archive: Learning to live with Hindus
Learning to live with Hindus
Firoz Bakht Ahmed
The Economic Times
May 16, 1999
Title: Learning to live with Hindus
Author: Firoz Bakht Ahmed
Publication: The Economic Times
Date: May 16, 1999
It is high time that Muslims in India understand that their existence
is linked with that of Hindus and that they cannot separate themselves
and think of living in their own outdated ghettos on the pretext of
saving their religious identity. Befriending the Hindus and striving
for understanding even to the likes of the Sangh Parivar is the
practical approach.
I can vouch that there are more of secular Hindus and it is because of
them that the social fabric is held together. Wisdom lies in Muslims
living in harmony with them not only for their own safety and security
but also that of the Indian nation. The present day irony is that
even the educated ones are not clear about what and how to do.
Assimilation is the watchword today. In fact Muslims in India must
perfect themselves in Sanskrit and Hindi in order to draw maximum
benefit. Muslims could remain Muslims while contributing to India
through assimilation and synchronisation. They are sadly mistaken if
they think that by assimilation they will be absorbed within the
majority community.
Muslims must explore, identify and enlighten themselves on the common
grounds between Islam and Hinduism and their holy scriptures, though
in different languages but sharing several common ways of life. If a
sincere attempt is made, both Hindus as well as Muslims will discover
that many of their roots are nurtured by similar philosophies,
composite culture and thinking.
The Punjabis, Hindus, Muslim and Sikhs may fight under different
political banners but they all love the songs of Waris Shah. Guru
Granth Sahib contains the poetry of Baba Farid. All the shrines of
Chisti saints in India are visited by a large number of the devotees
outnumbering the Muslims.
There are undoubtedly some emotive religious problems whose primacy
and importance cannot be undermined, but problems such as poverty,
illiteracy, unemployment, child labour, backward Muslim girl child and
social and economic backwardness need immediate attention.
The tragedy of Muslims is that they have failed to project the, true
tenets of their faith which are far more open, broad-based and liberal
than those of Hinduism. H G Wells, one of the worst critics of Islam,
conceded, "Islam prevailed because it was the best social order that
the times could offer. It was the broadest, freshest, and cleanest
political idea that had yet come into actual activity in the world."
Even 51 years after the independence, they seem to grope in the dark
having fallen prey to the so-called Muslim leadership which has
prospered at the cost of their community.
Need of the hour is that Muslims, true nationalists, outwit the
fascist forces that are trying to reenact Pakistan, 51 years after the
Partition. This land of the vedantic civilisation, the Upanishads,
the Gita and the Guru Granth, of Gautam the Buddha and Mahavira,
Ashoka, Swami Vivekananda, Tagore, Maulana Azad, Gandhi, Hazrat
Nizamuddin and Shirdi Sais Baba, weeps today as religion has been
hijacked by some political maniacs and prostituted by a few religious
leaders.
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