TOWARDS GLOBAL PEACE

PEACE IN ISLAM Islam, deriving from the root word silm, which means peace, is a religion of peace. The Quran puts on record the many names or attributes of God, one of them being Al-Salam, that is, Peace. God loves peace and security so much that He chose Peace as one of His names. That is to say that God Himself is the embodiment of peace. God has set the highest conceivable standards. That is, when God’s dealings with human beings are based on peace and security, then man should also deal with other human beings in a peaceable manner, and not with harshness or violence. The Quran says: “And God calls to the home of peace.” (10: 25) This is the message of Islam to humankind. It means that: build a world of peace on earth so that you may be granted a world of peace in your eternal life in the Hereafter. There is another verse in the Quran: “Reconciliation is the best.” (4: 128) This means that peace is the best option as it normalizes conditions, and only in normal conditions is it possible to achieve the goal of Islam, which is to lead a God-oriented life. The Prophet of Islam once said: “God grants to peace what He does not grant to violence.” This prophetic saying refers to the law of nature. As peace is the only culture for both man and the universe and man should learn to live on the culture of peace. LEARNING IN ISLAM Learning is a very important aspect of Islam. According to Islam learning is essential for religious and spiritual development that sets off a process of intellectual and spiritual development that makes individuals peaceful. The Prophet of Islam once said: “Every Muslim, man and woman, is duty-bound to acquire learning.” This Hadith of the Prophet shows the importance of learning in Islam. Learning is necessary for the realization of God. That is why acquiring knowledge is held to be a duty for all. PEACE-BUILDING IN ISLAM Islam always lays emphasis on peaceful living. The goal of Islam is the positive intellectual engineering of every human being, and this mission can be accomplished only in a peaceful atmosphere. According Islam always lays emphasis on peaceful living. The goal of Islam is the positive intellectual engineering of every human being, and this mission can be accomplished only in a peaceful atmosphere.