Non-resistance to Evil

In some of its teachings, however, Christianity is apt to

be too one-sided and unpracticable. For instance, Jesus is
reported to have said:
“But I say unto you, that ye resist not evil, but whosoev-
er shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the oth-
er also. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take
away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also, And whosoev-
er shall compel three to go a mile, go with him twain”.
(Matthew 5:39,41).
This was perhaps a neccessary corrective to the hard-
heartedness and vindictive spirit produced by the literal
obscrvancc of the teaching of an eye, for an eye, and a
tooth for a tooth". But can this teaching of .'turn the other
cheek also" be regarded as universal ? Can it be practised
as a wholesome moral precept in all cases and on all oc-
casions '? Non-resistance to evil when the tra et of evil Is
not one’s self but some one else is the sign ,f cowardice
and apathy. Submission to bullies and tyrants can bring

-120-
no good, it will only increase evil and human woe. It
will encourage them to exploit and subdue others
and 'ncrease disorder and injustice. Islam declares
that evil in all cases must be repelled. If the evil doer
can be reformed and prevented from doing vioince
and injury by kindness and mercy, then there can be
nonthing better than this. But if kindness makes him
bolder in doing harm to others, then chastise ment in
proportion to the crime must be meted out to him.
The teaching of the Ouran in this respect also 'is uni-
versal and applicable to all cases. It says :
"The good deed and the evil deed are not alike. Re-
pel the evil deed with one which is good, then lo! he,
between whom and thee there was enmity will be-
come as though he was a bosom friend." (The Quran
41:34)
"The guerdon of an ill-deed is an ill the like there-
of. But whosoever pardoneth and amendeth (the evil
doer by kindness and love), his wage is the affair of

-121-
God. Lo! He loveth not wrongdoing." (The Quran
42:39)
Monssticism and Celibacy
Christianity is too other-worldly, Jesus Christ is re-
ported to have told the people, "If a man come to
me, and hatee not his father and his mother, and
wife, and children, and bretheren, and sisters, yea.
and his own life also, he cannot be my disciples."
(L.ke 14:26) And again: ,whosoever he be of you
that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be MY
disciple." (L,,k-c 14-.33) When a man told him that
he would follow him, but he should be allowed to go
and bury his dead father, Jesus is reported to have
said "Follow me; and let the dead bury the dead."
(Matthew 8:22) He even told the people to "make
themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's
sake.” (Matthew 19: 12) The outcome of such a
teaching can only be the production of stunted and
contorted hypocrites instead of full grown human

-122-
beings.
Islam keeps a healthy balance between this world
and the next. it says that the spirit cannot grow by
crushing the body. Human instincts are not intrinsi-
cally bad. They must not be killed, but wisely con-
trolled, channeled and purposefully used to make the
life of man richer and better. This world has a
meaning and a purpose, and it is only by leading a
normal and fruitful life in the world and by appciat-
ing and enjoying the beautiful gifts of God that man
can come near to God, be of service to others, and
prepare himself for the other world. Islam favours
the middle path. The Holy Prophet declared that
there was no monkery in Islam.
Wine, Sex, Gambling
Whille, on the one hand Christianity favours mon-
asticism, on the other, it nowhere seems to have pro-
hibited the three gateways to most crimes and sin-
wine, gambling aid the improper display of physical

-123-
attractions. Wine, in fact, forms a necessary element
of the Holy Communion, and ttie first miracle of Je-
sus, as reported in Jolin's Gospel, was tile converting
of water into wine. It is in the Holy Quran which
contains complete moral guidance, that these evils
are prohibited and condemned. Regarding wine and
gambling, the Holy Quran says :
"O ye who believe ! Strong drink and games of
chance and idols and divining arrows are only an in-
famy of Satan's handiwork. Leave it aside in order
that ye may succeed-Satan seekth only to cast
among you enmity and hatred by means of strong
drink and games of chance, and to turn you from re-
membrance of God and from His worship. Will ye
then have done?" ('I'he Quran 5:90,91).
Jesus prohibited his followers from looking with
eyes of lust at the wives of others, but Islam goes
further. It prpevents men and women from unneces-
sarily staring at each other, whether with lust or

-124-
withou' , I ust, and wants ti-ieni to be decently
dressed. It condemns the shameful display of physi-
cal charms in the following words:
"Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and be
modest. That is purer for them. Lo! God is Aware of
what they do. And tell the believing women to lower
their gaze and be modest, and to display of their
adornment only that which is apparent, and to draw
their headcoverings over their bosoms, and not to re-
veal their adornment.(The Quran 24:30,3 1)

-125-
 CHAPTER 5
ISLAM : A UNIVERSAL RELIGION
The Christianity of Jesus Christ was not meant to
be a universal religion. Though as far as its funda-
mental message and teaching were concerned, the
religion of Jesus was not different from Islam, yet it
did not contain complete guidance for all aspects of
human life and for all nations and ages, During the
countless centries of human history, when the differ-
ent races of mankind were living in more or less
complete Isolation and there was no quick means of
communication between one nation and another,
God was sending ciifferent prophets to the different
peoples. Jesus was one of these national prophets.
He was the Messiah of the Israelites. This is what
Dr. C. J. Cadoux, an author whom we have already
quoted several times in this book, writes with regard
to the limited (national) scope of Jesus' mission:
"The office of Messiahship with which Jesus be-

-126-
lieved himself to be invested, marked him out for a
distinctly national role: and accordingly we find him
more or less confining his preaching and healing
ministry and that of his disciples to Jewish territory,
and feeling hesitant when on one occassion he was
asked to heal a Gentile girl. Jesus, obvious venera-
tion for Jerusalem, the Temple, and the Scriptures
indicates the special place which he accorded to Is-
rael in his thinking: and several features of his teach-
ing illustrate the same attitude. Thus, in calling his
hearers 'brothers' of e another (i.e., fellow-Jews) and
frequently contrasting their ways with those of the
Gentiles, in defending his cure of a woman on the
sabbath with the, pla that she was a daughter of
Abraham' and befriending the tax-collector Zacchae-
us 4because he too is a son of Abraham, and in fix-
ing the number of his special disciples at twelve to,
match the number of the tribes of Israel-in all this Je-
sus shows how strongly Jewish a stamp he wished to

-127-
impress upon his mission."l
Each nation having been separately guided to the
truth by the national prophets, the time was ultimate-
ly ripe in the plan of God to raise the WoId-prophet
and reveal the Universal religion. And so, when the
world was on the eve of becoming one, God raised
the. Prophet Muhammad to represent the essential
message of all the prophets, shorn of all the later
adulterations and misinterpretations. He amaigamat-
ed the religious traditions of the different nations
into a single universal faith and culture and united
the peoples Of all nations and lands intlo a single
world-wide brotherhood. He gave, the world a com-
plete code of life for the entire humanity.
To establish the truth of his religion, the Prophet
Muhammad did not resort to miracles, which may
win over the few who witnness them but fail to carry
conviction to those of the subsequent generations.
The appeal of his religion is to the reason and the

-128-
conscience of man. To carry the truth home to us he
draws our attention to the phenomena of Nature the
lessons of history and the teachings and experiences
of the prophets of various nations. There is nothing
in Islam which is of interest or benefit only to the
people of a particular region or age. The Holy Quran
enjoins nothing which is not uniformly inspiring, ed-
ifying and practicable for peoples of all ratiot,s and
times. 'The religious and moral teachings of Islam
are of universal nature.
In considering the proposition that Islam and not
Christianity is the universal religion, the reader must
bear in mind the folowing facts :
1. The mission of Jesus was only for the children
of Israel, but the Prophet Muhammad came with a
message for all the nations of the earth. Jesus clearly
stated :
"I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house
of Israel." (Matthew 15:24)

-129-
 He chose twelve special disciples to match the
number of the tribes of Israel and he clearly told
them :
"Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any
city of the Samaritans enter ye not : but go, rather to
the lost sheep of the house If Israel." (Matthew
l0:5.6).
On the other hand, the Prophet Muhammad from
the very beginning of his minitry addressed himself
to the entire humanity- It was revealed to him :
"We live not sent thee (Muhammad) but as a mercy
to all the, nations." (The Ouran 21:107)
"Say (o Muhammad) : 0 mankind ! Lo am the Mes-
senger of God to You 11-the messenger of Him unto
Whom belongeth the Sovereignty of the heavens and
the eath. There is no God save Him." (The Quran,
7:158).
Christianity believes that the Israelites are a chosen
people. God has sent His revelations and prophets to

-130-
them alone. The Christians acknowledge only the
prophets of Israel. All others they regard as impos-
tors. But Islam says that it would be a denial of the
universal providence of God to assert that prophets
were raised only in one nation. According to the
Holy Quran, God is the Lord and Cherisher of all the
worlds. He has made no discrimination between na-
tions in sending his revelations, He has raised proph-
ets among all the nations of the globe. These same
religion was revealed to all the prophets. The Holy
Quran says:
“There is not a nation but a warner hath passed
among them.” (35:24).
"And for every nation there is a Messenger."
(10:48) "Verily We sent Messengers before thee
(Muhammad), among them are those of whom We
have told thee, and some of whom We have not told
thee." (The Quran 40:78)

-131-
 "Mankind are one c.mmnity, and so God sent (unto
all sections of them) Prophets as bearers of good tid-
ings and as warners, and revealed therewith the
Scripture with the truth that it might judge between
mankind concerning that wherein they differed."
(The Quran 2:213).
The Prophet Muhammad had come to complete,
not to oy, the work of the earlier prophets. He told
his owers to have faith in the prophets of all the na-
tions :
"Say (O Muslims) : We believe in God and that
which Is evealed unto us and that which was re-
vealed unto Araham, and Ismael, and Isaac, and Ja-
cob, and the tribes, and that which Moses and Jesus
received, and that which the Prophets (of each and
every ntion) received from their Lord. We make no

-132-
distinction between any of them, and unto Him we
have surrendered." (The Quran 2:136).
Islam is the consummation of all the religions. Bv
Ling the prophets and scriptures of all nations, Islam
affirms the Unity and universal providence of God
and the universality of religious experience, and also
seeks to bring together people of all races and creeds
in a single all-----embracing Faith and Brotherhood.
3. Islam, and not Christianity, gives complete guid-
ance for all aspects and conditions of life. individual
as well as social, national as well as international.
Jesus Christ Iiimseff admitted that lie had not come
with the final or complete divine message for man-
kind, for the time was not yet ripe for it:
"I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye
cannot bear them now. Howbeit, when he, the Spirit
of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth."
(John 16:12,13)
Five centuries after him the Spirit of tuth appeared

-133-
in the person of the Prophet Muhammad to onvey
the whole truth to mkind. God revealed to him :
'This day have I perfected your religion for you aid
completed My favour to you, and have chosen for
you as religion Al-Islam." (The Qtiran 5,3)
The Prophet Muhammad is thus the last Prophet
and the Message, which he brought from God is the
final and complete message. Let us compare certain
aspects of the religions of Jesus and Muhammad to
see why we regard Islam and not Christianity as the
complete message.
The Status of Women in Islam and Christianity
Jesus was the last prophet to appear among the
Beni Israel. He introduced reforms in the teachings
of the earlier Israelite prophets, where he felt such
reforms were due. Hr reinterpreted some of the relig-
ious precepts of Moses to bring them in line with the
needs of his age ; but others he left as they were. The
so-caled Old Testament of the Bible advocates mas-

-134-
sacre, condones polygamy, accepts slavery and or-
ders the burning of witches. Jesus, who had come
"not to destroy the law and the prophets but to ful-
fill", apparently saw nothing wrong with these or, at
any rate, had no time to remedy them. For, he said or
did nothing to humaninze the Mosaic laws of war or
to abolish slavery or to raise the status of women. He
said not a word against polygamy.
St. Paul, who was the real founder of Christianity
as it is understood and believed by the Christians, re-
garded woman as a temptress. He laid the entire
blame for the fall of man and the genesis of sin on
woman. This is what we read in the New Testament
of the Bible
"Let the women learn 'in silence with qll subjec-
tion. But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp
authority over the man, but to be in silence. For
Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was
not deceived, but the woman deceived was in trans-

-135-
gression." (I Timothy 2:11,14)
"For the man is not of the woman-, but the woman
of the man Neither was the man created for the
woman but the woman for the man. For this cause
ought the woman to have power ,n her head because
of the angels. (I Corinthians 1 1: 8,1 0)
And this is what some of the canonized saints of
Christianity have said about woman :
Woman is a daughter of Falsehood, a sentinei of
Hell, the enen-iy of peace ; through her Adam lost
Paradise."
(St. John Damascene)
"Woman is the instrument which the Devil uses to
gain possession of our souls." (St- CyPran)
“Woman is the fountain of the arm of the Devil,
her voice is the hissing of the serpent” (St. Antho-
ny).
“Woman has the poison of an asp, the alice of a
dragon". (St. Gregory the Great).

-136-
 The Holy Quran clears woman of the responsibility
for the fail of Adam and vindicates her honour and
dignity. ft raises the status of woman to make her
man's equal. For the first time in history woman was
given the same rights a, those of man by Islam.
“And they (women) have rights similar to those of
men over them inn a just manner." (The Quran
2:228)
The modern man recognizes that there can be no
true freedom and dignity without economic rights.
Fourteen hundred years ago, Islam gave woman the
right to inherit the property and wealth of her father
and husband and to acquire, own and dispose of
wealth as she liked. The Holy Quran says :
"Unto men a fortune from that which they have
earned, and unto women a fortune from that which
they have earned." (The Quran 4:32)
"Unto men (of a family) belongeth a share of that
which parents or near kindred leave, and unto wom-

-137-
en a share of that which parents or near kindred
leave; whether it be little or much--a legal share."
(The Quran 4:7)
In marriage a woman is considered by Islam to be
an equal and free partner. Marriage in Islam is a
scred contract between a man and a woman and the
consent of both the parties has to be taken before
marriage can take place. The Holy Quran describes
woman as a companion of her husband-an object of
love and source of peace and solace to him :
"And of His signs is this: He created for you help-
meets from among yourselves that ye may find rest
in them and He ordained between you love and mer-
cy. Lo, here indeed are portents for folk who re-
flect." Quran 30:21)
To impress upon his followers the e.alted position
and sacredness of womanhood, the Prophet declared:
"Paradise lies at the feet of the mother." (Nasai
25:61)

-138-
 He said that "women are the twin-halves of men,"
and that men and women come from the essence. Is-
lam makes no distraction between them as regards
their moral and spiritual capabilities and rewards:
"The believers, men and women, are protecting
friends of one another, they enjoin the right and for-
bid the wrong, and they establish worship and they
pay the poor-due, and they obey God and His mes-
senger. As for these, will have mercy on them. Lo!
God is All-mighty, All-wise." (The Quran 9:71)
"Whoever doeth right, whether mate or female, and
is a believer, him (or her) verily We shall quicken
with good life, and We shall pay them a recompr-
nce in proportion to the best of what they used to
do." (The Quran16:89).
"Lo! men who surrender unnto God, and Women
who surrender, and men who believe and women
who believe, and men who obey and women who
obey, and men who speak the truth and women who

-139-
speak the tutli, and men who p rsevere in righteous-
ness and women who persevere, and men who are
humble, and women who give alms, and men who
fast and women who fast, and men who guard their
modesty and women who guard their modesty, and
men who remember God much and women who re-
member--God hath prepared for them forgiveness
and a vast reward." (The Quran 33:35)
Elimination of Slavery
Islam is the first religion to impprove the condition
of slaves and to take steps for the total abolition of
slavery, As the first step, the Holy Prophet made
kind and brotherly treatment of slaves a duty of
Muslims. They were to be considered as members of
the family:
"Your slaves are your bretheren. So if any one of
you happens to have a slave, let him give him the
same food that he himself eats, and the same cloth-
ing that he himself wears. And do not give them

-140-
such work as is beyond their power to perform, and
if you ever happen to give them such work, you
should help them in doing it." (Bukhari, Kitab al-ltq)
The following are just two of the many verses of
the Holy Quran exhorting men to emancipate the
slaves:
"Ah, what will convey unto thee what the Ascent
is!-- It is to free the slaves and to feed in the day of
hunger an orphan near of kin, or some poor wretch
in misery,, and to be of those who believe and exhort
one another to perseverance and exhort one another
(90:12-17)
"It is not righteousness that ye turn your faces to
the East and the West; but righteous is he who be-
lieved in God and the Last Day ... and giveth his
wealth, for love of Him, to kinsfolk and to orphans
and th needy and the wayfarer and to those who ask,
and to set slaves free........ (2:177).
The institution of slavery being opposed to the Is-

-141-
lamic teaching of the equality and dignity of man,
the Prophet prohibited the taking ,f fresh slaves in
very strong words :
"God has spoken to me, saying, there are three
classes of men whose adversary I shall be on the
Day of Judgment. Firstly, the man h,, makes a cove-
nant with some one in My name and then breaks it.
Secondly, the man who enslaves a free man, sens
him and eats his price. Thirdly, the man who em-
ploys a man to do a work and exacts full work from
him but does not pay him his full wages" (Bukhari,
Kitab al.Bai).
Finally, came the categorical command of God not
Only to give freedom to the slaves but also a part of.
one's wealth to rehabilitate them
"And sucll of your slaves as seek a writing of
emancipation, write it for them if you are aware of
aught of good in them, and bestow upon them of the
wealth of God which,He hath bestowed upon you."

-142-
(The Quraii 24:33)
On the other hand, Jesus said or did nothing to pate
the slaves or to improve the lot of these miserable
creatures.
Political Constitution
Christianity docs give some guidance with regard
to what Aristotle described as private virtues, but is
absolutely silent on the question of political virtues,
es. The rests! of the separation of religion and poli-
tics in Chr istianity has been the growth of Machia-
vellism in the West. Islam, on the other hand, being
the last revealed and foreseeing the eventual evolu-
tion of humanity, had to formulate a basic code of
comprehensive guidance for man kind in all their ac-
tivities and relations, whethcr they fall within the
public or the private sector. Islam erasures social
justice and international peace by bringing political,
economic and international relations and affairs un-
der the control of religion and ethics and by defining

-143-
the basic duties of the individual towards the state
and of the state towarcs the individual and of one
State towards another State. It lays down some basic
principles which every community is enjoined to
adopt and then gives each the liberty to develop its
structure according to the needs of the age, provided
this super-structure observes the basic principles and
remains within their scope.
The first basic principle of the Islamic political sys-
tem is that the sovereignty of the State rests with
God and no legislature or parliament has the right to
pass a Law or Act which is contrary to the spirit and
letter of the commands the prophet. Thus Islam en-
sures uniform justice and saves the state and the des-
tinies of the people from being swayed by the
whims, shortsighted decisions of the legislators, and
the minority group from the brute will of the majori-
ty, and the interests of the people as a whole from
those of the dominating economic class in the parlia-

-144-
ment. The Holy Quran Says :
,”Say: O God Owner of Sovereignty! Thou givest
sovereignty unto whom Thou withdrawest sove-
reignty from whom Thou wilt. Thou exaltest whom
Thou wilt and Thou abasest whom Thou wilt, In Thy
hand is the good. Lo! Thou art able to do all things."
(3:26)
The second basic principle is that all men are equal
before law and in the sight of God. They have equal
political rights. The same, law applies to all. in an Is-
lamic ,State no one, not even the head of the state, is
above Law. For the breach of any law, even the Ca-
liph can be summoned in the court and punished, if
found guilty.
The third basic principle is that all public offices
including that of the chief executive, are trusts from
God, and the trustes must exercise the authority giv-
en to them as per the command of God and for the
benefit of the people. As the Head of the State is ap-

-145-
pointed by the people, he can also be removed by the
people, if they find that he IS carrying on the admin-
istration according to the commands of God and in
the best interests of the people.
The fourth basic principle is that all pulic matters
are to be decided by consultation and after taking
into coisideration the views of the citizens or the Is-
lamic State :
"So pardon them and ask forgiveness for them con-
sult with them upon the conduct of affaire. And
when thou art resolved, then put thy trust in God Lo!
God loveth those who put their trust in Him." (The
Quran 3:,159)
"And those who answer the call of their Lofd and
establish worship and whose Government is by con-
sent themselves and who spend on others out of
what we have bestowed on them." (42:28)
Islam brought into existence the first true democra-
cy in which there was no distinction of free-born and

-146-
salve, citizen and serf, and no discrimination on the
basic of race or colour, or sex or creed. All are equal
before law and enjoy the same rights.
The Economics of Islam
In the ecloillic field, Islam considers all unearned
income to be unjust and unlawful. It upholds the dig-
nity of labour. The Prophet said:
"No one eats better food than that which he eats
out of the work of his own hands." (B.khari, 35:15).
In the social order of Islam the possibility of ex-
ploitation of man by man is minimized, without the
total abolition of private property or enterprise, by
the prohibition of monopoly, blackmarketing, hoard-
ing and interest (riba), that is, a fixed extra return for
money lent of any purpose. Says the Quran:
“Those who live on interest cannot rise up save as
he ariseth whom the devil hath prostrated by his
touch. That is because they say: Trade is just like in-
terest; whereas God permitteth trading and forbid-

-147-
deth interest” (2:275).
In order to reduce inequality and make sure that
every one gets the basic necessities and has equal
opportunities in life, Islam imposes a tax on the capi-
tal of the rich for the benefit of the poor. This tax,
called Zakat, is different from and in addition to
Khairat or voluntary charity. Moreover, the Quran
contains frequent and repeated exhortations to the
people to spend their wealth for the welfare of oth-
ers. It says that the profession of faith and the relig-
ious devotions of a man who is not actively engaged
in works of Mercy are vain and not acceptable be-
fore God. And, finally, by its judicious laws of in-
heritance. Islam makes the concentration of wealth
in few hands imposible.
While not ignoring the importance of economic ac-
tivities in human life, Islam strongly condemns the
tendency to judge people by their financial and so-
cial status. The mark of a man's worth is not his

-148-
wealth but higher morals and greater participation in
the works of mercy. Wealth is not an end, but a
means of support" to the people. 'I'he wealth that a
man earns is not absolutely his. It is a trust with him
from God. He has acquired it by employing the God-
given faculties and by the aid and the facilities pro-
vided by the society. He must repay his debt to the
society and spend as much as possible, out of what
he has earned, in the way of God. Above all, in the
pursuit of wealth a man must not lose sight of the
higher values of life.
Religious freedom
Just as Islam has made the State subject to the
same ethical principles as govern individuals and has
brought international relations within the scoppe of
morality, making the subjugation and exploitation of
one nation by another as reprehensible as the subju-
gation and exploitation of one man by another, in the
same way Islam has ordained justice, equality and

-149-
mutual respect in inter-religious affairs and relations.
In the Islamic social order all individuals and relig-
ious communities are free to follow the religion f
their own choice. No individual or religious commu-
nity hass the right to impose his own beliefs on oth-
ers or to restrict in any way the profession, Preach-
ing and practice, by others of the religion which
appeals to them. Says the Holy Quran:
There is no compulsion religion.” (2:256)
The Islamic attitude towards inter-religions rela-
tions is much more than that of nacre toleration. Is-
lam enjoins equal faith in the founders of all the
great religions of tile world. It invites people of oth-
er religions to join the Muslims in foriniiig a League
of Faiths to uphold tile principles of the Unity of
God and righteous conduct.
In Muslim countries Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians
and Hindus have enjoyed the freedom, which, till re-
cently was totally denied to the non-Christians in

-150-
Christendom.
The Universal Brotherhood of Islam
The Islamic belief in the unity of mankind is the
corollary of the doctrine of the unity of God. The
self-same God is the Creator and Nourisher of the
men and women of all nationns, races, colours,
creeds and cultures. And hence all mankind may be
regarded as God's big family:
"Mankind are one community." (The Quran 2:213)
"All God's creatures are His family, and he is the
most beloved of God who tries to do the "greatest
good to God's creatures." (Sayings of Muhammad)
Islam rejects all false criteria of superiorly based
on race, nationality, colour or languge. It makes
righteousness and good conduct the only mark of su-
periority in the sight of God:
"O mankind! Lo! We have created you male and
female and made you nation and tribes that ye may
kiow one another. Lo! the noblest of you, in the

-151-
sight of God, is the best In conduct. Lo! God is All-
Knowing, All-Aware."( Quran 49-.13)
The Prophet of Islam, commenting on the above
verse in the occasion of the Last Pilgrimage, ob-
served:
“No Arab has superiority over any non-Arab, and
no non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; no
dark person has any superiority over a dark person.
The criterion of honour in the sight of God is right-
eousness and honest living.” (Sayings of Muham-
mad).
Islam unites all human beings in love and sympa-
thy as brothers. The brotherhood of Islam transcends
all geographical and political barriers. Even the
strictly religious obligations of Islam, like the con-
gregational prayers, fasting Zakat and pilgrimage to
Mecca have the additional function of creating
brotherly feelings and equality among all ,sections
of Humanity. The Holy Quran says:

-152-
 “And hold fast, all f you together, to the cable of
God, and be not disunited. And remember God's fa-
vour unto you: how ye were enemies and He made
friendship between yur hearts so that ye became as
brother, by His grace; and how ye were upon the
brink of an abyss of fire, and fie did save you from
it. Thus God maketh clear Ms revelations unto you,
that haply ye may be guided." (3:103)
Thus it will be seen that Islam gives guidance on
many matters and aspects of human relations on
which Christianity is silent. The prophet Muhammad
completed what was left incoi-nplete by Jesus. Islam
is the true religion of Jesus, revived by a fresh reve-
lation and perfected to cover all aspects of human
action and relations and to give guidance to the peo-
ple of all times and nations. it is in short a Universal
Religion. it does not only respond to ranks devotion-
al urges but to human life as a whole. It does not
only give us an infallible metaphysics, but also a

-153-
comprehensive and sublime code of individual and
social ethics, a sound ecoonomic system, a just polit-
ical ideology and many other thing, besides, It is not
a solitary star, but a whole solar system, encompass-
ing the whole and illuminating the whole.

-154-