Pact of Madinah

Nilofar Ahmed

When the Prophet of Islam (PBUH) migrated to Madinah there was no ruler, no written rules and consequently, no accountability for crimes committed. The mightiest had a free- hand, while the weak had to hide behind the strong, usually the tribe or the leader of the tribe, in order to survive.

There were constant internecine, tribal wars with a general lawlessness prevailing in Arabia. The Prophet at once set about organising the city in order to give it the semblance of a state and to codify laws, which would form the basis of what can safely be called a basic constitution.

At the time of the Muslims’ arrival in Madinah, the population of the city was said to be about 10,000. Of these, only about 15 percent were immigrant Muslims; the rest was almost equally divided between Jews and polytheists. There were no common laws and no central command.

Each tribe dealt with matters according to its customs. Dr M Hamidullah in his biography, Muhammad Rasulullah, says that the Prophet, after consultation with all the parties, decided to form a city-state in Madinah on the basis of a confederation.

There was to be a certain amount of autonomy for the units, with common rules and laws creating unity among its citizens, Muslims, Jews and polytheists, who would all be considered one ummah (nation).

A set of rules known as the Misaaq-i-Madinah (‘Pact of Madinah’), was drafted in the first year after Hijra (623 C.E.). It has come down to us in its complete form in the Prophet’s biography by Ibn Ishaq. The document is made up of about 52 clauses.

Because of the constant tribal wars being fought at that time, a large number of the clauses pertain to the orderly settlement of the issues of war and its aftermath.

Dr Hamidullah says it is the “first written constitution of the world”. He also says that the Prophet introduced moral values in politics, institutionalised the provision of justice and declared that real and final power belonged to God alone. He did away with the concept that the king could do no wrong. He declared himself to be God’s Prophet and His representative on earth and considered the instructions that he brought for his followers, binding on himself.

M Akhtar Muslim says in his book, Quran Aur Insani Huquq, (‘Quran and Human Rights’) that this document attempts to meet all the challenges and needs of every class and individual with regard to justice, tolerance, peace and freedom, including freedom of religion and the principle of co-existence. He also says that even Jews, who were well-known for their knowledge, skills and intelligence for centuries and were quite sharp in their dealings with others, accepted this agreement willingly, peacefully and completely.

Also, all the citizens accepted the Prophet as a ruler, without any coercion, when he was only the leader of a minority. This was a great achievement. According to Dr Hamidullah, the concept of social insurance was also introduced by this pact: if an individual was caught in a difficult situation due to having to pay blood money or ransom, his tribe would have to come to his rescue by pooling their resources. The poorest of the members of the believers would be able to give protection to anyone he deemed fit and bind the whole community of believers to honour his word. Those outside the pact could also be protected.

Madinah was declared a sanctuary for those who signed the document. All those tribes of Jews who cooperated were to be treated equally and given aid. The Muhajirun who had migrated from Makkah to Madinah were considered one tribe. The peace agreement entailed that no believer would help an unbeliever against a believer. All believers were to be against the one who spread injustice, enmity, sin or corruption among believers, even if he be one of them. No one would have the right to go to war without the permission of the head of state.

The administering of justice would not be in the hands of the one wronged, but would become the duty of the whole ummah.

This meant unbridled revenge would be curtailed and the state would become responsible for dispensing justice. No ties of kinship or social relationships would come in the way of justice. No one would be allowed to protect a murderer or a criminal. No one would have the right to protect the Quraish of Makkah or their helpers, who were constantly trying to harm the believers.

In case of a dispute, the case would be referred back to the Prophet’s teachings. It was stated clearly that Jews and Muslims would practice their religion freely. The whole tribe would not be responsible for a crime committed by a member. In case any of the signatories of the pact were attacked, all the members would be obliged to defend them. If Jews made a peace pact with any party and invited the believers to join them, the believers would be compelled to do so, except in the case of a holy war.

The pact resulted in weakening the hold of the repressive culture and authority of the many tribes and superimposed the modern concept of a unifying culture and authority above it. The basic concepts of co-existence with followers of other faiths, dealing justly with everyone, keeping one’s word and feeling a concern for the weak were all highlighted by this pact and laid the foundation of a government for future generations to emulate.

(The writer is a scholar of the Quran and writes on its relevance to contemporary issues.)

Source: The Dawn, Karachi

Rich Islamic heritage in India

Enchanting land watered by the streams of philosophies:

India is an enchanting land watered by the streams of compassionate philosophies since ancient times. Flourishing communities of the Islamic, Christian, Zoroastrian and Jewish faiths exist here. The Hindu, Buddhist, Jaina and Sikh faiths were born here. It has a great cosmopolitan heritage of culture and art.

Although Mughal architecture of North India is famous, the fascinating richness of Islamic architectural heritage in other parts of the country is not so well known. The vastness of India’s Islamic architectural heritage is unbelievable. India has more beautiful medieval Islamic architectural heritage than any other country. This is a fact which neither Indians nor the rest of the world is fully aware of.

It is a known fact that the most famous Islamic monument of the world, the Taj Mahal, is in India. But what is not equally well known is that one of the oldest mosques in the world is also in India, in Kerala. In fact, India has a vast and rich Islamic architectural heritage, from Kerala in the south to Kashmir in the north, from Tripura in the east to Gujarat in the west.

Islamic architecture is characterised by a few visible symbols. One is the arch, which frames the space; the second symbol is the dome, which looms over the skyscape; and the third is the minaret, which pierces the skies. Minarets were actually symbols in the middle of deserts. They represented fire, which was lit atop them to guide travellers. The dome represents the infinite and also the sky. As tomb architecture represents both the finite and the infinite, the dome has a very important role to play.

Arab traders

Islam did not come to India from the north as is commonly believed. It came through Arab traders to the Malabar region in Kerala, and Muslims flourished as a trading community there. You can still see traces of that community amongst the Moplas of Kerala, who trace their ancestry to the Arabs.

Since ancient times, India has had considerable trade contact with the Arab world. In the 1st century AD, the Roman historian Pliny the Elder wrote about the existing routes to India and the July monsoon winds that traders used to catch to reach the Indian coast. He spoke about a ship that left the coast of Arabia and took 40 days to reach Muziris, which was then the name of present-day Kodungalloor.

With the advent of Islam, Arab traders became the carriers of the new faith. The first mosque in India was built at Kodungalloor by the Chera King Cheraman Perumal in A.D. 629, within the lifetime of the Prophet. This is one of the oldest mosques in the world.

Kayalpattnam is an ancient town about a kilometre from the mouth of the Tamiraparani river. Arab traders built the Kodiakarai Mosque here as early as Hijri 12, or A.D. 633. It is the first mosque to be built in Tamil Nadu and ranks among the oldest mosques in the world. Kayalpattnam has many other early mosques. In fact, Kerala on the west coast of India and Tamil Nadu on the east coast have numerous mosques, made through the ages. At Nagore, on the east coast, is one of the grandest dargahs ever made.

Invasions

Islam came to the north of India through different invasions, starting with the invasion of Mahmud of Ghazni, who came as far as Gujarat. Thereafter, there was the peaceful contribution of different Sufi saints, traders and other individuals who moved to the northern region of India because of political instability or dynastic changes that were taking place in and around central Asia and Afghanistan at that time. Gradually, a small community developed and increased its strength once Turkish rule was established in north India.

The Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque was the first mosque built in north India, in A.D. 1193. A number of Quranic verses are beautifully etched on the mosque. Some medieval writers say they are so beautifully carved that it looks as if they are written on wax.

The most impressive monument in the Qutb complex in present-day Delhi is the Qutb Minar itself. It was made in the early 13th century by Qutbuddin Aibak, the sultan of Delhi. At 72.5 metres, it is one of the tallest minarets in the world. The traveller Ibn Batuta, who came to India after journeying all over the Islamic empire, starting from Africa and covering Samarkand and Damascus, has recorded that nowhere in the world has there been a minaret as impressive as the Qutb Minar.

Close to the Qutb complex is the tomb of Ghiyasuddin Balban, another 13th century ruler of Delhi. Balban ruled from 1266 to 1286. His tomb marks a very important development in the field of architecture. Before this tomb was built, a number of arches had been made in Indian Islamic buildings, but these were not “true arches”. In Balban’s tomb, for the first time in India, a keystone, which is fundamental to the true load-bearing arch, was used at the top of the arch. Subsequently, the “true arch” began to be used in numerous structures across the country.

The Alai Darwaja was built by Allauddin Khilji as part of the extension of the Qutb complex in 1305. It is very fascinating from the point of view of architecture. In the 13th century, owing to Mongol attacks in West Asia and Central Asia, a large number of craftsmen had to flee from their lands. Many of them were given refuge in this part of India and were very fruitfully employed in the making of the Alai Darwaja. We see here the introduction of the horseshoe arch in Indian monuments.

The Deccan

Meanwhile, Islamic influence continued to grow further south, in the Deccan. The end of the 15th century saw the establishment of five sultanates in the Deccan: Ahmadnagar, Bijapur, Golconda, Bidar and Berar. The sultan of Bijapur was a descendant of the Ottoman dynasty of Istanbul. The sultan of Golconda was a Turkman prince who had taken refuge in India. The sultans were followers of the Shia sect of Islam and were close allies of the Safavid rulers of Iran. A distinct culture thus developed in the cosmopolitan community of the Deccan.

The streets of the Deccani sultanates were filled with Turks, Persians, Arabs and Africans. In India, the Deccan became the greatest centre of Arabic learning and literature. In fact, Iran and Central Asia only had single courts. If you were a soldier, a religious figure, an intellectual or an artistic person and you could not find a sponsor in what is now Iran or Uzbekistan, chances were that you could find some sort of patronage in the Deccan. Thus there was a continuous migration of people, ideas and artistic devices from the Near East to the Deccan.

A remarkable example of an architectural transplant from central Asia is the madrassa of Mahmud Gawan, in Bidar, built at the end of the 15th century. It would be very hard to tell the difference between this and the madrassas of Uzbekistan or eastern Iran. The similarities between the two are not only in form or in other architectural elements such as corner minarets, the square courtyard in the middle and four great arched portals, but also in the decorations of the exterior with blue-and-white tiles.

Sultan Ibrahim Adil Shah II ruled Bijapur from 1580 to 1627. He was a contemporary of the Mughal emperor Akbar. A visit to his rauza, or tomb, is a pilgrimage for someone deeply interested in Indian art, for some of the finest miniature paintings

The Gol Gumbaz in Bijapur is the tomb of Sultan Muhammad Adil Shah, who ruled from A.D. 1627 to 1657. This is the largest dome ever built in the Islamic world. It is the second largest dome in the world, after the one at Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome. It measures 37.92 metres on the inside.

The massive Bidar fort was built in the 14th and 15th centuries. It is one of the most formidable forts in the country. It has walls that run for 5.5 km around. Inside, it has beautiful palaces, two mosques, a madrassa, ornamental gardens and hamams.

Emperor Akbar

Timur, when he came to India, was struck by the beauty of its historical cities. In his autobiography, Malfujaate Taimoori, he says, “I ordered that all the artisans and clever mechanics who are masters of their respective crafts should be picked out from among the prisoners and set aside. And accordingly some thousands of craftsmen were selected to await my command. I had determined to build a Masjid-e-Jami in Samarkand, the seat of my empire, which should be without rival in any country. So I ordered that all the builders and stonemasons of India should be set apart for my own special service.” In some other records it is said that he took about 3,000 artisans from India and employed them in the construction of the Jami Masjid at Samarkand.

The dynasty founded by Babur became one of the greatest the world had seen. It ruled a vast empire whose fame spread far and wide. The culture and the art it created helped shape future developments in all spheres of life in the Indian subcontinent.

Humayun’s Tomb, which might be considered the first great masterpiece of the Mughals, is very much related to the previous architecture of Delhi. It is closely linked to the Lodhi and Tuglaq architectures of the 14th and 15th centuries. Mughal architecture presents us with a fusion of local elements, building techniques, styles and traditions with imported traditions and styles. The genius of Mughal architecture is that it sustained this incredibly rich mingling of different traditions throughout its history.

Agra was the imperial capital of Akbar in the mid-16th century. The fort here was one of the most powerful in north India. In 1565, Emperor Akbar ordered the reconstruction of the fort. The fort has palaces of Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan. The most prominent among all the structures are the white marble buildings of Shah Jahan. The Khas Mahal, made of pure marble, is one of these elegant buildings. It is flanked by the palaces of Shah Jahan’s daughters Roshanara and Jahanara.

In 1571, Emperor Akbar decided to build a new capital city. And a magnificent city was built at a site not very far from Agra. It was called Fatehpur Sikri. This was Akbar’s most ambitious architectural project. By the end of the 16th century, there were a quarter of a million people living in the new city.

In the building of Fatehpur Sikri, no cost was too much, no effort too great, for Akbar. He wished to build the city true to his conception. As a matter of fact, miniature paintings of that period show the emperor amidst the workers, supervising the construction of the city himself. Fatehpur Sikri is one of the best ordered and symmetrically laid-out cities of the entire medieval world.

Taj Mahal

The world’s best-known tomb stands testimony to a timeless love story. The Taj Mahal was built in 1648 by the Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife Arjumand Banu Begum, known to the world as Mumtaz Mahal. The construction of the Taj Mahal was a stupendous engineering feat. It is built of marble and is finely inlaid with semi-precious stones. As many as 20,000 workers and master craftsmen laboured for 17 years to erect this magnificent edifice. Several hundreds of mosques and Islamic tombs of great beauty are spread throughout India.

Coming to the west of the country, in Gujarat is the World Heritage Site of Champaner of the 15th century. In the east there is the impressive Nakhoda Masjid and several others in Kolkata.

There are famous dargahs in Hajo and other places in Assam. In the north-eastern region of India, in Agartala in Tripura is the beautiful Gedu Mia Ki Masjid.

In the mountainous State of Kashmir, Islamic architecture was influenced by ancient Hindu and Buddhist traditions. The resultant form was combined with influences from Persia and Turkistan. Wood was used extensively in the mosques and tombs of Kashmir.

India has a vast, living heritage of Islamic architecture. These monuments are a great treasure of India’s culture and many of them are recognised as World Heritage Monuments. We see in these the confluence of local talent and inspiration from Iran, Arabia and Central Asia. These mosques, tombs, madrassas, palaces and fortresses are a unique heritage of Islamic architecture.

Text and photographs by Benoy K Behl- Courtesy Frontline

Food most liked by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

MILK: The Prophet (PBUH) said that milk wipes away heat from the heart just as the finger wipes away sweat from the brow. It strengthens the back, increases the brain, augments intelligence, renews and drives away forgetfulness.

HONEY: Considered to be the best remedy for diarrhoea when mixed in hot water. It is the food of foods, drink of drinks and drug of drugs. It is used for creating appetite, strengthening the stomach, eliminating phlegm, as a meat preservative, hair conditioner, eye salve and mouthwash. It is extremely beneficial in the morning in warm water and is also a Sunnah.

OLIVE OIL: Excellent treatment for skin and hair, delays old age, treats inflammation of the stomach.

MUSHROOM: The Prophet (SAW) said that mushroom is a good cure for the eyes. It also serves as a form of birth control and arrests paralysis.

GRAPES: The Prophet (SAW) was very fond of grapes. It purifies the blood, provides vigor and health, strengthens the kidneys and clears the bowels.

DATES: The Prophet (SAW) said that a house without dates has no food, also to be eaten at the time of childbirth.

FIGS: It is a fruit from paradise and a cure for piles.

BARLEY: Good for fever in a soup form.

MELON: Melon contains 1000 blessings and 1000 mercies. The Prophet (SAW) said “None of your women who are pregnant and eat water melon will fail to produce off springs, which are good in countenance and good in character.

POMEGRANATE: The Prophet (SAW) said it cleanse you of Satan and evil aspirations for 40 days.

WATER: The Prophet (SAW) said the best drink in this world and the next is water.

When you are thirsty drink by sips and not gulps, gulping produces sickness of the liver.