The lost middle ground in Islam
“A religious man is a person who holds God and man in one thought at one time, at all times, who suffers harm done to others, whose greatest passion is compassion, whose greatest strength is love and defiance of despair” -- Abraham Joshua Heschel (New York Journal-American, April 5, 1963).
Religion is very difficult to define. Just about everyone has their own interpretation of what they believe religion is or should be. The etymology of the word religion comes from the Latin word “religio”, which means “to bind”. The simple dictionary definition defines ‘religion’ as a group of beliefs concerning the supernatural, sacred, or divine, and the moral codes, practices, values, institutions and rituals associated with such belief. It is sometimes used interchangeably with faith or belief system. In the course of the development of religion, it has taken many forms in various cultures and individuals.
In general life, the secret of success in any effort lies in our ability to keep a “just balance” between extremes. There are some of us who use their entire means to eat or dress properly, while there are others who are thrifty to the extreme and only eat to live. We need to keep the just balance between the extremes of extravagance and thrift. The same is the case with religion. Karl Marx once declared religion to be the “opiate of the masses”. In his view, religion was simply a power-tool conceived by the ruling elite to sedate the workers into compliance. Although that is not what religion is, but nonetheless it has been used to exploit people’s sentiments by fundamentalists who want their agendas to be fulfilled. We must respect others’ religions. It is their prerogative which religion they have chosen to follow. We are no one to force our views down anyone’s throats. Islam neither advocates extreme conservatism, nor complete liberalism. Both the conservatives and modern liberals are extremists. They leave no room for the middle ground. Our Prophet (PBUH) said, “Beware of extremism in your religion.” Islam is the middle way between excess and neglect.
Zealots are a plague for Islam. Do not let yourself be swayed by ignorant mullahs who do not really know the true meaning of the Quran. These people are literalists, who do not ponder over the inner meanings of the messages contained in the Quran. They reject pluralism; they view the world in melodramatic black and white, good and evil terms. They are the good and anyone who opposes them is evil. These mullahs are the people who excommunicate any Muslim who fails to share their interpretations of the Quran. They denounce good Muslims as kafirs and use character assassination as a tool for marginalising any criticism directed at them. These radicals use violence to further their cause. They believe like every nefarious secret society before them that “the end justifies the means.” They use the word jihad for their own interests, ignorant of its true meaning, and distort it into ‘terrorism’. Why is the stereotype image of Islam being portrayed as a religion of terrorists? It is because of these ignorant religious extremists. The common dread of these fundamentalists is that if real knowledge were imparted, the common man would not subscribe to their path. That is why ‘hate’ is their major fuel, ‘fear’ is the cement of their movement, and superstitious ignorance is the best defence against the acquiring of ‘dangerous’ new knowledge. There isn’t just one ‘middle’ path between the two extremes, it spans continuously from one extreme to the other. While one may strive for the middle path, it is not altogether bad if someone has a strong religious bent at a personal level, but has moderate views otherwise. What matters then is how a person comes across to the average person.
The modern liberals take the opposite way and interpret religion too freely. For them, religion means chains, and they find a way out by breaking free of religious chains. The modern liberal looks to the Quran more as a source of guidance on how to lead one’s life. As such, he accepts that the meaning, the “truth” of the Holy Book may change as the circumstances of the individual and society change, i.e. it is a relative, rather than an absolute, truth. Modern liberals will look to other religions as alternative views of religious truth. For them, traditional Islam is a closed system. According to their views a liberal view of Islam would have to begin by challenging the system. It would have to begin by submitting the Quran itself to human inquiry and reason. Where did this book truly come from? How was it, in fact, compiled? This is where the fault lies: because these questions sometimes turn them away from religion. Islam does not prohibit asking questions, but to question the authenticity of the Holy Scripture is in fact taking it too far.
Both ways are wrong. One should try not to take extreme positions and instead engage in a more balanced approach towards religion. The only sensible way is to adapt to the ‘moderate’ way. Moderation in Islam means that one does not exaggerate and go beyond the limit set by Allah, nor fall short of this limit. A moderate Muslim is one who correctly follows religion, while staying within the limits, and is still firmly religious, though not exploiting religion for vested interests. One religious scholar, Ibn Al-Qayyim, wisely put it when he said, “There is no single matter in which Satan does not make an insinuation either toward extremism or negligence. But the truth is in between the two.”
Today, people have exploited Islam and we now just have enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another. Islam does not teach us to make fun of other religions or philosophies. In an Indo-Pak forum, I have seen Pakistani Muslims ridiculing Hindus and their religion countless times, making fun of how the Hindus hold a cow sacred. If we ridicule someone else’s god(s), he is bound to retaliate by ridiculing our God, Allah. Do we want that to happen? Such acts are not only childish or provoking, but are also despicable. Extremism and modern liberalism, both in religion and in life, are wrong in the way they are practiced.
In a broadcast to the people of the US in February 1948, Quaid-e-Azam laid a good deal of stress on Islamic ideals and principles, but he ruled out theocracy, saying, “Islam and its idealism have taught us democracy. It has taught equality of men, justice and fair play to everybody. We are the inheritors of these glorious traditions and are fully alive to our responsibilities and obligations as framers of the future constitution of Pakistan. In any case Pakistan is not going to be a theocratic State -- to be ruled by priests with a divine mission. We have many non-Muslims -- Hindus, Christians, and Parsis -- but they are all Pakistanis. They will enjoy the same rights and privileges as any other citizens and will play their rightful part in the affairs of Pakistan.” These do not sound like the words of a fundamentalist. Jinnah negated theocracy. He wanted a country that would embrace all citizens regardless of race, creed or religion. However, today’s Pakistan is anything but what Jinnah envisioned it to be. It is time Pakistan frees itself from the conservative mindset that interprets religion only literally. Let’s move towards a progressive Islam, instead of being chained in the shackles of regressive religious theories. Only that can bring us back Jinnah’s Pakistan. Religious extremism hurts Islam, and so does extreme modern liberalism, so stand your middle ground O moderate Muslim!
Religion is very difficult to define. Just about everyone has their own interpretation of what they believe religion is or should be. The etymology of the word religion comes from the Latin word “religio”, which means “to bind”. The simple dictionary definition defines ‘religion’ as a group of beliefs concerning the supernatural, sacred, or divine, and the moral codes, practices, values, institutions and rituals associated with such belief. It is sometimes used interchangeably with faith or belief system. In the course of the development of religion, it has taken many forms in various cultures and individuals.
In general life, the secret of success in any effort lies in our ability to keep a “just balance” between extremes. There are some of us who use their entire means to eat or dress properly, while there are others who are thrifty to the extreme and only eat to live. We need to keep the just balance between the extremes of extravagance and thrift. The same is the case with religion. Karl Marx once declared religion to be the “opiate of the masses”. In his view, religion was simply a power-tool conceived by the ruling elite to sedate the workers into compliance. Although that is not what religion is, but nonetheless it has been used to exploit people’s sentiments by fundamentalists who want their agendas to be fulfilled. We must respect others’ religions. It is their prerogative which religion they have chosen to follow. We are no one to force our views down anyone’s throats. Islam neither advocates extreme conservatism, nor complete liberalism. Both the conservatives and modern liberals are extremists. They leave no room for the middle ground. Our Prophet (PBUH) said, “Beware of extremism in your religion.” Islam is the middle way between excess and neglect.
Zealots are a plague for Islam. Do not let yourself be swayed by ignorant mullahs who do not really know the true meaning of the Quran. These people are literalists, who do not ponder over the inner meanings of the messages contained in the Quran. They reject pluralism; they view the world in melodramatic black and white, good and evil terms. They are the good and anyone who opposes them is evil. These mullahs are the people who excommunicate any Muslim who fails to share their interpretations of the Quran. They denounce good Muslims as kafirs and use character assassination as a tool for marginalising any criticism directed at them. These radicals use violence to further their cause. They believe like every nefarious secret society before them that “the end justifies the means.” They use the word jihad for their own interests, ignorant of its true meaning, and distort it into ‘terrorism’. Why is the stereotype image of Islam being portrayed as a religion of terrorists? It is because of these ignorant religious extremists. The common dread of these fundamentalists is that if real knowledge were imparted, the common man would not subscribe to their path. That is why ‘hate’ is their major fuel, ‘fear’ is the cement of their movement, and superstitious ignorance is the best defence against the acquiring of ‘dangerous’ new knowledge. There isn’t just one ‘middle’ path between the two extremes, it spans continuously from one extreme to the other. While one may strive for the middle path, it is not altogether bad if someone has a strong religious bent at a personal level, but has moderate views otherwise. What matters then is how a person comes across to the average person.
The modern liberals take the opposite way and interpret religion too freely. For them, religion means chains, and they find a way out by breaking free of religious chains. The modern liberal looks to the Quran more as a source of guidance on how to lead one’s life. As such, he accepts that the meaning, the “truth” of the Holy Book may change as the circumstances of the individual and society change, i.e. it is a relative, rather than an absolute, truth. Modern liberals will look to other religions as alternative views of religious truth. For them, traditional Islam is a closed system. According to their views a liberal view of Islam would have to begin by challenging the system. It would have to begin by submitting the Quran itself to human inquiry and reason. Where did this book truly come from? How was it, in fact, compiled? This is where the fault lies: because these questions sometimes turn them away from religion. Islam does not prohibit asking questions, but to question the authenticity of the Holy Scripture is in fact taking it too far.
Both ways are wrong. One should try not to take extreme positions and instead engage in a more balanced approach towards religion. The only sensible way is to adapt to the ‘moderate’ way. Moderation in Islam means that one does not exaggerate and go beyond the limit set by Allah, nor fall short of this limit. A moderate Muslim is one who correctly follows religion, while staying within the limits, and is still firmly religious, though not exploiting religion for vested interests. One religious scholar, Ibn Al-Qayyim, wisely put it when he said, “There is no single matter in which Satan does not make an insinuation either toward extremism or negligence. But the truth is in between the two.”
Today, people have exploited Islam and we now just have enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us love one another. Islam does not teach us to make fun of other religions or philosophies. In an Indo-Pak forum, I have seen Pakistani Muslims ridiculing Hindus and their religion countless times, making fun of how the Hindus hold a cow sacred. If we ridicule someone else’s god(s), he is bound to retaliate by ridiculing our God, Allah. Do we want that to happen? Such acts are not only childish or provoking, but are also despicable. Extremism and modern liberalism, both in religion and in life, are wrong in the way they are practiced.
In a broadcast to the people of the US in February 1948, Quaid-e-Azam laid a good deal of stress on Islamic ideals and principles, but he ruled out theocracy, saying, “Islam and its idealism have taught us democracy. It has taught equality of men, justice and fair play to everybody. We are the inheritors of these glorious traditions and are fully alive to our responsibilities and obligations as framers of the future constitution of Pakistan. In any case Pakistan is not going to be a theocratic State -- to be ruled by priests with a divine mission. We have many non-Muslims -- Hindus, Christians, and Parsis -- but they are all Pakistanis. They will enjoy the same rights and privileges as any other citizens and will play their rightful part in the affairs of Pakistan.” These do not sound like the words of a fundamentalist. Jinnah negated theocracy. He wanted a country that would embrace all citizens regardless of race, creed or religion. However, today’s Pakistan is anything but what Jinnah envisioned it to be. It is time Pakistan frees itself from the conservative mindset that interprets religion only literally. Let’s move towards a progressive Islam, instead of being chained in the shackles of regressive religious theories. Only that can bring us back Jinnah’s Pakistan. Religious extremism hurts Islam, and so does extreme modern liberalism, so stand your middle ground O moderate Muslim!
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