Understanding Islam — Page 34
IS ISLAM A VIOLENT RELIGION? 34 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 A P ROPHET OF P EACE It has been established in the previous section that Prophet Muhammad sa was a man of peace and forgiveness, and the real Jihad that he waged in his life was the Jihad for peace. Still, some critics unfairly allege that the mere presence of violence in his life is enough to call him a “violent Prophet”. Dr.