Non-Violence and Islam
Non-Violence and Islam
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continued for several centuries. This was
possible because the
tabi‘un
(companions of the
Prophet's companions) and their succeeding
generations, consisting of traditionists, jurists,
‘ulema
, sufis and other great religious scholars,
all scrupulously avoided any clash or
confrontation with the rulers.
It was during this period that on the one hand
peaceful
da‘wah
work was started in various
countries; while on the other, disciplines of
hadith,
fiqh
and other Islamic sciences came into existence
on a large scale after a long period of great
ideological struggle. All the precious books which
adorn our libraries, all the classical literature of
Islam are the result of these peaceful activities.
For instance, the hadith as a source of
shari’ah
is
second only to the Qur’an in Islam. These traditions
now exist in the form of printed books. These books
are so precious that, without them, it would not
have been possible to develop Islam into a complete
system as it exists today. During the Umayyads and
Abbasids, when the political system had begun to
deteriorate, where were these tens of thousands of
