The Truth About Salaat - Eng (Dr Qamar Zaman)

8/3/2019 The Truth About Salaat - Eng (Dr Qamar Zaman)

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http://www.aastana.com


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Dedication

While dedicating this book, I find within my inner self mixedfeelings of happiness and grief. For the book in your handsis, in essence, the fruit of Mohammad Qasim Noorisprofound efforts. It was him who embarked upon the projectof Haqiqat-e-Salaat, when some beastly characterssilenced him for good. However, they could neither silencehis thoughts nor impede his noble work. Today, manypeople all over the globe are busy in advancing his thoughtsand works.

I dedicate this book, with all the depths of my feelings for

him, to Mr. Mohammad Qasim Noori.


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Acknowledgements

I am extremely grateful to all my friends who helped me inthe compilation of this book. The list is long though, but I amparticularly indebted to Mr. Adnan Ahmad Khan, who, withhis perseverance, carried out a lot of improvements in its text

and offered useful counsel, causing the book to becomemore vivid and revealing.

I thank also all my friends who performed proof-reading ofthis book, and pointed out its mistakes. Not only proofreading, but improvement in the style of narration, as well asthe argumentation in favor of the subject-matter, has all been

made available through the gestures of kindness from thesefriends. Those who helped me in the final editing of the bookare Mr. Azhar Jalil Roomi, Mr. Khalid Butt, Mr. Tufail Dar, Mr.Mohammad Sarwar and Doctor Mohammad Anis. Apartfrom that, the invaluable guidance of Mr. Saeed Chaudhry, inmatters of lexicons and Arabic linguistics, was constantlyavailable to me.

I am further indebted to all those who helped me inunderstanding the ideology of Islam. Particularly to my latematernal grandfather, Mr. Asghar Zaman and my lateparents who had arranged my preliminary education byenrolling me into Madrasa Razvia Ahmed Raza Khan inBraily and also arranged for the Respected Mustafa RazaKhan to be my mentor. And that was how I came to develop

affection for the Prophet pbuh, and an eagerness forunderstanding Quran, starting from my early childhood.

I am also thankful to all those scholars whose kindness, loveand monitoring afforded new life to my flair for understanding


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Quran and enabled me to distinguish right from wrong. I amparticularly grateful from the depths of my heart, to my lateteacher, Sheikh al-Hadith, Mr. Fazil Mohaddith, who taught

me Usul-e-Hadith and, for more in-depth studies, taughtthe Mishkaat too. It is due to his efforts that today I findmyself capable of contemplating upon, and analyzingAhadith, in some measure.

I am extremely indebted and grateful to the prominentQuranic scholar, Dr. Asrar Ahmed who made me develop

the temperament of exploring the Quran. I call that atemperament because Doctor Sahib is the man whose hardwork brought many like me into close proximity with Quranfor ever, who had actually gone too far away from it.

The name of respected Javed Al-Ghamdi is also included in

the list of my benefactors, whose company granted me thecore doctrine and which I have always kept in my view that DEEN (the Ideology of Islam) is wholly and solelyenshrined in Quran. And finally, the most importantpersonality that I came across during my journey throughQuran, is that of the learned Qazi Kifayatullah whoseenlightened vision unfolded new horizons of Quranic

understanding.

To have differences of opinion with a teacher is a basic rightof a student. I might be in disagreement with my learnedteachers on many accounts; still I hold all of them in utmostrespect and regard them as inspiring personalities.


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Table of Contents

First Part

Number Page1. Preface 8

2. Preamble 13

3. Excerpt from the Journal of Ahl-e-Hadith 26

4. Matured Argumentation 30

5. Salaat of the Prophets 38

6. Interpolation of Salaat 48

7. The Truth About Salaat 53

8. The Chapter Al-Jumah 57

9. The Chapter Al-Kauthar 64

10. The Truth about Wudhu (Ablution) 67

11. The Prostration 8712. Qiblah (The Object of Veneration) 91

13. The Truth about Darood 96

14. Musalleen (The Performers of Salaat) 104

15. Musallaa 111

16. Big words from a Small Mouth 124


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Second Part

Number Page1. Preamble 127

2. The Chapter al-Baqarah 128

3. The Chapter al-Nisaaa 137

4. The Chapter al-Maaidah 1535. The Chapter al-Anaam 188

6. The Chapter al-Anfaal 162

7. The Chapter al-Taubah 163

8. The Chapter Hood 170

9. The Chapter al-Raad 173

10. The Chapter Bani Israel 175

11. The Chapter Maryam 182

12. The Chapter Taahaa 185

13. The Chapter al-Ambiaaa 190

14. The Chapter al-Hajj 191

15. The Chapter al-Noor 197

16. The Chapter al-Namal 204

17. The Chapter Luqmaan 206

18. The Chapter al-Ahzaab 208


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19. The Chapter Faatir 209

20. The Chapter Shuraa 213

21. The Chapter al-Mujadilah 214

22. The Chapter al-Muzammil 217

23. The Chapter al-Mudaththir 225

24. The Chapter al-Bayyinah 232

25. The Word Salaat as Relative Compound 235

26. Verbs from the Root 243

27. Az-Zakaat 249


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THE TRUTH ABOUT SALAT

PART ONE


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Preface

Please have a look around you. You may witness nothingbut despair. You may find victims of tyranny andoppression, crying for help. Why is it that this situation ismore commonly visible in those countries where peopleclaim to be the favorites of the Creator, and the truefollowers of His book? Those who call themselves Musalman

or Muslim.

Muslims wish to lead the entire world and, thus, to redeemthe humanity from humiliation and degeneration. They insistthat if humanity as a whole becomes Muslim, they would besaved from humiliation and degeneration. But the point toponder is, whether or not Muslims themselves are leading an

honorable life. Arent they wholly dependent upon non-Muslim nations for their livelihood?

If our convictions are not coming true within our ownboundaries, why are others, who are already leading lives ofrespect and opulence, going to believe us. Rather, thosewho are not Muslims, have distantly surpassed us today in

progress and development. Therefore, those who arealready ahead in this journey of time, would hardly have areason to follow those who are left far behind. The fasterones either leave the slower ones behind, or, if they havecompassion, try to help them along. But, there has neverbeen a precedent for the losers to play leaders to thewinners.

It is an illusion on the part of Muslims that the concepts theypresently follow steadfastly, can somehow afford themleadership over developed nations. Why would developednations opt to abandon their respect, fame, dignity and


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comfort, for a life of humiliation and subjugation? Let ustoday analyze the situation with an open mind and determineour target orientation. Because, if you lead a life without a

destinatin, or if you are devoid of the intellect to formulate afuture strategy, then you are compelled to make demeaningcompromises and lead a life of repentance or remorse. Andyou resort to playing either a constant blame game againstothers, or just continue enduring misery, as something pre-destined for you.

Todays Muslim ideology is limited to physical worship(Namaz) and fasting (Roza). Some may go beyond that, andmay add to it the Pilgrimmage (Hajj) and paying of Zakat, asthe ultimate religious virtues. If these rituals are deemed asIslam, then you may keep performing them and, whileabandoning this worldly life, keep your eyes set on thehereafter. In this case, your only option will be to keep

humiliating yourselves in this world, and continue leading alife of total impassivity, with a total disregard of that so-obvious humiliation and degeneration.

But is this the objective set forth by Quran? Are these theteachings of God Almighty? Let us see what God says aboutit::-

antum al-aaloun in kuntum momineenYou will be the highest ones if you be true believers.

God is making our aims and our beliefs conditional with ourhonor and our supremacy. That means that whosoever

loses honor and supremacy and is subjugated, is notregarded a Believer (Momin) at all. So, the question thatarises here is: what kind of convictions we have that stand incontradiction with Quran? Indeed, somewhere we are wrong.Our target, our conviction is wrong! We have compromised


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with subjugation and slavery instead of supremacy. And forthis reason, Muslims all over the world are forced to lead alife of humiliation and degeneration.

Today, all over the Muslim world, exploitation is thepredominant phenomenon. Muslim is putting Muslim underthe chains of servile bonds. A deep study would reveal thatevery person has built a fortification around himself withinwhich he has established a personal estate. Within the forewalls of a house or outside, everyone is intent on exploiting

the weaker one.

Has God Almighty created us for worshipping Him in thisway, and, at the same time, usurping one anothers rightsunscrupulously? Keep demeaning and insulting each other?And keep exploiting each other?

The sole purpose behind the revelation of Quran was tobring an end to this exploitation; to set the suppressedhumanity free from coercion and tyranny; to afford everyoneones basic rights. And to achieve that target, Quranspecified values and tenets, through which a model welfarecommunity be established, to serve as a catalyst for allnations. If you have to define Islam and Quranic teachings in

one sentence, it will suffice to say:-

Islams definition and Qurans teaching is that nohuman being may exploit a human being.

And if we bear in our minds the true meanings of the wordsMuslim and Momin, our whole concept of Islam will become

precise:

Muslim is the one who provides SECURITY to others;and Momin is the one who provides PEACE to others.


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In Arabic grammar, both words Muslim and Momin fallunder the paradigm of Afaal and this chapterscharacteristics are to convey the meaning of its root word to

others. Muslim and Momin are, under this paradigm,names of the subject (Ism al Faail) - which means onewho provides Security and Peace to others.

I wish we could understand Quran with proper regard to thebasic purpose it was revealed for. Or at least, we shouldhave known the concept of Muslim and Momin in the light

of their true meanings.


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Preamble

The intention of the Propagation of Quran Movement isneither the formation of a party nor laying the foundations fora religious sect. The humanity as a whole is our party. Wehave nothing against a religious group or a school ofthought. Whoever believes in offering safety and security isa Muslim and is our companion. And whoever is working for

peace, is a Momin and is a dear brother.Qurain proclaims:

t%x.$9$#Z&Z yn u4Kana an Nasa Ummatan wahidatan

The whole humanity was (is and will remain) one nation,

y]yt7s!$#zh;9$#eu;t uFa baatha Allahu an-nabbiyyina, mubashsharina wa munzireena

So, Allah appointed Messengers to give glad tidings and to

forewarn

ttr& uyt|=tG39$#d,ys9$$/z3su9tt/$9$#$y(#n=tFz$#Wa anzala maahum al-Kitaba bil Haq li yahkuma bayin an-naasi mimmaakhtalafu fihi.

And granted them a Book of rights/truth that may passjudgments/rulings between them in matters where they differfrom each other.


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In this way, the whole mankind was one nation, is one, andwill remain one. The reasons why we have been separatedinto different entities are those disagreements that are of our

own fabrication.

Every Messenger has offered the message of love, affection,peace and security to the humanity. In our hands we haveQuran, just because we are born in a Muslim community.We invite the whole humanity towards peace and harmonythrough Quran. But, whatever else is there with another

man, if that does not go against peace, security, love andharmony, then that is also divine, because a divine teachingwill always be based exclusively upon peace, security, loveand harmony.

Please see that Quran does not address a particular sect,religion or class. Nor does it emphasize a Muslims religion.

It rather addresses the human kind. Just for this reason, thePropagation of Quran Movement also is not addressing aparticular sect, class or religion. Its foremost invitation is tolook into your inner selves and check how Quran is directingyou towards Gods commandments to make you realize yourown misconceptions. The same is our humble invitation, i.e.,towards love, peace and security and we deem it our holy

mission.

As Quran neither calls towards a religion, nor preaches areligion, therefore, it will be a serious mistake to offer theconcept of a religion through Quran. Quran offers anideology, a code of life, a discipline to live accordingly.Therefore, what we will find in Quran, will only be a code of

conduct.

In Chapter Al-Baqara, verse 62, the Almighty ordains:


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)t%!$#(#t#u%!$# u(#$y3t|9$# u79$# utzt# u!$$/

u9$#uzF$#tu$[s=|n=s_r&yn/ uuyzn=t u tts

Innal lazina aamanu wal lazina Haadu wan Nasaara was Sabieena,man aamana billahi wal youmil aakhiri wa amila salihan, fa lahumajruhum inda rabbihim wa la khoufun alayihim wa la hum yahzanun.

Verily those who are the people of Peace and Faith andthose who belong to Jewish or Christian or any other faith,whoever became a believer in God and remained so in thehereafter, and performed reformative/progressive deeds,their rewards are reserved with their Nourisher and shall notthey face fear or grief.

It simply means that its not a problem with Quran as to whysomeone is a Jew or why someone is a Christian or whatfaith someone is following. Quran is offering just one adviceto every faith follower. That is, that if one believes in Peacewith the Creators appointed parameters, that if he is aprovider of peace and works for the betterment of human

community, then rewards for such a person are reservedwith Almighty. He may not have remorse or repentance nordoes an impending fear haunt him.

It is then surprising that going through the Quranictranslations, we find therein the outline of a particularreligion. And due to those translations, it becomes difficult

for a probing and research-oriented person to accept thatwhile, on the one hand, not condemning any faith followerand appreciating his reformative work in the human society,why, on the other hand, Quran is propagating a religion in aparticular religious style. The proof of this anomaly is that, atseveral places in these translations, we frequently notice the


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word Namaaz (the Muslim ritual of worship) which givesbirth to the concept of a particular religion.

Contrary to the above, our earlier scholars and elders hadvery clearly visualized the term Salaat as areformative/progressive community. Moreover, all theMuslim scholars had a consensus that the details of theritual of worship, Namaaz, were not available in Quran. Aclear proof of this statement is the Writings of our seniorscholars as elaborated in the article Aqamat-e-Salaat,

printed in the weekly magazine of Ahl-e-Hadith sect, for theweek 19-25 Nov. 1997 (whose text will be reproduced in thecoming pages). Another point that creates confusion is thetranslation of Salaat as Namaz, given the fact that if a ritual(Namaaz) has been declared by God as the pillar of Deen,why its details may be available only through the process ofhistorical continuity/succession, rather than from Quran.

And for its methodology, we need to be dependent uponBokhari and Muslims rivayaat (tradition). While the status ofthese rivayaat be such as the narrator himself may not besure of the exact amount of the element of truth andfalsehood in his narration and where the narrator is alwaysobliged to make a statement at the end of every narrationthat he was not sure whether the Messenger of God exactly

said this or something else (Aou kama qaala Salla Allahualayihi wa sallam). What indifference in the matter of divineguidance! A fact whose authenticity the narrator (Raavi)himself is not sure about, was not only shamelesslyassigned by him to the Prophet, but he also absolved himselffrom the blame of posting falsehood, just by saying .if notthis,.. then whatever the Prophet might have said..

Fantastic, isnt it? Worth praising are such people whocarried upon their shoulders such unbearable load offalsehood and deceit.

Let us try to make a simple fact about Hadith (rivayaat) clearto us, which eventually may solve all the rest of the puzzles.


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The episodes narrated in the rivayaat were so rarely knownthat in every period of time, among hundreds of thousands ofpeople, only a maximum number of only three (3) individuals

had known them. The majority of these rivayaat were hardlyknown to more than one person. For this reason, to look forthese stories, Bokhari and Muslim had to undertake long journeys. Clearly, these stories did not exist for theoverwhelming majority of orthodox Muslims and theirexistence was based on the flight of thought of some veryrare individuals. But when we laid the very foundations of our

religion on these rarely known stories and gave up thoseteachings that were widely known by all - the process ofdegeneration took a start. Had we held on to our originalsource the Quran no problems would have arisen.

In spite of our pride in being Muslims, we are always shy andreluctant in proclaiming that we cannot accept an association

(duality) of any kind with Qurans teachings.

What is the reason behind it? Why a Muslim cannot have anunderstanding of the comprehensive code of conduct thatexists within Quran, without associating it with some mediumof jurisprudence (Fiqh), hadith or sufi precepts. Look at anysect of Muslims. Everyone has his own Code of conduct

(Shariah), which is linked with some particular individual orsome particular school of thought. There is not a singlereligious sect that owns a code based upon pure Quranicinjunctions. Gods commandments have been mixed up withpersonal preferences due to the use of conflicting sourcematerial. Every sect has invented novel routines in order todistinguish itself from the others. And now these additions

form integral part of sectarian rituals of worship.Consequently, today the framework of Salaat has also fallenvictim to speculation. On one side, it is insisted upon that,in spite of all the man-made additions, the ritual of Salaat(Namaaz) has to be exactly in that format which theirelders had determined for them; while on the other side, the


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very existence of a particular format of Salat (Namaaz) isdeemed doubtful.

As a result thereof, when you try to divert someone towardspure Quranic teachings, you are immediately asked thequestion : If so, then how are we going to perform Namaaz- because the Namaaz which we offer, does not exist at allin Quran. But still nobody thinks for a single moment that ifsome thing does not exist in Quran, how we can regard it asGods commandment.

If you want Qurans prescribed Salaat, then let us ask Quranas to what orders it has given about Salaat! And, if youprefer the Namaaz that came down through generations andelders, then in whatever way you offer that Namaaz, it wouldstill be Namaaz. It would never be the Salaat prescribed byQuran. Now let us see what status of Salaat is determined

by Quran.

Chapter Al-Bayyinah, verse 5, stipulates Gods commandas under :

!$t u(#&)(#6u9!$#t=&s!te$!$#u!$xum(#)un4n=9$#(#? un4x.9$#4y79s uyhs)9$#

wa ma umiru illa liyabudullah mukhlisina lahud Dina hunafaa wayuqimus Salaata wa yutu az-zakaata wa Zalika deen al-qayyimah.

And they were ordained to be obedient to God alone,making the Deen (divine ideology) pure for Allah alone,remaining straightforward in their quest and that theyestablish the system of Salaat and offer Zakaat, as this wasthe only firm and authentic Code of life.


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That means that in this verse, the firm/authentic code of lifeis restricted to pure obedience and the two pillars of thisCode are proclaimed as Salaat and Zakaat. Now the point

to ponder is that the clauses the Almighty is prescribing asthe firm/authentic Code, how can HE adopt a completesilence about their format or the course of action to carry outtheir performance? While, in the Chapter An-Nahal, verse89, HE decreed about Quran as the expounder ofeverything (tibyanan li kulli shayin), i.e., that Quran, withrespect to the topics it encompasses, explains things very

clearly.

So, it is just not possible that the acts envisioned by the Godas firm/authentic ideology, expounding of the same mayhave been overlooked by HIM. We have been brainwashedinto believing that nothing has been elaborated about Salaatin Quran, therefore, we pass through the very pertinent

verses routinely, without pausing for some deliberation. Wedo not think that those acts that are called firm/authenticideology by God, how HE would leave relevant detailsthereof unexplained. And, if Quran was devoid of the detailsof that firm/authentic ideology, then what was left there inQuran to learn about?

Indeed, the essential subject of Quran is the firm/authenticideology. And in Quran, the God has fully explained thisfirm/authentic ideology. But when we limit thisfirm/authentic ideology to the prevalent concept of Namaazand Zakaat, then we definitely cannot find the details thereofin Quran.

The word Salaat has been used in Quran in variouscontexts. Salaats root letters are : Suad, laam, wa ( ) and Al-sala ( ) is the back side of the body, which isalways joined with the front. From here is derived the basicmeaning of the root letters, which is to follow. However,


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apart from this meaning, some other meanings are alsoderived which can be known from the context.

The other fact to be noted is that the term Namaaz is notfound in Quran. The term chosen by the Almighty in Quranis called Salaat, whose jurisdiction is so wide that itencompasses the whole life of a prophet. In ChapterAbraham, verse 37, the prayer of Abraham is mentionedwhich he offered while stationing his son Ishmael in a barrenvalley:-

!$u/o)Ms3r&Lh>#u/x? yyy7Ft/ys9$#$u/ u(#)9n4n=9$#

Rabbana, inni askantu min zurriyyati biwadin ghayir zi zarin inda

baytika al-Moharram, Rabbana li yuqimus Salaat.

O our Nourisher, I have stationed my offspring in a barrenvalley in the proximity of your respected house so that theyESTABLISH AS-SALAAT.

Now the point to consider here is whether Abraham offered

the great sacrifice of devoting his son Ishmaels whole life forthe sake of enforcing the divine discipline, or .was thatonly for teaching how to offer the ritual of Namaaz. Or isthere any other interpretation of this term Salaat?

And in case the exalted Ishmaels sacrifice was in effect onlyfor teaching how to offer Namaaz, then the natural resultthereof would have been that not only himself, but all hisdescendents, and that included our Prophet too, would onlycontinue offering Namaaz and teaching people how to offerNamaaz. What was the entire struggle for that our Prophetunderwent in his life time, eventually succeeding inestablishing a model community in Medina? Shouldnt he


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just have continued guiding his people to offer the ritual ofNamaaz? Under what orders did he undergo all the rest ofhis struggle?

Indeed, the struggle for establishment of Salaat tantamountsto the struggle for enforcement of the complete ideology the goal for which exalted prophets had been chosen. Aftertheir training, when they came up to Gods yardstick, GodHimself revealed to them His commandments through themedium of Wahi- the divine way of communication and

demanded their enforcement. The exalted Prophetsconveyed those orders to the public and set out in theirstruggle to establish a state, just like the one our Prophetestablished and exemplified in Medina. It means thatstarting from the dissemination of divine teachings up to theestablishment of an exemplary state, the entire relevantstruggle fell under the chapter of the Duty of Salaat, and

wherein the economic aspect of that radical change wasusually the most crucial one. Thats why Quran has relatedthe episode in Chapter Hood, verse No.87, wherein thecommunity of Prophet Shoaib asked him as to why hisSalaat forbade them from spending their earnings accordingto their own wishes. The people of Shoaib said :

(#9$s%=yt?4n=|r&'s?r&x8I$t7t!$t!$t/#ur& r&y$o9 u r&$t(#tn(

Qalu ya Shoaib, a-salatuka tamuruka an natruk ma yabud abaaunaaou an nafal fi amwalina ma nashaau

O Shoaib, does your Salat command that we give up thatwhich our forefathers obeyed steadfastly, and that we maynot spend from our belongings as we may wish?


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It simply means that, according to these verses, Salaat isthat system which is formulated under divine orders andvalues, and which dictates that human beings will not

develop an economy based on man-made principles. Itsprinciples will have to be determined under divine values.

It is surprising for me when some religious scholars insistthat Quran is silent about the concept of Deen-e-Qayyam(the firm/authentic ideology). From this you can imaginehow our religious papacy 'serves the cause of Quran,

whereas, they keep claiming to be the servants of Quran.On the contrary, they openly announce that Quran is notself-sufficient, but is rather dependent upon those books oftraditions that are the centre of contradictory and defamatorystories and inconsistencies. And whose very relation to theProphet is doubtful. And by depending upon them you willrender yourself unable to even decide about the right

standing posture of Namaaz. You wouldnt know if you arerequired to keep both feet close to each other or maintain acertain distance between them; or you have to fold yourarms upon your chest, or upon your belt, or you must leavethem hanging on both sides. Some scholars have startedsaying that these differences are frivolous. If these pointshave become frivolous today, were the holy elders devoid of

intellect when they established not only different sects on thebasis of these frivolities, but, on the same basis, builtseparate mosques and institutions that, to this day, exist assymbols of schism, discrimination and hatred within theMuslim communities?

The fact of the matter is that our religious papacy recognizes

only thatNamaaz which does not exist in Quran. Whereas,the Quranic discourses revolve mainly around the same twopillars of the firm/authentic ideology that are called Salaatand Zakaat, and Quran consists of all the material aboutthese two pillars which the Almighty thought fit and best forhis subjects to know. Let us ask Quran as to what is the


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difference between the God-given multi-dimensional andeverlasting duty of Salaat, and the man-made salaat that issymbolized in the physical ritual of Namaz.

Before I take up the subject of Salaat directly, I would like toconvey to you some opening comments. Before the start ofdiscussion on Salaat, the question that comes up is: whyshould we learn the concept of Salaat from Quran alone,whereas, its embodiment the ritual of Namaz is inheritedby us not from Quran but through continuity (technically

called tawatar), as confirmed by tradition, over thecenturies.

Let us see that, if it were the common mutual understandingthat Namaaz, regarded as a common admitted ritual ofworship, followed by Muslims, has been inherited by usthrough Hadith and tawatar (continuity/succession); and,

apart from that, there is the Salaat, a comprehensive term ofQuran, which is not Namaaz, but has its own distinctmeaning and interpretation; then the problem would havebeen easily clarified with the consensus that the termNamaz and the term Aqamat as-Salaat actually define twoquite different concepts. And that these terms and theirrespective concepts do not resemble or relate each other.

But common Muslim understanding about these terms is notlike that. Because whenever we open up the pages ofQuranic interpretations, we find the translation of the wordSalaat as Namaaz; and that of Aqamat as-Salaat as theoffering of Namaaz (prayer). It seems very odd that a greatmission is entrusted by Quran to be carried out, but its planof action, or methodology, is not explained, while Quran

claims about itself, with respect to its instructions, as beingthe complete and the detailed narrator of all details(tibyaanan li kulli shayiin).

In view of the above, we can draw only two conclusions :-


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1. Quran is self-explanatory and is not dependent uponman for its rendition.

2. Quran is not self-explanatory and is dependent upon

man for its rendition.

Evidently, for those who do not take Quran as dependent,the second option is not acceptable, so they insist upon thefirst conclusion. But, when they are questioned withreference to Salat and asked to show the details of the ritualof Namaaz in Quran if they thought that Quran was

complete in all respects - they find it difficult to answer thatquestion, as nowhere in Quran the way to offer Namaaz isexplained; nor have its ritualistic details been determined.More clearly, nowhere in Quran is explained as to how tostart the ritual of Namaaz, how to call people to offer thisritual, what wording is to be employed therefor, and whatphysical gestures will be displayed. Nowhere has it been

told that Namaaz will consist of standing, bowing, prostrationand seating positions; what verses will be recited duringthese postures; what action will signify the end of the ritualand how many times it will be offered, etc. etc.

In view of the above, the foremost point will be to establishthe true, authentic meaning and interpretation of the word

Salaat in order to determine that whatever this term is beingtaken to mean either Namaaz, or teachings, or justsymbolization, or a system are actually its basic meanings,or are just fabricated interpretations. If these are the rootmeanings then we cannot move an inch away from these.But if all the meanings are fabrications, then no one has aright to impose ones own fabrications upon others.

Whoever undertook to misinterpret Quranic verses, he eitherrelated Salaat with some system, or with teachings orcongregations, or eventually accepted it as Namaaz bymisconstruing it as prayer - but, without being able to proveits timings, number of rukaats (Rukat = one complete


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round of the ritual), and number of prostrations, from averse of Quran.

Let us study the Quran with an open mind and instead ofadopting our wishful meanings from its verses, concentrateupon the term Salaat, with particular reference to its context,and thus try to determine what Salaat actually means.


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Excerpt from the Journal of Ahl-e-Hadith

Before I proceed further, I deem it of utmost importance torefer to an article that was published in the Journal of Ahl-e-Hadith, the issue of 19-25 November, 1997, under the titleAqamat-e-Salaat. Please have a look.

As-Salaat is a fundamental aspect of Islamic discipline andthe kind of social order the Quran is desirous of establishing,it wishes to define that by the comprehensive term ofAqamat as-Salaat.

The meanings of Salaat, according to its Root ( ) , areto follow someonesFootsteps and move on. Therefore, in the light of authenticArabic lexicons, the interpreters have determined themeaning of Quranic term Aqamat as-Salaat as followingthe divine laws steadfastly. In other words, to abide by thecommands and laws revealed through divine guidance(Wahi) and to continue acting upon the program prescribedby Him, is called Aqamat as-Salaat. According to Quran,its enforcement or promulgation can only take effect under a

social system a system where individuals continue risingup to the determined goals and ideals through honest pursuitof Qurans guidelines, without regard to their personal gainsor interests. Thus, Aqamat as-Salaat has been declared acommon goal and obligation and it is made clear that theestablishment of Salaat would not be possible withoutBelievers acquisition of Tamakkan fil Ardh, meaning,

without their coming into power as a free state, aselaborated in the Chapter Al-Hajj :-


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t%!$#)3F{$#(#$s% r&n4n=9$#(#s?#u un429$#(#tr& u

y9$$/(#ytuts39$#3! ut6)tW{$#Allazina im makannahum til Ardh, aqaamus Salaata wa aatuz Zakaatawa amaru bil Maarufi wa nahaw anil munkir.

They are those, that when their own free state isestablished, they will perform the duty of establishment of

Salaat and grant of Zakaat. Virtues will be ordered and evilwill be forbidden.

This respected verse makes it clear that the pre-condition ofevolving a free state for the final goal of Aqamat as-Salaatand Ita-az-Zakaat, actually defines a whole integrated socialsystem, and not only the offering of Namaaz, and paying of

the prevalent traditional two and half percent of savings asZakaat. Obviously, such obligations are easy to fulfil underany government. In Chapter Ash-Shuraa, an Islamic Statewas defined as :-

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The momineen are those who respond promptly to the call

of their Nourisher and bow their heads in His obedience, andsettle their affairs with mutual consultation and spend in theway of God from what He has bestowed upon them.


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Here Aqamat as-Salaat has been mentioned along withmutual consultation to run the affairs of state. It means thatAs-Salaat is that discipline of governance where the state is

run through mutual consultation among the community ofmomineen.

It is stated in the Chapter Al-Araaf:

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These are the people who remain attached with the Book ofGod and they carry out the duty of Aqamat as-Salaat.

It is because the discipline of Islam actually means thepractical application of the tenets of Gods Book. To furtherelaborate this goal, in Quran, the word Tawalla is used asan antonym of Salla (Chapter 75, verses 30-31). Tawallameans to deviate from the right path, to show hesitation, toturn faces. And Salla means to move on in the right

direction as per the divine injunctions; to continue performingyour duties as prescribed by the divine system. And thoseduties encompass every aspect of life.

By now it has become evident that if Salaat is translated asNamaaz, it will be a fabrication. From another point of view,the question arises whether or not the format of Namaaz

allows us to accept it as the equivalent of Salaat? We alsomust see that, after authentication, by lexicons and research

scholars, of meanings of the derivatives from the root ( ) as to follow someone, another question will arise that

If, at all, we try to replace Salaat with Namaaz, would it


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remain possible for us to make Salaats proven meaningspractically applicable, or not?

Under different topics, through which Salaat will bediscussed in this book, first of all we would consider thoseverses which include the word Salaat. It will besubstantiated through arguments that to translate Salaat asNamaaz in these verses is impossible. Afterwards, thosereferences will be brought into light wherefrom the term As-Salaat will be clearly defined. Thirdly, the discussion will

target the Salaat of Prophets and Messengers. Finally,Momineens Salaat will be investigated from Quran, and incontrast, a comparison will be drawn with the Salaat ofhypocrites and disbelievers.

.


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Matured Argumentation

Let us first of all visit those places in Quran where it declaresSalaat as a collective duty and thus affords a frameworkupon which to build a community based on commandmentsand values; and where to adopt Namaaz from, is just notpossible. Some such verses are presented.

Firstly, let us ponder upon the same verse which has been

mentioned in the article of the Journal of Ahl-e-Hadith. Saysthe Almighty :-

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Allazina im makkannahum fil ardhi aqamus salaata wa aatuz zakaatawa amaru bilmaroofi wa nahaw anil munkiri wa lillaahi aaqibatulumoor.

These are the people whom if/when we bestow withdomination on earth; they will establish the system of Salaatand grant Zakaat, and will perform the duty of amar bil

maroof and nahi anil munkir. And the result of all actionsgoes according to Allahs prescribed laws. (Chapter Al-Hajj, verse: 41)

We find here that Aqamatus Salaat in this verse, is madeconditional with coming into power. In this verse, it is adeclaration by the Almighty that Momineen (believers)establish Salaat only when they reach the seats of power.On the contrary, about Namaaz, it is our general observationthat Namaaz can also be performed without your ownsupremacy. And this observation amply proves that thisNamaaz is not the Gods prescribed Salaat, which isconditional with your coming into power.


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If you employ a little bit of deliberation, it will become evidentthat Salaat means Gods commandments which just cannot

be enforced in a non-Muslim government. Just as youcannot enforce Gods commandments in the U.S.A., Britain,India or any other state as they have their own set of lawsand commands which they will always prefer to promulgate.However, they will not impose restrictions upon yourperformance of Namaaz. A clear example of this situation isthere before us. We all were forced to build a new country,

Pakistan, only because we needed to set up a society whereenforcement of Gods commands could become possible.This purpose could not have been served under thegovernment of that time, though we could perform the ritualof Namaaz then, as we still can perform it, and buildmosques too. Moreover, today, the non-Muslimgovernments assist you in the building of mosques in their

countries. For the above reasons, according to this verse, toadopt the meaning of Namaaz from the word Salaat, is justnot possible as the establishment of Salaat is conditionalwith the establishment of a state. Namaaz has nothing to dowith a government or a state.

Let us present before you another verse. There is a divine

verdict about Ahl-e-Kitab (People of the Book) :-

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tRQ$#u!$$/u9$# uzF$#y7s9'&?y#_ r&$tLakin ar-Raasikhoona fil Ilmi minhum, wa al-mominoon, yuminoonabima unzila ilayika wa ma unzila min qablika wal muqiminas Salaata walmutoona az-Zakaata wal mominoona billahi wal youmil aakhiri oolaaikasanutihim ajran aziman.


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But those among people of the book who are competent inknowledge, as well as the momineen, believe in what has

been revealed towards you and in what was revealed beforeyou. And these people perform the duty of establishment ofsalaat and grant of Zakaat. These people believe in Allahand the law of requital and these are the ones whom wedefinitely will reward greatly. (Chapter an-Nisa, verse:162).

Some clarifications come up from this verse, that:

1. Among Ahl-e-Kitab (people of the book),commonly known as Jews and Christians, thereare some people who possess the knowledge,meaning divine guidance;

2. They are those who, just like mominoon, are

people of faith/peace;3. They, just like mominoon, fulfill the obligations of

establishment of Salaat and grant of Zakaat;4. Believe in Allah and the law of requital.

Now here is the question that comes up here: who are thoseamong people of the book who are performing the ritual of

Namaaz? We do not find such people amongst people ofthe book who may be offering Namaaz. But, Quran claimsthat people of the book do establish the Salaat, and thisclaim obliges us to investigate into that particular Salaat thatboth people of the book and momineen perform in identicalway. As far as Namaaz is concerned, people of the bookviz., Jews and Christians, do not offer our Namaaz, but

perform Gods worship in their own ways. They not onlyhave different kind of rituals than Muslims, but amongthemselves, they follow their own separate rituals. And ifthey were offering the same rituals of their Namaaz duringour Prophets lifetime, then clearly, Muslimss confrontationwith them was not on the basis of that Namaaz.


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In this situation, our priority will be to determine as to what isthat duty upon whose performance and nature the scholars

from people of the book as well as the momineen canequally agree upon. Undoubtedly, these are the divinecommandments whose awareness was already in theknowledge of some people of the book, as they werecompetent in Al-Ilm divine guidance and were steadfastupon it.

What we derive from the discussion on both the aboveverses is like this:

1. Salaat is a duty that can be carried out in a freecountry, whereas, Namaaz can be offered in anycountry;

2. Those people also establish Salaat who are theknowledgeable people from people of the book,whereas, Namaaz has never been offered by anygroup from the people of the book.

Now let us present to you verse No.43 of the Chapter AnNissa, where it is proved without minute research or

deliberation that the Quranic term Salaat can never beconstrued as Namaaz. The Almighty says:

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Ya ayyuhal lazina aamanu la taqrabus Salaat wa antum sukara hattatalamu ma taquloon.


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O believers, dont go near Salaat while you are underintoxication, as long as you become able to apprehend whatyou are saying.

Evidently, there is a command in this verse, in clear andprecise terms, that you may not go near Salaat in thesenseless state of mind where you may not know what youare saying. The word that is used in this verse is taquloonwhich is used for speech/dialogue in Arabic, whereas, inNamaaz nobody is allowed to speak. Rather, the worshipper

either recites verses or listens to leaders (Imams) recitation.Then, what kind of Namaaz is being quoted here wherespeech or dialogue is mentioned. Second point: In theprocess of Namaaz, verses are recited, whereas in thisverse neither chanting nor recitation is emphasized. If aword was used here for the recitation of Quran, It wouldnaturally be either taqraun ( ) or tutloun ( ),

whose meanings describe the recitation of verses. If a wordwas used for a common follower of the ritual, it would havebeen tasmaoon ( ), whose meanings are to hear orlisten.

It means that Salaats meaning cannot be taken as Namaazin this verse. Rather, it would be better to say that Salaat

cannot be made to mean Namaaz here by any kind ofmanipulation. To do that, a permission to speak duringNamaaz was essentially required.

The other point: the word sukara cannot be translated intodrunkenness, because to get drunk is already prohibited.One who abides by the divine commands will not have a

reason to get drunk. Definitely here the meaning of sukarais the intoxication of ignorance lack of knowledge. For thevery reason it was forbidden to go near Salaat as long asyou are in ignorance or devoid of awareness. You sure canjoin the mission of Salaat when you find yourself in a positionto assess what you speak.


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Similarly, verse 110 of Chapter Bani Israel commands theProphet :

4 uygrBy7?|/ uM$sB$p5tF/$# utt/y79 sW6ywa la tajhar bi salaatika wa la tukhafit biha, wa abtagh bayina zalikasabila.

And you neither make your Salaat loud, nor make it toohumble, but adopt the middle/average attitude.

You can see, the Prophet is ordered neither to make hisSalaat loud, nor to make it silent, but to follow themiddle/average pattern. And now, you can analyze yourdifferent timings of Namaaz on the basis of that order. OurNamaaz is offered either loudly (Fajr, Maghrib and ishaa) ortotally silently (Zohr and Asr). It means that if Salaat is

taken as Namaaz, then it is being performed in blatantviolation of Gods command. So, you can see, Salaat herecannot be translated as Namaaz, as it is the Salaat which isneither loud nor silent, whereas, in violation of Godscommand, Namaz is either loud or silent.

Let us now present to you verse No.45 of the Chapter al-

ankabut, which contains the divine announcement:

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Innas Salaata tanha aanil fahshaai wal munkar.

Verily, Salaat roots out the obscene and the vice.


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Please note that it is the claim of the Almighty that as-Salaatsaves you from the obscene and the vice; meaning thatwherever Salaat is established, people there would stop

committing obscenities and vices. Does Namaz fulfil thatproclamation? Whether Namaaz has successfully madepeople abstain from vices in areas where Namaaz is beingoffered? Certainly Namaaz has failed to achieve that goal.We all are witnesses to the fact that in Muslim countrieswhere Namaaz is offered, particularly where anoverwhelming majority offers Namaaz, even there the vices

have not disappeared. On the contrary, in those countriesyou will find people more committed to vices. If you dontbelieve it, you just have to ask a non-Arab Muslim living inArab countries as to how an Arab Muslim regards a non-Arab Namaazi - not more than an animal ! This is the statusof a Muslim Namaazi with the Muslim Arabs. Strangely, thesame haughty Muslim Arab can be seen flattering the non-

Muslims and happily acting as their lackey.

Please note, there is the claim by Almighty thatestablishment of Salaat eradicates evils from humancharacter. Very clearly, if Namaaz has been unable tosubstantiate that claim, then definitely Salaat cannot beconstrued as Namaaz. In fact, Salaat is a discipline,

formulated under divine commands, once established in astate, leaves no space for obscenities or vices in that state.

The above references are those where Qurans translation isneither altered nor misconstrued, nor imagination has beenemployed, nor something has been adopted from Quranicverses. But only the commands that have been revealed by

the verses have been presented.

Let us put before you the conclusions finally arrived at fromthe above discussion.


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1. In verse 41 of Chapter Al-Hajj, the establishmentof Salaat is made conditional to the establishmentof a state. Therefore, in this verse, Salaat cannot

be construed as Namaaz as Namaaz can beoffered irrespective of your own government ornot.

2. According to verse 162 of Chapter An-Nisaa, theknowledgeable people among people of the bookdo establish Salaat; whereas, it is a fact that no

people of the book have ever offered Namaaz.Nor they offer it today. Therefore in this versealso, Salaat cannot be construed as Namaaz.

3. Verse No.43 of Chapter An-Nisaa reveals thatspeech and dialogue are involved in the processof Salaat. Whereas, we see no speech allowed

during the process of Namaaz. Therefore, herealso, Salaat cannot mean Namaaz. Secondly,drunkenness is not allowed in Islam, so to saythat: dont pray when you are drunk, will beincomprehensible. So, in this verse too, Salaatcannot be construed as Namaaz.

4. It became known from verse No.110 of ChapterBani Israel that the Prophets Salaat was neitherloud nor silent. He rather adopted the middle way.Contrary to that, Namaaz is either loud or silent.Therefore, in this verse too, the Prophets Salaatcannot be construed as Namaaz.

5. There is a divine proclamation in verse No.45 ofChapter al-Ankabut to the effect that Salaatwipes out obscenities and vices; whereas,Namaaz has failed to achieve that goal.Therefore, in this verse too, Salaat cannot beconstrued as Namaaz.


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Salaat of the Prophets

The point must have been clarified to you by now that theSalaat Quran is talking about is, by a consensus of allinterpreters (Mufassirin), a comprehensive term without anyambiguity in translation, inference and derivation. Its goal isthe enforcement of divine commandments in a society.While Namaaz, through consensus and succession, is a

ritual prevalent among Muslims for centuries. If you replacethe word Salaat by the word enforcement of divinecommands, in all those places where Salaat is mentioned,you will definitely have no difficulty in understanding theessence of Salaat. The meaning of Salaat as divinecommandments is a mutually agreed upon verdict of allthose whom the Muslim scholars call Mufassirin andMuhaqqiqin (Interpreters and researchers). It is withreference to those people that the Journal of Ahl-e-Hadithhas confessed, in the light of authentic Arabic lexicons, thatSalaats meanings have been determined as to follow thedivine commands and to abide by them. Now toauthenticate the article of the Journal of Ahle-Hadith, wepresent to you some Salaat related verses with reference toProphet Abraham pbuh.

Salaat of Prophet Abraham

The Chapter Abraham reads :

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Rabbana inni askantu min zurriyyati bi wadin ghayir zi zarin indabayitikal muharram rabbana li yuqimus Salaat, fa ajal afidatan min an-nas tahvi alayihim wa arzuqhum min ath-thamaraati lallahum

yashkurun.

O our Lord, I have settled my offspring near your respectedhouse in a barren valley my Lord, so that they establishSalaat. Therefore please turn peoples hearts towards themand grant them sustenance from fruits so that they becomegrateful. (Chapter Abraham, verse No.37)

Please note that Prophet Abraham is praying just for a singlepurpose, viz., that his offspring may establish Salaat. Itmeans that the Prophets whole mission, their struggle, eventheir wars against those who stand up against divinecommands, is embodied in this comprehensive term. But todo away with its comprehensive meaning, people today aretrying to limit the mission of Salaat to the mere ritual of

Namaaz. Prophet Abraham had prayed for Salaat not onlyfor his offspring but also for his own self too. Please look atverse No.40 of this Chapter where his prayer is mentioned inthese words :

b>u_=y_$#z)4n=9$# uLh4$o/ u6s)s? u!$tRabbi ijalni muqimus Salaati wa min zurriyyati.

O my Lord, make me and my offspring the enforcers ofSalaat

Please see at this point, Prophet Abraham is not onlypraying for his offspring to become the enforcer of Salaat,but is wishing for his own self to be the enforcer of Salaat.Would any intelligent person here agree that ProphetAbrahams expectation from his offspring was to offerNamaaz? Certainly, the mission of his offspring was toestablish Salaat, viz., his mission at large, was to enforce thedivine rule, which was ordered to our Prophet too as :


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Ittabioo millata Ibrahima hanifan

O Prophet, you must follow Abrahams way (course ofaction, line, etc.).

It means that our Prophets whole life was the pursuit of

Prophet Abraham.

Whatever he worked for was according to ProphetAbrahams model. Thats why, whenever Prophet Abrahamspoke about establishment of Salaat, he talked about adivine kingdom. Whenever our Prophet was ordered tofollow Prophet Abrahams way, he certainly was ordered to

adopt the way of Abraham or the discipline of Abraham.

Please see that there is a word in verse No.37, i.e., Ghayir zi zarin, whose translation is always done asuncultivated valley. The point to consider here is that thereis a barren valley, neither populated nor cultivated. Whywould Abraham settle his offspring therein, and for whom he

would pray to turn their hearts towards them?

Please note that Prophets mission is always to enforcedivine commands, which in turn produce an exemplarycommunity, through which comes into existence a state withpeace and security. The fruitful results of this societysendeavors prove beneficial for the humanity. Prophet

Abraham had accomplished the same mission. He settleddown his offspring in an area whose population was barrenwith regard to divine guidance. A peaceful, opulent societywas to be established there. It is the same mandate thatwas given to Mominoon in verse No.31 through our Prophet.Please have a look:


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#vZut ui6s%r&uA'ttt/ un=zQul liibaadi allazina aamanu, yuqimus Salaata wa yunfiqu mimmarazaqnahum sirran wa alaaniyatan min qabli an yati youma la bayiunfihi wa la khilalan.

Tell those of my subjects who believe, to establish Salaatand, secretly or openly, spend in the way of Allah from thesustenance we have granted them, before that day comeswhen there will be no bargaining and no friendship.

It is apparent that in this verse too, our Prophet is ordered,as Prophet Abraham was ordered, to insist upon Mominoon

to unite under a discipline according to divinecommandments and keep open the doors of sustenance foreveryone from what God has bestowed them with.

Prophet Shoaibs Salaat

With regard to Prophet Shoaib, reference to the Journal of

Ahl-e-Hadith is again made, exactly as it says : Sallameans to keep walking on the write path and to keep abidingby the prescribed divine discipline. The framework of divineduties is encompassing every aspect of our lives. And thediversification of these duties is highlighted in the story ofProphet Shoib. Please see how this eternal truth has beennarrated in Chapter Hood. When Prophet Shoib presentedhis manifesto of Salaat before his people, they, as a usualpractice, refused to accept and started opposing it. In replyto what Prophet Shoib preached them, they shouted:


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Qalu ya Shoaibu, aSalaatuka tamuruka an natruk ma yabud abaaunaaou an nafal fi amwalina ma nashau.

O Shoaib, what is this Salaat of yours that orders us to giveup those gods whom our elders worshipped; and that we

may not spend our wealth as we wish. (Chapter Hood,verse No.87).

Please see that there are two demands in this verse:

1. To stop worship2. The economic aspect to come under Salaat

The questions that come up before us again are: Is Namaazthe equivalent of Salaat? And arent we justified in asking theNamaaz advocates as to what aspect of economy ourNamaaz brings to question? What and where your Namaazorders you about your economic system, or to formulate youreconomic policies?

Prophet Musas Salaat

As Prophet Musa was chosen for Gods mission and he wasawarded with the first revelation, he was first of all given onlyone order :

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Aqimis Salaata li zikri

Establish Salaat for my remembrance. (Chapter Taha,verse No.14)


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Here if Salaat is translated as Namaaz, then it will mean:

Establish Namaaz for Allahs remembrance.

Please note that if at this juncture, Salaat is taken asNamaaz, then it is settled that what Prophet Musa did as apriority, was the offering of the ritual, Namaaz. But we seethat when Prophet Musa liberated his nation from Faroahstyranny; and when Musas people watched another people

sticking to idol worship, they asked Musa to fabricate an idolfor them too for the purpose of worship. They said to him:

4(#9$s%yty_$#!$u9$Ys9)$yx.s9y9# uQalu ya Musa, ajal lana ilahan kama lahum aalihatan

They said: O Musa, make for us too an idol just as for themare idols (Chapter al-Aaraaf, verse No. 138)

Kindly consider the point. If the worship Namaaz wasalready prescribed to them, then it was just not believablethat they would demand an idol in whose worship they couldalso sit still. Not only this demand is strange, but ProphetMusas response is also inconsistent with the demand.

Prophet Musa, on this demand, instead of pointing out tothem that they already had an idol to whom they stuck inworship, said to them :

4t$s%3)s%t=ygrBQaala innakum qoumun tajhalun

Said: you are a nation of illiterates.

In the light of the above narration, if Chapter Taha, VerseNo.14, where establishment of Salaat was ordained, is takento mean Namaaz, the people of Musa did not have a need to


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demand an idol of worship whom to stick with. And neitherhad he to reply that they were a nation of illiterates. Theproper answer should have been: you already have

Namaaz as your ritual of worship.

If Salaat is not Namaaz in the first divine revelation, due towhich people later on demanded an idol that can beworshipped, then again the result comes before us thatProphet Musa had, under divine orders of establishment ofSalaat, not perceived Namaaz. He had taken it as

establishment of divine revelation, and had declared worshipof any idol as illiteracy. So, how can we declare Salaat hereas Namaaz?

And as is evident from the Journal of Ahl-e-Hadith, thecomprehensive term of Salaat encompasses Prophetswhole mission. Starting from the awareness of divine

revelation, up to the establishment of an organized statebased on divine revelation, everything falls under thejurisdiction of the comprehensive term of Salaat.

Our Prophet, Mohammads (pbuh) Salaat

Whichever verse you will contemplate upon and will try to

understand in its proper context, you will certainly reach theconclusion that the term Aqamat Salaat has been used forthe establishment of a social order through divinecommandments. For example, there is a divine injunction inverses 71, 72 of Chapter al-Anaam :

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Qul inna hudallahi huwa al huda wa umirna li nuslim li rabbil aalamin,wa an aqimus Salaata wa attaqoohu.


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Say, verily Allahs guidance is the real guidance and wehave been ordained to bow down to the Lord of the Universeand to establish Salaat and adopt its Taqwa.

Please see that in these verses, some orders are giventhrough our Prophet:-

1) The first order was to proclaim that divineguidance was the real guidance; meaning thatthere was no guidance outside the parameters of

Wahi;

2) The second order was to bow in obedience to theLord of the Universe; meaning that for the globalsustenance, no orders will be obeyed exceptdivine commandments;

3) The third order was to establish Salaat;

4) And the fourth order was to take utmost precautionand vigilance towards His laws.

Please note that the first order is to confess about theawareness of divine commandments and the second

order is to confess about your intention and yoursubmission for obedience. Now in case the third order,that certainly belongs to the next phase, viz.,implementation, ends up in the ritual of Namaaz, whatwould happen to the enforcement of divinecommandments? The logical order of things should havebeen: the awareness, the intention of total submission,

and thirdly, the enforcement and then the fourth stageshould have been that of taking utmost precaution and bevigilant in avoiding disobedience. Taqwa does not

mean to fear God. Its root words are ( ) whichmeans to prevent a bad ending/result. So, when it is


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said: Ittaqullah, it does not mean to fear God but, itmeans to keep safe from the adverse results of Godsdisobedience. More clearly, keep yourself safe from the

grip of Gods law of requital. On the contrary, bychanging Taqwas meanings from taking precaution andbeing vigilant, to be fearful of God, we converted Quraninto a book of fright and fearfulness. Taqwa, in simplewords, actually means to avoid a bad end.

Please note that our Prophets entire struggle was

incorporated and symbolized in the term establishmentof Salaat. The order to establish/enforce, that followedthe first phase of awareness, and the second ofsubmission, was undoubtedly related to the enforcementof divine commandments, rather than offering the ritual ofNamaaz. This is exactly on the pattern of ProphetAbrahams mission that was incorporated too, by the said

Verse No.37, in the establishment of Salaat. TheAlmighty says in verses 30-32 of Chapter Al Roam:-

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(.>m$y/ys9tmsFa aqim wajhaka liddina hanifan. Fitrat-Allah allati fataran-naasaalayiha. La tabdila li khalqi-llah. Zalika ad-deen al-qayyam. Walaakinna aktharan-naasi la yalamoon. Munibeena alayihi wat-taqwa waaqimus-Salaata wa la takunu min al-Mushrikeena, min al-lazina farraqudeenahum wa kanu shiyaan. Kullu hizbun bi ma ladayihim farihun.


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So, fix all your attention upon the ideology exclusively andupon the divine laws of nature under which man was

created. Divine Laws of nature are irreversible. This is thefirm/authentic ideology, yet the majority is not aware of it.Concentrate fully upon it with eagerness and be cautiousand vigilant, establish Salaat and do not be like Mushrikeenwho split their ideology into pieces and became sectarians,every sect feeling happy over their own separate ways.

There is nothing in these verses that may need a higherlevel of intellect to comprehend. There is a simple and directexplanation that God has created man under a law and thesame law is the divine ideology. God has bestowed manwith all the capabilities. And that God does not change Hislaws of nature but the majority of human beings remainsunaware of them. If the divine laws of nature are eagerly

followed, we can reach the firm/authentic ideology (Deen-e-Qayyam). Moreover, Gods decree that we establish Salaat,and that we do not become Mushrikeen (polytheists), clearlytells us that Salaat precisely means those divinecommandments in which no infiltration is allowed. Whenman adulterates them with human fabrications, he is splitinto sects (parties), and there is no end to this split. Every

coming generation, and every upstart scholar, create somemore disparity, and drift further away from the genuinecommandments. But keep feeling happy over their distinctways.


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Interpolation of Salaat

In earlier pages of this book, a reference from the Journal ofAhle Hadith was produced, where it was proved by theopinions of interpreters and researchers that the Orders withregard to Salaat in the Quranic texts do not represent theritual of Namaaz. And in this book, those references fromQuran were also presented before you where the verses do

not substantiate their claims..if Salaat is taken to meanNamaaz.It was also proved, from the Salaat of the Prophets thatProphets have been carrying out the duty of enforcement ofdivine revelations in their societies. This is the essence ofSalaat. Let us now make it clear to you as to who are thepeople who establish Salaat, who are the ones who lose it,and the ones who ridicule it.

In Chapter Maryam, verse No.58, referring to exaltedprophets, it is said :

y7s9'&z%!$#zyr&!$#n=tzizh;9$#hty#u u$o=yymyt8y uhtt/)u)u u$uyy!$ou;tG_$#u

4#s)4n?G?n=tMt# uuq9$#(#yz#Y$|3/ u)Oolaaika al-lazina anamal laahu alayihim min an-nabiyyina minzurriyyata Aadama, wa mimman hamalna maa Noohin wa min zurriyyataIbrahima wa Israela wa mimman hadayina wajtabayina iza tutla alayihim

aayaatur-Rahmaani khurru sujjadan wa bukiyyan.

These are the people whom God blessed. These wereprophets from Adams offspring and these were the peoplewhom we carried away with Noah and they were the ones


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from Abraham and Israels offspring. We blessed them withguidance and responded to them. Whenever Al-Rahmans(Gods) verses are recited to them, they bow to them

wholeheartedly.

But contrary to that :

y#n=sm.t/#=yz(#$|r&n4n=9$#(#t7?$#uN up9$#(t|s

ts)=t$xFa khalafa min baadihim khalfan adhaus-Salaata wa attabau ash-shahwaati fa sowfa yulqouna ghayyan.

So, they were succeeded by such people who lost Salaatand were imprisoned by their lust. Such people would soon

be subjected to destruction. (Chapter Maryam, VerseNo.59)

Please note that exalted Prophets and their true followerswere subsequently succeeded by those who lost Salaat andbecame prisoners of their lusts. If you ponder upon ChapterMaryam a little bit, you will not find Prophets offering the

ritual of Namaaz. You will find them enforcing the divineverdicts. This is the very mission that the incompetentsuccessors tend to lose after Prophets have departed. Thensuch people, in pursuance of their evil designs, fabricate adifferent kind of religion, where divine injunctions are notvisible far and wide. Rather, in the name of God, somerituals are performed which do not exist in the text of divinerevelation. With the passage of time these rituals alone aredeclared as the ultimate goal, and peoples hard earnedincome is usurped with both hands. This is done by theband of religious papacy (Mulla mafia), whose credibilityand authority are deep-rooted in societies.


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The incompetent ones described in Chapter Maryam, theirnatures are further explained in Chapter al-Aaraaf, sayingthat they are the ones who assume monopolies over the

book. About such religious monopolists, the divine verdictthus speaks :

y#n=ys.t/#=yz(#O u|=tG39$#t{'tuzt# xy4oF{$#t9)t uxy$us9

Fa khalafa mim baadihim khalafun warithu al-kitaba, yakhuzuna aradhahaaza al-adna wa yaquluna sayaghfar lana.

Therefore, those who became incompetent after them, andbecame heirs of the Book, prefer the advantages of thepresent lower level of life and say that they will surely beabsolved of their sins. (Chapter aaraaf, Verse No.169).

After narrating a few other characteristics of those people,the reformers characters were specifed as follows:-

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t=RQ$#Wa allazina yumassakuna bil-kitabi wa aqamus-Salaata inna la nudhiuajral-Muslihin.

Those who hold on to the Book and establish Salaat, surelywe do not let them lose their reward. (Chapter Aaraaf,Verse No.170)

Please note those who hold on to the Book, they surely arethe reformers in Gods view, and in all times to come, theywill be those who will stick steadfastly with divine revelationand will enforce it. If such people might stick with the book


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just by rhetoric, and did nothing for its enforcement, noracted upon it by themselves, nor made it their life line, thenholding on to the Book would mean nothing at all. Holding

on to some book simply means to act upon what it specifies.Therefore, beyond doubt, the meaning of Aqamus-Salaathere as it comes after the words yumassikuna bil-Kitab, can only be the order of enforcement of this Book(Quran).

The Almighty relates about the people of the book, who had

resorted to the same negative tactics, as follows :-

3%tttr&|=tG39$#%!$#u!%y/4y#YY u$=j9(t=ygrB}#ts%$pt6?tB u#ZWx.(Fk=u$s9(#s>s?

Fr&I u.!$t/#u(%!$#(O syzt7y=tQul man anzala al-Kitaba al-lazi jaaa bihi Musa nooran wa hudan lin-naasi tajalunahu qaraateesa tubdunaha wa tukhfoona katheeran waallamtum ma lum talamu antum wa la aabaaukum, qul Allah. Thummazarhum fi khowdhihim yalabun.

Ask them who is the One Who sent down the Book that

Musa carried with him which was enlightenment andguidance for human beings and which you scattered intopieces. You play with it by displaying some of it and youconceal most of it, inspite of the fact that you and your elderswere given that knowledge which you were not aware of.Say; He is the God who revealed that Book, then leave themwith their evil ways. (Chapter: Al-Anaam, Verse No.91).

Then contrary to that, a Momins way of life was narrated likethis:


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# xyu=tG.o9tr&8u$t6d|%!$#tt/ ytuF9 u&3t)9$#tu$om;ym4t%!$# uttzF$$/t/(u

4n?tE|t$ptWa haza kitabun anzalnahu mubarakan musaddaqan al-lazi bayinayadayihi wa li tunzira umm al-Quraa wa man howlaha, wa al-lazinayuminoona bil aakhirati yuminoona bihi wa hum alaa salaatihim

yuhafizoon.

And we sent down this inspiring Book which authenticatesthe earlier ones so that you may warn the people of Ummul-Qura and surroundings, and those who believe in thehereafter as well as in this Book, and safeguard theirSalaat. (Chapter: al-Anaam, Verse No.92).

After studying carefully the above verses from ChaptersMaryam, al-araaf andanaam, there remains no doubt that, by fabricatingNamaaz from the meaning of Salaat, we also havecommitted the same crime of interpolation which wascommitted by the religious leadership of earlier communities.

Which means that the fundamental concept of a justicebased opulent society, under divine commandments, whereeveryone should be provided with his rights at his door step,was converted into the concept of a mere ritual of worship.

For this very reason, we are apt to display a lot of eagernessand religiosity in offering the ritual of Namaaz, whereas, we

remain bereft of feelings while crushing the rights of othersunder our feet. So, for this very reason, violation of humanrights is most manifestly evident in Muslim countries.


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The Truth about Salaat

How can the fact be denied that Al-Salaat is a Quranic termthat encompasses all the phases of endeavor starting fromrevelation of divine commandments up to the officialenforcement thereof upon a society? Therefore, thebelievers, who hold on to the divine book, not only safeguardit, but exercise utmost precaution about it, declare it their

ultimate goal and strive to implement it. Resultantly, theysucceed in enforcing it. The divine verdict in Chapter al-Maaidah, reads as under :-

$u)39 u!$#&! u ut%!$# u(#t#ut%!$#t)n4n=9$#

t? un4x.9$#ut. uInnamaa waliyyukum Allahu wa rasuluhu wa al-lazina aamanu, al-lazinayuqimunas salaata wa yutuna az-zakaata wa hum raakioon

Your patrons are only Allah, his messenger and thosebelievers who establish Salaat and discipline of Zakaat, andremain submitted to Him. (Chapter Al-Maaidah, Verse

No.55).

Please note that this verse specifies three characteristics ofbelievers. They are those who:

1) establish Salaat2) carry out the duty of providing sustenance

3) and remain bowed to Him.

If we take Aqamat-e-Salaat as Aqamat-e-Namaaz in thisverse, we are going to face a controversy. Once the ritual ofNamaaz has been performed, and logically, the stance of


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Rukoo is also undertaken, as many times as prescribed bythe ritual, then apart from Namaaz, what kind of anotherRukoo is there which believers must continue performing

without end? Apparently, this is what remain bowed to Himmeans !!!

On the other hand, if we perceive Aqamat-e-Salaat as thefundamental goal of enforcing the divine commandments,there is going to be no controversy at all. Certainly, thebelievers would not only carry out the duty of establishment

of Salaat, but will remain obedient and vigilant for all ordersissued under the system off and on.

In this context, let me introduce a similar order issued topeople of the book. In Chapter Al-Baqarah, Verse No.43,the Almighty states :-

(#% r& un4n=9$#(#?#uun4x.9$#(#x.$#uytt.9$#Wa aqimus-Salaata wa aatuz-Zakaata wa arkaoo maa al-raakieen.

Establish Salaat, and provide Zakaat and bow downtogether with the obedient ones.

In this Verse too, after establishment of Salaat and provisionof Zakaat, there is the order to bow down along with theobedient ones. In actual fact, Salaat is the disciplineformulated under divine revelation. The Momin is alwaysready and eager for it. He brings into shape an opulentsociety by establishing this discipline.

Let us revert to our actual subject, after this pertinentdiscussion. After clarifying in Verse No.56 of Chapter Al-Maaidah, that the patrons of believers are only Allah, hismessengers and other believers, it is further stated :-


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tuutGt!$#&s!u ut%!$#u(#t#u*sz>m!$#t7=t9$#Wa man yatawallal laha wa rusuluhu wa al-lazina aamanu, fa inna hizballaha, humul Ghaalibun.

And whosoever becomes friend of Allah, His messengerand the believers, then verily, Allahs party is the dominantone.

In this Verse, those are described who become friends ofAllah, His messenger and believers. The same people arecalled Allahs party. And look at the next Verse to knowwhich ones are those who are forbidden to befriend with,and for what reason :-

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Ya ayyuhal lazina aamanu, la tattakhizu al-lazina attakhizu deenakumhuzuwan aou laiban, min al-lazina ootul Kitaba min qablikum wa al-kuffara aowliyaa, wat-taqu Allah in kuntum momineen.

O believers, dont befriend those from people of the bookand disbelievers, who take your ideology as a thing offrivolous passtime. And take precaution and keep vigilancein respect of Gods commandments, if you are Momin.

Please note that, in this Verse, those from people of thebook have been prohibited to befriend with, who degradeyour ideology to the level of a pastime. Now see in the nextVerse, what is it that they are taking as a pastime.


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Chapter Al-Jumah

Let us now go through those points of Chapter Al-Jumahwhere, by adopting Namaaz as the meaning of Salaat, itdoesnt become clear whether the term as-Salaat has beenspecified for divine commandments, or for some ritual ofworship. The inspiring Verse of Chapter Al-Jumah: Izanoodiya lis Salaata min youm al-Jumah, fa saou ila zikr-

illah (if called for Salaat on the day of gathering, do yourbest towards remembrance of God), would require athorough study to comprehend.

Chapter al-Jumah starts with the divine attributes of God,for Whom the whole universe is performing the duty ofTasbeeh:-

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Yusabbihu lillahi ma fis samawaati wa ma fil ardhi, al-malik al-Quddus alAziz al Hakeem.

Whatever is there in heavens and on earth, performstasbeeh to the Lord, the Highest, the Dominant and theWise.

Now, what is the meaning of performing Tasbeeh by theuniverse, for God? We do not see the universe counting the

beads of a rosary, while chanting the words Subhan-Allah,in praise of God. Rather, we witness that, from a tiny atomup to the most gigantic physical body in this universe, all areacting steadfastly upon the physical laws imposed by God.This makes it clear that the fundamental meaning of


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tasbeeh is to abide by the given commandments. Aftermaking it clear that the whole universe is running underdivine commandments. Verse No.2 states :-

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Huwa al-lazi baatha fil ummiyyina rusulam minhum, yatlu alayihimaayatihi wa yuzakkihim wa yuallamahum al-kitaba wa al-hikmata, wa inkaanu min qablu lafi dhalaalim mubeen.

It is He Who appointed rusool from other than people of thebook who recites unto them His Verses, evolves them andteaches them the Book and the wisdom behind it. And that

they earlier were in evident transgression.

To bring the people of Arabia under a divine discipline, amessenger was appointed so that he may preach divinecommandments to the ignorant. And through thesecommandments, by raising their status, expel old dogmasfrom their minds, and equip them with divine guidance. It

means that the tasbeeh which every atom of this universeis performing, that was also conveyed to the humanitythrough al-Kitab. This was also told that there still wereothers, among the Arabs, whom they had not come intocontact with. But to appoint a messenger from amongstthem was a blessing from God which He bestowed uponthose who came up to the standards prescribed by His

Laws.


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tyz#uu]$s9(#)ys=t54uuy9$#3pt:$#y79s

s!$#?t!$to4!$#ux9$#y9$#wa aakhirina minhum lamma yalhaqu bihim. Wa huwa al-aziz al-hakeem. Zalika fadhlullaha yuteehi man yashaa. wa Allahu zul fadhlilAazeem.

And Messenger was also appointed among those others

who have not joined them yet since He is the Dominant, thewise. It is His blessings that He bestows upon those whocome up to His prescribed standards, and verily, He is themost exalted one.

After mentioning the tasbeeh of the universe and the Book,the example of people of the book was quoted, saying that

they were also given the Taurah and that they treated theTaurah just as a donkey carries a load on its back. Certainlythat was the example of a nation who falsified divineVerses..

sVtt%!$#(#=dms1uG9$#Os9$y=tssVyx.$ys9$#ts#I$xr&4}/sWts)9$#t%!$#(#/x.Mt$t/!$#4!$#uuts)9$#t>9$#%$pr't%!$#(#$y)Ft y3 r&!$u9r&!$9$#(#ytFs|NpRQ$#).t%| u

tytFt#Jt/ r&$y/Mts% r&4!$# u7=tt=9$$/Mathalu al-lazina hummilu al-Tauratah, thumma lum yuhmiluha, kamathal al-Hamaar yahmilu asfaaran. Bisa mathalu al-qowmi al-lazinakazzabu bi aayati-llah. Wa allaahu la yahdi al-qowmu az-Zaalimin. Qul


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ya ayyuhal lazina Hadu, in raghamtum annakum aowliyaaa lillahi minduna an-naasi fa tamannau al-mowt in kuntum saadiqin. Wa layatamannaunahu abadan bi ma qaddamat ayidihim wa allaahu alimun

biz zaalimin. Qul inna al-mowta allazi tafirrowna minhu, fa innahumulaaqikum, thumma turaddauna ila aalim al-ghayibi wa ashshahaadati,fa yunabbiukum bi ma kuntum tamaloon.

The example of those, who were awarded Taurah but theyfailed to fulfill the obligations thereof, is like the example of adonkey who has been loaded with heavy burdens. Thosewho negate the Verses of God, their example is ugly. And

God guides not the transgressors. Say O Jews, if you claimto be the only friends of God, and there is none equal to you,then try wishing for a quick death. Due to the vices theyhave been involved in, they would not dare to make such awish. And the God is well aware of the transgressors. Tellthem that the death you are trying to escape from will finallycapture you and eventually you will be reverted to the One

who knows what is obvious and what is concealed, and Hewill inform you of all that you have been doing.

After quoting example of Jews, the address once again turnsto believers. The Almighty says :;-

$pr'tt%!$#(#t#u# s)4n==9tyf9$#(#y$$s4n


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(#.$#u!$##ZWx./3=y9ts=?Fa iza quziyati as-Salaatu fa antashiru fil ardhi wa abtaghu min fadhliAllah, wa azkuru Allaha kathiran laallakum tuflihoon.

So, when Salaat is decided upon, spread around the land

and look for Allalhs blessings, remind people about Allahscommandments so that you may prosper.

Please note that believers are being directed through theseVerses to give up all their preoccupations in order to meetthe goals. When Salaat is agreed upon, i.e., when you havemade decisions according to divine commandments, scatter

around the land and look for Allahs blessings. Rememberthe divine commandments more and more so that a welfareoriented society comes into existence.

Please study the next Verse very carefully. The Almightysays:-

#s)u(#r& utpgBrm;(#x$#$ps9)x8.ts?u$V!$s%4%$ty!$# yzzi=9$#z utyfnF9$#4!$# uyzt%9$#Wa iza raaou tijaratan aou lahwan, anfazzu ilayiha wa tarakukaqaaiman. Qul ma indallahi khayiran minal lahwi wa min attijarati.Wallahu khayirur raziqeen.

When these people witness some trading or a pastime, theyslip away to that and leave you alone. Tell them whateveryour God has, is much superior than your pastime and yourtrading. And it is Allah who is the best Provider.


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was demanded from people of the book in Taurah, andwhich is related to Allahs remembrance, and, which Qurandefines as divine commandments. This was the purpose the

Prophet was ordained for, viz., Yuallimuhum al-kitaba waal-hikmata (= to teach them the Book and the wisdomthereof). That is the central theme of this whole Chapter. Itmakes it clear that those societies that treated divinecommandments just as a donkey bears a load, they actuallyfalsified/denied the commands. You should not make suchmistakes. The Prophet is among you. Whenever he may

call you towards Salaat, viz., towards divine teachings, youmust run towards him promptly.


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Can today the enemies of Muslims be destroyed throughNamaaz and sacrificial animals? Never!

Disbelievers t

Documents

The Truth About Salaat - Eng (Dr Qamar Zaman)