REFORM YOURSELF

This fact stands as an eternal testimony to how Muslims should think in similar situations: instead of identifying the conspiracies of others, they should engage in introspection. Removing their own weaknesses, they should try to move ahead. This is the way to succeed. To further clarify this point, it is instructive to reflect on the following letter sent by Umar ibn Abdul Aziz (died. 720 CE), regarded as the fifth Pious Caliph of the Muslims, to a subordinate officer, Mansur ibn Ghalib, whom he had sent on a military campaign against some opponents. He advised Mansur to remain established in God-consciousness, because, he wrote, the fear of God is the best form of preparation, the most successful way and the strongest power. The best way to save oneself from one’s enemies, he explained, is to save oneself from sin, because sin is even more dangerous than the wiles of the enemy. Victory over opponents owes to the latter’s sinfulness, even if they are more numerous and better in terms of preparation. If the Caliph’s army, which was smaller than its opponents, were also to fall prey to sinfulness, they would not be able to gain victory over their opponents. Umar ibn Abdul Aziz advised Mansur to fear his own sins even more than he feared anyone’s enmity. The fact is that this world is God’s world, not man’s world. Here one has power only over one’s self. In reality, no individual or community has any power over any other individual or community. This means that in this world whenever you get anything, you actually get it from God, even if it appears to reach you through somebody else. Similarly, whenever something is taken away from you, it is actually taken away by God, even if it appears that there is a person behind the loss you have incurred. An intelligent person is one who in both situations turns to God. In the face of the treatment that some Muslims face today in some places, they typically respond in just one way; by screaming and protesting against what they brand as ‘oppressors’. This is a completely un-Islamic approach and method. When everything that happens is from God, then, undoubtedly, whatever Muslims are facing is also from God. This is why the only way to respond to this situation is for Muslims to turn to God. They should try to find out what errors they Instead of identifying the conspiracies of others, one should engage in introspection. Removing personal weaknesses, one should try to move ahead. This is the only way to succeed.