Muslims, why don't they say Vande Mataram?
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From the pen of: Abdullah Rafiq Qasmi
Servant of Teaching
Jamia Abdullah Bin Masood Vijayawada
The political atmosphere of Hindustan is becoming increasingly turbid and putrid day by day. The politics of the ruling party has become so focused on Islam and Muslims that the real and fundamental problems of the country have been pushed to the background. To distract the majority mind from the real questions, sometimes history, sometimes divorce, and sometimes slogans like Vande Mataram are made the subject of discussion. From the halls of politics to the streets, and from media studios to TV debates, Vande Mataram has become a hot topic.
In this article, an attempt will be made to clarify:
What is Vande Mataram?
Why don't Muslims say it?
What is the ruling from a Sharia and Islamic point of view regarding reading or singing this song?
Vande Mataram is a Bengali song, created by the famous Bengali writer Bankim Chandra Chatterjee. This song was first published in the Bengali magazine Bang Darshan under the editorship of Bankim Chandra on November 7, 1875 (according to some traditions, 1876), but it did not receive much recognition initially and went into obscurity.
Later, Bankim Chandra started publishing a novel serially in the same magazine, which came out in book form in 1882 under the name "Anand Math." Vande Mataram was included at the end of this novel. During this period, Bengal was going through a period of famine, political unrest, and intense hatred against Mughal and Muslim rulers. The overall mood and background of the novel was clearly anti-Muslim, giving the impression that Hindus and the British would together oust Muslims from power.
In this atmosphere, Vande Mataram became an emotional slogan. Gradually, its initial verses became popular among the public.
In 1896, Rabindranath Tagore presented Vande Mataram with melodious voice at the Congress session held in Calcutta, which gained it extraordinary fame. Later, during the freedom movement, this slogan remained on the lips of many non-Muslim freedom fighters.
When the British government banned the singing of this song, this ban became a reason for its popularity, and it spread from Bengal to the whole of Hindustan. After independence, it was given the status of National Song, while Jana Gana Mana was declared the National Anthem. However, the initial verses of Vande Mataram were also encouraged to be read on some occasions, which further increased Hindu-Muslim differences.
The opposition of Muslims to Vande Mataram is not merely stubbornness or political animosity, but its foundation is based on the belief of Tawhid (Oneness of God).
In this song, the homeland has been presented as a deity and those attributes have been used for it which in Islam are specific only to Allah Almighty, for example:
The one who gives salvation from sorrows
The one who bestows blessings
The one who gives strength and energy
The one who is my knowledge
The one who is my inner self
The one who is my purpose
The one who is the life inside the body
The reality residing in hearts
The one with great power
Permanent and eternal
Sacred
All these attributes are attributes of Allah, and it is not permissible in Sharia to apply them to any creation. According to Islam, Shirk (associating partners with God) is the biggest sin, which Allah Almighty has declared unforgivable.
The basic belief of Islam is that the creator of the universe and everything in it is only Allah, the One, without partner. The homeland is a creation of Allah, not a deity. The homeland can be beloved, love for it is natural and permissible, but even the most beloved thing cannot reach the level of a deity, whether it is parents or prophets (peace be upon them). We are definitely protectors and lovers of the homeland, but not its worshippers.
Muslims do not need to take a certificate of patriotism from anyone. Every particle of the soil of our homeland testifies to our patriotism:
Patta Patta, Boota Boota Haal Hamara Jaane Hai (Every leaf, every plant knows our condition)
Jaane Na Jaane Gul Hi Na Jaane, Bagh To Saara Jaane Hai (The flower may or may not know, but the whole garden knows)
We are ready to give our lives for this homeland, but we cannot accept Shirk at any cost. Even before independence, there has been legal and constitutional struggle against Vande Mataram, and as long as faith remains, this struggle will continue.