ISLAM AS IT IS

~ 28 ~ According to Islam, peace is not simply an absence of war. Peace opens doors to all kinds of opportunities which are present in any given situation. It is only in a peaceful situation that planned activities are possible. It is for this reason that the Qur’an says ‘reconciliation is the best’ (4:128). Similarly the Prophet Muhammad, may peace be upon him, has observed: “God grants to gentleness (rifq) what he does not grant to violence (unf). (Sunan Abu Dawud 4/255) Some people bracket justice with peace, but Islam does not subscribe to this notion. Islam believes in peace for the sake of peace. According to Islam, justice is not the direct result of peace. Peace only provides a framework within which we may work towards justice. There are so many examples in the life of the Prophet which prove that the Prophet never bracketed justice with peace. He always took peaceful circumstances as an opportunity to work for justice and did not attempt to derive justice directly from peace. One such clear example is provided by the treaty of Hudaybiyya, between the Prophet and his opponents. From the