Social Debate: Do we have culture ?

[Positive]

Walaalayaal,

 

In another posting Shaqsii asked us many questions. In my view we are in a cultural CRISIS. A new culture is in the making and OUR culture is dying. I say our culture because the new culture is not still ours.

 

Contrary to our cultural heritage, this new culture, is for example, more materialistic. It is more individual centred then group centered and worst of all our traditional family values are erroded !

 

I will here rather present the groups- not their evolving cultural inputs- which I called "new culture in the making in the above pragraph".

 

In my view there are at least four groups in our society who are unconsciously/consciously contributing to this emerging culture. The collective members of every group is always trying to assert their influence on us so that we may share their ideal way of life. Every group thinks that their ideal way of Life has the solutions for the problems we are facing now or any eventual problems which may arise in the future.

 

The groups are:

 

1) The traditionalist oriented:

 

This group prefers our traditional pastoralist culture and/or the other sub-cultures that are indigenous. In their mental make up they are the nomads and/or agrarians and they resent change specially when it cames to culture. They believe their way of Life, or culture if you prefer that word, has been refined through experience in hundreds of years and ( therefore) it has to be the best.

 

2) The Muslim/arab oriented:

 

This group which has now an emerging power believes that the shortcomings of our indigenous culture has to be replaced by what they think is already enshrined in the Quran and Hadith. This group prefers also to bridge the gape between our (pastoralist) culture and the other arab cultures/subcultures. They look with worrying eyes to anything that is not in essence Islamic- even if that shortcoming is in our pastoralist oriented culture. MANY of them believe that arabisation of our culture is a worth ideal to persue.

 

3)The western oriented:

 

This group which has now also an emerging power believes that the western way of Life is the best. They consciously/subconscious copy and imitated "the civilised way of Life" in the west. For them whatever that is not western is backward. Many in this group may be convinced that westernisation of our culture is worth ideal to persue.

 

4) The confused and criminals:

 

This group mostly live in the cities and towns both in Somalia and outside Somalia. They belong to non of the above groups but are still members in every group.They are the confused and criminals in our society and act upon and cultivate the negative nature of the human being. They do not have social norms that regulate their actions but rather manifest the bad and evil through their human form. They are those who are among us and causing misery in our country and poisoning our mental beingness. In short their ( unsconscious) ideal is a society without the rule of law. Where only the fittest can survive.

 

In my understanding the above mentioned groups, and may be others that I have not mentioned, are in active competion in our society to day. Every group is trying to become the dominant. But there is NOT yet one single group that has gained cultural dominance over the others.

 

That is why we are LOST: the lack of a dominant culture

 

Shall we reflect upon these questions:

 

Do we need/have a culture ?

 

What is my/your role ?

 

How can the above ideals of the (four) groups be converged to the best interest of the poeple ?

 

Which ideal of the four groups can (best) serve the interest of the poeple ?

 

 

Your comments are welcome.

 

Positive

 

[ September 02, 2003, 01:32 AM: Message edited by: Admin ]

[Conscious Manipulation]

asalaamu alaykum

 

Originally posted by Positive:

2) The Muslim/arab oriented:

 

This group which has now an emerging power believes that the shortcomings of our indigenous culture has to be replaced by what they think is already enshrined in the Quran and Hadith. This group prefers also to bridge the gape between our (pastoralist) culture and the other arab cultures/subcultures. They look with worrying eyes to anything that is not in essence Islamic- even if that shortcoming is in our pastoralist oriented culture. MANY of them believe that arabisation of our culture is a worth ideal to persue.

This personally offends me. Islam is a universal way of life that transcends borders, race and time. Islamic culture is not synonymous with Arab culture and pursuing an Islamic culture does not mean embracing Arab cultures/subcultures as you've stated. Before Islam the Arabs were in the worst state of ignorance plagued by senseless tribal wars (sound familiar?) and it is only after Islam came to them and they adopted an Islamic Identity that they became civilized. Yes, the language of our faith is Arabic and our beloved prophet was an Arab but the Islamic culture is a unique culture designed by the All Mighty for all people in all places at all times. I think you by using the terms, Islamic culture and Arab culture, interchangeably you do a huge disservice to Islam as you limit it only to the Arabs when infact it is for all of mankind. It is interesting to note that of the 1.2billion Muslims in the world the Arab Muslims make up less than 20%.

 

salaam

[Haashim]

Well said, CM I agree with you Arab without Islam are as Ummar Bin Al-Khattab (R.A) say "worst nation on earth" so we have to imitate Islam not Arab or Ajam.

[Positive]

Brother CM,

 

The similarities/differences of the Islamic vs. arab culture is a extensive topic which I have not intended to debate. What I have been trying to bring into discussion is our culture- The Somali culture.

 

In my part I can understand the good intentions of those in our society who would prefer more Islamic/arab oriented somali culture. I use the word MORE because the arabs as our neighbors have been influencing our islamic way of Life for, at least, the last one thousand years.We also know that substantial number of Somalis CLAIM that they are not only related to the arabs in culture but in blood.

 

 

Islam is ..... a universal way of life that transcends borders, race and time,...... as you rightly mentioned. And the arabs became "civilized...... only after Islam came to them and they adopted an Islamic ( cultural) identity" The arab culture ,for me. is assimilated now by the Islamic way of Life. Therefore their (adopted) Islamic culture must transcend the arabness and arab borders! I may be wrong but it is my assumption that this is an assessment which the muslim/arab oriented share.

 

I still agree with you that the present day arab culture is unique and has in it's self elements which are indigenously arab. But this elements can be excluded- when they are indentified. That is what I ment when I said, quote"..... They (muslim/arab oriented) look with worrying eyes to anything that is not in essence Islamic......

 

In conclusion the view points that I have presented are intended to inspire discussion about our culture! They are (personal) view points- nothing more. Therefore my questions stand: How can we actively participate to improve our culture or shall we ?.

 

Positive

[Khayr]

Salaamz,

Positive, can't help but wonder to ask this question: ARE YOU WRITTING A THESIS PAPER/ESSAY

cause the way you presented your thoughts reflect that.

If you want us to help you with your thesis,

you're gonna have to put us in your footnotes

and give us the proper credit, walaal.

[koonfur]

Positive, I agree with you on one thing and that is, Somalis specially the ones that are in Western Countries are loosing thier culture. But one thing that is negative is that you are comparing islam and arab culture. Arabs are muslims and they have a muslim culture and so do we, somalis. Even though people have their own cultures still the religion dominates the way people live.

[imperial-lady]

i hate sarcastic folks :mad:

 

positive ..i agree with u 100% percent

[Miskin]

Positive, we have a culture that is in crises. all the mentioned groups exist in our society. i do not know if all Arabs have muslim culture or if all Arabs are muslims.

 

Khayr, wouldn't you help a brother with out getting anything in return, what happened to the brotherhood that ment to be between the muslim ummah, more to the point is that not the western way of life (individualist) that the brother mentioned above.

[wind talker]

CM -

 

Great point! QUOTE: "Islamic culture is not synonymous with Arab culture and pursuing an Islamic culture does not mean embracing Arab cultures/subcultures as you've stated."

 

POSITIVE -

 

I've yet to see a Somali person who looks at Arabs and their culture as sort of the "symbol" that Somalis and Somalia should follow. Perhaps, if you limited you're label at "Islam oriented," you'd be able to find many under that category.

[Positive]

Thanks all of you who have responded to this thread.

 

Khayr,

 

Won't you prefer that your footnotes are recorded by the angel in your right shoulder into your books of compensations. Yes you probably do ! Your Nick is pleasing to the thoughts. It reminds me the blessing God always showers on us. But how may of us are thankful?

 

No brother, I am not writing thesis but I am trying to sort out my thoughts and your(positive) contributions MAY help.

 

CM, Wind talker and others,

 

You may be right. As Talker suggested "Perhaps, if I limited my label at "Islam oriented," one'd be able to find many under that category. That would be fair suggestion and I agree!

 

Feel free to make your contributions.

 

Positive

[Jamster]

Salaams,

 

Before we swim through this heated water, one is obliged to enquire what we are preparing ourselves for. Question that needs to be addressed first is what positive means to be CULTURE or Somali CULTURE to be precise. From thereon can we salvage this “culture” of ours?

 

I hope I am not taking the discussion away from its intended road.

 

Farah

[Coloow]

salaama,

 

I agree with Farah!

 

What is somali culture? do we have a culture of our own? or is the so called somali culture a cocktail of other "cultures"?

 

My layman view on culture is a dynamic identity that a goup of people knowlingly/unknowlingly construct. Because it is constructed, deconstructing and reinventing it is also part of the process.

 

Students of culture that I have spoken to have failed to explain the difference between value, culture, tradition, ethics, religious superstitions, philosophical viewpoints´etc.

 

This has made me to conclude that culture is a relative phenomenon that has place and time dimensions.

 

Positive; Your classification of somali culture rests on the sole premises that "our" culture is shaped by religion- could be true- but isn't it true that we have some aspects of somali culture that is heathenic?

[Khayr]

Salaamz,

Ask yourselves this,

Is a somali person who has become Christian, is Born Christian

or marries a non-muslim,

considered a full fledged SOMALIAN???

 

ISLAM is so imbued into our culture and our

thinking that we just associate Culture with it. Yes, the deen is imbued with Arabism

which has formed our habits and thoughts.

 

You can have a Somali Islam (Just like a English Islam, Pakistani Islam etc.), which is dominated

by the habits and traditions developed by Somalians, but I can't see myself calling someone

Somalian who is not Muslim or practising Islam.

 

I would like to add more inshallah and answers

Positives questions at the end of his first post on this thread

but I need to get back to work.

 

Fi Amanallah

[Modesty]

Do we have culture? Of course! who doesn't,but we do have different habits and depending on where you grew up different mentality.So I would say yes Positive(by the way I like your name )we have a culture.

[Jamster]

I have YET to hear anything tentative definition on this out of the usual run of things; namely Somali Culture. The more one dives in the hallow waters of the argument the more, disappointingly one becomes dissilutioned with the idea of Somali culture.

 

As I have asked before, what do we mean by culture? We often hear people employing these generic terms without conceptualising it. One wonders in halarity; how can people who are so much concerned (or atleast bubbaling) about a concept with seemingly great passion fail to elucidate (or even grasp) the notion in question.

 

Like most of things Somali, this is an issue that has not been paid enough care to-perhaps being a young society has such an ailment? It could only be remedied if we aware of our shortcomings as a YOUNG nation wrought by un-certantities about almost everything.

 

I pose the same question one again in the slightest hope that there will be a beacon of light! What is Culture and particularly how the Somali culture corrosponds with the definition you have given to culture.

 

Respectively

 

Farah