In the modern, industrial world, the term ‘Turnkey
Project’ has come to be widely used. Ready-made
houses and factories are made today in which
everything is provided by the seller. The buyer has
only to turn the key in order to use it. The
behaviour of certain Muslims of the present day
suggests that they think the world is theirs for the
taking, that God has handed it over to them readymade
and that all they have to do is ‘turn the key’
and everything and everyone will be ready to do
their bidding.
Little do they realize how far this is from being the
true state of affairs. This world, in reality, is one of
vigorous action and keen competition, and no
worthwhile position can be attained without
working hard on every aspect of the project in
hand, and no job is well done unless carried out
with scrupulous care from beginning to end. Our
very right to live has to be proved by competing
with others. Only when we plunge wholeheartedly
into the fray, can we hope to attain the place we
desire in this world of cause and effect. There is no
question of just ‘turning the key’.
Muslims of the present day must learn before all
else that they are at the beginning of history, and
not the end. Everyone knows that this is January
1986 and that for it to be December 1986, we shall
have to wait twelve months. The earth shall have to
revolve on its axis 365 times and only then shall we
come to the end of one year. This is common
knowledge. But Muslims tend to overlook such
obvious facts when it comes to the building of their
nation. They have only just entered the first month,
but they want to leap straight into the twelfth. They
make no effort to lay the foundations of the homes
they keep imagining, but already they want to
stand on their rooftops. The very phrasing of their
speeches and writings gives the impression that
they have actually attained their objectives.
We should remember, first and foremost, that we
can create a nation only if its inhabitants are imbued
with a sense of purpose and, to that end, we must
educate our people: they must have full knowledge
of both the past and the present if they are to
progress towards an ideal future. We have to
inculcate in them the will to work unitedly in spite
of their disagreements. We have to instill in them
the courage to sacrifice their personal feelings and
their short-term interests for long-term ones. Only
then will it be possible to fashion history anew.
--Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
( Ref - The Moral Vision)
