… Continued
Today’s
civilization, more accurately the shockingly materialistic modern
civilisation, propagates its own set of principles regarding human
rights. It is a fact that these rights are weak, deficient and geared
only towards greed, even at the expense of religion and morals.
Moreover, these rights are not underpinned by faith, nor is there any
belief behind them that would revive them, nor any enforceable
legislation that would protect them. Consequently, one sees them being
violated in the world’s most materialistically advanced civilizations,
the very places from which they were first propagated! Where are these
human rights when Jerusalem is being occupied, the sanctity of
Al-Aqsaais beingviolated, its people’s wealth confiscated and their
blood spilt for so many decades? Where are the human rights in a war
being waged that is not based on principles, is inhumane and flagrantly
destroys the very notion of human rights?
The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said during his sermon during the Farewell: “All matters from Jaahiliyyah (The pre-Islamic era) are under my foot (i.e. valueless).”[Muslim]
During the Jaahiliyyah
(the Period of Ignorance before Islam)bloodshed was taken lightly and
acts of violence and brutality were conducted in a business-like manner.
Initiating wars was a common practice at that time. People were left
without guidance, with no divine message or faith to purify and regulate
them. Then Islam came to change and uplift their principles and to use
these as a basis to govern all areas of life. Islam emphasised the
sanctity of human life and made murder a crime against humanity. Allaah
The Almighty Says (what means): {We
decreed upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul - unless
it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land - it is as if he
had slain mankind entirely}[Quran, 5: 32]
Before the arrival of Islam, tribalism was deeply rooted in society and well structured. Then the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam
worked to eliminate all the prejudice and racism which people lived
with, praised and boasted of. Stressing this point in his speech, he, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said: “All
of you descend from Aadam and Aadam was created from clay; The most
honourable amongst you in the sight of Allaah are the most pious. There
is no preference for an Arab over a non-Arab, a non-Arab over an Arab, a
coloured person over a white person or a white person over a coloured
person except based on piety.” [Al-Bayhaqi, Ahmad and
others]Therefore, a person’s colour, wealth, worldly position and
lineage are not to be taken into consideration when evaluating them,
because these are things granted by Allaah The Almighty and they were
not given any choice on whether to accept these or not. Allaah The
Almighty says (what translates as): {Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allaah is the most righteous of you}[Quran, 49: 13]
Nowadays it is distressing to see some people amongst the Muslims trying to revive the tribalism and racism of the Jaahiliyyah, boasting about it and trying to spread its evil, although the Messenger of Allaah, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said: “Abandon it (tribalism and racialism), for it is foul.”[Al-Bukhaari and Muslim]
He, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam further said: “The first Riba (interest-based transaction) I cancel is that of Al-‘Abbaas ibn Al-Muttalib (his uncle) - I cancel it all.” [Muslim]Allaah The Almighty forbade Riba
because of its great harm and evil; it ruins man’s conscience and
corrupts societies. This is because it causes greed, selfishness and
avarice to spread. It also kills community spirit, causes enmity between
people and puts hatred of each other in their hearts. For all these
reasons, Allaah The Almighty declared war against all those who deal
with Riba and spread it. The war in this life is the alarming
phenomenon of widespread inflation of prices, financial crises,
psychological problems and the deprivation of the sense of mutual
cooperation and sacrifice. As for the Hereafter, the war is in the form
of a painful punishment. Allaah The Almighty Says (what means): {Those
who consume interest cannot stand (on the Day of Resurrection) except
as one stands who is being beaten by Satan into insanity}[Quran, 2: 275]
The Riba-based
financial system of the world is what is responsible for many of the
financial and economical crises that have overwhelmed individuals,
communities and countries in recent history.
(To be continued)
The Farewell Hajj: Discussing Human Rights - I
The Farewell Hajj: Discussing Human Rights - III
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