Without their knowing, a superstitious religion has brought the great majority of people under its sway. This hidden religion never openly reveals itself. It has no written commandments, but it controls people's behavior, attitudes and thoughts. People unconsciously implement this religion's rules throughout their lives, and live by its structures and prohibitions. This religion is not Islam, Christianity or Judaism. When asked, many people who abide by this religion may well describe themselves as Muslims or Christians or Jews. They may even be atheists. But nevertheless, all are actually members of this secret belief system.
This religion never presents itself to people as a unified whole. People adopt it as the result of the steady propaganda they are subjected to from birth. Therefore, they're unaware that their behavior, thoughts, and even body language derive from this religion.
To its adherents, this religion portrays its goal as becoming a respected person. To do so means adopting the value judgments of this religion, implementing its laws, prohibitions and forms of behavior, and assuming its character traits. To be respected is essential to achieve a specific accepted station in society, and not regarded as an eccentric, not out of the ordinary.
This religion is therefore an ignorant one, which is how we'll refer to it for short. Ignorant religion propels people towards insincerity, toward artificial and affected behavior. Adherents of this religion do not generally behave naturally and spontaneously. They employ modes of behavior, speech and facial expressions in a way they think will be appropriate, and engage in constant role-playing. Yet they imagine that they are living exceedingly natural and normal lives.
This religion produces insincere, artificial human models with false identities. Why does such an evil religion, bringing with it all kinds of trouble and suffering, hold large sections of society under its sway? The most important reason is, as already mentioned, that it lacks any formal name. Adherents of this religion never even think to question, abandon or change it, because they are unaware that the system they live under is actually a religion, and regard it as "the facts," or "the immutable laws of life."
As long as people fail to remedy this situation and turn away from the religion of the ignorant, they cannot properly comprehend and live by Islam, because the fundamental condition of Islam is sincerity and naturalness. A person can live by Islam, and thus achieve true happiness and salvation, only by being uncompromisingly sincere towards Allah, himself and others. Faith can only be built on a foundation of sincerity. In order to free yourself of the effect of the Religion of the Ignorant, that religion must first be identified and defined. That is the aim of this book. The following chapters shall examine the characteristics of Ignorantism in some detail.
The reader's task is to personally weigh and review these characteristics. One may be reluctant to admit it, but the Religion of the Ignorant can exert a definite effect on anyone. Ridding yourself of this dark religion that impacts on every moment of people's lives calls, first and foremost, for close attention and sincerity.
10 Haziran 2010 Perşembe
Ignorantism versus the True Religion
Asked "What is religion?" our Prophet (saas) replied, "It is the path you are on." His reply wisely summarizes the matter. Religion (deen) encapsulates all of a person's values, ethical rules and lifestyle—and thus, those of entire societies. For example, the word deen is employed in this sense in Surah Yusuf 76:
He started with their bags before his brother's and then produced it from his brother's bag. In that way We devised a cunning scheme for Yusuf. He could not have held his brother according to the deen of the King—only because Allah had willed it so. We raise the rank of anyone We will. Over everyone with knowledge is a Knower. (Surah Yusuf, 76)
Various verses of the Qur'an also revealed that deniers also share a religion: Pharaoh, for example, told his people the following about the Prophet Musa (as):
Pharaoh said, "Let me kill Musa and let him call upon his Lord! I am afraid that he may change your deen and bring about corruption in the land." (Surah Ghafir, 26)
Other verses describe how pagans remained loyal to their own religions in the face of the Divine religion brought by the prophet:
They are surprised that a warner should come to them from among themselves. The unbelievers say, "This is a lying magician. Has he turned all the gods into One God? That is truly astonishing!" Their leaders went off saying, "Carry on as you are! Hold fast to your gods. This is clearly something planned. We have not heard of this in the old religion. This is merely something contrived." (Surah Sâd, 4-7)
As pointed out so far, every human being has a religion. Those who not adhere to the religion of Allah, and even those who describe themselves as atheists, are not totally devoid of religion, but merely adhere to superstitious ones. Some of these "religions" may not presently be described as such, though that is exactly what they all are—as is revealed in the Qur'an. Marxism, for instance, is in one sense a religion, because that ideology is the "path" down which millions of people have gone. Marxists adopt the intellectual system developed by Karl Marx and Frederich Engels and accept their way of thinking. They analyze the world by means of the standards that they set out. They account for their own existence and the meaning of death based on the logic of Marx and Engels. In short, as believers in Marxism, they shape their lives and evaluate events accordingly.
Besides Marxism, there are hundreds of other different religions, philosophies, and intellectual systems. All these are superstitious religions, basically produced in order to turn people away from the path of Allah.
The point that really needs to be emphasized is that whatever their ideology, philosophy or world view, those who have turned their backs on the true religion still share one common belief system: That is the "religion of the ignorant" that gives this book its name and whose outlines we have briefly sketched. It is also the most cunning and effective weapon wielded by satan in his endeavors to turn humans from the true path.
He started with their bags before his brother's and then produced it from his brother's bag. In that way We devised a cunning scheme for Yusuf. He could not have held his brother according to the deen of the King—only because Allah had willed it so. We raise the rank of anyone We will. Over everyone with knowledge is a Knower. (Surah Yusuf, 76)
Various verses of the Qur'an also revealed that deniers also share a religion: Pharaoh, for example, told his people the following about the Prophet Musa (as):
Pharaoh said, "Let me kill Musa and let him call upon his Lord! I am afraid that he may change your deen and bring about corruption in the land." (Surah Ghafir, 26)
Other verses describe how pagans remained loyal to their own religions in the face of the Divine religion brought by the prophet:
They are surprised that a warner should come to them from among themselves. The unbelievers say, "This is a lying magician. Has he turned all the gods into One God? That is truly astonishing!" Their leaders went off saying, "Carry on as you are! Hold fast to your gods. This is clearly something planned. We have not heard of this in the old religion. This is merely something contrived." (Surah Sâd, 4-7)
As pointed out so far, every human being has a religion. Those who not adhere to the religion of Allah, and even those who describe themselves as atheists, are not totally devoid of religion, but merely adhere to superstitious ones. Some of these "religions" may not presently be described as such, though that is exactly what they all are—as is revealed in the Qur'an. Marxism, for instance, is in one sense a religion, because that ideology is the "path" down which millions of people have gone. Marxists adopt the intellectual system developed by Karl Marx and Frederich Engels and accept their way of thinking. They analyze the world by means of the standards that they set out. They account for their own existence and the meaning of death based on the logic of Marx and Engels. In short, as believers in Marxism, they shape their lives and evaluate events accordingly.
Besides Marxism, there are hundreds of other different religions, philosophies, and intellectual systems. All these are superstitious religions, basically produced in order to turn people away from the path of Allah.
The point that really needs to be emphasized is that whatever their ideology, philosophy or world view, those who have turned their backs on the true religion still share one common belief system: That is the "religion of the ignorant" that gives this book its name and whose outlines we have briefly sketched. It is also the most cunning and effective weapon wielded by satan in his endeavors to turn humans from the true path.
To be a "Fine" Man
"Be smart!" "That wouldn't have happened if you had used your head!"
You must have heard those words countless times during your life: especially during childhood, when you said or did something your elders didn't agree with or didn't want you to do again.
For someone who utters these words, being a fine person is more important than anything. That means adhering to the morals, culture, attitudes and behavior generally accepted by the great majority in society, and conforming to a certain system of values, models and rules deemed acceptable. This is adopted and implemented in society. It's difficult to initiate any debate on where these models and rules originated and whether they're correct. Their inconsistencies cannot be questioned easily, because to question values adopted by the majority risks contradicting masses of people and becoming the target of their hostile reactions.
This structure, whose rightness is so firmly believed in, is not peculiar to our own society alone. The system is practiced in the East as well as in the West, and maintains itself in widely different cultures as a particular system of beliefs and values with its own prohibitions, sanctions and recommendations—just like a religion.
The concepts of Ignorantism are directly opposed to being a Muslim, believing in Allah, having proper moral values, and even being human. This religion definitely leaves no room for the behavior and moral values described by Allah in the Qur'an. Indeed, the religion of the ignorant emerges and grows wherever people do not live by the moral values of the Qur'an. People who are admired and regarded as prominent have learned this religion very well, and implement all its rules.
It's useful to emphasize the basic moral values recommended in the Qur'an that totally conflict with the corrupt logic of Ignorantism. It is revealed in the Qur'an that all people have a responsibility to Allah. A human being is therefore charged with pleasing Allah alone, and must not seek others' approval. A believer who lives by the moral values of the Qur'an thinks and lives according to these verses:
Is Allah not enough for His servant? Yet they try to scare you with others apart from Him. (Surat az-Zumar, 36)
… your Lord is a sufficient guide and helper. (Surat al-Furqan, 31)
A believer's entire life is directed towards being able to please Allah. This is the core of religion. The Qur'an reveals that the characteristic of this true religion that has come down to the present day from the Prophet Ibrahim (as), is the dedication of all one's life to Allah:
Say: "My Lord has guided me to a straight path, a well-founded, the religion of Ibrahim, a man of pure natural belief. He was not one of the associaters." Say: "My prayer and my rites, my living and my dying, are for Allah alone, the Lord of all the worlds." (Surat al-An'am, 161-162)
Holding Allah's approval as the fundamental objective in life doubtless alters one's relationships with others. As set out above, a person has no mutual responsibility towards others. However, Allah has revealed in the Qur'an how other people should be treated, and responsibility to Allah ensures that others must be treated in the most just, the most correct and the most honest way. This perspective of believers is described in these terms:
They fulfill their vows and fear a Day whose evil will spread far and wide. They give food, despite their love for it, to the poor and orphans and captives: "We feed you only out of desire for the Face of Allah. We do not want any repayment from you or any thanks. Truly We fear from our Lord a glowering, calamitous Day." (Surat al-Insan, 7-10)
As can be seen from these verses, believers expect nothing from other people, which detachment endows them with a very strong and healthy character. The believer treats everyone correctly under all circumstances, and thus fulfils Allah's commandments. He neither hopes for other people's approval nor fears their criticism. Indeed, in the Qur'an Allah has described believers as not fearing "the blame of any censurer" (Surat al-Ma'ida, 54). Therefore, a believer's character and attitude never change in the face of events and other people's approval. He never becomes arrogant because of any rank or station given him, nor ever despairs in the face of difficulties. This stable character of believers frequently draws attention, and their attitudes remain the same when they obtain great wealth or power, as well as in the face of difficulty and poverty. The believer knows that every blessing he enjoys of wealth, power, or rank; or every difficulty he encounters such as condemnation and attack by others, exile, suffering poverty, and imprisonment—all these come from Allah, and all these are trialsto test him and teach him.
In contrast to believers, adherents of Ignorantism change their attitudes and characters in the face of events and other people. To put it another way, the Religion of the Ignorant is relative and circumstantial. It requires different behavior in the face of different circumstances. In this religion, the concepts of sincerity and naturalness have no place. According to this belief, everyone needs to exhibit different behavior according to the individual's gender, age and status in society.
Women must conform to the roles set out for them, as do men and children. A student must behave according to the rules of Ignorantism which impinge on students. Similar rules apply to civil servants, doctors, teachers and laborers. Adherents of the religion of the ignorant acquire their identity from the status they possess in society, and behave in the light of the requirements of that identity. In the case of believers, on the other hand, their faith shapes their identity and, as already stated, society's attitude towards their status has no effect on that identity.
One's ethical and personal identity is automatically instilled in those raised in a society of the Religion of the Ignorant, and they immediately begin to practice the rules of that religion. The way to obtain a place and be superior in such a society is to adopt such attitudes and behavior.
The following chapters shall examine the character, behavior and modes of speech taught to people according to their circumstances—their surroundings, age, social and cultural situations and gender, their personal preferences and psychologies. You will see that these are far removed from the ideal forms of behavior and personal and ethical structure described in the Qur'an. In this way, it will be made plain how satan's ignorant superstitious religion dominates those people who live far removed from Islam, at all periods of their lives.
You must have heard those words countless times during your life: especially during childhood, when you said or did something your elders didn't agree with or didn't want you to do again.
For someone who utters these words, being a fine person is more important than anything. That means adhering to the morals, culture, attitudes and behavior generally accepted by the great majority in society, and conforming to a certain system of values, models and rules deemed acceptable. This is adopted and implemented in society. It's difficult to initiate any debate on where these models and rules originated and whether they're correct. Their inconsistencies cannot be questioned easily, because to question values adopted by the majority risks contradicting masses of people and becoming the target of their hostile reactions.
This structure, whose rightness is so firmly believed in, is not peculiar to our own society alone. The system is practiced in the East as well as in the West, and maintains itself in widely different cultures as a particular system of beliefs and values with its own prohibitions, sanctions and recommendations—just like a religion.
The concepts of Ignorantism are directly opposed to being a Muslim, believing in Allah, having proper moral values, and even being human. This religion definitely leaves no room for the behavior and moral values described by Allah in the Qur'an. Indeed, the religion of the ignorant emerges and grows wherever people do not live by the moral values of the Qur'an. People who are admired and regarded as prominent have learned this religion very well, and implement all its rules.
It's useful to emphasize the basic moral values recommended in the Qur'an that totally conflict with the corrupt logic of Ignorantism. It is revealed in the Qur'an that all people have a responsibility to Allah. A human being is therefore charged with pleasing Allah alone, and must not seek others' approval. A believer who lives by the moral values of the Qur'an thinks and lives according to these verses:
Is Allah not enough for His servant? Yet they try to scare you with others apart from Him. (Surat az-Zumar, 36)
… your Lord is a sufficient guide and helper. (Surat al-Furqan, 31)
A believer's entire life is directed towards being able to please Allah. This is the core of religion. The Qur'an reveals that the characteristic of this true religion that has come down to the present day from the Prophet Ibrahim (as), is the dedication of all one's life to Allah:
Say: "My Lord has guided me to a straight path, a well-founded, the religion of Ibrahim, a man of pure natural belief. He was not one of the associaters." Say: "My prayer and my rites, my living and my dying, are for Allah alone, the Lord of all the worlds." (Surat al-An'am, 161-162)
Holding Allah's approval as the fundamental objective in life doubtless alters one's relationships with others. As set out above, a person has no mutual responsibility towards others. However, Allah has revealed in the Qur'an how other people should be treated, and responsibility to Allah ensures that others must be treated in the most just, the most correct and the most honest way. This perspective of believers is described in these terms:
They fulfill their vows and fear a Day whose evil will spread far and wide. They give food, despite their love for it, to the poor and orphans and captives: "We feed you only out of desire for the Face of Allah. We do not want any repayment from you or any thanks. Truly We fear from our Lord a glowering, calamitous Day." (Surat al-Insan, 7-10)
As can be seen from these verses, believers expect nothing from other people, which detachment endows them with a very strong and healthy character. The believer treats everyone correctly under all circumstances, and thus fulfils Allah's commandments. He neither hopes for other people's approval nor fears their criticism. Indeed, in the Qur'an Allah has described believers as not fearing "the blame of any censurer" (Surat al-Ma'ida, 54). Therefore, a believer's character and attitude never change in the face of events and other people's approval. He never becomes arrogant because of any rank or station given him, nor ever despairs in the face of difficulties. This stable character of believers frequently draws attention, and their attitudes remain the same when they obtain great wealth or power, as well as in the face of difficulty and poverty. The believer knows that every blessing he enjoys of wealth, power, or rank; or every difficulty he encounters such as condemnation and attack by others, exile, suffering poverty, and imprisonment—all these come from Allah, and all these are trialsto test him and teach him.
In contrast to believers, adherents of Ignorantism change their attitudes and characters in the face of events and other people. To put it another way, the Religion of the Ignorant is relative and circumstantial. It requires different behavior in the face of different circumstances. In this religion, the concepts of sincerity and naturalness have no place. According to this belief, everyone needs to exhibit different behavior according to the individual's gender, age and status in society.
Women must conform to the roles set out for them, as do men and children. A student must behave according to the rules of Ignorantism which impinge on students. Similar rules apply to civil servants, doctors, teachers and laborers. Adherents of the religion of the ignorant acquire their identity from the status they possess in society, and behave in the light of the requirements of that identity. In the case of believers, on the other hand, their faith shapes their identity and, as already stated, society's attitude towards their status has no effect on that identity.
One's ethical and personal identity is automatically instilled in those raised in a society of the Religion of the Ignorant, and they immediately begin to practice the rules of that religion. The way to obtain a place and be superior in such a society is to adopt such attitudes and behavior.
The following chapters shall examine the character, behavior and modes of speech taught to people according to their circumstances—their surroundings, age, social and cultural situations and gender, their personal preferences and psychologies. You will see that these are far removed from the ideal forms of behavior and personal and ethical structure described in the Qur'an. In this way, it will be made plain how satan's ignorant superstitious religion dominates those people who live far removed from Islam, at all periods of their lives.
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