| Islamic Principles are Based on Humanism and Non-Violence Islamic Principles are Based on Humanism and Non-Violence
The Divine religion of Islam is a religion of mercy, kindness and benevolence. In fact, Islam is against brutality, violence and viciousness. Allah, the Almighty, urged all Muslims to follow the pattern of Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Allah, the Almighty, states in the Glorious Quran addressing Mohammed (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), as in Sura Al-Imran, [The Family of Imran] 3:159, which reads as follows:“ It is part of the Mercy of Allah that thou dost deal gently with them. Wert thou severe or harsh-hearted, they would have broken away from about thee: so pass over (their faults), and ask for (Allah's) forgiveness for them; and consult them in affairs of moment). Then, when thou hast taken a decision, put thy trust in Allah. For Allah loves those who put their trust (in Him)”.
The teachings of Islam exhort upon every Muslim to show mercy, and kindness to every gullible and poor person. Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported to have said, which reads as follows:“ The merciful and kind people would get the Mercy of the Merciful Lord, Allah, the Almighty. Be merciful to those [people] on earth, and Allah, the Almighty, Who is in Heaven, would grant you [His] Mercy” .
Furthermore, Islam requires that mercy and kind treatment should be meted out to all people, including the fighting enemies of Muslims. Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported to have said, which reads as follows:“ Be kind and merciful to the captives” [] 22:393). If thus was the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) command to Muslims concerning the enemies who are fighting against them, what would be the treatment towards the peaceful people? Islamic mercy is not limited to human being only. Rather, it covers also to animals as well. In fact, several reports confirm the blessed reward for individuals who are kind to animals in general, and suffering animals in particular.
Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported to have said, which reads as follows:“ While a man was on a trip [in the wilderness], he felt very thirsty. He searched for water, and found a well. He managed to go to the bottom of the well in order to get to the water, as he had no equipment to reach the water from the surface. He suffered a great deal to reach to the bottom of the well. The man managed to quench his thirst and came out of the well. Upon reaching the surface he noticed a dog with his tongue stretched out because of severe thirst and inability to reach the water at the bottom of the well. The man thought to himself, Surely, this dog is suffering the same hardship I suffered because of severe thirst. Thus, the man went down the well again, with a great difficulty, and holding one of his shoes by his teeth, filled the shoe with water and brought it back up to the thirsty dog. The dog drank and went away. Allah, the Almighty, appreciated the action of this man and forgave his entire previous sins. One of the audience, who heard the statement of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) inquired, O Messenger of Allah! Would we be rewarded for being kind and merciful to animals? Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) asserted, truly, there is a blessed reward for being kind and merciful to every living creature that has a wet liver [i.e. alive animal]”
In fact, a woman deserved the penalty and the wrath of Allah, the Almighty, and was to become one of the dwellers of the Fire of Hell, as a result of her cruelty to a cat. Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported to have said, which reads as follows:“ A woman would become a dweller of the Fire of Hell, as a result of ill and cruel treatment of a cat. The woman locked the cat up and tied her. She did not offer proper food for the cat, and neither let it fetch for her own food in the surrounding” .
The list of the Prophet's (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) commands to Muslims to be kind, merciful, and kindhearted even to animals is endless. We only cited above few examples. Some other examples are as under:
Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported to have said, while passing by a donkey that was tattooed on his face, “ May Allah's Curse descends on the person who placed this tattoo on the face of the donkey” . Ibn Omar (may Allah be pleased with him) is reported to have passed by a group of young men from the tribe of Quraish who set up a bird as a shooting target. They were shooting their arrows on that bird, as a target. Ibn Omar (may Allah be pleased with him) inquired, 'Who placed this bird as a shooting target? May Allah's Curse descend on the person who did. Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported to have said, which reads as follows:“ Allah, the Almighty, curses the person who sets any living creature as a shooting target aiming to shoot it” .
Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported to have said while passing by a camel who appeared to be extremely thin of hunger, “ Be mindful and honor the Commandments of Allah (subhanahu wa ta'ala) concerning these animals, which can't express its needs by speech. Ride them while they are in good shape. Eat them while they are also in good shape” .
Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) commands Muslims to show kindness in every action, even at slaughtering an animal. Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported to have said, which reads as follows:“ Allah, the Almighty, prescribes perfection in every action. If you kill, be perfect in your killing. If you slaughter an animal for meat, perfect your act of slaughtering. Sharpen your knife and be good, kind, and merciful to the animal you are about to slaughter. Give the slaughtered animal the best comfort you can while being slaughtered”
Allah's Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is reported to have said, on noticing someone shooting, for fun, a little bird, and leaving it to die for no reason, “ This little bird would argue, before Allah, the Almighty, on the Day of Judgment, O My Lord! This man killed me for no reason of benefit to him” .
If such was the mercy and kindness to animals and living creatures, what about the human being, who is given full preference, honor and respect over all other creatures? Allah, the Almighty, states in the Glorious Quran, Sura Isra [The Night Journey] 17:70, which reads as follows:“ We have honored the sons of Adam; provided them with transport on land and sea; given them for sustenance things good and pure; and conferred on them special favors, above a great part of Our Creation”.  |
Linear Mode
