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In this page, you will find the questions related to non-Muslims. WAS ISLAM SPREAD BY THE SWORD? ARE MUSLIMS FUNDAMENTALISTS OR TERRORISTS? DOES NON-VEGETARIAN FOOD MAKE MUSLIMS VIOLENT? WAS ISLAM SPREAD BY THE SWORD? Question: How can Islam be called the religion of peace when it was spread by the sword? Answer: It is a common complaint among some non- Muslims that Islam would not have millions of adherents all over the world, if it had not been spread by the use offeree. The following points will make it clear, that far from being spread by the sword, it was the inherent force of truth, reason and logic that was responsible for the rapid spread of Islam. 1. Islam means peace. Islam comes from the root word 'salam' which means peace. It also means submitting one's will to Allah (swt). Thus Islam is a religion of peace, which is acquired by submitting one's will to the will of the Supreme Creator, Allah (swt). 2. Sometimes force has to be used to maintain peace. Not each and every human being in this world is in favour of maintaining peace and harmony. There are many, who would disrupt it for their own vested interests. It is precisely for this reason that we have the police who use force against criminals and anti-social elements to maintain peace in the country. Islam promotes peace. At the same time, Islam exhorts its followers to fight where there is oppression. The fight against oppression may, at times, require the use of force. In Islam, force can only be used to promote peace and justice. 3. Opinion of historian De Lacy O'Leary. The best reply to the misconception that Islam was spread by the sword is given by the noted historian De Lacy O'Leary in the book "Islam at the cross road" (page 8) "History makes it clear however, that the legend of the fanatical Muslims sweeping through the world and forcing Islam at the point.of the sword upon conquered races is one of the most fantastically absurd myths that historians have ever repeated." 4. Muslims ruled Spain for about 800 years. Muslim ruled Spain for about 800 years. The Muslims in Spain never used the sword to force the people to convert. Later the Christian Crusaders came to Spain and wiped out the Muslims. There was not a single Muslim in Spain who could openly give the adhan, that is the call for prayers. 5. 14 million Arabs are Coptic Christians. Muslims were the lords of Arabia for 1400 years. For a few years the British ruled, and for a few years the French ruled. Overall, the Muslims ruled Arabia for 1400 years. Yet today, there are 14 million Arabs who are Coptic Christians i.e. Christians since generations. If the Muslims had used the sword there would not have been a single Arab who would have remained a Christian. 6. More than 80% non-Muslims in India. The Muslims ruled India for about a thousand years. If they wanted, they had the power to convert each and every non- Muslim of India to Islam. Today more than 80% of the population of India are non-Muslims. All these non-Muslims Indians are bearing witness today that Islam was not spread by the sword. 7. Indonesia and Malaysia. Indonesia is a country that has the biggest number of Muslims in the world. The majority of people in Malaysia are Muslims. Which Muslim army went to Indonesia and Malaysia? 8. East Coast of Africa. Similarly, Islam has spread rapidly on  the East Coast of Africa. One may again ask, if Islam was spread by the sword which Muslim army went to the East Coast of Africa? 9. Thomas Carlyle. The famous historian, Thomas Carlyle, in his book "Heroes and Hero worship refers to this misconception about the spread of Islam: "The sword indeed, but where will you get your sword? Every new opinion, at its starting is precisely in a minority of one. In one man's head alone. There it dwells as yet. One man  alone of the whole world believes it there is one man against all men. That he takes a sword and try to propagate with that, will do little for him. You must get your sword! One the whole, a thing will propagate itself as it can." 10. No Compulsion in religion. With which sword was Islam spread? Even if Muslims had it they could not use it to spread Islam because the Qur'an says in the following verse: "Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from error" [Al-Baqarah 2:256] 11. Sword of the Intellect/Truth It is the sword of intellect, the sword that conquers the hearts and minds of people. The Qur'an says in Surah An-Nahl, chapter 16 verse 125: 'Invite (all) to the way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and dispute with them in ways that are best and most pacious." [An-Nahl 16:125] 12. Increase in the world religions from 1934 to 1984 An article in Reader's Digest 'Almanac', year book 1986, gave the statistics of the increase in percentage of the major religions of the world in half a century from 1934 to 1984. This ankle also appeared in 'The Plain Truth' magazine. At the top was Islam, which increased by 235%, while Christianity had increased only by 47%. One may ask, which war took place in this century which converted millions of people to Islam? 13. Islam is the fastest growing religion in America and Europe. Today the fastest growing religion in America is Islam. The fastest growing religion in Europe is Islam. Which sword is forcing people in the West to accept Islam in such large numbers? 14. Dr. Joseph Adam Pearson. Dr. Joseph Adam Pearson rightly says, "People who worry that nuclear weaponry will one day fall in the hands of the Arabs, fail to realize that the Islamic bomb has been dropped already. It fell the day MUHAMMAD (pbuh) was born".     ARE MUSLIMS FUNDAMENTALISTS OR TERRORISTS? Question: Why are many Muslims are regarded as either fundamentalists or terrorists? Answer: This question is often hurled at Muslims, either directly or indirectly, during any discussion on religion or world affairs. Muslim stereotypes are perpetuated in every form of the media accompanied by gross misinformation about Islam and Muslims. In fact, such misinformation and false propaganda often leads to discrimination and acts of violence against Muslims. A case in point is the anti-Muslim campaign in the American media following the Oklahoma bomb blast, where the press was quick to declare a 'Middle Eastern conspiracy' behind the attack. The culprit was later identified as a soldier from the American Armed Forces. Let us analyze this allegation of 'fundamentalist' and 'terrorist: 1. Definition of the word 'fundamentalist'. A fundamentalist is a person who follows and adheres to the fundamentals of the doctrine or the theory he is following. For a person to be a good doctor, he should know, follow, and practice the fundamentals of medicine. In other words, he should be a fundamentalist in the field of medicine. For a person to be a good mathematician, he should know, follow and practice the fundamentals of mathematics. He should be a fundamentalist in the field of mathematics. For a person to be a good scientist, he should know, follow and practice the fundamentals of science. He should be a fundamentalist in the field of science. 2. Not all 'fundamentalists' are the same. One cannot paint all fundamentalists with the same brush. One cannot categorize all fundamentalists as either good or bad. Such a categorization of any fundamentalists will depend upon the field of activity in which he is a fundamentalist. A fundamentalist robber or thief causes harm to society and is therefore undesirable. A fundamentalist doctor, on the other hand, benefits society and earns much respect. 3. I am proud to be a Muslim fundamentalist. I am a fundamentalist Muslim who, by the grace of Allah, knows, follows and strives to practice the fundamentals of Islam. A true Muslim does not shy away from being a fundamentalist. I am proud to be a fundamentalist Muslim because I know that the fundamentals of Islam are beneficial to humanity and the whole world. There is not a single fundamental of Islam that causes harm or is against the interests of the human race as a whole. Many people harbour misconceptions about Islam and consider several teachings of Islam to be unfair or improper. This is due to insufficient and incorrect knowledge of Islam. If one critically analyzes the teachings of Islam with an open mind, one cannot escape the fact that Islam is full of benefits both at the individual and collective levels. 4. Dictionary meaning of the word 'fundamentalist'. According to Webster's dictionary 'fundamentalism' was a movement in American Protestantism that arose in the earlier part of the 20th century. It was a reaction to modernism, and stressed the infallibility of the Bible, not only in matters of faith and morals but also as a literal word of God. Thus fundamentalism was a word initially used for a group of Christians who believed that the Bible was the verbatim word of God without any errors and mistakes. According to the Oxford dictionary 'fundamentalism' means 'strict maintenance of ancient fundamental doctrines of any religion, especially Islam'. Today the moment a person uses the word fundamentalist he thinks of a Muslim who is a terrorist. 5. Every Muslim should be a "terrorist". A terrorist is a person who causes terror. The moment a robber sees a policeman he is terrified. A policeman is a terrorist to the robber. Similarly, every Muslim should be a terrorist for the antisocial elements of the society, such as thieves, dacoits and rapists. Whenever such an anti-social element sees a Muslim, he should be terrified. It is true that the word 'terrorist' is generally used for a person who causes terror among the common people. But a true Muslim should only be a terrorist to selective people i.e. anti-social elements, and not to the common innocent people. In fact a Muslim should be a source of peace for innocent people. 6. Different labels given to the same individual for the same action, i.e. 'terrorist' and 'patriot'. Before India achieved independence from British rule, some freedom fighters of India who did not subscribe to violence were labelled as terrorists by the British government. The same individuals have been lauded by Indians for the same activities and hailed as 'patriots'. Thus two different labels have been given to the same people for the same set of actions. One is calling him a terrorist while the other is calling him a patriot. Those who believed that Britain has a right to rule over India called these people terrorists, while those who were of the view that Britain has no right to rule India called them patriots and freedom fighters. It is therefore important that before a person is judged, he is given a fair hearing. Both sides of the argument should be heard, the situation should be analyzed, and the reason and the intention of the person should be taken into account, and then the person can be judged accordingly. 7. Islam means peace. Islam is derived from the word 'salam' which means peace. It is a religion of peace of which its fundamentals teach its followers to maintain and promote peace throughout the world. Thus every Muslim should be a fundamentalist i.e. he should follow the fundamentals of the Religion of Peace: Islam. He should be a "terrorist" only towards the anti-social elements in order to promote peace and justice in the society.

DOES NON-VEGETARIAN FOOD MAKE MUSLIMS VIOLENT? Question: Science tell us that whatever one eats, it has an effect on one's behaviour. Why then, does Islam allow Muslims to eat non-vegetarian food, since eating of animals could make a person violent and ferocious? Answer: 1. Only eating of herbivorous animals allowed. I agree that, what a person eats has an effect on his behaviour. This is one of the reasons why Islam prohibits the eating of carnivorous animals like lion, tiger, leopard, etc. who are violent and ferocious. Islam only allows the eating of herbivorous animals like cow, goat, sheep, etc. that are peaceful and docile. We Muslims eat peaceful and docile animals because we are peace loving and nonviolent people. 2. The Qur'an says the Prophet prohibits what is bad. The Qur'an says: "The Prophet commands them what is just and prohibits what is evil". "He allows them as lawful what is good (and pure) and prohibits them what is bad (and impure)," [Al-A'raf 7:157] "So tahe what the Messenger assigns to you and deny yourselves that which he withholds from you." [Al-Hashr 59:7] For a Muslim, the Prophet's statement is sufficient to convince him that Allah does not wish humans to eat some kinds of meat while allowing some other kinds. 3. Hadith (saying of prophet Muhammad) of Mohammad (pbuh) prohibiting eating of carnivorous animals. According to various authentic Ahadith (plural of ‘Hadith’) narrated in Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim including hadith narrated by Ibn Abbas in Sahih Muslim, Book of hunting and slaughter, Hadith No. 4752 and Sunan Ibn-I-Majah chapter 13 Hadith no. 3232 to 3234, the Holy Prophet (pbuh) prohibited the eating of: i) Wild animals with canine teeth, i.e. meat eating carnivorous animals. These are animals belonging to the cat families such as lion, tiger, cats, also dogs, wolf, hyena, etc. ii) Certain rodents like mice and rats, with claws, etc. iii) Certain reptiles like snakes, alligators, etc. iv) Birds of prey with talons or claws, like vulture, eagle, crows, owl, etc.