It is very unfortunate that almost every month, we perceive the
news regarding the sectarian conflicts in the valley. There can nothing be as alarming and
threatening to the nation as sectarian conflicts because it’s a kind of
conflict which involves less head and more emotion, and victory to the enemy
and defeat to our own values. Religious ideas are very much available now in
every market of Kashmir. Its peers have left no stone unturned to sell them at
cheap costs to the closed minds. Muslim mind has also closed the intelligence gate
long back and went back to the tortoise shell. The only attractive and
impressive feature of Islam left was the mass congregation in the mosques,
where men could fasten together the shoulders of each other before Allah and
show unity. Now since many ideas have fastened their grip in the minds of youth
and elders, this unity felt a setback, due to the various differences in the
name of Islamic Jurisprudence. Different schools of thought emerged in Islamic
civilization which is the characteristic of Islamic diversity and an example of
it being a universal religion. These schools of thought were important for the
development of Islamic law and their application in different times, locations
and among different cultures stipulated the diverse thoughts of Islam. But the
scholars who created such different legal opinions, sometimes opposite to one
another, had an intention based on the prosperity and development of Islamic
civilization. It was an exercise of knowledge learned through burning the
midnight oil and a rigorous accountability. This reflects through the Imams of
four schools of thought when we study them as founders of these respective
schools of thought.
But the schools of thought have played a very unconstructive
role in Kashmir. I have been witnessing the construction of number of mosques for
the most part because of indifferences for the men of other school of thought.
Even sometimes men of similar thought gnaw each other to command power in a
mosque. The places of worship have thus turned into areas of contention. Youth
who follow the congregations of clergy, ponder less and follow blindly, turn
very unproductive for the maintenance of ethic in our society. They appear very
good apparently and are very healthy in creating moral values but they fail to
adopt ‘other’. The essence of Islam which lies in brotherhood and tolerance
does not reflect from our religious schools or congregations. This is a very
serious question mark on our religious preachers. Religious preachers must be
asked this question that if they have produced a good number of men with long
beards and women draped in veil; why have they failed in creating tolerant
youth? Why is youth of Kashmir so intolerant in listening to other school of
thought?
This issue should not be taken lightly because enemy sees the
future battle lines and fault lines and history testifies that religion is
always vulnerable, misused for vested interests. I wish to see Kashmir
prosperous and happy. I don’t want to see bombs exploding in mosques. The
debate of ‘keeping the trousers above your ankle’ should not make us like Iraq
were ankles disappear in bombs exploding in the holy places. We as a youth of
this nation must open our intellect and see into Islam by ourselves. We all
have a degree of intelligence to understand the Islam. Let’s not fall into the
trap of false preaching. Let Kashmir not explode in the name of religion. In
this context law must get involved to check were Kashmir is brewing up on
religious lines. Political and religious leaders should address the differences
among the people. Strong religious training must be incorporated among the
youth. Various seminars of peace and dialogue should be conducted.
Let’s save something good for our next generation. This is
sending bad signals about our religion to the next generation. This is making
them vulnerable to agnosticism and atheism when they see so much scuffle and
mess in their own set up.
Nazar Ul Islam Wani (Junior Research Fellow- Department of
Islamic Studies) University of Kashmir.
waninazar13@gmail.com
