Bringing a Change…Taking a Stand

The Holy Quran says in chapter 31 verse 21:

When they are told to follow the (Revelation) that Allah has sent down, they say: “Nay, we shall follow the ways that we found our fathers (following).”What! Even if it is Satan beckoning them to the Penalty of the (Blazing) Fire?

The Quran again says in chapter 5 verse 104:

When it is said to them: “Come to what Allah hath revealed; come to the Messenger”: They say: “Enough for us are the ways we found our fathers following.” what! Even though their fathers were void of knowledge and guidance?

This is the general behavior of the people who want to follow blindly and who do not have the courage to go against the society and take a stand for something that is right.

A custom is any practice that has become habitual with the members of a particular social group.

A tradition is a practice continuing from the past.

Customs become traditions as they go on from one generation to the other.

But what one has to look for is that only those customs and traditions should be followed which are in accordance with the teachings of our religion and which have some positive impacts.

These days our society is accustomed to follow a lot of different customs and traditions which are simply unnecessary and totally unislamic.

Let’s take marriage for an example. It is an act of worship and a Sunnah of the holy prophet. But you can very well observe what has become of it. The whole procession of BARAT and all kinds of “RASMS” from “SEHRA BANDHAI” till “JOOTA CHUPPAI” are nothing but wastage of time, money and efforts and most of them are picked up from foreign culture which makes it a double sin as according to a HADITH of Sunan Abu Dawood:

“Whoever imitates a nation will be amongst them.”

People are compelled to borrow money even on interest for the weddings of their daughters as they feel that they will be looked down upon if they do not do what the society demands, even if it is not in accordance with their religion.

Many girls do not get married only because their parents can not afford the dowry that is demanded and many women get divorced because their parents are not able to fulfill the demands of their in-laws.

The practices regarding dowry and its importance are an influence of the Hindu culture as the Hindus give dowries to their daughters since their daughters do not have an implicit share in inheritance and so they try to give them everything at the time of their marriage. Its correct from their perspective but that is not applicable for Muslims, because in Islam daughters get half as much the share in inheritance as the sons get.

On one hand the advocates of DOWRY in the Muslim culture say that the prophet himself gave dowry to his daughter Hazrat Fatima (R.A.).On the other hand it is believed that whatever was given was not for Hazrat Fatima (R.A.) but was to support HAZRAT ALI (K.A.W) because our beloved Prophet (P.B.U.H.) was himself the guardian of Hazrat ALI (K.A.W.). This has always remained a debatable issue. But for the sake of argument, even if one agrees that it really was a Dowry so this remains an undeniable fact that it was one of the simplest dowries ever, free from all kinds of show off.

Consider Walimas:

Walima is a Sunnah of the holy prophet but not the kind of lavish Walimas and Buffet Dinners that we see today where the poor are altogether forgotten. Meals where the poor are not invited are referred to by the prophet as Shar-ut-Tuam (the worst of meals) and according to Ahadis it is not allowed even to accept such an invitation.

The Walima can only be masnoon if it is done the way our prophet did it and with similar intentions. When our prophet got married to Hazrat Safiyah (R.A) the food that was available with the companions was collected together and served for Walima. This shows that if a person does not even have enough to invite people himself then he and his friends can gather and share their food and the Sunnah of Walima will be done. Hazrat Ayesha (R.A.) narrates that “the most blessed marriage is the one with the least expenses”.

The teachings of Islam about marriage are very easy and simple. Marriage is an act of worship and a Sunnah of the Holy Prophet (P.B.U.H.). It prevents a person from indulging in fornication and adultery.

There are only two faraiz of nikah:

1. the agreement of the two partners.

2. the presence of two witnesses.

Islam teaches us to value time and money .The companions of the Prophet took as much time for Nikah as it takes to offer two rakka’ats of nafil prayers.

Getting married prevents a person from indulging in illicit gratification and adultery. But a person would better indulge in such things till he can have enough money to spend on his wedding and can you envision the negative impacts of such acts.

Mehndis and Dholkees are purely foreign trends and there is no place for these trends in Islam, and the tremendous amount of money that muslims spend on these unnecessary things can be spent on the welfare of the needy people.

Muslims are advised to distinguish themselves in their external appearance adopting Islamic ways and methods in all their affairs, whether worldly or Deeni.

According to Sir Syed Ahmed Khan leading ones life according to his free will is a person’s right and in a society where not following the customs and traditions is considered an unpardonable sin the people are deprived of this right. Sir Syed also says that following the customs and traditions blindly even if they are good has a very negative impact and that is that the people stop pondering and their intellectual growth comes to a halt.

A better way is to use ones intellect and follow the customs and traditions on rational basis, that is to follow those which are good, improve those which need improvement and stop following the bad ones blindly.

Its now our job to spread the message and bring a change. May Allah guide us and give us enough strength to demolish the Idols of Rasm-o-Rivaaj and use our intellect.

Sir Albert Einstein has rightly said

“Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence.”