Islam Rediscovered
17. Prophetic Vision
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peaceful policy. For instance, on the occasion of the
Ahzab encounter, the Prophet set up a buffer in the
form of a trench between him and his enemies.
Then on the occasion of Hudaybiya, when it came
to making a peace treaty with the enemy, the
Prophet, accepted all the conditions set by them.
During the 23-year period of his prophethood, the
Prophet, physically encountered his antagonists
only on three occasions—at Badr, Uhud and
Hunayn, where conflict had become totally
unavoidable. Each of these three engagements
lasted for only half a day. This means that the
Prophet fought for only one and a half days
throughout his life, with the total casualties
amounting to not more than 130 from both sides.
The winning over of such an aggressive and
belligerent people with so little bloodshed had been
possible only because the Prophet always used to
lay stress on the power of peace.
Arabia had been conquered during the lifetime of
the Prophet. The wars that took place in this process
took a toll of less than one hundred and fifty
people. This revolution brought about by the
