176 /11 Ibt FtNJII!(PS oj tIN Prop/Jtlafter observing the Muslims' devotio n and their behavior with the
Prophet. he decided, following Abbas's advice, to say the whole profes-
sion of faith. T he Prophet knew that this change of heart remained very
fragile, and he asked Abbas to go with Abu Sufyan to the edge o f the val-
ley so that he could watch the Muslim army marching by. T h at p«xiuccd
the desired effect, as Abu Sufyan was greatly impressed. Before that,
Abbas had, in a whisper, rem inded the Prophet that Abu Sufyan loved to
be h o nored and advised him not to forget that; ~'Iuhammad. a good psy-
chologist, did not forget the ad vice and sem word that anyone in ~'lecca
who sought refuge at Abu Sufyan's, or in the Kaha sanctuary, o r simply
remained inside thelt home, would h ave nothing to fear and would be
sp ared. Ab u Sufpn h urried back to i\'lecca before the Muslim army got
mere and Qeered at by his own wife Hind, who called him a madman and
a coward, and by other leaders such as lkrimah ibn Abi] ahJ, who insult-
ed him) advised everybody to surrender and offer no resistance to th e
Pro p het's cxtrao rdinary army.
J\'\uhammad had turned Abu Sufyan into an ally, not only because Abu
Sufyan had converted to Islam but also because the Prophet had heeded
his character and personality. Abu Sufyan had fir st recognized God. bUl
found it difficult to confe r sp ecial status on a man he had fo ught and con-
sidered his e'lual; ~:Iuhammad had understood this and had not ru shed
him, giving him time to observe and understand by himself. Even after
Abu Sufyan had embraced Islam, th e Prophet was aware mat h e retained
an attraction for power and glory, and h e took this into account when he
exposed him to the strength o f his army and conferred on him a specific
ro le in the possible resolution of the conflict. Though Muhammad insist-
ed o n commo n p rinciples, h e \Y-as able to take particular traits into
account; his mission was to reform the latter through the former, but h e
never neglected the character, aspiratio ns, and specific features that made
up each individual's personality. His mess age in sisted on the principle of
equality fo r all in justice, as well as the psychology of differences and of
each p erson's singularity in faith.
Coming Back
].[ost traditionists report th al the Prophet entered M ecca on th e twentieth
or twenty-first o f Ramadan o f the eighth year o f hijrah (630 CE).