Page 28 - The Vision of Islam

The Essence of Religion

Prophet had particularly addressed himself through speeches, and
by interacting, with both individuals and groups.
Beyond conveying the message to them, nothing further was
attempted. That is why all the expressions, used in the Quran for
the order to convey God’s message fully, are synonymous with
making them aware of God’s Creation Plan for man. (Quran 15:94,
16:44, 21:109, 7:79, 7:35, 17:106, 29:51, 34:28, 3:193, 61:7, 5:67, 14:5).
Baihaqi relates that, according to Mughira ibn Shuba, one day
when the Prophet was explaining Islam to Abu Jahl, the latter said:
“Muhammad, won’t you stop criticizing our idols? What you want
is that we testify to the fact that you have conveyed the message,
so we do bear witness that you have conveyed it!”
The Prophet repeatedly asked his companions to bear witness
to the fact that he had fully conveyed God’s message to them.
Imam Ahmad relates that, according to Tha‘alaba bin Ibad Al-
Abdari, once when the Prophet stood up to give a speech, after
praising God, he said:
“O, people, I ask you on God’s oath to point out to me if I have
fallen short, to any degree, in conveying God’s message to you.’
People stood up and said, ‘We testify that you have delivered God’s
message to us. You have done full justice to the task as a well-wisher
of your Ummah, and you have fulfilled your responsibility.”
The da‘i starts his Dawah work in this very spirit, keeping in
view all the requirements of wisdom and well-wishing. He wants to
convey his message to the people to the maximum possible extent.
The events that unfold subsequently do not depend on the Dawah
work but depend rather on the response of the madu for whom
this task of bearing witness has been performed. This is why we
cannot determine what sets of circumstances will prevail after the
Dawah work has been done. Neither can we hold any particular
example to be the absolute model for bearing witness. The da‘i may
breathe his last, having invited people to accept the Truth all his
life, without achieving any positive result.
There may also be a confrontation between the da‘i and mad‘u
(congregation), and the latter may, individually, or with the aid
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