Inspiration and Spirituality
The Story of the Pretty Woman
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colourislam
March 18, 2009 at 1:50 AM
This is so true. We think that doing better in the world will be better than sacrificing the comforts of this life for the comfort of the other life.It’s a sad state what we are running after and what we are destroying unknowingly. May Alllah give us enough sense to see the superficiality this wold has to offer and make us good Muslims that are conscious of what life and this world really are.
Loga
November 20, 2009 at 4:23 PM
BarakAllah fiikum.
jazakAllah khier for the video. there is some great father advice that was shared with me (too long to re-post here. The site linked above (my name) will direct you there. JazakAllah khier if you can come and join the conversation.
salaam alaykum.
abu abdAllah Tariq Ahmed
March 18, 2009 at 2:24 AM
may Allah forgive me for what sights, sounds, tastes, aromas, and touches have ever kept or delayed me from salah in His House, from the company of a jamat that assembled only for His sake. time marches no less deliberately than a soldier. and the book of deeds you expect in your right may swing to the left as sharply as the executioner’s blade. seek forgiveness from your Lord, and repent to Him.
and while you yet breathe, spend that breath for the sake of Allah.
astagfirullah, wa attooboo alayh.
Ibn Mikdad
March 18, 2009 at 3:09 AM
Amazing…
bAHADER
March 18, 2009 at 4:14 AM
SubbhanaAllah.. Amazing as said..
Ayesha Fatima
March 18, 2009 at 7:53 AM
May Allah swt grant us hikmah before it`s too late.I read this story in Qisas.com .
salaam.
midatlantic
March 18, 2009 at 8:31 AM
I had read a similar story before, but this made me realize the power of oral narration: it makes stories so much more mesmerizing.
SaqibSaab
March 18, 2009 at 9:06 AM
I’ve always liked this story. Well written and powerful.
ayesha
March 18, 2009 at 9:20 AM
Allahumma aslih niyyatina wa zuriyyatina.
Allahumma inna naaoozubika min mudhillatil fitan
ma z’ahara minha wa ma batan.
Oh Allah! Set right our intentions and off-springs.
Oh Allah! Save us from ill temptations,
whether explicit or hidden.
ASC
March 18, 2009 at 10:48 AM
Jazak Allah Khairun for posting, I really enjoyed this story and it was a great way of getting the point across.
Hamza Isa
March 18, 2009 at 11:56 AM
salams
Excellent story mashallah, deep message
UmA
March 18, 2009 at 12:14 PM
I wonder why I can’t see the text of the story?
abu abdAllah Tariq Ahmed
March 18, 2009 at 2:28 PM
just an observation: i completely understand the word fulsome. even checked my dictionary afterwards thinking i had remembered it incorrectly. and i see no way that the color black could be described as fulsome. “…dressed in fulsome black…”
maybe the translator meant the adverb? “dressed fulsomely in black.”
alternatively maybe the ism in Arabic was located next to the ism “black” in the sentence. but “fulsome” was meant to modify something other than the color or the verb?
Amad
March 18, 2009 at 4:36 PM
abu abdallah, you are being fulsomely nitpicky ;)
[lol. but notice you used the adverb correctly. :) — abu abdAllah]
Amy
March 18, 2009 at 3:51 PM
Anyone get the sense that this sort of implies women –> dunya? (I.e., women lead to dunya?)
I guess I could say I felt slightly slighted.
Of all things, dunya took the form of a veiled woman? That just seems weird and inconsistent.
Amad
March 18, 2009 at 4:35 PM
It was an analogy, and I think an appropriate one. You could flip it and imagine a really ugly man but you can’t put a hijab on him— i mean how many women will run after a man like that? The reality of life is that men and women are different so analogies are not justifiably reciprocal.
Can you think of any other realm that would reflect the message in the story— I guess you could put a big moving treasure chest, with a man running behind it, and finding nothing in it. But it completely loses the sense of immense loss that one gets with this kind of deep message. No doubt men will get more out of this than women, because many men see more than an analogy in this.
muslim flavor
March 18, 2009 at 3:58 PM
that was scary…may Allah protect us from chasing after the dunya while neglecting the akhira. ameen. jazakallah khair…that was a needed reminder.
Nihal Khan
March 18, 2009 at 9:46 PM
You can commit zina, murder, steal, drink alcohol, etc…..just make sure you pray man….just make sure you pray.
abu Rumay-s.a.
March 19, 2009 at 7:09 AM
I tend to echo Amy’s concern..while similitudes and analogies do certainly possess strong clarification of matters, it is a part of the Qur`anic themes as well as ahadeeth.
As creative as the writer was, perhaps a better choice of analogy could have been considered in my opinion :(
sufi gurus really dig this stuff because they believe in order to reach “maqams” they have to totally deny themselves of all dunya and this is quite antithical to the prophet’s way (saws). All of the dunya is not as ugly as that woman, on the contrary, the prophet (saw) loved things of this dunya in due moderation and this is the way of the awleeya of Allah (may Allah accept us from them..)
May Allah show us the truth as it “really” is and bless us to adhere to it and show us falsehood as it “really” is and bless us avoid it (and be free from it)..ameen.
Umm Reem
March 19, 2009 at 8:29 AM
i liked it…
it was about the “shahwa” (lusts/desires) of this world and how we run after them…for men the biggest fitnah, in this dunya, is of the women (and vice versa) and how they run after that fitnah, at times destroying every good that Allah has blessed them with…
ayesha
March 19, 2009 at 8:40 AM
assalamualikum
@ abu Rumay-s.a.—–please refer to the translation of sureah ankaboot ayah no 64
“and this life of the world is only an amusement and play!——-“
UmmeAmmaarah
March 19, 2009 at 9:43 AM
Creepy……. in the sense that, it makes u feel scared and make a ‘muhaasaba’ about where your life is heading. Aameen to ayesha’s du’a.
Amad
March 19, 2009 at 10:26 AM
To be honest, it is really not important who the message came from… what is important is the message itself. Is it a consistent message with the deen? Is it an effective message? Is it a “lasting” message? If the answer to all these is yes, then its a good message.
As much as I thought about it, I could not come up with a better alternative or symbol to relay the same reflections, and I am waiting for anyone to give me a specific alternative, not just that it could be done.
Nahyan
March 19, 2009 at 11:35 AM
ooo that was heavy…mashaAllah.
ameen to the dua.
Aamir Hashmi
March 19, 2009 at 11:42 AM
This earth is our mother, a gift from Allah she is not a hideous old hag. We were given this gift to live a balanced life not to abandon akhira or to abandon our purpose in this duniya. That is why Allah has taken the reins of this Duniya from Muslims, we were appointed as guardians to look after his creation, all we do though is selfishly care about ourselves. We do not do anything to look after his creation. Despite our sallahs we will be questioned as to why we did nothing to protect the innocent people, creatures and the planet. Allah and his Angels send salutations to the Prophet, O you who believe; salute the Prophet (S.A.W) Salute with your actions and deeds. Remember him S.A.W. for he gave you the best gift – the gift of Islam by the grace of Allah (SW)
abu Rumay-s.a.
March 19, 2009 at 4:10 PM
dont get me wrong, it was an amazingly well written story, no doubt…and as Amad correctly said, it doesnt really matter where it came from..
my thought is that as Amy alluded to, the use of a “woman” to represent the dunya (although the analogy definetly makes good sense), can be taken in a deragatory sense by some and another analogy could have conveyed the same point…(i can’t think of any either at this point:)
regarding the moral of the story is that if you run after they dunya at the expense of your deen you will be dispointed and indeed this is confirmed by the ayat and hadeeth…
however, there is nothing wrong with liking things of this dunya as they are in essence blessings from Allah as the prophet (saws) loved his wives, his children, certain types of fragrances, wardrobe, certain foods, etc…obviously these things can be a fitna if it is not handled with care…
could it not be that the richest person with all the dunya at his hands be the most impovershed in his heart to Allah (such as the case of the rich companions) and to the contrary, could it not be that a very poor destitute have absolute lust of the dunya in his heart?
the point is that such stories can be used by certain people to convey that you have to give up all the dunya in order to reach spiritual englihtenment and that is not necessarily the case and what prompted me to write this is that someone referred a link to noah k.(shaikh??) and most of the sufi mathahib exagerrate this point of “denying” dunya to the point where they misinterpret and misrepresent true “faqr” (impoversihment) and this is a subtle point that I feel needs to be re-emphasized when such topics are discussed.
BWT, there is an actual true story related by Hasan al Basri (ra) about a muslim man who ran after a christian woman….l’ll leave the rest of story for your reading…(hint; you can find in the book “Glimpses of the Lives of Righteous People”)
And Allah knows best…
abu abdAllah Tariq Ahmed
March 19, 2009 at 4:35 PM
bismillah. sometimes an analogy is just an analogy — not a deep-seated subtextual diatribe against whatever the observer has hang-ups over.
all of you people who see the piece as demonizing women, or subhanAllah, “mother earth,” or the life of this world — ask yourself whether you got the actual message of the video:
that man did not truly care about his salah, about his worship to Allah. he was easily distracted by something he saw that he liked more. and even though he still had some semblance of a conscience — remember all the pauses — that did not save him from throwing away the barakat Allah had made available to him.
and anyone who imagines that “just pray” and you can do as much evil as you want? if your prayer was like that of the man in the video? if you pray only because the dunya had not yet distracted you with something more “inviting?” forget about it.
but if you prayed with khushoo — only for the sake of Allah, with ikhlaas, with a sincerity that made the world pale before your eyes during the time you devote to salah — then Allah would bless you. and among the blessings would be the company of those who pray, who are free from najis so as to enter a masjid, who also seek khushoo. and among the blessings would be the time you spend contemplating the Kalaam of Allah. a person who prays will be stronger and better in character than one who does not.
the strength of the effect of salah on the believer is one of the wisdoms, wAllaho’Alim, that salah is the first question you will be asked about after resurrection. not the second one. not “who did you vote for?” not even “were you nice to your mom?” you will be asked about your salah — not were you at the masjid 5 times a day? you will be asked about your salah.
and may Allah give us all the answer on that day that pleases Him.
Umm Jaabir
March 19, 2009 at 5:22 PM
Allahuma inaa naudhubika min fitnatil mahya wal mamaat.O Allah dont make us ubaad for this dunya and protect us from the dorrsteps of the adornment of this world.
Amatullah
March 20, 2009 at 8:22 AM
SubhanAllah that was intense.
Sister: No non-sense, Please!
March 20, 2009 at 9:41 PM
Its a test!…in both ways!
Why am I able to comment on this post but not on this one:
http://muslimmatters.org/2009/03/20/moving-forward-the-end-of-deconstructive-criticism/
Anyone know?
mohamed
March 22, 2009 at 7:38 PM
Great story, but for the sake of propriety and copyright (which most certainly do exist in Islam), there should be a clear attribution in the slideshow to the author of the piece, Sheikh Nuh Keller. I think its wonderful that the moderators of the site (who probably aren’t that fond of Sufism) would post a story by a Shadhili murshid – let’s complete the cycle of virtue and make sure to give proper attribution.
Amad
March 22, 2009 at 8:34 PM
Mohamed, was Sh Nuh a translator or did he write the original Arabic? The video did not have any attribution on it, and I have asked the person who uploaded it to provide it.
w/s
shahgul
March 22, 2009 at 11:09 PM
I get the message. But again the question, the only thing that went wrong from the point of view of that man was, it did not turn out to be 100%USDA certified piece of flesh. The only thing that made the man repent was, that the woman was not the right age. So, the only bad thing about the woman was the stamp of age on her face. Now if this was chota gosht (a younger hunk of flesh), the sin would have been worth it.
How sexist and ageist. I understand that these stories have a point, but you cannot transplant the language and nuance of one culture into another. Or I am wrong, probably, it is OK to run after young flesh, whatever the culture.
Qas
March 22, 2009 at 11:45 PM
Sis shahgul, I think what the story tries to convey is that the sins of this world that one finds so attractive, are not attractive after all.
shahgul
March 23, 2009 at 12:45 AM
Unattractive, just like the weather battered face of a grandmother?
Amatullah
March 23, 2009 at 1:29 AM
Sister Shahgul, whether we like it or not, men and women alike do not find that attractive–especially in this story where the man left everything, even his salaah, to follow this woman and he finds her to be a very old woman.
Think of the story of the Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam when the old woman came to him and requested him to pray to Allah to make her enter paradise. The Prophet sal Allahu alayhi wa sallam said, ‘O mother of so and so! No old woman shall enter into paradise’. The narrator says that on hearing this the old woman went back weeping. The Prophet said to the people around him to go and tell the old woman that she would not enter into paradise as an old woman. (Tirmidhi) Then he recited the verse:
“Verily we! We have created those (maidens) by a creation and have made them virgins, loving, of equal age” Qur’aan 56: 35-37
Allah ta’ala states this in the Qur’an, men and women alike will be of equal age because being elderly itself is a stage of weakness (as Allah calls it) and for most people it is past the age of beauty. Sometimes looking so deep into these reminders take away from the original point of the message. This was a reminder about how the dunya takes you away from ‘ebaadah and obedience thinking you are gaining something better in return, only to find that it wasn’t worth it at all. I thought it was a powerful story/message. and Allah knows best.
mm
March 23, 2009 at 1:14 PM
The following went to spam and was accidentally deleted:
Submitted on 2009/03/23 at 10:28am
Assalam u alikum all,
Please see the motion picture version of the posted You Tube Video.
I hope you all like it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8elNqiQlqPk
Ali Mirza
shahgul
March 23, 2009 at 1:14 PM
The point I am trying to make, and people are missing is:
If the purpose of posting such a video was to make dawah to Muslims or Non-Muslims in the West/English speaking world, it totally missed its target. These are precisely the questions that would arise in an average western mind, Muslim or not. It is very important to analyze your audience before you communicate, specially in dawah. Whatever the purpose of your communication, in the 21st century, you just cannot use references that people would find offensive on the base of race, sex, age, national origin or ethnicity. This is because the globe has shrunk and all kinds of people are reading your communcation.
Masajid and Madrisahs have forever been exclusive boys clubs (not any more), with very little input from women. Therefore, the communications have been from one perspective only. It is a fact that ‘men’ commit most open sins involving women (no one seems to be bothered about earning haram and other hidden sins), however, that does not justify making women objects of ridicule. As a woman, I feel dirty and sinful, if I take this kind of poem seriously. No woman should be made to feel that way, and women have a right and duty to put a stop to this kind of men’s club dawah.
The woman depicted in this peom was fully observing Islam dress, she was still casted as an evil influence. If men cannot respect a woman fully hijabed, they need to live in Monasteries like Catholic Monks, or fast like Muslim men. Their shahwa is their problem, not the covered woman’s. I am sick and tired of hearing peotry like: I went to the masjid and looked into your eyes under the niqab and you made me commit such and such sin. Take blame for your own sins. You could have lowered your gaze.
Sister Amatullah wrote:
“Sister Shahgul, whether we like it or not, men and women alike do not find that attractiveโespecially in this story where the man left everything, even his salaah, to follow this woman and he finds her to be a very old woman.”
Sister, please reference the first paragraph above. What you are saying is similar to saying, for example: Most people believe that Pakistanis tell more lies than Indians, therefore…..”
This is unacceptable communication in context of today’s communication standards. Remember, in today’s society, you are free to believe and say whatever you want, but you may or may not have a lot of converts.
shahgul
March 23, 2009 at 2:24 PM
May Allah forgive you for the above link. Thank you for maligning the veiled woman again. I think someone needs to apologize.
Amad
March 23, 2009 at 2:43 PM
Shahgul, apologize for what? We don’t have to agree with your perception and perspectives, just like you don’t have to agree with ours.
This video was meant for Muslims. It is not a “dawah video”. We cannot judge what is acceptable and what is not based on what others who don’t share our faith, might perceive it as, especially when we cannot agree that the message would indeed be negative to a diverse audience. There is no greater trial for men than women, this is what the Prophet (S) himself said. The analogy hit a nerve in many people, men and women. I respect your opinion, but to extend this video as a proxy for all injustices against women, seems outlandish to me.
It wasn’t the woman who was at fault in the story, but rather the man, who fell for imagined beauty, and let his guard down. This man doesn’t represent just men, but rather he represents BOTH men and women who think that the world is beautiful, follow it heedlessly, only to be let down when death comes.
As I have requested before, please provide an alternative story that would have made the same sort of impact in the analogy?
abu Rumay-s.a.
March 23, 2009 at 4:25 PM
very tasteless motion picture, i stoped watching it after he leaves the masjid, i think better discretion should be used in posting such things (my sincere advice)…it really gives a horrible image of a woman in hijaab…i can’t imagine how the sisters would feel, let alone a non muslim watching this…spam is truly what it is in my opinion….
I dont think it is appropriate to use a haraam analogy to get a point across…
Dear brother Amad:
You decided to post this ( i know with good intentions), but you didn’t have to, I dont think there was an immediate rush to post it without looking for alternatives… there are plenty of beautiful ones from the Quran, the sunnah, and true stories from the righteous with better impact and simply because you didnt find an alternative does not legitimize its “acceptability” :( .
Astagfirullah, I dont want to be one that complains and provides no alternatives, so I’ll share Al Hasan al Basri’s story about “Temptation”, its not directly about dunya, but it can be allegorically. I think you may also realize that author of this story which was posted may have gotten his ideas from such stories that I am going to share below, so here it goes, its a bit lengthy for a reply to a post, so its up to you if you want to keep or not…
“Temptation”
It is related that a group of people were once seated in the company of al Hasan al Basri, when some men passed by, dragging along with them the body of a dead man. When Al Hasan saw the dead man, a glint of instant recognition could be discerned in his eyes, and he fell unconscious from the shock of some memory that had just been rekindled. When he regained consciousness, his compansions asked him what was wrong with him. He said, “this man – referring to the dead man being dragged along the ground – used to be one of the best worshippers and one of the most renowned ascetics in the world (here, ascetic specifically refers to a person who forgoes many of the pleasures of this world, because he is so busy and devoted to worship). One day, he left his home, intending to go to the Masjid to pray; but on the way, he saw a young Chrisitian woman, who became an immediate temptation to him. When proposed to her, she refused saying, “I will not marry you until you become an adherent of my religion.” He went on his way, but as time went on, his yearning for her contined to increase. He then succumbed to her wish and exited from the fold of Islam – the religion of Pure, unadulterated Monothesiem. After he became a Christian and some time passed, the woman came out to him from behind her curtain and said, “You are a man bereft of goodness. You have foresaken your religion, which was important to you for your entire life, simply for the sake of a lust that is of no value. Indeed, I too am fosaking my religion, but not for the same reason. I am doing do in order to acheive a blissful existence that never comes to an end, an eternal existence under the care of the One, The As-Samad (i.e. The Self Sufficient Master, Whom all creastures need, He neither easts nor drinks). She then recited (the entire chapter of Suratul Ikhlas). ” Say, ‘He is Allah, The One, The Self Sufficient Master, Whom all creastures need, He neither easts nor drinks. He begets not, nor was He begotten. And there is none equal or comparable unto Him.’
When people heard about what she said, they approached her and asked, “All along, you had this Chapter memorized?” ‘No” she answered. “By Allah, I had never known it before. But after this man continued to insist on having me, I saw a dream: I saw the Hellfire, and my place in it was shown to me. I became terrified and panic-striken. Malik – the Custodian of the Hellfire – said to me; Do not be afraid or sad, for Allah has ransomed (i.e. saved) you with this man (i.e. he will take the place in the Hellfire that you would have taken had not Allah saved you). He then took me by the hand and took me into Paradise. Seeing a line written inside of it, I read it; among what was written were these words; “Allah blots out what He wills and confirms (what He wills). And with Him is the Mother of the book” (Quran 13:39).
He then recited the Al-Ikhlaas chapter to me , and I began to repeat it. Then I woke up and had it (the Al-Ikhas chapter) memorized.”
Al-Hasan then said, “The woman then embraced Islam, and the man – whose corpse you just saw being dragged away – was killed for having apostasized. And I ask Allah to make us firm and steadfast (upon correct guidance) and to grant us safety and success”
{Barhud – Dumu’, 97-98) This story was taken from “Glimpses of the Lives of Righeous People” compiled by M.M. Ash-Shahawi, Darussalam Publications, pgs. 53-55.
Amad
March 23, 2009 at 9:50 PM
I think we should be careful in making judgments of halal and haraam, seriously, even if we don’t like it. That’s a heavy judgment to make.
Ali, that was good acting. I always knew you were a good actor and great at dramas. Glad that things haven’t changed from the good ole’ days! ;)
Btw, the actor in the clip + the commentator, Ali Mirza is an old friend of ours… “semi”-part of the MSA @ U Houston clique ;) which included YQ, urs truly, and a few others.
Sister: No non-sense, Please!
March 23, 2009 at 5:56 PM
I believe sister Shahgul has a point. I think it would have been more appropriate to depict a shameless woman as dunya. After all, they’re the ones who cause all the distraction. Appropriately veiled women help men get close to jannah, not jahannam! They make it easy for men to lower their gaze so they can mind their own business and attend the salah instead of following them.
I think, this video would be much well understood by Saudi audience (compared to western audience) because the Saudi law requires all women to veil (to a certain extent) and the veil wouldn’t seem demonized. And despite that, you will find men following women in their fancy shancy bmw’s or while pretending walk-a-thons! No, not for the sake of marriage, just for the sake of pleasure! Shame on them!
Sister: No non-sense, Please!
March 23, 2009 at 6:13 PM
…and shame on women who provoke from beneath their veils!
shahgul
March 24, 2009 at 12:51 AM
Imad wrote:
“This video was meant for Muslims. It is not a โdawah videoโ. We cannot judge what is acceptable and what is not based on what others who donโt share our faith, might perceive it as, especially when we cannot agree that the message would indeed be negative to a diverse audience. There is no greater trial for men than women, this is what the Prophet (S) himself said. The analogy hit a nerve in many people, men and women. I respect your opinion, but to extend this video as a proxy for all injustices against women, seems outlandish to me.
It wasnโt the woman who was at fault in the story, but rather the man, who fell for imagined beauty, and let his guard down. ”
Dear brother,
I thought the very purpose of this website was dawah, specially to Muslims. If you think it is not, please rethink. Muslims more than anyone else are in need of dawah. Today, we have demonstrated to our teenage girls that Muslim women too can act like the other kind of women, that is, proposition men, not just verbally, but touch non-mehram men. Men they do not even know, random strangers in the market. I am more concerned about their perceptions rather than of other people.
You said it was not the woman who was at fault. Please watch again. She, clad in hijab and all, behaved like the most morally bereft men behave in some countries. She molested the man with touch. Not even a decent man is expected to act like that let alone a Muslim woman.
You strengthen the argument of those (muslims) who oppose the hijab and niqab in particular by saying that the guy fell for ‘imagined’ beauty. If there had been no niqab, the man would have known the woman was ugly and not fall for her.
Yes the prophet peace be upon him did say that there is no greater trial for men than women, but this is a very simplistic and pedestrian interpretation. Some men commit greater sins for the sake of women they are married to, than they do for those they are not and some sons go to hell for their mothers.
And yes, all this kind of simplistic interpretation comes from disrespect for women. Last time I was in the holiest place of earth, I was appalled at all the men who came in a straight trajectory towards you, even within the confines of the haram. I kept jumping out of their way, till I decided I am not going to jump out of the way of the next one, just to see what he would do. The next one kept coming at me and I kept my station till he realized at the last moment that I was not going to give way. He looked at me with disgust and changed his path. You see, he was not trying to bump into me. He was just expecting me to give way. The burden of chastity was on my shoulders, though, I assume the man was aware of what the prophet pbuh said about touching women in the market. I tried this again and agian and again, and held true for each one of them. This is the station of a woman in the heart of those who write these poems and make these videos, and I have decided to hold my station against them.
abu Rumay-s.a.
March 24, 2009 at 3:16 AM
Amad:
I was referring to the act of the “zina” or those steps leading to it in the analogy being haram, nothing more, i’m non one to make a ruling on the anology or any other religious matter, walaythoobillah..I hope you agree that Zina is “haram”?
Amad
March 24, 2009 at 8:20 AM
I guess I misunderstood your statement above where you seem to be suggesting that the analogy is haraam, not the actions. If your intention was the latter, then of course there is no disagreement. So, if I understand you correct, are you suggesting then, that it is not appropriate to use an analogy to describe the haraam act?
abu Rumay-s.a.
March 24, 2009 at 10:03 AM
Thanks for asking, let me clarify.
No, I am saying that I personally believe that it is not appropriate to use a haram act in an anology to convey a “halal” concept, i.e. (loving the dunya (by a zina act analogous to loving dunya) at the expense of deen). Maybe I’m wrong, but I believe it to be reasonable unless otherwise proven…
When I think about the Qur`anic ayat and ahadeeth, nothing comes to mind where a “haram” act is specifically used in analogy to prove or explain a “halal” concept…
some sisters took offense to it (you best watch out for da sistaz feelins)… :)
Umm Reem
March 24, 2009 at 9:41 PM
wow, mashaAllah brother ali…that was pretty good.
but just a few things…perhaps you should add in a background voice what is going on through the man’s mind as he is following this woman…like when he enters the cometary, the dark room etc. his hesitations but how the lust/whispers of shaytaan overtakes him every time, because not everyone read the original story so it will be difficult for the audience to understand how shaytaan plays with our minds…
also, the end was sort of quick…perhaps you should create a bit more suspense, the sound of the key falling in the well etc.
and most importantly you GOTTA show an ugly face underneath that niqaabi!
your acting was very nice! hope you and your family are doing well…
Umm Reem
March 24, 2009 at 9:50 PM
brother aby rumaysa, in all honesty there are some sisters who wear hijaab very nicely (and may Allah reward them for that) but their gesture, their eye contact and their speech is far more flirtatious then many non-hijaabi sisters. Now don’t get me wrong…i am not disrespecting or undermining the obligation of hijaab, but i am just saying that although some sisters wear hijab, they have yet to develop the hijab of their eyes/gestures etc.
and there are many sisters who don’t wear hijab (which they should) but their manners in dealing with the opposite gender are far more conservative than many hijaabis (may Allah reward them for that)
I have heard some brothers say that a covered flirtatious sister is more fitnah for them then a non-hijaabi non-flirtatious sister…maybe for some but not for others, wAllahu ta’ala ‘alam…
abu Rumay-s.a.
March 25, 2009 at 1:53 AM
@ sister Umm Reem;
You’re probably right in your assessment, I can’t really disagree with you…but that is not what i’m contesting..
think of it this way, put the analogy aside for a minute, because we all agree it gives a potent message across about not running after the dunya..
however, the means by which this message is conveyed is questionable to me in that here you have a symbol (sha`airillah) of Allah, a symbol of purity, a symbol of great honor and dignity, a symbol of our mothers, sisters, wives and daughters, and this is noble symbol of a women in hijab is being used in a very demeaning, disrespectful and vulgar way to get a “moral” message across.
Honoring the symbols of Allah is a sign of piety of the heart as Allah ta`ala says in the Quran
Please don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to pass a ruling/judgement or anything, these are just my sincere thoughts. It seems like you all know the brother who has produced this film, perhaps as good due diligence, it’d be good to pass it on to shk. Yasir Q. or any other learned person to get their thoughts on it before publicizing it…
Also, for those brothers who know the original author of this poem, I hope these thoughts reaches him in spirit of sincere advice…
wallahu a`laam..