Conflict Resolution: A Culture of Peace
This is the eighth in a series of articles on the key principles of dealing with conflict in accordance with the guidance of Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) from the seminar The Prophetic Principles of Conflict Resolution.
Allah says:
وَلَا تَسْتَوِى ٱلْحَسَنَةُ وَلَا ٱلسَّيِّئَةُ ۚ ٱدْفَعْ بِٱلَّتِى هِىَ أَحْسَنُ فَإِذَا ٱلَّذِى بَيْنَكَ وَبَيْنَهُۥ عَدَٰوَةٌۭ كَأَنَّهُۥ وَلِىٌّ حَمِيمٌۭ
“Nor equal are the good deed and the ill: Repel with that which is fairer, and lo, he between you and whom there is great enmity shall be as if he were a zealous friend.” [Quran, 41:34; tr. Keller, Quran Beheld]
Allah says:
فَبِمَا رَحْمَةٍۢ مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ لِنتَ لَهُمْ ۖ وَلَوْ كُنتَ فَظًّا غَلِيظَ ٱلْقَلْبِ لَٱنفَضُّوا۟ مِنْ حَوْلِكَ ۖ
“So only by a tremendous mercy from Allah did you soften towards them: Had you been harsh and hard-hearted, they would have scattered broken from around you.” [Quran, 3:159; tr. Keller, Quran Beheld]
Whenever we have a problem or conflict be at the side of the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace). Do not leave any room for violence. What did the Quraysh do to the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) before he left Makka? The Embargo that the Quraysh did for reportedly 3 years, resulted in the death of our mother Khadija and Abu Talib. The first hadith that we have when the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) arrived in Madina. It was narrated by the then-Jewish Rabbi Abdullah ibn Salam:
Abdullah ibn Salam reported: When the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, came to Medina, the people rushed toward him. They said, “The Messenger of Allah has come!” I came along with the people to see him. When I looked at the face of the Prophet, I realized that his face was not the face of a liar. The first thing the Prophet said was, “O people, spread peace. Feed the hungry. Pray at night when people are sleeping. You will enter Paradise in peace.”
Allah says:
وَعِبَادُ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلَّذِينَ يَمْشُونَ عَلَى ٱلْأَرْضِ هَوْنًۭا وَإِذَا خَاطَبَهُمُ ٱلْجَـٰهِلُونَ قَالُوا۟ سَلَـٰمًۭا
“And the true servants of the All-Merciful are those who walk softly on the earth; and when coarse fools address them, answer so as to part with them in peace.” [Quran, 25:63; tr. Keller, Quran Beheld]
We need to have a culture of peace. Can you imagine that girls used to be buried alive? Narrated Abu Musa: Some people asked Allah’s Messenger (Allah bless him and give him peace), “Whose Islam is the best?” I.e. Who is a very good Muslim? He replied, “One who avoids harming the Muslims with his tongue and hands.”
