Laura Veccia Vaglieri (1893 – 1989) was an Italian orientalist. A pioneer of Arabic and Islamic studies in Italy. Veccia Vaglieri served as professor at the Naples Eastern University and was the author of books on the historical and institutional analysis of the Arab and Muslim world.
Prof. Laura Veccia Vaglieri, is perhaps the greatest among all the Western admirers of Prophet Muhammad. In her book ‘An Interpretation of Islam’, translated from Italian by Dr. A Caselli, she has tried to dispel the various accusations and charges levelled against the Holy Prophet by some dishonest and biased writers of the Western world. Referring to the achievements of Prophet Muhammad as a Prophet she says:
“The spirit was liberated from prejudice, man’s will was set free from the ties which had kept it bound to the will of other men or other so-called hidden powers.
Priests, false guardians of mysteries, workers of salvation, all those who pretended to be mediators between God and man and consequently believed they had authority over other people’s will fell from their pedestals.
Man became the servant of God alone and towards the other men he had only the obligation of one free man towards other free men. While previously men had obligations of one free man towards other free men.
While previously man had suffered from the injustices of social differences, Islam proclaimed equality among human being.
Each Muslim was distinguished from other Muslim not by reason of birth or any other factor not connected with his personality, but only by fear of God, his good deeds, his moral and intellectual qualities.”
Replying to the charges hurled by some Western writers, Prof. Vaglieri says:
“Blinded by hate, the most powerful enemies of Islam have sought to smear the Prophet of God with calumnious charges.
They forget that Muhammad before he began his mission was highly esteemed by his own countrymen for integrity of conscience and purity of life.
Nor do these people stop to ask themselves how could it be that Muhammad could have threatened liars and hypocrites with the eternal fire in the words of the Quran if he had himself been a liar.
How could he have dared to preach, inspite of the insults of his countrymen, if he, a man of simple nature, had not been continuously urged on by inner force?
How could he have carried it on for over ten years at Mecca with little success and countless sorrow, if he had not very deep conviction of the truth of his mission?
How could so many noble and intelligent Muslims have believed in him and thrown in their lot with him, joined the new faith and consequently associated with a society made up for the most part of slaves, freed men and indigent people, if they had not felt in his word sincerity of the truth?”
Concluding she emphasizes the most human aspect of the Prophet Muhammad’s character—his kindliness and unprecedented benevolence. She says:
“Muhammad as a preacher of the religion of God was gentle and merciful even towards his personal enemies.
In him were blended justice and mercy, two of the noblest qualities which the human mind can conceive. It is not difficult to support this with many examples that are to be found in his biographies.
One of his biographers says, that he was accustomed to give his order to his soldiers;
Spare the aged, the women and the children ; refrain from demolishing the homes of those who do not resist you; do not destroy their means of sustenance; do not destroy fruit trees and do not touch palm trees.”