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Reflective letter 4
Islamic Studies 2 - Self study
Postscript – Reimagining Islam in the Twenty First
Century
SEC 206
Mariam Tanveer
201000078
Dr. Hala Asmina Guta
PMU
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Postscript – Reimagining Islam in the Twenty First
In this chapter I learned about how colonialism still has its after effects in the world creating
conflicts between East and West due to certain ideologies. It is said that the notion of Islam is
based on the dynamics and inner drives of modern history, above all the colonial period. The
stereotype that many people have adapted is that everything that falls outside the West is
considered as undeveloped culture and shows the least progress as it is mistaken as its opponent,
and eventually they are destined to be like the West. As the West is occupied with the latest
technology and advanced science, it has the misconception of being superior over others. This
causes the societies with less technology to be further away from the timeline of advancement.
Another stereotype which proclaims that the East is the home of spirituality and the West is the
adobe of soulless materialism. Rabindranath Tagore was the supporter of this idea that east is the
home of spirituality, when he tried to spread this message across China and Japan; they found his
idea to be impractical and instead bootstrapped their industrial and military establishments to
withstand the economic and political aggression of America and Europe.
It should be also known that the terrorist attacks or any acts of violence should not be an
excuse for the historical explanations. The extremist anticolonial mentality can result to Muslim
societies jeopardizing the ethical values and underlying Islamic traditions. The colonial
authorities considered and followed the thought that Islamic personal laws are more restricted
than premodern Muslim judicial systems and are much narrower. Another aspect this reading
talks about is that how Pakistan is struggling to define itself as an Islamic state since a long
period of time. It was because of the Ahmadis (Qadianis) who believed that Mirza Ghulam
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Ahmad, the founder, could have been a Prophet after the last Prophet (PBUH). Later in 1974, a
rule was passed by Z.A. Bhutto that Ahmadis were going to be declared as non – Muslims. It
was even informed later that anyone who didn’t recite properly or called their place of worship
as a mosque without a copyrighted logo was prone to legal penalties. Due to the Ahmadis
incident, Pakistani passports now require Muslim citizens to sign a declaration that they believe
in the last Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) and are not Ahmadis.
It is also known that in any society in the world today, religious pluralism is a sociological
fact. Everyone should accept that Islam is not just a religion but a way of life. By accepting and
following Islam one can remain in peace and harmony as Allah (SWT) nourishes and blesses
him throughout life. This new message of Islam is not yet that successful but remains a minority
view. Problems even arise when politicizing religion and the colonialism aftershocks will almost
certainly continue on the international stage for some time. If you look at the bright side, the
minorities of Muslims living in the states or Europe, basically the West can show the true picture
of Islam so Muslims and non Muslims can co exist together. Although there will be debates and
many controversies but the effort can be made to make a positive difference by promoting the
real image of Islam. This can be done by using innovative ideas of spreading Islam by writing
novels which can be a realistic depiction of the lives of Muslims. It later explains how new
technology can be used to portray Islam by communicating the message through radio, TV,
internet or any source of technology. There are many websites available which are authorized
and can help you answer many question related to Islam. It’s a way of increasing knowledge.
Modern communications and the new concept of the Islamic anticolonial ideology have made it
appealing to raise the idea of Muslim unity. The trick is to tolerate the pluralistic ethics. The best
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thing I liked about this reading was the quote that “Following Muhammad, like the sighting of
that moon, is the responsibility of those who consider themselves Muslims.”