My grandfather and my father were born in Lahore. My grandfather fled Pakistan from the wrath of Muslims in 1947 with his family, his shirt on his back and my father in his arms. But he always had fond memories of Lahore. Today I ask Pakistanis to look deeply inside their society and come to the only rational conclusion. Such acts of murder are the direct result of the teachings of Islam and the example that the founder of Islam, Muhammad set. Please read Sirat Rasulallah and the killing of the poetess Asma bint Marwan on the orders of Muhammad. Or the killing of all the adult males of the Jewish tribe, Banu Qurayza, by Muhammad and his men. Even boys as young as 12 were beheaded because they had sprouted pubic hair. That will give Pakistanis a clue as to why some very devout Muslims behave the way they do.

Here are some ways Muslim can reform Islam:

1) Acknowledge that Islam is man made and that it was meant for 7th century Arabia and is no longer applicable, especially in Pakistan. That Islam is deeply flawed.

2) Ban all evil practices that the Quran and the hadiths allow such as wife beating( 4:34) marriage of old men to young female children ( Muhammad and the children (such as Aisha, Saffiya and Juwariyah), the talaaq procedure, unequal property rights for women, unequal testimonial rights for women and much more. By treating 50% of the population, the Muslim women, as chattels, Pakistani society cannot ever be egalitarian. It is a myth that Islam gives equal rights to women.

3) Muslims should also carry out some symbolic acts. They should refuse to do the hajj until Saudi Arabia allows complete freedom of religion including the building of and worship in non-Muslim places of worship in all parts of Saudi Arabia including Mecca and Medina. Muslims have built mosques in Rome, why not let Christians build churches in Mecca. I am not saying that a church or a temple should be built inside the kaabaa but Mecca is a big city and has room for non-Muslims and their places of worship.

The wrong question is always being asked : What can non-Muslims do to win the hearts and minds of Muslims?

The right question is: What can Muslims do to win the hearts and minds of non-Muslims.

The truth of the matter is non-Muslims are extremely alienated from Muslims. In fact the average non-Muslim is very afraid of the average Muslim. I have seen women in the west walking with their children cross to the other side of the street when they see a Muslim women coming in the opposite direction towards them.

If someone were to be afraid of me I would be terribly ashamed because the fault and the blame would be mine.

Please read again the Quran , the six Sahih hadith collections, including Muwatta by Imam Malik, and the first and most authentic biography of Muhammad by Ibn Ishaq available in a redacted form from the Oxford Press of Pakistan. The Quran and hadiths are available on the internet and in hard copies. I am not making this up. It is all in books that Muslims consider to be sacred. The enemy is not outside Pakistan, it is in Pakistan and the enemy is inspired by Islam.

That Islam completely degrades women and men is illustrated by this real life incident.

After Muslims attacked the United States on 9/11/2001 I began to study Islam, took a course in comparative religion, read the Quran in many different versions, read the Sirat Rasulallah. At that time only partial translation of the sahih hadiths and of Muwatta by Imam Malik were available on the internet. So I went into a store that sold Islamic books to buy hard copies. The woman behind the counter wore the Muslim gown including the hijab but part of her face was uncovered. She was from Iraq and friendly enough and started a conversation . Then to my surprise she asked me what faith I belonged to. I told her that I was a Hindu. I generally never discuss religion.

She then said ” why don’t you accept Islam and tread the RIGHT PATH.”

I said I cannot accept a faith that was founded by a man who had sex with children( Aisha, Saffiyah, Rayhana, Maria, Juwariyaah. Maria and Rayhana were Muhammad’s concubines) and I cannot accept as the word of God a command for men to beat up their wives for disobedience.( verse or ayat 4;34).

She challenged me on the ayat and opened the Quran in her store to read the ayat. She was very fair skinned and I could see her face turn beet red when she saw what she read. She had evidently never read the ayat.

Then she made an about face and said that she would fully accept getting beaten up by her husband if she disobeyed him as that was the will of Allah.

That was very sad for me to witness and hear. here was an educated woman that accept physical abuse commanded by Allah.