Can I speak authoritatively on Muslims? Most probably not. For, I do not know Arabic, nor have I read the Koran, even though the Old Testament King James Versions is familiar to me. Yet, maybe there might be something in my observations that could hold a candle to deciphering them.

It is possible that Islam is a very noble religion. Yet, it has had the misfortune to be identified with some of the most tedious-to-support actions.

Some 30 years and back, a very illustrative feature was seen in the Muslims who lived on the Malabar coast of India. They had a social relationship, which stood in sharp contrast to that of the local Hindus. While the Hindus lived social lives of severe feudal restrictions, and strictures on interactions, the Muslims of this area, who are generally called Mappillas, exhibited a sort of ‘disturbing levels’ of human brotherhood. To explain it more, let me say that one could see an employer and an employee sitting and eating on the same table in the employer’s or employee’s home, using the same level of terms of intimate communication. Here I have entered into an area, which I have to explain. The language of this region, ‘Malayalam’ is very, very feudal, and each words, or sentence has a direction component, which sharply denotes who is the boss, social superior, socially dominant, or financially competent etc. and is very derogatory towards subordinate beings. But among the Mappilas, this factor was conspicuous by its very obvious absence.

In many ways, this was a very disturbing feature to the whole society, for these persons also lived in a society filled with persons who could exist with ease only with visible social and familial attributes.

(It is my contention that there is a factor of different religious groups existing in differing language structures, which creates varying and mutually incompatible social relationships, that adds to the lingering animosity between ethnic or religious groups).

As the years went by, the Muslims also slowly imbibed the features of the Hindu social communication, more so, due to the ‘universalisation’ and standardisation of education.

Even though the Islam religion does have very sharp attitudes against the social negativity of many Asian nations, the fact remains that the Muslims do exist in these very socially negative nations. There are two most significant factors that I have noticed:

One is the existence of so-called religious teachers, called ‘Musaliar’ in local parlance. It is possible that many of them do have intelligent information on many themes; yet, there does exist a lot of these persons, who come from very low social and educational backgrounds. For them, more than volition, religious teaching is a real vocation, for earning a livelihood. Infrequently one does hear their speeches, inadvertently. I have found that at least some of them do try to compensate for their lack of general information, with highly provocative and extremely narrow, views of other societies, using highly inflammatory words.

Since these persons are a sort of focus of many socially immobile classes of persons, they do tend to influence their minds with sharp animosities. And due to the fact that these demagogues can easily influence the society, the more educated Muslims generally prefer to play it safe by keeping their own mental reflections to themselves.

Now let us see what happened to the Indian Muslim mindset with regard to the English nations.

With regard to the British, the schools in India parrot out the theme (such as) that the British deliberately tried to destroy their religions by making Muslim soldiers of the East India Company tear out the Royal Enfield rifle cartridge covers (using their teeth), which were lubricated with pork fat. Many other themes of how the Muslims were sidelined, and exploited by the British are the theme songs of Indian government history. To say that this has no effect on the general Muslim mindset is to be very, very naïve.

For many, many years, the general refrain among the Indians was that America was a nation that supported the Muslim Pakistan. From this position, who moved America to that a position of supposedly anti-Muslim?

One of the greatest actors in this was and is the media, mainly the print media. I believe that two different issues can easily be identified here. One is the fact that most of the rich media owners do live a life of ‘Best of both worlds’, in that they have their one foot in the English West, and the other on top of the hierarchical Indian East. It is a most common knowledge that a foot in the English West is a coveted position for any Indian, and he or she doesn’t like others from his connected society to compete with him from this position.

This is the case with most senior journalists also; they also covet their English social associations, and friendships; and do display these with a most condescending attitude to the others in the Indian society. Yet they also do take pain to misrepresent their English associates as having a certain level of depravity. So, what generally comes out is a sort of allusions to English persons, places, and incidences etc. all with a certain level of enviable familiarity; at the same time, a sort of deprecation of English social systems, history, attitudes, actions, and almost all things; a sort of warning to all others to keep away from all Englishmen.

The second factor is the general thought that the poverty of India is caused by the continuing exploitation of India by the English nations. This, in a way, is propagated by the rich persons in India, for others to believe. Actually, the poverty in India exists in the very mindset of the Indian, and has deep connection to the structure of the Indian languages. Yet, when Muslim religious teachers harp on Britain and America, the undercurrents of the understanding that these are rich nations, who behave in the same manner the Indian rich behaves to the poor Indians, come to the fore. Naturally the media, also uses the same theme as it is a very easy to support stand, even though they themselves are pretty rich.

Not many Indians, including the Muslims remember the fact that when the Islamic Pakistan was in terrible conditions, after the surrendering of the Pakistani Army in East Pakistan under General Niazi, and the Indian Army was overrunning Karachi, it was Pakistan’s friend America that came to its rescue. US despatched the Seventh Fleet to the Bay of Bengal from Deigo Gracia in the Indian Ocean, and gave a deadline to India to withdraw. It was then rumoured in India that the planes from the Seventh Fleet could destroy any or all Indian military centres within a time period of six hours.

(It is really a most enduring reality that if UK and US withdraw their protection to the nations in the Middle East, such as the UAE, Bahrain, Kwuait etc., their sovereignty wouldn’t last for more than a day, for all neighbouring nations would send their police or army to occupy them).

Many, many years later, when the whole world was seeing the saving of the Muslims in Bosnia by the British and Americans, there was barely any mention of it, in the Indian media, both print as well as visual. Yet, there was severe publicity given to the fact that the Serbian towns were being destroyed, by the English nations. Not much mention was given to the fact that the whole action was to save Muslims, and not Christians.

Generally all journalists who live their lives writing such themes later try for UK or US citizenships. So one can imagine the type of mindset they bring over there also.

Now let me quote from my own book:

“Apart from all this, I have seen a very strange phenomenon. I was once living in a (Muslim) place with very violent anti-American feelings. The society was highly segmented in a very feudal manner. The lower guys were addressed consistently with very powerful lower indicant words, yet they were more respectful to those who did it stolidly. It was very obvious to me that the lower sections are kept in a sort of mental subjugation by the higher sections, yet the lower sections only had mutual animosity among themselves, and in all such disputes, the higher guys were the mediators.

In spite of this very obvious suppression that the lower section were enjoying, there was always a continuing theme in the air that the poverty and privation that they were suffering from, were due to the devious designs of the developed nations like Britain, America etc. In all meetings and speeches, which obviously were organised by the higher sections, this was a ringing theme. Yet, nobody from among the lower section could understand that the improvement for the lower sections should start in their immediate social set-up. Nor, was there anyone of calibre enough to understand this paradox, and to ask for its obliteration.”

Now what has all this to do with the Muslim feelings in other Asian nations? Well, even though Islam may be harping on Universal Brotherhood, and such very fantastic social themes, the reality is that even though this religion obviously came up with the aim of destroying the tribal feudal hierarchical social communication systems in the Asian societies, it has had the misfortune to exist in the midst of its very opposite social systems. Obviously it has not been very successful in its social aims, for the reality may be that Islam exists in the crevices of the same extremely feudal social structures, it actually tried to demolish.

Right from Saudi Arabia, through Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, to such nations as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Indonesia etc. this could be the simmering reality.

For understanding macroscopic historical incidences, microscopic understandings have far greater significance than generally understood.

Apart from all this, is about the impact of Muslims on English nations. Actually in this aspect, even though all the above mentioned factors could mould the Muslim mindset, the parameters of the total impact may not be limited to their religious denomination. Being the carriers of feudal language mindset, a feature they have in common with all the others coming from these feudal language nations, their most forceful effect could be connected what is the social structure embedded in their languages.

Here it may be mentioned that, as I have earlier mentioned in my insertion in the literary section: The Godfather: What props his pedestal (about the Italian Mafia), there would be social and familial strings that forms and endures, in sharp isolation to external social realities. These strings in the case of Muslims could be formed in the religious schools, where the teachings are done in feudal languages. These strings are not really connected to the tenants of Islam, but to the hold on each person, the language extends. This may not be a unique feature of Islam, but something common to persons from other religious beliefs also, from similar language backgrounds. Yet, the sectarian ambience built up in religious schools could really enhance its power to levels not understandable from English.

Yet, its affect may not necessarily be religious or that of terrorism. It could more be a sort of a secluded systems of information sharing, like that of business, links that could sponsor nepotism, and such other things, where others of other communities could stand excluded. As regards this feature, it may be categorically said that it is not a unique Muslim attitude, but could also have been practised by many others of similar disposition like possibly the Sindhis, Jews etc. (I am not sure).

Even though, I did mention the South Indian language of Malayalam, I would like to say that even though such languages as Hindi, Urdu could possibly be much more liberal than South Indian languages, they also do carry codes that really can splinter the English social fabric.

Beyond all this is the fact that when persons start talking in English, a sort of unique personal liberation sets in. The reasons for this is not very apparent to the feudal language speaker; he or she can only understand that when persons get embedded into English social systems, they suddenly turn more free. Actually such freedom, seen from the closed environs of a feudal language may seem a sort of impertinence when visible in men, and that of wanton behaviour in women. Actually such behaviour if replicated into feudal language interactions could really stain a woman’s social attributes. The fact that such things are not possible in English is not understandable to the person from the feudal language ethnicity.

This also lends to a sort of insecure feelings to the outsider, who may himself enjoy the freedom, but may view with grave misgivings when another, including a woman enjoys the same. These feelings also make the ethnic societies take an attitude of antipathy to English systems. These ethnic systems include the Muslims also.

Actually it may be seen that when Muslim social leaders argue for retaining the cultural purity of their religious followers, it is not Islam that they are trying to promote or protect, but the anomalous social systems of their own native nations, from which many actually tried to escape by running to English societies. If these negative social mindsets are removed from Islam, it could be a very fine religion; but then these so-called religious leaders may lose their followers, and thus their pedestal of leadership.

Continued:

QUOTE(ukcoder @ Feb 7 2006, 12:02 AM)

Deciphering is for decrypting an encrypted text or an algorithm. The last thing we should do is decipher any relegion. Which one of the four versions is authentic? why many verses are missing from the Bible etc..

Believe and accept

I just noticed this reply, since I came back after much time.

When I used the word deciphering, I used it deliberately. Because the undercurrents of my writings, do touch upon a software called language. There are codes, in its, visible to those who are aware of it. It designs emotions also.

Continued:

Again the English world is captivated by the seeming connection between Islam and Terrorism. One may feel that there is need to study the Muslim theology, the Holy Quran, and the various Haddiths, and Sunnahs to understand what creates such deviant emotions in such persons. Yet, I would say that the whole endeavour is bound to be a useless one.

For the reasons for such emotions may not be found encoded in any of the things mentioned. For it actually exists in the languages and words.

Even such a simple sentence in English as ‘Where are you going?” when spoken in many other languages, can come loaded with an immensity of powerful reverences, animosities, snubbing, timidity, terrorising, irritations, and even allusions to many other unconnected events and realties. Beyond all this, they do contain powerful links, subjugations, and loyalties, which cannot be imagined from English.

If anyone really wants to search for the tremendous power that moves intelligent persons to act with unintelligent vengeance, they have to seek it in the codes and designs that I mentioned here.

Yet, why the Muslims alone are seen as the harbingers of terrifying moods also can be asked:

It is connected to various other factors like that a minor section of the Muslims live in incredible wealth (with no logical reason to its possession), while other wallow in stupefying levels of poverty and yearnings

the fact that Islam was born and bred in social systems which were the very opposite of Islamic tenets,

the issue of Israel-Arab conflict which contains elements of non-logical positions easily vulnerable to demagogic rhetoric,

such other issues as of Kashmir, where a freedom struggle was cleverly converted into a sectarian violence over the years

the fact that in many nations the English world is identified with the rich, where their own rich live in feudal powers,

and the most important fact that many newly independent nations’ school history is simply a propaganda literature for igniting anti-British themes, written in colourful, passionate words.

Yet, the most powerful thing that links all these things to form a very extensive web of hatred is the codes in the language, which simply remains incomprehensive to the average English speaker, even if it is spoken right in their own midst. For, the effect is of a long expansive span, and even the speakers themselves wouldn’t know what they are sowing. The society at large reaps the terrible harvest.

It may be understood that many others other than Muslims also can sow the same evil codes. Yet, they do not have a unifying standard to bear. Even the so-called Hindus, are really a mass of mutually antagonistic groups, who do not follow the same leadership.

In many ways in feudal language areas, everything is a matter of leadership; and craving for retaining it. The modern leaders of the developing nations work incessantly to see that the loyalty of their own people is contained in their own hands, using indoctrination.

I must admit that I may not have been very convincing or clear here. I am simply lacking time, nowadays.