Maulana Wahiduddin Khan | Yours Positively | June 29, 2022
Violence has no place in Islam. “The true objective of Islam is to introduce man to his creator and to make him desirous of God’s neighbourhood,” according to Maulana Wahiduddin Khan.
Maulana ji, who was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, the second-highest civilian honour in India, left his physical body on April 21, 2021, four years short of a century, leaving behind a rich legacy that presented a peaceful ideology of Islam for the modern age based on the teachings of Islam and prophetic wisdom.
To spread spiritual wisdom and the Quranic message of peace to mankind across the globe, Maulana ji established CPS International ― Centre for Peace and Spirituality in January 2001. As is apparent from its name, the organization aims to promote and reinforce the culture of peace through mind-based spirituality.
He advised his followers to carry his ideology through CPS International and to run it with the guiding principles he had laid out. CPS is a non-profitable, non-political NGO. The organization’s ideology has been picked up globally by many followers who are propagating Maulana ji’s thoughts based on peace and spirituality derived from Islamic Scriptures.
He displayed through his conduct how one should be a well-wisher for humanity by being a giving member in society.
Maulana ji wrote more than 200 books, booklets and pamphlets as well as recorded thousands of video and audio lectures presenting Islam to address modern minds.
This material gives the rational interpretation of Islam, an introduction to God, prophetic wisdom, principles of the Quran and explains the Creation Plan of God. Some of his books include Islam Rediscovered, Quran for All Humanity, Discovering Islam, The Purpose of Creation, The Prophet of Peace, The True Jihad, Islam and World Peace, The Age of Peace, Leading a Spiritual Life and Nonviolence and Peace-building in Islam.
In the book Spirituality in Islam, Maulana ji explains that spirituality is the elevation of the human condition to a plane on which the mind is focused on the higher, non-material realities of a godly existence.
One who rises above material things or appearances, who finds his focus of interest in non-material things, is regarded as being spiritual or godly, Maulana ji emphasised.
In his book, Indian Muslims, he guided Muslims on how to become a giver community once again through internal construction.
In the book, Manifesto of Peace, Maulana ji explained that peace is the only religion for both man and the universe. “In a peaceful environment all good things are possible, whereas in the absence of peace, we cannot achieve anything of a positive nature, either as individuals, or as a community,” Maulana ji said.
He added: “The same holds true at national and international levels. Peace is the absence of war. Some people say that peace should be accompanied by justice. But setting such a condition for the attainment of peace is impractical. This is because justice is not necessarily an element of peace.
What peace does, in actual fact, is open up opportunities. It creates favourable conditions that would enable us to strive for justice and other constructive ends.”
“Peace is always desirable for its own sake. Everything else comes after peace, not along with peace,” concluded Maulana ji.
Note: The information in this article is based on a Q & A with Dr Rajat Malhotra, Maulana ji’s Disciple and Global Coordinator of CPS International, Center for Peace and Spirituality.