Welcome to Ahmadiyyat, The True Islam — Page 484
− the most righteous among you. Surely, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Aware. − (49:14) Islam totally rejects racism in any shape or form. Islam condemns − − distinctions based on nationality, color or social class. There can be no master-race, aristocracy or priesthood, the most noble in the eyes of God Almighty being the most pious. The brotherhood of man in Islam has − always been a living fact, not an idle theory. Islam is unique in that it requires physical expression of − brotherhood. In the daily Prayer, Muslims must stand shoulder to shoulder, indifferent to the status or color of the person next to them. There is no greater physical example of equality than the when all Muslims wear Hajj ± the same dress and circuit the in unison. Ka bah ‘ The Holy Prophet of Islam in his farewell address said: sa − "All men are children of Adam and Adam was created of clay. The Arab has no superiority over the non-Arab, nor has the non-Arab any superiority over the Arab, nor do the whites have any preference over the dark colored people, save of course, through righteousness, honesty, integrity, learning and other intrinsic qualities. " (Sihah Sittah, Tabari, Hisham and Khamis) ± ± ± ± − − − ETHICS As regards 'Ethics', Islam believes every man to be born pure, not − in sin. Each of us is responsible before God for our actions, and we cannot be saved by any sort of atonement by a third party. It is up to us to choose good rather than evil and to work out our salvation through faith, prayer and charity. Piety and virtue do not mean forsaking the lawful pleasures of this earth and falling into monastic asceticism. We ought to lead active, healthy and useful lives in which qualities such as kindness, chastity, honesty, meekness, mercy, courage, truthfulness, patience, politeness, and cleanliness will be uppermost, and faults like cruelty, immorality, deceit, pride, cowardice, avarice, slander, and hardness of heart will be avoided. 484