Blasphemy Law and The Dilemma of the Apologists!
A few years back there was a huge uproar in the Muslim communities around the world over the Danish cartoon controversy. Protests in some parts such as Pakistan turned violent and angry mobs damaged private property apart from burning effigies of the culprits. This scribe had written a piece- in fact a series of articles- back then urging people to just ignore these insults as, in my opinion back then, that’s the only suitable reply. Apart from that, the series also tried to prove from the Seerah of RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.) and Sahaba (r.a.) that they always dealt with blasphemous behavior in the same way.
Well, I have to confess, I was ignorant of our history and I was foolishly wrong!
I guess now that I’ve read and heard a bit of our history (still not all of it obviously), I can tell you that there’s overwhelming evidence that the only suitable punishment against blasphemy to RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.) and all the prophets of ALLAH (s.w.t.) is death, and a swift one at that! Not only there’re instances that Sahaba (r.a.) killed blasphemers but they did so with the approval, and in some cases orders, of RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.).
Ka’b ibn Ashraf, Abu Rafay, Ibn Khatal and his two slavegirls, a jewish woman in Medina and lots of others are such criminals that were slain by Sahaba (r.a.) and, as is reported in numerous Hadith, with orders or approvals of RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.). Some were set up, some ambushed, some immediately killed, some properly executed.
The fact that such an important part of Seerat un Nabi (s.a.w.) is one of the most obscure ones is a mind-boggling phenomenon. We’ve been taught in our schools and colleges and higher levels that Islam is a religion of tolerance, that RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.) always fought when war was thrust upon Muslims and that RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.) pardoned each and every one of his enemies – even the killers of Hadhrat Hamza (r.a.)- on the day of Fath Makka,.
It turns out that we’ve been told only partial truths!
The history that we have been studying in our course book has been contorted; the Truth has been misconstrued. The roots of the current science-centric education system that we are following in Pakistan, can be traced back to two major movements historically: a) Malthusianism[1] and b) the Ali Garh movement[2]. It was with the efforts of Sir Syed Ahmed Khan that Muslims started studying the sciences and English language and his services can’t be denied. Yet, it was also largely due to his influence that Muslims, early after, adopted the already corrupt and infected education system set by British East India Company.
The advent of this modern education in Muslims became the main cause of promotion of a more docile version of Islam. A docile, rather toothless, version of Islam that practices non-violence to the core and goes to war only when war is thrust upon it. While that’s not entirely untrue, it’s not the whole truth either. There are countless examples when the offensive was taken by Muslims and took the Kuffar by surprise. Ghazwa Badr was well and truly the first proper battle between Muslims and Kuffar but what’s not told to us is that there were as many as eight military expeditions sent or led by RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.) before the battle of Badr. Each of those expeditions paid dividends and a large area in Hijaz which was earlier under allegiance with Quraish either became a Muslim ally or became neutral. Also, there’re a lot of examples of preemptive strikes out of which the famous battle of Khyber and the battle of Bani Al-Mustaliq are famous. Reading our history in this way casts a totally different light altogether to how we should go about our religious duties. But by and large, these incidents have been obscured by our education system and either inadvertently or intentionally created breeds after breeds of apologists whose life’s work is to deny such important elements of our history.
Some glaring examples can be found in response to the recent case of Aasia Maseeh, the woman convicted of blasphemy against RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.). While there are liberal fascist making raucous noises to repeal the blasphemy law altogether, there are also some apologists, senior opinion-makers in the print and electronic media, who are trying to remind us of the tolerance in our religion, that a mother of 5 children – one of which is disabled- should be pardoned, especially after she says she’s sorry. There are also such daft columnists who see Salman Taseer’s hasty visit with his family to the convicted woman in prison and conducting a press conference there as an act out of empathy. It’s beyond words how disgusted the people of Pakistan are with the efforts of the ruling class to have a convict of blasphemy pardoned, that too on the orders of Pope Benedict, while the same ruling elite is tightlipped over the abduction and illegitimate trial of Dr Aafia Siddiqui.
But even if we assume that the government will go the whole nine yards to get Aasia removed to some western country, it seems appropriate at this point to see if pardoning Aasia Maseeh is within the power of the government or not.
Apologists claim that RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.) pardoned everyone who ever said anything foul to him. They give the examples of the women who threw garbage on RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.) daily, whom he (s.a.w.) had visited when she’d fallen ill. They also give the examples of conquest of Makka (Fath Makka) when he (s.a.w.) pardoned everyone in Makka. They also claim Aasia Maseeh said she’s sorry and has hence repented. They also say that Aasia is a non Muslim and Muslim capital punishment is not applicable to her. They say she’s a women and she’s poor so she should be pardoned. That we should pardon her to show goodwill towards west and thus pave the way to Islam’s preaching.
First of all, the amnesty on the day of the Fath Makka was for everyone, except there was a black list. A list of those who were to be slain even if they were found hanging with the curtains of Kabba, the most sacred of sacred places on earth. Ibn Khatal, as it goes, was found exactly in this situation and still was executed. There were two slavegirls of Ibn Khatal who used to sing absurdities against RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.) and they were also in that list. It’s important to note that they were also women like Aasia, they were also non-muslims like her, they probably were also poor, in fact they were slaves and hence had no free will, still they were executed. Ibn Taimiyah says that it shows that blasphemy against RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.) is an even greater crime than murder.
Secondly, even if we agree that RasooluLLAH (s.a.w.) pardoned some when he found it appropriate, it should stand as his prerogative and that’s it. Now we can’t pardon anyone on his behalf. Neither the government, nor the complainant.
Thirdly, even if she’s sorry for what she did doesn’t make her crime any milder. It’s similar if a murderer on the death row says he’s sorry, doesn’t absolve him of his crime. After all we’ve just seen that the crime that was perpetrated here was bigger than murder. It’s the verdict of scholars new and old, that the perpetrator of blasphemy should be killed immediately and not to be given a chance.
Lastly, we shouldn’t pardon her to just show our goodwill towards the west. Just to show how tolerant we are. That’s the most absurd excuse to do something equally absurd. If we had dealt with blasphemers in the way of Sahaba (r.a.) lately, our outlook would be a lot more different from it is today. It’s because of this tolerant behavior that any tom, harry or dick could say or write what he likes about our sacred personalities. If Salman Rushdi had been slain back then in the eighties, or Tasleema Nasreen back in the nineties, or the perpetrators of the European newspapers controversy had been killed back then, we would be a lot better off than we are today. Every time something like this happens, our response has grown weaker. And now it has come down to the point where our government is trying to dodge its public to provide safe passage to a convict of blasphemy. I seek refuge with ALLAH (s.w.t.) from the day when our public would be trying to save such a criminal from punishment.
As an afterthought, we probably should agree with the liberal fascists on one thing. That the blasphemy law should be repealed altogether. As it happens, having a law for a crime makes the punishment predictable. And when something is predictable it’s all the more defendable. If there’s no blasphemy law, then public would do justice on its own. The anticipation of punishment would be all the more painful for the perpetrators as the punishment itself.
There would be a Ghazi Ilm Deen Shaheed on every street, every city!
[1] Malthusianism refers to the political/economic thought of Reverend and indirect employee of British East India Company Thomas Robert Malthus, whose ideas were first developed during the industrial revolution. It follows his 1798 writings, An Essay on the Principle of Population, which had a great impact on the way British East India Company managed India; it had a great impact on economic\political\education policies of Great Britain.
[2] Aligarh Movement was the movement led by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, to educate the Muslims of the Indian subcontinent after the defeat of the rebels in the Indian rebellion of 1857.
For those who ponder
The modern age is the age of professionalism. This is the age when being workaholic is not a disorder but a demand. People now cannot tend to their most basic needs because they haven’t the time to do so. Being ahead from their peers in the rat race remains the ultimate desire of every individual. So much so that to be ahead in life they forsake their basic rights, right to be happy, right to be content, right to be with the family, right to be religious etc. Today’s civilization seems like a giant web which has tied us in invisible strings where we’re supposed to do only three things: Go to work, go home, and prepare to go to work. Even our recreations are a way of supplementing this schedule.
But there are times, when destiny laughs in our face and makes us feel so helpless that we’re left wondering if we had any power all along. It’s at such times that our monotony comes to an abrupt halt. One such instance is when we’re witnessing the funeral of a loved one. At such a time, none of our “most important and most urgent” errands are so much as important as the grief of losing our loved ones. Work can wait then, because we’ve humbly submitted to our destiny.
The same hand of destiny is currently holding an entire continent- who is the flag bearer of atheism in the world- in a state of paralysis. Europe’s air travel has come down to an absolute halt due to hot toxic ash oozing from a glacier.
(Boston Big Picture)
I couldn’t help but laugh at the remark from an acquaintance that “isn’t it ironic hot lava is coming from Iceland!” The volcano, Eyjafjallajökull (Pronounced something like Aiya-fjadla-yeugdul), is a veteran of centuries and since the time of its reawakening last week, has spewed enough fumes and toxic ash into the atmosphere to have spread over almost all Europe. 
(BBC News)
That’s why all flights coming in and out of Europe have been seized, leaving hundreds of thousands of commuters stranded at airports, airlines incurring daily losses of over 200 Million USD for accommodating customers, even Germany’s Chancellor has had to make her trip back home from Italy via car. Those who could afford are opting for the Intra-Continent train system, and some have opted for the fairy, converting one industry’s misery into another’s pleasure. The majority of people are those who are left stranded. People who were supposed to be on urgent assignments abroad have had to realign their schedule, they couldn’t have done otherwise. No matter how badly the airlines and the passengers want these flights to take off, conditions are absolutely not favorable for flight and there is high risk of plain crashes with ash blocking the engines. Worse, the glacier is still exhuming its contents and there’s a fair chance it could continue to do so for a month or even more. Worst, it could trigger other volcanoes which are somehow quite abundant in Iceland.
Our businesses run on the premise of predictability. We hope that the world wouldn’t come to end tomorrow. That’s why we leave our loved ones behind everyday to work because we believe that we’ll come back in the evening to see them again. This predictability comes from the laws that ALLAH (swt) has embedded in the universe: law of gravitation, law of entropy, law of aerodynamics, law of surface tension, law of aging etc. ALLAH (swt) declares this tranquility in the Quran as one of His Ayaat.
In Surah Faatir it is mentioned:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُمْسِكُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ أَن تَزُولَا ۚ وَلَئِن زَالَتَا إِنْ أَمْسَكَهُمَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ مِّن بَعْدِهِ ۚ إِنَّهُ كَانَ حَلِيمًا غَفُورًا
خدا ہی آسمانوں اور زمین کو تھامے رکھتا ہے کہ ٹل نہ جائیں۔ اگر وہ ٹل جائیں تو خدا کے سوا کوئی ایسا نہیں جو ان کو تھام سکے۔ بےشک وہ بردبار (اور) بخشنے والا ہے
Lo! Allah graspeth the heavens and the earth that they deviate not, and if they were to deviate there is not one that could grasp them after Him. Lo! He is ever Clement, Forgiving. (41)
On another place it is mentioned in Surah Shoora:
إِن يَشَأ يُسكِنِ الرّيحَ فَيَظلَلنَ رَواكِدَ عَلىٰ ظَهرِهِ ۚ إِنَّ فى ذٰلِكَ لَءايٰتٍ لِكُلِّ صَبّارٍ شَكورٍ
اگر خدا چاہے تو ہوا کو ٹھیرا دے اور جہاز اس کی سطح پر کھڑے رہ جائیں۔ تمام صبر اور شکر کرنے والوں کے لئے ان (باتوں) میں قدرت خدا کے نمونے ہیں
If He will He calmeth the wind so that they keep still upon its surface – Lo! herein verily are signs for every steadfast grateful (heart). – (33)
In Surah Room it is mentioned:
وَمِن ءايٰتِهِ أَن يُرسِلَ الرِّياحَ مُبَشِّرٰتٍ وَلِيُذيقَكُم مِن رَحمَتِهِ وَلِتَجرِىَ الفُلكُ بِأَمرِهِ وَلِتَبتَغوا مِن فَضلِهِ وَلَعَلَّكُم تَشكُرونَ
اور اُسی کی نشانیوں میں سے ہے کہ ہواؤں کو بھیجتا ہے کہ خوشخبری دیتی ہیں تاکہ تم کو اپنی رحمت کے مزے چکھائے اور تاکہ اس کے حکم سے کشتیاں چلیں اور تاکہ اس کے فضل سے (روزی) طلب کرو عجب نہیں کہ تم شکر کرو
And of His signs is this: He sendeth herald winds to make you taste His mercy, and that the ships may sail at His command, and that ye may seek his favour, and that haply ye may be thankful. (46)
As it is clear from the above mentioned verses, the laws of nature, no matter how predictable, are subject to ALLAH (swt)’s will. It’s not just that the universe was created by ALLAH (swt) and triggered in a self-perpetuation state. No. ALLAH (swt) is well and truly at the helm of His eternal kingdom. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, cyclones, tremors, and epidemics like dengue fever, cholera and plague are not signs of chaos, but the exceptions that prove the rule. They are but just a way to remind human beings that they’re not left unanswerable and that they’re not indispensable. There were much mightier civilizations than the current one which have been swept clean from the face of this earth in such catastrophes. As if they never were.
For those affected by this current debacle, and for those who’re witnessing it happen, maybe ALLAH (swt) has given a chance to ponder in his Ayaat. We’ve got to take the time out of our busy schedules to look into ourselves and in the universe. Human being has become lonelier and lonelier but the solitude that lets us think about our Creator is still a rare commodity. We should relish this chance. Any calamity that makes us closer to our Lord is not a calamity, it’s a blessing. And smart and practical people grab blessings with both hands!
May ALLAH (swt) makes us one of his dear ones. Ameen
Quranic references from:
Rationale for Islamic way of life (As I have understood)
There are more than a billion Muslims in the world, almost 2/3 of them offer prayers (during ramadan it’s almost 3/4), Saudia is inundated with pilgrims during Hajj, Eid shoppers crowd the markets, every mosque is overflowing during Friday prayers; yet we’re divided, dismantled, disintegrated, and most shamefully, dominated! Still our behaviour is masochistic to say the least. The west can step over our values any time they want and all we do is ignore. The very west that’s dominating us in our lives, is the place we all want to go. We look up to them to cure us from the ailments they’ve caused. Yeah right, you’ve heard all this before! 
My question has lately been, what is it that we should be doing as Muslims to be respected. One thing is clear, no matter how much we try to become “them”, we can’t become “them”, they won’t accept us as one of theirs and rightly so.
Let me confess, this questions came to my mind only after I started listening to dars-e-quran of a contemporary scholar. It was different from other Moulvis bcuz it first created those questions in my mind, and then led to the answers so logically that everything started to fall into place.
First reaction was, if we want to be respected in life, then the only way we can do that is to become ardent followers of Quran. Whatever Quran says, we follow.
Second reaction, since RasooluLLAH brought the Quran, and since he was Saadiq and Ameen, we should trust him that he(S.A.W.) described and acted upon the Quran in the best and most easily understandable manner as possible. So if we follow the Sunnah, we’ll do exactly what Quran wants us to do.
Still, my mind, like the minds of many others, kept asking. There should be a logic behind this. All the rituals, practices, prohibitions, allowances, should have a logical outcome, because Islam is a very practical religion, at least as is told. On one hand, it stops from adultery, fornication, gambling, meaningless activities, and on the other hand orders to do things in a certain way, follow a certain code, do this, don’t do that. This should all lead up to a grander cause than just creating mindless followers.
The reason, as far as I’ve understood, is in this verse of the Quran.
048.028
“It is He Who has sent His Messenger with Guidance and the Religion of Truth, to proclaim it over all religion: and enough is Allah for a Witness.”
Islam was destined to dominate. Muhammad RasooluLLAH’s (S.A.W.) mission was not only to proclaim the message of ALLAH(SWT), but also to upend the prevalent politico-socio-economic system. And as we all know, systems don’t give way all too easily. It needs sacrifices, sacrifices need volunteers, and volunteers should be totally committed to the cause instead of walking the fringes.
For a cause as high as this, the quality of volunteers can’t be compromised. Young volunteers should be thoroughbred, totally developed in an environment in which they breathe not air, but their mission. That environment can be provided by parents who are sincere to each other and trust each other, and follow the Quran themselves. Hence the ban on adultery, and the strict rule of Hijab. The ban on gambling and other meaningless activities was because they dilute the focus away from the mission and, being the footsteps of satan, will lead them away from the correct path. Ban on liquor because a man not in his senses can do all of these banned activities. I hope you’re following me.
It generally takes 20-25 years for a generation to grow. The span between the day the first Wahi arrived, and the day RasooluLLAH(SAW) departed this world, is 23 years. A whole generation grew up with this value system circulating in their blood. They did what the Quran told, but not mindlessly, the wisdom of Sahaba is well known. The way Islam spread even after RasooluLLAH’s (S.A.W.) departure from this world, is enough to prove that their focus wasn’t lost, they believed in ALLAH (SWT), RasooluLLAH (SAW), Quran and their mission. And whenever there will be a “successful” effort to uproot the zionist systems, it can be this way and only this way.
The reason I’ve been repeating the word standardization and discipline, is that as much as belief causes action, actions cause beliefs as well. Someone asked me earlier whether it’ll be realistic to say so. I believe yes it will. Most people only “think” they need a reason to act upon something, whereas in effect they’re themselves doing a lot of things just because the other guy’s doing it. Most of us justify our actions “after” we act. Some people could be the exceptions that prove the rule. I’ve come to believe very firmly that Muslims will soar to greater heights they once reached, there are clear Hadith that predict these. ALLAH (SWT) will get His work done no matter what. If someone works in that way, it’s going to benefit himself only, no one has any might to harm or favor ALLAH (SWT)… And it’s mentioned in the Quran (I miss the reference again, sorry), that if we won’t do the job we’re supposed to do, then we’ll be wiped off the face of the earth and be replaced by a nascent, alive nation.
Diagnosis and treatment? This couplet of Iqbal from Jawab-e-Shikwa has both.
Wo Muazziz thay zamanay main musalman ho karAur tum khwar huay taarik-e-Quran ho kar(They were Muslims, and they were dignified, You abandoned Quran, so you’ve been abandoned)(Iqbal)
If we say that the people currently preaching Islam are not doing it correctly, then we must do it! And if we think someone is doing it right then we must go all out and support him. All we need to do is to learn the Quran, with sincerity, not seeking conspiracy. And the same way we look for the best teacher available for our studies, we should look for teachers of this knowledge as well. The world, and Pakistan, must still have good, practicing scholars, otherwise we’d have been obliterated by now and replaced.
ALLAH (SWT) knows best!
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