The story of modern age man is embellished with a thousand accidental tragedies, periodic natural disasters and mayhem. In the last hundred years we have seen two epidemics and a horrific tsunami along with numerous floods and earthquakes. The prophets of doom, as we can term the destructive forces, played havoc and the message brought was that of ‘death and fear’.
The history of man also reveals there were miracles, blessings and prosperity being showered through Prophets of peace in earlier times. The message brought by each one was that of ‘Life and Hope’. As we have entered the last part of Ramzan searching for the ‘Powerful Night’ we need more ‘ hope ‘ for our world.
The corona hit world wakes up in despair and sleeps in fear. The virus has engulfed not just physical space in the world but has clouded our mind with helplessness. The virus may never completely leave our ecology. It can shed its severibility or intensity. This too will come with the vaccination and medication. We can subdue it but not completely eliminate it. Meanwhile man can probably make himself immune to the virus as done in the past. Medical science is hellbent on making human beings stronger than the attacking virus. Almighty gives us problems but not without a way out.
The inherent weaknesses of mankind have often sought the wrath of the universe. Time and again messengers and righteous people were born to strengthen the human mind. The holy month of Ramzan is a reminder of many sorts. The holy message through the Quran was revealed in this month that mitigated fears, instilled hope and showed righteous way of living. The society had ingrown various viruses of the mind that had corrupted the whole being. The souls had lost the sheen. The virtues fell off one by one. The society had degraded itself due to materialistic greed and weaknesses of self. Injustice, rule of might and pagan practices had marred the human character with blemishes and injury. This intellectual health needed healing and rejuvenation. A revival of the pure self that was bereft of any disease of the heart and mind was the need.
The holy Prophet (pbuh) and the message of peace strengthened the society miraculously. Many great men and women had a change of heart and shed off the diseased mind overnight. Barbaric, rude strong men melted within moments when the realization and truth manifested. The wealthy and the poor, both humbled to the doctrine of Islam. The righteous path had been manifested. Did evil die? Certainly not, we just subdued it. In fact the evil whispers are as strong as day one. Religion stands as that staff we rely on, call it Dharma or Deen. This divine vaccination of body, mind and soul was done in all regions and all periods of time. The trivialities of worldly life were shed off and there was a higher goal set for every individual. They became ‘super humans ‘. The tribe, community and the society gradually transformed with the revived spirit of life, the new anecdote or the spiritual vaccination. Each one was immunised against the evil temptations, the cruel ways and the inhuman deeds committed earlier. Great monarchs, big landlords, business tycoons submitted to the oneness of Almighty and mended ways of living. Islam vaccinated the shallow diseased mind and transformed man into a pious , righteous and healthy human in every form.
The world today is again strengthening itself to fight the virus that is weakening the physical form. We need to increase the fighting capacity from within. As the deadly second wave of the novel corona has hit us, we need more fortification of the body through isolation and vaccination. This Ramzan we need to adopt another form of charity for our society. Wearing the mask, sanitising , maintaining social distance, following SOPs and getting vaccinated as early as possible has been the practice since a year. Mutual cooperation and concern for fellow beings is the best ‘Sadqa’ or charity we can give this Ramzan. Responsible behaviour towards each other could save the society in a subtle yet a significant way. Be it your co-worker, domestic help, chauffeur, milkman, vendor and grocery man, each one is part of your daily life. Phones, watches, bags, and other accessories are over sanitised and the real carrier of the virus misses our eye. The frontline workers directly exposed to the pandemic and the 45 plus group are vaccinated as there is apprehension that they may lack immunity. Soon the 18-45 group will be covered. But this group has an onus of being responsible and empathetic towards each other as they carry the risk on shoulders.
The dwindling mortality rates, the infected numbers and the number of vaccinations done everyday are the only tangible pointers to the condition of the severity of the outbreak. To make the virus insignificant, if not wipe it out, we need to increase immunity and adopt an appropriate social behaviour to combat the disease. This will come with the small charity of wearing of masks, home isolation and social distance with each other. Become your own corona warrior this Ramzan.
The author is Karnataka origin settled in Kashmir.