By Dr. Syed Arshad Hussain
Religion may be defined as the individual act and dealings based on beliefs, rituals and certain moral principles. It is considered a spiritual matter concerned with the personal or private affairs of human life. According to Islam religion is defined as the law or guideline given by Allah to mankind through His selected Messengers or Prophets sent to the earth time to time to attain goodness in this world and the world hereafter (after death). First Prophet was Adam and Muhammad (pbuh) was the last and final Prophet. Allah started sending guideline through Adam, the first Messenger and the process continues till Muhammad (pbuh), the last Messenger. In between there were numerous messengers time to time. Through Muhammad (pbuh) Islam gets completeness. All the guideline sent through Muhammad (pbuh) are preserved in Quran. After Muhammad (pbuh) there will no Messenger and Muslims (follower of Islam) must follow these guideline throughout the life. Qur’an and Sunnah (the Prophetic tradition) as well Hadith (sayings of Muhammad (pbuh)) are the basis of Islam. A true Muslim must follow these. As a whole Quran and Hadith have given the complete guideline starting from religious rituals, life style or even business or politics for a Muslim.
At present we are living in the age of globalization in communities comprising of people from diverse ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds. Every day we interact with the followers of different religions as neighbours, colleagues, classmates, friends, and so on. Thus, we experience different aspects of different religions as part of our daily life. It’s very common to all of us. The issue of religious freedom and interreligious relationships is very important and it has a logical connection between fundamental human rights and individual freedom of choice. Therefore, it is interesting to know the Islamic view about other religion and their followers.
There are lots of misconceptions and false propaganda is going on regarding this issue. Here I shall try to highlight the freedom of religious beliefs and practices as well as Muslim relationships with people of other religions through historical interpretation of the Qur’an and Sunnah (the Prophetic tradition).
Islam is a complete way of life which prohibits intervening in the beliefs and practices of other religions and seeks to preserve the customs, honour, and property of every individual irrespective of his or her religion. As a universal religion, Islam teaches love and sympathy for all humanity. However, it hurts me when I see the kind of un-Islamic behaviour being demonstrated by crazy extremists or so called Islamic leaders, who claim to be “Muslim” whilst their actions completely depict otherwise, and this is the reason I decided to discuss this topic because I want to defend the faith I believe in and what it has taught me; which is to love and respect everyone, regardless of their faith.
Islam plays a unique role in providing every individual with the complete freedom to possess and practice any religion, culture or ideology. It also shows that as a universal religion, Islam advocates a harmonious relationship among the people of different religions, cultures and civilizations for the peaceful coexistence and harmonious development of all human beings. The study concludes that Islam as a complete way of life preserves the beliefs and practices of every individual and maintains a peaceful relationship between the followers of one religion and another. It constitutes a viable model for resolving religious hatred and promoting peace and justice among people of diverse ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds.
According to Islam and as declared by Allah Muhammad (pbuh) was the best human being and role model for the Muslim. A Muslim must follow Allah’s order as followed by Muhammad (pbuh). Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was a model for positive engagement with the people of different faiths and traditions even before he achieved Prophethood. In the young age, Muhammad (pbuh) witnessed a prolonged dispute among the tribes of Arab, known as ‘Harb ul-Fijar’, which caused the death of many people. He felt distressed watching this inhuman activity, and with the help of the tribes, Muhammad (pbuh) established a peace association known as ‘Hilful Fudul’. The Prophet (pbuh) played a significant role in this great initiative [1]. People of Makka used to call him al-Amin, ‘the trustworthy’, and as-Sadiq, ‘the truthful’. The history of Islam offers numerous examples of the tolerant and liberal attitudes of Muslim rulers toward the followers of other religions [1-3]. Today, Islam is often misunderstood because of the destructive activities of those with little or incorrect knowledge of Islam, who the public take as representatives of Muslims and Islamic teachings.
“The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History” is a 1978 book by Michael H. Hart, an astrophysicist [4]. The first person on Hart’s list is the Prophet of Islam Muhammad (pbuh) [4]. Hart asserted that Muhammad (pbuh) was “supremely successful” in both the religious and secular realms. Prophet (pbuh) was a man of unity. He ensured to spread love and kindness wherever he went, and just through these actions, he attracted millions of people to join the religion of Islam.
The Quran says:
“Surely those who believe, and those who are Jews, and the Christians, and the Sabians — whoever believes in God and the Last Day and does good, they shall have their reward from their Lord. And there will be no fear for them, nor shall they grieve.” (The Holy Quran 2:62 )
“…and nearest among them in love to the believers will you find those who say, ‘We are Christians,’ because amongst these are men devoted to learning and men who have renounced the world, and they are not arrogant” (The Holy Quran 5:82)
“Indeed, Allah is with those who are righteous and those who do good”. (Al Quran 16:129)
“The reward of goodness is nothing but goodness”. (Al Quran 55:61)
Hadith says:
“Beware! Whoever is cruel and hard on a non-Muslim minority, or curtails their rights, or burdens them with more than they can bear, or takes anything from them against their free will; I (Prophet Muhammad) will complain against the person on the Day of Judgment.”(Hadith: Abu Dawud)
At present we live in a highly diverse world. There is not a single country in the world which is homogenousand without diversity. Diversity is one of the laws of nature; it is not something human beings can control, rather the Holy Qur’an states that diversity is created by God for the benefit of us and we must accept it.
The Quran says:
“And if Allah had pleased He would have made you a single people, but that He might try you in what He gave you. So vie with one another in virtuous deeds” (Al Quran 5:48).
“O people, we created you all from a single man and a single woman, and made you into races and tribes so that you should get to know one another. In God’s eyes, the most honored of you are the ones most mindful of Him: God is All Knowing, All Aware” (Al Quran 49:13).
“We have assigned a law and a path to each of you. If God had so willed, He would have made you one community, but He wanted to test you through that which He has given you, so race to do good: you will all return to God and He will make clear to you the matters you differed about (Al Quran 5:48).
There exist several other verses of Quran and Hadiths indication the coexistence of religious as well as ethnic diversity among the mankind. Thus, diversity is Allah’s Will and it is a test for us to live in peace and harmony with each other despite our differences. Since diversity is Divinely created, we all need to understand and accept the beauty of creation. Allah assures us that we can live together in peace and harmony with people of other faiths. The diversity of cultures is like a garden where different types of flowers grow on the same soil.
Since Islam is a very broad religion which can be taken as a complete code or way of life for all humanity, it would not be wrong to say that it is a religion which has universal applicability. However, some Muslims understand Islam in a narrow sense; they consider Islam to be only for them, and when they follow the teachings and perform the duties of Islam, they think they are complete as an individual believer. Islam encompasses every dimension of life; social, political, economic, educational, cultural, and societal, etc. As Muslims, we have to understand the greater philosophy of Islam and that narrowing it down would create many problems for the Muslim fraternity. For example, Muslims’ dealings with other faiths should be humane and cooperative so as to have an impact upon other religions and to help them understand that Islam is not based on radicalism and fundamentalism, rather it is a peaceful and just religion. Prophet Mohammad’s (pbuh) sayings document the ways to deal with non-Muslims.
Abdullah Ibn-Amr, May Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said: “He who kills a promisor (a non-Muslim living among Muslims where he is promised to have protection, and he promises not to help enemies against Muslims, hence, he is called ‘a promisor’), will not smell the fragrance of paradise, though its fragrance is recognizable from a distance of forty years.” [5]
This Hadith of the Prophet clearly mentions that a person “cannot smell the fragrance of paradise” if he kills any promisor. In other words, to maintain peace and stability, every Muslim needs to be just and kind to all faiths, and this is the best framework which the Prophet of Islam (pbuh) has left for the whole Muslim Ummah (Islamic Community). Islam teaches Muslims to show respect and compassion to all other cultures. Islam is based on peace and harmony and its best example in practice is the life of the Prophet Mohammed (pbuh). All Muslims need to follow the Holy Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh) with full rationality and not blindly; only then can Muslims be at peace with other faiths.
For managing religious differences it is paramount for all the religions to be moderate enough in their religious beliefs and practices and to always try to give space to other faiths as well. Therefore, while respecting each other in a multi-cultural or pluralistic society, one has to consider and adopt the principle of “humanity”. One should not criticize others religion or belief rather can practice his own religion and stick to its guideline related to the wellbeing of the society as a whole. Dialogue and meaningful interaction and exchange between people of different groups (social, cultural, political, and religious) who come together through various kinds of conversations or activities with a view to increase understanding and mutual trust can be organized frequently.
The world community in general and world religions in particular is capable enough to recognize intolerance and extremism and use various mechanisms to defeat this menace. For instance, peace education, sensitization, civilizational dialogue, tolerance, conferences, joint sports, and the exchange of ideas may be the ways forward to preserve unity in diversity.
In conclusion, if the teachings of the Quran and the Prophetic Sunnah regarding religious freedom and interreligious relationship are maintained, conflict, hatred, and mistrust will be reduced and peace, harmony and coexistence will be established in multi-religious and multicultural societies.
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References:
[1] Abd al-Malik Ibn Hisham, Sirah al- Nababiyah, Vol. 1, Egypt: Sharika Maktaba, 1955, 197
[2] John L. Esposito, “Mohammad and the Quran: Messenger and Message”, in Islam: The straight Path, London: Oxford University Press, 1988, 8.
[3] Ahmet Kurucan and Mustafa Kasim Erol,Dialogue in Islam: Quran- Sunnah- History, London: Dialogue Society, 2012, 18.
[4] (a) 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History Michael H. Hart 1978 (Hart Publishing company, New York, ISBN 9780806513508)
(b) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_100:_A_Ranking_of_the_Most_Influential_Persons_in_History
[5] Al-Bukhari. “Sahih al-Bukhari.” In Salih Abd al-Aziz, Mawsu’ah al-Hadith al-Sharif al-Kutub
al-Sittah. Riyad: Dar al-Salam, 2000, p. 256.
I have learned that so many religions have become corrupt through the interpretation of others. It’s very refreshing what I have just read and Ithank you for the insight
may god guide u brother