Poor Consideration of the common good in taking decisions and attitudes

This is about the narrow sightedness and poor consideration of common good when taking decisions and attitudes

It is about our poor consideration of ‘What is better and more enduring’ in our activities and decisions

About poor awareness and sense of the impact both the individual and the group have on the whole progress of society, as referred to in the following hadith of the Prophet, peace be upon him (as reported by al-Bukhari):

“The similitude of those who stand for the boundaries set by God and those who trespass on them is that of a number of people who boarded a ship, and drew lots to determine who should be on the upper deck and who on the lower deck, so some were above and some were below.  Now those below felt they were being a nuisance by mounting upstairs when they needed water, so they said: ‘Why not dig a hole in the bottom and get water from the sea, so that we do not incommode our neighbors upstairs.’ Now if the others let them have their way, both groups would perish; and if they prevent them, both groups would be safe.”

We learn that unawareness or ignorance, and doing what is harmful in good intention, or failure to do that which realizes what is good and wards off what is harmful – all the good intention here does not spare society the negative consequences of behaviors

We may learn this from the following Verse of the Qur’an:

“And fear tumult or oppression, which affects not in particular only those of you who do wrong;” (8:25)

Unawareness of accountability for the common good and caring for the interests of others

Societal attitude of bystander towards history

(A society that is a passive executer of civilized efforts, not a proactive participant in establishing civilization)

Cognitive script of an individual:

It is a set of attitudes and behaviors ready to be recalled from one’s imagination without reflection of meditation – attitudes and behaviors that are harmful to the common interest; like: flattery, fawning, cajoling tyrants … as may be seen in the case related in the Qur’an about Pharaoh and his people: “Thus he made fools of his people, and they obeyed him;” (43:54)

Unawareness of the connection between one’s daily behavior and common good

Examples are: carelessness about general cleanliness, bribery, mistreatment of others, failure to abide by organizing systems … Think how badly this impacts on the conditions of the refugees in Arab and non-Arab asylum countries!

Taking respecting the common interests as insignificant and may be ignored; its not occupying a prominent place in our hierarchy.

Unawareness of the crucial role of cooperation and solidarity with others to accomplish social targets; the near absence of investment in this domain

Lack of ardor, enthusiasm, and eagerness to enhance social good

We may cite here the hadith which describes how the Messenger, peace be upon him, showed this deep care for people’s safety and warding off any injury for the public. In this hadith, Anas bin Malek narrates how, one day, the Medina people heard a loud cry for help from the direction of Sala’ (a mount to the left of Medina). The Messenger, peace be upon him, proved to be the bravest, for he hurried as fast as he could towards the cry. On his way, he noticed a mare, called al-Mandub, known to be too slow, and it belonged to Abu Talha, a Companion of the Prophet: he untied it, jumped to its back, and had it gallop until it sweated. When people were hurrying towards the source of noise, they found the Prophet, peace be upon him, coming back; and he calmed them down with the words: “You needn’t panic; it was only a woman servant of Ka’b bin Malek, who was grazing some sheep at Sala’; a ewe fell down a rock, and she cried and rushed to slaughter it before it died;” (Reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim).

Mechanisms of reinforcement

An individual may be preoccupied with his/her own interest; alternatively, they may be preoccupied with the family’s interests and short-term interests

Stressing the importance of the individual’s group at the expense of the common interests

Cognitive mistakes

Generalization and exaggeration

Narrow-sightedness; inability to have a bird’s view of things

Arbitrary inference

Cognitive schemas

‘None of our concern’: downplaying common interests

Suggested Solutions:

1. Approach of: ‘What is better and more enduring’

Striving to fulfil targets linked to the common interests, at the individual, family, and social levels: to have ‘What is better and more enduring’ as the basis of thinking, even if it meant sacrificing what seems better in the short run

Enhancing a consciousness of the impact of our efforts and its value for society

2. Awareness of one’s responsibility, and practicing responsibility

Taking one’s responsibility seriously; participating in social activities which prove good for the family, for the school, the neighborhood, the community and nature; we are urged in the Qur’an to compete in doing general good – as in the following Verse: “For this let those aspire, who have aspirations;” (83:26).

Let’s look at this hadith about practicing responsibility:

Abu Sa’eed al-Khudri narrates: “I heard the Messenger, peace be upon him, say: ‘Whenever any of you sees an abominable behavior, let him change it physically; if he cannot, let him change it through utterance; if he fails, let him change it in his heart, and this last is the least acceptable from a believer;’” (Reported by Muslim).

3. Developing an awareness of the social pulse

We have a lot about this in the Qur’an. One Verse reads: “Let there arise out of you a band of people inviting to all that is good, enjoining what is right, and forbidding what is wrong;” (3:104) and, “You are the best of peoples, evolved for mankind, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in God. if only the People of the Book had faith, it were best for them: among them are some who have faith, but most of them are perverted transgressors;” (3:110).

And we may refer to the following hadith, reported by al-Bukhari and Muslim, on the authority of Abdullah bin Umar, who heard the Messenger, peace be upon him, say: “Each one of you is a shepherd, and is therefore responsible for his/her herd: A leader is a shepherd, and is responsible for his herd; a man is a shepherd of his family, and is responsible for his herd; a woman is a shepherdess at her husband’s home, and is responsible for her herd; a servant is a shepherd of his/her master’s property, and is responsible for his/her herd – each one of you is a shepherd, and each is responsible for his/her herd.”

4. A law (sunan)-abiding approach; and accepting the position of khalifah

That a mentality of acting in accordance with God’s laws (sunan) is implanted in people’s minds, along with an awareness of the importance of the scientific approach to change

This puts the human in a pivotal position in creation, being a vicegerent or viceroy ‘khalifah’ as we read in the following Verse of the Qur’an: “And he subjected to you, as from Him, all that is in heavens and on earth;” (45:13).

5. Justice and the rule of law

Establishing social justice and the rule of law: whereby all are equal before the judiciary authorities

This correlates with the dignity of the human, a human’s independence and freedom of choice

6. Perseverance, persistence, and a team spirit

The virtue of perseverance, persistence and working hard in realizing our goals; as we read in a hadith of the Prophet, peace be upon him, that “the kind of religious fervor he preferred was an act of worship which was sustained on a permanent basis;” (Reported by al-Bukhari)

Competition and rivalry to be encouraged, but for realizing what does good for oneself and others, as we are urged in the Verse of the Qur’an: “For this let those aspire, who have aspirations;” (83:26) to feel the pleasure of doing good

The team spirit to be developed through shared projects and enterprises

7. Supporting people who order what is fair, of whatever extraction they may be

We find in the Qur’an: “As to those who deny the Signs of Allah, and in defiance of right, slay the prophets, and slay those who teach just dealing with mankind, announce to them a grievous penalty;” (3:21)

Allying with those who stand for truth and uphold justice and fairness among all people; identifying with those who champion the cases of the wronged

Remembering ‘the Fudul Alliance’, complimented by the Prophet

The above principles must be translated into real-life practices; to be put to practice and not to remain mere theoretical slogans.

8. Achievement and accomplishment

To be keen on realizing achievements and accomplishing the objective we set out to attain, as individuals, as organizations, and as communities – good intentions and sincerity are not sufficient for bringing efforts to a desirable conclusion: success is required, and people must be accountable to realize success.