The notion of
Jihad, usually translated as Holy War in the West, has been widely
misunderstood, and even by some Muslims. There is a tendency to give a
one-sided view by placing emphasis on one aspect only in support of
self-interest or prejudice. Hopefully this will be avoided here.
Human beings are
instruments of Allah, organs of the Universe, having a purpose and function in
the scheme of things. Islam states this as a fact and requires that human
beings realize this and behave accordingly. This function has three
interdependent aspects:- input, transformation and output, which require (1) receptivity, (2) processing and (3) striving.
The word
"Jihad" means to make efforts, to exert oneself on behalf of
something, in order to achieve a goal, remove a barrier to it, or defend
against, counteract, or repel any opposition or threat to it. In Islam it is
done on behalf of Allah to establish the good and against evil or Satan. This
may be within oneself or outside in the community or environment. It could
refer to any action, words, writings, and relationships, affairs or work
connected with one‘s profession, community, spouse, family, or even oneself. It
could refer to the responsibilities of businessmen, shop keepers, traders,
employees, students, politicians, journalists, artists, craftsmen, parents, and
children. It is done for ones spiritual welfare and development, to achieve
nearness to Allah, which is also called Paradise.
"And that man shall have nothing but what
he strives for. And that his striving shall be seen." 53:39-40
"The true believers are those only who
believe in Allah and His messenger and afterward doubt not but strive with
their wealth and their lives for the cause of Allah. Such are the
sincere." 49:15 See also 61:11
"Allah has conferred on those who strive
with their wealth and lives a rank above the sedentary. Unto each Allah has
promised good, but He has bestowed on those who strive a great reward above the
sedentary." 4:95
"As for those who strive in Us, We surely
guide them to Our paths, and lo! Allah is with the good." 29:69
"Deemed ye that ye would enter paradise
while yet Allah has not determined those of you who really strive, nor those
who are steadfast?" 3:142
"As for those who strive in Us (the cause
of Allah), We surely guide them to Our paths, and lo! Allah is with the good
doers." 29:69
Striving in the
service of Allah is really striving for oneself, one's own soul. This can be
better understood if it is kept in mind that the spirit of Allah is also within
man, that man is a duality, having a lower ordinary nature and a dormant higher
nature which is the one in contact with Allah. To strive to reunite with Allah
is, therefore, to reunite with ones higher nature and become Whole, an
integrated individual.
"And he who strives, strives only for his
own soul; for verily Allah is wholly independent of His creations." 29:6
Jihad is not,
however, "lifting oneself by ones own boot-straps" as some Christians
accuse Islam of being, or inflating oneself. Though exercise certainly causes
muscles and human mental faculties to grow, growth is only possible by the
introduction of something from outside. A person grows spiritually by receiving
the bounties or spirit of Allah by which he enhances the attributes of Allah already
in him. In order to do this he must sincerely ask, please, obey, serve, rely on
and trust Allah who is the source of all things.
"Say: The Bounty is in the hand of Allah,
He gives it to whom he pleases, for Allah is All-Embracing, All- Knowing......Nay,
whoso fulfills his covenant and acts righteously, - verily, Allah loves those
who act righteously. Verily, those who sell Allah's covenant and their oaths
for a small price, these have no portion in the Hereafter. Allah will not speak
to them, and will not look upon them on the Day of Resurrection, nor will He
make them grow; but theirs is grievous woe." 3:73,76-77
"Whoso obeys Allah and the Messenger,
these are in the company of those unto whom Allah has shown favour, of the
prophets and saints and martyrs and the righteous;- the fairest company are
they. Such is the Bounty of Allah, and Allah suffices as Knower." 4:69-70
" Allah is the Rich and you are the
poor."47:38
"Put your trust in Allah if ye be, indeed,
believers." 5:23
"Allah's are the unseen things of the
heavens and of the earth; and unto Him do all affairs return. So serve Him and
put your trust in Him; for thy Lord is not heedless of what ye do." 11:123
see also 16:41-42, 29:58-59, 42:36, 65:3.
But these
efforts must be correct in thought, motive and action:-
"But whoso desires the Hereafter, and
strives for it with the necessary (or appropriate) effort, for such, their
striving shall find favour." 17:19
"And strive in the cause of Allah, with
the effort which is His due." 22:78
Striving has not
only importance for the individual, but also for the community:-
"And that there may spring from you a
nation who invite to goodness, and bid right conduct, and forbid what is wrong
(or indecent); these are the successful." 3:104
It also has
Cosmic significance.
The Prophet
Muhammad (saw) is reported to have said:-
"Allah said: I was a hidden treasure. I
wished to be known. Therefore, I created the Universe."
There was at
first only Allah and He created the Universe (11:7, 67:2-5) for a purpose. It not
only is but is also becoming. There is a goal. There are facts but also values.
That which promotes the purpose is good and that which obstructs it is evil.
Human being are a part of the Universe and created by the materials and forces
of the universe. They also have a purpose and in order to live, they derive
their facts and values from the Universe and ultimately from Allah (23:115,
51:56, 53:42, 98:5, 3:20). Jihad, striving, is an integral part of the
Universal process.
"Lo! In the creation of the heavens and
the earth and in the difference of night and day are tokens of Allah for men of
understanding, such as remember Allah, standing, sitting and reclining and
consider the creation of the heavens and earth and say: Our Lord! Thou
createdst not this in vain. Glory to Thee! Preserve us from the doom of
Fire." 3:190-191
"How many a sign is there in the heavens
and the earth which they pass by with face averted" 12:105
"And when thy Lord said unto the angels:
Lo! I am about to place a vicegerent in the earth, they said: Wilt Thou place
therein one who will do harm therein and will shed blood, while we, we hymn Thy
praise and sanctify Thee? He said: Surely I know that which ye know not. And He
taught Adam all the names." 2:30-31
"He directs the ordinance from the heaven
unto the earth; then it ascends unto Him in a Day whereof the measure is a
thousand years of that ye reckon. Such is the Knower of the invisible and the
visible, the Mighty, the Merciful, who made all things good which He created,
and He began the creation of man from clay: then He made his seed from a
draught of despised fluid; then He fashioned him and breathed into him of His
Own Spirit; and appointed for you hearing and sight and hearts. Small thanks
give ye." 32:5-9
Forces descend
from the Heavens and produce an ascent or evolution on earth in stages. The
result is, therefore, a combination of the higher and the lower, e.g. solar
energy and matter. Man has arisen in the same way, and is a duality in so far
as he is made of earth and also contains the divine. The one renders his
behaviour mechanical, automatic and materialistic while the other adds the
spiritual dimension of consciousness, conscience and will, of intelligence and
purposiveness. There is a struggle within him between these opposites,
something animals and angels are free of. But it also defines his function with
respect to the Cosmos. He is an agent for Allah in the world.
Human behaviour
is governed by three factors: -
They have an
inherent nature, which derive from the whole history of creation. This includes
the urges for self-preservation, reproduction and self-extension. These provide
the motives.
"So set thy purpose for religion as a man
by nature upright - the nature framed by Allah, in which He hath created him.
There is no altering the laws of Allah's creation. That is the right religion,
but most men know not - turning unto Him only. And be careful of your duty unto
Him, and establish worship, and be not of those who ascribe partners unto Him,
of those who split their religion and become schismatic, each sect exulting in
its tenets." 30:30-32
They acquire
data and learn from their environment owing to the existence of sensory
apparatus and recording in memory. But the environment they are aware of may
vary greatly. Some may be aware only of their immediate household or family.
Others may be aware of their community, or the nation, the world, or the whole
cosmos. Some may be aware of only material things while others are also aware
of subtle social interactions or the cultural world of ideas. Most people are
quite unaware of the subtler electromagnetic and other forces coming from the
rest of the Universe or emanating from the earth which, nevertheless, affect
them. Nor are they aware of the subtle chemical messages that pass between
people or the sub-conscious effects of changes in expression, behaviour
patterns and body language. Generally speaking the environment modifies people
and they modify the environment. This produces a closed circle. We are required
to observe nature, cultivate consciousness of it and follow the lessons it
provides, rather than fantasy and speculation.
"O man follow not that whereof thou hast
no knowledge. Lo! The hearing and the sight and the heart - of each of these it
will be asked (to give an account), and walk not in the earth exultant. Lo!
Thou canst not rend the earth nor canst thou stretch to the heights of the
hills." 17:36-37
"Most people follow naught but conjecture.
Assuredly, conjecture can by no means take the place of truth. Lo! Allah is
aware of what they do." 10:37
"O ye who believe: Obey Allah, and the
messenger when He calls you to that which quickens you, and know that Allah
comes in between the man and his heart, and that it is He unto whom you will be
gathered." 8:24
There is a third
factor. Human beings have a mind that enables them to process data within
themselves. They can relate, analyze, synthesize, and rearrange images,
substitute, diminish, exaggerate, select, form concepts and they can give them
verbal labels and manipulate these instead. They can also create machines and
instruments to extend their faculties to do all data processing for them. They
can use their imagination and invent, and this means they can create tools and
machinery, theories and they can also tell stories and lie and deceive. This
power is a double-edged sword that can do great evil and great good. It can
promote order or chaos. It is because of this that guidelines are also
necessary. As vicegerents they have some of the creative power of Allah and
they are also given guidance in the form of revelation, prophets and
scriptures. Although they cannot create anything new, they can re-arrange the
data they are given both in thought and actuality. They can do this to various
levels. For instance, at one level they construct houses from already available
materials, but at another level they can extract various metals not found
freely in nature. At still another level they can create plastics by chemical
manipulation. They may also become capable of genetic manipulation or even
transmutation of matter. The power may increase but unless a sense of moral
responsibility also increases a state of imbalance will increase leading to a
major disaster.
However, this
processing can take place unconsciously, automatically in a non-purposive way
or consciously, deliberately and intelligently. In the former case since no
conscious value system is employed, the result may be good or bad, both
accidentally, for the person who does them, others or the environment. It is not,
however, accidental from the Cosmic point of view. The results are always
according to causes. The Cosmic purpose will be served whether or not it serves
that of the individual. Nothing new can be achieved without conscious efforts.
We learn new skills such as cycling through conscious efforts. But having
learnt it, cycling becomes automatic, a habit which does not change. Though
habits allow efficient adaptation to existing conditions, they are useless when
conditions change. The development of the Universe ensures that conditions will
change. People, communities and whole civilisations stagnate and are eventually
destroyed when they get trapped in habits of action, motivation and thought,
and cease to make conscious efforts.
"Lo! These others love fleeting life and
put behind them the remembrance of a grievous day. We, even We created them,
and strengthened their frame. And when We will We can replace them, bringing
others like them in their stead. Lo! This is an admonishment, that whosoever
will may choose a way unto his Lord. yet ye will not, unless Allah wills. Lo!
Allah is Knower, Wise." 76:27-30
"Thy Lord is the Absolute, the Lord of
Mercy. If He will, He can remove you and can cause what He will to follow after
you, even as He raised you from the seed of other folk. Lo! That which ye are
promised will surely come to pass, and ye cannot escape. Say ( O, Muhammad): O
my people! Work according to your power. Lo! I too am working. Thus ye will
come to know for which of us will be the happy sequel. Lo! The wrongdoers will
not be successful." 6:134-136
"If He will He can be rid of you and bring
in your stead some new creature." 35:16 Also 4:133
"But nay! I swear by the Lord of the
rising places and the setting places of the planets that We are Able to replace
them by others better than them. And We are not to be outrun." 70:40-41
Jihad means
conscious efforts on the part of people who align themselves with the Divine
Purpose. This is also called Surrender (Islam). A Muslim is, therefore, one who
has devoted his life to Allah and strives on His behalf.
"O ye who believe! Be mindful of your duty
to Allah and seek the way of approach unto Him, and strive in His way in order
that ye may succeed." 5:35
"Say: Lo! My worship and my sacrifice and
my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the Worlds." 6:163
It is possible
to distinguish between four types of striving: -
(1) Striving for
self-development, spiritually, mentally and physically. This could be (a) for
extension of powers, (b) development of skills and control (c) health and
rectification of malfunctions. Spiritually it means the development of
consciousness, conscience and will (i.e. self-control). Mentally, it means the
development of the sensitivity and skills of sense organs, feelings and thought,
and includes powers of observation and reasoning. Physically, it could mean all
kinds of skills, which in fact implies control over the body, its various
organs, including muscles, endocrines and nerves. It also involves patience and
courage. It is concerned with inner and outer striving to establish good and
remove evil within oneself. It refers mainly to reawakening the spirit within,
to establish inner unity, to become conscious, to arouse and be guided by
conscience and to act with self-control and will. Other things may be regarded
as means to this end and consist of things such as getting rid of obstructions
such pride, egotism, prejudice, selfishness, greed, lust, anger, hatred, envy,
vanity, lying (deception and self-deception), cruelty, hostility,
unfriendliness, enmity, apathy, impatience, intolerance, despair, negativity,
and the results of idolatry or attachments such as obsessions and addictions;
to establish compassion, generosity, charity, love, hope, faith, honesty,
justice, hospitality, detachment, truth and a sense of responsibility. Various
religious techniques exist to facilitate this. The religious doctrines
themselves may be regarded as techniques in so far as they create a mental set
and attitude that enable certain kinds of perception, motivation and action.
From this point of view, the question "Are these doctrines true?" may
be regarded as irrelevant. Not facts but faith is required, because facts are
created by purposes. The real question is "Do these doctrines fulfil a
useful cosmic purpose?" If they do then they are also true. Not only
because they will become true, actions based on them will ensure this, but also
because this truth must already be a potentiality in the structure of the
universe and is merely becoming actualised or manifest. Indeed, the Quran tells
us:-
"We shall show them Our signs on the
horizons and within themselves until it will be manifest unto them that it is
the Truth. Doth not your Lord suffice since He is Witness over all things. How!
Are they still in doubt about the meeting with their Lord? Lo! Is not He
surrounding all things?" 41:53
(2) Social
striving to get rid of poverty, disease, ignorance, crime, suffering,
injustices. This is done through charity, law, organization and the seeking and
encouraging of knowledge and education.
"Ye are the best community that hath been
raised up for mankind. Ye enjoin right conduct and forbid indecency; and ye
believe in Allah." 3:110
(3) However, man
is a vicegerent and has a function with respect to the Cosmos, at least, with
respect to this planet (2:30), including its animals, plants and minerals. It
is also true that human welfare is to a large extent interconnected with the
welfare and development of their environment, this planet. Some communities
(A'ad and Thamud), the Quran tells us, were destroyed because in their
arrogance, greed and lack of consideration they ruined their environments.
"Work not confusion in the earth after the
fair ordering thereof, and call on Him in fear and hope. Lo! The mercy of Allah
is nigh unto the good." 7:56
"Systems have passed away before you. Do
but travel in the land and see the nature of the consequences for those who did
deny." 3:137
(4) Political
striving to defend the community which adheres to and abides by the above ideals,
to propagate these ideas and practices and to annihilate all those factors
which oppose and try to destroy these communities, practices and ideas.
"Fight in the way of Allah against those
who fight against you, but begin not hostilities. lo! Allah loves not
aggressors. And slay them wherever ye find them, and drive them out of the
places whence they drove you out, for persecution is worse then slaughter. And
fight not with them at the Inviolable
Place of Worship until they first fight you there,
but if they attack you there then slay them. Such is the reward of
disbelievers. But if they desist, then lo1 Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. And
fight them until persecution is no more and religion is for Allah. But if they
desist then let there be no hostility except against wrongdoers."
2:190-193
There are rules which govern warfare:- (1) The
intention must be for Allah not wealth, power, prestige or any worldly
advantage. (2) Military action is undertaken in defense or against oppression
not aggression, though pre-emptive action is allowed when there is evidence
that aggressive is planned. (3) It should be in obedience to the head of the
Muslim community, the Caliph or Imam. (4) The booty belongs to Allah and its
disposal is done by the Caliph in the form of charity (59:7). (5) All pledges
and treaties are honoured. (6) There should be endurance, steadfastness and
decisiveness (7) Killing of non-combatants (men, women and children),
destruction of property, animals, plants (farms, orchards), the environment is
not permitted (2:205). (8) Hostilities should cease on surrender and when peace
is offered. Plunder and mutilation is not allowed.
It is quite
plain from these verses that Islam cannot be regarded as an aggressive
religion. But they do imply that Muslims have a Cosmic and evolutional
function, the establishment of Truth.
"But if the truth were to conform to their
desires, verily, the heavens and the earth and whosoever is therein would be
corrupted. Nay, We brought them their Reminder (The Quran), but from their
Reminder they now turn away. Or dost thou ask them for a tribute? But the
bounty of thy Lord is better, for He is the best of those who provide. And,
verily, thou dost call them to the Straight
Way." 23:71-73
"Lo! Allah has bought from the believers their
lives and their wealth because the Garden will be theirs; they shall fight in
the way of Allah and shall slay and be slain. It is a promise which is binding
on him in the Torah and the Gospel and the Quran. Who fulfills His covenant
better than Allah? rejoice, then, in your bargain that you have made, for that
is the supreme triumph. Triumphant are those who turn repentant to Allah, those
who serve Him, those who praise Him, those who abstain, those who bow down,
those who fall prostrate in humility and worship, those who enjoin the right
and who forbid the wrong and those who keep to the limits ordained by Allah -
And give glad tidings to the believers." 9:111-112
In the above to
slay and be slain can have another meaning apart from the obvious. It is
possible to "die" mentally or spiritually to "this world",
the world of greed, materialism, ambition, sensual pleasures and rivalry - a
world with restricted horizons, and to be resurrected into a world of wider and
more universal facts and values. It is also possible to die to this wider world
and to be buried in this narrower world as in a grave. This can be seen from
verses such as the following :-
"Our Lord! Lo! We have heard a crier
calling unto Faith: Believe ye in your Lord. So we believed. Our Lord!
Therefore forgive us our sins, and remit from us our evil deeds, and make us
die the death of the righteous." 3:193
"O ye who believe! Observe your duty to
Allah with right observance, and die not save as those who have surrendered
unto him." 3:102
"Is he who was dead and We have raised him
unto life, and set for him a light wherein he walks among men as him whose
similitude is in utter darkness whence he cannot emerge? Thus is their conduct
made fair seeming for disbelievers. And thus have We made in every city great
ones of its wicked ones, that they should plot therein. They do but plot
against themselves, though they perceive not." 6:123-124
"Lo! You cannot make the dead to hear, nor
can you make the deaf to hear the call when they have turned to flee; nor can
you lead the blind out of their error. You can make none to hear save those who
believe Our revelations and who have surrendered." 27:80-81
The idea that
everyone has an equal capacity for perception and is open to reason is,
therefore, rejected.
It should be
noted that this striving has little to do with what in the West is called
Progress. Progress appears to mean organizational and technological advance,
though it also includes scientific progress. But science is not a source of
values and has become biased towards producing technologies, profit, power and
prestige, rather than understanding the nature of life and existence. This is
because its power has caused commercial and political interests to take
control. This kind of progress appears to have been obtained at the expense of
moral development and psychological, social and environmental welfare. It
appears to involve both the degeneration of man and his environment. The
direction of development appears to be self-destructive. On the other hand it
could be said that these developments do also produce an educational, social
and industrial system in which people are obliged to make certain kinds of
efforts and these modify them. It might be that science will progress
sufficiently in the future, in theory and application, to produce an
educational, social and cultural system which will facilitate human
development. As such it will become an instrument of religion and enhance its
techniques.
From the
Biologists point of view, the result of natural processes is organic evolution.
The Islamic idea of development through striving does not really have much to
do with this idea of biological evolution either, except in so far that a
social system based on the idea of striving will create conditions in which
natural selection will operate in correct direction. People able to make
greater conscious efforts will become more successful in such societies, will
be admired and copied and they will have greater reproductive advantages,
especially if polygamy also exists. The things which distinguish man from
animals are the spiritual factors namely consciousness (awareness), conscience
(compassion, empathy, social responsibility etc.) and will (abilities,
self-control). It is these that need further development. But it should be
pointed out that the modern world has been organized in such a way as to
harness the negative impulses of greed, pride, lust, selfishness, vanity,
materialism, aggression, rivalry etc. and it encourages these to develop. The
commercial, political and cultural system of the nations are run and
manipulated mainly by powerful self-seekers with psychopathic tendencies whose
activities would be regarded as criminal by any objective standards. It is
these that prevent human development, destroy efficient social structures and
also distort the natural environment.
There is reason
to believe that physical and biological evolution as such has come to an end
and a new phase of social evolution has begun, though this may itself require
some organic changes. Societies are becoming more organized and integrated and
forming super-organisms. This is accompanied, and will probably gradually be
replaced, by inner psychological evolution. This is not unlike the development
of multi-cellular organisms from single-celled ones, and the culmination of
this development into conscious beings. There is little organic difference
between man and ape, but the ape has not created a world of culture and ideas.
But there is
also a great difference between a rigid machine-like State and a living
Community, a true Umma. The latter is the aim of Islam. Indeed, the
establishment of such a community has been the aim of most religions. The
ancient Egyptians tried to create on earth as it was in heaven. The Hebrews
attempted to do this next, and then Jesus taught this through the so called
Lord’s Prayer, which asks for the Kingdom
of God to be established
on earth. Finally the Muslims tried but their first attempt was also crushed by
Satanic forces. But the longing and the striving for it has not been crushed
and the eventual triumph is promised. Inner spiritual transformation must take
place before there is an outer one.
"Lo! Allah changes not the condition of a
folk until they first change that which is in their hearts." 13:11
“Verily, We will inherit the earth
and all who are upon it, and unto Us shall they return! “ 19:40
“The Day when We will roll up the
heavens as a recorder rolls up the scroll. As We produced it at its first
creation, We shall repeat it - a promise binding upon Us; verily, We shall do
it. And already have We written in the Psalms after the Reminder: My righteous
servants shall inherit the earth." 21:104-105
"On the day when the earth shall be
changed for another earth, and the heavens too; and all shall come forth unto
Allah, the One, the Almighty." 14:48
“If He will, He can remove you, and
bring, instead of you a new creation.” 35:16
It is only a
matter of common intelligence, to perceive that it is the motives, the value
system, the framework of reference according to which the mind operates that
requires conscious re-assessment and corrective effort. But this is impossible
for those who are most conditioned and successful under the secular system
because they are unable to examine the very foundations from which their
motives flow. It is for this reason that new ideas always come from and spread
among those who are not conditioned, not orthodox or deemed respectable. It
spreads among the humble and relatively poor in ego and self-opinion. Yet
people require leadership, not only to unite them and coordinate their
activity, but also to guide them. There is a range of intelligence and ability,
and it is to the advantage of all that the more conscious, able and virtuous
should have the power. Unfortunately in communities where the correct form of
striving has ceased to be valued highly, there no leadership of quality will
arise. And conversely, where there is a dearth of such leadership there the
correct form of striving will cease to be valued.
In a nutshell, but Allah knows best:- Human
beings already contain within them a spark of the divine, the spirit of Allah
(32:9) which we can call the True or Higher Self. But owing to their Fall
(95:4-6), they have lost contact with it (become unconscious of it - 59:19) and
by means of attachments to things (idolatry) acquired a False or Lower Self
also called the Ego. This is the cause of all their malfunctions or diseases,
psychological, social and environmental. They have become divided into two
compartments. They are required to strive to become whole again, to be healed.
Those in whom the higher part still functions are the Prophets and saints. They
bring the techniques by which this re-integration can be achieved. This
technique consists of creating a new centre of integration, of consciousness
and control in our minds. We may call this the New Self. This is done by
striving to hold the idea of Allah in our minds as the centre of a framework of
reference in which we interpreting all our experience, from which all our
values and motives flow, and all our actions are made. Efforts are made to get
rid of the addictions, attachments, and idolatries. Efforts are also made to
cultivate the awareness of Allah. This creates a bridge or a kind of resonance,
between the New Self and the True Self. There is a two way traffic across the
bridge which helps the construction of the New Self and its eventual
assimilation.
There is no
doubt that there is a great amount of injustice and oppression in the world.
Islam appears to provide the only force against this in many cases. Several
militant groups have, therefore, appeared under the banner of Islam. They are
regarded as freedom fighters by some Muslims, misguided or ineffective by
others and terrorists by their enemies. However, (a) Striving does not
necessary mean military action or violence, but could be conducted through many
other means:- intellectual, emotional, educational, social, cultural,
political, economic, technological and so on. (b) The Quran also teaches,
endurance, patience, forgiveness and mercy. (c) Muslims have abandoned Islam to
a large extent, and (d) it is often doubtful that the motive is religious. It
is more likely to be political. (e) There is generally freedom of worship in
most places, though the establishment of an Islamic State or conditions that
are more like those Islam requires would obviously be better. (f) Islam has
fallen into sects, there are a variety of opinions and no central authority or
recognized group of wise leaders to unite and direct Muslims. (g) There are
often greater and more urgent problems that have been ignored. Indeed, some
have been created by Muslims themselves for which they want to find scapegoats.
Muslims are
certainly required to fight against oppressors and those that attack them. This
is not denied. In principle, there is good justification for the resistance of
the Palestinians and Chechens against their oppressors. It is also true that
Muslims have been found to be cowards and hypocrites who make excuses not to
fight. This was so
from the earliest days. The Quran records this. But certain actions might also
be fool hardy, stupid and unwise under certain circumstances.
The early
Muslims were led by the wisdom and ability of the Prophet and by his companions
in an era where things were very different from what they are now. Today,
certain things have to be taken into consideration:- (a) Do the people who
think or claim to be fighting against oppression and for righteousness really
know and understand their scriptures and what oppression or righteousness
consists of? (b) Are they really righteous and sincere people and not deceiving
themselves or others with ulterior motives? (c) Do they have the necessary
ability and wisdom to improve things or do they and will they make things
worse? (d) Are their actions not utterly ineffective and counter-productive?
(e) Are the actions not themselves unjust, for instance, in the targets chosen.
(f) Do they really understand how the world has changed since the time of the
Prophet:- The kind of technologies that exist today and the nature of the world
Politics and Economic conditions. Of what is possible and not possible. Will
they lead Muslims into destruction because of their ignorance and stupidity?
(g) Though they believe themselves to be righteous, if they are able by these
military means to establish an Islamic State, will this not be an oppressive
State in so far as they are in the minority and will this not be
counter-Islamic and will not people revolt against it and establish similar military
resistance as they have created.
The Islamic
point of view is essentially a Cosmic point of view. The fact of existence is
that the entire history of life on this planet, and throughout the Universe,
shows that there is a direction of development, one of increasing autonomy,
through consciousness, conscience and control – something known as Vicegerency.
It is this direction that makes the difference between fact and values i.e.
between that "which is" and that "which ought and will be".
Development or
evolution requires transformation, which involves the destruction of something
in order to release the material for new constructions, and new creations
involve destruction of other things. One state of order must supercede another.
This is also the reason why one generation replaces another. But nothing is
gained if the new is not in some ways better or higher than the previous.
Changes are often of this horizontal type, or even degenerative. But this
appears to be necessary in order to allow the arising of suitable other
conditions that facilitate new growth. There is an in-built striving in all
things to improve. In human beings it shows itself as a self-extensive drive
that manifests itself in seeking knowledge, experience and adventure, exploration,
facing challenges, overcoming difficulties, competition, ambitions, setting and
solving problems and so on. It shows itself in boasting, or in the community as
a desire to dominate, and the striving for wealth, power or prestige, or
attachment to their sources. It governs fantasy, personal relationships and
action that affect the environment, or leads to spiritual excellence. It
involves the awareness of one’s limitations and the recognition of, and
devotion to, something greater than oneself.
The urge for
self-extension is a basic drive, a third one, the other two being the
self-preservative and the socio-sexual or reproductive drives. The
self-preservative is the most urgent – without it there would be no
individuals. But the individual dies and cannot have a purpose or value by
himself. The reproductive drive takes him beyond himself. It embeds him in a
family and a community. It links him vertically and horizontally with all
humanity and beyond it, with all life. But the community or species cannot be
ends in themselves. We see communities and species arising and dying out. Life
obviously has a Cosmic function.
The
understanding of the function or purpose of life depends on how life is
understood. It is obviously a transforming device, both externally in that it
brings changes to the environment and internally as an energy and information
processor. Its evolution implies increasing order, something called negentropy.
This appears to go counter to another Law of Nature, the Second Law of
Thermodynamics that requires the increase of disorder or entropy. If a basic
aspect of existence is the Principle of Conservation, then perhaps, the
preservation of Existence requires a balance between these opposite processes.
If the Universe arises from a state 0, then if the act of creation is
represented by +A, there must at the same time be an opposite process -A. This
opposition can be defined as a “Problem” which activates all things. It is the
“Cause”. But its “Purpose” is to “Solve” the problem, to reconcile and restore
the original Unity. This is done through a third reconciling factor, the
“Effort”.
"And of all things have We created pairs,
that you may reflect (or receive instruction). Therefore flee unto Allah,
surely I am a plain Warner to you from Him." 51:49-50
"Strive in the cause of Allah, with the
effort which is His due." 22:78
"And that man shall have nothing but what
he strives for, and that his striving shall be seen. Then shall he be rewarded
for it with the fullest reward; And that your Lord is the final goal;"
53:39-42
"Dost not thou see that Allah created the
heavens and the earth in Truth? If He please He can remove you (take you off)
and bring (replace you with) a new creation;" 14:19 See
also 11:57, 70:40-41
There is,
therefore, always a struggle between the inertia, conservatism or
self-preservative tendency of what already exists and that which has vitality
and creativity. This is symbolized as the struggle between Satan and the
Messengers of God. We can denote these as forces "S" and
"M" respectively. The combinations of these forces create another
social cultural factor "C", which has a certain independent
development but also affects the other two.
Human beings,
according to the Quran and other scriptures, consist of matter and spirit (32:9).
The combination of these produces the mind which can act independently or on
the side of either of the other two. Working by itself, the mind is concerned
with the processing of data received through the outer and inner senses. The
spiritual aspect of man gives him consciousness, conscience and will,
objectivity, impersonal universality of thought, autonomy, self-regulation and
the ability for volition and control. The material aspect of man and mental
fixation on it, tends towards inertia, selfishness, sensuality, materialism,
mechanicalness, subjectivity, pride, greed, laziness, ambitiousness and the
reduction of consciousness, conscience and will.
Some people
follow one and some the other consciously, subconsciously or unconsciously to
various degrees. But the majority seem indifferent to either, and simply drift
along, though many may be led by one or the other cause. In so far as
"Muslims" are defined as those who follow the Messengers and submit
to God as His agents, then they will inevitably clash with those who follow
their own desires based on sensual and material attachments and temptations.
But we have to
look at realities rather than names and slogans. Islam and Muslim have meanings
that refer to some real state, the state of "surrender to Allah”. It is
God who will judge - i.e. Reality will determine the outcome. From this point
of view a true Muslim may be in any sect or none at all, and those who are
called or consider themselves Muslim may not be really Muslim. The struggle
between the vital developmental and the inertial or degenerative forces,
therefore, cuts across the artificial man made divisions of nation, race,
culture and religion. However, as the struggle produces strength as exercises
do, and the good is established by overcoming evil, both forces are necessary
and ultimately serve the same end.
Striving as
Vicegerents for Allah can be classified as follows:-
(1) To strive
for all that is necessary for the physical and mental health and welfare of the
individual.
(2) To strive
for a healthy and harmonious family life, and bring up healthy and well
functioning offspring.
(3) To repay the
debt involved in our existence and fulfil the function for which we were
created.
(4) To work for
the welfare, defence and development of the community.
(5) To
progressively increase one's knowledge, understanding and awareness of the
nature, laws, processes and functions of the Universe and its contents.
(6) To attain
self-knowledge and self-awareness and strive for self-perfection.
(7) To
facilitate and aid the welfare and development of the rest of the Cosmos,
particularly this planet and the immediate environment and all things in it.
(8) To be
constantly aware of Allah and one's relationship, functions and duties to Him.
This also facilitates all the other strivings.
These are
all to a large extent inter-dependent aims.