THE WORD JIHAD and its connotations will be separately discussed in the chapter entitled, What is Jihad? but it must be clear at this point that this word literally means “to struggle”. When we look at the life of Prophet Muhammadsa, we learn that he struggled for peace throughout his life. This was his Jihad for peace. It is impossible for us to reproduce his illustrious life in this short book but a few examples offer the reader a glimpse!
During his time in Makkah, for instance, he and his companions were severely persecuted, humiliated, and harassed with extreme hostility. Some of his companions were even tortured to death in the most brutal manner. Yet, on one occasion, when Hazrat ‘Abdur Raḥman bin ‘Aufra and some other companions came to him and said, “O Messenger of Allah! We were respected when we were idolaters and when we believed, we were humiliated”. This was a suggestion to allow them to fight their persecutors, but Prophet Muhammadsa responded by saying, “I have been commanded to pardon, so do not fight”.28 This demonstrates how much he detested warfare and how much importance he gave to the promotion of peace.
One excellent example that clearly illustrates this is the personal conduct and precept of Prophet Muhammadsa when he migrated to Madīnah along with his followers, and the manner in which the migrant Muslims absorbed themselves into the local society. It was a perfect model of how to immigrate and integrate into a new society. Before the migrant Muslims arrived, there were two main ethnic groups in Madīnah, namely, the Jews and the Arabs.
Upon the arrival of the Muslims, there emerged three groups – the Muslims, the Jews and the non-Muslim Arabs. Prophet Muhammadsa immediately proclaimed that it was essential that they all lived together in peace and harmony; and, therefore, he proposed a covenant of peace between them. According to the terms of this treaty each group and each tribe was given its mutually agreed upon due rights. The safety and security of the lives and wealth of all parties was guaranteed in this treaty and any pre-existing inter-tribal customs were also respected. It was also agreed that if any person came from Makkah with the intention of causing harm or mischief he would not be provided sanctuary by anyone in Madīnah nor would they enter into any pact with them.
Further, if a common enemy attacked Madīnah all three groups would join together and defend the city as one entity; although it was also stipulated that non-Muslims would not be forced to fight alongside Muslims if the Muslims were ever attacked or fought outside Madīnah. In addition, any agreements the Jews had already entered into with other groups would be honoured by the Muslims. The Jews would live by their religion and the Muslims would live by their religion.
When all three groups unanimously accepted the terms of this agreement it was also agreed through mutual consent that Prophet Muhammadsa would serve as the Head of the State. Thus, as the de-facto head of the state, Prophet Muhammadsa enacted a covenant of peace between all parties within the city. According to the treaty, the Jews were not bound by the Islamic Shariah (law) but were bound only by the Jewish laws and customs. This was the perfect example of tolerance and mutual respect Prophet Muhammadsa had for other faiths.
By contrast, extremist organizations claim that Shariah law must be enforced on every person, no matter what their religion or background may be, whereas the example of Prophet Muhammadsa is entirely different and diametrically opposed to that. Indeed, this treaty clearly stipulated that no woman was to be forcibly removed from her home, thus nullifying the extremists’ claim that non-Muslim women are their possessions or chattel.
According to the treaty, no person would ever be compelled to accept Islam; rather it expressly stated that the Jews and the non-Muslims of Madīnah, would be treated with love and compassion and as brothers by the Muslims.
History bears witness to the fact that the Muslims followed this agreement to the letter and if the covenant was ever breached it was done so by the other parties. As the accepted leader of Madīnah, sometimes Prophet Muhammadsa would have to deal with individuals or groups who had breached the covenant, or who were involved in wrongdoing. Such cases of infractions were adjudicated in fairness, following the provisions of the treaty of Madinah.
If a so-called Muslim terrorist organization or any Muslim government, acts against these principles of true justice and equality, it must be clearly understood that they are doing so only to fulfil their own personal or political interests. Even if they claim to act in the name of Islam, the explicit truth is that their dastardly actions have no basis whatsoever in Islam or the teachings of Prophet Muhammadsa.
If one studies the early Islamic history in a fair, and unbiased manner, one will see that during the early era of the life of Prophet Muhammadsa and during the period of his four Rightly Guided Khulafā’, the behaviour of the Muslims was impeccable. They were never the aggressor in any battle; nor did they ever seek to conquer land under a policy of materialistic expansionism.
Wherever they sought to disseminate Islam’s teachings they did so only through preaching in an entirely peaceful manner. For example, Islam spread to China and South India and yet nowhere in history does it state that any Muslim armies ever attacked those nations; rather, Islam spread to these countries and among other nations through peaceful means. In later periods, some Muslim monarchs initiated wars for various reasons for which Islam alone cannot be blamed; and even in those wars the inhabitants of the captured countries were never forced to convert to Islam. Certainly, the Quran rejects such ventures and teaches only peaceful propagation of the teachings of faith.29