World Earth Day 2024: ‘Make it a habit to plant trees like your prayers’, what is Green Islam which is discussed all over the world?

World Earth Day 2024: The world is celebrating Earth Day today. On this day people are made aware of issues like pollution, deforestation, and global warming. But Indonesia, the country with the largest Muslim population in the world, is fighting this challenge through Green Islam.

World Earth Day is celebrated every year on 22 April. This day is also known as ‘International Mother Earth Day’. The purpose of celebrating Earth Day is to reduce threats like rapidly increasing levels of pollution, deforestation, and global warming and to increase awareness among people about it. In India also the Earth is called Mother Earth. Meanwhile, Green Islam is being discussed and protection of the environment is also at its center.

Every country in the world, including India, is affected by the changing environment. But Indonesia, the country with the largest Muslim population in the world, is fighting it differently. Nasruddin Omar, the royal imam of Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, has launched a religious campaign regarding the environment, which is known as Green Islam.

Many things have been said in Islam regarding the maintenance of the environment. Islam gives instructions regarding everything from the wastage of water to the cutting of trees. Some people consider environmentalism beyond religion, and some surveys have shown that there is a general belief among Indonesians that climate change is not caused by human activity. However supporters of the Green Islam movement say that change can be brought about by making 200 million Muslims aware and educated.

What is Green Islam?

Indonesia is the world’s largest exporter of coal and palm oil. Its impact is increasingly visible on the climate of the country. There are about 1700 islands in the country that are under threat of global warming. The people of the country with a population of 27 crores, which is facing environmental challenges, look towards religion with great expectations. Millions of people come to listen to Shahi Imam Nasruddin Omar, The Imam says, “Our biggest shortcomings have been that we consider the earth as a mere object, the more greedy we are towards nature, the sooner the day of doomsday will come. ”

Imam is making people across the country aware of saving the environment through the teachings of Islam. He says that like every day, it should be the duty of Muslims to control themselves to save the environment, just like doing Namaz, Muslims should also develop the habit of planting trees. The impact of this movement going on in the name of Green Islam is being seen in the country and outside the country. The imprint of this ‘Green Islam’ movement is being seen in other Muslim countries also. Experts believe that if Indonesia is successful in this, it will prove to be a guiding light for the world.

“I am following the path shown by the Prophet.”

Imam Nasruddin Omar does not make people aware only through his speeches. He has also cleaned the river flowing near the mosque of which he is the Imam and made its banks green. Not only this, he has converted Indonesia’s largest mosque into a green mosque by running it on solar energy. The Imam says that he is only following the path shown by Prophet Muhammad and that Muslims should take care of the environment.