If Islam Is ‘Backwards,’ Why Is the West Still Copying It?

For years, Islam has been dismissed in the West as outdated and incompatible with “modern values.” Media outlets, politicians, and think tanks have spent decades painting the religion as patriarchal, authoritarian, and rigid — a relic from a pre-modern world. Its rules were mocked, its traditions rejected, and its adherents pushed to apologise or modernise.

But today, something strange is happening. The very same societies that accused Islam of being backward are now turning back to the very principles they once ridiculed — just dressed in new language and secular branding.

What Muslims called guidance, the West now calls science. What Islam has practiced for 1,400 years, the modern world now markets as “cutting-edge lifestyle trends.”

So the question must be asked: if Islam is so backward, why is the modern world trying so hard to catch up?

Rethinking What We Eat: Halal to “Mindful Meat”

Islam’s laws on halal meat — from the ethical treatment of animals to the invocation of God’s name during slaughter — were long dismissed by critics as primitive. Yet today, we see an explosion in demand for “ethically sourced,” “conscious,” and “humane” meat.

Organic butchers, animal rights advocates, and high-end restaurants now pride themselves on transparency in how animals are raised and slaughtered. Many of the practices they promote mirror Islamic guidelines that have been followed for centuries.

The same voices that once scoffed at halal now praise the identical concepts — just stripped of the word “Islam.”

Fasting: From Faith to Biohacking

When Muslims fasted in Ramadan, they were accused of fanaticism or extremism. Yet today, intermittent fasting is promoted by nutritionists, wellness experts, and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs as a life-transforming habit.

It’s said to improve mental clarity, reduce inflammation, reset metabolism, and even extend lifespan. Tech CEOs speak proudly of 16:8 fasting windows, eating before sundown, and abstaining for spiritual clarity.

What was once called “religious zeal” is now “biohacking brilliance.”

Hijab and Modesty: Once Oppression, Now High Fashion

For decades, Western discourse painted the hijab as a tool of female oppression. Governments banned it. Media demonised it. Yet now, global fashion houses are launching “modest wear” lines, abaya-inspired gowns grace runways, and head coverings are suddenly “elegant” when worn by Western models.

This is not cultural appreciation. It is appropriation.

Muslim women were told their modesty was backward. Now the very same styles are praised as “minimalist luxury.”

Gender Roles, Marriage, and Family: Stability in Disguise

When Islam emphasised the roles of men and women in a family — with responsibility, leadership, and cooperation — it was declared misogynistic. Yet as Western society suffers the collapse of the family unit, there is growing interest in “traditional values.”

Men’s movements call for restored fatherhood. Women increasingly seek protective, stable, value-based marriages. Influencers speak of feminine energy, homemaking, and structure — all things Islam advocated for, but without the chaos of extremes.

The Prophet ﷺ never taught oppression. He taught balance. But balance only makes sense when the world around you is falling apart.

Prayer, Mindfulness, and the Rituals of Presence

Five daily prayers, wudu’, dhikr, sujood. For generations, these were mocked as mechanical rituals, disconnected from modern life. Yet now, mindfulness is everywhere.

Breathwork, guided meditation, grounding practices — all attempt to recreate what salah gives effortlessly: presence, surrender, clarity.

The Prophet ﷺ taught us to disconnect from the dunya five times a day — long before smartphone detox apps tried to replicate the same.

Islamic Finance and Shariah: Demonised, Then Duplicated

Islamic finance prohibits interest, speculation, and unjust profit. It demands fairness, contracts, and protection of the vulnerable.

For years, critics called this medieval economics. But today?

• • Ethical banking is rising.

• • Interest-free models are praised.

• • Wealth redistribution is championed.

Zakat became “universal basic income.” Halal finance became “impact investing.” Yet the source remains ignored.

Conclusion

Islam is not behind. It’s simply not desperate to please.

As modernity burns out, people return to what was always there. They rebrand it. They sell it. They sanitise it from revelation. But the source — the Qur’an — remains unchanged.

“This is the Book in which there is no doubt, a guidance for those who are mindful of Allah.” — Qur’an 2:2

They mocked it. Then they mirrored it. The only thing left is for them to admit it.

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