At this point, the question has also been raised that if the actual intent of the Islāmic teaching was that slaves should be gradually freed, why then did the practice of slavery continue to remain in Islāmic countries up until the current era? The answer to this is that on the one hand, until the Islāmic State continued to progress and the sphere of its influence continued to expand; and the Muslims also continued to understand the true essence of the Islāmic teachings and adhere to them, the liberation movement of slaves continued to move forward very rapidly. Millions of slaves were delivered from the misfortune of slavery by the efforts of Muslims. However, as mentioned above, during that era, there was a countless and limitless number of slaves throughout the world. There was no civilized country in the world where slaves did not exist in great abundance. Hence, prior to the depletion of this inexhaustible store, on the one hand the progression of Islāmic conquests gradually weakened, and ultimately came to a halt completely. On the other hand, due to a distance from the prophetic era, that light of prophethood, which was the cause of all this bloom and blossom, began to fade in the hearts of the Muslims. That vigorous passion of understanding the true Islāmic doctrine and adherence to it, with which the Companions stood up, and which was given to future generations by the Companions as inheritance, gradually began to vanish from the hearts of the Muslims. As a matter of fact, during this Dark Age, such people were born who, due to their ignorance or materialism, distorted religion and disfigured it completely. The result of this was that in the likeness of other nations, who still practiced a very repulsive form of slavery, Muslims also abandoned the Islāmic teachings and traditions and resorted to that very cruel form of slavery, which Islām actually stood to uproot. However, even in the era of this crooked mindset and unbecoming conduct, as a whole, the state of slaves in Islāmic countries remained comparatively better than in other countries. Moreover, at the outset, even though Muslims kept slaves, they were never supporters of the actual spirit behind slavery. Contrary to this, in the Christian country of Abyssinia, such a horrific form of slavery exists even today that upon witnessing it, mankind is put to shame. Even today, death has not come upon the spirit of slavery in the cultured and civilized Christian countries of Europe and America. Nonetheless, the miserable state of a neighbouring nation cannot wash away the blemish of our own deterioration. There is an immediate and dire need for Islāmic governments and Islāmic societies to engage in abolishing this cruel practice of slavery, with full concentration and effort. They must once again, bring the world back to that blessed nucleus, which the Holy Prophet(sa) and his Companions wished to gather it in, and the purpose of which was to eradicate slavery and its spirit from the world; and thus, establish true freedom and true equality.