Senin, 22 Oktober 2007
Differences in opinion among Islamic scholars and my own FAQs
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| DATE: 2007-10-22 |HNS
The breakaway religious group in Himandhoo guard their makeshift mosque before Police and the Army stormed it. (Haveeru Photo: Ahmed Hamdhoon)
MALE, October 22, 2007 (Haveeru News Service) – When the Government first started giving religious advice to the public, one venue where such service was conducted was Mulee-Aage in the capital Male.
As a child I once attended one of the sessions at Mulee-Aage which had earlier been used as the President’s residence and later as accommodation for visiting foreign dignitaries.
At that time, when people talked about Islamic scholars, the first name that came to my mind was President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, one of the top Islamic scholars this country has seen to date.
I was quite enthusiastic about attending the meeting, and although my childlike mind then could not absorb all the advice that were given by him, it was an exhilarating experience for me as a child.
With President Gayoom at the helm of the country, information about Islam was widely disseminated across the country. The President helped the Maldives get rid of many ‘bidua’s or false principles and practices which were widespread in Maldives as traditionally Maldivians have been a superstitious people who sometimes practice black magic.
Earlier, what was meant by the Sunnah (the actions of Prophet Mohamed) was interpreted as the non-obligatory prayers and fasts that Islam encourages. However, today, the Sunnah has now been interpreted to mean following the culture and traditions of centuries ago. Today in Maldives you can see some men with long beards and ankle length pants, described by some as part of the Sunnah.
My grandfather was a devote Muslim. He would come back from dawn prayers only after the sun has risen. And then he would once again go to the mosque in the morning to offer a non-obligatory Sunnah prayer called ‘Luha’ namaz.
When my grandfather had his eye operated on, doctors advised him to make sure that he does not get water into his eye. But being so devote, my grandfather could only once adhere to that doctor’s advice.
Whenever I checked why my grandfather was missing from the hospital bed, he would be found doing the ablution before the prayers. Such was his devotion. Yet, he was clean shaven.
If only my grandfather was alive today he would have performed many Sunnah as it is now only that many people are coming to know the Islamic faith better.
And perhaps now is the time to take a neutral look at the issues concerning Islam.
At no time in Maldives history have we seen a time when local Islamic scholars are at loggerheads even with trivial issues like the growing of beards or wearing ankle length pants.
With the loosening of the Government’s control over religion, a new generation of self-proclaimed Islamic scholars have emerged, providing a wide range of information about the faith while at the same time engaging in heated and divisive debates about certain Islamic principles.
If people still do not want to believe that we have already fallen into a hellhole of internal religious strife, at least it might be safe to say that we are at the edge of an abyss and about to fall down into it.
Islamic scholars in Maldives can now be divided into two camps; those who are linked to the Government or are friends with President Gayoom; and those who oppose the Government and the President and claim that the Government over the past 30 years spread “misinformation” about Islam to the Maldivian public. The latter camp is of the view that the Government and the President have done nothing good for the spreading of Islam in the country.
The recipients of this information are of course us, the public. When Islamic scholars have become so polarized in their views, no general member of the public can help but take an interest in this national debate on religion.
The Islamic scholars themselves seem now to be divided into two camps in which one accuse the other of spreading the wrong information about the Islamic faith. These self-proclaimed Islamic scholars are so self-righteous that in their opinion, anyone who has alternative views are deemed to be heretics.
There is a more sinister side to this trend: Do these self-proclaimed Islamic scholars have a political agenda?
As we hear and listen to the raging debates, I can’t help but become confused with a zillion questions regarding our faith. Have I and my close friends all these days been practicing what some may term the “real” Islam? Have we all this time prayed in mosques that have been built on graveyards? Does state broadcaster Television Maldives make people tune off their faith? If I listen to music, am I committing a sin? Is criticizing the Government and Islamic scholars an act of creating public disharmony? Is it wrong to criticize both the Government and the Islamic scholars as well?
This post was written by: Franklin Manuel
Franklin Manuel is a professional blogger, web designer and front end web developer. Follow him on Twitter
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