RISING HIGHER

On August 12, 1985, a Japan Airlines Boeing 747 took off from Tokyo. It was scheduled to reach Osaka in one hour. But only 10 minutes after takeoff, the pilot realized he had lost control of the aircraft. The plane was meant to fly at an altitude of 24,000 feet. But as it kept losing height, it dropped to 9,800 feet, and finally struck a mountain and was destroyed. Five hundred and twenty passengers died in the crash. Among them were an Indian engineer, Mr. Kalyan Mukherjee, and his wife. Mr. Mukherjee was 41 years old at the time of the accident. He had recently gone to Japan on a business trip. From there, he wrote a letter to his 13-year-old son, Niranjan Mukherjee, telling him that on August 12 he and his wife were going on a pleasure trip from Tokyo to Osaka. (Hindustan Times, August 14, 1985)

One reason planes fly at high altitudes is to avoid colliding with mountains or tall buildings. For this flight, 24,000 feet was a safe height. But when the aircraft developed engine trouble, it could not stay at that altitude. It dropped to 9,800 feet, leaving the safe zone, and as a result it hit a mountain and was destroyed.

The same is true of human life. Our journey takes place among countless other people. If, in thought and attitude, we remain at a low level, we will keep clashing with others again and again. The only solution is to raise ourselves in thought and attitude to such a height that the possibility of conflict with others disappears. The Islamic principle of i‘raaz (avoidance) provides exactly this elevation. In essence, i‘raaz is the same as what some thinkers have called the “superior solution” to the problem of life. Traveling on the same level always carries the risk of conflict with others. That is why a wise person raises the level of his journey higher, so that no clash occurs. Choosing this higher wisdom is what i‘raaz (avoidance) means.