SPIRIT OF ISLAM DECEMBER 2018

16 Spirit of Islam Issue 72 December 2018 Had Kashmir treaded along the path of educational and economic advancement, today it would have been a model of progress and prosperity. But the incompetent leadership, with unrealistic dreams and empty slogans, have caused terrible damage. The time has now come for the Kashmiris to completely and permanently abandon the path of militancy, and, instead, to adopt the path of peace and progress. Only then can the dream of Kashmir as ‘heaven on earth’ come true. Unrealistic politics has played havoc with Kashmir, but now through realistic politics we can once again lead Kashmir to progress and development. Kashmiri Muslims have today become disillusioned. They are living in an atmosphere of mistrust. It is indeed possible for the Kashmiris to start a new life at any given time, but for this, two conditions must be met. First, they must take responsibility for the unpleasant situation they are faced with today. Second, more importantly, they must come out of their delusional world and learn to live in the world of practical realities. They must understand that today it is the age of peace. Today everything one wants can be achieved by treading the path of peace. For their growth and advancement to take place, they must carve out a new plan of adjustment with the present situation. India is a big country. It has freedom and democracy. More than two hundred million Muslims reside here. Almost all the big Islamic institutions of the sub- continent are located in India. All across India is imprinted a thousand year history of the Muslims, which should give them courage and inspiration. Moreover, India provides great opportunities to Muslims in the footsteps of the Sufis to follow and spread the peaceful message of Islam—a task which, according to a Hadith , can earn them salvation in the Hereafter. Once, on a short visit to Karachi, a Muslim industrialist remarked that the Indian Muslims were in a far better position than they were. When he was asked the reason he said India being a vast country has a huge market for his products. What he said has now become a fact of life. In the twenty-first century, the Muslims of India have emerged as the most developed Muslim community in the whole of the subcontinent. This is in no way an exaggeration. And a comparative survey of any city can establish the validity of this statement. If the Muslims of The only way to progress is to avoid the hurdles and avail of the opportunities to build one’s life. To ignore the problems and avail of the existing opportunities.