Intellectual Diabolism

Intellectual Diabolism

by Abu Muhammed edited from Diabolik Intelektual*

Diabolise is an old Latin word, which means Satan, this as mentioned by A. Jeffery in his book: “The Foreign Vocabulary of the Quran” published by Baroda in 1938 pages 48. The meaning of diabolism can also be interpreted as an ideology, attitude or salvation to someone. In the Holy Quran it has been said that Satan is part of the Jinns (18:50: “Behold! We said to the angels, “Prostrate to Adam”: they prostrated except Iblis. He was one of the Jinns, and he broke the command of his Lord. Will ye then take him and his progeny as protectors rather than Me? And they are enemies to you! Evil would be the exchange for the wrong-doers!” ), which was created by the element of fire (15:27: “And the Jinn race, We had created before, from the fire of a scorching wind”).

As we all know, Satan was cursed and driven away from the paradise due to his disobedient of the God command to prostray to Adam. But does this mean that Satan is an atheist?, no, or does it mean that the devil is an agnostic? no either. Satan doesn’t deny the existence of God, or has any doubt on the Oneness of God; Satan knew the God and believes in God hundred percent, but why doesn’t Satan been cursed and been categorized as an agnostic?, here is the core of the problem.

Knowing and understanding is not sufficient enough, believing and confessing will not justified either. Those who are agnostic amongst the people of the books do believe and knew the Prophet peace be upon Him dearly the way the parents knew their children (ya’rifunahu kama ya’rifuna abna’ahum”, but still they wouldn’t want to submit and surrendered to Islam.

It is crystal clear that knowledge, belief and confession should be attached closely with obedience and salvation and follow by one’s willingness of obeying and performing sincerely what has been commanded upon. Professor Naquid has said: “Knowledge and recognition should be followed by acknowledgement and submission”

Satan Characters

The mistake that the devil/satan made is not because of the ignorant or lack of knowledge, but the main reason is due to Satan refused (abaa) of God command, as stated in the following verses:

(1). 2:34: “And behold, We said to the angels: “Bow down to Adam:” and they bowed down: Not so Iblis: he refused and was arrogant: He was of those who reject Faith”, (2). 15:31: “Not so Iblis: he refused to be Among those who prostrated themselves”, (3). 20:116: “When We said to the angels, “Prostrate yourselves to Adam”, They prostrated themselves, but not Iblis: he refused.”

And Satan arrogance/haughty (istakbara) as stated in the following verses 2:34, 38:73, 38:75:

(1). 2:34: “And behold, We said to the angels: “Bow down to Adam:” and they bowed down: Not so Iblis: he refused and was haughty: He was of those who reject Faith”,

(2). 38:74: “Not so Iblis: he was haughty, and became one of those who reject Faith”

(3). 38:75: “(Allah) said: “O Iblis! What prevents thee from prostrating thyself to one Whom I have created with my hands? Art thou haughty? Or art thou one of the high (and mighty) ones?

 And Satan dispute (fasik) on the command of God (fasaqa an amri rabbihi,) as said in verse 18:50:

(1). 18:50: “Behold! We said to the angels, “Prostrate to Adam”: they prostrated except Iblis. He was one of the Jinns, and he broke the command of his Lord. Will ye then take him and his progeny as protectors rather than Me? And they are enemies to you! Evil would be the exchange for the wrong-doers!”

In this situation the devil is not alone, there a lot of peoples recruited as staffs and crony, they acted and behaved precisely like theirs master. (refused, arrogant and dispute) Satan is a prototype intellectual , as mentioned in the Holy Quran, just after been condemned, the devil seek for his life to be spare and pro-long, and it has been granted for a period of time, and he made a promised to force others to his path in whatever ways possible. As mentioned verses in 17:64 & 65, which said:

And Arouse those whom thou canst among them, with thy (seductive) voice, make assaults on them with thy cavalry and thy infantry, mutually share with them wealth and children, and make promise to them, but satan promises them nothing but deceit,(65) “As for My servants, No authority shalt thou have over them” Enough is thy Lord for a Disposer of affairs

The Satan was so ambitious: “He said: “Because thou Hast thrown me out (of the way) , lo! I will Lie in wait for them on Thy Straight Way,” (17) “Then will I assault them from before them and behind them, from their right and their left, nor wilt thou find, in most of them gratitude (for thy mercies)”. (QS 7: 16 & 17), al-Maktabah al-As riyyah, 1995, vol. 2, pg. 190).

From the verses above, Ibnu Abas r.a said that, Satan had determine to deviate others and spread suspicion, making mankind suspicious and forget to the hereafter, felt allergy and anti towards goodness and truth, inclined and mad toward materialist in this world, it became an hobby and ignorant toward sins, suspicious and confuse toward the religion. (Ibn Katsir Tafsir Al Quran)

It is not difficult to identify intellectual with the mentality of Satan, this is because there is enough criteria which the Holy Quran has explained, which are as follows:

(1). Always opposes and make an objection

As said (QS: 6:121): “Eat not of (meats) on which Allah’s name hath not been pronounced: that would be impiety, but the satans ever inspire their friends to contend with you if ye were to obey them, ye would indeed be pagans.”

Even though they knew, acknowledge and understood, but they will never want to accept the truth, just like Fir’aun with his army, “Zulman wa ‘uluwwan”, even if in their heart they confess and believe (wa istayqanat-ha anfusuhum)

These group will always argue and try to dispute and oppose the truth for the sake of defending their opinion, this is because for them the important expect is not the truth, but how to make it be the truth. Therefore it is not that they don’t know the true was, but it is because they didn’t want to follow and acknowledge to the truth. So don’t be surprise when there will always be an intellectual who confess to be muslim, but had this kind of attitude in them. To them their wild ideology and opinion is more important to be defended rather than seeking the truth and protecting their faith in Islam.

In the tradition of Islamic jurisprudence, this attitude of disputing the truth is also name as “Al ‘Inadiyyah” (see: Abu Hafs Najmuddin Umar ibn Muhammad an-Nasafi (w.537H / 1142M), al-‘Aqa’id in Majmu min Muhimmat al Mutun, Cairo: al-Matba’ah al-Khayriyyah, 1306H, pg 19)

 (2). The Diabolic Intellectual has the attitude of arrogant.

The meaning of arrogant is very clear from the Prophet peace be upon Him saying, which has been narrated by Imam Muslim (no. 147): “Al-kibru batarul-haqq wa ghamtu n-nas” which means: Arrogance is to oppose the truth and to trifle others

The outcome (for them) will be, for those who follow the truth as mentioned in the Holy Quran and the narration from the Prophet peace be upon Him, will be considered as dogmatic or literalistic.

But to the contrary, for those who has the liberal thinking, and who are relativistic and sceptic in slandering the Holy Quran and the sunnah, disputed and opposed the truth, they are the one who will be admire as an intellectual who are considered as the most critic, reformism and so for, even though they had been proved to be atheist, heretic and have the mentality of the Satan.

They have two faces, and used the standardise attitude, as mentioned in the Holy Quran (QS 2:14) which said: “Of a surety, they are the ones who makes mischief, but they realize (it) not”, they considered the believer as ignorant, but in reality they are the ones who are dull and stupid (sufaha’). This group of intellectuals who are the ones that has been threaten by Allah in the Holy Quran (7:146) : “Those who behave arrogantly on the earth in defiance of right-them will I turn away from My Signs. Even if they see all the Signs, they will not believe in them, and if they see the way of right conduct, they will not adopt it as the Way, but if they see the way of error, that is the Way they will adopt, for they have rejected Our Signs, and failed to take warning from them”.

 (3). The third criteria is they will try to blur and conceal the truth, (talbis wa kitman al-haqq).

This diabolic intellectual knew what is the truth and what is falsehood, but they deliberately twist and turn the data and the fact. The falsehood were polished and decorated to the extent that they looked precisely like the truth.

Where else the truth has been cut and disfigure until it looked illegal and unlawful, or the two (legal and illegal) has been mixed together until it became ambiguous and couldn’t be differentiate between the two. This strategy is the most effective way to make others felt confused and disoriented.

Some of the example that has been done by the group who support iklusivisme and pluralism in religion is that they select verses from the Holy Quran (2:62 and 5:69) (2:62“Those who believe (in the Quran) and those who follow the Jewish (scriptures) and the Christians and the Sabians, any who believe in Allah and the last day and work righteousness shall have their Reward with their Lord on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve”) (5:69“Those who believe (in the Quran) those who follow the Jewish (scriptures) and the Sabians and the Christians, any who believe in Allah and the last day and work righteousness , on them shall be no fear , nor shall they grieve”)  to justify their wild ideology that all religions are the same, and ignore the context of siyaq, sibaq and lihaq or the interpretation bi l-ma’tsur from the verses.

It is the same that has been done by the western orientalise in their research toward the Holy Quran and the Hadist, they questioned and exaggerated minor issues, they created ambiguity to something which is obvious and  clear, and try to distorted  and manipulated (tahrif) the existing references. This is not too surprised, as majority amongst them are the Jewish and the Christian, as their character has been clarify in the Holy Quran 3:71 :”Ya ahla l-kitab lima talbisuna l-haqq bi-batil wa taktumu l-haqq wa antum ta’lamun?” ( Ye people of the book! Why do ye clothe truth with falsehood and conceal the truth while ye have knowledge?”) . The most astonishing thing is that the samething has been done by those who are physically Muslim.       

The Role and Attitude of Iblis

Due to the action and role that he had played, Iblis which probably in Hebrew also known as Satan, is also interpreted as contender or enemy (see: W. Gesenius, Lexicon Manuale Hebraicum et Chaldaicum in Veteris Testamenti Libros). In the Holy Quran it has been said that satan are the enemy of mankind as stated in the following verses:

(1).12:5: “Said (the father): “My (dear) little son! Relate not thy vision to thy brothers, lest they concoct a plot against thee: for Satan is to man an avowed enemy”,

(2).17:53: “Say to My servants that they should (only) say those things that are best: for satan doth sow dissensions among them: for Satan is to man an avowed enemy”

(3). and 35:6: “Verily Satan is an enemy to you: so treat him as an enemy. He only invites his adherents, That they may become companions of the Blazing Fire”.

Other than the attitude of opposing (‘asiyy) Satan has a lots of bad characters,  such as wild and impudent (marid and marid), to skidded or make one’s slipped (istazalla), to stumble or cause one to trip (yughwi) and to deviate or mislead (yudillu) mankind, satan too used strategies, some of it is by creeping and influencing (yatakhabbat), or by prossessing (yanzagh) , or by conquering (istahwa) or by controlling (istah’wadza) or by creating obstruction (yasudd) or by instilling fear (yukhawwif), or by recommendation (sawwala) and accompany (ta’uzz), or calling (yad’u) and by trapping (yaftin), or by creating negative image to looked positive (zayyana lahum a’malahum), or whispering negative values in someone heart and mind (yuwaswis), or making promise or tempting with something good (ya’iduhum wa yumannihim), or by deceiving (dalla bi ghurur), or by making people to forget or neglect (yunsi), or by inserting conflict and hatred (yuqi’u l-adawah wa l-baghda’), or organizing act of sin or immoral value (ya’mur bi l-fahsya’ wa l-munkar) or by calling people to be infidel (qala li l-insani-kfur).

These are some of the trick used by Satan followers which are amongst the elites and intellectual. They are also called as :

(1)  awliya’ al-syaytan” as stated in (4:76) : “Those who believe fight in the cause of Allah, and those who reject Faith fight in the cause of Evil (Tagut): so fight ye against the friends of Satan: feeble indeed is the cunning of Satan”

(2)  , ikwan al-sysytan (3:175) : “It is only the Satan that suggests to you the fear of his votaries: be ye not afraid of them, but fear Me, if ye have faith”

(3)   hizb al-syaytan (58:19) “Satan has got the better of them, so he has made them forgot the remembrance of Allah. They are the party of Satan. Truly, it is the Party of Satan that will lose”

(4)  and junudu iblis (26:94) “Then they will be thrown headlong into the (Fire) they and those straying in evil”

 They kill the religion and propagate wild ideology in the name of human right, freedom of expression, democracy, reformation, modernization or revival.

The truth is for those who read and understand the history of Islamic ideology, all these are not something new to them or had just happen recently for the first time. All these are only the repetition and reproduction, as the word goes: “History repeats itself”, the only differences is the actor that changes, but the character and their act remain the same. There is Fir’aun and there Musa a.s. There appear Suhrawardi al-Maqtul and there Ibn Taymiyyah, and there came Hamzah Fansuri and there came ar-Raniri and therefor.

The Holy Quran too has said (22:3-4) : “And yet among men there are such as dispute about Allah, without knowledge, and follow every Satan obstinate in rebellion! (4) about whom (Satan) it is decreed that whoever turns to him for friendship, Him will he lead astray and he will guide him to the chastisement of the fire”

And for the believer they have been reminded that (6:121) : “ But the Satans ever inspire their friends to contend with you if ye were to obey them, ye would indeed be Pagans”, but this doesn’t mean we are prohibited to think or to interpret, everyone have the right in giving opinion but with knowledge and good manner, wallahu a’lam.

*This article is written by Dr Syamsudin in Indonesia, he is one of the auditors from Insist Institution, and is now pursuing his second PHD program in Frankfurt University, Germany and translated by me,  Abu Muhammed graduated  from Al Azhar in Islamic Jurisprudence and has his Diploma in Psychology from Lee Com. College and Master Decree In Counseling from Monash University.