A paper entitled “Islamic Perspectives on Disaster: Alternatives to Changing Fatalistic Attitudes” by Dr. Furqan Ishak Aksa from Samudra University, Aceh, provides an interesting perspective on disasters from the Islamic perspective. In general, this paper attempts to show that misunderstandings of Islamic teachings are the root cause of Muslims’ fatalistic attitude toward disaster.
A fatalistic attitude relates to the belief that every incident which happens in life is beyond human control. This understanding seems to teach society to accept disaster and its impacts as destiny. This belief is not entirely wrong but it seems to indicate that Islam is a passive religion. On the contrary, a lot of Islamic guidelines and values are proactive in nature. In other words, Islamic teaching encourages Muslims to make every effort to change one’s fate instead of accepting his or her destiny.
Dr. Furqan focuses on three important concepts to deal with fatalistic attitude, they are al-Ilmu (knowledge), ikhtiar (efforts) and tawakal (trust in Allah SWT). Besides fatalistic attitude, these three concepts are also important in dealing with disaster recovery efforts. This article therefore discusses those three concepts in the context of disaster recovery.
In disaster risk reduction management, knowledge is important. Seeking knowledge is indeed an obligation for every Muslim (Ibn Majah) because knowledge brings Muslims closer to Allah SWT and with knowledge, we are able to understand different facets of a disaster such as the cause of the disaster, disaster preparedness, actions that need to be taken when a disaster occurs and different ways to overcome it.
Therefore, public disaster education is vital. It could be done formally or informally. The focus of disaster education should be experience-based disaster education. Specifically, experience-based disaster education offers a hands-on and interesting learning experience.
Perhaps Japan’s experience in public disaster education could be used as a guide. Japan has several educational centres. In Tokyo alone there are three disaster education centres in Ikebukuro, Honjo and Tachikawa. The same facilities are also available in Kyoto. The purpose of setting up the centre was to educate and provide relevant information and opportunities for visitors to learn about disasters engagingly and also have hands-on experience on the different types of disasters. The centre also offers disaster management training to the public and students through various types of educational institutions such as schools and universities. The local government and various rescue agencies also offer and conduct disaster training with the community.
In addition to knowledge, ikhtiar is another Islamic value which is also significant and support disaster recovery efforts. Ikhtiar involves one’s diligent efforts to get the best results in every endeavour. In a disaster recovery context, ikhtiar encourages us to strive for recovery when a disaster strikes and carry out efforts to deal with future disasters. The value of ikhtiar is acknowledged in Islam and is clearly stated through verse 11, surah Ar-Rad. The story of Prophet Nuh in surah Hud verses 25-49, which stated Prophet Nuh’s preparation before a disaster (flood) occurs is as an attempt to reduce the impacts of a disaster. Similar to that is the story of Prophet Yusuf and his preparation for the drought mentioned in surah Yusuf verses 46-49, as a form of effort to deal with prolonged droughts.
On the other hand, the value of tawakal (trust in God) involves our complete surrender to Allah SWT after every hard work. This value includes two important aspects, namely self-reliance in Allah SWT and amal or human’s effort to achieve his or her desires or need. Self-reliance involves complete submission of our destiny to Allah SWT and amal involves human’s earnest effort to achieve something. Tawakal is different from surrender because by surrendering, a person lets his fate be determined by destiny without any specific efforts.
According to Dr. Maila Dinia Husni Rahiem from Universiti Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta in a paper entitled “Religious Interpretations and Psychological Recovery from the Aceh 2004 Tsunami: The Promise of Heaven, Healing the Trauma,” the concept of tawakal is derived from the Quran and has a positive impact on the recovery process of psychological trauma from disaster. Therefore, tawakal is one’s full submission to Allah SWT and is followed by some efforts to help victims recover from the effects of disaster. Although the recovery period varies from one victim to another, tawakal helps to strengthen our souls in the light of any disaster events.
Presently, the government of Malaysia has set up certain systems and facilities to assist disaster risk reduction efforts and reduce the impacts of various disaster events in Malaysia. Even though its efficiency has so far been questioned, Malaysia also has some form of disaster early warning system. Nevertheless, all the systems and facilities for risk reduction effort will never succeed without non-material support such as psychological support, stakeholder cooperation and disaster education. Thus, disaster risk reduction efforts are holistic in nature and part of it involve understanding and practicing of religious values and guidance. In summary, religious belief is a source of strength for victims to rise after any disaster.