Islamic Principles and Values of Peace Building
Islam is a religion that is built upon a foundation of peace values and principles. Islam itself means peace (salam). It means that all teachings and rules in Islam lead Muslims to make peace in the world, so if there is someone who considers himself Muslim, but in his/her daily life, s/he always commits something evil or violence or something that make the others pain, s/he is substantively not Muslim. Muslim must preach peace throughout the world. In this short paper I will explain what are the values and principles that are related to peace building in Islam.
All teachings and rules in Islam are based on the Qur’an and Hadits (Muhammadan tradition reports). If we consider the Qur’an and Hadits, we will find that there are many verses and hadits that relate to peace building. These values are unity, supreme love of creator, mercy, subjection of passion, accountability for all action, ‘adl (justice), ihsan (beneficence), rahmah (compassion), hikmah (wisdom), social justice, brotherhood, equality of mankind (abolition of slavery, racial and ethnical barrier), tolerance, submission to God, recognition of the rights of others, etc. These values are related to one another. These values have been practiced by Islamic communities in the prophet Muhammad saw’s era.
Muslims have a duty for justice and reject oppression on both interpersonal and structural levels. God says in the Qur’an: “Allah commands justice, the doing of good, and liberality to kith and kin, and He forbids all shameful deeds and injustice and rebellion: He instructs you, that ye may receive admonition” (16:90). It means that God insist Muslims maintain ‘adl (juctice).
There are many words in the Qur’an and Hadits that most commonly associated with the noun ‘adl. These words are qist, qasd, istiqomah, wasat, nisab, hissah, and mizan. Ibn Manzur in Lisan al-Arab, and al-Fayruzabadi in al-Qamus al-Muhit interpret ‘adala (in its various forms) as (1) to straighten or fix; (2) to straighten up or sit straight; to amend or modify; (4) to run away, depart or deflect from one (wrong) path to the other (right) one; (5) to be equal or equivalent, to match, or to equalize; (6) to be balance or counterbalance, to weigh, or to be in a state of equilibrium.
In Islam, besides there are many concepts that are related to nonviolence and peace building, also there are many rituals and cultures that train Muslims for nonviolence and peace building. These ritual and cultures are (1) fasting ritual (shaum), which train Muslims to be aware to the poor and the hunger; (2) ritualistic prayers, which train Muslims to be discipline in daily life; (3) religious chanting, which can become an outlet for peaceful marches, meetings and sit-ins.
Although Islam has the principles and values that lead Muslims to make peace and to avoid violent action, it does not means at all, if these values are not implemented in Muslim’s day-to-day practices. Therefore, it is duty for Muslims to make these values not be just an ideal concept that is far from reality, but be the concepts that are indeed implemented in daily life to create an Islamic society that is full with peaceful.[]
Bibliography:
Mohammed Abu-Nimer, Nonviolence and Peace Building in Islam: Theory and Practice, Chapter I.2, p. 48-84.
