The orientalists always ask a question, what was the situation when the advent of Islam?
What distinguished this pure religion and its Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, over the rest of the apostles and prophets?
These are the questions that moved the American academic Juan Cole to interact with the biography of the Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, according to a new perspective that contradicts the prevailing view of orientalists, as he believes that the Islamic religion arose in the presence of a major conflict between the Roman Empire and the Sassanid Empire in Iran, this epilepsy witnessed violent confrontations It spanned nearly 3 decades.
Juan Cole's book entitled "Muhammad: Prophet of Peace Amid the Clash of Empires" - which witnessed a wonderful translation into Arabic by Amr Bassiouni and Hisham Samir, publications by Dar Ibn Al-Nadim for Publishing and Distribution - presents a reinterpretation A stage for early Islam as a movement strongly influenced by the peace-making values that Islam produced to confront what was prevalent in the world at the time.
In this book, Cole seeks to extrapolate the Holy Qur'an according to the context of the historical descent, to conclude that it contains the values of peace and tolerance towards violators.
The book believes that the common understanding of orientalists who see Islam as a religion of war emerged due to a complex misunderstanding in their view, which is linked to the prevailing ideologies, as well as because of the difficulties they faced in interpreting the Holy Qur’an.
They also did not compare what the Qur’an presented with what was prevalent in the Roman and Iranian texts at the time, which is what the book did and concluded that Islam is a religion of peace in the first place.
Islam was revealed in an era that witnessed Persian conquests of Roman lands since 603, as was the Sassanid conquest of Jerusalem in 614.
According to the author, a careful reading of the Qur'an shows the Prophet's quest to build an alternative society to what is prevalent, a society based on peace.
Cole monitors the discourse of the Qur’an, which directs the believers towards ease instead of hardship, and delinquency for peace instead of delinquency for war.
He believes that the context of these verses is related to the conflict between the Romans and the Persians, in which the polytheistic Arab tribes became involved as an ally of one of these two parties.
The writer sees in his book that Muslims at the time of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, were explicitly allied with the Christian Roman Emperor Heraclius the Great (r. 610-641).
Cole sees the Prophet as an ally of the West, and the conquests he made against the polytheists in the Arabian Peninsula were motivated by the pursuit of peace, and the Prophet established the principles of a just war.
According to Cole, the Qur'an confirms that Islam spread in peace throughout the major cities in the west of the Arabian Peninsula.
Here he shows the importance of the soft power of the spiritual message of the Qur'an in the process of spreading this religion.
In order for us to expand more on this section, Al Jazeera Net conducted a dialogue with the American academic Juan Cole about the contents of his book, and this is the text of it.
You mentioned in your book that during the era of the Prophet Muhammad, may God bless him and grant him peace, the world witnessed a clash between empires, so what are they?
At that time, the dominant powers were mainly the Eastern Roman Empire with its capital at Constantinople (today's Istanbul) and the Sassanid Empire in Persia with its capital, Ctesiphon (today's cities, a city in today's Iraq).
The Roman emperors in Constantinople defended Christianity and ruled what is today Turkey, Greater Syria, Egypt and Tunisia in the Near East.
The Sassanids, who professed Zoroastrianism, had expanded into Central Asia, Iran, some areas of Armenia, northern Pakistan, Iraq, and Yemen.
In 603, when the Prophet Muhammad was in his thirties, the Persian Emperor Khosrau II invaded the Roman Empire and over the next 16 years conquered both Greater Syria and Egypt, capturing most of Anatolia and besieging Constantinople.
It was a brutal, full-scale war that turned politics upside down.
Cole considers in his book that the Prophet, peace be upon him, viewed the believers as part of the community of the sons of Abraham's religion (Al-Jazeera)
How did these two civilizations view peace in that era?
Both Christianity and Zoroastrianism had visions of peace, although the legacy of both religions acknowledged that their probability of being in heaven is greater compared to the others.
However, in Christianity, monks often mediate to end conflicts in neighboring villages or between pastoral tribes.
Priests and bishops sought peace among their parishioners.
Expansionist leaders sometimes made peace through diplomacy and political bargaining.
The Eastern Roman and Sassanid Empires concluded a 50-year peace (which lasted until 572 and included all parts of the two empires, including their Arab allies) before the time of the Prophet.
However, neither treaty lasted long, and there were always invasions and counter-invasions.
The outbreak of war between the two sides in 603 began a long period during which diplomacy was futile.
Emperor Heraclius the Great, who came to power in 610, sent two expeditions to consecrate peace to the Sassanid court, but the arrogant and victorious Khosrau II rejected these initiatives, even killing some ambassadors and imprisoning others.
The Arabian Peninsula was a buffer zone between the two empires, a border area that did not have a strong state.
How was the Arabian Peninsula before the era of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)?
Was it united, or was it at peace, or was it attracted by internal and external conflicts because of the ambitions of the two empires?
The Arabian Peninsula was a buffer zone between the two empires, a border area that did not have a strong state.
The Persians had owned Yemen since 570, and Roman influence extended from Transjordan to northern Hejaz.
Some Arab tribes, such as the Banu Nasr in Hira, allied themselves with the Persians.
Other tribes such as the Ghassanids were Christians loyal to Eastern Rome.
Archaeologists find evidence that Christianity was more prevalent in the Hijaz in the two centuries preceding the Prophet than historians had previously believed.
The Qur’an also mentions the existence of forms of polytheism in Mecca and Medina, which is similar to what we know about the ancient Nabataean religion.
The early Qur’anic interpreter Muqatil bin Suleiman (died: 150 AH/767 AD in Basra) says that the polytheists in Mecca allied themselves with the Sassanids against the Romans, while the early Muslims preferred Christian Rome.
Contrary to what many orientalists say about the Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him), you describe him as a prophet of peace. Can you explain your idea to the Arab reader?
I assert that scholars have neglected the peace verses so prevalent in the Qur'an, and have instead focused on the few instructions on fighting defensive war.
The verses of peace are present in the Qur’an in all its parts, not only in the revelations of the Meccan period.
The Qur'an confirms that heaven is synonymous with peace.
The angels pray for peace for those who enter Paradise, and love and peace pervade the people of Paradise among themselves, as there is no place for grudges and anger there, just as God blesses all of his servants with peace.
I believe that peace can transform our societies into heaven on earth.
The Qur'an encourages peaceful paths in the first place, and permits war only if society is under military attack.
As an example, the numerous peace verses in Surat separated, meaning: It is the best word to those who called to God and the good work and said I am )33( Muslims and equated good nor bad pay that is better. If between you and him is enmity like me intimate )34 # .
This conception goes far beyond the view of peace and its relation to society than what is presented in the New Testament in Christianity, because it speaks of turning your enemies into supporters by doing good in return for their bad deeds.
If Jesus says in Matthew's chapter, "Love your enemies," he did not really talk about their reaction to that.
How does the Prophet Muhammad's (peace and blessings be upon him) dealings with the polytheists in Mecca reflect his quest for peace?
The Qur’an mentions that the polytheists have the right to adhere to their religion in a way that is parallel to the adherence of the Prophet Muhammad to his followers in their religion, which is what we find in Surat “Al-Kafirun” where the Qur’an says: Say, O you who disbelieve (1) (I
do not worship what you worship) I worship what you worship (4) (and you do not worship what I worship (5)) to you is your religion and I have mine (6).
Despite the polytheists’ attack on Madinah, the seventh verse of Surat Al-Mumtahinah urges the believers to have affection and a medical relationship: “Perhaps God will place between you and those among whom you have encroached upon.
In 528, the Prophet Muhammad negotiated a peace treaty with his Meccan enemies at Hudaybiyah and made many concessions. According to his prophetic biography, he allowed the language of the treaty to be neutral, and concluded the treaty with the polytheists under the name “Muhammad bin Abdullah” instead of concluding it under the name Muhammad is the Messenger of God In pursuit of peace with them
In 528, the Prophet Muhammad negotiated a peace treaty with his Meccan enemies at Hudaybiyah and made many concessions. According to his prophetic biography, he allowed the language of the treaty to be neutral, and concluded the treaty with the polytheists under the name “Muhammad bin Abdullah” instead of concluding it under the name Muhammad is the Messenger of God In pursuit of peace with them.
The story of al-Hudaybiyya, attributed to Urwa ibn al-Zubayr and mentioned by many later authors, cannot be proven from the Qur’an.. Some of the provisions mentioned are similar to those contained in the peace treaty between the Roman Empire and Sasan 561-562, including the agreement to refuse to receive dissidents, and the binding of Arab allies Tribal peace, providing freedom of religion for followers who live under foreign rule.
We can now call the treaty made by the Prophet Muhammad a peace treaty that avoided violence in society, with the aim of restoring social calm in the Hijaz.
Emotions related to compromise and peacemaking find their stable in the Qur'an.
Cole's book studies the Medina community within the context of the multi-religious Roman city communities (Al-Jazeera)
It is also worth noting that two years later, when the Prophet came to Mecca with his followers at the beginning of the year 630 Fatih, the Qur'an states that there was no bloodshed.
Although the polytheists of Mecca had tried for 6 years to conquer Medina and killed hundreds of Muslims, according to the Qur'an there were no reprisals.
The verse of al-Fath show that where it says it is the palm of their hands from you and your hands on their stomach Mecca after Ozfrckm them. And Allah what ye do )24( so that the Umayyad, who were the fiercest enemies of the Prophet and the new religion, converted after amnesty to leaders of the Islamic community.
What are the lessons learned from the biography of the Prophet in our time, whether for Muslims or humanity?
The Prophet Muhammad was always ready to pardon those who had changed their convictions and were willing to put aside previous quarrels and enmities.
The Prophet Muhammad was a seeker of the paths of peacemaking.
This rejection of long-standing hatreds and disagreements was very different from what we, the West, knew about Arab culture at the time.
Pre-Islamic poetry hangings and pre-Islamic rock inscriptions in ancient Arabic or Persian show revenge as the ultimate goal in life.
It is clear that in our world, due to increasing tribal inflation and geopolitical conflicts, we need the Prophet as an example of mercy and tolerance and the great values he holds for humanity.
Pre-Islamic poetry hangings and pre-Islamic rock inscriptions in ancient Arabic or Persian show revenge as the ultimate goal in life.
It is clear that in our world, due to increasing tribal inflation and geopolitical conflicts, we need the Prophet as an example of mercy and tolerance and the great values he holds for humanity.
Koran also urges people to see the beauty in the differences in skin color, language, sex, and make these differences appropriate to learn something new and the values of these other Kcolh in Al rooms: O people, we created you from a male and female and made you into nations and tribes so that the sight of God Indeed, God is All-Knowing, All-Aware (13). This principle alone would thwart many of our current struggles.