Every so often a lazy bit of analysis seeks to put complex, multi-faceted ideas about people into simple boxes; into single homogenous stereotypes. Currently, Muslim students are in the midst of such narratives. We are told that we are vulnerable to radicalisation and extremism. We are told that our faith is a problem for Western liberal societies. Given that a former UCL student attempted to bomb an airliner in December 2009, such analysis is only to be expected. However, to characterise students only through the lens of terrorism is a gross distortion of the life of Muslims on campuses.
Student life is all about breaking the mould, writing new narratives and learning about the real you. We are used to stereotypes and we know how flimsy they can be. We know that in reality we are a mixture and an assortment of stylised and individualised quirks. University life gives us the chance to define ourselves, but in doing so, and in conjunction with others, we can also re-define the ‘we’, re-imagine the ‘us’ and re-write what it means to be a Muslim student today. In truth, and in many ways, we do this already.
A little while before writing this article, my blessed mother shared with me a poem etched on the hearts of students eager to discover, by none other than Allama Iqbal.
Let this be our beautiful departure from stagnation; let our minds come alive; enter another Dimension; go beyond the stars eagerly struggling to find that…which our naked eye did not know existed; rise like the falcon born to soar and be not alone but be present amongst others. Such poetry is a recent discovery of mine; for too long it has been either un-cool, or a waste of time, or part of my anti-Asian rebellion. Alas, the journey of the Muslim student is unpredictable and mine is but a single story in a chronicle that is being written continually.
Five years ago I never thought I would be citing Iqbal to you, interspersed between journeys to campuses around the UK, being interviewed by Jeremy Paxman, regularly addressing audiences of tens of thousands, and leading a Muslim student generation that last year raised nearly £400k within the space of a single week for orphans around the world. I have had the great fortune over the past half-decade of joining tremendous families and being a part of some remarkable frontiers; let me share with you my heart’s case.
It is noted that the Prophet Muhammad was found in voluntary prayer during the night until his feet were swelling visibly; when asked why he was doing this when his past and future sins had already been forgiven, he replied, “Should I not be a grateful servant?” Sisters and brothers of faith and humanity, let this be our starting point and do not take it for granted that you are a student — privileged — to be at University, yet also an individual with the ability to read the page you are reading now. We have a lot of thanking to do.
That gratefulness to God — and realising that we are in constant need of Him — immediately takes us to a realm that that is another Time and Space, where angels roam and hearts glow.
Take a step back from it all and you should realise that we are living in a deeply special time right now — a challenging time. Not because of “fear” and “terrorism” — I’ll come to these bores later — but a world where our individual and collective consciousness of God and morality, our division of good and bad and our priorities have been turned upside down, in a way that we have never seen before. Bring that all back down to earth — here are some simple barometers. For example, when was the last time you told your mum that you loved her? Or when was the last time you ate fried chicken? Or the last time you checked out the Facebook of the person you fancy? Or the last day you made all your prayers on time with good concentration?
Recent meltdowns of the global financial system (losing at one point a trillion dollars in one day), the riots in London, and rising rates of abortion — these issues are not disconnected. Discussing the forces of capitalism, and societal ignorance, arrogance and consumption, is (although true) simplifying and missing the relevant issue entirely.
I believe we are living in a special time because European Islam is firmly planted and evolving, and young Muslims like you and I, the first generation in literally ages, are ideally positioned to make a difference with a globe of education at our feet. It is a special time because we realise that it starts with making ourselves better people — for example, to love your mum is to worship Him, to question your fried chicken parlour is to be ethical about the food you eat and how it was treated (you are what you eat — these processed-food chickens don’t get treated well, by the way!), and the eyes with which we see are a channel to our hearts. “God does not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves”; it is a special time because we have been blessed with the real opportunity of changing the world.
Do not let our warped understanding of Muslim tradition kill our confidence, but let us learn, because we’re part of something much bigger and it is growing in a magnificent way. Mohamed Iqbal was a student like us, just over 100 years ago, at the University of Cambridge. It doesn’t stop there—to be a “falcon born to soar” is to be like Professor Salim Al-Hassani, once an active student at the University of Manchester and a part of the student organisation that I now preside over, but today the founder of perhaps the most fascinating Muslim heritage project on the planet, 1001 Inventions. Or Dr.Hany el-Banna, founder of Islamic Relief when he was also part of FOSIS, today rolls in over £60m every year for needy people around the world. Today, more than ever before, it is all happening for Muslim students; not only are we doing amazing charitable work (see Charity Week), we have the first ever Muslim Vice-President of the NUS; last year saw the first ever Muslim student art exhibition, Muslim students are playing pioneering roles in feeding-the-homeless and green campaigns, and we are seeing a faith-led approach on increasing female scholarship.
We have every reason to be confident and we should look upon trials with a smile and grace – as the Prophet would have done – and work determinedly with compassion and love. Viewed through another Time and Space, trials are there to test us and act upon. To lock ourselves away in isolation and hope for the best for those suffering from drone-attacks in Pakistan, the needy in East Africa or oppressed in Palestine, is to disconnect ourselves from our obligation to serve humanity. To be an angry young Muslim (as we often see), insulated from those who do not share our faith and constantly complaining about the world or the length of the beard, is to do an injustice to our tradition. The balanced character and determination of our family in the Arab Spring show how things should be done.
The challenges we face are not only from within — in the “discourse of fear” (fitting that I comment upon it a decade after 9/11) Muslim students have often been castigated as vulnerable to extremism. Muslim student groups, like my own, have been criticised, including by those such as our own Home Secretary. Our stand, given directly to the Home Office, has been clear. We have the support of universities and even the Universities Minister, in recognising that Muslim students are making an incredible contribution, that we need a mature discussion, and that sidelining us helps nobody. But with the terrorism discourse I feel, more than anything, that we digress — importantly, wasting excessive time here is a trap and a huge distraction from what really matters in our agenda to change. Let us ensure we have broken the shackles of fear that has been imposed by demagogues.
God asks us, “so where are you going?” I believe the greatest challenge we face is one of spirituality, and if we get this right, everything should follow. As the great scholar Professor Tariq Ramadan teaches us today, “pray in the night so you can change the world in the day”. We need to work on ourselves to get closer to Him and for all of humanity; eager during the day and tranquil during the night.
To be a leading Muslim student today is to be as educated by Yeats as by Rumi; it is to live up to the sincerity of Malcolm X (read his autobiography, by the way); it is to cry in prayer for our sisters and brothers struggling in conflicts and to also work for the 100k homeless children in Britain today; it is to not be afraid to love God. We need to be a balanced people; there is “a time for this and a time for that” said the Prophet. I was amazed to hear one of the great hadith scholars of Europe was spotted recently at the bowling alley in my hometown of Leeds! Rather than neglectful or over-zealous, the Muslim mind is holistic and comprehensive, establishing the foundation of your faith firmly, and then taking in the knowledge of the world, respecting your role in the wider community and aspiring to do your bit depending on what you’re good at. Companions of the Prophet were not just God-conscious experts in jurisprudence and the Qur’an, but also a diverse coomunity of experts in languages, history, trade, battle and so forth.
Islam is going to have a transformational effect on our lives. In the same way that it changed Umar bin Alkhattab from a man ready to kill the Prophet to one of his closest companions and a man whose leadership impacts our daily lives today, it has transformed the lives of many students I know. It will transform you (if it hasn’t already), and those around you. It transformed me.
My vision is a world where every Muslim has a sound heart and is a leader in their community. Have the mindset to lead — whether it be your family, your postcode, your field of study, the arts or politics, whatever — become a leader and serve them. University will develop you into this leader, if you try. Remember that this is our special time and the opportunity is there for the taking. Let us constantly remember and thank Him; it is, after all, all for Him. Do not let our generation be the one that gets priorities the wrong way round, for on the Day of Judgment we will not succeed except by the one “who comes to God with a sound heart”.
I’ll see you in the skies.
