The question of suicide was even more problematic. There is no theological support for such an action in Islam; indeed, it is expressly prohibited.Do not kill yourself,the Quran states. The hadith, or sayings of the Prophet, are replete with instances in which Mohammed condemns the action. The specific punishment for suicide is to burn in hell and to be forever in the act of dying by means of the same instrument that was used to take his life. Even when one of his bravest warriors was severely wounded in battle and hurled himself upon his own sword only to relieve his terrible suffering, Mohammed declared that he was damned.A man may do the deeds of the people of the Fire while in fact he is one of the people of paradise, and he may do the deeds of Paradise when in fact he belongs to the people of Fire,the Prophet observed. Verily, (the rewards of) the deeds are decided by the last action. In defense of the bombing, Zawahiri had to overcome this profound taboo. The bombers who carried out the Islamabad operation, Zawahiri said, representa generation of mujahideen that has decided to sacrifice itself and its property in the cause of God. That is because the way of death and martyrdom is a weapon that tyrants ans their helpers, who worship their salaries instead of God, do not have.He compared them to the martyrs of early Christianity. The only example he could point to in Islamic tradition was that of a group of Muslims, early in the history of the faith, who were captured byidolatersand forced to choose between recanting their religion or being killed by their captors. They chose to become martyrs to their beliefs. It was, Zawahiri argued, a suicidal choice. Other Muslims did not condemn them at that time because they were acting for the glory of God and the greater good of Islam. Therefore, anyone who gives his life in the pursuit of the true faith - such as the bombers in Islamabad - is to be regarded not as suicide who will suffer the punishment of hell but as a heroic martyr whose selfless sacrifice will gain him an extraordinary reward in Paradise. With such sophistry, Zawahiri reverse the language of the Prophet and opened door to universal murder. -The Looming Tower, Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11, by Lawrence Wright. Page 248 - 249
Posted on: Tue, 26 Aug 2014 12:58:06 +0000
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