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Eid get-together
Speech of Ameer-e-Jamaat, Syed Jalaluddin Omeri, on the occasion of Eid Milan, organised on September 4, 2011 at headquarters of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, New Delhi.
I thank the Almighty Who gave us this opportunity to meet and exchange Eid greetings.
I offer congratulations on my behalf and also on behalf of the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind to all of you.
I especially welcome many non-Muslim friends who have come here from far and wide to share our joy.
You know that Eidul Fitr is celebrated at the conclusion of Ramadhan.
Ramadhan is the month in which the Quran was revealed to guide mankind.
Fasting is prescribed by the Almighty in this month so that people may prepare themselves to receive the Quranic guidance.
Fasting is a rigorous form of worship since it involves abstaining from eating and drinking, for long spans of time.
The regular prayer of Salat (namaz) five times a day of course continues as usual during Ramadhan as well.
In addition, people stand up in prayer during the night and listen to the whole of the Quran. Quran is the only book on earth which is recited in this reverent manner.
After undergoing this month-long rigorous programme, Eidul Fitr is the occasion to rejoice. People offer their thanks to the Almighty who gave them the strength to perform these acts of worship.
Indeed the essence of religion consists of these two basic traits; gratitude for the bounties provided by the Creator and sincere repentance for human mistakes.
In addition, the celebration and expression of joy, people are also instructed to take care of the poor and the needy; on the occasion of Eidul Fitr.
Everyone must contribute to ensure that the poor are able to share the joys of Eid.
This modest contribution is known as Sadaqatul Fitr, which must be distributed among the poor before Eid prayer. Though this is a joyous occasion, we cannot ignore the painful realities of contemporary life.
It is a sad fact that our country suffers from a number of problems.
For instance, the legal structure governing the country recognises the rights of minorities; but in practice, these rights are often denied to them.
Our society suffers from inequality in various forms and acute poverty.
The corporate sector is exploiting the people and perpetuating the system of economic injustice.
Moral values and ethical considerations are being ignored by most people and the young generation is being misled towards permissiveness and moral anarchy by irresponsible media.
Corruption is one of our problems.
Recently this issue has occupied the centre stage and other equally acute problems have been neglected by the public debate. Be as it may, there is no doubt about the severity of this problem.
It is unfortunate that to tackle corruption, only legislative measures are being contemplated. The fact of the matter is that without awakening the individual and social conscience and reforming the self the problem of corruption cannot be solved.
Legislation alone is not enough.
Our country has imported modern ideologies from the west and organised the polity on their basis. These ideologies have not been able to solve the problems of the society.
We must now seriously consider Divine guidance, as the basis of public life, which promises to build individual character and social fabric along healthy lines. Islam presents belief in One God and sense of accountability before Him as the stable foundation for reform.
Islam also seeks to build a social atmosphere which enjoins whatever is morally good and forbids whatever is evil.
The recent awakening in our country on the issue of corruption is welcome.
But let such public revolutions be created against all evils and not merely against corruption.
We certainly need strong laws to tackle the ills of society but let the law be applicable to all, the high as well as the low. Finally, let the effort on the legal front be supplemented by equally serious efforts towards moral reform.
An instance from Muslim history may be quoted here.
Once the ruler of the Islamic State, Omar Farooque (the second Caliph), was addressing the people. A person in the audience stood up and exclaimed, “We will not listen to you. You have some explaining to do. Recently everyone was given a piece of cloth (by the State treasury) and that piece was certainly not large enough to make the shirt that you are wearing! Where did you get the extra cloth from?” On hearing this, the ruler Omar asked his son Abdullah to explain the anomaly. Abdullah stood up and said, “I have gifted my share of cloth to my father.” The outspoken representative of public morality was satisfied with this reply. He said, “Omar! You may continue your address. Now we will listen and obey.”
This was the morally upright State which was created by sincere followers of Divine Guidance.
Let our countrymen learn from this experience. Here indeed is a lesson for the ruler and the ruled alike.
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