THE HUDAIBIYA METHOD

These innocents, potential Muslims, would have been killed along with the Quraysh. Verse 27 says: God knew what you did not. THE QURAN 48: 27 In the light of this divine knowledge, this guidance was given to the Muslims on the occasion of Hudaybiya—they had to arrive at a peace agreement, even if they had to accept all the conditions of the Quraysh leaders. This was to give the potential Muslims an opportunity to declare their allegiance to Islam. What characterizes the method of war is hatred, while what characterizes the Hudaybiya Method is love. The Arabs were a simple people. Even their polytheistic beliefs were not deep-rooted. This is why, in the early period of Islam, we find innumerable instances where someone comes to the Prophet, asks some simple questions and then, immediately or a short while later, accepts the truth of his message, recites the kalima (Islamic creed) and accepts Islam before the Prophet. For example, Amr ibn Abasa, a companion of the Prophet, came to see the Prophet before he had accepted Islam. He said to the Prophet, “Tell me of what God has told you.” The Prophet gave him the message of monotheism, gentleness, kindness, good character, etc. He immediately said, “O, how good are the things which God has told you” (Hayat asSahaba, 1/72), and accepted Islam. There are many such instances in the books of Hadith and Seerah (the Prophet’s biography). These show that the perversion in the ancient Arabs was only superficial. Their real personality was unspoilt and they had not lost the ability to recognize the truth. It was as a result of the simplicity of the ancient Arabs that, except a few tribal leaders, most of the Arabs accepted the Prophet. The denial of the Prophet by the Arabs was mostly based on misunderstanding, rather than on insolence or arrogance. This is proved by a prayer they said before the battle of Badr (THE QURAN 8: 32). We learn from history that the Makkans, before leaving for Badr to wage war against the Prophet and his companions, visited the House of God (the Kabah) and while holding its cloak they prayed, “O God, grant victory to whichever