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Does Mankind Deserve Our Morality?
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By
Latiefah Achmet**
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Dec.
14, 2005
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Allah
the Almighty sent prophets and messengers from the beginning of
time. They all carried the same message: Worship none but Allah
and live righteously. Although each prophet may have taught the
particular group of people he was sent to different times and
forms of worship—for example, prayer and fasting— the spread
of noble and pious ideals was always present, as it is today.
This
is because Allah established man as His representative on earth
[And when thy Lord said unto the angels: Lo! I am about to place
a viceroy in the earth, they said: Wilt thou place therein one
who will do harm therein and will shed blood, while we, we hymn
Thy praise and sanctify Thee? He said: Surely I know that which
ye know not.] (Al-Baqarah:30), and to succeed in this
responsibility man must first know the Creator, the One he is
supposed to be representing. Second, he must commit himself to
following Allah’s path, that is, enjoining what is good and
forbidding what is evil. [Those who, if We give them power in
the land, establish worship and pay the poor-due and enjoin
kindness and forbid iniquity. And Allah's is the sequel of
events.] (Al-Hajj: 41)
The
problem rises when man fails to represent Allah and to establish
goodness on earth, and instead lives his life simply to gain
wealth, have a good time, and do whatever he wants without ever
really caring what happens to the people around him. Allah has
ordered man to do basic things to ensure peace and stability on
earth so that man can then go on and achieve and develop himself
and his society. From the beginning of time, man has been
ordered not to worship other than Allah, not to steal, kill,
fornicate, cheat, lie, betray, and so on. In fact, success in
mankind’s collective history is found when people establish
societies that distribute wealth fairly; it is found where
orphans, the needy, the poor and the deprived are taken care of;
where the people show mercy and forgiveness rather than cruelty
and revenge.
Why
is establishing piety so important? Why is it vital that the
individual develops himself? Why isn’t it possible for the
individual to do whatever he likes and let society keep things
going? The answer is simple: The individual is society; the
society is made up of individuals. So if you have lying,
cheating, drug-dealing, corrupt users as members of a society,
they are the same people who will elect leaders who are like
themselves. Likewise if people are honest, peace-loving,
generous, wise, and moral, they will elect a government who will
perpetrate their kind of behavior. Therefore we see the
importance of the individual.
Each
individual is the police force of society, because each person
knows well that if he or she does not remind the others, forbid
evil, enjoin goodness, put out the flames of envy, hatred, and
racism, then the society will no longer reflect the noble ideals
and values that are necessary for man to become civilized and
developed.
This
is because Islam does not see civilization and development as
only scientific and technological advancement, but as spiritual
and moral enlightenment (the essence of the arts) that is
reflected in cooperation, decency, tolerance, charity. Imagine
that on an international level and you have a very different
world from what we see today.
In
the man-made structure of life we usually find a police force
imposed on the people—enforcing law and order, from the top
(law enforcement) down (to the people). But in Islam it’s the
opposite. The people are the police force (so to speak) that
enforces the rights and the rules that protect those rights for
all upon the government.
Mankind
does deserve our morality because we, as individuals, form the
integral center around which others are affected. Each word and
action sends out a consequence, the evil of which can only be
avoided by du`aa’. “Nothing can block Qadar but Du`aa’”
(Ahmad, Ibn Majahm and Ibn Hibban)
A
major part of our morality that we should cling to, so as to
avoid harming others and consequently society, is to never
oppress anyone.
The
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “The prayer
of the oppressed is answered. If he is wicked and a wrongdoer,
its ill effect will go against him (the wrongdoer).” (Ahmad).
Think
for a minute of the importance of keeping families stable,
happy, and intact. Look at what happens to the whole of society
when families start to break down. The burdens placed on single
parents; brokenhearted, disillusioned children; neglected old
people—so here we see that the decision of one or a few people
triggers a reaction that affects everyone else. Then recall how
Islam orders us to be kind to relatives. ["But if they both
strive with you to make you join in worship with Me others that
of which you have no knowledge, then obey them not, but behave
with them in the world kindly, and follow the path of him who
turns to Me in repentance and in obedience. Then to Me will be
your return, and I shall tell you what you used to do."
Luqman: 15]
The
survival of a nation—its development, culture, and
civilization—depends on the moral power and strength of the
individuals that make it up. Mankind gets back what his own
hands send forth. [And that man can have nothing but what he
does (good or bad). An-Najm 53: 36-41]
The
Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “When Allah
wants to deal kindly with a nation He entrusts its reins in the
hands of wise men, gives wealth to its generous people; when He
wants to deal with a nation harshly, He entrusts its control in
the hands of foolish people and gives wealth to its miserly
men” (Abu Dawud).
I
pray that we will be of those who stand up and are counted as
people standing for truth, peace, and wisdom; I pray we are of
those following divine guidance—enjoining good and forbidding
evil.
Read
More:
**
Latiefa Achmat is
an Islamic counselor and social worker in Cape Town, South
Africa. She can be contacted at youth_campaign@iolteam.com.
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