Too sacred to touch ,Too complex to understand

Most of muslims, instead of reciting the QURAN day and night , are yet miles away from it.Do we even realize that?

In Islam, there is no priesthood, and no centralized religious hierarchy. However, as soon as you ask muslims about their religion, they will refer you to the opinions of this or that Imam or a maulana who are often dogmatic religious bigots, sometimes politically motivated and often are the cause of such unabated increase in the divisions of the religion. Some being just rabble-rousers. The common people are always carried away by the rhetoric .Being gullible, never do the common muslims put any effort to at least read the Quran with meaning, consider, weigh and contemplate it. We do not delve into the Quran and remain ignorant and rummage around to find our solutions. We are brought up in an environment where people know numerous hadith stories (which are mostly hearsay) which dictate their action and jurisdiction but they rarely know any Quranic verse on any issue. Normally in a religious gathering one is allowed only to listen and not to question.

What do we do with the Quran?

Muslim households often have several of Quran lying respectfully wrapped in fine cloth in the upper shelves..Ahh.,we are told that they are too sacred to touch without ablution..(wudu)..well..being fussy in matters of faith is yet another problem altogether. Anyways..We recite the Quran daily. The speed with which you recite and the number of pages you cover is the yardstick of how much 'religious' you are. In the month of Ramadhan, i see many people reciting the whole Quran over and over again and proudly saying about the number of times they completed the Quran.What sort of achievement is this when you don't know what you are actually reciting?

Very few of Muslims read the Quran intelligibly, few read with meaning and fewer ponder over its message .And even when you start self-exploring the verses, you are told "Don't delve in too deep, you will be distracted" or" Quran is very complex and no one can translate or derive its meaning exactly" or" first learn Arabic then you can truly learn its message."

Till when shall we experience our faith vicariously by listening to lectures or submitting to fatwas of imams or other authorities?

In Madrasas, we see children sitting on the floor of a room, swaying back and forth, reciting lyrically, words and phrases they do not understand. Will it do any good to them?

Many people see Quranic verses as magical spells and use Quran for exorcism or medical relief and by GOD's mercy chanting of divine verses might have a positive effect  but it really is not the purpose it was sent for and to the height of ignorance many pious believers in their whole lifetime die without being curious or without putting a slight effort as  to discover what  they have been reciting in their prayers throughout their life.Is it blind faith or ignorance or both? 

54:17. And certainly We have made the Quran easy for remembrance, but is there anyone who will mind?

HYPOCRISY OF BOLLYWOOD

Whenever there’s a abuzz in the country over any incident of rape or crime against women, our Bollywood celebs come out with their online tweets and posts showing sympathy and disappointment at the situation. But behind this façade, the movies they contribute not only clearly show their apathy towards such incidents but in a way is one of the contributor to the problem itself.

  The 70's and 80's were periods when rape scene was a norm in Hindi films. Indian movies have now stooped to redundant sex-scenes and inane Item songs which are often a misfit in the script .But they are intentionally filmed and used as a bait to attract audience because the common masses enjoy such scenes. Now we have a item number in almost any movie coming out : Any actress dancing seductively in skimpy clothes with a bunch of drunk and lewd men ogling and dancing behind her or an actor surrounded by girls getting wild. And now ladies have a new career option in the industry-'Item Girls'.Actresses seem to have no objection in being potrayed in demeaning ways. Stripping your clothes off is a 'bold' scene. Movie posters show actress posing seductively. Is this what you call sexual liberation? Is this how actresses celebrate their womanhood?

Whistling, hooting and leering at a girl has always been a common scene in Indian movies.What Indian movies teach us is that it's normal and funny to whistle and pass sleazy comments on girls.Vulgar lyrics and lewd lines are shown to be worth of entertaining. In a way they encourage the potential rapists. Be it '3 Idiots' making fun of the word 'balatkaar' or a line from a hit-‘Rowdy Rathore’

aurat jab hoti hai satra, to badh jaata hai khatra

aur jab wo hoti hai tees, tab wo hoti hai cheez,

the list is countless.

Raunchy lyrics and suggestive choreography has become a trend these days. Our hypocritical Censor Board has no issues with the lyrics and filming of songs like 'pritam pyare','sheila ki jawani','choli ke peeche' ,'Chikini Chameli','Laila Teri Le Legi' etc.Imagine the mindset of the future generation growing up watching and dancing to such songs.

See our hypocrisy. We are the ones who march and protest against sexual violence. But at the same time we don't forget to ogle any young girl on the street or any actress we see on the screen. We tend to whistle and clap on double entendre and saucy lines and tap our feet to the item numbers. No wonder why such mean movies are a big hit and honey singh is a big star in India. If you enjoy vulgar scenes and sleazy lyrics; sexual objectification is what entertains you, i am sure you would pretty much enjoy a girl being raped or just be a silent bystander.

Bollywood Movies also teach us that if you constantly stare and follow the girl you like, initially she will resist and get infuriated but eventually she would fall in love with you. The hero constantly pesters and follows the heroine even if she says no and this is shown as it’s just a normal and integral part of romance. What message are you sending out? Also see the way kissing scenes or sex scenes are scripted in movies: the actor makes a sexual advance and the actress initially resists, but then finally responds positively. Given the fact that movies have a large influence on social behaviour, just imagine the serious repercussions of such scripts on the society.

How many movies have we made which portrays a woman protagonist with intelligence, skill or leadership qualities? Women are shown just as eye candy without any significant role in the script.A woman is always somebody’s wife or girlfriend; somebody’s daughter; somebody’s mother; somebody’s sister;she is never that’somebody’. Movies rarely portray the actress as an independent individual with her own intellect or ideas. And even when such attempts are made,these rarely fetch money at the box-office perhaps because eye-balls freeze only on watching bare skin or it is still hard for the largely patriarchal and misogynist Indian society to digest a women getting intelligent or her character getting beyond decorative.

Sexual objectification might not be the direct cause of sexual violence but no doubt fuels it. Filmmakers should portray woman as a subject and not an object of male fantasy.

SEXUAL ASSAULTS:Blinders Still Worn

The infamous 'Nirbhaya Rape Case' had sparked tremendous agitation and vehement protests and rallies all around the country. But now it seems that nothing has changed for the good. The reaction had been a sudden furore and people had just gone with the flow. They had marched and had vociferous demands and opinion without any self -introspection at an individual level. The only change that i notice is that girls are now advised more to dress modestly and parents are now more concerned about their daughter's safety than they used to be. The onus of remaining safe seems to have shifted more to women, instead of being shared by society and law-keepers.

Official data in India show that rape cases have jumped almost 875% over the past 40 years -- from 2,487 in 1971 to 24,206 in 2011, given the fact that most cases still are not reported. So in a country where female Gods like Durga, Kali, Shakti are worshipped the condition of the women remains terrible. Also sexual violence against the transgenders don't make it to the headlines. Sexual violence by husbands is ignored.

 Sexual assaults can also be visual or verbal. There are many factors which act backstage and contribute to increase in growing number of sexual assaults, deeply entrenched patriarchy and misogynistic mindset of the male folk is the largest contributor besides other factors like objectification of the women's body in movies, songs, tv shows, racy advertisements in the print and electronic media; the growing culture of provocative clothing and revealing outfits; growing consumption of alcohol and drugs; the wide circulation and easy accessibility of pornographic content; such factors constantly envelops us in an erotic and titillating environment, constantly boosts up the libido and if the temptation overpowers the conscience(which is very likely to be the case)the basic human desire of mating often finds immoral and abnormal channelization in the form of rape, molestation, exhibitionism, frotteurism, voyeurism etc..

Rape is ubiquitous. i think it has very little to do with  the way women dress. Of course, Provocative Clothing could be the cause of sexual arousal but it should not be related to the act of rape which involves cowardly act of violent and non-consensual forceful sex.  Normal sexual urge and rapist mentality are very different. Even child girls are raped. Also the fact that sexual assaults are so common in places where women are covered from head to toe. So i think rape is more related to patriarchy and misogyny and male chauvinism. Patriarchy is rooted in our culture, societal structure and even religions. Boys are brought up to be sexually aggressive, dominant and conquering, as a way of affirming their masculinity. Most men and boys i know consider themselves superior and entitled to dominate their sisters or girlfriends. In many societies, men who do not act in this traditional masculine way are ostracized by their peers and considered effeminate. Even most religious texts support male-domination.

 -The media also objectifies the women folk. it is very clear when you see advertisements or music videos and even video-games meant for children .Nowadays, raunchy lines and double entendre have become so common in movies and almost every movie comes out with an item song in which a girl with skimpy dress would gyrate around lewd men to some vulgar lyrics.Even in Disney Movies, the female character is highly sexualized with large breasts,a thin waist,fluttering eyelashes and coy expressions.Such portrayal deeply influences the mindsets of growing children. 

-The wide and easily availability of porn provides an outlet for sexual impulse but pornography has traditionally been made by and for men, and women are just portrayed as sex-objects, lump of flesh for sexual satisfaction. Pornography has substantial sexual violence involved.

Social-stigma attached to the rape leaves many rape cases unreported and also harasses the girl mentally and emotionally. Our society is largely patriarchal and judgemental and it often reacts as if the victim is also to be blamed for it. Incidents like rape or molestation is thought to besmirch the reputation of the victim and her family.’ ‘Izzat lut gayi’  is how we’ve been reacting to the victims of sexual assaults. A complete nonsense...How can one relate a crime committed against someone to his/her dignity or reputation. Ignominy should be for the perpetrator and not the victim. And see the hypocrisy of the people they advise every girl to dress modestly but don't forget to ogle any girl on the street. So there is a visual rapist behind a facade of decency-driven moral policing.

Dressing modestly, getting back home earlier at night, keeping pepper spray or joining karate classes; fast track courts, castration, death penalties could serve as partial deterrents but could never be any step towards the cure of the menace because we are still hitting the wrong button.

To the females: Respect the sharp line between sexual liberation and immodesty.To the males: Your chivalry won't help unless you truly believe in equality of both the sexes.

SHARIA-Jeering Human Rights

Sharia is religious law and code of life in Islam and covers a wide area including family laws, economic, political, marital, criminal, military, dress code and even dietary, hygiene and purification. The Sharia law has always been under question because of it being extremely barbaric and misogynist. Its rulings fly in the face of Human rights and Feminism.

Sharia courts traditionally do not rely on lawyers. The plaintiffs and defendants represent themselves. Trials are conducted solely by the judge, and there is no jury system. There is no pre-trial discovery process, and no cross-examination of witnesses. A confession, an oath, or the oral testimony of a witness are the main evidence admissible in a case, written evidence is only admissible when deemed reliable by the judge. Testimony must be from at least two

witnesses, and preferably Muslim male witnesses. A woman's testimony is considered half as reliable as that of man. Forensic evidence (i.e., fingerprints, ballistics, blood samples, DNA etc.) and other circumstantial evidence is likewise rejected .Oral testimony of the eyewitnesses is solely preferred.

Sharia laws completely prevent freedom of expression and religion. Leaving Islam is a sin and a religious crime. If you Question your religion, you will face serious Blasphemy Laws and you might land yourself in jail  or even get executed. It does not stop here. Once any man or woman is officially classified as Muslim, because of birth or religious conversion, he or she will be subject to the death penalty if he or she becomes an apostate, atheist, agnostic or to convert to another religion. Before executing the death penalty, Sharia demands that the individual be offered one chance to return to Islam. In practice, as of 2011, 20 Islamic nations had laws declaring apostasy from Islam as illegal and a criminal offense.

-Under Sharia Law, if you commit adultery or fornication, you would be stoned to death.

-The punishment of theft or robbery is the amputation of your hand.

-Religious minorities in sharia states are treated as second-class citizens. They have  limited rights and are often forced to convert to Islam

Women and Sharia

Sharia laws are heavily misogynistic.

-Sharia permits the marriage of girls as soon as she attains puberty, sometimes it even permits below the age of 10. Just imagine the serious ill- effects on the physical and mental health of girls getting married at such ages. Think of the society that would evolve out of its consequences.

-Sharia considers a woman’s testimony half as reliable as that of man. This is followed in many countries including Pakistan and other Arab countries.

-A man can initiate the divorce just by oral declaration while if a woman wants to divorce her husband, the process is complex. Moreover, Child custody reverts to the father at a preset age, even if the father is abusive; women who remarry lose custody of their children

-Under Sharia Law, to prove that you are raped,either you require the confession of the one who raped you or you require four eyewitnesses who should have seen you being raped. A sheer non-sense. Forensic evidences are most likely to be ignored. Now this causes severe difficulties for women plaintiffs in rape cases. Sharia courts in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Syria and Tunisia in some cases allow a rapist to escape punishment by marrying his victim. Height of injustice! In some cases, the victim who complains is often prosecuted with the Sharia crime of Zina (adultery)..In 2012, a 16 year-old Moroccan girl, having been forced by her family and the government prosecutor to marry her committed suicide by swallowing rat poison.

-Sharia allows a man to beat his wife even if he fears or suspects suspects nushuz (disobedience, disloyalty, rebellion, ill conduct)

in his wife.So, in a way,when domestic violence is “divinely” allowed,one can guess the prolific cases of domestic violence in Muslim countries like Syria, Pakistan, Egypt, Palestine, Morocco, Iran, Yemen and Saudi Arabia.

- Domestic violence is so common that 85 per cent of women admit to experiencing it. 60% of all women report being victims of multiple forms of serial violence.

- A 2012 United Nations Women's study found that 33% of women in Egypt have experienced physical domestic violence in their lifetime.

-In Pakistan, reports claim domestic violence rates between 70% to over 95% in Pakistan. According to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences in 2002, over 90% of married Pakistani women surveyed reported being kicked, slapped, beaten or sexually abused by their husbands and in-laws. Over 90% of Pakistani women consider domestic violence as a norm of every woman's married life. Between 1998 and 2003 there were more than 2,666 women killed in honor killings by a family member. These are just the reported cases, tip of the iceberg.

-Afghanistan is the only country in which the female suicide rate is higher than that of males.

-In Syria, found that 25% of the married women surveyed said that they had been beaten by their husbands

-According to a WHO, United Nations study, 30% of women in rural Bangladesh reported their first sexual experience to be forced.[52] About 40% report having experienced domestic violence from their intimate partner, and 50% in rural regions report experiencing sexual violence.

According to a 2004 study,undertaken by Ministry of Higher Education and Interior Ministry of 28 provinces of Iran, 66% married women in Iran are subjected to some kind of domestic violence in the first year of their marriage, either by their husbands or by their in-laws. 9.63%  women wished their husbands would die, as a result of the abuse they had experienced.

- I think Saudi Arabia is the torchbearer in stupidity. Not only it officially recognises Sharia Law , here women can’t even drive cars. Interestingly, women are permitted to fly airplanes even though they have to be chauffeured to the airport. Does that make sense?

To put in a nutshell, the condition of the Women in states strictly following sharia is terrible. Mostly,women are treated someone brought for satisfaction of lust and bearing child. Women do not have a meaningful identity of their own and are just puppets in hands of their male guardians. Sometimes the submissiveness is brainwashed but often it is forced.

In many Muslim countries, Police and judges often tend to treat domestic violence as a private or family matter or, an issue for civil courts, rather than criminal courts. Sometimes,they seem to sympathize with the husbands. Most women hide their bruises and don't report domestic abuse to authorities, often because of the social stigma attached to it or because of little or no hope of justice. 

So people should raise their voices against this cowardly barbaric system of justice practiced by early Arab pagans. Not only Sharia Law, but the very idea of  theocracy should never be considered as an option for any state. No major world religion or civilisation has been free of misogyny, inequality, or patriarchy.In secular states.Even in democracy and constitutionally secular states, religious tolerance should never be at the cost of universal rights.

TROJAN HORSE- HADITH AND SHARIA LAW

Muslims, in spite of being second in the demographic division of the world, are still the poorest and most uneducated and unemployed group. Why is the participation of the Muslim community in academic and professional fields, cultural arenas, creative fields and corporate world is abysmally low? Despite tremendous growth in the number of Muslims and Muslim flags, the muslim ummah is still at the pity of the western world. Government of muslim countries are indulged in ubiquitous corruption and killings of its own people and the common muslims often keep themselves indulge in inter-sect hatred and fights. In my view, the problem has one of its roots in hadeeths and hadith-driven Sharia Law.

The apocryphal hadith stories which governs islamic law and thought are mostly hearsays.Read this. 

On a whole, what hadeeths and hadith-based Sharia Law do is :

1. Degrades the status of woman in society, family and as an individual. Projects women as a puppet in the hands of fathers, brothers or husbands, overall a slave in disguise.

2.Promotes violence and violates human rights in many cases like killing apostates, infidels, beating  woman, stoning to death to adulterers, chopping off hands of the thieves.

3. Encourages fatalism-For example, there are Hadith that would have us believe that everything in our lives is predestined and we have no control over our decisions. The inference then is that God has chosen to deliberately lead people astray and then punish them for it, something that is unthinkable for any rational person.

4. Encourages superstition and corrupt religious practices.

5. Discourages creativity and innovation.(like do not draw sketches of creatures).Even discourages sports and recreational activities.

6. Promotes religious ilm but disregards worldly-knowledge .To put it in a nutshell, hadith culture creates a regressive environment.

7. Divides the whole world into- muslims and non-muslims i.e believers and kaafirs. Teaches us to take pride in being born a muslim and treat the kaafir as someone alien or hostile.

8.Demonise Prophet Muhammad, portray him as a man who slaughtered captives, robbed caravans, sold women and children into slavery, had sexual relations with captive women, tortured prisoners, married a nine-year-old, mandated war against non-Muslims, and who had some of his critics and rivals assassinated. Is it not Outrageous? Are we going to believe such slanders just because they are sacred hadiths.You can read some of the calumnious hadiths here. It’s just the tip of the iceberg On the contrary, Quran describes the prophet as someone of highest moral character.

68:4. And most surely you conform [yourself] to sublime morality.

33:21 Certainly you have in the Messenger of Allah an excellent exemplar for him who hopes in Allah and the latter day and remembers Allah much.

9. .The conflation of true islam with sharia laws has become so widespread and widely publicised that it not only keeps the non-muslims away from islam but also make many muslims switch to different faiths.

10.Needless to mention,if a faith is represented by such doctrines,it not only repels non-muslim away from islam but also seriously confuses newly converts to islam. , it’s no surprise that any person in his right senses will get offended by a faith being represented by such fictitious stories some of which you would find absolute bizarre. Many Hadith do in fact contradict the Quran, defy all reason or logic, or scientific truths or ethics.

11. It’s a truism that the hadiths which mostly potray islam as intolerant, patriarchal and misogynist religion; give  the anti-islamic people or groups the best opportunity  to malign the divine religion.

Historical records that the writings of the Rabbinic literature -the Talmud,did overshadow the Torah, which was revealed to the earlier Prophet Moses. The writings of Paul - the Epistles, did overshadow the Injeel 18 that was revealed to Prophet Isa. Similarly, today the Hadith literature has sadly overshadowed the Quran, something Prophet Mohammad always feared. Hadith is venerated and is upheld as the second source of jurisdication (often  first) by hidebound muslims.Fabricated hadith and Sharia Law are the major cause of downfall of muslim  community on,social, economical and educational grounds.

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HADITHS - THE LESSER KNOWN ASPECT

The Arabic word “hadith” literally means a story, or saying. Any story, or saying, from anyone.In Islam,it means collection of sayings and actions of Prophet Mohammad.

Sunni Muslims view the six major hadith collections as their most important. They are, in order of authenticity:

Sahih Bukhari, collected by Imam Bukhari (d. 870), includes 7275 ahadith

Sahih Muslim, collected by Muslim b. al-Hajjaj (d. 875), includes 9200 ahadith

Sunan al-Sughra, collected by al-Nasa'i (d. 915)

Sunan Abu Dawood, collected by Abu Dawood (d. 888)

Jami al-Tirmidhi, collected by al-Tirmidhi (d. 892)

Sunan ibn Majah, collected by Ibn Majah (d. 887)

The first two, commonly referred to as the Two Sahihs as an indication of their authenticity, contain approximately seven thousand ahadith altogether if repetitions are not counted.

A Hadeeth is composed of two parts

1) Matn (Text)

2) Isnad (Chain of reporters or narrators).

The Muhadditheen (Scholars of the Hadith) have classified the Ahadeeth in four main categories.

1. Saheeh (Authentic/Sound)

2. Hassan (Good)

3. Da'eef (Weak)

4. Mawdoo (Fabrication)

Al Hasan al Hadith (the 'good' hadith) is a term used to describe any hadith whose text (matn) is absolutely true but whose narrators (isnad) do not pass the test of complete reliability and accuracy based on the stringent criteria established by the hadith compilers. Al Da’if al Hadith (the 'weak' hadith) is a term used to describe any hadith whose truthfulness in both text (matn) and transmission (isnad) is not absolutely beyond question.

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COLLECTION OF HADITH

Hadith collections began on a small scale during the Messenger's prophethood and accelerated tremendously a century after his death. The companions of Prophet Mohammad, tried to preserve his sayings and judgements mainly in the form of memory. So basically, Hadiths were originally part of the oral tradition of Islam. There were no written records of the Prophet’s sayings and deeds during the first century after his death but after two hundred years of transmission and circulation, they were crystallized into written form by the compilers of hadith (the muhaddithun). Forgery had been rampant during the caliphate of the Prophet’s immediate successors, and it only increased under the Umayyads, who considered hadith a means of propping up their rule and actively circulated traditions against Ali and in favour of Mu'awiya.  Ummayad dynasty was overthrown by the Abbasids more than a century after Muhammad's death. The abbasids were more theocratic than the Ummayads. They encouraged the development of the sharia and even employed the court theologians to advise the caliphs. The rise of sunna had begun in the ummayad period but it was the Abbasids who gave it the official recognition. But, there was still a gap between Quran and Islam as a complete way of life. The scholars sought to fill this gap from materials from other sources like the Roman law or even their own opinions. Abbasids even encouraged circulating Prophetic hadith which predicted the reign of each successive ruler. Some of the religious leadership concentrated on ensuring the unity of the Ummah through law and other institutions. Such unity has, no doubt, reigned in the Muslim World but at the cost of inner growth.

Some striking points about hadiths :

LONG TIME GAP (MORE THAN 200 YEARS): After the destruction of the Baghdad Caliphate and the breakup of the political unity of the Muslim World. It is striking that the compilation of hadith started more than 200 years after the physical death of Prophet Mohammad. By that time, many generations had passed. The compilation was nothing but collection of hearsays and stories that were passed on from generation to generation.

HAdiths  are based on memory and hearsays and oral transmission from generation to generation.The historical records of seventh century Arabia show that oral communication (based on memory) was the primary mode of transmitting literature, history, culture, social customs and local tradition from one generation to the next. Arabia had been a land that had neither paper nor the abundance of scribes to write anything down. It’s an undisputed fact that collection of hadith mainly started after more than 200 years of Prophet Mohammad. The Hadith compilers took the herculean task of travelling to different places, even door to door in order to collect any sayings of prophet Mohammad. The people used to share with them stories and sayings of Prophet Mohammad what they had learnt from their forefathers ,who, in turn, had learnt from their forefathers. It’s very practical that even the gist of the message is highly vulnerable of being distorted when it involves: numerous messengers & long time period. In case of Hadeeths, it involved both. Then, How could after more than 200 years of prophet's period, Imam Bukhari suddenly emerge in the scene and not only collect thousands of hadith but also manage to trace back to its source (i.e. the Prophet) by establishing all the links in a chain which cannot possibly have been genuinely reconstructed? How could Bukhari and other hadith-collectors manage to bridge the gap of eight generations? Who can guarantee that any narrator of the chain had not lied or not made any unintentional mistake in stating things. How could one be fully certain that the narrator fully remembered what he had heard from another narrator and that any of the narrators involved in the chain had not made even the slightest mistake in communication, thus passing verbatim message. If we talk of consecutive generations, How can one be so certain that the chain of narrators, through the oral transmission , had been successful in transmitting the same message verbatim from generation to generation, when even in the same generation, or say, even in the same year or month or day, people are often found unable to exactly reproduce one’s utterances.

COMPILERS AND NARRATORS

 No human is infallible. The compilers and narrators could have been biased and prejudiced in their choice of narrators ,in their choice of hadith’s matter(matn) based on their personal ethical, theological, rational or even political thoughts. The collectors of Hadith made very little effort to examine the internal evidences and the genuineness of each Hadith was determined by the characters and personalities who were alleged to be its transmitters. Who can guarantee that the fallible compilers and narrators involved, had never distorted or manipulated the message? If we talk about the matn, the matn was almost never questioned; only if the content of a tradition with a sound isnad was in flagrant contradiction to the Qur'an, it was rejected; if the content could in any way be interpreted so that it harmonized with the Qur'an and other traditions, it was left uncriticized.

Some other causes that led to the fabrication of hadiths were:

.POLITICAL CONFLICT AND SECTARIAN PREJUDICE: Corrupt political leaders and partisan theological parties began to exploit the existing hadith and sunnah in order to promote their own sectarian views especially after the reigns of the four Rashidun caliphs.The Shia’s, particularly in Iraq fabricated many hadiths in praise of Hazrat Ali.Hadith were also fabricated just to please the king. For example, Giyath ibn Ibrahim ibn al Nakh’I fabricated a hadith about virtues of pigeons, to please the Caliph Mahdi (who was very fond of pigeons).Various factions attempted to justify and/or propagate their own schools Of philosophical thought in the name of the Prophet, e.g. Sufic Orders, Qadariyah, Jabariyah, Rawafid, Ikhwan-as-safa, Mu'tazila, etc. These were the groups that appeared after the death of Hazrat Ali.

The desire to translate the underlying meaning also led to distortion of the verbatim.

Not only this, various factions attempted to justify and/or propagate their own schools Of philosophical thought in the name of the Prophet, e.g. Sufic Orders, Qadariyah, Jabariyah, Rawafid, Ikhwan-as-safa, Mu'tazila, etc.These were the groups that appeared after the death of hazrat ali.

Some hadiths  were fabricated to instill and indoctrinate strict piety (taqwa) among the believers.For example, there were narrators who invented hadiths on "the merits of each Sura of the Qur’an" when they found people deserting the Qur’an. For example, Abu Isma Nuh ibn Abi Marayam admitted fabricating Hadith on the virtues of each Surah of the Qur’an stating that people were over-occupied with fiqh issues to the detriment of the Qur’an so “I invented these hadith for the sake of reward (from Allah)”.

Some more points to consider:

1..If one believes that all the Hadiths in Sahih Muslim are authentic then he should read this hadith "Do not write anything from me except Quran. Anyone who wrote anything other than the Quran shall erase it." [Ahmed, Vol. 1, Page 171, and Sahih  Moslim, Zuhd, Book 42, Number 7147].This also reflects self-contradictory nature of Hadith-compilation.

2.Abu Hurayra narrated more hadiths than anybody else including Abu Bakr, Omar, Ali, and Aysha who lived with the Prophet all their lives.Less than three years before the passing away of the Prophet, Abu Hurayrah joined Islam.Still Abu Hurayra narrated more hadiths than all these companions of the Prophet altogether. He narrated 5374 hadiths. Ibn Hanbal quoted 3848 of  his hadiths in his book.Compare the number of hadiths given by Abu Baker i.e 142 to those given by Abu Hurayra while keeping in mind that Abu Baker

accompanied the Prophet for about 23 years, while Abu Hurayra accompanied the Prophet for less than 2 or 3 years. Some of the Prophets companions (Sahaba) and Aysha, the Prophet's wife, accused him of being a liar, telling lies about the Prophet just to make up hadiths and gain some status.

 3. Bukhari collected about 600,000 hadiths and accepted 7275 hadiths(They further reduce to 2762 Hadith without repetition) and considered 592,725 hadiths to be un-proven hadiths, lies and/or fabrications, that is almost 99% of what he collected .Similarly, Imam Muslim collected 300,000 hadiths and only accepted 4000 of them, and refused about 296,000, that is almost 99% of these collected hadiths .

Ask yourself: Is it possible for Imam Bukhari or Imam muslim to have meticulously considered over several lakhs of hadith texts to pick his so-called authentic 7275 hadith texts in his lifetime in an age when the camel journey was the only available means to cover long desert distances to collect prophetic sayings. Even if we assume that they actually did so , who could vouch that the hadith they considered worth of including were actually authentic and rest lakhs of hadiths were actually worth of rejection?

4.Why was the official compilation not made earlier, especially during the time of Prophet Mohammad or the righteous caliphs when the the eye witnesses, were still alive and all hadiths could have been well examined? Just because Prophet and all Caliphates prevented people from any such compilation because they feared such compilation would lead to too much honouring of the traditions and sayings and neglect of the Quran, a fear that unfortunately, has got justified to a great extent by in the contemporary world.

CONCLUSION

This gives us an idea of how much corruption entered or tried to enter Islam from the back door. Now we should understand one of the reasons why God promised to preserve, protect and safeguard Quran.

Quran 15:9  Surely We have revealed the Reminder and We will most surely be its guardian.

 Remember Allah promises to preserve and safeguard the Quran and no other text. Even after so many hurdles, some hadith ,might still be fortunate enough to maintain their authenticity but the darker side seems to be too overweighed. Needless to say, large number of hadith texts do in fact contradict the Quran, defy all common sense reason or logic, or scientific truths or ethics.Some are salacious.There are many hadiths which record conflicting accounts of the same event!See This

Instead of validating or invalidating  hadeeths on the basis of its historical roots or reliability of its isnad(chain of narrators),  why do not so-called scholars of islam validate or invalidate it on the basis of reason or ethics or on humanitarian and egalitarian ground. Progressive and Rational muslims should assemble and a serious recompilation of Hadith is needed if they are not completely done away with. Masses should be made aware about the fabricated aspect of Hadith. The issue is of paramount importance and need to be addressed immediately as it would shape the mind-set of  generations to come.

A Blissfull Ignorance

As the day of eid-ul-adha  approaches , one could see the increasing number of goats and cows being sold ,bought and tied in muslim households ,including mine.Each lunar Year , muslims all over the world slaughter millions of animal to commemorate Prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son to obey Allah. Islam is the only religion that practices blood sacrifice as a ritualistic norm on such a huge scale in the form of eid-ul-adha. Ironically the festival of bloodshed is present in the religion which strongly advocates love and compassion towards all creatures.

On that very day, these innocent animals are slaughtered brutally and this craven act is deemed by muslims (if not GOD) as an act of 'sacrifice' in the way of GOD

Is it really a sacrifice in the way of GOD or just an insane ritual being carried out for centuries?

Sacrifice means to give up something over which we have complete possession and which is very precious or close to our heart as was the case in Prophet Abraham's story .Does this sense get justified when we merely buy an animal for a few bucks  and slaughter it? Do we have ultimate right over an animal's life? Is it logical to forcibly kill an animal desiring to live and call it your 'sacrifice' in the way of God? We did not sacrifice anything but the poor animal who lost its life bearing all the pain, unwillingly sacrificed itself.  Isn't this just a ritual of bloodshed of innocent animals and turns out to be a mockery of the true spirit of the sacrifice of Prophet Abraham? In fact a cheap skit of commemoration pursued so 'piously' .It’s called Qurbani but where is the spirit of 'sacrifice' involved in this brutality?  Shedding blood of innocent animals is worse and doing so in the name of God is worst. 

In many cases, the animal is bought, fed, taken good care of; sometimes decorated with colorful draperies, paints and beads. But for what?  Just for the day of betrayal when the animal learns it had actually been bought and served to be ultimately killed. A wolf in sheep's clothing'; a mask of kindness concealing the face of cruelty. So craven brutality combined with betrayal is what is considered as 'sacrifice' to please Allah.

This ritual of Qurbani often turns into an ostentation as the number and size of animal you slaughter is considered the yardstick of your financial prosperity and social status. Sometimes, people who cannot afford the cost of an animal still buy it just to maintain their standard in society.

-it’s a pity that sadistic spectators including children enjoy witnessing the genocide. The streets and grounds run red with blood.The parents who ask children to abstain from violent scenes filmed or televised are okay with their children becoming the spectators of the live scene of four men brutally shedding blood and skinning a seven or eight hundred pound alive animal. In many muslim countries,children daub their hands in blood,spatter one another,make blood imprints of their palms on the walls of home(often regarded as good omen).But no censorship because it's 'religious’. One can imagine the impact of such an upbringing on children.

Why are we so okay with killing animals ?

Might be our temptation for pleasure of tongue even if it costs a being's life. Secondly, our social and religious conditioning has led to deeply entrenched anthropocentric belief in us that we humans are the supreme of all the creations (Ashraful Makhluqat) and God has created other forms of life just to be consumed and utilised for our convenience in terms of food, clothing, labor, transportation and agriculture. But the fact is, all the species, including humans, have been perfectly designed within a framework of food-chain and food-web and any sort of threat to any one or more species or their habitat  disturbs the whole co-ordination of ecological balance which brings about ruin both at local and global level in the long run . Life on this earth is so intertwined as an homogeneous unit that it cannot be disentangled for the melioration of one species at the expense of the other.Even if we are dogmatic of our kingship, we overlook that dominance and hegemony should incorporate the obvious responsibility of protecting and respecting rights of the underdogs, and not to persecute.

Animal Sacrifice and Charity

Many say Animal sacrifice or Qurbani champions a great social cause-it offers charity. Really? Slaughtering of animals and donating the meat might be the simplest and most useful way to perform charity in a desert community where money and other resources were scarce. In the modern world, however, it would be simple and more helpful to donate money. The poor have many needs. Meat can at best serve only one, it can satisfy their hunger and that also, only for a day or two following the very day of sacrifice .Meat gets spoiled in a few days even if it is provided the best refrigeration and thus its scope of charity ceases to be vast, if meaningful. But money can satisfy a variety of needs and can be used as and when required. The poor have a variety of other needs like shelter, cloth, education, health services. If we donate even half of the money that we spend on buying our animal, much social service can be financed. We can please ALLAH by performing charity in a way that would be of the greatest benefit to the recipient without taking the lives of innocent animals.

Can God ever be pleased with killings in His name ?

 As spectators to this bloodshed ritual, we all notice the poor animal struggling at its best to escape but all in vain. Terror, pain and desire to survive is so perceptible in its teary eyes as it refuses to drink the final gulp of water.But people ,blindfolded by religion, hardly get moved by such  signs. Just think! How can God , whom we consider the most Merciful and Compassionate, get pleased watching a helpless and innocent animal , His own creation , restlessly struggling for life, with its legs tied in pairs that it cannot move , jaws tightly tied that it cannot even brawl , while two men holding it and tossing it on the floor, and finally slitting the throat , thereby completing the inhumane ritual of so called Sacrifice. The animal excruciatingly bleeds , moans, gasps and finally succumbs to death while the sadistic crowd rejoices. Who can justify this splurge of Bloodshed? Do you beileve that God, whom you revere as the most merciful, most benevolent would be pleased at such a sight? 

Inflicting pain on sentient creatures might satisfy our 'nafs' with the physical pleasure of delicious meat or our craving for taste but can never ever please God. The Islamic approach of sacrifice involves one's willingness to submit one's will to God, giving up one's temptation and evil desires in the way of God. Islam demands personal sacrifice and submission (and not the physical sacrifice of the animal you buy). The idea of gaining favour by offering the life of another is not only illogical but also antagonistic to Islamic true ideology. In fact, Islam was the religion which broke away from the longstanding  tradition  of appeasing an "angry god" by shedding blood of any innocent creature ; vicarious  atonement of sin which was common especially among pagans and is a common practice  in many regions.

Quran 22:37 "it is neither their meat nor their blood that reaches Allah, but it is piety from you that reaches him"