The Greatest Example Of Divine Wisdom
HIS PRE-DESTINED ROLE AND STATUS- THE GREATEST EXAMPLE OF DIVINE WISDOM WHICH IS THE SOURCE OF MUHAMMAD’S (sws)
Certainly prophets are born and not made. Using the modern theory it is genetically determined. It is well known that some abilities (and also liabilities) run in families. Talent for music for example. But also the tendency to schizophrenia, may Allah keep us safe from it. Before we say more I think it will be good to stress something. Genetic makeup must be very important for individuals and societies. The tradition of parents arranging marriages for their children and their care to find the match must have been a wise policy- in principle. But the fact remains that as every institution this tradition can both be beneficially used or abused. Abuse is when the parents forget about the real criteria like family background, mutual attraction between the candidates and character match and go for financial and other material prospects although these also may need be considered as secondary issues after the primary ones are satisfied.
Initial love may not survive a subsequent poverty or one partners too much absence from home on account of over zeal for business or politics. The modern tendency to let inexperienced and often yet impulsive youths pick up partners from the college or the street often leads to regrets and may be one of the reasons why divorce rates are getting higher. But again the modern education, especially in poorer countries creates so much a cultural gap between the parents and their offspring that the parents may not always be the best judges in the matter of choosing a partner. Another not so good habit in more traditional countries is marrying cousins, often first cousins. This is a result of a clan and agrarian social lifestyle which is slowly being phased out. It appears that the Creator is pushing mankind towards global integration and cultural uniformity preparing them to be addressed by Islam under equal circumstances with equal chances. Allah knows best.
But that genetics is very important may be seen from the Qur’an where the Almighty says: “Indeed Allah preferred Adam and Noah and the Family of Abraham and family of ‘Imran over all people” (3: 33). The preference has been in the form of prophetic talent. Abraham AS is especially blessed and became the father of many nations producing many prophets until they culminated in and sealed by our master Muhammad Mustafa sws. Which means that the possibility of ever again genes meeting in a person so as to produce another true prophet has came to an end. This is explicitly supported by what Rasulullah’s said when his baby son Ibrahim expired in his arms “Had he survived he had to become a prophet. But there is no prophet after me”. Which means all claims to prophecy after Rasulullah amounts to blasphemy and any treasonable claimant who dared to declare himself a prophet and fake a new scripture could only deceive few people and could not justify his cause. Theirs remained small sects and promise to remain so and never attain the volume of a world religion. In the case of impostors from a muslim background their ‘scriptures’ remained very poor imitations of the Qur’an and contained only too palpable attempts to address certain mostly false issues like women’s liberation and making cuts in Islamic devotions for a lazier generation and especially pandering to western prejudices. Even if some of these issues could be regarded worthy of some re-thinking mere juridical re-consideration could be enough and pretensions to a new prophethood shouldn’t be necessary at all.
What is even more convincing about the folly and futility of claiming prophethood after Muhammad the Seal of the Prophets (sws) is that the sealing meant that the time for mankind to be led by new prophets have come to an end and from Muhammad (sws)onwards the age of reason and science have arrived and Muhammad’s (sws) Islam being eminently rational in ideology, practical and utilitarian in application and science-encouraging and world-unifying in its call is enough as a spiritual basis for mankind for all time to come. Which gives another wisdom to Muhammad’s finality as a messenger (sws) from Allah. He was sent to round up Divine Revelation so far and seal the bag for good. None in history has had this image of culmination and completion and sealing up of something precious at its zenith. Very clearly all history conspired to prepare the ground for Muhammad sws and ensure his success as the greatest personal success by a margin that could not be matched and his success is most explainable by the heavens-full amount of wisdom Allah chose to fill into him through the very best genes ever concentrated in a single man. To drive this point home Rasullullah (sws) the dearest of Allah said “From Adam onwards anytime the generations split Allah chose as my parents the best man and the best woman”.
In other words it was as if a perfect breeder had bred many generations of, say, horses and eventually one such stallion that no past stallion could match and no future better stallion was possible. There could be no purer gold than 24 carat gold so to speak. To put it still another way, Allah in His Perfect Wisdom run the whole history to cause the production of the Perfect Man Muhammad Mustafa (sallallahu alayhi wa sellim taslima!) whose greatest wisdom among all those created made Islam the greatest success story in the spiritual and cultural evolution of mankind. Although Islam looks a bit eclipsed for a while now we have no doubt that it will emerge from its temporary eclipse with a beneficent vengeance when it will be irresistible once and for all for all mankind. Allah is globalizing this world in order to deliver it in one pack into the lap of its best leader Muhammad (sws) who will rule through his best followers to make the rest his good followers. Amen.
WISE FROM THE BEGINNING
Tradition reports that as a child Muhammad (sws) was pleasant yet serious, obedient at all times and sociable yet reserved. As he grew a bit older he played less with his peers on their own terms and preferred to watch them play instead- which shows he was mentally growing fast and could only watch his peers enjoy themselves because he himself was far maturer beyond his age. When his playmates asked him why he was more standing aside than playing he would say “I like watching you more”. Apparently he was growing into a keen, conscientious and benevolent social observer and his reported later, after his thirties, habit of increasingly withdrawing from the public and meditating in the wilderness shows that as the born prophet-reformer he was evaluating everything around him and trying to relate what is in and among people to what is in earthly nature and unearthly heavens. A very important indicator of his depth of insight and purity of intention is the fact that although he was disgusted with his people’s idolatry and superstition as much as their barbaric practices like killing infant daughters (he himself was the extremely loving father of four daughters whom he could not bear even imagining hurt or sad in any way let alone anybody kill them); despite his disgust and his reasonable knowing about both Christianity and Judaism he did not even consider embracing any of the two. Reports are that there were quite a few practicing Christians among the Quraish and one was no other than Ubaidullah b. Jahsh, a first cousin of Muhammad and brother of his future wife Zainab bt. Jahsh. This Ubaidullah had converted to Islam from his Christianity and was one of those who had temporarily emigrated to Abyssinia with the Prophet’s (sws) permission but he eventually reverted to the Cross there and died as a Christian.
Despite such observation of Christianity from such close quarters for years Muhammad (sws) was obviously too realistic and insightful to notice its then imperfection as well as Judaism’s- Christianity’s disturbing doctrinal impurity and Judaism’s equally disturbing racial selfish and arrogant ethos as well as jews’ notoriety as too clever operators in every social transaction. And both additionally stood accused of corrupting their scriptures and breaking into warring factions which did no good to their supposedly common faith. In other words he could not be deceived despite his formally nil education. Instead he sympathised with the Hanifs (wishful followers of prophet Abraham and legendary ancestor of at least Quraishi and Hejazi Arabs) who were pure monotheists with a universal outlook instead of the jewish racial supremacist. Muhammad (sws) meditated and worshipped Allah as best as he could on Hanif lines. And his sincere and exclusive devotion to Allah as the Lord of all mankind without privileged favorites was quickly rewarded. He began to see spiritually sourced dreams, like what would happen the next day which came to happen as seen.
Now if anybody doubts the existence of such a beginning into sainthood (for prophets are first and foremost are sainst- friends and deserving protégés of Allah) I can emphatically confirm from personal experience as the humblest of Sufis that at the early stages of my spiritual development (1960+) I also was blessed with similar dreams where I saw persons in my dreams who turned up as exactly seen. In one case I saw myself sitting on the pulpit (mimbar) in my local mosque (where my dear friend the old kind imam and a fellow sufi allowed me to preach and lead prayers) and a holy-looking humble youth wearing a wool cap and baggy trousers stood to call the internal adhan facing me on the pulpit as is the practice. Barely three days later at the next Friday service this very same man showed up. When all was finished and we were leaving the mosques I asked this man as to who he was. He said “I am one of the murids of Sheikh Nazim” and moved away. I never saw him again. I also saw other dreams which came to pass. So the reports about Prophet’s (sws) incubation experiences in his evolution towards prophethood can only be genuine as every other significant report about him are.
Significant spiritual experiences occasionally happen to perhaps everybody no matter his faith or lack of it- even total atheists must have had some- for nobody really can be an atheist but can only think so. Deep down everybody- repeat everybody- knows Allah and can tell the Truth apart from falsehood and what holds them back from admitting and befitting from the truth is their vanity (hawa) born of their too much proud attachment to their crass egos who itself claims to be the god for him. Allah says about such persons “Have you seen the one who took his ‘hawa’ as his god and therefore Allah sealed his hearting and his heart and put a veil before his eyes on account of a knowledge (he is proud of). Who can then put him on the right path after Allah? Will you then not ponder. They say: Life is only our life of this world. We die or live and only time is destroying us. They have no knowledge of this, their’s is only opinion” (45: 23-24).
Yet each such blasphemer knows Allah’s truth deep down. Moses challenges the arch-blasphemer Pharaoh : “Thou knowest that none did sent down these revelations but the Lord of the heavens and earth as eye-openers. I think that you are in for destruction” (17: 2).
Similarly Abraham secretly chops to pieces the wooden idols of his countrymen and puts them to shame his countrymen suspiciously question him: “Is it you who did this (broke to pieces) to our gods o Abraham?” they asked. ‘No, this great one (chief idol) of them did it to the rest. Ask them to tell you if they will talk” he answered. They consulted their hearts (they thought in their hearts) and said to themselves (in their hearts) ‘it has been you who have been committing the wrong’. But still going back to their old heads they said ‘You know that these do not talk’. “So why then are you worshipping other than Allah, things which can neither benefit or harm you? Enough with you and all that you worship other than Allah. Will you not use your minds?’ “ (21: 62-67).
So, what Muhammad (sws) attained as a saint (spiritual gnosis) all willing and loving believers can attain as well according their individual capacities and peculiarities except that being sent as a prophet is reserved only for born and destined prophets the last of whom is Muhammad (sws). A Prophet’s is a special genius and talent purpose-created to hear and transmit the Creator’s cosmic guiding revelations intended for the general public while a saint can only receive revelations for his personal guidance within the bounds of his prophet’s law. Thus were the revelations to the mother of Moses and the mother of Jesus narrated in the Qur’an. Thus are the revelations Allah sends to each and every one of us to guide and save us in personal and private matters which are vitally important to us. We may make us see a portentous dream or wise words of warning or advice materialize in our hearts like out of the blue”. Or warning hunches which save us or leading hunches which take us to what we need to find. Or even ideas and wishes he inspires into his enemies to self-destruct! Like in the verses about the ‘hawa’ worshipper above.
Of all these recipients of Divine revelations the Prophet (sws) was the wisest and worthiest and therefore the highest and vastest form of revelation was vouchsafed to him both in the form of the greatest of Allah’s Books and in the form also of the greatest of wisest ideas and most effective saving advice and practices, i.e., the Sunna, were inspired into him- all the while, day and night, asleep or awake. The Prophet was like a all-powerful radar combing the heavens and not missing a single guiding and blessing signal seeping and filtering down from the Lord of the Heavens and Earth direct from His Divine Person or through the agency of His innumerable angels. In comparison to that heavens swallowing radar we are like teaspoons aspiring to act like antennas but ending up less then indoor TV antennas which sell only £1.00 p in flea markets. No amount of tuning or turning can make such toy antennas to receive clearly even the local stations at all times but only briefly and imperfectly. Saints or sinners we are nothings compared to Allah’s chosen messengers and must thank Allah for them only too much and gain what they are given only by grace later if at all. This is not fake or naïve humility. It is the same in all callings. There are hundreds of thousands of science professors at any one time but only few win the year’s Nobel Prize. The musicians are perhaps a thousand times more numerous but does any impress us as new Mozart? Of course their musical inspirations come nowhere near that born rare master’s. As for true prophet’s then it can be undersood that theirs is a wisdom not available to every mortal and a witness not every mortal can attain. Read then the rest of this essay with all above in mind.
EARLY PROMISE
Young man Muhammad sws had already won a nickname for himself. Nicknames are usually derogatory or at least humorous. Like John the Thick or James the Jackal. But his was “al Amin”, the Trustworthy. The following anectode shows not only how ‘good-starred’ he was but also how he earned a fame for fairness and wisdom. The Kaaba was repaired as sometimes it had to be it was time to put the sacred black stone to its place on one corner of its walls. The tribal representatives who had done the honorable job so far working together in harmony began to quarrel about as to who was the most worthy of this most sacred of tasks. After all it was a single small stone one single man could handle. Tens of hands couldn’t handle it together. Not quite willing to unsheath swords they accepted a suggestion by one of their number, Huzaifa b. Mughira that they wait and see who would next enter the holy precinct of the Kaaba through the Bani Shaiba gate and let that gentleman arbitrate. Of course each was afraid that the awaited unknown visitor could not be fair. The next visitor was none other than Muhammad (sws) and as soon as this was seen the contestants remarked “Here is the Trustworthy. Nobody could arbitrate better”. Muhammad (sws) suggested that they spread out a cloth. He than put the black stone in the middle and asked them for each to hold from some fringe and raise it into position. When it was done he picked up the stone and inserted it in place. All were satisfied (Ibn Ishaq).
A noble and wealthy widow, namely Khatija bt. Huwailid was weary of unreliable managers she hired for her caravans and looked for a really good one. She was suggested Muhammad and she employed him. He not only proved entirely reliable but brought in bumper profits all honestly made. Again, pre-destined good fortune and born wisdom could explain this. He simply could be at the right place at the right time (good-starred) and also could impeccably take advantage of opportunity presented without needing or inclining towards any dishonest or unscrupulous opportunism. Look what he said in later life: “It is not lawful (morally good) to ask for the hand of a woman while another man still negotiating about it for himself (i.e., no amorous gazumping). If he, undisturbed, fails in his bid or withdraws on his own, then can you make your own bid”. He was trustworthy, he was wise and he was decent and honest, well-mannered and charitable in the extreme and by the definition we gave for wisdom he was the wisest of men. We are as much wise as we are moral and as much stupid as we are immoral. Wisdom is about pleasing God and nothing else. Every good and honor is in such wisdom and nowhere else.
HIS WISDOM AS A PROPHET - EXAMPLE GROUP ONE
As one none other than the representing Allah (messenger of Allah) among men he truly had to display perfectly fair, just and kind characteristics and actions. His first and head duty was calling men to Allah (i.e., to their highest wisdom potential of which high morality was the spirit). He acknowledged that most of the errors made by men were caused by ignorance. Knowledge should be imparted to ignorant men and they should be punished only after they were shown the light in a way they could see it but stuck their wrong ways out of selfishness and arrogance. So the Prophet sws sent out armed expeditions who went about communicating the Message of Allah and empowered to impose order on any rebellious refusers. Armed because nobody copuld travel in Arabia unarmed.
The audience could either embrace Islam or stay away from Islam by paying a poll tax and keeping their peace with muslim afterwards. The idea was to pacify the earth so that Islam could have the chance to be communicated to everyone living on it. But he instructed his expedition leaders not to attack any hostile audience and harm anybody without first making to them the offer of either faith or poll (subjection) tax. If they refused both the leader could then attack. That was because the refusers were almost without doubt potential allies of the chief idolaters and determined persecuters of Islam the Quraish of Mecca. Now please see what happened in one case. “Prisoners of war were brought to the Prophet sws. He asked ‘Did you invite these to Islam before you enslaved them?”. The captives (took the initiative and) said “No!”. The Prophet (sws) asked them (again) ‘Did they invite you to Islam? The slaves said ‘No!’. He then said ‘Set them free and escort them to where they are safe and then invite them to Islam’ “. Baihaki and Wakidi). What use it is to claim to represent Allah but not to deal with people perfectly fairly? The Prophet sws was too wise to ignore that requirement.
EXAMPLE TWO
As wisest of men (closest to Allah by entertaining always the noblest and kindest of wishes towards all men and displaying actions confirming his moral excellence) he aimed at building up and wining his audience and not demolishing and losing, no matter the audiences past record. Nobody else in history could show this level of Godliness. We shall give five instances of this.
HIS WINNING OVER WORST AND GUILTIEST ENEMIES
Khalid b. Walid had been the only enemy commander who had turned the tables against the Prophet and had nearly destroyed him and Islam thereby. A born military genius of highest order (he never lost a battle in his entire career as a commander- fought at least fifty major battles- he kept his cool while the Meccan army at the Battle of Uhud began fleeing in front of the Prophet’s he hawkishly noticed that a critically positioned unit in the muslim army had began to give chase or collect booty too soon. He attacked from the gap created and by this surprise so upset the muslims that their imminent victory suddenly turned into a rout, the Prophet was brought down with a stone bleeding and unconscious and was thought to be dead and all except few of his army were fleeing for their lives. But Allah put fear into the hearts of the Meccans and they withdrew without taking the matters into their final conclusion. Their commander Abu Sufyan said “Enough for one day, let us depart before anything unexpected happens and our day is spoiled”.
Next time, at the Battle of the Trench, the Prophet was victorious and saw off more then ten thousand-strong enemy who had invested his capital Medina withdraw in frustration. He then attempted his famous pilgrimage (Umra kind) to Mecca, was denied entry and unwilling to begin hostilities for many reasons each wiser than the other he was heading back to Medina. In fact Khalid had lied ambush to Muhammad’s group on their onward march but he and his men could somehow could not bring themselves to attack their enemies who were praying behind the Prophet sws. Apparently they were awed by their noble appearance of sincere and pious worshippers of Allah. Once camped at his last stop at Hudaibia overlooking Mecca the Prophet sent and look for Khalid and when he could not be found he left a letter for him. It read (as Khalid tells): “In the Name of Allah, the All-Kind, the Merciful. I am surprised that despite your intelligence you have been unable to appreciate Islam. I have not seen anything more strange. How can a man like you fail to recognise Islam’s worth?”. The Prophet added: “Had he done his work with muslims it would be better for him. We would indeed prefer him over others”.
Not long afterwards Khalid decided that his future lied with Islam and reported to the Prophet’s (sws) presence in Medina. He narrates: “When I saw the Prophet sws he was smiling at me all the way as I approached. I saluted him as I should salute him as the prophet and he returned my salutation with a beautiful face…. ‘O Messenger of Allah, pray Allah that He forgive my sins”. “(Embracing) Islam wipes away all that happened before it”… Khalid says “Whatever important matter cropped up then the Prophet sws did not prefer anybody over me for tackling it”. Khalid ex-commander Abu Sufyan had even a far far worse record than him as an enemy of the Prophet sws. When he realized that by the Prophet’s final advance on Mecca everything was lost he was guided by Abbas the Prophet’s (sws) uncle and Abu Sufyan’s old pal, to present himself to the Prophet sws in subjection as the only way to save his skin. Full of mortal trepidation he sneaked into his presence with tail between legs so to speak. He met such a gracious Muhammad (sws) that he exclaimed “ May my father and mother be sacrificed to you what a forbearing and forgiving man you are!”
With some prodding from Abbas he then declared his Islam and fought in its army for the rest of his life until he was martyred. Similar winning tactics were applied to other terrible grandees of the defeated Quraish all of him turned into Muhammad’s (sws) incredulous admirers. If anybody in history suffered so much from at the hands of his many powerful enemies and yet worked so hard to win them over even when they were at his mercy instead of punishing them it was Muhammad (sws) and ONLY Muhammad (sws). HE NEVER AVENGED ANY HURT OR INSULT DONE TO HIS PERSON OR TO HIS NEAR AND DEAR. offer as Muhammad’s and at the much delayed hour of his complete victory won them.
For example he did not only let Abu Sufyan off the hook at the latter’s most vulnerable hour but also Abu Sufyan’s terrible wife Hind (daughter of another and even a nastier enemy Utba b. Rabia) and Wahshi, Hind’s accomplice in the successful conspiracy of felling Hamza, Prophet’s dearest uncle whom Hind also had mutilated and his liver tried to eat (she spat it out). Nobody had seen the Prophet (sws) as sad as the day he viewed his dear uncle’s badly mutilated body as if he was torn apart by Wolves, nose and ears cut away and torso slit apart and internal organs spilt out and spattered. In front of the Prophet’s (sws) both pardoning and honouring her husband and then her hopelessly guilty self Hind was dumbfounded with wonder and shame and admiration. The Prophet (sws) also forgave and honoured both sons of Islam’s greatest enemy Abu Jahl which sons then became his greatest admirers and served Islam magnificently.
His behavior contrasts sharply with and puts to shame the behavior of all religious-cum-political leaders who often took terrible revenge on their enemies. Many supposed caliph’s of his like the Umayyad and later the Abbasid rulers could not treat their defeated rivals more harshly and even barbarically. Yazid, the second Umayyad ‘caliph’ (through his equally evil agents) almost exterminated the Prophet’s offspring at the notorious Karbala whose chief hero Hussein the grandson of the Prophet sws was chopped to pieces and minced to blood and soaked into earth by repeatedly trampling on his dead body by hordes of horsemen. His holy head was sent to his murderer Ubaidullah b. Ziyad the Ummayyad governor of Iraq and then on to Yazid himself both of whom toyed with it as if it was an animal’s. Leader’s of some recent so-called Islamic revolutions could not shed more blood and punish more barbarically their defeated enemies despite apologies on their part. Those who could escape their vengeance they hunted down bot at home and abroad and killed like killing vermin. Most modern so-called Islamic militant movements hardly reflect the Prophet’s character and conduct but imitate the ruthless tactics (like mass terror) and savageries admiringly learned from rabid nationalist or Marxist guerrilla movements.
2. HIS INCOMPARABLE POLITICAL GENIUS BASED ON HIS INCOMPARABLE SPIRITUAL GNOSIS
The Truce of Hudaibia and its effects provide quite a few magnificent examples of the Prophet’s (sws) insight into matters both human and Divine and the wisdom and sagacity his tactics and decisions in view of what they led to. As already briefly remarked the Prophet (sws) was inspired to try a visit to the House of Allah the Kaaba in Mecca with his few hundred companions as was the inalienable right of all Arabs whatever their faith or political allegiance. Although initially permissive the Quarish changed their minds and threatened Muhammad’s (sws) peaceful and essentially unarmed party of would-be pilgrims with war to death. Muslims were utterly unprepared for such a nasty surprise yet all believed that Muhammad (sws) being the Messenger of Allah and they his holy companions he could lead them to victory no matter what the balance of power. Incidentally this naïve way of interpreting the power and prerogative of being a believer in Allah continues among the modern Islamic militant groups who keep attacking enemies a thousand times stronger than they despite disastrous result to themselves and masses of innocent civilian muslims.
Unable to challenge the enemy forces in the field our misguided zealots resort to suicidal terror against the enemy’s civilians only to attract enormous punishment to both themselves and the muslim civilians and their already too precious paltry assets. They should rather follow the Prophet’s example who ignored his companions unrealistic expectations from him and negotiated a way out of the grave danger however much ground he had to concede to the increasingly demanding and arrogant enemy. All companions except Abu Bakr RA were shocked and resentful about the Prophet’s (sws) concessions to and compromises with the enemy and Umar was in an especially nasty mood. Ali was also rattled but being a less intense and excitable makeup could control himself better. The whole truce seemed a complete and humiliating climbdown on the part of the Prophet sws despite all the following spiritual advantages. Please look at them carefully to form an idea strange and suspicious how things looked then.
(i) Despite overwhelming odds he had repulsed all attempts on the part of the idolatrous camp under Quraish to dislodge him from his successful position based at Medina. At the Badr, Uhud and Handaq he was delivered from his enemies by miraculous good fortune. When his enemies looked nearest from finishing him something somehow frustrated them. Who else could stand up to thousands of vicious and valorous Arab cavalry armed and armoured so superiorly to him, drawn from the most ferocious tribes while himself could only muster a fraction of the enemy’s force and was persistently undermined by a determined group of traitors all over the place, joining his army now nad deserting at the crucial moment to spoil things for him- the hypocrites. Excepting the Badr he was nearly finished both at Uhud and the Handaq battles and was saved by a whisker. Was not that a sign how invincible Allah had made him despite all odds?
(ii) He had outwitted and driven out the infinitely clever jewry who had planted themselves around Medina for centuries then and was masters of playing one arab against another, amassing great fortunes and in general playing with the sea of Arabdom surrounding them on all sides like cat would play with mice. Just like today’s Israel perhaps. Despite many conspiracies to do away with him the Prophet sws could never be fooled by them and easily turned the tables on them every time they conspired to bring him down by employing both the Quraish and the Medinese hypocrites and drove them from their tremendously fortified and wealth- and brains-packed settlements into humiliating exile and in one case partial extermination. Jews had never had such a brilliant enemy all their history, an enemy who was made even more hurting because he was also so kind and so much always in the right against them and could be their greatest savior, greater than Moses in fact had they followed him. His spirit is still the only real and effective potential to solve the present Arab-Israeli conflict. Had he been around no doubt he could by Allah find a way to either tame both Arabs and Jews and eject the spoiling elements among both (racists, hypocrites and unwise religious hotheads) and make justice and peace and sanity prevail. The sahaba was witness to his unprecedented total victory against the elusive and formidable jews which no Arab had dared to dream let alone realize before him.
(iii) The Prophet (sws) had attempted this pilgrimage on the basis of a dream in which he saw himself and companions visiting the Kaaba in Mecca and doing it. Since prophets’ dreams are part of Divine Revelation both Muhammad (sws) and his ashab took this literally as both a permission and command from Allah to the event in question. How could they be so badly disappointed and frustrated? Umar was especially incensed and indignant and raised a lot of dust about it to which both the Prophet (sws) and his best disciple Abu Bakr RA RESPONDED calmly and explained that the promise of a successful pilgrimage had not specified that it was to be achieved this particular year. Umar seemed satisfied with this answer although not quite sure.
(iv) Heavenly hosts seemed to have had always intervened on Muhammad’s (sws) side and driven away enemies. So muslims couldn’t loose. Why the Prophet (sws) was bending and backing so much as if he was afraid of infidels and even worse, as if his claim about of being Allah’s messenger was false and he had reached his limits of deceiving them.
(v) Of all things the infidels had forced him to cross out the clause “Muhammad the Messenger of Allah” from the draft truce agreement the two sides were jointly drafting and instead making him too climb down to “Muhammad son of Abdullah”. The Prophet (sws) asked Ali, his clerk, to cross the first out and insert the second but Ali was so shaken and frozen that he could not bring himself to do it. Umar had already had his worse doubts and his eyes was turning in their sockets like weaving spindles. When Ali was thus paralysed the Prophet calmly asked him to show where the clause was and crossed it out and made Ali to insert the bad alternative.
(vi) To let the badly unprepared-caught muslims off the hook to go home without entering Mecca and performing the pilgrimage rites the Quraishite ambassador and chief negotiator Suhail also dictated that any who crossed over from their side to Muhammad’s (sws) was to be returned while those who crossed in the opposite direction was not. To the shock and dismay and ominous murmurs of his companions he succumbed. And lastly to add insult to injury an attempt at defecting to muslim side happened there and then- young muslim Abu Jandal arrived his broken chains trailing him to the Prophet’s (sws) presence his father, who had been keeping him in chains for months now both to punish his conversion and prevent him from running to Medina arrived in hot pursuit. Abu Jandal made heart-rending appeals to the Prophet sws not to deliver him back to the infidels and Suhail demanded that he did, since the agreement had just been signed and sealed. Again companions protested and had to swallow hard when the Prophet sws did as demanded except that he consoled Abu Jandal with unspecified succor from Allah (which subsequently materialized so spectacularly that Quraish regretted having inserted this clause and asked for its waiver. Abu Jandal had managed to escape and with other fugitives had formed a formidable gang waylaying and capturing the precious Quraishite caravans.
Against all these apparent concessions the Prophet (sws) had got agreed a single clause which, unknown to all except his wisest of the wise self wiped out the effects of all other hurtful clauses. There was to be a ten year truce between his muslim and the Quraish-led idolatrous camp. This was such a master stroke that on their way back from Hudaibia Allah sent down the Surat al Fath (Opening of floodgates gates of victory) and implicitly glorifying the Hudaibian diplomatic stroke promised both the realization of the intended pilgrimage the next year and the conquest of Mecca and more soon afterwards all of which came to pass as revealed. Umar and others regretted their ignorant doubts and reservations about the Prophet for the rest of their lives. But he had forgiven them so completely that the Prophet sws never raised the issue again. He When the Huadibia truce took effect and Arabs lost the moral shackles their priestly class the Quraishites had imposed on them flocked to Islam in droves, tribal delegation after tribal delegation flocking to Medina, hearing out the Prophet (sws) and embracing Islam on behalf of the whole tribe each represented.
Conscripts and tributes began to flow in like floods and within a year after Hudaibia the coin dropped for the Meccans: They had been massively outwitted by Muhammad (sws)! Umar and his likes could not believe their eyes and regretted bitterly for having doubted the Prophet sws. A few months more and Quraish was caught red-handed in a clear breach of the agreements and the Prophet descended upon them with an army Arabs had never seen the like before and so scared them that they capitulated without firing a shot. Practically all was won to Islam, kindly forgiven and generously rewarded by their new master and the future master of billions of people to come. It was this which was the real Truce of Hudaibia and not it at first looked to be. It was the incomparable wisdom of the most perfect of men Allah had chosen to create and send for the perfecting of all who cared to look for it and the pacification of the rest at their own humbler levels.
One last bit of Prophet’s (sws) wisdom may be gleaned from another episode which has not been appreciated enough by his biographers to date. When the supposedly humiliating truce was signed and Abu Jandal supposedly ignominiously abandoned to his fate the question of what to do with the sacrificial camels dyed and garlanded and brought over all the way from Medina arose. The Prophet sws asked his crest-fallen and grieving companions to sacrifice their animals and shave their own heads and trim their nails as was the tradition of pilgrimage . But they simply sat down dejected, sulked and looked at him with empty eyes. Disturbed by their reluctance to obey orders the Prophet (sws) resorted to the tent of his wife Umm Salama and consulted her about the matter.
She said “O Messenger of Allah go out and sacrifice your animals, shave your hair and trim your nails and they will follow suit”. It happened just as she predicted. Which episode constitutes another of the very many examples of the Prophet’s (sws) attitude towards women. Almost singly among all ancient greats he was utterly enlightened as regards women whom he could not like and honor more. His wives, his daughters and all females he was dealing with in whatever capacity enjoyed his total unprejudiced affection and respect and could even criticize him as much as they could and basically get away with it (We shall have more to say about the Prophet’s wisdom regarding women). He is never reported to have acted against any woman harshly and in fact had forgiven completely a jewish woman who had set before him a poisoned lamb in order to kill and get rid of him. He took a little bit but feeling the trap spat the morsel out and warned the rest. But one companion had already swallowed his morsel. The Prophet sws had forgiven the woman as was his wont- no revenge for personal reasons- but when the unlucky companion died of the poison he had to apply the prescribed justice and the woman was executed in retaliation. Many years later something similar happened to Ali RA- Initially he forgave the assassin who had wounded him on the head. But he advised that in case he died of the wound the killer should have to be executed. For kindness which excludes justice is no real kindness but cruelty to potential victims who have to be convincingly protected from oppressors by effective deterrents.