To understand how and when your rights and freedom began to get eroded we need to do a study of the history of humankind.
Of course, if you were to believe in the Bible, then you would probably also believe that humankind lost its rights and freedom even before we came down to earth; while still living in Paradise to be exact. God had imposed certain rules on Adam and Eve and when they violated these rules they were sentenced to a life on earth that results in eventual death.
So, when Adam and Eve came down to earth, they were already subjected to laws, God’s laws. Hence there was no real freedom or freewill from the very beginning. Humankind had to live by the will of God, which was full of rules and restrictions, from Day One.
A code of conducts & ideals
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters,
He refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
— Psalm 23:1-6
That is actually the New International Version of Psalm 23 and there are roughly 50 different versions in all — just for the English language alone. If other languages are added to this list then we are talking about hundreds of versions of Psalm 23. For example, some versions translate Even though I walk through the darkest valley as Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death.
Psalm 23 (Greek numbering: Psalm 22 because of its opening line) is the 23rd and perhaps best-known psalm in the Old Testament Book of Psalms and perhaps the best-known chapter in the Hebrew Bible. The writer describes God as his shepherd. The theme of this poem casts God in the role of protector and provider, and is routinely read and recited by Jews and Christians alike. For Christians, the "Lord" referred is sometimes taken to be Jesus, who referred himself as the "good shepherd" according to the Gospel of John.
How many Jews, Christians or Muslims would live by the ideals, standards and demands of Psalm 23? We would be lucky if we can find even 1% who do. To the rest of the 99%, Psalm 23 is merely lip service that has no place in their hearts.
In short, 99% of the Jews, Christians and Muslims are not true Jews, Christians and Muslims. They lack akidah and hence are not true followers of their religion.
First, read what Psalm 23 says. Then try to understand the real meaning and implication of what you just read. Finally, do you really live your life according to the ideals, standards and demands of Psalm 23?
In a place of Do's & Dont's (Rules & Laws)
Scientists, however, say that early humankind lived a nomadic life as hunters-gatherers and was not encumbered by rules and laws. Families lived off the land and moved on once that land could no longer sustain life.
They did not own property so there were no fights over land or territory (which is what most wars are about). No one was jealous of each other since no one owned anything; hence there was no conflict. You did not need any language because you did not need to communicate about anything whatsoever. And the less people talked (and talked too much) the less chance of quarrelling. There was no government so there was no tussle over power (another source of conflicts and civil wars).
Basically, it was a state of anarchy, a state where no governments and rules exist, and it was a very peaceful state not driven by lust or greed for power, position and wealth. (And anarchists still believe we should return to that state where peace can be achieved and governments/rules can be abolished).
Eventually, the family unit grew bigger and bigger and after many generations it was no longer possible to migrate to a new territory every time the land you lived on could no longer sustain life. There were just too many people to move and all other territories were already occupied anyway (so there was no unoccupied territory to occupy).
And that was when the nomadic life of a hunter-gatherer no long suited humankind. So people had to settle down wherever they happened to be living at and the life of a settler replaced the life of the nomadic hunter-gatherer.
Since people could no longer migrate in search of food but had to settle down, they had to learn how to cultivate the land and rear livestock to continue to feed themselves. It was no longer possible to forage for food. You had to practice agriculture and animal husbandry to replace the life of scavenging.
These settlements soon grew as the population increased and in time neighbouring settlements began merging with each other and many small settlements became one large settlement and developed into townships.
In the days of the nomadic hunter-gatherer, the head of the family was the patriarch so there was no confusion as to who was the boss. He made the rules and everyone followed these rules, which was almost non-existent anyway. But their needs were very basic (food and sex) so there was very little complication in managing this family unit. As long as you satisfied your lust for food and sex everyone was happy. And since no one owned anything (not even spouses) there was no need to quarrel.
But when humankind transformed into settlers and settlements grew there were now many family units living as one community. So things began to get complicated. And that meant they needed rules so that everyone respected the rights of others.
You now owned land, houses, wheat fields, vegetable plots, livestock and whatnot. And the women now belonged to you and not to the entire community and the children were yours and no longer from unknown fathers. So they had to ensure that what belonged to you remained yours and that no one could rob you of what belonged to you.
However, once you have rules and laws then you need to ensure that people complied with these rules and laws. Having rules and laws but not being able to enforce them was useless. So they needed a way to govern the community so that people did what they were supposed to do and did not do what they were not supposed to do.
So the people chose from amongst their community certain people to govern over them, implement these rules and laws, enforce these rules and laws, and make sure that people followed them (plus punish those who did not).
Eventually, those who had this power became very powerful. They could decide who lived and who died and who should be banned or exiled from the community when they committed an ‘illegal’ act. And eventually other people also wanted this same power so a power struggle soon emerged and people fought each other for control over the community.
To protect your position of power and to prevent others from ousting you, those in positions of power needed to act tough against their challengers. Rules and laws needed to be tightened and the punishment for those who violated these rules and laws needed to be draconian. And this eventually developed into draconian dictatorships where opposition and dissent would not be tolerated.
To be able to claim the legitimacy to rule over others, you had to have the divine right to rule. Your authority did not come from the people you ruled over (like in an elected government) but from a divine power. Hence you had to create this divine power and hence, also, you had to create the concept of a divine being, meaning God or Gods. And with this concept of God(s) came the concept of the religion of God.
And anyone who questions the divine right of the ruler to rule over others would be questioning God and hence would have to be punished with God’s law, meaning death for questioning God.
Soon the path to power was through the path of religion. To attain and retain power and to ensure that no one questions your power or tries to take this power away from you, you need to hold on to power by the grace of God. Hence you had to have control over religion to be able to rule over the people.
And this was how religion was invented as the path to power. When you question me you are questioning God because I rule over you by divine right and by the will of God. Hence if you challenge and offend God then you must die as decreed by God and according to our religious belief.
Is it not interesting to note that religion came about because you needed a ‘vehicle’ to rule over others and to be able to decide the fate and future of others with you as judge, jury and executioner by virtue of the power that God gave you?
And that was when your rights and freedom as a nomadic hunter-gatherer anarchist disappeared; when you became a settler and adopted a system of government with rules and laws.
Ironic is it not that you lost your rights and freedom the day you decided to organise yourself as a community in the interest of protecting these same rights and freedom?
A Rule Of Law In the eyes of a Follower; Moral Being
Two Rabbis argued late into the night about the existence of God, and, using strong arguments from the scriptures, ended up indisputably disproving His existence. The next day, one Rabbi was surprised to see the other walking into the shul for morning services.
"I thought we had agreed there was no God," he said.
"Yes, what does that have to do with it?" replied the other.
The cognate to this is the part left out, the fact that it was traditional to go to services, regardless of what one believed, and the rabbi was merely following that tradition. This is like the story of the boy who tells his rabbi he can't daven (a traditional prayer ritual), because he no longer believes in God. The rabbi merely tells him, "Yes, God, no God: doesn't matter! Three times a day, you DAVEN!"
Moral Being: What we want to discuss today is with regards to homosexuality being against the law. There is already a law regarding sodomy. It talks about sodomy, not about homosexuality. That section of the law does not say that homosexuality is a crime. It only says that sodomy is a crime.
Lord: It is automatic. If it involves homosexuality then automatically it involves sodomy.
Moral Being: But, Lord, that section of the law also makes it a crime for a husband and wife to have anal sex. So heterosexual anal sex also attracts a 20-year jail sentence, even if it is between legally married couples. Why wouldn't Lord not also stress on this fact: that husbands and wives can also get sent to jail, not just homosexuals?
Lord: We are not concerned about married couples and what they do in the privacy of their bedrooms. We are only concerned about what homosexuals do in the privacy of their bedrooms.
Moral Being: But that is beside the point, Lord. It is still the law that married couples who indulge in anal sex can be sent to jail for 20 years, until such a time that this law is amended and stipulates that anal sex is a crime only for those who indulge in same-sex relationships.
Lord: How can we control what married people do in their bedrooms? It is impossible to monitor what people do in the privacy of their bedrooms.
Moral Being: Yet the moral police wants to monitor what non-married people or gay couples do in the privacy of their bedrooms. How are you going to do this?
Lord: Well…I….I….
Moral Being: Never mind, Lord. Let’s move on. The law says that anal sex is a crime. It does not say that homosexuality is a crime. What happens if two people of the same sex live as husband and wife but they do not indulge in anal sex? How can you arrest and charge them?
Lord: How can they live together but not have sex?
Moral Being: They can always indulge in oral sex, Lord.
Lord: You mean they live together as a married couple and just talk about sex? I don’t believe that.
Moral Being: No, Lord, I don’t mean oral sex as in talking about sex. I mean….well, you know Lord…..lick, lick, suck, suck.
Lord: Oh, that oral sex! Oral sex is also a crime. It is also punishable by 20 years jail, even if between husbands and wives.
Moral Being: Okay, Lord, you may be thinking of homosexual relationships as just being between two men. What if the homosexual relationship is between two women? Are you still going to say that it is a crime since there is no sodomy or anal sex involved? And take note, Lord, that section of the law you are talking about makes it a crime to indulge in anal sex, not to be a homosexual.
Lord: Well, if it is two women, then they probably have oral sex. So that means it is also a crime.
Moral Being: So, it is the sex act that is the crime then. Being homosexual or living as a gay couple is not a crime. Is that right, Lord?
Lord: Well….yes, that is right.
Moral Being: So, Lord, are you going to now issue a statement saying that you made an error and that only anal and oral sex are crimes whereas gay relationships are not a crime according to the Moral law? And if people live together as gay couples and only kiss, hug, touch, rub against each other, masturbate each other, but as long as there is no anal or oral sex, then the Law can’t do anything about it?
Lord: Well…I….I…. HhhhhhhhHmmmmmmmmm........
As Time Faded; So Does the Touch!!!
To be Out of Touch; To be Out of Time...
Only Kosher
A Catholic priest, Peter Smit and a rabbi are seated next to one another on a plane. During the flight, the priest says, "Tell me, rabbi, is it still a requirement of the Jewish faith that you do not eat pork?" "That is the case, yes," says the rabbi. "But tell me, did you ever get tempted - did it ever appeal so much that you couldn't resist and decided to see what, say, bacon tasted like?" the priest goes on. "Yes, father, there was one occasion when, as a young man, the smell of bacon became too much of a temptation and I tasted it," the rabbi admits. "And how did you find it?" asks the priest. "Well, says the rabbi, "Since we are both men of God and being honest with one another, I must confess it was excellent. I enjoyed it very much. But I never ate it ever again." The priest sits back, looking smug. Later during the flight, the rabbi says to the priest, "Tell me, father - is it still a requirement of your own faith that you do not have sexual intercourse?" "Why yes," says the priest, "That is indeed true." "But were you ever tempted, even once, to see what sexual intercourse is like?" the rabbi continues. "Well, as you were so honest with me, I must confess that indeed, once, when I was a young man, I did have sexual intercourse with a woman," the priest tells him. "Beats the hell out of a bacon sandwich, doesn't it?" says the rabbi.
A Jewish man walks past a butcher's shop and sees a lovely Ham Joint in the window. "This I must try. Just once:" He says to himself. He sneaks it home and secretly starts make himself a ham sandwich. One of his sons comes in.
"Father, what are you doing? You making a ham sandwich? I'm telling the Rabbi."
"No, no my son. Don't do that. Here's a couple of hundred pounds to keep quiet."
The son takes the money and tells his father that his secrets safe. A couple of minutes later his daughter walks in:
"Father, what are you doing? Is that a Ham sandwich? I'm telling the Rabbi."
"No, no my daughter. Don't do that to your own father. Here's a couple of hundred pounds to buy that dress you've been on about."
Like her brother, the daughter walks off quite content.
The next day the man is walking down the road when he is greeted by a friend:
"Hey Levi!! How's it going?"
"Oi vey, terrible, terrible."
"Why so terrible?"
"Well, yesterday, Micah, for about 20 minutes I became a Christian."
"Well that's not too bad."
"No? Well in that time I got turned over by a couple of bloody Jews."
Why No Pork?
There is probably no animal as disgusting to Jewish sensitivities as the pig. It’s not just because it may not be eaten: there are plenty of other animals that aren’t kosher either, but none of them arouse as much disgust as the pig. Colloquially, the pig is the ultimate symbol of loathing; when you say that someone “acted like a chazir[pig],” it suggests that he or she did something unusually abominable. Indeed, many people think of pork, ham, bacon, etc., as the most unkosher foods there are.
The Torah gives two physical signs that mark kosher land animals: they ruminate (chew their cud) and have fully split hooves. It then The pig is the ultimate symbol of loathinggoes on to list several creatures that have just one or the other of these, and are therefore unkosher. One of these is the pig, since it has hooves which are split, but it does not chew its cud—it is therefore unclean for you.
Many of the commentaries offer reasons for the mitzvah of keeping kosher. However the Talmud asserts that the kosher laws fall under the category of chok, mitzvahs without any rationale, and makes the following observation regarding pork:
Our rabbis taught: . . . ‘Keep My chukim’2—this refers to those mitzvot against which the Satan and the gentile nations argue, [considering them illogical and deserving of mockery,] such as [not] eating pork.
So, this mitzvah is a supra-rational one, not something that we can understand logically.
In a similar vein, Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah says4 that one shouldn’t say, “I abstain from pork because I don’t like it,” but rather that we do so because of G‑d’s commandment.
“Are you ready to order, sir?”
“Yes. What is the speciality of the house?”
“Our deep-fried roast pork skin is the talk of the town.”
“No, no pork. I am a Muslim. I don’t eat pork.”
“Okay. No pork then. Why not try our duck cooked in wine? That is also our speciality.”
“No, no wine also. Muslims can’t take liquor.”
“Well, the duck won’t taste as nice cooked in Coca-Cola. Okay, our other speciality is monkey brain. Ours is the best outside Hong Kong.”
“Monkey brain?”
“That’s right. We clamp a live monkey in that hole in the middle of the table. Then we slice open the skull and pour brandy into the skull after which we light it up and fry the brain while the monkey struggles and squeals. Oh, I forgot, you don’t take liquor.”
“It’s not only the liquor. I also don’t eat monkeys, especially the brains of live monkeys, fried or otherwise.”
“Alright. Do you eat dogs then?”
“No, no dogs.”
“Okay, then I take it you don’t eat cats either.”
“No cats.”
“Squirrels?”
“No.”
“Try our snake then. We slit the snake from head to tail and garnish it with a special…”
“No, no snake.”
“Anteater?”
“Anteater? No.”
“You said no pork. But now it looks like no pork and hundreds of other things as well. This is going to go on forever. Why not just tell me what you can eat. That would be easier and faster.”
“Okay. I can eat beef, lamb and chicken.”
“Alright. Our sizzling beef is the best in town. Or you can try our steamed chicken or charcoaled lamb. Or try all three.”
“I’ll try your streamed chicken.”
“Okay, half or quarter chicken?”
“Half should be okay. But is it halal chicken?”
“It is the normal chicken with wings and feathers.”
“No, I mean is it properly slaughtered?”
“Of course. We never cook the chicken while it is still alive. We kill it first.”
“I mean, how do you kill it?”
“We cut of its head with a chopper.”
“Is it done the Muslim way?”
“The Muslim way?”
“Yes, with prayers.”
“The chickens can’t pray.”
“Not the chickens, the person who kills the chickens. Do they pray as they kill the chicken?”
“I don’t think so. Most times they are listening to music on their iPod.”
“Oh, then it is not halal. I suppose the beef and lamb would be the same then. Maybe I will just order the fish.”
“Okay, the fish then. You have no problems how the fish is killed?”
“No, no problems. But hold on. How do you cook it?”
“Steamed, fried, any way you like.”
“No, I mean do you cook it in the same pots and pans that you cook the pork and all those other things.”
“Yes.”
“You don’t have separate pots and pans for the fish?”
“No.”
“Oh, then it would be contaminated by the pork.”
“If that is a problem I can always serve the fish raw, something like Japanese Sushi.”
“No, it won’t taste so nice. Maybe I will just have the vegetables, raw, not cooked.”
“Okay. But why did you not just go to the vegetarian restaurant next door then? It looks like it is not just no pork but no everything other than vegetables.”
“Yes, I suppose it is not so much what I don’t want but what I do want, which is almost nothing.”
The Bread Winner
One of the religious leaders (mufti) of a certain state has condemned men who allow their wives to become the breadwinner of the family while they, the husbands, stay home as househusbands.
According to him, the accepted order of nature is that the wives should stay home as housewives while the men should go out to earn the money to support their families.
If a man allows his wife to become the breadwinner of the family while he stays home to look after the children and do the housework then the marriage is not blessed, argued this religious leader, the head honcho of religion in that state. In short, that spouses’ marriage would not be blessed by God and expect that marriage to suffer. Anything that God does not bless would certainly be headed for doom and only no good would come out of it.
And stay in your houses, and do not display yourselves like that of the times of ignorance” - [al-Ahzaab 33:33]
Although this was addressed to the wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), all believing women should follow them in that. It was addressed to the wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) because of their honoured status and because they are the example for the believing women.
This is also indicated by the words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): “Woman is ‘awrah, and when she goes out the Shaytaan gets his hopes up. She is never closer to Allaah than when she is in the innermost part of her house.” (Narrated by Ibn Hibbaan and Ibn Khuzaymah; classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, no. 2688.
And the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said concerning women praying in the mosques: “Their houses are better for them.” (Narrated by Abu Dawood, 567’ classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh Abi Dawood).
And Stay In Your Houses, And Do not Display Yourselves - Al-Ahzab 33:33
Every Eye Is Lustful & When A Woman Applies Perfume & Then Goes About In An Assembly, She Is Such & Such, I.E. An Adulteress. - Mishkat, Hadith #1065
Their Houses are better for them - Al-Salaah 480
A Way Of Life (ADEEN)
One man’s ‘extremism’ could be another’s ‘commitment’ while one man’s ‘moderation’ could be another’s ‘deviation’. You say you are moderate and I say you are a deviant. You say you are committed and I say you are extreme.
Most Muslims, Malays included, would argue that Islam is not merely a religion but a complete or total way of life. A Muslim must conduct themselves in a certain manner. It is not enough that you believe in God, Prophet Muhammad, the Quran, etc. It is not enough that you fulfil your five times a day prayers, fast during the month of Ramadhan, go to Mekah, etc. It is not enough that you do not eat pork, gamble, drink liquor, etc. There are other things you need to do to be a complete Muslim. And that would be to also live the life of a Muslim.For example, if you go to your neighbour’s house and the husband is not in and the wife is alone at home, you should not enter the house. You go off and come back later when the husband is home. If you still need to talk to the wife about something very urgent, then you stand outside at a respectable distance and do not touch her, not even to shake her hand.That is adeen.
Islam says that one must not inconvenience others, even when performing one’s religious obligation. If someone is sleeping we are not to disturb him or her by reciting verses of the Koran at the top of our voice, especially when that someone may be sick. But when we perform our Friday prayers we park our cars all over the place, creating massive traffic jams to the inconvenience of other road users as well as to the residents living around the mosque who cannot enter or exit their houses until the prayers are concluded.
Have you seen old folks and pregnant women having to stand in a bus or train because those who are younger, stronger and healthier refuse to vacate their seats in favour of those who need it more? Have you seen healthy people park their cars in parking spaces reserved for those in wheelchairs? Have you seen strong, young men rush into a bus or train, pushing aside women and children in front of them? Have you ever had to bump into others rushing into a lift as soon as the door opens and before you can step out of it? Have you seen parents smoking while driving in a car full of children? Have you seen parents smoking in a crowded place while carrying their babies in their arms?
A better reason for moral police for Adeen to be perfected?
The need for Moral Policing
I was just about to drink mineral water, lifting the bottle with my left hand when I felt a tap on my shoulder. A good friend of mine, who just recently decided to wearhijab, glared at me.
“Use your right hand when drinking and eating, otherwise you’ll drink with Satan,” she said. “Ok, I’ll do it next time I drink,” I said. “No, do it now. Use your right hand,” she scolded me.
Not wanting to irk her and because we’re having lunch with a bunch of friends, I placed the water bottle on my right hand.
When she just started wearing hijab, my friend only sometimes reminded me it was time to pray, which was fine. It later became intolerable when she started telling me the correct way of holding a mineral or telling me that staying home reciting Quran is better than wandering in the mall.
My cousin, who has been wearing hijab in the past two years, recently sat me down for a little “heart-to-heart” talks. I knew what she was going to talk about, but I went along out of respect. She gently said that I wasn’t practicing the correct Islamic teaching. And she offered to lead me back to the right track by asking me to recite the Shahada (the declaration of one’s belief in God and the acceptance of Muhammad as God’s prophet) in front of an ulema.
“Islam has many groups but only one will have a place in heaven, and this one group which I’ve been following, has the correct teachings,” she said. “I don’t want you to burn in eternity flame of hell, so you’ll have to start correctly. You have to recite the Shahada again,” she said.
More and more of my female friends and relatives are wearing hijab, which has become a trend in recent years, creating the popular term “Hijabers”. I have nothing against hijab and have much respect to those who wear it, as I’m also a Muslim. But what I don’t appreciate is that by wearinghijab, some of them feel spiritually superior and entitled to become religious police.Social media has also become a playground in promoting hijab. Nothing wrong with that, but I found some to be unsettling. Another relative once posted a graphic picture on Facebook showing the stages of covering a woman’s body with hijab. A woman in the lowest ladder wore a tank-top and one on the highest ladder had hijab on. Underneath the bar, there were two arrows. The one going up the ladder with the woman in hijab says “loved by God”, while the second arrow going down the ladder says “loved by satan”. (Seeing this making me wonder whether Indonesian women who lived in villages in Java and Bali in 1900s are in hell now because of they were bare-chested then.)
I increasingly come across fellow Muslims who are questioning my religious quality, criticizing the way I pray or the way I dress, than those non-Muslims who try to convert me into their religions. In fact, none of my non-Muslim friends ever talk me into converting my religion.
Seeds of its Labour. As the Bible says, on the sixth day, God created man, and on the seventh day, God rested. And on the seventh day that God rested, man out of boredom and with nothing else to do, begin to dream tat leads God to create woman. And when Man woke up on Monday he discovered woman is worth fighting for. And ever since No one rested!!! For on the day of the fall, the serpent aka Satan tempt woman resulting in God to enter creation thru a miracle shrine known as the Virgin Mary. Since then there seems to be no peace among all the creations resulting in wars And laws of the dos and don'ts. My Oh My Ohh Mine!!!! #myohmy https://youtu.be/PeVwCdGX-YE
I believe in woman, my oh my I believe in lovin', my oh my Don't a woman need a man? Try and catch one if you can I believe in woman, my oh my
We all need someone to talk to, my oh my We all need someone to talk to, my oh my You need a shoulder to cry on Call me, I'll be standing by
We all need someone to talk to, my oh my We all need a lotta lovin', my oh my
Yeah, and whole lotta lovin', my oh my