Burning the Quran is not pleasant

Dr. Ibrahim Islam

(dribrahimislam9141@gmail.com)

The Qur’an is the book of guidance sent by Allah Ta’ala. In this Quran, there are all the guidelines for managing the life of mankind. From the beginning of creation, Allah Ta’ala has described the words of all the Prophets and Messengers and the descriptions of various heavenly books and the Qur’an. This Qur’an is the emancipation document of mankind and was revealed during the 23 years of Prophet Muhammad’s (PBUH) life. Even when this Quran was revealed, some people opposed it. But a holy book like the Qur’an is a far cry! No one could make even a small surah. But some people tried in that era but did not succeed. Because the one who revealed this Quran for the guidance of people declared, “I (Allah) revealed the Quran. And of course, I am its protector.” (Surah Hijr-Ayat 9) We have not heard of any other book making such a declaration. I will not listen in the future. Does it not prove that the Qur’an is the word of God?

Recently, two people set fire to a copy of the Holy Quran on the holy day of Eid-ul-Azha outside the Central Mosque in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden. We do not have the language to condemn this incident. No one can give an example of a Muslim making ugly comments or insults against other religions’ deities or religious books. But thousands of examples can be presented of their ugly statements and derision against Islam. Some anthropomorphic inhumans who hate Islam are sometimes doing the worst thing, like setting fire to the pages of the Quran, sometimes with Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH). Today in Sweden and tomorrow in Denmark, such painful events are happening. But they are not being judged. As a result, they are being careless and going against Islam. This Quran is not only read by Muslims but cherished in their hearts. The hearts of Muslims have been severely hurt by setting fire to the pages of the Quran. When Muslims tear a page from the Quran and it falls on the ground, they pick it up and kiss it repeatedly.

It is not pleasant to insult the Quran. But the Swedish court has given permission to commit this crime, which is not acceptable in any way. A miscreant named Salwan Momika set fire to pages of the Quran in front of Stockholm’s largest mosque on Eid al-Adha on June 28. This incident has burned the hearts of all peace-loving people in the world. The reason why Salwan Momika, a refugee from Iraq, became angry with the Quran, needs to be investigated. It remains to be seen whether he did it out of his own intelligence or to fulfil someone else’s agenda. Salwan Momika once again announced that she would burn the Iraqi flag and the Quran in front of the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm in the next 10 days to not dry up the wounds of this incident. It is unfathomable how much ignorance a person can have and declare to set the Quran on fire again! We think that in the interests of world peace, the Swedish government should ensure the punishment of this murderer as soon as possible.

No one applauded the burning of the Quran; Rather, heads of government of different countries, heads of religious political parties, and people of different religions have also strongly condemned this incident. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) strongly condemned the burning of copies of the Quran. The agency said such acts by extremists are unacceptable and called on governments worldwide to take effective measures to prevent the recurrence of such acts. Like other countries in the world, the Bangladesh government strongly condemned this incident. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that Bangladesh is deeply concerned about the insulting of the sacred values of Muslims all over the world in the name of freedom of speech. All the religious and political parties in Bangladesh strongly condemned the incident of the Quran burning. Especially Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami acting Ameer and former MP Professor Mujibur Rahman strongly condemned and protested the incident of the Quran burning. He said in Bibi that this incident is very disgusting, dishonourable, and provocative. This incident has hit the hearts of Muslims all over the world. Such senseless actions not only create hatred in society but also give rise to violence.

The history of the early period of Islam is more or less known to everyone. Once, Muslims ruled half the world. Epistemology and justice were role models. Everyone was respectful of freedom of speech, equal rights of expression, and other religions or opinions. No one was oppressed at all. Because they thought that everyone was created by the same God. But looking at today’s world, it seems that the world has turned into hell. No one can say that all the religious books in the world contain the welfare of all people, the management of life, or the solution to all problems. But the Qur’an has repeatedly described the welfare of all people. All books have some mistakes. But there is no mistake in the Quran. Many people converted to Islam after finding fault with the Qur’an. Many examples can be given. Incidentally, I mentioned former Christian preacher Professor Dr. Gary Miller of Canada. He tried to find mistakes in the Holy Quran to make it easier to campaign against Islam and the Quran. But after reading the Quran, he accepted Islam and became a Muslim. He said, After reading the Quran, I realised that my idea was not correct. Verse 82 of Surah Nisa plunged me into deep thought. Allah Ta’ala says, What do they not pay attention to in the Qur’an? If it had been revealed by anyone other than Allah, it would have seen many contradictions.

Muslims are a nation that believes in peace. If you look at the history of the golden past of the world, it will be seen that the most beautiful and golden age was during Muslim rule. There was a Golden Age of Islam, excluding the Caliphate period of the four Caliphs. So if someone thinks that Muslims don’t have that golden age, why burn the Quran, tear the Quran, or what? No one can protest. This idea is wrong. The Muslim nation will not sit in an orderly manner if anyone insults the name of the Quran or the name of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). It will resist. What happened in Sweden is not just an attack on the Quran and Muslims; Rather, this attack is an attack on humanity, morals, and values. No sane person can insult the religious books of any religion. A sane person should not do the work of a mad person. Insulting religious texts or religion cannot be freedom of expression in any way.

Blaspheming God in the name of freedom of expression is just as inappropriate as it is a heinous crime to burn the Quran, the religious book of Muslims. Burning this book is an insult to all Muslim communities in the world. The emergence of such events is a threat to any religion. Burning the Quran in the name of freedom of expression has become their instinct. It needs to be stopped.

Islam is a religion of peace. Islam talks about humanity. Talk about human rights. People of all professions and followers of different religions are safe in Islam. It should be noted that in the great book Al-Qur’an, not only Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is mentioned, but other prophets and messengers are also described. Twenty-five prophets, including Hazrat Musa (a.s.) and Hazrat Isa (a.s.), are mentioned. So, when this Quran is burned, they are also burned. When paper is burned, it becomes ash. If the Qur’an is burned, it also turns to ashes. But the words of the Quran do not become ashes, even if they are burned. Because Allah Ta’ala himself has taken the responsibility of safeguarding it. If you look at the history of Islam, you will find many examples of this. Whether the incident in Sweden is just an insult or there is a deep conspiracy behind it, the leadership of the Muslim Ummah needs to look into it.

All those who sided against the Quran are zero. And those who have sided with the Quran have become heroes from zero. Allah Ta’ala has increased their status. But those who disrespected this Quran could not live in peace. Many have been punished in this world. Hazrat Umar (ra) was zero before accepting Islam. And after accepting Islam, he came into contact with the Quran and became a hero from zero. So burning the Quran will not end the matter. One shuddered to think how those who presented themselves as civilised were attacking the fundamental beliefs of others. This is not the only time the Quran has been burned in Sweden! Earlier in 2020 and 2022, the Quran was desecrated. As a result, many people have died in violence in different parts of the world. On March 15, 2019, 49 people were killed in the attacks on Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Mosque in Christchurch, New Zealand.

This incident has wounded the hearts of conscientious people all over the world. New Zealand’s Christchurch earthquake made headlines around the world. But no loud words were heard about this incident. Attributing violence to its source is not pleasant at all. This despicable act has struck a chord in every Muslim’s heart. The question is, Why do they burn the Quran? The direct answer is that it is their innate nature. First of all, some do the despicable thing for virality or fame. Secondly, this work can be done for the sake of spreading violence among the followers of Islam. Islam never believes in terrorism. Rather, the view of Islam is that there is no superiority of white over black, no superiority of black over white, no superiority of non-Arab over Arab, and no superiority of Arab over non-Arab. Among the people of all religions in the world, Muslims are the most oppressed. If Muslims struggle for their rightful freedom in any part of the world, then they are called extremists, terrorists, or fundamentalists. When countries like Israel, America, Russia, or Myanmar indulge in the Holi game of occupying independent land and killing innocent people, no one calls them terrorists, radical Hindus, or fundamentalists. But why? It is important to find the answer to that question. Whoever is involved in creating violence or religious frenzy needs to be brought to book and stop such heinous acts.