Visits: 8
First, I would like to introduce myself as Naveed Anjum, a Muslim. In this segment, I aim to prove the land of Israel as a Jewish heritage. Many people believe, mainly from the Islamic World that Jews have no connections to the land of Israel and it was originally a Palestine and belonged to the Muslims. According to their claim, Jewish people came from the European countries and elsewhere in the World, occupied the land and expelled the Palestinians who were the lawful inhabitants of the land. According to them Jewish people had no connections to the land and they just invaded in Palestine and renamed the region from Palestine to Israel. They consider the name Palestine or pronouncing “Filistin” in Arabic as some Islamic term. We will discuss the term Palestine and Palestinians in the next episodes whether it was really a Islamic term or not? Whether the original Palestinians were really Arabs and Muslims? However, in this segment I aim to prove the past and continuous connections of Jewish life with the land of Israel. There is a serious lack of knowledge prevalent in Islamic countries since Media does not educate the people in a right way regarding the true facts. On the other hand our Islamic priests and scholars do not let the people the true religious facts. It is my aim to educate the people in a right way using much information taken from the Islamic resources. If the information is not available in Islamic resources then it will be taken from the Biblical resources that are called Israeliyat in Islam. It is better to explain the term Israliyaat in a very concise way before getting into other details.
If we ponder into the stories of Biblical prophet in Quran, we will note that Quranic stories are incomplete and in most of the cases out of context. If the reader reads the story of any prophet in Quran, he can not understand the chronology of events. If some part of the story is in one chapter then the other part will be in other chapter. Besides that Quranic stories leave many unanswered questions in the readers mind. For instance, you cannot understand the story of Prophet Job in Quran unless you read the Bible, which gives the full context of the story. Likewise, the Joseph’s wife name was Zuleikha that every Muslim knows. However, rare Muslims know that it has come to the Muslims from Talmudic resources and Quran does not mention the word Zuleikha. These are only 2 examples but to understand approx. every story or a part of the story in Quran which is related to Prophets of Israel, you need to go through the Judeo-Christian scriptures otherwise you will left with uncertainty of the event. Here the necessity of Israeliyat crops up into the Islam. We will discuss the term Israeliyat in proper detail in next speeches, but in short, “Israeliyat are the narrations that were introduced by the Jews who were converted into the Muslims to prop up the incomplete stories of the Quran and to make them understandable. The Jews knew the complete stories from the scriptures and complete the lacking of the Quranic stories related to Prophets.”
Mufti Muhammad Shafi says of Isra’iliyat:
Judaica or Isra’iliyyat are narratives, which have reached us through Jews and Christians. It may be noted that the early commentators used to write down all sorts of narrations, which reached them from an identified source. Many of these narrations were straight from Judaic.
However, I will endeavor my best to use the Islamic resources to acknowledge the legitimacy of Zionist state. I will refer the number of Quranic verses and Islamic traditions for this purpose in different episodes. But if required, I will use the Biblical references as far as they are not contradictory to Quran. Also in the next episodes, I aim to put up an exclusive article on this matter whether the present Bible has been changed!!!!!! And I will prove it by the Quran and Islamic traditions that the Biblical accounts are trust worthy. I will present the number of Quranic references and Hadith narrations for this purpose.
In this current episode, I will use a long tradition from Sahih Bukhari that is considered the most authentic book of traditions in Islam. I will also present some Quranic verses as well to prove that it was it was the God’s decision to settle Ishmael’s offsprings out of Canaan and Isaac’s offspring in Canaan. Arabs consider themselves to be the descendents of Ishmael and they must realize what is the God’s command regarding the descendants of Ishmael.
So the life of Israelite began in the Holy land previously known as Land of Canaan with the arrival of Abraham when God ordered him to go the Holy Land in Quran. It is mentioned in the Surah Anbiyaa verse 71 and 72:
We delivered both him [Abraham] and Lot to the land that We had blessed for all beings. And in addition to that, We gave him Isaac and Jacob and made both of them righteous.
Here it became clear that He was the God who brought Abraham into the Holy Land of Canaan. One more thing is distinguished when we read the above Quranic verse. Whenever the God discusses the Holy land, He is discussing the names of Isaac and Jacob associated with it. This is a very significant fact. Quran does not mention the emigration in details so we are dependent on Old testament to know the further details as I have mentioned earlier. So there in Canaan Abraham fathered 2 sons Ishmael via Hagar and Isaac via Sarah. Islamic traditions affirm that Abraham left Isaac and Sarah in Canaan whereas Ishamel and Hagar to Makkah. Even though the Biblical accounts say that It was Paran where Abraham left Ishamael and Hagar. However Muslims can deny Biblical account, we will consider Islamic traditions. As we already believe that Prophets do nothing from their own will but only by the God’s will. So it was the God’s decision regarding the descendents of Ishmael and Isaac that where they will bring and dwell. Islamic traditions affirm that Abraham left Hagar and Ishmael to Makkah leaving Sarah in Canaan. Even though Biblical accounts contradict of Abraham, Hagar and Ishmael having gone to Makkah but we will follow the Islamic course in order to conclude the facts since the Muslims prefer Islamic references.
So it was the God’s plan to make Canaan, the holy land for Jewish people and Saudi Arabia, the holy land for Muslims. We will not argue that Bible says it was Paran not Makkah. In general, whether it was Paran or Makkah, the matter of fact is that God’s plan was to get Ishmael’s descendents inhabits out of Canaan and maintains Israelis in Canaan.
In Sahih Bukhari Book 55 Hadith 583, it is narrated by Ibn Abbas (the cousin of Prophet Mohamed):
Ishmael’s birth to Hagar caused strife between her and Sarah, who was still barren. Abraham brought Hagar and their son to a land called Paran or (Faran in Arabic) which is the land surrounding Mecca, where the angel Gabriel showed him the Ka’aba. The objective of this journey was to “resettle” rather than “expel” Hagar.
By the above tradition, my intention is to demonstrate the God’s plan to settle Ishmael’s descendents somewhere else but not in Canaan. The tradition further informs us that:
Abraham brought Hagar and Ishmael in Mecca, made them sit over there and set out homeward. Abraham leaves baby Ishmael and his Mother in the desert.
Ishmael’s mother followed him saying, “O Abraham, Where are you going, leaving us in this valley where there is no person whose company we may enjoy, nor is there anything (to enjoy)?”
She repeated that to him many times, but he did not look back at her.
Then she asked him, “Has God ordered you to do so?”
He said, “Yes.”
She said, “Then He will not neglect us,” and returned.
Here we learn two significant facts:
- Abraham did not expel them but the God had ordered him to resettle Hagar and Ishmael out of Canaan because God had planned Makkah for descendents of Ishmael and Canaan for the Abraham’s upcoming son Isaac.
- God planned to keep Abraham with his imminent child Isaac in the Holy Land leaving Hagar and Ishmael in Makkah. The tradition informs us “He set out homeward” Here it remains no doubt that Abraham was back to Canaan leaving them in Makkah.
Later in the same hadith, Prophet Muhammad goes on to inform:
After Ishmael’s mother had died, Abraham came after Ishmael’s marriage in order to see his family that he had left before, but he did not find Ishmael there…
Now here in this segment of the hadith, one more becomes clear that Abraham lived most of his life in Canaan with his younger son Isaac and he came to meet Ishmael after Ishmael had already married and his mother Hagaar had been passed away. It shows that Ishmael was not the son to be sacrificed because Quran Chapter 37 verse 102 says:
“And, when ‘he’ was old enough to work with him…” (That is, the time when Abraham was to sacrifice his son).
The above tradition demonstrates that Abraham was not with Ishmael until the Ishmael had been married. So the tradition affirms that Ishmael was not the son to be sacrificed. However I will discuss this sacrifice issue in another episodes with comprehensive details.
So Quran also describes the settlement of Ishmael out of Canaan near Kaaba. In chapter 14 verse 37, the Quran mentions Abraham praying to the God as follow:
Our Lord, I have settled some of my offspring by Your Sacred House in an uncultivated valley. Our Lord, let them perform prayer. Make the hearts of humanity incline toward them and provide them with fruits, so that, hopefully, they will be thankful. (Qur’an, 14:37)
According to all the Islamic exegesis, the sacred house mentioned in this verse is Kaaba, and uncultivated valley is Makkah. “Some of my offspring” stands for the descendents of Ishmael in this verse. We being good Muslims must accept the God’s decision of settling Ishmael’s descendents out of Canaan in Makkah.
Arabs and Palestinians call themselves the descendents of Ishmael. Shouldn’t they regard Holy Quran and Islamic traditions, which establish the God’s plan to inhabit Ishmael’s descendants out of Canaan?
People may argue that where it is mentioned in the above tradition that the God had planned the land of Palestine for the descendents of Isaac? The best answer is that “Is there any Islamic tradition or a Quranic verse which informs us that God had commanded Abraham to resettle Isaac’s descendants any where else except Canaan?” NOO there is no verse or tradition which mentions that point. So this is the obvious fact that Isaac was the son of prophet Abraham and his descendants will dwell in the land of their Grandfather since the God had not commanded them to move outward.
I will come up with more traditions and Quranic verses in the next episodes.
Thank you.