It is time to rescue Islam from the Talibani Courts in Mogadishu - Bashir Goth

[Haddad]

“Those who believe (in the Qur’Än) and those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Christians and the Sabians, any who believe in God and the last Day, and work righteousness, shall have their reward with their lord: on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve.†Qur’Än, (2:62).

 

When the Taliban zealots destroyed the 5 th century statues of Buddha in Bamiyan, Afghanistan, in March 2001 the world watched with derision and disgust at the barbarism of such primitive hordes but did nothing to stop them. It took a human and civilizational tragedy of Sept11 to make the world realize how unstopped evil could spillover even to distant lands in today’s global world.

 

When Nazis in Germany ordered the burning of books in May 1933, it was only a handful of intellectuals and few newspapers that could see through the fog of history the oncoming disaster predicted a long way back by the German Jewish poet Heinrich Heine in his prophetic statement “ where one burns books, one will soon burn people.†It was the bibliocaust as described then by the Time magazine that was a prelude to the Jewish holocaust that followed for which the memory of Auschwitz stands as the ugliest crime committed in the name of an ideology.

 

Presently the world was outraged at the scene of Somali Militant Islamists unearthing the remains of bodies in an Italian cemetery in Mogdishu, dumping the skeletons in the most

 

disrespectful way at a garbage dump and building a mosque in the middle of the cemetery and on top of whatever remains of the dead bodies. One has to wait and see what tragic consequence this also has to bring before the world acts to move against such barbarism.

 

It is not coincidental that all three acts of barbarism had to be committed in the name of puritanical ideologies with the Nazis burning the books to cleanse the German nation of unGerman ideas, while the Afghani Taliban and their counterparts in Mogadishu spearheaded by the Wahhabist Islamic courts, committed their crimes in the name of cleansing infidel traces of history from the House of Islam.

 

It is also tragic that both the Afghan and Somali Talibans had to hijack Islam and drag it in the mud in the face of the unforgivable silence and indifference of the majority of the mainstream Muslims. It may help here to refresh the minds of the non-Muslim world and confused Muslims as well that such desecration of the cemeteries and destruction of historical relics amount also to desecration and an act of aggression against Islam as well.

 

Taking the lead from the actions of the Prophet of Islam, one may recall it was Muhammad (PBH) who allowed a delegation of Christians from Najran who called on him to stay in the Holy Mosque of Medina. And when at evening, the Christians desired to offer religious service; the Prophet permitted them.

 

It was also Prophet Muhammad who, when he saw a funeral procession of a dead Jew passing by, stood up to show respect for the dead. When he was told that the deceased was not a Muslim but a Jew, he said, “The funeral may be of a Muslim or a non-Muslim we must get up to show respectâ€.

 

It was again the Prophet of Islam who prayed for the soul of the Abyssinian Negus when he heard about his death. History revealed to us that when the word of the death of Negus of Abyssinia reached him, Muhammad turned to the congregation after the next prayer and said to them: “This day a righteous man hath died. Therefore, arise and pray for your brother Ashamah.†He then led the prayers. The Islamist groups claim that the Negus had secretly converted to Islam as they cannot accept the idea of Muhammad praying on the soul of a non-Muslim, but experts in the history of Islam say that Muhammad prayed for the Negus for being a good Christian who also protected his followers from prosecution in the hands of their non-Muslim tribesman at the beginning of Islam.

 

It may also be worth mentioning here that it was the same Christian King of Abyssinia for whom the Prophet of Islam had asked him to stand on his behalf and to ratify his marriage to Umm Habiba, Abu Sufyan’s daughter, whose husband died while Muslims were in the protection of the Negus. The Negus solemnized the marriage and threw a feast in his palace with all Muslim exiles invited.

 

Another shinning example of the Islamic tolerance and respect toward other religions was evidenced by the well-documented Covenant of Omar. When the Caliph Omar Ibn al-Khattab, entered the city of Jerusalem in 638 AD, he granted to the people of Jerusalem and to the Patriarch Safronius a covenant of peace and protection which came to be known the Covenant of Omar, or the Code of Omar. In addition, to ensure the care and protection of Christian and Jewish Holy places, Omar entrusted each of the major holy places to the care and protection of a different Muslim family.

 

The text of the Covenant read as follows: “This is an assurance of peace and protection given by the servant of Allah Omar, Commander of the Believers to the people of Ilia' ( Jerusalem). He gave them an assurance of protection for their lives, property, church and crosses as well as the sick and healthy and all its religious community.

 

Their churches shall not be occupied, demolished nor taken away wholly or in part. None of their crosses nor property shall be seized. They shall not be coerced in their religion nor shall any of them be injured.â€

 

History says that Omar also prohibited the destruction of any Christian images or places of worship. It is related that Omar had refused to pray in the Church when the prayers time came and there was no mosque yet built for the victorious Muslim forces. Invited by the Patriarch Safronius to offer prayers in the Church, Omar declined the invitation saying that if he did, Muslims would lay claim to the Church years later as the place where Omar had prayed.

 

This is the true Islam that the new Talibans in Mogadishu like the Afghan Talibans before them are trying to replace with their Wahhabism brand which is known for its demolition of the domes and cemeteries of the Prophet’s wives and his prominent supporters when they captured the holy cities in the early 19 thC. They leveled the domes of the houses of Khadijat al Kubra, prophet’s first wife, Imam Ali and Abu Bakr-al-Siddiq, first and fourth Caliphs of Islam. In Medina they laid waste to the gravestones of the Janat al-Baqi cemetery next to the Prophet’s Mosque, where the remains of some of the greatest names of Islam in its nascent years lie. The Wahhabists also plundered treasuries of the Prophet’s mosque. It was due to Muslim world outrage and the forces of the Ottoman Empire that saved the dome of the Prophet’s Mosque from destruction.

 

It must be clear to all Muslims and non-Muslims alike that the zealots of Islamic courts in Mogadishu have committed a crime against humanity and against the respect for the dead resting in peace in their last abode regardless of their previous creed, color or race.

 

It is an irony that when Somali refugees are sheltered by Italian Churches, when generations of Somali children get home and education and dream of a good future in Europe and other countries of the West, when churches rush to the rescue of the Tsunami victims of Somalia and home thousands of Somali refugees from man-made disasters, when even the clerics of Mogadishu themselves owe their subsistence to the monthly assistance send to them by their sons and daughters living on the handouts of churches and the welfare of the Western tax payers, when the Christian world is trying to help the living Muslims to have a decent life; that Christians who died decades ago cannot find peace in their lasting abode in a small plot of land in the House of Islam.

 

It is time that mainstream Muslims should stand up and call this by what it is “an act of barbarism and a crime against Islam, against all recognized human norms and against human decencyâ€. They should break their eerie silence and declare this as a plague that has to be condemned and confronted before it is too late. They should know that to describe this as only a land-grab and real estate companies fighting for spoils of public land is an ugly euphemism tantamount to a derelict of duty and an incongruous attempt to insult to human intelligence and absolve the perpetrators of their barbaric act of vandalism. It is time to rescue noble Islam from the claws of the hijackers.

 

I may not find a better way to conclude this piece than to remind the fanatics that we do not need them to preach to us as who is right and who is wrong in the ways of God as Almighty Allah has told us 14 th centuries ago and in the mouth of the Great Prophet of Islam that it was only Almighty God and no else that held the truth of the matter. That it was He alone who could judge who is right and who is wrong as it is evident in the following Ayah of the holy Qur’Än: “To each among you have we prescribed a Law and an open way. If God had so willed, He would have made you a single people, but (His plan is) to test you in what He hath given you: so strive as in a race in all virtues. The goal of you all is to God; it is He that will show you the truth of the matters in which ye dispute.†( 5:48). I may not claim absolute claim on whose side the truth lies but as is obvious to every living human being and particularly to the victims of Tsunami and every other calamity that bests human beings, I have no doubt as who has won the race in virtues, in rubbing the tears of the deprived and alleviating the misery of the poor, the homeless and the refugee.

 

Bashir Goth

bsogoth@yahoo.com

 

 

Source

[Haddad]

First, the title of the article is misleading; Islam rescues human beings, not the other way. Islam isn't a commercial or human product whose image or reputation has to be rescued.

[Nur]

e-Nuri Opticians Welcomes

 

Bashir Goth

 

 

From The archives of e-Nuri Posts Gallery

 

 

Salaams Nomads

 

 

The following is a rendition I posted on another thread, as a light hearted answer to Mrt. Bashir Goethe. when he claimed that Somali Islam to be superior than Wahhabi Islam.

 

 

Bashir is not a bad guy, just religiously challenged who needs vision correction, so be kind nto him.

 

As promised, This thread provides a treatment clinic for Nomads who have lived in the west for too long, to the point of believing that western and pagan lifestyles to be closer to Somali culture than Islam is. A case in point is an article posted here on these pages by Tony Montana and written by Bashir Goethe ( Somali German Poet?)

 

 

Scenario:

 

 

Nurtel Opticians Examination Room.

 

 

Nur: Good morning Bashir

 

Goethe: Good Morning Nur

 

Nur: I understand that you are suffering from vision problems, that you can not reconcile the fact that Somalis are Muslims without having any need to pray, fast or go to Hajj, You also seem sympathetic to Sufis, you think that Sufi Music is great, specially if we mix a little bit of Jazz and bluies, from Lousiana. Look like black babtis church choir to me.

 

Bashir: That is right Nur, let me add to it that I am very furious about womens plight in Somaliland, that our women have to wear this medieval rags on their heads when they can wear the latest fashion from Paris and London, dresses designed by Christian Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, and diplayed by beautiful women like our great Somali Model iimaan ( you see Nur, she has iimaan without wearing anything at times). I also have problem accepting this brand of islam that I have never knbown that came from Saudi Arabia, because I feel our indiginous homegrown Islam to be far better than this cut throat vicious Islam that allows no fun at all, like dating girls, dancing and drinking foaming camel milk, I mean I am annoyed at these neo Muslms who have changed my religion that tolerated me even if I claim to be a God , as long as I do not preach it in public ( although that is also against freedom of expression), because, too much Camel Milk can make you feel like you are a God of sorts, you know caano ciir iyo qaad what they can do to a fun loving guy like me. Nur, I miss the good old days, before the Waxda guys came to our corner grocery shop near daanta Reer Qudhac of Kalabaydhka, and started their march to win over the hearts of our women, now, most beautiful women are all hijaabified, you cant't sit outside your balcony to enjoy looking at the body curves of our beatiful women, they wear Abaya from Saudi, it is too bad.

 

You see Nur, religion back then was great, we used to date girls and still had great faith in Allah, we never prayed , but we were ideal Muslims, because Islam, was ingrained in our blood, we had no need of showing it in public, so we only had fun in public, and once in a blue moon we prayed at funerals, because that was the only time we feared Allah.

 

 

Nur: OK Bashir Goethe, so do you think that Somali Islam was better than Wahaabi islam?

 

Bashir Goethe: You see NUR, " Depending on your view of history, since Somalis embraced Islam at the time of the Prophet or shortly after his death, it never clashed with the local culture in terms of clothing, eating and going about their ordinary life. Once it settled in the heart"

 

You see Bro, Arabs have threatened our culture, like the Dirac, and the three piece suits, so, women wear abaya, and some crazy wadaads wear saudi Thawb and Ghutrah and Cigaal. what a shame. why can't they wear Cerruti suits?

 

 

Nur:

 

So, you think that Somali culture is the epitome of Islam in its purest form, since our culture and Islam are the same thing?

 

Bashir Goethe: That is correct Bro, in our Somali culture, Islam is part of our culture, and the only measure of our faith is the QALB, the heart, so no action is needed to show our faith, just inside beleif, it is the wahhabis who added deeds to islam, Islam according to Somali culture needs no deeds. because like I say " The heart was clean and nothing else had mattered much " and in my opinion, mixing with girls is no orgy although we called it in Hargeisa "Geeresh" and fashion is good even if a girl has to wear a transparent dirac, showing her breast which she needs to show so her child can easily find ger breast, because these transparent Kaneebo Brand Dirac manufactured in Japan and imported in Jabouti to be sold in Hargeisa are 100 Islamic compliant, because Islam encourages beauty, am i correct bro?

 

 

To Be continued........

 

 

2003 Nurtel Oprticians

Powered By Quraan and Sunnah

[wind.talker]

Every time I see a Bashir Godd article, it has something to do with Islam and Somalia. He talks about the relationship between Islam and Somalis in a way that's not in line with mainstream Somali thought.

 

But about the digging up of colonial Italian bones: that was just sick and wrong but it shouldn't be used as a catalyst to wage a war against shieks in Somalia and Mogadishu.

[rudy-Diiriye]

i dont know who bashir is! i dont see him as any of the contributers here!! but digging cemetaries is mood and vile!!

 

as they say, dead men tell no tales! so why not let them rip!! amiin!!

[Haddad]

Originally posted by wind.talker:

it shouldn't be used as a catalyst to wage a war against shieks in Somalia and Mogadishu.

What kind of catalyst should be used to wage a war against them?

 

Originally posted by rudy:

i dont know who bashir is! i dont see him as any of the contributers here!!

You're not making sense. Half (or more) of what is discussed in this forum doesn't pertain to any of the contributers here.

 

Originally posted by rudy:

so why not let them rip

Because, when politics is an element of the equation, it doesn't/wouldn't matter. Besides, the militias who are behind this do not respect live people, so disrespecting dead people (or bones) isn't as important or worse than disrespecting live people.

 

The usual desperate Somali politicians are still trying to attract the involvement of the US & the West in Somalia to fight Wahhabists, Militant Islamists and etc- but will not succeed.

[Sakina]

But about the digging up of colonial Italian bones: that was just sick and wrong but it shouldn't be used as a catalyst to wage a war against shieks in Somalia and Mogadishu.

Wind.talker if the Sheikhs condemned this action Bashir Goth would never have an excuse to write articles like this.

 

Brother Nur

The e-Nuri conversation is it real or a fiction? Did you have this conversation with Goth?

[Haddad]

Originally posted by Sakina:

Wind.talker if the Sheikhs condemned this action Bashir Goth would never have an excuse to write articles like this.

The sheikhs got nothing to do with the desecration, and they have already condemned it. It's corrupt politicians and liberal Somalis like Goth who are making allegations about Somali sheikhs/Islamists, which is nothing new, because they have been making it for a numbers of years. It's mere allegations, which will not translate into action by the US and/or the West. The US cannot open a new front in Somalia, because its hands is tied and wouldn't dare acquire new enemies.

[shyhem]

Funny how we muslims hate to be told the truth.I don't know who Bashir Goth is but much of what he said is the truth.

 

As muslims it is time for self reflections. Nowadays it is fashionable to talk about the west, but i think it will be helpful to actually take a good look at ourselves.

[Haddad]

Originally posted by Shyhem:

but much of what he said is the truth.

Your above quote doesn't make a sense. That's not how to say it. Much of what he said that's the truth is what you found it to be the truth.

[shyhem]

^^^

What, are u out of u'r mind?Do i look like Shakespear to u.

 

F.Y.I.......I have no allegiance to the queen and i hope i made myself clear.Plus up in here, we abuse the langauge like dubya on Crawford.

 

****Warning to somalis**** Watching aljazeera is bad for u'r personal development.Aljazeera fans are known to be depressed and irritated hence the need to pick fights with strangers on the net.

[Coloow]

Assalamu calaykum,

Bashir Goat twists and spins anything that could be related to islam and somalia. He wrote an article a few years back condemning islam in Borame. He is one of a few somalis who makes a living by condemning our religion. Others include Ayan, Weris.

 

The issue of the italian graves has been given a religious dimension by the likes of Bashir and a somali media (mainly internet based and BEEN-BEEN-SI) to defame the religious leaders.

 

The italian graves were dug by a landlord to be. It was all about land issues. The islamic courts had nothing to do with it.

 

If the likes of Bashir would pay more attention to the root cause of the somali problems; Poverty, war and lack of law and order instead of condemning those who try to do something about the situation, somalia would be a better place.

 

Nin dhintay kabtiisa ayaa ka roon, gaal dhintay ma lafihiisa ayaa ka roon?

[xiinfaniin]

On the outset, let me condemn the digging of Italian graves in Mogadishu. That I think was, to say the least, unwise venture. That much I agree with Mr. Goth’s article.

 

The rest of his writing, or approach, reveals a confused character of his. He seems to want to defend this religion, if that’s his true intent, by measuring it with a wrong yardstick. Goth’s comparison of Taliban movement and Mogadishu Islamic courts with the Nazis signify his intolerable amplification of facts. Theirs, Nazi’s that is, was an aggression and a hateful crime driven by racial superiority, which Muslims are incapable of doing. The Mogadishu Islamic court, on the other hand, is a clerical project for the benefit of that troublesome city’s residents. Its mission is to partially restore security and safeguard human dignity and decency. There are a lot of success stories brought by these courts. And great many people are deeply appreciative of it.

 

When these courts erred in either imposing disproportional and harsh punishment or in participating in clan politics or, like in this case, act irrationally, the appropriate response should be to criticize those particular acts and not to their existence and core principal. I have in fact disagreed with certain acts of theirs.

 

Mr. Goth sadly misses that point. And he seems to be on a mission to discredit and defame the Islamic Courts. His lack of sincerity becomes apparent when he sings the popular songs of the West! Where the West’s charity is magnified and the victims of their ‘collateral damage’ are downplayed. If Goth wanted to talk about savagery and barbarism, he could’ve written about Iraq, Afghanistan, and indeed Palestine. There is where the humans are bulldozed a live in their homes, shot in their houses of worship, and entire cities are flattened in the name of liberation and freedom.

 

In short, and in the words of Michael Parenti, Bashir Goth is indeed a character besieged, "not from without but from within, subverted not from bellow but from above." And provided he recognizes his ailment, his cure can easily be attainable and readily be available to him :IT’S in the Qur’an.

[xiinfaniin]

Shyhem wrote:

 

****Warning to somalis**** Watching aljazeera is bad for u'r personal development.Aljazeera fans are known to be depressed and irritated hence the need to pick fights with strangers on the net.

Care you explain how watching Al-Jaziira is bad for one’s personal development?

[NGONGE]

Welcome to the site, friend.

 

I’m not going to attempt to reply to any of your questions for the fear of misleading you or, worse still, getting the zealots (using the modern meaning here) on my back and yours. Your questions are valid and I’m sure that many others that visit this site have had similar questions in the past (or still do). My advice to you and them is to look up the answers in trusted Islamic websites. There are plenty on the net and I’m certain that a fair number of them have addressed these questions of yours already. Sadly, and as you’ll come to find out when you’ve spent some time with us, emotional opinions are rife on these parts and the chances are that you’ll be misled instead of enlightened, my friend.

 

Still, there is no harm in reading whatever replies you get and sifting through the good and the bad. Welcome again and keep your wits about you, friend.