During his recent visit to Malaysia, Maulana Wahiduddin Khan addressed a meeting organized by the National Institute of Public Administration in Kuala Lumpur on July 31, 1984. Following is the text of his speech:

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

It is a pleasure to be with you here in Malaysia. I would like to say a few words about Islam, which I have studied for over thirty years.

What is Islam? Quite simply, Islam is the way to become a good person. When one becomes good, in the real sense of the word, then one is good to oneself, to one’s family, to one’s society, and to all mankind.

The world around us is a perfect world. From tiny atoms to huge galaxies, everything acts so perfectly that we can predict its behaviour. This is because everything in nature obeys the law of God. Likewise, when man obeys the law of God he becomes as perfect as he ought to be. He develops a predictable nature, like everything else in the world.

Islam means submission to God. The Quran tells us that submission to God is the only religion for both man and the universe:

“Are they seeking a religion other than God’s, when all creatures in heaven and on earth have submitted to Him, willingly or by compulsion? To Him they shall all return.” (3:83)

So Islam means living in harmony with nature, as one ought to, face to face with reality. Man has not created himself, he has been created by God. To live in accordance with reality, then, is to acknowledge the greatness of God and show appreciation of His favours. The emotions of love and fear are inherent in man. He wants something to depend upon, something on which to focus his efforts. If he leads his life in accordance with reality he will focus all his attention on God alone for besides Him, all things are creatures; nothing besides Him has any real power.

Adam is the father of all past, present and future men. A life in accordance with reality, then will be one of kindness to others, as if one were dealing with one’s own brothers and sisters.

Everyone has been endowed with a conscience, which favours justice and despises injustice and cruelty. Life in accordance with reality, then, is one of kindness and justice.

Death is bound to come one day. It will deprive everyone of his worldly possessions, so one who lives in accordance with reality will look at the ups and downs of life as transitory and insignificant; he will regard everybody as God’s servant, irrespective of worldly status.

When one comes upon the truth one might be disposed to reject it. But one should remember that one day everyone will have to accept truth and falsehood for what they are. One should willingly accept today what one will be forced to accept tomorrow.

The position that Islam occupies in relation to our lives should be an integral, not a supplementary one:

“Take on God’s own dye. And who has better dye than God’s?” (Quran, 2:138)

Here is an example to illustrate this point. When a stone is dropped in water it descends to the bottom and settles there. It is in the water but separate from it. On the other hand, if dye is put into the same glass, the dye and water combine. The water is not separate from the dye. Both have intermingled in such a way that no one can detect any difference between the two.

The relationship between Islam and a true believer should be like that of dye and water, not of stone and water. Islam should not be just an accessory to a Muslim’s life; it should merge with his whole being; as the Quran says, Islam should be entered into ‘in its totality’ (2:208).

When a person adopts Islam in this manner, it becomes the throb of his heart as it permeates his emotions. It enters his thoughts, moulding his intellect in its own fashion. It becomes the eye with which he sees, the tongue with which he speaks, the hands and feet with which he performs his day to day functions. It takes possession of a person, to the exclusion of everything else. His every statement bears the stamp of Islam and his every action becomes dyed in Islamic colours.

If Islam is like a stone in water then it is not Islam at all. Faith should be absorbed in a person like dye is dissolved in water. Just as the emotions of love and hate are felt by the whole body so, when one adopts Islam in the real sense of the word, it becomes an issue affecting one’s whole existence. The Muslim and Islam become inseparably attached to one another.

By way of introduction to the Islamic way of life, I would like to put some sayings of the Prophet Mohammad before you:

“Let him who believes in God and the Last Day either speak good or keep silent; and let him who believes in God and the Last Day honour his neighbour; and let him who believes in God and the Last Day be generous to his guest.”

“Fear God wherever you are, and follow up a bad deed with a good one and it will wipe it out, and behave well towards people.”

“Righteousness is good-naturedness, and evil is what wavers in your soul, and you would not like people to find out about.”

“None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.”

A man came to the Prophet and said: “Messenger of God, tell me something which, if I do it, will win me the love of both God and men.” The Prophet said: “If you renounce the world God will love you, and if you renounce what people possess they will love you.”