Identifying and discussing the social reform introduced by Prophet Muhammad in the Medina period

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) championed numerous social reforms whilst living in Medina. One such reform was that of establishing a pluralistic society with principles rooted in social justice, tolerance, brotherhood and equality.

This reform enabled the citizens of Medina, regardless of faith and ethnicity, to coexist and put an end to the violent tribal warfare that had been plaguing the region. The articles of pluralism, which transformed the society, can be found in a charter known as the Medina constitution.  This article will identify and discuss the social reform of pluralism found in the Medina charter. It will give some insight into Medinas social situation, as well as probe the essential attributes found within the reform which enabled its success and lead Medinas society toward unification. It will also look at the growing intolerance and division prevalent in the multicultural and multi-religious societies of today, and of how the Prophetic model of pluralism could help lead modern societies to unity and social cohesion as was experienced in Medina. The moral and ethical values found in the Prophets (pbuh) reform transcend beyond race, time or place, they are universal and timeless qualities that remain relevant, adaptable and accessible to all.

The Muslims left their original homeland of Mecca, after having suffered extreme oppression, and relocated to Medina (Dogan, 2014). The situation in Medina was problematic and required the Prophets urgent attention. The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) arrived and settled amidst a society in need of unification; its citizens had difficulty coexisting in harmony (Demirel, 2013). Medinas inhabitants were very tired of the long-standing conflicts that were prevalent among the differing tribes and there was a very serious and essential need for harmony (Dogan, 2015). The residents were a combination of “Medinan Muslim Arabs, pagan Arabs, Jews, a minority of Christians, and Meccan Muslims” (Demirel, 2013, p. 6). 

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) introduced many reforms whilst in Medina; ranging from respect and equality, to the acceptance and inclusion of all citizens. Most notably was the establishment of a charter known as the Medina constitution, which helped ease the fighting and discord and unite Medinas citizens. It was comprised of forty-seven articles as cited in (Watt, 1956). These articles embodied the reform that forged a new pluralistic society that enabled the coexistence and new way of life for Medinas residents. The articles dealt with the various issues pertaining to social fairness, harmony, equality of all Medinas citizens and “confirmed them in their Religion and possessions and gave them certain duties and rights” (Watt, 1956, p. 221). The main concept was that of no one has the right to coerce the other in matters of belief. Therefore, each individual has the right to choose their path in life and all should respect and except each other as such (Demirel, 2013). One such article specifies that “whoever among the Jews follows us shall have help and equality; they shall not be injured nor shall any enemy be aided against them” (Dogan, 2014, p. 191). Additionally, article 25 continues “to the Jews their Religion and to the Muslims their Religion” (Watt, 1956, p. 223) and article 37 “… there is help against whoever wars against the people of this document. Between them is sincere friendship and honourable dealing …” (Watt, 1956, p. 223). 

Many have spoken on the reforms found in the Medina constitution and of their transforming the society from intolerance and division to one of coexistence and unification. Watt (1974) explains how, through the Medina charter, it becomes apparent the society had become one body. The Medina charter helped Medinas residence to recognise one another without the need to overpower one another. It enabled the various tribes to come together and live inside a collective framework whilst maintaining their own identities and ways of life (Demirel, 2013). Additionally, Demirel (2013) illustrates how various articles affirm the establishment of a single unified party. Furthermore, Khan (as cited in Temperman, 2010, p. 20) “argues … the Medina constitution lit the torch of freedom by establishing a free state for a pluralistic community composed of Muslims, Jews, and Pagans …”. All the different groups formally agreed to the articles found in the constitution (Dogan, 2015) and this paved the way to a pluralistic society that turned away from division and marginalization to a new society that was now united. Dogan (2014) quotes that Aisha (wife of Prophet Muhammad pbuh) said, “he established the unity and peace there through Islam” (p. 190). Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) enabled the right of everyone to live out their lives in peace and ultimately unite as brothers and sisters in humanity despite the varied Religious affiliations and diversity. The society had willingly accepted the Prophets (pbuh) reform and in him had the perfect example of how to apply the reform into their daily lives.

The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) implemented the reform of pluralism, found in the Medina constitution, through the application of dialogue, equality, respect and a fostering of brotherhood. On no occasion did the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) act with prejudice toward anyone on the basis of faith inclinations (Dogan, 2014). He steadfastly practiced the Qur’anic teachings that rally its adherents to support those of other faiths in upholding that which is good and refraining from that which is evil as well as propagating monotheism (Atabani, as cited in Anceschi, Camilleri, Palapathwala, Wicking, 2011) which helped foster brotherhood within the community. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) ensured justice for all based on equal opportunities, regardless of faith or ethnical background. He managed to achieve this through educating the Muslims that other faith groups living under their governance were not to be oppressed or offended. They too had entitlements and were to receive equitable treatment (Dogan, 2014). This helped decrease hostilities and pave the way to a coexistent and pluralistic society, which embodied many virtuous qualities (Dogan, 2014). He always engaged people with an open-mindedness and attentive ear, considering all proposals and suggestions offered despite not necessarily agreeing with them (Dogan, 2015). The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) implemented this reform, which embodied noble and just qualities, through tangible real-life examples. These examples presented an opportunity for positive change; they gave hope to a society gripped by endless feuding and inequality. The societies willingness to accept and implement the Prophet’s (pbuh) reform, secured the success and positive transformation of Medinas society. 

The Prophet Muhammad’s (pbuh) approach made the essential features of the reform visible to all. He never sat idle but consistently and painstakingly brought his reform of pluralism to life through proactive interaction, real life examples and well-grounded mandates whereby securing its success. One example of this shows the Prophet (pbuh) checking that no limitations were placed on Jews rights to educate and impart their Religious teachings to their followers, he would on occasions inspect the Jewish education establishments in order to make certain that this was the case (Dogan, 2015). Similarly, from its formation, the Medina charter specified that the Jews were entitled to observe their own Religious legal code (Demirel, 2013). Additionally, the Prophet forbade that the disbelievers be targeted with insults or derogatory words in any instance (Dogan, 2015). And further to this, he deemed that some of the most advantageous and worthwhile acts a Muslim could partake in were that of offering salutations of peace and desiring the wellbeing of all people (Dogan, 2015). It is these types of noble features found within the reform that endeared the people’s hearts toward acceptance and change. Such examples illustrate the essential features of respect; acceptance and tolerance found within the reform, which are a commendable and credible concept for any modern society to emulate. Implementation of such concepts could help alleviate and potentially rid modern multicultural, multi-religious societies of their growing intolerance and division. 

In modern times there are a growing number of conflict resolution analysers who are reviewing the Prophet Muhammad’s (pbuh) conduct as well as the Medina charter (Esposito & Yilmaz, 2010) in an attempt to discover how these reforms, namely that of pluralism, were made successful. It is hoped that through such findings, nations may be able to apply a similar reform in order to alleviate the growing social problems of intolerance toward multiculturalism and multi-religious groups within their societies. Calls such as “… if migrants want to be tolerated and accepted, they need to abandon their cultural specificity outside the public sphere and then enter it as equal among equals” (Spyros & Tsagarousianou, 2012, para. 17) are becoming commonplace. Such ideas of superiority in ethnicity and the complete lack of tolerance toward diversity, evidently suggests that there is room for positive change. Celik, (2010) points out that the answer to ending communal conflict lies in the ability to recognise, welcome and allow diversity within transforming societies. The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) managed to do just this, establishing a coexistent, pluralistic society through his Medina reform over fourteen hundred years ago. He achieved this through his highly ethical practices as well as his sincere respect and belief in the equality of all. He desired the benefit and betterment of all humanity and sought this realization through education and consultation. It becomes clear that there is a great deal of positive lessons to be learnt, for all societies through the Medina social reform. 

In conclusion, Prophet Muhammad’s (pbuh) social reform transformed Medinas society from one entrenched in anarchy to a society displaying the ideal model of pluralism and coexistence, which stands as an extraordinary precedent even in modern times. His insight, intellect, wisdom and ability to visibly portrait the noble qualities found within the reform, no doubt secured its success. Implementation of such a reform in today’s world could help ease the social problems being encountered and potentially transform our modern societies into models of justice, tolerance and equality, similar to that of the Medina society more than fourteen hundred years ago.

References

Anceschi, L., Camilleri, A., Palapathwala, R., Wicking, A. (2011). Religion and ethics in a globalizing world: conflict, dialogue and transformation. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.

Celik, G. (2010). The Gulen movement: Building social cohesion through dialogue and education. Netherlands: Eburon Academic Publishers.

Demirel, S. (2013). The prophet muhammad's models of coexistence and the constitution of medina. The Journal of Rotterdam Islamic and Social Sciences, 4(1), 1-10. doi:http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/10.2478/jriss-2014-0001

Dogan, R. (2014). Conflict Resolution Forms in the Life of Prophet Muhammad. The International Journal of Religion and Spirituality in Society. Retrieved from https://student.csu.edu.au/library

Dogan, R. (2015). Contributing to world peace – an examination of the life of Prophet Muhammad as a leader. Sociology and Anthropology, 3(1), 37-44. doi: 10. 13189/sa.2015.030105

Dogan, R. (2014). Exemplary role model Muhammad. California: FB publishing.

Esposito, J. L., & Yilmaz, I. (2010). Islam and peacebuilding Gulen movement initiatives. Retrieved from https://student.csu.edu.au/library

Spyros, A. S., & Tsagarousianou, R. (2012). Back to the drawing board: Rethinking multiculturalism. Journal of contemporary European studies, 20(3), 263-271.

Temperman, J. (2010). State – Religion relationships and human rights law: Towards a right to Religiously neutral governance. Available from Google books.

Watt, W. M. (1956). Muhammad at Medina. Available from https://archive.org/details/muhammadatmedina029655mbp

Watt, W. M. (1974). Muhammad: Prophet and Statesman. Available from Google books.