JUST CONTEMPLATING ON - THE STRUGGLE FOR THE SOUL AND FUTURE OF AFGHANISTAN AND THE AFGHANS. PART 3.

 

And, in the same order of importance, the role of religion, namely Islam, in the country and the nation.

Can Afghanistan become a modern and prosperous nation, in which the reasonable political, religious and other human rights of the individual and groups can be realised and safeguarded? 

Or must those rights, or some or all of them be suppressed and suffocated in deference to Islamic monopolism?

It would appear that, for some Muslims, the two perspectives are incompatible. 

That it is not realisable for Afghanistan to evolve a modern, futuristic and prosperous nation, while retaining its essentially Islamic soul. 

To some extent, this is not a surprising conclusion, since Islam, as the orthodox Muslim or believer would contend, is more than 'just a religion.' It, Islam, they would argue, is a way of life. 

Whereas Jesus Christ - Isa, in Islam - was reported to have said that one is to give unto Ceasar what is his, according to the secular society or imperative, you might say. 

Islam, or those believers who are wedded to Islamic orthodoxy, seeks to put its stamp or religiosity on all aspects of the citizenry's life. 

Islam is used to measure and quantify all of society, its politics, its economics, its governance, its legal system, its culture, traditions, everything.

It is therefore not surprising that more progressive and secular Muslims and/or Afghans, should be experiencing a massive sense of trauma, by the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban. 

Yes, the current Taliban leadership and political system might not be as brutal and lacking in compassion like its 1980s/90s prototype. 

And yet, because of its literalistic interpretation of Islam, there is probably little doubt that the Taliban of 2021, in comparable terms.  

Are still more firmly rooted in the Islamic version of the 'Biblical Old Testament', than of the 'Biblical New Testament.'

So, yes, it is true that a Taliban government, or, while some of us remain wishful, predominantly Taliban government, is not going to bring enlightenment to Afghanistan. 

To be continued!