In Holy Quran, violating a pledge made simulates unravelling a yarn spun with effort by a woman. It follows from the Divine simile that making a pledge or taking an oath may not be taken lightly, but painstakingly. It may be done as painstakingly as the woman spinning her yarn, lending it strength and sanctity:
”And do not be like her who unravels her yarn, breaking it into pieces, after she has spun it strongly. Nor use your oaths as a means of deception among you, because one community is more prosperous than other. God is testing you thereby .On the Day of Resurrection, He will make clear to you everything you had disputed about” (16: 92)
It is obvious that much more than an individual affair, in the Sacred Verse, community is in focus, the pledge, the oath between communities. The prosperity a community enjoys, the power it holds may not be used as a lever for deceiving a community which may be less prosperous, thus weaker in comparison. It amounts to deception in the Divine scheme of things. It could be inferred that what holds good in the inter-community affairs, may hold good in affairs between nations.
The prosperity, the power that a community or a nation enjoys may be taken as a test from God. The Divine Decree is clear that on the Day of Resurrection, God will make clear the matter of dispute between communities/nations. It follows thus the right and the wrong of the matter in dispute will be laid bare, and dealt as per Divine Commands.
The Holy Verse makes clear that inter-community affairs, and on a similar plane affairs between nations are ever and always under Divine Scrutiny, and due care may be exercised, lest a weaker community or a weaker nation is wronged by the prosperous and the powerful, in the vain hope of emerging stronger and more powerful.
iqbal.javid46@gmail.com