"The spirit of all true prayer is social. Even the hermit abandons the society
of men in the hope of finding, in a solitary abode a fellowship of God".
Dr. Muhammad Iqbal, The Reconstruction of ReligiousThought in Islam P.92.
As per Iqbal, "spirit of all true prayer is social" and if we look the repeated
term salat in Qur'an (salat alQamas is pre-Islamic) for example Qur'an
2:238; 11:114; 24:58 or if we add Qur'an 17:78 which some scholars
present as an evidence of description of system of prayers. The text of the
subject verses by no means a clear statement, but, an analogy by later day
scholars to rely on fabricated or true traditions in the name of Prophet had
managed to settle it down at the level of sects. This is the reason that there
are different mosques for different sects. There is sufficient evidence in
Islamic literature that rulers were always discouraging diverse interpretation
and practices because that could cause danger to their power. Single mosque
system directly linked to power centre of the Empire had and still is an
effective tool to misguide general public by exploiting their religious
sentiments and attachment and to suppress the voices of discontent,
presenting alternative pictures of daily happening. This is the reason that
when Prophet's own children were massacred by the then so-called Islamic
Caliph, Ruling class was enjoying support just because the aamal were
having direct control over mosques.
The Islamic thinking of conformity against diversity stem from tribal
environment even against the idea of Islam. Even in recent past with the
influence of whabby ideology, the people been told that "don't say Kuda
Hafiz but say Allah Hafiz" because "Allah" do have only one name
which is Allah. On contrary the Qur'an 17:110, (Say, Call Him God, or call
Him the Most Gracious; whichever name you use, to Him belongs the best
names. You shall not utter your Contact Prayers (Salat) too loudly, nor
secretly;use a moderate tone).
It clear that there is no clear statement in Qur'an for the prayer, but, if
something had settled down at the level of sect how one can claim that
it is not sect but for whole? To claim that Islam or Muslim term must be
followed instead of sect to establish a perceived conformity and unity
is fiction and utopian thought not real. The reality is that there are different
sects in Islam, there are people who are very religious, conservative,
orthodox, liberal, rationalists and free thinkers under Islamic fold. This
is common to every society and community all across the globe. The fact
that diversity is natural aspect of human life and no society can walk in
opposite direction in modern time, which is must to guarantee the notion
to coexist and to respect fundamental freedom of a person which cannot
be compromised under any circumstances. No society can promulgate
such rules be that even based on historical, cultural or religious traditions
which are in violation of person's individual freedom. How a Chief
Judge can order his or her staff that everyone must visit the mosque
where he or she would lead the prayer? How on earth he knows that
everyone working for his court is Muslim?
Is it not an evidence that system is rigid to favour people of one
denomination against others which is to use discrimination to hired the
people of desired sect or tribe? How he can provide justice to those who
are not Muslims? Why he is using his judicial position to promote his like
of religious thinking? Justice is not emotional, sentimental or religious but
based on evidence been presenting in the court of law defended and
contested from both sides through which a jurisprudence took shape based
on empirical evidence rather faith or ideology.
Today every society is diverse; new demands brought people of different
faiths, gender, tribes, color, and ethnicity into a new social relationship to
coexist and respect each other’s divers’ life style and thinking. That is why
all societies put maximum resources to foster and promote in societies to
respect to individual freedom rather to bully every one by using majority
sectarian tools of religious prejudices.
The official name of the political entity carry title as "Azad Jammu and
Kashmir State" and similarly the title for gentleman is Chief Justice of
Azad Jammu and Kashmir Supreme Court which indicate to represent a
territory of 85,000 sq. miles that include Jammu, Valley of Kashmir,
Ladakh, Baltistan, Hunza, Gilgit, Poonch. The AJK territory is main
portion of Poonch and small portion of Valley of Kashmir and Jammu.
Just for the sake of argument, we leave aside personal rights of individual
human being and just to look at the socio-political and socio-cultural
landscape to which he is claiming to be a Chief Justice. In Jammu the
majority is Hindus, in Valley of Kashmir and Poonch the majority is
Sunni Muslims, in Ladakh, the majority is Budhists, in Baltistan
and Gilgit the majority is Shia Imamiya where as in Hunza the Fatami
(Ismaili) are in majority. So, how a Sunni mosque, let us assume it is
not whabby school of thought would pave the way for unity of state?
Why Hindu, Budhists, Shia would accept Sunni domination in their
socio-political, socio-cultural and socio-economic life? Is it not to
appease rulers at Islamabad to pave the way for division of the state?
From political stand point why India would allow Sunni part of State of
Jammu Kashmir to go yet keeping 100s of millions of Sunni faith
community on its soil? If religion is basic demand then why hundreds
of thousands of my Kashmiri from AJK had migrated to settled down
in non-Muslim societies such as Europe and North America? Is it not a
fact that economics determine the rests? So mixing judicial system with
basic rituals of Islam which had evolved and settled down diversely
at sect level is to promote extremists ideology of exclusiveness
fostering very destructive consequences. No one can stop such societies
to sleep walking into an ultimate destination of Taliban and ISIS Caliph
where no prosperity but deaths and destruction and slave girls into
force prostitution as we are observing poor Yazidi girls in Iraq.
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