SPIRIT OF ISLAM JUNE 2O18

19 Spirit of Islam Issue 66 June 2018 is so deep-rooted in the minds of not only the extremists but also of many common Muslims that it is important to expose this ideology for what it is and show in detail how it contradicts Quranic teachings. Everyone will thus see the stark difference between the two. Time and again throughout the ages, people have risen in rebellion and made their mark on human history, but seldom did they attain the level that the Islamists of today have taken it to. There are two main reasons for this state of events—modern weaponry and modern media. These are the twin factors that have propelled terrorism into the limelight. Another aspect of this phenomenon which must be questioned is the terrorists’ ideology. The extremists call their terrorist culture ‘ Islamic Jihad ’—clearly a misnomer—and portray their actions as having been carried out under the banner of Islam. In this manner, the religion of Islam gets falsely linked with terrorist activities, and its name gets besmirched. Contrary to common belief, Islam, by definition is a religion of peace. The very word Islam (from the Arabic silm ) means peace. According to the teachings of the Prophet, peace is Islam. In other words, peace is a prerequisite of Islam. The same is stated in the Hadith : A Muslim is one from whose tongue and hands people are safe. Further, one of the attributes of God mentioned in the Quran (59: 23) is As-Salam , which means ‘peace and security’. Thus God Himself is a manifestation of peace. Indeed ‘God is peace’. The Quran (5: 16) likens divine guidance to the paths of peace. Paradise, which is the ideal human abode, is called the ‘Home of Peace’ (10: 25) . It is also said that the people of Paradise will wish one another peace—this indicates that the social culture of the people of Paradise will be based on peace. The movement of the terrorists is a movement against humanity. To put an end to this movement, what is required is to bring about a de- conditioning of its adherents. This can be done only by meeting them on an intellectual level and impressing upon them the true and positive picture of Islam based on the ideology of peace rather than on their deceitful ideology of violence. o Terrorism will persist in one form or another until the ideology of violence is countered with another ideology based on peace.