10 things I hate about Hasbe Haal

Hasbe Haal is one of the most-watched program in Pakistan right now. Personally, I love the work done by Sohail Ahmad on it. Still, there are many things not to like about the show. I have made a list of the 10 things I hate about the show. It is necessary to mention that I do not hate the show as a whole.

1. The Advertisements

Advertisements take up as much time as the program itself, which is extremely annoying. The show starts after almost 5 minutes of advertisements and after every 6 minute interval we get to delve into the dumb word of marketing.

2. Junaid Saleem's rants

The program used to start for a long time with Junaid Salim, lecturing the audience on political matters (this format has changed now and the 'views on news' segment precedes it). Mr. Junaid often talks about controversial issues and his bias is clear for all to see. He rarely presents the 'other' side of the case and goes on and on regarding a certain aspect. He has a vivid pro-rite wing, anti-liberal, antifeminist bias. He recently badmouthed senior journalist, Najam Sethi in the show. 

3. Najia's ignorance

Najia beg's only job in the show is to laugh. Of the 35-38 minutes of the program, she spends around 25 minutes in laughing. She also opines on some issues at times and her lack of General knowledge or that of Social norms is clearly exposed.

4. Funny videos

A recent addition to the format of Hasbe Haal has been that of funny videos. Playing a funny video on national media is not savvy. The can do it like the 'Moment of Zen' is done on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, as playing a viral video on loop is not really funny.

5. Over-emphasis on traditionalism

Yes, we get it that our younger gen is facing moral decadence, that we need to respect our elders and give them ample time, or that taking unnecessary risks is not cool but can you please stop sounding less like Talqin shah and more like Junaid Salim and Azizi. If joint family system was that good, why are you people living as 'nuclear families'(defend as having only 1 bread-owner) yourselves.

6. Lack of Interviews

There are no external interviews on the show(they did interview Ch Shujaat once and Shehbaz Sharif once). Instead of parodying, why not interview the “real” Firdaus Ashiq Awan.?

7. No competition

Hasbe Haal started as a groundbreaking program which provided a nice mixture of humor, knowledge and critical analysis. Since its inception, it has gathered high ratings and managed to push many shows in its time slot, off the air waves. This lack of competition has meant lesser efforts on part of the Hasbe Haal management to improve the show. Even then, it’s the most watchable show on network television. Remember the golden saying, excess of everything is bad.

8. The 'intellectual' debate.

J.s thinks he is an intellectual. Azizi insists n him being one. This debate has been repeated ad nauseam. By definition, an intellectual is someone who uses critical or analytical reasoning in a personal or professional capacity. This means both Junaid Saleem and Azizi should stop scoring points and admit graciously that they are not intellectuals.

9. The absence of literature segment

Aftab Iqbal, the previous host of Hasbe Haal (the son of a widely acclaimed and prolific poet of Urdu) used to have a segment to discus common mistakes made in Urdu language. This was probably the only occasion in history of television in Pakistan that people got to know what linguistic mistakes they were making in daily lives. Since his departure, that segment has been scrapped.

10. Depiction of third gender.

Stereotyping is a pre-requisite for comedians and the same is done by Azizi in different segments of the show. The group subjected to the harshest stereotype is the mixed gender people. 

Imran Khan's biography

Imran Khan's Biography written by Christopher Sandford can be viewed and downloaded from here now.
This one is much more interesting than Imran Khan's recently released book because
1) It is written by a professional writer.
2) This not only include IK's narrative but also the narrative of other sources.
3) This book is devoid of the ideological propaganda contained in IK's own book.
Read and Enjoy.


Chapter 1:- Only a Game
Chapter 2:- Of Hospitality and Revenge
Chapter 3:- The Swinger
Chapter 4:- War without the nukes
Chapter 5:- The downhill struggle

Excerpts from the next article: Murder of History

Murder of History 

I have written in for Posterity. In a hundred years’ time when the future historian sets out to contemplate the Pakistan of an age gone by and look for the causes that brought it low, he might find in this book of mine one small candle whose quivering flame will light his path.

K.K.Aziz, in Preface to his book ‘The Murder of History’

In the last 64 years, a lot of wrong Information has been passed on as “facts” by our textbooks and Media. In this article, I have mentioned some of the most popular myths about Pakistan History and tried to debunk them using authentic sources. I should admit that this is a beginner’s effort, I don’t claim to possess absolute knowledge nor do I claim that whatever I have mentioned is absolutely true. My basic aim is to provide an alternate discourse on the below-mentioned issues.

1. The 1857 War of Independence was in fact a mutiny

2. Sir Syed Ahmed Khan was the Pioneer of two nation theory.

3.Mohammad Ali Jinah was never arrestd in his life.

4. Allama Iqbal was the first person to present an idea of an Independent Muslim state.

5. The establishment of Pakistan as envisaged by 1940 resolution was favored by all the muslim leaders.                                                   

6. Pakistan was made in the name of Islam.

7. Mujahidin had gone to conquer Kashmir in 1948.

8. The wars between India and Pakistan(1948, 1965, 1971,1999) were a Jihad.

9. Our decendents arrived from Arabian Peninsula.

10. Sheikh Mujib ur Rehman and his Awami league wanted to break the country.

The Extra-vagant republic of Pakistan

'If Muslims got ten rupees, they would buy a pretty scarf and eat a biriani whereas Hindus would save the money.'
Mohammed Ali Jinnah (Reference: - Jinnah, Pakistan and Islamic identity: the search for Saladin, Akbar S Ahmed, Page 8)

Global Economy has been in recession since 2008. Countries considered to b Economic giants have been forced to undertake austerity measure and budget cuts. People in Greece started venting their anger on their inept rulers by means of protests and sit-ins. It was followed by massive student protests and later rioting in the UK. Recently, jobless people have taken to the streets in New York, Boston,Los Angeles, San Diego to protest against the monetary policies of USA. In our beloved country, Pakistan-admist all this-nothing has changed. The same old faces keep playing musical chairs. Our president is the 2nd richest person in the country, the leader of largest opposition party (NS) is the 5th richest person in the country. Our country owes more than 60 billion dollars in external debt and the figures are increasing. Keeping aside the extravagance of our ruling class, we need to inspect what the rest of country is doing. According to a research, an average Pakistani consumer spends 42% of his income on food. We spend hundreds of thousands of rupees on social functions specially weddings(farooq tirmzi in his article wrote that an average paki wedding cost about 40 times that of average national income of Pakistan). We waste natural water without even thinking twice.

We love building palatial homes. We must possess the latest mobile. We will spend the same amount on 1 buffet meal that we pay our driver for a month.Later we will use any means possible to reduce weight but not restrict diet. We will not turn unnecessary lights off. We will use Air Conditioners not below 18 degree Celsius.The real problem though, is about priorities and not extravagance. Our priorities seem to be hedonism, personal glorification and show off while we don't give a damn about our civic responsibilities. We don't like to pay our taxes.According to a report published on 30th September 2011, Pakistanis pay the lowest tax in the world. We will buy generators and UPSes to ward off load shedding but won’t report electricity thefts. We would save money by avoiding private health care and visiting quacks for our health problems.

We will donate generously to terrorist organizations wearing cloak of jihadis and withdraw our money from banks on 1st of Ramadan.

These attitudes need to change. We can't live like this forever. We should ask what WE are giving this country, rather than what this country is giving us.  Governments in almost all third world countries are corrupt. The change has to be started by us. We can start by switching unnecessary electrical appliances off, by saving water, by avoiding food in Bulk, by spending on our Children’s education, by paying taxes, by arranging simple weddings. It might sound like a utopia but It is easy to do and will ensure a better future for ourselves and our future generations.

Decontructing Zaid Hamid part 5

Deconstructing Zaid hamid

Philosophers have only interpreted the world, the point however is to change it.

Karl Marx

 Dr Eqbal Ahmed, in his article, Religion in Politics 
[Published Dawn, 31 January 1999] wrote, “All religious systems are made up of discourses which are, more often than not, dialectically linked to each other as in light and darkness, peace and war, evil and goodness. Hence, it is possible to detach and expropriate a part from the whole, divest it of its original context and purpose, and put it to political uses. Such an instrumentalist approach is nearly always absolutist, that is, it entails an absolute assertion of one, generally de-contextualized, aspect of religion and a total disregard of another. The phenomenon distorts religion, debases tradition, and twists the political process wherever it unfolds. The idea of Jihad is a case in point.

It is an Islamic precept with multiple meanings which include engagement in warfare, social service, humanitarian work, intellectual effort, or spiritual striving. The word is formed from an Arabic root jehd which denotes an intense effort to achieve a positive goal. Jihad entails then a striving to promote the good and overcome the bad, to bring light where there is darkness, prosperity where there is poverty, remedy where there is sickness, knowledge where there is ignorance, clarity where there is confusion. Thus mujahada (as also jihad) in early Islamic usage was an engagement with oneself for the achievement of moral and spiritual perfection. A mujtahid is a religious scholar who does ijtihad, i.e. strives to interpret religious texts in the light of new challenges and circumstances.

Without a hint of doubt, contemporary Muslim ideologues and militants have reduced the rich associations of jihad to the single meaning of engagement in warfare, entirely divested of its conditions and rules. Thus the war against a Marxist government in Afghanistan and its Soviet ally became the most famous jihad of the 20th century even though it was armed and financed by the United States, a non-Muslim superpower. Today, such activities as terrorism, sectarian strife, and the killings of innocent people are claimed as holy warfare. This reductionism is by no means unique to the Muslim world.”

Zaid Hamid is a media phenomenon popularized by his programs “Brass Tacks” and later “Iqbal ka Pakistan”. He has been frequently criticised in the mainstream media due to his espousal of conspiracy theories about global domination of Jews and their economic policies. Eight episodes of Iqbal ka Pakistan have been analysed in last four episodes. Given below is the analysis of episodes 9 and 10 of Iqbal ka Pakistan.

Episode 9

Ali Azmat started the show by mentioning that people are accusing him of being an agent of new world order and a CIA Agent. He went on to state the agenda of the program.i.e to make  Pakistani(especially Muslim Pakistanis) realize that we are not living according to Iqbal's ideas and that we have been conditioned. He also said that Iqbal is a way of life. He later expressed his pleasure at getting commercials from Multinational Corporations.

Zaid hamid:I am fascinated that ALL of Pakistani youth is understanding Iqbal's ideology which can convert a man to a superman.

Comment:-  There is no standardized system in Pakistan which could indicate how much viewers watched a certain program(like Nielsen Ratings in the US). How can Zaid Hamid claim that All of Pakistan’s youth is not only watching but also understanding his program. Regarding this issue of Super-man, we have already discussed that this concept was presented by Nietzsche.

ZH:- According to Iqbal's philosophy of Khudi, politicians should stop begging (votes) to become parliamentarians, senators, governors.

Comment:- If politicians should stop begging people for votes, how will the system work.? This argument by Zaid Hamid is an indirect attack at Democratic system. Regarding Iqbal’s views on Democracy, I would like to quote Iqbal himself. He wrote, “For Islam the acceptance of social democracy in some suitable form and consistent with the legal principles of Islam, is not a revolution but a return to the original purity of Islam”.

ZH:- Britishers built roads in Punjab and ordered people to crawl and not walk.

Comment:- This is a blatant lie. No such incident can be found in recorded history that people were made to crawl across streets of Punjab. Incidentally, the majority of population in Punjab, when the British arrived, was of Sikh people. Even in the 1941 Census, Muslims made up around half of population of Punjab.

ZH:- We need to create and channelize Ghairat.

Comment:-  I would like to present the definition and explanation of Ghairat by a much better writer than myself. Nadeem F Paracha wrote, “‘Ghairat’ (pride or honour), is a term that is often heard and used in the Pakistani media these days. This is a term usually associated with TV news anchors, talk-show hosts, analysts and members of political parties who are verbose and smug, who get more space on TV news channels than votes.It is a term that reflects images and sounds related to the muscle-flexing, big-talking and huff-puffing ways of ultra-patriots, or in case of Pakistan’s electronic media – free-wheeling loud-mouthed charlatans playing the role of fiery dyed-in-wool patriots.”  For more explanation, visit here.

ZH:- The biggest problem of Pakistanis is that they are blaming themselves because of hype of western media.

Comment:-  Zaid Hamid thinks Introspection is our biggest problem. We should just stop pointing out the mistakes and deal with “external” threats. From the NFP article quoted in last point,  “This lets-be-positive-through-ghairat outlook is largely delusional. It leaves most of us navel-gazing or passionately contemplating about manufactured issues but conveniently ignoring what we as a society really ought to be doing – making sure that Pakistan is able to compete with the rest of the world on all the vital economic, political and cultural levels. Honourable sloganeering and going around pin-pointing ‘enemies’ and traitors, blasphemers and ‘agents’ will not achieve much”.

ZH:- Because we let Aimal Kaansi get arrested by Americans, we sold our ghairat.

Comment:-  Again the ghairat issue is being raised by Mr. Zaid Hamid. He is implying that we should let terrorists get away with murder, just to protect our National Pride.

ZH:- If we get united, they can’t do anything if we stop NATO supplies.

Comment:- Thankfully matters of the state are not run by people suffering from Delusional Grandeur like Zaid Hamid. In his opinion, we should stop NATO supplies so that there is no harm to Taliban alongside whom he has fought. He should read the newspapers sometimes. He probably does not know that 35 thousand innocent people of Pakistan have been killed by the SAME Taliban in last 7-8 years.  

ZH:- The system doesn’t let anybody enter itself unless they sell their dignity.

Comment:-  He is referring to the banking system here. As far as I know, no body puts a gun to your head to take a loan from a bank anywhere in the world. If you think it is against your grace, do not interact with them.

Episode 10

Ali azmat expressed his view that teachings of Iqbal should be made a part of our national Curriculum. I don’t think he has ever read a textbook of Urdu from Class 5 right up to Class 12. Even O and A levels students get to study Iqbal if they opt for Urdu as a subject. Which planet are you living on Ali.???

Zaid Hamid said that we want a national revival, to educate people that Iqbal is a powerful Force, without which Pakistan can't become a spiritual super power. He did not explain what a SPIRITUAL super power is. Who, by the way, is the incumbent spiritual super power.?

ZH:- Imam Khomeini was  exiled to France and he returned after 20 yr.s.

Comment:- Khomeini spent about 14 yr.s in Exile(1964-79). Initially, he went from Iran to Turkey, then Iraq and then France. Also, he was not the most popular leader of the opposition until 1977 when Dr Ali Shariati died. To answer If the Iranian model can b recreated in pakistan,read here.

ZH:- Western Civilization is dying and we have started Self Discovery.

Comment:-  We have discussed previously about Western Civilization. It can be argued that Western civilization is dying or not but where is the evidence that WE have started self discovery.? 

ZH:- We are being brought up in an absolutely controlled environment. Mass Media is doing Mind control.

Comment:-  These lines come straight out of the George Orwell novel, 1984, in which there is a Big Brother which controls every aspect of peoples’ lives. This is also an oft-repeated mantra of modern conspiracy theorists and is a classical symptom of Paranoid Schizophrenia.   

ZH: - Patriotism that confronts Islamic Ideology is a farce. In the next sentence, he denies that.

Comment: - In a rational discourse, you have to chose either one argument or its opposite argument. You can't have both as it leads to confusion. Zaid Hamid has ignored this principle time and again. He did it with the above mentioned point as well. According to the leading Islamic scholars of 20th century, Abu-al-Maududi and Syed Qutab, nationalism (basis of Patriotism) is contrary to teachings of Islam. Maududi wrote, 'Islam can't be contained by ideas of nationalism which is based on racial and historical traditions'. He also wrote 'If you want to remain Muslim, you should understand that unlike Judaism or Hinduism, Islam is not based on racial nationalism'. (Maududi, musalman aur maujuda siasi kashmakash; published in 1941; volume 3; pages 46 and 47)

ZH: - People respect Pakistan because we are a nuclear power. We should be proud that now Islamic civilization has nuclear capability. The whole Muslim world is looking at us now.

Comment: - Zaid Hamid should have used the word 'fear' instead of 'respect' because that is closer to reality. 'Western Powers' are fearful of our nukes getting in the 'wrong' hands. Indeed the whole Muslim world rather the whole world is looking towards us, but with suspicion. We are top exporter of terrorism to the world. The assertion that other 'civilizations' have got nuclear bombs and we have not was the brainchild of Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. He wrote in his book, 'we know that Israel and South Africa have full nuclear capability. The Christian, Jewish and Hindu civilizations have this capability. The Communist powers also possess it. Only the Islamic civilization was without it, but that position was about to change. (Bhutto, If I am Assassinated, Classic, Lahore, 1979, pages 137 and 138)

ZH: - Balochis are aligned with Israel to disintegrate Pakistan because they claim that Balochistan as it is now was never part of areas in Pakistan. Baloch Insurgency is due to 1% people in Balochistan.

Comment: - Zaid Hamid does not know the first thing about Balochistan. He probably does not know that Army operations have been going on in Balochistan since April 1948(1^st operation started on 1^st April 1948, 2^nd was conducted in 1958, 3^rd in 1963, 4^th in 1972-3, 5^th in Musharraf era). With this kind of history, which sane person would remain safely ensconced in his house and not defend his territory. He also does not seem to know that the claims of Baloch people are right. Due to this ignorance, he laid all the blame on his favorite enemies, Zionists.

ZH: - Islamic terms like Taqwa cannot be translated in English because it is a weak language.

Comment: - Linguists all across the world agree that NO language is made for translation. Every single word in a given language has its distinct sociological background and that word loses its flavor when it is translated to another language. Islamic (Arabic) terms are no exception. Also, you just can’t label a language as weak because you seem to loathe the people who speak it and the language which you yourself speak with relish.!! Also, we can’t translate “BALUNGRA” in english..

(an abridged version of this article was published today at Viewpointonline.net)

Decoding Two Nation Theory

Two nation theory is said to be the building block of Pakistan. The architects of Two nation theory are said to be Sir Syed, Allama Iqbal, Mohammad Ali Jinnah etc. I recently read a book which is a scholarly work tracing the root of the theory and the misconceptions about its origins. Very few books in Urdu are research-oriented, scholarly works but this one defies the stereotype. The name of the book is, Dau Qaumi Nazriya, aik tareekhi jaiza(Translation: Two Nation theory, a historical perspective).

I am providing links from where the book can be read and downloaded and please remember that this is for educational purposes only.
Part 1 about Sir Syed (available for download only)
Part 2 about Iqbal
Part 3 about Quaid i Azam
Part 4 about the REAL creators and promoters of the theory.
Instructions for Download
1.Click on the links given above
2. When the Google Docs page opens, there is an option "Download Original" on the top right. Click that and document will be downloaded in PDF format.

De-constructing Zaid Hamid part 4

(an abridged version was published on viewpointonline.net)


Deconstructing Zaid Hamid


“In order to reach the truth, it is necessary, once in one’s life, to put everything in doubt.” Descartes


Professor Khawaja Masood, in his article, Marx and Iqbal, wrote,
Before Marx, human genius had accomplished much by giving a scientific interpretation of many natural phenomena. But in the study of social development the past thinkers only groped in the dark. Marx pioneered the scientific study of society. In the words of Engels spoken at the graveside of Marx, he discovered the law of development of human history just as Darwin discovered the law of development of organic nature: “the simple fact hitherto concealed by an over-growth of ideology that mankind must first of all eat, drink, have shelter and clothing, before it can pursue politics, science, art, religion, etc.: that, therefore, the production of the immediate material means of subsistence and consequently the degree of economic development attained by a given people during a given epoch form the formulation upon which the state institutions, the legal conceptions, art and even the ideas on religion of the people concerned have been evolved, and in the light of which they must, therefore, be explained instead of vice versa as had hitherto been the case.”
These profound ideas are repeated almost verbatim by Iqbal in his first book Ilm-ul-Iqtisad: “There is no doubt that religious principles have played an extremely influential role in the course of human history, but it is also clearly established by daily observation and experience that earning a livelihood is the constant concern of man and it is this concern which quite imperceptibly and unconsciously shapes his external and internal instincts. Reflect how poverty or insufficient provision of the necessities of life effect the conduct of man. Often poverty and deprivation so encrust the clean state of human soul that morality and culture are completely corroded.”
According to Engels, Marx “discovered the special law of motion governing the present-day capitalist mode of production and the bourgeois society that this mode of production has created. The discovery of surplus value suddenly threw light on the problem, in trying to solve which, all previous investigations of both right-wing economists and socialist critics, had been groping in the dark.”
Iqbal’s view on surplus labor closely follows that of Marx. He says in Ilm-al-Iqtisad: “If the wealth of the landlord is not the result of personal effort, then his property is unjust. In view of this fact some scholars maintain that this injustice is produced by the private ownership which is harmful to the national interest. Accordingly, land is not the property of a particular individual and should be nationalized.” Similarly, “the profit which in the present conditions goes into the pocket of the capitalist should accrue to labor. And, increased productivity which is the fruit of labor should entirely benefit labor, and capitalists have no claim over it.”
 
Episode 7 


Ali Azmat opened the show by saying that this is a soft revolution.
They start discussing Asrar e Khudi which according to Zaid Hamid, in last 64 yr.s this book has never been discussed.
The primary reason for Asrar e Khudi not being popular enough is its langauge. Its written in Persian which is not understood by majority of people in Pakistan. The assertion that it has never been “discussed” is also controversial. The book is easily available in Pakistan, also on the internet. Its english and persian versions can be viewed and bought from Iqbal Academy.  


ZH:-Asrar e Khudi was Iqbal’s first book.
Comment:- Wrong. Asrar e Khudi was the first poetry collection written by Iqbal. His first book(as ZH himself acknowledged) was Ilm-ul-Iqtisad.   


ZH:-It has been doctrine of muslim mystics that they should move to far flung places and become hermits.
Comment:- Mysticism across religions has has the same tradition i.e. Moving away from the populated areas and immersing in religion. This concept was shunned by Islam and Prophet P.B.U.H prohibited muslims from becoming hermits. In history of Subcontinent, we can see that Ali Hajveri, Nizam-ud-din Aulia etc took to cities and preached. Thus, this claim by ZH is absurd and he should read some history. 


ZH:-These days it is believd that power corupts and absolute power is kind of cool.
Comment:- This kind of sweeping statement reflects on the ideology of Zaid Hamid. The original quote as written by Lord Acton i.e. “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely” is as true for today as it was in 1887 when it was written.  


ZH:-Pakistan ban'ne k baad iqbal ko,khasusan Asrar e khudi ko gum kar dia gya(Translation:- After creation of Pakistan, Asrar e Kudi was forgotten). And he lays the blame on freemasons.
Comment:- I have explained at the start of this piece the reasons for relative obscurity of Asrar-e-Khudi. The belief that it was a delibrate attempt and that too by FREEMASONS is not documented in any historical or contemporary text. If any such thing happened, where is the proof.? According to law,the burden of providing proof  lies with the accuser.


ZH:-Har chez k pechay aik poshida hath hota hai.(There is a hidden hand behind everything).
Including Rothschilds, Rockerfellers and Bildrberg group.
Comment:- If there was a gospel for conspiracy-mongers, this line would have been its first verse.Taking the cue from Zaid Hamid, who is behind this Program.? Regarding the Bilderberg group, In a 1994 report Right Woos Left, published by the Political Research Associates, investigative journalist Chip Berlet argued that right-wing populist conspiracy theories about the Bilderberg group date back as early as 1964 and can be found in Schlafly's self-published book A Choice, Not an Echo.Regarding the Rothschilds’ I have explained in part 1 of this series. 


ZH:-Allama Iqbal ne 1930 main Pakistan ko daikha tha
Comment:- I have explained this earlier in my article, 10 historical facts our textbooks forgot to mention. Allama Iqbal didn't present the concept of of Pakistan in his Allah-Abad Address (Reference:-Muslim league papers) rather he strongly dissociated himself from the idea in his letter to The Times.
His exact words were 'I do not put forward a "demand" for a moslem state outside the British empire' and that 'No Indian Moslem with any pretence to sanity contemplates a Moslem state or series of states in North-Western India outside the British Commonwealth of nation as a plan of practical politics' 
 
ZH:-It was decided that “aik mulk bana lo, phir develop kar len gay, expand kar len gay” (Translation:- Lets establish a country and later we will develop and expand it)
Comment:- Nobody said any such thing during the Pakistan Movement. The odds were heavily stacked against formation of a separate country and Mr Zaid Hamid thinks everything was under our control at that time. The part which irked me the most was the “expansion” part. It is the height of spreading a specific propoganda. Again, no proof or reference was presented by erstwhile Zaid Hamid. 
 
ZH:-Because Mussolinni had consulted with Iqbal once, “Maghrib ne Iqbal ko samaj lia tha”.
Comment:- The term “west” has been used as a demon by fear-mongerers and peddlers of conspiracy theories for quite some time. A detailed discussion can be read here. On top of that, Mussolini was a fascist dictator, citing his example repeatedly can imply that Zaid Hamid also shares some of his ideals. Another thing that Zaid Hamid probably doesn’t know is that Iqbal washimself influenced by “Wetsern” Philosophers and that is why his message was well-received by the “West”. 


ZH:-Iqbal says that get your swords out and capture the world.
Comment:- This is a clear message of jingoism and cultural narcissim. Iqbal wrote his poetry at a time when muslims were in a desparate position. To inspire and instill hope in his fellow believers, Iqbal often used exaggerations and many of his ideas can bedeciphered as being jingoistic. To highlight such ideas selectively is a sign of  moral bankruptcy on Zaid Hamid’s part.  


ZH:-Subah Uthnay wale log, yani Muslaman.(Implying that all early risers are muslims)
Comment:- Stereotyping is a much derided sociological phenomenon. Statements such as “XYZ people are misers/stupid/ignorants etc” are commonplace. There is rarely a convincing proof presented while giving such statements.Some famous contemporary stereotypes include “All Muslims are terrorists” “All Jews are conspiring against others”. Rising early in the morning is a cultural thing mostly, not a religious one per se. More people in the US wake up early to go to work than in Pakistan. One should be careful when saying such things on national media.  


ZH: Dunya se separation k baad insaan main spiritual purity paida hoti hai. (Translation:- Separation from the world creats spirtual purity in humans. )
Comment:- This is a classical example of a thought-somersault. Hardly 30 minutes ago, in the same program he claimed that Iqbal didn’t advocate hermitism and here he is saying just that.!!! This is not coherent thinking, its like a complete U-turn on his previous musings. Pathetic.
 
ZH: Iqbal was on a prophetic mission.
Comment:- IF this statement had been given on national media by a secular-liberal person, there would’ve been a huge outcry, calls for his/her head, charges of blasphemy, hate-mail and so on. But the fact that this was claimed by a person who wears his religion on his sleeve, who claims to be a descendent of Prophet(PBUH), no one dare speak a word.  


Episode 8




Zaid Hamid started the program by criticizing politicians and accuses them of being “Ghatya log”(Morally Inferior People) and that such “ghatya” people can never bring a revolution. That’s a bit mean and indirectly means that these “civvies” are no good at it. I wonder which particular institution is fond of thinking like this.?

ZH: You should jump into a conflict, not shy away from it.
Comment:- This idea has been used by oppressed people througout history. It is often said that there is a fine line between being brave and being foolhardy. Someone should tell Zaid Hamid about it. Risking your life, being foolhardy, looking forward to conflict are all symptoms of mental instability. Becoming Don Quixote is what Zaid Hamid is preaching and doing himself.
ZH: Insani zindagi ki har cheez kufr k nizam k control main hain(Translation:- All aspects of human life are under control of Capitalist system) e.g. your location can be tracked anywhere in the world courtesy credit cards etc.
Comment:- I mentioned symptoms of mental instability in the last comment. This gem by Zaid Hamid suggests that he is suffering from paranoia. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory beliefs, or beliefs of conspiracy concerning a perceived threat towards oneself. Historically, this characterization was used to describe any delusional state.
The rest of time in this episode was taken up by calls and simple reading of Asrar by Zaid Hamid, so there were no more blunders.


Corrigendum:- I stated in part 2 of this series that Jamal-ud-Din Afghani was not a proponent of Pan-Islamism. I was fortunate enough to discuss this issue with some historians and I learnt that there were 3 distinct phases in Afghani’s life.

1. When he was in India, his tone was clearly anti-british and Anti-Sir Syed and he hated both of them.
2. When he was in Egypt, his stance was that of Nationalism.
3. When he went to Tukey, under the influence and instruction of the Caliph, he started propogating the message of Pan-Islamism.

For Further Reference, a book based on life and works of Jamal-ud-Din Afghani has been written by Mr Zahid Chohdary which will be available in the market soon.