Chapter 3
Dynamic Nature of the Quran
The fundamentalists preach that Islamic laws and precepts should be carried
out today exactly as they were 1,400 years ago. Maybe this is why they are
called fundamentalists! Let me comment, in passing, that I do not believe
this name is appropriate for them at all. They absolutely do not abide by
the fundamentals. Instead, they dogmatically adhere to the secondary commandments
and outdated forms, and sacrifice the principles and fundamentals to the
pettiest of their own interests. In the 20th century, they absurdly calculate
religious fines (diyat) and tithes based on the value of camels, sheep,
dates and the currency of 14 centuries ago.
Beyond the precepts and rules relevant only within a certain time-frame,
we must understand the spirit of Islam and the genuine outlook of the Quran.
The precepts must not be interpreted as unalterable dogmas; as circumstances
change, they must be replaced with new precepts more compatible with Islam's
ideal society. This is the dynamism of the Quran and of an ideology which
claims to respond to the problems and needs of humankind and society in
any circumstances. When this dynamism is overlooked, it inevitably leads
to retrogression, oppression and discrimination emerging under the cloak
of Islam.
Dogmatism about the letter of the law while overlooking its spirit is not,
of course, exclusive to Islam, but has a long history in all ideologies
and creeds. To distinguish right from wrong, one must first differentiate
between the overall objectives and strategies and the tactical means of
achieving those objectives. Consider, for example, a boat sailing toward
the shore. The ultimate objective is to reach the shore, and the strategy
is to go straight ahead, directly east, for example. Paddling, adjusting
the speed, and other mandatory behavior at any stage should never be considered
unalterable and inflexible. Otherwise, tactics will replace strategy, diverting
or reversing the desired direction. The objective will be forgotten, and
the means will become the end to themselves.
No matter how definite and unchangeable a goal is, therefore, rules, regulations
and tactical precepts are flexible, provided they are not rejected due to
opportunism or personal interest. Dogmatic adherence to them will stunt
efforts to achieve the final objective or delay its achievement. We must
move forward toward the goal, without dogmatism, without opportunism, without
profiteering, without an outdated approach to tactical rules, regulations
and precepts. Otherwise, we will be deviated from the correct path.
Aside from this introduction, Islam is a religion, an ideology, with fundamental
views on humankind, society and history. It defines each of these concepts
within the philosophy of Towhid, or monism. One fundamental and central
theme, derived from Islam's monistic approach to existence, is equality
among human beings. It is explicitly emphasized in the Quran that all human
beings are equal, regardless of gender, race or nationality. According to
this principle, the only criterion for differentiating among people is the
extent of their cognizance, emancipation, and sense of responsibility, which
in Quranic terminology is called Taqwa. The equality of women and men is
one of the most obvious aspects of the Towhidi philosophy.
This guiding principle is proclaimed in the chapter The Inner Apartments,
verse 13: "O' People! We created you, men and women, and made you into
Nations and tribes, that yea may know each other. Verily the most honored
of you in the sight of God is the most righteous of you."
Another guiding principle is that Islam's social ideal strives for freedom,
justice and social unity. The Quran describes the mandate of monotheist
prophets as inspiring humankind to rise up and establish Qest, the ultimate
stage of social freedom, justice and unity. The sura Iron, verse 25, reads:
"We sent aforetime, our apostles with Clear Signs and set down with
them The Book and the Balance (of right and wrong), that peoples may stand
forth in justice." In such a society, the oppressed and the talented
- whose talents have been suppressed - will be free and, at the zenith of
their development, will occupy positions of leadership, and the community
will flourish. The Narration, verse 5: "And we wished to be gracious
to those who were abased in the land, to make them leaders and make them
heirs."
Such examples vividly express Islam's genuine views on humankind and history.
The leaders of Islam, inspired by this outlook and striving to move toward
Islam's ideal society, responded to the extent that their circumstances
allowed change. For such a society to be realized, of course, many grounds
had to be prepared. It was not possible even for the Prophet of Islam to
instantly realize these ideals in the primitive society of his time. The
Prophet could not simply issue a decree abolishing even the most violently
oppressive and blatant form of discrimination, slavery; instead, he laid
the groundwork for its annihilation. The Tradition, guidance and direction
provided by the Prophet and the Quran led to the rapid elimination of this
inhuman phenomenon. Today, we can appreciate that given the economic structure
of the time and the rudimentary state of the forces of production, any decree
to completely abolish slavery would have brought progress neither to the
society nor to the system of production as a whole. So premature a measure
would have delayed the actual eradication of slavery. It is evident in the
spirit of all the teachings and actions of the Prophet, however, that slavery
is a stigma on the visage of humanity; one that must be removed as soon
as possible, so that the tremendous gap between the infancy and maturity
of the human race can be bridged.
It is important to note that today, even the fundamentalists cannot claim
that the Quran, because it did not explicitly abolish slavery, condoned
the practice, let alone defended it.
So the key is to grasp the spirit and genuine outlook of the Quran. This
understanding will enable the followers of this religion at any historical
stage to determine the precepts and laws suited to their time. To understand
this concept, let us read the Quran to see how verses are categorized and
defined. The Family of Imran, verse 7: "He it is Who has sent down
to thee the Book: In it are verses fundamental (muhkamat); They are the
foundation of the Book: others are allegorical (motashabihat). But those
in whose hearts is perversity follow the part thereof that is allegorical,
seeking discord."
The fundamentalists and reactionaries interpret all the precepts and temporal
rules as unchangeable dogma. This interpretation contradicts the Quran's
own definitions and categorization. Muhkamat are the fundamental principles
of Islam, definite and unchangeable. Motashabihat are relative, dynamic
and flexible. Elsewhere, the Quran uses the term mathani (which means flexible
and having dynamism) for motashabihat.
The Crowds, verse 23: "God has revealed the most beautiful Message
in the form of a Book, Consistent with itself, (yet) repeating (its teaching
in various aspects)."
Take the precepts on inheritance, for example: Fourteen centuries ago, a
woman's share was set at half a man's. If the historical circumstances are
ignored and this ruling is interpreted as permanent, then its significance
at the time cannot be appreciated. Furthermore, the unrealistic conclusion
would be that Islam opposes the equality of women and men. In fact, Islam
accorded women a share in inheritance at a time when they basically inherited
nothing, but were themselves inherited. They were part of their husband's
property, to be owned by his heirs or other men of their tribe.
So the very idea of according women the right to inheritance, in and of
itself, was a revolution. We all know that until just recently, even in
European countries, women had no financial independence. Another important
point to note is that 14 centuries ago, women did not play any role in production
and men provided for the family expenses. All things considered, it is natural
to conclude that when socio-economic progress allows, and when women's socio-economic
status has changed or been allowed to change, the Quran's dynamism calls
for changes in inheritance laws, and that is why, as we have already declared,
women and men enjoy equal and identical rights with respect to inheritance.
The same holds true for many other precepts on social or legal issues, such
as testimony, the payment of fines, etc. Consider the precept on testimony,
whereby the testimony of two women is equal to that of one man. In this
case, too, a dogmatic interpretation would presume that this decree is immutable
and eternal. Again, that would mean inequality, attributed to Islam. Whereas
14 centuries ago, when women had no rights in primitive societies and female
infants were buried alive, such decrees were very important, bold initiatives
towards establishing women's rights. Now look at the fundamentalists, and
see how they have distorted the liberating message and ideal of Islam with
their dogmatic interpretations, reducing it to a deficient, short-sighted
and profiteering mentality.
I would like to add that the fundamentalist mullahs' claim that they are
carrying out the religious precepts in accordance with the Tradition of
the Prophet is a blatant lie. It is common knowledge that one of the most
brilliant aspects of the Prophet's mission was to emancipate and teach respect
for women. It was he who made it a mortal sin to slander a woman, who levied
a heavy punishment for the slanderer, and who ruled that to prove the accusation,
one had to produce four witnesses. Even when faced with a confession, time
and again he simply turned his face away and urged the sinner to repent.
The misogynous mullahs, however, slander hundreds of women every day, detain
them, flog them or stone them in public. Imam Ali tells us: "There
will come a time when nothing will remain of the Quran but a set of rituals.
And nothing will be more common than attributing falsities to God and the
Prophet."
Let us also acquaint ourselves a little with Imam Ali's views on the Quran
and the religious precepts. "The Quran has spelled out what is lawful
(halaal) and unlawful (haraam); what is obligatory (wajeb) and recommended
(mostahab); what is renewing (nassekh) and outdated (mansookh); what is
general and specific; what is fundamental and allegorical." He continues:
"The Quran has proclaimed some things as obligatory, but they have
been annulled by the Prophet's Tradition. There are also certain matters
that have been considered as obligatory in the Tradition, but the Quran
allows their annulment. There are also matters that were obligatory in their
own time, but were later abolished." Do these remarks by Imam Ali endorse
the fundamentalist interpretation, or prove the dynamism of the Quran?
The introduction of Ijtihad to respond to the questions and developments
of any historic juncture is more solid proof of the dynamism of Islam and
the Quran. Ijtihad is undertaken by a decent, competent leader who believes
in the religion, has a good knowledge of the ideology and its emancipating
mandate, and is also abreast of the developments of the time. Unfortunately,
despite official Shiite recognition of Ijtihad, in practice this institution
has been used not to reflect the dynamism of the Quran, but to formulate
reactionary readings of the precepts and distort the liberating message
of Islam.
Relying on the principal Islamic texts, such as the Quran, the Mojahedin
have discovered the dynamism of the Holy Book. For their part, the fundamentalists
cannot produce any viable counter arguments. Islam, free of rust and reactionary
distortions, has become the essential, eternal premise and "breakthrough"
ideology of the People's Mojahedin of Iran. Their grasp of genuine Islam
was made possible by the organization's ideological research based on the
Quran, the original texts of Islamic culture, and 30 years of practical
experience under the leadership of Massoud Rajavi. He truly is Iran's most
qualified, most decent, most selfless leader and Islamic ideologue. He has
conveyed and taught the Mohammadan Islam as a religion of mercy and tolerance,
freedom and democracy, progress and advancement of science and society to
an unrelenting generation of Muslims.
Years before Khomeini seized power in Iran, the demarcation between the
Mojahedin's ideology and the ideas of Khomeini and his reactionary clerics
had surfaced. In the early days of Khomeini's rule, a tremendous number
of young people, intellectuals, and progressive clerics chose the Mojahedin's
interpretation of Islam and supported Massoud Rajavi. Since the 1906 Constitutional
Revolution, generation after generation of Iranians have been aware of the
views of the reactionaries. Subsequent to the anti-monarchic revolution,
these very ideas basically served the political ends of a suppressive regime,
enjoying neither influence nor ideological weight. Consequently, a furious
Khomeini had to call off his unpopular televised classes in which he interpreted
the Quran. He also had to close down the weekly classes at Sharif University
of Technology, where 10,000 university students eagerly gathered to listen
to Massoud Rajavi teach philosophy and a comparative study on the nature
of existence. On March 1, 1980, Le Monde wrote: "Among the most important
events not to be missed in Tehran are the courses on comparative philosophy,
taught every Friday afternoon by Mr. Massoud Rajavi. Some 10,000 people
presented their admission cards to listen for three hours to the lecture
by the leader of the People's Mojahedin on Sharif University's lawn."
"In the weekly conferences at Sharif University," Le Monde continued,
"Mr. Rajavi draws help from the Quran, the Old Testament and the Bible
as well as from Plato, Socrates, Sartre, Hegel, Marx, and others to explain
the Mojahedin's ideology. The courses are recorded on video cassettes and
distributed in 35 cities. They are also published in paperback and sold
by the hundreds of thousands of copies."
Now, let us study Islam's view of women and compare it, in accordance with
its fundamental principles, with the outlook of the fundamentalists. This
is a discussion which I think will bring many pervious discussions into