To understand why there is so much violence in Islam, we have to look
into two sources. One is the Quran and the other is the examples set by
Muhammad. Throughout this book I have quoted some of the verses of the
Quran that show not just the absurdity of that book but also its
violence. To make an exhaustive list of all the violent verses of the
Quran would make the book tedious and boring. To the see how much
violence it contains, all it takes is to read it.
In this chapter I will focus on Muhammad himself and the examples
that he set.
In my response to Ayatollah I wrote:
Dear Ayatollah Ozma Montazeri,
To begin on this subject I would like to thank you for being truthful
and unlike most of the Muslims who claim all the wars of the Prophet
were defensive you acknowledge that he was actually the aggressor and it
was he who raided merchant caravans. This saves a lot of time for both
of us because I don’t have to list his numerous attacks at those whom
he considered to be his enemies.
However, you seem to justify his raids at merchant caravans, towns
and his killing of the civilians because as you see them they were
strategic military plans to weaken the position of the enemy. Muhammad’s
own explanation was that Muslims have the right to take back what the
Quraish took away from them when they forced them to exile.
Notwithstanding, the truth is that Meccans did not drive the Muslims
out of their homes. The Muslims emigrated on their own volition and
because of Mohammad’s insistence. At first he ordered his followers to
emigrate to Abyssinia and then when he found enough disciples in Medina,
he sent them thither.
The truth is that despite the fact that Muhammad constantly insulted
the religion of the Quraish and infuriated them with his abrasive
behavior there is little retaliation on the part of the Meccans.
Muslims today would not tolerate any criticism against their
religion. They would kill at once any person who dares to question their
belief. This is what the prophet taught them to do. But Arabs prior to
Muhammad were more tolerant. They used to live with the Jews, Christians
and Sabeans in harmony without any sign of religious animosity between
them. Only in Ka’ba there were 360 deities. Each Arab tribe had its
own god and they never fought over religion. Yet the ultimate test of
tolerance came when Muhammad started to taunt their gods. Despite that
kind of abuse the Quraish evinced incredible degree of tolerance and
although being offended, never harmed Muhammad or any of his cohorts.
Compare this to the treatment of the Baha’is in Iran. Baha’is do
not insult Muhammad or his Allah, they do not reject the Imams nor
disagree with any part of the Quran. All they say is that their
messenger is the Promised One of the Muslims. This is nothing compared
to Muhammad’s affronts of the beliefs of the people of Quraish.
Nevertheless Muslims have not spared any act of atrocity against the
Baha’is. They killed many of them, jailed them, tortured them, beat
them, denied them of their basic human rights and treated them with
utter inhumanity. None of that was done against Muhammad and his
followers in Mecca even though he constantly accosted their gods with
showers of taunts and would imprecate their sacred beliefs as if daring
them to persecute.
When the Meccans had enough of it and could no more stand Muhammad’s
mocking of their deities, a body of their elders repaired to Abu Talib,
the uncle of the Prophet and complained: - “This Nephew of thine
hath spoken opprobriously of our gods and our religion: and hath abused
us as fools, and given out that our forefathers were all astray. Now,
avenge us thyself of our adversary; or, (seeing that thou art in the
same case with ourselves,) leave him to its that we may take our
satisfaction.” Abu Talib spoke to them softly and assured them he
would counsel his nephew to be more deferential. But Muhammad would not
change his proceedings. So they went again to Abu Talib in great
vexation; and warned him that if he would not restrain his nephew from
his offensive conduct, they would have to restrain him themselves. They
added thus: - “and now verily we cannot have patience any longer
with his abuse of us, our ancestors, and our gods. Wherefore either do
thou hold him back from us, or thyself take part with him that the
matter may be decided between us.”
This is all that is recorded about the persecution of the Muslims in
Mecca. The above is a warning but falls short of issuing a threat. In
fact until Abu Talib was alive and even after his death until Muhammad
stayed in Mecca no harm was inflicted upon him and nor any of his
followers suffered persecution for their beliefs.
There are stories about persecution of the early Muslims such as Omar
beating his sister for converting to Islam. That is possible because
Omar was a violent man with short tempers. But even this story is
dubious because this hadith says this led to Omar’s acceptance of
Islam. However there is another hadith where Omar describes his own
conversion differently.
We have the story of Bilal. He is said to be ransomed by Abu Bakr
when he was being tied and left in the sun. The truth is however that
Bilal was not being tortured for believing in Islam. He was a slave of
Bani Jumh and under the instruction of Muhammad he was planning to
escape and go to Abyssinia. His master punished him for this and not for
his belief. When Abu Bakr paid his price his master set him free.
The message of Muhammad was most agreeable to the slaves in Mecca. It
is not that Muhammad was an advocate of anti slavery. He raided many
cities and captured many free people whom he reduced to slaves and then
traded them. However when he was in Mecca he encouraged his slave
followers to escape and go to Abyssinia until his orders. Muhammad has
plans for these emigrants that we shall see revealed a few years later.
These slaves converted to Islam to join the party of the Muslims and
escape their slavery. They were often caught by their masters and beaten
and tortured. This should not be mistaken as religious persecution but
rather as punishment of the masters whose were concerned of losing their
property.
There are other alleged persecution, such as that of Yasar and
Jabr These two slaves were originally from Yemen who converted to
Islam and are among those whom the Quraish said have instructed Muhammad
about Christianity. Yasar is said to have been persecuted.
Among those slaves converted to Islam and said to be persecuted is
Ammar who was freed by Aub Hodzeifa
The father of Ammar was Yasir. He was Yemenis who had married a slave
girl called Sommeya. Both parents of Ammar converted to Islam. Some
narratives say that Sommeya was persecuted and martyred.
The problem with the story of Sommeya is that there is also another
narrative about her which says after Yasir she married Azrack, a Greek
slave, belonging to a man of Taif, and to him she bore Salma. There is
indeed a lot of confusion in these stories because Ammar was four years
older than Muhammad, so when he converted to Islam (ca. 614, 615 AD) He
must have been at least 46 years old. His mother Sommeya who bore a son
to Yasir older than Ammar must have been at least in her sixties. At
that age it is not likely that she was persecuted and killed nor it is
likely to have married Azrak and bore him a child.
This is to make you see how unreliable and vague are these stories
claiming persecution of the Muslims in Mecca.
However it is natural to imagine the Quraish were not pleased with
Muhammad. Not because he was preaching a new religion. They already had
hundreds of religions one more would have made no difference. And not
because Muhammad was preaching monotheism, after all the Jews and
Christians among them were monotheists and the Arabs were familiar with
that concept. The reason the Meccans were wary of Muhammad was because
he was insulting their beliefs, and encouraging their slaves to escape
and join his army in Abyssinia.
Sir Willam Muir on the authority of
“Lo! those who believed and left their homes and strove
with their wealth and their lives for the cause of Allah, and those
who took them in and helped them: these are protecting friends one of
another. And those who believed but did not leave their homes, ye have
no duty to protect them till they leave their homes; but if they seek
help from you in the matter of religion then it is your duty to help
(them) except against a folk between whom and you there is a treaty.
Allah is Seer of what ye do.”(Q.8:
72)
These are very harsh words against his own followers who did not
leave Mecca and stayed behind. In other part he presses further this
point.
They long that ye should disbelieve even as they disbelieve, that
ye may be upon a level (with them). So choose not friends from them till
they forsake their homes in the way of Allah; if they turn back (to
enmity) then take them and kill them wherever ye find them, and
choose no friend nor helper from among them, (Q.4: 89)
In the above verse was written when Muhammad was already in Medina
and it has a very harsh tone. He is ordering the believers of Mecca to
forsake their homes and go to Medina. He goes as far as to instruct
other Muslims to kill those who decide to return home. This verse is
another proof of the cultic nature of Islam. We are reminded of Jim
Johns and his compound where he had his followers under control and
would not let them go home.
As we can witness the exodus of the Muslims from Mecca was not due to
any persecution by the idolaters. There was no such a persecution even
though Muhammad exasperated the Quraish to their limit of forbearance
with his triad of insults. The new converts left Mecca because Muhammad
asked them to. His pressure tactics was so intense that he even told
them that they would go to hell if they stayed behind and did not
emigrate.
Lo! as for those whom the angels take (in death) while they wrong
themselves, (the angels) will ask: In what were ye engaged? They
will say: We were oppressed in the land. (The angels) will say: Was
not Allah's earth spacious that ye could have migrated therein? As
for such, their habitation will be hell, an evil journey's end;(Q.4:
97)
008.072
Those who believed, and adopted exile, and fought for the Faith,
with their property and their persons, in the cause of Allah, as
well as those who gave (them) asylum and aid,- these are (all)
friends and protectors, one of another. As to those who believed but
came not into exile, ye owe no duty of protection to them until they
come into exile; but if they seek your aid in religion, it is your
duty to help them, except against a people with whom ye have a
treaty of mutual alliance. And (remember) Allah seeth all that ye
do.
008.073
The Unbelievers are protectors, one of another: Unless ye do this,
(protect each other), there would be tumult and oppression on earth,
and great mischief.
008.074
Those who believe, and adopt exile, and fight for the Faith, in the
cause of Allah as well as those who give (them) asylum and aid,-
these are (all) in very truth the Believers: for them is the
forgiveness of sins and a provision most generous.
008.075
And those who accept Faith subsequently, and adopt exile, and fight
for the Faith in your company,- they are of you. But kindred by
blood have prior rights against each other in the Book of Allah.
Verily Allah is well-acquainted with all things
Muhammad grand
plans,
The inevitable question is: “why?” Why would the Prophet force
his followers to emigrate when they were not being persecuted? Why would
he coerce them to leave their own homeland? This tactic was so
unorthodox that even western historians and scholars of Islam like
Sprenger and Muir have failed to see the plot that Muhammad was brewing
in his mind from very early on.
Muhammad was a narcissist and narcissist dreams of grandiosity.
Muir, in The Life of Mohammad, quotes Hishami:
“The Quraish, hearing that Abu Talib lay at the point of death,
sent a deputation in order that some contact should be made to bind
both parties, after his decease should have removed all restraint
upon Muhammad. They proposed accordingly that they should retain
their ancient faith, and that Muhammad should promise to refrain
from abuse or interference; in which case they on their part would
agree not to molest him in his faith. Abu Talib called Muhammad, and
communicated to him the reasonable request. Muhammad replied -"
Nay, but there is one word, which if ye concede, you will thereby
conquer Arabia, and reduce Ajam under subjection."
"Good!" said Abu Jahl, "not one such word, but
ten." Mahomet replied,-" Then say,-There is no God but the
Lord, and abandon that which ye worship beside him." And they
clapped their hands in rage;-" Dost thou desire, indeed, that
we should turn our gods into one God? That were a strange
affair!" And they began to say one to another, "This
fellow is obstinate and impracticable. Ye will not get from him any
concession that ye desire. Return, and let us walk after the faith
of our forefathers till God determine the matter betwixt us and
him." So they arose and departed.” [Hishami, p.136]
From the above story we can establish several facts.
a) The Quraish were not persecuting the
Muslims and their leader but pleading with him to respect their
beliefs.
b) Muhammad was adamant to continue his
abrasive and opprobrious behavior towards the people of Mecca and
their religion.
c) Muhammad was fantasizing to “conquer
Arabia and reduce Ajam (Persia) under subjugation” even at a
time when he was nobody.
Further on we will discover how the mind of Muhammad worked and how
he could have such grandiose ideas that impressed the people around him
and inspired them to make those reveries come true.
Is it befitting for a messenger of God to indulge in reveries about
“conquering” and “subduing”? One would expect that the a man
chosen by God to be the light for all mankind, would have nobler
thoughts such as guiding, educating and liberating the people, not
conquering them and subduing them. These should not be the thoughts of a
messenger of God but of a conqueror and a vanquishing subjugator. These
are the thoughts of authoritarian conquistadors like Changiz Khan,
Napoleon, Hitler and Saddam Hussein, but not of a Prophet of God who,
should radiate with love, compassion and other spiritual qualities.
Muhammad was indeed a vivid case of megalomania. He was a narcissist
and a manic/depressive par excellence. When he was high, he had
grandiose thoughts of conquering the world and subduing mighty nations
and when he was low he would indulge in thoughts of suicide.
Sahih Bukhari V. 9, Book 87, Number 111
“….the Divine Inspiration was also paused for a while and the
Prophet became so sad as we have heard that he intended several times to
throw himself from the tops of high mountains and every time he went up
the top of a mountain in order to throw himself down, Gabriel would
appear before him and say, "O Muhammad! You are indeed Allah's
Apostle in truth" whereupon his heart would become quiet and he
would calm down and would return home. And whenever the period of the
coming of the inspiration used to become long, he would do as before,
but when he used to reach the top of a mountain, Gabriel would appear
before him and say to him what he had said before.
This change of mood gives us the clue that the Prophet was not a
messenger of any god but a mentally disturbed and unstable man. His
dreams of conquering and subduing were so intense, and they consumed his
inner thoughts with such an ardor that they expunged the shades of right
and wrong from his conscience. For him his fantasies of domination
became his primary goal. And to achieve that goal he would stop at
nothing.
A narcissist is a pathological liar but he is the first to believe in
his lies.
The Psychiatrist Dr. Len Sperry notes that individuals with NPD
(Narcissistic Personality Disorder) are expansive and inclined to
exaggerate; they focus on images and themes and take liberties with
the facts. They use self-deception to preserve their own illusions.
They will do whatever is needed to reinforce their self-ascribed
superior status [Len Sperry, Handbook
Of Diagnosis And Treatment Of The DSM-IV Personality Disorders
1995, p. 114]
Muhammad lied compulsively and so convincingly that even he
eventually believed in his own lies. Although his earlier visions were
the result of his hallucinations, when those hallucinations stopped he
kept revealing spurious verses and perusing his dreams of grandiosity
with a remarkable obduracy distinctive only to mentally infirm.
Narcissists are often charismatic people with compelling
personalities. Hitler is a good example of a pathological narcissist. He
would mesmerize his audience, with his speeches, his oomph, his
confidence and his charm. Watching Hitler’s buoyant, upbeat, inspiring
and motivating talks with his of self-assuredness and see how he
captivated the imagination of millions of Germans perhaps can give us an
insight into the mind of the Apostle of Allah and understand why he has
such a spell over his foolhardy and unsophisticated followers.
Muhammad dreamed of conquering Arabia and subduing the Persia even
when his followers were but an untrained and insignificant lot. However
Muhammad was not just a dreamer, but someone who would follow his dreams
with extraordinary single mindedness and endurance. In his quest for
personal grandiosity he was ready sacrifice everything. He killed those
who opposed him. He slew those who turned their backs to him. He
assassinated those who criticized him. He wiped out the entire Jewish
and Christian population from the Arabic Peninsula and executed one of
the most ruthless genocides of the Jew of Medina and Kheibar. He
fabricated stories of jinns and angels and fooled his followers with
tales of his visits to Heaven and Hell. And he invented an Allah,
proclaimed to be his messenger, thus demanding total and unconditional
submission for himself as the only mediator between man and God.
His dreams were of grandiosity and his plan was perfect. His timing
was ideal and he had the best people to work with. Arabs of his time
were superstitious, bigot, fanatical, ambitious, ruthless, barbarian,
stubborn, chauvinist and above all a gullible crowd. Conquering Arabia
and subduing Ajam with the help of these people for man of his allure in
that milieu was a synch.
But how would he realize his fantasies without an army? How would he
convince his followers to take up their swords and use it against their
own brothers, fathers and friends? He had to create the discontent. He
had to cause enmity where there was none. He had to incite brother
against brother and divide them so they would willingly take arms and
slay each other at his behest. Thus, on one hand he imprecated the
deities of the Quraish with his rude and boorish slurs in order to
excite them and incite them to hostility who would in turn react and
harass his followers and make them feel wronged and victimized. On the
other hand he forced his followers to endure the hardship of exile,
abandon their homes and flee to a foreign land. As a consequence he put
one group against the other, and caused his followers to feel
persecuted. Now they were poor, sore and suffered. Muhammad needed that
anger and bitterness to foster his own dominance over them and command
their obedience. In order to rule, he had to divide.
In order to rule ignorant people and make them side with you, you
have to give them an enemy. Nothing can make people rally around you
more than a common foe. This is the oldest trick in the book, which has
been used successfully by all dictators throughout the history of
mankind.
Muhammad, boasted in the Quran “Makaroo va makara Allah. va Allah
khyrul makereen” (3:54). (They deceived and Allah deceived them and
Allah is the best of deceivers). But Muhammad was a master deceiver
himself. He managed to create religious hate among people who despite
their backwardness and bigotry never had evinced religious intolerance
before. Now he had a group of supporters who were impoverished,
discontent and angry. They were ready to fight for him and help him
realize his dreams. Obedience to "God and his Apostle," became
the watchword of Islam. And of course as usual Allah would reveal verses
that give his Apostle total authority.
Whomsoever disobeyeth GOD AND HIS PROPHET; verily to him shall be
the Fire of Hell; they shall be therein always, forever! (Q.72:
23)
Say: "Obey Allah and His Messenger": But if they turn
back, Allah loveth not those who reject Faith. (3:32)
And obey Allah and the Messenger; that ye may obtain mercy.
(3:132)
O ye who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger, (4:59)
All who obey Allah and the messenger are in the company of those
on whom is the Grace of Allah,- (4:69)
Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger (5:92)
O ye who believe! Obey Allah and His Messenger, and turn not away
from him when ye hear (him speak). (8:20)
O ye who believe! give your response to Allah and His Messenger,
(8:24)
And obey Allah and His Messenger; (8:46)
The Believers, …. obey Allah and His Messenger. On them will
Allah pour His mercy: (9:71)
They say, "We believe in Allah and in the messenger, and we
obey": but even after that, some of them turn away: they are
not (really) Believers (24:47)
It is such as obey Allah and His Messenger, and fear Allah and do
right, that will win (in the end), (24:52)
Say: "Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger: (24:54)
O ye who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the messenger, and make
not vain your deeds! (47:33)
But if ye obey Allah and His Messenger, He will not belittle
aught of your deeds: (49:14)
Establish regular prayer; practice regular charity; and obey
Allah and His Messenger. (58:13)
So obey Allah, and obey His Messenger: (64:12)
But those who disobey Allah and His Messenger and transgress His
limits will be admitted to a Fire, to abide therein: And they shall
have a humiliating punishment. (4:14)
for any that disobey Allah and His Messenger,- for them is Hell:
they shall dwell therein for ever." (72:23)
They ask thee concerning (things taken as) spoils of war. Say:
"(such) spoils are at the disposal of Allah and the
Messenger (8:1)
This last verse makes it clear why that much emphasis in obeying
Allah and his messenger needed. Of course Allah had no need for spoils
of war. It was all for his messenger.
After enduring years of verbal abuse, the Quraish boycotted Muhammad
and his supporters from commercial transactions. They even threatened to
punish Muhammad if he did not stop insulting their gods, but no one was
jailed or killed for his beliefs.
Muhammad barricaded himself with a group of his relatives, in a
Quarter of Mecca known as She'b of Abu Talib. This self-imposed durance
lasted about 3 years. During this time they would venture out only at
the time of hajj and retreat once the pilgrimage was over. But in no
time Quraish attacked that quarter. On the contrary they seemed quite
happy that Muhammad was not in the streets shouting obscenities at their
deities. Had the Quraish intended to persecute the Muslims or kill
Muhammad, they had plenty of opportunities to do so. Yet no violence was
used against the Muslims. Muhammad however did not have the same
patience with those who did not agree with him. In Median he surrounded
the Jewish quarters, cut the supply of water and food to them and after
they surrendered, he massacred and banished thousands of them with no
mercy.
Nonetheless, the Quraish was ever suspicious of Muhammad and his
movements. They had heard that his followers were increasing in number
in Medina. The tone of Muhammad’s message was of doom and gloom and
his actions towards the Meccans were perceptibly hostile. It was natural
to be apprehensive of his moves and watch him carefully. Their
suspicions picked when they learned that the Prophet had a clandestine
rendezvous at midnight with a conclave of the Pilgrims from Medina in
Aqaba, at the outskirts of Mecca. Meccans were not at war with the
people of Yathrib (Medina) but still the Medinans were foreigners. What
Muhammad had to do with them? Why he was conspiring with outsiders and
what was the purpose of his secret meeting with them in the middle of
the night? We cannot blame the Quraish to be nervous and concerned for
their own security. They saw that secret gathering an unwarrantable
interference in the domestic affairs of their town.
This forced them to meet and confer with each other to gauge the
gravity of the situation. The outcome of that meeting is not clear, yet
it caused Muhammad to fear for his life and flee the town with his
friend Abu Bakr.
Muhammad later recalls that moment and conjectures that perhaps they
were plotting to detain him, or may be expel him or even slay him. But
there is no evidence to prove any of those charges are true. Even
Muhammad’s all-knowing god who spoke of this meeting seemed to know
exactly what decisions were taken in that meeting. In the following
verse Allah talks about that event and sys:
"And call to mind when the unbelievers plotted against thee,
that they might detain thee, or slay thee, or expel thee. Yea, they
plotted; but God plotted likewise. And God is the best of
plotters." (Q.8: 29)
In Medina
After Muhammad and Abu Bakr fled to Medina, their families stayed
behind for several weeks. But nothing befell them and the Quraish did
not harm, accost or harass them in anyways. Although as Muir points out
“it was not unreasonable that they should have been detained as
hostages against any hostile incursion from Medina. These facts lead us
to doubt the intense hatred and bitter cruelty, which the strong
coloring of tradition is ever ready to attribute to the Quraish. In
accordance with this view is the fact that the first aggressions, after
the Hegira, were solely on the part of Mahomet and his followers. It was
not until several of their caravans had been waylaid and plundered, and
blood had thus been shed, that the people of Mecca were forced in
self-defense to resort to arms”
The fact that Mohammad and Abu Bakr trusted that their families would
be safe if left behind in Mecca is a clear indication that the
hostilities attributed to the Quraish against the Muslims is an
exaggeration and an excuse or a justification for their later invasion
of Mecca. None of the Muslims were exiled. All of them emigrated by
their own volition. A few of them were prevented from following Muhammad
by their families and a few who were slaves were not allowed to escape
before the payment of what their masters had paid for them. The rest
joined Muhammad with no obstruction from the Quraish. This can hardly be
called persecution.
When Muhammad reached Medina, there were about a couple of hundreds
of emigrants and perhaps an equal number of Medinans of the tribes of
Khazraj and Aus who had believed in him. The Meccans were unskilled
people and found employment in the fields and plantations. They mostly
worked as laborers and journeymen for the wealthy Jews. It was hard on
them. The belief in Allah was good but it would not feed them. Muhammad
was aware that he could not keep his followers for long if he failed to
satisfy their earthly needs. Moreover he had made them immigrate for a
purpose: to wage war for him and establish his dominance over Arabia and
subdue the Persia.
However his small cluster of followers was unqualified for military
tasks. Yet he had offered those who left their homes a goodly home in
this world and it was time to deliver his promise or face sedition and
defection. This is what he has promised them:
“To those who leave their homes in the cause of Allah, after
suffering oppression,- We will assuredly give a goodly home in this
world; but truly the reward of the Hereafter will be greater. If
they only realized (this)!” (Q.16: 41)
Whence would he provide them all the goodly things he had offered
them in this world? Certainly Allah would not be able to do send those
goodly things from the heaven. That is when he had to put to action the
plan that he had devised years earlier. Of course conquering Arabia and
subduing the Persia was not possible with just a few disciples but
raiding the merchant caravans and plundering their goods was possible.
The Prophet turns a bandit.
So the Prophet turns a bandit and thenceforth he ceased to preach,
"Speak good to men..." 2: 83 or "Be patient with
what they say, and part from them courteously".73: 10 and
started to call for blood, “qateloo” (kill) became the buzzword of
Allah’s subsequent messages.
During the first six months of Muhammad’s arrival to Medina,
nothing important happened. The immigrants including Muhammad himself,
had to struggle to make a living to pay for shelter and food.
However the thoughts of Mohammad were not thoughts of peace. He was a
hurt man. No one can disregard and mock a narcissist and escape his
wrath. Muhammad promised condign vengeance on those who belittled him
and laughed at his claim.
He had plans, big plans. He was determined to prove his importance
and rub it especially on the face or those who mocked him.The number of
his followers was increasing. More of his Meccan disciples managed to
escape their masters or their families and joined other immigrants and
some accepted Islam in Medina. Now he was in a position to command a
party of warriors.
But the people of Medina had pledged only to defend him from attacks
and not to support him in his highway robberies. Therefore he had only
the Meccan immigrants to work with in the early stages of his empire
building.
In Dec. A.D. 622 during the month of Ramadhan, seven months after his
arrival to Medina, Muhammad dispatched his uncle Hamza, at the head of
thirty Refugees, to surprise a Meccan caravan returning from Syria under
the guidance of Abul Hakam (the father of knowledge) whom Muhammad duped
Abu Jahl (the father of ignorance). This caravan was guarded by some 300
men. Hamza’s men had to retreat empty handed to Medina and Abu Jahl
proceeded onwards to Mecca. This was the first confrontation started by
Muhammad, which was had a petty and marauding character and was aborted
because of shortage of men and bad planning. The god, who told Muhammad
to raid that caravan, did not tell him how to do it. The Prophet of
Allah, had to learn the art of high way rubbery through trial and error,
just like any greenhorn thief.
The next raid took place a month later in Jan. A.D. 623. At that time
Muhammad sent another party, double the strength of the first one, under
the command of Obeida, ibn Harith, in pursuit of another caravan
protected by Abu Sofian with 200 men. This time the Quraish were
ambushed while their camels were grazing by a fountain in the valley of
Rabigh and some arrows were exchanged but the invaders retreated after
realizing that their number is much less than the men in the caravan.
One month later, a third expedition started under the youthful Sa’d,
ibn Abu Waqqas with twenty followers, in the same direction. He was
directed to proceed as far as Kharrar, a valley on the road to Mecca,
and to lie in wait for a caravan expected to pass that way. Like most of
the subsequent marauding parties intended to affect a surprise, they
marched by night and lay in concealment during the day. Notwithstanding
this precaution, when they reached their destination in the fifth
morning, they found that the caravan had passed a day before, and they
returned empty-handed to Medina.
These excursions occurred in the winter and spring of the year 623
A.D. On each occasion, Muhammad mounted a white banner on a staff or
lance, and presented it to the leader of the expedition, on his
departure. The names of those who carried the standard, as well as the
names of the leaders, in these and in all other expeditions of
importance, are carefully recorded
In the summer and fall of the same year, Mahomet led in person three
somewhat larger, though equally unsuccessful expeditions.
Nearly a year after his arrival at Median, in June, 623 AD he headed
a party to Abwa, the spot where his mother lay buried, in pursuit of
another caravan owned by the Quraishites. They missed the caravan. But
Muhammad headed towards the Bani Dhamra, a tribe connected with Mecca
and forced them to sign a peace treaty with him that they would not take
the side of the Meccans. This was the first treaty that Muhammad entered
into with any foreign tribe. This expedition lasted fifteen days.
Bowat:
In the succeeding month Muhammad headed 200 followers to Bowat, a
place on the caravan route south-west of Medina. This time some Medinan
Muslims also volunteered to join the party. This shows Muhammad was
gaining influence among them because by then the number
of the
refugees from Mecca was less than a hundred. It also shows the strange
values of the Arabs who did not see anything wrong in highway robbery
and believed in Muhammad even though his actions were that of a
marauding chieftain. 1400 years later, these barbaric values are not
changed but they have now spread to other countries that fell under the
domination of Islam. Civilized nations such as Iranians, who wrote the
first declaration of human rights 1100 years before Islam, now under the
influence of Islam, see no problem with robberies and even terrorism if
that is done in the name of God.
A rich burden, laden on 2,500 camels, under the escort of Omeya ibn
Khalf, (who was killed later in Badr) with 100 armed men, was to proceed
by that road. But it eluded pursuit, and passed on in safety.
In this expedition not only Muhammad did not succeed, he actually
lost a few camels when Kurz ibn Jabir, another marauding
chieftain, more experienced than him stole some of the camels from the
Muslims. Muhammad pursued him nearly to Badr, but he made good his
escape. Kurz later converted to Islam and continued his marauding
activities this time in the name of God.
Islam has always been the favorite religion of criminals and thugs.
Today we have the prison inmates who convert to Islam. There are things
that never changes.
Osheira,
In October of the same year (623 A.D) Mahomet launched his third
expedition. 150 to 200 believers joined the party. They had no more than
thirty camels, which they rode upon by turns. At Osheira, nine stages in
the direction of Yenbo, in the vicinity of hill Rashwa they waited to
intercept another rich caravan which Abu Sofian was conducting towards
Syria.
Muhammad had spies everywhere. His men, acting as the fifth column
informed him of what was going on in their homeland. He was tipped when
a caravan left Mecca or was about to approach it and he prepared his men
to attack it. .
But this caravan passed before he could reach the spot. Later on,
this same caravan was raided by Muhammad’s men at Badr, when it was
returning from Syria. The raid of Badr was a turning point in the
marauding carrier of Muhammad and it is regarded as a big victory for
Islam.
Again like in his previous failed expedition, Muhammad confronted two
tribes, the Bani Mudlij who lived in the vicinity of Osheira and with
the Bani Dhamra, and forced them to enter into peace treaty with him.
The purpose of these peace treaties were to strengthen his political
connection and his position. Later on Muhammad broke all peace treaties
and all these tribes were forced to accept Islam and contribute to
Muhammad’s power both financially and militarily.
Nakhlah the breakthrough
More than one year had past and despite several attempts and
expeditions none of the holy Prophet's robberies were successful. The
megalomaniac Messenger of Allah finally realized that he has to start
with smaller targets and slowly build his way up. So when the news
reached him of a small merchant caravan going from Mecca which was
guarded by four men only, he seized the opportunity and sent Abdullah
ibn Jahsh, with seven or eleven other immigrants, to hijack that
caravan.
It was now the sacred month of Rajab, and it was a time-honoured Arab
institution that in a sacred month there should be a truce between
hostile tribes. During this period, men could go about unarmed and in
peace. Obviously an armed force which set this custom at defiance had a
good prospect of success, and success was now sorely needed by Muhammad
and the Muslims. Mudariju'n-Nabuwat, p. 555;
Muhammad gave Abdullah a sealed letter telling him to open it after
two days. The letter read: “Advance in
the name of God the most High and Glorious and, when thou arrivest by
His blessing in the valley of Nakhla with thy companions, there look out
1for the caravan of the Quraish; because thou mayest probably derive
profit therefrom. Nor must thou take any one against his will. Let those
who like accompany thee and those remain who like to stay behind”
The men who went for the expedition had no knowledge of their mission
until they unsealed the letter and read Muhammad’s instructions. The
reason why Muhammad asked Abdullah not to open the letter until the
third day was that had the expedition knew a priory the intent of the
mission, i.e. raiding a caravan and killing in a sacred month, many of
them might have hesitated and not have gone. But once they were on the
third day of their trip, it was more likely that they would go ahead and
carryout the instruction.
Upon hearing the instructions, two of them men,
Sa’d and
Utba conveniently lost their camels. They
went in search of them and did not return.
The rest went to Nakhla a Valley between Mecca and Taif known for its
date orchards and waited. In a short time a caravan laden with wine,
raisins, and leather, came up. It was guarded by four Qureishits, who,
seeing the strangers, were alarmed, and halted. To disarm their
apprehension, one of Abdullah’s men shaved his head, in token that
they were going for the lesser pilgrimage. The men of the caravan were
thus reassured, and turning their camels adrift to pasture, began to
prepare food. Then one of Abdullah’s men advanced; and discharging an
arrow, killed a man of the convoy, on the spot. All then rushed upon the
caravan, and took two of the guards as hostages. One man escaped. The
Muslims took the hostages along with the goods stolen to Medina.
Upon arriving at Medina, the followers of Muhammad were disappointed
for the envoy had violated a long-standing tradition of no hostility
during the sacred months and this gave reason to Jews to further
criticize Muhammad and reproached him
saying: 'Muhammad and his followers make the unlawful lawful and shed
blood and plunder in a sacred month.' This was embarrassing
to the messenger of Allah and he pretended to be angry blaming the men
for acting on their own and without his consent. He took the goods
confiscated and jailed the men captured. But soon the resourceful
Prophet received another verse from Allah who condoned the crime and
completely justifies it:
"They will ask thee concerning the Sacred Months, whether
they may war therein. SAY : - Warring therein is grievous; but to
obstruct the way of God, and to deny him, and hinder men from the
Holy Temple, and expel his people from thence, is more grievous with
God. Tempting (to Idolatry) is more grievous than killing. They will
not leave off to fight against you until they turn you from your
faith, if that were ill their power; but whosoever amongst you shall
turn back from his faith and die an Unbeliever, -verily their Works
are rendered of no effect in this Life and in the next. These are
the Dwellers in Hell, - for ever therein. But they that believe, and
they who emigrate for the sake of their faith, and strive earnestly
in the way of God, - let them hope in the mercy of God: for God is
forgiving and merciful." (Q.2: 217)
After promulgating this verse and thus getting
out of the difficulty Muhammad gave over the booty to the
captors, who, after presenting a fifth of it to Muhammad, divided the
remainder among themselves.
When party returned to Medina, Sa’d and Utba’s who had avoided
the robbery by letting their camels lose, had not yet returned. Muhammad
feared that they were captured by the Quraish and refused to ransom the
captives till he was assured that no foul play had been used against
them: - "if ye have killed my two men," he said, "verily,
I will put yours also to death." But, soon after, they showed
up, and Muhammad accepted the proffered ransom, - forty ounces of silver
for each and released them. This success
eliminated the danger of want and privation that Muhammad and his men
faced.
Raiding merchant caravans, fighting during the holy months, deceiving
and killing innocent people, stealing, taking humans as hostage,
demanding ransom for their release, threatening to kill them, etc. are
not acts that one would expect from a messenger of God. What Muhammad
did was criminal. There can be no justification for that.
It was only then that Meccans realized that their opponent respected
no rules and his savagery knew no bounds. This was the first expedition
of Muslims where someone was killed. It is interesting to note that the
first blood spelt in the cause of Allah belonged to an innocent caravan
man and it was spelt by Muslims through treachery. In no time Muslims
were victimized. They were always victimizers, the aggressors and
provokers.
Ibn Hisham confirmed, "This was, the first booty that the
Muslims obtained; the first captives they seized; the first life they
took."
Muhammad designated Abdullah, the head of the bandits of Nakhah, with
the distinction of Amir al Mominin, "Commander of the
Faithful" an appellation that was assumed in after days by his
successors, the Khalifas.
This attack showed that Muhammad and his followers would respect
neither life nor the universally honored sacred months. Despite this
flagrant act of hostility where a life was lost, the Quraish did not
retaliate. Though some of the Muslims were still in Mecca, the Quraish
attempted no cruelties or reprisals against them. This is in contrast
with the Prophet’s way of punishing some for the faults of others.
When his men captured the guards of the Caravan in Nakhlah, he was ready
to kill the hostages because he suspected that his other lost followers
were captured and killed by the Meccans. Even if that were true, how
could a messenger of God put to death innocent people for the sins of
others? However, the most horrendous act of Muhammad’s injustice is
his massacre of all the men of Bani Quraiza in retaliation of one
of them killing a Muslim who in turn had killed a Jew.
After the successful foray in Nakhlah, Muhammad increased his
profitable marauding activities and became an expert in art of
plundering and warfare. More caravans were attacked and more booty
filled his coffers making his followers also wealthy. It was then that
the messenger of Allah started to reveal verses encouraging fighting and
killing.
"Bear good tidings unto the Righteous. Truly the Lord will
keep back the Enemy from those who believe, for God loveth not the
perfidious Unbeliever. Permission is granted unto those who take up
arms for that they have been injuriously entreated; and verily the
Lord is Mighty for the assistance of those who have been driven from
their homes without just cause, - for no other reason than that they
said, God is our Lord. And truly if it were not that God holdeth
back mankind, one part of them by means of another part (Q.22: 41)
Notice how the holy Prophet is twisting the facts to rouse his
followers into killing frenzy. As we saw Muslims were not “injuriously
treated” and they were not driven from their homes. The Quraish did
not persecute them for their belief in God. These inflammatory verses
were unfounded. But he wanted to incite them to enlist in his army and
help him realize his dream of conquering the Arabia and subduing the
Ajam.
The treaty that was signed in Medina obliged the inhabitants of that
town to protect Mohammad if he was attacked by the Meccans, but it did
not require them to take part in offensive wars, plunder and enrich the
prophet with spoils of war. Yet Muhammad needed their participation in
his expeditions. The solution was found, as usual, in a revelation. If
they did not listen to him, they would listen to Allah. Hence Allah
often would speak for Muhammad to do what he pleased.
"War is ordained for you, even though it be irksome unto
you. Perchance ye dislike that which is good for you, and love that
which is evil for you. But God knoweth, and ye know not."
At this point we have to ask ourselves what makes a man a messenger
of God if not his deeds and good conduct? In what ways Muhammad’s
actions are different from those of the common thieves, the gangsters,
the thugs, the hooligans, the hoodlums and the criminals?
Dear Ayatollah, in your letter you seemed to approve of what the
Prophet did because the ends justified the means. You were not concerned
at all that what he did was unethical, dishonest and ruthless because he
was a messenger of God and because of that whatever he did, even though
it was blatantly unjust was right.
The point is not who Muhammad was and what he did? Muhammad is dead
and what he did is history. The point is who are WE? What can be said of
a society that holds a thug, an assassin, and a thief as her spiritual
guide? What can be said about us, our values and morals, when we hoist a
man like Muhammad as our teacher? How can we aspire to become a
spiritual society when our beloved Prophet was a thug? How can we ever
establish humanistic values of tolerance, equality, justice and love
when our spiritual leader had none of them? These are the questions that
our nation must answer in this crucial moment of her existence. This is
the first time after 1400 years of living under terror and being
blindfolded that we have the chance to see for our selves, question and
face the truth.
We are what we think and we think in accordance to what we believe.
Can we ever become a peaceful, loving, advanced and civilized nation
when we believe in a man that was a mass murderer, a liar, a pedophile,
a thief, an assassin, a rapist, a lecher, a hatemonger and a prowling
gangster? Can we ever have peace when our Prophet taught nothing but
war? Can we ever tolerate each other and celebrate our differences when
the man whom we want to emulate in everything, had nothing but scorn for
those who did not agree with him? Can we ever respect the women of our
society when our “infallible” guru, called them “deficient in
intelligence”, “crooked ribs”, “calamities” and “domains of
Satan”? Can we ever quench the hate that is burning in our hearts for
the minorities among us when our messenger said that they are najis,
should be killed, subdued, humiliated and fined? Can we ever love each
other when our Prophet told us to hate? Isn’t it true that leaders
should be ahead of their followers? How can we go forward, when our
leader was so backward?
