PEACE IS THE NAME OF GOD — God is the source of Peace

PEACE IS THE NAME OF GOD In every religion including Islam, God is described as a Being Who is the source of peace. In the Quran we find a number of names for God which are descriptive of the divine attributes. One of these is As Salam (THE QURAN 59: 23), meaning Peace. This name for God which specifically denotes peace occurs only once in the Quran. But there are many other names which indirectly connote peace. For instance, the words Rahim (Most Merciful) and Rahman (Most compassionate) occur more than two hundred times in the Quran. As represented in the Quran, God is All Peace. He is peace in His very being and He desires that His servants live peacefully in this world. They should have peace in their hearts and extend that feeling to everyone. That is why one of the teachings of Islam is that when the Muslims meet one another, they should greet each other by saying “AssalamuAlaikum,” May peace be upon you. Besides the Quran, the books of Hadith contain many sayings which tell us of the importance of peace in Islam. For instance, the Prophet of Islam said, ‘Peace is from Islam’. On another occasion, the Prophet of Islam observed, ‘God is peace’. We also learn from traditions that the wording of the conclusion of the Prophet’s prayer included the eulogy: ‘O God, You are Peace and Peace is from You.’ A tradition in Sahih al Bukhari is related by a companion, Ammar ibn Yasir “There are three actions, the performance of which is equal to possessing the whole faith. These are doing justice, doing one’s utmost for the peace and well-being of the world, and spending on others in spite of a lack of means.” This part of the Hadith, exhorting one to do utmost to bring about peace in the world, is extremely important. This shows the real Islamic spirit The greatest success of the human being in this world lies in his intellectual development, in his spiritual advancement, in the production of the divine soul – the ultimate goal of man.