English

The theme of this book is the realization of God. The realization of God is the essence of religion. Realization of God (maarifah) is the beginning as well as the end of religion. The position of maarifah in God’s religion is that of the seed. Just as a seed grows gradually into a full tree, similarly maarifah shapes the entire personality of a person. Without maarifah, religion is reduced to a spiritless form. With maarifah, religion is like a lush green tree and without it, religion becomes like a dried up tree. If religion is the body, maarifah is its spirit.

In Reflections on Life and Death, the author explains that of all the stages through which a person will have to pass, death is the most certain. Yet, it is something that few people bother to think about seriously, leave alone prepare for. Everyone who is alive now will be dead sometime in the future. Every human being will one day be leaving this world, never to return, and will enter a world which he will never leave.

Islam is a religion of peace. Contemporary instances of Muslims resorting to violence in the name of their religion is, according to Maulana Wahiduddin Khan, in complete contrast to Islamic teachings. In the book Non-Violence and Peace-Building in Islam he presents the approach to conflict-prevention, conflict-resolution and peace-building outlined in the Quran and the life of the Prophet. A common thread running through these essays is the assertion that one should differentiate between Islam and Muslims: one should judge Muslims in the light of Islamic teachings and not vice versa.

Addressing Prophet Muhammad, the Quran enjoins: “Have patience, then, as had the steadfast Messengers before you; and be in no haste about them.”(46:35) This lays the basic principle of Islamic activism: showing restraint in adverse situations and refraining from negative reaction and retaliation, and planning one’s actions on the basis of realism. This is called Islamic activism or positive activism. It is when one tries to discover opportunities and avails them, without interfering with the prevailing state of affairs.