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Dear Farzana,
The crucial question is not
whether Islam and democracy is compatible. To me the audacious question is
if religion should be allowed to have a say in the running of the state.
This is audacious because many in Islam are not ready to discuss this vital
issue because there is an ever present fear factor in Islam which does not
allow people to be candid on this question. The claim that Islam is a
complete code of life instantly negates all logic and diversities whereas
the notion of democracy is an ever progressive idea which is flexible and
accommodative of all the shades of opinions. The oft repeated claim that
the Koran and Muhammad’s views have been designed eternally to fit into the
future is basically a very orthodox and illogical claim which is the reason
for all the polemics. This is a fixed view that does not go along with the
progressive ideas. As we all know that religions were designed for a
certain time and space therefore giving any faith a right to rule the
future is wrong. Muhammad was given a mandate to discipline the pagan Arabs
in Mecca
and its vicinity. Being the best social ideology of his times it spread
very fast among many societies. Muhammad had to inject some strict aspects
of fear to discipline a very illiterate and wild tribe. These fear factors
were the necessities of his times but after 1500 years when logic and
enlightenment rules our lives how sensible is the claim that everything
written in the Koran and said by Muhammad still to be valid now? Another
important subject many Muslims does not appreciate that faiths are nothing
but a thought process and any thought processed is destined to be
questioned, scrutinises and revisions.
It’s always prudent to believe
that an epoch is fast approaching when all the instutionalsed
religions will lose their traditional appeal and a synthesis will overcome
the traditions and I am sorry to say Islam is very slow to accept these
realities.
Akbar Hussain
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