THE PROBLEM OF THINKING WRONG
A reader of the monthly magazine “Al-Risala” writes: “In one of your articles, you wrote that when one opportunity for success ends for a person, they should not be discouraged. This is because another opportunity is always close by, allowing them to resume their journey of progress. The question is, how can a person know that there is another opportunity available?” (Suhail Ahmed, New Delhi).
The key to recognizing new opportunities is to think openly, rather than with a closed mind. It’s important to rise above the tendency to blame others. An example of this is the Muslims of India. Before 1947, our leaders and newspapers told Muslims that they faced the Hindu majority in India and could never succeed here. Even after the partition in 1947, this mindset continued. All speakers and writers kept delivering this negative message to Muslims. Some even went so far as to claim that the majority community wanted to turn Indian Muslims into a second Spain.
Such negative propaganda distorted the thinking of Muslims to such an extent that they came to believe that no opportunities for success existed for them in India. Since 1947, I have been writing and speaking against this idea. Finally, about 40 years after independence, the mindset of Muslims began to shift. They realized that all kinds of opportunities were available to them in India. As a result, Muslims here are now continually advancing in every field.
The truth is that the world works according to the laws of nature, not the plans or schemes of any biased group. Even if a group or faction wishes otherwise, nature will block their way, and they will not succeed in controlling the course of history.
As mentioned, the world operates according to the unchangeable laws of nature, not the plots of any group. An uplifting aspect of this natural law is that it often supports the weaker party. It favours the smaller group over the so-called larger one. This law is stated in the Quran as follows: “Many a small group, by God’s command has prevailed against a large group.” (2:249).
Why does a weaker group outperform a stronger one, and how does the law of nature support them? The answer is that the Creator of nature has endowed every human being with immense potential. Every person is inherently gifted with extraordinary abilities. However, initially, these abilities are in a dormant state. All this high potential exists within a person in a latent form. It is up to the individual to transform this potential into actual reality.
The natural law is that this transformation happens under pressure. The more pressure placed on a person or group, the more their hidden talents surface. This is exactly what occurs with sugarcane. As is well known, every sugarcane stalk is full of juice. However, under normal conditions, this juice remains inside. The juice only flows out when subjected to extraordinary pressure. If you place sugarcane in soft cotton, its juice will never emerge. But when you put sugarcane in a crusher, the sweet juice inside is released.
The same is true for humans. People always improve under pressure. This principle applies to both individuals and groups.
The renowned British historian Arnold J. Toynbee effectively explained this in his book “A Study of History.” In this 12-volume series, he showed that all major civilizations throughout history were created by a minority group. In fact, it is the minority that has driven every significant event in history.
According to Toynbee, the principle is that a challenge from the majority group forces the minority to put in more effort. This challenge pushes the minority to use their abilities more than others to survive. The pressure of circumstances motivates the minority until they are able to perform heroic acts. Toynbee demonstrated this natural principle through real examples from twenty-one civilizations in history.
The same law of nature applies to Indian Muslims. Before 1947, India was under British rule. For political reasons, the British kept a balance between the country’s smaller and larger groups. When India gained independence on August 15, 1947, and entered the democratic era, this balance established by the British was disturbed. Now, Muslims became a minority, and Hindus became the majority. As a result, many problems arose for Indian Muslims that did not exist during British rule.
For Indian Muslims, this appeared to be a problem, but according to the law of nature, it was a challenge. In terms of its result, it was like awakening the dormant strengths of Muslims. This awakening process started right after 1947 but initially happened unconsciously. Later, a second phase began, and this awakening became conscious. Now, it has progressed to a point where it can be seen everywhere.
Some time ago, there was a gathering of Muslims in Delhi. The topic was why Muslims are economically behind. Various speakers shared their views. In my speech, I said that the idea itself is wrong—that Muslims in this country have fallen behind. I argued that the reality is quite the opposite: almost every Muslim in this country has made progress since 1947. I pointed out that after the industrial revolution, there has been a worldwide economic boom, including in India. In such a context, claiming that Muslims are economically backward is an attack on the times. In fact, such a statement can be easily disproved.
Then, addressing the audience directly, I said that I am confident that every Muslim present in this hall is in a better economic position today compared to 1947. If anyone’s situation is different, they should stand up and refute my statement. Not a single Muslim in the audience said that their economic condition is worse today than it was in 1947.
I conducted a formal survey on this issue and detailed my findings in my book “Indian Muslims.” According to this survey, nearly every Muslim institution, organization, mosque, and school in India has grown tenfold or fourfold since 1947. Almost every Muslim family is living a better life today than it was in 1947. In the areas of education and economics, Indian Muslims have made significant progress since 1947. This progress is so widespread that it can be confirmed by looking at any Muslim family.
An eye-opening example of this occurred in July 1999. The well-known American business magazine Forbes conducted a survey of billionaires worldwide, including those in India. The results of this survey were published in the July 5, 1999, issue of Forbes magazine. Afterwards, these results were reported in all Indian newspapers, such as The Times of India, Hindustan Times, and others.
According to the Forbes survey, the top billionaire in India at that time was a Muslim from Bangalore named Azim Hashim Premji. Additionally, three out of India’s ten wealthiest individuals were Muslims. This report was published under the title “At the Top” in the July 14, 1999, issue of the Intelligent Investor. It was also published as “Very Rich” in the June 27, 1999, issue of The Times of India, New Delhi. Furthermore, this report has appeared under titles like “Richest Indian” in other newspapers.
