Significance of the Treaty of Hudaibiyyah — Seal of the Prophets Vol. 3
Introduction
In this discourse from The Life & Character of the Seal of the Prophets (Volume 3), Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad (ra) details the historical events and scholarly insights surrounding Significance of the Treaty of Hudaibiyyah.
Book Series: The Life & Character of the Seal of the Prophets (Volume 3)
Author: Hazrat Mirza Bashir Ahmad (ra)
Section: IV – The Treaty of Hudaibiyyah & its Magnificent Outcomes
Pages: Book pp. 117–118 (PDF pp. 135–136)
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Historical Account
Now we are about to enter that period of Islāmic history which holds special significance in the second era of the Life of the Holy Prophetsa in Madīnah. My intent is to refer to the Treaty of Ḥudaibiyyah, by which the course of war and conflict between the infidels of Makkah and the Muslims was brought to a halt and whereby a new era in the history of Islām began. The world was given the opportunity to realise that the true power of Islām lied in peace and not in war. Clearly, there was no war during the Makkan life of the Holy Prophetsa and the Holy Prophetsa as well as his companions spent their lives under the rule of the Chieftains of the Quraish. However, this rule of the Quraish was even more cruel and tyrannous than a state of war, because the Quraish exerted their utmost strength to annihilate Islām. Following this, war broke out with the start of the era in Madīnah and the helpless Muslims went from one trial to another, which in some ways was even greater than the first. In reality, until now Islām had not yet received the opportunity to exhibit its power of peace. The Treaty of Ḥudaibiyyah, however, which we are about to mention, furnished this opportunity. Furthermore, the world knows that in this test, Islām demonstrated in broad daylight, that its power of peace is far greater and
more splendid than its power of war. As such, the historical account which we are about to mention is a very significant one. We request our readers to study the details of this account very carefully.
Dream of the Holy Prophetsa & the Journey to Ḥudaibiyyah We have seen that shortly after the Holy Prophetsa migrated from Makkah to Madīnah, Allāh changed the Qiblah of the Muslims from Jerusalem to the Baitullāh. Along with this alteration of the Qiblah, Allāh also instructed the Holy Prophetsa to set his concentration towards Makkah and not to forget that Makkah was the religious centre of Islām, which should come under Muslim control as soon as possible. Due to these injunctions, the Holy Prophetsa would constantly think about Makkah and since it was their homeland, naturally the Holy Prophetsa and his Muhājirīn companions had a special love for it. Moreover, it so happened that during those days, the Holy Prophetsa saw a dream that he was performing Ṭawāf of the Baitullāh along with his companions. At that time the month of Dhū Qa‘dah was near, which even in the era of the Jāhiliyyah was considered to be amongst those four blessed months wherein all forms of war and conflict was prohibited. On the one hand the Holy Prophetsa saw this dream and on the other, the time was also such that the course of war would come to a halt and peace and safety would prevail throughout the whole of Arabia. Although these were not the days of Ḥajj, and until now Ḥajj in Islām had not been officially ordained either, but Ṭawāf could be performed around the Ka‘bah at any time. Therefore, upon seeing this dream, the Holy Prophetsa instructed his companions to prepare for ‘Umrah. ‘Umrah, was as if a lesser Ḥajj, wherein various rites of the Ḥajj were left out and only Ṭawāf of the Baitullāh and an animal sacrifice would suffice. Furthermore, unlike the Ḥajj, there was no specified time of the year for the ‘Umrah either. This worship could be performed any time of the year. On this occasion, the Holy Prophetsa also
[Al-Fatḥ (48:28) Jāmi‘ul-Bayāni ‘An Ta’wīli Āyatil-Qur’ān (Tafsīruṭ-Ṭabari), By Imām Abū Ja‘far Muḥammad bin Jarīr Aṭ-Ṭabarī, Volume 2, p. 123, Commentary of Sūrah Al-Fatḥ, Verse No. 27, Dāru Iḥyā’it- Turāthil-‘Arabī, Beirut (2001) Sharḥul-‘Allāmatiz-Zarqānī ‘Alal-Mawāhibil-Ladunniyyah, By Allāmah Shihābuddīn Al-Qusṭalānī, Volume 3, p. 170, Amrul-Ḥudaibiyyah, Dārul-Kutubil-‘Ilmiyyah, Beirut, Lebanon, First Edition (1996) *Tārīkhul-Khamīs Fī Aḥwāli Anfasi Nafīs, By Ḥusain bin Muḥammad bin Ḥasan, Volume 2, p. 16, Ghazwatul-Ḥudaibiyyah, Mu’assasatu Sha‘bān, Beirut]
[Pilgrimage to the Ka‘bah (Publishers)]
Book Series: The Life & Character of the Seal of the Prophets (Volume 3)
Section: IV – The Treaty of Hudaibiyyah & its Magnificent Outcomes | Navigation: « Previous: [Treachery of the Tribes of ‘Ukl and ‘Urainah & its Terrible Outcome – Shawwal 6 A.H.] | Next: [Dream of the Holy Prophet (sa) & the Journey to Hudaibiyyah] »