the heart of a Muslim woman
" to the American people who support Israel and its
wars "
Dear friends
I am writing
this letter to you because of the devastation that is caused by your government
in our lands, and because of the immanent threat to world peace that I see your
government pushing for, again.
The way
things are moving now, I foresee great danger, and terrible risk to peace and
security to the whole world.
I am writing
to you because I care very much about humanity and I love our planet, with all
its inhabitants.
I am writing
to you because I believe in civilised dialogues, where people can express
themselves freely, without being patronized, silenced, ridiculed, imprisoned or
even killed for their beliefs.
I am writing
to you to build bridges not walls, and to take you on a short journey so you
may see things from our perspective.
I am
writing to you for the purpose of advancing more realistic and humanistic
understanding and for trying together to achieve a more tolerant and peaceful
world.
I see
systematic efforts by most of your media pundits, to work endlessly at
dehumanizing Muslims and their faith, and I see that as pre-emptive
justification for more military attacks against more innocent civilians, aiming
at our total destruction.
When a group
of people (Muslims in this case) are seen as intrinsically evil, and when their
faith and beliefs are portrayed as violent, malicious, and aggressive, then,
anything done to those people is acceptable and defensible.
Without
talking to one another, and without trying sincerely to put extra effort to
understand the other, we will all be losers, and we’ll be driving our beautiful
world towards catastrophe and devastation… that breaks my heart, as a mother,
and as a human being.
Is it
too much to ask “to open our hearts and our minds and listen to what the other
has to say” ?
Can we learn
something from little children; where prejudice and bigotry are non-existent ?
Words
in your media are used and manipulated to imply deceptive meanings, so you are
kept in a state of constant fear, watching over your shoulders in panic from
"Islamist monsters bent on invading and destroying you", never mind
how absurd and ridiculous such allegations in reality are.
The
zionist-controlled media has hijacked our language, and vocabulary and
disfigured our religion
They drilled
in people’s heads that:
Islam is
terror
Jihad is holy
war
Fatwa is
death penalty
Muslim women
are the manifestation of oppression, uneducated, forced into wearing the veil,
and enslaved by their men.
Muslim men
are fanatics, cruel, sadistic wife beaters
Muslim
children are terrorists in the making
When a c rime
is committed, the criminal is a criminal, but when a Muslim commits a crime,
even a petty one, he is immediately labelled a "Muslim criminal"
irrespective the fact that his faith opposes such crimes. A Muslim
criminal committing a crime becomes "a Muslim terrorist", and he
committed the crime because he is a Muslim and his faith teaches evil!
If only
Americans could understand that what is published in US medias and blogs, is
not the truth, but as much a lie as when your bankers all told you could borrow
almost limitless and never suffer any economic consequences.
The hard
facts about Islam and Muslims, are different, and the vast majority of Muslims
would not fit to this ugly stereotype.
Islam is
peace: the root of the word Islam is Salam, which is one of the Holy Names of
God. Salam is Arabic for Peace. The meaning of the word Islam is
beautiful as Islam is Arabic for bring into Peace.
The word Salam
is used for greeting others. Saying "as’Salam alaikum" to someone
means "Peace be upon you!"
When a Muslim
greets another person with "Peace be upon you," the greeter is in
fact proclaiming a contract of Peace with the other person. Hence, if the
greeter has non-peaceful intentions towards the other person, he would be
engaging in hypocrisy, which is one of the Major Sins in Islam!
“When a
(courteous) greeting is offered you, meet it with a greeting still more
courteous, or (at least) of equal courtesy. God takes careful account of all
things” Quran (4:86)
Jihad is
an Arabic word that means the endeavour to do your best to make this world a
better one:
Any
effort to help achieve that is called jihad, or struggle, going to school to
learn is a form of jihad, being a mother rearing children is jihad, spreading
knowledge through teaching or writing is jihad, treating patients is jihad,
looking after sick parents is jihad, also defending yourself when attacked is
jihad, and struggling against oppression is jihad.
Any action
that one undertakes in order to bring good to mankind is jihad
Life with all
its ups and downs is a jihad
The highest
form of Jihad, however, is the inner Jihad, which is the Major Jihad that means
the never ending inner struggle against one’s arrogance, greed, and selfishness
in order to achieve the Generous Temperaments.
The Prophet
Muhammad, Peace be upon him, declared "Verily I was sent to this World to
define (and live by) the Generous Temperament."
According to
him, the codes of Generous Temperament (makarem elakhlaq) are seven:
“Pardoning
those who have oppressed you
Giving to
those who have deprived you
Connecting
with those who have shunned you
Benefiting
those who have abused you
Counselling
those who have deceived you
Forgiving
those who have maligned you
Forbearing
with those who have angered you.”
Contrary to
common beliefs, the concept of holy war does NOT exist in Islam; it is a
European concept from the days of the crusaders, and has absolutely no
equivalent in Islam, it does however in the minds of the new crusaders as it seems
from so many video clip we have seen, of your hypocrite politicians and zionist
"evangelists", and in the sick minds of those who invaded our lands
and murdered our people.
To translate the concept of Holy War into Arabic is almost impossible. It would
sound something like “Harb Muqaddassah” which does not exist in Arabic, even
the concept of it is unheard of, never used in spoken or written language, as
it is too contrary to Islamic principles and values !
How
misleading and dishonest is the translation and misconception of jihad as a
holy war then!
By writing
this, all I am doing is reclaiming my language back.
Fatwa is
nothing but an expression of an opinion by an informed person:
Being
what it is, it is not for any one to enforce their “fatwa” / opinion upon
anyone.
There is no
hierarchy system, no priesthood, no church institution, and no clergy in Islam;
and that is something totally misunderstood, and rarely ever mentioned.
Any Muslim is
entitled to make his/ her opinion from their understanding of the Qur’anic
text.
If those
opinions are expressed by some knowledgeable person, they are called “fatwa”.
All this
falsification, distortion, and misrepresentation of Islam (deliberate or not)
if not addressed and sorted out urgently, logically and with open-mindedness
and compassion, then our world is doomed!
Being a
Muslim woman and knowing exactly what Islam teaches, I feel dismayed and
heartbroken at the image that you are made to believe as a true representation
of us and of our faith
Now, if I
come to you and say: “well, no in fact Islam teach this or does not teach that”
would you take my word for it?
Of
course not, so, I “quote” some of the specific teachings in order to
reflect-precisely- the position of Islam, from the most authentic source to
Muslims: the Qur’an.
Democracy and
Freedom of choice:
“No
compulsion in religion or ideology” (2:256).
“Say: O
you that reject Faith! I worship not that which you worship, and you do
not worship that which I worship… To you be your Way, and to me mine”.
(109:1-6)
“We showed
him the Way: whether he be grateful or ungrateful (rests on his will)”. (76:3)
“Let
there arise out of you a band of people inviting to all that is good, enjoining
what is right, and forbidding what is wrong: They are the ones to attain
felicity”. (3:104)
"And
their affairs are (conducted) through consultation among themselves."
(42:38)
“If any one
does a righteous deed, it ensures to the benefit of his own soul; if he does
evil, it works against (his own soul). In the end will you (all) be brought
back to your Lord”. (45; 15)
Relations
with others:
‘O mankind!
We created you from a single soul, male and female, and made you into nations
and tribes, so that you may come to know one another. Truly, the most honoured
of you in God’s sight is the greatest of you in righteousness. God is
All-Knowing, All-Aware’. (49.13)
“And
among His Signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the variations
in your languages and your colours: verily in that are Signs for those who
know”.(30-22)
Women’s’
issues
“Whoever
works righteousness, man or woman, and has Faith, verily, to him will We give a
new Life, a life that is good and pure and We will bestow on such their reward
according to the best of their actions”. (16-97)
“The
Believers, men and women, are protectors one of another: they enjoin what is
just, and forbid what is evil: they observe regular prayers, practise regular
charity, and obey God and His Messenger. On them will God pour His mercy: for
God is Exalted in power, Wise”. (9:71)
“If any do
deeds of righteousness, be they male or female – and have faith, they will
enter Heaven, and not the least injustice will be done to them”. (3-124)
“Then shall
anyone who has done an atom’s weight of good, see it! And anyone who has done
an atom’s weight of evil, shall see it”. (99:7-8)
“It is He who
created you from a single soul, and made its mate of like nature, in order that
he might dwell with her (in love)”. (7:189)
“And among
His Signs is this: He created for you mates from among yourselves that ye may
dwell in tranquillity with them, and He plants love and mercy between your
(hearts): verily in that are Signs for those who reflect. 30-21
“For Muslim
men and women, for believing men and women, for devout men and women, for
truthful men and women, for men and women who are patient and constant, for men
and women who humble themselves, for men and women who give in Charity, for men
and women who fast (and deny themselves), for men and women who guard their
chastity, and for men and women who engage much in God’s praise; for them has
God prepared forgiveness and great reward”. (33:35)
War and
peace:
The
general rule is:
Fighting is
only allowed in case of self-defence, against Aggression (odwan) or Persecution
(fitnah).
‘You may
fight in the cause of God against those who fight you, but do not initiate
aggression. God does not love transgressors.’ (2.190)
"O
believers, be you guardians of justice, witness for God. Let not a group’s
hostility to you cause you to deviate from justice; be equitable – that is
nearer to being God-conscious." (5:8)
“To those
against whom war is made, permission is given (to fight back), because they are
wronged; and verily, God is most powerful for their aid; (They are) those who
have been expelled from their homes in defiance of right,-(for no cause) except
that they say, our Lord is God”. (22:39-40)
“God commands
justice, the doing of good, and liberality to kith and kin, and He forbids all
shameful deeds, and injustice and antagonism: He advices you, that ye may be
reminded.” (16-90)
"No soul
shall be made to bear the burden (liability) of another." (35:18)
“But
show them forgiveness, and say "Peace!" and soon shall they know!”
(43; 89)
“The
recompense for an injury is an injury equal thereto (in degree): but if a
person forgives and makes reconciliation, his reward is due from God; for (God)
loveth not those who are wrong-doers”. (42:40)
‘If they seek
peace, then seek you peace. And trust in God for He is the One that heareth and
knoweth all things.’ (8.61)
“But God does
call to the Home of Peace” (10-25)
“Ye who
believe! Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to God, even as against
yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich or
poor: for God can best protect both. Follow not the desires (of your hearts),
lest ye swerve, and if ye distort (justice) or decline to do justice, verily
God is well-acquainted with all that ye do. Thus, have We made of you a nation
justly balanced, that ye might be witnesses over the nations, and the Messenger
a witness over yourselves” (2-143)
“Show
forgiveness, speak for justice and avoid the ignorant.” (7:199)
“It may well
be that God will bring about love (and friendship) between you and those with
whom you are now at odds.” (60:7)
“Nor can
goodness and evil be equal. Repel evil with what is best: if you do so, he who
is your enemy will become a close friend.” (41.34)
**********************
I am only a
mother, and I am also a person who detests violence, war, weapons, killings…etc
I am sick to
death with war and violence
And I wish
what I have seen and what my people had seen on nobody.
Centuries
of imperialism, and illiteracy followed by the brutal uprooting of a whole
nation from their homeland in order to give it away to people from other parts
of the world just because of their Jewish-ness, and to free the European’s mind
of the guilt of the holocaust (which we –Muslims and Palestinians- had nothing
to do with, but ended up having to pay the price for Europe’s crimes)
Year
after year, decade after decade of injustice towards the Palestinians, accompanied
by unequivocal support from USA and Europe to the Zionist entity, led the
Muslims to resent the hypocritical policies of the Western world.
This blind
support of the Zionists was/ is perceived by Muslims as an act of aggression
and grave injustice.
Yet those
fundamental basic facts are not represented to you, what you led to believe is
that Muslims hate your freedom, your democracy, they are jealous of your way of
life, and they hate peace… what a load of nonsense!!!
Muslims feel oppressed
and persecuted by YOUR government, its unjust policies, its unconditional
support of the terrorist zionist regime and its criminal wars and aggression
They
feel that justice had been denied to them, and that they have been constantly
under attack.
Exposed to so
much injustice and oppression it is only natural that people would have
resentments and would look for ways to liberate themselves from oppression and
modern slavery, which is precisely the case in many Muslim countries nowadays.
And instead
of trying to right the wrongs you’ve done over decades of oppression and
injustice, what do you do?
You go yet
again and attack more Muslim countries; you bomb Afghanistan and Iraq reducing
them to rubble! And go on to threaten Iran with nukes!
You kill over
a million more!
And what is
more ridiculous is that you are doing so whilst claiming that you’re doing it
for the sake of liberating us from our backwardness, ignorance, and our
fanatics…
What
are you thinking? Do you think we are idiots?
We are
sick to death with your interference in our lands, and our countries
We are sick
to death with your domination and your attitude of superiority towards us and
the rest of the world.
We are sick
to death of you trying to impose on us your ways, your thinking, your problems
and your solutions.
Imperialism
has no room in the future of our world, and most certainly, that must include
thought imperialism.
WE WANT TO BE
FREE
We want to be
free in our homelands
We want to be
able to exercise our rights to choose our representatives and our governments
We want our
human rights that enable live peacefully and with dignity with no threat of
bombing or ethnic cleansing
We want our
right to go home and not to live forever as refugees
We want our
right to believe in God or not to believe if we so wish to
We want our
right to be equal human beings with equal value to our lives
We want to be
free to solve the ills of our societies in our own ways not by copy-pasting
your experiences and your solutions.
It’s
not good enough to try to justify the horrors that you’ve inflected and still
inflecting upon us, by dehumanizing us and belittling our faith. Period
Where
to go from there?
Yes indeed,
where to go from there?
Is there a
way out?
As an
optimist, yes of course there is always a way out:
To begin
with, you must start with opening your hearts and minds to see us as equal
human beings, worthy of life, love, and freedom.
Remove
your prejudice against us, and with sincere efforts open dialogues with us, not
to tell us what should we do or how should we think, or whom to elect as our
leaders, but to listen to us as your equals in humanity. A dialogue is a two
way system.
It’s also
good to start educating yourselves a bit more about us, not taking your
information from Hollywood but from us and our authentic sources.
We have
so much to tell you, so much to share, so much good we can offer you and the
world.
And that is
not exaggeration; that is simply the truth. Because we are humans just like
you. We all have so much to offer the world.
May I give
some suggestion towards a solution?
Why not
end your occupation of our lands?
Why not stop
supporting those puppet regime and dictators your successive governments have
forces upon Arabs for the sake of "Nation Building" which is the most
heinous word one can imagine, and why not continuing by accepting our FREELY
elected representatives, whom we chose through democracy ?
Why not
visit and even come and live in Muslim countries without your army uniform, and
without offering your bombs and missiles as gifts?
Why not drop
your arms and come to us with open arms rather than coming carrying machine
guns and riding offensive tanks?
Instead of
pushing like crazy towards Armageddon; why not gently, lovingly, tenderly and
with compassion, why not embrace a world of justice, tolerance and respect, as
Jesus “peace be upon him” would’ve done if he was alive today?
Why not
attentively listen to each other? Why not dream and work for a more peaceful
world built upon diversity and richness of multiplicity, a world where humanity
is celebrated and variety is rejoiced, a world where all are respected, where
all are free to think, to believe, and to live their own way without infringing
on each other, or imposing our ways upon each other?
As of now,
the world already can see that the American dream is a nightmare, your
s-elected and corrupt governments have made your country the most loathed
country, and they have robbed you exactly as they robbed those "Arabs out
there"
If you look
more vigilantly, more attentively, and closer to home, you will find the REAL
terrorist worthy of your alarm and disgust, are the ones amongst your midst,
ruling your country, robbing your resources, thriving on your poverty,
rejoicing your misery.
So why not
transform this mad nightmare and ideologically driven devastation, back into a
dream…. a reality?
Who is there?
Oh
human
Can’t you
see!
I am
precisely like you
I don’t like
being humiliated
I am no one’s
doormat
I’m person in
my own right
When I was
born
I was born
innocent
Happy and
free
And I
want to live
A normal life
With dignity
Wouldn’t you?
I
realise there is a dawn
Waiting to be
born
And that…
after hardship… passes away
Ease will
come to life… very soon
But…
they’ve inflected so much
Pain and
cruelty
Upon this
little girl
And upon her
homeland
The world is
watching
Eyes open
wide
In
bewilderment
And disbelief
“What we are watching
Is a fiction
movie
It’s not
really true”
While in
exile
Puzzled… I
agonize
Wiping tears
off my saddened face
Searching
around
Any one
there?
Looking up…
into sky
Did You hear
my cries?
Did You
witness the crime?
Suddenly
Knock… knock
A gentle tap
Yes,
coming
Who is there?
Hope is here
Smiling at my
heart
Standing by
my door
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