WAS ISLAM SPREAD BY THE SWORD?
Refutation of a common myth that states Islam was spread by the sword and t=
hat people were forced to become Muslims.
It is a common misconception with some non-Muslims that Islam would not hav=
e millions of adherents all over the world, if it had not been spread by th=
e use of force.
The following points will make it clear, that far from being spread by the =
sword, it was the inherent force of truth, reason and logic that was respon=
sible for the rapid spread of Islam.
Islam has always given respect and freedom of religion to all faiths. Free=
dom of religion is ordained in the Quran itself:
=93There shall be no compulsion in [acceptance of] the religion. The right=
course has become clear from the wrong.=94 (Quran 2:256)
The noted historian De Lacy O=92Leary wrote:[1] =93History makes it clear =
however, that the legend of fanatical Muslims sweeping through the world an=
d forcing Islam at the point of the sword upon conquered races is one of th=
e most fantastically absurd myths that historians have ever repeated.=94
The famous historian, Thomas Carlyle, in his book Heroes and Hero worship, =
refers to this misconception about the spread of Islam: =93The sword indeed=
, but where will you get your sword? Every new opinion, at its starting is =
precisely in a minority of one; in one man=92s head alone. There it dwells=
as yet. One man alone of the whole world believes it, there is one man ag=
ainst all men. That he takes a sword and tries to propagate with that will=
do little for him. You must get your sword! On the whole, a thing will pr=
opagate itself as it can.=94
If Islam was spread by the sword, it was the sword of intellect and convinc=
ing arguments. It is this sword that conquers the hearts and minds of peop=
le. The Quran says in this connection:
=93Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good instruction, and arg=
ue with them in a way that is best.=94 (Quran 16:125)
The facts speak for themselves
=B7 Indonesia is the country that has the largest number of Muslims in=
the world, and the majority of people in Malaysia are Muslims. But, no Mu=
slim army ever went to Indonesia or Malaysia. It is an established histori=
cal fact that Indonesia entered Islam not due to war, but because of its mo=
ral message. Despite the disappearance of Islamic government from many reg=
ions once ruled by it, their original inhabitants have remained Muslims. M=
oreover, they carried the message of truth, inviting others to it as well, =
and in so doing endured harm, affliction and oppression. The same can be s=
aid for those in the regions of Syria and Jordan, Egypt, Iraq, North Africa=
, Asia, the Balkans and in Spain. This shows that the effect of Islam on t=
he population was one of moral conviction, in contrast to occupation by wes=
tern colonialists, finally compelled to leave lands whose peoples held only=
memories of affliction, sorrow, subjugation and oppression.
=B7 Muslims ruled Spain (Andalusia) for about 800 years. During this =
period the Christians and Jews enjoyed freedom to practice their respective=
religions, and this is a documented historical fact.
=B7 Christian and Jewish minorities have survived in the Muslim lands =
of the Middle East for centuries. Countries such as Egypt, Morocco, Palest=
ine, Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan all have significant Christian and Jewish p=
opulations.
=B7 Muslims ruled India for about a thousand years, and therefore had =
the power to force each and every non-Muslim of India to convert to Islam, =
but they did not, and thus more than 80% of the Indian population remains n=
on-Muslim.
=B7 Similarly, Islam spread rapidly on the East Coast of Africa. And =
likewise no Muslim army was ever dispatched to the East Coast of Africa.
=B7 An article in Reader=92s Digest =91Almanac=92, yearbook 1986, give=
s the statistics of the increase of the percentage of the major religions o=
f the world in half a century from 1934 to 1984. This article also appeare=
d in The Plain Truth magazine. At the top was Islam, which increased by 23=
5%, while Christianity had increased by 47%. During this fifty-year period=
, there was no =93Islamic conquest=94 yet Islam spread at an extraordinary =
rate.
=B7 Today the fastest growing religion in America and Europe is Islam.=
The Muslims in these lands are a minority. The only sword they have in t=
heir possession is the sword of truth. It is this sword that is converting=
thousands to Islam.
=B7 Islamic law protects the privileged status of minorities, and that=
is why non-Muslim places of worship have flourished all over the Islamic w=
orld. Islamic law also allows non-Muslim minorities to set up their own co=
urts, which implement family laws drawn up by the minorities themselves. T=
he life and property of all citizens in an Islamic state are considered sac=
red whether they are Muslims or not.
Conclusion
It is clear, therefore, that Islam did not spread by the sword. The =93swo=
rd of Islam=94 did not convert all the non-Muslim minorities in Muslim coun=
tries. In India, where Muslims ruled for 800 years, they are still a minor=
ity. In the U.S.A., Islam is the fastest growing religion and has over six=
million followers.
In his book The World=92s Religions, Huston Smith discusses how the prophet=
Muhammad granted freedom of religion to the Jews and Christians under Musl=
im rule:
The Prophet had a document drawn up in which he stipulated that Jews and Ch=
ristians =93shall be protected from all insults and harm; they shall have a=
n equal right with our own people to our assistance and good offices,=94 an=
d further, =93they shall practice their religion as freely as the Muslims.=
=94[2]
Smith points out that Muslims regard that document as the first charter of =
freedom of conscience in human history and the authoritative model for thos=
e of every subsequent Muslim state.
Footnotes:
[1] In his book Islam at the Crossroads, p.8.
[2] Quoted in The World=92s Religions by Huston Smith, Harper Collins, 1991=
, p. 256
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