Through Force or Faith? — Page 135
Chapter 2 — Islamic Teachings about Jihad 135 َو اَل اْوُدَتْعَت١ؕ َّنِا َهّٰللا اَل ُّبِحُي َنْيِدَتْعُمْلا. . . but do not transgress. Surely, Allah loves not the trans- gressors. ( S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:191) 2. Similarly, in the context of avoiding war as far as possible, instruction is given that if the enemy is inclined to truce, accept the offer without hesitation. َو ْنِا اْوُحَنَج ِمْلَّسلِل ْحَنْجاَف اَهَل َو ْلَّكَوَت ىَلَع ِهّٰللا١ؕ ٗهَّنِا َوُه ُعْيِمَّسلا ُمْيِلَعْلا And if they incline towards peace, incline thou also towards it, and put thy trust in Allah. Surely, it is He Who is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. ( S u rah al-Anf a l, 8:62) 3. Obligation to keep pacts Islam has put extraordinary emphasis on the principle that an agreement or a treaty with anybody is not to be violated under any circumstance. If an agreement stands in the way of a gain even in the course of a battle, the agreement must be upheld even if it results in the sacrifice of all benefits. It is stated: َو َنْيِذَّلا ْمُه ْمِهِتٰنٰمَاِل َو ْمِهِدْهَع َنْوُعٰر And who are watchful of their trusts and their covenants… ( S u rah al-Mu’min u n, 23:9) The life of the Holy Prophet Muhammad s as is a testimonial that he always observed this injunction. Hudhaifah bin Al-Yaman ra states,