FROM THE LIFE OF THE PROPHET

FROM THE LIFE OF THE PROPHET Peaceful Coexistence with People of other Faiths The Prophet’s Treaties with Christians and Jews The migration, or Hijrah, of the Muslims of Makkah to Yathrib in AD 622 opened a new chapter in the life of the newly-founded Muslim community. Till then those who had accepted Islam were themselves persecuted by the inhabitants of Makkah and its surroundings, but once the decision to migrate to Yathrib was taken, the Muslims found themselves in a position of strength. They further strengthened their position by entering into treaties with non-Muslims. Of these treaties the most important was the treaty signed by the Prophet Muhammad himself soon after the Muslims arrived in Yathrib, which later came to be known as Madinatul-Nabi, the Prophet’s city. The main parties to these treaties were the Muslim emigrants and the inhabitants of Madinah. There were many tribes then in the Arabian Peninsula, some of which were Jewish or Christian. They used to follow their own laws and customs, and worshipped God according to the tenets of their respective religions. There was no pressure on the part of the Prophet to convert them to Islam. Rather, he recognised them as People of the Book, that is, people to whom God’s messages were sent in earlier times and were enshrined in their scriptures. The Prophet let them lead a peaceful life, treated their religion with respect and entered into a number of treaties with them to ensure mutual cooperation. In Madinah itself, the Jews were a part of the local community and the Prophet made a treaty with them, keeping peaceful coexistence in mind. He never acted against them until they opened direct hostilities against him. But after the Battle of Badr, which took place in AD 624 the Prophet had to deal with the Jewish tribe of the Banu Qainuqa most sternly, for they had sided with the disbelievers, aided the Makkans and broken their treaties with the Prophet. Consequently, they were expelled from Madinah. However, it is important to remember that the decision to expel them from Madinah was not dictated by religious prejudice but by the fact that they had broken the treaty. As the trust is one of the very important social obligations enjoined in the Quran and the breaking of treaties is labelled as a sin, it was the behaviour of the tribe and not their religion, which dictated the decision of the Prophet, in which God guided him through a revelation. (59: 15)