As regards war, all religions and all ethical systems
are agreed upon one principle, and that is, that no
matter how great the justification for waging war,
i.e. even in an entirely lawful war, non-combatants
must not be assailed or killed. The attacking of non
combatants is totally unacceptable.
Now let us look at how this principle is carried into
effect in wartime. This kind of condition, i.e. the
attacking only of combatants, could be fulfilled only
in the agricultural age. Today, owing to scientific
and technological developments, war is waged with
explosive weapons which do widespread damage.
When a bomb is dropped over an inhabited area, it
cannot do otherwise than kill a large number of
non-combatants along with the combatants. In
reality, therefore, it is well-nigh impossible to meet
this condition.
This shows that, in practice, man has only two
options in present times: either he refrains from war
on the grounds that the observance of humanitarian
provisos is impracticable. Or else he commits the
crime of hurling himself headlong into war,
callously ignoring all humane considerations.
When we delve deeper into the matter, we discover
another important truth. We now find that in
present times, on the one hand, circumstances are
such as do not allow us to meet all the desirable
conditions of waging war, while, on the other hand,
such resources have been made available by the
industrial revolution as permit us to achieve our
goals by purely peaceful means. Indeed, we may
expect to win far greater victories today by peaceful
means than could have been done in ancient times
by waging war. It must be conceded that war, as
fought in former ages, has been rendered a futile
exercise by the modern industrial revolution.
When we keep this reality before us, we can safely
conclude that violent war was the product of the
circumstances prevailing in the agricultural age. In
the industrial age, this kind of war, due to its
counterproductive results, has been in principle
rejected. With the end of the agricultural age, the
way of violent struggle has at least theoretically
come to an end. Now, in the present circumstances,
the peaceful method is the only method. Now no
excuse can justify violence or war.
The difference between peace and violence is aptly
illustrated by the building of a bird’s nest. A nest can
be constructed only by a peaceful effort. Violence
can only destroy it, not build it. The same is true of
human life. If any constructive work is to be
achieved in life, it must be through peaceful efforts.
Violence can only destroy life. It cannot build it.
Ref -The Ideology of Peace
- by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
