The Prophet in the Quran

so that the public readily accepted the leadership of a person who belonged to this tribe. That was why the Prophet indicated his preference for a Quraysh as his successor. This was not a command of an eternal nature. This meant only that in any community or nation it should be a member of a group, which enjoyed a political status such as that of the Quraysh, who should be appointed as its ruler. This shows that pragmatism was also one of the sunnah of the Prophet. In individual matters, one should always keep before one what is ideal, but at the same time bear in mind that in social matters sometimes the ideal is not practicable. It is necessary, therefore, that in such matters the ideal be abandoned in favour of practical solutions. If this principle were not observed, the smooth functioning of any given system would not at times be possible. Future Vision After the victory of Makkah there followed the year of delegations. The Arabian tribes thronged Madinah to embrace Islam, the tribe of the Thaqif of Taif being one of them. It set a strong precedent for entering the fold of Islam. They said, however, that although they wanted to accept Islam, they would neither pay zakat nor perform jihad. It was a serious matte The Muslims were not willing to accept conditions of this kind. Rising above the present, the Prophet of Islam looked at the future. His deep insight showed that once those people became a part of Muslim society after having embraced Islam, they would surely accept everything on their own, as required by Islam. Therefore, the Prophet accepted their conditions and allowed them to enter his fold. To remove the doubts of his companions, the Prophet said: Once they accept Islam, they will pay zakat and perform jihad as well. (Sunan Abu Dawood, Hadith No. 3025) This example set by the Prophet is illustrative of his great wisdom. This was seeing into the future. Humans are not made of stones. They are open to influence. Man is a creature who keeps changing. His future is different from his present. This reality must always be kept in view while dealing with him. Insisting on instant change produces haughtiness. Whereas, if an attitude of broad-mindedness is adopted, the potential convert will of his own become in future what we wanted to see him turn into in the present.