The past couple of decades have witnessed an increasing number of middle and upper class urban Pakistani women actively turning towards this brand of Islam through schools like Al Huda. They influence their families and friends towards this religious framework in order to construct a culture in Pakistan which they say is the pure Islam — free of all the foreign influences or bida’at. The bida’at includes wedding festivities, Sufism and co-education, among other things. The question that should become part of popular discourse in Pakistan, but has not been given due attention is: Who gets to define what is local and organic and what is foreign and intrusive?
The Wahabi interpretation of Islam taught at schools like Al Huda shuns something as simple as a birthday celebration as a foreign concept or a mehndi function a legacy of living with Hindus. Basant is a festival indigenous to Punjab marking the advent of spring. It dates back 3,000 years and has traditionally been celebrated by people of all religions in Punjab. Though local and organic, it is erroneously linked with Hinduism and disowned as both un-Islamic and foreign. However, adoption of the abaya, which is clearly a Saudi import, is not considered foreign at all. Subcontinental women observing purdah would use a big chador. In fact, women in urban Khyber Pakhtunkhwa still prefer a chador over an abaya but the abaya never faced the hostility that the festival of basant faced.
The curriculum has encouraged this discourse in Pakistan. The history books that say “when we came or ruled the subcontinent” provide factually incorrect information. Barring a few, who are the descendants of the invading armies of Mohammed bin Qasim or the Mughals, most Pakistanis are descendants of people who were already living in the subcontinent. Negating centuries-old civilisation for an identity that is still in evolution is not only untrue, but can have catastrophic consequences for society. The elimination of local practices on the basis of their being unIslamic and foreign reflects adherence to a particular interpretation of Islam. The people upholding this interpretation as the truth are not only negating the religious experiences of different kinds of Muslims but also the history of the land, creating a culture based on beliefs and practices that originate from outside the land.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 28th, 2012.
COMMENTS (79)
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@asma- Your comment shows that you have not understood the basic difference between religion and culture which the author is trying to point out. And who has given you the right to make such derogatory comments about another religion? As a hindu, even I can start finding faults in the lifestyle of Muslims or what is preached in Islam...But I won't. Because, in our Hinduism, we are taught to respect and accept pluralism. If castism is a problem in Muslim society then why are you bringing up Hinduism. In Islam there is no place for caste and if the Muslims are still following them then it's their failure to follow Holy Quran.
@observer: "@Parvez Iqbal:
If speaking in Arabic only is Islamic, then, Iran, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, etc. etc, all will have to be classified as non-Muslim countries.
"
You forgot Muslims in India. considering that India has more Muslims than Saudi Arabia, Eqypte, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Turkey combined.
Also people from Nigeria whic has a very large Muslim population. In fact 80% of Muslims do not speak Arabic.
@BlackJack: "India has always existed – only Indians did not."
A subtle difference but an important one.
@observer: They can be classified as countries with converted Muslims & Saudis themselves are most racist in this regard.
@Parvez Iqbal:
If speaking in Arabic only is Islamic, then, Iran, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, etc. etc, all will have to be classified as non-Muslim countries.
@Doomed Lions: any proof you have sir that original inhabitants of present-day PAKISTAN were dravidians(don't drag brahui's here, they themselves are very recent arrivals)?
any refrence that the inhabitants were defeated by invading aryans?
and, yes INDIAN civilization is certainly more ancient than iranian?
EVER heard about MITANNI INSCRIPTION?
and, AGE OF avestan gatha cannot be put beyong 800 BC, by any means,
while RIGVEDA'S clearly are from 1500 bc.
@ Sobriquet: I'd like you to reference these 'studies' here so that I can read them and determine they conclude what you have said here. Till then I dont believe you.
As for Persian people being influenced by people from "Indian subcontinent," what do you mean by these people? Were these people truly Indian? Or Central Asians, who migrated down South to India, and then influenced people in Persia?
Persian civilized is one of the oldest, perhaps as old, if not more, than Hinduism and their Vedas. Persians are Indo Aryans, and that is what Iran means. On the other hand, Hindu Brahmans, who have kept some racial purity, despite being Indo Aryans, are still very different from Persians.
We have have a lot of Caucasoid facial features as Persians, unlike Indians. Indians have Mongoloid features, google Indian women and see their broad shoulders, hooked noses, and manly features.
As for physical features and skin color being "small" attribute of genome, you are right, but also wrong. Skin color is determined by few genes, but gene products of these genes interact with a number of many other gene products to give you final skin color. And then facial features are determined in this way. Think of it as a matrix.
The author, in her hysteria, forgets to mention that traditions such as basant are also an imported culture. They were imported into North India by Indo Aryans over 5000 years ago when Dravidians, the true natives of India were forced to move to the South!
The author criticizes the import of Arab culture into India over last 1200 years, but does not criticize the import of Indo-Aryan culture from Central Asia into India about 5000 years ago which ruined locals such as Harappa and Mohen jo daro civilizations (this period is called Vedic period). Keep in mind that the Indo-Aryan theory is contested but majority of history scholars do think that Vedas are foreign to India (horse carts etc).
The author needs to learn her history properly.
@ Astonished Most sensible, intelligent and knowledgeable comments. Writer and other Muslims could make an effort to learn and understand true teaching before writing and comments.
who follows Wahabism is Good Muzlim
@kaalchakra: India never existed???? Seriously dude...You're not trolling well nowadays....
Now let me close my eyes and pretend that your comment never existed...
This is my idea of what a muslim should be. Pakistan has a long way to get there still
1) Koran and Hadith must be followed no matter what.
2) Strict dress code for both men and women.
3) Imams must judge on all matters of law.
4) All punishments must be done as prescribed in the Koran.
5) No English language. Language of Pakistan must be Arabic. Urdu is too Persian and Hindu
6) No Kuffar institutions at all. No secularism. Bank must not charge interest.
7) Visting tombs of the saints and perform tawassul is shirk
@Faraz:
There was a lot of interaction between Hindus and Arabs in earlier centuries which is quite beneficial for mankind even today.
@Doomed Lions: Don't confuse yourself or rather flatter yourself with a 'Persian' lable because Persians, as is the case with all other groups, were never a homogenous people. Genetic studies have shown that the region called Persia has had several influences from the Indian Subcontinent, including the much prejudiced Dravidian.
Physical features and skin colour are only a small part of genetic attributes. For example, genetic studies have shown that the Parsees in India are nearer to the Gujrati genotype than to the Iranian—despite the Parsee claim that they have maintained their racial purity.
Ayatollah Khomeini's grandfather's name was Seyyed Ahmad Musavi Hindi. Among the Arabs there have also been several famous people with the name "Al-Hindi," perhaps you should find out why.
Tina, there is no racism in Islam, neither positive nor negative. Besides, there was no India before the British took power from the hands of Muslims. So your race appears to be as fictitious as India - which of course never existed.
How about asking "What makes a good human" ??
@asma - the day you realise that your views regarding basant and mehndi are your views alone and not to be imposed on other people - you will realise the true tenet of humanism - live and let live. If people are living like animals in rural pakistan today as you say - it is not because of following the wrong brand of islam but a pure failure of administration.
you have to learn to keep religion in your heart - it does not belong anywhere else.
Nothing...
@Faraz: Good for you.
The curriculum has encouraged this discourse in Pakistan. The history books that say “when we came or ruled the subcontinent” provide factually incorrect information.
Some people did say the same in this site too,that they ruled the subcontinent. http://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/12108/hinudana-rasm-or-a-radical-mindset/#comments http://tribune.com.pk/story/424755/throwing-open-the-borders/#comments
Choice yours what you want , your 6000years of culture or your religion which gives peace to people for not following it properly
Good attempt,but needs research on culture & religion to deal with such topics.The essentials to make a good Muslim are well known,the problem is not following them.
Respecting views of a person whether he believes in a particular religion or sect or he refutes the very idea of God or he remains ambivalent to the concept of God would make us better human being.
@Astonished: "Names don’t matter dude. Like I said Islam does not get into petty things."
Names DO matter dude. Some time back a Pakistani doctor was charged with blasphemy and he had to flew the country to escape death. Why? Because he threw a visiting card of a sales rep. into the dust bin and the sales rep's name happened to be Mohammad.
What is the point of this again?
Tina: Your comment that we are Indian race highlights your ignorance. What do you mean by "Indian" race? Are South Indian Tamils also an Indian race? Or are North Indians from Punjab and Patna true Indians? Or are asian-looking Indians from Himalayas not Indians? Or are Kashmiri not Indians? What exactly do you mean by Indians?
My caste goes back to Persian Zoroastrian race, yet I was born in South Asia and today my caste is prevalent in Punjab. What does that make me? Indian? Punjabi? Or Persian?
@gp65: I'm afraid we have a divergence of position, possibly due to lack of clarity in my earlier post. I meant conservatism in the context of political Islam, which is seen as a philosophy that defines far more than just how to practice the religion; as our friends on this forum tell us constantly, it is a complete way of life, and there are no parallels in the non-Islamic world - in effect, it defines the world that they see. Conservatism also implies resistance to change, which is a hallmark of this movement. The conflict that we see here is between political Islam (which as in most political movements is also driven by funding and one of many different ideologies) and non-Islamic traditions. These conservatives successfully argue that local culture/ dress/ customs are non-Islamic (when they are just non-Arab), and gradually wean away the faithful all with the noble objective of bringing them closer to a particular strain of orthodox Islam; you can see the same effect in varying degrees in Malaysia, Indonesia, Maldives, and even in Kerala. As mentioned earlier, I do not disagree with the writer and I understand where you are coming from; I only feel that the contradiction mentioned above is rapidly becoming too stark for a return to roots (preservation of what we have may still be possible, but it is also a challenge). The presence of their eternal enemy next door and the creation of Pakistan a non-India also complicate the process in this case. The id that I use for ET is a separate one - I will use blackjackdaw@outlook.com to get in touch (ET pls allow).
Without going into the debate : The article is an immature attempt to generalize the confusion related to culture vs religion by discussing a single institute. I would suggest a more comprehensive report with more analysis to be re-worked !
@BlackJack: "If the acceptable image of the ideal muslim is that of an Arab, then why fight it; the two-nation theory says that you are different from Indians – Arabs are probably as different from Indians as you can get."
Acceptable image?! there shouldn't be any ideal "image" of Muslim, Ideal Muslim should be known by how he practices the religion (and it should be between and Allah only) not what his image is! If you don't know what I am talking about, look at Malaysians and Indonesians, they are Muslims too but as far from Arabs as it can get.
And about your two Muslim theory concept, that's just ignorance, "you are different from Indians", mind you, more Muslims live in India then Pakistan and they are Indians, so how come same Muslims in the now two divided countries be different??
Don't try to mindlessly copy Arab culture, go to the Middle-East and just see how these Arabs treat us, Arab wannabees! I am proud of my Indian lineage and I am a Pakistani Muslim.
@C. Nandkishore: I'm not sure where you came up with those cockamamee generalizations, but that's all they are: generalizations. Majority of the Pakistanis I know would much rather associate themselves to Indian culture as opposed to Arab. We have more in common with Indians anyway; Arab culture is quite different (and imho, it's partly at fault in establishing this radical brand of hatred and misogyny that they label "Islam" when it really isn't). Those who don't, it has nothing to do with 1947, 1971 or onward. Please don't flatter yourself; although it's always amusing to see what the population of India with a one-track mind will tell themselves and then pass on as fact.
More to the point, interesting read! I'm not brushed up on all of my history so I can't comment on accuracy, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Intriguing question. I, myself, don't know the answer. Cheers!
@ET moderators :
@Blackjack says "This is not similiar to the abolition of slavery which was an economic dispute that was also ultimately settled by force; further, it is a fallacy to assume that the victors wanted to abolish slavery due to any deference to human rights (hence the long delay in removal of segregation) – we cannot compare these two cases, and I would be happy to discuss this with you further (it is a topic of great interest to me)."
This is a conversation I would also like to have but understandably do not expect it to be published on ET since it is off-topic. Can I request your permission to allow me to post a temporary throw away email ID so as to take the conversation offline? It does not have any demographic details attached in the name and hence hopefully should not violate any policy of yours. cherishgp@gmail.com Thanks in advance.
what makes a good muslim according to Pakistanis. As a Pakistani, I can say,
The more hypocrite you are the better muslim you become. This charade that Pakistanis love to display that they are the best muslims and there is nothing wrong with Pakistan and only the west is responsible for everything, is badly exposed and they get angry.
Islam is now being viewed as an alternative to what Hitler propagated. No matter what Pakistani muslims say, their hypocrisy has contributed immensely to this negative image of Islam.
The favourite topics of muslims are who to declare kafir, what women can wear, how to convince people that Islam is the true religion and justify any deed in the name of Islam.
Worst of all, majority of Pakistanis are proud of this.
A perfect case of when you get to know islam via google searches or random discussions in coffee houses. How can you single out a small setup for militancy and cultural shift (Iran and rest of gulf goes clean after their years of 'investment' in Pakistan to make it their playground) and Your definition of bidaat can make anyone laugh. I can easily award you the rank of 'Zaid Hamid of liberals' since you hold the same 'perfect' knowledge of everything.
Arabs identify South Asians as 'hindiyya'. And we try to stick with them for what? What kind of identity are we trying to make being pakistanis? Our religion is islam and our culture is indian because we are an indian race. *Abaya is their cultural dress which has nothing to do with religion. and most of them abandon it when they move out for vacation.
"What makes a good muslim?"
I think your headline tells us the current situation of Pakistan and why noone could find a solution for it...Why every muslim wants to become a good muslim,instead of being a good human??
we're human first,let us try to become a human.Religion is only secondary,something which is created by man just like other inventions...
"Khuda ke liye" showed how a man becomes a terrorist just because he wanted to become a good muslim..If people are trying to become a good muslim,they might go in the wrong direction like the Talibans...
Its time the world kept religion at home and decide how to live peacefully,learn to respect other's freedom and raise voice whenever there is an injustice
God made us as humans.Its we who divided ourselves in the name of religion,region,nation,race.color
P.S.Now please dont stop bringing the crap that my religion is the only true religion..Everyone religion tells the same
The article link to Al Huda -- an insider's view, was very interesting.
How does one reason with deluded dogmatic revisionists who propagate their own ideology unashamed? I would hope a good Muslim would be accurate, truthful and factual with added objective critical thinking skills to be able to criticize history and oneself rather than be selective, censoring, hyperbolic, hypocritical, prejudiced and biased like a jahil or munafiq, which sadly many are. Even the mere mention of Jinnah being a non-Sunni Ismaili/Twelver Shia Khoja is anathema to many.
The curriculum, our thinking and narrative needs change and progress, but its almost as moot as Salafists blowing up Sufi shrines. A self-proclaimed Sufi like IK certainly is surprisingly flanked by a good number of Deoband personalities, though.
to author .
What point you are trying to make exactly ?
to be a wahabi , whats wrong in it ? a man is responsible of his family and similarly a Nazim/leader is responsible of his clan , and they will be questioned for what they taught their dependents.
One last thing to preach good things and forbid from sins ( by force , by voice and third considering it bad in heart ) are every muslim's obligation irrespective of any sect.
@BlackJack: I understand what you are indicating is a trend towards 'conservatism'. I agree with what you you intend but not with what you specifically stated. Conservatives try to conserve old values and traditions. The mindset of rejecting old traditions and customs which the author has written about because they do not match Arab culture (though not in any way opposing Islam) is not conservative behaviour. You might think that I am nitpicking on the word conservative but the fact is that Pakistanis are indulging in behaviour that is exactly opposite of conservatism i.e. discarding traditions while thinking that they are practicing conservative behaviour. I feel that just as the word liberal and secular are poorly understood in Pakistan, this is another term used quite incorrectly. If a label is considered good and then the way to achieve that label undergoes a 180 degree change people can accept the 180 degree change because they feel they have not given up the good label. Is this not what happened with the American apology - was it really an apology? This project of rejective traditional local culture but yet calling it conservative behavior has been on for 30 years, so of course it is not something that can be reversed in 30 days. Still a problem should be well defined - which to an extent the author has done - before it can be solved.
@ET moderators : @Blackjack says that " This is not similiar to the abolition of slavery which was an economic dispute that was also ultimately settled by force; further, it is a fallacy to assume that the victors wanted to abolish slavery due to any deference to human rights (hence the long delay in removal of segregation) – we cannot compare these two cases, and I would be happy to discuss this with you further (it is a topic of great interest to me)".
I would also like to discuss that but because it is off topic I imagine none of the other ET readers should have to put up with a sidebar conversation. Is it possible to publish a temporary throw away email address that I provide - so that we can take our conversation offline? This is not my regular email and provides no demographic information about myself, so I doubt this would violate any policy of yours. Thanks in advance. The email address is cherishgp@gmail.com
One of the best tweet, "I am going to learn Arabic myself to correctly interpret the Qur'an which is going to solve all problems of Pakistan".
@yousuf: When did Hindus enslaved Muslims?????????????
@C. Nandkishore: I felt disgusted reading your post.
@Midhat: Couldn't agree more! Thanks.
@gp65: I have no argument with the writer, and we are almost always on the same page; let me set aside the sarcasm of my earlier post to answer this one in earnest. There is a clear pattern that we can see in Pakistan - one of increasing conservatism which is readily (and willingly) adopted as being closer to the 'true' form of Islam, supported by extensive funding from the Middle East. This project is no longer in its introductory stage, and has already succeeded in converting a significant section of the population, and the results in terms of sectarian killings and widespread violence are clear indicators of how deep the rot has already set in. This is not similiar to the abolition of slavery which was an economic dispute that was also ultimately settled by force; further, it is a fallacy to assume that the victors wanted to abolish slavery due to any deference to human rights (hence the long delay in removal of segregation) - we cannot compare these two cases, and I would be happy to discuss this with you further (it is a topic of great interest to me). However, the examples that are available of significant change of course (post-war Germany/ post-revolution Russia/ China) have always been accompanied by violence, social upheaval and ideological turmoil; even extraordinary political forces will find it difficult (and dangerous) to attempt to do so in peacetime - hence my bromide of too little, too late - things will have to get worse before they get better. Of course, I too hope for the best.
Author: You need to do a little more research in your topic with an unbiased mindset before actually writing and publishing about it.. Your argument about chador and abaya sums up your lack of understanding of the matter..Bidat is any thing that is un-islamic and has been fabricated. The requirements for parda have been outlined, and to practice it you can wear chador or abaya or what ever that ful-fills the requirements ( author, I dont wear either but it doesnt hurt to have proper knowledge about things before commenting)
Very nicely written. I feel that instead of keeping the religious narrative simple we try to outdo the other in a show of religiosity and in the process lose the essence.
The problem of Pakistanis is not religion or culture. Both religion and culture are excuses. The real problem with Pakistanis is somewhere at the back of their head, or in the heart of hearts they realized that they have lost the race against India. Especially after the loss of Bangladesh. The realization that they are now a second rate power and that they can never catch up with India has made them to distance themselves as far as possible from India and anything Indian. Hence from 1980s they started calling themselves arabs, followed wahabism, and in general they started negating what ever is Indian. The celebration of Basant falls into this category. So does the wearing of the sari. So does the naming of their missiles Gauri and Gaznavi. And so does the changing the weekly holiday from Sunday to Friday.
How can anyone be identified to be a Muslim? By his/her deeds. Such people show Kalimah in their deeds. A Muslim has to be truthful sincere and must show in his/her deeds to be upholder of justice. Doing justce is to regard and respect Lord Almighty as and what He is. Doing justice is to regard and respect the fellow human exactly like what he or he is i.e. another of fellow humankind. The deeds of a Muslims must be like that of A S Edhi or the famous Albanian woman called Mother Teresa. A Muslim will always prove through his/her deeds to begiving topmost priority to the fact that one day he/she will be hauled before Lord Almighty to answer questions about his/her deeds on this earth. The tragedy is that there are not many people who show in their deeds that they will ever face the Lord to answer questions about their deeds.
""That every tradition if conflicting with Islam must be abolished after we accepted Islam. Islam doesn’t care whether that tradition was of pre-Islamic arabs or of natives of sub-continent"" The above is one of the primary reasons for the conflict and confusion that prevails in the Muslim world. The works of Naipaul provide a fascinating insight into this.
To many non arab muslims traditional dance , music , music instruments , acting, sculpture, drama come into direct conflict to verses in Islamic scripture which are clearly against any form of art and music and instruments ( except the "duff")
When will we see Pakistan , the pure land of muslims give up its "qaumi tarana" , dramas, singers , musicians , poets , bhangra and also TV perhaps ??
john , i wonder if you have any idea of what you're talking about. Sunnah is not 'sunnah of mankind'. it is the sunnah of the prophet and is considered a revelation because the Qur'an says it is upon Allah not ony to preserve Qur'an but also to explain it (surah qiyyamah) and that the prophet is sent to expain the qur'an. Many ayaat in the Qur'an necesitate obeidence to prophet to be a good muslim.
cultural pracitices not contradicting whats laid out by islam are fine - islamically.
@John B:
You really need some study to be able to comment on Islam. You post is full of ignorance and fabrications.
Better luck next time!
@unbeliever:
Names don't matter dude. Like I said Islam does not get into petty things.
@BlackJack: "The fact is that these questions are being asked too late. "
I beg to differ. The question of slavery was addressed 80 years after independence. It took another 100 years before African Americans were given voting rights and racial segregation truly ended. So 65 years after independence is not too late to ask these questions if a course correction is possible.
think the problem is different. No serious stakeholder (leader of key political party or COAS or CJ) has taken ownership for the course correction. But then that ownership can only come if advocates of a different type of thinking continue to speak and write and maybe one of these thought leaders gets the eyes or ears of a key stakeholder.
So write on lady. Voices such as yours are sorely needed.
The problem with Muslims and the root cause of the Muslim sectarian violence is reverence to both Quran and Sunnah.
Sunnah as claimed by Muslims is an amalgamation of cultural practices of the early arabic society.
In a strict theological perspective, adherence to sunnah is not needed to be a true muslim, as sunnah is not a revelation of Allah.
One cannot wipe out centuries of cultural practices of a civilization by new one that is totally foreign. Similarly, one cannot resist the change in culture imposed by time. However, one can adopt certain foreign cultural practices that appeal to the senses.
It is a fact that nearly all Muslims of the present time ignore aspects of sunnah and it is inevitable that sunnah of muslims around the world also includes local cultural practices. Insisting, only the sunnah of early Arabia should be be followed is tantamount to cultural clash and hence is the problem of sectarian violence between the Muslim sects.
Unfortunately, the pillars of Islam codified much later in history of Islam give equal reverence to Allah's revelation and sunnah of mankind. Hence, the perpetual problem of clash among the followers of Islam.
A good Muslim is the one who follows Quranic revelation only since that is the foundation of Islam and the only scripture of Islam.
How come sufism is local? isn't it a strain from withing Islam and thus imported from arabia, or is it something non-islamic?
not covering ones self like you see in the indian vedic culture is forbidden in basic text of Islam - The Qur'an. covering ones self is ordained there. Thats what alhuda teaches. Chador being bid'at and Abaya being righteous has never been an opinion and simply manifests author's twistings which the article has quite a few of.
@Astonished:
Whether we are the descendants of natives (mostly hindus) in this land or of arabs, one thing is established (whether we like it or not). That every tradition if conflicting with Islam must be abolished after we accepted Islam. Islam doesn’t care whether that tradition was of pre-Islamic arabs or of natives of sub-continent.
but, islam is religion of peace, and what would you do, if a muslim refuses to drop a RANA, BHATTI from his sirname, you certainly can't use force to implement a peaceful ideology. or can u?
"Good", is a rare commodity and dwindling asset. And it sounds even true for us.
It is a meaningless debate though. The debate of bida'at has nothing to do with what the traditions were present in the Sub-continent and what were imported from Arab world. It has to do with what was part of Islam and what was "made" as Islamic. But you, the writer, is missing one point here. The abaya can never be a bid'at nor a chaddor. The purpose was to cover whether to do with a chaddor or an abaya and should be left completely on the choice of the women.
The purpose of Islam was to provide a guideline (as in this case for men to avoid looking at uncovered women and for women to cover). It does not get into petty things like cover with what or look where (for men),
Whether we are the descendants of natives (mostly hindus) in this land or of arabs, one thing is established (whether we like it or not). That every tradition if conflicting with Islam must be abolished after we accepted Islam. Islam doesn't care whether that tradition was of pre-Islamic arabs or of natives of sub-continent.
You can find answers to your confusion about bid'at in the Quran & Hadith. Its free online these days as well!
I find it interesting how you single out institutions like Al-Huda as catalysts that have brought about this shunning of cultural traditions like wedding festivities, basant etc. I don't think it's just the wahabi interpretation of Islam that is responsible for this shift. In fact, this same problem exists in many other non-arab muslim nations. The problem, in my opinion, is this crisis of national identity that exists in so many predominantly Muslim countries such as Pakistan. For the most part, there is this desire to be a part of the universal Muslim ummah due to which people are adamant on giving up their own cultural traditions that are not rooted in Islam. I think it has little to do with the interpretations of Islam and more to do with the fact that Pakistan was founded on the basis of religion. People have this compulsion to create their own identity and culture separate from the British and Hindus they gained independence from 65 years ago.
the point of this was?
Religion and Culture are two different entities and should not be interlinked. These fanatics confuse people and create prejudice and hatred among the young minds which will further confuse their generations. This is a major social crises.
Just pick what is good for us in every culture. Some people feel that we should forget India vs. Arabia - let us become westernized please. Both India and Arabia are not really nice places / societies.
Histroy is a threat to this society. Wahabbism is not the only problem of pakistan. The main substantial element of propoganda that corrupts actual historical facts comes from the narrative formed by pakistan army. Its a national security state that is suffering from inferiority complex, delusions and paranoia
. Though local and organic, it is erroneously linked with Hinduism and disowned as both un-Islamic and foreign.
there is no error in the statement. it is true to the core.
besides, it is upto you people, whether you want to become arabic, or want to remain punjabi, sindhi, pathan ie pakistani. nobody can force you to choose what you do not want.
you choose abaya, but do not reject sirnames like bhatti, rana, butt which do not have any arabic connotation, and are certainly remnant of a hindu past, but since in your society they tell a lot about your lineage, so you refuse to drop them, and neither those teaching in AL-HUBA dare to suggest you to do so.
so, it all boils down to what great indian sociologist MN SRINIVAS said long back....it's all SANSKRITIZATION....and in context of pakistan and ISLAM, it is ARABIZATION......plain and simple.....
The fact is that these questions are being asked too late. It is probably safer to continue the process that has already been set in motion and avoid the identity crisis and consequent social upheaval that will result from uncomfortable answers to the questions that you have raised. If the acceptable image of the ideal muslim is that of an Arab, then why fight it; the two-nation theory says that you are different from Indians - Arabs are probably as different from Indians as you can get.