The Calcutta Ban Quran Petition

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The Calcutta Quran Petition

Compiled with an introduction by

Sita Ram Goel

Voice of India, New Delhi

Content

Preface to Third Edition

Preface to Second Edition

Section I ! Introduction

1. A Government in Panic

2. The Judgment misses the Main Point
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3. Entire Quran is a Manual on JihAd

4. The Prophet sets the Pattern

5. The Orthodox Exposition of JihAd

6. JihAd in India s History

7. octrine of the !s"amic State

8. Musli !ah is a Military Ma"hine

#. The Petition has served a Great Purpose

1$. A %"ose &oo' at A""ah of the (uran

Section II ! The Petition and the "ud#ement

1. )imangshu *ishore s &etter

2. )imangshu *ishore s +eminder

,. -otice from %handma" %hopra

4. The rit App"ication

/. Affidavit in 0pposition

. The Judgement

7. The +evie App"ication

3. +evie App"ication ismissed

PREFACE TO THIRD EDITION

The first two editions of this book were published in quick succession - July 1986 and July 1987 -because it was received with great interest and appreciation by the indu intelligentsia at large! inthis country and abroad" #ut the present $third% edition has been delayed inordinately in spite ofpersistent de&and after the second edition went out of print in 1988" ' reprint of the secondedition was not brought out because ( wanted to include in a new edition the copious &aterialswhich ( had collected in the &eanwhile fro& orthodo) collections of adis and which ( thoughtworth presenting to the readers" #ut that was not to be"

( had finished reading the si) authentic adis collections #ukhari! *usli&! Tir&i+i! (bn *a,ah! (bnaud! .asaii - which an orthodo) *usli& organi+ation had published in several volu&es each!with 'rabic te)t and /rdu translation" ( had &arked in the &argins of several thousand pages therelevant references pertaining to the five pillars of (sla&! the character of the *usli& Ummah! andthe doctrine ofjihAd" ( had noted &any stories which provide the conte)t in whichparticular sUrahsandAyatsof the 0uran were revealed they &ade it &ore than clear as to how 'llah of the 0uran had functioned as a &outhpiece of the 2rophet and even so&e of his
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co&panions" #ut as ( started sorting out the references and putting the& together underparticular the&es! ( suffered a prolonged spell of illness which persists even as ( write theselines" 3o ( wait and hope that ( will be able to resu&e the work at so&e future date"

3o&e of the &aterial included in the present edition had gone into the co&puter in the winter of1994-91" #ut a lot of new &aterial has been added during 1999" 's this edition stands now! (think the reader will find it better arranged and &ore infor&ative"

The book is still divided into two sections" The second section stands as it did in the earliereditions e)cept that it has been rena&ed as The 2etition and the Judg&ent instead of

5ourt ocu&ents " The first section! however! has not only been rena&ed as(ntroduction instead of 2reface ! but also carries new insertions! reflections and

for&ulations which have added as &any as 4 &ore pages to it" *any new footnotes have beenadded! and several new publications cited as the #ibliography at the end goes to show"

The 3econd 2reface to the second edition has been retained intact e)cept that now it standsrena&ed as! 2reface to 3econd dition " #ut sections of the irst 2reface to the secondedition have been rearranged as chapters! &ost of which have been revised! enlarged andrena&ed" 5hapter ! The 2rophet sets the 2attern ! is entirely new" (t is a su&&ary of thefirst orthodo) biography of the 2rophet! and provides a background to the chapters that follow"

5hapter ! The :rthodo) )position of JihAd ! has been enlarged with e)tensive passages fro& Tuhfat-ul-Mujahideen ! a si)teen century $5% treatise onjihAdco&posed at #i,apur andcarrying &any citations fro& orthodo) collections of adis" (n a way! this part of the chapter fulfilsto a certain e)tent &y plan to present adis &aterials vis-;-visjihAd" 5hapter 6! JihAdin(ndia s istory ! now includes jihAdswaged by 3her 3hah 3ur! 'kbar the est% prefer to describe as (sla&ic funda&entalis& and terroris&" ( wish to pointout that 2akistan has not invented the (sla& it is practising it has always been there in (ndia$which is now known as (ndo-2ak 3ubcontinent or 3outh 'sia! but which is the sa&e as the#h'ratavarsa of hoary history% since the eighth century 5" ?et it be reali+ed by everybodyconcerned that (ndia has always been and re&ains! the citadel of the &ost bigoted andbloodthirsty +ealotry of (sla&" The historical reasons for why it is so! are &any" ( do not have theti&e to detail the& here" The &ain reason &ay be told" (sla& in (ndia has been what it has beenbecause (ndia has continued to stare at (sla& as its greatest failure" (sla& in (ndia has neverbeen able to rela)! as it could do in countries which it converted co&pletely" 'nd it will not rela)

till indus learn to knock out its ideological fangs which are rooted in the 0uran"

.ew elhi

Sita Ram Goel

14 July 1999

Footnotes:
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1Glimpses of World History! ourth (&pression! :/2! 198@! p" A46" ( have e)a&ined the&yth of 'kbar in The Story of Islamic Imperialism in India! 3econd Bevised dition!

Coice of (ndia! .ew elhi! 199! pp" 99-14A"

PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION

3oon after the first edition of this book was published in July 1986! a significant ,udg&ent onso&eAyatsof the 0uran was pronounced by D"3" ?ohat! &etropolitan &agistrate of elhi" 's&ost of theseAyatsand others of a si&ilar sort figure in the 5alcutta 0uran 2etition of 5hand&al5hopra! we thought it relevant to reproduce the i&pugned poster in which theAyatswere cited":perative portion of the ,udg&ent is also being reproduced in order to give a gli&pse of theargu&ents for and against"

The poster had been published on behalf of the indu Baksha al! elhi! by its 2resident! (ndra3ain 3har&a! and 3ecretary! Ba,ku&ar 'rya" #oth of the& had been arrested under 3ections1A' and @9' of the (ndian 2enal 5ode" These are the sa&e sections which were invoked by5hand&al 5hopra in his petition for prohibiting publication of the 0uran"

The publishers of the poster had cited @Ayatsof the 0uran under the caption! Why riots takeplace in the country" They had added the co&&ent that theseAyats co&&and the believers $*usal&ans% to fight against followers of other faiths and that so long as these Ayatsare not

re&oved Efro& the 0uranF! riots in the country cannot be prevented "

The case acquired considerable weight when it ca&e before the court because (ndra 3ain3har&a happened to be Cice-2resident of the 'll (ndia indu *ahasabha at that ti&e" Theprosecution see&ed to be convinced that it had caught a big fish" #ut the &agistrate thoughtotherwise" e found that the prosecution had failed to provide sufficient grounds such as couldenable hi& to fra&e charges" e discharged both the accused with the observation that >ith due regard to the holy book of 0uran *a,eed ! a close perusal of the 'ytes shows that the sa&e are harmful and teach hatred! and are likely to create differences between*oha&&edans on one hand and the re&aining co&&unities on the other $e&phasis added%"

The poster was printed in indi" TheAyatsit cited were taken verbati& fro& an authentic editionof the 0uran published by an orthodo) *usli& organi+ation! *aktaba al-asn't of Ba&pur /ttar2radesh" The edition provides the 'rabic te)t of the 0uran together with indi and nglish

translations in parallel colu&ns" >e are reproducing the nglish translation of theAyats"

IITHE POSTER

3o&e Ayatsof the 0uran *a,id co&&and the believers $*usal&ans% to fight against followersof other faithsG

1. Then! when the sacred &onths have passed! slay the idolaters wherever ye find the&!and take the& $captive% and besiege the& and prepare for the& each a&bush" #ut ifthey repent and establish worship and pay the poor due! then leave their way" ?oH 'llahis orgiving! *erciful" $SUrah9!Ayats%

@" : ye who believeH The idolaters only are unclean""" $9"@8%

A" (n truth the disbelievers are an open ene&y to you" $"141%

" : ye who believeH ight those of the disbelievers who are near to you and let the& findharshness in you""" $9"1@A%

" ?oH Those who disbelieve our revelations! >e shall e)pose the& to the ire" 's often astheir skins are consu&ed >e shall e)change the& for fresh skins that they &ay taste thetor&ent" ?oH 'llah is ever *ighty! >ise" $"6%
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6" : ye who believeH 5hoose not your father nor your brethren for friends if they takepleasure in disbelief rather than faith" >hoso of you taketh the& for friends such arewrongdoers" $9"@A%

7" 'llah guideth not the disbelieving folk" $9"A7%

8" : ye who believeH 5hoose not for friends 2eople of the #ook and of the disbelievers"

#ut keep your duty to 'llah if ye are true believers" $"7%

9" 'ccursed! they will be sei+ed wherever found and slain with a $fierce% slaughter" $A A"61%

14" ?oH Ie $idolaters% and that which ye worship beside 'llah are fuel of hell" Thereunto ye willco&e" $@1"98%

11" 'nd who doth greater wrong than he who is re&inded of the revelations of his ?ord! thenturneth fro& the&" ?oH >e shall requite the guilty" $A@"@@%

1@" 'llah pro&iseth you &uch booty that ye will capture" $8"@4%

1A" .ow en,oy what ye have won as lawful and good" $8"69%

1" : 2rophetH 3trive against the disbelievers and the hypocrites! and be ste& with the&"ell will be their ho&e! a hapless ,ourney s end" $66"9%

1" #ut verily >e shall cause those who disbelieve to taste an awful doo& and verily >eshall requite the& the worst of what they used to do" $1"@7%

16" That is the reward of 'llah s ene&iesG the ire" Therein is their i&&ortal ho&e!pay&ent for as &uch as they denied :ur revelations" $1"@8%

17" ?oH 'llah bath bought fro& the believers their lives and their wealth because the


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victory over the&! and e will heal the breasts of folk who are believers" $9"1%

There are nu&erous $other% Ayatsof the sa&e sort" ere we have cited only twenty-fourAyats" :bviously! theseAyatscarry co&&and&ents which pro&ote en&ity! ill-will! hatred!deception! fraud! strife! robbery and &urder" That is why riots take place between *usli&s andnon-*usli&s! in this country as well as Ethe rest ofF the world"

(n the above-&entioned twenty-four Ayatsof the 0uran *a,id! *usal&ans are co&&anded tofight against followers of other faiths" 3o long as theseAyatsare not re&oved Efro& the 0uranF!riots in the country cannot be prevented"

Defects in English Translation

:n co&paring the indi and nglish translations of the 'yats under reference! we find that atplaces the nglish rendering does not follow the indi version very faithfully" >e think itworthwhile to point out as to where the nglish translation has failed to convey the full &eaning inkeeping with the 'rabic te)t and the spirit of (sla&ic theology initiated by the 2rophet andelaborated by orthodo) schools in subsequent centuries"

or instance! the indi translation ofAyat8"69 cited under .o" 1A of the poster uses the words

hanImat kA mAl "

This is in keeping with the original 'rabic ter&" #ut the nglish rendering!what you have won ! is a very weak version of what is sought to be conveyed" ' closerrendering would be war booty or plunder acquired through war " (n the 0uran! 'llahpro&ises plenty of plunder to the believers! again and again" The 2rophet also clai&ed that oneof the si) points of his superiority over earlier prophets was that while plunder was not lawful forthe&! 'llah had &ade it so for hi&" e also laid down the rule according to which one-fifth of theplunder belonged to 'llah and his 2rophet! while the re&aining four-fifth was to be divided a&ongthose who took part in the war which brought the plunder" This sacred one-fifth ca&e to be known as khamswhich beca&e in later ti&es one of the four &ain sources of revenue for the(sla&ic state! the other three being kharAj$land revenue fro& the conqueredpeasantry%!ji!yah$poll ta) fro& the 2eople of the #ook and others who were acceptedas !immis% and !akAt$charity fro& the faithful%"

3i&ilarly! the nglish word strive in 'yat 66"9 at .o" 1 of the poster is too innocuous to

convey the ringing &ilitancy of jihAd karo which is used in" the indi translation" (t is truethat literally the 'rabic word jihAd &eans to strive " #ut in the &outh of the 2rophet asalso in latter-day (sla&ic theology!jihAdis not a &ere word like any other" (t has beco&e a wholeinstitution! na&ely! aggressive war for the spread of the only true faith till the kAfirsgetconverted! or hu&ble the&selves by agreeing to beco&e !immis! or are killed en masse" The2rophet &inces no words in &akingjihAdan obligatory duty for every *usli&" 'llah hi&selfharangues the faithful to vie with each other in spending their wealth and staking their lives in the way of 'llah which is only a euphe&is& for jihAd"Ayatscited at .os" 1! ! 17! 19 and @1 ofthe poster &ake the &essage fro& 'llah &ore than clear" This aggressive war was held up bythe 2rophet as superior to all other &eritorious deeds such as prayer! fasting! pilgri&age! etc"The believer who kills kAfirsin ajihAdis honoured as ahA!iand en,oys a higher status in the*usli& Ummah" The believer who gets killed in ajihAdbeco&es a shahId$&artyr% and goesstraight to the 0uranic paradise without having to wait for the ay of Judg&ent like the rest of the

believers"

'gain! while the indi word yAtanA in 1"@7 at .o" 1 of the poster is quite close to the 'rabic word a!A" ! the nglish rendering! awful doo& ! hardly conveys what is &eant" The word doo& carries a sense of finality! however awful" (t happens and the story ends forall ti&e to co&e" #ut the tor&ents with which 'llah threatens the unbelievers! again and again!are far &ore for&idable" (t is a continuous process in which the victi&s are sub,ected to ever&ore terrible &odes and doses of torture"Ayats"6! @1"98! 1"@8 and 9"8 cited in .os" ! 14!16! and 18 of the poster tell so&ething of the type of tor&ent which awaits the unbelievers"

Terrible and everlasting tor&ent would have been a &ore faithful translation of the 'rabic


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ter&"

?astly! the nglish word


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The portions of the ,udg&ent we have left out relate to technicalities such as case law on thesub,ect or the correctness of certain ter&s used in the indi translation for conveying the spirit ofthe original in 'rabic" >e thought that while they are not likely to be of &uch interest to the layreader! they &ar the s&ooth flow o f the &agistrate s observations" *oreover! the &agistratehas su&&ed up in his ,udg&ent the substance of argu&ents advanced by the prosecution"@

I"#anning of #oo$s is Conter%Pro!cti&e

>hen we published for the first ti&e $1986% the docu&ents relating to the 5alcutta 0uran 2etition!we should have &ade it absolutely clear that we do not stand for a ban on the publication of the0uran" >e take this opportunity to state una&biguously that we regard banning of books!religious or otherwise! as counterproductive" (n the case of the 0uran! we believe and advocatethat &ore and &ore non-*usli&s should read it so that they know first hand the quality of itsteachings"

:ur only intention in publishing the court docu&ents of the 5alcutta 0uran 2etition and providinga long preface to it! was to pro&ote a public discussion of (sla& as a religion! particularly its clai&that every bit of the 0uran and the adis has a divine source" This clai& is used at present toprevent a close e)a&ination of what the book contains and what &essage (sla& has for &ankind

at large" >hile all other religions have been sub,ected to such an e)a&ination! (sla& has so far&anaged to re&ain a closed book" :ur plea in the 2reface to the first edition was that if suchco&&and&ents as we find in the 0uran e&anate fro& what is proclai&ed as a divine source!then the character of that source should also invite questions" :ur rational faculties and &oralsensibilities should not stop functioning the &o&ent 'llah s na&e is &entioned" The characterof 'llah as revealed in the 0uran also invites a close e)a&ination"

*arch @4!1987

Sita Ram GoelFootnotes:

1Beference is to co&&ents in the poster regarding the consequences of the 0uran s teachings"

@or full te)t of the case! see #reedom of $%pression& Secular Theocracy 'ersus (i"eral)emocracy! Coice of (ndia! .ew elhi! 1998! pp" 1-9"

CHAPTER '

A GO"ERN(ENT IN PANIC

*usli&s in (ndia have often sought shelter under 3ections 1A' and @9' of the (ndian 2enal5ode $("2"5"% for preventing every public discussion of their creed in general and of their prophetin particular"10uite a few publications which e)a&ine critically the sayings and doings of the2rophet or other idoli+ed personalities of (sla&! have been proscribed under 3ection 9 of the5ri&inal 2rocedure 5ode $5r"2"5"% as a result of pressure e)erted by vociferous! very often

violent *usli& protests" ?ittle did they suspect that the sa&e provisions of the law could beinvoked for seeking a ban on their holy book! the 0uran"

The credit for this turning of tables goes to 5hand&al 5hopra of 5alcutta" (t was he who filed a>rit 2etition in the 5alcutta igh 5ourt on @9 *arch 198 stating that publication of the 0uranattracts 3ections 1A' and @9' of the ("2"5" because it incites violence! disturbs public tranquility! pro&otes! on ground of religion! feelings of en&ity! hatred and ill-will between differentreligious co&&unities! and insults other religions or religious beliefs of other co&&unities in(ndia " e also prayed for a rule nisi on the est #engal to show cause as to why a writ of &anda&us be not issued to it directing it to declare each copy of 0uran whether in
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the original 'rabic or in any of the languages as forfeited to the


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5hakraborty s letter" e! therefore! wrote a re&inder on 1 'ugust 198! enclosing a copy ofhis first letter along with the 'nne)ures" #ut si) &onths passed and there was no response" (twas during this interval that he &et 5hand&al 5hopra who also had been studying the 0uran inorder to understand why the indus in #angladesh were being syste&atically uprooted fro& theirancestral ho&eland! even after (ndia had &ade great sacrifices for securing freedo& for#angladesh"

5hand&al 5hopra is an adherent of the ancient Ja& tradition which has all along stood for thefive principal virtues prescribed by all schools of 3anatana har&a - non-violence! truthfulness!non-stealing! chastity and non-covetousness" (t was a pu++le for hi& as to how adherents ofanother religion could persist in practices to the contrary and that! too! with a good conscience"is question stood as if answered when he ca&e to the 0uran" e was in a position to confir&that the conclusions reached by 5hakraborty were correct"

5hand&al 5hopra now felt reinforced to do so&ething about what he thought to be a &atter of&a,or public interest" 3o he wrote a letter on *arch 16! 198 to the sa&e 3ecretary in theest #engal! drawing the latter s attention to the contents of the 0uran and referring to the de&and &ade earlier by 5hakraborty" e requested that his letter be treated as

notice de&anding ,ustice and &ade it clear that unless necessary steps were taken by the est #engal within 7 days fro& the receipt of his letter! he would take such

steps as &ay be advised to us "

5hopra s letter also re&ained unacknowledged" e! therefore! filed on *arch @9! 198 hisfa&ous >rit 2etition in the 5alcutta igh 5ourt under 'rticle @@6 of the (ndian 5onstitution" 3ital3ingh! another public-spirited citi+en! ,oined hi& as a co-petitioner" The grounds the 2etitiongave for seeking action fro& the est #engal were the sa&e as provided earlierby 5hakraborty" #ut now they were couched in appropriate legal language and presentedaccording to the correct legal procedure"

The >rit 2etition ca&e up before *rs" Justice 2ad&a =hastgir on 'pril 1! 198" 3he directedthat the &atter would appear in her list on 'pril 8" There were! however! two postpone&entsbefore the &atter could appear on 'pril 1@" :n that date! the learned ,udge gave directions forfiling of affidavit-in-opposition by th6 Bespondent $3tate of >est #engal% by *ay A! 198! andaffidavit-in-reply by the 2etitioners by *ay 17! 198" The &atter then stood ad,ourned to *ay @7!198"

The affidavit-in-reply was duly filed by the est #engal stating that as the oly 0uran is a ivine #ook! no earthly power can sit upon ,udg&ent on it and no court of law has

,urisdiction to ad,udicate it and that fro& the ti&e of the #ritish Bule and since (ndependence! inspite of the (ndian 2enal 5ode being in e)istence! there had never been such an application inany 5ourt in (ndia " #ut for reasons unknown! Justice =hastgir released the &atter fro& her liston *ay @" :n *ay 7! the 'dvocate-est #engal requested the 5hief Justice of the5alcutta igh 5ourt to assign the &atter to another bench" inally! on *ay 14! the 5hief Justicechose *r" Justice #i&al 5handra #asak for hearing the >rit 2etition"

The ,nion Go&ernment *ecomes Panic$+

*eanwhile! all hell had broken loose" The Teleraphof 5alcutta dated *ay 9 carried a /.(report date-lined .ew elhi! *ay 8" The /nion


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created considerable resent&ent at the #ar 'ssociation Ein 5alcuttaF where *usli& lawyers hadcalled an e)traordinary &eeting and &oved a &otion for conde&ning Justice =hastgir for havingad&itted the case" The &otion was" however! defeated as the lawyers &oving the &otion couldnot &uster enough votes"

The Teleraphdated *ay 14 reported that the sa&e sort of pressure was being &ounted by theest #engalG The 5hief *inister! *r" Jyoti #asu! it wrote! today E*ay 9F described the writ petition filed in the 5alcutta igh 5ourt challenging certain portions of the0uran a despicable act" *r" #asu who was replying to the orward #lock *?'! *r" 'nil *ukher,ee! in the state 'sse&bly also felt that the court should have dis&issed the petitionoutright as the sub,ect &atter pertains to religion" 'ccording to hi&! the /nion govern&ent hasalready contacted the state authorities who had sought the for&er s help in resolving the issue"

( have also told the advocate general to talk to the chief ,ustice of 5alcutta high court in this regard! *r" #asu added" (t did not occur to Jyoti #asu that the &atter being sub,udice! he was co&&itting conte&pt of court" .or did the court repri&and hi& for this breach of law"

The &atter was also raised in the ?ok 3abha at .ew elhi on *ay 14 by two *2s! one belongingto the 5ongress$(% and the other to the 52( $*%" 'ccording to The Statesman dated *ay 11!

The speaker! *r" #alra& Jakhar! agreed with the& that this was a serious &atter" There was!he noted! enough trouble in the country and there was no need to add anything which would stir

up another conflagration" >hat bothered #alra& Jakhar was the fear of trouble and not the right or wrong involved in the case" (n fact! he was inviting *usli& &obs to take to the streets!and create trouble" (n his reply to the *2s! the *inister of 3tate for ?aw! "B" #hardwa,! said that

when the writ petition had co&e to the est #engal had panicked because of their presu&ption that the>rit 2etition had been ad&itted by Justice 2ad&a =hastgir" #ut this was by no &eanscertain" The Teleraphof *ay 14 carried a report of the controversy which was raging in 5alcuttaround this point" There is a serious difference of opinion! it wrote! between 5hief Justice 3atish 5handra and Justice 2ad&a =hastgir on the one hand and the advocate-general *r"3nehangshu 'charya and a large nu&ber of lawyers on the other! on whether Justice =hastgirhad ad&itted a writ petition de&anding the banning of the 0uran" Justice 5handra and =hastgir&aintain that the petition &oved by 5hand&al 5hopra and 3ital 3ingh was not ad&itted in thecourt" owever! the advocate-general and a large nu&ber of lawyers! are convinced that thepetition was ad&itted by Justice =hastgir" The significant fact is that the controversy has


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acquired a serious di&ension only because Justice =hastgir entertained the &ischievous petition! instead of dis&issing it outright" Justice =hastgir told The Teleraphthat she issueddirections on the petition as she would not turn down any petitioner" *eanwhile! the registrar ofthe high court has infor&ed The Teleraphthat he has been directed to state that the petitionunder 'rticle @@6 had not been ad&itted by Justice =hastgir" The acco&plices of (sla&ic i&perialis& in (ndia - 5o&&unists! 3ocialists! .ehruvian 3ecularists!


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&ost of the shopkeepers today preferred to keep their establish&ents closed when theprocession was taken out"

:n the sa&e day! widespread violence was staged by *usli& &obs in 3rinagar in the =ash&irCalley which was to beco&e a centre of widespread (sla&ic terroris& four years later when C"2"3ingh! an unasha&ed cha&pion of (sla&ic i&perialis&! beca&e (ndia s 2ri&e *inister" TheTeleraphdated *ay 1 reportedG The police fired to disperse a &ob which ransacked the 52( headquarters in 3rinagar today in protest against the petition seeking to ban the 0uran" 'natte&pt was &ade to set fire to a bridge" There was violence in other parts of the city andde&onstrators carrying black and green flags stoned the police" 3hops and cine&a halls wereclosed and as a precaution the authorities shut down all educational establish&ents" 3loganswere raised against the >est #engal govern&ent" There could be no greater irony that the 5o&&unist 2arty of (ndia $52(%! a consistent defender of all (sla&ic causes! had been bracketedwith indu co&&unalists by *usli& &obs" #ut &obs are &obs! and the responsibility forwhat they do rests on those who &obili+e the& ever so often"

(t was in the &idst of this &ob fury that The Times of Indiapublished three articles by r" BafiqDakaria in praise of the 0uran" (t was one of the &any efforts being &ade by concernedauthorities to &ollify the *usli&s" 'ccording to knowledgeable circles! the articles were aco&&and perfor&ance "@

A High Cort in a Hrr+

The develop&ents that took place in the 5alcutta igh 5ourt were no less dra&atic" 's statedearlier! Justice =hastgir had directed 5hand&al 5hopra to file his affidavit-in-reply by *ay 17" ewas busy preparing it when he received a &essage on the &idnight of *ay 1@-1A that the &atterwould appear to be &entioned on *ay 1A before Justice #i&al 5handra #asak" .e)t day!when 5hopra appeared in the court! Justice #asak recalled the earlier court directions regardingfiling of affidavits and directed hi& to &ove the >rit application afresh as a 5ourt 'pplication"5hopra had no alternative and had to do what he was told to do by an august authority"

:n the other hand! the 'ttorney-


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disruption of religious har&ony" The petition should have been re,ected forthwith and in li&en asunworthy of its consideration as soon as it was &oved"

3o&e *usli& leaders pounced on this point to de&and action against Justice 2ad&a =hastgir" 'notable e)a&ple was rit 2etition for voicing so&e per&anent *usli&

grievances " The Statesmandated *ay 18 had carried a news date-fined 3rinagar! *ay 17G:ne person was killed and at least three persons were seriously in,ured when the police fired

and e)ploded tear-gas shells to disperse a stone-throwing &ob at ateh =adal in 3rinagar today!according to police sources! report /.( and 2T(" 3rinagar and other parts of the =ash&ir Calleytoday observed a bandh in response to a one-day hartal called by *irwai+ *aulvi arooq!chair&an of the 'wa&i 'ction 5o&&ittee and other leaders" 3hops and co&&ercialestablish&ents were closed in the city and other towns of the Calley and vehicular traffic ca&e to

a standstill" #anks and


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did not stint in using his own stock of literary and philosophical flourishes for fortifying thefunda&ental *usli& belief that the 0uran has a divine source"

#ut the >rit 2etition had not contested the point that *usli&s revere the 0uran as divinerevelation" (n fact! the 2etition had stated quite clearly that the 0uran! particularly in its 'rabic original! &oves *usli&s to tears and ecstasy - a sign of e)tre&e devotion" The real issueraised by the 2etition was not what *usli&s believe about the 0uran but what behaviour patternthe 0uran inculcates in its votaries vis-;-vis the unbelievers"

>e find that Justice #asak neither faced this issue squarely nor ignored it co&pletely in his,udg&ent" e was not required to face it after he had constructed the legal concept that the0uran is sacred scripture" e could have cited the relevant law which e)e&pts scriptures fro&legal review! and gone straight ahead to draw the logical conclusion that no court in (ndia can sitin ,udg&ent on the contents of the 0uran" e! however! chose to &ake three observations which!though brief! are significant"

irstly! in para @ of his ,udg&ent! he observed! (n the faith of *usli&s! and according to the theory propounded in the book itself! the =oran is the revealed word of rit 2etition has quoted fro& the 0uran are not interpretations but the very words of 'llah conveyed through the 2rophet" They have been translated into nglish bya translator viewed as co&petent by *usli&s! and published by an orthodo) *usli& publishinghouse"

.or have these passages been culled at rando& fro& different chapters of the 0uran with a viewto &aking the book sound sinister" :n the contrary! they provide an al&ost e)haustive list of'llah s sayings on a sub,ect of great significance! na&ely! what the believers should believe about and do to the unbelievers" The fact that these saying are scattered over as &any as A4chapters is e)plained by the peculiar &anner in which the 0uran has been co&piled" *ostchapters in it happen to co&bine revelations received by the 2rophet on different dates at different places! and regarding varied sub,ects"

There is no question of these passages do&inating or influencing the &ain ai& and ob,ect of the book " The 0uran provides no other passages which abrogate or run counter to these


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passages" (n fact! these passages e&body! &ore or less co&pletely! one of the two &ain the&esof the 0uran! the other the&e being as to how *usli&s should beco&e a &ilitant brotherhood$ummah% on the basis of unifor& beliefs and behaviour"

's regards the observation that these passages have been quoted out of conte)t! it would havecarried weight if the legal lu&inaries had co&e out with what they knew or thought to be theproper conte)t! at least for one passage as an illustration" (n the absence of an illustration! onecannot help suspecting that the plea about out of conte)t was no &ore than a stereotyped re&ark which is often &ade by those who run out of relevant argu&ents"

The observation sounds all the &ore astounding because finding the conte)t of the passagescited in the >rit 2etition! presents no proble&" The &eanest &ullah in any village &osque cantell us as to when and in what situation the 2rophet received which particular revelation fro&

'llah" (sla& is not a &ythical religion! howsoever chock-full it &ay be of &agic and &iracles" (t isa historical creed which was floated less than fourteen hundred years ago" *oreover! the piousscholars of (sla& have been &ore than &eticulous in preserving a record of what revelation the 2rophet received on which occasion"

>e have several orthodo) biographies of the 2rophet and as &any as si) authentic collections ofthe 2rophet s Traditions $ Hadis%" 5o&&entators on the 0uran have used this wealth of first-

hand historical &aterial for connecting &ost of its verses to concrete situations in which the2rophet had received guidance fro& 'llah in the for& of revelations " The oft-quotedauthentic editions of the 0uran! in original 'rabic as well as translations! also carry detailedinfor&ation about the conte)t of every sUrahandAyatsin it" 'nd all this literature is available innglish translations &ade by pious *usli& scholars or renowned >estern (sla&ologists" Thegovern&ent lawyers could have consulted so&e of this literature and brought it to the notice ofJustice #asak! if they were really interested in the conte)t of 0uranic passages"

Conte1t is the )e+ to the 2ran

'part fro& the failure on the part of the concerned lawyers to provide the conte)t! no one canquarrel with the proposition that passages fro& the 0uran cannot be understood properly unlessthe conte)t is known" :nly we do not see our way to accepting the i&plied proposition in Justice#asak s observation that the conte)t is likely to elevate in any &anner the &eaning of passages cited in the >rit 2etition"

The language of the passages under reference is far fro& being a&biguous or allegorical" (t isprecise and plain in every instance" .or do the passages e&body any abstract principles" :nthe contrary! they contain concrete rules of conduct" There is plenty of evidence! as we shall see!that all i&a&s and sufis and ule&a and qa+is have always stood for a literal and &atter-of-factacceptance of these passages" They have always frowned upon those who show a taste forallegorical interpretations $ta .Il %"

The 2ran in Conte1t

The 0uran has 11 sUrah$chapters% and &ore than 6!@44Ayats$verses%"1The bulk of the&aterial in it consists of stories and doctrines borrowed bodily fro& the #ible and the Judeo-

5hristian lore floating around in 'rabia in the 2rophet s ti&e"

*any rituals and social for&s aswell as nor&s have been taken over fro& the 2agan 'rab traditions! and transfor&ed in a &annerso that they look like original contributions of 'llah" The only revelations which stand apart fro& this general &ass! are those which 'llah relays at certain critical ,unctures in the 2rophet s career" 's the 0uran has been co&piled neither in a chronological nor in a the&atic order! thesekey revelations lie scattered $or secretedM% in &any chapters" #ut biographers of the2rophet in the &ode& >est have sorted the& out! and connected the& to the concrete conte)tsin *uha&&ad s life as a prophet spread over @A $614-6A@ 5% years" @

>e list below! in a chronological order! the occasions when 'llah either co&&anded his prophet
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to do what the latter had already decided to do! or confir&ed and ,ustified what his prophet hadalready doneG

1. Allah s command to preach Islam pu"licly G The 2rophet had launched the (sla&icbrotherhood in *ecca as a secret society which converts to his creed were asked to ,oin"They perfor&ed their new rituals either inside their ho&es! or outside the city li&its of

*ecca" This went on for three years" 3eeing that the nu&ber of converts had reached acertain nu&ber! and that so&e of the well-known desperados of *ecca had ,oined thesecret society! he felt confident about proclai&ing publicly what (sla& stood for" 'llahobliged hi& with appropriate revelations i&&ediately $0uran! 7"1-A%"

2. 1eelation from Satan G #ut the 2rophet had overesti&ated his strength" (t was notbefore long that the 2agans of *ecca started offering stiff resistance to his publicpreaching so that the spread of (sla& got stopped and so&e of the converts started goingback to the 2agan fold" The *eccans organised a boycott of the 2rophet s clan! #an/ 'shi&! and he found hi&self in a difficult situation" e felt de,ected and yearned to bereconciled with his people" 3o 'llah per&itted hi& to proclai& that the ancient


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/. S.ord in the serice of AllahG The 2rophet had decided to use the sword $jihAd "il saif%when he saw that the 2agans of *ecca were refusing to co&e round and convert to hiscreed by &eans of peaceful persuasion " e had sought help fro& 'byssinia andTa if! but failed" e was preaching to pilgri&s fro& outside *ecca when so&e leadingpeople fro& *edina &et hi& at 'qaba! and rescued hi& fro& his plight by inviting hi& totheir own city" uring his early days in *edina! the 2rophet apprehended attacks fro&

the 0uraish of *eeca" 3o he for&ed the *usli&-Jewish alliance as a defensive&easure" 'llah ca&e forward with revelations $@@"A9-1% per&itting the 2rophet to fight in self-defence! and pro&ising help" #ut no attacks ca&e fro& *ecca so that the2rophet was left free to break his alliance with the Jews and for& his own*usli& Ummah" 'llah obliged i&&ediately by converting the per&ission into a co&&and$@"@16 "76-77! 8! 8"A9! 66- 66%" >ar against the 2agans now beca&e obligatory on all*usli&s" *usli&s were to go out and attack the infidels in regular &ilitary for&ations$"71 8"1 9"1@A 61"%" 's the *usli&s succeeded in the raids on 'rab settle&ents andcaravans! the 2rophet used the plunder obtained for building a for&idable &ilitary&achine at *edina" ?ust for loot attracted to his fold desperados fro& all over 'rabiathey ,oined the *usli& Ummahin droves" The 2rophet went on elaborating this doctrineof war in the way of 'llah $ jihAd fI sa"Ilallah% till it beca&e a total and per&anent warfor establishing (sla& all over the world" 'nd 'llah went on sending down appropriate

revelations as and when the 2rophet needed the& in his ca&paign of slaughter and rapine till he died after giving a call for world conquest" 'llah had purchased the lives andproperties of the *usli&s in e)change for do&inion in this word and paradise hereafter$@"@- 9"111%" 'voidingjihAdbeca&e a great sin and violation of the covenant with

'llah $@"@18 A"16 "7! 77! 9 9"@! A8-A9! 81"8%" #eco&ing a &artyr $shahId%beca&e the highest &erit for every *usli& $@"1 A"17! 169-74!19! 198 @@"8 AA"16-17%" (t is significant that all these revelations about jihAdbil saif were received by hi&after his &igration to *edina"

. 0loodshed in the Sacred Months justifiedG 'n e)pedition which the 2rophet had sent to.akhla was successful in obtaining so&e plunder! after the earlier ones he had sentelsewhere had failed in this respect" #ut the leader of this e)pedition which was &ountedin the 3acred *onth of Ba,ab killed a &an fro& *edina! which was a serious violation ofthe ancient 'rab tradition that no blood was to be shed in the four 3acred *onths of

which Ba,ab was the last" The incident invited not only strong co&&ents fro& 'rab2agans everywhere but also &ur&urs of disapproval fro& the *usli&s in *edina" The2rophet kept quiet for so&e ti&e" #ut he had a ,ustification up his sleeve" 'llahconfir&ed his prophet s reasoning in a revelation $@"@17% so that the plunder could be distributed a&ong the *usli&s and their &ur&urs silenced"

7. 1ansom for prisoners of .arG The *usli& ar&y had captured a nu&ber of 2agans fro&*ecca in the #attle of #adr" The 2rophet got two of the& killed because they had&ocked or otherwise insulted hi& after he proclai&ed his prophethood in *ecca" 'boutthe rest of the prisoners! he faced a controversy as to whether they should be killed orreleased after e)acting ranso& fro& the 0uraish" 'bu #akr was in favour of ranso&!while /&ar wanted the& to be slaughtered" The 2rophet decided to ranso& the& outbut wanted to pacify /&ar at the sa&e ti&e" 'llah was quick to co&e to the rescue of

his prophet" (n a sudden revelation he repri&anded the 2rophet for not co&&itting slaughter in the land but pardoned hi& for accepting ranso& $8"67-74% because he was in need of it"

3. )iision of plunderG The *usli&s who participated in the #attle of #adr! had collected a lotof plunder! particularly fro& the bodies of the ene&ies killed" They deposited every bit ofit with the 2rophet but kept on de&anding that it should be distributed a&ong the&without delay" Their &ouths were watering in e)pectation of a rich share" The 2rophetwas keen to keep a part of the plunder for hi&self but could not &ake up his &ind about


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how to say it" 'llah took hi& out of the tight corner by an appropriate revelation $8"1! 1% which established the (sla&ic institution of khams! the sacred one-fifth " (n ti&esto co&e! as the (sla&ic e&pire e)panded over large areas! kha&s beca&e the principalsource of revenue for every (sla&ic state" :ther sources of state revenue were tapped&uch later in the history of (sla&"

#.$%pulsion of 0anU 2aynu3a Je.s from Medina G 3uccess in the #attle of #adrencouraged the 2rophet to i&ple&ent a sche&e which he had had in his &ind ever sincehe turned against the Jews" e wanted to &assacre the Jews of *edina and sei+e therich properties they possessed in various for&s in their three settle&ents around the city"#ut the Jews had allies a&ong the 'rab tribes of *edina! so&e of who& had convertedto (sla& while others had re&ained 2agans" 3o the 2rophet decided to test the allianceby besieging one of the Jewish tribes - #an/ 0aynuqa " The 'rab allies incited theJews not to yield! but did not &ake any effort to raise the siege" The Jewish tribe wasstarved into surrender" The 2rophet tried to do what he had in his &ind" #ut at this pointthe 'rab allies intervened! and saved the Jews fro& slaughter and rapine" The 2rophethad to rest content with e)pelling the #an/ 0aynuqa fro& *edina" e had also toallow the& to take away whatever &ovable properties they could" (t was certainly asetback for hi&" #ut 'llah was quick to approve the co&pro&ise in a new

revelation $A"1@-1A! 19-@4%"

1$. )efeat suffered "y Muslims at UhudG 'nother setback to the 2rophet ca&e soon after theco&pro&ise regarding #an/ 0aynuqa " 'n ar&y of the 0uraish fro& *edina

defeated the *usli&s at /hud near *edina! killed so&e of their stalwarts like a&+a!and even wounded the 2rophet hi&self" The *usli&s had to run away fro& thebattlefield to which they had gone in hope of victory and plunder" The 2agans and theJews in *edina started &aking fun of hi& and his blind followers" The 2rophet was nowcalled upon not only to console his flock! but also to e)plain away their defeat in ter&s oftheir lack of fir& faith" 'llah sent down the appropriate revelations $9A"1A9-7! 16- 7@%"

11. /uttin of date-palms and institutin #aiG ' few &onths after defeat of the *usli&s at/hud! the 2rophet got another opportunity to further unfold his sche&e against the Jews

of *edina and retrieve so&e of his reputation" The Jewish tribe of #an/ .a+(r wasaccused by hi& of being in league with a tribe of 2agan 'rabs who had &assacred aparty of *usli&s sent by the 2rophet in response to an invitation fro& the 2agans forconverting the& to (sla&" e asked #an/ .a+(r to leave *edina i&&ediately" The Jewsrefused! and the *usli&s led by the 2rophet besieged their settle&ent" (n order to forcethe Jews to surrender! the 2rophet ordered his followers to cut down the date-pal&saround their settle&ent and bu& the roots of the trees" The Jews appealed to the2rophet in the na&e of *oses who had forbidden cutting of date-pal&s" They thoughtthat their appeal would have effect as the 2rophet was in the habit of citing *oses everynow and then and the 0uran revealed so far was full of stories about *oses" #ut the2rophet received a revelation telling the Jews that the law of *oses had been violated in obedience to a specific order fro& 'llah repudiating the disobedient ones$9"@-%" #an/ .a+(r had to surrender and accept banish&ent fro& *edina" #ut this

ti&e they had to leave their properties! the whole of which the 2rophet appropriated forhi&self in obedience to a si&ultaneous revelation $9"6-8% in ter&s of which 'llah ordained that plunder obtained without an ar&ed conflict belonged solely to 'llah and hisprophet" The latter revelation established the institution of fai which enriched &any *usli& &onarchs and co&&anders in the subsequent history of (sla&"

12. Marriae .ith 4aina"G The 2rophet s first wife =hadi,a had presented to her husband a young slave! Daid bin al-'ris! who& he had freed! converted to (sla&! and adopted ashis son when he appointed hi&self a prophet in *ecca" ?ater on! he had &arried Daid toa beautiful young girl! Dainab hint Jahsh" The couple had &igrated to *edina along with
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the *usli&s of *ecca! and lived in a house near those of the 2rophet s other wives" :ne day! the 2rophet went to see Daid and found that the latter was not in his house"Dainab invited hi& inside" e saw her scantily clad! and her ravishing figure riveted hisattention" e fell in love with her and pined for having her as his lawfully wedded wife"The 2rophet s agony beca&e known to Daid who offered to divorce her so that she could enter the 2rophet s hare&" #ut the 2rophet re,ected the offer! so&ewhat angrily"

'ccording to a hallowed 'rab tradition! the wife of a son! even if the son happened to bean adopted one! was to be treated as a daughter by the father! &arriage with her beingtanta&ount to incest" The 2rophet s longing for her! however! re&ained unabated" inally! 'llah had to intervene with revelations $AA"-! 9"A7-4% which ordained that the 2rophet should follow his heart s desire in &atters of se)! and that Daid was not his own son but the son of his $Daid s% natural father" The dile&&a stood resolved" Daiddivorced Dainab and the 2rophet &arried her" e celebrated the occasion with aspectacular feast" (t was! however! a great scandal! and tongues in *edina continuedwagging for quite so&e ti&e" ' isha got an opportunity to &outh the scandal when so&eone accused the 2rophet of concealing certain revelations which did not suit his convenience" Beferring to verses regarding Dainab and Daid! she is reported to havere&arked! (f the 2rophet had concealed anything of the revelation! it would have been those verses he ought to have hidden" (ncidentally! these revelations &ade adoption unlawful in (sla& for all ti&e to co&e"

1,. 1enunciation of her day "y Saudah G The 2rophet had re&ained &onoga&ous solong as his first wife! wealthy and influential =hadi,a! was alive" 'fter her death! he had&arried 3audah! a widow of &ature age! an year before his &igration to *edina" (n thene)t five years! he &arried five other wo&en - ' isha! afsa! Dainab bint =hu+ay&a! /&& 3ala&a! and Dainab bint Jahsh" e used to spend a day and night with each of hissi) wives" Thus every wife had her turn! and each of the si) days was na&ed after a wife- day of 3audah ! day of ' isha! and so on" e was! however! getting tired of3audah! and no &ore relished her co&pany" e decided to divorce her and allot her

day to his favourite ' isha" 3audah offered to renounce her day in favour of ' isha! and pleaded with the 2rophet to let her re&ain his wedded wife" 'llahrevealed i&&ediately $AA"1% that the 2rophet was free to do with his wives as he

pleased" The 2rophet did not divorce 3audah! and ' isha gained another day to

keep hi& co&pany"

14. A isha rescued from scandal G (n the sa&e year that the 2rophet &arried Dainab!there was another scandal which also beca&e the talk of the town in *edina" ' isha had acco&panied the 2rophet in an e)pedition! but was left behind by &istake on thereturn &arch during the night" 3he had gone a little distance away fro& the ar&y ca&pto answer the call of nature when she dropped her necklace so&ewhere" 3he went outagain in search of the necklace but by the ti&e she returned! she found that the ar&y hadbroken ca&p and &arched towards *edina" (t was assu&ed by everyone concernedthat she was inside her ho.daon her ca&el" 3he had to reach *edina ne)t the &orningriding on the ca&el of 3afwan! who was also in the sa&e e)pedition but who too hadbeen left behind searching for his ca&el which had wandered away in the night" Tonguesin *edina started wagging again including those of a few pro&inent co&panions of the

2rophet" (t was suspected that the very young wife of an old &an was involved inro&ance with a youth of her own age" The 2rophet was in a fi) in fact! he shared thesuspicion for a few days" #ut no evidence of ' isha s guilt was forthco&ing fro& any quarter" (nstead! 3afwan had stabbed a person who& he found spreading theru&our" The 2rophet was too fond of ' isha to be swayed by 'li s considered opinion that he should divorce her! and that there was no dearth of beautiful youngwo&en wanting to ,oin his hare&" *oreover! she was the daughter of 'bu #akr who had stood by hi& through thick and thin! and who ranked ne)t to hi& in the hierarchy ofthe *usli& Ummah" 3o 'llah had to be called in! and ' isha pronounced innocent $@"1-@4%" 'llah also prescribed whipping for those found guilty of accusing &arried


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wo&en of adultery without producing four eyewitnesses" These revelations have co&plicated the (sla&ic law regarding adultery! and it has beco&e e)tre&ely difficult tosettle cases involving this offence one way or the other"

1/. Massacre and plunder of 0anU 2uray!a Je.s of MedinaG :f the three settle&ents ofJews in *edina! the 2rophet had already dealt with two - #an/ 0aynuqa and #an/

.a+(r" e was in search of an e)cuse for dealing with the third settle&ent! that of the#an/ 0uray+a" is opportunity ca&e soon after he was finished with the #attle of theTrench in which a *ececan and allied ar&y besieging *edina had been repelled" The2rophet and his flock were in a &ood of triu&ph" 'llah sent the angel


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13. 0reach of plede .ith 5aansG The 2rophet had perfor&ed /&rah at *ecca in the year following the conquest of that city" #ut he had yet to perfor& Hajj" e avoided thecere&ony ne)t year because while perfor&ing Umrah! he had been pained to seecrowds of 2agan 'rabs inter&ingling with *usli&s around the =a ba and elsewhere in *ecca" 5onversions to (sla& had increased by leaps and bounds after his spectacularvictories" #ut a large nu&ber of 2agans had re&ained loyal to their ancestral faith! and

the 2rophet was bound by the Treaty of udaibiya to per&it the& to perfor& thetraditional pilgri&age to their holy city" This sorry situation had forced the 2rophet to postpone perfor&ing Hajjin the subsequent season" e had sent 'bu #akr to lead thefaithful in the pilgri&age" e was! however! feeling unco&fortable with the treaty with the2agans! particularly after the sub&ission of Ta if which had &ade hi& all- powerful over the whole of 'rabia" 3o 'llah facilitated his breach of pledge with revelations $9"1-! @8-@9% which released hi& fro& his treaty obligations" e sent 'li to read 'llah s co&&ands to the people! *usli&s as well 2agans! gathered at *ecca" 'llah hadallowed only four &onths to the 2agans to walk around in the land they were to he slaughtered by the *usli&s if seen anywhere after that period" The whole of 'rabia wasreserved e)clusively for *usli&s! and so it has re&ained till today"

This repeated coincidence between the 2rophet s convenience on the one hand and 'llah s co&&ands on the other! &akes it &ore than obvious thatAllah of the 2uran is no other than the

5rophet himself" *any people around the 2rophet &ust have seen through the ga&e" #ut itneeded a privileged person like ' isha to e)pose it in so &any words" >hen 'llah approvedof his wife 3auda renouncing her day in favour of ' isha $AA"1%! the latter could not contain herself and quipped! ( find that 'llah is pro&pt to proclai& co&&and&ents in accordance with your desire $maI, d$khtI hUn k$ .oh allah ta la Ap kI Ar!U ke mu.Afi3 jald hukam farmAta hai%"6The sa&e co&&ent by ' isha is recorded in a slightly different /rdu translation in another adis collection! 'llah e)cels even you in fulfilling your wish $ allah ta la

Ap kI kh.Ahish pUri karn$ m$n Ap s$ "hI sa"3at l$ jAtA hai%"7

>e find far &ore clinching evidence to the sa&e effect in biographies of the 2rophet and adiscollections" 'ccording to (bn (sh'q! *usli&s had constructed a hut for hi& to retire into at nighton the eve of the #attle of #adr" .e)t &orning! after he had straightened the ranks ! he returned to the hut and prayed! : 'llahH if this band Ei"e" the *usli& ar&yF perishes today Thou

will be worshipped no &ore"8

't-Tabari has a slightly longer passage in the sa&e conte)t" The/rdu translation we have before us! reads! +hudA.andA aar y$h m$rI jamA t halAk h6 ayI t6 duniyA m$, phir t$rA k6I parastAr na rah$A$: 'llahH if this band of &ine perishes!then there will re&ain no worshipper of yours in the .orld%"9ere the band is defined specifically as *ine and the world as a whole is supposed to stand threatened with the disappearance of 'llah s worshippers" ' &ode& writer has referred to the sa&e passagewithout &entioning the source fro& which he has quoted it" 'ccording to hi&! The 2rophet s well-known re&arks on the &orning of the day of #adr were! 'l&ighty 'llah! if these 789perishtoday! there would he none left to worship Thee on earth"14Thus he follows at-Tabari e)ceptfor substituting the word these for &ine ! and &entioning specifically the nu&ber of *usli& swords&en who were present at #adr" 3ir *uha&&ad (qbal! the renowned poet of (sla&in &odern ti&es! goes still further" (n his fa&ous poe&! 3hikwah $


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@" (f the *usli& swords&en who fought at #adr had been killed! 'llah would have beenworshipped no &ore anywhere in the world"

A" (t was the &ight of the *usli& &ailed fist which first established and later on &aintained'llah s position"

:bviously! these clai&s are too tall or wild to be accepted" (f 'llah stands for


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>e have seen that this theory is not tenable" The &ost likely one! as ( have e)plained atlength! is that *uha&&ad did really e)perience sensory pheno&ena translated into words andphrases and that he interpreted the& as &essages fro& the 3upre&e #eing" e developed thehabit of receiving these revelations in a particular way" is sincerity appears beyond a doubt!especially in *ecca when we see how 'llah hustled! chastised and led hi& into steps that he wase)tre&ely unwilling to take" #ut it is said that in *edina! as #uhl has very aptly e)pressed it!

>hen we see how his later revelations so&eti&es co&e to the aid of his less elevatedinclinations! we observe how he beco&es increasingly cautions in producing revelationsto back hi& up! and how these! obviously enough! often contain conclusions at which hehas hi&self arrived after reflection and &editation on the needs of the situation or evenas a result of suggestions &ade by those close to hi&! it is very hard for us to believe thatthey appeared in the sa&e innocent fashion as in the earlier period"

ad the inspired visionary been transfor&ed into an i&postor! driven by necessity to produce convenient revelations at the appropriate &o&ent and at no other! in the way that &ediu&s havebeen known to resort to fraud in si&ilar casesM ' isha certainly re&arked sarcastically on one occasion on the ?ord s readiness to answer her husband s wishes" There are a nu&berof difficult occasions! when we find hi& hesitating to &ake up his &ind! asking advice andthinking things over! before the revelation suddenly descends fro& heaven and solves theproble& along lines of what hu&an $sometimes all too human% cogitation &ight have suggested"

/&ar boasted innocently of having three ti&es given advice which turned out &iraculously to correspond with the dictates of heaven""" ven *usli& tradition tells the story of a secretary of the2rophet s! 'bdull'h ibn 3a d! who was taking down the sayings of the =oran at his dictation"

't one point! when the 2rophet broke off! the secretary continued aloud to the end of thesentence as he thought it should read! and *uha&&ad absent&indedly incorporated

'bdullah s suggestion into the divine te)t" $' prey to doubts of the 2rophet s inspiration! 'bdullah ab,ured (sla& and fled to *ecca" >hen the city fell the 2rophet wanted to kill hi&! but

he finally escaped with his life after his foster brother /th&'n interceded for hi&"%

'll this is true! but does not necessarily i&ply deliberate deception" Man*s capacity for self-deception is infinite" (t is obvious to non-*usli&s that the words which *uha&&ad heard! bywhich his e)periences $in the&selves al&ost ine)pressible% were translated in so &iraculouslyperfect a fashion! were dictated to hi& by his unconscious" e hi&self suspected it he had

doubted their source! he was afraid that hu&an inspiration &ight have for&ed so&e part of it!and! as we have seen! he even ad&itted at a later stage that 3atan hi&self had &anaged toinsert his own orders"

>ith success achieved! his own faith acknowledged! strengthened and confir&ed by thousands of disciples! it was only natural that he should have fewer and fewer doubts about the pro&ptingsof his inner voice and that these! too! should have conflicted less and less with the results of hisconscious deliberations and with the urge of those strong instincts which were fostered by theco&fort of his position! by the into)icating influence of success and by the consciousness ofpower""" There was nothing surprising in the fact that 'llah should suddenly co&&and hi& to takereasonable decisions which his own hu&an reflections! or the advice of shrewd co&panions! hadalready urged" 0esides .hat could "e more natural than that the Master*s orders shouldcorrespond .ith the la.ful .ishes of his faithful serantM"""11

The observation of Bodinson in the last line of the above citation is confir&ed by a Tradition of the2rophet hi&selfG ' *usli& saw in a drea& that he &et a person fro& a 2eople of the #ook Ei"e" a JewF who said! Iou would have been an e)cellent ummahif you had not practised idolatryand not said - what 'llah pleases and *uha&&ad pleases" e ca&e to the oly 2rophet and reported the drea&" The 2rophet replied! #y 'llahH ( also think alike" Iou should start saying -what 'llah pleases! then*uha&&ad pleases"1@ #ut the 0uran has retained verses whichequate obedience to 'llah with obedience to the 2rophet! and pro&ise reward and punish&entaccordingly $"84 "9@ 8! 1! @4! 6 @"@! 6 AA"A6! 71 7"AA 9"1%"

The Jew was co&&enting on the (sla&ic confession of faith $+alimah% - There is no


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and *uha&&ad is the2rophet of 'llah" *i)ing the na&e of *uha&&ad with that of 'llah! &usthave sounded sacrilegious and a pollution of pure &onotheis& to the Jews - an idoli+ation of*uha&&ad so to say" Their &isgivings proved true" (sla& started by substituting *uha&&ad forthe idols of the 2agan 'rabs! and that is what it has re&ained till our ti&es"

-h+ 2ran an! Ha!is are interchangea*le

This identification of 'llah with the 2rophet alone can e)plain why orthodo) (sla& has placed the0uran! the word of 'llah! on the sa&e holy pedestal as the ad(s! the word of *uha&&ad"

The sources of (sla&! observes Ba& 3warup! are twoG the 0uran and the HadIs$3ayingsor Traditions %! usually called the Sunnah$ custo&s %! both having their centre in *uha&&ad" The 0uran contains the 2rophet s revelations $ .ahy%G the HadIs! all that hedid or said! or en,oined! forbade or did not forbid! approved or disapproved" *usli& theologians&ake no difference between the 0uran and the HadIs" To the&! both are works of revelation orinspiration" The quality and degree of the revelation in both works are the sa&e only the &odeof e)pression is different" To the&! theHadIsis 0uran in action! revelation &ade concrete in thelife of the 2rophet" (n the 0uran! 'llah speaks through *uha&&ad in the Sunnah! he actsthrough hi&" Thus *uha&&ad s life is a visible e)pression of 'llah s utterances in the 0uran""" .o wonder that *usli& theologians regard the 0uran and the HadIsas beingsupple&entary or even interchangeable" To the&! the HadIsis .ahy hair matlU$ unread

revelation ! that is! not read fro& the eavenly #ook like the 0uran but inspired all the sa&e% and the 0uran is hadIs mut.Atir! that is! the Tradition considered authentic and genuine by all*usli&s fro& the beginning"1A

(t is this fi)ed and fro+en i&age of the 2rophet which is &eant when a *usli& proclai&shis )In$funda&ental faith%" (n fact! the 2rophet produced a revelation $AA"@1% presenting hi&self as the perfect &odel for those who look forward $with hope% for the ay of Judg&ent" ora pious *usli&! hu&an life is lived best when it confor&s to *uha&&ad s conduct even in &inor &atters such as defecating! urinating! brushing one s teeth! licking one s fingers after &eals! co&bing one s hair! cutting one s beard to a specific si+e! and so on" (sla& leaves noroo& at all for individual initiative or ,udg&ent! not to speak of innovation" (n case of doubt! apious *usli& &ust go to a mufti$,urisconsult% and obtain a fat.aabout how the 2rophet wouldhave conducted hi&self in a situation which! according to all known sources! the 2rophet is not

known to have faced" The e)ercise is eulogi+ed by (sla&ic scholars as 3iyAs! that is! laying downthe law by analogy"

(t is the sa&e identification of 'llah with the 2rophet which has given currency to the patent*usli& slogan! $you can% be reckless $in your utterances% about 'llah but when it co&es to *uha&&ad! bewareH $"A khudA dI.AnA "Ash o "A muhammad hoshiyAr%" 'llah can be discussed! but *uha&&ad is a closed book" The only freedo& of e)pression which one cane)ercise vis-;-vis *uha&&ad is the freedo& to praise hi&"

:rthodo) as well as liberal *usli&s agree that *uha&&ad occupies the centre of (sla&" /rdu poetry! writes a liberal *uslin abounds in irreverent references to the 'l&ighty" #ut theree)ists not a single couplet which takes si&ilar liberties with 2rophet *uha&&ad" ven scholarsof (sla& in the >est! bar a few e)ceptions! have not quite understood the i&pact! over thecenturies! of the 2rophet of (sla& on the *usli& &ind (n 198! the great scholar! 'nne&arie

3chi&&el published a classic entitledAnd Muhammad is His Messener& The 'eneration of the5rophet in Islamic 5oetry" 3he drew not only on works of scholarship but also on poetry! &usic!folklore and literature to show the central place he has occupied in *usli& life and thinking sincethe down of (sla&"1

The J!gement sffers from S+llolisation

5o&ing back to Justice #asak s ,udge&ent! we find that it is a syllogis& which assu&es arbitrarily in its &a,or and &inor pre&ises what it has to prove in its conclusion" (n other words!the conclusion has not been inferred fro& the evidence presented but deduced hypothetically"
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The >rit 2etition had placed before the court 8Ayatsfro& the 0uran which co&&and *usli&sto practise a particular behaviour pattern towards non-*usli&s" The first point to be consideredby the court was whether there was substance in the 2etitioners plea that the behaviour pattern prescribed by the 0uran was ini&ical to public peace! co&&unal har&ony! and religious beliefs ofthose who did not subscribe to (sla&" The belief syste& which produces that behaviour patternshould have been evaluated only after evaluating the behaviour pattern in ter&s of natural ,usticeand co&&on sense"

Justice #asak! however! chose to proceed the other way around" e started by accepting the*usli& clai& that the 0uran was the word of


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&edieval (ndia" (t has a section on khams"

5ited by *a)i&e Bodinson in Mohammed! 3econd $revised% edition! ?ondon! 1971! p"@47 with reference to Tir&idh(! sahIh! kit'b $ tafs(r al-qur'n%! on s/rah al-a+h'b! hadith 9a to 11 $ed" 5airo! 1@9@ "! vol" ((! p" @49f%"

6Sahih Muslim SharIf! 'rabic te)t with /rdu translation by 'lla&a >ahid-u+-Da&an!

'itqad 2ublishing ouse! elhi! 1986! Colu&e (C! p" 84"

7Sunan I"n MAjah! 'rabic te)t with /rdu translation by *aulana 'bdul aki& =han'khtar 3hah,ahanpuri! 'itqad 2ublishing ouse! elhi! 1986! Colu&e (! p" 7"

8(bn (sh'q! SIrat 1asUl Allah! translated by '"

1'"


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parlance" 5hristianity! 5o&&unis& and .a+is& abound in such doublespeak" 3o also (sla&"

The 0uran uses the words salam ! IslAm ! and Muslim in so&e of its Ayats! but thesynony&s of these words - ImAn ! )In ! and Mu min - occur far &ore frequently" There is not a singleAyat! however! in which these words or their synony&s stand or can beinterpreted to stand for peace"

The word salam &eans literally ' contract involving an i&&ediate pay&ent of the price! and ad&itting delay in the delivery of the article purchased " 1(t has been used in the 0uran$@"1A1! A"@4% to &ean bowing down before 'llah or surrender to 'llah " The word as-salAm which has been derived fro& it is :ne of the ninety-nine na&es or attributes of 'llah and &eans according to al-#ai+'w(! e who is free fro& all loss or har&" @'nother wordderived fro& it is taslIm which &eans The benediction at the close of the usual for& of prayer ! that is! namA!"A

3i&ilarly! the word IslAm in the 0uran &eans doing ho&age to 'llah and is said to be the religion of all the prophets who preceded *uha&&ad! the ?ast 2rophet" 'ccording to A"19!(sla& is 'llah s own religion! and those who re,ect 'llah s revelations will be punished soon"

'ccording to A"8! he who believes in a religion other than (sla& will not be accepted! and will bea loser on the ?ast ay" 'ccording to 9"1! the #edouins say that they have

confessed ImAnbut they should say instead that they have confessed IslAm"

5o&ing to the word Muslim it si&ply &eans one who has received (sl'& " >e quote afewAyatswhere the word occurs" 't @"1A@! the 0uran says! This is what 'braha& and (ssac bequeathed to their sons! 'llah has chosen this religion for you" ie as *usli&s" 't A"8! the 0uran says! >e believe in what 'llah has revealed to us" >e are his *usli&s ! that is! obedient servants" 't @@"78! the 0uran says! 'nd wage war $ jihAd%""" your religion is thereligion of 'braha&" e na&ed you as *usli&s" 't A9"11-1@! the 0uran co&&ands the believer to say! ( have been asked to worship 'llah alone! and beco&e a *usli& first of all"

.ow we can take up the synony&s" The word ImAn &eans belief of the heart and confession of the lips to the truth of *usli& religion " 6The word mu min $pl" mu minUn !popular momin% is ' ter& generally used for *uha&&adans in the 0uran and all *usli& books"7 Two sUrahsof the 0uran are na&ed after this word" 3/rah @A!Al-Mu minUn ! givesa warning to those *eccans who argue with *uha&&ad and ask inconvenient questions! thatthey will burn in hell" 'nd 3/rah 4!Al-Mu*min! describes the terrible tor&ents of hell which arewaiting for all unbelievers according to the revelations fro& 'llah"

inally! the word )In which occurs quite frequently in the 0uran like the words ImAn and mu min ! is The 'rabic word for religion ! and is used especially for the religion of the prophets and their inspired books " 8 .owhere does it &ean 6 peace or religion of peace " (n fact! in so&eAyats$@"194-91 8"A9! 7@ 9"19-@@! 111%! it is used for inviting thebelievers to engage injihAd"

3ir >illia& *uir writes as follows about the earliest 6 revelations received by *uha&&adG There is at this period hardly an allusion to Jewish and 5hristian 3cripture or legend" The

=or 'n did not as yet rest its clai& on the evidence of previous revelation and its

correspondence therewith" #ut the peculiar phraseology of the new faith has already beco&efi)ed" The dispensation of *oha&&ad was distinguished as (3?'*! that is! 3urrender of the soulto 'llah his followers as */3'?*(. $those who surrender themseles%! or as #elievers his

opponents as ='(B(.! that is! those .ho reject the diine messae! or as */3B(=(.! such asassociate co&panions with 'llah"""9

*a)i&e Bodinson defines the new creed in ter&s of *uha&&ad s feeling of a sense of sub,ection to the terrible yet fascinating &ysteries which surrounded hi& " e continues!

*any others besides hi& have had this feeling" #ut it &anifested itself in a for& which waspeculiar to hi&self" The presence! 'llah! was an al&ighty power which had no li&its of any kind
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a will which no bounds could contain""" The only possible attitude towards this 'llah was aninfinite hu&ility and total surrender $islAm% in anticipation of a terrible ,udg&ent of which theoutco&e was wholly unpredictable"14 This atte&pt to convert *uha&&ad into a philosopherand a &ystic can be accepted only with a fistful of salt" *uha&&ad never clai&ed to be either infact! he had conte&pt for both" >hat is! however! quite clear again is that (sla& has always stoodfor surrender to 'llah! that is! *uha&&ad"

*argoliouth also has so&ething to say on this sub,ect" e writes! inally a na&e had to be given to the new sect! and either by accident or choice led to its being called the sect of the*usli&s orHanifs no 'rab see&s to have known any thing about the anifs""" and since in ebrew the word &eans hypocrite and in 3yriac heathen ! pious followers of *oha&&ed did not care to study its ety&ology" The other word! *usli&! naturally &eant traitor! and when the new sect ca&e to be la&pooned! it provided the satirists with a witticis& *oha&&edshowed so&e want of hu&our in adopting it but displayed great ingenuity in giving it anhonourable &eaningG .hereas it ordinarily sinified one .ho handed oer his friends to theirenemies: it .as lorified into meanin one .ho handed oer his person to Allah and though! like5hristian! it &ay conceivably have been first invented by ene&ies of the sect who& it designated!divine authority was presently adduced for the state&ent that 'braha& coined the na&e"11

The reference here is obviously to *uha&&ad s 'byssinian connection"

The A*+ssinian Connection

The 'byssinians who were 5hristians had invaded and occupied 3outh 'rabia in @ 5" Theyhad persecuted and oppressed the 2agan 'rabs in various ways" 'n 'byssinian ar&y had&oved to *ecca also and threatened to destroy the 2agan Te&ple at =a ba in 74 5! the sa&e year in which *uha&&ad was born" The ar&y had to retreat because of a plague whichbroke out soon after" #ut it had left a lasting hatred in the &inds of the *eccans for both

'byssinia and 5hristianity" 'byssinia had continued to inspire fear also because it was apowerful kingdo& as co&pared to *ecca which was a s&all city state"

(t sounds strange that *uha&&ad should have thought of 'byssinia of all the places as soon ashe &et opposition at *ecca" #ut it is quite understandable once we grasp the psychology ofthose who get alienated fro& their own society and culture" They take little ti&e in ganging up

with the ene&y" 3&all wonder that *uha&&ad sent so&e of his new converts to the court of.egus! the king of 'byssinia" The &ove caused considerable co&&otion in *ecca" isclans&en! the 0uraish! hurried an e&bassy of their own to the sa&e court in order to counter*uha&&ad s &ove"

*uha&&ad s biographers have presented the *usli& &igrants to 'byssinia as refugees fro& persecution at *ecca" #ut they have concealed the true story" *argoliouth revealsG :n the analogy of si&ilar scenes we should suppose that the enoys of Mohammed ured the ,eus totake an actie part in suppressin paanism! re&inding hi& of the 'byssinian rule in 3outh

'rabia! a fact which gave hi& so&e sort of title to the country and that the idea of regaining thisancient possession was what led hi& to favour the *eccan insurgents"1@ (t was! therefore!natural for the *eccans to describe as *usli&s the followers of a &an who was inviting a ruthless ene&y to slaughter and enslave his co&patriots"

Crses an! Street #ra5ls

(n any case! (sla& could not have sounded anything like a &essage of peace to *uha&&ad s conte&poraries" e started by cursing that his clans&en who did not concede his clai&! wouldcook in the fire of hell for all ti&e to co&e" The list included his indulgent uncle and protector! 'buT'lib" #efore long! he would consign his dead &other also to the sa&e dreadful place"

The curses were soon backed by street brawls which his boisterous *usli&s &anaged toprovoke" e had a real tough lot on his side! apart fro& his ideology which ani&ated the lowest
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passions in hu&an nature" *argoliouth saysG The persons whose accession to (sla& was &ost welco&ed were &en of physical strength! and &uch actual fighting &ust have taken place at*eccah before the light else the readiness with which the *osle&s after the light couldproduce for& their nu&ber tried cha&pions would be ine)plicable" ' tried cha&pion &ust havebeen tried so&ewhereG and no e)ternal fights are recorded or are even the sub,ect of an allusionfor this period" The 2rophet hi&self is said on one occasion after reciting 3urah )))vi to haveflung dust on the heads of his opponents"""The ro.th of the ne. reliion tended to spreaddiscord "et.een families and so keep the city in a state of turmoil and confusion" Those who forany reason felt aggrieved with their condition could gratify their ill-will by ,oining *oha&&ed andso&e probably did this in &o&entary pique" )esperadoes of .hom the .hole city .as ashamedseem to hae "een receied into the fold of Islam= they could then on the strenth of their faithclaim to "e "etter than their neih"ours"1A

-ars 5age! *+ the Pro.het

3oon after *uha&&ad &igrated to *edina! he started organising surprise raids on unsuspectingcaravans and tribal settle&ents" e slaughtered quite a few of his clans&en at #adr" >aging waron his own country&en beca&e his &ain occupation during the succeeding years" 3laughter ofthose he viewed as his ene&ies not only satisfied his inflated ego but also brought to hi& &uchplunder" e also enriched hi&self by plundering the prosperous Jews of *edina" (t is reported

that his lieutenant! /&ar! had counselled hi& to wear silk! and live in lu)ury" *uha&&ad hadreplied curtly that it was far better to spend the plunder on buying ar&s and horses" e acquiredthese sinews of war even by selling wo&en and children captured in war and reduced to slavery"

#iographers of *uha&&ad have listed as &any as eighty-two e)peditions which he &ountedagainst various tribes of 'rabia and the neighbouring lands! in a brief span of ten years betweenhis &igration to *edina in 6@@ 5 and his death in 6A@ 5" The average co&es to twoe)peditions every three &onths" Twenty-si) of these! we are told! were led by hi& in person"

'fter he had reduced *ecca and the rest of 'rabia! he started planning e)peditions against the#y+antine and the 2ersian e&pires" (t was only his death which stopped hi& fro& waging &orewars"

:ne! therefore! finds it difficult to believe that the word IslAm could have &eant peace in *uha&&ad s life-ti&e! either to his votaries or to his unwary victi&s" .or did it do so for a longti&e afterwards! as the sword of (sla& swept east and west spreading death! devastation anddark terror over &any lands" *usli& historians of those terrible ti&es have not tried to hide whattheir heroes did to the infidels of all sorts! everywhere" (n fact! they gloat over thosegory scenes with unasha&ed glee" indus have known for &ore than thirteen hundred yearswhat (sla& stands for" (t was not very long ago that (sla& &ade rivers of blood flow on both sidesof the borders of what re&ains of (ndia today" Justice #asak s e)ercise in ety&ology cannot wipe out national &e&ories and put the sta&p of peace on an essentially violent creed" (sla&was born as an ideology of totalitarian terror! and so it has re&ained till today" The key tounderstanding (sla& is not in &ode& apologetics but in the life of the 2rophet"

The Pro.het s life%.attern *ecomes a Theolog+

The wars waged by *uha&&ad in his own life-ti&e turn out to be no &ore than &inor skir&ishes

when co&pared with even the not-so-fa&ous conflicts of hu&an history" They would have beenforgotten before long but for the labours of (sla&ic theologians who transfigured the triu&phant&arch of *usli& ar&ies into the unfold&ent of a divine plan" The seeds of this theology werealready there in the 0uran $AA"@1% and *uha&&ad s sayings in his nor&al &o&ents! that is! when he did not speak in a state of trance $.ahy%" They flowered into full-fledged faith whenfortune continued to s&ile on the *usli& &ilitary &achine for two long centuries"

2erhaps the &en who &attered after *uha&&ad s death were awe-struck at their own victories which followed in quick succession! and could not help looking at the& as a series of &iracles":r! perhaps! that was what they could sell &ore easily to their followers who had beco&e wide-


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eyed with wonder" (n any case! it was in this darkroo& of &iracle-&ongering that the portrait ofthe 2rophet was enlarged to a fabulous si+e and painted in superhu&an colours" ven the leastlittle detail of his life! public and private! was invested with infallibility"

inally! as the i&a&

Documents

The Calcutta Ban Quran Petition