The Unfinished Agenda

of the Shariah. These are the unfinished agendas for which Muslims of the present times are fighting against supposed enemies. Yet, even after a long passage of time, none of these groups has been successful in achieving its declared goal. Why has there been this failure? A verse from the Quran throws light on this matter. It says: ‘You will overcome them if you are indeed believers.’ (3:139) There are many such verses in the Quran which tell us that success in this world is for one who follows the law of nature set by the Creator. Those who go against the law of nature can never be successful in their endeavours. The law of nature applies to everyone—be it Muslims or any other group. According to the law of nature, a universal principle is that, in this world, political power cannot be the monopoly of any particular group – it will sometimes be in the hands of one group and, at other times, in the hands of some other group. This principle is stated more than once in the Quran. For example, at one place the Quran says: ‘Lord, sovereign of all sovereignty. You bestow sovereignty on whom You will and take it away from whom You please.’ (3:26) According to this principle, not being able to achieve one’s goal, in spite of resorting to war, shows that one has been engaged in a wrong war—trying to achieve something which, according to divine law, was impossible to achieve.