the hijra, Muhammad's journey from Mecca to Medina in the year 622. It is after this event that jihad begins to become an issue. The new Muslim emigrants to Medina needed a way to maintain their livelihood. They pursued the most expedient course, and began raiding the caravans of the Meccans.
In the raids the Muslims were taking the offensive. Muhammad cannot have failed to realize that, even if the raids were only slightly successful, the Meccans were bound to attempt reprisals. In these little raids, then, he was deliberately challenging and provoking the Meccans. In our peace-conscious age it is difficult to understand how a religious leader could thus engage in offensive war and become almost an aggressor.
