Magnificent
Deeds of the Muslims
Among the nations of the world,
Muslims are the only nation which is replete with splendid deeds and marvelous
performance. And, above all, it has such tested and trusted knowledge and
information about the deeds of its elders and heroes which are irrefutable and
beyond all doubts. The Muslims need not be introduced to the Iliad and the
Odyssey of Homer, nor they are in need of Mahabharat and Ramayan, for they, in
their real history, have all kinds of more splendid and amazing models than
those of Iliad and the Odyssey, and Mahabharat and Ramayan contain.
The Muslims have also nothing to do
with the Shahnamah of Firdausi and tales of the Spartans; for every page of
their history can present many Rustams and the Spartans. The Muslims need not
hear the stories of Nushirwan the Just and Hâtim Tâi; for in their true and
authentic history, countless Hâtim and Nushirwan appear radiating light and
luster. The Muslims also require no Aristotle or Bacon, Ptolemy or Newton; for
in the assembly of their ancestors, such philosophers and astronomers are
present which is a matter of pride for them.
How pitiable and amazing it is that,
at a time, when there is tough competition among the nations of the world to
excel one another, the Muslims, despite having the most glorious history,
appear to be detached and careless as regards their history. The class which
may be said to be more wakeful and vigilant among the Muslims, also quotes in
its lectures, speeches, writings, articles, magazines, newspapers and books any
eminent person from Europe or Christian world wherever it needs to cite example
of high morals or amazing performance, since it is unaware of such
personalities among the Muslims.
Who can deny this fact that the
educated class among the Muslims quote in their speeches and writings names of
Hannibal, Shakespeare, Bacon, Newton etc., more frequently than those of Khâlid
bin Walid, Salahuddin Ayubi, Hassân bin Thâbit, Firdausi, Tusi, Ibn Rushd
(Averroes) and Bu Ali (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ)
Sina (Avicenna). The sole reason behind this is that the Muslims are unaware of
and careless about their history. And they are so, firstly, because they are
much less fond of knowledge in comparison to other nations; secondly, they have
least opportunity and leisure for acquiring knowledge; thirdly, Government
schools and colleges have almost wiped out Islamic educational institutions in
India; fourthly, the class which is generally called the educated class among
the Muslims and which is considered to be forerunner of the Indian Muslims,
comes out totally from the Government schools and colleges where Islamic
history does not form part of the syllabus or if it is there, it is something
other than what is known as history of Islam. After obtaining diploma from
colleges, the age of acquiring further education is almost passed and one
cannot have time left at his disposal for studying Islamic Sciences. In all
cases, our Muslim educated class has to depend on the Islamic histories written
in English in a distorted form by the rivals and opponents of the Muslims.
Before Islam, no nation of any
country would turn towards the art of writing history or compile any authentic
history of its elders and ancestors. In order to know how much progress in the
art of history writing could have been made before Islam, the scriptures of the
Bible and Mahabharat and Ramayan are enough to establish and believe it. The
caution, determination and courage the Muslims showed in the preservation and
narration of Ahadith has no parallel in the inhabited quarter of earth.
The principle of Hadith and
Asma’-ur-Rijâl (branch of knowledge judging merits or otherwise of the
narrators of Hadith etc.,) came to be invented as Sciences by the Muslims for
the sake of the service and safeguards of the Ahadith of the Prophet, against
all odds. The strong, firm and unshakable principles invented by the Muslims
for research and minute study are so matchless that the like of which the world
never witnessed in its long years.
The first memorable work of the
Muslims in connection with the art of writing history is the arrangement and
compilation of the Science of Hadith. And in this connection and in the same
manner, they penned the accounts of their caliphs, nobles, kings, scholars,
philosophers etc. This whole treasure should be taken as Islamic history. The
art of writing history by the Muslims was a new and novel thing and an
unexpected blessings and essential asset for the world. When other nations
consider their books like Bible and Mahabharat as an asset and a matter of
pride, a man is left wonder-struck that the Muslims take out and keep aside
even Khatib’s history from the shelves of authentic books of history.
European historians, these days,
appear to be engaged in hairsplitting and the Muslims seem to be awe-stricken
with and all-praise for their perfection in this art and they do it with all
the sincerity at their command. But, they are ignorant even of the fact that
the Introduction to History written by Muslim historian, Ibn Khaldûn belonging
to an Arab family of Spain living in North Africa, made the entire Europe and
the whole world to understand such unique points about the art of writing
history that all the efforts of European historians can be safely sacrificed on
the historical sense and acumen of Ibn Khaldûn. But the high ambition and
height of fondness of the Muslims can be gauged from the fact that even in the
assembly of scholars of Islam, the original history written by Ibn Khaldûn
fails to attract their sense of importance and glory, except the Introduction
to History.
The praiseworthy endeavors of
thousands of Muslim historians from Ibn Hisham, Ibn Al-Athîr, Tabari, Mas’ûdi
etc., to Ahmad bin Khawand Shah and Zia Barni and up to Muhammad Qasim Faristha
and Mulla Badâûni, which are still preserved in fat volumes — each one of them
is the portrait of the fascinating magnificence and grandeur of the past Muslim
era. And each book on Islamic history needs deep study, and lessons derived
from it may be of great use to the readers. But, how pitiable it is that not a
single Muslim among a hundred appears to be aware of his Islamic history and
goes through history books written by Muslims historians, although a large
number of Muslims have the ability to read and understand books of history
written by Mill, Carlyle, Eliot, Gibbon and others.
Since all the books of Islamic
history have been written in the Arabic and Persian languages and even one
among a hundred Muslims in India does not know Arabic or Persian to go through
these books, it becomes a bounden duty to write Islamic history in the Urdu
language. As now, I am presenting this book, other farsighted persons have an
opportunity to write Islamic histories in Urdu in the form better than this
humble effort.
The
Nature of and Facts about Islamic History
Islamic history is a science or art
of permanent nature which has in its fold thousands of voluminous books written
by highly experienced and esteemed writers. The Muslim historians have
generally penned separately histories of a dynasty or country or any one nation
or any one ruler or a king or an event of tremendous importance and value. Some
of them have compiled biographies simply of scholars of Islam or philosophers
of Islam or saints of Islam and their number reaches up to thousands. This
magnificent treasure and collection may be safely brought under the title of
Islamic history or the art of Islamic history. And this treasure is multiplying
with the passage of time.
The number of Islamic countries and
kingdoms is also so large that even a book of history of each one of them, if
selected, can not be put in a few shelves but in several rooms of a library. To
produce an average book of history in the Urdu language is, in fact, to extract
essence of books of Islamic history and to summarize the whole thing. It is
easier to take a photograph of a very big scenery on a card or to put the
photograph of a palatial building into the hole of a bead of rosary, but it is
very difficult to produce a gist of the whole history of Islam in a volume
containing merely two thousand pages. Hence, I myself cannot convincingly say
that I have achieved success in my attempt. I leave it to my readers to decide
what place does this book occupy as a book of Islamic history and how could the
Muslim Ummah (nation) be benefited by it.
As for the events and occurrences,
for each and every event, I have tried my level best to judge its veracity in
the authentic histories of the period when the event occurred. I have then
tried to put the gist of the events in my own words. Wherever any sharp
difference of opinion arose among the different historians and I found it
difficult to decide about the authenticity thereof, I have translated the
opinion of the historian exactly, and also expressed my personal opinion where
the situation demanded it. I have written this book as a service to Islam and
as a matter of religious duty and expect my recompense only from Allâh the
Almighty.
I admit my incapability to undertake
such a gigantic task and if I, anyhow, come out with success, it is nothing
short of wonders. And anyone who takes the course of constructive and sincere
criticism exclusively for the sake of reforms, will be welcomed as a
benefactor, while the one who does it out of jealousy and malice is to be
consigned to Allâh.
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