Top Ten Muslim Phobias

Phobia is defined as the irrational fear of something and can be very intense. Many Muslims always complain about the Islamophobia of some Non-Muslims and rightly so, but we have some Phobias of our own that we need to sort out first. So it's introspection time again:

1. Jewaphobia:

These are the Muslims who think all Jews are in on some kind of global conspiracy against Islam, it is the Muslim equal to Islamophobia. Don't believe me, look at the following example:

The Islamophobes are determined that Obama is a secret Muslim, while the Jewaphobes are determined that he is a secret Jew, all the while the poor guy keeps explaining that he is Christian.

Jewaphobes make the Jews seem almost God-like in their power, they seem to think the Jews can watch our every move like the Truman Show, that they control every thing in the media, the governments and they even blame the Jewish scientists for the earthquakes and Tsunamis.

Islam teaches us to stay away from conspiracy theories and work only with facts, further it teaches us that every individual is different and you can't treat all Jews as bad because of a few, we don't like it when they do that to us after all. Remember Muslims and Jews lived side by side in peace for centuries, one last point: The Jews are not an all-powerful boogeyman with control over everything, most of them are normal people like you and me who can't even control their own bank accounts leave alone yours.

2. Kaafiraphobia:

This is even more intense than Jewaphobia, some Muslims think that everything Non-Muslims do must be evil, forgetting that most Non-Muslims are just simple people who don't know any better. They think any movie, book, shop or statement by a Non-Muslim is definitely evil, this is ridiculous. There are many Non-Muslims through out history who are decent people and they all can't be put into one camp with the others. Did the prophet (peace be upon him) treat his uncle Abu Talib the same as his uncle Abu Lahab? No, because one was a good Non-Muslim and one was bad, Important point to reflect upon.

3. Technolophobia:

Also known as Mediaphobia. Some Muslims confuse technological advancement with Bidah (religious innovation) and religiously shun technology. They have a strange fear that technology can only harm and not benefit, anything goes wrong and they blame technology. TV is evil even if you watching an Islamic lecture, it will corrupt you, they say. Such people need to wake up and face reality, this is the technological age, you can either embrace it or get lost in transmission, and technological advancement is not bidah, bidah refers to changing, adding or subtracting from the religion. As far as worldly things go, Islam teaches that everything is Halal until proven Haram.

4. Womenaphobia:

Some Muslim men are literally scared of women! They think that even if a woman makes Salaams or comes out dressed in full veil, she is still tempting them to sin. Their response? They oppress women in the name of Islam to keep them subdued. Such men need to study Islam properly and realize what they are doing is a sin. They also need help, because its not the women's fault they go bananas at the sight of a woman in niqab or on hearing a woman make Salaams, its their own fault. They need to learn self-control and realize that replying to a woman's Salaam does not count as Zina.

5. Canine-phobia:

Islam teaches us that we should not keep dogs in our houses or as pets, it does however allow guide dogs, guard dogs, hunting dogs. etc yet some people forget this second part and treat dogs like they are the worst thing on earth. I feel sorry for the way some Muslims treat dogs, the poor dog never do anything wrong. These people also forget that Allah praised a dog in the Quran for protecting the people of the cave and Allah forgave a Jewish prostitute because she was kind to a dog. Points to ponder, folks.

6. Jinn-phobia:

Parents are to blame for this one. Some parents raise their kids with the Muslim alternative to ghost stories...Jinn stories. This leads to the child growing up to be paranoid and to see Jinn everywhere, especially in the Darul Ulooms, unless the child is crazy like me as I spent a lot of my childhood searching for ghosts, jinn and aliens to little success. It should be noted that Jinn can trouble people but that is very rare and if you practice Islam and read for protection Duas like Ayatul Kursi and the Three Quls, they can't harm you, so relax a bit.

7. Azaab-a-phobia:

This one I do not understand. Some Muslims are so scared of Azaab (Divine Punishment) that whenever it rains, thunders, etc they start panicking and thinking the world is about to end. These guys have clearly seen too many Roland Emmerich movies. Yet the same Muslims don't change their lives and forget about the end of the world when the sky clears up. People, we need to be Muslims full-time, not just when the sky is falling on our heads!

8. Signofqiyamaphobia:

These Muslims are scared that Qiyamah is close and see everything as a sign of Qiyamah. If an earthquake happens, "Qiyamah is close", If a crime happens "Qiyamah is close", if Jacob Zuma becomes president "Qiyamah is close", If Obama sneezes "Qiyamah is close"

Relax people, only Allah knows when Qiyamah is. It could be tomorrow or in five hundred years time, it does not matter. Once a man asked the prophet (peace be upon him) when will Qiyamah be, he replied "What have you prepared for it?" Another interesting point to ponder.

9. Othergroupphobia:

Some Muslims live in boxes, they only hang out with, talk to, live with and study under people born into the same group, sect or mazhab as them, as a result they grow narrow-minded and think their understanding is the only way that Islam should be practiced and they grow wary and fearful of other Muslims. This Phobia is holding the Ummah back from uniting for common goals or learning from each other. As Muslims we should realize we do not know everything and our teachers are fallible and can make mistakes, thus we must be willing to give others an ear and hear out their opinions. If it is wrong, then correct it...politely please and if it is right then accept it and change.

10. Mullahphobia:

Another one to blame the parents for. Some parents threaten their kids with police, others with physical punishment, yet others threaten them with the Uloom, The Moulana, The Shaykh or most popular in SA.....Mia's farm. As a result, such kids grow up terrified of Scholars and Islamic places, and the way certain Moulanas and religious people treat them in the Masjid doesn't help things..but thats a different article: http://caller2islam.blogspot.com/2009/10/rights-of-children.html

Point to note: If you are raising your kids to be terrified of anything Islamic, how the hell are they ever suppose to become practicing Muslims! Now having studied in a Darul Uloom, I can understand and vouch for the fact that the place and its Moulanas can be scary but that is no excuse to put kids off religion. Find some nice cool scholars and students of knowledge and get your kids to hang out with them instead, rather than only focus on the negative and end up raising children who are scared of anything or anyone Islamic.

Thats the top ten phobias I can think of, let me know if you can think of any others. :)