abul hasan nadwi-islam and civilization

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Islam and Civilization

By Syed Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi

Scope and SignificanceIslam and civilisation is a realistic and living issue which relates not only to the prophethMuhammad (peace be upon him) and the teachings of Islam, but also to the reality of lifethe present and future of mankind and the historic role played by Muslims in the developmculture and the building up of a flourishing civilisation. This is a subject important enoreceive the attention of an academic body instead of by just a single individual. In its depscope, it can compare with any discipline of thought pertaining to the life of man. It covimmense area in time and space, from the first century of the Islamic era to this day andone corner of the world to the other. In its immanence, it encompasses everything from crmorals and behaviour, individual as well as social, and is linked with diverse phenowhether if be law, political, international relations, arts, letters, poetics, architecture, cu

refinement, etc. Each of these aspects of human life are indeed many-sided and, henacademic body composed of scholars of different disciplines is required to study them seach may undertake objective research and present his detailed findings courageously, wfear or favour. Each of these scholars, specialist in his own field, can discuss the issues in detail as, for example, one can study the creed and religious thought of Islam, another socand culture, a third Islamic law, a fourth the equality and dignity of man, a fifth the posiwomen, and so on. Detailed discussions on each such subject can indeed cover an encycloinstead of being dealt with by an individual like me who has little time to spare for li pursuits. But as the saying goes, the thing which cannot be owned completely should given up altogether. I have, in working on this subject, kept in mind the Qur’nic verse says: And if no torrent falls on it, then even a gentle rain (Al Baqarah: 265).

A Delicate Task An analysis of the ingredients of any developed culture is perhaps a very difficult and detask. For the intrinsic constituents of any culture become assimilated over time; these are elusive and their interaction is difficult to indicate after they have shaped themselves wholeness that is known as a society and its culture. They enter into peoples lives impercand become a part of their soul and life blood; give it a distinct identity much in the wainstincts, education and training, circumstances and it go to make the personality individual. No chemical laboratory exists which is of any help in such a historical analyhas a microscope been invented which can minutely examine the constituent elements culture.

Such difficulties mean that the only way to achieve this is by an in-depth study of difnations and their cultures so that their past and present may be compared to determine the of Islamic teachings and, the revolutionary call of the Prophet (peace be upon him) freformation and the guidance of human society.

The part played by this call in reforming or changing earlier creeds, pagan ways of thougmanners and customs of the ancient world as well as in giving birth to new ideas and valuhave helped give rise to a new culture and civilisation, has to be studied and examined.



stupendous task but one which is also rewarding enough to be undertaken by an academior university in any Islamic country, if not by organizations like UNESCO or the developed academic centres of Europe or America. There is not the least doubt thatresearch would be more useful than those in which these universities and literary bodiengaged at present.

Difficulties Confronting the task

Identifying the influences of Islam on human life and culture is an extremely difficult taskthese have by now become part and parcel of the life and culture of different nations. Tsuch an extent that these people themselves cannot indicate whether they are extrinintrinsic, borrowed from Islam or evolved by them internally. Many of these Islamic influare now the flesh and bone of their existence and are integrated with their modes of thougculture.

The all-pervasive Influence of Islam

Here I would first like to cite a passage from my own work Islam and the World in which I havedelineated the impact of Islamic civilisation in shaping the attitudes of people and their cadvancement during the heyday of its glory:

"The rejuvenating currents of Islam ran through the world, infusing men everywhere withlife and an unparalleled enthusiasm for progress. The lost values of life had been discoPaganism became a sign of reaction, while it was considered progressive to be associateIslam. Even nations that did not come directly under the influence of Islam, profoundly, tunconsciously, benefited by the freshness and vitality of the new creative impulses releaits impact on large parts of the world. Numerous aspects of their thought and cultureevidence to the magic touch of Islam. All the reform movements that arose in their midst

their origin to Islamic influences." (Nadwi, S. Abul Hasan Ali, Islam and the World, Luc1980 p.87)

It is well-nigh impossible to enumerate the influence exerted by Islam in different fields adifferent nations and countries. We can only attempt here to describe these in a few spwhere they have played a conspicuous role in the reformation, guidance and progrhumanity towards a better and healthier existence in contradiction to the norms usually a by the Muslims during the period of their decadence.

We will now turn to a brief discussion of some of these universal gifts which Islam hasmankind. Namely: a clear and distinct faith in the Queness of God; the concept of humaand equality; and Islam’s proclamation of human dignity.

A Clear and distinct faith in the Oneness of GodThe initial gift of Islam, which also constitutes the invaluable heritage of Muhammad (peupon him) is the gift of the Absolute and undiluted Oneness of God. This creed is revolutilife-giving and vigorous, and cannot be compared with anything else that man has pinnfaith on, either before or after the Prophet of Islam. (peace be upon him)



The Effect of Paganism of Human Life

Man has been proud and presumptuous, boastful of his creations, such as philosophy, poetthe art of government; he has taken as much pride in enslaving other countries and nationhas in digging canals and turning arid lands into gardens; often he has arrogated himself

position of God; but he has also demeaned himself by bowing his head before inanimate, objects, things of his own creation which neither harm nor do him any favour:

" And if a fly should rub them of aught,

they would never rescue it. Feeble

indeed are the seeker and sought (Al-Hajj: 73)

Man prostrated himself before his own creations, feared them and begged them for help. Hover-awed by mountains, rivers, trees, animals and harboured credulous beliefs and irrafears of demons and devils. He paid divine respect even to reptiles and insects. He spent

in fear of the unknown and hope from non-existent powers, all of which went to produce confusion, cowardice, doubtfulness and indecision in him. Brahmanic India shot ahead oother region in the world with its 33 million gods and goddesses.( Dutt, R.C., Ancient IndiIII, p. 276 and O’Mally, L. S.S. Popular Hinduism: The Religion of the Masses, Camb1935.) Everything which fascinated man or appeared frightening was elevated to the posia deity.

The Effect of Monotheism on Human Life

The Qur’an and the Holy Prophet declared that this universe was neither without (peace bhim) a Lord nor was it jointly controlled by a set of deites. It had One Lord and MastCreator and Controller wielding complete and Absolute power over it. The Qur’an anno

Lo! His is the Creation and the Command , (Al-Araf: 54) meaning that God was the Sole Creatthe Sole Originator, or, the Sole Creative Principle and everything around man was dependHim by virtue of its creation by Him.Yet to Him submitted whose is in the Heavens and theearth, willingly or unwillingly (Ali-Imran: 83), was a natural corollary of this declaratimeaning that all things in nature, whether heavenly or earthly, bow down to His decreehave perforce to submit to His Physical laws— so Exalted is he. So was it not incumbent o

creature possessing will and option to submit to Him willingly? sincere and exclusive obewas due to God alone. He asks: Belongs not sincere religion to God? (Sad: 3)

The natural consequences following from this belief was that the world was united thro

Common Principle; a Universal Law ran through it. Man was led to acknowledge a un purpose, motive and law in the varied phenomena of nature which could also help himmeaning and significance in his own life since it was integral to the wisdom underlyiintegrated nature of this universe.

The Prophet of Islam acquainted man with the clear and easy creed to the Unity of Godwas satisfying and full of vitality since it took away all irrational fear from him. This screed made him self-reliant, courageous, rational and undoubting by removing the feverything else save that of His real Master and Lord. It was because of this creed that ma



to recognise his Creator as the Supreme Power, as the Enricher and the Destroyer.discovery meant a world of change for him; he could now see the unity of cause manifoldness of phenomena, was reassured of his pivotal position in the scheme of cre became aware of his worth and dignity; in short, is acceptance of the serfdom of the Oonly God made him the master of every other created being and object. As a vicegerent ohe became aware of the exalted position allocated to him as the executor of the Will of Gearth. It was a concept previously unknown to the world.

The Effect of Monotheism on Other Religions

It was, thus, the Prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him) which granted the absolute monotheism to humanity. Faith in One and only God was earlier somethingunusual but its forceful advocacy by Islam made it such a compelling concept that no reand no social philosophy remained uninfluenced by it. Even polytheistic religions taking pidol worship and a multiplicity of deities began confessing the existence of the Supremand Master by taking recourse to philosophical justifications for the concept of un

multiplicity. They were ashamed of their pantheism, developed an inferiority complestarted to make efforts to bring their creed closer to Islam.

How the absolute and unalloyed monotheism of Islam proved to be a revolutionary conchumanity has been sharply delineated by Syed Sulaiman Nadwi in his Sirat-un-Nabi following words:

Those nations which were unfamiliar with the creed of monotheism were also nescientworth and dignity of man; they took man as just a servitor of every natural phenomenon. the lesson of monotheism, taught by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), that removfear of everything save God from the heart of man. This was a revolutionary concept for itdown everything— from the sun to the rivers and ponds on earth— from their pedesdivinity to an attendant in the service of mankind. The magic of regal glory and splevanished: monarchs of Babylonia, Egypt, India and Iran no longer remained the lords a"highest gods", deriving their right and authority from the gods and angels, but became seand guardians to be appointed by the people themselves.

Mankind under the authority of gods and goddesses had been divided into castes and chigh and low, noble and menials; some were supposed to have been born of God’s mouth,from his hand or foot. These articles of faith had drawn such lines of demarcation betweeand man that he could never hope to be united again. Human equality and brotherhoo perished from the earth converting it into a vast arena for asserting one’s superiority and through the most barbarous means, if need be. Then came the belief in monotheism level

human beings, destroying all concepts of high and low-born, making them all servants oequal in His sight, brother unto one another and having equal rights and obligationsrevolutionary changes that were brought about by this radical creed in the social, mor political fields of human life are self-evident from the pages of history.

The truth of this principle was at last acknowledged by those who were not acquaintedwith the Oneness of God or the equality of mankind; who could not get rid of the false notheir superiority even in the House of God; who discriminated on grounds of wealth, colorace between men bowing in submission to the same deity. Muslims, however, have



enjoying the fruits of human equality for the last thirteen hundred years solely because ofaith in the Oneness of God. They do not acknowledge any man-made distinctions; aservants of the same Lord, all are equal in the sight of God; no dividing line of wealthcolour and nationality can now separate them; only he is worthy of greater honour who iGod-fearing, more obedient of God3. Surely the noble among you in the sight of God is the most

God-fearing of you (Al-Hujurat: 13).The Influence of Islam on India

The deep imprint which Islam has left on Indian thought and culture has been discussed bPannikar in hisSurvey of Indian History, which he says:

One thing is clear. Islam had a profound effect on Hinduism during this period. Medieval theism is in some ways a reply to the attack of Islam; and the doctrines of medieval teachwhatever names their gods are known, are essentially theistic. It is the one supreme God the object of the devotee’s adoration and it is to His grace that we are asked to looredemption. All Bhakti cults are therefore essentially monotheistic, not in the exclusivethat other devotees cannot worship the same supreme being under other names, but affirmative belief that whether known as Siva, Krishna or Devi, they all symbolise the Othe Eternal. This is of course most noticeable in the songs of Kabir, the influence of whicvery greater among the common film.

Another well-known scholar, Dr Tarachand, who argues in a similar vein has cited Barth:

The Arabs of the Khilafat had arrived on the shores (of South India) in the character of trand had established commercial relations and intercourse with these parts long befoAfghans, Turks or Mongols, their co-religionists, came as conquerors. Now, it is precisthese parts that from the ninth to the twelfth century, those great religious movements too

rise which are connected with the name of Sankara, Ramanuja, Anandatirtha and Basava,which the majority of the historical sects came and to which Hinduism presents noanalogous till a much later period.6

Dr Tarachand discusses the growth of the emotional cult, the Bhakti school, and after delinthe propositions put forward by different authorities, reaches the conclusion that:

It is necessary to repeat the most of the elements in the southern schools of devotio philosophy, taken singly, were derived from ancient systems; but the elements in their tand in their peculiar emphasis betray a singular approximation to Muslim faith and themake the argument for Islamic influence probable.

In his other book,Society and State in the Mughal Period, Dr. Tarachand writes about the Bhaktschool:

...there was the third group of mystics who employed the language of the people to preacradical creeds. They mostly belonged to the lower castes and their movement represents thof the unprivileged masses to uplift themselves. Some of them were persecuted by Governsome incurre social opprobrium, and others were not regarded as worthy of notice. But theheld in high esteem among the humbler classes who followed their simple teachings



eagerness and understanding. They laid stress upon the dignity of man, for they taught thaindividual would reach the highest goal of human life by his own effort... The movemenin the fifteenth century and continued till the middle of the seventeenth, but then it declingradually lost its momentum.

The leaders of this group hailed from all parts of India but their teachings manifest a dinfluence of Islam on their belies.

Sikhism

The same is true of Sikhism which has made an important contribution to the cultural, reand political life of India. The system of Guru Nanak and his followers, as well as its liteand traditions, show that it owes its origin to the reformation of Hinduism under Isinfluence. Its founder, Guru Nanak, was deeply attracted by Islamic teachings. He learnt Pand Sufi doctrines from Syed Hasan Shah. He is also reported to have been closely assowith six other Muslim mystics of his time. He is stated as having performed Hajj and spenof his time in Baghdad. The most significant associate which Guru Nanak foundundoubtedly, Shaikh Farid whose 142 stanzas were admitted in the Adi Granth itself.Guru Nanak called upon his followers to worship Alakh Niranjan — the True, the Immortal, theSelf-existent, the Invisible, the Pure One God, to treat all human beings as equals arenounce idols and incarnations. It is not only with respect to the idea of the Unity of Gothe identity of his teachings is discernible; he liberally made use of Sufi terms and imagery.

Tauhid and the Christian World

The impact of Islam on the Christian world has been delineated by an Egyptian scholAhmad, Amin in Zuhal Islam. He writes:

Several dissensions arose in Christendom which unmistakably reveal the influence of Islthe eighth century A.D., that is, the second and third century A.H., a movement emerSeptamania(10) which denied confession of sin before Church authorities. It propagated ththat the bishops had no authority to absolve anyone from sin, for which one should only bGod. Islam had no organised church nor there was any concept of such a confession of sin

Another movement of a similar nature was against the presence of images and statuchurches which was known as Iconoclast. This was a sect in the eighth century A.D. or thand fourth century A.H., which was opposed to the worship paid to statues. The Roman EmLeo III issued an Edict in 726. A.D. against showing respect to the images and statues aninterdicted it in 730 A.D. The Popes, Gregory II and III and Jerome, the PatriarConstantinople, were in favour of paying homage to images and statues while ConstantineLeo IV were opposed to it. The struggle that ensued between them need not be describe hewhat we would like to emphasise is that the Iconoclast movement, as the histoacknowledge, came into existence through the impact of Islam on Christianity. They record that Clodius, the Pontiff of Touraine who became Pontiff in 828/213), used to dimages and the Cross and prohibited divine honours being paid to them. He was bor brought up in Spain where he must have learnt to hate images and statues as objects of wBukhari and Muslim include a report from Ayesha, the Prophet’s wife, which says: "The P



returned from a journey when I had hung a curtain having a few pictures on a window. WhProphet saw it, he tore it apart and remonstrated me saying; Ayesha, the Day of Reckonin be the hardest for those who copy God’s creation.

She further relates that she made pillows out of that cloth.

There have been sects in Christianity which explained Trinity as belief in One God and divinity of Jesus.

European historians, particularly those of the Church, discern the influence of Islam conflict between the Papist and the Protestant reformers. The sixteenth century movement reform of abuses in the Roman Church, led by Martin Luther, betrays the influence of Isla

Simple faith in the Unity of God has been a standing reproach to the inexplicable intricTrinity. Michael Servetus (1511-1553) a contemporary of Calvin and Luther depicts his ain The Errors of Trinity:

How much this tradition of Trinity has alas been the laughing stock of Mohammedans onknows. The Jews also shrink from giving adherence to this fancy of ours, and laugh foolishness about the Trinity, and on account of its blasphemies, they do not believe that the Messiah promised in their Law. And not only the Mohammedans and the Hebrews, bvery beasts of the field, would make fun of us, did they grasp our fantastic notion, for workers of the Lord bless the One God.

Christianity amalgamated antagonistic doctrines, according to Ernest De Bunsen, whichframed by St. Paul and so came to be recognised as the foundation of orthodox ChristSeveral others like George Bernard Shaw, H.G. Wells and Dr. Albert Schweitzer havereached the conclusion that the Pauline heresy became the foundation of Christian orthwhile the legitimate teachings of Jesus Christ were disowned as heretical.Perhaps no wthen that Luther spearheaded Protestantism, a revolt against the assumption of supremspiritual matters by the Roman Catholic Church and taught that man is responsible to Gnot to the Church.

The Reason for Failure

A well-grounded fact demonstrated by the history of religions and in tune with h psychology is that reformative or even revolutionary movements that take shape with bosom of any religion are ultimately absorbed within that religion if they do not reject it postulates and maintain an ambivalent attitude towards it. The fate of all such movemenmatter to which religion they belong is the same; they lose both their identity and their me

Reformative movements within Christianity and Hindu sects calling people to accept DUnity and the brotherhood of mankind were ultimately assimilated within the religions theto reform. Contrary to such reformism, the Prophets of God (peace be on all them) were candid and straightforward in their condemnation of what they did not think to be correct. best illustrated by what the Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him) is reported to have said people:

Surely an excellent pattern you have in Abraham and those who followed him. They said to their



people: we disown you and what you worship beside Allah. We renounce you: enmity and hate shall reign between us until you believe in Allah alone except the saying of Abraham to his father: I shall implore Allah to forgive you, although I have no power for you with Allah at all.O Lord, in Thee we put our trust and to Thee we turn and to Thee we shall come at last. (Al-Mumtahaha:4)

The stand taken by the Prophet Abraham was meant not for the people of his time alonenjoined posterity to follow his example:

And (recall) when Abraham said to his father and his people: I renounce what you worshiHim, who has created me it an abiding precept among his descendants, so that they mig(to none but Allah). (Al-Zukhruf: 26-28)

It was this teaching which has helped Islam to maintain its pristine purity to this day principle to be followed for ever being:whosoever perished might perish by a clear sign, and bya clear sign he might live who remained alive . (Al-Aufal: 42)

The Concept of Human Unity and EqualityThe Historic Declaration of Man’s Brotherhood

The second great favour conferred by the Messenger of God on human beings was the cof the equality and brotherhood of mankind. The world before him was divided into macastes and creeds, tribes and nations; some claiming the ranks of nobility for themselvcondemning others to the position of serfs and chattels.

These differences were by no means less sharp than those existing between the free-born aslaves or between the worshipper and the worshipped. It was for the first time, amidst the overshadowing the world for centuries, that the world heard the clarion call of human efrom the Prophet of Islam: (peace be upon him)

"O Mankind, Your God is One and you have but one father. You are all progeny of AdamAdam was made of clay. Lo! The noblest among you, in the sight of God, is one who is conduct. No Arab has any preference over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab over an Ahab save piety.

His announcement was in fact a twin declaration of the Unity of God and the Unity of maThese are the two natural foundations for raising the edifice of peace and progress, frieand co-operation between different peoples and nations. It created a twin relationship behuman beings— that of One Lord of all mankind and the other of one father of all of themOneness of God was the spiritual principle of human equality just as a common lineage them on the same plane of humanity:

Mankind, fear your Lord, Who created you of a single soul, and from it created its matfrom the pair of them scattered abroad many men and women; and fear God by Whomdemand one another, and the wombs, surely God ever watches over you. (Al-Nisa: 1).

O mankind, We have created you male and female, and made you races and tribes, that yo



know one another. Surely the noblest among you in the sight of God is the most God-fearyou. God is All knowing, All-aware. (Al-Hujurat: 13)

The Prophet of Islam (peace be upon him) simultaneously announced:

God has put an end to the convention of the pagan past taking pride in your fathers; nowwill be pious believers or unbelieving wrongdoers. All are sons of Adam and Adam was mclay. No Arab excels a non-Arab but by his piety.

These were the teachings which made Islam, consisting of widely different tribes, racenations, a commonwealth of Believers hailing from many countries and regions. It confer privileges at all: no Bani Lavis and Brahmins of Judaism and Hinduism. No tribe or raceclaim any preference over another nor any blood or lineage could lay a claim to nobilityown sake. The only criterion recognised for preference over others was an indiviendeavour to improve his morality and character. TheMusnad of Imam Ahmad reports theProphet as saying: "Iranians would attain knowledge even if it were to be found in Venus."

The Arabs have always shown the highest mark of respect to those non-Ahab scholars whexcelled them in religious disciplines and taken them as their teachers and guides. Stthough it may seem, they have not conferred such titles of honour on Arabs themselves ahave on certain non-Arabs. Imam Muhammad ibn Ismail-al-Bukhari (d. 256 A.H.) th

Amir-ul-Muminin fil Hadith (Commander of the faithful of Hadith ) and his Al-Jami'-al-Salihwas regarded as the most authentic book next only to the Holy Qur’an.Imam Abul Ma’ali‘Abdul Malik al-Juwaini of Nishapur (d. 268 A.H.) was known as Imam-ul-Haramayn (Leader of the Two Sacred Cities) and Imam Abu Hamid Muhammad b. Muhammad al-Ghazzali (d. 5A.H.) as Hujjat-ul-Islam ( Proof of Islam).?

By the end of the first century of the Islamic era, non-Arabs had attained distinction in aevery branch of learning and attained prominence even in such sciences as fiqh (jurisprudence)andhadith (traditions). Any work on the literary history of the Arabs or biographies bear wto this development. All this happened in the golden era of Islam when the Arabs held p power.

An eminent Arab scholar Abdul Rahman iba. Khaldun (d. 808 A.H.) expresses surprise saying:

It is a strange historical fact that most of the scholars of religious and intellectual sciencenon-Arabs. The contribution of the Arabs was extremely meager although it was ancivilisation and its founder was also an Arab. Saibuyah held the most prominent positArabic Syntax, then it was Bu ‘Ali Farsi and then Az-Zajaj, and all these were non-Arabs

is the case with experts in the field of hadith (traditions)usul fiqh (principles of jurisprudence)and ilm kalam (theological dialectics).

The announcement made by the Prophet of Islam (peace be upon him) cited at the begiwas pilgrimage made on the historic occasion of his lastHajj . When this was made, perhaps, itwould have been difficult for the world to fully appreciate its significance. It was a revolutcall signifying the release of man from the pressures of society, its values, standards, tradand practices.



Man always accepts any change gradually and indirectly. We can touch a covered electri but not a naked one since we would get a shock and possibly even die. This declaratiowas more appalling than an electric shock.

The long journey of knowledge, thought and culture has now made this revolutionary

acceptable to us that today every political and social organisation swears by the CharHuman Rights adopted by the United Nations. Now nobody is taken aback by it, but wasame when the Prophet proclaimed it?

Humanity before Islam

There was a time when superiority of blood and clan was accepted as a matter of fact. ThQur’an quotes the belief then held by the Jews and Christian in these words: The Jews aChristians say: We are the children of God, His loved ones. (Al-Ma’ida: 18). The PharaEgypt claimed themselves to be the incarnation of Ra, the Sungod, while India had severafamilies who arrogated themselves as the progeny of the sun ( suryavansi ) or the moon(chandravansi ). The Emperors of Iran called themselves Kesra or Chosroes meaning that D blood flowed in their veins. Chosroes II (Khosrau Parvez) even lavished himself wigrandiose title: "The Immortal soul among the gods and peerless God among human bglorious is whose name; dawning with the sun-rise and light of the dark-eyed night."22

The Caesars of Rome were called ‘Augustus’ meaning majestic, venerable, since theyentitled to receive divine honours23. Chinese rulers deemed themselves to be the sons Heavens. They believed that the Heaven was their God, who, with his spouse, the goddesshad given birth to human beings and Pau Ku, the Chinese Emperor, was the first born Heaven enjoying supernatural powers24. The Arabs were so proud of their language that evenation besides their own was an ‘ajami or dumb to them. Likewise, the Quran’sh of Makkaconscious of maintaining their superiority, claimed a privileged position even during Hajj . Theynever went to the Plain of ‘ Arafat with others. They stayed in the Mosque at Makkah or wenMuzdalifa claiming that privilege on the grounds that they belonged to the House of God. also claimed themselves to be the elite of Arabia.

The most glaring peculiarity of the religion-social structure of India of the olden days wall-powerful caste system. This rigid social order having the sanction of religion behallowed no inter-mixing of races for it was meant to protect the privileged position of BraIt classified the population of India into four classes with reference to the vocation followe particular family in which an individual was born. The system which covered the wholeof social life in India divided people into four castes, namely, (i) the Brahmin or the learned and priestly class, (ii) the Kshattriyas or the fighting and ruling class, (iii) TheVaisyas or trading and

agricultural people, and (iv) theSudras or the lowest caste, created from the foot of God, order to serve the other three classes.

This law of caste distinction gave to the Brahmin the distinction, superiority and sanctienjoyed by any other caste. He was both sinless and saved, even if he destroyed the three wno impost could be levied on him; he could not be punished for any crime; while theSudra couldnot accumulate wealth or touch a Brahmin or a sacred scripture.

The Vaisyas, or the working classes like weavers, boatmen, butchers etc. andSudras like



scavengers were not allowed to live in a city. They came into the town after day-break a before sun-set. Not allowed to enjoy the amenities of urban life, they lived in rural slums.

The most precious gift that the Muslims brought to India was the concept of human eqwhich was completely unknown to India. Muslim society was not divided into castes an

was not allocated to any particular class. The Muslims mixed freely, lived and dined togethwere free to read or write and carry on any occupation. The Muslim social order pochallenge to that obtaining in India, but it was also proved a blessing for it. The rigours odistinction were weakened and social reform movements were able to concentrate oshortcomings of Hindu society and, consequently, untouchability was to a large extent rem

Jawahar Lal Nehru, the former Prime Minister of India, has acknowledged the debt India oIslam. He writes in theDiscovery of India:

The impact of the invaders from the north-west and of Islam on India had been considerable. It had pointed out and shown up the abuses that had crept into Hindu society— the petrification of caste, untouchability, exclusiveness carried to fantastic lengths. The idea of the brotherhood of

Islam and of the theoretical equality of its adherents made a powerful appeal, especially to thosein the Hindu fold who were denied any semblance of equal treatment.

The impact of Islam on Hinduism can be seen in the Bhakti (love and devotion) movementwhich began in South India during Muslim rule and spread to the whole country. Describi phenomenon Dr Tara Chand writes:

.........along with them marched a goodly company of saintly men who addressed themsethe common people. The spoke the common people's dialects and in the main impartedmessege through word of mouth. Many of them were endowed with the gift of peetry anhomely memorable verse went direct into the heart of their listeners. Their avoidance of l jargon, their simple teachings stressing the love of God and of man, their denunciatidolatry and caste, of hypocrisy, inequality and the externalia of religion, their sincerity, and dedicated life appealed to wide circles among the masses.

Their utterances gave shape to modern Indian languages. Their enthusiasm stirred the sprlife and moved men to high endeavour and unselfish behaviour. Their is a strange exaltasociety in every region during the fifteenth, sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, which canaccounted for without taking into consideration this sudden outburst of spiritual energy.centuries are filled with voices— at once warning and encouraging— of truly noble andhearted men in surprisingly large numbers. Yet most of them were of humble origin anddestroyed the myth of aristocracy based on birth.

The spirit of human brotherhood built up by Islam is not hampered by concept of racialsectarianism, be it linguistic, historic, tradionalistic or even of a dogmatic nature. Its pounite different races and nations in one brotherhood has always been recognised. A orientalism, H.A.R. Gibb, says:

But Islam has yet a further service to render to the cause of humanity... No other society haa record of success in uniting in an equality of status, of opportunity and of endeavour soand so various races of mankind. The great Muslim communities of Africa, India and Ind



perhaps also the small Muslim community of Japan, show that Islam has still the powreconcile apparently irreconcilable elements of race and tradition. If ever the oppositiongreat societies of the East and West is to be replaced by co-operation, the mediation of Isan indispensable condition.

The British historian, A.J. Toyabee, agrees with Gibb that Islam alone can effaceconsciousness:

The extinction of race consciousness as between Muslims is one of the outstanding achievof Islam, and in the contemporary world there is, as it happens, a crying need for the propaof this Islamic virtue...

Though in certain other respects the triumph of the English-speaking people may be judretrospect, to have been a blessing to mankind, in this perilous matter of race feeling hardly be denied that it has been a misfortune.31

Islam was the first religion which preached and practiced democracy. The well-known

freedom fighter and poetess Sarojini Naidu witnessed and affirmed this quality of Islamwrites:

It was the first religion that preached and practised democracy; for in the mosque when tfrom the Miniaret is sounded and the worshippers are gathered together, the democracy ois embodied five times a day when the peasant and the king kneel side by side and pro"God alone is great." I have been struck over and over again by this indivisible unity ofthat makes a man distinctly a brother. When you meet an Egyptian, an Algerian, an IndianTurk in London, what matters that Egypt was the motherland of one and India the motherlanother.

Malcolm X was a racist for whom the ‘devil white man’ was a Satan. However, he shed prejudices on coming into contact with Muslims. He recounts his own experience:During the past eleven days here in the Muslim World, I have eaten from the same plate,from the same glass, and slept in the same bed (or on the same rug)— While praying to thsameGod— with fellow Muslims, whose eyes were bluest of the blue, whose hair was blondest blond, and whose skin was the whiest of the white. And in thewords and in theactions and inthe deeds of the ‘white’ Muslims, I felt the same sincerity that I felt among the black AfMuslims of Nigeria, Sudan, and Ghana.

We were truly all the same (brothers)— because their belief in one God had removed the ‘whfrom their minds, the ‘white’ from their behaviour, and the ‘white’ from their attitude.

I could see from this, that perhaps if white Americans could accept the Oneness of God, th perhaps, too, they could acceptin reality the Oneness of Man—and cease to measure, andhinder, and harm others in terms of their ‘differences’ in colour.

The Proclamation of Human DignityThe third universal gift of Islam is its declaration that man has been endowed with the hrank and dignity in the entire scheme of God’s creation. Before the prophethood of Muha



on whom be the peace and blessings of God, man had degraded himself to the positionmost inconsequential being on earth. Numerous beasts and trees connected with mythotraditions and pagan beliefs were held as holy and cared for more than man himself. They be protected even at the cost of innocent lives; sometimes human beings were sacrificedaltars of these holy objects. We still come across such gory incidents even in such civcountries as India.The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) restored the dignity of man by declaring this the most respectable and prized being in the whole Universe and nothing has a greater chonour and love and protection than he. The Holy Prophet raised man to the highest conclevel, that is, the position of the vicegerent of God on earth. It was for man that the worcreated. Says the Qur’an:

It is He who created for you all that is (Al-Baqarah: 29).

The Qur’an described man as the paramount and best of creations in the whole Universe.

We have honoured the children of Adam and guided them by land and sea.And provided themwith good things and exalted them above many of Our creations. (Al-Isra’: 70) What can affirmhuman eminence and honour better than the following observation by the Prophet of Islam: Theentire creation constitutes the family of God and he is dearest of Him who is the best in hisdealings with God’s family.

Can there be a better concept of human dignity and nobility? Has man ever been granthonour under any religion or social philosophy? The Prophet of Islam made Divine mcontingent on man being kind to man:

The Most Merciful is compassionate to the softhearted. Show mercy to those on the earth aOwner of Heavens will be merciful to you.

All those who know about the social and political condition of the world prior to the advIslam can appreciate the determined efforts the Prophet made in order to drive home the cof the worth and dignity of man. The lives of innumerable human beings depended on the of a single individual before the prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him). Anycould made in Blood across countries and continents to gain political ascendancy or just his whims.

Alexander the Great (356-324 B.C.) rose like a tempest, subdued Syria and Egypt, and crBabylonia and Turkistan reached India. He swept the older civilizations before him. Caesar (102-44 B.C.) and several other conquerors like Hannibal (247-182 B.C) exterm

large populations remorselessly as if those were not human beings but beasts of prey.These pitiless massacres continued all over the world even after the advent of Jesus ChriRoman Emperor Nero (A.D. 54-68) murdered his own wife and mother, persecuted hicountrymen and played the fiddle while Rome burnt, for which he was himself proresponsible. Barbarians like the Goths and Vandals were busy destroying civilisations in Eand Africa only a hundred years before the prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon hi

Little regard for human life among the Arabs had made fights and forays a pastime for the



even the most trivial matter could lead them to the battle-field. Bakr and Taghlab, the twoof Bani Wa’il, continued to fight for 40 years during which time they fought many a sang battle although it all started by the shooting of an arrow at the udder of a camel which milk with blood. Jassas ibn Marrah killed Kalayb and then Bakr and Taghlab started fightiabout which Kalayb’s brother, Al-Muhalhil, remarked: "Men have died, mothers have bchildless, children have become orphans; tears stream from the eyes and the dead areshroudles.’

Similarly the Battle of Dahis-o-Ghabra was sparked off simply because Dahis, the horse oibn Zuhair, had overtaken that of Hudaiqa ibn Badr. A man of Asad slapped Qays at the inof Hudaiqa which made his horse lose the race. Thereafter, the war of attrition started in wlarge number of people lost their lives and many had to leave their hearths and homes.

The number of battles fought by the Prophet was 27 or 28 while he is reported to have s60 forays and expeditions. In all these battles and expeditions only 1018 peoples, Muslim as non-Muslim, lost their lives.

The purpose of these fighting was to restore law and order and to protect human lif property from senseless destruction. A civilised code of conduct was prescribed for warfathis changed the character of war from prosecution to disciplinary action.

The moral teachings of Islam create such a strong sense of human dignity that one neveranother person as a sub-human being. A Muslim never treats another man as a chattel onor discriminates between himself and others. An incident preserved by history amply illuthe sense of human dignity embedded in Islam. Anas relates that he was with ‘Umar, the Caliph, when an Egyptian Copt complained to the Caliph that his horse had beaten tMuhammad, son of ‘Amr ibn al-As, the Governor of Egypt, and was witnessed by a num people. When he claimed that he had won the race, Muhammad became enraged and lash

with a whip. Caliph ‘Umar asked him to wait and wrote to ‘Amr ibn al-‘As asking him ason to present themselves before him. ‘Amr ibn al-‘As sent for his son and enquired abomatter, who then denied having committed any crime. Then both ‘Amr ibn al-‘As and hrepaired to Madina. Caliph ‘Umar sent for the Copt and giving him a whip asked him t‘Amr ibn al-‘As’s son. After the Copt had exacted retribution, Caliph ‘Umar ordered the Cmove the whip over ‘Amr ibn al-‘As’s head for it was because of him that he had been flThe Copt refused saying that he had already had his revenge. Thereupon ‘Umar remarkedyou beaten him I would not have intervened." Then, turning to ‘Amr ibn al-‘As he"Whence did you make them slaves who had been born free?" Thereafter, turning to the‘Umar said, "Go back and have no fear. If anything happens, inform me."

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Allah T'ala says in the Holy Quran:

ن َ و ل ُ ف ِ ا َغ ا َ ت ِ ا ي َ آ ْ َع م ْ ُه َ ي ذ ِ ّ َ ا َ ب ِ ْ و أ َ َ ط ْ َ ا َ ْ د ِة ا ح َ ْ ا ب ِ ْ و ض ُ ر َ َ ا َ ء ا ق َ ِ ن َ و ج ُ ْ ي َ َ َ ي ذ ِ ّ ن ّ َإ

ن َ و ُ س ِ ك ْ ي َ ْ و ُ ا َ ا َ ب ِ ر ُ ا م ُ ُه َ أ ْ َ َ ئ ِ ـ َ ْ ُ

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Surely those who do not expect to meet Us, who are gratified with the life of the worldand content with it, and are heedless of Our signs,their abode shall be the Fire in returnfor their misdeeds. (The Holy Quran, 10:7-8)

The statement that is being made here is that rejection of the doctrine of the Hereafter necessarily entails the punishment of Hell, and the argument that is being proffered insupport of it is that those who are oblivious to the Hereafter commit, because of their disbelief in it, evil deeds which can only lead to them suffering the torments of Hell. Thisargument is corroborated by the entire record of man's past. It is quite clear that the livesof those who do not believe that they will not be held to account by God for their deeds;who work on the assumption that life is merely confined to the span of worldly existence;who measure human success or failure only in terms of the extent of material comfort,fame and power that a person is able to enjoy; who under the influence of suchmaterialistic notions do not even care to pay attention to those signs of God which pointto reality, assume an altogether wrong direction with the result that their life is vitiated.Hence they live a totally unbridled life, develop the worst possible character traits, andfill God's earth with injustice and corruption, with sin and transgression, and ultimatelyend up meriting the punishment of Hell.

The above argument about the Hereafter is drawn from human experience itself.Although in the present verse the argument is found only in an implicit form, it is speltout at several other places in the Qur'an. The argument essentially is that unless man'scharacter rests on the consciousness and conviction that he will have to render an accountfor all his deeds to God, both man's individual and collective behaviour will fail to havesound basis and direction. It would seem, therefore, to be worth asking: why is this so?Why is it that once this consciousness and conviction are altogether ended or greatlyenfeebled, the human character turns to iniquity and corruption? Had affirmation of theHereafter not been in conformity with reality, and conversely, had its denial not beenopposed to it, then the evil consequences flowing from the denial of the Hereafter wouldnot have been found with such unfailing regularity. If adherence to a propositioninvariably leads to good results, and failure to adhere to it invariably leads to evilconsequences, then this definitely proves the proposition to be true.

In an attempt to refute the above argument it is sometimes contended that even atheistswho reject the Hereafter and follow a materialistic approach to life often lead lives thatare on the whole good and decent, that they hold themselves free from corruption andinjustice. Not only that but also that their actual conduct is characterized by righteousnessand benevolence. However, only a little reflection will make apparent the fallacy

underlying this argument. For if one were to examine any atheistic or materialistic philosophy or ideology one will not find in them any basis for righteous behaviour whichdraws such lavish praise from so-called 'righteous' atheists. Nor can it be established bylogical reasoning that an atheistic philosophy of life provides any incentive to embracesuch virtues as truthfulness, trustworthiness, honesty, faithfulness to one's commitment, benevolence, generosity, preferring the interests of others to one's own, self-restraint,chastity, recognition of the rights of others, and fulfilment of one's obligations. The fact isthat once God and the Hereafter are relegated to oblivion, the only practicable course left



that their boys were killed as they were born. The land was also filled with magicians andwitchcraft was the fashion of the day. Paganism was prevalent including the cowworship.

Centuries have passed since the Pharaohs ruled Egypt and much has changed. Thescientific and technological advancements have made us live luxuriously in many ways.Many in America believe in One God, live in prosperity and are far removed from thelike of the persecutions of the Pharaohs of the past. At the same time, magic andwitchcraft still exist in the American life, but in ways which are very different from thetime of the Pharaohs. An example of such presence can be seen in the Harry Potter booksand paraphernalia. Paganism also has its presence, for example, in the customs of Halloween. The Holy scriptures acknowledge existence of magic, but forbid its practice.

"Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead." (Deuteronomy 18:10-11)

The story of Prophet Moses’ encounter with the magicians appears in several places inthe Holy Scriptures. Below is one such narration:

Moses said: "O Pharaoh! I am an apostle from the Lord of the worlds,- One for whom itis right to say nothing but truth about God. Now have I come unto you (people), fromyour Lord, with a clear (Sign): So let the Children of Israel depart along with me."(Pharaoh) said: "If indeed thou hast come with a Sign, show it forth,- if thoutells the truth." Then (Moses) threw his rod, and behold! it was a serpent, plain (for all tosee)! And he drew out his hand, and behold! it was white to all beholders! Said the Chiefsof the people of Pharaoh: "This is indeed a sorcerer well-versed. "His plan is to get youout of your land: then what is it ye counsel?" They said: "Keep him and his brother insuspense (for a while); and send to the cities men to collect- And bring up to thee all (our)sorcerers well-versed."So there came the sorcerers to Pharaoh: They said, "of course we shall havea (suitable) reward if we win!" He said: "Yea, (and more),- for ye shall in that case be(raised to posts) nearest (to my person)." They said: "O Moses! wilt thou throw (first), or shall we have the (first) throw?" Said Moses: "Throw ye (first)." So when they threw,they bewitched the eyes of the people, and struck terror into them: for they showed agreat (feat of) magic. We put it into Moses' mind by inspiration: "Throw (now) thyrod":and behold! it swallows up straight away all the falsehoods which they fake!Thus truth was confirmed, and all that they did was made of no effect. So the (great ones)were vanquished there and then, and were made to look small. But the sorcerers felldown prostrate in adoration. Saying: "We believe in the Lord of the Worlds,- "The Lordof Moses and Aaron."Said Pharaoh: "Believe ye in Him before I give you permission? Surely this is a trick which ye have planned in the city to drive out its people: but soon shall ye know (theconsequences). Be sure I will cut off your hands and your feet on apposite sides, and Iwill cause you all to die on the cross." They said: "For us, We are but sent back unto our Lord: "But thou dost wreak thy vengeance on us simply because we believed in the Signsof our Lord when they reached us! Our Lord! pour out on us patience and constancy, andtake our souls unto thee as those who bow to thy will! (The Holy Quran, 7:104-126)



Moses exposed the falsehood of the sorcerers. The sorcerers repented, gave up magic and became true believers of the God Almighty. Can the same happen with the makers of Harry Potter? The books are in effect promoters of paganism. They glorify magic and paganism while non-magical people, called Muggles, are despised and portrayed as boring, narrow-minded, and paranoid of magic. Not surprisingly, the main characters in

the story have few noble qualities; they lie with impunity, use profanity, don't respecttheir elders, break rules regularly, and are unrepentant. And for all these qualities andmore, the books are popular and are having an effect. Children have also gone crazy over Harry Potter memorabilia, surrounding themselves with Harry Potter T-shirts, posters,toys, costumes, wands, hats, etc.Welcome to the world of materialism and paganism, where superstitions and the occultreign supreme in the hearts and minds of people, and where the twin forces have forgedan "alliance of the willing" that is doing its "magic" on a global scale. This alliancehowever is not limited to Harry Potter books.Halloween has been tied to pagans, like the Druids. Samhain was the name of the Druidgod of the dead. The Druids were a religious order amongst the Celts. On October 31st

they would try to appease their lord of death. These Druids also believed that witchesrode on broom sticks and that ghosts were the cause of supernatural occurrences. The belief was that on the eve of the Celtic New Year (which for them was October 31), thesouls of the dead people roamed the land of the living. The Devil, spirits and witcheswere also believed to be moving about and at the height of their power.Halloween activities have found their roots in almost every walk of life. Driving aroundneighborhoods shows a large number of homes with Halloween displays. School teachershold special Halloween parties. There may not be a single store, office or institution leftwithout a display of Halloween. The entire nation appears to be celebrating Halloween. Itis, therefore, not difficult to conclude that those who believe in monotheism are also participating in these activities. I leave it to the rabbis, pastors and imams to give their verdicts based on the Holy Scriptures, but I do have to ask those who believe in One Godto read the Ten Commandments just one more time, especially the phrase, “…for I theLord your God am a jealous God …”What did Moses do when he found his nation made a calf? What would Moses do if hewere among us? Deeds have no value without Faith and yet Faith demands obedience inaction. Satan did not say that he does not believe in God. He disobeyed God and becamethe lowest of the low!

by Ishaq ZahidOct 21, 2007

Note: Some text about Harry Potter is taken from Khalid Baig's article. Some text about

Halloween is taken fromwww.soundvision.comarticle on HalloweenAnalysis: More than Bad Rulers and Corrupt Societies

By Khalid BaigPosted: 18 Safar 1424, 20 April 2003

In the past centuriesthe Muslim world

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was much moreintegrated than werealize. It was onesocial, cultural,religious andeconomic domain.Its language, systemof education,currency, and lawswere the same.

When British journalist Robert Fisk said that in the face of disaster Arabs act likemice, he was being polite. He could have said that the Muslims act like mice. Thequestion is why?

It is easy and customary to blame the current Muslim rulers for this sorrysituation. No doubt the Iraq invasion would not have been possible without their acquiescence and support. If they refused to open their lands, waterways, andairspace to the invasion, it could not have taken place. Neither would theslaughters in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Kosova, Kashmir, Chechnya, and Palestinehave been possible if the Muslim rulers had their act together. But was it only because the Muslim rulers happened to be immoral, coward, and unscrupulouscharacters? Is the 1.2 billion strong Ummah suffering only because there are fifty-four corrupt persons who are ruling it?

These rulers do not carry out all their plans personally. They have armies of compliant soldiers, bureaucrats, and other staffers at every level of governmentthat do the dirty work. Further the societies at large produce, nurture, and sustainthe corrupt machinery of the corrupt governments. As we continue our investigation, we find that our problem is corruption; not only of the rulers butalso of the ruled. Today we have strayed from the Shariah in our personal lives;we lie, cheat, steal at a higher rate than ever before; we exploit and oppress in our small spheres. In short, our problems are caused by our moral corruption.

But there is something more. And it is getting scant attention in the Muslimdiscourse.

Islam teaches us the correctness of belief is even more important than correctnessof deeds. There is an implied message here: The corruption of ideas is far moredevastating than the corruption of actions. This may be happening here. Wecomplain about the particular tribal leaders that happen to be there today butforget about the tribalism that sits at the root of all this. This tribalism of thenation-states has been enshrined into the constitutions, legal structures, bureaucracies, and the entire apparatus of government in every Muslim country.Its language and thinking, though anathema to Islam, has gained widespreadacceptance. While we condemn its outcome, we do not sufficiently examine or challenge the system itself.



We complain aboutthe particular triballeaders that happento be there today butforget about thetribalism that sits atthe root of all this

We constantly talk about the Muslim brotherhood and the need for Muslim unity.We assert that Muslims are one Ummah. Simultaneously --- and without muchthought --- we embrace the symbols, ideas, and dictates of its exact opposite. Wehave lived under our nation-states, celebrated our national days, and sang our national anthems all our lives. As a result the realization that the gap between theidea of the nation-state and that of one Ummah is wider than can be patched withgood leaders of individual nation-states does not occur easily. We do not realizethat we may be trying to simultaneously ride two different boats going in opposite

directions.So let us consider some real life situations. In Pakistan, the provinces of Sind andPunjab share the Indus River. Available water is less than their combined needsand Punjab is situated upstream while Sind is downstream. Quite naturally, thereis constant bickering over the distribution of water. The conflict is resolved by the presence of a central government and by the realization that both provinces belong to the same country. Now imagine that the two provinces had beentransformed into two separate countries. We can be certain that the small issuethat no body in the world knows about or cares about today would become a biginternational conflict. And it may matter little whether they were called IslamicRepublic of Punjab and the Islamic Republic of Sind! The logic of a sovereigncountry is very different and once you embrace that there are consequences thatgood intentions and good people alone cannot overcome.

When completedTurkey's SoutheastAnatolia Project,(GAP in Turkey)will reduce water supply to Syria by50% and to Iraq by90%, selling itinstead to Israelthrough the so-called PeacePipeline. Acomparablesituation would bePunjab denyingwater to Sind and



then selling it toIndia.

To understand that let us move from the Indus basin to the Furat-Dijla (Euphrates-Tigris) basin. What is presented as a hypothetical situation in the former has been

turned into an unfortunate reality in the latter. Both Dijla and Furat originate inTurkey, pass through Syria, and end up in Iraq where they join to form the Shat-alArab that then discharges into the Persian Gulf. Mesopotamia means the land between the two rivers, the two rivers having been the source of civilization sincethe ancient times. Add the artificial international borders between Turkey, Syria,and Iraq, and the same life giving water turns into an explosive that could rock thearea. In 1974 there was a near war between Syria and Iraq as Syria began to fillthe reservoir that has become Lake Asad, decreasing the flow of the river to Iraqto as little as 25 percent of the normal rate. Armies were moved and threats wereexchanged, though finally diplomatic activity by the Soviet Union and SaudiArabia defused the situation. In 1990 tensions ran high as Turkey stopped all flow

in Furat for one complete month as it started to fill the Ataturk Dam.Today Turkey's Southeast Anatolia Project, (GAP in Turkey) is promising a muchmore serious conflict in the days to come. The multi-billion dollar GAP includesmore than 20 dams and 17 electric power plants, which will reduce water supplyto Syria by 50% and to Iraq by 90% when it is completed in another twenty years.Even more bizarre is the plan Turkey has for part of the water that it denies toSyria and Iraq seriously endangering their agriculture and economies; it will sell itto Israel through the so-called Peace Pipeline that will run through theMediterranean. The agreement with Israel was signed in 2001. "We have declaredthat we can sell water to whichever country needs water, regardless of itslanguage or flag," said Cumhur Ersumer, Turkey's energy minister at that time. "Itlooks like Israel will be the first country to buy Turkey's water." That is the logicof the nation-state as articulated by Suleyman Demirel: "Neither Syria or Iraq canlay claim to Turkey's rivers any more than Ankara could claim their oil. This is amatter of sovereignty."

We can be sure that accountants in Turkey can show that Turkey will benefiteconomically by doing what it plans to do. And even a so-called Islamist party inTurkey will be driven by those calculations pledging, as it does, allegiance to"Turkish national interests." A comparable situation would be Punjab denyingwater to Sind and then selling it to India. No matter how corrupt leaders inPakistan become (if they have not already reached the limit) it is just impossibleto imagine that outcome. And yet the same situation is not only possible, it isthere in the other case. Such are the wonders of the corrupt ideology of nation-state!

Conflicts of interest between any two entities are normal and natural. What iscrucial is the mechanism and structure for resolving them. Islamic laws of inheritance highlight this fact. Conflicts could develop even among close relativesover distribution of inheritance. Since Islam values very smooth relations and



does not like even the slightest bickering there, the Shariah has provided thedetailed rules for this distribution. Neither the people involved, nor thegovernment can override this distribution. Thus a solid mechanism has been provided for resolution of these conflicts.

In case of two provinces of the same country, the mechanism for the resolution of their conflicts remains in the form of the central government as well as firmrealization on the part of everyone that they are riding the same boat. However when they turn into independent countries, both of these are lost.

How the definition of the self-interest can change with a change in the frame of reference can be seen through another example. When the US gave the Pakistaniruler the choice of either joining the invader or joining the target he did nothesitate for a minute to choose the first option. It can be criticized as much as onewants, but the fact remains that under the frame of reference under which Pakistanand all Muslim countries operate today, that was an option. But can we imaginethe US demanding, or Pakistan conceding the support for attacking Baluchistan?This would clearly be seen as preposterous by everyone. As far as the Shariah isconcerned, the two situations are exactly alike. But in the system of nation-statesthey are not.

The gap betweenthe idea of thenation-state and thatof one Ummah iswider than can be patched with goodleaders of individual

nation-statesThat the opposition to what the Pakistani president did was manageable is also areflection of the fact that Muslims the world over have generally and unwittingly bought into the philosophy of this nationalism.

The imposition of embargo on Afghanistan and Iraq is another example of theclash between Islam and the nation-state. Islam teaches that it is not a believer who eats while his neighbor goes to bed hungry. The system of the UN on theother hand, ordered its member-states not to supply any food or medicine to thosedying of hunger and disease in Iraq. Again, the fact that Muslim countries havecomplied with the latter without any consternation or serious opposition is areminder of our subconscious acceptance of the nationalist ideology.We can see why world Muslims acted like mice in the face of disaster. The Qur'anwarned us not to engage in disputes and infighting or we would become weak and powerless. But we have not only done the exact opposite, we have given a permanent structure and legal cover to the arrangement for that infighting in thecurrent political organization of the Muslim domain.



This exposition of the ideology of nation-state invariably faces a mental block;namely that all this is impossible. This argument runs like this. We had a Khilafahcenturies ago. Since then we have had a checkered history of nominal Khalifah,Sultans, and Nawabs running their own kingdoms and fiefdoms. Today we havefifty-four states and there is no way we can change that in our life times. Yes and

no. While we had more then one centers of political power for centuries, theMuslim world was much more integrated then than we realize. It was one social,cultural, religious and economic domain. Its language, system of education,currency, and laws were the same. There were no restrictions on travel, or movement of capital or goods. A Muslim could take up residence and start a business or get a job anywhere. Ibn Batuta traveled from Tunisia to Hijaz, EastAfrica, India, Malaya, and China, covering 75000 miles without traveling thesame road twice. During the twenty-five year journey he took up residence wherehe wanted to; got even government assignments as Qadi and even as ambassador in China for the Sultan in India. If that was possible then, it should be easier now because of the huge advances in the communication and transportation

technologies alone.The corruption of ideas is far moredevastating than thecorruption of actions.

No one is suggesting that we can dismantle the fifty-four Muslim governmentsovernight and replace them with a Khilafah. But we can gradually breakdown the barriers between the Muslim states in travel, trade, and all exchanges at personallevels. With free flow of people, goods, capital, and ideas throughout the Muslimdomain, a quite revolution can begin. We could realize that this domain is muchmore self-sufficient and strong then we have ever realized. That its various partscomplement each other's needs and strengthen each other. That it is the artificial borders between Muslim lands drawn by colonial powers that have terriblyweakened it!

While we recognize that the barriers to that vision are real and very serious, wemust also realize that the most serious barriers are mental and psychological. Wemust break through the mental straitjacket and realize that another world is possible. Only then we will begin to see how to get there. It may take a generationor many generations. But we will never get there if we do not know that is where

we want to go. Today sometimes Muslims say out of frustration that Muslimgovernments should form their own United Nations. The suggestion does captureour deep desire for unity as well as our deep running confusion about it. For it hasone s too many. The Islamic discourse should be about a United Nation of theirsand not United Nations.

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The Ship and the LifeboatsAlthough the pen and the sword are arrayed against it, Islam is spreading. But there arealso problems within the Muslim reawakening.By Khalid BaigPosted: 14 Zul-Hijjah 1423, 16 February 2003

We are living at a time when the daily news about the world, especially about the Muslimworld is quite depressing. In Palestine, Kashmir, Afghanistan, Iraq, and many other places Muslim life, property, and honor have been declared fair game by those who wieldworldly power. It is not just armies waging this war. A whole gamut of institutions, fromsophisticated research centers to slick media, is dedicated to the campaign to sow doubts,to spreads confusion, and to denigrate Islam. In hot spot after hot spot around the world,the sword is busy prosecuting a war on Islam. The pen is busy in both conducting a war on Islam and in trying to foment a war within Islam. While the unprecedented andunexpected momentum gained by the anti-war movement in the middle of February hasgiven some hope that the mad rush to slaughter may be deflected, overall picture remainsgrim.

And yet these are also the times when people all over the world are coming to Islam inunprecedented numbers. At a time when Muslims have lost control of the sword and the pen, Islam is finding new followers everywhere everyday. (It is quite revealing that evenas Islam continues to spread despite the sword, some people should continue to insist thatit spread by the sword. As Qur'an repeatedly reminds us, the opponents of Islam are avery closed-minded lot).

Within the Muslim world also there are signs of awakening. Muslims are coming back toIslam after having toyed with one false ideology after another. Colonialism had hit themhard. It subjugated them physically, politically, economically, culturally, and mentally.An education system that they embraced as a ticket out of their miseries during that period of oppression compounded their problems by producing self-doubt and self-hate.It produced generations of perfect strangers within the house of Islam, who were then ---for this 'achievement' --- given leadership roles in all areas of Muslim societies. Theyhated their languages, their culture, and their religion. It is such people who rule theMuslim world today.

Yet, the scene is changing. More women are choosing hijab and are becoming moreassertive about it as a symbol of their Islamic identity. There is a greater interest inIslamic knowledge. Qur'an lectures are attracting crowds that were not seen in the past.The nature of the questions people ask about Islam is also changing. There are more 'howto' and 'what to' questions than 'why' questions coming from the secular educated groups.The last Biswa Ijtima (annual gathering of Tablighi Jamaat in Bangladesh) attracted sometwo million attendees. What is more, they came from widely varying segments of society.A parallel growth can be seen in Islamic activism. Politics, media, relief and charity,education, and community service are all attracting new workers and new organizations.

http://our-world-today-mainmenu-50/202-invasion-of-paganism-into-monotheism-by-materialism.html

http://our-world-today-mainmenu-50/202-invasion-of-paganism-into-monotheism-by-materialism.html



There is a new enthusiasm, new energy, and new awareness.

Our renewedinterest in our religion is great butit is good toremember thatIslamic revival willnot take placethrough the blindleading the blind.

But there are also problems within this awakening. The period of colonialism was a bigcrash in which our ship was destroyed. In the immediate aftermath, survival was the maingoal, and people came with whatever lifeboats they could. Now is the time to pick up the pieces and build the ship again. The problem is we have been living in the lifeboats for solong, we are confusing them with the ship. The schools for secular education were onesuch lifeboat. They imparted some skills necessary for survival in a changed world,although they impoverished Muslim education and society tremendously in so manyways. But today so many well-meaning people who get excited about spreadingeducation in the Muslim world think of nothing more than establishing more of thesesame schools. Campaigns for 'democracy', whatever it means, were another such lifeboat,aimed at returning control of Muslim affairs to them thereby seeking liberation. Today,democracy or no democracy, nowhere do Muslims have any control over their affairs, butthis lifeboat has become a ship and Khilafah, the Islamic system of governance, remains astrange entity. Islamic organizations were such a lifeboat, aimed at gathering like minded people so they could focus their resources and energies on some of the important things.Yet each of them is considered to be the ship by its occupants and captains, therebycreating new lines of cleavage within the Ummah.There is another issue. Most of our new activism thrives on sincerity, concern and drive but not on knowledge or guidance. There are Islamic relief organizations providing muchneeded support for the destitute millions. But many do not show a sensitivity to check whether their fund raising methods are Islamic; whether they are distributing the zakataccording to Shariah; whether their operation meets the Islamic guidelines. There areorganizations focused on media and political activism --- certainly very important fields--- that sometime say things that the media or political establishment they are talking towould like to hear, even if they are totally wrong and un-Islamic. They seem to be doingas much damage as good through ignorance and carelessness.

The same observation can be made about our efforts at spreading Islamic knowledge. It isembarrassing how many of those giving lectures, issuing 'fatwas' (not necessarily callingthem so but issuing legal opinions nonetheless), and conducting Qur'an lessons have noqualifications for the job. Yet they find a ready audience among those who confuseeloquence with scholarship.

Our renewed interest in our religion is great but it is good to remember that Islamicrevival will not take place through the blind leading the blind. All Islamic work ---



whether Dawah, or Jihad, or relief work or political or media activism --- requiresguidance from the Shariah, which in turn requires knowledge and understanding.Recognizing the need for such guidance from true scholars is the first step in getting it.The questions we need to ask may not have ready-made answers but that does not justifynot asking them or accepting answers from unqualified sources. There is a very good

example in the work done in the field of Islamic finance during the last decades. It wasthe collaboration of religious scholars with experts in economics and finance that produced the body of knowledge today that did not exist before. A similar effort isneeded in other fields. Muslim journalists working with scholars can help evolve anIslamic protocol for Journalism. Muslim activists working with scholars can help evolveIslamic protocol for media and political activism. Relief organizations can establishShariah advisory boards to ensure their operations are within the bounds of Shariah.

Bringing our own house in order is the only response we can and must have to the threats,challenges, and fears we face today.

abul hasan nadwi-islam and civilization

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