Are We Our Fore Fathers?

And they swore by Allah (SWT) that their most binding oath that if a warner came to them , they would be more guided than any of the nations (before them); Yet when a warner (Muhammad PBUH) came to them, it increased in them nothing but flight (from the truth). Sura Fatir: 42 Weve often heard countless stories of the mentality of the people during the Holy Prophets (PBUH) time and of the horrendous and ignorant acts they would perform, whether it was from burying female babies or praying while intoxicated. While female infanticide has long since been abolished and the consumption of alcohol been outlawed, do we ever think that we too in the 20th century could act as our forefathers once did? Many of us may make the assumption that we are far more advanced and intelligent than the people of the Prophets time simply because we ride in cars instead of camels, we no longer bury female children because of their gender, or because the level of education far outweighs the likes of that 1400 years ago. When we analyze our actions compared to those of the people 1400 years ago - are we so different from them during Jahiliyah, in that they too fled from the truth when it was set before them. We might discover similar behaviors. The image of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) walking through the streets of Makka having stones thrown on him and thorns embedded in his feet by the hands of Abu Lahabs wife; Umm Jumail. Or the image of a door crushing the blessed ribs of someone the Holy Prophet (said Whoever angers her -angers me, and whoever displeases her displease me. These images are all too real for us to imagine being done to the Messenger of Allah let alone his family. Though these actions have since stopped; are we not in effect flying away from the truth if we do not acknowledge their enormous sacrifice by taking the time to educate ourselves with the countless literature that is out there? Or not taking the time to fully understand the true meaning of Hijaab and not neglecting the fact that this requirement was sent down to the men of the community to lower their gaze first. Or for the sister to neglect the importance of attaining the three levels of Hijaab i.e. the physical covering,

the behavior of a Muslimaa, and the responsibility that she has to promote the message of Islam. Upon further analysis - we may in fact act like our forefathers once did. If the Quran, being the words of Allah (SWT) and its recitation a means of purifying mans heart is not apart of our daily lives, then are we not rejecting the Quran and its teachings in much the same way as the Jews did with the Torah or the Christians with the Injil? Or continue to engage in illegitimate relationships in the same manner as Ibne Ziyad. How are we not like our forefathers. Much like 1400 years ago, ignorance or a rejection of the truth branches off into a disease that spreads and attacks every aspect of ones life and drives some to commit the unthinkable reality of massacring the grandson of the Holy Prophet; Imam Husain (as). If we say that we are in fact not like our forefathers then we must take heed to Imam Jafar Sadiqs (as) recommendation of not being like the donkey, for the donkey simply carries items on their backs without knowing what they are or how beneficial they are to his life. Likewise, let us not disregard the message of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) by not taking advantage of the abundant access that we have to learning about Islam, our Ahlul Bait, and how they can play a role in shaping and moving our lives towards closeness to Allah (SWT).