The concept of pluralism, tolerance, acceptance, and peaceful coexistence has been scrutinised in philosophy, history, enriched traditions, and sacred scriptures by Western and Eastern scholars. The Qur’anic vision of pluralism, tolerance, acceptance, and coexistence affirms human diversity as a divine sign to be understood and honoured. Rooted in human dignity, freedom of conscience, justice, compassion, and mutual recognition, it views differences as opportunities for learning and cooperation in goodness.
Shabeer Ahmad Lone
The concept of pluralism, tolerance, acceptance, and peaceful coexistence has been scrutinised in philosophy, history, enriched traditions, social contexts, and various sacred scriptures by Western and Eastern scholars. To avoid ambiguity and their diverse meanings and complexities, it is sufficient here to explore the Quranic basic perspectives on tolerance and pluralism and to draw upon contemporary religious thinkers and intellectuals to address the modern predicament—faced by both East and West—and to reorient for productive, dynamic, and positive outcomes.
The Qur’anic vision of pluralism, tolerance, acceptance, and coexistence affirms human diversity as a divine sign to be understood and honoured. Rooted in human dignity, freedom of conscience, justice, compassion, and mutual recognition, it views differences as opportunities for learning and cooperation in goodness. This vision resonates with the insights of Al-Ghazali on humility and ethical knowledge; Rumi and Ibn Arabi on love and spiritual openness; Fazlur Rahman on moral responsibility and human dignity; Muhammad Asad on freedom of conscience; Seyyed Hossein Nasr on diversity as a sign of divine wisdom; Gandhi on unity in diversity; Martin Luther King Jr. on human brotherhood; Hans Küng on interreligious peace; Karen Armstrong on compassion; and Abdul Ghaffar Khan and Abdul Sattar Edhi on nonviolence and service. Together, these voices illuminate a vision that seeks not uniformity but unity amidst diversity, not domination but dialogue, and not mere tolerance but justice, compassion, mutual respect, and the flourishing of our shared humanity.
Numerous contemporary Muslim thinkers, intellectuals, and scholars have argued and advocated in favour of toleration, pluralism, freedom, and peaceful coexistence as a quest for peace, harmony, and inclusive and sustainable development. Islam protects against social disorder and ordains enjoining what is good and forbidding moral corruption, what is wrong, and what is indecent.
The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), the early Caliphs, and the Akabir and Aimah Sufis practised pluralism and tolerance as revealed in the Qur’an. For example, eighteen prophets are mentioned in one place in the Qur’an, and Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) is told: “These were the people God guided, (Prophet), follow the guidance they received” (6:83–96). The Qur’anic proclamations define Islam not only as peace for and between all but also affirm belief in prior revelations that were bestowed upon Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob, Job, Jonah, Aaron, Solomon, David, and the tribes, and that which has been given to Moses and Jesus, making no difference between them (Q. 2:136).
An analysis of classic and modern exegetic interpretation of Qur’anic verses regarding tolerance and pluralism is not possible here. Scores of Qur’anic verses—such as Q. 2:62, 2:136, 143, 190, 205, 256, 269; 3:64, 113–114; 5:48, 69; 6:108, 151; 10:19, 94, 108; 11:118; 17:33; 18:29; 22:40; 29:46; 30:22; 49:6, 13; 60:8; 65:11; 109:6; 7:89; etc.—offer distinct modern perspectives on tolerance, pluralism, and mutual recognition in a multicultural, multi-ethnic world for cooperation and peaceful coexistence, universal harmony, and the foundations and necessity of tolerance and pluralism.
A comparative study of the Qur’anic texts, in the light of the situational context of revelation, confirms the view that humanistic love, pluralism, and tolerance are the fundamental directive principles of the Qur’an, while mistrust of non-Muslims, social exclusiveness, and harshness towards non-believers were merely temporary rules or security or defensive measures during a state of belligerency—rather than basic maxims of conduct—and not offensive. The Qur’an also inspires people to fortify mutual understanding and peaceful coexistence rather than engage in sectarian violence, conflicts, killings, and wars, and it emphasises the divine attributes of mercy and forgiveness. It favours moderation and a desire to avoid extremes, so that seeking the negation or eradication of the religious Other is not permitted.
Scholarly Perspectives
Prof. Abdul Aziz Sachedina summarises his key arguments for pluralism and tolerance as follows: “The idea that ‘the people are one community’ is the foundation of theological pluralism and tolerance that presupposes the divinely ordained equivalence and equal rights of all human beings” (Sachedina, The Islamic Roots of Democratic Pluralism, 35, 2001). Religious pluralism and tolerance can function as a “working paradigm for a democratic, social pluralism in which people of diverse religious backgrounds are willing to form a community of global citizens.”
Asghar Ali Engineer, the Indian scholar-activist, interprets Q.5:48–49 to mean that Allah has purposefully created different religions and different groups so that He may test whether we can live in harmony and peace and to spur humans to do good works.
Clare Wilde and Jane Dammen McAuliffe, in Religious Pluralism and the Quran, raise the question: “What does the Quran exhort Muslims to do in the face of a plurality of religions?” They answer that although Q. 2:256 (“There is no compulsion in religion”) and 109:6 (“You have your religion and I have mine”) are often cited as proof texts for an Islamic tolerance of non-Muslims over the course of history in the tafsir literature, there are scores of other verses which prescribe “proper” behaviour towards non-Muslims.
Fathi Osman notes that God’s grace lies not in the abolition of differences in beliefs and views, nor in changing human nature which He Himself has created, but in showing human beings how to handle their differences intellectually, morally, and behaviourally—as a call for collaboration between different races, ethnicities, and social ranks.
Ziauddin Sardar, in his Reading the Quran in a chapter on “Truth and Plurality,” writes: “The Quran promotes acceptance of religious plurality and treats other religions with equality. It recognises that different faiths have different laws and ways of knowing and understanding God, but emphasises the common ground of ‘doing good’: values and morals that promote goodness, virtue, and peace are integral to all faiths and more basic than differences in outward form and rituals.” Thus, Sardar emphasises by way of conclusion, “the Quran envisages a religiously plural world, where different communities share different aspects of Divine Truth. There is an internal or transcendental unity of religions underneath the external differences. Believers of all faiths are asked to put differences aside and collaborate with each other to promote harmony and mutual affection.”
Asma Afsaruddin, in her Contemporary Issues in Islam, summarises: “The twenty-first century arguably presents unique opportunities for reimagining historical relations between different religions and cultures, particularly for Muslims as they occupy the centre stage of the global arena and play a pivotal role in defining such relations. Scriptural hermeneutics remains a vital dimension of this process of reconceptualisation of interreligious and cultural dynamics in our own time. Reinterpretation of key Qur’anic verses as indicated earlier are essential as the first step towards imagining a different world based on peaceful coexistence rather than one based on conflict, strife, and war, as was the default situation in the pre-modern world.”
The Qur’an offers the highest form of wisdom and all-embracing guidance, which needs to be approached in its own perspectives for contemporary issues such as pluralism and tolerance in the new spirit of globalisation. Muslims do not need to abandon their religious teachings to become tolerant; true tolerance is enshrined in the Qur’an and Hadith.
We need to genuinely commit ourselves to pluralism and tolerance as envisioned in the Qur’an and the prophetic practices to establish mutual peace, harmony, and inclusive development within and across cultures. Blaise Pascal noted that throughout history, Islam has demonstrated through words and deeds the possibilities of religious tolerance and racial equality.
“Live and let live” in a spirit of accommodation and goodwill, as ensured in the Qur’an, is the hallmark of our civilisation. This thought leads to the appealing idea of religious coexistence and harmony, inevitable for peace and development individually, collectively, locally, globally, and universally. It has been found that all-round sustainability, inclusive development, global healthy competitiveness, and collaboration are stronger in countries where the government and civil societies, religious leaders, institutions, and media respect and protect freedom of religion and encourage religious pluralism and tolerance.
Let us fully embrace Qur’anic teachings on tolerance and pluralism as divinely ordained principles to foster harmony and peace in this world. The diversity of revelations and plurality of communities is intended to stimulate healthy competition, collaboration, and mutual enrichment in the domain of good works.
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