How Disability-Friendly Is Muslim Community?
By
Grace Mubashir, New Age Islam
14
September 2023
It is very
interesting how Islam addresses disability. Islam discusses this issue and
provides guidelines like no other culture or ideology. Islam is a religion that
presented a verse against the Prophet (PBUH) who did not treat a blind
companion who entered the audience while speaking to the civic leaders of
Mecca.
Meanwhile,
when we examine our social order, childhood stories often feature stories of
the blind being given sight and the lame being ministered. Here, the message is
being conveyed that blindness and lameness are imperfect and the perfection of
man lies in changing them and becoming sighted and able-bodied. Perfection is
considered to be the transformation of a differently abled body into an abled
body. There is a general tendency here to see people with disabilities with
sympathy, to pity them, to inquire about their problems and remedies, and to
force them to transform themselves into able-bodied ones without acknowledging
their disabled bodies.
Photo
courtesy/About Islam
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But in the
case of the blind companion mentioned earlier, instead of changing him to a
capable one, Islam took steps to keep him as such and accept his existence as a
blind person in society. Hopefully, they are willing to accept the existence of
such people by building ramps in Muslim mosques. The problem with society's
approach to such issues can also be seen in the issue of sexual minorities. The
fact is that we are not adequately addressing the problems these people are
experiencing. We have many good examples. But we are unwilling to borrow them
creatively into our culture.
Every human
being is created by the Creator and has unique abilities. Everyone's thoughts,
views and abilities are different. The task of the believer is to accept it in
the same way. Allah has said that the mission of man is that We have appointed
him as a representative (Khalifa). Everyone's caliphate will be different.
Allah gives them the body, ability and capacity according to it. differently
abled were created differently to fulfil different life missions. Islam
recognizes these varieties. We should be guided by the fundamental belief that
every human being is in his own perfection. It is also noteworthy that Islam
never associates ability with the body. Rather, it is related to the whole
soul.
There is no such thing as disabilities for the
soul. If there were, they are man-made. Rather, it is to fully accept and
submit to it. Because this is the destiny of all human beings (Qadr).
The
applications of disability in our daily lives are often dangerous. For a long
time, we used the term disabled. Over time it became differently abled.
Finally, Prime Minister Narendra Modi used the term Divyang to refer to such
people. In fact, the phrase Divyang, which means divine body, is also
dangerous. Because it is a human body. It is as dangerous as the expression
``disabled'' to give it divine status without even acknowledging his existence
as a human being. There is also the danger of creating the impression that they
are something beyond all limitations, even though the truth is the opposite, by
making such applications. The problem here is that society is not sufficiently
aware of the issue. Every disabled person is not the patient, but the person.
As such, the existence of every person with disabilities as an individual needs
to be accepted in the society.
The most
important thing is to accept one's identity. Accepting a differently abled
person as a human being with his disability is the greatest recognition he
gets. In many developed countries, things have come to the point where special
centres are being established for the purpose of conducting studies on the
sexuality of differently abled people and its possibilities.
Disability
Friendliness and Inevitable Changes
People with
disabilities are a community where sometimes we hurt people with a heavy look,
facial expression, words or some sympathetic attitude without even realizing
it. People with physical or mental limitations are called differently abled or
people of determination. According to the Disability Rights Act, 2016, 21 types
of conditions in 6 categories are included in the disability category.
1. Physical challenge: Locomotor disability,
Leprosy cured, Cerebral Palsy, Dwarfism, Muscular dystrophy, Acid attack
victims, Blindness, Long vision, Hearing impairment, Aphaxia
2. Intellectual disability: Specific
learning disability, Speech and Language disability, autism spectrum disorder.
3. Mental illness (Mental illness)
4. Chronic neurological diseases: multiple
sclerosis, Parkinson's, haemophilia, thalassemia, sickles anaemia
5. . Multiple Disability Disease
6. conditions all have more severe and less
severe conditions. All these fall under the category of differently-abled but
the conditions of those who face physical and mental challenges are very
deplorable.
In the
disability category, certain causes are identified for congenital or early
developmental disabilities. Unhealthy diet during pregnancy, accidents,
infections, lack of care, drug use by parents, consanguineous marriages, mental
illness and marrying people with developmental disabilities can cause birth
defects. Most of these reasons are mentioned for attention by our Islamic
literature but are found in most of our families.
Early
Detection and Rehabilitation
Figures and
reasons may not be necessary for those who have reached such a state, but what
they need is a change from this state. First of all, we need to identify our
child's condition very clearly and provide the necessary rehabilitation
treatment based on it. See a specialist neurologist or paediatrician to
identify and provide appropriate therapies for movement difficulties, speech
difficulties, barriers to social interaction, or other neurological problems.
As drugs do not have much effect in such conditions, physiotherapy, speech
therapy, occupational therapy, behavioural therapy, play great roles.
Role Of
Our Institutions
It can be
said that there are very few Muslim-managed institutions in India that provide
scientific rehabilitation for differently abled society. Although relatively
present in the urban regions, most of them are private-centric. If our
orphanages, Arabic colleges and other educational institutions can focus on
these areas, basic religious education will also be possible among the
differently abled.
Urgency
For Community Interventions
If
differently abled promotion activities are organized by the community, the
differently abled community will be well-empowered. All religious institutions
should start by being disability friendly. They came to mosques and madrasas in
wheelchairs and three-wheelers. Arrangements must be made for the smooth
conduct of worship. Wheelchairs, wheelchair-friendly urinals and other means of
movement should be implemented in mosques just as prayer chairs are universal.
Special
consideration and scientific intervention should be made possible for the
differently abled and learning disabled in Madrasas. Identifying and
distributing aids to the needy, establishing information centres and parent
associations to provide supporting hands, helping the economically
disadvantaged due to long-term medical needs, providing basic facilities for
self-employment training and financial security, providing counselling for
parents and children and remedial measures for children with learning
difficulties are very important for the inclusive growth of the community. To
provide education, utilize the buildings of Madrasas and vocational training
centres for the special needs to achieve economic security are also of vital
necessity.
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Also
Read: Differently
Abled Are More Favoured By God in Quran and Hadees
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How
Prophet Treated the Differently Abled
In the
history of Islam and the life of the Prophet, we can see the noble behaviour
and attitude towards the differently abled. Abdullahi bin Umm Maktoum was the
most prominent of the Companions and memorizer of the Qur'an, a great scholar
and a person with limited eyesight. Once when he went to the Prophet to study
the Qur'an, the Prophet was talking to the leaders of Quraysh, and at that time
the Prophet ignored Umm Maktoum, which caused him a little distress, and
immediately reminded the Prophet of the Qur'anic verse (Do you turn away when a
blind person comes to you) (Surah Abaza 1, 2) ) Even as a visually impaired
person, the Prophet took care to recognize his abilities and give him positions
and opportunities.
Like this,
an epileptic woman came to the Prophet and complained that during her illness
she lost consciousness and due to this part of her body was seen by others, the
Prophet said to her: Allah has given you Paradise because of your patience. And
they gladly accepted it. Here the seer understood their illness and tried to
comfort them and keep them together.
The Way
Forward
The
differently abled community is an important area that our Muslim community
needs to open its eyes to in many areas. Especially in creating a
differently-abled-friendly environment and enabling institution-centred
rehabilitation. We can make it possible through centralized donations and
Zakat. But only by incorporating scientific methods, we can make positive
changes. Through this, new studies and active changes can be made to intervene
in religious institutions and social sectors.
If we ask
how to create a change in the mindset of the society, the answer is that the
society should be transformed in such a way that it becomes accessible to all.
Apart from specific places and spaces, a situation where differently abled
people can be accepted and part of the general society should be created. There
should be representation of such people in various groups and organizations of
the Muslim community from the bottom to the top. Their voices should be heard.
Among the
differently abled, the problems faced by women are overwhelming. In a
patriarchal society, we have not addressed it at all. One only needs to think
about how society would view a woman coming out in a wheelchair, just like a
differently abled man who wants to go out in general, to understand the horror
of this.
In the Arab
world, looking at its rich culture, their mosques and houses were built with
spaces and ramps to accommodate all kinds of people with disabilities. This
practice still exists today in mosques in the Arab world. Even when we fully
adopt the modern methods of house construction and church construction in such
places, even when we imitate their air-conditioners, decorative lights and
everything else, the biggest degradation of our system is to avoid only the
existing facilities such as ramps for the differently abled.
Another
important issue is the changes that our education systems need to make in this
regard. The fact that young polio-affected students are not afforded further
education in our religious education system should be problematic. It is a fact
that including the fiqh of such people in the madrasah syllabus will help them
learn things and create awareness about such people among all the students.
They need to move away from schools only for abled bodies. The issue is not
whether differently abled people come and study in such religious schools, but
whether the student generation will grow up and become aware of such a
community. Making them aware that there are still a few in the world is a big
reason for their existence to be acknowledged. Only by giving space to such
people in the curriculum committees can their problems be properly addressed
and concrete solutions suggested.
It is not
necessary to completely deny the fact that there have been and will be many
changes that spread hope, but in the context of the rapidly growing world,
efforts should be made to bring more changes without stopping at the current
small gestures. We need to be more updated in the situation where even
developed countries have started studying the possibilities of sexuality of
such people as a result of the awareness that not only air, water and food are
necessary for human survival, but also all other emotions and social
interaction.
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A
regular columnist for NewAgeIslam.com, Mubashir V.P is a PhD scholar in Islamic
Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia and freelance journalist.
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-human-rights/disability-friendly-muslim-community/d/130672
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