Muslims: Their past, present and future

Part-4

The present Muslim World

I am acutely aware of the fact that Muslims do not like to be criticized for their failures, inertia and what have you for the simple reason that any criticism of them they view as being an attack on their faith and its practices. Why they have developed this attitude in them is not clearly known to me, but when one wishes to talk about the Muslims, they have to identify them with their religious affiliation. Failure to do so is bound to derail the theme and the purpose of the discussion, and this is something that no one in his right mind would like to do just to make the Muslims happy.

In my previous segments I have discussed, in brief, the past history of the Muslims. This I have done with a specific purpose, it being to remind them about what they had failed to achieve when they were ruling a vast landmass of the world and also about what has befallen them as a result of their inability or unwillingness to adjust themselves with the requirements of a changing world. In this last segment of my write up, I will discuss what Muslims need to do in order to integrate them with the rest of the world’s nations and to reap benefits from this action of theirs.

Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran has done a great disservice to the Muslims by leveling the United States the “Great Satan of the world.” This terminology may sound irrelevant to many, but, in truth, it has been having a great impact on the psychological behavior of many Muslims of the world. For the purpose of elucidation, a short discussion of the Ayatollah’s phrase is necessary.

The Quran represents Satan as being the one who instigates, seduces, influences and misleads humans through his manipulative abilities. He is depicted, not for once, as being the one who occupies others’ lands and properties.

Equating the United States with the manipulative nature of the Satan meant that it is a country, which has been leading the Muslims away from the path of Islam, and, through this action, from the pious and righteous causes of God. The Quran exhorts the believers to constantly fight the Satan to save themselves from his manipulations.

From the time the Ayatollah replaced the mystical Satan by the United States of America, it has become a duty for most Muslims to remain in a perpetual state of struggle or warfare against this country. This concept is exactly what many Muslims hold in their minds; this concept, coupled with the Quranic exhortations, is exactly what Osama and his ilk have put into action by launching their attack on the soil of the “Great Satan.”

There are not too many countries in the world, which do not have some kind of grievances against another country or nation. But it does not mean that the aggrieved country should resort to such actions as would inflict harm on the innocent people of the offending country.

But, ironically, Muslims hold many countries, especially, the Western countries responsible for colonizing their countries in the past. This they do by forgetting what they themselves did in the past; they, too, had colonized a vast number of the world’s countries in the name of Islam, and then plundered them.

India was colonized by the Muslims as well as by the United Kingdom, but the Indians appear to have forgotten what had happened to their country in the past. At least, this the impression one gets out of their present-day attitude towards their past. Instead of keeping themselves entangled with what had befallen them in the past, they are now forging ahead with what they need to do to enable their nation to achieve prosperity and respect.

Taking lessons from their past mistakes and mishaps, Muslims would also need to pull themselves out of the “past” and start living in the present, and plan for the future, for a nation that remains ensnared in its past, it in itself becomes the past, having no relevance for others to recognize its existence.

In order to change their fortunes, Muslims need to take, among many others, the following decisive actions:

1. They should separate Islam from the affairs of their states. In other words, political Islam must not be allowed to interfere with the functions of their governments. Sharia Law is something that needs to be avoided at all cost, for its efficacy in the modern world is suspect even in the eyes of many Muslims.

2. Muslims must stop denigrating or insulting other religions. This would enhance respect for Islam in the hearts of other religious groups of the world, thus laying the foundation for them to exist, among themselves, in an atmosphere of cooperation, respect and love.

3. Muslims must give up the idea of converting the whole world to Islam. This would enable them to develop in them the sense of “nationalism,” which, sorrowfully, has been missing from their lives. Without nationalism, they would not be able to build their countries into great entities. And without achieving greatness for their countries, they would never get the respect and honor they long for from other nations of the world.

4. Muslims must put more emphasis on modern education, instead of devoting their energies to the learning of religious doctrines. They must pay serious attention to the demands of science and technology that have come to rule over our lives. Modern innovations are going to be the most valuable “real state” of the future. To benefit from them, Muslims must plunge themselves in scientific research without wasting any more time on their so-called “Islamic life.” Any further delay would ensure their permanent isolation from the rest of the world.

5. Muslims must learn the value of time. Instead of wasting much of it on the ritualistic practices of their religion, they should consider seriously to divert it to constructive and fruitful efforts. It is through the judicious use of their time would Muslims be able to compensate for what they have been losing for a long period of time.

6. Muslim must develop in them the ability to tolerate their opponents as well as their critical analyses of their religion. It is through such analyses that Muslims would be able to find out the true nature of the religion they follow. Refusing to engage themselves in the quest of truth or reality is a means that leads to ignorance. Ignorance is a bane that has caused them much harm in the past, it is going to cause them more in future, should they insist on viewing their religion from the standpoints of an ignorant and myopic person. In order to enlarge their vision of the world and of all that it contains, Muslims must come out of their constant indoctrination and live a life that is honorable and satisfying.

Failure on Muslims’ part to become fit in order to survive in a competitive and ever-changing world has reduced them to what they are today; their refusal to adapt themselves to the demands and rigors of time would consign them not only to a position of insignificance and ridicule, it may also prove disastrous to the world’s peace and order.

In its own as well as in the interest of mankind, the West must also come forward to help Muslims out of their predicaments. Failure on its part would create more jihadis and more bloodshed in the world. To avoid a situation of uncontrollable magnitude, I hope the West would play the role history has placed on its shoulders, thus helping mankind survive in a world that is fast approaching a point where bloodbaths are likely to become a norm of their existence.

March 14, 2004