| We present you something of the story of Moses and Pharaoh in truth, for people who have faith. Pharaoh elated himself in the land and split up its people into parties, weakening a section of them by killing their sons and keepint their women alive. He was one of those who make mischief. And We wanted to show favour to those who were kept weak in the land and to make them leading examples, and to make them heirs, and to establish them in the land, and to show Pharaoh and Haman and their hosts, at their hands, the very thing that they were taking precautions against. (Surah 28:3-6) |
Muslims are not afraid - or are they?
Fear is a natural reaction that is linked with the instinct of self-preservation in animals and human beings. On perceiving something that seems dangerous, the reflex is to assume a deterring appearance, to run away and hide, or to get ready to defend oneself. It is also natural to take precautions against danger - after all, even roses have their thorns - and for human beings who no longer follow their instincts the same way animals do, it is a matter of wisdom to consciously take appropriate measures to protect themselves, their community and their resources.
There is, however, a catch to this. Human reactions are no longer natural reflexes, and human imagination can create all kinds of possible scenarios, including supposed dangers and threats. The consequence is then often that the difference between real and imagined dangers are blurred - with disastrous results. There are interesting links between fear and aggression, excessive precautions and even tyranny. Safety and security is often perceived as depending on one's power to control all possible dangers either by being able to overcome them or by building up protective barriers. But the fear might still be lurking in the background: human beings are simply not in a position to control everything. There can actually emerge a vicious circle: fear that causes a desire for power in order to handle dangers, followed by the fear of losing exactly that power, which in turn leads to additional precautions and aggressive self-assertion while at the same time there remains, sometimes unconsciously, the fear of the consequences of overstepping one's boundaries.
There is a great deal of that kind of fear around in today's society. Human beings have become able to control strong forces of nature, even nuclear energy - for the better and for the worse. The secrets of life itself have been explored to an extent that opens up possibilities to cure diseases in a way that could not be imagined even a few decades ago, but also to manipilate plant, animal and even human life in various ways. Any human discovery, from the fire and the stone axe to space travel and information technology, contributes both to human hopes and fears, and increasingly so. Accordingly, precautions are taken against the destructive use of this potential, and sometimes the ancient dream of word supremacy (respectively the desire to prevent the "Other" from achieving world supremacy) in order to guarantee security is revived in the guise of globalization. Fear is repressed or overcompensated with megalomania, with a desire to perpetuate oneself in a way that is hostile to life.
Let us have a look, from this perspective, at Pharaoh, the proverbial tyrant outlined in the Qur'an. He is described as someone who tries to cement his position by "dividing and ruling", splitting up the population into factions in order to play them off against each other. One particular group that is relevant for the subsequent story, the Children of Israel (we don't know about others), are "kept weak", oppressed, enslaved. Except that Pharaoh has grossly misjudges the situation: this group has a special relationship with God that goes back to their ancestors Abraham, Isaac and Jacob: according to the Bible, "the Children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly ...". All oppression seems to achieve the opposite result, until Pharaoh ends up killing their male babies. What makes him turn into such a cruel monster? The great strong Pharaoh has a secret weakness: he is afraid of losing power and influence and starts overcompensating his fear with atrocious measures against what he, in politicians' language, perceives as a "demographic threat".
In the more democratic environment that we are used to nowadays, we would think of constructive possibilities of dealing with changes in the population of a country; oppressing, expelling or murdering a group of people would be outrageous, wouldn't it? Except that even today there can be a fear of losing control, disguised as "reason of state". May God protect us all from that!
In contrast with Pharaoh, there is another key figure in the story: Moses who is commissioned by God to confront Pharaoh's deadly behaviour with a message of life. Let us have a look at an aspect of the Qur'anic story of the Burning Bush. Moses is told:
"I am God, the Mighty Friend, the Wise. Throw your rod." But when he saw it moving around as if it were a snake, he turned around and fled and did not go back. (He was told,) "Moses, do not fear. In My presence those who are being sent (by Me) need not be afraid." (27:9-10)
But oops! Aren't we again and again taught that a faithful person must not be afraid? And now we suddenly learn that Moses, a messenger of God, is afraid of something that is introduced to him as one of the tools for the task that lies ahead! So what's the difference between him and Pharaoh?
The difference is that Moses acknowledges his fear. He feels that he is afraid and does the most natural thing: he starts running away. Only when he learns that God is with him, he conquers his fear. He remembers that life is nothing static like a rod but moving, full of changes, like a snake. His task is to bring about a change, a change for the better. Trusting in God, he gets hold of the snake and learns to use it.
The doctrine that a faithful person must not be afraid can be deceptive. Ordinary fear is one of the instincts given to us by our Creator for self-preservation. If we deny it, it might appear in the disguise of something else. It might turn into senseless fatalism that carelessly accepts anything that happens, or it might surface disguised as greed for power, tyranny or the demonization of others - even in the name of religion. That would be the way of Pharaoh.
The way of Moses would be to stand up for what is right in spite of our fear, learning to trust the One who guides us and to recognize even Pharaoh for what he is: another human being who is suffering from hidden fear and the delusion of power. May God help us with our task.
Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of Dawn from the evil of what He created, and from the evil of nightfall when it spreads, and from the evil of those who blow on knots (in order to conjure destructive sinister forces), and from the evil of the envious person when he envies. (Surah 113)
Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of human beings, the King of human beings, the God of human beings, from the evil of the sneaking whisperer who whispers into the heart of people, from among the hidden forces and human beings. (Surah 114)
(c) Halima Krausen, 2007