Foreword

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Foreword

 

All praise be to Allah and salutations upon his chosen servant

The death of chastity and modesty, which has been caused by the western propagation of the intermingling of sexes, has been aptly described by Allamah Iqbal almost a quarter century ago. He said:

Your own moral values will slay you with its own dagger,

The nest made in a weak branch will be unproductive.

 

Now the Iranians have outdid the dissolute customs of the west by saying that women can indulge in intercourse with those young men or students who remain unmarried for a long time due to their extended period of study, thus matching the free lifestyle of western culture.

If any Shia scholar or Ayatollah had to say the above then one would not be amazed in the least but when I read the following article of Iranian President Rafsanjani in the daily paper Jang, 7 September 1990, then I was thoroughly astounded. The headline read:

In order to save Iranian society Mut’ah will have to be practiced.

 

Just three days prior to this the same paper printed these statements of Rafsanjani:

 

Those who are unmarried have been given permission to perform Mut’ah. Islam permits the practice of Mut’ah

The Iranian president ‘Ali Akbar Hashimi Rafsanjani has advised unmarried men and women to satisfy their lustful desires through the act of Mut’ah. He says that it is incorrect to suppress the natural desires of man. It is for this reason that unmarried people, widowers and widows can perform unorthodox marriages for a short period of time.

Jang London 4 September 1990

 

In addition, I also read:

 

Eleven years after the Iranian revolution, President Akbar ‘Ali Hashimi Rafsanjani has adopted a more liberal approach to relationships and interaction. Once again placing emphasis on the custom of Mut’ah, he stated that if the people of Iran do not accept unorthodox marriages for a short period of time in order to fulfil the desires of its masses, then they will have to bear the weight of defeat. In a television interview president Rafsanjani said that he is adopting a serious stance with regards to Mut’ah and he will stick to it. He said that if Mut’ah is not made common and the disrepute associated to it is not eliminated then our society will be crushed and defeated, because in that case we will be unable to fulfil the sexual needs of many Muslims, specifically the youngsters.

Jang London 7 December 1990

 

In reply to this statement of Iranian President Rafsanjani, we think the following question raised by Shia Doctor Musa al Musawi is sufficient:

I ask those Shia fuqaha’ who have issued a ruling of permissibility regarding Mut’ah and hold its practice in high esteem, if they condone this practice for their daughters, sisters and girls of their family or will their faces fall, temperatures rise and anger becoming uncontrollable when hearing such news?

 

Those who are well-acquainted with the ethical standards of Islam and the status of woman therein will never dare to propagate the disgraceful practice of Mut’ah and selling the favours of women in the mixed western society that we live in.

 

The Noble Status of Women in Islam

The qualities of honour and chastity are such jewels which have been passed down through the generations and even after years; one would still not be able to fully appreciate it. Its value is so immense that the wealthiest of this world are incapable of purchasing it. Whoever has not safeguarded his honour and chastity has destroyed the main qualities which make him human. It is for this reason that the Noble Qur’an and hadith have emphasised on the protection of one’s honour and chastity, and inculcating within oneself the qualities of shame and modesty. In addition any act, saying or movement that opposes one’s honour and chastity has been declared as haram (forbidden) in the shari’ah of Islam.

 

Honour and Chastity in the Light of the Qur’an

The importance of honour and chastity can be gauged by the manner in which the Noble Qur’an describes its importance. If at any time any nabi was falsely accused of any act which might stain his honour or chastity, the Noble Qur’an addressed the allegation and testified to that nabi’s innocence and purity. The Qur’an itself testifies to the purity and chastity of Nabi Yusuf ‘alayh al Salam, Nabi Yahya ‘alayh al Salam, Sayyidah Maryam radiya Llahu ‘anha and even Sayyidah Aisha radiya Llahu ‘anha.

 

Honour and Chastity in the Light of Hadith

Honour and chastity had such value in the eyes of Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam that he would make every man and woman vow when pledging their allegiance to him that they will not commit zina (fornication and adultery), which would destroy their honour and chastity. There are numerous narrations in the treasury of hadith which contain the instruction and guidance of Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam through various methods, to hold fast to the qualities of honour and chastity.

When Heraclius, the emperor of Rome asked Abu Sufyan radiya Llahu ‘anhu about the teachings of Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, Abu Sufyan replied:

He orders us to perform Salah, give Sadaqah (charity), to remain chaste and to join family ties.^[1]

 

Chastity was mentioned along with salah and zakat, which is clear sign of its importance. It is for this reason that Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam not only closed the doors to all forms of shamelessness and immodesty that were prevalent in the period of ignorance, but Allah stipulated severe punishments for these acts, so that these bestial customs may be removed from society, and the qualities of honour and chastity become prevalent.

However it is extremely disappointing that the one door which the leaders of Iran were still attempting to open was flung open by Rafsanjani.

What is Mut’ah? What are its virtues? What is its price? These details you will discover in the forthcoming pages. At this point I would like you to understand one thing; which is that Mut’ah is the opposite of honour and chastity and the way of destroying shame and modesty. It is impossible to determine how many young girls lost their innocence as a result of the announcement by the Iranian president, how many women destroyed their chastity as result of it, the sense of honour of how many individuals destroyed and how far reaching will be its consequences.

The level to which it has mislead the youngsters of Britain is a separate consequence altogether. To those whose intention is to spread anarchy and shamelessness in the world, we give them the glad tidings of a fearful torment. In our country of Britain, whose atrocious values and ethics are a poison for Muslims, where shaitan confronts one at every step, where shamelessness and merry-making meets one at every corner, where scenes of immodesty — which make it impossible for our youngsters to control themselves — are widespread, this announcement has caused the youth to take steps in this direction. The announcement was given in the name of the Qur’an, in the name of Islam, which has led all those youth who love the western culture to fulfil their lustful desires in the name of Islam, thinking that they are following in the footsteps of some Ayatollah.

It is uncertain why the leaders of Iran thought it was necessary for Mut’ah to be practiced and why was the Shari’ah of Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam mocked by encouraging such a practice in the name of Islam. If they desired so keenly to practice upon their famous law then they should have done so in their private capacity and not disgraced the pure and blessed religion of Rasulullah salla Llahu ‘alayhi wa sallam.

What must the non-Muslims of Britain be saying? Their religion of Christianity has not as yet condoned such behaviour with one’s “partner” but the leadership of Iran felt no shame in doing so first.

Terrible indeed is the words that come out of their mouths, they speak but lies.

 

What effects this announcement of Rafsanjani has had in Iran, only the people of Iran know. However, we have learned that those youngsters who did not adhere to any particular school or tact, nor have they ever adhered to any of the tenets of din, are fervently searching for girls with whom they can indulge in Mut’ah. When we try to prevent them from this, they put forward their counter-arguments and send to me letters, books and pamphlets explaining the permissibility of Mut’ah.

I have studied them intensively but it is extremely disappointing that not one proof could be found that reaches Sayyidina ‘Ali radiya Llahu ‘anhu with an unbroken chain. They disgrace themselves for no apparent reason, topping it all off by saying that Mut’ah is an act of worship, and not merely a permissible act.

To Allah only do we complain.

 

We are extremely grateful to Allamah Khalid Mahmud who has not only written a comprehensive and inclusive introduction but has also aided me with his sound advice and correction in some instances.

May Allah reward him with the best of rewards.

 

There is a dire need now for this book to be published in both India and Pakistan, so that these countries can also be saved from this shameless act and reveal the

errors and fabrications of the Shia, so that no youngster will change his school of thought, in his frenzy to fulfil his lustful passions.

O Allah safeguard us from the evils of the children of Mut’ah in all the cities of Islam.

 

Salam

Muhammad Iqbal Ranguni (May Allah protect him)

Islamic Academy

Manchester

 

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^[1]  Al Bukhari, v. 2 p. 884