Islamic History – 5

(continued from Islamic History – 4)

Before Abu Bakr passed away, he appointed Umar as the next caliph.

Umar
After the victory of Ajnadain, Muthana came to the capital to ask for reinforcements. On the first day of his caliphate Umar appealed for volunteers and a sizeable army was raised under Abu Ubaid. Muthana succeeded in defeating Rustam the famous Persian in the battle of Namaraq.

Battle of Bridge/Jasr
Muthana and forces of Rustam meet. Abu Ubaid crossed the river, ended up being killed and got 6000 of his army killed.

Clash at Buwaib
When Umar got to know about battle of Jasr, he sent an army under Jasir. (Some chieftains of Christian tribes also joined them). The Persians were severely defeated

Battle of Qadisiya
Yezdagirdthe Persian monarch sent Rustam with a massive force to overcome the Muslims.
The Muslim army consisted of 10000 + 6000 under the command of Sa’d bin Abi Waqas.
The two armies met at Qadisiya for three days and 3 nights. Feirce battle ensued and 8,500 Muslims died. Victory on Ramadan 14 A.H. (635 AD)

Madain Captured.
Soon after, Sa’d bin Abi Waqas advanced to Babel and in 154A.H. beseiged the town. The seige lasted for months and finally the Persians gave in. Yezdagirdran away and took refuge in Hulwan where he had already removed his treasures.

Fall of Jalula
16A.H. Yezdagird occupied Jalula which was strongly fortified. Sa’d dispatched 12,000 men under Q’aqa to meet Persian challenge. Jalula was besieged for 80 days before Persians gave way. Mutual understanding between Persians and Muslims reached. Umar issued orders to stop advancing towards Persia, but later Umar had to lift the ban.

Total Victory over Persia
640A.D. Muslimsmoved on from Basra to Shustar.
642 A.D. Muslims besieged the town andtook Hormuzan prisoner. Hormuzan was sent to the Caliph at MEdina and managed to obtain mercy for his life. He embraced Islam and stayed at Medina as Caliph’s advisor on Persian affairs.

642A.D. Occupation of Khuzistan
A strong persian army gathered in Ninawand. The Muslim army was led by Noman bin Muqarrim. The army battled for 3 days and finally achieved the victory of victories.

Syrian wars
During Abu Bakr’s illness, Muslims defeated Romans on the Syrian fronts (Battle of Ajnadain). The Romans had taken refuge in Antioch, and Khalid Bin Waleed marched on Damascus. For 6 months he blockaded the capital of Syria. Surrendered on Sep 10, 635.
Khalid promised the inhabitants their lives, property and freedom of religion in exchange for tribute money. At the end of 635 A.D. the whole of Syria and Palestine was in Muslim hands.

Battle of Yarmuk:
The Romans perpared a massive force to protect Jarusalem from Muslims. When the news of this massive preparation reached Muslims, Abu Ubaida decided to evacuate the occupied territory. The troops of Abu Ubaida, Amr bin al-’As settled at the bank of river Yarmuk.
Summer 636 the two armies me. Muslims (40,000) met Byzantines(200,000). Muslim Victory!!!
Khalid bin Waleed was replaced by Umar with Abu Ubaida bin Jarrah.

Jerusalem
After battle of Yarmuk, Muslims beseiged Jerusalem. Abu Ubaida came to assist the Muslim army. The inhabitants agreed to capitulations that caliph Umar would personally come to sign the treaty.

Egypt conquest 640A.D.
Amr bin al ‘As had great difficulty in persuading Umar to authorize the invasion of Egypt. In 640 A.D. Amr bin Al As (with 5000) men marched towards Fustat and laid seize for 7 months till the garrison surrendered and was granted amnesty.
In 642 Amr bin al ‘As captured Alexandria. After the conquest of Egypt, Fustat was made the capital on instructions from Umar.

Umar’s adminstration
Majlis Shura:
Umar organised and expanded Majlis Shura introduced by Abu Bakr. It consisted of Ali, Abu Ubaida, Uthman, Talha, Zubair and Abdur Rahman bin Auf.
Provincial Governers:
State was divided into provinces with a governer (Wali) – Mecca, Medina, Jazira, Basra, Kufa, Palestine and Egypt. Provinces were divided into districts. The district officers were known as ‘Amils. These were appointed by the Caliph in consultation with advisory council.
Revenue System:
Established department of Finance called Diwan. The sources of income were Zakat, Jizya, Kharaj, Ghanima and Fay.
Military administration:
Army was divided into regular forces (who worked on permanent basis and were paid) and irregular forces (raised in times of emergency).
Judiciary
Qadis appointed – not subject to authority of provincial governers.

Death of Umar (644 A.D.)
Umar was murdered by a persian slave by the name Lulu.
He appointed 6 prominent companions for Caliphate – Ali, Uthman, Talha, Zubair, Sa’d bin Abi Waqas and Abdur Rahman bin Auf.

Where there is a will, there is a way!

And this is the lesson I learned today!

I finally managed to get an animated header on my blog.. yipeeee!!

Has God forsaken us?

[Wrote this article in 2005. It was published in GK)

Death, Pain, Misery – you name it and we have it! Depression and hopelessness fills the atmosphere. Lawlessness and disorder is the norm. Psychological trauma, physical abuse, moral decay is what meets the eyes (for those who bother to keep them open). The happiness that people crave for seems fake – meaningless. There is no joy, no peace, no contentment!

Amidst all this utter confusion a cry is raised, “Has God forsaken us?”

Everyday we call our Creator by His attributes of Most Beneficent, Most Merciful (Ar-Rahman Ar-Raheem) – then how could He leave us in this state of misfortune? How could He plunge us so deep in the darkness that we cant even perceive a tiny ray of hope? In a place where people – young and old, rich and poor – shed tears, raise their hands in dua; why is it that He doesn’t set all things right? Why is it that He watches us helplessly cling to life – rather to whatever of life is left within us?

Some call it a test, while some others call it punishment… “gonah panin”… Some faces frown… some others turn pale. A few dare to speak out, and others hush them up … “Keriv panin katha..”, believing that speaking out is useless and that it wont help.

And we are in a situation that comes to a point where one would think it can’t get worse; and it actually does become worse!

Death frees the suffering soul from the worries of this damned life; but leaves a much heavier penalty for those who are left behind. Ask an aging parent who lost a child, a widow whose world has become uglier, a child who looses his childhood and plunges into the harsh, cruel adult world – ask them what expectations they have from life?

The sick languish in pain in the pitiable conditions of our hospitals. Those who are lucky enough to be outside these hospitals, still suffer the psychological trauma. The reasons could be many – from traumatic experiences to the ever increasing demands of a society that is based on materialism. The pursuit of survival in this jungle where fear reigns supreme is enough to keep minds occupied. There are many who end up with drugs, many others who just end up with depression and other psychological disorders.

With the policies that the ‘people in power’ come up with, many of the evils that long existed in the dark corners of our society are coming out into the open – a closed eye to prostitution and lewdness, an open license to liquor!

Enough!!! Obviously, all this is too much for any society to bear with. We all run like blind people and become the ardent followers of “Escapism”. Like mad people we strive for our individual immediate materialistic interests. Our minds are bogged down and busy with “here and now” – we want more, more and more. With an insatiable hunger for goods and services that would make us “respectable” in the society, we forget future with its extended time horizon – that includes the hereafter! Where future seems bleak, we live to enjoy the moment!

And we squeeze happiness from our hollow lives. But somehow, every now and then, we feel a lump in our throat, a heartache, a restlessness that we seek a relief from. We cry out, “Where is God?”

“Where is God?”

The echo of “Haya alal Falah” – inviting to victory, progress, success – resounds from the masjid’s five times a day. We hear and we don’t know how to respond. We don’t even make an effort to make the connection with our Creator.

Is it that we don’t understand – or that we don’t want to understand?

What a paradox life has become! We steal and we complain of corruption. We live lives based on lies and expect justice. We build palaces with money obtained from all unlawful means, and wear a garb of piety by going to hajj! We shrug our shoulders from the responsibility of the orphans and the destitute – and wonder why The Most Merciful doesn’t shower His mercy on us?

Surprisingly, we as individuals and at a societal level have found justifications for everything. For every lapse of ours, we have conveniently found someone else to blame. By forever blaming the system for our failures, we have found a scapegoat. Why don’t we channel our money to an orphanage – “Well! They are already getting lot of money from people…” Why don’t we spend an hour voluntarily with some NGO – “ (Seari choor!) They are all cheats…” Why don’t we do our work with honesty, “ Yahan yehi chalta hai”. Why we don’t do a small thing like not throw the plastic bag out of our maruti, “Myani na karne saeth kyah gasi…”.

From big decisions to the very small mundane ones, we are more and more contributing to the problems that we seek riddance from. By being part of the rotting system, we are nurturing the rot. We murder our conscience and wonder why tranquillity doesn’t descend upon us. We are running away from God and wondering why He has turned away from us!

If we are looking for God, we will find Him – He is always there, we just need to make the connection with Him. If we want His mercy, let’s attempt to be worthy of that mercy. If we want changed conditions, let’s change what is in our hearts.

We all have to remind ourselves that, “If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem”. And if we are part of the problem, know that God hasn’t forsaken us, rather, we have forsaken ourselves!

“Verily God will not deal unjustly with man in aught. It is man that wrongs his own soul.” (Surah Yunus:44)

The Sinister Laugh of Satan

[Yet another something I dug from my 'things i wrote' folder.. ]

Every human shape I perceive
Has a Satan lying underneath
The eyes have a banner: ‘We have no shame’
And Satan laughs for he has got fame.

Violence and immorality fill the atmosphere
And in making this possible every person has his share
Fashion and new trends form talk of the day
And I see Satan merrier than I could say

There is no honor, no privacy
Horrifying scenes are wherever I see
Evil is here in full and in half
And I can see Satan with his sinister laugh!

Written on 11.7.1997

KASHMIR – education at its best!

[some time back in 2005 this article I wrote was published in GK. And I look through my stuff and I stumble upon it.. and so here it is.. just in case you'd want to read through...]

Take a walk around the city – early morning students rushing for tuitions. Later, you will come across uniformed students entering one of the many houses in your locality that carry a banner of some “government recognized” school; dragging a bag that’s too heavy to carry. Open the newspapers and your eyes might encounter notices given by schools to parents so they would ensure that their wards come to school. A walk in the afternoon will bring you face to face with many groups of students who are coming home with their carbon-copied notes.

Kashmir indeed is a land of learning – or is it?

Like nearly all other ‘systems’ in Kashmir, the educational system also speaks of the misery that has become the characteristic trait of its people. Whether it is ‘what is taught’ or ‘how it is taught’, the problems in our educational setup are too noticeable for anyone to condone.

Looking at what is taught; let us reach an agreement that education ought to be all round development of an individual – intellectual, physical and emotional. In the name of extensive coverage by the syllabus, little children are loaded with heavy bags (maybe it is meant to cater to their physical development). In the name of high standards, end of year exams create havoc for students who are examined on what they learnt the whole year. How often is the syllabus revised to make it more interesting, informative and relevant to the present times? Science, where the basis of gaining knowledge is observation and experimentation has become nothing more than the text that was memorized to pass the exam. For those who think that the coverage of our syllabus is truly of good standard, then an analysis of how many Kashmiris ever compete outside poses a serious question. How many Kashmiris make it to IIT, IPS or IAS? Clearly our system needs a major overhauling.

Leaving the purely academic concerns, let us look at what our students get in name of extra-curricular activities. Programs and activities that are meant to develop physical strength, mental alertness, and social skills are shamefully deficient.

The mechanism of imparting the education shows yet another aspect of this sad story. Government schools – very sadly – reflect a state of apathy and lack of accountability. Isn’t it ironical that in spite of the fact that the government teachers are comparatively much better paid – what they impart to their students is inadequate. The mushrooming of private schools – with the ‘government recognized’ title – is another remarkable trend that has gone unrestrained. Who checks the facilities and the educational standards of these schools that have transformed from residential buildings in a matter of days?

The inefficiency of these educational institutions is quite manifest in the institutionalization of that which we call “tuitions”. Students are sent for tuitions as early as primary school. On the pretext of not being able to complete the syllabus, school teachers ask students to come for extra tuitions. Many of tuition goers never show their faces in the schools and colleges where they understand they wouldn’t learn anything, anyways. What do we expect a student to have learnt if the whole day he has exhausted his mental and physical energies running “dar-ba-dar” — from one tuition to another?

The lack of accountability, lack of initiative and the nonchalant behavior of those in power have robbed our children and our youth of what they are capable of. A study of what is wrong, and a comparison with other educational set-ups should provide input on what needs to be done. There is a lot that needs to be done, and a lot that can be done — it is high time we bring about change, or else we shall continue to drown in the depths of ignorance.

“Ignorance is bliss” – maybe, the people heading our education system seem to have come up with a novel approach to play its part in ensuring bliss in this valley.

Khandar – The Kashmiri Wedding

Kashmiri weddings are elaborate affairs… from the match making process to the actual ‘function’ which lasts for many days. There are rituals lasting for days… there is singing and the tumbakhnaer….And of course there is food food and food.

I see these pics and I can actually smell the wazwan.. ummm…

the ‘masala’ – the good things that make the nose twitch and the tongue drip… (he he )

no wazwaan without MEAT!!!

Zaamdod! (Curd to eat your food with)

Red hot chillies being softened…

THE COOKING PROCESS

and while you wait for food to get ready why not nibble at these:

[Its been raining, and the weather is just perfect for wazwaan.. yum yum yum]

Does God Exist?

[Got this in an email, found it interesting, so here it is for you to read and THINK!]

“WHAT DO U FEEL ABOUT THIS?

A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed. As the barber began to
work, they began to have a good conversation.They talked about so many things and various subjects.

When they eventually touched on the subject of God, the barber said: “I don’t believe that God exists.”

“Why do you say that?” asked the customer.

“Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn’t exist. Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If God
existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain. I can’t imagine a loving God who
would allow all of these things.”

The customer thought for a moment, but didn’t respond because he didn’t want to start an argument.

The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop. Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed beard. He looked dirty and unkempt.

The customer turned back and entered the barber shop again and he said to the barber: “You know what? Barbers do not exist.”

“How can you say that?” asked the surprised barber.

“I am here, and I am a barber. And I just worked on you!” “No!” the customer
exclaimed. “Barbers don’t exist because if they did, there would be no people with dirty long hair and untrimmed beards, like that man outside.”

“Ah, but barbers DO exist! ” answered the barber. ” What happens is, people do not come to me. “
“Exactly!” affirmed the customer. “That’s the point! God, too, DOES exist!

What happens, is, people don’t go to Him and do not look for Him.

That’s why there’s so much pain and suffering in the world.”

The largest fresh water lake…

Wular Lake is the largest freshwater lake in India and lies in the Kashmir Valley, 40 km northwest of Srinagar City in the Northwest of India.
With a size of 189 sq. km, Wular Lake is also one of the largest freshwater lakes in Asia. The lake lies at an altitude of 1,580 m. Its maximum depth is 14 metres, it has a length of 16 km and a breadth of 10 km.

Read more about it here

And with all that said, I would like to add that is is breathtakingly beautiful! SubhanAllah… As I looked down at it, it felt like I was looking down at sea-shore.. Awesome!

Take a peep yourself. My camera can hardly capture the beauty of it all…

Kashmir News!

They say reading news is important.
Even the kids in Kashmir know this.
Watch my little dear nephew read the latest news updates..:)

Specially for my readers…

The good old garfield says it all.