Muslims ruled over Spain
from 712 AD to 1492 AD for 780 years, yet today there are no Muslims
in Spain though every aspect of Spanish life has a touch of Islam.
Spanish language has many Arabic words, its music has an Arabic
tone, its culture has more Arabic influence than the European, and
proper nouns in Spanish often have the Arabic prefix al. From 1492,
when the last bastion of Muslim political strength Grenada fell,
the Muslims of Spain were on the decline and its culmination took
place after 120 years when the last batch of Muslim die-hards left
Spain in 1612. From that year, Islam vanished from the Spanish horizons.
A particular noteworthy point is
that during this period of Islamic decline from Spain, the entire
civilised world was ruled by Muslims. The Ottoman Turks had conquered
Constantinople in 1553, and were ruling the entire Balkan Peninsula,
Egypt was ruled by the powerful Mamiukes, Persia was at its political
pinnacle under the Abbasi rulers, and India was ruled by the Moghals.
Still Islam vanished from Spain and none of these great Muslim
armies did anything to protect the Muslims of Spain. How Islam
was ejected from Spain had been a subject of keen study by lndia's
Hindu Nazis in the 30s and 40s of this century. They studied this
aspect to be copied in India and to counter this possibility,
the Muslim leaders also studied this to prevent a repetition of
the Spanish methods because Muslims (forming 11.35% of the population
as per 1981 census) as lndia's single largest minorities have
become the biggest headache to the upper caste Hindus. But the
present-day Muslims are totally ignorant of the history of Islamic
decline in Spain and hence of the designs surrounding it.
Through this we intend to shed
a little light on this subject so that the thinking section of
the Muslims and their sympathisers may do some more research on
this subject. As in India, Spanish Muslims had three categories:
(i) the descendants of the original Arabs, (ii) descendants of
Arab fathers and Spanish mothers and (iii) Christian converts
to Islam. Immediately after the fall of Grenada many of the original
Arabs to save their lives (not property, as they were not permitted
to carry their wealth) left Spain to Tunisia and Morocco; many
died on their journey by the attacking Christian hordes. Rest
of the original Arabs who opted to live in Spain itself were subsequently
branded 'foreigners" (as in India) and destroyers of Spain. The
other category of Muslims viz. the descendants of Muslim fathers
and Christian mothers and converts from Christianity opted to
live in Spain believing in the declaration of King Ferdinand that
complete religious freedom would be guaranteed. (in India also,
we are told that Muslims enjoy full religious freedom and minority
rights). The attacks by Christian on their lives and property
during the earlier years was pardoned as a temporary phenomenon.
Compare it with the development
that took place in India after the partition (1947). But these
attacks on Muslim life and property in Spain did not abate but
continued for about 50 years with lesser intensity in a sporadic
manner, just as it is happening in India today. In the earlier
years, the Indian Muslims resisted and fought back. There were
mini-battles in the streets, but gradually there were one-sided
attacks and every time Muslims were the losers. Of late, the Hindu
police itself is let lose to kill the Muslims in India.
While the organized Christian groups
were committing such massacres, Ferdinand's Govt, in Spain adopted
the policy of eliminating Muslims from the services and adopting
the following measures:-
Arabic was removed from administration,
schools attached to mosques were debarred from teaching academic
and secular subjects like science, history, mathematics and philosophy.
Only religious teaching could be imparted,
Lessons in history were faked by which the Muslim rule was dubbed
as barbaric. Contribution of Muslims to the development of Spain
was avoided,
Muslim houses were made objects of constant searching by police
on allegations of arms hoarding and secret meetings, Original
Arab Muslims were projected as enemies of Christians and destroyers
of Spain.
Christian converts were persuaded to reconvert to Christianity
on the ground that their ancestors were forced to become Muslims
and as there is no more coercion, they should revert to Christianity.
Muslims who were from Muslim-Christian parentage were branded
as bastards and ridiculed and persuaded to revert to Christianity.
Marriages performed in the Islamic manner were directed to be
registered with the judicial officers. Islamic law was declared
illegal. Every method followed in Spain is being experimented
in India with better precision and timing.
Thus Muslims in Spain were made objects of ridicule, condemnation
and continuous attack. Burning of Muslim houses and shops was
encouraged to destroy their economy. Mock ceremonies of reconversion
of Muslims to Christianity were held and publicized. In India,
Hindu Nazis of all hues-Arya Samaj, Ramakrishna Mission, Vishwa
Hindu Parishad etc,. are doing the same. The first two generation
of Spanish Muslims adopted passive methods to save their religion
by teaching Arabic to their children at home and mosques, and
telling them orally about the realities but gradually they lost
the zeal. When marriages were ordered to be celebrated only through
Govt. agencies, Muslims in early stages performed dual marriages
- one with the Govt. authorities and again privately in their
homes in the Islamic manner. Gradually the second ceremony was
given up as even such a private ceremony was banned.
During this period, Muslim masses
gradually fell out of the grips of the Muslim leadership and Muslim
elites started flocking to Turkey, Tunisia, Morocco and Egypt
where they were received with sympathy. Poor Muslim masses were
left uncared for. This is exactly what is happening in India.
The richer, English-educated Muslims are getting Brahminised.
They have become imitators of upper caste Hindus as they live
not in Muslim localities but in Hindu areas. The poor Muslims
(they form 95% of the Muslim population) live in ghettos and being
better followers of Islam, they are left high and dry. Hence they
are getting killed in all anti-Muslim riots.
The seeds sown in the first half
of the century in Spain started yielding results in the second
half. There was no political leadership, no organization to protect
Muslims and enlightened personalities to save the situation. Religious
leaders knowing nothing but Islamic' theology tried their best
to save the situation, but against heavy propaganda by the Govt.
agencies, lures and offers to reconverts, ignorance of Islamic
values by the masses and sense of inferiority nurtured in the
minds of Muslim masses were too big a force to be undone by the
theologians. This needed a political leadership and an organization
with arms to counter, but there was none. Those who spoke of invoking
the help of Muslim powers of Turkey and Egypt were feared and
exposed before the authorities (by the Muslims themselves) to
be condemned. Without willing fighters, other Muslim powers could
not help. Those who had settled in Turkey and Egypt advised the
authorities there to desist' from such a thought as otherwise
atrocities on Muslims of Spain would increase. An Ahmed Shah Abdaii
was needed but th@'@ was none. And the Muslim masses joined the
"mainstream" of Spanish life and the mullahs finding no job for
their preaching gradually left Spain. And the last batch to leave
Spain consisted of the diehard mullahs in 1612
In India also the political leadership
of the Muslims became a tail of the Hindu parties led by the upper
castes. Only the theological leadership like that of Moulana Hasan
Ali Nadvi has tried to maintain the cultural identity of the Indian
Muslims.
This "Spanish experiment" is being
tried with greater energy and efficiency in India. Urdu, which
is as Islamic in India as Arabic was in Spain, is being eased
out. Muslims are voluntarily holding on to madrasas. English-educated
richer Muslims are away from the Muslim masses. We saw this at
the Tablighe Jamat International conference held in Bangalore
(DV, March 15, 1985). They are not going to Muslim countries,
but are taking refuge in their psychological and physical seclusion.
Any move to organise them to protect the Muslim life and property
is branded as communal. Any Muslim flirting, if not supporting
the upper castes, is called a "nationalist Muslim". The gulf between
the Muslim masses and educated rich Muslims is widening every
day. Mass killing of Muslims is considered something natural by
the Muslim leadership itself. Whenever it is raised at international
Islamic platforms such actions are called interference in the
internal affairs of India. Muslims history is deleted from the
syllabus. Names of Muslims who died for India are avoided. A great
martyr who died for India like Tippu Sultan is unknown to youngsters,
whereas the name of Tantia Tope, who fought not for India but
for his pension, and Jhansi Laxmi Bai, who fought for her adopted
son's heirship to the throne, is brought on the lips of every
Indian. No Muslim gets awards for his contribution to science,
medicine, music, art or gallantry. Even those who fought from
the ranks of the ruling Congress Party like Moulana Azad, Kidwai,
Syed Mahmood, Humayun Kabir etc. do not have a road or extension
named after them. But there are half-a-dozen in the names of each
upper caste leaders in our towns and cities. History is being
re-written. ("Falsifying Indian History", DV editorial, April
16, 1985). Muslims are killed daily and their houses and shops
burnt. The doors of the Army, police and administration are closed
to them. And yet Muslim organizations to protect Islam are coming
up like mushrooms. Everybody wants to protect Islam and nobody
wants to protect Muslims. We are really worried.
A study of the Ruling Class policies
reveals that it has great similarity with the one followed by
Ferdinand and Isabelle in Spain. The only difference is that the
Hindu upper castes are more sharp and sophisticated because of
the limitations imposed in the 20th century by the checks exercisable
by the United Nations Human Rights Charter and international public
opinion.
The systematic and daily anti-Muslim
riots resulting in loss of life and property, and above all the
sense of fear in the hearts of every Muslim, elimination of the
martial Muslims from the Defence, paramilitary and police forces
and brahminising of these forces, closing the doors of appointments
in Govt. services and public undertakings, Brahminisation of education
and mass.media like radio, TV and advertisement, elimination of
Urdu as official language from those areas which form the present
day States of Punjab, Haryana, UP, Bihar, parts of Madhya Pradesh,
Maharastra, Andhra Pradhesh and Karnataka overnight in 1947-48,
gradual closing of Urdu schools are all examples of positive anti-Muslim
policies.
On the brahminical psychological
warfare side comes the cries of Personal Law amendment, now diluted
as common civil code, greatness of the Indian (Hindu) culture,
projection of notorious anti-Muslim personalities like "Mahatma"
Gandhi, B. G. Tilak, Madan Mohan Malaviya, Veer Savarkar, Lala
Laipat Rai as heroes of India to belittle the contribution of
Muslims for the development and progress of the country, re-writing
of Indian history, describing Muslim professions like beef-selling
as a sin and glorifying cow protection policies, introduction
of mechanical slaughter of animals to throw out of job butchers,
declaration of import and export business carried on by Muslims
as smuggling are policies through which vulnerable Indian masses
are misguided, resulting in a psychological anti-Muslim bias.
Muslim electoral constituencies are divided horizontally and vertically
so that they don't have an effective voting power anywhere and
thrusting upon them ultra-secular Muslim leaders who have started
worshipping Hindu idols and such scenes being systematically televised.
Unfortunately Muslim leaders, who are dejected with the Govt.,
repose much confidence in Hindu masses and hope to secure their
help ignoring the fact that the poor Hindu (Dalit) masses are
as much victims of such a propaganda. And as on this day only
seeds are being sown. The harvest is yet to come. When the harvest
reason comes, what will be harvested in India is repetition of
Spain, unless the Muslims resort to counter measures soon.
It is high time the Muslim/ intelligentsia
rises to the occasion to undo the repetition of the history of
Spain in India. Islam has always been protected by the Muslim
masses and not by the classes. Rich Muslims, who are not even
5% of the Muslim population (with minor exceptions) are joining
the upper caste exploiters. They may talk of Islam but they have
forgotten the fellow Muslims. Please note: religion does not protect
its followers, but followers protect the religion. Remember if
Islam has to be saved in India, Muslims have to be saved.
