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15. Buttering – an art form.
Behind every big fortune , there is a crime (Balzac).
I don’t like yes men .But when I say no , I expect them to say no.
In a meeting held in Islamabad , a participant referred to the department’s newly announced policy and also to the Battle of Badr ,which was fought on 17th Ramazan and in which the Muslims were victorious by the Grace of Allah . He said , addressing the boss ,that the Battle of Badr was fought on 17th Ramazan and he( the boss) announced the country’s policy on 17th Ramazan . All the participants were dumbfounded at his audacity .
Nearing his first year in office , the people understood , barring a few diehards of the PPP, that governance of the country was not a cup of tea for President Zardari and his motley crowd of court jesters viz. Yusuf Raza Gilani , Raja Rental , Rehman Malik , Farooq Sattar ( he has not learnt speaking the truth ), Raja Riaz ,Farooq Naik ,oh no that many .If they had learnt to speak the truth and advised him sincerely what the people wanted the Government to do rather than to please their Boss, their Government could have survived the Elections 2013 and saved from the embarrassment.
Hazrat Ali (May Allah be pleased with him ) was asked once as to why the affairs of the Caliphate went into disarray when he was the Caliph . He replied that he was the adviser of the first three Caliphs whereas when he became the Caliph , his advisers were incompetent people like the questioner
Like the profession which involves an exploitation of women by beasts masquerading as men , buttering came into being at about the same time . For ages ,man has been is search for support :if not God or Allah , then another man far more superior and powerful .Inversely man is basically weak .Therefore , he needs support of his actions particularly when he enjoys wealth and power .Others exploits his weakness to their advantage .This applies especially to emperors and kings , president , prime ministers and other powerful men.
The example of Sir Philip Sidney and Edmund Spenser and his “The Fairie Queene “ came readily to mind. Edmund Spenser was a protégé of Sir Philip and the latter
56
was a courtier of Queen Elizabeth I .Spenser wrote ‘The Fairie Queene’ to please the English queen- in this epic poem , we have the best example of buttering . The poem contains twelve books and the Queen had been described as the fairy queen . The book found political favour with the queen and was consequently a success, to the extent that it became Spenser's defining work. The poem found such favour with the monarch that Spenser was granted a pension for life amounting to 50 pounds a year , a big fortune then, though there is no evidence that Elizabeth I read any of the poem.
In the Age of Discovery , explorers like Sir Francis Drake ,Sir Walter Raleigh ,Christopher Columbus and others named the lands that they discovered after the name of their sovereigns in the hope of reaping rich rewards from them . The process continued . Such names as Virginia , the Carolinas , Adelaide are examples .
The process of giving rich gifts to the undeserving goes on in Pakistan even in this time and age. Qudratullah Shahab’s fine book ‘Shahab Nama’ tells us a historical fact .When the first Prime Minister , Liaqat Ali Khan , was assassinated , Khwaja Nizamuddin , the then Governor General , became the Prime Minister and an ailing and paralysed Malik Ghulam Muhammad became the Governor General . His American secretary interpreted his words for him . A mystery remains . In those days , three important figures wielded much authority : the Army C in C (later Field Marshal ) Ayub Khan , Major General Iskandar Mirza and the senior most secretary , Ch. Muhammad Ali . What factors prevented them to throw the Governor General out ?
Two illustrations may suffice to explain . When Emperor Babar invaded India , he and his men were hardy .But gradually the weather of that country made the Moghuls lazy and slothful .And when the English forces were about to enter Delhi , Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar had to helped to his carriage to lead his forces in the defence of the city .
When the English began their rule , their were aided by the Hindus, who followed an old adage that the enemy of my enemy was my friend because of the series of Muslim invasion and rulers .To please the English rulers , the Hindus brought gifts and even humiliating themselves in the process to please their English masters and taught them to buy the Muslims off . The English gave them gifts of land after they
57
bought them off viz Mir Jaffar and Mir Sadiq and many other Mir Jaffars and Mir Sadiqs.
Nobody likes to be told ‘No’ . Through experience of ages , the people learnt of survival : they chose the path of least resistance. History recounts the tales of Cardinal Wolsey and John Knox because they dared to say ;No’ to the King ie King Henry VIII . There were political killings in Pakistan, too .
However ,Islam has given us many beautiful and advices for every occasion . Let me recount one incident .The Holy Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him ) sent one of his companions ( May Allah be pleased with all of them )to a certain place to collect Zakat . The latter gave the former all the zakat and saying that the residents also gave as gift . The Holy Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him ) was annoyed and told the other to return the zakat he received as a gift .
.
Mahfooz ur Rahman
Islamabad
June 30, 2013
15. Buttering – an art form.
Behind every big fortune , there is a crime (Balzac).
I don’t like yes men .But when I say no , I expect them to say no.
In a meeting held in Islamabad , a participant referred to the department’s newly announced policy and also to the Battle of Badr ,which was fought on 17th Ramazan and in which the Muslims were victorious by the Grace of Allah . He said , addressing the boss ,that the Battle of Badr was fought on 17th Ramazan and he( the boss) announced the country’s policy on 17th Ramazan . All the participants were dumbfounded at his audacity .
Nearing his first year in office , the people understood , barring a few diehards of the PPP, that governance of the country was not a cup of tea for President Zardari and his motley crowd of court jesters viz. Yusuf Raza Gilani , Raja Rental , Rehman Malik , Farooq Sattar ( he has not learnt speaking the truth ), Raja Riaz ,Farooq Naik ,oh no that many .If they had learnt to speak the truth and advised him sincerely what the people wanted the Government to do rather than to please their Boss, their Government could have survived the Elections 2013 and saved from the embarrassment.
Hazrat Ali (May Allah be pleased with him ) was asked once as to why the affairs of the Caliphate went into disarray when he was the Caliph . He replied that he was the adviser of the first three Caliphs whereas when he became the Caliph , his advisers were incompetent people like the questioner
Like the profession which involves an exploitation of women by beasts masquerading as men , buttering came into being at about the same time . For ages ,man has been is search for support :if not God or Allah , then another man far more superior and powerful .Inversely man is basically weak .Therefore , he needs support of his actions particularly when he enjoys wealth and power .Others exploits his weakness to their advantage .This applies especially to emperors and kings , president , prime ministers and other powerful men.
The example of Sir Philip Sidney and Edmund Spenser and his “The Fairie Queene “ came readily to mind. Edmund Spenser was a protégé of Sir Philip and the latter
56
was a courtier of Queen Elizabeth I .Spenser wrote ‘The Fairie Queene’ to please the English queen- in this epic poem , we have the best example of buttering . The poem contains twelve books and the Queen had been described as the fairy queen . The book found political favour with the queen and was consequently a success, to the extent that it became Spenser's defining work. The poem found such favour with the monarch that Spenser was granted a pension for life amounting to 50 pounds a year , a big fortune then, though there is no evidence that Elizabeth I read any of the poem.
In the Age of Discovery , explorers like Sir Francis Drake ,Sir Walter Raleigh ,Christopher Columbus and others named the lands that they discovered after the name of their sovereigns in the hope of reaping rich rewards from them . The process continued . Such names as Virginia , the Carolinas , Adelaide are examples .
The process of giving rich gifts to the undeserving goes on in Pakistan even in this time and age. Qudratullah Shahab’s fine book ‘Shahab Nama’ tells us a historical fact .When the first Prime Minister , Liaqat Ali Khan , was assassinated , Khwaja Nizamuddin , the then Governor General , became the Prime Minister and an ailing and paralysed Malik Ghulam Muhammad became the Governor General . His American secretary interpreted his words for him . A mystery remains . In those days , three important figures wielded much authority : the Army C in C (later Field Marshal ) Ayub Khan , Major General Iskandar Mirza and the senior most secretary , Ch. Muhammad Ali . What factors prevented them to throw the Governor General out ?
Two illustrations may suffice to explain . When Emperor Babar invaded India , he and his men were hardy .But gradually the weather of that country made the Moghuls lazy and slothful .And when the English forces were about to enter Delhi , Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar had to helped to his carriage to lead his forces in the defence of the city .
When the English began their rule , their were aided by the Hindus, who followed an old adage that the enemy of my enemy was my friend because of the series of Muslim invasion and rulers .To please the English rulers , the Hindus brought gifts and even humiliating themselves in the process to please their English masters and taught them to buy the Muslims off . The English gave them gifts of land after they
57
bought them off viz Mir Jaffar and Mir Sadiq and many other Mir Jaffars and Mir Sadiqs.
Nobody likes to be told ‘No’ . Through experience of ages , the people learnt of survival : they chose the path of least resistance. History recounts the tales of Cardinal Wolsey and John Knox because they dared to say ;No’ to the King ie King Henry VIII . There were political killings in Pakistan, too .
However ,Islam has given us many beautiful and advices for every occasion . Let me recount one incident .The Holy Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him ) sent one of his companions ( May Allah be pleased with all of them )to a certain place to collect Zakat . The latter gave the former all the zakat and saying that the residents also gave as gift . The Holy Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him ) was annoyed and told the other to return the zakat he received as a gift .
.
Mahfooz ur Rahman
Islamabad
June 30, 2013
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