I said to my white colleague, “Why don’t you become a Muslim?” He smiled and replied, “Give me a good reason and I will accept Islam.” I told him about the righteousness of Islam and narrated numerous incidents of the life of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). I also referred to those people who left Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism and Hinduism and became Muslims. I also told him that you will go to the heaven after becoming Muslim. He kept listening to me very attentively. When I became silent, he laughed and said “There are two dozen Muslims in our company, you give me a reference of any one of them who can inspire me to become a Muslim.” I started looking at him surprisingly’ he said, “Even if you Muslims compete together morally against any of our fellow Christians, I will become a Muslim.” He stopped and then asked me, “Do you guys eat halal?” I put my hand on my chest and replied, “Alhamdulillah, Muslims don’t eat haram.” He laughed and said, “You’re right up to the point of chicken but as far as love for work ‘loyalty to the company’ and actions are concerned I have never seen any of you eat halal. Time to come to office is 9 o’clock and off time is 5 o’clock but you guys always arrive 5-10 minutes late and leave early whereas I reach the office at 8:45 every day, set my stuff on the desk, take off my coat and hang it, turn on my laptop and start working at 9:00 am sharp. I leave the office at half past five in the evening. I pack my things for half an hour. I clean the table and desk. I put the chairs in order. I straighten the curtains. I turn off the lights. I lock the drawers and then I leave the office. While you guys stop working at four o’clock and spend an hour walking around and leave without clearing your desks and packing your things. We Europeans clean our own bathroom, clean even the commode. Turn off the office’s lights. Water the plants. Pick up our plates and put them in the rack while you guys leave the used dishes on the table. don’t even flush and if you do, get the floor wet wash your feet in the sink and wet the entire bathroom floor. I haven’t seen any of you turn off the lights, your desks are a mess, and nothing is in order. You people have slits on your clothes and wet hands. You people consider it a crime to smile at others. It is your habit to delay work and start chatting. You also eat food very unmannerly. Weird sounds come out of your mouth while eating and drinking tea. We Europeans don’t talk behind anyone’s back, while you people find fault with others all day long. Our food and medicines are pure. You buy anything from anywhere in Europe, it will be pure and the box will contain what is written on the outside of it. We do not sell any food after the expiry date. In Europe and America, there is no concept of counterfeiting of medicines, but in your societies, whether it is the president or Imam e Kaaba, he does not get pure food and medicine.
He paused and then said, “I have never even seen you people reading. You people buy sweets and chocolates every day, but I have never seen you buy books. This distance from books and knowledge is surprising to me. We slaughter chickens or cows in the abattoir, the citizens do not see its blood nor its skin, while you people slaughter animals daily in the streets and markets and leave them to languish in the drains and finally you throw their belongings in the squares and streets and dogs, crows and hawks peck at them. You go to buy bread or at the butcher’s shop, you will be greeted by flies and cockroaches. Look at your clerics, their clothes are dirty, careless appearance and belly crossing the limits. The question is, how much faith will I get from a person who could not impose Islam on his six feet height and lastly, are women, children and animals safe in your societies? In a Muslim country, even ten percent of women cannot leave the house without fear. You people even torture children and consider it your duty to beat animals with stones or sticks. So you tell me to whom I see and accept Islam? Islam is indeed a great and glorious religion, but you Muslims do not look good from any angle, you people are full of wickedness and every evil of the world, so then people like me are forced to think that the religion which until today, could not change its followers, how far will it change me? Secondly, even if I become a Muslim, what will I do? Do I accept Islam to burp loudly or become a Muslim to stare at women and have a forty inch waist? You give me a reason and I will recite the kalimah right away.” He became silent and my mouth fell open.
Sheikh Farid stopped and then took a long breath and said, “I am ashamed of the words of that white man till today and I have not preached to any non-Muslim after that. I also believe that even at the age of 84 I could not make myself a Muslim. I could not meet the standards of Islam.” After listening to sheikh Farid, I looked at his face with surprise for a long time. Shaikh Farid belong to Mansehra and he was with us while visiting Skardu and K2. He is 84 years old. He spent most of his life in Saudi Arabia and America. He is an engineer by profession. Worked in the world’s largest petroleum company and came to Mansehra after retirement. Walks around with a stick but has wisdom and experience in what he says. He loves others and tries to be happy and keep others happy. My son Shumail likes the elderly. He was very close to his grandfather (my father) too. He misses him very much so he always includes elderly women and men in every tour and serves them whole heartedly. Elder people also give prayers to him. He was accompanying Sheikh Farid during that journey as well and Sheikh was giving him prayers at every step. Shumail told me about his wisdom and then I started enjoying his words. Now the question is what did this white man say wrong? Aren’t we Muslims like that? Every year the list of the cleanest, calmest and peaceful countries in the world is published. The data is also published for the happy, easy to work, cheapest countries, education, human rights, justice, environmental sophistication, clean drinking water, clean food and equal opportunities for success and all non-Muslim countries seem to be competing with each other in these fields. But I have never seen Islamic countries in this list, be it education, health, sanitation, justice, human rights, tolerance or brotherhood, be it the fields of service or ethics, literacy and skill, the name of Saudi Arabia or Pakistan has never been mentioned in it. As much paper as the entire Muslim world uses in a year, Boston city of America uses in research papers. Even if the book is about Islam, the most buyers of it are in America and Europe. Most of the research on the Holy Quran and Hadiths is also being done in Europe. The marble for the floor of the Kaaba is also imported from Europe and it is cut and polished by Italian companies and they also put it on the floor. In all the mosques of the Islamic world, the call to prayer and recitation are also broadcasted by the sound system of Jewish companies, and all of us use medicines made by them. So the question is, where are Islam and Muslims in the world? What and where is our contribution? Why are the world’s evils, flaws, weaknesses and trials recorded only in our account? A nation that kills its Muslim brothers in the name of Islam and attacks a mosque and martyrs more than two hundred worshipers, does it deserve a great religion like Islam? Where is Islam in the lives of us Muslims? If you want to find the answer to this question, you look at the streets of Pakistan today and tomorrow, you will find sacrificial animals everywhere and then you ask yourself “a nation which until today, could not do animal sacrifice with cleanliness and neatness, does it has the right to preach to others?”
[Courtesy: Daily Express]