Table Of Content4 ~ w V w
AND
INTER-RELIGIOUS UNDERSTANDING
With Foreword by:
H.E. ALI REZA SHEIKH ATTAR
Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in India
Editors:
PROF. SHAH MOHAMMAD WASEEM
DR. S. ALI MOHAMMAD NAQAVI
Renaissance Publishing House
Delhi-110 051
è p
113-1
•/92
N 3 H
ISBN 81-85199-64-7
Rs. 500/-
© Culture House of the Islamic Republic of Iran, New Delhi
First Published in 1997
Publihsed by Renaissance Publishing House
C-69, JitarNagar, Delhi-110051 (India).
Printed at D.K. Fine Art Press Pvt. Ltd., Delhi, India
Composed by : Akram Parvez
Jacket Concept and Design by : Majid Ahmady
All Rights Reserved. No portion of this publication may be
reproduced or transmitted without prior permission of the
publishers.
The views expressed in the articles
belong exclusively to their writers.
f'L 6 -
: n f
CONTENTS
Foreword
H E. Ali Raza Sheikh Attar v-xiv
Introduction
XV-XXVIIJ
1. Presidential Address
Dr. B.N. Pande 1-12
2. Inaugural Address
H.E. H. Rafsanjani, Hon'ble President of Iran 13-16
3. Message
H.E. Dr. S.D. Sharma,Hon'ble President of India 17-19
4. Address
Hojjatul Islam Syed Jamaluddin Deenparwar 20-23
5. Speech
Prof AM. Khusro 24-25
6. Valedictory Address
H.E. Boroujerdi 26-28
7. The Latest Edition of Nahjul Balagha
Allama Azizullah Attarudi 29-31
8. Nahjul Balagha: An Analysis
Hojjatul Islam Syed Zeeshan Hyder Jawadi 32-49
9. The Relevance of Nahjul Balagha to Contemporary Life
Dr. (Mrs.) Ismat LateefMehdi 50-55
10. The Concept of God in Nahjul Balagha
Late Professor Majid Ali Khan 56-61
ii Nahjul Baugh a and Inter-Religious Understanding
11. Concept of Society in Nahjul Balagha
Prof Syeda Jafar 62-71
12. The Ideal of Inter-Religious Understanding
Swami Brahmasthananda 72-79
13. Nahjul Balagha and the Inter-Religious Understanding
Dr. Joseph Al-Hashim 80-112
14. Nahjul Balagha and the Unity of Religions
Dr. Sulaiman Kitani 113-120
15. Imam Ali on the Limits and Conditinos of True
Religious Understanding
Dr. James W. Morris 121-133
16. The Concept of Islamic Society in Nahjul Balagha
Dr. Sadiq Naqvi 134-140
17. The Concept of Man in Nahjul Balagha
Prof. Syed Anwar Kabir 141-148
18. A Manifesto for Human Affairs in Nahjul Balagha
Dr. R.K. Mishra 149-159
19. Human Values in Nahjul Balagha
Dr. S. Musi Raza 160-173
20. Human Values in Nahjul Balagha
Ms. Amena Nakavi 174-177
21. Human Dignity and Human Rights in Islam
With Special Reference to Nahjul Balagha
Firdous A. Wani 178-199
22. Hazrat Ali (A.S.) and the Reconstruction of Society
Prof S.J.R. Bilgrami 200-209
23. Socio-Economic Justice With Particular Reference to
Nahjul Balagha
Prof. S.M. Waseem 210-229
Contents iii
24. Hazrat Ali's (A.S.) Principles of Administration
Professor Zafar Ahmad Nizami 230-240
25. The Idea of an Imam-Ruler in Nahjul Balagha and
its Influence on Al-Farabi's Political Philosophy
Prof (Dr.) MS. Khan 241-243
26. Some Spiritual Dimensions of Nahjul Balagha
Hamidullah Marazi 244-254
27. Terrestrial Realities in Nahjul Balagha
Maulana Hasan Abbas Fitrat 255-264
28. Literary Merits of Nahjul Balagha and
its Impact on Art and Culture
Dr. S. Abdul Bari 265-280
29. Sources of Ali's Knowledge and Nahjul Balagha
Maulana Raza Agha 281-288
Index 289-302
FOREWORD
In the Name of God, The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful
In 1992, when I was coming to India to take up my new assign
ment as the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran in New
Delhi, a friend of mine, who had paid numerous visits to India
and had made various studies on this land, told me that I was
soon about to enter a land, which- although from time to time
has seen religious conflicts, being the result of the ignorance of
those groups which have allowed their minds to be dominated,
exploited, and driven by their sentiments- is a land where one
could find many knowledgeable men who are the followers of a
host of different faiths and beliefs, and whose sense of justice,
freedom and religious tolerance, is second to none in the world.
My first day in India, unfortunately, coincided with the sad event
of the demolition of the "Baberi Mosque". But a few days later,
when I presented my credentials to H.E. Dr. Shankar Dayal
Sharma, the Hon'ble President of India, I had the opportunity to
listen to His Excellency's scholarly and learned speech on Islam
and Hazrat Ali (PBUH). It was then that I truly realised the au
thenticity and purport of my friend's remarks.
After this occasion, during my numerous meetings with the people
drawn from different walks of life and following different reli
gions and faiths, my friend's claim was proven more and more.
The presence of Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, Jain and Zoroas-
Vi Nahjvl Balaqha and Inter-Religious Understanding
trian sages in Muslim festivals and festivities, and the speeches
delivered by these people on different occasions viz., Sirat-un Nabi
(life and teachings of the holy Prophet), Youm-e-Ali (Ali Day),
and on the holy Qur'an, Islam and Islamic leaders, are probably
the best proofs of such a claim.
Then, late in 1993 when I participated in a magnificent gathering,
a Seminar on Nahjul Balagha, chaired by my dear learned friend,
Professor A.M. Khusro, and convened at Hyderabad in collabo
ration with the Consulate General of the Islamic Republic of Iran,
Hyderabad, and with the active cooperation of brother-in-Islam
Seyed Abbas Mosavi, President of Imam-e-Zamin Association, I
had a pleasant and valuable opportunity to listen to some of the
best interpretations of Nahjul Balagha delivered by the Hindu and
Christian clerics and priests as well as Sunni and Shia scholars.
It was during the same Seminar that the idea of convening an
International Conference in New Delhi with the same title, but
covering a wider perspective, sparked in my mind: A conference
by means of which we could on the one hand show the nature of
liberalism of Indian thinkers, and on the other prove the ample
and high extent of the global acceptability of the thoughts of Imam
Ali (PBUH) to those men and women who believe in the exalted
human values.
I shared this desire with my dear friends including: Mr. Sibte
Razi, Dr. B.N. Pande, Dr. Mozafar Burai, Hakim Abdul Hamid,
Late Dr. Majid Ali Khan and Mr. Ausaf Ali. Faced with their
views and a welcoming reply, we then decided to embark upon
doing the needful by constituting a Committee and holding a
meeting to prepare forthe conference. This committee in addition
to the above mentioned persons included the following:
1. Prof. A.R. Kidwai, Hon'ble Governor of Bihar.
2. Prof. A.M. Khusro, Chancellor, Aligarh Muslim
Foreword vii
University.
3. Justice Sardar Ali Khan, Chairman, Minorities Commis
sion of India.
4. Qazi Mujahidul Islam Qasmi, Islamic Fiqh Academy
(India).
5. Dr. Kalbe Sadiq, Depty Chairman, Muslim Personal Law
Board.
6. Mr. K.M. Khan, Member of Parliament.
7. Mr. Syed Ammar Rizvi, Ex-minister of U.P.
8. Prof. Tahir Mahmood, Dean, Faculty of Law, University
of Delhi.
9. Dr. Baseer Ahmad Khan, Head, Department of Islamic
Studies, Jamia Hamdard.
10. Dr. S. Ali Mohammad Naqvi, Secretary, Madinatul-
Uloom, Aligarh.
11. Mr. S. Abbas Moosavi, President, Imam Zamin (PBUH)
Taleemi Waqf, Hyderabad.
During the deliberations of the Committee the arrangements as
regard the announcement of the Conference, call for and the mode
of selecting the papers, and also the invitation to both the Indian
and foreign scholars, were made.
The prevailing idea during the sittings of the Committee was that
the message of human qualities as put forward by Hazrat Ali
(PBUH) should not be exhibited only by Shias. Further, the all-
encompassing ideas of such qualities and values should be dis
cussed and exhibited not only by Muslims alone, Shias and Sunnis,
but also by the scholars of different religions and faiths.
Inspired by this idea, the Committee decided to select and invite
the scholars from among the followers of different religions anci
Nahjul Baugh a and Inter-Religious Understanding
faiths.
The presence of H.E. Hashemi Rafsanjani, Hon'ble President of
the Islamic Republic of Iran, in India at the invitation of his coun
terpart H.E. Dr. Sharma, in April, 1995, was an auspicious occa
sion to inaugurate the Congress on Nahjul Balagha. This was so
because his presence not only as Head of the State but also as a
well-versed scholar of Nahjul Balagha, who has devoted years in
studying this book, gave a special value and glamour to this Con
gress.
The International Congress on Nahjul Balagha was inaugurated
on 17th April, 1995, at the Andhra Pradesh Bhawan, New Delhi,
by H.E. Mr. Rafsanjani. Delivering his inaugural address, he spoke
on the "Message of Nahjul Balagha and its Effect on the Social
Life of Man".
After the reading of the Message of the Hon'ble President of In
dia, which contained glorification and laudation of the human and
educational values given in Nahjul Balagha, and the personality
of Hazrat Ali (PBUH), Dr. B.N. Pande, the eminent historian,
Ghandi's friend, and an outstanding freedom fighter, spoke on the
theme.
During the three days and five Sessions of the Congress a good
number of papers were presented and valuable discussions were
made on this great book.
As seen in the topics of the selected papers, the accentuation of
the Conference has been on Nahjul Balagha as a book which fo
cuses on the social and political life of man culminating in the
exaltation and development of free people, who while opposing
injustices and oppressions, believe in the free exchange of ideas
and thoughts in an amiable, healthy and congenial environment.
Ali's (PBUH) message in Nahjul Balagha is directed both to the
rulers and the ordinary people. It is a treasure book which has
