Islam and Superstition-4

Part Four
By: Syed Kamran Mirza
U.S.A.
(Translated into English from Bengali by Abul Kasem)



[A request to the readers: Those who had already read the Part One of this
series may skip the introductory part of this essay as this section will be
the same for all the remaining parts, although, there might be some slight
changes for Part Two. Needless to say, those readers who did not read Part
One, the Introductory part is a must-read. In the subsequent parts I shall
simply include, in serial numbers more amazing, queer, and cock-and-bull
stories from Islami Books]


INTRODUCTION

We are aware that superstition is a popular belief held by people without
any reason or logic; that is to say, it is an irrational belief system
without any proof practiced by the ignorant mass. This type of superstition
can be of two types, namely; Folklores—that are essentially fanciful,
irrational stories that are accepted by the population as such; so, there is
no problem with such fairy-tales. However, the other type of superstition is
the religious false notion that is firmly rooted in the belief of
supernatural divinity. The morbid fear of unknown, the thought of after-life
and a deep penchant for supernatural power are the main causes for the
growth of such religious mumbo-jumbo. Clearly, this uncontrolled fear for
life after death and its resultant irrational faith in it is the primary
reason for the birth of world religious beliefs. We see the abundant
presence of many such fanciful, irrational ingredients in almost all
religions practiced in to-day’s world—no religion is free from such
ridiculousness, to say the least. For that matter Islam is no exception. In
fact, there are so many superstitions in Islam that one can safely surmise
that the entire edifice of Islam stands firmly on many such mythological
/supernatural narrations.

When one reads the fundamental scriptures of Islam, namely; the Qur’an and
many Ahadith, one is bound to find copious superstitious stories and
practices. The belief in such irrational and illogical stories and tales is
bound to give rise to many fanatical believers and this could be the root
cause of Islamic frenzy among its blind believers.

In Bangladesh, searching every nook and corner of the markets, bookstores,
Islamic libraries, even the foot path (Fatemolla aptly calls these books:
the Moons and the Stars of the foot path) of a city one is sure to find
thousands of such Islami Kitab (Islami Books) that shamelessly promotes such
ignorance and cock-and-bull stories. From among such famous and popular
books, let me name a few. These are: Behester Kunji (The Key to Paradise),
Beheshti Zewar (The Treasures of Paradise), Maqsudul Momeneen (The Destiny
of the Believers), Kissas-ul-Ambia (The Stories of the Prophets) and Neyamul
Qur’an etc. In a Muslim country like Bangladesh, these Islami books are in
such a great demand that the publishers have a tough time meeting this huge
demand even after they have run 30th or 40th edition for each of the above
books.

From among the books cited above, I found it absolutely compelling to delve
in illustrating some of the contents of Kissas-ul-Ambia. This Islami Kitab
is considered to be distinctly different from any other Islami Book—in that,
this book is not about the exhortations of Islami teachings based on the
fanciful ideas of some Mullah. As the title of this book suggests, this book
narrates the stories of many Prophets mentioned in the holy Qur’an and
Ahadith and who were born in the Arabian Peninsula. This means that whatever
is written in this book conforms to the contents of the Qur’an and Ahadith,
and as such they are completely irrefutable. The version of this book that I
am using has been written by an impeccably educated Muslim writer—M.N.M.
Imdadullah (M.A., B.A. Hons. M.A). In look and size this book is quite
similar to the holy Qur’an and as such it commands a great reverence from
the Muslims. As a mark of respect the libraries and the devotees will store
this book at the uppermost shelve of bookshelves, positioning it just by the
side of the Qur’an.

This is also a pricey book—mind you, one translated volume is costlier than
the holy Qur’an!

An examination of this tome will reveal that its content is replete with
superstitious narrations—almost 90% of it, to be precise. Once the
simple-minded, faithful Muslims read/hear such irrational tales, they turn
to be more ardent believers, devoting more time and attention in prayer and
fasting. For the not-so-faithfuls, they will find such incredible,
irrational tales extremely hilarious and will definitely have hearty laugh
reading the book.

Nonetheless, such superstitious books are plenty in Bangladesh and, as said
before, one may find them in virtually every household—no joke. These are
the text books—the principal learning sources of Islam for the vast a
majority of the Muslims in Bangladesh. Most of what they believe and
practice in Islam actually emanate from these primary learning tools! Many
Maulanas (Islamic priests) recorded these ‘cock and bull’ stories in the
audio-cassettes which are readily available in Bangladesh to the gullible
Muslims. For some unscrupulous Maulanas this cassette selling is a booming
business that is simply nothing but only to plunder the hard-earned wealth
from poor public. Needless to say, the influence of such books, and the
audio-cassettes have created, among the Bengali Muslims in Bangladesh, a
thriving business for the saints, ascetics and the friars by selling
talisman and by practicing charms.

In the villages, in the suburbs, and even in the metropolitan cities of
Bangladesh numerous Islamic Jalsas (Islamic Preachings) are held almost on a
daily basis. These congregations are attended by thousands of ordinary,
illiterate, half-literate, ill-educated Muslims. The surprising fact is that
many educated, blind believers also attend these gathering and become
engrossed in listening to the exhortations of the Mullahs. The main theme of
such speeches is the narrations of Islamic mythological tales, irrational
and fanciful stories, and colourful anecdotes from Islamic history. The
principal source of such tales, of course, is none other than the incredible
Kissa-ul-Ambia, the implausible Islamic book. The simple-minded village
folks are so much imbued by these cock-and-bull and absurd stories, that in
no time they start believing such stories to be true and many of those
ardent believers even start weeping. As a result of such gullible faith in
irrationality, they soon become victims of fear and completely surrender to
superstition and supernatural forces.

During my childhood, when I attended such gatherings, I used to wonder as to
where from these Mullahs obtained such coaxing stories and narrate them so
eloquently. I used to marvel at the level of their knowledge and
understanding. Now, I have no doubt in my mind that all those incredibly
irrational tales are actually from authentic Islamic books. In this
serialised article I shall quote, verbatim, a few sample passages from those
authentic Islamic books mentioned above. [Please note: these quotes are
exact; nothing is from me, except that my personal views are included inside
parenthesis]:



Please note: Items 12 to 17 were published in Part 3
18. How the soil to make the body of Adam was collected:
At first, almighty Allah, to make the body of Adam, despatched angel Gabriel
to collect soil from the earth. On the very first instant that Gabriel
descended on earth and extended his hand to gather soil, the earth,
immediately swearing in the name of Allah, said to Gabriel, “O Gabriel! By
Allah, do not ever try to collect even a speck of dust from me.” So, an
empty-handed Gabriel returned to Allah and quipped, “O Allah, due to the
vehement vow taken by earth in your name to not to allow me to collect soil,
I could not bring any soil from there.” Then Allah instructed Michael, the
angel, to gather soil from the earth. Upon his arrival on earth, Michael
said to earth, “O earth! Please grant me just a small piece of soil; I am on
command from Allah to collect this dust from you.” The earth replied, “By
Allah, I am entreating you not to take any soil from me.” A disappointed
Michael then returned to Allah without any soil from earth. Allah then
appointed the angel Israfil to accomplish the job. But Israfil, too,
returned empty-handed. Angered, Allah then appointed the formidable
archangel Azrail to accomplish the task. On his arrival on earth, archangel
Azrail dug out soil and put that in a basket. Mournfully the earth said to
Azrail, “By Allah, please do not take any soil.” Without paying any heed to
earth, Azrail retorted, “I am collecting earth on the order of the same
almighty by whom you are taking your vow. I am unable to disobey His order.”
Saying this, Azrail frantically brought the piece of soil to Allah. Allah
was extremely pleased with this act of Azrail.


19. Which parts of earth’s soils were used to make Adam?
According to Hazrat Abdullah ibn Abbas, the apostle of Allah said, “Allah
had made Adam from soils collected from various parts of the earth.” Adam’s
head, He made it from the soil of Ka’ba, his belly and backside--Allah made
them from the soil of Indo-Pak subcontinent, two hands-- made from the soils
of the eastern frontier and the two legs-- made from the soils of the
western frontier. As per other ahadith: Adam’s head was made from the soil
of Bait al- Maqdis, his countenance-- from the soil of Paradise, his teeth--
from the soil of Indo-Pakistan, his two hands-- from the soil of holy Ka’ba,
his backside--from the soil of Iraq, his heart—from the soil of the supreme
Paradise (Zannat al-Firdaus), his tongue—from the soil of Taif, his two
eyes—from the soil of lake of Kalkauthar, and from the soil of mountains his
other limbs were made. (I could never imagine that there is soil in supreme
Paradise!).

20. How Allah created the species of dog:
Having created Adam, Allah placed him, for forty years, in a corner of the
Paradise. All the angels were extremely fascinated by this bizarre creature.
When Iblis was informed of such a curious object in Paradise, he looked at
Adam with impetuous contempt and spat on him with great insinuation. Allah
then created the species of dog from this spittle (saliva) of Iblis.

21. How the spirit entered in to Adam’s body:
Having kept Adam in a corner of Paradise for forty years, Allah fixed a day
for the spirit to enter into Adam’s body. Accordingly, Allah commanded all
the angels in the heaven and earth to assemble. Then Allah ordered the
spirit, “O spirit! Enter thee now into the body of Adam.” The spirit
obligingly entered inside Adam’s body, but experiencing intense darkness
inside, returned and entreated to Allah. Then Allah engraved the
Noor-e-Muhammadi (Muhammad’s light) on the forehead of Adam. Thus, the
entire inside and outside of Adam now became luminous. Gleefully, the sprit
then descended inside Adam. No sooner had the spirit entered Adams body than
Adam sneezed vigorously. With this sneezing, Adam recited, “Al Hamd al-Allah
(all praise to Allah).” Allah immediately answered, “Ya Rahmukallah (you too
receive the blessings of Allah).” From that very day this became a practice
among all the generations of Adam; i.e., whenever someone sneezes, one must
immediately say ,”Al Hamd al-Allah.” and in response the person who sneezes
must say,” Ya Rahmakallah.” Then Adam stood up. Allah commanded the angels
to fetch the exquisite gold-embroidered cloak and to clothe Adam with that
apparel. The angels brought that dress pronto, put that on Adam and made him
ascent a throne.

22. The mystery of Jesus, the Prophet:
As soon as the spirit entered inside Adam, he woke up and produced a sneeze.
Allah then commanded Gabriel, “O Gabriel, save for posterity, this sneeze of
Adam, because I shall use it for some special purpose. Verily, from this
sneeze shall I create a person supremely pious. Angel Gabriel gingerly
stored that sneeze in the Lauhe Mahfouz (the store house of spirits). By the
grace of Allah, from this sneeze, Jesus, the Prophet was born in the womb of
Bibi Miriam.


23. Song and Music are the Adhan for Satan:
Once Allah awarded Iblis an accursed life, Iblis said to Allah, “Oh
almighty, you have decided to help Adam and his progeny by sending Prophets
and apostles, but how about me? Wouldn’t you help me to distract the progeny
of Adam by providing me with some Books and Prophets?” An angry Allah then
replied, “O, the king of sinners! The numerous corrupt rulers, wicked
leaders and the filthy, corrupt, obscene and evil-worded books (I think this
refers to the porno movies) will indeed act as your Prophets and Books.” On
hearing this Adam said, “Almighty Allah, please tell me how shall I bring my
children back on right track?” Allah replied, “Whenever the time for prayer
arrives instruct the Muazzin in every mosque to announce the call for prayer
(Allah did not mention to use the powerful amplifiers invented by the
infidels—I wonder why?). My genuine followers will immediately be eager and
excited to respond to the call of prayer and will hasten to immerse
themselves in prayer and devotion.” Then Iblis said, “Almighty, can’t you
provide me with a similar system like Adhan?” Allah replied, “O the wicked,
remember that songs and music and all the musical instruments will act as
Adhan for you. Many of my devotees will be enchanted by these songs and
music and they will thus leave the path of righteousness and follow your
path of wickedness.”



24. The marriage of Adam and Eve and how the system of dowry evolved:
Enchanted by the extreme beauty, charm and grace of Eve, Adam passionately
fell in love with her. Under this influence of love he extended his hands
towards her to embrace her. Immediately Allah warned, “O Adam! Refrain, do
not touch Eve before marriage; this will not be legitimate for you.” Adam
replied, “Almighty, please get me married to Eve.” So Allah married Eve to
Adam. This wedding was of such great joy that all the angels from seven
heavens and seven earths had a great time for seven days by assembling under
a Tuwa tree. Allah himself delivered His sermon (Khutba) on this occasion.
Then when Adam wanted to embrace his newly-wed bride, Eve, Allah roared, “O
Adam, touching Eve without paying her dower (bride-money) will not be legal
for you.” A disappointed Adam then said, “Almighty, I have nothing. How can
I pay dower?” Allah, the most merciful then said, “O Adam, offer Darud
(litany) ten times to my dearest friend, Muhammad. This will suffice as your
dower.” With great devotion and faith Adam then offered ten Darud (litany)
to Muhammad. Having had paid his dower in this manner Adam was able to have
sexual intercourse with Eve.



25. What punishments Eve received for eating the fruit from the “Tree of
Knowledge”?

The instant Adam and Eve, disobeying Allah’s forbiddance, ate the fruit from
the tree of knowledge, their exquisitely crafted, gold-laced dress fell off
from their bodies. Then Eve, and all the women of the world were ordained to
bear the monthly pain of menstruation. From that very day all women were to
endure the pain of child-birth. Women were to be always under the
subjugation of men; they lost their right to divorce their husbands. The
women were now ordained to observe Idda (waiting period after divorce)
whenever they are divorced by their husbands. Women were now gifted with
less intelligence than men; they now had to command less respect and honour.
The door to Prophethood became close to them forever. On matters of witness
their evidence in court became half to that of a man. They were deprived of
the rewards of Jumaa and Eid prayers. They were dispossessed of the glory of
Jihad; the inheritance for them became half to that of a man. Finally, they
were booted out from the rewards of all important services to religion and
society. (Our pious and religious ladies, what do you think of these?).



References:

Kissas-ul-Ambia
The Holy Qur’an; translated in Bengali by Maulana Muhiuddin Khan and
published from Saudi Arabia
Maksudul Momeneen
Beheshti Zewar

To be continued

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