Tolerance is Bedrock of Islam

 

Tolerance is Bedrock of Islam

Prof. Khwaja Masud

 

The Qur'anic emphasis on tolerance and religious freedom is abundantly clear from the following verses:

(i) There shall be no compulsion in religion

(2:256) (لا إكراه في الدِّين)

(ii) Then, let him who will, believe; and let him who will, disbelieve. (18:29)

(iii) Say, O unbelievers, I serve not what you serve. I am not going to worship what you do, nor will you worship Him whom I worship. To you, your religion, and to me, my religion (109:6)

(iv) Warn mankind, for thou art but a warner. Thou hast no authority to compel anyone (88:22,23)

(v) Say, O men, the truth has comet to you from your Lord. Whosoever is guided, is guided to his gain. And whosoever goes astray, it is only to his loss. I am not a guardian over you (in this respect) (10:108)

(vi) And revile not those deities whom the unbelievers call upon and worship (6:109)

(vii) There has been a guide sent to every people.

(viii) We do not differentiate among any one of the Lord's messengers.

It is quite evident that the Qur'an clearly states that the ultimate choice of belief is the concern of the individual, and no one has the right to interfere in it. The concept of tolerance is carried to the extent that it clearly defines the limits of the ministry of the Holy Prophet ﷺ. It has been made abundantly clear that it is the individual who bears the ultimate responsibility for his beliefs and convictions. The principle of tolerance is exalted to the highest pinnacle when it is enjoined upon the believers to show deference to the deities of the unbelievers. This tolerant injunction in respect of the deities of the unbelievers is supplemented by an injunction of positive reverence so far as the prophets of other faiths are concerned.

It is crystal clear from the above Qur'anic verses that religious freedom is the bedrock of Islam.

So far as the Holy Prophet ﷺ himself is concerned, he showed utmost tolerance to those who differed with him on matters of religion. A delegation of Christians who came from Najran had an extensive discussion in the mosque with the Holy Prophet ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ gave firm assurances that the Christian institutions of Najran would be protected and preserved. During the course of their meeting, the Christians expressed their desire for an interlude so that they might pray. The Prophet ﷺ invited them to hold the service right in his mosque, one of the holiest places of Islam.

When the Holy Prophet ﷺ migrated from Makkah to Madina, a constitution was drawn. It went by the name of Mithaq-i- Madina in history. It was a unique achievement. For the first time in history the rights and obligations of the subjects and the sovereign were, reduced to writing. The constitution was drafted with the consent of all the parties concerned.

According to Mithaq-i-Madina, both Muslims and non-Muslims enjoyed complete freedom of religion. All the elements constituting the body politics were assured of religious, legal and judicial freedom. One of the clauses stated: "For Muslims their religion and for Jews their religion."

The first article of the Mithaq states: "This is a prescript (kitab) of Muhammad the Prophet ﷺ to operate among the believers) and (the faithful (those submissive to God) from among the Quraish and the people of Yathrib and those who may be under them and join them, and take part in war in their company.

The second article states: Verily they constitute one ummah (ummah wahida) as distinct from all the people (of the world).

It is quite clear from the second article that everyone, Muslims and non-Muslims, constituted the ummah, enjoying equal religious and legal rights.

Madina started with a city-state and within ten years, it became the capital of a vast state whose area was no less than three million square kilometers. In ten years less than 240 men were killed including 70 killed at Uhud. Thus the Prophet ﷺ, set an example of avoiding unnecessary bloodshed.

He epitomized tolerance, goodwill, compassion and peace in a world sunk in frequent fratricidal wars, hatred, violence and fanaticism.

In Makkah, the Prophet's ﷺ most bitter enemy was Abu Jahal, who was killed during the battle of Badr. His son, Ikramah, another bitter enemy of Islam, fled towards the coast with the intention of crossing over to Abyssinia after the conquest of Makkah. His wife approached the Holy Prophet ﷺ and asked if Ikramah could return to the Makkah while still professing his idolatrous beliefs, The Holy Prophet ﷺ replied that faith was a matter of conscience and conscience was free.

Ikramah came back and went to see the Prophet ﷺ who once again gave him the assurance that he would come to no harm because of his beliefs. Ikramah was so deeply moved by the Holy Prophet's ﷺ magnanimity and his sincerity in upholding religious freedom that he embraced Islam. The Holy Prophet ﷺ asked him if there was anything he wished for. Ikramah replied that he could wish for no greater bounty that God had already bestowed upon him in opening his heart to the acceptance of Islam. Indeed, the Holy Prophet ﷺ was l (blessing for the whole world).

Can we, the Muslims of Pakistan, follow the example of tolerance set by our Prophet ﷺ and transform our country into a heaven of religious peace and sectarian tranquility? Islam means not only submission to the will of God, but also peace and harmony. Above all, Islam means tolerance and goodwill. It is a unified perception of the diversity of cultural and social horizons and of the infinite variety of individual situations. Islam, by its very nature, is an indissoluble link between absolute values and the virtues of change, between the fundamental certainties of revelation and the creative doubt which gives rise to scientific reflection, It means constantly having recourse to the universal, so as to apprehend the specific more comprehensively; it means always going back to the sacred in order to gain a better understanding of the secular.

Islam is not a closed system: it is open at one end to the infinite diversity of mankind, and, at the other end to the infinite greatness of the Divine.