Page 9 - Pakistan Link - October 19, 2018

OPINION OCTOBER 19, 2018 – PAKISTAN LINK – P9

n By Professor Nazeer Ahmed Signs from Allah: History, Science and Faith in Islam (The author is Director,
Concord, CA
he medieval Popes claimed 72. The Atlantic Slave Trade - Part 2 World Organization for Re-
source Development and Educa-
tion, Washington, DC; Director,
the right to dispose of con- American Institute of Islamic
Tquered Muslim territories History and Culture, CA; Mem-
as well as the lands newly discov- ber, State Knowledge Commis-
ered by Europeans. sion, Bangalore; and Chairman,
The legal basis was Delixus Group)
the Donation of
Constantine. Under INTERFAITH FROM P6
supervision of the harm any innocent civilians in the
Vatican, Spain and process as that may create more
Portugal negotiated terrorists. When our youth fail to
a treaty dividing up the world into uphold the sanctity of human life,
spheres of influence. A Papal Bull we should also look inwards and
sanctified the Treaty of Tordesillas examine where we failed in their
(1494). It placed the line of de- upbringing at home, school, media
marcation between Spanish and or peers.
Portuguese territories 370 leagues e. Jihad: Is not holy war but is a
(approximately 800 miles) west of striving in the cause of God, exter-
the Cape Verde Islands. West Af- nally and internally by fighting evil
rica, the Indian Ocean and Brazil temptations. Prophet Mohammad
were allocated to Portugal. Spain said, “The highest level of jihad is
received Europe, the Mediterra- conquest of self ( against evil temp-
nean, East Asia and the Americas tations) .
(except Brazil).
In spite of its strong Crusader Do’s and Don’ts of interfaith
underpinnings, there was noth- dialogue:
ing unusual about the African word su-ka-ra, meaning a sweet business for the common man. in London, Liverpool, Paris, and a. All have right to their belief
slave trade until 1492. It fit a pat- substance. Sugarcane is a tropical Since it required enormous capi- Amsterdam financed the expedi- and religion. “Let there be no com-
tern that had existed for centuries crop, which originated in the In- tal, it remained the privilege of tions. On occasions, even their pulsion in religion” (Qur’an). All
wherein slaves from Europe were do-Gangetic plains in ancient In- emperors, noblemen, interlopers monarchs participated. conversion is done by God.
sold in Egypt, Central Asia and dia. Until the 16th century, it was and scoundrels. Portugal wanted To simplify the complex b. Interfaith is a window to
India, while slaves from sub-Sa- imported in small quantities into to keep a monopoly on this trade interplay between the Muslim share your faith without compro-
haran Africa were sold in North Europe by Muslim merchants and sought justification of its Maghrib, Christian Europe and mising your beliefs.
Africa, Spain and India. The slave and their Venetian partners, and Africa, we have divided the slave c. Look for a common ground
trade declined towards the end found its way to the dining tables trade into seven periods. The first as a human. All the concerns of the
of the 15thcentury because the of the rich. When direct Euro- The slave trade was period started with the Portu- society we live in, from pollution, to
European market was saturated. pean contacts were initiated with not a business for the guese capture of slaves in south- terrorism, to potholes are common
Lisbon had about ten thousand India (1496), it became more ern Morocco (1441) and ended concerns. Share them as your own.
Muslim and African slaves and readily available. Demand mul- common man. Since with the discovery of America in d. Respect other’s belief as you
could use no more. tiplied. The islands of the West it required enormous 1492. The second period lasted expect them to respect yours. The
The discovery of America Indies, and some in the Atlantic until 1541, when Sultan Mu- Qur’an forbids Muslim to deride
changed this picture. It trans- Ocean off the coast of Africa, capital, it remained hammed al Mahdi of Morocco other’s deity.
formed what was up till then a were ideally suited to grow sugar the privilege of recaptured the powerful fort of e. Do your best to remove pre-
small trade in ivory, gold and cane, a crop that is labor inten- Santa Cruz and drove the Portu- vailing misconception about your
slaves into an intricate global web sive. Native American labor had emperors, noblemen, guese from the Atlantic coast of faith.
of trade, piracy and politics. The been exhausted. Moreover, the interlopers and his country. This event slowed f. If you win their heart with
initial objective of Spain in her Native Americans were not suited the growth of Portuguese power your love and compassion they will
American colonies was gold. In for the kind of backbreaking work scoundrels. Portugal but did not eliminate it. The third become your friend.
their hunt for precious metals, required on the sugar plantations. wanted to keep a phase lasted until 1578 when the g. Serve the needs of those who
the Spanish obliterated the an- So, labor had to be imported. Moroccans crushed the Portu- have been given less. Your wealth,
cient civilizations of the Aztecs of At first, Muslim slaves from monopoly on this guese at the Battle of al Qasr-al knowledge and even your visible
Mexico, the Mayans of Guatema- Portugal and Spain were im- trade and sought Kabir and brought an end to piety is a test for you. Treat their
la and the Incas of Peru. Ninety ported, but it was soon realized justification of Portuguese ambitions in North children as your own. This is God’s
percent of the men were killed that Europe could not meet the Africa. The period 1578 to 1640 work and He has chosen you to do
while the women died as a result increasing demand for labor. Af- its position in its was marked by Dutch ascendan- His work. Ask what kind of society
of slavery and diseases brought in rican labor was ideally suited for early discoveries cy in the Atlantic and the Indian you are going to leave for your chil-
by the Europeans. Within a span this task. A two-way exchange of Oceans. During 1640-1713, there dren and grandchildren. A nation of
of ten years, from 1500 to 1510, sugar for labor began. As demand as well as in the was a bitter struggle between the love and compassion or of hate and
the population of Cuba decreased for sugar increased, so did the de- Papal Bulls. But the Dutch, the French and the Brit- apathy.
from about one million to twenty mand for African slave labor. The ish for control of trade routes; it Two prayers at the end.
thousand. When the Mayan gold first shipload of sugar from Cuba lure of profits was ended with the ascendancy of the Prayers of Prophet Mohammad
was exhausted, the Spanish went arrived in Spain in 1515. In 1518, too great to keep British. The last period 1713 to “O Lord, grant me Your love that I
after the silver mines of Mexico. the first shipload of slaves arrived 1818 saw the Atlantic slave trade love those who love you that I might
The residual indigenous popu- in Cuba from West Africa. interlopers out. at its height and the systematic do deeds that win Your love, Make
lation was enslaved and put to Sugar processing yields mo- French and English transfer of millions of Africans to Your love, dearer to me than love of
work in the silver mines. Work- lasses as a by-product. Fermented the Americas. myself, my family and my wealth”.
ing conditions were so harsh that molasses yield rum. Molasses pirates were active The coast of Guinea was Prayer of Saint Francis of As-
by 1520, the American colonies were processed into rum in the against Portuguese known as Ghenoa in Arabic and sisi.
were almost drained of their na- factories that sprang up in New its geography was well document- “Lord, make me an instru-
tive manpower. England, as well as in England, shipping throughout ed by Leo Africanus, a North ment of Your peace,
It was about this time that a Holland and France. Much of the the 16th century. African Muslim who was cap- Where there is hatred, let me
new crop, unknown in the Amer- rum was consumed in Europe. tured by the Crusaders, brought sow love,
icas up until then, was introduced From there, some of it found its Rich merchants in to Rome, baptized and who rose Where there is injury, pardon,
into the New World. The discov- way to West Africa. European London, Liverpool, to become one of the most re- Where there is doubt, faith
ery of America had resulted in a merchants paid for the slaves with spected historians of the era. The Where there is darkness, light
vast interchange of agricultural rum, guns, horses, and industrial Paris, and initial products sought by the Where there is sadness, joy
products between the New World products from southern Spain, Amsterdam financed Portuguese were fish, palm oil, O Divine Master,
and the Old. The potato, tomato and fine muslin cloth imported silver, indigo, cotton, silk, amber, Grant that I may not seek
and red pepper traveled from the from India. Guns were in de- the expeditions. wax and hides. By 1470, the slave To be consoled as to console
Americas to Europe and Asia, mand by the African slave agents On occasions, even trade on the Guinea coast had To be understood as to under-
while sugar and cotton went who used them to hunt for more come alive. In 1486 the coast of stood
in the other direction. slaves. Both guns and rum were their monarchs Benin opened up for the supply To be loved as to love
The introduction of sugar destabilizing factors in West Af- participated of Benin black pepper and slaves. For it is giving that we receive
transformed America, Europe rica. It was a recipe for men to get The Benin black pepper stayed It is pardoning that we are par-
and Africa alike. Its impact on drunk and kill each other. There in great demand in Europe until doned
history was far greater than that were enormous profits to be position in its early discoveries 1506 when the supply of black It is dying that we are born to
of Mayan gold treasures or the made at each stage of the sugar- as well as in the Papal Bulls. But pepper from India overwhelmed eternal life.”
rich silver mines of Mexico. To molasses-rum-gun-slave transac- the lure of profits was too great to this trade. The Portuguese made (8th Annual Fr. Illies Memo-
understand how it happened, it tion. In the process, Europe and keep interlopers out. French and few inroads into the interior of rial Lecture at Newman Center, St.
is important to know the process America grew rich as Africa bled English pirates were active against Africa, staying close to the coast Cloud, MN. Dr Athar is a founder
of sugar extraction. The word in agony. Portuguese shipping throughout and establishing strong points on and past president of Interfaith Al-
sugar derives from the Sanskrit The slave trade was not a the 16th century. Rich merchants the islands off shore. liance of Indiana)
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