Saturday, April 25, 2009

be nice to your pets!!

Hadith / Customary Narrative of the Holy Prophet of Allah PBUH
Volume 1, Book 12, Number 712:
Narrated Asma' bint Abi Bakr:
The Prophet once offered the eclipse prayer. He stood for a long time and then did a prolonged bowing. He stood up straight again and kept on standing for a long time, then bowed a long bowing and then stood up straight and then prostrated a prolonged prostration and then lifted his head and prostrated a prolonged prostration. And then he stood up for a long time and then did a prolonged bowing and then stood up straight again and kept on standing for a long time. Then he bowed a long bowing and then stood up straight and then prostrated a prolonged prostration and then lifted his head and went for a prolonged prostration. On completion o the prayer, he said, "Paradise became so near to me that if I had dared, I would have plucked one of its bunches for you and Hell became so near to me that I said, 'O my Lord will I be among those people?' Then suddenly I saw a woman and a cat was lacerating her with it claws. On inquiring, it was said that the woman had imprisoned the cat till it died of starvation and she neither fed it no freed it so that it could feed itself."

The implications go beyond pets. Lets take a look at ecology and deforestation, and the destruction of animal habitat all over the world. For example - we should all feel responsible for the current trend of polar bear forced to leave the arctic in search of food. Polar bears have actually been spotted in grizzly bear habitat - but they don't have a clue on the food forraging methods of the grizzly. Let's take it easy on the climate change trend and avoid playing the role of the woman in the hadith/customary narrative (who could have been a good religious woman otherwise).

Please read HERE
Therein is placed a hadith regarding putting nuisance strays to sleep, which occurs today, the local shelters here put stray cats to sleep. I am not sure if I agree that they are a nuisance however.

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