Question
To many the two terms in the title cannot mutually coexist. I am talking with particular reference to romanticism as a style of writing. Can romantic writings or prose be considered acceptable in the eyes of Islam? Likewise, can romantic poetry or songs be tolerated in a society that wants to elevate its members’ moral and ethical standards? Or is it that romanticism can only be restricted to the relationship between a married couple, within the confines of their home.
Let me be more specific. In the sub continent, we had poets of such stature as Ghalib and Faiz Ahmed Faiz. Their poetry undoubtedly has a deep meaning that they sought to convey but at so many instances, they indulge into romantic frivolities some of which are too stark. Similarly, a majority, if not all, of the songs of old times and those one gets to hear these days have romantic themes and so many times, calling these songs romantic would be using a euphemism not expressing the indecency in them. Then we have another famed writer Saadat Hassan Manto who is always maligned for his provocative writings. He used to defend them by using the phrase ‘stark realism’ for them.
Is there anything such as ‘innocent romanticism’ and ‘realistic portrayal’ in prose and poetry that Islam would approve of and if not, what are the limits for literature in an Islamic society?
I have also heard that a sizeable portion of the classical Arabic poetry actually comprises of utterly shameful verses which are studied by individuals who want to attain a masterly command on the classical idiom. Is that really the way to the understanding of the language of Qur’an?
Your comments would be highly appreciated.
Answer
Romance, indeed, has mostly been the favorite topic of world literature, in general, and poetry, in particular. This fact seems to be the direct affect of the strong relationship between man’s esthetic sense and romance. The expression of the natural human emotions emanating from the strong attraction between the male and the female is the root cause of this general bent of world literature towards romantic writings.
Islam is not against romantic expression in literature and poetry. However, as a system based on the promotion of high moral values, Islam wants these expressions to not only remain within the acceptable socio-cultural standards of the universally recognized moral values but also to help elevate these standards.
One may, however, ask what are the acceptable limits of literary expression in a Muslim society. In my opinion, these limits are directly determined and affected by the prevalent moral standards of the society. In other words, Islam does not directly control the standards of acceptable literary expressions of a society. On the contrary, Islam elevates the general moral and spiritual level of that society, which, in turn, would have a natural effect on all aspects of cultural life – including the standards of literary expression – of that society.
To understand the foregoing point more clearly, take the pre-Islamic Arabic poetry as a case in point. The pre-Islamic Arabic poetry is representative of the generally accepted and appreciated level of literary expression in the pre-Islamic Arabian culture. This ‘generally accepted and appreciated’ level of the pre-Islamic Arabs was different from that of, for instance, the present-day culture in the sub-continent or even that of the post-Islamic Arabs. Nevertheless, the change in this ‘accepted and appreciated level of literary expression’ in the Arabs was not because of any direct legislations of the Islamic Shari`ah. On the contrary, it was a natural outcome of the general elevation of the moral and literary standards of the Arabian culture, which, in turn, was the result of the Islamic teachings.
Islam is directly concerned with raising the moral, ethical and spiritual aspects of individual and collective life. As a result, Islam would naturally affect the standards of all kinds of artistic expressions in its followers, without ever having to impose any artificial restrictions on these expressions.
I hope this helps.
Regards,
Moiz Amjad
May 22, 2002