Islam: The Constant Truth in the Face of Fluctuating Whims
Introduction: A Correct Understanding of the Nature of Revelation
Once it has been firmly established in our minds that the Noble Qur’ān is the preserved word of Allah, which falsehood cannot approach from before it or from behind it, and that the purified prophetic Sunnah is the practical explanation of this Qur’ān, we must understand a fundamental reality without which true faith cannot be upright: Divine Revelation came to be the constant reference point by which human ideas and practices are measured, not the other way around.
Allah Almighty revealed His wise Sharīʿah (Divine Law) to reform a distorted human reality and straighten its crookedness, not so that the Law would be shaped according to the whims of every era, the fads of every generation, or the desires of every society. Divine Revelation was sent down to judge reality and correct it, not to submit to reality and follow its deviations.
This pivotal issue gains profound importance in our time, where a specific culture prevails and attempts to impose itself—through the power of media, economics, and politics—as the sole global standard for right and wrong, truth and falsehood, and progress and backwardness. Thus, we find those who think—or want us to think—that truth is whatever is agreed upon by the so-called "international community," that correctness is whatever "contemporary values" have settled upon, and that progress means total assimilation into the dominant cultural model, while backwardness is to differ from it.
This is a grave methodological flaw in its foundation, corrupt in its conception, and misleading in its results. Truth is not known by its popularity or prevalence, correctness is not determined by the majority or numerical superiority, and true progress is to draw closer to the constant truth, not to move away from it by following every clamoring voice.
Islam: The Eternal Religion of Allah
Islam is the eternal religion of Allah that He has approved for all of humanity. Its rulings are built upon the absolute and comprehensive knowledge of Allah regarding human nature and Fiṭrah (innate disposition), and what brings humans reform and happiness in every time and place, as well as what corrupts them and brings them misery in every age.
Is it rational—after this—to abandon the judgment of the All-Knowing, All-Wise, and All-Aware Creator and replace it with fluctuating and deficient human opinions that change with every decade, shift with every generation, and contradict one another from one culture to another and one society to another?
Shall we abandon the correct constant that builds upon the Creator’s knowledge of His creation, only to follow the fluctuating variable that builds upon the creature's ignorance and whims? Shall we leave certainty to follow doubt? Shall we leave the light to walk in the darkness?
The Illusion of Absolute Progress: Confusing the Technical with the Value-Based
Some harbor the illusion—or are intended to harbor it—that a later time necessarily means progress in everything, and that the ideas, values, and concepts prevailing today are necessarily superior and more correct than those that preceded them in past ages.
This is a dangerous illusion clearly contradicted by the facts; it falls at the heart of what is known as the "logical fallacy of novelty," where it is wrongly assumed that the new is better and more correct simply because it is new, and that the old is backward and wrong simply because it is old. It is as if time alone were the criterion for truth and falsehood, and history alone were the scale for right and wrong.
The reality we must clearly perceive is this: technical and material progress—which humanity has achieved in later ages—does not necessarily mean moral, value-based, or faith-based progress. In fact, it may be accompanied—and indeed has been—by a grave decline in values, a scandalous moral degradation, and a destructive spiritual loss.
Look at the twentieth century, the century called the era of staggering scientific and technical progress. How it witnessed the most heinous massacres and the most horrific destructive wars in all of human history!
Look at how the achievements of science and technical developments were used to exterminate millions in gas chambers, and how modern technology was employed to bomb peaceful cities with nuclear weapons that annihilated hundreds of thousands in moments. What kind of "progress" results in such total destruction? What kind of "advancement" leads to such tragic brutality?
Look at the reality of contemporary societies that claim progress and civilization: terrible family breakdown, scandalous psychological loss, high suicide rates, widespread mental illnesses, and a lethal spiritual vacuum. Where is the true progress in all of this?
Truth is truth even if it is old in time, and falsehood is falsehood even if it is recent in the moment. The significance is not in the age of an idea, but in its alignment with the truth. The rulings of Allah revealed fourteen centuries ago are more reforming for humanity and more beneficial for mankind than all the philosophical theories and intellectual schools humans have invented, because they are from the All-Knowing, All-Aware Creator of what reforms human behavior and brings happiness to the human soul in every time and place.
Truth is Not Known by Numbers or Popularity
The Noble Qur’ān teaches us a profound and great lesson that we must grasp well: truth is not known by numbers nor is it determined by the majority; correctness is not measured by prevalence or popularity. Allah said: “And if you obey most of those upon the earth, they will mislead you from the way of Allah.” [al-Anʿām: 116]. And He, Glorified be He, said: “And most of the people, although you should desire it, are not believers.” [Yūsuf: 103].
The fact that an idea is prevalent in the world does not make it correct, and the fact that a practice is widespread among people does not make it legitimate. History is full of examples of ideas and practices that were dominant in certain eras, only for their corruption and invalidity to be revealed later. Slavery was prevalent and accepted in most societies, then people realized its injustice. Racial discrimination was accepted and justified, then they realized its hideousness. Much of what is considered "universal values" today may be discovered by people decades later to be corrupt and invalid.
The true criterion for truth and falsehood is not what the majority says, but what Allah Almighty has revealed. The correct measure for right and wrong is not what the dominant culture settles upon, but what the Divine Revelation has brought.
Islam Came to Reform, Not to Comply
When we reflect impartially on the nature of the Islamic message and its methodology, we find that it did not come to be a mere reflection of the reality in which it was revealed, or a mere recording of the ideas and practices people held. Rather, it came to correct the straying path of humanity and guide it to the upright, Straight Path.
Islam was not revealed to affirm people in their existing ideas, customs, and traditions, but to elevate them to what they ought to be in terms of correct faith, righteous deeds, and virtuous character.
This reformist methodology included fundamental concepts and perceptions of life, the universe, and the human being. Instead of submitting to the ignorant tribal customs of the pre-Islamic era (al-Jāhiliyyah), Islam established the principle of complete equality before Allah. Instead of blind fanaticism for tribe, race, or color, it established the brotherhood of faith that transcends all barriers. Instead of the ignorant blood feuds and endless revenge, it legislated just retribution (Qiṣāṣ) and noble forgiveness.
In truth, if Islam had come merely as an echo of the reality in which it was revealed, the need for it would have been negated from the start. What need does humanity have for a Revelation from heaven if it is only going to tell humanity what it has already told itself? What is the necessity of a Divine message if it is merely going to repeat the customs, traditions, and ideas people have already settled upon? And what is the benefit of sending messengers and revealing books if they were to agree with a distorted human reality instead of correcting it?
The Danger of Adapting Religion to Reality
The matter that many overlook—or intentionally ignore—is that the danger of adapting religion to reality lies not only in following falsehood and adopting it as a methodology, but in attributing this falsehood to Allah Almighty and turning it into a religion. When some attempt to clothe prevailing customs or dominant ideas in the garb of religious legitimacy, searching through texts for convoluted interpretations to justify a distorted reality, they commit a grave double crime: distorting religion on one hand, and misleading people on the other.
This is far more dangerous than overt, clear deviation. Overt deviation can be identified, distinguished, and warned against. However, distortion disguised as religion and wrapped in false interpretations confuses people and leads them away from the Straight Path, making them believe they are following religion when they are, in fact, following the fluctuating whims of humans.
The Standards of Truth and Falsehood are Constant and Unchanging
The standards of truth and falsehood in Islam are not subject to human voting, the approval of the majority, or the satisfaction of the dominant culture. Zinā (unlawful sexual relations) is forbidden by Allah even if every constitution in the world permitted it and every law legislated it. Ribā (usury/interest) is forbidden by Allah even if every bank on earth practiced it and built their economy upon it. Alcohol is forbidden by Allah even if everyone drank it and considered it a part of their civilization. The Hijab (modest covering) is an obligation upon the Muslim woman even if most women abandoned it and the dominant culture denounced it.
These are the rulings of Allah Almighty, who created the human being and knows what reforms them and what corrupts them, and knows what benefits them and what harms them. If we compare His rulings to the rulings of humans, sound reason dictates that His rulings be prioritized and His Sharīʿah (Divine Law) be followed; this is because He is the Most Knowing of His creation and the most Aware of their natures and Fiṭrah (innate disposition). Allah said: “Does He who created not know, while He is the Subtle, the Acquainted?” [al-Mulk: 14].
Is it rational—after this—to abandon the judgment of the All-Knowing, All-Wise, and All-Aware Creator to follow the whims of ignorant and deficient creatures? Shall we leave the medicine prescribed by the most skilled and expert Doctor to take the advice of the ignorant simply because they are greater in number, louder in voice, or stronger in influence?
The Constants and Variables in the Sharīʿah
Yes, there is a vast space in Islam for Ijtihād (scholarly legal reasoning) and flexibility, but this exists within the circle of variables, not constants—in the branches of law, not in the foundational principles. Means may change according to time and place, but the objectives remain constant. There are rulings based on reasoning linked to custom and interest, and these possess flexibility. However, there are definitive, constant rulings that do not change with the passage of time or place because they are built upon explicit, categorical texts and relate to constant matters in human nature.
Matters concerning ʿAqīdah (creed), ʿIbādah (worship), fundamental ethics, the Ḥudūd (prescribed legal punishments), and major rights are constants that do not change. As for the detailed matters in transactions and certain customs, these possess flexibility within the parameters of the Sharīʿah.
Attempts to Adapt Islam: The Exposure of Psychological Defeatism
The bitter truth that must be stated clearly and frankly is this: those who strive with all their effort to adapt Islam and its rulings to fit the dominant Western culture are merely psychologically defeated before the hegemon, whoever or wherever that power may be. They do not follow the truth for its own sake, nor do they search for correctness impartially; rather, they follow cultural and political power wherever it turns, orbiting the hegemon wherever it moves.
If the global cultural and political hegemony today belonged to China and its civilization, you would see these same defeated individuals searching through Islamic texts for what agrees with Chinese philosophy and complies with Chinese concepts. If the power and hegemony belonged to India and its culture, they would interpret verses and Ḥadīth (prophetic traditions) to suit Hindu beliefs and Indian concepts. If power and hegemony return to the Muslims—by Allah’s permission—these same chameleons would be the first to call for the application of the Sharīʿah exactly as Allah revealed it, and the first to defend the rulings they attack today.
Imagine this scene: if world-famous celebrities through whom concepts are shaped and values are built—athletes, actors, singers, and intellectuals—began to show clear commitment to Islamic rituals and boasted of them publicly, you would see these same defeated people, who are ashamed today to speak of the Hijab or prayer or Sharīʿah rulings, suddenly racing to display their "Islam," "commitment," and "religiosity." This is because, for them, the issue is not one of conviction in the truth or a search for correctness, but a matter of blind infatuation with power and submissive surrender to the hegemon.
They are like a light feather in a violent wind, tilting where the wind tilts and moving where the wind pushes. They have no constant principle to return to, and no firm conviction to build upon. They are slaves to cultural, material, and media power, prostrating to it submissively wherever it exists. They change their convictions—if they even have convictions—with the changing balance of power, and they swap their positions according to the direction of the political and cultural wind.
Today, they fiercely attack polygyny because the dominant West denounces and fights it; tomorrow, they may defend it enthusiastically if it becomes a Western fashion or a widespread practice in Western societies. Today, they feel embarrassed by the Sharīʿah punishments and describe them as "barbaric," yet tomorrow they might justify and praise them if the powerful hegemons applied them. Today, they denounce the Hijab and describe it as "backwardness," but tomorrow they might praise it if it becomes a symbol of elegance in Western fashion capitals.
True, humiliating slavery is not when your body is enslaved and you become a prisoner; it is when your mind, conscience, and convictions are enslaved and you become a submissive follower. These people are slaves in every sense of the word—slaves to powerful humans, not to Allah the Creator. They submit to the dominant culture in a lowly, humiliating manner, and then they try to dress their submission and defeat in the garb of "reasoning," "renewal," and "enlightenment."
The truly unfortunate part is that they think themselves free, enlightened, and independent, when in reality they are nothing but captives of cultural hegemony and slaves to media power. They repeat the ideas dictated to them, thinking they are their own, and adopt the concepts they are taught, believing they reached them through their own effort.
Servitude to Allah: Liberating the Human from the Chains of Whim and Dependency
One of the strangest paradoxes we must reflect upon is that many believe freedom lies in following lusts and drifting behind desires, or in blindly walking with the prevailing current without thought or distinction. The truth is that both matters are disguised slavery—indeed, a more severe and debasing form of it.
The person who follows the erroneous concepts widespread in society—those that consider Divine Law to be "chains," "backwardness," or "reactionary"—is not free as they believe or as they are portrayed. Rather, they are a captive of the dominant culture and a slave to public opinion, swimming with the current like a dead fish that has no will. True freedom, however, is to choose truth and justice even if you stand alone against the entire world, like a strong, living fish that chooses its own path even if it is against the current.
One who claims to want truth, justice, and welfare, but in reality follows what their soul desires or what pleases people or what agrees with the dominant culture, is caught in a flagrant contradiction. Lust is blind; it does not distinguish between truth and falsehood or between benefit and harm. The masses can stray just as they can be guided, and the dominant culture can be false and distorted no matter how glittering and attractive it seems.
Their lust may lead them to oppression and injustice while they think they are achieving fairness, and the current may drag them toward falsehood and misguidance while they believe they are civilized, advanced, and enlightened.
Look at those who mock Divine inheritance rulings or the Sharīʿah Hijab to please the prevailing intellectual fashion and comply with the dominant culture—are they truly free in their decision and position? No, by Allah, they are lowly slaves to public opinion and captives of the dominant culture, fearing to be described as reactionary or backward, thus compromising their convictions—if they had any real convictions at all.
The truly free person is the one who stands tall and says with all confidence and honor: "This is the ruling of Allah which He revealed to His Prophet . I believe in it, I am honored by it, and I am proud of it—whether people are pleased or angry, whether it agrees with the dominant culture or contradicts it, and whether it aligns with intellectual fashion or differs."
Following fleeting intellectual fashions and blindly drifting behind so-called "universal values" is not freedom; it is submissive dependency and humiliating slavery. True freedom is to possess a constant, firm reference point that does not change with the shifting of political and cultural winds. Freedom is to know the truth and follow it even if you are alone in the whole world. Freedom is to submit to your Creator alone, thereby liberating yourself from the lowly submission to all else among humans and creatures.
Servitude to Allah, therefore, is the peak of true freedom. It liberates the human from the prison of whim and lust, from the humiliation of dependency on humans and submission to them, and from blindly drifting behind fluctuating cultures and changing concepts. When the believer says to the ruling of Allah, "We hear and we obey," they are declaring with pride their total liberation from every false deity (Ṭāghūt), proving they possess the courage and independence to stand with the constant truth even if the whole world stands against them.
Conclusion: The Muslim Woman at the Crossroads
The aforementioned facts and proofs place us—the community of Muslims—before a clear reality that must be faced with honesty and courage: Islam did not come to be a submissive follower of a fluctuating and changing human reality; rather, it came to be the leader, the corrector, the guide, and the lighthouse. Every attempt to flip this correct equation—by making a corrupt reality the judge over the Wise Law instead of the reverse—is a malicious attempt to empty religion of its true essence and strip it of its radical reformative power.
We have clearly seen how truth is not known by numbers nor determined by prevalence, and how chronological and technical progress does not necessarily mean value-based and moral progress. We have seen how Islam came to change a corrupt, distorted reality, not to bless it and affirm it. We have clearly seen that those who try to adapt religion to fit the dominant culture are nothing but psychologically defeated before the hegemon, taking on its color and orbiting it like lowly slaves.
The truth is that the Muslim woman today—as we are in the context of providing the legal grounding for her status in Islam and demonstrating that Allah’s Sharīʿah is what is best for her in her religion, worldly life, and Hereafter—stands at a dangerous crossroads where a choice must be made:
Either she chooses the path of honor through her religion and dignity through her Sharīʿah, holding fast to the rulings of her Lord, being honored and proud of them regardless of the slander and distortion directed at them, and regardless of being described as reactionary or backward.
Or she chooses the path of humiliating defeat and shameful dissolution, giving up her Islamic identity piece by piece, and the rulings of her religion one by one, to please a Western culture that has gained a false glitter through material power and media hegemony—a glitter that will soon fall and vanish, just as the glitter of other previously dominant cultures fell and vanished.
The choice is clear for those who wish to see, and the path is plain for those who wish to walk. The rational Muslim woman knows that her true honor is in her religion, her constant dignity is in her Sharīʿah, and her permanent happiness is in the obedience of her Lord.