The End of the Age of Violence
During the Second World War (1939-45) several countries opted for the path of violence, namely Britain, Germany, Japan, Italy, Russia and the U.S.A. But when the war was over, all these countries abandoned the path of confrontation in favour of a peaceful struggle. This was not a simple matter. It was in actual fact, a declaration that human history had reached the stage when the age of violence had come to an end forever. Now man had only one option and that was of adopting peaceful methods.
Before engaging in any activity, the results of that activity must be considered. Any act which will not produce positive results is surely unfit to be considered as an option. The results of the Second World War made this quite evident. All those nations which participated in this war made innumerable sacrifices in terms of lives and possessions but, in terms of any positive results, these sacrifices proved futile.
It should be borne in mind that modern-day weapons have become a deterrent rather than an incentive to waging war. For instance, Germany and Japan incurred great losses in treading the path of war, so in the light of this experience, they opted for the way of peace. Consequently, the two countries rose to great heights of success. They did so, even after having lost a part of their countries, Germany losing the eastern part of it and Japan losing the large Island of Okinawa.
Kashmir and other regions where Muslims have launched violent movements ought to take a lesson from these experiences. These events have resonated far beyond the countries in which they took place. Indeed, they illustrate the law of nature, according to which those who take to the path of hatred and violence will suffer only deprivation as their lot in life, whereas those who take to the path of peace and love, will have all kinds of success awaiting them.
Destructive Politics
A well-known Muslim speaker of the West once addressed a conference attended by Muslims and quoted the maxim: “Rebellion to a tyrant, obedience to God”.
This saying is typical of the mindset formed under the influence of a political interpretation of Islam. The present generation of Muslims has been particularly affected by this interpretation. Agitations in the name of Islamic revolution at many places in the world of today are the result of this political thinking.
This kind of so-called politics is by no means Islamic in character. If a strong word may be used, it would be right to say that this is a brand of satanic politics in the name of Islam, the founder of which is Satan himself. All those who have hoisted the flag of such politics are without doubt following Satan, and not Islam.
The Quran tells us that before the creation of Adam, two creatures existed—angels and jinns, whom God commanded to surrender before Adam.
The angels obeyed the command but Iblis (the leader of jinns) refused to obey the command and he turned into a rebel against God.
In human history, this was the first incident of rebellion against authority. Proceeding without clashing with authority is the way of angels. But indulging in agitations, launching movements of opposition, and clashing with authority is the way of Satan. Strangely indeed, this negative politics of Satan has continued throughout the whole of human history, amongst believers as well as non-believers. It is the result of this that human history has become a tale of destruction rather than of construction.
Against nature
The movements launched to bring about changes in human life fall into two categories—those which target the mind and those which target a system.
Such movements as are in accordance with nature seek to win over minds. Such movements as aim at breaking down or altering a system run counter to the creation plan of nature. The latter will always be a failure, while the former will always succeed. The hatred and violence rampant in today’s world are only the result of a general unawareness of this law of nature.
None of the movements launched in Kashmir and in other places in present times have targeted the mind. All of them have targeted the system. This is why all these movements have resulted in destruction. Centuries-old traditions have been destroyed, mutual hatred has been engendered and this has ultimately led to violence. The environment of mutual well- wishing has come to an end.
Any movement which sets itself up against the prevailing system is unnatural. The right kind of movement is one which is based on the reform of the mind.
In fact, the system has no separate existence. The system is put in place by virtue of the thinking and organizational skills of a group of people. If the human beings, the individuals who make up the group are reformed, the system that will emerge as their social mainstay will naturally be a reformed system. According to the law of nature, the movement of reform begins from the individual and not from the system. Any movement which is set in motion in the name of the reform of the system will, at the very outset, produce confrontation between two or more groups of people. And where there is hatred and confrontation, all possibility of reform is nullified.
Virtuous Movement, Non-virtuous Movement
A satan is latent within every person. This satan is a hate bomb. Everyone potentially carries this hate bomb within him. This hate bomb, in normal situations, lies dormant, but if it is awakened, it flares up beyond all limits and then it wreaks havoc. Events tell us that there are no men and women in this world who are an exception to this rule.
This state of affairs means, in other words, that man is made of a highly inflammable material. If there are 10,000 men in a society, this means that society is made up of 10,000 highly combustible components. It is, in fact, personal interest which compels man, in spite of being violent in nature, to keep the peace. In such a situation the task of leadership is very difficult. The leader who has nothing to offer but slogans, voicing complaints and protests, should never enter this field, for negative slogans will only provoke people to the point where society will be turned into a mass of highly inflammable material which could burst into flames at any moment.
It is incumbent upon the leader to launch his movement in society, only if he has slogans of love with which to inspire his followers. If all he has to offer is hatred and complaints, then he had much better not attempt to lead any social movement. He should rather confine himself to his home, thereby at least ensuring his own salvation.
There are two kinds of social movements — the positive and the negative. A positive movement is one which is based on duty. Such a movement has definite virtues. A negative movement is based on the demand for rights and the voicing of protests. Such a movement has no virtue whatsoever.
The former is invariably positive in outcome, while the latter can end only in calamity.
The Starting Point of Reformative Action
When political decline set in in ancient times, the Jews conceived of the idea that they should revive their political power in Palestine by force. At that time, according to the biblical record, the Jewish Prophet Jeremiah said to them: “Say to the king and to the queen mother, ‘Humble yourselves; sit down, for your rule shall collapse, the crown of your glory.’” (Jeremiah, 13:18)
This example of the Jews shows that nations rise and then fall, suffering from decline. After political dominance, they undergo political subjugation. This is the law of nature. At such times, the people ought to accept this change in their circumstances. For failure to accept it amounts to leading the community further down the path of destruction.
The truth is that political power is not the monopoly of any nation or community. The acquisition of political power depends upon the capability of any given group to wield that power. Where a community has this capability, it may be granted the blessing of political power. Once a community loses this capability, its political power is taken away from it. In such a case, the group concerned should concentrate on developing the necessary capability rather than on waging a futile war against opponents.
The Quran tells us that any change in the community is the result of a change in the individual. (13:11) Therefore, whenever any community suffers from decline at the social level, it should search for its cause at the individual level. For a community’s social condition can change only when change takes place at the individual level. Thus the starting point of an action is at the individual level and not at the congregational level. To start an action by addressing the crowd can only bring cheap popularity and nothing else.
