If the Oceans Were Ink: An Unlikely Friendship and a Journey to the Heart of the Quran

by Carla Power

British-Indian novelist published a story slurring the Prophet Muhammad? Ignore it. Don’t issue fatwas against him, or burn books in town centers, or stage protest rallies. Turn away from this world and toward God. Pray. Do dawa—call people to Islam. “If people write books against your Prophet, there are many ways to solve the problem! The best way is to pray for these people. Write some books yourself.” Some cartoonist in Denmark sketched some ugly little pictures insulting the Prophet? Let it go; go toward God instead. “Someone makes a cartoon, and we protest. We make protest, and we think we’re doing what we’re supposed to do!” They’re not. “Where is it in the book of Allah that we ‘protest’? Is this business of ‘protest’ anywhere in the Quran or the Prophet’s sunna?” Akram urged his students to look at the Prophet and his Companions. Faced with a silly sketch, or a nasty novel, would they have demonstrated? “Let’s think, really,” he urged. “No matter how much the Prophet had been abused by people who opposed him, did he protest? Did he burn their houses? Did he harm them? No! He went to do dawa. When he wanted to persuade the people in Mecca to become Muslim, he would go to someone’s house seventy times! He would have patience!”