Mehmed II and the Prophet’s Promise

Mehmed II and the Prophet’s Promise

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ  promised his followers in the Arabian Desert that they would one day conquer the most powerful and legendary city of the day, Constantinople. For centuries, it seemed like an impossible task. The city is incredibly well-defended, being a peninsula with a giant wall on it’s land side that deterred most conquerors. The city was laid siege to by Muslim armies during the Umayyad Caliphate, but those sieges were unable to defeat her mammoth walls.

When the Ottoman Empire sprang up in the early 1300s as a small Turkish beylik in Western Anatolia, it threatened the security of the Byzantines and their capital, Constantinople. By the time Sultan Mehmed II takes the throne in 1451, the Ottomans have expanded to control land in both Europe and Asia, thus surrounding the city of Constantinople. Sultan Mehmed made it his goal from the moment he took the throne to finally capture the legendary city. He ordered the building of a fortress on the Bosporus Strait, north of Constantinople to control ship movement in and out of the city. To honor the Prophet who declared the Muslims would conquer Constantinople, Mehmed had the fortress built in a way that it’s shape spelled out “Muhammad” in Arabic when seen from above.

On April 1st, 1453, Mehmed and his Ottoman army of over 100,000 soldiers arrived at the walls of Constantinople. The sight that greeted them must have been terrifying. The inner walls of Constantinople were 5 meters thick at their base and 12 meters high. 20 meters away from the inner wall was the outer wall, which was 2 meters thick and 8.5 meters tall. These walls had never been conquered in history, and numerous previous sieges by the Ottomans as well as the Umayyads during the caliphate of Mu’awiya in the 600s attested to that.

In addition to the walls, the Byzantines had a giant iron chain installed in the Golden Horn, a small inlet to the north of the city. This would prevent a navy from sailing to the weaker northern coast of the city and attacking from there. The Byzantines had a clear defensive advantage before the battle began. Despite being outnumbered and outgunned, the Byzantines were confident of their impending victory. Especially once additional soldiers and commanders were sent from the Italian city-state of Genoa.

Mehmed offered the defenders the option to surrender and remain in possession of their property, lives, and families in peace, but this offer was refused by the Byzantine emperor, Constantine XI. Thus, Mehmed began the attack on the city on April 6th. Despite the best effort of the Ottoman soldiers, and the bombardment of the world’s biggest cannons, the city held out for weeks. On April 22nd, Mehmed ordered the Ottoman navy to be carried over land to bypass the chain in the Golden Horn. Over one night, 72 ships were carried over land and put into the Golden Horn, threatening the city from the north.

It seemed that the battle of the city would soon be over as the Ottomans clearly had the upper hand. On May 28th, Mehmed halted all attacks and allowed his army to spend the day praying to Allah for victory. The next day, on May 29th, the army began a final assault on the city walls and before the morning was over, the walls were conquered and the city was taken.

Perhaps the most important part of this historical event was Mehmed II’s treatment of the defeated Byzantines. He did not kill the residents of the city and in fact encouraged them to stay in Constantinople by absolving them of taxes. He insisted that the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate stay in the city and rule the Christians of the city on his behalf. While to the rest of Europe, the idea of religious tolerance was a foreign concept, Mehmed followed the Islamic principles on treatment of non-Muslims and gave religious freedom and rights to the Christians of Constantinople. His abilities in battle and his virtuous qualities earned him the nickname “al-Fatih” or “the Conqueror”.

Al-Biruni: A Master of Scholarship

When learning about Islamic history, it’s hard to not be amazed at the scientific and intellectual accomplishments of Muslims in the past. From medicine to mathematics to philosophy to art to physics, during their golden age, Muslims were at the forefront of almost all sciences, making new discoveries and building on earlier ones. Names like Ibn Sina, Ibn al-Haytham, Ibn Khaldun, and al-Farabi come to mind when people think of the giants of Islamic science.

One man who is in this elite group of the greatest scholars of all time is the Muslim Persian polymath, Abu Rayhan al-Biruni. He lived from 973 to 1048 and spent most of his life in Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent. During his illustrious career, al-Biruni became an expert in numerous subjects, including history, physics, mathematics, astronomy, linguistics, comparative religion, and earth sciences. Despite the unsettling political problems the Muslim world was dealing with during his life, he managed to rise above the instability and become one of the greatest scholars of history.

Early Life

An illustration of a lunar eclipse, drawn by al-Biruni and annotated in Persian.

Al-Biruni was born in the province of Khorasan, in Northeastern Persia in 973. Like many other children in his time, he was educated at a young age, learning the Arabic and Persian languages, as well as basic Islamic studies, and natural sciences. Early on, he took an interest in mathematics and astronomy, which he specialized in under the eminent astronomers of the day.

In his 20s, he moved away from home in his pursuit of knowledge. For 3 years he traveled throughout Persia, learning from scholars about numerous subjects. When he finally settled in Jurjan (modern Gorgan) in 998, he worked for the local ruler, Shams al-Ma’ali Qabus. For the next 10 years, he lived in this small northern Irani city, doing research, writing books, and learning more.

During this time, he wrote a monumental work that analyzed historical chronologies of ancient civilizations, along with the rise and fall of empires. The book foreshadowed his future as a scholar of numerous subjects. It is more than just a history book, as it brings history, science, astronomy, and cultural studies together to explain events of the past. Al-Biruni clearly became one of the foremost minds of his day through his work in Jurjan.

In Ghazni

Al-Biruni would not accomplish some of his greatest works until he moved to Ghazni, and was under the patronage of Sultan Mahmud. Ghazni was a major city at the time, located in what is now Afghanistan. Mahmud’s empire stretched far beyond the borders of modern Afghanistan, however, into present-day Iran, Pakistan, and India. In this powerful empire, al-Biruni had the resources and ability to show what he was capable of doing.

Al-Biruni’s travels into India opened the door to some of his greatest discoveries.

Of particular benefit to al-Biruni was the fact that Sultan Mahmud regularly embarked on military expeditions into India to protect his domain there. Mahmud had a habit of taking al-Biruni along on all his military campaigns, so al-Biruni was exposed regularly to language, culture, and religion in India.

Blessed with a mind that was capable of picking up new ideas easily, al-Biruni quickly managed to learn Sanskrit, the language of Hindu liturgy. This opened up an entire realm of Indian books that he could learn from and compare with books from other parts of the world. He translated books from Sanskrit into Arabic and Persian, and also translated from Arabic to Sanskrit. He was a firm believer in the idea that civilizations should aim to learn from each other instead of destroy each other.

Because of his ability to read ancient Hindu texts, al-Biruni was able to compile an encyclopedia of ancient Indian history, known as Kitab Tarikh al-Hind - The Book of Indian History. In fact, much of what is known today about ancient India comes directly from al-Biruni’s book. Tarikh al-Hind does more than tell the reader about ancient India, however. It is also a testament to the fact that al-Biruni was able to put together so many different sciences to fully understand the background of historical events. The book is a window into Indian philosophy, geography, and culture, which al-Biruni immersed himself in to give himself a better understanding of Indian history. As such, Tarikh al-Hindcan truly be considered one of the world’s first books on anthropology – the study of human societies and their development.

Scientific Discoveries

Besides being an expert in Indian history and culture, al-Biruni managed to find time to make scientific advances as well. Because of his travels, he was able to see different geographic features first-hand, and come up with theories as to how they are connected. By analyzing the different types of soil particles in the Ganges River from its source to the Bay of Bengal, al-Biruni formulated theories about erosion and how land forms are shaped, particularly noting the role of water in this process.

In a related study, he discovers fossils of ancient sea animals in the mountains that cut India off from the rest of the world – the Himalayas. It seems unlikely that lowly sea snails and other shellfish would travel thousands of miles inland and up the side of a mountain, so al-Biruni came to the conclusion that the Himalayan Mountains must have been under the ocean at one point, and moved to their present location over millions of years. This directly led to the modern understanding of plate tectonics – how continents move and shift over time.

Al-Biruni also pioneered the field of geology, as he collected, analyzed, and compiled hundreds of metals and gems. He described their properties, how they are made, and where they can be found. His books on gemstones served as a standard for understanding precious stones for hundreds of years.

Al-Biruni on a modern Iranian stamp

Al-Biruni continued a remarkable career in the early 1000s, doing research into fields such as:

How the earth spins on its axis

How wells and springs transport water to the surface

Combining statics and dynamics into the study of mechanics

Recording the latitude and longitude of thousands of cities, which allowed him to determine the direction towards Makkah for each city

The optical nature of shadows, particularly their use for the calculation of prayer times

Separating scientific astronomy from superstitious astrology

During his 75 years, al-Biruni managed to revolutionize the way numerous subjects were understood. By the time he died in 1048, he had authored well over 100 books, of which many have not survived till today. His intellect and mastery of various subjects, and his ability to relate them together to gain a better understanding of each puts him among the greatest Muslim scholars of all time. His life serves as proof of the ability of Muslim scholars of the past to push the limits of knowledge and establish new frontiers in the sciences. It also serves to show the ability of the best scholars to rise above political problems, wars, and and general instability to still do world-changing research and make remarkable discoveries.

Al-Ghazali and the Revival of Islamic Scholarship

Al-Ghazali and the Revival of Islamic Scholarship

Prophet Muhammad ﷺ promised that every century, a re-newer of the faith of Islam will arise. Throughout history, great Muslim intellectuals, rulers, generals, and artists have come and managed to rejuvenate faith in the Muslim world and help Muslims deal with the problems of that age. For each one of these great figures, a specific historical context was necessary for them to accomplish what they did.

One of the greatest renewers of the faith in history was the 11th century scholar Abu Hamid al-Ghazali. Today, he is known as Hujjat al-Islam, the Proof of Islam, because of his efforts in intellectually fighting against some of the most dangerous ideas and philosophies that plagued the Muslim world during his time. From the ubiquitous nature of ancient Greek philosophy to the rising tide of political Shi’ism, Imam al-Ghazali did not leave a stone unturned in his effort to bring back serious Islamic scholarship in the face of heterodox threats.

Early Life

Abu Hamid al-Ghazali was born in 1058 in the city of Tus, in modern Iran. He hailed from a Persian family but was fluent in Arabic, which he wrote in, like many other Muslim scholars of his era. He was educated in the basics of Islam and Islamic law from an early age, and counted the eminent Shafi’i scholar al-Juwayni among his teachers.

During his self-imposed exile, al-Ghazali lived in the al-Aqsa Mosque.

After completing his education, he joined the court of the Seljuk vizier Nizam al-Mulk in Isfahan in 1085. Nizam al-Mulk was known for his efforts to establish advanced educational centers around the Muslim world. He thus appointed al-Ghazali as a teacher in the Nizamiyya School in Baghdad in 1091. In Baghdad, al-Ghazali had a very prestigious position and regularly attracted huge crowds to his lectures.

In 1095, however, al-Ghazali experienced a spiritual crisis during which he began to doubt his intentions in teaching. He stated in his autobiography that his intention “was not directly purely to God, but rather was instigated and motivated by the quest for fame and widespread prestige.” Recognizing his spiritual dilemma, he abandoned his post at the Nizamiyya and traveled to Damascus, Jerusalem, and the Hejaz. During his travels, he focused on tazkiya (purification) of his soul and analysis of the various approaches to Islam that were popular during his day.

He did eventually go back to Baghdad in 1106 and began teaching again. His travels and search for a way to purify his intentions had a huge influence on his public role, and he was sometimes met with controversy during his stay in Baghdad. He eventually moved back to his hometown of Tus, where he died in 1111.

Refutation of Philosophy

In his autobiography, Deliverance from Error, al-Ghazali describes the approaches to finding truth that people follow. One of the popular ideologies at the time was philosophy, based on the ancient Greek philosophical models of Aristotle. Prominent Muslim proponents of Aristotelian philosophy included Ibn Sina and al-Farabi.

The dangers of Aristotelian philosophy and logic, according to al-Ghazali, was the conclusions the philosophers came to. Some philosophers would come to believe things such as the eternity of the world and the non-existence of God, or that God is not all-knowing. For al-Ghazali and other Muslims grounded in orthodox Islamic beliefs, these new ideas were counted as disbelief in the tenants of Islam.

As al-Ghazali saw it, no Muslim scholar had so far managed to effectively refute these philosophers. Since the philosophers were experts at logic and argument, they appeared to make very clear and sensical arguments for their positions, despite the fact that those positions directly contradicted Islamic belief.

Al-Ghazali took on the challenge of showing the problems in the philosophers’ arguments on their own terms in The Incoherence of the Philosophers, which was published in 1095. Using the philosophers’ logic against them, he managed to clearly show the holes in the philosophical arguments that led to disbelief. To do this, he had to delve deeply into philosophy itself, a practice he did not recommend for the masses  Throughout his writing, he emphasizes the importance of being firmly grounded in correct belief before delving into heterodox beliefs.

Another major problem that al-Ghazali had to deal with was the rising tide of Muslims who accepted the Ismaili Shi’a belief that an infallible Hidden Imam is a valid source of Islamic law and creed. For the Ismailis,who ruled Egypt during al-Ghazali’s life, the prophethood of Muhammad ﷺ was not the final word in religious matters, and a special holy figure, known as an Imam, can be turned to for guidance.

In Deliverance from Error, al-Ghazali refuted their claims of having an Imam on a scriptural basis, by showing that there existed no authentic narrations of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ regarding an Imamate after his death. He also went beyond that to logically answer the claims that an Imam is necessary by analyzing the role of Islamic law and how it is derived. Without going too far into his proofs (which are much better understood by reading his original work), he comes to the conclusion regarding the Ismailis that:

“The substance of their doctrine comes down to deceiving the common folk and the dimwitted
by showing the need for the authoritative teacher.”1

After analyzing the approaches to Islam through philosophical, Shi’a, and other means, al-Ghazali comes to the conclusion that the only effective way to understand the world is through the authentic practice of Islam as was taught by the Prophet ﷺ and early generations. At his time, this was being practiced by the Sufis, a group who renounced dependence on this world and focused entirely on purification of their own souls in an attempt to better serve Allah.2

Al-Ghazali and Science

A common accusation that has been leveled at Imam al-Ghazali by Orientalist scholars is that his refutation of philosophy led to a general decline of Islamic scientific advancement. They base their claims that many of the people that al-Ghazali refuted, such as Ibn Sina and al-Farabi, were some of the leading scientific scholars of the day. The truth, however, is of course more nuanced.

While al-Ghazali clearly did take issue with the philosophical ideas of scholars who also wrote great mathematical and scientific treatises, he makes very clear the distinction between philosophy and science. Al-Ghazali states:

“Whoever takes up these mathematical sciences marvels at the fine precision of their details and the clarity of their proofs. Because of that, he forms a high opinion of the philosophers and assumes that all their sciences have the same lucidity and apodeictic solidity as this science of mathematics.”3

The danger in studying mathematics and other sciences, argues al-Ghazali, is not that the subject itself is contrary to Islam and should be avoided. Rather, the student must be careful to accept the scientific ideas of scholars without blindly accepting everything they say regarding philosophy and other problematic subjects.

He goes on to state that there is another danger for an ignorant student of the sciences, and that is the rejection of all scientific discoveries of scholars on the basis that they were also philosophers with heterodox beliefs. He states:

“Great indeed is the crime against religion committed by anyone who supposes that Islam is to be championed by the denial of these mathematical sciences. For the revealed Law nowhere undertakes to deny or affirm these sciences, and the latter nowhere address themselves to religious matters.”4

When one reads Imam al-Ghazali’s works at a very superficial level, one can easily misunderstand what he is saying as anti-scientific in general. The truth, however, is that al-Ghazali’s only warning to students is to not fully accept all the beliefs and ideas of a scholar simply because of his achievements in mathematics and science. By issuing such a warning, al-Ghazali is in fact protecting the scientific enterprise for future generations by insulating it from being mixed with theoretical philosophy that could eventually dilute science itself to a field based on conjecture and reasoning alone.

Legacy

This article does not attempt to provide a comprehensive overview of Imam al-Ghazali and all his ideas and contributions. To do so would require full textbooks analyzing his writings. Instead, the purpose is to show the impact that al-Ghazali had on his own era and subsequent Islamic history.

Imam al-Ghazali today is known as Hujjat al-Islam, Arabic for “the Proof of the Religion” due to his contributions in protecting the Muslim world from the intellectual challenges that were facing it. Traditional Islamic beliefs and practices were being confronted by a rise of nihilistic philosophy and extreme Shi’ism that threatened to erase change the face of Islamic scholarship forever. Due to his efforts and the numerous scholars he inspired, the path was paved for the resurgence of Islamic belief as it was taught by the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, free from external corruption. His life clearly kept in line with the saying of the Prophet ﷺ promising a renewer of the faith every century, 500 years after it was spoken.

Footnotes:

1 – Deliverance From Error, pg. 18 http://www.aub.edu.lb/fas/cvsp/Documents/reading_selections/CVSP%20202/Al-ghazali.pdf

2 – A distinction should be made between the Sufism of Imam al-Ghazali and some of the various brands of Sufism today. Al-Ghazali’s support of the Sufis in his time should not be taken as a blanket endorsement of all Sufi ideologies today, some of which may lead to innovation or misguidance. In Imam al-Ghazali’s time, Sufism at its core simply meant purifying the soul and turning it towards Allah, as al-Ghazali states about the Sufis:”The aim of their knowledge is to lop off the obstacles present in the soul and to rid oneself of its reprehensible habits and vicious qualities in order to attain thereby a heart empty of all save God and adorned with the constant remembrance of God.”

¤ NIYAZ E IMAM HUSSAIN رضي الله تعالى عنه

¤ NIYAZ E IMAM HUSSAIN رضي الله تعالى عنه
BARA E ESALE SAWAAB ¤

Imam Alama Tahtawi farmate hai:
" Ahle sunnat ke nazdeek yeh jaiz hai ki koi insaan apne amal ka sawab kisi gair ko phochaye khwa woh amal namaz ho ya roza ya hajj ya sadka wa kahirat ho ya tilawat e quran ya zikr ya uske alawa nek amaal mein se koi bhi amal ho. Aur un amaal ka sawab marhoom ko phochta hai aur use fayda bhi deta hai. [¤ HASHIYA AL TAHTAWI ALA MARAQI AL FALAH:376]

▶ KHANE YA PEENE KI CHEEZ (JAISE SHARBAT WAGAIRA) KA ESALE SAWAB KARNA JAIZ HAI.

¤ HADEES :
" Hazrat Saad Bin Ubada رضي الله تعالى عنهbayan karte hai ki unhone kaha Ya Rasulallah صلی اللہُ علیہِ و آلہِ وسلمِ! Saad ki walida faut ho gayi. Pas kis cheez ka sadqa karna sabse afzal hai? Aap صلی اللہُ علیہِ و آلہِ وسلمِ ne farmaya PAANI KA. Unhone kuwa khudwaya aur kaha yeh (kuwa) Saad ki maa ke liye hai.
[¤ SUNAN ABU DAWOOD, KITAB UL ZAKAT, JILD1]

▶ ESALE SAWAB SAHIH HADEES SE SABIT HAI?

¤ HADEES :
"Hazrat Aisha رضي الله عنها bayan farmati hai ki , Ek shaks ne Huzoor صلی اللہُ علیہِ و آلہِ وسلمِ se arz kiya ki meri Maa achanak faut (inteqaal) ho gayi aur mera gumaan hai ki agar woh kuch baat kar sakti to sadqa karti. Agar mein un ki taraf se kuch sadqa kar du to kya unko Ajr (sawab) milega? Aap صلی اللہُ علیہِ و آلہِ وسلمِne farmaya , HAAN!."

[¤ SAHIH BUKHARI, KITABUL JANAIZ,JILD1;

¤ SAHIH MUSLIM, KITAB UL ZAKAT;

¤ SUNAN ABU DAWOOD, KITAB UL WASAYA;

¤ SUNAN NASAI, KITAB UL WASAYA]

¤ HADEES
" Hazrat Anas رضي الله تعالى عنه se marwi ek Hadees mein Huzoor Nabi e Kareem صلی اللہُ علیہِ و آلہِ وسلمِ ne farmaya: Jab Ahle khana (ghar walo) mein koi apne faut shuda azeez ke liye sadqa wa khairaat kar ke Esale Sawab (Fatiha) karta hai to us ke sawab ka tohfa Hazrat Jibraeil (alayhissalaam) ek khoobsurat thaal mein rakh kar us Qabr wale ke sirhaane ja kar pesh karte hai ki tere fala'a Azeez ne ye sawab ka tohfa bheja hai. Tu isse Qubool kar. Woh shaks use qubool kar leta hai. Woh us par khush hota hai aur dusre Qabr walo ko khushkhabri sunata hai aur uske padosiyo mein se jin ko is qism ka koi tohfa na mila ho woh gumgeen hote hai."
[¤ TABRANI - Al MAUJAMUL AWSAT, jild 7]

▶ ESALE SAWAB MEIN KISI KHANE YA PEENE KI CHEEZ KO SAAMNE RAKH KAR QURAN KI AYAT PADHNA.

¤ QURAN :

SURAH AN'AM, AYAT NO 118-119

"SO TUM USSE KHAYA KARO JIS PAR ALLAH KA NAAM LIYA GAYA HO. AGAR TUM USKI AYATO PAR IMAAN RAKHNE WALE HO. AUR TUMHE KYA HO GAYA KI TUM US SE NAHI KHATE JIN PAR ALLAH KA NAAM LIYA GAYA HO."
"Tum ko muzdaa naar ka ae dushman'ane ahle bait,
Yun kaha kar teh h SUNNI dastane ahle bait."

‪#‎RespectForHussain‬ ‪#‎Muharram‬ ‪#‎Islam‬

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Bagh janat kay hain behr e madha khwan e Ahl e Bait
Tum ko mujda naar ka aie dushman’anain Ahl e Bait.

Unkay ghar to bay ijazat Jibrail aatay nain
Qadr walay jantay hain qadr o shaan e Ahl e Bait .

Unki paki ka Khuda e Pak karta hai bayaan
Ayah e tat’heer say zahir hai shaan e Ahl e Bait.

Ghar lutana jaan dena koi tujsay sekh jaye
Jaan e alam houn fida aie kha’ndanain Ahl e Bait.

Ahl e Bait e Pak say gustakhiyan bay bakiyan
La’natullahi alaikum dushmananain Ahl e Bait.

Bay adab gustaakh firqay ko suna day aie Hassan
Youn kahan kartay hain aashiq dastaan e Ahl e Bait.