THE CULTURE OF PEACE — Part VI
Teachings of Islam
We often talk of peace in the context of war. But this is a very narrow and restricted notion of peace. The fact is that peace is deeply linked with the whole of human life. Peace is a complete ideology in itself. It is the master-key that opens the doors to every sort of success. Peace creates a favourable atmosphere for success in every sort of endeavour. Without peace, no positive action—small or big— is at all possible.
Violence, a Result of FrustrationVIOLENCE results from a sense of being deprived, while peace is the result of a sense of attainment or achievement. People who think they have been deprived or robbed of something of their's by others always remain immersed in negative thinking. This feeling is often expressed in the form of violence. On the other hand, those who feel that they have achieved something in life experience peace of mind. They always lead peaceful lives.
Violence results from a sense of being deprived, while peace is the result of a sense of attainment or achievement.
Individuals and groups that hate others, sometimes going to the extent of inflicting violence against them, prove by their actions that they feel they have been deprived. In contrast, individuals and groups who live peacefully prove by their actions that they have achieved what they wanted to in life.
What is the reason that some people feel deprived? And, who are those others who always live with a sense of achievement or attainment?
The greatest attainment in life is to find God, while the greatest deprivation is to fail to find Him. If you have found God, nothing else remains for you to find. In contrast, those who fail to find God suffer the maximum possible deprivation, and then nothing can cure them of their sense of deprivation.
Waiting Is Also A SolutionAwaiting the bounteous abundance of God is an excellent form of worship—this is what we learn from a Hadith report in the collection by at-Tirmidhi.
Every individual and group repeatedly faces difficult situations. On such occasions, people, whether consciously or otherwise, take this difficulty to be a permanent condition, and so they immediately begin to fight against it. But this sort of fighting always proves to be futile. Its only outcome is that it adds some more difficulties to an already difficult situation.
The greatest attainment in life is to find God, while the greatest deprivation is to fail to find Him.
No difficult situation lasts forever. It is always temporary. And so, the only easy solution of a difficulty is to adopt a policy of waiting. That is to say, one should not unnecessarily start fighting against a difficult situation. Instead, one should simply adopt a ‘wait-and-see’ policy. As a result of this policy, you will save yourself from losing peace of mind, and whatever has to happen will happen, in its own time.
When people are faced with a problem, they generally look for an instantaneous solution. This is the underlying problem. If, instead, one adopts a 'wait-and-see' approach, then the problem will no longer remain a problem at all.
Divine Warning, Not Oppression by Fellow HumansAccording to a Hadith, the Prophet is said to have predicted with regard to the Muslim ummah that soon people would summon one another against them just as when eating, people call others to share their meal. (Musnad Ahmad)
Events show that this prediction came true in the second half of the 18th century. To begin with, this happened through the agency of European colonialists. The Europeans later were joined by other communities. And this process is continuing till today. The question is: Why did this happen?
A study of the Quran reveals that this happened directly in accordance with the practice of God. God’s practice in this regard is that He sends warnings to communities or peoples to wake them up. This is a sort of shock treatment to jolt people and make them reform themselves.
As God says:
When the affliction decreed by Us befell them, they did not
humble themselves, but rather their hearts hardened, for
Satan had made all their doings seem fair to them.
THE QURAN 6: 43
This Quranic verse mentions a common human tendency—of dressing up a bad deed in beautiful-sounding words so that its wrongness is concealed. This is exactly what has happened with Muslims in present times. Present-day Muslim leaders have, consciously or otherwise, done exactly what this Quranic verse decries.
Those who fail to find God suffer the maximum possible deprivation, and then nothing can cure them of their sense of deprivation.
The problems that present-day Muslims face from other communities are foretold as Divine warnings. However, Muslim leaders began expressing these problems in terms of ‘oppression’ and ‘conspiracies’. As a result of this, Muslims failed to see that these events had occurred in order for them to realise their own mistakes and turn to their own internal reform. But Muslims did not realise this, and owing to the erroneous guidance of Muslim leaders, the entire focus of Muslims was directed onto, and against, other communities. These events were intended to make Muslims begin to introspect, but they came to be wrongly deployed in order to criticise other peoples. This tendency began magnifying over time, until today where it has assumed the form of violence and militancy.
The Power of SilenceUmar Farooq, the second Muslim Caliph, is said to have remarked, ‘Destroy falsehood (batil) by keeping silent about it.’
According to the Law of Nature, truth is destined to live and falsehood is doomed to die. And so, to finish off falsehood it is enough just to keep silent about it. To talk about it or to demonstrate against it is only to give it life. To ignore falsehood and to remain silent on it causes its death.
Remaining silent on falsehood simply means to ignore it. It means not expressing any reaction to it in any way whatsoever. It means not protesting against it. Only those who have realised the power of Nature and have full faith in it can respond to falsehood in this way. Those who are bereft of this realization agitate against falsehood, and, in doing so, become a foundation for giving it life.
Positive Status-QuoismAs soon as you want to do something, you find yourself faced with some hurdle or the other. This happens in the case of individuals as well as entire communities. Now, one way to react to is to first fight against these hurdles in order to try to get rid of them and then to begin whatever work one wants to. This is what is conventionally called ‘radicalism’.
Radicalism seems to appeal to certain highly emotional people— those with a proclivity to extremism. Yet, it is not useful for any sort of positive purpose. Radicalism is effective only for destruction, not for construction. It not only causes the destruction of an existing system, but also leads to the destruction of social traditions that have evolved over centuries.
People are subjected to unspeakable horrors because of the bloodshed and disruption wrought by radicalism. Experience indicates that although it may appear attractive at the ideological level to some people, in terms of its practical consequences radicalism has nothing positive about it at all.
Awaiting the bounteous abundance of God is an excellent form of worship.
Another way to respond to the challenges one inevitably faces in life is to totally avoid confrontation with a given situation, and instead, to plan one’s efforts remaining within the limits of possibility. Accepting for the time being, the given status quo, one can use the opportunities that still remain available. This method can be termed as ‘positive status-quoism’.
Radicalism always produces violence and exacerbates a given problem. In contrast, positive status quoism fulfils its purpose without creating any problems in society while preserving social peace. The former leads to destruction, the latter to constructive action.
The method of reform that the Prophet Muhammad used in ancient Arabia was that of positive status-quoism. For instance, at that time, there were 360 idols inside the Kaaba. But in the early Quranic revelations no order was revealed to remove these idols from the Kaaba. Instead, in this initial period the Quran announced, ‘purify your garments’ (THE QURAN 74:4). This meant purification of one’s moral character, and that of others, too.
No Justification For ViolenceViolence is against human nature. It murders humanity. It is the most heinous of all crimes. Yet, despite this fact, why do some people still engage in violence? The reason is very simple: Such people fabricate a justification for violence, and then they begin to believe that their violence is justified.
Radicalism only exacerbates a given problem. In contrast, positive status-quoism fulfils its purpose without creating any problems in society.
But the fact remains that every single justification or pretext that is offered for violence is false. Whenever an individual or group engages in violence, there also exists, at the very same time, the possibility of choosing non-violent or peaceful methods. Yet, in such a situation, violence is still their choice.
The fact is that violence is to be abandoned completely and peace is to be accepted completely. One should never resort to violence under any pretext whatsoever. No matter what the conditions are, one must necessarily remain firmly wedded to peaceful methods.
Solving EnmitiesPeople often think of certain communities as their enemies. And then, on the basis of this imaginary perception, they start fighting against these communities, supposedly to save themselves from the consequences of their enmity. This imaginary enemy of theirs is, however, wholly false. And so are whatever actions they are engaged in to counter this so-called enemy’s imagined threat.
Enmity is not a constant aspect of human existence, unlike, say, the fingers of one’s hands. It is just a superficial aspect of human existence. Through positive actions, every enmity can be ended. It is like a bit of dirt that stains a glass. This bit of dirt can easily be removed—by simply washing it off with some water. A bit of dirt on a glass is not a problem in itself. The problem is created when you do not have clean water to wash it off.
It always takes two hands to clap. You cannot clap with just one hand. In the same way, enmity is a two-sided affair. If someone considers you his enemy, you can respond by considering him your potential friend. In this way, his enmity will automatically cease. The most effective way to end the problem of enmity is not to be an enemy of someone who sees you as his enemy.
Stockpiling Weapons is UselessA successful businessman was very concerned about the safety of his family from the danger of harm from people of another community in the neighbourhood. His strategy to keep them family safe was to buy a licensed gun for each member of his family. 'Now I think that I and my family are safe,' he said. 'I have no fear of riots now.'
If someone considers you his enemy, you can respond by considering him your potential friend.
This person might have known the principles of business but he was unaware of the principles for social existence. One cannot protect oneself with a gun or a revolver. The way to be safe in society is to be a good neighbour to others. Let the neighbours be safe from your harm and inevitably, you will find that you will also be safe amongst them. Hatred will beget hatred. If we are concerned about others' well being, in turn we will receive love and concern from them.
The futility and repercussions of using a gun are obvious. If riots were to break out, would the action of shooting people with guns end the matter? Impossible. One should know that firing on people is a cognizable offence.
Violence against another community may seem like two equal parties fighting each other, but it is a different equation if one were to fight with the police. Using a gun in this scenario is like inviting an angry bull to attack. Obviously, then, this sort of step is not protection, instead it will be self-invited devastation.
Conscience, the Best JudgeTwo men belonging to different religious backgrounds were neighbours. One of them built a house. A controversy arose between him and his neighbour who was a contractor over an adjacent portion of land. Each one claimed the land belonged to him. The contractor accused his neighbour, who had constructed the house to be in the wrong and instigated some of his brethren who gathered outside the man’s house and indulged in raising slogans against the neighbour.
Whenever an individual or group engages in violence, there also exists, at the very same time, the possibility of choosing non-violent or peaceful methods.
The other man had a gun with him, but he did not use it. Instead, he came out of his house alone and empty-handed. He did not say a word to the slogan-raising crowd except to ask them who their leader was. A man stepped out of the crowd, saying that he was their leader and asked him what he wanted.
The man turned to the crowd and requested them to remain where they were. Then, he took their leader into his house and requested him to be seated. He asked the leader why the crowd had gathered outside. The leader angrily replied, ‘You have grabbed our brother’s property, and that’s why we have come here.’
The man gently said, ‘You are aware that the name of the rightful owner of any property is mentioned in the official documents. These documents decide who the rightful owner of a plot is. So, what you should do is to take my documents and those of my contractor neighbour and examine them. You be the judge in this matter. After studying both our documents, I will unconditionally accept whatever decision you arrive at.’
At this, the leader suddenly calmed down and became friendly. He had entered the Muslim’s house in a rage, but he now stepped out all smiles. Then, he addressed the crowd outside, saying, ‘You all go back to your homes. Miyan-ji (a term of respect for a Muslim man) has himself made me the judge in this affair. I will see his and the contractor’s documents and come to a decision.
Accordingly, the leader went home and studied both sets of documents. And in a few days time he gave a decision that was wholly in favour of the Muslim man.
If the Muslim man had reacted to the crowd by grabbing his gun and firing, it would certainly have provoked the angry demonstrators’ egotism, or nafs-e ammara. And then things would have gone totally against him. But by using wisdom and reasonableness instead of a gun, he awakened their conscience, or nafs-e lawwama. And when the conscience awakens, its decision is always in favour of justice. It never decides in favour of oppression and injustice.
Victory Can Also Be DefeatPyrrhus was a Greek king who lived in the third century B.C. He fought the Romans and was victorious over them. But in the course of this war, his army and the entire economy of his kingdom were badly devastated. It was a superficial victory for Pyrrhus, but, from the point of view of its results, it was synonymous with defeat. On the basis of this historical incident, the phrase ‘Pyrrhic victory’ came into being. It refers to what seems, on the face of it, to be a victory, but what in reality is a complete defeat.
The way to protect yourself in society is to become a good neighbour for the people around you.
If you examine the history of war in general, it will not be an exaggeration to say that most victories turn out to be ‘Pyrrhic victories’. Every victor has to necessarily face two types of loss—one, destruction of life and property, and the other, a burning hatred in the heart of the defeated party. No victor can escape these two losses. If there is at all any difference in this regard, it is that some victors have to face these losses at once, while others have to contend with them at a later stage.
This question of loss is connected only with the use of violent methods. The question of peaceful methods is entirely different. Peaceful methods lead only, and always, to victory and nothing else. There is no question of defeat at all as far as the choice of these methods is concerned, so much so that even if the result of using peaceful methods appears in the form of what seems to be a defeat, it is still actually a victory. This is because by using peaceful means one may lose a war but one does not lose the available opportunities. These opportunities and possibilities still remain open to him. Availing these, he can start new efforts and journey towards success.
Stop Complaining At OnceA complaining mentality makes people think negatively. A person who always complains is rendered incapable of thinking positively. And this sort of mentality is, without a shred of doubt, the root of all ills. In most cases of violence, it is this mentality of constant complaint that is seen to be at work.
If you have found God, nothing else remains for you to find.
This world has been created in such a way that it is inevitable that people will keep having complaints about each other. In this regard, what we need to do is to dispel the thought of a complaint about others as soon as it enters our minds. However, what generally happens is that a complaint is formed, first in our conscious minds, and then, if we constantly obsess about it, gradually it seeps into our unconsciousness. Then it becomes so deeply entrenched that after this it cannot be extricated.
In this situation, the wise approach is to nip all complaints in the bud. You should remove them as soon as they appear in your mind. If you fail to do this, they will gradually become an integral part of your psyche and your thinking will become negative. You will start thinking of others as your enemies.
You might even—given the opportunity—resort to practical confrontation and physical violence towards those you have complaints against, even if this is entirely counter-productive for you.
The method for nipping complaints in the bud is suggested in the following Quranic verse:
Whatever misfortune befalls you is of your own doing […]
THE QURAN 42: 30
This means that whenever you have a complaint against somebody, what you should immediately do is to turn the direction of the complaint towards yourself. You should search for some explanation of the issue in which you yourself emerge as the culprit. When you realise that the mistake is actually yours, and not someone else’s, you will set yourself to rectifying your mistake and not waste time making unnecessary demands and protesting against some imaginary enemy.
This article is the concluding part of a series entitled ‘The Culture of Peace’ that commenced from Issue 19 (July 2014).