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| O Abdulla |
Renowned Malayalam movie actor Mohanlal recently
offered special prayers for Mammootty, another equally renowned actor of
Kerala. The ritual was performed at Sabarimala temple, one of the supreme Hindu
pilgrimage centres in Kerala. No one in Kerala found anything wrong in Mohanlal,
a Hindu, praying for Mammootty, a Muslim, to a Hindu deity. Malayalis were
concerned about Mammootty’s wellbeing and were relieved to know that the actor
wasn’t suffering from anything as serious as it appeared.
Except O Abdulla.
Who is this Abdulla? I had never
heard of him until he created an unsavoury controversy about a Hindu praying
for a Muslim. This man’s Facebook profile describes him as: “Former Professor
Islahiaya, Media Critic, Ex-Interpreter of Indian Ambassador, Founder Member
MADHYAMAM.” He has 108K followers on FB. As I was reading Malayalam
weekly this morning, I came to know that this Abdulla is a former member of Jamaat-e-Islami
Hind Kerala, a fundamentalist organisation.
Abdulla objected to Mohanlal’s prayer
for Mammootty. Reason: A Muslim cannot seek the blessings of any god from other
faiths even through people who profess that faith. That is, if you are a Muslim,
you should not ask a Hindu or a Christian to pray for you. That is Abdulla’s
contention. This Abdulla wanted Mammootty to apologise to Muslims by performing
some ritual called tauba. I don’t know what that is except what Google
tells me: repentance. Mammooty should repent for Mohanlal’s prayer for
his good health!
How ridiculous can religion get! It
is people like Abdulla who make religions so repulsive. Why blame others for
Islamophobia when you have too many Abdullas around?
The irony is that Sabarimala temple has a Muslim shrine too. Vavar, a Muslim who was Lord Ayyappan’s [Sabarimala’s deity] beloved companion, is venerated at a shrine near the Ayyappan temple. Hindu pilgrims offer their homage to Vavar too. Will O Abdulla’s next demand be a tauba from Vavar Swami of Sabarimala?
I have always been of the opinion that
religion is a regressive force. People like Abdulla (there are others from
other religions too, too many of them) are like ossified leftovers from the
dark medieval ages, lingering on to cast their ghastly shadows on human
civilisation that longs to move forward toward light.
Such people never learn the true
meaning of religion. Religion, for them, is merely some rules and rituals
without any soul. Love is the soul of any religion. As 17th-century Punjabi
Sufi poet, Bulleh Shah, wrote:
Not in the Kaaba, not in Kailash,
Not in the mosque, nor in the temple.
I searched the whole world, my friend,
And found the Beloved in my heart.
The Beloved is his God. Your God should be your
beloved, Abdulla, teaching you love, not hatred, giving you light instead of
darkness. At least some good sense. Look inside your heart and see if your God
is there. Find him there. Then you will be healed.
Gai Eaton, British diplomat, converted
to Islam because of the Sufi mysticism. In his most famous book, Islam and
the Destiny of Man, he wrote: “Truth is not the property of any one
religion; rather, it is like light that shines in different colours through
different lenses. Islam acknowledges that the divine truth has manifested in
many ways, and it continues to do so.” I pray to my God to help O
Abdulla to understand the meaning of such writings. Now O Abdulla can go and
perform a tauba.
With the behaviour of this kind of fanatics, secularists left on the earth keep turning against Islam.
ReplyDeleteExactly, Murthy ji. I have lost the sympathy I had for this community because of people like this.
DeleteHari OM
ReplyDeleteHear! Hear! YAM xx
I'd love to see this Abdulla guy responding to this.
DeleteThis is like a Maulana damning Shami for drinking water on the cricket field during Ramzan!
ReplyDeleteThat's what! They lack common sense, I think.
DeleteDeep sigh. There's nothing worse than the gatekeepers who have appointed themselves as the arbiters of what is "correct". People don't need to listen to them.
ReplyDeleteBut people get swayed by rhetoric and group mentality. Group has no brain, only emotions.
DeleteThe Hindu Sabarimala pilgrims visit not only Vavar, at the Muslim Mosque at Erumely. Lower down the terrain and their pilgrim trajectory, they also have a ritual visit to Veluthachan, at the St George'e Shrine at Arthungal, Alappuzha. A seamless web of religious harmony, knit into the religious tapestry of India, which breathes the oxygen of mystical pluralism.
ReplyDeleteIndeed Sabarimala is an eminent lesson in religious harmony. The truth is Hindus are by and large more open to other faiths. Certain leaders have perverted that openness with political motives and hence others are turning more reactionary. Bad leaders are a nemesis for any nation.
DeleteWonderfully penned. Religious intolerance is a disease rampant in our country currently, sadly having no cure. Self professed afficianados make the rules and teachings of centuries old religion as to their liking and call.
ReplyDeleteThese self-proclaimed Messiahs are killing the gods, destroying culture, and turning people into mutual enemies.
Delete