been the supreme force in the development of mankind to its present condition. That all that is good and noble in man has been inspired by faith in God is a truth at which perhaps even an atheist would not cavil. One Abraham, one Moses, one Krishna, one Buddha, one Christ, one Muḥammad has, each in his turn and his degree, changed the whole history of the human race and raised it from the depths of degradation to moral heights undreamed of. It is through the teachings of this or that prophet that man has been able to conquer his lower nature and to set before himself the noblest ideals of selflessness and the service of humanity. A study of the noble sentiments that inspire man today will show their origin in the teachings and examples of some great sage who had deep faith in God and through whom was sown the seed of faith in other human hearts. The moral and ethical development of man to his present state, if due to any one cause, is due to religion. Humanity has yet to find out whether the lofty emotions which inspire man today will survive after a generation or two of Godlessness, and what sentiments materialism will bring in its train. To all appearances, the reign of materialism must need entail the rule of selfishness, for a cut and dried scheme for the equal division of wealth will not inspire the noble sentiments which are today the pride of man and which centuries of religion have instilled into his very being. If the sanction of religion were withdrawn today, the ignorant masses — and the masses will always remain ignorant though they may be able to read and write — will sink back, gradually of course, into a state of savagery, while even those who reckon themselves above the common level will no longer feel the inspiration to noble and high ideals which only faith in God can give.

Islām as the basis of a lasting civilization

As a matter of fact, human civilization, as we have it today, is, whether it likes the idea or not, based on religion. Religion has made possible a state of civilization which has again and again saved human society from disruption. If its history is traced back anywhere, it will be seen that whenever it has begun to totter, a new religious impulse has always been at hand to save it from complete extinction. Not only that civilization, with any pretence to endurance, can rest