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Do You Know? – Quiz, Questions & Answers #16 Thursday, Dec 3 2009
Quiz 10:32 pm
Questions:
77. Who said that he is the dot under the “BA” in Bismillah and what is the Ta’wil of it?
78. What is the name of special `Ibadat, which we do in the morning between 4.00 a.m. & 5.00 a.m.?
79. What is the meaning of “Ism A`zam” and what is its Ta’wil?
80. What does AKDN stands for?
Answers:
77. Hazrat Ali said: “I am the dot under the “BA” in Bismillah”.
Ta’wil: “BA” is the Arabic alphabet, which is equal to “B” in English alphabet. “BA” has the dot in the bottom, which means it is the base (foundation) of the letter “BA”. Surah Fatihah (the first surah) and all the other surahs (except surah 9) begin with Bismillah and “BA” is the first letter in Bismillah and the base of “BA” is the dot in it and by saying “I am the dot under the ‘BA’ in Bismillah”, Hazrat Ali (a.s.) is saying that he is the base/foundation (Asas) of the Holy Qur’an and he is the source of the Ta’wil of the Qur’an.
78.“Baitu’l-khayal”.
79. “Ism A`zam” means Supreme Name and its Ta’wil is Imam (guide) of the time.
80. “The Aga Khan Development Network”
Bonus question and answer
What is faith?
Faith (IMAN) means to affirm with the tongue, to believe with the heart and to act upon it with the limbs of the body, in other words belief, speech and action should be simultaneous.
(To know about faith (IMAN) from the Ismaili point of view please refer to the “Book of Faith” by Qazi al-Nu`man, translated by AAA Fyzee.)
Do You Know? – Quiz, Questions & Answers #15 Thursday, Dec 3 2009
Quiz 10:21 pm
Questions:
74. We believe that Allah has not created anything without any meaning in it or without any use for it, then why has Allah created ‘tears’ if we are not allowed to shed them in our worldly matters?
75. Who wrote the Book “Wajh-i Din”?
76. Who wrote the following Books: “Da`a’imu’l-Islam” and “Asasu’t-Ta’wil”?
Answers:
74. Allah has created ‘tears’ so we must cry in the love of Imam-i zaman and come near to him and also we should cry while asking for forgiveness of our shortcomings.
75. Pir Nasir-i Khusraw.
76. Sayyidna Qadi an-Nu’man.
Do You Know? – Quiz, Questions & Answers #14 Thursday, Dec 3 2009
Quiz 10:15 pm
Questions:
71. How many ranks of the human soul are there in the Holy Qur’an?
72. What three (3) things do human beings consist of ?
73. If good food and regular exercise make our body healthier, what are the sources of health for our Soul and Intellect?
Answers:
71. In the Holy Qur’an, there are three stages of the human soul:
- Nafs-i ammarah (the carnal soul) (22:53)
- Nafs-i lawwamah (the censoring soul) (75:2)
- Nafs-i mutma’innah (the satisfied soul) (89:27)
72. Body, Soul and Intellect.
73. Tasbih, Ginan, giryah-u zari and `Ibadat are necessary for the healthy Soul and blessings of knowledge and Wisdom are a must for the sound Intellect.
Do You Know? – Quiz, Questions & Answers #13 Thursday, Dec 3 2009
Quiz 10:07 pm
Questions:
66. Which Surah is called “Ummu’l-Kitab” and esoterically whose title is it?
67. Name the Surah, which we read in our Du`a, which refers to the concept of ‘Tawhid’?
68. How many times is the word “Imam” mentioned in the Holy Qur’an?
69. How many times is the word “Nur” mentioned in the Holy Qur’an?
70. How many times is the word “Ruh”(Soul) mentioned in the Holy Qur’an?
Answers:
66. “Ummu’l-Kitab” (Mother of Book) is the ‘Suratu’l-Fatiha’ and esoterically it is the title of Hazrat Ali.
67. “Suratu’l-Ikhlas”.
68. Twelve (12) times.
69. Forty Nine (49) times.
70. Twenty Four (24) times.
Do You Know? – Quiz, Questions & Answers #12 Thursday, Dec 3 2009
Quiz 10:01 pm
Questions:
61. What is Hazir Imam’s father’s name?
62. Who gave the title “Aga Khan” to our Imams?
63. Name the Four (4) Aga Khans in the order I, II, III & IV?
64. What are our Ismaili Tariqah practices, “Esoteric” or “Exoteric”?
65. What are the Arabic words for ‘Esoteric’ and ‘Exoteric’?
Answers:
61. Prince Ali Salman Khan (a.s.).
62. Fath`Ali Shah Qachar (Shah of Iran).
63. Imam Shah Hasan Ali Shah, Imam Shah Ali Shah, Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah & Shah Karim Hazir Imam.
64. Both “Esoteric” and “Exoteric”, but emphasis is in their respective phases or periods.
65. Esoteric: Ta’wil or Batin, Exoteric: Tanzil or Zahir
Do You Know? – Quiz, Questions & Answers #11 Saturday, Nov 28 2009
Quiz 12:12 am
Questions:
56. In which ayat which we recite in the second part of our Du`a, are these three stages of `Ita`at referred to? Give the Qur’anic reference too.(if possible)
57. What are the three (3) stages of ‘Yaqin’(certainty)?
58. What are the three (3) levels of ‘Fana’(Annihilation)?
59. Name seven (7) Pillars of Islam?
60. Name six (6) major Prophets?
Answers:
56. “O you who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Rasul and the Uli’l-amr (those who hold authority = Imam-i zaman)” (Suratu’n-Nisaa, 4:59)).
57.
- Ilmu’l-yaqin (knowledge of certitude)
- `Aynu’l-yaqin (Eye of certitude)
- Haqqu’l-yaqin. (Truth of certainty)
58.
- Annihilation in the Murshid (Imam)
- Annihilation in the Prophet
- Annihilation in God.
59.
- Walaya
- Tahara
- Salah
- Zakah
- Sawm
- Hajj
- Jihad
60.
- Hazrat Adam (a.s.)
- Hazrat Nuh (a.s.)
- Hazrat Ibrahim (a.s.)
- Hazrat Musa (a.s.)
- Hazrat `Isa (a.s.)
- Hazrat Muhammad (s.a.a.s.)
Do You Know? – Quiz, Questions & Answers #10 Monday, Nov 23 2009
Quiz 12:37 am
Questions:
51. What is ‘Spiritual Science’?
52. What is the Qur’anic reference regarding Allah’s promise about His signs in both worlds?
53. What is “Farz” and what is “Nafal”?
54. What is “Hadith-i Nawafil” or “Hadith-i Taqarrub”(Hadith of proximity)?
55. How many and what are the stages of ‘Ita`at’(obedience)?
Answers:
51. True knowledge about the physical (external) world is called physical science. Same way, true knowledge of the spiritual (internal) world is called ‘Spiritual Science’.
52. “Soon We will show them Our signs in the external world and the internal world until it becomes manifest to them that He is the truth” (41:53).
53. “Farz” means obligatory or compulsory practices of religion, which a mu’min must fulfil. “Nafal” is the additional prayers and actions that a true mu’min must do in order to come closer to Almighty Allah and to earn His Love.
54. “My servant always seeks My closeness through additional prayers until I love him. When I love him, I become his ear with which he hears, and I become his eye, with which he sees and I become his hand with which he grasps and I become his foot by which he walks.”
55. Three Stages:
- Obedience of Allah
- Obedience of Prophet
- Obedience of Uli’l-amr (those who hold authority) = Imam-i zaman.
Do You Know? – Quiz, Questions & Answers #9 Sunday, Nov 22 2009
Quiz 12:00 am
Questions:
46. What is the difference between ‘Monorealism’ and ‘Monotheism’?
47. What does “Personal World” mean?
48. What are ‘`Alam-i Asghar’ & ‘`Alam-i Akbar’ and what is the difference between them?
49. Why is a human being’s rank above all creation?
50. What does Holy Qur’an says about Paradise?
Answers:
45. Yes, Allah is everywhere. As Qur’an says: “Allah is the light of the Heavens & Earth” (24:35) and “Wherever you turn, there is the face of Allah” (2:115)
46. ‘Monotheism’ is the concept that Allah is somewhere higher and we are down here and can’t reach him. But ‘Monorealism’ gives us the hope that Allah is everywhere (“Allah is the light of the Heavens and the Earth”, (24:35) and we live within Allah and walk and talk within Him. Monoreality explains how Allah is one. Allah is one in the sense that He is the only one but includes all of us.
47. Personal world is a world contained within oneself, which is also called the microcosm. Personal world contains within itself the entire Universe in a subtle form, just as a seed contains within itself the entire tree. When true mu’mins travels on ‘Sirat al-Mustaqim’ and reach Ma’rifat, they come to the recognition as to how the entire Universe is subjugated to them.
48. ‘`Alam-i Asghar’ means the personal world and `Alam-i Akbar means the Universe. The difference between them is like the seed and the tree.
49. It is because a human being possesses intellect that allows him to identify right from wrong and enables him to attain Ma’rifat.
50. “Nothing is Impossible in Paradise”.
Do You Know? – Quiz, Questions & Answers #8 Saturday, Nov 21 2009
Quiz 11:54 pm
Questions:
41. What does ‘Tawhid’ means?
42. What is the word, which describes the concept of ‘Tawhid’ for us?
43. Which Imam blessed us with the miraculous word “MONOREALITY”, which describes the concept of ‘Tawhid’ for us?
44. Name the ‘Book’ & ‘Chapter of that Book’ in which Imam wrote about “MONOREALITY”?
45. Do we believe that Allah is everywhere, if yes give the reference from the Qur’an?
Answers:
41. ‘Tawhid’ means to believe in one God. (112:1)
42. “MONOREALITY”.
43. Hazrat Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah (a.s.).
44. Book = “The Memoirs of Agakhan” and Chapter = “Islam-the religion of my Ancestors”.
45. Yes, Allah is everywhere. As Qur’an says: “Allah is the light of the Heavens & Earth” (24:35) and “Wherever you turn, there is the face of Allah” (2:115)
