PMS 2022 Solved Islamiat Past Papers | The Causes of Intellectual Decline of the Muslim Ummah
The following question of PMS Islamiat 2022 is solved by Miss Ayesha Irfan, the highest scorer in CSS Islamiat. Moreover, the question is attempted using the same pattern taught by Sir Syed Kazim Ali to his students, who have scored the highest marks in compulsory subjects for years. This solved past paper question is uploaded to help aspirants understand how to crack a topic or question, write relevantly, what coherence is, and how to include and connect ideas, opinions, and suggestions to score the maximum.
Question Breakdown
The examiner has asked about the causes of intellectual decline of the Muslim Ummah. The first part is an outline, breaking the question into different parts. Moving further the causes of intellectual decline of the Muslim Ummah in the present day and the measures to be taken to address them, critical analysis and conclusion.
Outline
1-Introduction
2- A bird’s eye view of the intellectual glory
3- Highlight the causes of intellectual decline of the Muslim Ummah in the present day
- ✓ Moral failure of leaders
- ✓ The increasing prevalence of Western civilization and culture
- ✓ increasing prevalence of major sins
- ✓ Misdirection of Muslim youth
- ✓ Disunity among Muslim countries and Muslim scholars
- ✓Rise in sectarianism and social stagnation
- ✓Lagging in Islamic and scientific education
4-Solutions for the causes of intellectual decline of the Muslim Ummah in the present day
- ✓ Fostering scholarly critical thinking and ijtihad (Addressing social and political factors hindering intellectual development)
- ✓ Unity in Muslim ummah
- ✓ Authentic Interpretation of Islamic Teachings
- ✓ Strengthening Islamic culture and civilization
5-Conclusion
Answer to the Question
Introduction
Despite the fact that Islam is a comprehensive code of life that promotes tolerance, peace, moderation, and peaceful coexistence, it is unfortunate that the de facto Muslim ummah is currently engulfed in intellectual decline. The rise of Western civilization and culture, the moral failure of leaders, the misdirection of Muslim youth, and the division of Muslim nations and scholars are some of the numerous factors contributing to the intellectual downfall of the Muslim Ummah. The Ummah is also engulfed in a maelstrom of issues because of the chaos among Muslim nations and scholars, the rise in terrorism and extremism, the educational lag, the authoritarian government that is incompatible with Islam, and the poor economic standing caused by poor management despite an abundance of resources. The Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) teach Muslims to strive for moderation and to steer clear of extremism in their beliefs and behavior.
“Whoever is deprived of gentleness is deprived of all good” (Muslim, Book 32, Number 6270 & Abu Dawood, Book 41, Number 4791)
A bird’s eye view of the intellectual glory of Muslim Ummah
Initiated by the Prophet Muhammad, the advent of Islam in the 7th century created a new religion and a new intellectual and sociopolitical structure. The Qur’an took center stage and impacted law, ethics, and theology. The Hadith, or the sayings and deeds of Muhammad, became essential to comprehending Islamic doctrine. Moreover, early Islamic academics like Al-Jahiz and Ibn Qutaybah started penning historical writings, poetry, and prose documents. Furthermore, Ibn Khaldun, Muhammad Iqbal, Avicenna (Ibn Sina), Al-Kindi, Al-Farabi, Al-Ghazali, and Averroes (Ibn Rushd) were the most well-known figures in Islamic splendor. They all acquired a higher level of Islamic knowledge and elevated Islamic culture and intellect to their pinnacle.
Highlight the causes of the intellectual decline of the Muslim Ummah in the present day
- Moral failure of leaders
Islamic concepts and customs, which originated from the greatest and noblest person on earth—the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), the head of the Islamic nation—had an impact on European intellectuals following their interactions with the Islamic world in the 16th century. He embodies the al-Qur’anic teachings in his ethical principles. Nonetheless, scholars now lack institutional support and resources as a result of a drop in patronage. The conditions of the colonial era have influenced the Muslim leadership’s perspective. Muslim academics have now identified a number of reasons for the fall in interest in modern Islam, from puritanical Saudi Wahhabism to the aftermath of colonialism, including Westernization, the contemporary identity crisis, and the economic collapse in the majority of the Muslim world.
“˹O Prophet! ˺ Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and guard their chastity. That is purer for them. Surely Allah is All-Aware of what they do.” (24:30)
- The increasing prevalence of Western civilization and culture
Many cultures have coexisted with Islam for a long time. Information technology advancements accelerated the process of cultural transformation. The waves of globalization and the involvement of electronic media contributed significantly to the convergence of Islamic principles with western culture in the 1990s. There are countless ways in which the two cultures approach faith, morals, customs, and ideals differently. The aristocracy of Pakistan, Turkey, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for example, have started incorporating Western fashions into their everyday routines as a cheap replica. Due to the intense competition in the modern western world, it is difficult for weak or backward countries to relocate their nationals. Overall, because of the stark differences in wealth between nations, the domain has become fragmented.
“O ye who believe! Enter not houses other than your own, until ye have asked permission and saluted those in them: that is best for you, in order that ye may heed (what is seemly).” (24: 27)
- increasing prevalence of significant sins
According to Islam, sin is an action rather than a condition. It is thought that on the Day of Judgment, God balances a person’s good deeds against their sins and punishes those whose evil deeds outweigh their good deeds. Throughout the chapters, the Quran lists the many sins and illustrates how some of them have worse punishments in the future than others. Q4:31–32 makes a clear distinction between large sins (al-Kabirah) and minor sins (al-Sagha’ir), suggesting that if a person abstains from significant sins, they would be pardoned for lesser sins. Regretfully, Muslim youngsters in particular have been drawn into a maze of deception and misdirection and bitterly don’t even consider these sins and biddats as a sin. For instance, in Pakistan, Approximately 4,326 cases of rape were reported in the year 2018 followed by 4,377 rape cases in 2019, 3,887 cases in 2020 and 1,866 cases in 2021.
“Nor come nigh to adultery: for it is a shameful (deed) and an evil, opening the road (to other evils).” (17:32).
- Misdirection of Muslim youth
The ‘identity issues’ and disobedience to family values of Muslim youngsters are denounced. These experiences may lead to both positive and negative reactions, from intellectual engagement and developing spiritual maturity to emotional rejection, narrow identity politics, and violent extremism. TikTok has had a tremendous social and cultural impact on teenagers, for example. Many of the songs that went viral on TikTok have become very popular. The video-sharing app has already been banned several times by Pakistani authorities. In October 2020, the first restriction was implemented in response to several complaints against the app’s purportedly “immoral, obscene, and vulgar” material. Thus, Muslim youths continue to be influenced by social media apps and western culture, which leads them to stray from their real course.
“O you who believe! Do not take the Jews and the Christians for the friends; they are friends of each other, and whoever amongst you takes them for a friend, then surely, he is one of them, surely Allah does not guide the unjust people” (5:51)
- Disunity among Muslim countries and Muslim scholars
These days, the Muslim Ummah faces several difficulties. Discord is the most significant issue facing the Ummah at the moment. The split among Muslims resulting from the vested interests of all Muslim nations is the primary reason for the intellectual degradation of Muslims. “And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided,” declares Allah Almighty in the Holy Quran. And keep in mind how Allah blessed you, turning you from adversaries into brothers by bringing your hearts together. Additionally, He protected you from a pit of fire that you were on the brink of. In this way, Allah clarifies His verses for your guidance. (Al-Imran 3:103). One of the best examples of the OIC’s lack of unity is its inability to come up with a viable solution to the Palestine issue because of the growing gap between Muslim governments with Shia and Sunni majorities. Therefore, the absence of unity is the most urgent issue Muslims confront.
- Rise in sectarianism and social stagnation
Islam is a peaceful and inclusive religion and direct path to human rights and dignity without distinction and discrimination is found in Islamic teachings. However, Islamic society is currently fast sinking into social stagnation and sectarianism. Such as the Shia-Sunni war in Iran and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Comparisons to the dynamics of the Cold War era have been made to the competition. As of 2017, sectarianism in the area is being used by both nations for geopolitical ends as part of a wider battle, and the rivalry is essentially a political and economic struggle made worse by religious differences.
- Lagging in Islamic and scientific education
The largest challenge facing Muslim countries is, above all, a lack of education. Due to ignorance, Muslims are unable to compete and make a name for themselves in global society. When compared to the world’s heavyweights, Pakistan’s literacy rate is incredibly low, at just 62%, according to the Economic Survey of Pakistan. As a result, the country’s competitiveness gradually declines. Muslims must therefore place a high priority on education in order to overcome the challenges.
Solutions for the causes of the intellectual decline of the Muslim Ummah in the present day
- Fostering scholarly critical thinking and ijtihad (Addressing social and political factors hindering intellectual development)
Muslims’ intellectual decline can be addressed by addressing social and political problems that impede intellectual development and by promoting scholarly critical thinking and ijtihad. To make sure that Islamic law keeps up with advancements, critical thinking—which is the process of formulating ideas, opinions, and legal positions through assessment, comparison, analysis, and synthesis of the available source material—is crucial. According to Quran, Indeed, that is My Path—perfectly straight. So follow him and do not follow other ways, for they will lead you away from His Way. This is what He has commanded you, so perhaps you will be conscious of Allah.”(6-153).
- Unity in the Muslim ummah
Unity in Muslim ummah is as important for muslim society as water and air for plants. If Muslim countries united and started to assist each other, they wouldn’t need any assistance from their Western backers. According to the Quran, “And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided. And remember the favour of Allah upon you—when you were enemies, and He brought your hearts together, you became, by His favour, brothers. And you were on the edge of a pit of fire, and He saved you from it. Thus does Allah make clear to you His verses that you may be guided.” (Al-Imran 3:103). There are roughly 50 nations with a majority Muslim population. Muslims make up about 2 billion people or 25% of the global population. Other than the Arab world, there are no other countries that speak the same language. About 25 Arab countries—Muslim-majority countries in the Middle East, the Arabian Peninsula, and North Africa—speak Arabic. Language remains a unifying element. Unfortunately, this is not the situation in the Arab world.
- Authentic Interpretation of Islamic Teachings
Furthermore, addressing the intellectual degradation that Muslims suffer today can be achieved through an authentic interpretation of Islamic teachings. Muslims can overcome current obstacles from both inside and beyond their communities by going back to the fundamental ideas and ideals of Islam, which place emphasis on guidance, truth, and obedience to divine laws. This strategy promotes harmony, comprehension, and a stronger devotion to the religion, all of which can aid in resolving the underlying conflicts that are now present in the Muslim world.
“I leave behind me two things: the Quran and My Sunnah, and if you follow these, you will never go astray.”
- Strengthening Islamic culture and civilization
Last but not least, to safeguard Muslims from intellectual decline, radicalism, and narrow-mindedness, efforts should be made to spread correct information about Islam as a moderate and tolerant religion and to defend Islamic principles, values, and beliefs. Additionally, emphasize how inter-civilizational discussion based on equality and respect for one another is essential to global peace and security, tolerance, peaceful cohabitation, and participation in developing the foundation for that discourse. Encourage interreligious dialogue and draw attention to common ideals and beliefs.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, the lack of unity among Muslims, the rapid rise of extremism, the educational disparity among Muslims, the low economic standing of Muslim countries, the moral failure of leaders, the growing influence of Western civilization and culture, and authoritarian governance that is incompatible with Islam have all contributed to the current intellectual decline of the Muslim ummah. The solution for this sort of decline, however, is to strengthen Islamic culture and civilization, create unity within the Muslim ummah, encourage scholarly critical thinking and ijtihad (addressing social and political factors impeding intellectual development), and authentically interpret Islamic teachings.
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