the crescent of islam

In the Christian world, the cross is the most prominent religious object. One can see it in churches, schools, funeral parlors, cemeteries, sarcophagi, some Christian houses, and even on necklaces of some women. Christians believe it is the symbol of Christianity. There is no Christianity with that ubiquitous cross.

In Islam, the religion of the Muslims, there is no cross. Muslims do not believe Jesus died on the cross. When the Jews arrested Jesus and wanted to kill him, Allah (God) miraculously intervened and saved him. Jesus was raised to heaven without passing death. So no one can see a cross in the mosques as he can see in Christian churches. Instead, one can see the crescent on the domes and minarets of almost all mosques around the world.

Most Muslims believe the crescent is the symbol of Islam . But why the crescent? Muslim scholars are not unanimous in explaining the meaning of the crescent. Some say it represents the crescent of the Islamic month of Ramadan, the month in which Muslims fast. If a month has such importance as to represent Islam, why chose Ramadan? Why not Rabee-ul-Awwal, the Islamic month in which the Prophet Muhammad was born? Or why not Safar the Islamic month in which the Prophet Muhammad died? So many Muslim scholars disagree with this Ramadan explanation.

Some scholars explain that the crescent means that Islam is a growing religion just like the crescent moon which becomes bigger and bigger until it becomes full moon. But why start with the crescent? The new moon is much appropriate. Islam started with one man, the Prophet Muhammad himself. Then it grows until it is embraced now by more than ¼ of the whole world population. Islam is indeed a fast growing religion. So with this explanation, Islam cannot be represented by a crescent. Can we change the crescent to a new moon?

Another Muslim scholar has a different version. He said the crescent represents the so-called fertile crescent in the Middle East, starting from Egypt, passing the western part of Saudi then to Iraq. But why this region only? Muslims say Islam is a universal religion; it cannot be isolated to the fertile crescent only. Furthermore, when Islam was first revealed to the Prophet, this region was immersed in paganism.

Until now the correct meaning of this crescent on the mosques is unknown. If Muslim scholars are not sure, how can the ordinary Muslims know? And to complicate matters, nobody knows for sure when the crescent was first used as a symbol of Islam, and who introduced it . Some Muslim scholars say it was during the Abbasid caliphate. Some, however, disagreed.. They claim it started during the time of the Ottoman empire of the Turks in 1300 – 1916 C.E. Of course, all these are wild guesses.

Prophet Muhammad did not use the crescent as a symbol of Islam. When he built the first mosque in a place called Quba, he did not install any crescent. Later when he built another mosque in Medina, now known as the Mosque of the Prophet, he did not install any crescent; neither did he teach that it was the symbol of Islam. In other words, using the crescent as the symbol of Islam is an innovation of the Muslims themselves.

When Prophet Muhammad received the first revelation of Islam sometime in 610 C.E., the Middle East and the whole known world were already immersed in paganism. Christianity has already absorbed many pagan beliefs and rites like the trinity doctrine, the god-eating- rite now known as the Holy Eucharist, Christmas, Crucifixion and Easter, and many others. Islam is a purely monotheistic religion that tried to destroy these pagan beliefs and rites.

The worship of the triune god first started in ancient Babylon which is now in modern Iraq, a Muslim country. The first trinity started with Nimrod the son, his father Cush and his wife . Though worshiped in different names, this trinity spread to other countries like Egypt, Turkey and other Mediterranean countries.

After the passage of time, the gods of Babylon begun to multiply and other triune gods came like Sin the moon god, Shamash the sun god and Ishtar the fertility goddess.In Christianity Sin the moon god became the father, Shamash the sun god became the son Jesus, and Ishtar the wife of Sin became Mary the mother of Jesus.

Archaeological findings in the ruins of Babylon showed a stone tablet depicting the shrine and emblem of the trinity Sin, Shamash and Ishtar. The emblem of Ishtar is the eight-pointed star; that of Shamash , the sun god or the son, is the sun; and that of Sin, the moon god or the father, is the crescent.

In 1300 C.E. when Turkey, a former pagan country but now Muslim, rose to power, it preserved the crescent as its emblem , and it was also at this time that the crescent became prominent in almost all mosque throughout the empire. Saudi Arabia and all Muslim countries in the Middle East became part of the empire, so all the mosques there displayed the crescent emblem. And from the Middle East, it spread throughout the world.

The Ottoman Empire fell in 1916. Although the empire was gone, the crescent remains until now. The Muslims love it although it was an emblem of the pagan god Sin.Is Islam purely monotheist? One should think hard on the origin of the crescent he sees on the mosques before he answers, yes.

SAUDI ARABIA: ISLAMIC COUNTRY?

Saudi Arabia to many people is a land of opportunity. Coming from diverse cultures like Egypt, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Philippines, and other poor countries , many people go there to work hoping for a better future. Though many failed, many did find their pot of gold. The most important contribution of Saudi Arabia to the world, however, is not only job opportunities, oil, and an excellent military base for the U.S.A., but Islam, the religion embraced by about ¼ of the whole world population.

The birth place of Islam and its prophet, the Prophet Muhammad, is Saudi Arabia. Because of this, most Muslims consider it as the sole authority in the teaching and practices of Islam. In the Philippines when a dispute on Islamic law crops up among the Muslims, the one who could present practices in Saudi Arabia settles it. That is how high the esteem of Saudi Arabia in the minds of Filipino Muslims. Muslims are made to believe that Saudi Arabia is an Islamic country, that its system of government and practices are patterned after Islam, and that its people , the Arabsare model Muslims.

This is of course wild imagination and false; the opposite is true.Arab muslim scholars know this, only that they are afraid to speak out in public, knowing well that anybody proven to speak against the government or Islam, the consequence is imprisonment or expulsion from the kingdom. That is the justice of Saudi Arabia. But that justice in the light of Islam that it purports to follow is injustice.

Islam is theocracy. It is a government of God (Allah), by a representative of God, and for God. Everything that the Muslims do is for the pleasure of God . And the earthly representative of God that runs this government is the Prophet who was also appointed by God, not appointed or elected by the people. The successor of the prophet called the Imam was also appointed by God through the Prophet. The Prophet said there will be twelve Imams after him. The laws of Islam are not man made, but by God and promulgated by the Prophet by the command of God. People have no say in legislation; they are required to follow.

Saudi Arabia, however, is opposite this as it is a monarchy called Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is run and governed by a king from the Saud family. That is why it is called Saudi, meaning, Arabia of the family of Saud. Everything that the subjects do is for the pleasure of the king. One may do something in the name of God and Islam, but if it will cause displeasure of the king, he is in trouble as mentioned earlier. In order to ensure the perpetuation of the Saud family as rulers, the government made a very strong tie with the West especially the United States up to the point of being subservient to it. It put up a strong military machine with the backing of its western master, the United States.

In addition to that, in order to have eyes and ears inside the kingdom itself, a unique intelligence system was established- the motawa or the religious police in plain clothe sin order to hide his presence among the masses. The title, religious police, is of course deceiving as he is not only concerned with religious matters, but of anything else that tends to shake the acceptance of the people of the anti-Islamic monarchy.

How the motawa treats people, especially the foreign workers, is dreadful. This writer had an unforgettable experience with him. After we finished praying the Isha prayer orthe night prayer in a big mosque, while waiting for a drugstore to open, there was a hard knock on our car's window. When I opened, the big, fat man and his companion staring at us shouted at the top of his voice: "Iqamah, iqamah, iqamah." (The iqamah is a sort of residence certificate showing ones entry into the kingdom.)

Then he pulled my hands and pushed me into his car. In their headquarter, they pushed me into a detention cell. There, much to my surprise, I learned they were the ones who did not pray in the mosque during the time of prayer; they were just roaming around looking for their victims. They should be the one who should be arrested – not me. But maybe they are exempted from obeying Islamic laws because they are part of the establishment and because the government authorized them to do so.

Many more instances of Saudi injustices could be told. These injustices are done in the name of Islam; Islam that prohibits injustice in the first place. What an irony! Now Muslims should open their eyes to the true nature of Saudi Arabia. We love Saudi Arabia but hate its anti-Islamic foolishness.

Minoans – the early atlantheans (atlantis)

atlantis an advance civilization during its time, that was wipe out on the face on the earth through catastrophic volcanic eruption. The exact location of atlantis is uncertain and being debated over and over again. Lots of folklore, theory, myths, emerged about atlantis in novels and movies. There are even theories, that it was once located on the present-day Bermuda triangle. And those missing ships and airplanes, entered another dimension, the dimension of atlantis.

Every search about atlantis begins with the writings of the great philosopher plato. Considered the father of western philosophy. During the early 19th century, on the island of Crete in the Mediterranean an archaeologist named Arthur Evans a real-life Indiana Jones, on the hills of knossos unearthed a magnificent stone throne. A palace with a one century advance engineering during its time. This newly unearthed civilization was named by Evans as the Minoan.

Recently there is this ground-breaking theory that Minoans, where the early people of atlantis. Or to say, the remains of atlantis. It is the sophistication of the palace on Crete that link to the idea of atlantis. The theory is very convincing based on the technology that can be found on the palace matching the description of plato. For instance, plato describe the palace of atlantis as an acropolis sitting on top a great hill. At knossos, experts finds just that. Large foundations blocks of palace walls, was built using crystalline stone called gypsum. Which was quarried locally. In the atlantis myth, it was said that the external of the palace walls shine like silver. Today, the gypsum walls at knossos was eroded by the elements, but during their full-glory, they too would have sparkled. Whatever plato describe about the palaces of atlantis, can be found on the palace at knossos.

Now the next question is, is that theory confirmed? The answer, till now it remains a very convincing theory.

philippines national tree

in the philippines, narra (Pterocarpus indicus) is considered as the national tree. for what reason, definitely a common citizen is not that aware. however if you ask, someone from the government, he/she can give you dozens of policatal reason.

for governance or political reason that maybe fine. however, I'm looking into the aspect of benefits. and when it comes to benefit, nothing beats the good old coconut (Cocos nucifera). if you consider uniqueness, as the reason for choosing narra. we have mango as national fruit, but mango don't only exist in Philippines!


coconut provides a nutritious source of meat, juice, milk, and oil that has fed and nourished populations around the world for generations. and scientifically proven treatment for flu, gingivitis, gonorrhea, irregular or painful menstruation, jaundice, kidney stones, lice, malnutrition, nausea, ..etc. this site will give you more more comprehensive idea of what benefit can be taken from coconut: coconut research center

narra on the other hand had been used by folks for source of honey, shampoo, treatment for diarrhea, headache, stones..etc. again, visit this site for more details.

based on the data presented, when it comes to benefit - narra or coconut?

The Crescent Moon - Is it a symbol of Islam?

the crescent. distinctive symbol that can be seen on the minarets of almost every mosque. is it the symbol of islam? the use of it is so widespread that even mosque, as far as the philippines are adapting this as a ritual. there are even some folks, that will not honor it as mosque unless if it has a crescent symbol.

to answer the question, it is not a symbol. islam thoroughly prohibits association of any form of idols, and symbols. so, how the hell it started?! actually it was during the reign of ottoman empire that the crescent moon and star became affiliated with the Muslim world. when the turks conquered constantinople (istanbul) in 1453, they adopted the city's existing flag and symbol. legend holds that the founder of the ottoman empire, osman, had a dream in which the crescent moon stretched from one end of the earth to the other. taking this as a good omen, he chose to keep the crescent and make it the symbol of his dynasty.

for hundreds of years, the ottoman empire ruled over the muslim world. after centuries of battle with christian europe, it is understandable how the symbols of this empire became linked in people's minds with the faith of islam as a whole. in short, it is a non-islamic tradition.

the science behind breaking(Tameshiwari)

i must admit, breaking is one part of martial arts that i like most. the feeling is satisfying! imagine you break solid object such as bricks, wood, etc with your bare hands. for a martial artist, breaking is a superb confidence booster.

what is the secret behind it?! based on personal experience, nothing but practice, practice, ....i mean lots of practice and proper training. it is not an overnight success. and by the way, let me stress this out. shortcuts don't work in martial arts! so next time when you see ads like learn karate in 2weeks, or get your black belt in 6 months -- that is a pure scam.

going back, other martial artist go away from breaking because it can caused cancer to your hand/s or i might break your bones. some says, human body is not meant to be stuck against hard objects. aside from proper training and deligent practice, what science has to say about it? can human bones tolerate such impact?!

ok, the answer is yes. hard body training actually transforms the bone itself. It is called Wolff's Law. a theory developed by the German Anatomist/Surgeon Julius Wolff(1836-1902) in the 19th century that states that bone in a healthy person or animal will adapt to the loads it is placed under. If loading on a particular bone increases, the bone will remodel itself over time to become stronger to resist that sort of loading.

THE IMAMS OF THE MOSQUE – CORRUPT OR UPRIGHT?

One of the teachings of Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, as shown by his deeds, is the perfection of morality. Muslims who seriously follow such morality as set by Muhammad, indeed, stand on a higher plane of character and behavior. Such are the Imams of the mosques who in reality are representatives of the Prophet. These Imams not only lead in the daily worship in the mosque but also in other aspects of the muslims' life like marriage, death burial, honesty in business, education of the muslims, and politics. In any problem arising in the daily affairs of the muslims, the Imam is consulted. To be effective, the Imam should be models of wisdom and morality. But the Imam of Mansilingan, Bacolod City, Philippines is an exception!

Commonly known as Omar Betita, a former christian who newly embraced Islam. Before his conversion his name was Bebot Tanis, a Christian who worked in Mindanao.

But because he was involved in some sort of financial malversation in his company he escaped to Negros Occidental where he converted to Islam in one of the Islamic Organizations in Bacolod City, Philippines in order to work in Saudi Arabia as an auto painter. In order to learn Islam while he was working in Saudi Arabia, he would take clippings about Islam from The Arab News every Friday. And this became his only Islamic education.


Muslims in the Philippines always looked up to Muslims who worked in Saudi Arabia thinking that these Muslims are learned in Islam. So after a few years stint in Saudi Arabia, when he abruptly returned to Bacolod City, some Muslims requested him to be their Imam which he readily accepted despite his meager knowledge of Islam and zero knowledge of Arabic.

What kind of a man is Omar Betita? Did he really absorbed the morality of Islam? To say, yes, is hypocrisy, why? First of all he was involved in financial malversation, that is why from Tanis, he changed his family name to Betita in order to hide his identity. While in Saudi Arabia, he caused his wife to write a letter that she needed to be operated of her goiter and she needed cash. Of course that was a lie; there was no goiter. Betita needed the letter to solicit for cash donations, and the gimmick was successful. As Imam, he required cash payment from people who accepted Islam and for officiating in marriages.
Worst of all, he called muslims who do not belong to his group as non-muslims; only they are the true muslims, so says Omar Betita.

Is this Islam? Is Omar Betita a true muslim? Does he deserve to be an Imam? We cannot really open what's in his heart; but his un-Islamic deeds
reveal it. Action speaks louder than words, so the saying goes.

This is not a personal vendetta against Omar, rather an eye-opener, a warning to all.