Saturday 30 December 2017

Elections are over ; Padmavati Becomes Padmavat


Padmavati ko Padman bolke hi release kar dete! 
Karni Sena wouldn't have known what hit them!

Just for the Gujarat Elections #Padmavati issue was raised suddenly Karni Sena is ready for minor changes to be accepted ,CBFC is going to certify Padmavati. Dear Karni Sena, elections are over; Welcome to the reality..

Both Sanjay Leela Bansal and Prasoon Josh are happy about Padmavat, and they hope this compromise is acceptable to Narendra Mod and Rahul Gandh.


When we care about cows and Karni Sena more than governance, things like #2Gverdict happen. It's the citizens who decide their priorities.

Thursday 28 December 2017

A very flawed law: on instant talaq By A. Faizur Rahman


In this article publised in THE HINDU English Daily Dtd 28/12/2017

A. Faizur Rahman says that the proposed Bill criminalising instant talaq has no legal basis, and is riddled with contradictions

The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill 2017, which is set to be tabled in Parliament today, is riddled with so many internal contradictions that one is left wondering what purpose it would serve.


The stated intent of the Bill is “to protect the rights of married Muslim women and to prohibit divorce by pronouncing talaq by their husbands”. Talaq here is defined as “talaq-e-biddat or any other similar form of talaq having the effect of instantaneous and irrevocable divorce”. 


The draft law goes on to declare, in Sections 3, 4 and 7, that the “pronouncement” of talaq-e-biddat by a person upon his wife in any form whatsoever “shall be void and illegal”, and whoever “pronounces” such a talaq “shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and fine”, and the offence would be “cognizable and non-bailable”.

This amounts to a gross misreading of the August 2017 Supreme Court judgment which neutralised the legal effect of instant talaq and rendered it bad in law. In other words, the pronouncement of talaq-e-biddat does not dissolve the marriage, and this is the law of the land under Article 141.


Several contradictions

But the proposed Bill presumes that the “pronouncement” of talaq-e-biddat can instantaneously and irrevocably dissolve the marriage, and proceeds to “void” it in Section 3. Nonetheless, this begs the question of how after rendering talaq-e-biddat inoperative in Section 3, its nugatory pronouncement can be considered a cognisable and non-bailable offence in Sections 4 and 7. Can a law criminalise an act after conceding that it does not result in a crime?

However, the most glaring internal contradiction is found in Sections 5 and 6 which discuss post-divorce issues such as a “subsistence allowance” for the woman upon whom instant talaq “is pronounced” and the “custody of her minor children” as if her marriage is dissolved by the mere pronouncement of talaq-e-biddat. How could the authors of this Bill talk of post-divorce matters ignoring the fact that the pronouncement (instant talaq) has already been voided in Section 3 and cannot result in a divorce?

Image result for triple talaq bill
The chairman of THE All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) , Maulana Rabe Hasani Nadwi, had requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to withhold or withdraw the proposed bill that criminalises the practice of instant divorce, an official spokesperson of the Muslim body said.


The Pakistan ordinance

With so many inconsistent provisions, the only option before the Centre is to withdraw the Bill immediately. Instead, in its place, it may consider something similar to Sections 7(1), (3), (4) and (5) of Pakistan’s Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961 (http://bit.ly/2Cf7fz8).

According to these clauses, ‘any man who wishes to divorce his wife shall, after the pronouncement of talaq in any form whatsoever, give the chairman of the state-appointed Union Council notice in writing of his having done so, with a copy submitted to the wife. Within 30 days of receipt of notice, the chairman should constitute an arbitration council that comprises himself and a representative of each of the parties, for the purpose of bringing about a reconciliation between the parties. And talaq shall not be effective until the expiration of 90 days from the day on which notice is delivered to the chairman. If the wife is pregnant at the time of the pronouncement, talaq shall not be effective until the termination of her pregnancy’.

It may be noted here that the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance does prescribe, in Section 7(2), a simple imprisonment of one year. But this is not for the mere “pronouncement” of talaq, as envisaged in the Centre’s draft law. The husband will incur this punishment only when he pronounces talaq with an intention to divorce but fails to inform the chairman and the wife (in writing) about his pronouncement.

A case in the U.S.

As is obvious even in Pakistan, the mere pronouncement of talaq-e-biddat neither dissolves the marriage nor is it a cognisable offence.

This was proved beyond doubt in the interesting case of Tahira Naseer, a Pakistani citizen, decided by the ‘Court of Appeals of Virginia’, in August 2012 (http://bit.ly/2Dlympk). According to court records, Tahira was divorced by her husband, Nasir Mehmood Khan, through talaq-e-biddat, without any written intimation to the chairman of the Union Council.

The background to this case is as follows. In August 2000, Tahira married Nasir in Pakistan. Within a year, he told her three times that ‘he had divorced her pursuant to Islamic law’. Believing that she was divorced, she returned to her parental home and broke off all contact with Nasir, considering him to be her former husband. Then, in 2003, she married Hamid Mughal, who was a U.S. resident, in Pakistan, with another marriage ceremony, being held the next year in Fairfax County, Virginia, U.S. But this marriage too did not last long, and in November 2009, ended in them getting separated.

While waiting to seek a legal divorce in Virginia, Hamid discovered that Tahira had been married earlier and not obtained a legal divorce in Pakistan. He sought annulment of the marriage on grounds of bigamy which was granted by a U.S. trial court on the testimony of Ellahi, a Pakistani lawyer brought in by Hamid as an expert witness.

Tahira appealed against the verdict. But the Court of Appeals of Virginia rejected her arguments saying that the trial court was right in accepting Ellahi’s testimony to arrive at its decision and to treat her first marriage as legally intact because, as a Pakistani lawyer, Ellahi was a “better qualified expert” to interpret the Pakistani law than Tahira’s own witness who was not a lawyer. Ellahi had testified that ‘in order to be divorced in Pakistan, a person had to obtain a legal divorce, not just a religious one’. These facts and arguments make it clear that the Centre has no legal basis to justify the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill 2017.

It negates the recent Supreme Court ruling by unwittingly favouring the All India Muslim Personal Law Board’s medieval view that the pronouncement of talaq-e-biddat breaks the marriage, and, therefore, needs to criminalised.

Source : http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/a-very-flawed-law/article22288659.ece


A. Faizur Rahman is an independent researcher and secretary-general of the Chennai-based Islamic Forum for the Promotion of Moderate Thought. E-mail: a.faizur.rahman@gmail.com






A very flawed law: on instant talaq
In this article publised in THE HINDU English Daily Dtd 28/12/2017
A. Faizur Rahman says that the proposed Bill criminalising instant talaq has no legal basis, and is riddled with contradictions







Wednesday 27 December 2017

Mirza Ghalib








Google's doodle today celebrates the poet, #MirzaGhalib on his 220th #BirthAnniversary. A prominent Urdu and Persian-language poet during the Mughal era, Mirza Asadullah Baig Khan was born in Agra on 27 December 1797. He began composing poems from the age of 11.

Wednesday 20 December 2017

Bilal Ibn Rabah RA

Bilal Ibn Rabah RA was the first announcer of the time of Muslim prayer and the troublemaker to the idols. He was one of the miracles of faith and truthfulness, one of Islam’s great miracles. For out of every ten Muslims, from the beginning of Islam until today and until Allah wills, we will meet seven, at least, who know Bilal. That is, there are hundreds of millions of people throughout the centuries and generations who know Bilal, remember his name, and know his role just as they know the two greatest Caliphs in Islam, Abu Bakr RA and Umar RA!

Before Islam, Bilal was no more than a slave who tended herds of camels for his master for a handful of dates. Had it not been for Islam, it would have been his fate to remain a slave, wandering among the crowd until death brought an end to his life and caused him to perish in the profoundest depths of forgetfulness.

However, his faith proved to be true, and the magnificence of the religion which he believed in gave him, during his lifetime and in history, an elevated place among the great and holy men of Islam. Indeed, many human beings of distinction, prestige, or wealth have not obtained even one-tenth of the immortality which Bilal the Abyssinian slave gained.

Indeed, the black colour of his complexion, his modest lineage, and his contemptible position among people as a slave did not deprive him, when he chose to embrace Islam, of occupying the high place which his truthfulness, certainty, purity, and self-sacrifice qualified him for. For him, all this would not have been on the scale of estimation and honour except as an astonishing occurrence when greatness is found where it could not possibly be.

The news of Muhammad’s SAW call began and reached his ears when people in Makkah began to talk about it and when he began listening to the discussions of his master and his guests, especially Umayah lbn Khalaf, one of the elders of the Bani Jumah, of which Bilal was one of the slaves. How often did he hear Urnayah talking to his friends for some time and to some persons of his tribe. Many times they talked about the Messenger with words that were overflowing with anxiety, rage, and malice!

Bilal, on the other hand, was receiving between those words of insane fury and rage the attributes of this new religion. He began to feel that they were new qualities for the environment which he lived in. He was also able to receive during their threatening, thunderous talks their acknowledgement of Muhammad’s nobility, truthfulness, and loyalty. Yes indeed, he heard them wondering and amazed at what Muhammad came with. They said to one another, ‘Muhammad was never a liar, magician, or mad, but we have to describe him this way until we turn away from him those who rush to his religion.’

He heard them talking about his honesty and loyalty, about his manliness and nobility, and about his purity and composure of his intelligence. He heard them whispering about the reasons which caused them to challenge and antagonize him: First, their allegiance to the religion of their fathers; Second, their fear over the glory of the Quraish which was bestowed upon them because of their religious status as a centre of idol worship and resort in the whole of the Arabian Peninsula; Third, the envy of the tribe of Bani Hashim that anyone from them should claim to be a prophet or messenger.

One day Bilal Ibn Rabah recognized the light of Allah and heard His resonance in the depths of his good soul. So he went to the Messenger of Allah and converted to Islam. It did not take long before the news of his embracing Islam was spread. It was a shock to the chiefs of the Bani Jumah, who were very proud and conceited. The devils of the earth sat couched over the breast of Umayah Ibn Khalaf, who considered the acceptance of Islam by one of their slaves a blow that overwhelmed them with shame and disgrace.

Bilal gave a profound lesson to those of his age and every age, for those of his religion and every religion, a lesson which embraced the idea that freedom and supremacy of conscience could not be bartered either for gold or punishment, even if it filled the earth. He was stripped naked and laid on hot coals to make him renounce his religion, but he refused.

The Messenger SAW and Islam made this weak Abyssinian slave a teacher to all humanity in the art of respecting conscience and defending its freedom and supremacy. His torturers used to take him out in the midday heat when the desert turned to a fatal hell. Then they would throw him naked on its scorching rocks and bring a burning hot rock, which took several men to lift from its place, and throw it onto his body and chest. This savage torture was repeated every day until the hearts of some of his executioners took pity on him. Finally, they agreed to set him free on condition that he would speak well of their gods, even with only one word that would allow them to keep their pride so that the Quraish would not say they had been defeated and humiliated by the resistance of their persevering slave.

But even this one word, which he could eject from outside his heart and with it buy his life and soul without losing his faith or abandoning his conviction, Bilal refused to say. Instead he began to repeat his lasting chant: ‘One… One!’ His torturers shouted at him, imploring him, ‘Mention the name of Al-Laat and Al-‘Uzza.’ But he answered, ‘One . . . One’ They said to him, ‘Say as we say.’ But he answered them with remarkable mockery and caustic irony, ‘Indeed my tongue is not good at that.’

Abu Bakr As-Siddiq went to them while they were torturing him and shouted at them, ‘Are you killing a man because he says, ‘Allah is my Lord?” Then he shouted at Umayah lbn Khalaf, ‘Take more than his price and set him free.’ It was as if Umayah were drowning and had caught a lifeboat. It was to his liking and he was very much pleased when he heard Abu Bakr offering the price of his freedom, since they had despaired of subjugating Bilal. And as they were merchants, they realized that selling him was more profitable to them than his death.

They sold him to Abu Bakr, and then he emancipated him immediately, and Bilal took his place among free men. When As-Siddiq put his arm round Bilal, rushing with him to freedom, Umayah said to him, ‘Take him, for by Al-Laat and Al-‘ Uzza if you had refused to buy him except for one ounce of gold, I would have sold him to you.’ Abu Bakr realized the bitterness of despair and disappointment hidden in these words. It was appropriate not to answer, but because they violated the dignity of this man who had become his brother and his equal, he answered Umayah saying, ‘By Allah, if you had refused to sell him except for a hundred ounces, I would have paid it.’ He departed with his companion to the Messenger of Allah, giving him news of his liberation, and there was a great celebration.

After the Hijrah of the Messenger SAW and the Muslims to Al-Medina and their settling there, the Messenger instituted the Adhaan. So who would become the muezzin five times a day? Who would call across distant lands, ‘Allah is the Greatest’ and ‘There is no god but Allah’?

It was Bilal, who had shouted thirteen years before while the torture was destroying him, ‘Allah is One… One.’ He was chosen by the Messenger that day to be the first muezzin in Islam. With his melodious soul-stirring voice, he filled the hearts with faith and the ears with awe when he called:

Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest I bear witness that there is no god but Allah I bear witness that there is no god but Allah I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah Come to Prayer

Come to Prayer Come to Success Come to Success Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest There is no god but Allah

Fighting broke out between the Muslims and the army of the Quraish who came to invade Al- Medina. The war raged fiercely and terribly while Bilal was there attacking and moving about in the first battle. Islam was plunged into the Battle of Badr, whose motto the Messenger SAW ordered to be, ‘One… One.’

In this battle, the Quraish sacrificed their youth and all their noblemen to their destruction. Umayah Ibn Khalaf, who had been Bilal’s master and who used to torture him with deadly brutality, was about to retreat from fighting. But his friend Uqbah Ibn Abu Mu’it went to him when he heard the news of his withdrawal, carrying a censer in his right hand. When he arrived he was sitting among his people. He threw the censer between his hands and said to him, ‘O Abu ‘Ally, use this. You are one of the women.’ But Umayah shouted at him saying, ‘May Allah make you and what you came with ugly!’ And he did not find a way out, so he went out to fight.

What other secrets does destiny conceal and unfold? ‘Uqbah Ibn Abu Mu’it had been the greatest supporter of Umayah in the torture of Bilal and other weak Muslims. And on that day, he himself was the one who urged him to go to the Battle of Badr where he would die, just as it would be the place where Uqbah would die! Umayah had been one of the shirkers from war. Had it not been for what Uqbah did to him, he would not have gone out fighting.

But Allah executes His command. So let Umayah go out, because there was an old account between him and one of the slaves of Allah. It was time to settle it. The Judge never dies. As you owe, you shall be owed to.

Indeed destiny would be very much pleased to mock the tyrants. Uqbah, whose provocations Umayah used to listen to and follow his desire to torture the innocent believers, was the same person who would lead Umayah to his death. By the hand of Bilal himself and Bilal alone! The same hands that Umayah used to chain and whose owner he beat and tortured. Those very hands were on that day, in the Battle of Badr, on a rendezvous that destiny had set the best time for, with the torture of the Quraish who had humiliated the believers unjustly and aggressively. That is what really happened.

When the fighting began between the two sides, and the side of the Muslims shouted the motto, ‘One . . . One,’ the heart of Umayah was startled, and a warning came to him. The word which his slave used to repeat yesterday under torture and horror became today the motto of a whole religion and of a whole new nation.

The swords clashed in the battle and the fighting became severe. As the battle neared its end, Umayah lbn Khalaf noticed Abd Ar Rahman Ibn Awf, the Companion of the Messenger of Allah. He sought refuge with him and asked to be his captive, hoping to save his life. Abd Ar-Rahman accepted his supplication and granted him refuge. Then he took him and walked with him amidst the battle to the place where captives were held.

On the way Bilal noticed him and shouted, ‘The head of kuft (disbelief), Umayah lbn Khalaf! May I not be saved if he is saved!’ he lifted up his sword to cut off the head which was all the time full of pride and arrogance. But Abd Ar-Rahman Ibn Awf shouted at him, ‘O Bilal, he is my captive!’ A captive while the war was still raging? A captive while his sword was still dripping blood because of what he had been doing just moments before to the bodies of the Muslims? No! In Bilal’s opinion, this was irony and abuse of the mind, and Umayah had scoffed and abused the mind enough. He scoffed until there was no irony remaining for such a day, such a dilemma, and such a fate!

Bilal realized that he would not be able alone to storm the sanctuary of his brother in faith, Abd Ar-Rahman Ibn Awf. So he shouted at the top of his voice to the Muslims, ‘O helpers of Allah! The head of Kufr, Umayah Ibn Khalaf! May I not be saved if he is saved!’ A band of Muslims approached with swords dripping blood. They surrounded Umayah and his son, who was fighting with the Quraish. Abd Ar-Rahman Ibn Awf could not do anything. He could not even protect his armour which the crowd removed. Bilal gazed long at the body of Umayah, who fell beneath the smashing swords. Then he hastened away from him shouting, ‘One… One.’

The days went by and Makkah was conquered. The Messenger SAW entered it, thankful and saying, ‘Allah is the Greatest,’ at the head of 10,000 Muslims. He headed for the Kabah immediately, this holy place which the Quraish had crowded with idols amounting to the number of days of the year. ‘The truth has come and falsehood has vanished.’

Ever since that day, there has been no Uzza, no Laat and no Hubal. Man will not bow to a rock or idol after today. People will worship no one with all his conscience but Allah, Who has no likeness, the One, Most Great, Most High. The Messenger SAW entered the Kabah accompanied by Bilal. He had hardly entered it when he faced a carved idol representing Ibrahim AS prophesying with sticks.

The Messenger SAW was angry and said, ‘May Allah kill them. Our ancestor never did prophesy with sticks. Ibrahim was not a Jew or Christian, but he was a true Muslim and was never a polytheist.’ Then he ordered Bilal to ascend to the top of the mosque and call to Prayer, and Bilal called the Adhaan. How magnificent was the time, place, and occasion!

Life came to a standstill in Makkah, and thousands of Muslims stood like motionless air, repeating in submissiveness and whispering the words of the Adhaan after Bilal while the polytheists were in their homes hardly believing what was happening.

Bilal lived with the Messenger of Allah SAW, witnessing all the battles with him, calling to Prayer and observing the rites of this great religion that took him out of darkness to light and from servitude to freedom. The stature of Islam along with the stature of Muslims was elevated. Every day Bilal was getting closer to the heart of the Messenger of Allah, who used to describe him as ‘one of the inhabitants of Paradise.’

But Bilal remained just as he was, noble and humble, always considering himself ‘the Abyssinian who only yesterday was a slave.’ One day he was proposing to two girls for himself and his brother, so be said to their father, ‘ I am Bilal and this is my brother, two slaves from Abyssinia. We were astray and Allah guided us. We were two slaves and Allah emancipated us. If you agree on us marrying your daughters, all praise is to Allah; if you refuse, then Allah is the Greatest.’

The Messenger passed away to Allah, well pleased and well pleasing, and Abu Bakr As-Siddiq took the command of the Muslims after him. Bilal went to the caliph (successor) of the Messenger of Allah and said to him, ‘O Caliph of the Messenger of Allah, I heard the Messenger of Allah SAW say, ‘The best deed of a believer is jihad in the cause of Allah.’

Abu Bakr said to him, ‘So what do you want, Bilal?’ He said, ‘I want to defend in the cause of Allah until I die.’ Abu Bakr said, ‘And who will call the Adhaan for us?’ Bilal said, with his eyes overflowing with tears, ‘I will not call the Adhaan for anyone after the Messenger of Allah.’ Abu Bakr said, ‘Stay and call to Prayer for us, Bilal.’ Bilal said, ‘If you emancipated me to be for you, I will do what you want, but if you emancipated me for Allah, leave me to Whom I was emancipated for.’ Abu Bakr said, ‘I emancipated you for Allah, Bilal.’

The narrators differ. Some of them believe that he travelled and remained fighting and defending. Some others narrate that he accepted Abu Bakr’s request to stay with him in Medina. When Abu Bakr died and Umar succeeded him, Bilal asked his permission and went to Syria.

Anyhow, Bilal vowed the remaining part of his life to fight in the cause of Islam, determined to meet Allah and His Messenger having done the best deed they love.

His melodious, welcoming, awe-inspiring voice did not call the Adhaan anymore, because whenever he uttered in his Adhaan, ‘I bear witness that Muhammad SAW is the Messenger of Allah,’ memories would stir him, and his voice would vanish under his sadness while the tears cried out the words.

His last Adhaan was during the days Umar, the Commander of the Faithful, when he visited Syria. The Muslims entreated him to persuade Bilal to call one Adhaan for them. The Commander of the Faithful called Bilal when it was time for Prayer and pleaded with him to make the Adhaan. Bilal ascended and did so. The Companions of the Messenger of Allah SAW who were with the Commander of the Faithful while Bilal was calling the Adhaan wept as they never did before, and Umar the most strongly.

Bilal died in Syria, fighting in the cause of Allah just as he had wanted. Beneath the dust of Damascus, today there lies the body of one of the greatest men of humankind in standing up for the creed of Islam with conviction.

Source: Khalid, Khalid Muhammad, Men Around the Messenger, Islamic Book Service, 2004

Tuesday 12 December 2017

Lecture on Major Books on Seerah written in Kannada

IOS Lecture on Major Books of Seerah written in Kannada
Darus Salam Building , Queens Road, Bengaluru.

Bengaluru Dec 9, 2017 - Saturday : Institute of Objective Studies,  New Delhi organised a Lecture in Kannada on the subject "Major Books of Seerah written in Kannada" the lecture was delivered in Kannada language by Mr Abdussalam Puthige , Editor in chief Kannada Daily "VARTHA BHARATHI". at Darus Salam Building , Queens Road, Bengaluru.

Delivering the lecture  Mr Abdussalam Puthige said that efforts shall be immediately the introduction of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) life in a larger way, Muslim community of Karnataka is has been keeping distance from the kannada language, result of which is there is lack of number of books written on the subject of Seerah. 

He emphasized that the life Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) shall not seen or connected only with History or Religion, The Prophet Muhammad's (PBUH) is eternal yet simple, The prophets life has example in every part and to every age, one can easily find the examples in Daily life of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), in keeping relations, Speaking the Truth, delivering the Justice, feeling happy and pain for others , he also said no personality in world has the dedicate literature in all the languages as Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

He said  Kannada language has also given the due importance in writing the life of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), but lot more has to be done. the situation has improved if we compare the works with last century.

Major Books in Kannada on Seerah ( The Life of Prophet Muhammad PBUH) :
He mention that "Manava Kulada Vimochaka" 720 Pages is the translation of Moulana Nayeem siddiqui's Urdu Book on Seerah " Mohsin E Insaaniyat"  is the largest book available in Kannada regarding the Life of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) , He also gave the list of 35 books which is used often for reference.

The Synopsis of the lecture in Urdu Lecture was presented Sulaiman Khan Vice president All India Milli Council Karnataka

The programme was presided by Dr Muhammad Manzoor Alam , Chairman IOS, Presiding over the programme he said that in the current era that we live in larger efforts being given to damage the image of, this is the time when muslims from every aspect of life especially Ulemas, scholars and intellectuals, shall raech the grass root level to introduce the Holy Life in a correct way.

Dr. Alam said that by hearing Abdussalam puthige's lecture "one can undersatnd the fact that the drop of ink in scholar's pen has more importane than the drop of Blood in the sword of Warrior"


Earlier, the programme began with the recitation of a Quranic verse by Moulana Muzaffar Umari, President All India Milli Council Bangalore . Jameel Aahmed Milansaar , GA Member IOS welcomed the Guests and gathering.
GA Member IOS Obaidulla Sharieef & GC Member Aga Sultan , Moulana Syed Mustafa Rifai

Saturday 2 December 2017

Religious and Cultural Impact of Islam on Hindu Society With special reference to Bhakti Movement

 Research Paper By: Jameel Aahmed Milansaar
AT

INSTITUTE OF OBJECTIVE STUDIES & THE NEW COLLEGE (AUTONOMOUS)
Two-day Seminar
“Towards Equality, Justice and Fraternity in Contemporary India – Creating a Better Tomorrow through History”
December 2-3, 2017 at The New College, Chennai



Since the Indian Society (compromising mostly of Hindus) was living in isolation for several thousand years under a tight Brahminic control, it had lost its vigour and vitality. Bottled in their own customs and rites ,the Hindus were politically divided and militarily weak. This naturally resulted in a major shake up by the Muslims who were strong and better equipped.

Islam as the most powerful movement to bring mankind into one brotherhood, free from exploitation and corruption, had at that time a firm moral, intellectual and political control over the civilized world. The character of Hindu society was substantially changed after long and intimate association with the Muslims.

Islam in India constitutes the second-most practiced religion after Hinduism, with approximately 151 million Muslims in India's population as of 2007 (according to government census 2001), i.e., 13.4 percent of the population. Currently, India has the third largest population of Muslims in the world, after Indonesia and Pakistan.

Islam in India has had a fascinating, and powerful impact. Indeed, Islam has become woven into the very fabric of Indian civilization and culture.
Muslims arrived in India during the life of Prophet Muhammad (SAWS), establishing mosques and organizing missionary endeavours in the seventh century C.E. Those missionary efforts proved successful, rooting Islam firmly into Indian life. As often happens with missionary movements from all religions, merchant and trade endeavors went hand in hand with missionary work. Arabs had had a presence in India before the birth of Muhammad (SAWS). That probably facilitated making inroads for Islam, since Arab traders established in India who converted to Islam already had a base of operations established, in the phenomenally diverse religious and cultural landscape of India.

Islam brought to India a conception of human equality, pride in one’s religion, a legal system which was in many ways an advance on the codes of the time. Hindu rulers were influenced to work as the upholders of Hindu religion. Islam gave the message of universal brotherhood, introduced equality in society, rejected caste system and untouchability.

In due course, these ideas began to have a conscious or unconscious effect upon the philosophical Hindu mind and fostered the growth of liberal movements under religious reformers.

The influence of Islam was more pungent in the domain of religion. It gave a rude shock to Hinduism and shattered the Brahmanical influence from the Hindu society which it was availing since long. Besides this, the impact of Islam on Hinduism produced important consequences.

The Islamic message of universal brotherhood, introduction of equality in society, rejection of caste system and untouchability, opposition to idol-worship and the idea of oneness of God threw up a powerful challenge to the upholders of Hinduism. With the gradual march of time, this moulded the Hindu mind and fostered the growth of liberal movements by some saints and reformers.


This gave rise to the “Bhakti Cult” or Single-minded direct devotion and love to “One”, this movement produced saints like Ramanand, Kabir, Nanak, Sri Chaitanya and many more. These saints and reformers of fifteenth and sixteenth centuries like Kabira, Nanak and Srichaitanya and others preached fundamental equality of all religions.

This Bhakti cult provided a much coveted relief to the oppressed mass who were debarred from social privileges and they got liberation from the clutches of the priests. This Bhakti cult exerted great influence in South India Sankaracharya, Ramanuja, Basava and many others in South rose to reinterpret Hinduism in terms of Islamic monotheism.

Ramananda, the celebrated Vaishnava preacher of the 14th century, preached the message of unity of God and the unity of man, and introduced a radical reform of the Vaishnava sect.

Nanak the founder of Sikhism, like Kabir and Ramananda preached the futility of caste distinctions and stressed on the unity of man. The most influential and well-known among the religious reformers of this period was Sri Chaitanya. He was born in a Brahman family of Nabadwip. He laid great stress on universal love and did away with all artificial barriers. The teachings of the great reformers made profound and lasting impression on the life and thought of contemporary times and did much to bring the two communities into ever closer relations with each other.

A remarkable effect of this Hindu-Muslim impact was noticeable in the growth of Vernacular Literature. The great Sannyasi teachers of the 14th and 15th centuries preached in the simple language of the people and helped the growth and development of vernacular literature. While Ramananda and Kabir gave a great impetus to the development of Hindi literature, Bengali and Punjabi literature received a great impetus at the hands of Chaitanya and Nanak respectively. The vernacular literature of Bengal and Bihar was further enriched by the melodious songs composed by Chandidas and Vidyapati. Even the Sultans of Bengal were liberal patrons of vernacular literature. They encouraged a number of scholars and literary men who, at their instance, undertook the compilation of Bengali versions of the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, and the Srimad Bhagavat Gita.
As a result of close Hindu-Muslim contact a new vernacular known as Urdu came into existence. It did much to bring the two communities into closer relations with each other.
The above discussion, facts and figures lead to the conclusion that Islamic teachings influenced Indian religious thought, society and culture specially the religious sects and reform movements. The social and moral teachings of Islam broke the rigidity of the caste-system of the Hindu society and influenced the educated Hindus. This is most evident in the Lingayat sect established by Basava as early as the twelfth century. Similarly, the Virsaivas and Siddhars and almost all the socio-religious reform movements were influenced by Islam. Without doubt, the Muslim social manners and customs influenced those of the Hindus of all classes of society. Almost all the Indian languages whether of the north or of the south have been enriched by the vocabulary provided by Arabic, Persian and Turkish, Islamic ideas have been absorbed in the literatures of medieval India.
Indian History is witness to the fact that the basic teachings of Islam such as monotheism, universal brotherhood, introduction of equality in society, rejection of caste system and untouchability, opposition to idol-worship and the vernacular languages and literature which was created as an impact of Hindu Muslim co existence, played a major role in bridging the gap between two major Communities --- Hindus and Muslim and these played the role of catalyst to bring these two communities together. The basic tenets of Islam such as Justice, Unity, Fraternity and Equality have been adopted in the preamble of our Constitution as these are the basic building blocks of a prosperous Society with peaceful co-existence. Today when the secular fabric of our great Country is being torn to pieces there is a dire need to review and revive these basic tenets of islam and to use language and literature to propagate these great qualities so as to remove the misgivings and misPunderstandings being spread among different communities, only then can our country be saved from the fascist forces and a just and peaceful environment be created here.
Kashti-e-Haq Ka Zamane Mein Sahara Tu Hai 
Asr-e-Nau Raat Hai, Dhundla Sa Sitara Tu Hai
In you relies the bark of God, Adrift beyond the bar,
The new‐born age is dark as night, And you its dim pole‐star.