War in Islam

the path leading to Hell and to set them on the path leading to Heaven, not to kill them while they are in a state of ignorance. A trader’s eye is on a prospective customer’s pocket. A warrior’s eye is on a prospective enemy’s neck. Contrary to this, the focus of Islam is on a person’s heart. Islam aims at transforming people’s hearts, so that they may partake of the mercies of their Lord. A person may be an enemy or may follow another religion, but he is, first of all, a human being. Islam wants us to reach this inner humanity inside every person and knock on the doors of his heart. It is quite possible that, in this way, his inner self will be awakened and that he might enter the True Faith. An example of this is recorded in Byzantine history. At the same time that the Byzantines were at loggerheads with the Muslims, a Byzantine Christian named Farwah Ibn Amr al-Juzami accepted Islam. He had been appointed by the Byzantines to rule over the Banu An-Naafirah people. When Islam emerged and spread in Arabia, Farwah, too, accepted the faith. He sent news of his acceptance of Islam to the Prophet through a messenger, along with a white mule as a gift. When the Byzantine ruler heard about this, he had Farwah imprisoned, and later had him killed. When Farwah was taken to the spot where he was to be killed, he recited the following verse: Convey to the leader of the Muslims the news that my bones and my entire being are for my Lord. (Seerat-e Ibn Hisham 4/262) Farwah was killed. It is no simple matter to be willing to be killed for remaining firm on one’s principles. Such a person’s very being testifies to the truth of the principles for which he gives up his life. He pens the truth of his ideology with the ink of his blood. Such a death is a source of life for thousands of people. And this is exactly what happened. Sacrifices like this one willingly made by the early Muslims made many territories enter the fold of Islam.