May Peace be Upon Us

Sunday April 17, 2011

After the conclusion of the election in the State of Sarawak where the spectre of inter-racial and inter-religious conflicts rear their ugly heads, I am reminded of the following article published over a year ago by Tuanku Sultanah Raja Zarith Sofia binti Sultan Idris Shah issuing an appeal for peace.

Grace & Peace
Yap Kim Hao

Sunday January 10, 2010
May peace be upon us
Mind Matters
By RAJA ZARITH IDRIS

Compared to the people of war-torn countries, we have a lot to be thankful for. But perhaps it is because we are at peace that we bicker with each other, seeing shadows where there are none.

AND so a new year begins, carrying with it last year’s “1Malaysia” theme for the country.

It perhaps signifies a realisation that we have many problems to overcome together as a nation. The encouragement for unity suggests that we all, knowingly or otherwise, realise that something is seriously wrong: we have become unhealthily obsessed with petty issues regarding race and religion.

We’ve all heard whispered comments about parents telling their children not to befriend their classmates who are not of the same race or religion. These whispers have become part of conversations, which leave us frustrated.

We are now facing a wall – quite a solid one at that – made up of bigoted remarks which stem from ignorance, intolerance, suspicion, a shunning of our own neighbours, and, yes, even hatred.

Last year, Muslims brought with them the severed head of a cow to a mosque to show their anger over the building of a Hindu temple.

During the second week of this new year, incendiary devices were thrown into churches – the Metro Tabernacle Church in Kuala Lumpur, the Assumption Church, the Life Chapel Church and The Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, all in Petaling Jaya.

And yet, it is written in the Holy Quran: “And argue not with the People of the Scriptures (Jews and Christians), unless it be in a way that is better (with good words and in a good manner... except with such of them as do wrong.” — Surah Al-Ankabut, verse 46.

In his own lifetime, the Holy Prophet Muhammad S.A.W (May Peace Be Upon Him) dealt fairly with the Christians.

The Prophet ordered two of his followers – Abu Musa Al-Ash’aree and Mu’aadh ibn Jabal – to go to Najran (part of present-day Yemen) to speak to the Chris­tians.

This is recorded in the Hadiths (Islamic Traditions) according to both Al-Imam Muslim and Al-Imam Al-Bukhari: “... he said to them: ‘Facilitate things for the people (treat the people in the most agreeable way), and do not make things difficult for them, and give them glad tidings, and let them not have aversion (i.e. to make the people hate good deeds) and you should both work in cooperation and mutual understanding, obey each other’...” —Kindness & Gentleness by Doctor Fadl Al-Ilaahi, translated by Tarik Preston.

The treaty made then has become the basis of Islamic relations with other religions: “Najran and their followers have the protection of God and the protection of Muhammad, the Prophet and Messenger of God, for themselves, their community, their land and their goods, both those who are absent and those who are present, and for their churches and their services (no bishop will be moved from his episcopate, and no monk from his monastery, and no church warden from his wardenship) and for all, great or little, that is under their hands...” — Demystify­ing Islam: Your Guide to The Most Misunderstood Religion of the 21st Century by Dr Ali Shehata.

After the Prophet’s death, the second Caliph, Saidina Omar bin Khattab, signed a peace treaty with the Christians in Jerusalem: “In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate, This is the protection which the servant of God, ‘Umar, the Ruler of the Believers has granted to the people of Eiliya (Jerusalem). The protection is for their lives and properties, their churches and crosses, their sick and healthy and for all their co-religionists. Their churches shall not be used for habitation, nor shall they be demolished, nor shall any injury be done to them or to their compounds, or to their crosses, nor shall their properties be injured in any way. There shall be no compulsion for these people in the matter of religion, nor shall any of them suffer any injury on account of religion ... Whatever is written herein is under the covenant of God and the responsibility of His Messenger, of the Caliphs and of the believers, and shall hold good as long as they pay Jizya (the tax for their defence) imposed on them.” — www.

gawaher.com

It is a sad irony that at an age when there is so much information available to us via telecommunication and the Internet, we have become even more paranoid than ever.

We all call Malaysia home, do we not?

As fellow citizens, we can choose to see what we have in common or we can just look at the differences.

We can choose to remain ignorant or we can ask for guidance from our religious leaders and officials.

A year ago, we saw television footage and news items about the war in Gaza. Every day, our newspapers showed us images of the wounded and the dead. We saw homes and hospitals bombed into broken skeletons of bricks and metal.

Compared to the people of Gaza, we have a lot to be thankful for. We do not have an armed enemy attacking us. Our country is not at war. There are no missiles, no bombs, no air raids.

It is perhaps because we are at peace that we have come to bicker with each other, seeing shadows where there are none.

Most families have enough to eat decent meals. We have no shortage of petrol. Our homes remain intact. Because we do not have a common enemy, we have, it seems, the time and energy to destroy places of worship.

Let us remind ourselves that the Muslim greeting or salam is “May Peace Be Upon You”.

> The writer is Royal Fellow, School of Language Studies and Linguistics, UKM, Chairperson of the Community Services Committee of the Malaysian Red Crescent Society, and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Oxford.