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The world appeared to have totally changed after the 9/11
attacks on the US. The muslims can easily be termed as prime
victims of the entire episode. While the rest of the world
community suddenly finds a tongue to express their anguish for
the muslim world, few of us actually know how a muslim feels.
Well, I managed to get hold of one, and following is the way
the poor man explains himself.
"I, happen to be a muslim by birth. Should this be
termed as the soul mistake which I was forced to commit by
virtue of my fate ?, or should I be penalized for not
converting from the religion of my forefathers ?, I have no
comments to offer. My nation has been kept suppressed by the
so called generous powers of the world. My ill fated brothers
and sisters belong to each and every corner of the world. May
it be Bosnia, Palestine, Kashmir, Chechnia or the burning towns
of Gujarat, a muslim appears to be the soul enemy of entire non
muslim community. Is it really so? I recall the teachings of my
religion which regards peace as its highest priority in a
society. I recall the saying of my prophet which meant that the
one who kills a human being, actually kills the whole mankind.
I look at my people, striving to earn a livelihood. Trying
hard, that their children do not die of hunger. My youth grows
with no ambition, except to find ways and means to feed their
families. Their thoughts and feelings are bounded by their
compulsions. Their minds restricted to think in one direction
only. Unable to improvise they are forced to follow the
traditional paths of survival.
My past, was glorious. My religion, Islam,
enlightened the world form the era darkness to the social
divine that formed the very basis of today's civilized society.
It converted the evil rituals of the most dejected culture of
that time into the custodians of the unmatched social values.
My ancestors, were the best known professionals of
their times. They enlightened the dark world in every field one
can imagine. They introduced the importance of education. They
established the value of research in science as well as arts.
They excelled in sociology, they progressed in astrology, they
discovered new horizons in every aspect related to human life.
My forefathers were known to be the best military commanders
this world has ever seen. May it be the battle of Yarmuk, the
assault on Gibralter, or the invasion of the subcontinent, the
muslim tactician stands out for his prowess in mastering the
skills of sword and stallion. They ruled the largest part of
the world for centuries. I belong to them, yet for me to be
proud of, is only my past, regrettably I don't have any pride
in my present. Similarly, I don't see anything in my future to
be proud of, I am bound to cherish my past only.
While the evils of my society continue to prevail, I don't
enjoy any freedom to raise my voice. All that I managed to yell
was subdued in the hue and cry of the so called developed
nations. The nations, whom my ancestors taught the A, B, C of
today's success. They being powerful economically, take it as
their right to decide the fate of poor nations like me. If they
don't allow, I cant fight my social evils, I cant practice my
religion, I cant eat, I cant sleep, I cant even breath. And yet
they dub me as a terrorist. Even then, they are surprised that
why my people hate them, for they owe the right to be loved by
all, despite whatever they might do to harm them, innocent
aren't they?
The rules are not the same for all. They shoot my people in the
head if the poor chaps throw stones at them. If my people ask
for freedom, what they get in reply is massacre, bloodshed,
scorched houses and raped women. If they ask for justice, the
reply is again a barbaric act of state sponsored terrorism and
extremism. Yet the world regards these nations as democratic,
secular, and even victims of terrorism, how can they be wrong?
they are always right, they cant be wrong, because they
themselves judge who is right and who is wrong. And if one of
my helpless youth picks up arms as a last resort to stop his
wife, mother, sisters or daughters being raped in front of his
eyes, he becomes a terrorist for the civilized world.
Today, my brothers and sisters in every corner of the
world are forced to blow up their bodies just to make the world
realize that they prefer death over the miserable life which
they are forced to lead by the so called masters of the world,
and yet they are termed as terrorists. I can feel the pain they
suffer. I can realize their emotions when they decide to
sacrifice their lives for their just cause. I can feel the
misery from which one of my sisters must have suffered at the
hands of hindu extremists at Godhra Railway Station before some
of her loyal brothers set the train ablaze, yes, I can feel
the heat that burnt her to death. I can sense the terror which
thousands of my sisters in Kashmir would have suffered from
while they were being maltreated, brutalize, abused, raped and
finally killed. Their pain, when portions of their
bodies are shredded away. The distress of their real brothers
and fathers, in front of whom their beloved sisters and
daughters were being slaughtered. I can sense it all. I can see
it all. I can hear it all. I can feel it all. Yet I am unable
to do anything.
I feel sorry Fida, (synonymous to her name, my Palestinian
sister who blew herself up a couple of months ago in Israel
dictating the the norms of bravery to cowards of modern world),
I am sorry. For I feel the sting of death you suffered when you
accomplished your task. I feel the impact of the shockwaves
that ripped your body apart. I feel your emotions when you
pressed the button which dispatched a number of Israelis to
hell. What I cant experience is the joy and ecstasy which you
are in now. While you enjoy the propinquity of the Prophet in
the heavens above, please pray for me. Pray, that the
dormant and inert period through which I am now is over before
long. Pray, that I get the muscle to thwart those
because of whom you were forced to leave the world this way.
Pray, that I get the wisdom that allows me to keep only the
will of the Almighty as my prime mover. Pray, that I
enjoy the might of a united muslim world where each brother
shares the sorrows and grieves of the other. Pray, that
I don't turn my eyes away from a diabolic act committed against
any of my sisters on this planet. Pray, that I become
able to dictate my terms to the tyrants of so called civilized
world. Pray for my success, as you are at a place from
where, requests are not turned down.
But I still feel ashamed, as after going through all
this debate I would still turn on my television and tune into
an Indian channel to get my nerves relaxed. I feel ashamed, but
there is nothing I can do. This, is not a bad thing in my
society. My people are so accustomed to this practice that they
don't realize it to be something bad. My youth continues to be
spoiled by this social menace to an extent that now they don't
even feel like taking revenge of the savagery their fellow
muslims have suffered at the hands of their enemy. They don't
know what is wrong and what is right. The very sense of
discrimination has been stolen from them. And they fall asleep.
My muscles, are lulled asleep. My arms remain
dormant. My mind is latent. When shall I see it awake?
When will my arms be able to break the shackles of mental
slavery? When shall I be able to think? My questions remain
unanswered….."
I listened to the man spellbound, I never thought him to be so
sensitive. Now that I was able to convey the real curse of
muslims living all over the world, might you suggest some way
to get them out of the darned whirlpool of miseries. As I find
myself completely helpless in a situation like this. When one
feels bad about something, and he wanting to fight it out, but
constrained by the unknown factors, what will he do? Whom will
he turn to ask for the solution? But we don't realize, the
solution is there. The solution was given to us fourteen
hundred years ago but we failed to understand that. The
solution is, a total adherence to the teachings of Islam,
the prophet and the Quran. But we forgot that. Would a reality
such as one quoted above can open our eyes or do we need
some more humiliation to wake up from the horrible
dormancy.
To tell you the truth, the Muslim, presented above, I found
him, in myself. Till the time I relearn to practice the
teachings of Allah, I will continue to face the brunt. Till the
time I don't learn to trust in Allah only, I will continue to
be maltreated. I will continue to face defeat. Till such time
its not me, it's, The Defeated Me….
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