[Full Lecture] Whisperings of the Postmodern World | Nouman Ali Khan | Dr. Halis Aydemir | Istanbul

TLDR;

This discussion explores the internal and external forces that challenge Islam, the nature of secularism, and the importance of individual responsibility and understanding in faith. It emphasizes the need to reclaim true freedom and avoid corrupted representations of Islam.

• Internal and external forces challenge Islam.
• Secularism's philosophical and practical implications.
• Individual responsibility and understanding in faith.
• Reclaiming true freedom from societal pressures.
• Importance of Quran-inspired psychology.

Introduction and Purpose of Discussion [3:13]

The discussion's purpose is to address various ideologies like postmodernism, atheism, and secularism, and how they are understood across different cultures. The goal is to mediate potential differences in understanding these concepts and to examine how Islam stands resilient against these ideologies, as embodied by those in Palestine and Gaza. The discussion aims to understand these identities and ideologies, recognizing that they may sometimes be used as tribal allegiances rather than true descriptions of reality.

The Nature of External and Internal Forces [6:45]

An ayah from the Quran is mentioned, highlighting that every prophet faces enemies, both from mankind and jinn, who whisper deceptive words to mislead people. It's explained that those who dislike the truth will seek alternative paths, and after Allah's guidance, there is only misguidance. The core message of all prophets is to worship Allah alone, while devils forge many sins. Numan Ali Khan adds that forces that try to misguide from Islam operate externally through ideologies like atheism and internally by contaminating the original message.

Corruption of Religious Teachings [12:59]

The true religion of Allah is constantly under threat of contamination from outside forces, presenting the religion through a corrupted lens rather than rejecting it outright. The example of Christianity is used, where the original mission of Jesus to fight corruption was later co-opted by the Roman Empire, which rebranded the religion to serve its own interests. This rebranding masked the oppression that was being promoted in the name of Jesus, which was the exact opposite of his original message.

Internal Threats and the Mutilation of Islam [16:28]

There's a tendency among Muslims to violate the Quran openly while still thinking they are holding on to Islam. This internal contradiction can lead to young people rebelling against what they perceive as Islam, but they are actually rebelling against a corrupted representation of it. An example from Surah Talaq is given, where the Quran mandates specific treatment of a divorced woman during the waiting period, but many religious Muslims openly violate these rules. This disregard for Quranic teachings mutilates the beauty of Islam, making it difficult for future generations to appreciate it.

Secularism as a Core Issue [22:31]

Secularism is identified as a core issue underlying many modern ideologies. There are two main currents of secularism: the French and the Anglo-Saxon, which manifest differently across the world. It's important to understand what secularism means exactly and how these different understandings affect the Islamic purview and how Muslims relate to their worldly life.

Modernism and Postmodernism [24:10]

Circumstances and conditions in the world change to expose those who truly believe in Allah versus those who follow their own advantage. Modernism eliminates revelation and relies solely on human reason, but it manipulates reason instead of using it purely. Postmodernism eliminates both revelation and reason, denying the existence of absolute objective truth. Both approaches are seen as products of Satan, with secularism being a crime against the creator.

Practical Manifestations of Secularism [39:10]

The secular mind in America allows people to worship whatever they want, promoting a "live and let live" mentality. However, this doesn't last, as powerful religious groups eventually see minorities as a threat, leading to extremism. Psychologically, secularism separates religious identity from other aspects of life, leading to a compartmentalization where individuals can engage in haram activities while still claiming to love Islam. This internal secularism can be so extreme that it resembles a bipolar disorder.

Reclaiming Freedom from Secularism [45:41]

There was no conversation about secularism in the history of Islam because the Quran addresses all aspects of human existence, impacting everything from shopping habits to relationships. Secularism, on the other hand, confines religion to a small corner of life, branding everything else as freedom. However, this freedom is false advertising, as evidenced by the rise in mental health issues among young people due to social media pressures. True freedom comes from surrendering to Allah, which liberates individuals from the slavery of creation and false social standards.

Liberalism and the Promise of Freedom [53:38]

Liberalism, as a tool of modernism, promises the humanity that they will be able to do whatever they want, but this is not true because we are in a very limited source in this life. This promise from Satan was not true. Modernism didn't give that chance to the believer especially daughters to have hijab for example. From Islamic point of view in Islam and on all the messengers that kind of liberty already given by Allah.

The Power of Islam and the Fear of Truth [1:06:19]

There's a fear that if Islam spreads, it will create an oppressive society, but this is rejected. The real fear from Islam is its power and clarity of truth, which is scary for those who avoid truth. The Quran emphasizes individual choice and responsibility, with Allah bringing another nation if one turns away from the religion. Islam is a bottom-up religion that transforms individuals, and as the world runs out of "isms," Islam will be the only thing standing.

The Government's Role in Islam [1:16:50]

Allah forms the governance system in a society according to the individuals in that society. The prophet didn't say to them go and govern uh conquer to that region and uh go and become leader there or something like that. He said just this uh this uh communication and the level of the individuals. If there is at least 20 of real believers who bear witness in the oneness of Allah subhana w t'ala and surrender in his life to allahel it is one of the most important.

The Importance of Institutions and Individual Choice [1:27:16]

A government's role is to facilitate and provide services that the public needs. Institutions are necessary to prevent chaos and major religious conflicts. The vast majority of people look for convenience in religion and choose stupidity. Institutions play a regulatory role and keep society in order. Allah is the turner of hearts, and our efforts should be to seek with individuals on their level.

Promoting Values and Understanding [1:33:25]

We need to find effective ways of communicating values. If a young girl is not wearing hijab for me, I don't see the problem as her not wearing hijab. I see someone who I don't know what their reasons are. I don't know what their story is. I don't know if they were wearing it last year and they took it off. I don't know if they went through some trauma or not. I I know nothing. But if I have an opportunity to share something with them, my first my first look at them and say, you know what, I diagnose this as a person who's violating Islam, I wouldn't do it.

Fulfilling Our Duty and Leaving the Outcome to Allah [1:43:04]

Even if we do the best, it is not guaranteed that they will react in a good way. They will accept because we are interacting with someone who has really freedom given by Allah. From the beginning we should know that when we fulfill our duty we just fulfill our duty that is the outcome. If if the outcome in order to make him a believer or make him a prayer that's it that is not in our hand then we will feel that we couldn't do anything.

Differentiating Between Fitra and Shaytanic Approaches [1:47:32]

If Allah didn't give us any criterion within ourselves then we will not be differentiate between anything between the inner voice of the shaitan or between our uh our understanding our reason and there should be something we depend on otherwise either we will be a malid imitator the others if it is valid. The reality appears in our hearts by itself and Allahel made it guarantee otherwise every person will be innocent in this life because he will not be able to choose whether this one from Shan or this from Allah or not.

The Dangers of Therapeutic Worldview [1:52:16]

Religion can be impacted by outside views and there's a there's the therapeutic worldview um you know healing trauma recovery psychology and now especially Tik Tok psychology and pop psychology and how that's impacting our the way we're thinking about Islam. In this worldview feelings are they take a place above facts. Your feelings are your ultimate truth and your ultimate objective is to come to a place of healing. The narrative that's being told is your trauma defines you. Your trauma defines you. You went through so much. No wonder you're so broken.

Quran-Inspired Psychology [1:59:01]

One of the core fundamental essences of Islam is self assessment, self- evvaluation. You have to have a view of yourself. You have to have an insight into yourself. If you're the victim, guess what? You're not the sinner. The people who hurt you are the sinner. We have to develop Quran inspired psychology because Freudian psychology is actually diametrically opposed to Quran inspired psychology.