The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 5) — Page 41
PT. 26 CH. 48 ركوعاتها ٤ سُورَةُ الْفَتْحِ مَدَنِيَّةُ ٤٨ بسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ (AL-FATH) 1. "In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful. 3816A 2. Verily, We have granted thee a clear victory, 3817 3816A. Commentary: See 1:1. 3817. Commentary: "See 1:1. The reference in the words "a clear victory" seems to be to the Treaty of Hudaibiyyah. It is remarkable that though, during the previous brief six years of his life at Medina, the Holy Prophet had gained great victories over his enemies which had crippled and crushed their fighting power, yet none of them is called "a clear victory" in the Quran. It was reserved for the Treaty of Hudaibiyyah to receive this single honour, in spite of the fact that its terms were seemingly so humiliating that the Muslims were greatly perturbed over this apparently rude rebuff to the prestige of Islam, and even a stalwart like 'Umar exclaimed in extreme grief and indignation that had the terms been settled by any other person than the Holy Prophet, he would have scorned to listen to them (Hishām). The Treaty was indeed a great victory in that it opened the way to the expansion and spread of Islam and led to the Fall of Mecca and ultimately to the conquest of the whole of Arabia. It proved to be a إِنَّا فَتَحْنَا لَكَ فَتْحًا مُّبِينًان master stroke of strategy as the Holy Prophet's "political status as an equal and independent power was acknowledged by the Quraish" (Mohammad at Medina by Montgomery Watt). As the Treaty of Hudaibiyyah constitutes a great landmark in the early history of Islam and as it forms the principal topic dealt with in the Surah under comment, it needs to be treated at some length. The Holy Prophet had seen a vision that he was making a circuit of the Ka'bah along with a party of his followers. In fulfilment of his vision, the Prophet started for Mecca with about 1500 Muslims to perform the Lesser Pilgrimage in 6 A. H. , in the month of Dhul-Qa'dah, one of the four sacred months in which, according to Arab tradition and usage, fighting was forbidden, even before Islam. When he reached 'Usfan, a place a few miles distant from Mecca, he was informed by an advance party whom he had sent under the command of ‘Abbād bin Bishar that the Quraish were bent upon barring his entry into Mecca. In order to avoid an armed clash the Prophet changed his route and "after a 2937