May
19, 2006
Looking
inward
The tensions between
the Western world and the Muslim world
may form the defining challenge of the
21st Century. Yet, one element is common
to both the worlds. It is the lack of
critical self-examination, along with
little re-examining of prevailing priorities
and values.
In search of enemies and foreign demons,
often overlooked is the beast lurking
within. Before 9/11, the world had one
occupation situation to contend with
in the Middle East – Palestine.
Now, thanks to the Anglo-American intervention,
there are two – Palestine and
Iraq. As the world is finding out, even
one is one too many. With so much going
wrong, and with so much not working,
the need of the hour may be the need
to look inward.
In striving for justice, dignity, and
for inter-faith harmony, it is often
forgotten that inter-faith harmony is
embedded within Islamic teachings which,
alone among the great faiths, acknowledges
Judaism and Christianity and gives recognition
to their original sacred scriptures.
Long before the talk of globalization
gained traction, the great Sufi-saint
teachers recognized the common humanity
of fellow human beings.
The bane today is that of a money-centric
culture superseding a knowledge-driven
society. A knowledge-driven society
is consistent with the pristine Islamic
legacy and tradition of the quest for
Ilm. In Germany, for example, the professor
was considered the epitome of dignity
and enjoyed wide social esteem. The
famous German tale “The Blue Angel”
illustrates the decline and fall from
grace of a respectable professor when
he is consumed by his passion for a
glamorous cabaret singer.
Then, too, there is a challenge of governance
with a tussle between an autocratic
mindset which prefers order over and
above democratic yearnings for freedom
which, in turn, can entail chaos. Perhaps,
the answer lies in between. Pluralism,
whether social, political, ethnic, religious,
or ideological, is a reality and it
cannot be wished away in the name of
uniformity, conformity, and homogeneity.
That is why totalitarianism fails. Finding
a modus vivendi for co-existence with
the other is a perennial effort.
While the talk is of democracy, the
actions are dynastic. The conventional
notion of democracy needs to be re-visited
and strategically re-assessed. Democracy
is shown to be neither a panacea nor
a level playing field as exercised practically
and visualized merely through the medium
and mechanics of elections. In its present
format, it helps facilitate the monopoly
of those with means and genes to hijack
the system at the expense of ability
and integrity. And democracy is frequently
bypassed where it does not suit the
expediency of power interests.
It has been proven before in the Maghreb
and now in the Middle East that the
preachers of democracy are hardly the
respecters of democratic outcomes which
do not suit their power interests.
The need for rethinking cannot be circumscribed
to one portion of humanity. Muslims
in the West are gradually finding out
that they are hostages to the growing
turbulence in the Middle East. Many
of them have yet to clearly choose between
seeing the West as a place to work or
as a place to live. In a large part,
the West is viewed not as a place to
compete as equals but merely as a place
to quietly make a living and return
home with the earnings. The result today
is that there is zero Muslim political
representation at the national level
in the United States.
With no countervailing power and caught
unprepared in the aftermath of 9/11,
many innocent Muslim families were shattered.
What is required now is the energy of
new ideas which comes through new thinking
and sustained reflection.
