Posts by MuadDib

That is incorrect. The Islamic Empire, in the sense of a political entity governed by an Islamic warrior elite, was certainly spread through conquest as the Arabs took down the Byzantines and Persians, who were so busy fighting one another to exhaustion that they were unprepared for a fresh onslaught from a more dynamic group of people. But Islam itself could hardly have been spread by conquest; the conquering armies were much, much too small to enforce such a young faith over the very well-established religions of Byzantium and Persia. In fact, the newly subject populations, being "Peoples of the Book," were allowed to keep their respective faiths subject only to certain restrictions (like paying special taxes and being unable to build a church or temple higher than a mosque). Only gradually did these populations convert to Islam, and then only because the new faith seems to have offered them a message lacking in their established traditions. Significantly, Islam was spread to sub-Saharan Africa and Indonesia (where more Muslims live than anywhere else) via commercial contacts, not warfare: people chose this religion willingly more often than they did not.

If you want to hear about warfare and forced conversions, then check out Christianity, which was confined to the urban centers of the Mediterranean basin for centuries until Germanic warrior kings, setting up their own polities on the ruins of the Roman Empire, started forcing their subjects to convert (a task made easier, again, by the relative intellectual sophistication of Christianity as compared to their own pagan traditions). Often these warlords themselves were only converted spontaneously, in the heat of a losing battle, and considered Christianity a kind of magic that would help them keep winning their wars.

I also feel compelled to point out that the Mongol hordes did not exist as such until the thirteenth century, long after the Islamic world had fractured into multiple distinct and autonomous polities.

But you are dead on about Wahabbism, which if you ask me is the greatest problem facing Islam, internally, in this day and age. The difficulty isn't just that Wahabbism is a backwards and skewed interpretation of Islam, it's that the Saudi Royal family believes in it. America is no more to blame for the creation of this monster than sport shooters are to blame for the handgun industry: the responsibility lies on the shoulders of the corrupt fundamentalist despots descended from Ibn Saud. Replace them with progressive, enlightened Islamic governments and the problem will go away.

72

In a few sentances, why did you leave the truth?........

by jambon1 in

jw
friends

if you had to write down just a few sentances about why you left the truth, what would you say?.......

jambon;.

wholeheartedly embraced it for a few years after love bombing etc then saw widespread hypocrisy.

MuadDib

Three words: history and science.

7

For Stevenyc:Epic of Gilgamesh and UFO's

by Franz in

jw
friends

in a previous topic of mine regarding satans (chariot) stevenyc suggested i study gilgamesh for information on the giants (maha'ladriel) i have posted some thoughts: .

in ancient sumer clay tablets describe visits of the gods.

the gods fly in vehicles, called shems, or mu, which are described as being tall rocket like "rocks" from which fire flies.

MuadDib

"You need to look into ancient history."

I am currently finishing an Honours degree in ancient history. I'd wager I know it fairly well. I have yet to encounter, after four years of research, any treatment by an accredited scholar or historian of ancient knowledge of DNA or space flight. One would think that such an important find would rank pretty high up on the research scale in terms of priorities. And yet serious archaeologists and historians seem content to learn about such mundane things as ancient coinage, pottery, administration, literature, warfare, and so on. At least, these are the fields to which they are devoting all their funds, research, and energy.

Why do you think that is?

40

I think Islam is a peaceful religion...

by Pleasuredome in

jw
friends

.

"that will teach them that we mean peace"

MuadDib

"They haven't studied in enough detail their history as it really is and not a doctored version of it, if they do they will see that their religion was established through sword and fire and by the forcible conversion of conquered populations."

Sounds like it's you who doesn't know his history.

22

Anybody ever had their Aura photo taken?

by Bumble Bee in

jw
friends

.

i had mine done a few weeks ago, and also my chakras.. my colours for my aura photograph were predominately green with some blue.. if you've had yours done, what colours showed up, and do you think the interpretation was correct?.

bb.

MuadDib

No, you have to go to one of the twelve primary Masonic lodges which have the transdimensional psitronic generators (powered by pieces of the Holy Grail [actually a primary component of an extraterrestrial hyperspace drive {invented on earth by primordial humans who lived before the dinosaurs}]) necessary to reach Atlantis where the aliens, helped by wealthy Jews, secretly maintain aura photographing technology accidentally brought to earth by a secret Nazi experiment further developed by the Soviets.

Christ, maybe I should just write this book myself.

22

Anybody ever had their Aura photo taken?

by Bumble Bee in

jw
friends

.

i had mine done a few weeks ago, and also my chakras.. my colours for my aura photograph were predominately green with some blue.. if you've had yours done, what colours showed up, and do you think the interpretation was correct?.

bb.

MuadDib

Hey Franz. If all that crazy stuff is actually real, wouldn't a lot of people stand to gain from blowing the cover off the conspiracy? Why do you think it is that only valiant souls like yourself are out there crusading on the internet to make the truth known while 99.9% of the rest of the world just laughs you off and moves on with their lives? If all this information is so readily accessible why are you way out on the wild fringe of sanity?

7

For Stevenyc:Epic of Gilgamesh and UFO's

by Franz in

jw
friends

in a previous topic of mine regarding satans (chariot) stevenyc suggested i study gilgamesh for information on the giants (maha'ladriel) i have posted some thoughts: .

in ancient sumer clay tablets describe visits of the gods.

the gods fly in vehicles, called shems, or mu, which are described as being tall rocket like "rocks" from which fire flies.

MuadDib

""The heavens shrieked, the earth boomed; Daylight failed, darkness came. Lighting flashed, a flame shot up. The clouds swelled, it rained death. Then the glow vanished; the fire went out, and all that had fallen turned to ashes."

Jesus H., man. Have you ever heard of a volcano? That's basically what this passage is describing. Actually, there are scholars who think the ancient description of the Greek gods fighting the Titans also refers to a volcanic eruption - but I forgot, in your looney version of the universe all human history and mythology is the exclusive domain of the paranormal, as opposed to the mundane truths that actually lie behind events that happen in the real world. So something as esoteric as a volcanic eruption is probably just silly to you.

"(Doesn't it seem strange that we have 60 minutes in an hour, and not a hundred? Or that our day is 24 hours, not 20?) "

Not really, when you consider that very ancient cultures likely used a duodecimal system in which sets of data were compared with the number of joints on the human hand, using the thumb as an indicator. Why would a hundred minutes or twenty hours be any more "natural"? Our ancestors made this shit up by counting based on their own hands and feet. It's not that tricky.

"Could ancient myths speak of extra-terrestrials? From what I read, I see that there is such a possibility."

Occam's Razor, man. You are trying WAY too hard.

4

Can anyone tell me...

by MuadDib in

jw
friends

somebody's got to know what date the memorial is this year.

i haven't been to a meeting or in service in almost four months, so i'm pretty sure there will be some pressure from my family, if not from the elders themselves, for me to go to the memorial.

i'm determined not to go (the thought of entering the hall again is total anathema) and to continue avoiding contact with all jws except my family, so i'm going to need time to plan a strategy of some kind.

MuadDib

Excellent. Thanks a lot!

4

Can anyone tell me...

by MuadDib in

jw
friends

somebody's got to know what date the memorial is this year.

i haven't been to a meeting or in service in almost four months, so i'm pretty sure there will be some pressure from my family, if not from the elders themselves, for me to go to the memorial.

i'm determined not to go (the thought of entering the hall again is total anathema) and to continue avoiding contact with all jws except my family, so i'm going to need time to plan a strategy of some kind.

MuadDib

Somebody's got to know what date the Memorial is this year. I haven't been to a meeting or in service in almost four months, so I'm pretty sure there will be some pressure from my family, if not from the elders themselves, for me to go to the Memorial. I'm determined not to go (the thought of entering the Hall again is total anathema) and to continue avoiding contact with all JWs except my family, so I'm going to need time to plan a strategy of some kind.