What is Islamic law?

It may sound ironical to ask the question what is “Islamic law” in the 21st century when it is generally thought that the body of what constitutes Islamic law has already been crystallised and settled.

If indeed it has crystallised into a recognisable and unchangeable body, then it is logical that there would only be one universal Islamic law. However, an observation of Islamic law between various countries and even between various states in Malaysia would evidence the fact that the laws are not uniform.

It would seem that what is Islamic law is still developing, in a state of flux and diverse. Shariah, on the other hand is a separate concept altogether.

Every Muslim would agree that Islam is a simple religion. The pillars of Islam are said to be only five that is, declaration of faith or the syahadah, the daily five times prayer, fasting in the month of Ramadan, payment of the zakat and the performance of the pilgrimage by those who can afford it.

However, Islam is seen not only as a religion in the typical sense but also as way of life that is complete and encompasses every aspect of our life.

In other words, Muslims believe and accept that Islam provides the necessary guidance and imposes certain obligatory behaviour in order to achieve the pleasure of God in this life and the next.

It is this belief that has lead the scholars of Islam to discern principles, precepts and law affecting life from the scriptures and the Sunnah of the Rasul.

Thus, began the role of the jurists or scholars of law in interpreting and developing various legal, social, economic and religious laws, conducts of behaviour and so on for the Muslim. These active role of the jurists began some many decades after the passing of the prophet.

I believe they reflected the intellectual response to the needs of a growing civilisation to derive various legal principles and codes of conduct necessary to create an orderly society consistent with the understood commandments of Allah in the Quran and the injunctions of the Sunnah.

It is from such need and environment that the development of usul al fiqh or Islamic jurisprudence took place.

In Islamic jurisprudence history, the al madhahib or schools of law that became famous are the Hanafite, the Malikite, the Shafi- ite and the Hanbalite though there were also other schools in the history of Muslim jurisprudence.

It is important to pause at this stage to reflect and note that prior to the development of these schools of jurisprudence, the primary source then for Muslims was simply the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet.

With the development of the schools of jurisprudence, therefore, the primary sources of Islamic law expanded to become the Quran, Sunnah, Ijma’ (consensus of the jurists) and Qias (judgement upon juristic anology).

Later, other secondary sources of Islamic jurisprudence were developed. Hence, there clearly was liberalisation of the sources from which Islamic jurisprudence began to expand and develop.

Any modern lawyer will appreciate this development as law is considered to be a “living creature” that develops as life and its circumstances change and develop.

However, it is worrisome whether some conservative scholars today are fully aware that no human being’s interpretation of Allah’s will can be absolute because only Allah alone is the Absolute Interpreter.

If this point is correct and properly understood then “Islamic law” as developed and developing can be relevant to contemporary situations and the very understanding of what embodies “Islamic law” can undergo fresh perspective without departing from its fundamental adherence to the Quran and most authentic Sunnah.

In the history of Muslim jurisprudence, a study and consideration of what are the objectives of the Shariah also too place. From a modern perspective, this would be an inevitable development.

The great university professor and scholar of Islam Imam Al Ghazali identified five essentials of the maqasid or the objectives of Syariah namely, preservation of religion, human life, the faculty of reason, progeny and material wealth.

As to whether or not the objectives or the maqasid should be limited to five is a subject of vigorous debate among the scholars.

Later scholars have added on to these five for example, the attainment of justice. This debate is understandable and in fact encouraging because life is constantly evolving with new experiences, new sets of circumstances, higher levels of knowledge, information and technology and discovery of new facts.

Hence, the perception and understanding of life today cannot be limited to the experiences and perception of life by previous scholars alone.

After all, Muslims believe that the law giver is Allah and any scholar cannot have a claim to monopoly of interpreting Allah’s intent, however knowledgeable he may be acclaimed to be.

It can, therefore, be seen from the discussion that “Islamic law” is in a state of development as is the case with many other aspects related to Muslim thinking such as political Islam, Islamic economics and so on.

The field of Islamic law and jurisprudence has become a complex discipline and Muslims must be careful that the legalistic aspect of Islam does not overshadow the spiritual and moral aspect of the religion such that it stifles faith or creativity of the individual Muslim in particular and the society in general.

In the context of Malaysia, as a Muslim, it is my hope that contemporary Muslim scholars maintain an open mind within the principles of the Quran and the most authentic Sunnah when they discuss and try to apply the Islamic law as developed by classical jurists who, without doubt has made great and laudable efforts.

There is sufficient evidence in Muslim jurisprudence history that the classical jurists never claimed their interpretations and their views to be beyond criticism or rejection if it is not consistent with the Quran, most authentic Sunnah or not relevant to the times.

In this regard it may be helpful to realign our Muslim outlook, for example, to evaluate whether some of the legislation that has been passed by our Parliament are in fact consistent with the primary sources of Islamic jurisprudence and hence “Islamic”.

This may be a better and useful approach than trying to impose classical formulation of laws in contemporary settings which are different.

If my argument is correct, this may lead to a more holistic understanding of what Shariah is unlike the current trend that what is defined as “shariah laws” are the only ones that are “shariah.” With this approach, probably large segments of what is now classified as “civil laws” may qualify as “shariah.”

I opine that the government’s effort to introduce the idea of Shariah compliance is a step towards this direction in the long run.

* Jahaberdeen Mohamed Yunoos is a senior lawyer and founder of Rapera, a movement which encourages thinking and compassionate citizens. He can be reached at rapera.jay@gmail.com

** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail Online.

- See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/what-you-think/article/what-is-islamic-law-jahaberdeen-mohamed-yunoos#sthash.ypBpogXI.dpuf

Moving towards Muslim intra-faith tolerance

There has been much discussion and many conscious efforts to bring about inter-faith understanding and tolerance so that people from different religious backgrounds may learn to live together in peace and harmony in this country. 

The Federal Constitution itself was so drafted to enshrine this principle of religious tolerance while acknowledging Islam as the religion of the Federation.

Since Merdeka, we see there are mosques, gurdwaras, temples, churches and many other holy places belonging to diverse religions co-existing peacefully.

Malaysians celebrate each other’s religious festivities as an occasion to foster togetherness without the respective religious beliefs being threatened.

There is not only tolerance but acceptance of the fact that being from different religious backgrounds is not a deterrent to working and living together.

By and large, most Malaysians accept this diversity of religious beliefs as a rich feature of Malaysia.

Malaysian Muslims, too, accept this reality as a sign from Allah of His creativity, mercy and wisdom.

Hence, God willing, religious differences do not cause disunity or strife among Malaysians.

The situation, however, I am afraid is different when it comes to tolerance within the Muslim community itself. 

In the Middle East, Pakistan and many other countries, sectarian differences in the Muslim community is characterised by enmity, disunity and sometimes violent conflicts among themselves.

The Shia-Sunni conflict is historical and continues to undermine global Muslim unity.

Even within the Sunni community itself, various sub-sects and extremist groups seem to have sprouted creating conflict within its community. The Islamic State  is positioned as an offshoot of the Sunni community.

In Malaysia, I sadly note sectarian differences seem to be taking a stronger negative presence in our society, threatening to undermine Malaysian Muslim unity. I may be wrong and I hope to be wrong but I observe that intra faith conflicts in the Muslim community seem to be increasing as the number of graduates from religious studies increase. 

Compared to say, about 40 years ago,  there seems to be less tolerance in our society pertaining to differences in opinions, views and interpretation of aspects of Islam among Muslims themselves.

A clear disunity among the Malay Muslims occurred when the political contest between Umno and PAS escalated in the 80s right through the 90s.

PAS was projected as representing Allah’s will in the political arena while Umno was seen as a nationalistic party despite the fact Umno’s constitution also placed the protection of the Islamic faith as one of its main objectives. 

“Islamic politics” became a significant political behaviour in the quest to woo the Malay Muslim’s votes.

The political contest between Umno and PAS led to the unfortunate disunity among the Malay Muslims as a result of the kafir mengkafir phenomenon where PAS politicians labelled Umno as infidels.

Hence, from politics, it mutated to a choice between belief and disbelief. Thereafter, each party tried to be more Islamic than the other but perception-wise, Umno was lagging behind in the “Islamic” image department.

I recall even many Umno members secretly believed PAS was indeed more “correct” on the Islamic path. The upshot of it is that the use of “Islam” for political purposes had the unfortunate result of breaking up Malay Muslim unity. 

In this regard, Najib and Hadi’s efforts to bring together Umno and PAS is seen as a move to lessen this political disunity among the Malay Muslims.

Over the years, there is greater emphasis on matters Islamic or perceived to be Islamic due to the political realities of the country. Concurrent with this, there is also increasing conflict between the Muslim thinkers not formally trained in religious studies and the Muslim scholars formally trained in religious studies. I note there is also increasing conflict among the Muslim scholars themselves. 

If the “conflict” is merely a civilised academic contest of ideas and interpretations with the view to espouse and put forth the best interpretations for consideration and humble debate, it is laudable. Civilisations are built upon citizens who are willing to think and behave compassionately.

However, it appears the contest increasingly dominant in the public sphere is not one with a view to share ideas but seems to be a contest to monopolise religious discourses and interpretation of what “Islam” is.

I believe this trend is increasing in our country and is actuated by the quest for power, control, wealth and also religious arrogance. 

Such a contest for monopoly of religion, if not curtailed, may lead to serious fractures in the Muslim community.  It is therefore extremely important for Muslims who wish to stand united by the “rope of Allah’ to be wary of such mischief makers clothed in the robe of religion.

Furthermore, I believe also some (not all) religious “experts” have developed a sense of religious egoism where, unwittingly or otherwise, they have equated their understanding and their interpretation to that of Allah’s.

In other words, the interpreter of scripture has elevated himself to the status of the Giver of scripture. Such a mindset is almost narcissist in nature and is dangerous to society. Such religious leaders may also become the leaders of disunity among the Muslim community.

To foster unity among the Muslims, no amount of outward and superficial show of “Islamness” will help if the spirit of Islam is dead within them. The Quran is replete with advice, exhortations and guidance on how to deal with differences of views even among the Muslims. They have to learn to be more tolerant of each other’s differing views on Islam.

Allah has many times in the Quran said He will settle all differences in the hereafter and that our duty includes doing righteous deeds, be humble, be useful to mankind and His creations, be compassionate and be mindful of our own duties and responsibilities.

So long as we have a few but “powerful” men who want to behave like god on earth, our efforts towards a united Muslim community will still remain a challenge. It is this challenge that the majority spiritual Muslims and the many guided and learned scholars have to bravely and consistently address before matters get worse. Let us never turn Malaysia into another Middle East.

* Jahaberdeen Mohamed Yunoos is a senior lawyer and founder of Rapera, a movement which encourages thinking and compassionate citizens. He can be reached at rapera.jay@gmail.com

** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail Online.

- See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/what-you-think/article/moving-towards-muslim-intra-faith-understandingjahaberdeen-mohamed-yunoos#sthash.INIPjGiM.dpuf

I am a Muslim

JUNE 20 — The month of Ramadan and the abstinence from food does put you in a more self-reflective mood than other months. Of course, self-reflection should be a routine exercise as it spring cleans the mind and the heart.

I am a Muslim or, more accurately, I try to be as good a Muslim as I possibly can. It is both easy and difficult as all contest between good and evil is.

Though genealogically, I am supposed to be a seventh generation “born Muslim”, if there is such a thing. I like to think that I am a Muslim by my own choice from the age of 30 when I finally “came” to the Quran.  How God judges me is His prerogative.

I had a typical Malay upbringing where you are sent to Quran reading classes by the time you are five years old. By the time you are 10, you already know how to read the Quran, pray and fast. You know the basic five pillars of Islam.

However, when I was 12 years old, for an unknown reason, the question of God’s existence bothered me. I became increasingly bored with the sermons of hellfire in our neighbourhood mosque. 

Instead of frightening me into submission, it started to disgust me. The ustad around me also could not answer many of my teen questions and often I was scolded for asking blasphemous queries. But the yearning to know God was very strong in me and almost unstoppable.

This yearning led me to study various scriptures and even go into the church to learn the Bible, talk to Hindu priests about the Bhagavad Gita, and study some sudras of Buddhism. As a teenager, I spent a lot of time reading, debating and thinking about God and religion. I read and debated about atheism too.

I met as many priests, ulamak, swamis and atheists who would want to discuss and debate with me. It was not enough for me to just accept a religion or a scripture. Having come from Penang, I now recall Penang as a liberal and open-minded society, where such discussions are generally allowed or at least no one condemns you to immediate hellfire for enquiring.

That was my journey as a teenager throughout adulthood. I made a conscious decision to be a Muslim from my own evaluation of the Quran, Hadith and scholarly views. I am convinced that the Quran is the most reliable source of revealed scripture but I will not insist that anyone else must believe so too.

I am only too happy if someone wants to discuss the Quran with me because I want to share the wisdom and mercy of Allah with anyone who wants to. 

If someone disagrees with me, I am humble enough to know that my interpretation and understanding is not absolute. Furthermore, I have no wish to usurp the jurisdiction of Allah when it comes to guidance. I simply refuse to play the role of a demi god on earth though I know that many religious “leaders” and experts have absolutely no compunctions behaving so.

When I came to the Quran, I realise that the prophet Abraham also took the road of enquiry and seeking. His own father excommunicated him merely for enquiring. There are many instances of prophets reflecting and meditating to understand the world.

I am happy that today there are more and more Muslims beginning to make an effort to understand the Quran instead of merely reciting it. However, it saddens me too that there is also an increasing trend towards coercion by a minority but dominant and loud groups.

This religious coercion takes various forms from extremist statements, extremist and fascist behaviours and to even legalising certain “religious laws” on the sly. I say on the sly because these laws are enacted without my actual consent. Thus, being legally a Muslim, I am compelled to be subjected to it. 

However, those that impose those laws will not be present before Allah with me to defend me if they are wrong.

Does not this compulsion, to accept the views of others regardless of how learned they claim to be, an oppression? 

Muslims may, sooner or later, ask how do they reconcile the Quran’s clear principle that no one else is responsible for our actions and belief except ourselves with the insistence on forcibly accepting so called learned views?

Feelings of guilt or deluded sense of piety does not help to resolve the conflict between compulsion and personal responsibility in matters of faith. I may be wrong but the problem could very well be in the fact that being a Muslim, which is a journey, had been turned into a set of behaviours which is forced upon you even if you are not spiritually ready. 

In other words, in the interest of uniformity, you are compelled to be a hypocrite to avoid worldly punishments. Administrative and political expediency seems to override the individual’s right to have a personal relationship with his Creator.

Muslims attend prayers at Masjid Wilayah in Kuala Lumpur. The writer says compulsion to accept the views of others could be regarded as oppression. — Picture by Azneal IshakI also note that politics cannot seem to keep away from the religion of any majority in any country. In India, for example, Hinduism seems to creep in and in Malaysia, Islam. The Christian world had already undergone its share in political history. This is actually a malady because politics being what it is, may very well interfere with the free practise of one’s faith as he deems fit.

This interference becomes effective with the cooperation of some of the religious class who likes the power that comes with cooperating with politicians.

As a Muslim, I believe that so long as there are mere humans who insist on monopolising the interpretation of Allah’s words, there will be strife, tension, disunity and oppression in the name of Islam. 

I pray that the Muslim spirit is allowed to be developed as enjoined in the Quran through beautiful preaching and polite discussions and not by coercion or force. Happy Ramadan.

* Jahaberdeen is a senior lawyer and founder of Rapera, a movement that encourages thinking and compassionate citizens. He can be reached at
rapera.jay@gmail.com

** This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Mail Online.

Ramadan a month of self reflection

June 6 — The Ramadan month is here again as it does every year. Every Sunni Muslim knows that fasting is required during the month of Ramadan, it is one of the five pillars of his faith. He knows how to fast, when to break fast and what to do during the fasting month so that his fast fulfils the requirements of the fast.

This is the time when Muslims undergo disciplinary training of abstinence from food, drinks, lust and management of emotions for the love of Allah. The month is also filled with nightly ritual prayer of terawih, a special prayer which is much longer than the normal five times per day prayers.

Correctly practised, Ramadan is capable of being a month that transforms the caterpillar into a butterfly, change of bad habits into good ones. It can cause the hijrah or migration of  a person from a lower state into a higher state, a poor character into an exemplary one.

Whether Ramadan serves the purpose of transforming a person into a better human being or it only serves as a mere religious ritual depends on many factors, primarily how the individual Muslim sees it. It will be a sad state if good character emerges only for one month to be replaced by poor character for the next 11 months.

One of the significance of the Ramadan month is that Muslims believe the Quran was first revealed during this month. The first verse revealed was said to be the following in Surah Al Alaq: Read (O Muhammad!) in the name of your Lord who created (96.1). He created man from a clot (96.2). 

“Read, and your Lord is the Most Honorable (96.3) who taught with the pen, (96.4) taught man what he did not know.’’

Hence, the month of Ramadan is also a month of learning and relearning. In line with the first verse of the Quran, Muslims can use this month to revisit the contents of the Quran and to reach out to its messages. To read in the name of the Lord who teaches humans what they know not. This will be the best opportunity to evaluate how far we may have moved away from the teachings in the Quran and accepted other teachings of men as divine.

To the believer, there are many pearls of wisdom in the Quran and guidance for mankind in many areas of our life, particularly how to be a human being useful to His creations and to ourselves. The most basic and fundamental teachings of Islam comes from the Quran.

If a Muslim takes the trouble to allocate a mere one hour a day in the month of Ramadan to study the Quran, he may emerge more knowledgeable about Islam as contained in the Quran at the end of the Ramadan month.

Reading sincerely leads to self-reflection and hopefully, leads us nearer to Allah in our actions and we become useful human beings on earth so that those who do have the benefit of the Quran can see its mercy through our actions of kindness and industry. 

Reading the Quran will make us aware that there are many approaches of peace that Allah has taught us when we are faced with potentially hostile situations.

Reading the Quran also teaches us to preempt potentially aggressive or hostile situations in our dealings with other fellow human beings. As I mentioned earlier, reading the Quran will lead to self-reflection which is very important in life, like spring- cleaning our house or our cupboard. There could have been many mental cobwebs and dirt that may need to be dusted in our minds and our hearts.

Allah has clearly stated in the Quran that he will not change our state until we change what is within us. In other words, He requires those who want to improve to take stock of themselves — their diligence level, their mindsets, their thirst and quest for knowledge and so on.

I would invite my Muslim brothers and sisters to look inwards at ourselves during this Ramadan and see whether we are responsible for the state and condition that we are in. I find that too often we are busy blaming everyone from the Jews to anyone else who does not sound like us for our woes.

The story of Prophet Yunus in the Quran is an excellent example to critically evaluate myself when things go wrong. More likely than not, I must have erred in some way for me to receive “negative” response from the world.

“And remember Zun-nun (Yunus), when he departed in wrath: He imagined that We had no power over him! But he cried through the depths of darkness. There is no God but You: glory to You: I was indeed wrong! 021.088. So We listened to him: and delivered him from distress: and thus do We deliver those who have faith.” (Al Anbiya 87 – 88).

Salam Ramadan to all and may you each be blessed with what you sow.

*Jahaberdeen is a senior lawyer and founder of Rapera, a movement that encourages thinking and compassionate citizens. He can be reached at rapera.jay@gmail.com.

** This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of Malay Malay Mail Online.

- See more at: http://m.themalaymailonline.com/what-you-think/article/ramadan-a-month-of-self-reflection-jahaberdeen-mohamed-yunoos#sthash.TfLX3UGg.dpuf

Why some Muslims are easy prey to terrorists and extremists.

 I totally welcome our country’s fight against terrorism through the use of law, the police and the military. Safety of the citizens is always a high priority for any responsible government.

However, I am of the view that anti-terrorism measures cannot merely be confined to law, police and military, though necessary, if a long-term solution is the objective.

The re-evaluation and reformation of values, culture, thought and how Islam is taught is the root that ought to be addressed. For this to happen, we need to create a culture of knowledge, thinking, civilised debates and discourse and a high tolerance for dissenting views. In short, coercion and compulsion in matters of faith must give way to personal choice and spiritual growth. 

Islam related terrorism (IR terrorism) is not confined to acts of violence alone because it is based and propagated on ideology.  IR terrorism obviously infests on its own ideology of what Islam is.

The question that every Muslim should ask is this: how in the world did the religion of peace get associated with terrorist violence so easily and globally? How is the professed Muslim persuaded to blow himself up in the name of “jihad”?

I believe that policy makers who want to combat IR terrorism has to embark on an honest study and evaluation of history first to understand what could have been used as the basis of ideology to recruit potential terrorists. The policy maker has to study all versions of history and not just the version he is most comfortable with. A proper approach to fighting IR terrorism has to take into account various other equally significant factors.

- See more at: http://www.themalaymailonline.com/what-you-think/article/why-some-muslims-are-easy-prey-to-terrorists-and-extremists-jahaberdeen-moh#sthash.QawnzQwU.dpuf

Pengajaran Daripada Low Yat Oh Low Yat

Dari satu segi, kita bernasib baik sebagai Negara kerana di uji oleh Allah dengan kejadian di Low Yat. Mana tahu, kita sudah matang, sudah belajar bersyukur, sudah boleh mengenali kelemahan dan kekuatan diri daripada menyalahkan seluruh dunia kecuali diri sendiri ....maka dengan kematangan dan kesyukuran kita mungkin dapat bertindak terhadap apa-apa yang berlaku sebagai seorang Muslim yang bijaksana.

Malangnya sekali lagi, nampaknya ramai yang di pertanggungjawapkan oleh Allah dalam kedudukan tertentu telah gagal segagal-gagalnya.  Dalam kita menyorak “Allah hu Akbar” dan pelbagai lagi kata-kata yang kita sangka bersemangat kita lupa untuk beriman kepada surah Al-Israa ayat 36 dimana Allah mengajar kita supaya usul periksa sebelum mempercayai sesuatu berita.

Ketua Polis Negara telah mengesahkan bahawa insiden yang berlaku berpunca daripada dua orang pemuda yang telah mencuri talipon bimbit. (klik disini http://www.kinitv.com/video/20678O8) Berita ini telah di putar belit oleh manusia-manusia yang tidak bertanggungjawap dan lupa akan kewujudan Allah sehingga diwujudkan ketakutan dikalangan rakyat dan kerosakkan kepada harta benda.

Kerakusan untuk berpolitik didunia yang amat sementara ini telah juga melalaikan kita untuk membezakan diantara suatu perbuatan jenayah dan rusuhan kaum. Apakah kita berdoa kepada Allah untuk menurunkan musibah rusuhan kaum yang boleh merosakkan masa hadapan anak- anak di bumi bertuah Malaysia ini?  Apakah kita begitu angkuh berpolitik sehingga kita tidak lagi takut kepada azab Allah?

Apakah kerana matlamat politik, atau sentimen perkauman atau atas sebab-sebab kepentingan tertentu kita sanggup dengan sengaja kufur (enggan patuhi) kepada firman-firman Allah dalam Al-Quran yang membawa maksud berikut:-

1)      “Wahai orang-orang yang percaya, jadilah kamu orang-orang yang menegakkan keadilan, saksi-saksi untuk Allah, walaupun terhadap diri kamu sendiri, atau ibu bapa kamu, dan sanak saudara, sama ada orang itu kaya atau miskin; Allah paling dekat dengan keduanya. Kemudian janganlah mengikuti keinginan kamu supaya kamu tidak berbuat adil; kerana jika kamu memutarbelitkan, atau kamu memalingkan, maka sesungguhnya Allah menyedari apa yang kamu buat”  (Q4:135)

2)      “Wahai orang-orang yang percaya, jadilah kamu orang-orang yang menegakkan di hadapan Allah, saksi-saksi untuk keadilan. Janganlah kebencian pada kaum mendesak kamu untuk tidak berlaku adil; berlaku adillah, itu lebih dekat dengan takwa. Dan takutilah Allah; sesungguhnya Allah menyedari apa yang kamu buat” (Q5:8)

Sekadar berkongsi di bulan yang kita sendiri akui adalah mulia.

Salam.

What does “protecting Islam” mean?

(This article was inspired by Kadir Jasin’s latest posting where he mentioned what is important is to “protect the future of UMNO. Malays and Islam..”  No fault of his.)

We often hear this phrase “protecting Islam”, “protecting the sanctity of Islam”, “memartabatkan kedudukan Islam”, “mempertahankan Islam” and so on. What do they exactly mean when they say that?

Firstly, I must confess that I as a Muslim do not know exactly which interpretation of “Islam” they are referring to though I know that there is no single interpretation. All the evidence is out there and in particular, globally, the Muslim world is theologically and politically divided in two major denominations - the “Sunni” and “Shia” Islam world.  The Shias and the Sunnis do not accept each other’s collection of hadiths (“saying of the Prophet”), notwithstanding the fact that each claims “authenticity” and academic verification of the same .

Even within the said denominations, there are diverse sects with their own interpretation of what constitutes “Islam”. In the Sunni world itself there are four main schools of thought namely, Maliki, Shafie, Hanbali and Hanafi equally diverse in views on many topics including those related to pure faith issues.

Fundamentally the divisions in the “Islamic” world arises due to the differences in the sources relied upon to build the structure of Islam.  While all of them claim to accept the Quran, much of the structure of Islam today is build not necessarily from the explicit injunctions of the Quran per se but mostly from the jurists or fuqahas efforts of exegesis. In simple words, derived from the reasoning and interpretation of the jurists.

In the Sunni world, it is “accepted” by their collective mainstream clergy that the sources of Islam in Islamic jurisprudence or usul al-fiqh is primarily the Quran, the Sunnah and hadith, Ijma’ (consensus of the scholars) and Qias (anology).  There are many other sources of islam that have been created to assist in addressing a particular issue such as istihsan, urf and so on.

Even the idea of maqasid al-syariah (objectives of the shariah) is a concept created by the jurists or religious scholars/clergy by way of deducing and inferring from the “accepted” sources aforementioned.

It is understandable that human beings will have to interpret, deduce, and infer from facts and evidence to arrive at a conclusion or to create a concept from which everything else is build. There is nothing unique about this process of thinking and is common to all aspects of our life. This is how values and systems of beliefs and behaviour evolve in societies.

The problem only arises when we deny our interpretative role and equate our ideas, concepts and conclusions to that of the Divine or God. Hence, criticisms and alternative interpretations become impossible and would immediately be cast as blasphemous or unthinkable.

This is what I call the confusion between the views of the Interpreter (“the clergy or anyone) and the actual intent of  the Giver of the Text (“Divine/God”).  Would not equating the views of the interpreter (clergy) absolutely with the intent of the Giver of the Text (“God”) equate the position of the clergy with the position of God?

So back to the question of “protecting Islam”, those who say this cannot and should not assume the serious reader or serious audience knows what they are talking about. They must specify which “Islam” they are talking about.  A generalisation in matters pertaining to Islam is completely unhelpful if they understand the realities of the situation and the diverse academic discussions on Islam and most importantly, the contents of the Quran itself.

Say for example, they were to say “protect the Shia Islam”, then it will be easy to make a choice whereby those who prefer the Sunni version can reject that call. And similarly if one was to say “protect the Sunni version”, then those in favour can support that call.  Even this however may pose a problem in a seemingly Sunni society because of the differences in the opinions of the four schools of thought.  

So, maybe it becomes clearer if the caller was to say “protect the Shafie views of Islam” and so on.

However, do we see this manner of calls as promoting unity among the Muslims? What then will those adhere to the Maliki or Hanafi view do? If you say accept all, then what do you do when there is a conflict of views?

Would it not be easier and more efficient for Muslims to make the call from one book which all of them do not dispute – the Quran?  And mean it too when the call is made and Muslims heed the call by adhering to the Quran. Otherwise, you will be guilty of causing further disunity among the Muslims.

Hence, be careful when you say you want to “protect Islam” for you may be doing the exact reverse by your futile call due to your ignorance of the complexities and the Quran.

Peace !

NOTE: THE AUTHOR DOES NOT REQUIRE NOR EXPECT ANYONE TO ACCEPT OR AGREE WITH HIS VIEWS STATED HEREIN. IN MATTERS OF ISLAM, THE AUTHOR WARNS THAT THE READER SHOULD CHECK WITH HIS OWN COPY OF THE QURAN AND MAKE UP HIS OWN MIND.

Are Muslims Really the Best of People ???

1.      Every Muslim is taught that they are the best of peoples that has evolved for mankind. That they have the Truth with them and that they are on the “right path of God”.

2.      Every Muslim believes that “Islam” is the answer to all of human ills and sufferings and the Muslim through “God’s teachings” will be able to guide human beings to a better life here and in the herefater. Hence, many Muslim today wants to implement the “syariah law” which has been touted as “divine laws” by the Muslim clerics especially the “hudud laws” which is considered sacrosanct and deemed beyond any discussion.

Indeed the Quran does in surah 3 verse 110 state the following:

“You are the best of peoples, evolved for mankind, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in God. If only the People of the Book had faith, it were best for them: among them are some who have faith, but most of them are perverted transgressors”.

3.      Yes, the Quran says that the Muslims are the best of peoples. But who are these Muslims and where are they? Let Muslims not forget that Allah also speaks well of the people of the Book in surah 3 verse 113 to 114:

“Not all of them are alike: Of the People of the Book are a portion that stand (For the right): They rehearse the Signs of God all night long, and they prostrate themselves in adoration”. (Q3:113)

“They believe in God and the Last Day; they enjoin what is right, and forbid what is wrong; and they hasten (in emulation) in (all) good works: They are in the ranks of the righteous”. (Q3:114)

4.      Q3:113-114 clearly says that among the people of the book (the Jews and the Christians) there are those who enjoin what is right, forbid what is wrong and do good works like some Muslims do. The Quran is equally clear that in the Muslim community itself there are hypocrites (Q4;142, 63:1) who cause mischief within the community and spread false teachings in the name of Allah with their tongue and for wealth (Q2:41, 77; Q3:77-78, Q9:009)

From the discussion above, is it not a reasonable conclusion to make that a righteous Christian and Jew who forbids wrong and enjoins what is right is better than a hypocrite who pretends to be a Muslim? Q5:69 even states “any who believe in Allah and the Last Day, and work righteousness,- on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve”.

5.      As a matter of clarity, it is important to note that all beautiful names belong to God and “Allah” is just one name ordinarily used by Muslims to refer to God the One and Only. 

“Say: "Call upon God, or call upon Rahman: by whatever name you call upon Him, (it is well): for to Him belong the Most Beautiful Names. Neither speak your Prayer aloud, nor speak it in a low tone, but seek a middle course between." (Q17:110)

6.      So, back to the question – are Muslims indeed the best of peoples evolved for mankind? I sincerely believe that those Muslims who adhere to the Quran and study it as it should be studied (Q2:121) and take the best meaning/interpretation from it are indeed useful for the world (Q39:18). These are people of peace (aslama), who are able to co-exist with compassion and understanding with people who have completely different belief systems or even an atheist, are diligent, productive, self-accountable and responsible, and able to engage in any discourse in an intelligent way as best as they can. In short, the best possible of a “civilized” person.

7.      Is that the image that Muslims portray today? I am sad to say that the general perception is completely the opposite.

8.      A general analysis of all the so-called “Muslim countries” shows backwardness in many ways – economically, politically and socially. They paint a gloomy and embarrassing picture of communities with poverty, abysmal record of human and women’s rights, constant civil wars, religious persecution often by the state itself, increasing lack of tolerance for other communities, overbearing sense of self righteousness, lack of respect for human privacy and freedom of thought, and most shockingly in this era of knowledge explosion, state sanctioned faith.

9.      Saudi Arabia for example, where the Quran was first revealed is a nation which has trapped its ordinary people in a time wrap completely excluded from the realities of the rest of the world. Many have noted that there is “so much religion and very little Islam” in that country. The reader can easily do further research to understand what I mean.

10.   Look at the “Muslim majority” countries in the African continent, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Libya, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Yemen, Mali, Gambia, Kyrgyzstan and so on. Honestly, do these countries give meaning to the “best peoples evolved for mankind”?

11.  What have these “muslim majority” countries contributed to the betterment of the 7 billion over people living on earth in just the past 100 years that they deserve to be called the “best peoples evolved for mankind?”

12.  Muslims appear to be fond of blaming the whole world except themselves for whatever weaknesses, lackings, unhappiness or misery they suffer. When they cannot blame others, they break up into groups and sects and blame each other and often times ending up in bloodshed or persecution.

13.  How can we expect non-Muslims to have high regards for us when the perception globally is that we are intolerant, self-centered, unable to think for ourselves but completely dependent on the priests/clerics, over-sensitive to differing ideas and criticisms and hence lacking in self confidence, aggressive to the point of screaming Allah’s name in the streets and engaging in suicide bombings, that Islam is more politics and law rather than a spiritual guidance from the Creator and so on?

14.  It is also perceived that some of their ulamaks are of no help but only seek to put their followers further in a defensive position and angry position for what they lack in life. Not for a second are they encouraged or motivated to progress from whatever resources that have nor are they encouraged to use their creative minds to reap Allah’s mercy. You reap what you sow is a universal truth.

15.  All these extremely negative perceptions of Islam hurts me as a Muslim but I cannot simply get angry with them. This is a perception that my Muslim community has allowed to evolve. This is a perception that my Muslim community has failed to address because, I humbly believe, we have forsaken the teachings of the Quran (Q25:30) and gone on a frolic of our own following the teachings of men. We seem to have abandoned our God given common sense, thinking skills and compassion given by the Merciful and Compassionate Creator.

16.  Even in my own beloved country Malaysia, we witness some people abusing and subverting Islam to promote exclusivism, fascism and racism of the worst kind and in the process trying to create division, distrust, hatred and chaos among the peaceful people of Malaysia. Are these the “best of peoples evolved for mankind” as stated by Allah in the Quran? Surely not.

17.  I sincerely pray to Allah that in 2015, Muslims begin to sincerely indulge in their own soul searching and are courageous enough to be self critical (Q17:36, Q2:44), so that they can conclude for themselves whether they have indeed became the “best of peoples evolved for mankind” as stated by Allah in the Quran.

18.  Peace and Happy New Year.

NOTE: The above views are entirely my understanding and no one is required to agree with them. Kindly check with your own copy of the Quran and make up your own minds and thoughts. If I have erred in my facts, kindly highlight to me.

Munafiqs and Firauns Oppressing Other Muslims is the real threat?

(Image thanks to http://www.presentermedia.com/index.php?target=closeup&maincat=clipart&id=10112)

My deep and sincere concern is this – will munafiqs in our midst try all possible ways to deny my ubudiyah (service/worship) and compel me to stray away from the path of Islam as taught by Allah? Will they deny me the right to sincerely serve my Creator?

 I am not worried about non-Muslims trying to proselytise me, or trying to “insult Islam” or "placing" Islam under a “threat”. These are things that I can handle myself easily. 

Also, for me it is impossible, under current circumstances where Muslims are the majority and have political control for any non-Muslim to place Islam under “threat”.  I also believe in the promise of Allah that it is He who will guide whom He pleases and that it He who will safeguard the teachings of the Quran.

I actually welcome non-Muslims to try to proselytise me as it would give me an opportunity to share the wisdom of the Quran and to invite them to Allah who is the Creator of everything and everyone. I will be happy to be engaged in a discussion to seek out the Way of the Creator.

As a Muslim, I will also be equally happy to peacefully disagree with the non-Muslim and welcome him back for another discussion if he so desires.  Otherwise, being consistent with what the Quran teaches, I will let Allah decide our differences on judgement day. In the meantime, I am completely prepared to share Allah’s mercy with him as Allah so graciously bestows His mercy on me.

It is the munafiqs (hypocrites) and the extremists that worry me. For one to be a munafiq in this situation, he has to smell, sound, and look like me and even pretend to “care” for me except that he wants me to think and believe EXACTLY as he does. In effect, he wants me now to accept him as my god or as another god alongside Allah or an intermediary for me to "reach" Allah.

If I do not accept his views and his teachings, he is prepared to ostracise me, humiliate me, oppress me if he has the power and make life completely miserable for me. He will even go to the extent of declaring that I am not a Muslim and hence try to deny me my right of faith simply because I do not think and believe EXACTLY like him.

He will behave like the Firaun (Pharoah) of the Quran who will cut off the legs and hands of his subjects on opposite sides if they were to follow Moses without his permission.

The real threat to the practice of Islam has always been from within - by those who want to compel by force their understanding of Islam on other Muslims. Extremist behaviours.

It is the munafiq and the Firaun who is a threat to the peaceful practice of Islam. 

Correct me if I am wrong in my views.

Peace !