In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
All Praise is due to God. May Allah's Peace and Blessings be upon Prophet Muḩammad and upon His Family and Companions!
Professor Jabir Naṣṣār, President of Cairo University,
Dear presidents, professors, scholars, and personnel of Egyptian universities,
Dear female and male students of Cairo University and other universities,
As-Salāmu ‛Alaykum wa Raḩmatu Allahi wa Barakatuh
I am very pleased to accept your invitation to deliver this lecture at the remarkable Cairo University, a university that has graduated many notable Egyptian leading figures in science, literature, and culture. The famous alumni of Cairo University have been carrying the torches of enlightenment and knowledge over long decades in the horizons of Egypt and the Arab and Muslim world. It is also my pleasure to thank all the university staff, vice presidents, deans, teaching staff, students, and personnel.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I find no word to express my happiness in delivering my message to my dear female and male students. Really, this message is just a repetition of what the professors already know. I honestly tell you that thinking about a suitable topic to address the Egyptian university youth with, in my endeavor to touch upon their concerns, worries and dreams, has opened horizons teemed with tens of various issues that have passed my mind.
It is really beyond the rhetorical skills of any speaker, given the talent of charming eloquence and precision, to explore them all comprehensively and perfectly in one lecture. Youth and nation, youth and responsibility, rights due to young generations on old generations and the state, youth and science, youth and work, youth and faith, youth and atheism, youth and ethics, youth and apathy are some suggestions among numerous others that seemed optimal options.
Though highly important, it goes beyond the scope of this short message to mention, let alone discuss, them all in a clear-cut and transparently open manner with deeply-rooted and honest heritage-based theoretical framework. Such a framework must be associated with realities' synchronic problems, coinciding necessities and Egypt's ongoing crises and challenges.
Facing this multi-choice question with a medley of discrepant topics, I held it more appropriate to address you—youth, about some general rules and well-established principles. Your strong wills, promising prospects, constructive ideas, personal rich experiences and other creative abilities, as expected and even wished for, would help you assimilate and translate them into realities. Before presenting the general framework chosen for tonight's speech, I would like to remind you, youth, that you should not overlook your legacy of civilizations for which you are markedly distinguished among the world youth. Never be heedless of your noble heritage and lofty roots profoundly entrenched over the course of time. Forget not that your ancient civilization is really historic and majestic; you are the offspring of that civilization and shall be the makers of a great civilization. You are the youth of Egypt. You have exceptionally numerous imposing ancient civilizations intensely affecting your hearts and souls from the civilization of Ancient Egypt and the Coptic civilization until the Arab and Muslim civilization in Egypt. I think no other young generation in the world has such a rich diversity of civilizations blessed with such a valuable heritage expanding throughout long times of history.
You may argue that all the youth around the world have their history and ancient civilizations. Yes, you would then tell the truth, but there are two distinctive differences worthy of your attention:
First, all the world civilizations came next to that of Ancient Egypt, since the Egyptian civilization is the oldest of all. Yesterday, the head of the Chinese churches visited my office. When I asked him which civilization is more ancient: the civilization of Ancient Egypt or that of China? He unhesitatingly said that the civilization of Ancient Egypt was older. However, it did not take me to pride, as an Egyptian, to hear that answer. I felt discontent in heart while comparing today Chinese civilization with our older and greater one! Had affairs been rightly set, we would have been much better.
Second, the youth of other civilizations have no connection whatever with their heritage. They are alienated from and heedless of their ancient heritage and treasures. How could they build bridges to their heritage while they neither know nor speak its language? Nor do they even have the desire to discover the treasures of that heritage in the areas of knowledge, religion, behavior and ethics. This intentional separation between heritage and modernity has created new generations deeply attached to the diachronic changes of times and locations more than their association with old philosophies of theoretical principles and practical patterns. Such generations had nothing kept in mind about the mediaeval centuries and their rich treasures of science and knowledge. In a word, all the remnants of that era hold no position in their imagination or memory. It is truly fair for humankind to feel grateful for and recognize the favor of the Western modern civilization in terms of knowledge, philosophy and scientific inventions. They have contributed enormously to the liberation of humankind from the chains of tyrannies, suppression, transgression and corruption. Indeed, their achievements in these areas have surpassed all other progresses achieved since the dawn of history until the Renaissance era. It is equally fair to assert that they have also created a parallel crisis, chaos or vague vision in the man of modern times. I am not interested in exploring this crisis of chaos in length. It is enough to turn around to see the impending dangers threatening the entire world.
In conclusion, I want to affirm the introductory part of my speech that you, the youth, have firm connections with your original civilizations guided and inspired by splendid heritage in their corrective contributions to humanity and their endeavors to redress the long course of humanity for prosperous and most beneficial ends.
Dear honorable audience!
The Muslim Civilization is the most recent of the eastern civilizations. Its effects are far-reaching and vividly impressing our souls. Like an equilateral triangle, it also has three equal pillars: the Divine Revelation, a revelation-led mind and ethics. The Divine Revelation forms the pole of the Muslim civilizational system. Like a heart to body, it nourishes civilization with life and lends it powers to stand firm and survive. The revelation here refers to the texts of the Qur᾿ān and their explanatory texts of Sunnah which illustrate Qur᾿ānic scriptures, make laws, guide moral conduct, or convey values and ethics. We know that the Qur᾿ānic text is uniquely and exceptionally endowed with the blessing of being kept in books and hearts together, the case which enabled the Muslim civilization to stand steadily resilient in all the battles of developments and to survive till today. Despite the decline it has experienced and the severe blows it has received from inside and outside equally, it remains as vivid and vigorous as an undying firebrand even at times of retirement and decline. Had any other nation suffered the calamities that befell the Muslim civilization, it would have faded away and become a part of the past history centuries ago.
Next to revelation comes the mind in the most perfect and comprehensive sense of its meanings and requisites in relation to science and knowledge. It forms the foundation upon which the texts of Divine Revelation, the Qur᾿ān and the Sunnah, rely. The Qur᾿ān fully depends on the human mind when addressing humankind about the divine laws and regulations. The high esteem of the human mind in the Qur᾿ān is indisputably well-known and clearly beyond debates. Mathematically speaking, the mere recitation of Qur᾿ān provides conclusive evidence for this fact. For example, the roots of ‛aql (mind/reason/intellect), fikr (thinking), ” and naẓar (reasoning), all indicating the intellectual process of building rational arguments and proofs, are repeated in more than 120 Qur᾿ānic contexts in linguistic forms reflective of the repetitive occurrences of that intellectual activities, such as ya‛lamūn (to know), ya‛qilun (to perceive), yatadabbarūn (to contemplate), yufakkirūn (to think), yanẕurūn (to contemplate), yasma‛ūn (to hear), yafqahūn (to comprehend). The Qur᾿ān decisively differentiates between the degree of certainty resulting from science, which is full certitude, i.e. truth, and the degree of conjecture, doubt or suspicion as expressed in God's saying: “They have no knowledge about this; they only follow conjecture. Conjecture is no substitute for the truth. You shall disregard those who turn away from our message and only desire this worldly life.” (Qur᾿ān, 53:28-29)
As to the pillar of ethics in the Muslim civilization, it is enough to stress two points:
First, the ethics of Islam are invariably constant; they are not open for change and alteration in submission to the logic of interests and purposes or the logic of power and dominance or any other epistemological moral structure such as those adored by other civilizations. Over their long history, the Muslims never plundered other nations or devised pretexts to murder, fight or dominate them. In a word, immoral behavior to the Islamic ethics is seen as eternally abhorrent and wicked, whereas moral behavior is regarded as everlastingly good and ethical. When it comes to ethics, the Muslim ontological philosophy accepts no relativity. Against the Machiavellian cynical duplicity and disregard for morality as coined in the principle “the end justifies the means,” Islam never condones double-standard policies or accepts any immoral vice associated with despotic minds, such as those giving rise to human contemporary crises, pains and distresses.
Second, the Islamic acts of worship, e.g. prayers and fasting—no matter how great and numerous—cannot substitute ethics. Unless the devotional acts of worship are grounded in moral principles, they are ineffective. Once the Prophet (pbuh) had a question about a certain woman who observed prayers all night and fasting all day, but who hurt her neighbors verbally. In response, the Prophet (pbuh) said, “There is no good in her. She is following the way of hellfire.” Again, they asked about another woman who only offered the prescribed prayers and gave nothing but bits of curd in charity, but who never hurts anyone. The Prophet (pbuh) said “She is one of the people of Paradise.” He (pbuh) also said, “Shall I tell you of those who are most perfect in faith? They are best in morals as endowed with affable personalities, making friends and proving themselves as beloved friends.” He (pbuh) also says, “A believer is an affable person who kindly befriends others; and there is no good in a person devoid of affability that s/he befriends none and is not anyone's favorite friend.” In reaffirmation of this lofty meaning, the Prophet (pbuh) says, “A servant with a highly moral character can win the greatest degrees and most honorable ranks in the Hereafter even if his/her worship is moderate. Conversely, a bad-tempered person notorious for immoral disposition deteriorates to the lowest and worst place of Hellfire even if s/he is a constant worshipper.” The young people who may think that Islam is exclusively restricted to the mosques, religious rites and forms are seriously mistaken. They erroneously think that they are free to criticize or hurt fellows and colleagues, or that they are exceptionally privileged and superior to all others. They must wake up and pay attention to this prophetic law governing the relation between ethics and worship. Only through this way, they can save their worship from loss. Otherwise, they are taking the same way of that woman whose tongue led her to Hellfire.
Dear young people,
In the light of these universal frameworks presented, set out your movement, start thinking, seek learning, and identify the dividing lines between the mind guided by the light of Divine Revelation in its authentic texts, and the unrestrained destructive mind which brings ruins to all. Know that the mind has its scope, but revelation also has its own. Any confusion with their roles or any absolute dependence on only one of them can only lead to disorder and conflict. The unrestricted intellectual or rational activity only occurs due to the fall of the dividing lines between these two scopes when the mind loses restrictions and falls into atheism and misguidance or into isolation, withdrawal, and excommunication. Both cases are forms of mental and intellectual disorder. Ultimately, they lead to nothing but aberration in reasoning and inference. In this regard, the conclusion of Muslim scholastic theologians stands unique and wonderful. They set out the hairsplitting difference between rational evidence and textual evidence, specifing the scopes appropriate for each, concluding that refuting anyone of them results in rendering them both invalid and false.
There is another point I would like to stress in this brief message, which is patriotism and national loyalty, especially at this crucial juncture in the history of Egypt and the Arab nation. We all, old or young, must respond positively to match the level of responsibility expected of us to shoulder. You should repeatedly remember the trust of homeland with which you will meet your Lord and for which you will inevitably be called into account. It is also a responsibility in this world as recorded by history and preserved by days. “History is merciless,” as usually said. As such, be keen to keep your historic records of patriotism pure and honorable. Let the future generations hold your memories in praise and gratitude as we hold the memories of the Egyptian youth during the last century for their firm stand against colonization and the then conspirators and corruptors in Egypt. Stand by the benefits of your homeland; that homeland is the source and provider of our food, drinks, education, comfort and pleasure. Do not be like those traitors who take by the right hand and stab in the back by the left hand. It is not the ethics of men noted for manhood and loyalty.
Dear young people,
Do not think that I am here to just remind you of your duties while being heedless of your problems, distresses and pains. Although I have left the time of my youth altogether, I never forget the pains of my generation when I was young. We even had the blame for responsibilities created by imposed circumstances that we never did or had any hand in. We had to pay the bills for others and bore the blame instead of others. We underwent wars and knew their consequent destruction and social and economic crises, especially closing all the doors for social justice and equality before us. Although you experience similar problems, it is within your wisdom, acumen, and patience to overcome them so long as you are backed with resolute will, calm and well-balanced thinking. You own the right vision of realities and events as well as the plots and conspiracies contrived overseas against the region. Read the reality in a rightly-guided manner while determined to face and resolve these problems. Turn your back from improper solutions that proved infeasible and useless in dealing with contemporary transformations and challenges. You should give up insistent pursuit of government jobs and avoid the waste of youth years waiting for them in reluctance of manual works and jobs, being unduly busy with empty fondness of forms and appearances or unjustifiably given to cozy and comfortable life. It is necessary to abandon all these inherited practices if you wish to develop the Egyptian community and move it towards work, production, anticipated social justice, and equality.
In the meanwhile, all the officials must share the young people their austerity, distress, worries, and pains by virtue of practical plans apart from empty slogans, usually ridiculed and branded by young people as useless and irrelevant to their realities. I have a dream to see the rich entrepreneurs and investors investing their wealth in alleviating the suffering of young people, thus giving a hand to create an actual touchable development. I frequently wonder in sorrow and suspicion why the wealthy people refrain from investing their wealth in building low-cost housing units for the indigent youth to help them gain psychological stability and build their small families. The culture of society on marital costs is replete with meaningless complications with no change. Why is that so?!
Actually, things have gone beyond all tolerable limits. Where is the role of jurists, scholars, preachers, media people, intelligentsia, and artists in changing these bad habits which Islam has come to eliminate and destroy by striking at their very foundations? Evidently, the Prophet of Islam (pbuh) worked on facilitating the means to marriage and reduced its costs to become even equal to “a handful of barley” or “an iron ring”. Wide distance is there between a handful of barley or an iron ring on the one hand, and a handful of gold/a diamond ring, let alone other vanities in which some rich families find pride, thus arousing the feelings of the poor and agonizing the senses of the needy. Actually, they hurt the feelings of the entire society, driving some young people to deviation or physical and mental suffering.
Dear young people,
I know that you keep wondering about terrorism, Daesh (ISIS) and other violent groups. I know that you are not unaware of the truth of these armed organizations and the circumstances of their birth. As seen, they are born with clutches, claws and talons. They are maliciously created and devised for some hidden purposes. Currently, enmity is declared as past hidden plans have become exposed. I think you have heard presidents of some states while exchanging accusations of buying oil from terrorist organizations in our Arab Lands. Would you not wonder if the defeat of a ruler, even a tyrant, would entail the decimation of countries and peoples, killing three fourths of a million of men, women and children in one war within one country? I leave the painful answer to your acumen and awareness. Your generation may even be more aware of these contexts and circumstances than ours, as our journey is inclined to sunset.
Dear young people,
I would like to conclude my speech affirming that Al-Azhar is very happy to open all the doors for your intellectual contributions and inspiring suggestions, which are anticipated to enhance Al-Azhar mission in promoting the culture of social peace at the national, regional, and international levels. It also comes in assertion of human brotherhood and universal human colleagueship to build the right concepts of religion and Sharia deeply in the minds of young people and to protect them from delusive intellectual polarizations and calls to intolerance, extremism, killing and taking up arms against secure civilians and peaceful people. I hope you hold dialogues with Al-Azhar scholars and reciprocate views, know more about each other, and identify the challenges that face you.
Thank you for your kind listening!
As-Salāmu ‛Alaykum wa Raḩmatu Allahi wa Barakatuh
Professor Ahmad At-Tayyeb,
Grand Imam of Al-Azhar
Safar 18, 1437 AH/December 1, 2015