that which had overtaken Thamud and Ad. ‘What has become of you?’ the Quraysh asked. ‘How is it that a person speaks to you in Arabic, and you do not understand what he says?’ ‘Really, I didn’t understand

insane, without doubt,’ Umayya added. (Al-Isaba, Vol. II, p. 210) When ‘Amr ibn Murra Juhni preached Islam among his own tribe, the Juhaina, one of them spoke up: ‘May God make you taste the bitterness of

thus can never prosper.’ A number of people were prevented by jealousy from accepting the message of Islam. The Prophet proclaimed the fact that he was sent by God. But people always find it very difficult

According to the creation plan of God, man shall have to give an account of himself ‘whether you disclose what is in your minds or keep it hidden.’ (2:284), when ‘men’s hearts will leap up the throats and choke

neo-convert Leopold Asad. 2. When the Prophet was ordained by God to invite people to accept Islam, according to the Arab custom, he climbed the Mount Safa and addressed those who had assembled there

punishment.’” (Al-Bidayah wan- Nihayah, Vol. III, p. 38) Once the Prophet conveyed the message of Islam to Abu Sufyan ibn Harb and Hind bint Utba in the following words: “By God, there will come a day when

One thing which has to be fully understood is that the age of science was essentially the age of Islam. The fact that scientific development led to atheism is explainable in terms of incidental mistakes

Christianity, which has been subjected to human interpolations. What is science? It is the study of nature. Nature and the religion of Nature (Islam) are two aspects of the same reality. That is why the Quran

Quran prophesied that science would not pose any danger to Islam, but would rather be a means of clarifying the Truth. “We will show them Our signs in all the regions of the earth and in their own souls,

uppermost in a believer’s mind is what serves the interests of Islam, not their own personal interests. Their preoccupation must be with preaching the message of Islam. If there is a clash between personal

this, those who had been thinking of apostasy became firm in Islam.”10 When the Prophet reached Madinah, there were, besides a small minority of idolators, two main communities living there—the Jews and

just waiting for someone who would organize and unite them. When the Prophet realized that this was what people wanted, he issued a decree in which Jews and Muslims were recognized as communities in their

decree amounted to a political initiative which, in the most tactful and ingenious manner, introduced Islamic constitutional government to the city of Madinah. The Prophet’s departure to Madinah, instead of

Makkah, where they met the Prophet and heard the teachings of Islam from his lips. The impression that they received was that the person they needed to reign over their society was— not ‘Abdullah ibn Ubayy—but

their leader. They swore allegiance to the Prophet at ‘Aqabah, an event that proved a watershed in Islamic history. Quite apart from its far-reaching historical implications, this act of allegiance was an

nothing in return. In the 20th century we have heard some western thinkers—notably Bernard Shaw—mention what a fine leader of the western world a person like Muhammad would make. To make an offer like this in

life, on the other, are of a different nature. The mistake made in the political interpretation of Islam is that injunctions relating to individual life and social life have been given the same position—

position— although this cannot be proven from the Quran and the Hadith. There are some aspects of Islam that relate to individuals, and these are necessary to be followed under all circumstances, as long as one

her individual capacity, and which the believers were duty-bound to follow at all times, no matter what the circumstances. The rest of the shariah

its way to Europe, thus paving the way for modern medical science. This is because, before the Islamic revolution, the world had been swept by superstitious beliefs and idolatry. The environment in those

with gods and goddesses, what appeal could the scientific method of treatment have for the people? Only when the monotheistic revolution came to the world in the wake of Islam did the door open to that

opportunities as were available in other fields were to be utilized to promote the Islamic mission. The method Islam prescribes for the achievement of our goals, and the model example we find in the life

time the method adopted by Prophet Muhammad provides a perfect example of positive status quoism. What Prophet Muhammad did was to refrain completely from interfering with the idols and idol worship. Instead

Prophet of Islam initiated a revolution which, although very great in its scope and repercussions, was nevertheless almost bloodless. He gave peace the status of a complete ideology or system of life.

In this way he dispelled the notion that worldly progress should be one’s aim in life, for that is what ultimately results in all kinds of confrontation and violence. His formula for better living was to

friend: the ‘enemy’ always has it in him to be a friend.Peace in all circumstancesThe Prophet of Islam was a peace lover to the ultimate extent. His opponents repeatedly attempted to draw him into war