{Quick Reflections 45} Corrupted Islam 4

Clarification:

Last time we stopped at the classification that divided people into 4 groups; “Theoretical scholars”, “Average Muslims”, “Extremists” and “Hypocrites”. I would like to clarify that this classification includes the different parties whose actions and interactions in life form what we have called “Corrupted Islam”. This is by no means a comprehensive classification of all the Muslims. Of course there are millions who participate to form the picture of “True Islam” and can be divided into “True Scholars”, “True Leaders” and “True Average Muslims”. Unfortunately their voice and impact is less loud and difficult to identify amongst the chaos.
Similarly when I say that nowadays Islam is corrupted does not mean that there is no correct or true Islam nowadays but it just means that the general picture or presentation of Islam is corrupted. This is because the percentage of corruption dominates the percentage of true or correct Islam. Just like when we say that Egypt is a Muslim country does not mean that none of its people are non-Muslims. It just means that the majority (90%) and the governing authority are Muslims. Similarly when we say that Islam is corrupted it means that a major part of the presented and practiced picture of Islam is corrupted by a great percentage of Muslims and their leaders, be that intentionally (due to personal motives) or due to ignorance.
Generally throughout this series when I mention Muslim, or Scholar, I mean the ones contributing to the corruption and not all Muslims or all Scholars. Only in the last episode, if God wills, will I talk about the True Muslims that are struggling to hold some ground.


Enemies:

It is very well known that outsiders will never defeat true Muslims and true Islam but the defeat comes from within, which has been the case for nearly four hundred years now. This can be explained by defining what are the main themes of Islam and how have Muslims dropped them and what are the main enemies of Islam and how Muslims have not fought them as ferociously as they should have.

The three main themes of Islam are the Oneness of God, Perfection of Manners and Pursuit of Knowledge. I will discuss these themes in separate articles later if God wills.
On the other hand the two main enemies of Islam that are within us and that I am going to focus on in this article are the Hypocrites and Idol Worshiping.


The Hypocrites (Fifth Columnists):

When Allah first introduces the readers and listeners to Qur’an to the main three different types of people in Surat al-Baqarah (2; 2-20) He uses 4 ayat to describe the believers followed by 2 to describe the non-believers and then 13 to describe the hypocrites. Thirteen to describe a group that is a small percentage of people and 6 to describe the rest of the people on Earth! All that stress and detailed description of one type in contrast to the other two is because they are the worst and most complicated. They know the truth, they live amongst ones who practice it and they are given the freedom to choose yet they insist on pretending what they are not. Later on in the Qur’an there is a whole Surah in their name. They are a group of people who live in all ages and their main aim is to corrupt Islam from within. There is no logic to explain their attitude especially that Islam gives the freedom to every human being to choose. They could have simply chosen to be atheists or anything else they wish. They could just leave the place they grew up in and immigrated to live with whomever their ideology they agree with yet they do not. The only explanation for their attitude is the one given by God. Their hearts are sick.

They could be average Muslims or even scholars. Usually they are successful and have a high IQ. (I prefer not to use the word intelligent, as the true definition of that word is different in Islam than what it is commonly known for.)
We are not allowed in Islam as individuals to judge other people. This is left to certain authorities in certain situations and individual judgment is left to only God. Unfortunately one of the main diseases corrupting Islam nowadays is that most people most of the time tend to openly judge not only other average people but even scholars whom they do not agree with.
During the time of the Prophet, peace be upon him, although he was informed by God about the names of the hypocrites living amongst them he did not openly declare them. He, peace upon him, mentioned their names secretly to one of his companions so that when each hypocrite dies he would prevent the Muslims from offering prayers for mercy on his soul. He did not do that while they were alive for three main reasons. The first is not to shock the Muslims confidence in some people whom they thought were good people and leaders and hence spread a sense of insecurity and mistrust amongst Muslims. The second is not to create chaos that would result if those people were confronted openly. They would become defensive and start mentioning many acts of good deeds they participated in with the Prophet, peace be upon him, to try to prove that he is mistaken. This would result in an escalating argument and up to a civil war amongst Muslims. The third is to teach the Muslims not to judge other people on individual basis openly. He, peace be upon him, was told by God, the All-Knower, about these people, so there is no doubt about that judgment yet he, peace be upon him, did not openly mention them. Accordingly, we, as very less knowledgeable human beings, should not judge anyone person and spread that judgment around.
However that does not mean that we trust everyone completely and act as if that category of people does not exist. We have been warned about the hypocrites and our Prophet, peace be upon him, mentioned their criteria to us so we can avoid them and not follow them if they call for one thing or another. When we spot those criteria in someone we do not accuse them openly of being hypocrites but we avoid them and do not trust them.
Basically, per the Prophet, peace be upon him, they are liars, who do not keep their promises and are traitors. However they can be shrewd enough to cover up for their defects at least temporarily for everyone or all the time for a certain audience of people.

An average one would usually be seen as very strictly adherent to the “looks” but when it comes to true practice he is nowhere to be seen. For example, he could have a beard, or she could wear hijab or even niqab, and always talking about God and his Prophet and shows up on most religious occasions telling you what to do and what not to do. On the other hand he would have a terrible relationship with his parents, treats his spouse and children offensively, does not give a damn about his neighbor and has foul manners in general. S/he is always judging others and is on the offensive towards others. S/he talks about prayers all the time and gives you a hard time if you miss one. However when you ask them to participate in hidden voluntary work they are no where to be found.

A real life example that I have experienced with some of these people is very interesting. Let us say he is called Smiley. Smiley starts a religious group in college. He is very active and attracts many people with him. Some of the people who join are also dishonest like Smiley while the majority is sincere. It is very democratic in that group and some of the sincere people rise to power but they are not aware of the insincere ones amongst them who also have the chance to rise to power. The group grows and grows with many true sincere successes. However there are always setbacks and punitive actions taken against the sincere from time to time. Thanks to Smiley and friends who originally started the group to be able to keep track of the sincere and keep them checked back.
A lesson to learn is to always have an open eye for the causes of setbacks. Do not trust people who are responsible for them and at the same time work hard to accomplish your goal enduring the hardship you will suffer in the process. God is there for you and will support you but you have to take all possible human measures to ensure success of the work.


On the other hand one who is a leader or in a high rank or even a scholar would act as follows. He focuses on minor issues that are the source of argument amongst people for centuries. He does not talk about major issues that concern the wellness of Islam and Muslims. He is very hard on the public and never says a word of truth or advice to stop the rulers or political leaders from their corruption. He tends to spend a lot of time in attacking other scholars. When he sees that Muslims are uniting on a certain action or opinion, which is a rare event nowadays, he discourages that and tries to disperse that unity. They also tend to relate themselves to important very early Islamic figures. They discourage advancement and thinking and tend to be very productive in terms in the amount of books they write and spread.
Unfortunately their followers nowadays are in the millions due to their ignorance. We need to watch out for those kinds of “scholars” and avoid them.

Here is an imaginary exemplary quiz with 6 examples to try to see for ourselves whom to trust and whom not to, whom to follow and whom to avoid (be that due to them being dishonest or theoretical -continuously misguided- scholars).

1- Two men agree to split the political leadership and religion leadership between them such that each one of them leaves the other to do what he wishes and not to harm each other.

2- A scholar praises the ruler and indulges in minor details that make people’s daily life hard and avoids major issues that concern Islam and Muslims.

3- A scholar is constantly praising the ruler and pleasing him and does not care about the welfare of Muslims.

4- A scholar is avoiding the authorities and working on reform amongst the general population with an eye on the general welfare of Muslims.

5- A scholar does not aggressively oppose the ruler but tends to be polite and advises him wisely and is working hard on teaching Islam to the people.

6- A scholar is a “troublemaker” with the authorities through his harshness with them while trying to stop their corruption, and tends to be very patient and polite with the average people and at the same time caring for their advancement and ease.

The difference between the first 3 examples and the last 3 is very clear.