New Literature for a New Era

Let’s Redefine Muslim Identity

And in doing this, let us redefine our identity and role in the world. And let us go down in history as the relentless, indefatigable makers, movers and marketers of Salaam! Regardless of what others may say about us: those who misunderstand us; those who wish us ill; those wish to steal from us; and those who are our declared enemies.

Let us define our own identities. Let us not let our enemies define them for us. Let us let the world know that we are people of Salaam, peace and love and not people of hate, malice and ill-will.

Let the world know us as those who are preoccupied to the point of obsession with the wording and meaning and implications of this wonderful notion of Salaam. How the wellbeing of the world is our business.

For, if we do not take effective steps to define ourselves, we will end up being defined by others. And that is what has happened to us over the years and centuries. Muslims have been defined and re-defined continually by others.

They are being defined and redefined by people who are moved either by their own personal and political reasons and agendas or by their ignorance, arrogance and naiveté!

One way in which others have defined us is by associating the words terror and terrorism with Islam and Muslims.

Salaam vs. Terror: Whither Muslim Identity

Did you ever wonder how often and in how many different ways this association gets repeated and reinforced in a given day by how many different sources in how many different channels of public and private communication?

Well, do some math. Count up the numbers. Then you will know that what I am doing is a one-man counter-Crusade, pardon the expression, to redefine Muslim identity. And I am doing that along more factual terms as the people of Salaam.

I am taking on the vast and virulent anti-Islam and in many instances mindless anti-Muslim propaganda and hate-mongering alone, all by myself, with my counter-campaign of Salaam.

And, in the process, I am trying to re-point – a bit of satellite imagery, if you don’t mind – the Muslims themselves in the right direction – the direction of Salaam. So that they will become a Rahmat for this world, even as their Rasul, Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam, was a Rahmat for all the worlds!

That is what this whole discussion of Salaam is – over and over again. That is what I am trying to accomplish – desperately and at times, it seems to me, almost hopelessly. And what could be a more appropriate key to that world of Rahmat than the key of Salaam?

Therefore, what I am doing is trying to show the organic and unbreakable connection that exists between Islam and Muslims on the one hand and this most amazing concept and culture of Salaam on the other hand. Thus, incidentally, I am also trying to expose the spuriousness of the connection others have created between Islam and Muslims on the one hand and such nefarious notions as terror and terrorism on the other hand.

So, if it occurs to you at any time that I am repeating things, just add up the times and ways in which the anti-Islam and anti-Muslim propagandists and hate-mongers repeat things and see for yourself if our repeating of Salaam approaches even a fraction of their non-stop repeating and reinforcing of anti-Salaam.

Become a Salaamist

Therefore, become a convert to Salaam if you aren’t one already. Be a partner in promoting Salaam to yourself, your family, your neighborhood and the whole world. Be a partner and helper in this great nation-building, world-changing enterprise of Salaamism?

That is right, that is what this business of loving, promoting and working for Salaam is. It is Salaamism.

If you embrace the message and culture of Salaamism, then buttonhole everyone everywhere and give them Salaam and proceed to flood their consciousness with all the beautiful things that this little word Salaam stands for.

Do what the Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam, asked you to do: “Go forth and spread Salaam!” Afshus-Salaam!

That means, go, change the world – using the little divine expression Salaam and all the Rahmat and all the blessings and all the Barakaat Allah Almighty has packed in it.

Ask yourself what you can do to promote Salaamism in the world. What practical steps will you take to Afshu some Salaam wherever you are and however you can? Ask yourself if you are a Salaamist, and if you are one, in what way are you a Salaamist?

If you are, then go fill the world with Salaam! If you are not, then become a Salaamist! Be a Salaamist. Live the life of a Salaamist. Work to make everyone a Salaamist!

That identity was given to you by God Almighty. It was he who made you a Salaamist. Let your enemies eat their hearts out. For, if you are a Muslim your identity is not terror or terrorism, your identity is Salaam, given to you by God himself.

God Gave You that Name

Huwa Sammaakumul Muslimeen, says God in the Qur’an.

Proudly tell the world you are a Salaamist. Actively invite everyone to be a Salaamist.

And in every way you can, be a Salaamist. Pack the world with Salaam: a supreme gift from the most loving, kind, sweet, caring, doting, merciful master of all of us, someone who calls himself As-Salaam.

Tell the world that this Salaam is from him! Just like the Qur’an says: Salaamun Qauwlam Mir-Rabbir Rahim!

And Tahiyyatan Min ‘Indillahi, Mubaarakatan, Tayyibatan!

Greetings from God Almighty, blessed and beautiful! Nothing less!

That means Salaam, Salaam everywhere. Salaam here and Salaam there. That means Salaam now, then and forever. And that means Salaam for one and Salaam for all.

That means Salaam in this world and Salaam in the next world. That means Salaam in body, mind and spirit. And that means Salaam at home, at work and at play.

That means Salaam in our culture, education and civilization. And Salaam in our society and its institutions. That means Salaam in our commerce, politics and sports. And Salaam in our industry, health field and entertainment world.

That means Salaam in our justice and law enforcement systems. And Salaam in our defense forces and in our bureaucracy.

That means Salaam within and Salaam without each one of us. And that means Salaam with oneself, with one’s surroundings, with one’s neighbors and with one’s world.

And of course, above all else, that means Salaam with one’s maker, owner and master: Rabbul ‘Aalameen!

This is a story of Salaam on top of Salaam: Salaaman Salaamaa, the eternal cry that will ring around Paradise.

The enemies of Salaam don’t have it. And they don’t believe in it. That is why they would rather paint you and Islam with the broad brush of terror and terrorism regardless of whether it is true or false. That would act as an excuse for them to steal your wealth and your land. It will also act as a cover and an excuse for their own terror and violence against you and keep you perpetually on the defensive.

So, cherish this message of Salaam and work to make it the new dominant culture in the world.

Heaven on Earth

Working to create a piece of paradise, right here on earth, that is what this whole thing is about. This business of Salaam.

The Qur’an captures this most marvelous phenomenon of the breaking out of Salaam in every way and from every direction in the most beautiful words: Salaaman Salaamaa!

Salaaman Salaamaa! Salaaman Salaamaa!

That is in Paradise – Jannat – of course. But let us get some practice right here on earth, by trying to turn this world into a piece of paradise – for all of Allah’s creation. Not the least for us, for our neighbors and for all those we love.

You get this done and there shall be peace on earth! And you will be the one who made it happen!

And there shall be nothing more to do except to repeat – endlessly: Salaaman Salaamaa! As the Qur’an says: Illaa Queelan Salaaman Salaamaa! That is how the world will end. Not with a bang or a whimper, but with a song and beautiful melody.

The eternal song and dance of Salaaman Salaamaa!

Assalamu alaikum! A miracle! That is what it is! A miracle from God Almighty, pure and simple – in our frail, mortal, incapable, undeserving, unsteady, uncaring human hands.

This matchless, priceless, fathomless, timeless divine greeting of Assalamu Alaikum!

This piece of Paradise – right here on earth!

This immortal fresh breath of eternal life from across the vast expanse of death and oblivion – right here on this side of the grave, while earthly life is still in bloom!

It is a gift from God Almighty – God of Salaam – to the people of Salaam. To his creation, which he has filled with Salaam, as he says in the Qur’an: Rahmatee Wasi’at Kulla Shai’. A perfect gift from a perfect God.

So, this Salaam is a gift from God Almighty. To those who are smart enough to submit. To those who are nice enough to care. To those who are humble enough to seek. To those who are fortunate enough to find. To those who are clean and pure enough to understand.

To those who are bold, courageous and confident enough to accept and embrace. It is an offering of love and mercy from a God of love and mercy to those who are honest and open enough to admit and own up. To those who have consciously and deliberately chosen the message and the path of Salaam.

Life Is a Cornucopia of Miracles

So, Salaam is one of the greatest miracles of God on earth. If anyone wants to behold the spectacle of a real and living miracle on earth in this day and age, all they have to do is witness the phenomenon of Salaam unfold all around them, in every part and culture of the world where there may be Muslims present.

But that is the story of life itself. For, life is full of miracles! Every breath is a miracle! Every grain of sand, every particle of dust is a miracle. Every leaf, every flower, every fruit is a miracle.

Every step we take is a miracle. Every heartbeat in our breast is a miracle. Every time we think a thought or utter a word, a miracle occurs. Every time we laugh or cry, a miracle comes into being. We are nothing but an ongoing parade of God Almighty’s spectacular miracles.

What is a Miracle? I don’t mean a “miracle” in terms of the technicalities of “religious” or other definitions, but purely in terms of the practicalities of everyday life. A miracle to me means something that ordinarily speaking should not be happening.

A miracle is an event that is most unlikely to occur in the ordinary course of life.

Or, stated somewhat differently, it is an event whose occurrence in this world is least probable – least likely or most unpredictable. It is an event that runs contrary to all expectations and predictions – an event the chances of whose happening in the real world are minimal.

That is what the essence of a miracle is to me in real life, regardless of the name by which you choose to call it from your own “religious” or scientific or some other vantage point.

And that is what this amazing phenomenon of Salaam turns out to be, no matter how you look at it. It turns out to be a miracle, pure and simple and nothing but.

That is why, I say, it could not be a product of the human mind. For, no human mind could have conceived or invented something like this greeting of Salaam. This very concept or culture of Salaam.

That is why Islam offers it – as a gift from God. And that is why no one else has it. If others had it – given to them by God through other prophets – they lost it. It simply atrophied and disintegrated through disuse and distortion over the eons and the millennia.

And it was never woven into the practical fabric of their daily, hourly life as it was in the case of Islam – starting out with the very name: Islam.

Islam: A System Designed by God to Run the Universe

That is because Islam is a system designed by God to run human life on earth. It is also the same system that God uses to run the entire universe up above – and all around us. As such, it cannot be a shoddy, capricious, illogical, unscientific and in most instances even counter-intuitive system.

And most certainly it cannot be a cult to be owned and operated by those without knowledge or understanding.

To be able to operate the entire universe and keep it running as it does, it needs to be a perfectly workable and scientific system. And to the extent we can study and understand it, it needs to be open to logic and empirical investigation and validation.

Balance, harmony and reciprocity have to be among the chief characteristics of such a system. And that means peace and absence of conflict. In other words Salaam, Salaam, Salaam, no matter how you look at it. Salaaman Salaamaa!

That means nothing but Salaam can run the universe, up above and all around us, successfully and harmoniously. And nothing but Salaam can run human life, right here on earth, successfully and harmoniously. All of which means Islam and nothing but Islam, pure, simple and true.

One God, One Message

And it is the same system that the same God Almighty gave to the whole world at one time or another, through one prophet or another. This Salaam-based system of Islam!

So, the sun and the moon are Muslims, because they follow the divine system of Islam – submission to God Almighty and his laws. They follow the path of Salaam. They follow the pathways of peace, if you will: Subulassalaam, as the Qur’an puts it.

So will we also be Muslims if we also submit to God Almighty and follow the laws he sent down through his prophets, Allah bless them, for our guidance, all of which are centered on the key notion of Salaam. That would make us Muslims – those who submit. And that would make us of those who follow the pathways of peace: Subulassalaam.

What an expression and what a concept: Subulassalaam – pathways of peace.

What or who but the Qur’an (5:16) could come up with a concept like that, with an expression like that?

And it would give us in return – our single-minded pursuit of divine pleasure would give us (5:16) – something very, very special. It will give us Salaam. In our life now and in our life after death.

And, in my book, that makes us all Salaamists – if we submit to Allah that is. For, Salaam is the ultimate outcome, right here in this world as well as in the next world, of human beings submitting to God Almighty – both as individuals and as collectivities, cultures and societies.

That means you do the submitting, out comes the Salaam – regardless of whether you are an individual, society or culture.

What Does It All Mean?

Here is what it means: It makes us of those who have been blessed by God Almighty with the supreme gift of Salaam. It means God has conferred upon us the great blessing of believing in him and believing in the message as well as the methodology of Salaam. For, Salaam is not only a message, it is also a complete methodology in and of itself, of life and how to deal with its many issues and challenges.

It means God has made us of those blessed souls on earth who manage their lives based on the method and mechanisms of Salaam. It means he has made us of those fortunate people who actively teach and preach this wonderful message of Salaam to the world.

And, ultimately, God Almighty has made us of those who, even when accosted and challenged by foolishness, folly and arrogance on a personal level persist on the path of Salaam! That is what it means.

It means we are firmly on the path of peace, love and service to humanity and to God’s creation, never to falter and never to look back.

As the Qur’an says: Wa Idhaa Khaatabahumul Jaahiloona Qaaloo Salaamaa! Paraphrase: And when foolish people accost them, and want to pick a quarrel with them, they simply say: “Salaam!” and walk away.

What a model for positive human behavior! What a foundation for peace in human hearts and in people’s daily dealings with others.

Salaamist

The question is: Are you, then, a Salaamist? How much of a Salaamist are you?

That means, are you willing to play an active role in defining your own identity based on the eternal and immutable principles, message, methodology and culture of Salaam and not be an accomplice in letting others define your role and identity in this world based on the perverted notions of terror and terrorism?

Or are you going to just sit around and let others define you, define Islam and define Muslims as associates, correlates, supporters, advocates and practitioners of mindless terror, senseless violence and global mayhem?

That is the choice that is upon us.

That means how well did we internalize this amazing message of Salaam? And how many people did you share that message with? How many people did you buttonhole and how many people did you explain the meaning, message and intricacies of Salaam to – Afshu-ing some Salaam, as our Prophet, Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam, told us to do? In other words, how much of “Afshus-Salaam!” did we really do?

If we did nothing, and if we have no intention of doing anything in future, then we shouldn’t complain if the world slaps us around, and if God Almighty imposes upon us the punishment of humiliation and helplessness – Dhillat and Maskanat as the Qur’an calls it.

For, that is God Almighty’s law: Flout Allah’s commands as a pattern of behavior; be willfully and chronically derelict in your duty to him; turn your back on the imperatives of the day; and Allah reduces us to a state of disgrace and lowliness.

That means life, the way God Almighty designed it for us human beings, is not about sitting around and complaining. It is about doing something about what is wrong. It is about fixing what is broken.

And we are asked in the Hadith to do it either by our action, or by our speech, or at least through our thought. For, a human being is not much of a human being beyond that point.

END

© 2009 Syed Husain Pasha

Dr. Pasha is an educator and scholar of exceptional 
talent, training and experience. He can be reached at DrSyedPasha [at] 
AOL [dot] com or www.IslamicSolutions.com.

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