Today is a public holiday for Youman Nabi which was commemorated yesterday to mark the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad, the founder of the Islamic religion. It is a mark of the enlightened approach that Guyanese have to the peaceful coexistence of religions that even though Muslims constitute possibly only ten percent of Guyana’s population, their major festivals receive equal public observation with those of the other major religions – Hinduism and Christianity.
In today’s world, religion has, unfortunately, become a source of conflict more than a source of peace. In this regard, Guyana, small as it is, has a lot to offer the world. Much of the tension among religious adherents arises not necessarily from the making of exclusivistic claims that raise hackles in the followers of other religions but from the insistence of some to act on those claims by proselytising among the latter groups. From this perspective, Islam in Guyana has the most to offer peaceful coexistence.
Islam does announce that it presents the only path to God (specifically “Allah”) and salvation. In this way it is exclusivist. But in Guyana, Muslims have never gone out to “convert” anyone through proselytising activities that include denunciations of the beliefs and practices of other religions. Yet, the Muslim population has steadily increased through the years, not only through a higher birth rate but through others accepting the tenets of Islam on their own.
How was this achieved? The major reason is that Muslims are exhorted not only to have abstract beliefs, but to concretely practise the tenets of their religion as expounded in their Quran. Actions are as important as beliefs. What makes the actions easier to inculcate is that following the Quran, the life of the Prophet Muhammad as outlined in the “Hadith” is a most authoritative exposition of what behaviour constitutes a Muslim. If one is told to be “kind”, then there are countless examples of kindness performed by the Prophet. Sacrifice? Here again, Muslims look to what the Prophet did in similar circumstances.
So, in Guyana, we have the living experience of Muslims giving charity to others, taking care of their bereaved and generally striving to live as one big family. The “anomie” or “alienation” that so many complain about in the modern world has to be less in the Muslim community because of the conscious cultivation of the network of relationships that create strong communities. Others in the wider society see living cohesiveness and are attracted to the religion.
In Guyana, racial divisions have been the bane of our quest for a more peaceful life. When the ancestors of African-Guyanese were brought as slaves starting in the 17th century, there were a significant number of Muslims in their midst. The term “Fulaman”, which is colloquially applied in the present to Muslims, is thought to have been derived from “Fulani”, an African people who were among the first in that continent to practice Islam. However, by the end of slavery, Islam as a living religion had been beaten out of its adherents. In the last few years, however, there has been a significant number of Africans who have accepted Islam – without any proselytisation. It is hoped that the sharing of a common way of life and an acceptance of the equality of all adherents that is stressed by Islam would go a long way in reducing interracial tensions.
Youman Nabi also has a lesson for those who will be vying next year to lead this nation in the years ahead. The Prophet Muhammad left a living example of how a leader of a country should act and behave. Modesty, frugality, fairness, mercy and practising what is demanded of others were some of his watchwords. While there is great stress nowadays on academic qualifications, the life of Muhammad demonstrates that more than all the “learning”, a leader must be imbued with and live by positive values and be concerned at all times about the condition of people.
