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The India Canada Consortium recently hosted a conference entitled Insightful Islam. The goal of this transnational forum was to introduce to people in Canada and India some of the most insightful aspects of Islam.  I was invited to speak on the forum. I chose to speak about how Indian Muslims, especially during the age of the grand Mughal emperors, advanced an interpretation of Islam that was inclusive and tried to bring Hindus into the fold of the people of the book. Contemporary Muslim leaders and scholars like Maulana Azad too tried to advance a pluralistic commentary on Islamic issues on the ground of oneness of religions (Vahdat al-din).

In his discussion Dr. Muqtedar Khan elaborated ideas such as Sulh Kul (peace with all) and argued the Indian Muslims had found a way to propose a pluralist India where people of all faiths could live and prosper in peace and security. It was this national policy under the rule of Emperor Akbar that made India famous as a Dar al-Aman, the land of peace and safety.

In this brief fifteen-minute presentation he shared some of the best ideas advanced by Indian Muslims.

Chapters:
00:00 Sulh Kul as Pluralism
00:40 India Canada Consortium
01:40 Quran and Enlightenment
03:00 India as Dar al-Aman
06:48 Are Hindus People of the Book?
10:25 Sulh Kul as Emperor Akbar's National Policy
13:00 Maulana Azad's Vahadat al-Din ( Oneness of Religion)
14:00 Conclusion

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Dr. Muqtedar Khan is a professor at the University of Delaware and host of the YouTube show Khanversations. He is the author of the award-winning book Islam and Good Governance: Political Philosophy of Ihsan (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019). He Tweets @MuqtedarKhan.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]