novum opus hominum

What Pakistan needs.

They want us to think that democracy and elections are the way to a new Pakistan. That just isn’t true. Democracy and elections haven’t even worked in U.S! what makes anyone think they’ll work in Pakistan!? We need to look beyond the political process. We need to look towards the people, and look towards Islam to find the answer. 

People are told that investment will bring progress. They are lies told by so called experts. They point to the success of scandinavian countries. But that progress relies on the blood and sweat of third world countries which their corporations exploit. Who are we going to exploit? we are the third world. I guess we will have to exploit our own people just to invite their corporations.

What is necessary is the hard way. Necessity means that we stop relying on foreign aide (which our politicians depend on so much). Necessity means we develop our own industry, using the tools and people we have, for our own people. Equating globalization to progress is a neo-colonial lie spread by the IMF and World Bank so the first world can keep the status quo.

Globalization is a sham. Globalization means that each country plays their position in the world to promote  a harmonious “world order”. The position is that the first world countries stick to being rulers and policing the world, while the third world sticks to supplying the people of the first world with resources so that the “responsible” first world countries can put them to good use. It is an exploitative lie designed and spread by experts in a way that makes third world people believe it is good for them. Much like how the arguments of slavery were that slavery is good for the slaves.

Pakistanis need to look beyond this lie, they need to see that true progress can only be achieved through breaking off ties from the “globalized economy” and focusing on bettering their own self. Examples of such successes would be in countries such as Cuba, Venezuela, Iran, Eriteria, Bolivia (which even kicked out Coca-Cola company), among others.

It is time we look past the sects and races, and claim Pakistan for Pakistanis. Not for politicians, not for the army, not for the ISI, but only for Pakistanis. Forget uniting over politicians like Imran Khan, Pakistanis need to unite against policies that hurt Pakistanis themselves.

How about Punjabis rising up and protesting against the massacres in Balochistan? 

How about Sindhis protest in Karachi against the Drone strikes? 

How about the Pakhtuns protest against Shia killings?

I won’t ask anything of the Balochis because they’ve been going through massacres and assassinations by the Pakistani army for decades now. Before anything else, Pakistanis need to rise up for other Pakistanis. 

A lot needs to be done. We need to take away our faith from Imran Khan or Nawaz Shareef. We need to put our faith in Islam. Islam compels us to rise against the oppressors. The Quran doesn’t ask us to put our faith in politicians, the Quran asks us to put our faith in truth and fight against the oppressors. No matter who they are, no matter who they are oppressing.

Writing a name on a paper doesn’t change the world, it never has. What changes the world is standing up for each other and claiming Pakistani resources and people for Pakistan, and not for any multinational corporation. 

Lessons from Edward Said’s “Oreintalism”

The extent of racism meted out against the “Orient” in the 19th and 20th century does not surprise me. What surprises me is how it has persisted in our everyday living. A few examples:

‘Nationalism” has a negative connotation today. Just as it did in those centuries. Back then nationalist thought by the Oriental nations was disregarded as something which is not familiar to them. Today, nationalist thought thought by Oriental nations is still disregarded because we know better how dangerous nationalism is. Different reasons, but promoting the same agenda of putting down the Orient.

 Western nations took pride in their use of logic and reasoning. In believing in what is observed and proven scientifically and disregarding everything else. Everything else consisted of Oriental thought and logic. Spirituality, faith, and pondering over the unseen instead of the observed. All those were seen as inherently inferior to scientific reasoning. This criteria has persisted even today. The scientific model is seen as the epitome of human thought and reason. Religion and spirituality is considered inferior since it cannot be observed with the five senses; and hence cannot be believed by all logical and reasoning human beings. People who are religious are considered lacking in their reasoning capabilities. 

More lessons will become evident as i continue to read this book.

On “Personal feelings”

We often find ourselves conflicted between a logical understanding, and personal feelings towards a matter. It is quite common, and really a natural occurrence towards the study of any issue. Often times, we would find them in conflict. My personal feeling towards a matter (depending on the society i grew up in) may differ from what i know logically to be right, as per the word of God and the traditions of the ahlulbayt. If i am surrounded in a society which promotes drinking, my personal feelings towards it might be that it is not as bad. Why shouldn’t i drink? i don’t get drunk, i drink in moderation. I drink only socially, it is good for my heart to drink a cup of wine a day. Those would be my personal feelings towards  a matter. Yet i know logically, drinking has more harm to the society and the individual than good. I know it is prohibited by God. Logically, i believe that it is a forbidden act. But i just don’t feel like it should be forbidden. I see all these people are around me who are good people and they drink.

We might find ourselves in a similar situation regarding many matters. They could be matters regarding the judicial system as presented in Islam, or about the role of women vs the role of men in society, or even about rulings on what is halal and haram to eat. Which is why it is important for us to know and understand, before we delve into the research of any topic, that our personal feelings are very narrow. They are dictated by the experiences of only one person, not the society in general. They do not, and can not, reflect what is beneficial for the society at large. Moreover, they cannot judge what is beneficial for the individual properly either. Personal feelings are based after ones wants, ones ambitions, ones materialistic illusions. They are clouded by the layers of oppression, lies, experiences, and dreams the society places on us. Those feelings cannot pierce through those layers, but logic can.

Logic is an innate gift of God. It is given to Humanity so that we might be able to understand God, so we might be able to implement Gods commands in our lives. Our logic will never deny God, nor His commands. If we were to take our time to ponder over each personal feeling we have, we will find a source. A past experience, what someone might have did, or said, which changed our view towards something one way or the other. But that change may not be what God asks us to promote. That change would not be logical in its essence, it’ll be a reactionary change. A change based upon a narrow point of view, an incident experienced by one member of society (yourself) once, or twice, or even multiple times. But a personal experience nonetheless.

I write this to remind myself, and all those who care to read, of such experiences, of such feelings, and how they can keep us from reaching our full potential of understanding God.

This is borderline similar to the cho chang issue.

No, its not. Rowling doesn’t depict evil as Eastern in any of her books. In Harry Potter, everyone is of the same culture and the same people. Voldemort isn’t some wizard from the eastern lands who has brought darkness to the western world. Voldemort and the Death Eaters are all regular wizards form the same society that Harry and other wizards are. 

I don’t have a problem with a writer writing about their own society. I don’t have a problem with Tolkein being obsessed with Anglo-Saxons or writing about feudalism. 

What i do have a problem with is making the East and foreigners into Evil beings that the Anglo-Saxons must win against. You don’t need to make the Orient Evil in order to glorify yourself. Rowling shows that very well in her books. They are full of glory and valor yet the villains are the same as the heroes. Both form the Occident.

Tolkein on the other hand, did not do that. He could have written a book about Anglo-Saxons and put Evil within the same people. He could have made it so that Mordor was to the North, that the mercenaries and wild men resembled Vikings or other groups. But no, he made the entire Europe as good pitched against the Oriental Evil that rises from the East. 

If you need to make the “other” as evil, in order to glorify yourself, then that means you’re lacking in glory inherently. 

Controversial opinion: Lord of the Rings

I see LOTR fandom all over my dash. I decided to re-watch the whole series after the Hobbit came out. I’ve only read 23 pages of Orientalism so far but throughout the entire movie marathon (that i was having by my lonely self) i couldn’t help but notice all the Orientalism and evil-view of the east.

For one thing, Mordor lies to the East! i mean come on! to the east! of all the directions available, Tolkein chose the east. Aragorn was a ranger from the North. The place is called “middle-earth” but it is considered to be west. Heck even their kings and all refer to themselves as kings of the West. ugh.

Moreover, the wild men and mercenaries that join Mordor are definitely Oriental. They are all depicted to have dark skins and “kajol” around their eyes. Elephants!? seriously!? Elephants are the evil creatures!? 

Then there are descriptions of beauty of Arwen, Galadriel, and Eowyn. All described with fair skin without a blemish. So yea, I understand that Tolkein is from England and he would use his own society and history to describe standards of beauty, valor, and goodness. But there is difference between upholding your own people’s values and downgrading descriptions of other people. 

That is where Orientalism kicks in and the inherent view of the East as Evil. Why was Mordor to the East? Why did the wild men and mercenaries look like my uncles? Damn you Tolkein.

I remember reading about being wary of the dangers of Evil but Eloquent men. For they hide their intentions beneath their eloquence and to a layman, their eloquence speaks of their truthfulness. Which is what makes them especially dangerous. I have read some of Salman Rushdie and i can tell he definitely joins the ranks of Abu Jahal. Men who are evil, but eloquent in speech. Maybe Tolkein joins the same ranks. By God his writing is eloquent and captures each moment in its essence, but beneath those layers of descriptive capturing and eloquent story telling, lies an inherent inferior view of the Eastern people, My people, of Me.

So there you go, LOTR fandom. come at me.

To be in love…

To be in love with a person is a chronic illness. It does not go away. No matter how many times your chest tightens, it becomes difficult to breathe, or how many words you swallow. 

Read More

Fearing Allah

I have fear of Allah, but I do not fear Allah. Fear is weak, it drives one away from Allah. A person who fears Allah can never reach the reality of faith. Religion is a manifestation of faith, hence a person who cannot reach the reality of faith, can never reach the reality of religion. Fear keeps one wary of Allah, cautious about approaching Allah, tip-toeing around Allahs ayaats (symbols) without pondering over them. 

I love Allah. I want to get closer to Allah. Faith is a manifestation of love. One who has realized the reality of Love of Allah, has reached the reality of Faith. One who has realized the reality of Faith has reached the reality of Religion. Hence Love is at the root of religion; at the root of Islam. Allah has given me the path to get closer to Him and to love Him. Allah has given me examples of the people most beloved to Him in the Prophet and the Ahlulbayt (pbut). Allah is so kind and generous that He has given me everything i need to be in Love with him. 

Suddenly, his Ayaats (symbols) become more clear. They start directing me to His love no matter where i look. Love of Allah overpowers me as Allah kills my “ego”, my “self”. What a beautiful feeling that must be.

So selfish are those who follow Allah out of fear of punishment. Indeed in the Quran there are verses that point to fearing Allah such as:

And believe in what I reveal, confirming the revelation which is with you, and be not the first to reject Faith therein, nor sell My Signs for a small price; and fear Me, and Me alone. 
(  سورة البقرة  , Al-Baqara, Chapter #2, Verse #41)

Allah does not ask us to fear his punishment, or fear fire; Allah asks us to fear Him. That fear will naturally come to one who is in love with Allah. There is only one fear within the scope of love, the fear of disappointing the beloved. I love Allah, how can i bear to have my beloved disappointed in me? how can i bear to know that my beloved asked me one thing and i did not listen? i fear disappointing my beloved after everything He has blessed me with. Indeed i fear Allah out of Love.

When in Love, i would want to envelop myself in every aspect, every aayat, and every word of the beloved. I would not tip-toe around what Allah asked, but instead dive into the sea of knowledge Allah blessed us with.