The Nature of Idols - Continued - Part 2
In Surah Shams one finds:
“By the Sun and his brightness,
And, by the moon when she follows him,
And by the Day when it reveals him,
And by the Night when it enshrouds him,
And by the heaven and He Who built it,
And by the earth and He Who spread it,
And by the soul and Him Who perfected it
And inspired it with knowledge of lewdness and God-fearing,
He is indeed successful who causes the soul to grow,
And He is indeed a failure who stunts its growth.”
According to my shaykh (may Allah be pleased with him),
the rhetorical style of the Qur'an is such that when Allah
wishes to emphasize the importance of something, the
medium of oaths is used. In Surah Shams, one finds oath
upon oath upon oath upon oath … by the Sun, and by the
moon, and by the Day and by the Night, and by the
heaven, and by the earth, and by the soul, and by Him
Who built the heavens, and by Him Who spread the Earth,
And by Him Who perfected the soul and inspired it
With knowledge of lewdness and God-fearing.
On many occasions I heard my shaykh say that no where
else in the Qur'an does one encounter so many oaths heaped
on one another as in the opening verses of Surah Shams. Clearly,
God is seeking to draw our attention to something of crucial
importance – and this emphasis or focus has to do with the things
we do which can either purify the soul and help it grow, or the
things we can do to sully and obstruct the growth of the soul.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is reported to have
said: “Every person who rises in the morning either does that
which will be the means of one's redemption or one's ruin.” Each
day we either pursue the purification and growth of the soul or
we do not.
Elsewhere in the Qur'an, one finds: “That person prospers who
purifies oneself, invokes the name of one's Lord, and prays.”
[Qur'an, 87: 14]. Throughout my adult life I have sought
to do each of things – sometimes more so and better than
at other times.
The foregoing is also why such emphasis is given on the Sufi
path to the development of character for in character lies the
capacity to do justice to the truth, irrespective of its personal
costs. Thus, the Prophet is reported to have said: “I have been
given all the Names and have been sent to perfect good character
and conduct.” The Prophet also is reported to have said that
'the best thing in the Scale on the Day of Judgment will be a
beautiful character', and he is also reported to have said that
'the most perfect of the faithful in faith is the most beautiful
of them in character'. In addition, the Prophet was asked: “Which
part of faith is most excellent?” He is reported to have replied:
“a beautiful character”. And, finally, the Prophet is reported to
have said: “Allah has 300 attributes, and the person who acquires
just one of these for one's own character, will inherit Paradise.”
Clearly, the issue of the lenses which are constructed by us and
through which we engage, interpret, understand, and act in
relation to reality are very important. Clearly the methodologies
and processes through which we fashion, shape, color, and
orient the qualities that are made into such lenses are of critical
importance. Clearly the intentions with which we undertake
such a lens constructing project are of essential importance.
You indicate that the lens of tasawwuf which you allege I
use to examine many issues can, sometimes, be misleading.
You also say, as quoted earlier, that the Whitehouse Briefs
portion of the Sufi Reflections Pod-cast usually touch on politics.
Actually, although some of my comments may “touch on politics”
in the sense of involving critiques of various political positions, I
am not interested in politics per se; I don't participate in politics; I am
not a member of any political party, and I believe that politics is
firmly entrenched in the realm of dunya and nafs, and, therefore,
the farther away one stays from politics, the better off one is.
At the same time, I do seek the truth, and I do attempt to do
justice to the truth as I understand it and according to whatever
insights, if any, God may have blessed me with in relation
to the realms of truth, action, knowledge, understanding,
and justice in the activities of humankind. The Prophet
Muhammad (peace be upon him) is reported to have said:
“Live in this world as if one were going to live for a thousand
years and live for the next world as if one were going to die
tomorrow,” and, surely, part of this means that with respect
to this world, one should do unto others as one would want
others to do unto oneself, and, with respect to the next world,
one should attempt to busy oneself with activities that may,
if God wishes, have value in the life to come.
With respect to this world, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be
upon him) is reported to have asked and then answered the
following question: What actions are most excellent? To
gladden the heart of a human being; to feed the hungry; to
help the afflicted; to lighten the sorrow of the sorrowful; to
remove the wrong of the injured.”
How I do any of this is my responsibility. I try to follow the
example of the Prophet according to my capacity and
understanding, and I do not feel duty bound to follow what
another human being says is my duty unless there is merit in
what is said. In this respect, I try to take into consideration a
variety of points of view, and, then, I reflect on these matters,
and, then, God willing, I make a judgment concerning an issue,
and, then, I try to act in accordance with that judgment --- this
is a judgment for which I – and no one else -- will be held
accountable on the Day of Judgment, and it is a judgment about
which I pray a prayer of the Qur'an: “O my Lord, increase me
in knowledge.” [Qur'an, 20: 114]. As the Qur'an indicates:
“No soul benefits except from its own works, and none
bears the burden of another. Ultimately, you return to your Lord,
then He informs you regarding all your disputes." [Qur'an, 6:164]
In the Qur'an, one finds: “To everyone We have appointed a
Law and a Way. [Qur'an, 5: 48]. I have my law and I have my
way, and I seek to apply myself to both and gain greater insight
into each of these as I travel on my journey of return … my pilgrimage
back to Allah.
The Qur'an says: “Say: Each works according to one's own manner.”
[Qur'an, 17: 84]. I have the fitra or primordial capacity which God
has given me, and I seek to realize, if God wishes, some of the
constructive potential of that capacity.
To do – or try to do -- the foregoing, one needs more than love.
Among other things, one also needs: faith, commitment, perseverance,
courage, compassion, sincerity, honesty, humility, kindness, tolerance,
forbearance, repentance, equitability, piety, patience, dependence on
Allah, balance, knowledge, modesty, and strength. This is what the
Sufis teach, and this forms part of the lens through which I attempt
to engage the events of life.
Byazid al-Bistami (may Allah be pleased with him) once said:
“The contraction of the heart lies in the expansion of the nafs,
while the expansion of the heart lies in the nafs' contraction.”
Truly, there is much which is unpalatable to the nafs which nurtures
the heart, spirit and soul. However, what is unpalatable to the nafs is
not necessarily this or that commandment which is being alleged
to having been issued from Divinity.
Islam is about opportunity, not necessarily obedience. Islam
is about unique potentials, not necessarily rewards. Islam is
about the sort of faith which one must verify with one's heart,
not a blind adherence to that which has been invented by this
or that theologian. Islam is about principles and not necessarily
legalities or rules. Islam is dynamic not static. Islam is flexible
not rigid. Islam is about realizing the purpose of life and not necessarily
achieving Paradise – as real as the latter may be. Islam provides
a way for every spiritual capacity, and Islam is not necessarily
just one narrowly defined way to which everyone must acquiesce.
What the nature of the aforementioned opportunity, unique potential,
faith, principles, flexibility, dynamism, and way alluded to above may
be has been outlined in the foregoing discussion. It is not quasi-Sufi,
but fully Sufi, and, despite your belief to the contrary, the foregoing
lays a fully Islamic foundation for dealing with the sorts of objections
which you wish to make concerning the idea that offering the Temple
Mount to the Jewish people in exchange for peace, land and full
sovereignty of the Palestinian people is somehow un-Islamic.
Before stating what you consider to be Islamic objections to the
foregoing idea, you state a few things that you believe can be
offered from what you believe to be the Jewish side of things. For
example, you state:
“You mentioned at least twice in your brief that Jews could not
worship properly without their temple, being a center of their
world and a source of redemption for them. This struck me as
odd, as if it were so terribly important, one ought to inquire about
how the Jews have gotten along for the last two thousand years
since Titus destroyed the second temple.”
The short answer to your question is: the Jews have gotten along
in relation to the practice of their faith only with difficulty as
far as the portions of their faith are concerned that cannot be
observed due to a lack of the sacred temple. Part of these difficulties
have been due to the Diaspora, and part of these difficulties have been
due to a lack of a space and the power to effect the building of the third
temple, and part of these difficulties have been due to the totalitarian,
manipulative, and oppressive manner in which the modern state of Israel
was created and all of the totally unnecessary – but all too real -- problems
which that strategy entailed.
When you can't do what you need to do, you do what you can.
And, so the Jewish people have tried to make do as best they can
without the presence of the third temple – but it doesn't necessarily
follow that because they have been able to make do without
the third temple, that, therefore, one should continue to create
difficulties for the Jewish people in relation to this aspect of
their faith.
You go on to say that you:
“came across a quote from a Jewish work entitled
Avoth de-Rabbi Natan wherein is described a conversation
between Rabbi Yehosua and Rabbi Yochanan. The former
lamenting the destruction of the second Temple, the later
replied that redemption was now arrived at via “loving kindness”
as stated in Hosea 6:6 “I desire loving kindness and not sacrifice.”
Another source from the Babylonian Talmud states that two rabbis,
Rabbi Yochanan and Rabbi Eleazar relate that while the Temple
stood, its altar atoned for Israel's sins, and now that it is gone
“one's table atones,” i.e. that kindness and charity were the path
of redemption. Additionally, the liturgy of the Days of Awe state
that prayer, repentance, and piety atone for sin. So, it seems the
Temple is not so central in redemption after all.”
Actually, all your stated research shows is that there were some
Jewish Rabbis who felt there were ways of proceeding in the absence of
the physical presence of the third temple which might serve, if God
wished, as a temporary substitute for the role played by that sacred
structure. The Rabbis you mention had inventive, constructive, moral
and flexible ways of dealing with the difficulty represented by the
absence of the third temple.
If necessary, one can get along without all manner of things, and in the
process, adapt to the exigencies of the circumstances. A person who
is blind, or deaf, or physically challenged in some way can find ways
of adapting to, and, perhaps, even thriving in the face of adversity,
but this doesn't mean that if the opportunity for the regaining of
sight, hearing, or overcoming some other form of physical impairment
came along, one should just stick with an interim mode of adaptation.
Secondly, I do not think it is the place of Muslims to tell the Jewish
people what is, or is not, central to redemption, any more than I believe
it is the place of Israel to try to impose on Palestinians Israeli notions
of what constitutes justice and fairness. I am sure that many Jewish
people would agree that one cannot eliminate individual efforts in
the seeking of personal redemption and salvation, but the redemption
of a nation may require something more than individual acts of
atonement … however important these personal acts
may be.
Next you say:
“Additionally, the majority of Jews believe that the third
Temple should and/or will be built in the era of the Messiah. The
minority position is that the Temple ought to be rebuilt whenever
possible. That minority position would also not be inclined to
give up land. The main reason, it seems, for Jews to wait for the
Messiah is that the dimensions of the Temple are not actually
known. Well, they know all the measurements in cubits, but there
is disagreement on what exactly a cubit is – an issue which only the
Messiah can resolve.”
I have not conducted any polls which identifies what the majority or
minority of Jews believe with respect to the third temple. I haven't
seen any such polls, and I don't know how accurate and reliable
the polls are to which you allude in your comment. However, if we
use your claims as a working hypothesis, then, I have the following
suggestions to make: for those who believe that the third temple
should not be constructed until the arrival of the Messiah, then,
as a gesture of good faith on both sides, why don't Muslims say
that when the Messiah arrives, the Jews may have the Temple Mount
for the building of their third temple, but, in the mean time, let the
Muslims continue to pray there and, moreover, the Israelis should give
back the lands and sovereignty which have been taken from the
Palestinians. As for those among the Jews who believe that the temple
should be constructed now, then, permit the Jewish nation to proceed
with this, but in the meantime, the Jewish people should observe the
ten commandments which are also part of their faith and, as a result, not
covet the property of their neighbors nor steal from their neighbors nor kill
their neighbors. If the Jewish people wish to build the third temple in
order to be able to observe all of their faith, then, they should practice
all of the rest of their faith as well … don't pick and choose what you
will observe in the way of spiritual practice and what you will not observe
with respect to such practices.
You follow up your foregoing comments with the following:
“One should also note that the rebuilding of the Temple is
something that all Jews pray for, but which is not a principle
of faith.”
If all Jews pray for the building of the third temple, and if, as you claim,
it has nothing to do with observing their faith, then, why do they pray for
it? What role, function, or purpose does the third temple serve in their
lives? Is it merely a matter of representing sentimental value? And, if
it is merely of sentimental value, then, what difference does it make
whether, or not, one waits for the Messiah in order to get the
measurements right?
You continue by saying:
“I would argue that if it actually were an article of faith
that the Temple must be rebuilt, it would have been done so
by now as the Israelis have had effective control of the Temple
Mount since the Six Day War. On the contrary, the Israelis,
despite their apparent military superiority and ability to enforce
their will, have left the management of the Temple Mount in the
hands of the Islamic Waqf, in whose hands it has been since the
Muslims conquered the Kingdom of Jerusalem in 637 CE.”
I disagree with your contention that if the rebuilding of the temple
were really an article of faith, then, the Israelis, with all their
military superiority, would have enforced their will on the Temple
Mount. First of all, if what you argued earlier were true – that is, if
the majority of the Jewish people believe it is necessary to wait for
the advent of the Messiah before rebuilding the temple -- then they
can afford to bide their time and wait for the appropriate events
to unfold, doing nothing in the meantime – in fact, even being able
to assume a certain aura of magnanimity by 'allowing' the Muslims
to retain control of the Temple Mount. Secondly, if the Israelis
were to forcibly evict Muslims from the Temple Mount, they would
risk igniting a real public relations nightmare for Israel around the
world, not to mention an on-going human tragedy – for both Muslims
and Jews -- of incredible proportions.
With the active help of American religious leaders, journalists, media
leaders, and members of Congress, Israeli politicians have been able to get away with
many forms of oppression, torture, destruction, and injustice with respect to
the Palestinian people. However, I think that Israel would be signing its own
death warrant with respect to its ability to get away with things as it has in
the past if it were to lay waste to the Temple Mount and/or forcibly evict
Muslims from that area … and I believe the Israelis understand this. They
have left management of the Temple Mount in the hands of the Islamic
Waqf because it is prudent for them to do so under the present circumstances.
In the next portion of your e-mail you move on to what you consider
to be Islamic arguments against the idea of thinking about arranging a
swap of lands, peace, and sovereignty for the Palestinians in exchange
for the Jewish community's right to build their third temple. More
specifically, you claim:
“Unlike some Muslims today, the early Muslims believed that Islam
was the perfection and final religion, abrogating all other religions. "
Actually, Islam always existed – right from the time of Adam (peace
be upon him). It may have received its final name and form in the time
of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), but spiritual traditions
that were pursued by the 124,000 Prophets, and which were disclosed
through various revealed books – including the Divine revelations given
to Jesus, Moses, David, and Abraham (peace be upon them all) –
all contained the essential spiritual guidance needed by human beings
to realize the purpose of life.
Nothing in the way of essential spirituality was abrogated. To be sure,
mistaken and false theologies that had arisen over the course of time
were corrected. However, this was accomplished through God sending
more Prophets and books of revelation to humankind, to renew the
message of truth which already had been given to earlier generations.
This renewal of spiritual truth had to do with the nature of life, faith,
justice, love, worship, compassion, kindness, patience, sincerity, piety,
remembrance, methodology, practice, mankind's relation to divinity,
the life to come, warnings, moral principles, and so on. I challenge
anyone to name one authentic Prophet to whom these spiritual truths
were not given.
You use the term “perfection” in relation to religion. I agree with you
that the Qur'an says that “on this day I have perfected your religion”,
but what, exactly, did Allah mean by this? How was the deen perfected?
What was added or changed?
Are you saying that what human beings were given prior to the time of
Muhammad (peace be upon him) was but a pale imitation of the real truth
and but a shoddy piece of workmanship? Are you saying that what
human beings were given prior to the time of the Prophet was filled
with error, problems, and was lacking in what human beings needed
to realize their essential primordial nature? And, if you are saying this,
then what significance should be given to Prophets and revelation prior
to the time of the Prophet -- especially since we are told to make no
divisions among Prophets and especially since we are told that the
Qur'an has incorporated within its contents all of the previous
revelations which have been sent to humankind?
What are we to make of the Quranic injunction: “So follow the Deen of
Abraham, the upright. He was not of the idolaters.” [3: 95] Or, again,
“who forsakes the millati of Abraham save him who deludes himself.”
[Qur'an, 2: 130]
What are we to make of all of the traditions related in the Qur'an
which extol the character of earlier Prophets and use their lives to
inspire, instruct, guide, warn, and teach Muslims of today? Are we
to suppose that none of this was part of the perfection to which you
are alluding?
In the section of your e-mail where you talk about the fact that
God had perfected the Deen of Muhammad and completed God's
favor upon the Prophet, you mention the part of Surah 5, verse 3
which states how Allah has “chosen for you Islam as your religion.”
What seems to be missing from your account is that Allah
had chosen Islam for all of the Prophets.
God didn't choose some other religion for the Prophets prior to
Muhammad (peace be upon him). There may have been certain
practices which were given to Muhammad (peace be upon him)
and his followers (e.g., fasting, prayer, and pilgrimage in their
current form) that were not bestowed on earlier Prophets and
their followers, but the beliefs in the Oneness of Divinity, the angels,
the prophets, revelation, the Day of Judgment, and that God is the
determiner of good and evil, were all present from the time of Adam
(peace be upon him). Similarly, prayer, remembrance, worship,
charity, and the performance of good deeds were also observed by
earlier Prophets and their followers.
Whatever differences of guidance and practice which exist among
the different Prophets are variations on the same underlying Deen.
One is not talking about different spiritual traditions, even if some
people gave different names to the essential Deen and sought, over
time, to introduce practices and teachings which had not been inherent
in the original Divine guidance given to such Prophets.
You continue on with:
“As far as abrogating all previous religions, Allah says, “Whoever seeks
a religion other than Islam will never have it accepted of him, and he
will be of those who have truly failed in the hereafter.” (Koran 3:85) …”
What is the Deen of Islam? The Deen of Islam is what is transmitted through
the Qur'an, and what is transmitted through the Qur'an encompasses what
has been passed on through the other Prophets and the previous revelations
which is true.
The best exemplar of the observance and practice of Islam is the Prophet
Muhammad (peace be upon him). However, it is the Prophet's entire body
of intention, understanding, knowledge, and practice which constitutes this
example, not just what we take that practice to be.
Many people maintain that they grasp the intention, understanding, knowledge
and practice of the Prophet. I have my doubts about such a position.
Only someone of the Prophet's spiritual stature could possibly understand
the Prophet, and, therefore, since the rest of us are not of that stature, we
are left to grapple as best we can with the clues which are left behind in
the form of the Qur'an and the sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad
(peace be upon him).
The Qur'an says: “So, the one who has obeyed the Messenger has obeyed
God.” [Qur'an, 4: 80] And, when the Messenger instructs me
to do something, then, insha' Allah, I will strive to do that which is
indicated for me.
However, there are far too many people running around claiming that
the Prophet is instructing me to do this and instructing me to do that
and, yet, in many, if not most, cases what I am being told is little more
than someone's interpretation of the Qur'an or someone's interpretation
of the life of the Prophet … interpretations which often are rooted
in very questionable and arbitrary assumptions, premises, and leaps of
logic.
The Qur'an teaches many things, and the Prophet teaches many things.
How one balances those teachings, how one forges a spiritual vector that
is capable of combining different, sometimes conflicting, teachings into a
wise course of action in any given set of circumstances is something
which should be explored, discussed, reflected upon, questioned, and
analyzed in considerable detail by the Muslim community. I believe in
the concept of shura – at least in the sense of having public forums
concerning issues of the day in which everyone comes to those forums
and is given an equal opportunity to express their perspective, concerns,
questions, ideas, and the like.
But when someone in another country – whether this someone is an
imam, a shaykh in the non-sufi sense, a mullah, a mufti, a qadi, an
Ayatollah, a Caliph, an alim, and even, unfortunately, many who
refer to themselves as Sufi shaykhs (there are all too many inauthentic
spiritual guides these days who are masquerading as something they
are not) – issues a fatwa and tries to argue that they are speaking on
behalf of the Prophet or God and that people must submit to the
dictates of such a fatwa and if they do not then they are among
the unbelievers, then, I begin to suspect that nafs and dunya are
at play, not spirituality and certainly not Islam.
| Return to Menu | Part 1 | | Next | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 |
|
