Islam's Reformers .pdf

for their own advantages, the remainder’s nationalism results byhearing and imitating. It is seen that religious men also join inthis imitating.The thirteenth âyat of the sûrat al-Hujurât declares thathuman beings, the descendants of the same parents, can begraded only according to their fear of Allâhu ta’âlâ, and therecannot be racialism in Islam. Some put forth this âyat in favourof parting Muslims into nations and say that Islam is not againstparting into different nationalities and all should be respected.However, to divide Muslims into separate nationalities means topave the way to racial conflicts.The hadîth, “On the Day of Judgement Allâhu ta’âlâ willsay: ‘O men! I chose a family, a lineage (having commonreligious qualities, e.g. fear of Allâhu ta’âlâ). You choseanother family (you emphasized racial considerations). I said,he who fears Me more is more valuable. You did not giveup saying, “He is so and so’s son. For this reason, thatman is superior to this man.” Therefore, today I exalt Myfamily and debase your family. You should know very wellthat My Lovers are those who fear Me,’ ” explicitly showshow Muslims should be.Fiqh books write that man and woman to be married shouldbe suitable for each other and add the races and nationalities tothis criterion. This may make one suppose that racialism andnationality also are important in Islam. Yet the fact is that innikâh [1] every kind of suitableness, right or wrong, between theman and the woman are considered. If it were permissible tobreak the nikâh done with the consent of the both sidesbecause of racial and national difference, then it would berightful to suppose so. Since all the different nations world overare trying to exploit other people to their advantages, we, too,have to care for our own nationality. We, too, have to defendour nationality against our enemies. To do this does not meanto attach a special importance to nationality, for the notion ofnationality is based on sentiments, rather than on a scientificessence. Georgy Zaidân, the author of The History of IslamicCivilization, writes that the idea of nationalism existed in thebeginning of Islam and that even the policy of Hadrat ’Umar[1] Marriage contract prescribed by Islam. There is detailed informationabout nikâh is Endless Bliss, V, 12.- 95 -