we all talk about muslim atrocities on non-muslims. but we fail to recognise that muslims are themselves victims of islam. islam started as a religion in a part of saudi arabia. however, mostly by force and also due to some good points(we will discuss these also), it spread to other parts.
1) Some of the great civilisations in Egypt, Iraq, Iran etc were destroyed by the tide of islam and people were broken from their past and their ancestors. it was as if every good thing started after the birth of islam. But the people of Turkey, Egypt, iraq, iran and of central asia had a proud past before that as well.
2) It cannot be denied that a large no. of muslims were converted under the threat of force. so the ancestors of a large number of present muslims (though not of all) were threatened and suffered physical harm to themselves, their families and children before converting to islam.
3) because of too much emphasis on the concept of separate identity and islamic brotherhood (millet), many the muslims in non muslim countries consider themselves outsiders or do not mix as easily in the national mainstream. this leads to tensions between muslims and non-muslims.
4) due to polygamy the rich muslims marry a number of women. as a result the poor ones cannot get married and settled. so some of these (though not all) are available for Jihad or holy war.
5) the concept lectures by the maulvis after the congregational friday prayer is dangerous for muslims. these maulavis often have half baked knowledge and a narrow myopic viewpoint. so they end up showing half the picture to the large no. of muslims. Also many maulvis like so called holy men of all religions have a narrow personal viewpoint and they use religion to promote their distorted vision.
6) Muslims are told not to worship idols and many muslim kings broke idols also. but the most important ritual in the life of a muslim is to go to mecca to visit kaaba. And it has that black stone which muslims consider as holy. Is it not idol or stone worship?
6) regarding the good points in Islam first is the sufi viewpoint which is tolerant and inclusive. second is the lack of expensive rituals. and thirdly and most importantly. islam lays greater emphasis on equality than hinduism and christianity. in hinduism low caste people were exploited for centuries and white christians practically never treatd blacks as equal. also just as islamic raiders behaved iconoclastically in africa and asia, the christians wiped out civilisations in north america, south america and australia. in this regard Buddhism is the best as it has the cleanest slate.( i am not a buddhist).
7) solution; all religions have skeletons in their cupboards. but while there have been efforts at reforms in christianity and hinuism, there have been no huge substantial effort at reforms in islam. only moderate muslims can save islam. they have to come forward and take up the cudgels. otherwise the mullahs and jihadis are hell bent on harming islam. consider this- Laden killed a few thousand americans but there is no count of the muslims killed by the U.S. in afghanistan and iraq. who gave the U.S. this opportunity ? Laden and Saddam. no doubt these to appeal to muslim emotions but in retrospect they have only caused harm to muslims.
in the end, my regrets for hurting some peoples feelings but my intention is not that.
RE:muslims are victims of islam
by mohd rehman on Feb 18, 2007 01:59 PM Permalink
first of all i would like to advise Mr Vikram that half knowledge is really dangerous. secondly thank you very much for your sympathy towards the people of islam. The Countries which you are mentioning to be destroyed by the tide of islam is just your mere perception because Allah have blessed them with a special favour and brought them out of the life of ignorance and betrayal towards the path of the believers. islam was never spread by force, just bringing the issues of a handful persons won't give you the right to make a perception that islam was spread by force. and regarding the Idol Worship. the Holy Mosque in Mecca. Muslims face the direction of the Kaaba, known as the Qibla during their prayers. At the time of the Prophet, people even stood on the Kaaba and gave the adhaan or the call to prayer. One may ask those who allege that Muslims worship the Kaaba; does an idol worshipper ever stand on the idol he worships In order to unite Muslims in their worship of the One True God, Muslims, wherever they may be, are asked to face in only one direction i.e. towards the Kaaba.
When the Muslims visit the Holy Mosque in Makkah, they perform tawaf or circumambulation round the Kaaba. This act symbolizes the belief and worship of One God. Just as every circle has one centre, so also there is only one Allah (swt) worthy of worship.
Regarding the black stone, Hajr-e-Aswad, Umar the illustrious companion of the Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him), said: "I know that you are a stone and can neither benefit nor harm. Had I not seen the Prophet (peace be upon him) touching (and kissing) you, I would never have touched (and kissed) you". Thus, it is important to note that though Muslims face the Kaaba during prayers, they do not worship the Kaaba. Muslims worship and bow to none but Allah. Islam is a complete way of life. it totally believes in tolerance towards others. regarding the other issues they are more political rather than religious. i don't think anybody needs your suggestions. i would suggest you to acquire some knowledge before making any statements.
RE:RE:muslims are victims of islam
by vikram dev thakur on Feb 18, 2007 02:40 PM Permalink
your reply seems to come more out of frustration than anything else and betray anger. also u seem to think that islam is the only true religion.
but then u seem to be a victim of wahabi islam it seems. my sympathies
RE:RE:RE:muslims are victims of islam
by mohd rehman on Feb 18, 2007 03:21 PM Permalink
i never meant to say that Islam is the only true religion, all religions teaches the message for peace and equality, it is on the individual as to how he interprets. all religions have come into existence for a cause and were for a certain period and for those ppl only but the fact is Islam has come for the entire mankind and will be there untill the Day of judgement. and by the way islam is one ther is no seperate religion called as wahabi islam. my apologies if i have hurt you in my previous reply.
RE:RE:RE:muslims are victims of islam
by kashmir on Feb 18, 2007 03:34 PM Permalink
thats good! when you have nothing to debate you go back to square one and talk about wahabism; you know nothing about anything. Ofcourse, we show anger when anyone talks rubbish about our religion. thats human nature. and thats what our religion teaches us..respect..honour..love..struggle..fighting evil..
RE:RE:RE:RE:muslims are victims of islam
by vipin bihari mehrotra on Feb 19, 2007 05:11 PM Permalink
And terrorize others who do not beleive in your faith
RE:RE:muslims are victims of islam
by zena on Feb 19, 2007 10:23 AM Permalink
Mohd Vasi,
The kaaba in Mecca was a Hindu stone. Go read the history of early Arabia and India's King Vikramaditya and educate yourself. Sheesh. Get out of the black hole of darkness. Yours is a human spirit. BTW what vikram wrote is 100% accurate. "To ignore history is to remain a child (read imbecile) forever. Marcus Tullius Cicero
