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In addition, we have to recognize that the creation itself is a creation of diversity. It is a creation in which you see variation of colors. Allah did not make all the trees one, and He did not make all the animals one. He diversified the creation. He diversified even our colors and our languages; and He did all this for a wisdom. Not only that, Allah subhaana wa ta'aala made us on different religions and different paths, and He did that intentionally because He said in the Quran, "They continue to be in differences except those whom your Lord has shown His mercy to, and for that reason He created them." So, Allah subhaana wa ta'aala is saying that He actually created us in order that we differ-that there is a wisdom, a divine wisdom in the differences that we have. He created us to show mercy to us as well. So, we have to rise up to this challenge. This is a high challenge, and we as Muslims have to rise up to this challenge.

Another thing that is very important for us to remember is the moderation of Islam. This is a deen of wasatiyyah: it is a deen of moderation. We are a moderate community. We are between the two extremes of excess and deficiency. We are in the middle. The Messenger of Allah, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said, "Those people who go into matters too deeply will be destroyed." [The shaykh is an expert in the Arabic language, and he said, "those people" are people involved in "tatarruf" or extremism. That is what "tanatau'" is.] The Messenger of Allah, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said, "The extremists are destroyed," and he said, "Beware of extremism in the deen." The Prophet, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, warned against extremism, and he did not like it. Notice that one of the things that extremism does is that it causes you to lose your rational component so that you are not able to weigh things rationally. Once you have gone to an extreme, you can no longer see things in any balanced way. You have lost that balance of the middle way. This makes you think that what you are doing is right even though it is clearly wrong to others.

As an example, take note of the Khawaarij when there was a difference of opinion between Sayidana 'Ali and Sayidana Mu'awiyah, radi Allahu 'anhuma. They differed. Sayidana 'Ali was the legitimate khalifa, but Mu'awiyah did not take baya' with him; they had differences. So, they called for arbitration. At that point, there was a group of people who were with Sayidana 'Ali, radi Allahu 'anhu, and they were extremists in the deen. They interpreted the Quran on their own whims. When they heard that Sayidana 'Ali had accepted arbitration, they quoted an ayah which says, "La hukma illa lillah: There's no arbitration except by Allah." Allah is the only one that can make judgment. So, they said, how can you call a hakam into this situation for them to decide when it is Allah who will decide this situation? Sayidana 'Ali, radi Allahu 'anhu, replied that the ayah is a true word but that they were using it for a false purpose. They did not listen to him despite that he said and proved to them in the Quran there are many instances where Allah subhaana wa ta'aala calls for arbitration where people must be brought to decide: between marital disputes; on the on the Haj, when somebody breaks a tree or kills an animal; and there are many other examples of that. Their extremism prevented them from seeing the truth, and this is why things have to be weighed in the balance of the sacred law and of the rational, middle understanding of a human being that is balanced in his nature.

This means that we should not fear, but we also should not be aggressive. In other words, we should not be people who are cowards, and there is cowardice in our nature, but nor should we be people who are extremists, going to the other side and being aggressive. An example is people who blow up innocent people in the name of religion and do things that the sharia' is really completely against. These are means that they are using that are unacceptable to the deen of Islam. What they end up doing is creating a completely distorted picture of Islam so that people who are outside of Islam are completely repelled by it and are not attracted to Islam. This is why Imam Shaatabi, radi Allahu 'anhu, wrote in his Muwaafaqaat, one of the greatest books written on usool al-fiqh, that this sharia' lies between excess and between want. It is the middle way; and the Messenger of Allah, sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, said, "Khair ul-umoom ausatuha: the best of affairs are those that lie in the middle."

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