Shah Abdul Hannan: Three doctrines divide human civilization and destroy the unity of mankind.

Racism

The first is racism, to differentiate between black and white people. This is completely unreasonable. Human beings are  basically one regardless of color. His limbs are basically the same. Their Creator is the same Creator. It is said in the Qur`an that the creation of different colors is part of God`s creation. Allah`s Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him) said in his farewell sermon, “There is no superiority of a white person over a black person or of a black person over a white person.”

Despite this, the Europeans brought black people from Africa and enslaved them. It is an indescribable sad story. Slaves were captured and brought to America by ship. The way they were tortured is a black chapter in history. This was done by white people who went to America from Europe. On the one hand, they killed the natives there , on the other hand, they brought black people from Africa for slavery. Black people had no human rights.

Abraham Lincoln`s efforts led to the legal abolition of slavery in America. But in reality, slavery continues. The decision to abolish slavery led to years of civil war in America. In fact, there is still a black-and-white difference in America. It is ingrained in most white minds.

No civilization can be built based on this racism. The basis of civilization must be equality and unity of all people.

Class War

The doctrine that has divided mankind after racism is the theory of class war. Economic problems need to be solved and measures must be taken so that all people can live well. But to divide mankind into rich and poor and to say that there is eternal class struggle between the two classes  is an exaggeration. Communism did just that. Millions of people were killed by them in Russia and other countries after the establishment of the communist state. Russia persecutes Muslim states in Central Asia. Their right to practice their religion was taken away. Their mosques were destroyed, and bars were set up in the place of mosques. Communists call religion opium. They want a one-party government. The nationalization of everything destroyed their production system. In the end, therefore, communism collapsed. No communist is in power anywhere in the former Soviet Union. Even though the communists are in power in China, that state is really a capitalist state, not a communist state.

An ideal world civilization cannot be formed by such a doctrine of dividing people based on class. Their efforts were in vain.

Caste System

The third doctrine that has divided mankind is the caste system - dividing people into Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. That system exists in India. This system is not conducive to human unity. It is not possible to build any advanced civilization on this basis. There is a huge public opinion against it in India. Although this system is deeply rooted in society.

It is not possible to build an advanced human civilization based on the above three doctrines. We need to find other ways to do this.

Can Western civilization be the ideal civilization?

Every civilization has a body and a soul. The body of Western civilization feels very good. Many buildings, many industries, many high-quality roads etc. The body of Western civilization is good, but its soul is rotten. The soul is its social system and values. There is a lot of chaos in the western society when it comes to sex. The family is broken. Homosexuality is legal. Children are neglected, old people are neglected. Again, there is intoxication. Ninety percent of people are addicted to drugs. Heroin is even found in coffee shops. Many elderly people do not have a husband or wife. They live with dogs. There are a lot of murders, suicides, gun violence etc.

Thus, Western civilization cannot be the basis of future civilization. This is what Dr. Yusuf al-Qaradawi said in his book, “Islam: The Future Civilization” . According to him, Islam is the system that can be the basis of future human civilization. In it is Tawhid - the Creator is one and all are His creations. This includes the provision of `no coercion in religion`, establishing justice for all,  providing welfare for the helpless, and a system in which the government takes responsibility for all the helpless people.

I think Dr. Yusuf al-Qaradawi is right. If mankind thinks and acts accordingly and Muslims also fulfill their responsibilities, then Islam will be the future of human civilization.

Author: Former Secretary, Government of Bangladesh

Translated by: Dr Foyasal Khan is an IIIT scholar and a research fellow at the Bangladesh Institute of Islamic Thought. He can be reached at foyasal.khan@gmail.com

Disclaimer: This article by Shah Abdul Hannan was first published in the Daily Nayadiganta on July 10, 2021, (https://www.dailynayadiganta.com/sub-editorial/593853/). I must mention that I am solely responsible for any errors and shortcomings in the  translation.