Shihab: Mercy Must Be Defining Trait of Muslim in All Their Dealings

Dr. Muhammad Quraish Shihab, a member of the Muslim Council of Elders and former Indonesian Minister of Religious Affairs, emphasized that mercy should be the defining trait of a Muslim in all their interactions, situations, and attitudes—not only towards fellow humans but also towards animals and even inanimate objects.

 He pointed out that as we welcome the blessed month of Ramadan, we must strive to spread the values of mercy and compassion among one another.

Speaking in the first episode of ‘Humanitarian Values with the Elders,’ a program now in its third consecutive year, broadcast on the Muslim Council of Elders’ social media pages, he highlighted that Islamic law is fundamentally built upon mercy.

 He noted that the term “mercy” appears in the Glorious Qur’an no fewer than 250 times, with various meanings—ranging from Allah’s mercy towards humanity, and indeed all of creation, to His intrinsic mercy as part of His divine essence.

 He further distinguished between human mercy and the all-encompassing mercy of Allah.

He explained that, for humans, mercy is a state of compassion that compels them to feel the pain and suffering of others. The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) commanded his followers to embody mercy in all circumstances. Allah Almighty states in the Glorious Quran “And We have not sent you, [O Muhammad], except as a mercy to the worlds.” (The Quran 21:107) This verse carries profound meanings, among them that Allah—Who sent the Prophet and revealed the divine message—is the Most Merciful and the Most Compassionate, that the Prophet himself was sent as a mercy to all of humanity, and that this mercy must extend to all of creation.