Islam's Spiritual Decay

Long discussion today with my fixer on Islam. Not an easy thing to do - there is such a rigid closed-mindedness among the Pashtuns I know when it comes to religion, an unwillingness to consider other perspectives. There is an absolutism, a binary division between right and wrong that borders on hostility. Like I said in my previous post, this is I think a product of recent history - the politicization of culture. Over the past 30 years, not only in Afghanistan but in much of the Islamic world, belief, faith has become more a matter of power than of self-realization.

It's a common theme in the religious debates I have with my fixer: his fixation on power. "So, who is more powerful," he will ask, constantly, "Muslims or non-Muslims?" I suppose it's understandable given the history of the West's domination over Islamic cultures during the past few hundred years. Nonetheless, Muslims are certainly not blameless; they've allowed themselves to be led astray by those who view religion as a path to power. In that vision, all things non-Muslim are subordinated to the the Islamic Ideal, deemed worthless, or worse, as the enemy.

So instead of moderation, you end up in the extremes: if a woman is not fully covered and kept out of sight of society, she is a whore. If a person doesn't pray 5 times a day, he is an infidel. These parochial categories drain Islam of meaning, suck out the ichor of faith and leave behind a hollow husk of rituals and dogma. I wish I could say my experience with Islam's spiritual decay has been limited to places like Afghanistan and Pakistan where war and hardship have fossilized belief into a sort of relic, into an idol that is worshipped unquestioningly. But the disease is much more widespread.

I was on assignment in Toronto in the summer of 2005, covering the Islamic community and the discussions that were underway following the London tube bombings. I was interviewing a spokesman for a moderate Islamic organization. At the end of the interview, we started up a casual discussion about Islam in the West, how young Muslims can cope with the demands of their faith in a secular society. At one point, I said to the spokesman, "I think part of the problem is taboos: there are too many in the Muslim community even among moderates. Sex and drugs for example - these are issues young Muslims are exposed to in their everyday lives. But within the community, there is nowhere for them to turn to try and understand them in an Islamic context. Muslim families never talk about sex or drugs; it's hush hush. As a result, these confused young people easily fall prey to charismatic extremists who give them the answers they're looking for. To combat this, Muslims need to open a space for a discussion of these difficult issues." His response, considering he was an intelligent and moderate Muslim, was startling:

"So what then," he said, his back straightening in his chair, "should we condone free sex and drugs?"

I was shocked. I never expected such a polemic reaction. This was something I'd experienced quite a bit in Afghanistan and Pakistan but I certainly didn't expect it from a moderate, western-educated Muslim with an understanding of the secular challenges facing Islamic sensibilities.

But it seems almost a reflex these days for many Muslims, the belief that change is not required in their community, that the problem lies somewhere 'out there'. What I've learned in the years I've been covering Islam, from the books I've read, from reading and re-reading the Quran and Hadiths is that Islam is something every Muslim must feel in his or her heart. That is the cause. Prayer, fasting...all of the outward expressions of faith will follow that inner acceptance.

I am no model Muslim. I often call myself an atheist (if you know me, then you also know that my atheism is a rejection of God as conceptualized in formal religions, not a rejection of the Great Mystery of life). But I believe in Islam. I accept the power it has to promote peace and understanding, to help a person reach self-actualization. I also believe Christianity has that power, and Judaism, and Buddhism, Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, paganism. These are all paths to a deeper, inner reality.

The best example I have for this, in the Islamic context, is prayer. Prayer in Islam is a basic pillar of faith. But the question I've asked myself is how: how does prayer help us come closer to God, or the Great Mystery? The answer came to me when I was in Mecca, at the Kaaba. Anyone with a Muslim background will understand the awe that comes over you when you're standing in front of the Kaaba. Every Muslim home has a picture of it displayed somewhere, on fridge magnets, calendars, framed pictures...It is a potent symbol of what it means to be Muslim, a reminder of a Muslim's duties to his faith (to perform Hajj, to accept the unity of God, etc.).

When I was in Mecca, sitting in front of the Kaaba, the thought occurred to me: why do all Muslims face in its direction during prayer? There must be a reason for it beyond the formal act of unity - Muslims could all face the sun and acheive that. No, there must be something more, I thought. It certainly can't be the Kaaba itself, as a structure - that would be idolatry. Then it dawned on me: what happens if you're inside the Kaaba during prayer time? What direction do you face in that case? The only logical answer is within yourself. That, I think, is the deeper meaning of prayer in Islam. Like meditation, it is a personal act, one that guides you back to your own inner existence. Prayer is a way for Muslims to come closer to the Great Mystery within themselves.

My fixer doesn't agree with me. That's his right. My opinion is that he's too fixated on the outward expression of faith and not enough on deeper meanings. He thinks God watches him like a gymnastics judge, grading him on his form when the real measure of his faith is hidden, secret, a part of the Great Mystery.

I'll end this post with a Rumi poem. Rumi was one man who truly understood that Mystery. My hope is some of that understanding can be resurrected.

Come, come whoever you are.
Wanderer, idolater, worshipper of fire,
Come even though you have broken your vows a thousand times
Come, and come yet again.
Ours is not a caravan of despair.