Principle of Confronting Oppressors

part 2

The Prophet (PBUH) and the Oligarchs

All through his 23-year divine mission, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) insisted on his mission, which was confronting aggression, tyranny, crime and oppression. As Imam Khomeini (R.A) puts it: “How many battles occurred in the time of the Noble Prophet! It was for reforming the society, to cut short the hand of the oppressors, the hand of pillaging capitalists, those criminal despots. All his life he was busy fighting in Mecca. He couldn't do as he wanted to. In Mecca he could preach, until all was set for him to go to Medina. There it was all fighting and confrontations and political issues. “During his time in Mecca he had to tolerate a lot, all through the 10 years he was there. When he arrived in Medina and the pains of Mecca was over, the distress of armed encounters started. All those armed encounters in the 10 years he was in Medina!

 About 100 battles and expeditions were carried out against the aggressors. Usually  at  least  armed  encounter  would  happen  each month. There are some discrepancies on the number of these  encounters.  Ibn  Ishraq,  quoting  Omrat  al-Qaza, believes that the Prophet personally took part in 27 battles and expeditions along with the army of Islam. Tabari and Mas'udi believe the number to be 26 and remind that some believe it to be 27. The reason behind this discrepancy is that the first group considers the Noble Prophet's (PBUH) return from Khaybar and the expedition to Wadi al-Qura to be as one. Ibn Hazm, has documented the number of these fights as 25. Ibn Sa'd believes there were 38 battles in which the Prophet (PBUH) die not accompany the army of Islam.

Mas'udi quotes a group and says the number is 35 and according to Tabari it is 48 and some other believe it to be 66. Ibn Hazm says the number was 47. So, the Noble Prophet had no choice but to defend the sanctity of Islam and the Muslims and for this he was ready for all types of defensive acts. He didn't spend one single day at ease, defending his people and achieving his goals. As Imam Khomeini (R.A) puts it:

“The Noble Prophet spent all his life working hard. In all his life history you can't find a single day when he sat at ease. Now his religion is in your hands. During the 13 years of his mission in Mecca he spent hard days and after that it was always war and confronting aggression. “All the battles of the Noble Prophet were defensive and in fact they were confrontation with oppressors who couldn't witness freedom of mankind from captivity of idolatry. The political Quraysh and masters of tribes were after their own vested interests under the pretence of worshipping idols. They fought till idolatry was rooted out. All the aggressions had deep root in this. After the advent of Islam, the rulers of the lands that Islam where Islam had become dominant and chiefs  of  tribes  who  were  followers  of  idolatry,  felt endangered, so they became determined to annihilate Islam and the Muslims. The verses that were revealed to the Noble Prophet (PBUH) on Jihad and the prophetic conduct in those battles are all good witnesses to this case:

“And fight in the way of Allah with those who fight with you, and do not exceed the limits. Surely, Allah does not love the transgressors.”‌

Source:

Behavior and Character of the Holy Prophet of Islam from Imam Khomeini's Viewpoint  

Written By: Mostafa Dilshad Tehrani 

Translator: Ali Shahbaz

Other Links:

Principle of Care for the Oppressed (part 1)  

Principle of Care for the Oppressed (part 2)