May
1, 2003 Dear
Dr. Khalid Sohail, I
am really enjoying reading the material available on your site; particularly
the interview section is very interesting. It provides a wonderful collection
of versatile ideas of so many intellectuals and artistes at one place.
Besides, a feeling of freedom prevails while browsing through the articles and
poems at this site. As I was reading interesting letters about the ‘SECULAR
MUSLIM’, I also felt like sharing my understanding of this term. As
some of the writers of this forum have mentioned, the term ‘Secular
Muslim’ definitely brings up a paradoxical picture of an individual.
However, it seems that the intellectuals like Dr. Hoodbhoy are trying to
describe a person living in an Islamic state whose thinking process is not
burdened by the beliefs and blind faiths. With such an individual, a dialogue
becomes possible without any fear of forced ideas. An ugly situation of
‘I’ and ‘You’ in little compartments is replaced by a feeling of
‘Amness’ reflecting a common bond for the humanity. However,
the term ‘Secular Muslim’ seems like an old wine in a new bottle. It fits
more appropriately on the Sufis. In Islamic countries, the Sufis (genuine
ones! of course) have always been like that! Their rebellious nature and
freedom of expression could not be tolerated in any rigid Islamic country. The
brutal executions of Mansoor Hallaj and Sarmad Shaheed is the evidence to this
fact, otherwise poetry, anecdotes and discourses of the Sufis reflect the
realm of knowledge that always surpasses the narrow bonds of conditioned
minds. Now, whether we call such an individual a ‘Secular Muslim’, Sufi or
a Creative soul, a common thread exists that he always transcends the pool of
stagnant water like opinions to float in an open sea of limitless ideas. His
truth or the original ideas shakes the very foundation of a society and
consequently, it tries to save itself by either condemning the creative
individual or by giving limited meaning to an unlimited idea. As has been
expressed by Riaz Majeed: -
koh qaamat feel andhon mein ghira hun mein Riaz
keh raha hai jis nae jaisa jitna samjha hai mujhe To elaborate it further, following ideas from the
lives of Sufis or the Secular Muslims may shed some light on their open
mindedness: -
·
Rumi
has said about the angels that they are not some kind of heavenly creatures
with wings rather reflect higher faculty of a human being. ·
Dr.
Iqbal similarly said that ‘WAHI’ i.e. revelation is not only the domain of
the prophets but can occur to any human being in a creative moment. ·
Baba
Bhulle Shah has said that a living human being is much more holy and precious
than the so-called holy places of worship. ·
Once a
Sufi had reported to say to a person going on a Haj as to why to go all the
way to circumambulate a house of stone, instead circumambulate ‘ME’ – a
living house of God. ·
Khusro
said to Nizamuddin, ‘Man Qibla raast kardam bar samt kaj kulahe’ ·
I have
personally heard a Pakistani Sufi saying that through Ijtehad, the Muftis and
Moulvis should allow only one Qurbani in one’s lifetime rather than common
occurrence of killing and wasting animals every year in the name of God. The
term ‘Secular Muslim’ also seems more realistic and down to earth, as a
believer or an atheist basically are the two sides of the same coin. One has
an absurd belief system, while the other just develop an inflated ego and
tends to reject every thing unless and until proven by the sense organs
ignoring an important aspect of intuitive insights. The beauty lies somewhere
in between the two extremes just as an abstract format on a concrete canvas
brings both the logical and illogical worlds together. An order can be seen in
chaos. This is the middle path of a ‘Secular Muslim’ where religion is
redefined from inside out after replacing the outside authority by one’s
conviction of his own potential that can be realized in this life span through
interacting with other human beings in a humanistic way. After all, we are
here to celebrate the same party in different outfits. One should be free to
enjoy his stay on this planet and be allowed to grow on his own amidst the
company of other growing souls. Regards Hasan
N. Mirza Brantford,ON. |