The Life & Character of the Seal of Prophets (sa) - Volume II — Page 39
II Commencement of Jihād by the Sword and Fundamental Discussion on Jihād Commencement of Jihād by the Sword Now we are entering into the second year of migration. We now enter that era of Islāmic history in which war between the disbelievers and Muslims commenced. The issue of Jihād by the sword, on account of which the swords of the Muslims were unsheathed, despite actually being a very straightforward and simple issue, has become very confused. Unfortunately, this is due to the contradictory notions which have been expressed by Muslims themselves in this regard. Furthermore, the writings of various non-Muslim historians, which they have written not in their capacity as historians, but as prejudiced religious critics, have also contributed to the confusion. It is alleged that Islām was initially nurtured under the shadow of the sword, which was raised against every such individual who refused to accept Islām, and that it was made a religious obligation upon Muslims to convert people to Islām by force of the sword. How far off is this notion from the truth, and how contradictory is it to authentic historical account? The answers to this shall be provided in the following pages. The truth is that, in this early period, the actions of the Holy Prophet sa and his Companions were solely in security and self-defense, and evidence in support of this shall be provided ahead. Moreover, these measures were only undertaken when the Quraish of Makkah - and upon their instigation - the hostile designs of the other Arabian tribes had reached such an extent, that remaining silent in response, and refraining from physical action, was equivalent to suicide for the Muslims. No sensible individual can deem this as being worthy of praise. Then, the various measures employed by