The Intertwined Conflict

About the Book

This book looks into the different aspects of Islam and culture, and how culture rather than Islam is affecting Muslims, today.  It will examine the conflict between Islamic values, and social and culture ones.  How Islam has always seen as a religion of oppression and terrorism through the Western eyes, this book will illustrates the factors which created those stereotypes and impression about it.  The book, frankly explores the events and life in the Islamic world, Kuwaiti society and the wrongdoings of Muslims.  It also finds out how Muslims are influenced by the surrounding circumstance and the folklore of their ancestors whether living amongst their compatriots or expatriates. The book refers to some practices of Muslims briefly by extracting religious texts: The Quran, The Sunnah, and the Sharia, and explaining the misconception of those referred texts by fanatics and very conservative Muslims.  The book compiled information and references about different Islamic topics such as social relationships, jurisprudence, and Islam and the modern world.  It also explores how Islam is compatible with the past, present and future.

The Intertwined Conflict: The reason I chose this title for my book “The Intertwined Conflict” is because of the conflict most of Arab countries have when it comes to culture, tradition and religion. Everything is embedded with Islam when it has nothing to do with it. It’s all about making Islam seem to be the problem when it’s all about culture, tradition and the wrong doings of the real means of Islam. People take Islam as an excuse to cover up what they believe in and what they think is right so they relate it to Islam. Fanatics mostly misunderstand Islam, the Quran and the Sunnah and tend to decipher things according to their preference.

Matrimony and divorce vs. Islam: Marriage is the most complicated issue which is affected by traditions of the country in where one lives. Different countries have different interpretations of Islam and marriage. Different tribes, ethnic groups and races in a country have different interpretations of marriage. In terms of marriage, In Islam, the conjugal right is as much a woman’s right as it is a man’s right because one of the purposes of marriage is to protect the chastity of both men and women. This right is also based on the fact that if woman does not have the right to sexual intercourse, it would not have been mandatory in Islamic law for both spouses to insure the maximum possible self-fulfillment for each other.

Racism and Islam: Racism in Islam is forbidden and in the sight of Allah no man is superior to another by color, race, class or ethnicity. Indeed, all human beings  are equal to Allah and what distinguishes them from another is their good deeds, religious commitments, good manners and following and obeying the Quran and the Sunnah. Equality is one part of the targets of Islam and one of its fundamental bricks. Equality is embedded in most of the Islamic manners and rules.

Women, their role and Property Owning: Women in Islam have the full right to own property and possessions, money in whatever manner they prefer. They do not transfer their possessions to their husbands once they get married. They get to keep their money and belongings, and the husband still has to pay for her trivial expenses, such as the household, her children and whatever she needs as a woman, not extravagantly but fairly.  

Islam and Neighborhood: Neighborhood is one of the important things that Islam exhorted us to pay attention to. It is one of the things that we should not neglect. Taking care of your neighbor urges peace, love and tolerance. Not only Islam exhorts it, but also Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) he was a good example to all of us Muslims in all matters and this matter too

About the Author

Najebah A. Marafi was born on July 4th, 1987 in Kuwait City, Kuwait. She studied BA in English Linguistics/Translation at Gulf University for Science and Technology, Kuwait and currently is studying an MA in Computer Assisted Language Learning at the University of Essex, United Kingdom. She developed her passion in reading and writing at the age of fifteen when she started exploring the English language autonomously and later worked as an English language teacher at Gulf University for Science and Technology where she was encouraged to write about Islam and culture by her Western colleagues.