ASK Conference 2004
Introduction
By:
Iqbal Jhazbhai
Fond memories encircle our hearts as
conference
participants recall the
appropriately entitled Conference, Celebrating Islam, which was
held at the Pretoria-based Rasooli Centre under the auspices of
the newly founded
Academy of Self Knowledge (ASK).
The timing of this Conference initiated by Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri,
could not be more perfect. It was held against a backdrop of
celebration in South Africa.
In this respect, South Africans, along with their friends, were
celebrating and reflecting on the lessons of a decade of democracy
(1994-2004), away from the reactionary path. The majority of South
Africans were celebrating 10 years since emancipation from
apartheid and turning away from oppression. Many celebrated the
fact that the racist, doomsday scenarios painted upon South
Africa, proved unfounded. Importantly, 2 days prior to this
Conference on Celebrating Islam, some 76.73% of the 20.6 million
registered South African voters, peacefully streamed to the
polling booths of South Africa’s 9 provinces.
On this 3rd national
election since the inauguration of
Mr.
Nelson Mandela in 1994, South Africans
voted (69.68%) for
Africa’s
oldest liberation movement, the African National Congress (ANC,
ce1912). On the eve of this Celebrating Islam Conference, the ANC
held its Victory Celebration.
In this context of celebration and democracy, and that the Arab
world remained by and large “anorexic spiritually speaking”, this
Conference remained particularly brilliant and radiant. It
celebrated our ability to experience “the discovery of the map; that Prophetic manual which never
fails”. Brothers and sisters went on further to celebrate “our
ability to experience the amazing Perfection around us, the
journey of discovery to the zone of Perfection in all of us”.
Islam experienced as the “user-friendly package of the Prophetic
path, overflowing with joy, which emancipated the lower self”.
Real sustainable emancipation was presented and correctly needs to
be experienced as loving the zone of Perfection in
all
of us
and despising the lower self in all of us.
In this respect, this Conference was also a celebration of a
netocracy:
a
network
of hearts bonding, blooming via interaction at the bosom of the
Baqi (the Ever-Stable Allah).
The Qur’anic term farh -joy, celebration, cheerful,
delight, exhilarate- resonated
with
nuanced shades in the presentations at
the Conference on Perfection and unison. Clearly, the succinct
presentations on personal experiences of celebrating Islam,
touched on a newly founded way of tearful cheerfulness, which was
not only riveting but unplugged new channels of joy and openings.
It was celebrating this ability to experience an amazing Eid of
all times –recurring and permanent.
This text has indeed a compelling and caring ring of real
celebration and authority. It, along with the CD recordings,
merits serious consideration as we journey and chart our discovery
to the Prophetic way, with all the journey’s perfections and
imperfections.
