Islam Between Religion Spread And State Expansion

Abstract

This study addresses the topic of Islam’s expansion, distancing itself from two prevailing biases: on one hand, the overzealous insistence of some scholars that Islam spread solely through peaceful preaching, and on the other, the Orientalist claim that its spread was driven entirely by coercion and force. Instead, the study presents and analyzes a nuanced perspective that differentiates between the spread of Islam as a religion and the expansion of Islam as a state, despite their close association during the Prophetic era.

The findings suggest that Islam as a faith spread voluntarily and without compulsion, whereas the Islamic state expanded by means of power—an instrument deemed essential in building a state that addressed the socio-political and cultural deficiencies of the pre-Islamic Arab context. The study further engages in a modernist analysis of Qur’anic discourse, exploring its rhetorical messages and communicative strategies directed at its early audience