In the Shadow of Swords
Al-Risala (English), March 1988, p. 21
By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
Maulana Wahiduddin Khan is named as the default author of the periodical; a piece that carries another writer’s byline is credited to that writer.
In the Shadow of Swords
1988 3 March 21-22 In the Shadow of Swords (596) The Prophet’s saying: “Paradise lies in the shadow of swords” is indisputably a reference to the act of fighting as a matter of self-defence, and can not by any stretch of the imagination be construed to mean that doing battle in the name of Islam is a guarantee of one’s admission to Paradise.
“Paradise lies in the shadow of swords.” This statement was made by the Prophet Mohammad is recorded in Hadith literature. Taken in its original context, it is an exhortation to peaceful coexistence. Recently, however, it was presented-out of context-as The Times of India’s ‘Thought for Today’ (May 19, 1987) and, as a result, has become the subject of gross misinterpretation, willful or otherwise. One reader remarked that he now knew why Muslims were always ready for a fight. “This is only natural when their Prophet has himself said: ‘Paradise lies in the shadow of swords.’ Obviously, once they have heard this asserted, there will be nothing dearer to their hearts than war and martyrdom. Isn’t it their profound conviction that to die on the field of battle is to ensure their passage through the gates of heaven?”
The only way to rectify such a glaring misconception is to put the Prophet’s statement back into its original context. The full text of the original Hadith is as follows:
Salim relates that a letter written to the Kharijite sect by Abd Allah ibn Abi Awfa, and conveyed to them by Amr ibn Ubaydullah, tells of how on certain days, when the Prophet was engaged in a military campaign, he would wait until the sun had almost set and then, standing up amidst his Companions, he would say: ‘Oh my people, be not eager to meet the enemy on the field of battle. Ask God instead for peace. But, when confronted by the enemy, stand fast and do not flinch. You must know that Paradise lies in the shadow of swords? Then the Prophet prayed to God: ‘Oh Allah, You who reveal the Scripture, who set the clouds afloat, who defeat armies defeat them, and grant us succour in our struggle against them.’
This passage, recorded in three major works on the Hadith, respectively by Bukhari, Muslim and Abu Dawood, appears in each case in the chapter on Jihad (holy war). But according to all three authors – all of them Imams – the true message of this Hadith is that there should be no keenness to meet the enemy on the field of battle. The chapters in which this Hadith is included are in fact, centred on this theme. Bukhari entitles his chapter: “Have no longing to meet the enemy on the field of battle and both Muslim and Abu Dawood have headed their chapters: “Disapproval of eagerness to meet the enemy on the field of battle.” Quite clearly, all three Imams take this Hadith as an exhortation to keep the peace and, in no instance, do they take it as an incitement to do battle.
The Prophet’s saying: “Paradise lies in the shadow of swords” is indisputably a reference to the act of fighting as a matter of self-defence, and can not by any stretch of the imagination be construed to mean that doing battle in the name of Islam is a guarantee of one’s admission to Paradise. It only signifies that when Muslims are attacked, they must resolutely defend themselves. There should be no aggression on the part of the believers, but, when forced to defend themselves, they should do so with the utmost steadfastness. Then they can be sure of Paradise as their reward.
