The Hadith you have mentioned is an authentic one related by Al-Bukhari on the authority of Abdullah ibn Abbas who quotes the Prophet as saying: "Illnesses are cured by means of three things: a drink of honey, a cut of cupping and cauterization. I, however, advise my followers against the use of cauterization." There is no doubt about the usefulness of honey for curing illness. Allah describes it in the Qur'an as a curative drink. He says: "There issues from within these (bees) a fruit of different colors, in which there is cure for people" (16;69).

The other two methods need a little explanation: Cupping was a method used for letting out blood either from one's hands, legs, head or other spots. It was extensively used, as people found it highly useful. The Prophet himself was cupped and on one occasion that took place while he was fasting. Cauterization, on the other hand, involved the use of a red hot piece of iron to stop the bleeding from a bad cut. If a soldier lost an arm or a foot in battle, the surest way of stopping him bleeding to death was to resort to cauterization.

There are a couple of points to make here. The statement of the Prophet was not exclusive. He did not say that cure can only be sought in these three methods, to the exclusion of any other. In another Hadith, the Prophet encourages us to seek medical treatment for our illness. He says: "Seek medical treatment, for Allah has not created an illness without creating a cure for it."

Secondly, the Prophet was making a statement on the basis of what was known in his time. These were the three principal methods of treatment. We know that honey is a cure for several illness. Cupping was also approved as a method of treatment, while Cautery could save the life of a badly injured person.

I fully understand the reasons which may compel a person take a major step of migrating to another country. When one has a family to look after, without any prospect of a real improvement in one's situation, one's burden seems much too heavy. When jobs are scarce in one's own country and one turns around only to find a large number of people without work, the lure of immediate, steady employment abroad seems too great to resist. The decision to migrate does not come easy to anyone. A young man may talk about it, but when it comes to taking the step, the decision is a very difficult one indeed. Unless, the pressure of the family responsibilities are very strong, most people prefer to stay in their own countries, where they have all their relatives and friends.

Islam takes such economic factors into consideration. It appreciates that people can find economic pressures much too severe. Therefore, trying to find a job in some other place is a commendable step, as it shows willingness to share one's responsibilities. Problems arise, however, when the migration is to a non-Muslim country, especially one which does not merely offer a more comfortable living standard but is also highly advanced by modern standards. The fact is that when Muslims from our part of the world migrate to countries of Western Europe, America, Canada or Australia, they expose themselves and their families to a set of pressures which is in no way less powerful than those which have compelled them to migrate. This is only natural when one puts himself in the midst of a totally different culture where he finds himself alone, or a member of a small, alien minority.

Nowhere in the countries to which most people migrate does a Muslim face an attempt to entice him away from his faith. Such crude, futile methods are no longer employed. It is the cultural pressures which I am concerned. These are slow, indirect, continuous. Their effect is varied, cumulative and permanent.

I do not wish to give the wrong impression to anyone. Many Muslims benefit a great deal from staying in American and Western European countries. They learn many good habits and they learn the civilized approach to dealing with people who express views which differ with their own. Moreover, nobody interferes with their religious practices. Indeed, they may find practicing their religion easier than in some Muslim countries.

What I am concerned with here is the long-term effect of living in a non-Muslim country on the children of any immigrant Muslim family. It may be true that the parents will attend regularly to their prayers and other religious duties. They may even have a greater eagerness to fulfill their religious duties because they are conscious of the need to retain their identity. They will try hard to impart this identity to their children. But how successful can they be?

Immigrant communities in Western countries have tried to establish their centers, mosques and schools. The first generation normally starts in a very modest way. It is normally composed of unskilled workers who take up jobs which are low on the scale, and try to establish a decent living. They organize themselves in groups and donate whatever they can in order to buy a rundown house, or a garage, or some other place which they convert into a mosque. They use it also to teach their children about Islam either at weekends or in the evenings. Such small centers and mosques serve as a good beginning. Now we see purpose-built mosques emerging everywhere in Europe and America. We also find afternoon schools more effectively run. What is more, in a number of places we find schools being started, which will teach all subjects as well as Islamic subjects during normal school hours. They provide for the integration of both types of teaching. In London, for example, there is the King Fahd Academy which provides schooling for the children of the Muslim community and the school started by Yousuf Islam. These are the steps in the right direction, but it is not to be expected that two schools will meet the need of the Muslim community in London which is estimated to be in excess of 100,000. The vast majority of Muslim children in these countries go to state schools. There they receive the normal education provided for the children of their host country. There they learn to live in that culture as part of it.

This is a very tricky problem. I am not advocating separate education for the children of immigrant Muslim communities. I am merely speaking of what happens to their children as a result of their own decision to migrate.

We can divide these children into three groups: one which accepts the values taught at home, inherits Islamic traditions and feels the Western culture as nearly alien to it as it was to the first immigrant generation. The second group is the exact opposite: it rejects the "home" values and tries to identify with the culture of the adopted homeland. The third group is one in between: it feels a dichotomy between home and society which affects all aspects of life. None of these groups is very happy. None is looked upon by the host society as belonging to it. There will always remain a sense of being a stranger in an adopted home which is forced upon one. The parents who took the decision to migrate could more easily come to terms with such a sense of being strangers, because it was they who had consciously taken the decision to leave home. Their children had no say in that. On the other hand, they cannot reverse the decision. If any of them were to do the return immigration, they would feel strangers in their father's home country.

Furthermore, it may be extremely difficult for the young generation to learn the Islamic values. The parents may try hard to provide Islamic education, but so far, the education so provided is an imported one. It is mostly provided by teachers who themselves are immigrants. They may not be able to come to terms with life in their host country. Therefore, the education they provide will always fall short of what is required, namely, how to live as Muslims in a non-Muslims' society.

This is a major problem which faces everyone who migrates and at the same time has a family to bring up. I know many people who have wrestled with this problem and eventually chose the only means of escape, by returning home or seeking work in a Muslim country while their children were still young.

There are several issues raised in this letter, but the most important one, from my point of view, is that which concerns Mr. Tyson being a role model. Before we answer we should define who would look at him as a role model, and which of his attitudes and practices would they be emulating. There is also an important proviso which should be attached to this answer. We often read in the papers that certain personalities have accepted Islam and we are thrilled by that. Sometime later, we discover that the whole thing is untrue and disappointment replaces our earlier pleasure. Hence we have to assume that what we have read about Mr. Tyson being a Muslim is true. I have not seen anything to confirm either the truth or the falsehood of those reports.

Now let us remember that Mr. Tyson was imprisoned for an offense he committed and he was found guilty in accordance with the provisions of the law in his country. The subsequent events were that he got to reflect on his situation in prison, and he apparently regretted what he had done. He also came to know about Islam and was convinced of its truth. He then declared his acceptance of Islam. If this is what has happened, then certainly he provides a role model for any rational person to examine his behavior and to look for the truth, and to act on his conviction. This is a model not only for offenders and prisoners, but for every one. God has given us our reason so that we may reflect and seek the truth at all times.

Having said that, I would like to add that the present weakness of the Muslims everywhere makes them over-enthusiastic whenever a famous personality is said to have embraced Islam. We tend to consider that such a person has done Islam a great favor simply by becoming a Muslim. We tend to forget that Islam does not need anyone, but every human being needs Islam, which embodies divine guidance to all mankind. While Islam is a universal message from God addressed to all human beings, it is the person himself who is the beneficiary of becoming a Muslim. His life will be purged of much of the ills that overburden human life in different societies. He will enjoy the balance that Islamic life provides between the physical and spiritual aspects of humanity. It is time we recognized this and did not make so much fuss at the conversion of any person, famous as he may be.

Whether professional boxing is an appropriate career for a Muslim is totally separate from the case of Mr. Tyson. He has been a professional boxer for a long time. It is not to be expected that he would have a profound insight into all Islamic teachings within a very short period of time. Be that as it may, boxing is not an appropriate profession for anyone, least of all a Muslim. It is an activity, not a sport, which is geared to the infliction of harm on an opponent who has done nothing except agreeing to be at the opposite corner of the ring. It is certainly dangerous, as we hear ever so often that a boxer has been taken to hospital after having gone into coma, or suffering brain damage, or dying. Even Muhammad Ali, who was arguably the finest boxer the world has known, ended up suffering brain damage as a result of the heavy punishment he received in some of his bouts, particularly against Joe Frazier and Ken Norton. Because of this danger involved in boxing I agree with the view which considers boxing to be forbidden as a sport, although Muslims are encouraged to learn it as part of their preparation to strive for the cause of God.

As for his not having performed pilgrimage, many scholars consider pilgrimage a duty which need not be offered immediately, or for the first year a person meets the conditions of ability to undertake it. I am more inclined to the other view which considers pilgrimage to be an immediate duty once these conditions are met. Nevertheless, Mr. Tyson knows his circumstances better, and we are not to judge him on this count. How do you know whether he was aware of the time factor involved in the question of pilgrimage? Perhaps, he had made a commitment and he could not release himself from it.

No one can judge Mr. Tyson on the accusation of rape. He was convicted in accordance with the American law. Islam requires clearer evidence to make any conviction. We do not make a judgment because his conviction was not on the basis of any confession. Indeed he continued to claim innocence to the end. How can we overlook that?