Kafir Or Musalman by Usama Ansari

About this novelette

Kafir Aur Musalman (Urdu: کافر اور مسلمان) by Usama Ansari is a short Urdu novel about Artas, a kind Christian student, and his Muslim best friends. A love story leads Artas to think deeply about faith, and the novel follows the questions it raises for all of them.

The book opens with the writer’s reflection on ishq, mohabbat, ibadat and sakoon. People insist on marrying within their own caste and class, he says, and this has ruined many homes – but when love becomes worship, people forget religion and caste altogether. A true lover only wants peace; he wants the soul, not the body.

Then the story begins in a college library. Artas is reading with his friends when he suddenly bursts out laughing. The librarian asks what’s so funny, and Artas points to a line about someone who became a Muslim for the sake of a faqeer. The librarian smiles and explains that the One who created human beings can change them too; no person makes another a Muslim or a kafir – only the Rabb, who knows everyone’s secrets, decides that. Artas is struck by these words and goes outside to think.

دوستی، انسانیت، اور ایک سوال: انسان کو مسلمان یا کافر کون بناتا ہے؟

Artas comes from a good, wealthy Christian family, but his three closest friends, Usman, Adnan and Imran, are all Muslims, and the four of them are always together. Imran’s family is poor. One day Artas asks Usman how a person can enter Islam, and Usman replies that it’s all in God’s hands. Artas never harms anyone and quietly helps classmates who need money. When Imran’s father has a heart attack and the government hospital won’t treat him properly, the friends rush over, and Adnan calls his father, who has political connections, to get things moving. Artas is saddened to see how people forget God.

After their second-year exams the friends get good results; Usman and Adnan move to another city, and Imran says his father can’t afford more studies. Artas tells him not to worry and gets him admitted to university with him. On their very first day there, Artas notices a girl named Maryam, and he likes her very much.

Usama Ansari mixes friendship, social issues and spiritual questions in a simple, heartfelt way. A good read for those who enjoy stories about faith and humanity.

You can read Kafir Aur Musalman online here or download the complete PDF for free. More by Usama Ansari: Mohabbat Aur Sakoon, Dil Darta Hay and Muhabbat Ka Khel, or see all Usama Ansari novels.