“In your name, O God!
This is the treaty of peace between Muhammad Ibn Abdullah and Suhayl ibn Amr. They have agreed to allow their arms to rest for ten years. During this time each party shall be secure, and neither shall harm the other; no secret damage shall be inflicted, but honesty and honor shall prevail between them. Whoever in Arabia wishes to enter into a treaty or covenant with Muhammad can do so, and whoever wishes to enter into a treaty or covenant with the Quraysh can do so. And if a Qurayshite comes without the permission of his guardian to Muhammad, he shall be delivered up to the Quraysh; but if, on the other hand, one of Muhammad's people comes to the Quraysh, he shall not be delivered up to Muhammad. This year, Muhammad, with his companions, must withdraw from Mecca, but next year, he may come to Mecca and remain for three days, yet without their weapons except those of a traveler, the swords remaining in their sheaths.” Thus, enemies have become to become tolerant of each other’s existence.
Citing this treaty has a purpose to remind that it is our history and it is still considered the epitome of documenting tolerance between the two totally different and hostile parties; one was Muslims and other was the Quraysh who were Non Muslims. Despite the prevailing extreme-animosity between the two parties, they agreed to respect each other and ensured the safety of life and property. No doubt, that our beloved prophet Muhammad PBUH had played the major role in the documentation of this treaty so that there would not be any more loss of life on either side because to him a human’s life was the most scared thing.
Alas! Look at ourselves today, unfortunately! We are totally different than what we must have been. Leave the debate over how very good we are at the practicing of our religion or say doing fundamental worships. The worst thing penetrated fast in our society is that we are intolerant most towards each other. We all like to be called Muslims but have no respect for each other’s sect. We only like to follow what our closed-identities guide us to pursue. We no longer remember that we are the followers of same Lord, Prophet and the Holy Book but we only keep adhering to what our particular sect make us to believe in. Our hearts so closed in this aspect that we have started people branding or disbelievers, whoever is out of the particular circle of the sect that we follow. Our history tells that our Prophet respected even his enemies but being the followers of the same Prophet now we are happened to be almost enemies to each other on the sectarian basis.
Let me stress on this grave reality that this very intolerance alone is capable of eradication us all. There is no need of any drone, suicidal attack or foreign war to be imposed over us. For a fact, with the approaching day of any sectarian-religious practice which is publicly practiced, entire cities are shut down due to the looming fear of violence and riots tat might follow. Instead of carrying on with life and letting other groups practice what they choose to practice, our cities and lives come to a stand still and we all suffer. The measures to be taken in this respect are to shut down ever single department of the city life and that’s how we can show the tolerance to each others. Our government, very regularly suspend the cellular service for long hours on such occasions that only result in more suffering especially in the wake of emergency. That’s how we show tolerance that we sit at home shutting down every department of life and praying that may the day pass with peace.
The reason that has paved way to this perilous situation is our own faults that we teach intolerance at homes, at institutions and at every place where a particular sect people meet or talk. The very bonding element of adhering to one God and Prophet has become secondary but we only follow what are sayings of our present day leaders. It is good that one should have a spiritual leader but one also needs to have a spiritual tolerance to the rest of the society people. We should not regard or brand the other sectarian people as infidels. Sadly, we do it even without thinking the dangerous future that we are going to give our coming generations. It seems now that all what we want to educate our children is to respect the people only who follow the same sect that we are from and also teach them telling that the rest of sectarian people are infidels. We have no fear of the day when our kids would be doing the same thing-taking bamboos in their hands, damaging all the property and killing each other in the name of religion rather sect appropriately.
Guys, we are in a dire need of teaching tolerance or sectarian-harmony at all the levels; homes, institutions and all the social congregations. There is no need and more importantly use of teaching our kids about the closed identities that we have been following so far and so blindly. It has done nothing good in any way to us yet has uprooted everything that is referred as good nations. It has finished our economy, ethics, social stability and most importantly our humanity. Go in the world and see it that there are many cosmopolitan societies and they have the marvelous tolerance towards every fraction of the society. Whereas, we who had learnt it from the history of our very own religion have neglected it so badly that now this intolerance is only endangering us in a pitfall more and more every day that is passing. We have the best example of our beloved Prophet (PBUH) to learn the tolerance in its totality. We need to open up our minds and hearts to each other with total honest-respect. Also to open up our religious places, those were never indented to be opened earlier unfortunately. Then surely, time would come when our generations would stand up, all and together following any sect but adhering one identity of a good human. If we teach our kids in this manner so there would not be so late for a very prosperous society who happily nourishes each fraction and sectarian people.
