Islam, Freedom and Artistic and Literary Innovation
Dr Yusuf Al-Qaradawi
When Islam dawned, it enunciated the principle of freedom. Commander of the Faithful, Umar Ibn Al-Khattab declared his famous saying: “When, on earth, have you enslaved people while their mothers delivered them free human beings!” . The fourth caliph, Ali Ibn Abi Talib, advised some people: “Never be somebody else, since Allah has created you as a free man from the beginning.”
The original principle is that all people are free, in accordance with the fact that Allah creates them in freedom and that they are born free. They are entitled to be free and not be slaves. When Islam proclaimed freedom as a principle, it was during an epoch when most people were virtually enslaved intellectually, politically, socially, religiously, and economically, etc.
Running counter to all those forms of human bondage, Islam came to announce all possible forms of freedom: freedom of belief, freedom of thought, freedom of speech and freedom of criticism. Those categories have always been the foremost kind of freedom usually sought by people..
Freedom of belief:
Despite Islam being a religion itself, Islam has set forth religious freedom. It has never allowed coercion in converting to Islam or any specific religion. Many texts can be cited here. Verses in the Quran from the Makkan period show Allah, the Almighty, as saying: “And had your Lord willed, those on earth would have believed, all of them together. So, will you (O Mohammed) then compel mankind, until they become believers?” (Surat Yunus: verse 99).
During the period in Madina, we have this Quranic revelation: “ There is no compulsion in religion. Verily, the Right Path has become distinct from the wrong path.” (Surat Al-Baqarah: verse 256). The significance in this revelation, in particular, shows how far Islam has gone to sanctify freedom and how it holds it in high esteem.
Read more about other freedoms in Islam:
http://www.islam-online.net/iol-english/dowalia/art-2000-August-22/art13.asp
Dr Yusuf Al-Qaradawi
When Islam dawned, it enunciated the principle of freedom. Commander of the Faithful, Umar Ibn Al-Khattab declared his famous saying: “When, on earth, have you enslaved people while their mothers delivered them free human beings!” . The fourth caliph, Ali Ibn Abi Talib, advised some people: “Never be somebody else, since Allah has created you as a free man from the beginning.”
The original principle is that all people are free, in accordance with the fact that Allah creates them in freedom and that they are born free. They are entitled to be free and not be slaves. When Islam proclaimed freedom as a principle, it was during an epoch when most people were virtually enslaved intellectually, politically, socially, religiously, and economically, etc.
Running counter to all those forms of human bondage, Islam came to announce all possible forms of freedom: freedom of belief, freedom of thought, freedom of speech and freedom of criticism. Those categories have always been the foremost kind of freedom usually sought by people..
Freedom of belief:
Despite Islam being a religion itself, Islam has set forth religious freedom. It has never allowed coercion in converting to Islam or any specific religion. Many texts can be cited here. Verses in the Quran from the Makkan period show Allah, the Almighty, as saying: “And had your Lord willed, those on earth would have believed, all of them together. So, will you (O Mohammed) then compel mankind, until they become believers?” (Surat Yunus: verse 99).
During the period in Madina, we have this Quranic revelation: “ There is no compulsion in religion. Verily, the Right Path has become distinct from the wrong path.” (Surat Al-Baqarah: verse 256). The significance in this revelation, in particular, shows how far Islam has gone to sanctify freedom and how it holds it in high esteem.
Read more about other freedoms in Islam:
http://www.islam-online.net/iol-english/dowalia/art-2000-August-22/art13.asp
