Maulana Wahiduddin Khan Answers: ''All kinds of communalism is a phenomenon of reaction. Advise people not to react, thus communalism will automatically disappear. The fact is that difference is part of human life. One cannot eliminate differences. If we see some difference or something that we dislike, we should simply avoid it. This is the only option for us in such matters. Adopt the culture of tolerance, and there will be no communalism.''
Source: The Seeker’s Guide
The only way to deal with the irksome side of daily living is to exercise patience. Patience will ensure that whenever one has some bitter experience, he will opt for the way of tolerance rather than that of reaction to provocation. It will enable one to absorb shocks and to continue, undeterred, on one’s onward journey.
Patience, as well as being a practical solution to the problems faced in the outside world, is also a means of positive character building. One who fails to exercise patience, gives free rein to negative thoughts and feelings, develops a personality which is likewise negative while one who remains patient is so morally bolstered by his own positive thoughts and feelings that he develops a positive personality.
Sabr is no retreat. Sabr only amounts to taking the initiative along the path of wisdom and reason as opposed to the path of the emotions. Sabr gives one the strength to restrain one’s emotions in delicate situations and rather to use one’s brains to find a course of action along result-oriented lines.
Source: Simple Wisdom
Maulana Wahiduddin Khan Answers: When a person works, makes money, builds a house, makes an effort to improve his standard of living, he appears to be engaged in efforts towards some worthy end. But a life of this nature cannot be called a purposeful life, for these activities do not demonstrate man’s unique status. It might seem as if they are the result of deliberation, but if one looks at the matter in depth, one will see that in actual fact the motive force behind these actions is the same urge that motivates an animal in various ways, in its concern for its own survival. It is the driving force of one’s desires; the pressure of one’s needs, and the wish to fulfil the demands of one’s self that underlie such a life. These are the considerations which, in fact, guide a person in his search for his livelihood.
When man grows up, he realizes that there are certain material necessities without which he cannot live. He requires food, clothes, a place to live; he requires a reliable source of income to sustain him throughout his life. He is forced by these considerations to obtain these things. Then he sees that those who have an abundance of these material things enjoy respect and apparently possess every form of happiness and luxury in this world. Thus he is driven on to do more than just seek a livelihood; he desires to earn to a degree greatly in excess of his actual requirements.
In bustling markets, grandiose offices, and opulent buildings, he is not really guided by deliberate thought. Rather, he is being guided by inflated ideas of his own needs, desires, longings and ambitions to achieve fame and high status in this world. For this reason these activities cannot be considered as being directed towards the purpose which sets man apart from the animal and lends him a higher distinction.
To determine the purpose of life is, in short, the effort to make life meaningful. It must surely, therefore, be one which is in accordance with man’s unique status; it must be one which leads man on the path to success and progress in terms of his true nature.
Source: The Seeker’s Guide
Maulana Wahiduddin Khan Answers: As per my experience, discovery of truth leaves no room for frustration. This is because man remains tensed because of matters of the world. But if he finds the truth which next to God is truth, his relation with God is established and then he starts receiving divine succor and inspiration. It is important to note that this is not applicable for self-proclaimed truth. Only that which is truth next to God is what attaches you to God.
Source: The Seeker’s Guide
Maulana Wahiduddin Khan Answers: Law of attraction is a totally speculative concept and has no scientific basis. Although some people believe in this law in the present times, but there is no scientific basis to the law of attraction. The law of attraction is applicable to the physical world. The proponents of the above idea are applying this physical law to the human world, but this is the drawing of a wrong parallel. It is the same mistake that was committed by Karl Marx. He coined a term "historical determinism", that is, he applied the principle of material determinism to human affairs, which proved to be completely wrong.
Some people believe that whatever happens in life, be it good or bad, is attracted by the person concerned. However, this is wrong thinking. For example, Muslim leaders founded Pakistan in 1947. They deeply believed that Pakistan would emerge as an ideal Islamic state. But this never happened.
You have referred to two verses from the Quran. Whatever hardship befalls you is the result of your own deeds" (42:30), and " No misfortune can affect the earth or your own selves without its first having been recorded in a book, before We bring it into being. (57:22)
These verses have no relation with the philosophy of attraction. You can consult any commentary of the Quran, and you will realize that this reference is incorrect.
Source: The Seeker’s Guide
My formula is, 'Save yourself.' This is the only formula and there is no other formula. This has been given in the Hadith, “Alaika nafsat.” (Baihaqi)
Source: The Seeker’s Guide
At a Doordarshan panel discussion on 'The Scientific Temper', (New Delhi, June 2, 1998-including, besides myself, a central Minister, a social activist, a professor, an English journalist and a lady educationist), I quoted Pandit Nehru as having said as early as 1947, that what his country required more than anything else was just that-the scientific temper. I further made the point that we need to know exactly what is meant by this expression. Broadly interpreted, it means having a realistic attitude. In one of his prayers, the Prophet is recorded as having asked God to enable him to see things just as they are (Allahuma arenal ashyaa kama heya). This clearly indicates that having the scientific temper, or pursuing a scientific line of thought, is the equivalent of coming to grips with reality.
We live in a world which has an existence of its own, functioning according to its own immutable principles. Scientific thinking is, therefore, extremely important for the successful development of both the individual and the nation. The secret of success is to see the world around us with an open mind and to acquire an understanding of the laws of nature. This approach will produce positive results, enabling one to form correct judgments about things as they actually are. This is what is meant by having the scientific temper. In this world, the real achievers are those who, by fostering this bent of mind, are able to confront the truth.
Scientific thinking, largely, is a question of ratiocination based on facts. This applies equally to the world of matter and to human affairs. For instance, if you have to build a bridge over a river, the science of engineering will tell you to build it from iron and not from clay. Similarly, if you want to harvest a particular crop, the science of horticulture will tell you not only that you must sow the seeds of that crop (and not for example plastic pellets!) but also how to irrigate and fertilize them.
Similar principles apply in the human world. Good results can be achieved only if full account is taken of all of the relevant facts. Failing this, the desired outcome will remain elusive. If, for example, you want someone to be your supporter, the science of psychology will tell you that you must activate his conscience and appeal to his better feelings. But if, on the contrary, you speak or act in such a way that his ego is hurt, you will turn him into an enemy. If you want to receive something from someone, you shall have to become in his eyes a giver, and not just a beneficiary, for it is a matter of common experience that most people are used to giving only to those from whom they receive. Then, if you aspire to a position of honour, you had best be unassuming in demeanour, because it is the modest man and not the egoist who makes the greatest impression on the better side of human nature. It is the unpretentious individual who is most likely, therefore, to attain to a position of honour and prestige.
Source: Simple Wisdom
The Earth is the sun’s satellite. It constantly orbits around the sun. It takes one year to complete such a rotation. This movement of the earth around the sun is essential for the healthy functioning of life on earth. If the earth did not revolve around the sun, its existence would have no meaning, and life would come to an end.
This is a practical example of how we should lead our lives in this world. This example is indeed a physical demonstration that shows how man must revolve around God, just as the earth revolves around the sun. It means that all of man’s activities should be based on God.
The earth rotates as compelled to by the laws of nature. But man, of his own free will, should surrender to God. He should build a life, which is based on the concept of God. This consciousness is the real ascension of man. In this consciousness lies the secret of all success.
Source: In Search of God
It is un-Islamic to consider reconciliation as cowardice. If we opine so, what will we think about Prophet Muhammad? There is no other instance in history where reconciliation was done by unilaterally accepting the terms of the opposing party. This is an extreme example of reconciliation. Mr. Sajid Anwar told of an instance where the distribution of the Quran to non-Muslims was being discussed. An attendee interrupted the discussion and raised the question that if a non-Muslim disrespects the Quran and throws away the copy, who would be liable for punishment? In response, another attendee cited an instance whereby, a dawah contingent was sent to King of Iran. A companion took that document, which had Quranic verses. When he gave it to the King, he tore it away. So, the attendee asked who would be accountable in this case. This is no logic. It is misguidance from Satan so that Muslims refrain from doing dawah work. Reconciliation is not cowardice; it is wisdom and according to Quran it is the best way!
Source: The Seeker’s Guide
Jihad, according to Islam, is simply a natural requirement of daily living. It is vital both as a concept and as a practice because, while leading his life in this world, man is repeatedly confronted by such circumstances as are likely to derail him from the humanitarian path of the highest order.
These factors sometimes appear within man in the form of negative feelings. This is something to which everyone must remain intellectually alert, so that if for any reason there is some danger of a negative mindset gaining the upper hand, he may consciously and deliberately turn himself to positive thinking. Even if circumstances repeatedly place him in situations, which are depressing, and demoralizing, he must never on such occasions lose courage or lose sight of noble goals. The re-assertion of his ethical sense is the real jihad, which he has to wage.
From the Islamic standpoint, intention is all-important. Any undertaking carried out with good intentions will win God’s approval, while anything done with bad intentions is bound to be disapproved of and rejected by God. In actual fact, intentions are the sole criteria of good or bad actions in the divine scheme of things.
This truth relates jihad to man’s entire life and to all of his activities. Whatever man does in this world, be it at home, or in his professional capacity, in family or in social life, his prime imperative must be to carry it out with good intentions and not the reverse. This, however, is no simple matter. In all one’s dealings, adhering strictly to the right path requires a continuous struggle. This is a great and unremitting lifelong struggle. And this is what is called jihad.
Source: Principles of Islam
Islam asks us to perform jihad by means of the Quran, calling this ‘greater’ jihad (25:52). But it never asks its believers to do the ‘greater’ jihad by means of the gun.
This is a clear proof that jihad is, in actual fact, a wholly peaceful activity, carried out through peaceful methods. It has nothing to do with violent activities or violent threats.
Jihad through the Quran means striving to the utmost to present the teachings of the Quran before the people. That is, presenting the concept of One God as opposed to the concept of many gods; presenting akhirah-oriented life as superior to world-oriented life; principle-oriented life as against interest-oriented life; a humanitarian-oriented life as more elevated than a self-oriented life and a duty-oriented life as a categorical imperative taking moral precedence over a rights-oriented life.
Two conditions have been laid down in the Quran for the communication of the teachings of Islam to others – naasih, well-wishing and amin, trustworthiness. The former appertains to God and the latter to man.
What is meant by naasih (well-wishing) is an earnest desire on the part of the preacher of truth for the well-being not just of his immediate interlocutors, but the whole of humanity. This well-wishing should be so steadfast that it remains undiluted even in the face of injustice and oppression. Overlooking people’s negative behaviour towards him, the preacher should continue to remain their well-wisher.
The element of trustworthiness (amin) is important in that it ensures that the religion God has sent to the world will be presented to the people without deletion, addition or distortion. For instance, if the Islam sent by God is akhirah (Hereafter) oriented, it should not become world oriented; if it is spiritually based, it should not become politics based; if it confines jihad to peaceful struggle, it should not become violence based.
Source: Principles of Islam
Jihad is regularly misconstrued as war, with all its connotations of violence and bloodshed. However, in the Islamic context, and in the literal sense, the word jihad simply means a struggle—doing one’s utmost to further a worthy cause. This is an entirely peaceful struggle, with no overtones even of aggression. The actual Arabic equivalent of war is qital, and even this is meant in a defensive sense.
According to Islamic teachings, jihad bin nafs means to make the maximum effort to keep control over negative feelings in one’s self, for instance, arrogance, jealousy, greed, revenge, anger, etc. The psychological efforts to lead such a life of restraint are what jihad bin nafs is about. In social life, it happens time and again that all sorts of base, negative feelings well up within a man, causing him to lead his life succumbing to desires and temptations. The internal effort made in such a situation to overcome the temptations of the self and to continue to lead a life guided by principles is the truly Islamic jihad bin nafs.
According to the Hadith, a believer is one who wages jihad with himself in the path of obedience to God. That is, at moments when the self (nafs), lured by some temptation, desires to deviate from the path of God, he keeps control over it and remains unswervingly on the divine path. This is his jihad—a permanent feature of the life of a believer, continuing day and night, and ending only with death.
Source: Principles of Islam
Islam is a religion of peace in the complete sense of the word. The very first verse of the Quran reads: In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the most Compassionate. This verse, which is repeated in the Quran 114 times, clearly shows that the God of Islam is the God of Mercy and Compassion, and the book of Islam too is the book of mercy. The people of Islam must also possess the quality of mercy and compassion; otherwise they could not be true believers.
If you go through the Quran you will find that from most verses, either directly or indirectly there emanates the spirit of peace. There is a verse, which says ‘And God calls to the home of peace.’ (10:25) This means that the destination of Islam is peace. All the teachings of Islam are oriented towards the goal of peace.
If you make a detailed study of the Quran you will discover many verses, which deal with the objects and events of the universe, as signs of nature. These verses project the universe as a model of peace and harmony. There are innumerable astronomical bodies in space. All are in motion, but all follow their own orbits without the slightest deviation. Holding up this phenomenon as an ideal, the Quran asks us to follow the same course of peace, that is, to move in one’s own orbit and not trespass (3:83). Thus peaceful living is the religion for both: man and the universe.
Now I would like to present examples from the traditions of the Prophet. Once a man came to the Prophet and asked, “O Prophet, give me a master advice which will enable me to manage all the affairs of my life.” The Prophet told him: “Don’t be angry.”
That is to say, stick to positive behaviour in all situations. In fact, in normal conditions, man is governed by his own nature. And nature always takes the course of peace. When people are provoked their nature is upset, and they are derailed into negativity. So the Prophet advised people never to take a negative course of action, and to keep to peaceful and positive behaviour in all situations, even in the face of provocation.
According to another tradition, the Prophet of Islam once observed: Don’t wish for confrontation with your enemy; instead always ask for peace from God.
This means that even when they have enemies. Muslims are not allowed to take the course of confrontation. They must rather seek the way of avoidance. The Quran further states that if you deal with your enemy positively and return good for evil, he will become your closest friend (41:34). These references from the Quran and Sunnah make it clear that peace is the greatest concern of Islam. The Islamic method is a peaceful method. Islamic activism is peaceful activism.
Why does Islam lay such a great emphasis on peace? Because all the good things which Islam wants to see in human life can be brought about only in a peaceful environment. For instance, such constructive activities like spiritual uplift, character building, educational activity, social welfare, worship and prayer — and above all dawah work, can be performed only in peaceful conditions. No peace, no progress; no peace, no development. Peace in Islam is not required for the sake of peace. It is required for the sake of God that is for the sake of a great purpose. It is because no Islamic activity can be carried out except in peaceful conditions. Due to this great importance, the Prophet of Islam always wanted to maintain peace even at the price of unilateral adjustment.
Some people portray the picture of Islam as a religion of violence by using the word Jihad. They say that Jihad in Islam is a holy war. But there is no concept of holy war in Islam. Jihad has nothing to do with war or violence; it actually means a struggle, a peaceful struggle. ‘And make Jihad on them, with the help of the Quran’ (25:52), says the Quran. Nowhere does it say, ‘with the help of the sword’.
Clearly, Jihad is an act to be performed by the power of ideology rather than the power of the sword; it is only another name for peaceful activism along Islamic lines.
The Quran says that on the day of the Judgement, God will say: ‘O peaceful soul, come and enter my paradise’ (89:28). And only those who have followed the path of peace in this world will be allowed an entrance into God’s Paradise.
Source: Islam and Peace
According to Islamic teachings, jihad is of two kinds. One is with the self (jihad bin nafs), that is, making the maximum effort to keep control over negative feelings in one’s self, for instance, arrogance, jealousy, greed, revenge, anger, etc. The psychological efforts to lead such a life of restraint is what jihad bin nafs is about. In social life, it happens time and again that all sorts of base, negative feelings well up within a man, causing him to lead his life succumbing to desires and temptations. The internal effort made in such a situation to overcome the temptations of the self and to continue to lead a life guided by principles is the truly Islamic jihad bin nafs.
According to the Hadith, a believer is one who wages jihad with himself in the path of obedience to God. That is, at moments when the self (nafs), lured by some temptation, desires to deviate from the path of God, he keeps control over it and remains unswervingly on the divine path. This is his jihad—a permanent feature of the life of a believer, continuing day and night, and ending only with death.
The other form of jihad is that which is engaged in to propagate the constructive message of Islam. All those who embark upon such a course must first of all study the Quran and Sunnah in a dispassionate and objective manner. No kind of conditioning should be allowed to come in the way of such a study. Only after passing through this intellectual jihad will the would-be proponent of Islam be in a position to make a true representation of his religion.
Two conditions have been laid down in the Quran for the communication of the teachings of Islam to others—nasih, well-wishing and amin, trustworthiness. The former appertains to God and the latter to man.
What is meant by nasih (well-wishing) is an earnest desire on the part of the teacher for the well-being not just of his immediate interlocutors, but the whole of humanity. This well-wishing should be so steadfast that it remains undiluted even in the face of injustice and oppression. Overlooking people’s negative behaviour towards him, the teacher should continue to remain their well-wisher.
The element of trustworthiness (amin) is important in that it ensures that the Islam God has sent to the world will be presented to the people without deletion, addition or distortion. For instance, if the Islam sent by God is akhirah (Hereafter) oriented, it should not become world oriented; if it is spirituality based, it should not become politics based; if it confines jihad to peaceful struggle, it should not become violence based.
Islam asks us to perform jihad by means of the Quran, calling this ‘greater’ jihad. But it never asks its believers to do the ‘greater’ jihad by means of the gun.
This is a clear proof that jihad is, in actual fact, a wholly peaceful activity, carried out through peaceful methods. It has nothing to do with violent activities or violent threats.
Jihad through the Quran means striving to the utmost to present the teachings of the Quran before the people. That is, presenting the concept of One God as opposed to the concept of many gods; presenting akhirah-oriented life as superior to world-oriented life; principle-oriented life as against interest-oriented life; a humanitarian-oriented life as more elevated than a self-oriented life and a duty-oriented life as a categorical imperative taking moral precedence over a rights-oriented life.
Source: The True Face of Islam
Jihad means struggle. Any sincere effort for the cause of religion will be called Jihad. Man’s self leads him to evil. So waging war with the self is jihad. Sometimes friends or acquaintances pressurize you into engaging in activities, which are not right from the moral standpoint. At that time, refusing to yield such pressure and sticking firmly to an upright attitude are forms of jihad.
Exhorting people to goodness and making them refrain from indecency are tasks entailing a great struggle. Continuing the dawah campaign whilst bearing all hardship is also jihad.
If having been treated with bitterness by neighbours or acquaintances, or after suffering any other kind of provocation, one refrains from reaction and retaliation and maintains pleasant relations unilaterally; this will also be a form of jihad.
There is another kind of jihad which is called ‘qital’ that is, engaging in war at God’s behest at the time of aggression on the part of the enemies. This jihad is purely in self-defence in order to counter aggression. The literal meaning of jihad is not war. But to fight in self-defence in accordance with God’s commandments also involves a struggle; that is why it is also called jihad.
Jihad, meaning war, is however a temporary and circumstantial matter. If in the real sense any need for defence arises only then will armed jihad be launched. If no such severe urgency arises, no armed jihad will take place.
Just calling an action ‘jihad’ will not morally validate it. The only true jihad is that which is carried out in accordance with Islam. Islamic jihad is, in actual fact, another name for peaceful struggle. This peaceful struggle is sometimes an inward-looking thing, like waging jihad with the self when it takes place at the level of feeling; sometimes it is desired externally, and manifests itself at the physical level through gestures (like kneeling, prostrating oneself before God).
Jihad is regularly misconstrued as war, with all its connotations of violence and bloodshed. However, in the Islamic context, and in literal sense, the word jihad simply means a struggle—doing one’s utmost to further a worthy cause. This is an entirely peaceful struggle, with no overtones even of aggression. The actual Arabic equivalent of war is qital, and even this is meant in a defensive sense.
Source: The True Face of Islam
The word jihad is derived from the root jahada, which means ‘to strive’ or ‘to struggle’. It denotes the exertion of oneself to the utmost, to the limits of one’s capacity, in some activity or for some purpose. Thus, the Quran says: “Strive for the cause of God as it behoves you to strive for it.” (22:78)
In the Arabic language, the word jihad refers to making an all-out effort for something. Because fighting one’s enemies is also one form of such effort or striving, it is also referred to as a jihad, in an expanded sense. However, the actual Arabic word for this is qital, and not jihad.
Fighting with one’s enemies is something that might happen by chance, and only occasionally. However, jihad is a continuous process that animates every day and night of the life of the true believer. It never ceases. This continuous jihad is the ceaseless effort a believer makes at every moment to abide by God’s will in every aspect of his life. Such a person does not let any negative elements affect his life, such as the desires of the self, the allure of gain and personal aggrandizement, the promptings of opportunism, the problems of the ego, the lust for wealth, and so on. Overcoming such things is the real jihad, and this is what jihad’s essential meaning is.
Source: Principles of Islam
The Quran tells us: “whoever killed a human being – except as a punishment for murder or for spreading corruption in the land – shall be regarded as having killed all mankind.” (5:32)
Killing someone is a very heinous act. It is legitimate only if someone becomes a definite danger to social peace. To kill someone without genuine justification is tantamount to the slaughter of the whole of humanity because such an action is a gross violation of respect for life, which, in turn, leads to the taking of human life becoming a seemingly easy affair.
From the Quranic verse quoted earlier, one can gauge the great importance that Islam gives to peace and security. Islam demands that if a single person is killed, the entire society must react as if it is not a single individual, but, rather, the whole of humanity, that has been slain.
Source: Spirit of Islam December 2015
Peace is not prevalent in the world as people the world over are acting intolerantly and indulging in acts of violence, saying, “Give us justice and peace will ensue.” But when people, ostensibly seeking justice, stoop to violence, peace can never prevail. Peace is always desirable for its own sake, and every other desirable state comes after peace, not along with it. When peace is the desired state, the maxim to be followed is: Ignore the problems, and avail the opportunities.
Once people become tolerant and obtain peace for its own sake, it opens up opportunities to strive for their ideals. Eventually, this leads to justice and other constructive ends.
This ideology of peace can counter the ideology of violence and is based on the original sources of Islam. The Prophet of Islam provides a great historical example in his negotiation of the Hudaybiyyah peace treaty by unilaterally accepting all the opponents’ conditions. While not receiving justice or rights, he gained a 10-year no-war pact. This gave him and his Companions an opportunity to work uninterruptedly on a constructive program. Using this peaceful non-political program, they were able to consolidate themselves so thoroughly that without waging war they acquired Makkah peacefully.
This example shows that Islam is a truly peaceful religion and the Islamic method is a completely peaceful method.
What can be done in the present alarming situation? What is the practical solution to the present state of affairs? There are two parts to the solution. Half the solution depends on the work of government agencies, with the remaining left to non-governmental organizations.
In every country, there are strict laws to curb violence and terrorism, but are of no avail unless enforced by governmental agencies. All those elements involved in heinous acts of terrorism must be punished in a fitting manner.
The second half of the task pertains to the re-engineering of the minds. This task has to be undertaken by non-government agencies. An entirely peaceful task, the re-engineering of people’s minds can be achieved only through education and positive training (that is called in Islam akhlaq or good character) which naturally includes a counter-ideology to violence. Once this is done, the ultimate peaceful result will be achieved through the combined efforts of both governments and reformers.
The common man in every community has a major role in this process. First is not to believe in rumours. One should not believe anything however genuine it sounds, until thoroughly enquired. This will remove misunderstandings prevalent on both sides. Historically, it is misunderstandings that have always led to violence and war.
The ideology of peace in Islam banishes the notion that there can be anything acceptable about terrorism. Islam is a religion unequivocally committed to peace and the Islamic method is equally so. By following the ideology of peace, each individual’s mind can be re-engineered, away from the culture of violence and closer to the culture of peace.
Source: Spirit of Islam December 2015
The ideology behind present-day terrorism is that Islam being a political system, it is the duty of all Muslims to establish Islamic rule in the world. This thinking was not prevalent during the time of Prophet Muhammad. It is a later innovation developed in the last few centuries by a handful of people. Having become widespread in the Muslim world today, it has led to the current violence. It has influenced many Muslims, especially the vulnerable youth. They have become obsessed with establishing the political rule of Islam, thinking it to be their ticket to Paradise. Failing to achieve this objective by peaceful methods, they resort to suicide bombing. The idea being that if we cannot eliminate the non-Islamic rule, then let us at least de-stabilize it and pave the way for Islamic rule.
Having studied Islam through its original sources—the Quran and Hadith— it can be said with certainty that this political interpretation of Islam is an innovation and the real Islam is based upon peace, compassion and tolerance.
Source: Spirit of Islam December 2015
There is no doubt that the terror attacks in different parts of the world are highly condemnable. People the world over are trying to find a solution to this menace. The authorities are trying to crush the terror menace through legal action; while the reformers are trying to curb it by engaging in condemnation. However, both of these methods are, apparently, proving to be ineffective. Then what is the solution?
According to my assessment, the present problem of terrorism is based on an ideology—the political interpretation of Islam—and an ideology cannot be countered through legal action or by mere condemnation. We have to develop a counter-ideology to overcome it.
According to UNESCO, ‘Violence begins from the mind’, it has to, therefore, be uprooted from the mind itself. This I feel succinctly captures the very root cause of terrorism. Therefore, in order to eliminate this root cause we need to initiate our efforts by beginning from the right starting point–the re-engineering of the minds of individuals by taking them away from the culture of violence and bringing them closer to the culture of peace.
To explain the importance of the above, I would state two parallel examples from history. One of the American campaign against Communist Russia and the other of the American campaign against Saddam-led Iraq. While the US was successful in curbing the menace of Communist Russia, the same America failed to cope with the menace of Saddam-led Iraq. This is because America met the Russian challenge at an ideological level while it opted for military action against Saddam’s Iraq.
I believe that terrorism will persist in one form or another until the ideology of violence is countered with another ideology based on peace. The ideology behind present-day terrorism is that Islam being a political system, it is the duty of all Muslims to establish Islamic rule in the world. This thinking was not prevalent during the time of the Prophet Muhammad. It is a later innovation that was developed in the last few centuries by a handful of people. Having become widespread in the Muslim world today, it is leading to present-day violence. It has influenced many Muslims, especially the easily influenced youth, and they have become obsessed with trying to establish the political rule of Islam, thinking it to be their ticket to paradise. Failing to achieve this objective by the peaceful method, they have started resorting to suicide bombing. The idea being that if we cannot eliminate the non-Islamic rule, then let us at least de-stabilize it and pave the way for Islamic rule.
I have studied Islam through its original sources—the Quran and Hadith—and I can say that this political interpretation of Islam is an innovation and that real Islam is based upon peace, compassion, and tolerance.
Peace is not prevalent in the world as people the world over are acting intolerantly and indulging in acts of violence, saying, “Give us justice and peace will ensue.” But when people, ostensibly seeking justice, stoop to violence, peace can never prevail. Peace is always desirable for its own sake, and every other desirable state comes after peace, not along with it. So, the maxim I follow is: “Ignore the problems and avail of the opportunities.”
Once people become tolerant and obtain peace for its own sake, it opens up opportunities, which enable people to strive for their ideals, eventually attaining justice and other constructive ends.
This is the ideology of peace which can counter the ideology of violence and it is based on the original sources of Islam. The Prophet of Islam provides a very clear example of this in his method of negotiating the Hudaybiyyah Peace treaty. In this treaty he unilaterally accepted all the conditions of his opponents, without receiving justice or his rights, to enter into a 10-year no-war pact. This gave him and his companions an opportunity to work uninterruptedly on a constructive programme. Using this peaceful non-political programme, they were able to consolidate themselves so thoroughly that without waging war, they acquired Makkah peacefully.
From this example of the Prophet Muhammad, we can understand that Islam is a completely peaceful religion and the Islamic method is a completely peaceful method.
