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SURE
Maide Suresi
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O’ you who believe, have not disrespect for the rituals established by Lord, nor the sacred months, nor the animals to be offered, nor the garlands marking them, nor the people who head for Mecca seeking purification from God. Once you performed the rituals, then you may start hunting. Do not let your hatred toward those who prevented you of pilgrimage to Mecca lead you to engage in hostility with them. Help each other in righteousness and in acting according to divine laws; do not encourage commitment of sins and disobedience of God. Fear you Lord as He is sever in punishment.
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Do not eat pork [as it is already strictly ordered in the Bible], blood, the meat of an animal died of itself (including strangled, struck by an object, fallen from a height, pierced by a sharp object, attacked by a wild animal—unless slaughtered by you before its death-- ) and animals sacrificed for other than God. It is also prohibited to you to eat of the meat which is distributed according to the pagan rituals. Today, the disbelievers have given up the idea of exterminating you; do not, therefore, fear them. Instead fear Me (God), Today, I have completed your religion, perfected my blessing upon you and have decreed Islam (submission to God) as your religion. In case of emergency, it will not be sinful to you to eat of the above mentioned food as long as it is necessary to prevent you from death by famine; God is the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.
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People will ask you (Mohammad) about lawful to consume food. Say: "Lawful for you are all good and pure [not offensive to good taste or universally been regarded as repugnant (such as eating dog or cat) by cultured people] things. you may also eat what trained to hunt dogs and falcons catch for you (as long as they are permitted to eat catches.) You must, however, mention the name of God [saying: “In the name of God..." as a gesture of asking for permission and that one is not taking it for granted that he is eating something which belongs to God and not hunting/killing it just for the sake of pleasure.] Keep God always in mind (and do not kill for the sake of pleasure) and know that God will punish you very fast for your wrongdoings (in this case for killing the creatures of God just for the sake of sport.)
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Today, I declare as lawful for you all pure (non-repugnant) and good (tobacco products, for example, are pure but not good for health) things. You may eat the food prepared by the people of the Scriptures (as long as they do not include those items which are strictly prohibited such as pork); for them, too, it is lawful to eat the food which is prepared by you. As to [the people’s question abut] marriage, marry morally pure believing women; you may also marry morally pure women of the people of the Scriptures. When you marry a woman, you must give them their [agreed upon] dowries and establish a real marital relationship and not a secret relationship just for sexual pleasures. Anyone who rejects faith has nullified all his good deeds and will find himself among the losers in Hereafter.
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When a believer wants to worship his Lord, he must clean himself up in the following manner [referred to as wuzu in Arabic]: Wash the face. Wash the hands. Wash the arms up to the elbows. Wipe the head. Wash the feet up to the ankles. If, due to sexual orgasm, you were unclean, you must take a full bath [referred to as ghosl in Arabic.] If you had any digestive excersion (urinated, defecated or passed gas), or had sexual contact with a woman and cannot find water (while stranded as a traveler or to weak in account of illness), then cleanse yourself with pure dust in the following manner [known as tayammum in Arabic]: strike you palm on dust and wipe your hands and face with it. This is because God does not want to make life difficult for you [by insisting upon the usage of water]. God wants to make you [get accustomed to be] clean and, thus, complete His blessing upon you; may you show gratitude.
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O’ you who have chosen to believe, stand out firmly for the cause of God. Be just in giving witness to please God. Never let your hard feelings against a party prevent you from testifying the truth. Be fair as justice is a part of righteousness. Keep God with the utmost respect in mind and know that He is fully aware of what you do.
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Remember the most recent favor of God upon you as He restrained the hands of those who wanted to harm you (reference to the Jews who invited Mohammad to a dinner and wanted to poison him. ) Therefore, keep God with the most utmost respect in mind as the believers always put their trust on God alone.
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God took a solemn covenant from the Israelites and appointed twelve leaders from among them and said: "I am with you; if you worship God on regular basis, devote a part of your income to charity (as a loan to your Lord) and believe in My Prophets and support them, then I will surely wipe out your sins and admit you into gardens under which rivers flow. Beware that, anyone who chooses to disbelieve after this will not find the right path."
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Then they broke their covenant! Therefore, I put a curse on them and made their hearts insensitive to the truth. With a few exception, they are the ones who falsify the words of the Scriptures and disregard some of their commandments. You will be subject to their betrayal every now and then. Forgive them and disregard them as God loves graceful people.
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As to those who call themselves "Christians", I took a similar covenant. but they, too, forgot much of their commandments. That is why [as a punishment] I broke them into different sects who will hate each other till the Day of Resurrection when I will bring to their attention what they were doing in this world.
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Those who say that Jesus, son of Mary, is God Himself [incarnated], have indeed forged a great lie. If God decides to destroy Jesus, his mother, and all the inhabitants of the earth, who has the power to prevent Him from doing so? To God belongs the Kingdom of the earth and the heavens and whatever is between. He creates whatever He decides [including Jesus] and has power over His realm of creation.
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Jews and the Christians say: "We are God’s beloved sons [wishfully thinking that God will not punish the]. " Reply: “Then how come He punishes you for your sin? You are nothing but ordinary human beings created by God. He forgives whoever He wills and He punishes whoever He wills as to God belongs the Kingdom of the heavens and earth and anything between and to Him all shall return. (Confirmation of the theory of the contraction of the universe.
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O’ those who believe in the Scriptures; now you do not have any excuse and cannot say that: "No one ever warned us [about the falsified materials our Scriptures and the nature of the Hell] nor gave us any heart warming news [about the heaven. ]" After a long time of having no Prophet (years after Jesus), now My Prophet has come to you as a Warner and as a bearer of good news. Indeed God has power (and control) over everything.
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Then God ordered a crow to scratch the earth, showing him how to hide his brother’s corps [and bringing his ignorant nature to his attention. ] He said: "Shame on me, I do not even know as much as this bird to bury my brother’s corps." Then he [buried his brother’s corps and] became very sorry [for what he had done.]
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Based upon this incidence, I decreed to the children of Israel (and such passages are missing in the existing bibles except a few verses in Thalmud) that: "Whoever kills a human being (unless the latter being guilty of murder or spreading corruption on earth) should be looked upon as though he has killed the entire humanity and whoever saves a life should be considered as the savior of whole mankind. " However, in spite of many Prophets which came to them with undeniable miracles, the majority of them chose to disregard the Divine laws.
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The punishment of those who declare war to God [by not submitting to His laws] and His Prophet and try to spread corruption on earth (where the Lord’s laws are established), is death, crucification, cutting off their alternate hands and feet or deportation (at the discretion of the judge and the severity of their crime. ) These punishments are meant to disgrace them in this world; as to Hereafter, they will be subjected to a harsher punishment.
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O’ My Prophet, do not be upset about those people whose mouths say, "We believe," but there is no belief in their hearts and, consequently, rush toward the disbelief [and engage in kind of activities which does not please the Lord. ] Also, do not be upset about [the attitude of] those Jews who have heard nothing but lies about you. The latter have heard [these lies] from those Jews who have never met you and have presented them a falsified version of your speeches [after all, these are the same people who falsified their own Torah.] They say: “If Mohammad says such and such [to suit their lusts] accept it, otherwise reject it!” You can do nothing to save from God’s punishment a man who has failed the Lord’s trial. They do not deserve that God purify their hearts. They will be humiliated in this world and an awful punishment is waiting for them in the Hereafter.
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They [and their judges] are accustomed to appreciate listening to the falsehood and devour the forbidden [such as bribe. ] If they bring their cases to you [as the head of the state and them most just man in the Arabian Peninsula], you may judge between them or refuse to do so and they cannot harm you in any manner. If you judge among them, be fair as God loves those who are just.
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I sent them Torah, which is a beacon and a mean of guidance, so that all their Prophets use it for judgment among those who called themselves "Jews. " Likewise, their rabbis and leaders used Torah as the source of reference in their judgments and I asked them all to be the guardians of the Book of God and witnesses to it. Therefore, you Jews should not fear the people and fear me instead and do not falsify My revelations for a small worldly gain. Those who do not judge by the law of the Lord {and replace it by the civil laws, made by their ignorant politicians,} are indeed disbelievers.
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I decreed in Torah for the Jews: "Life for life, eye for eye, nose for nose, ear for ear, tooth for tooth and for all wounds equal wounds. However, if the victim forgives his attacker to please God, many of his sins will be forgiven." Thus those Jews who do not submit to the law of their Lord are indeed unjust people.
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As to you (Mohammad), I have sent this truthful Book which confirms the intact verses of the previous Scriptures and protects the Book of God. Therefore, use this Truth which has come to you as your source of reference in your judgments and do not follow the people’s vain desires. For each nation, I have prescribed a law and a way of life. If I wanted, I would have made you all a single community. But I want to test you according to what I have prescribed for each of you [and promote a competition among you.] Therefore, try to beat each other in doing good deeds. You will all return to God and then He will inform you about what your differences were all about.
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You (Mohammad) shall rule among them (the citizens of newly established Islamic country) in accordance with the laws sent down to you. Do not follow their wishes; be on your guard that these people do not divert you the least from the Guidance that God has decreed upon you. If they do not submit to the Divine laws, know that God wants to punish them for some of their sins in this manner. Indeed many people are corrupt.
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O’ Believers, do not take the Jews nor the Christians as your [intimate] friends and allies. They support only one another [like Western allies of Israel.] If you intimately befriend them, you will be counted among them [and deprived of God’s Mercy.] Know that God deprives the unjust people from His guidance.
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You see those [hypocrites] who suffer from the disease [of doubt] are always around them (Jews & Christians. ) They say: "In case we (the Muslims) are defeated [then we will have a safe harbor.]" What if God gives you a victory or shower you with His blessings? How can they hide their shame of being hypocrites in that case?
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O’ Believers, if you turn away from Islam, God will raise new Muslims, whom He will love Him and they, too, will love Him. They will be kind toward each others and tough in dealing with the disbelievers. They will fight in the cause of God and will not mind the others blaming them the least. Such is God’s blessing; He will shower whoever He wants with as God is the Most Generous and the Most Wise.
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Say to them: "Let me tell you who are worse than the sinners, as far as God is concerned. They are the ones that God has already condemned them and have been under His wrath. God turned some of them into apes and swines as they started to worship beside the Lord. These idol worshippers are indeed worse than the sinners and are far away from the Right Path."
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The Jews say: "God has become stingy (and does not shower us with His blessing anymore!)" They do not realize that their miserable situation is due to the fact that God has cursed them [for what they have done (such as killing God’s Prophets), what they were doing during the advent of Islam and what they are doing in our time in Palestine] as God is the most generous. As a matter of fact, the message with is sent to you has increased the rebellion and disbelief of many of them. Therefore, I have cast animosity among them which will last till the Day of Resurrection. Rest assured that anytime that they ignite the flame of war, God will turn it off. They roam the earth spreading the evil (such as the practice of usury;) God dislikes the evil doers.
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O’ Prophet (Mohammad) deliver what is revealed to you from your Lord. If you do not do this, you have not accomplished your mission. God will protect you from the people (therefore, do not have any fear in delivering the Lord’s Message.] God will not guide those who choose to disbelieve [therefore, do not be disappointed when you see that the Message is not penetrating them.]
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Say: "O people of the Scriptures, your only way to success is to follow the [original] Torah, the Gospel and the other Books which God has sent to you [which, by the way, are the same teachings that you will find in Qur’an and, therefore, there will not be any question of “changing" your religion but instead following it in the most proper manner. ]” However, these revelations (Qur’an) will instead increase the rebellion and the disbelief of many of them [as they do not keep an open mind.] It is not, therefore, worth it for you to feel sorry for the disbelievers [as they have made a conscious choice.]
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Had they believed in God and the Prophet (Mohammad) and in what was revealed to him (Qur’an), they would have never allied themselves with the disbelievers [after all, what kind of believer in God allies himself with the disbelievers against the Muslims who believe in God?] The fact of the matter is, many of them have become corrupt.
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O’ Believers, do not prohibit the pure things that God has made lawful for you [and do not live like Hindu friars or the Christian monks who have forbidden for themselves lawful food, sex, etc. ] and do not go beyond the limits [prescribed by the Lord] as God does not like those who are extravagant [and walk in either direction of disbelief or too much exaggeration in the religion.]
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God does not hold you responsible for "unintentional" oaths [such as swearing that you will not eat such and such lawful food, not sleep anymore with your wives, etc. ] The Lord, however, will hold you responsible for your “intentional” oaths [such as swearing by God that you will do such and such thing for such and such person.] If you break a solemn oath, you have to feed ten poor person with the same food that you eat usually, to give them clothes or (if you cannot afford none of the above) three days of fasting. These hardships are imposed upon you so that you take your oaths seriously. God thus makes His Commandments plain to you so that you may show gratitude [for having laws for every situation and know what your responsibilities are.]
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The righteous ones who have chosen to believe, will not be held responsible for unlawful foods that they had eaten in the past, provided that they refrain from those unlawful things, be faithful, do good deeds and do not do forbidden things and believe in the Divine law. They should keep the Lord with the utmost respect in mind and adopt the righteous attitude as God loves such graceful people.
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O’ Believers, God is going to put you through a hard trial. In order to make it known to you who respects the "Invisible" Lord’s Commandments, [during the pilgrimage, in which hunting is prohibited] you will see all kind of animals come so close to you that you can easily hunt them. Those who do not respect the Lord’s order [especially] after this plain warning, should expect a painful punishment.
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O’ Believers, do not hunt while you set forth to the pilgrimage [of Mecca. ] If anyone fails to obey this order, he should send either an offering to Mecca, feeding some poor people or fast; all these will be decided by two just men among you. This is a hardship to remind the guilty one of the evil work [of not obeying the Lord] that he has committed. God has already forgiven your past actions, but if anyone repeats the same, God will punish the sinner as He is the Most Serious when it comes to the punishment.
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Catching sea food is an exception (as people in the ship may not have access to any other food. ) You may eat the caught sea food or take it with you for the later consumption. Hunting the animals in land, however, has been prohibited for you as long as you are in the pilgrimage cloth. Do not disobey the Lord that you will all stand in front of in the Day of Resurrection.
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God has appointed Kaaba (the oldest house of worship, built by Abraham in Mecca) as a sacred place of adoring the Lord and a peaceful place for the people. The sacred months and the animals dedicated to the sacrifice, which are marked by the garlands (so that people do not steal or harm them), too should be respected (so that people gather together in peace worshipping the Lord, increasing their brotherhood.) This is decided so that you [yourself think about the Wisdom of the Lord who provides a peaceful international gathering of millions of believers and] realize that the Lord knows anything that happens in the heavens and the earth and that God is the Most Knowledgeable.
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O’ Believers, do not ask [useless & unnecessary] questions about matters, which, if explained in detail, would cause hardship upon you (such as whether or not one should go to the Pilgrimage of Mecca only once or once a year. ) If you ask them when Qur’an is being revealed [or perhaps when it is being penetrated in your heart,] the answers will be made known to you. God has forgiven you for what you have done up to this point as He is Forgiving and Understanding.
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God has never ordained your superstitious practices such as: splitting the ear of a camel whose fifth new born is a male, to let loose a camel as a fulfillment of a vow, not to use the first born twin camel or respect the he-camel as soon as his "grandson" grows up and fits for riding! These practices are falsely attributed to the Lord and most disbelievers follow it blind folded without thinking about them.
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When it is said to them: "Follow the laws of the Lord which is revealed to the Prophet, " they reply: “We prefer to follow our forefathers way of life [even though it implies nonsense such as the above mentioned practices. ]” What if their forefathers knew nothing and their “way of life” would lead them nowhere?
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O’ Believers, make a will in preparation of death and take two righteous/ trustworthy Muslims as your witness. In case of emergency (say in a foreign land), you may take two non-Muslims as witnesses to your will. If there is any dispute about the inheritance, detain the witnesses in the mosque after the Prayer and ask them to swear by God saying: "We will not testify to gain something personal and we will say the whole truth even though the heirs may be our relatives; otherwise, we would be sinners."
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Then the Lord will [turn to Jesus and] say: "O Jesus, son of Mary, remember how I showered you and your mother with my blessings: I ordered Holy Spirit to help you; then you relayed my message to the people from the time you were in the cradle till your old age. . I gave you the wisdom and taught you the Book, the Torah and the Gospel. I turned a statue of a bird that you made of clay into a real bird. I gave you the power to heal the born-blind and the lepers and brought the dead person back to life. I also protected you against those Jews who mocked at you saying: “These are [not the miracles of the Lord and that they are] nothing but cheap magic."
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God will ask [on the Day of Resurrection]: "O’ Jesus, son of Mary, did you ever ask the people to take you and your mother as deities beside the Lord?" Jesus will say: “O Glorious One, how could I [being your Messenger] have said such a thing? Had I ever said such a thing [see Matthew 7-& Luke 18-19], you would have known it as you know the innermost of my thought and I do not know nothing about your thoughts. ”
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