In the religion of Islam the character of the Prophet Muhammad,
peace and blessings be upon him, is the model of human virtue.
Orphan, exile, contemplative, successful businessman, long-time
faithful husband to one wife, husband to several wives in his later
years, statesman, judge, warrior, conqueror, lawgiver, peacemaker,
spiritual teacher, Muhammad is the complete man, the exemplar of
broad and balanced character whose sunnah (habitual and
characteristic way of acting) is the ideal of human behavior for
the traditional Muslim world. Dar-al-Islam is presently under
ruthless attack from the forces of secular modernization, as well
as those of the Islamicist reaction; both sides are attempting to
trim Islam down to fit their own shrunken ideologies. Under such
damaging blows, young Muslims need to remember not just the Holy
Book, but the man whose character was the perfect mirror of that
Book. Both modernizers and Islamicists want to narrow down,
marginalize, and perhaps even do away with the example of the
Prophet; he was too complete and genuine a human being to fit into
their increasingly inhuman agendas. Human life requires heroism in
any time, and the duties of self-development and self-mastery call
for a greater degree of heroism than any other struggle, which is
why the Prophet called the war against the sub-human aspects of
one's own soul 'the greater jihad'. Alone of all creatures, human
beings are not simply established as themselves by God, but are
required by God to become themselves. It is easy to throw one's
life away, either in the name of a cause or at the ever-present
command of the vices and passions; much harder and requiring an
even greater degree of courage is the struggle to grow and live, so
as to become a human being. We must be prepared to sacrifice life
at any time if God commands it; we must also be prepared to nurture
and develop life, both for our own salvation and in the name of
future generations. This unity of heroic abandon with painstaking
and compassionate care is the essence of the traditional Muslim
character, which is nowhere more clearly visible than in the
character of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him,
who said: 'Even if you know that the world will end tomorrow, plant
a tree.' Charles Upton is a serious thinker from whom I have
learned much. His writing merits close attention. Huston Smith,
author of The World's Religions, etc.
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