Saladin, the greatest of Muslim warriors, died of fever and old age on the morning of March 4, 1124. He was the iconic believer. Malcolm Lyons and D E P Jackson write in Saladin: The Politics of the Holy War, ''The imam Abu Jafar and al-Fadil were with him on the morning of March 4. The imam was reciting from the Quran. 'It is said that when he reached the words — There is no god but God and in Him I put my trust — Saladin smiled; his face cleared and he surrendered his soul to God'.''On his last visit to Jerusalem, the holy city he had restored to Arab rule, in September 1123, he gave his fourth son, Abu Mansur al-Zahir, some immortal advice. As his son was about to leave, on October 6, Saladin kissed him, rubbed his hair fondly and said: be chary of shedding blood, ''for blood does not sleep''. He added, addressing his attendant emirs, ''I have only reached my present position by conciliation''.
Nine centuries later, blood has still not slept in that land. It keeps awake as a nightmare. No region in modern times has refused conciliation and invested as heavily in a nightmare. (via Blood does not sleep, stays awake as nightmare-The Siege Within-MJ Akbar-Columnists-Opinion-The Times of India).
And this is the difference between the 'Desert Bloc' and the 'Indic Bloc'. Gandhiji's non-violence was based on this premise that 'blood does not sleep'. The Desert Bloc has not learnt Saladin's lesson. India's ability to stay together, in spite of history never having seen a republic like India - is due to this belief. India has done well and much needs to be done. As long as India remembers that 'blood does not sleep', we will succeed. The day we forget that, we will go the way of others. The country model of the West is built on foundations of congealed blood of slaves, genocide and war.
Possibly, the US Congress must make this statement a part of swearing-in ceremony for every US President, Senator and Congressman.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment