Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) — 39: Secrets Of
Success
Islamic Perspectives - Muslim JournalsArab News
& Information - By Adil Salahi
Those who are critical of Islam often claim that its
early success at the hands of its Prophet Muhammad
(peace be upon him) the bearer of God’s last message
to mankind, was due to the promises and threats it
gives.
They cite the Qur’anic descriptions of heaven and
hell, claiming that people’s fear of the punishment in
the hereafter or their eagerness to enjoy the supreme
pleasures of heaven prompted their speedy acceptance
of Muhammad’s message. Even today some people try to
dismiss the spread of Islam into new areas as due to
such promises and threats. Nothing can be further from
the truth.
By their nature, people prefer today’s pleasure and
immediate comfort even when what they are promised for
tomorrow is much better and greater. Tomorrow always
seems to them to be distant. It appears even more so
to those who indulge in pleasure at every opportunity.
What the message of Islam promised was nothing of the
pleasures of this world. It never promised its
followers that they would be always victorious against
their enemies. On the contrary, it told them that they
would encounter stiff opposition and suffer great
hardships. They would be expected to withstand all
this, never wavering in their commitment, even if it
meant that they faced death, loss of their land,
homes, families, and all they had. Their reward does
not come in this life. It is there, in the next world,
the life to come.
To a person who is keen on the pleasures of life, such
a promise does not score highly. It appears so
distant. Would that merit sacrificing all the
pleasures that may be had in this life?
Yet those who responded to the Prophet’s call and
believed in his message were fully aware that the
immediate promise they were given involved great
hardship and exposure to unrelenting persecution. When
the delegates of the Ansar met the Prophet and were
about to give him their pledges of support against all
his enemies, one of them shouted: “Stop. Do you know
what you are pledging to do for this man? You are
committing yourselves to go to war against the whole
world. If there is any doubt in your minds or if you
feel that if your wealth is looted and your honoured
leaders are killed you will give him up, it is more
honourable for you to leave him alone now.”
It was the case with every new Muslim. They were clear
that the road ahead was full of difficulties. They
would be called upon to sacrifice their all. Hence,
those who responded to the Prophet’s message were the
best of all people. Had it been true that the
motivation to accept Islam was based on the promises
of the pleasures of heaven, such as the endless flow
of wines and the scores of young beautiful women
allocated to every man, we would have found that the
early Muslims would have been those who cared for such
pleasures. Yet these were the ones who never wavered
in their opposition to Islam. They still do today.
Those early Muslims had to fight battles, but every
single battle was imposed on them. They were only
defending themselves against clear aggression. They
never thought of attacking anyone for any reason. All
they wanted was to live in peace and to be allowed to
present their faith to people so that they may choose
to accept if they wanted. They realized that there was
much to life than cheap pleasures. Hence, they were
able to establish a model society, which humanity
today can do no better than to emulate.
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