{"id":544,"date":"2024-08-01T15:37:38","date_gmt":"2024-08-01T20:37:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/?p=544"},"modified":"2024-08-01T15:47:28","modified_gmt":"2024-08-01T20:47:28","slug":"course-correction-for-a-better-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/2024\/08\/01\/course-correction-for-a-better-future\/","title":{"rendered":"Course Correction (2): For a better future."},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Azher Quader
President
Community Builders Council (CBC)
www.cbc7.org

May 8, 2024, Chicago

With our campuses in turmoil, our politics in dysfunction, our leaders disconnected or disgraced, one
has to wonder what kind of a country do we have anymore?

With Iraq destroyed, with Kashmir occupied, with Pakistan silenced, with Saudi\u2019s self-destructing and
with Gaza raised to the ground, why is it that Muslim communities wherever u look globally, seem to
be in the eye of the storms?

As always the poet sage of the East had warned us of this approaching trouble over nearly a hundred
years ago. But did we listen to him then or are we listening to him now?

Ragon Mein Woh Lahoo Baqi Nahin Hai
Woh Dil, Woh Arzoo Baqi Nahin Hai
That blood of pristine vigor is no more;
That yearning heart\u2019s power is no more;

Namaz-o-Roza-o-Qurbani-o-Hajj
Ye Sub Baqi Hain, Tu Baqi Nahin Hai
Prayer, fasting, hajj, ritual sacrifice have all survived,
But what has not survived is the \u201cyou\u201d that you used to be
Iqbal<\/em>

These poetic expressions of Iqbal draw their inspiration from the recurring expressions in the Quran
that question our belief system and challenge our deeply held paradigms.

Our over emphasized concept of piety as evidenced through the devoted pursuit of certain rituals and
the neglect of ethics and morality as foundational for Deen, is at the core of Iqbal\u2019s lament.

What motivated earlier generations of Muslims, he says, was their passionate belief in the message
and their unconditional surrender to Allah\u2019s Will and commandments. He draws a sharp contrast
between the attitudes of earlier Muslims to those of later times.

To them ethical living was foundational, while for later generations the practice of rituals became the
cornerstone of their faith. The earlier Muslims were fearless and humble, not fearful and arrogant.
They were engaged in building just and secure communities, in standing up against oppressive
regimes, in embracing the rights of the peasants and the less fortunate. They were honest and
trustworthy, they were caring and compassionate, they were forgiving and forthright. They no doubt
practiced the rituals as prescribed in the faith, but never ignored to live by the moral code that defined
their true Muslim identity.

The Quran makes it clear that it plays no favorites. It promises the same results to all who follow its
guidance.

\u201cAllah has promised those of you who believe and do righteous deeds, that He will certainly appoint
them successors in the earth as He appointed successors those before them; and that He will
certainly establish for them their religion which He has chosen for them; and that certainly He will,
after their fear, give them security in exchange. They will worship Me (alone) and not associate
anything with Me; and whoever disbelieves after this, then these are they that are evil-doers.\u201d
24:55 An Noor<\/em>

Ye Aik Sajda Jise Tu Garan Samajhta Hai
Hazar Sajde Se Deta Hai Admi Ko Nijat !
Prostration before God (submission to His guidance) you presume as irksome, tedious, burdensome ;
But mind, this homage sets you free from thousand other calls for submissions (to men, vain desires
and other personal desires.)
Iqbal<\/em>

A reimagining of the teachings of Quran and a return to the \u201cDeen\u201d as presented in it which calls for
the embrace of all people, pursuing their welfare, through a commitment to equity, justice and
compassion, is in Iqbal\u2019s opinion the true meaning of living in Islam.

The Quran does not ask for our blind allegiance. The Quran relies on no miracles to bolster its
arguments. It rests its case on the evidence of reason and facts, historical and scientific. It claims
absence of contradictions in its message, the presence of order in the form and function of the
universe created by the Creator.

It promises success for all believers who pursue its prescribed path and points to the deviations of
later generations which caused their inevitable falls from grace and glory.

The gift of \u201cchoice\u201d given to us as humans, not only separates us from the rest of God\u2019s creation but
more importantly enables us to distinguish ourselves as believers or non-believers destined for either
a blissful life or a life of torment and misery in the here or in the hereafter, on the basis of that
choice.

Clearly we are doing the praying, the fasting, the hajj and the ritual sacrifices and yet our condition is
not improving. In fact, the poverty, the misery, the suffering we are witnessing should tell us the
obvious.

Perhaps we need a paradigm shift. A new outlook. A reexamining of our deeply held beliefs and
biases, a reimagining of the message, a relearning of the teachings. Yes indeed, a course correction
for a better future.

Tere Zameer Pe Jab Tak Na Ho Nazool-e-Kitab
Girah Kusha Hai Na Razi Na Shahab-e-Kashaaf
Unless the Book\u02b9s each verse and part be revealed unto your heart, (so u can know it\u2019s true meaning
and follow it)
The works of scholars like Razi , though very wise and profound, are not enough to change hearts.

Finally, here is what is needed going forward in order to better understand and follow Quran .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Know some basic Arabic.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Know the root letters (Maada) of a word to understand its true meaning through any
    appropriate Arabic English dictionary.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Collect all verses of Quran in different locations which relate to a particular topic when
    discussing an issue, then review them, in order to get to understand their more
    comprehensive and contextual meaning.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Know the essential scientific facts of the times to better understand the descriptions of
    Quran on facts that may not have been easily understood previously but would be easily
    understandable later in light of current scientific advancements.
    We must recognize that it is not always easy to change long held beliefs. But our fortunes will not
    alter if we fail to recognize the centrality of Quran and its message for our lives. For the many
    perplexing problems, we face today, the answers are to be found in the Quran, if only we give it a
    chance to guide us.

    \u201cVerily, Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change what is within them\u201d
    13:11 Al Ra\u2019ad<\/em>

    May Allah guide us to better our lives and better the conditions of the societies we live in.

    May 8, 2024
    Chicago

    Azher Quader is a writer, thinker and community worker. He is founder president of Community Builders Council (www.cbc7.org ) and Compassionate Care Network (www.ccnamerica.com). He can be reached at azherquader42@gmail.com.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Azher QuaderPresidentCommunity Builders Council (CBC)www.cbc7.org May 8, 2024, Chicago With our campuses in turmoil, our politics in dysfunction, our leaders disconnected or disgraced, onehas to wonder what kind of a country do we have anymore? With Iraq destroyed, with Kashmir occupied, with Pakistan silenced, with Saudi\u2019s self-destructing andwith Gaza raised to the ground, why is… Read More ›<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3YLOM-8M","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/544"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=544"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/544\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":548,"href":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/544\/revisions\/548"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=544"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=544"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/communitybuilderscouncil.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=544"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}