From time immemorial, there have been two diametrically different faiths in the world. One stresses that God is wadud (the all-loving and all-embracing). Al Wadud, one of the names of God in Quran, shows that He is truly forgiving, all-embracing in His love, as is enunciated in Surah Al-Buruj. Going by this, those who believe that “God is love” embrace a world of differing religions and are devoted to saving rather than destroying humanity.
They epitomise the spiritual symbiosis embedded in almost all religions “to save a life is to protect the whole mankind”. Psychologically, they are the healthy human beings and pose no threat to any section of society. On the contrary, the other group of believers propound that “fear of God” should be given preference over love for Him.
This line of thinking paves the way for those who play the role of takfiris or crusaders forcibly imposing “God’s will” apropos their own concocted interpretation of faith. In a crazy bid to prove themselves as pious religionists, they even usurp the personal right of one’s freedom of religion, freedom of expression and act coercively and violently to impose their own motives in the name of God’s will.
Islam shows God’s love for man as infinite, all-inclusive and all encompassing. Those claiming God’s love for His creations is restricted are doing a blunder. Not a single creature is exempted from His bountiful grace and divine mercy. Prophet Muhammad said, “When God created His creatures, He wrote in the book: ‘Verily, My mercy prevailed over My wrath.’”
Once, Prophet Muhammad and his companions saw a mother bird with her babies in a nest.She was feeding worms to her babies. Her actions were so loving, tender and gentle that the companions were pleasantly surprised at the display of her natural love.
This beautiful and fascinating scene reminded the Prophet of God’s infinite love for man and, therefore, he smiled and asked his companions, “Are you surprised at the love this mother bird shows to her babies? Let me tell you that God loves man 70 times more than this mother!”
Ghulam Rasool Dehlvi is an alim (classical Islamic scholar) and a Delhi-based writer. He can be contacted at: grdehlavi@gmail.com
