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Offline Reader Questions

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Discussing Fasting till Night
« on: August 11, 2012, 10:47:10 AM »
Dear brother Joseph,

Assalamu alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu.

It is indeed a pleasure for me to write you .I have gone through to visit your web site & Alhamdulillah found so many things positive & impressive.I feel interest to know more about Islam from you. I am curious to know by asking some of the questions when arise in me to you. Please don't feel bother .

Now please come to the vital point.Since I have read your article regarding "FASTING IS PRESCRIBED UNTIL NIGHT NOT SUNSET" from A to Z . I have enjoyed after reading it. Alhamdulillah  I knew all those verses which you have quoted from the glorious Quran, not only that but also I & my family members along with my 3 daughters those who are the University students in the month of Ramadan have trying for the last few years to comply the action to break the fasting at night.We are trying to abide by the commandments given by Allah Sobhanu ta'ala ( 002:187 ( Part ).

Please be informed that, if you kindly allow me to quote 2 more few verses where almighty Allah stated as Cristal as clearly the definitions of Night & Day's (Arabic:Layl & Nahar) which would be added as an addition to your article may be by mistake you have missed to quote, please forgive me for my ignorance & discourtesy showing to you as a student of comparative religion .These are as follows :

017:0012
We have made the Night And the Day as two( of our ) Signs:the Sign of the Night have We made dark While the Sign of the Day We have made bright That ye may seek Bounty from your Lord And that ye may know The number and count Of the years:all things Have We explained in detail.

(Please note, there is a ward in Arabic "famahaona" in this verse means obliterate &  have also other meanings such as strike out,erase,blot out,cause to disappear from view & completely conceal etc.)

079:0029
Its night doth He Endow with darkness,And its splendor doth He Bring out (with light).

Please note, the verses you have quoted in your article are enough to understand, thereafter I have ventured to raise to quote 2 more verses,please forgive me for my velour.As  I have come to know after seeing your web site that you are a research scholar of the glorious Qur'an.There is a chalk & cheese difference between you and me.I am a student, you are my teacher.

Please be noted, may I ask you why have you not mentioned any saying of our prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in connection with the verses you mentioned ?As I have found from Mooatta Imam Malik as same as the verses saying.If you would like to know would inform you in my next message.

048 : 0023,033 : 0062,040 : 0085,017 : 0077.

(Such was) the practice (approved) of Allah among those Who lived aforetime:No change wilt thou find In the practice (Approved of Allah).

(This was Our) way With the messengers We sent Before thee:thou wilt find No change in Our ways.

I would like to conclude this message by quoting some of the verses which are very much consistence of this context. Which are as follows :

068:0008 - 13.

8. So obey not To those who Deny ( the Truth ).
9. Their desire is that Thou shouldst be pliant:So would they be pliant.
10.Obey not Every mean,Swearer,
11.A slanderer ,going about With calumnies,
12.(Habitually )hindering ( all )good,Transgressing beyond bounds,Deep in sin,
13.Violent ( and cruel ),- With all that,Of a doubtful birth,-

Thanks in advance for your kind attention in this respect & hoping your valuable comment at an early date.

Offline Joseph Islam

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Re: Discussing Fasting till Night
« Reply #1 on: August 11, 2012, 11:09:22 AM »
Salamun Alaikum.

Thank you for your email and JazakAllah khair for your kind comments.

When I present my arguments from a Quranic perspective, I do so without any support from Islamic secondary sources. The Quran in matters of 'deen' are the direct words of God and should be sufficient to make a case from a deen perspective.

As I study the Quran directly in Arabic, I would like to share some thoughts with regards your interpretation of verse 17:12 and then InshAllah, why I have not used it to support my perspective in the article.

First of all, the words highlighted in red in your translations do not exist in the Arabic.

017:0012
We have made the Night And the Day as two (of our) Signs: the Sign of the Night have We made dark While the Sign of the Day We have made bright That ye may seek Bounty from your Lord And that ye may know The number and count Of the years: all things Have We explained in detail.

The text in red is better translated as:

“Then we erased (famahawna) the sign of the night (ayata’layli) and We made (waja’alna) the sign of the day (ayata –(l)nahari) visible (mubsiratan)”

As you can see there is no ‘darkness’ in the Arabic to define night as is being implied by your translation. All the verse indicates is that night has to be erased for daylight to be visible. This verse does not intend to ‘define’ night as ‘dark’. The word ‘darkness’ is sometimes inserted by translators when it does not exist in the Arabic of the verse.

Please check the Arabic directly for yourself.

With regards verse 79:29, again the verse is not defining night. It is merely explaining the gradual movement into from day into night. The verb ‘aghtasha’ means to make dark and is a gradual occurrence and is counterbalanced by the brightness (duha) of the day being gradually removed (akhraja).

I hope this explains why I have not used the verses in support of my article to define night. However, I have used some verses to clearly indicate the gradual movement of day and night which is similar to the ones you have shared.

074:33-34
"And the night (Arabic: al-layl) when it departs (Arabic: adbara) and the morning when it brightens"

However, I have discussed in my article what is meant by ‘night’ from a Quranic perspective [1]

I hope that helps, God willing.

Joseph.

REFERENCES

[1] FASTING IS PRESCRIBED UNTIL NIGHT NOT SUNSET
http://quransmessage.com/articles/fasting%20till%20night%20FM3.htm
'During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act' 
George Orwell