وما أرسلناك إلا رحمة للعالمين
“And We have not sent you, [O Muhammad], except as a mercy to the worlds.”
(Surat Al-Anbiya, Verse 107)
(Translation from Sahih International)
As we continue with this special short series honoring the qualities of our Messenger ﷺ, one of the most apparent and unique qualities of our beloved Prophet ﷺ was that he was forgiving. Last month, we covered the qualities and examples of his mercy and compassion towards others. This brings up an important question: What is the difference between mercy and forgiveness? The simple answer to this question is that in order to be merciful or demonstrate mercy, you must be willing to forgive. Forgiveness for a believer is a sign that he/she is also merciful and compassionate.
This raises another question: Why is forgiveness unique? I stated earlier that this quality of forgiveness that Prophet Muhammad ﷺ embodied was unique because it is arguably amongst the most difficult character traits for any human to have and showcase. That is because forgiveness has no boundaries and is not limited. If you are to be forgiving, then you must show it toward Muslims, non-Muslims, neighbors, friends, family, and even sometimes those you consider to be your enemy. Uniquely enough, no human was able to do this as perfectly as our teacher and role model, Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
One significant event in the Seerah of the Prophet ﷺ was the Battle of Uhud. In this battle, it was 3,000 soldiers of Quraish against only 700 soldiers from the Muslims. The number was higher but about 300 Muslim soldiers abandoned the Messenger of Allah ﷺ on the way to the battlegrounds and were exposed as hypocrites. However, the Battle of Badr was also a battle in which the Muslims were outnumbered yet they still won through the help of Allah ﷻ.
The Prophet ﷺ set archers on the hill of Uhud and ordered them not to move under any circumstance until the Messenger ﷺ himself ordered them to vacate their positions. This was to prevent an attack from behind. As we know, the archers abandoned their positions due to hearing false news and this caught the attention of Khalid Ibn Walid, who was at the time a disbeliever. To sum it up, the Muslims were ambushed from behind and cornered along with Muhammad ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ along with some Muslim soldiers were heavily wounded but managed to escape to safety. One of the most beloved people to the Prophet ﷺ, his uncle Hamza (RA), was martyred and completely dismembered by the disbelievers. In an authentic hadith, he had broken teeth, a wounded body, and blood flowing from his helmet onto his face. Yet instead of cursing the disbelievers, he wiped the blood from his face and said “O Allah, forgive my people, for they do not know.” This was the forgiveness that the Messenger ﷺ had even in the worst situations.
In another authentic hadith in the book of Sahih Muslim, Abu Hurairah narrated that it was asked of the Messenger ﷺ to invoke a curse upon the polytheists, whereupon he said: “I have not been sent as the invoker of curses, but I have been sent as mercy.” This was in the moment that he fell to his knees during this battle. Instead of cursing people of Quraish, he made dua for them and remembered his true purpose in this Dunya. This was the forgiveness of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
As I mentioned earlier, the Prophet’s uncle Hamza (RA) was martyred during this battle. A disbelieving woman at the time named Hind sent an Abyssinian slave named Wahshi to not only kill Hamza (RA), but to completely dismember his body into pieces. Imagine the savagery and immorality. Later on, both of these people ended up going to Prophet Muhammad ﷺ and accepted Islam. Despite their actions against his most beloved family member, the Prophet ﷺ forgave them for their actions and welcomed them to Islam, through his mercy and forgiveness. This was the mercy of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
One more significant event in Islam, in which it marked what is known now as the “year of sorrow,” was the persecution of the Messenger ﷺ by the people of Taif. After being persecuted and forcibly displaced by his own people in Makkah, the Messenger ﷺ made his Hijra to Madina.
The Messengerﷺ went to spread Dawah to the people of Taif. They were also not friendly with the people of Quraish and he sought to spread Islam to them. After they rejected, he asked if they could at least provide him some protection and not tell Quraish that he came. Instead, they invoked the entire city to humiliate and stone the Prophet ﷺ, even the women and children participated. He fled from Taif with heavy wounds and blood all over his body. Angel Jibreel came down to the Prophet ﷺ and told him that Allah ﷻ could crush the people of Taif between the two mountains if he wished. Instead of accepting the offer, Prophet Muhammad ﷺ decided to forgive the people of Taif by responding to Angel Jibreel that “Their kids could be better when they grow older.” He forgave them with the small hope that their kids will grow to be better than them. This was the forgiveness of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
As we can see, these were just two historical events of many from the Seerah of our Prophet ﷺ that demonstrate his mercy, compassion, and forgiveness towards everyone, indiscriminately. We always strive to be like our role model, the Messenger of Allah.
We ask Allah ﷻ to make us amongst those that follow in the footsteps of our beloved Messenger ﷺ. We ask Allah ﷻ to make us among the merciful and compassionate ones so that He will have mercy upon us. We ask Allah ﷻ to make us among those who forgive so that we may be forgiven for our shortcomings and unite us with our Prophet ﷺ in the highest level of paradise. Allahumma Ameen.
By Ahmad Salah
