Looking at the corruption and lawlessness in Pakistan and the dominance of the Western civilization and its oppressive hold over the Muslim world, the impassioned youth today develop either of the two attitudes:
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- Despair and isolation as a result of it
- Or become more militant in their thought.
Both these outcomes do not bode well for the Muslim ummah. It is to Syed Abul A’la al-Maududi’s credit that he not only critiqued the Western degeneracy but also laid the foundation of an organized movement for the establishment of an Islamic state based on Islamic principles. He devised strategies to struggle peacefully for the Islamic cause in a Muslim society and remedied feelings of despair and inclination toward civil war amongst Muslims, saying:
Secure and long-lasting government can never be established through havoc and violence. Examples of Latin America and Africa are for everyone to see where revolution was brought through such means which resulted in a series of revolutions and counter-revolutions. That is why we ourselves won’t adopt violence and not let others use it either.
Syed Maududi not only gave a detailed outline of what an Islamic state in modern times would look like but also elaborated on how a contemporary Islamic state will address the problems of the modern era. An Islamic state operates on the principle of mutual consultation rather than a despotic and dictatorial one.
Maududi stated, “Western understanding of democracy is that absolute rule & sovereignty belongs to the people. While we Muslims understand democracy & the authority that comes with it with respect to the vice regency bestowed upon humans by Allah. In both contexts, western and Islamic, the government is formed and transferred by the electorate’s opinion. But the difference is that according to them a democratic state is sovereign in absolute terms while according to us a “democratic viceregency” is subject to Allah’s sovereignty.”
In the past, a state-backed narrative was pushed that the “Army is the most organized and educated institution in the country”. In those days, Ayub Khan was the Chief Martial Law Administrator and Maulana Maududi was being persecuted by the government for his Islamic ideology and struggle. General Ayub invited Syed Maududi for an extensive meeting and suggested, “Maulana, this politics is a very filthy game. How did people of high moral character with uncorrupted souls such as yourself get involved in it? You should leave this and occupy yourself only with spreading Islam in this country and around the globe. Let politicians do politics. Whoever steps in this mud will be covered in filth. If you limit yourself to the propagation and teaching of Islam, our government will assist you in it.” Maududi replied, “You have correctly stated that politics has been made a dirty game by immoral and godless people. That is why I say that a corrupt government is the root of all corruption and it’s this corruption that has made all aspects of our lives filthy. Until politics is not cleansed from such filth, no aspect of human life can be improved or made healthy. To cleanse the society of this filth is not mere politics for us, but rather a religious obligation.” Ayub Khan remarked, “Then Maulana, you cannot shield yourself from being defiled by this filth.” Maududi responded, “There is no doubt that whoever cleans the scum and sewerage, no matter how many precautions he takes, some dirt will get on his clothes. But if sewerage isn’t washed out of fear of getting dirty, then evidently the whole population is under threat of becoming diseased.”
During his life, Syed Maududi ensured that force or violence never be the basis of national policy. His stance was clear that rulers should be elected by the people and they should be free to choose them and not coerced to do so.
Maududi opposed underground movements or operating in secrecy or adopting unconstitutional means of political struggle in Pakistan. He endorsed adopting nonviolent protests in the face of dictatorship, avoiding civil war, and not using force to reach power. He was of the opinion that even after forming the government, force would be used as the last resort to implement Islam. According to him:
Some people ignore the full scheme and details of the Islamic system and outright start criticizing its harsh punishments. Islam starts with creating faith among ordinary people, then it builds their character and takes steps to prepare strong public opinion which fosters good and suppresses evil. Then it establishes such a social, economic, and political order in which performing a good deed is easier than committing a bad one. It shuts all doors through which the various abominable crimes penetrate. After all these things, force is used as a deterrent for wiping out every evil that crops up in a clean society. Who would be more unjust than a person who skips over all these things and places the last of its item on the top only to disgrace this righteous system
In Pakistan, whether it’s a civilian or military dictatorship under the guise of democracy, all such dictatorships can only be countered through public awareness. To instill God-consciousness and desire for paradise in the hearts of the people and turn it into a force that is not content with anything but Islam is the panacea to our unfortunate condition, this was Maududi’s approach to change.
References:
-https://dawatnews.net/jabar-wa-jmuhriyat-our-syed-maududi/
-https://www.tarjumanulquran.org/articles/feb-2019-pehlay-foji-aamir-ki-molana-modudi-per-tankeed
