Let us think of a small society! A society whose people are extremely stubborn and are loyal to their traditions just like flesh and bone. Let us think that we are an important judge in such a society. Although we are an important judge, to what extent can we change the traditions of this stubborn society by working hard and replace them with high ethics?
Let us think of the following too before answering this question:
A father sometimes cannot change the bad habits of his son despite his advice. A teacher sometimes cannot demolish the bad ethics of his/her students. Despite all kinds of harsh punishment, crimes such as theft cannot be prevented. A doctor cannot cause an addictive person to give up smoking…
Now, as a great judge, how many of the customs could we change in such a stubborn society and how long would it take?
It is clear that a great judge can only cause to give up a small custom in a small society such as smoking temporarily. However, Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH) managed to eliminate many great customs from a stubborn society whose people were strictly loyal to their traditions in a very short time with a very limited power and aid. He replaced those customs with such high ethics that it is matchless in history.
No reformist in the history of the world was able to make reforms that affected the whole society in tens of different fields. For instance, they achieved reforms in one or a few of the fields like politics, economy, industry, education, war, etc. The history of the world is a witness that even the genius leaders of the ideological movements were able to activate only a few feelings like nationalism and freedom in the people they addressed. They could not succeed in affecting people in all fields.
However, Hazrat Muhammad made many reforms from art to health from justice to equality; he replaced the customs of the Jahiliyya with high ethics ; he made reforms in about a hundred fields from exacts sciences to war tactics; he changed that society, which was so loyal to their customs, in such a short time and to such a great extent that it is unprecedented in history. Some Bedouins who listened to him for only a few minutes underwent such a great change that they became superior to civilized people and returned to their tribes or countries as guides and teachers; those Bedouins, Hazrat Umar, who had been a camel wrestler but became a caliph that ruled an enormous state with justice, and others were the fruits of the community that Hazrat Muhammad established.
We show the Arabian Peninsula and say to those people who do not or cannot see the Era of Bliss of Hazrat Muhammad, “Will you be able to do only one per cent of what he did there by hundreds of philosophers and sociologists and working there with them for a hundred years?