Imam Muḥammad Saʿīd Ramaḍān al-Būṭī, may Allah have mercy on him, in his book
Fiqh as-Sīrah[1]
states:
Third: The Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant
him peace, took his people to task for enslaving themselves to traditions that
they had inherited from their forefathers without giving thought to how valid or
invalid they might be . He called upon them to free their minds from the habit
of blind obedience and bigoted attachment to traditions[2]
which are not based upon a foundation or sound reason.
This, in turn, serves as evidence that the underpinning for
this religion, in both its theology and rulings, is none other than the
intellect and reason, and that the aim behind adherence to it is the best
interests of mankind, in the life and the next. Hence, one of the most
important conditions for the soundness of one’s faith in Allah and whatever
other beliefs are associated with this is that such faith rest on a foundation
of certainty and free thought, unrestrained by convention or tradition. The author
of Jawharat at-Tawḥīd says
in his well-known poem:
If one just mimics others in the Oneness of Allah (tawḥīd)
His faith has not been freed of redundancy (tardīd)
From this it becomes clear that the religion of Islam came
to declare war on traditions insofar as they arise from blind mimicry, since
this religion – in all its principles and rulings – is based on the foundation
of sound intellect and reason, while “traditions” in this sense are founded on
nothing but the desire to imitate and follow, that is, without any role being
given to the element of inquiry and independent thinking. After all, the word taqālīd means,
according to the scholars of the Arabic language and social scientists, the sum
total of the customs which have been inherited from former generations, or
which maintain their validity simply by virtue of the social contract which
takes place in a particular environment. As such, the element of sheer
imitation is the central nerve which extends through such customs, both giving
them life and enabling them to survive.
Everything people have grown accustomed to in their
societies – ways of life, the forms of entertainment they engage in during
times of happiness, and how they express mourning in times of misfortune and
sadness – is part of what has been handed down from times of old, or what has
been adopted unthinkingly through influence or contact with others; and it is
all these things together which are referred to by both linguists and
sociologists as “traditions”.
Once you know this, you realise that Islam cannot possibly
contain anything by the name of “traditions”, whether they have to do with
theology or various rulings and regulations, since the theology is based on the
foundation of sound reasoning while its rulings rest on the foundation of
temporal and eternal interests. Although some interests might not be
comprehended by some people for this reason or that, they are, nevertheless,
understandable through thought and careful reflection.
This, in turn, reveals the serious of the error committed by
those who employ the phrase “Islamic traditions” to describe Islam’s various
forms of worship, legislative rulings and moral precepts.
The propagation of this unfair designation may suggest to
people that the value of Islamically sanctioned morality derives not from its
embodying a divine principle which contains the secret of happiness for the
human race – as, in fact, it does – but rather, because the Islamic law and
system of morality are customs which were inherited from previous generations.
If this suggestion is taken seriously, it is bound to cause people to feel
oppressed by this “antiquated” heritage which others wish to impose on society
in which everything is highly developed, advanced and modern.
The application of the term “Islamic traditions” to the
various rulings of Islam is not, however, an innocent mistake; rather, it is
one link in a series of attacks being waged on Islam by means of empty,
misleading slogans.
The primary aim behind the promotion of the term “Islamic
traditions” is to produce an association in people’s minds between the meaning
of “tradition” in its negative sense and Islam’s various rulings and precepts.
When this occurs, people forget that these precepts are, in essence, principles
based on sound reason and enquiry, and they become a weak point that is
vulnerable to the arrows and spears of Islam’s foes.
All the precepts and legislation that Islam has brought are,
in essence, principles, and a principle is something which is founded on sound
thought and reason and which aims to accomplish a specific end. Now, although
principles of merely human origin may or may not hit their mark due to
misconceptions on the part of their originators, the principles of Islam never
miss their mark, since the One who established them is the Creator of all minds
and thoughts. This alone is sufficient rational proof for one to be convinced
of these principles and be certain of their correctness and soundness.
There is no doubt that if Muslims wake up from their slumber
they will find that most of Islam’s principles and rulings, such as marriage
and divorce, a woman covering and being maintained, and other issues of morals
and manners, have been clothed in the garb of “traditions”. Therefore, it is
only natural that they should find some people calling for the repudiation of
such “traditions” and emancipation from the “slavery” which they impose,
especially in this age of ours that is dominated by the quest for freedom of
opinion and thought.
However, the reality is that there are no traditions in
Islam.
Rather, as we have seen from our examination of the earliest
days of the Prophet’s mission, it is a religion which came to deliver the mind
from the grip of tradition.
As for traditions, they are simply behavioral trends in
which people get unthinkingly swept away out of the human desire to imitate.
It is principles which must regulate development over time,
not vice-versa.
As for traditions, they are just a gathering of parasites
that develop by themselves in the midst of society’s intellectual fields. These
are the weeds which must be uprooted, and from which sound thought must be freed.
[1] ML:
Based on the translation by Nancy Roberts and revised by Anas al-Rifāʿī (Damascus: Dār
al-Fikr, 2008), p.144 to 146 (p.114 to 116 of the 2009 Arabic edition)
[2]
Ar. taqālīd, which can also be translated as
customs or conventions
From the Imam's statement we can learn the following:
1) Islam has to be separated from culture. The former is revelation while the latter is simply customs and traditions that have been imitated over time; the only defense offered by those who engage in them is that they found their parents and ancestors engaging in them. One can look at Surat al-Maidah 5:104 and several other examples in the Qur'an. Culture not only has to be separated but must be completely abandoned when it goes against revelation. As one of my teachers eloquently put it, "Culture must die so that we can live."
2) We have to be wary of referring to Islam as a culture or set of traditions because it clouds Islam's revelatory source. If Islamic theology and rulings are merely part of a culture or set of traditions, i.e. something passed on from generation to generation for no apparent reason other than it being practiced by people before, it can be easily attacked and subjected to calls for its reformation or outright dismissal. Here is an example of disbelievers dismissing and castigating Islamic rulings because they are said to be part of Islamic "culture". I would include in this the term "Traditional Islam". Ahl us-Sunnah wa al-Jamaa'ah is Orthodox Islam, and they are the people who follow the Sunnah, have the correct theology (i.e. the theology that was revealed) and they are the majority. Sunni Islam is not something that is simply passed down over the years and centuries; it is revelation. Is is rooted in the Book and the Sunnah.
3) Islam is not a race, and therefore it is certainly not a wise idea to attempt to conflate race with religion. Racism is so abhorrent and indefensible because one's race can't be changed. It's entirely Allah's will and therefore completely involuntary. Religion, on the other hand, is a voluntary matter and one must have one's own conviction. Faith that is based on mere imitation, as the quote from Jawharat a-Tawheed demonstrates, is worthless. Therefore, the way that one might defend their race by saying they were born that way simply won't do when defending one's faith. One can't say that because they were born and raised a Muslim that their religion should be above criticism or reproach, or even mockery.
And, as mentioned in this post, as Muslims carry on down this route of demanding legal protection after legal protection, they too will be beaten with same stick. If this is taken further, to the extent that all religions are protected because they are conflated with race, and religion is seen as an even deeper part of one's identity than one's race, then preaching Islam, and indeed any religion, will be illegal, and if Muslims in Dar al-Kufr can't preach Islam then they have no justification for being there. Is it not obvious that inviting someone to Islam can be taken offensively, as one is implying that the one being invited is wrong and unsaved, and not just the individual but their family as well?
Let us therefore heed the late Imam's advice and understand that our religion is revelation, and we must treat it as such and present it as such. It is not a race and it is not a culture.
And with Allah is every success.
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