The survival of democracy in any pluralistic nation lies in the stability and ability of the government of the day to manage diversity. In Malaysia, diversity has been shaping the very essence of the country’s social structure and historical aspects. Most could agree that the richness in the country’s ethnic and cultural identities is actually…
Thinking that freedom means doing what a man likes as he pleases, libertines promote freedom which thrives on the absence of laws. To such habits of mind, liberty is viewed only as casual good-pleasure, self-indulgence, and self-will. The fanatics among them are pleased with nothing but to give vent to their desires. They champion licentiousness…
In Islam, zakah or zakat (alms), is the fourth pillar of the religion. This has been conclusively established by Quranic verses, prophetic traditions and consensus of scholars. It’s an institutionalized charity to help the less fortunate within the Muslim community, so as the wealth is not circulated among the rich only. The importance of zakat…
With fairly wide, continual coverage in various mainstream media, most Malaysians by now have been familiar with the clarion call to be moderate and to practise moderation. It is also commonplace, if not entirely common sense, for moderation to be regarded as something in the middle, as equitable balance, as the opposite of extremes, as…
Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the Freedom from Religion Foundation recently criticised an address by City Clerk in New Haven, Connecticut for prayer to be put back into schools as a way to fight crime. Condemning the address as offensive, ignorant and unconstitutional, the FFRF president argued that secular nations have lower murder rate than…
The Prophet (peace be upon him) once said: “Learn the Qur’an and teach it to mankind, and learn and teach knowledge of al-Faraid (knowledge of inheritance) to mankind. Indeed, I am man who will leave this world, and indeed the knowledge that will be taken away, and later there will be persecution, until two people…
Recently our attention have been drawn to the lack of interest among our students in science subjects in schools (New Straits Times 12-02-2012, Berita Harian 10-02-2012). This issue perhaps need our elaborated and continued engagement because in the context of the k-economy and Malaysia’s latest developmental policies, it is also common knowledge that science, technology…
In his Major Themes of the Qur’an, Fazlur Rahman observes that, “Obligations and rights are the obverse and converse of the same coin; the one obviously cannot subsist for any length of time without the other.” Indeed, claiming one’s right must be matched with discharging one’s duty and obligation. Likewise, demand for freedom must be made…
In Islamic transactions (muamalat), one of the prerequisites determining the validity of a variety of contracts is the spoken offer and acceptance (aqd) between the two parties involved. Certain quarters, however, are putting excessive emphasis on this to the effect that if aqd is missing or not properly carried out in any given transaction, the…
In the Holy Qur’an there are several occasions where one can find some accounts of Adam’s encounter with man’s nemesis, Iblis. Carefully attending to those accounts with intelligence, sincerity and honesty can surely help Muslims derive useful lessons, insights and reminders not only about human strength and potentials but also human weaknesses and vulnerability. Of such…
