Home >> Middle East >> Iran  Email  Print Knighthood For Rushdie: The Need For Social Change Saberi Roy - 6/28/2007 Salman Rushdie’s contribution to literature has been recognized once again with the British honor of Knighthood. The recognition is not just of literary contribution but also of a bold spirit and freedom of speech. In the literary world, Salman Rushdie is quite a phenomenon because it was the publication of the Satanic Verses that exposed Islamic fundamentalism way back in 1989 but let’s not forget, Satanic verses apart, he is the author of 13 very good books and he shouldn’t be branded only as the author of Satanic Verses and one who wrote against the Prophet.
Of course, the Satanic Verses was a major contribution and even Rushdie may not have predicted its controversy, but we needed a Salman Rushdie to begin a social process and we need more such authors in the future who can bring out the flaws in all religions, not just Islam, in a way that will be most effective in bringing about social change. Certain books can change the world, the way we perceive our lives, our faiths, our worldviews and we need these books as they pave the way for change. Someone had to attack biased or contradictory teachings in the Quran or any other religious text for that matter. Religious texts are not ultimate truths as they are made out to be; they have been composed by our ancestors, who were just humans and like any other piece of literary work, these will have to be criticized, analysed and the flaws will have to be exposed, whether directly or in a satirical way through fantasy novels, stories and poetry. An attack on religions is not blasphemy; it is absolutely necessary for social change, it is a part of progress in civilization and will force people to think differently.
In fact, Salman Rushdie did not even attack Islam directly, he just tried to expose the contradictions which were already present in the Quran, he did not invent the verses, he just dug out the flaws and such flaws and contradictions are present in every religious text. But he did one thing; he simply and unknowingly exposed Islamic fundamentalism rather than the contradictions in the Quran which seems to have become a secondary issue. Iran and Pakistan and every other Muslim country which has supported the fatwa against Rushdie really should get beyond the fact that Salman Rushdie is the author of the Satanic Verses, the man is recognized for his literary genius not solely for his writings against the Quran or Prophet Muhammad. But then Rushdie represents a changing mindset and the critical acclaim of his work only highlights the fact that we are ready for change. Whether it is the Quran, the Bible, the Bhagvad Gita, the Torah or any other text, any criticism of religious texts should be accepted by society and a transformation in our understanding of faiths is absolutely necessary. Religious texts are not ultimate truths, but have major flaws, contradictions, and some ideas are elements of fantasy that do not even fit in with our rational thinking, so we have to criticize and ‘clean up’ religions in a way that is more rational and useful for society. At the moment the concepts of ‘jihad’, ‘subjugation of women’ or even ‘creationism as against evolution’ in different religious texts, may be some of the issues that will have to be taken up in science-religion or sociopolitical debates and we have to consider whether these concepts are necessary at all within these texts and our present social context, or whether these ideas are creating confusion among the masses, are being usurped by terrorists and ultimately hindering social progress. Let’s face it, there will be no Messiah coming down on earth and saving the world now, we have to do it ourselves in a rational way, we are intellectually and spiritually evolved humans and proper analytical and social debates, literary masterpieces exposing flaws of religions, and rational thinking on our part would be necessary to get out of the rut caused by traditional religious ideas that are doing no good to this world.
We do need a change in this world, at the spiritual, political, literary and social level and Satanic Verses is only a beginning.
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