Salwan Momika's Invitation to Death

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 4 February 2025 An Iraqi refugee, Salwan Momika, was shot dead by five assailants in Sweden on January 29 during a TikTok live stream. Notorious for burning the Quran in public and extreme hatred for the Muslims and Islam, led to his murder. Whether the men who gunned him down were radical Muslims or jealous YouTubers who felt threatened and overshadowed by his popularity on social media is still unclear. But one thing is clear: He invited his brutal end by repeatedly burning the Quran and abusing Islam all the time. Desecrating the Quran became the slain 38-yr-old man's lifetime mission. Somewhere he was also aware that such a dismal fate would befall him sooner or later. But the question is: Why should one indulge in such idiocy day in and day out? Agreed, Islam like any other man-made faith is flawed. So is its holiest book, Quran. But why should its pages be torn in public? Why should it be burnt? If a person accuses Islam and Quran of extremism, burning Quran is also an act of extremism and violence. It's as reprehensible as the faith you're condemning in public. Making a bonfire of scriptures of all faiths may be a seductive idea to a violent and volatile atheist, it has no place in a civilized world where such acts invite widespread condemnation from all and sundry. Burning a scripture or desecrating it in public is never an acceptable solution because it not only goes against the religious ethos of the faithfuls, but also of the ethics of level-headed and considerate non-believers. Such drastic and destructive acts shock all. Momika was doing this relentlessly. Some of us suffer from a constant death-wish. Death is orgasmic for them. Momika was one such violent individual who was in a tearing hurry to die. We're living in religiously dangerous times. Followers of all faiths have become too touchy. Muslims have always been over-sensitive about such issues. Remember, if you burn the book of any faith, eventually you'll also be burnt at the stake. I've scriptures of all faiths. I read and dust them off regularly. But I feel no religious or emotional attachment to those 'holy' books. They're as 'sacred' to me as Emile Zola's controversial novel ' Nana ' or Vladimir Nobokov's ' Lolita' based upon Hebephilia. Read a book. Discard it. But never burn it, however useless it may be. We must avoid cerebral anarchy and impulsiveness. While death of any man saddens all those who're sane and sensible, imbeciles like Momika and his ilk should also understand that playing with the flames may finally prove to be too dicey. You'll not just be singed. You'll be forever jinxed and finally dead. ---- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/salwan-momika-invitation-death/d/134517 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism