Spirit of Islam, Jan 2013

FROM THE EDITOR’S DESK W HAT you have in your hands is not just another magazine. It is much more than that. In fact it is an institution for informal education. The purpose of this magazine is to promote spiritual values in society. Journals and magazines can be one of the greatest sources of informal education. Our generation gets professional learning in formal educational institutes. But this is insufficient for a life in society. Formal education can give you a job, but it cannot teach you the art of living. The art of living can be promoted only through informal education. What is informal education? Basically, it is to inculcate in people those values that are important for better social life, and spiritual values are of prime importance in this regard. Spirituality stems from positivity. Positive thinking leads to positive behaviour, and positive behaviour results in better social relationships. Maintaining positivity under any circumstance is an integral message of Islam. Circumstances are beyond our control, it is only our actions and responses that are under our control. Therefore, Islam lays great emphasis on patience. Patience is not a negative term, patience is the behaviour of a mature person who has the ability to live with things that he/she cannot change. It is this maturity that is called, sabr (patience) in Islam. 1. The World’s 500 Most Influential Muslims 2012, Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre, Jordan. Maulana Wahiduddin Khan, born in Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh in 1925 is an Islamic spiritual scholar who is well-versed in both classical Islamic learning and modern disciplines. The mission of his life has been the establishment of worldwide peace. He has received the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian honour in India, and the Demiurgus Peace International Award. He has been called ’Islam’s spiritual ambassador to the world’ and pronounced one of the most influential Muslims1. His books have been translated into sixteen languages and are part of university curricula in six countries. He is the founder of the Centre for Peace and Spirituality based in New Delhi.