Here we go again.... Me no noe if this is for real,,, however Me do noe that things are changing here, or at least, the general publics exposure (like mine for example, lil old me Manar) to things happening here is really changing. Does the general public (like moi) accept such changes? Do they find them acceptable and culturally and religiously appropriate? For the most part, no (no statistics involved here, just an overview of the reviews such events are having)? And whats worse? that AstaghfurAllah things take place? or that we know they do? No doubt, what people choose to do in the privacy of their surroundings is their own business, unless they are harming anyone or compelling anyone to something they dont want, it really isnt anyones place to judge or condemn or forbid. Each person pays the consequence of their own actions, be it through a drunk driving accident, a pregnancy, an STD, or a life lacking of the self control required by us as human beings to maintain our dignity. Without going into the implications of the societal harm caused by such actions (for example, if anyone is harmed from the drunken driver, or a child born into the world without a father, or thrown into foster-homes, or a wife or husband that contracted an STD because their spouse couldnt keep their zippers zipped up, or a person who gets to the point of willing to do anything to feed whatever it is they want, regardless of whomever may be harmed in the process) But yah, regardless of that, the question on my mind is: with the knowledge that things our culture, and many other cultures see as obscene are going on already, is it better that we know of their explicit occurrence, or is it better that we dont, that we arent given the visual tools enabled to us by social media today to know how and when things happen, and then actually have access to seeing these things? Whats safer? What maintains the akhlaq, the principles and moral construct of a people, an Ummah better? And I really dont know, Im just pondering on the question, with no idea whether or not Id be able to come up with an answer to that. Now something I know, something I constantly ponder on is the struggle of parents to raise their children in non-Muslim, non-Arab societies. Parents constantly, 24/7 non stop try to create within their children this insulating wall between them and the society around them, children are constantly made to feel different, afterall, the morals this family pushes are different then the mainstream way of life, Children are constantly monitored, practically chocked to death, and by the time they are teenagers, they might as well have a microchip attached to their brains so that their parents could every mundane thought going through their adolescent minds, and even the minds of their friends. Obviously though, growing up within a society will have its impact. And while the chocking may work with some, the constant exposure to an environment will take its toll. Then there are the parents that create this wall in a strategic manner, by emphasizing on the personality of the culture and background they are from, sometimes to the extent that they create their own world within the society they live in. While this doesnt seem practical, it is a coping mechanism, that does to some extent work better then the previous one, since within this world, everything has to be made to make sense to be convincible and thus abided by, and thus even the exposure these children have is explained and elaborated in a manner that makes the contents of this exposure less desirable, because the basis upon which the distinguishing is made is solid and concrete, and they know why they do not act in way XYZ and why ABC is not right for them. The principle of: He who does not know evil will fall into it... comes into play here, and that exposure + the conscious protection from it, and the decisive refute of it, keeps all on track (for the most part) So here is a context where exposure exists, however barriers to maintain the normalization of this context in the minds of those growing up within them, are very strong. and I think the normalization of logical, conscious refute towards a surrounding is the most holistic mechanism to protecting yourself or children from it. Now on the note of normalization, societies evolve through it, and if there is anything Ive learnt from my study of literature, or my love towards history, its that in order to bring about change, you need to shock people at first, leave them appalled at the audacity of expression of a certain thing, bring them to publicize it, express their refusal or acceptance or defense of it. The trick here is for some form of expression to take place so loudly, so bluntly, that it will bring people to start thinking about it and form opinions. That it exists within their minds and left them with some form of impression is enough to lay a cornerstone for society to start accepting it little by little. And that is the danger here, especially when the society or surrounding is inhabited by people and entities with the same background and culture, and not composed of an influx of immigrants whom can easily disassociate themselves from their surroundings. And this is where the question of whether or not it is better to know or not comes into play, because the space for disassociation becomes immensely limited, and the proximity makes gradual positive normalization seem inevitable. The concept of sutra of privatizing actions as directed by Allah comes into play here, and the importance of not broadcasting actions deemed as sinful, or a result of whim-following, or those that may cause shock within a surrounding, is particularly for that reason, I believe. And thus one may say that not knowing of the manifestation of such things is preferable to avoid their spread. Furthermore, the discreetness of something stipulates its lack of concrete-ness, and while, indeed, a person may decide to change or amend their lifestyle into something that would maintain the dignity bestowed upon them by our supreme creator, or repent regardless of whether or not people are knowledgeable of their actions; the fact that society has not placed them into a mold of a particular way of leading their lives makes it all much easier and far more easily genuine. That people do not feel the need to prove themselves as certain beings to others elevates a great amount of pressure from them when it comes to change internally. Yes, people do know that Allah is the all-seeing, all-knowing, and all-forgiving, but the struggle is much harder when they are dealing with a surrounding not as merciful as Allah Subhan wa Taala. And sometimes it is human beings themselves that raise the bar when it comes to repentance and self-improvement. The realization of Allahs sustinance and his sufficiency in our lives alleviates this, however, we are human beings, and it is both ignorant and impractical to say that our surroundings and the view of our surroundings towards us does not have a great influence on us. And thus we are directed on how to handle our own imperfect nature as human beings. And therefore, we are told not to run our mouths on actions that may shock others and warned against broadcasting actions from others that may shock others, both for the person commiting the actions sake, and societys as a whole. However, in such a context, what if there is a deliberate will to broadcast in order to cause shock? We live in world of conflicting interests, and while I dont want to make this text one of some covet conspiracy aiming at dismantling the basic moral construct which maintains societal productivity on every level, which would thus make us immensely susceptible to gradually accepting any form of degradation for the aim of making us exploitable at every level to the benefit of others. What if? How could a society protect itself from the shock that leads to normalization? How could it deal with it? The concept of self-affirmation is repeated here to address that, in my opinion. However in a world where standards are relative, and we see extreme cases of self affirmation that get to the point of rejecting and violently refuting, the situation becomes sticky. However, despite that stickiness, as human beings, we are born with a mind, and the capability of choosing what is and what isnt good for us, If we can control that mind, we wouldnt feel the need to control the minds of others, if we could normalize what we see as the foundation for a productive society in our own selves, we would see gradual normalization in our surroundings take place. First though, wed need to determine what makes us who we are Why weve chosen for this to make us who we are And how it suits us and how it is manifested in a way where a person exists not to refute or reject something, but to build themselves in a direction particular to them, and suitable and productive to them, without it being based upon the way of existence of others.
Posted on: Sun, 31 Aug 2014 11:28:26 +0000
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