Salamun alaykum
The Voice From The Cave – How It Shaped The Community
The holy Prophet spent most of his time in meditation in the cave of mount Hira. In the 40th year the moment had arrived when the angel Jibrail conveyed the Divine Message.
"Read! The voice resonated in the cave of Mount Hira.
"Read, in the name of your Lord who created. He created man from a clot. Read, for your Lord is most Honourable, who teaches (to write) by means of the pen, teaches man what they know not," (Sura Al-'Alaq: 96:1-5)
This was the first revelation of the holy Quran to the holy Prophet Muhammad. This was the message of Islam. It all started with the word 'read'.
Reading highly encouraged by the Prophet:
During the early years of Islam Muslims comprised mostly of the illiterate. Several traditions from the holy prophet encourage the believers to broaden their horizons by seeking knowledge – even to the far off land of China.
Seeking knowledge has been made obligatory on all muslims male and female.
History records that after the first battle of Badr, the Quraysh prisoners were able to buy their freedom by teaching 10 muslims how to read and write. Upon doing so, they would be free.
Reading by the muslims was a compensation for freedom.
The foregoing gives a glimpse into the mission of the Prophet emphasizing on reading thus removing the believers from darkness of ignorance to illumination of knowledge. Reading is a key method for acquiring knowledge.
Nowadays the plight for seeking knowledge has become easier than ever with the abundance of reading materials on the Internet.
The BIG question:
In these auspicious days of celebrating the occasion of Meeladun Nabi it is essential to reflect how we have put into practice: 'read' - the first word of revelation to the holy Prophet.
Obviously in these days of the worldwide web we would all be satisfied that we do read something.
However the BIG question to ponder is: "Do we take time to read part of the holy Quran every day?"
Reading the key to our future:
What a coincidence as we celebrate Meeladun Nabi that this title is the caption printed on the cover page of current issue of Flagship magazine produced quarterly by the Portsmouth City Council. The main theme of this issue of the magazine is:- Let's make Portsmouth a reading City.
Khushali Mubarak.
Wa ma tawfiqi illa billah
Fazle Abbas Datoo
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Resident Alim
Wessex Shia Ithna Asheri Jamaat