Wednesday 23 March 2011

Life of Muhammad 1

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[Edited: Part 1. Only the chronology of events in Prophet's life are presented here. Few chapters on introduction, background, Hadith and Maxims, plus Achievments in Medina are omitted. They are in Part 2.]


THE LIFE OF MUHAMMAD

The Greatest Liberator, The Holiest Prophet

By Allama Baqir Shareef al-Qurashi (2007)

[Pages numbers in the printed edition are shown]


(page 1)


In the name of Allah

"He it is Who sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth, that He might cause it to prevail over all religions, though the polytheists may be averse."

Quran, 9:33

"Certainly a Messenger has come to you from among yourselves; grievous to him is your falling into distress, excessively solicitous respecting you; to the believers is he most kind and merciful."

Quran, 9:128

"And We have not sent you but to all mankind as a bearer of good news and as a warner, but most mankind do not know."

Quran, 34:28

"He it is Who raised among the inhabitants of Mecca a Messenger from among themselves, who recites to them His communications and purifies them, and teaches them the Book and the Wisdom, although they were before certainly in clear error."

Quran, 62:2

"And We have not sent you but as a mercy to the worlds."

Quran, 21:107



(p. 107 )


# In the cave of Hara

The Prophet’s missionary and intellectual life began from the Cave of Hara’.[1] He stayed their away from the noise of life pondering on the universe and the irrefutable signs in it that proved the existence of the Great Creator. He looked at the planets and his faith and certainty in the greatness of Allah the Almighty, the Creator of the universe and Giver of life, grew more and more.

What increased his pains were the deviation, ignorance, and foolishness of his people who worshipped idols away from Allah the Almighty. Those idols did not create, give, harm, or benefit. The Prophet said with himself: Where is reason? Where is the truth? Why do these people live in darkness that had no glitter of light?! Why do they worship idols and live astray? He pitied them and thought with himself: they must be guided and saved from this deviation…

He was distressed and sad for his people and Allah announced that in the Qur'an by saying, (It may be that you fret yourself with grief because they do not believe).[2]

The Cave of Hara’ was the source of light in this planet that we live on, and it was this mountain from which the lights of guidance glittered in Mecca and spread then to all peoples and nations of the earth.

Prophet Muhammad stayed in the Cave of Hara’ worshipping and glorifying Allah the Almighty. He was certain that he would be the reformer and savior of humanity who would spread monotheism in the earth and do away with idolatry, and that he was the coming prophet whom the Divine Books had brought good news about.

He was certain with no doubt that he would be the messenger of Allah for all human beings with their different races and languages. In the cave, he pondered deeply on reforming and guiding human beings and spreading knowledge and understanding among them all to get rid of their ignorance and bad habits.


Notes:

[1] Hara’ is a mountain near Mecca.
[2] Qur'an, 26:3.


The revelation

The beginning of the revelation was in that blessed cave of Hara’ when Muhammad was forty years old. It was on the first of February in the year 610 AD as fixed by Mahmud Basha al-Falaki (astronomer), falling on the seventeenth of Ramadan, thirteen years before the hijra.

Gabriel brought down the holy mission to Prophet Muhammad beginning with the Sura of Iqra’.[1] The Prophet declared that he could not read. Gabriel repeated the command for the second and the third time and then the Prophet said, “What shall I read?”

Gabriel revealed,

(Read in the name of your Lord Who created. He created man from a clot. Read and your Lord is Most Honorable, Who taught by the pen. Taught man what he knew not.)[2] Muhammad read it and it was engraved inside his heart, and then the Angel left.[3]

The Prophet came back to Mecca while his holy soul was filled with fright and fear of Allah the Almighty, but he submitted to undertake that great responsibility to save people from their ignorance and deviation. Gabriel was following after him along the way and congratulating him on this great and high position near Allah the Almighty.


Notes:

[1] Iqra’ means ‘read’ in imperative form.
[2] Qur'an, 96:1-5.
[3] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 154.


With Khadijah

The Prophet hastened to his loyal wife Khadijah while he was trembling. He said to her, “Wrap me! Wrap me!”

Khadijah wrapped him and she was occupied by great fear. She said to him, “O Abul Qassim,[1] by Allah, tell me what has happened to you.”

He told her what had happened to him and she began calming down and encouraging him to undertake the mission of his Lord. She said to him, “By Allah, Allah will not disgrace you at all. You maintain kinship, help the weak, clothe the needy, and help others against the calamities of time. My cousin, be delighted and determined. By Him in Whose hand the soul of Khadijah is, I hope that you shall be the prophet of this nation.”[2]

She calmed him down, aroused in him determination and activity, and removed from him that fears.

Khadijah went to her cousin Waraqah bin Nawfal who was a faithful Christian and expert in the Bible. She told him about what had happened to Muhammad. He pondered deeply, and then raised his head while being terrified and astonished saying, “Most Holy! Most Holy! By Him in Whose hand Waraqah’s soul is, O Khadijah, if you were truthful in what you told me, the Great Law that came to Moses has come to him and he is the prophet of this nation. Say to him to be firm.”


Notes:

[1] The Prophet’s surname.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 254.


Khadijah was very delighted. She hurried back to her husband to bring him that good news of Waraqah. She found him asleep, but suddenly he trembled and broke into sweat. It was Gabriel that came down revealing to him,

(O you who are wrapped up, arise and warn, and your Lord do magnify, and your garments do purify, and uncleanness do shun, nor expect, in giving, any increase (for yourself), and for the sake of your Lord, be patient.)[1]

Allah ordered him to rise and invite people to monotheism on which all powers of good and peace would be based and to warn them against the severe torment of Allah that He would afflict the unjust and the unbelievers with.

Khadijah asked him to go back to his bed, but he replied, “O Khadijah, the time of sleep and rest has gone. Gabriel has ordered me to warn people and to invite them towards Allah and towards His worship. Whom shall I invite and who will respond to me?”


Khadijah and Ali’s faith

At once, Khadijah believed and embraced Islam, and then Imam Ali embraced Islam. They were the first ones who became Muslims.[2]

Imam Ali talked about his and Khadijah’s precedence in embracing Islam by saying, “…and no house, then, gathered in Islam except the messenger of Allah, Khadijah, and me the third of them.”[1b]

When becoming a Muslim, Imam Ali was seven years old, and it was said nine years.[2b]


The Prophet’s prayer in the Kaaba

On the second day of the revelation and prophethood, the Prophet went to the Kaaba and offered the prayer in it.[3] Khadijah and Imam Ali offered the prayer behind him, and this was the first prayer in Islam offered in the Holy Kaaba. This prayer was a matter of wonder and astonishment. Afif al-Kindi narrated, “Once in the pre-Islamic era, I came to Mecca intending to buy from its clothes and perfumes to my family. I went to al-Abbas bin Abdul Muttalib who was a merchant. While I was sitting with him looking at the Kaaba and the sun was high in the sky, a young man came, looked at the sky, and stood up towards the Kaaba. After no long, a young boy came and stood on his (the young man) right, and then a woman came and stood on his left. The young man bowed down, and the young boy and the woman bowed down like him. Then, the young man prostrated and the young boy and the woman did the same. I said astonishedly, ‘O Abbas, it is a wonder!’

Al-Abbas said, ‘Yes, it is a wonder. Do you know who this young man is?’

I said, ‘No.’

He said, ‘He is my nephew Muhammad bin Abdullah. Do you know who this young boy is? He is Ali bin Abi Talib. Do you know who this woman is? She is Khadijah his (Muhammad) wife.

My nephew (he pointed to Muhammad) told me that his god, the god of the heaven and the earth, has ordered him of this religion on which he is. By Allah, there is no one on the whole earth on this religion other than these three ones.’”[1c]

Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 74:1-7.
[2] Sahih of at-Termithi, vol. 2 p. 301, at-Tabaqat al-Kubra by ibn Sa’d, vol. 3 p. 12, Usd al-Ghabah, vol. 4 p. 17, Kanzol Ummal, vol. 6 p. 400, Tareekh at-Tabari, vol. 2 p. 55, Tareekh Baghdad, vol. 2 p. 18, and others.
[1b] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib by Baqir Shareef al-Qurashi, vol. 1 p. 54.
[2b] Sahih of at-Termithi, vol. 2 p. 301, Kanzol Ummal, vol. 6 p. 400, Tareekh at-Tabari, vol. 2 p. 55.
[3] Tahthib al-Kamal, vol. 20 p. 185. It is mentioned that “the Prophet became a prophet on Monday and offered the prayer in the Kaaba on Tuesday”.
[1c] Khasa’is an-Nassa’iy, p. 3, Musnad of Ahmed bin Hanbal, vol. 1 p. 309, at-Tabaqat al-Kubra by ibn Sa’d, vol. 8 p. 10.




Circumambulating the Kaaba

The Prophet circumambulated the Kaaba, and it was the first Islamic circumambulation around the Kaaba. Abdullah bin Mas’ud narrated, “The first thing I knew about the matter (religion) of the messenger of Allah was that once I came to the Kaaba with some of my relatives and we were guided to al-Abbas bin Abdul Muttalib. We came to him while he was sitting at the well of Zamzam. We sat with him. While we were still with him, a man came from the as-Safa Gate. He was white with some reddishness. He had thick, curled hair until the middle of his ears. He had small nose, shining white front teeth, black eyes, thick beard, thin neck, and big hands and feet. He had two white garments on as if he was the full moon of the fifteenth night. After him there was a beautiful, beardless, young boy; a teenager or adult, followed by a woman veiling all her body. He (the man) went toward the (Black) Rock and kissed it, and then the young boy kissed it and then did the woman. Then he circumambulated the House (the Kaaba) seven times, and the young boy and the woman circumambulated with him. We said, ‘O Abul Fadhl (al-Abbas), we did not know this religion among you. Has anything happened?’


Al-Abbas said, ‘This is my nephew Muhammad, the boy is Ali bin Abi Talib, and the woman is Khadijah.’

Ibn Mas’ud added, ‘By Allah, there is no one on the face of the earth that we know worshipping Allah by this religion except these three persons.’”[1] This was a virtue to Khadijah and Imam Ali that no one other than them had won.

Secret invitation

The Prophet covered his invitation to Islam with much secrecy and concealment. There was no place for the mission to be openly in that fanatic, ignorant society that worshipped idols. At the beginning of the mission, the Prophet would face severity and harms that he could not be able to stand against if he invited for his mission openly.

The Prophet, then, just invited to monotheism. He began his mission with this golden word, “Say: ‘there is no god but Allah’ and you will be successful.”

The invitation to the faith in Allah required the Prophet to destroy the idols that the people of Quraysh believed in absolutely, worshipped, and offered sacrifices to them. From their deep faith in those idols, the people of Quraysh asked the Prophet to worship their idols for a year and they would worship Allah another year; therefore, this Sura was revealed to the Prophet, (Say: O unbelievers! I do not worship that which you worship, nor do you worship Him Whom I worship, nor am I going to worship that which you worship, nor are you going to worship Him Whom I worship. You shall have your religion and I shall have my religion.)[2]


Notes:

[1] Majma’ az-Zawa’id, vol. 9 p. 222, Kanzol Ummal, vol. 7 p. 56.
[2] Qur'an, 109:1-6 (the Sura of al-Kafirun).


Some other people asked the Prophet to describe Allah to them whether He was of gold, silver, or wood. Yes, it was this mean mentality that they had. However, the Prophet offered to them irrefutable proofs on the existence of Allah the Almighty, but they did not understand.

The weak, the disabled, and slaves believed in that new mission besides some persons of understanding and reason, but the mission remained secret covered with much concealment. It is worth mentioning that some famous companions believed in the mission in that period, such as Abu Tharr al-Ghifari, Salaman al-Farisi, Abu Bakr, az-Zubayr, Talha, and Umar bin al-Khattab.

The Prophet was certain with no any bit of doubt that Islam definitely would spread and prevail the earth. He said, “This matter (Islam) will reach what night reaches, and Allah will leave no house of adobe or hair except that this religion will enter it. A noble one is honored by it and a low one becomes low by it. Allah degrades disbelief by it.”[1]


Notes:

[1] Rabee’ul Abrar, vol. 2 p. 192.


# Publicity of the mission

Three years passed and the Islamic mission was still secret. After that, Allah ordered the Prophet to publicize it by revealing to him this verse, (And warn your nearest kin).[1] The Prophet received the order of his Lord and was determined to open his mission. He ordered his cousin Ali to invite the Hashemites, the children of Abdul Muttalib, the children of Nawfal, and other children of Abd Manaf, and asked him to serve a meal of a sheep leg, about one kilo of wheat, and three liters of yogurt. The invitees, who were forty men among whom were Abu Talib, Hamza, al-Abbas, and Abu Lahab, came. The Prophet offered the food and said to them, “Eat in the name of Allah!” They had food and yogurt until they were satiated. Though the food was too little, they all were saturate. They were astonished at that. The Prophet wanted to speak, but Abu Lahab said before him, “We have not seen magic like this of today. Let us leave!” All of them parted while mocking and making fun. The Prophet could not say anything, for Abu Lahab interrupted his speech. The next day, the Prophet invited them to have a meal too. They ate and drank, and then the Prophet got up making speech before them saying,

“O children of Abdul Muttalib, by Allah, I do not know that a young man among the Arabs has brought to his people a thing better than what I have brought to you. I have brought to you the good of this life and of the afterlife, and Allah the Almighty has ordered me to invite you to it. Which of you shall support me in this matter to be my brother, guardian, and successor among you?”


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 26:214.


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All of them kept silent except Ali who said zealously, “I, O prophet of Allah, will be your vizier on it.”

The Prophet put his hand on Ali’s neck and addressed the attendants saying, “This is my brother, guardian, and successor among you. You should listen to and obey him.”

They began mocking saying to Abu Talib, “He orders you to listen to and obey your son!”[1]

The Prophet compared his invitation to monotheism with the invitation to the caliphate, viziership, and imamate after him, and he entrusted these positions to his brother and the gate of the city of his knowledge Imam Ali.

Anyhow, these people lent the Prophet deaf ears and no one of them responded to him except his uncle Abu Talib and his son Ali.

Worry of Quraysh
The people of Quraysh were terrified by the Prophet’s mission. Their life was troubled, and hatred spread in their houses, for some of their children, wives, and slaves became Muslims. The weak and the disabled, such as Yasir, Sumayyah, and their son Ammar, also embraced Islam. Those, who became Muslims, were in disagreement with their parents, spouses, and brothers. A Muslim child rejected his polytheist parents, and a Muslim wife rejected her husband and left him because he was not a Muslim. As for slaves and the disabled, the Prophet opened to them new horizons of freedom, honor, and dignity,


Notes:

[1] Tareekh at-Tabari, vol. 2 p. 63, Tareekh ibn al-Atheer, vol. 2 p. 24, Musnad of Ahmed bin Hanbal, vol. 1 p. 159, As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 1 p. 457-459. It is odd that ibn Katheer mentioned the event but he distorted some information in it. Please, refer to his Tafsir.

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and brought them good news that they would be masters, and the tyrants of Quraysh would submit to them. Thus, troubles, upsets, and disputes were in all of the houses of Mecca.

Severe procedures
The people of Quraysh agreed on resisting and standing against the Prophet with all means of severity and violence they had. Quraysh was unable to bear Islam at all. They tried their best to do away with it by all means such as:

Mocking

At the beginning of the mission, the people of Quraysh began mocking at the Prophet and saying, ‘This is the son of Abi Kabsha;[1] he is spoken to from the heaven’ or ‘this is the boy of Abdul Muttalib; he is spoken to by the heaven’. But, when the Prophet criticized and scorned their idols, they were provoked and they agreed on plotting against him.

Inciting the children to harm the Prophet

The people of Quraysh ordered their children and encouraged them to harm the Prophet. They threw stones, soil, and ashes on him. Quraysh did that to be excused before Abu Talib that it was their little children, who could not be punished, and not them who were responsible for that. The Prophet felt much pain and was too affected by the behavior of children. Imam Ali, though very young then, accompanied the Prophet to protect him from the children. Imam Ali attacked children and beat them severely, and so they ran away. After that, when the Prophet went out and Imam Ali was with him, children ran away frightenedly.


Notes:

[1] Abu Kabsha is said to be the husband of Halimah, the Prophet’s wet-nurse.

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Accusing the Prophet of madness

Because the Prophet came with a new law unlike the habits and traditions of Quraysh, they accused him of madness, though he was the most knowledgeable of all mankind. They accused him of madness to frustrate his mission and prevent the public from following him and embracing his mission. However, they failed and the mission moved like light and reached all peoples and nations of the world.

Some men from Quraysh mocked at the Prophet and strove to tease and harm him, but Allah the Almighty ordered him to be fixed and not to pay attention to them. Allah revealed to him, (Surely We will suffice you against the scoffers).[1] Those men ran after the Prophet and mocked at him, but he raised his voice reciting, ‘in the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful’ and they went back. Then, this verse was revealed to him, (and when you mention your Lord alone in the Qur’an, they turn their backs in aversion).[2]

Here, we mention the men who mocked at the Prophet:

1. Al-Waleed bin al-Mughirah

Al-Waleed bin al-Mughirah was excessive in harming and mocking at the Prophet. However, Allah avenged on him. A fragment from an arrow of a man from Khuza’ah hit him and cut his hand artery and he died while saying, “The god of Muhammad has killed me.”

2. Al-Aas bin Wa’il

The Prophet suffered too much from this man’s harming and mocking, but Allah afflicted him that one day a rock fell on him and killed him.


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 15:95.
[2] Qur'an, 17:46.


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3. Al-Aswad bin Abd Yaghuth

He scorned and mocked at the Prophet and at his companions. Whenever he saw the Prophet, he said to him mockingly, “Have you been talked to by the heaven today?” He said when he saw the Prophet’s companions, “The kings of the earth have come!” He said that because the Prophet’s companions were with poor clothes and their living was very simple.

One day, he and his servant went to receive his son. He sat in the shadow under a tree. Gabriel took his head and beat it against the tree. He asked his servant for help saying to him, “Protect me from this!” The servant said to him, “I can see no one.” Then, he cried out loudly, “The god of Muhammad has killed me.”

4. Al-Harith

He was one of those who scorned at the Prophet. One very hot day, he left his house to somewhere. His face turned black. When he came back home, his family could not know him for his black face and so they killed him.

5. Al-Aswad bin al-Harith

He scorned too much at the Prophet until Allah made him perish. He ate a lot of salty whale meat and became too thirsty. He began drinking water until he died while saying, “The god of Muhammad has killed me.”

There was another group from Quraysh who wronged and hurt the Prophet. They were too severe to him. Here, we mention some of them:

1. Abu Jahl

He was one of the bitterest enemies to the Prophet. He was filled with grudge and enmity against the Prophet.



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Abdullah bin Mas’ud said, “Once, we were with the messenger of Allah in the mosque while he was offering prayer. Abu Jahl said to his fellows, ‘Can anyone of you bring the placenta of the camel of so-and-so and throw it on the shoulders of Muhammad when he is prostrating?

Uqbah bin Abi Ma’eet fetched the placenta and threw it on the Prophet while he was prostrating. No one of the Muslims, who were in the mosque, could remove the placenta from the Prophet’s back because of their weakness and inability to stand against the Prophet’s enemies at that time. Someone went to Fatima and told her what happened to her father. She came, removed the filth from her father’s back, and washed his body. The Prophet felt too pain and prayed Allah against Quraysh saying, “O Allah, avenge on Quraysh!” He repeated that for three times. Then, he kept on praying against those men saying, “O Allah, avenge on Abu Jahl, Utbah bin Rabee’ah, Shaybah bin Rabee’ah, al-Waleed bin Uqbah, Umayyah bin Khalaf, and Uqbah bin Abi Ma’eet.”

Ibn Mas’ud said, “By Him Who has sent Muhammad with the truth, I had seen those, whom he (the Prophet) had named, killed in the battle of Badr and then they were drawn to the well, the well of Badr and their carrions were thrown into it.”[1]

One day, the Prophet was in the Thil Majaz Bazaar inviting people to embrace Islam and saying, “Say: ‘there is no god but Allah’ and you shall be successful.” Abu Jahl was behind him throwing earth on him and saying to people, “Let this one not cheat you against your religion! He just wants you to leave the worship of al-Lat and al-Uzza (two idols).”[2]


Notes:

[1] Sahih of Muslim, vol. 5 p. 180, Sahih of al-Bukhari, vol. 1 p. 65.
[2] Tareekh al-Islam, As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ath-Thahabi, p. 151.

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Once, this villain tried to tread on the Prophet’s neck while he was offering the prayer, but he receded and when he was asked why, he said, “I saw that there was between me and him a terrible trench of fire and I saw winged angels.” This was told to the Prophet and he said, “If he approached me, the angels would snatch him part by part.” Then, these verses were revealed to the Prophet, (Have you seen him who forbid a servant when he prays…)[1].[2]

2. Abu Lahab (the Prophet’s uncle)

Abu Lahab was one of the most spiteful enemies of the Prophet and the most daring and denying one against him. The Prophet suffered from him too much. He threw filth on the Prophet’s door because he was his neighbor. The Prophet removed the filth and said, “O children of Abd Manaf, what neighboring this is!”

Abu Lahab’s wife Umm Jameel, who was Abu Sufyan’s sister, was not less than her husband in her enmity and grudge against the Prophet. She often met the Prophet with abuse and revilement. Her grudge against the Prophet increased when the Sura of al-Masad (111) was revealed about her and her husband Abu Lahab. Allah has said, (Perish both hands of Abu Lahab, and he will perish. His wealth and what he earns will not avail him. He shall soon burn in flaming fire. And his wife, the bearer of firewood. Upon her neck a halter of twisted palm-fiber.)[3]


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 96:9-…
[2] Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 18 p. 46, Dala’il an-Nubuwwah by al-Bayhaqi, vol. 1 p. 438, Musnad of Ahmed bin Hanbal, vol. 2 p. 270, Tareekh al-Islam, As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ath-Thahabi, p. 151.
[3] Qur'an, 11:1-5.

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When the Prophet invited people to the faith in Allah, Abu Lahab addressed the people of Quraysh saying loudly, “Let him not cheat you against your religion and the religion of your fathers.”[1]

3. Uqbah bin Abi Ma’eet

He had great grudge against the Prophet and was excessive in harming him. Once, he saw the Prophet offering the prayer inside the Kaaba. He put his garment around the Prophet’s neck and tried to throttle him, but Abu Bakr pushed him away from the Prophet and said to him, “Do you want to kill a man just because he says: ‘my god is Allah’ and has come to you with proofs from your God?”[2]

4. Al-Hakam bin Abil-Aas

Al-Hakam bin Abil-Aas bin Umayyah was the father of Marwan. He scorned and mocked at the Prophet. He walked behind the Prophet and made ridiculous gestures with his nose and mouth. Once, the Prophet turned and saw him do that. He said to him, “Let you be so then!” His mouth began quivering until his death.

5. Umayyah bin Khalaf

He was one of the most malicious and spiteful men towards the Prophet. Whenever, he saw the Prophet, he vexed and annoy him. Then, Allah revealed these verses about him, (Woe to every slanderer, defamer, who amasses wealth and considers it a provision (against mishap)…).[3] This villain was killed in the Battle of Badr.[4]


Notes:

[1] Tareekh al-Islam, As-Seerah an-Nabawiyyah by ath-Thahabi, p. 151.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 1 p. 470.
[3] Qur'an, 104:1-…
[4] Dala’il an-Nubuwwah by al-Bayhaqi, vol. 2 p. 335, and other sources.


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Accusing the Prophet of magic

The people of Quraysh accused the Prophet of being a magician, for he recited before them the miraculous verses of Allah that they could not keep up with, besides his wonderful maxims that attracted all hearts. Moreover, he showed them miracles by the will of Allah to affirm his mission and make people believe in it. They could not resist his mission, so they accused him of being a magician.

Preventing praisers from coming to him

The people of Quraysh were so spiteful toward the Prophet that they spent much monies to prevent poets from coming to him. Historians mention that al-A’sha, the poet, had composed a poem in which he praised the Prophet. When the people of Quraysh knew about that, they lay in wait for him. When they saw him, they asked him where he wanted to go and he said, “I want to go to Muhammad to be a Muslim.”

They said to him, “Muhammad prohibits adultery, usury, drinks, and gambling.”

He said, “Adultery has left me but I have not left it.” He became uneasy when they mentioned to him that Islam had prohibited wine.

Abu Sufyan said to him, “Would you accept what is better than what you want to do?”

He asked what it was and Abu Sufyan said to him, “You take one hundred camels and go back to your country. You wait for what we shall do. If we defeat him (the Prophet), you shall have taken your recompense, and if he shall defeat us, you can come to him.”

He said, “I do not hate this.”



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Abu Sufyan collected to him from Quraysh one hundred camels, and the poet took them and went back to his country…and he could not be blessed by meeting the Prophet. Abu Sufyan made him lose that blessing.[1]

Preventing people from embracing Islam

Quraysh tried the best to prevent those who were willing to be Muslims from embracing Islam. One day, Marwan met Huwaytib and asked him about his old. When he told him, Marwan said to Huwaytib, “O sheikh (old man), your faith in Islam has been late and events have preceded you.”

Huwaytib said, “By Allah, I intended to embrace Islam more than one time, but your father hindered me from that every time. He said to me: You lose your honor. You leave your fathers’ religion for a new religion and be inferior.”[2]

Thus was the situation of the people of Quraysh at the head of whom were the Umayyads. It was a situation of absolute enmity to Islam and far grudge against the Prophet. They followed all means to put out the light of Islam but they failed.

Persecuting the believers

The tyrants of Quraysh wreaked their wrath on everyone that believed in the Prophet and became a Muslim. They pursued the weak and slaves who had no supporters that could protect them against the oppression of Quraysh. Those weak and disabled people were the base and the strong fort of the Islamic mission. The Prophet said, “Allah gives victory to this nation through its weak people; through their propagandizing, prayers, and devotion…”[3]


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 26-28.
[2] Al-Bidayeh wen-Nihayeh, vol. 8 p. 76.
[3] Rabee’ul Abrar, vol. 2 p. 198.

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The men of Quraysh were excessive in scorning and oppressing those first Muslims. Allah has said about them, (Lo! The guilty used to laugh at those who believed, and when they passed by them, they winked at one another, and when they returned to their own followers they returned exulting, and when they saw them, they said: Most surely these are in error.)[1]

However, they remained no long until Islam destroyed them and did away with their ignorance and moldy minds, and then the weak and the disabled became the masters of the earth.

As an example, the tyrants of Quraysh tortured Yasirs’s family with unbearable torment. The Prophet passed by them when they were being tortured and felt great pain and pity for them. He said about them (Yasir, Sumayyah, and their son Ammar), “Be patient O Family of Yasir! Your promise is the Paradise.”[2]

Yasir and his wife Summayah were martyred under the pressure of torment, and their son Ammar remained receiving heavy torment. He could bear no more. Consequently, Quraysh asked him to abuse the Prophet, and he responded unwillingly and they set him free. He hurried to the Prophet crying and feeling very sad. He told the Prophet what he did, but the Prophet wiped his tears and said to him, “If they do again (punish you), you do the same (to abuse).” Therefore, Allah revealed this verse, (He who disbelieves in Allah after his having believed, not he who is compelled while his heart is content with the faith).[3]


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 83:29-32.
[2] Kanzol Ummal, vol. 6 p. 85, Majma’ az-Zawa’id, vol. 9 p. 293.
[3] Qur'an, 16:106. Al-Qurtubi in his Tafsir, vol. 1 p. 239, and Ibn Sa’d in his Tabaqat, vol. 1 p. 178, mentioned that it was revealed about Ammar.

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Ammar’s soul was filled with faith and devotedness until he was martyred for the sake of Islam in the desert of Siffin with the leader of wisdom and emir of justice; Imam Ali bin Abi Talib.

Bilal al-Habashi was another one from those who were tortured in the way of Islam. Umayyah bin Khalaf poured on him all kinds of torment. After leaving him hungry and thirsty for a day and a night, he took him out at midday and made him lie down on his back in the desert and ordered his men to put a heavy rock on his chest, and then he said to him, “It is so until you die or disbelieve in Muhammad and worship al-Lat and al-Uzza.”

From the other kinds of punishment against Bilal was that the men of Quraysh tied him with ropes and made their children draw him in the streets of Mecca. He did not care for all that, but he said: He is One. He is One.[1]

Anyhow, the steadfastness of those tortured ones astonished the tyrants of Quraysh and made them too angry. The most spiteful one of those tyrants against whoever became a Muslim was Abu Jahl who whenever knew that some man turned a Muslim, he went to him to scold him. If that new Muslim was a notable man in his tribe, he (Abu Jahl) said to him, “You have left the religion of your father who is better than you! We will confute your opinion, refute your belief, and degrade you.” If he was a merchant, he said to him, “We will stagnate your trade and deaden your capitals.” And if he was a helpless one, he punished him and incited others against him.[2]

Sa’eed bin Jubayr narrated, “I said to Abdullah bin Abbas, ‘Did the polytheists punish the messenger of Allah’s companions to a degree that they were obliged to give up their religion?’ Ibn


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 1 p. 494.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 320.


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Abbas said, ‘Yes by Allah. They punished a companion, starved, and made him thirsty until he was unable to sit erect because of the damage he had, and then he would respond to their ill will. Then they said to him: Are al-Lat and al-Uzza your gods away from Allah? He said: Yes. He said that just to save himself from their torment.’”[1]

The Prophet asks Muslims to be steadfast
The men of Quraysh were excessive in harming and tormenting Muslims with unbearable kinds of torment, until some of them could not resist more and so they abandoned their religion; though some of them remained fixed and did not yield to the severe punishment of Quraysh. The Prophet invited Muslims to withstand and be patient with their affliction. Once, al-Khabbab bin al-Art asked the Prophet to pray Allah against Quraysh, but he said to him, “The believers (of nations) before you were combed with iron combs. The flesh and nerves on their bones were combed but that did not make them abandon their religion, and saws were put on the partings of their heads and were split into two but that did not make them abandon their religion. Surely, Allah will complete this matter (Islam) until a rider shall move from Sana’a to Hadhramaut not fearing except Allah the Almighty.”[2]

Abu Talib protects the Prophet
Abu Talib was the strongest fort that defended and protected the Prophet against the plotting and evil of Quraysh; otherwise, the Prophet could not withstand determinedly to fulfill his mission.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 320.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 1 p. 496.


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In his great revolution, Prophet Muhammad founded an intellectual and social rise that made Quraysh fear for their habits and traditions that the Prophet refuted. Therefore, they were angry and full of spite against him. They resisted and fought him, but his uncle Abu Talib encouraged him to be determined and steadfast. Abu Talib addressed his nephew with these verses of poetry,

“Announce your mission and never mind anything,

and let your eyes be delighted.

You invited me and I knew that you were sincere to me.

You are the most truthful, the most honest.

I have known that the religion of Muhammad

is the best of religions among all of the peoples.

By Allah, they won’t reach you whatever numerous they were,

until I am buried under the ground.”

These verses declare Abu Talib’s deep faith in Islam and his devotedness in defending the Prophet. Abu Talib was too careful for his nephew; he did not leave him alone or let him be liable to the expected or unexpected evils of the polytheists of Quraysh. He was too kind to him. He loved and pitied him more than his own children. He was very loyal in defending and supporting him. He refuted the men of Quraysh who asked him to leave the Prophet alone. He replied to them saying,

“I swear by the House of Allah that you have told lies!

We never give up Muhammad; we struggle and fight for him,

we support him until we are killed around him.

For him we ignore our wives and children.”

He added praising the Prophet,



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“And a white-faced, with whose face it is prayed,

so that the clouds bring goodness.

He is the shelter of the orphans and the guardian of the widows.

They know well that our son had never been a liar,

nor we care for absurdities.

I swear I love Ahmed as a passionate lover;

I sacrifice my soul for him,

I defend him with all I have…”[1]

Ibn Katheer commented on this poem saying, “It is a very great, eloquent poem that no one can compose except that one to whom it is ascribed. It is more perfect and more eloquent in delivering the meaning than all the (famous) Seven Poems (hanged on the wall of the Kaaba).”[2]

In any case, Abu Talib was too loyal in his love and protection to the Prophet and without him the Prophet would not be able to announce the principles and values he adopted in his immortal mission.

Quraysh ask Abu Talib to deliver them the Prophet
Some chiefs of Quraysh went to Abu Talib asking him to deliver Muhammad to them to kill him and to give Imarah, who was the noblest and most handsome young man of Quraysh, to him (Abu Talib) instead. Abu Talib replied to them saying, “O fools, you have not been fair to me. Fie and woe be to you! Do you want me to give you my soul and son to kill him and you give me your son to bring him up for you? How do you judge?! Do you want me to replace Muhammad by Imarah bin al-Waleed? By


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 1 p. 488, 491.
[2] Al-Isaba, vol. 4 p. 116, Usdul Ghaba, vol. 6 p. 287.

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Him in Whose hand my soul is, if you give me the whole world, I will not replace it by a nail from Muhammad’s foot. Be away from me! Do not talk to me; otherwise, I will strike your heads with the sword.”

They went back disappointedly, and Abu Talib left spite filling their hearts against the Prophet.

Abu Talib orders Ja’far to follow the Prophet
One day, Abu Talib saw the Prophet offer prayer while Imam Ali was on his right side. He turned to his son Ja’far and said to him, “Protect the wing of your cousin and offer prayer on his left side.”[1] Then, he recited these verses which he himself had composed,

“Ali and Ja’far are my trusts,

whenever the time brings distresses and disasters.

O you both! Support your cousin and don’t fail him.

He is my blood-brother’s son.

By Allah I won’t fail the Prophet

Nor will any of my sons.”[2]

Once, the Prophet came into the Kaaba to offer the prayer. Abu Jahl said, “Who would come to this man and interrupt his prayer?” Ibn az-Ziba’ra fetched feces and blood and stained the Prophet’s face. The Prophet stopped his prayer and went to his uncle Abu Talib who asked him who had done that to him and he replied that it was Abdullah bin az-Ziba’ra. Abu Talib got up, held his sword, and came to those men. When they saw him coming, they tried to get up, but he said, “By Allah, if any man


Notes:

[1] Al-Isabah, vol. 4 p. 116, Usd al-Ghabah, vol. 6 p. 287.
[2] Sharh Nahjol Balaghah, vol. 3 p. 272, al-Ghadir, vol. 7 p. 356.

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from you gets up, I will strike him with my sword.” They all sat down. He took feces and blood and stained their faces and beards while abusing them.[1]

Abu Talib invites an-Najashi to Islam
Abu Talib invited the king of Abyssinia to embrace Islam. He sent him a letter and ended it with these verses of poetry,

“You know O king of Abyssinia!

Muhammad is a prophet like Moses and Jesus, the son of Blessed Marry.

He came with guidance as they both had come with.

Each-according to the order of Allah-guides and educates.

You recite it in your Book as a true speech not a divination.

So don’t make a partner with Allah and let you come to Islam;

the way of the truth is not dark.”[2]

Hamza becomes a Muslim
Hamza’s becoming a Muslim was a victory and honor to Muslims. He was famous among all people of Mecca for his courage, intelligence, and true determination. He was very respectable, honorable, and of a high position near all the people of Quraysh. The sources of history mention the reason behind his becoming a Muslim that once Abu Jahl passed by the Prophet at as-Safa and was excessive in abusing and harming him (the Prophet) and criticizing Islam. The Prophet kept silent and did not answer him. One of Abdullah bin Jad’an’s maids heard Abu Jahl’s impolite speech to the Prophet


Notes:

[1] Al-Islamiyyat, vol. 7 p. 335.
[2] Majma’ al-Bayan, vol. 7 p. 37.


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. She went to Hamza (one of the Prophet’s uncles) and said to him, “O Abu Imarah, I wish you saw what your nephew Muhammad met from Abul Hakam bin Hisham (Abu Jahl). He found him sitting there- in as-Safa- and he harmed, abused, and made him hear what he hated, and then he left, but Muhammad did not spoke to him.”

Hamza became angry and lost his mind. He went to the mosque. When he saw Abu Jahl, he struck his head with his bow that wounded his head. He shouted at him, “Do you abuse him while I am on his religion? I believe in what he says. Refute me if you can do that!”

Some men from bani Makhzum rose to assist their fellow Abu Jahl who prevented them saying, “I had abused his nephew too impudently.”[1]

Hamza announced his faith and promised the Prophet to defend and protect him and to sacrifice himself for supporting Islam. When Hamza became a Muslim, the Prophet was relieved from much of Quraysh’s harm, because Hamza was very courageous and daring and most of people feared him. He announced his faith in Islam openly and withstood the tyranny of Quraysh.

The first emigration to Abyssinia
When the Prophet saw that his companions met much harm and torment from the polytheists of Mecca, he ordered them to emigrate to Abyssinia whose king was just and fair to everyone, until Allah would grant them with a deliverance from what they were in.

A group of the first Muslims, who were punished and persecuted, fled to Allah to keep their faith. They were eleven


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 311.


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men and four women. Then, other Muslims joined them little by little. Among the first group of emigrants was the martyr Ja’far at-Tayyar. Some believers emigrated by themselves and others with their families. Negus, the king of Abyssinia, welcomed very well and assured them with security and protection, and they found under his care much kindness and comfort.

Muhammad Hasanayn Haykal sees that the purpose of the Prophet’s order to the Muslims to emigrate to Abyssinia was not the escape from the persecution of Quraysh, but it had an important political goal; it was to propagandize for Islam and to show the Muslims’ sufferings. I myself think that this thought is so far true, for the Prophet’s procedures were not, in any case, spontaneous, but they were intentional and they had important political purposes. The Prophet ordered the believers to emigrate to Abyssinia and not any other place such as Yemen that was near to Mecca, because the people and the rulers of Abyssinia were Christians and their divine books had brought good tidings about the appearance of the Prophet Muhammad. Therefore, they would be worthier of responding to Islam than the people of the towns dominated by idolatry and Judaism. Anyhow, the emigrants were safe, there, from the punishment and persecution of Quraysh.

The men of Quraysh were terrified by the emigration of Muslims to Abyssinia. They feared that events might develop against them and Abyssinia might be taken as a center for the Islamic mission. Therefore, they sent a delegation to the King of Abyssinia asking him not to protect the emigrant Muslims of Mecca and to deliver them back to Quraysh. They chose for the delegation Amr bin al-Aas and Abdullah bin Abi Rabee’ah and sent with them precious gifts. On the other side, Abu Talib sent a letter to the king of Abyssinia asking him to protect and be kind to the emigrant Muslims and he ended the letter with these verses of poetry,


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“I wish I knew what affairs of Ja’far among people there,

and of Amr and the kin enemies of the Prophet!

Did the goodness of Negus reach Ja’far and his companions,

or it was prevented by a seditious offender?

You know O Negus, glory be to you, that you are so generous,

that whoever resorts to you won’t be disappointed.

You know that Allah has given you great authority,

and every means of goodness,

that still keep to your high qualities.

And you are a fount of goodness,

that enemies and relatives can get its benefits.”[1]

Anyhow, the two deputies of Quraysh came before Negus, and one of them said to him, “O king, some silly young men from us have come to your country. They have abandoned the religion of their people and they have not embraced your religion. They have invented a religion that neither we nor you know it. The notables of their people from their fathers, cousins, and tribes have sent us to you that you may send them (emigrant Muslims) back to them, for they are more aware of them and of what they have done to and faulted them.”

The retinue of Negus asked him to respond to the delegation of Quraysh, but he refused and said, “I do not deliver them to them. How can I do that whereas they have come to my country and chosen me from among all others? I will inquire them (Muslims) about what they (the delegation of Quraysh) say. If they are as they say, I will deliver them to them and send them


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 357.

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back to their people; otherwise, I will protect them against them.”

When the emigrant Muslims appeared before Negus (and there were many bishops in the palace), he asked them, “What about this religion by which you have parted with the religion of your people and not embraced my religion or any other religion?”

Ja’far bin Abi Talib said, “O king, we were a people of ignorance; worshipping idols, eating dead animals, committing adultery, abandoning kinship, doing badly to neighbors, and the strong eating the weak. We were on that until Allah sent us a prophet from us that we know his lineage, truthfulness, loyalty, and virtuousness. He invited us to Allah; to believe in His oneness and to worship Him, and to abandon what we and our fathers were worshipping of stones and idols away from Him. He ordered us to be truthful in speech, give deposits back (to their owners), maintain kinship, be good to neighbors, and to refrain from sins and shedding of blood, and he prohibited us from adultery, vices, falsehood, eating up the properties of orphans, and accusing chaste women of adultery, and he ordered us to worship Allah alone without associating any partner with Him, and ordered us to perform prayer, zakat, and fasting…so we believed in and followed him in all what he had brought from Allah. We worshipped Allah alone with no partner, refrained from what he prohibited, and practiced what he permitted to us, but our people oppressed, tortured, and tempted us to renegade our religion and come back to idolatry away from Allah the Almighty, and to practice the vices we practiced before. When they wronged, persecuted, pressed, and tried to prevent us from our religion, we left to your country, chose you from among others, wished to be your neighbors, and hoped that we would not be wronged near you O king.”



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The king asked Ja’far, “Would you recite to me from what he (the Prophet) has brought from Allah the Almighty?”

Ja’far recited the Sura of Maryam from its beginning until he reached these verses, (Then she pointed to him. They said: How should we speak to one who is a child in the cradle? He said: Surely I am a servant of Allah; He has given me the Book and made me a prophet, and He has made me blessed wherever I may be, and He has enjoined on me prayer and poor-rate so long as I live, and (has made me) dutiful to my mother, and He has not made me insolent, unblessed. Peace on me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I shall be raised alive.)[1]

These verses occupied Negus and the bishops’ hearts and affected their feelings that made them cry. Negus said to Ja’far, “This and what Jesus has brought come out of one niche. (he addressed the delegation of Quraysh) Go away! No, by Allah, I do never deliver them to you.” Then, he ordered his men to drive away Amr bin al-Aas and his companion.

Amr bin al-Aas became very angry and tried to plot against the Muslims. He said to Negus, “The Muslims say odd things about Jesus son of Mary.” Negus asked the Muslims about what they said concerning Prophet Jesus, and Ja’far said, “Our prophet says: he (Prophet Jesus) is Allah’s servant, messenger, spirit, and word that He has cast to Virgin Mary.”

Negus became too delighted. He drew a line on the ground and said to Ja’far, “There is nothing (different) between our religion and your religion more than this line.”

Negus was certain that Muslims were true and their opponents were false. He let Muslims live in Abyssinia and assured to them security against the harms of Quraysh. The deputies of Quraysh


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 19:29-33.


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returned empty-handed, whereas the Muslims lived under the full protection of the king and became free in practicing their rituals. Umm Salama narrated, “When we arrived in the land of Abyssinia, we neighbored the best of neighbors; Negus who secured to us our religion. We began worshipping Allah the Almighty without being harmed and without hearing anything that we hated.”[1]

The second emigration of Muslims
The news that Negus received and accepted the emigrant Muslims to be under his protection and that the deputies of Quraysh were disappointed spread among the Muslims in Mecca. Consequently, eighty Muslim men with their wives and children emigrated to Abyssinia too. This emigration had a great impact in Mecca and outside Mecca and it affected the public opinion in those areas. It showed the Prophet’s political expertness that he had planned to, and made people in those societies ask about Islam and that made them embrace Islam as a result.

Umar turns a Muslim
Umar was hot-tempered and he quickly became furious. Imam Ali described him in his ash-Shaqshaqiyyah sermon as ‘the harsh region’. He was fond of amusement and wine.[2] He was one of the cruelest men of Quraysh towards Muslims. When he knew about the Muslims’ emigration to Abyssinia, he became angry and distressed. Therefore, he decided to kill the Prophet to relieve Quraysh from him, and so he set out to fulfill his task. He met Na’eem bin Abdullah who asked him where he was going and he said, “I want to go to kill Muhammad who


Notes:

[1] Imta’ al-Asma’, vol. 4 p. 106, Musnad of Ahmed bin Hanbal, vol. 1 p. 461.
[2] The Life of Muhammad by Muhammad Hasanayn Haykal, p. 155.

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separated the unity of Quraysh, refuted their thought, faulted their religion, and abused their gods.”

Na’eem scolded him saying, “By Allah, your self has seduced you O Umar! Do you think that bani Abd Manaf (the Prophet’s family) will let you walk on the earth if you kill Muhammad? Would you not go back to your family to reform them?”

Umar said, “Which of my family?”

Na’eem said, “Your brother-in-law and cousin Sa’eed bin Zayd bin Amr and your sister Fatima bint al-Khattab. By Allah, they have become Muslims and followed Muhammad’s religion. Go to them!”

Umar was shocked and angry. He hurried to his sister and brother-in-law. Al-Khabbab bin al-Art was with them in their house teaching them the teachings of Islam and reciting to them the Sura of Taha. When the three heard Umar’s voice, they were terrified. Al-Khabbab hid himself in some place for fear of Umar’s violence. Fatima hurried to hide the book in which the Sura of Taha was written down. Umar had already heard the recitation of al-Khabbab, and so he asked his sister what that reciting was and she replied that there was nothing. He said, “But I have been informed that you both have followed Muhammad’s religion.” Then, Umar hit Sa’eed whose wife Fatima tried to defend him, but Umar hit her too and wounded her head. She cried out inattentively to her brother’s violence and severity, “We have become Muslims and believed in Allah and His messenger. Do whatever you like!”

Umar was regretful for what he did to his sister and was certain that Islam must prevail, and that there was no way to withstand it. He asked his sister to give him the book in which the Sura of Taha was written down. She told him that she and her husband feared for it from him. He swore by the gods he worshipped that he would give it back to her after reading it. She said to him,


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“You are impure and on polytheism, and the Qur'an must not be touched except by a pure person.”

After bathing himself, she gave him the Sura of Taha. When he read it, he was overcome by the unequaled eloquence of the Qur'an and he felt nearing to Islam. He said to his sister, “How beautiful and honorable this speech is!”[1] He went to the Prophet and announced his faith in Islam. Muslims became delighted for they would be safe from his hostility.

Quraysh negotiates with the Prophet
The people of Quraysh had no patience with the principles and values the Prophet declared and which were to destroy their idols and beliefs, and instead, to build a new life that they were unfamiliar with, based on true justice and truth. All means failed them to do away with this new mission. Besides, many of their children, women, servants, and slaves everyday turned Muslims. They found that the policy of violence made no use. Therefore, they agreed on meeting the Prophet directly. They formed a delegation headed by Utbah bin Rabee’ah who was one of the notable chiefs of Quraysh. The delegation of Quraysh met with the Prophet in the Kaaba. Utbah addressed the Prophet leniently saying,

“O my nephew, you are to us, as you know, of honor in the tribe, and high rank in lineage. You have brought your people a dangerous thing by which you separated their unity, refuted their opinions, censured their gods and religion, and considered their past ancestors as disbelievers. Listen to me; I will offer to you some things to ponder on that you may accept some of them.”

The Prophet said, “Say, O Abul Waleed, I will listen.”


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 367-370.


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Utbah said, “O my nephew, if you want, by this matter which you have brought, money, we will collect to you from our monies until you shall be the wealthiest of us. If you want, by it, honor, we will make you the master over us that we shall not decide anything without you. If you want, by it, authority, we shall make you the ruler over us. And if this that comes to you is a vision that you cannot withstand, we will find you a remedy and spend from our monies until we shall heal you from it. Magic may overcome a man, but he can be cured from it.”

When Utbah finished his speech, the Prophet said to him, “Have you finished (your speech) O Abul Waleed?”

Utbah said, “Yes, I have.”

The Prophet said, “Would you listen to me?”

Utbah said, “Yes, I would.”

The Prophet recited,

(In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. Ha Mim. A revelation from the Beneficent, the Merciful Allah. A Book of which the verses are made plain, an Arabic Qur’an for a people who know. A herald of good news and a warner, but most of them turn aside so they hear not. And they say: Our hearts are under coverings from that to which you call us, and there is a heaviness in our ears, and a veil hangs between us and you…)[1] The Prophet kept on reciting the Sura, and Utbah was astonished. Then the Prophet said, “You have heard, O Abul Waleed, what you have heard. It is up to you then.”

Utbah went back to his people full of reverence to what he heard. Changing and astonishment appeared on him. His companions asked him what happened and he said,


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, the Sura of Fussilat (41:1-5).


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“I have heard a saying that, by Allah, I have never heard like before. By Allah, it is neither poetry, nor magic, nor divination. O community of Quraysh, obey me and leave this man alone with what he is in. leave him alone! By Allah, to his saying that I have heard there will be a great influence. If (other tribes of) the Arabs do way with him, you shall be relieved from him by other than you, and if he prevails over the Arabs, then his authority shall be yours and his glory shall be your glory, and you shall be the happiest of people by him.”

They said to him, “He (the Prophet) has bewitched you O Abul Waleed.”

Utbah said, “This is my opinion about him. Do to him whatever you like.”[1]

They gave Utbah deaf ears and remained insisting on their deviation. They kept on resisting the Prophet with all means they had. If they had had a bit of reason, they would have responded to win glory in this life and in the afterlife. However, not many years passed when people began entering in the religion of Allah groups by groups…when the Islamic army attacked them and they remained at their houses surrounded by horror and fear until the messenger of Allah did them a great favor. He pardoned them and did not punish any of them for all the oppression and harms they did to him before.

As-Sahifah (document)
The men of Quraysh were very angry and were filled with spite against the Prophet who faulted their idols and criticized their beliefs, habits, and life that was full of sins and vices. They could bear no more; their children, women, and slaves turned


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 293, 294, Kanzol Ummal, vol. 6 p. 289.

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Muslims. Disputes took place between children and parents, wives and husbands because of faith and unfaith. The life of Quraysh was disturbed and troubled. Therefore, the men of Quraysh held a meeting to discuss their conditions. In this meeting, they decided:

1. Not to marry any of their women to any man from the bani Hashim or bani Abdul Muttalib.

2. Not to get married to any Hashimite woman.

3. Not to sell anything to them.

4. Not to by anything from them.

They wrote down these items in a document and hung it inside the Kaaba to affirm it and to be bound by it. The man, who wrote the document, was Mansur bin Akrimah whom the Prophet prayed Allah against and some of his fingers were paralyzed.[1]

In the Shi’b (defile) of Abu Talib
The people of Quraysh imposed a house arrest on the Prophet and the rest of the Hashemites and prevented them from mixing with people lest they would brainwash them. The Hashemites stayed at the Shi’b of Abu Talib suffering there the severest kinds of persecution. Khadijah supplied them with all that they needed until she spent all her abundant wealth.

The Prophet and the Hshemites remained in the Shi’b two years or more suffering indescribable exhaustion and hardship. They were in total isolation and all means of life were blocked before them.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 375.

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Allah willed to save His messenger and his fellow believers from this disaster and grant them deliverance. Woodworms ate the document of the blockade hung in the Kaaba leaving only the name of Allah safe. Gabriel told the Prophet about that, and the Prophet told his uncle Abu Talib saying to him, “My Lord Allah the Almighty has sent the woodworm to the document of Quraysh, and it left every name that was of Allah safe in it (the document) and removed injustice, alienation, and falsehood.”

Abu Talib asked the Prophet, “Has your god told you about that?”

The Prophet said, “Yes.”

Abu Talib set out to Quraysh saying to them, “O people of Quraysh, my nephew has told me so-and-so. Look at your document; if it is as my nephew has said, then give up our alienation and end what there is in it (the document). And if my nephew is untrue, I will deliver him to you.”

The men of Quraysh agreed and they hurried to the document. They found it as the Prophet had told. However, this only made them more insolent and more spiteful.[1]

The Hashemites remained in the Shi’b under the burden of the severe blockade suffering exhaustion until the news of the document that was eaten by the woodworm spread among all people of Quraysh. Then, some men of Quraysh headed by Zuhayr bin Abi Umayyah agreed to annul the blockade. Zuhayr made a speech before the people of Quraysh saying, “O people of Mecca, do we eat food and wear clothes while the Bani Hashim are exhausted neither is sold to them nor is bought


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 16-17.


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from them? By Allah, I will not sit down until this unjust document will be torn.”

Abu Jahl replied, “By Allah, it will not be torn.”

Some supporters of Zuhayr denied and opposed Abu Jahl who then said, “This is a matter prepared in the darkness (it is a plot)!”

The oppositionists won and Abu Jahl could do nothing. The blockade was broken and the Hashemites were free from the Shi’b. The Prophet left the Shi’b more fixed and determined inviting people to believe in Islam and reject idolatry. He enjoyed the protection of his uncle Abu Talib who encouraged him every moment to fulfill his mission. He said to him,

“So, reveal your mission openly feeling no fear,

And be delighted at that and rest in relief.

By Allah, they shall not reach you with all their crowds,

until I shall be buried in the ground.”[1]

The Prophet and the tribes
The Prophet began offering his mission to the Arab tribes and inviting them to worship Allah the Almighty and reject idols. He spent ten years following the pilgrims (of the Kaaba) to their abiding-places in Mina and al-Mawqif (place of standing), and coming to them in the seasonal markets like Ukadh, Mijannah, and Thul Majaz to inform of the missions of his Lord.[2]


Notes:

[1] Asnal Matalib fee Najat Abi Talib, p. 25.
[2] Fat~h al-Bari, vol. 3 p. 695.


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The Prophet went to the abodes of the tribes of Kindah inviting them to Islam, but they refused to respond to him.[1] He did the same with the Bani Hanifah and they refused and replied to him impudently. He went to the bani Aamir bin Sa’sa’ah and invited them to Islam. Bayharah bin Firas said to him, “If we pay allegiance to you on your matter, and then Allah makes you prevail over your opponents, will the matter (authority) be to us after you?” Bayharah thought that the Prophet’s mission was a matter of authority and rule, but the Prophet said to him, “The matter is to Allah; He puts it wherever He wills.”[2]

Bayharah said, “Are our necks cut by the Arabs for you, and when Allah makes you prevail, the matter shall be to other than us? We are in no need of your mission.”[3] The Prophet went back and they did not respond to him too. Some men of this tribe told one of their wise old men about the Prophet’s invitation, and he blamed them and said, “By Him in Whose hand my soul is, no Isma’ili[4] had claimed it (prophethood) falsely at all. He is true. Where was your reason?!”[5]

The Prophet went to the tribe of Thaqif. He met three brothers from the notables of the tribe. He invited them to Islam. One of them said to him while he was tearing the clothing of the Kaaba, “If (it is true that) Allah has sent you?!”

The second one said to him, “Has Allah not found other than you to send him (as a prophet)?!”


Notes:

[1] Hayat ar-Rasool al-Mustafa, vol. 1 p. 236.
[2] Nihayatol Irab, vol. 12 p. 204.
[3] Al-Kamil fee at-Tareekh, vol. 2 p. 61.
[4] A descendent of Prophet Ishmael.
[5] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 66, as-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 3.


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The third one said to him, “I do not talk to you at all. If you are a messenger from Allah-as you say-then you are much greater than refuting your saying (by me), and if you fabricate lies against Allah, then I should not talk to you.”

The Prophet was too distressed. The people of this tribe asked him to get out of their land to anywhere he liked. They asked their children and slaves to abuse and insult him. People crowded around him in two rows and began shooting him with stones until they wounded his legs. He sat on the ground and could not get up. Two men of them caught him by his arms and made him get up. They again began throwing on him stones while they were laughing. His head was wounded and his legs bleeding.[1]

The Prophet’s supplication
When the Prophet was saved from the tribe of Thaqif, he supplicated Allah with this supplication,

“O Allah, to You I complain the weakness of my power, my inability, and my insignificance near people, O the Most Merciful of the merciful. You are the Most Merciful of the merciful and You are the Lord of the disabled. To whom You leave me; to a far enemy that scowls on me or to a near friend that You make overcome me? If You are not angry with me, I do not care, but Your soundness is better to me. I seek refuge with the light of Your face by which darks have shone, and the affairs of this life and the afterlife have been right, not to let Your anger distress me or Your wrath afflict me. We apologize to You until You will be satisfied. And there is no power and strength except in You.”[2]


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by Zayni Dahlan, vol. 1 p. 141.
[2] Ibid., p. 142.

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The Prophet also invited to his mission many other Arab tribes such as the Bani Abs, Bani Sulaym, Bani Muharib, Fazarah, Murrah, Bani an-Nadhr, Uthrah, and al-Hadharimah, but they met him impudently. They said to him, “Your family and tribe were more aware of you where they did not follow you.”[1]

The Night Journey and the Ascension
Allah the Almighty had singled out Prophet Muhammad with the Ascension from among the rest of the prophets. Allah says in the Qur'an, (Glory be to Him Who made His servant to go on a night from the Inviolable Mosque to the Farthest Mosque of which We have blessed the precincts, so that We may show to him some of Our signs; surely He is the Hearing, the Seeing).[2]

The Prophet was made to journey in the night from the Inviolable Mosque in Mecca to the Farthest Mosque in Jerusalem. The Prophet had journeyed by his body and soul.[3]

Historians were different about the date of the Night Journey and the Ascension; some said it was eighteen months before the hijra (the Prophet’s emigration to Medina), [4] some said it was on Monday one year before the hijra, some said one year and five months before the hijra,[5] some said it was in the eleventh


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by Zayni Dahlan, vol. 1 p. 147.
[2] Qur'an, 17:1.
[3] Nihayat al-Irab, vol. 16 p. 293.
[4] Fiqh as-Seera, p. 145.
[5] At-Tabaqat al-Kubra, vol. 1 p. 214.

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year after the Advent,[1] some said ten years and three months after the prophethood,[2] and some others said other than that.

Historians were also different about the month and the night of the Ascension. Some said it was on the seventeenth night of Rabee’ul Awwal,[3] some said on the night of the twenty-seventh of Rajab,[4] and others said it was on the night of Saturday, the seventeenth of Ramadan.[5]

As for the place of the Night Journey and the Ascension, there are some different traditions about it. Anas bin Malik narrated that the Prophet had said, “While I was in the Inviolable Mosque (al-Masjidul Haram) half asleep, Gabriel came to me with the al-Buraq (the means by which the Prophet had ascended to the heavens).”[6]

Malik narrated that the Prophet had said, “While I was in the House (the Kaaba) half asleep, a gold washtub was brought to me full of wisdom and faith.”[7]

Umm Hani narrated, “On that night, the messenger of Allah spent the night with me in my house. He offered the Isha’ Prayer, and then he slept and we slept too. Before the dawn, he wakened us. When he finished offering the Fajr Prayer which we offered it with him, he said, ‘O Umm Hani, I offered the Isha’ Prayer with you as you saw me, and then, I went to Jerusalem


Notes:

[1] Tafsir of Rooh al-Ma’ani, vol. 15 p. 6.
[2] Hayat ar-Rasool al-Mustafa, vol. 1 p. 232.
[3] Nihayat al-Irab, vol. 16 p. 293.
[4] Seerat ar-Rasool, p. 101.
[5] Hayat ar-Rasool, vol. 1 p. 232.
[6] Ibid.
[7] Ibid., p. 233.


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and offered prayer in it, then I offered the dawn prayer just now as you saw.’”[1]

Abu Tharr al-Ghifari narrated that the Prophet had said, “I was in Mecca when Gabriel came to me and said: O the sleeping one, get up! Then, he held my hand and took me up to the Lower Heaven.”[2]

During the Ascension, Gabriel ordered the Prophet to offer prayer in Mount Sinai because Allah the Almighty had talked to Prophet Moses there. Then, Gabriel ordered the Prophet to offer prayer in Bethlehem because Jesus Christ was born in it. When the journey ended in Jerusalem, Gabriel took the Prophet down to the Mosque. He offered a two-rak’as prayer and the prophets offered the prayer behind him.

The Ascension
The Prophet’s Ascension declares the bright Islamic intellect that is too far from intellectual stagnancy. It invites man to set out in this wide universe to discover all the facts therein in order to have faith in Allah based on knowledge and proofs not a faith of partisanship and imitation. Passing from this universe to the outer space was impossible at that time, but the Prophet proved that it was possible by the will of Allah the Creator of everything. The Prophet passed the great distances in a short period that even light cannot pass. In that short time, the Prophet journeyed from Mecca to Jerusalem and then he ascended to the high heavens and came back to the earth. The Ascension was, in the scientific view, the strongest evidence on monotheism and the exalt position of Prophet Muhammad near Allah.


Notes:

[1] Hayat Muhammad, by Muhammad Hasanayn Haykal, p. 189.
[2] Sahih of al-Bukhari, vol. 1 p. 97.


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In this divine journey, Prophet Muhammad met with his grandfather Adam, Jesus Christ who welcomed him with great reverence, Prophet Joseph, Prophet Moses, and Prophet Idris.[1]

Besides these wonderful scenes of his meeting with the great prophets, Prophet Muhammad saw terrible scenes; he saw groups of people being punished severely. They were the ones who slandered and defamed innocent people (in the earth), and ones who ate the properties of orphans wrongfully, and ones who were usurers. The Prophet saw the severe punishment of those people just to inform his nation of the heavy sins those people had committed lest no one of his nation would follow the same way.[2]

With the Exalted Creator
The Prophet got the honor of listening to the speech of his Exalted Lord, either directly or by a means, as Prophet Moses had got that honor before. The Prophet said, “When I was made to ascend to the Heaven, I was called, ‘O Muhammad!’ I said, ‘My Lord, here I am! You are blessed, exalted.’ I was called, ‘O Muhammad, you are my slave and I am your Lord; worship Me and rely on Me because you are My light among My slaves, and My messenger to My creatures, and My authority on My people. To you and to whoever follows you I have created My Paradise, and to whoever opposes you I have


Notes:

[1] Sahih of Muslim, vol. 1 p. 104, As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 1 p. 146, As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 48-49, Safeenat al-Bihar, vol. 1 p. 174.
[2] Safeenat al-Bihar, vol. 1 p. 176.

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created My Fire, and to your guardians I have assigned My honor.’”[1]

There is another tradition narrated in this way: The Prophet said, “When I was made to journey in the night, Allah the Almighty called me saying, ‘O Muhammad, your prophethood has come to an end, so who shall be to your nation?’ I said, ‘O my Lord, I tested Your creatures and I could find no one more obedient and more beloved to me than Ali bin Abi Talib.’ Allah the Almighty said, ‘O Muhammad, inform him that he is the banner of guidance, the imam of My guardians, and a light to whoever obeys Me.’”[2]

The goals of the Ascension
We think that the goals of this blessed Ascension were:

First, the Prophet saw the great kingdom of Allah the Almighty and His wonderful creation in the outer world; the other galaxies that any of their stars was million times greater than our planet that we live on.

Second, this journey was one of the strongest, irrefutable proofs on the existence of the Great Creator of this universe.

Third, this blessed journey had filled the Prophet’s soul with patience and determination to fulfill the mission of his Lord and spread the teachings of Islam to better the lives of all societies.

The influence of the Ascension in Mecca
The news of the Prophet’s Ascension spread in Mecca and Muslims believed and received it with satisfaction, but the unbelievers denied and suspected it and their minds could not bear this great news.


Notes:

[1] Safeenat al-Bihar, vol. 1 p. 176.
[2] Amali of as-Saduq, p. 286.

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Historians say that the Prophet told Umm Hani (his wife and Imam Ali’s sister) about this ascension and wanted her to spread the news among the people of Quraysh, but she hesitated and felt fear for the Prophet from the tyrants of Quraysh. She said to him, “I ask you by Allah not to talk to Quraysh about it that those, who believe you, may disbelieve you.”

The Prophet paid no attention to her and he left. She asked her maid to follow after the Prophet to see what he was going to do. He went to some men from Quraysh in al-Hateem, between the Kaaba and the Black Rock. Al-Mut’im bin Adiy and Abu Jahl bin Hisham were there. The Prophet told them about his Night Journey to Jerusalim and his ascension to the Heaven. Abu Jahl began mocking at the Prophet. He called people to gather together, and when masses crowded, he said to the Prophet, “Tell your people about what you told me.”

The Prophet said, “I was made to journey in the night to Jerusalem. A group of prophets were made to receive me there among whom there were Abraham, Moses, and Jesus (peace be on them). I led them in prayer and talked with them.”

Abu Jahl said mockingly, “Describe them to me!”

The Prophet said, “As for Jesus, he was neither short nor tall, somehow reddish as if pearls were flowing down of his beard. And as for Moses, he was big and tall as if he was from the men of Shanu’ah. And as for Abraham, by Allah he was the most of people in looking like me in shape and morals.”

People disagreed; the believers believed the Prophet and others denied him. Al-Mut’im bin Adiy said to the Prophet denyingly, “Before this day, your matter was easy except this saying today. It proves that you are a liar. We beat the camels to Jerusalem a month in going and a month in returning, and you claim that you have gone to it and come back within one night!



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By al-Lat and al-Uzza, I do never believe you and this, which you say, could not happen.”[1]

Thus, some circles of Quraysh denied the news of the ascension and did not believe it.

The Ascension: spiritual or bodily?
Scholars are different about the Prophet’s ascension whether it was by his soul or his body. The famous opinion is that the Night Journey and the Ascension took place by the Prophet’s holy soul, but other scholars say by his body. Allama At-Tabarsi says, “The apparent opinion in our companions’ belief and the famous thing in their news is that Allah the Almighty has made the Prophet ascend to the Heaven by his body alive, until he saw with his eyes the Kingdom of the Heavens, and it was not in sleep.”[2]

Allama al-Majlisi says, “Know that his (the Prophet) ascension to Jerusalem and then to the heaven by his body within one night has been affirmed through verses and recurrent traditions by the Shia and the others, and denying this matter or interpreting it into the spiritual ascension or in sleep, result from the lack of studying the traditions of the immaculate imams, or the lack of faith, or the weakness of certainty.”[3]

At-Tabari says that the Prophet’s ascension was by his soul and not body. He quoted that from Huthayfah who narrated, “The Ascension was a vision, and the Prophet’s body was not missed, but his soul was made to journey in the night.” At-Tabari quoted that from Aa’ishah and Mo’awiya too.[4]


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of the Twentieth Century, vol. 6 p. 316, 317.
[2] Majma’ al-Bayan, vol. 9 p. 174.
[3] Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 8 p. 229.
[4] Mafatih al-Ghayb, vol. 5 p. 266.


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Arguments
Those, who say that the Prophet had ascended to the Heaven by his soul and not body, justify their opinion by saying:

First, the material movement in such a very high speed is not reasonable.

Second, the ascension of the Prophet to the heavens required the piercing of the orbit.

Third, if the Prophet’s Night Journey and Ascension by his body were true, it would be one of his greatest miracles and this must be in the presence of people so that they would believe him. What was the use of his journey in the night while all people were inattentive?!

Fourth, man is considered as the soul alone that remains since the beginning of his life until its end, whereas the bodily parts are in continuous changing.

Fifth, they justify their opinion by referring to this Qur’anic verse, (and We did not make the vision which We showed you but a trial for men).[1] They say that this vision was the very matter of the ascension and it was a trial for people because many of those who had believed in the Prophet, apostatized when they heard of this matter.

These are some of their justifications that I may answer them here:

If the Prophet’s ascension within one night was impossible, the descending of Gabriel from the Throne to Mecca in one moment would be impossible too, and the same would be said about the movement of the jinn and Satan. Allah had subjugated the wind to Prophet Solomon that it made a month’s journey in the


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 17:60.

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morning (till midday), and a month’s journey in the afternoon (till evening). Allah has said, (One who had the knowledge of the Book said: I will bring it to you in the twinkling of an eye).[1] The throne of Balqis was in Yemen whereas Prophet Solomon was in Sham…what affirms this fact is what is said that the ray moves from the eye to the planets in the same moment. This proves that the ascension is possible in itself, but what makes it incredible is that it is a miracle and unusual, and this is not limited to the ascension only but it includes all miracles that are unusual to ordinary happening such as the cold and peacefulness of the fire to Abraham.

As for the use of the Prophet’s ascension, it gave the Prophet great benefits. He saw the celestial world, the Throne, and all the wonders there which made him absolutely devoted to Allah the Almighty.

Anyhow, what I see is that the power of Allah the Almighty is much greater than to be described or limited. He is the Creator of miracles in the space and no one can keep them except the might of Allah the Almighty Who is the Creator of astonishing miracles, and the Prophet’s ascension to the outer space is one of the simplest and easiest things to Allah.[2]

Farid Wajdi’s opinion
Farid Wajdi was the only one who thinks that the Prophet’s Night Journey was by his body whereas the Ascension was by his soul. He said, “The Night Journey by the body and the soul from Mecca to Jerusalem was something possible and not impossible. It has been proved by the European scientists’ experiments in the spiritual matters that what they called as


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 27:40.
[2] Encyclopedia of the Twentieth Century, vol. 6 p. 324, quoted from Nidhamuddeen al-Hasan an-Naysaburi in his Tafsir.

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spirits that brought to them fresh flowers from the farthest points of the land, like china and India for example, and scattered them on them while they were sitting in their rooms. This thing was proved to the scientists who had spent tens of years on experiments and written that down in their books. The denying of some stagnant persons, who have neither attended such experiments nor written any book about them, has no any value. If this is proved, a prophet can move from a country to another far one by supernaturality, for Allah the Almighty is more able to move objects and other things.”

He adds, “Those, who saw with their eyes spiritual experiments and read what experimenters had written like William Crookes, Roussel, Parks, Lodge, and other English, German, and French scholars who did not consider this matter as impossible.

As for the matter of the ascension to the Heaven, it is impossible because it has scientifically been proved that the sky is not a material roof, but it is an infinite space where stars and planets swim; some of which are burning like the sun, and others are cold, and there are worlds like ours. What has been mentioned in the Qur'an is other than this and it must be interpreted in some certain way.”[1]

This is some of what Farid Wajdi has mentioned about the Night Journey and the Ascension (al-Isra’ wel Mi’raj). I think, after pondering, there is no place for these details after believing in the infinite power of Allah the Almighty, the Creator of all wonderful things that mind cannot imagine.

Anyhow, there were some things that faced the Prophet’s Ascension by his body such as the escaping from gravitation, the escaping from the atmosphere, the escaping from meteors, the matter of weightlessness, and some other things that some


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of the Twentieth Century, vol. 6 p. 328, 329.


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writers consider as obstacles facing the ascension, but the exceptional power of Allah that everything in the existence has submitted to refutes that…He, who ponders on the wonders of the creation of Allah the Almighty and His great wisdom, determines easily that the Prophet’s Night Journey and Ascension were by his soul and body.[1]

The year of sorrow: Abu Talib’s death
After the Prophet had left the Shi’b where he and his followers were forced to undergo home arrest, he began announcing his mission among the tribes that came to Mecca. He felt safe in that under the protection of his uncle Abu Talib who had devoted his life, position, and all his abilities to serve Islam and protect the Prophet though he was about eighty years old and attacked by illnesses.

The notables of Quraysh came to visit him. They said to him, “O Abu Talib, you are to us (respectable and honorable) as you know, and now has come to you what you see (death)…and you know what is there between us and your nephew. So leave him alone and take to him from us and take to us from him so that he may leave us alone and we leave him alone, and he may leave us to our religion and we leave him to his religion.”

Abu Talib sent for the Prophet who when came and knew what those men had intended, said to them, “One word that you give to me you shall prevail by it over the Arabs and the foreign peoples shall submit by it to you.”

Abu Jahl said, “Yes, by your father, ten words!”

The Prophet said, “You say ‘there is no god but Allah’ and you give up what you worship other than Him.”


Notes:

[1] The Prophet’s Ascension to the outer Space, (manuscript) by Kadhim Shareef al-Qurashi that we have made use of in this study.


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Some of them denied that and said to the Prophet, “Do you want, O Muhammad, to make the gods into one god?”

Those men of Quraysh were desperate of the Prophet’s response to them. One of them said, “This man will not give you anything of what you want.” They left while were angry and disappointed.

Abu Talib’s will
Before leaving to the better world, Abu Talib recommended his children and family members with this moral will and to care much for the Prophet. Here are some passages from Abu Talib’s will:

“I recommend you to glorify this building (the Kaaba), for in it there is satisfaction to the Lord, a means of living, and affirmation of settlement. Retain your kinship and do not cut it because the retaining of kinship is a cause of delaying one’s death and increasing his family. Refrain from oppression and help the needy! Keep to truthfulness in speaking and give deposits back to their owners, because it causes love among the near and honor among the public.”

He added, “I recommend you (to take care) of Muhammad because he is the loyal one in Quraysh and the truthful among the Arabs, and he has had all what I have recommended of. He has brought to us a thing that the soul has accepted and the heart perceived.




By Allah, as if I see the paupers of the Arabs, the people of countryside, and the disabled will have responded to his mission, believed his saying, and glorified his matter, and then he will advance by them and the heads and heroes of Quraysh will be subordinates and their houses will be destroyed, and then the cruelest one of them to him (the Prophet) will be the neediest of them to him, and the farthest of them to him will be the nearest one to him. The Arabs will give him their love and



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deliver to him their leadership. O community of Quraysh, here is your nephew! Be to him supporters and to his party protectors! By Allah, no one follows the path of Muhammad except that he will be successful, and believes in it except that he will be happy. If there is a space of time in my life and a delay in the term of my death, I will save him from troubles and defend him against disasters, but I acknowledge his witness and glorify his beliefs.”[1]

To immortality
Abu Talib faced many hardships in supporting the Prophet, protecting, and defending him against his opponents. Therefore, illnesses attacked him and death approached him rapidly. At the last moments of his life, he recommended his family and children to support the Prophet and protect him against the plotting and oppression of Quraysh. Then, he breathed his last and his pure soul ascended to Allah the Almighty.

Imam Ali ritually washed his father’s body and enshrouded it. Masses of people hurried to escort Abu Talib to his last abode and to end, by this moment, the life of this great hero by whom Allah had supported Islam and the prophet of Islam.

The Prophet was really afflicted by the death of his uncle who was his supporter, protector, and defender. He stopped at the tomb full of sadness and sorrow saying, “May mercy come to you O uncle! May you be rewarded with good O uncle! You have brought up and adopted (me) when a child (I was) and protected and supported when grown-up. By Allah, I will pray


Notes:

[1] Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol. 2 p. 213, ad-Darajat ar-Rafee’ah, p. 61, Thamaratul Awraq, p. 294, Asnal Matalib, p. 20.

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Allah to forgive you and intercede for you an intercession that will make men and the jinn wonder at.”[1]

The Prophet felt much sorrow at his uncle until that year was called ‘the year of sorrow’. The Prophet lost his supporter and defender and the strong fort that he resorted to. After Abu Talib’s death, Quraysh found the Prophet alone, and so they could harm him too much. He said, “Quraysh could not harm me with anything I hated until Abu Talib died.”[2]

The people of Quraysh were excessive in oppressing the Prophet after his uncle’s death. They threw earth on him. One of them threw a placenta of a sheep on him while he was offering the prayer,[3] besides many other kinds of harming.

Anyhow, Abu Talib had done every Muslim a great favor by his services to the religion of Allah. It is nonsense to say that this great mujahid died while unbelieving. This was falsehood fabricated by the Umayyads and the Abbasids who were spiteful toward Imam Ali and the rest of the Alawids.

How would the Prophet be so sorrowful at the death of an unbeliever and how would he call that year as ‘the year of sorrow’? How could he pray Allah to have mercy on him and shed on him all kinds of respect and reverence if he was an unbeliever? How could he eat and drink in Abu Talib’s house whereas Islam considers the unbelievers as impure?

May Allah reward Abu Talib with the best of reward and resurrect him with His prophets and great saints.


Notes:

[1] Abu Talib and his Children, p. 103.
[2] Al-Kamil fit-Tareekh, vol. 2 p. 34.
[3] Ibid.

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Khadijah’s death
Lady Khadijah stood beside the Prophet confirming and supporting him in all his situations and relieving him from the sufferings he faced from Quraysh. Ibn Isaaq narrated that whenever the messenger of Allah heard something of spiting, denying, and disbelieving and became sad, Allah relieved him by Khadijah when he came back to her. She confirmed, relieved, and believed him, and made the troubles of people easy to him. She helped him in bearing the burdens of life and she was still doing so until she left to the neighborhood of her Lord.[1]

Khadijah spent all her abundant wealth to serve Islam. She spent liberally her monies to spread the Islamic mission. When the Prophet and all his family of the Hashemites were home-arrested in the Shi’b and subjected to the severe blockade, she provided them with all what they needed throughout the period of the blockade. She offered all her wealth to Islam until she had nothing even a mat to sit on.

Because of her devotedness to Islam, Khadijah got a high position near Allah Who thanked her services and sent her a greeting via the Prophet.[2] Allah has granted her with a palace in the High Paradise. In a tradition the Prophet said, “I have been ordered (by Allah) to bring good tidings to Khadijah that she shall have a house of reeds in the Paradise wherein there shall be neither noise nor tiredness.”

As for the Prophet, Khadijah had occupied his passion and feelings and got an exalted position near him. He had great love and reverence to her. Aa’isha narrated, “When the messenger of


Notes:

[1] Al-Isabah, vol. 4 p. 273, al-Istee’ab, vol. 6 p. 275.
[2] Al-Isabah, vol. 4 p. 274, quoted from Sahih of Muslim and Mustadrak al-Hakim.


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Allah wanted to leave the house, he often and always mentioned Khadijah and praised her. Once, he mentioned her and I became jealous. I said, ‘Was she but an old woman that Allah has given you in place of her better than her?’ The Prophet became angry until the front of his hair shook of anger. He said, ‘No, by Allah! Allah has never given me in place of her better than her; she believed in me when people disbelieved, comforted me with her wealth when people prevented me, and He gave me children from her where he deprived me of children from other women (wives).’”[1]

One day, Halah sister of Khadijah came to the Prophet’s house. When he heard her voice, which was like Khadijah’s voice, in the yard, he said, “By Allah, she is Halah.”

Aa’ishah could not control herself and she said, “What do you remember from an old woman from the old women of Quraysh?... She died since long, and Allah has given you in place of her better than her.”

The Prophet became very angry and he shouted at Aa’ishah, “By Allah, Allah has not given me in place of her better than her; she believed in me when people disbelieved, believed me when people accused me of lying, comforted me with her wealth when people denied me, and Allah granted me offspring from her when he did not granted me from wives other than her.”[2]

When the Prophet slaughtered a sheep, he said (to servants), “Take (some meat) to the friends of Khadijah!”

Once, Aa'isha said to him, “Why do you do that?”


Notes:

[1] Sahih of al-Bukhari, vol. 5 p. 485, al-Isabah, vol. 4 p. 275, al-Istee’ab, vol. 4 p. 278.
[2] Sahih of Muslim, vol. 7 p. 134.


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He said, “I do like her beloveds.”[1]

Envy often overcame Aa'isha whenever she heard the Prophet praising Khadijah. She said, “I did never envy a woman like I did to Khadijah. The messenger of Allah did not marry me except after her death.”[2]

The gifts of Allah on her
Allah the Almighty had endowed Khadijah with gifts that no any other one of the Prophet’s wives had been endowed with. From the great gifts of Allah to her was that Allah had made her the mother of the best woman Allah had ever created in the earth since the beginning of the creation until the Day of Resurrection; Fatima the principal of the women of the worlds, and made her the grandmother of the two grandson of the Prophet, two infallible imams, and two masters of the youth of Paradise; Imam al-Hasan and Imam al-Husayn (peace be on them), and the grandmother of Lady Zaynab, the first wronged and oppressed woman in Islam. Allah had made Khadijah the grandmother of the infallible imams who were His authorities on His people. These heavenly gifts that Khadijah had been endowed with had not been given to any woman other than her at all.

To the Paradise
Diseases attacked the Mother of Believers Khadijah and death approached her soon. In the last moments of her life, she felt pain whenever she looked at her only daughter Fatima az-Zahra’ who was a young child then. She looked at Fatima (a.s) with pain and sigh. She recommended the Prophet to take much care of her.


Notes:

[1] Al-Istee’ab, vol. 4 p. 278.
[2] Al-Isabah, vol. 8 p. 62.

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It was not long until Khadijah left to the better world and her pure soul rose towards its Creator surrounded by angels and received by the prophets of Allah.

The Prophet was afflicted by the great loss of Khadijah who filled his life with satisfaction and tranquility, and relieved him from the persecution of the oppressors of Quraysh. He was very sad when she died.

Anyhow, he washed, enshrouded, and offered the prayer on her. He dug a grave for her and buried her in it.[1] The loss of Khadijah caused the Prophet a great sorrow until he called that year where also his uncle Abu Talib died in as “the year of sorrow”.

Death took Khadijah, who was the most loyal to the Prophet, the most loving, and the best supporter to him and to his mission. Lady Khadijah died in the month of Ramadan when she was sixty-five years and after living with the Prophet twenty-five years.[2]



The first homage of al-Aqabah
When Allah willed to confirm and honor His messenger, make His religion prevail, and fulfill His promise of victory, the Prophet traveled to the tribes propagating his mission publicly. When he was in al-Aqabah, he met some men from the tribe of al-Khazraj who were followers to the Jews. He showed to them Islam and its principles and values and recited to them some verses from the Holy Qur'an which went deep into their hearts. What made them believe was that the Jews they lived with often propagated about the approaching advent of a new prophet. When Prophet Muhammad invited these men to


Notes:

[1] Ad-Durr al-Manthur, p.180.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by Zayni Dahlan, vol. 1 p. 139.

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Islam, they said to each other, “O men, he is the prophet that the Jews have promised you of. Let them not precede you to him!”

They responded to the Prophet and announced their faith. They said to the Prophet,

“We have left our people while there was enmity and grudge among them which had no like among other than them. May Allah reconcile them by you that you invite them to Islam and show to them the same that we have responded to. If they respond to you, then no one shall be more honored than you.”

Those men went back to their country. They announced their faith in Islam and began propagating it. They were twelve men; Abu Umamah As’ad bin Zurarah, Owf bin al-Harith and his brother Mu’ath, Rafi’ bin Malik, Thakwan bin Abdil Qays, Ubadah bin as-Samit, Yazid bin Tha’labah, al-Abbas bin Ubadah, Uqbah bin Aamir, Qutbah bin Aamir, who were from al-Khazraj, Uwaym bin Sa’idah, and Abul Haytham Malik bin at-Tayyihan who were from al-Ows.[1] After that, Islam spread in Yathrib (Medina) and monotheism shone there.

The text of the homage to the Prophet was as the following: “Not to associate with Allah anything as a partner, not to steal or rob, not to commit adultery, not to kill their children, not to fabricate falsehood, not to disobey Allah in any good deed…if they fulfill that, they shall deserve to be in the Paradise, but if they do not, their affair shall be up to Allah the Almighty; if He wills, He will pardon, and if He wills, He will punish.”[2]


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 2 p. 178.
[2] Ibid., p. 179.


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Sending Mus’ab a deputy to Medina
The people of Medina sent a delegation to the Prophet asking him to send them a religious instructor to teach them the teachings and rulings of Islam. The Prophet chose Mus’ab bin Umayr, who was from the best Muslim youth in virtue and jurisprudence as he was from the politest, most well-behaved, and most handsome youth of Quraysh, as his deputy to the people of Medina. Mus’ab traveled to Medina and began instructing the teachings of Islam among the people of the al-Aws and al-Khazraj (the biggest tribes of Medina) and reciting to them the Book of Allah. Islam spread so speedily, and no house remained there except that some of its men and women embraced Islam.[1] Mus’ab was so successful that he was the first deputy in Islam to be successful in his task.

The second homage of al-Aqabah
Mus’ab came back to Mecca carrying with him the good news of the spread of Islam in Medina and the response of the al-Aws and al-Khazraj to it and their devotedness to defend it with all material and moral abilities they had. The Prophet was so delighted and happy, and so were the Muslims in Mecca who suffered persecution and oppression there.

The Muslims of Medina sent a delegation headed by al-Bara’ bin Ma’rur and Ka’b bin Malik, to meet with the Prophet in Mecca. The delegation met with the Prophet in the mosque and offered to him their absolute reverence and conveyed to him the longing of the people of Medina to get the honor of receiving the Prophet in their town.

Al-Abbas, who was with the Prophet, rose and made a speech before the delegation of Medina saying, “O people of the


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 76.


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al-Khazraj, Muhammad among us is as you know; we have protected him from our people who are on the belief of ours (the polytheists),[1] so he is honorable among his people and secure in his country. He has refused except to incline to and join you. If you see that you will fulfill what you have promised him of and will defend him against his opponents, then it is you and what you have undertaken, but if you see that you will leave and betray him after his coming to you, then since now let him alone, for he is in honor and security among his people and in his country…”

The Prophet meets with the Ansar
The Prophet agreed with the delegation of Medina that he would meet with the people of Medina during the days of Tashriq.[2] A group of seventy men and two women, who were Umm Imarah Nusaybah bint Ka’b and Umm Manee’ Asma’ bint Amr, from the Muslims of Medina came to perform the hajj. They concealed the matter for fear of the polytheists of Quraysh. They waited until a third of the night elapsed, and then all these seventy-two persons sneaked away to al-Aqabah and had the honor of meeting the Prophet there. The Prophet welcomed and recited to them some verses from the Qur'an. They said to him, “We listen to you. Speak and take to yourself and to your Lord as you like.”

The Prophet said to them, “I accept your homage on condition that you protect me as you protect your women and children.”

Al-Bara’ bin Ma’rur took the Prophet’s hand and said, “By Him Who has sent you with the truth, we will defend you as we


Notes:

[1] Al-Abbas (the Prophet’s uncle) was still a polytheist then.
[2] Three days following the Day of Immolation during the hajj.

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defend our women. O messenger of Allah, accept our homage for, by Allah, we are people of war and arms. We have inherited that from one another.”[1]

Ibn Rawaha asked the Prophet, “If we do that, what shall we have?”

The Prophet said, “You shall have the Paradise.”

Then, Abul Haytham bin at-Tayyihan informed the Prophet about the danger of the Jews there. He said, “There is between us and the men (the Jews) ropes (relations) that we will cut. If we do that and then Allah make you prevail, will you go back to your people and leave us?”

The Prophet smiled and said, “But it is the blood the blood, and the destruction the destruction! You are from me and I am from you; I fight whomever you fight, and make peace with whomever you make peace with.”

This situation of the Prophet and the Ansar[2] was as the declaration of war against the Jews. Before these men paid the homage to the Prophet, al-Abbas bin Ubadah had said to his people, “O community of al-Khazraj, do you know what for you pay homage to this man? You pay homage to him that you will fight against the red and the black of people. If you see that when your monies are exhausted and your notables killed, you will give him up, then from now you should let him alone. If you do (give him up), it shall be disgrace on you in this life and in the afterlife, and if you see that you are loyal to what you have promised him of exhausting the monies and killing of notables, then it will be the goodness of this life and the afterlife.”


Notes:

[1] At-Tabaqat al-Kubra, vol. 1 p. 332.
[2] They were the Muslims of Medina who assisted and supported the Prophet and so they were called ‘Ansar: supporters’.

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All of them cried out, “We take him in spite of the exhausting of monies and the killing of notables. O messenger of Allah, what shall we have if we fulfill that?”

The Prophet replied, “The Paradise.”

The text of the homage was as the following, “We have paid homage to the messenger of Allah that we listen and obey (him) in activity and laziness, and spend (money) in poverty and richness, and enjoin the good and prohibit the wrong, and say (the truth) for the sake of Allah fearing no blame of any blamer, and support the messenger of Allah when he comes to us in Yathrib as we defend our selves, souls, and children, and we shall have the Paradise.”[1]

This homage was called “the homage of ar-Radhwan”. Then, this verse was revealed, (Certainly Allah was well pleased with the believers when they swore allegiance to you under the tree, and He knew what was in their hearts, so He sent down tranquility on them and rewarded them with a near victory),[2] and this verse, (Surely those who swear allegiance to you do but swear allegiance to Allah; the hand of Allah is above their hands. Therefore, whoever breaks (his faith), he breaks it only to the injury of his own soul, and whoever fulfills what he has covenanted with Allah, He will grant him a mighty reward).[3]

Women paid homage in Mecca by putting their hands in a vessel of water and taking them out. Allah has said about that, (O Prophet! when believing women come to you giving you a pledge that they will not associate aught with Allah, and will not steal, and will not commit fornication, and will not kill their children, and will not bring a calumny which they have forged


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 2 p. 203.
[2] Qur'an, 48:18.
[3] Qur'an, 48:10.


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of themselves, and will not disobey you in what is good, accept their pledge, and ask forgiveness for them from Allah; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful).[1]

When the blessed homage was completed, the Prophet asked the pledgers to choose from among themselves twelve chiefs to be guardians over their people. They chose nine men from al-Khazraj and three from al-Aws. The Prophet made As’ad bin Zurara a chief over these chiefs and said to them, “You are guardians over your people as they are, like the guardianship of the disciples to Jesus son of Mary, and I am a guardian over my people.”

This homage took place in the heart of night in the defile of al-Aqabah, and then the pledgers went to their beds until the morning wakened them.

Fear of Quraysh
When the people of Quraysh knew about the homage of the people of Medina to the Prophet and their promise to protect him and defend his religion, they felt great fear and were too worried. The people of Quraysh were certain that they were meant by this treaty, because it was they who disbelieved in this religion, tortured the weak who believed in it, and harmed the Prophet bitterly; therefore, he must avenge on them.

Anyhow, the chiefs of Quraysh hurried to the caravan of Medina and said to them, “O people of al-Khazraj, we have been informed that you came to our friend (the Prophet) to take him out of us and pay him homage to fight us. By Allah, there is no tribe from the Arabs that is more hated to us that a war may break out between us and them than you.”


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 60:12.


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Some men from al-Khazraj, who had not yet embraced Islam, swore before the people of Quraysh that nothing of that had taken place, while the people, who had paid homage to the Prophet, hurried to leave Mecca soon to be safe from Quraysh’s harms.

However, the people of Quraysh were certain of the homage of the people of Median to the Prophet, and so they followed after them but they only could reach Sa’d bin Ubadah in Athakhir (a place near Mecca) and al-Munthir bin Amr who both were from the chiefs (nominated over the people of Medina). As for al-Munthir, he could run away, whereas Sa’d was taken and his hands were tied to his neck with the ropes of his mount. They brought him back to Mecca while beating and drawing him by his hair.

Muslims’ emigration to Medina
After the homage of al-Aqabah, Yathrib became a strong center for Muslims, for the Ansar (the Muslims of Medina) undertook their protection and defense. There, Islam spread everywhere and people of all classes talked about its high principles and rulings in their meetings and clubs.

Muslims of Mecca, after suffering much from Quraysh, asked permission to emigrate to Yathrib, and the Prophet permitted them. He gave them a general permission of immigration to Yathrib by saying, “I have been informed that the place of your emigration is Yathrib, so whoever wants to emigrate let him emigrate to it.”[1]

The Prophet encouraged Muslims to emigrate to Yathrib (Medina) saying to them “Allah the Almighty has made to you brothers and an abode that you shall be safe in it (there).”


Notes:

[1] At-Tabaqat al-Kubra, vol. 1 p. 226.

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Muslims began emigrating to Yathrib secretly[1] for fear of the oppression of Quraysh. This emigration was based on a deep thought that made the Ansar more active and determined to support Islam besides its great influence on the Muhajireen (emigrants) who felt safe and free there. The first one from the Prophet’s companions, who emigrated to Yathrib, was Abu Salamah Abdullah bin Abdul Asad al-Makhzumi, and then his wife Umm Salamah joined him after suffering too much from Quraysh. From among the other first emigrant was Aamir bin Rabee’ah with his wife Layla bint Abu Hathmah, Abdullah bin Jahsh bin Ri’ab with his wife and his brother Abu Ahmed Abd bin Jahsh, Ammar bin Yasir, Bilal al-Habashi, Sa’d bin Abi Waqqas, Umar bin al-Khattab, with Ayyash bin Abi Rabee’ah, Hisham bin al-Aasi and other twenty riders.

The Muhajireen in the hospitality of the Ansar
The Ansar (Muslims of Yathrib) received and welcomed the Muhajireen (emigrants) and made them live in their houses and they spent on them. Umar bin al-Khattab and his companions lived in Rifa’ah bin Abdul Munthir’s house,[2] Mus’ab bin Umayr lived in Sa’d bin Mu’ath’s house, Hamza bin Abul Muttalib and Zayd bin Harithah lived in Kulthum bin al-Hadm’s house.[3]

The people of Yathrib received the Muhajireen too welcomely. They were too generous to them; they spent on them and offered their own houses to them and to their families. They participated with them in all what they had.


Notes:

[1] Nihayat al-Irab, vol. 6 p. 322, Tareekh at-Tabari, vol. 2 p. 342.
[2] As-Seerah al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 208.
[3] At-Tabaqat al-Kubra, vol. 1 p. 226.

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The method of the mission in Mecca
It may be too useful to discuss the method of the Islamic mission in Mecca which was the strong fort of idolatry and polytheism and a center of bad habits and traditions that resulted from the deep ignorance of those people. The Prophet’s mission in inviting people towards Islam was based on the following methods:

1. wisdom and good preaching

Allah has said, (Call to the way of your Lord with wisdom and goodly exhortation, and have disputations with them in the best manner; surely your Lord best knows those who go astray from His path, and He knows best those who follow the right way).[1] Indeed, the Prophet followed all kinds of wisdom and reasonable arguments to guide that society and save it from its ignorance.

2. good saying

The Prophet’s invitation depended on the good saying that did not provoke anyone’s passion or hurt his dignity. Allah has said, (And say to My servants (that) they speak that which is best),[2] and said, (and speak kindly to mankind).[3]

3. leniency and mercy

The Prophet depended in his mission on leniency and mercifulness and he avoided harshness and strictness. Allah has taught and guided him to these high morals. Allah has said,


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 16:125.
[2] Qur'an, 17:53.
[3] Qur'an, 2:83.


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(and had you been rough, hard hearted, they would certainly have dispersed from around you).[1]

4. repelling evil with what is best

The Prophet repelled the oppression and severity of Quraysh against him with being kind and charitable to them as Allah the Almighty had said to him, (Repel (evil) with what is best, then lo! he between whom and you was enmity would be as if he were a warm friend).[2]

5. patience

The Prophet armed himself with patience in fulfilling his mission, for Allah had ordered him of that. Allah has said, (And bear patiently what they say and avoid them with a becoming avoidance),[3]and said, (And be patient, and your patience is not but by (the assistance of) Allah, and grieve not for them, and do not distress yourself at what they plan),[4] and said, (So wait patiently for the command of your Lord, and obey not from among them a sinner or an ungrateful one).[5]

Prophet Muhammad suffered from the people of Quraysh the severest kinds of harms and distresses, but he did not mind. He tolerated all that for the sake of Allah and he kept on fulfilling his mission until Allah the Almighty granted him with the great victory over his enemies. Allah ordered him to imitate His Arch-Prophets who were patient with the hardships they met from their peoples. Allah has said, (So bear up patiently as


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 3:159.
[2] Qur'an, 41:34.
[3] Qur'an, 73:10.
[4] Qur'an, 16:127.
[5] Qur'an, 76:24.


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as did the Arch-Prophets bear up with patience and do not seek to hasten for them (their doom)).[1]

6. warning the unbelievers against Allah’s punishment

From the methods of the Prophet in his mission was his warning the society against the punishment of Allah the Almighty if people did not respond to him. He recited before them the Qur’anic verses that censured their disbelief and deviation. Allah has said, (And whoever does not believe in Allah and His Messenger, then surely We have prepared burning fire for the unbelievers),[2]and said, (and We have prepared for the unbelievers a disgraceful chastisement).[3] The Holy Qur'an has many verses warning the unbelievers against the torment of Allah and confirming that they will remain forever in the fire of the Hell under severe tortures.

7. giving good tidings to the believers to be in the Paradise

The Prophet always gave good news to the believers that they would win the Paradise with all its bliss. Allah has said, (Surely Allah will cause those who believe and do good deeds to enter gardens beneath which rivers flow),[4] and (Surely the righteous shall be in gardens and rivers, in the seat of honor with a most Powerful King),[5] and (Those who believed in Our communications and were submissive; enter the garden, you and your wives; you shall be made happy. There shall be sent round to them golden bowls and drinking-cups and therein


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 46:35.
[2] Qur'an, 48:13.
[3] Qur'an, 4:37, 151.
[4] Qur'an, 22:14.
[5] Qur'an, 54:54-55.


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shall be what their souls yearn after and (wherein) the eyes shall delight, and you shall abide therein).[1]

There are many other verses like these ones that the Prophet made use of in carrying out his mission and spreading his values and goals.

The invitation to Allah
The first principle that the Prophet adopted was the invitation to the Oneness of Allah; the only Creator of the universe and the only Giver of life. He raised the motto of monotheism by saying, “say: there is no god but Allah and you shall be successful!” This was too heavy for that society which had been brought up on worshipping idols. Therefore, the people of that society rushed out to put out this light and silence this voice. The Prophet proved the oneness of Allah through irrefutable evidences that, here, we shall show some of them.

The existence of Allah
From the facts that can never be denied or suspected is the existence of the Great Creator, the Manager of the universe, and the Giver of life. The Prophet depended in proving this fact on some verses from the Holy Qur'an. Allah has said, (Most surely in the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of the night and the day, and the ships that run in the sea with that which profits men, and the water that Allah sends down from the cloud, then gives life with it to the earth after its death and spreads in it all (kinds of) animals, and the changing of the winds and the clouds made subservient between


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 43:69-71.

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the heaven and the earth, there are signs for a people who understand).[1]

This verse has irrefutable proofs on the existence of the Great Creator. It talks about the creation of the heavens with millions of galaxies flowing in the space with absolute accuracy and orderliness. Allah says about the sun and the moon, (It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor does the night outstrip the day. They float each in an orbit).[2]

The alternation of the day and the night is also a clear sign on the existence and great power of Allah Who says, (And a sign to them is the night: We draw forth from it the day, then lo! they are in the dark).[3]

Another sign is the running of ships in the huge seas and oceans carrying goods from a place to another. Allah says, (And a sign to them is that We bear their offspring in the laden ship).[4]

The coming down of water from the heaven that gives life to all creatures is also a clear sign on the existence of the Creator. Allah says, (Have you not seen how Allah has sent down water from the sky and has caused it to penetrate the earth as springs, and afterward thereby produces crops of different colors; and afterward they wither and you see them turn yellow, then He makes them chaff. Lo! herein verily is a reminder for men of understanding).[5]


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 2:164.
[2] Qur'an, 36:40.
[3] Qur'an, 36:37.
[4] Qur'an, 36:41.
[5] Qur'an, 39:21.

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The movements of winds and clouds between the sky and the earth are also signs proving clearly the existence of the Great Creator.

From the great signs of Allah the Almighty that prove His existence is the creation of man. Allah says, (And certainly We created man of an extract of clay. Then We made him a small seed in a firm resting-place. Then We made the seed a clot, then We made the clot a lump of flesh, then We made (in) the lump of flesh bones, then We clothed the bones with flesh, then We caused it to grow into another creation, so blessed be Allah, the best of the creators).[1]

From the great signs of Allah the Almighty is this earth; our mother that supplies us with life and blessings and that has seas, rivers, mountains, and everything. Allah says, (And He it is Who spread the earth and made in it firm mountains and rivers, and of all fruits He has made in it two kinds; He makes the night cover the day; most surely there are signs in this for a people who reflect).[2]

The signs that guide to the existence of Allah are uncountable. In every atom of the creatures there is a clear proof on the existence of Allah. The Prophet recited these verses, signs, and evidences before that idolatrous society, but no one believed in them except a very few.

The oneness of Allah
Allah is only one with no partner with Him in His kingdom and might. The impossibility of such partnership has been declared in the Holy Qur'an. Allah says, (If there were therein gods


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 23:12-14.
[2] Qur'an, 13:3.


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beside Allah, then verily both (the heavens and the earth) had been disordered).[1]

If there is a partner with Allah in this universe that has the same powers as Allah the Almighty has, then everything in the universe will be in disorder, because he will act according to his own wills and wishes which leads to the corruption of the heavens and the earth. Allah says, (and never was there with him any (other) god; in that case would each god have certainly taken away what he created, and some of them would certainly have overpowered others; glory be to Allah above what they describe),[2] and He says, (Most surely your Lord is One. The Lord of the heavens and the earth and what is between them, and Lord of the easts).[3]

The power of Allah
Everything in the heavens and in the earth is submissive to the might and will of Allah the Almighty. Allah says, (Our word for a thing when We intend it, is only that We say to it, Be, and it is),[4] and (The Originator of the heavens and the earth, and when He decrees an affair, He only says to it, Be, so there it is).[5]

The knowledge of Allah
As for the knowledge of Allah, it is indefinite; neither can be counted nor perceived. Allah says, (And with Him are the keys of the unseen; none knows them but He, and He knows what is in the land and the sea, and there falls not a leaf but He knows it, nor a grain in the darkness of the earth, nor anything green


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 21:22.
[2] Qur'an, 23:91.
[3] Qur'an, 37:5.
[4] Qur'an, 16:40.
[5] Qur'an, 2:117.


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nor dry but (it is all) in a clear book),[1] and (And He is Allah in the heavens and in the earth; He knows your secret (thoughts) and your open utterance, and He knows what you earn).[2]

The Holy Qur'an talks about the vastness of Allah’s knowledge saying, (Allah knows what every female bears, and that of which the wombs fall short of completion and that in which they increase; and there is a measure with Him of everything. The knower of the unseen and the seen, the Great, the Most High. Alike (to Him) among you is he who conceals (his) words and he who speaks them openly, and he who hides himself by night and who goes forth by day).[3]

The messenger of Allah recited these verses to the unbelievers of Mecca and showed them irrefutable evidences on the existence and the attributes of Allah, but none responded to him, for they were occupied by total ignorance. Rather, they accused him of being a magician and a liar. They oppressed and fought him until Allah gave him the great victory over them.

The legislation of wudu’ and prayer
At the beginnings of the revelation in Mecca, wudu’ and prayer were legislated as obligations on Muslims. Historians mention that Gabriel came down to the Prophet while he was at the outskirt of Mecca. Gabriel beat the ground and a spring gushed out. Gabriel performed the wudu’ while the Prophet was looking at him. Then, the Prophet performed the wudu’ as Gabriel did. Then, Gabriel offered the prayer and the Prophet did as he saw Gabriel do.[4]


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 6:59.
[2] Qur'an, 6:3.
[3] Qur'an, 13:8-10.
[4] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 244.

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As the prayer was legislated, the azan was legislated with it too. The first Muslim, who called out the azan, was the great companion Abu Tharr al-Ghifari. He went above the Kaaba and recited the azan loudly. The men of Quraysh hurried to and beat him severely until he was unconscious. He was carried to the Prophet’s house, and he did not regain consciousness until the night. In the morning, he mounted his horse and stopped before the men of Quraysh reciting loudly the azan in order to anger them. They ran toward him, but he hurried with his horse away and was safe from them.

The kiblah
The Prophet offered his prayers towards Jerusalem for thirteen years when he was in Mecca. After his emigration to Yathrib, he offered the prayers towards Jerusalem for seven months, and then Allah ordered him to offer the prayer towards the Kaaba. The reason behind that was that the Jews blamed the Prophet and said to him that he offered his prayers towards their kiblah. The Prophet was sad and distressed. In the heart of night, he went out looking at the heavens waiting for an order from Allah the Almighty. The next day and while the Prophet was offering the Duhr Prayer in the mosque of bani Salim, Gabriel came down to him, held him by his two hands, and turned him toward the Kaaba after he had offered two rak’as from the Duhr Prayer, and revealed to him this verse, (Indeed We see the turning of your face to heaven, so We shall surely turn you to a kiblah which you shall like; turn then your face towards the Sacred Mosque).[1] The Jews said as the Qur'an recites, (What has turned them from their kiblah which they


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 2:144.

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formerly observed?)[1] They were answered that it was the truth from Allah the Almighty.[2]

The Prophet’s miracles in Mecca
Allah the Almighty assisted His messenger with wonderful miracles that proved his mission and confirmed his authority as a deputy from Allah. The following are some of the Prophet’s miracles:

1. The Holy Qur'an

The greatest miracle of Prophet Muhammad was the Qur'an that (falsehood can not come to it from before it nor from behind it). It was the firmest evidences on Muhammad’s prophethood and the truthfulness of his mission. The most eloquent men were unable to keep up with it nor could they compose a bit like it. Allah said, (Or do they say: He has forged it? Say: Then bring a chapter (sura) like it and invite whom you can besides Allah),[3] and said, (And if you are in doubt as to that which We have revealed to Our servant, then produce a chapter like it and call on your witnesses besides Allah if you are truthful).[4]

Besides its wonderful eloquence, the Holy Qur'an has all kinds of knowledge and sciences. It includes civil laws, administrative decrees, war arts, and all other fields of life. It has no contradiction or conflict, and it has been kept safe from any forging. Allah says, (Do they not then meditate on the Qur’an? And if it were from any other than Allah, they would have found in it much discrepancy).[5]


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 2:142.
[2] Majma’ul Bayan, vol. 1 p. 222-227.
[3] Qur'an, 10:38.
[4] Qur'an, 2:23.
[5] Qur'an, 4:82.


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If we notice the Bibles, we shall find in their editions contradictions and discrepancies while the Qur'an has been safe from all that, praise be to Allah.

The Holy Qur'an is a miracle in its legislations that keep pace with man’s nature and are not a bit different to the rules of the universe. Allah says, (Surely this Qur’an guides to that which is most upright).[1] The Qur’an’s teachings and rulings have been built on the mere justice and truth. Allah says, (Surely Allah enjoins the doing of justice and the doing of good (to others) and the giving to the kindred, and He forbids indecency and evil and oppression; He admonishes you that you may be mindful).[2]

2. The miracle of the Tree

Imam Ali narrated, “I was with him (the Prophet) when the men of Quraysh came and said to him, ‘O Muhammad, you have claimed something very great that neither your fathers nor anyone from your family had ever claimed. We will ask you for something that if you respond and show it to us, we shall know that you are a prophet and messenger, and if you do not, we shall know that you are a magician and a liar.’

He said, ‘what is it?’

They said, ‘You call this tree until it is plucked out with its roots and then it stands before you.’

He said, ‘Surely, Allah is powerful over everything. If Allah does that to you, will you believe and acknowledge the truth?’

They agreed and he said to them, ‘I shall show you what you have requested though I know well that you do not submit to the truth, and I know that there are from among you some ones


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 17:9.
[2] Qur'an, 16:90.


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who shall be thrown into the well and some shall gather parties (against the Prophet and Muslims).’ Then he said, ‘O tree, if you believe in Allah and the Last Day (day of resurrection) and know that I am the messenger of Allah, let you be plucked out with your roots until you stand before me by the will of Allah!’

By Him Who has sent him (the Prophet) with the truth, it was plucked out with its roots and it came having great roar and sound like that of birds’ wings until it stood before the messenger of Allah, and some of its branches touched my shoulders for I was at his (the Prophet) right side. When the men saw that, they said haughtily, ‘Order it that a half of it should come to you and the other half to remain in its place.’ The Prophet ordered the tree, and a half of it came wonderfully roaring until it was about to embrace the messenger of Allah. They disbelievingly and insolently said, ‘Order this half to go back to its other half as it was.’ He ordered it and it came back as it was. I (Imam Ali) said, ‘There is no god but Allah. I am the first one to believe in you O messenger of Allah, and the first one to witness that this tree did what it did by the will of Allah to confirm your prophethood and exalt your mission.’ The men all said, ‘He is but a magician and liar; wonderful and expert in magic. Would anyone believe in your matter except one like this?’ They meant me (Imam Ali).”[1]

No one of those ignorant people, who were occupied by falsehood, believed. Allah says, (and even if they see every sign they will not believe in it).[2] Yes, only Imam Ali, whom Allah had purified from falsehood and uncleanness, believed.

3. The split of the moon

Some polytheists, among whom were al-Waleed bin al-Mughirah, Abu Jahl, al-Aas bin Wa’il, al-Aas bin Hisham, al-


Notes:

[1] Nahjol Balagha, vol. 2 p. 158-159.
[2] Qur'an, 6:25.

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Aswad bin Abd, al-Aswad bin al-Muttalib, Zam’ah bin al-Aswad, an-Nadhr bin al-Harith, and their like, met the Prophet and said to him, “If you are truthful, let you split the moon to us into two halves; one on Abi Qubays and the other on Qayqu’an.”[1]

The Prophet said to them, “If I do, will you believe then?”

They said, “Yes.”

The Prophet prayed Allah to do what those men wanted. It was no long when the moon was split into two halves; one on Abi Qubays and the other on Qayqu’an. The Prophet cried out, “O Abu Salamah bin Abdil Asad and al-Arqam bin al-Arqam, witness this!”

However, no one of them believed. Rather, they all said, “This is fabricated magic.”[2]

The Meccan Suras
As we are still with the Prophet in Mecca, it might be useful to show the Suras that were revealed to him there. They were eighty-six suras, and here are they according to the Qur’anic order:

Al-Fatiha, al-An’am, al-A’raf, Younus, Hud, Yousuf, Ibrahim, al-Hijr, an-Nahl, al-Isra’, al-Kahf, Maryam, Taha, al-Anbiya’, al-Mu’minun, al-Furqan, ash-Shu’ara’, an-Naml, al-Qasas, al-Ankabut, ar-Room, Luqman, as-Sajdah, Saba’, Fatir, Yasin, as-Saffaat, Sad, az-Zumar, Ghafir, Fussilat, ash-Shoora, az-


Notes:

[1] Abu Qubays and Qayqu’an are two mountains in Mecca.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 2 p. 116-117, Sahih of al-Bukhari, vol. 4 p. 243, Sahih of at-Termithi, vol. 3 p. 211, Musnad of Ahmed bin Hanbal, vol. 1 p. 413, As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by Zayni Dahlan, vol. 2 p. 198.

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Zukhruf, ad-Dukhan, aj-Jathiyah, al-Ahqaf, Qaf, ath-Thariyat, at-Toor, an-Najm, al-Qamar, al-Waqi’ah, al-Mulk, al-Qalam, al-Haaqqah, al-Ma’arij, Nooh, al-Jinn, al-Muzzammil, al-Muddaththir, al-Qiyamah, al-Mursilaat, an-Naba’, an-Nazi’aat, Abasa, at-Takweer, al-Infitar, al-Mutaffifin, al-Inshiqaq, al-Burooj, at-Tariq, al-A’la, al-Ghashiyah, al-Fajr, al-Balad, ash-Shams, al-Layl, adh-Dhuha, ash-Sharh, at-Teen, al-Alaq, al-Qadr, al-Aadiyaat, al-Qari’ah, at-Takathur, al-Asr, al-Humazah, al-Feel, Quraysh, al-Ma’oon, al-Kawthar, al-Kafirun, al-Masad, al-Ikhlas, al-Falaq, and an-Naas.[1]

It is worth mentioning that these suras, which were revealed to the Prophet in Mecca, deal with monotheism and the evidences on the existence and oneness of Allah. Most of them do not show the religious rites and the legal obligations. The suras that were revealed in Medina deal with that.


Notes:

[1] Hayat ar-Rasool al-Mustafa, vol. 2 p. 317.

# The Prophet’s emigration to Yathrib
The Prophet was assured as to the homage of the Ansar and he trusted in their loyalty to him and their devotedness in defending the Islamic mission. Yathrib became inaccessible fort of Islam. Many believers emigrated to it and found protection, security, and comfort there. The Prophet decided to emigrate to it and this was one of the most important events in the history of Islam. It was the blessed beginning of the establishment of the Islamic state and the spread of Islam throughout the Arabia.

Worry of Quraysh
When the news of the Prophet’s intention to leave Mecca to Yathrib, which he would take as a center for his mission, reached the people of Quraysh, they got very worried and upset. They used to harm the Prophet with every means they could get at hand. They had home-arrested him in the defile and severely punished the believers who followed him. Therefore, they thought that if he left their country, he might come back to them with an army that they would be unable to stand against, and then he would avenge on them severely. Different thoughts came to their minds and they feared for their interests that the people of Yathrib might cut the ways of their trade to Sham. Anyhow, the Meccans counted the cost of the Prophet’s emigration to Yathrib and took many steps to prevent it.

The chiefs of Quraysh called each other to meet in Dar an-Nadwa which was a house of Qusayy bin Kilab that the people of Quraysh had taken as a place of consultation whenever they faced a problem. The meeting included Utbah, Shaybah, Abu Sufyan, Tu’mah bin Adiy, Jubayr bin Mut’im, al-Harith bin Aamir, an-Nadhr bin al-Harith, ibn al-Bukhturi, Zam’ah bin al-Aswad, Hakeem bin Hizam, Abu Jahl, Nabeeh and Munabbih sons of al-Hajjaj, Umayyah bin Khalaf, and others. Iblis joined



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the meeting in the form of an old man from Najd. One of them opened the meeting saying, “This man (Muhammad) has done as you already have seen. By Allah, we are not safe from his leaping on us with those who have followed him from other than us. Let you agree on one opinion toward him.”

Ibn al-Bukhturi suggested, “Tie him (the Prophet) with iron chains and confine him behind doors. See what had afflicted the poets like him before such as Zuhayr and an-Nabighah and others who died in this way. Thus, he shall meet the same fate.”

The attendants did not agree on this suggestion and they said, “Muhammad’s companions definitely will know about the place of his confinement. They will attack the place and set Muhammad free.”[1]

Al-Aswad bin Rabee’ah al-Aamiry said, “We expel him from our country. When he leaves us, by Allah, we shall not mind wherever he goes or whatever he does. When he is away from us and we are free from him, we shall then repair our affairs and unity as they were…”

The old man of Najd refuted this suggestion saying, “No by Allah, this suggestion is not good for you. Do you not see his (the Prophet) nice speech and good reasoning and his prevailing over men’s hearts by what he says? By Allah, if you do that, you shall not be safe that he may live among a tribe of the Arabs and affect them by his sayings and speeches until they shall follow him. Then, he shall march with them until he shall defeat you in your country and subjugate you, and then he will do to you as he wants. So find an opinion other than this one…”

The attendants approved this saying and gave up al-Aswad’s suggestion. Then Abu Jahl bin Hisham addressed the men


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 125.

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saying, “I have an opinion about him that I see you have not got to yet!”

They asked what it was and he said, “I see that we should take from every tribe a brave young man and we give each of them a sharp sword. They should together go and strike him as a strike of one man and kill him. Thus, we shall be relieved from him. If they do that, his blood (murder) shall be divided among all the tribes, and then Bani Abd Manaf (the Hashemites) shall be unable to fight against all their people…”[1]

All the attendants approved and agreed on this opinion and said, “There is no (accepted) opinion other than this.”[2]

The men, who would carry out this crime, were chosen and the time of the attack against the Prophet’s house was appointed, but the Divine Will disappointed them. (And they planned and Allah (also) planned, and Allah is the best of planners).

The Prophet leaves Mecca
Allah the Almighty instructed His messenger to leave Mecca and emigrate to Yathrib. Allah informed the Prophet of the plot of the polytheists to assassinate him.

On that night, the chosen men surrounded the Prophet’s house waiting for the dawn to let their swords eat the Prophet’s flesh. The people of Quraysh wanted to support their idols and recover their position among the Arabs by getting rid of the messenger of Allah.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 126.
[2] Al-Kamil fit-Tareekh, vol. 2 p. 28, As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 126, Tareekh at-Tabari, vol. 2 p. 243.

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Imam Ali sleeps in the Prophet’s bed
The Prophet informed Imam Ali about what Quraysh had plotted and he asked him to put on his (the Prophet) green garment and sleep in his (the Prophet) bed that night to make those villains believe that he was the Prophet, and thus the Prophet would be safe from killing. Imam Ali received the Prophet’s order with delight and pleasure. He was very happy to be a sacrifice for the messenger of Allah.

The Prophet went out of his house. He took a handful of earth and threw it on the men of Quraysh and said, ‘How ugly, mean faces!’

He went on while reciting, (And We have made before them a barrier and a barrier behind them, then We have covered them over so that they do not see).[1]

The sleeping of Imam Ali in the Prophet’s bed and sacrificing himself for him was a shiny page from his sacred jihad. Allah has revealed about him, (And among people is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of Allah).[2]

Historians mention, “Allah the Almighty vied in glory with Imam Ali before His angels. He revealed to Gabriel and Michael, ‘I have made you as brothers and made the old of one of you longer than the other. Which of you prefer his friend to himself in life?’ Each of them preferred himself to his friend. Allah revealed to them, ‘Would you not be like Ali bin Abi Talib? I have made him as a brother to Muhammad and he slept in his (Muhammad) bed sacrificing him by his self and preferring him to himself in life. Go, you both, down to the earth and protect him from his enemy.’ They came down to the earth. Gabriel was


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 36:9.
[2] Qur'an, 2:207.


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at the head of Ali and Michael at his feet while saying, ‘Who is like you O Ali bin Abi Talib! Allah prides Himself on you before the angels.’ Allah then revealed to His messenger while he was moving towards Medina (Yathrib) this verse about Ali, (And among people is he who sells himself to seek the pleasure of Allah).”[1]

When the light of morning came, the men attacked Imam Ali thinking that he was the Prophet. Imam Ali drew his sword towards them and they were terribly surprised. They shouted at him, “Where is Muhammad?”

He said to them, “Have you made me a guard on him?”

They retreated taking with them disappointment and loss whereas the Prophet had slipped away safely. While he was moving toward Medina, the Prophet supplicated Allah with this supplication,

“Praise be to Allah Who created me when I was nothing. O Allah, assist me in the terror of life, troubles of time, and disasters of nights and days!

O Allah, accompany me in my travel, be my successor to my family, bless what You have endow on me, make me submit to You, affirm me with my good morals, make me, my Lord, love You, and do not make me in need of people!

O Lord of the disabled! You are my Lord. I seek refuge by Your Honorable Face to which the heavens and the earth have shone, and darks have been removed, and the affairs of the firsts and the lasts have been repaired, not to afflict on me Your anger or send down on me Your wrath. I seek Your protection from the


Notes:

[1] Usd al-Ghabah, vol. 4 p. 25, Noor al-Absar, p. 77, Tafsir ar-Razi, vol. 5 p. 223, Musnad of Ahmed bin Hanbal, vol. 1 p. 348, Tareekh Baghdad, vol. 13 p. 191, Mustadrak al-Hakim, vol. 3 p. 4, Tabaqat ibn Sa’d, vol. 8 p. 35.


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disappearance of Your blessing, from Your sudden punishment, the change of Your soundness (to me), and from all Your wrath. I beseech You as possible I can, and there is no power and might save in You.”[1]

The Prophet with Suraqah
Quraysh offered one hundred camels for whoever would arrest the Prophet during his journey to Yathrib. Suraqah bin Malik set out looking for the Prophet. When Suraqah found the Prophet, the Prophet prayed Allah, “O Allah, save me from the evil of Suraqah bin Malik with whatever You will.” Allah responded to his supplication and the legs of Suraqa’s horse sank in the ground. Suraqa said to the Prophet, “What has happened to my horse is from you. Pray Allah to release my horse. By my life, if no good from me came to you, no evil from me shall come to you.” The Prophet prayed Allah and Suraqa’s horse was released. However, Suraqa did not refrain and he chased the Prophet again. His horse’s legs sank in the ground, and he asked the Prophet again to pray Allah for him. This happened three times. In the third time, Suraqa said to the Prophet, “O Muhammad, these are my camels. They are before you and my servant is with them. If you need a mount or milk, you can take from him. This is an arrow from my quiver as a sign, and I will go back to confuse those who will chase you.”

The Prophet said to him, “We are in no need of what you have.”[2]

The Prophet headed for Yathrib after he was saved from the villains of Quraysh. Abu Bakr was with him. They remained


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 2 p. 234.
[2] Rawdhatul-Kafi, p. 263.

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in the cave of Thour[1] for three days. Allah the Almighty sent a couple of pigeons to lay eggs at the bottom of the opening of the cave and a spider to spin its cobweb on the opening. The men of Quraysh wasted no minute in chasing the Prophet. They, headed by Suraqa bin Malik who was an expert tracer, reached the cave. When Suraqa saw the eggs of the pigeons and cobweb, he said to his companions that if anyone entered the cave the eggs and the cobweb would be damaged. The Prophet was seeing and hearing them. He prayed Allah saying, “O Allah, blind their sights!”

Allah blinded their sights and they could not find the Prophet. Abu Bakr was afraid, but the Prophet calmed him down and said to him, “Do not be afraid, for Allah is with us.”

Then, this verse was revealed to the Prophet, (If you will not aid him, Allah certainly aided him when those who disbelieved expelled him, he being the second of the two, when they were both in the cave, when he said to his companion: Grieve not, surely Allah is with us. So Allah sent down His tranquility upon him and strengthened him with hosts which you did not see, and made lowest the word of those who disbelieved; and the word of Allah, that is the highest; and Allah is Mighty, Wise).[2]

When the men of Quraysh was desperate of finding the messenger of Allah, they went back to Mecca. The Prophet had hired two camels; one for him and the other for Abu Bakr. When the men of Quraysh no longer looked for the Prophet, the two camels were brought to him. He and Abu Bakr mounted the camels and set out toward Yathrib.


Notes:

[1] It lies an hour-travel from Mecca.
[2] Qur'an, 9:40.

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Yathrib receives the Prophet
The news got to the people of Yathrib that the messenger of Allah had emigrated towards them. The masses longingly hurried to receive and welcome him. The women began chanting:

“The dawn has come to us

from the defiles of al-Wada’.[1]

Gratefulness has become obligatory on us,

Whenever an inviter invites for Allah.”[2]

Masses of people crowded in the streets crying out; ‘Muhammad has come’, ‘the messenger of Allah has come’, ‘Allahu akbar’.[3] The public, under a halo of ‘Allahu akbar’ gathered together to receive and welcome the Savior who had been sent by Allah to save mankind. It was a memorable day that Yathrib had never seen like before. On the other hand, the Prophet felt delight and satisfaction by that great welcome.

The chiefs of the tribes surrounded the Prophet and each of them looked forward to have the honor of hosting the Prophet in his house. The Prophet thanked them all and said that his she-camel had been ordered (by Allah) to stop at the place that Allah the Almighty had chosen. The she-camel walked being followed by the crowds of people until it reached the house of Abu Ayyoob Khalid bin Zayd. It knelt down and the Prophet dismounted. Abu Ayyoob received the Prophet


Notes:

[1] A valley in Mecca.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 2 p. 269.
[3] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by Zayni Dahlan, vol. 1 p. 172.


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with all regard and honoring, and he considered that as one of Allah’s favors and blessings on him.[1]

The notables, the chiefs, and all classes of Yathrib came to the Prophet welcoming and assuring him of their protection to him and defending his religion. The Prophet thanked and said to them, “You are the most beloved people to me.” He repeated this three times.[2]

The Prophet lived in the ground-floor and Abu Ayyoob lived in the upper floor. Abu Ayyoob felt embraced and very distressed. He said to the Prophet, “I never ascend a roof that you are under it!” It was from Abu Ayyoob’s great politeness, and so the Prophet turned to live in the upper floor.[3]

Abu Ayyoub and his wife served food and offered it to the Prophet. They eagerly ate whatever remained in the dish that they might be blessed by it.[4]

Then, the Prophet built a house near the mosque with adobes and roofed it with palm trucks and fronds.[5]

The population of Yathrib
The Prophet asked Huthayfah bin al-Yaman to record the number of Muslims (in Yathrib), and Huthayfah wrote down to him one thousand and five hundred men.[6]


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 495.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 2 p. 275.
[3] Ibid., p. 278.
[4] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 144, As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 2 p. 2 77.
[5] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 141.
[6] Al-Eeman by ibn Mundah, p. 453, Sharh as-Sunnah, vol. 6 p. 288.


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Most of the inhabitants of Yathrib, which the Prophet took as the capital of his state, responded to embrace Islam. They entered violent wars against the powerful forces of the enemies of Islam that were armed with the most modern arms of that time whereas the Muslim army had no weapons except strong faith and fixed beliefs. Nevertheless, Muslims could defeat the powerful enemies and Allah assisted His religion and honored His messenger, and soon the light of Islam moved to all directions.

It is worth mentioning that the inhabitants of Medina were not the same in their beliefs. There were true believers, hesitant Muslims, and a group of hypocrites who were apparently Muslims whereas their hearts were full of disbelief and grudge against Islam. In Medina, as well, there were the Jews who were the most dangerous enemies to Islam in the past (and are still so in the present). No plot was prepared against Islam except that they supplied it with arms and money. When that was clear to the Prophet, he waged wars against them and warned Muslims against their evils. The last one of the Prophet’s instructions was to expel the Jews from the Arabia as al-Waqidi has mentioned.

Anyhow, most of the inhabitants of Medina were from the tribes of al-Aws and al-Khazraj. Many wars had broken out between them, but the Prophet put an end to their enmity and made them as brothers to each other.

Friday Prayer
When the Prophet came to Medina, he offered Friday Prayer and made this speech before Muslims:

“Praise be to Allah Whom I praise, beseech His assistance, seek His forgiveness, request His guidance, believe and do not disbelieve in Him, feud with whoever disbelieve in Him, and


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bear witness that there is no god but Allah alone with no associate to Him, and that Muhammad is His slave and messenger whom He has sent with guidance and the religion of truth, light, and admonition after a cessation of messengers, littleness of knowledge, deviation of people, elapse of time, approach to the Hour (Last Day), and nearness to the end. Whoever obeys Allah and His messenger is on the right way, and whoever disobeys them goes astray, neglect, and is deviant in absolute deviation.

I recommend you of being pious to Allah, for the best that which a Muslim should recommend a Muslim of is to enjoin him to be pious to Allah, so beware of what Allah has warned you against from Himself, and there is no better than this advice and no better than this reminding. It is piety to whoever follows it with fear and attention, and true assistance to what you intend from the affairs of the afterlife.

Whoever is true in that which is between him and Allah in secret and openness not intending by that except the Face of Allah shall be a (good) mention to him in his life and a provision to him after death when man is in need of what he has done afore, and whatever other than that he shall wish that between him and that (evil) there were a long duration of time; and Allah makes you to be cautious of (retribution from) Himself, and Allah is Compassionate to the servants.

By Him Who is truthful in His saying and has fulfilled His promise, there shall be no renege to that, for He the Great and Almighty says, (My word shall not be changed, nor am I in the least unjust to the servants).[1]

Fear Allah as to your worldly life and afterlife in secret and openness, for He says, (and whoever fears Allah, He will remit


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 50:29.

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from him his evil deeds and will enlarge his reward).[1] And whoever fears Allah shall win a great winning; surely the fear of Allah safeguards against His aversion, safeguards against His punishment, and safeguards against His wrath. And surely the fear of Allah honors the faces, pleases the Lord, and exalts the rank.

Be careful and do not fall short of your duty to Allah. Allah has taught you His Book and made clear to you His path to know those who are true and those who are liars. So do good as Allah has done good to you, feud with His enemies, and strive in the way of Allah in the striving that is His right. He has chosen you and named you Muslims (that he who would perish might perish by clear proof, and he who would live might live by clear proof)[2] and there is no power save in Allah. So increase the remembrance of Allah and work for that which is after death, for whoever repairs what is between him and Allah, Allah will suffice to him what is between him and people that is because Allah determines for people and they do not determine for Him, and He has authority over people and they do not have authority over Him. Allah is great and there is no power save in Allah, the High, the Great.”[3]

The building of the mosque
After no long, the Prophet established the mosque (of the Prophet) to be a center for his government, a school for his teachings, and a place for his worship. The piece of land, which the Prophet wanted to build his mosque on, was called al-Mirbad. After asking about its owner, it was said to him that it


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 65:5.
[2] Qur'an, 8:42.
[3] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 2 p. 299-301, Tareekh at-Tabari, vol. 2 p. 116,117.


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belonged to Sahl and Suhayl sons of Amr. They were orphans secured by Mu’ath bin Afra’. After the owners of the land were satisfied, the Prophet built the mosque which was sixty cubits long and the same in wide. The Prophet himself was one of the workers who participated in the building of the mosque, and so was Imam Ali. After establishing the mosque of the Prophet and his houses, Islam spread everywhere in Medina, and henceforth the great Islamic state was established.


# The battle of Badr
The battle of Badr had a great importance in the history of Islam, for by this battle Allah had given a great victory to the Prophet and his followers, honored his religion, degraded his enemies, and defeated his opponents. In fact, the battle of Badr was the beginning of the raising of the banner of Islam and the conquests of Muslims that reached everywhere.

The trade of Abu Sufyan
The economic life in Mecca depended mainly on the trading to Sham from which the merchants of Mecca brought what their people needed of necessary and luxurious goods. It happened that a great trading caravan of Abu Sufyan set out with seventy men from Quraysh. After buying all the goods needed, the caravan set out back towards Mecca. When the Prophet, who waited for an opportunity to weaken the economic abilities of Quraysh, knew about that, he said to his companions, “Here are the camels (caravan) of Quraysh, get out for them that may Allah make you possess them.”[1]

Abu Sufyan came to know about that; therefore, he feared that Muslims might attack the caravan, kill the young men with him in the caravan, and confiscate their goods.

Abu Sufyan sought the help of Quraysh to protect him and the goods with him. He sent a messenger who arrived in Mecca in a very miserable case after he himself had cut the ears of his camel, broke its nose, and gouged out one of its eyes, and torn his own shirt crying out,

“O people of Quraysh, the caravan! The caravan! Your monies with Abu Sufyan have been attacked by Muhammad and his


Notes:

[1] As spoils of war after fighting the polytheists in the caravan.


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companions, and I see that you may not reach them…help…help!”

This call was like a thunderbolt to the people of Quraysh who were totally terrified, for they feared for their monies and for their chief Abu Sufyan and their young men with him. Therefore, all men of Quraysh hurried up to support Abu Sufyan and protect their trade.

The march of Muslims
The Prophet with his three hundred and five companions, who were armed with faith, set out from Medina on the eighth of Ramadan in the second year of Hijra. They had no enough weapons or equipments. They had seventy camels only that each two, three, or four men of them participated in a camel alternately. The Prophet, Imam Ali, and Marthad bin Abi Marthad participated in a camel. Muslims hastened to follow after Abu Sufyan and his caravan, but they were informed that he had slipped away and the people of Quraysh had come to support him and guard the caravan.

For his high morals, the Prophet used to consult with his companions on different matters, for Allah had said to him, “and consult with them upon the affairs.”[1] Anyhow, after knowing that Quraysh had come to support their trade, the Prophet consulted with his companions. Al-Miqdad bin Amr said to him, “O messenger of Allah, go on to what Allah the Almighty has inspired you with, and we will be with you. By Allah, we will not say to you as the Children of Israel said to Moses, (So go you and your Lord and fight! We will sit here”[2]but we say: go you and your Lord and fight, and we will


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 3:159.
[2] Qur'an, 5:24.

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fight with you. By Him Who has sent you with the truth, if you take us to Bark al-Ghimad,[1] we will strive with you until you win…”

The Prophet thanked al-Miqdad and prayed Allah for him, and then said to his companions, “Suggest to me, O people…” He meant by this the Ansar who were the pillar of his army, for they had paid homage to him in al-Aqaba that they would protect him as they protected their own children and women as long as he was in their country. He also wanted to see whether they were still bound to their covenant and promise to him. Sa’d bin Mu’ath, who understood what the Prophet meant, said, “O messenger of Allah, as if you mean us!”

The Prophet said, “Yes.”

Sa’d added, “We have believed in you and considered you truthful. We have witnessed that what you have brought is the truth and given to you for that our covenants and promises to listen and obey. Therefore, take us to whatever you want. We are with you. By Him Who has sent you with the truth, if you review us before this sea and you plunge into it, we will plunge into it with you and no one man from us will lag behind. We do never hate that you meet by us our enemy tomorrow. We are patient in war and loyal in the meeting that may Allah make you see from us what may delight you. So take us with the blessing of Allah…”

The Prophet was delighted by Sa’d’s speech and he said to his companions, “Go on and be delighted! Allah has promised


Notes:

[1] A very far place in Yemen or it is also said in Abyssinia.

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me of one of the two parties.[1] By Allah, as if I am seeing now the deaths of the people (of Quraysh).”

And what the Prophet said came true; that after a few days the chiefs and the notables of Quraysh were killed and their bodies were thrown into the well.

The Prophet began inquiring the news of Quraysh, their place, and their numbers. He asked some of his companions, at the head of whom was Imam Ali, to bring him the necessary information about the opponents. Imam Ali went out with his group and could arrest two young men from Quraysh. After questioning these two young men, the Prophet knew that the army of Quraysh was about nine hundred or one thousand armed men among whom were the most prominent chiefs and notables of Quraysh. Then he said to his companions, “This is Mecca that has cast to you the apples of its eye…”

Yes, Mecca sent the dearest of its people to be degraded and avenged by Allah the Almighty and be killed by the most honored men of His people and the guards of His religion.

Muslims waited for the passing of Abu Sufyan to attack him with his caravan, but he slipped away after having known the way that Muslims had followed.

Abu Sufyan sent a messenger to the people of Quraysh telling them that the trade caravan was safe and asking them to go back to Mecca. Many of them approved this suggestion, but Abu Jahl said to them, “We do not go back until we go to Badr and remain there three days. Then, we slaughter camels, have food, drink wine, and songstresses play (and sing) to us, so that the


Notes:

[1] Either to obtain the camels with their goods or to fight the polytheists and win the victory.


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Arabs will hear about that and they will fear us.” Some men responded and remained with him and others went back to Mecca.

The Muslims stopped at the valley of Dahas which was a plain place that if they whenever wanted to leave, they could, but the people of Mecca stopped at a rough place that if they wanted to leave, they could not easily. That was from the wrath of Allah against them.

Anyhow, this place that the Prophet and the Muslims stopped at was not good for battling. Al-Hubab bin al-Munthir said to the Prophet, “O messenger of Allah, has Allah the Almighty ordered you to stop at this place that you should neither exceed nor stay behind, or it is the opinion, the war, and the trick?”

The Prophet said, “No, but it is the opinion, the war, and the trick.”

Al-Hubab said, “O messenger of Allah, this is not a suitable place. March with the people until we reach the nearest well to the people (the opponents) to stop there. Then, we bury all the wells around that well and we build a pool around it and fill it with water. Then, we begin fighting them, and so we will have water to drink, but they won’t.” The Prophet approved this suggestion because an army would be most in need of water. The Prophet and his army marched until they reached the nearest well, and then they built a pool around it and filled it with water.

Quraysh sent Umayr bin Wahab al-Jumahi to see the number of warriors in the Muslim army. He went on his horse roving around the Muslims’ camp, and then came back saying to his people that Muslims were about three hundred a few more or a few less. Then, he went roving in the valley around them to see whether the Muslims had ambushes or aids. He came back



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saying to his people, “I found nothing, but, O people of Quraysh, I saw disasters bearing deaths. The camels of Yathrib carry terrible death. They are people that have no protection or a shelter except their swords. By Allah, I see that no man of them is killed except after killing a man from you. If they kill from you like their number, then what good is there in living after that?”

Yes, his insight was true. The camels of (Yathrib) Medina carried lions supplied with faith and longing for martyrdom in the way of Allah, whereas the army of Quraysh was sinking in amusement and impudence.

Utbah bin Rabee’ah advised Quraysh saying, “I see death-defying people that you shall not reach…O people, tie it to my head today and say: ‘Utba bin Rabee’a has become coward’, though you know well that I am not coward…”

Utbah, who was one of the most reasonable and aware men of his tribe, wanted to spare his people’s lives and properties. The Prophet looked at him while riding a red camel and said to his companions, “If there is goodness in one of the people (of Quraysh), it shall be in the man of the red camel; if they obey him, they will be saved…”

Abu Jahl said, “We will not go back until Allah will judge between us and Muhammad…it is not as what Utbah said, but he saw that Muhammad and his companions eat fat camels (or sheep) and that his son is with them, so he feared from you for him (his son).”




However, Quraysh did not turn to reason, but they insisted on fighting the Prophet who said to his companions, “By him in Whose hand the soul of Muhammad is, no man of you fights them and is killed patiently, expecting (the reward of Allah), attacking and not running away, except that Allah will take him to the Paradise…” These words inspired power, determination,


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and activeness in them and made them rush most determinedly to fight the enemies of Allah.

The battle
The fight began on Friday morning, the seventeenth of Ramadan in the second year of Hijrah (15th of January, 624 AD). It was Quraysh that opened the door of the war when Utbah bin Rabee’ah, Shaybah, and al-Waleed, who were from the famous heroes of Quraysh, advanced to challenge. Young men from the Ansar advanced, but Utbah disdained them and was occupied with haughtiness that he said, “We do not want these, but we want our cousins from the children of Abdul Muttalib to duel with us.”

The Prophet ordered Imam Ali (his cousin), Hamza (his uncle), and Ubaydah (his cousin) to advance for the fight. The men of Quraysh accepted and the fight began. Hamza killed Shayba, Imam Ali killed al-Waleed, and Ubaydah and Utbah struck each other. Ubaydah’s leg was cut and Utba was killed after Imam Ali and Hamza hastened to support Ubaydah. The hearts of Quraysh were filled with rage and terror that their heroes were killed at the beginning.

The Prophet raised his hands towards his Lord praying, “O Allah, this is (the tribe of) Quraysh that has come with its arrogance trying to falsify Your messenger. O Allah, (grant to me) Your victory that You have promised to me. O Allah, if this group (of Muslims) perishes today, You shall be not worshipped…”

The two armies clashed; the Prophet’s companions strived to support Allah, His messenger, and the Word of Islam, whereas the men of Quraysh strived to support their idols and bad habits. However, Allah cast terror and fear in the hearts of the


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men of Quraysh and the Muslims’ swords began harvesting their heads one after the other.

Imam Ali showed indescribable courage in this battle though too young. He was the striking power in the Muslim army that penetrated the army of the polytheists and killed whoever met him. The angels were astonished at his courage and Gabriel called out in the space, “No sword except Thul Faqar,[1] and no young man except Ali.”[2]

Allah granted the great victory in this battle to His messenger; honored him and degraded his enemies and made their bodies scatter here and there in the battlefield surrounded by curse and lasting disgrace. From the chiefs of Quraysh that were killed in this battle were Abu Jahl, by whose killing the Prophet was delighted and said: “It is Allah that there is no god but Him”, Umayyah bin Khalaf, who was the head of disbelief and the most excessive in torturing the first Muslims especially Bilal, an-Nadhr bin al-Harith, who was one of the most spiteful polytheists to Islam, Utbah bin Rabee’ah, who was the most hostile to the Prophet, and Shayba bin Rabee’a. Most of the men of Quraysh, who were killed in this battle, were killed by the sword of Imam Ali who killed more than thirty-four men from the heroes and famous warriors of Mecca.

The Prophet ordered the carcasses of the polytheists to be thrown in the well, and then he stopped at the well and said addressing the killed ones,

“O people of the well! O Utbah bin Rabee’ah, O Shaybah bin Rabee’ah, O Umayyah bin Khalaf, O Abu Jahl bin Hisham… (he mentioned the names of some of them who were excessive in


Notes:

[1] The name of Imam Ali’s famous sword given to him by the Prophet that Gabriel had brought down from the heaven as traditions mention.
[2] Kanzol Ummal, vol. 3 p. 154.


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harming him), have you found really what your god had promised you? I have found really what my Lord had promised me.”

The Prophet’s companions were astonished why the Prophet talked to the dead, and he replied to them, “You are not more listening to what I say than them, but they cannot reply to me.”

In another narration, it has been mentioned that the Prophet said to the killed people in the well, “O people of the well, the worst tribe to your prophet you were; you denied me while (other) people believed me, exiled me while people sheltered me, and fought me while people supported me.”

Seventy men from Quraysh were taken prisoners, some of whom were set free after paying ransom that was four thousand dirhams. The Prophet ordered those, who could not pay the ransom and who knew writing and reading, to teach the children of Muslims writing and reading instead of the ransom. The Prophet ordered his companions to be kind to the prisoners and to treat them very well.

The results of battle
The battle of Badr left very important results to Muslims. Here are some of them:

1. The prevalence of Islam

After the battle of Badr, Islam prevailed and Muslims became so powerful morally and materially. This battle was the mother of victories that encouraged Muslims to face courageously the severest wars that their enemies waged against them. It is worth mentioning that when the battle of Badr came to an end, Imam Ali was the real hero that by his sword he harvested the heads of evil and polytheism.



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2. The fear of Quraysh

The victory of Muslims in the battle of Badr caused a wave of fear and terror in the hearts of the people of Quraysh and the polytheists of the Arabs. Since the tribe of Quraysh was the strongest of the Arabs in power and all other abilities and it was defeated by Muslims, so the other Arab tribes became certain that they would not be able to stand against the Muslims.

3. The sorrow of Quraysh

Quraysh felt great sorrow for the great loss in men and in properties. They concealed their sorrows for fear that the Muslims might rejoice at that. Hind, the wife of Abu Sufyan and mother of Mo’awiya, said addressing her sons, brothers, and other relatives who were killed in this battle, “How can I weep for you that it may reach Muhammad and his companions and so they will rejoice at our loss? No by Allah, until I revenge on Muhammad and his companions. Make-up is impermissible to me until we shall attack Muhammad.” Abu Sufyan also swore that he would never sleep with his wife (until they would avenge).[1] Their poets composed many poems full of deep sorrow and sadness elegizing in them their killed men.

4. The delight of Muslims

On the other hand, the Muslims were joyful and delighted by this great victory in this battle where Allah affirmed their religion and disgraced their enemies. Many of their poets composed famous poems on this occasion.


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 20.

# The battle of Uhud
The people of Quraysh received the news of their defeat and their great loss in men and properties with great sorrow and grief. The most of them in sorrow and distress were Abu Sufyan and his wife Hind who prohibited to herself and to the men and women of Quraysh the weeping on their killed men so that their sorrow would remain inside them until they would avenge on Muslims.

The leadership of Abu Sufyan
In the battle of Uhud,[1] Abu Sufyan was the head of Quraysh and the first leader of the war. He succeeded in taking the masses of people to fight against the messenger of Allah. He asked the merchants and the wealthy people of Quraysh to assist him with their monies in the war against the Prophet, and they responded to him. They gave him monies as he liked to buy weapons and equipments. Concerning this battle, sixty verses from the Sura of Aal Imran were revealed to the Prophet.

The people of Quraysh agreed unanimously on the war followed by the tribes of Kinanah, Tihama, and their allies. Historians say that the army of Quraysh was about three thousand men, whereas the army of Muslims was about seven hundred men.

All men of Quraysh went out to fight the Prophet. They accompanied with them their women because that would encourage them to fight defiantly. Abu Sufyan took with him his wife Hind bint Utbah, and so did the chiefs and notables of Quraysh. The women of Quraysh were behind the men


Notes:

[1] Uhud is a famous mountain in Medina where this battle took place on Saturday, 11th of Shawwal in the third year of Hijra and took the name of this mountain. Refer to as-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by Zayni Dahlan, printed in the margins of as-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 19.

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drumming on the tambourine headed by Hind (Abu Sufyan’s wife) who aroused the enthusiasm of the men by reciting stanzas and verses of poetry. On the other side, her husband Abu Sufyan was encouraging the men to put out the light of Allah and quench the mission of Islam. When Quraysh arrived in al-Abwa’, Hind suggested to dig out the tomb of the Prophet’s mother, and later on if some men from Quraysh were taken prisoners, they would be ransomed for each part of the Prophet’s mother, but the people of Quraysh refused this suggestion and said, “Let this door not be opened; otherwise, they (Muslims) will unearth the graves of our deads when they come.”[1]

The Prophet consults with his companions
As usual, the Prophet consulted with his companions on the political and military affairs except when it was revealed to him from the heaven concerning those affairs. He suggested to them either to go out of Medina to repel the army of Quraysh there, or to remain in Medina waiting for the enemies to fight them in the town. His companions disagreed on the matter. Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool thought that they should remain in Medina, whereas others said, “O messenger of Allah, lead us out to our enemies. Let them not think that we are coward or weak.” The Prophet responded to them unwillingly. He got prepared and set out followed by about one thousand warrior.

The Prophet marched with the army and when they were at some place between Medina and the mountain of Uhud, Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool, who was from the heads of the hypocrites, slipped away with the third of the army.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 268.


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The Prophet went on with seven hundred warriors until they stopped at the slope of the valley and made the mountain of Uhud behind them. He ordered fifty archers led by Abdullah bin Jubayr to remain on the top of the mountain and not to leave it in order to guard the backs of Muslims. The Prophet said to Abdullah, “Shoot the horsemen with arrows and do not let them attack us from behind us. If we win or not, let you not leave your place.”

In another narration, it is related that the Prophet said to the archers, “If you see that we are attacked, do not leave (your place) until I will send to you a messenger, and if you see that we have won and defeated the people, do not leave until I will send you a messenger.”[1]

If this troop of the army had followed the order of the Prophet, the Muslims would not have met that defeat and the losses of men.

The war
Quraysh opened the door to the war when Talha bin Abi Talha advanced crying out, “O companions of Muhammad, you claim that Allah takes us soon to the Fire by your swords and takes you soon to the Paradise by our swords. Then, which of you will come out to me?”

The hero of Islam and lion of Allah and of His messenger Imam Ali advanced saying, “By Allah, I will not leave you until I will send you soon to the Fire by my sword.”

Imam Ali struck the man with his sword and cut his leg, and he fell down to the ground. Imam Ali wanted to finish off him, but he begged him by Allah and kinship to leave him alone, and Imam Ali left him alone, but after an hour he


Notes:

[1] As-Seerah al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 222.


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died. The Prophet was delighted by his death and so were the rest of Muslims,[1] because he was called ‘the ram of the battalion’ for his courage. By his killing fear and weakness overcame the people of Quraysh and they felt as if they were defeated from the beginning. After Talha, the heroes and courageous fighters advanced to duel with the Muslims, but Ameerul Mo'minin Imam Ali harvested their heads one after the other. Their morale collapsed and they became certain that they were going to perish.

Hind, Mo’awiya’s mother, was in the middle of the battlefield enthusing the army of Quraysh to keep on fighting the Muslims. Whenever a man from Quraysh ran away, she offered to him a kohl jar and a stick saying to him, “You are but a woman, so darken your eyes (with this kohl).”[2] Her zeal was not less than her husband’s who as well encouraged and enthused his men in all ways. He said to the people of (the tribe of) Abdid-Dar, who were the carriers of the army’s banner, “You were entrusted with our banner on the Day of Badr, and we were afflicted with what you had already seen. Surely, people are attacked from the direction of their banners which when are defeated they (people) shall be defeated. Either you suffice us our banner, or you leave it to us that we will suffice you it.” By this saying, he provoked their emotions and they considered that as scolding and despising. Therefore, they said to him, “Do we give up our banner to you?! You shall see tomorrow when we will meet how we will do.” Indeed, it was this that Abu Sufyan intendeds.


Notes:

[1] Noor al-Absar, p. 78.
[2] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 23.


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The Prophet and his companions
Abu Dujanah was one of the best companions. He was very courageous at war. The Prophet had a sword in his hand. He said, “Who will take this sword for its right?”

Abu Dujanah said, “What is its right, O messenger of Allah?”

The Prophet said, “To strike with it in the face of the enemy until it (the sword) is bent.”

Abu Dujanah said, “I take it, O messenger of Allah, for its right.”

He took the sword and attacked the polytheists. He killed everyone he met. He attacked Hind, Mo’awiya’s mother, and was about to beat her head, but he gave up loftily.[1] In another narration it has been mentioned that he said, “I honored the sword of the messenger of Allah in not hitting by it a woman.”[2] Thus were the situations of the Prophet’s companions. They were honest, noble, and lofty.

The murder of Hamza
Hamza bin Abdul Muttalib, the Prophet’s uncle, was a very brave hero before and after Islam. He was a very faithful Muslim who defended Islam boldly. He was the striking force in the Muslim army. In the battle of Uhud, he was assassinated by Wahshi, a villain, sinful slave who was incited by Hind, Abu Sufyan’s wife, who lost several men from her family in the battle of Badr. She promised Wahshi to offer him many things if he would kill Hamza. Wahshi also was incited by his master Jubayr bin Mut’im who promised to set him free (from slavery) if he would kill Hamza.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 3 p. 73.
[2] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 227.

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When Hamza was martyred, Hind became very joyful and delighted. She hurried to the battlefield looking for Hamza’s body to satisfy her grudge against him. When she found him, she cut open his abdomen, took out his liver, and chewed it, but she could not swallow it, so she throw it away, and then she cut his nose, ears, and genitals, and she took them as a necklace. The women with her did the same thing to the bodies of the other martyrs.[1] By doing this, Hind thought that she would satisfy her soul that was filled with spite and grudge against Hamza.

Hind thanked Wahshi for his assassinating of Hamza and she gave him her necklaces, earrings, and one of her bondmaids.

Abu Sufyan as well went looking for Hamza’s body to satisfy his grudge too. When he found him, he began beating his mouth with his spear. In fact, all the Umayyad family had been brought up with vices, betrayal, disloyalty, and rejoicing at others’ distresses. There was no one honest, noble, or generous from among them.

The Prophet’s sorrow
The Prophet with a group from his companions went looking for his uncle’s body, and when he found it, he was shocked because he found that his uncle’s body had been maimed. He said sadly and angrily, “I will not be afflicted with one like you at all. I have not been in a situation more hurting to me than this…if Allah makes me prevail over Quraysh in a battle from the battles, I will maim thirty men from them.”[2]

And on this occasion, Allah revealed to the Prophet these verses, (If you punish, then punish with the like of that


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 3 p. 74.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 95.

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wherewith you were afflicted. But if you endure patiently, verily it is better for the patient. And be patient and your patience is not but by (the assistance of) Allah, and grieve not for them, and do not distress yourself at what they plot).[1] Therefore, the Prophet became patient and gave up. And then, he prohibited the maiming even if against a biting dog.

The Prophet enshrouded his uncle with his own garment, put the other martyrs beside him, and offered the prayer on them seventy-two times.[2] Then he himself buried his uncle while shedding tears and feeling deep sorrow. He said addressing his martyred uncle, “O you the uncle of the messenger of Allah, the lion of Allah, and the lion of His messenger. O you, the doer of goodness, the reliever of distresses, O Hamza the defender of the messenger of Allah!”[3]

The women of the Ansar held meetings of mourning on their killed men. When the Prophet passed by them, he said, “But there are no mourners for Hamza!” So the women of the Ansar informed each other about the saying of the Prophet and said, “Do not weep for your killed ones until you weep for the Prophet’s uncle.” Then, the women held meetings of mourning for Hamza the Prophet’s uncle.

The martyrdom of Mus’ab
Mus’ab was one of the noblest young men of Quraysh and one of the most pious Muslims. He tolerated different kinds of torture in the way of Allah and faced many calamities from the polytheists of Quraysh. At the beginning of the mission, the Prophet sent him as a deputy to Medina to invite the


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 16:126-127.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 97.
[3] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 246.


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people there to Islam. A great number of people there turned Muslims at his hand. In the battle of Uhud, he was one of the prominent leaders and he did very well in the battle until he was martyred. He was killed by ibn Qam’ah al-Laythi who thought he was the Prophet, and therefore, he cried out in the middle of the battlefield, “I killed Muhammad.”

The Prophet felt great pain for the loss of Mus’ab as Muslims lost one of their great leaders who were so loyal and faithful in defending Islam.

The rout of the polytheists
Muslims, and especially Imam Ali, killed the bearers of the polytheists’ banners and most of their leaders. Their army fled followed by their women, who were crying and wailing and uncovering their legs in utmost meanness and disgrace, towards the mountain. It was not long when everything was upside-down.

The defeat of Muslims
Muslims suffered great loss in men and they faced a disaster that was about to do away with Islam. That was because when the archers, whom the Prophet had ordered to remain on the mountain to back the army lest the enemy might attack from behind, saw that the polytheists were defeated and saw them run away leaving behind them their arms and baggage, they left their places on the mountain and hurried to the battlefield to plunder the arms and baggage of the enemy. When Khalid bin al-Waleed, who was from the leaders of Quraysh then, saw that, he attacked with his men the Prophet’s companions from behind while they were unaware. He killed many of them most of whom were prominent leaders in the army of the Prophet. This disaster was the result of the archers’ disobedience to the Prophet’s order.



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When the Prophet saw this painful defeat that his army faced, he raised his hands towards the heaven praying,

“O Allah, all praise be to You.

O Allah, there is no straitening to what You enlarge and no enlarging to what You straiten, no guide to whom You make astray and no deviator to whom You guide, no giver to whom You deprive and no depriver to whom You give, no approacher to what You isolate and no isolator to what You approach.

O Allah, give to us Your blessings, mercy, favor, and sustenance.

O Allah, I ask You for the permanent bliss that does not change or disappear.

O Allah, I ask You for security on the Day of Fear and richness on the Day of Neediness.

O Allah, I am seeking Your protection from the evil of what You have given to us and what You have not given to us.

O Allah, endear to us faith and adorn it into our hearts, and make disbelief, apostasy, and disobedience hateful to us, and make us from the prosperous.

O Allah, make us die Muslims and join us to the righteous; neither disgraced nor tempted.

O Allah, fight the disbelievers who deny Your messengers and keep (people) away from Your way.

O Allah, send down on them Your wrath and torment, O You the Lord of the truth.”[1]

He also invoked Allah in the battlefield with this invocation, “O Allah, praise be to You, to You is the complaint, and You are the Assistant.”


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol.3 p. 77.

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Then Gabriel came down saying to him, “You have invoked with the invocation of Abraham when he was thrown into the fire and of Jonah when he was inside the whale.”[1]

The struggle of Umm Imarah
From the great women who had a distinguished role in the battle was the Prophet’s companions Umm Imarah. She did very well in this battle. Umm Sa’d bint Sa’d bin ar-Rabee’ asked Umm Imarah about her jihad before the Prophet and she replied, “In the morning I went to Uhud to see what people were doing. I had with me a skin full of water. I went to the Prophet who was among his companions while the Muslims were prevalent. When the Muslims were defeated, I surrounded the messenger of Allah and began fighting to defend him by the sword and shooting arrows until I was wounded with many wounds.”

In her shoulder there was a deep wound. Umm Sa’d asked her who wounded her and she said, “It was Ibn Qam’ah, may Allah lower him. When people (Muslims) left the messenger of Allah, he (Ibn Qam’ah) came saying, “Show me Muhammad! Let me not be saved if he is saved.” I, Mus’ab bin Umayr, and some people, who remained fixed with the messenger of Allah, blocked his way and he struck me this one, and I struck him for it many strikes, but the enemy of Allah (Ibn Qam’ah) had put on two armors.”[2] Umm Aymen, another great companion, also had a great role in this battle. She looked after the wounded warriors…[3]

Villains try to kill the Prophet
Utbah bin Abi Waqqas, one of the most hostile polytheists to the Prophet, hit the Prophet with a rock and broke his


Notes:

[1] Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 19 p. 131.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol.3 p. 67.
[3] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 227.

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front teeth. The Prophet prayed Allah against him saying, “O Allah, let the year not complete to him until he shall die a disbeliever.”

Allah responded to His messenger and this villain was killed on that very day by Hatib bin Abi Balta’ah who took his (Utbah) sword and horse and brought them before the Prophet. The Prophet was pleased and said to him, “May Allah be pleased with you.”[1]



Umayyah bin Khalaf was also a very bitter enemy to the Prophet. When he met him in Mecca, he said to him, “O Muhammad, I have al-Awth (the name of his horse); everyday I feed it with a great deal of corn so that I will kill you on it.”

The Prophet replied to him, “But it is me who will kill you by the will of Allah.”

In the battle of Uhud, this villain came towards the Prophet crying out, “O liar, where shall you run away?”

Some Muslims blocked his way, but the Prophet ordered them to clear the way for him. The Prophet took a bayonet and threw it at Umayyah and it scratched his neck. He shouted out, “Muhammad killed me.”

His fellow men said to him, “You have lost your mind! You often took arrows out of your ribs, and this is not but a scratch.”

He said to them, “If this, which is in me, is in the people of Thil Majaz, Rabee’ah, Mudhar, or the whole people of the earth, they will die. If he spits at me, he will kill me.” He died on his coming back to Mecca.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2, p. 233.


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Danger surrounds the Prophet
When most of Muslims ran away from the battlefield, dangers surrounded the Prophet and he was wounded by the enemies. His front teeth were broken and his upper lip was cut and it bled on his holy face. He wiped the blood while saying, “How would a people, who stained (with blood) the face of their prophet while inviting them to Allah, be successful?”[1]

He fell into a hole that Abu Aamir had dug and concealed so that Muslims would fell into unknowingly. Imam Ali, held the Prophet’s hand and Talha lifted him (by the other) until he stood up.[2]

Abu Sufyan asked some man to call out in the battlefield that Muhammad had been killed. When the Muslims heard that, they ran away here and there. Some companions tried to write to Abu Sufyan asking him for protection.

However, Imam Ali defended the Prophet against the polytheists so courageously. The Prophet asked him, “O Ali, what did people (Muslims) do?”

Imam Ali said, “They broke the covenant and ran away.’

A group from Quraysh attacked the Prophet who said to Imam Ali, “Suffice me against these people!”

Imam Ali attacked them and they ran away. Another group of about fifty men attacked the Prophet who again said to Imam Ali, “Suffice me against these people!” He attacked them and killed four men from the children of Sufyan bin Uwayf as he killed six men from the first battalion. A third battalion attacked the Prophet headed by Hisham bin Umayyah who was killed by the imam and the rest of his men fled. A


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo’minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 18.
[2] Ibid.


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fourth group headed by Bishr bin Malik attacked the Prophet. Imam Ali killed Bishr and the group ran away.

Thus, Imam Ali protected the Prophet after harvesting the heads of the heroes of Quraysh. Gabriel was astonished at Imam Ali’s great struggl in defending the Prophet; therefore, he (Gabriel) said to the Prophet, “This comfort (of Imam Ali) has astonished the angels.”

The Prophet said to him, “And what prevents him from that since he is from me and I am from him.”

Gabriel added proudly, “And I am from you both.”[1]

In this ordeal, Imam Ali was beside the Prophet as a sacrifice to him. He met sixteen strikes that sent him down to the ground but Gabriel lifted him up. [2]

Then, a group of truthful Muslims hurried to defend the Prophet from among whom there were:

1. Anas bin an-Nadhr

When the Muslims fled and Abu Sufyan rumored that the Prophet had been killed, Anas bin an-Nadhr faced the Muslims and said determinedly, “What do you do with life after him (the Prophet). Die for what he died for.” He fought courageously until he was martyred.[3]

2. Thabit bin ad-Dahdaha

He was one of the heroes and prominent Muslims. When he saw the defeat of Muslims and heard the caller of Abu Sufyan calling out that Muhammad had been killed, he said to the Ansar, “O people of the Ansar, come to me! Come to me! I am Thabit bin


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 18.
[2] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 18.
[3] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 246.

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ad-Dahdaha. If Muhammad was killed, surely Allah is alive that never dies. Defend your religion, and surely Allah will support and make you prevail.”

Some men from the Ansar responded to him, and they together attacked a group of men from Quraysh among whom were Khalid bin al-Waleed, Amr bin al-Aas, Ikrimah bin Abi Jahl, and Dhirar bin al-Khattab. Khalid bin al-Waleed killed him by his spear and killed the men with him.[1]

3. Abu Dujanah

He was one of the prominent mujahidin. He bent his back before the Prophet to protect him against arrows lest no one would hit him.

4. Ziyad bin Imarah

He did very well in defending the Prophet. The arrows and spears of Quraysh hit him until he fell to the ground unconscious. He was carried to the Prophet and he put his head on the Prophet’s leg, but after no long his soul went high towards its Creator.[2]

5. Abu Talha

he was too sincere in defending the Prophet and sacrificing him by himself. He was expert in archery. He spread his quiver before the Prophet and said to him, “My soul is sacrificed for your soul, and my face is a guard for your face.”

He kept on shooting his arrows against the enemy army, and the Prophet ordered some man to put arrows near to him. The Prophet was overlooking the enemy when Abu Talha was shooting. He said to the Prophet, “O prophet of Allah, may


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 246.
[2] Ibid., p. 231.

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my father and mother die for you! Do not overlook them lest an arrow from their arrows hits you. May my neck be the sacrifice for yours.”[1]

6. Amr bin al-Jamuh

He was one of the best Muslims. He was lame having four courageous sons who all fought with the Prophet in all his battles. In the battle of Uhud, they wanted to prevent their father from going to the war saying to him, “Allah the Almighty has excused you because you are lame. He has exempted you from jihad.”

He was not satisfied, and he hurried to the Prophet saying to him sadly, “My children want to prevent me from this way, but, by Allah, I hope that I shall walk with my lameness in the Paradise.”

The Prophet said to him, “As for you, Allah has excused you and there is no jihad on you.”

When the Prophet saw his eagerness to gain martyrdom, he said to his children, “You may not prevent him that Allah may grant to him martyrdom.”

He left the Prophet pleasedly and delightedly. He fought courageously in the battlefield until he was martyred.[2]

7. Sa’d bin ar-Rabee’

He gave a wonderful picture of faith and heroism in Islam. He fought everywhere in the battlefield. The Prophet was very careful of him. He asked his companions to look for him. Some man from the Ansar went looking for him and he found him breathing his last. He came near and said to him, “The


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 231.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 3 p. 73,74.


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messenger of Allah ordered me to see whether you are alive or dead.”

He said to him faintly, “I am dead. Inform the messenger of Allah and said to him that Sa’d bin ar-Rabee’ says to you: may Allah reward you with all goodness as ever He has rewarded a prophet on behalf of his nation. And send my greeting to your people and say to them: Sa’d bin ar-Rabee’ says to you: there shall be no excuse to you near Allah if your prophet is touched while there is an eye twinkling among you.” After no long, his soul left high to the heaven.[1]

8. Aasim bin Umar bin Qatadah

His eye was hit in the battle and it fell down on his cheek, but the Prophet returned it by his hand. After that, it was the best and sharpest one of his eyes. His children often prided on this charisma.

9. Al-Usayrim

He was Amr bin Thabit from bani Abd al-Ashhal who became Muslim on the Day of Uhud. He held his sword and joined the Muslim army. He was wounded and he fell to the ground in the battlefield. Some men from his tribe, who had come to look for their killed men, saw him and said to each other, “This is al-Usayrim. What brought him here whereas he denied Islam?” They asked him, “What brought you here O Amr! Is it a pity for your people or love to Islam?” He said, “But it’s the love of the Prophet of Islam. I believed in Allah and His messenger and turned a Muslim. Then, I took my sword and came with the messenger of Allah. I fought until I faced what I faced.” Soon, he died between them. They mentioned that to the messenger of


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 3, p. 78. Sa’d was one of the chiefs on the Night of al-Aqabah.


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Allah who said, “He is from the people of the Paradise.” In another tradition it was mentioned that the Prophet said, “He has entered the Paradise.” He offered no prayer,[1] because he was martyred on the same day when he turned a Muslim, and (the faith in) Islam would cancel whatever (sin) before.

10. Mukhayreeq

He was from Bani Tha’labah. On the Day of Uhud, he said to the Jews, “O community of the Jews, you have already known that the supporting of Muhammad is obligatory on you.” Then he took his sword and said, “If I am killed, all my possessions should be for Muhammad. He can do with them whatever he likes.”

He joined the Prophet in Uhud and fought with him until he was killed. The Prophet possessed his (Khuwayreeq) properties and made them entailment in the way of Allah, and this was the first entailment in Medina.[2]

The end of the war
The war ended with the victory of Quraysh and the defeat of Muslims. Many Muslim leaders and famous companions were martyred in this battle. The Prophet declared that this was the last battle where Muslims were defeated. He said to Imam Ali, “The polytheists shall not defeat us like it (this battle) at all until Allah will grant to us victory.”[3]

Anyhow, Abu Sufyan left the battlefield with his army while filled with joy and delight.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 3 p. 73.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 3 p. 72.
[3] Ibid., p. 84.

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The Prophet and his companions buried the martyrs in the very place of the battle. Many of the martyrs were from the memorizers of the Holy Qur'an where a fragrance like that of musk emanated from their tombs. Some carried their killed men to Medina, but the Prophet returned them to the battlefield where they were martyred.[1]

In the year forty of Hijra, Mo’awiyah the son of Hind made water flow in this graveyard and ordered people to move their deads to another place and they did while the graveyard was wet.[2] He did that to avenge himself on them, though it is impermissible to violate the tombs of Muslims, but they must be revered especially the tombs of martyrs. Anyhow, Mo’awiya the son of Abu Sufyan did that, because he was too far from the principles and rulings of Islam.

The Prophet marches with his army to fight Abu Sufyan
The Prophet ordered his companions, who were still in the battlefield and especially those who fought with him, to move on for fight. They responded to him and set out. Then Allah revealed about them this verse, (As for those who heard the call of Allah and His messenger after the harm befell them (in the fight); for such of them who do right and ward off (evil), there is great reward).[3]

The Muslim army marched until it arrived in Hamra’ al-Asad, eight miles from Medina. The Prophet and his army remained there three days and then they went back to Medina. This was a wonderful military plan that the Prophet


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 250.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Qur'an, 3:172.

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planned to make Abu Sufyan, who regretted for going back to Mecca without keeping on fighting and doing away with the rest of Muslims especially after obtaining the victory over them, think that the Prophet had prepared an army stronger than his and that the army was on the way to chase him and his army.

Ma’bad al-Khuza’iy was a polytheist, but he was loyal to the Prophet. He passed by the Prophet while he was in Hamra’ al-Asad and said to him, “O Muhammad, by Allah, it was painful to us what happened unto your companions. We liked that Allah might save them to you.” Then he left the Prophet and set out towards Mecca. In ar-Rawha’, he met with Abu Sufyan who decided to come back to fight the Prophet again after the people of Quraysh had said to him, “We have killed the leaders and the heroes of Muhammad’s army and we want to return to do away with the rest of them.” Abu Sufyan said to Ma’bad, “What do you have, Ma’bad?”

Ma’bad said, “Muhammad has set out chasing you with a gathering that I have never seen like it. They feel burning desires to fight you. Those, who had left him (the Prophet), joined him and regretted for what they did. They had anger against you that I have never seen like it.”

Abu Sufyan felt fear and said worriedly, “Woe unto you! What are you saying?”

Ma’bad said, “By Allah, I see that you shall not leave until you shall see the forelocks of horses.”

Abu Sufyan said, “We have already determined to do away with them.”

Ma’bad said, “But I see that you may not go on that…” He recited to him some verses of poetry on the matter that made



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Abu Sufyan give up his intention to fight again, and this was a victory to Islam.

The results of the battle of Uhud
The battle of Uhud left, on the Islamic side, some painful consequences such as:

1. The joy of Quraysh

The people of Quraysh went back to Mecca playing the trumpets of victory for what they achieved against the Muslims and the great losses they caused to them in lives and properties. The most delighted ones of them at all were Abu Sufyan, his wife Hind, and the Umayyads who felt they had avenged themselves on the Prophet by killing his uncle Hamza and the other heroes of Muslims. Before going to his home, Abu Sufyan went to the Kaaba to greet Hubal, the greatest of idols, and thank it for that victory, and then he went to his house and slept with his wife Hind to fulfil his vow that he had made in not sleeping with her until he would defeat Muhammad.

2. The delight of the polytheists and the Jews

The polytheists and the Jews became very delighted at the defeat and the great losses the Muslims faced in that battle. They thought that the authority and the power of Islam shook and became disturbed. In their meetings, they talked mockingly about the fate of Muslims. Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool, the head of polytheists, did not participate in the fight because the Prophet did not listen to his suggestion or because he was angry at his allies from the Jews and the Christians; therefore, he rejoiced at the losses that Muslims faced in this battle.

Anyhow, all the enemies of Islam rejoiced at this defeat of Muslims and announced their joys at this disaster that had afflicted the Prophet and his followers, and they wished if



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it would happen again so that the banner of Islam might be folded forever.

3. Deeming Muslims weak

After the battle of Uhud, the Arab tribes deemed the Muslims weak. After they feared Muslims and feared the prevalence of Islam over them, they began, after the damages that had befallen the Muslims, attacking them intending to do away with them.

# The event of al-Khandaq (trench)
The battle of al-Khandaq was one of the most violent battles that Muslims were engaged in. The Arab tribes gathered together against the Prophet, and therefore it was called ‘the battle of parties (ahzab)’. Muslims were very worried about it and fear prevailed over them. The Holy Qur'an has talked about that in this verse, (When they came upon you from above you and from below you, and when the eyes turned dull, and the hearts rose up to the throats).[1]

The role of the Jews
The Jews of the Arabia had a big role in this battle. A group of them went to the people of Quraysh telling them that they would be with them against the Prophet to do away with him and his followers. The people of Quraysh said to them, “O community of the Jews, you are the people of the first Book and the knowledge that we have been disagreeing on. We and Muhammad; is our religion better or his?”

The Jews replied, “But, it is your religion (idolatry) that is better than his religion, and you are worthier of the truth than him.”

This was the logic of the Jews! They preferred idolatry to the religion of Allah. The Qur'an talked about what happened between the Jews and the people of Quraysh when revealing,

(Have you not seen those to whom a portion of the Book has been given? They believe in idols and false deities and say of those who disbelieve: These are better guided in the path than those who believe. Those are they whom Allah has cursed, and whomever Allah curses you shall not find any helper for him. Or have they a share in the kingdom? But then they would not give


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 33:10.


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to people even the speck in the date stone. Or do they envy the people for what Allah has given them of His grace? But indeed We have given to Ibrahim's children the Book and the wisdom, and We have given them a grand kingdom. So of them is he who believes in him, and of them is he who turns away from him, and hell is sufficient to burn).[1]

However, Quraysh responded to the call of the Jews.

Digging the trench
When the Prophet knew about the preparation of Quraysh and the other Arab tribes of Ghatafan to fight him, he gathered his companions, informed them of that, and asked them to suggest the best way to repel that aggression. His companion Salman al-Farisi suggested to him to dig a trench around Medina to prevent the enemy from entering the town. The Prophet admired this suggestion and began with his companions the digging of the trench. The hypocrites of Muslims often slipped away to escape the working in the trench; therefore Allah revealed this verse concerning them, (Allah knows those of you who steal away, hiding themselves. And let those who conspire to evade orders beware lest grief or painful punishment befall them).[2] As for Muslims, they tried their best in digging the trench, and whenever they had something to do, they asked the Prophet’s permission to go to carry it out, and then Allah revealed this verse concerning them, (Only those are believers who believe in Allah and His Messenger, and when they are with him on a momentous affair they go not away until they have asked his permission; surely they who ask your permission are they who believe in Allah and His Messenger; so when they ask your permission for some affair of theirs, give


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 4:51-55.
[2] Qur'an, 24:63.

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permission to whom you please of them and ask forgiveness for them from Allah; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful).[1]

The Prophet himself worked with the other Muslims and hated to be distinguished from them. In fact, this plan was very wise that it kept the Muslims safe from the evils of Quraysh and its allies. Quraysh and the parties remained astonished at the trench and they could not cross it. They remained at the other side of the trench shooting arrows at Muslims and the Muslims did the same without taking place of a general war between the two sides.

The Prophet with Nu’aym
Nu’aym bin Mas’ud, who was from the chiefs of Ghatafan that came to fight the Prophet, became Muslim at the hand of the Prophet at that very time. He said to the Prophet, “O messenger of Allah, I have become Muslim and my people do not know about that. You can order me with whatever you like.”

The Prophet ordered him to discourage the tribes and cheat them as war would be a trick. Indeed, Nu’aym did his role positively in discouraging those tribes (in the alliance) and causing sedition between them. He went to the Bani Quraydhah, whome he was their companion in the pre-Islamic age, and said to them, “O bani Quraydhah, you have already known my love to you and the good relation between me and you.”

They said, “You are right. You are not doubted to us.”

He said, “Surely, (the tribes of) Quraysh and Ghatafan are not like you. The country is yours in which there are your properties, children, and women. You cannot leave it to elsewhere. Quraysh and Ghatafan have come to fight


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 24:62.


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Muhammad and his companions, and you have supported them against him. Their country, properties, and women are in other than it (this country) and so they are not like you. If they find an opportunity, they will make use of it; otherwise, they will go back to their country and leave you alone with him (the Prophet), and you are not able to stand against him when you are alone before him. Therefore, do not fight with these people (of Quraysh and other tribes) until you will take hostages from their notables to be in your hands as insurance to you in order to fight with them against Muhammad until you will defeat him.”

They all said, “You have well advised.”

They all trusted in his advice. Then, he went to the people of Quraysh and said to Abu Sufyan and the other chiefs with him, “You have already known my love to you and my desertion to Muhammad. I have been informed of something that I feel, due to my loyalty to you, I must tell you about it, but you have to keep it secret.”

They said, “Yes, we do.”

He said to them, “Know that the Jews regretted what they did to Muhammad, and they sent him a messenger telling him that they regretted what they did to him, and that if it would please him, they would take from Quraysh and Ghatafan some notables as hostages, and then they would hand them over to Muhammad to kill them, and then they (the Jews) would be with him. So, if the Jews ask you for some men as hostages, do not give them even one man from you.”

Abu Sufyan approved Nu’aym’s saying. He sent Ikrima bin Abi Jahl with some men to the Bani Quraydhah asking them to join Quraysh to fight against the Prophet. The Jews of the Bani Quraydhah said to them, “We will not fight with you except if


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you give us some men from you as hostages in our hands and then we will fight against Muhammad.”

The delegation went back telling Quraysh and Ghatafan what Bani Quraydhaha had said, and so they trusted what Nu’aym said. They said, “By Allah, we do not hand over to them anyone from us.”

Thus, the Muslims were safe from the Jews of the Bani Quraydhah who did not join Quraysh or participate in the war against the Muslims.[1]

The crossing of the trench
Some forces of the enemy could cross the trench and began challenging the Muslim forces for fighting. From among the enemy forces that could cross the trench was Amr bin Abd Widd who was the famous hero and knight of Quraysh in the pre-Islamic age. The ground shook under the pride, the haughtiness, and the strength of that hero. Fear and silence overcame the Muslims when this hero walked here and there before them disdainfully. He cried out, “O men of Muhammad! Would anyone of you duel (with me)?”

No one of Muslims replied except Imam Ali, who was too young then, saying, “I am to him, O messenger of Allah…”

The Prophet was too worried about Imam Ali. He said to him, “It is Amr!”

Imam Ali sat down obediently to the order of the Prophet.

Amr, again, scorned the Muslims saying, “O men of Muhammad, where is your paradise that you claim you shall enter when you are killed? Does no man from you want it?”


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 23.


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No one of the Muslims replied to him, except Imam Ali whom the Prophet permitted after insisting. The Prophet said, “The whole faith has appeared to the whole disbelief.”

Then the Prophet raised his hands towards the heaven praying, “O Allah, you have taken from me Hamza on the Day of Uhud, and Ubayda on the Day of Badr, so keep to me Ali today… O my Lord, leave me not alone, and You are the best of inheritors.”

The hero of Islam advanced with no bit of fear or worry. Amr bin Abd Widd was astonished at the courage of this young man and his daring to duel with the great hero of the Arabs. He asked him, “Who are you?”

Imam Ali replied, “I am Ali bin Abi Talib.”

Amr felt pity for him and said, “Your father was my friend.”

Imam Ali paid no attention to his father’s friendship with Amr, and he said, “O Amr, you have promised your people that no man from Quraysh invites you to three things except that you respond to him.”

Amr said, “Yes, it is my promise.”

Imam Ali said, “I invite you to Islam.”

Amr said mockingly, “Shall I leave my grandfathers’ religion? Give up this!”

Imam Ali said, “I refrain from killing you and you go back (leave the battle).”

Amr became angry and was astonished at the daring of this young man. He said to him, “Then, the Arabs begin talking about my fleeing.”


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Imam Ali said to him, “Then, I invite you to the fight.”[1]

Amr wondered at the courage of this young man. He dismounted from his horse, unsheathed his sword, and struck Imam Ali on his helmet that was split and his head was wounded. The Muslims were certain that Imam Ali would meet his end, but soon Imam Ali struck Amr so strongly that he fell to the ground sunk in his blood. Imam Ali cried out ‘Allahu Akbar’, and the Muslims cried out ‘Allahu Akbar’ too. The back of polytheism was broken and its power failed. It was the victory of Muslims at Imam Ali’s hand before the actual war began. The Prophet said, “The fighting of Ali bin Abi Talib against Amr bin Abd Widd on the day of al-Khandaq (the trench) is better than the deeds of my nation until the Day of Resurrection.”[2]

The Prophet’s great companion Huthayfah bin al-Yaman said, “If the virtue of Ali’s killing of Amr on the Day of al-Khandaq is divided among all Muslims, it shall include them.”[3]

Abdullah bin Abbas said when interpreting this Qur’anic verse (and Allah sufficed the believers in fighting),[4] “He sufficed them by Ali bin Abi Talib.”

The people of Quraysh wept too much for Amr and were very sad because the killing of him was the actual defeat to them.

Amr’s sister did not weep for Amr because his killer was the first and best hero among all the Arabs. She recited:

“If the killer of Amr was other than his killer,


Notes:

[1] Mustadrak al-Hakim, vol. 3 p. 32.
[2] Tareekh al-Khateeb al-Baghdadi, vol. 13 p. 19, Mustadrak al-Hakim, vol. 3 p. 32.
[3] Rassa’il (letters of) al-Jahidh, p. 60.
[4] Qur'an, 33:25.


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I would weep for him (Amr) until the last of time.

But his killer cannot be faulted,

And whose father was called the master of the country.”[1]

Imam Ali killed another hero from Quraysh. He was Nawfal bin Abdullah, and that caused another defeat for Quraysh. Then the Prophet said, “Now we attack them, and they do not attack us.”[2]

Quraysh and its allies ran away overcome by fright and worry after losing their greatest hero in this battle, whereas the Muslims did not face any loss.


Notes:

[1] Amali al-Murtadha, vol. 2 p. 7-8.
[2] A’yan ash-Shia, vol. 3 p. 113.

# Bani Quraydhah and the conquest of Khaybar
As soon as the battle of al-Khandaq came to an end, a revelation came to the Prophet from the heaven ordering him to hasten in attacking the Bani Quraydhah who were the worst community of Jews that had been cursed by Allah and His messenger and were a source of sedition and troubles to Muslims. They plotted against Muslims in broad daylight and in the darkness of night.

The march of the Muslim army
The Prophet ordered the army to set out for the fight against the Bani Quraydha, and that they would not offer the Asr Prayer except there in their land. The Muslim army surrounded the Jews of Bani Quraydhah, who were protecting themselves in strong forts, and impose on them a strict blockade.

The Prophet sent Imam Ali to meet the Bani Quraydha. When he arrived in there, they met him impudently and they criticized the Prophet badly. Imam Ali went back to the Prophet, told him what happened, and asked him not to approach the Jews’ forts.

The Prophet said to Imam Ali, “I think you heard from them something bad against me. Didn’t you?”

Imam Ali said, “Yes, I did.”

The Prophet said, “If they saw me, they would say nothing like that.”

Then, the Prophet approached their forts and called upon them, “O brothers of apes, has Allah disgraced you and sent down His wrath on you?”



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The Prophet ordered his army to firm the blockade which lasted about twenty-five days where nothing took place except shooting arrows and stones on each other. The Jews became certain that their forts would not protect them and they must fall in the grasp of Muslims.

Ka’b bin Asad, a Jewish man, offered an advice to his people saying, “O community of the Jews, you have been afflicted with what you see, and I shall give you three suggestions that you may follow any of them as you like…; we follow this man (Prophet Muhammad) and believe in him. By Allah, it has come clear to you that he is a sent prophet and he is the very one you find in your Book, and thus you shall be safe in your bloods, properties, children, and women.”

They altogether said, “We do never leave the judgment of the Torah and never replace it with any other than it.”

Ka’b said, “If you deny this, then let us kill our children and women, and go out to Muhammad and his companions; only men with unsheathed swords leaving behind us nothing, until Allah will judge between us and Muhammad. If we are killed, we are killed while leaving no progeny behind us that we may fear for them, and if we prevail, we, by my life, shall find women and children.”

They denied this suggestion and said, “If we kill these poor ones, then what good is there in living after them?”

Ka’b offered his third suggestion saying, “If you deny this too, then tonight is the night of Saturday, and Muhammad and his companions may give us security in this night. So let us go down (of the forts) that we may find Muhammad and his companions in inadvertence.”

They did not respond and they said to him, “(If we do) we shall corrupt our Saturday and do in it what those before us did not


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do except those whom you know and they were metamorphosed as it is clear to you.”[1]

The delegation of Abu Lubabah
The Banu Quraydhah asked the Prophet to send them Abu Lubabah, who was from al-Aws the allies of Banu Quraydhah, to consult with him on this affairs. The Prophet sent Abu Lubabah to them, and when they saw him, they got up before him reverently and respectfully. Their women and children began crying in front of him. When he saw them in that case, he pitied them. They said to him, “What do you see, Abu Lubabah? Do we submit to the judgment of Muhammad?” He said to them, “Yes, you do, (he pointed to his throat) but know well that his judgment on you is the slaughtering!”

He suggested to them to resist and not to submit because he made them understand that the judgment would be the slaughter in any case. Then, Abu Lubabah regretted too much because he was certain that he had betrayed Allah and His messenger. He repented and Allah accepted his repentance.[2]

The arbitration of Sa’d
The Banu Quraydhah sent for their ally the tribe of al-Aws to mediate between them and the Prophet. A group from the al-Aws interceded with the Prophet who accepted the intercession and suggested to them to choose an arbitrator as they liked. The Jews chose Sa’d bin Mu’ath and were satisfied with him as the arbitrator. He took from them a promise that they would accept his judgment. He ordered them to put away their arms and they did. Then he judged to kill those who fought and killed Muslims and to captivate their women and children.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 3 p. 246.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 3 p. 247, and other sources.

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The Prophet acknowledged the judgment of Sa’d and said, “Allah and the believers have been satisfied with his judgment, and with such I have been ordered.”

The sinful Jews were brought to the markets of Medina, and there ditches were dug for them and they were killed. Then, Muslims were relieved from Jews’ evils because they were a source of sedition and troubles.

Anyhow, the Banu Quraydhah had black history towards Muslims and were a source of great evils and disasters to Muslims. They often said, “We shall not be pleased except by doing away with Muhammad and his followers.”

Then, the Prophet divided the properties, women, and children of the Banu Quraydhah among the Muslims after deducting from them the khums. But, most of their women remained Jewish and they did not turn Muslim.[1]

The raid of Muslims against the Banu Quraydhah made the Arabs fear the Muslims and it fixed the authority of Islam as a power that could not be defeated.

The conquest of Khaybar
The Prophet saw that the Muslims would not be safe and that Islam would not be prevalent with the existence of powerful Jews who were in the strong forts of Khaybar[2] which was a factory of different arms and war equipments; swords, spears, armors, and tanks that shot hot water with melted lead and were from the most dangerous weapons at that time. Khaybar


Notes:

[1] The Life of Muhammad, p. 356.
[2] Khaybar was a place about three miles from Medina. Inhabited by Jews, it had strong forts and huge gardens of date-palm trees. The battle of Khaybar took place at the end of the sixth year of Hijra. Refer to Khizanat al-Adab (treasury of literature), vol. 6 p. 69.


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was the source that supplied with arms the forces that fought against Muslims.

The Prophet marched with his army to conquer the forts of Khaybar. When he was close to Khaybar, he prayed Allah saying, “O Allah the Lord of the heavens and what they have shaded, the Lord of the earths and what they have born, the Lord of Devils and what they have misled, and the Lord of winds and what the have scattered, we ask You for the best of this village, the best of its people, and the best of what there is in it, and we seek Your protection from its evil, the evil of its people, and the evil of what there is in it.”

Then he ordered the army saying, “Move forward in the name of Allah the High!”

He made Abu Bakr a leader over the army. When Abu Bakr approached the fort, he faced a shower of missiles and he went back with the army disappointedly. On the next day, the Prophet entrusted the leadership of the army to Umar bin al-Khattab who did like his friend Abu Bakr did, and went back disappointedly while the fort of the Jews remained untouchable.

When the army was unable to break into the forts, the Prophet announced that he would appoint a leader that Allah would grant victory to Muslims at his hand. He said, “I will give the banner tomorrow to a man who loves Allah and His messenger and whom Allah and His messenger love. He shall not go back until Allah will make him prevail.”[1]

The army impatiently looked forward to know who that leader would be. No one thought that the expected leader would be Imam Ali, because he was suffering trachoma. When the


Notes:

[1] Hilyat al-Awliya’, vol. 1 p. 62, Sifat as-Safwah, vol. 1 p, 163, Musnad of Ahmed bin Hanbal, tradition no. 778.


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light of morning spread, the Prophet sent for Imam Ali whose eyes were bandaged. He (the Prophet) removed the bandage and spat in Imam Ali’s eyes which recovered soon. He said to him, “Take this banner so that Allah will grant the victory at your hand…”

Imam Ali received the banner from the Prophet and said, “O messenger of Allah, shall I fight them until they become like us (Muslims)?”

The Prophet said, “Move slowly until you arrive in their yard, and then invite them to Islam and tell them of their duties to Allah. By Allah, if Allah guides one man by you, it shall be better to you than to have all properties.”[1]

Imam Ali hurried to the battlefield feeling a bit of neither fear nor worry. He advanced towards the fort, plucked out its great gate, and took it as a shield[2] that protected him against the arrows and missiles of the Jews who were terribly terrified when they saw Imam Ali take out the gate of their fort.

Marhab, the most courageous hero of the Jews, came towards Imam Ali to fight him while reciting some poetry. The imam received him with a strike that split his head and made him fall down to the ground bathing in his blood, and soon the imam finished him off.


Notes:

[1] Sifat as-Safwah, vol. 1 p. 164, Sahih of al-Bukhari, vol. 7 p. 121, and in Wassa’il ash-Shia, vol. 6 p. 3, it is mentioned in this way: “O Ali, you do not fight anyone except after inviting him to Islam.”
[2] The taking out of the gate of Khaybar was a miracle, because it was opened by forty men together as mentioned in the books of history such as, Tareekh Baghdad, vol. 11 p. 324, Mizan al-I’tidal, vol. 2 p. 218, Kanzol Ummal, vol. 6 p. 368, and in ar-Riyadh an-Nadhirah, vol. 2 p. 188, it is mentioned that seventy men gathered together to return the gate to its place after great efforts.

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Soon, Khaybar was conquered at the hand of Imam Ali and the Jews were subjugated, disgraced, and taught a lesson that they could not forget throughout history.

The Prophet was delighted by this great victory by which the Muslims became glorious and powerful. It happened that on that very day Ja’far at-Tayyar had come back from Abyssinia, and so the Prophet said, “I do not know with which of them I am more delighted; is it the coming back of Ja’far or the conquer of Khaybar?”[1]

A poisoned ewe
Zaynab bint al-Harith, a Jewish woman, offered a poisoned ewe to the Prophet with more poison in the arm because she new that the Prophet liked more the arm of a ewe. The Prophet took a piece of the arm, chewed it, and spat it out. Bishr bin al-Bara’ ate from it, and that caused his death. The Prophet said that it was poisoned. He sent for Zaynab who confessed that she had poisoned the ewe. The Prophet asked what made her do that and she said, “You have done to my people what is not unknown to you, and I said to myself: if he is a king, I shall be relieved from him, ad if he is a prophet, he shall be inspired.” And so the Prophet pardoned her.[2]

The faith of al-Hajjaj bin Ilat
It may be pleasant to mention the beginning of al-Hajjaj’s faith. He became a Muslim at the Prophet’s hands. He had properties here and there in Mecca and he feared that they may be seized if the people of Mecca knew that he was a Muslim. He asked the Prophet’s permission to go to Mecca and the Prophet permitted him. When he was near Mecca, he met some men


Notes:

[1] Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol. 4 p. 128.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 3 p. 352.

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from Quraysh who did not know that he had turned a Muslim. They asked him about the news of the Prophet, and he said to them, “I have pleasant news to you. Muhammad was terribly defeated and his companions were terribly killed. Muhammad was taken a prisoner, and the Jews said: we do not kill him, but we send him to the people of Mecca to kill him there in order to avenge themselves on him for those whom he had killed from their men.”

These men hurried to Mecca delightedly crying out: ‘It is Muhammad! He shall be brought to you to be killed before you.’ Joys spread everywhere among the people of Mecca.

By this trick, al-Hajjaj could gather his properties safely. Al-Abbas, the Prophet’s uncle, who was very distressed for that news, asked al-Hajjaj whether that news was true or not, and he said to him, “I shall tell you the truth when we are alone.” When they were alone, al-Hajjaj said to al-Abbas, “Keep my speech secret until after three days, and then you can say whatever you like.” Al-Abbas agreed and al-Hajjaj added, “By Allah, I have left your nephew while he was a bridegroom with the daughter[1] of their (the Jews of Khaybar) king. Khaybar was conquered and the Muslims obtained all its properties.”

Al-Abbas was astonished and said, “What do you say, O Hajjaj?”

Al-Hajjaj said, “Yes, by Allah, it is what I said to you. Keep it secret. I have become a Muslim and come here just to take my properties, for I fear that if they (the people of Mecca) know I am a Muslim, they will plunder all what I have. After three days, you can tell the people.”


Notes:

[1] When she was taken a prisoner, the Prophet made her free to choose; either to be released from bondage and get married to the Prophet or to go to join her family, and she agreed to get married with the Prophet.


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After three days, al-Abbas came to the Kaaba, and he was received by the people of Quraysh. He said to them, “Muhammad has conquered Khaybar and got married to the daughter of their (the Jews) king and he obtained all their properties.”

They asked him, “Who brought to you this news?

He said, “It is the very man, who told you the news of his (the Prophet) defeat. He was a Muslim. He came to take his properties, and then he set out to join Muhammad and his companions to be among them.”

They were upset and they said, “The enemy of Allah has slipped away. If we knew, we would deal with him elsewise.” It was not long when the certain news came to them about the conquest of Khaybar by the Prophet.[1]


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 3 p. 359-360.

# Expeditions
Here we discuss the raids of the Prophet against some areas, provinces, and tribes. I think, after deep thinking, that the goals of those raids were as the following:

First, Allah the Almighty had sent his messenger as mercy to all the peoples and nations of the world to save them from their painful realities and guide them to the best.

The tribes at the time of the Prophet lived in utmost ignorance and bad habits besides idolatry. Therefore, the Prophet was ordered by Allah to carry out His mission to His people and take them to knowledge, guidance, high morals, and noble life.

Second, to repel the dangers expected from some tribes and provinces against Islam such as the Jews who plotted day and night against the Prophet and his mission and who were a base joined by the hypocrites to overthrow the Islamic authority; therefore, the Prophet was obliged to attack them to save Islam and the Muslims from their dangers.

Third, in any case, the raids against those tribes and peoples did not aim at subjugating them and possessing their properties, but to make them believe in Allah and His messenger, practice the rituals of the religion, and give up the bad habits of the age of ignorance.

The expeditions
1. The expedition against the Banu Sulaym

The Prophet and his army marched to the Bani Sulaym and stopped at one of their wells. They remained there three


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days and went back without facing any resistance,[1] because the people of the tribe scattered here and there.

2. The expedition of as-Suwayq

Historians say that the reason behind this expedition was that Abu Sufyan had sworn that he would not sleep with his woman at all except after fighting against Muhammad. So, one day, he and some men from Quraysh set out roving in the desert until they went to the Bani an-Nadheer near Medina. There, they found a Muslim man from the Ansar with a companion of his and killed them both. When the Prophet was informed of that, he with his men set out chasing the killer after leaving Basheer bin Abdul Munthir as the wali over Medina. When they arrived in the Bani an-Nadheer, they found that the killers had fled back to Mecca. The Prophet and his army went back to Medina with no any loss in Muslims.[2]

3. The expedition of al-Furu’

The Prophet appointed ibn Umm Kulthoom the wali over Medina, and he with his army marched to face Quraysh. When they arrived in the village of al-Furu’, they stayed there for two months teaching the people of that village the rulings and teachings of Islam and the Qur'an. Then, they went back to Medina after having faced no clash or plot.[3]

4. The expedition of Buwat

The Prophet and two hundred men from his companions set out to attack a caravan of the polytheists that was traveling towards Sham. There were two thousand and five hundred camels in the caravan with Umayyah bin Khalaf and one


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 3 p. 46.
[2] Ibid., p. 48.
[3] Ibid., P. 50.

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hundred men from Quraysh. The Prophet and his companions stopped at the mountain of Buwat, one of the mountains from which rocks were taken to build the Kaaba. The Prophet and Muslims stayed there for some period, but without meeting fight or harm.[1]

5. The expedition of al-Asheera (the tribe)

The Prophet and his companions moved to capture a great caravan of Quraysh that was going to Sham. It was the greatest trading caravan of Quraysh that all the people of Quraysh had had shares in it, and therefore it was called ‘al-Asheerah’. This event was the reason that had led to the battle of Badr. The Muslims missed the caravan that had preceded to Mecca.[2]

6. The expedition of the Bani Qaynuqa’

Some people of Jews, who were famous for courage and were in alliance with Ubadah bin as-Samit and Abdullah bin Ubayy bin Salool, showed hostility and envy after the battle of Badr and broke their covenant with the messenger of Allah who had entered into a covenant with them, with the Bani Quraydhah, and the Bani an-Nadheer not to fight against him or support any of his enemies. However, they were the first Jews that betrayed the Muslims. One day, a woman, who was the wife of a Muslim man from the Ansar, brought some of her camels and sheep to sell them in the market of the Bani Qaynuqa’. After selling them, she sat beside a goldsmith from them (Bani Qaynuqa’). Some Jews tried to tempt the woman to uncover her face, but she refused. The goldsmith tied the end of her garment to her back, and when she got up, her body was unveiled. Some Muslim man hurried to the Jewish goldsmith and killed him, and then some Jews attacked the Muslim man and killed him.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 46.
[2] Ibid., p. 126.


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When the Prophet was informed of this event, he said, “It is not on this that we have entered into the covenant with them.” The Prophet asked Ubadah bin as-Samit to exempt himself from them and to break his covenant with them. Ubadah said, “O messenger of Allah, I follow Allah, His messenger, and the believers, and I exempt myself from the covenant of the unbelievers.” As for Abdullah bin Ubayy, he did not break his covenant with them (the Jews of Bani Qaynuqa), and then this verse was revealed concerning him (O you who believe! do not take the Jews and the Christians for friends; they are friends of each other…then surely the party of Allah are they that shall be triumphant).[1]

Then the Prophet gathered the Jews and said to them, “O community of the Jews, beware from Allah of like the resentment He has sent down on Quraysh in the battle of Badr, and be Muslims, for you have already known that I am a sent prophet. You find that in your Book and the promise of Allah to you.”

They replied cruelly to him, “You think that we are like your people (Quraysh)! Let it not deceive you that you met a people who were not expert in war and you could find an opportunity over them. By Allah, if we fight you, you shall know that we are the very people (of it).”

They hurried to protect themselves in their forts. The Prophet marched with his army to them where the banner-man was his uncle Hamza. The Muslim army blockaded their forts tightly for fifteen days. Then Allah cast terror and fear in their hearts. They were seven hundred men. Then, they begged the Prophet to let them free and they would leave Medina with their women and offspring, and all their properties and lands


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 5:51…56.


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and even their weapons would be for the Prophet. The Prophet agreed to that. The Prophet divided the properties among Muslims after deducting the khums though they were the Prophet’s pure possession, because they were not gained by fighting.[1]

7. The expedition of Qarqarat al-Kudr

The Prophet was informed that a group from the Bani Sulaym and Ghatafan wanted to attack Medina after the Prophet had raided them. Thus, the Prophet marched to them with twenty men and the bannerman was Imam Ali. When the Muslim force arrived in Qarqarat al-Kudr, no one was there. The Prophet sent some of his companions to look for that group of men, and they saw five hundred camels with the herdsman. After deducting the khums (fifth), the Prophet gave every warrior two camels whereas the herdsman was set free.[2]

8. The expedition of Thee Amarr

The Prophet was informed that a man from Ghatafan called Du’thoor was gathering people in Thee Amarr (a place of the tribe of Ghatafan) in order to attack Medina. The Prophet with four hundred and fifty men set out to meet the man and his followers. By accident, the Prophet met with a man from them who told the Prophet what they had intended to do. He said to the Prophet, “If they knew about your march towards them, they would run away to the tops of mountains. As for me, I shall go with you.” The Prophet invited the man to Islam and he turned Muslim. The man began guiding the Muslims to the right way. When the man and Muslims approached those people, they ran away to the


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 208-209.
[2] Ibid., p. 212.


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mountains. It happened that it rained heavily. The Prophet took off his clothes and spread them on a tree to dry, and he lay down before the eyes of those polytheists. Du’thoor, the leader of the group of polytheists, said, “May Allah kill me if do not kill Muhammad!”

He took his sword and came to stop at the head of the Prophet saying to him, “Who can protect you from me today?”

The Prophet answered steadfastly, “Allah protects me from you.”

The man was affected by the Prophet’s gravity, his hand shook, and the sword slipped to the ground. The Prophet took the sword and said to the man, “Who can protect you from me?”

He answered, “No one can protect me.” Then, he declared his faith in Islam and the Prophet gave his sword back to him. He went back to his people inviting them to Islam. Then, this verse was revealed, (O you who believe! remember Allah's favor on you when a people had determined to stretch forth their hands towards you, but He withheld their hands from you, and be careful of (your duty to) Allah; and on Allah let the believers rely).[1]

Then, the Prophet with his companions went back to Medina after eleven days without fighting.[2]

9. The expedition of That ar-Riqa’

The Prophet was informed that the Bani Muharib and Bani Tha’labah were gathering their men to attack him. He with four (or seven) hundred men marched to face them. When the Muslim army arrived in Najd, they found no one there. They


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 5:11.
[2] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 212.

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kept on marching until they stopped at some valley in the night. The Prophet asked his companions to start guarding the army in the night. Ammar bin Yasir and Abbad bin Bishr volunteered to guard the force. They sat at the mouth of the valley. Abbad suggested guarding during the first part of the night and Ammar the second part. So Ammar slept and Abbad began offering prayers. While he was offering the prayer, an arrow hit him. Then a man came to kill the Prophet. He shook the sword and said to the Prophet, “O Muhammad, do you not fear me?”

The Prophet said, “No, and what shall I fear you for?”

The man said, “Do you not fear the sword in my hand?”

The Prophet said, “Allah the Almighty protects me from you.”

The man was confused and affected by the Prophet’s gravity, and gave him the sword.

The Prophet said to him, “Who can protect you from me?”

The man said to the Prophet, “Be the kindest taker of the sword!”

The Prophet pardoned, and asked him to embrace Islam, but he refused. He went back to his people saying to them, “I have come to you from the best one of all people.” Later on, he turned a Muslim.[1] Then, the Prophet and his force went back without fighting, whereas fright prevailed the villages around, that were still worshipping idols.

10. The expedition of Dawmat al-Jandal

The Prophet was informed that there was a band of highwaymen in Dawmat al-Jandal (a place in Sham near


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 270-273.

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Tabuk). They had determined to attack Medina. The Prophet with one thousand Muslim warriors marched towards that place at the end of the fourth year of Hijra. The Muslim army moved in the night and hid in the day for secrecy. When the Muslim army was near to that place, those people ran away leaving behind them their cattle and herdsmen. Muhammad bin Maslamah could captivate one of them who turned a Muslim. Then, the Prophet and his army went back to Medina.[1]

11. The expedition of the Bani al-Mustaliq

The news came to the Prophet that al-Harth bin Dhirar, the chief of the Bani al-Mustaliq, mobilized his men to fight against the Prophet who sent Buraydah bin al-Haseeb to explore the truth. When Buraydah reached that tribe, they asked who he was, and said to them, “I am from you. I have come to you when I heard that you have gathered together against this man (Muhammad), so that I with whoever obeys me from my people will go together (with you) to do away with them (Muslims).” In fact, Buraydah had asked the Prophet to permit him to say as he liked. Their chief said to him, “We have agreed on that. So let us hurry up!”

When Buraydah went back and told the Prophet about the intention of those people, the Prophet prepared Muslims for the fight. Many Muslims joined him among whom there were some hypocrites who wished for gaining loots.

A man was arrested, and then it was clear that he was a spy to those people and he was killed. When his news reached his people, they felt afraid and many of them left the gathering. The Muslim army attacked, killed ten men, and arrested the rest of them. The loot was about two thousand camels and five


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2, p. 277.


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thousand sheep. Then, the Prophet and his army went back to Medina.[1]

12. The expedition of Mu’tah

The Prophet sent to Mu’tah (a village in Sham) in the eighth year of Hijra an army of three thousand men under the leadership of Zayd bin Haritha who if would be killed, should be replaced by Ja’far bin Abi Talib who should be replaced by Abdullah bin Rawaha if would be killed. The army set out until it arrived in Ma’an in Sham when the news came to them that the king of Rome had stopped at Ma’ab with an army of one hundred thousand soldiers. And then, another one hundred thousand men joined him from other tribes. When the Muslims knew of this great army that had come to face them, their leaders met to discuss the situation. Some suggested writing to the Prophet telling him about the great number of the enemy’s army that he might either send other troops or issue some other order to be carried out. Then, Abdullah bin Rawaha addressed the army saying, “O people, by Allah, that which you hate is the very martyrdom that you have come looking forward to. We do not fight against people by number, power, or muchness, but we fight them by this religion with which Allah has honored us. So go on, and it shall be one of the two good things; either victory or martyrdom…”

The army believed in what Abdullah bin Rawaha said and became more determined to fight. The Muslim army marched on until arriving in Mu’tah. The army of the king of Rome as well marched to Mu’tah, and the two armies clashed too violently. Zayd bin Haritha, the leader of the Muslim army, fought too heroically until he was martyred in the middle of the battlefield. After him, Ja’far bin Abi Talib took the banner,


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 2 p. 279.


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killed his horse, and attacked the enemy while reciting enthusiastic poetry. He fought courageously and steadfastly until his right hand was cut. Then, he lifted the banner with his left hand and kept on walking about in the battlefield until his left hand was cut too. He embraced the banner by his upper arms until he was martyred. He was a unique, intelligent Muslim leader during the age of the Prophet who often and always fought the enemies of Islam with high courage and daring. When martyred he was thirty-three years old. The army, the Prophet, and the Hashimites wept for him too much.

After Ja’far, Abdullah bin Rawahah carried the banner and became the leader of Muslims. He fought with great courage until he was martyred in the way of Allah.

The Prophet, who was in Medina, was inspired from the heaven about the martyrdom of his cousin Ja’far bin abi Talib. He went to Ja’far’s wife Asma’ bint Umays asking her to bring him Ja’far’s two sons. When she brought them, he began kissing them and weeping. Asma’ was astonished and said to the Prophet, “May my father and mother die for you! What makes you cry? Has anything bad come to you about Ja’far and his companions?”

The Prophet replied sadly and faintly, “Yes, they have been killed today.”[1]

After the leaders of the Muslim army had been killed, the leadership was entrusted to Khalid bin al-Waleed who ordered the army to stop fighting and go back to Medina, and soon the army set out back to Medina. Khalid was blamed for that because he did not prefer fighting in that situation.[2]


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 15-22.
[2] Ibid.

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13. The expedition of Wadi al-Qura (the valley of villages)

Wadi al-Qura was inhabited by Jews whom the Prophet invited to Islam, but they denied and chose to fight. Muslims fought those Jews and killed eleven men from them most of whom were killed by Imam Ali. Muslims possessed the properties and lands of the Jews and dealt with them like in Khaybar.[1]

14. The conquest of Mecca
The conquest of Mecca caused the greatest victory to Islam and the total defeat to idolatry and polytheism. After this victory, the enemies of Islam from among Quraysh and the Jews were so disgraced and lowered that they were able to do nothing against Islam that prevailed over most of the Arabia.

The conquest of Mecca was so important in the history of Islam, because Mecca was the greatest fort of polytheism and atheism and it was the main source that supplied the enemies of Islam with the means of resistance. The people of Mecca had undertaken the resistance of the Prophet and the torturing of his followers since the first moment of the mission. At the same time, Mecca was the greatest power in the Arabia for its wealth and economic prosperity which all was used to fight Islam and Muslims.

However, we shall discuss here in brief some matters that led to the conquest of Mecca.

The truce of al-Hudaybiyyah
The Prophet concluded a truce between him and the tribe of Quraysh. From the articles of that truce was that whoever (from other tribes) wanted to join the truce of the Prophet


Notes:

[1] Insan al-Uyoon, vol. 3 68-69.

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could do, and whoever wanted to join the truce of Quraysh could do. Therefore, the tribe of Bakr entered into the truce of Quraysh, and the tribe of Khuza’ah entered into the truce of the Prophet. And really, the truce was regarded for some time.

Between the tribes of Khuza’ah and Bakr there were bloods and vengeances. After the battle of Mu’tah, some men from Quraysh thought that Islam was defeated forever, and so the Banu Bakr thought that it was the best opportunity to attack the tribe of Khuza’ah. They discussed that with some men from Quraysh and they encouraged them to do that and supplied them with arms. While the men of Khuza’ah were at a well of theirs, the men of Bakr attacked and killed some of them. Some men from Khuza’ah headed by Amr bin Salim went to Medina and told the Prophet about what had happened and that the Banu Bakr and Quraysh had broken the truce. The Prophet promised Amr bin Salim to support him and his people.

Abu Sufyan felt afraid of the consequences of these happenings, and so he set out to Medina to meet the Prophet in order to put an end to the expected sedition. He went to his daughter Umm Habeebah who was the Prophet’s wife after having been a Muslim. Abu Sufyan wanted to sit on the Prophet’s rug, but Umm Habeebah (though she was his daughter) folded the rug so that he would not sit on it. When he asked her why, she answered him, “This is the rug of the messenger of Allah and you are an impure polytheist, and I do not like you to sit on it.”

Abu Sufyan went to some of the Prophet’s companions in order to intercede for him with the Prophet to preserve the truce and keep it valid, but no one of them responded to him. Then, he went to Imam Ali begging him to talk with the Prophet about the matter. Imam Ali told Abu Sufyan leniently that no one could dissuade the messenger of Allah from a thing that he had already determined. Abu Sufyan went to Fatima az-



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Zahra’, the Prophet’s daughter, asking her for intercession, but there was no use too. Abu Sufyan returned empty-handed taking with him disappointed to Mecca.

The Prophet determines to conquer Mecca
The Prophet saw that the conclusive victory could not be achieved for Islam except by conquering Mecca whose people fought him when he was in it and when he left it. He began preparing everything for that great task, and he was confident and had trusted in the support of Allah to him to defeat his enemies and opponents.

The Prophet prepared an army of ten thousand well-armed men or more. The Prophet kept that secret and even his troops did not know where they would go to fight for fear that the people of Quraysh might know, and so they would get prepared for the war, and then bloods would be shed in the Inviolable Town (Mecca) that he hated (the bloodshed); therefore, he kept that secret.

Hatib bin Abi Balta’ah wrote a letter to Quraysh telling them that the Prophet had determined to march to conquer their country. He gave the letter to some woman after insisting on her to keep the matter totally secret. He promised to give her a camel if she could take this letter to Quraysh. The woman hid the letter under the hair of her head. The Revelation came to the Prophet telling him about the matter. The Prophet asked Imam Ali and az-Zubayr bin al-Awwam to arrest the woman and take the letter from her. They both followed after the woman until they found her. When they asked her about the letter, she denied it. Imam Ali shouted at her saying, “I swear by Allah that neither the messenger of Allah nor we tell lies. Either you take out the book to us or we shall search you.”



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Feeling afraid, she took out the letter from her hair and gave it to Imam Ali. They went back and handed the letter to the Prophet who sent for Hatib and asked him, “What made you do that?”

Hatib said, “By Allah O messenger of Allah, I am faithful in Allah and His messenger and still on my faith with no change, but I am a man who has no origin or supporters in the tribe (of Quraysh in Mecca) and I have children and a wife among them, and so I flattered them (in order not to harm my family).”

The Prophet accepted his excuse and pardoned him. Then, this verse was revealed concerning him, (O you who believe! do not take My enemy and your enemy for friends; would you offer them love while they deny what has come to you of the truth…).[1]

The Muslim army marched until it reached the outskirts of Mecca whose people were aware of nothing. The army surrounded the town and got prepared to occupy it. The Prophet kept all the matter secret just for peace and to avoid blood-shedding in the inviolable town.

The Prophet ordered his men to collect firewood, and great quantities were collected. When darkness prevailed, the Prophet ordered fire to be set to the firewood. The numerous flames of fires appeared in the horizons of Mecca whose people became too terrified. Abu Sufyan was very worried and he said to Badeel bin Warqa’ who was with him, “I have never seen such fire like this of tonight.”

Badeel said to him, “By Allah, it is Khuza’ah that might be milled by war.”

Abu Sufyan said, “Khuza’ah is meaner and less than to be of such fires and armies.”


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 60:1.

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Fright occupied Abu Sufyan’s heart and he became certain that it was the armies of Muslims coming to conquer Mecca.

Al-Abbas, the Prophet’s uncle, knew about the coming of the Muslim army to occupy Mecca and felt fear for his people. He said, “What a morning for Quraysh it shall be! by Allah, if the messenger of Allah enters Mecca by force before its people come to ask him for security, it shall be the perishment of Quraysh until the last of time.” He tried his best to find someone to go and tell the people of Mecca to hurry up to the Prophet asking him for pardoning. While he was thinking of the matter, he saw Abu Sufyan. He said to him, “O Abu Sufyan, it is the messenger of Allah with the people (Muslims). How terrible the morning of Quraysh shall be!”

Abu Sufyan was upset and he said to al-Abbas, “May my father and mother die for you! What shall we do?”

Al-Abbas said, “By Allah, if the messenger of Allah takes hold of you, he will behead you. Come on! Ride behind me on this mule so that I take you to the messenger of Allah to ask him for protection to you.”

Abu Sufyan rode on the mule behind al-Abbas who took him to the Prophet passing through the troops of Muslims who said when seeing Abu Sufyan, “Who is this?” But, when Umar bin al-Khattab saw him, he cried out, “It is Abu Sufyan; the enemy of Allah.” Then, he added, “Praise be to Allah who has subjugated you with no truce or covenant.”

In the morning, al-Abbas brought Abu Sufyan before the Prophet who said to him, “What, O Abu Sufyan! Is it not time for you to know that there is no god but Allah?”

Abu Sufyan said, “May my father and mother die for you! How patient, how generous, and how kind to kin you are! By Allah, I


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think that if there was with Allah anyone other than Him, he would suffice me.”

The Prophet said to him leniently, “O Abu Sufyan, is it not time for you to know that I am the messenger of Allah?”

Abu Sufyan said, “May my father and mother die for you! How patient, how generous, and how kind to kin you are! As for this, there is something in my soul about it until now.”

Al-Abbas said to him, “Woe unto you, O Abu Sufyan! Be Muslim and bear witness that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah before you are beheaded.”

This villain found no way except to claim his faith in Islam unwillingly and for fear of the sword while his heart was still full of disbelief and hypocrisy.

The Prophet asked his uncle al-Abbas to hold back Abu Sufyan in the valley until the soldiers of Allah would pass by him so that he would warn Quraysh of standing against the Muslim army to avoid blood-shedding.

Troops after troops passed by Abu Sufyan carrying the banners of definite victory. Whenever a troop passed by him, he asked al-Abbas which tribe they were and he answered him. There, Abu Sufyan declared his astonishment and disability to stand against such an army. He said, “No one has ability or power to stand against these…today the authority of your nephew has become so great.”

Al-Abbas replied to him, “O Abu Sufyan, it is the prophethood.”

Abu Sufyan said mockingly, “Yes, then!” This ignorant man did not perceive prophethood, but he just perceived authority and rule.



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The Prophet’s favor to Abu Sufyan
The Prophet was kind to Abu Sufyan though he was his bitterest enemy and it was he who had led the tribes and armies to fight against him since the beginning of the mission. He accepted his false faith in Islam and showed him an example of the mercy of Islam and its great values and principles.

Al-Abbas asked the Prophet to do a favor to Abu Sufyan because he loved pride. He said to him, “O messenger of Allah, Abu Sufyan is a man that loves pride; therefore, give to him something.”

The Prophet said, “Yes, whoever (from the people of Mecca) enters the house of Abu Sufyan shall be safe, whoever closes his door (remains inside his house) shall be safe, and whoever enters the mosque (the Kaaba) shall be safe…”

The Prophet gave a general amnesty to Quraysh and all the people of Mecca. Such amnesty has never taken place in the history of all wars at all. The Prophet did all his enemies, who met him with all kinds of distresses and calamities, favors.

Abu Sufyan went back to Quraysh telling them what the Prophet had said to him and declaring the Prophet’s great favor to all people of Mecca who calmed down and stayed inside their houses while some others resorted to the Kaaba.

Hind, Abu Sufyan’s wife, was so angry. She encouraged the people of Quraysh to resist the Prophet and to kill her husband Abu Sufyan. She began enthusing the public to fight against the Prophet and his army, but Abu Sufyan warned them against the bad results they would face and asked them no to listen to his wife Hind, and the masses of people responded to him.



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The Prophet enters Mecca
The Muslim army entered Mecca rejoicing at this great victory that came to them with no resistance or blood-shedding. The banner of Muslims was carried by Sa’d bin Ubadah who began crying out, “Today is the day of triumph. Today inviolable things shall be violated.”

When Umar bin al-Khattab heard him saying that, he went to the Prophet and told him about what Sa’d said. The Prophet ordered the banner to be taken from Sa’d and to be given to Imam Ali who began calling out loudly, “Today is the day of mercy. Today inviolable things shall be protected…”

All people of Quraysh felt relieved and safe. They became certain of the mercifulness of the messenger of Allah and that he would not punish them for what they had committed against him and against his followers.

The Prophet went to the Kaaba to offer greetings to the House of Allah, but Uthman bin Talha closed the gate before him and went up the roof of the Kaaba refusing to give him the key. Imam Ali followed after him, twisted his hand, and took out the key from him to give it to the Prophet who opened the door of the Kaaba and offered a two-rak’a prayer inside it.[1] Then he gave the key back to Talha saying to him, “Today is a day of piety and loyalty.”[2]

When the Prophet entered the Kaaba, he, before doing everything, destroyed the idols that the tribes of Quraysh had put inside the Kaaba to worship them away from Allah. The idols that were hung on the walls of the Kaaba were about three hundred and sixty ones that every clan of the Arabs had a


Notes:

[1] Subh al-A’sha, vol. 4 p. 269.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 55.

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special idol. At the gate of the Kaaba there was the greatest idol of Quraysh ‘Hubal’ which was the idol of Abu Sufyan. The Prophet began stabbing this idol in its eye by his bow while saying, “The truth has come and falsehood has vanished away. Surely, falsehood is ever bound to vanish.” Then, he ordered this idol to be destroyed, and this was the greatest blow that Abu Sufyan and the arrogants of Quraysh received.

The Prophet got on Imam Ali’s shoulders to destroy the idols, but Imam Ali could not get up. The Prophet said to him, “You cannot bear the heaviness of prophethood. Then, you get up.”

Imam Ali got on the Prophet’s shoulders while saying, “If I like, I shall get to the horizon of the heaven.” Then he began plucking out the idols and throwing them to the ground one after the other except one idol of the tribe of Khuza’ah which was tied with iron rods. The Prophet asked him to deal with it, and he began dealing with it while saying, “The truth has come and falsehood hash vanished away. Surely falsehood is ever bound to vanish”. Then, he could pluck it out and throw it to the ground and it was broken into pieces.[1] Thus, the House of Allah was purified from the idols of Quraysh at the hands of the Prophet and his brother Imam Ali (peace be on them) as idols had been destroyed before at the hand of Prophet Abraham.

The destruction of the idols was the most painful blow to the people of Quraysh who had devoted themselves totally to them and offered precious sacrifices to them, besides that it was one of the important victories that Islam got at that period.


Notes:

[1] Insan al-Uyoon, vol. 3 p. 99-100.

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The Prophet’s sermon
Masses of the people of Quraysh surrounded the Prophet waiting impatiently for what they would receive from him; would he avenge himself and punish them severely for what they had done to him and to his followers at the beginning of the mission and later on, or he would pardon and treat them kindly?

The Prophet mounted the stage and addressed the attendants of Quraysh, who were all ears, saying,

“There is no god but Allah alone with no associate to Him. He has fulfilled His promise, supported His servant, and defeated the parties alone. Every exploit, (shed) blood, or property that are claimed are under my two feet except the custodianship of the House (the Kaaba) and the offering of water to the hajjis.”

He added, “O people of Quraysh, Allah has taken away from you the arrogance of the pre-Islamic era (of ignorance) and the priding on fathers. People are from Adam and Adam is from earth. (O mankind! We have created you male and female, and have made you nations and tribes that you may know one another. Surely, the noblest of you, near Allah, is the best in conduct).[1] O people of Quraysh, what do you think I shall do to you?”

The all cried out, “You shall do good! (you are) a noble brother and the son of a noble brother…”

Then the Prophet announced the general amnesty saying, “Go! You are the freed…”[2]


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 49:13.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 54-55, Tareekh at-Tabari, vol. 2 p. 327.


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It was the mercifulness of prophethood! The Prophet did not avenge himself on those sinful people who caused to him and to his followers all kinds of harms and troubles. He did not kill, punish, or hurt anyone of them, nor did he confiscate a bit of their properties. It was the high morals of the messenger of Allah that did not submit to fancy or desire.

Then Bilal, the Prophet’s caller, got upon the Kaaba and recited the Azan loudly. The arrogants of Quraysh were terrified when they heard this azan that it was like a thunderbolt over their heads. Etab bin Usayd said, “Allah has honored Usayd (Etab’s father who was dead) by not hearing this (azan) that he might hear in it what enraged him.” Al-Harith bin Hisham said, “By Allah, if I knew that he was true, I would follow him (the Prophet).” Abu Sufyan said, “I say nothing. If I speak, I shall inform about stones.’

The Prophet came out and said to them, “I have known what you said.” Then, he mentioned to them what they said, and they became astonished. Al-Harith and Etab said to the Prophet, “We bear witness that you are the messenger of Allah. By Allah, there was no one with us that we might say he told you about it!”[1]

Then, some notables from Quraysh announced their faith in Islam. Fudhalah bin Umayr was circumambulating the Kaaba while thinking with himself of killing the Prophet. The Prophet came near and said to him, “Is this Fudhalah?”

Fudhalah replied, “Yes, O messenger of Allah.”

The Prophet asked him, “What were you thinking of with yourself?”


Notes:

[1] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 3 p. 101, as-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 56.


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He said, “I was mentioning Allah.”

The Prophet smiled and said to him, “Ask Allah to forgive you what you have intended to do.”

The Prophet put his hand on Fudhala’s chest and then took it back. Fudhalah said, “By Allah, as he took back his hand from my chest, he became the most beloved one of the creatures of Allah to me.”[1]

Safwan bin Umayyah, who was the chief of his people, wanted to run away from the Prophet to Yemen because he had done wrong to the Prophet before, but the Prophet pardoned him, and then he turned a Muslim.[2]

Ibn az-Zeba’ra, the famous poet, composed a poem in which he announced his faith in Islam after seeking the Prophet’s pardon for the wrong he had done to him (the Prophet).[3]

Ikrimah bin Abi Jahl fled to Yemen for fear of the vengeance of Muslims, for he had harmed them too much. Umm Hakeem, Ikrima’s wife, became a Muslim and she asked the Prophet to pardon her husband, and the Prophet pardoned him. She traveled to Yemen and brought him, and he announced his faith in Islam.[4]

Mirdas had a special idol of stone called Dhamar. He worshipped it and he recommended his son Abbas to worship it too saying to him, “O my son Abbas, worship Dhamar, because he (it) benefits and harms you.” But, Abbas heard a caller crying out and scolding this idol and its followers and praising the


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 59-60.
[2] Ibid., 4 p. 60.
[3] Ibid., 4 p. 61,62.
[4] Ibid., p. 61,62.


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Prophet and the people of mosques. He burned the idol and joined the Prophet.[1]

Men and women’s homage to the Prophet
The Prophet took the homage from men in Mecca that they would bear witness that there was no god but Allah and that Muhammad was the messenger of Allah. As homage was taken from men, it was taken from the young in order to purify their minds and souls from atheism and polytheism.

The Prophet also took the homage from women that they would observe the following conditions as the Prophet said to them:

“They (women) have paid homage to me that they would not associate anything with Allah, not steal, not commit adultery, not kill their children, not commit any vice between their hands and legs, and not disobey me.” Then, he accepted their homage.[2]

Historians say that the Prophet stayed in Mecca for ten, fifteen, or eighteen days, and then he (with his army) went back to his capital Medina where he found security after hardships and sufferings.

The people of Medina were afraid that the Prophet might remain in Mecca and take it a capital in place of Medina, but he refuted that worry and said to them, “Allah forbid! Life is with you and death is with you.”[3] On the other hand, the people of Mecca asked him to stay in their town, but he refused saying, “I do not live in a place that I was driven away from.”


Notes:

[1] I As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 1 p. 69.
[2] Ibid, vol. 3 p. 662.
[3] Ibid, vol. 4 p. 59.

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The Prophet appointed an instructor in Mecca to teach its people the rulings and teachings of Islam, lead them in prayer, solve their problems, and judge between them according to the Book and the Sunna. When Mecca was conquered, people embraced Islam groups by groups.

15. The expedition of Hunayn

The tribe of Hawazin was terribly terrified when the Prophet conquered Mecca and made the tribes of Quraysh submit to the authority of Islam and then masses of people turned Muslims. Malik bin Ouf, the obeyed chief of Hawazin, invited his tribe and asked some other tribes, at the head of which was the tribe of Thaqif, for support to fight the Prophet and his followers. He expressed to them that their tribes (polytheists and idolaters) would face great dangers if Islam would prevail. He said to them that Muhammad would march with his armies to occupy their countries. Therefore, all of them responded to him and a great force was prepared from them.

When the news of Hawazin came to the Prophet, he sent to them Abdullah al-Aslami and ordered him to see what they had decided to do. When he went there, he knew that they had determined to wage war. He hastened back to tell the Prophet who marched with an army of twelve thousand warriors among whom there were men that Islam had not affected their hearts yet like Abu Sufyan and the like of him from Quraysh who just wished for loots. The Muslim army marched until it arrived in the valley of Hunayn.

The two armies clashed and it was a terrible fight that the Muslims had not taken into account. The military plan that the tribe of Hawazin had prepared was very exact. The warriors of Hawazin were distributed in all the pockets of the valley, and when the Muslims entered the valley, they (men of Hawazin) attacked them from every side while they were unaware. They


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were terrified and they ran away here and there. The Prophet began calling them to be patient and fixed. He cried out, “O people, come to me! I am the messenger of Allah, I am Muhammad the son of Abdullah.” The Prophet remained in the battlefield shouting at the runners away, “Whereto O people, whereto?”

It was rumored among Muslims that the Prophet was martyred, but there was a caller calling out, “O people of the Ansar who have protected and supported (the Prophet), O people of the Muhajireen who have paid homage (to the Prophet) under the tree, Muhammad is alive, so come on!” Then the runners away returned to surround the Prophet and protect him from the enemies. It was a very bitter defeat Muslims faced.

The hypocrites (among Muslims) rejoiced at this defeat of Muslims. Abu Sufyan was very delighted and he said, “Their defeat does not end until the sea.”

Shaybah bin Uthman bin Abi Talha, whose father had been killed by Muslims in the battle of Badr, was very delighted at the defeat of Muslims. He said, “Today, I get to my vengeance on Muhammad.”

Keldah bin al-Hanbal showed his great delight at the Muslims’ defeat and said, “The magic has been annulled today.”[1]

The defeat of the polytheists

When the hearts of Muslims rose up to the throats and they were shaken severely and prevailed by fear and terror, Allah the Almighty supported his servant and messenger and granted him with victory. Seventy men from the heroes of the polytheists were killed and the rest of them ran way. The Muslim warriors


Notes:

[1] The Life of Muhammad, by Hasanayn Haykal, p. 434.


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followed after them and kept on killing and arresting them. And thus Allah the Almighty returned their scheme and guile against themselves.

In this fight, Imam Ali showed incomparable courage. Historians mentioned unanimously that he was the most courageous and most fixed in defending the Prophet. He with some Muslims fought with great courage around the Prophet who was repeating his saying, “I am the Prophet with no doubt. I am the son of Abdul Muttalib. Now the battle has become fierce.” The most important role in the achievement of the victory in this battle, which was one of the fiercest battles, was Imam Ali’s.[1]

The Holy Qur'an described the battle of Hunayn, the defeat and the fear that Muslims suffered, and then the victory obtained against the polytheists at the end. Allah has said,

(Certainly Allah helped you in many battlefields and on the day of Hunain, when your great numbers made you vain, but they availed you nothing and the earth became strait to you notwithstanding its spaciousness, then you turned back retreating. Then Allah sent down His tranquility upon His Messenger and upon the believers, and sent down hosts which you did not see, and chastised those who disbelieved, and that is the reward of the unbelievers. Then after this, Allah will turn (mercifully) to whom He pleases, and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful).[2]


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 59.
[2] Qur'an, 9:25-27.


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In this battle, Muslims got, as loots, twenty-two thousand camels, forty thousand sheep, and four thousand okes of silver besides six thousand prisoners of war.[1]

Delegations from the tribe of Hawazin came to the Prophet begging him to give back to them what he had got in the battle. He asked them to choose either their women and children or their properties, and they chose their women and children. The Prophet had pity on them and so he gave to them his share of the loot and the shares of the children of Abdul Muttalib. So did the Ansar, the Muhajireen, and the Banu Sulaym, whereas other tribes did not do.

Then, the Prophet divided the camels and the sheep among the soldiers who crowded around him and snatched his garment. He said to them, “O people, give my garment back to me. By Allah, if I had camels and sheep as much as the trees of Tihama, I would divide them among you, and you would not find me stingy or coward.”

The Prophet did not give to the Ansar anything from these loots. They became angry and distressed. The Prophet ordered Sa’d bin Ubadah to gather the Ansar together. When they were before him, he said to them, “What about the talks that were informed to me? Had I not come to you while you were deviants, and Allah guided you by me, poor and Allah enriched you by me, and enemies to each other and He reconciled you?”

They said, “Yes by Allah, O messenger of Allah. The favor is to Allah and to His messenger.”

He said, “Do you respond to me?”

They said, “With what?”


Notes:

[1] The Life of Muhammad, p. 436.

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He said, “By Allah, if you like, you can say and be truthful: you had come to us while (you were) denied but we believed you, let down but we supported you, exiled but we sheltered you, and poor but we helped you. O people of the Ansar, have you become angry for a transient pleasure of this life which some people were given to be attracted to Islam, whereas I have entrusted you to your faith in Islam? Are you not satisfied that people shall go with camels and sheep while you shall go back to your country with the messenger of Allah? By Him in Whose hand my soul is, were it not for the emigration, I would be a man from the Ansar. If people follow a way (and the Ansar follow another), I will follow the way of the Ansar…O Allah, have mercy on the Ansar, the children of the Ansar, and the children of the children of the Ansar.”

They all cried out while shedding tears, “We are satisfied with the messenger of Allah as a share and luck.”[1] The Ansar went back to their homeland while their souls were full of faith and satisfaction after those kind words of the Prophet.

The Prophet asked about Malik bin Ouf, the obeyed leader of the tribes of Hawazin, who had run away after the battle of Hawazin. It was said to him that Malik was in at-Ta’if with the tribe of Thaqif. He said to his companions, “Tell him that if he becomes a Muslim, I will give him back his family and properties, and give him one hundred camels.” When Malik was informed of that, he slipped away from Thaqif, while they were unaware, and came to the Prophet and announced his faith in Islam. The Prophet delivered to him his family and


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 143, al-Kamil fit-Tareekh, vol. 2 p. 268-272.

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children and one hundred camels, and made him the chief over the Muslims of his tribe.[1]

16. The expedition of at-Ta’if

Since the beginning, the Muslims armies were full of faith and love to the martyrdom in the way of Allah. The Prophet determined to attack al-Ta’if which was a fortified town and was difficult to be approached or conquered, because its people shot with arrows from above the forts whoever came nearer. Therefore, the Muslims were forced to stay away. They stayed in the mosque that was built in at-Ta’if, and from there, they imposed a blockade against the forts. The blockade lasted seventeen days. The Muslims began throwing at the forts with mangonels. However, they could not break into the forts. The Prophet announced that he would pardon whoever would come to him from the people of at-Ta’if. Twenty men joined him, and he understood from them that there were enough supplies inside the forts which might suffice them for a long period. The Prophet was certain that the blockade might last long and he felt that the army wished to go back to Median; therefore, he and his army went back to Medina.

17. The expedition of Tabuk

There were no people in the Arabia except that they became certain that the Muslim government was powerful and could not be defeated. They had but two options; either to resist the Islamic power or to embrace Islam and submit to its religious and economic system.

While the Arabs were worried about the events that they would face from Islam and Muslims, the news came that the Romans had prepared an army to attack the Muslims and subjugate the


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Katheer, vol. 3 p. 683.


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countries that were under the authority of Islam. Hearing this news, the Prophet prepared a powerful army to attack the Romans and defeat them.

The hypocrites did not join this army and they justified that it was very hot. A Qur’anic verse was revealed concerning them reciting, (Those who were left behind rejoiced at sitting still behind the messenger of Allah, and were averse to striving with their wealth and their lives in Allah's way. And they said: Do not go forth in the heat. Say: The fire of hell is much severe in heat. Would that they understand. Therefore, they shall laugh little and weep much as a recompense for what they earned).[1]

The Prophet was informed that the hypocrites met in the house of Suwaylim the Jew. They discouraged people and incited them not to join the Muslim army. The Prophet sent them Talha bin Ubaydillah with some companions. Suwaylim’s house was set to fire and those in it ran away. Some hypocrites said to each other, “Do you think that the fighting against the Romans is like the fighting of the Arabs against each other? By Allah, as if we see you tomorrow tied with ropes.” They did that to discourage the believers.

From behind the unseen, the Prophet understood what those hypocrites said. He sent to them Ammar bin Yasir and ordered him to tell them what they had said. When Ammar went to them, they came to the Prophet apologizing and justifying that they just played. Then, this verse was revealed to the Prophet, (And if you ask them, they will say: We did but talk and jest).[2]

Imam Ali was with the Prophet in all his battles except the battle of Tabuk. The Prophet ordered him to


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 9:81-82.
[2] Qur'an, 9:65.


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remain in Medina in place of him. The hypocrites rumored that the Prophet did not bring Imam Ali with him because he hated him. Hearing this rumor, Imam Ali inquired about it from the Prophet who said, “They told but lies. I just made you my successor there. Go back to be the guardian of my family and your family. O Ali, are you not satisfied to be to me as was Aaron to Moses, except that there shall be no prophet after me?”[1]

When the Prophet and his army arrived in Tabuk, Yohanna bin Ru’bah, who was from the great notables of Tabuk, came to the Prophet and made a truce with him and he agreed to pay the attribute to Muslims. Then, the people of other tribes came to the Prophet, made peace with him, and agreed to pay the attribute. The Prophet wrote a book reading,

“In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. This is a covenant of security from Allah and Muhammad the Prophet and messenger of Allah to Yohanna bin Ru’bah and the people of Aylah and their ships and caravans in the sea and on the land. They have the protection of Allah the High and the protection of Muhammad the Prophet, so do those with them from the people of Sham, Yemen, and the people of the sea. Whoever of them commits a crime his property shall not protect his soul, and it is lawful for anyone of people who takes it. It is not permissible to prevent them from a source of water they may come to, or a way on the land and in the sea they want to follow.”[2]


Notes:

[1] Tareekh ibn al-Atheer, vol. 2 p. 190, as-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 163.
[2] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 169.

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No fighting or shedding of blood took place. Then, the Prophet and his army went back to Medina after remaining in Tabuk about two weeks.

Three men from the famous companions of the Prophet did not join this army and they remained at home with no reason that might prevent them from that. They were Ka’b bin Malik, Murarah bin ar-Rabee’, and Hilal bin Umayyah. The Prophet ordered Muslims no to communicate with these three men. Muslims refrained from meeting and talking with them until the earth was so narrow to them in spite of its vastness. They remained inside their houses living in total loneliness. They were very distressed and regretful looking forward to the forgiveness of Allah and their repentance to be accepted by Him. They remained so for about forty days until the Prophet was inspired that Allah had accepted their repentance and pardoned them. Allah revealed to the Prophet these verses concerning them, (Certainly Allah has turned (mercifully) to the Prophet and to the Muhajireen and the Ansar who followed him in the hour of hardship after the hearts of a part of them were about to deviate, then He turned to them (mercifully); surely to them He is Compassionate, Merciful. And (He also turned mercifully) to the three who were left behind, until the earth became strait to them notwithstanding its spaciousness and their souls were also straitened to them; and they knew it for certain that there was no refuge from Allah but towards Him; then He turned to them (mercifully) that they might turn (to Him); surely Allah is the Oft-returning (to mercy), the Merciful).[1]


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 9:117-118.

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Imam Ali and the Sura of Bara’ah
The Prophet entrusted Abu Bakr to recite to the people of Mecca some verses from the Sura of Bara’ah and the teachings of Islam concerning the pilgrimage to the Kaaba. The following are some of these teachings:

1. No one naked should circumambulate the Kaaba (for the habit in the pre-Islamic era was that men circumambulated the Kaaba nakedly).

2. No one would enter the Paradise except one who believes in Allah and His messenger.

3. Whoever has a covenant with the Prophet his covenant shall be valid until its term.[1]

4. Allah the Almighty and his messenger are free from the polytheists.[2]

Abu Bakr set out carrying with him the message of the messenger of Allah to the people of Mecca. While Abu Bakr was on his way, the Revelation came down to the Prophet ordering him to entrust this task to Imam Ali and to depose Abu Bakr. Imam Ali hurried up following after Abu Bakr and he could find him in the way. He took the message from him[3] and went to recite it before the people of Mecca. Abu Bakr was upset and worried. He went back to Medina. When he saw the Prophet, he wept and said to him, “O messenger of Allah, has something happened concerning me?”


Notes:

[1] At-Tanbeeh wel Ishraf, p. 186.
[2] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 47.
[3] Musnad of Ahmed bin Hanbal, vol. 1 p. 3, Khasa’is an-Nassa’iy, 30, Kanzol Ummal, vol. 4 p. 246, Tafsir at-Tabari, vol. 10 p. 46, Mustadrak al-Hakim, vol. 3 p. 51, Sahih of at-Termithi, vol. 2 p. 183, Tathkirat al-Khawass, p. 37.


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The Prophet said to him, “Nothing has happened concerning you except good, but I have been ordered (by Allah) that no one should deliver it except me or a man from me.”[1]

This event is one of the evidences that the Shia rely on in defending Imam Ali’s right in the caliphate after the Prophet. They say that Abu Bakr was not well-qualified to deliver a Sura from the Qur'an to the people of Mecca, which was a simple task, so how would he be well-qualified to be the successor of the Prophet after his death?

Imam Ali and the conquest of Yemen
The Prophet sent an army under the leadership of Imam Ali to Yemen inviting its people either to Islam or to fighting. When Imam Ali arrived with his army in Yemen, he met the chiefs and the notables there and offered to them the invitation of the Prophet and explained to them the principles and teachings of Islam.

The people of Yemen highly admired the perfect personality of Imam Ali with his high morals and virtues. Therefore, they responded to him. The tribe of Hamadan, which was the biggest and most powerful tribe in Yemen, embraced Islam and became very devoted to its values. Thus, Yemen was conquered with no fighting[2] and it remained as a base of adherence to Imam Ali.

The battles and the expeditions of the Prophet
The expeditions that the Prophet himself led were twenty-nine ones. Here are they:


Notes:

[1] Amali al-Murtadha, vol. 1 p. 292, as-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 190.
[2] Amali al-Murtadha, vol. 1 p. 292.


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1.Waddan 2. Al-Abwa’ 3. Buwat 4. Al-Asheerah 5. The first expedition of Badr 6. The great battle of Badr (where the heroes of Quraysh were killed) 7. Banu Sulaym 8. As-Saweeq 9. Ghatafan 10. Thi Amr 11. Bahran 12. The battle of Uhud 13. Hamra’ al-Asad 14. Banu an-Nadheer 15. That ar-Riqa’ 16. The last expedition of Badr 17. Dawmat al-Jandal 18. Al-Khandaq 19. Banu Quraydhah 20. Banu Lihyan 21. Thi Qarad 22. Banu al-Mustaliq 23. Al-Hudaybiyah 24. Khaybar 25. Umrat (minor hajj) al-Qadha’ 26. Al-Fath (the conquest of Mecca) 27. Hunayn 28. At-Ta’if 29. Tabuk.

These are all the expeditions that have been mentioned by Ibn Hisham[1] most of which we have discussed in the previous chapters.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 256.

# The battalions
As for the battalions that the Prophet had sent to some districts and villages, the purpose of them was to show the power and authority of Islam there and not to let those villages join the enemies of Islam. From the other goals, it was to spread the high principles and values among those people and to liberate them from idolatry and the bad habits of the pre-Islamic age of ignorance.

Anyhow, we mention here the battalions that the Prophet sent here and there and entrusted their leaderships to some of his companions. They were thirty-eight as the following:

1. The battalion of Zayd bin Haritha

The Prophet sent Zayd bin Haritha on a battalion from the Muslim army to attack a trading caravan of Quraysh headed by Abu Sufyan. Zayd with his battalion could find and arrest the caravan with all the goods, whereas all the men of the caravan ran away.[1] The purpose of this attack was to weaken the power of the main enemy of Islam; the tribe of Quraysh.

2. The battalion of Khalid

The Prophet sent some battalions to the villages around Mecca inviting their people towards Allah alone. He sent a battalion under the leadership of Khalid bin al-Waleed to the Banu Juthaymah to invite them to Islam and not to fight them. When Khaild arrived there, he ordered the people of Juthaymah to put their arms aside. Jahdam, a man from the tribe, suspecting Khalid, said to his tribe, “How bad it is to you, O Banu Juthayma! It is Khalid. By Allah, there is nothing after the putting aside of arms except capturing, and there is nothing


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 4 p. 284.

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after the capturing except beheading. By Allah, I will not put my weapon aside.”

Some men of his tribe denied him and said, “O Jahdam, do you want to shed our bloods? The people have turned Muslims and put their arms aside. The war has been cancelled and people have felt secure.”

They insisted on him until they could take off his sword. When they all put aside their arms, Khalid ordered them to be tied, and then he killed many of them by the sword. When the news came to the Prophet, he became very angry and felt great pain. He raised his hands towards the heaven and said, “O Allah, I am free to you from what Khalid has done.”

Then, the Prophet sent for Imam Ali and ordered him to go to the Banu Juthaymah to repair the affairs. Imam Ali set out carrying with him monies which the Prophet had given to be paid as blood-money of the killed ones. Imam Ali paid to and recompensed them for everything even for a dog’s broken drinking vessel. Nothing of shed blood or damaged property remained except that Imam Ali paid money for it. Some money remained with the Imam, but he gave it to them saying, “I give you the remainder of this money as a precaution for the messenger of Allah from what he does not know and what you do not know.”

Imam Ali went back to the Prophet and told him of what happened. The Prophet thanked him and said, “You have done well and right.” Then the Prophet raised his hands towards the heaven and said, “O Allah, I am free to you from what Khalid has done.” He said that three times.[1]


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 2 p. 429-430.

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This event shows that Khalid did not care for the Islamic morals. He did not regard any covenant. In fact he was eager to shed bloods. His famous story with Malik bin Nuwayrah was another evidence that very clearly confirms this fact.

3. The battalion of Abdullah bin Rawaha

The Prophet sent Abdullah bin Rawaha with thirty horsemen to Yusayr bin Rizam the Jew. The Prophet had been informed about the evil and the plotting of this villain Jew who was gathering people in order to fight against the Prophet and his companions. When Abdullah bin Rawaha met Yusayr, he said to him, “The messenger of Allah has sent us to you (to tell you) that he has decided to appoint you the wali over Khaybar.” After insistence, he responded and went with the Muslims accompanied by thirty men from his people like the number of the Muslims accompanying Abdullah bin Rawaha. When they arrived in Qarqarat Niyar (six miles from Khaybar), Yusayr regretted what he had done, and so he fell down to take the sword of Abdullah bin Rawaha who noticed that and he struck Yusayr’s leg and cut it. Yusayr hit Abdullah with a stick that was in his hand and he wounded his head. Then every Muslim attacked the Jew that was before him. All the Jews were killed except one who could run away, whereas no one of the Muslims was killed. When Abdullah came back, the Prophet saw the wound in his head. He treated the wound with his saliva and it got well.[1]

4. The battalion of Basheer bin Sa’d

The Prophet sent Basheer bin Sa’d with thirty horsemen to the Banu Murrah in Fadak who fought him and killed all the men with him. Basheer was patient in fighting them. He fought


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 3 p. 418.


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courageously until he could escape them safely and go back to Medina.

Then, the Prophet sent to them Ghalib bin Abdullah with some great companions among whom was Usamah bin Zayd and ibn Mas’ud. Usamah fought against Mardas bin Nehik, and when he was able to kill him, Mardas said, “There is no god but Allah”. However, Usamah did not care for that and he killed the man. The companions blamed Usamah for that. The Prophet was too much distressed for that and he said to Usamah, “O Usamah, who is to you without ‘there is no god but Allah’?” Usamah felt great regret for the great sin he committed.[1]

5. The battalion of Abu Hadrad

Rifa’ah bin Qays and some men from the Banu Jusham bin Mo’awiya camped in a forest trying to gather some other people in order to fight against the Prophet and his followers. The Prophet sent for Abu Hadrad and other two Muslims and ordered them to deal with the trouble of Rifa’ah. They set out until they were near the camp of Rifa’ah and his men. In the night, Abu Hadrad could kill Rifa’ah, and then he with his two companions went back to the Prophet.[2]

6. The battalion of Amr bin al-Aas

The Prophet sent Amr on the head of a battalion to mobilize the Arab tribes towards Sham. No fight took place during this expedition. Its task was just to call people to attack Sham.


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 3 p. 419.
[2] Ibid., p. 422.


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7. The battalion of Zayd bin Harithah

Zayd bin Harithah attacked, with a battalion, Wadi al-Qura in which there was a people from the Banu Fazarah. In this fight, Zayd was wounded. He took an oath that he would not sleep with his wife except after defeating the Banu Fazarah. He went back to the Prophet who made him the leader of an army that marched again towards the Banu Fazarah who were killed in this battle and the rest of them were taken prisoners.[1]

The mentioned above are some of the military tasks that the Prophet had sent to guide people to Islam or to defeat some groups of polytheists or unfaithful powers that were hostile to Islam and Muslims. There were other military tasks that we see it is not necessary to mention them all here. Ibn Hisham mentions in his Seera that those tasks were thirty-eight ones in the form of battalions the Prophet had sent here and there under the leadership of some of his companions.[2]


Notes:

[1] As-Seera an-Nabawiyyah by ibn Hisham, vol. 3, p. 617.
[2] Ibid., vol. 2 p. 136.

# The signs of the departure
Prophet Muhammad carried out the mission of his Lord to His people perfectly. He saved them from ignorance and bad habits and freed their minds from their rigidity and guide them to see the vast horizons of the noble life in this world and the afterworld.

The Prophet suffered all kinds of calamities and hardships from the tyrants of Quraysh, the arrogants of the Arabs, and the cruel Jews. They accused him of madness, lying, and magic. They encouraged their children and fools to throw him with earth and stones. They punished those who followed him with the severest kinds of harms and torments. Because of that punishment, Yasir and Sumayyah (Ammar’s parents) were martyred at the beginning of the mission. Then, the first Muslims were obliged to leave their homes and emigrate to Abyssinia.

At that period, the protector and defender of the Prophet was his uncle Abu Talib the faithful of Quraysh, but after his death, the arrogants of Quraysh found the Prophet alone and they deemed him weak. They sent forty men from their villains to surround his house in order to do away with him, but Allah made him escape them under the darkness of night towards Medina after having left his brother Ali bin Abi Talib to sleep in his (the Prophet) bed wrapping himself in his (the Prophet) garment. Thus, the Prophet was saved by the mercy of Allah the Almighty.

When the Prophet arrived in Medina, he found among its people protection, security, and powerfulness until he took it as his capital. The people of Quraysh were filled with grudge and spite. They prepared armies to fight him from time to time; the battle of Badr, Uhud, al-Ahzab…all under the leadership of Abu Sufyan, the father of Mo’awiyah and the grandfather of Yazid.


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However, all their attempts failed and they returned empty-handed but with disgrace. Allah supported His messenger and honored him with great victories until he won the greatest of them; the conquest of Mecca that made people embrace Islam groups by groups and made the arrogant men of Quraysh submit to the rule of Islam and Muslims.

Anyhow, after having carried out the mission of his Lord, the signs of the departure from this world to the better world appeared on the Prophet. From the signs of this departure was the following:

First, the Holy Qur'an was reviewed to him twice in that year whereas it was reviewed to him once a year before.[1] Therefore, he felt that his inevitable death was near.[2] He began announcing his coming death to the Muslims. He said to his daughter Fatima, “Gabriel used to review the Qur'an to me once every year, but this year he reviewed it to me twice. I do not see that for anything except that my death is near.”[3]

Second, the following verses were revealed to him, (Surely you shall die and they (too) shall surely die. Then surely on the Day of Resurrection you will contend one with another before your Lord).[4]

After the revelation of these verses, Muslims heard him saying, “I wish I knew when that shall be.”

Third, the Sura of an-Nasr was revealed to him and he felt that his death was about to come. After that, he often kept silent for


Notes:

[1] Gabriel used to recite the whole Qur'an to the Prophet once every year.
[2] Al-Khasa’is al-Kubra, vol. 2 p. 268.
[3] Tareekh ibn al-Atheer, vol. 5 p. 523.
[4] Qur'an, 39:30-31.

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a while in the prayer, and when Muslims asked him why, he said, “I am consoled for my life (I have been told that I am about to die).”[1]

The farewell Hajj
When the Prophet was certain that he would soon leave to the better world, he saw that he should make a pilgrimage to the Inviolable House and to show to his nation the ways of its rescue and deliverance that would keep it safe from disasters and seditions and make it prevail over the nations of the earth. Therefore, he performed the hajj to the Kaaba to announce there before all Muslims that that was the last year that Muslims could see him among them. He said,

“I do not know. Perhaps, I will not meet you after this year in this place forever.”

The hajjis felt worried and they said one to another: “the Prophet informs about his death.”

In order to assure a good future for his nation, the Prophet said, “O people, I leave among you the two weighty things; the Book of Allah and my progeny, my household.”

When the Prophet finished the rites of the hajj, he stopped at the well of Zamzam and ordered Rabee’ah bin Khalaf to stand beside him and to repeat loudly what he would say. The Prophet said (before the hajjis), “Do you know which country this is? Do you know which month this is? Do you which day this is?”

They all cried out, “Yes, this is the inviolable country, and the inviolable month, and the inviolable day.”


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 71-72.


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The Prophet began announcing his high values saying, “Allah has prohibited to you your bloods and your properties[1] as the inviolability of this country, as the inviolability of this month, and as the inviolability of this day… Have I informed?”

They all said, “Yes, you have.”

The Prophet added, “Fear Allah and do not diminish the things of people, and do not act corruptly in the land. Whoever has had a trust, let him give it back to its owner…People in Islam are equal…all are from Adam and Eve. There is no preference for an Arab to a foreigner or for a foreigner to an Arab except by the fear of Allah…Have I informed?”

They all said, “Yes, you have.”

He said, “O Allah, bear witness!

Do not come to me with your lineages[2] but come to me with your deeds…Have I informed?”

They said, “Yes, you have.”

He added, “O Allah, bear witness. Every blood (that was shed) in the pre-Islamic era is put under my foot, and the first blood that I put under my foot is the blood of Rabee’ah bin al-Harith bin Abdul Muttalib. Have I informed?’

They said, “Yes.”

He said, “O Allah, bear witness.”

Then he said, “Every usury in the pre-Islamic era is put under my foot, and the first usury that I put under my foot is the usury of al-Abbas bin Abdul Muttalib. Have I informed?”


Notes:

[1] Allah has prohibited to shed each other’s blood or to seize each other’s property unlawfully.
[2] Do not pride on…


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They said, “Yes, you have.”

He said, “O Allah, bear witness.”

Then he said, “O people, postponement (of the sacred month) is only an excess in disbelief whereby those who disbelieve are misled; they allow it one year and forbid it (another) year, that they may make up the number of the months which Allah hath hallowed…

I recommend you to be kind to women for they are deposits with you. They are weak. You have taken them by the deposit of Allah, and married them by the Book of Allah. You have rights on them and they have rights on you. They have a right on you that you provide them with clothes and sustenance, and you have a right on them that they should not betray you with anyone in your beds, and not permit anyone into your houses except with your knowledge and permission. … Have I informed?”

They said, “Yes, you have.”

He said, “O Allah, bear witness.”

Then he said, “I recommend you to be kind to what your hands possess (servants). Feed them with what you (yourselves) eat and clothe them with what you (yourselves) wear…Have I informed?”

They said, “Yes, you have.”

He said, “O Allah bear witness.”

Then he said, “A Muslim is a brother to a Muslim. He should not cheat, betray, or backbite him. His blood (killing) is not lawful to him, nor anything of his property except by his permission willingly. Have I informed?”

They said, “Yes, you have.”


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The Prophet kept on his precious speech that was full of Islamic morals, manners, and rulings. He ended his speech saying, “Do not turn back after me unbelievers leading people astray and subjugating one another. I have left among you what if you keep to, you shall not go astray; the Book of Allah and my progeny, my family. Have I informed?”

They said, “Yes, you have.”

He said, “O Allah, bear witness.”

Then he said to them, “You are responsible. Let the present of you inform the absent!”[1]

The conference of Ghadeer Khum
When the Prophet performed his last hajj, he (with the Muslims) began his journey back to Medina. When he (and the Muslims) arrived in Ghadeer Khum, Gabriel came down to him carrying with him a very important message from the Heaven. It was to appoint Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib a caliph over the Muslims (after the Prophet) and to announce that openly and with no moment of delay. The message of the Heaven was revealed in this verse, (O Messenger! deliver what bas been revealed to you from your Lord, and if you do it not, then you have not delivered His message, and Allah will protect you from the people).[2]

Historians mention that this verse was revealed to the Prophet in the Ghadeer Khum[3] and it had a strict warning to the


Notes:

[1] The Life of Imam al-Husayn bin Ali, vol. 1 p. 195-298 quoted from Tareekh al-Ya’qubi, vol. 2 p. 90-92.
[2] Qur'an, 5:67.
[3] Tareekh Baghdad, vol. 8 p. 290, Asbab an-Nuzool by al-Wahidi, p. 150, ar-Razi in his Tafsir, vol. 4 p. 401, Majma’ al-Bayan by at-Tabarsi, vol. 2 p. 152, ad-Durr al-Mantur, vol. 6 p. 117.

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Prophet that if he did not carry out this order, it would be as if he had not carried out the mission of his Lord, and his efforts would go in vain.

The Prophet determined to fulfill the will of Allah. He stopped at the desert and ordered the caravans of the hajjis to do the same. It was a very hot summer day that men put the ends of their abas under their legs to guard against hot. When Muslims, who were about one hundred thousands or more as historians say, gathered together, the Prophet began making a speech before them. First, he explained to them what he suffered for the sake of their guidance and to save them from the superstitions of the age of ignorance into a safe, noble life. Then, he said,

“See how you will obey me through (being loyal to) the two weighty things.”

Some one cried out, “O messenger of Allah, what are the two weighty things?”

The Prophet said, “The major weighty thing is the Book of Allah; its one end is in the hand of Allah and the other end is in your hands. Keep to it and do not deviate. The other is the minor weighty thing; it is my progeny. Kind Gabriel told me that they (the Book of Allah and the progeny) will not separate until they will come to me at the pond (in the Paradise), and I prayed my Lord to do that for them. Do not antecede them that you may perish, and do not lag behind them that you may perish…”

Then, the Prophet took Imam Ali’s hand and announced his guardianship over the Muslims and appointed him a general leader over the nation. He raised Imam Ali’s hand until the white of their (the Prophet and Imam Ali) armpits appeared and he addressed the Muslims loudly;

“O people, who is worthier of the believers than themselves?”



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They all said, “Allah and His messenger are more aware.”

The Prophet said, “Allah is my guardian and I am the guardian of the believers, and I am worthier of them than themselves. Whoever I am his guardian Ali is to be his guardian.”

He repeated that three times and then said, “O Allah, guard whoever follows him, be an enemy to whoever opposes him, love whoever loves him, hate whoever hates him, support whoever supports him, let down whoever betrays him, and turn the truth with him wherever he turns. Let the present inform the absent…”

The homage to Imam Ali
After the Prophet’s speech, Muslims came to Imam Ali congratulating and paying homage to him. The Prophet ordered his wives to pay homage to Imam Ali and they did.[1] Umar bin al-Khattab shook hand with the imam and said to him, “Congratulations O son of Abi Talib! You have become my guardian and the guardian of every believing man and believing woman.”[2]

On that eternal day, this verse was revealed to the Prophet, (This day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favor on you and chosen for you Islam as a religion).[3]

The religion was perfected and the great favor was completed to the nation by announcing the guardianship of Imam Ali, the pioneer of the truth and justice in Islam. The Prophet had gathered his nation together on knowledge, faith, and piety


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of al-Ghadeer.
[2] Musnad of Ahmed bin Hanbal, vol. 4 p. 281.
[3] Qur'an, 5:3.


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by paying the homage to Imam Ali, for there was no one at all from among the Prophet’s companions or family like Imam Ali in any one of his qualities and ideals. The allegiance to Imam Ali was a part from the mission of Islam and a pillar from the pillars of the religion, and whoever denies that as if he has denied Islam as Allama al-Ala’ili says.

The Prophet and the caliphate
The Prophet cared greatly about the matter of caliphate and imamate that would lead the nation after him. It was the continuity of his sharia and rule that he compared it to his mission of Islam at its beginning when he invited his family to believe him and believe in the principles he had received from the heaven. However, no one from his family responded to him except Ali bin Abi Talib. The Prophet put his hand on Ali’s neck and said, “This is my brother, vizier, guardian, and caliph (successor) among you after me. So you listen and obey him.”[1]

The Prophet also said, “Whoever dies while unknowing the imam (leader) of his time, he dies as unbeliever (of the pre-Islamic age of ignorance).”

The Prophet dealt with all affairs of Muslims and found irrefutable solutions to them. The most important one of them was the appointment of a caliph after his death to achieve justice and to rule the nation due to the pure laws of Allah the Almighty. It is completely untrue to say that the Prophet ignored this matter of the caliphate which was the first key of the nation’s happiness and safety from deviation. Definitely, ignoring this matter would destroy the social structure that


Notes:

[1] This tradition is agreed on by most of historians and narrators.


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Prophet Muhammad had built and would throw the nation into many dangers.

The disasters and violent disagreements that Muslims faced throughout most of their ages were, undoubtedly, the result of the purposely neglecting of the clear traditions and orders of the Prophet that concerned the matter of caliphate. Surely, the Prophet had appointed the caliphs after him and limited that to his progeny, who were the centers of the Divine Revelation and who were the propagandists of Allah in the earth.

Muhammad al-Keylani says, “The people disputed on the position of caliphate in a way that was unequalled in other nations. They committed for the sake of that what we ourselves refrain from nowadays. And consequently, many souls were ruined, towns were destroyed, villages were torn down, houses were burnt, women were made widows, children were made orphans, and great masses of Muslims were killed.”[1]

Anyhow, the Prophet, who was sent by Allah the Merciful as mercy to people, would definitely not leave his nation in anarchy without appointing the leader who would be able and well-qualified to manage all its affairs.

The Prophet chooses Ali for the caliphate
The definite thing according to the sources of history, the scientific studies, and the pondering on the Prophet’s life and conducts is that the Prophet had actually appointed Imam Ali as the caliph after him. He announced his leadership over the nation in many occasions. There are many true traditions transmitted from the Prophet confirming this fact. According to these traditions Imam Ali was the gate


Notes:

[1] The Influence of Shiism in the Arabic Literature, p. 25.


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of the Prophet’s town of knowledge, and he was with the truth and the truth was with him, and was to the Prophet as was Aaron to Moses, and other than that mentioned in hundreds of traditions all showing the virtues and high standing of Imam Ali.

Many people ask that why the Prophet had chosen Imam Ali to be the caliph and preferred him to his family and companions.

The answer to that is that the Prophet thought deeply of his family and companions, and he could not find anyone better than Imam Ali or worthier of the caliphate than him; not because Imam Ali was the closest one to the Prophet, but because he was the most aware of the mission from among all Muslims at all and the most aware of the rulings of Islam at all, and the best of the nation after the Prophet at all. Most surely the Prophet did not follow his emotions and sentiments in anything.

The Prophet chose Imam Ali to be the caliph after him according to the abilities and the high qualities he had that no one other than him from among all Muslims had ever had. The following are some of those qualities that made Imam Ali unequalled and incomparable:

First, Imam Ali had had scientific abilities that no one other than him had ever had especially what concerned the rulings of the Sharia, the affairs of religion, and the cases of judgment. He was the first authority after the Prophet in all of that. Umar often said, “Were it not for Ali, Umar would perish.” No one of the Prophet’s companions was compared to Imam Ali in judgment.

Besides, Imam Ali was the best leader in the Islamic world concerning the political and administrative affairs. His book to


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Malik al-Ashtar was the clearest evidence on this fact. Whoever reviews the political documents mentioned in Nahjol Balagha will find wonderful pictures of the successful, honest policy that has adopted justice in all its faces.

As Imam Ali was the most aware in the just political affairs that did not involve cheating, hypocrisy, and misleading, he was the most aware among all Muslims in other sciences like theology, philosophy, mathematics, astronomy, and others. Al-Aqqad says, “The Imam opened many doors of sciences that were more than thirty sciences. With all these abundant scientific treasures how was it possible for the Prophet not to choose him for the position of the caliphate on which the independence, freedom, and prosperity of the nation were based?

The infinite scientific abilities that the imam had determines, according to the Islamic logic that prefers the general interest to anything else, that he must be the candidate to lead the nation other than anyone else, for Allah the Almighty has said, (Are those who know equal with those who do not know?).[1]

There is nothing more ridiculous than to believe in the possibility of preferring the good one to the better one. Certainly this unscientific thought contradicts the Islamic values that make it obligatory to prefer the knowledgeable people to other than them and to nominate them to the important positions. To prefer other than them to them destroys the noble values and wrongs knowledge.

Second, Imam Ali was the most courageous and the bravest one of all people. He said, “If all the Arabs gather together to fight me, I will not run away before them.” Indeed,


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 39:9.

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Islam was established by his sword and built by his struggle and efforts. He was the man of the memorable situations on the days of Badr, Hunayn, and al-Ahzab when he harvested with his sword the heads of the polytheists and did away with their heroes and chiefs and spread in their houses terror and sorrows. No gap was opened against Islam by its enemies except that he was the one who closed and silenced it. For all that, the Prophet preferred him to all others in entrusting him with the leadership of the Muslim armies. He did not lead Muslims in a war except that victory was theirs. It was he who subjugated and defeated the Jews and conquered their strong forts and finished off their power.

Surely courage is one of the main aspects that a man, who assumes the leadership of a nation and the management of its affairs, must have, but if he is weak and cowardly, the nation shall face different kinds of disasters.

Since courage in the full sense of the word was available in Imam Ali, then how was it possible for the Prophet not to choose him for the caliphate and the leadership of the nation after him?

Logically and due to the incomparable aspects that Imam Ali had, he must be the only one to be chosen to lead the nation even if there was no decree from the Prophet concerning him.

Third, from the most important aspect that one, who assumes the leadership of a nation, must have is altruism and the preference of the interests of the nation to everything else. Undoubtedly, this aspect was so prominent in Imam Ali’s personality that Muslims had never seen like him in asceticism and altruism. All historians mention unanimously that Imam Ali, during his reign, was so just in dealing with the public treasury that he did not take for himself or his family even one



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dirham. In fact, he spent even his own salary on the poor and the needy. He ran Muslims with utmost just policy in giving. He equaled the all in rights and duties. It did not happen in every religion or doctrine like what he legislated of high values and ideals of justice and truth.

Fourth, from the aspects that must be available in one, who assumes the leadership of a nation, is piety and righteousness in order not to prefer anything to the obedience of Allah. Definitely, no Muslim at all was better than Imam Ali in this concern. It was he who said, “By Allah, if I am given the seven districts with all that under their skies to disobey Allah in a bran of a grain of barley that I deprive from a mouth of a locust, I will never do.”

Surely, Imam Ali was the best of Muslims at all after the Prophet. From the piety of the imam was that he refused to respond to the conditions of Abdurrahman bin Ouf who insisted on him to assume the caliphate after the murder of Umar bin al-Khattab on condition that the imam must act according to the policies of Abu Bakr and Umar in leading the nation. Imam Ali refused and said that he would act, in his policy, according to the Book of Allah, the Sunna of His prophet, and his own opinion. If the imam wished for rule and authority, he would respond to Abdurrahman first, and then he would act according to his (Imam Ali) policy, and if Abdurrahman objected to him, he would arrest and throw him into prison.

Humanity in all its experiments in the world of politics could not (and will not be able to) find throughout all periods of history a ruler like Imam Ali in virtue, justice, honesty, knowledge, altruism, and abstinence.

Definitely and with no any bit of doubt, the Prophet had appointed Imam Ali a caliph and highest authority over the nation not according to the base of heredity or other



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accounts, but because of the unequalled qualities available in Imam Ali. It is not true at all to say that the Prophet neglected the matter of the caliphate and the succession after him and left the nation to face anarchy and troubles after him.


# The immortal disaster
After appointing Imam Ali in Ghadeer Khum as the caliph over the nation after him, the Prophet set out back to Medina. But, a day after another, his health got worse and illnesses began attacking him. He suffered a bad fever for many days that whoever of his wives or visitors put her\his hand on his (the Prophet) body, felt its heat.[1] A vessel of cold water was put beside him in which he put his hand and put it on his holy face in order to lessen the heat of the fever. Some sources of history mention that the Prophet’s illness was because of a poisonous food offered to him by a Jewish woman. He often said, “I am still feeling the pain of the food that I had eaten in Khaybar. This is the time that I found my aorta is cut because of that poison.”[2]

When the news of the Prophet’s illness spread among Muslims, they hurried to visit him while being so distressed and sad. What made them more distressed was that the Prophet himself confirmed to them his soon death saying, “O people, I am about to be made die soon and taken away. I speak to you to be excused before you; I leave among you the Book of Allah and my progeny, my family.” Then, he took the hand of Imam Ali, who was sitting beside him, and said, “This is Ali; he is with the Qur'an and the Qur'an is with Ali. They shall not separate until they shall come to me at the pond (in the Paradise).”[3]

In this recommendation, the Prophet invited Muslims to keep to the Holy Qur'an and to his progeny in order not to go astray or fall into seditions.


Notes:

[1] Al-Bidayeh wen-Nihayeh, vol. 5 p. 226.
[2] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 62.
[3] As-Sawa’iq al-Muhriqah, vol. 2 p. 361.


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The army of Usamah
The Prophet saw factionalism among his companions and he became certain that they would fulfill their plans to take the caliphate away from his family, who were the center of knowledge and wisdom, and especially from his guardian and successor Imam Ali. Hence, he thought to rescue the situation by sending all his companions in an army to fight the Romans so that his capital would be empty of them and thus Imam Ali would assume the caliphate after his (the Prophet) death easily and with no obstacles.

The Prophet ordered all the notables of the Muhajireen and the Ansar to join the army of Usama whom he had appointed as the leader though he was a very young man. Among those men there were Abu Bakr, Umar, Abu Ubaydah bin al-Jarrah, and Basheer bin Sa’d, and all of them were from the oppositionist party.[1] The Prophet said to Usama, the leader of the army, “March to the place where your father was killed and make the horsemen defeat them (the Romans). I have entrusted you with the leadership of this army. In the morning, attack the people of Ubna (in Syria) and meet them with fire. Hurry up to precede the news. If Allah grants you victory over them, do not remain there too long. Take guides with you, and make spies and pioneers in the front.”


On the twenty-ninth of Safar, the army mutinied and no one of the notable companions joined his battalion. The Prophet was very angry at that. He went out of his house in spite of his illness. He encouraged his companions to join the army. He himself gave the banner to Usama and said to him, “March by


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 85, Kanzol Ummal, vol. 5 p.312, Tabaqat ibn Sa’d, vol. 4 p. 46, Tareekh al-Khamees, vol. 2 p. 46.


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the name of Allah and for the sake of Allah. Fight those who disbelieve in Allah.”

Usama marched with his army and camped in al-Jurf.[1] The famous companions slackened in joining the camp. They criticized and disparaged the leader, young Usama. Umar said to him, “The messenger of Allah dies while you are an emir over me?!”

This saying was conveyed to the Prophet while he was badly ill suffering bad fever and headache. He became very angry and distressed. He went out of his house wrapped with a velvet garment and his head was folded. He ascended the minbar and showed the people his anger about not carrying out his orders. He said,

“O people, what for is the saying of someone of you that criticizes my appointing Usama as the emir? You have criticized my appointing his father as emir before. By Allah, he was worthy of the emirate and his son after him is worthy of it…”[2]

He descended the minbar and went into his house. Then, he recommended people to join the army of Usama by saying, “Prepare the army of Usama!”

“Let the army of Usama march!’

“May Allah curse whoever does not join the army of Usama!”

These firm orders and insistence of the Prophet at his last hours of life did not move the people’s determination. They slackened in joining the army and justified their doing with different excuses, though the Prophet did not accept their excuses. Rather, he showed them his anger and discontent.


Notes:

[1] Three miles from Medina towards Sham.
[2] As-Seera al-Halabiyyah, vol. 3 p. 342.

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As for the purpose of the Prophet behind his appointing of Usama as the leader of the army though he was too young was as the following:

First, the Prophet wanted to refute all the points of disagreement and criticism against the appointing of Imam Ali as the caliph that he was young, for Usama was younger than him.

Second, to ignore old age and not paying attention to it in entrusting the high positions in the state if an old man had no sufficient abilities and talents, for the managements of the nation’s affairs must be entrusted to well-qualified people.

The Prophet said, “He, who precedes some men of Muslims while seeing that there are ones among them better than him, betrays Allah, His messenger, and the Muslims.”[1]

Islam is totally careful in appointing the best of people in the posts of the state to sincerely regard the public interests and be loyal in serving the people, in collecting taxes, and in spending the general wealth, and be just in judging among people. All this has nothing to do with old age.

Third, appointing young Usama as the leader of that army refuted all Imam Ali’s opponents who disliked him to be the caliph justifying their intention that Imam Ali was a young man then.

The calamity of Thursday
The political tendencies and opportunistic trends which the famous companions adopted to turn the caliphate away from the Ahlul Bayt appeared clearly before the Prophet. Therefore, he saw, in the last hours of his life, that he should


Notes:

[1] Sunan of al-Bayhaqi, vol. 10 p. 111.

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save his nation from deviation and assure to it happiness and prosperity. He wanted to confirm the homage of Ghadeer Khum paid to Imam Ali by registering it in a document. He asked his companions, “Bring me a piece of paper and an inkpot to write you a book by which you shall not go astray at all…”

It was the greatest blessing that the Prophet wanted to write a book for the nation by which it would not go astray forever. It was a very precious opportunity, but, unfortunately, those companions lost it easily. And unfortunately, some of the Prophet’s companions understood that the Prophet had intended to write down in that book the decree of the caliphate to Imam Ali and that would make their greed go in vain; therefore, one of them said, “The Book of Allah is enough to us…”[1]

Undoubtedly, if this sayer knew that the Prophet wanted to recommend of anything else in that book, he would not reply so impudently, but he understood well that the Prophet wanted to announce the caliph after him.

Anyhow, disputes and disagreements increased among the attendants that some of them wanted to carry out the Prophet’s wish and some others insisted on objection. The women from behind the curtain denied that impudent situation towards the Prophet, who was living his last moments, and they cried out addressing the Prophet’s companions, “Do you not hear what the messenger of Allah is saying? Do you not carry out what the messenger of Allah wants?”

Umar, who was the head of the oppositionists then, harshly replied to the women, “You are the friends of Yousuf (Prophet


Notes:

[1] It was Umar bin al-Khattab as most historians have mentioned in their books.


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Josef). If he became ill, you would press your eyes (to shed tears), and if he recovered, you would ride on his neck.”

The Prophet looked at him angrily and said, “Let them alone! They are better than you.”

A terrible dispute broke out between the men. The party that wanted to carry out the Prophet’s order was about to win, but someone (Umar) shot a bad arrow against the Prophet’s order by saying harshly and impudently, “The Prophet is raving!”[1]

How daring he was towards the Prophet and how impudent he was before the messenger of Allah!

These events must be studied thoughtfully and exactly because they concern the essence of our Islamic life. They have a clear criticism against the messenger of Allah, who was accused of raving whereas Allah has said about him, (Your companion does not err, nor does he go astray, nor does he speak out of desire. It is naught but revelation that is revealed. The Lord of Mighty Power has taught him),[2] and (Most surely it is the Word of an honored messenger, the processor of strength, having an honorable place with the Lord of the Dominion).[3]

Yes, by Allah! This sayer had heard these verses that Allah had revealed about His holy prophet, but the political tendencies and the greed to authority led him to face the messenger of Allah with these severe words that hurt and threw Muslims into


Notes:

[1] All historians and narrators have mentioned this painful event. Al-Bukhari mentioned it many times in his Sahih vol. 4 p. 68-69, vol. 6 p. 8, but he concealed the sayer’s name. In Nihaya of Ibn al-Atheer and Sharh Nahjol Balagha by ibn Abil Hadeed, vol. 3 p. 194, the name of the sayer was mentioned and it was Umar bin al-Khattab.
[2] Qur'an, 53:2-5.
[3] Qur'an, 81:19-20.


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seditions, disasters, and great evils. When Ibn Abbas remembered this painful event, he wept and his tears covered his cheeks. He often said, “Thursday, and what Thursday is! The messenger of Allah said, ‘Bring me a piece of paper and an inkpot to write you a book by which you shall not go astray after me at all’ and they said, ‘The messenger of Allah is raving.’”[1]

Ibn Abbas wept because he knew well that the Prophet wanted to write down the decree of Imam Ali’s caliphate after him. But alas! The companions accused the messenger of Allah of raving which was a clear criticism against his personality that had been chosen by the Lord of the worlds, and that caused him to refrain from writing down that book in order to preserve the sacredness of prophethood.

Fatima’s distress
Sorrow and distress filled Fatima’s heart and pain hurt her too much when she became certain that her father was going to leave her for the other world. She sat beside and stared at him. She heard him saying, “Ah, my anguish!”

She, shedding tears, said, “Ah, my anguish for your anguish father!”

The loving father said kindly to his darling daughter, “There is no anguish for your father after this day!”[2]

She was very affected by these words because she became completely certain that her father would leave her. When the Prophet saw her very sad and distressed, he wanted to delight her. He asked her to come closer to him. He whispered to her something and her eyes were filled with tears, and then


Notes:

[1] Musnad of Ahmed bin Hanbal, vol. 1 p. 355, and others.
[2] The Life of Imam al-Hasan bin Ali, vol. 1 p. 128 quoted from Kanzol Ummal, vol. 7 p. 110, Sharh Nahjol Balagha, vol. 4 p. 4.


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he whispered to her another thing and she began smiling. Aa’isha (the Prophet’s wife) was astonished at seeing that and she said, “I have not seen delight that is nearer to sadness like this of today.”

Aa’isha asked Fatima about what her father whispered to her but she did not answer her. When days passed, Fatima told Aa’isha saying, “He said to me: ‘Gabriel reviewed the (whole) Qur’an to me once a year, but this year, he reviewed it to me twice. I do not think except that my death has come.’”

This was the cause of her pain and weeping. As for the cause of her delight, she said, “He said to me: ‘You are the first one of my family that shall join me (die). I am the best ancestor to you. Are you not pleased to be the principal of the women of this nation?’”[1]

The Prophet comforted Fatima saying, “O my daughter, do not weep! When I die, you say: ‘we are Allah’s and to Him we shall return’. It has recompense for any dead one.”

She said, “And for you O messenger of Allah?!”

He said, “Yes, and for me.”[2]

When the Prophet began suffering more pain, Fatima began weeping and she said to him, “By Allah, you are like what some sayer has said:

“A white one by whose face it is prayed that clouds may rain;

the resort of orphans, the guard of widows.”’

The Prophet said to her, “It is the saying of your uncle Abu Talib.” Then he recited this Qur’anic verse: (And Muhammad is but a messenger; the messengers have already passed away


Notes:

[1] Ansab al-Ashraf, part one, vol. 1 p. 133.
[2] Ibid.

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before him. If then he dies or is killed, will you turn back upon your heels? And whoever turns back upon his heels, he will by no means do harm to Allah in the least and Allah will reward the grateful).[1]

The Prophet recommends of his family
Anas bin Malik narrated, “Fatima, with al-Hasan and al-Husayn, came to the Prophet in his last illness. She embraced him and stuck her chest to his while weeping bitterly. The Prophet ordered her not to weep out of pitying her. He said while tears were falling down over his cheeks, ‘O Allah, these are my family. I have entrusted them to every believer…’ He repeated that three times.[2] He said that because he understood from behind the unseen that his family would face all kinds of calamities.

The Prophet’s recommendation about his two grandsons
Three days before his departure to the better world, the Prophet recommended Imam Ali to care much for his two grandsons saying to him, “O father of the two darlings, I recommend you of my two darling grandsons in all this life. How soon your two supports will be undermined! May Allah be my guardian to you…”

When the Prophet died, Imam Ali said, “This is one of my two supports that the messenger of Allah talked about”, and when Fatima died, he said, “This is the second support that the messenger of Allah told me about.”[3]


Notes:

[1] Qur'an, 3:144.
[2] Ansab al-Ashraf, vol. 1 p. 133.
[3] Amali of Sheikh as-Saduq, p. 119.

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To the High Paradise
It was time for the Prophet to leave this world and join the highest Paradise. The Angel of Death came down to him asking permission. Fatima said to the angel, “He (the Prophet) is busy with himself.” The Angel of Death left and came back later asking permission. The Prophet woke up and said to his daughter, “Do you know him?”

She said, “No, O messenger of Allah.”

The Prophet said, “He is the establisher of graves, destroyer of houses (families), and separator of gatherings.”

Fatima was shocked and sorrows attacked her. She said sadly, “O Father! To the death of the last of prophets (he has come)? Alas! To the death of the best of the pious and to the end of the master of choices? Alas! To the cease of the Revelation from the Heaven? After today, I shall be prevented from talking with you.”

The Prophet pitied his darling daughter and said to her, “Do not weep! You will be the first one to join me…”[1]

Then, the Prophet permitted the Angel of Death to come in to him. When he came in, he said, “O messenger of Allah, Allah has sent me to you and ordered me to obey you in whatever you order me to do. If you order me to take your soul, I shall do, and if you order me to leave it, I shall do.”

The Prophet was astonished at the Angel’s courtesy. He said, “O Angel of Death, would you do that?”

The Angel said, “I have been ordered to obey you in whatever you order me to do.”


Notes:

[1] Durratul Nassihin, p. 66.


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No one of Allah’s prophets and messengers had ever got such preference as Prophet Muhammad had. Allah had ordered the Angel of Death to ask permission before coming in to him and to obey him in everything.

Then Gabriel came down saying to the Prophet, “O Ahmed, Allah is longing for you.”

The Prophet chose to be near his Lord, for the afterlife would be better to him than this life. He permitted the Angel of Death to take his holy soul.

Then he said to Imam Ali, “Put my head in your lap, for the decree of Allah has come. When my soul comes out, take it and rub your face with it, and then direct me towards the qibla, prepare me, offer the prayer on me, and do not leave me until you burry me in my grave. Seek help from Allah the Almighty.”

Imam Ali put the Prophet’s head in his lap and put his (imam Ali) right hand under his (the Prophet) chin. When the Prophet’s holy soul left his pure body, Imam Ali rubbed his holy face with it.[1]

Mankind was afflicted with a great calamity; the leader, teacher, and educator died, and that light, which lit this world with the divine teachings, high morals, and noble manners, went to the other world.

Muslims were shocked by the disaster and they lost their minds. The Prophet’s wives…began beating their chests. The women of


Notes:

[1] Manaqib Aal Abi Talib, vol. 1 p. 29. Many reliable sources have mentioned that when the Prophet died, his head was in Imam Ali’s lap. Refer to at-Tabaqat al-Kubra, vol. 2 p. 51, Majma’ az-Zawa’id, vol. 1 p. 293, Kanzol Ummal, vol. 4 p. 55, Thakha’ir al-Uqba, p. 94, ar-Riyadh an-Nadhirah, vol. 2 p. 219.


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the Ansar beat their faces, and their throats were harmed because of crying.[1]

As for Fatima, she fell over the pure body of her father saying, “O father! O prophet of mercy! Now, the Revelation does not come. Now, Gabriel ceases coming to us. O Allah, let my soul join his (the Prophet) soul, and have mercy on me by looking at his face, and do not prevent me from his reward and intercession on the Day of Resurrection.”[2]

Then she mourned for him saying, “O Father, to Gabriel I mourn you! O father, the Paradise is your abode! O father, you responded to the Lord Who has invited you!”[3]

Preparing the holy corpse for burial
Imam Ali, alone, washed (ritually) and prepared the Prophet’s corpse for burial due to his (the Prophet) own order. While washing the Prophet’s body, Imam Ali sorrowfully said, “May my father and mother be sacrificed for you O messenger of Allah! By your death, something has ceased that it has not ceased by the death of any other than you; prophethood, revelation, and the news of the Heaven. You have been particular until you sufficed away from anyone other than you, and you have been popular until people were the same in you. If you had not enjoined on patience and forbidden from impatience, we would have exhausted our tears for you, and disease would have lasted long, and distress would have endured forever.”[4]


Notes:

[1] Ansab al-Ashraf, vol. 1 p.574.
[2] Tareekh al-Khamees, vol. 2 p. 192.
[3] Siyer A’lam an-Nubala’, 2 p. 88, Sunan ibn Maja, vol. 1 p. 511.
[4] Nahjol Balagha, vol. 2 p. 255.

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Imam Ali talked about this ghusl (ritual washing) saying, “I undertook his ghusl while the angels were my assistants. The house and the yards were full of clamor. Angels were coming down and angels were going up. Their whisperings did not leave my hearing. They were praying Allah for him.”

Al-Abbas, the Prophet’s uncle and Usama gave Imam Ali water from behind a curtain.[1] Good scent came out of the Prophet’s body. Imam Ali said, “May my father and mother be sacrificed for you O messenger of Allah! You are good scented alive and dead.”[2] The water, which the Prophet’s corpse was washed with, was from a well called al-Ghars that the Prophet used to drink from.[3] Finishing the ritual washing, Imam Ali enshrouded the holy corpse and put it on a bed.

The prayer over the holy corpse
The first who offered the prayer on the great corpse was Allah from above His Throne, then Gabriel, Israfel, and then the angels groups by groups.[4] And then, Imam Ali offered the prayer on him.

When Muslims came to offer the prayer on the Prophet’s corpse, Imam Ali said to them, “No one of you is to be an imam (in the prayer). He (the Prophet) is your imam alive and when dead.”

So, Muslims came group by group to offer the brayer of the dead in lines with no imam. Imam Ali was standing beside the Prophet’s corpse and saying, “Peace be on you, O prophet, and Allah’s mercy and blessings. O Allah, we bear witness that he


Notes:

[1]Al-Bidayeh wen Nihayeh, vol. 5 p. 263.
[2] At-Tabaqat al-Kubra, vol. 2 p. 63.
[3] Al-Bidayeh wen Nihayeh, vol. 5 p. 261.
[4] Hilyatul Awliya’, vol. 4 p. 77.

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has informed of what has been revealed to him, been loyal to his nation, and struggled in the way of Allah until Allah glorified His religion and perfected His word. O Allah, make us from those who follow what has been revealed to him, and fix us (on that) after him, and gather us with him.” People said, “Amen.”[1]

The masses of Muslims passed by the Prophet’s pure body to see him off while overcome by sorrow and distress, because their savior, liberator, and teacher, who had established to them a great civilization and state that prevailed the world and had lit to them the life after their ignorance and deviation, died.

The burial
After the rituals of prayer on the holy corpse finished, Imam Ali dug the tomb and buried the sacred body in the last abode. He stood beside the tomb and said, “Patience is nice except for you, and impatience is ugly except for you. The calamity of your death is so great, and it is so great before and after you.”[2]

It was a very terrible day for all Muslims. The loss of their prophet was so great affliction to them that they could not bear. The Light of Allah and His great mercy that they used to see every moment was no longer among them since that moment. Sorrows and weeping filled every house everywhere.

But as for the pure progeny of the Prophet, they were so terrified after his death. They feared that the Arabs, and especially the tribe of Quraysh, might revolt to avenge on the Prophet’s family, because the Prophet had killed their men for the sake of Islam. The tendency of avenging was deep-rooted in the Arabs, and it was Imam Ali who had killed their


Notes:

[1] Kanzol Ummal, vol. 4 p. 54.
[2] Nahjol Balagha, vol. 3 p. 224.


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men and heroes, and so they were eager to avenge. Imam as-Sadiq said,

“When the messenger of Allah died, his family spent the longest night and they thought that there would be no sky to shade and no earth to carry them, because the messenger of Allah had afflicted the near and the far (for the sake of Allah).”[1]

Anyhow, the Prophet’s death was the greatest of calamities that the Ahlul Bayt faced. It was the beginning of the terrible calamities that they suffered later on. Quraysh avenged and announced openly that, “Prophethood and caliphate should not gather together in one house.” And indeed it was so! The Ahlul Bayt were deprived of their rights and kept away from what Allah and His messenger had intended for them. After fifty years, the Prophet’s progeny were killed in the desert of Kerbala, their heads were carried on spears, and their women and children were taken prisoners and made to go from place to another unveiled before all classes of people who looked at their faces that were unveiled unwillingly and by force though they were the Prophet’s daughters! We are Allah’s and to Him we shall return.


Notes:

[1] Encyclopedia of Imam Ameerul Mo'minin Ali bin Abi Talib, vol. 2 p. 96-97.


[Source: maaref-foundation.com]

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