Why Extremism Could Not Be Curbed In Islamic Society

By New Age Islam Staff Writer 30 September 2023 Different Exegetes And Islamic Scholars Justify Violence With The Help Of The Quran Main Points: 1. Violence has become a way of life in Islamic society. 2. Violence is justified against other sects. 3. Dr Zakir Naik justified suicide bombing in 'special circumstances'. 4. Dr Tahirul Qadri justified killing for blasphemy. 5. Theory of Abrogation of verses is based on violence against non-Muslims. ----- The Quran is the primary book of Islamic principles and laws. It has laid down the contours of a peaceful society where all the communities will live in harmony. It contains chapters which are named after the prophets of the Jews and the Christians and even after the nation of Saba which worshipped the sun not because it glorifies sun worship but because it has a liberal approach to other religious communities. It has chapters after Mother Mary, Prophet Joseph, Prophet Abraham (peace be upon all), Bani Israel and Prophet Mohammad pbuh. It narrates the stories of the nation of Bani Israel, Prophet Moses and Jesus Christ in detail and points out their false beliefs and deviations. In short, the Quran does not isolate and alienate other Abrahamic communities from the Islamic community. The holy Quran does not declare a whole community Kafir or atheist or disbeliever. It says that disbelief is not collective affair. In every community, some people deviate from the straight path because of their own idea or religion. The Quran says that not all the Jews or Christians are on the wrong path. The Quran points out on a number of occasions that the polytheists of Makkah believed in one supreme God but they believed in the power of intercession of their deities like Laat, Manat, Hubal and hundreds of other deities. Therefore, the Quran adopts the approach of correcting their deviations and removing the impurities of their faith. It does not outrightly rejects any community as non-believers. That's why it only points out the deviations in the belief of the Christians and Jews and corrects and purifies their belief. It says that not all the Christians are on the wrong path. There are Christians who believe in the Quran along with Bible and there are Christians who do not believe in Trinity as Trinity is only a later period development. Therefore, the Muslims should also have an inclusive approach towards other communities. It should have adopted the approach of correcting the deviations and innovations in the their faith not of rejecting whole communities as non-believers. This approach of rejecting whole communities as atheists and non-believers led Muslims towards extremism and violence. The poly theists of Makkah believed in one God but also had deities as intercessors. The Quran acknowledges that they do believe in Allah but also associate other gods with Him. The Quran asks them not to associate Allah with others and only worship Allah. Similarly, the Quran asks the Christians to remove false beliefs from their faith system. They should not believe in Trinity and consider only in the prophet hood of Jesus Christ. The Quran also says that Christians should not worship their saints. Many Christians believe in the Quran along with Bible and Torah. But many Christians believe only in Bible but do not believe in the Quran. So the Quran tells them to also believe in the Quran. The verse in surah Nisa says: "O People of the Book! Have faith in that ( book ) We revealed testifies to the book that is with you before We annihilate many faces and turn them towards their back or curse them like We cursed the people of the weekend and Allah's decree does not go in vain.":(Nisa:47) The Quran also warns the Jews against their evil deeds and deviations in the faith which tantamount to Kufr. But the exegetes among the Muslims adopted an intolerant approach towards other religious communities rejecting whole communities as disbelievers and non-believers. This created an atmosphere of acrimony and insecurity in the society. The Muslim scholars did not act as reformers but as executioners, ready to punish those whom they declared Kafirs though the Quran says on hundreds of occasions that the Muslims should not behave like the religious police but only as reformers. The theory of abrogation also contributed to the extremist ideology. According to this theory, all the war verses are universal and the verses that advise Muslims to treat non-Muslims with love and sympathy have been abrogated. Thus, a Muslim should remain at war with non-Muslims at all times. The Islamic ideologues also formulated the ideology that the Muslims should strive to establish Shariah rule wherever they live. Therefore, struggle for establishing an Islamic rule became their religious duty even if they formed only 3 per cent of the population in a particular country. This promoted terrorism because a handful of Muslims wanted to establish Shariah rule by force. They considered all the 97 per cent population Kafir who deserved to be killed. This ideology does not believe in reform enjoined by Quran but on violence and bloodshed as a means to establish Shariah rule. Dr Zakir Naik supported suicide bombing in 'special circumstances' knowing fully well that only terrorists resorted to suicide bombing. His fatwa emboldened terrorists and extremists. The Taliban and Al Qaida benefitted from Zakir Naik's fatwa as they used suicide bombings in a big way. They attacked official buildings, mosques, Mazars, hospitals and residential complexes killing and maiming Muslims and non-Muslims alike. Sectarianism among Muslims has also promoted extremism and violence in the Muslim society. Every sect considers all others Kafir. Some sects even consider others Wajibul Qatl (worthy to be killed) . This ideology has been promoted by exegetes and Islamic scholars. One aspect of this ideology is the concept of blasphemy. To many scholars, blasphemy should be punished by death. Some scholars include even Muslims as the perpetrator and have issued the fatwa that even if a Muslim commits blasphemy, he should be killed. In Pakistan, even religious Islamic scholars are accused of blasphemy and killed extra judicially. In Pakistan, some religious scholars including Dr Tahirul Qadri have written books arguing that even Muslims can be killed for blasphemy. Therefore, if a Muslim believes that the prophet pbuh was a Bashar ( human being), he will be considered guilty of blasphemy and will be killed. The day is not far when Muslims nog joining Juloos-e- Mohammadi will be considered Kafir and killed. This ideology of violence and Takfir has been causing bloodshed in the Muslim societies from Pakistan to Nigeria and from Philippines to the Middle East. And the exegetes and Islamic scholars have contributed greatly in the spread of this ideology of violence. Some scholars like Mohammad Asad and Maulana Wahiduddin Khan tried to present a moderate interpretation of Islam but he did not leave a his successors or an organisation to carry forward his legacy. Therefore, if the Islamic society really wants to rid itself of violence and bloodshed, it should shun the ideology of Takfeer and the approach of rejection of religious communities and promote a culture of peaceful reform and dialogue. 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