The End of Terrorism by Amir Fatir

THE END OF TERRORISM BY AMIR FATIR
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The word Islam means peace. But to most people in Europe and America the word Islam triggers emotions of fear and the threat of imminent danger through some fanatical terroristic act. How did the religion of peace come to represent the complete opposite of peace to most of the developed world? Although the word Muslim means peaceful one, misguided fanatics have branded Islam with such a horrible image that millions of people would rather disembark than fly on an airplane when even one Muslim is known to be a passenger. In the face of such terrible international image The Silent Muslim Majority can no longer sit quiescent while the religion of peace is hijacked by violent fanatics who attack and murder non-combatants while claiming, quite erroneously, to be compelled to commit atrocities because of their religious sincerity. While only Almighty God Allah can judge a persons sincerity, all intelligent Muslims can judge the validity of their actions. And indeed we are obligated to do so because the Quran itself instructs us to judge by the light of what Allah (God) has revealed. When weighed in that light, terrorism is wrong. Terrorism is haram (prohibited). Terrorism is unIslamic.
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The terrorist who blows himself to pieces and kills innocent men, women and children will not go to Paradise and cavort with 72 virgins. The poor deluded one will, instead, suffer the torment of a blazing chastisement. Does not Allah state clearly in the Quran la taqtulu anfusakum, Do not kill yourselves (4:29)? You might think that the misguided youth who was tricked into suicide bombing by his handlers deserves a break due to his utter ignorance of divine law. In the Quran, a group of followers complain that their leaders deceived them and ask Allah to give them a double punishment. But Allah pronounces a double punishment for all, the deceivers and the deceived. It is incumbent upon us to tell our young would-be-terrorist brothers that Paradise is the last place they can expect to see after their deaths. They must also be told that the only reason their older handlers are making them commit suicide is because the handler is trying to guarantee that no one is left who can possibly point a finger at him The suicide is not a sacred act or even a ploy to cast fear into the enemy. Its a legal ploy to keep the handler out of the courtroom. We know that all Muslims are not terrorists. Only an infinitesimal number are. Yet that tiny minority has disfigured the faces of all one billion believers in every nation on the globe. The fear of Islamic terrorism costs. It shows up in the stares and looks Muslims receive going about their daily affairs. It strikes their pocket books in the form of jobs they dont get, promotions they lose and networks from which they are excluded. Those fears, whether irrational or not, restrict Muslims housing options and social circles. The fears have meant police investigations, routine stops by highway patrols, wiretapping and, sometimes, even the confinement of innocent people who have no more connection to terrorism than any American Christian. Just having an Arabic name has meant being embarrassed and inconvenienced by placement on a no-fly list. Its meant denial of credit by banks and denial of entrance to some of the better universities. While we are not to blame for the pervasive fear of and antagonism toward Muslims, we are responsible for it because
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responsibility means the ability to respond. No one is better situated to respond to misguided Muslim terrorism than the Silent Muslim Majority. We must be silent no more. For only we can speak with authority to the misguided terrorist in the language and light of the Quran to redeem him from his error and save him from perdition. Direct us the right way, The way of those You have (showered) blessings upon, not (the way of those) the Anger (is) upon, and not the Deluded ones (either) -- Quran 1:6-7 Allah reminds us through Al-Fatihah that we are always vulnerable to becoming Al-Daaleen, the Errant or Deluded Ones. And only by Allahs grace can we be brought back into alignment with the best divine principles after we have gone astray. The suicide bombers and terrorists have gone astray. As the Quran teaches, They have taken the Devil to be their guide and they think they are rightly guided. We seek Refuge in the Lord of men, the king of men and the God of men from the evil whispering of the Slinking Devil who whispers terroristic ideas into the hearts and minds of men. We cannot cede the duty and authority to explain Islam to a few members of a minute sect who promote a very narrowminded anti-intellectual interpretation of religion. Muslims the world over especially in the modernized post-industrial West must engage in detailed, highly publicized conferences to discuss all facets of Islam in the modern world. Are we not familiar with the Holy Prophets prophecy? He said, The sun of light will rise in the West. Instead of a total dependence on the opinions of Shaykhs in Arabia, Muslims who live in the West have a duty to allow the scientific discoveries known in the West to broaden our understanding of the majestic scientific religious wisdom thats contained in the Quran.
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It is not righteousness that you turn your faces towards the East or the West. But it is righteousness to believe in Allah and the Last Day, and the Angels, and the Book, and the Prophets, to spend of your substance, out of love for Him, for your relatives, for orphans, and the poor, for the wayfarer, for the beggars, and to free a slave. -- Quran 2:177 We must seek proper knowledge even as far away as China. The best international Muslim minds must come together, regardless of sect, to give the best modern interpretation of Islam as Islam engages the developed world. Such scholarly men and women must not be timid, nor should they limit their knowledge to the conflicting speculations of the scholars of yore. Many of those men would flee in panic if they even saw a jet airplane. So while we respect them and honor their past contributions, can we really restrict the knowledge of Allah to the world as those men experienced it? The Quran speaks of people who say, We follow the ways of our forefathers. The Quran rebuts, What? Even though your forefathers were fools? Intelligent international Muslim scholars must publicly engage vital topics such as: diet, ecology, children, womens rights, medicine, health care, marriage, funerary procedures, banking, usury, economics, finance, education for men and women, fashion, parents and elders, hospitals, law, international relations, professional careers, associations, penology and criminal justice, eliminating torture, so-called honor killings, transportation and military service. IS ISLAM A VIOLENT RELIGION? Muslims and Christians are the only two religious people who feel they are duty-bound to proselytize and convert people to their faiths. Most other people are content to live their own religious tenets and leave space for others to do likewise.
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In their zeal to make converts both groups sometimes go to extremes. Various European and American Christians, in competitive zealotry, enjoy criticizing Islam and the Quran for its allegedly Barbaric and violent verses about fighting and war. Apparently, those Christian zealots have forgotten to read the Bible. One would be hard pressed to find texts more barbaric-sounding or violent than those on the pages of the Bible. Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the Stones. -- Psalms 137:9 Now go and smite Amalek and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not, but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass. 1 Samuel 15:3 And [Saul] utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. -- 1 Samuel 15:8
and the Lord said unto Moses, take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the Lord against the sun. -- Numbers 25:4
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and Moses saidSlay every one his men that were joined unto Baalpeor. -- Numbers 25:5 and they warred against the Midianites and they slew all the males. -- Numbers 31:7 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him. --Numbers 31:17 If a woman approach unto any beast, and lie down thereto, thou shalt kill the woman, and the beast; they shall surely be put to death. --Leviticus 20:16 And Judah went upand they slewten thousand men. -- Judges 1:4 they slew the Canaanites and the Perizzites. But Adonibezek fled, and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes.
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--Judges 1:5-6 And [Samson] found a new jawbone of an assand slew a thousand men therewith. --Judges 15:15 And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword. --Joshua 6:21 At that time came Joshua, and cut off the AnakimsJoshua destroyed them utterly with their cities. There was none of the Anakims left in the land of the children of Israel. --Joshua 11:21-22 And afterward Joshua smote them, and slew them, and hanged them on five trees: and they were hanging upon the trees until the evening. --Joshua 10:26 These are but a few of the hundreds of Biblical verses praising and ordering atrocities and war crimes upon non-Jews.
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Nothing in the Quran comes close to the level of carnage and bloodlust that proudly stands in the pages of the Bible. The Quran places limits on killing during war, and, unlike the Bible, specifically outlaws genocide. Unlike the Bible which orders stonings the Quran does not and reduces Biblical stoning offenses to flogging. When one reads the Quran itself, not the comments of commentators pro or con, it can become clear that the Quran advocates a much more humane and evolved legal system than the Mosaic law in the Bible. I do not intend to put the Bible in a bad light. I only wish to show indisputably that when it comes to violence, war and fighting the Quran is far, far more humane and in accord with the Geneva Conventions than is the Bible. Other texts such as the Hindu Bhagavad Gita and the Ramayana are also full of passages that support warfare and violence. There were no Ghandis in power in the ancient world. But, thankfully, a definite evolution is apparent over the eons from Moses to Muhammad. A Muslim doesnt see competing revelations. He or she sees the unfolding of principles in the same tree of revealed spiritual information. Intelligent Muslims are: The ones who believe in what was revealed to you and what was revealed before you. -- Quran 2:4 All revelation comes from God. That Revelation is presented according to the degree of human maturity at the time. In fact, Revelation is the main factor that engenders the maturation process in the first place. In the Bhagavad Gita Krishna exhorts the warrior Arjuna to fight and kill his own kinsmen. Yet the Bhagavad Gita is considered one of the most beautiful literary works in the world. Moreover, mystics and scholars agree that the war Krishna implores Arjuna to wage is a metaphor for the war spiritual men and women are called to wage against their false ideas, lower emotions and destructive passions. If the Bhagavad Gitas war is a literary device might not the Qurans battle verses also present a graphic depiction of the religious man and womans duty to fight against conditioned reflexes and negative emotions?
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A clue to the meaning of the religious literary device is that the bad guys or opponents are usually situated lower than the righteous children of light or the followers of the true God. When you were on the nearer side of the valley, and they on the further side and the caravan on lower ground than you. -- Quran 8:42 In ancient Egypt the battle was between the king of the south and the king of the north. The king of the south (Ausar) occupied Upper Egypt and the king of the north (Set or Satan) occupied Lower Egypt. The motif is very ancient. This oft-recurring literary theme was used to point out the perils of the subconscious mind (underworld) and the many dangerous passions (demons) that lurked therein. Advanced Muslim leadership must now educate the Mujehiddin that the actual fight to which Allah calls them is not some kind of national war, but the more important battle against ones own lower desires and bad habits. The Jihad every Muslim must wage is the Jihad against our own nafs al-amaarah. That is the true Jihad. Political states and nations come and go. None of them will remain forever. But the reward of Paradise for waging the true Jihad that blessing is one that will endure. Everything will perish except His Face. -- Quran 28:88 And every nation has a term; so when their term comes, they cannot delay it (for even an) hour, nor can they advance (it).
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-- Quran 7:34 Every human constructed government on the globe, and every nation, will one day disappear. The Quran tells us that the entire Earth belongs to Allah. So how then can we be literally up in arms over non-Muslims entering Saudi Arabia or any other country? No part of the planet is more Gods property than another. All of it belongs to God. None of it belongs to us. This does not mean people should not resist invasion, colonialism and exploitation. However, we should clearly differentiate national political interests and prerogatives from religious obligations. Jihad The word jihad is usually used in the Quran in its verb form: jaahada, to endeavour, to strive, labor, exert oneself. Physical warfare can be an act of jaahada, but that is far from the original and primary emphasis of the word. Very subtly the Quran guides us to exert ourselves in battling the tyranny of our own low desires. They were adverse to striving (jaahidu) with their wealth and their souls. -- Quran 9:81 The jihad here is conducted in or with (bi) the peoples souls. The true Jihad is within. Those who believed and emigrated and Strove [jaahadu] hard in Allahs way with their wealth and their souls are much higher in rank with Allah. These are the ones who are the Achievers. --Quran 9:20
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Just as the earliest Companions, the Ansar, emigrated from Mecca to Medina, so must true spiritual seekers emigrate from a stagnant and backwards state of mind. And strive [jaahidu] in Allah true (to) His striving. He has chosen you and has not placed any hardship in religion upon you. It is the religious practice of your father AbrahamSo raise up the Salaat and give Zakaat, and hold fast to Allah. He is your protector. --Quran 22:78 The nature of the Jihad is here identified: raise the Salaat, give Zakaat and be strongly devoted to God. Thats a lot different from blowing yourself up thinking thats some type of human sacrifice for God. So dont listen to the Kaafirs, and strive against them with a great Jihaad. --Quran 25:52 Muslims have gotten quite loose with the word Kaafir, even using it against other Muslims who dont belong to a particular sect. A sincere Christian who adheres to what Jesus taught cannot be a Kaafir. Nor can a sincere Jew who obeys the Torah of Moses. Wheres the proof of that? Kaafirs are to be chastised with Hell. But Allah said: Surely those who believe, and those who are Jews, and the Christians and the Sabians, whoever believes in Allah
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and the Last Day and does good, they have their reward with their Lord, and there is no fear for them, nor shall they grieve. --Quran 2:62 Here we see that good Christians and good Jews have nothing to fear, not even Hell. They have their reward with Allah right along with the Muslims. So how can such also be Kaafirs? The word Kaafir comes from the verb Kafara, meaning, he covered a thing. A Kaafir is something that covers or superimposes itself upon the real you which is clear, beautiful intelligent light and consciousness. The true you is unconditioned (mu min), pure and undifferentiated. But false beliefs, programmed conditions, bad habits, low desires can superimpose themselves over the real you, covering you, choking you until the true majestic you is buried under decades of negative imposed traits. By the Soul and its balance, proportion, order and perfection. So he breathed into it its corruption and its (enlightened) righteousness. Surely he succeeds who purifies it. And he surely fails who smothers it. --Quran 91:7-10
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The lower emotions that cover and smother our souls are the Kaafirs against whom we must strive, fight and wage Jihad. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) taught that the greatest Jihad is against ones own lower desires. The Quranic verses on fighting are also a sublime metaphor for the spiritual aspirants battle against his or her internal adversaries. They also guide us to proper behaviour when it is necessary to defend ourselves against external aggression. To those against whom war is made, permission is given (to fight) because they are wronged. --Quran 22:39 Fighting is authorized in self-defense, not as an aggressor. Moreover, whenever the opponent inclines to peace, Muslims are obligated to come to appropriate terms for peace. We are never permitted to wage war upon innocents who have not waged war upon us. If Allah did not check one set of people by means of another, there would surely have been pulled down monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques in which the name of Allah is commemorated abundantly. --Quran 22:40 Spiritual people should protect churches, monasteries and synagogues with the same zeal that they defend mosques. Fight in the Cause of Allah those who fight you, but do not transgress the limits. For surely Allah loves not the transgressors.
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--Quran 2:190 Muslims are clearly held to limitations even during war. Women, children, animals, non-combatants, elderly people and the ecology are strictly off-limits. Any terrorist act that harms any of these has exceeded the limits. For spiritual warfare, the message is to stay away from extremes like self-mutilation or denying any type of human expression whatsoever. For example, we shouldnt fast so much that our organs begin to fail. We must practice moderation in all things. So fight [qaatil] in Allahs way you are responsible only for your soul. And rouse the Believers. Perhaps Allah will restrain the ferocity of those who cover. And Allah in strongest in might and in punishment. -- Quran 4:84 The implication that stands out is that the fight is for the soul. The lower emotions that accost our spirits can be reduced in their sharpness by the mercy of God. The word punishment demands some explanation. The Arabic word tankeel actually means driving back, holding back or delaying. The verse is saying that Allah might drive back the lower passions, retrains them, for the sincere Believer who wishes to be free of their molestation. Fighting is prescribed for you, and you dislike it. But it is possible that you dislike a thing which is good for you and that you love a thing that is bad for you. --Quran 2:216
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Nobody likes resisting their appetites and pleasures. But fighting against such cravings is better for our health and spiritual development than indulging them. Just as in the Bhagavad Gita and Ramayana warfare is used as a metaphor for the spiritual aspirants protracted struggle against his or her conditioned responses. Root Cause of Terror People dont suddenly decide to be terrorists for the fun of it. They are people who are desperate whose countrymen have been horribly wronged and who have had the world ignore their plight or, worse, to blame them for the suffering inflicted upon them by others. Western corporations and governments treatment of Muslims has been outrageous and unconscionable. Because it is a cry for attention to a horrendous plight, terrorism is, in part, a desperate kind of speech. Few Americans have any knowledge of the horrors the United States and Europe have visited upon the Muslim world. So when some Muslims explode in frustration and despair many Americans dismiss their desperation and simply categorize them as lunatics. The corporate media hides the atrocities committed against Muslims from the public. If the public knew one-tenth of the facts theyd demand that the atrocities cease and that reparations be paid. When the average citizen knows the facts, they are surprisingly fair. But the truth is that desperate acts of terror are generating the opposite reaction in the West. If terrorism is speech, that speech has backfired. Instead of generating sympathy it has generated fear and hostility. A completely different strategy is needed to win the hearts and minds of the Western public. But America and Europe must be informed that when they ignore the cries of aggrieved people, they are helping to convert normal boys and girls into potential terrorists. I propose real and extensive dialogue between Muslims and Europe and America to understand terrors cause and ways to resolve it.
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Muslims, however, must be firmly resolved that terroristic acts is foul speech. Allah advises us in the Quran to argue in the most beautiful manner. Terrorism is light years away from the best way to put forward an argument. The Quran teaches that the way to eradicate evil is to replace it with that which is better. Intelligent Muslims have the opportunity to marshal their resources to address legitimate grievances and Islamic concerns in a manner thats more effective than terrorism. The Quran teaches us to arrive at decisions by means of consensus. We should conduct conferences on terrorism and arrive at the best approach to terror and a unified endeavour to secure Muslims rights. Some talking points for those conferences could include: Expanding Islamic charities to provide assistance to victims of terrorism Making Tauhid (unity) take precedence over sects Muslim extremists who attack and murder other Muslims The Quranic way to resolve disagreements. Quran 49.9 Interfaith and Interdenominational Activities Role of Muslims in Western Government Military Forces Expanding other Muslims understanding of Jihad Establishing a Hot-line and counselling for prospective suicide-bombers who want out Non-violent Passive Resistance: Global Intifada Reaching out to misguided Jihadists
Young Muslim boys and girls around the world must be told and shown that each life Allah creates is sacred and that they have too much to offer and are far too precious to be sacrificed to the false god of violence. We must seek the fortitude to resist the temptation to allow transgressions against Muslims to persuade us to transgress the limits and boundaries of Islam. We have the challenge and opportunity to fulfil Islams promise of peace and to offer the principles in the Quran as an
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antidote for the social, economic, political and spiritual ailments that are afflicting the world. O Mankind! There has indeed come to you an admonition from your Lord and a healing for what is in the breasts, and a guidance and a mercy for the believers. -- Quran 10:57
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The End of Terrorism by Amir Fatir

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THE END OF TERRORISM BY AMIR FATIR