A Lesson From History

2. The Call to God and Unity ~ 49 ~ into Islam. But, regardless of this criticism, it should be noted that the two-decade long rule of Mu’awiyah gives us an important lesson. Any sincere effort to deter Muslims from internal strife and conflict, even if it is at the cost of introducing monarchy to a political institution, will always bring fruitful results in favour of Islam. Internal conflict leads Muslims to make destructive use of their Islamic spirit, yet, once distracted from the path of factional feuds, their zeal finds an active outlet in the efforts of spreading Islam. Factional conflicts among Muslims are highly deplorable. An attempt, therefore, to save Muslims from internal strife encourages them to eschew unlawful acts and harnesses their Islamic spirit to the popularising and spreading of Islam. The energy or collective force that might otherwise be used in destructive activities is then devoted to the progress and consolidation of Islam. The target of Muslims’ reform and the inculcation in them of the exalted qualities of a noble Islamic character from which they had earlier been diverted by factional feuds, is automatically achieved.