Faith and common sense (or, lack thereof): Worship, Taliban style.

Ahmadiyya Times does not know Khalid A., the Daily Times reader who wrote the following lines to the Daily Times Editor. Our staff came across the comments during a random  search. 

Ahmadiyya Times | News Staff | Interesting reads
Source & Credit: Daily Times, Pakistan | letters
By Khalid A. | London, UK

A true namaazi

Sir: There was a news item in the Daily Telegraph (Febuary 9, 2010), about a ‘true’ namaazi. He is a Muslim bus driver who stopped his bus in the middle of traffic and started performing his prayers in the aisle. The bus was full of passengers. The driver locked the doors so that nobody could leave or enter the bus. He did not make any announcement nor offered any explanation.

In the UK, the authorities have provided prayer rooms in hospitals, airports, hotels, educational institutions, etc., where facilities for wuzoo [ablution] and prayer mats facing the Qibla are provided. One expects namaazis to be pious persons who would be considerate to others. Not so here! They ignore all rules and continue to pray in corridors, dining halls and stair halls, blocking pedestrian traffic and disrupting official activities. They often leave bathrooms messy and dirty. People have been seen praying in the aisle in a flying aeroplane! In general, there is an air of arrogance around such people, as if they are superior to all others. Where is the humility that should be the hallmark of a true worshipper?

Sometime back I was listening to a radio talk show. A Muslim caller was on the line. He was demanding that Muslim workers should be given breaks five times a day for prayers, during office hours. I was driving, so I could not join the discussion. I would have liked to ask whether he wanted breaks for Fajr, Maghrib and Isha prayers that are generally outside office hours. Why could he not offer Zuhr prayers during his lunch break and a short Asr prayer during an afternoon coffee break? Why do we have to make everything difficult for everyone?

There have been cases in Pakistani hospitals where patients are neglected because the doctors have gone for prayers. I personally know a case where, during the month of Ramadan, a heart-attack patient was asked to come in the next day. The poor man died during the night. When the staff at the cardiology centre was quizzed, they admitted, off the record, that no senior doctor reports for duty after Friday prayers during the month of Ramadan. The holy month is for more ibadat. Is patient care not true ibadat?



Read the original letter here: A true namaazi