Islam's Response to Contemporary Issues — Page 257
Individual Peace 257 Everyone has an ultimate goal to pursue which dominates him. We fix that goal for you, do you, then vie with one another in goodness. Wherever you be, Allah will bring you all together. Surely, Allah has the power to do all that He wills. 1 In this brief statement, boundless wisdom is miraculously compressed and preserved. It serves as a guiding principle covering competition of all types and in all fields. Goodness must stand supreme. It must remain the ultimate goal. It must itself become the object of all competition. All foul play and meanness is completely banished at a single stroke. If time could permit, we could go into greater length and provide ample illustrations from Islamic teachings as to how competition should be kept healthy, pure and correct. Seldom do people realise that real peace of mind and heart lies in the realisation of one’s being good and not in some fabulous feat achieved by employing bad and foul means. Such individuals are never at peace with either society or themselves. To casual observers, they present a facade of great attainment and consequential satisfaction but it is more a hollow victory rather than a real triumph. A close friend of a late multi-millionaire from Pakistan once told me a surprising tale of utter despondency. Once he complimented his friend on his great achievement and success. Instead of being pleased, the multi-millionaire’s spontaneous reaction was most surprising. He opened up the front buttons of his shirt and moved his hand as if he was about to rend his chest apart using his nails like the claws of an animal. He exclaimed: ‘Woe to this success. If one could tear open my