Maulana Wahiduddin Khan I Speaking Tree Website I February 16, 2015The Quran relates that whoever kills a human being, except as a punishment for murder or for spreading corruption in the land, shall be regarded as having killed all humankind. (5:32) According to the divine law, killing another human being without a legitimate reason is the most serious crime. The Quran describes such a murder as equal to the massacre of the whole of humanity. This is because just one incident of this sort can easily rob people of their respect for the sanctity of human life. The divine law requires us to respect human life to the maximum extent. When someone is killed without an accepted reason, there is a danger that people can begin to lose this respect for human life.God is man's Creator, not man himself. And so, no human being has the right to slay a fellow human, who, too, has been made by God. It is permissible for human life to be taken only in a case when this is proven to be legitimate according to the divine law. In no other case is this at all permissible. [Highlight1] This is a general law of nature. We human beings have not invented water. Hence, it isn't legitimate for us to waste even one drop of it. We did not invent foodgrains. And so, it isn't proper for us to waste even a single grain of rice. The same rule applies-but with much greater severity-in the case of human life. We humans have not created ourselves or other human beings. Hence, we do not have the right to deprive any other human being of his or her life.Every person who takes birth in this world does so in order to spend his life here, fulfill the plan that God has for him and live up to the hopes that God has for him. Therefore, unjustly killing an individual is a very grave act in God's eyes.
Related Articles
Article
According to scientific accounts, about 15 billion years ago, at the behest of the Creator, a big cosmic ball came into existence in space. This contained all the particles from which the various parts of our universe…
Article
When we think about the purpose of man's life we realize that man is born with unlimited potential, yet in the present world he finds only a very limited use for it. According to his nature, man wants to live eternally…
Article
Everything in the universe submits itself to the will of God. Therefore, submission to God is the true religion for both man and the universe. Everything or being in the universe, including man, must strictly obey the…
Article
The Qur'an states that "There is no changing in God's creation." (30:30) According to the Prophet of Islam 'every child is born with an upright nature.' (Al-Bukhari) We learn from this that unity is found among all…
Article
Maulana Wahiduddln Khan | The Sunday Guardian | June 7, 2015Man is born as a living creature. After taking birth he passes through different relationships. First, the family relationship which is based on blood, second…
Article
It is man's quest to find the universal principles of life or the supreme reality. In this sense, man is a born seeker - a veritable truth-seeking animal. Every human being regards himself as incomplete until he has…