INDIAN MUSLIMS: A HISTORICAL REVIEW
Finding the Cause of Their Backwardness
THE British put an end to the Muslim rule over India in 1857, dealing a death blow to the political and cultural supremacy of Muslims. Japan witnessed a similar turn of events in 1945 when America, having completely destroyed its industrial and military power by dropping two atom bombs, succeeded in establishing its total domination over Japan.
During the past one and a half centuries after the fall of political power, the Indian Muslims launched a number of movements for their reconstruction at the cost of great sacrifices. Right from the revolt of 1857 to the demolition of the Babri Mosque in 1992, the sacrifices made by Indian Muslims of the subcontinent are tremendous. If an appraisal is made of these sacrifices in material terms, it will come to a Himalayan magnitude. But all these sacrifices proved to be fruitless and of no avail to Muslims from any respect.
Despite incurring huge losses, Muslim leaders and thinkers are still not able to come out mentally of collision course. They are completely unaware of any other approach. In this path, they are welcomed only by deprivation and defeat.
Let us now look at the Japanese nation. After the defeat in 1945, they started their struggle for reconstruction, and within a short span of forty years they not only made up for the loss suffered in the Second World War, but also managed to occupy a far more honourable position in the world.
What is the reason of this difference between the Muslim and Japanese? There is only one reason and that is traceable to the different strategies of action adopted by the two towards the solution of their problems. The Muslims led by their incompetent leaders opted to destroy their opponents. On the contrary, Japan led by their wise leaders resorted to the policy of self-construction.
It is this difference of their approach, which accounts for the sharp difference between the states of the two communities.
In the mid-nineteenth century when the British grabbed political power from the Muslims the initial reaction of the Muslim leaders was to recapture their lost power by resorting to violence. Muslim leaders, therefore, embarked upon a battle against the British though they were ill-equipped and insufficiently prepared. This aggravated their ruination a hundred fold. However, Muslim leaders, ignorant of any other strategy, held others responsible for their ruin and continued their collision course with the British.
Despite incurring huge losses, Muslim leaders and thinkers are still not able to come out mentally of this collision course. They are completely unaware of any other approach except that of agitation and encounter. Consequently, whether it is the revolt of 1857 or the confrontation over the Babri Mosque, this confrontation-loving leadership has set Muslims, on all occasions, to the path of conflict. In this path, they are welcomed only by deprivation and defeat.
All this does not mean to suggest that leaders with vision and wisdom were never born in the Muslim community. Nature has always been generous to every community in this respect. Wise and competent leaders have therefore always been born in the Muslim community. Unfortunately though, the Muslims did not pay any heed to the advice of their competent and worthy leaders. The basic reason is that a wise leader always addresses his people in low-profile. Due to certain reasons, the present Muslim psychology attaches importance only to high profile oratorical skills of their leadership, however baseless and meaningless they might be as regards reality.
Sir Sayyid Ahmad Khan (1817-1898) provides one notable example in this connection. Being an eye witness to the turmoil of 1857, and then after a critical assessment of the situation, he realized that the Muslims were not in a position to make an advance, but they needed to undergo a stage of preparation. He thus offered to Muslims the same suggestion offered by the 124th Emperor Hirohito of Japan in 1945. Hirohito told his people that although America had destroyed their cities, its army had captured their territory, yet, he said that a sphere of action was still lying wide open for them. It was the field of knowledge. Admitting that the American domination over Japan was undoubtedly an insufferable tragedy that they had to suffer in order that they could set the next generation on the path of knowledge and progress. After a little hesitation, the Japanese community finally wholeheartedly accepted Hirohito’s advice. Subsequently, the entire world witnessed Japan’s history taking a new turn through the efforts of only one generation.
Exactly the same suggestion was made by Sir Sayyid in the wake of 1857 revolt, to the Muslims of the subcontinent. He asked Muslims to accept the British domination, and to avoid any political encounter with their rulers as it was not going to serve their purpose. He tried to convince the Muslims that bright opportunities for the acquisition of knowledge were lying open for them, outside the sphere of the political dominance of the British. He tried to impress upon them that if they could devote their energies to the field of knowledge, their history would itself begin to change.
The Encyclopedia Britannica gives the following description of Sir Sayyid’s mission:
The supreme interest of Sayyid’s life was, however, education— in its widest sense. (…) (He) advised the Muslims against joining active politics and to concentrate instead on education (1/369).
While Hirohito’s people accepted their leaders’ advice, Sir Sayyid’s people rejected their leader’s advice castigating him as a British agent. The difference in the result of respective responses is for all to see. Japan today occupies the top rung of the ladder of the world’s developed nations. On the contrary, the Muslims are today engaged in putting pressure upon the Indian government to declare Muslims a backward class so that they may avail of the privileges mandated for such reserved communities.
By availing the existing opportunities one enables oneself to solve other problems as well, whereas one who is entangled in the problems not only loses out on the existing opportunities but also fails to solve the problems.
It is the verdict of history that a community which fails in the test of prudent action can never compensate for its loss through agitational campaigns and charter of demands, even if their poets, orators and writers all join together in support of this demand.
Far from observing the whims and fancies of any group, this world strictly adheres to the immutable laws of nature. Every individual and collective achievement in this world can be gained only by conforming to the laws of nature. Those who follow their own desire will receive nothing in this world.
The Indian Muslims have to start their history anew from the point where they had left Sir Sayyid. They will have to learn to starve the problems and feed the opportunities already at hand. By availing the existing opportunities one enables oneself to solve other problems as well, whereas one who is entangled in the problems not only loses out on the existing opportunities but also fails to solve the problems.