The Power of Peace According to a Hadith, “God grants to gentleness what He does not grant to harshness.” That is to say, peaceful activism is distinctly superior to violent activism. There is nothing to be achieved in war and violence, save death and destruction. On the contrary, an atmosphere of peace enables normal relations to be established between people. It makes it possible for feelings of love and friendship to prevail. In a favourable atmosphere constructive activities flourish and the existing resources can be used for development or other God creative activities. grants to gentleness what A positive bent of He does not grant to mind wil l pre vail harshness. which will help develop academic The Prophet a nd intellectual œ Muhammad advancement. That is why Islam teaches us to avoid war and confrontation at all costs and commands us to establish peace to the greatest possible degree.
Clarification of a Fallacy There are certain verses in the Quran, which convey injunctions similar to the following: ‘Kill them wherever you find them.’ (2:191) Referring to such verses, there are some who attempt to give the impression that Islam is a religion of war and violence. This is totally untrue.
Peace in the Quran
This division of commands into different categories is a natural one and is found in all religious books. Jesus Christ said: “Do not think that I came to bring peace on Earth. Islam I did not come to is a religion of bring peace, but a peace in the fullest sword.” (Matthew, sense of the word. Chapter 10) The Qur’an calls its way It would not be ‘the paths of peace’. It right to conclude describes reconciliation that the religion as the best policy. preached by Christ was one of war and violence, for such utterances relate purely to particular occasions. So far as general life is concerned, Christ taught peaceful values, such as the building up of a good character, loving each other, helping the poor and needy, etc. Islam is a religion of peace in the fullest sense of the word. The Qur’an calls its way ‘the paths of peace’ (5:16). It describes reconciliation as the best policy (4:128), and states that God abhors any disturbance of the peace (2:205). Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
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