Through Force or Faith? — Page 189
Chapter 3 — Holy Prophet and Wars 189 Perhaps someone might think that he did so later when he gained control all over Arabia. But first of all, it is absurd to think that if he did not force anyone while he did not have complete domi- nance, why would he need to do it once he attained control and power? Additionally, we have the example of conquest of Makkah before us. When he conquered Makkah, the central city of Arabia, less than two years before his demise, without any battle, in perfect peace, a proclamation had been made beforehand that everyone who stayed behind closed doors or disarmed shall be in peace. ( Muslim, Kit a bul Jih a d, The Victory of Mecca, Tradition No. 3332) He did not tell even a single person to change his reli- gion. On the contrary, he permitted even his enemies to stay in his territory while maintaining their religion. It also is also worth noting that most of the battles Muslims fought were with Meccans who were their kin. Is it conceivable that Muslims fought their fathers, sons, brothers, uncles, etc. , so as to force them into their own religion? Similarly, the life histories of the companions bear witness to the fact that the way they sacrificed for Islam; the way they gave up their homes and migrated; and the way they became victims of the cruelty of their brethren—no one who had been coerced to become a Muslim would have behaved in that manner. Can human reason accept this possibility that a person who had been coerced to become Muslim would suffer such hardships for the sake of Islam and yet would not renounce it? If one argues that perhaps earlier Muslims were sincere but later on people were forced to become Muslim, then the incident of the Treaty of Hudaibiyyah refutes it. This truce, which took