Everyone should really have a taste of being a minority…

When Donald Trump won the US Presidential election, my facebook timeline was filled with comments and opinions about the shocking event. International friends from the US, non US and even fellow Indonesians pitched in their thoughts about the victory of this controversial figure. Many stated their frustration and worries, while some posted memes and jokes. From amidst the ocean of status about Trump, there was one that really caught my interest: a (fake) tweet from Donald Trump which says, “Muslims in United States are worried that if I become the president, I will treat them just like they treat non-Muslims in Muslim countries”. This is interesting because although I don’t agree with what this statement is leading us to believe, I still think that this satirical remark contains a hint of ugly truth behind it.

Okay, first thing first… I would say the redaction of the text above should undergo a slight modification to become like this, “Muslims in United States are worried that if I become the president, I will treat them just like their brethren in Muslim majority countries treat non-Muslims. What difference does this make? Of course this does not make the statement to become more agreeable. However, it made clearer who the real target of this satire is: us, Muslims, who live in a Muslim-majority countries. So, yes… that includes us, Indonesian Muslims. I see the above statement as a message to all of us to look into ourselves and reflect whether we have been as good as we thought we have.

Funnily enough, somebody thought we have. He proudly replied the remark above with, “Then it means, Muslim in the US would have nothing to worry because Muslims in Muslim countries protect non-Muslims’ rights and treat them justly.”…..… How I reaallly wish that was the case. If we’re talking about ideal Muslims and Islamic system, then yes! That should be the case. However, If we really look into our society without being clouded by foolish pride, we will see that we are still far from ideal. We will find bigotry seeds lying around… and with a bit of water and appropriate temperature, they will sprout and emerge to the surface, just like that.

I don’t want to believe it myself, but I heard it firsthand, from a close friend, who stripped non-Muslim families off of their right to practice their religion. So he’s a landlord. He has several houses for rent. He told me one day that his newly bought house has been rented by a non-Muslim family. So I asked him whether he had made all the agreement (especially regarding payment) clear. “Of course”, he said. Then, with a smug on his face, he added that he also put a term on that agreement that tells them to not do things that might disturb the neighborhood. I thought it was so ambiguous and confusing, so I asked him, “What? What do you mean by things that might disturb the neighborhood? Like making the house as a factory or warehouse or something?”. Then he answered, “No no… what I meant is I don’t want them to do religious gathering in that house.” …………. I was shocked. What he said after that was beyond me. Apparently, he has done this before to another tenant renting a different house in another area. It all started when the tenant had a religious gathering which includes chanting and singing prayers. It seemed that some of the neighbors think that their activity disturbed the neighborhood so they reported it to the chief. The chief then asked my friend as the landlord to tell the tenant not to do it again… and he did. On another day after that event, the tenant came to my friend to ask for permission. He said, he is hosting a gathering. He told him that he won’t be doing any bad things or harm, just some form of “syukuran¹”. He even said that there won’t be any alcoholic drink. But my friend wouldn’t budge. He said something like, “I’m sorry but the people had spoken. I can’t do anything about it.” And so, the tenant’s freedom of religion was violated.

I was so mad that time. I also felt very offended… and I took it personally. Why? Because it reminded me of a similar degrading circumstance I had to experience when I was a mere minority in Germany. I was a student at that time, and my friend told me that students can get a really cheap price for swimming in the university’s swimming pool. That time, I, who had not swum in a long long time, agreed immediately to sign up. After everything was taken care of, my friend and I went to the swimming pool. My clueless self changed into a burkini and plunged myself hapilly into the pool. The feeling of being back in the pool again was so good... But, just as I was getting ready to take my first lap, the pool guard came to me and said that I had to get out of the pool immediately; I was not allowed to swim there. Confused, I hesistantly got out and asked him why. He said that the problem is with my swimming attire. I felt very hurt; What is wrong with my swimming attire? I really don’t get it! Not wanting to be kicked out just like that, I asked him whether there is a rule that states it. He showed me the rules of the swimming pool fixed on the wall of the swimming pool hall. It was in German and God knows I couldn’t speak the language. But I asked him to point out the exact sentence in that piece of paper anyway and he translated it for me. He said something like, “You are not allowed to go into the swimming pool wearing something that is not commonly worn.” I thought that rule sounds so ridiculous and made up. It might also be a problem of translation, but it’s all the same to me. The point was, I as a Muslim, was not allowed to be a complete Muslim in a swimming pool. I was not given the rights to enjoy a particular public facility like everyone else just because I’m practicing what I believe. Feeling frustrated and devastated, I went to the edge of the pool to meet my friend. Her face showed simpathy and sorry, but I know she couldn’t do anything about it. It’s an effing legal rule and for some absurd reason, I broke it. I tried to not let it get to me, but the dissappointment, humiliation, rejection and the inability to fight for my rights were just too much I cried.

If there is any of you who says, “See… Non Muslim Countries always oppress Muslims. That’s why, non-Muslims are baaad.” I’m gonna have to poke your eyes and ask you to re-read the paragraph before that and ask yourself, “Are we any better then?”. Those two cases I mentioned were played by different actors from different groups of people, yet they depict similar content: bigots lurking in a majority. This is not in any way to say that there are no bigots in a minority, but living as a minority is already hard enough without one being a bigot, so imagine being a minority plus an (openly) bigotted person… that’s suicidal. Now, the problem with having bigots in a majority, is that it can lead to a bigger impact. From the two stories above, a messed up, disastrous and unfair idea coming from some bigots from a majority group can formed into a society norm or even worse state law. This forces whom that law is intented to to comply eventhough the law disregard their fundamental rights. How can it happen? Because we are usually more permissive and tolerant towards our kind… but bigotry should not be tolerated no matter who it comes from. Do not become someone who says, “I am in friendly terms with my friends and neighbors who are not from the same religious group as I,” but at the same time claps and smirk behind their backs when unfair things caused by some people in his group happen to them as though they deserve that.

I made this writing to remind us that we, as an ummah, are not flawless. Our understanding of Islam have yet to be perfected. Learning and educating fellow Muslims should never go out of date. Moreover, this writing is not exclusively addressed to Indonesian Muslims. I’m calling out to you… anyone… who spend most of your life living as a majority… Go out there! Go out of your cloistered shell and try becoming a minority for once. No… not to foster and bottle up hate and anger from the little unpleasant things that might happen to you just because you’re a minority, but to see that the world does not revolve around you… and to learn humility as well as empathy.

Gray
#AgaintsHateAgaintsRacism
#SayNoToBigotry  

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 ¹Syukuran is an event to show your gratitude to God

[post in Indonesian] Al-Quran, sebuah mukjizat otentik dari Allah Al-Haqq

Disclaimer: Tulisan ini berdasar pada artikel yang ditulis oleh Hamzha Tzortiz.

Al-Qur’an merupakan pedoman hidup bagi manusia yang Allah turunkan lewat nabi Muhammad. Dari zaman Quraish dulu hingga saat ini, selalu ada orang yang meragukan kebenaran yang ada di dalam Qur’an. Alasan yang mereka pakai klasik, yaitu karena mereka tidak yakin akan keabsahan Qur’an sebagai produk dari Allah yang Maha Benar. Untuk orang-orang seperti ini, Allah secara spesifik menantang mereka dalam surat Al-Baqarah ayat 23:

“Dan jika kamu meragukan Al-Qur’an yang Kami turunkan kepada hamba Kami (Muhammad), maka buatlah satu surah semisal dengannya dan ajaklah penolong-penolongmu selain Allah, jika kamu orang-orang yang benar.”

Hingga saat ini, tantangan itu belum (dan tidak akan pernah bisa) terjawab. Mengapa? Karena Qur’an merupakan sebuah mukjizat, yaitu sesuatu yang tidak dapat dijangkau oleh kemampuan akal manusia sehingga dianggap sebagai hasil kerja Ilahi.

Lalu, hal apa yang dimiliki Qur’an sehingga tidak akan ada yang bisa menandinginya? Jika kita bicara soal bahasanya yang agung, indah dan puitis, bukankah itu relatif? Bisa saja orang mengklaim bahwa sebuah karya sastra lain lebih indah bahasanya dari sebuah surat di Qur’an. Ya, memang bisa dan sah-sah saja. Namun, inti dari tantangan Allah pada surat Al-Baqarah 23 bukanlah itu.

Ketidakmampuan seseorang untuk membuat sesuatu seperti Al-Qur’an terletak dari bentuk sastra/bahasa Qur’an yang unik. Di dalam bahasa Arab sendiri, semua ungkapan tergolong ke dalam bentuk Prosa atau Syair. Prosa dan Syair ini terbagi-bagi lagi menjadi sub-bagian-sub-bagian, misal: Prosa terbagi menjadi Saj dan Mursal, di mana saj adalah prosa berima sedangkan Mursal bentuk ungkapan yang menyerupai bahasa lisan sehari-hari. Di sisi lain, Syair terbagi menjadi sekitar 16 sub kategori yang masing-masing memiliki aturan dan pola tersendiri. Berdasarkan para cendekiawan, Al-Quran tidak tergolong kedalam kesemua kategori tersebut.

Memang ada yang berpendapat bahwa tata bahasa di Qur’an cenderung menyerupai Saj, terutama untuk surat-surat Makiyah. Namun, ia tidak bisa digolongkan sebagai saj pada umumnya, dan para ahli pun setuju untuk memberinya sebutan khusus, yaitu Saj Quran. Hal yang membedakan saj Quran dengan saj bahasa Arab pada umumnya, antara lain:
- Kecenderungan yang lebih tinggi pada penggunaan rima tunggal.
- Rima yang tidak mengikuti gaya tertentu.
- Cakupan frasa saj yang lebih luas.
- Frekuensi penggunaan bahasa retoris yang lebih tinggi.

Oleh sebab itu, bahasa Qur’an berbeda dengan bahasa Arab pada umumnya. Tata bahasanya unik dan tidak bisa digolongkan ke dalam kategori manapun dalam bahasa Arab. Apa artinya? Artinya adalah, Al-Baqarah 23 berisi tantangan untuk membuat sebuah surat dengan menggunakan bahasa Arab yang tidak mengikuti pola dan aturan bahasa arab pada umumnya, namun baik isi maupun keindahannya harus setara dengan sebuah surat di dalam Al-Qur’an.

Mungkinkah? Rasanya tidak. Bayangkan kita yang orang Indonesia disuruh membuat sebuah tulisan bermutu dalam bahasa Indonesia namun tidak menggunakan tata cara yang ditemukan dalam aturan berbahasa Indonesia. Bisakah? Silakan dicoba :D

Jadi, esensi mukjizat Al-Qur’an adalah pada bentuk bahasanya yang unik di luar norma bahasa Arab pada umumnya sehingga tak dapat tertandingi. Hal ini menunjukkan bahwa Al-Qur’an bukanlah buatan manusia namun Dzat yang Maha Kuasa dan Maha Benar. Oleh sebab itu, setiap ayat di dalam Qur’an pun mengandung kebenaran dan sudah selayaknya dijadikan standar bagi mereka yang ingin hidupnya benar di mata Allah.

The Professor and the Robot

From many among the Islamic discussion forums I joined in the past, there is one I particularly remember. The guest speaker was a senior who just came back from Japan. He told us a story about one of his life experience being a Muslim student there. One day, he was invited by his Professor to dinner. The Professor ordered sake and offered him a cup. He politely refused and said he doesn’t drink because he is a Muslim.

The Professor was bemused. “So what if you’re a Muslim?” he asked. “A sip should be ok?” 

“Well, unfortunately no” said the student, “My God forbids me to drink something that can get us drunk.”

“So you’re just following what your God tells you to do?” asked the Professor in disbelief.

“Yes… because He is God…” he answered.

“Well… some God He is…” he murmured, shaking his head a little bit.

“……....” the student was uncertain whether he should continue the conversation or not.



… and that’s all I can recall. I couldn’t really remember if he purposely left the story at that point or because he really didn’t know the best way to explain his faith. When I think about it now, it’s probably the former; he described it that way so we can produce our own ending to the story… and that’s why it left a deep impression on me. By leaving it hanging like that, my brain was challenged to produce a satisfying conclusion. In a way, it’s a test of faith really… your answer will show you your understanding of Allah…

Anyway… here’s how the story unfold in my head:

After a moment of deliberation, the student finally decided to break the awkward silence. “Umm… Professor?”

“Yes?” replied the professor, turning his gaze towards the student.

“How many robots have you created during your lifetime?” asked the student.

“Ah…… How many was it? A lot…I have to say…” answered the professor, a little bit surprised by the change of subject.

“I see… what kinds of robot have you created?” the student continued asking

“Well, many kinds… the idea is to make every aspect of human life easier.” said the professor.

“Ah… yes of course.” said the student, nodding in agreement. He then continued, “Say Professor, you created a robot to help human with household chores…”

“Okay…” he said, paying his full attention.

“So you asked this robot to help you with cooking. You said, ‘hey robot, cut this carrot into small dices!' What happened is the carrot was cut too big and was not diced properly. You tried again, maybe the first time you did not give the instruction clear enough. The robot cut again but the result still did not meet your expectation. What would you do, sir?”

“Oh, well the robot would probably still need to be perfected,” answered the professor.

“Yes… you’ll try to find the problems and fix it. Let’s just say everything is perfect now and the robot functions as it should. You’re happy with it. Then one day, when you ordered it to do the daily routine you’ve been assigning, it didn’t move. You’re curious so you approached it. Then suddenly it said ‘I’m done taking orders from you. I’m going away to find less boring things to do’… and so it went, leaving you perplexed.”

The professor realized that his student has finished talking and was now smiling at him, eager to hear a reply. His expression changed from serious into glee. “Ha… haha… What have I created? A robot with its own mind and wants” He exclaimed. 

The student laughed with him, “What a cheeky robot…”

“Indeed… indeed”, said the professor amused.

“It simply won’t do, would it sir?” asked the student

“Well, no… No, of course not” he said, still chuckling.

“Why not, sir?” asked the student again; this time in a more serious manner.

Realizing the sudden change of tone, the professor cleared his throat and said, “Well, it’s not doing what its programmed to do. I created it to do x, so x must it do.”

The student nodded. “Yes, of course. You created it. It is its duty as a creature to oblige to the will of its creator. If not, you as the creator has the right to fix it, shut it off and never use it again or even replace it with a better one… right, sir?”

“Ehm… yes… I suppose…” said the professor a little bit uneasy.

 “Well, I think I have delivered my point, sir. So, just water for me please”. The student gave him a smile and bowed a little.


Gray