The Treaty of Hudaybiya
The Treaty of Hudaybiya is an important event in the early history of Islam. When this treaty was signed, a Quranic verse was revealed which called it a ‘clear victory’ (48:1).
The Prophet began his mission in 610 AH. His mission was that of tawhid, the oneness of God. At that time, there were many polytheists in Arabia. They did not like the Prophet’s mission. They bitterly opposed him, so much so that they unleashed war against him. This climate of war prevailed for many years. Because of this, it was not possible to carry on, in a balanced manner, the work of dawah, or inviting people to tread God’s path, and other constructive activities.
In order to end this unfavourable environment, the Prophet began reconciliatory talks with his opponents at a place called Hudaybiya. His opponents kept insisting on very severe conditions. After two weeks of talks, the Prophet unilaterally accepted their conditions and entered into a peace treaty with them. In this way, he put an end to the existing state of war and established peace with his opponents.
As a result of this treaty, the followers of Islam gained the opportunity of engaging in dawah and other constructive work. And so, because of this, within just two years, Islam became so firmly established that very soon, without shedding blood, it became dominant all across Arabia.
The Treaty of Hudaybiya was not an isolated event. Rather, it was a manifestation of a general principle of nature. It can be described, in other words, as a policy of adjustment. In this world, no individual or community lives all by itself. Here, people live together or in proximity with many others. Everyone’s interests are different. And because of this, problems repeatedly arise between people.
In this context, there are just two options. One can either try to clash with a problem, or one can avoid it and move on ahead. The first method is that of war, the latter of reconciliation. The Quran teaches us that the policy of reconciliation is the best policy. The Prophet acted on this Quranic commandment in entering into the Treaty of Hudaybiya, which proved to be a ‘clear victory’ for Islam.
This method of reconciliation or adjustment is the method of nature. Think of a flowing stream. Whenever a rock comes in its way, it does not try to break it. Rather, it makes a way for itself around the rock and moves on ahead. Likewise, someone driving his car on the road does not willingly crash into a vehicle coming from the opposite direction. Rather, he simply shifts to one side, lets the vehicle pass, and then moves on ahead.
This method of reconciliation was exemplified in the Treaty of Hudaybiya. The Hudaybiya method can be expressed in the following words: Ignore the problems and avail of the opportunities. This is an eternal principle, one that relates to the whole of human life. Be it family or social affairs or international relations, everywhere this is the only principle for success in life. The consequence of abandoning the Hudaybiya Treaty method is confrontation—and no problem can ever be solved through confrontation. If the Hudaybiya Treaty method is Life, then confrontation and war are nothing but Death.
The Hudaybiya Treaty method is the only method for success in the present-day world. It rescues people from negative thinking and leads them to think in a positive way. It saves people from wasting their time in confrontation and from failure to use available opportunities within the possible limits. The Hudaybiya Treaty method makes people capable of transforming their disadvantages into advantages, their minuses into pluses.
