Islam also accords very high value to justice, and recommends a system that will disallow and eliminate the aggressors and unjust people from the society The system so designed is required to punish such people according to the law. Even in the legal and punitive system the emphasis is laid on the reformation of the people who have left the righteous path. A lot of importance is attached to the repentance of such criminals before they are brought to justice. At the same time, Islam encourages people to forgive those who have wronged them, whenever possible.
These concepts are vividly elaborated in the Holy Qur'an and are also found in the Hadith, (the sayings of Mohammad peace be upon him), A few extracts of these rulings from the Holy Qur'an are listed below::
"Nor can Goodness and Evil be equal. Repel (Evil) with what is better: then will he between whom and thee was hatred become as it were thy friend and intimate!" (Surah 41, Verse 34).
"O those who believe! Stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to Allah, even as against yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich or poor: for Allah can best protect both. Follow not the lusts (of your hearts), lest you swerve, and if you distort (justice) or decline to do justice, verily Allah is well-acquainted with all that you do." (Surah 4, Verse 135).
"God advocates justice, charity, and regarding the relatives. And He forbids evil, vice, and transgression. He enlightens you, so that you may take heed." (Surah 16, Verse 90).
"And if you do punish them, punish them no worse than they punished you: but if you show patience, that is indeed the best (course) for those who are patient." (Surah 16, Verse 126).
"The prohibited month, for the prohibited month, and so for all things prohibited, there is the law of equality. If then any one transgresses the prohibition against you, transgress you likewise against him. But fear Allah, and know that Allah is with those who restrain themselves." (Surah 2, Verse 194).
"…and let not the hatred of some people in (once) shutting you out of the Sacred Mosque lead you to transgression (and hostility on your part). Do help one another in righteousness and piety, but do not help one another in sin and rancor: fear Allah: for Allah is strict in punishment." (Surah 5, Verse 2).
The above verses indicate that the goodness and evil are never equal, and that we should repel evil with good actions. This means that when someone is unjust to us or commits evil against us, we are encouraged to respond with kind and good actions, so that the hatred between us and that person may evaporate and become an intimate friendship!
Muslims are instructed to stand up for justice, even if it is against themselves or their family, and even if it is against those who are rich or powerful, because justice applies to everyone. It also reminds us that God knows everything we do, and so if we act unjustly even in our hearts, God knows what we did and we will be accountable for that.
God enjoins the mankind to follow justice, and that God forbids us from committing evil, vice and transgression. If somebody is punished for bad deeds, the punishment should conform to their deeds only and should not exceed. However, the Muslims are reminded that forgiveness and patience are the best and most recommended acts.
If someone transgresses against Muslims, they should respond to them likewise, and it reminds Muslims to fear God and to restrain themselves to this limit. It reminds Muslims not to let hatred of some people for past reasons to lead them to transgress against those people or be hostile towards them. It also instructs us to help each other in good and righteous actions, and not to cooperate in aggression and sin. It reminds them finally of the strict punishment of God to encourage them to abide by these principles.
Some of the wonderful ideals of Islam are as appended below::
- To pursue peace with everyone including past enemies, except when they fight the Muslims and refuse peace, then Muslims are allowed to fight in self-defense.
- To ensure that we always apply justice and never transgress against others even if they are our enemies.
- To repel evil actions with good actions, in order to replace hatred with an intimate friendship.
- To give punishment according to the intensity of crime, but that forgiveness and patience is even better than retaliation and revenge.
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