Humanity Needs a Rebel/ Ubermensch
By
Sumit Paul, New Age Islam
15 July
2022
We Need
A Revolutionary Soul Who Can Question The Hoary-Old Traditions Of Every Faith,
Who Can Analyse All Scriptural 'Truths' In The Light Of Modernity And Who Has
The Courage Of Conviction To Refuse And Refute Whatever Is Written-In These
Books- Against The Collective Welfare Of Mankind
Main
Points:
1. Fear of the
unknown and an impotent sense of complacency go hand in hand when it comes to
religions and their associated paraphernalia.
2. Spirit of
Ijtihad remains in the statutory books and is seldom practised.
3. Human mind
is a bag of religious and scriptural rubbish.
------
“All Religions Must Be Shaken Like Soda-Water
Bottles."
-Nazim Hikmet, 'Hikaayeler'
Nowadays,
I'm reading, nay poring over, the legendary Turkish-Polish poet and novelist
Nazim Hikmet's ' A Sad State of Freedom. ‘Hikmet is known for using Hikayat
(Arabic for parables, stories, anecdotes) to drive home the point. In fact,
resorting to Hikayat has been a very effective mode of teaching, favoured by
all Persian mystics, esp. by Rumi and Khaqani, and also by Sheikh Saadi in his Bostaan
and Gulistan. In fact, Hikayat is a prescribed didactic way of
teaching in Sufism. Hikmet narrates a very thought-stirring parable to bring home
the atavistic fear of the unknown and how it cripples us.
There was a
very wise king. His own prime minister committed a betrayal: he delivered some
secrets to the neighbouring country, to the enemy. The prime minister was
caught red-handed. There was only one punishment for it, and that was death.
But the old king had always loved this man. He was sentenced to death, but the
old man gave him an opportunity. The last day, he called the whole court. On
one side there was a gun ready to kill the man, on the other side, there was a
black door. And the king said, “You can choose either to die-you have to die-or
you can choose this black door. It's up to you." The prime minister asked,
“What’s behind that black door?” The king said, “That’s not allowed. Nobody
knows, because nobody has chosen it before. In the times of my father, in the
times of my grandfather, many times the opportunity had been given, but nobody
has chosen and nobody knows. And nobody is allowed; even I don't know. I have
the key, but when my father died he said to me, " I'll open the door and
you can go in and I'll close it. Don't look into it." But you can see,
because you can choose. You can discover what's there. It's up to you."
The prime
minister brooded and brooded, and then he chose the gun. He said, “Kill me with
the gun. I don't want to go behind the black door." The prime minister was
killed. The queen was very curious. She persuaded the king somehow to see
what's behind it. The king laughed. He said, “I know-there's nothing behind it.
It's simple freedom; there's not even a room. The door opens to the wide world.
There's nothing, but nobody has chosen it yet."
People even
choose death before choosing the unknown. People even choose to be miserable
before choosing the unknown. The unknown seems to be more dangerous than death
itself. And freedom is a door unknown. Freedom means moving into the unknown,
not knowing where one's going, not knowing what's going to happen the next
moment. It's a black door. Rarely, sometimes a Jesus, Zarathustra or Buddha
will choose the door; all else choose the gun.
It's the
palpable fear of the unknown and a mediocre sense of complacent certitude that
don't allow most of us to venture into a realm of uncertainty because
incertitude frightens us. We are all fearful of walking on untrodden paths and
terra incognita (unknown landscapes). We dare not go beyond what has been
prescribed or indoctrinated into our psyche. We are perpetually hesitant to
break those mental barriers and psychological blocks to go to the precipice and
have the courage to look into the intimidating vastness of the universe. We are
slaves to our frightened selves. George Washington, the first President of the
US, said, 'Only a man, who is man enough, can plunge into the unknown and
return with a winning smile.' Yes, only a man, who's man enough, is capable of
challenging the unknown. All else are crawling creeps and living for the sake
of living sans a scintilla of adventure and intrepidity in their veins and
arteries.
This fear of
the unknown and an impotent sense of complacency go hand in hand when it comes
to religions and their associated paraphernalia. We dare not go deeper and ask
questions lest we should be persecuted. The spirit of Ijtihad remains in the
statutory books and is seldom practised. We continue to believe in our
religions, gods, books, revered characters, gurus, customs and rituals because
we feel complacent and dare not come out of our comfort zones.
Great
Pakistani novelist Intizar Hussain aptly wrote to Faiz Ahmad Faiz, " Ek
Aisa Inqalabi Chahiye Jo Har Mazhab Ki Qadeem Ravayaton Pe Sawaal Uthaye, Jo
Bhi Mazhabi Kitabon Mein Likha Gaya Hai, Use Jiddat Ki Roshni Mein Parkhe Aur
Jo Baat Insaniyat Ke Haq Mein Na Dikhe, Use Maan-Ne Se Saaf Inkaar Kar
De..." (We need a revolutionary soul who can question the hoary-old
traditions of every faith, who can analyse all scriptural 'truths' in the light
of modernity and who has the courage of conviction to refuse and refute
whatever is written-in these books- against the collective welfare of mankind).
We,
particularly the scripture-bound Islamic society of today, must need a rebel
(or a Nitzschean ubermensch, Dr Muhammad Iqbal also thought of) like Josh
Malihabadi who thundered, ' Bashar Ke Zehan Pe Qarnon Se Jo Musallat
Hain/Badal Raha Hoon Gumanon Mein Un Yaqeenon Ko ' (I'm changing the
primitive minds saddled with antediluvian 'truths') or a Sahir Ludhianvi to
declare, " Aqaayad Vaham Hain, Mazhab Khayal-E-Khaam Hai, Saaqi/Azal Se
Zehan-E-Insaan, Basta-E-Auhaam Ha, Saaqi " ( All traditions are
dubious, religion is a meaningless thought/ Right from the advent of human
civilization, the mind of a man is a bag of garbage/useless things). Yes, human
mind is a bag of religious and scriptural rubbish that must be expunged and
thrown out.
----
A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul
is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He
has contributed articles to world's premier publications in several languages
including Persian.
URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/humanity-rebel-ubermensch/d/127482
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