Kharijites attack Islam to steal our past and future
LLCO.org
In the 7th century, the Islamic world was descending into chaos. A struggle for power followed. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the companion caliphs, had just been assassinated by rebels in 656 AD. There was a struggle over succession. Who would lead the Muslim community? On one side was Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth caliph of the companions for Sunni Muslims, also the first imam of the Shia. On the other side was Muawiyah of the Umayyads, which had also been Uthman’s clan. In 657 AD, during the First Islamic Civil War, during the battle of Siffin, Ali ibn Abi Talib sought compromise with his opponents. He sought peace over war. Enraged by this, a small faction of his own soldiers betrayed him. They abandoned their leader, one of the most dear of all the companions and part of Muhammad’s household. So did Muhammad love Ali that the Prophet’s daughter became Ali’s wife. Ali was betrayed. One of the first people to accept Muhammad’s message, a man who had never worshiped the pagan idols, was left to fight alone, to die. They betrayed their leader when Ali needed them most. The traitors came to be known as “Kharijites.” They perverted religion with an extremism that saw all other Muslims, Sunni and Shia, as suspect, “kafir,” infidel, apostates. And, according to their extremism, infidels and apostates deserve death. Their extreme perversion of the Koran rejected the moderating influences of the Koran itself. Instead, the whole of religion was interpreted through the their twisted lenses.
The Kharijites return today in a new form. In Iraq, Syria, Libya, Pakistan, in Arabia. In our land, Bangladesh, they have many names: “Islamic State,” “Jamaat-e-Islami,” and so on. They try to play the “moderate” as the “Bangladeshi Nationalist Party.” Whatever they call themselves, whoever their leaders are, it does not matter. What matters is the politics behind the masks. This is why the great revolutionary Leading Light Lin Biao said we must always understand “politics in command.” We must always understand the real politics behind the masks. Islamic State, Jamaat-e-Islami, and Bangladeshi Nationalist Party are just different masks for the same backward, feudal barbarism. The modern Kharijites claim to represent Islam, but they are the greatest betrayers of religion. Just as in the past, they bring chaos to the Third World. They help Empire control the Third World and the Muslim peoples.
Recently, the Islamic State bombed the library in Mosul, Iraq. the burned thousands of ancient manuscripts. Similarly, they destroy ancient monuments, tombs, architecture. Much of the cultural heritage of the people is erased overnight. The Middle East, one of the cradles of civilization, is being destroyed. There is an old saying: “What is worse than ignorance? Ignorance with a gun.” It is physical and cultural genocide against Muslim and other peoples. It is a war on knowledge itself. Look at how Jamaat-e-Islami and the Bangladeshi Nationalist Party attack journalists, bloggers, women. Or look at the hypocrisy. The extremists in our land wave the flag of democracy, yet they attack the masses, impose theocracy and barbarism, and crush all knowledge and dissent. They call for elections, but the terrorize the people. Similarly, they wave the flag of Islam to attack Islam. Let’s look to the Koran itself. The Koran teaches us to embrace a scientific attitude, not blind faith and obedience:
“Do not uphold what you have no knowledge of. For the hearing, eyesight, and mind, all these are held responsible for that.” [Koran 17:36]
Intelligence and reason, according to the Koran, are gifts from God. We are called to study historical precedents in order to carry out our moral duty. How can we embrace the lessons of the past, when books are burned? How can we embrace reason when intellectuals are shot, their bodies left on the side of the road? The Koran specifically rejects this war on reason and intellect:
“We have committed to hell many Jinns and humans. They have hearts, yet they do not comprehend; they have eyes yet they do not see; they have ears yet they do not hear. They are like cattle; no, they are even more astray. These are the heedless ones.” [Koran 7:179]
“The worst creatures with God are the deaf and dumb who do not reason.” [Koran 8:22]
“It is not for a person to acknowledge except by God’s leave. He casts the affliction upon those who do not reason.” [Koran 10:100]
“In their stories is a lesson for the people of intelligence. It is not a hadith that was invented, but an authentication of what is already present, a detailing of all things, and a guidance and mercy to a people who acknowledge” [Koran 12:111]
Too many times have men tried to make themselves into God. The Koran itself says:
“Many nations have come before you. So roam the earth and see what the consequence of the liars was.” [Koran 3:137]
Is the Islamic State so different than the Razakar militia? The spectacle of death created by the Islamic State is something our people have sadly witnessed before. The Razakar militia, backed by the Pakistani Army and the Western imperialists, tried to exterminate the intellectual traditions of our people by executing students, teachers, writers, artists, intellectuals, and so on. The modern Kharijites want to restrict education for everyone, and deny education for women altogether. They want to lock women away like animals. They want to eliminate the best and brightest minds of our people because it is easier to control an ignorant people. Yesterday, it was the Razakar militia. Today it is Jamaat-e-Islami. Today it is the Islamic State. Today it is the Bangladeshi Nationalist Party.
To commit genocide on our culture and mind is to steal our past. The Kharijites steal not only our future, but the future of our children. They are cowards who are afraid to debate their ideas honestly, openly. The modern Kharijites know the masses will not be fooled or intimidated by them unless they use terror. So they chop off heads. They crucify people. Both the Islamic State and Jamaat-e-Islami burn people alive, both in cages and buses, to create a spectacle of death. And, they are so arrogant as to ignore the teaching that only God is allowed to punish with fire. In their arrogance, they try to make themselves into God. They have disdain for morality, for serving the people. The Koran teaches God has given life. Who are they to steal this gift from God? Who are they to kill innocent workers, farmers, poor people, women, intellectuals, youth, small owners?
The Koran states that God gave humanity reason, the ability to know:
“The Gracious. Has taught the Koran. He created the human being. Taught him how to distinguish.” [Koran 55:1-4]
The Koran instructs us to increase our knowledge:
“Then High above all is God, the King, the Truth. Do not be hasty with the Koran before its inspiration is completed to you, and say, “My Lord, increase my knowledge.” [Koran 20:114]
The scientific order of existence is itself a sign of the divine:
“Surely, in the creation of heavens and earth, the succession of night and day, and the ships that sail in the sea for the benefit of people, and what God has sent down of water from the sky therewith He brings the earth back to life after it had died, and He sends forth from it every creature, and the movement of the winds and the clouds that have been designated between the earth and the sky are signs for a people that reason.” [Koran 2:164]
It is again a time of chaos for our people. Empire is playing a sick game. With one hand, Empire attacks the masses with liberalism. With the other hand, it attacks the masses with extremist lies. When Empire wins, we lose. Just as the cowards betrayed Ali, they betray the Koran. They betray the masses then and they betray the masses now. The best in the Koran demands that we stand with the masses. The best in religion demands we treat each other with dignity and respect. Those who truly have religion fight for, not against, education. They fight for science, not medieval barbarism. They cherish life. They elevate and serve the people. When we pray toward Mecca, we ask God to hear us. In praying to God, we face each other. We are a global circle, all facing Mecca. This is to call on God, but also to respect each other and unite. The best in the Koran demands we better ourselves, that we educate ourselves, that we use our brains that God has given us. Like Socrates, it teaches that we must study and know the world. Like the great philosopher and scientist, the Koran demands us to think critically. To know oneself and the world is to know God’s creation. Knowledge brings us closer to God. It is a key link between the created and the creator. There is no better way to honor and obey the Koran than to embrace truth, the most advanced revolutionary science, Leading Light Communism.
Look at the barbaric, medieval world they offer. Look at the deeply liberating world we offer. Do you want your children enslaved by men who act as God? Or do you want real freedom and truth? Ask yourself: Who is acting in accordance with God, the merciful, the just? It is time to destroy Empire, the system that enslaves and beats us down. It is time to do away with capitalism, the dictatorship of the dollar, a system that corrupts the children of Adam and turns them into beasts against one another. There is a way out of the madness. We must fight for Leading Light Communism. One World. One people. We must cease with the destruction of our planet, our beautiful planet, our common home before we can no longer breathe the air or drink the water or cultivate our food. We must revive the spirit of the true revolutionary movement and correct past mistakes. Do not allow the extremists, the fanatics, modern Kharijites, the perverters of Islam to define your vision, your destiny. They are but the playthings of Empire. God willing, this is our time, this is the time of destiny, and we are the people of destiny. God willing, this is the time when the seeds of Leading Light Communism will bear the sweetest fruit so that we may live in a society of true peace, prosperity, freedom. A society where people can exist as equals regardless of differences. Imagine a world where we can be our best selves. A society where everyone can think and express themselves freely, without fear. A world where comrades, brothers and sisters may greet each other “Assalamu Alykum,” “Peace be upon you,” with full knowledge that the greeting will be a reality.