[Saispapedlimi]

This is mainly to all the "unknown" type of people who are senselessly defending the appalling excuse of a comedy known as Diary of a Badman. My sincere advice to such people is to remain silent on such issues, for the bitter truth is that they have no authority to present excuses on behalf of some of the content of the series.

Before I continue with my post, I don't think Humza Arshad is so uneducated that he cannot pronounce the name "Abdul Jabbar" correctly. Quite disgustingly, he has referred to him as "Abdul Jabbala" (1:33) and then "Abdul Jabbalama" (3:20), distorting and mocking one of the beautiful names of Allah Most High, Jabbar. I don't want to be accused of being a "ranting molvi" and judging others so early into my post; hence, I would advise the Badman to follow his own advice, ironically a few seconds after he uttered what he uttered (3:25), and read the Qur'an and hadith if he really is so ignorant of Jabbar being a name of Allah. Furthermore, I think any fair person would agree that to twist somebody's name is a "personal attack", but hey, who is anybody else to judge??!!!

Anyway....

1. Islam is not averse to humour and as rightly stated in one of the posts, some shaykhs do add a bit of humour every now and then in their lectures. However, there is a big difference between humour and outright mockery. Just move away from the Islamic context for a moment and this still stands. Nobody likes to be ridiculed or made fun of, and no matter how "sincerely" innocent the person who is ridiculing considers himself in cracking a joke at somebody's expense, the person on the receiving end will not feel the same way. It is painful to see how when aspects of Islam are ridiculed, we fail to see this and excuse Humza Arshad on the pretext that he was not trying to represent Islam!! In that case, anybody can ridicule the Sunna of the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) and Islamic practices and simply put a disclaimer at the end, stating: "This is in no way, shape or form, intended to be a representation of Islam." Does this justify it? NO!!! I could easily quote the erudite scholars of all schools of fiqh regarding mockery of Islamic teachings and what it constitutes, but I think what I have stated above is sufficient for one who possesses an ounce of sound reasoning.

Allah says, "And if you were to ask them, they would say: 'Surely we were
only jesting and playing.' Say: 'Was it Allah, His Verses,
or His Messenger you were mocking? Make no mistake,
verily you have disbelieved after your belief.' " (9:65-66)


Regarding the circumstances behind the revelation of this verse, Ibn Kathir (rahimahullah) relates how a man said in the Battle of Tabuk, "I have not seen anyone like these reciters (qurra') [a term used for ulama]; they have the hungriest bellies, the most lying of tongues and the biggest cowards at the time of battle." News of this reached the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). This man came and said, "O Messenger of Allah, I was only jesting and joking." All the while, Allah's Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) kept reciting, "Was it Allah, His verses and His Messenger you were mocking?"

In short, if anyone is adamant upon mocking, then let him find members of his own family or friends whom he can mock publicly and who hopefully won't be offended. Or perhaps some of his avid fans and defenders will present their names for this great service. But please, for the sake of your own faith and belief, don't mock anything of Islam.

2. What the youth think or don't think of Abdul Jabbar or the Badman does not really have any bearing on the teachings of Islam. If all the youth of the UK were to think the Badman and his ridicule is acceptable, it will not render it acceptable. Having said that, I know many youngsters who did initially find the Badman's clips to be funny but who themselves identified the sheer mockery of Islam he was presenting in the guise of comedy. So let's not go down the route of who thinks what....

3. "Don't judge others!"...."Only Allah has the right to judge!" etc. are just as deceptive slogans as "As long as my heart's clean!" and "It's your heart that matters" to excuse oneself from following Islam. Yes, only Allah is the true and ultimate judge of matters, but he has granted us guidance in the form of the Quran and Sunna whereby we distinguish between right and wrong. If nobody has the right to judge others, then never should we look down upon or comment on the actions of every mass murderer, serial killer, paedophile, terrorist or any other sick, individual guilty of a heinous crime. And if only Allah has the right to judge, who gave anyone the right to call Al-Qadr Media's response as a publicity stunt and label members of the Islamic clergy as self-righteous? Why did Humza Arshad say that they are doing it to make money? In that case, when an American pastor wants to burn the Qur'an, let him; who are we to judge???

4. Becoming angry for the sake of Allah is part of the Deen. Again, if you are ignorant of that, go check the hadiths describing the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) and how enraged he would become when the rules of Allah Most High were violated. And to say there are bigger issues to be dealt tackled is quite funny coming from a person who condones ridicule of Islam. Perhaps you can highlight some of these "bigger issues" for the outdated, prehistoric Muslims like myself....

With respect to the apology of Humza Arshad, acknowledging that he may have made mistakes, realising the need to be careful in the future and his hoping to become a better person, I pray that Allah grants him sincerity in what he has said.

It is very easy for us to refuse the glaring truth and deny our mistakes, due to the pride and arrogance which lurks within us. For a person who has reached such fame and recognition through his videos on Youtube to publicly retract is undeniably difficult, but my humble advice to him would be to take a step back, view his own content impartially and then think: have I not mocked many aspects of Islam? Just as an example; to say: "Blud, that's just dum! Why would I say uff to my mum!!?" Is that not mockery in light of the verse of Sura Tawba and the incident behind its revelation?

I trust that he is not a "monster" and that his intentions were not malicious. Yes, the charitable acts he has done are all commendable in their own right but that does not detract from the serious issue at hand with the DOABM series and its content. Furthermore, the soundness of our intention does not always translate into correct actions. Lack of knowledge can cause major pitfalls, no matter how good the intention was.

I think the brave and, more importantly, right thing for Humza Arshad to do is to understand his mistakes, repent to Allah Most High and publicly retract and remove his videos. By Allah, it will not dent his reputation or decrease him any way whatsoever, but rather, it will be a means of closeness to Allah Most High and be an inspiration and turning point for many youth, which I am sure he wants deep down. He also needs to understand the sheer anger he has caused many Muslims who cherish the Qur'an and Sunna and which has warranted the severe criticism he has received. It should not be taken as a personal attack.

I pray Allah gives us all the ability to do what is right and the true understanding of Islam. I pray Allah gives Humza Arshad the ability to understand what is right from wrong and enables him to be courageous enough to repent. Amin.