Does Allah
Command Evil and Abomination or Doesn’t He?
The Quran says that Allah
doesn’t command indecency and abomination:
And whenever they commit
an indecency they say, 'We found our fathers practising it, and God
has commanded us to do it.' Say: 'God does not command indecency;
what, do you say concerning God such things as you know not?' S.
7:28
Surely God bids to justice
and good-doing and giving to kinsmen; and He forbids indecency,
dishonour, and insolence, admonishing you, so that haply you will
remember. S. 16:90
In fact, the Quran says it
is Satan who does:
O men, eat of what is in
the earth lawful and good; and follow not the steps of Satan; he is
a manifest foe to you. He only commands you to evil and indecency,
and that you should speak against God such things as you know not.
S. 2:168-169
Response:
Strange enough answering-islam
reject these verses on their site, by promoting islam as an religion
of terror and violence. Now when it suits them to make up a so
called quran contradiction they use these verse to support their
false claim, how funny.
The Quran further says
that Allah does not destroy any city unjustly:
That is because thy Lord
would never destroy the cities unjustly, while their inhabitants
were heedless. S. 6:131
Yet we are told elsewhere
that Allah does indeed command wickedness and indecency:
And when We desire to
destroy a city, WE COMMAND its men who live at ease, AND THEY
COMMIT UNGODLINESS therein, then the Word is realized against
it, and We destroy it utterly. S. 17:16
Carefully notice the
wording of the text; Allah commands and the people commit
ungodliness. In other words, it is Allah’s command that leads the
people to commit indecency which then results in their destruction!
Response:
Carefull reading leads to
another conclusion, what does Allah command in the quran?
Yes he commands : justice and
fairness.
Men who lived at easy were
given this command, yet they transgress in it and commited
ungodliness. The text doesn’t say god commands ‘ungodliness’ .
Egyptian Christian writer
and scholar, Dr. Labib Mikhail, commented on the theological
ramifications of the above text and shows how the literal meaning is
that Allah is commanding the people to commit evil in order to
destroy them:
I have to mention, as one
who mastered the Arabic as my first language and who has read the
different versions of the Koran, that some of who translated the
Koran into English were not honest; they tried to deceive the
English speaking reader. Here are a few examples of their deception.
(4) In Surat Al-Isra we
read this Arabic verse in the Koran, where Allah is saying:
Wa eza aradna an nohlika
kariatan amarna motrifiha fafasako feha fahaqa Alliah alkowl
fadamarnaha (Surat Al-Isra 17:16)
The correct translation of
this verse should be:
And when we (Allah) decide
to destroy a village, we send a definite command to those who lead a
life of luxury in it to commit lewdness, and thus the word of
torment is justified against them. Then we destroy it with complete
destruction.
Response:
Wa-itha aradna
an nuhlika qaryatan amarna mutrafeeha fafasaqoo feeha
fahaqqa AAalayha alqawlu fadammarnaha
tadmeeran
Let us look just for the sake
of argument look at the correct literal translation, and the
translations of the anti-islamic rodwell.
Translations:
Literal And if We
willed/wanted that (E) We destroy/perish a village/urban city, We
ordered/commanded its luxuriated ungrateful and arrogant, so they
debauched in it, so the saying/words was deserved on it, so We
destroyed it destructively.
Rodwell (a christian
referee who knew arabic)
And when we willed to
destroy a city, to its affluent ones did we address our bidding; but
when they acted criminally therein, just was its doom, and we
destroyed it with an utter destruction.
How strange that Rodwell a
christian who knew arabic didn’t translate the verse the same way
like those christians mentioned by sham shamoun. Perhaps Rodwell
knew that there is a
clear distinction between the logical meaning or the lexical
reference of a particular word, and between the types of associated
meaning (which i will proof in my next response) .
To check the other translations
of this verse visit:
http://www.answering-christianity.com/cgi-bin/quran/quran_search1.cgi?search_text=17%3A16&all=1&B1=Search
Not a single translator
translated the verse in the same way like those arabic christians
quoted by sham shamoun, which proofs their lack of islamic
knowledge.
This means that when Allah
wants to destroy a village that he will command the elite of that
town to commit gross sins. Then after that he will punish them
because they obeyed his commands. (Mikhail, Islam, Muhammad and the
Koran: A Documented Analysis [Blessed Hope Ministry, Springfield VA;
Second edition, Revised and Expanded 2002], pp. 111, 112-113;
online edition)
Another Christian writer, the late ‘Abdallah Abd al-‘Fadi, said in
reference to these passages:
Does
God desire to destroy the people he created? Would He really command
people who live at ease in a certain place to commit ungodliness, so
that they would be worthy of punishment, together with the poor who
live among them? Is this compatible with God’s justice, holiness and
faithfulness? How could anyone ascribe to God such infamy, injustice
and ungodliness?
Besides, the Qur’an contradicts this statement in many other places…
(Al-‘Fadi, Is the Qur’an Infallible? [Light of Life, P.O. Box 13,
A-9503 Villach, Austria], p. 131)
Response:
First: there is
a clear distinction between the logical meaning or the lexical
reference of a particular word, and between the types of associated.
Let’s take a look lexical reference of the word ‘amarna’ used in
verse 17:16 and the meaning of this verse explained by the sahaba in
authentic hadith:
Tafsir Ibn kathir verse 17:16
(16. And when We decide to destroy a town
(population), Amarna those who live luxuriously. Then, they
transgress therein, and thus the word (of torment) is justified
against it (them). Then We destroy it with complete
destruction.)
Meanings of Amarna
The commentators differed over the meaning of this word. It was
said that the phrase translated here as "Amarna those who live
luxuriously. Then, they transgress therein'' means, "We send
Our decree upon them'' as Allah says elsewhere:
(Our decree reaches it by night or by day) For [Amarna
cannot mean "Our command''] because Allah does not command or
enjoin immorality. Or, they said it means that Allah subjugated
them to commit immoral deeds, so they deserved the punishment.
Or it was said that it means: "We commanded them to obey Us,
but they committed immoral sins, so they deserved punishment.''
This was reported from Ibn Jurayj from Ibn `Abbas, and it is
also the view of Sa`id bin Jubayr.
(Amarna those who live luxuriously. Then, they transgress
therein,) `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn `Abbas said:
[this means] "We gave power to the evil people, so they
committed sin therein (in the town), and because they did that,
Allah destroyed them with the punishment.''
Source:
http://www.tafsir.com/default.asp?sid=17&tid=28754
Ibn Abbas explained the meaning
of ‘armana’ very well in ibn kathir’s tafsir:
We commanded them to obey Us, but they
committed immoral sins, so they deserved punishment.''
Meaning of the Holy Quran , Note 2192:
Allah’s mercy gives every change to the wicked to repent. When
wickedness gets so rampant that punishment becomes inevitable, even
then Allah’s Mercy and Justice act together. Those who are highly
gifted from Allah – it may be with wealth or position o rit may be
with talents and opportunities – are expected to understand and
obey. They are given a definite order and warning. If they still
transgress there is no further room for argument. They cannot plead
that they were ignorent. The command of the Lord is proved against
them, and its application is called for beyond doubt. Then it is
that their punishment is completed.
It is clear now what the meaning of armana is in
this verse, nowhere does the quran command evil. Nowhere does Allah
desire to destroy the people he created like those christians try to
claim. It;s their god in the bible who desires to kill unborn babies
with murder , by sending an invading army to their mothers ‘to rip
them open’ as a punishment for idol worshipping. In other words
their bible god desires to kill innocent unborn babies in an extreme
cruel way:
Read:
http://www.answering-christianity.com/karim/pregnant_women_ripped_open.htm
Al-‘Fadi proceeded to quote the very same texts cited above. Since
both these gentlemen are/were Arab Christians and know/knew Arabic,
one cannot accuse them of failing to understand or properly
exegeting the Arabic text of the Quran.
The
Quran does not provide specific examples of the particular sins or
ungodliness that Allah would command people to perform if he wants
to destroy a city. Nevertheless, the above is a clear contradiction
on an abstract level. Does God command indecency or does he not? The
Quran makes both statements.
Two
further observations:
First, one perverse consequence of S. 17:16 is that the people in
that city are ultimately punished and destroyed for obeying Allah’s
commands given to them, not for disobedience to the commands that
they had received.
Response:
These statements are desperate, false and not true.
Nowhere does the quran contradict itself, it never commands people
to commit ‘lewdness and/or ungodliness, which i have proven by
quoting authentic hadith from ibn kathir’s tafsir about this issue
in my previous response. Further arab christians are well known for
spreading lies about islam, it’s no surprise to see them making such
claims.
Second, looking at
the Torah in comparison to the Quran, there is at least one behavior
that the Holy God of the Bible has forbidden explicitly, which he
even called detestable, but which Allah has made an explicit command
for the Muslims. This is what the Bible says:
"If a man marries a woman
who becomes displeasing to him because he finds something indecent
about her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to
her and sends her from his house, and if after she leaves his house
she becomes the wife of another man, and her second husband dislikes
her and writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and
sends her from his house, or if he dies, then her first husband, who
divorced her, is not allowed to marry her again after she has been
defiled. That would be detestable in the eyes of the LORD. Do
not bring sin upon the land the LORD your God is giving you as an
inheritance." Deuteronomy 24:1-4
"God says, 'If a husband
divorces his wife and she goes from him and belongs to another man,
will he still return to her? Will not that land be completely
polluted? But you are a harlot with many lovers; Yet you turn to
Me,' declares the LORD. Lift up your eyes to the bare heights and
see; Where have you not been violated? By the roads you have sat for
them Like an Arab in the desert, And you have polluted
a land with your harlotry and with your wickedness." Jeremiah 3:1-2
Here, the God of the Holy
Bible prohibits a man from remarrying a divorcee who has remarried
and either been divorced again or widowed. Contrast this to the
following Quranic command:
Response:
This rule brings
a problem for true love. What if a man and women both discover
(after a second marriage with someone else after they were divorced
from each other) that they truly only love each other, and that no
other person could ever take his/her place. Sometimes people realize
this after they have been married to someone else, then they see how
valuable and special their previous partner was. To close the doors
for remarry one’s true love would be cruel and unjust, how can god
forbid those who love each other truly to remarry? Sham shamoun
proofs that the bible isn’t god’s true word, since a god is just and
fair, which can’t be found in his quoted biblical verses.
Divorce is twice; then
honourable retention or setting free kindly. It is not lawful for
you to take of what you have given them unless the couple fear they
may not maintain God's bounds; if you fear they may not maintain
God's bounds, it is no fault in them for her to redeem herself.
Those are God's bounds; do not transgress them. Whosoever
transgresses the bounds of God -- those are the evildoers. If
he divorces her finally, she shall not be lawful to him after that,
until she marries another husband. If he divorces her, then
it is no fault in them to return to each other, if they suppose that
they will maintain God's bounds. Those are God's bounds; He makes
them clear unto a people that have knowledge. S. 2:229-230
Response:
Allah swt is
just and fair, and gives true love a change to survive, instead of
closing it’s doors like the bible does.
Muslim tradition even goes so far as to say that the woman must
engage in sexual intercourse with the man before she can return to
her former husband:
Narrated 'Aisha:
Rifa'a Al-Qurazi divorced his wife irrevocably (i.e. that divorce
was the final). Later on 'Abdur-Rahman bin Az-Zubair married her
after him. She came to the Prophet and said, "O Allah's Apostle! I
was Rifa'a's wife and he divorced me thrice, and then I was married
to 'Abdur-Rahman bin AzZubair, who, by Allah has nothing with him
except something like this fringe, O Allah's Apostle," showing a
fringe she had taken from her covering sheet. Abu Bakr was sitting
with the Prophet while Khalid Ibn Said bin Al-As was sitting at the
gate of the room waiting for admission. Khalid started calling Abu
Bakr, "O Abu Bakr! Why don't you reprove this lady from what she is
openly saying before Allah's Apostle?" Allah's Apostle did nothing
except smiling, and then said (to the lady), "Perhaps you want to go
back to Rifa'a? No, (it is not possible), unless and until you
enjoy the sexual relation with him ('Abdur Rahman), and he enjoys
the sexual relation with you." (Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 8,
Book 73,
Number 107)
Yahya related to me from
Malik from al-Miswar ibn Rifaa al-Quradhi from az-Zubayr ibn Abd
ar-Rahman ibn az-Zubayr that Rifaa ibn Simwal divorced his wife,
Tamima bint Wahb, in the time of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah
bless him and grant him peace, three times. Then she married Abd
ar-Rahman ibn az-Zubayr and he turned from her and could not
consummate the marriage and so he parted from her. Rifaa wanted
to marry her again and it was mentioned to the Messenger of Allah,
may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and he forbade him to marry
her. He said, "She is not halal for you until she has tasted the
sweetness of intercourse." (Malik's Muwatta, Book 28,
Number 28.7.17)
Yahya related to me from
Malik from Yahya ibn Said from al-Qasim ibn Muhammad that A'isha,
the wife of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace,
said when asked whether it was permissible for a man to marry again
a wife he had divorced irrevocably if she had married another man
who divorced her before consummating the marriage, "Not until she
has tasted the sweetness of intercourse." (Malik's Muwatta, Book
28,
Number 28.7.18)
Response:
Divorce in islam
is not a light thing. In islam a husband and wife can divorce twice
from each other and then still turn back to each other by making
peace. So allah swt is fair and knows that humans can make mistakes
(regretting their divorce etc) , only after the third divorce, a
divorce is final. Since Allah swt has given them before two times
the option to turn back to each other, theres no way turning back
after the third pronounce of divorce. This to prevent husband and
wife viewing marriage as something not serious by divorcing and
turning back to each other over and over again, Allah swt forbids
the divorced couple to remarry again after they divorced for the
third time, which then is a definitive divorce. So the divorced
couple first have to try honestly a marriage with someone else, and
intercourse with someone else in another marriage since intercourse
stimulates love between a couple and is a fair try to a good
marriage. Only when a men or women have fairly tried to build up a
good marriage with someone else, only then when their marriage fails
, only then they can remarry again with their previous spouse. These
rules are fair and show that divorce is a not a thing to be viewed
in islam, in islam true love has always a change to survive, but
not in the bible (since divorced couples never get the change to
remarry, even when they find out they made a mistake by divorcing
each other, which is cruel in my eyes).
The man who makes the
woman lawful for her former husband is called Muhallil:
Yahya related to me from
Malik that he had heard that when asked whether it was permissible
for a man to return to his wife if he had divorced her irrevocably
and then another man had married her after him and died before
consummating the marriage, al-Qasim ibn Muhammad said, "It is not
halal for the first husband to return to her."
Malik said, about the
muhallil, that he could not remain in the marriage until he
undertook a new marriage. If he had intercourse with her in that
marriage, she had her dowry.
(Malik's Muwatta, Book 28,
Number 28.7.19)
Allah calls permissible
what Yahweh calls shameful and abominable.
Response:
You mean Allah
swt is just and mercifull and give true love a change to surive and
return back, Yahweh forbids divorced couplet o remarry again, even
these couples really love each other and found out that they made a
big mistake by divorcing each other, which is common by many humans,
Yahweh sadly closes all the doors for true love to survive. In the
new testament divorce is forbidden, so a couple that finds out after
some weeks that they really don’t belong to each other can’t
divorce, but have to stick together unhappy with each other for the
rest of their life.
Matthew 19:4-9: No divorce, except for
fornication:
"...Have ye not read, that he which made
them at the beginning made them male and female, And said, For this
cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his
wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more
twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let
not man put asunder. They say unto him, Why did Moses then command
to give a writing of divorcement, and to put her away? He saith unto
them, Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to
put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. And I say
unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for
fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and whoso
marrieth her which is put away doth commit adultery."
Here is another instance of Allah permitting indecency, lewdness:
Permitted to you, upon the
night of the Fast, is to go in to (alrrafathu) your wives; --
they are a vestment for you, and you are a vestment for them. God
knows that you have been betraying yourselves, and has turned to you
and pardoned you. So now lie with them, and seek what God has
prescribed for you. And eat and drink, until the white thread shows
clearly to you from the black thread at the dawn; then complete the
Fast unto the night, and do not lie with them while you cleave to
the mosques. Those are God's bounds; keep well within them. So God
makes clear His signs to men; haply they will be godfearing. S.
2:187
The word alrrafathu, which
comes from rafath, refers to obscene, immoral behaviour and conduct.
The word is used in this manner in the following citation:
Response:
Rafath can mean
many things, like obscene, inmodest, nasty speech, unseemly,
nonsensical and unnecessary
speech. These last three meanings
apply to the meaning of rafath in verse 2:187
Notition:
The ulama have explained
that the word ‘Rafath’ includes every single form of words which
are unseemly, nonsensical and unnecessary.
Source:
Virtues of Hajj By: Shaikhul Hadeeth Maulana
Mohammad Zakariyyah
(R.A.)
------------------------------------------------------
Made permitted for ye, on
the night of the fast, is ‘it' unto your wives;...
Those who are fasting are permitted upon the night of the fast –
that is, the night of the morrow when the fast is to begin – to make
love with their wives. ‘It' is given for al-rafath, a
word used for anything not spoken about. It is narrated from
Imam al-S?diq, bliss be upon him, concerning the
circumstances of this ?yah, that during the nights of the
month of Ramaž?n it was forbidden to eat during the night after
sleep, while ‘relations' were forbidden night and day during the
month of Ramaž?n. A man from amongst the companions of the
Messenger, Allah's bliss be upon him and his house, who was
called Mut'im ibn Jubayr, brother of ‘Abd Allah ibn Jubayr who was
the man who had been appointed by the Messenger, may Allah
condescend upon him and his House, to guard the mouth of the
valley at Uhad with fifty archers, but who had been deserted by his
men and remained amongst twelve, all of whom had been killed at the
mouth of the valley. His brother, the said Mut'im ibn Jubayr, was
old and weak; fasting one day his household brought him his food,
but he slept before he ate it. When he awoke he said to his
household that he was forbidden from eating that night. So in the
morning while he was present fortifying the defensive ditch
(khandaq) around the city, he fainted. The Messenger, may
Allah condescend upon him and his House, saw this and had pity
on him. At the same time, a group of the young men would secretly
have relations at night during the month of Ramaž?n. Therefore Allah
sent down this portent, permitting relations during the nights of
the month of Ramaž?n, and eating after sleep until the break of
dawn.
(source:
http://www.shirazi.org.uk/002%20al-baqara.htm)
Simple, the verse says permitted to you
on the night of fasts is ‘the thing were not should be spoken about
during ramadan’ . "Rafath" includes every single form of word which
is unseemly, nonsensical and unnecessary to such an extent that even
the mention of sexual relations with ones wife is also included. In
ramadan muslims have to fast from morning till sun sets down. During
this time muslims must abstain from eating, drinking and sex.
Fasting is a spiritual exercise and it brings about spiritual
awakening in man. A man is required to abstain from satisfying the
natural desires of hunger and thirst and to suffer certain
privations, not because there is any harm or any moral delinquency
in doing so, but simply because he believes that it is the
commandment of God that he should abstain. As the Prophet said: “He
gives up his food and his drink and his sexual desire
for My sake: Fasting is
for Me” (B.
30:2). This undoubtedly awakens a living consciousness of the
existence of God in the mind. This is the idea underlying the words:
My servants ask theeconcerning Me.
A real and earnest search for God is raised in the mind through
fasting. Therefor it would be unseemly, nonsensical and unnecessary
(rafath) to talk about sex during ramadan (this could
also temptate muslim to commit sexual intercourse during day time,
which would break the fast and be a sin) . In the beginning of Islam
no sex was allowed during the month ramadan , however some muslims
secretly perform sexual intercourse with their wifes at night,
because it was very hard to abstain from sex whole days, therefore
as a mercy allah swt send down a revelation, in which allah swt
says ‘permitted during the night of fasts is rafath (to commit that
thing which is unseemly, nonsensical and unnecessary to talk about
during fasting in the holy month, which is sex) .Immediatly
after this allah swt describes the reason for this permission (to
perform sexual intercourse during the nights of ramadan) in a
most beautiful metaphor:
“They are your garments and ye are their
garments..” ( Quran 2:187)
Just as a garment hides our nakedness, so do husband and wife, by
entering into the relationship of marriage, secure each other's
chastity. The garment gives comfort to the body; so does the husband
find comfort in his wife's company and she in his. Actually a
garment is the grace, the beauty, the embellishment of the body, so
too are wives to their husbands as their husbands are to them.
Sexual intercourse is only ‘rafath’ (unseemly,
unnecesarry to talk about) during fasting in the holy month of
ramadan and during the week of hajj. Sexual intercourse is not
obscene in islam , since The Prophet (s)
stated that in one's sexual intimacy with one's life partner there
is sadaqa (worship through giving):
Allah's Messenger (pbuh)
said: "In the sexual act of each of you there is a sadaqa." The
Companions replied: "O Messenger of Allah! When one of us fulfils
his sexual desire, will he be given a reward for that?" And he said,
"Do you not think that were he to act upon it unlawfully, he would
be sinning? Likewise, if he acts upon it lawfully he will be
rewarded."
(Muslim)
Secondly like i showed before
allah swt describes sexual intercourse in a most beautiful metaphor
(see Quran 2:187)
The pilgrimage is (in) the
well-known months, and whoever is minded to perform the pilgrimage
therein (let him remember that) there is (to be) no lewdness
(rafatha) nor abuse nor angry conversation on the pilgrimage. And
whatsoever good ye do Allah knoweth it. So make provision for
yourselves (Hereafter); for the best provision is to ward off evil.
Therefore keep your duty unto Me, O men of understanding. S. 2:197
Pickthall
... Let there be no
obscenity, nor wickedness, nor wrangling in the Hajj ... Y. Ali
... abstain from lewd
speech, from all wicked conduct, and from quarrelling ... Asad
Renowned Sunni expositor
Ibn Kathir commented on the meaning of Rafath in Sura 2:197:
Prohibition of Rafath
(Sexual Intercourse) during Hajj
Response:
The Hajj which
is performed with restrictions, has the merit that one is totally
purged of sins. But this purification is from sins which come in the
category of minor sins and which relate to the Rights of Allah.
Major sins relating to the Rights of Allah and lapses in respect of
the rights of people are not pardoned without sincere repentance and
compensation to the aggrieved. Therefor it would be
unseemly speech (rafath) to talk about sex during
the holy week of Hajj, since this is week to be complete devout to
Allah swt and ask him for forgiveness, since Hajj is only for a
week, it is also forbidden to commit ‘rafath’ (that thing which is
unseemly to talk about during hajj, which refers to sex). Also any
form of anger or cursing etc is also forbidden during hajj etc.
Allah said: ...
<He should not have
Rafath>
This Ayah means that those
who assume the Ihram for Hajj or `Umrah are required to avoid the
Rafath, meaning, sexual intercourse. Allah's statement here is
similar to His statement:
<It is made lawful for you
to have Rafath (sexual relations) with your wives on the night of
the fast.> (2:187)
Whatever might lead to
sexual intercourse, such as embracing, kissing and talking to women
about similar subjects, is not allowed. Ibn Jarir reported that
Nafi` narrated that `Abdullah bin `Umar said, "Rafath means sexual
intercourse or mentioning this subject with the tongue, by either
men or women." `Ata' bin Abu Rabah said that Rafath means sexual
intercourse and foul speech. This is also the opinion of `Amr
bin Dinar. `Ata' also said that they used to even prevent talking
(or hinting) about this subject. Tawus said that Rafath includes
one's saying, "When I end the Ihram I will have sex with you." This
is also the same explanation offered by Abu Al-`Aliyah regarding
Rafath. `Ali bin Abu Talhah said that Ibn `Abbas said, "Rafath means
having sex with the wife, kissing, fondling and saying foul words
to her, and similar acts." Ibn `Abbas and Ibn `Umar said that
Rafath means to have sex with women. This is also the opinion of
Sa`id bin Jubayr, `Ikrimah, Mujahid, Ibrahim An-Nakha`i, Abu
Al-`Aliyah who narrated it from `Ata' and Makhul, `Ata Al-Khurasani,
`Ata' bin Yasar, `Atiyah, Ibrahim, Ar-Rabi`, Az-Zuhri, As-Suddi,
Malik bin Anas, Muqatil bin Hayyan, `Abdul-Karim bin Malik,
Al-Hasan, Qatadah and Ad-Dahhak, and others. (Source;
italic and underline emphasis ours)
The late Maulana Muhammad
Ali wrote:
197b. Three things are
prohibited in pilgrimage, rafath, fusuq and jidal. Rafath means
foul, unseemly, immodest or obscene speech (LL). Fusuq,
according to a saying of the Prophet, signifies abusing (Rz). Jidal
signifies contending in an altercation or disputing or litigating
(LL). The pilgrimage represents the final stage of spiritual
progress, and hence the pilgrim is enjoined not to speak words which
should be a source of annoyance to anybody. Perfect love of God
requires perfect peace with man; hence no offence should be caused
to any man. The doing of good to others is recommended instead in
the words whatever good you do, Allah knows it. (Source:
*,
*)
Now intercourse itself is
obviously not obscene or lewd when done within the confines of
marriage between a husband and wife. God is the one who created us
as sexual beings and sanctioned sexual intimacy in the first place.
It is therefore obvious that the Quran is referring to and
sanctioning obscene sexual acts, lewd sexual behavior, acts that are
unnatural and abnormal. In this verse, the Quran does not use the
common word for intercourse, nikkah (e.g. S. 2:230, 4:22, 33:53; cf.
this article), but rafath.
In other words, Allah is explicitly permitting Muslim men to commit
obscene, lewd conduct with their wives!
Response:
In islam sexual
intercourse is not obscene or lewd, but a blessing and act of
worship. Since sham shamoun knows this he concludes that ‘rafath’
therefor can only refer to ‘abnormal/ immoral things in bed with
ones wife’ , he failed to realize that rafath in the context of
verse 2:187 (about the fasting days of ramadan) only refers to
unseemly, nonsensical and unnecessary speech
(which would be talking sex in the holy month of fasting ) , however
this thing (sex) which is unseemly and unnecesarry to talk about
during fasting in ramadan is permitted at night, so in other words
the verse just says ‘sexual intercourse is permitted with your wife
during the nights of ramadan’ . This meaning is confimred by the
commentaries of the sahaba quoted by sham shamoum himself here, none
of this commentaries says that rafath refers to unnatural/abnormal
sexual acts, on the contrary all confirm that it just refers to
sexual intercourse (some included nasty speech, which off course is
normal during sexual intercourse) .
As the following source
says:
The Arabic word rafath is
defined by Abu Ubaida and other reliable Arabic commentaries as
"behaving in an obscene manner". But translators of the Quran into
English have been biased. The original Arabic verse does not just
use the expression, "go unto your wives," but succinctly and
explicitly states: "go and behave in an obscene manner with your
wives." (The True Guidance: Commentary on Quranic Verses [Light of
Life, P.O. Box 13, A-9503 Villach, Austria], part 5, pp. 40-41)
[All Quranic quotations
are taken from A.J. Arberry's translation unless noted otherwise.]
Response:
The christian missionaries
faile to realize that rafath in the context of verse 2:187
(about the fasting days of ramadan) only refers to
unseemly, nonsensical and unnecessary
speech (which would be talking sex in the holy month of fasting
) , however this thing (sex) which is unseemly and unnecesarry to
talk about during fasting in ramadan is permitted at night, so in
other words the verse just says ‘sexual intercourse is permitted
with your wife during the nights of ramadan’ . This meaning is
confimred by all the commentaries of the sahaba (those who had
the best knowledge of arabic and the quran after the prophet saw,
and therefor have more value then all other commentaries) none of
sahaba (companions of the prophet saw) said that rafath refers to
unnatural/abnormal sexual acts, on the contrary all confirm that it
just refers to sexual intercourse (some included nasty speech, which
off course is normal during sexual intercourse) .
Conclusion:
Talking about sex is ONLY unseemly during the fasts
of the holy month ramadan and the holy week of hajj, however in the
nights of fasts (ramadan nights) it that is unseemly to talk about
during the fasts (which refers to sex) is permitted at the nights of
the blessed month ramadan, since
“They are your garments and ye are their garments..” (
Quran 2:187)
Just as a garment hides our nakedness, so do husband and wife, by
entering into the relationship of marriage, secure each other's
chastity. The garment gives comfort to the body; so does the husband
find comfort in his wife's company and she in his. Actually a
garment is the grace, the beauty, the embellishment of the body, so
too are wives to their husbands as their husbands are to them.