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*Aspects of Islamic faith: Are we born with religion?*
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Sometimes people wonder whether religion is inherited. Could it be genetic?
Is there something in man’s make-up that sways him to be religious, or to
reject religion? If so, is he influenced by his parents’ religion? What
about the children of interfaith marriages? The ready answer offered on the
basis of both science and reason is that belief in a religion is not
genetic.
It is something that we choose for ourselves, influenced by various factors,
no doubt, but there is nothing in our make-up to make us lean toward a
particular religion. When we are born, we have no knowledge of anything,
whether religious or temporal. God says in the Qur’an: “God has brought you
forth from your mothers’ wombs devoid of all knowledge, but He has given you
hearing, and sight, and minds.” *(16: 78)* Our knowledge is acquired, not
inherent. Yet we have the faculties of perception which will indeed
influence how we react to what we acquire of knowledge.
This is indeed confirmed by the Prophet in the following hadith quoted by
Abu Hurayrah: “Every newborn is born with sound nature. It is his parents
who bring him up as a Christian, a Jew or a Zoroastrian. It is just like an
animal is born whole: you do not see any of them born with a cut ear.” As he
reported this Hadith, Abu Hurayrah quoted the Qur’anic verse that says: “(It
is) the natural disposition which God has installed into man. Nothing can
change God’s creation. Such is the ever-true faith.” *(30: 30)*
The Hadith stresses the fact that we are all born with the same clear image
of religion. It does not matter what religion our families follow, we have
the same blank sheet at birth. We are just like clear and pure water which
has no taste, smell or color. When you add salt, sugar or lemon juice to
water, you make it salty, sweet or sour. You can color it with whatever dye
you put in it. The Prophet gives the analogy of cattle and how they are born
complete: none is born with a cut ear or nose. It is people who print their
marks on cattle, or cut their ears or noses to mark them for identification.
The Prophet says that it is a child’s parents that make him a Jew, a
Christian or a Zoroastrian. It is how they bring him up. Thus, it is the
family and social environment that influence a child’s identity, giving him
his religion.
When a child grows up in a religious environment, he will follow the
religion he is brought up in. Likewise, if he is brought up in an atheist or
agnostic environment, he will not care about religion.
If we imagine someone growing up without any environmental influence
whatsoever in as far as religion is concerned, he will retain his clear
nature. As such, he tends to believe that the universe is created by a
Supreme Being, and that Supreme Being is one and has no partners. This is
the religion of clear human nature. This is the natural disposition God has
installed in man.
The more contemplation in the universe around us we do, the stronger is our
belief that everything in it is controlled by its Creator, the Supreme Being
we call God in English, Allah in Arabic, and by other names in other
languages.
-by Adil Salahi
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Faizan Shaikh,
Servant of Allah subhanau taa'la
“O Allah! Guide me to have beautiful manners and characteristics, no one can
guide me to beautify them except You. And turn me away from all evil actions
and characteristics, no one can turn them away from me except You.”
--
Nor can Goodness and Evil be equal. Repel (evil) with what is better; then the
enmity between him and you will become as if it were your friend and intimate!
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