Bouquets and Brickbats

Sir, The US and its allies are not only losing the war in Afghanistan, but their military alliance, the NATO, is also on the verge of unravelling as a result of this failure. This has also been expressed by many US and British officials including Rice. No member-state of NATO is willing to contribute any more forces since there is very less public support for their militaries’ missions, embarked upon essentially to appease the US. This war is almost certainly un-winnable and instead of going in deeper, as the US is urging, NATO should sensibly plan an exit strategy. But as the US control of Afghanistan becomes weak, it is foolishly extending the war into Pakistan in hope of undermining support for the Afghan resistance. This is a dangerous game, similar to the failed policy of extending into Laos and Cambodia when the US was on the verge of defeat in Vietnam. Pakistan too is paying a heavy price for America’s “un-winnable” imperialist war. The US seems quite happy to fight to the last Pakistani soldier, and Musharraf, the Pakistani dictator, is prepared to oblige in order to save his own skin.

Sir, I am one of the oldest contributor to Islamic Voice. There has been gradual improvement in the quality of the monthly. However I would like to make a few observations.
Good articles are being reduced to smaller size and the paper has begun to carry a lot of advertisements. If I am correct Islamic Voice is not meant for South Indian Muslims alone. In the March 2008 issue, you have carried campus updates from colleges in South Indian states only. Bear in mind that majority of Indian Muslims live in northern belt and they lag behind educationally and economically. They too deserve your attention.

Sir, I have read the article, “Made in Shadi Mahal” about marriage expenses (March 2008 issue). I agree 100 per cent with what has been said. Is anyone listening? Lakhs spent on wedding functions, printing costly cards with Allah’s name and Qur’anic verses which are thrown away and trampled upon. How can Muslims be so disrespectful and thoughtless? How do the lakhs spent improve the position of the spender or the community? Instead that money can be given to the newly weds which will help start their lives. What is worse, people get into debts for the purpose, merely to look good in others’ eyes. Can anything be more stupid than this? How can such marriages have Allah’s blessing when we do things which displease Him? Celebrating marriage in a simple way should be the rule instead of imitating others in lavishness and extravagance.

Sir, We follow the sunrise and sunset timings supplied by the astronomical observatory for daily namaz and sehri (pre-dawn meal) and Iftaar (breakfast at sundown). I wonder why the data about visibility of crescent from the same observatories cannot be relied upon. Whether we physically sight the moon or not, the speed of the moon’s rotation around the earth is constant and does not change a bit. It is therefore imperative that we avoid bickering over moon sighting and follow the astronomical data. What is of prime importance is that we deal with the issue with a rational outlook and avoid the controversy that mars the festive spirit of Eidul Fitr and the beginning of Ramadan.

Sir, Some misguided elements are circulating mails which can sow a discord between Sunnis and Shias. The decadence has reached such an extent that Shias are being termed as non-Muslims. Such an effort is truly wicked. I wonder if there is any Saudi funding behind this because the monarchy over there would definitely not like an Iranian sort of Islamic revolution to take place and may have some vested interests behind maligning the Shia Muslim brothers. The timing of this effort is also strange and surprisingly coincides with some controversial remarks recently made by a learned Indian Muslim of international repute which will not go down well with Shias. I request all brothers and sisters to be careful of such negative trends. Both Sunnis and Shiites are required to work together and try to overcome their differences.
In our day and age, it is more important to stress points of agreement rather than points of disagreement and to try to bring a bridge between the Sunni and the Shi‘ah without compromising any Islamic values, because what unites Muslims is much greater than what disunites them.