Donkey then said, "I know that those who feel themselves as humans, have formed a bad opinion of donkeys but I would like to say that donkeys have also formed a bad opinion of some humans. There is a common belief among human beings that donkeys cannot read nor write. But, this is not true, for some donkeys find this very easy. We can read the trail of a scent on the ground. From the blasts of the wind, we know about expected weather changes. However, it is true that we do not write except during some rare occasions, like when there is a confession, complaint or something dangerous that we want to say, just like what I want to say to you, O birds! " The birds said, simultaneously, "Tell us O donkey!"
Donkey said, "This story is told by Western writer. In a village of La Mancha, the name of which I have no desire to call to mind, there lived not long since one of those gentlemen that keep a lance in the lance-rack, an old buckler, a lean hack, and a greyhound for coursing. The age of this gentleman of ours was bordering on fifty; he was of a hardy habit, spare, gaunt-featured, a very early riser and a great sportsman. They called him Don Quixote of La Mancha. You must know, then, that the gentleman, whenever he was at leisure, which was mostly all the year round, gave himself up to reading books of chivalry with such ardour and avidity that he almost entirely neglected the pursuit of his field-sports, and even the management of his property; and to such a pitch did his eagerness and infatuation go that he sold many an acre of tillageland to buy books of chivalry to read, and brought home as many of them as he could get. But of all there were none he liked so well as those of the famous Feliciano de Silva’s composition, for their lucidity of style and complicated conceits were as pearls in his sight, particularly when in his reading he came upon courtships and cartels, where he often found passages like “the reason of the unreason with which my reason is afflicted so weakens my reason that with reason I murmur at your beauty.
By the thought of all the world was losing by his delay, seeing what wrongs he intended to right, grievances to redress, injustices to repair, abuses to remove, and duties to discharge. So, without giving notice of his intention to anyone, and without anybody seeing him, one morning before the dawning of the day, he donned his suit of armour, mounted Rocinante with his patched-up helmet on, braced his buckler, took his lance, and by the back door of the yard sallied forth upon the plain in the highest contentment and satisfaction at seeing with what ease he had made a beginning with his grand purpose.
Meanwhile Don Quixote worked upon a farm labourer, a neighbour of his, an honest man, if indeed that title can be given to him who is poor, but with very little wit in his pate. In a word, he so talked him over, and with such persuasions and promises, that the poor clown made up his mind to sally forth with him and serve him as esquire. Don Quixote, among other things, told him he ought to be ready to go with him gladly, because any moment an adventure might occur that might win an island in the twinkling of an eye and leave him governor of it. On these and the like promises, Sancho Panza. left wife and children, and engaged himself as esquire to his neighbour. And firmly, Sancho rode his donkey.
At a point of their journey, they came in sight of thirty forty windmills that there are on plain, and as soon as Don Quixote saw them he said to his squire, "Fortune is arranging matters for us better than we could have shaped our desires ourselves, for look there, friend Sancho Panza, where thirty or more monstrous giants present themselves, all of whom I mean to engage in battle and slay, and with whose spoils we shall begin to make our fortunes; for this is righteous warfare, and it is God's good service to sweep so evil a breed from off the face of the earth."
"What giants?" said Sancho Panza. "Those thou seest there," answered his master, "with the long arms, and some have them nearly two leagues long."Look, your worship,” said Sancho; “what we see there are not giants but windmills, and what seem to be their arms are the sails that turned by the wind make the millstone go.”
“It is easy to see,” replied Don Quixote, “that thou art not used to this business of adventures; those are giants; and if thou art afraid, away with thee out of this and betake thyself to prayer while I engage them in fierce and unequal combat.”
So saying, he gave the spur to his steed Rocinante, heedless of the cries his squire Sancho sent after him, warning him that most certainly they were windmills and not giants he was going to attack. He, however, was so positive they were giants that he neither heard the cries of Sancho, nor perceived, near as he was, what they were, but made at them shouting, “Fly not, cowards and vile beings, for a single knight attacks you.”
A slight breeze at this moment sprang up, and the great sails began to move, seeing which Don Quixote exclaimed, “Though ye flourish more arms than the giant Briareus, ye have to reckon with me.” So saying, with lance in rest and covered by his buckler, he charged at Rocinante’s fullest gallop and fell upon the first mill that stood in front of him; but as he drove his lance-point into the sail the wind whirled it round with such force that it shivered the lance to pieces, sweeping with it horse and rider, who went rolling over on the plain, in a sorry condition. Sancho hastened to his assistance as fast as his ass could go, and when he came up found him unable to move, with such a shock had Rocinante fallen with him.
“God bless me!” said Sancho, “did I not tell your worship to mind what you were about, for they were only windmills? and no one could have made any mistake about it but one who had something of the same kind in his head.”
“Hush, friend Sancho,” replied Don Quixote, “the fortunes of war more than any other are liable to frequent fluctuations; and moreover I think, and it is the truth, that that same sage Friston who carried off my study and books, has turned these giants into mills in order to rob me of the glory of vanquishing them, such is the enmity he bears me; but in the end his wicked arts will avail but little against my good sword.”
“God order it as he may,” said Sancho Panza, and helping him to rise got him up again on Rocinante; and then, discussing the late adventure, they followed the road to Puerto Lapice. And the story goes, leaving a message that we sometimes assume that windmills, which irrigate fields or grind grains, as a terrible monster."
Shama' then said, "Any comments?" Mantis said, "O my brothers and sisters, we sometimes assume that windmills, which irrigate fields or grind grains, as a terrible monster. The same thing happens to some views about the Law of Islam, known as Sharia Islam. What I will say to you, O my brothers and sisters, is not an invitation to raise the sword, bring down the legitimate government, as the common image of Islam, being spread by the swords. If you are saying Islam, then in the mind of the people, will emerge an Arab on camel back riding in off the desert with a Quran in one hand and a curved sword in the other offering a choice of either accepting Islam or losing one’s head. And also, this is not an invitation to suicide bombings as well, because Suicide is forbidden in Islam so the concept of “suicide bombing” is fundamentally unacceptable in Islam. Islam opposes any form of indiscriminate violence. The Quran, Surah Al-Ma'idah, verse 32, states, “...that whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption [done] in the land - it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one - it is as if he had saved mankind entirely..." There are strict rules regulating how war may be conducted. Our beloved Prophet (ﷺ) forbade the killing of women, children, and old people and the destruction of Churches and Synagogues or farms. Of course, if women, children or the elderly bear arms they may be killed in self-defense.
The covering of Muslim women has become one of the international symbols of female oppression in feminist circles. Islam prescribes the covering of females for two primary reasons stated in the Quran. Allah says in Surah al-Ahzaab (33: 59), "O Prophet, tell your wives and your daughters and the women of the believers to bring down over themselves [part] of their outer garments. That is more suitable that they will be known and not be abused. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful."
The hijaab is to make the Muslim woman known in the society as a virtuous and honorable woman. Her hijaab makes the statement that she is not available and not interested in any advances. Many Muslim women who have emigrated to the West take of their scarves and outer garments because they claim it draws attention to themselves. If they expose their hair and dress in modest western dresses no one will look at them. It is true that the hijaab does provide a level of anonymity, as many of the woman’s physical details will be hidden. However, the intent is not to prevent men from looking. When men see a nun in her habit, fully covered like a Muslim woman in full hijaab, they will turn their heads and stare at her. Similarly, when they see a woman walking in a bikini, they will also turn their heads and stare. However, the first stare is different from the second. The first is out of curiosity, having seen something unusual, while the second is out of lust and aroused sensuality. The consequence of the second is the molestation of women on a national scale while the first causes respect.
Padda asked, "Some people question the imposition of hijaab by the Islamic state. Is it a personal choice of women or a legal obligation?" Mantis said, " It is the responsibility of the head of every family to insure that the women of his household leave the home in a legally acceptable state of dress. The state is further responsible to prevent any women who appear in public in a state of undress in order to protect public dignity and morality. There are conditions which must be fulfilled for the hijaab to be acceptable.First, It should be wide and loose so as to not show the shape of the woman’s body; second, it should be made of thick material which will not reveal what is underneath; third, It should not be colorful and ornamented so as to attract sexual admiration.
There are two major trends which have developed in the West over the past century. On one hand, the fashion industry has systematically unclothed women. From being fully clothed from head to toe at the turn of the century, she now wears virtually nothing when the weather permits. On the other hand there has been a dramatic rise in the reported incidents of rape. The two trends are closely interrelated. The woman in the West has become a sex object with which to sell products thereby pumping up the sexual tension of the society. A car is not sold based on its powerful engine or its special features, instead the car is displayed with a model in a bikini lying on it. Similarly, a new razor blade is not sold by giving details about its new titanium blades. Instead, a man is shown in ads shaving with a woman’s hand with long red fingernails coiled around hold his. The subliminal message being taught is: You buy the car, you get the girl. You buy the razor, you get the girl.
Another example, is about Criminal Justice in Islam. Muslim application of criminal law has often been described as Medieval Draconian laws. In the Islamic system, punishments are placed in three categories. The first category is Hudood, the second is Qisaas, and the third is Ta'zeer."
Padda' asked, "What is Hudood?" Mantis said, "Hudood are punishments prescribed by Allah in a revealed text of the Quran or Sunnah, the application of which is the right of Allah. Hudood are the prescribed punishments legally decreed to be executed when certain sins are committed in order to forbid recommitting them. The origin of the legality of these prescribed punishments is the Noble Qur’an, the Sunnah and the consensus of Muslim scholars. The wisdom behind ordaining the prescribed punishments is that they are means of deterrence, restraint, and purification from sins. They are ordained to fulfill the Rights of Allah, in the first place, and then for the benefit of the Muslim community, Allah has made these punishments incumbent upon those who commit crimes stemming from weaknesses in human nature. Thus, such prescribed punishments are in the best interest of humankind in this world as well as in the Hereafter.
To illustrate, the affairs of any state do not settle except through having restraints, deterrents, and punishments to be imposed on criminals. Through applying these punishments, the disobedient people and outlaws are deterred, the obedient and law-abiding people feel safe, justice is established on earth, and people feel secure with regard to their souls, honors and properties. This can be seen in the societies that apply the punishments prescribed by Allah, where security, stability, and welfare are achieved in a way that none can deny. In contrast to this are the societies that dispense with the punishments prescribed by Allah on the pretext that such punishments are savage and incompatible with modern civilization. Thus, these communities are deprived of this divine justice achieved through these prescribed punishments and the virtues of security and stability they maintain. Whatever arms and high technology such straying communities have, it avails them nothing until they apply the punishments prescribed by Allah for the benefit of Hisservants.This is because human societies cannot be ruled only by power and technology, but they are to be ruled by the Law of Allah and His prescribed punishments; power and technology can only serve as means to execute these legal punishments, provided they are properly used.
How could those deviating people describe the punishments prescribed by Allah as being savage while in reality they represent divine mercy to ail humankind? How could they regard those divine decrees as savage while not regarding the wrongdoing done by criminals as savage, though they, the criminals, horrify safe people, harm the innocent, and disturb social peace and stability? In fact, this is the real savagery; the one who shows mercy toward such criminals is more unjust and more savage than the criminals themselves. So. regrettably when minds are spoiled and morality vanishes, people see what is right wrong and vice versa.
It is impermissible to execute a prescribed punishment on a culprit unless the following two conditions are met. The first condition; is that the culprit must be a legally accountable person, i.e, sane and adult, for the Prophet (ﷺ) said , "There are three persons whose actions are not recorded: A minor until he reaches puberty, a lunatic until he regains his reason, and a sleeper until he awakes." Since none of the acts of worship is obligatory upon such persons, they are more entitled to be exempted from legal punishments, for they are already legally unaccountable persons, in addition to the fact that legal penalties are inapplicable in case of suspicion.
The Second condition: is that a culprit must be aware of the prohibition of the act he has committed: otherwise, the prescribed punishment is inapplicable. This is because ' Umar Ibnul-Khattab, ‘Uthman Ibn ' Affan, and Ali Ibn Abu Thalib, radhiyallahu 'anhum, maintained, "No prescribed punishment is to be executed except on him who is aware of it (i.e. aware that his deed entails such a punishment)."
