Holy Prophet’s Softheartedness And Strictness
The Holy Quran, addressing the Holy Prophet (PBUH) mentions these two qualities in an interesting way.
This is what Hani Chitchian, a member of the Quran and Etrat School of the University of Tehran, discussed in the 32nd session in a series on Surah At-Tawbah. Following are excerpts from his remarks in the session:
The verses of the Quran portray the Holy Prophet (PBUH) as someone who is very softhearted, and tell him if he were hot-tempered, people would disperse from around him. (Verse 159 of Surah Al Imran)
On the other hand, Verse 9 of Surah At-Tahrim says: “Prophet, fight against the disbelievers and the hypocrites and be stern against them. Their dwelling will be hell fire, the most terrible fate.”
Verse 159 of Surah Al Imran shows that the Prophet’s (PBUH) compassion and softheartedness is a very important and strategic issue while Verse 9 of Surah At-Tahrim tells a Prophet who is softhearted to be strict and deal harshly with disbelievers. The two verses together indicate the fact that if the Prophet (PBUH) acts strictly, this harshness is not in his heart but in his behavior.
If one does not have both of these two qualities, he cannot be a leader in the fight against Taghut.
Some verses from Surah At-Tawbah also address the Holy Prophet (PBUH). The first is Verse 6: “If any of the pagans ask you to give them refuge, give them asylum so that they may hear the words of God. Then, return them to their towns for they are an ignorant people.” The Prophet (PBUH) is tasked with creating conditions so that the disbelievers will hear the Word of God.
The next is Verse 42: “Had the gain been immediate or the journey shorter, they (hypocrites) would certainly have followed you, (Muhammad), but it was too far for them. They will swear by God, ‘Had we had the ability, we would certainly have marched with you.’ They destroy only themselves and God knows that they are lying.” Here the Prophet (PBUH) is addressed but given no orders.
Next is verse 51: “(Muhammad), say, ‘Nothing will happen to us besides what God has decreed for us. He is our Guardian. In God alone do the believers trust.’” According to this verse, we will either be victorious or be killed, both of which are good for us and for you (disbelievers) the outcome will be bad: You will either be punished by us or by God.
Verse 65 says: “If you question them about their manners, they say, ‘We were only arguing for the sake of amusement.’ Ask them, ‘Were you mocking God, His revelations, and His Messenger?’” This is about confronting the hypocrite.
In Verse 80, God says: “(Muhammad), whether you ask God to forgive them or not, He will never do so, even if you were to beg seventy times; they have disbelieved in God and His Messenger and God does not guide the evil-doers.”
This is addressed to the Prophet (PBUH) but it is for disbelievers. It shows that God is so angry at them that He does not want to talk to them.
And then there is Verse 84: “Should any of them die, never pray for him or stand on his grave. They have disbelieved in God and His Messenger and have died while committing evil.” This is about those who refused to go to war to fight on the path of God.
