Throughout the course of history, Islam has been threatened internally and externally, i.e., the dispensation of Islam to Non-Arab Cultures and the change of government structure from Caliphate to Monocracy, carried the load of immense additions and eliminations in Islam.
Narrated `Abdullah: The best talk (speech) is Allah’s Book ‘Quran), and the best way is the way of Muhammad, and the worst matters are the heresies (those new things which are introduced into the religion); and whatever you have been promised will surely come to pass, and you cannot escape (it).
[Bukhari 7277]
It’s important to acknowledge the fact that culture is complex and multifaceted and while Indo-Pak Culture, like any other culture, has its positive aspects, it can also perpetuate certain negative effects on households and parenting, also there are cultural deviations and clashes with Islam at many instances. It’s crucial to avoid generalizations, as not all households or individuals within Indo-Pak Culture may exhibit these negative effects. However, some of the potential issues include:
WEDDING RITUALS
Islamic Culture and its essence has been lost and Hindu culture has been amalgamated into most of our events. We’ve mixed and inculcated their culture, thought patterns and ways of living into our lives, because of living with them for a thousand years, forgetting the true Islamic Ways and the beauty, simplicity and purity embedded in. We’ve adopted a complicated culture which has led to a multitude of problems and confusions, most importantly, complicating marriage while Islam makes it easy. Moreover, the dowry’s an immense load on the parents and becomes a curse for the female if she ain’t loaded much by her parents.
Narrated by Abu Huraira that The Prophet said, “A woman is married for four things, i.e., her wealth, her family status, her beauty and her religion. So you should marry the religious woman (otherwise) you will be losers.”
[Sahi Bukhari 5090]
Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “If someone proposes marriage to you whose religion and character satisfies you, then you should accept it. If you do not do so, there will be trials on the earth and the spread of corruption.”
Sunan al-Tirmidhī 1084]
It is narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: Iman has over seventy branches, and modesty(Haya) is a branch of Iman.
[Sahi Muslim 152]
As we abandoned The Holy Scriptures (Quran and Hadees) and the contemplation there in, obeying anyone or everyone with so-called Islamic get-up, without asking for reference(Daleel) for his actions and statements, adopting Bida’at in our culture that have nothing to do with Islam. A mere instance is that the death of a person in our current culture, becomes a far bigger problem and a liability than the loss of that person for his family to fulfill the prevalent traditions.
FORCED MARRIAGES
The marriage being done under parental pressure, no compatibility of the spouses and no criteria except the spouses must both belong to the same caste, against the will of the couple is truly against Islam and it should not be considered marriage for it doesn’t fulfill the prerequisites for marriage in Islam. Such a marriage not only leads to psychological disposition but also a source of long-term animosity among spouses, both controlling each other resulting in the construction of a disturbed household and disturbed children, psychopaths producing psychopaths.. The intolerance we see growing in our communities is a repercussion of all that chaos that gets inherited generation by generation, in the name of culture. Moreover, the rich history of honor killings, daughters being murdered just because of their asking for their just rights, to be permitted to choose their spouse themselves. ALLAH SWT says,
"BECAUSE OF THAT, WE DECREED UPON THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL THAT WHOEVER KILLS A SOUL UNLESS FOR A SOUL OR FOR CORRUPTION [DONE] IN THE LAND - IT IS AS IF HE HAD SLAIN MANKIND ENTIRELY. AND WHOEVER SAVES ONE - IT IS AS IF HE HAD SAVED MANKIND ENTIRELY. AND OUR MESSENGERS HAD CERTAINLY COMES TO THEM WITH CLEAR PROOF. THEN INDEED MANY OF THEM, [EVEN] AFTER THAT, THROUGHOUT THE LAND, WERE TRANSGRESSORS."SURAH AL-MA’IDAH [5:32]
Incompetent males and females plus irrational ways of thinking.. The lack of understanding of the actual true constructs of The Purpose Of Marriage. Also the role of marriage as an institution for the right upbringing of the younger generation is sacrificed.
MASAJID SPARED FOR PRAYERS
In the era of The Prophet (PBUH), Masajid weren’t confined to just offering prayers, rather they were the Hub for all the important political decisions & intellectual discourse. They were grand universities, rich sources of knowledge and wisdom. But nowadays, they just belong to particular sects. Masajid are being locked just after offering the prayers.
EDUCATION IN OUR CULTURE
The kid’s careers’ been picked off by parents just to serve the family’s interests regardless of the child’s own interests leading to the growth of incompetent, dependent, merely degree-holder unemployed adults, of no use to the society or even the same household, ill-disciplined and prey to low self-esteem, lacking courage and the sense of a bigger purpose of life. The insecurity everyone faces is a consequence of one’s not being able to practice the actual true version of himself but to limit himself and all his potential just in order to be acceptable to the society.
JOINT FAMILY SYSTEM
Leaders not being produced, nor any effective loading of responsibility, nor any effective influence of the parents over their children. The daughter-in-law serving the father and mother, following the norms of the joint venture. No privacy, no freedom, always a sense of persecution. Women not being able to fulfill the Islamic Ruling nor the requirements of veil established in islam when living in the same house along with the father and brother-in-law.
Narrated `Uqba bin ‘Amir: Allah’s Apostle said, Beware of entering upon the ladies. A man from the Ansar said, Allah’s Apostle! What about Al-Hamu the in-laws of the wife (the brothers of her husband or his nephews etc.)? The Prophet replied: The in-laws ofthe wife are death itself.
[Sahi Bukhari 5232]
Domestic Politics running among members of family due to lack of morals leading to conflicts and faulty parenting of children, parents passing on their grudges onto their off springs.
DIVORCE_A TABOO
Above All, a wife or a husband being fed up of all that crisis, can’t get rid off the mental torture for there’s zero possibility of escaping such a marriage as the door towards divorce is closed forever. In such a hostile culture, the toxicity of the victims of such a corrupt marriage only get closer to psychological disorders..
Narrated Ibn `Abbas: Barira’s husband was a slave called Mughith, as if I am seeing him now, going behind Barira and weeping with tears flowing down his beard. The Prophet said to `Abbas, O `Abbas ! Are you not astonished at the love of Mughith for Barira and the hatred of Barira for Mughith? The Prophet then said to Barira, Why don’t you return to him? She said, O Allah’s Apostle! Do you order me to do so? He said, No, I only intercede for him. She said, I am not in need of him.
[Bukhari 5283]
If a Muslim woman doesn’t want to live with a man, she has the right of separation (called khula). Islam has given her the right to khula but the societal pressure doesn’t allow her to practice it for it’s a taboo here. It can be seen in Ahadees that a woman was allowed to practice the right to khula despite her husband not wanting to leave her.
RISING SUICIDE TREND AMONG FEMALES
The rising trend of suicides especially by females, is a direct consequence of corrupt marriages, psychological disposition and societal oppression, exploitation and deprivation of women’s rights. And when the doors to divorce and khula are also closed and the fear of being unacceptable to the society and parents too to have bore the tag being “divorced”, a female, completely helpless, mentally tortured, bullied, exhausted and frustrated, only finds flee to all such crisis in suicide.
“Suicidal behaviour is more common among individuals younger than 30 years. Females comprised 60% of those who attempted suicide” says a study conducted in 2021 in Pakistan, focusing the suicidal attempts by poisoning in the last three decades.
(https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8240123/)
CONCLUSION
From the dowry to every other crime mercilessly practiced in the name of culture, all of it leads to serious repercussions. The people being confined to their norms in the name of culture and none’s living nor practicing his true inner self and the great purpose one has been created for!! Nor the struggle for accomplishing a meaning of life or a bigger purpose of life nor the consciousness to find one’s establishment in Islam!! As The Lord states,
SAY, O PROPHET, "IF YOUR PARENTS AND CHILDREN AND SIBLINGS AND SPOUSES AND EXTENDED FAMILY AND THE WEALTH YOU HAVE ACQUIRED AND THE TRADE YOU FEAR WILL DECLINE AND THE HOMES YOU CHERISH—˹IF ALL THESE˺ ARE MORE BELOVED TO YOU THAN ALLAH AND HIS MESSENGER AND STRUGGLING IN HIS WAY, THEN WAIT UNTIL ALLAH BRINGS ABOUT HIS WILL. ALLAH DOES NOT GUIDE THE REBELLIOUS PEOPLE." SURAH AT-TAWBAH[9:24]
We’re just using Islam wherever it falls into our favor and abandoning it wherever it strikes us hard. And this is called Taghoot (طاغوت) i.e., not moulding ourselves according to the scriptures but moulding the scriptures according to ourselves and is a far bigger and heinous crime in Islam than Shirk (شرک). As ALLAH SWT says,
"DO YOU BELIEVE IN SOME OF THE SCRIPTURE AND REJECT THE REST? IS THERE ANY REWARD FOR THOSE WHO DO SO AMONG YOU OTHER THAN DISGRACE IN THIS WORLDLY LIFE AND BEING SUBJECTED TO THE HARSHEST PUNISHMENT ON THE DAY OF JUDGMENT? FOR ALLAH IS NEVER UNAWARE OF WHAT YOU DO." SURAH AL-BAQARAH [2:85]
“The best of you are the best to their families, and I am the best to my family. When your companion dies, then do not abuse him.”
[Sunan al-Tirmidhī 3895]
None’s maintaining nor resetting the highest standards of morality defined by Islam!! Just chasing materialism, all the efforts being vested into establishing oneself in the current status quo. There’s a dire need to learn and practice the Holy Quran and Hadees, dig out and thoroughly research the basis of Islam and reconstruct the actual true version of Islam, The Prophet SAW has been descended with!! For only Islam is the solution to all the problems of humanity.
Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “ISLAM BEGAN AS SOMETHING STRANGE AND IT WILL RETURN TO BEING STRANGE, SO BLESSED ARE THE STRANGERS.”
[Sahih Muslim 145]
Written by
Abbas Anjum Noor
