In the name of Allah, the Beneficient, the Merciful

Introduction

Plentiful, noble and blessed gratitude to Allah, enough gratitude to fill the heavens and the earth, and whatever else that is unattainable but that God Wills. His prayers and greetings on the best of his creations and the last of his messengers, Sayyiduna Mohammed, as well as his relatives and disciples and those who follow them in goodness until the day of reckoning.

These are papers and articles, which were written at different and distant times and were published in different journals (Among these, there are some which were written and published over thirty years ago and some which were published this year.
Some of them were published in Cairo in the following journals Mimbar Al Islam, Nour Al Islam, Al Azhar. Some of them were published in Beirut in the joun1als,Al Mujtama' and Al Shihab. Others were published in Qatar in Al Doha, Al 'Ummah, Al Haqq. Finally, there are some others which were published in Al Ba'th Al Islamii, which is published by the Conference of Muslim Scholars.)

I still recollect that some of these articles were published immediately after I was released from the War Prison in 1956 in the Journal Mimbar Al Islam, which was published by the Section of Religious Affairs at the Wakf Ministry in Egypt.
I used to sign these articles under the name of Yusuf Abdullah for fear that the name Al Qardawi would raise the opposition of the investigating services, which purposely set up hindrances in the face of all public action that I wanted to undertake and address to the population at the time. This was the same situation in both the domains of education and religious and spiritual guidance, which were the only two domains open to me, and which correspond to my training and speciality.
It also happened that I applied for a teaching position at the Institutes of Al Azhar. My name was the first on the list of those who were admitted and the total of my marks was the highest of all the applicants from the three schools of Al Azhar: The School of the Foundations of Islam, The School of Jurisprudence, The School of the Arabic Language. When the names were submitted to the investigating services, my name was dropped.
That is why I used to use a name other than my real one to sign my articles, so that I would not be discovered by the spying agents.

The following is one among the anecdotes which I still recall in this respect. In the Section of Religious Affairs in the Wakf there was an administrator by the name of Yusuf Abdullah. When my first article entitled "A wish by Omar" was published under the name of Yusuf Abdullah, the administrator in question thought that one of the scholars, such as Professor Al Ghazali or Professor Sayed Sabiq wrote the article and signed it in his name, so that he can benefit from it and draw the special grant for this article for himself. He actually went immediately to claim the grant and was about to receive it when a colleague of his, who was aware of the secret, informed him of the actual author of the article. That is how I was about to lose the five pound grant, which was for me at the time a big fortune.

I am not quite sure why such thoughts have crossed my mind, as I am writing these lines. But this tale may have within its folds a lesson and a reminder to myself and to people in general. God Almighty has ordered us to recall the miseries of the past and to compare them to the benefits of the present, to mention the blessings of Allah and His Favours and to Thank Him for what He has Granted us.
This is how God Almighty reminded His Messenger, Peace Be Upon Him (PBUH), and all the Muslims who were with him in Al Madina of the way they were in Mecca, so He Said: (And remember, when ye were few and reckoned feeble in the land, and were in fear lest men should extirpate you, how He gave you refuge, and strengthened you with His help, and made provisions of good things for you, that haply ye might be thankful) (Surah 8, Verse 26)

The importance of this introduction resides in the fact that these words flow from the same source, that of Islam, in spite of the difference in the times, places and the conditions in which they were written. This religion which is whole but balanced, and which is strong but does not weaken the wishful person who does not despair. This religion is also that of the warrior who does not give up his arm. The source that we mentioned was erupted by the concerns of the Muslims, which become bigger, wider and deeper by the day. Be they new or old, they all flow in the same bed and aspire to the same aim: That of contributing to the achievement of a true and authentic Islamic awakening, which is characterised by rationality, maturity and enlightenment. This awakening should be that of intelligent minds, clean hearts and young resolutions. It should be well aware of its aims and means, its rights and responsibilities, and of who is its friend and who is its foe.

This awakening should aim at renovating the religion and promoting life. It should correct the misconceptions and should straighten the crooked paths, awaken the sleeping minds, stir the still lives, inject some soul in the still bodies and should re-instil in them, movement and development.
Nowadays, thanks to Allah Almighty, we see signs of this awakening that were not apparent to many in the past.
We also thank Allah Almighty for the fact that the contribution of the scholars, the sacrifice of the martyrs, the words of the advocates, the efforts of the reformers, the hard work of the renovators did not all go in vain. These efforts were not, as some thought, a cry in a valley or a blow in ashes. They gave their fruit at the right time, by the will of God.

Allah Almighty certainly spoke the truth when He said: (Seest though not how Allah coineth a similitude: A goodly saying, as a goodly tree, its root set firm, its branches reaching into heaven, giving its fruit at every season by permission of its Lord ? Allah coineth the similitudes for mankind in order that they may reflect)(Surah 14, Verses 24-25).

I ask Allah Almighty, the Generous, Whose Favours are Great, Who has made the present day of this awakening better than its yesterday, to make its tomorrow better than its today. May God accept and approve.

(Our Lord! Accept from us (this duty). Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the Knower)(Surah 2,Verse 127).

Dr. Yusuf Al Qardawi