-Bismillahirrahmanirraheem-
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| He who Rose to Oppose -Ghulam- |
Where were
we previously?
Let me
recall for a while. It started off with me babbling, then it jumped to the
story of the prophet and settled down to the introduction of the main
characters right?
Right?
Err, okay.
Kind of weird asking you guys this. You can check it out in the previous hyperlinks
up there.
So let me
continue with the tale but I’m going to narrate it from the child aka Ghulam’s
perspective. Because I think we can relate to him better than the emperor or
sorcerer or the mysterious old man who’s going to debut later.
So the
Ghulam, who was he really?
You’ve
known before that he was a child, he’s attending an exam made by the empire for
very devious reasons AND became the highest scorer in that exam. So, is there more
to Ghulam than this?
Here comes the genius of the words of the prophet and the way the Quran narrates the tale of mankind.
If you ever
read or went through a passage of a verse of the Quran and hadith, you’ll
realize that most of time the reference of people and places in the texts are
quite ambiguous; meaning they don’t refer specifically to particular
individuals, time or place.
Does it
mean that Allah forgot to attach such critical information when the Quran was
to be revealed to Prophet Muhammad?
Subhanallah
from such flaws!
Subhanallah
from imperfections!
The Quran
and the tradition of the prophet were meant to be guidance for us until the Day
of Judgment right?
So what
would be of our religion if both of these important source our religion were to
be limited to certain time, people & place? Then Islam would only be
tradition practiced by people of old, not the way of life that we perceive as
it is today.
So how does
the story of Ghulam, preserved by our ulama to finally arrive in our arms,
embraces the message of Islam that is eternal and universal?
If you
think really hard about Ghulam, he is actually the archetype, the
personification of the young generation of today.
What? You
don’t believe me?
Let’s see
now, he’s a kid who doesn’t know what he’s gotten himself into, he’s just
following what society thinks is the trend or right thing to do (remember, the
exam was something celebrated by the people), he has no plans for the future
and he is oblivious to the fact that he is being used as a tool in someone
else’s game of life-like chess.
Sounds
about right don’t it? If you’re still unconvinced wait till you read the rest
of story, hoho.
…………………………………………………………………………………….
Ghulam was
very pleased when he knew that he was the crème de la crème of all the
candidates in the national sorcerer examination. Why wouldn’t he? His parents
were very jovial about it and that seemed as good as any reason to jump and
make a flying kick pose wachhaa!
So news of
this golden boy of the empire spread far and wide among the people. Making him
a celebrity amongst the local community and envy of all those who failed to
make the final cut as he did. With his status as the sorcerer’s apprentice
legitimized, he would now travel back and forth from his home into the tightly
guarded castle walls where no commoner will ever enter, to receive the mantle
of illusion from the now ailing sorcerer, to become the tool of fear for the
emperor. As regalia, to remind those who dare stand up against the emperor’s
will of the terrors they will face.
But did he?
As the
story unfolds, during a routine of back & forth goings of Ghulam from his
home to the palace, he came across an old man. He wasn’t some revolting beggar
with tattered clothes trying to pry his way into making ghulam give up his
lunch money. Nor was he a deranged insane old man that we see now wandering in
the streets, whether from mental breakdown or abandonment.
This
particular old man only started to show up when Ghulam started going to the
palace for his lessons of the art of ‘magic’ and surprisingly enough, he was
always giving some type of sermon to passer-byes who happen to cross that
street.
He wasn’t a
bard spouting nonsense and narrating outrageous story for the sake of
entertainment, case in point, every day as Ghulam commuted from his home to the
palace he started to enjoy the musings of the old man. That is saying something
because not every day you see someone like Einstein standing on the street to
hear a stranger’s conversation.
As days
passed by, what used to be 5 minutes of me time before going to the palace for
sorcery lessons, became full-fledged apprenticeship between Ghulam and the old
man, consuming much of the day he was supposed to be with the sorcerer.
Wow,
amazing right? What was it that mesmerized Ghulam so much that he became more
engrossed than sorcery, the ‘trending’ or the in-thing during his lifetime?
You know
this something called religion? Well,
during that period any form of submission to God was made extinct save
obedience to the pseudo-god, the emperor who is responsible for it. With that
decree, he also made sure anyone who worships any divinity beside him is
prosecuted. Whether death or imprisonment, he wanted to solidify his status as
the only sovereign in the minds of his people. Still it seems one old man was
able to slip by the genocide and he’s here to make one last push!
Ghulam became
fascinated with what the old man said, of the one true God and His message to
worship Him and Him only, to not associate Him with His creatures who are full
of flaws and imperfections, of the true reason why we are all here, on this
earth, in this moment, to what end are we living out our lives.
And those
so called musings later became no meager interest; it became a conviction in
Ghulam’s subconscious. Though, it was weird that Ghulam still went to tht palace
for his apprenticeship with the sorcerer which contradicts the teachings of the
old man on Oh-So-Many levels.
This
development didn’t go unnoticed however. Since Ghulam spent so much time with
the old man he steadily arrived late to his classes and home. The sorcerer and
his parents started to question Ghulam’s peculiar behavior these past few
weeks.
“Why are
you late for my classes? Don’t you realize you are my successor? Don’t you want
to become the one who holds the power over this kingdom? ”
Piaaaak!
INI MAKAN DIA!
“Why are
you late? It’s already past maghrib! Where have you been ha? Jumpe anak dara
orang eh? Mak ayah tak pernah ajar ko wat keje tak de pekdoh gini!”
Piaaaak!
INI MAKAN DIA! (2nd time)
I bet
Ghulam’s body is covered with bruises right about now with the constant
beatings from both his teacher & parents. And those bruises became scars
which only increased as days passes by, showing just how haunting were the
words of Ubudiyyah & Tawheed which was conveyed to him, up to the point he
was willing to go against the wishes of those who once controlled him. At the
same time, Ghulam wasn’t dumb enough to tell them about his illegal hobby.
Remember,
any statements indicating there is a divine being aside from the emperor is
blasphemy and a major capital offence. Ghulam knew that but continued to learn
from the old man, he knew that this was something worth the sweat, tears and
blood he shed. It was something to root for despite being at odds with what
society believes & advocates. He learned, he questioned and he understood.
He was no longer a tool. He was no longer a sail following the wind’s path as
it breezes through.
“Oh God, I
BELIEVE.”
-TO BE CONTINUED-
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