The prophet Muhammad, possibly the most loved and hated man on Earth, has been at the heart of many discussions and debates lately on the De Anza College campus and nationwide.

A forum hosted by the De Anza College Muslim Student Association to discuss the prophet Muhammad and dispel stereotypes about him and his followers was held May 27 in Conference Room B.

The room was filled with a diverse crowd representing all religions. The event opened with a recitation of some verses from the Muslim Holy Scripture, the Koran, first in Arabic, then in English for the non-Arabic speakers.

The event’s keynote speaker was Imam Tahir Anwar. An imam is a person who has enough knowledge to lead prayer, one of the organizers, Asiyah Doljic, said. Some of the stereotypes they hoped to dispel were that Muslims worshiped the prophet Muhammad and that the verses of the Koran were made up.

Anwar explained the basics of Islam and the reliability of the Koran because of a chain of narration. “We consider the Koran the unadulterated word of God revealed to the prophet Muhammad through the angel Gabriel,” he said.

“The tradition of prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, is sourced for authenticity and the reputation of a narrator has to be undisputed. One recorder of the teachings of the prophet, Al-Bukhari would not trust someone as a source if they had told even one white lie any time in their life … it gets very technical.”

Anwar explained that the chain of narration still existed in the Muslim world today, and explained the Islamic perception of God. “We understand God, Allah, through his 99 names or attributes such as ‘most generous,’ ‘most kind,’ this is how we understand the power of God.”

Anwar’s talk was followed by a question and answer session. He addressed the way the Koran was interpreted, the relationship of individual Muslims with God, jihad and the “Draw Mohammad” event.

The words and meaning of the Koran can’t change, but the rules can be adapted to the society they are in, Anwar said. “Everyone’s relationship is between oneself and God. There is no intermediary, God judges you based on your intentions, not your looks,” he said.

Regarding a question about a justifiable war by De Anza College Student Body President Marlo Custodio, Anwar said, “I’ve come to realize that the easiest way to incite anyone is through religion. Look at the crusades, when your faith/faith values are at threat, it is a war of God, everything else is a war for land.”

Anwar wore a white robe, and a kufi (cap) on his head, but his most distinguishable feature was his long black beard. His appearance and the subject matter may have made the event seem serious to some, but Anwar kept the event light with jokes and humor.

“You name the place, I’ve done it there,” Anwar said. “Prayed there, I mean. Like in the changing room at Macy’s, on highway 52, in every airport I’ve been in.”

Anwar ended his talk by saying that everything is a creation of God, and people need to mutually believe in respecting each other and finding love.

The crowd then broke for Halal (specially prepared and blessed) pepperoni pizza and drinks while enjoying musical performances from Fadi Hayek, Umair and the Khan brothers. Crowd members showed their support by bobbing their heads to the music. As the beats faded away, the organizers hoped the message of the evening would linger on the attendee’s minds.

“One of the first commandments of the Koran is ‘Ikrah’ which is ‘to read,’ so I hope people read and educate themselves about Islam and Muslims in a deeper, more in-depth way,” Asiyah Dojic said.

“I think, especially with the event that happened last week, it would be good to have people more educated about the beliefs so they don’t believe stereotypes like Muslims worship Mohammad,” undecided major Mariam Azhar said. “I want people to come away with an understanding of how much Muslims value the prophet, which is why last week’s event was really offensive. This is not just a Muslim event. It’s for everyone to learn from.”