FROM MAULANA’S DESK

other person gives, people of faith should in every situation unilaterally behave positively. This teaching of unilateral ethics has been referred to in the Quran as ‘sabr’, or patience. The advocacy of patience is based on the law of nature, according to which it is reality that must ultimately prevail. The Quran teaches believers that unreal things have to be ignored, for their existence is only temporary, and will very quickly be replaced by matters of a permanent nature. The truth is that, the system of this world functions on the basis of interdependence. The interests of one group are inevitably linked with those of other groups. Therefore no group can deny outright the interests of others. By keeping away from reaction you give nature a chance to work. This principle of nature has proved true, in the case of Donald Trump. If you go by media reports, you will find that during his election campaign, Donald Trump made a number of negative statements. But soon after the election results were made known, he started making positive statements. Donald Trump’s victory speech hints to a softening of his stance towards the minorities. This shows that his Muslim-ban statement was just an election rhetoric. Even Donald Trump’s statement on banning Muslims from the US has disappeared from his website. Such incidents have a great lesson for Muslims. That is, they should always remain patient in the face of adversity. If anything appears undesirable, one should avoid reacting to it, for, according to the law of nature, that ostensibly permanent state will very soon be replaced, and Muslims will find this new state quite acceptable. Here is a relevant verse from the Quran: “As for those who affirm, ‘Our Lord is God,’ and then remain steadfast, the angels will descend on them, saying ‘have no fear and do not grieve. Rejoice in the (good news) of the Garden that you have been promised.’” (41: 30). ‘Remaining steadfast’ in this verse, means that when the faithful maintain their positive attitude in spite of their having negative experiences, they receive divine help through the angels and finally achieve success. Muslims must place their full trust in this verse of the Quran. They must, under all circumstances, adhere to this divine principle, enshrined in the Quran. If they follow it they will find that very soon the course of events will turn in their favour and that with divine planning, they will manage to achieve their goals in a far better manner than they had imagined. o Maulana Wahiduddin Khan editor@thespiritofislam.org