What turn life takes! Would Dr Martin Luther King Jr ever have thought that a day will come when a black man is elected president of USA with about 80 % approval rankings? The answer is ,Yes. He dreamt of such a day and look, the day has come. When he said in front of the Lincoln Memorial in 1963, the now famous words,
"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.
....
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!"
who would have thought that these words will echo in many ears today, as Barack Husse
in Obama takes oath as the 44th President of the United States of America.Dr King would have been a proud man today. It just goes on to show that idealism can sometimes be translated into reality, that dreams do come true, that truth ultimately prevails in the end.
I have a dream too. I dream that all the world, especially Pakistan, also adopts the charter for humanity that Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) gave us 1400 years ago; that all men are equal and the no Arab has any preference over a non-Arab and vice versa, no white has a preference over a black and vice versa, that we are all children of Adam and greatness is only based on a person's character and closeness to God.
I have a dream too. That this gem of speech also translates into the fabric of our own society.
Maam ... Ameen, and Summ-a-Ameen.
ReplyDeleteAlas!!
Kaash all (or a majority of) moslims thought the way you think ...
Kaash they were convinced that Islam can never go against humanity,
that there can never be a conflict between Islam and Humanity,
and that if ever there appears to be one, Humanity must prevail (as most likely the interpretation of Islam which conflicts with humanity is a wrong interpretation).
If only moslems could give women their rights, (rights not of wearing bikinis - which is the only meaning of women rights to majority of moslems), but "certain inalienable rights, among these life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" (as against not allowing them to drive a car *S.A.*, or worse, not allowing them to study, not allowing them to go out of the house, treat, and beat em up like animals *Talibans*).
If only moslems will start believing in ayats of Quran by heart, which include "2:256 Let there be no compulsion in religion", and "88:24 And so, (O Prophet!) exhort them your task is only to exhort; you cannot compel them to believe.".
If only, before committing crimes against humanity, they (many but taliban most prominent) thought ki had Prophet (pbuh) been alive, whether He (pbuh) would have approved their actions ....
Aah ... the truth is, the majority of moslems have been doing things terribly wrong ... :(, So though I share ur hope and ur dream, I don't expect it to come true :(.
Martin Luther King was a lucky guy.
Yes, your post captures the feeling very well. Islam is never at odds with humanity. In fact, to be a good Muslim, one has to be a good human. THese things are the fundamentals of all religions, not just Islam. But these days, religion is a ritual more than a code of life.
ReplyDeleteYou are right. Many MUslim men feel they will lose their control over women if they give them full rights. BUt they forget that they are no one to give those rights, The Prophet respected women, treated them kindly, and alienated their suffering. Look at the men of today. All they think of is four marriages when it comes to Islam. The other commands they throw to the winds.
That's our problem....Creating our own versions of Islam and letting go of the essence
Yes, Dr KIng was a lucky man but idealists are the ones who give us hope of a better future and sometimes these ideas come true. THis us the only incentive to us....to keep dreaming and to keep hoping for a better life
Off-topic: I have responded to your comments at my blog.
ReplyDeleteA black man in America becomes president and it is right for every American to be proud.ditoo if a woman has become a President in America.
ReplyDeletePakstan produced the first lady Prime Minister Benazir who was democratically elected. In India we had Indira gandhi and Muslims as Presidents and Dalits as Presidents and one is occupying the Chief Justice of India just now.One lady Dalit mayawathi doesnot hide her diamonds like others pseudo lady politicians who wear big bindies and cotton sarees to fool the public.But no credit to anyone in Subcontinent.
Oh yes, we are not talking of credits here. The winner is humanity and the slogan, that all men are equal.Sadly, we, the people of the Sub-Continent lag far behind in this regard
ReplyDeleteCorrection: Thomas Jefferson's phrase is "all men are created equal". It was quite a daring assertion for the time, but not even MLK believed that all men are equal.
ReplyDeleteAnd neither do I. All I have to do is visit the local prison. These criminals are not my equals. Few even deserve pity; one need only judge "by the content of their character." If you can find one exception to a maxim, there are probably more. And if you find two extremes, there are probably cases in-between, as well.
@ solomon 2
ReplyDeleteThanks for the creation. I have mentioned the correct sentence in the post, but had erred while replying here.
No matter how daring the assertion was, then, it is still daring now, but all the same it signifies the truth that a baby born has no religion, character, culture....so all humans born are equal, no matter what's their skin colour or nationality. However, many factors shape us and some become leaders, some criminals....The only test is character and while circumstances do affect people, I refuse to believe that people can change if they make an effort not to. We all have a decision to choose between good and evil and God does not force us to choose one over the other. This decision is ours and people who are fatalistic ( many Muslims) simply fail to make use of this right.
Ali, Prophet Muhammad's son in law and the 4th caliph said a beautiful thing. Someone asked him how much control do I have over my destiny? Ali told him to stand on one leg,he did it. Then Ali asked him to take both legs off the ground. The man was stunned: He said I can't do this. Ali said: You see, you have only this much control over your destiny......meaning 50,50.