The Muslims liberated many countries and ruled them by Islam. Islam has commanded them to hold the reins of power and leadership. They are forbidden from being ruled by non-Muslims. Allah (swt) says in Surah al-Nisa,

“And never will Allah grant to the disbelievers a way (triumph) over the believers.” [An-Nisa, 4:141]

Allah (swt) has bestowed the ‘Izzah upon the Believers. He I says in Surah al-Munafiqeen:

“But honor belongs to Allah,His Messenger (Muhammad (pbuh)) and to the Believers, but the hypocrites know not.” [Al-Munafiqun, 63:8]

However, Allah (swt) did not give them the might, nor had He given them the rule and the leadership until they had acquired an Islamic mindset. This mentality carried the idea of viewing the task of ruling as a means to implement Islam and propagate its Message, and not to possess a lust for power. Until they had acquired an Islamic mentality (having the ability to understand what the rule entailed and its responsibility before Allah) the authority to rule and look after the people’s affairs was kept away from them. The splendor of Islam was reflected in the actions of those rulers and in their words and it reached the people that they ruled over through the implementation of the Shari’ah. This inevitably resulted in convincing these people to the extent that they embraced Islam in crowds. The might, leadership and the rule then belonged to them too. Their countries became an Islamic household and part of the Islamic State.

The Islamic conquests were consolidated by ruling the conquered countries according to Islam, followed by the people’s adoption of the Islamic belief until the conquests of countries by the Islamic State was a given until the Day of Judgment. It detached its people from their former condition and ruling authority and transformed them from disbelievers to Muslims and their country from Dar ul-Kufr to Dar ul-Islam. This state of affairs remained intact until Islamic rule was destroyed. However, its people remained Muslims and their land remained Islamic even after the Islamic rule had perished and the authority of the State dissipated. Although the Islamic State is currently absent, the countries originally conquered by the Muslims continue to be Muslim lands and the people still remain Muslims, and this land still has potential for the return of Islamic rule and the spreading of its authority over its territory.

Several factors have actually consolidated the Islamic conquests permanently and implanted the seeds of Islam to the Day of Judgment.

Some of these factors made the governace of the liberated lands simple from the very beginning such as the nature of the Islamic legislation. Other factors prepared the people to enter Islam such as the behaviors of the rulers while other factors contributed to the implantation of the seeds of Islam into the hearts and minds of those who embraced it forever such as the nature of the Islamic ‘Aqeedah.

In summary, these factors can be summarized by the following:

1. Islam is a rational ‘Aqeedah. It compels whoever embraces it to believe in it rationally through the agency of the intellect. Thus, the moment a human being embraces Islam, he turns into a thinking person. This is so because his attention would be turned towards the creatures and universe created by Allah (swt), thus enabling him to realize the existence of his Creator and thereby encouraging him towards gaining the knowledge of His rules, to extract them and solve his problems accordingly. Therefore, Islam will conclusively become a part of the person and this will motivate him to understand its rules and implement them.

2. Islam obliges a Muslim to acquire knowledge and to become acquainted with the Islamic culture. It is not enough for the Muslim to simply profess the two Shahadatain (witnesses of faith) in order to become both knowledgeable about Islam and understand it. He should comprehensively study Islam and begin to develop a clear vision about the purpose of man, life, and the universe and the manner in which Islamic regulates these. This knowledge broadens the Muslim’s horizons and develops his perception, thereby enriching his mentality, making him a teacher of others.

3. The nature of the Islamic ideology and its Shari’yah necessitate that they should be progressively acquired, i.e., it should affect the manner in which the individual learns and processes information from the society he lives in. The Muslims learned about Islam in order to implement it. This is why the Muslims were always eager and zealous towards Islam. They had an all encompassing thought, rich knowledge, and broad horizons because the Islamic ‘Aqeedah was deeply rooted in their hearts and minds. They also received the Islamic rules and opinions after a great deal of study and research and because the practical implementation of Islam was dominant. The Muslims did not learn Islam for the sake of soaking up knowledge because this would have rendered them as mobile books containing information about Islam. This would have made them intellectual sponges, soaking up knowledge at each turn but not acting upon the information in order to change and subsequently order society. The information (like water) would eventually dry up and the individual would not make an impact up on society. They also did not merely listen to Islam as a form of advice. This would have turned them into shallow minded individuals, unable to relate the belief to the daily affairs of life. The Muslims made sure that they avoided these two dangerous paths, i.e. learning about Islam for information or taking it as mere advice. The Muslims restricted their learning of Islam and its rules to the method decreed by Islam, which is the clear and enlightened understanding of Islam in order to implement it in all walks of life.

4. Islam is progressive. It leads the Muslims to new heights and sets them on the path of perfection. It obliges the Muslim to perform certain actions, the performance of which would lead the Muslim to a level of perfection where he can enjoy spiritual superiority, peace of mind and true happiness. The human being, once raised to such a level, will remain there and will not degrade. However, if the reaching of such a level of perfection were hard to achieve, the maintaining of such a level is even harder, therefore, the actions performed by the Muslims have to be consistent and permanent, and not temporary. This enables the human being to maintain the attained level of superiority and progress.

These actions constitute acts of worship, some of which are obligatory and others complimentary. Fulfilling the obligations by all people would lead to realizing a common level of progress. Performing what is beyond the obligatory actions encourages people to strive towards perfection. Performing these acts of worship is not a tough task, nor is it a tiring or shattering experience, nor does it entail deprivation of life’s pleasures and an abstention from its joyful aspects. It does not lead to the suppression of instincts and consequently to the contradiction of human nature. No, the performance of such acts of worship, especially the obligatory ones, is an easy task and well within the capability of every human being, no matter what his strength and will-power. Acts of worship do not prevent him from enjoying life. To perform the complimentary acts of worship is a Mandub (desirable matter), the Muslims perform them with great zeal and eagerness, knowing that by doing so they will gain the pleasure of Allah (swt).

5. The Muslims conquered other countries in order to convey the Message of Islam. As a result, they felt that they were envoys of compassion and guidance. They would enter a country, rule it according to Islam and as soon as the people embraced Islam, they would enjoy the same rights as the Muslims. They would then become obligated to carry out the same duties that the Muslims were charged with. The newly conquered land would enjoy the same rights that the State provided for other Muslim regions and would become an integral part of the Islamic State because the Islamic ruling system is a system of unity. That is why the people of conquered countries never felt they were being colonized, nor did they ever sense the slightest signs of colonization. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that people embraced Islam in large numbers, more so after they had witnessed true Islam being implemented.

6. The Islamic ideology and rules are not exclusive. It is permitted to teach them to all people and it is in fact an obligation to teach them to everyone so that they can taste the sweetness of Islam and realize its true nature. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) would send governors, judges and teachers to rule people by Islam and to teach them its rules. The Muslims who came after him (pbuh) conquered many countries and set up rulers and teachers who would teach the people Fiqh and the Qur’an. The people welcomed Islamic education with open arms until their culture became Islamic. This included those who chose not to embrace Islam.

7. The Islamic Shari’ah is a universal and comprehensive. Therefore, the Muslims never needed to study the laws of the country that they were about to conquer. They never needed to try and accommodate or compromise between the laws they had brought to solve life’s problems and the laws in existence within that country. They would conquer a country and introduce the Shari’ah as a complete system, implementing Islam from the very first day they entered a country. Their method was radical in the sense that there was no phased approach to implement the system, such as implementing laws A, B, and C but not D, because implementing law D would result in controversy, turn people away from Islam, or was too difficult to adhere to. This type of gradualism did not exist. There were no patches here and there.

The Muslims would not allow the status quo to prevent them from applying the system of Islam. They conquered the country with the sole aim of conveying Islam to its people in order to change their corrupt state of affairs and turbulent way of life. This necessitated the uprooting of the old structure and replacing it with a new structure in a most comprehensive manner. That is why it was easy for the Muslims to rule the newly liberated people from the very first day. Their rule would be completely and firmly established. They never suffered any legislative crisis nor did they undergo a transitional period. They had their Message and it was based on an ‘Aqeedah from which the system, legislation and rules emanated. It was and is a Shari’ah that is valid for implementation upon any human race, anywhere and at anytime.