The Broader Notion of Din Al-Islam Is Inclusive Of
All Monotheistic Faiths
It is a joy to read the following article about Islam by
Muhammad Yunus
Islam can be understood to be a
system of keeping the creation as created; in balance. All our efforts to
preserve and maintain that balance amounts to submission to God, the ultimate
goal is perfect harmony of all the elements to function cohesively - to create
peace - a perfect union where there is no injustice or oppression, nor fear or
apprehension.
I really like your statement, “Qur’an
describes ‘din al-Islam’, as the universal faith that was enjoined on earlier
prophets, who were all true Muslims (2:131-133), and conveyed the same
essential message.”
Your mention of “The Qur’an’s
repeated reference to good deeds [1] as distinct from purely religious
obligations, such as salah, Zakah, hajj and fasting indicate that the Qur’an
treats all those deeds or actions as good, which bring about good to human
beings or serve humanity.” Also points to the item above and that has been my
take all along. 3:85 is generic, Muhammad Asad does the right translation.
The analogy of Xerox to mean photo
copy, Islam means a system to keep one in balance with himself and what
surrounds him, it is a generic word politicized as an entity like a private
club where the appointed managers decides who is a member or not. Islam is not
a private club.
You put
that perfectly, “Thus, in the Qur’anic worldview, a good Muslim is a believer
in God who is active in good deeds, is conscious of his social, moral and
ethical responsibilities and preserves against all that is gross, immoral and
unjust.”
Indeed,
you are right about a “few” Ulema, who will refute this understanding. Their
rightness is based on other’s wrongness, and that is a short sighted
understanding of the diversity of the creation.
An average
Muslim is insecure; he cannot fathom the idea that other religions are as
beautiful as Islam and that each system works for the believer. Ours is not a
negative faith, it is an all embracing faith and truly universal. For most
people their faith is the right faith because others are wrong, that is the
weakest of Imaan.
All are
committed to preserving that elusive equilibrium, in essence submission to that
goodness.
Mike
Ghouse
Its conclusion reads:
Conclusion: An introspective probe
into the Qur'an as advocated by the Qur'an (38:29, 47:24) and tabled in this
discourse, shows that in the Qur'anic worldview, a good muslim is a believer in
God - regardless of religion, race, cast, creed or affiliation with a spiritual
fraternity, who is active in good deeds, is conscious of his social, moral and
ethical responsibilities and preserves against all that is gross, immoral and
unjust. Since God alone can judge human's faith (iman), deeds ('aml) and moral
uprightness (taqwa), a non-Muslim in the divisive human language can be a
better muslim in divine record than a Muslim (follower of Prophet Muhammad).
Hence the Muslims have absolutely no basis to call the non-Muslims as kafirs
(denier of truth), individually or collectively.
The Broader Notion of Din Al-Islam Is Inclusive Of All
Monotheistic Faiths
By Muhammad Yunus, New Age Islam
Co-author (Jointly with Ashfaque
Ullah Syed), Essential Message of Islam, Amana Publications, USA, 2009
July 26, 2012.
In the Qur'anic vocabulary, the din
al-Islam or the moral law (religion in popular vocabulary) of Islam has a
specific (exclusive) as well as universal (inclusive) connotation. In its
specific sense, it is the religion of the followers of the Prophet Muhammad.
This is defined by one of the concluding revelations of the Qur'an:
"…This day, those who reject
(this Qur'an) despair of (ever harming) your religion. Therefore, do not fear
them; fear Me. This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My
favour on you, and have chosen Islam for your religion…" (5:3).
In its generic sense, it is the
universal din (moral law) that all the prophets who came before Muhammad
(pbuh), whether or not mentioned in the Qur'an, preached to their followers.
The Qur'an defines the essence of this common religion as follows:
"Indeed! Whoever commits (asslama)
his whole being [lit., face] to God, and is compassionate (muhsin) - will get
his reward from his Lord. There will be no fear upon them nor shall they
grieve." (2:112).
"And who can be better in
faith* (din) than the one who orients (asslama) his whole being to God, and
does good deeds (ya'mal min al sualihat), and follows the way of Abraham, the
upright one, and God took Abraham as a friend" (4:125).*[In Qur'anic
vocabulary, din is the embodiment of moral laws]
"And who is finer in speech
than the one who invites to God, does good deeds ('amila sualihan) and says: 'I
am of those who orients himself to God (muslimun)'" (41:33).
Accordingly the Qur'an describes
'din al-Islam', as the universal faith that was enjoined on earlier prophets,
who were all true Muslims (2:131-133), and conveyed the same essential message.
"When his Lord said to him
(Abraham), 'Submit (aslim)', he said, 'I submit (aslamtu) to the Lord of the
worlds' (2:131). Abraham enjoined his sons to do so, as did Jacob: 'O my sons,
God has chosen the religion (din) for you; so you should not die unless you
have oriented yourself to God (muslimun)' (132). Were you witnesses when death
came to Jacob? He said to his sons, 'What will you serve after I am gone?' They
said, 'We will serve your God; the God of your fathers, Abraham, Ishmael, and
Isaac - the One God; and to Him we have truly oriented ourselves
(muslimun)'" (2:133).[See also verse, 3:52, 28:52/53]
These verses employ different
grammatical forms of the word Islam – asslama, Muslim (pl. muslimun) to define
Islam as a universal religion that is based on two fundamental criteria –
orienting oneself to the divine will and doing of good deeds. The Qur’an’s
repeated reference to good deeds [1] as distinct from purely religious
obligations, such as salah, Zakah, hajj and fasting indicate that the Qur’an
treats all those deeds or actions as good, which bring about good to human
beings or serve humanity. Accordingly, the Qur’an sets good deeds as the common
criteria for divine approval for all humanity (2:62, 4:124, 5:69, 64:9, and
65:11)
The Qur’an, however, complements the notion of good deeds
with moral uprightness (taqwa). At an early stage of the revelation the Qur’an
conflates taqwa with the obverse of moral depravity (91:8). Connoted
divergently as fearing God, heeding God/His guidance, being conscious of God
(God consciousness), preserving or guarding against evil, self-restraint and
piety, in Qur’anic usage, it is emblematic of human awareness to one’s social,
moral and ethical responsibilities and his preservation against all that is
gross, immoral and unjust. Thus,
in the Qur’anic worldview, a good Muslim is a believer in God who is active in
good deeds, is conscious of his social, moral and ethical responsibilities and
preserves against all that is gross, immoral and unjust.
The Qur’an privileges taqwa over the symbolism associated
with some of its spiritual rituals, such as taking provisions and slaughtering
cattle for hajj (2:197, 22:37), describes fasting as a gateway to taqwa
(2:183, 2:187), and extols taqwa as the best dress (7:26). It also declares
that in God’s sight, those imbued with taqwa will stand above those who
obsessively acquire the good things of life (2:212, 47:36). Thus, like good
deeds, taqwa is not the prerogative of the followers of the Prophet Muhammad
alone. Accordingly two of its
keynote verses (5:93, 49:13) revealed in its conclusive phase
declares: |
“O People! We have created you as male and female, and made you into
races and communities for you to get to know each other. The noblest among you
near God are those of you who are the most active in taqwa (atqakum). Indeed
God is All-Knowing and Informed” (49:13).
“Those who believe and do good deeds shall not be blamed for what they
may eat (or drink) so long as they practice taqwa (attaqu), and believe, and do
good deeds; so long as they practice taqwa (attaqu), and believe; so long as
they practice taqwa (attaqu), and do good (Remember,) God loves the
compassionate” (5:93).
Conclusion:
An introspective probe into the Qur’an as advocated by the Qur’an (38:29,
47:24) and tabled in this discourse, shows that in the Qur’anic worldview, a good Muslim is a believer in God -
regardless of religion, race, cast, creed or affiliation with a spiritual
fraternity, who is active in good deeds, is conscious of his social, moral and
ethical responsibilities and preserves against all that is gross, immoral and
unjust.Since God alone can judge human’s faith (Iman), deeds (‘aml) and
moral uprightness (taqwa), a non-Muslim in the divisive human language can be a
better Muslim in divine record than a Muslim (follower of Prophet Muhammad).
Hence the Muslims have absolutely no basis to call the non-Muslims as kafirs
(denier of truth), individually or collectively.
Falsification tests
1. The Ulama may attempt to refute
the foregoing conclusion (in bold) by citing the statement of the verse 3:85:
“If anyone seeks other than Islam as a din (religion), it will not be accepted
of him, and in the hereafter he will be among the losers.” Traditional
scholarship disconnects the verse from its immediately preceding verses
3:83-84, which categorically declare that “all in the heavens and on earth have
submitted (asslama) (to God), willingly or unwillingly” (3:83) and expounds
Qur’anic universalism quite unambiguously:
“Say, ‘We believe in God, and in what has been revealed to us, and in
what has been revealed to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the tribes, and to
Jesus and Moses and (other) prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction
between any of them; and surely to Him do we all orient ourselves (muslimun)’
(3:84).
2. The Ulama may charge that the
foregoing conclusion exempts a Muslim from observing the pillars of faith or
even reciting the Qur’an, or wearing strictly Islamic dress. This is not
tenable because i) the Qur’an is a perfected divine writ of guidance (5:3) – a
book of Wisdom that guides to the upright path (sirat al mustaqim)– the path to
taqwa (36:1-3), the salah incorporates the devotee’s singular plea to God to
guide him/her to the upright path (sirat al mustaqim) (1:6) and fasting and
hajj are both spiritual and physical avenues for cultivating taqwa (2:183,
2:187, 2:197, 22:37).
3. How can people who do not have
their original scriptures with them be good Muslims (in the generic sense)?
Answer: From the Qur’anic perspective each human being regardless of religion
or even if he or she is irreligious is recipient of a portion of God’s breadth
(15:29, 32:7-9, 38:72) and is imbued with a polarity of ego (nafs) – the nafs
al lawwama (75:2) and the nafs al ammara (12:53) - the former representing his
conscience or ingrained taqwa and the latter his base or animal instinct
(12:53). It is for individual humans, regardless of his religious affiliations
to hone his taqwa or succumb to his animal instincts. Thus a non-Muslim can be
superior to many Muslims in taqwa and stand ahead of them on the Day of
Judgment (2:212).
4. What about the divine warning to
the ‘Mushrikun’ (idol worshippers) and ‘Kafirun’ (those bent on denying truth),
at times in most dire terms? Answer: The Qur’an intrinsically bears out their
existential dimension, having been addressed to an idol worshipping and
recalcitrant audience. Furthermore, as noted in a recent exegetic publication
[2] “the deterrent of punishment is essential to establishing justice and
morality. So the Qur’anic references to punishment awaiting the sinners – no
matter how they are described, were essential to its discourse that primarily
aimed at establishing justice in the society and protecting the weak and the
historically oppressed
classes.”
Notes
1. 2:25, 3:57, 4:57, 4:122, 4:173,
5:9, 7:42, 10:4, 10:9, 10:26, 11:23, 13:29, 14:23, 17:9, 18:2, 18:30,
18:107/110, 19:59/60, 19:76, 19:96, 20:75, 20:112, 21:94, 22:23, 22:50, 22:14,
22:56, 22:77, 24:55, 28:67, 28:80, 29:7, 29:9, 29:58, 30:14/15, 30:44/45, 31:8,
32:19, 34:4, 34:37, 35:7, 38:28, 39:10, 39:33/34, 40:58, 41:8, 41:33, 41:46,
42:26, 44:22, 45:15, 45:21, 45:30, 47:2, 47:12, 67:2, 77:41-44, 84:25, 85:11,
95:3-6, 98:7, 99:7/8, 103:2/3.
2. Muhammad Yunus and Ashfaque Ullah
Syed, Essential Message of Islam, Amana Publications, USA 2009. p. 80/81.
Muhammad Yunus, a Chemical Engineering graduate from Indian Institute
of Technology, and a retired corporate executive has been engaged in an
in-depth study of the Qur’an since early 90’s, focusing on its core message. He
has co-authored the referred exegetic work, which received the approval of
al-Azhar al-Sharif, Cairo in 2002, and following restructuring and refinement
was endorsed and authenticated by Dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl of UCLA, and
published by Amana Publications, Maryland, USA, 2009.
