monotheism; the concept of God as a being who is mighty, loving, forgiving, merciful and just, as well as stern and violent in punishing; conveyance of the word of God through prophets; God’s active involvement in the daily life of human beings; rewards and punishments for obedience/disobedience of God’s words; resurrection after death, heaven and hell, etc.. Muhammad taught that his message was identical to those of Abraham and Moses. can be practicsd by people of other religions within the framework of their own religions. one should be ready to modify the theory or ideology suitably, discard the theory or ideology in part or in full, and if necessary formulate an altogether new theory or ideology, or even consider the possibility of having no theory or ideology at all whether old, modified or new. A common query is: Where did the Black Stone come from? As the It is because this universal absolute truth, which one may call ‘God’, is present in everything and pervades the entire universe, that Hindus see, revere and worship God in anything and everything whether it be trees, animals, birds, stones, a blade of grass or whatever. The religious concepts, beliefs and practices obtaining at that time were as follows: Monotheism i.e. But now, in order to understand clearly the various dimensions of global Islamic terrorism and the fundamentalist, extremist ideology which is taking root everywhere, it is necessary to go to the roots of these problems by going back into history and examining the origins, growth, similarities and differences, etc. Let me start with a story narrated about Edmund Burke, a British parliamentarian and historian, who wanted to write a complete history of the world right from the beginning when life started on earth with marine creatures. So, there are serious drawbacks in Islamic societies which hold these societies back. Dinner Invitations for Famous People from the Past, about Ismail al-Jazari: Medieval Muslim Inventor and "Father of Robotics", about 400+ Ancient Muslim Graves Unearthed in Spain, about Missing Stone Inscription Holds Key to Almazán Skeletons Enigma, about Qutb Minar, the Incredible Victory Tower of the Mamluk Dynasty, about Turkey Converts ANOTHER Former Byzantine Church into a Mosque, about Chittorgarh Fort: A Tale of Sieges, Conquest and Singing Ecstasy, A Secret Roswell Journal Becomes The Focus Of A New UFO Documentary. The goal of Ancient Origins is to highlight recent archaeological discoveries, peer-reviewed academic research and evidence, as well as offering alternative viewpoints and explanations of science, archaeology, mythology, religion and history around the globe. The Stone is roughly 30 cm (12 in.) Do you need to book in advance to visit Black Stone? http://www.crystalinks.com/blackstone.html. The Kaaba is a cuboid stone structure made of granite. The entrance is a door set 2.13 m (7 ft 0 in) above the ground on the north-eastern wall of the Kaaba , called the Bab ar-Rahmah ( Arabic : باب الرحمة ‎, romanized : Bab ar-Rahmah , lit. 'The Black Stone'), is located on the Kaaba's eastern corner. In such a scenario, the alternatives various societies have before them are to make an effort to move forward, change, adapt and be in sync with the world, or try forcefully to be where they are, be in conflict with and try to pull the rest of the world back, all to their own great disadvantage and peril. of the host countries in which they lived, the scientific advancements made by the Christian Western world to which the Jews too were exposed, etc. The release of the strangle hold of orthodox, narrow, fundamentalist religious thinking resulted in considerable growth in science and technology, the arts, and intellectual progress which got translated on the ground into considerable material progress, prosperity and better standards of living for their societies. For these Jews their Jewish identity may be a very powerful force in their lives but they see this as being largely independent of traditional religious beliefs and practice. The crowd at the Kabbah was moderate at this time and we were able to complete all our rituals o, Black stone is embedded in a corner of the Kaaba in the Great Mosque of Mecca in Saudi Arabia & it is touched before starting the tawaaf ( going round the Kaaba ). The Quran is supplemented by the teachings of Muhammad and his living example known as ‘Sunna’ which have been preserved in the ‘Hadith’. The Black Stone was held in reverence well before the preaching of Islam by Muhammad. But over the centuries the religious beliefs contained in Jewish texts were questioned by the Jews themselves right from medieval times through to the Jewish enlightenment of the 18th century and to present times. If you book with Tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. 'The Black Stone'), is located on the Kaaba's eastern corner. Their Origins May Surprise You, Piercing the Veil: Uncovering the Secrets of The Holy Lance, King Solomon’s Mines Discovered: Kings and Pharaohs - Part I, Floki and the Viking Discovery of Iceland. The Key has been held by the Shaiba family for 1400 years An rainwater pipe was added to protect the roof from the damage of accumulated rainwater. The question here is that if freedom to think independently and creatively is accepted in some spheres such as science, the arts, etc. The other books of the New Testament such as the Acts, Epistles, Revelation, the Book of Romans, etc. According to a Hadith in Sunan An-Nasa’i, the Black Stone originates from Heaven.The Hajr e Aswad is a sacred stone from ancient times. POINTS TO PONDER UPON BY JUDAIC RELIGIONS. (Page of tag black stone of Kaaba) Today, the stone is still broken up into several pieces , with estimates ranging from seven to as many as fifteen fragments. Within Islamic jurisprudence, jihad is usually taken to mean military exertion against non-believers and non-Muslim/Muslim combatants. If you can’t reach it, you can point at it or kiss something else which has touched the stone. These various sects cover a wide range of views such as the assertion in Orthodox Judaism that the Torah and Jewish law are divine in origin, eternal, unalterable and have to be strictly followed; Reform Judaism which says that Jewish laws should be viewed only as a set of ‘general guidelines’ rather than as a set of restrictions and obligations which must be observed by all Jews; Conservative Judaism which promotes more "traditional" interpretation of Judaism's requirements than Reform Judaism, Humanistic Judaism which rejects the religious aspects of Judaism while retaining certain cultural traditions. are records of events post Jesus’ death. Jihad, when used without any qualifier, is understood in its military aspect. The annual pilgrimage to the Kaaba takes place inthe first ten days of Dhu al-Hijja, the last lunar month ofthe Islamic calendar. ), Interdenominational, New Thought, etc.. Black Stone of Mecca, Muslim object of veneration, built into the eastern wall of the Kaʿbah (small shrine within the Great Mosque of Mecca) and probably dating from the pre-Islamic religion of the Arabs. Though Christian authorities initially resisted it for a long time, yet gradually the Christian Pope and the Church accepted the truth of various scientific discoveries that were made such as that the earth is not at the centre of the universe, that it is the earth which revolves around the sun and not the other way round as reported in the Bible, that the story in the Bible of the world being created in six days is not true and that creation did not happen in this manner, etc.. As a result of this freedom to question, we have a number of sects in Judaism and Christianity who hold a wide range of views about the content of their religious texts, the degree to which they accept the truth, rationale and correctness of various statements made, their interpretations of the same, the extent to which they follow various religious beliefs, values and practices, all of which has enabled them to be open and tolerant to alternate points of views and to criticism, to co-exist relatively peacefully with other sects in their own religions and with other religions, and to adapt to and cope with a rapidly changing world. have a vested interest in maintaining the status quo / in preserving and propagating their extremist ideology. Even if God stands before us and tells us anything we will question God’. We seek to retell the story of our beginnings. It is time that every Indian (including those in Kashmir who are being misled by Pakistan and by Muslim leaders, politicians and extremists) every Indian leader, politician, political party, etc. But at the same time there is the pull of mental conditioning, mind-sets, inertia, a desire to be securely anchored to the past. When Adam was banished from the Garden of Eden , he was filled with sin. Muslims believe that Islam is the complete and universal primordial faith revealed many times earlier through prophets such as Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, the last prophet being Muhammad (570-632 CE). The contributions made by Christians and Jews have benefited the whole world and are significant even if we take a single parameter such as the number of Nobel Prizes won by people belonging to these two religions. inside, it would not be possible to see it, let alone touch it. 877, and classified as authentic hadith by Sheikh Al-Albaani in his book Sahih At-Tirmidthi, hadith no. Various factors such as the Jewish Enlightenment of the late 18th century, the exposure of Jewish diaspora to the diverse cultures, religious beliefs, education, etc. Polished smooth by the hands of pilgrims. Muslims believe that Allah ordered the Kaaba to be constructed. This is because Muslims have rigidly clung to the past, have been hostile to change, and are wary of examining their religion critically and considering new thoughts and practices, because there is always a threat of violence for any scrutiny or deviation however small from the tenets of Islam. The piercing star.) The Black Stone is one of the stones of the Ka`bah. But trying to achieve political and economic ends through religion, mixing religion with political and economic ambitions makes for a toxic cocktail. The animosities towards Muslims and Christians regarding religious conversion of Hindus to Islam and Christianity continue to this day with efforts continuing to be made to stop such conversions and to reconvert people back to Hinduism. Hajr e Aswad (the Kaaba black stone)is a stone from Paradise. Another factor which holds Islamic societies back is ‘gender inequality’ where, despite claims being made to the contrary, equal treatment is not meted out to both the genders, and females who constitute 50% of the population are not given educational and other opportunities to develop and contribute to their full potential to their societies. Purportedly the oldest mosque on Earth, it is believed to have been originally used by pagans before Islam came into existence. On the other hand, we can keep the past as it is and try to ‘force-fit’ the present to the past. Archaeologists in Almazán Spain are boxed into a corner with a double-edged mystery in which a missing carved stone holds the answer to why eleven bodies were buried beneath a massive medieval... Islamic culture has left an indelible mark on India’s celebrated architectural heritage. which in turn has given rise to problems such as inequalities in Hindu society, attempts by fringe elements to enforce their narrow thinking, etc.. The Ka'aba Black Stone with its frame ( Harry Marlan/Google+ ). The Islamic world has not yet reformed, and reacts very much in the same way to critics and dissidents now as it did many centuries ago. [9] Located on the eastern corner of the Kaaba, it is about 30 cm (12 in) in diameter and surrounded by a silver frame. Since not all would be able to conceive of concepts such as ‘ absolute truth’ or an ‘abstract God’, Hinduism offers concepts and images of ‘personal Gods’, allows use of concrete symbols, idols, images, and belief systems, etc, which people can use to ‘anchor the mind’ and as ‘stepping stones’ to move from ‘religion’ with its rites, rituals, beliefs and focus on an ‘external God’ to deeper meditative states which will lead them into higher ‘spiritual’ experiences. It is also gives people the right and even encouragement to question and debate with authorities whatever be their rank and stature (including the greatest sages); it has evolved a number of techniques of meditation to suit people of different temperaments, to enable people to move from religion with its rites, rituals, beliefs, symbols, idols, images, etc. But the question is why do Muslims, particularly Muslim extremists want to stick to their regressive ideologies and go against the universal basic human urge for freedom, growth and realization of one’s full potential? To understand the grave menace of global Islamic terrorism and the spread of extremist Islamic ideologies it is necessary to go back into history and examine why, though the three Judaic/Abrahamic religions Judaism, Christianity and Islam share a common religious and cultural background, yet today Islam stands apart in many ways from Judaism and Christianity, and in fact it also stands alone among all religions of the world. Non-Muslims are strictly forbidden from touching it and most of the year the Kaaba is covered in black cloth. Force-fitting is like taking a scientific theory, and forcefully fitting further facts, new information, new developments, etc., into the existing theories by stretching, twisting, convolution, etc.. Apart from this story, a number of research studies have been conducted, where incidents were made to happen right before the eyes of various subjects who were asked to give reports of the incidents immediately after they witnessed them, but it was found that their reports varied regarding what they had observed, their perceptions and interpretations, the conclusions that they reached, etc.. aberrations have crept into Hinduism over time and the earlier wide-spread spirituality with its scientific temper, emphasis on meditation to turn the mind inwards, open-mindedness, etc. Since the world has changed in such radical and divergent ways in a manner which human beings could not have conceived of even in the past one century leave alone 20-40 centuries ago, principles of jurisprudence such as strict adherence to the letter of religious texts, consensus which is anchored to the past, analogical derivations, preference for custom and precedents over independent thinking, etc. It is broken into roughly seven pieces, which are held together in a silver frame.