they have a point. 

Scholar 2: In terms of ethically being looked after, I don't think that contributes to the meat being Harām. However, in terms of the responsibility that she is referring to, in that case I don't think she will be liable for that, especially considering the approach to finding out if an animal was ethically bred or slaughtered.

However in light of her point, it has been mentioned through several narrations in terms of how animals need to be treated but that lies in the responsibility of the owner.

Scholar 1: Makes sense; Masha-Allah. 

Scholar 3: The standard in Islam is to eat حلال and طيب and therefore it is ethically valid to question to that extent but beyond that Islam does not force one to be a non vegetarian and therefore down to personal choice not belief.

Scholar 1: شكرا 

Scholar 4: There are a handful of companies like this that have popped up recently (that sell free range chicken, lamb, goat and turket).

Free range Halal chicken, lamb, goat and turkey

https://www.freerangehalalmeat.co.uk/ 

Scholar 1: wow. It's a solution for her then. 

Scholar 2: (I concur.) Although one thing I ought to mention, there are ways to find free range so, so that would be her best solution.

Scholar 1: True. 

Scholar 5: Obviously as Muslims we must eat Halal and should eat Tayyib. In this respect, the sister is correct in her thinking. 

              Furthermore, not eating meat is not a problem. However,  labelling oneself as a vegetarian is a problematic for a Muslim I believe. This is because the vegetarian society thinks it is cruel to consume animals altogether; they even consider the Halal Zabah as cruel and inhumane, even is the animal was fed and treated well. 

This is only from my limited thinking and Allah knows best.

Scholar 1: Shukran! 

Scholar 2: Overall, I guess it is down to personal research. To answer the question though, she won't be questioned for the meat she has eaten where it was not ethically bred. But if in her capacity she is aware of such actions, in that case, she will be made liable in a sense that she can choose to have ethically bred animals rather then going  vegetarian.

I also agree with (scholar 5) that the term 'vegetarian' nowadays is vaguely loose term. She needs to be careful of making which something  Allah made halal, haram for herself and choosing to eating vegetables, but NOT against eating meat. 

Scholar 1: Wonderful discussion, very informative. 

Scholar 2: If she is also a person who eats HMC only too AND wants free range, there are some home bred organic meats (may be expensive, however, if she is willing to go for it, then it would be very rewarding for her)

https://www.handtfoods.com/

Scholar 1: Jazakumullahu Khairan! 

VACCINATION FATWA OF OF MAURITANIA

THE FOLLOWING ARE EXTRACTS FROM THE FATWA ISSUED RECENTLY  BY THE ULAMA OF MAURITANIA

“Imam Ahmad said, “I like for the one who believes in the efficacy of trust and pursues this path to abandon medical treatment such as drinking medicine and other things.” For this reason, Qadi ‘Iyad conveyed unanimous consensus on the non-obligation to medicate.”

There is no doubt that the refusal of medical treatment, placing one’s reliance upon Allah  (i.e. Tawakkul) and acceptance of what He decrees, (i.e. Tafweez) is among matters endorsed by the revealed law. This is supported by what Al-Bukhari reports from ‘Ata b. Abi Rabah from Ibn ‘Abbas that a woman came to the Prophet—upon him Allah’s blessing and peace—and said, “I suffer from seizures to the point that my body becomes exposed. So, pray to Allah for me.” He said, “If you would like, you can endure it and be rewarded with Paradise. And if you would like, I can ask Allah to cure you.” She responded, “I will endure it.” She, then, said, “I become exposed. So, pray to Allah for me not to become exposed.” So, he prayed for her. Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani said in Fath al-Bari while commenting on this hadith,

The hadith indicates the merit of the one who suffers seizures, that the reward for enduring the tribulations of the world is Paradise, and that embracing the more difficult is superior to taking dispensations for those who know what they can withstand and are not too weak to cling to adversity. It also contains evidence of the permissibility to refuse medical treatment, that treatment of all ailments with supplication and taking refuge to Allah is more beneficial than treatment with prophylaxis (aqaqir), and that the effect of that and the body’s reaction to it is greater than the effect of medicine on the body.

The Maliki Ibn ‘Abd Al-Barr said in Al-Tamhid, And there were among the best of this nation, its predecessors, and scholars, people who endured ailments until Allah removed them despite having access to physicians. They, however, were not condemned for refusing treatment. And if treatment had been one of the required norms (al-sunan al-wajibah), then those who refused to utter incantations and take medication would have been deemed blameworthy. And this is something of which we know no one who says.

And Al-Nawwawi said in Al-Majmu’, “And it is recommended that the sick not be forced to medicate and to consume other things like food.” And if it is not permissible to force the sick who is suffering from extreme illness to medicate, then how is it permissible to force the healthy who has not been afflicted with any sign of illness? And how can trust and surrender to the divine decree be something desirable for the sick who suffers from an actual illness and that not be desirable for a healthy person who is fearful of an expected illness?.................

Experts have expressed that the vaccines prevent neither illness nor infection from pathogens.

Allah, Glorified and Exalted, has given to sane adults the freedom of choice and burdened them with the responsibility of themselves. Allah, the Exalted, says, “Whoever follows guidance, follows guidance for his soul. And whoever strays, only strays against it.” Therefore, the Shariah forbids forced conversion to the religion. Allah, the Exalted, says, “There is no compulsion in religion.” And if forced conversion to the religion is  forbidden, how could it be lawful to force one to adhere to health measures? And what  freedom of action remains for a person once his compulsion to take health measures is  completed? If it is permitted for a government to force a person to vaccinate on the basis of public interest, then this means that it is permitted for it to force a man to marry three or four wives on the basis of public interest! It is also permitted for it to force a woman to marry a man she does not desire, to travel outside [the country] to study on the basis of public interest or to perform military service on the basis of public interest. It would also be permitted for it to force the farmer to become a carpenter, a carpenter to become a tailor, and a physician who has memorized the Qur’an to teach in a religious school (mahzarah). And all of that is on the basis of public interest. Such things are not affirmed by either sacred or secular law, while the examples [following this flawed logic] are many. …………

It is not proper to support any vaccine until its safety has been completely verified. However, the safety of these vaccines is uncertain. The manufacturing companies are indemnified. The authorization for them was only for emergency use. And the side effects of these vaccines that the manufacturing companies have announced are many and serious, and most of them have appeared.3 Also, the effects of these vaccines on pregnant women and those with chronic illness is unknown. And they are vaccines the least of which can be said of them is that they incite dispute. In France and other European countries protests have persisted since October of 2020 until they reached their fortieth week with the attendance of tens of thousands among whom are the leaders of political parties, members of parliament, military officers, professors of medicine, and organizations of civil community. ……

The World Health Organization has been exposed to blackmail by pharmaceutical companies. This is in addition to statements made by Bill Gates going back to 2011 wherein he said that the reduction of the population will be completed via forced vaccination.

Signed by

- Shaykh Muhammad al-Sufi b. Mukhtass, Imam of the Hayya Central Mosque

- Shaykh Muhammad ‘Abd Al-Qadir b. al-Dad, Shaykh of Mahdarah al-Malikiyyah in

Arafat and author of Al-Mawrid Al-Shahi fi al-Fiqh al-Maliki

- Shaykh Muhammad al-Amin wald Aqah, Imam of a central mosque in Barimir

- Shaykh Khalid Wald Aslamu, Imam Masjid al-Hidayah in Riyadh

- Shaykh Muhammad Mahmud Wald Muhammadi

- Shaykh Babah Wald al-Lahamud

- Shaykh Ahmad Mahmud Wald Haddu, Imam of Masjid Baskujim

- Shaykh Adumu Wald al-Jili, Imam of Jami’ al-Da’wah wa al-Tabligh in Dar al-Na’im

- Shaykh ‘Isa Wald Muhammad Wald Hamati

- Shaykh Abu Bakr b. Ahmad b. Yarim, Imam of Masjid Maryam in Dar al-Barakah, Rusu

- Shaykh Ya’qub b. Sa’id, Imam of Masjid Damal Dak

- Shaykh Ahmadu b. Muhammad Sultan, Imam of Jami’ Hamzah

- Shaykh ‘Ali Jalu, Imam of Jami’ al-Ihsan

- Shaykh Muhammad Mahmud b. Sayyid ‘Ali, Imam of Jami’ al-Bayt al-Ma’mur

- Shaykh Muhammad al-Mashri Wald Muhammad al-Hajj, Imam of Masjid al-Sabkhah

- Shaykh Dr. Muhammad ‘Ali al-Shinqiti

- Shaykh Ahmad Ba’bu al-Naji, College professor and Imam of Jami’ Abu Bakr al-      Siddique  in Tafarrugh Zinah

- Shaykh ‘Abd Allah Wald Arbayyah

- Shaykh Muhammad Yasliim Wald ‘Abd Allah, Imam of Jami’ al-Mihsab

23 Muharram 1443 – 1 September 2021

Growing up in a Bangladeshi Village- A Bangladeshi Sylheti Anthology

I used to like buying balloons, as a kid growing up in Bangladesh there wasn't too many other entertainments. There was a small shop in the village selling biscuits and the likes. It was by the shores of the Kushiara on the way to my school, Chorya Prathomic Biddaloy Primary School. Often, if the village crazy man wasn't sitting outside, the group of children I would come home with would stop at the shop and buy Ozmi, balloons and Potato Crackers; it made us feel grown up transacting. My fascination was balloons, but really I hated it when they inevitably popped and would always cause me a fright, which I still seem to suffer from today. I noticed the shop was selling a different kind of balloon which looked bigger, firmer and made to last longer. It was hanging from a hook on front of the shop like AK47 ammos adjoined together around the chest of John Rambo going into war. I thought I'll buy those instead but the shopkeeper wouldn't sell it to me, he said these are not balloon. I said well what is it then? The man looking uneasy and flustered replied how many do you want and sold them to me. I indeed felt like a grown-up transacting. 

I was made to throw away all my balloons by the head-teacher, which I bought from my pocket money. It took me a decade to understand why he made me throw away my oily balloons!

That was the story of the very first time I bought condoms. Come to think of it I did have a great childhood, until I was banished to an unforgiving, cold and mean-spirited land for all my sins.

Friday in Islam

Abu Sa’id reported: The Prophet ﷺ said:

“If anyone recites Sūrah al-Kahf (Qur’ān chapter 18) on Friday, light will shine brightly for him till the next Friday.”

The Ulama agree that Friday begins from the start of Maghrib on Thursday and lasts until the end of Asr on Friday, therefore you can read Surah al-Kahf tonight and fulfill the requirements of the hadith!

Here are a list of some more Friday Sunnah’s that you should do to maximise the reward you get on the most blessed day of the week:

Invoking blessings on the Prophet Muhammad PBUH abundantly

Have a Ghusl (bath/shower) in the morning

Take care of your personal hygiene - clip nails, remove unwanted hair, use the miswak

Wear your nice clothes for Jumu’ah

Men should apply perfume before going to Jumu’ah prayers

Go to Jumu’ah prayer and listen attentively to the Khutbah

Make a lot of du’a - especially in the last hour before Maghrib begins

Albert Einstein hated Zionism

Before the illegal establishment of the Israel state in 1948, the figurehead of The Zionist terrorist organisation in America contacted Albert Einstein asking him to endorse this notorious movement. Since his heritage was Jewish, the organization assumed that Einstein, who himself had fled Nazi Germany and sought refuge from Hitler's policies, would be a vocal supporter. 

However, because Einstein had traveled to Palestine in 1922, and at that time seen first-hand the realities on the ground, he wrote this letter back, angrily disavowing any affiliation with Zionism. Einstein wanted a land in which Jews and Muslims lived together as equals, and he realized that the Zionist agenda would not be able to achieve its goals without inflicting massive sufferings and untold deaths on millions of people. He went so far as to claim that Zionism was a betrayal of the ideals of the Jewish people, and its practitioners at the time were nothing but terrorists.