Assalamu’alaikum wr.wb.,
Ini satu bab dari buku saya "Mencari Tuhan, Menemukan Allah" (Searching for God and Finding Allah). Awalnya bab dua, tapi dipindah menjadi bab sembilan. Saya berusaha jelaskan sebuah alasan logis kenapa manusia tidak bisa melihat Tuhan di dunia ini. Semoga bermanfaat.
Wassalamu’alaikum wr.wb.,
Gene Netto
MENCARI TUHAN, MENEMUKAN ALLAH
[Perjalanan Spiritual Seorang Mualaf yang Membandingkan Agama Kristen dan Islam Dalam Mencari Kebenaran]
DAFTAR ISI
1. TENTANG SAYA: BAGAIMANA SAYA BISA MENJADI MUSLIM
2. RANGKAIAN PENGUTUSAN PARA NABI
3. TANDA DARI TUHAN
4. PARA PENGIKUT YESUS
5. PENGIKUT YESUS DAN PENGIKUT MUHAMMAD
6. KEBENARAN ISLAM
7. INILAH YANG ALLAH KATAKAN TENTANG AL-QUR’AN
8. SEBUAH AGAMA YANG LOGIS
9. ALASAN LOGIS KENAPA KITA TIDAK BISA MELIHAT TUHAN
10. KEBUTUHAN SPIRITUAL KITA DAN SOLUSI DARI ALLAH
11. INI PILIHAN ANDA
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9. ALASAN LOGIS KENAPA KITA TIDAK BISA MELIHAT TUHAN
Ketika saya kecil, saya dibuat bingung oleh kenyataan bahwa kita tidak bisa melihat Tuhan. Jika Dia ada, maka dalam pikiran logis saya, seharusnya kita bisa melihat-Nya dan fakta bahwa Dia tidak terlihat membuat saya lebih mudah menjadi seorang ateis. Namun, pada saat yang sama, saya juga tidak ingin benar-benar menolak kemungkinan adanya Tuhan, dan saya juga merasa bahwa saya harus tetap berpikiran terbuka kalau seandainya nanti ada orang yang bisa menunjukkan bukti Tuhan itu memang ada.
Sebagai usaha untuk memahami Tuhan, agama, alam semesta, dan arti dari kehidupan, saya banyak bertanya tentang agama Kristen karena saat itu satu-satunya agama yang saya ketahui adalah agama Kristen. Sayangnya pertanyaan-pertanyaan itu tidak pernah terjawab dengan baik dan justru membuat saya lebih bingung daripada sebelumnya. Karena tidak ada bukti yang memuaskan, maka saya merasa terpaksa tidak percaya kepada Tuhan.
Saya sering memperhatikan bagaimana orang-orang dewasa menghadapi suatu kejadian yang menyedihkan, misalnya saja saat seorang anak meninggal atau saat seseorang divonis menderita kanker. Orang dewasa seringkali menyatakan bahwa semua itu harus diterima dengan pasrah. Caranya dengan mengucapkan “God works in mysterious ways” (Tuhan bertindak dengan cara yang misterius), yang artinya kita tidak mungkin bisa memahami apa yang dilakukan oleh Tuhan, dan bertanya-tanya tentang hal itu hanya akan membuang-buang waktu saja. Tuhan itu misterius dan kita tidak dapat memahami-Nya.
Tapi kalau Tuhan memang misterius, kenapa Dia memberikan akal pikiran kepada kita? Dengan kecerdasan dan kemampuan untuk berpikir logis, tentunya akan sangat masuk akal jika kita menggunakan kelebihan itu untuk memikirkan Tuhan. Fakta bahwa kita pasti mampu menggunakan logika untuk berpikir tentang Tuhan pastinya karena Tuhan (jika Dia memang ada) telah menciptakan kita dengan kemampuan ini, dan karena itu Dia juga tahu bahwa cepat atau lambat kita akan menggunakan otak kita yang kompleks untuk berusaha memahami-Nya dengan sikap yang logis dan cerdas. Jadi, di dalam agama, seharusnya ada ajaran-ajaran dasar yang bisa ditelaah dan masuk akal dalam agama mana saja yang dibenarkan oleh Tuhan. Kalau Tuhan memang ada, mengapa Dia memberi ajaran-ajaran agama kepada manusia tapi membuat agama tersebut membingungkan bagi banyak orang?
Hal itu membuat saya memikirkan sebuah pertanyaan baru: Apakah Tuhan harus “misterius” jika Dia tidak menghendaki demikian? Dalam hal agama, bukankah Tuhan seharusnya mampu menerima dan menjawab pertanyaan-pertanyaan yang diajukan oleh ciptaaan-Nya sendiri jika Dia berkehendak? Bagaimana jika sebenarnya Tuhan ingin agar kita mengenal-Nya (dalam batasan pemahaman kita tentunya) sehingga kita dapat menjadi lebih dekat dengan-Nya? Bagaimana jika ternyata Dia tidak menginginkan kita menganggap-Nya “misterius”?
Setelah menjadi seorang Muslim, saya merenungkan kembali keinginan di masa kecil, yaitu ingin melihat Tuhan dengan mata saya sendiri. Saya mulai berpikir apakah mungkin ada alasan logis mengapa Tuhan tidak ingin menampakkan Diri di depan kita pada saat ini? Apakah mungkin semata-mata karena Dia ingin menjadi “misterius”? Saya kemudian berusaha mempertimbangkan kemungkinan lain bahwa memang ada sebuah alasan logis untuk perkara ini. Jika alasan itu memang ada dan kita mampu menerimanya, maka mungkin kita juga akan mampu memahami bahwa semua itu adalah untuk kebaikan kita sendiri dan bukan karena alasan-alasan “misterius”.
Dalam bab ini, saya ingin memberikan satu penjelasan yang logis mengapa Tuhan tidak ingin terlihat oleh kita, dan bagaimana hal itu merupakan rahmat bagi kita. Untuk membahas ini, kita harus mencermati kisah Nabi Adam, manusia pertama yang diciptakan Allah, dan juga kisah Iblis. Lalu dibandingkan dengan kisah seorang pembunuh yang membunuh 100 orang. Tapi sebelumnya, ada baiknya kita terlebih dahulu membaca kisah Nabi Musa yang juga ingin melihat Allah.
9.1.Nabi Musa Juga Ingin Melihat Tuhan
Saya sering mendengarkan penceramah Muslim di Indonesia bercerita tentang Nabi Musa yang memohon untuk dapat melihat Allah. Telah dijelaskan oleh Allah kepada Nabi Musa bahwa dia tidak akan sanggup melihat Tuhannya. Tentu saja, Allah dapat berhenti sampai pada pernyataan itu, namun ternyata Allah berkehendak lain dan Dia memilih untuk memberikan “bukti” nyata kepada Nabi Musa bahwa dia tidak bisa melihat Tuhannya. Allah kemudian menampakkan Diri di belakang sebuah gunung. Saat cahaya Allah mulai terlihat, gunung itu hancur luluh karena tidak sanggup menahan cahaya-Nya. Begitupun halnya dengan Nabi Musa yang jatuh pingsan karena tidak sanggup melihat cahaya-Nya, seperti yang dijelaskan dalam Al-Qur’an:
143. Dan tatkala Musa datang untuk (munajat dengan Kami) pada waktu yang telah Kami tentukan dan Tuhan telah berfirman (langsung) kepadanya, berkatalah Musa: “Ya Tuhanku, nampakkanlah (diri Engkau) kepadaku agar aku dapat melihat kepada Engkau”. Tuhan berfirman: “Kamu sekali-kali tidak sanggup melihat-Ku, tapi lihatlah ke bukit itu, maka jika ia tetap di tempatnya (sebagai sediakala) niscaya kamu dapat melihat-Ku”. Tatkala Tuhannya menampakkan diri kepada gunung itu, dijadikannya gunung itu hancur luluh dan Musapun jatuh pingsan. Maka setelah Musa sadar kembali, dia berkata: “Maha Suci Engkau, aku bertaubat kepada Engkau dan aku orang yang pertama-tama beriman”.
(QS. Al-A’raf 7:143)
Ayat ini memberikan kita suatu pemahaman bahwa manusia, termasuk para Nabi, tidak sanggup (atau tidak boleh) melihat Tuhan ketika kita masih berada di bumi ini. Jika seorang Nabi Allah seperti Nabi Musa tidak sanggup melihat Allah, maka manusia biasa seperti kita lebih tidak mungkin lagi berharap dapat melihat-Nya. Terlepas dari ketidaksanggupan Nabi Musa melihat Allah, kita mengetahui bahwa dia sanggup berdialog dengan-Nya. Selain Nabi Musa, makhluk lain yang juga pernah berdialog dengan Allah adalah Iblis.
9.2.Kutukan Allah Atas Iblis (Setan)
11. Sesungguhnya Kami telah menciptakan kamu (Adam), lalu Kami bentuk tubuhmu, kemudian Kami katakan kepada para malaikat: “Bersujudlah kamu kepada Adam”; maka merekapun bersujud kecuali Iblis. Dia tidak termasuk mereka yang bersujud.
12. Allah berfirman: “Apakah yang menghalangimu untuk bersujud (kepada Adam) di waktu Aku menyuruhmu?” Menjawab Iblis: “Saya lebih baik daripadanya: Engkau ciptakan saya dari api sedang dia Engkau ciptakan dari tanah”.
13. Allah berfirman: “Turunlah kamu dari surga itu; karena kamu tidak sepatutnya menyombongkan diri di dalamnya, maka keluarlah, sesungguhnya kamu termasuk orang-orang yang hina”.
(QS. Al-A’raf 7:11-13)
Dalam ayat-ayat ini kita diperkenalkan dengan suatu makhluk yang menolak untuk bersujud dan menunjukkan rasa hormat kepada Nabi Adam. Makhluk ini dinamakan Iblis atau Shaitan di dalam Al-Qur’an. Dalam Bahasa Inggris, makhluk ini dikenal dengan sebutan Satan, the Devil, Lucifer, dan lain-lain. Dalam ayat-ayat di atas, kita dapat melihat sebuah situasi bagaimana Iblis membantah Allah dan menolak Perintah Langsung-Nya untuk bersujud kepada Nabi Adam. Penolakan atas perintah Tuhan yang dilakukan Iblis merupakan tindakan kesombongan yang sangat terhadap Allah SWT, dan inilah alasannya mengapa Iblis mendapat hukuman.
34. Allah berfirman: “Keluarlah dari surga, karena sesungguhnya kamu terkutuk,
35. dan sesungguhnya kutukan itu tetap menimpamu sampai hari kiamat”.
(QS. Al-Hijr 15:34-35)
Dengan menolak perintah-Nya, maka Iblis menjadi makhluk pertama yang dikutuk oleh Allah sampai Hari Pengadilan. Kejadian ini sangat istimewa karena ini merupakan pertama dan terakhir kalinya (sepanjang pengetahuan kita) ada makhluk yang dikutuk untuk selama-lamanya. Al-Qur’an tidak menyebutkan bahwa ada makluk selain Iblis yang dikutuk oleh Allah untuk selama-lamanya. Pertanyaan yang relevan adalah: kenapa Iblis langsung mendapatkan kutukan yang begitu keras dari Allah. Adalah sesuatu yang menarik, bahwa pada saat dinyatakan sebagai makhluk yang terkutuk, Iblis tidak protes. Dia tidak menuduh Tuhan tidak adil. Iblis tidak membantah dengan mengatakan bahwa dia tidak bersalah dan tidak pantas mendapat hukuman yang begitu berat. Kalau saja seorang manusia mendapat hukuman yang sama, saya pikir siapapun pasti akan protes dan mencari jalan keluar dan mohon ampunan dari hukuman tersebut. Sebaliknya, Iblis ternyata langsung menerima hukumannya, tetapi dengan meminta agar hukuman itu ditangguhkan sampai hari kiamat supaya ada waktu baginya untuk menyesatkan manusia dan membuktikan bahwa ia lebih baik daripada manusia.
14. Iblis menjawab: “Beri tangguhlah saya sampai waktu mereka dibangkitkan”.
15. Allah berfirman: “Sesungguhnya kamu termasuk mereka yang diberi tangguh.”
16. Iblis menjawab: “Karena Engkau telah menghukum saya tersesat, saya benar-benar akan (menghalang-halangi) mereka dari jalan Engkau yang lurus,
17. kemudian saya akan mendatangi mereka dari muka dan dari belakang mereka, dari kanan dan dari kiri mereka. Dan Engkau tidak akan mendapati kebanyakan mereka bersyukur (ta’at).
18. Allah berfirman: “Keluarlah kamu dari surga itu sebagai orang terhina lagi terusir. Sesungguhnya barangsiapa di antara mereka mengikuti kamu, benar-benar Aku akan mengisi neraka Jahannam dengan kamu semuanya”.
(QS. Al-A’raf 7:14-18)
Yang jelas, sekarang Iblis mempunyai keinginan untuk berusaha dengan cara apapun agar bani Adam mengikutinya ke dalam neraka, supaya dia bisa membuktikan kepada Allah SWT bahwa dia memang lebih baik daripada Adam. Sekarang, ada suatu keadaan yang menarik. Allah telah mengutuk Iblis, tetapi daripada langsung melemparkannya ke dalam neraka, Allah malah memberikan waktu kepadanya untuk menyesatkan semua manusia yang mau mengikutinya.
Jika kita meyakini bahwa Allah selalu mengetahui semua hal yang akan terjadi, berarti Allah juga pasti mengetahui bahwa Iblis akan menunjukkan kesombongannya, menjadi makhluk terkutuk, dan kemudian akan diberi waktu untuk menyesatkan manusia yang mau mengikutinya. Jika hal itu memang benar, berarti kita harus menerima kenyataan bahwa keberadaan Iblis beserta para pengikutnya, dan pengaruh mereka terhadap manusia, adalah suatu hal yang telah diketahui Allah sebelumnya, dan Allah membiarkan hal itu terjadi atas kehendak-Nya. (Allah tidak menyebabkan Iblis membangkang, tetapi hanya membiarkan hal itu terjadi). Kita harus meyakini bahwa semua kejadian hanya dapat berlangsung sesuai dengan Izin Allah. Jika Allah tidak berkehendak, maka bagaimana mungkin suatu hal dapat terjadi? Jika sesuatu bisa terjadi tanpa Izin Allah, berarti Allah bukan Yang Maha Kuasa.
29. Katakanlah: “Jika kamu menyembunyikan apa yang ada dalam hatimu atau kamu melahirkannya, pasti Allah mengetahui.” Allah mengetahui apa-apa yang ada di langit dan apa-apa yang ada di bumi. Dan Allah Maha Kuasa atas segala sesuatu.
(QS. Ali Imran 3:29)
Jadi, di dalam surga ada Nabi Adam bersama Hawa, dan juga Iblis! Iblis (yang setelah dikutuk disebut sebagai Shaitan dalam Al-Qur’an) tidak memiliki tujuan hidup kecuali menyesatkan sebanyak mungkin keturunan bani Adam agar menemaninya masuk neraka. Dengan Izin Allah (karena tidak mungkin terjadi tanpa Izin Allah) Iblis bisa masuk surga untuk mengganggu Adam dan Hawa, dan dia berhasil. Dia meyakinkan mereka untuk makan buah yang terlarang, yang menyebabkan mereka dikeluarkan dari surga dan ditempatkan di bumi.
35. Dan Kami berfirman:”Hai Adam, diamilah oleh kamu dan isterimu surga ini, dan makanlah makanan-makanannya yang banyak lagi baik di mana saja yang kamu sukai, dan janganlah kamu dekati pohon ini, yang menyebabkan kamu termasuk orang-orang yang zalim.
36. Lalu keduanya digelincirkan oleh syaitan dari surga itu dan dikeluarkan dari keadaan semula dan Kami berfirman:”Turunlah kamu! Sebahagian kamu menjadi musuh bagi yang lain, dan bagi kamu ada tempat kediaman di bumi, dan kesenangan hidup sampai waktu yang ditentukan”.
(QS. Al-Baqarah 2:35-36)
Dalam kasus ini, Iblis hanya melakukan satu kesalahan saja dan sebagai akibatnya, dia dikutuk sepanjang masa. Kesalahan Nabi Adam dan isterinya Hawa (disebut “Eve” dalam bahasa Inggris) juga hanya satu, dan sebagai akibatnya mereka dikeluarkan dari surga tapi tidak dikutuk sepanjang masa. Kenapa ada perbedaan seperti itu di dalam kedua kasus ini?
Mungkin satu hal yang mempengaruhi perbedaan hukuman dari Allah ini adalah kenyataan bahwa hanya Iblis yang membantah Allah. Pada saat Adam dan Hawa diberitahu kalau mereka telah berbuat salah, mereka langsung bertaubat dan mohon ampunan. Sebaliknya, Iblis tidak mau bertaubat dan tidak juga meminta ampunan.
37. Kemudian Adam menerima beberapa kalimat dari Tuhannya, maka Allah menerima taubatnya. Sesungguhnya Allah Maha Penerima taubat lagi Maha Penyayang.
(QS. Al-Baqarah 2:37)
Maka sekarang kita dapat melihat dua kasus di mana Adam dan Iblis masing-masing membuat satu kesalahan dan mereka dihukum karena kesalahan itu; tapi Iblis dihukum lebih berat. Untuk dapat memahami bagaimana hal ini berkaitan dengan topik yang tengah dibahas, yaitu mengapa Tuhan tidak nampak bagi kita untuk suatu alasan logis, maka kita juga perlu menguji satu kasus lagi; kasus pembunuh 100 orang yang mendapatkan ampunan atas segala dosa-dosanya.
9.3.Iblis, Nabi Adam, dan Pembunuh 100 Orang
Ada sebuah hadits (riwayat) yang menceritakan riwayat seorang pembunuh dari Bani Israel yang telah membunuh 100 orang, akan tetapi pada saat dia meninggal, dia sudah terlebih dahulu berniat untuk bertaubat dan memperbaiki diri. Oleh karena itu, dosanya diampuni.
Diriwayatkan Abu Said Al-Khudri: Nabi bersabda, “Di antara kaum lelaki Bani Israel ada seorang pria yang telah membunuh 99 orang. Lalu dia berjalan dan bertanya kepada orang yang dijumpai (apakah taubatnya bisa diterima atau tidak). Dia menemukan seorang biarawan dan bertanya kepadanya apakah taubatnya bisa diterima. Si biarawan memberikan jawaban yang negatif, jadi pria itu membunuhnya. Dia bertanya terus sampai ada seseorang yang menasehatinya untuk pergi ke sebuah desa. (Lalu dia berangkat ke arah desa tersebut) tetapi kematian menjumpainya dalam perjalanan itu. Pada saat akan meninggal dunia, dia menghadapkan dadanya ke arah desa tersebut (di mana dia berharap taubatnya akan diterima), maka malaikat pencatat kebaikan dan malaikat pencatat keburukan bertengkar tentang si pembunuh. Allah kemudian memerintahkan desa (yang dia tuju itu) untuk mendekatkan diri kepadanya, dan memerintahkan desa (yang dia tinggalkan) untuk menjauhinya. Lalu Allah memerintahkan para malaikat untuk mengukur jarak antara badan orang itu dan kedua desa tersebut. Apakah lebih dekat ke desa pertama ataukah lebih dekat ke desa kedua. Diketahui bahwa dia sedikit lebih dekat ke desa (yang dia tuju). Jadi dia diampuni. (HR. Bukhari)
Sebuah pertanyaan penting yang perlu diajukan adalah mengapa seorang pembunuh yang telah membunuh 100 orang dapat memperoleh pengampunan atas dosa-dosanya dengan cara yang begitu mudah? Diampuni oleh Tuhan berarti bahwa pertaubatan seseorang telah diterima dan bahwa ia tidak akan dihukum karena dosa-dosanya. Jelas bahwa si pembunuh ini belum bertaubat secara resmi (dengan berdoa atau melakukan tindakan ibadah lainnya). Ia tampaknya masih dalam proses mencari tempat di mana ia akan belajar bagaimana bisa bertaubat secara formal dan menjadi orang beriman yang akan beribadah dan menyembah Tuhan dengan cara yang benar. Namun demikian, ia masih menerima pengampunan dari Tuhan sehingga tidak akan dihukum atas semua dosanya yang sangat serius.
Di sisi lain, Nabi Adam yang “hanya makan sepotong buah” memang bertaubat secara resmi (dengan mengucapkan doa yang diajarkan kepadanya oleh Tuhan) dan taubatnya diterima, sehingga ia diampuni, tapi dia masih dihukum dengan dikeluarkan dari surga. Dan kemudian Iblis, yang “hanya berdebat dengan Allah”, tidak bertaubat dan tidak mau bertaubat, dan tidak diampuni sama sekali. Iblis menerima hukuman paling keras dari ketiga kasus yang disebutkan karena dia menjadi yang pertama dan satu-satunya makhluk yang dikutuk oleh Allah untuk selama-lamanya.
Ketiga kasus terpisah ini, sekarang dibagi menjadi dua kategori yang berbeda. Di satu sisi, ada seorang pembunuh yang dosa-dosanya diampuni dan tidak menerima hukuman apa pun. Di sisi yang lain, ada Nabi Adam dan Iblis yang masing-masing menerima hukuman atas satu perbuatan dosa yang mereka lakukan, meskipun dosa mereka itu sepertinya tidak seberat dosa membunuh manusia yang lain.
Jika kita ingin mencari satu alasan logis mengapa kita tidak bisa melihat Allah di bumi ini, maka saya pikir alasan itu dapat ditemukan dengan membandingkan kedua kategori ini. Kita perlu menemukan satu alasan mengapa seorang pembunuh dapat terbebas dari hukuman setelah membunuh 100 orang, sementara Nabi Adam dan Iblis yang masing-masing hanya melakukan satu perbuatan dosa tetap mendapatkan hukuman dari Allah.
9.4.Hikmah Bagi Kita Bila Tuhan Tidak Nampak
Saya ingin bertanya: kenapa Nabi Adam dihukum, Iblis dihukum, tetapi seorang pembunuh yang telah membunuh 100 orang tidak dihukum? Perbedaannya hanya satu; si pembunuh itu tidak memiliki bukti bahwa Tuhan benar-benar ada! Dia tidak pernah melihat Allah atau berbicara dengan-Nya. Sebaliknya, Nabi Adam dan Iblis memang berbicara dengan Allah. Pembunuh itu percaya kepada Tuhan hanya berdasarkan pada keimanan, yang berarti dia percaya ada Tuhan Yang Maha Esa yang mau mengampuni semua dosanya, walaupun tidak melihat (dan tentu saja tidak bicara dengan Tuhan).
Apakah Adam dan Iblis percaya kepada Allah karena mereka melihatnya? Secara teoritis, kita bisa berargumentasi bahwa ada kemungkinan Adam dan Iblis melihat Allah dengan matanya dan oleh karena itu mereka tahu Tuhan itu ada. Tapi kita tidak menemukan ayat-ayat dalam Al-Qur’an yang secara jelas menyatakan bahwa Adam atau Iblis bisa melihat Allah. Mungkin mereka bisa melihat-Nya, mungkin juga tidak. Kita tidak tahu. Tapi yang kita tahu secara pasti adalah bahwa mereka berbicara dengan Tuhan, sehingga mereka tahu bahwa Dia benar-benar ada dan memiliki kekuasaan mutlak atas mereka.
Seperti Musa, Nabi Muhammad S.A.W. tidak melihat Allah dengan matanya (di dunia ini) karena ada hadits (riwayat) yang menyatakan bahwa Nabi Muhammad S.A.W. juga tidak pernah melihat Allah:
Diriwayatkan oleh Abu Dhar: Aku bertanya kepada Rasulullah S.A.W., “Apakah engkau melihat Rabb-mu?” Beliau S.A.W. menjawab, “Cahaya, bagaimana aku melihatnya?” (HR. Muslim)
Diriwayatkan oleh Masruq: Saya sedang istirahat di rumah A’ishah ketika dia mengatakan: “Wahai Abu A’ishah [nama kehormatan untuk Masruq], ada tiga perkara yang, bilamana ada seseorang yang membenarkannya, maka dia telah berbuat kebohongan terbesar terhadap Allah.” Saya bertanya apakah tiga perkara itu. Dia menyatakan: “Dia yang menganggap bahwa Muhammad S.A.W. melihat Tuhannya (dengan penglihatan matanya) telah berbuat kebohongan terbesar terhadap Allah…” (HR. Muslim)
Jika Nabi Musa dan Nabi Muhammad S.A.W. tidak pernah melihat Tuhan di bumi ini, maka mungkin Adam dan Iblis juga tidak mampu atau tidak diizinkan untuk melihat Allah pada saat mereka berada di surga dulu. Namun sangat jelas bahwa Adam dan Iblis (serta Musa dan Muhammad S.A.W.) melakukan dialog langsung dengan Tuhan. Dalam QS. Al-A’raf 7:22-23, Nabi Adam berbicara langsung dengan Allah untuk mohon ampun kepada-Nya atas kesalahannya memakan buah terlarang. Di dalam QS. Al-A’raf 7:11-16 juga terdapat dialog antara Allah SWT dan Iblis.
Oleh karena Nabi Adam dan Iblis pernah berdialog secara langsung dengan Allah, maka jelaslah bahwa mereka tidak ragu Tuhan itu ada. Mereka percaya kepada Allah bukan berdasarkan keyakinan atau keimanan saja; mereka percaya kepada Allah karena mereka telah mendapatkan bukti bahwa Allah Yang Maha Esa memang ada. Pengetahuan ini menempatkan mereka pada posisi yang sangat istimewa dan mungkin bisa membuat kita iri. Tetapi, kita juga harus melihat konsekuensi yang timbul dari keistimewaan ini. Nabi Adam dan Iblis menyadari Allah memang adalah Pencipta mereka karena mereka berdialog dengan Dia, dan tetap saja keduanya tidak patuh pada-Nya. Nabi Adam mengakui kesalahannya dan dikeluarkan dari surga sebagai hukumannya. Sementara Iblis memilih untuk tidak mengakui kesalahannya dan tidak meminta ampun sehingga ia dikutuk sampai akhir zaman.
Sebagai perbandingan, si pembunuh 100 orang berada dalam posisi yang lebih baik dalam hal ampunan. Dia percaya kepada ampunan Allah berdasarkan keimanan semata, bukan karena ada bukti nyata di depan mata bahwa Allah memang ada. Hal ini membuka kemungkinan dan kesempatan yang lebih besar bagi dia untuk mendapatkan ampunan atas dosa-dosa yang diperbuatnya. Sepanjang hidupnya, si pembunuh tidak mengenal Tuhan dan juga mungkin dia tidak percaya pada Tuhan. Dia melakukan kejahatan karena dia tidak menyadari keberadaan Tuhan atau tidak tahu apa yang Sang Pencipta inginkan darinya. Ketika akhirnya dia menjadi percaya (semata-mata berdasarkan keimanannya) dia meyakini bahwa Tuhan Yang Maha Kuasa akan menerima taubatnya dan mengampuni segala dosanya. Dia tidak melihat Tuhan atau pun berbicara dengan-Nya. Mungkin sebagai hasil dari “keimanannya” itu, dia menemukan Allah sebagai Sang Maha Pengampun.
Tidak ada jaminan bila kita dapat melihat Allah, maka kita akan setuju untuk menyembah-Nya. Belum tentu kita akan serta-merta setia pada-Nya hanya karena melihat-Nya dan mengetahui bahwa Tuhan memang ada. Sebagai contoh, Iblis juga mengetahui bahwa Allah ada, tetapi dia tidak setia dan tidak mau beribadah kepada-Nya. Jika kita bisa melihat Allah, ada kemungkinan kita akan seperti Iblis (membantah Allah), dan akibatnya, kesempatan untuk mendapat pengampunan atas dosa-dosa kita akan menjadi kecil sekali.
Jika analisis ini benar, maka melihat Allah dengan mata kita, atau bahkan hanya berbicara dengan-Nya, nampaknya menjadi sesuatu yang terlalu sulit untuk dihadapi oleh manusia biasa di dunia ini. Jika seandainya kita bisa melihat-Nya, mungkin kita akan menghadapi masalah yang sangat besar sebagai akibat dari satu dosa saja, atau hanya satu kali berdebat dengan Tuhan, dan mungkin kita akan berharap tidak pernah bisa melihat Allah dari awalnya.
Saat masih kecil, saya ingin sekali melihat Tuhan sebagai bukti bahwa Tuhan itu nyata, dan tampaknya saya bukanlah satu-satunya orang yang ingin melihat Tuhan secara langsung. Orang-orang yang tidak beriman yang menolak Nabi Muhammad S.A.W. juga menuntut hal yang sama:
90. Dan mereka berkata: “Kami sekali-kali tidak percaya kepadamu hingga kamu memancarkan mata air dan bumi untuk kami,
91. atau kamu mempunyai sebuah kebun korma dan anggur, lalu kamu alirkan sungai-sungai di celah kebun yang deras alirannya,
92. atau kamu jatuhkan langit berkeping-keping atas kami, sebagaimana kamu katakan atau kamu datangkan Allah dan malaikat-malaikat berhadapan muka dengan kami.
93. Atau kamu mempunyai sebuah rumah dari emas, atau kamu naik ke langit. Dan kami sekali-kali tidak akan mempercayai kenaikanmu itu hingga kamu turunkan atas kami sebuah kitab yang kami baca.” Katakanlah: “Maha Suci Tuhanku, bukankah aku ini hanya seorang manusia yang menjadi rasul?”
(QS. Al-Isra 17:90-93)
Seandainya keinginan saya sewaktu kecil terwujud, dan saya sudah pernah melihat Allah (setelah Dia menampakkan Diri), atau setidaknya saya telah mendengar Suara-Nya, maka barangkali saya sudah menjadi seorang manusia yang masuk ke dalam kategori yang sama dengan Nabi Adam dan Iblis. Masuk ke dalam kategori itu mengandung konsekuensi yang sangat jelas: sekali berbuat salah, langsung kena hukuman berat. Sebagai seorang manusia biasa, saya melakukan dosa terus-menerus, dan dosa saya bertambah setiap saat, tanpa terasa. Kalau saya masuk kategori Nabi Adam, tampaknya belum tentu saya masih bisa hidup sampai sekarang ini tanpa menghadapi masalah besar; sudah pasti saya telah dijatuhi hukuman berat disebabkan dosa-dosa yang telah saya perbuat.
Masalah lainnya adalah jika saya masuk ke dalam kategori Nabi Adam dan Iblis, lalu Allah menjadi marah kepada saya disebabkan dosa pertama saya (atau pada pertama kali saya tidak menuruti perintah-Nya), apakah saya akan berbuat sama seperti Nabi Adam yang langsung bertaubat dan mohon ampunan? Atau apakah saya akan lebih mirip dengan Iblis dan melakukan protes? Kalau saya mengikuti sikap sombong Iblis, akankah hukuman yang saya terima sama dengan hukuman yang dijatuhkan kepada Iblis? Dilaknat sampai hari kiamat?
Kita semua sibuk mengumpulkan dosa setiap hari, tetapi berapa banyak dari kita yang bertaubat setiap hari? Bayangkan: sekali berbohong, sekali mengingkari janji, sekali mengambil sesuatu tanpa hak, sekali memfitnah orang, atau sekali melakukan sesuatu yang tidak diridhoi Allah. Bukankah itu sudah cukup untuk membuat kita terkena masalah? Jika kita bisa melihat Allah dan mendengar Suara-Nya setiap waktu, kita tidak bisa berpura-pura tidak tahu bahwa Allah memang ada. Apakah kita masih ingin melihat Allah di muka bumi ini (pada waktu keimanan kita masih diuji) jika hal itu berarti kita akan segera mendapatkan hukuman yang keras atas satu dosa saja yang kita perbuat?
Kalau kita membandingkan kasus Nabi Adam, Iblis, dan si pembunuh, nampaknya jika kita tidak bisa melihat Allah dan tidak dapat berbicara secara langsung dengan-Nya, maka kita ada di posisi yang lebih baik dibandingkan mereka yang diizinkan berbicara dengan-Nya. Sepertinya, Allah lebih mengampuni orang yang hanya sebatas percaya kepada-Nya daripada orang yang mengetahui bahwa Allah benar-benar ada (karena pernah mendapatkan bukti nyata). Kalau ada seseorang yang pernah berbicara dengan Allah, berarti orang itu sudah mengetahui Kebesaran dan Keesaan Allah. Orang itu sudah tidak punya alasan lagi untuk tidak menuruti Perintah Allah. Dan selanjutnya, orang itu juga akan mendapatkan kemurkaan yang lebih besar ketika melakukan satu dosa, dibanding mereka yang hanya percaya pada Allah karena keimanannya.
Jika kita beriman walaupun belum pernah melihat Allah atau mendengarkan suara-Nya, maka kita masih bisa membuat alasan atas perbuatan-perbuatan kita yang kurang baik: saya lupa, saya sibuk, saya bingung, terlalu sulit bagi saya, sedang hujan, nanti saja, dan seterusnya. Dan kita tetap mendapatkan pengampunan yang tidak terbatas di sisi Tuhan kita, Allah Yang Maha Pengampun lagi Maha Penyayang, asalkan kita percaya hanya kepada-Nya.
53. Katakanlah: “Hai hamba-hamba-Ku yang melampaui batas terhadap diri mereka sendiri, janganlah kamu berputus asa dari rahmat Allah. Sesungguhnya Allah mengampuni dosa-dosa semuanya. Sesungguhnya Dialah Yang Maha Pengampun lagi Maha Penyayang.
(QS. Az-Zumar 39:53)
Tapi meskipun kita tidak diizinkan melihat Allah di saat kita berada di bumi, tidak ada keraguan bahwa kita akan diizinkan untuk melihat-Nya nanti di Hari Kebangkitan. Bagi orang-orang yang telah menghabiskan hidup mereka dengan percaya kepada-Nya, ini akan menjadi pertemuan yang indah. Ketika kita melihat Allah SWT, kita akan melihat Tuhan Yang Maha Esa yang telah kita imani sepanjang hidup kita. Tetapi bagi mereka yang telah menghabiskan kehidupan mereka sebagai orang-orang yang tidak beriman, ini akan menjadi awal dari waktu penyesalan yang sangat panjang, yang akan berlangsung selama-lamanya.
Diriwayatkan oleh Abu Said Al-Khudri: Pada masa Rasulullah, beberapa orang berkata: “Wahai Rasulullah (Muhammad S.A.W.)! Apakah kita akan melihat Rabb kita pada hari kiamat?” “Nabi berkata, “Ya; apakah kamu memiliki kesulitan dalam melihat matahari di tengah hari yang cerah dan tidak ada awan di langit?” Mereka menjawab, “Tidak.” Rasululah berkata, “Apakah kamu memiliki kesulitan dalam melihat bulan pada malam bulan purnama ketika cerah dan tidak ada awan di langit?” Mereka menjawab, “Tidak.” Rasulullah bersabda, “(Begitu juga) kamu tidak akan memiliki kesulitan dalam melihat Allah pada Hari Kebangkitan seperti halnya kamu tidak memiliki kesulitan dalam melihat keduanya [matahari dan bulan]. [...]” (HR. Bukhari)
Setelah membandingkan kasus Nabi Adam, Iblis dan manusia yang membunuh 100 orang, menjadi jelas sekali bahwa kenyataan kita tidak bisa melihat Allah merupakan suatu nikmat dan rahmat besar bagi kita sebagai manusia biasa yang banyak berbuat dosa setiap hari. Sebab, kalau kita bisa melihat Allah, ada kemungkinan bahwa sanksinya akan sangat berat. Barangkali kesempatan kita untuk berbuat dosa hanya satu kali saja, dan setelah itu kita akan dihukum dengan hukuman yang terasa sangat berat bagi kita. Justru karena Allah menyayangi kita, maka Dia tidak menampakkan Diri kepada kita dan tidak pernah berbicara langsung kepada kita. Ini adalah tempat di mana iman kita kepada-Nya sedang diuji, dan untuk membuatnya lebih mudah bagi kita untuk lulus tes ini, maka Dia tidak akan menunjukkan diri-Nya kepada kita untuk saat ini. Dan karena kita tidak dapat melihat-Nya atau mendengar suara-Nya, maka kita tidak punya pilihan selain untuk percaya kepada-Nya berdasarkan keimanan kita. Dengan demikian, dosa kita yang sungguh banyak bisa terus diampuni dan Dia selalu memberikan kita sebuah kesempatan baru untuk memperbaiki diri. Selama kita masih percaya kepada-Nya!
21. Berkatalah orang-orang yang tidak menanti-nanti pertemuan (nya) dengan Kami: “Mengapakah tidak diturunkan kepada kita malaikat atau (mengapa) kita (tidak) melihat Tuhan kita?” Sesungguhnya mereka memandang besar tentang diri mereka dan mereka benar-benar telah melampaui batas (dalam melakukan) kezaliman.
(QS. Al-Furqan 25:21)
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Dua Bab Dari Buku Saya
Dua bab dari buku saya ada di Blog dalam bahasa Indonesia dan bahasa Inggris. Insya Allah buku pertama ini akan disebarkan ke seluruh dunia dalam berbagai bahasa. Semoga bermanfaat.
Mencari Tuhan, Menemukan Allah
Bab 1: Tentang Saya
http://genenetto.blogspot.com/2006/04/saya.html
Bab 2: Ingin Melihat Tuhan
http://genenetto.blogspot.com/2006/04/ingin-melihat-tuhan.html
Searching For God and Finding Allah
Chapter 1: About Me
http://genenetto.blogspot.com/2007/07/about-me.html
Chapter 2: Wanting To See God
http://genenetto.blogspot.com/2007/07/wanting-to-see-god.html
07 April, 2006
The Prophet of Islam - His Biography
I found this on a website. It's short, clear and accurate. It gives a brief history of the Prophet Muhammad and the early development of Islam.
I just wanted to show that Muhammad and Islam are not quite as portrayed in the western media.
I was surprised to read that during all of the Islamic "wars" that only a few hundred non-Muslims were killed.
The Prophet of Islam - His Biography
[Taken from Introduction to Islam by Muhammad Hamidullah (Centre Culturel Islamique, Paris, 1969), with some changes to make it more readable. The changes are marked by pairs of brackets like around this paragraph. Dr. Hamidullah's present address is: 10 E. South Street, Apt 130, Wilkes Barre PA, 18701,
IN the annals of men, individuals have not been lacking who conspicuously devoted their lives to the socio-religious reform of their connected peoples. We find them in every epoch and in all lands. In
2. Two points are to note: Firstly these reformers claimed in general to be the bearers each of a Divine mission, and they left behind them sacred books incorporating codes of life for the guidance of their peoples. Secondly there followed fratricidal wars, and massacres and genocides became the order of the day, causing more or less a complete loss of these Divine messages. As to the books of Abraham, we know them only by the name; and as for the books of Moses, records tell us how they were repeatedly destroyed and only partly restored.
Concept of God
3. If one should judge from the relics of the past already brought to light of the homo sapiens, one finds that man has always been conscious of the existence of a Supreme Being, the Master and Creator of all. Methods and approaches may have differed, but the people of every epoch have left proofs of their attempts to obey God. Communication with the Omnipresent yet invisible God has also been recognised as possible in connection with a small fraction of men with noble and exalted spirits. Whether this communication assumed the nature of an incarnation of the Divinity or simply resolved itself into a medium of reception of Divine messages (through inspiration or revelation), the purpose in each case was the guidance of the people. It was but natural that the interpretations and explanations of certain systems should have proved more vital and convincing than others.
3/a. Every system of metaphysical thought develops its own terminology. In the course of time terms acquire a significance hardly contained in the word and translations fall short of their purpose. Yet there is no other method to make people of one group understand the thoughts of another. Non-Muslim readers in particular are requested to bear in mind this aspect which is a real yet unavoidable handicap.
4. By the end of the 6th century, after the birth of Jesus Christ, men had already made great progress in diverse walks of life. At that time there were some religions which openly proclaimed that they were reserved for definite races and groups of men only, of course they bore no remedy for the ills of humanity at large. There were also a few which claimed universality, but declared that the salvation of man lay in the renunciation of the world. These were the religions for the elite, and catered for an extremely limited number of men. We need not speak of regions where there existed no religion at all, where atheism and materialism reigned supreme, where the thought was solely of occupying one self with one's own pleasures, without any regard or consideration for the rights of others.
5. A perusal of the map of the major hemisphere (from the point of view of the proportion of land to sea), shows the Arabian Peninsula lying at the confluence of the three great continents of Asia, Africa and
6. We do not know much about the Libyanites of Central Arabia, but
7. In this limited area of
Religion
8. From the point of view of religion,
Society
9. In spite of the comparative poverty in natural resources,
Birth of the Prophet
10. It was in the midst of such conditions and environments that Muhammad was born in 569 after Christ. His father, 'Abdullah had died some weeks earlier, and it was his grandfather who took him in charge. According to the prevailing custom, the child was entrusted to a Bedouin foster-mother, with whom he passed several years in the desert. All biographers state that the infant prophet sucked only one breast of his foster-mother, leaving the other for the sustenance of his foster-brother. When the child was brought back home, his mother, Aminah, took him to his maternal uncles at Madinah to visit the tomb of 'Abdullah. During the return journey, he lost his mother who died a sudden death. At
11. Young Muhammad had therefore to start immediately to earn his livelihood; he served as a shepherd boy to some neighbours. At the age of ten he accompanied his uncle to
12. By the time he was twenty-five, Muhammad had become well known in the city for the integrity of his disposition and the honesty of his character. A rich widow, Khadijah, took him in her employ and consigned to him her goods to be taken for sale to
An Order of Chivalry
13. Foreign traders often brought their goods to
Beginning of Religious Consciousness
14. Not much is known about the religious practices of Muhammad until he was thirty-five years old, except that he had never worshipped idols. This is substantiated by all his biographers. It may be stated that there were a few others in
15. About the year 605 of the Christian era, the draperies on the outer wall of the Ka'bah took fire. The building was affected and could not bear the brunt of the torrential rains that followed. The reconstruction of the Ka'bah was thereupon undertaken. Each citizen contributed according to his means; and only the gifts of honest gains were accepted. Everybody participated in the work of construction, and Muhammad's shoulders were injured in the course of transporting stones. To identify the place whence the ritual of circumambulation began, there had been set a black stone in the wall of the Ka'bah. dating probably from the time of Abraham himself. There was rivalry among the citizens for obtaining the honour of transposing this stone in its place. When there was danger of blood being shed, somebody suggested leaving the matter to
16. It is from this moment that we find Muhammad becoming more and more absorbed in spiritual meditations. Like his grandfather, he used to retire during the whole month of Ramadan to a cave in Jabal-an-Nur (mountain of light). The cave is called `Ghar-i-Hira' or the cave of research. There he prayed, meditated, and shared his meagre provisions with the travellers who happened to pass by.
Revelation
17. He was forty years old, and it was the fifth consecutive year since his annual retreats, when one night towards the end of the month of Ramadan, an angel came to visit him, and announced that God had chosen him as His messenger to all mankind. The angel taught him the mode of ablutions, the way of worshipping God and the conduct of prayer. He communicated to him the following Divine message:
| With the name of God, the Most Merciful, the All-Merciful. |
18. Deeply affected, he returned home and related to his wife what had happened, expressing his fears that it might have been something diabolic or the action of evil spirits. She consoled him, saying that he had always been a man of charity and generosity, helping the poor, the orphans, the widows and the needy, and assured him that God would protect him against all evil.
19. Then came a pause in revelation, extending over three years. The Prophet must have felt at first a shock, then a calm, an ardent desire, and after a period of waiting, a growing impatience or nostalgia. The news of the first vision had spread and at the pause the sceptics in the city had begun to mock at him and cut bitter jokes. They went so far as to say that God had forsaken him.
20. During the three years of waiting. the Prophet had given himself up more and more to prayers and to spiritual practices. The revelations were then resumed and God assured him that He had not at all forsaken him: on the contrary it was He Who had guided him to the right path: therefore he should take care of the orphans and the destitute, and proclaim the bounty of God on him (cf. Q. 93:3-11). This was in reality an order to preach. Another revelation directed him to warn people against evil practices, to exhort them to worship none but the One God, and to abandon everything that would displease God (Q. 74:2-7). Yet another revelation commanded him to warn his own near relatives (Q. 26:214); and: "Proclaim openly that which thou art commanded, and withdraw from the Associators (idolaters). Lo! we defend thee from the scoffers" (15:94-5). According to Ibn Ishaq, the first revelation (n. 17) had come to the Prophet during his sleep, evidently to reduce the shock. Later revelations came in full wakefulness.
The Mission
21. The Prophet began by preaching his mission secretly first among his intimate friends, then among the members of his own tribe and thereafter publicly in the city and suburbs. He insisted on the belief in One Transcendent God, in Resurrection and the Last Judgement. He invited men to charity and beneficence. He took necessary steps to preserve through writing the revelations he was receiving, and ordered his adherents also to learn them by heart. This continued all through his life, since the Quran was not revealed all at once, but in fragments as occasions arose.
22. The number of his adherents increased gradually, but with the denunciation of paganism, the opposition also grew intenser on the part of those who were firmly attached to their ancestral beliefs. This opposition degenerated in the course of time into physical torture of the Prophet and of those who had embraced his religion. These were stretched on burning sands, cauterized with red hot iron and imprisoned with chains on their feet. Some of them died of the effects of torture, but none would renounce his religion. In despair, the Prophet Muhammad advised his companions to quit their native town and take refuge abroad, in Abyssinia, "where governs a just ruler, in whose realm nobody is oppressed" (Ibn Hisham). Dozens of Muslims profited by his advice, though not all. These secret flights led to further persecution of those who remained behind.
23. The Prophet Muhammad [was instructed to call this] religion "Islam," i.e. submission to the will of God. Its distinctive features are two:
|
| A harmonius equilibrium between the temporal and the spiritual (the body and the soul), permitting a full enjoyment of all the good that God has created, (Quran 7:32), enjoining at the same time on everybody duties towards God, such as worship, fasting, charity, etc. Islam was to be the religion of the masses and not merely of the elect. |
|
| A universality of the call - all the believers becoming brothers and equals without any distinction of class or race or tongue. The only superiority which it recognizes is a personal one, based on the greater fear of God and greater piety (Quran 49:13). |
Social Boycott
24. When a large number of the Meccan Muslims migrated to Abyssinia, the leaders of paganism sent an ultimatum to the tribe of the Prophet, demanding that he should be excommunicated and outlawed and delivered to the pagans for being put to death. Every member of the tribe, Muslim and non-Muslim rejected the demand. (cf. Ibn Hisham). Thereupon the city decided on a complete boycott of the tribe: Nobody was to talk to them or have commercial or matrimonial relations with them. The group of Arab tribes called Ahabish, inhabiting the suburbs, who were allies of the Meccans, also joined in the boycott, causing stark misery among the innocent victims consisting of children, men and women, the old and the sick and the feeble. Some of them succumbed yet nobody would hand over the Prophet to his persecutors. An uncle of the Prophet, Abu Lahab, however left his tribesmen and participated in the boycott along with the pagans. After three dire years, during which the victims were obliged to devour even crushed hides, four or five non-Muslims, more humane than the rest and belonging to different clans proclaimed publicly their denunciation of the unjust boycott. At the same time, the document promulgating the pact of boycott which had been hung in the temple, was found, as Muhammad had predicted, eaten by white ants, that spared nothing but the words God and Muhammad. The boycott was lifted, yet owing to the privations that were undergone the wife and Abu Talib, the chief of the tribe and uncle of the Prophet died soon after. Another uncle of the Prophet, Abu-Lahab, who was an inveterate enemy of Islam, now succeeded to the headship of the tribe. (cf. lbn Hisham, Sirah).
The Ascension
25. It was at thIs time that the Prophet Muhammad was granted the mi'raj (ascension): He saw in a vision that he was received on heaven by God, and was witness of the marvels of the celestial regions. Returning, he brought for his community, as a Divine gift, the [ritual prayer of Islam, the salaat], which constitutes a sort of communion between man and God. It may be recalled that in the last part of Muslim service of worship, the faithful employ as a symbol of their being in the very presence of God, not concrete objects as others do at the time of communion, but the very words of greeting exchanged between the Prophet Muhammad and God on the occasion of the former's mi'raj: "The blessed and pure greetings for God! - Peace be with thee, O Prophet, as well as the mercy and blessing of God! - Peace be with us and with all the [righteous] servants of God!" The Christian term "communion" implies participation in the Divinity. Finding it pretentious, Muslims use the term "ascension" towards God and reception in His presence, God remaining God and man remaining man and no confusion between the twain.
26. The news of this celestial meeting led to an increase in the hostility of the pagans of Mecca; and the Prophet was obliged to quit his native town in search of an asylum elsewhere. He went to his maternal uncles in Ta'if, but returned immediately to Mecca, as the wicked people of that town chased the Prophet out of their city by pelting stones on him and wounding him.
Migration to Madinah
27. The annual pilgrimage of the Ka'bah brought to Mecca people from all parts of Arabia. The Prophet Muhammad tried to persuade one tribe after another to afford him shelter and allow him to carry on his mission of reform. The contingents of fifteen tribes, whom he approached in succession, refused to do so more or less brutally, but he did not despair. Finally he met half a dozen inhabitants of Madinah who being neighbour of the Jews and the Christians, had some notion of prophets and Divine messages. They knew also that these "people of the Books" were awaiting the arrival of a prophet - a last comforter. So these Madinans decided not to lose the opportunity of obtaining an advance over others, and forthwith embraced Islam, promising further to provide additional adherents and necessary help from Madinah. The following year a dozen new Madinans took the oath of allegiance to him and requested him to provide with a missionary teacher. The work of the missionary, Mus'ab, proved very successful and he led a contingent of seventy-three new converts to Mecca, at the time of the pilgrimage. These invited the Prophet and his Meccan companions to migrate to their town, and promised to shelter the Prophet and to treat him and his companions as their own kith and kin. Secretly and in small groups, the greater part of the Muslims emigrated to Madinah. Upon this the pagans of Mecca not only confiscated the property of the evacuees, but devised a plot to assassinate the Prophet. It became now impossible for him to remain at home. It is worthy of mention, that in spite of their hostility to his mission, the pagans had unbounded confidence in his probity, so much so that many of them used to deposit their savings with him. The Prophet Muhammad now entrusted all these deposits to 'Ali, a cousin of his, with instructions to return in due course to the rightful owners. He then left the town secretly in the company of his faithful friend, Abu-Bakr. After several adventures, they succeeded in reaching Madinah in safety. This happened in 622, whence starts the Hijrah calendar.
Reorganization of the Community
28. For the better rehabilitation of the displaced immigrants, the Prophet created a fraternization between them and an equal number of well-to-do Madinans. The families of each pair of the contractual brothers worked together to earn their livelihood, and aided one another in the business of life.
29. Further he thought that the development of the man as a whole would be better achieved if he co-ordinated religion and politics as two constituent parts of one whole. To this end he invited the representatives of the Muslims as well as the non-Muslim inhabitants of the region: Arabs, Jews, Christians and others, and suggested the establishment of a City-State in Madinah. With their assent, he endowed the city with a written constitution - the first of its kind in the world - in which he defined the duties and rights both of the citizens and the head of the State - the Prophet Muhammad was unanimously hailed as such - and abolished the customary private justice. The administration of justice became henceforward the concern of the central organisation of the community of the citizens. The document laid down principles of defence and foreign policy: it organized a system of social insurance, called ma'aqil, in cases of too heavy obligations. It recognized that the Prophet Muhammad would have the final word in all differences, and that there was no limit to his power of legislation. It recognized also explicitly liberty of religion, particularly for the Jews, to whom the constitutional act afforded equality with Muslims in all that concerned life in this world (cf. infra n. 303).
30. Muhammad journeyed several times with a view to win the neighbouring tribes and to conclude with them treaties of alliance and mutual help. With their help, he decided to bring to bear economic pressure on the Meccan pagans, who had confiscated the property of the Muslim evacuees and also caused innumerable damage. Obstruction in the way of the Meccan caravans and their passage through the Madinan region exasperated the pagans, and a bloody struggle ensued.
31. In the concern for the material interests of the community, the spiritual aspect was never neglected. Hardly a year had passed after the migration to Madinah, when the most rigorous of spiritual disciplines, the fasting for the whole month of Ramadan every year, was imposed on every adult Muslim, man and woman.
Struggle Against Intolerance and Unbelief
32. Not content with the expulsion of the Muslim compatriots, the Meccans sent an ultimatum to the Madinans, demanding the surrender or at least the expulsion of Muhammad and his companions but evidently all such efforts proved in vain. A few months later, in the year 2 H., they sent a powerful army against the Prophet, who opposed them at Badr; and the pagans thrice as numerous as the Muslims, were routed. After a year of preparation, the Meccans again invaded Madinah to avenge the defeat of Badr. They were now four times as numerous as the Muslims. After a bloody encounter at Uhud, the enemy retired, the issue being indecisive. The mercenaries in the Meccan army did not want to take too much risk, or endanger their safety.
33. In the meanwhile the Jewish citizens of Madinah began to foment trouble. About the time of the victory of Badr, one of their leaders, Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf, proceeded to Mecca to give assurance of his alliance with the pagans, and to incite them to a war of revenge. After the battle of Uhud, the tribe of the same chieftain plotted to assassinate the Prophet by throwing on him a mill-stone from above a tower, when he had gone to visit their locality. In spite of all this, the only demand the Prophet made of the men of this tribe was to quit the Madinan region, taking with them all their properties, after selling their immovables and recovering their debts from the Muslims. The clemency thus extended had an effect contrary to what was hoped. The exiled not only contacted the Meccans, but also the tribes of the North, South and East of Madinah, mobilized military aid, and planned from Khaibar an invasion of Madinah, with forces four times more numerous than those employed at Uhud. The Muslims prepared for a siege, and dug a ditch to defend themselves against this hardest of all trials. Although the defection of the Jews still remaining inside Madinah at a later stage upset all strategy, yet with a sagacious diplomacy, the Prophet succeeded in breaking up the alliance, and the different enemy groups retired one after the other.
34. Alcoholic drinks, gambling and games of chance were at this time declared forbidden for the Muslims.
The Reconciliation
35. The Prophet tried once more to reconcile the Meccans and proceeded to Mecca. The barring of the route of their Northern caravans had ruined their economy. The Prophet promised them transit security, extradition of their fugitives and the fulfillment of every condition they desired, agreeing even to return to Madinah without accomplishing the pilgrimage of the Ka'bah. Thereupon the two contracting parties promised at Hudaibiyah in the suburbs of Mecca, not only the maintenance of peace, but also the observance of neutrality in their conflicts with third parties.
36. Profiting by the peace, the Prophet launched an intensive programme for the propagation of his religion. He addressed missionary letters to the foreign rulers of Byzantium, Iran, Abyssinia and other lands. The Byzantine autocrat priest - Dughatur of the Arabs - embraced Islam, but for this, was lynched by the Christian mob; the prefect of Ma'an (Palestine) suffered the same fate, and was decapitated and crucified by order of the emperor. A Muslim ambassador was assassinated in Syria-Palestine; and instead of punishing the culprit, the emperor Heraclius rushed with his armies to protect him against the punitive expedition sent by the Prophet (battle of Mu'tah).
37. The pagans of Mecca hoping to profit by the Muslim difficulties, violated the terms of their treaty. Upon this, the Prophet himself led an army, ten thousand strong, and surprised Mecca which he occupied in a bloodless manner. As a benevolent conqueror, he caused the vanquished people to assemble, reminded them of their ill deeds, their religious persecution, unjust confiscation of the evacuee property, ceaseless invasions and senseless hostilities for twenty years continuously. He asked them: "Now what do you expect of me?" When everybody lowered his head with shame, the Prophet proclaimed: "May God pardon you; go in peace; there shall be no responsibility on you today; you are free!" He even renounced the claim for the Muslim property confiscated by the pagans. This produced a great psychological change of hearts instantaneously. When a Meccan chief advanced with a fulsome heart towards the Prophet, after hearing this general amnesty, in order to declare his acceptance of Islam, the Prophet told him: "And in my turn, I appoint you the governor of Mecca!" Without leaving a single soldier in the conquered city, the Prophet retired to Madinah. The Islamization of Mecca, which was accomplished in a few hours, was complete.
38. Immediately after the occupation of Mecca, the city of Ta'if mobilized to fight against the Prophet. With some difficulty the enemy was dispersed in the valley of Hunain, but the Muslims preferred to raise the siege of nearby Ta'if and use pacific means to break the resistance of this region. Less than a year later, a delegation from Ta'if came to Madinah offering submission. But it requested exemption from prayer, taxes and military service, and the continuance of the liberty to adultery and fornication and alcoholic drinks. It demanded even the conservation of the temple of the idol al-Lat at Ta'if. But Islam was not a materialist immoral movement; and soon the delegation itself felt ashamed of its demands regarding prayer, adultery and wine. The Prophet consented to concede exemption from payment of taxes and rendering of military service; and added: You need not demolish the temple with your own hands: we shall send agents from here to do the job, and if there should be any consequences, which you are afraid of on account of your superstitions, it will be they who would suffer. This act of the Prophet shows what concessions could be given to new converts. The conversion of the Ta'ifites was so whole hearted that in a short while, they themselves renounced the contracted exemptions, and we find the Prophet nominating a tax collector in their locality as in other Islamic regions.
39. In all these "wars," extending over a period of ten years, the non-Muslims lost on the battlefield only about 250 persons killed, and the Muslim losses were even less. With these few incisions, the whole continent of Arabia, with its million and more of square miles, was cured of the abscess of anarchy and immorality. During these ten years of disinterested struggle, all the peoples of the Arabian Peninsula and the southern regions of Iraq and Palestine had voluntarily embraced Islam. Some Christian, Jewish and Parsi groups remained attached to their creeds, and they were granted liberty of conscience as well as judicial and juridical autonomy.
40. In the year 10 H., when the Prophet went to Mecca for Hajj (pilgrimage), he met 140,000 Muslims there, who had come from different parts of Arabia to fulfil their religious obligation. He addressed to them his celebrated sermon, in which he gave a resume of his teachings: "Belief in One God without images or symbols, equality of all the Believers without distinction of race or class, the superiority of individuals being based solely on piety; sanctity of life, property and honour; abolition of interest, and of vendettas and private justice; better treatment of women; obligatory inheritance and distribution of the property of deceased persons among near relatives of both sexes, and removal of the possibility of the cumulation of wealth in the hands of the few." The Quran and the conduct of the Prophet were to serve as the bases of law and a healthy criterion in every aspect of human life.
41. On his return to Madinah, he fell ill; and a few weeks later, when he breathed his last, he had the satisfaction that he had well accomplished the task which he had undertaken - to preach to the world the Divine message.
42. He bequeathed to posterity, a religion of pure monotheism; he created a well-disciplined State out of the existent chaos and gave peace in place of the war of everybody against everybody else; he established a harmonious equilibrium between the spiritual and the temporal, between the mosque and the citadel; he left a new system of law, which dispensed impartial justice, in which even the head of the State was as much a subject to it as any commoner, and in which religious tolerance was so great that non-Muslim inhabitants of Muslim countries equally enjoyed complete juridical, judicial and cultural autonomy. In the matter of the revenues of the State, the Quran fixed the principles of budgeting, and paid more thought to the poor than to anybody else. The revenues were declared to be in no wise the private property of the head of the State. Above all, the Prophet Muhammad set a noble example and fully practised all that he taught to others.
31 Similarities Between Hitler and President Bush
by Edward Jayne
Source: DissidentVoice.org
August 29, 2004
(revised from an earlier version posted March 29, 2003)
When President Bush decided to invade
Like Hitler, President Bush was not elected by a majority, but was forced to engage in political maneuvering in order to gain office.
1. Like Hitler, Bush began to curtail civil liberties in response to a well-publicized disaster, in Hitler's case the Reichstag fire, in Bush's case the 9-11 catastrophe.
2. Like Hitler, Bush went on to pursue a reckless foreign policy without the mandate of the electorate and despite the opposition of most foreign nations.
3. Like Hitler, Bush has increased his popularity with conservative voters by mounting an aggressive public relations campaign against foreign enemies. Just as Hitler cited international communism to justify
4. Like Hitler, Bush has promoted militarism in the midst of economic recession (or depression as it was called during the thirties). First he used war preparations to help subsidize defense industries (Halliburton, Bechtel, Carlyle Group, etc.) and presumably the rest of the economy on a trickle-down basis. Now he turns to the very same corporations to rebuild
5. Like Hitler, Bush displays great populist enthusiasm in his patriotic speeches, but primarily serves wealthy investors who subsidize his election campaigns and share with him their comfortable lifestyle. As he himself jokes, he treats these individuals at the pinnacle of our economy as his true political "base."
6. Like Hitler, Bush envisages our nation's unique historic destiny almost as a religious cause sanctioned by God. Just as Hitler did for
7. Like Hitler, Bush promotes a future world order that guarantees his own nation's hegemonic supremacy rather than cooperative harmony under the authority of the United Nations (or
8. Like Hitler, Bush quickly makes and breaks diplomatic ties, and he offers generous promises that he soon abandons, as in the cases of
9. Like Hitler, Bush scraps international treaties, most notably the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, the Biological Weapons Convention, the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, the Convention on the Prohibition of Land Mines, the Chemical Weapons Convention, the Kyoto Global Warming Accord, and the International Criminal Court.
10. Like Hitler, Bush repeats lies often enough that they come to be accepted as the truth. Bush and his spokesmen argued, for example, that they had taken every measure possible to avoid war, than an invasion of Iraq would diminish (not intensify) the terrorist threat against the U.S., that Iraq was linked with Al Qaeda, and that nothing whatsoever had been achieved by U.N. inspectors to warrant the postponement of U.S. invasion plans. All of this was false. They also insisted that
11. Like Hitler, Bush incessantly shifted his arguments to justify invading
12. Like Hitler, Bush and his cohorts emphasize the ruthlessness of their enemies in order to justify their own. Just as Hitler cited the threat of communist violence to justify even greater violence on the part of
13. Like Hitler, Bush takes pride in his status as a "War President," and his global ambition makes him perhaps the most dangerous president in our nation's history, a "rogue" chief executive capable of waging any number of illegal preemptive wars. He fully acknowledges his willingness to engage in wars of "choice" as well as wars of necessity. Sooner or later this choice will oblige universal conscription as well as a full-scale war economy.
14. Like Hitler, Bush continues to pursue war without cutting back on the peacetime economy. Additional to unprecedented low interest rates bestowed by the Federal Reserve, he has actually cut federal taxes twice by substantial amounts, especially for the top one percent of
15. Like Hitler, Bush possesses a war machine much bigger and more effective than the military capabilities of other nations. With the extra financing obliged by the defeat and occupation of Iraq, Bush now relies on a "defense" budget well in excess of the combined military expenditures of the rest of the world. Moreover, the $416 billion defense package passed last week by Congress will probably need to be supplemented before the end of the year.
16. Like Hitler, bush depends on an axis of collaborative allies, which he describes as a "coalition of the willing," in order to give the impression of a broad popular alliance. These allies include the
17. Like Hitler, Bush is willing to go to war over the objections of the U.N. (
18. Like Hitler, Bush launches unilateral invasions on a supposedly preemptive basis. Just as Hitler convinced the German public to think of Poland as a threat to Germany in 1939 (for example in his Sept. 19 speech), Bush wants Americans to think of Iraq as having been a "potential" threat to our national security--indeed as one of the instigators of the 9-11 attack despite a complete lack of evidence to support this claim.
19. Like Hitler, Bush depends on a military strategy that features a "shock and awe" blitzkrieg beginning with devastating air strikes, then an invasion led by heavy armored columns.
20. Like Hitler, Bush is willing to inflict high levels of bloodshed against enemy nations. Between 20,000 and (more probably) 37,000 are now estimated to have been killed, as much as a 40-1 kill ratio compared to the more than 900 Americans killed. In other words, for every
21. Like Hitler, Bush is perfectly willing to sacrifice life as part of his official duty. This would be indicated by the unprecedented number of prisoners executed during his service as governor of
22. Like Hitler, Bush began warfare on a single front (Al Qaeda quartered in Afghanistan), but then expanded it to a second front with Iraq, only to be confronted with North Korea and Iran as potential third and fourth fronts. Much the same thing happened to Hitler when he advanced German military operations from
23. Like Hitler, Bush has no qualms about imposing "regime change" by installing Quisling-style client governments backed by a
24. Like Hitler, Bush curtails civil liberties in captive nations and depends on detention centers (i.e., concentration camps) such as a
25. Like Hitler, Bush uses the threat of enemies abroad to stir the fearful allegiance of the
26. Like Hitler, Bush depends on a propaganda machine to guarantee sympathetic news management. In Hitler's case news coverage was totally dominated by Goebbels; in Bush's case reporters have been almost totally "imbedded" by both military spokesmen and wealthy media owners sympathetic with Bush. The most obvious case is the Fox news channel, owned and controlled by Rupert Murdoch. Not surprisingly, recent polls indicate that the majority of Fox viewers still think Hussein played a role in the 9-11 attack.
27. Like Hitler, Bush increasingly reduces the circle of aides he feels he can trust as his policies keep boomeranging at his own expense. Just as Hitler ended up isolated in his headquarters, with few individuals granted access, Bush is now said to be limiting access primarily to Attorney General Ashcroft (who also talks with God on a regular basis) as well as Karl Rove, the Vice President, Karen Hughes, and a few others. Both Secretary of State Powell and Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld are now said to be out of the loop.
28. Like Hitler, Bush has become obsessed with his vision of conflict between good (
29. Like Hitler, bush takes pleasure in the mythology of frontier justice. As a youth Hitler read and memorized the western novels of Karl May, and Bush retains into his maturity his fascination with simplistic cowboy values. He also exaggerates a cowboy twang despite his C-average elitist education at
30. Like Hitler, Bush misconstrues Darwinism, in Hitler's case by treating the Aryan race as being superior on an evolutionary basis, in Bush's case by rejecting science for fundamentalist creationism.
31. Of course countless differences may be listed between Hitler and President Bush, most of which are to the credit of Bush. Nevertheless, the resemblances listed here are striking, especially since Bush's first term in office must be compared with Hitler's performance as German Chancellor through the year 1937, preceding the chain of events immediately preceding World War II. In any case, George W. Bush seems the worst and most dangerous
Edward Jayne is a retired English professor with experience as a '60s activist. He can be contacted at: edward.jayne@wmich.edu.
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