Author: Ahmad Shoaib Ghaznavi
Why Have Muslims Fallen into Despair?! (Part Two)
It is truly strange that Muslims, despite having a book like the Holy Quran and important sayings of the Messenger of Allah (PBUH), find themselves in despair. It is indeed peculiar that a nation with a history as rich as that of the Muslims, and with history-makers and epic creators, continues to experience such despair. It is surprising that a nation endowed with abundant talent and resources still succumbs to feelings of hopelessness! Most astonishingly, this nation lives in despair while Allah Almighty has said in His Book: «قَالَ وَمَن يَقْنَطُ مِن رَّحْمَةِ رَبِّهِ إِلَّا الضَّالُونَ» Translation: “And who despairs of the mercy of his Lord except the misguided?”
This despair is a reality that cannot be denied. The truth is that the lack of hope, tolerance, patience, and a loss of purpose represent a terrible calamity that has befallen Muslims. This calamity seems almost insurmountable. Without a doubt, what has sown despair in the hearts of some Muslims is the prominence of negative beliefs among the weak, leading them to bow their heads in submission rather than expect movement and uprising.
Therefore, we must invest significant time analyzing, examining, and understanding why we have fallen into such a state and how we can inspire a new uprising, leadership, and guidance in the world. Our current situation stems from numerous factors that can be categorized into two major parts:
First: The circumstances created by Muslims themselves, which arose when they failed to respect Allah’s religion, distanced themselves from His laws and Sharia, and occasionally allied themselves with Allah’s enemies.
Second: The ugly conspiracies that have been devised against Muslims over the years, wherein various groups of enemies of the Islamic Ummah have collaborated.
A: The Situation Muslims Find Themselves In:
1. The beginning of successive defeats after the fall of the Ottoman Caliphate.
2. Constant betrayals in every corner of the Islamic world, resulting in the loss of many cities and personalities, as well as the disappearance of genius and the loss of self-confidence among leaders.
3. The expansion of both official and unofficial media, which showcases sin, debauchery, shamelessness, and moral decay, takes pride in destructive sins, and disregards the feelings of a virtuous nation that has upheld Islamic laws, customs, and traditions for centuries.
4. Theft, fraud, bribery, and administrative corruption are rampant, with billions embezzled from public treasuries while many Muslims suffer to the point of hunger and malnutrition.
5. Economic crises, escalating foreign loans, bankruptcies, and foreign domination over key sectors of Islamic nations have widened the gap between the rich and the poor.
6. Division, hostility, and discord among Muslims have become so pronounced that it is rare to find two neighboring countries without differences or conflicts over borders, ideologies, or beliefs. Wars between Muslim countries of the same faith have lasted for years.
7. These circumstances have created despair in the hearts of many Muslims, who feel that revival and resurgence are, if not impossible, nearly unattainable.
B: Cultural Invasion Against Islam:
The conspiracy against the Islamic entity is a longstanding and multifaceted issue that cannot be fully explored here; however, we will touch briefly on one dimension: the cultural invasion.
Various groups of enemies of Islam have sought to divert this Ummah from Islamic thought. As a result, the Islamic Ummah has lost the correct standards for assessing its current situation.
A significant objective of this conspiracy is to instill despair among Muslims and convince them that it is impossible to rise from their current state of decline.
But who are the instigators of this conspiracy against the Islamic entity? Many actors play a role, including:
1. Orientalists: A group of European scholars many of whom harbor treachery and malice. Their hatred has ignited their hearts. They came to study Islam—not to embrace it—but to criticize it and sow doubt among Muslims. Their publications and analyses have become a choking burden for Muslims.
2. The Westernized: Another group that imitates Orientalists, which I will refer to as the “Westernized.” These are young Muslims seduced by Western ideals. The West exploited this vulnerability, educating them and instilling its thoughts, then sending them back to their homelands to promote defeatism among their peers. Some of these individuals claim that Islamic countries will not advance without adopting programs created in London and Paris—accepting all their qualities, both good and bad. One such individual studied in France, returned, and taught students to criticize the Holy Quran, proclaiming certain verses as strong or weak. «كبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ إِن يَقُولُونَ إِلَّا كَذِبًا» Translation: “Hard and big is this word that comes out of their mouths; they speak nothing but lies.”
He attempted to cast doubt on the existence of key figures like Ibrahim and Ismail, insisting on the necessity of material evidence for their existence. He even labeled the Madani verses as more complete than the Makki verses, as if his extensive knowledge gave him the right to make such claims. «سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ» Translation: “Glory be to Allah; above what they attribute to Him.”
This individual wrote books criticizing the Companions, particularly during times of internal strife, without shame or embarrassment. Remarkably, this individual, with such a dubious record, was promoted to Minister of Education—responsible for the education of millions of students—turning a product of Islamic education into a proponent of secularism, materialism, and despair.
3. Colonialists: The colonialists joined in the conspiracy to disillusion Muslims. For decades, they subdued Muslims, inflicting torture and persecution across Egypt, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Libya, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Yemen, Sudan, and other Islamic nations.
4. Some Evil Rulers: Certain Muslim rulers contribute to this conspiracy, convincing their peoples that they are incapable of challenging the Goliath of the West and its military forces. They argue that it is impossible to oppose the world’s superpowers, and that if Muslims are not under one superpower’s wing, they must become mere subordinates to another. They measure our distance from them not in years but in centuries.
5. Negative Muslims: This group understands the truth yet fails to act upon it. They know what is good but do not promote it among others. They witness evil without preventing others from committing it. They wait for solutions from the heavens or from others instead of taking action themselves. Their only contribution is to criticize others, including the pragmatists and champions of this religion.
Continues…
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