“Patience is bitter, but its fruits are sweet”. — Rousseau

“Everything comes if a man will only wait”. — Tancred

A. WAHEED Khalfe's discourse, 'Patience is a virtue' (Dawn Magazine, Jan 18) is definitely a breath of fresh air, especially in an intellectually suffocating atmosphere of this land. Nevertheless, while delving on the topic of 'patience', Mr Khalfe started discussing another, though not less significant, human value, i.e. 'tolerance' , the nature has bestowed on its creature.

'Patience' and 'tolerance' are two most amazing human virtues, though at times used as a synonym but are having different connotations and usages.

According to 'The New Webster Encyclopedia Dictionary', patience means the quality of being patient; the power or capacity of physical endurance; character or habit of mind that enables one to suffer afflictions, provocation or other evil, with a calm unruffled temper, calmness; composure; quietness or calmness or waiting for something to happen; forbearance; long sufferings; constancy in labor or exertion; perseverance, a card game played by persons alone.

Tolerance, however, is the quality of being tolerant; the capacity or act of enduring; a disposition to be patient and indulgent towards those whose opinions or practices differed from one's own.

Tolerance comes with age and the urge to coexist peacefully with others who have fundamentally different beliefs or values. According to Goethe, “I see no fault committed that I myself could not have committed at some time or other”.

Within western political philosophy, toleration was first discussed during Wars of Religion between Catholics and Protestants. When attempts to impose a single religion failed, the assumption that political stability required a common religion was replaced by the principle of toleration.

Thus with war and destruction, on the one hand, and enormous intellectual activities, on the other hand, started after Renaissance in every field of life created space for awakening suggesting that better life cannot be achieved unless tolerance is made an article of faith. This was the period when Voltaire said “Tolerance of all religions is a law of nature”.

Patience, however, is a cardinal virtue practised by prophets and men of exalted understanding and knowledge having enormous capacity to comprehend universal laws of nature. These immutable laws have been functioning from times immemorial in such perfection and precision that only a discerning eye can comprehend. The Holy Quran has laid much emphasis on seeking patience.

Mr Khalfe is correct in saying that that there was a time when tolerance walked these lands. Even the best instance of tolerance for a Muslim is provided in the Quran wherein a non-believer is urged “for you your religion, and for my religion (109-7)”.

Then what went wrong? The reason is obvious, ie the basic source that develops in a person such value is the quality education, which has received the least importance in the last more than four decades.

Therefore, unless we teach and practise the significance of this important human value, the well-being of society will remain at the precipice of narrow-mindedness and bigotry, to our own peril and sufferings.

MANZOOR H. KURESHI

Karachi