History Lesson, My Version

 

Dump Islam, go for Science. It is difficult, but it will bring you enlightenment. You will bow lower than a Muslim when you KNOW how powerful the God of The Universe is. 

Mad Scientist  (In reply to Zack on the Sultans) 

Dear Zack, 

The answer to your question is this short essay I am writing for you below. Your question was:

"if adat resam and religion was so taboo a subject to even talk about openly let alone to promulgate to a Malay person let alone to a Malay Sultan, what made our Sultans at that time to suddenly allow the preaching of this new religion (Islam) and to even embrace it wholeheartedly and in doing so, to have all his subjects also simultaneously embrace not only this new religion but its traditions too?"

1. At the time in history, if you care to check up on our old history books (the newer ones in school are all rubbish), Islam arrived on the beaches of Malaya, and the Hindu Sultans were visited. These missionary Arabs wanted to do business and so sought the permission of the Sultan. In return they taught Islam, impressed the Sultan, and the Sultan decided to use religion as a means of rule, which allowed him better grip on his Sultanate without the need for more soldiers or police. Religion is self governance and self policing. One does not steal because he is afraid of God and punishment in the after life. There is no need for guards.

2. Item (1) is not really an Issue, yet. What is the real problem is that these missionaries Arabs taught only the legal aspects of Islam, not the science and plentiful medical advances, not the philosophy. Perhaps they themselves did not know or perhaps they were selfish and did not want to impart too much knowledge. Whatever the reason, the Islam that came to the shores of Malaya is the primitive backward retarded version, meant exclusively for ruling.

3. The Ruler at the time, or Sultan chose Islam and decreed that everyone should follow suit as a demonstration of power, as a change of governing method, and as a clear advantageous religion to use for ruling. The majority Malays simply followed. If you went against the Sultan in those days, I cannot imagine what would happen to you. Even today we can see how one person at least got visits from the police for saying something about a certain Sultan. Thus Malays became Muslims. 

4. Hence, what made the Sultan change religion is the influence and teachings of these Arab Missionaries. Our history books revealed how the Malays were impressed by these Arab Muslims, praying by the seaside. They wonder what religion the Arabs were. Such statement indicates the Malays were already impressed, hence the Arab Missionaries must have had an easy time with their "dakwah" effort.

5. Note also in history these Arabs were successful traders and became rich trading in our Spices to Europeans who needed them. This was before the British and other Europeans found out where the Spices came from and refused to buy and pay the exorbitant prices the Arabs were charging them. All this you can verify from historical records and books.

6. When the British came, they studied our Malay system and concluded the Sultan is the best person to deal with. To cut a long story short, by way of agreements with the Sultans, the British got Penang, Singapore, Port Dickson, and perhaps the entire Malaya under their influence, and kept the Sultans as ruler for the Malays, as they know the Sultans have a good grip on the Malays and the Malays need their Sultans, until today. It can be argued that the British are very clever occupants of Malaya. The Malays got their Sultans and Political Power while the British got the loot, which of course they shared with the Sultans.

7. Islamic Medical science and other Sciences, of which there is plentiful and very advanced, relatively speaking, never reached the shores of Malaya, perhaps never allowed to. Many million of Muslims do not even know the word camera comes from the Arab word "kamar" which means room (as in dark room for photography) and the word alcohol comes from none other than Al-Kohl, the discoverer of well, alcohol!

I am going to end this essay with a simple solution for Muslims. Dump Islam, go for Science. It is difficult, but it will bring you enlightenment. You will bow lower than a Muslim when you KNOW how powerful the God of The Universe is.

As for God, it is a personal choice. I choose to hang on to my belief in God, and am thus a Deist, not an Atheist. Some may prefer Atheism. Some prefer to be Gay. Whatever makes you happy!

written by zack, November 13, 2012 03:00:10
Dear RPK,
In the wake of the current news surrounding the notion that there shall be no compulsion in religion, i have a question that i have been meaning to ask for quite some time. We love our Sultans, there is no doubt about that. We love our Sultans to the extent that what the Sultans believe is what we believe and it goes to the issue of religion also, in so far as the Malays are concerned. Religion and adat resam went hand in hand from the old days and was strictly adhered to so much so that it was taboo for anyone to question it. It was a fact from the earliest of times in our country that trying to take a Malay out from his religion or his adat resam was out of the question. In this context we immediately think about Islam being the religion of the Malays. But history tells us that the Sultans used to be Hindu and all Malays at that time were also Hindu and the adat resam that was practiced was in all probability the Hindu adat resam. This perhaps explains why our bersanding and majlis berinai and baju melayu bear much resemblance to Hindu traditions. Then all of a sudden, well at least that is how the History books put it, the Sultans embraced Islam and every single Malay person followed suit without question. My question is, if adat resam and religion was so taboo a subject to even talk about openly let alone to promulgate to a Malay person let alone to a Malay Sultan, what made our Sultans at that time to suddenly allow the preaching of this new religion (Islam) and to even embrace it wholeheartedly and in doing so, to have all his subjects also simultaneously embrace not only this new religion but its traditions too?
p.s. please do not post this question if you view it offensive. apart from seeking some clarifications, i certainly do not intend any publication which may be offensive to any person.