Don't like Buddha statues? Why, smash them!Mo smashed statues, Taliban took a leaf out of Muhammad's book & smashed Buddha statues too!
To quote some Buddhist wisdom (and Bruce Lee
): "It is like a finger pointing at the moon. Do not focus on the finger, or you will miss all that heavenly glory." I think veneration of statues and icons is distracting from what 'those whom the images represent' taught. Forget the image, get over religious fetishism of 'holy' things, it's about the ideas!
I feel mixed on the Taliban's destruction of the Buddhas. On one hand it's great iconoclasm. On the other, it's destruction of art and history.
Also their fundamentalism has become an icon that needs to be smashed. (I have an idea to paint a 'pious' icon (in the orthodox christian style) of Muhammad, to smash the idol of iconoclasm by painting an icon
)
*shrug*
It is this whole Qibla change that made me reject the Qur'an Alone thinking when I first encountered it and decided to try it out by going on the Qur'an alone. The Qur'an clearly states that allah used to make muslims pray while facing Jerusalem, but he did it as a test, and has now told them to pray towards the K`abah. However, nothing in the rest of the Qur'an contains the original exhortation to pray towards Jerusalem. So where did this mysterious order come from?
If you accepted Muhammad as a messenger of allah, and one who only did what allah told him to do, then the original command to pray to Jerusalem MUST have come as an extra-Qur'anic revelation. And it was thinking like this that made me realise how unstable and ridiculous the QA position was.
Good observation. I remember looking for that command (Jerusalem Qibla) myself. Could've been of the verses "caused to be forgotten or abrogated"? I had the rationale that 'what Muhammad says is also from Allah' (but then again it's not)
He does not speak of (his own) desire. It is only an Inspiration that is inspired.
This is the Revelation sent down from the Lord of the worlds. And if he (Muhammad) had forged a false saying concerning Us; We surely should have seized him by his right hand; And then certainly should have cut off his life artery (Aorta); And none of you could withhold Us from him.
One day, in Medina, the Prophet was passing by a few Medinan farmers who were climbing high up on date palms to enhance pollination of seeds. They would manually put male with the female instead of leaving it to the wind to do it. The Prophet, who was not a farmer without realizing the importance of this manual process said to them, "Perhaps it may be better for you not to do this." The Medinians, hearing this from the Messenger of God left what they were doing. The produce came out scarcely as it was merely by the wind. The Prophet clarified his role and nature as a Messenger of God to the people in very clear terms, "If I order you to do something that is to do with your religion then take it (and do it) but if I order you to do something from my own opinion then verily I am merely a human being;" and he added, "You are more knowledgeable of the matters of your world." Sahih Muslim (I think it's in Bukhari too).
You don't think the real Islam is evil?
Okay, maybe I wouldn't want to live at the time of the prophet, but I still think alot of good came from him.
You did quote it out of context awais, that's not what Islam teaches as a religion as Rashna showed. And I never stated the only good out of it can only come from quoting out of context, it is not purely evil however it is full of sadistical bollocks. The bad in it outweighs the good and I fail to see how the real Islam can produce a good man.
The verse I quoted could be taken on it's own. My point was that even though a muslim should try to face Mecca as it is legislated, it doesn't really matter which direction one prays, it's the intention that counts. I thought it was something beautiful.
"Before we changed our direction towards the Ka'ba (Mecca) in prayers, some Muslims had died or had been killed and we did not know what to say about them (regarding their prayers.) Allah then revealed, "And Allah would never make your faith (prayers) to be lost (i.e. the prayers of those Muslims were valid).' " (al-Baqarah 2:143).
Whatever.
Topic: Which Way Do We Pray, George?