Between Asgard and the Western Paradise

Nov 07 2008

Pop Culture in the Name of Religion

Posted by: 阿偉 in Culture, Religion

Greetings, friends and visitors.

Today I want to talk about what I see as a disturbing trend across the religious world. Nearly a decade ago, Protestants began to come out with “praise songs” in the style of popular music. Such praise songs consist entirely of theologically incorrect lyrics, and are empty and meaningless because they glorify the singer’s “artistic” ego rather than God. The singing people allow themselves to be taken in by rampant emotionalism, whipped up by the music itself, rather than the true joy of worshipping God.

I see a similar trend in Islam, but in my opinion, the problem can be considered more serious. Some Muslim scholars have opined that music is haram in one form or another. Bukhari narrated that the Prophet once said: “There will be people of my Ummah who will seek to make lawful; fornication, wine-drinking and the use of musical instruments.” Other scholars have said that music is permissible, so long as it is wholesome and does not cause one to sin. Still others, (in the Maliki, Hanbali and Shafi schools of jurisprudence) regard the prohibition on music from hadith to have a weak line of prohibition.

A friend of mine, who lives in England, said that at one concert by Sami Yusuf, the largely female crowd was encouraged to “get up on stage” and sing along. Islamic boy bands like 786 and Mecca 2 Medina are also the subject of the sort of female adulation you expect to see on American Pop Idol or the X-Factor. Surely “Islamic” events can at least promote more restrained behavior.

If people wish to glorify Allah (swt), then they should do it in a way that is pure and consistent with the way of Sunnah and the Quran. It is very clear that instrumental music is prohibited in worship, and that Allah has mandated this way of preserving our deen. We should not fall into the trap of “modernizing faith” to appeal to the masses, but rather, let the people who are truly willing to follow the Quran come of their own accord, for it is written:

Ye are the best of peoples, evolved for mankind, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in Allah. If only the People of the Book had faith, it were best for them: among them are some who have faith, but most of them are perverted transgressors. (3:110)

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Nov 01 2008

Election Announcement

Posted by: 阿偉 in Current Events, Religion

As election day approaches, I wish to address the members of the religious community, particularly the Islamic community, in order put this election in a different perspective. Many communities across the US, given the crisis that the US now faces, have decided that this is a pivotal election, and are debating who they should pick as the next President.

Like many people, I have also put this question to the test. Yet, I fear that there are some people, because they are not equipped with a proper ideological guideline with which to consider the problem, will make the incorrect decision.

I have said before that liberal democracy is a form of government which only appeals to the rowdy masses and does not have any grounding in the tradition of consensus. The argument which often comes up in a liberal democracy is not truly that of which leader would be the wisest or most capable, but which leader is the lesser of two evils. In reality, preserving the so-called democracy is more about considering personal advantage and considering the benefit of ‘America’ than glorifying the divine, because the fact of the matter is there is no benefit in either candidate whatsoever.

Let us consider, then the history of democracy and how it contributed to European history. Democracy has its roots in the secularist ideals of the so-called “Enlightenment”; secularism itself came from some early English humanistic philosophers and was largely spread through the secret societies of the Enlightenment such as the Freemasons. Originally, secularists believed that the best course of civic action was through finding the common ground between the worldly and the religious. By implication, this means that secularists believe that there is a separation of “Church and State”, and the laws of the state should generally only cover the “common ground” of beliefs between the various religious groups that might be present. The Roman Catholic Church, however argued that all aspects of society had to be organized with the final goal of heaven in mind.

Nevertheless, religion suffered a severe setback in the European continent due to increased opposition from increasingly secularist politics. In the same way that democracy is anti-Christian, it is also anti-Islamic, and true Muslims should entangling oneself in it. The reality of democracy today is that it is inherently opposed to Islam, just as it is opposed to any religion. The West in its war against Islam is offering the democratic system as an alternative to Sharia. Therefore, if the West, which is the founder of democracy, sees as necessary to replace Islam with seclarism, Muslims should not adopt this as a political philosophy.

But, it is not only that democracy is corrupt at its core, but also that the candidates involved in the election are horrible administrators and enemies of religion to boot. For example, how can a Christian or a Muslim say that he supports Obama, when it is clear that Obama supports things which are in a clear contradiction of the Bible and of Islamic law? We may be told that it is a “duty” to vote, but no matter what earthly duties we have, the Divine should take precedence. Why do we forsake our trust in Allah by putting our trust in the hands of the mushrikeen?

Jesus stated that if we are friends of the world, then we cannot be friends of God. Likewise, the Holy Quran says that our true allies are none but Allah, the Prophet (saw), and those who bow down humbly before God. Therefore, we need not worship the false idol of democracy, nor to support the corrupt American system. We need not select Barack Obama to get the approval of our peers, nor select John McCain for fear of being called “unpatriotic”.

There is, in fact, no benefit in either candidate.

2nd day of Dhu al-Qidah, 1429 AH / 戊子年癸亥月巳乙日

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Oct 10 2008

Islam and Confucianism

Posted by: 阿偉 in Religion

Before I begin, let me say that I wish for this to be a first in a series of posts relating both to Confucianism and Islam. At such a time when the phrase “China’s peaceful rise” is being weighed against the ominous “China threat,” and in a world where Islam is struggling against cultural Trotskyite imperialism, there can be no question that the interplay of such worldviews might seriously affect the future. Therefore, it would be fitting for us to discuss them here from a friendly viewpoint.

For nearly a decade, Islamic traditionalism has come under harsh criticism. This can no doubt reflect contemporary politics, but at the same time, the criticism manifests as an attack on the religion itself. It is said that Islam is contrary to the “Western liberal-democratic tradition”. The same criticisms resonate of the Chinese government, and already, the link is being made by Western analysts about Confucianism. In the coming years, could it be that the controlled media will speak of “Confucian-fascism?” Perhaps only time will tell.

More than a decade ago, the relationship between Islam and Confucianism was pondered by some Malaysian and Malaysian-Chinese scholars. They set forth these ideas in a book called “Islam and Confucianism: A Civilizational Dialogue“. There are a number of striking similarities between Islam and Confucianism, both in ideals and historical experience. For example, through the Hadith of the Prophet (s.a.w.) is similar in structure to the Analects, in that they lay the framework to incorporate ethics and morality from the public sphere. In other words, the Islamic argument against secularism, that is, the separation of politics and other societal concerns from religion and morality, is not dissimilar to the Confucian perspective presented by the pre-eminent Modern Neo-confucian (當代新儒學) scholar Tu Wei-ming (杜維明) in his book Way, Learning and Politics. A very similar attempt was made by a Qing dynasty Islamic scholar, Ma Dexin (馬德新), who also wrote the first Chinese translation of the Quran, and Liu Zhi (劉智) an earlier Islamic scholar from Nanjing.

I certainly don’t want to suggest that Islam and Confucianism are one and the same. However, I do feel that as two aspects of the Traditionalist Weltanschauung, the relationship between the two is well-worth investigating, and that there is much to be gained through dialogue between the two groups.

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Oct 01 2008

Upgrades and Changes

Posted by: 阿偉 in Announcements

myTextJourney.com has recently been upgraded to be compatible with WordPress 2.6. Details regarding this change can be found at the link provided.

You now have the ability to directly interact with digg, StumbleUpon, and other social networking sites. If you like what you read, just click on the appropriate icon below the post. In addition, you can now use the “Contact Me” link at the top of the page in order to submit general questions and concerns regarding content. As always, I do accept submissions from people, and welcome feedback. However, I ask that you post replies to specific posts in the proper area. Also, a sitemap has been added for your convenience. Also, please review any changes made to the disclaimer.

Once again, thank you for visiting.

Between Asgard and the Western Paradise

Traditions, Culture, Spirituality, and more…

Pop Culture in the Name of Religion

Election Announcement

Islam and Confucianism

Upgrades and Changes