by Saad Mahmood on Thursday, February 24, 2011 at 12:44am
"Sixty three have passed and we are still sleeping --- and I am definitely not running on an overdose of caffeine that I see everyone else sleeping."
With these confident words, I concluded my speech made before two of my friends. The dim expression on their faces gave me contentment that I had successfully delivered my point. Impulsively, one of them exclaimed, "Man, check out that bomb-shell!" I looked where he was pointing at and then looked at his grinning face with utter disgust. What a loser! I reflected over something and not knowing what else to do, turned around in the hope that I might spot a better looking girl than my friend did. After a prolonged analysis of the whole terrain, I was not able to spot even a single woman with her head covered. Amazing was it, that I was sitting in a presumed land of the pure, which was founded in the name of Islam, but I could not find a single person who was actually practicing Islam. Welcome to Pakistan! And allow me to introduce to you the brilliant nation of ours.
Honest, hardworking, fair, enthusiastic, just, morally upright, caring and purposeful: all of these attributes define a nation, which ours is definitely not. Our officials are renowned for their inefficiency; our politicians are famous for their unmatchable corruption; our army chiefs are revered for their keen interest in the governmental affairs; Our traders are acknowledged specialized in looting others; Our town dwellers are known for their ego and conceitedness; and our nation is known for being one of a kind --- the kind that you must have well understood by now. I agree that criticizing is the easiest thing to do, and others may criticize me for doing so. But honestly, I am innocent. The habit of criticising others, overlooking one's own self, is in the air that I breathe. After all, besides sleeping, gossiping and cheating, this is one thing each one from among our nation is equally good at.
Toning my tone slightly serious: See, no one is born perfect or infallible. Everyone is supposed to have certain faults or shortcomings. But in the longer run, it is not simply about the faults that one possesses, it is about how one tackles those problems or faults. We being a nation, have failed in this regard. We try our best to rely on others in our day to day issues and generally, whenever a new problem arises, our common reaction is to back out and assume that someone else will do it (to be noted that I am speaking about the 'positive' things here only). What we do not realize that someone else left after someone else is eventually no one else, except of course the problem itself. Einstein is quoted to have said:
"The price of greatness is responsibility."
the derivative of which becomes: "The fine of irresponsibility is disgrace", which is what we have in plenty. Be it in sports, academics or politics, we have earned it and many shamless of us hold it bold and proud.
That was quite sufficient of an appetizer serving, now let us get to the real point which is, how to change the fate of our destitute nation? Unfortunately, the answer does not come packed in a multi-action, easy-to-swallow pill. For changing the scales that hold our fate, we certainly would be required to take extensive courses of the bitterest of all pills, namely hard work: which is pretty hard to do - especially for the people like us. Before that, we must realize our identity: our 'self' termed by Allama Mohammad Iqbal as Khudi.
~ Dive into the realms of self to discover the clue of life! (Iqbal)
Because, just as the structure of a building depends on its foundation, likewise our identity, our ideological basis, our values serve as our foundation. Among the major causes of our downfall is that we have ignored our real identity. And this identity of ours is provided by Islam. Pakistan was aimed to be nothing but a magnificent fort of Islam, where Muslims could freely practice Islam, under an Islamic leadership. Had our elders desired of living in a god-neglected or a Hindu/western-oriented culture, they would never have settled upon creating Pakistan, and that too by sacrificing their own blood and wealth. They did manage to get an appreciable piece of land for turning this dream project of theirs into reality, but unfortunately, their tenure of staying in this world came to an end pretty soon, and so did the national dream of breathing in a truly Islamic state. We, now, are the ones on whose shoulders lies the responsibility of making this dream a reality.
Nation building evolves from individual development. Just as a saltwater sea cannot be turned into a freshwater lake unless the imbalanced salts retained by seawater are removed, likewise a disturbed nation cannot be turned into a good one unless the bad salts retained by every individual are removed. Consider for example the case of a student: The venomous salts of corruption can seek admission in him as he deliberately tries to cheat on examinations. So are related the stubborn salts of lying, prevarication, hypocrisy, laziness and inefficiency. Being a student who wants the destiny of the nation to be changed, he needs to inhibit the inhabitation of such salts within himself; and also prevent the salts from saying Home-Sweet-Home to other fellow beings. Reminded that: Charity begins at home.
Practically this can be made possible if one makes his character strong. When one comes across a thing materialistically benefiting one, it should be first considered whether that benefits others or not, and also whether Allah allows that or not. This inner sense of correctly judging right and wrong is a valuable key, highly helping in unlocking the doors to the actual success.
Quality education of the masses is of critical importance as well. In fact, it is the education around which most of the other factors mentioned here revolve. We need to provide our people with purposeful education; showing any substandard and illogical methods, adopted in the provision of education, the way to exit.
Another factor which devoids us from being a quality nation is the absence of the feelings of brotherhood and fraternity among us. These need to be cultivated. We have to put aside all the man-made divisional boundaries like that of sectarianism, racism, tribalism, provincialism and (the latest of the collection) political party-ism. We must learn to love one another; feel for one another; care for one another; and share for one another. The strength of a chain is not estimated by the material used; it is done by inspecting how well the chain links are joined to one another.
We need to actively participate in the affairs of our country: because, it is ours. A corrupt politician being aware that the nation is active, will not even dare to do something fishy. Because if he does, the nation will fish him out immediately. We need to sound out our opinions concerning the governmental legislations; provide positively helpful suggestions to them; and rebuke them, in the best manner possible, whenever they go wrong. This is both our right and responsibility. Moreover, the officials should be kept realized that they are servants, not masters: so they should behave accordingly and not misuse their power.
The details expressed above are all categorised under the prerequisites of the change we ask for. If these are achieved, then the next step for progress is easy to deal with: which includes the industrial, monetary and resources' development, management et cetera. A dedicated, just and righteous administration would know how to deal with all these strategic issues in the best way possible.
I have already crossed the limit of expression allowed to be expressed. Needless to say, this topic is unsatisfiable no matter how much one writes. Summing up, I will say: my dear fellow brothers, whether young or old, wake up and see the sun across the horizon. It is shining with all its might, right? Then why are not you! Why, even after coming across this idea several times, you do not reflect:
Never has God changed the state of that nation:
Who is oblivious of changing its own condition!
Pull off the dark curtain of ignorance and fraud decorating your senses, and look around: So many people are waiting eagerly for you to help them; beauties are waiting for you to watch them dance; your Lord is waiting for you to turn to Him, to beg Him for forgiveness, and to ask for guidance to the straight path al'Siraat al'Mutaqeem. And last but not the least, your own self is calling on you to discover it and put to use its enormous capabilities.
So get up and set to work. I know, I know that the plight of your fellow nationals hurts you. It also hurts me. But simply bearing the pain would not do. You have to work. You have to work as if the weight of the whole nation rests upon your shoulders. Have faith; believe me, that you being a Muslim have the potential of crushing down the mountains and tearing apart the oceans. But that requires you to be a genuine Muslim --- not a hypocrite like me.
Elevate your self to the level that before every predestination;
God asks you Himself: tell, what is your volition!
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An original work by Saad Mahmood. Please feel agitated to copy or plagiarise anything from this essay.
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