MUSLIM BELIEFS.
 

ORIGIN OF MAN.

"Behold, the Lord said to the angels". "I will create a vicegerent on earth". They said: "will thou place therein one who will make mischief therein and shed blood ? while we do celebrate Thy praises and glorify Thy holy (name)" ?  He said "I know what you know not".           (II : 30).

"Behold ! thy Lord said to the angels"; "I am about to create man, from sounding clay from mud moulded into shape"; "When I have fashioned him (in due proportions) and breathed into him of my spirit, fall ye down in obeisance unto him".(XV:28-29).

"We have indeed created man in the best of moulds".(XCV:4).

"O mankind ! reverence your guardian Lord, who created you from a single person, created of like nature, his mate, and from them twain scattered (like seeds) countless men and women". (IV : I).

"Man we did create from a quintessence (of clay); then we placed him as (a drop of) sperm in a place of rest; firmly fixed; then we made the sperm into a clot of congealed blood; then we made out of that lump bones and clothed the bones with flesh, then we developed out of it another creature. So blessed be God, the best to create". (XXIII:12-14).

Question:

Are we believe that there are other civilizations in the universe ?

Answer:

Allah has revealed His message to Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) who conveyed it to us complete so that we may be able to discharge our task which he has appointed to us, namely, building the earth and establishing a happy human life through the implementation of the constitution Allah's message embodies. He tells us in the Qur'an that there is a world beyond what we can perceive with our senses. We know that He has created creatures whom we cannot see. He tells us that He knows everything about the worlds which will always remain beyond our power of comprehension. he describes Himself as "the Lord of all the worlds". The fact that this word occurs repeatedly in the Qur'an in plural suggests that there are worlds other than our own. That there worlds contain intelligent civilizations is something perfectly possible. Indeed it is highly possible. To have numerous intelligent civilizations in different parts of the universe, with varying degrees of progress, advancement and skills would testify to Allah's power of creation. There is nothing wrong with believing in the existence of such civilizations. Whether our path will ever cross their's is something no one at present can tell. What we know, however, is that so far the evidence of such encounters ever occurring seems to be far from reliable. The creation of our own earth is described along with the creation of heavens as follows:

"Verily your Lord is God, who created the heavens and the earth in six days, and is firmly established on the throne (of authority), regulating and governing all things".(X:3).

Question:

The theory of Evolution as formulated by Darwin and subsequent studies claim that man evolved from apes. How compatible is this theory with Islam ?

Answer:

Darwin was a scientist who studied the different species which live on earth. he travelled widely in order to record his observations of various species and the fact that all animals have certain qualities which enable them to live in their particular surroundings. He was overwhelmed by the fact that animal species were graded. In other words, each shows that it has certain aspects which place it a grade higher than a species slightly inferior to it and a grade lower than another which is slightly superior. From the one cell animals to the ape there are hundreds of   species which make a perfect claim of beings. Darwin tried to explain this phenomenon by suggesting that species came into existence as a result of a long process of evolution. Man comes next, but the gap between man and the ape is so great that he cannot be said to have evolved from the apes directly Hence, the theory of evolution explains always this gap by claiming that there is "a missing link".
At first, Darwin stressed that the theory of evolution was not intended to contradict Christianity. Later however, he was forced either by pressure from scientific circles or by the weight of his own belief in the evolutionary theory, i.e. that each species must have evolved from the one lower in line, and must have later evolved into the one higher, to admit that there could not be any sort of accommodation between his theory and the religions view of the creation of man. We are told That Darwin hesitated a great deal before making this admission and his hesitation was mainly due to the fact that he did not want to offend his wife who was profoundly religious.
There is nothing wrong with Darwin's studies and observations in fact, they make interesting reading and could have ben used as a very strong argument in support of the religious view of creation. Indeed, Darwin was not the first to point out the gradation of species. Muslim scientists have made similar observations in the past. They spoke in detail about the gradation of creation. At no moment, however, did they feel that their observations or the fact that species were graded tended to contradict the Islamic view that man was created by Allah from clay, before Allah blew of his spirit into him.  They viewed this gradation as confirming Allah's great power.  Moreover, they observed that the gradation does not apply to animals only. Plants also are graded from very primitive ones to something which approaches animal qualities. There is, however, another wide gap between the highest plants and the lowest animals.
Where the theory of evolution goes terribly wrong is that it claims that because species are graded, the whole notion of a creator is negated. This is a very arbitrary conclusion. In fact, it does not follow logically from the observations and premises it starts from. Muslim scientists have reached the opposite conclusion from the same observations. This is not surprising. Muslim scientists are encouraged by Islam to study the world around us where they will find a great many signs confirming Allah's great power. European scientist, on the other hand, were pursuing their studies in defiance of the Church which tried to impose its own narrow view on the activity of the human mind. The gap between science and the Church was great indeed and led to the execution, or the burning alive, of scientists who refused to toe to the official church line. European scientists have every motive to rebel against the church, while Muslim scientists had no such motive. Indeed they viewed their work as a task required of them by Islam. Although their work served as the foundation from which European civilization started, at no time was there a conflict between science and religion within Islamic civilization.
This is not the place to make adetailed critique of the theory of evolution. Its failings are immediately obvious. It has no explanation for the two missing links. Nor can it answer the question of why a certain species continues to exist after it has evolved into a higher one. Its view of life as a great battle in which only the fittest survive is very narrow. it is enough for our purpose here to say that as an alternative explanation to existence, it is a still theory only, it is nor more than a miserable failure.

Question:

When did Adam live on earth ? Do Muslim scientists make a guess or estimate this event ? Is it relevant to Islam ?

Answer:

As Muslims, we are recognize only one source for the formulation of our concepts of life and the role of man. That source is divine revelations. We know that Allah has revealed the Qur'an, his last message, through the angel Gabriel to His last messenger, Prophet Mohammad (Peace be on him). Allah has also guaranteed that the Qur'an which contains His message, will remain intact, free from distortion, for the rest of time. Therefore, we must refer to the Qur'an for the formulation of our concepts of life and creation. We know that the knowledge contained in the Qur'an is factual, because it comes from the Creator whose knowledge is limitless and absolute. We cannot therefore, abandon this factual source of knowledge, preferring to it a scientific theory which is liable to amendment or improvement as even its most outspoken advocates admit. On the basis of the information Allah has given us in the Qur'an, we state without hesitation that human life on earth has started with Adam (peace be on him), who was created of clay and Allah breathed of His spirit into him. Therefore, man is the result of combination of clay and spirit. He came into existence as a result of Allah's will when He decided to appoint a vicegerent on earth. How did Allah breath of His spirit into Adam who He has made of clay, and when did all this happen are details which He has not chosen to give us. Therefore, we need not concern ourselves with them for two reasons; First, we have no means of finding out the answers with any degree of certainty because the only source which can give us such information, namely, Allah (limitless He is in His glory) has chosen not to tell us. Second, our knowledge of such details will not be of any help to us in the fulfillment of our task which is given to us by Allah, namely, the building of human life on earth, Had such information been of benefit to us in this regard, Allah would not have withheld it.
Having said that, I want to add two important points. The first relates to the fact that at no point in Islamic history was there any clash between science and religion. Even at the highest point of scientific achievement during the glorious days of Islamic civilization, Muslim scientists always felt that their discoveries confirmed religious concepts. Every time they made a new discovery about the universe, Muslim scientists felt that their faith increased in strength. In Europe, scientists always felt the urge to break free from the chains of the church. They always hoped that there would be come a time when a glaring discovery would enable then to claim an independent position, where they feared no opposition from the church. That discovery came with the publication of The Origin of Species which enabled European scientists to develop the theory of evolution. When European scientists were able to assert that man descended from apes, they felt their chains broken and they no longer needed to labor under the yoke of incomprehensible paradoxes.
The second is that there is nothing in the Qur'an or the Sunnah which prevents us from accepting that there are other forms of life in other planets or other solar systems or galaxies. Indeed, there is every reason to believe in such possibility. Moreover, we need not rigidly maintain that human life in its present form has always existed. There could have been a different form of life on earth before our present one. Moreover, man may have had some predecessors who might have been of greater or less intelligence. The creation through a combination of clay and spirit may refer to the very first predecessor of man. What we know of a certain is that human life in its present form has started with Adam (peace be on him), as we are told in the Qur'an.
You asked about the God worshiped by the first human beings. There has always been obviously one God, Allah. Adam was a Prophet who taught his children how to worship Allah alone. The Unitarian faith existed as long ago as man himself. What professors of comparative religion in Western universities assert about the development of religious beliefs is totally untrue. They claim that man started with primitive concepts of God and worshipped forces of nature and represented them with idols or totems, etc. Later, as man developed, his beliefs also developed and he started to believe in a small number of deities, who were then reduced to two before the concept of monotheism evolved. All this is contrary to what Allah tells us in the Qur'an. Allah gave Adam, the first man on earth, the message based on the Oneness of Allah. His children continued to worship Allah alone for many generations before deviation crept into their faith. Therefore, Allah sent them prophets and messengers to call on them to revert to the Unitarian faith. They made such a return at the time of Prophet Noah, when the group of believers who survived the floods with Noah started a new social order. Other returns were achieved by other prophets in different communities. This message was given its complete and final form in the Qur'an revealed to Prophet Muhammad, the Allah's last messenger.

ANGELS.

"Praise be to God, who created (out of nothing) the heavens and the earth, who made the angels messengers with wings, two or three or four (pairs) He adds to creation as He pleases; for God has power over all things". (XXXV : 1).

"Behold, two (guardian angels) appointed to learn (his doings) learn (and note them). One sitting on the right and one on the left". "Not a word does he utter but there is a sentinel by him ready (to note it)". (L : 17-18).

Question:

Are there any descriptions in the Qur'an and the tradition of the Prophet (PBUH) which would describe the shape and age of angels ?

Answer:

To begin with, Muslim believe in the existence of angels because such a belief is one of the essentials of the Islamic faith. Angels are mentioned in several verses of the Qur'an, a fact which necessitates that no Muslim can deny their existence. It is important to know what the Qur'an says about angels, because that is what constitutes our certain knowledge of them.
On the basis of information provided in the Qur'an we know that the angels were created before the creation of man. Allah has told them of intentions to create man.

"Behold ! the Lord said to the angels;"  "I will create a vicegerent on earth". (II : 30).

The purpose of their creation is to comply with Allah's orders and to do whatever He bids them, indeed they cannot disobey Him. The Qur'an states:

"Who flinch not (from executing) the commands they receive from God, but do (precisely) what they are commanded". (LXVI:6).

Angels live in heaven, because they "come down" to earth when they receive Allah's orders to do so.
It seems that man has a higher status than angels. This is apparent from what we are told in the Qur'an about Adam being taught all names before the angels were asked about them. When they indicated their ignorance, they were ordered to prostrate themselves to Adam as a sign of salute.
Their obedience to Allah is part of their nature. They do not have to resist any temptation to disobey Him. There is no conflict within them between what they desire and what Allah tells them do . Their natural desire is to obey Allah.  Hence any human being who succeeds in keeping to the right path, complying with Allah's orders as best as he can, resisting all temptations to disobey Him, seems to be better than angels.
Angels may also take different shapes, and acquire sometimes a physical form, or perhaps appear like human beings. We are told in the Qur'an that Mary was given the news that she would beget a son by an angel who 

"appeared to her like a perfect human being".             (XIX : 17). 

The same was the case with Abraham's guests who were angels in the form of human beings. Whichever form or shape they take, it is always a good shape and form, pleasant to the eyes of those who are made to see them. This is a point which distinguishes them from devils, who always take ugly forms and shapes. Angels also have grades and classes. The only physical description that occurs in the Qur'an of the angels is that they have wings which vary in number; some of them have two, some three and others have four wings (XXXV : I) some may have even more. Different angels are given different tasks. We know that Gabriel is the one who carries Allah's revelations to His messengers. He is described in the Qur'an as being honest and being obeyed by other angels. A number of angels carry Allah's throne. Some angels have the task of serving the inhabitants of heaven and attending to their wish. Others inflict Allah's punishment on those who are assigned to hell.
We are told in the Qur'an that angels attend the battle the believers fight. in the first major battle fought by the Prophet (PBUH) against the unbelievers that is, the battle  f Badr, angels actually took part in the fighting in support of the Muslims. In later battles, their tasks was confined to encouragement and consolidating the position of the Muslims without actually fighting. Their task in relation to the believers also includes that they pray for the believers, ask Allah's forgiveness for them and implore Allah to save them from sin. They also attend the morning prayers with the believers. Angels do not marry and procreate. They cannot be classified into male and female. Age and color do not apply to them.
These are the main qualities of the angels, as related in the Qur'an. The traditions of the Prophet (PBUH) speak of the angels in greater detail, but they are largely an elaboration on the points we have already stated. Whatever information has been given in the Qur'an must be accepted without question, whether it relates to angels or to anyone else. When something mentioned in the Qur'an relates to some creature or some event or some beings whom we cannot see or know, we have to accept it at its face value. We cannot verify it with our own senses. Hence, our acceptance of it lies within the framework of our belief in what we cannot perceive. When people confront us with detailed description of something of the world we cannot see, hear or perceive, we have to ask them what is their authority, and in this case of the angels they simply cannot, then the only way o treat their assertion is to reject them. We can only accept what comes to us from a definite and trusted source, such as the Qur'an or the Hadith. Whatever else lacks such a basis cannot be accepted.

Question:

Do Angels die ? Do beings other than man like Angels, Jinns have souls, if they have do they die.     Who then will then take the soul of the angel of death ?

Answer:

If we define the soul as the element which makes our bodies alive, and enables us to move, act, speak, eat, drink and above all think, then the angels, Jinns and other living creatures have souls and will certainly die. Whether the soul of an angel is similar to that of a human being is something beyond our knowledge. What is certain, however, is that every living soul has a certain term of life and upon the expiry of this time it will die. The statement, "each soul shall taste of death" is mentioned three times in the Qur'an. Other Quranic verses express the same fact in different ways. Allah says in Surah Rehman:

"All that is on earth will perish; but will abide (for ever) the face of thy Lord full of Majesty, Beauty and Honor". (LV : 26-27).

Hence, all creatures including birds, fish, animals human beings, Jinns and angels will certainly die. A long Hadith related by Al-Tabarani which does not aspire to any high degree of authenticity mentions that when the horn is blown for the first time, all living creatures in the heavens and the earth are stunned and die. Only the Angel of Death remains. He comes to Allah the Almighty and says. "My Lord,you, the eternal who never dies, remain and I am also  left here". Allah says to him "You are a creature of Mine. I have created you for the job you have done. Die". He dies.

C. THE JINN.

"And the Jinn race, we had created before, from the fire of a scorching wind".  (XV : 27)

"And He created Jinns from fir free of smoke". (LV : 15).

Question:

What is the Islamic concept of the Jinn ? Can they take different shapes and forms ? Can they be seen by Human beings ?

Answer:

This subject is one about which we do not have any material evidence to shape our views. What we have, however, is certain Quranic statements which together give us a clear idea. It is, therefore, a subject which belongs to the realm of the imperceptible. As such, we believe in what we are told in the Qur'an or by the Prophet (PBUH) without question. If any person denies the existence of the Jinn while he is aware of what the Qur'an says about them, he is not a Muslim, because he denies something stated explicitly in the Qur'an.
From what we have in the Qur'an we can deduce that the Jinn are a species which differ from man in certain aspects, but, like man, they have been given the freedom of choice in matters of thought and action. They are, therefore, required to believe in Allah and follow the Divine Faith. They will be resurrected on the Day of Judgement and will be given their rewards. The unbelievers among them will be thrown to the Hell in the same way as unbelieving human beings are. On the other hand, those who believe in Allah and accept the message of the Prophet (PBUH) and conduct their lives according to the teachings of Islam will be admitted into Heaven.
There is a SURAH in the Qur'an entitled "The Jinn" which speaks of some of them having listened to the Qur'an and were overwhelmed by the strength of its argument and accepted the faith of Islam. In SURAH AL-AHQAF, we are also told that a group of the Jinns listened to the Prophet (PBUH) as he recited the Qur'an, then they went back to their people to give them warning against rejection of the Islamic faith. From the Quranic report we know that those  inn and their people were aware of the message of Moses. We can then safely assume that they were also required to believe in the message of Moses.
Their origin is different from ours. Man is created from moulded clay and the spirit of Allah, as we are told in the Qur'an. The Jinns are created from fire. We also know that a minority of them accept the faith and conduct their lives according to it. The majority follow the ways of that most famous of their kind. Satan, who has taken it upon himself to try to seduce human beings. Like human beings, they procreate, and apparently they die. They have a world of their own and they are supported to conduct the affairs of their world according to Islam.
These are the basic beliefs about the Jinn which we are supposed to accept. Apart from this, there is very little we know about them which aspires to any degree of certainty. In particular, their taking several shapes and causing harm to human beings are matters which are commonly believed in, but in which we do not have any certain or authentic information. My own personal view is that they do not have any bearing on our lives, in the same ways that we do not have any bearing on theirs. Certain people, however, try to make a great deal of money by claiming that they have special powers which enable them to communicate with the Jinn or to drive them away from anyone who is possessed by them. These claims are  ertainly false. A Muslim is supposed to have keen awareness of the facts of life. He should know that anyone who makes such a claim cannot provide any real proof to support his claim. It is much wiser to absolutely disregard any such claim and to accept only such information as Allah and the Prophet (PBUH) have given us. In matters of faith, we are not supposed or required to go beyond the apparent and clear meaning of Quranic statements and what has been authentically reported to us of the Prophet's pronouncements.

D. BLACK MAGIC.

"Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of the Dawn, from the mischief of darkness as it overspread; from the mischief of those who practice secret acts; and from the mischief of the envious one as he practices envy".("AL-FALAQ, The Dawn" CXIII : 1-5).

In this Surah three special kinds of mischief are spelled out against which our best guard is our trust in God, who is the light of the heaven and the earth. Three mischief are:
i)  Physical dangers: typified by darkness,
ii)  Psychical dangers within us: typified by secret acts and,
iii)  Psychical dangers without us: resulting from a perverted will, which seeks to destroy any good that we enjoy.
From the above Black magic may be considered as a danger to us as practiced by witches and magicians and included as secret acts. Such secret acts cause psychologically terror. Thus the practicing of such secret acts so as to cause psychological terror is called Black Magic, i.e. secret plotting or the display of false and seductive charms. There is deceit and fraud in such things but man is swayed by such things. He should cast of fear and do his duty. The recital of Sura AL-FALAQ also helps the believer from any harm that the practicers of Black Magic may intend to do.

Question:

Some people believe in the existence of Black Magic or witchcraft, claiming that it is mentioned in the Qur'an. Does it exist ?

Answer:

That Black Magic exists, there is no doubt. It is mentioned in the Qur'an on more than one occasion (XX:66-69; XX:73;). But from the Qur'an we learn that Black Magic does not have any reality. It is merely an attempt to trick people into believing that some particular thing is happening by working on their imagination. In the story of Moses, when the magicians did their act throwing their ropes and staffs, the Qur'an states that even Moses himself "was made to think, by the power of their magic, that they were alive and moving" snakes. Then the Qur'an also states that all that the magicians were able to do was no more than "a trick of a sorcerer". (XX : 66-69).
From all this we learn that black magic does exist. Some people may be able to work on the imagination and the minds of others and make them believe that they are able to accomplish some supernatural acts.
Islam, however, strictly forbids the learning and practice of magic. There is no situation or circumstance when the practice of black magic is permissible. Indeed, the prohibition is so strict that the practice of black magic is equated with a complete denial of Islam altogether i.e KAFIR.
 

Question:

Can a Muslim believe in Magic and witchcraft ? In certain societies, some people claim that they or others are possessed by the devil or by Jinns, and that certain witch doctors can cure them. Please explain.

Answer:

Allah tells us in the Qur'an that He has created human beings and Jinns. Both have their own worlds. Both share in common their ability to choose their beliefs and determine their actions. Both are required to believe in Allah and the message of Mohammad (PBUH). From Quranic statements, we understand that the Jinns were also required to believe in the message of Moses.
We also told that the majority of the Jinns are unbelievers. Just like the majority of human beings. We are not told that the Jinns have any power over human beings, nor that human beings have any control over the world of Jinns. In the normal course of life. Their two worlds are separate.
We also know that magic has been known to man. My understanding of it is that a magician uses certain tricks to make his audience believe that he has super human powers. He may also give them the impression that he can use one or more of the Jinns, to accomplish his purposes. People also suggest that magicians can place a curse over a person or a place to ensure that no good comes to that person or place.
All this is rejected in Islam. The fact that there is something called magic does not, by necessity, imply that a magician can do wonders or play havoc with the lives of people. We are therefore, required not to resort to magic or sorcerers in any circumstances. The Prophet (PBUH) gives us his ruling that to learn magic is forbidden and to practice it is a rejection of the faith of Islam. The Prophet (PBUH) also warns us: "He who goes to a monk, a sorcerer or a witch doctor, denies by his action what has been revealed to Mohammad (PBUH)". There can be no more categorical verdict on such practices. They take the person concerned totally outside the faith of Islam. This does not apply only to the sorcerer or the witch doctor in person, but it applies also to those who seek their advice or help. Please note that the pronouncements of the Prophet (PBUH) which I have just quoted, begins with "He who goes to.....". This implies going there for help or advice. A person does not need to act on the advice of a magician or a witch doctor or to hire his services in order to be considered as having rejected the faith of Islam; he only needs to take the first step by merely going to such people. By going to them, he demonstrates that he believes their false claims of having special powers. It is such a belief which takes him completely out of the faith in Islam. What we should do with our friends and relatives who fall ill is not to take them to witch doctors or such people who claim healing powers, but to seek medical advice for them. This is what the Prophet (PBUH) has taught us. He says; 

"Seek medical treatment, for Allah has created the illness and created its cure". He also says:

"Seek medical help, for Allah has created a cure for every illness, although it may be known to some and unknown to others".

From these two pronouncements, we learn that there is no such thing as a sick person being possessed by evil spirits. He tells us very clearly that every illness has a certain cure.

Question:

Some people are said to have an evil eye or even an evil tongue. Is there really such thing ? How true is this notion ?

Answer:

That such things do happen, there is no doubt. whether an evil eye of a person can be evil is a different matter altogether. Allah has created our eyes for us, to do their normal function which is known to everyone. The eye itself is therefore a neutral organ. What happens in such cases when someone's gaze is associated with some misfortune to the object of his gaze relates more to the mind, thoughts and soul. It is with what mind (intentions) and thoughts a person looks at another, that may cause him to come to a misfortune.
Moreover, a person whose "eye" causes such an evil outcome is normally not aware of it. If he is questioned about it, he will be quick to deny any knowledge of it with apparent sincerity. What is also true is that a person with an "evil" eye cannot use his eyes to bring about certain results which he may desire. He is not given any special "power" which he may utilize at will for any particular end. He is merely an ENVIOUS person who does not like to see others endowed with aspects of Allah's grace which he believes to have been denied to him. He looks with ENVY on something or someone, and misfortune befalls it or him.
The assertion is that this is true is borne out with evidence from the Hadith and from the Qur'an. The Prophet (PBUH) says: "That there is an (evil) eye is certainly true". He also says: "An (evil) eye can cause a thick piece of rope to go through a fine needle hole". In the Qur'an Allah says to the Prophet (PBUH):
"And the unbelievers would almost trip thee up with their eyes when they hear the message". (LXVIII : 51).
It is also strictly forbidden to resort to priests of other religions for any help or to perform any ritual. We cannot ask them to perform any rituals on our behalf. Islam is the last divine message Allah has sent to mankind. It contains every good that is to be found in any other religion. Hence, there is no need to seek such help which is tantamount to an acknowledgment of their religions and taking part in their worship. This is not allowed to any Muslim.

Question:

If Black Magic does exist and that an "evil eye" can cause  harm. How does one protect oneself from such ?

Answer:

A spell of black magic was cast on the Prophet (PBUH) at some time in the early years of his message. Allah revealed to him the two Surahs which later became the last two Surahs of the Qur'an, "AL-FALAQ or the Dawn and "AN-NAAS the People", He commanded him to recite these two Surahs and pray Allah to remove that evil spell and its effects from him, As you realize, these two Surahs are to recited with a supplication to Allah seeking refuge with Him against the wrong doings of people and the harm that may be caused by Satan. The first Surah (The Dawn translated at beginning of this chapter). The second The People is translated as:

"Say: I seek refuge with the Lord and cherisher of Mankind, The King (the rule) of Mankind, The God (or Judge) of Mankind; from the mischief of the whisperer (of evil) who withdraws (after his whisper), (the same) who whispers into the hearts of Mankind; among Jinn and among Men". (CXLV:1-6)

The Prophet (PBUH) used to recite these two Surahs frequently afterwards and the spell of Black Magic cast on him soon became ineffective. All its outward effects were dispelled and he came to no harm afterwards. This remains the cure for Black magic at any time and for any person.
The question put here is what one should do to protect oneself, his children and his possessions against such evil eyes. What is clear is that protection must be sought from Allah, since there is nothing material or physical to remove or to guard against. The Prophet (PBUH) teaches us that the proper thing to do is to mention Allah's name and to glorify and praise Him when we show others our treasured things or our children. This should come naturally to a Muslim who knows that it is only Allah's grace that he has got whatever he has. When such words are repeated by him in his ordinary speech, they serve as a reminder to any envious person that he should pray to Allah to grant him something similar.
A person endowed with Allah's grace should always be thankful to Allah, for it is through thanks that he received more of Allah's bounty. He should remind himself of the fact that only by Allah's will that he has got what he enjoys. He, therefore, always repeats the phrases BISMILLAH, MASHAA'ALLAH which are his prayer for protection. They mean: "In the name of Allah. Whatever Allah wills is accomplished.
Again, something of great help as a means of protection, is to recite the penultimate Surah of the Qur'an, entitled the "DAWN" or to recite together with the last Surah, "MEN". In both, one seeks refuge with Allah against the evil perpetrated by His creatures. If your visitor is so excessive in his admiration of your little child or possession, and he or she does not use the Phrases, BISMILLAH, MASHAA'ALLAH, and you feel uneasy, you can always read, privately, Surah "The Dawn" and be sure that your child or possessions shall come to no harm.
One of the practices the Prophet (PBUH) has recommended to us when we go to be is to cup our hands together and blow of our breath into them and read the last three Surahs of the Qur'an entitled "Al-Ikhlas, Al-Falaq and An-Naas" then pass our hands over as much of our bodies as we can reach. We repeat this three times. One can do this to one's little children and teach the older ones to do it as a habit when they go to sleep.
Another thing to do for children is to repeat this short prayer which has been taught to us by the Prophet (PBUH); "Protection do I seek for you by Allah's complete words, against every devil and evil, and against every touching eye". If you wish to use the Arabic form, you say: "U'EETHUKA BIKALIMAATILLAH ITTAAMMAH, MIN KULLI SHAYTANIN WAHAAMMAH, WAMIN KULLI AININ LAAMMAH".
When you use this prayer, you should remove from your mind all thoughts that your child may come to any harm as a result of anybody's "evil eye". If her mother is so worried about her new born child when people come to offer their congratulations that she would rather seek any excuse to keep the child away, she can quieten her worry by repeating this prayer as she gives her child to any visitor.
On the other hand, a visitor may seek to reassure his hosts by repeating this same prayer as he or she holds the child. The mother will be very happy to hear her guest praying for her child and all thoughts of the guest casting an "evil" eye at the child will totally disappear from her mind. Similarly, one may use the phrase BISMILLAH, MASHAA'ALLAH when one is shown anything to examine or admire, be it a house, and article of furniture or a child. This makes him a highly welcome visitor. Moreover, it earns him a reward from Allah since he mentions His name and prays to Him for others.

E. THE SOUL.

"One day every soul will come up struggling for itself, and every soul will be recompensed (fully) for all its actions; and none will be unjustly dealt with". (XVI : 111).

"Every soul shall have a taste of death; and we test you by evil and by good way of trial. TO US must ye return". (XXI:35).

It may be a common notion that the-soul, which gives life to the body of a human being is settled in his heart, but no one can say that with any degree of certainty . Indeed, what is certain is that it is not so. If a bullet goes through the head of a person, he dies instantly while his heart may continue to beat for a short while. Can we, then, say that the soul is in the head or in the mind of a human being ?
People have always wondered about the soul. The polytheists in Makkah at the time of the Prophet (PBUH) sent a delegation to Madinah where they met the Rabbis of the Jewish community there. They asked them about the message of Mohammad (PBUH) and the Rabbis told them that if he would give them satisfactory answers to three questions, then he was a true Prophet (PBUH). One of these question was to define the soul. When the polytheists put those questions to the Prophet (PBUH), he prayed to Allah to give him the answers. The answer to the question on the soul is contained in verse 85 of Surah 17. Which says:

"They ask thee concerning the spirit (of inspiration; the soul". Say: "The spirit (cometh) by command of my Lord; of knowledge it is only a little that is communicated to you (O men !)". (XVII : 85).

What this means is that we should not try to know what the soul is, or how it functions. We are told absolutely clearly that Allah has kept its knowledge for Himself. He has chosen not to tell us about it while at the same time telling us that no true knowledge of it can be established by any human being. Hence, it is certainly futile to try to fathom what Allah has chosen to keep to Himself.
Volumes and volumes have been written on this subject by people of all creeds and denominations. We can only say that if Allah chooses to keep the knowledge of something to Himself; no one can claim to have any accurate knowledge of it.
As Muslim, we must abide by Allah's instructions and not involve ourselves in any futile pursuit to gain knowledge of something Allah does not want us to know. After all, whatever conclusions such an exercise may achieve can only belong to the realm of guess work.

Question:

Is the soul immortal as some people believe ? What happens to the human soul after it departs from the body when a person dies ?

Answer:

Immortality is quality of Allah alone. It cannot be shared by any creature. Since everything in the universe has been created by Allah, nothing in it can be immortal. It will inevitably die. This leads us to the conclusion that souls also will certainly and inevitably die. This is a logical an rational argument.
Before anyone can retort with a counter argument, I hasten to add that Allah states in the Qur'an in three different Surahs, and in the same words, the following absolutely clear statements which admits of no ambiguity whatsoever and stated in III : 185; XXI : 35; XXIX : 57 as follows and leaves no doubt as to the destiny of human souls:

"Every soul shall have a taste of death; in the end to Us shall ye be brought back". (XXIV : 57).

How does the death of souls occur is a matter of which we know nothing. When the polytheists in Makkah asked the Prophet (PBUH) about the natures of the human spirit, or the human soul, the answer from Allah directed the Prophet (PBUH) to say:

"They ask thee concerning the spirit". Say; "The Spirit (Cometh) by command of my Lord; of knowledge it is only a little that is communicated to you (O men !)". (XVII : 85).

To us, this Quranic statement means that we should not indulge in any attempt to discover or define the nature of the human soul.
Having said this, I must also mention that we have a number of traditions from the Prophet (PBUH) which mention certain points about what happens to souls after they depart from bodies.  One such Hadith says; "The grave is either a garden of heaven or a pit of hell". This means that some people are punished in their graves while others are perfectly comfortable. Such suffering or enjoyment must relate to the soul, since the body has lost all its senses.
Similarly the Prophet (PBUH) passed by two graves when some of his companions were with him. He mentioned to them that the two persons in those graves were being punished for sins which were not extremely grave. One of them was for carrying false reports about people, and the other was not scrupulous enough about removing impurities from his body or clothes. Again such punishment could not have affected the body. How it worked and how the person concerned felt his punishment are matters which we cannot determine. Nor is it necessary for us to do so. It is sufficient for us to accept that this is possible and that Allah accomplishes it the way He wants.
On the other hand, we have a clarification by an Hadith which states:  "the soul of martyrs are inside green birds with lamps hanging down from the throne of Allah. They roam around in heaven as they please, and come back to the lamps.  Allah looks at them and asks; Do you desire anything ?  They answer; what would we desire when we are moving around in heaven as we please.  He repeats His question three times. When they realize that they must answer that question by stating their wishes, they answer; "Our Lord, all we wish for is that you return us to life so that we may achieve martyrdom for your cause a second time". Another report of this Hadith adds that when they make this statement, Allah replies that He has already determined that no one is brought back to life on earth. Then they request Him to make their fate known to the believers who are still alive. For this reason Allah has revealed in the Qur'an the verse which states:

"Think not those who are slain in God's way as dead. Nay, they alive, finding sustenance in the presence of their Lord". (III : 169).

Question:

What happens to the soul during sleep ?

Answer:

Sleep is a special case of death. Allah states in the Qur'an:

"It is God that takes the souls (of men) at death; and those who do not (He takes) during their sleep; Those on whom He has passed the decree of death, He keeps back (from returning to life), but the rest He sends (to their bodies) for a test appointed.  Verily in this are signs for those who reject". (XXIX : 42).

When the Prophet (PBUH) was questioned about resurrection by unbelievers who made it clear that they were not convinced by his answers, he said to them most emphatically; "By Allah, you shall indeed die as you sleep and you shall certainly be resurrected as you wake up". As you realize, in both the Qur'an and the Sunnah, death is likened to sleep.
As to what happens to the soul during sleep, I prefer not to try to answer such questions, since Allah states in the Qur'an that knowledge of the soul is something that Allah has kept to Himself (XVII : 85). Hence, whatever we try to determine about the soul will remain, mere conjecture.

F. DEATH.

"Wherever you are, Death will find you out, even if you are in towers build up strong and high". (IV:78).

"We granted not to any man before thee (Prophet) permanent life (here); if then thou shouldst die, would they live permanently ? (XXI:34).

When we deal with this subject, wee have to remember that Islam views death as the drawing of curtains which indicates the end of a play in the theater. On the stage of life, death indicates that the term of the deceased has come to an end. He can not longer do anything which affects the living or affects what happens to him in the life to come. Death occurs by the will of Allah which is absolute. When the time comes, there is no way to prevent death. A person may take all precautions to prolong his life and defer his death, but these precautions can never add a second to his time of life. Everyone must die except Allah the creator. This life is a test and death is the end that test before the reward is given to us.

Question:

Is death predetermined by Allah's will ? How does Islam view suicide ?

Answer:

It is true that Allah has predetermined the time and place of everyone's death as well as how and by what means it is effected. Nothing can change what Allah has predetermined unless He Himself chooses to do so. Moreover, Allah has kept the knowledge of the time of death He has appointed for everyone of His creatures totally to Himself. He informs the Angel of Death of such time when He pleases.
There are numerous ways of how people meet with their death. Some die in war, others have accidents and still others die of illness. Many die when old age has consumed all their strength. Some die in infancy, some in youth. Some events which cause death are deliberate, while others are accidental. By which ever ways a person dies, he dies only by the will of Allah. We cannot restrict Allah's will to any particular course of events. Whatever happens of earth, or indeed in the universe, happens by His will. There is no way any person can tell when or where or how he or she will die. When He creates man, He determines his age. He also knows how his age will come to its end at the appointed time. In whichever way it happens, it happens only by His will.
Having said that we have to admit that much in this world place as a result of the law of cause and effect. When something falls in water, it gets wet, when we throw a piece of glass on the floor, it breaks, when a certain virus attacks the human body, it produces certain symptoms of illness, when a man is shot in his heart or head he dies.
What we have to understand in this context is that the law of cause and effect operates by Allah's will. It is, therefore, part of what He has determined or if you like, predetermined for human life. If we take the example of a napkin getting wet when it is thrown in water, we say that it gets wet by Allah's will. If it is not thrown in water, it remains dry. This also happens by Allah's will. Whether it gets wet or dry, therefore, depends on what man does with it. His action is the cause which results in the napkin either getting wet or remaining dry. It is we who choose what to do with the napkin. This applies to every thing over which we have a choice. Our freedom of action is extended over a very wide area indeed. It is because of this freedom of choice which Allah has given to us that we are held accountable for what we do. If we could not choose, it would not be just that we should be held responsible for our actions. Allah is the most just of judges. It follows that He would not pass a judgement on us over that in which we have no say.
Bearing this in mind, let us ask ourselves, why has Islam legislated capital punishment for murder ? If the victim would have died any way at this particular time, and if it is Allah's will that he would meet with his death through a gunshot or a stab with a knife or any other weapon used for his murder, then his killer was merely a tool of effecting Allah's will. Why is his action punishable by death ? There are several points to be considered here. First, regardless of what may have happened to the victim, the fact that a murderer strikes his victim with whatever weapon he chooses, with the intention of killing him, merits that punishment. By so doing, he commits a crime against the basic rights of life which is enjoyed by every human being. Secondly his action is the result of personal choice. There is nothing to compel him to take his weapon and strike his victim. That he does so of his own accord. Hence, he must be punished. Thirdly, the victims death is the effect of the action of his assailant.
This invites the question; what would have happened if the murderer did not do the action which caused the death of his victim ? The answer is that we do not know for certain. We live and die by Allah's will. Whether a person lives or dies depends on what Allah has predetermined. It may be that He has predetermined that the victim would live forty years if he is shot by his murderer and e would live for sixty years if he is not. Allah's knowledge, however, is perfect and absolute. He knows before He even creates us what we will do at every moment in life time. He does not wait for a man to fire his gun in order to determine that the shot will hit someone and he will die. He knows that before hand. His knowledge, however is not a dictate. If it was, He would not have held up responsible for what we do.
This is in line with the Hadith of the Prophet (PBUH). The Prophet (PBUH) says; "He who likes to be granted increase in his income and his life to be prolonged, should maintain good relationship with his kinfolk". (related by Al-Bokhari, Muslim and Abu Dawood). How does kindness to one's relatives prolong one's life ? It is an increase in what the Angel of Death is informed. Allah may tell his that the life of a particular person is sixty, if he severs his relations with his kinfolk. If he is kind to them, his life will be increased to seventy. Allah knows before hand what will the person do with his kinfolk. Hence, the increase is real as far as we end the Angel of Death are concerned. The extra ten years in that person's life are dependant on what he does with his relatives. As far as knowledge is concerned, there is nothing that can be added to it. He knows whether the person will be kind to his relatives, and He knows how long he will live, even before he is born.
The case of suicide is the same, if a person shoots himself in his head or his heart, he dies. He actually kills himself by firing that bullet. He is punishable for his action. If he does not hold the gun at his head and fire that shot, he would not die by that bullet. Perhaps he would have died at the same time by some other cause, but it would not be his own doing. It is for this reason that Allah says in a Qudsi Hadith:

"My servant has affronted me by taking his own life and I, therefore, have banned him from entering heaven".
There can be greater punishment that. Allah would not have meted out that punishment to anyone unless it is commensurate with crime. Here the crime is the fact that a person, exercising his freedom of choice, occasionally takes steps to end his life. It does not matter whether his life would have ended anyway at that particular moment. The fact that he holds a gun to shoot himself or jumps from a very high building, or ties a very heavy weight to his legs and jumps into the sea or stabs himself is great crime against Allah's right to give and end life. The Prophet (PBUH) tells us that a person who kills himself will remain in hell for ever, doing the same act by which he ended his life. Would you imagine that Allah's absolute justice would have required such punishment if that person was only executing Allah's will by killing himself ?
The argument based on the technicality of the timing of death, and that the person who killed himself would have died any way and at that particular moment even if he did not lift a finger to kill himself. That may be true, but it is his action which caused his death. That is Allah's predetermined law. He, however having taken the step which caused his death and he is, therefore, held responsible for that action which is known in human language as "suicide". The Qur'an says:

"And make not your own hands contribute to (your) destruction". (II:195).

Question:

How should a person react or act on the death of a person ?

Answer:

Since death is an act of Allah, we must accept it with submission and resignation. We cannot object to what Allah does. We may be sorry, indeed very sorry to part with our beloved ones. That is a natural feeling which is perfectly acceptable. It is the way in which we express our sorrow which may be objectionable.
When a person dies, it is strongly recommended by Islam that he should be prepared for burial without unnecessary delay. Islam lays strong emphasis on the need to maintain simplicity in all espects of burying the deceased, and offering condolence to his family. Everyone who takes partt in either function he should indeed remember that death is inevitable. Everryone will die except Allah, the Creator. This life is a test and death is the end of that test before the reward is given to us. It is a Sunnah to send food to the famiuly of the deceased, because they are busy with the burial and receiving people who come to offer condolences. It is also an indication of the closeness of the community. The sorrowful event is thus felt to be shared by everyone. Condelences may be offered on the day of death or extended to three days. Afterwards, it may come only in the normal course of life. The buyrial should be speeded up, but it is permissible to wait a little for the arrival of a very close relative such as the father or the brother or the son of the deceased.
The may be done provided that the delay is not extended for any long period and the body of the deceased does not begin to decay. No delay is admitted for any other purpose, with the exception of cases where a postmortem is necessary either to determine whether the deceased was a victim of a crime or for legitimate scientific purposes.
Aspects other than these, whether to show that the deceased occupied a special position in his life or to show that he is missed and mourned by so manuy people for such a long time are inadmissible. Thus, the procession organised for the burial of senior government officials are an innovation which is not acceptable in Islam.
It is permissible indeed recommended that we should pray for the deceased. One should also visit the graves of one's parents and pray to Allah to have mercy on them. But to entertain any idea that the dead can be of any use to us, except in the ways outlined by the Prophet (PBUH) is to commit a grave sin.
 

Question:

Reading the Qur'an for a deceased person and other rites unacceptable in Islam.

Answer:

Although there is some disagreement among the scholars on this question of the reading of the Qur'an, it is probably more accurate to say that if a person recites the Qur'an deliberately and properly and then prays to Allah to add the reward of his recitation to a certain deceased person, such as his parents, then Allah will grant his request. What is wrong, however, is to make a special occasion for this. Singling out THIRD days, the 40th day the anniversary of the death for renewed mourning is un-Islamic. Such practices have no base in Islam. To say that these occasions have a redeeming factor which is to repeat the name of Allah or to praise Him is not correct either. Allah wants us to worship Him as He told us. He does not want us to invent special functions for His praises. Islam is complete as the Prophet (PBUH) has conveyed to us. Any addition in matters of worship is unacceptable.
It is during these functions that the people invited are each given a portion of the Qur'an to recite in order that the Holy Book would be recited in total for the deceased person. There is no need for such a thing. When it becomes a tradition, it takes the shape of an innovation. Moreover, it is improper to make a relay recitation of the Qur'an as happens on such occasions. What is even worse is that two people are sometimes given one portion of the Qur'an with one of them reading the right hand page and the other the left hand pages. This is not the proper attitude to take of the Qur'an. Our approach to the Qur'an is that we recite it in order to learn what Allah wants of us. Our attitude should be one of more respect to Allah's revelations.
Again, to demonstrate one's sorrow or to indicate that one has suffered the loss of a close relative by any special apparent mark, such as wearing black or white, as women do in certain societies, or for men to wear a black tie, is also unacceptable. Death itself should be remember to us that we will also die, and we should prepare for that inevitable occurrence by striving hard to win the pleasure of Allah.
As mentioned previously, to show that the deceased person occupied a special position in his life or to show that he is missed or mourned by so many people for such a long time is inadmissible.
Visiting graveyards is recommended to Muslims because it reminds one of one's certain death when one can no longer make amends for past sins or misdeeds. That is, however, different from what people understand by visiting the tombs of saints. Indeed, to make a tomb of any sort, other than a simple grave, is not allowed. To make a shrine of the tomb of anybody, whereby people think that they are making an act of worship by visiting such a shrine, is strictly forbidden. Moreover, if one visits the grave of anyone in order to seek the help of that deceased person with regard to anything that he may be facing in his own life is a form of polytheism which take the person totally outside the path of Islam. One must, therefore, be careful about what to say or do when visiting the graves.
The proper attitude is to greet the deceased person by the ordinary greeting of "ASSALAM ALAIKUM" or peace be on you. One may also pray for the deceased, asking Allah to forgive him, whether he was a "saint" or not. For even people who are thought to be saints need to be forgiven by Allah. One should make use of such a visit in order to remind himself of his certain death and prepare for it by refraining from doing anything sinful, and by doing good deeds. It has also not been reported in any authentic tradition that one should read the opening surah "Al-Fatiha" of the Qur'an, in indeed any other part of it, for the deceased, when he visits a graveyard or tomb. All that has been reported is to pray to Allah for their forgiveness.
Thus to conclude, to engage in such practices of venerating saints in order to receive blessings from these dead people is to believe in something which is alien to Islam.
The Prophet (PBUH) says; "If a human being dies, his work comes to an absolute end except in one of three ways; a continuous act of charity, or a useful contribution to knowledge, or a good child who prays for him". This applies to those pious men as it does to any human being. Besides, no matter how pious those people were or appear, they could not have been better than the companions of the Prophet (PBUH). No such practices are or were done for any of the companions of the Prophet (PBUH). Hence, why should they be permissible for lesser people ? In fact, these pious people are in need of our prayers while they can do nothing for us. Indeed the Prophets (PBUH) pronouncements stresses the fact that they cannot do themselves any good, how can they do any good to other people ?
It is permissible, indeed recommended, that we should pray for the deceased. One should also visit the graves of one's parents and pray to Allah to have mercy on them. But to entertain any idea that the dead can be of any use to us, except in the ways outlined by the Prophet (PBUH), is to commit a grave sin.

Question:

Does Islam allow the post mortem of the deceased body?

Answer:

If postmortem is carried out for medical research in the hope of learning more about medicine and how to cure certain illness, then there is nothing wrong with it. Similarly, it is permissible to carry out a postmortem in order to determine the cause of death especially when there is a criminal element involved or there is suspicion to the circumstances of death, and it is hoped that the postmortem will reveal something which could help in determining the cause of death and the apprehension and arrest of the criminal.

G. Day of Judgement & the Resurrection. 

Surah LXXV.
"I do call to witness the Resurrection Day; and I do call to witness the self-reproaching spirit.(Eschew Evil) Does man think that We cannot assemble his bones ? Nay, we are able to put together in perfect order the very tips of his fingers". (LXXV:1-4).

"They say (now); What ! shall we indeed be returned to (our) former state ? What ! When we shall have become rotten bones ? They say; It would in that case be a return with loss ! But verily it will be but a single (compelling) cry. When behold, they will be in the (full) awakening (to judgement)". (LXXIX:10-14)

"Every soul shall have a taste of death, on the day of judgement every one shall be paid his full recompense" (III:185).

"He shall set up scales of Justice on the Day of Judgement, so that not a soul is dealt with unjustly in the least". (XXI:47).

The true Muslim believes in the last day or "the Day of Judgement" as an article of faith. This world shall come to an end one day, and the dead will rise to stand for their final and fair trial. Everything we do in this world every intention we have, every move we make, every thought we entertain and every word we say, all are counted and kept in accurate records. On the day of judgement they will be brought up. People with good records will be generously rewarded by Allah and welcomed to the heaven, and those with bad records will be punished and cast into hell.

Question:

What are the signs of the day of judgement ?

Answer:

The time of the resurrection the Muslims allow to be perfect secret to all but God alone; the Angel Gabriel himself acknowledged his ignorance on this point when Mohammad (PBUH) asked him about it (Mishkat book 1 ch.1). However the approach of that day may be known from certain signs which are to precede it. These signs are distinguished into "the lesser" and "the greater".

The lesser signs "ISHARATU'S-SA'AH" are as follows:

 i) The decay of faith among men.
 ii) The advancing of the meanest persons to eminent dignity,
 iii) A maid servant shall become the mother of her mistress (or master) by which is meant that either that towards the end of the world men shall be much given to sexuality or that the Muslims shall then take many captives.
 iv) Tumults and seditions.
 v) A war with the Greeks or the Romans.
 vi) Great distress in the world, so that a man when he paneth by another's grave shall say "Would to God that I were in his place.
 vii) The Province of Al-Iraq and Syria shall refuse to pay their tribute.
 viii) The building of Al-Madinah or Yathrib shall reach to Makkah. (Mishkat book XXIII ch III).

The greater signs "ALAMATU'S-SA'AH" are as follows:

 i) The sun's rising in the west.
 ii) The appearance of the "DABBATU'L-ARZ" or the "the beast" which shall rise out of the earth, in the Mosque of Makkah, or in the Mount of As-Safa.
 iii) The war with the Romans or Greeks and the taking of Constantinople by seventy thousand of the posterity of Isaac, who shall not win that city by force of arms, but the walls shall fall down while they cry out "There is no deity but God! God is most great!" As they are dividing the spoil, news will come to them of the appearance of Anti-Christ, whereupon they shall leave all and return back.
 iv) The coming of Anti-Christ "MASIHU'D-DAJJAL", the false or lying, Christ. He is to one-eyed, and marked on the forehead with the letters KFR, signifying KAFIR, "infidel". He will appear first between Al-Iraq and Syria or according to others, in the province of KHORASAN. He will lay waste all places, but will not enter Makkah or Al-Madinah, which are to be guarded by angels, and at length he will be slain by Jesus, who is to encounter him at the gates of LUD.
 v) The descent of Jesus on earth. He is to descend near the white tower to the east of Damascus. He is to embrace Islam, marry a wife, get children, kill the anti-Christ and at length die, after forty years continuance on earth and be buried at Al-Madinah.
 vi) War with Jews.
 vii) The appearance of God and Mogog or "YAJUJ" and "MAJUJ".
 viii) A smoke which shall fill the whole earth.
 ix) An eclipse of the moon, Mohammad (PBUH) is reported to have said, that there will be three eclipse before the last hour, one to be seen in the east, another to the west, and the third in Arabia.
 x) The returning of the Arabs to the worship of AL-LAT and AL-UZZA, and the rest of their ancient idols, after the decease of every one in whose heart there was faith equal to a grain of a mustard seed, none but the very worst of the people being left alive.
 xi) The discovery of a vast heap of gold and silver by the retreating of the Euphrates which will be the destruction of many.
 xii) The demolition of the Ka'aba in the mosque at Makkah by the Ethiopians.
 xiii) The speaking of beast and inanimate things.
 xiv) The breaking out of fire in the proving of Al-Hijaj, or according to others in Al-Yemen.
 xv) The appearance of a man of the descendants of KAHTAN, who shall drive men before him with his staff.
 xvi) The coming of Al-Mehdi "the director" concerning whom Mohammad (PBUH) prophesied that the world shall not have an end till one of his own family shall govern the Arabs whose name should be the same with his own name, and whose father's name should also be the same with is father's name.
 xvii) A wind that shall sweep away the souls of all who have but a grain of faith in their hearts.
These are the greater signs which, according to traditions, are to precede the Resurrection, but still leave the hour of it uncertain.

Question:

What is the description and the immediate signs of the day of Judgement ?

Answer:

The immediate signs of the coming of the day of Judgement will be the first blast of a trumpet which is believed will be sounded three times.
The first "the blast of consternation" at the hearing of which all creatures in heaven and earth shall be struck with terror except those whom God shall please to exempt from it. The effects attributed to this first sound of the trumpet are very wonderful, for the earth will be shaken, and not only all buildings, but the very mountains will be levelled that the heavens shall melt, the sun be darkened, the stars fall and the sea shall be troubled and dried up, or according to some turned into flames. The Qur'an, to express the greatness of the terror of that day, adds that women who give suck shall abandon the care of their infants, and even the she-camels which have gone ten months with young shall be utterly neglected. (Surah LXXXI). A further effect of this blast will be that concourse of beasts mentioned in the Qur'an. According to some, all kinds of animals, forgetting their respective natural fierceness and timidity, will run together in one place, being terrified by the sound of the trumpet and the sudden shock of nature.
The second blast, "the blast of examination" when all creatures both in heaven and earth shall die, or be annihilated, except those which God shall please to exempt from the common fate; and this shall all happen in the twinkling of an eye, nay in an instant, nothing surviving except God alone, with Paradise and Hell and the inhabitants of those two place, and the throne of Glory. The last who shall die will be the angel of death. (MALAKU'L-MAUT).
Forty years after this will be heard "the blast of resurrection" when the trumpet shall be sounded the third time by Israfil, who together with Gabriel and Michael, will be previously restored to life, and, standing on the rock of the temple of Jerusalem "Masjid Al-Aqsa" (i.e. As-SAKKRAH) shall at God's command call together all the dry and rotten bones and other dispersed parts of the bodies, and the very hours, to judgement. This Angel having by the divine order, set the trumpet to his mouth, and called together all the souls from all parts, and on his giving the last sound at the command of God, they shall fly forth like bees, and fill the whole space between heaven and earth, and then repair to their respective bodies, which the opening earth will suffer to arise, and the first who shall so arise according to the traditions of Mohammad (PBUH) will be himself. For this the earth will be prepared by the rain above mentioned which is to fall continually for forty years, and will resemble the seed of a man, and be supplied from the water under the throne of God, which is called living water, by the efficacy and virtue of which the dead bodies shall spring forth from their graves, as they did in their mother's womb or as corn sprouts forth by common rain, till they become perfect, after which breath will be breathed into them, and they will sleep in their sepulchers till they are raised to life at the last trump.
To the reader who is interested in reading from the Qur'an descriptions of the day of Judgement, may read the following relevant surahs:

 Surah LXXV: 1-40
 Surah LXXXI: 1-19
 Surah LXXXII: 1-19
 Surah LXXXIII: 4-20
 Surah LXXXIV: 1-19
 Surah XXII: 1-17

Question:

How shall we be resurrected on the day of Judgement ? Is it only the soul or will it be the soul and the body ?

Answer:

Although the thought of resurrection after being dead for hundreds, if not thousands of years seems to our minds difficult to understand or envisage, it is by no means beyond our power of comprehension. When we believe in Allah as the All Powerful Absolute Creator, then we understand that there is nothing which can be said to lie beyond His power. We only have to look at how every new baby is born and how that baby develops from conception to birth. What makes those infinitesimal sperm and egg especially equipped for bringing into existence a human being ? If we say it is the genes which they have, then who has made those genes ? Neither sperm nor egg has been there before a certain point in time. How did they get their qualities ? What made them equipped to meet, be fertilized and start the process of pregnancy and childbirth ? Because of the familiarity of this process to man, it may seem natural.Natural it certainly is, but it is also miraculous. It is an indication of the power of the Creator.
The Creator who gives us life when we come into this world is certainly able to bring us back to life on the day of Judgement. This second process of resurrection is much simpler than our first creation.
Resurrection according to Islam, brings us back to life in body and soul. Numerous version in the Qur'an and many Hadiths indicate this. The Prophet (PBUH) likens the resurrection to awakening from sleep. Addressing his people he says: "By Allah, you shall die as you go to sleep, and you shall be resurrected as you wake up again". The Prophet (PBUH) here draws on an analogy which is given in the Qur'an, making sleep a special form of death. Resurrection is therefore, no more than a special form of awakening. When we wake up, we have both body and soul. Similarly, when we are resurrected, we shall have both our bodies and souls.
Read carefully these verses from Surah 36 "Ya Seen".

"Does not man see that it is We who created him from sperm ? Yet behold he stands (forth) as an open adversary (with the power to think and to argue) ! And he makes companions for Us and forgets his own (origin and) creation; He says who can give life to (dry) bones and decomposed ones (at that)" ? Say "He will give them life who created them for the first time ! for He is well versed in every type of creation ! The same Who produces for you fire out of the green tree, when behold ! Ye kindle therewith (your own fires) ! Is not He Who created the heavens and the earth able to create the like there of ? Yes, indeed ! for He is the Creator Supreme of skill and knowledge (infinite). Verily, when He intends a thing, His command is "Be" and it is !" (XXXVI : 77-82).

In these verses as well as the following:

"Does man think we cannot assemble his bones ? Nay, We are able to put together in perfect order the very tips of his finger". (LXXV : 3-4).

We have a clear assertion that bones will be resurrected and put back together. That is a reference to the resurrection of the body. It is useful to think about the example given by Allah of making the green, water containing plants into fuel. In whichever it is completed, the green tree becomes a source of energy which can be used in a variety of ways to bring things into being. Yet when trees die, they first decompose and become part of the soil. When we dig we do not notice that there has been a tree in that place sometime in the past. Yet it remains there and it goes through a long process of decomposition in order to become a new source of energy. That is the work of Allah who can do everything with perfect ease. It is also with perfect ease, He can resurrect us, body and soul for Judgement.

 H. REWARD AND PUNISHMENT.

"Then, for such as had transgressed all bounds, and had preferred the life of this world, the abode will be Hell-fire, and as such as had entertained the fear of standing before their Lord's (tribunal) and had restrained (their) soul from lower desires, their abode will be the Garden". (LXXIX : 37-41).

Question:

Whom are those who shall be rewarded with heaven by Allah ?

Answer:

This question is answered suitably by Allah in the Qur'an:

"And the servants of (God) Most Gracious are those who walk on the earth in humility, and whom the ignorant address them, they say "Please"; Those who spend the night in adoration of their Lord, prostrate and standing; Those who say, "Our Lord ! avert from us the wrath of Hell, for its wrath is indeed and affliction grievous; Those who, when they spend are not extra vagrant and not niggardly, but hold a Just (balance) between those (extremes); Those who invoke not with God, any other god, Nor slay such life, as God has made sacred, except for Just cause, not commit fornication, and any that does this (not only) meets punishment, but the penalty on the Day of Judgement will be doubled to him, and he will dwell therein in ignominy; Unless he repents, believes and works righteous deeds, for God will change the evil of such persons into good, and God is oft-forgiving, Most Merciful, and whoever repents and does good has truly turned to God with an (acceptable) conversion;- Those who witness no falsehood, and if they pass by futility they pass by it with honorable (avoidance); Those who, when they are admonished with the signs of their Lord, droop not down at them as if they were deaf or blind; and those who pray, "Our Lord" grant unto us wives and offspring who will be the comfort of our eyes, and give us (the grace) to lead the righteous; Those are the ones who will be rewarded with the highest place in heaven, because of their patient constancy; therein shall they be met with salutation and peace, Dwelling therein; how beautiful an abode and place of rest!" (XXV : 63-76).

Question:

Punishment and different classes of punishment.

Answer:

It is understood by Muslims, that all persons whether believes or not undergo some form of punishment in their graves, it is a fundamental article of belief in Islam and their punishment it is again understood commences as soon as the funeral party leaves.
The punishment that a person may be given are divided into three classes:
 i. Hadd,
 ii. Qisas, and
 iii. Tazib.

HADD:  It is that punishment the limits of which have been defined in the Qur'an and Hadith's and include the following:
  Adultery,
  Fornication,
  False accusation, of a married person with adultery,
  Apostasy,
  Drinking of wine,
  Theft and Highway robbery.

QISAS:  "Retaliation" is that punishment which, although fixed by the law, can be admitted by the person offended against, or in the case of a murdered person by his heirs. This is applicable in the case of:
  Murder,
  Wounding.
It is the LEXTALIONIS of Moses "Eye for Eye, tooth for tooth, burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe", but in all owing a money compensation. The Muslim parted from this Jewish code and is instructed by Allah:
"O Ye who believe ! The law of equality is prescribed to you in cases of murder; The free for the free, the slave for the slave, the woman for the woman. But if any remission is made by the brother of the slain, then grant any reasonable demand, and compensate him with handsome gratitude. This is a concession and a Mercy from your Lord. After this who ever exceeds the limits shall be in grave penalty." "In the law of Equality there is (saving of) life to you, O Ye men of understanding; that ye may restrain yourselves". (II:178-179).

The above is further explained by Abdullah Yousuf Ali (No.182-186).
The above two verses makes it clear that Islam has much mitigated the horrors of the pre-Islamic custom of retaliation. In order to meet the strict claims of Justice, equality is prescribed with a strong recommendation for mercy and forgiveness. To translate to QISAS, therefore, by "retaliation" is incorrect. The Latin legal term LEX TALIONIS may come near it, but even that is modified here. In any case it is best to avoid technical terms for things that are very different. "Retaliation" in English has a wider meaning, equivalent almost to returning evil for evil and would more fitly apply to the blood feuds of the Days of Ignorance. Islam says; if you must take a life for a life, at least there should be some measure of equality in it; the killing of the slave of a tribe should not involve a blood feud where many free men would be killed, but the law of mercy, where it can be obtained by consent, with reasonable compensation, would be better.
Our law of equality only takes account of three conditions in civil society; free for free, slave for slave, woman for woman. Among free men or women, all are equal; you cannot ask that because a wealthy or high born or influential man is killed, his life is equal to two or three lives among the poor or the lowly. Nor, in case of murder can you go into the value or abilities of a slave. A woman is mentioned separately because her position as a mother or an economic worker is different. She does not form a third class, but a division in the other two classes. One life having being lost, do not waste many lives in retaliation; at most, let the law take one life under strictly prescribed conditions, and shut the door to private vengeance or tribal retaliation. But if the aggrieved party consents (and this condition of consent is laid down to prevent worse evils) forgiveness and brotherly love is better, and the door of mercy is kept open. In Western Law, no felony can be compounded.
Islamic Jurists have carefully laid down that the Law of QISAS, refers to murder only. Qisas is not applicable to man slaughter, due to a mistake or an accident. There would be no capital punishment.
The BROTHER; the term is perfectly general all men are brothers in Islam. In this, and in all questions of inheritance, females have similar rights to males, and therefore the masculine gender imports both sexes. Here we considering the rights of heirs in the light of the larger brotherhood.
The demand in case of murder should be such that can be met by the party concerned.i.e. within his means, and reasonable according to justice and good conscience. For example, a demand could not be made affecting the honor of a woman or a man. The whole penalty can be remitted if the aggrieved party agrees, out of brotherly love. In meeting that demand the culprit or his friends should equally be generous and recognize the good-will of the other side. There should be no subterfuges, no bribes, no unseemly bye-play; otherwise the whole intentions of mercy and peace is lost.

TAZIB:   This is punishment that is left to be imposed with all impartiality by the QASI or Judge.
It is understood that all persons whether believers or not undergo some punishment in their graves, it is a fundamental article of belief in Islam and these punishments it is understood commences as soon as the funeral party leaves.

Question:

What is the suffering in the grave ? What happens to a Muslim after he is buried until the time when he is resurrected on the Day of Judgement ?

Answer:

We are told by the Prophet (PBUH) that when a person is buried two angels come to him an question him about his beliefs. He is also asked about how far he translated his beliefs into actions. A good person who has conducted himself well in this life, and has observed the teachings of Islam with diligence, will find good reward in the grave, while a person who has failed to observe the proper teachings given by Allah and the Prophet (PBUH) will receive punishment in the grave before he is resurrected on the day of judgement. The Prophet (PBUH) describes the grave as either a garden of Heaven or a pit of Hell.
Once the Prophet passed by two graves and told his companions that the two persons buried there were undergoing suffering for sins which were not very grave. One of them was given to back biting and the other did not take care to clean himself from wine. From these traditions, we conclude that the suffering in the grave is a fact for any person who has upheld erroneous beliefs or indulged in sinful practices. It is therefore proper to pray to Allah to protect us against the suffering as the Prophet (PBUH) himself used to pray.

Question:

Reward and punishment in the hereafter ? Allah's limitless mercy and forgiveness.

Answer:

Perhaps the best point to start answering this question is to quote the Quranic verse which states:

"God forgiveth not (the sin of) joining other gods with Him; but He forgiveth whom He pleaseth other sins than this; one who joins other gods with God, hath,, strayed far, far away (from the right)". (IV : 116).

This verse is very specific on what may not be forgiven by Allah. When a person associates partners with Allah, whether he claims for them a higher or lower status than His, and whether he makes them Allah's children or companions, he commits the gravest sin of all. It is this sin which cannot be forgiven.
The verse quoted above is also clear on the point that all other sins may be forgiven, if Allah is pleased to forgive them, forgiveness is one of Allah's attributes. it should be remembered that for this tribute to take effect sins need to be committed by human beings. As things stand in human life, there is no shortage of sins being committed everyday, everywhere. What we have to remember with regard to divine attributes, is that they are limitless in scope. When we speak, for example, of divine mercy, we know that it is for greater than the mercy and compassion shown by human beings to one another, regardless of their mutual relationships. The Prophet (PBUH) gave us a guide to try to imagine how great Allah's mercy is. He says that Allah created mercy and divided it into one hundred parts. He kept 99 parts to himself and put the remaining one part in the world. It is by their share of that one part that Allah's creatures show mercy to one another. This includes in the Prophet's (PBUH) own word, "Even an animal lifting her leg off the ground so that her offspring may not come to any harm". This Hadith gives us feeling of the greatness of Allah's mercy. The same standard of greatness applies to His forgiveness. We must not forget that Allah describes himself as the "One who forgives" in a variety of ways, mostly using the forms which indicate total, great and often repeated forgivenesses.
Having said that, I should add that it is the action of any person which earns him a reward from Allah by admission into heaven or earn him Allah's punishment in hell. The notion of "original sin" is totally alien to Islam.
Moreover, a person is accountable only for his or her deeds. No one takes responsibility for the deeds of anyone else. Sins are not the same. There are some grave ones and some light ones. Moreover, sins are divided into:
 Crimes against the rights of Allah,
 Crimes against the rights of other people,
 Certain crimes having the dual aspect of being crimes against Allah and other people.
When Allah is pleased to forgive a certain person some or all of his sins, He forgives him the sins of the first type. i.e. those which are crimes against his own rights. Sins of the second type i.e. against the rights of other people, can only be forgiven if the aggrieved person forgives his or hers rights. If, however, Allah wishes to bestow His grace on a particular person who has committed sins of the second type. He takes it upon Himself to compensate the aggrieved person for what was done against him by adding to his good deeds until he is satisfied and willingly forgives his own rights.
What happens on the day of Judgement is that our actions are weighed against us. Our good deeds are put on one side. Our bad deeds are also put together. The two lots are balanced against each other. If the good deeds prove to be heavier or of greater value, then our bad deeds are erased and we are admitted into heaven. If the two are equal, Allah's mercy ensures that we are also forgiven. A person whose bad deeds are preponderant will be condemned by his own deeds to suffer the punishment of hell, unless Allah decides to forgive him.
Islam adopts a very realistic view of man. It deals with man as he is, with all his susceptibilities, motives, intentions and liability to be influenced by temptation. It recognizes that even the most pious and God fearing may slip and yield to temptation.
Allah states in the Qur'an:

"The God fearing are those who, when they experience a thought of Satan they remember and they can see things as they are".

This is a recognition of what even the most God-fearing of us may experience.
We also have the Hadith which states:

"He who says with sincerity there is no god save Allah" will be admitted into heaven".

The Hadith does not merely refer to a verbal statement, it refers to an honest and most sincere acceptance of the Oneness of Allah. It is needless to say that such acceptance will inevitably have a strong learning on that person's actions throughout his life.
Taken together, these principles prove that even good believers may commit mistakes and sins. On the Day of Judgement, these sins may be counted against them or may be forgiven. The fact remains, however, that a person who sincerely believed in the Oneness of Allah during his life may have committed more sins than he did good deeds. Even when we take into consideration the fact that a good deed is rewarded by ten times its value, while a bad deed is punished only at its own value, a person may be still burdened with heavy sins for which he will be punished in hell. Will he stay there forever even when he actually believed in the Oneness of Allah and in the message of Mohammad (PBUH).
The answer to this question is "NO". We know that the Prophet (PBUH) will be granted the right to intercede on behalf of his followers whose sins outweigh their good deeds. Allah will grant his request by forgiving some of them. What remains outstanding of their sins, with regards to the others, Allah will grant the Prophet's (PBUH) request by not condemning them to everlasting punishment. In other words, they will stay in hell for the purpose of compensating for their outstanding sins. Afterwards, He will forgive them and send them to heaven. In the Hadith which speaks of the Prophet's (PBUH) intercession with Allah on behalf of his followers we are told that there will come a time when Allah asks 

"Is there still in hell anyone who said "there is no deity save Allah"? It is needless to say that Allah does not ask this question in order to know the answer.
He knows it, but He asks this question as a reminder to His Angels. The Hadith goes on to say that Allah orders that all those people are brought out of hell. The water of life is poured on them and they are restored to their original shapes. They are then sent to heaven.
The question here arises about the perpetrators of such sins which we are told in the Qur'an that they earn everlasting hell. These include, for example, the deliberate murder of a believer. Scholars agree that the term "everlasting" or similar terms used in respect of these sins does not mean perpetual punishment. It means a very long stay in hell.
Having said that, we should remember that it is a case with all of us that we commit more sins than good deeds. We should strive as hard as we can to stay away from sin, but our good deeds are normally of lesser value than our bad ones. For this reasons, we should maintain an attitude of hope on Allah's forgiveness equal to our fear of His punishment. It is this equilibrium of hope and fear which should motivate us to do more good. When death approaches we should trust Allah's forgiveness.

Question:

Could you explain the deterrent effect of Islamic Justice and punishment ? Giving some example to this effect.

Answer:

Islam prescribes certain punishments for a limited number of sins or crimes such as murder, theft, adultery and highway robbery. It leaves the punishment of other crimes (TAZIB) to the discretion of the Judge, according to the circumstances in which they are committed and the conditions prevailing in society. The Judge determines the punishment guided by the principle that Justice must be done and must be seen to be done. He must also take into account the need to make the punishment he determines a deterrence to others who may contemplate similar crimes. These two principles are derived from the Quranic verses and Hadiths relevant to the crimes for which punishment is specified.
When we examine those crimes, we find that they are essentially an aggression against the social order or the security of the Muslim community or against its moral fabric.
There are certain conditions that must be met before these punishment are inflicted upon anyone who commits any of these crimes. The penalty for theft, for example is not implemented when there is any suspicion that the perpetrator of this crime has stolen in order to eat or to feed his family, or when there is reasonable suspicion that he may have a claim to at least part of the goods that are stolen. When we consider that it is the duty of community to make sure that everyone has enough to meet his basic needs and those of his family, theft becomes a crime against the security of the society as a whole. Hence, its punishment is very severe. Its effect remains with the perpetrator of the crime for the rest of his life. The deterrent effect is also in the mind of the person who may contemplate stealing something. No amount of money is equivalent to the loss of one hand. A person may think that spending a few years in jail will be worthwhile if he could break into a bank and get away with a few million, if he is certain to enjoy the money after he is released. But these millions will not be enough to compensate him for the loss of his hand.
Islam also makes it clear that such punishment as it prescribes must be administered in public. This is stated clearly in the Quranic verses:

"The woman and the man guilty of adultery or fornication; flog each of them with a hundred stripes; Let not compassion move you in their case, in a matter prescribed by God, if ye believe in God and the Last Day; and let a party of the Believers witness their punishment". (XXIV:2).

This is a clear statement that the implementation of the Islamic criminal law must be made in public, so that its deterrent effect is realized in full.
That such punishments are prescribed in order to serve as a deterrence is seen clearly in the fact that no one has the right to waive punishment, once the crime is established.
Human made laws normally allow the head of state or the chief justice to waive each punishment when he determines that such a waiver could bring better results. Under Islam this right is not given to anyone. The fact that these punishments are prescribed by Allah means that only an authority equivalent to Allah could waive them. Hence, they must be implemented. Islam does not like that these punishments be inflicted. Hence, it takes every appropriate step to establish beyond any doubt that the crime has been committed by the accused person before the punishment is meted out to him. Once that established, there is no escape. That in itself adds to the deterrent value of these punishments.

 I. THE HEREAFTER - HEAVEN AND HELL.

"What is the life of this world but amusement and play ? But verily the Home in the hereafter, that is life indeed, if they but know". (XXIX:64).

Question:

The Quranic description of Heaven and what shall people do there ?

Answer:

The Quranic description of Heaven and Hell are made in terms of this world. The luxuries and enjoyments of Heaven are given descriptions which we understand. What is certain is that the comforts, luxuries, enjoyments of Heaven are far greater than we can imagine. If they were described as they actually are, we would not have understood those descriptions, because we have not seen anything similar to them. Thus, if we are told in the Qur'an that the people admitted into Heaven recline on couches set up for them, it does not follow that the couches are similar to what we have in our houses. Nor is it necessarily accurate to say that they are set up in the same way as we set up our couches in our homes. What is certain, however, is that there are couches of some sort in Heaven which are suitable for reclining. It is certain also that they are set up and prepared for the believers to use them. We should accept the Quranic description of Heaven and Hell as we understand them, and need not try to define them in elaborate detail.
As to what believers do in Heaven, you should know that Heaven is not a place of work, but a place of reward. Work or actions produces results. Heaven is that stage of the result. So the preliminary stage, i.e. action, has finished by the end of every person's term on this earth. The people in Heaven only enjoy the luxuries Allah provides for them, which is their reward. ie.the result of their actions, and express their gratitude to Allah by praising and glorifying Him.
We are also told in the Qur'an that the people who earn the pleasure of Allah will abide in Heaven forever. This means that they will not themselves be put to another test on earth or anywhere else. They have had their test and they have passed. The result is to enjoy what is provided for them in Heaven forever.

 J. PREDETERMINATION & FREE WILL.

"If it had been thy Lord's will, they would all have believed, all who are on earth ! Will thou then compel mankind, against their will to believe!"  (X:99).

Allah is Omnipotent and Omniscient, all command rests in Him and not a leaf falls without His knowledge. This appears to give the impression that all things are predetermined and that there is no free will for man. On the other hand there are many verses in the Qur'an which clearly indicates that man has been given free will viz:

"The truth is from your Lord". Let him who will believe and let him who will reject (it)". (XVIII:29).

Man is responsible for his deeds and is subject to reward and punishment. This implies that man enjoys a free will. All things cannot be ordained by Allah thus denying free will to man. Man has his free will, but by Allah's superior knowledge He knows before hand how man will act.

Question:

Predestination and free will.

Answer:

4The question here is whether man acts and behaves according to his own free will or to what has been destined for him by Allah. In other words, it the choice in any given situation completely ours, or is it predetermined for us ? Is there for anyone of us a destiny towards which he moves every minute of his life, and from which he cannot escape ? Or is it true that by our own choice we mould our future ?
This is a question which really speaks of man's position in relation to Allah. In order to answer it properly, we need to establish a basis for our answer which takes into account certain essential facts which must be accepted at the outset. Otherwise, there can be no common ground between the one who poses the question and the one who tries to answer it.
These facts are:
 i.   Allah is the creator of all things, great and small, magnificent and pity, physical and abstract.
 ii.   Allah is Just. He administers His Justice on the basis of His knowledge.
 iii.   Allah's knowledge is perfect and absolute. He knows the most secret of thoughts in the same way as He knows the most public of events. Nothing escapes His knowledge as He sees all and hears all, without restrictions or impediments.
 iv.   Allah always tells the truth, the plain & complete truth. He never says something and means another. What He says must always be taken at face value, because He does not need to wrap His meaning or make use of ambiguity.
Within the framework, which these facts establish, we find the answer to the above question as an easy one. Allah tells us in the Qur'an that every human being accepts the faith or denies it according to his own will.He instructs His messenger to say to people:

"Say, "The truth is from your Lord; Let him who will believe, and let him who will reject (it)". (XVIII:29).

This verse tells us that man chooses for himself whether to believe in Allah or not. This is the most important choice a man ever makes. If he has free choice over this particular question, then he must have the same over matters which are less serious. We cannot imagine a situation in human life where man can reach a higher stage without passing through a primary one. The sophisticated always includes the elementary. For man to be able to make a choice in a subject which affects all his life, he must have adequate training in exercising his ability to choose in simpler and less serious matters.
Allah also tells that He rewards man according to his actions. Numerous verses in the Qur'an tell us that no action will be allowed to pass unnoticed.

"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". (XCIX:7-8).

If our actions carry a reward, good or bad, then they must be of our own choosing, if they were imposed on us through predestination, then we cannot be held responsible for them. Otherwise the divine attributes of Justice could not be fulfilled. Suppose you are a shopkeeper and employ an assistant to attend to customers needs when you are absent. Suppose also that you do not allow your assistant to sell any goods for anything lower than the prices you have marked. Suppose also that you come to the shop one evening after having been absent all day and your assistant tells you that he tried to reach you everywhere to ask your permission to give a discount of 10 percent to a customer who wanted to buy a very large quantity of goods. When the customer did not get the desired discount, he bought the goods from one of your competitors. Now, if you were to scold, reproach or punish your assistant for not acting in what you may describe as "a responsible manner". You are unfair. He has acted within the restrictions you have imposed on him. You have left him no choice and he should never be punished for not exercising a choice which is not his.
The fact that our actions are either rewarded or punished by Allah means, by logic and necessity, that have complete control over them. Otherwise, the reward and punishment cannot be fair.
Moreover, Allah has created us and equipped us with an ability to choose. That ability is set into operation and we can see its effects every minute of our lives. You have only to look at what you do and what you omit. When you are awakened by your alarm in the morning, whether you rise and get ready to go to work or you switch if off and go back to sleep is your own choice. If you do the latter and you are reproached by your employer for being late, you do not complain. When you open your wordrobe you choose the shirt and trousers you will wear that day. It is you who decides whether to go to work walking, by your car or to use public transport. No one imposes on you that you should invite your friend to dinner, and when you accepts someone else invitation, that again is your own choice. These are simple matters and I have chosen these example advised by. When you realize that it is always your choice that determines what you do in such matters, it is easy to understand that we also exercise a choice in more complicated matters.
A person who does not fast in Ramadan can never claim that he has made that choice under duress. Nor does the one who fasts accept any suggestions that he is compelled to fast. The same applies to prayers and Zakah, no matter how much is said about anyone's need to maintain appearances. Even that is one's own choice. Without this free choice, the whole idea of action and reward becomes impossible. Moreover, it would not fit with Allah's Justice. There is no doubt then, that we have free choice and we exercise it freely, and we bear the consequences.
What makes this question seems, at times an intricate one is that people confuse Allah's prior knowledge of everything that may take place in the universe with predestination. We state very clearly that Allah knows what we are going to choose in any situation and what we will do or say before we actually do it or say it. His prior knowledge, however, does not signify any imposition on us to comply. Perhaps we will find it easier to understand this point if we remember that time, as we know it, does not apply to Allah or to His knowledge
Having said that, however, I should add that there are certain things in our lives over which we can exercise no choice. We do not choose when we are born or when we die. Nor can we choose whether or not to react to natural elements such as rain, wind and temperature. We cannot determine how our bodies react in different situations. We are affected by illness in a way over which we exercise no control. In such matters, we earn no reward and incur no punishment. This fits with Allah's Justice which attaches those to our free choice.
Moreover, Allah has placed us on earth and gives us its potential and created its environment. We can tap those potentials and make use of them, and we deal in a limited way with the environment. What we can do through our own choosing is part of what we are responsible for. What we cannot alter has no effect on our final outcome. But we should understand however, that our lives are affected by condition and environmental influences which are part of Allah's system of creation. There are causes and effects. When we can influence a cause, we are responsible for the effect which results from our action. When we are influenced by a cause over which we have no control we have no liability.
Perhaps, an element of ambiguity arises from the fact that Muslims often use such words as "By Allah's will", "Allah willing", "If Allah wants this to happen there will be escape from it", "What has been written cannot be changed" and similar phrases. These can easily be understood in the light of the foregoing, when we relate them to Allah's prior knowledge on the one hand, and to His overall will on the other. It is Allah who has willed that there be cause and effect, and it is His will that such causes as affect our lives are there to affect it. Furthermore, it is His will that we should have a free will of our own. Our own will, then, is exercised within the framework of His absolute and overall will, which has determined that man can have free choice of his own. The two are by no means naturally exclusive. Indeed, man's free will is a manifestation of Allah's absolute will.
The answer above may not have satisfied all the questions, but in subsequent answer relevant to particular question we shall try to answer them as well.

Question:

Do we commit sins by Allah's will as we are made to understand by some of our so-called learned people ?

Answer:

This question is an extension of the above in which it has been explained that man by Allah's will has been given freedom of choice to act upon as he wills in different circumstances.
There is a great deal of confusion over this point. The confusion arises from the fact that most people in the Muslim world today do not know enough about their faith to understand this issue of man's freedom of choice and the related subject of Allah's will and how it effects our actions and lives. May learned actually say what you have quoted and ******* They always repeat that nothing takes place in the universe can come about except "by the order of Allah". Some of them, however, put their statement more correctly by saying that things happen "by Allah's will". When you ask about man's freedom of choice, you sometimes find the answer not well thought out.
Let us first clarify a couple of points, Firstly, Allah does not order any person or creature to commit a sinful act. Indeed, He orders nothing but good. He has forbidden sin, and every action which is sinful in itself or leads to sin is forbidden. It is not possible that Allah contradicts Himself. He does not forbid something and orders someone to do it. To suggest that He does is in itself an enormity. Only disbelievers make such a claim. In the Qur'an we read about disbelievers.

"When they commit a gross indecency, they say: We have found our fathers practicing it and Allah had commanded us to do it". "Say: Allah does not command anyone to do a gross indecency. Do you Allege against Allah something of which you have no knowledge".(**********).

As you realize thee is in this Quranic verse a clear definitive statement that sin is never ordered by Allah. Anyone who says something different is either ignorant or a liar.
Some people use the term "by the order of Allah" That is a mistaken usage which leads to confusion. What Allah orders and commands is something which He wants people to do. If they had no escape from doing it, then they are in the same category as angels who are described in the Qur'an in the following:

"They do disobey any command issued to them by Allah and they do what they are bid". (****).

On the other hand, Allah's will relates to actions which He Himself does. Whenever He wills something He only has to say to it "Be" and there it is. When we say that the universe is run by Allah's will, our statement means that Allah has willed that the system of operation which governs the universe be in this particular way and His will is done.
If we contemplate the fact that Allah has willed that man has freedom of choice over his actions, we can understand how we operate within Allah's will and exercise our freedom of choice at the same time.
Allah has willed that we have freedom of choice, so we have it and exercise it. In whatever action we exercise our freedom of choice, this comes within the general framework of Allah's will, although it is our own action for which we are accountable.

Question:

Suicide, Murder or predetermined death.
Is it an absolutely true belief that Allah has predetermined the death of every creature, its time, place and how it is effected ? Thus when a person shoots, stabs or hangs himself it is not his action that kills him. It is Allah's will that causes him to die. Please comment.

Answer:

It is true that Allah has predetermined the time and place of everyone's death as well as how and by what means it is effected. Nothing can change what Allah has predetermined unless He Himself chooses to do so.
Moreover, Allah has kept the knowledge of the time of death He has appointed for everyone of His creatures totally to Himself. He informs the Angel of Death of such time when He pleases.
There are numerous ways of how people meet with their death. Some die in war others have accidents and still others die of illness. Many die when old age has consumed all their strength. Some die in infancy, some in youth, others in middle age while a fourth group attains a very old age before they die.
Having said that we have admit that much in this world takes place as a result of the law of cause and effect. When something falls in water, it gets wet, when we throw a piece of glass on the floor it breaks, when a certain virus attacks the human body, it produces certain symptoms of illness, when a man is shot in the heart or head, he dies.
What we have to understand in this context is that the law of cause and effect operates by Allah's will. It is therefore part of what He has determined, or, if you like, predetermined for human life. If we take that example of a napkin getting wet when it is thrown in water, we say that it gets wet by Allah's will. If it is not thrown in water, it remains dry, the law of cause and effect works here, this is also by Allah's will. Therefore whether it gets wet or remains dry, depends on what man does with it. His action is the cause which results in the napkin either getting wet or remaining dry. It is what we choose to do with the napkin. This applies to every thing over which we have a choice. Our freedom of action is extended over a very wide area indeed. It is because of the freedom of choice which Allah has given us that we are held accountable for what we do. If we could not choose, it would not be Just that we should be held responsible for our actions. Allah is the most Just of Judges. It follows that He would not pass Judgement on us over that in which we have no say.
Bearing this in mind, let us ask ourselves, why has Islam legislated capital punishment for murder ? If the victim would have died anyway at this particular time, and if it is Allah's will that he would meet with his death through a gunshot or a stab with a knife or any other weapon used for his murder, then the killer was merely a tool of effecting Allah's will. Why is his action punishable by death ? There are several points to be considered here:
First, regardless of what may have happened to the victim, the fact that a murderer strikes his victim with whatever weapon he chooses, with the intentions of killing him, merits that punishment. By so doing, he commits a crime against the basic rights of life which us enjoyed by every human being.
Secondly, his action is the result of personal choice. There is nothing to compel him to take his weapon and strike his victim. This he does of his own accord. Hence, he must be punished.
Thirdly, the victim's death is the effect of the action of his assailant.
This invites the question. What would have happened if the murderer did not do the action which caused the death of his victim ? The answer is that we do not know for certain. We live and die by Allah's will. Whether a person lives or dies depends on what Allah has predetermined that the victim would live forty years if he is shot by his murderer and would live for sixty years if he is not. Allah's knowledge, however, is perfect and absolute. He knows before He even creates us what we will do at every moment in time. He does not wait for a man to fire his gun in order to predetermine that the shot will hit someone and he will die. He knows that before hand. His knowledge, however, is not a dictate. If it was, He would not have held us responsible for what we do.
This is in line with the Hadith in which the Prophet (PBUH) says: 

"He who likes to be granted increase in his income and his life to be prolonged, should maintain good relationship with his kinfolk". (Related Abu Bokhari, Muslim and Abu Dawood). How does kindness to one's relatives prolong one's life ? It is an increase in what the Angel of Death is informed. Allah may tell him that the life of a particular person is sixty if he severs his relations with his kinfolk. If he is kind to them, his life will be increased to seventy. Allah knows, before hand what will this person do with his kinfolk. Hence, the increase is real as far as we and the Angel of Death are concerned. The extra ten years is that person's life are dependant in what he does with his relatives. As far as Allah's knowledge is concerned, there is nothing that can be added to it. He knows whether the person will be kind to his relatives, and He knows how long he will live, even before he is born.
The case of suicide is the same, if a person shoots himself in his head or his heart, he dies. He actually kills himself by firing that bullet. He is punishable for his action. If he does not hold the gun at his head and fires that shot, he would have died at the same time by some other cause, but it would not be his own doing. It is for this reason that Allah says in a Qudsi Hadith: "My servant has affronted me by taking his own life and I, therefore, have banned him from entering heaven". There can be no greater punishment than that. Allah would not have meted out that punishment to anyone unless it is commensurate with the crime. Here the crime is the fact that a person, exercising his freedom of choice, consciously takes steps to end his life. It does not matter whether his life would have ended anyway at that particular moment. The fact that he holds a gun to shoot himself, or jumps from a very high building, or ties a heavy weight to his leg and jumps into the sea or stabs himself with a sharp weapon is a great crime against Allah's right to give and end life. The Prophet tells us that a person who kills himself will remain in hell forever, doing the same act by which he ended his life. Would you imagine that Allah's absolute justice would have required such punishment if that person was only executing Allah's will by killing himself ?
The argument regarding timing of death, an that the person who killed himself would have died anyway and at that particular moment even if he did not lift a finger to kill himself. That may be true, but it is his action which caused his death. That is Allah's predetermined law, the person, however, having taken the step which caused his death and he is, therefore, held responsible for that action which is known us as "suicide".
 

K. INTERCESSION (SHAFA'AH).

"If we question them; who created them, they will certainly say, Allah, We only worship them (i.e. idols) so that they may draw us nearer to Allah". (****).

"For Him (alone) is prayer in truth; any others that they call upon besides Him hear them no more than if they were to stretch forth their hands for water to reach their mouths but it reaches them not". (XIII:14)

"Say; "Call on those-besides Him whom ye fancy; They have neither the power to remove your troubles from you not to change them". (XVII:56)

"What ! do they take for intercessors others beside God ? Say; "Even if they have no power whatever and no intelligence." Say; "To God belongs exclusively (the right to grant) intercession". (XXXIX:43-44).

Question:

Could you please explain the meaning of WASEELAH or intercession with Allah. Can the power to intercede be granted to Prophets, scholars & martyrs ?

Answer:

From the linguistic point of view, the term waseelah indicates a "means" employed for a certain purpose within a religious context, however, the term acquires that added connotation of seeking someone's help in interceding with Allah for a certain purpose to be accomplished. These connotations are derived from the Arabic verb "TAWASSLA" which means "to request with eagerness and humility, repeating the request frequently".
Islam stresses emphatically that everyone is free to address Allah, pray to Him and seek His help and protection directly, without any need for a "religious man" to act as an intermediary. We may pray to Allah to help us accomplish any purpose in life. Whether it relates to the affairs of this world or those of the life to come. He listens to us and answers our prayers at all times. Nothing need prevent us for praying to Allah for any matter or purpose, at any time of the day or night. Allah says in the Qur'an:

"And He is with you wheresoever you may be. And God sees well all that ye do". (LVII : 4).

also in the Qur'an;

"It was we who created man, and we know what dark suggestions his soul makes to him; for we are nearer to him than (his) jugular vein". (L : 16).

It is definitely far better if we can make use of the waseelah or means which Allah tells us that makes His answering of our prayers much more certain. That means are good action. If we do the sort of deeds Allah has enjoined on us to do, these serve as the best recommendation we may combine with fulfillment of anything we have in mind, we actually acknowledge that He is the Lord of all the universe and that He controls everything and all forces in the universe. Allah is certain to answer the prayer of anyone who prays to Him firmly believing that He is the overall Lord of whole universe. In the Qur'an Allah tells us;
 "When My servants ask thee concerning Me, I am indeed close (to them); I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me". (II : 186).
If we combine that belief with good actions, then he has demonstrated practically that he takes his faith seriously. With such a combination, his prayers are certain to be answered.
Over the centuries, people have come to seek some sort of an "intermediary" between themselves and Allah. They pray to one whom they feel to be dear to their God because he is known to have been a "good believer". Their prayers normally take the form of "my Lord", I beseech you, by the high position or by the honour You have given to this man, to answer my prayers and accomplish this or that for me". More often than not the person named is dead. He is most likely to be one of those "Holy" men for whom people have built a tomb which they frequently visit. Such a practice can never be practiced by Islam. It is indeed a form of shirk or associating partners with Allah. We have frequently mentioned the Prophet's tradition which states; "that when any human being dies, his actions come to an absolute end except in one of three ways
 i. A continuous act of charity, or
 ii. A useful contribution to knowledge, or
 iii. A goodly child who prays for him.
To imagine that a dead person, no matter how good and dedicated to the cause of Islam he was during his life, can after his death know what people pray to Allah for and intercede with Him to answer their prayer, is to place him on an equal footing with Allah. It is needless to say that Islam will never approve of such an idea. Indeed, this does not apply even to the Prophet himself, the noblest and most devoted servant of Allah. How can we imagine that it may apply to an ordinary human being ? in the Qur'an Allah commands:

"No intercession can avail in His presence, except for those for whom He has granted permission". (XXXIV : 23).

Moreover, when we claim that a dead person has a high position with Allah, we are actually placing ourselves in a position of Judgement over others. This is again inadmissible from the Islamic point of view. How can we judge others when we are not really aware of their motives or their actual objectives. How can we ever be certain that something done by another person was free of all hypocrisy and purely done to please Allah ? If we acknowledge our inability to determine the intentions of others, then we cannot make any judgement on what position they may have with Allah. It is not for us to say that a certain person is truly good. We can say that we think him to be so, but we must add that it is for Allah to judge him on the basis of His knowledge.
There are unfortunately people who still claim that waseelah, as defined above, is permissible. They base their argument mainly on what Omar ibn Al-Khittab, the second Caliph, did when and the Muslims in Medina went outside the city to pray to Allah for rain after a period of drought. He prayed to Allah in these words: "My Lord, we used to beseech you by the Prophet to give us rain and you answered our prayers. Today we are beseeching you by the Prophet's uncle, Al-Abbas, to give us rain". Al-Abbas then stepped forward and led the Muslims in prayer for rain.
Omar's action is totally different from that of those who advocate waseelah. We note first that he did not beseech Allah by the position of the Prophet, although he was well aware that, the position of the Prophet with Allah is far superior to that of the Prophet's uncle. The Prophet, however was dead while his uncle was still alive. What Omar actually meant was that Al-Abbas would be leading the Muslims in prayer. All Muslims realized that, including Al Abbas, who stepped forward and did exactly that. In this incident, the Muslim choose a relative of the Prophet who they knew to be a good believer to pray to Allah and they joined in his prayer. This is permissible because it does not involve any element of associating partner with Allah. When we choose someone whom we think to be a firm believer to lead us in prayer and who is one of our members, the fact  that he is merely a  servant of Allah with no special status remains firmly  established in our minds. Our actions are no more than appointing a spokesman for the community. That  does not involve giving that spokesman any holy status. The term "holy" is not used in Islam except as an attribute of Allah. It is not used to describe any person, place or object. Other than if declared by Allah himself.
In clarifying further and to make a point in this connection is that none of us can be certain of our destiny. Nor can we as a community make a judgement on any person, be he a scholar, a devout, or a most pious man. We cannot say  hether he will be in heaven or not. We know that Allah has promised forgiveness of all their sins and admission into heaven to martyrs. To earn such a position however, a martyrs must have gone into war for the sole purpose of serving the cause of Allah. He must have had no other motive or consideration. How can we, then, pass judgement on anyone and give him the title of martyr when we do not know his intentions or motives which had prompted him to fight ? It is for this reason that when we speak of anyone and praise his character, we say that we think or believe him to be good, although we can make no final judgement in front of Allah.
When we take the above into consideration, the notion of there being a class of people, whether prophets, scholars or martyrs, who would be granted permission to intercede on behalf of others sound rather hollow. Such a notion tries to create a class of people who can be certain of their own position in the life to come. This is diametrically opposed to the proper Islamic idea that no one whomsoever can have that certainty. On hearing one of his companions saying about a person who had died recently that he "has come to his rest" the Prophet commented "how do you know he is resting" ? I, the messenger of Allah, do not know what will happen to me". While it is absolutely certain that the Prophet will be in heaven, what this Hadith tells us that even he does not know precisely what will take place on the day of judgement. That knowledge Allah has kept to Himself.
If you want to know whether the statement quoted is true i.e. whether the power to intercede will be granted to prophets, scholars and martyrs, or not, you have only to imagine how people will treat a person whom they believe to have the power to intercede with Allah on their behalf. People sometimes pamper even the absurd wishes of their basses in order to win a promotion in their work. When they realize that some people can stand between them and the realization of some of their interests in this world, they try to hard to keep them happy, showing them with praise or gifts in order to make sure that they remain in their good books. What would they do if they should feel that a fellow human being can stand between them and heaven ? The thought of ordinary human beings, no matter what position they occupy, being able to influence the destiny of other human beings is totally alien to the teachings of Islam. The fact is that every human being, scholars and martyrs included are in need of Allah's grace of forgiveness in order to make sure of their place in heaven.
Everyone of us commits sins. None of us is immune to the temptation of unlawful gains or the lure of worldly pleasures.  Many of these cannot be enjoyed without the violation of Islamic teachings. On the other hand, there are numerous faults which we may commit without thinking. It is this which makes all in need of Allah's forgiveness. That is the reason why every Muslim always prays to Allah to bestow on him His grace and forgive him all his sons. When we are resurrected on the Day of Judgement everyone of us is preoccupied with his own destiny. He has not even the time or the mind to think of others. His preoccupation with himself is so total that he does not even think, as the Qur'an tells us, of his parents, wife or children. How can he think of others ?
The right to intercede on behalf of  thers is given to one man only. That man is Mohammad, Allah's final messenger and the last of all prophets. We are told in a Hadith that on the day of Judgement, people go to one prophet after another, asking them to intercede with Allah on their behalf. Everyone of the prophets tells them that he cannot do that. When they finally go and ask Prophet Mohammad to do that, he prostrates himself beneath Allah's throne and stays in that position until Allah commands him to rise. He lifts his head and prays to Allah to accept his intercession. He is granted that and he intercedes on behalf of his followers.
That is the Islamic view. No one else can be of any benefit to other people. Indeed on that day, no one can improve his own position by any atom's weight except through the Prophet's intercession and Allah's forgiveness. To believe otherwise is to commit a great error.

Question:

The role of personal teacher, mystic or saint. If we  question them;

"who created them they will certainly say, Allah. We only worship them (i.e. idols), so that they may draw us nearer to Allah. (*****)

Answer:

The starting point in answering any question about what constitutes Islam and how to understand it, and which practices are part of Islamic worship and which are alien to it is a clear understanding of what is meant by the declaration which every person is required to make in order to become a Muslim. That declaration is the border line which separates Islam from non-Islam. A person who makes that declaration is a Muslim, the one who does not remain outside Islam. It is, therefore the criterion by which we can distinguish between what is Islamic and all that is not.
This declaration states. "I bear witness that there is no deity save Allah, and I bear witness that Mohammad is His messenger". The first part of this declaration stresses the absolute Oneness of Allah. Within the context of our question we are discussing this is not a point at issue. The second part stresses that Mohammad, the Prophet, is Allah's messenger. What this means is that it is only through Mohammad (PBUH) that we can learn what Allah wants from us and what He has forbidden us. He has nothing which brings us nearer to Allah and earning His pleasure but has told us about and explained it perfectly clearly. Nor did he ever omit to warn us against anything which is certain to invite Allah's displeasure. Hence we need no other guide. No teachings which differ with those of the Prophet can be of any use to us.
What we need are scholars who can teach us what the Prophet has given us. Such teachers study the Qur'an and the Hadith and relate the two together and make certain of what Allah wants of us in order to explain it to us and point out its relevance to our daily life. They do that guided only by the Qur'an, authentic Hadith and the established practices of the Prophet and his companions. The companions received the message of Islam directly from the Prophet. They sought his guidance in every aspect of their lives. He was able to mould their community in a truly Islamic shape. Their community serves as model for all future Muslim communities, because they were keen to keep the shape the Prophet gave to their community in its original colour.
Throughout the history of Islam, there have been such scholars who achieved great eminence for their scholarship and their keenness to keep up the true Islamic tradition which receives guidance only from the Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet. They sought to explain Islam to ordinary people in its simple direct from which stresses the importance of action and individual responsibility. Something to be noted about eminent Muslim scholars, throughout history, is their modesty and their repeatedly expressed readiness to change their views when valid evidence from authentic Hadith and Sunnah is presented to them. Many of them have stated to their students that they must disregard totally their opinion on any matter if it is found to be in conflict with an authentic Hadith.  None of them has ever claimed perfection or infallibility.  Indeed in Islam infallibility belongs only to Allah's messenger, Mohammad (PBUH). Even Abu Bakr, a close companion of the Prophet and the first Caliph of Islam stated "If I do well, then help me, but should I do badly, then correct me".  This same attitude was expressed by other companions of the Prophet who succeeded Abu Bakr.
It is stated by some people that a pious man or a saint can pray to Allah on behalf of others. People may put forward all sorts of arguments to support their views. The fact is that as stated earlier, when a person dies, his death means the end of his role in this life. The Prophet says; "When a human dies, all his actions come to an end except to one of three ways; a continuous act of charity, a useful contribution to knowledge or a good child who prays for him".
What this Hadith tells us is that a deceased person benefits by what we do for him or her. He himself cannot benefit us after he had died. His actions, as the Prophet says, have come to an end. Moreover, the Hadith speaks of every "human being". This means that it applies to all people, good and bad. We cannot classify people into saints and non-saints. This idea is alien to Islam. There are people who maintain a high standard of religious conduct throughout their lives. These are good people and they will be rewarded by Allah for their good actions. We cannot however, give them the title of "saint". If we do we are giving a judgement which is not ours to give. It is Allah only who judges people according to their deeds.
The most serious aspects, however, is the fact that people formulate in their minds the idea that a dead person can be of benefit to them by being able to solve any of their problems. What they actually do is a form of polytheism. By paying homage to the dead person or saint in this manner, they are guilty of worshipping graves. This is one of the worst forms of polytheism which Islam works hard to eradicate.
In a case of a so-called mystic or saint or sheikh who is living and practices the teachings of Islam as he sees it, it might be acceptable to some if he were able to bear the responsibility for his followers on the day of judgement. If it were the case that he alone would be accountable for all their deeds, one could say that by blind following of the Sheikh or saint one is making sure of his safety on the day of judgement. Try to put these argument to any of these mystics or Shaikhs and see whether he would give you a straight forward answer or he would seek to dodge the issue. The tells us, however:

"No one will bear the burden of another". (***).

it also states;

"Every soul is responsible for what it has done". (****).

Indeed the principle of personal responsibility is so deeply entrenched in the whole philosophy of Islamic teachings that the mere thought of one person answering for another is bound to be seen as totally absurd by every Muslim. The Qur'an decrees the argument which will be put forward by some of the polytheists on the day of judgement that they were merely following their leaders:

"They say; Our Lord we have only obeyed our masters and leaders and they have caused us to go astery". (****).

When one community of disbelievers puts the excuse of having only followed their predecessors and pray to Allah to double up their punishment for having let them to astery. Allah states that the punishment of all of them will be doubled up.
In the light of these verses from the Qur'an, how can the principle of blend following of the shaikh be acceptable ? Indeed, when we follow the Prophet himself, we are required to learn the wisdom behind his teachings and instructions. In other words we are to follow him, or anyone else's instructions with open eyes, not like a blind person. It is true that we follow the Prophet in everything, because he has taught us nothing but good.
But why do these mystics or Shaikhs demand such blind following ? The answer is simply because they do not have anything of value to teach or satisfy an average mind.

Question:

Appealing to the Prophet whether this is acceptable in Islam ? but then praising him at the same time .

Answer:

These are two separate issues which need not be confused or linked together. Sometimes people go beyond what is permissible in giving greetings or praising the Prophet, describing the Prophet with qualities which belong to Allah alone. This, however, is only marginally relevant to the subject under discussion. If such phrases of greetings and praise are within what is Islamically acceptable, then there is nothing wrong with them.
What is objectionable is addressing the Prophet asking him to accomplish certain things for us in this life. Similarly, when we make him an intermediary between ourselves and Allah, we exceed the bounds. If we want to pray for something, we must address our prayers to Allah directly. Allah addresses the Prophet in the Qur'an in these words;

"When my servants ask thee concerning Me, I am indeed close (to them); I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me; Let them also listen to My call, with will, and believe in Me; That they may walk in the right way". (II : 186).

We note that Allah has not instructed the Prophet to act as an intermediary. He has instructed him to tell us that He is near and He answers prayers addressed to Him. It is when we give the Prophet something which neither he claimed nor Allah has given him that is objectionable. Only on the Day of Judgement will the Prophet intercede with Allah on our behalf In this life, he has given us all that he has been asked to give, namely, Allah's message complete and perfect. May Allah give him the reward he deserves for having done so.