Collective Intuition of Muslims

Collective Intuition of Muslims

Islam has been favored by the infinite mercy and grace of the Lord, with a collective intuition which is free from all dangers inherent in taking to a new course or following the decision of any individual.

When ever the Muslims are faced with any intricate or difficult problem or the march of time throws up a new question which cannot be solved by the ordinary process, God invariably inclines the hearts of a group among the deeply-learned, pious and sincere Muslims, who apply themselves wholeheartedly and find out the correct answer to that question. They feel so determined to get to the bottom of the problem that one mighty say that they have been commanded by God or driven by some force beyond them to set the matter at rest. Such is the combined endeavor of the community in the hour of every crisis to which we have given the name of ‘collective intuition’___ and numerous examples of this nature can be found in the history of Islam.

1. For a detailed discussion see Chapter IV of Section II in Qadianism ___A Critical study by the author.

2. While this chapter was being written, Pakistan decided to treat Qadianis as non-Muslim minority, in order to placate the agitated Muslim masses of the country, as demanded by almost all the Muslim organisations with in and outside Pakistan.

But, there are also times when some of the pure and elevated souls have an immediate apprehension of the right course. An example of the intuition of this nature can be found in Adhan, the call to prayer, which was prescribed by the Prophet after (Umar ibn al-Khattab and (Abdullah bin Zaid were simultaneously communicated the words of the call heard by them in their dreams.1 Lailatul-Qadr or the Night of Power furnishes another example of similar nature. It has been related on the authority of (Abdullah bin (Umar that “a few companions of the Prophet who had the vision of Lailatul Qadr in the last seven nights of the month of Ramadhan in their dreams came to the Apostle of God and told him about what they had seen. The Prophet thereupon said, “I find that all of you have similar visions about the last seven nights, therefor, whoever desires to find it should seek it in these seven nights.”

The prayer of Tarawih, offered during Ramadhan, furnishes yet another example of somewhat analogous nature. The Prophet started to offer this parayer but abandoned it after three days lest it should become a burdensome obligation for his followers.2 The Muslims, however, continued to offer it individually until Caliph (Umar decided to perform the prayer in congregation. Obviously, the decision of Caliph (Umar was guided by divine intuition, for it proved to be immensely beneficial to the community. The prayer of Tarawih not only created the zeal for spending the nights of Ramadhan in vigils and adoration of God but also led to the memorising of the Quran. The earnestness of the Ahl-i-Sunnat in learning the Quran by heart and its recital as compared to the absence of similar fervor in other sects of Islam, who do not offer Tarawih prayer, is a manifest sign of (Umar’s right-guided intuition.

1. Abu Daud, Timidhi, Darimi and ibn Majah

2. Bukhari on the authority of Ayesha.

And, oftentimes, this ‘collective intuition’ takes the shape of unanimous consent of a vast majority of Muslims on a certain issue, which cannot, by any means, be treated as the result of fortuitous circumstances or conspiracy, by a section amongst them. Such a consensus of opinion of the majority of learned Muslims is either advantageous to Islam and the Muslims, provides a solution to certain important problem affecting their community life and puts an end certain menace or dangerous situation, or helps to achieve certain desired objectives.

The instances of the ‘collective intuition’ of this category are very many: collection of the Quran during the caliphate of Abu Bakr, collection and critical examination of the Traditions during the first two centuries of Islamic era, deduction of laws and principles of Islamic jurisprudence by the learned doctors of religion, and the amplification and development of all those branches of learning which have helped in preserving the original text of the Quran and its study and propagation of Islam are befitting examples of such a collective intuition.

The system of spiritual purification which later on developed into an elaborate discipline designed to identify the machinations of the devil within man and its suppression through spiritual realisation and communion with God is the inner dimension of the Islamic Shariah, recognised by it as tazkiyah (spiritual purification) and ihsan (devotion). Known as tasawwuf (mysticism) to later generations, it furnished yet another manifestation of ‘collective intuition’. It was refined and developed by the noble masters of spirit into the greatest act of devotion to God and as a means for striving against the burden of one’s own carnal self. God made it a medium of revivifying listless hearts and cool spirits and it was then utilised by the great saints and their disciples to spread the message of Islam in far off lands like India, Far East and Africa. Innumerable people were guided through it while many amongst them imparted faith and righteousness to the Muslim society of their times. They were not ascetics embodying the quiescent spirit of inactivity, since, many of them fought like heroes in the battlefields. Nobody who has not closed his eyes to the history of Islam can deny the great service rendered by these travelers of the path of spirit to the cause of faith.

Another shining example of this ‘collective intuition’ can be found in the great endeavor made from time to time to discredit and confute the misguided sects, irreligious philosophies, skeptic patterns of thought and blasphemous movements inviting people to profanity and inaction. It was the ‘collective intuition’ of Islam which produced master spirits of the age, at the appropriate moment they were needed, who unraveled wickedness of these bad influences and saved the Muslims from their pernicious effects. All these are the achievements of divine inspiration granted by the Lord to section of Muslims every age and place, for they are not only the last of the right -guided people but also the star of hope for entire mankind. This is, undoubtedly, the sign of this ummat being the chosen community while its ‘collective intuition’ is a testimony of the termination of revelation after the last Apostle of God. We do not find such a continuous and marked example of ‘collective intuition’ in the followers of earlier prophets who were not blessed with it because the prophethood was not to be terminated in their times...