Islam - The Summit of Religious Evolution — Page 153
153 love the Lord your God with all your heart. This continued to be the first Commandment for all succeeding prophets, judges and kings, down to Jesus Christ and his Apostles. ilial-lah Muhammad ur Rasulullah meaning "There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is His messanger”. Exodus 3 (Migration): Moses’ led the Jews out of Egypt as a result of their continued persecu- tion by the Pharaohs. He thus migrated with his people as a result of persecution. This Exodus proved to be the turning point in the history of Israel. The eve of Exodus is reckoned as the starting point of the Jewish Passover festival. Hijra (Migration): Mohammad led Muslims out of Mecca because of severe persecution by his people. He thus migrated with his followers as a result of persecution. This successful migration was a turning point in Islamic history and marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar. Destruction of arch enemy: Moses struck the waters of the sea with his rod, this movement of his hand was a signal for a wind to blow, and the tide to return, which led to the drowning of pharaoh and his hosts in the sea. (Exodus 15:21- 28). Destruction of arch enemy: Muhammad threw a handful of small pebbles towards the enemy, in the battle of Badr. This movement of his hand became a signal for a strong sand- storm to blow in the eyes of the enemy; and it eventually led to the destruction of Abu-Jahl, and his hosts were totally routed. (Holy Quran 8:18; Hisham under battle of Badr) The Pledge: Moses took pledge from 70 of his elders that they will be obedient to God and loyal to him. On that same occasion, they offered animal sacrifice to the Lord, as a burnt and peace offering. (Exodus 24:1-8) The Pledge: The Holy Prophet also took pledge from 700 of his elders, at Hudaibiyya. That same day, 70 camels were sacrificed to the Lord, for the 'Umrah' that was intended that year. (Quran 48:19; and Ibne Ishaq P. 500) Battles 4 (Jihad): After the exodus, Moses fought several battles against the surrounding pagan tribes, to consolidate his position in the area. He himself commanded his armies and was successful in all the battles he fought by way of Jihad. (Ref: Num 21:23-35; Num 31:1- 54; 32:20-42. Deut 2:32-35; 3:1-8). Battles (Jihad): The battles which the Holy Prophet fought were all fought after the Hijra i. e. the exodus of the Muslims from Mecca. He was forced to fight these battles against the hostile pagan tribes, in self-defense. He himself trained and commanded his armies; and he was spectacularly successful in all the battles he fought as Jihad. (Ref: Quran 3:14, 3:124; 8:45; 22:40 and Islamic history. The Law 5 (Shariah): Moses was a lawgiver prophet. Starting from the basic commandments such as. , 'Do not kill' 'Do not steal' etc. he gave his people a comprehensive Law covering moral, religious, social, judicial, The Law (Shariah): The Holy Prophet was also a lawgiver. Starting from very basic commandments like that of Moses, he gave mankind a complete Divine Law covering all aspects of man's life at individual, national as 3 Jesus also migrated to another land, after his persecution and his recovery from his ordeal on the cross. His migration to the eastern land was also successful. But he never led his followers there. He himself proclaims: “I say to you: Where I am going, you cannot come. ” 4 Though Jesus made preparations for fighting his enemies, and according to Luke, told his disciples to sell their belongings to buy swords (Luke 22:36). But: “… they said, ‘Look Lord! Here are two swords and he said to them: ‘It is enough’ (Luke 22:28). Thus, he never fought a Jihad against his enemies. 5 Jesus, according to his own statement, was not a law-giver. On being asked about his commandments, he referred the person to the commandments of Moses.