Vaccination Against Discontinuities

In order to follow the discussion in this article, it is imperative for you to read two previous articles (Continuity of Sustenance, Preparing for the Discontinuity of Sustenance). From this point on, I am assuming that you have read them.

So, we are in a quest to find a vaccine, or better a family of vaccines, against the discontinuities that threaten our existence and our faith due to their magnitude and extreme duration. This clearly is a research area and must be an ongoing one due to the ever changing life conditions and the ever improving methods and devices of evil. Below, I am sharing with you some of my conclusions from personal experiences and discussions with people.

An idea in this regard can be obtained from the example of the prophet Muhammad pbuh. Had he come today, what would he do in order to strengthen the faiths against the disturbing discontinuities? This question may sound nonsense and even ridiculous to you, because, one, he is not coming back, two, who are we to empathize with a messenger of God. Still, in the Quran, God tells that there are good examples in the person of the prophet for those who believe in God and the afterlife. So, why not try a time travel and pay a visit to our doctor?

"You have had a good example in God's Messenger for whosoever hopes for God and the Last Day, and remembers God often." (33/21)

The first event that draws my attention is the prophet's action during the battle of Hunayn. Initially, the Muslim army was dispersed and bewildered in the face of the enemy, and the Muslim soldiers were running back from the field. Upon seeing this, Muhammad pbuh stood against this flow and shouted as strong as he might: "I am the messenger of God, there is no lie in this." Such bravery gave a shock to the Muslims, because they realized that the prophet was standing alone and trying to fight against the enemy, all the while trying to call his friends to their senses. It didn't take too long for the Muslim army to recollect and execute a conclusive assault leading to victory.

This event is an analog to the discontinuities we are discussing. It shows that if you yourself are able to stand against the adversity, when others are bewildered or even giving up, that action of yours can function as a vaccination to your fellows. Allah sometimes guides his servants through the example of some other servants. And if He has blessed you with the faith, conviction, strength and guidance to stand against the adversities, then you must share your inspirations and ideas with others, remind them the conditions of their agreement with God, and trigger an immunity against disbelief. 

Another idea of vaccine can be found in the concept of patience. Patience is an indispensable component of survival in dire conditions. So, the activities, exercises that strengthen your patience can help you endure the extreme tests later on. For example, doing sports that take a long time and extreme effort to complete are superb for this purpose. Marathon running (quarter, half or full), mountain climbing are two such examples.

Similarly, a factor that undermines the will power and feeds depressive thoughts is the absence of a meaning in what is happening. Research has shown that people who see a meaning in their suffering can both endure the tough conditions better and can come out stronger, whereas those who see no meaning are more likely to fail or come out destroyed. So, practices that help us see a bigger picture in the complicated things or events can also help us survive the pitch dark times that seem like eternity. In this regard, making puzzles (500, 1000, or 2000 pieces) or other artistic productions that take long time to complete (embroidery, sculpture, painting, etc.) can be highlighted.

Next idea is Quran memorization. Here, I am not talking about memorizing only the short chapters. I am talking about memorizing several pages, or even tens of pages, even if you cannot memorize the entire Quran. There are several benefits coming with this. First, the reason we are trying to device a vaccine is that we want to become and remain loyal servants of Allah. So, having His living word with us wherever we go is a prime source of energy and help. Even when nobody can be with you, He can speak to you through His word that is in your mind. You can recite it for tens of minutes or even hours. The One who has the control over everything and the One who gives meaning to anything is communicating with you as you utter every single word of Quran. Another reason for Quran memorization is that it takes patience and effort to do, and knowing more of the Quran helps you see everything through better and larger lenses, which connect this practice to the two previous reasons.

Last but not the least, another vaccine suggestion that again connects to everything explained so far is doing good willed actions or charity projects that push you to your limits and beyond so that you must get out of your comfort zone and force things and people desperately, all the while praying to Allah for a successful end to your project. This effort is certain to bring you face to face with your Creator, and it is meant only for you to conduct that communication. That is, I cannot go beyond telling you to try it.

"Behold! Abraham said to his father and his people: 'I do indeed clear myself of what you worship. (I worship) only Him Who made me, and He will certainly guide me.' And he left it as a Word to endure among those who came after him, that they may turn back (to Allah)." (43/26-28)

Preparing for the Discontinuity of Sustenance

Can you imagine what would happen if the entire world had insufficient oxygen to breath for 1 minute? If you are one of those who can hold their breath for well over a minute, this would not pose a big problem. However, many people would not survive such a shock and many others would come out severely, and perhaps permanently, injured. What if this unfathomable disaster lasts for 2 minutes? 

The above thought experiment brings up the issue of strength in the face of scarcity of the essentials. And that connects us to the concept of fasting in Islam. Especially the fasting during the long summer days pushes the bodies and wills to their limits. Yet the believers force themselves to obey the command of God and wait for the time of sunset to break their fast. Pondering over this worship through the perspective of the above thought experiment, we can see that God is strengthening the believers through fasting so that when a scarcity occurs, which will definitely happen throughout the course of life several times, the believers can survive not only in their bodies but also in their faiths. This last point about surviving in faith needs further scrutiny.

"And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits,..." (2/155)

Surviving in your faith automatically connotates other concepts: inflictions and challenges to your faith, strength of your faith, death in your faith or flourishing in your faith. For example, freedom and justice are essential needs of humans. An unusual delay in the delivery of justice or an irrationally long duration of an oppressive regime put people in a strenuous state of mind where they feel obliged to question the veracity of their faith and their adherence to it. Absence of basic sustenance for many while the ridiculous wealth possessed by the few and continuation of this structure over time while God's apparent indifference to this state may push people to trying life styles where they act regardless of God's commands. Such lethal situations for faith are part of the destiny, and if the believers are not prepared for them, their survival in faith is rather unlikely. If the occurrence of such trials are inevitable, how can the believers prepare for them?

The very first step in addressing any situation is properly understanding it. The trials discussed here are not simple trials that put you through hardship. These are the events that you would clearly label as "heartless, treacherous, merciless", and they compel you to question whether God is really merciful and compassionate as He says in the Quran so many times: "if He is so, then why is this situation?" These are the events that crush the connections between the believers and their adherence to the traditions narrated to them. That is, the words and actions of the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and the people who represent his tradition come under scrutiny. This is when the believers can at last truly empathize with the atheists and understand why they are so stuck with the problem of evil!

"[Remember] when they came at you from above you and from below you, and when eyes shifted [in fear], and hearts reached the throats and you assumed about Allah [various] assumptions." (33/10)

In fact realizing the existence and severity of situations that may shake us from our foundations is not limited to the events in the adult life. From a very early stage, we humans are hardwired for detecting and coping with cases of irreversible consequences. I am talking about the early years of childhood when we learn and start thinking about death. It doesn't take too long to ask the most dreaded question: 

"Mom, dad! Are you going to die? What is going to happen to me when you die?"

One approach in solving these problems is abandoning life itself so that they won't happen. That is, you bring your own discontinuity so that the uncertainty of its otherwise occurrence becomes certain. This is the approach of the sufis or the ascetics, where they abandon the worldly life, eat less, sleep less, interact with people at minimum. They reduce their existence so that they won't face a fundamental quake in their lives, because there is nothing to shake. This way of life brought about the generations that eventually left the material world and the world of knowledge, i.e. science and technology, to those who don't have a regard for God. So, the power shifted to the people who did not prepare themselves for the life after death. 

Today, following the same route means not interfering with life at all and becoming an item of display in documentaries. It means becoming a topic or figure in epic movies but remaining passive and inactive when it comes to real life. Is this what God wants?

"O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. " (49/13)

"The believing men and believing women are allies of one another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and establish prayer and give zakah and obey Allah and His Messenger. Those - Allah will have mercy upon them..." (9/71)

"They did not prevent each other from committing sins nor would they themselves stay away from them. Evil was what they had done!" (5/79)

To be among people and to have immunity against the evil that may befall you due to your faith,  an easy solution seems to be vaccination. Just like fasting on the long, scorching summer days, a practice or a set of experiences can be / must be developed so that people can prepare themselves to excruciating moments of endless misfortunes. Similar to the vaccines that can upend the spread of a pandemic, this social/psychological vaccination can ensure the survival and flourishing of the believers through the extreme challenges facing their faith. 

Then, what could that vaccination be like?