THE SEARCH FOR A JUST SOCIETY
JOHN HUDDLESTON
GEORGE RONALD 1989
PART 10
Chapter 10: Islam and the Idea of Equality
Following the sequence of history, it is now time to turn to Islam, a religion which raised the standard of civilization over the vast regions of the globe stretching from West Africa to the Pacific Islands in the East, from China and Russia in the North to East Africa in the South. It brought a new statement of religion easy for all to understand and appreciate; it strengthened ethical standards; it created a much greater sense of equality of men; and, for the first time in the evolution of religion, gave guidelines on the administration of the state.
Islam (the word means submission to God’s will) arose in the 7th century AD in Arabia, a vast land, mostly desert, measuring some 600 by 1,000 miles, situated to the east and west of the great river basins of the Nile, Euphrates and the Indus. The people of this land, a mixture of nomads, cultivators and traders, were grouped into a complex system of tightly knit tribes where kinship was the determining factor in a man’s life. There were constant quarrels between the tribes; violence particularly in relation to blood feuds was endemic; and generally there was much brutality. Slavery was widespread and there was a low valuation of women – newly-born female babies were often buried alive to eliminate a perceived burden on the family. The chief city of the region, Mecca, was important both as a trading centre on the route between the Mediterranean and the orient and as a holy place, for it was here that Abraham had built the Ka’be (cube) as a place of worship of the one true God. Though the Arabs recognized Abraham’s God (Allah) as supreme, they had over the centuries added subsidiary cults of lesser deities and by the 7th century it was said that the city had shrines for some 360 gods. The shrines made of Mecca a centre for pilgrimage, a most profitable business for the inhabitants, and to encourage it agreement had been reached that there should be a four-month truce from inter-tribal quarrels each year.
Muhammad was born in Mecca in AD 750. He was either posthumous or soon lost His father, ‘Abdu’lláh, and at the age of six He lost his mother, Amínih, as well. He was then raised by His grandfather, the foremost chieftain of the city and a member of the Hashemite branch of the ruling Qurayhi clan. Two years later this grandfather died and Muhammad was taken in by His uncle, Abú Tálib, also a powerful figure in the city. As a child Muhammad tended sheep, but as He grew up He graduated to trade and travelled with caravans from one centre of trade to another. He became known for the purity of His life and was called Amín, the Trusted One. At the age of 24 (AD 594) He married a widow, Khadíja, who was 16 years older than himself and a merchant for whom He had acted as agent. A daughter, Fátima, was the only child to survive from this marriage (which was apparently happy) and Muhammad did not take any other wife until after Khadíja’s death 25 years later.
After His marriage Muhammad’s life proceeded without incident for some 16 years. Then in 610 during one of His periodic visits to Mount Hira where he liked to meditate and pray, He had a vision of the Archangel Gabriel, who commanded Him to arise and reform the religion of His land. At first He had grave doubts about Himself but was encouraged by His first followers, His wife and His nephew, ‘Ali. In 613 He began to preach in the city against the idols and about the need for all to change their way of life in preparation for the day of God. Gradually people began to respond to His teachings, but this caused increasing alarm amongst the rich and powerful who saw Him as a possible threat to their lucrative pilgrimage business, if not worse. They tried to dissuade Him, first with mockery, then bribery, but when these approaches failed they threatened violence to the point where in 615 He sent away many of His followers to other lands for their own safety. For 7 years the pressures was on Muhammad gradually increased; major stages were His confinement to one sector of the city in 617 and the deaths in 619 (the Year of Mourning) of both His wife and His protecting uncle. Still He persisted, and His opponents finally resolved to kill Him (as a joint venture, so that there would be no subsequent blood feud). Just at that time Muhammad was invited by a delegation from Yathrib (later to be renamed Medina, the city of the Prophet), a small agricultural town some 200 miles north of Mecca, to come to be their ruler. They had heard of His teaching of unity amongst all peoples and they hoped He would be able to end the constant strife in their own city between its various component groups. Muhammad agreed and in October 622 left Mecca in secret so as to avoid assassination. It is said that ‘Ali slept in Muhammad’s place so as to make those watching think Muhammad was still there. The move to Medina marks the emergence of Muhammad as the formal head of a state and of a reformed religion, and this is the reason the Islamic calendar starts with this year of Emigration (Hijra) rather than with the year when Muhammad received His first revelation, or the year He first preached.
- In Medina, Muhammad brought peace through conciliation and compromise. He made a particular effort to include Christians, a relatively small group, and the Jews, who were more numerous.
- Each group was given freedom to practise its own religion and some of their customs were incorporated into Muhammad’s own teachings, such as the Jewish practice of turning to Jerusalem when praying.
- Muhammad’s enemies in Mecca began a war of harassment to try and undermine His position.
- During the final two years of His life, before His death in 632, most of the tribes of Arabia came over to His cause.
The two main sources of the teachings of Muhammad are the Qur’án (the Book to be read) and the example of His life, actions and sayings (the hadith). The Qur’án is a record of the revelations received by Muhammad over a period of more than 22 years, recorded at the time on whatever material was at hand (skins, stones, bones, etc.). Divided into 114 surihs, the Qur’án was completed by AD 650, less than 20 years after His passing, and its content was confirmed by those who had known Him. It was the most authentic record of the teachings of any Manifestation of God made up to that time. The hadith, which in all comprise some 600,000 different traditions, are much less consistent in authenticity.
Muhammad’s teachings revolve around the concepts of a single God of justice and mercy, each man’s responsibility for his own actions, and the equality of all before God. The teachings are both simple and practical and are presented sometimes with a sense of humour, as in the admonition: ‘Trust in God but tie your camel.’ Four of the five obligations of the Faith relate to reinforcing man’s understanding of his humble position before God: the reiteration of the profession of faith, the saying of prayers five times a day, observance of a fast from sunrise to sunset every day during the month of Ramadan, and pilgrimage once in a lifetime to the holy city of Mecca. In obedience to these teachings the proud Arab on his camel in the desert, lord of all he surveyed, would bow down and touch his forehead to the ground during the act of prayer.
The idea of the unity and equality of all had many facets of which one of the most important was the fifth obligation of the Faith to contribute alms for the benefit of the poor: ‘wealth should not be allowed to circulate among the rich only’
Another was the absence of prejudice on account of race: ‘And among his signs are the creation of the Heavens and of the Earth, and your variety of tongues and colour. Herein truly are signs for all men.’
- Muhammad enjoined his followers not to be cruel to others, and to be kind and forgiving.
- He set an example in His own life when he forgave the killer of one of his daughters.
- Kindness should be extended to animals, while fellow human beings should be treated with the greatest courtesy and concern for their feelings.
- A Muslim might defend himself against an attacker but should not himself be the aggressor, nor should he be involved in blood feuds: ‘Fight in the way of God against those who attack you but begin not hostilities, for God loveth not the transgressors’.
The principle of Holy War (jihad) was the right of the state to protect its citizens against corruption by pagan beliefs. More important, it was a reference to the need for individuals to struggle against their lower passions: ‘The most excellent Jihad is that for the conquest of self.’ This principle was not to be interpreted as a right to impose Islam on others, which would be contrary to the principle of toleration: ‘Let there be no compulsion in religion.’
- Jews for centuries expressed a preference for living under Muslim rather than Christian rule.
Slavery was fundamental to contemporary society, and Muhammad did not require that it be abolished immediately, but it is clear that He intended that ultimately it should wither away. Manumission of slaves was strongly encouraged by: (1) His own example of freeing slaves; (2) His statement that emancipation was a cardinal virtue; and (3) the right given to slaves to purchase their own freedom. Furthermore, He taught that in the eyes of God a slave was equal to a free man. In accordance with this liberal view, slaves were not confined to menial jobs and indeed in the Muslim states slaves often rose to positions of great influence.
Similarly, Muhammad did not try to force equality of the sexes on a society which was clearly not ready for such a radical change in the practice of centuries. Nevertheless, many of His teachings tended towards raising the rights of women and respect accorded to them, so that during the early centuries of Islam there were better conditions for women than in any other culture or society of the time.
- In addition to high standards of sexual morality Muhammad also enjoined cleanliness and forbade the drinking of alcohol, gambling, usury and other forms of vice.
- Education was highly recommended: the great universities of the Muslim Empire would later become the pride of Islam.
There has been a great deal of prejudice and hostility towards Islam in the West, dating back to the wars of the Christian countries of Europe against the Islamic states during the Middle Ages. Much of this centred around an ad hominem attack on Muhammad Himself by Christendom, with a view to demonstrating that He was a ‘false prophet’. It was argued that Muhammad’s teachings were not original but that He stole them from the Bible and other sources; that He advocated the sword as a means of spreading His religion; and that in His teaching and in His practice (the fact that He had 13 wives) He advocated the subjugation of women and encouraged sexual immorality. A review of His life and teachings make it clear that these charges were false. Many of His teachings, including those on religious toleration and the administration of the state were new. Had his religion been merely a reform movement rather than an independent revelation there could not have been a book with the power of the Qur’án, or a civilization as dynamic as that which ultimately emerged. Islam’s success was due to the simplicity and power of its teachings in attracting adherents, not to the threat of the sword which in any case Muhammad had said should only be used in defence. As for the charge concerning women and personal lasciviousness, it is to be observed that Muhammad did not marry until He was 24 and then married a woman 16 years his senior, and that He remained faithful to her and took no other wife until after her death. Then, the women He took to wife were often widows of fallen comrades, who were taken in for their own protection, or they were political marriages to serve the interest of the state.
Just as Christianity was to be weakened soon after the death of Jesus by teachings added by His followers, notably the theory of incarnation, so too was Islam by the decisions taken by Muhammad’s followers immediately after His passing (8 June 632) with regard to who was to succeed Him as leader of the new Faith. It is a tribute to the inspirational power of both religions that they were to achieve so much to raise the level of civilization despite these early divisive occurrences. Though Muhammad had apparently not left a written statement of who was to succeed Him, these is said to be record of at least two occasions when He made it clear that it should be ‘Ali.
- At first all went well under the leadership of the two Caliphs Abu Bakr (632-634) and ‘Umar (634-644).
- The new religion attracted many and so inspired its adherents that they were able to defeat in battle two of the most powerful states in the world: Persia, which was totally crushed, and the Byzantine Empire, which was reduced for the remaining 800 years of its existence to the status of a relatively minor power.
- During this period the forces of Islam swept through Palestine, Syria, Iraq, Persia and Egypt.
- True to the teachings of Muhammad, ‘Umar entered Jerusalem in 638 in all humility and guaranteed the right of Christians to continue to visit it on pilgrimage.
- ‘Umar was assassinated by a slave with a personal grievance and the new Caliph fell into the practice of filling all the high positions in the state with members of his own family.
- The resulting corruption brought forth an increasingly indignant reaction amongst the most sincere Muslims.
- In 656 ‘Uthmán was killed and ‘Ali was elected Caliph, but by this time the damage had been done.
- The Umayyad family resented ‘Ali’s dismissal of many of them from office, and called for revenge.
- When ‘Ali tried to conciliate the Umayyads he provoked the opposition of another group, the Kharijites, who thought ‘Ali had betrayed Islam by having dealings with the Umayyads, and it was one of this party which assassinated him in 661.
- Once the Umayyads were driven out, the new dynasty of the ‘Abbasids (another branch of the descendants of Muhammad) seized and held the Caliphate for some 350 years.
- There was a price, though: the loss of Spain and the western half of North Africa, which remained loyal to the one member of the Umayyad dynasty who survived this coup.
- The ‘Abbasids took Islam to new heights of glory, well known in the West from the stories in the Thousand-and-One Nights.
Meanwhile the direct line of ‘Ali continued through nine more Imams to make a total of twelve including ‘Ali himself and his two sons, Hasan and Husayn, until the last one died in the year AD 878/AH 260.During this period the Shi’i party, though maintaining the right of the Imams to spiritual leadership in Islam, was quietist in nature and did not attempt to overthrow the Caliphs. This policy did not bring the Imams much respite, for nearly all of them were murdered by one political group or another.
Though the ‘Abbasids were at first relatively successful in holding the Empire together, major cracks in the edifice had become evident by the end of the ninth century and over the next two centuries it gradually fell apart and finally succumbed to the invading Turks at the end of the twelfth. Great Muslim empires were to arise again, but the dream of a universal Islamic empire bringing peace and justice was never to be achieved. Yet the religion was to be immensely successful in raising the level of civilization and culture in the whole area occupied by the Empire, and it is significant that Islam has never retreated except from France and Spain and parts of the Balkans.
For many centuries Islam was successful in raising the level of civilization in areas where its influence was significant. Nevertheless, right from the beginning the community was flawed because of a major failure to abide by all the teachings of Muhammad, most obviously in its early divisions and its violence in affairs of state (a depressing parallel to Christianity where the most basic teachings of Jesus concerning violence were disobeyed by its leaders after it became a state religion). The decline was later to extend to all areas of life, as the initial inspiration and clarity of Muhammad’s teachings was corrupted by a thousand and one interpretations and additions.
- By the beginning of the 19th century Islam had become associated with extreme intolerance of other religions, and with anti-intellectualism and hostility to open discussion of ideas.
- It was also noted for its suppression of women – the practices of seclusion, trial marriage (prostitution by another name), elimination of any political or social rights, low priority to women’s education, and a widespread belief that women do not even possess souls.
- In countries where Shi’i Islam dominated, most notably Iran, the lie had become a routine aspect of conversation, which by the 19th century had reached the point of tearing apart the basic fundamentals of civilization: a minimum of trust between all citizens.
Torture and cruelty to man and beast in Muslim countries equalled the worst conditions in the world. Islam, once the light of the world, had become one of the most reactionary of forces, delaying rather than promoting the advancement of man. Nevertheless, like Christianity and the other great religions, Islam does give hope of a spiritual awakening – the coming of the Qa’im (the One who Arises), as expected by Shi’i Muslims, or the Mahdi (the Guided One, the Spirit of Jesus) as expected by Sunni Muslims.