ASK MAULANA

Intellectual development means such sharing between two persons that leads to broadening of their mental horizons. In such a discussion, the two may not necessarily reach an agreement. However, they both can develop intellectually even without reaching an agreement. This kind of objective discussion is common among scientists. However, this is not seen in the field of humanities. I have adopted the scientific model of discussion in the field of humanities. There is a difference between the concept of intellectual development of a scholar and that of a religious person. But there is one thing that is common between them. If the two are sincere, they would both become seekers. The only condition for this is that they should be free of bias. If this is so, then they both are journeying towards the same goal, of finding the truth. I consider myself a religious person and at the same time I also consider myself a scholar. You can find examples of this in my writings. You often quote this phrase that appears in the Quran: as-sulh khair, to stress the importance of peace or reconciliation in Islam. But some critics say that this phrase appears in the context of marital dispute (THE QURAN 4:128), and may not be of general applicability in the sense of inter-community peace, as you seem to interpret it. Further, they might argue that if sulh-khair were meant to be of general applicability, and not just for marital disputes, the phrase would have appeared many more times in the Quran and in contexts that relate specifically to inter-community and international relations. And so, they might argue that your interpretation of this phrase is faulty. How would you respond? All principles of Islam, including as-sulh khair, have a particular application and a general application. This pattern is evident throughout the Quran. The way of Islam is to speak of a general principle through a particular reference. This concept has been used again and again in the Quran with different wordings. For example, in a verse the Quran says, “As long as they act straight with you, act straight with them.” (THE QURAN 9:7) Here, “straight” means to be peaceful.