We live in an era in which our Ummah (Muslim nation) suffers from an unprecedentedstate of underdevelopment and disunity, which has undermined the main pillars upon which the Muslim nation was founded in its earlier formation, starting with Eemaan (faith) and the unique Islamic identity. In our time, Muslims have lost much of their Islamic identity and have adopted the identities of other nations. Consequently, the Muslim Nation has lost the essence of Islam and has adopted the morality and codes of conduct of its very enemies. A large number of Muslims take pride in adopting the outward appearances, ethics and behavior of other nations. They pride themselves on taking the initiative to apply these foreign ethics, cultural values, codes of conduct and social norms in their lives.
Add to that the apparent indifference of most Muslims in attributing themselves to the great Muslim nation and the weakness of their sense of pride in their nation. They also lack the confidence in the possibility of the development and progress of their nation due to their bedazzlement with the material development and advancement of knowledge of other nations, and the enormous gap between our Muslim nation and other nations in this regard.
Not only that, the Islamic Sharee‘ah (Islamic legislation) was deliberately put aside and shelved. Muslims no longer implement the Islamic Sharee‘ah in their societies and in the systems of governance for the most part. Moreover, the concept of religion has been significantly dwarfed, and the separation between religion and various aspects of life has been introduced into the Muslim societies in varying degrees.
False doctrines, erroneous concepts, and distorted laws and ways of life were formulated in an eye-catching way and with the help of attractive, yet deceptive, methods that made them more acceptable and agreeable to the masses. In addition, they were keen to dress religion in the garment of philosophy and present Islam in a way that recognizes and accepts the un-Islamic status quo, giving the current circumstances legitimacy. Thus, things became upside down; those who tread the right path were regarded as deviated and those who deviated were believed to be treading the right path!
Sincere scholars and callers to Allah The Almighty were excluded in most places from taking part in the active institutions and decision-making offices in order to undermine their influence on the formulation of decisions. The streams and springs of goodness in the Muslim nation dried up. They aimed at destroying the Islamic Da‘wah and renaissance in its cradle as extensive plots were devised against Islamic Da‘wah and callers to Allah. Islamic Da‘wah was fiercely fought with various methods and targeted in the harshest ways of moral and physical war.
The Muslim nation was not only targeted in its identity, but one of the most prominent elements of its backwardness was the loss of many of its sincere sons, and the fact that most of its affairs are conducted by those who were shaped and formulated by its very enemies. Therefore, their sense of dependence and subordination to these opponents became deep-rooted within their hearts. The Muslim nation threw itself into the arms of the East and the West, according to the different circumstances and the changes in the balance of power and the vicissitudes of fate.
The most serious issue is that the last thing about which Muslims think – if they think about it at all – is how to maintain their unique Islamic identity and pursue the interests of the Muslim nation. This is due to the corruption that has invaded the hearts and the innermost feelings and the blameworthy rivalry among Muslims, who are subordinate to the enemies of the Muslim nation, to please their masters. These Muslims promote and propagate their ideas, imitate them, and serve their interests; in anticipation of the continuation of being in the lead and in charge as well as attaining more benefits and worldly gains.
It is fair to highlight the fact that there is a group of Muslims who bear the Muslim identity with loyalty and take pride in belonging to it. They have confidence in the ability of the Muslim nation to recover from its catastrophe, rise up again, and overcome the effects of its backwardness. This sense of pride and confidence can only be attained if Muslims hold on to their religion and follow the Divine norms of Allah The Almighty in victory and empowerment.
However, this group is to be blamed for two things:
1- The self-contempt and lack of confidence in their abilities in a way that made them very passive. This negative attitude drained their enthusiasm that motivates them to do the actions that benefit their nation, facilitate its progress, triumph over its mistakes, and rise up again.
2- The inability of many enthusiastic Muslims who are eager to usher their nation to the path of advancement and progress, to translate their enthusiasm and ideas into fruitful results. This inability is due to the weak knowledge of the fundamentals of progress, or the lack of necessary skills to achieve them.
Whatever the nature of the differences between the factions of this group and the ruling of the Islamic Sharee'ah on them are, the outcome is one in the area of our conversation; that Muslims do not do what is expected of them to achieve the advancement of their nation and its renaissance.
In short, after our Muslim nation has abandoned its religion and deviated from the guidance of their Lord, we see it content with being at the bottom of the list of nations in terms of development. If one ponders on all aspects of life, he will find that the Muslim Nation’s backwardness in all fields of life has reached rock bottom or is about to reach it.
This is a brief and sobering account of the Muslim nation’s decline and underdevelopment.
To be continued …
Hajj When Hope Springs in the Heart - II