When we look back at the time of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), we realize how this blessed man was indeed able to achieve the arduous task of reforming a society.  By the end of the twenty-three years of the Divine Call, virtually all of Arabia was practicing Islam.  Was this achievement attained through aggressive warfare?  No, it was never an issue of conquest of might, but rather a feat by conquest of the heart.  

After the Divine Call, the Prophet (pbuh) spent the first thirteen years in Makkah.  This was a time when Muslim men, women, and slaves were being butchered shamelessly, solely because of their declaration of faith in Islam and of the teachings of the Holy Prophet.  During those first few years, when persecution was severe, the Holy Prophet advised the weaker of his companions to advance towards Abyssinia.  Upon entering Abyssina, Jaf’ar ibn Abi Talib, the head of the refugees, addressed the then King in the following words, which painted a true picture of what was being taught and endured by the Muslims in Makkah:

“O King! We were an ignorant people, given to idolatry. We used to eat corpses even of dead animal, and do all kinds of disgraceful things. We did not make good our obligations to our relations and ill treated our neighbors. The strong among us would thrive at the expense of the weak, till, at last, God sent a prophet for our reformation. His descent, his righteousness, his integrity and his piety are well-known to us. He called us to the worship of God, and exhorted us to give up idolatry and stone worship. He enjoined us to speak truth, to make good our trusts, to respect ties of kinship, and to do good to our neighbors. He taught us to shun everything foul and to avoid bloodshed. He forbade all manner of indecent things. – telling lies, misappropriating orphans’ belongings, and bring false accusation against the chastity of women. So we believed in him, and followed him and acted upon his teachings. Thereupon our people began to wrong us, to subject us to tortures, thinking that we might thus abjure our faith and revert to idolatry. When, however, there cruelties exceeded all bounds, we came out to seek asylum in your country, where we hope shall come to no harm.” [i]

At one point, the Quraish, a leading tribe in Makkah that was hostile towards the Muslims, tried to compromise the Holy Prophet’s character through bribery, by sending deputations with the offer:

"If your ambition is to possess wealth, we will amass for you as much of it as you wish; if you aspire to win honour and power, we are prepared to swear allegiance to you as our overlord and king; if you have a fancy for beauty, you shall have the hand of the finest maiden of your own choice." [ii]  

But to their surprise, the Holy Prophet replied: "I want neither riches nor political power.  I have been commissioned by Allah as a warner to mankind.  I deliver His message to you. Should you accept it, you shall have felicity in this life as well as in the life to come; should you reject the word of Allah, surely Allah will decide between you and me." [iii]