Questions and Answers
The Light (Pakistan), 1st July 1922 Issue (Vol. 1, No. 14, p. 4)
Question:
What is the significance of religion? — Muhammad Salman
Answer:
Religion is the collective name of the divine laws revealed for the guidance of man. When our soul is highly evolved, we are in communion with God; hence this communion is a sort of testimony to our spiritual advancement.
[Related: A further query appears in the 1st March 1923 issue]
Question:
Was Adam misled by Satan? — Muhammad Salman
Answer:
Not only Adam, but his wife also:
“But the devil made them both fall from it” (Holy Quran, 2:36).
Question:
What is Satan? Does it exist? — Muhammad Salman
Answer:
An evil propensity is a Satan.
Question:
How do you account for that Islam was not spread by the sword? — Muhammad Salman
Answer:
The Holy Quran and Islamic history show that the Prophet [pbuh] and his followers never wielded the sword for the spread of Islam. They used it for self-defence only. The Holy Quran says:
“There is no compulsion in religion” (2:256).
Question:
What is life, and what is death? Why did men die at different ages? — M. Mohir-ud-din
Answer:
When your physical organs are working, you are alive; when they stop working, you are dead. Men die at different ages because they are differently situated.
Question:
What is the soul? Is the soul of man immortal? — M. Mohir-ud-din
Answer:
The soul is a spirit; there is a life after death, but the soul may undergo changes.
Question:
What is Fate in Islam? — M. Norman
Answer:
There is no trace in Islamic literature of “fate” or “fatatism” as understood in the West. The Islamic word taqdir only means measurement, which signifies the divine laws or laws of nature.
Question:
Can an infidel hold communion with God and receive inspiration from on High? If so, why accept Islam? — M. Norman
Answer:
Communion with God implies frequent revelation from God, and this is denied to a non-Muslim. But an occasional tint of that is sometimes met with in non-Muslims as well because the instinct of communication with God is implanted in every human heart.
Question:
What is a religion, and which is the best and why? — M.A. Hague
Answer:
Religion is the collective name of the divine laws for the guidance of man. Islam is the best religion because:
- its teachings are pure from corruption;
- it is the final code for humanity; and
- it is the natural religion of man.
Question:
Is the interest in bank deposits permissible? — M.A. Hague
Answer:
It may be spent in the propagation of Islam; it is not permissible otherwise.
Question:
Is the keeping of photos or pictures permissible? — M.A. Hague
Answer:
So long as they do not interfere with the duties of man towards God, they are permissible.
Question:
Will the prayer be accepted if a photo is hanging before the worshipper? — M.A. Hague
Answer:
As far as possible, a photo should not be before the worshipper, but in unavoidable circumstances there is no harm so long the worshipper does not worship it.
Question:
Is a prayer without ablution, that is, wudzu or tayammum, permissible? — M.A. Hague
Answer:
No.
Question:
Is transmigration of the soul supported by Islam? If not, how is the theory of action to be explained? — Mohammad Abdul Jabbor
Answer:
No.
The theory of actions is simple enough: some of our actions are compensated in this world; others in the next. Islam believes in the continuity of life.
Question:
What causes the differentiation of action, circumstances, environments, and other distinction? — Mohammad Abdul Jabbor
Answer:
It is very difficult to trace such causes. The simple solution of this problem is that God is the Master and not a mere judge. He does as He thinks fit.
To be continued.