Muslims across the globe need to get their act together
Syed Mustafa Ahmad
The unity of Ummah is obligatory than that of some peripheral issues
One, who leads a society, nation, country, state, village, town, etc., is called a leader. Plato, the teacher of Aristotle, said that a leader is the asset of a state. Without it, the state will be devoid of development. Plato further says that a leader always is a philosopher. It is because he always likes truth in one form or another.
In this respect, Islam also is not behind. The Muslim Community is also advised to work under the watchful eye of a just ruler. Leaderless community can never flourish. Other religious and non-religious scriptures also stress upon this fact as well. So, it becomes clear that never should a community remain without a just ruler. But if we talk of the Muslims in particular, they have innumerable leaders. Why is it? Let us try to know.
After the death of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), he was not laid to rest until the leader of the whole Ummah was chosen. They, the companions of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) knew that we were advised by him to be aware about the fact that a leaderless community never finds solace.
It keeps moving to and fro without any fruit. Such was the concern of the Companions of the Prophet that they didn’t bury their leader but instead preferred, to have a leader of the Community.
Keeping this fact in mind, we can easily compare ourselves with the situation of theirs. Today, the Muslim Ummah is divided into 57 countries. Some countries are monarchies, some are democracies, some are Islamic States, etc., to name a few. But the most common thing among them is that all are going in the different directions. They have forgotten this lesson that a Muslim Community is called a body.
If one part of the body aches, the whole body feels the ache. Today, there is no Muslim body. The question of aching doesn’t come to forth. It is a well-known fact that the most bloodshed happens in Muslim countries. The Muslims are the followers of one of the most peaceful religions of the world. But they are acting in a way that compels any person to think that they are the most dreadful persons in the world.
Why does it happen? It is because we don’t want to assemble under a single authority. We want to keep our divisive shops open for materialistic gains. We will like to get killed by the hands of a non-Muslim; but never bother to walk hand in hand with our Muslim brethren. It has so many causes. It is the handiwork of our own. No one comes and disintegrates us. We like to live the sectarian lives. In this way, the thread of unity is slit. The Community becomes rudderless. Let us try to know some causes.
Sects always are harmful. Minor issues can be kept aside. The majority of the principles, if common, can act as the source of unity. But we let those persons speak, who highlight the minor issues and create sects. They, being uneducated, deploy tactics that create a wide chasm and the best of the society is ruined. Here and there, these emotionally immature preachers have brought more harm than profiting the Muslim community.
If for the sake of academics, we look out for the doctorate students, why in this case, we look out for those preachers who don’t even know the meaning of any holy verse. They follow their whims and speak foul against others that hurt the basics of the Muslim Community. And it paves way for intolerance. The result is that we become prey to division.
The second cause is that the sectarian books are provided free. Without any research, the books reach the remotest parts of any area. It results in the sectarian divisions of the society. The unity is shattered into pieces. The person who dreams of unity is left clueless because we are the community, who almost worship the preachers and orators.
We never pause for a moment and think that these preachers are like us and are immune to mistakes. They can be wrong at any time. We, being the narrow-minded, take everything as a gospel truth. After a brief lull, the sectarian books produce fruits in the shape of divisions.
The third and the last cause in my opinion is the smooth growing of the Masjids. It can be termed as religiosity. It is in contrast to the real purpose of a Masjid. Masjids are constructed on the large basis to depict that we can’t live peacefully.
The concept of Jama Masjid means that we should assemble in a single place and live like humans. Our Creator says the faithful are brothers. You will see faithful like a hard wall. But our walls have the foundations of sand. Any minor issue of the lowest rank shatters our foundations and we are divided into parties.
The unity of Ummah is obligatory than that of some peripheral issues. We can’t leave the examples shown by our beloved Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) when for the sake of unity, advised his Companions to offer the Congregational prayers so that the custom of being rich and poor, black and white, Arab and non-Arab, is erased from the lives of people.
Today, when the world needs peace, we love violence. There can be many ways of offering Namaaz. But the important thing is that one should bow his or her head. The pride of being something should get erased. The created should know his or her Creator. It is the essence of Islam. A diverse religion has become the target of illogical targets. It is due to our behavior. We are characterless when it comes to accept dissent. Until and unless, dissent is not given an opportunity, nothing will change on the ground.
So, let us like true Muslims ponder over the wrongdoings and promise that we will not create more sects and act as an obstacle in choosing a leader for the whole Ummah. Let us leave the minor issues aside and accept that which is common. Why the 57 countries can’t choose a single leader in the light of the Qur’an and the traditions of the holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)? So, don’t fall in a trap because wisdom is an asset of a faithful. He or she has to find it. Let us find and love wisdom.
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