The ManicaPost
Aninar Khan
FOR humanity, the critical focus must be the individual’s responsibility to respond to the violations of rights of God’s creation, Muslims, non-Muslims, the environment and animals.
A religious fanatic is a person who considers himself to be correct in all his beliefs while others are just conspiracy theories. He believes that he only concerns himself to what is real and apparent and condemns all others. They become obsessed with the fault of others while ignoring their own. A common problem in all sects, affiliation and denominations. This attitude of I know-it-all.
This type of religious fanaticism is one of the tools of the devil. Lucifer was proud and arrogant. The devil (shaytan) was the first oppressor. He refused to respect mankind. “Fear of God” means that a person should not oppress fellow beings in any form, and should not be unjust to His creation in any way.
The object of religion is certainly that it should enable man to establish brotherly relations with others. The best act is perfect justice, which means that one should be absolutely impartial and should not discriminate between different persons.
Since man arrived on earth, fanaticism of every kind has been inherent in him, and there has not been any time in history during which man has not displayed fanaticism. Fanaticism today is based on egotism, pride, political beliefs, ignorance and nationality, etc.
Nowadays we are at war against religious fanaticism and consider it to be indecent and despicable. Their view about man and beliefs is indisputable. Fanatics and extremists insist upon the correctness of their views and beliefs and force it upon others without consultations.
They ignore the fact that during the many centuries of Islamic rule, the rights to various religious sects and communities were upheld in the context of a strong social fibre. What we need is intellectual renaissance not intellectual terrorism.
Guidance from the Holy Quran can be of value only when we empty our minds of all pre-existing motions and attitude, because fanatical convictions concerning the contents of the holy scriptures (Quran) will yield nothing but mental stagnation and immobility. A pitfall we must avoid.
This applies to all responsible intellectual leaders, scholars, school of thought and all aware individual who are seeking ways of serving religions. We need moderate leaders of all groups to do self-criticism through dialogue and discussions. A Muslim is a brother to a Christian whether he likes it or not, because man is brother of man whether he admits it or not.
The emergency of the wahhabi sect in the 12th century AH become the source of many religious and political disputes and disagreements in the Muslim world, and up to now, it has consumed a considerable portion of the potential and energy of Muslim societies especially from the time it had been backed by political power of Ibn Saudi and British imperialism.
The Saudi crown prince Muhammad Bin Salman is the master mind behind the Yemen conflict which led to a three year genocide and has left the poorest Arab country on the brink of famine. According to human rights groups more than half a million people killed, UNICEF reports that 1,8 million Yemen children under the age of five suffer from acute malnutrition. A further 30 000 children die of malnutrition each year in Yemen. The fanatical regime of M Bin Salman still presses ahead with its atrocious aerial bombardment campaign. This blood thirsty and illegitimate regime which seems to have the unequivocal support of the world’s only superpower and until now has been spared from meaningful criticism. Why are the fanatical and extremist groups such as Wahhabis, Salafis, Isis, Al-Qaeeda, Taliban, Boko-Haram who claim to be Muslims, act in the name of Islam killing fellow Muslim brothers? This shows that these fanatical extremists are even more intolerant of their fellow Muslim brothers. They do not regard those whom they murder in the name of Islam as true Muslims. Thus if people violate the boarders of their duties and become disloyal to human rights, they then start to descend on the slope of destruction. Today all evidence and proof suggests that the life line of extremism and all fanatical groups are rapidly losing its advocates and supporters. Thou shall not kill is the universal law.
Aninar Khan is a lecturer in Meditations and Philosophy and can be contacted on 0772891895.
