FROM MAULANA’S DESK

anybody. The way of Satan is only to deceive people by misleading them. This act of killing was worse than any act of Satan. The Prophet once said that a time would come when Muslims would engage in unlawful acts. When his Companions asked him how this would happen, the Prophet replied, saying, ‘Muslims of that time would make a forbidden act lawful for themselves, justifying it by another name.’ (Sunan al Darimi) It is evident that this prophetic prediction has come true. Today, Muslims have set out on a course of violence on a vast scale describing it as ‘holy jihad’, although jihad essentially means a peaceful struggle. Muslims wantonly indulge in acts which they preface by the phrase ‘Allahu Akbar’; whereas a precise heralding of their wrongdoing would be to praise Satan who has deceived them into this brutality. The incident that occurred in Bangladesh is a clear confirmation of the prediction set forth in the tradition of the Prophet. This act was wholly un-Islamic and no religious nomenclature or explanation can justify the atrocity. The terror attack in Dhaka was both inhuman and un-Islamic act. It was also a very grave sin—tantamount to killing Islam itself. The true mission of Islam is that of peaceful dawah, namely, conveying to people the message of God by peaceful means. A violent act against innocent people is bound to distort the image of Islam to the extent that nobody would think of Islam as being worthy of consideration. Their rejoinder would be: ‘Sorry, we need a religion of peace, whereas your religion is one of violence.’ Historical accounts show that Islam spread in Bangladesh through the peaceful activities of the Sufis, who had a tremendous influence upon the populations of that region. It was as a direct result of the peaceful preaching of the Sufi masters that the people of Bangladesh embraced Islam. It is ironic that those who entered the fold of Islam as a consequence of such peaceful activities are now involved in the most brutal kind of violence. This attack targeting foreign nationals was an extremely shameful act. The atonement for such a deed should be that the Bangladeshi people sincerely repent for it and never ever allow such an incident to recur in The true mission of Islam is that of peaceful dawah, namely, conveying to people the message of God by peaceful means.