Study of Western Psyche
The West has been credited so much for its achievements in Science & Technology that its negative points often remain latent. I have tried to put forward these points that certainly affect the Western Psyche and the West must address them at this moment of time if it really wants to stay at the position it has made for itself with so much effort.
The world has seen rise and fall of many empires and history points out this fact clearly that CHANGE is a natural phenomenon. However, there has always been aherence to some principles (they may be right or wrong by Islamic Viewpoint) by the nations that rose to power and as they went on to leave the adherence to those principles, they had a significant fall. However, at present, I would not provide detail for the statement given as I want to give a glimpse of the psyche of the West as I find it now at this moment of time. Surely, this would not account for the total features of the Psyche of the West that has one or two positive points too and I have put my emphasis on the Negative points and more so, if you consider the fact that I would give my viewpoint on the West as a whole in general though mostly this accounts for the USA, that heads the Western Philosophy at present.
IMPERIALISM: This is one of the main features of the Western Psyche. History points out that the West has always tried for intervention in other people’s Lands for this reason or that and it has usurped other people’s possessions mostly by force and modern weapons of the time. They have morals but little to display and change people’s hearts yet their strength is their material and physical power by which they tend to soothe their imperialist intentions though they might use other words and other philosophies to justify their imperialist actions. You would find this phenomenon applying at all the places where the West has put its foot and in today’s world, there is much to see in this regard. This feature of Imperialism is a direct result of FEAR (the second feature to be discussed here insha Allah) of the powerful and that tends to make them create trouble for the weak as they feel that someone powerful in material & physical things must show its power to create fear. They expect the same from others who have material & physical power and as such, they adhere to this concept of using power for the sake of creating fear. Please note that Islam clearly tells us that such power must be used for the sake of protecting the weak people from all other powerful people who tend to display their power to create fear. However, I would omit the detail for this matter at this place and would keep myself to the matter at hand of clarifying the Psyche of the West.
FEAR: Another important feature of the Western Psyche is Fear. There is a fear of the Powerful that he would surely use his power to subject the weak. This factor might be seen in their TV films and Movies where Giants are against the Human Beings and where powerful aliens from space are fighting them all around the world. In fact this theme is present in all their popular fiction and even in cartoon programs you would find this theme operating. It is a conformation to the animal character (with philosophies like might is right and consent for adultery makes it lawful) as the West have but little care for the spiritual values and takes the man as a form of animal (however, Islam tells us that man is created unique and in the current set of words by taxonomy, he belongs to a Kingdom of his own and his placement naturally is between animals and angels so caring only for his animal wants, he could fall below the dirty animals and keeping his animal nature in control fulfilling his physical wants to necessary limit only, caring about his spiritual need to achieve true Guidance and adhere to it, he could rise even above angels and history records the ultimate result of the lives of both type of people in its fold for our view and guidance). Fear of the Powerful is one of the keys that lets an observing person understand the Western attitudes. Displaced Hope & Irrational Fear creates trouble for an individual and even for a nation, one of these two is ALWAYS the reason behind any high mental disturbance. The treatment that the weak has endured from the powerful in the West (having political power, religious power, martial power etc.) during the past as the history of the West tells us is most proabably the reason behind this troublesome feature of Fear in the psyche of the West. This fear of the powerful has caused the Western people to consider all the people around that have some power, as hostile to them and this includes their own acquaintance too. In fact, I do feel (and this is my personal opinion and though formed after much study yet it might be wrong) that this fear of the powerful is the reason behind women getting moe liberal than any good morals would allow just because of a reaction to the suppression they have been subjected to by their men-folk. This attitude of giving little value to morals that women must adhere to, as Islam and even as Christianity asks for, is a direct result of Fear that the weaker gender holds towards the stronger gender and in other words, it might be an answer, reaction or even revenge towards the powerful now as the powerful suppressed them and not assisted them by their power in the past. As they say themselves “you have come a long way, baby” so that is why I am totally positive that this attitude is unable to get some grounds in the Eastern nation where women have always found security by their men-folk and where the powerful has always tended to provide assistance to the weak by his power by the blessing of Allah. Insha Allah any attempt to misguide Muslim women to take attitudes that we Muslims consider shamelessness would fail totally here. False accusations might impress some Muslim People for some time yet in the long run, even those few are also bound to shake off such propoganda insha Allah (by the will of Allah) or they would have to leave the fold of Islam. Let us see how things take shape in the near future.
PRIDE: The third important feature of the Western Psyche is PRIDE. In a positive sense, this is a good thing as then it denotes to have a self esteem that asks for keeping one’s respect in all matters of life yet I take it here as a Negative Feature in the Western Psyche as to me, it seems to denote that they have an immature thought that they are high beings among the peoples of the world and they have a right to guide people of the world as they deem fit. This thought is shown clearly in their speech when they tend to think themselves as Super Power or where they consider that their development is the end of all development of the Human-kind. This is a dangerous mistake that has no legitemate grounds. It works in the same way as the feature of the Fear works causing trouble to all people that are physically weaker than the West and making them seek refuge of some powerful people that might answer them in their own style. This thought can easily become deadly as it can lead to dangerous wars initiated by the West and it can also cause much hatred towards them by their opponents that again might be a cause of great mental disturbance and deadly attitude by the people having such hatred. This might be a response to Inferiority Complex that I have often felt in the Western Psyche specially when they call themselves as Super Power and as such this feature of PRIDE might only be a reaction of that complex.
NO HISTORICAL VALUES: Another important aspect of the Western Psyche is that it does not find any Historical Values now to adhere to, as it say that it rejects suppression of the weak (this of course is its stance verbally and in actual, it adheres to suppression of the weak as mentioned due to the built of its psyche). The only thing that this verbal statement does, is to develop hypocrisy in the Western Psyche. There is no such nation that can discard its history in total rejecting all of it and rejection is only possible when and where some necessary aspects are taken from it. That is why Islam tells us that the actual history of all people is adherence to Truth as Adam, the first man was sent with it, then with time people took wrong concepts and got involved with evil. However, the fact of the matter is this that the known history of West gives it the values of suppression of the weak and they call those times as their dark ages so they can not adhere to it and they have not replaced it with any high morals thus providing satan to play with their psyche creating hypocrisy and the deep seated adherence to the same philosophy of their past that “might is right” as a nation’s history to it is like the childhood to a man the problems of which create troubles in advanced life of the man and as such it can only be rejected by true adherence to rightousness that is totally absent as far as Western Psyche is concerned. This problem of having no high historical values to adhere to, has also caused this problem to them that they undermine other people’s history and consider that others too could be led to their way of thinking and their style of life as their commitment to their historical values would be the same as their own. This is a grave mistake as far as Muslims are concerned for we have a shining history and it does not start with Muhammad but from the times of Adam, as according to our belief, the teachings of Islam have been in the world from the beginning of the man’s life. So, any demand to adhere to life style with man-made philosophies at its base, leaving our commitment to our past, would insha Allah fail to impress us in any way and even if a few Muslims find some good in that satanic life-style, they would also see the Truth as it is in the long run insha Allah, if they are Muslims by heart.
These points though written briefly for the clarification of the Western Psyche, are quite enough to see that the West can not become a model to us Muslims in any way and we must shake off all inferiority complex that might have found some way among us due to our lack of adherence to Islamic Values and try to tie ourselve even more strongly with Islamic Values as that have the power to give us back our lost glory. Development of Man does not lie in the development of Wood, Bronze, Iron, Plastic etc. but it lies in the development of morals and the spiritual teaching that Islam gives us so that is what we must see to, without caring about what the Western Psyche wants. It would only be a grave mistake to give respect to such a psyche and this respect we must avoid at all cost without challenging our opponents in any way.
Al-Hamdu-Lillah,
Completed this writing at:
15th January, 2007
Written by:
Muhammad Saleem Dada
e-mail:
saleemdada@yahoo.com
sdada111@yahoo.com