The Prophetic Model

The Prophetic Model The Prophet of Islam began his dawah mission in 610 AD in Makkah, where he found himself facing stiff opposition from the Makkans. He therefore decided in 622 AD to migrate along with some companions from Makkah to Madinah. There, unlike the adverse situation prevailing in Makkah, a favourable environment already existed for the Prophet to carry out his mission. Islam then began to spread rapidly, unhindered by any obstacles in its path. How did this come about in Madinah? We find the answer to this in one of the traditions of Aisha, the wife of the Prophet: At that time in Madinah, there were two big tribes – the Aws and the Khazraj. Because of tribal traditions, they often came into confrontation with each other and five years before the Prophet’s migration, the two tribes waged a bloody battle, known as the Buath war. This battle was a blessing in disguise for the Prophet of Islam (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith No. 3777), for, in the course of the fighting, a large number of people belonging to both the tribes were killed, and all this carnage caused the Madinahns to engage in some soul-searching. Consciously or unconsciously, they came to realize that they needed an ideology based on peace rather than on war, if they were to ensure an honourable life for themselves. It was at a moment such as this that the peaceful message of Islam was brought to Madinah and it rapidly entered the hearts of the people. Now, almost the same state of affairs prevails in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The ‘jihad’ in Kashmir first started here after the partition in 1947 in the form of large gatherings and agitations. After a period of time this movement took a violent turn. On the one hand, were the Kashmiri Mujahidin and on the other the Indian army. It was an unequal fight. As such, it was but natural that a large number of Kashmiri Muslims were killed. As a result of this armed confrontation, Kashmir suffered great harm in every respect. Education was disrupted, tourism dwindled to almost nothing, important social institutions were destroyed beyond repair and the overall economy was seriously affected. In view of this state of affairs, the conscience of the people of Kashmir was awakened and this has lead to a process of rethinking on a large scale. Consequently, the people of Kashmir have decided to give up