The Recipe of Failures of the Muslims
Dr. Firoz Mahboob Kamal
The crippling
incompetence
The most crippling
incompetence of a human is not physical, rather intellectual. The people with
physical disabilities -like broken arm, missing leg or blind eye, can
incredibly cope with day-to-day difficulties. The insight of such men remains
intact; therefore, still can live a life as a sensible and responsible man in
the society. But the intellectual inability takes away the necessary moral,
ethical and societal skills; and makes them incompatible with a life with
self-respect, dignity, responsibility and meaningful vision. This is why
Alzheimer’s dementia -which causes awful depletion of intellectual abilities,
is so much dreaded in civilised societies. In dementia, the memory loss is global:
it affects all domains of mental recollection and exhausts the whole
intellectual ability. Such a man fails to recognise even his own wife, children
and house of residence. He doesn’t have any sense on his death and the life
after death. If once he gets out onto a street, can’t return back to his
residence. He loses his most basic cognitive power; therefore fails to
differentiate right from wrong, good from bad and friends from foes.
But awfully, the people with
intact memory may even behave as if they have no memory vis-à-vis some
fundamental truths. Allah SWT described them in the Holy Qur’an as the people
who have eyes but can’t see, they have ears but can’t hear and they have
intellect but can’t think. They are the people inferior to the cattle. Their
selective amnesia of some fundamental truths leads to incorrect understanding
of the real worth of the life. The people with such restrictive focus
concentrate only on issues that help maximising the immediate gains. In such
relentless personal pursuit, even the most important issue in human life –like
success in the infinite life in the hereafter gets ignored or goes to oblivion.
It even nullify the very purpose of the creation. They are the people who fail to align with
the vision of their own Creator –the Almighty Allah. They exclusively take
their selfish lust, interest, motive and vision as the sole criteria to make
decisions on family values, morality, justice, politics and other societal
norms. Truth gets accepted or rejected on the basis of its compatibility with
their personal lust, agenda or whims.
Such selective disregard of
the realities of life is indeed the root cause of humans’ failure to grow up as
the best creation on earth. Such an arrogant attitude frustrates Allah SWT’s
vision of overwhelming the world with His Own prescription. Indeed, this has
been the core crime of the kuffars in all ages. In the holy Qur’an, Allah SWT
repeatedly reveals the story how people deliberately rejected the truth
-revealed to them through prophets. Such arrogance not only makes them deny the
divinely assigned role, but also prompts them to stand against the Divine
project of humans’ salvation. In Alzheimer’s dementia, the victim’s functional
power gets markedly compromised; therefore, it diminishes the range of his
criminality. But in selective amnesia, people retain power of deliberate
wrongdoing. Therefore, the most dreadful man-made disasters in human history
are not caused by the people who suffer from dementia, rather by the people who
are afflicted with self-induced amnesia or memory loss vis-à-vis the core
issues of life.
The most forgotten issue
What’s the most forgotten
issue in life? Is it the belief in Allah - the Almighty? This is not the case.
Even the non-believers of Mokkah didn’t disbelieve Him. In those days of
pre-Islamic jaheliya (ignorance), the belief in Allah (SWT) was intact. As
evidenced from the tradition that they even preferred naming their son as
Abd’Allah –the slave of Allah. Even today, the huge scientific advancement
couldn’t annihilate the faith in God either. Even the secular Americans express
their faith by printing “We trust in God” on the currency notes. So,
disbelieving Allah (SWT) is not an issue. Even the basic pillars of Islam -like
salah, fasting, haj and jakat are not forgotten either. The crowded mosques in Muslim countries, the
sea of people during the haji in Mokkah and the fasting millions in Ramadan
give the testimony that none of these pillars of Islam has been forgotten in
the Muslim World. Even many dishonest men and women believe in Allah; they
offer prayers, keep fasting, give charities and even go for haj.
In fact, the most forgotten
issue in human life is siratul mustaqeem –the right path shown by Allah (SWT)
through His prophets and the Divine books. The creation of the right path is
not within the domain of humans’ intellect. In fact, the most incapacitating
inadequacy of humans lies in finding the right path; not in scientific
discovery. So, showing the right path to the humans has been taken by Allah (SWT)
–the Almighty Creator, as His own responsibility. So, in holy Qur’an, Allah
(SWT) says, “Inna alainal huda” (certainly, on Me is displaying the guidance).
In order to discharge such a crucial responsibility, more than hundred thousand
prophets were sent down to the earth. Prophet Muhammad is indeed the last
prophet in that Divine chain. In fact, it is the most important blessing of
Allah (SWT) for the humans.
Humans are created for an
endless life; death doesn’t end it, rather takes it to a deathless phase in the
hereafter. The success in this worldly life and also in the life of infinity in
the hereafter entirely depends on reaching the place of peace called haven
there. Otherwise, this life only takes to the horror of hellfire. Allah (SWT)
wants humans to succeed in this world as well as in the hereafter. To ensure
the success of His beloved creation, He sent down prophets like Nuh (AS),
Ibrahim (AS), Musa (AS), Isa (AS), Muhammad (SAWS) and others of the same
Divine chain with the same siratul mustaqeem – the Divine roadmap. But their
followers made awful history in forgetting as well in disobeying or concealing
the Divine path. In Islam, such acts are perfect expression of kufr. Allah
(SWT) considers such self-inflicted amnesia and arrogance as a great crime
against the Divine truth; and a sure precursor of bringing down the Divine
curse.
The catastrophic failure
The holy Qur’an gives vivid
descriptions of the crimes of the rebellious people of different ages; and also
tells about the punishment they invited on themselves. The Qur’an goes into
great details on the failures of the Bani Israel (the people of Israel) and
projected them as the careless and failed students of Islam. In order to help
people take the lesson form their failure, the holy Qur’an not only reveals the
right path towards paradise, but also showed the path that definitely takes to
the hell fire. In their collective memory, only the name of Allah (SWT) and
some prophets survived, but not the revealed path. The right path of Allah (SWT)
–siratul mustaqeem went into oblivion. Likewise, only the name of Allah (SWT)
and the names of Ibrahim and his son Ismail survived among their Makkan
descendants, but not their deen-e-haneef -the Ibrahimic way of life. As the
part of the same Divine chain, the holy Qur’an came as the last revelation of
siratul mustaqeem. But the case of the Muslims hasn’t been different either. In
the Muslims’ memory, though the names of Allah (SWT), His prophets and the
Qur’an still survive, but seldom they follow the Qur’anic road-map in their
educational, political, judicial, cultural and social life. So, they, too made
history in awful failures. And the process continues.
The Qur’anic road-map is all
inclusive. Not only it shows the right way of performing five time prayer,
fasting in Ramadan, giving charity, performing haj, and other forms of ibadah,
but also prescribes on right types of foods and drinks, judiciary, politics,
distribution of inheritance, economics, culture, statehood, warfare and other
aspects of life. One cannot think of any success in this life and in the
hereafter without strict adherence to this Divine road-map –the siratul
mustaqeem. But unfortunately, this is the most missing element in the Muslims’
life today. The Muslims’ statehood, trade, dresses, culture, morality,
politics, laws and economics do not match with that of the prophet (peace be
upon him) and his companions. The constitution, the laws, the politics, the
economics and the culture that are followed in the Muslim world are not based
on submission to prophetic tradition; rather based on the deviation and
rebellion against Allah. They invest their intellect, energy, wealth and even
life to fulfil their secular, national or tribal aspirations, not an Islamic
one.
Between two destinations
there cannot be more than one straight line. But the deviations may be in
millions. This is why siratul mustaqeem is only one: connecting this worldly
life with the heavenly one. The Qur’anic road-map does not show different maps
for different groups of the same people –the ummah. Overwhelming disunity,
disaffection and conflicts in the Muslim world are the products of such diverse
deviations. Due to such deviations, the Muslims are the most divided people on
earth. The Christians, the Hindus, and the Chinese –each could build their own
united states; previously, the Muslims could do that too. But now the Muslims
cannot even think of that, let alone achieve that. In early days of Islam,
Muslims built such a state with the civilizational purpose: it was based on
Divine faith, values, and vision. In fact, building such a state is an Islamic
obligation on every believing man and woman, otherwise Islam cannot achieve its
civilizational objectives and neither can man ensure the growth of his whole
creative potentials. Major efforts and sacrifices of the Muslims in the early
days were made to fulfil that goal. Indeed, the Qur’anic road-map cannot move
further towards the Divine aim without establishing such a civilizational
state; secular or anti-Islamic state stands as a stumbling block against such
move. This is why the early Muslims could go incredibly high to make a glorious
impact on human history, but today’s Muslims are making history in decadence
and failures. In those days the states
of Arabs, the Persian, the Kurds, the Levant, the Turks, the Barbers, the
Moors, the Tatars -all formed a united states with a single Qur’anic vision.
But now they are broken apart, and deviated to national, tribal or secular
objectives.
Every sensible man or woman,
prior to making a footstep, firstly knows the road-map of the planned journey.
Otherwise the journey may end up in a wrong way. But Muslims’ journey towards
jannah is not a simple tour, rather the most important event in life. So the
road-map needs to be known by heart by every Muslim man and woman. Otherwise,
how one can attain the Divine goal? The Qur’anic road-map (siratul mustaqeem)
-with all its all signals and signs, is not hidden or kept in the custody of a
few, rather made known to all in all possible ways. Whoever reads the holy
Qur’an, whoever studies the life of the prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)
and whoever explore his sayings (hadees), he will get the elaborate guidance on
the road of his Divine journey. He will receive clear signals on what to do and
what not to do, and where to take the turn and where to restrain. To become a
Muslim, it is a religious obligation to follow it. But the real picture in the
Muslim world is different: the pursued path is different from that of the
prophet. Their politics and policies, education and culture, courts and laws,
economics and banking do not follow that Divine guidance, rather they follow
the road of the deviants. In fact, they deliberately pursue such clear
deviation to fulfil their personal, national or tribal objectives.
The most important issue
What is the important issue
in life? Is it good food, good house, good wife, good children, good job, good
profession, good money, and other worldly successes or pleasures? The humans
are usually at crossroads on these issues. Most crucial mistakes are done at
this juncture, and people get lost on a wrong track. Success depends on picking
up the right path at this crossroads. Humans’ real intelligence and wisdom is
judged here. Mistake done here can never be compensated by other gains. The
Quran not only shows the most important issue in life, but also guides on the
most forgotten issue. Allah SWT is fully aware of his own creation’s
inadequacies. Who knows better than Him? Man believes that worldly gains and achievements
are the real markers of success of life. But Allah SWT says otherwise. In the
Quran it is revealed, “(O Muhammad!) Tell them, should I inform you about them
who are ultimate looser in their deeds?
They are people whose whole efforts in this world have gone in the wrong
way, and they think they are doing professionally well.” (Sura Al-Kahaf, verse
103-104)
But, it is the saddest
reality that most people fail to identify the most important issue in the life.
Man’s such ignorance is very devastating: in fact, the great deviation in life
starts here. Civilizations collapsed and nations perished -not due to lack of
foods or drinks, but due to such deviations. If wealth, wife, children,
business, professions, political power and other worldly pleasures get priority
in one’s life, and ignore the hereafter, he will definitely miss the Divine
path. Allah (SWT)’s greatest gift comes not as foods, drinks or other assets of
livelihood –these come to animals too. His greatest blessing comes as the
guidance on the most important issue in life; and He shows us the devises to
constantly focus our attention on that; and it is through salah. Allah (SWT)
wants our success, and salah attaches our attention to the path of that
success: especially the supplication in sura fatiha is indeed the most
important tool to fix our mind on that.
The prescribed priority & the failure
Knowing the life’s priority
is crucial; without its understanding, one cannot fix his or her goal. Allah
(SWT) opens Qur’an with that issue. The opening chapter –the sura Fatiha –the
first fully revealed chapter, has been dedicated to address this subject. Allah
(SWT) wants humans to be focussed on the important issue throughout the whole
span of life; and it shouldn’t go out of our mind’s radar at any single moment
of time. Man’s highest priority is expressed in his prayer. If the summit of
ambition is to have a good business, a good job, a professional success or
higher power in politics, then the man will repeatedly ask Allah (SWT) for that
in his every prayer. He may even invite
his friends and others to his house or he himself goes to priests or asking
them to make a supplication for that.
Dowa or supplication is
indeed the expression of man’s most cherished desire; it is the revelation of his
inner faith. A man who has no belief in the hereafter cannot be concerned with
the Divine road map. His path, his character, his believer are understandably
different from a true believer. Man’s daily activities indeed bear imprints of
his supreme desire. So the moulding of faith, the correction of his deeds, and
the purification of his soul, indeed start from that inner longing. Such
longing in fact works as the guiding compass. So Allah SWT addresses that issue
in the Qur’an, and that starts from sura Fatiha. So it is rightly named as
Fatiha -the beginning. But those who do wrongs in the beginning, how they can
be right in the end?
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