Читать книгу Enlightenment from the Quran - God's Last Revelation to Mankind - Irfan Ph.D Alli - Страница 4

As a parent with a busy lifestyle, I have had to look for innovative ways to build character in myself and my four children and protect my family’s sense of decency. As a result, I began by sharing selected verses from the Quran with my family to enlighten them.

Muslims believe the same angel Gabriel who came to prophets Abraham, Moses and Jesus also came to prophet Muhammad (peace be upon them all). Muslims also believe that God, through the angel Gabriel, revealed the Quran to Muhammad (peace be upon him). This was done over a period of twenty-three years. Muslims consider the Quran to be God's last revelation to mankind and Muhammad (peace be upon him) is God’s last prophet and messenger to mankind. Since one in every five persons on earth is a Muslim, the Quran enlightens and guides over a billion people around the world.

Muhammad (peace be upon him) lived during the sixth and seventh centuries. He was born in Arabia in the year 570 C.E. Muslims believe he invited people to the same God that Abraham, Moses and Jesus (peace be upon them) invited to.

Muhammad (peace be upon him) received his call to prophethood at the age of 40 and died at the age of 63. The Quran, which we will be sampling throughout this book, was revealed to him in small amounts over these twenty-three years. In this short time span Muhammad (peace be upon him) was able to convert the entire society of the Arabian Peninsula from idol-worship and paganism to the worship of one God; from moral decay to moral excellence; from tribal wars to solidarity and purpose; from the exploitation of women and killing of female babies to establishing rights for women and respecting them. He did all this by using the Quran.

The Encyclopedia Britannica calls Muhammad (peace be upon him) “the most successful of all religious personalities of the world.” Others had this to say:

“My choice of Muhammad to lead the list of the world’s most influential persons may surprise some readers and may be questioned by others, but he was the only man in history who was supremely successful on both the religious and secular levels.” (From: The 100 - A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History by Michael H. Hart.)

“People like Pasteur and Salk are leaders in the first sense. People like Ghandi and Confucius, on one hand, and Alexander, Caesar and Hitler on the other, are leaders in the second and perhaps the third sense. Jesus and Buddha belong in the third category alone. Perhaps the greatest leader of all times was Mohammed, who combined all three functions. To a lesser degree Moses did the same.” (Professor Jules Masserman)

“Philosopher, Orator, Apostle, Legislator, Warrior, Conqueror of ideas, Restorer of rational beliefs, of a cult without images; the founder of twenty-terrestrial empires and of one spiritual empire, that is Muhammad. As regards all standards by which human greatness may be measured, we may well ask, is there any man greater than he?” (From: Historie de la Turquie by Alphonse de LaMartine).

Verses in the Quran number in the thousands, and cover a variety of topics. As a family the Quran guides us through the day to day challenges of life, and we often use it for settling differences. Daily, Quranic verses help to enlighten our souls.

Reflecting on the benefits they have brought me and my family, I felt obligated to share selected verses with people who have never heard of the Quran before, and are searching for a better way to get closer to God and improve their life.

If each of us strives to live better lives and attain inner peace, we can make our families and our piece of the world a better place.

I hope you benefit from verses from the Quran as much as we continue to do.

Irfan Alli

AUTHOR’S NOTE: The word Islam has its origin in the Arabic word salaam, which means “peace”. On following the teachings of Islam, one submits to the will of God with the hope of attaining peace at all levels. A person who chooses to seek this peace and follow the path of Islam is called a Muslim.

ENLIGHTENMENT FROM THE QURAN

God’s Last Revelation to Mankind

In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.