March 1, 2011 9:23 am
SELECTIONS FROM THE EXPLANATIONS MADE BY CELEBRITIES WHO WERE FORMERLY NON-MUSLIMS AND WHOSE ADMIRATION FOR ISLAM EVENTUALLY LED THEM TO BELIEVING IN ALLÂHU TA’ÂLÂ
MAHATMA GANDHI (Mohandas Karam-chand):Gandhi (1285 [C.E. 1869]-1367 [C.E. 1948]) descends from a West Indian family. His father was the chief ecclesiastic of the city of Porbtandar, and he was very rich. Gandhi was born in the city of Porbtandar. He went to Britain for his high school education. After completing his education he went back to India. In 1893 he was sent to South Africa by an Indian firm. Upon seeing the heavy conditions under which the Indians working there were and the utterly inhumane treatment they were being subjected to, he decided to put up a struggle for the betterment of their political rights. He dedicated himself to the Indian people. As he was conducting a vigorous campaign against the South African government for the protection of the Indians’ rights, he was arrested and imprisoned. Yet he was too undaunted to give up struggle. He stayed in Africa till 1914. Then, quitting his perfectly lucrative job there, he returned to India to carry on his struggle. He waged a struggle in cooperation with the Indian Muslims Unity, which Muslims had established in 1906 for the liberation of India. All his personal property and his father’s property he spent for the promotion of this cause.
When he heard that the British were going to launch a second operation of violence and cruelty similar to the one they had perpetrated in the state of Punjab in 1274 [A.D. 1858], he cooperated with the Muslims, induced his friends to withdraw from the civil service, and waged a silent protest and a passive resistance. By wrapping a white piece of cloth around his naked body and contenting himself with the milk of a goat which he continuously kept with him, he carried over his passive resistance. The first reaction on the part of the British was to laugh at him. It did not take them long, however, to see with astonishment and dismay that this man, who believed his own ideals with all his heart and who was ready to sacrifice all his existence with alacrity for the sake of his country, was with the entire India in tow and resounding with his speechless struggle. Imprisoning him proved to no avail. Gandhi’s efforts resulted in India’s attaining its independence. The Hindus gave him the name ‘Mahatma’, which lexically means ‘blessed’.
Gandhi studied the Islamic religion and Qur’ân al-kerîm with meticulous attention and finally found himself a sincere admirer of Islam. The following is his observation concerning this subject:
“Muslims have never indulged themselves in bigotry even in times of greatest grandeur and victory. Islam enjoins an admiration for the Creator of the World and His works. As the West was in a dreadful darkness, the dazzling star of Islam shining in the East brought light, peace and relief to the suffering world. The Islamic religion is not a mendacious religion. When the Hindus study this religion with due respect, they, too, will feel the same sympathy as I do for Islam. I have read the books telling about the life-style of the Prophet of Islam and of those who were close to him. These books generated profound interest in me, so much so that when I finished reading them I regretted there being no more of them. I have arrived at the conclusion that Islam’s spreading rapidly was not by the sword. On the contrary, it was primarily owing to its simplicity, logicality, its Prophet’s great modesty, his trueness to his promises and his unlimited faithfulness towards every Muslim that many people willingly accepted Islam.
“Islam has abrogated monastic life. In Islam there is no one to intervene between Allâhu ta’âlâ and His born slave[1]. Islam is a religion that commands social justice from the outset. There is not an institution between the Creator and the created. Anyone who reads Qur’ân al-kerîm, [i.e. its explanations and books written by Islamic scholars], will learn the commandments of Allâhu ta’âlâ and will obey Him. There is no obstruction between Allâhu ta’âlâ and him in this respect. Whereas many ineluctable changes were made in Christianity on account of its shortcomings, Islam has not undergone any alterations, and it preserves its pristine purity. Christianity lacks democratic spirit. The need to equip that religion with a democratic aspect has necessitated an increase in the Christians’ national zeal and the concomitant reforms.”
Deepa Kandaswamy is an award-winning writer, political analyst, and engineer based in India. Her articles have been published in six continents and some of her writing credits include ABC News, Ms., Truth Out, Data Quest, and Middle East Policy. She is the founder–moderator of the International Gender Lobby, which is a global networking platform for individuals, organizations, and activists who are interested in working for human rights, peace, and development worldwide.
An article, Answers to Mahatma Gandhi’s Quiz by Deepa Kandaswamy, wrote:
Not many know that one of his children became a Muslim. According to article, Harilal, the eldest son, was converted to Islam and became a Muslim.
Not many know that one of his children became a Muslim. According to article, Harilal, the eldest son, was converted to Islam and became a Muslim.
NAPOLEON (BONAPARTE):Napoléon I (1769-1821 [1237 A.H.]), who went into history as a military genius and statesman, when he entered Egypt in 1212 [C.E. 1798], admired Islam’s greatness and genuineness, and even considered whether he should become a Muslim. The following excerpt was paraphrased from Cherfils’s book (Bonapart et Islâm):
“Napoléon said:
The existence and unity of Allâhu ta’âlâ, which Mûsâ ‘alaihissalâm’, had announced to his own people and Îsâ ‘alaihissalâm’ to his own ummat, was announced by Muhammad ‘alaihis-salâm’ to the entire world. Arabia had become totally a country of idolaters. Six centuries after Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’, Muhammad ‘alaihis-salâm’ initiated the Arabs into an awareness of Allâhu ta’âlâ, whose existence prophets previous to him, such as Ibrâhîm (Abraham), Ismâ’îl, Mûsâ (Moses) and Îsâ (Jesus) ‘alaihim-us-salâm’, had announced. Peace in the east had been disturbed by the Arians, [i.e. Christians who followed Arius], who had somehow developed a degree of friendship with the Arabs, and by heretics, who had defiled the true religion of Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ and were striving to spread in the name of religion a totally unintelligible credo which is based on trinity, i.e. God, Son of God, and the Holy Ghost. Muhammad ‘alaihis-salâm’ guided the Arabs to the right way, taught them that Allâhu ta’âlâ is one, that He does not have a father or a son, and that worshipping several gods is an absurd custom which is the continuation of idolatry.”
The existence and unity of Allâhu ta’âlâ, which Mûsâ ‘alaihissalâm’, had announced to his own people and Îsâ ‘alaihissalâm’ to his own ummat, was announced by Muhammad ‘alaihis-salâm’ to the entire world. Arabia had become totally a country of idolaters. Six centuries after Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’, Muhammad ‘alaihis-salâm’ initiated the Arabs into an awareness of Allâhu ta’âlâ, whose existence prophets previous to him, such as Ibrâhîm (Abraham), Ismâ’îl, Mûsâ (Moses) and Îsâ (Jesus) ‘alaihim-us-salâm’, had announced. Peace in the east had been disturbed by the Arians, [i.e. Christians who followed Arius], who had somehow developed a degree of friendship with the Arabs, and by heretics, who had defiled the true religion of Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ and were striving to spread in the name of religion a totally unintelligible credo which is based on trinity, i.e. God, Son of God, and the Holy Ghost. Muhammad ‘alaihis-salâm’ guided the Arabs to the right way, taught them that Allâhu ta’âlâ is one, that He does not have a father or a son, and that worshipping several gods is an absurd custom which is the continuation of idolatry.”
At another place in his book he quotes Napoléon as having said, “I hope that in the near future I will have the chance to gather together the wise and cultured people of the world and establish a government that I will operate [in accordance with the principles written in Qur’ân al-kerîm.]”
FOOTNOTE[1]: Islam does not allow a third person between the born slave and Allâhu ta’âlâ in matters pertaining to worship, praying and penance. These practices do not require a priestly intermediation.