It needs not be a sad farewell

While we pray for the souls of the departed victims of this carnage we will continue to also pray to Almighty Allah to expose the architects and perpetrators of this inhumanity and wickedness. Llike I observed earlier, on this page, to us it is a double tragedy because Muslims are killed and maimed and also […]

While we pray for the souls of the departed victims of this carnage we will continue to also pray to Almighty Allah to expose the architects and perpetrators of this inhumanity and wickedness. Llike I observed earlier, on this page, to us it is a double tragedy because Muslims are killed and maimed and also blamed for the atrocities. We desperately pray for the real terrorists to be known. Luckily, even some non-Muslims testify to the greatness and positive contributions of Islam to the development of humanity. I hereby reproduce some of these testimonies in the hope that they will make our farewell to Ramadan and celebration of Eid not as sad as the murderers want them to be. Eid mubarak in advance!
I hereby present to you a testimony to Islam’s glorious past and its indelible contributions to today’s world. This time it’s from Carly Fiorina, the former CEO of computer giant Hewlett-Packard. I hope her words will inspire us to strive and regain our lost intellectual heritage.
Ms. Carly Fiorina, Hewlett-Packard’s Chairman and CEO delivered a speech in Minneapolis, Minnesota on September 26, 2001. The title of her lecture was ‘TECHNOLOGY, BUSINESS AND OUR WAY OF LIFE: WHAT’S NEXT?” She said “There was once a civilization that was the greatest in the world.” …….”And this civilization was driven more than anything, by invention. Its architects designed buildings that defied gravity. Its mathematicians created the algebra and algorithms that would enable the building of computers, and the creation of encryption. Its doctors examined the human body, and found new cures for disease. Its astronomers looked into the heavens, named the stars, and paved the way for space travel and exploration.” “When other nations were afraid of ideas, this civilization thrived on them, and kept them alive. When censors threatened to wipe out knowledge from past civilizations, this civilization kept the knowledge alive, and passed it on to others.”
“While modern Western civilization shares many of these traits, the civilization I’m talking about was the Islamic World from the year 800 to 1,600, which included the Ottoman Empire and the courts of Baghdad, Damascus and Cairo, and enlightened rulers like Suleiman the Magnificent.”
“Although we are often unaware of our indebtedness to this other civilization, its gifts are very much a part of our heritage. The technology industry would not exist without the contributions of Arab mathematicians. Sufi poet-philosophers like Rumi challenged our notions of self and truth. Leaders like Suleiman contributed to our notions of tolerance and civic leadership. And perhaps we can learn a lesson from his example: It was leadership based on meritocracy, not inheritance. It was leadership that harnessed the full capabilities of a very diverse population-that included Christianity, Islamic and Jewish traditions.”