TOWARDS GLOBAL PEACE

then, they say, can there be peace. This is Utopian thinking and will never happen. And then what do these people do? They establish organizations in the name of peace. Some even pick up weapons in the name of attaining ‘just peace’. Others bring crowds into the streets to shout and demonstrate in the name of peace. Such an approach creates many problems. Like physical violence, this ‘street activism’, too, produces agitation. It produces agitated minds. It fills people’s minds with hate, with the ‘us-versus-them’ mind-set. It is based on opposition to others, on the belief that others are oppressors and that you are oppressed, that others have deprived you of your rights and that therefore you need justice, else there will be no peace. Whether someone picks up a gun or engages in street activism, bringing people into the streets, mobilising crowds and engaging in the politics of sloganeering, it is all the same thing. Neither of these methods is condoned in Islam. The Prophet never adopted a policy of agitation, of demonstrations, of slogans even though he faced many problems. This formula of ‘just peace’ can never work; it can never bring about peace. Why? Because there are bound to be problems in this world since this is a part of God’s creation plan itself. Differences between people will always exist. People are bound to get hurt by other’s attitudes and behaviour. All these are included in God’s creation plan. So, learn to accept problems as part of life. Recognise that you cannot eliminate problems. All you can do is to manage them. According to a Hadith report, the Prophet said: “God grants to rifq (non-violence) what He does not grant to unf (violence)”. (Abu Dawood) The Prophet of Islam was an embodiment of this principle. In his years as a prophet in Makkah, he faced innumerable challenges. He was persecuted. His companions were beaten. He was boycotted. His opponents made it difficult for him to stay on in the town. But in this entire period of 13 long years never did he engage in agitation, nor take out a demonstration or start a fight. When the number of Muslims grew, some of Prophet’s companions suggested that they fight to end Violence is no option at all—for anyone, individual or a state. It only results in greater destruction, greater evil, and nothing else. History testifies to this.