Islam and Slavery — Page 39
39. Under these circumstances, it would indeed be an insult to truth to mention the name of any modern reformer side by side with that of the Holy Prophet while speaking of the reformation wrought by the latter in regard to slaves. . We do indeed hold in great esteem the work performed by the western reformers and we admire their endeavours, but naturally the efforts put forth by different persons are of different degrees, and the truth is that the reform brought about by the Holy Prophet is of such a high degree that the achievements of any other reformer can stand no comparison with it. The Holy Prophet's taking up the cause of the slaves 1,350 years ago when the world looked upon the possession of slaves as its birth-right and the slaves were treated as worse than beasts; his absolute prohibitlon of the cruel system of enslaving free men for all time to come; his adoption of effective measures for the betterment of their condition; his making strong recommendations for the emancipation of the existing slaves and introducing a system under which they continued both to improve their condition and to secure their eventual freedom; his making it binding on the State to see that the system for the improvement of the condition of the slaves and for their gradual but certain emancipation worked properly; and his carrying out the scheme in such a thoughtful manner and to such a successful issue that the slaves who were emancipated as a result of that scheme were not only made free in the real sense of the word but proved highly honoured and useful citizens both to the State and to the nation so much so that there appeared among them men