Beyond Heaven and Earth

by Steven H. Propp

  Muhammad was born in Mecca, Arabia in about the year 570 CE; his father died before Muhammad was born, and his mother died when he was 6, so he went to live with his grandfather—who died two years later—leaving Muhammad to live with his paternal uncle. He worked as a camel driver and then with traveling merchant caravans, until he began working for a wealthy widow named Khadijah as her commercial agent. Although she was fifteen years older than Muhammad, they fell in love; she proposed marriage, and they lived happily in the city of Mecca.

  At age 40, Muhammad began having what he considered spiritual experiences and revelations from the angel Gabriel, who served as an intermediary between Muhammad and Allah himself. Muhammad’s utterances about these revelations were ultimately written down by his supporters, and were organized after Muhammad’s death into a book known as the Holy Qur’an (Arabic for “recitation,” reflecting the fact that the text was originally transmitted by memory). This book—which is considered to have been directly and infallibly revealed by Allah to Muhammad—consists of 114 chapters (suras, each of which has a title such as “Muhammad,” “The Prophets,” “The Pilgrimage,” etc.), which are arranged roughly in order of length, with the longest suras (often the most recently-written) first. The Qur’an is considered to be God’s final revelation to humanity. Next in importance to the Qur’an are the Sunna—the actions of Muhammad—which are found most authoritatively (though not exclusively) in the written collection of his actions and sayings known as the Hadith. The Hadith is considered the best interpreter of the Qur’an, and provides detailed instructions about Islamic law and practices. Interestingly, Muhammad did not claim to work any miracles (the story about him “moving a mountain” is a myth), apart from the revelation of the Qur’an.

  When Muhammad was almost 50, both his wife and his uncle died. Removed from their protection (his monotheistic beliefs were strongly opposed as heretical by the polytheistic leaders of Mecca), he migrated (an event known in Arabic as the Hijra or “flight”; this event now marks the first year of the Muslim calendar) to the city of Yathrib (later renamed Medina, in Muhammad’s honor). In Medina, the people began converting to the new religion, so that after ten years, Muhammad had succeeded in making Medina into the first Muslim state. There were a series of wars (and thus the term Jihad or “struggle,” more infamously translated as “Holy War”; wars were really no more prevalent or violent for Islam, however, than in certain periods of Christian history, it should be noted) between the Muslims and the Meccans, but Muhammad’s forces ultimately prevailed, and he and his followers took command of Mecca in 630. He first went to the holy temple—walking around it seven times in reverence, a practice symbolically repeated by Muslims today—then destroyed the idols within it. He ruled for more than two years, and began to unite the various Arab tribes under the rule of Allah. He died after a brief illness in 632. Tradition has it that he stood upon a rock in Jerusalem to ascend to Heaven after his death, and the Dome of the Rock—the oldest extant Islamic structure—was built upon this site (which also happens to be built on part of the Temple Mount, the site where the Holy of Holies of the ancient Jewish Temple was supposedly built).

  What do Muslims believe? Their faith is encapsulated in the Five Pillars of Islam, which are:

  1.Shahadah: The profession of faith, “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet.”

  2.Salat: Prayers, which are made in Arabic, done five times per day (at daybreak, noon, midafternoon, sunset, and late evening), with the believer facing toward the Kaba (House of God) structure in the main mosque in Mecca.

  3.Zakat: Almsgiving to the poor (orphans are a particular concern).

  4.Sawm: Fasting (from drink, food, and sexual relations) from sunup to sundown during the month of Ramadan (the 9th month in the Islamic calendar). Ramadan ends with a 3-day festival.

  5.Hajj: All Muslims who are able to are expected to make a pilgrimage to Mecca, at least once in their lives.

  The Six Pillars of Faith are also critical; a Muslim must believe: in Allah; in angels; in Allah’s revealed books, including the Qur’an, New Testament, and Hebrew Bible; in Allah’s prophets; in the Last Day; and in Allah’s determination of affairs. Angels are very important to Islamic faith, as is Satan, who is thought to have been a jinn (rebellious angel) who disobeyed Allah. Muslims believe in 28 (or 25) earlier prophets, 18 of whom are Biblical figures such as Adam, Abraham, Noah, Moses, and Jesus. Muslims believe that much of the Jewish/Christian Bible has been mistranslated or falsified. They believe in Jesus’ virgin birth, as well as his performance of miracles, but they believe that he was not crucified on a cross; rather, someone—perhaps Judas—was crucified in his place, Jesus instead having been raised up to Heaven by Allah. These prophets revealed the will of God to earlier ages. Muhammad is, however, the last and penultimate prophet—the “Seal” of the Prophets—whose message has now superseded the earlier prophets.

  Islamic society is based on Divine law known as shari’a. This is a very comprehensive code in the area of personal conduct, religion, politics, economics, and society in general; alcohol and pork are definitely prohibited, for instance. Jews (whom Muhammad called, “People of the Book”) and Christians were encouraged to convert to Islam, but were otherwise able to live peacefully under Islam society by paying a substantial tribute/tax. Muslims’ place of worship is called a mosque (masjid in Arabic), where the leader of worship (for Sunni Muslims) is called an Imam. On Fridays at noon, Muslims temporarily cease from work and gather at a mosque for community prayer. Muslims do not have a “priesthood” as such, but men (known as ulama) trained in the shari’a run community affairs.

  There are definite differences (which are of disproportionate interest to the mass media in the West) in the treatment of the two sexes in Islam. Homosexuality among men is largely tolerated, but not among women. Women are prohibited from marrying non-Muslims, whereas men can marry outside the faith. (In fact, after Khadijah’s death, Muhammad had several other marriages— sometimes for the “political” purpose of unifying groups through marriage.) Women are also expected to observe modesty in action and dress (normally wearing the headscarf/veil or hijab), and normally are not expected to work outside the home, or pursue advanced education.

  Islam has strong and definite beliefs about the afterlife. After death, one enters the condition of barzakh (life in the grave; the intermediate realm), which is sparsely discussed in the Qur’an and Hadith, and about which many Muslim thinkers decline to speculate. In the Last Day, the False Messiah or Dajjal will appear to mislead the masses, but the Madhi (“divinely-guided one”) as well as Jesus will reappear, to reestablish righteousness at the end of the world. Then will occur the resurrection of all human beings on the Day of Judgment, where all will be judged solely based on their deeds in life, and accordingly spend eternity in either Paradise, or Hell—with Hell understood to be an eternal place of torment, described in the Qlur’an as having flames, etc. (Most important from my standpoint is that the Qur’an states in 56:34-37 that one’s righteous wife will be in Paradise with her husband. So clearly, Islam is going to be deserving of serious study in the course of my Quest.)

  There are two major divisions of Islam today: Sunni (probably about 80-85% of the Muslims in the world) and Shi’ite. They divided after Muhammad’s death, over the issues of (1) Muhammad’s successor, and (2) religious authority. The Sunnis believe that Muhammad designated no successor to himself, and followed the successor caliphs (leaders of the Muslim community) elected by the friends of Muhammad; whereas the Shi’ites followed Muhammad’s son-in-law Ali (Muhammad had no sons, only four daughters). The Sunnis derive their authority solely from the Qur’an and tradition, whereas the Shi’ites feel that authority is also vested in an Imam, of which there have been twelve since Muhammad’s death. (The Taliban of Afghanistan infamy are Sunni, whereas the Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran was Shi’ite.)

  Another Islamic group is
the mystical sect known as Sufis or Dervishes. (“Sufi” is the Persian term, whereas “Dervish” is the East Indian term for the sect.) There is no general agreement about the origin of the term “Sufi.” They do not really dissent from the normal beliefs of Islam (e.g., belief in Muhammad as Allah’s prophet, etc.), although they favor a spiritualized “Inner” meaning for the Qur’an rather than the strict literal one. Their beliefs about life after death are also far less detailed and explicit than those of the Sunnis and Shi’ites, and mostly seem to emphasize this present life rather than the future one. The core teaching of their sect, however, is the belief that inner awakening is more important than intellectual knowledge. They believe that divine reality must be found through direct experience, rather than by rational thought. They often practice mystical exercises including dancing (thus the term, “Whirling Dervishes”). The most famous Sufi is perhaps Abu Hamid al-Ghazali, renowned for his work in philosophy as well as religion. (Islamic civilization was the most advanced in the world at a time when European civilization was in the midst of the “Dark Ages.”)

  Islam has had a number of later “splinter” groups. For example, the Druse religion began in the 9th century CE as an offshoot of Islam; almost all of these people (probably less than 450,000 in all) live in Lebanon. They call themselves Mowahhidoon, which means “monotheistic.” “Druse” is not really an appropriate name for them, since this name derives from an early preacher of the religion, who is now considered blasphemous. They accept the Qur’an as sacred, although they give it an inner, esoteric meaning; their own religious texts are known as “Kitab Al Hikma” (The Book Of Wisdom). They also believe that God sent seven major prophets, including Adam, Abraham, Jesus (like traditional Islam, they accept the virgin birth) and Muhammad, as well as minor prophets and disciples such as the biblical prophet Daniel and the philosopher Plato. Their religion is extremely exclusive: they do not accept converts, and do not marry outside their religion; they sometimes even pretend to be members of other religions, in order to keep their religious affiliation hidden. They believe in reincarnation of the soul immediately after death, but also believe that the soul after numerous reincarnations will ultimately achieve union with God. Paradise and Hell are, for them, not literal places but spiritual descriptions of one’s relationship with God.

  A more recent group are the Ahmadiyyah (so named by—and after—its founder), a messianic movement founded in 1899 by Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, who announced in 1891 that he was the promised Madhi and Messiah.

  An Islamic reform movement, the Ahmadis actively sought to convert Western Christians to Islam; to this end, they built mosques in Europe and North America. They claim almost 200 million followers, but other estimates are much lower than this. They are viewed as heretical and “non-Muslim” by many orthodox Muslims, such as Pakistanis.

  A very recent innovation that is largely within the Islamic tradition (which some derogatorily call “New Age Islam,” and others deny is Islamic at all) is Subud, which is considered by its followers to mean to “surrender completely to the Will of God.” It was started a Javanese man named Pak Muhammad Subuh Sumohadiwidjojo, who claimed that starting in 1925 he began to have direct contact with God, and could pass this experience on to others. Pak Subuh is fondly known as “Bapak” (“little father”) to his followers. Subud is a contraction of three Indonesian words, Susila, Budhi, and Dharma: Susila means the good character of man in accordance with the will of God; Budhi means the inner force of man enveloped by the power of God; Dharma means surrender and trust toward God. Subud claims to be neither a religion nor a “teaching,” but a spiritual experience and a training; members are encouraged to continue to practice their own religion (although they are discouraged from concurrently using other spiritual practices or meditations). Subud has no dogma, and no creed, and its only teacher is God, although God has sent five messengers to us: Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, and (presumably) Pak Subuh, who died in 1987. Pak Subuh often said, “There are no rules in Subud.” Nevertheless, alcohol and drugs are forbidden to members, as is unmarried sex, homosexuality, divorce, and abortion. Fasting is allowed but not required, and those who wish to may observe the Muslim fast of Ramadan.

  Its spiritual exercise is called the Lathian, an Indonesian word meaning exercise (such as those performed by soldiers). The exercise should be performed 2-3 times per week, and may not be performed by men and women together; its purpose is to enable people to be guided by their inner life force. Subud has no “priesthood,” but they have helpers, who are the only people authorized to give explanations about Subud and the Lathian. (Observers are not allowed in the room while the Lathian exercise is being performed.) One’s first Lathian exercise is called the opening; the Lathian training is expected to change one’s character over a course of years (rather than weeks or months). What is experienced during Lathian is said to be what is known by Muslims as Roh Ilofi, and by Christians as the Holy Spirit. Through the practice of the Lathian, one is said to be able to experience the state of being in heaven while still on earth, which must occur before one can go to heaven after death.

  For Subud, if you follow the teachings of your own religion, you can go to heaven, in which you will be conscious of your earthly life; if you do not practice the teachings of your religion, you will go to Hell. There are seven levels of heaven; to be in Hell is to be trapped in the material level (the lowest of the seven levels), whereas humans should strive to go to one of the three higher levels; after death, one cannot change one’s level or condition. Reincarnation is accepted, but past lives must be “cleansed” so that we can improve to the perfect state, and thus need to reincarnate no longer. Suicide is considered to be the worst sin that an individual can commit; members believe that a person who commits suicide will be reincarnated in a physical body over and over again, committing suicide again each time.

  Sikhism is often (incorrectly) thought of as a “mix” of Hindu and Islamic beliefs, but this is far from true. The vast majority of its more than 20 million adherents live in Punjab, India. (Sikhs chose to go to the “Indian/Hindu” side rather than the “Moslem” side when India and Pakistan were partitioned in 1947.) Sikhism (“Sikh” is Punjabi for “disciple”) began in the 15th century, when a 30-year Hindu named Nanak received what he considered a revelation from God, and went on a series of religious pilgrimages. He ultimately stated that God (Akal Purakh, “The One beyond Time”) had chosen him to proclaim his true, all-liberating name, Sati-N?m (“True Name”). Declaring “There is no Hindu; there is no Muslim,” he sought to unify followers of these two traditions, and became known as a Guru (or “prophet”). He died of natural causes at age 70, and was succeeded by a series of nine other Gurus over the next 150 years. The movement grew in size, but also suffered great persecution from the government.

  The 10th personal Guru, Gobind Singh (considered the greatest Guru since Nanak) founded the Khalsa (“Pure”; the Sikh religious and military order), which follows a strict code of conduct called the Rahit. The Guru was fatally stabbed in 1708; before he died, however, he told his disciples that from now on, the functions of the Guru would be vested in the Granth (the sacred “Volume” of Sikh scripture) and the Panth (“Way”; the path of Sikh religious practice). Their scripture, the Adi Granth—a collection of hymns written by the earliest Gurus—is highly revered, since it embodies the mystical presence of the Guru and is thus known as the “Guru Granth Sahib” (“Sahib” is an honorific title). A second sacred writing, the Dasam Granth (attributed to Guru Gobind Singh, or at least to his time period) was written later, and has lesser importance.

  The Sikhs have developed somewhat of a reputation as having a “military” orientation, which is not entirely undeserved. (The Khalsa is a military as well as a religious organization, for example.) However, they have also undergone substantial persecution during their history, and so have an obvious need for self-defense. In fact, it was just such persecution that resulted i
n the most outwardly distinctive aspects of practicing Sikhs, the so-called “Five K’s”: After the 9th Guru was decapitated by the government, the newly-appointed Guru Gobind Singh (who was a child) asked how many others had also been killed; after being informed that only three had been (the other followers had been able to conceal their identity as Sikhs), he resolved that Sikhs should subsequently bear obvious signs of their religion. The Five K’s are: kes (uncut hair, including beards, the hair invariably wrapped up in a turban), kar? (steel wrist-ring), kirp?n (ceremonial sword), kangh? (comb, worn in the topknot of the hair), and kachh (military breeches, worn underneath other garments).

  The Sikhs are strongly monotheistic, and believe that God can be encountered directly through meditation (called n?m simaran) on the divine name, through which the believer achieves sahaj (inexpressible bliss). Their holy men reject the eastern tradition of begging for a living. Sikhs do not have an ordained clergy, although they do have custodians of their Gurdwara (temples), in which the Guru Granth Sahib is the most prominent object, followed by pictures of Guru Nanak and other Gurus. All believers are expected to have a room in their house with a copy of the Guru Granth Sahib. Sikhs believe in social equality, and rejected the traditional Hindu caste system. They also reject asceticism, prohibiting meat only when it was killed by Muslim conventions, and strongly prohibiting tobacco. (Alcohol is prohibited in the strictest traditions, but the large majority of Sikhs do drink.) Male members of the Khalsa are supposed to take the surname Singh (“lion”) and women the surname Kaur (“princess”).

  Concerning life after death, Sikhs believe in reincarnation, their beliefs being very similar to the beliefs of Hinduism (where one’s actions determine one’s karma, and thus one’s future lives; and the ultimate goal is absorption into the divine).