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QUR'AN
REPLIES TO OBJECTIONS
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To
get the answers of these questions
let us look at the preceding 2 verses.
Verse
18:
"Indeed,
well-pleased was ALLAH with the
believers when they pledged their
allegiance unto you O Prophet
(P.B.U.H.) sunder that tree, for
HE Knew what was in their hearts;
and so HE bestowed inner peace
upon them from on high, and rewarded
them with the glad tiding of a
victory soon to come.
Verse
19: “and of many war-gains
which they would achieve: for
ALLAH is indeed Almighty, Wise."
(From
Holy Qur'an 48/18-19)
From
there and then only it is very much
evident that it is related to a specific
episode that took place during the
Prophet’s period. It does contain
a moral lesson and an admonitory for
the rest of the world for all the
times for the entire human race. And
if we look to the historical background
of these verses and the whole Chapter
48, it is after the famous treaty
of Hudaibiyah in which the Prophet
bought the peace and successfully
made hostile people of Makkah to agree
on no-war accord. Although in all
the 3 attacks they made on Madinah,
the victory was in favor of the Prophet.
Still he bought the peace even on
a very heavy price. His own companions
were uncomfortable with some humiliating
terms of the peace treaty, but the
coming years proved that this heavily
paid peace treaty became great victory,
in the history. The Prophet left an
example for all that if the peace
is available, price should be no bar
to buy it. It is the costliest and
yet most important factor for the
call (Dawah) to The Lord
of the Universe.
Frankly
speaking, this Hudaibiyah treaty must
be a lesson for present day Muslims
who have opened the fronts with many
nations of the world and facing defeat
after defeat on every front for more
than three centuries. They should
draw inspiration from this whole Chapter
48 and generate among themselves Prophetic
compassion, generosity, forgiveness,
love for peace, mercy for enemies,
so that their incessant downfall may
halt and they may make progress on
right path. It is the need of the
hour for the Muslims to defuse all
type of tensions one sided, so the
world can understand Islam, the Qur’an,
the Sunnah. After the treaty
of Hudaibiyah only, the call of Prophet
Mohammed spread in the whole peninsula
of Arab like wild fire. Peace is so
important.
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Objection
10:
It is on Chapter 8 Verse 69, the translation follows.
"So
you may take into your use all that is lawful and
good among the things which you have gained in war
as war-remainings, and remain conscious of ALLAH.
Verily ALLAH is much-forgiving, a dispenser of grace."
Here
a question arise, when and where did the event take
place and what kind of gains these are? For the
war-remaining and gains, one can understand by applying
his common sense that when a losing army runs away
from the battlefields, they think of saving their
lives only and leave behind every thing. Many a
time they have to leave their wounded soldiers,
heavy weapons, installations, equipments and provisions.
Possessions of the POW may also form the part of
that war-remaining. What should be the other way
to do away with war-remaining? Nothing is abnormal
and inhuman in this.
But
subsequent verse has a surprise for such war remaining
and POWs. The translation is
"O
Prophet, say to the captives of war who are at
your hands: ‘If ALLAH finds any good in
your hearts, HE will give you something better
than all that has been taken from you and will
forgive you your sins: for ALLAH is much forgiving,
a dispenser of grace.’ And if they should
want to betray you, they have already betrayed
ALLAH previously, so HE gave you mastery over
them and ALLAH is All-knowing, Wise."
Unfortunately
we find that Muslim conquerors used this Qur’anic
terminology to provide divinity to their loots.
They even did this many times against their own
co-religionists. The true call and mission should
continue without any violence and with utmost peace
and one-sided patience in response to all the persecutions.
On its climax, when the lives are in danger, there
should be migration from native land to avoid an
armed struggle. If the enemy does not want to settle
down and attacks, armed struggle is inevitable.
If in that case the invaders leave the battle ground
leaving goods, it is termed as ‘war-remainings’.
The rules for its use and distribution were laid
down to avoid confusion. The Qur’an has no
chapter of expansionism, invasion on new territories
and creation of empires. Nadir Shah Durrani, Mahmood
Ghaznavi, Babar or Akbar were not missionaries of
Islam. They did not fight for the cause of ALLAH
and never preached the faith. They were only the
rulers. They freely misused their faith and its
terminology to exploit the masses for their political
goals.
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