ism

1960
When they arrived at Tabuk, they learnt that the Caesar and his allies had withdrawn their troops from the frontier and there
was no enemy to fight with. Thus they won a moral victory that increased their prestige manifold and, that too, without
shedding a drop of blood. In this connection, it is pertinent to point out that the general impression given by the historians of
the campaigns of the Holy Prophet about the Campaign of Tabuk is not correct. They relate the event in a way as if the news
of the mustering of the Roman armies near the Arabian frontier was itself false. The fact is that the Caesar had begun to
muster his armies, but the Holy Prophet forestalled him and arrived on the scene before he could make full preparations for
the invasion. Therefore, believing that "discretion is the better part of valour," he withdrew his armies from the frontier. For he
had not forgotten that the three thousand fighters for the cause of Islam had rendered helpless his army one hundred
thousand strong at M'utah. He could not, therefore, even with an army of two hundred thousand, dare to fight against an army
of thirty thousand, and that, too, under the leadership of the Holy Prophet himself. When the Holy Prophet found that the
Caesar had withdrawn his forces from the frontier, he considered the question whether it would be worthwhile to march into
the Syrian territory or to halt at Tabuk and turn his moral victory to political and strategic advantage. He decided on the latter
course and made a halt for twenty days at Tabuk. During this time, he brought pressure on the small states that lay between
the Roman Empire and the Islamic State and were at that time under the influence of the Romans, and subdued and made
them the tributaries of the Islamic State. For instance, some Christian chiefs Ukaidir bin Abdul Malik Kindi of Dumatul Jaiidal,
Yuhanna bin D'obah of Ailah, and the chiefs of Maqna, Jarba' and Azruh also submitted and agreed to pay Jizyah to the
Islamic State of Al-Madinah. As a result of this, the boundaries of the Islamic State were extended right up to the Roman
Empire, and the majority of the Arab clans, who were being used by the Caesar against Arabia, became the allies of the
Muslims against the Romans. Above all, this moral victory of Tabuk afforded a golden opportunity to the Muslims to
strengthen their hold on Arabia before entering into a long conflict with the Rormans. For it broke the back of those who had
still been expecting that the old order of 'ignorance' might revive in the near future, whether they were the open upholders of
shirk or the hypocrites who were hiding their shirk under the garb of Islam. The majority of such people were compelled by
the force of circumstances to enter into the fold of Islam and, at least, make it possible for their descendants to become true
Muslims. After this a mere impotent minority of the upholders of the old order was left in the field, but it could not stand in the
way of the Islamic Revolution for the perfection of which Allah had sent His Messenger.
TREATY OF HUDAYBIYAH:
See Surah 48.
48:1 - Verily We have granted thee a manifest Victory: 4866
4866 This is best referred to the Treaty of Hudaibiya, for which see the Introduction to this Sura. By this Treaty the Makkan
Quraish, after many years of unrelenting conflict with Islam, at length recognised Islam as (what they thought) an
equal power with themselves. In reality the door was then opened for the free spread of Islam throughout Arabia and
thence through the world. (48.1)
48:3 - And that Allah may help thee with powerful help. 4868
4868 Three objects or results of the Treaty are mentioned: (1) forgiveness, which is equivalent to Mercy, (2) fulfilment of the
dignity of Prophethood with the dignity of an effective and recognised position in Arabia; (3) opening up a straight way
leading to Islam, by access to Makkah from next year, Makkah being the symbolic centre of Islam. These three are
summed up in the comprehensive phrase "powerful (or effective) help". (48.3)
48:18 – Allah's Good Pleasure was on the believers when they swore Fealty to thee under the
Tree: He knew what was in their hearts and He sent down tranquillity to them and He
rewarded them with a speedy Victory; 48914892489348944895
4895 The Treaty of Hudaibiya itself was a "speedy Victory": it followed immediately after the Bai'at. (48.18)
48:20 – Allah has promised you many gains that ye shall acquire and He has given you these
beforehand; and He has restrained the hands of men from you; that it may be a Sign for the
Believers and that He may guide you to a Straight Path; 489648974898
4897 The first fruits of the Bai'at were the victory or treaty of Hudaibiya, the cessation for the time being of the hostility of
the Makkan Quraish, and the opening out of the way to Makkah. These things are implied in the phrase, "He has
restrained the hands of men from you." (48.20)
4898 Hudaibiya (in both the Bai'at and the Treaty) was truly a sign-post for the Believers: it showed the solidarity of Islam,
and the position which the Muslims had won in the Arab world. (48.20)
48:24 – And it is He who has restrained their hands from you and your hand from them in the midst
of Mecca after that He gave you the victory over them. And Allah sees well all that ye do. 4902
4902 Little incidents had taken place that might have plunged the Quraish and the Muslims from Madinah into a fight. On
the one hand, the Quraish were determined to keep out the Muslims, which they had no right to do: and on the other
hand, the Muslims, though unarmed, had sworn to stand together, and if they had counter-attacked they could have
forced their entrance to the Ka'ba, the centre of Makkah. But Allah restrained both sides from anything that would
have violated the Peace of the Sanctuary, and after the Treaty was signed, all danger was past. (48.24)
48:25 – They are the ones who denied revelation and hindered you from the Sacred Mosque and
the sacrificial animals detained from reaching their place of sacrifice. Had there not been
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1960