The Concept of the Unity of Humanity in the Writings of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (Part One)

By Dr Zafar Darik Qasmi, New Age Islam 21 October 2025 Abstract: Maulana Abul Kalam Azad believed that all human beings are equal, regardless of religion, race, or nationality. He taught that true peace and harmony can only be achieved when people recognise the oneness of God and the unity of humanity. In his writings, especially Tarjuman al-Qur’an and Al-Hilal, Azad promoted interfaith understanding, tolerance, and cooperation. He explained that every religion originally shared the same message — to worship one God and live a moral life. For him, differences in colour, language, or status should never divide people. Instead, all must unite under the universal bond of faith and humanity. Azad’s vision remains relevant today, encouraging global peace, justice, and brotherhood through respect for diversity and shared human values. Main Points: 1. All humans are equal, beyond religion, race, or nationality. 2. True unity comes through belief in one universal God. 3. Every religion teaches peace, morality, and divine oneness. 4. Azad promoted interfaith harmony, tolerance, and shared values. 5. His message guides humanity toward global peace and justice. ---- Abul Kalam Muhiyuddin Ahmad Azad (1888–1958) was among India’s most influential and respected personalities. He not only worked for Hindu–Muslim unity, national harmony, and shared cultural values through his writings, but also took practical steps to promote these ideals. By reading Maulana Azad’s writings, speeches, and letters, one can clearly see that he not only offered valuable and insightful guidance on national and community issues, but also wrote extensively about patriotism, social justice, tolerance, humanism, and Hindu–Muslim cooperation. Alongside these themes, dialogue, mutual understanding, and the study of religions were also central to his thought. His commentary on the Qur’an, Tarjuman al-Qur’an, is a living example of this. In the interpretation of Surah al-Fātiḥah (the first volume), elements of unity, harmony, tolerance, and pluralism can be seen in a unique way. Likewise, his journal Al-Hilal also contains a great deal of material related to comparative religion. The following discussion highlights Maulana Azad’s approach to comparative study of religions. The Philosophy of the Unity of Humanity Today, the world faces many kinds of divisions among people, which have weakened the very foundations of humanity. Compassion, kindness, tolerance, and mutual love seem to be disappearing. Therefore, it has become necessary to strengthen human relationships, regardless of one’s faith, belief, or creed. Maulana Azad vividly described these human differences and explained that genuine inter-religious harmony and human connection can only exist when we are truly connected through the bond of servitude to one God — the philosophy of divine unity (Tawhid). This, he argued, is the only force capable of uniting humankind and realising interfaith harmony in practice. He wrote: “The divine order of nature throughout the universe is one and the same. It cannot be more than one, nor can it differ from itself. Therefore, divine guidance too had to be one from the very beginning and address all humanity alike. The Qur’an declares that all messengers of God, in every time and place, brought the same universal message — the message of faith and righteous action. True religion is nothing other than worshipping one God and living a moral life. Anything contrary to this cannot be considered the true religion.” (Tarjuman al-Qur’an, Vol. 1, p. 358) From this quotation, it becomes clear that the core teachings of all religions were originally the same — they all called humanity to unity and warned against division. As Maulana Azad observed: “There has never been a founder of any religion who did not teach unity of faith and warn against sectarianism. The true purpose of religion is to bring scattered people together, not to separate them. But humanity divided itself by race, nation, colour, language, and class, creating endless barriers of hatred and conflict. What, then, remains to unite them? Only one sacred bond — the worship of one God. No matter how divided people may appear, their God is one and the same. When humanity bows before one Lord, all earthly differences fade away, and every human heart feels that the whole world is one home, and all mankind is one family — the family of the ‘Lord of all worlds.’” (ibid., pp. 259–261) Naturally, all creation is the family of the Lord of the Worlds (Rabb al-‘Ālamīn). This is a fundamental Islamic belief that binds together all peoples, communities, and followers of diverse faiths into one moral and spiritual unity. Maulana Azad repeatedly emphasised that human relationships can only achieve true stability when we sincerely respect the diversity of religions and the plural nature of society. The concept of the unity of humanity means that all people — regardless of race, colour, language, nationality, or religion — share the same origin and equal status. The Qur’an declares: “O mankind! We created you from a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes so that you may know one another.” (Al-Ḥujurāt: 13) This verse highlights the principles of equality, mutual respect, and human connection. True human dignity lies not in wealth, race, or power, but in moral character and virtuous conduct. This idea has inspired peace, tolerance, and cooperation throughout history. Prophets, philosophers, and reformers have all spread this same message of human unity. In Islam, the unity of humanity is a central teaching. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) declared in his Farewell Sermon: “No Arab has superiority over a non-Arab, nor a non-Arab over an Arab, except through piety. This timeless declaration serves as a universal charter of human equality and unity. In today’s world, divided by race, religion, language, and political interests, the message of human unity has become a global necessity. It calls all people to live with mutual respect, peace, justice, and brotherhood — so that we may build a world free from hatred and prejudice, a world united in the shared bond of humanity. ----- Dr. Zafar Darik Qasmi is an author and a New Age Islam Regular Columnist. URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-personalities/concept-unity-humanity-maulana-azad-part-one/d/137331 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism