Page 17 - MFP 2017

PAY YOUR DUES AND GET YOUR RIGHTS
The basic human instinct has a desire for peace, comfort and security. But human nature demands changes at di erent levels to further enhance things. This burning wish keeps the blood warm in our vessels. In the spiritual world, this has brought one Prophet after another as the race progressed to grasp the message while accepting and following it accordingly. In the material world, the changes are implemented by man-made laws. If you do not accept them, then they will be implemented by force. In the religious eld, if you deny the message then you have to face the consequences of nature.
Similarly, the human race has been debating from day one as to what is good and what is bad; and what is evil and what
is heavenly. Some take it lightly while others put all of their energy into this struggle.
Even a man of the caliber of Socrates as early as 479 BC,
who de ned democracy as a government of the people, by the people, and for the people which became the basis of western government, had also wondered about these basic questions. According to Socrates, as indicated by Plato,
he (Socrates) insisted that he did not have the satisfactory answers as to what is courage (raised in Laches), what is self- control (Charmides), and what is piety (Euthyphro). Although he proposes elaborate answers to this question of what is justice. And in doing so he also defends his view of an ideal society, the condition of human soul, and the nature of reality and the power of arts, among many other topics. He was teaching the youth of the times the goodness as he felt was right but the State took o ence claiming he was poisoning the youths. As a result, he was given poison which he happily drank although he had ways to escape, if he so wished it.
Plato was another idealist who tried to change the world for better. He was born to a wealthy and well known political family. Athens was embroiled in political upheaval which he did not like. After the death of Socrates, he went on a tour of Greece, Egypt, Italy and Sicily at the age of 40. In Italy he got totally disgusted by the gluttony & sexual debauchery and he returned to Athens. He then opened an Academy to teach politics and ethics. He helped cities, states and colonies to set up legislative bodies to draw about healthy constitution.
Syed Manzoor Rizvi, MD
saints, and good hearted people who gave their lives to bring about goodness, this world has seen unrelenting upheaval, wars, chaos and revolutions.
Alexander the Great became the king after the death of his father King Philip II of Macedonia. He is known for his great military genius and diplomatic skills. After conquering the lands, he used to appoint rulers from local population under his kingship. He was good to them if they listened, otherwise he would erase the entire population from the surface of earth.
Genghis Khan and his grandson Hulagu Khan, in their zeal to conquer the world, just terrorized the world, caused universal upheaval and destroyed half of the world. More recently, Napoleon Bonaparte, Mussolini, and with the Russian revolution, among others, killed millions of people and terrorized the world. Mussolini, according to some reports, killed 7% of the Libyan population. During the First World War, ten million people died. In WWII, seven million Jews alone were massacred, not counting others.
There are two recent revolutions which were rather peaceful. The Indian Independence, and the Iranian revolution. There was not much loss of life during either of these revolutions. But lives were lost following it. In India during the partition, more than one million lives were lost. The butcher of Iraq, Saddam Hussain, attacked Iran with severe loss of lives.
This long introduction to rather a small article is given
to relate with the revolution brought about by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). For the rst forty years, his life was an open book. He showed the world in the most transparent way, his basic nature, overall personality, his piety, his devotion to the well-being of his community, his humbleness and his greatness as an ordinary citizen of one the most degenerated and backward society. He was not given the title of ‘ameen’ or ‘trustworthy’, ‘sadiq’ or ‘truthful’ just like that. Instead these were titles that he earned, and earned the hard way but well-deserved.
Upon turning forty, when he was declared as a Prophet, he did not change but the community did. The same society now turned against him, and became enemies overnight. The people were now calling him all sorts of name. The strange thing is that in spite of all this, they still believed
in his integrity and trusted him with their deposits. He also
In spite of all these great thinkers, philosophers, prophets,
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