Assalamualaikum, dear inquisitive ones:
It has been a while since I have written any worthy pieces to read. It’s only because I want to straighten up a few things before I can manage to sit in front of my computer now, thanks to some big issues, finally settled and I am at ease now.
A little bit confused about the title, are we? This post will elaborate more on how we should accept diversities as it is, and we should not label people as negative, without any prior investigations. I remember a short poem by Rudyard Kipling, a regular lad in my childhood memories:
All good people agree,
And all good people say;
All nice people like Us, are We,
And everyone else is They.
And he nonchalantly ends his piece by saying:
…If you cross over the sea,
Instead of over the way,
You may end by (think of it!)
Looking on We,
As only sort of They.
What is the main lesson behind this short writing of his? We need to understand why other people think and act as they do and to respect and emphatize with their diverse perspectives. Know this: not a single person is created the same.
Ignorant? Dont be!
If your are a muslim, you should know better that the four main caliphs (khalifahs) – Abu Bakar r.a., Uthman r.a., Umar r.a. and Ali r.a. – shows these vast differences in the way they perceive politics, war, and even tackling administrative issues. For example, Abu Bakar is a very pious, reserved but stern in a few ways, and he even devoted everything that he had to the religion. Umar, is in contrast, a very headstrong chap and known as a ‘gangster’ and ‘wrestler’ before he embraced Islam. After he is a devoted muslim, his sternness and outspoken style continued still to scare the pants out of the infidels (kafir).
This differences show that in certain things, people will have different ways in perceiving things – but one thing is for sure for the caliphs, they all embraces Islam full-heartedly, in their own special way, nothing less and nothing more. As muslims know, all four of them had been promised jannah or heaven, by our beloved prophet, Muhammad S.A.W. – ultimately showing that you should not worry about the differences in others, but focusing on building your own strong foundation of iman. Iman is, as they say, made of hills and slopes. There will be time when your iman will be as shallow as a swampy lake, and there also be time when your iman is as strong as a Himalayan mountain.
As long as we don’t do what we are not allowed to do, as in Suratul Baqarah, verse 229, “..and that is Allah’s hukm, and don’t ever cross the line. Whoever crosses the line, they are the destructive ones (zholeem).“
There are no other ways in life, but to uphold the truth, even when it causes unwanted war. I want to add some more spice to this issue from the same surah, from verse 244, “Wage war in the name of Allah, and know that Allah is All Hearing and All Knowing”. Mark these words deep in your craniums: He will definitely know what you hide and what you show inside your hearts. There are no futile amal or good deeds in His Knowing, in which all of it will be paid for by God. The bigger your amal (..or bluntly we can say akhirah investment), the bigger the rewards will be. I will end this piece by mentioning another verse from al-Baqarah, verse 245, “Whoever wants to give loans to Allah, good loans (giving whatever you own to Him), then Allah will repay you with numerous-fold (greater) repayments. Allah makes it hard (hardship in rizk) and makes it easy (prosperous) as He pleases. And to Him will you be returned.” Loans here, in this context, can be in any form, be it ibadah, amal, sadaqah, waging war – soft or hard, or whatever good that we do, bearing His name.
Read, and think. Again.
Always read the Ultimate source of Knowledge
To the main issue, why do people fight among themselves, even from their own kind? Because, it is an inability to accept the differences of other people, with their different characters, albeit their same belief…think about it, even though we are created with different colour hues, forms and characters, we are ultimately from the same nature of creation. We are Men, and these vast differences are colouring our very lives as we know it. Our lives in this earth is a test, the ultimate test, in order go to the Eternal Land. The Promised Land.
Tis is important, for it’s up to Him to judge, as He is The Ultimate Judge – not you, or me, for that matter. Learn to accept, and adapt. If you think that you are the one holding the truth, present your points, and let intellectual discourse and deduction reveal itself. We are programmed as humans, to incline ourselves to a form of truth, or at least what we think it is. By constantly discussing on these matters, we will achieve the Ultimate Truth. Nobody can escape the Ultimate Truth, for Islam is the way of life, and the truth will always prevails.
Don’t ever judge a person without prior knowledge and never think that you are too knowledgable to consider more inputs. Always open up your heart for more. We are learning still, till the day we are carried to our graves, as limp, lifeless and hopefully not clueless, bodies.
What can we make up out of this?
Wallahualam.
