TOWARDS GLOBAL PEACE

This, unfortunately, is a principle which is not sufficiently adhered to. When America gained independence, people took to the streets to celebrate the occasion. A person went out to celebrate his country’s freedom from foreign domination in his own particular way. He strutted exuberantly down the street, swinging his arms in a carefree manner and totally ignoring all other pedestrians. Eventually, he hit a passer-by on the nose. The passer-by was enraged and said: “What is this foolhardiness? What makes you walk in this frivolous manner, swinging your hands about in this way?” “America is free,” the man replied, “I’m free to do what I want and walk as I wish.” “Well,” replied the passer-by, “your freedom ends where my nose begins.” The response of the passer-by was, in fact, the voice of man’s true nature, reasserting universal norms and calling out for an end to man’s deviation from them. The law of nature is such that the universe has functioned impeccably for billions of years, no star or planet ever having left its orbit to enter that of another. It is man’s instinctive wish that he should be guided by such a law. The remonstrance of the American passer-by was simply an expression of this desire. In a universe which has been forcibly subjugated to the will of God, man is privileged to have a will of his own. While the entire universe conforms to God’s will, each part functioning in exemplary harmony with all other parts, man misuses his freedom, straying from the path that God has laid down for him. The problems which he encounters in life are part of the price which he has to pay for his God-given freedom. All his trials and tribulations are ultimately traceable to his own wilful deviations. Principle of Avoidance One of Islam’s most important principles is that of avoidance, that is, keeping oneself aloof from avoidable confrontations. A good analogy is our obedience to the traffic control system, which prevents accidents by ruling that vehicles must keep to their own side of the road, never speed head-on towards each other, nor suddenly cross the path of another. Even far off the ground, collisions could occur if the principle of avoidance were not invoked. Imagine two jet-airliners approaching each other at an altitude of 30,000 feet. Unless one of them received instructions to fly at, say, 35,000 feet, disaster would be inevitable. The safety rules which apply to traffic embody the very principle which, if implemented, would relieve our everyday existence of so many