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Responding madness
M A Safavi
Email:afzalsafavi@hotmail.com
The ostrich like behaviour of our intelligentsia notwithstanding, the
West is in the very thick of an all-out war against Islam. It does not
matter what the West calls it. The entire West is united and it has put
all their acts together bilaterally as well as multilaterally- the mass
media being its mainstay. On the other hand, the so-called Muslim world
is utterly disunited, lacks the real spirit of Islam and is responding
in awkward ways. With all its resourcefulness and far-reaching effects,
the media is being used in this war massively exploiting the un-Islamic
behaviour of the Muslims. Publication of the blasphemous cartoons is
just a tip of the iceberg.
Picture of the holy Kahba has been desecrated in an exhibition at
Berlin. Geert Wilder, a member of the Dutch Parliament and head of the
Dutch Freedom Party, has made a ten-minute documentary on the Holy Quran
playing its message in the worst possible way ridiculing the Islamic
traditions, Islamic culture and its ideology in a derogatory manner. The
British daily ‘Sunday Observer’ has recently published his interview
wherein he demands that the Holy Quran should be banned in Holland as it
is a serious threat to the Western society and alleges that Muslims are
criminally assaulting the homosexuals on the streets of Amsterdam and,
adds that such a behaviour of the Muslims is not acceptable as it will
destabilize the Dutch society. An IT outlet “Cyberspace” has put a
picture of the Holy Prophet (SAW) on its website. Another such a
facility “Freeline Encyclopedia” has also put desecrating material about
the person of the Holy Prophet (SAW) on its website. Vein Goag, a Dutch
painter has painted Quranic verses on a woman’s nude body displaying it
at public places. Demonstrations by the Christian students in front of
mosques at prayer times are a daily phenomenon in the U.K. In
neighbouring India, celluloid medium is being used to disdain the
Islamic values. Films playing with the Muslim-Hindu issue, in one way or
another, the Hindu viewpoint always plays supreme. In such a film,
‘Jodha Akbar’ which has been released a few days ago, it is Akbar the
‘Great’s’ quality to abandon everything Islamic to appease his Hindu
wife. It is he who agrees to construct a mandir within the Mughal Muslim
fort for her, it is he who happily samples vegetarian food from her
separately maintained kitchen, it is he who readily endorses the
importance of colouring her maang with sundoor. Jodha, on the other
hand, does not change anything about herself specifying her moral
superiority as being a Hindu.
Not to speak of our adversaries, our own media, particularly certain
private TV channels and a section of the print media is toeing the same
line. A glaring example to this effect is the live coverage of release
from prison of Kashmir Singh- a RAW’s saboteur, sentenced to death in
1973 which was later converted into life imprisonment- conducted by our
electronic and print media in private sector. It has been done in such a
way that the prisoner occupied the mini-screens for hours together
playing as an innocent hero with no mention of his crime. The under
current of the coverage portrayed Pakistan as an inhumane villain.
This is not a new phenomenon. As Allama Iqbal puts it, the fight between
the evil spirit of Abu-Lahab and the light of Mustafa (SAW) started from
the day the man was created and, it continues till today. Yesterday,
there were wretched Abu Lahab, Hindah, Abu Jehl and Waleed son of
Mughirah and so many others who used to tease and show disrespect to the
Holy Prophet (SAW). They all died ignominious death. Today, there are
wicked Fleming Rose, Morgen Visen, Geert Wilder, Vein Goag, Ahmed
Rushdie and Tasleema Nasreen. They are neither living nor dying just
breathing in constant fear. Is it not a curse on them of Almighty Allah?
Yes, it is true that the faith of any Muslim is incomplete unless he
loves the Holy Prophet more than his most near and dear ones. Therefore,
it is but natural for the Muslims to get angry on such heinous acts of
disrespect against the Holy Quran and Prophet Muhammad (SAW) but, they
must demonstrate their anger in orderly and peaceful manners keeping it
strictly confined within the precincts of the Holy Quran. Let us see how
does the Holy Quran guide the Muslims to behave in such situations.
The verses 15:90-99 are pertinent in this regard. These verses set forth
a course of action for the Muslims to follow. These verses read “We
shall punish these infidels like We punished those who had divided Quran
by accepting one part of it while rejecting the other- tearing it into
pieces. By the name of your Sustainer, We shall take account of the acts
they have been committing. Thus keep on telling them the commandments
you have received from your Lord. And do not care at all about the
actions of the infidels. We suffice to save you from those who make fun
of you, who commit acts of infidelity. Very soon they shall see the
result of their doing. And We know that you are distressed by the acts
of these people. You should continue praising your Sustainer and
continue telling His virtues. And join those who are prostrating before
their Lord. And keeping on worshiping Him until the day of your death”.
Look how does Almighty Allah is consoling His Prophet when the Prophet
is distressed on being teased by the infidels. He does not order His
Prophet to take revenge. Instead, Allah Almighty is telling His
Messenger to be more vigorous in obeying Allah and conveying His message
to the infidels. These are the guidelines which the Muslims should also
follow in letter and spirit. Anything less or more will weaken the case
of the Muslims and strengthen their enemy’s.
We must realize that blasphemy is being used by the West as a tool of
the war for two purposes: one, to pander the Muslims to the extent that
they may be shattered psychologically; two, to provoke them to such an
extent that they should resort to violence so that their acts of
violence should be hyped to isolate them. Unfortunately, the Muslims
readily fall into the trap. The other thing the Muslims must realize
that the West believes in “everything is fair in love and war”. Such an
idea is alien in Islam. In Islam, a Muslim lives and dies as enjoined
upon him by his Sustainer irrespective of the circumstances he lives in.
The only way to respond the Western madness is to conform our lives in
accordance with the Holy Qur’an by following the foot-steps of the Holy
Prophet (SWA).
The writer is an ex-media manager based in Islamabad.
