Playing God

"All rights of this book are reserved for the publisher and the author. This copy is for reading purpose only. This copy cannot be uploaded on any website except those of the publisher and the author." Playing God: Misreading a Divine Practice 56 3 + - . About Ka‘b ibn Ashraf, the historians write that after Ghazwah-e Badar (Battle of Badar), he went to Makkah and recited vengeance inspiring elegies for those of the Quraysh who had fallen in battle, wrote odes ( tashb ī b ) that prefaced the names of some Muslim women and caused much distress to Muslims, a nd, while residing in the domain of the Prophet’s governm ent, endeavoured to incite people against him. Some narratives describe that he even went to the extent of devising deception to assassinate the Prop het (sws). ‘Abd All ā h ibn Khat al was sent for zak ā h (o bligatory alms) collection by the Prophet (sws). He was accompanied by a person from amongst the Ansā r and a servant. On the way, Ibn Khat al killed the servant on the pretext of insubordination, became an apostate, and ran away to Makkah. Not only this; all three people mentioned here persisted in their denial of the Prophet ( sws ) even after the truth of his message had become conclusively evident to them. 42 ix. Prohibition of asking for Forgiveness for Non-Muslims A common perception among Muslims is that the following verse of the Qur’ ā n has stopped them from asking the Almighty for forgiveness of non-Muslims: 42. For details, see: Ja # ved Ah @ mad Gha # midi # , Punishment for Blasphemy against the Prophet (sws) (trans. Asif Iftikhar). Can be accessed from: http://www.al- mawrid.org/pages/articles_english_detail.php?rid=1157&cid= 304&search=blasphemy www.javedahmadghamidi.com www.al-mawrid.org