Pause, Rest and Connect - Opposing Colonisation

Pause, Rest and Connect - Opposing Colonisation

Assalamu alaykum

During Ramadan, a change in routine brings a moment’s pause. In that moment, if we choose to consciously re-orientate ourselves, we realise that we are stuck in a hamster wheel, chasing after material goods and financial security. These are not bad pursuits per se, but if they become the be-all and end-all of our existence - which they often do in this modernity we have encountered - then we become trapped in a vicious cycle of consumerism and comparison. Today, I want to take a moment to reflect on the importance of rest and connection and how we can oppose colonisation.

My inspiration for today’s reflection comes from a sermon by Professor Khaled Abou El Fadl where he makes an important point about rest - and situates rest in opposition to colonisation. Quite organically, my mind connected this opinion with three Quranic concepts that I will discuss today: vicegerency (khilāfah), balance (mīzān) and the middle community (ummatan wasaṭan).

In Surah Al-Baqarah, when Allah shares with us His rationale for creating human beings, He uses the word Khalīfah which means successor, inheritor, trustee, vicegerent.

Behold, thy Lord said to the angels: “I will create a vicegerent on earth.”… [Q2:30]1

It means that Allah has delegated a lot of power and authority to us. But therein also lies a test, as the last verse of Surah Al-An‘ām tells us so eloquently:

It is He Who hath made you (His) agents, inheritors of the earth (khalāāif al arḍ): He hath raised you in ranks, some above others: that He may try you in the gifts He hath given you: for thy Lord is quick in punishment: yet He is indeed Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful. [Q6:165]

Thus, we have a responsibility to look after the Earth, with which we are intimately linked because we are created from ‘sounding clay’, as the Qur’an tells us in Surah Al-Rahmān, and to which our physical bodies will return. This Earth nurtures us and sustains us. Its beauty inspires awe and heals us. So we must learn to bring balance into our relationship with this planet.

This brings me to the other two concepts: the mīzān and ummatan wasaṭan. The Qur’an mentions the mīzān – balance – in various places. Importantly, this idea of balance sits at the start of Surah Al-Rahman (chapter 55). The Surah begins from reminding us that Allah is the most Gracious and Merciful. And then it immediately moves to reminding us that Allah has set up a balance of justice and He does not like those who transgress and disturb this balance. Let me read the first 13 verses so you can see how the Qur’an develops the argument:

(Allah) Most Gracious! It is He Who has taught the Qur’an. He has created man: He has taught him speech (and intelligence). The sun and the moon follow courses (exactly) computed; And the herbs and the trees - both (alike) prostrate in adoration. And the Firmament has He raised high, and He has set up the Balance (of Justice), In order that ye may not transgress (due) balance. So establish weight with justice and fall not short in the balance. It is He Who has spread out the earth for (His) creatures: Therein is fruit and date-palms, producing spathes (enclosing dates); Also corn, with (its) leaves and stalk for fodder, and sweet-smelling plants. Then which of the favours of your Lord will ye deny? [Q55:1-13]

It is no coincidence that as custodians and gardeners of this planet, we are also meant to be the balanced nation or the middle nation – our relationship with this planet and each other should be one of balance, not exploitation. Ummatan wasatan.

When I was reading verse 143 in Surah Al-Baqara, I was struck by the placement of this term Ummatan wasatan – meaning, the middle nation or the balanced nation. Surah Al-Baqara primarily addresses Jewish people. According to Maulana Amin Ahsan Islahi, this verse is situated in a group of verses that recount how Ibrahim (alaihi salaam) and his son Ismail (alaihi salaam) built the sanctuary of the Ka‘aba, and how they were true monotheists who followed the Deen of Islam. This context is very significant. The Arabs had not been sent a Prophet since Ismail. Between him and Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) there is a gap of over 2,000 years! In this period, all the Prophets and Messengers had been sent amongst the descendent of Ishaq (as) and prophecy remained within the lineage of Ishaq, the Jewish nations. It was a change of seismic proportions for Allah to change the direction of prophecy and send the last Prophet – Muhammad – amongst the descendants of Ismail who settled in Makkah and built the Ka‘aba. This is one of the main reasons why Jewish people would not accept the truth of an Arab Prophet. The temporary change in the direction of prayer was a test for the new community, the new ummah, now trusted with Allah’s final revelation.

With this background in mind, let’s now read verse 143 in Surah Al-Baqarah:

Thus, have We made of you an Ummat justly balanced, that ye might be witnesses over the nations, and the Messenger a witness over yourselves; and We appointed the Qibla to which thou wast used, only to test those who followed the Messenger from those who would turn on their heels (From the Faith). Indeed it was (A change) momentous, except to those guided by Allah. And never would Allah Make your faith of no effect. For Allah is to all people Most surely full of kindness, Most Merciful. [Q2:143]

Dear listeners. We have a heavy responsibility on our shoulders. As the middle nation, we must be a community of just and balanced people. This balance is also to be exercised towards the planet we inhabit. If tomorrow we were given influential leadership of this world, we cannot be like colonisers and predatory capitalists who reduce ‘other’ communities and geographies to mere resources, to be exploited for consumption. As vicegerents of Allah, we must maintain the mīzān and exercise conscientious custodianship. This is our duty as ummatan wasatan, the middle nation.

Let’s take today as a moment of pause and rest. Pause, rest and connection are critically important if we are to reorientate away from consumerism, the need to own stuff – more clothes, more cars, more furniture, more make-up. In Ramadan, we can step out of the hamster wheel and inhale deeply. We can make the choice to become aware of our surroundings. We can learn to maintain balance and justice.

And what is the power of pause, rest and connection? Let me read out the quote from Professor Khaled – from his sermon on Decolonising the Self on 29 Nov 2024. I will leave this quote with you as today’s reflection:

The opposite of colonization is rest. The opposite of colonization is coming back to the Earth. It is being with nature and being with the Earth and listening to what God calls the created Qur’an. As least that is part of it, in my opinion. Is it any wonder that the early Muslims and the Prophet would not even cut down a tree in constructing a mosque? Colonization is consumerism. Islam is vicegerency, which means taking care of and being responsible for. I am responsible for the Earth. I am responsible for observing the balance, and for making sure it is upheld.