6. MEANING OF "ISLAM"
The word
“Islam” is to be regarded as a technical term meaning
“Surrender, acceptance or submission to Allah”, where Allah refers
to the ultimate objective Reality. The word has a particular meaning not to be
confused with its common usage and translation.
It is an
Arabic word derived from the root SLM. Other words derived from this root have
meanings such as peace, submission, resignation, acceptance, perfection,
safety, security, wholeness, fulfilment, completeness, harmony, consistency,
adjustment, contentment, calmness. These meaning are reflected in the word
“Islam”.
Surrender
means self-identification with Allah, and, therefore, to objective behaviour.
In
Hebrewism those who devoted their lives to the fulfilment of God’s work
rather than their own interests were called Prophets. This included Moses.
In
Christianity, Jesus is regarded as the ideal on whom
the Christian is to model himself. Jesus was in a state of Surrender as the
following verses indicate:-
“I can of mine
own self do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and my judgment is just because I seek
not mine own will, but the will of the Father which has sent me.” John
5:30
“Believest thou
not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak unto
you I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, he does the
works.” John 14:10 also 6:38, 7:16
In Buddhism
a distinction is made between that which is Immortal in man and the illusory.
Surrender is implied in Nirvana which is the state of self-identification with
the former.
In the
Bhagadvadgita which contains the essence of Hinduism, ‘Surrender ‘ is mentioned in the following verses:-
“When a man
surrenders all desires that come to the heart and by the grace of God finds joy
of God, then his soul has indeed found peace.” 2:55
“Because the Sanyasi of renunciation is also the Yogi of holy works; and
no man can be a Yogi who surrenders not his earthly will.... When the mind of
the Yogi is in harmony and finds rest in the Spirit within, all restless desire
gone, then he is a Yukta, one in God.” 6:2 ,18
“Arjuna: Speak to me, Krishna,
of the essence of renunciation, and of the essence of Surrender.
Krishna: The renunciation of selfish works is
called renunciation; but the surrender of the reward of all works is called
surrender. Some say that there should be renunciation of action - since action
disturbs contemplation; but others say that works of sacrifice, gift and self-harmony
should not be renounced. Hear my truth about the surrender of works, Arjuna. Surrender, O best of men, is of three kinds. Works
of sacrifice, gift, and self-harmony should not be abandoned, but should indeed
be performed; for these are works of purification.” 18:1-5
“But they for
whom I am the end supreme, who surrender all their works to me, and who with
pure love meditate on me and adore me - these I very soon deliver from the
ocean of death and life-in-death, because they have set their hear on
me....Concentration is better than mere practice, and meditation is better than
concentration; but higher than meditation is surrender in love of the fruit of
one’s actions, for on surrender follows peace.” 12:6-7,12
Surrender
has three aspects:-
1, To give up something. In this case it means to give up ones
ego, attachments, prejudices, self-will and self-opinions, pride,
rationalisation, lusts and desires - one’s subjectivity. This state is
also known as Fana, annihilation or death. This is probably also the Buddhist
Nirvana. The Christian Baptism also symbolises this. There can be no
resurrection without death.
2, To accept the authority or dominion of something. Here it
means to accept objectivity in thought, motivation and action. - to accept Allah in place of the ego. This involves
accepting:-
(a) objective truth, reality,
things, people, events as they are, including oneself.
(b) objective meanings - that we
interpret all things in terms of the correct context or framework of reference.
(c) objective values.
This is
known as Baqa - coming into existence, regeneration or resurrection.
3, To return something which one has been given, to repay a
debt. Here it implies that we have been given a life with which we do as we
like, but this puts us under obligation to Him who has given it to us. We must
repay this debt. This also includes the fact that our life depends on the
environment and the benefits we get from the society, from the work of many
other people who supply our needs.
“O
you who believe! Be
mindful of your duty to Allah, and seek a way of approach unto Him, and strive
in His way in order that you may succeed.” 5:35
Three
attitudes are connected with Islam:-
1. Tajrid, which means giving up worldly life (i.e. desires
and ambitions connected with the ego and subjective judgements) in favour of
the spiritual life (obedience to God and objective principles).
2. Tafrid, which means that all praise and credit is given to
God and not to oneself. This is based on the idea that God is the source of all
things and there is no originator or source of power other than Allah. The good
that a person does arises from the Spirit of Allah that is within him (32:9)
3.
Acceptance, which means that one accepts whatever circumstances Allah provides.
But, this is not Fatalism or passivity. Muslims also have to accept the
instructions of Allah and act rightly without regard to the consequences, as
long as there is adequate knowledge and the intentions are correct. The results
are in the hands of God.
Tajrid is also known as "spiritual death" which leads to
"spiritual resurrection". Conversely worldly life is spiritual
death.
"Is he who was dead and We have quickened (given him life) him, and made for him a
light, wherein walks amongst men, like him whose likeness is one walking in
utter darkness whence he cannot emerge? Thus is their conduct made seemly to
the disbelievers." 6:123
Note that
this verse is followed by the following:-
"And thus have We
placed great ones (leaders) in every town, its wicked ones, that they may plot
therein. But they do but plot against themselves, though they perceive
not." 6:124 See also the next 2 verses.
To
Surrender to Allah is to surrender to the Spirit of Allah within (Quran 32:9).
“Surrender” can be seen as having three aspects:-
(i) To strive for Allah, on His behalf and in
obedience to Him. (ii) To give up in mind, motive and action that which is not
Allah or is contrary or contradictory to Him. This implies that though a person
thinks and does many other things, they should not be goals in themselves, but
means to the ultimate goal which is to serve Allah as Vicegerents and that this
goal should be kept in mind. This also ensures that all thought, feeling and
action are co-ordinated and form a single system which facilitates human
integration. (iii) To relate to Allah, to the spirit of Allah within oneself
and to others who also contain the Spirit of Allah. This facilitates the
development of Psychological, Social and Cosmic harmony and Peace, the
cessation of conflict.
It is
necessary to understand that it is not the striving, the personal efforts that
cause the transformation and development of man, but that this is a
pre-requisite. The transformation is caused by the activation of the Spirit of
Allah which had become dormant owing to the Fall. The
application of the religious techniques is like repairing and tuning a radio or
television set, so that the transmission can be received, made manifest and
conveyed. It is a healing.
“Surely, We have
created man in the best of moulds. Then We reduced him
to the lowest of the low; save those who believe and act right; for theirs is a
reward unfailing.” 95:4-6
“O mankind! There has come to you a direction
(guidance, exhortation) from your Lord, and a healing for the disease in your
breasts, and a guidance and a mercy for
believers.” 10:58 See also 17:82, 41:44
“O you who believe!
Respond unto Allah and His Messenger when He calls you to that which quickens
you; and know that Allah comes in between a man and his own heart; and that He
it is unto Whom you shall be gathered.” 8:24
When we
look at the world, we generally divide it into three parts (a) man (b) the
earth, our environment, nature with which we have to interact. (c) the Rest of the Universe, the Heavens, the Cosmos, which
usually appears to be remote. In fact, however, the materials, Laws and
processes of the Universe act both in our environment and in ourselves.
There are,
in general, three attitudes to life:-
(a) That nature is a
source of danger and disease and we have to control, subdue, use and dominate
it.
(b) That we are part
of nature, dependant on it and that all our malfunctions and troubles arise
from flouting nature, both within ourselves and in our surroundings.
(c) The Islamic attitude
which comes from the notion of the vicegerency of man gives him a cosmic
function. According to this both nature and man arise from Cosmic
processes, ultimately from Allah who created these, and man, because he has
been given the capacity for knowledge as well as creativity, has a
responsibility in the administration, regulation and development of both
himself and the world.
A human
beings exists in, interacts with, and is inter-dependant with a society, an
environment, the world, and ultimately with the whole of Reality. This requires
three interdependent aspects:-
1.
Receptivity 2. Processing (analysing, synthesising,
organising, and relating) 3. Activity
He receives
from the environment; he transforms this and utilises some of it for his own maintenance
and growth; he acts on and returns something to the environment. Each of these
aspects have to be developed. Processing and activity
depend on receptivity; receptivity depends on the results of processing and
action; processing depends on both receptivity and action. Surrender refers to
all three aspects. The act of processing is particularly important as the
justification for the existence of human beings, as indeed, of anything else,
is that they are processors or instruments, and as such have a function with
respect to the world. Processing controls and determines both reception and
action. The Islamic, or any other religious teaching, concerns itself with how
experiences are to be processed.
Surrender,
therefore, means:-
(a) To seek
and take in correct knowledge, ideas impressions, experiences, food etc. To
seek the correct circumstances and conditions through which this can be done.
(b) To know
and follow ones own nature, not prejudices conditioned into us or fantasies, nor
the opinions and desires of others.
(c) To have
an objective purpose in life, an objective value system and pursue it, even if
it means self-sacrifice.
(d) To take
responsibility as a vicegerent. To act correctly. Not to blame others, circumstances or institutions nor have
expectations. The events which happen to a person have been, directly,
indirectly or by default, created by himself. The realisation that human suffering, malfunctions and diseases
result from the non-fulfilment of their function as vicegerents. But
this suffering is not an evil since it has or ought to have educational value.
(e) To
accept rather than judge according to our own likes and dislikes.
(f) To have
a positive attitude, an enthusiasm for life.
(g) To
undertake a discipline where we live according to knowledge and purpose rather
than by impulse, habit or conditioning.
(h) To
interpret experiences correctly. The Universe, this planet, the biosphere,
humanity, the community and environment we live in, all these are wholes consisting
of interacting and inter-dependent parts of which we are but one. There is a
larger picture than we can see, it is more complex than we can understand and
it has a pattern. A balance and equilibrium is created at each level.
Everything, therefore, happens not only because it must, but also because it is
good in preserving the balance. Surrender means that we accept this not only in
action, but also emotionally and intellectually. (i)
We cooperate with it instead of rebelling (ii) we do not fall into despair and
resentment because things do not turn out the way we wanted or expected. (iii)
This attitude not only conforms to what is true, but it is also good for our
own health.
(i) An essential ingredient of Surrender is humility. This
implies the recognition that there is something greater than man, namely Allah,
that man is dependant, and that other people are in the same state and of equal
value.
”O mankind! Ye
are poor in relation to Allah. And Allah, He is the Absolute, the owner of all
praise. If He will He can be rid of you and bring instead of you another
creature. That is not a hard thing for Allah” 35:15-17
” Be modest in
thy bearing and subdue thy voice. Lo, the harshest of all voices is the voice
of the ass.” 31:19
Islam is,
therefore, not like Christianity or Buddhism, which take their names from the
founder. It is not Muhammadanism. It is not the name of an institution or a
community, an object or an “ism”, but refers to a state of being.
The word “Muslim” refers to one who is in that state, to one who
has surrendered to Allah.
However,
several levels of Islam should be recognised:-
1. A Nation
or community.- A person enters this community by the
verbal acceptance of the Shahadah, the Confessions of Faith. These are:-
(a)
There is no god except Allah.
(b)
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.
This is an
Oath of Allegiance.
Islam does
not recognise allegiance to Kings, Countries or Flags or any kind of Ideology.
At this
level only the verbal oath is sufficient. It has a legal status. It is not
possible for a judge or other people to determine whether the individual who
utters these words is sincere or not. The community, however, is regulated by
the Islamic Law, the Shariat, which the individual has accepted by his oath. It
is, therefore, hoped that this law and the conditions of life which it
provides, will transform the individual.
”The wandering
Arabs say: We believe. Say unto them: Ye believe not, but rather say ‘We
submit’, for the faith hath not yet entered your hearts. If ye obey Allah
and the Messenger, He will not withhold from you any of the rewards of your
deeds.” 49:14
2. A Faith
- The individual actually understands and accepts the teachings of Islam,
intellectually and emotionally. He tries to live by it. He may fail to do so
sometimes, but this does not matter. What matters is
the efforts made. It is the efforts which transform him, not the success or
failure.
3. A Complete Way of Life - This refers not to
something which has arisen accidentally, but is deliberately cultivated by the
application of Islamic principles to all aspects of life whatever. This goes
beyond faith to righteousness. It is hoped that this will transform the
individuals.
4. A State
of Being -
The individual is then a Muslim by nature.
“
Lo! My worship and my
sacrifice and my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the Worlds.”
6:16
To
Surrender to Allah implies:-
(a) to Fear Allah (b) to Love Allah and (c) to Know Allah.
These are
inter-related since each leads to and is reinforced by the other. In order,
however, to understand these notions we have to distinguish between their
objective and subjective meanings. There is a spiritual fear connected with the
welfare of the soul, the conscious entity, and a physical fear connected with
the welfare of the body. Physically we will all die. But there is something in
man which makes the difference between a dead body which merely reacts to
mechanical forces and a living entity which is conscious, has motives of love,
hope and faith, and can act deliberately. These qualities transform the world.
An unconscious man is merely a dead object. The difference is given by the
following verse:-
“It is Allah who takes the
soul of man at death, and those that die not, He takes during their sleep.
Those on whom He has passed the decree of death He keeps back, but the rest He
sends back for a term appointed. Verily in this are signs for those who
reflect.” 39:42
A person can be spiritually or physically
dead or asleep. The notion of ‘soul’ can be regarded as meaning
that aspect of man which is not identified with a temporal body, but has a much
more universal and cosmic significance. It cannot be denied that human beings,
apart from self-preservation and reproduction, are capable of thinking and
acting in an impersonal and much more objective and abstract manner, as, for
instance, when they pursue science, art, social justice and the communal
interest or religion where no personal material benefits are involved. They possess
consciousness, conscience and will which are suspended in sleep though the
processes of self-maintenance are still operating. Physical death and
destruction cannot, of course, be avoided, and an unconscious person cannot
feel any pain. Here we are speaking of objective fear, love and knowledge which
dispel subjective or false ones. Fear may result, subjectively, from greed
which is love of something producing no advantages, pursued by sacrificing
something beneficial. It is based on false knowledge, superstition or
ignorance. We may fear, love or know something which is superficial or fleeting
in time and has insignificant functions or consequences. The object of our
devotion may be an illusion, not what we thought it was, or prove to be fickle.
The part may be mistaken for the whole, the name for the object, the accidental
for the necessary, appearance for essence, desire for need, the means for the
ends, the vessel for the contents. Physical discomfort
is less important than psychological discomfort. A short time advantage in the
present may be obtained by sacrificing some greater long term advantage in the
future. The disintegration of Justice and fellow-feeling in a community is a
greater disaster than the loss of wealth, or some personal advantage for the
individual, as these, too, depend on the integrity of the community. The
individual is dependant on the community and on the world he lives in, and his
welfare depends on their welfare. This is a fact which cannot be ignored
without dire consequences.
Surrender
can be justified by means of three inter-dependant ideas:-
1, Allah is
defined as the Ultimate Reality from which the causes of all things proceed.
All things are, therefore, dependant on Him.
2, Allah is
Unity. Therefore, all things have a function and meaning with respect to Allah.
Nothing is independent of Allah. In effect this means that all things belong as
part to greater wholes; that all things are inter-dependant directly or
indirectly; that the whole has an aspect which is independent of the parts;
that the Whole controls the parts and not the other way round; that the whole
cannot be described or known by parameters which apply to the parts, but the
parts can be known in terms of aspects or attributes of the Whole. It also
means that reality is a consistent harmonious system such that every sub-system
within it must adjust itself to this whole or be destroyed. The implication is
that every sub-system has three aspects:- It must have
an input of information from its environment, it must process this, and it must
produce an output into the environment, and that these three processes are
inter-dependent. All processes depend on feedbacks. It is not difficult to see
that the cognitive, affective and conative functions are described by this, and
three values, knowledge, morality and practice depend on it.
3. The
nature of things is determined by the causes proceeding from Allah and their
function with respect to the whole to which they belong. All things do in fact
behave in conformity with their nature. But man has been given a degree of
independence. This is why the instruction to Surrender is required. Things
which cannot help but behave in accordance with their nature do not require
such instructions and these would be futile. He is required to cooperate
consciously and deliberately with the processes of the Universe, Nature and his
own nature.
The nature
of man is defined by the term Vicegerent. That is, the Spirit of Allah has been
placed in him. (2:30-34, 32:9, 33:72) This has several implications:-
(a) That he has been
given the powers of Allah, such as consciousness, intelligence, creativity,
initiative. He can, therefore, create and alter things.
(b) That he is capable
of knowing the world he lives in and himself.
(c) That he must use
these powers on behalf of Allah, including his own good..
(d) That his welfare
depends on fulfilling this function.
(e) Because of the
existence of the Spirit of Allah, the divine spark, within him, some systems
regard each individual as being a god. Islam does not approve of this for
several reasons:- (i) An
individual is described by the limits of his physical body, his mind as well as
his spirit. (ii) Owing to the Fall the spirit is
dormant in him. A person can be said to have a Higher or Real Self as opposed
to the False Self or Ego which is an idea of self in the mind. (ii) Since it is
the same spirit in all, there is no distinction between different people at
this level or between them and the rest of creation. It cannot apply to any
individual. (iii) The term creates arrogance which prevents learning and
development as well as numerous malfunctions.
It follows
that Surrender means surrender to the Real Self, the Divine spark, the
re-activation and dominance of the Spirit within. Surrender then implies that:-
(a) That the individual attains the same powers of
creativity, initiative and responsibility as Allah because Allah works through
Him. This applies to his effects on the environment as well as within him. He
can, for instance, be healed or obtain miraculous
powers.
(b) That the individual ceases to distinguish between
himself and others. What is good for others is good for him and what is bad for
others is bad for him. His motives cease to be self-centred.
(c) That the Awareness of the individual changes. He can (i) perceive the more subtle forces and (ii) he sees
everything in its relationship with other things (iii) He sees things as
belonging to a self- consistent wholeness.
(d) He
judges everything according to what he is given by Allah.
These are
self-evident facts no matter how formulated, but man is seldom aware of them
and does not behave accordingly. All these facts have not only to be recognised
but our motivations and actions must conform to this for three reasons:-
(i) If he does not behave in this
way he can disrupt the whole order and harmony of Nature, the World and perhaps
also of the Universe. This is an external reason.
(ii) Reality is greater and more powerful than man. If he
flouts the laws and order of the Universe it is he who will be destroyed. He
depends on the environment. This is an interactive reason.
(iii) Man
has an inbuilt need for self-preservation and development. If he flouts his own
nature he will contradict himself, disintegrate and suffer, This
may happen at several levels. He may be unaware of reality and himself. He may
be aware of the fundamental truths, but his motives may not conform to this
knowledge. His abilities and actions may not conform to his motives. He may
have been socially conditioned or compelled by habits and obsessions. This is
an inner or psychological reason.
Thus we may
reduce the notion of Surrender to four fundamental inter-linked principles, all
derived from the concept of Allah.
The Principle of Objectivity. - Allah is the ultimate
objectivity.
The Principle of Unity. - Allah is absolute Unity
behind the relativity which is usually described by a trinity.
The Principle of Responsibility. - All things are done by,
through and on behalf of Allah
The Principles of Judgement. - The attributes of Allah,
Truth, Beauty Goodness, and Power.
The four
parts of the last principle correspond to the four principles themselves in
that they tell us that truth is connected with Objectivity, beauty with Unity,
goodness with Responsibility, and power with Judgement.
Three
sources of objective Truth are recognised:-
1. The
Universe and the world of nature, the external world, to which the Quran
constantly points. This is also the subject of study for Science.
2. The
essential nature of man, the inner world, his spirit, consciousness, conscience
and will.
3. The
Scriptures in so far as they are correctly understood
and have not been corrupted. These provide the criteria and framework by which
the external and internal world are reconciled.
Surrender,
therefore, means surrender to these three creations of Allah.
The rest of
this work is devoted to the exposition of the meaning of these Principles.
----------<O>----------
From its technical
meaning, the following further meanings of “Islam” can be derived:-
1. To become one
with Allah; to identify oneself with Reality.
2. To submit to the
disciplines which lead to oneness with Allah.
3. To accept the
authority of teachers and guides who are devoted to the achievement of unity.
4. To join the
community that devotes itself to the goal of oneness with Allah.
5. To accept a
situations without agitation or despair. This is often called Fatalism. Taken
by itself it would appear to be an excuse for making no effort and for
stagnation. Indeed, this has often been the case. But it cannot be justified
because it is also necessary to accept objective values and truths. The word
“Islam” does not mean resignation in this sense, though a situation
about which nothing can be done has to be accepted with patience. It is the
Will of Allah and should be accepted as such. The acceptance of both a given
situation and the values ( the instructions of Allah
), should make Muslims consider carefully what is significant, what is
unchangeable and what is possible in a given situation and how to deal with it.
Unfortunately, this has not always occurred and the result has been futile
struggles and suffering. The Universe is always developing and changing from
“what is” to “what will be”. Human effort is part of this
process.
6. To accept
circumstances, both fortune and adversity, as being equally good and useful,
opportunities. To transcend the pair of opposites and reach
the underlying unity. This removes the conflicts and the tensions which
are the causes of suffering.
7. To be objective
not only in ones thinking, but also in ones feeling and actions. To have
objective motives, purposes and goals.
8. To seek knowledge
of all things and accept the truth.
9. To accept and
surrender to ones own essential nature.
10. To become
conscious of oneself; self-realization.
11. To develop the
love of Truth, the Universe, Reality, hence to serve in its interest.
12. To serve the
Universal Processes, e.g. Evolution, (the Purposes of Allah). To devote oneself to self-development and aid the development of
other things.
13. To achieve inner
integration. To become whole.
14. To achieve
cooperation and Unity with the rest of humanity.
15. To achieve
harmony with ones environment and the whole of the Universe. To
achieve complete adaptation to the Universe.
16. To become a
citizen of the Universe rather than of some limited or confined area of it. To
give ones total allegiance to Total Reality (Allah) rather than to some planet,
race, king, country, firm or group. To give up all narrow allegiances.
17. To establish in
oneself something permanent and real which is not accidental, fickle and
unstable and not to be subject or subordinate to the not-I. It should be
remembered that our opinions and behaviour patterns are largely acquired by conditioning to a
particular culture or situation where we happen to be born and raised up. These
opinions etc are not our own. The ego so created is to be replaced with Allah,
the divine spark which is the real I.
18. Surrender also
implies the acceptance that all things are, in fact, in a state of surrender,
including man, but man must also surrender consciously. The implication is that
there is a Causal Law which controls all things. It may be asked, as Muhammad
was asked by his companions, that if all things are already pre-determined by
the Causal Law what is the point in striving? The answer, as given by the
Prophet, is “That too has causes”. The question is irrelevant.
There are teachings and other social and genetic causes which determine if a
person will strive or not.
19. To give up
attachments, obsessions, addictions, manias, phobias and all other sources of
external compulsions. To be liberated.
20. To disentangle
oneself from the superficial, the formal, the accidental.
21. To develop a
real Self. To achieve consciousness, conscience and will.
To psychologically Construct or Reconstruct oneself.
22. To achieve
Perfection.
23. To achieve
self-purification by removing the obstructions and barriers between oneself and
the Spirit within.
24. To awaken, to
see Reality by removing the veil of illusion.
25. To help in the
Self-unfoldment or Self-realization of the Universe.
26, To assume the responsibilities which are inherent in the
existence of our potentialities and faculties, towards ourselves, the community
and the environment.
27. To achieve
Salvation. To save oneself from spiritual degeneration or destruction which
unconscious, automatic and mechanical behaviour imply.
All these meanings
can be included in the Islamic Principle of Objectivity.
The Principle of
Objectivity on which Science is based differs from that in Islam. In Islam it
requires that not only thought but also motivation and action should conform to
the Will of Allah, the ultimate Reality. The Scientific Principle of
Objectivity has the following features:-
1. In Science,
though objectivity means that things should be tested by experiment and
observation that is, by their conformity to reality it means that we should
detach ourselves from nature and regard the object of study as dead and inert
and find external causes for all changes in it. This cannot, of course be done
for the Whole since, by definition, there is nothing outside it. Hence, Science
must necessary ignore Allah. It can neither prove nor disprove the existence of
Allah.
2, The principle is, of course, not a proven or provable fact
but an assumption. It is a value judgment in that it tells us how scientists
ought to think. But there is no good justification even for this.
3, There are causes
for its arising but no logical reasons. The cause was as follows:- The development of science in the West was stimulated by
contact with the Islamic world, particularly with the Universities in Cordoba in Spain.
But here there was no dichotomy between Science and Religion. Since scientific
ideas derived from what was regarded as a heretical religion with which there
were bitter conflicts, controversies arose between the Christian Church, which
had the dominant power, and the newly emerging Scientists. This often led to
the persecution of the latter. There is a dichotomy in Christianity, justified
by some of the teachings of Paul, between the mind and the body, the spiritual
and the physical, the sacred and the profane, the Ideal and the Material. A
compromise was reached particularly as the Church was losing Political power.
Since Christianity had Priesthood organized into a Church, it took upon itself
the right to deal with the spiritual, and left the material to others,
Scientists, Political and Commercial leaders. Thus a dichotomy arose between
religion and science, spirit and matter, values and facts. The result was
disastrous both for religion and science. Religion became institutionalized,
wholly dogmatic and ritualistic. Science on the other hand became abstract,
impersonal and socially irresponsible. Objectivity was applied to thought, but
not to motives and actions.
4. The relevance of
Science to man is indirect, through the intellect. The difference between
Science and Religion is the same as that which exists between knowing a person
and knowing about a person. But we live in the world and are dependant on it,
and the motive for human activities is human benefit, even from a scientific
point of view. The detached attitude of Science, therefore, seems absurd.
5. The knowledge it
seeks is always that of relationships between things rather than relationships
between a thing and the whole to which it belongs.
6, The
justification for the Scientific Principle of Objectivity lies in the structure
of consciousness. As long as everything is constant or uniform, in a state X,
there is no awareness. As soon as there is a change or a contrast, awareness is
aroused so that some factor x1 can be distinguished from x2. The purpose of the
arousal of awareness is to activate the organism to reconcile the opposition so
created, and restore the unity by adding a factor x3. The opposition is a
problem and the solution is the restoration of unity. This can be done in
numerous ways. Intellectually it is done by the search and discovery or
invention of an explanation. This has several consequences:-
(a) Ultimately,
therefore, the purpose of science as of religion, is
to return to Unity. But science does it only intellectually. It wants to find a
Unified theory that will explain everything. But this cannot solve the problems
of Humanity. It is a purely intellectual pursuit. Since life consists also of
motives and actions, it is not possible to build a system of living on it.
(b) Science has
divided these inter-dependant faculties. The distinction between mind and
matter has created a distinction between intellect and action, and squeezed out
the feelings and emotions, so that they have become neglected and distorted,
and yet all motivations and values depend on them. The same attitude has
divided man, also a Unity into those who deal with intellectual matters, those
who do the physical work and those whose function is emotional and social. The
worker does not apply intelligent thinking, the intellectual produces theories
which conflict with practice, and those concerned with emotional and social
affairs neglect both thought and practice.
(c) It also divides
life into values, meanings and facts, ignoring the values which, nevertheless,
enter into it secretly by the back door in a distorted and disguised way. This
is not the case with religion or ought not to be the case if properly
understood. Whereas, the attention of Science is placed on the triad x1, x2 and
x3, that of Religion is placed on X, the original Unity. And that ought to be
the ultimate assumption. Hence the Islamic abhorrence of the
idea of a Trinity.
7, The
reliance on external causes has three consequences:-
(a) If it cannot find
a cause then this is attributed to Chance.
(b) It has to deny
purposiveness. But the whole of the behaviour of organisms are explained in
terms of the desire of the genes to reproduce themselves.
Since Biology cannot deny this, the way round the problem is to regard
reproduction as being fully determined and invariant, and make this the primary
condition. Purposiveness can then be seen as emerging through natural selection
which is also a mechanical process. What is more, change, mutation and
evolution are then seen as errors in reproduction due to accident rather than a
process in its own right.
(c) It must ignore
consciousness altogether, though knowledge depends on it.
8, The emphasis on external causes implies the supremacy of
sense data. But sensations are also subjective experiences. They are not always
reliable. There are illusions and hallucinations. In fact Science tries to
overcome this by the use of the intellect. Though the sun is seen as rising in
the East and sinking in the West, the intellect tells us that it is the earth
which is rotating. In fact motions being relative, it all depends on where the
observer is. However, the intellect is also known to give false results. But
since the intellect judges what is true, it follows that truth varies according
to what is currently considered to be true.
9, The wider effects and
applications of the Scientific Principle of Objectivity leads to
(a) Sensuality or Intellectualism, leading to the neglect
of feelings and all question of values.
(b) Externalism which shows itself in societies as methods
of external coercion, conditioning, regimentation.
(c) Mechanization of
thought, feeling and action. There is increasing concentration on the design,
manufacture and reliance on machines; the Universe is seen as a Machine; the
society is organized like a machine; and most activities, including science,
are reduced to rules, regulations and routines, to habits where intelligence is
suspended. The innovative and creative work is done by, and the initiative and
responsibility rests on, only the few.
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The word
“Islam” may be used to refer to different things:-
1. It refers to the
religion as taught by the Prophet Muhammad. It then, refers to particular
teachings, practices and institutions, to the methods. This should exclude the
innovations made by his followers or extraneous factors which have crept into
the actual practices of the people who profess to follow Islam.
2. It refers to the
religion of the “People of the Scriptures”. This phrase is used in
the Quran to refer specially to Hebrews, Christians and Muslims. There is here
a continuity of religious tradition. But the innovations should be excluded.
The word, Islam, now transcends the differences in form and method which exist
between these religions.
“He has named you Muslims in
olden times and in this scripture...” 22:78
3. It refers to all
religions in general as taught by their founders. This, too, should exclude the
innovations in theory and practice of the people who profess to follow these
Founders. It includes all the genuine teachings and practices. They should be regarded
as complimentary points of view without contradictions. If any contradictions
appear to exist between them then this should be regarded as either because
they apply to different situations and times or because of the limitations of
the observing mind.
The word, Islam, is
a synonym for a true religion, a deliberate conscious way of life based on
objective principles.
“And We
never sent a messenger save with the language of his folk that he might make
the message clear for them.” 14:4
“And lo your religion is one
religion, and I am your Lord, so keep your duty unto Me.
But they (mankind) have broken it into sects, each sect rejoicing in its
tenets.” 23:52-53
4. It refers to the behaviour of an individual who conforms to his
essential nature, quite apart from any formal or generally accepted way of life
or religion.
“So set thy purpose for religion
as a man by nature upright - the nature framed by Allah, in which He hath
created man. There is no altering the laws of Allah’s creation. That is
the right religion, but most men know not.” 30:30
“And the Jews will not be
pleased with you, nor will the Christians, till you follow their creed. Say:
Lo! the guidance of Allah Himself is sufficient
guidance.” 2:120
“O people of the Scripture! Why
will you argue about Abraham, when the Torah and Gospel were not revealed till
after him? Have you then no sense?.. Abraham was not a
Jew, nor yet a Christian; but he was an upright man who had surrendered to
Allah, and he was not of the idolaters.” 3:65-67
The same, no doubt
applies to the protestations of any other religion. It is, therefore, a mistake
to suppose that the only valid religions are orthodox ones. However, those who
claim to be directly guided by God may be lying or deceiving themselves. The
judge of this cannot be anyone but Allah Himself.
“Allah will judge between them
on the Day of Resurrection concerning that wherein they differ.” 2:113
5, It refers to anyone who has been inspired by Allah. Such
people are known as saints or mystics. However, anyone can claim to be inspired
but may well be deceiving himself, and many people fall into this category.
This cannot be determined by others from observation of external behaviour, particularly as such Judgements are
usually based on prejudices. It is not for man to judge, but only for Allah.
“The Exalter of Ranks, the Lord
of the Throne, He casts the Spirit by His command upon whom He pleases of His
servants, that it may warn men of the Day of Meeting.” 40:15
6. It refers in
particular to the condition of the Prophets, those who have given up their own
will, and have identified it with that of Allah.
“Lo! my
worship and my sacrifice, and my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the
Worlds. he hath no partner. This I am commanded and I
am the first of those who surrender unto Him.” 7:163-164
7. It refers to the
natural state of all things.
“And unto Allah submit whosoever
is in the heavens and the earth, willingly or unwillingly, as do their shadows
in the morning and the evening hours.” 13:15
“Hast thou not seen that unto
Allah pays adoration whosoever is in the heavens and whosoever is in the earth,
and the sun and the moon and the stars, and the hills, and the trees, and the
beasts, and many of mankind, while there are many unto whom the doom is justly
due. “ 2 2:18
8. Allah Himself
submits to His own rules. E.g.
“ He hath prescribed for Himself mercy.” 6:12
Though Allah can do
as He will, He wills order. The existence of order does not contradict His
freedom. Indeed, it may be argued that the existence of Chance at the same time
as Order proves this. The Universe exists and is recognizable only because it
has certain rules and regularities. A game which has no rules is not a game,
nor is an object an object which has no structure.
9, Finally, it refers to all these different meanings at the
same time.
When speaking about
Islam, in order to avoid misunderstandings, it is often necessary to ascertain
which level is being referred to .
Islam is at once a
doctrine, a method, and a goal.
The doctrine is that
Allah, the ultimate Reality is One and Absolute, Eternal, Infinite, Omnipotent,
Omniscient and Omnipresent. All things are dependant on Him. Therefore,
opposition to Him can only produce conflict, suffering and destruction (Hell),
while conformity with Him causes self-fulfillment, peace, development (Paradise). In other words :
Everyone has a built-in desire for self-fulfillment (though they may not be
aware of it or they may misinterpret it due to disease or ignorance ). They
need to acquire Truth (objective knowledge), the correct objective motivation
and the appropriate abilities to do so. All other goals are of subordinate
importance, being means to an end. If other things become goals in themselves
they become distractions from the Straight Path (another name for Islam), and
constitute Idolatry. The goal is, therefore, to achieve self-fulfillment,
perfection and ultimate Peace through submission to Objective Truth. This
includes ones own nature.
To clarify:- 1. The doctrine states:- that
all things are already in a state of submission unconsciously. 2, The goal is:- that in so far as man possesses consciousness he ought
also to submit consciously to the Universal Plan in order to avoid
self-destruction and achieve self-fulfilment. In order to do this he needs objective
knowledge, motivation and abilities and these are developed by 3, the direct
method:- of the practice of submission to Reality.
Many other methods also exist but these are indirect.
“This ( The
Quran ) is naught else than a reminder unto Creation.” 81:27 and
68:52”
“And unto Allah falls prostrate
whatsoever is in the heavens or the earth, willingly or unwillingly, as do
their shadows in the morning and the evening hours.” 13:15. See also
16:49 and 22:18
“O man, follow not that whereof
thou hast no knowledge. Lo! the hearing and the sight
and the heart- of each of these it will be asked (to give an account).”
17:36
“Allah, He is the Truth, and
that whereon they call instead of Him, it is the False.” 22:62 Also see
24:25
“And who goes further astray
than he who follows his own lust without guidance from Allah.“
28:50
“Nay, but those who do wrong
follow their own lusts without knowledge.....So set thy purpose for Religion as
a man by nature upright - the nature framed by Allah, in which He hath created
man. There is no altering the laws of Allah’s creation. That is the right
religion, but most men know not- turning unto Him only; and be careful of your
duty unto Him, and establish worship, and be not of those who ascribe partners
unto Him; of those who split up their religion and become schismatics, each
sect exulting in its tenets.” 30:29 - 32
Thus we see that
Islam means surrender to ones own essential nature. But people go astray owing
to the fact that they replace the truth with their own wishful thinking driven
by greed and lust.
The Prophet is
reported to have said:-
“Everyone is born a Muslim, but
his parents make him into something else.”
The meaning of this
is that everyone is born according to his true inherent nature. But during his
upbringing he acquires certain other characteristics through social
conditioning. This is done through punishment and reward, imitation, trial and
error in a society organized to channel efforts in certain directions,
propaganda and indoctrination. This so called Persona or Mask suppresses
certain inherent tendencies, perverts others and reinforces still others. The
individual is no longer himself but a slave of the society. The Society is not
an association of free individuals but a machine created by its position and
history. The essential Man is imprisoned and needs to be set free. The mirror
of his consciousness has rusted.
It is evident that
if the above statement were to be taken in its naive sense then it would become
absurd. How could you be a Muslim if you had not yet heard about Islam, studied
its teachings, understood them, adopted and practiced them ?
It is not difficult
to see that the essential principles of all Religions are included. Consider,
for instance, the Four Noble truths of Buddhism: That there is suffering, the
causes of suffering, that it can be overcome, the method of overcoming it. To
say that the cause of suffering is birth, is not different in effect from
saying that it is the result of the Fall of Adam, a formulation accepted in
Hebrewism and Christianity too. It is not necessary to accept the controversial
cyclic law of Karma. It is only necessary to see that there are laws which the
processes of the universe and human nature obey and that our actions will reap
benefits or harm accordingly.
“Whosoever goes right, it is
only for the good of his own soul that he goes right, and whosoever errs, errs
only to its hurt. No laden soul can bear another’s load.” 17:15
Islam recognizes the
validity of other religions whose formulations and methods were suited to other
peoples in other ages and circumstances.
“Unto each nation have We given sacred rites which they are to perform; so let them
not dispute with thee of the matter, but summon thou unto thy Lord.” 22:67
The existence of
these differences in methods does not imply that one is wrong and the other
right. However,
“And when it is said unto them:
Follow that which Allah hath revealed, they say: We follow that wherein we
found our fathers. What! Even though their fathers were wholly unintelligent
and had no guidance?” 2:170
Mere imitation is
quite useless and it is not necessarily true that something which has been
passed down by tradition has still any spiritual value or had even been
introduced by a genuine teacher. Surrender of this kind to tradition is not
surrender to Allah.
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The word ‘Islam’ has three levels of meaning.
It refers to:-
(a) a psychological state of Surrender to Allah.
(b) adherence to a system of ethical teachings, regarded as the
commands of Allah.
(c) a system of religious practices.
Islam is
‘Surrender to Allah’ in all three senses. A person who has accepted
Islam is called a Muslim.
A true Muslim is one
who has surrendered to Allah. This means that he has devoted his living and
dying to Allah and that he does all things for Allah’s sake. ( 6:163 and 76:9). In other words, he behaves objectively.
In effect a Muslim
is one who has surrendered to the Spirit of Allah within himself. The Divine
spark becomes active in him. This brings him to life. He is reborn or
resurrected. (6:123). It makes him into the Vicegerent.
The effect of this
is:-
1. The person
acquires a centre of integration and control, a Self within himself. He becomes
a unified whole.
2. A person acquires
consciousness. He becomes capable of the awareness of reality, of himself and
his environment.
3. His conscience is
uncovered. His behaviour is motivated by an inherent sense of values.
4. He acquires Will.
He becomes capable of self-control.
5. He behaves with a
sense of responsibility towards everything which comes within his sphere of
influence.
6. He possesses and
uses the divine power of initiative.
7. He acquires the
divine power of creativity and exercises it.
This describes the
state of Surrender. It has greater priority than the ethical system, and this
has a greater priority than the religious practices. The state of surrender
leads automatically to an appropriate ethical system. And this leads to a
suitable system of religious practices. However, the religious practices are
designed to instill the ethical system and this is designed to facilitate the
state of surrender.
The word
“Islam”, unfortunately, like other words, arouses certain
conditioned reflexes. All kinds of irrelevant experiences and ideas have become
associated with it. The result is that passionate and unthinking reactions are
aroused in people, for or against it. We are not concerned with these here.
It is necessary to
state, however, that the word “Islam” does not merely refer to an
intellectual concept. It is also a formula which brings into consciousness all
its meanings. When the word “Islam” is used or its associated flags
and other emblems are presented, they ought to act as “reminders” in
the psychological sense, producing the appropriate attitudes of thought,
feeling and action, a “mental set”. From this point of view they
act as what used to be called “charms” whose psychological function
has seldom been properly understood. Needless to say that, when this word or
its associated emblems merely arouse belligerency or sentimentality, then their
purpose has not merely been neutralized but reversed. Instead of activating the
higher centers they have activated the more primitive ones.
Islam may be
regarded as being synonymous with Theism in that it is impartial towards all
religions. It differs from Atheism in recognizing that man is not supreme, but
dependent on a power greater than himself.
It may also be
regarded as being synonymous with Humanitarianism in so far as it recognizes
that human nature itself contains the moral impulses. But it differs from it in
denying that human beings are already morally perfect. They have the
potentialities, but these must be cultivated. It is also a much wider concept
since it recognizes that human beings do not exist in isolation, are not the
only creature and do not have any importance in themselves, but have a function
with respect to a greater whole.
Provided that the
term, human being, is understood correctly, that is, in its relation to Allah,
a Muslim can be regarded as one who calls himself a human being, rather than
according to nationality or race, Arab, Indian, Persian, American etc, or
according to profession, carpenter, doctor, lawyer and so on.
The main concept in
Islam is Tawhid, Unity, to unify or assert oneness in thought, motivation and
action. It has three forms:- Tawhid-ar-Rabubiyah ( Unity of Lordship ), Tawhid-al-Asma-was-Sifaat (Unity of names and attributes), Tawhid-al-Ibadah (Unity of worship). That nothing besides Allah
should be served or worshipped and no intermediaries are recognized. Belief
must be correct, but belief is not enough. (49:15). We
must try to be aware of the Unity behind diversity, behave accordingly and try
to create it within ourselves, in the community and the world.
There are seven ways
in which Unity can be seen:-
1, That Allah has all Power. He is the origin, cause and source
of all things. 1:1-3, 2:116, 6:102, 13:15, 57:3
2, That He is unique and incomparable to anything. 42:11, 112:4,
42:11
3, That He has no parts. 112:1, 23:64, 38:66, 39:4
4, That He has no partners or rivals. He is not one among many.
4:48, 6:164, 17:111, 21:22, 23, 91, 27:26, 38:66
5, That He is the goal and judge of all things. 112:2, 22:18,
51:56, 53:42
6,
That He is neither
begotten nor begets. That He is self-sufficient and independent of all things
and has no need. 112:3, 10:69, 29:6, 39:7.
7, That He pervades all things. 2:115, 4:126, 6:104, 41:54
In other words He is
Reality, the Truth, which we must seek and abide by for our own welfare.
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