The two concepts that best complement any sentence mentioning “humanity” and that bring beauty to every word about humankind are peace and mercy. Without these two words, it is nearly impossible to provide a true definition of humanity or to articulate its unique position in the realm of existence. Indeed, humanity stands out on Earth as the ambassador of peace and the embodiment of mercy. What sets humans apart from other living beings is not physical or biological attributes but rather a conscious morality values such as peace and mercy. In Islamic thought, these concepts of peace and mercy are central to explaining humanity’s purpose and the wisdom behind its presence on Earth. According to Islam, the purpose and primary duty of humanity on Earth are to live in alignment with values such as goodness, peace, justice, and mercy through sincere devotion to Allah, striving to strengthen these values and establish an environment of harmony and security.
Allah the Almighty impressively expresses this noble ideal in the Qur’an: “O believers! Enter into Islam wholeheartedly and do not follow Satan’s footsteps. Surely he is your sworn enemy.” (Baqarah, 2:208) In essence, both the words “Islam” and “Muslim”, in their root and terminological meanings, most clearly and comprehensively convey the concept of peace. Thus, peace is a foundational concept in Islamic thought, morality, and worldview. The system of values people uphold, along with the feelings of peace and mercy they carry in their hearts, manifests in their responses to life. Their interactions and relationships with themselves, others, society, and nature reflect the ideals of peace and mercy that they embody. For this reason, our beloved Prophet describes a Muslim as “one from whose hands and tongue others are safe”. When we look at his hadiths, we see that a believer is someone who embodies a sense of responsibility, toward Allah the Almighty above all, but also toward family, neighbors, the environment, animals, the oppressed, orphans, and those in need, and reflects this in their actions. Indeed, throughout history, civilizations built on the guidance of the Qur’an and the sunnah have demonstrated the finest examples of justice and law, peace and mercy, serving as a guarantee of tranquility and security for all humanity. However, beginning in the 18th century, we see that a dark era in terms of values emerged across the world. In an era termed the “enlightenment”, humanity experienced an unprecedented level of wars, suffering, global catastrophes, environmental crises, turmoil, and despair. While science, technology, transportation, and communication advanced at a dizzying pace, values that bring tranquility to humanity such as peace, security, and sharing have drastically weakened.
In recent years, the world has been engulfed by significant political, economic, and social crises. On one hand, we witness rampant wastefulness, selfishness, and complacency, while on the other, more than half of the global population is condemned to lives plagued by hunger, poverty, misery, and social problems.Wars, terrorist organizations, and pandemics have dragged millions into a vortex of bloodshed, tears, and hopelessness. This is a reality known to anyone living in this era with the awareness to observe what is unfolding around them. One of the most common phrases used over the past century to describe life is that we are living in the “age of speed”. Everything moves so quickly that people often lack the time for self-reflection, for contemplating existence, truth, and meaning, and are frequently forced to follow life and events from behind. Yet, these are only portrayals of “what” is happening on our planet. What truly matters and what will contribute to a better future is to reveal “why” these things are happening. In an undesirable and painful situation, the crucial step is to accurately identify the causes behind the symptoms, enabling a realistic diagnosis and an appropriate prescription for healing.
In this context, one of the most serious causes behind the crises, disasters, and tragedies experienced from the individual level to the global scale in the modern era is the sidelining of human values and the corruption of natural disposition. Essentially, this is a profound crisis of truth and mercy. The loss of truth has led to a deep crisis of meaning, while the loss of mercy has resulted in a severe moral crisis. Unfortunately, the paradigms of the modern era have overlooked the connection between humanity and the transcendent being, Allah. As a result, humans have lost awareness of their noble mission on Earth and their responsibility and accountability to divine authority. Yet, humanity is a dignified being (Isra, 17:70) created in the most beautiful form (Tin, 95:4), endowed with superior qualities (Balad, 90:8-10), appointed as a vicegerent (Baqarah, 2:30), and entrusted with the task of ensuring that goodness and mercy prevail on Earth while eliminating evil (Al-i ‘Imran, 3:104). Similarly, in the modern era, humanity has been highlighted solely in its physical dimension and regarded through a powercentered perspective as if it were merely an element of natural selection. However, what distinguishes humans as unique and special in the realm of existence are their virtues and sense of responsibility.
Today, it has become painfully clear that international projects and expenditures based on peace and mercy are dwarfed by budgets allocated for war. The investments made by the world’s dominant powers in the arms industry and technology far exceed spending on humanitarian sectors, particularly health, by thousands of times. Unfortunately, over the past century, global centers with the power to influence humanity have created fronts centered on war, power, and conflict, rather than on projects promoting mercy, peace, and tranquility. As a result, vulnerable regions have been transformed into lands of blood and tears, plagued by rampant attacks, proxy wars, and laboratories of terrorism and discord. Even more tragically, the perpetrators of these atrocities and oppressions, through the use of informational tools, camouflage their horrific actions behind the guise of peace, presenting themselves as guardians of peace while extinguishing hope and possibilities for genuine reconciliation. This is what is happening in Palestine, Gaza, and Lebanon… Scenes of babies being torn apart by bombs flash across screens like an animated film… The Zionist Israeli regime surpasses even the Pharaohs in its oppression and inhumane policies. The reality that the dominant imperial powers fail to understand is that peace and tranquility cannot be ensured on Earth without bringing peace and harmony to Palestine and other oppressed regions. The flames rising from the territories they have turned into battlegrounds will also engulf them. Therefore, everyone who values peace, mercy, tranquility, and security on Earth must work diligently to establish peace and well-being in regions besieged by oppression and war.
On the other hand, human peace, security, and well-being have become entirely dependent on the advancement of technology, transportation, and communication, while values centered on mercy have been excluded from the ideal conception of humanity. Laboratories that disregard mercy have become the subjects of sentences that evoke the nightmares and disasters of humanity.
The force that gives life to humanity and sustains it is mercy, which precedes money and material possessions. The means that facilitate life stem from mercy before they arise from technology. Indeed, these developments serve the betterment of humanity only when rooted in mercy; without it, the economy, material goods, and technology can transform into mechanisms of oppression, cruelty, and torture. Therefore, during these challenging times marked by global confusion and the search for direction, if a global consciousness can emerge, humanity will have found a path toward hope for the future. Conversely, sacrificing common sense and rationality in troubling times to feelings of anxiety and panic will further undermine human values.
The sole guarantee of people’s inner peace is to establish communication with themselves on the foundation of mercy. People who do not align their minds and hearts with the guidance of mercy are doomed to become alienated from themselves and their true nature. Indeed, cooperation, sharing, positive thinking, and acts of kindness primarily benefit their own hearts. Conversely, pride, selfishness, envy, and negative thoughts and emotions will first and foremost harm their own hearts. When people’s hearts are attuned to peace and tranquility through mercy and sincerity, to confine themselves to lives centered on image and ambition is to do a disservice to themselves. The tragedy of humanity lies in the erasure of mercy from their hearts.
Humanity must realize that it is impossible to construct a peaceful life outside the realm of mercy; if it cannot build a world based on mercy, no digital model it creates will bring peace and security. Therefore, before the marvels of design and technology in the form of chips, humanity needs to implant the gem of mercy in the human heart. Indeed, no object, miraculous device, or security system can make people feel safer and more at peace than carrying a heart filled with mercy.
Certainly, there are individuals and entities that have become so distant from mercy that they are unable to find their way back to their hearts, chasing after wild dreams fueled by the resources and technology at their disposal. However, it is also a clear truth that those who take mercy, common sense, and good ethics as their guiding principles are stronger and will ultimately prevail.
