Maulana Wahiduddin Khan is an Islamic spiritual scholar, who has adopted peace as the mission of his life. He was born in a family of landlords in 1925 at Badharia, a village near the town of Azamgarh, in the eastern United Provinces, now the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. After his father’s death in December 1929 and his mothers soon later, he was brought up by his uncle, Sufi Abdul Hamid Khan. He comments that becoming an orphan gave him a challenge very early in life and he learnt that that to succeed in life you have to take such situations as challenges and not as problems. Being an advocate of result-oriented and positive action, he explains that if you take such situations as problems, the result is only negative as you either try to fight to remove them or complain or protest against them. On the other hand, if you take such situations as challenges, you can positively and constructively work to overcome them yourself as and when opportunities present themselves. His success in life is largely due to the implementation of this and other such principles, which he has derived from Islamic Scriptures.

Since his family was involved in India’s freedom struggle since the beginning, as a very young man, he became a staunch nationalist in the period prior to India gaining its independence in 1947 and he continues to be one till today. Although his brother, Abdul Muhit Khan, his cousin Iqbal Ahmad Sohail and other members of his family were sent to western-style schools for their education, the young Wahiduddin was enrolled at a traditional Islamic seminary, the Madrasatul Islah, in Sarai Mir, near Azamgarh in 1938, in order to train as an alim. Here he spent six years, completing the alim course, graduating in 1944. Although he had unconsciously loved to live with nature from childhood, during his days at the seminary he learnt that the Quran teaches man to observe and reflect on nature – God’s creation. Here, he consciously began to imbibe this principle in his life and observation and reflection became the seed that were to develop scientific temper and analysis in him, which he effectively uses till today in both religious and secular fields.

After graduating from a seminary of traditional Islamic learning, he started interacting with people to begin his life – considering his education to be complete. Coincidentally, the people that he came across had received a modern education in the English medium. During some of these interactions, he was deeply shocked to realize that although his education had been completed, he was not able to respond to statements and questions put to him by others such as, “You can believe in religion only as a matter of faith at it only has primary rationalism and not secondary rationalism” and “If Prophet Muhammad was taken out of history, how will history change?” Questions such as these presented a new challenge to him.

His elder brother wanted him to join the family business, but realizing that without studying English, modern and science, his education would be incomplete, young Khan immersed himself in learning English and then went on to study innumerable books on science and contemporary thought. Developing a voracious appetite for knowledge, he would visit the library early in the morning and leave only when requested to do so by the librarian at closing time. His quest for knowledge can be gauged by the fact that, even today – at the age of eighty – he talks less and listens more. All visitors coming to him are constantly questioned by him so that he may gain fresh knowledge from interacting with them.
As a result of his quest and resulting research, he became well versed in both classical Islamic learning and modern science. He then came to the conclusion that the need of the hour was to present Islamic teachings in the style and language of the post-scientific era. Khan’s primary concern has been to express Islam as a perfectly suitable ideology for the modern age. Having a deep understanding of the original Arabic scriptures and with his extensive research in the fields of modern thought and science, Maulana presented to the world the real face of Islam in the modern idiom and based on peace, tolerance and co-existence, not the violence as it is misunderstood and misrepresented today.

He deals at great length in his writings with issues related to pluralism, inter-faith dialogue and peace – issues that he sees both the Islamists, with their radical rhetoric; and quietists, such as the Tablighi Jamaat, with their refusal to look beyond formulations of traditional fiqh, are unable, if not unwilling, to seriously consider. To Khan’s own distinct understanding of how Islam can be understood in the modern world, an understanding which claims to be both authentic and at the same time relevant in today’s context, we now turn.

Upon completion of his research, in 1955, he published his first book Naye Ahd Ke Darwaze Par or On The Threshold of a New Era. This book was further elaborated upon in his next work Ilme Jadid Ka Challenge or Islam and modern challenges, which was later published as God Arises and was the result of his exhaustive research. The culmination of his research was his book Al Islam in which he presented the ideology developed by him. He has continued to write since then and has authored over 200 books. His book, God Arises has been accepted as the standard on Islamic position on modern thought and has been incorporated in the curricula of universities at over six Arab countries. It has been translated into various languages such as English, Arabic, Malay, Turkish, Hindi, Malayalam and Sindhi. Its Arabic version has been published under the title of Al-Islam Yatahadda and has become popular throughout the Arab world.

From 1967, he began to address public and private gatherings in order to advocate a policy, which should be constructive, nationalist and inter-nationalist in nature. He, therefore, became actively involved in serving the cause of national and international unity based on peace and inter-faith harmony and extended his mission to interfaith efforts through which he would present the peaceful, tolerant side of Islam in the modern idiom to the world. With time, he began to contribute articles to various journals and newspapers and has been a regular contributor to several national and international dailies and magazines since.

To give full expression to these positive ideas, he established the Islamic Centre at New Delhi in 1970. Subsequently, the organ of the Centre, Al-Risala was launched, in Urdu, in 1976. This magazine, consisting entirely of his own articles, quickly acquired a wide circulation throughout the Urdu-speaking world, and has done much to make people understand the peaceful face of Islam and awaken in Muslims a new awareness of positive thinking and action and of their social responsibilities. The first issues of the English and Hindi versions of Al-Risala were launched respectively in February 1984, and December 1990.

It is because of his advocacy of peace in the country and his espousal of the cause of communal harmony that he is respected by all communities, and in every circle of society. Invited to meetings by all religious groups and communities within India and abroad, Maulana Wahiduddin Khan is, in effect, India's spiritual ambassador, spreading the universal message of peace, love and harmony.

A special invitee to inter-religious conferences, within and outside the country in the past four decades, he has traveled to almost every part of the globe to spread the message of peace and harmony. His formula for conducting inter-faith dialogue using the formula, “Follow one and respect all.” While conducting inter-faith dialogue, he reveals the true face of Islam by directly addresses issues to remove misconceptions about Islam, remove hatred from the minds of people and bridge gaps between communities and religious groups. He addresses individuals’ minds to re-engineer them so as to develop positive and spiritually inclined citizens of the world – who can live together peacefully – so that the culture of peace and spirituality spreads at the universal level.

While engaging in inter-faith efforts, he reveals the true face of Islam and removes its misconceptions. He emphasizes the importance of differentiating between Islam and Muslims to rediscover Islam. This is because to discover the true face of Islam, it is essential to draw on its original sources rather than judge it by latter-day interpretations and commentaries of these texts, or by the practices of present day Muslims in different parts of the world. There are two original sources of Islam, the Quran, the word of God and the Sunnah, the sayings and the actions of Prophet Muhammad and these are completely preserved to posterity. These are the two sources from which we derive the true message of Islam. The Seerah or the life of Prophet Muhammad, that has full historical credibility and the lives of the Sahaba or the companions of the Prophet of Islam provide another later source. Then, there is a full stop in this matter. No other person or historical record enjoys the status of source of Islam.

To reveal the true face of Islam as enshrined in its original sources, he takes an objective look at Islam in the light of these and, therefore, emphasizes on the need to differentiate between Islam and Muslims. Using a scientific approach, he encourages one to see Islam in the light of the Islamic Scriptures and not to judge it by the conduct of Muslims. He explains, that if one wants to know what is the ideology of democracy, he will study the constitution of a democratic state and not observe the acts of a democratic country. In the same way, to understand Islam one has to understand what is in its original Scriptures and not judge it based on the acts of certain Muslims.

Realizing the need for the correct translation and commentary of the Quran, he translated the Quran in Urdu along with the commentary in the form of Tazkirul Quran. Its Hindi version has recently been published and its English version is under preparation, which will give to the world a correct English translation of the Quran with a modern interpretation to address the minds of the people of the post-scientific era.

His 200 books and innumerable audio and video lectures in English and Urdu on Islam, prophetic wisdom and peaceful co-existence in a multi-ethnic society give the true, peaceful and scientific interpretation of the Islamic Scriptures. More than four-dozen books such as In Search of God, Islam Rediscovered, Man Know Thyself, Islam: The Voice of Human Nature, Quran: An Abiding Wonder, Religion and Science, Islam Creator of the Modern Age, Muhammad: Prophet for all Humanity, Prophet Muhammad: A Simple Guide to his Life, Women between Islam and Western Society, etc. have already been translated into English and the work is continuing. The latest work to his credit is The Ideology of Peace, which not only offers a peaceful solution to the terrorism menace, but also helps people understand the concept of peace in Islam.
Advocating Islam as a complete ideology of peace and spirituality, he lays stress on respecting all religions while following one. He opines:

“Peace is the only way to achieve anything of positive nature either as an individual or as a society. And the same holds true at national and International levels as well.”

He believes in peace as the only religion for both man and the universe. He is currently promoting the culture of peace through mind-based spirituality. According to him, peace and spirituality are both in fact two aspects of the one truth. Positive thinking at an individual level is called spirituality; when this positive thinking reaches a collective level in society, it results in what is known as peace. Helping seekers discover truth at a rational level, he emphasizes that spirituality, the result of the awakening of the mind, provides the best formula for the discovery of truth and the building of character – thus making one a peaceful and positive person.

Giving the practical model to obtain peace, he analyzes that people the world over are acting intolerantly and indulging in acts of violence in the name of justice, saying, “Give us justice and peace will ensue”. When people are indulging in acts of violence in the name of justice, peace will not prevail. According to him, peace is always desirable for its own sake. Everything else comes after peace, not along with peace. So, the formula for peace according to Maulana is, “Ignore the problems, and avail the opportunities.” When people become tolerant and obtain peace for the sake of peace, what peace actually does is, it opens up opportunities – it creates favourable conditions that enable people to strive. When people avail the opportunities thus created, they eventually obtain justice and other constructive ends. Maulana has developed a full-fledged Ideology of Peace – derived directly from the Islamic Scriptures to counter the mentality of violence that banishes the notion that there can be anything acceptable about terrorism. He has presented this ideology of peace in his books: Islam and Peace, Manifesto of Peace, The True Jihad and his latest book, The Ideology of Peace.

Maulana’s greatest contribution has been his tireless campaign to avert the danger of a nuclear conflict between various countries, to which end he put forward a proposal for a worldwide movement for nuclear disarmament at a peace forum in Switzerland.

Maulana is well travelled and a recipient of several other national and International awards. In 2002, he was awarded Demiurgus Peace International Award by the Nuclear Disarmament Forum AG. The award, under the patronage of the former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, has been awarded to acknowledge his outstanding achievements in strengthening peace among nations and for his efforts to develop a complete ideology of peace and present Islamic teachings in the style and language of the present day. The award was presented by Dr Alexander Bessmertnykh, chairman of the World Council of Former Foreign Ministers (WCFFM), at an impressive ceremony at Zug, Switzerland. He has also been awarded the title of Ambassador of Peace by the International Federation for World Peace, Korea.
He has been awarded with the Padam Bhushan, the National Integration Award, Communal Harmony Award, the Diwaliben Mohan Lal Mehta Award presented by the former President of India; the National Amity Award presented by the former Prime Minister of India; the Dilli Gaurav Award presented by the Chief Minister of Delhi; the FIE Foundation Award; the Urdu Academy Awardz; the Aruna Asaf Ali Sadbhavna Award and the National Citizen’s Award presented by Mother Teresa.

He has also developed a complete Ideology of Spirituality, which is based on contemplation rather than on meditation. According to him, since man is endowed with a mind, it can only be through contemplative spirituality that he receives answers to his eternal questions pertaining to the Ideology of Life: Who am I?, What is My Purpose?, Does God Exist?, Do I need God? How should I live in this world, Does the hereafter exist?, What is death?, How do I achieve salvation?, etc. According to him, spirituality is, indeed, a representation of truth – truth is spirituality and spirituality is truth. Everyone is in need of spirituality, whether rich or poor, powerful or powerless. Contemplative spirituality provides human beings with a starting point for their lives. It provides man with the right philosophy of life. It is a guidebook of life, bringing man out of the darkness of ignorance and leading him into the light of reality to understand his creation plan.

People often ask him how he can prove the existence of the one Universal God scientifically. He replies that the concept of God is innate in human beings. People usually doubt the existence of God because He cannot be seen. They believe in the observable direct argument or primary rationalism and not the unseen or inferential argument or secondary rationalism. The atom was once considered to be the smallest unit of the observable material world. But when the atom was split, it was confirmed that it was nothing but a mad dance of energy waves or electrons, which could not be observed. Scientists however continued to believe in the concept of the atom, albeit unobservable. A new logic then came into being. Not only was the observable or direct argument thought to be valid, but the inferential argument or the invisible sources of visible effects were also considered valid. An example of the latter is that X-rays are not visible to the naked eye, but their effect can be seen when we observe the X-ray film. Using inferential argument, the Maulana has provided scientific proof that this division of primary and secondary rationalism is in itself wrong. In his books, God Arises, In Search of God and Religion and Science, he has given credence to the belief in a non-observable God, as the Ideology of Monotheism, with the maxim that: “Where there is a design, there is a Designer.” Bertrand Russell likewise confirmed this in his book, Why I Am Not a Christian. The following is an excerpt from God Arises proving this point:

“The option one has to take is not between the ‘universe without God’ and the ‘universe with God’. The option is actually between the ‘universe with God’ or ‘no universe at all’. Since we cannot, for obvious reasons, opt for the latter proposition, we are in fact left with no other option except the former — the ‘universe with God’.”

According to Maulana Wahiduddin Khan, once a person accepts the fact of one God, the next question that he asks is what does God want from me? Or Why has He created me? Presenting to the world the creation plan of God, he explains that the Creator of man has created him according to a special plan. His intention is that man should spend a period of trial in this present, imperfect world and subsequent to this, by virtue of his deeds; he will earn the right to inhabit the perfect and eternal world, another name for which is Paradise. In terms of the creation plan of the Creator, human life is divided into two stages –the pre-death stage and the post-death stage. The limited period before death is meant to be a test for man, while the period after his death will be the period for his reward or punishment, based on his performance in the test in this life. Those who pass the test by living a God-oriented life instead of a self-oriented life will be rewarded with eternal Paradise, while those who fail will be debarred from entering Paradise and will suffer everlasting punishment.

He further elaborates that, in the present world, man finds himself totally free. However, this freedom does not belong to him as a matter of right, but is rather a test paper for everyone. In the present world of trial, any man or woman, to be eligible for Paradise, must, firstly, acknowledge the truth of the One God, and surrender to Him, not by compulsion but by his or her own choice and, secondly, must lead a principled life.

To spread the ideology of peace and spirituality globally and to train people on its principles, in January 2001 Maulana established CPS International - Centre for Peace and Spirituality. As is apparent from its name, the organization aims to promote and reinforce the culture of peace through mind-based spirituality. CPS International, under his patronage and inspired by his spiritual wisdom, undertakes peace efforts and interfaith efforts to help individuals understand the importance of peace and focuses on unleashing their spiritual potential through its spirituality efforts. The centre imparts spiritual training to individuals in the art of clear thinking, art of conversion, de-conditioning of mind, intellectual awakening, personality development and principles of life such as art of difference management, principle of avoidance, principle of status quoism, etc. The objective of these efforts is that the individual is able to de-condition and re-engineer his mind – his real personality – to bring an intellectual revolution in him and reveal his natural personality.

The centre is further helping inquisitive minds, intellectuals and seekers in their quest to rationally find answers to questions pertaining to the ideology of life and scientifically explaining the ideology of Monotheism, Life after Life and the Creation Plan of God. As a result, seekers, while becoming peaceful members of society, embark on a journey in search of truth. This elevates their consciousness by allowing their intellect to discover their Creator and live a God-oriented life instead of a self-oriented life. When individuals such as these are collected in sufficient numbers, it results a peaceful society.

Maulana Wahiduddin Khan is Islam’s Spiritual Ambassador to the world. In the form of CPS International and its global partners, he has trained a team of individuals in the principles of peace and spirituality and re-engineered their minds using the simple formula: change yourself through spirituality – by living a God-oriented life and you will be able to change the world. According to Maulana, it is this team of individuals who will play the role of Ambassadors of Peace and Spirituality to the world and usher in an era of global peace and unity. This team has made it their life’s ambition to take the message of peace and spirituality to every corner of the globe – to reach each and every home – and to train people based on its principle.

The sphere of action of CPS International is therefore global. Through the use of every peaceful means: one-on-one interactions; lectures, seminars, conferences; the publication of books, magazines and online material; audio-visual material such as dvds, cds, vcds; television and radio broadcasts, etc. the centre is giving to the people the world a sustainable message of truth, peace and spirituality. Under the leadership of Maulana, the centre undertakes peace efforts and interfaith efforts to show Islam as a religion of peace and reveals its true face based on peace and spirituality. Under Maulana's patronage and inspired by his spiritual wisdom, the centre further undertakes spirituality efforts that focus on unleashing the spiritual potential of an individual. As a result, the seeker embarks on a journey that elevates his consciousness by allowing the intellect to discover and acknowledge the Creation Plan of his Creator - thus resulting in the construction of positive individuals. According to Maulana, when such positive and spiritual individuals are created in large numbers, it will result in a peaceful society and an era of global peace and unity will ensue.

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