Analysis of Milestone Written by Qutb S - Book Report/Review Example

Milestone Qutb was an Egyptian and thinker who lived from 1906 to 1966. He is considered to be a leading intellectual of Islam as it has taken shape through the sixties to today. His works and thoughts encourage change to be brought to the Muslim world in order to bring them closer to the ideals of Islam rather than the western civilization which he thought to be faltering and decadent (Wikipedia. 2008). In fact, what most Americans would consider to be innocent displays of culture and social norms, Qutb (1964) thought to be useless in terms of providing a way of life. He notes that, “Western civilization is unable to present any healthy values for the guidance of mankind (Qutb, 1964, Pg. 1)”. It must be noted that the book was written at a time when America as well as the rest of the world was going through numerous changes that were going towards shaping the modern economic systems, the modern governmental systems and the manner in which civilization was to take shape. The 60s was a formative decade indeed since the affects of the Second World War had been shaken off by most of the world and the countries which had gained independence after the Second World War were just beginning to stand on their own feet. However, many such nations in the Middle East, Africa and Asia were struggling with the changes that were being forced upon them. In this context, the war between the western allies who promoted a democratic system and the communist nations of the world often drew in other non aligned nations who had no particular ideology to hold on to. In this scenario, Qutb (1964) presents his ideas of leading Islamic nations through the means of following a new path which is based on the Holy Scriptures of Islam and the examples set down by the followers of Muhammad who were with him in his life. In fact, it was this book itself which was used to prove in an Egyptian court that Qutb was engaged in sedition against the ruling government and was executed for conspiring against the state (Wikipedia. 2008). The primary point made by Qutb (1964) is that the Muslims have lost their way which was shown to them through the Quran and the words of the prophet. In essence, it seems that instead of taking a modern viewpoint on Islam, Qutb favors something which is closer to a fundamentalist approach to Islam in order to bring Muslims closer to how the prophet and his companions lived their lives (Wikipedia. 2008). In his view, the Quran itself is not seen as metaphysical or theological work but as a code of rules which should be used as the basis of forming a governmental system. The ideas presented in the book can certainly be taken as seditious depending on the interpretation given to them. For example, Qutb (1964) notes that Muslims should follow the Quran and the guidance contained within it even if it means that they would lose out in worldly terms. If the Quranic orders conflict with the orders of the government then the orders of the government are not valid. The conflict between science and religion is brushed aside by Qutb (1964) as he considers science subservient to the Quran and believe that science does not suggest anything which is contrary to the rules of the Islamic Sharia. In this manner, Qutb (1964) seeks the establishment of God’s government on earth which will remove all differences between individuals living in a state and will bring harmony to the people. In fact, when it comes to other systems of government or even the societies which are established by other philosophical guides, he considers them to be evil and corrupt. The primary targets for his labels of evil and corrupt are with the Americans who are thought to be to worst offenders when it comes to taking a liberal approach to life. At the same time, Qutb (1964) takes a very hardliner approach to negotiating or settling with those who have different beliefs than him since whatever is outside the fold of Islam is thought to be wrong. He believes that the truth of Islam cannot coexist with the falseness of other belief systems and any compromise would be against the tenants of Islam. Any reconciliation or even a search for common grounds would be useless since the principles of Islam according to Qutb (1964) do not allow Islamic values to be changed or altered in any shape. Moreover, even the existence of other systems is thought to be intolerable since they may spread and corrupt other Muslims. Qutb (1964) uses the example of socialist thought creeping into Egypt as an instance of how outside influences can corrupt the manner in which Islam is viewed by the people. Taking new views on Islam or trying to reconcile Islam with modern philosophical thought or emerging governmental systems is wrong because that would be against the way in which Muhammad worked and it would be completely against the way in which God has commanded Muslims to live. The system proposed by Qutb (1964) to bring Muslims back to the days of glory and to create a world where Islam is the dominant religion and governmental system is a system which has an elite governing group. These elite are called Talia by him and they form a group of individuals who model themselves on the companions of the prophet. The manner in which they operate is simple since it is based on two fundamentals. The first is to break off all connections from the outsiders who can influence them negatively and ignore any information given to them by non-Muslims. The second and perhaps more important principle is to look at the Quran for orders and obey these orders without question. The purpose of the Talia itself is twofold. First they have to be able to promote what they believe in through the use of persuasion and indoctrination which will let people become true Muslims. Secondly, and what could be of interest to western scholars is that Qutb (1964) advocates the use of force including a jihad which uses physical force to destroy any organization or system created by the outsiders for controlling Muslims. The primary targets here are institutes which create and give political powers to the outsiders. The use of force may be abhorred by some Muslims but Qutb (1964) explains that individuals and institutions which have gained force through illegitimate means over Muslims cannot be expected to give it up willingly. Thus when the Talia have enough force, they should strike against these targets with all their might to destroy them. This appears to be a very dangerous approach since a western reader can see this argument and line of thinking as an unreasonable justification for terrorist attacks. This is because instead of taking a defensive approach to jihad, Qutb (1964) is encouraging an offensive approach through any means which could be utilized to gain the objective. As per the guidelines given by him, the Talia should continue to preach, convert and then deploy individuals to wage jihad through continually attacking the corrupt systems which have enslaves Muslims. At the same time, he warns those who form a part of the Talia to be aware of hardships including torture at the hands of those who would seek to prevent them from gaining their objectives and asks them to take all the hardships necessary for the rule of Islam over the world. With these opinions presented in the text, it is not easy to see Qutb as an Islamic reformer since he is actively encouraging Muslims to take up arms against the west. While the book was written in the 60s, recent events and the current war of civilizations has shown us that his words have certainly affected some Muslims who consider themselves to be in the right by using terrorism and attacking western interests in whatever manner they can. I feel that a more liberal and open interpretation of Islam is necessary and this includes a reconsideration of the ideas presented by other Muslim thinkers who do not see the western ideals or the west itself as the enemy of Islam. Word Count: 1,402 Works Cited Qutb, S. 1964, ‘Milestone’, [Online] Available at: http://www.globusz.com/ebooks/Milestone/index.htm Wikipedia. 2008, ‘Sayyid Qutb’, [Online] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sayyid_Qutb Read More