Since i been here for a while i should be in a postion to tell who would i meet if i had the chance of meeting some the nomads here. It is pleasure to have known some of the great contributors of this site namely Jamaal1 , mujaahid, sijui and so on and would be more pleasure to meet some of these ladies and gentle men: Guys: Libaax sankataabte Miskiin macruuf aqiyaar Thunder Abdinuur Muraad kowneyn (by now you guessed why i want to meet him ) Girls: Rahiima Asomali Manalagaraadbaa Barwaaqo Baydan Kamila hamdi Amina Mizz ish and mizz huricane And the list goes on..actuallt if i can rembember all the names i would list them here but there you go

May be sijui they want to be War-Lords!!!

Can you reference your verses please?

May allah most willing, most gracious and most mercious bless him and make easy for his surgery , Amiin

loooooooooooooooooooool miskiin macruug waa iga qoslisiisay maanta wallaahi.....................you one funy guy

It is OK for me if the person is Muslim and happy to be with other person , i dont care which backgroung or nationality it really does not matter.

Not necessarrily My dear Sijui Well it all depends the definition we give the term terrosim. If we can agree on the definition, only then we can agree on if it goes only with poverty or not, an idea i am fully sceptical. Well Amrica the so called the richest country terrorised and still terrosrises people in their homes and enjoys killing children and old so as isreal. If we take the definition used by the west to define terrorism then we have osma bin laden who was one of the rich people in his country. If you look in africa one of the poorest continent in the world there are conflicts and civil wars not terrorism so it is rather a matter of common sense to believe that conflicts and poverty are linked not terrorism and poverty.

Islamic way of governering is the best.....ecenomy is divided betwen the poor and the rich and have kind of similirity with the socialist ideology since i think they derived some of their thinking from the Kuran. But then there is the social differences you have as in islam liberty is controlled so that it should not cross the borders like you have homesexuals in public in some of the western world. So my advice is '' NO TO CAPITALISM, NO TO SOCIALISM AND NO TO COMMUNISM.......ISLAM IS THE BEST

Salaamu Alaikum, Well i dont understand the motive behind this war.........what i can think of is that America and their blind ally Britain have hidden agendas and that is all down to OIL... Afetr september 11 americans blame it to so called Muslim fundamentalists and they say their base is in Saudi Arabia and they cannot pressurize saudis to change their way of life becouse of the interest they have in OIL and to do that they have to have a replacement before they can abandon the Saudi kingdom and they can not get that replacement from Iraq which have the second largest Oil reserve in the world while saddam is still in power therefore the idea of regime change. Mr bush has aleady said this idea of regime change will not stop there and they will take action against any regime they believe is a threat to the interests of america and its allies. This is a start of a new world disorder and many counries especially those in the middle east are scared and think it may endup all against them even so long so they helped america murder muslims in their own territories. For them war is about to start but for the real muslims the war started long time ago. All in all i can't understand why it should be iraq while america have many enemies who have weapons of mass destruction , North Korea for example, hence the hidden agenda.

Salaam Alaikum warahmatullahi, I Cannot say exactlty that Osama bin laden was behind it, but i believe it was an act of muslim personals and backup of this is that no one can kill themselves for what they believe except muslims can do that. jews wouldnt do that becouse we know in the kuran that they dont like Death but we like it becouse we believe that life in the hereafter is better than this very low one That is my thinking but the truth is untold and only Allah subhaanah knows it . Wassalaam

There is no time or age set for some one to learn becouse it is always an obligation for humanbeings to learn before believing. Quran'' faclam anahu laailaaha ilalaahu wastaqfir lidhinuubika'' O' learn that there is no god except Allah and then ask forgiveness for your sins''. From this verse we can understand from it that Allah did not ask us to accept him blindly but after learning that him alone is worth to worship. What I am trying to say is when we were in our homeland there were no disbelievers namely gaalo hence the need to be your own scholar was less important than now because there were scholars who we ask whatever we had problem with and the fact that there were no interaction with non-believers. Since the civil war broke out in our homeland we became migrating nation from place to place and we became neighbours, colleagues, friends to non-believers in our hosting nations mainly in the western world. Well this is not bad if looked from the economical perspective but are we not losing out in the most valuable thing we have which is to have born as Muslims? Many of us did not choose to be Muslims, we saw ourselves bearing names like Mohamed, Ali, etc but do we really know why should we be Muslims? And is this religion we found ourselves in the most righteous one and how do we know that? These are many questions facing our society in the foreign land today and many of us do not have answers for these questions simply because we don’t know. We have never understood the Quran because we don’t understand Arabic and we are never willing to learn it because we are too lazy and don’t even mention about Hadiths!! Ok here we go. we are Muslims! Fellow students ask us about Islam , Friends ask us about Islam, neighbours ask us about Islam, and you can add the list.... We have no answers for them ...we haven’t learned about it...then comes the killer they betray us and tell us what you believing is nonsense even though they have no firm knowledge about it and they tell us this from their perception within their western society. Not long time ago i met this Somali girl through one of my friends whom she was distant relative to him. She's been in this country for just 3 years and within this three years she befriended with non believer and she, this poor girl knowing little or none about Islam he asked her so many questions she could not bear answering and now she started urging about some of the fundamental aspects of Islam. Allah Akbar. Having witnessed that and having heard similar stories from other sources I am beginning to fear for my people. And my fear for them is ignorance. May be we might not see ourselves ignorant as such as long as we have BSC, BH, MSC and PhDs, But believe me there is no ignorance which is far more shameful and bigger than being ignorant about the Deen, Islam. Brothers and sisters let us learn about our Islam as we learn other subjects which are only beneficial in this world but our religion is what is gona go with us in the grave and will help us in the day of judgment. May Allah forgive our sins and show us his true path. Ameen

OK brother muraad i accept that and here i come with the complete verse of the last verse revealed chronologically, marking the approaching end of the prphet's minstry in his earthly life: Translation taken from Yusuf Ali suratul maida verse 4 ''Forbidden to you (for food) are: deadmeat, blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which hath been invoked the name of other than god; That hath been killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, Or by aheadlong fall, Or by being gored to death; That which hath been (partly) Eaten by a wild animal; Unless ye are able To slaughter it (in due form); That which is sacrificed on stone (altars); (Forbidden) also is the division (of meat) by raffling with arrows : that is empiety. This day have those who Reject Faith given up All hope of your religion: yet fear them not But fear me. This is day i have perfected your religion for you, completed my favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion . But if any is forced By hunger, with no inclination To transgression, God is indeed Oft-forgiving, Most merciful.'' n.p muraad i hope that answers your quastion bro. thanks wasalaamu Alaikum

Muraad aayadii quraanka ugu danbeysay waxay aheyd bismillahi raxmani raxiim ''Alyawma akmaltu lakum diinakum wa,atmamtu calaikum nicmatii waradhiitu lakumul islaama diinaa'' my quastion is hiw many children had the prophet mohamed sallahu allaihi wasalam and what are their names?

Salaamu Alaikum, My vote goes to C/waduud maqbuul xaniif , ooh and oooh have u seen the sheikh reciting suratul yusuf? ooh boy u must be missing some thing then...xaadaa ku istaageysa bay dhahaan soomalidu My second vote goes to sheikh muhaisy , i heard he is serving in jail nor sure though, for just speaking out against kingdom, may allah help him and reawrd his efforts, Amiin

Salaamu Alaikum, Amatullah was that Judhamah bint Alharith otherwise known Ash-shyma . I am not sure just guessing(you will tell me if am right , wont you ok here comes my quastion who was the khaliphah who ordered the compilation of the quran?

Islam Attracts Converts by the Thousands, Drawn Before and After Attacks By Jodi Wilgoren, The New York Times, October 22 2001 CE ALLWIN, Mo., Oct. 20 — Since she became a Muslim six months ago, Angela Davis has given up many things. She stopped listening to music, started sleeping on the floor, put away her 100 Disney videos and traded her porcelain doll collection for velvet posters with verses from the Koran. Now, in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Ms. Davis may have to give up her children. After her photograph, in full veil, appeared in the local newspaper on Sept. 30, Ms. Davis's soon-to-be-ex-husband refused to return their children, 5 and 2, from a weekend visit. She has not seen them since. "It's a test that is given to me from Allah to see if my faith is strong enough," said Ms. Davis, 27, who discovered Islam in an Internet chat room this spring and now teaches pre-kindergarten at the Al-Salam Day School in this St. Louis suburb. "I'm asked to give up my religion for my kids, but I won't do it. On Judgment Day, as much as I love my kids, they won't be there with me." Though her situation is extreme, Ms. Davis is one of thousands of new Muslim converts struggling with their identities amid anti-Muslim fervor and declarations of an Islamic holy war being broadcast on television. Already estranged from relatives and friends, some of whom accuse them of joining a cult, these new Muslims face catcalls and fresh challenges to their faith. Many say the events of Sept. 11 only confirmed their commitment. Shannon Staloch is not sure why, but upon hearing of the hijackings, she immediately grabbed a book from her backpack and recited the Arabic declaration of belief; she made the conversion official 12 days later. "You know how the world changed when that happened and everyone was shaky?" Ms. Staloch said. "I wanted something steady." With some 6 million adherents in the United States, Islam is said to be the nation's fastest-growing religion, fueled by immigration, high birth rates and widespread conversion. One expert estimates that 25,000 people a year become Muslims in this country; some clerics say they have seen conversion rates quadruple since Sept. 11. Experts say Islam is attractive because of its universal message — the faithful believe that everyone is born Muslim and thus call the transformation reversion, not conversion — and because its teachings incorporate other traditions, honoring Jesus Christ, the Jewish patriarch Abraham and other Biblical figures as prophets. Though missionary work is rare in Islam, spreading the message is demanded by the Koran. Conversion is as simple as reciting one sentence — "I bear witness that there is no deity except Allah and that Muhammad is his messenger" — in front of witnesses, a ceremony known as Shahadah. "There's no class," said Khalid Yahya Blankinship, chairman of the religion department at Temple University. "There isn't really a formalized requirement, you don't have to be tested." Mr. Blankinship, who converted to Islam in 1973 and has since witnessed 100 Shahadahs, added: "It's very important that Islam should spread. The idea is that one should want other souls to be saved." The vast majority of converts are African-Americans, who make up about a third of Muslims in the United States. Thousands find Allah while in jail or in recovery from drug or alcohol addiction. Less familiar are the lapsed Catholics and lost Jews, often highly educated professionals, who come to the mosque. Many convert because they want to marry a Muslim who demands it, a common reason for conversions in any religion. "I would never have changed if it wasn't for Rania," David Nerviani, a St. Louis police officer, said of his Egyptian-born wife, a bartender he met on patrol. "It's probably not that deep for me." Others find Islam through friendships on college campuses, research papers on world religions or trolling the Internet. Some just feel called. Abdullah Reda of Reston, Va., said the news of Susan Smith, the South Carolina woman who drowned her two sons, brought him to Islam. A 13-year-old California girl had an epiphany during a sunset drive through the red rocks of Arizona. Katie Mathews, a graduate student at Washington University in St. Louis, who plans to make her Shahadah on her 23rd birthday in November, prayed for a sign and soon saw a license plate, "4 ALLAH." Nine years ago, Jim Hacking was in training to be a Jesuit priest. Now, he is an admiralty lawyer in St. Louis who has spent much of the last month explaining Islam at interfaith gatherings. Mr. Hacking's search began in the 12-step program Overeaters Anonymous and intensified when he befriended an Egyptian-born woman, Amany Ragab, at the law review at St. Louis University. He made the Shahadah on June 6, 1998, and proposed marriage to her the next day. This summer, the couple traveled to Mecca. "The thing I've always latched to is that there's one God, he doesn't have equals, he doesn't need a son to come do his work," Mr. Hacking, 31, said. "Giving up the pork and the alcohol was the easy part — I never drank much, but I did like bacon. The hard part, and the part I still struggle with every day, is being a good person, and living a good clean life." To help with the social transition, the All Dulles Area Muslim Society in Sterling, Va., pairs converts with mentors. Other mosques offer seminars in the basics of Arabic prayer. Web sites like jews-for-allah.org and understandingislam.tripod.com provide glossaries to common Muslim expressions, step-by-step guides to ritual washing, interactive games to teach Arabic, and profiles of fellow converts, organized alphabetically, by county of origin and by former religion. Perhaps the greatest challenge is maintaining family relationships, as parents often view conversion as a betrayal. One Web site offers a how- to guide for telling relatives. "Do not allow them to drag you into a conflict regarding religion at all," it lectures. Ms. Stolach, who teaches middle- school literacy, said her mother had helped her shop for hijab, the traditional Muslim head covering, but Ms. Mathews says the main reason she has delayed her Shahadah is that she is living with her parents. "My mom, she's Christian and she's very upset," Ms Mathews said. "I told her about my signs. She said, how do I know it's not the Devil?" "The Koran says you have to obey your parents, heaven is at the foot of your mother," she added. "I have to obey God before I obey my mother." On Sept. 11, Ms. Davis's mother exhorted her to remove the hijab, saying it would endanger her grandchildren. (Ms. Davis's divorce lawyer, and her husband, did not return telephone calls.) Ms. Davis, who wears a shoulder-to-ankle robe over her clothes, also faces resistance from her older two daughters, from a previous marriage, whom she enrolled in an Islamic school this fall, but who have lately said they would prefer to live with their father. As the afternoon call to prayer sounded from the mosque above Ms. Davis's classroom, the girls, white scarves around their heads, scrambled up to the women's balcony, where they bowed and knelt like old pros. They murmured "bismillah" ("in the name of Allah") before starting a game, "astaghfirullah" ("I beg Allah for forgiveness") after a misstep. But they say their father says their mother worships Satan. "I got one person saying they want me to be Muslim and then I got my dad saying no Muslim," said Krashanna Agers, 9. "I don't know, I'm not grown up yet." Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2001/10/22/national/22CONV.html?ex= 1004414400&en=ae7a47a9%2010427a10&ei=5040&partner=MOREOVER

Quran'' qul inkuntumtuxibuunalaah fatabicuunuu yuxbibkumullahu warasulluh...'' from this verse we can understand from it how best we can show our love to the prophet SAW by trying to follow his footsteps as hard as we can ...but neey there will be always those who will call for shirk and call for help other than the almighty, the most beneficient the most merciful. May allah guide them and us to true path. Amiin

Ok guys it looks like the quaestion has not been understood, let me give more clues about the sahabi in quastion: 1. He is one of the Ahlubaitu (family) rasullilahi saw 2. it was narrated from the prophet saw saying that i saw him flying in the paradise. 3. He was in charge of the muslim army when he was killed who is he then?

Salaamumu Alaikum hi guys. there are lot of quastion going since i last visited here so keep the ball rolling guys . Since tamina did not ask any quastion i will take this opportunity to ask mine Ok here it comes: Who was the companion of the prophet saw who was nicknamed ''TIYAAR'' ''FLIER'' following his martyrdom on one of the wars between the muslims and Romans in the prophet's time. Hope it is all clear. Thanks

Heey Buubto nice topic........Clever you and thanks for your efforts 1.yes cheehad muslims pay other payments to the poor and they are those paid on Eid days, EIDul fitr (it could be in monetary way too). 2. i am not known anything else should be paid by non muslims other than Jizyah. OK here comes my quastion: Who was the Sahabi ( Companion of the prophet SAW) who was nicknamed Khadimu rassalulahi prophet's caretaker.

salaam, Mujaahid brother out of desrespect i dont see the point of this rally!! First of all before we demonstarte we should ask ourselves who are we demonstrating about and who we should be demonstrate to? we are demonstrating about America , Israel, Britain and who are we demontrsting to America, Britain,israel the so called free people!! Are we not confused if we partcipate such kind of rallies or is it that we dont know what we stand for!! It is my own humble believe that palestine had been occupied by men and if it is to be freed needs real men '' rijaalun laa tulhiihim tijaaratun walaa baycun canthikrilaahi............. WASSALAAM

Muraad if london it is these bad you said why dont you pack your bags and head whereever you come from!! you bieng left your previous country and found a home in london means that you are enjoying living in london and we would expect to be more complimental to your host agonistic.....................

salaamz, Hi all. heey londoners where are you!! It is time we stand up for ourselves . Why is it we are subjected such kind of abuse and insults and again we have to endure housing , caring a large crowd of immigrants from north america, rest of europe and australia who when they come here in london first for holiday then settle permanently here and make the city crowded. Surely if your places are any good you should stick to it and leave london alone Otheer wise be good guest and commend the leading host :mad:

jAZAKUMULLAHU KHEYRAN SISTER , THAT IS VERY GOOD STORY . KEEP THEM COMING , YOU ARE ENLIGHTENING WITH IMAN INSHALLAH

Abdullah was the son of Abbas, an uncle of the noble Prophet. He was born just three years before the Hijrah. When the Prophet died, Abdullah was thus only thirteen years old. When he was born, his mother took him to the blessed Prophet who put some of his saliva on the babe's tongue even before he began to suckle. This was the beginning of the close and intimate tie between Abbas and the Prophet that was to be part of a life-long love and devotion. When Abdullah reached the age of discretion, he attached himself to the service of the Prophet. He would run to fetch water for him when he wanted to make wudu. During Salat, he would stand behind the Prophet in prayer and when the Prophet went on journeys or expeditions, he would follow next in line to him. Abdullah thus became like the shadow of the Prophet, constantly in his company. In all these situations he was attentive and alert to whatever the Prophet did and said. His heart was enthusiastic and his young mind was pure and uncluttered, committing the Prophet's words to memory with the capacity and accuracy of a recording instrument. In this way and through his constant researches later, as we shall see, Abdullah became one of the most learned companions of the Prophet, preserving on behalf of later generations of Muslims, the priceless words of the Messenger of God. It is said that he committed to memory about one thousand, six hundred and sixty sayings of the Prophet which are recorded and authenticated in the collections of al-Bukhari and Muslim. The Prophet would often draw Abdullah as a child close to him, pat him on the shoulder and pray: "O Lord, make him acquire a deep understanding of the religion of Islam and instruct him in the meaning and interpretation of things." There were many occasions thereafter when the blessed Prophet would repeat this dua or prayer for his cousin and before long Abdullah ibn Abbas realized that his life was to be devoted to the pursuit of learning and knowledge. The Prophet moreover prayed that he be granted not just knowledge and understanding but wisdom. Abdullah related the following incident about himself: "Once the Prophet, peace be upon him, was on the point of performing wudu. I hurried to get water ready for him. He was pleased with what I was doing. As he was about to begin Salat, he indicated that I should stand at his side. However, I stood behind him. When the Salat was finished, he turned to me and said: 'What prevented you from being at my side, O Abdullah?' 'You are too illustrious and too great in my eyes for me to stand side by side with you,' I replied. Raising his hands to the heavens, the Prophet then prayed: 'O Lord, grant him wisdom." The Prophet's prayer undoubtedly was granted for the young Abdullah was to prove time and again that he possessed a wisdom beyond his years. But it was a wisdom that came only with devotion and the dogged pursuit of knowledge both during the Prophet's lifetime and after his death. During the lifetime of the Prophet, Abdullah would not miss any of his assemblies and he would commit to memory whatever he said. After the Prophet passed away, he would take care to go to as many companions as possible especially those who knew the Prophet longer and learn from them what the Prophet had taught them. Whenever he heard that someone knew a hadith of the Prophet which he did not know he would go quickly to him and record it. He would subject whatever he heard to close scrutiny and check it against other reports. He would go to as many as thirty companions to verify a single matter. Abdullah described what he once did on hearing that a companion of the Prophet knew a hadith unknown to him: "I went to him during the time of the afternoon siesta and spread my cloak in front of his door. The wind blew dust on me (as I sat waiting for him). If I wished I could have sought his permission to enter and he would certainly have given me permission. But I preferred to wait on him so that he could be completely refreshed. Coming out of his house and seeing me in that condition he said: 'O cousin of the Prophet! What's the matter with you? If you had sent for me I would have come to you.' 'I am the one who should come to you, for knowledge is sought, it does not just come,' I said. I asked him about the hadith and learnt from him." In this way, the dedicated Abdullah would ask, and ask, and go on asking. And he would sift and scrutinize the information he had collected with his keen and meticulous mind. It was not only in the collection of hadith that Abdullah specialized. He devoted himself to acquiring knowledge in a wide variety of fields. He had a special admiration for persons like Zayd ibn Thabit, the recorder of the revelation, the leading judge and jurist consult in Madinah, an expert in the laws of inheritance and in reading the Quran. When Zayd intended to go on a trip, the young Abdullah would stand humbly at his side and taking hold of the reins of his mount would adopt the attitude of a humble servant in the presence of his master. Zayd would say to him: "Don't, O cousin of the Prophet." "Thus we were commanded to treat the learned ones among us," Abdullah would say. "And Zayd would say to him in turn: "Let me see your hand." Abdullah would stretch out his hand. Zayd, taking it, would kiss it and say: "Thus we were commanded to treat the ahl al-bayt members of the household of the Prophet." As Abdullah's knowledge grew, he grew in stature. Masruq ibn al Ajda said of him: "Whenever I saw Ibn Abbas, I would say: He is the most handsome of men. When he spoke, I would say: He is the most eloquent of men. And when he held a conversation, I would say: He is the most knowledgeable of men." The Khalifah Umar ibn al-Khattab often sought his advice on important matters of state and described him as "the young man of maturity". Sad ibn abi Waqqas described him with these words: "I have never seen someone who was quicker in understanding, who had more knowledge and greater wisdom than Ibn Abbas. I have seen Umar summon him to discuss difficult problems in the presence of veterans of Badr from among the Muhajirin and Ansar. Ibn Abbas would speak and Umar would not disregard what he had to say." It is these qualities which resulted in Abdullah ibn Abbas being known as "the learned man of this Ummah". Abdullah ibn Abbas was not content to accumulate knowledge. He felt he had a duty to the ummah to educate those in search of knowledge and the general masses of the Muslim community. He turned to teaching and his house became a university - yes, a university in the full sense of the word, a university with specialized teaching but with the difference that there was only one teacher Abdullah ibn Abbas. There was an enthusiastic response to Abdullah's classes. One of his companions described a typical scene in front of his house: "I saw people converging on the roads leading to his house until there was hardly any room in front of his house. I went in and told him about the crowds of people at his door and he said: 'Get me water for wudu.' He performed wudu and, seating himself, said: 'Go out and say to them: Whoever wants to ask about the Quran and its letters (pronunciation) let him enter.' This I did and people entered until the house was filled. Whatever he was asked, Abdullah was able to elucidate and even provide additional information to what was asked. Then (to his students) he said: 'Make way for your brothers.' Then to me he said: 'Go out and say: Who wants to ask about the Quran and its interpretation, let him enter'. Again the house was filled and Abdullah elucidated and provided more information than what was requested." And so it continued with groups of people coming in to discuss fiqh (jurisprudence), halal and haram (the lawful and the prohibited in Islam), inheritance laws, Arabic language, poetry and etymology. To avoid congestion with many groups of people coming to discuss various subjects on a single day, Abdullah decided to devote one day exclusively for a particular discipline. On one day, only the exegesis of the Quran would be taught while on another day only fiqh (jurisprudence). The maghazi or campaigns of the Prophet, poetry, Arab history before Islam were each allocated a special day. Abdullah ibn Abbas brought to his teaching a powerful memory and a formidable intellect. His explanations were precise, clear and logical. His arguments were persuasive and supported by pertinent textual evidence and historical facts. One occasion when his formidable powers of persuasion was used was during the caliphate of Ali. A large number of supporters of Ali in his stand against Muawiyah had just deserted him. Abdullah ibn Abbas went to Ali and requested permission to speak to them. Ali hesitated fearing that Abdullah would be in danger at their hands but eventually gave way on Abdullah's optimism that nothing untoward would happen. Abdullah went over to the group. They were absorbed in worship. Some were not willing to let him speak but others were prepared to give him a hearing. "Tell me" asked Abdullah, "what grievances have you against the cousin of the Prophet, the husband of his daughter and the first of those who believed in him?" "The men proceeded to relate three main complaints against Ali. First, that he appointed men to pass judgment in matters pertaining to the religion of God - meaning that Ali had agreed to accept the arbitration of Abu Musa al-Asbari and Amr ibn al-As in the dispute with Muawiyah. Secondly, that he fought and did not take booty nor prisoners of war. Thirdly, that he did not insist on the title of Amir al-Muminin during the arbitration process although the Muslims had pledged allegiance to him and he was their legitimate amir. To them this was obviously a sign of weakness and a sign that Ali was prepared to bring his legitimate position as Amir al-Muminin into disrepute. In reply, Abdullah asked them that should he cite verses from the Quran and sayings of the Prophet to which they had no objection and which related to their criticisms, would they be prepared to change their position. They replied that they would and Abdullah proceeded: "Regarding your statement that Ali has appointed men to pass judgment in matters pertaining to Allah's religion, Allah Glorified and Exalted is He, says: 'O you who believe! Kill not game while in the sacred precincts or in pilgrim garb. If any of you do so intentionally, the compensation is an offering, of a domestic animal equivalent to the one he killed and adjudged by two just men among." "I adjure you, by God! Is the adjudication by men in matters pertaining to the preservation of their blood and their lives and making peace between them more deserving of attention than adjudication over a rabbit whose value is only a quarter of a dirham?" Their reply was of course that arbitration was more important in the case of preserving Muslim lives and making peace among them than over the killing of game in the sacred precincts for which Allah sanctioned arbitration by men. "Have we then finished with this point?" asked Abdullah and their reply was: "Allahumma, naam - O Lord, yes!" Abdullah went on: "As for your statement that Ali fought and did not take prisoners of war as the Prophet did, do you really desire to take your "mother" Aishah as a captive and treat her as fair game in the way that captives are treated? If your answer is "Yes", then you have fallen into kufr (disbelief). And if you say that she is not your "mother", you would also have fallen into a state of kufr for Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, has said: 'The Prophet is closer to the believers than their own selves and his wives are their mothers (entitled to respect and consideration).' (The Quran, Surah al-Ahzab, 34:6). "Choose for yourself what you want," said Abdullah and then he asked: "Have we then finished with this point?" and this time too their reply was: "Allahumma, naam - O Lord, yes!" Abdullah went on: "As for your statement that Ali has surrendered the title of Amir al-Muminin, (remember) that the Prophet himself, peace and blessings of God be on him, at the time of Hudaybiyyah, demanded that the mushrikin write in the truce which he concluded with them: 'This is what the Messenger of God has agreed...' and they retorted: 'If we believed that you were the Messenger of God we would not have blocked your way to the Kabah nor would we have fought you. Write instead: 'Muhammad the son of Abdullah.' The Prophet conceded their demand while saying: 'By God, I am the Messenger of God even if they reject me." At this point Abdullah ibn Abbas asked the dissidents: "Have we then finished with this point? and their reply was once again: "Allahumma, naam - O Lord, yes!" One of the fruits of this verbal challenge in which Abdullah displayed his intimate knowledge of the Quran and the sirah of the Prophet as well as his remarkable powers of argument and persuasion, was that the majority, about twenty thousand men, returned to the ranks of Ali. About four thousand however remained obdurate. These latter came to be known as Kharijites. On this and other occasions, the courageous Abdullah showed that he preferred peace above war, and logic against force and violence. However, he was not only known for his courage, his perceptive thought and his vast knowledge. He was also known for his great generosity and hospitality. Some of his contemporaries said of his household: "We have not seen a house which has more food or drink or fruit or knowledge than the house of Ibn Abbas." He had a genuine and abiding concern for people. He was thoughtful and caring. He once said: "When I realize the importance of a verse of God's Book, I would wish that all people should know what I know. "When I hear of a Muslim ruler who deals equitably and rules justly, I am happy on his account and I pray for him... "When I hear of rains which fail on the land of Muslims, that fills me with happiness..." Abdullah ibn Abbas was constant in his devotions. He kept voluntary fasts regularly and often stayed up at night in Prayer. He would weep while praying and reading the Quran. And when reciting verses dealing with death, resurrection and the life hereafter his voice would be heavy from deep sobbing. He passed away at the age of seventy one in the mountainous city of Taif. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------