Reflecting On the Causes of the Rise in Religious Extremism in the Muslim Community
The
Reasons for Religious Extremism
Main
Points:
1.
Religious extremism is influenced by a number
of variables, including a lack of awareness and reliance on inaccurate
information.
2.
Every religious student considers himself
worthy of the position of Iftaa and Qaza. As a result, he issues his fatwa
without hesitation.
3.
The foundation of religion is a reverence for
human life, blood, and kinship. But this foundation is being broken and we are
not serious about that.
4.
Another reason for religious extremism is that
Muslims assign one criminal a high rank. For instance, Mumtaz Qadri was hailed
as an Islamic hero for killing Salman Taseer.
5.
However, not everyone respects those who work
nonstop to spread the message of moderation and peace as Islamic heroes.
6.
Tehreek-e-Labbaik was the reason Ghaus Mohammad
and Riyaz Attari were brainwashed and led to the ruthless murder of Kanhaiya
Lal in our country.
7.
Muslim Ulama must openly educate that India is
not an Islamic state, it does not have blasphemy laws and that taking the law
into the hands is seriously a criminal act.
-----
By
Kaniz Fatma, New Age Islam
5 July 2022
Modern
Muslims are divided into a number of sects. They constantly accuse one another
of being Kafir. They criticise one another and say negative things about one
another. Sometimes the conflict is so violent that it manifests as killing.
Religious extremism has various causes, but a few fundamental ones are as
follows:
Lack of
awareness of one's own core beliefs and the beliefs of other sects, as well as
dependence on unreliable information, are two factors that contribute to
religious extremism. The Holy Prophet, however, taught that nothing should be
accepted unless it is confirmed and supported by adequate evidence. According
to the Holy Qur'an, Allah, the Almighty,
“O you,
who have believed, if there comes to you a disobedient one with information,
investigate, lest you harm a people out of ignorance and become, over what you
have done, regretful.” (49:6)
One of the
reasons is that every graduate and even every religious student considers
himself worthy of the position of Iftaa and Qaza. As a result, he
issues his fatwa without hesitation and research on many issues and he forgets
that the Holy Prophet while addressing a glorious Companion, said that “Did you
tear the heart of a person before killing him to see if he had faith or not?”
Every
scholar is aware that during the Jihad in the time of the Prophet, a person
before he was killed, testified that Allah is One and that He has no partners
and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. The commander of the Muslim army took
the man's comment as a plea to stop killing him; so he killed the man. When the
Holy Prophet learned of the incident, he disapproved of this behaviour.
On the
other hand, we observe on a daily basis that Fatwas are issued without
hesitation regarding anyone, alleging that he is a hypocrite, a follower of
heresy, or misguided, and as a result, he ought to be punished or ostracised.
However, a Hadith indicates that the Holy Prophet condemned this behaviour
outright.
“Whoever
calls his Muslim brother O Kaafir (disbeliever), then if he is not Kaafir it
rebounces back to the one who said it.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 6103)
The third
scenario is that political connections have taken precedence over personal
connections. Religious devotees have started exaggerating seemingly
insignificant differences for political ends. Furthermore, it wouldn't be
inaccurate to say that most violence in Muslim countries is motivated by
personal and political gains.
Consider
the Shia-Sunni division, for instance. Although there are sectarian differences
between the two, it is still possible for them to coexist peacefully. However,
when political interests become involved in the causes of Shia-Sunni relations,
they often stoke the flames of hostility or support one sect over the other in
order to advance their own agendas. They are not concerned that such an act
will increase conflict and harm both Shia and Sunni factions, but rather a
mankind as a whole. They fail to remember that they must answer to God and that
it is possible that they will have to give an account for their actions at some
point in this world.
The
foundation of religion is a reverence for human life, blood, and kinship. The
killing of life without justification has thus been regarded as the murder of
all mankind. Islamic law states that "whoever kills a human being for
any reason other than committing acts of violence or encouraging corruption in
the land, it is as if he slaughtered all humans, and whoever saves one's life,
it is as if he saved the lives of all humans.” (5:32)
The murder
of one individual has been labelled as a grave offence. So what is the reason
for the rise of violent groups that engage in behaviour that the Holy Prophet
or the Companions forbade?
The fourth
reason is the tendency for violence in disputes over jurisprudential
principles. Observing this, people of all faiths—Muslims included—as well as
non-Muslims wonder if the root of sectarianism, extremism, and disputes among
Muslims is the jurisprudential difference. Has Islam made Muslims so
bloodthirsty that their only activity is to engage in hostility, conflict, and
bloodshed?
When a
typical analyst contrasts the circumstances of Muslims and non-Muslims, he
discovers that, despite having more than 250 distinct churches and
jurisprudential and sectarian differences, there is not the same level of
hostility among Christian sects as there is among Muslims in some nations and
regions today.
The global
media plays a significant role in enhancing this perception. In its headlines,
the world media almost never fails to emphasise Muslim violence, Muslim
extremism, or Muslim use of force. We are not able to hold people accountable
for our predicament unless we first improve it.
When the
stories of the clashes within the Muslim Ummah, mutual hostility and carnage,
and the use of force and violence are frequently depicted in the international
arena, both our own and our own people become convinced that whatever is
depicted or stated about Muslims will be accurate.
Major
American cities like New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Detroit,
among others, have much higher rates of crime than any other emerging nation,
including murder, sex offences, theft, and robbery. However, Time, Newsweek,
Asia Week, CNN, or the BBC never suggest that visitors to these cities get in
touch with the local police station before arriving.
On the
other hand, every type of extremism and separatism among Muslims is explored,
and it is widely implied that Muslims worldwide are xenophobic, aggressive, and
extremist in addition to being sectarian. Furthermore, it is strongly implied
that religious scholars who attend religious institutions place a higher
emphasis on sectarianism than on Islam. Furthermore, religious schools and
Madrasas are currently being painted as training grounds for crime and
violence. The religious institutions, Madrasas and schools in India, I think,
are in much better condition than those in Muslim countries. But the situations
of Madrasas and religious institutions in Muslim countries are worse and
greatly need reformation.
Other
factors contribute to religious extremism. Instead of looking outside of
ourselves for the solutions, we must look within. Until we change our
circumstances, we cannot hold other people responsible for the issues we
confront.
The last
reason for religious extremism is that Muslims assign one criminal a high rank.
For instance, Mumtaz Qadri was hailed as an Islamic hero for killing Salman
Taseer. Millions of Muslims attended his funeral prayer after the Pakistani
Court gave him a death sentence, and he is still regarded as a great Islamic
hero. The Fiqh book forbids taking the law into one's own hands, and this
lesson is taught in Madrasas. However, the Ulema, particularly those connected
to Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan, ignored this lesson in order to forward their
political agenda. The common Muslims did not notice that shortcoming and merely
did the work of showing emotions.
The
influence of Tehreek-e-Labbaik was the reason Ghaus Mohammad and Riyaz Attari
were inspired and led to the ruthless murder of Kanhaiya Lal in our country.
Although the Quran supports Hudud punishments, no one is asked to enforce the
law, then where did the idea of enforcing the law in relation to blasphemy
punishment come from? The idea of taking the law into one's own hands is not
supported by any Hadith or Fiqh. So, from where did it originate?
Our
intellectuals spend their time debating numerous subjects rather than dealing
with the real ailment. Some also hold Madrasas accountable in addition to
Hadith and Fiqh. But the real problem is when someone decides to enforce the law
on their own. Muslim scholars have propagated the idea among their people that
crimes punishable by Islamic law, including theft and other offences, are
prosecuted only by Islamic judges, Qazis or Hakim under Islamic courts. If this
is the case, then why not openly educate that India is not an Islamic state, it
does not have blasphemy laws and that taking the law into the hands is
seriously a criminal act. Muslims in India are bound to uphold the national
laws and not interfere with national laws. It is time for Muslim preachers and
imams to publicly warn India's Muslim population that they will not break the
law, no matter what. There are more causes for religious extremism, and Muslim
intellectuals and thinkers must come together to carefully discuss these causes
before it i too late.
-----
Kaniz
Fata is a classic Islamic scholar and a regular columnist for New Age Islam.
URL: https://newageislam.com/radical-islamism-jihad/religious-extremism-muslim-community/d/127407
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