Islam

In my travels, I've seen many different faces of Islam. I have seen Islam in a fairly liberal setting and a strict, conservative, and from the mouths of some Muslims, even crazy, setting. And from having several conversations with friends and listening to the happenings of Egypt and Syria lately, I'm beginning to wonder how a religion so caught up on not manipulating the words of Prophet Mohammed, can make up so many man-made, pseudo-religious laws? And from seeing Islam practiced in different settings, I'm beginning to wonder, when does culture become a religion?

When I visited Dubai, I was shocked by the seperatism of sexes. Men and women can't socialize in public. They can't flirt, they can't even stand in line together. In fact, an employee will call the women to the front of the line so no one will be uncomfortable! It is illegal to flirt in public! At first, I thought that this was Islamic law, only to later be told that this was merely cultural, by my Muslim-American friends. They told me that no where in the Koran, does it say that men and women should be seperate to this extent. I began to think of Malians in this respect, they are Muslim, but I see men and women flirting all the time, I'm flirted with all the time. So, where does this seperatism come from if it's not Islam, and why is this idea spreading within the Arab-world?

As my friends gave me further insight, of how the population is being effected by these ridiculous rules, I was shocked. How can the government think that they can nullify lust by restricting all contact with the opposite sex? Nature will prevail folks, and it does, secretely. In this secret, underground world, with the help of technology, most flirting is initiated using one's Blackberry. With one glance and one push of the bluetooth setting, the lines are open to hook up. And according to my sources, things have gotten so bad, that people are hooking up with random strangers because the families are so intertwined and they don't want everyone knowing their business.

Furthermore, the incidents of rape are growing because of this secrecy and build up of hormones. Some men have met girls, raped them and in some incidents, killed them to hide their own shame.

Also, there is a higher rate of homosexuality because of this suffocation. They are so starved of contact with the opposite sex, that they go for each other. In fact, I later learned that an Iman was accused of raping a young boy. I don't think that Islam approves of any of this behavior, so what does this say about the laws put in place?

What's funny, is that my friends told me that it didn't used to be like this. Things have gotten worse and worse over the past 10 years, as far as they know, given that they're only in their early-20's. So, again, I wonder why this is happening, not just in Dubai, but in Egypt and other Arab countries? What is there to be gained from this restrictive culture? What is there to gain from shutting women up and hiding them under a veil? According to my friends, the Koran specifically speaks to the importance of reading, not only the scripture, but to also seek knowledge. And it does not say that women are subservient to men, in fact it says that Muslims should kiss their mothers many times more than their father. To me, that says that women should be educated, respected and loved. So, where is all this other stuff coming from?