The Rational Reflections

By:  Dr. Maqsood Jafri (New York)

(a):   Surjeet Singh Lamba

Mr. Surjeet Singh Lamba belongs to the Sikh religion. He lives in New Delhi, India. He is one of my dear friends.  He has kindly visited me at my residences in Pakistan and America. I have found him a man of intense passions. He is a literary ambassador between India and Pakistan. He believes in peace. I was always under the impression that the Sikhs, being a martial race, are prone to feuds and fights. There is no doubt that the Sikhs of the Indian Punjab are a brave race, but, after meeting Surjeet Singh Lanba, I came to the conclusion that the Sikhs have both natural gifts, the gift of courage and the gift of mind. Three years back, when he kindly visited me in New York, he gave me his book Quran-e- Natiq (The Speaking Quran). It is about the holy prophet of Islam. It is a great tribute of a non-Muslim to Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him and his progeny). He is also known as Hafiz-e-Iqbal. He is a great fan of Dr. Allama Iqbal, a Muslim philosopher-poet of Pakistan. Whenever he visits Pakistan, he is especially invited by Dr. Justice Javed Iqbal at his residence. The lovers of Iqbal invite him and listen to his lectures on Dr. Iqbal with great solemnity.

He has translated the famous Urdu poem of Dr. Iqbal titled "Sikwa and Jawab-e-Shikwa" into English. He called me from India and recited some of the translated verses for me. I found them very fascinating and facile. As he well understands the poetry of Dr. Iqbal and has good command over English, it is expected from a man of his caliber to come up to the mark. Dr. Iqbal, in his poem "Shikwa," had addressed God and complained about the miseries of the Muslims. In this poem, he said how the Muslims sacrificed for the glory of God and for His divine mission but they are neglected and do not have the blessings of God. It was a very strong poem in the form of a complaint to God. The Muslim hardliners and the narrow-minded clerics criticized Dr. Iqbal for such heretic verses. They branded him as a heretic and decreed against him. On this, Dr. Iqbal wrote "Jawab-e-Shikwa." In the reply to complaint, God addressed the Muslims and counted His favors on them. God reprimanded the Muslims for being divided into sects and races. They have become lazy and insolent. They have left Jehad. They do not struggle, and they depend on fate. In this way, Dr. Iqbal awakened the Muslims and pointed out their loopholes. He showed them the real path of success. He asked them to end priesthood and monarchy. He asked them to seek the solution of their day-to-day matters by "Ijtehad."  In this "Reply from God," we find that Dr. Iqbal showed us the ways to God. God wants us to be good Muslims and humans to serve humankind. I congratulate Mr. Surjeet Singh Lanba for translating this poem of Dr. Iqbal into English for the Westerners. It is a great task and deserves appreciation.

(b):    The Controversy on Family Planning

Last night I watched a debate on the concept of family planning in Islam on the TV channel "Dunya," Pakistan. The anchorperson Mr. Mubashar Luqman had invited Dr. Akhter Hussian, the former federal secretary of education, Dr. Attiya Inyatullah, the former federal minister, Moulana Zubair Zaheer and a cleric of Jamat-e-Islami. The former two represented the progressive and moderate concept while the latter two propounded the traditional and retrogressive concept. Some friends called me and sought my opinion on the issue. I told them that already in my published books, I have opined on this issue. Briefly, I would like to discuss the subject at hand. Moulana Zubair Zaheer quoted a verse of the Quran that is mostly quoted by the traditionalists and tried to prove that the Quran rejects the act of family planning. In Surah "The Cattle," verse 151, the Quran says, " Kill not your children on a plea of want. We provide sustenance for you and for them."  On the plea of this verse, Moulana Zubair Zaheer concluded that we should not do family planning. On this the anchor person Mr. Mubashar Luqman retorted that this verse is against killing the children. It is not against family planning. Dr. Akhter Hussain in the favor of family planning argued that in the days of the prophet of Islam, people used to practice"Hazal."  The Arabic word "hazel" means outside discharge. It was to stop the conception. A lady who did not want to conceive asked the husband to discharge outside. The prophet did not stop it. Dr. Akhter Zaheer asked to exercise "Ijtehad"(rational analysis and soul-searching) to meet the demands of the modern age.

 I am of the opinion that, when a lady is conceived, if she aborts, it is tantamount to killing as prescribed in the Quran. Or if you kill your children on the plea of poverty, it is prohibited. But if you use medical methods to avoid conception, it is permitted. The use of tablets or condoms to avoiding the conception is not un-Islamic. Moreover, this issue is not a religious but a social issue. The countries like Canada and Australia have more economic resources and less population. They need more population. They invite the immigrants to settle down in these countries to utilize more natural resources for the increase in growth of crops. On the other hand, countries like Pakistan, India, Bangladesh and China have more population and less natural resources. These countries need family planning. According to the Malthusian theory of population, family planning is a must to run a country on smooth roads. I was pleased to see that after the discussion on the topic of family planning, the Pakistani youth sitting in the hall favored the idea of family planning. 65% cast their votes in the favor, and 35% cast their votes in opposition of the resolution. We must use family planning modern devices to stop conception and we must control population explosion in Pakistan. China has made it a legal binding not to produce more than one baby in one family. Ms. Indra Ghandi had also passed the bill in the Indian parliament to producing only two babies in one family.

(C):  Marriage in Islam

A young girl from London has asked me about the concept of marriage in Islam. She belongs to a Muslim Syed family. Her parents want her to marry a Syed guy but yet have not got one. She is thirty years old and is still looking for a Syed guy per the wish of her traditional parents. The simple answer to her question is if she can marry any Muslim guy without any sectarian or racial discrimination. Islam condemns all discriminations. So far as the question of marriage is concerned, my two books The Message of Islam and The Rational Study of Islam throw ample light on this subject. According to the Quran, a Muslim male can marry a lady of the "People of the Book." The Jews and the Christians are called the People of the Book in the Quran. But a Muslim is not permitted to marry an idolatrous lady. According to Islam, no Muslim lady is permitted to marry a non-Muslim guy.

It must be borne in mind that, about racial identification, the Quran says that these identifications of different clans and castes are only for recognition. In the address on the last pilgrimage, the holy prophet denounced all racial prides and prejudices. He said that the Muslim community was like one body. At another place, he said that the Muslims were like the teeth of a comb. The teeth of the comb are equal in shape and formation. It is highly tragic that some Muslims do not marry out of their sects or tribes. The class society is the religious rites and practice of Hinduism. Islam has totally rejected class society. The people who feel proud on their sects or tribes are practicing non-Islamic rites and must abandon them.