was a youth among them called Ayas ibn Mu’adh, who told his people that what the Prophet had told them was much better than what they had come for. The delegation, however, did not agree. “Leave us alone

When they heard about the Prophet, they went to see him. The Prophet called on them both to accept Islam and recited to them a passage of the Quran. They accepted the Prophet’s invitation, and became Muslim

straight back to Madinah after seeing the Prophet. They were the first to communicate the message of Islam to the people of Madinah. This was in the tenth year of the Prophet’s mission, three years before

was a youth among them called Ayas ibn Mu’adh, who told his people that what the Prophet had told them was much better than what they had come for. The delegation, however, did not agree. “Leave us alone

When they heard about the Prophet, they went to see him. The Prophet called on them both to accept Islam and recited to them a passage of the Quran. They accepted the Prophet’s invitation, and became Muslim

straight back to Madinah after seeing the Prophet. They were the first to communicate the message of Islam to the people of Madinah. This was in the tenth year of the Prophet’s mission, three years before

it is possible to establish peace in the society. The author, Maulana Wahiduddin Khan is a noted Islamic scholar and the founder of Centre of Peace and Spirituality in New Delhi, who has been internationally

one can achieve what one cannot achieve with violence. This very thought changed my perception of peace. Accepting peace as the status quo, the present for what it is rather than what it should be, not

upon the need for a counter ideology, the author says that the present militancy has no sanction in Islam. He also talks about the futility of wars, and stresses upon the role of third party in putting an

of training, this phase of a person's life is of great importance. In his lifetime, the Prophet of Islam specially selected two people for this purpose of training. One was Ali and the other was Aisha. He

his company when they were at a young age itself, and thereby they received training and obtained what is called prophetic wisdom in the Quran (2: 129). This objective of training in wisdom can be achieved

wisdom. The results confirm this analysis and the issue is considered an established fact amongst Islamic scholars. They agree that Ali and Aisha occupied—in terms of insight and understanding of religion—a

Indifference means indirect involvement, which in God’s eyes is as bad as direct involvement. Now, what is the message given by the Quran to grieving relatives? There is a very relevant verse in the Quran

tell the people of their area to abandon the false and violent version of Islam and adopt the true and peaceful version of Islam. If friends and relatives of the departed souls act accordingly, then it

it will be written down in history that these people were able to convert what could have been their minus into a plus to make the world safer for everyone, including our children. o This article by Maulana

working peaceably on a large scale in the sphere of individual reform. Since Islamic fundamentalists target the Islamization of the State rather than the reform of individuals, their only plan of action

precious resources, and so on. It would be right and proper to say that Islam is a name for peaceful struggle, while the so- called Islamic fundamentalism is quite the reverse. From the foregoing details it

teachings of Islam, is a direct product of Islamic fundamentalism.Fundamental Principles of IslamIf we are to put ‘fundamentalism’ in the correct perspective, we should be clear about what actually constitutes

THE EDITORIAL DIRECTORDr. Farida Khanam has been a professor at the Department of Islamic Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia in New Delhi. A Study of World's Major Religions, A Simple Guide to Sufism are two

two of the books amongst others, of which she is the author. She has also translated many books on Islam authored by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan. Currently, the chairperson of Centre for Peace and Spirituality

on peace-building, countering extremism and conflict resolution. THE CONCEPT OF SPIRITUALITY IN ISLAM SPIRITUALITY as a philosophy has a long history of five thousand years. In ancient Greece there were

used against them.22.WHY DO MOST MUSLIMS HAVE A TENDENCY TO TRY TO CONVERT PEOPLE TO THEIR RELIGION?Islam does not subscribe to the concept of conversion. It believes that religion is a matter of individual

your own discovery, your own realization. It is a personal choice. If you want to know what the purpose of life is, what life and death are about, and so on, you have to study, reflect and discuss with learned

‘conversion’, there are two parties: the converter and the converted. But this is not the concept in Islam. In Islam, there is only one party—and that is you. If you want to find the truth, you have to reflect

true spirit of Islam is militaristic. Heavenly scriptures were sent down and prophets were commissioned so as to instill in people a martial spirit. The ultimate aim of all practices in Islam is to provide

of the entire world in front of the House of God. The Muslim ummah is a sort of divine army, and Islam is the military law that the ummah has been given to enforce. For, as it is said [in the Quran]: ‘You

best community that has ever been brought forth for [the good of] mankind. You enjoin what is good, and forbid what is evil, and you believe in God.’ (3:110) If someone says this sort of thing, it can

used against them.22.WHY DO MOST MUSLIMS HAVE A TENDENCY TO TRY TO CONVERT PEOPLE TO THEIR RELIGION?Islam does not subscribe to the concept of conversion. It believes that religion is a matter of individual

your own discovery, your own realization. It is a personal choice. If you want to know what the purpose of life is, what life and death are about, and so on, you have to study, reflect and discuss with learned

‘conversion’, there are two parties: the converter and the converted. But this is not the concept in Islam. In Islam, there is only one party—and that is you. If you want to find the truth, you have to reflect