Dr Muhammad Maroof Shah

Meditations on the idea of conversion, Dawah and legacy of Muslim philosophers. If we examine sermons and activism of major missionary religions calling for adopting respective religions and even people within different sects of one religion calling for adopting respective sects, how do we choose? The fact remains that in more than 99% cases one is already convinced about the truth of one’s religion and remains in the faith of one’s ancestors/immediate environment. It is often assumed that we are to choose between true and false or this or that religion/sect/school at the cost of hell and that gives urgency to such a question for at least a miniscule fraction of people. How do philosophers in general and Muslim philosophers in particular engage with such calls? Let us explore with more specific reference to one of the greatest Muslim philosopher-sages Al-Farabi.       Al-Farabi’s legacy may be invoked in engaging with the phenomenon of missionary spirit of Islam that has two aspects:

Einstein or Hawking would love to imitate intellectual discipline of great sages such as Sankara or Nagarjuna or Eckhart or Ibn Arabi. Hemingway and Abu al-Ala al-Maari stated that “All thinking men are atheists.” Clifford challenged the religious world with the proposition that “It is wrong always, everywhere, and for anyone, to believe anything upon insufficient evidence.” Against this we find a statement in the Bible “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.” and in the Quran that God is a Manifest Truth and a great modern mind Berdyaev stating “Man can’t exist where there is no God.”  How do we understand such opposite statements while noting that most of the top ranking scientists and philosophers who supposedly seek evidence for any thesis are atheists?  What about many top ranking scientists/philosophers who affirm a sort of supra-personal intelligence of design and mystery instead of what is ordinarily called Designer or Creator? I suggest attention to few points to help

Encountering Some Difficult Questions Despite countless sermons and FAQ sessions during Ramadan, a few basic questions remain to be clarified and it seems most Muslims have yet to know the secret or key of the whole thing from fasting to iʿtikāf to laylat al-qadr and, one fears, that is why they only experience hunger and thirst and not proximity to God. Such questions include why is there, generally speaking, silence in the Quran/traditions regarding any punishment for those who though believe fasting as one of the pillars of Islam routinely fail to fast or who never fast (as against very clear elaborate descriptions about those who miss prayer/zakat) – we find promise of reward and call for fasting but silence on corresponding threat of punishment for missing without any excuse? There is a special gate reserved for those who fast in Heaven but none in hell for those who miss it. Very few note that God doesn’t hold us accountable for not offering tarawih in congregation routinely

IQBAL’S APPROPRIATION OF EVOLUTION IN ISLAM: A CRITIQUE IQBAL REVIEW (Issue: APR-2007)  Pages 167 to 185 http://iqbalcyberlibrary.net//pdf/IRE-APR-2007.pdf EXISTENCE OF EVIL, THEODICY AND SUFISM IQBAL REVIEW (Issue: APR-OCT-2009) Pages 54 to 97 http://iqbalcyberlibrary.net//pdf/IRE-APR-OCT-2009.pdf MUSLIM MODERNISM, IQBAL, AND DEMYTHOLOGIZATION: A PERENNIALIST PERSPECTIVE IQBAL REVIEW (Issue: APR-OCT-2010) Pages 93 to 125 http://iqbalcyberlibrary.net//pdf/IRE-APR-OCT-2010.pdf IQBAL‘S CONCEPT OF EGO IN THE LIGHT OF TRADITIONAL METAPHYSICS AND SUFISM IQBAL REVIEW (Issue: APR-OCT-2011) Pages 86 to 120 http://iqbalcyberlibrary.net//pdf/IRE-APR-OCT-2011.pdf THE FORGOTTEN TREASURE OF IQBAL’S RECONSTRUCTION A Joint Paper with Dr. Ibtasam Thakur IQBAL REVIEW (Issue: APR-OCT-2012) Pages 127 to 142 http://iqbalcyberlibrary.net//pdf/IRE-APR-OCT-2012.pdf

حقیقت عظمٰی جاننے اور اس سے رابطے کے لئے انسان کے پاس چار طریقے رہے ہیں مذہب،فلسفہ، تصوّف(سرّیت)اور شاعری۔سریت یا تصوف کو سرے سے رد کرناانسان کے ایک حس کو معطل کرنا ہے۔ ان چاروں دبستانوں کو اپنی اپنی حد اختیار میں رکھ کر انکو حقیقت کے کامل عرفان کا ذریعہ بنانا انسانکی کامل تشفگی کا ضامن ہے۔ یہ سب ایک دوسرے کی تعبیر و تفہیم میں مدد دے سکتے ہیں۔مذہب کے ڈانڈے فلسفہ و سریت سے اور تینوں شاعری کے ہمنوا بن جاتے ہیں۔ اقبال دنیا کی ان چند بڑی ہستیوں میں شامل ہیں جو ا ن سب طریقوں سے اعتنا رکھتے ہیں اور یہ انکی عالمگیر مقبولیت کی ایک وجہ ہے۔آج ہم انکیے تصوّف کی جہت کے مطالعہ کے سلسلے میں چند اہم نکتے زیرِبحث لاتے ہیں۔       دوسرے اہم علوم جنمیں فقہ، حدیث اور فلسفہ و سائنس کی بہت سی جہات اور انکی ترقی شامل ہیں کی طرح تصوّف کے برگ و با ربھی عرب سے باہر ہی ظاہر ہوے۔تصوّف عجم میں پھلا پھولا۔تصوّف ہمیشہ سے دین کا حسن یا اسکی تکمیل یا اسکی اخلاقی و روحانی جہات کی بازیافت کے طور اسلام کا جزو لا ینفک یا مقصود گردانا گیا ہے۔اس کے لےٗ احسان کی اصطلاح مستعمل تھی۔ اکابرِ صوفیا کے نزدیک یہ اخلاص فی لع