Preface
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Preface |
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I was requested to deliver a speech on the honored character of Fatima (peace be upon her). Granting this request would show my impotence to the utmost, because knowing Fatima (peace be upon her) and naturally, introducing her is a demanding task. What could I say about the one, whom no one really has known her save Allah; and indeed, no one has discovered her real character except Prophet Mohammed (a.s) and Imam Ali (peace be upon him).
The limit of my mind and knowledge does not allow me to describe her as she really is. In addition, any debate on the character of Fatima (peace be upon her) needs courage, rhetoric, full knowledge, and above all, thorough conversance with the celestial world, because she is the “Lady of the heavenly wOmmen”. Only he who has got a real understanding of the heaven would characterize her.
Right now, Fatima (peace be upon her) is not physically present among us, but her extensive aspects of her life, thoughts, and policies affect our minds and lives. Who is that does not know a brief of Fatima (peace be upon her)’s life and wishes not to follow her way? She has passed away, but the rich facets of her life get more extensive as time goes by.
Moreover, I consider it a great honor to introduce Fatima (peace be upon her) from the Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him and his descendants), Imam Ali (peace be upon him), and the Imams’ words, and talk about her various roles, her life and purity, her seeking for administering justice, lending the people a helping hand, and, at last, her martyrdom. Although our speech does not really characterize her, it has the great value to remind us for sOmme hours of Fatima (peace be upon her), Allah’s pure servant and the Prophet’s esteemed daughter.
Dr. Ali Ghaemi
Due to the high importance of the esteemed character of Fatima (peace be upon her) as a real genuine role model for the wOmmen of the world, I deemed it necessary to translate this book and provide the ground for the readers’ better understanding. The book seeks to introduce the invaluable dimensions of Fatima’s character.
To achieve this end, I put a lot of efforts into the work for about three successive months night and day, hoping that it can deliver me on the Day of Resurrection. In addition, I have attempted to give as transparent and as fair translation of the book as possible, yet still it is not devoid of faults, and I am responsible for anything in the translation that is amiss. I should be very glad to hear from the readers using the book who will find mistakes, or who have comments or suggestions of any kind. Please write me at ghq142002@yahoo.com.
As the last word, it is clear as day that the creation of any work usually involves the collaborations and efforts of a variety of persons. This work is no exception. To my intimate friend and advisor, Mr. Heshmatullah Zaheri Sarabi, for giving me the idea of translating the book, I express my deep appreciation. Besides, I seize the opportunity to thank Mr. Masud Meshki for his valuable comments on the translation and Mr. Mehdi Hassanzadeh for all his sincere efforts to publish the book.
In addition, I owe my wife, Tooran Khazraie, a debt of gratitude for encouraging and freeing me from many of life’s daily demands, so that I could translate freely. Without their support, this translation simply would not exist.
Mehdi Ghasemi,
April, 2004
We are living in a strange age and society; an age, having no similarity with the other ones. The values and principles are mostly exposed to doubt and question. There exists an excess of ignorance and sOmmetimes aimlessness.
The samples are various and misleading. The occasions for man’s leading are rare; and, therefore; man in choosing the right (way) from the various ones is irresolute.
Some persons do not yet know to be Eastern or Western, material or spiritual, realist or idealist. Even some of our women do not yet know to be the mothers of their children or the manageresses of offices, responsible for educating their children or responsible for typing the letters.
The theory of democracy and independence is set forth in discussions, but their extends and dimensions are not well known. The borderlines have not been specified, the side-takings are ambiguous, the ways are paved with doubt, and the thoughts are not right and well-studied.
One-sidedness is raging, as if we have just learned to discern one side of the premises and take not the other sides into consideration. Besides, our problem is to consider just today while the life is not irrelevant to yesterday and tomorrow.
Our thinkers follow the pre-thought policies with no shadow of doubt, but it must be questioned that is the way like that there exist plenty of thinkers ?
Moreover, there are cases proving that we pave a way without knowing its result and end. We follow a way, providing us with instantaneous and today wants, but what is beyond it, is of less significance for us, and sometimes, we even hope others to pave the way for us, and then, we take it for granted with no effort and analysis.
We hope to be of one face and nobody conceive us to be a real Jekyll and Hyde. If we claim to be Muslims, we’d better not to blasphemize under the name of Islam; and at last, we should not pass life in indifference when we assume any responsibility. If we lay greetings aside, it must be admitted that our nature is not so well as we think.
Though rejecting oppression, we are oppressed, and though rejecting exploitation, we are exploited. There exist a lot of internal and external cases of irregularity in us, but we have a false feeling of prosperity. Our affairs are all in disorder, but, on the other hand, we pretend order.
There exist a lot of responsibilities over us and our mothers and women’s shoulders, and egligence in their fulfillment will result in both Divine punishment and earthly losses. We suppose all our affairs are achieved successfully with a revolutionary appearance, but this is not the case. We do not deny that a part of the long way has been paved, but other steps and stages have to be taken.
We have naturally been brought up optimistic and superficial, supposing that by making a skeleton, we have built a house and can settle in it- negligent that there is no possibility of living in it at ease until it is not completed.
The discussion is not only about a woman, but a mother as well as a wife. Naturally in such a book, we’d better allocate the main course of our discussion to the character of women and analyze their status more, and if any criticism is posed, it does not mean that such grounds do not exist in men.
According to the model that we have; i.e. Fatima (peace be upon her), and other Islamic models, it must be stated that our women have a long way to go. On the other hand, they have to make great changes in their minds and policies, specify their aims, present a complete program to set themselves free from being a means, and extinguish the burning blaze of passion towards them. Their views and ideologies must be generally reformed towards the worldly life; grand attributes must be emerged and confirmed in them; the elevation of soul must be fortified in them; and they must attain futurology, stout hearts, courage and high opinions. In this case, their insights, functions, and social responsibilities based on the Islamic rules are fairly regarded.
Unfortunately, Some of the women have not attained the above-mentioned factors yet, and if they have, it is insufficient. They have not known their duties well, their ways and methods are not specified, and in general, their situations are not desirable as it should be.
Before presenting any ways or methods, and obliging the individuals to follow them, it sounds essential to ponder on the reasons, causing these situations:
Firstly, each problem must be resolved in a way that it has emerged.
Secondly, as long as the previous gaps have not bridged, the evils continue penetrating.
Thirdly, awareness of the reasons is the main factor for prevention of the new attacks and penetration of evil.
In studying the reasons, causing disorder in the lives of the women in the society, two groups of reasons should be stated:
The internal reasons are the ones that take roots from our society. In other words, we are responsible for their emergence. They are the strokes, coming to us from friends.
A: There are so many internal reasons, for examples:
Since fifteen centuries ago, learning has become vital, but unfortunately, more than sixty percent of our society are illiterate, and the statistics about women may exceed by ninety percent!! And how many of the literate are in contact with the ideological and philosophical sources of Islam and have a real understanding of them?! Their knowledge is just to read newspapers, leaflets, notices, and novels. And those in higher ranks mostly think about how to seize the opportunity to make money or pass the time happily. Seize the day and make most of it, for tomorrow is unknown. They have no high opinions and assume no responsibility.
Unfortunately, our literate and learned are mixed with the illiterate or secluded with their own pride, and these factors prevent them from learning, knowing, and teaching. Their speeches and actions are mostly rootless, as they always quote others as saying: “ An authoritative person has said so and so”.
Commonness is spreading in spite the fact that the number of the students are increasing. Our educational system is in a way, that keep us away from the authentic sources and make the roots of ignorance in our hearts stronger. But now who is responsible for this situation? Who gives answer for these ignorance ? And who must respond is a fact that needs to be analyzed separately?
The past negligence of those who have had opportunity, thought, power, and facilities for leadership and have not cared about the nature of the people in the society, especially women, has been the main cause of emerging disorder in the society.
Unfortunately, those who had knowledge assumed no responsibility and perhaps they had assumed responsibility but they did not enjoy authority. As a result, the ignorant people, those conversant not with their own responsibilities and positions, seized the power and reigned over the people.
Misinterpretations and misunderstandings in one side, and ill-naturedness, shortsightedness, and interference in the personal and social affairs in the other side have multiplied this mischief.
We just tried to ban the individuals, but never thought how to fill the gaps, resulting from prohibition and replace creativity. Thus, the society resorted to other programs the losses of which were not less than the prohibited ones.
Women were prevented from working outside, but nobody cared about their unemployment. They then spent their time, thinking about luxury, decoration and how to be more attractive, and sometimes making evil plots. Therefore, the status got worse.
What steps have we taken for the sake of our daughters and women’s blessings? What programs have we presented to bridge the gap of their relationship with the society? What methods have we applied to eradicate the plots of others? And at last, what grounds have we prepared for their development and elevation?
Man finds his way under the protection of correct or incorrect propaganda takes his way, changes himself, and therefore, constructs or destroys himself, because the role of inculcation is undeniable.
To be able to continue a fruitful life, defend the values and dignity, and keep them alive, each society or group needs an equipped organization of spirituality and rationality; an organization, showing the real direction, introducing the by-ways and then asking the individuals to move in that logical direction.
In a limit extent, this organization is just a family, and in the broader extent, it is mosque, school or society as well as mass media.
Have the aforementioned organizations made their utmost to achieve their aims? Have they had any special programs to present? Our mass media assumed the responsibilities of our ads, and in that way, there were a lot of damages, betrayal, negligence, and ignorance. The result is if we do not educate the minds, which have not been trained yet, they will do and use their lures to attract them.
The samples are constructive and attract the individuals to them with their awareness. The samples presented for the men and women of our society have not been clearly specified, and their positions and sides towards the for and against movements have been vague.
Mohammed and Ali, peace be upon them, are two true samples in Islam and the way indicators, and due to their capabilities, they can be considered as the true samples for the whole world. Fatima and her daughter, Zeineb (peace be upon them) can be samples for the whole women communities.
But what is our supposition of these samples? If they ask us to imagine their faces and write about their attributes, what will be our reaction?
Unfortunately, most of us have made no effort to know our samples to value their manners, to take lessons. What we have done is to love them sincerely and emotionally and even sometimes worship them, but their features as well as our duty towards them have not been clearly defined.
It must be considered that Mohammed, Ali, Fatima and Zeineb (Peace be upon them) are not only our spiritual samples but our practical ones in this world. We have to be conversant with their high attributes and what have made their characters so elevated in the first step and then make every endeavor to be their real followers. Besides, we have to clean this idea that we are so small to follow and achieve their attributes. This viewpoint prevents us from act and instead, makes them unapproachable. Therefore, the people resorted to the sublunary samples, easy to follow in this world, and due to this fact, a lot of deviation and misunderstanding emerged, and we sustained a lot of losses.
Many of the religious and moral concepts were set forth in a way that caused abuse and miscellany.
Dua (prayer), repentance, forgiveness, etc. have brought our beliefs from sublime to ridiculous. The people are of the opinion that they can commit any kind of sin, hoping that they then cleanse themselves of their sins by means of the tears of mourning. They also suppose that any kinds of problem can be resolved by means of Dua and spell, and any kinds of ambition can be achieved just with hope to the Absolute Divine Power.
There is no shadow of doubt that those whose knowledge of the religion and its concepts were insufficient have issued the unreal beliefs. They supposed Allah’s duty is like a technician’s, unaware that He is aware of the smallest amounts of good and bad deeds. As a result, these ill-teachings and shortsighted views have left great damages in our minds and actions, and now to remove them, we need to make every endeavor.
Most of our today’s problems are due to the fact that the application of pressure even against the unknown matters has not been normal and natural. Our reaction towards the ordinary errors has been as our reaction towards the mortal sins.
We have always prevented our women and daughters from participating in the social activities and in cases, deprived them of their civil rights, and today we see that we had not to. If only we regarded morality in prevention and did not pretend that those activities were illegal and indecent.
We would better replace logic and rationality in lieu of stick; that is a problem in social communities and discussible in jungle.
Our society has paid how much fines and is also paying now! When in a society the mother is beaten in the presence of the children, we must say goodbye to logic and education.
The prevention, lack of logic, and injustice instead of resolving the problems have caused disorder in the society that can be eradicated by the aid of a rational and practical revolution.
In this regard, we have to mention the reasons, produced by the betrayal and malice of the enemy.
Islam has always been against the enemy of rationality, because of the efforts taken by the Muslims for years. The enemy apparently knows that if Islam gains victory, there will be no place for their colonization and exploitation. If Muslims find power under the protection of Islamic Ideology, their floodlight will never allow the bats to come close.
Therefore, they have tried to stop Muslims from developing, by means of colonization, exploitation, and spreading different kinds of modes, samples, and schools, impositions, cultural imperialism.
Most of their decisions aimed at families, women, mothers, and daughters, and how well they planned it. They know that if the wOmmen pass their responsibilities into oblivion, there remains a generation with an alive outward but dead inward with no aim, misled and deserving any kinds of exploitation.
There exist many policies employed by them, for examples:
Whenever the school programs are sponsored by the enemy, it is apparent what kind of program is planned, and whenever the life artery is usurped by the enemy, he knows when and how to cut it.
When came to program for our schools must be seen that who decided to have schools in our country? Where did its system come from? Who were employed and started to work as experts and advisors? Who supported them? And at last, who kept quiet and adapted those programs? It was the enemy who started contaminating the Islamic societies. Even in Egypt, Dunlop, who was a graduate of Theology College in Oxford, programmed for it. In Syria and Lebanon, the French and Americans….
It was a planned exploitation program as we have seen its effects in our country and other countries now after two international wars, and now we are witnessing its termination.
In order to achieve its purpose, the enemy exported everything to our country such as: fashion, dance, opium, heroine, films, fornication, obscene books, and magazines… and then took radio, TV, newspapers, magazines, posters, or in one word, our mass media under its control and programmed to contaminate the grounds by building youth palace, co-swimming pools, café, etc. And what was our reaction against this destructive flood? We did not have enough power to shut the gates and instead, present constructive samples, and this is the disastrous consequence of our actions. Is it, then, feasible to eradicate all the aspects of cultural imperialism in one or two days?
The enemy has imposed his contaminated culture to us through trickery, betrayal, and sometimes books, magazines, tourists and applied all its pressures directly and indirectly. It was their purpose to deconstruct and invalidate the values, to weaken the resistance, and break down the traditional constructions. It was their purpose to make a two and even multi-dimensional generation; a generation, Muslim in appearance but non-religious in practice, with a Christian shape but Sufis views and generally, null and void automation, speaking nonsense.
We have not managed to present tangible and attractive samples. Our samples were all intangible and celestial, and their attainment needed tears and sigh, groan and grief, hardship and affliction, suffering and deprivation. But on the contrary, the enemy presented the samples, which seemed attractive and interesting and tangible…. Their samples were so accessible that we need not searching for them. They were presented in our houses, in our radio and TV, and in our books. Soon, their colors worked and built our characters so that they were replaced and attracted all hearts and souls to themselves.
The philosophical schools, the diversity of which is the criterion of our age, have added fuel to the fire of irregularity and unrestraint. These schools spread different kinds of seeds, and each of them soon rooted in our minds and as a result, changed our beliefs and customs.
Some of them provided the ground for our absurdity and nihilism; some others called on us to pleasures; and some another negated all sanctities and disrespected whatever considered as moral and religious values. And now, we are confronted with doubts, irresolution, and in some cases, depression.
Our mass media also amplified those schools ideologies instead of our own Ideology as if we really had not enjoyed any ideology, and we were in want of it. They acted to advance those schools thoughts into notice, and to achieve this end, they acclaimed them with great intensity and then called on us to adhere to them.
While studying these philosophical schools, we granted some of their aspects with no investigation. The unknown thoughts filled our minds as a result of repetition and inculcation as if they were a part of our Ideology, and in cases, they were given preference over our thoughts.
To advance these schools into notice, to propagate their thoughts, and to acclaim them caused the emergence of three groups of people among us: the deviated women, the aimless women, and the abnormal women with complex.
There exist no difference between them and the western women, but they can be clearly identified in their deeds or when presenting ideas. Those who are Muslims in word but imitate the nonbelievers in act are indeed deviated; those who are captured in the hand of their passion and have no intention are aimless; and at last, those are about to make up for the past deficiencies all costs and with no regard to their own honor are the men of complex.
