LAHORE- Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Inter-Faith Harmony Pir Noor ul Haq Qadri has said that Sufism teaches love, high moral values and eliminates hate and we must follow their teachings to promote interfaith harmony and tolerance in our society.
He was addressing the concluding ceremony of 2-day international Maulana Rumi and Sultan Bahoo Conference organized by Punjab University and Muslim Institute at Al Raazi Hall here on Friday. In his address, Pir Noor ul Haq Qadri said that the person bearing high ethical values was a Sufi of his time. He said that the Sufis’ message was derived from the life of Hazrat Muhammad (SAW).
He said that we need to spread love in our society so that hate could not get its space. He said that love was the balance of humanity and the universe. Some people misinterpret religion, the minister said, adding that Hazrat Muhammad SAW taught us to value and respect not only human beings but animals as well.
He said that Maulana Rumi stressed to win over the hearts of the people. Federal Minister for States & Frontier Regions Sahibzada Mahboob Sultan said that Sultan Bahoo and Maulana Rumi’s teachings were still popular and relevant even after hundreds of years.
He said that Sufis taught us to obey Allah and Hazrat Muhammad (SAW) and avoid conflicts with others. He said that their teachings kept us united and did not divide us. He said that Sufism promoted culture of tolerance among us. PU VC Prof Niaz Ahmad said that we needed to spread the message of Sufis, derived from Quran and Sunnah, to promote tolerance in society.
He said that Allah has created us to deal with others in a good way. He said that we must establish respectable relations with others and do justice in all matters. He said that the incumbent administration had established Baba Guru Nanak Chair, Human Rights Chair and had taken other initiatives to promote inter-faith harmony. QAU Vice Chancellor Dr Muhammad Ali said that Maulana urged us to help others in bad and good times. He said that Sultan Bahoo was a great poet.
He said that Sultan Bahoo gave us a message that the knowledge which carried love for humanity was the best. He said that we must be proud of our region, culture and civilization. He said that the philosophy of Sufis was a key to knowledge, success and development for us. AIOU VC Prof Dr Zia ul Qayyum said that the poetry of Sufis carried oceans of wisdom and there was a need to create awareness among the youth about their thoughts.
He said that the message given by Sufis could help solve the problems we were facing today. Mr Gurmit Singh said that our Sufis and religious leaders taught us to love each other. He said that we must clean our hearts and serve humanity. Sahibzada Sultan Ahmad Ali said that we need to rediscover our roots and restore our great legacy. Later, souvenirs were presented among the guests.–PRESS RELEASE
