Course Overview
Many millennia ago Prophet Ibrahim (as) saw a dream. He saw himself sacrificing his son. This dream has been traditionally understood as a command from God to His Prophet. But throughout the Quran, God prohibits human sacrifice and other pagan practices. How can we understand this dream in conjunction with the clear prohibitions found in the Quran? Is this understanding a case of misinterpretation or biblical influence on our tafsir literature?
Since it is a dream to begin with, Islam does provide a guide to understand the reality of dreams. Dreams present a message about the future and often times require an interpretation to derive their true meaning. Keeping that in mind, was this dream a 'command' or a vision about the future of Ibrahim (as)'s progeny through his son?
As we understand this dream, another question that will be explored is that is the future etched in stone or is it a collection of possibilities in God's infinite knowledge, according to Islamic literature? We all know the significance of Prophets as bringers of God's messages to humanity. In this course we will look at a different role assigned to Prophets It's a fact that Allah gives them access to the events of the future through revelation. But can they influence or change the future when given a choice?
Rather than understanding this dream to be a command of Allah, as it is in conflict with the rest of the Quran, we conclude that this dream has to be understood just like other dreams- Messages about the future that need to be decoded. Therefore, it has serious implications for the future of Prophet Ibrahim's progeny through Ismail (as), which is the Muslim Ummah.
Then we gather evidence for this interpretation through the various hadith of the Prophet Muhammad (saw) that talk about the future tribulations of the Muslim world. This leads us directly to Gog and Magog. The important question that needs an answer is- Are we living in the world order of Gog and Magog ?
Lesson Overview
Lesson 1 – Lesson 1- Prohibition of human sacrifice in the Quran
What does the dream of Ibrahim (as) imply? Did Allah really want a Prophet to 'literally' sacrifice his son (another Prophet)? The QUran throughout prohibits human sacrifice. Is there something more to this event than what was classically discussed ?
Lesson 2 – Lesson 2- Biblical influence on Tafsir literature
Is the traditional understanding of the dream of Ibrahim (as) a case of misinterpretation or biblical influence on the tafsir literature?
Lesson 3 – Lesson 3- Shaykh Imran Hosein's (hz) understanding
WHAT DOES THE DREAM OF IBRAHIM (AS) IMPLY? DID ALLAH REALLY WANT A PROPHET TO 'LITERALLY' SACRIFICE HIS SON (ANOTHER PROPHET)? THE QURAN THROUGHOUT PROHIBITS HUMAN SACRIFICE. IS THERE SOMETHING MORE TO THIS EVENT THAN WHAT WAS CLASSICALLY DISCUSSED ?
In this lesson we present a holistic understanding of this dream, using Shaykh Imran hosein's research. His interpretation of the event takes the entirety of the quran into consideration and avoids the contradiction of the traditional understanding. also it presents a profound vision of our destiny as muslims and heirs of the legacy of prohet ibrahim (as).
Lesson 4 – Lesson 4- Proper Methodology to study the Quran
How should the quran be studied? in the case of the dream of ibrahim (as), we see an interpretation of this dream that is in conflict with the rest of the quran. should a verse of the quran be understood in isolation from the rest? Is that not like taking a verse out of context? This is exactly the mistake that has been made with respect to the dream of ibrahim (as). while the entire quran prohibits human sacrifice, this dream, unfortunately has been interpreted as a divine command to commit a clear prohibition. is this not a contradiction?
Lesson 5 – Lesson 5- Early scholars and the 'time' advantage
Can the passage of time and the occurence of historical events enrich our understanding of Islamic literature. we know in the case of hadith pertaining to the End times (Islamic Eschatology), we as modern muslims have the 'time' advantage to interpret them. early scholars were confounded by many hadith that describe the tribulations of the end times. but for us they make much more sense, as we have seen them happening before our eyes.
this being said about the hadith pertaining to fitan (end times tribulations). what about verses of the quran. can modern scholarship bring out deeper and extensive meanings from the quranic text, by virtue of its experience of the historical process and the unfolding of new events? Should this new tool be added to improve the already stipulated collection of rules and principles for understanding the quran (usul of tafsir)?
Lesson 6 – Lesson 6- Dreams- A window into future possibilities
What is the reality of dreams in islam? A dream is a window overlooking future events. The dreams of Prophets are as true as other forms of revelation. Prophets are given access to the knowledge of future events. But her's the catch. Prophets are given access to the knowledge of future events but often times, with room for their choice.
is the future etched in stone or is it a collection of possibilities in God's infinite knowledge, according to Islamic literature? We all know the significance of Prophets as bringers of God's messages to humanity. In this lesson let's look at a different role assigned to Prophets. It's a fact that Allah gives them access to the events of the future through revelation. But can they influence or change the future when given a choice?
Lesson 7 – Lesson 7- Decoding the dream of a Prophet
What is the reality of Dreams? What does Islam say about Dreams? In this online course we take the dream of Ibrahim (as) as case study and try to understand the purpose and meaning of dream. Many millennia ago Prophet Ibrahim (as) saw himself sacrificing his son in a dream. While Allah Most High explicitly prohibits human sacrifice, why would He 'command' his Prophet to sacrifice his son (another prophet)?
We asked the questions- Was this a 'command' or a vision about the future of Ibrahim (as)'s progeny? Is the traditional understanding a case of misinterpretation or the biblical influence on the tafsir of the Quran?
Lesson 8 – Lesson 8- Does a Prophet's dream influence the historical process?
We all know the significance of Prophet's as bringers of God's messages to humanity. In this lesson let's look at a different role assigned to Prophets. It's a fact that Allah gives them access to the events of the future through revelation. But can they influence or change the future when given a choice?
Is the future unchangeable and etched in stone according to the Quran or full of different possibilities written by Allah?
What about the nature of dreams. A dream in Islam is a 'khabr' or message of the future. But the message needs interpretation. And the Prophet (saw) says, the interpretation actualizes the dream. "A dream is hanging on the wing of the bird as soon as it is interpreted, it happens as it was interpreted.” [Ibn Majah and Abu Dawud]
We took Ibrahim (as) as case study and tried to understand his famous dream in which he saw himself sacrificing his son. While Allah Most High explicitly prohibits human sacrifice, why would He 'command' his Prophet to sacrifice his son (another prophet)?
We asked the questions- Was this a 'command' or a vision about the future of Ibrahim (as)'s progeny? Is the traditional understanding a case of misinterpretation or the biblical influence on the tafsir of the Quran?
Lesson 9 – Lesson 9- Gog and Magog enter world stage
What was the meaning of Ibrahim (as)'s dream, when he saw himself sacrificing his son? In this lesson we discuss another dream and try connecting the dots of history that spans millennia.
This time it's the dream of Prophet Muhammad (saw) and it's about the release of Gog and Magog. Keep in mind the release of Gog and Magog meant the unleashing of the greatest tribulations on the Muslim Ummah. Are we witnessing the dream of Ibrahim (as) playing out right before our eyes ? Find out.
Lesson 10 – Lesson 10- Who are Gog and Magog?
Who are Gog and Magog?
The answer to this question will decode the modern world and its major challenges to the Muslim mind. But first we must deal with a complicated question- Have Gog and Magog been released?
Why is Islamic Eschatology or more specifically the Study of the End times (I'lm al Akhiruzzaman) such an under developed field in the broad spectrum of Islamic Studies?
Lesson 11 – Lesson 11- Crusades- the first wave of Gog and Magog
The Muslim world established one of the most powerful civilizations in history. But in time the power and stability of the Islamic empires faced a great challenge. A violent marauding army from Europe, dressed in the garb of Christianity displayed an unexplainable obsession with Jerusalem and the destruction of the Muslim world. Was this the dream of Prophet Muhammad (saw) playing out, when he said," Destruction is upon the Arabs. The barrier of Gog and Magog is being destroyed now"?
Famous Muslim Scholar Ibn Kathir described a European people- The Khazars as Gog and Magog and even identified the Black Sea as the western location in Zulqarnain's travels. Can we finally unlock the mystery of Gog and Magog?
Lesson 12 – Lesson 12- Colonialism- The second wave of Gog and Magog
In our study of Gog and Magog we travelled through history using the Quran and Hadith as our guides. It's one thing to study history, but it's a completely different thing to make sense of history and connect the dots. This is the job of the vast Eschatological literature that we have in Islam to analyze history and correlate the major events with the sayings of the Prophet (saw).
By using a robust methodology, we recognized that the release of Gog and Magog commenced in the lifetime of the Prophet (saw) and then manifested first as the Arab- Khazar wars, then the Crusades. In this lesson we'll see how the same people came in the garb of the Colonial powers to devour the Muslim world from the 18th to 20th century. How did we lose Jerusalem and did the genius from the Indian subcontinent, Dr Muhammad Iqbal identify Gog and Magog to be the European nations?
Lesson 13 – Lesson 13- War on Muslim countries-The third wave of Gog and Magog
In our study of Gog and Magog we travelled through history using the Quran and Hadith as our guides. We recognized that the release of Gog and Magog commenced in the lifetime of the Prophet (saw) and then manifested first as the Arab- Khazar wars, then the Crusades, then the same people came in the garb of Colonial powers to devour the Muslim world. But it has'nt stopped. Now the power structures and incentives of Gog and Magog have shifted again and under the pretext of defending democracy and fighting terror, the Muslim world is being ravaged by the third wave of Yajuj and Majuj.
Only this time, the attack is much more sinister. This effort of deconstructing history and analyzing it through the lens of Islamic Eschatology (I'lm al Akhiruzzaman) is a much needed one in our times. The present online course is one step in that direction. Insha Allah !
Lesson 14 – Lesson 14- How to deal with the Gog and Magog tribulation?
After completing our study of Gog and Magog, the necessary question that need to be asked is, how to deal with these tribulation? Will these ever end? How can we make sure we come out of the trial unscathed in our Iman and our intellect?
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