MAARIFAH GOD-REALIZATION
MAARIFAH GOD-REALIZATION
Muslims and Scientific, Secular Education
In his paper titled ‘Muslims and the Scientific Education’ Khan acknowledges the negative perception that Islam discourages Muslims from acquiring scientific education or does nothing to encourage it.
In his paper, Khan argues that innumerable verses from the Quran and many sayings of the Prophet can be quoted which explicitly urge their readers to delve deeper into the mysteries of the earth and the heavens. He ponders,”How then is it possible that with such exhortations enshrined in their most sacred literature, Muslims, for whom Islam was and is a living thing, should not have engaged themselves in the observation of nature? which is what science is.”
For Khan “making a study of nature is to discover the Creator in His creation”. Khan quotes Muslim history to contradict the supposition that Islam is an obstacle to scientific investigation.
He quotes some achievements of Muslim scientists and doctors in the Middle Ages which he says were indeed surprising…
Paradisiacal Personality
According to the Creation Plan of God, human beings are placed in situations where they have to face hardships from time to time at every moment throughout their lives as part of their test. Difficulty, sadness and unfulfilled desires are integral part of the creation plan of the Creator. This arrangement is to remind man of the fact that the present world has not been made as a place of luxury and comfort, but rather as a period of trial and as such will help determine whether he is eligible or not for eternal life in Paradise. In fact, it is situations such as these that are the tests for man. Giving negative responses to negative situations leads to failing the test. On the contrary, giving positive responses to such situations leads to passing the test.
In the present world, man finds himself totally free. However, this freedom does not belong to him as a matter of right, but is rather a test paper. The first thing that man has to do to be deserving of Paradise is…
Peace for the Sake of Peace
Khan thinks that there are regulations against insurgency versus the state in Islam. He quotes a hadith, even when rulers become tyrannical; "Muslims should not wield their swords against them." Instead, they shall "move to the mountains with their goats and camels." The descriptions of livestock and migration, Khan holds, mean that there are always pursuable "non-political" prospects that become apparent only "by ignoring the political problem." On the one hand, this argument demonstrates the general emphasis Khan places on "peace for the sake of peace," i.e., that peace is the necessary "method" whereby "you can attain other things by your struggle, your approach." On the other hand, it is an example of how the new conditions of the modern era are formulated by Khan; Muslims have access to a range of peaceful actions for fulfilling the alleged purposes of Islam. When there are peaceful alternatives, they must be pursued, according to Khan's presentation of Islam.
Peace in Kashmir
The issue of the regional status of Jammu and Kashmir is important to Khan. He begins one of his two English tractates on the subject by pointing out that he wrote on this subject already in 1968, in the Djamiat al-Ulama-Yi Hind weekly, and that his basic analysis has not changed since. In his writings, three direct actors in the conflict can be perceived; Kashmir Islamic Militants and the Pakistani and Indian governments with their respective armies. Two indirect actors are also important, ordinary Kashmiri Muslims, and tourists and others traveling to Kashmir. Behind these actors, the cosmic forces of God and Iblīs the Shaytan are acting upon the warring parties and affecting the potential outcomes of the conflict. In fact, due to its media coverage, the conflict over Jammu and Kashmir is seen by Khan as a stage set by God to show the world that authentic Islam is a force for peace aimed to undo the global association of Islam, Muslims, and violence.
To Khan, the…
Position of Women in Islam
A more critical stance towards Western civilization can be found in Khan's works dealing with the topic of the position of women in Islam with regard to modern society. Here, he states that, in contradiction to notions that Islam "degrades" women, instead, women find dignity and true freedom to develop their own feminine nature in Islam. The natural, and hence Islamic, position for women is taking "charge of tasks within the home." Hence, there are several cases caused by the "women's liberation movement," demonstrating "the baneful consequences of Western civilization's deviation from nature." In contrast to the positive evaluations of science and technology, which should be judged by their usefulness, this quote shows a tendency of a more polarised construction of, on the one hand, "Islam," and, on the other hand, "western civilization."
Pro-Self Activism and Anti-Self Activism
In his article titled, “Pro-Self Activism, Anti-Self Activism”, Khan writes that in the present age of professionalism, having a profession means living for others.
Khan explains that people live for others and hardly know their own self, for example, film actors live for their audiences, businessmen for their customers, lawyers for their clients, politicians for their voters, employees for their company bosses, and so on.
This is why Khan says that so many people have become non-self actors which is a great loss for a person, as people almost always remain unaware of themselves. People frequently evaluate themselves according to others’ perceptions and not their own and are unable to unfold their real potential, and finally die in this state of unawareness, writes Khan.
If people are judged on this basis, they can be put into three categories: anti-self activists, non-self activists, and pro-self activists. All persons fall into one or other of these categories…
Refuting Political Interpretation of Islam
In time Wahiduddin emerged as a critic of Maulana Mawdudi's Islamist ideas, which he saw as reactionary rather than authentically Islamic. From Khan's perspective, Mawdudi was treating politics as the center of Islamic activity, when tawhid (the oneness of God) is the actual heart of Islam, and the call (Dawa) to tawhid should be the center of all Islamic activity, making all else secondary. He dispels the notion that Islam is a religion of violence. He deals at great length in his writings with issues relating to pluralism, inter-faith dialogue and peace. His concern has been to demolish the political interpretation of Islam and present Islam as a complete ideology of peace.
The notion of "political" in Khan's writings are linked to "political Islam," which he sees as essentially violent. In Islam and World Peace (2015), he writes that the "so-called Islamic thinkers" should be blamed for creating contemporary hatred and violence. These have invented "a completely false,…
Religion and Scientific Reasoning
In his article, Religion and Scientific Reasoning, Khan explains how scientific reasoning upholds the veracity of religious truths. Here is what he says:
Many people are under the impression that religious truths cannot be proved scientifically. But inferring truths from things, as religion does, is the very reasoning which scientists employ in their everyday deductions.
In ancient times water was just water. Then, in the 19th century, the microscope was invented. When water was looked at under a microscope, it was discovered that water was not just water; it also contained countless live bacteria. In the same way man used to think that there were no more stars in the sky than those which can be seen with the naked eye. But in modern times the sky has been examined with telescopes and many more stars than can be seen with the naked eye have been discovered.
These two examples show the difference between ancient and modern times. Modern research has shown with…
