Social – Page 6 – My Bit for Change

A virtual world

Are you really laughing when you are writing LOL and do you really mean it when you show love/hate expressions on social media networks? Are the emotions expressed on social media real or fake? These questions pop up on a daily basis asking about the credibility of this virtual world. The answer is not simple; the feelings expressed can be genuine, forged or a mixture of both.

Virtual world has given us a chance to modify our image; it gives us an opportunity to portray ourselves the way we want to. This image is based on what we actually want to be. It normally reflects the aspirations and desires. It certainly may be not be a real picture, but it is a desirable picture for us. Thus, it is difficult to judge the validity of that picture portrayed on the social media.

There is more to social media then merely a pretty self-picture. Virtual world has given us an opportunity to express our opinions. The opinions which were hidden deep inside our hearts and minds can be expressed more freely now. We want to tell the world what we believe and this results in more difference of opinion. An opinionated society is an appreciable quality but certainly it has led to more disintegration of the society as we haven’t yet learnt how to sacrifice our opinion and unite on a common ground. It has created polarization in the society and everyone is stuck strictly on one extreme or another; thanks to the ‘’freedom of speech’’. Additionally, social media has given us the access to people across the globe and psychographics have certainly become more important than demographics.

In this scenario, it has become very easy to manipulate the situation. Sentimental news can break up across the borders within no time and everybody on the social media will be talking about it. A recent case of Shamsul Anwar is an eye opener. His story (fabricated) was published in a trusted daily newspaper with high sensuality elements in it, targeting the soft hearted people across the country and the news became viral. The authenticity of the news item was not questioned in itself because of the brand names associated with it, the heart wrenching plight of the ‘poor defender of the nation’ paying a ‘high price’ and the ‘deadlines of the abductors’ mentioned in this article. On humanitarian grounds, the people like Marvi Sirmed, Ansar Burney, Awab Alvi and My Bit for Change joined hands for the cause, regardless of their political opinions. Here are some tweets regarding this issue:

‘’marvisirmed Marvi Sirmed
Good progress on #JusticeForShamsulAnwar. Political, military authorities on board. We are now waiting for the abductors’ call @AnsarBurney

marvisirmed Marvi Sirmed
#JusticeForShamsulAnwar Dear all, please use your influence and contacts to help him bit.ly/xxveY8 Buy time, collect money. Whatever

marvisirmed Marvi Sirmed
#JusticeForShamsulAnwar @AnsarBurney is on it. might be traveling to Isd for this. Hope he can help set up an emergency fund too

MyBitforChange My Bit for Change
“RT@AshAijaz: @AnsarBurney May Allah give you courage and accept your efforts. Thank you so much! #JusticeForShamsulAnwar”

AshAijaz Aisha Aijaz
Thinking of Madina Anwar and her distressed family. May Allah protect you and you return safe dear. #JusticeForShamsulAnwar
10 Jan
Retweeted by MyBitforChange

But, unfortunately (or fortunately) the whole case turned out to be a fraud. Now this situation can be looked upon at two different angles. On one side, it’s the problem of social media that anything can become viral without any authenticity or validity associated with it. But on the other hand, it also shows the power of social media to unite the people of different ideologies on a single cause.

Another dimension to this whole episode is that people give more attention to sensuality. It’s a sad reality, my own blog right next to the shamsul anwar’s story, which was about a genuine school system for the poor kids but attracted very few people. It shows the mentality of our society, we focus less on positive things and negative things pop up out of proportion. The baseless story caught hearts of people because it was written in a very sentimental manner. Everybody wanted to contribute to the cause and thus the story became viral. The freedom of expression and opinion provided by the social media was utilized to its fullest. But I see a ray of hope in all this. If such sentiments can be shown for a fake story, a real problem will attract more people I believe and it surely has, in the past. I believe the emotions expressed on the virtual world were real, though they were exploited badly.

The newspaper and the journalist owe an explanation to the Nation on this issue; but simultaneously we should not feel let down. Rather it was an indication that this nation can become united on humanitarian grounds and dig its pockets in need without a second thought. The spark is already there, it needs to be ignited only. And yes, for all those who sent their monies out should be reminded, their rewards with God are safe according to their intentions.

Nurturing little seedlings

A few days ago I quite ‘accidentally’ happened to attend an event arranged by Baithak School Team. I had never heard of them before but it was only my fault that I was so unaware of this great task which is ideally the responsibility of the state and is so perfectly flourishing on volunteer basis.

A group of ladies, fresh graduates from Karachi University in 1996 joined hands to share what they so far had been earning. This give away was not the alms or charity but education. These young females had realized that in order to nourish the minds of less or rather under privileged fellow citizens, education is the main food. By enabling them to learn and read with no compromise on quality, a self-realization was to be given. This self realization would be pivotal to success in their lives. Thus not only teaching them but training them to be social leaders in their own domain. ‘Baithak Schooling System’ also aims at bringing Islamic values into daily lives of individuals to flourish a healthy society.

Within the span of sixteen years, that one room small school has been converted into a fully functional schooling network by the name of Baithak School Network which is now running more than 150 such small scale schools country wide.

I was really impressed to see that a fully dedicated group running the show, is not only devoted and determined but also sincere in their efforts and tasks. A proper team is functional behind the scene which has not only worked for the schools but also has developed into an NGO by the name ‘Society for Educational Welfare’. SEW is not only working to develop a standardized syllabus throughout the country but also have trained the staff in order to work with the similar methods employed in other standard schools. Apart from academic teachings, many skills are taught to the students which enable them to earn while learning. The Baithak Network is working for the betterment of people at community level. This skill training helps in entrepreneurship, aiming to raise the living standards of poor families.

This system has been catering boys and girls simultaneously, though the number of girl student is 4 times more than boys. These students belong to less privileged and poor class of society thus the funds are arranged through charity from kind hearted people and organizations from all over the world. I met some parents as well who were nothing but appreciative of the environment provided for education and good grooming of their children.

It is important for us all who are privileged and graced with higher and professional education to come forward and play our role towards education, by not only providing monetary assistance but also physically and intellectually volunteering our time and energies. As it indeed is time to pay off what we owe to our country and nation.

I was so charged after attending this beautiful evening that I jotted down some tips which might be helpful:

Each one teach one
Little time volunteered in routine for the neighborhood (if any such school is present, else go where help is needed).
Adopting a student (a very affordable amount per month or per year is calculated)
Adopting a school (small level to any level depending upon affordability)
Providing professional assistance
Providing uniforms, books etc

The above mentioned suggestions might be achievable at an individual level, but at bigger level, organizations, institutes, schools, colleges or universities can formulate such programs to enforce community education and welfare programs mandatory for students, members or employee. They can also adopt schools and put them under their umbrellas.

Once again hats off to the Baithak and SEW team and all those who are anonymously striving for the noble cause. Our efforts should be aimed towards an educated, respectful, proud and self reliant nation. For such endeavor it is not important to take a big start; a clear vision with dedication and devotion is enough to make a small seedling grow into a strong tree.

Baithak School System – A Systematic approach

Education is the first step towards change but unfortunately it is one of the most neglected fields in Pakistan. While poverty is skyrocketing in the country, education for poor is becoming a farfetched dream.

Baithak School System is trying to change this for better. It operates under the banner of Society for Educational Welfare (SEW); a movement which is organized by female volunteers to educate the destitute children across the country.

It didn’t start as a school system; rather it was a single room and a few fresh graduates from Karachi University took up the gigantic task of teaching those who can’t pay for their education. Tayaba Atif and her enthusiastic friends took the initiative to payback the society in the form of education. These remarkable ladies joined hands to create a difference. Their goal was simple; to contribute to extent to which they could by teaching poor kids in an area where there was no government school and hence the first Baithak School came into being.

The feedback was great; more people were motivated with the move which helped in gathering human and financial resources and within short span of two years, 57 baithak schools were opened in those areas where the government didn’t bother to provide education. Schools were more focused on imparting primary education to those kids who usually didn’t turn up to the schools. Social activists went door to door to convince the parents for education of their children. Things started improving and now almost 14000 students are studying in 134 baithak schools across the country. In the year 2000, Society for Educational Welfare (SEW) was registered as a non-profit organization to provide the umbrella cover for the school system.

The aim of the Baithak schools is to provide quality education to the under privileged students. Even with low level infra-structure, high quality education can be imparted to those who cannot afford it. More focus is given to the girls and hence 80% students are girls in these schools. Funds and donations are raised for children who cannot afford their school books and uniforms. There are some salaried teachers, but most of the staff and entire management consist of dedicated volunteers.

There is more to the SEW than just being a school system. It is totally managed by female volunteers, a rarity in our society. Pakistan is a country, where women are usually tagged with being victims of violence and oppression. It is propagated that they are not allowed to work in the main stream. “The developed world” continuously asks questions if women are allowed to go outside their homes and get education in Pakistan. In this scenario, an organization, fully managed by women and doing something meaningful is more than merely appreciable. This is the bright picture of Pakistan we need to portray to the world that our females are contributing to the fullest in the development of the country, under the guidance of Quran and Sunnah.

Decolonizing the mind

Faiz Ahmed Faiz was once attending a ceremony in his honour in Delhi, while residing at the home of the Pakistani high commissioner. Faiz tells us that the son of the commissioner came to him for an autograph. In return, Faiz inscribed his signature along with one of his verses. The boy looked at it and asked Faiz, “Uncle, you know such good English. Dad told me you were also the editor of a daily but you have given me your autograph in Khansama’s language?”

There should be nothing surprising in this narrative. Our brown sahibs, or Angraiz wannabes, are the product of a deeper phenomenon. They are one group of many affectees of a collective inferiority complex; an inferiority complex that is a legacy of colonization. Colonization is not only physical; it can be very much mental as well. The imperial mission of the British in India has always inculcated a scheme of spreading “civilization”.

We must come to realize that no colonization is possible until both the bodies and mind of the colonized subjects are subjugated.

Our former British masters had this in mind when they made guards and other lower staffs wear the traditional dress of the aristocracy of their predecessors, the Mughals. The elite staff was to wear western outfits. This legacy lives on to this day in elite circles.

Similarly, the people who we cherish as heroes today for resisting imperial occupation were equally met with such cheap colonial tactics. For example, even today many on the streets use the word “tipu” to call dogs. However, few know that the origin of the word lies in British attempts to humiliate their arch rival, Tipu Sultan.

The History of our education speaks volumes in this regard.

When, in the early 19^th century, the British took it upon them to educate the people of India, the belief followed that knowledge and wisdom was something they exclusively possessed, and hence declared that all traditional and indigenous forms of gaining knowledge, were not only insignificant, but also irrelevant.

So in 1833, an imperial committee sat down to determine an education policy for the native subjects. Lord Macaulay, who was head of this committee dismissed all oriental knowledge as “absurd history, absurd metaphysics, absurd physics, absurd theology; for raising up a breed of scholars who find their scholarship an encumbrance and a blemish, who live on the public while they are receiving their education, and whose education is so utterly useless to them that when they have received it they must either starve or live on the public all the rest of their lives.”

He went on to say that he has “never found one among them (Indians) who could deny that a single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole native literature of India and Arabia. The intrinsic superiority of the Western literature is, indeed, fully admitted by those members of the Committee who support the Oriental plan of education.”

So what Lord Macaulay was setting for was “a class of persons, Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste, in opinions, in morals, and in intellect”; this class of people still roams about in our country running our bureaucracy, our media, our academia, our military, and our politics. Never to realize that the British are gone, and they can emerge anew with their true identities and lead their own destinies consistent with their own culture, history and experience. But they remain adamant to forward the colonial heritage as a legacy to our future generations.

I believe much of this has to do with power. Man has always wandered this earth with an inherent desire to impose his will on others. He wants to have power so he can prove himself better than others in some way. The Quran has addressed this dilemma on many occasions. In fact, this seems to be a major theme. From the Pharoah to Namrood, and to the story of the owner of two gardens, the Quran has commented on how man is corrupted by power to the extent that he will go at lengths to impose a false belief of his intrinsic superiority over another’s intrinsic inferiority.

Another mentionable phenomenon haunts slave nations; a collective inferiority complex and lack of self-esteem. When Moses (PBUH) led Bani Israel out of the clutches of the Pharaoh, it did not take long for Bani Israel to resort to idol worship and Coptic paganism in the short absence of Moses (PBUH). The Quran tells us that during the whole episode, these companions of Moses (PBUH) witnessed many miracles and blessing of the Almighty. Despite this being, it does make you wander as to why such a nation would go astray in such a short period of time.

Maulana Maududi (RA) has commented on the episode by telling us that it was the glamour of the Mighty Egyptian Civilization of the time that had dazzled the minds of the Jews, who were still trying to come to terms with decolonization. Dr Israr Ahmed has further related, for good reasons, the whole story with that of the Muslims who struggled for a separate homeland in the sub-continent.

History is witness to the fact that these superiority-inferiority tensions have been recurring. “Survival of the fittest” ideas, as developed by western nations, have had their own shapes and forms in other dominant civilizations. Muslims have been equally vulnerable to this menace.

When Muslims were at their peak, they were equally tempted to fall to the belief of others being inherently inferior to them. So are the views of Ibn-Khuldoon explained on the people of Europe being unable to perform thinking tasks properly because the cold weather has deterred their brains; in others words, these people were naturally unfit for intellectual pursuits?

More interestingly, Europeans were considered ugly on account of their “pale” skin by Muslim historians and travelers. Which goes on to show that even conceptions of beauty are social constructs that have more to do with power than we would otherwise think.

Muslims still stand out for their exceptionality of incorporating all races and ethnicities in their fold. It has been Europe that developed social-political-scientific movements on racist ideologies. Finding refuge in “science” and it’s “objectivity” was the only way to provide a moral framework for the pursuit following the “white man’s burden”. But that’s a whole different story.

When Muslims were ruling Spain, the rest of Europe was in tyranny, disorder, anarchy, and famine. They were living on a very low standard of life. No wonder the new emerging elite would go to study in Islamic Spain and adopt Arabic lifestyles. They would wear Arabic dresses, adopt their culture and cuisine and even talk like them.

The Bishop of Cardoba, Bishop Alvaro, who lived during these times writes “My countrymen have forsaken the study of the sacred characters of Rome for the Chaldeans (referring to Arabs/Muslims). That out a thousand Christians, scarcely one was to be found capable of repeating the Latin forms of prayer, while many of them could express themselves with ease and elegance in Arabic. Learned men were now resorting from every part of Europe to the colleges found by Abdul Rehman and his successors.”

Another character, an Englishman, Daniel of Morley, writes in his autobiography “I stopped a while in Paris. There I saw asses rather than men occupying the Chairs and pretending to be very important. They had desks in front of them heaving under the weight of two or three immovable tomes… But because they did not know anything, they were no better than marble statues: by their silence alone they wished to seem wise, and as soon as they tried to say anything, I found them completely unable to express a word…I did not want to get infected by a similar petrifaction… But when I heard that the doctrine of the Arabs was in fashion in Toledo in those days, I hurried there as quickly as I could, so that I could hear the wisest philosophers of the world”

It’s a bit entertaining to see it the other way around, but we must also realize that the west only revived its glory by strongly reestablishing itself with its own identity, history and traditions, without which Europe could never have the self-esteem and self-confidence to pursue its journey of development.

You would never tell your child to start copying another child for him to succeed as you know that each individual has his unique abilities and talents. Blind imitation will never get you anywhere. It robs you from the chance of producing original work, fully expressing yourself, and the confidence that comes with doing stuff your own way. As this applies to individuals so does it apply to whole nations. In the words of Malcolm X,

“A race of people is like an individual man; until it uses its own talent, takes pride in its own history, expresses its own culture, affirms its own selfhood, it can never fulfill itself.”

As far as we are concerned, Iqbal’s words seem relevant,

The secrets of the self is not in the lute and the guitar

Nor in the promiscuous dancing of her daughters,

Nor in the charms of her bright faced beauties

Nor in the bare skins, nor in bobbed hair.

Her strength is not in irreligiousness

Nor is her rise due to Latin Script.

The strength of the west is due to knowledge and science,

Her lamp is alight from this fire only

Knowledge does not depend on the style of your garments,

And a turban is no obstacle to the acquisition of knowledge

The Clothesline

So many of the Ramadan have passed without benefitting the soul much. This could be a different one. The periodic break from reality is refreshing. Almost musical; mystical. To consistently be able to get up before dawn for Fajr prayers, timing your midday to slip in to the hospital chapel to bow down in prayer for Zohar, to joining a spouse in the post work Asr prayers, to rediscovering the joy of food and drink with sunset and Maghrib prayers and retiring to bed with a rough sketch of the next work day after Isha prayers.

This is not a claim to piety but an expression of amusement of deprivation bringing such content. Breaking away from the “givens” like food and drink is a hint perhaps to the “portable happiness” that human beings are capable of carrying in their very souls. Years ago in school I learnt of the virtues of fasting and could list understanding hunger and experiencing it first hand, understanding that what we take for granted being indeed a great bounty from Al-Ghaffaar (The Great Forgiver) and to bring discipline and subjugate the “free will” to what the Al-Kareem (The Bountiful) has willed for us. Mostly it was to pass the Islamic studies test. The gulf between word and deed registers meaningfully in the proverbial perfection of hindsight. Through the telescopic reach of it I pull out a seemingly random experience.

I watch the clothes being hung on the clothesline by the housemaid. Besides being entrusted with the task of cleaning a house teeming with children, she would also be asked to help with the laundry. I suspect the separate salaries that she would draw from the multiple families in the house served her sanity well. She starts at one extreme of the clothesline, which by evening would serve as a “net” for a badminton match between cousins, often earning the ire of an aunt or uncle for prematurely removing the garments hung out to dry. By the time she would reach the middle, garments of likely equal weight, would make the line sag just by virtue of their distance from the supports on either end. A much less perplexed mind marvelled at this being an analogy of the disparities in life in general. The clothes in the middle, sometimes the same weight, even shade, colour or fabric would be much closer to the ground, at times leaving them much more vulnerable to picking up dust from the floor when a bunch of teenagers would carelessly bundle them in to a corner for the evening sports. Years later, the simplicity of this analogy finds a reminder in the journey through Ramadan. It fits in to an emerging picture of who I am and where I am headed; still hazy but promising to reveal itself in its entirety. A picture that I believed was a complex mix of depictions, themes and subthemes, subtlety camouflaged as the obvious, turned out to be the creation of one master stroke by Al-Musawwir (He who designs all things). Infinitely simple.

The appropriateness of this analogy holds true as I reflect on the clothesline being this worldly life; confined in time, space, means, material, health and the journey lasting just as long as the body holds on to the basics of its physiology. How can some be left kissing the ground while the others sway freely with the slightest hint of a breeze? That too in a world created by Al-Adil (The Just)? I stared hard at the picture for a long time. No answers arrived and none will for many years and I know all too well the perils of claiming wisdom. I acknowledge the limits of my own vision. To sweep that corner of a sleeve off the ground I would need to make the line tauter and with that one simple answer came many others. The ends of this line extend to eternity, weighed against infinity ultimate and universal justice prevails. The Prophet Mohammed Sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam said:

Narrated Haritha bin Wahb Al-Khuzai: I heard the Prophet saying. “May I tell you of the people of paradise? Every weak and poor obscure person whom the people look down upon but his oath is fulfilled by Allah when he takes an oath to do something. And may I inform you of the people of the Hell-Fire? They are all those violent, arrogant and stubborn people.”

“I would not like to have gold equal to this mountain of Uhud, unless nothing of it, not even a single Dinar of it remains with me for more than three days, except something which I will keep for repaying debts. I would have spent all of it (distributed it) amongst Allah’s Slaves like this, and like this, and like this.” The Prophet pointed out with his hand towards his right, his left and his back (while illustrating it).

In yet another Hadith it is said that the poor will enter paradise 500 years before the rich as they had not been tested with wealth.

As I finally call it a day I hope to dream of the careless laughter as children play around a clothesline that does not sag.

The Judiciary, the Mob and the Criminals

When judiciary sleeps, the mob finds its own way of enforcing justice in the society … what other means do they have really? This has been happening for quite a while now and might happen more often in the future if nothing is done to ensure speedy justice. Otherwise, as they say, justice delayed is justice denied. With conviction rate of serious crime at around 5% – that too with conservative estimates – you have no trust in the system that the culprits who robbed you, who killed or raped your beloved, will not go scot free.

What choices are you left with then, (a) get robbed, killed, raped or humiliated (b) take law into your own hands and beat them, burn them, lynch them to the death … ?

Let us expand this a bit further and apply this scenario to a larger group. For example, what would you do if you were a political party that is being victimised? Why wouldn’t you pick up guns to protect your own interests when you know that’s the only way to do so? Why wouldn’t you react and create pain for those who have put their feet on your tail? Why wouldn’t you protest and bring the cities in your control to a halt when you know there is no one to safeguard your interests – irrespective of how unjust they might be. Why would you behave any differently?

If you were the police, why would you take action, when you know that the culprits will be freed soon, and when they are, they would test the sharpness of their knives on the throats of your sons and on the honour and dignity of your daughters, sisters and wives. What would you do when you know that it is not only your life but also the ones of your loved ones that are not safe, just because the judiciary let loose the beasts, which you have captured by putting your life at stake. Why would you bother?

Zooming out, if the trend grows then why would honest and sincere people join the police force? Why would anyone want to get killed for doing some good which ultimately is destined to go down the drain? We are not living in a perfect Islamic Society, where each individual fulfils his responsibility irrespective of the worldly consequences and aspires to be rewarded in the hereafter? How many people are out there with such a level of conviction, belief in Divine and fear of accountability in Hereafter? It is such a pity that in a society where everyone is there to serve his own desires and interests, you can’t even find a police force which does its duty with full conviction, just like we can’t find a judiciary which does its job justly.

Why then, shouldn’t we be called a hypocrite nation when a country founded in the name of Islam – the strongest advocate of implementing justice with an Iron fist; for the poor and the rich, the feeble and the powerful – is not able provide effective and speedy justice for its hypocrite citizens?

Chicken (judiciary) or egg (hypocrite citizen), which came first?

We all want our rights irrespective of whether we fulfil our responsibilities or not. We all, when taking on different roles like judiciary, law enforcement, media, government, political parties, civil societies, business community, etc. want all our rights and privileges while shamelessly ignoring the responsibilities entrusted on us by our respective roles. We conveniently forget the old adage – what goes around comes around. We all want to ride the ship, but don’t want to plug in the holes through which the water is seeping in, slowly sinking the ship and drowning the people on board. Those on the top deck (that’s you and me) are resting in relative comfort with their heads buried in the sand and pretending that everything is fine. It is only when the water reaches them that they realise, but by then it is already too late.

Society is a giant web of interconnected groups and the behaviour of any of these groups affects all. Judiciary cannot perform if the public doesn’t co-operate, the public cannot co-operate if the law enforcement doesn’t protect them and to complete the circle, the law enforcement cannot perform if the judiciary lets the criminals loose. The one common denominator among all is the citizen, who sometimes takes the role of judiciary, sometimes the law enforcement and at others, just the common man; yet in all cases behaving in a similar way, placing his selfish interest above everything else.

So what do we do? Perhaps educate the next generation. Develop them to become responsible citizens, sensitive to the needs of others, courageous enough to sacrifice their interests for the good of the society. Such empathetic behaviour can be inculcated, not through rhetoric, but through inspiration and role modelling, as behaviours are contagious and get transferred from a good role model to the observing student. Most people might think that where shall we get the number of people from to change the thinking of an entire generation.

This is where the key is: Never Give Up! If we can take one step forward to sooth the pain of even one individual, then we should; if we can make a small school with only a dozen students, whom we can inspire to become responsible citizens, then we should; if we can inculcate in the heart of one individual the fear of Allah and accountability in hereafter then we must not wait. Who knows that our one single initiative might start a chain reaction, which can prove to be a catalyst to change the nation one day? Who knows that our efforts might produce the next Allama Iqbal or Sir Syed Ahmed Khan (after discounting him for his misinterpretation of Quran and Sunnah). At least in the end, we can die with a clear conscience and without the regret of not doing anything when our nation needed us.

Blockbuster deals: Are you ready?

‘What a dhamaka khaiz offer yaar!’ I heard a teenager speaking to his friend with bright eyes and excited tone, over the new offer by a leading multinational food chain in the city. He added “I am sure they won’t compromise on quality as they are up to international standards and it is world renowned global chain”.

This was the day when a multinational food chain started its business in Pakistan and offered one for one (Buy one, get one free) pizzas. Regardless of the quality they served, there streets were jam-packed with cars and people outside all of its outlets. People waited for hours to get that one free pizza. Most of them came out with some complaints that they were not served properly, the quality was not up to the mark etc. but at least they were happy and content that they got two pizzas and paid for one.

I recall an offer, I read a few days back, guaranteeing 700% returns on investment with no hidden marketing gimmicks, from someone extremely credible. It also talks about guaranteed spacious accommodation at the most peaceful and picturesque place ever existed, with all the incentives one could dream of. You just need to find the right person, give him your investment money and you have a pre-confirmed pact that your account has been upgraded with 700times (or more) the profit.

What a lucrative offer it is by none other than our Creator, Allah (Subhanahu Wata’aala). He guarantees:

The charity of those who spend their wealth in the way of Allah (charity) may be likened to a grain of corn, which produces 7 ears and each ear yields a 100 grains. Likewise, Allah develops manifold the charity of anyone He pleases, for He is All-Embracing, All-Wise. (Surah Al-Baqarah 261)

To add to this, Allah has offered some amazing incentives in the form of virtues of Ramadhan. It’s a month when rewards are multiplied 70 times for every obligatory act of worship (Farz), while each offered nafil (voluntary act) is rewarded as farz. In this very month, Allah has promised to forgive all sins provided a person fasts and spends sincerely, seeking rewards from Allah alone. This is the very month where prayer of one night is rewarded as if one has prayed for 84 years (1000months). Allah says that every deed will receive 10 to 700 times reward, except Siyam (fasting) as it is for Him and He will reward it as he likes. Wow, now this is surely a called a “Dhamaka-khaiz offer”.

Ramadhan provides excellent opportunity for us to purify ourselves and make habit of abiding by the commands of Allah and his Prophet (S.A.W). It is the month of blessings when Quran was revealed, It is the month of Allah’s extreme mercy, forgiveness and emancipation from the Hellfire; a month when it is made easy for us to practice good deeds and the doors to Heaven are let open while devils are held captive.

In short, it’s a month of countless blessings from Allah like a rainfall but its effects are not the same everywhere and on everyone. For instance, when it rains, a piece of land absorbs and benefits according to its receptive quality. At one place the Earth turns into a lush green field and on the other, it only collects for a while and either drains or evaporates. So it is up to us how we spend Ramadhan and either avail it and prosper, or waste it and destine ourselves to complete destruction (according to a Hadith of the Prophet SAW).

Are we looting this sale, competing each other, as we queue up to get a free Mobile SIM, a half price worldly deal or as we put ourselves in pain by not going to bed only to avail a mere midnight food offer. Book your commitment order now and utilize these wonderful bunch of offers. Ramadhan Mubarak!

Reference:

Al-Quran (Surah Albaqarah (183, 261), Surah Al-Qadr, How to spend Ramadhan (Urdu)

Bewildered!

“Roti, kapra makan and sex! Yes sex!

..These are the basic human needs of today to motivate a person to do something. Our politicians have failed to promise people of this basic human need which is one of the greatest motivational factor just like hunger, food and shelter. Maslow’s theory of hierarchy of needs ignores the sex aspect’’ .. and the debate goes on in the classroom.

Bewildered — Roti, Kapra, Makaan and Sex!

“Now we will be watching some interactive videos that will depict human behaviour”, the teacher continues.
Next I see some obscene ads being watched and laughed at. This is followed by a useless discussion on how these ads have been successful as marketing tools. One such ad shown was of a body spray and the conclusion drawn was that if you use this particular brand of body spray you will not only save yourself from embarrassment ‘at the required time’ but also not miss out any chance of sleeping with a stranger.

You must be thinking as to what the hell I am talking about?? Let me give you the details. It’s a sunny afternoon, thirty minutes past twelve. Winters are nearly over yet our college fails to acknowledge this and we are made to sit in hot and suffocating classrooms. Welcome to Pakistan…no matter it is a private or public institute things are the same everywhere. I’m sitting in a marketing elective course known as the “Consumer Behaviour” but sex is all I’m hearing since the past half an hour. As I look around I see students of both genders, of my age comfortably and casually taking part in such a discussion leaving me bewildered and confused.

“Am I the only one feeling ashamed to be part of such a group? Have we lost all our values and morals?”
Well I guess I’m talking about the so called elite class of students for whom such topics reflect confidence and boldness.
What a pity if we call ourselves educated! Have we lost our HAYA which beautifies our lives, adds respects to relationships and differentiates us from animals?

Anas (RA) narrated: Allah’s Messenger (saw) said, “Every Deen has a distinctive quality, and the distinctive quality of Islam is Modesty.” (Ibn e Majah)

Sadly we have forgotten what Islam stands for. Islam is our Deen which is a complete code of life and all our actions and words should reflect this. In this very course, my teacher on the first class clearly told us that we are not allowed to discuss two things…can u guess what they might be? Yes, Religion and Politics. And believe me it’s not with this particular course only. All teachers feel Islam is a personal matter and should not be brought to classroom discussions. What does this mean? Is Islam just a badge that we can choose when to wear and when to throw it in the bin? We treat Islam as rituals selected carefully with a painful ‘pick and choose’ process by us.
This leaves me to a dismal state as I realize what education has given us. MBA and BBA degrees we all have achieved at the cost of our Deen. Are we spending so much money so that we can debate whether gay marriages should be made legal or not (sadly another very interesting discussion in class)

This is the state of education in my own so called Islamic Republic of Pakistan. It has made us irreligious and though we excel in speaking and writing English better than an ordinary Englishman it has taken us away from Islam sadly.
Suddenly my thoughts are disrupted by the sound of the bell. I slowly get up, collect my books and leave the classroom with a question haunting me: “Who am I? Am I Muslim or just become part of the secular class for whom concepts like Haya are dead.

I recall a saying of the Prophet (SAW)

“Islam began as something strange and shall return to being something strange. So give glad tidings to the stranger” (Muslim)

It is sad to see how we have deviated far away from our deen and have lost our identity as Muslims. In today’s world people who act upon the true teachings of Islam have really become strangers and are only a minority. But there are glad tidings from God, to these few strangers.

(This was the third session of my course when I wrote this article but never got the chance to publish it at that time but believe me this was just the beginning of the most unimaginable torture and humiliation journey through which I discovered the sad reality : that we truly have left our identity far behind. What came next on this journey cannot even be disclosed and I’m sure it will leave you thinking that what could have been worse than mentioned above!! Wake up time!! Welcome to the world of modernization and liberation where human and animals all are the same!)

“If you do not feel shame, then do as you like.” (Bukhari)

Amreen Rehman is an MBA Executive student at a leading private institution in Karachi.

The Complexity of inferiority

When I was eight years old, my family returned to Pakistan from the United States and a lot of things in the world suddenly changed for me. I remember (and my relatives won’t ever let me forget) that one of my very first statements was, “Why is everything broken?”. I’m pretty sure, I meant to refer to the buildings and the streets at that time, but today, I believe many other things are broken too.

I remember myself thinking about the prospects of going to Pakistan; a place my parents taught was home. I remember being worried about whether I was going to be that easily accepted. I knew for one thing that I was raised, till now, in a very different environment than the one I was going to.

One thing that really troubled me, then, was that I wouldn’t be able to speak my local language; English was all I knew. I wondered as to how I’ll go about in Pakistan, as I was expecting to have problems in interacting with other people. I was of the impression that once I get there I’ll be struggling with all my might to utter words in broken Urdu, the language of my parents, and people will see me as dumb as I would not be able to easily convey anything I want to say.

But such was the awkwardness that society was adjusting to me, rather than the vice versa. Instead of me struggling to speak to others, I would see people struggling to speak to me. I was also getting the scent that there was a factor of ‘showing-off’ in people trying to speak to me. People were desperately trying to speak with me in English. And I could see by their faces the difficulty many were going through. Personally, I felt a bit embarrassed seeing everybody put all their efforts in trying to speak in such a broken way. And after every attempt it was as though they were asking, through their facial expressions and body language, “how was I?”

Some may say well, what’s so awkward about all this? Well, for an eight year old it was awkward, and it should be ten times more awkward for a seventy year old. It’s actually bizarre! Imagine yourself going to the U.S.A from Pakistan and see all the people around you working their tails off just to speak in your language, Urdu. And not only do you notice this; you also notice that people are competing with each other just to prove as to who can speak the better Urdu?

I was taught to have pride for my country and everything in it, and therefore I was really disturbed on the way people looked down to their own language. Soon I reacted by refusing myself to reply in English, and instead tried to give my answers in Urdu, as much as I could. People were shocked at my behaviour. I believe they found it equally awkward. My aunts used to tell me that I was doing much loss to myself for refusing to use English in my conversation. They said that it is great luck that I’m fluent in English for people look up to those who are. “But why?” would be my response, just to get the what-do-you-mean-isn’t-it-obvious look.

Why are people looked up to just because they know English? The problem is because, for us, knowing this language is a sign of superiority. It’s as though just knowing it makes us more smart and knowledgeable. We become more liberal, more open-minded, and, most importantly, more educated. We can suddenly speak with more authority. When we want to make a point, or impression, we throw a sentence or two in English. As though by doing so just made the content matter anymore different then what it would have been otherwise.

It is because of this attitude of ours that a specific class dominates society just because it could afford good quality English language education. And if you were to analyse more closely you’ll realize that this has caused chaos in the lives of ordinary Pakistanis.

Why, I ask. Why the doors of opportunities are shut upon people, just because they can’t speak in a language which is not even local to the place? Why even in your own country, your own language carries no value? It’s all because we are still slaves mentally. By admitting their superiority we give up our identity, our pride and our humanity.

In 1948 the Duke of Gloucester, the brother of the British Emperor, was coming on a visit to Pakistan, and the British envoy requested the Quaid-e-Azam to receive him. The Quaid replied, “If I do so then the British head of state (King) would have to reciprocate when my brother would visit London”. Today our president feels no shame in carrying out a press conference with a third level U.S representative like Holbrooke. Today our most senior ministers get their body scans when entering U.S airports, while U.S citizens are given visas with zero scrutiny. Just recently, Senator and acting president of the ANP, Haji Adeel, was not allowed to enter the U.S embassy despite an official invitation. He was told by a guard that he needed a specific sticker on his car to get in or he could just park it outside.

You do not need to be physically captured to be a slave. Was our land occupied when our authorities handed over people to the U.S? Were we not independent and autonomous, when Dr. Aafia Siddiqui was taken to trial in the U.S and when Raymond Davis killed our citizens in the daylight and got away with it? No! We were a sovereign entity! But were we, ever?

Happy Father’s Day, Everyday!

Happy father’s day to everyone!!!!!!

“This is the day to express your love for your father, make him feel special on this Sunday. Father’s Day is a day honouring fathers and celebrating fatherhood, paternal bonds, and the influence of fathers in society.’’

These clips are not adverts from BBC, SKY or some other western channels, I saw them on a local
Pakistani channels here in the UK and I am sure this is true for all the other various channels that broadcast to millions of Pakistanis back home.

I just asked myself for a logical explanation as to what’s the point? Why is there only one Father’s day and only one Mother’s day celebrated in the Western society? So, in order to find an answer and justify the significance, I let my observation go wild and tried to encompass things which I have learnt being a very close observant of this society.

There is an absolute need to celebrate dedicated days for parents in a society where the bond between parent and child is very delicate and might be non-existent after a certain age and stage; A society where 3 in 5 women aged 75+ live alone. (attached is a graph which shows the percantage of men and women in UK living alone at different ages); where an old parent is a hindrance to fun filled life and where the slogan is ‘Be nice to your children as they are the ones who would decide which old house you’d end up in’ (reads a ‘humorous’ car sticker); where living with your parents is ridiculed by your mates, where an old parent falls on the floor of a lonely haunting house and there is no one to give him a hand to stand up again, until the milk delivery man comes next morning only to find no answer at the door and calls the police and ambulance. A society where mothers abuse and kill their children, youngsters abuse and beat the vulnerable elderly, fathers leave their partners to survive as ‘lone mothers’ who may be as young as mid-teens such dedicated days are indeed reminders of those vague bonds that exist by chance and not by choice.

The economic system here requires both parents to work to survive, which inevitably makes it difficult for them to spend quality time with their children. Such celebrations are required where children spend most of their time not in the company of their parents but child-minders, friends, mobile phones and internet. It’s a reflection of the society in which one-parent families on the rise. In the same society, morality dips down to the fact that they debate in the parliament on the very ‘need for a father’ to make a family and encourage lesbians to have children using IVF.

Rather than blindly copying (only the) useless traits of the West, let’s celebrate our values. Celebrate each day as mother’s day, a person whose cries at the time of childbirth can never be paid off and she keeps on bearing pains bringing us up and helping us keeping our head up high and reaching our goals; serving whom is more weighty than going to war in the way of Allah, if she is old and dependant. Celebrate everyday as father’s day in whose pleasure lies the pleasure of God and in whose displeasure lies the displeasure of God (according to a Tirmidhi Hadith).

And yes! Let’s be proud of a family system of respect which thankfully has been made an obligation by God upon us; which keeps us close and beautifully tied in the bonds of eternal trust and a package of ‘give and take’ throughout our lives. It is our family system and respect to our elders, religiously engraved on our minds which makes us proud and keeps us going in all the difficult times and has so far prevented us from a nervous breakdown. And it is this quality which non-Muslim parents feel as an obvious positive change in their ‘new converts to Islam’ children.

Does that make your head high enough to celebrate a trait which should be a trend-setter for other nations and not vice versa?

Come on! Let’s celebrate. Make our parents happy every day; the easiest way to please God every day.

“And your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him. And that you be dutiful to your parents. If one of them or both of them attain old age in your life, say not to them a word of disrespect, nor shout at them but address them in terms of honour” [al-Isra’ 17:23]