Am I living in the real world or the virtual world? Are social networking websites affecting our personalities?

The reality: the virtual world is taking over! Wherever you go, you see adults and children, males and females, all involved in some sort of electronic communication. It's rare to find someone who hasn't at least heard of one of the social networks, such as Facebook, MSN, Twitter etc. Many people use these social network sites, while others choose to create an internet presence using a personal blog site. Gone are the days where photo albums and video films were shown to visiting friends and relatives theyre now gathering dust in the attic. The current ease with which technology allows you to take a picture or video and post it straight on to your social networking wall for the world to see is staggering. The pace of change is also staggering a recent study found that UK teenagers spend an average of 9 hours per week on social networking sites. Mobile phones are now not only used to make calls, but internet access on handsets now allows people to communicate instantaneously with others. You often hear stories where two members of the same family are messaging each other whilst living in the same house! Social network sites: good or bad? A balanced look at the subject of social networking sites from an Islamic perspective shows both pros and cons. Proponents of social networking sites argue that these online communities promote increased communication with friends and colleagues, aid students in their education, allow people to track down old friends and strengthen family relationships; the latter being a highly encouraged practise in Islam. Social media can also be a powerful tool for social change and a voice for the unheard - as can be seen in the recent Middle-East uprisings, termed the Facebook revolutions' and the use of Twitter by Iranians after the presidential elections in 2009. Many people are now able to spread videos that have a viral impact, which can aid dawah opportunities. However, social networking sites do have their downfalls. In addition to the often talked-about negatives, such as identity theft and the emergence of sexual/financial online predators, there are many issues that the Muslim community should be aware of. One of the key concerns are the negative impact on the Islamic personality. People that use such media slowly become disembodied with real life and believe they live in a virtual world with virtual friends, becoming socially isolated. There can also be issues of neglect of duties if parents spend less time with their children and couples spend less time together, because they are using the Internet instead of interacting with each other. The sites allow idle chat between opposite sexes, encourage slander/backbiting by providing a medium of hidden messages, encourage self-centred personalities and also offer many time-wasting activities that replace more productive activities that allow a person to get closer to Allah (SWT). In a Hadith it states: No man sits alone with a woman, but the shaitan is the third person amongst them (Tirmidhi - 1171) The resultant effect of all the above is a warped personality and a carefree approach to life, both of which are becoming particularly apparent in the Muslim youth.

Roots of the issue Not many cyber-users know that social networking sites were created to make money by selling advertising, not to improve peoples' lives. The environment of social networking sites can be seen as mirror-reflection of the current society we live in, which is characterised by ideas such as individualism ("its all about me"), image-consciousness, a nolimits mentality, with a disregard for others feelings. As Muslims we shouldn't just be impressed with the latest technology and follow the crowd - we must remember that our behaviour is regulated by the Creator of this life, Allah (SWT). Unfortunately an environment exists today where the notion of freedom and a self-gratifiying mentality dominate peoples' minds. This is no accident, rather these and other Islamically conflicting values have been normalised by the ruling parties and the media. The use of social networking sites is not the issue, rather it is the mindset of the users and the values that underpin their behaviour that need to be put in the dock. Western values that promote living for the moment, pleasure at any cost and view women as gratifying objects have inevitably led to an environment of disregard for others, lack of trust, a culture of affairs, identity fraud, paedophilia and a rising number of rape-related incidents. These decadent values run contrary to the Islamic values of respect, haya (modesty) and taqwa (fear of Allah) which lead to a dignified self-accountable personality that continues to question his/her own actions in order to avoid the wrath of Allah (SWT). We must continually question which set of values and principles we are following or aspiring to follow. Do we look at technological advances such as social networking sites as tools of pleasure/flirting or do we view them as tools to further the Deen. If we look at the lives of the sahaba (RA), we see that they utilised every opportunity to further the message of Islam, such as when Musab bin Umayr (RA) cooked openly in the streets so that the aromas bought the people to his food stall and he could make dawa with them. Many of the sahabi (RA) used to dig grave-like holes in the ground and sleep in them to remind them of death and keep them steadfast. Correct stance on the issue/action points As a Muslim community, we must self-regulate our interactions on social networking sites, in order to protect our personality. We must aim to use such technology for the right reasons, such as dawah and family/professional interaction. We must expose the dangerous values that underpin peoples behaviour and have an honest, intellectual debate on which path our community is treading on. Islam is the religion that made people aware of their purpose in life and led the world with so many technological advances, without ever compromising on the pristine Islamic etiquettes and values that are an intrinsic part of its Deen. We must continue to stand for these same values today in the face of differing challenges. We must continue to 'Stand for Islam'. Narrated by Abu Huraira (May Allah be pleased with him): The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Faith (Belief) consists of more than

sixty branches (i.e. parts). And Haya (This term "Haya" covers a large number of concepts which are to be taken together; amongst them are self respect, modesty, bashfulness, and scruple, etc.) is a part of faith." Book - Sahih Bukhari Volume 1 : Book 2 : Hadith 8