Background
Islam was introduced to the world when Muhammad (Peace be upon him), the last of the prophets of God was sent to the people. The prophet hood of Muhammad marked the culmination point of the era that started with Adam (the first of the prophets) and consisted of a large number of prophets sent to all nooks and corners of the world, where ever the human societies exited. The holy book revealed to Muhammad, Al Quran, is the last of the holy books and marks the end of a direct one–on-one dialogue between the man and God. Quran is the only book whose responsibility of safe custody to maintain its originality has been taken up on by God Himself. One can now say with authenticity that whatever is written in the Quran is the true word of God. Similarly if someone now claims a direct talk or communication with God in any form, the claimant will be a false person. Quran is now the beacon of guidance for the whole mankind for all the people and for all times to come.
The Islam is a complete system of life. It is not only a collection of few prayers or religious rituals but encompasses all the aspects of social life like politics, economics, research and knowledge and international relations/contracts, just to name a few. The outlines of this system are given in the Holy Quran and were further elaborated by the holy Prophet Muhammad with his practical actions and sayings. After the death of the holy Prophet his sayings were compiled by different authors who were renowned religious scholars of their times. These books are called the books of Hadith ie the saying of the Prophet. Later on a large number of books were written by many scholars, thus laying the foundations for the Fiqa or the schools of thought. The authority of the Holy Quarn is supreme, followed by the Hadith and then the other books.
Concept of Peace
The word for peace in Islam is ‘salama’, which is akin to the Hebrew word ‘shalom’ in Judaism. This word is all encompassing and covers many aspects of human life, both in this word and hereinafter. The basic meaning of the word ‘Islam’ is also ‘peace, submission’. Islam demands submission of mankind to the sole authority of God and no one else. Once a person or the mankind as a whole totally submits to the will and authority of God, they come into the protection and then the peace follows automatically.
Islam is a religion that advocates peace and harmony among the mankind. Its message of peace is universal and above the distinctions of faiths, beliefs and races. According to Islam, man by virtue of being a human being is to be respected as God has made him respectable.
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Do you really believe that BS you post. Only one way to God, not the Quran, no Mohammad, he never claimed to be God in human flesh. How many time does he mention Love, not once, he was deceived by an angle of light into write a book for deceiving the half sons of Abraham. Mohammad never followed the God of Abraham, God chosen people. The elder shall be the servant of the younger.
The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) never claimed to be a God in human flesh. He was a human being like all other apostles and prophets of God. All prophets right from Adam to Muhammad (PBUH), including Jesus Christ, were human beings like you and me in the physical sense. The only difference being that the words of God were revealed on the prophets. The nature of that revelation could only be felt by the prophet himself and not by any ordinary persons.
Man is a creation and cannot become the creator ie God. God is an abstract reality that cannot be comprehended by physical human senses. The weakness and limitation of human mind since ages compelled the man to personify God in order to see and touch something material for the ease of worship. That created lot of religious stories and mythologies. Islam has no mythology. The message of God delivered to the mankind through the Quran is very simple. It spells out a practical and dynamic way of life, to achieve peace and prosperity in this world and hereinafter also.
The angle that revealed the words of God on Muhammad (PBUH), was very clear about the message, as same message had been revealed on all the prophets of God through ages. The only difference was that the message revealed on Muhammad (PBUH) was the final word that complemented the earlier messages and was to be saved / retained along with its every detail, being effectively applicable for all times and every people. God has taken the responsibility of the safety of the Quran on Himself. The result is that no other divine book exists in its original shape except the Quran.
As the message of the Quran is the continuation of earlier messages revealed by God, it is a must for a Muslim to believe in all the prophets who were sent to the mankind before Muhammad (OBUH) and all the divine books that were revealed on various prophets before the Quran. The same is clearly written in the Quran. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) also has said many a times that in order to be a true Muslim, one must have belief and faith in the previous prophets and the holy books. However, since the other divine books have been interpolated and altered extensively and do not exist in their original shape, they cannot be followed for the benefit of mankind. The proper code of conduct and a complete system of life is now available is the Quran only. So this not true that Muhammad (PBUH) had never followed God of Abraham or had never respected the God chosen people of the past. There are a large number of references written to this effect.
Regarding Muhammad (PBUH) mentioning love; the whole Quran and sayings of the Holy Prophet are proof of that. God says in Quran about Muhammad (PBUH), “And we have sent you nothing but mercy and benevolence for all the worlds”. Muhammad (PBUH) never took personal revenge from even the worst of his enemies. Once he went to Taif, a town near Mecca, to preach. The infidels of that town threw stones and wounded him. Someone suggested,” Why don’t you pray that God may destroy this town?” Muhammad (PBUH) said,” I have been sent as a mercy for the people and not as a torture. These people are the misguided ones. If not they, their next generations will come to the righteous path”.
Muhammad (PBUH) always stressed to love each other, particularly the children and the women. He laid so much stress on having close relations with the neighbor that someone said,” I was thinking that our neighbors may become the inheritors in our property”.
Regarding prisoners of war, Muhammad (PBUH) gave clear orders not to torture them or to hold them permanently. They ought to be set free either as a good will gesture or after imposing some financial penalty on the enemy.
On the eve of conquest of Mecca, the Holy Prophet announced general amnesty to all, even to his worst enemies like Abu Sufian. He even declared that any one taking refuge in the house of Abu Sufian will be considered as safe.
These are very few examples to mention, otherwise the Islamic literature is full of the teachings of love, peace, compassion, sympathy, tolerance and self sacrifice for the benefits of others. I would suffice to quote only one such saying. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said, “The best person amongst you is the one who possesses highest moral values and superb ethics. Even talking to each other in sweet and soft tone is also a kind of charity”.
The problem with people like you is that the stuff you see on the media in the name of Islam does not have any relevance with Islam. The enemies of Islam and those of the mankind are trying their best to display the distorted image of Islam, so that the people are not attracted to it after having seen the light of truth. This is the same mentality that was prevailing during early days of Islam. In those days whenever some Muslim would recite verses from the Quran, the infidels would start beating the drums and put fingers in their ears, so that the people do not listen to the truth. I would advise you and your friends to study the Quran in the language you understand, but with open mind and without any preconceived ideas. You will come to know about the amazing and wonderful facts of life and the universe, and you will not be disappointed.
Regards