"Islam is an intolerant religion; terrorism is intrinsic to the faith." I've heard many intelligent persons assert opinions such as this one, which is, in my opinion, invalid. Whenever you have huge swaths of unemployed young men living under repressive regimes, you're going to get violence, no matter what the prevailing religion is. Modernity has failed the majority of the inhabitants of Islamic countries, and the unhappy result is young people raging against those countries and, sometimes, against the entire world. This is the principal source of the fire raging in many Islamic countries today. True, a false interpretation of religion can provide the oil that fans the flames. God, after all, is silent; fanatics project their own feelings onto Him, as if He were nothing more than a dummy spouting whatever the ventriloquist chooses Him to say. Thus, He is reduced to an idol, nothing more than a reification of the ventriloquists' rabidity.
If you're happy, hatred is difficult; if you're unhappy, you are much more likely to do evil. Religion tends toward peace among the former, and tends to lead to violence among the latter. This is a universal law, independent of the religion practiced.
I am convinced that the people who make intolerant statements about Islam don't know much about it and don't know many Muslims. I sometimes like to think what these critics would say if the cosmic lottery had resulted in their having been born in an Islamic country. I can almost hear them militating against the "decadent West."
A wise Native American said it best: do not judge another until you have walked a mile in his moccasins.
I would like to counter some of the negative stereotypes of Islam with four positive impressions I've had during my recent trip to India, which has a Muslim population of about thirteen percent, roughly the same proportion of African Americans in the United States. They are admittedly superficial impressions. I am convinced, however, that they are much more valid than the opinions of Islamophobes. My conclusion that Muslims are no more prone to violence than Christians, e.g. the Russian Orthodox Church's support of Putin's armies; than Jews, e.g. the ongoing Israeli occupation of Palestinians; than Buddhists, e.g. the maltreatment of Muslim minorities in Burma; and Hindus, many of whom have been turning their ideologically tolerant religion upside down, is, I believe warranted; if I didn't believe so I wouldn't have written this article.
I will provide four examples, three of which took place during a recent trip to Kerala, a southern state of India, which has a Muslim population of about twenty percent.
Impression 1
We had arrived in Chennai from Baltimore on the thirteenth of February, 2015; the next day we took a 6:20 a.m. flight to Kerala. Upon arrival, we took a harrowing two hour taxi ride to our destination, the famed Kerala backwaters. (Nobody follows rules, and the necessity of passing slow-moving vehicles causes one to face oncoming traffic, the vehicles of which, to our chagrin, tend not to slow down.) The subsequent boat rides along coconut tree-lined canals were unforgettable. We returned to Kochi on the 16th, frazzled by a harrowing taxi ride back. We had difficulty finding our hotel. We were on the right street; it wasn't long, so I set out alone, trying to find our destination. I knocked on a door of a stately white building. A very hospitable middle-aged man invited me inside. I asked whether this building was our hotel. He laughed in a very friendly way. "This is a mosque," he said. We laughed together. Our encounter lasted less than a minute; the man's smile, however, left a deep impression, the best by far of the many smiles I received and returned in Kerala. The smile provided a window into the man's soul, as it were, and I liked very much what I saw.
Impression 2
The next day we walked to the famous Paradesi synagogue in Kochi. It is the oldest functioning synagogue in the Commonwealth; it was built in 1567. (The previous one on the same site was destroyed by Portuguese Christians.) The history of the Jews of Kerala goes back many centuries--the caretaker told us that her family has been in India for eight generations. There are few Jews left; nearly all emigrated voluntarily to Israel.) It took us about forty minutes to walk to the synagogue. The route passes through a Muslim neighborhood for most of the way--The names on the stores were Arabic; some of the women were covered; some of the men were dressed in white--otherwise it was like any other neighborhood in India. Soon we were in a little enclave called "Jew Town"--now part of the Muslim neighborhood.
The entrance to the orthodox synagogue was crowded with visitors; we were soon among them. After paying a nominal entrance fee of five rupees, we entered the sanctuary. It is a gem. The most striking aspect are the 101 hand-painted tiles which were imported from China centuries ago; many shared similar motifs, but they are all unique. It has an intimate and very spiritual ambiance; I experienced something joyfully beyond words within me and within everyone present.
What was perhaps most remarkable about this remarkable building is the total lack of security. No searching of bags, no metal detectors, nothing. There were, as far as I could tell, only two caretakers, one of them being the last woman of child-bearing years in the community.
I thought of the security checks at the Holocaust museum in Washington, D.C.; I also recalled that many European synagogues now have heightened security. And, no doubt about it, this little synagogue would last about five minutes in present day Pakistan, Syria or Iraq.
Think of it: a synagogue crowded with tourists with no security, in the middle of a Muslim community! The Muslims and Jews have been living side by side here for centuries. The vast majority of Kerala Muslims are living proof that tolerance is intrinsic to their faith.
Impression 3
The busy little tourist shops surrounding the Paradesi synagogue are all owned, as far as I could tell, by Muslims. I tried my best, as husbands are wont to do, to guide my wife past the shops, but, as usual, failed. My in-laws, son, niece, nephew and cousin followed Nirmala into the shop, where she was soon selecting jewelry. It must have been strange for the salesperson to see a white man, an Indian and a black man all in one family. He asked whether we were Muslims. He continued to be friendly after my wife gave him a negative reply. "Well," I thought to myself, "if my wife is getting some jewelry, I might as well pick out a little something for myself." I selected a little sterling silver Star of David locket; I haven't worn one since the 1970s. I asked the man to throw it in for free, since we were buying items that were much more expensive. For a moment, he was flabbergasted, and asked me, "Why would you want that?" I replied that I had worn a Mogen David for many years, and decided to do so again. "Oh," he said, put the star in a bag, gave it to me for free, then turned his attention back to my wife.
I detected curiosity and surprise in his demeanor, but not a shred of hostility. He just couldn't peg us down--white, black, brown--not Muslims, and, on top of that, not even Christians. His tolerance might have been tempered by the desire to make a sale--which he did--but it was tolerance nevertheless. I felt very safe in his shop.
Impression 4
My wife's sister, Mridula, lives in a three story concrete building in Chennai, opposite the headquarters of the Theosophical Society. Many of the families living there are Muslims. One day, long ago, I was chatting with an old man who lived in the ground floor flat. I connected with him immediately. He gave me a copy of a scholarly pamphlet he had written about an aspect of Sunni Islam. He told me how much he admired my wife's mother, who was truly an extraordinary person. (At that time, she was living with Mridula; both the author of the tract and my mother-in-law have been dead for many years.) He looked at me and said with a smile that he considered her, a Hindu, to be the perfect Muslim. It doesn't matter much what one believes, he told me; what matters is what one is, which is manifested by one's actions. He had absolutely no desire to convert her or me. I am sorry to have lost the pamphlet he had given me; as long as I live, however, I shall never lose the memory I have of this kind man, whose tolerance was, well, awesome.
I begin with a however and end with a nevertheless. However superficial these encounters were, I am convinced of their validity, nevertheless. Just as an analysis of the surface of an extrasolar planet rather than an analysis of its core is a better indicator of whether it is habitable or not; just as the most habitable of all known planets, Earth, contains frozen wastes and deserts, the world of Islam contains many temperate zones, in which human beings can thrive as well as anywhere else.
Please fell free to refer this article to anyone who believes that violence is intrinsic to Islam. It is not. All of us have flaws; true Islam helps remove them. It's as simple and complex as that.
If you're happy, hatred is difficult; if you're unhappy, you are much more likely to do evil. Religion tends toward peace among the former, and tends to lead to violence among the latter. This is a universal law, independent of the religion practiced.
I am convinced that the people who make intolerant statements about Islam don't know much about it and don't know many Muslims. I sometimes like to think what these critics would say if the cosmic lottery had resulted in their having been born in an Islamic country. I can almost hear them militating against the "decadent West."
A wise Native American said it best: do not judge another until you have walked a mile in his moccasins.
I would like to counter some of the negative stereotypes of Islam with four positive impressions I've had during my recent trip to India, which has a Muslim population of about thirteen percent, roughly the same proportion of African Americans in the United States. They are admittedly superficial impressions. I am convinced, however, that they are much more valid than the opinions of Islamophobes. My conclusion that Muslims are no more prone to violence than Christians, e.g. the Russian Orthodox Church's support of Putin's armies; than Jews, e.g. the ongoing Israeli occupation of Palestinians; than Buddhists, e.g. the maltreatment of Muslim minorities in Burma; and Hindus, many of whom have been turning their ideologically tolerant religion upside down, is, I believe warranted; if I didn't believe so I wouldn't have written this article.
I will provide four examples, three of which took place during a recent trip to Kerala, a southern state of India, which has a Muslim population of about twenty percent.
Impression 1
We had arrived in Chennai from Baltimore on the thirteenth of February, 2015; the next day we took a 6:20 a.m. flight to Kerala. Upon arrival, we took a harrowing two hour taxi ride to our destination, the famed Kerala backwaters. (Nobody follows rules, and the necessity of passing slow-moving vehicles causes one to face oncoming traffic, the vehicles of which, to our chagrin, tend not to slow down.) The subsequent boat rides along coconut tree-lined canals were unforgettable. We returned to Kochi on the 16th, frazzled by a harrowing taxi ride back. We had difficulty finding our hotel. We were on the right street; it wasn't long, so I set out alone, trying to find our destination. I knocked on a door of a stately white building. A very hospitable middle-aged man invited me inside. I asked whether this building was our hotel. He laughed in a very friendly way. "This is a mosque," he said. We laughed together. Our encounter lasted less than a minute; the man's smile, however, left a deep impression, the best by far of the many smiles I received and returned in Kerala. The smile provided a window into the man's soul, as it were, and I liked very much what I saw.
Impression 2
The next day we walked to the famous Paradesi synagogue in Kochi. It is the oldest functioning synagogue in the Commonwealth; it was built in 1567. (The previous one on the same site was destroyed by Portuguese Christians.) The history of the Jews of Kerala goes back many centuries--the caretaker told us that her family has been in India for eight generations. There are few Jews left; nearly all emigrated voluntarily to Israel.) It took us about forty minutes to walk to the synagogue. The route passes through a Muslim neighborhood for most of the way--The names on the stores were Arabic; some of the women were covered; some of the men were dressed in white--otherwise it was like any other neighborhood in India. Soon we were in a little enclave called "Jew Town"--now part of the Muslim neighborhood.
The entrance to the orthodox synagogue was crowded with visitors; we were soon among them. After paying a nominal entrance fee of five rupees, we entered the sanctuary. It is a gem. The most striking aspect are the 101 hand-painted tiles which were imported from China centuries ago; many shared similar motifs, but they are all unique. It has an intimate and very spiritual ambiance; I experienced something joyfully beyond words within me and within everyone present.
What was perhaps most remarkable about this remarkable building is the total lack of security. No searching of bags, no metal detectors, nothing. There were, as far as I could tell, only two caretakers, one of them being the last woman of child-bearing years in the community.
I thought of the security checks at the Holocaust museum in Washington, D.C.; I also recalled that many European synagogues now have heightened security. And, no doubt about it, this little synagogue would last about five minutes in present day Pakistan, Syria or Iraq.
Think of it: a synagogue crowded with tourists with no security, in the middle of a Muslim community! The Muslims and Jews have been living side by side here for centuries. The vast majority of Kerala Muslims are living proof that tolerance is intrinsic to their faith.
Impression 3
The busy little tourist shops surrounding the Paradesi synagogue are all owned, as far as I could tell, by Muslims. I tried my best, as husbands are wont to do, to guide my wife past the shops, but, as usual, failed. My in-laws, son, niece, nephew and cousin followed Nirmala into the shop, where she was soon selecting jewelry. It must have been strange for the salesperson to see a white man, an Indian and a black man all in one family. He asked whether we were Muslims. He continued to be friendly after my wife gave him a negative reply. "Well," I thought to myself, "if my wife is getting some jewelry, I might as well pick out a little something for myself." I selected a little sterling silver Star of David locket; I haven't worn one since the 1970s. I asked the man to throw it in for free, since we were buying items that were much more expensive. For a moment, he was flabbergasted, and asked me, "Why would you want that?" I replied that I had worn a Mogen David for many years, and decided to do so again. "Oh," he said, put the star in a bag, gave it to me for free, then turned his attention back to my wife.
I detected curiosity and surprise in his demeanor, but not a shred of hostility. He just couldn't peg us down--white, black, brown--not Muslims, and, on top of that, not even Christians. His tolerance might have been tempered by the desire to make a sale--which he did--but it was tolerance nevertheless. I felt very safe in his shop.
Impression 4
My wife's sister, Mridula, lives in a three story concrete building in Chennai, opposite the headquarters of the Theosophical Society. Many of the families living there are Muslims. One day, long ago, I was chatting with an old man who lived in the ground floor flat. I connected with him immediately. He gave me a copy of a scholarly pamphlet he had written about an aspect of Sunni Islam. He told me how much he admired my wife's mother, who was truly an extraordinary person. (At that time, she was living with Mridula; both the author of the tract and my mother-in-law have been dead for many years.) He looked at me and said with a smile that he considered her, a Hindu, to be the perfect Muslim. It doesn't matter much what one believes, he told me; what matters is what one is, which is manifested by one's actions. He had absolutely no desire to convert her or me. I am sorry to have lost the pamphlet he had given me; as long as I live, however, I shall never lose the memory I have of this kind man, whose tolerance was, well, awesome.
I begin with a however and end with a nevertheless. However superficial these encounters were, I am convinced of their validity, nevertheless. Just as an analysis of the surface of an extrasolar planet rather than an analysis of its core is a better indicator of whether it is habitable or not; just as the most habitable of all known planets, Earth, contains frozen wastes and deserts, the world of Islam contains many temperate zones, in which human beings can thrive as well as anywhere else.
Please fell free to refer this article to anyone who believes that violence is intrinsic to Islam. It is not. All of us have flaws; true Islam helps remove them. It's as simple and complex as that.
In the end, it's all about being human. Enjoying your posts.
ReplyDeleteThank you! And I do agree with you.
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