De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

Book title: De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy
Author: Syed Waqar Ali Shah
Reviewer: Mudeer Ahmed

De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy is written by Syed Waqar Ali Shah. He is a young Ph.D. Scholar at Mehran University of Engineering and Technology, Jamshoro. He is a teacher, writer, philosopher, and columnist. He authored and co-authored few books one of his write-up is De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy. It is the beneficial contribution of young researchers/writers in simple and easy English for the students. This book is for those who are new learners of philosophy, politics, social ethics, culture, and human behavior. This book is not recommended to those who are already enlightened and intellectually smart by the Author.

Further, he writes, " the sole purpose of this book is to educate the young generation of Pakistan. To prepare them for intellectual growth in science, religion, and education."

The Author highlights major issues, problems, and misunderstandings. The author encourages students to think critically, intellectually and motivated them to ask questions, critically argue with thoughts.

This book contains ten chapters to explain each point in simple language so that everyone can understand it.

Chapter 1 of book De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

The first chapter is all about the biographies of the well-known personalities of the world of all times. He writes that most of the biographies are biased, they were not written neutrally. They were written by the people either one who supporter/follower of that personality or by stronger opponents. So how could these biographies be fair in nature somehow, they could be fair but not at all. In this chapter, the author discusses the three Islamic personalities. To understand the biographies written about their life and gave his idea about those personalities. He tried his best to give a neutral touch while writing those biographies.

Chapter 2 of book De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

The second chapter is about the " limits of human thinking". This is a very interesting topic for the people of Pakistan. The people of Pakistan even don’t know what is the limit of thinking and at what extent we must think. We are limited to think politically as well as religiously. Instead of that religion and democracy encourage us to think broadly and intellectually, to ask questions to argue.

The author explains well about the thinking limitations in our Society, even our thinking is limited by social classes. Shah writes " In Pakistan society, it is very uncommon for a person coming from a lower class and lower-middle-class to question on faith. Author is afraid of asking questions. He is trained from the beginning not to question a faith/belief system as it would annoy God and his prophets. If he so so, they would do harm to him. He would lose what he possesses, or he would stop being blessed. The fear of 'loosing and stop being blessed' prevents him from questioning. He is afraid of learning and seeing the world with a different sociological eye."

Chapter 3 of book De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

The third chapter is all about Education. Education has remained a major issue of Pakistan since its creation and is still facing the same situation even in the 21st century. Pakistan's education system lacks good policies. The author highlighted all these major issues from the school level to higher education. Even he writes about the Madrasa education system in Pakistan. He explained how the society, institutes, government, stakeholders, and politicians weaken the education system.

He has a closed experience of that doctrines. As he is also a teacher, he knows well those tacts, and he rejects those doctrines in the education system. Even he was forced to teach the students according to the system formal requirements. He tried to teach students to think intellectually, instead of preparing for the good marks. That's why we Pakistani students obtain the highest marks in exams even more than 1000 from 1100 but failed to produce scientists, intellectual thinkers, philosophers, good Leaders, and best policymakers.

Chapter 4 of book De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

The fourth chapter is the monopoly of knowledge. In this chapter author discuss about the monopolization of knowledge. According to him knowledge is controlled by few Peoples, organization, Pops, and priests. It has been witnessed in the history the knowledge was controlled by religious zealots, as in Hindus only Brahmins could get and control the knowledge. Today nor pops neither priests control the knowledge, but by some well-known organizations. Those organizations don't give access to everyone to get free knowledge but few individuals, who are financially stable to purchase that write-up and research work. Many people don't afford them to get access to the files. The author also mentioned a case about the monopolization of knowledge against Elsevier Inc and other well-known research journals. Knowledge is not for only a few, but it is basic right of every human being on earth.

Chapter 5 of book De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

In the fifth Chapter “Separation of Science from religion,” The author explains that there are different people in each group (religious and scientific). Who think that religion and science are correlated and others think that these are both different. As science is developing day by day while the religion is steady static. As science developed day by day, we come to know that science has nothing to with religion and vice versa.

During the Muslims science period the other religions; Christianity and Judaism, thought that this science is against our ancestral believe and doings because it is the product and knowledge and belief of Muslims, they opposed science. The same anarchism is believed by Muslims today. And some of them still believe that whatever science is today is all from the holy book Quran. The writer gave a detailed study about this major misconception that the holy Qur'an encourages humans to explore the universe and investigate how the universe is created and lived in it. The Holy scripture is never opposed to scientific research or investigation. Nonetheless, the Quran is not a scientific encyclopedia.

Chapter 6 of book De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

In the sixth chapter, Author discussed some major misconceptions/misunderstandings in our society. He mostly mentioned some isms, science, and religion. The first misconception he mentioned is the in Pakistan who studies science is communist or become atheist. But as early he discussed science and religion the same situation is here. That science has nothing to do with atheism and communism. The author tried to bring the common readers/beginners a clear description of these terms. The Major isms he discussed and gave a brief description in this chapter are communism/Marxism/socialism, anarchism, atheism, materialism, science and religion. He just not only put some description of these terms but also showed a clear relation and difference between these terminologies.

Chapter 7 of book De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

The seventh chapter is " Cultural Identity & Supremacy. In this chapter, the author determines the cultures in the world and their superiority to other cultures. Today we must show our culture through material objects instead of socially practice our culture as defined by Dr. Mubarak Ali. We have divided our culture in caste, religion, and imperialism that affected our culture at a local and global level. Culture is not what we show to the world with material objects but it a practice that we performed daily in our society. The cultures are affected by religions, states supremacy and democracy. We have different rules and conditions for different people, different castes and different religions. Even the Quran says that we have created tribes that you know one another, but we took these tribes and castes as our superiority and some as low castes.

The author is also curious about the Sindhi culture that is being shown on the TV drama. In most dramas, Sindhis are represented as most backward people in Pakistan. It is not our culture that is being shown on TV and drama and films. We must address our culture at the national and international level in the first place as positive . In the last of this chapter, the author discusses the cultural imperialism that how cultural imperialism is being imposed by one usually politically or economically by the dominant community. Its own culture to another non-dominant community. In the modern world that we are globalizing the author condemns this globalization as it is not globalization but Americanisation and Westernization.

Chapter 8 of book De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

The eighth chapter is " Is a woman is second sex?"

This is a very important topic that should be read by every man and woman to clear understanding of the status of a woman in our society. We only consider the women as second sex and man as primary sex, this is not the only situation of Sindh or Pakistan but the whole world. It is another thing that the condition of a woman's status in our society is worst from the rest of the world. In most villages of Pakistan, the woman is treated only as a child producing Machine, sometimes I cried and felt sorry for those women who have nothing to with their will whatever they do is the only wish of their parents, husband, brothers, etc.

This is the basic issues of the woman the education of girls is felt like a curse in most of the areas of the country. They said that this is the matter of our honor so that we don't play with honors to allow girls to get an education. These issues are of rural girls. The author discusses many other issues that are also being felt by urban women too.

The author discussed woman individuality as a man has but he also criticized feminism that feminisms is major problem to the woman's individuality. He also discussed very precisely the religious concepts about woman creation that woman had created from the rib of man that’s why she can't be parallel with a man in every aspect because it is part of man not a parallel to man. He defended this idea, from Quranic verses and well-known female activists and feminists.

Sum up of Chapter

And finally, he concluded this chapter as man and women are equally independent and lovable creatures who have their own individual nature. A woman is equally human being as a man is. Primary and secondary beings are culturally constructed notions that need to be modified. He also encourages women to identify their own individuality instead of making themselves as manlike. In the last, he mentioned a poem by Dr. Riffat Hassan " I am a woman" which worth reading that sums up this section of the book.

Chapter 9 of book De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

The second last chapter is " Poverty: A Devine gift or social curse?" He writes that there is also a misconception about poverty in our society, that we accept poverty as a Devine gift, but it is not a Devine gift, it is a social curse. Here the repeats that religion has nothing to with poverty. Poverty is the product of the number of social factors. We think that this poverty is our destiny, pre-written document written of one's life what he gets is its destiny, and this is believed by ordinary believers.

We only accept those things where we don't want to blame ourselves, we want to get rid of social criticism, that why we believe in destiny. Other hand Quran tells that " A man gets what he strives for (53:39)". Due to this weak believe in ourselves and made God responsible for our doings and social status, the politicians, stakeholders, and autocrats also used these strategies to make them sure that we have nothing to do. we tried to give you these, these benefits but God didn't want it so it your destiny. He writes about this vested interest of the capitalist mindset that they use religion, culture, nation, ethnicity, language to exploit the masses. Finally, he concluded that poverty is calculatedly imposed on; the illiteracy which is spread is actually sponsored by a group of the political ruling elite.

Chapter 10 of book De-Idealizing Cultural Orthodoxy

The last chapter is " Rethinking Human Relations".

This is the last chapter I liked most, in this chapter author writes about the human behaviors, relations, and emotions that how human feel, behave and act at different, difficult, sad, easy and happy situations. What would be the relations with friends, family, father, brothers, sisters, cousins and relatives? The writer is curious about the aggressive behavior of the young generation and called humans as complex creatures. In this chapter, the author supports his critique by the philosophy of Abraham Maslow about human psychology. And writer believes in the theory of Erich Fromm that once he said, " If who I am, is what I have; if what I have is lost then who I am.

It seems a bit complicated, but it is a very simple language, just we have to focus on it. The writer seems largely influenced by this theory so that he dedicated this book to those who love him most for what he is not for what he has, and those he lives them for what they have not for what they are.

He analyzed the relations in the light of religion, social and other ideologies. Author also criticizes the modern social media era that affected the relations very effectively. Shahwrites, "we have forgotten all relations not others only, but own "self", too. We have no time for us, we live in a virtual world, we are more netizens than citizens."

Final Review

The sum-up of this whole book is that we are in chains, we don't allow to think critically. We don't have enough courage to talk about our basic rights, religions, politicians, stakeholders, capitalists, nations, and state wouldn't let us live freely in this world. We can say that this book is the well explanation of J.J Rousseau's quote " Man is born free and every he is in chains". This book encourages us to think critically, encourage us to question, analysis the things neutrally and believe what he sees not on what he told to be. I really learned a lot of things from this book. It is recommended that every student must read this book to clarify the Major issues, misconception and misunderstandings present in our lives. We suffer from them daily, the thin book also encourages us to increase the habit of reading.

You will know things better when you read and when you read you perform well in your life. So, make a habit to read books that help you to think in a better and critical way. So, keep reading.