Islam: Why killing and bloodshed - 3 & more

Baba 

Islam: Why there is so much killing and bloodshed -3

Note: A link to part one  & two has been appended below.

Namaskar,
"Still, Mecca at the time was a remarkably tolerant society. Muhammad was allowed to attack the local customs for thirteen years, even though the town's economy depended on the annual pilgrimage attended by visiting pagans, whose religion he actively disparaged.


Muhammad "marry" Abu Bakr's 6-year-old daughter

At first, Muhammad was only successful with friends and family. After thirteen years, “the street preacher” could boast of only about a hundred determined followers, who called themselves Muslims. Outside of his wife, his first convert was his young cousin Ali (who would later become his son-in-law and the fourth caliph of Islam). Another early convert was Abu Bakr, a wealthy merchant whose money and credulous acceptance of Muhammad can be credited with the survival of the fledgling cult. (Muhammad would later "marry" Abu Bakr's 6-year-old daughter). He would have sex with her when she turned 9 and was still prepubescent.


Muhammad recognize the local gods in addition to Allah

Relations with the Meccans turned particularly sour after an episode known as "e Satanic Verses" in which Muhammad agreed to recognize the local gods in addition to Allah. This delighted the Meccans, who generously extended their welcome. But Muhammad soon changed his mind after his own people began to lose faith in him. He claimed that Satan had spoken through him, and he rescinded recognition of the Meccan gods (Tabari 1192, Quran 22:52 & 53:19-26). 

The locals intensified their mockery of Muslims and made life particularly difficult for some of them. Although Muslims today often use the word "persecution" to describe this ordeal (justifiably, in some cases), it is important to note that the earliest and most reliable biographers (Ibn Ishaq and al-Tabari) record the death of only one Muslim during this period, an older woman who died from stress.


Muslims became violent

This fact is a source of embarrassment to modern apologists, who do not like admitting that Muslims were the first to become violent at Mecca and that Muhammad was the first to resort to militancy... and at a later time, when it was entirely unnecessary.

Muhammad's search for political alliance led him to make a treaty of war against the Meccans with the people of Medina, another Arab town far to the north (Ibn Ishaq 299-301). This was the last straw for the Meccans, who finally decided to capture Muhammad and put him to death. 

Although this sounds harsh against Western standards, it is important to note the contrast between the Meccan reaction and that of Muhammad when he had the opportunity to deal with perceived treachery in Medina at a later date on the part of those who hadn't even harmed anyone.


Muhammad slaughtered an entire tribe of Jewish

The Meccans limited their deadly aggression to Muhammad himself. This is quite clear from the episode in which Muhammad escapes his home by using his son-in-law, Ali, to trick his would-be assassins into thinking that they had him trapped (Ibn Ishaq 326). No harm was done to Ali or his wife, both of whom subsequently remained in the city for several days to complete the transfer of Muhammad's family business to Medina.

Compare this to the episode of the Banu Qurayza Jews, in which Muhammad slaughtered an entire tribe of Jewish people based on their leader having switched loyalties in a conflict in which none of them even participated.

The year that Muhammad fled Mecca for Medina was 622, which marks the beginning of the Muslim calendar." (1)

(To be continued)

Reference
1. Comment of M. Twain, Courtesy of Washington Post 

== Section 2: Main topic ==

यह मनुष्य का काम नहीं है

“जो मिलेगा, वही खाएँगे, ऐसा नहीं जी ! जो वस्तु का प्रभाव तुम्हारे शरीर पर, मन पर, आत्मा पर, अच्छा है---वही खाना है | जो मिलेगा खाएँगे, यह मनुष्य का काम नहीं है | यह पशु का भी काम नहीं है | पशु में भी खाना का विचार है”
[यह प्रवचन-अंश, बाबा के कैसेट से सीधे लिखा गया है । बाबा का यह असली प्रवचन, अमृतोपदेश है। आनन्दमार्ग हिन्दी पुस्तकों में छपे प्रवचन तो नक़ली प्रवचन हैं, असली नहीं हैं -- बंगालीकरण (बँगलाइजेसन) के तहत उनकी बर्बादी की गई]

Reference
1. अप्रकाशित भाग, 3rd June 1990, DMC, “The Cult of Spirituality, a Cult of Pinnacled Order”

== Section 3: Links ==

 

Prior Letters of Islam series

Islam: Why is there so much killing and bloodshed - 1

Islam: Why is there so much killing and bloodshed - 2

Other topics

Worrying trend

Confused people misguide others

This email contains four sections:

1. Current Events: Islam: Why is there so much killing and bloodshed - 3

2. Hindi Quote: यह मनुष्य का काम नहीं है

3. Links