Showing respect for customs and traditions

Man is born without any experience and then is influenced by the
customs and traditions from those around him. In this way, customs and
traditions are conveyed from one generation to the next.
Customs and traditions appear in the actions and works practiced by
individuals that is oft-repeated and represents a daily or cyclic
program for their life.
Customs are actions that are a norm for people to do and are repeated
on many different occasions. Traditions involve a new generation
copying the methods of the previous generation and imitating it in
different affairs.
Emergence and Development of Customs and Traditions:
It is difficult to determine the emergence, development and expansion
of customs and traditions because they are parts of the social
activity of individuals in any random sector of society. They do not
appear all of a sudden. On the contrary, it takes years until they
become well-established and even many more years until they change or
evolve.
Customs and traditions often emerge to serve a social function
benefiting all or some individuals in the society. It becomes a social
pattern that helps strengthen social relations among the individuals
of a community. This leads to a collective agreement upon certain
behaviors to be practiced in the community.
Customs and traditions act as a chain whose links are conveyed from
one generation to the next. This conveyance may be accompanied by some
changes through omissions or additions, being positive or negative, in
accordance with the conditions and values of every generation.
Moreover, the social function of the customs or traditions may fade or
even expire as a result of the change of social conditions. But they
survive due to psychological pressure on the individuals who repeat
them and feel that they grant them safety and reassurance and
guarantee their consistency against any new changes.
Women have an important and effective role in spreading customs and
traditions and conveying them from one generation to the next. This
stems from the theory of their great role in disciplining and
maintaining )the family(. For this reason, she bears the greatest
responsibility for adjusting them in accordance with the right Islamic
method. In confirmation of that Allah The Almighty Says )what means(:
•}And, ]moreover[, this is My path, which is straight, so follow it;
and do not follow ]other[ ways, for you will be separated from His
way. This has He instructed you that you may become righteous.{]Quran
6:153[
•}It is not for a believing man or a believing woman, when Allah and
His Messenger have decided a matter, that they should ]thereafter[
have any choice about their affair. And whoever disobeys Allah and His
Messenger has certainly strayed into clear error.{]Quran 33:36[
The Relationship of the Islamic method with Customs and Traditions:
With the spread of Islam to many countries that each have their own
different customs and traditions, the Islamic method takes three forms
in relation with them:
The first is to support the customs that encourage virtuous principles
and high values and enhancing them according to the eternal Shari'ah
principles. Among these are the neighbor's right, generously hosting
the guest, helping the poor, relieving the needy and assisting the
stranger.
The second is to straighten the customs which have two aspects: one
good and the other bad, by placing emphasis on the good, forbidding
the bad and reforming it according to the Noble Shari'ah.
The third is to resist the straying and misleading customs and
traditions, which oppose its values and principles, and may lead to
gaps in society, disorder of values, the spread of corruption and vice
and the loss of security and tranquility. An example of this is the
practice of girls being buried alive. The Arabs )during the
pre-Islamic days( regarded having a girl as a source of pessimism and
an object of contempt. Then the Quran disapproved of this hideous
custom and protected the girl from this criminal act. He The Almighty
Says )what means(:}And when one of them is informed of ]the birth of[
a female, his face becomes dark, and he suppresses grief. He hides
himself from the people because of the ill of which he has been
informed. Should he keep it in humiliation or bury it in the ground?
Unquestionably, evil is what they decide.{]Quran 16:58-59[
And, the Messenger of Allah, sallAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said:"He,
who has a female )daughter( and he does not bury her alive, disgrace
her nor give preference to his male child over her, Allah will Admit
him into Paradise."]Abu Daawood[
Before Islam, the young girl would also suffer from being coerced into
marriage regardless of her will and consent. Thereupon, Islam
glorified her in this respect when the Messenger of Allah, sallAllahu
'alayhi wa sallam, said:"No previously married woman should be given
in marriage without her consent and no virgin should be given in
marriage without her permission."]Muslim[ Before Islam, the young girl
also suffered being deprived of any inheritance. But Islam assigned to
her a right in the inheritance of her father. Allah The Almighty Says
)what means(:}For men is a share of what the parents and close
relatives leave, and for women is a share of what the parents and
close relatives leave, be it little or much - an obligatory
share.{]Quran 4:7[
Bad Customs:
These days, many bad customs have become widespread among the general
population and it is even more widely spread among women. Among these
customs is the intention of seeking to draw closer to Allah The
Almighty using the dead and Awliyaa' )Pious people who are close to
Allah The Almighty( as a medium. Wailing and screaming upon the death
)of a loved one(. Similar bad customs include visiting psychics and
fortune tellers and following their errors, attachment to amulets,
talismans and charms assuming they bring good and avert evil. Also,
Mushaaharah or Kabsah, which is the belief that if a man with a shaved
head carrying meat, red dates, eggplants or similar items enters upon
a confined woman, he would cause the milk to cease to flow )from her
breast( or delay her pregnancy. And, these are examples of bad customs
that do not please Allah The Almighty and His Messenger, sallAllahu
'alayhi wa sallam, like putting on toupees, visiting coiffeurs,
lengthening finger and toe nails, using dyes and colors to adorn them,
lagging behind the latest fashions of clothing )gothic and other
styles that stick out from the norm(, and so on.
The Duty of the Muslim:
To avoid the potential harms of these matters and prevent corruption
due to them, it is the duty of the Muslim to abandon every custom and
tradition that violates even a single principle of the religious
fundamental principles. He must pause to reflect upon all customs and
traditions and weigh them using the balance of the genuine Islamic
method and adjust whatever does not agree with it or comply with its
rules. If there is a custom or tradition that violates one's creed and
opposes one's religion, he should throw it far away without
hesitation, bashfulness or regret. He should flee from bad customs and
evil traditions and rush toward the secure shadows of Islam
entertaining no fear of critics for the Sake of Allah. His pattern
should follow that of the righteous believers in the ages of Islam who
responded to the call of truth and sacrificed what was valuable to
them in support of it.
Fabricating History:
Some historians fabricated this eternal image of the great men and
leaders of this Ummah. They presented the Muslim caliphs in a light of
men whose main concern was only food and drink, to the extent that it
is attributed to Mu'aawiyah ibn Abi Sufyaan, the Companion of the
Messenger of Allah, sallAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam, that he would eat
very compulsively. This is something unimaginable even from cattle,
let alone from a revered Companion who learnt in the school of the
Messenger of Allah, sallAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam, that a man should
not eat and drink in excess. They also represent to us such a caliph
as Haaroon Ar-Rasheed, as a man who loved women and drank alcoholic
drinks, and so on. All this is attributed to a man who, in his age,
witnessed many conquests, was himself a Mujaahid )one who strives with
his wealth and life in the Path of Allah, The Almighty(, a devout
worshipper of Allah, pious and righteous.
It is obvious from the biographies of such personalities that what has
been said about them are no more than invented lies whose initiatory
purpose is to distort the image of Islam through the character
assassination of its caliphs. As a result, they attempt to claim that
their customs and traditions appear to be in opposition to the innate
human common sense so that the Ummah would criticize its symbols and
celebratory figures. Afterwards, they would have nothing worthy of
mentioning for themselves in the history of mankind. Resentful
criminal historians distorted not only the image of men, but the
believing women as well. During the pre-Islamic days, they would let
their head covers hang down from behind their heads, uncovering their
breasts, necks and collars.
With the emergence of Islam and its spreading light, Allah The
Almighty Says, addressing the women by way of disciplining )what
means(:}and to wrap ]a portion of[ their headcovers over their
chests.{]Quran 24:31[. Upon which, the men turned to their wives to
recite to them what had been revealed by Allah The Almighty in order
to guide them and there was no woman but that she caught hold of her
sheet )of wool( and covered her head )and face( with trust and belief
in the clear Verses revealed by Allah The Almighty. In the morning,
they performed the morning prayer behind the Messenger of Allah,
sallAllahu 'alayhi wa sallam, with their heads covered and motionless,
as if there were crows perched on their heads. ]Abu Daawood and Ibn
Abi Haatim[. But the people represented their behavior as retardation
and not in harmony with the advanced time. Rather, they had their
women come out half-dressed as if they were nude, in order that the
dissolute wolves )amongst men( would quench their craving by the
unlawful glance, and whatever consequent traces of her body he may
recall.
Inherited customs and traditions are among the affairs that are the
most detrimental upon the religion of Allah The Almighty because they
are habitual, the soul inclines to them, the people agree with them
and it is difficult to abandon them. From this point of view, it is
incumbent upon the Muslim to discard anything that opposes the Islamic
Sharee'ah and play an effective role in changing and virtuously
protecting his community in order that its customs and traditions
would be compatible with the Sharee'ah of Allah The Almighty. Men and
women are equal in this respect, perchance the children would rise as
a strong generation, carrying the torch of Islam, and enlightening the
way for all people.