Obedience to God Is the Surest Way to Build Virtues for Resume and Eulogy
By Dr Basheer Ahmed Khan
Garden Grove, CA

David Brooks is a well-known political commentator and writer of our time. Recently he was on Global Public Square which is anchored by Fareed Zakaria on CNN. They talked about Brooks’ new book “Road to Character” in which he has introduced two terms “Resume Virtues”, and “Eulogy Virtue”.
Resume Virtue is about building a career and living good life, and Eulogy Virtue is about how one likes to be known as an individual; honest, brave and capable of deep love etc. He bemoaned that while all of us put much effort in building our Resume Virtues, we neglect to pay attention to build character which is our Eulogy Virtue. Mr Brooks said that we can build our character by understanding our core weaknesses and paying conscious attention to overcome them. This effort is the central drama of ones life and should not be neglected.
To a question by Fareed as to why did we change our focus from the concept that man was a sinner and that he needed to give attention to correct his imperfection, Mr Brooks said: The horrors of Second World War and the depression that followed necessitated that people were given a message of hope. As a result of this approach psychologist like Carl Rogers suggested that people should develop a love of self and take pride in self and should be given the feeling that they are wonderful. As a result of this conscious effort the percentage of high school seniors who considered that “they are important” rose from 12% in 1950 to 80% in 2005. He conceded that this attitude was essential to boost entrepreneurship. He further said his book was not meant to curb self-esteem but to balance it with self-worth without which one remains morally mediocre and internally deficient.
When asked about his commencement advice to the graduates passing out this year, Mr Brooks said that they should find a way to build this character in the world vocabulary and moral ecology. Elaborating on this point he said: We all grow up in an environment from which we get our moral values. Greeks paid attention to honor, valor and glory, Jews paid importance to obedience of law, Christians to salvation and gentle behavior, and science guides us to find good through rational thought. Those entering into active life after graduating can pick up from these approaches to build their eulogy virtues.
When Mr. Brooks did not mention the role of Islam in character building I was disappointed and attributed it to the sibling rivalry between Jews and Muslims. But when I thoughtfully examined his statement I felt that at a time when so many unpleasant and heinous acts are attributed to Islam and Muslims, both Mr Brooks and Fareed shied away from mentioning Islam. Besides, neither CNN nor GPS is a mouthpiece of Islam or Muslims.
When I pondered about the mention of rational inquiry as a means to understand good from bad and build character, I realized that majority of modern day youth are imbued with this scientific temperament; therefore they will find the deficiencies in the concept of character building in the various thoughts in moral ecology and will find its completion in the unadulterated, correctly interpreted, and astutely practiced Islam and will embrace it. Muslims will have to work hard against all odds to restore the spirit of the Pristine Islam which was lost in the ambitions of its rulers and the cultural baggage of those who converted to the faith as it spread. The only hurdle in its way is the vested interest in the established religious and temporal hierarchy which would rather have a distorted and discredited Islam as a scapegoat for their misdeeds rather than help Islam in ridding itself of its cultural and historical baggage.
By making the earning of honest livelihood a part of worship, Islam has not only inspired people to work hard to build virtues for their resumes but also made the earning of honest livelihood a mean for character building. In Islam emphasis is not just on honesty in earning livelihood, but also on spending one’s earning for the right causes. This judicious course in spending is also an exercise in character building by precluding all reasons for dishonesty in earning to support a life of sin, opulence and extravagance which causes disruption in the society (Nazarathun Nayeem Vol 2 P 491Hadith 2-3).
Greek concept of valor, honor and glory, Jewish concept of obedience to law, and Christian belief in salvation and gentle behavior, which are the factors of moral ecology which influence human behavior, are all combined in the last revelation which Allah swt gave to Muhammad SA in a balance so that people don’t go to one or the other extreme in search of good for themselves and their societies.
In Islam the Greek virtue of valor is subduing ones’ baser instincts before subduing the adversaries (Nazarathun Nayeem Vol 8 P 3198 Hadith 11). At the same time it does not stop its adherents from a just war to establish justice and order in society, but not the war that creates fear and anarchy (Ch.4 V75-76). This is the Islamic way to real honor and glory which the Greek aspired. If we look at it Islam has immortalized the quest of truth by Greeks through dialogue and debate; it made the Robe akin to the robe of ancient Greco Roman sages and senators the robe of Muslims while performing Hajj which is the ultimate expression of a Muslims commitment to his faith. Islam encourages debate and dialogue to understand truth, but it considers untenable arguments against established facts of life under a different paradigm as a mean of self-destruction (Nazarathun Nayeem Vol 9 P4222 Hadith 5).
In Islam obedience of law and the rulers is of utmost importance, but at the same time it emphasizes on making just laws and dispensing them impartially (Ch. 4 V 59). As it is not possible to do it just through legislative procedures, law enforcement machinery, and Justice System manned by the imperfect and selfish men, Islam enshrines consciousness of an Omnipotent, Omnipresent and Omniscient God and accountability before Him. This consciousness is essential for legislatures to make laws that do not favor one over the other; the laws that establish a just order and do not perpetrate oppression and exploitation. This God consciousness is also essential for those who enforce laws to remain honest and impartial in their enforcement of these laws.
Islam encourages deliberative process in legislative endeavors, but these deliberations must not defy common sense realities under strange rules of deliberations. Marriage between man and woman is a natural necessity and an age old reality. By arguing it and under the paradigm of “equality under law”, we may make homosexual marriages appear legal, but not real and practicable, no matter what other actions we may suggest to cover its deficiency in matters relating to procreation and nurturing of younger generation. Freedom of expression is a gift to express and propagate new ideas that may benefit the society. When it is not predicated with responsibility then it becomes mean of spreading falsehood and chaos in the society rather than benefit the society. A healthy economy is vital for any society and country, but it is not to build on greed but by the sweat of the labor and the honest intellectual exercise of true geniuses. By trumping this with greed and giving primacy to capital under strange logic we are busting everything from morality to environment and economy itself. That is why Prophet Muhammad SA said: Give me the assurance that you will control your tongue (which includes pen and all other means of modern day communication) and I will guarantee you a place in paradise (Riyadh Us Saleheen 1513)
By emphasizing Ehsan, the quality of doing everything in the best possible way to please God who is a witness to all our action (Nazarathun Nayeem Vol 2 P 84 Hadith 9), Islam disdains all actions that are not gentle and which are harmful either to the self or society. Salvation to Muslims is not just the bliss of the hereafter promised to the believer, but also a clean, easy, and serene life in this world which comes from getting rid of greed, hatred, falsehood and hypocrisy from individuals and society (Ch. 16 V 97).
By emphasizing on acquiring of knowledge (Iqra), and by extolling contemplation and judicious inquiry over ritualistic prayers (Nazarathun Nayeem Vol 3 P 913, 1), Islam advocates dynamism and negates stagnation both in thought and in action to be able to meet the challenges of the dynamic world. It is difficult to deny the importance of Islam in the moral ecology as an important tool of character building. More than this Islam resonates in the intellectual endeavor of Socrates and filters the prophetic revelation to Abraham, Moses, and Jesus (PBUT) and not just replicates them. One may read my article “Socrates and Luqman the Wise” in Pakistan Link dated October 10 and 24 of 2014.