In the previous article we noted that Islam, in a short period of time, brought success to people and blessed them with supremacy over the world. Islam also introduced them to arts and sciences, and became a source of inspiration for the creative minds. Two questions are pertinent to be asked about it. (1) Given Islam’s extraordinary role in promotion of sciences and arts, why German philosopher Karl Marx did not exclude Islam from his list of religion when he opined that religion is the opium of the masses. (2) The burning question, nevertheless, is that what factors are keeping Muslims from dominating the world of science and technology? Why are Muslims failing to provide a testimony to their extraordinary contribution to scientific inventions and technological advancements in the past?
As far as the first question is concerned that why Islam is wrongly placed with religions which Marx described as the opium of the masses, suffice is to say that an inaccurate basis to form an opinion leads to a mistaken and misleading conclusion. To drive my point home, I would like to recall the famous parable of ‘The Blind Men and The Elephant’. They say there were four blind men who learnt about the presence of an elephant in their area. The blind men were curious to know about the features of the elephant. Therefore, they decided to employ their sense of touch for having a better understating of the big animal. As they approached the elephant, one of them placed his hands on the elephant’s trunk, the second reached out to one of its legs, the third felt its belly and the fourth touched the elephant’s tail.
After this they started telling each other about the elephant. The one who placed his hand on the belly said that an elephant is like a mountain. The one who touched the leg said that it is not like a mountain, but rather like a pillar. The one who placed his hand on the tail said that it is like an old thick rope and the fourth one said something different. Since all four were blind and they did not see the complete elephant, none of them can give correct analysis of the elephant, but if a sighted person sees the elephant, he will tell them that the whole elephant is like this, whereas they have seen different parts of the elephant not the whole elephant.
Second example of poor analysis is that two strangers enter a city; one goes to the backward area of the city, where there are dilapidated houses, broken roads, a rubbish heap and sanitary sewer overflow, whereas the other enters the city's magnificent area, where there are beautiful, spacious bungalows, clean streets, large schools, magnificent hospitals, great cleanliness and beautiful trees. If these two people give any opinion about the whole city in the light of their poor, incomplete observation, surely this opinion then will be wrong because if someone wants to form an opinion about the whole city, he will be able to know about it after looking at its both excellent and dilapidated areas. Therefore, the person who is ill-informed, possesses poor knowledge and has poor experience will give poor analysis and opinion.
This is the state of those who comment negatively on Islam. They say about religion that it makes humans lazy or there are people who say even cheaper sentences than this one by saying that religion is opium and it causes man to become inactive. The reason why they make such statements is that such people may have seen a religion in their neighbourhood that causes humans to become inactive and does not instil motivation, passion, courage and enthusiasm into them.
In view of such a religion, the opinion of those who comment on Islam in the same way is undoubtedly the same as the blind men gave their opinions about the elephant and those who after seeing a part of the city gave opinion about the whole city. So the way their opinion was poor, wrong and contrary to the fact, similarly the opinion of those who give false and unrealistic comments about Islam is wrong and unreal.
And as far as fraud, uncivilized behaviour or misconduct of a Muslim businessman is concerned, it is not the fault of Islam but the fault of that Muslim and it is not because of the practice of Islam but because of non-adherence to Islam.
And as far as the second question is concerned, if Muslims’ past is so magnificent, why are they not active and dominant now? The answer is that there are many reasons behind it which can be summarized in the following way. As long as Muslims practised Islam, they remained dominant, but when they stopped practising Islam, removed it from their homes, government affairs and system of life and confined it only to Masajid and considered acts of worship to be religion, adopted the pleasures of the world instead of religion and the Hereafter, preferred personal interests to religious and national interests, they began to fall into disgrace.
When we adopted this practice that our trade, jobs, affairs and government are not under religion, but rather we are free in these matters and we will not let Islam enter these matters, instead of Islam we will follow the principles and teachings of so-and-so non-Muslims in trade, government, home, etc., as in many countries Masajid are filled, but Islamic Hamyiat (Protection of religion from being blamed) has vanished in the entire life of the Muslims living in those countries and they do not obey the commandments of Shari’ah, the result is what Allah Almighty has already told us that:
اَفَتُؤْمِنُوْنَ بِبَعْضِ الْكِتٰبِ وَ تَكْفُرُوْنَ بِبَعْضٍۚ-
So do you then have faith in some commandments of Allah , and deny some?
[Kanz-ul-Iman (Translation from Quran)](Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayah 85)
فَمَا جَزَآءُ مَنْ یَّفْعَلُ ذٰلِكَ مِنْكُمْ اِلَّا خِزْیٌ فِی الْحَیٰوةِ الدُّنْیَاۚ-
Then whosoever from you does so, what is his recompense, but this; that to be disgraced in this world,
[Kanz-ul-Iman (Translation from Quran)](Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayah 85)
Now, we can see Muslims are being disgraced and oppressed internationally. If it is true, and it is certainly true, then the main reason for this is to keep Islam aside instead of practicing it in every walk of life by considering it to be a perfect religion. In this regard, non-practicing people are also to blame and more than this the secular and liberal people are to blame who are trying to turn people away from Islam day and night by making fun of Islamic teachings, calling them old and outdated, chanting slogans such as ‘No religion for state.’
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