Playing God

"All rights of this book are reserved for the publisher and the author. This copy is for reading purpose only. This copy cannot be uploaded on any website except those of the publisher and the author." Playing God: Misreading a Divine Practice 41 It is thus obvious that these attacks launched by the Companions (rta) were part of this divine scheme and after their departure, Muslims cannot wage war to punish people for not accepting Islam. 23 5. Misplaced Directives It shall no w b e shown on the basis of the above discussion t hat there are some directives of Islam which are solely related to the divine practice discussed in this treatise. They relate to the direct addressees of Muhammad (sws ) wh o had deliberately denied the truth: they do not relate t o other non-Muslims. These directives are nothing but various forms of humiliation and punishment meted out to these people for their crime of intentionally denying the truth. They do not relate to non-Muslims who cannot be identified in this capacity. This identification can only be made by God. In the times of His messengers, He communicated this fact through these messengers. However, with the departure of these messengers, no communication can B ! eN 6 +2I" T : ?1"? )s: '( And if anyone among the Idolaters asks you for asylum, grant it to him so that he may hear the Word of Allah and then escort him to where he can be secure. That is because they are men without knowledge. (9:6) 23. In this regard, it needs to be understood that, apart from self-defence, the only legitimate reason for an Islamic state to undertake jih ā d today is to curb oppression and persecution in some other state whether Muslim or Non-Muslim. The Qur’ ā n (4:75) explicitly refers to this. www.javedahmadghamidi.com www.al-mawrid.org