Ijtihad, Rethinking Islam
Note: This is
the story of Imtiaz Shams who says he has left Islam and is now helping others
do the same. This young man has been a devout Muslim since his childhood. But
now, an ex-Muslim. Having grown up in Saudi Arabia, he is like many other young
Muslims, particularly in Turkey, who are leaving Islam, some to become Atheist
or Christian, but mostly to become Deist, who believe in God but not in any
religion. I think we Muslims should seek to understand this phenomenon as much
as that of radical Islamism which is attracting tens of thousands of our
children. Merely castigating them as crazy or apostate is not enough. This
approach is not helpful at all. We should try to explore the roots of the
problem. What is attracting some of our most intelligent, well-educated, youth,
who are also well-versed in Islamic theology to violent extremism and some to
altogether leaving the religion. Let us listen to Imtiaz Shams’s story and
ponder. This might do us some good. – Editor
Sultan Shahin, Founding Editor, New Age Islam
Sultan Shahin, Founding Editor, New Age Islam
Denying freedom
of religion to Muslims and ex-Muslims, not to speak of non-Muslims, indeed has
a long and gory history. The Quranic dictum (2: 256) la ikraha fid Deen [Let
there be no compulsion in religion] did not leave an impact beyond the life of
Prophet Mohammad (pbuh). Forcible conversions started with the first Caliph
Hazrat Abu Bakr (RA) fighting Ridda (apostasy) wars against the tribes who had
left Islam after the demise of the Prophet. They were all brought back to the
fold of Islam or killed. Similar is the case of Khwarij in the time of the
fourth caliph Hazrat Ali (RA) and beyond to neo-Khwarij today, also known as
Wahhabi or Salafi. These groups mostly
kill Muslims whom they consider “heretics” including Shias and Ahmadis....
It must always
be kept in mind that Islam although is a religion, is divided into four
aspects: values, rituals, legislation and politics. Thus, it is wrong for
reformists to focus on political reform while ignoring the need for
intellectual and cultural reforms. Reforms must take place together, and at the
same time....
Among many
factors, social, economic, political, psychological, the one common feature is
a brainwashing of vulnerable people on the basis of a supremacist, xenophobic,
intolerant, exclusivist and totalitarian Jihadi theology. This is a blatant
misuse of Islam, a spiritual path to salvation, that 1.6 billion Muslims
believe, teaches peace, pluralism, co-existence and good neighbourliness.
But there has to be a reason why jihadi
ideology has gained acceptance so quickly; why fatwas issued by reputed
moderate scholars prove so ineffective? How are Jihadis able to create a 100
percent certainty in the minds of some Muslims that violence against innocent
people, including Muslims, whom they consider infidel, will please God and lead
them to heaven?
Clearly we Muslims need to rethink some basic
features of our theology. Success of jihadism lies in the fact that, at its
core, the jihadi theology is not very different from the consensus theology of
all other schools of Islamic thought. For instance, jihadists are able to
misuse the intolerant, xenophobic, war-time verses of the holy Quran, as
Muslims believe that all verses, regardless of the context, are of universal
applicability. Indeed, the Islamic theology of consensus, taught in all madrasas,
says that Quran is uncreated, meaning that it is just an aspect of God; and so,
divine like God Himself.....
In such an era,
Muslim communities need more—not less—accountability, and a freer public arena
to discuss and debate. If Muslim religious scholars today seek to revive and
rejuvenate religious discourse, they urgently need environments of creative and
open enquiry.....
Since religion
is strongly connected with revelation, there is a general inclination among
youths to look at reason or rational inquiry as a single sufficient source of
guidance for their life, including their normative and epistemological
values....
The
emerging criticisms of the Muslim reform process in Kerala that there was “near
complete absence of engagement with the enlightenment paradigm” or “a realistic
engagement with modernity” are not only exaggerated but they tend to dampen our
intellectual propensity to study social reform process...
The Muslim
reaction to Javed Akhtar’s tweet can be summed up by what Khalid Yunus Ansari
wrote in Pratap of 11 September: “There has never been any dearth of
opportunists and traitors among Muslims. These people may appear intelligent
and educated but are ignorant of Muslim mores. … A real Muslim is one who
consciously and even sub-consciously believes in and follows Islamic Laws,
someone who cannot even imagine finding fault with or challenging or violating
any of them. Even imagining any fault with Muslim Laws is absolute kufr
(disbelief), not to speak of expressing such thoughts.”
I have been
reading Urdu newspapers for 45 years. While Muslims have been constantly
fighting for the so-called Muslim Personal Law which allows them to treat women
as inferior beings, never have I come across any Muslim demand for being
governed by Islamic criminal laws. If Sharia is so important, if it is such a
vital part of our faith, then why this dichotomy? Except for drinking alcohol,
punishments for all other hudud crimes (mentioned in the Quran, considered
crimes against God) are to be amputation, flogging and beheading. One would
have thought that at least those Muslims who are so particular about following
Sharia, and, of course, all ulema who consider Sharia divine would demand the
implementation of the entire Sharia. Why follow only the part that helps keep
women subjugated and avoid those that may lead to severe medieval punishments
specified by Quran and Hadees....
My point is we may speak of essential agreement between philosophers and religions on points that ultimately matter ...
The
powerful Indonesian conservative and nationalist group that operates madrassahs
or religious seminaries across the archipelago has taken on the ambitious task
of reintroducing ijtihad or legal interpretation to Islam as it stands to
enhance its political clout with its spiritual leader, Ma’ruf Amin, slated to
become vice president as the running mate of incumbent President Joko Widodo in
elections scheduled for next April.
From
Islamic point of view men and women are a single entity as a woman was created
out of a man’s rib and then, humanity was created with combination of a man and
woman. They are two equal parts of a single unit, which is differentiated into
nations and tribes only for the sake of recognition and nothing else. In the
sight of Allah, honour is not related to color creed or gender; it is the
righteousness of a person which elevates a person in hereafter......
At
the time when Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) had migrated to Madinah and
many people were entering the folds of Islam, Heraclius was the Emperor of the
Byzantine or Eastern Roman Empire. Heraclius heard of the Prophet from Arabia,
and he wanted to collect more information about this Prophet. At the time, Aby
Sufyan was still not Muslim. Abu Sufyan’s name was Sakhr bin Harb and he was a
prominent leader of Quraish in Makkah. Abu Sufyan was powerful, influential,
and wealthy. He led business caravans for trade between Makkah and the area of
Syria and Palestine. ...
It is the third finding which is devastating to
swallow. Intergenerational mobility has been negligible for Muslims. It is as
if democracy in an electoral sense has worked more for OBCs and SC/STs but not
for Muslims. Neither liberalisation nor democracy has offered much to Muslims
in terms of opportunity....
Fifteen
years after 9/11, the scourge of violent Islamist extremism has become even
more complex and deadly. The alacrity with which 30,000 Muslims from
around the world joined the so-called Islamic State’s war against humanity
has puzzled many. How could a peaceful, pluralistic religion be subverted so
easily to create inhuman monsters? Among many factors, social, economic,
political, psychological, the one common factor is a brainwashing of vulnerable
people on the basis of a supremacist, xenophobic, intolerant, exclusivist,
totalitarian, Jihadi theology.
This
is a blatant misuse of Islam, a spiritual path to salvation that teaches peace,
pluralism, co-existence and good neighbourliness. But there has to be a reason
why Jihadi ideology has gained acceptance; why fatwas issued by reputed moderate
scholars are proving so ineffective? How are Jihadis able to create a 100
percent certainty in the minds of some Muslims that violence against innocent
people, whom they consider infidel, will please God and lead them to Heaven?
Clearly
we Muslims need to rethink some basic features of our theology. Success of
Jihadism lies in the fact that, at its core, the Jihadi theology is not very
different from the consensus theology of all other schools of Islamic thought.
Jihadists misuse the war-time verses of the holy Quran, as Muslims believe that
all verses, regardless of the context, are of universal applicability. But most
damaging for Islam and useful for Jihadism is the Doctrine of Abrogation
whereby all peaceful Meccan verses are considered abrogated by the
confrontational, war-time Medinan verses. Similarly the divinity attached to
Hadith and Sharia and their universal applicability will have to be
reconsidered by mainstream Islam, and not just to defeat Jihadism, but also to
deal with many other issues including Human Rights of women, children and
homosexuals....
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Related
Articles:
1.
Open Letter to Maulana Firangimahali: Why Do Moderate
Ulema Stay Silent When Terrorists Claim
- 'Islam Has Never Been A Religion Of Peace, Not Even For A Day'?
2.
Do Not Entertain Any Defamation of Islam Resolution
Until Islam Is Protected From Defamation by Jihadi Literature in the Islamic
World First, Sultan Shahin Asks UN Human Rights Council
3.
Islam Is Based On the Prophet's Mysticism, Honesty and
Social Activism, Says Sultan Shahin in Pune: Muslims Should Strengthen These
Spiritual Foundations of Islam and Not Fall Prey to Fascism
4.
Do Muslims need to disassociate themselves from
Salafi, Wahhabi ideologies of permanent war with non-Muslims and moderate
Muslims? A New Age Islam debate
5.
Terrorists Have Failed So Far and
Should Not Be Allowed To Affect Global Multiculturalism, Sultan Shahin Tells
Parallel Meeting at UNHRC in Geneva
There are
currently, around the world, atrocities being committed every moment of every
day in the name of Islam; your goal should not be to be politically correct or
fiercely protect this religion, but to heal its wounded and offer support to
those that want to eliminate the abuses. Glossing over the often unspeakable
acts to which sharia can lead will only empower those individuals who have
malevolent intentions, while subjugating the most vulnerable to their
cruelty....
The Quran
doesn’t settle issues; it unsettles our complacency and asks us to think over
issues, have a consultation or dialogue on the same and always consider the
best amongst knowledgeable. In fact the Quran as discourse invites us to have a sort of Socratic
dialogue with ourselves/others so that what is to be truly honoured or is just
or beautiful comes to focus. We usually fail to notice why the Word or
Revelation necessarily means renouncing the very desire to interpret on our
part. A look at the theory of Revelation across religions clarifies the key
question so that we don’t hanker after meanings but prepare for receiving all
meanings that there are or become receptive to that which is – pre-linguistic
suchness – and one transcends all interpretative framing.....
Qawwali/Sama
is yet more proof of the power of cultural transmission of spirituality and
ethical life by means of organised listening. Rauscher and colleagues have
reported in Neuroscience Letters that listening to Mozart’s music enhances
spatial-temporal reasoning by the brain. Voisin, for example has discovered in
his research that listening in silence activates auditory areas in brain.
According to French psychologist Jean Piaget, active listening plays a basic
role in the construction of our mental models of reality and knowledge....
Naseer Ahmed, New Age Islam
Naseer Ahmed, New Age Islam
The
misinterpretations of the traditionalists cannot be countered by an appeal to
modernity. If we need to change the religion with the times, then the religion
is man-made and if so, why do we need the Quran at all? We can go wherever our
reason leads us. We have a case against the traditionalists only if we can show
them to be in gross error or by showing that their Islam is a caricature of the
real Islam of the Quran if not a complete anti-thesis of it. If not, then the
traditionalists are right and we either accept their Islam or go our own ways.
Why should we hang around Islam if we disagree with what we believe to be the
authentic Islam? What we need to become is a person of integrity and not a
hypocrite.
The
fact is that the Islam of the traditionalists is a gross misrepresentation of
the true Islam of the Quran as brought out by the clear meaning of the verses
shorn of all interpretations.....
As a matter of
fact, Islamic dogmatism, orthodoxy and fundamentalism as subscribed to by many
Muslim scholars, politicians, preachers and disciples of today are a fallacy
bringing about a fixated culture in society. The absence of reasoning and
inquiry has stagnated their minds and this has become an anathema to their progress.
Preachers delving into this dogmatic approach to Islam should not be allowed to
spread their influence, as this will muddle Muslim minds more and cause them to
return to the obscure ages of the past....
For too long,
Muslims have been imprisoned by the idea that their Present is simply the
West’s Past, and that their Future can only lead to the West’s Present. To
actually fulfil Tahtawi’s real vision, we must tap into the deep, rich bodies
of knowledge produced by Muslims over the centuries, and unchain ourselves from
Western hegemonising categories of understanding. This is how we can produce a
fresh and liberating engagement with Western traditions of knowledge....
I believe that
Islam has that progressive spirit within. We just need to emphasise on it, so
that we can come out of the current situation we are time-trapped in. I hope
that this debate, which has been kicked off by this act of bravery on Beevi’s
part, sets a good precedent and continues to take place. Only by debating these
issues can we move forward in the right direction. For now, good luck to Jamida
Beevi, and all the other valiant women who are supporting her!...
While this may
seem like a huge departure from traditional theology and jurisprudence, the
companions of the Prophet clearly saw the Qur’an and its teachings in this
manner. For instance, Omar suspended punishments for theft mentioned in the
Qur’an during a famine. Obviously, he understood that as circumstances change,
so too should our understanding of the Qur’an. I am suggesting nothing more and
nothing less....
The Islam we have today, he says, is not what God intended for us in the 21st century but rather a frozen version from more than 1,000 years ago. This heritage is often backward, irrational and certainly not sacred, according to his views. He contends that even the Hadiths of Prophet Mohammed are not revelations nor sacred, and that we should follow the Quran alone. This view of Hadiths is the same as that of the Quraniyoon who, as the name suggests, limit themselves to following the Quran only. But he is not considered part of this group because he has his own wide-ranging and unconventional interpretation of the Quran....