3 Guiding Principles: Faith, Self-Transcendence and Humility

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1 3 Guiding Principles: Faith, Self-Transcendence and Humility Foundation, an NGO which cares deeply about Islam and Muslims... strives to express, clarify LibForAll and widely disseminate a true understanding of Islam not only to non-muslims, but also to Muslims in general. LibForAll aims to present the moderate and tolerant face of Islam, and explain the importance of [Muslims] returning to the essence of Islamic teachings which, until now, have been poorly understood by many groups [both in Islam and the West]. Alaa Amer, Extremism is Alien to Islam, Al-Ahram (one of the oldest and most widely-read newspapers in the Arab world), 27 May 2007 The purpose of the International Institute of Qur anic Studies is to help restore Islam to the pristine beauty and truth of its original message, as revealed by the Qur an and the life of the Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace. The IIQS seeks to accomplish this objective by inspiring humanity to rise from a narrow, dogmatic understanding of Islam to the Ocean of Knowledge and Truth. This section of the strategic plan is intended for those who wish to understand, in detail, a number of theological principles that underlie and guide the IIQS. Others may wish to skip directly to Chapter 4, Terminology.

2 28 CHAPTER 3 is an inner activity, the deepest, innermost endeavor of man, and links us to that which is hidden Faith and mysterious, the Unseen, which is beyond the reach of the human intellect that is, God. IIQS Co-Founder and Patron Dr. Syafii Maarif Former Chairman, Muhammadiyah ( ) From Episode 1 of Ocean of Revelations, Islam and Faith ( LibForAll Foundation) The guiding principles of the IIQS are faith, self-transcendence and humility (iman, ikhlas, tawadlu ). Faith (iman) constitutes belief and absolute gnostic certainty regarding the existence of God Pure and Exalted is He! 8 the angels, Holy Scriptures, messengers of God, and the Day of Judgment. It includes the belief and certainty that God Pure and Exalted is He! is truly the Omniscient, the Omnipotent, the Just, the Most Loving, and the Compassionate One, possessed of these and other qualities that may be identified through His most beautiful Names (al-asma al-husna). This belief and certainty may be attained through spiritual practice (riyadah ruhaniyah) and/or intellectual inquiry, as conducted by the Prophets Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad peace and blessings be upon them prior to their receiving revelations from God (swt.). Perfect faith in God (swt.) gives birth to the awareness that He alone is Absolute. Thus, one comes to recognize that no product of the human mind, however brilliant, is ever perfect including our attempts to understand God s revelation and that such efforts are simply part of a process to bring us back to Him. True believers (mukmin) always recognize their human limitations, and are thus willing to share space with others whether characterized by similarities, differences or even opposing views for they recognize that everything which exists has been created by God Pure and Exalted is He! and serves as a blessing, and/or a test, for oneself. 8. When Muslims speak or write the name of God, they usually follow this with the phrase subhanahu wa-ta ala, which means, Pure and Exalted is He (Allah)! The phrase is often abbreviated as swt.

3 GUIDING PRINCIPLES: FAITH, SELF-TRANSCENDENCE AND HUMILITY 29 Given this awareness, the IIQS deeply values the richness of Islam s intellectual heritage in various fields, such as mysticism (tasawwuf), theology (kalam), jurisprudence (fiqh), philosophy (falsafa) and others. Yet at the same time, the IIQS recognizes and positions this rich intellectual heritage as the product of human efforts to comprehend the Divine Message, which efforts are closely tied to the specific context (time, place, social conditions, personality) when these efforts were made. As a result, they are relative in nature, while the Divine Message is Absolute. Therefore, the IIQS strives ceaselessly to comprehend the Divine Message, so that the primary objective of Islam to serve as a blessing for all sentient beings (rahmatan lil- alamin) may be realized. Through this effort, the IIQS strives to reunite the various aspects of Islam (islam, iman and ihsan), 9 which have been fragmented both epistemologically and, to a large extent, in action and practice. The reintegration of these different aspects of Islamic teaching also needs to be achieved by comprehending the Qur an and Sunnah 10 in an integral manner, i.e., by recognizing that the Sunnah is the practical and historical manifestation of the Qur an s verses. Operationally, IIQS stresses the significance of naql (literally, transmission, referring to traditions derived from the past) and aql (human reason). In other words, IIQS stresses the importance of striving to comprehend the Divine Message through intellectual endeavor and, at the same time, by submitting oneself totally to God Pure and Exalted is He! through spiritual practice, in order to welcome and obtain His guidance. Thus IIQS activities are ultimately efforts to obtain complete knowledge of God swt. (ma rifa, or gnosis), and to know Him as he reveals Himself through Holy Scriptures and the natural world. Since human knowledge of God (swt.) is never absolute, the IIQS rejects any and all attempts to absolutize human understanding or knowledge. Instead, IIQS views the acquisition and development of knowledge as a never-ending process of interpretation 9. Islam, iman and ihsan refer, respectively, to the state of self-transcendent surrender to Divine will; gnostic certainty regarding the existence of God; and the level of good deeds arising from a state of pure devotion. 10. The term Sunnah refers to the sayings (hadith) of the Prophet Muhammad, and the example of his life.

4 30 CHAPTER 3 and reinterpretation, and simultaneously rejects the dogmatization of the intellectual heritage associated with the teachings of Islam. antidote to polytheism (shirk) is selftranscendence. A polytheist (mushrik) is one who is The not self-transcendent; who is motivated by ego and self-interest, or the interests of his group, rather than engaging in actions moment by moment [guided by and] purely for the sake of the Divine. Indonesian Muslim Intellectual Dr. Jalaluddin Rakhmat Episode 4 of Ocean of Revelations, People of Faith Self-transcendence (ikhlas), the second pillar of IIQS, refers to a state of cleanliness without blemish, free of egotism and of any desire other than to be a perfect servant of God Pure and Exalted is He! so that anything and everything one does becomes a direct manifestation of His will. In the context of Islam s primary message, this means to become a blessing to all His creatures, and to nature as a whole. Self-transcendence constitutes a secret between Divinely-illumined souls and God, for no one can know whether someone else is truly established in self-transcendence. Honesty, however, arises naturally from self-transcendence. One who has transcended his or her ego will also be patient by nature, and refrain from acting in ways that conflict with religion, or endanger oneself or others. From a practical perspective, the IIQS seeks through a complete and integral comprehension of the teachings of Islam and their sources to proclaim and spread rahmat (love and compassion) to all sentient beings, and to purify the common understanding of Islam of various dogmas that hinder people in their efforts to know God Pure and Exalted is He! The intellectual heritage of Islam, and indeed even the Qur an and hadith, should be viewed as references helping one to know God (swt.), while Islam is a path to reach Him for the Source and Goal of life is God and God alone. Islam s intellectual heritage must be purified of various

5 GUIDING PRINCIPLES: FAITH, SELF-TRANSCENDENCE AND HUMILITY 31 dogmas that have caused the fragmentation of Islamic teachings, so that these teachings may guide every Muslim to become an active purveyor of God s love, mercy and compassion to all His creatures. Thus, IIQS does not undermine the great intellectual traditions of Islam, but rather, seeks to position the trilogy of Islamic teachings (islam, iman and ihsan) in a state of balance and equilibrium. Given these views, the IIQS s primary objective is to free every human being on earth from various dogmas that obstruct their efforts to know God Pure and Exalted is He! and to purify and liberate every society, and state, from dogmatic manipulations; in other words, the manipulation of religion for purposes other than the true goals of religion, and to liberate the holy sites of Islam from dogmatic hegemony and control by those who worship dogma, so that these sites become free and open to use by the entire Muslim community worldwide, rather than controlled by a select few who condemn and proscribe the religious practices of others. mission of the Prophet of God, peace and blessings be upon him, was to bless all of creation, The and such blessings cannot possibly be spread if the condition of Muslims is in tatters like today. As Muslims, we have one Qur an, one God and one Prophet, but there are tremendous differences in how we understand our religion. It is not appropriate for us to judge, condemn or revile others, or feel that we have an exclusive monopoly on the truth. Absolute Truth belongs to God alone. Humans are relative creatures, and thus our interpretation of religion is itself limited and relative, rather than absolute. Therefore, we must be humble. IIQS Co-Founder and Patron Dr. Syafii Maarif Former Chairman, Muhammadiyah, ( ) Humility (tawadlu ) is the natural, outward manifestation of a state of total surrender and submission to God Pure and Exalted is He! For without complete surrender to the Absolute, it is unrealistic to expect that one will consistently engage in humble

6 32 CHAPTER 3 behavior. Consciousness of Absolute Being awakens the realization that one s own individuality is completely insignificant in the face of Divine Majesty. Surrender to God (swt.) inspires one to value others as they should be, while simultaneously hindering arrogant and dogmatic behavior in oneself. Such an awareness compels one to reject any feeling of superiority in knowledge, virtue or perfection vis-à-vis others; rather, it serves to motivate one to constantly learn from others and to become a better and more perfect servant of God. It is important to stress that this submission to Absolute Being is not merely passive, because submission to God and to nothing other than God entails an active effort to approach Him, and to contend with anything that opposes or conflicts with His will, as expressed in His verses. Institutionally, the IIQS will promote unceasing efforts to comprehend and constantly reevaluate one s understanding of the Qur an, Sunnah and Islam s rich intellectual heritage, as expressed in various fields, because awareness of human imperfection in and of itself necessitates such efforts. At the same time, the IIQS rejects one-sided truth claims, or claims of absolute truth, as pertains to human understanding, because we are certain that God and God alone is absolute in nature Pure and Exalted is He! For this reason, we remain appreciative towards other efforts to understand the truth, even though they may give rise to different, or even conflicting, conclusions. To be of good religious faith, one must fulfill two vital requirements: first, to share in the transcendental certainty and teachings of the faith which one has adopted; and second, to fully embrace the importance of loving and humane behavior. By fulfilling these two requirements, one will be of strong religious faith, yet very slow to criticize or judge others. LibForAll/IIQS Co-Founder Kyai Haji Abdurrahman Wahid Episode 2 of Ocean of Revelations, Islam and Devotion

7 GUIDING PRINCIPLES: FAITH, SELF-TRANSCENDENCE AND HUMILITY 33 Through this constellation of three guiding principles, the IIQS seeks to emphasize, and ensure, that its programs constitute a sincere and devout effort to strengthen faith in its true sense that is, belief and certainty in the existence of God, Pure and Exalted is He! and thus reject any and all forms of shirk (associating other divinities with God, including the false divinization of human understanding). Self-transcendence is vital, to guarantee that the programs conducted by IIQS truly serve to reveal, express and disseminate the sublime and noble vision of Islam; while humility is required to ensure inclusive and open-minded behavior, in our efforts to comprehend and disseminate the sublime teachings of religion. Only by complying with these three principles can the efforts undertaken by the IIQS rise to the level of ijtihad and mujahadah (intellectual exercise and spiritual practice), to the point that they also constitute jihad, or programs that serve to annihilate the ego, and restrain the lower nature, so as not to endanger oneself or others. And even more important, not to betray the sublime message of Islam itself. Founded upon this understanding of islam, and guided by these three principles, may the International Institute of Qur anic Studies programs become a means to know the truth, and attain to the level of Truth Itself (al-haqq). is the key to progress The humble approach is for all of us who are concerned about the future Humility of our civilization, and the role we are to play in it. It is an approach for those of us who are not satisfied to allow things to drift and who want to channel our creative restlessness toward helping to build the kingdom of God on planet Earth. I use the word humility here to mean understanding that God infinitely exceeds anything anyone has ever said of Him, and that He is infinitely beyond human comprehension and understanding. As we realize this and become more humble, we thereby reduce the stumbling blocks placed in our path by our own egos. Sir John Marks Templeton