Why I Left Islam

April 27, 2003

Why I Left Islam

By Ali Sina

I am often asked, Why I left Islam?. As absurd as it

may be, some Muslims cannot even allow themselves to

think that leaving Islam is an option, or even

possible. They rather think that those who leave Islam

are paid Jewish agents than accept the fact that

people have freedom to think and some may even think

that Islam is not for them. The following are my

reasons:

Until few years ago I used to think that my faith in

Islam was not based on blind imitation but rather was

the result of years of investigation and research. The

fact that I had read a lot of books on Islam, written

by people whose thoughts I approved of and delving

into philosophies that were within my comfort zone,

emphasized my conviction that I had found the truth.

All my biased research confirmed my faith. Just like

other Muslims I used to believe that to learn about

anything one has to go to the source. Of course the

source of Islam is the Quran and the books written by

Muslim scholars. Therefore, I felt no need to look

elsewhere in order to find the truth, as I was

convinced that I have already found it. As Muslims say

“Talabe ilm ba’d az wossule ma’loom mazmoom”. The

search of knowledge after gaining it is foolish.

Of course, this is a foolish idea. What if we want to

learn the truth about one of these dangerous cults? Is

it enough to depend only on what the cult leader and

his deluded followers say? Wouldn’t it be prudent to

widen our research and find out what other people have

to say about them? Going to the source makes sense

only in scientific matters, because scientists are not

“believers”. They do not say something because they

have blind faith. Scientists make a critical analysis

of the evidence. It is very much different from a

religious approach that is based entirely on faith and

belief.

I suppose it was my acquaintance with the western

humanistic values that made me more sensitive and

whetted my appetite for democracy, freethinking, human

rights, equality, etc. It was then that when I reread

the Quran I came across injunctions that were not on a

par with my newfound humanistic values, I was

distressed and felt very uncomfortable to read

teachings like these:

Q.3:90

But those who reject Faith after they accepted it, and

then go on adding to their defiance of Faith,- never

will their repentance be accepted; for they are those

who have gone astray.

Q.16: 106

Any one who, after accepting faith in Allah, utters

Unbelief,- except under compulsion, his heart

remaining firm in Faith - but such as open their

breast to Unbelief, on them is Wrath from Allah, and

theirs will be a dreadful Penalty.

One may think that the dreadful penalty mentioned here

pertains to the next world. But Muhammad made sure

that these people received their penalty in this world

as well. See the following:

Sahih Bukhari Volume 6, Book 61, Number 577:

I heard the Prophet saying, "In the last days (of the

world) there will appear young people with foolish

thoughts and ideas. They will give good talks, but

they will go out of Islam as an arrow goes out of its

game, their faith will not exceed their throats. So,

wherever you find them, kill them, for there will be a

reward for their killers on the Day of Resurrection."

Sahih Bukhari Volume 4, Book 63, Number 260:

Ali burnt some people and this news reached Ibn

'Abbas, who said, "Had I been in his place I would not

have burnt them, as the Prophet said, 'Don't punish

(anybody) with Allah's Punishment.' No doubt, I would

have killed them, for the Prophet said, 'If somebody

(a Muslim) discards his religion, kill him.' "

Sahih Bukhari Volume 4, Book 63, Number 261:

Eight men of the tribe of 'Ukil came to the Prophet

and then they found the climate of Medina unsuitable

for them. So, they said, "O Allah's Apostle! Provide

us with some milk." Allah's Apostle said, "I recommend

that you sh ould join the herd of camels." So they

went and drank the urine and the milk of the camels

(as a medicine) till they became healthy and fat. Then

they killed the shepherd and drove away the camels,

and they became unbelievers after they were Muslims.

When the Prophet was informed by a shouter for help,

he sent some men in their pursuit, and before the sun

rose high, they were brought, and he had their hands

and feet cut off. Then he ordered for nails, which

were heated and passed over their eyes, and they were

left in the Harra (i.e. rocky land in Medina). They

asked for water, and nobody provided them with water

till they died.

And from Partial Translation of Sunan Abu-Dawud Book

38, Number 4339

Narrated Aisha, Ummul Mu'minin:

The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) Said: The

blood of a Muslim man who testifies that there is no

god but Allah and that Muhammad is Allah's Apostle

should not lawfully be shed except only for one of

three reasons: a man who committed fornication after

marriage, in which case he should be stoned; one who

goes forth to fight with Allah and His Apostle, in

which case he should be killed or crucified or exiled

from the land; or one who commits murder for which he

is killed.

The following is very disturbing. I dare to say that

any man who reads it and is not taken aback with

disgust has a long way to go to become a human.

Sunan Abu-Dawud Book 38, Number 4348

Narrated Abdullah Ibn Abbas:

A blind man had a slave-mother who used to abuse the

Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) and disparage him. He

forbade her but she did not stop. He rebuked her but

she did not give up her habit. One night she began to

slander the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) and abuse him.

So he took a dagger, placed it on her belly, pressed

it, and killed her. A child who came between her legs

was smeared with the blood that was there. When the

morning came, the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) was

informed about it.

He assembled the people and said: I adjure by Allah

the man who has done this action and I adjure him by

my right to him that he should stand up. Jumping over

the necks of the people and trembling the man stood

up.

He . before the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) and

said: Apostle of Allah! I am her master; she used to

abuse you and disparage you. I forbade her, but she

did not stop, and I rebuked her, but she did not

abandon her habit. I have two sons like pearls from

her, and she was my companion. Last night she began to

abuse and disparage you. So I took a dagger, put it on

her belly and pressed it till I killed her.

Thereupon the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: Oh be

witness, no retaliation is payable for her blood.

I felt the above story was a manifest injustice.

Muhammad condoned a man killing a pregnant mother and

his own unborn child just because he said that she

insulted him!

(Arabs used to sleep with their maid slaves. Quran

perpetuates this tradition Q.33: 52 “It is not lawful

for thee (to marry more) women after this, nor to

change them for (other) wives, even though their

beauty attract thee, except any thy right hand should

possess (as handmaidens): and Allah doth watch over

all things.” Muhammad himself slept with Mariyah the

maid slave of Hafsa his wife without marrying her.)

Forgiving someone for killing another human being just

because he said she insulted Muhammad is unacceptable.

What if that man was lying to escape punishment? What

does this story say about Muhammad’s sense of Justice?

During the past 1400 years, imagine how many husbands

escaped punishment for killing their innocent wives by

accusing them of blaspheming the prophet of God and

this Hadith has made them get away with it.

Here is another one:

Sunan Abu-Dawud Book 38, Number 4349

Narrated Ali ibn AbuTalib:

A Jewess used to abuse the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him)

and disparage him. A man strangled her till she died.

The Apostle of Allah (peace_be_upon_him) declared that

no recompense was payable for her blood.

It was not easy to read these stories and not be

moved. There is no reason to believe that all these

stories were fabricated. Why should believers, who

have tried to depict their prophet as a compassionate

man fabricate so many stories that would make him look

like a ruthless tyrant?

I could no longer accept the brutal treatment of those

who chose not to accept Islam. Faith is a personal

matter. I could no more accept that the punishment of

someone who criticizes any religion must be death.

See how Muhammad dealt with the unbelievers:

Sunan Abu-Dawud Book 38, Number 4359

Narrated Abdullah ibn Abbas:

The verse "The punishment of those who wage war

against Allah and His Apostle, and strive with might

and main for mischief through the land is execution,

or crucifixion, or the cutting off of hands and feet

from opposite side or exile from the land...most

merciful" was revealed about polytheists. If any of

them repents before they are arrested, it does not

prevent from inflicting on him the prescribed

punishment, which he deserves.”

How could a messenger of God maim and crucify people

on the account that they resist accepting him? Could

such a person really be a messenger of God? Wasn’t

there a better man with more moral and ethical

fortitude to bear this mighty responsibility?

I could not accept the fact that Muhammad slaughtered

900 Jews in one day, after he captured them in a raid

that he started. I read the following story and I

shivered:

Sunan Abu-Dawud Book 38, Number 4390

Narrated Atiyyah al-Qurazi:

I was among the captives of Banu Qurayzah. They (the

Companions) examined us, and those who had begun to

grow hair (pubes) were killed, and those who had not

were not killed. I was among those who had not grown

hair

Also, I found following story shocking:

Sunan Abu-Dawud Book 38, Number 4396

Narrated Jabir ibn Abdullah:

A thief was brought to the Prophet

(peace_be_upon_him). He said: Kill him. The people

said: He has committed theft, Apostle of Allah! Then

he said: Cut off his hand. So his (right) hand was cut

off. He was brought a second time and he said: Kill

him. The people said: He has committed theft, Apostle

of Allah! Then he said: Cut off his foot.

So his (left) foot was cut off.

He was brought a third time and he said: Kill him.

The people said: He has committed theft, Apostle of

Allah!

So he said: Cut off his hand. (So his (left) hand was

cut off.)

He was brought a fourth time and he said: Kill him.

The people said: He has committed theft, Apostle of

Allah!

So he said: Cut off his foot. So his (right) foot was

cut off.

He was brought a fifth time and he said: Kill him.

So we took him away and killed him. We then dragged

him and cast him into a well and threw stones over

him.

Seems that Muhammad passed judgment before hearing the

case. Also by cutting a thief’s hand he is left with

no other means to earn his bread except begging, which

would be difficult since he is defamed as a thief and

so hated by people. Therefore re-offending becomes his

only means of livelihood.

After living many years in the West and being received

kindly by people of other religions or of no religion,

who loved me and accepted me as their friend; who let

me into their lives and their heart, I could no longer

accept the following mandates of the Quran as the

words of God:

Q.58: 22

You will not find any people who believe in Allah and

the Last Day, making friendship with those who oppose

Allah and His Messenger…

Q.3: 118-120

O you who believe! Take not as (your) bitaanah

(advisors, consultants, protectors, helpers, friends,

etc.) those outside your religion (pagans, Jews,

Christians, and hypocrites) since they will not fail

to do their best to corrupt you. They desire to harm

you severely. Hatred has already appeared from their

mouths, but what their breasts conceal is far worse.

Indeed We have made clear to you the aayaat (proofs,

evidence, verses), if you understand. Lo! You are the

ones who love them but they love you not, and you

believe in all the Scriptures [i.e., you believe in

the Tawraat and the Injeel, while they disbelieve in

your Book (the Qur’an)]. And when they meet you, they

say, ‘We believe.’ But when they are alone, they bite

the tips of their fingers at you in rage. Say: ‘Perish

in your rage. Certainly Allah knows what is in the

breasts (all the secrets).’ If a good befalls you, it

grieves them, but some evil overtakes you, they

rejoice at it…

And

Q.5: 51

O you who believe! Take not the Jews and the

Christians as awliya’ (friends, protectors, helpers,

etc.), they are but awliya’ to one another…

I also found the above statement false. The evidence

is in the Bosnia and Kosovo crisis; where Christian

countries, waged war against another Christian

country, to liberate Muslims. Many Jewish doctors

volunteered to help the Kosovar refugees, despite the

fact that during the WWII, the same Albanian Muslims

took sides with Hitler and helped him in his holocaust

against the Jews.

It became obvious to me that Muslims are accepted by

all the people of the world yet our prophet wants us

to hate them, to disassociate ourselves from them, to

force them into our way of life or kill them, subdue

them and make them pay Jizya. How silly! How pathetic!

How inhumane! No wonder there is so much inexplicable

hate of the West and of the Jews among Muslims. It was

Muhammad who inseminated the hate and the distrust of

the non-believers among his followers. How can Muslims

integrate with other nations while holding these

hateful messages of the Quran as the words of God?

There are many Muslims who immigrate to non-Muslim

countries and are received with open arms. Many of

them get into politics and become part of the ruling

elite. We suffer no discrimination in the non-Islamic

countries. But see how our holy prophet tells us to

deal with non-Muslims where we are the majority:

Q.9: 29

Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day,

nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by

Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion

of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the

Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing

submission, and feel themselves subdued.

I also find the following verses completely against my

conscience. I love all humanity and wish everyone to

be happy in this world and forgiven in the next. But

my holy prophet bade me not to seek forgiveness for

the unbelievers even if they are my parents and

beloved ones.

(Interpretation of the meaning by Muhsin Khan):

Q.9: 113

It is not (proper) for the Prophet and those who

believe to ask Allaah’s forgiveness for the

mushrikeen, even though they be of kin, after it has

become clear to them that they are the dwellers of the

Fire (because they died in state of disbelief).

Quran and hadith are full of outrageous verses like

these that to me are clear proof that Muhammad was not

a prophet, but a cult leader. To force people to

denounce their own family is what cults do. He was an

impostor who lied so loudly and so forcefully that the

ignorant people of his time believed in him. Then the

following generations echoed these lies passing them

to the next. Philosophers and writers were born in

this atmosphere of lies and elaborated on them,

embellished them, and made them credible. But when you

go to the core of the religion, when you read the

Quran and study the hadith you see they are nothing

but pure nonsense. Rumi was a great poet and a mystic,

he tried to give Islam mystical significance that it

lacked. But what Rumi said is Rumi's thinkimg. Quran

is bereft of mystical meanings. Muhammad's concept of

religion and god was extremely primitive. Why Rumi,

Attar, Sohravardi or other mystics strive to

attribute meanings to senseless verses of the Quran

has to do with their upbringing as Muslim kids. On one

hand, unlike the more rationalist thinkers such as Ar

Razi, they could not denounce Islam altogether for it

was ingrained in their subconscious mind. Nothing is

more difficult to get rid of than religion. This is

truly the most potent narcotic if it is administered

to a person from childhood. Yet as intelligent people

it was not possible for these great minds to accept

the Quran for its face vale. Therefore they tried to

find exoteric meanings in meaningless verses of the

Quran and it was they who gave birth to a new religion

that had nothing to do with what was taught by

Muhammad. Yet this religion was palatable to those

with brains.

Thus we have two Islams. One that makes strives to

attribute mystical significance and otherworldly

meanings to the inane teachings of the Quran, as is

professed by Sufis, and the other that rejects any

interpretation of these verses beyond their literal

meanings, as is practiced by the majority of Muslims

with their hob in Saudi Arabia among the Wahhabis. And

of course there is a myriad of sects that go in

between these two extremes, each interpreting the

Quran according to their own whims and caprices, each

calling others mortad or heretics and constantly

making war among themselves to impose their own

"right" version of the pure Islam on others.

However, the real Islam is not what its philosophers

and mystics have inferred but what is in the Quran and

that is the Islam of the fundamentalist and the

terrorist. The real Islam is the Islam that abuses

women, that allows men to beat their wives, that

imposes penalty tax on the religious minorities, that

wants to dominate the world by subduing all the

non-Muslims, that calls for Jihad and killing the

non-believers until Islam becomes the only dominant

religion of the World.

My rejection of Islam is not based on the bad deeds of

the Muslims but on the bad teachings of its holy book

and on the bad deeds of its founder. Many cruelties

and heinous acts of violence, perpetrated by Muslims

throughout the centuries were inspired by the Quran

and the Sunnah (the examples of the prophet). That is

why I condemn ISLAM for the bad things that Muslims

do. Any effort to humanize Islam is a waste of time.

The obstacle to any reform is Quran. The enemy is

Islam and that is the target of my attacks. I do that,

despite knowing that I have become the magnet of the

hatred of fanatical Muslims and my own life could be

in danger. Yet I know that by eradicating Islam we can

save the world from the dangers of a catastrophe that

otherwise is looming over our heads and could cause

more disaster than the 1st and 2nd World Wars

combined. Eradication of Islam means restoring peace

among humanity and civility, democracy and prosperity

in the Muslim world.

Ali Sina

April 27, 2003

thanks gopaldas ji for the article.

i have read about ali.

he says he is a humanist (atheist).

still it is better than a muslim.

sanatana dharma provides one full freedom to study other religions and then choose a religion or path suitble to one.

hare krishna actually have studied or experienced christianity,a dn they they studied krishna bhakti. after the study they chose KC. so this is an educated decision.

there is nothing like it in islam. cases like ali are very rare. salman rasdai is another example.

islam in contrast forces islam on the children born in a muslims family. also islam encourges to produce a lot of children using four wives. this trend can devastate any democracy who allows islam in their country.

koran or hadith also says that if one quits islam, then he/she must be killed. so, no one dares to quit islam.

muslims alwasy ask for deparate land, schools, and laws

that are inaccordance eith koran and hadith. if you give any of thes to them, then it helps produce more terrorists who would ask for more land, schools and laws. thus the cycle continues and arab nationalism spreads and takes over the rest of the cultures.

people like ali should help other musilms quit islam.

ali is doing his part well by his web site.

ali sina's web site is

http://www.golshan.org

jai sri prabhupada!

April 30, 2003

I must admit that I am shocked to hear about Qaran. It looks like Mohd was more like Saddam than a Prophet. How come people are blindly beleiving the religion which has no humanistic priniciples other than teaching men to have more wives which is immorality and kill people who does not beleive in religion.