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Morality, part of Religion -letter2
This refers to your editorial on morality and religion
and it was timely attempt to depict the moral stature of our society,
which is crumbling like a sandcastle before the onslaught of new ideas
and technologies and cultural invasion.
However, I would like to differ from your observation that the enemies
of Islam weakened it by separating morality from religion.
Instead, the present state of affairs is a result of over-emphasis on
religion in every sphere of life. We mercilessly dragged religion in
everything, where it belonged or not; that leads to the crux of the
problem.
Secondly, that the powers that be, froze religion in its nascent phase
and gradually it lost its power to counter new issues arising out of new
circumstances and technological revolution.
Religion and society go hand in hand in the words of prominent historian
Dr Mubarik Ali, and if society lags behind the religion goes ahead of it
and vice versa.
The same thing was happening in Renaissance Europe, when the clergy went
on attacking new ideas and declared these as heresies and started to
prosecute scientists, philosophers and other people. As it happens, the
prosecution and intimidation cannot stop a new idea; the inquisition
failed before the strength of technology and new ideas; religion not
only lost the battle but also never become able to gain some of its past
glory, when Pope, was so powerful, that he could have sparked Crusades.
The same thing is happening in our society, where the religion has been
ritualized and its essence had been lost over the years.
The present militancy is also a by-product of such thinking, where
people are killed for not hiking their shalwar above ankles.
Thirdly, though we talk too much, but act occasionally and never had it
occurred to us for an instance that our value system needs a recheck or
boosting, so with the advent of internet and communication revolution
which started at the end of nineties the already battered edifice of our
value system started to crumble.
The reutilization of religion liberated individuals from observing
morality and other tenets of value system; this is same thing which you
have hinted that after praying, one is free to do according to his
whims.
Fourthly, Islam is basically an Arab religion; however, it does have an
assimilative character to absorb the cultural traits of other societies,
which don�t violate its basic principles. Our society was more liberal,
more God fearing and less corrupt in 1970s, but with Zia�s Islamization
now is more ritualized and intolerant but less God fearing and more
corrupt in every matter.
Fifthly, the practice of treating dissenters as outsiders has played
havoc with our value system and we call any innovation and new idea
repugnant to Islamic ideals and wage a holy war against it. The present
Jihad against schools, TV sets, music, barbers and artists are the
result of such thinking and indicative of deep rooted internal weakness
and phobias. There has been a dearth of icons in our country with the
courage to come out of present quagmire with a clear message, while the
public which fearful of any trouble tries to survive bad times in the
hope of good times, which ironically never arrive.
Manzoor Ali,
Peshawar.
Morality, part of Religion -letter1
This is with reference to your editorial on the
subject. We should know that Tablighi or Imam-e- Masjid are not
contractors of Islam and it's obligatory for each and every Muslim
to learn Islam, to spend their life according to golden principles
of Islam and to persuade others to do so. Those who don't know about
Islam how can they differentiate between good deed & transgression,
halal & haram, adultery & marriage, bribery and gift, truth and
falsehood, etc. and the persons who don't know what Islam likes us
to do and forbids us from which activities, have no right to
criticize others who have not only complete knowledge of Quran and
Ahadith but also they have devoted their selves to preach Islam. We
must remember while criticising Preachers and Imam-e-Masjid that
they are not angels and are human beings like us and they can commit
sins, can do mistakes but still their value is high compare to us
due to Knowledge of Quran & Ahadiths.
About your concern about moral values not being given due importance
in Mosques and Tablighi congregations shows that you have never
spent a single day with Tableghi Jamat and also may be you don't
have enough time to hear the complete speech of Ulama before Juma
Prayers, because these are the main topics of religious scholars in
Juma Khutba and Tablighi Jamat sessions. To criticize anyone blindly
is very easy but the criticism will be only valid if we spend some
time with those people, get awareness about them and to hear their
intentions and to see their character.
Hameed Ullah,
Lahore.
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