Childrens Own Page
Two Strange Rivals
”And everyone hath a direction (goal) towards which he turneth his face. Try ye to excel each other in doing good.”
وَلِكُلٍّ وِجْهَةٌ هُوَ مُوَلِّيهَا فَٱسْتَبِقُوا۟ ٱلْخَيْرَٰتِ أَيْنَ مَا تَكُونُوا۟ يَأْتِ بِكُمُ ٱللَّهُ
جَمِيعًا إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ قَدِيرٌ
Al-Baqara (The Cow) 2:148
DEAR CHILDREN, — In my last I told you something of the chivalry of Islam. I told you how the great Muslim King and Conqueror, Salah-ud-Din the Great, personally tended his adversary, Richard, in the guise of a physician and succeeded in healing him. On another occasion it so happened that just at the time when the armies of Islam and Christianity were ranged against one another and the battle was at its hottest, the mare of Richard was wounded and dropped dead. Thereon Salah-ud-Din sent him one of his own best steeds as a present for Islamic code of chivalry forbade to fight a foe at a disadvantage. This greatly impressed the English King and ever after, it is recorded in English history, he would recount with pride, as surrounded by his knights he would sit at his table, his encounters with the heroes of Islam. English bards sang the praises of the Chivalry of Salah-ud-Din the Great.
To-day let me tell you the story of how early Muslims vied with one another in self-sacrifice and service of fellowmen. The verse at the top tells Muslims what their motto should be. Every people have a motto, a goal, in the light of which they regulate their daily lives. They compete with one another in the realization of the goal. What is a Muslim to compete for? A Muslim must compete with another in the race of doing good. And wonderful was the way indeed, in which this spirit of the Quranic teachings was imbibed by the early Muslims.
There lived a very aged and decrepit woman in the suburbs of Medina, the capital of Islam. She had nobody to look after her. The misery of her lonely and helpless life was heightened by the fact that she had also lost her eyesight. Umar heard about the wretched plight of this woman and made it a point to call on her and do personal service to her. Early one morning he went to her cottage but on arriving there he found that everything necessary had been done. The house had been swept, the water pitchers filled, and food served. Thus, disappointed he said good-bye to the blind woman, promising to return the following morning to do these little jobs for her. The woman blessed him. The following morning Umar went earlier than before but disappointment was once more in store for him. Somebody had again anticipated him in this labour of love.
“Who is it,” he asked the woman. “Who comes so early and sweeps your floor and provides-all your needs.”
“O brother,” said the woman. “How can I tell? I am blind and don’t know who this invisible benefactor of mine is. He comes very early in the morning while I am yet in bed and does all this for me and then quietly slips away.”
“Well,” said Umar to himself. “I must find out this man, even if I were to keep a vigil the whole night.”
And next morning he hastened to the old woman’s cottage while it was yet dark and awaited the appearance of this mysterious visitor who had deprived him of any service to the old woman. And lo the mysterious man loomed in the morning dusk in the distance, coming with hasty steps towards the cottage. “At last, I have got him,” said Umar to himself, eagerly looking forward to who he might turn out to be.
“Hallo!” he shouted, as his eyes fell on the familiar venerable aristocratic old face” Hello, Abu Bakr! Is it you? I had been myself suspecting that it must be you.”
And then he related to him how he had been visiting the cottage and being disappointed had resolved to find the man out.
“God be blessed,” said Abu Bakr, and after looking to the needs of the old woman, the two friends turned back to Medina.
This, dear children, was what made Islam great and glorious. If you want that glory to come back you must revive that true Islam which meant life, practical daily life, lived in doing the will of the Lord and service to fellow man. Islam is a name not for any texts or rites and rituals. It is a name for high and lofty and noble morals lived in daily life.
Divine Dictators
Dear Children,
We live in an age of Dictators. You must have heard about the mushroom growth of dictators in many countries of the world. Russia has her Stalin, Italy, her Mussolini and their word is law unto their people. Germany has her Hitler, and a law was recently enacted in that country making any criticism of his person an offence punishable with a long term of imprisonment. His word is law unto his people. According to an English saying the king can do no wrong. That however is a mere platitude, so far as the king is concerned. If this adage is true of anyone, it is the modern Dictator. Anyone who dares challenge the will of any of the half a dozen of Dictators in the various countries had better prepare himself for the gallows or the firing squad. These Dictators are a great danger to the peace of mankind. Any time the whim for war may seize any one of them and he may plunge the whole world into bloodshed and carnage. You may well ask, “What about dictators in Islam? Were not the Caliphs of the early days of Islam virtually dictators?”
The Caliph in Islam was no doubt the sole head of the Muslim State and he had the entire control and direction of the state machinery into his hands. His authority was, however, based on and derived from a yet higher authority – the authority of the law of Islam. So long as he acted in conformity with the law of Islam, his authority was binding on Muslims. The moment he deviated from that law; he forfeited his right to the people’s submission to his authority.
Abu Bakr was the first Caliph who succeeded the Prophet ﷺ. On taking the reins of Government into his hands he delivered an address to his people in which he said:
“I am in no way superior to you. If I go wrong, put me right. If, however, 1 do the right thing, help me.”
Umar the second Caliph was a more thorough-going man. He was not content with mere theoretical enunciation of his position. One day as he was addressing the congregation in the Prophet’s mosque, he put to his audience the question:
“Muslims! What will you do if I become lax in observing the principles of Islam and incline to worldliness?”
Thereupon one man rose from amidst the congregation and, unsheathing his sword, said:
“With this shall your head go off.”
Umar, in order to test how far he was in earnest, said:
“Do you know what you say and to whom you say it?”
“Indeed, I do,” said the man undaunted – “I mean what I say, and I know whom I am addressing.”
“Thank God,” said Umar, “that among Muslims, there are men who would even set Umar right at the point of the sword if he were to go wrong.”
Such, dear children, were these Divine Dictators in Islam. They did not consider themselves a bit superior to the meanest of their people, for this fundamental equality of all men is the bedrock of Islamic teachings. These Dictators were the living embodiment of this essence of the message of Islam. History records numerous events from their lives how they looked upon themselves as much of common human beings and as much subject to the law as the commonest of men in the State of Islam.
Once, it is related that a certain man had a cause for complaint against Umar. He forthwith sued the Caliph in the Court of the Qazi, Zaid-bin-Thabit. The Qazi summoned the Caliph to appear before him and answer the charge against him. The Caliph came. But as he entered the court, the Qazi stood up to receive him and offered his own seat to him. “This is your first act of injustice”, said Umar and humbly took his seat by the side of the complainant.
(Edited and printed by M. Y. Khan at Ripon Printing Press, Bull Road, Lahore and Published by him from The Light Office, Ahmadiyya Buildings, Lahore. January 8, 1937.)
