aqaaid

Q: I am very confused when it comes to sects in Islam (e.g. Shia, Sunni, Wahhabi). I live in UK and I see a lot of sects in Muslims here. Myself I belong from Sunni/Sufi background. I like to call myself just a Muslim and try to avoid sects. However, when I try to improve my knowledge of Deen, I get confused by the different opinions. Most of the opinions make sense to me as the scholars from every sect tend to come up with valid evidence. After looking at a YouTube clip of Dr Zakir Naik I got even more confused. He says that Quran is against sects (giving reference to the Quran chapter 6 verse 159- "Indeed, those who have divided their religion and become sects - you, [O Muhammad], are not [associated] with them in anything. Their affair is only [left] to Allah; then He will inform them about what they used to do.”) Now my question is if the Quran doesn’t allow sects. Does that mean everyone who calls themselves Sunni Shia Wahhabi is not following the Quran? And if that’s true, then what is the best way to educate myself?

Q: What does emulating the kuffaar mean? Is it only confined to clothing or does it also relate to other aspects of one's life? We see the kuffaar driving cars and eating and drinking in plates and cups and we Muslims also do the same. Is this not also emulating the kuffaar in our actions?

Q: Is Nabi (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasllam) alive or dead? I have been discussing with my friends at work about Nabi (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) being alive or dead, some say he is dead and some say he is alive. Please can you clear this up for me?

Q:

1) How many wives can you get in Jannah?

2) What things nullify Islam?

3) If your Islam gets nullifed, how do you become a Muslim again? Do you need to read the kalima tayebah again?

Q: Is a follower or believer of the group or sect USI ( United Submitters International) a group founded by Rashad Khalifa an Egyptian native in the USA still in the fold of Islam or is he out of the fold of Islam? They believe primarily only in Quran though having their own English interpretation. They have no regard for sunnah and Hadith describing it as innovation and tradition contrary to the teachings of Quran. Would Nikkah to such a follower or believer be valid? Please give a detailed clarification and reasons for such. Urgent response much appreciated.

Q: Many Muslims belive that the prophet (Sallallahu Alayhi Wasallam) is alive in his grave with his own body. Is it believable?

Q: I have a hard time being convinced that the notion of predestination in Islam makes logical sense. This is my current understanding of the situation: According to the islamic faith, Allah knows everything- what will occur and all that which has not yet occurred. He knew everything about His creation before He created it. He knows in His eternal knowledge about His creation, their provisions, life spans, sayings, moves, deeds, secrets all of their obedient and disobedient acts, who among them will be people of Jannah or who will be from the people of An Naar. Allah has written everything in `law7 el ma7fouz`and there is no escape from Qadr. Examples from the Quran and the Hadith (ex: Book of destiny in sahih muslim and Divine Will in sahih bukhari) supports such understanding of pre-destination. So if human beings are essentially following a `script,` how does it make sense to punish or reward them for their actions? In other words, the notion of pre-destination seems to undermine the notion of free will. If God knows everything in advance and decided for us in advance, it doesn't seem fair to punish or reward us for our actions, since we aren`t the ultimate cause of these actions (Add to that the fact that, according to the islamic faith, nothing happens in the universe except if Allah allows it to happen, which further reinforces the fact that we are not the ultimate cause of our behaviour). But if we have free will, then God cannot be All-Knowing (which is how Islam describes God, thus there is a contradiction). Some sheiks say that no, we have free will, regardless. The say for example, `if I want to stand up I can`, and then they stand up as a proof of free will. They add to that the fact that `nobody forced them to do it`. From their own will, they chose to stand up. However, it can be argued that just because you have the subjective impression that no one is forcing you to do something doesn`t mean that, objectively, that`s what`s actually happening. For example, someone with a brain tumor can exhibit pedophilic behaviours but he/she would never know that it was the brain tumor causing such behaviours (for more, see http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/health/2003-07-28-pedophile-tumor_x…). Also, God already knew that you were going to stand up as an example, since he already knows everything in advance, thus this is an illusion of free will, it's not actual free will. So to summarise, either we have free will and God is not All-Knowing (therefore contradicting how Islam describes God) or God is All-knowing and we don't have free will (therefore the system of reward-and-punishment is unfair). What is your opinion on that? I would love to know.