I have seen many different VCDs that show Zakir Naik speeches, and what he has
said are mostly about tawheed. I don't think Zakir presents himself as a
follower of Wahhabism or an enemy of any branch of Islamic teaching. He is
clearly not an enemy Sufism. All he talk about is that followers of non-Islamic
tawheed prinsiples and practices need to reflect on the way they search,
define, and position the God.
Tawheed is all about the logical thinking, so it is of course based on
analytical ability. In many ways, knowledge very much helps someone to
establish this ability. Dr Zakir Naik, alhamdulillah, proved himself of having
a great strength, talent, and --above all-- skills to challenge what we believe
as "flawed theologies" and, in turn, influence non-Muslims to accept the
concept of the Oneness of Allah Subhanahu wa-Ta'aala. Look how many Hindus and
Christians have embraced Islam after listening to Zakir's speeches.
So, it hard to imagine that someone doesn't support him. He is just doing what
we are all supposed to do : the propogation of Islam, the work of da'wah. Why
someone has to narrow his/her mind by saying that Sufism is a threat of
Wahhabism? I don't agree that someon in Islam is a threat to someone else.
Peace be upon us all, brothers and sisters.
Wassalam alaykum,
Asyari Usman
________________________________
From: "as...@yahoo.com" <as...@yahoo.com>
To: eGroup For Muslims Around The World <islamcity@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, 14 February, 2009 10:22:16
Subject: Re: Bismillah [IslamCity] Dr. Zakir Naik - Defame And Destroy.
Zakir Naik always speak with references from Quran and Authentic Hadeeth and he
never claim to belong any so called sects, you should also present references
againt his speaches regardless of making the war of sufism and wahabism
Send your renowned scholars to have a debate with Dr. Zakir Naik instead of
sending these hatred messages
________________________________
From: "sai...@yahoo. com" <sai...@yahoo. com>
To: eGroup For Muslims Around The World <islamc...@yahoogrou ps.com>
Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2009 3:33:10 AM
Subject: Bismillah [IslamCity] Dr. Zakir Naik - Defame And Destroy.
Dr. Zakir Naik - Defame And Destroy.
Jamshed Iqbal
One comes across several interesting comments from the people who have been
defending Mr. Zakir Naik on Indian Muslims Blog. Most of my brothers and
sisters are impressed by his “immense knowledge” without knowing that his kind
of knowledge (database or retention) has nothing to do with religion at all. In
other words the knowledge he and his fans boast of is irreligious in its very
essence, for any true religion is an ever-flowing fountain of “wisdom” not
“knowledge”.
However, Mr. Naik is not an only man basking under this false impression but,
it is pity that most of our so-called Muslim scholars are making the profits of
same deceptive notion. And it is about this “subtle subversion” that Muslim
world or Muslim identity has suffered a great deal. Therefore in this article,
I would talk about a whole range of “scholars” of this nature and use the name
of Mr. Naik as an “all-purpose unit” to bring my point home.
A wise man may have some knowledge but “it does not necessitate that every
knowledgeable man is wise”. For knowledge comes with analysis but wisdom with
synthesis. Analysis demands scattering the whole into parts and pieces, on the
contrary, synthesis demands uniting and reassembling the parts, once again,
into a whole.
Men of knowledge without wisdom are far more harmful for human family than mad
men. For knowledge without wisdom lacks comprehensiveness of vision, feelings,
beauty and empathy. Therefore it is not beneficial at all, and in religious
terms, it is irreligious! How?
A man of knowledge studies the composition of the atom from a disinterested
desire for knowledge, and incidentally places it in the hands of powerful
lunatics as the means of destroying the human race.
In such ways the pursuit of knowledge may become harmful unless it is combined
with wisdom; and wisdom in the sense of comprehensive vision is not necessarily
present in specialists in the pursuit of any kind of knowledge.
The point is “so-called men of knowledge lack comprehensive vision that is
necessary to make them wise”. Ask, for example, a man of science to define
human being! If he is sociologist he will tell you that, “man is a social
animal for he cannot live without society”. Ask the same question to a
physicist and he would brief you about “material composition of a human being”
and reduce it to material hump. Raise this question before a chemist and get
ready to listen that “man is nothing but product or composition of different
chemicals”. A chemist would also open your eyes by telling that “man is a
chemical animal and his emotions and character is mainly controlled by chemical
balance or imbalance”. Go to a biologist to listen, “human being is an organism
composed of different organs”. See a human being have been dissected into piece
and lost! Even if all of these definitions cannot include what makes a human
being a human being!
Definitions, I mean to say, are the foundations of analytical thinking and they
always fail to spot the core—the essence. For example, in above definition of
human person, what makes human person a human person is nowhere, as no
definition could be holistic! Moreover, in definition, metaphor or simile, as
logic demands, is not allowed to make analytical thinking free from feelings
but religious wisdom or morality is absurd or impossible without feelings!
There is no room for aesthetics (beauty) in analysis and morality or wisdom
gushes from these two springs as well!
I think Islam is very clear about this point as:
“Allah is beautiful and loves beauty”. Allah (The Supreme Reality) is truth and
truth cannot be revealed unto those whose whole effort is demystification and
dissection!
Has analysis anything to do with “love”? Isn’t beauty a mystery so beyond the
logic (Allah Him/Herself) ? Have analytical sciences, from so-called
Enlightenment Age onwards, not been trying to demystify the mysterious
phenomenon of existence or being? Was it not an organized effort to obliterate
God from human consciousness? Has sciences (knowledge not wisdom) not been
consciously trying to omit suggestiveness from natural phenomena to make it
dull and ugly!
There have a tendency among Quranic scholars—the tendency to count! For example
word (or Ism-e-Zat) Allah has been used so many times in Quran. Mr. Zakir Naik,
and others of course, can safely claim 10 GB memory containing these types of
calculations. But, so far as I know, no one has told that how many similes and
metaphors are used in Quran. How many attributes of Allah (the beneficent the
merciful) reflect rationality and others feelings or emotions?
Mr. Zakir Naik could not deny that Prophet Mohammad’s (May peace by upon him)
holy life is an evergreen epic of compassion and empathy—the gift “to feel”
with others! Remember once my Lord was running for milking the sheep to feed a
crying cat when West was not familiar with “animal rights”! Was it analysis or
feeling—feeling with and for the whole creation?
Islam is known to be the highest point of Abrahamic tradition and Prophet
Abraham dived into the fire! A rationalist or an analyst (or a man of
knowledge) would never think that fire could behave otherwise!
In short the whole range of knowledge mounted up by sciences is of analytical
nature, and therefore today, world is rich with knowledge but poor in wisdom.
For if it were rich in wisdom we would have been living in paradise! The main
problem with our age is that our age far surpasses all previous ages in
knowledge (rotted data) but there is a correlative “famine” of wisdom. Since
wisdom includes not only intellect but also feelings, and this world is mostly
steered by those whose knowledge is wide but feelings are too narrow! Therefore
they have made it a hell of hatred!
One of my brothers, Mr. Wasif, wrote about Zakir Naik’s comments about Sufi
saints. According to him Zakir Naik says:
“Sufism is an alien plant in the soil of Islam”
These are actually the words of Allama Mohammad Iqbal (1877-1938) who, no
doubt, was an extraordinarily profound and inspiring poet—but as a philosopher,
he used to wear several hats of intellect like Herbert Spencer in Western
philosophical tradition. Actually, as I think, his poetry and thought begins in
trivial metaphors, pretty metaphors, then culminates into “grace metaphors” and
finally goes on to profoundest thinking that we have. Mr. Zakir Naik should
note that in his profundity—Iqbal himself is a Sufi! For example:
Ik Danish-e-burhani, ik Danish-e-ruhani
Hai Danish-e-burhani hairat ki frawani
(One the one hand there is an argumentative/ logical wisdom, and, on the other
hand spiritual wisdom! But argumentative/ logical wisdom is nothing but surplus
of wonder…….)
Qadhe khirad froze keh Frang dad mara
Hama aftab lekin asar-e-sahar na darid
(The shining wine cup of rationality offered by the West is the full Sun but
powerless/impotent to bring into being lime light of the morning)
Iqbal used to call himself a disciple (mureed hindi) of Jalal-ud-Din Rumi—the
great Persian Sufi poet! Therefore, he was highly impressed by Persian
influence on Islamic culture, community and thought. For example, in his famous
chapter, The Muslim Community, in The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in
Islam, Iqbal writes:
“The conquest of Persia gave to the Musalmans what the conquest of Greece gave
to the Romans. But for Persian, our culture would have been absolutely one
sided”.
It is doubtless that Mr. Zakir Naik is advocating and pushing exclusively
soulless, fanatical and chauvinistic Saudi (Wahhabi) version of Islam that has
become a disgusting scar on the face of highly inclusive Islamic teachings! It
is duty of Wahabism to wage war against teachings of great Sufi saints who kept
the divinely prophet-consciousne ss alive not by preaching the truth but living
like truth! Naik’s grudge towards Hussain (may Allah be pleased with him) is a
clear sign that he is an agent of un-Islamic Saudi state employed to save her
from Hussain who exposes and challenges Yazid of every age!
Wahhabism is troubled by Sufism for it is a message of inclusiveness and
tolerance! Wahhabism wages war against it for it is a message of freedom and
core of Islam that is, in its essence anti- hierarchy and anti-establishment!
Wahhabism is afraid of Sufism for it shows a beautiful face of Islam but
Saudi’s allies (especially United States) are funding her to prove it ugly and
dangerous for peaceful coexistence!
Mr. Zakir Naik and all his friends are stakeholders in the highly lucrative and
hideous business of a great conspiracy “Defame & Destroy”. For it is duty of
Wahhabism to promote blameful and reproachably bigoted religiosity for
facilitating its funders to wipe Muslims from the face of the earth by
declaring them potentially dangerous creatures!
May Allah save my innocent brothers and sisters in Islam from felling a prey to
a vicious alliance! May Allah help us to show our non-Muslim brothers and
sisters that Wahhabism is not the real face of Islam! Islam is one of the most
inclusive religions wherein “ink of a scholar is holier than blood of a martyr”
and “killing one human person is killing humanity”! Islam—that is a religion of
heart, love, empathy and compassion!
Amen!
Jamshed Iqbal is a student and teacher of English literature and philosophy
saiyed shahbazi
www.shahbazcenter. org
