Tawheed

My first reaction to this eminent book of collected articles and lectures given by Professor Ismail ‎Raji al-Faruqi is one of frustration that I was not able to meet the man. He died in 1986. I would ‎have loved to have known him, for I found in reading this book that so many of his thoughts and ‎ideas coincided with my own hopes concerning the future of Islam and its relationship with the ‎other peoples of the Book, especially the Christians. I was a Christian theolegian and teacher until ‎my conversion to Islam in 1986.‎
Professor Ismail's book provides a good cross-section of his contribution to the study of ‎comparative religion and covers a wide spectrum of interreligious issues, spanning more than two ‎decades of his work. Essays which deal directly with other faiths, Christianity and Judaism in ‎particular, were specifically selected but they should be seen against the background of his huge ‎contribution to the study of religions through his many other eminent publications. Here, the ‎volume concentrates on those aspects of Islam which the Ahl al-Kitab (the People of the Book) ‎have in common rather than their differences.‎

The role of an institution of higher education in implementing and developing the teaching and research has become an inherent character and can not be separated which in turn higher education to transform itself into a bastion of civilization. Proportional to this, Universitas Djuanda Bogor as one of the entities of higher education with a vision of becoming qualified and independent universities to educate the life of the people are united in Tawheed, making this university as a bastion of civilization through the formation of human character who have intellectual, emotional, spiritual and social quotient as a sacred duty that can not be negated by any reason. Anomalies and disagreement respond regarding to the vision of tawheedy campus is a challenge and the characteristics of an institution that continues to seek its identity to the reliability of the integrity of the organization.

A Booklet on a range of issues related to tawhid; its nullifiers; its categories; its conditions; its foundations; kufr bit-taghut; al-wala wal-bara; the subject of labels of the shari‘ah; Islam and shirk; the clear and hidden matters; the application of the rulings and labels and (establishing) the hujjah concerning it; and he ended it with the topic of dar al-Islam.

This article explores new pathways of understanding the theological doctrine of tawḥīd from a Sufi theological perspective. It is evident that Sufism has expanded the inherent meaning of tawḥīd from the relatively simple idea of the Oneness of God to the philosophically complex phenomenon that reality is best expressed through an absolute unity of all existence. Instead of engaging in a dialogue about this important doctrinal principle with only written texts, this article intends to combine both traditional sources but also the actual voice of one contemporary Sufi practitioner. This original approach aims to circumvent the tendency of a top-down approach to the study of religion, provide a grassroots perspective, and a concrete example of how a theoretical concept can be practically manifested in the life of ordinary believers. Such a contribution is important, for it adds to wider empirical studies of Sufism a localized example that underlines the importance of investigating religion not merely through written texts, but also by a nuanced exploration from the point of view of spiritual seekers themselves. Since Sufis ultimately embark on a spiritual journey and long to attain proximity to God, abstract theory must be met with experiential satisfaction.

The phenomenon of not believing in a higher power, commonly known as atheism, although popular amongst some of the millennials of the modern West, has since its existence never claimed a significant enough spot to be mentioned as a worldwide movement in the history of humans and their religious beliefs. Atheists do not use the word 'God' in explanation of the universe and everything that encompasses creation. This brief article aims to highlight the fact that true atheists have always been an extremely small percentage of the human population at any given time in history and that, as a matter of fact, religion never came to debate the existence/non-existence of a higher power, but to affirm the oneness of God-called Tawheed as polytheism was much more widespread and common deviation from the correct belief than atheism and its offsets.

“Using the cave, the space of contemplation, and the pen, which gave shape to the words of God, H. Masud Taj drew an analogy to the genesis of Muslim architecture and calligraphy. Jnanapravaha hosted Taj, an award-winning architect, professor and calligrapher, for the widely attended series of seminars titled ‘Seven Wonders of the Muslim Civilization’ under the segment of ‘Islamic Aesthetics’. With lectures spread over five evenings, he strung together a vast knowledge of Islamic culture into an incredible narrative spanning religion, commerce, language, the written word and the built environment.”

- S.M. ( JPM Quarterly Jan-March  2019 p.11-14)

إنَّ‎ ‎التعامل‎ ‎مع‎ ‎أيِّ جانب من جوانب‎ ‎الحضارة الإسلامية،‎ ‎سوف يؤكِّد لنا أنَّ العامل الأكبر في وجودها والقاعدة الأساس في إبداعاتها ‏إنما هو القرآن الكريم. فالثقافة الإسلامية في الحقيقة هي ثقافة قرآنية؛ فمفاهيمها، وتكويناتها، وأهدافها،  وأساليب إنجازها... ما لها أن ‏تكو‎ ‎ن إلا بالاستمداد من الوحي الإلهي المنزّل على النبي محمد ‏(صلى الله عليه وسلم‎‏). فمن دون هذا الوحي، ما كان يمكن أن يكون ثَمَّة دين إسلامي، ولا ‏دولة إسلامية، ولا فلسفة إسلامية، ولا شريعة إسلامية، ولا مجتمع إسلامي، ولا مؤسسة إسلامية.‏‎ ‎وكما أنَّ هذه الجوانب من الثقافة ‏الإسلامية يُنظر إليها بحقٍّ على أنَّها ثقافة قرآنية في أساسها ودافعها وغايتها، فكذلك ينبغي أن يُنظر إلى الفنون في الحضارة الإسلامية ‏بوصفها تعبيراً جمالياً  مماثلاً في أساسه وتجلياته. أجل! إنَّ الفنون الإسلامية هي في الحقيقة فنون قرآنية. فكيف إذن يمكن النظر إلى ‏الفنون الإسلامية على أنها تعبيرات قرآنية في: اللون، والخط، والحركة، والشكل، والصوت؟

My first reaction to this eminent book of collected articles and lectures given by Professor Ismail Raji al-Faruqi is one of frustration that I was not able to meet the man. He died in 1986. I would have loved to have known him, for I found in reading this book that so many of his thoughts and ideas coincided with my own hopes concerning the future of Islam and its relationship with the other peoples of the Book, especially the Christians. I was a Christian theole gian and teacher until my conversion to Islam in 1986. Professor Ismail's book provides a good cross-section of his contribution to the study of comparative religion and covers a wide spectrum of interreligious issues, spanning more than two decades of his work. Essays which deal directly with other faiths, Christianity and Judaism in particular, were specifically selected but they should be seen against the background of his huge contribu

This paper presents an original model for Public Policy in Islam (PPI). It asserts that the four key elements of unity, purposefulness, civic engagement and rectification that characterise PPI offer an infinitely better alternative to the neoliberal ideology that currently constrains policy,

تناول المؤلف في هذا البحث العلمي الاقتصادي النصوص الإسلامية التي كثيرا ما أسيء فهمها وتمكن بدراسة تلك النصوص من الكشف عن ‏النظرية الاقتصادية الإسلامية وذلك بفضل ما أتيح له من تخصص علمي وثقافة إسلامية مما يجعل هذا الكتاب فتحا جديدا في ميادين الدراسات ‏الإسلامية والاقتصادية‎.
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وقد تناول المؤلف بالدراسة والبحث المقارن نظرية الإسلام الاقتصادية في هذا الكتاب على ثلاثة أجزاء‎:
وكان الجزء الأول يبحث في الأسس الفلسفية للنظرية من وجهتي الفكر الاقتصادي والنصوص الإسلامية‎.
‎
والجزء الثاني كان يبحث في وسائل تنفيذ تلك النظرية في المجتمعات المعاصرة‎.
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وأما الجزء الثالث فهو يبحث في أسس القيمة والتبادل كما ترسمها النظرية الإسلامية. إن الهدف من هذا الكتاب هو تقديم نظرية الإسلام ‏الاقتصادية في صورة تمكن القارئ الذي لم تتح له فرص الدراسة الاقتصادية من فهم النظرية وهضمها‎.
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إن هذا الكتاب بما احتواه من عمق علمي وجرأة فكرية ابتكارية ونظرية إسلامية كلية في مثل هذا الموضوع الاجتماعي الخطير ليعتبر ضرورة ‏ثقافية وعلمية ودينية لكل قارئ ومكتبة‎.‎

Allah’ı bilmek için şu iki ayet çok önemlidirler:

Birinci ayet olumlu bir konuyu anlatır. Diğeri ise olumsuz bir davranışı anlatır. İkisi bir arada hakikati tam olarak çerçeveliyor. Çünkü insanın zihni diyalektik olarak yani zıtların çatışması ile çalışır..

Allah sonsuz ve soyut olduğundan ne fizik ne de metafizik âlemde hiçbir şey Ona gizli kalmaz. Bu iki boyutu güzel bir şekilde belgeleyen, insanın ana karnındaki şekillenişidir. Bu şekilleniş Allah’ın birliğini, sonsuz güç sahibi olduğunu ve hikmeti icabı belli yasalarla iş gördüğünü gösterir. (Âl-i İmran, 4-5)

Demek bu soyut yetkinliği; maddi güç ve yasalar ile beraber işleri bilerek irade ve idare eden bir bilinci görmeyenler, çevreci geçinseler dahi, materyalist olduklarından; onlar sonsuzluğa, soyuta ve manevi değerlere düşmandırlar. Bu gerçeği de Bakara, ayet 98, şöyle ifade ediyor:

Kim Allah’a (soyut ve sonsuz değerlere) ve meleklerine (metafizik ve ruhanî değerlere) ve peygamberlere (düzen ve liderlere) ve Cebraile (vahiy, bilim ve iletişime) ve Mikaile (ekolojik çevreye) düşman ise, işte Allah da onun düşmanıdır.

[Demek böyle olanlar, soyut, sonsuz ve temiz hiçbir değeri soluyamayacaktır. Kirlilik ve dumanlar içinde boğulup gidecektir. Evet, asrımız sanayi, medeniyet ve ekonomik yapısıyla bilerek veya bilmeyerek bu dört temel değere savaş açmıştır.]

This article explores new pathways of understanding the theological doctrine of tawḥīd from a Sufi theological perspective. It is evident that Sufism has expanded the inherent meaning of tawḥīd from the relatively simple idea of the Oneness of God to the philosophically complex phenomenon that reality is best expressed through an absolute unity of all existence. Instead of engaging in a dialogue about this important doctrinal principle with only written texts, this article intends to combine both traditional sources but also the actual voice of one contemporary Sufi practitioner. This original approach aims to circumvent the tendency of a top-down approach to the study of religion, provide a grassroots perspective, and a concrete example of how a theoretical concept can be practically manifested in the life of ordinary believers. Such a contribution is important, for it adds to wider empirical studies of Sufism a localized example that underlines the importance of investigating reli...

إنَّ‎ ‎التعامل‎ ‎مع‎ ‎أيِّ جانب من جوانب‎ ‎الحضارة الإسلامية،‎ ‎سوف يؤكِّد لنا أنَّ العامل الأكبر في وجودها والقاعدة الأساس في إبداعاتها ‏إنما هو القرآن الكريم. فالثقافة الإسلامية في الحقيقة هي ثقافة قرآنية؛ فمفاهيمها، وتكويناتها، وأهدافها،  وأساليب إنجازها... ما لها أن ‏تكو‎ ‎ن إلا بالاستمداد من الوحي الإلهي المنزّل على النبي محمد ‏(صلى الله عليه وسلم‎‏). فمن دون هذا الوحي، ما كان يمكن أن يكون ثَمَّة دين إسلامي، ولا ‏دولة إسلامية، ولا فلسفة إسلامية، ولا شريعة إسلامية، ولا مجتمع إسلامي، ولا مؤسسة إسلامية.‏‎ ‎وكما أنَّ هذه الجوانب من الثقافة ‏الإسلامية يُنظر إليها بحقٍّ على أنَّها ثقافة قرآنية في أساسها ودافعها وغايتها، فكذلك ينبغي أن يُنظر إلى الفنون في الحضارة الإسلامية ‏بوصفها تعبيراً جمالياً  مماثلاً في أساسه وتجلياته. أجل! إنَّ الفنون الإسلامية هي في الحقيقة فنون قرآنية. فكيف إذن يمكن النظر إلى ‏الفنون الإسلامية على أنها تعبيرات قرآنية في: اللون، والخط، والحركة، والشكل، والصوت؟