Akhtar Raja
Fasting has historically represented one of the main institutions of religion. The rules governing fasting have changed over centuries from religion to religion. These changes have been in response to evolving societies.
Ramadan provides Muslims with an opportunity to examine the depth and beauty of their faith and not to simply restrict themselves to slavish rituals and customs. Ramadan is not about shaking off a few pounds, going with the flow or just doing the right thing. It is not an exercise in blind faith but instead a deliberate intellectual choice: a commitment to Allah, His institutions, and His reality. He is not illusory or a mere habit. The concept of Allah is an intellectual idea.
Ramadan provides time and space with a framework of conditions to create a particular environment. Within this Muslims counter excess, achieve balance, and liberate reason. All religions represent a sense or order of priorities. Islam’s position is: Allah is the top priority of intellectual curiosity. The existence of Allah is established. Humans are not free of Him. Allah is not a secular refuge of simple ideas. He is a well-studied and well understood reality.
Shackled by our daily routines we give more importance and less time to the top priority and less importance and more time to lesser priorities. Ramadan gives Muslims time to press the pause button: ponder, assess, explore, and discover Allah.
Early religionists imprisoned religion within their obsessions. Allah was not recognised by His singular universality and His ability to withstand acute scrutiny by every discipline of knowledge. Allah was privatised and taken out of the public sphere.
Muslims avail Ramadan, amongst other things, to dedicate their intellect to discovering Allah and reaffirming His exclusive authority. They are accountable to and place sole reliance on Him. Whether individually or collectively Muslims look to this very authority to review the legitimacy of their aims and conduct. When this approach is applied in its true spirit it critically differentiates Muslims, their societies, nations, and rulers from the rest of the world. Over time thriving Muslim kingdoms have thus, with unrestrained and honest intellect, relinquished their affairs in subservience to Allah while striving to adopt high standards, ethics and equity. This was borne out in the excellence of their governance.
In 1579 Queen Elizabeth I reached out to Sultan Murad III of the Ottoman empire seeking safe passage and trade for her “agents and merchants…and with their ships.” In doing so she agreed to become his subject to overcome England’s difficulties with commerce arising from religious disputes between Catholics and Protestants. Islam has maintained untainted constancy since its inception from the time of the Prophet (pbuh). There is now a drift to realign with it. The renowned twentieth century writer, politician, and philosopher, Allamah Iqbal, said that Muslims never helped Islam, however, Islam always helped Muslims.
The world order is being radically reconfigured before our very eyes by both foreseen and unforeseen factors. The pace is startling. Barely is the ink dry on one page of history and it is turned over to a fresh sheet. We are witnessing whole new chapters unfolding. This metamorphosis does not perplex Muslims. Not only do they rationalise these changes by reference to the dictates of a higher authority but also, they are reminded in scriptures of countless nations not only being relegated but totally extinguished.
After all, how can rapidly changing events such as the global consequences of proxy wars, the uncontrolled mass leak of state intelligence and shifting regional alliances be surprising? Muslims accept that the final outcome of every event rests with the Ultimate Truth – the Fount of all being, the Uncaused Cause. He has actual command and control. What’s a little house keeping for Him? Take a look at one facet of His power: He created 400 billion suns in our galaxy alone. There are up to 100 trillion stars in a galaxy and two trillion galaxies in the ‘observable’ universe. As Brian Cox the renowned physicist asks: What does this mean? It cannot even be pictured. We must admit we do not know everything. (Here I’d like to add that Allah states there are 6 additional parallel universes. Seven in all. Not less, not more. Something for scientists to also ponder.) Time and space lose meaning in such expanse. Some Muslim countries are now building a stronger pulse and spirit of cooperation. Muslims’ hearts and minds are emancipated – not in the perverted context contrived by the unholy Bush Blair alliance.
The refusal to recognise real power, the ultimate centre of accountability and the true source of support, whether ideologically or as a way of life, produces decay. In England, this deterioration has manifested in different ways through the course of time from monarchs right through to present day politicians.
King Edward IV (who ruled in the 1400s) is recorded as being an illegitimate sovereign. So were monarchs that followed. Their legitimacy was supposed to rely on bloodline and inheritance. The sovereign is now reduced to representing a feeling of stability and continuity. The monarch is less relevant today with an elected British government. The legitimacy of government too is an issue. The behaviour of British politicians and many institutions project an image of illegitimacy. Illegitimacy is not only a genetic issue or something unauthorised by law. It extends to a government’s moral compass. British politics is in decline. The economy, public services (health, education, and the welfare system) and other institutions are under resourced and falling apart. So much so it is becoming a mockery. You do not have to look far to see this. Boris Johnson’s recent performance before the Partygate inquiry serves as an example if Liz Truss’s escapades have been forgotten. There is even more troubling behaviour.
The unelected Prime Minister Rishi Sunak presides over many policies of cruelty with little regard for suffering. For example, the government’s ‘Stop the Boats’ policy seeks to prevent people – mainly from Muslim majority countries - arriving by boat and claiming asylum. Even unaccompanied children are to be detained. These agendas have been run by successive home secretaries regarded by many as upstarts pining recognition by kowtowing to the far-right. The UK may want to study the acceptance of refugees by countries such as Lebanon, Jordan, Turkiye, and Pakistan. What did they have regard to in their perceptions of humanity?
The Memorandum of Understanding between UK and Rwanda, which is intended to facilitate removal of asylum seekers crossing the English Channel to Rwanda, allows UK to resettle Rwanda’s refugees in UK. One wonders therefore which religious class of people UK wants to get off its shores and replace and why?
More recently, the current Home Secretary, Suella Braverman went further and made inflammatory, misleading, and divisive remarks about the scale of exploitation of children by British Pakistani men. She claimed they have incompatible cultural values. This contradicts her own Ministry’s 2020 report concerning such criminality by defendants, most of whom are white. Is there an underlying theme targeting Muslims specifically?
These disturbing developments represent the consequences of giving way to unrestrained personal and political motives. A chorus of objection therefore arose in UK from among people instead.
The Stop the Boats policy faced criticism for being reminiscent of language used in the 1930s. A Tweet by Gary Lineker brought the BBC to its knees. (He has a record of welcoming refugees into his home.) The talented singer, actor, and fashionista, Paloma Faith, condemned Sunak’s policy. Previously, Stormzy, an acclaimed rapper for whom religion is central, lambasted Theresa May following the Grenfell Tower disaster. Seventy-four people died in 2017 in a fire in Ramadan caused by poor construction and institutional failures. In the meantime, Marcus Rashford, the famous footballer, has campaigned against racism, homelessness, and child hunger. He helped secure free school meals for children.
Sentiments towards the vulnerable, needy and suffering are enhanced in the Holy month. As Muslims embrace the last ten nights of Ramadan, they seek with increased affection the proximity of their Lord. It is a time of profound reflection. Allah is implored from the depths of sincere hearts. He dictates destinies, favourably so, for those who submit to His authority with unwavering reliance and commitment, individually and collectively.
Akhtar Raja, is a British lawyer based in London and Principal of Quist Solicitors.
