Second-year Creative Writing and Publishing student Naajia Amanulla tears down the stereotypes and shares what it really means to be Muslim
I have always been Muslim. Born and raised with Islamic principles, I was aware of other religious and non-religious groups who had their own practices, and though I didn’t understand them, I was taught to respect them. It was only when I got older and experienced the stereotyping that reduced a multicultural faith to a specific ‘type’ of person, that I noticed how many people outside of my faith were unaware of our lifestyle.
During secondary school, I was given a rude awakening with just how synonymous the word ‘Muslim’ was with ‘terrorist’, having previously thought it was just a joke based on events before my time. But no, my peers, people I’d spend my lunches with discussing our favourite TV shows and make-up brands, showed visible discomfort whenever I mentioned my faith in passing. There was a stunning lack knowledge around my lifestyle and therefore a developed unconscious bias against it.
“There was a stunning lack knowledge around my lifestyle and therefore a developed unconscious bias against it”
This was heartbreaking for me to internalise, because aside from an invisible wall of vague ignorance separating me from my friends, it meant that our society still carried fear surrounding Islam despite it being the second largest religion worldwide. Educating our communities instead of avoiding cultures and practices that are ‘foreign’ is the only way to combat this fear, and so, I want to share some of a Muslim’s core beliefs in the following points…
Humility
The most important aspect of Islam is believing in the one-ness of God, and by that extension, believing that nothing is more powerful than this solitary entity. We are taught to humble ourselves to our own flaws and ‘bow down’ to a higher power. This may seem forceful to non-Muslims, however, it is an important value for Muslims to uphold. Humility teaches us to open ourselves to other people’s perspective, and that no person is above another. We are all equally human and make mistakes. Acknowledging our flaws brings us together as a community.
Patience
The Arabic word for patience is sabr. In the month of Ramadan, we fast from dawn to dusk. Aside from being the month of giving, it is also a reminder of patience. Muslims learn to persevere through hunger and thirst, empathise with those who don’t have access to clean food and water like we do, and be grateful when the sun sets, and we have a meal with our loved ones. Part of the fasting involves maintaining a good attitude and work ethic. We must not let our hunger interfere with our mood, increasing our tolerance to those around us and treating them with compassion.
Gratitude
To be grateful is known as having shukr in Islam. Thanking God – or as we call him, Allah – for everything we are blessed with is core practice in Islam. It’s woven into our five daily prayers and even our language. Repeating phrases such as ‘alhamdhulilah’, meaning ‘praise be to God’, whenever something good happens reinforces the idea of gratefulness. This practice is also good to encourage enjoying the present instead of dwelling in the past or yearning for the future.
Compassion
In Islam, Allah is stated to have 99 other names, which Muslims can use to refer to him during prayer. One of these names is Al-Wadood, meaning the ‘Ever-Compassionate’. Calling out this name in our prayers reminds us that Allah will always consider us with love, and that we should do the same with other people, especially those whose circumstances differ from ours in significant ways. Islam is first and foremost a religion of peace. When it comes to interacting with other people, whether they are Muslim or not, we are taught to be kind.
Peace
Islam itself means ‘peace’. The common phrase used in greeting one another, ‘Asalaam alaikum’. means ‘peace be unto you’. It’s standard practice to wish tranquillity onto the person you greet, because other than having a friendly disposition, it is also to ease any worries or concern the other person may have. Approaching someone with peace is more than just saying you hope they’re doing okay; it’s about expressing your desire for stability and comfort in their life, encouraging brotherhood between loved ones or even strangers.
Stereotypes will always exist. It’s more convenient to put something or someone you don’t really understand at first glance into a box. Not everyone is going to take the time to learn about it, but that doesn’t mean we can’t try to speak out anyway. With a little patience and perseverance, you will be heard, so I’m going to keep talking about my identity, and I hope I inspire you to do the same!
