Adil Najam
According to a Reuters report (CricInfo version here) Pakistan cricket players have “been advised to strike a balance between religion and cricket.” This according to Dr. Nasim Ashraf, the new Chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
The report goes on to say:
Since last year, the Pakistan team has made it a point to pray in public and hold religious gatherings in team hotels. Ashraf said in a television interview he did not believe there was any connection between Maulvism, ultra orthodox Muslims, and cricket. “There is no doubt their religious faith is a motivating factor in the team. It binds them together. But there should be balance between religion and cricket,” Ashraf said.
Captain Inzamam-ul-Haq, batsman Mohammad Yousuf, who converted to Islam from Christianity earlier this year and former leg-spinner Mushtaq Ahmed have been in the forefront of projecting a religious image of the team. Ashraf said he had no problems with the players saying their prayers regularly but he had told Inzamam that Islam does not allow the imposition of views on others.
“I have told him clearly that there should be no pressure on players who don’t pray regularly or any compulsion on them to do it under pressure,” he said. “I have told him there should be no perception among players that if they don’t pray they will not be in the team… He has assured me there is no pressure on anyone to do anything they don’t want to do. I have also told him players should get proper rest for their cricket,” Ashraf added.
The report does not come as a surprise (click on image to see story from Jang, 9 October), but it is still a bit of a shock.
I do not like the word ‘Maulvisim’. I do not know what it means, and whether that was the intent or not, it is likely to be seen as a slur and a coded attack. I worry greatly these days about an increasing tendency to use polarizing language, the use of which can only spell trouble in an already much-fractured society. I am hoping that it is a word coined by an over-eager Reuters reporter and not Dr. Nasim Ashraf.
I should add that I have known Doctor Sahib for some years. I know that personally he is a man of strong personal faith and religious conviction and for that reason alone I think he would be well suited to have discussions with the team on these issues in ways that others might not be able to. But such discussions are intensely personal and should remain private (but not secret). Please note that I am not calling for secrecy, but I do not think that Reuters wire services or television airwaves are the best medium for this conversation. I fear that in the glaring lights of the media circus , this important conversation will necessarily become polarized, simplistic, and accusatory and will degenerate towards crass finger-pointing, self-righteous chest-thumping, and loud but hollow sloganeering.
I should thank Adnan Siddiqi’s blog (here) for first alerting me to this brewing controversy. Since then I have tried to keep a tab on this issue. Today, Teeth Maestro also has a commentary on his blog (here). My own views on this stem from the very same logic that had influenced my views on the story about Habib Bank requiring employees to trim their beards which I had commented on in the very earliest weeks on this blog (here). The parallels between the two are strikingly similar, but so are the principles:
- First, no one has the right to restrict anyone’s else’s right to personal expressions of belief and faith, no matter what that belief or faith might be.
It would be wrong, therefore, if PCB, ICC, or anyone else were to restrict the expression of personal faith by any set of players. Whether it is saying one’s prayers in public and in jamaat or growing a beard, that is a matter of personal choice. One’s inclusion in the team should not be a matter of whether one has (or does not have) facial hair. It should depend solely and only on one’s cricketing abilities. Despite the headline statement, a careful reading of the news item above suggests that the PCB is acknowledging that faith is a key “motivating factor” for this team and is not asking anyone to either restrict their beliefs or the expression of those beliefs. If it were ever to do so, it would be a matter of grave and serious concern indeed.
- Second, and relatedly, no one has the right to impose their own religious beliefs on others through direct or indirect pressure.
It would be wrong, therefore, if senior players were somehow pressurizing or forcing teammates to adopt a particular behavior. To repeat what I have already said above: One’s inclusion in the team should not be a matter of whether one has (or does not have) facial hair. It should depend solely and only on one’s cricketing abilities. A careful reading of the news item above makes clear that Inzimam, at least, understands that there should be (and is) no such pressure. If any players were ever to feel pressurized by the religious beliefs of their team-mates or were made to feel that their continued inclusion in the team would depend on their praying habits (rather than their playing abilities), then – and only then – it would be a matter of grave and serious concern indeed.
My only hope right now is that the media circus – in Pakistan and abroad – will not sensationalize this important issue and force even greater fissures and polarizations than already exist. I fear that this hope will not be realized.
But let me also say that I have much greater confidence in Inzimam, his teammates and Dr. Nasim Ashraf and pray that they will resist the media’s provocations and will refuse to fall into petty bickering or sloganeering opportunities.
I’m not a religious person and overt displays of religious zeal are not my cup of tea. But the real question here is: why doesn’t Nasim Ashraf ever shut up?
He could’ve easily discussed this with the team and made his point effectively in private. Why did he feel the need to go to the press? It seems to me that he doesn’t care about whether his actions get implemented as long as the tabloid newspapers of Pakistan print his “bayan”. He seems to be issuing “statements” before and after every meal.
He doesn’t look like a young pup – I’m sure he has some life experience behind him which makes it all the more unfortunate that for a man of his education and experience, he seems to have no clue on how to handle the spotlight with any class or dignity. He is making a mockery of his position and post.
All he needs to do now is bring his kid into the team and he will be on his way to surpassing the bipolar, hormonal mess that was Jarnail Tauqeer Zia as PCB’s most embarassing heads.
People who are respected and remembered generally don’t talk much. They let their actions do the talking for them. So, when they do choose to talk, everyone realizes that they mean business.
I must say that I miss the thorough gentleman and thoughtful man that Shehryar Khan was.
To people who use the word Mullah as a swear word, could you please enlighten me with the exact definition of this word?
According to Google, a Mullah is:
Derived from the Arabic mawla, denoting a Muslim religious cleric. here
Member of the ulama, an âlim (singular for ulama). A man recognized by Muslims as having a religious education and as an authority on the Koran and Islamic law (the Sharia). Has been described as similar in ways to a rabbi in Judaism. here
India/Middle East/North Afica A Muslim teacher or reader of the Koran, and traditionally an expert on Islamic law. here
A title of respect for one learned in the sacred law here
a Muslim trained in the doctrine and law of Islam; the head of a mosque here
Mullahs are Islamic clergy who have studied the Qur’an and the Hadith and are considered experts on related religious matters in this religion. here
seems Google is more enlightened than thou
The wikipedia entry is here
I think we are over looking the bigger issue here. This is a yet another sign of Mullaisation that is happening is Pakistan. Islam (or any religion) is a personal thing. No one should feel any peer pressure to follow it. It is between you and Allah.
This is a concern if it is done as a symbolic gesture in front of media and/or forces other team members to perform certain acts. If we are that eager to spread Islam it should be done in India and especially China (The fastest growing economies and most populace regions in the world)
The Islamisation that is happening in PK can lead to a Talibanization or something similar. The bottom line is that a conscious state must keep religion separate from state affairs.
Secondly dont forget that Pakistan cricket team has faced the greatest defamation and problems such as ball tamparing & then doping issues etc. Maybe they need to (really) pray (one on one ibadat)not just do an act. According to Islam we have to bring our nation to a global standard, Lead, fix our characters and stop measuring religion by the length of our beards.
Also I ask you what have Muslims given to the world in our (this) century? Where r our scholoars & inventors. Junaid Jamshed and others should be in China/US/India, leave Pakistan alone we know our religon, we are already doing Jihad (the true Jihad) against poverty and for economic success let us do our job for Allah sake.
The only Hindu team member is not really a team member; here
“Ahsan, I have no idea if you are or not blind. But on this you are certainly mistaken.”
Dear Hassan, I thank you for pointing out my mistake by your remark:
“People all over the world, including in sports, find motivation in their religion. Remember the movie ‘Chariots of Fire’? Many great athletes across the world find religion to be a motivating factor. American Football players routinely use religion as a motivating factor and also pray in public.”
Yes I know all that and even some more. I have even observed that many Christans before entering the swiming pool, make a cross on their chests. It does not mean that this cross making is their motivation to swim. It is simply a religious gesture of a faithful.
In your above statement, you are mixing up motivation and faith. By their religious actions they are simply seeking the Divine help. It is only personal or collective belief. They believe that with the help of Allaah or whatever the Divinity, they will win (or whatever their wish is?). It is the question of FAITH.
The MOTIVATION is something different. It is the justicatifion of an act that you will be taking to reach the motif. During the period of Romans the gladiators (slaves) were forced to fight. The loser was killed and the winner was granted freedom. Usually, Both the slaves used to pray before the fight, before their Divinity. But it was not their motivation. It was simply their religious BElIEF. Their MOTIF was their Freedom and the MOTIVATION was survival. The correct motivation helps you to achieve the success.
A Pakistani cricket player will be good or bad according to his personal achievements and appropriate motivations with the motif of winning, bringing Ashes to the country or simply beating the Indain Team.
Trying to find “motivation” in Islam or any other religion is like looking for light on the doom’s day.
Pakistani people are looking for motivation in Islam for every activity of life. If Islam could help, they would have been perfect human being by now. The real situation shows just the opposite.
Ahsan