Nothing has done more damage to us as Muslims than clinging to the past. Even today there are wars waged in the name of religion to seek power.
When we ask the extremists to let go of the past and all its complexities and hardships full of events that could potentially divide the Muslims, and to dedicate themselves to the present day and the future, we want to extinguish the fires of hatred. We do not want our grandchildren to repeat this history written in blood, death and hate.
Islam comes from the same root word in Arabic as peace. Islam itself means “the peace of spirit that comes from submitting one’s life to the will of God.” How can we expect to have inner peace when external factors are tearing us apart?
We need to free ourselves from the practice of blindly following people. We need to realize that they are mere mortals, and they can also make mistakes. If we are liberated from the hatred of the people, we will realize that through examining history we are repeating the wrongs of people. We need to pray to the Creator, not to the pages of history. When we do read, we should read the lessons and sermons, not create a reality that captures and tortures our present and affects our future.
When I look at the faces of extremists, as they pour their hatred into our ears, I only see their features twisted by hatred. I can smell only the scent of death. Daesh and Shiite militias in Iraq are two sides of the same coin, a bloodstained coin of savagery and violation of human rights.
Hisham Soli-man, a scholar at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies said: “The absence of peace in Muslim communities is the outcome of the oppressive conditions under which they have lived over the last two centuries, especially conditions of colonization and underdevelopment.”
By continuing the historical battles within Islam between the sects, we are continuing to perpetrate the oppressive conditions that have kept us from attaining inner peace. Muslims need to know how to coexist and live together by accepting others.
We must liberate our minds until we are free from the chatter and noise of the people who would damage our faith and our feelings, based on the past. Otherwise this past will continue to haunt us.
When we ask the extremists to let go of the past and all its complexities and hardships full of events that could potentially divide the Muslims, and to dedicate themselves to the present day and the future, we want to extinguish the fires of hatred. We do not want our grandchildren to repeat this history written in blood, death and hate.
Islam comes from the same root word in Arabic as peace. Islam itself means “the peace of spirit that comes from submitting one’s life to the will of God.” How can we expect to have inner peace when external factors are tearing us apart?
We need to free ourselves from the practice of blindly following people. We need to realize that they are mere mortals, and they can also make mistakes. If we are liberated from the hatred of the people, we will realize that through examining history we are repeating the wrongs of people. We need to pray to the Creator, not to the pages of history. When we do read, we should read the lessons and sermons, not create a reality that captures and tortures our present and affects our future.
When I look at the faces of extremists, as they pour their hatred into our ears, I only see their features twisted by hatred. I can smell only the scent of death. Daesh and Shiite militias in Iraq are two sides of the same coin, a bloodstained coin of savagery and violation of human rights.
Hisham Soli-man, a scholar at the Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies said: “The absence of peace in Muslim communities is the outcome of the oppressive conditions under which they have lived over the last two centuries, especially conditions of colonization and underdevelopment.”
By continuing the historical battles within Islam between the sects, we are continuing to perpetrate the oppressive conditions that have kept us from attaining inner peace. Muslims need to know how to coexist and live together by accepting others.
We must liberate our minds until we are free from the chatter and noise of the people who would damage our faith and our feelings, based on the past. Otherwise this past will continue to haunt us.
