Spirit of Islam November 2017

45 Spirit of Islam Issue 59 November 2017 ASK MAULANA Your Questions Answered Why is Islamophobia spreading outrageously in the whole world? The term ‘Islamophobia’ has come to denote prejudice against, hatred towards, or fear of the religion of Islam or Muslims. In my opinion, this term is a self-styled creation of Muslims and the real fact is contrary to what Muslims think. For example, if the bereaved family members of the victims of the recent killings in Manchester hold complaints about Muslims or Islam, it is but natural. It is not due to Islamophobia; their complaint is in fact a reason-based complaint whereas phobia is an irrational aversion and it develops without a reason. Therefore it is correct to say that there is no such thing as ‘Islamophobia’; it exists neither in the West nor anywhere else in the world. So, what is needed is for Muslims to reform themselves—then everything, including other peoples’ negative perceptions about Muslims and Islam, will be settled. It is a two-point formula: first, Muslims must admit that this phenomenon is ‘Muslim-phobia’ and not ‘Islamophobia’ as such. Second, they must correct themselves. It is the duty of right-thinking Muslims to educate other Muslims in this regard. Do you think political Islam is compatible with Western values? Political Islam is based on self-interpretation and has nothing to do with Islam. Political Islam rests on authoritarianism and is certainly not compatible with Western values, which are based on freedom and democracy. Islam is a religion of nature and operates on the principle of freedom. Just as nature does not follow the course of authoritarianism, similarly Islam does not encourage authoritarianism. Islam recognizes individual freedom. But this also means that everyone is free to misuse their freedom. It is this misuse of freedom that creates problems. In such a scenario, those who misuse their freedom may be made to understand and persuaded with reason. However, abolishing their freedom is not the solution advocated by Islam. Is the concept of ‘religion’ to be blamed for the chaos in the world, or is it the humans who are responsible? The source of chaos in the world is not religion. Its source is misuse of freedom by human beings. God bestowed freedom upon mankind in order to put us to the test in this world. It is the misuse of this God- given freedom which creates all kinds of problems in society. Evil is not a part of creation. It is a result of misuse of freedom by man.