ILM

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His  forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol,  no person,  no grave, no prophet,  no imam,  no dai,  nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and We bear witness that Muhammad is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

May Allah bless you for your ‘ikhlaas’ and sincerity in writing this comment to us.   Brother we appreciate your honesty,  and realize that it is not us that you hate.   It is the message that we are trying to propagate from the Glorious Quran which is at the heart of the matter.  So if what we have written from the Holy Quran and the traditions of the Messenger of Allah (saws) are worthy of us receiving hate mails and badwords from our brethren,  they are welcome.   The people on whom Allah sent His Messengers reacted much more strongly, and opposed the Messenger and the Message with a lot more ferocity.   I am not trying to be sarcastic here,  and want you to comprehend that we really understand your position and your reverence for your leaders.    A couple of years ago,  we too were in the same position and would have acted in a similar manner if somebody was to say or write something derogatory about the Syedna and his family.

But Allah guided us to read and understand the Holy Quran,  and Allah is our witness … the only reason I read the Glorious Quran was to prove to the person(non-Bohra)  that we and the Syedna are on the Siraat al Mustaqeem,  and he was wrong!    But after reading the Message of Allah in the Holy Quran,  we were left with no choice, but to declare that there is nobody, absolutely nobody, worthy of worship except the One Allah Alone!    And that supposedly has been our biggest crime in the eyes of our Bohra brethren.  

Today we bow down in ‘sajdah’ (prostration)  to no one else,  except Allah Alone!  Today we invoke no one else,  except Allah Alone!    Today we fear no one else,  except Allah Alone!   Today we ask no one for help,  except Allah Alone!   Today we realize that everything we have;  our lives,  our children,  our health,  our wealth,  our guidance, etc.  is from no one except Allah Alone!    Thus we praise Allah, as all praise is due to Allah Alone!   Thus we invoke Allah Alone,  as He Alone deserves to be invoked!   Thus we worship our Creator,  our Sustainer,  our Cherisher,  our Provider,  our Helper,  our Protector,  our Lord,  and our Master,  Allah  Subhanah Alone!    And we proudly declare, that there is no god,  no idol,  no grave, no man,  no prophet, no imam,  no dai,  no bhaisaheb,  absolutely nobody is worthy of worship except Allah Alone.   And we proudly declare that Mohamed ibn Abdullah (saws)  is His slave servant and the seal of His Messengers.

One day,  we will all realize who was on the Right Path,  and who was astray.   Both of us claim to follow the same Quran,  but have apparently taken different paths.  One is right and the other is astray.    One of us is claiming to have read and understood the message of the Holy Quran,  and is trying his best to act according to its commandments.   The other has not read the Glorious Quran with understanding himself,  but relies on some man-made leader and scholar for his guidance.  One of us invokes and worships no one but Allah Alone.   The other invokes men;  living  as well as the dead pious muslims in their graves.    One of us believes Allah Alone can help us in our distresses.   The other believes that Allah helps only if some pious slave of Allah is invoked to take his message to Allah,  otherwise Allah will not help.   One of us believes that Allah Alone can bestow His Grace upon us.   The other believes,  that Allah will only bestow His Grace only if some pious slave of Allah is invoked as an intercessor.   One believes that we have to stand all alone in front of Allah on the Day of Judgment to give a full accounting of our lives.   The other believes that he will have all his ‘intercessors’ and ‘helpers’ with him to intercede with Allah on the Day of Judgment.   One believes that Allah Alone will have the absolute Power and Decision on the Day of Judgment.   The other believes that Allah will not decide the fate of somebody until He consults his pious slaves who were invoked with Him by these people!    One day,  we will all realize who was on the Right Path,  and who was astray!

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 7 Surah Aaraf verse 191-196: They associate with Allah partners who do not create anything,  but are themselves created!   Who cannot help them nor have the power to help themselves!   If you invite them to follow the Right Way,  they will not follow you!   It will be all the same for you whether you call them or keep silent.   Those whom you invoke with Allah are MERE SERVANTS OF ALLAH LIKE YOU!  Just invoke them,  and if what you say of them be true,  they will answer your prayers!   Have they feet that they should walk with them?   Or have they hands that they should hold with them?   Or have they eyes that they should see with them?   Or have they ears that they should hear with them?   Tell them, O Mohammed, “Call up the partners you have set up,  and then all of you sit down together and plot against me,  and give me no respite.  My Protector and Helper is Allah,  Who has sent down this Book (Al Quran),  and,  it is He who protects the righteous people.”

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 16 Surah Nahl verse 20-21: All the other beings,  whom the people invoke with Allah,  create nothing!   Nay,  they are themselves created.   They are DEAD,  not living,  and they do not at all know themselves when they shall again be raised to life!

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 22 Surah Hajj verse 71-72: They worship besides Allah those for whom Allah has sent down NO AUTHORITY!   Nor they themselves have any knowledge about them.  Such transgressors have no helper!   And when our CLEAR REVELATIONS are recited to them,  you perceive signs of disdain on the faces of the disbelievers,  as though they were going to ASSUALT those who recite our Revelations to them!

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 33 Surah Ahzab verse 66-68: On the Day their faces are rolled about on the Fire,  they will say, “Would that we had obeyed Allah and His Messenger!”  And they will say, “O our Lord,  we obeyed our CHIEFS and our GREAT MEN, and they led us astray from the Right Path.   O our Lord,  give them a double chastisement and curse them severely”.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 6 Surah Anam verse 94: (And Allah will say), “So,  you have come before Us all alone,  as We created you at first.   Now,  you have left behind all that We gave you in the world.   Now We do not see with you those ‘shufa’a’(intercessors), who, you believed,  had a share in moulding your destinies!  All the relations between you and them have been cut off,  and all those,  in whom you trusted,  have left you in the lurch.”

If one can realize the Straight Path in this life of ours,  and come to the Path that Allah and His Messenger (saws) invites us to,  he will be saved.   But if one dies in ignorance and takes the path of anybody else,  without consulting the Glorious Quran,  then he will have nobody to blame, except himself, on the Day of Judgment!    A lot of people live their lives in this world,  and deem that the Day of Judgment is far far away!   The truth of the matter is,  that every man’s death,  is his Day of Judgment.   As soon as the breath that goes in,  does not come out,   he will see the other dimension as promised by Allah in the Holy Quran, with certainty.   That is when he will realize immediately if he was on the Siraat al Mustaqeem or he was astray!   If he was on the Straight Path,  the angels will give him the good news accordingly,  and if he was astray,   he will have nothing but regrets about his life,  and there is nothing in the universe that could change his coming fate!  

So my dear brother in Islam,  I leave you with this thought,  so that you can ponder over it and come to your own conclusion.   I am not responsible for your deeds,  and you will not be responsible for my deeds.   May Allah guide you and us to the Siraat al Mustaqeem,  and to His Mercy and Forgiveness.

In search for the truth and in the quest for knowledge,  in all humility,  I want to ask you just one question,.    The answer is all over the Quran,  and not a page goes by, but Allah reminds us about it.   You are welcome to consult any ‘aalim’ or scholar of your choice.   You are welcome to unearth the answer yourself.   You are welcome to read the Quran and affirm this answer yourself.   

And that all-important question is:

What is the biggest sin in Islam?   What sin is it, for which Allah has promised in the Holy Quran that He has made Paradise haraam for the people guilty of this heinous crime?  What is the name of this sin that was the reason for the destruction of the people of  Prophet Noah,  Prophet Saleh,  Prophet Hud,  Prophet Shuaib,  and many other Messengers of Allah?    What is the name of this sin which renders all the deeds done as worthless?    What is the name of this monstrous sin,  that Allah has promised in the Glorious Quran,  that the guilty ones will never ever get out from the Hell Fire?  

Brother,  even though,  our paths are different,  we implore you to answer this one question in sincerity and for the pleasure of Allah.   We await your answer impatiently.

May Allah guide you and us all to determine and understand all the manifestations of this horrendous sin,  so that we all can keep away from it.   May Allah bless you and your families and keep us all in His infinite Mercy and Protection.   May Allah guide you and us all to the Siraat al Mustaqeem (Straight Path of Islam).       

May Allah guide you and us all to the Siraat al-Mustaqeem.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me.  Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan