Aishah
(ra) said: "Whenever the Prophet had to choose between two options, he
always opted for the easier choice." (Al-Bukhari) To choose the easiest
option means to begin from the possible, and one who begins from the possible
will surely reach his goal.
In
the early days of Mecca, there were many problems and difficulties. At that
time, a guiding verse in the Qur'an was revealed. It said: "With every
hardship there is ease, with every hardship there is ease." (94:5-6).
This means that if there are some problems, there are also opportunities at the
same time. And the way to success is to ignore the problems and avail the
opportunities.
This
principle is derived from the Hijrah. Hijrah was not just a migration from Mecca
to Medina. It was to find a more suitable place for Islamic work, as history
proved later on.
The
Prophet (saw) of Islam was repeatedly subjected to practices of antagonism by
the unbelievers. At that time the Qur'an enjoined upon him the return of good
for evil. And then, as the Qur'an added, "You will see your direst enemy
has become your closest friend" (41:34). It means that a good deed in
return of a bad deed has a conquering effect over your enemies. And the life of
the Prophet (saw) is a historical proof of this principle.
After
the Battle of Badr, about 70 of the unbelievers were taken as the prisoners of
war. They were educated people. The Prophet (saw) announced that if any one of
them would teach ten Muslim children how to read and write he would be freed.
This was the first school in the history of Islam in which all of the students
were Muslims, and all of the teachers were from the enemy rank. Here I shall
quote a British orientalist who remarked about the Prophet of Islam (saw): He
faced adversity with the determination to writing success out of failure.
When
Mecca was conquered, all of the Prophet's (saw) direst opponents were brought
before him. They were war criminals. But the Prophet (saw) did not order to kill
them. He simply said: "Go, you are free." The result of this
kind behavior was miraculous. They immediately accepted Islam.
In
the famous Ghazwa of Muta, Khalid bin Walid decided to withdraw Muslim forces
from the battlefield because he discovered that his army was disproportionately
outnumbered. When they reached Medina, some of the Muslims received them by the
word "O Furrar (O deserters!)" The Prophet (saw) said "No.
They are Kurrar (men of advancement)." Those Medinan people were
thinking dichotomously, either fighting or retreating. The Prophet (saw) said
no. There is also a third option, and that is to avoid war and find a time to
strengthen yourself. Now history tells us that the Muslims, after three years of
preparation, advanced again towards the Roman border and this time they won a
resounding victory.
This
principle is derived from the Ghazwa of Hudaibiyya. At that time, the
unbelievers were determined to engage Muslims in fighting, because obviously
they were in an advantageous position. But the Prophet (saw), by accepting their
conditions unilaterally, entered into a pact. It was a ten-year peace treaty.
Until then, the meeting ground between Muslims and non- Muslims had been on the
battlefield. Now the area of conflict became that of ideological debate. Within
two years, Islam emerged as victorious because of the simple reason of its
ideological superiority.
This
principle is well established by a hadith of Al-Bukhari. Aishah (ra) says that
the first verses of the Qur'an were related mostly to heaven and hell. And then
after a long time when the people's hearts had softened, the specific commands
to desist from adultery and drinking were revealed in the Qur'an. This is a
clear proof that for social changes, Islam advocates the evolutionary method,
rather than the revolutionary method.
During
the writing of Hudaibiyya treaty, the Prophet (saw) dictated these words: "This
is from Muhammad, the Messenger of God." The Quraysh delegate raised
objections over these words. The Prophet (saw) promptly changed the word and
ordered to write simply Muhammad, son of Abdullah. These were the principles
through which the Prophet of Islam (saw) gained that success which has been
recognized by historians as the true success.