The Principles of Success

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The Principles of Success

in the Light of SeerahMaulana Wahiduddin Khan

It is a well-known fact that the Prophet of Islam(PBUH) was the supremely successful man in the

entire human history. But he was not just a hero, asThomas Carlyle has called him. According to the

Quran, he was a good example for all mankind. Hehas shown us the way of achieving supreme

success in this world.

By studying the life of the Prophet we can derivethose important principles, which were followed by

the Prophet. In short, the Prophet of Islam was apositive thinker in the full sense of the word. All his

activities were result-oriented. He completelyrefrained from all such steps as may prove counter-

productive.

First Principle:To begin from the possible

This principle is well explained in a saying of

Aishah. She said: "Whenever the Prophet had tochoose between two options, he always opted forthe easier choice." (Al-Bukhari) To choose the

easiest option means to begin from the possible,and one who begins from the possible will surely

reach his goal.

Second Principle:To see advantage in

disadvantage


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In the early days of Mecca, there were manyproblems and difficulties. At that time, a guiding

verse in the Quran was revealed. It said: "Withevery hardship there is ease, with every hardshipthere is ease." (94:5-6). This means that if there aresome problems, there are also opportunities at thesame time. And the way to success is to ignore the

problems and avail the opportunities.

Third Principle:To change the place of action

This principle is derived from the Hijrah. Hijrah wasnot just a migration from Mecca to Medina. It was to

find a more suitable place for Islamic work, ashistory proved later on.

Fourth Principle:To make a friend out of anenemy

The prophet of Islam was repeatedly subjected topractices of antagonism by the unbelievers. At that

time the Quran enjoined upon him the return ofgood for evil.

And then, as the Quran added, "You will see your

direst enemy has become your closest friend"(41:34).It means that a good deed in return of abad deed has a conquering effect over your

enemies. And the life of the Prophet is a historicalproof of this principle.

Fifth Principle:To turn minus into plus


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After the Battle of Badr, about 70 of the unbelieverswere taken as the prisoners of war. They were

educated people. The Prophet announced that ifany one of them would teach ten Muslim childrenhow to read and write he would be freed. This was

the first school in the history of Islam in which all ofthe students were Muslims, and all of the teachers

were from the enemy rank. Here I shall quote aBritish oriental that remarked about the Prophet of

Islam:

He faced adversity with thedetermination to wring success out of failure.

Sixth Principle:The power of peace isstronger than the power of violence

When Mecca was conquered, all of the Prophetsdirest opponents were brought before him. They

were war criminals, in every sense of the word. Butthe Prophet did not order to kill them. He simply

said: "Go, you are free." The result of this kindbehavior was miraculous. They immediately

accepted Islam.

Seventh Principle:Not to be a dichotomousthinker

In the famous Ghazwa of Muta, Khalid bin Waliddecided to withdraw Muslim forces from the

battlefield because he discovered that the enemywas un-proportionately outnumbered. When they

reached Medina, some of the Muslims received

them by the word "O Furrar" (O deserters!) The


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Prophet said "No. They are Kurrar" (men ofadvancement)."

Those Medinan people were thinkingdichotomously, either fighting or retreating. TheProphet said no. There is also a third option, and

that is to avoid war and find a time to strengthenyourself. Now history tells us that the Muslims, afterthree years of preparation, advanced again towards

the Roman border and this time they won a

resounding victory.

Eighth Principle:To bring the battle in onesown favorable field

This principle is derived from the Ghazwa ofHudaybiyah. At that time, the unbelievers were

determined to engage Muslims in fighting, becauseobviously they were in an advantageous position.

But the Prophet, by accepting their conditionsunilaterally, entered into a pact. It was a ten-year

peace treaty. Until then, the meeting groundbetween Muslims and non-Muslims had been on thebattlefield. Now the area of conflict became that of

ideological debate. Within two years, Islam

emerged as victorious because of the simple reasonof its ideological superiority.

Ninth Principle:Gradualism instead ofradicalism

This principle is well established by a hadith of Al-Bukhari. Aishah says that the first verses of the

Quran were related mostly to heaven and hell. And


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then after a long time when the peoples hearts hadsoftened, the specific commands to desist from

adultery and drinking were revealed in the Quran.This is a clear proof that for social changes, Islamadvocates the evolutionary method, rather than the

revolutionary method.

Tenth Principle:To be pragmatic incontroversial matters

During the writing of Hudaybiyah treaty, theProphet dictated these words: "This is from

Muhammad, the Messenger of God." The Qurayshidelegate raised objections over these words. The

Prophet promptly changed the word and ordered towrite simply Muhammad, son of Abdullah.

These were the principles through which theProphet of Islam gained that success which hasbeen recognized by historians as the supreme

success.

In the end, I would like to repeat those tenprinciples of success:

1. To begin from the possible2. To see advantage in disadvantage3. To change the place of action4. To make a friend out of an enemy5. To turn minus into plus6. The power of peace is stronger than the power ofviolence7. Not to be a dichotomous thinker

8. To bring the battle in ones own favorable field


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9. Gradualism instead of radicalism10. To be pragmatic in controversial matters

The Principles of Success

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