The External Target

2. The Call to God and Unity ~ 44 ~ Prophet, they were full of Islamic zeal. They wanted the religion they had discovered as the greatest truth to be shared with other people. This zeal required an outlet for its expression. The timely despatch of Osama’s army was aimed at providing Muslims with a suitable sphere of action. Seeing the Romans’ aggression as the occasion for a military encounter, the Prophet in his last days was able to divert the Muslims’ zeal towards the communication of the divine message among nonMuslim communities. Hence, the energy wasted in internal disputes was utilised for fruitful activities in outer spheres. Had it not been so, the Muslims of Arabia would have indulged in fighting among themselves on the pretext of reforming each other, as is evident from the prevailing situations in almost all Muslim countries. The infighting among Muslims themselves would have halted the historical process of Islam before it had even begun. But for the prudent decision of the Prophet to direct Muslims’ ardour towards external fields, Islamic history would have been an elegiac recital instead of a record of the exemplary deeds of the champions of Islam. Involvement in a lofty cause is a guarantee of noble character. But Muslims had