Light

Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. Al-Nur 24:36

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Praying for small things

Should we pray for small inconsequential things too or just for big things?

God wants us to pray for all things big and small and is offended if we don’t.  His powers are not limited by time or space and He can take care of everyone’s requests.

For example you lost your keys somewhere and can’t find them.  After looking for them everywhere and trying to figure out where they could be, you start getting desperate and think whether you should ask God to help you find them.

Since you are desperate and losing hope, you will have real earnestness in your prayer and God always listens to people when they are in need.

You will find your keys where you least expected them to be.

Who answers the distressed person when he calls upon Him?

Prayer vs medicine

Some people ask why use medicine when prayer heals.  First of all prayer heals a lot of spiritual ills.  Secondly God wants us to use the faculties and resources He has already provided us and then ask for His help.  If we are not using what He has already given us, it doesn’t make sense to ask for more.  He wants us to make the maximum effort we can and then ask Him to make those efforts fruitful and beneficial.

There is no conflict between prayer and science.  Science describes the facts we have discovered about this world.  Prayer goes beyond science.

Science is limited by our God given faculties and effort and time.  Prayer is limited by nothing, just like God Himself.

God does not have a son

As stated in the most important and smallest chapter of the Holy Quran, God does not have a son:

Jesus lived to be 120 years

Jesus was taken down from the cross by Joseph of Arimathea and was treated by both Joseph and Nicodemus, who were members of the Essenes Order (as was Jesus), and who were experts in the healing medicines (John 19:38-40).  Once Jesus was healed, he knew he had to stay out of sight and to leave the area once he had settled his affairs (John 20:14). His mission was to preach to all the tribes of Israel, many of whom had been taken to Assyria, Mesopotamia and Media (modern day Persia/Iran) by the Assyrian King Shalmaneser V. When the Persian Empire spread to Afghanistan, India and Kashmir, the so-called “Lost Ten Tribes of Israel” moved with it and permanently settled in those areas.  Jesus appeared to his followers one last time on the Mount of Olives and then disappeared in a cloud (Acts 1:9).  He travelled to Damascus and then on to Persia.  He had to change his name to Yuz Asaf (Jesus the Gatherer) to escape recognition. He reached Afghanistan and then India and settled in Kashmir.  He travelled for many years preaching to the tribes of Israel in Kashmir, India, Nepal and surrounding areas.  He died there at the age of 120 years and is buried in Mohalla Khaniyar, Srinagar, Kashmir.  More details and pictures are in this presentation.

Without God, I am nothing

If one truly believes in God, one understands that only God is permanent.

He was here before anything else, and He will be here after everything else is gone.

Everything else, and everyone else, is temporary.

So if one doesn’t believe in God, one’s existence doesn’t make any sense.

Life only makes sense if there is a God who can tell us why He created us and for what purpose.

Without God, we are nothing.

Does Prayer Change Anything?

Yes. But only if one truly believes in God.

First of all, it changes one’s outlook on life. One believes God to be the Creator and Sustainer of the world, and everything else and everyone else to be of no consequence. It gives one the courage and confidence to take bold actions and do the right things.

Secondly, even though nature follows the laws of nature created by God, only God has full knowledge of everything, and He arranges things in such a way as to help His creatures who are in trouble and seek His help.

Attributes of God

These are the attributes of God mentioned in the Holy Quran:

1		Rabb al-Aalamin	Lord of all the worlds
2		Al-Rahman	The Gracious
3		Al-Rahim	The Merciful
4		Malik Yaum al-Din	Master of the Day of Judgement
5		Al-Malik	The Sovereign
6		Al-Quddus	The Holy One
7		Al-Salam	The Source of Peace
8		Al-Mu’min	The Bestower of Security
9		Al-Muhaimin	The Protector
10		Al-Aziz	The Mighty
11		Al-Jabbar	The Subduer
12		Al-Mutakabbir	The Exalted
13		Al-Khaliq	The Creator
14		Al-Bari	The Maker
15		Al-Musawwir	The Fashioner
16		Al-Ghaffar	The Great Forgiver
17		Al-Qahhar	The Most Supreme
18		Al-Wahhab	The Bestower
19		Al-Razzaq	The Great Sustainer
20		Al-Fattah	The Opener
21		Al-Aalim	The All-Knowing
22		Al-Qabid	The Seizer
23		Al-Basit	The Enlarger
24		Al-Khafid	The Depresser
25		Al-Rafi	The Exalter
26		Al-Mu’izz	The Bestower of Honor
27		Al-Mudhill	The Abaser
28		Al-Sami	The All-Hearing
29		Al-Basir	The All-Seeing
30		Al-Hakam	The Wise Judge
31		Al-Adl	The Just
32		Al-Latif	The Incomprehensible
33		Al-Khabir	The All-Aware
34		Al-Halim	The Forbearing
35		Al-Azim	The Great
36		Al-Ghafur	The Most Forgiving
37		Al-Shakur	The Most Appreciating
38		Al-Aliyy	The High
39		Al-Kabir	The Incomparably Great
40		Al-Hafiz	The Guardian
41		Al-Muqit	The Preserver
42		Al-Hasib	The Reckoner
43		Al-Jalil	The Lord of Majesty
44		Al-Karim	The Noble
45		Al-Raqib	The Watchful
46		Al-Mujib	The Answerer of Prayers
47		Al-Wasi	The Bountiful
48		Al-Hakim	The Wise
49		Al-Wadud	The Loving
50		Al-Majid	The Lord of Honor
51		Al-Ba’ith	The Raiser
52		Al-Shahid	The Witness
53		Al-Haqq	The True
54		Al-Wakil	The Disposer of Affairs
55		Al-Qawiyy	The Powerful
56		Al-Matin	The Strong
57		Al-Waliyy	The Friend
58		Al-Hamid	The Praiseworthy
59		Al-Muhsi	The Recorder
60		Al-Mubdi	The Author
61		Al-Mu’id	The Repeater
62		Al-Muhyi	The Life-giver
63		Al-Mumit	The Destroyer
64		Al-Hayy	The Living
65		Al-Qayyum	The Self-Subsisting and All-Sustaining
66		Al-Wajid	The Discoverer
67		Al-Majid	The Glorious
68		Al-Qadir	The Possessor of power and authority
69		Al-Muqtadir	The Omnipotent
70		Al-Muqaddim	The Provider
71		Al-Mu’akhkhir	The Degrader
72		Al-Awwal	The First
73		Al-Akhir	The Last
74		Al-Zahir	The Manifest
75		Al-Batin	The Hidden
76		Al-Wali	The Ruler
77		Al-Muta’ali	The Most High
78		Al-Barr	The Beneficent
79		Al-Tawwab	The Oft-Returning
80		Al-Mun’im	The Bestower
81		Al-Muntaqim	The Awarded
82		Al-Afuww	The Effacer
83		Al-Ra’uf	The Compassionate
84		Malik al-Mulk	The Lord of Sovereignty
85		Al-Muqsit	The Equitable
86		Al-Jami	The Gatherer
87		Al-Ghaniyy	The Self-Sufficient
88		Al-Mughni	The Enricher
89		Al-Mani	The Withholder
90		Al-Darr	The Inflictor
91		Al-Nafi	The Benefactor
92		Al-Nur	The Light
93		Al-Hadi	The Guide
94		Al-Badi	The Originator
95		Al-Baqi	The Survivor
96		Al-Warith	The Inheritor
97		Al-Rashid	The Director
98		Al-Sabur	The Patient
99		Dhul Arsh	The Lord of the Throne
100		Dhul Waqar	The Possessor of staidness and gravity
101		Al-Mutakallim	The Speaker
102		Al-Shafi	The Healer
103		Al-Kafi	The Sufficient
104		Al-Ahad	The Unique
105		Al-Wahid	The One
106		Al-Samad	The Besought of all
107		Dhul Jalal wal Ikram	The Lord of Majesty and Bounty

Does God have the same attributes as man?

There are some attributes that man shares with God. After all, the purpose of man’s creation is to manifest in himself God’s attributes:

And when thy Lord said to the angels: ‘I am about to place a vicegerent in the earth.’ (2:31)

A vicegerent is a Prophet who manifests divine attributes and becomes an image of God.

As it says in the Bible, ‘So God created man in his own image.’ (Genesis 1:27)

The Holy Quran teaches that man has been created to serve as a manifestation of God’s attributes and to illustrate them in his life.

But man’s attributes are not the same as God’s attributes, just like an image is not the same as the real thing. Man is limited in his abilities to manifest God’s attributes, whereas God manifests these attributes fully.

For example man can create things out of other things, whereas God created the whole universe out of nothing.

Why was the Holy Quran revealed in Arabic?

Why was the Holy Quran revealed in Arabic, instead of some easily accessible language like English?

God has addressed this issue in the Holy Quran:

And if We had made it a Quran in a foreign tongue, they surely would have said, ‘Why have not its verses been made clear? What! a foreign tongue and an Arab Prophet?’ (41:45)

God always sends His guidance in the language of the Prophet and the people who are its first recipients:

And We have not sent any Messenger except with revelation in the language of his people in order that he might make things clear to them. (14:5)

So We have made the Quran easy in thy tongue that thou mayest give thereby glad tidings to the righteous, and warn thereby a contentious people. (19:98)

Arabic is the most expressive, eloquent and comprehensive language, and is eminently suited for the delivery of God’s final and complete message to mankind:

We have made it a Book to be oft read, in clear, eloquent language that you may understand. (43:4)

A Book, the verses of which have been expounded in detail, and which will be repeatedly read, couched in clear, eloquent language, for a people who have knowledge. (41:4)

It has also been proven that Arabic is the mother of all the world’s languages.